Of the festival of Lights ....Happy Diwali Folks!

Asato ma sadgamaya
Tamaso ma jyotirgamaya
Mrtyorma amrtam gamaya..

Lead me from the illusion to the truth.
Lead me from darkness to light.
Lead me from death to immortality.

Wishing each one of you a very Happy Diwali and a Prosperous New Year!
Lots of Love and Light to all! :)

P.S -http://archives.amritapuri.org/bharat/mantra/asatoma.php

 

Rest in Peace..

Ever wondered what happens after one passes on to a world unknown to all of us?

This was my first experience of watching someone who has passed on ,so closely.
When my maternal grandmother passed on, I wasn't even born.
When my maternal grandfather passed on , i did not go to see him on his final journey as i had to stay back at home to look after my paternal grandparents.

When my paternal grandfather passed on , I was out of town , only to reach when it was the last bit of him going into the ambulance to take him to the crematorium.
When my paternal grandmother passed on , I was admitted in hospital after a spine surgery.I still remember , it was one day after my surgery , I was in immense pain only to be topped by the pain that I could not bid her farewell ;Though she did come to my dream that night and gave me the worlds warmest hug to say goodbye.

It was as if God was actually protecting me from seeing death that close ; coz i was always afraid to face the truth of death.
I am sure they are all in a peaceful place now and have united there to form one big happy family.

A few days back , my in-law , paternal grandfather passed on.
He was unwell for the last 4 month and we prayed each day that he passes on peacefully instead of suffering like he was.
But still , when i got the news, something stirred within me.

I dint know how i was going to face seeing him and the funeral procession there after, I must admit i was scared ; and my grandparents did flash before me...

But i guess ; i have matured over time and HE up there realized that and decided to make me face it.

We went there , and I saw him laid down, looking at peace where he was.
It dint feel like anything I did not want to feel.

It was only once before that I had met him and took an instant liking to him.
He looked adorable.Very knowledgeable from what I had heard of him.

The one time i met him , we chatted like we'd known each other already. He told me a few stories, some of his village , some of how he battled a heart surgery and cataract and some of his travels.
Very interesting indeed.
The best part about the conversation was , we dint speak each others language.
He spoke Marathi and I spoke in Hindi. But somehow, both of us understood each other.As they say , we "spoke the language of the heart".
 It was wonderful to know him. I feel privileged.

As i saw him go on his final journey and watched his 3 sons and Ameya , carry him on their shoulders, i could not hold back the tears, but at the same time was proud to see the number of people who had turned up to pay their last respects to him; and i was told that each one there knew him personally! wow! what a fulfilling life I'd say.
Not many get the privilege to pass on in the same home they were born! He did! Good karma i guess :)

This is a tribute to him, my grandparents and all the people Ive known and been close to who are in a world unknown to us.. which i would like to believe..is a world with the kind of peace we dream of.. a world with no terrorists , a world where there is no anger,jealousy or any other vices.. just beauty all around with a fresh fragrance in the air...

Rest in Peace, Ajoba. You will definitely be missed.

Of Life ... :)

Ganpati Bappa Morya !!!

Its that time of the year again! :)


He is here! :) The cutest of all , to bestow upon each one of us His light and demolish every obstacle that comes our way!


Here's wishing each one of you a Happy Ganesh Chaturthi , may the good lord bless us all with good health and peace in our lives!

om gan ganapataye namo namah mp3 | lyrics

free music downloads | music videos | pictures

Of Sense and Sensitivity....

Saturday evening went by , watching Aashayein. Loved it!
Cut to - The morning after .Sunday.
As usual, went about our chores and took the stash of the Sunday editions .

To my surprise/disgust/whatever you may like to call it (but something to that sentiment), read the following review on the movie :

http://www.punemirror.in/index.aspx?Page=article&sectname=Entertainment%20-%20Film%20Reviews&sectid=58&contentid=2010082920100829001951162724dc210

I definitely had a response for Mr.Minty!!
Have e-mailed him. Lets wait and watch if i do get a response! or my "Aashayein" go for a toss ;)

Here goes :

HI Minty!
This comes 4 minutes after reading your review on "Aashayein".

Just one question out of curiosity "Have you even watched the movie?"

Sad , but true , you seem to be in a real bad mood for the past few weeks.
It makes one wonder , if you can rate a movie like "Aisha"  3 stars , which has only no brainer-women strutting their stuff and  glamor quotient , What happens when movies like "Aashayein" are made with so much sensitivity ?

Well , the answer is,you rate it a mere 1/2 star , if it is to be believed it is not a  printing error.

In my opinion, which is not as privileged as yours to be published, Aashayein is made for the sensitive souls and for the numerous people who have seen their near and dear ones go through the struggle for a hope of survival. Aashayein is not expected to provide only a high entertainment score but it is also an inception of a concept to have a shelter for terminally ill people who choose to step out of the mainstream world into a cocoon free from fake sympathy and assurances of false hopes.

Instead of mocking at it , i would love to see you watch and understand the metaphor the movie clearly showcases.
The Indiana Jones angle is a tool to execute the one last wish for people who face their death for no fault of theirs. This makes it significantly different than the last wish offered before a criminal is executed.
"The bald gifted kid" is just a way to tell us humans that we should not give up hope.

One cannot blame you for not noticing such sensitivities in these metaphors. If Aashayein hurts your sensibilities, then I am sure the upcoming move ,"Mallika" would awaken them!

If you prefer John in Dostana as opposed to Aashayein, then you shouldn't have reviewed this movie at all in the first place.  Genuine critics are unbiased and unpersonal.Hard to find, obviously!

I wonder how many people may miss this sensitively made film after reading your review.

Sigh !!!

Prayer........

Prayer doesn't just happen when we kneel or put hands together and focus.

When u hug a friend, tht's prayer...

When u cook something to nourish family & friends tht's prayer.

When you send them off with 'Drive Safely' or 'Be Safe' tht's a prayer too.

When you are helping someone in need by giving your time,energy, and money, you are giving prayer and answering one at the same time...

Prayer is a vibration.It feels good. Prayer is the VOICE of LOVE.

P.S- This is something i read on the internet. Its not original :) (only putting the pictures in is my idea)Loved it , hence posted it here... :)

The joy of giving...A lesson learnt for life...

This is what my lesson for this weekend was!:)
All this while i've been thinking to myself... that i'm above all this materialistic pleasure..
Im way above a lot of people i know..
I wonder why money gives them such a high...
Why people are so egoistic.. why can they not let go...
And all through this unknowingly i definitely had an ego of my own which i was nurturing..

We had a maid who worked with us for about 3 months. She din't quite need to work and that was very apparant in the way she went about doing the chores assigned to her.

In no time we were kind of looking for someone to do a better job and hence gave her quite a decent notice period saying we will need to replace her and she seemed pretty ok with the idea.. so there was no guilt :P

Her last day with us.. was the day i learnt a lesson for life...
The joy of giving can compete with no other...

My husband was helping me clean the kitchen draw when a brand new box.. more or less of a showpiece by itself came out of there
... It was one of the many that i had bought for mom..on my trip to Jaipur nearly 3 years ago... she had never used it and it was still brand new.. so she passed it on back to me for our new home...
And the circle continued as i tucked it away to use it some other day too..




Out it came...
He looked at it.. as i showed it off to him and told him the story behind it and how i got it so cheap and how it could cost a bomb here.. and bla bla bla...
He din't say much. Just heard me out.
A brief silence .
"Let's give this to her" He says
"Who??!!" I say (with a "haw" expression on my face)
"The maid" He says
"R u crazy" I say
"Huh? Why? Whats crazy about that?"
"NO NO im not giving it" I say
"U know what it feels like to give? Have u ever felt the joy of giving?" He says
"Yes ofcourse i have, but.. but... not this... this has been stored for so long.. and i wanna use it someday" i say
" Ya, but you said you got it real cheap.. and it looks like it comes from her land, so whats the harm if u just gave it to her.. she'll be so happy"
"NO ways.. i love it and i am going to use it soon.. maybe even now" I say...
"Come on.. its ok love.. we CAN defnitely afford to make someone happy " he says...

I change the topic hoping he forgets about it and get on with my other chores...

Time comes for her to leave..She says her goodbye...

The words repeat a million times in my head and heart " the joy of giving .. the joy of giving..."

Involuntarily..not even realising what i am about to do.. I go .. pick up the box.. hand over the salary and this box to her...

The smile on her face was something that cannot be matched with any materialistic gain ever!
She was shocked and happy at the same time.The expression very obviously said " this is brand new.. why would she give it to me"
I did not explain as i did not think there was any need to...:)
I Just put my hand on her shoulders and say " Take care.. come by sometime "
She bid farewell and left.

I felt sooo small...
Here i was thinking i'm above all these materialistic pleasure and I can let go easily.. and all the gyaan...
But when it came to action it actually took some convincing... i couldnt believe myself...
But yes.. I have learnt this lesson.. and its for life...
I promise myself this...
I will never deny the joy of giving ever again! :)

Thank you my most prized possesion for teaching me the most important lesson of my life and unknowingly helping me grow on a spiritual level each day:)

Of My Little "Brown spotty"....

We got her home around a month ago... I like to call her , "her" .. for obvious reasons ;)

She was a tiny little white baby then... so scared , quiet , subdued....

Finches are supposedly quite a cheerful lot and are most of the time bursting with energy....

I did worry and wonder why she was the way she was. I was totally unaware of her being a baby.. the shop guy had not really mentioned it explicitly...chances are maybe he dint know either!

I noticed her every single day .. and as days went by... she looked weirder and i wondered what was going on...n i must admit - i did worry...

I looked closely... and it looked as if she was hurt on her cheeks.. i looked even closer and noticed that she was "hurt" in the exact same way on both her cheeks..
At once i knew i was mistaken... she wasnt hurt....
She was just growing up :)
She was getting her colours...

Everyday we noticed changes in her...
She developed spots on her wings... brown spots....
and her whole body was turning light brown...

And now when u see her.. She has Orange Cheeks and an even brighter orange beak.. with brown wings with white spots on them!!
Ah! What a beauty she is... :)

Just love sitting by the window .. watching her flutter away to glory as she bathes herself in her little bathtub ... going chirp chirp chirp ... :)

I think this is what she's going to eventually look like...
She's already quite close.. :)



Ahh!Watta Beauty! My little brown spotty :)!

Guess who got I.N.K.E.D ?!

Meeeeeeeeeee!!!! :)

18-06-2010... Thats the date thats going to remain etched in my memory forever...even if hypothetically i want to forget it... my TATTOO wont let me!

Yes! finally got myself one! A Phoenix ! Love it!

Now for the whole hue and cry about how painful it was! Yeah! All you sissys who said its hurts! Boo! :) Just kidding..;)

It hardly hurt... For all the women.. just multiply the pain 7 times to that of how it feels when you go waxing to the salon!

The artsist .. who for security reasons (my own) ;) .. i dont wanna name.. was a man filled with attitude..

rather for nothing!

For some reason .. these tattoo artists .. ive met a few ..have trucks of attitude...i wonder why!

I mean .. yeah they are good with their hands.. no doubt.. but then whats one losing in being humble..

Yeah.. we can trace and draw too.. but unfortunately we humans happen to trust someone else with this rather than ourselves

.. what to do! We are like that only ;)

But yea... thank you to him for a wonderful piece of art on my forehand which i am going to cherish for life..

My most prized possesion..:) .. after the husband ofcourse ;)

Of Innocence Lost and Found...

An evening trip to the local grocery store... brought back fond memories of my childhood....

Watched 2 little boys.. all of around 6 -7 years of age...come into the shop... and look around with hopeful eyes..for a particular packet of chips which has those small little toys inside them....

I had sudden flashes of how my brother and I used to rush into shops just like that and do the very same thing...

After around 5 minutes of looking around..arguing which one to buy..from the flavour to the colour of the packet... about how each one knew which is the better one to buy .. they finally agreed upon one particular packet and bought it!

Counting the coins they had.. which came up to an exact amount for that packet.. they proudly handed them over to the shopkeeper and looked thrilled with their purchase...

They could not hold their excitement back and opened the packet right then n there....and Lo! Behold! What an achievement! They jumped and danced and sang with sooo much happiness that people around looked as to what had happened... but all everyone could do was ....smile... :) at their innocence....
They had got the same toy which they had anticipated.. and were thrilled to bits!!

Loved watching them .. as they cycled off into the alley near by...
Brought back such lovely memories... of Innocence lost....and now found!!! :):

Of Evening turning into Night....

The view from my living room .... As i watched the skies fall asleep....

Of Raindrops...Romance and Chai!

I hear thunder , I hear thunder , oh don't you? oh don't you?... Pit-a-patter raindrops, Pit-a-patter raindrops.. I'm wet through...I'm wet through....

Yes! Looks like the monsoons have arrived and I couldn't be more glad to get respite from the biting heat...

I know dark clouds are apparently supposed to be disturbing for some... but it does just the opposite for me...
As i sit by my 8th floor balcony and watch them gather on the horizon... its gives me such a sense of calm.....sense of peace...within...I can literally see the silver lining on each cloud... :)



In my opinion, it is also the most romantic of all four seasons we have in our incredible country....
It definitely sometimes takes water to ignite a fire! ;)

I have very fond memories of the monsoon of 2009....long drive to Lonavala... sudden heavy downpour ..being stuck in a traffic jam...n while being stuck in the jam .. my husband now....but .. mind you ,  my closest buddy then....singing to me .. making the rains seem even more beautiful and me in my mind thanking God for the traffic jam!! :P

Well then, all you people... here's to the monsoons that have been and monsoon that will be!
Looking forward to creating many more memories to deposit in my bank of  "My most cherished memories" !

Cheers! (with chai and bhajiyas) ;)

Of Confessions ... ;)

Of Love ,Rape and Dhoka...

Every other morning , the newspapers carry news which tell tales of young girls being in intimate relationships with men who promise to marry them and then eventually don't...
These young pretty young things go straight to the police and lodge complaints against those men....

What i refuse to understand is what was she thinking when she was having a good time with him?
Women who are above 18 , i am sure understand the implications of such promises and relationships...
Its not like they have been forced into the anything...its their own free will ..they enjoy every bit of it... and when things don't turn in their favor they report the matter to the police and term it as "rape"......Unfair i think!

Yes we live in a society which always gives the benefit of doubt to the woman.. and i don't think i am complaining, being a woman myself... but there should be limitations of taking advantage of the same...

It is sad that relationships do break... things happen...life moves on...but... you cannot go to the "police" for that!!

Love Sex and Dhoka has very conviniently turned to Love "rape" and Dhoka!

Unfair .. Unfair....

Tattoo on my mind...

Q - To Tattoo or Not to Tattoo..?!
A - Ofcourse to Tattoo!!! :)

Q- Inspiration?
A- The Husband! :)

Q- Whats on the mind for the design?
A- Well keeps changing.. was some flower first, then the word "TRUST" , then an earring design which was gifted by the husband and for now its the PHOENIX ...

Q- Why the Phoenix?
A- Well , its inspirational you know! Considering whats going on with my health on and off i think i need to sink in the fact that i CANNOT give up and have to resurrect with the same gusto as the majestic bird...

Just FYI **The Phoenix is a beautiful, mythical bird, and its legend exists in many cultures.  Basically, it was a large bird that lived for many years.  At the end of its life cycle it would build a nest that would serve as its funeral pyre.  It would light the nest on fire and be consumed by the flames.  Out of the ashes a new Phoemix would rise.  It represents new life, re-birth, and resurrection.  It also symbolizes different things to different cultures, but the idea of rebirth is its basic meaning.

Q- Any thoughts on the placement?
A - Ah! Ofocurse yes! but that too keeps changing! :) First it was the ankle.. then the collar bone.. then the nape of the neck and now the forearm...

Q - HAve i chosen the design of the bird yet?
A- Oh yes! Many of them!! LoL! .. Cannot single one out.. love each one..

Maybe i should get the body tattooed!! :D

Who said one can Twitter only on the world wide web :)

We brought them home :)

P.s-FYI- :) for those of you who feel sad for the birds being caged.. these birds are meant to be caged..or they will be killed by the others in just a few minutes :)

Relationships.....

Relationships are like Rome.
Difficult to start out,
incredible during the prosperity of the ‘Golden Age’,
and unbearable during the fall.

Then, a new kingdom will come along
and the whole process will repeat itself
until you come across a kingdom like Egypt…
that thrives, and continues to flourish.
This kingdom will become your best friend, your soul mate, and your love.

---- Helen Adams Keller

Pune... OUR Pune...MY Pune....

Its heart - wrenching to watch that they have reached our clean-simple-sweet-pure-beautiful city too...
Its numbing to realise how close to death we all are....




German Bakery - The Leopold - of my Pune... was where we hung out so so often..
Since our college days...way back from 1999 till date...Ive frequented it so much!
From the smiling guy at the cash counter to the masala chai to the cheese and chocolate croissant to the tira misu to the wooden benches to the lanterns to the adverts on the walls about tarot, feng shui, meditation to the whole smell and feel of it........i will miss each bit....

It feels like a part of me went with it....

Its difficult to fathom what and why these things happen to good places and people for no apparent reason at all...

Was it really a bomb blast?? Or was it the cylinder blast?? Or was it an opposition party or was
it really our buddies from accross the border...

We will never know...

For now, Id only plead to them , whoever it is... please leave us alone...please dont touch this virgin city....

And i say a silent prayer for those who lost their lives..may their souls rest in peace and for those
who are recovering in various hospitals...may they recover real soon with the good lords grace..

Amen....

!Happy Valentines Day!

Thanks a bunch!!! :)

Of Sex Lies and Videotape.....

"Is your Tiger a Cheatah" is what the article was titled... I loved it!

Its alarming as to how the world is a changing on values and traditions...
In the "olden times" it always was about being a "one man woman" or a "one woman man" ... it seems like the olden times have become golden times for both , men and women with multi partners... (by this i mean one man/woman at a time- not that one cannot have more than one relationship) -just to clear the air before i get accused of hypocrisy ;)
I for sure belong to the olden times and im glad about it....and i don't believe the fact that i have to call it so..
Its seems so easy to cheat on ones partner today... All over the papers and magazines one reads articles about how to detect a liar, how to find out if your partner is cheating on you, how infedility can actually save a marriage and how maybe telling a few white lies is a done thing...

I may seem like i come from a very old school of thought, but buddy thats what it is. You take it or leave it. I also know i sound enraged right now and I very well am, at what the world has come to.


From the above "white lies" between partners is something i would want to comment upon;
White lies - is an oxymoron in my opinion..
The world wide web describes it as -"an unimportant lie (especially one told to be tactful or polite)"
So if its unimportant, why lie about it in first place. Being tactful isnt always a positive nature, i say..
Lies are black. No matter what. There is no white lie between partners in my dictionary.
If one is not comfortable telling the truth then one should be even more uncomfortable telling a so called white lie. Just dont do things that are wrong so the question of even white lying does not arise.
But then again whats right for me may be wrong for the other and whats wrong for me may be right for the other, which can be a whole new topic of discussion altogether, where I am not going now.
For every one lie which is told, one has to create 2 - 3 more to cover up the first one.
One also needs to have a fantastic memory to remember who he/she has lied to and what...so that they dont end up being in a mess..

While writing this..I chanced upon a very interesting video ; for those of you who want to know how to detect a liar :) (ignore that last bit where they talk only about Americans) ;) .. i think the world is turning that way..

...

:)

Have you evers….. and Wild guesses....

Have you ever surprised a loved one with so much love and affection that they are out of words to react…?

Have you ever felt that you know a person so well that you can read his/her mind ?

Have you ever felt that someone you know is a male / female version of you?

I have….and believe me …they are feeling that cannot be replaced by any other…

To see someone so dear to you so happy with something that you’ve put in so much love and effort for is PRICELESS….

To know someone so well that you can guess what he/she has in store for you as a surprise is CRAZY …

To feel that someone you know so close to you is a male/female version of you is like finding your SOULMATE….


Wild guesses… are WILD ofcourse… but this one time…I guess It was knowing eachother so well that made us guess whats in store!

It was his birthday . I had a surprise planned.
We went out pubbing to bring the birthday in.
I had obviously not mentioned it to him..though the plan was to blind fold him and take him to the venue !
Since there was no way I could do a kidnap-act – I had to spill the beans that there was a surprise in store.
His eyes lit up and like a child full of glee he announced he had a surprise for me too!
Uh – wasn’t it HIS birthday?! Then why surprise for me…
“you will know soon” was the response I got…
We waited..to be surprised…
He suggested a “game” – We write on a piece of paper what we thought the surprise was –
Was not tough for him I think – without being unfair I say this – coz it was his birthday- so !
But the awesome part was – he wrote in detail about everything .
My turn to write. I couldn’t think. I still wrote.

2 hours later – at midnight…when the plan was executed ..…We exchanged notes!

And Guess what!!?!? ?!?!? ?!?!

Both wrote the exact chain of events that took place!!!

Bliss I say !!! To know someone so well !
Bliss I say!!! To find your SOULMATE !
Bliss I say!!! To see expressions which are PRICELESS !
Bliss I say!!! To feel CRAZY !

Happy Birthday again! :)

and

Thanks a tonne for the "return gift" :)!

Of New Beginings and Old Endings.....

....One month down! Phew! .....didn't zoom as i thought it would...
Started with a bang no doubt....loved each day..no doubt again...but yea...would have loved it if it went by a little quicker...
How unsatisfied we as humans are..! When times goes by like a gunshot..we crib saying..oh how i wish i just had some time in hand ..and now when it is going by at a pace which can give us time for a lot of other things to do..here I am ... asking it to zoom....!
Alas! The human species.... the grass is always greener on the other side..innit?? :)

Looking forward to February... a very special month indeed... An angel was born , and I'm sure for me ; making sure we lead a good life with eachother ! I'm loving each bit... Thnk You! :)

A new job to add to it...Hoping it makes me feel good about myself all over again...after a long sabatical....not saying much as of now as today is just my first day at work!

Wish me luck as I wish all you readers too...

Much love and light...
:)

Jack and Jill.... and the lesson we can learn ... :)

There were 2 caterpillars - named Jack and Jill...

Jack said to Jill , "I dont like this butterfly that hovers around me all day "

Jill was worried and didn't know what to say.

Jack went crawling to eat grass the next day and as soon as he left , the butterfly came fluttering around Jill.

Jill was scared and asked him to go away , the butterfly tried telling Jill that she too someday could and would fly...

That night Jill could not sleep. She had dreams of wings...

Jack was annoyed at Jill for being so silly and believing the lying butterfly...

Jack was now worried and went to speak to the wise elders.

"This is a serious problem" they said. "The butterfly will illusion all of us away.

We must do something to stop this" , and they decided to kill the butterfly.

Jack went home and told Jill she must make friends with the butterfly and invite him home one day.

Jill was thrilled and so was the butterfly and they met next day on a leaf near by.

The butterfly spoke with passion to Jill and showed her how he sucked honey from the flowers and flew around trees...

Ans as he was explaining , there came the wise caterpillar and tried and killed the innocent butterfly..

Jill cried and cried and no one could console her. She did not speak to Jack that day.

Jill covered herself in a thinck dark blanket and was gone...

Jack was hurt and thought he had lost his love..

Jack was lonely and cried all day , he would not eat and hoped Jill would emerge from the shell one day...

And then... after a few days....the blanket did open..Jack trembeled and was waiting to see what would happen..

He then saw a beautiful butterfly emerge, She spread her wings and hovered around Jack with love..

Jack was transformed and ran to the elders, to tell them of this marvelous miracle.

Obviously , no one believed him , because each caterpillar must die in his/her own shell to emerge and fly in the beautiful sky...

I can continue on this and write volumes , and if a caterpillar had a mind of its own,then sure they would have been a religion to follow.!

- Thank you Shradha for this one. It's rather beautiful to know and learn so much from nature.

Bring it on 2010....

The countdown was finally over...

The clock struck 12:00 ..

Fire crackers went off in the distance....

Greetings were being exchanged......

We wished eachother... away from the world....with a bottle of wine and a candle...

Was Bliss....coudln't have asked for a better start....

Happy new year everyone...i know a tad late...but then...better late than never methinks! :)

This year has begun well...very well i'd say.... with new hopes, dreams, aspirations and goals...

Looking forward to 2010 being the most cherishable year of my life and i wish and pray HE grants it to me....

Bring it on 2010...i welcome you with open arms! :)