Finding Nemo

Today - January 15th, Indian Army is celebrating the Army Day. Its a great day and a proud moment for India. For many, who just like me who do not know the importance of this day - you are in luck! A refresher course is here. Today is the day when, in 1949, the outgoing British commander-in-chief General Sir Francis Butcher passed on the strings of the Indian Army to Lt General Kodandera Madappa Kariappa. Today, this day is marked by parades and other military shows in Army headquarters. Similar to the Army Day, the Navy celebrates Navy Day on December 4th and the Air force celebrates Air Force Day on October 8th. A friend of mine jolted me to read and think about this day and urged me to write about the significance. However, knowing the slight bent in my thinking, I acknowledge this day to be of great significance in understanding the most important event of our life - planning for our successor. We have all understood that nature changes itself continuously. And so are we. Many lear...

Now that we understand Kali in terms of her looks and her companions, lets try to know the different forms of Kali. As we have seen in our scriptures, Kali has been celebrated as a goddess but she has secured the highest pedestal not in the Puranic scriptures but the Tantric scriptures. The tantra knowledge and the followers of the Tantric school of thought consider Kali as source of immeasurable, never-ending power that goes beyond any imagination. Hence the Tantric school celebrates Kali in similar way as the Puranic school celebrated Gauri. Just like Gauri or Lalita is worshipped on the nights of waxing moon, Kali is worshipped on the nights of waning moon. In other words, Kali puja starts after purnima and culminates on amavasya. A mention of Kali puja is seen in Ramayana when Meghnaad or Indrajit goes into a hidden cave. Later when Indrajit was killed, Ravana invoked Mahiravana - this king of subterranean world and a devotee of Kali to offer Ram and Lakshmana as sacrific...

In my last post we saw how the classification of the females depended upon their measurement against the social periphery or the “Lakshman Rekha”.  We saw how the society called the fearless, strong and self-willed women as Kali. However, do we even know who is Kali?  Many or all from the region of Bengal and North-East India have worshipped Kali and have known her for ages. Almost every region of India has known Kali in different forms and in different descript. Most of us though know Kali for being a naked goddess instilling fear in the hearts of those who do wrong. Kali is the ultimate power of destruction, destroying every last bit of attachment and thus marks a new beginning. Known for her endless powers and a fearful form, Kali is thus more popular in the Tantric approach of Hinduism.  I shall try my level best in understanding her and describing her for you and myself.  Kali’s form needs no description, as we all must have seen her as a dark skin...

For the last couple of weeks, I have been tied down to a corner due to my broken foot. I am unable to move and unable to do anything. On top of it all, the painkiller keeps me drowsy and throws me off-balance when concentrating on something important. Yet we are doing well. My family is well taken care of and the kids are happy. All thanks to my wife who stood up as a pillar on whom the household stands. True, everyone has cracked jokes at her for her being busy with her community work. I am sure that they do realize the load she carries on her shoulders of taking care of her two daughters and a grown up kid. Last evening I was watching one of the soap-operas on the television, where the lady of the house takes it on herself to expose the bad guys all around the work place playing with the lives of their co-workers slyly. Despite of her solid plan, she failed in her attempt as the evil guys got to know of her plan somehow. The situation was then turned in such a way that the lady be...

When Thomas Jefferson wrote the US Declaration of Independence, he coined the famous phrase "All men are created equal". For centuries since then the phrase has gained popularity and has exuberated its meaning in different forms. The phrase has been used in decorating the speeches, writings and reflecting the intellectual bent of mind by many. Well, I am not untouched by the vast sense of meaning of the phrase either. I love it! The challenge though comes with what follows the initial phrase – "All men are created equal,…..". It is left for the others to supplement the phrase with additional words forming a statement. And this too has been a very populist subject. I remember in the late 1990's, the editorial of one of the leading newspapers of its time used the phrase to cause quite a stir. It read – "All men are created equal, but some are more equal". This became one of the common themes for essays, group discussions, debates and other literary wo...

पाती तुम्हें लिख रहा हूँ, दिल थाम कर पढ़ना। बातें तो बहुत हैं, पर आज कुछ विशेष है कहना। चाहो तो मुझे ही दोषी कहना, पर मेरा हाल भी समझना। जो सपने हमने देखे थे, उन्हें जीवन मत समझना। जिन राहों पर चलना था, उन पर बबूल उग आये हैं, ज़रा देखना। मेरा धीमे चलना तुम्हें नापसंद था, पर तेज चलना कठिन है, ज़रा समझना। तुम दूर जा चुकी हो, पर मुझे आज भी अपने आंसुओं में पाना। अब जो भी है, वही जीवन है, इस जीवन को सुख से जीना। मैंने भी जीवन से बहुत सीखा है, तुम मेरी चिंता मत करना। अब भी सपने देखना, पर मुझे नायक मत बनाना। इस संदेसे को खूब पढ़ना, और जो अनकहा है, वह भी समझना। दोषी न तुम हो, न मैं, पर इस सज़ा को तो पड़ेगा सहना। मैं हर गम सह लूँगा, बस तुम्हारे सुख की ही करूंगा कामना। फिर से विनती करता हूँ, कभी अलविदा ना कहना, मुझे अपने आँसुओं में छुपा कर रखना। पाती तुम्हें भेज रहा हूँ, दिल थाम कर पढ़ना। 

The more I learn, the more I am amazed and realize how little do I know!  I wrote about Navratri and its significance a few months ago -  Navratri . Also, I tried to explain the Golu puja as per Tamil tradition in my previous blog -  Celebrating Navratri through toys – Golu . In these blogs, I did cover and explain the importance of each of the nine days of Navratri.  Decked up in beautiful shimmery attires people were dancing to the tunes of Bhajans and Bollwood numbers on the Dandiya floor. Being heavy on foot, I silently watched them from a corner. Though Garba and Dandiya dances are folk dances of Gujarat, I saw friends from almost every part of India and even foreigners enjoying in the dance. And then I started thinking of how the same festival is being celebrated by many in different ways. I shall try my best to summarize the nine different traditions being followed in different parts of the country for this fantastic festival.  Uttar Pradesh - T he lan...