Of Blocks And Barriers

True, I write only for myself but sharing through a blog post also feels good when others are able to view it more objectively, dispassionately. And if it still makes sense, it feels better ofcourse. The blocks and barriers to penning one's thoughts can be many and for reasons varied. During such stretches of silence or non creativity, life goes on per se but the nagging feel of something 'missing' remains.

More often than not we 'let' the blocks and barriers, constraints and limitations take over their hold on us and we proverbially 'blame it on the rain'. Without our own connivance, nothing..absolutely nothing has the power to take the better of us. We become hand in glove with our small discomforting health issues, busydom, plain indifferential attitude and the time goes on not just in days or weeks, sometimes in months!

On the other hand, it really does not take more than 'yes' to our own urge to go out, breathe easy, 'connect' to a place, person or a thing, any project, an act of philantheooy and charity by simply setting out literally from the constraintful dopmain of our mind, heart or body. It honestly does not take much nor cost anything in monetary or emotional terms to say a gentle 'hi' to a project like Gau Abhyaranya or attending an Aarti in a temple or paying obeisance to a saint or a mentor, a friend- I mean thats all it takes 'to connect' soulfully. The chain of positive energies the small gestures can set rolling abundantly is no less than a blessing for a parched soul or a drying heart or a closed mind and overtly conscious constraintful physical self.

It is said when the going gets tough, the tiough get going. I feel the pun in 'going' is intended. We have no business to stop or halt just at some uncomfortable, negative zone of mind , heart or body. It is essential to be a little tough- talking-friend or a gentle mentoring guide to ourselves to let ourselves go off a place, a situation, a scene or location which tends to hold or seize our better energies and power.

Milton has rightly said: ' .'
(John Milton, Paradise Lost)
Its very important to be 'watchful' lest we are caught unawares in trail of negativity. There is so much so very beautiful in this world, so full of positivity, so very gratifying that we only have to have the desire to look around and let go, do and be compassionate and caring, giving and sharing. The receipts of such small actions are immensely enriching and filling. So 'shall we go then, you and I' beyond the blocks and barriers, controls and constraints and for sure we can make this world a much better place to live in -if not for anyone else- atleast for us individually and collectively.

Andd lo! Just on entering the hotel Gludsmeden, Copenhagen I found this:
'Nothing changes until something moves...'

Fear

'Fear no more the heat o’ the sun, 

Nor the furious winter’s rages'.

           William Shakespeare ( Cymbeline)

Fear is very simple, spontaneous thing occurring most of the time without provocation, takes an instant to emerge but stays on to affect only adversely all the good things which give joy. The why of fear is unknown. It is intuitive, a gut feeling we desparately want to be untrue, we sincerely wish it should not happen come what may. But while praying thus we keep clinging further to our worst fears.

Fear is the commonest of all maladies. It is an instant poison we involuntarily gulp in and the effects follow quite naturally marring our simplicity to believe, our ability to trust and our strength to surrender. Enveloped by fear our vision blurs, our reasoning takes the back seat and our vulnerability to mistrust and suspicion takes over. Hapless we become caged in fear, we grapple with our inherent capacity to believe and we let go the positive approach become conspicuous by absence when faced with our worst fears.

What makes us feel and nurture fear? What are we afraid of? Why is it so common? Who is not afraid? Does fear differentiate in gender, age, ability, position, status??

Fear is in itself a negative phenomenon and like all other negative things it has ample scope of spreading over its clutches without any discrimination. In itself fear is a dark force, thick dark cloud which covers all positive things life, the sun, light, hope, trust, belief. In all the years that I have lived, I have not come across a single person who is not afraid, who does not have any fear whatsoever. 

Fear is like a hunch, sometimes an intuition, too depending on our own value assignment to things, persons and whatever ...w h a t e v e r we deem as dear and cherishable. The more we deem a thing precious, the more we cling to it and become afraid of 'losing'.The more we possess and value- health, relationships, kith and kin, status and prestige, wealth and prosperity, the more fear we tend to have of losing them. Actually anything that we value the most makes us afraid of its probable loss. The biggest fear is fear of a loss- loss of dear one-despite the certainty of imminent death we are never ever able to accept it as the reality of life. The very thought of losing a dear one is enough to cast a spell of gloom and grief. We are never prepared to overcome this fear because death symbolises the end, it shuts, makes no return possible, causes pain and uncertainity, enigma associated with it is scary, it un -nerves. But there are people who cannot afford to be afraid. Can the soldiers be afraid of dying or else would they be able to save us, our contrymen? 

Besides, we 'know and do not know' that this world is 'maya', not real, just a facade. Afterall it is not easy to believe everything we live with our five senses to be untrue !! The bigger the fears which - if they come true, lead us to point of no return. 

It is very important to remember that 'the mind is its own place and in itself, can make a Heaven of Hell, a Hell of Heaven.' (John Milton). We can also create our own destiny by affirmations we give to our thoughts- nrgatively if our thoughts run in that direction and vice versa. We cannot afford and should not close our eyes(like a pigeon) to fear (the cat) by posing it does not exist. If and when it does, fear must be encoutered head on and rationally thought of, analysed, discussed with mentors and done away with. It has to be managed or else fear can become unimaginably unmanageable! It is like a phantom who can become real and swallow us unawares. 

Srimad Bhagwad Gita's biggest exhortation is 'ma shuchah- dont be afraid' ( ch.18) but then the Arjuna in us need Lord Krsna who could convince us with why and how of it. It is important to cultivate the desire to 'let go' and also to look upto persons, scriptures, Mentors, friends who we feel may offer us guidance or advice, 'satsang' and wisdom, answers and solutions. Above all it is the most important thing to realise that fear exists and affects our thoughts, perspective, vision and attitude. Just imagine if all the philosophers, statesmen, freedom fighters had been afraid , full of fear of the consequences, would we be breathing today the free air with our 'minds without fear and head held high' ? Definitely, the answer is NO.

It is our own responsibility towards- first and foremost- to our own selves to be vigilant actually against all things negative( including fear) that tend to beseige us. We need to cultivate gratitude and prayer more for 'we are blest by everything/ everything we look upon is blest' (WBYeats)

Pyar Ka Din Mubarak Ho...

Come February and 'Love is in the air', they say as the freezing, biting, cruel, cold foggy days are over and the gentle sun spreads sheen of its healing warmth, the very air becomes fragrant when flowers

bloom- the gladulii on the wane but the lilies, the marigold and roses present awesome sight. Nature marks sprouting of joy which is the most basic ingredient of love, isn't it? The most primal of all needs and our very basic nature is to be happy happy and this is what we all crave for, yearn to get from stocks and stones, skies and deep waters, mountains and rivers and above all from the people we care for, persons we love. They give us the meaning, they make us see our own value through their eyes, they make this life worth all this and all that, they make us dream and enable us give direction to our dreams and aspirations.

And it is not just the people that love is connected with, it also can be a dream, a profession, our own work, an agenda we pursue with passion, anything that stands apart as meaning of our own life and being, something that we may die for and would like to live for can be our love of life. For some it can be money, fame, name, celebrityhood and for some it can be just the passion for sake of doing things because they can, for love provides 'the purpose' and 'meaningfulness'. Anything that makes us feel that this is what we are sent in the world for can be nothing but only 'the love' of our life.

Love is very complex emotion though it emerges in the simplest kind of way-naturally, genuinely, spontaneously. Since this feeling has the ability to immerse our whole being, hence it can give us pain or pleasure, trauma or treasure, rapturous blissfulness or unenviable sinking- and they would say- its part of the game, isn't it? And we detest to attach the world 'game' to it because it is breathed, its the essence our life stands for, it is the life itself !!! I donot think anything else.....n o t h i n g.. absolutely nothing else in this our human universe has the capacity to impart counter and contradictory impact as love.

As Shelly says: 'we look before and after and pine for what is not/ our sincerest laughter is with some pain wrought/our sweetest songs are those that tell of saddest thought', love is like a song to the tune of which we sing-mostly happily but yes, sometimes sadly too. The ability to make or mar is with us only but often we fail to value love as a blessing God endows us with and we mortals fail to protect it, guard it from taxing expectations (dil maange more..). It IS hard, you know, very hard to just let it be per se (jaisa bhee). Afterall why should we be content with just this much and why not that much more which we deem as our legitimate right as a matter ofcourse? We strive, we struggle with ourselves, the fight often is more in the mind whether we should or should not give vent to what our heart craves to express and burst out with but is this desirable to put on love the wearisome burden of naturally felt expectations? Is it welcome? Is it acceptable? Is it not avoidable? Incidentally, its only the voice within and not the voice outside that holds the answer to such simpleton queries of the heart. To me this can leave more questions in front of us and behind us than we can ever have the answers for.

Nogainsaying the truth that without this beautiful feeling of affinity and attachment, affection and affirmation life is incomplete. Though the void it has the capacity to cause and deep it has the ability to throw us in is equally or more true of this Dame Sans Merci. Then what is the choice that proverbially we all humans are blessed with- go for joy it abounds in or cage ourselves with pain it has ample potential to bring? Is there a thing called unconditional love and is it possible? The answers to these heavy questions are simple and around us, can be seen, felt, touched, smelled, breathed, too. Nature itself abounds in answers as Sun, the biggest giver of life energies, shine, warmth, health, positivity would shine come what may even if the night envelops it in dark; the beautous forms of nature the earth, air, sky, trees, light and fire - all give us so abundantly and what do they expect in return except small, little cares and concern with sensitivity. I am fond of dogs and I feel they are the best example in unconditional love. They ask for it, love to be fondled, hate to be abhored and shunned but they forgive so easily - really unconditionally and show gratutude for the smallest of our gestures of affection. I feel the key lies in this-gratitude and forgivenss to be Ble to fully grasp the bliss of love and affection.

Are we prepared to give before or after we recieve? Are we ready to live with it or we want to let go to see if it comes back and is ours only? Are we in love or we are love? Is it not our second nature just as it is, as said earlier, our nature to be happy and elated, joyous and cheerful. Let us think of the rosy side of love and breathe it ciz love is in the air today. Pyar ka din mubarak ho.

Shishu, the Great !

She is every bit my Pitaji's puttar- a perfectionist to the core,an excellent orator and writer, has an uncanny zeal for learning new things, words, and enjoys using them. She made my father jump in joy (more than we all ever did) and get awarded with ten rupee note everytime she achieved the best score, a gold medal,  the most well read student of the college prize, the highly recommended debator in youth festival and an epistle writer par excellence. Infact she has been the best academic performer and had cleared UPSC written twice. Her hand writing resembled (as her face too) with Neelam didi, her most favourite sister and mentor. She has never been an ordinary sister, massi and friend as she always went out of the way to show and prove the loveful commitment she felt from the bottom of her heart for the kin, kids, her sister and friends.

Archana's culinary skills could never be matched by any of us. Everytime there us a get together of family, some surprise soup or a different pizza or some new snack, vegetable, cake or sweet dish can be a guarantee as she plays the great host. Her preference for a cookery channel to a soap may not be welcome by us but when she treats us with relishable things, the joy is immense indubitably.

She hardly ever tells anyone about it but whenever any of us has had challenging time, I think it is Archana's 'connect' with Hanumanji through her sunderkaand paath that we have come out unharmed. Her paath transcend the concern for family, she chooses to do it for anyone associated with her kin directly or indirectly. It may be easier to send the prayers for whom we feel concern for but to spend time in jap or paath for days and days together is not a small gesture, it means a lot, bespeaks her essential goodness of nature. She is a blessing for the family. Bless her.

It feels good that she has chosen to serve the academic arena even after retirement. As Principal of a girls' degree college, she is cobtributing her mite as a teacher cum administrator. One more thing, after her retirement we find her more generous, more lively, more caring and understanding. It seems she feels more free to enjoy life now-unfettered. May she be blessed with good health and also prosperity and peace of mind. I do feel her 'the best' is yet to come. 

She has always mentored me and been very generous to me and cared for me so much, nurtured me, supported and helped so much in my thick and thin that I don't think I can ever reciprocate in equal meaure because what she has given and blessed me with is immeasurable, rresiprocable ever. I might not have told this or expressed this before her but I feel grateful for her overwhelming love for me and on this day, her birthday I would like to tell her that I love her very much.

The Spirit of Panipat Raahgiri

 It was after great hesitation and with fingers crossed I mooted the proposal of the event 'Raahgiri' to the handful of Panipat residents. The greatest apprehension was regarding receptivity of the people for this concept and fear pertained to its sustainability. May 6,2018 was the D day when the maiden Raahgiri was organised in sector 13-17, Panipat. A few of us cycled to the venue to send the message ' ab sunday na hogi motorgiri/ chalenge apni Raahgiri' for Mera Panipat, Fit Panipat- the tagline coined unanimously by the core group consisting officers, School Principals, NGO representatives and renowned citizens. The theme song was musically composed by Vikas Of Rehmaan waves just the night preceding the date with Raahgiri. The whole area was teeming with hordes of activities skating, cycling, Badminton, Volley ball, Yoga, Aerobics, Horse riding, Zumba, Games, cultural performances, kanchas, Pithoogram, archery, painting, rangoli, Gatka performance,musical chairs and hordes of games where thre target was to be hit in order to win a plant or a frooty. There were people people everywhere- senior citizens, kids, parents accompanying their kids dancing, doing workouts, re-living childhood through games of the yore, flying kites, riding rikshaw or e rikshaw for sheer fun of it. The whole atmosphere was electrifying soaked in spirit of conviviality, togetherness of a city was so apparently visible as if Panipat was just waiting for the Raahgiri. The slum children, the kids from Bal Ashram, the aged people from the Special Home were all there to revel in the joyous environs breathing the fresh air of early morning. I was set athinking whether I myself or anyone else in core team had imagined such tremendous response. The RWA of the venue sector had organised drinking water facility in traditional matkas . A 'neki ki deewar' collection counter had been set uo by youth enthusiasts to cater to the needs of the downtrodden. The sudden pour from the sky,when the event was about to end, was received as blessing from above and in no way it could dampen the spirit. Rather the dancing crowds cheered and soaked in the blessedness.

Raahgiri has become a platform for getting together of the positive force of the town. All the youth organisations' aim to make the difference for the better in Panipat has got vent; the comraderie shown by NGOs manned by the renowned citizens is commendable and their pro active support through mass participation is strength of Raahgiri. It is not just about coming forward with logistic support but it is the zeal and enthusiasm with which they energise the event makes Panipat Raahgiri unique from other districts. Imagine the core team consisting school heads, businessmen, Corporates, Lawyers and Media men overseeing arrangements till late on Saturday for the fun and frolic packed Sunday morning bespeaks their love for 'Mera Panipat Fit Panipat'. I visualise the million plus population of Panipat imbibing this spirit of my, mera for their city, will it not become a much better, more clean, morw managed, more disciplined Panipat?

The creditable aspect is that Panipat Raahgiri spirit is gradually spreading beyond the event and nogainsaying the fact that bonhemie shown by the citizens in painting and protecting the painted pillars from defacement is an example in itself. Besides, the institution of 'Ek Prayas' - the citizens' voluntary initiative for managing Parking without any payment burden on common citizens also depicts the spirit raahgiri represents. And the way organisations are gearing up all the residents for 'swachhta survekshan' and 'safaeegiri' has also emerged from the commitment and perseverance of people who want to become the harbingers of the change they want. Kudos to spirit Raahgiri!!

The role of Panipat police in making Raahgiri huge success cannot be undermined. It is the presence of SP/ DSP and the vigilant presnece in plain clothes as well as in dress which inculcates a sense of confidence amongst the parents and their wards/ school children. Apart from this the role of Police officers in Raahgiri meetings, route planning and ensuring spick and span bandobast is laudable. I salute my counterpart SP, Panipat and his team for paving way for feel of safety and ensuring mass participation without an iota of apprehension. Big thanks to , Mr Sumit and also his predecessor Mr Manvir Singh. Just as Mr Satish, the present DSP is keenly participating, it was Mr Doon, his predecessor who put his wholehearted efforts in initial stages and instilled the confidence that nothing would be allowed to slacken the feel of security during the event. Thanks is such a small word, forbour police team.

Media and social media - all have played a very positive role in projecting the spirit of Panipat Raahgiri in the right perspective. Their own participation as citizens and as protectors of public interest has heightened the stature and widened the expanse of coverage. My sincere gratitude !

Raahgiri aims to impart sensitivity for our own being, enhance our own aspiration to be happy, healthy, positive and fit, provide a safe, aesthetically pleasing avenue to allow ourselves be what we are and so what we miss out in day to day mundaneness- workout, exercises, aerobics, open hearted laughters, togetherness with like minded individuals, be out as a family and let worries, prwssures, burdens go. The joyous moments we cherish in selfies and photos we are so fond of taking and at the same time also carry home the message of how important it is to enjoy the gaiety, the abundance we are blessed with, the sacred blessedness of a healthy and happy family outing.

Panipat Raahgiri, for me, symbolises the spirit of Panipat and may this joie de vivre continue to increase and envelop e v e r y one in the fold of 'Mera Panipat, fit Panipat'. Amen

The Joy of Giving/ Not Giving

I was stuck by this phrase when I came across it in a brilliant piece of writing ' I Write' by my friend Maneesha. We all have heard of 'joy of giving, sharing' but this..this 'joy of not giving' I found hard to gulp down. And I started wondering if it really is true, is it?

Giving is not just connected with a noun (noun is a place, person or a thing, they say), giving also means giving up, parting with, sharing, publicising, opening up, talking and on and on. Do we not feel joy in all these? Do we not feel good to open up, come out and extend a hand to shake, or lend a helping hand to the needy and deserving by parting with some of the things money can buy, or publish a poem in a magazine or an article in the newspaper or upload a song on youtube or a photo album of funny moments on instagram? Do we not enjoy writing comments on facebook and posting/ forwarding messages of wisdom drawn straight from the university of whatsapp, tweeting on social media or sending link posts on family and friends' groups? Do we not get exclusive kind of elation to send our daily pic to a close friend or sharing selfie wearing a dress that deserves a 'new pinch' or changing profile pics with a sincere hope of deluge of likes or thumbs up or heart smileys that it would invoke and provoke?
Oh! my mind is getting diverted to the joys numerous of sharing whereas I had all good intention to discuss the 'joy of not giving'. Let's be serious, really.

The clutter in my cupboard and store, the hordes of books I own, the old and no-more-of-use shoes, electronic items, cell phones, chargers, computer and laptops and pieces of furniture, utensils bear ample testimony to the joy of not giving. Everytime I organise a CCC (Clear the Clutter Campaign) with a new- year-like-resolve, I end up hording, storing almost all the things I initially intend to throw, give up, just give away, donate, send to this or that home, oblige a help or whosoever. Does it not symbolise the special kind of joy of not giving? I start feeling at times that with ageing, it is an infectious virus of hording this and that and we rejoice in it, really we do, isn't it?

I dare say that basically, fundamentally, I mean originally we all like the luxury of this our indulgence in joy of not giving but we love to wear the make believe thing about ourselves that it is in giving, giving up, giving away and sharing that we draw real happiness from. If this were true, indeed it is a great trait on which stands the principles of philanthropy and trusteeship. If we are really happy (to help) to share, to give, to donate then believe me,the world is a better place to live in because of us. But how many of us are genuinely like the Sun, the biggest visible giver in the Universe?

Actually, Nature does not believe in the concept of joy of not giving. It believes in giving and giving so generously. All the Romantic Poets from the famous Lake district and in other parts of the world bear ample testimony to this. Not only it gives, it expects nothing in return except the sensitive, silent acknowledgment and letting it be. But do we hear that?

Giving or not giving is a matter of individual choice. I feel that in matters of creation- a composition of a poem or a piece of writing deserves regard and respect to it. Sharing it is giving part of ourselves and not sharing is vice versa. The joy one derives in either of the choices is an individual's own perception. In 'not giving' one is being self-protective from what one is shy of receiving and in giving, one is receiving, too voluntarily or involuntarily.