Arundhati Roy, a Booker prize winner and more recently, a social activist and campaigner must begin to choose her words carefully. She has a command over the English language and the State of India granting her the freedom of speech, does not necessarily mean she can go to town on issues that are delicate and need political maneuvering rather than hard hammering. Its time people like her realise that not every issue needs a campaign and a champion, some issues need time and patience. Getting on the nerve of the State for every damn issue is not the way forward, it merely hardens stances and reduces the room for negotiation. Indirectly, its harming the cause of the same people whose cause she claims to espouse.
To me she is just a lose mouthed canon that goes off at wrong times and does not help any one's cause. Its time she is reined in and for good. Its time people know that the fundamental rights granted to us by the Constitution of India are inalienable but are not absolute. The misuse of the said rights will not be taken in good taste by the State. Every State needs a conscience keeper and it is for this sacred duty that every citizen must use his rights to freedom of speech, not to hammer in wrong places and cause unrest among the population. Ms. Roy seems to have lost it completely and not for the first time. She has been testing the patience of the State of India for more than a year and acting counterproductive to the same State that gives her the right to free speech.
Firstly, it was the Naxal issue. Every Indian empathises with the atrocities meted out to some tribals long-long ago. This issue was not resolved and some left wing extremists took this up to justify their war on the Indian state. They started blowing up bridges, killing police personnel and causing lot of infrastructure damage. In short, they did not allow these areas to develop on the pace that rest of India is developing. Then comes our lady Ms. Roy and speaks on the same issue, only this time, blames India for not developing these areas and conveniently ignores the destruction caused by the Naxal movement. To her, if a Naxalite kills state police personnel its justified as "self defense" but if the State is imposing the rule of law in a land where it seems to have collapsed, it becomes excesses meted out by a rouge State. In her view, India should act as a banana republic and allow every region a right to secede from the nation. God forbid, if the State imposes its authority and sovereignty, it becomes a colonial power which colonises the said regions. I cannot fathom what kind of skewed mindset this is. Is she really naive or playing plain stupid. Is she on the payroll of the enemies of the State of India, trying to stay within the society and trying to disintegrate the nation. Mind boggles with naivety of her stupid arguments.
Kashmir is seething in the fires burning and every able minded Indian is concerned about how to bring back the normalcy in Kashmir. Now, more than ever its imperative on the State not to fail its people and India is doing just that by nominating 3 interlocutors to get every shade of opinion in the valley and try to assuage the pain felt by the Kashmiri in the street. Enter our trouble seeker Ms. Roy. First in Delhi, then in Srinagar she shoots her mouth off stating that India is a force occupying Kashmir and holding it. Indian army is meting inexplicable damage on the psyche of the Kashmiri and they are tortured, raped etc into saying that they are Indians. This one sentence should not be let to pass. It undermines our soldiers and the lifelong service that they have rendered to us. It is easy to criticise the Army, putting on their hats and standing within 300 feet of the LOC, facing the enemy guns is a whole different story. The Army has been doing this for past 60 years, protecting the territorial integrity of the nation. Be it Kashmir, Nagaland, Arunanchal Pradesh or West Bengal, they stand like a sturdy wall facing all the bullets and keeping the average Indian safe in the street. The very freedom that Ms. Roy uses to shoot her mouth off is achieved by the sweat and blood of the men in uniform, so we must not denigrate them so lightly who have served us so diligently. Agreed, many mistakes have been made in handling situations but then again we must remember that army is not trained to handle civilian areas so there is bound to be some collateral damage when they operate. Mistakes made by few officers (though not condoned) cannot be extrapolated to entire armed forces and there is no case for calling them an occupying force.
If the armed personnel knew that the freedom and sovereignty of India that they protect laying down their lives, will be talked about so lightly by "intellectuals" of the nation, who, forever espouse the "human rights" of the terrorists and naxals and denigrate the very forces that protect them, they would think twice before signing up for duty. The families would not send their sons and daughters in harms way to fight for the country if the citizens are going to throw away the objectives for few sensational sound bites. People like Ms. Arundhati Roy are not loyal to anything, neither the nation nor the cause that they stand for. They are merely publicity hungry individuals who find it fashionable to make ludicrous statements in the name of "freedom of speech" and "justice for poor".
I would sincerely appeal to the likes of Ms. Roy to not play with fire and to use their influence over society for solving problems rather than stoking fire using mindless speeches and articles. Its time the "intellectuals" come out of their ideal bookish world and be part of some practical solutions to the society.
So long...
Thursday, October 28, 2010
Pretty Woman
Julia Roberts and "pretty woman" go hand in hand. It was the first movie of Julia Roberts that I ever watched and even though it didn't make much sense to me (I was very young back then), I loved her screen presence and Richard Gere's panache. I am not here to talk about her though, its about my very own take on pretty woman (not the movie).
Years and years of male shallowness about female beauty has made a major impact on the female brain. Women are now, more than ever convinced that how they look constitutes a major portion about how the world perceives them. In India the love for fair skin tone is additional burden that women carry. Indians are unique, they are just fascinated by the erstwhile colonial masters and their skin tone and have accepted its superiority. It has nothing to do with racism, its pure fascination. Of late, the men have changed their view about female beauty, the fulsome bodies that once all men lusted for, are not longer all that they need. Men have gone deeper than that and accepted virtues as the best assets in a woman. They want their woman to be intelligent, empathetic, caring and understanding person rather than just a arm candy. Let me clarify, I am talking about men, not boys. Boys will forever chase the bimbos.. no doubt about that, but I was hoping that women would have began to love the real men rather than having boy-toys.
This brings me back to my earlier point, pretty woman. The thing I learnt after revisiting the movie and a few life experiences is this, the parameters that men use to find a mate have changed and its high time the women realise this. Its no longer a virtue to be a virgin bride as once understood, men find women who can take them on.... on an equal footing more sexier. Men want someone whom they can share their thoughts with, someone who understands their needs to be competitive, someone who can take care of them and love them for all their shortcomings. If this particular woman looks like Julia Roberts, great... but that's not a required attribute anymore.
Its time women wake up to this reality and know that the next time they dress to kill, they are doing it just for female competition, bcos the guy whom they wanna end up with, will have her looks as last priority and the ones that fall for looks aren't gonna be around for long.
So long...
Years and years of male shallowness about female beauty has made a major impact on the female brain. Women are now, more than ever convinced that how they look constitutes a major portion about how the world perceives them. In India the love for fair skin tone is additional burden that women carry. Indians are unique, they are just fascinated by the erstwhile colonial masters and their skin tone and have accepted its superiority. It has nothing to do with racism, its pure fascination. Of late, the men have changed their view about female beauty, the fulsome bodies that once all men lusted for, are not longer all that they need. Men have gone deeper than that and accepted virtues as the best assets in a woman. They want their woman to be intelligent, empathetic, caring and understanding person rather than just a arm candy. Let me clarify, I am talking about men, not boys. Boys will forever chase the bimbos.. no doubt about that, but I was hoping that women would have began to love the real men rather than having boy-toys.
This brings me back to my earlier point, pretty woman. The thing I learnt after revisiting the movie and a few life experiences is this, the parameters that men use to find a mate have changed and its high time the women realise this. Its no longer a virtue to be a virgin bride as once understood, men find women who can take them on.... on an equal footing more sexier. Men want someone whom they can share their thoughts with, someone who understands their needs to be competitive, someone who can take care of them and love them for all their shortcomings. If this particular woman looks like Julia Roberts, great... but that's not a required attribute anymore.
Its time women wake up to this reality and know that the next time they dress to kill, they are doing it just for female competition, bcos the guy whom they wanna end up with, will have her looks as last priority and the ones that fall for looks aren't gonna be around for long.
So long...
Wednesday, October 27, 2010
Learning to let go...
Hi guys, back after a while. In the past few days watched a lot of romantic movies, I mean conventional chick flicks and realised that they all depict a golden rule that they don't mean to highlight in the movies. Believe me, this is the only thing that sounds true and is close to reality not all the mush that is depicted and the overdose of romance. I am highlighting on one particular point.. "learning to let go". Its not as easy as it sounds and I myself have failed miserably at this so would not be in preaching mood regarding this, but it would be great if we learnt it and tried to adopt.
Love is one of the truest emotions known to mankind and one of the happiest because while "in love" one learns to give rather than receive and puts other persons interest above their own. In short one feels powerful than the beloved and feels the control in the relationship. This works both ways. However, I am not gonna harp about the bliss of love; I am here to discuss the aftermath of a breakup. People who have gone through a breakup in life will tell you it makes you feel vulnerable, used, in some cases dirty and in most cases a loser. Well, I am here to say that you need not feel this way. You know that you did nothing wrong in loving the person and did all things possible to make the relationship work, so you don't deserve to feel so low, in fact you should feel pity for the other person and learn to "let go".
Never use a breakup to highlight each others flaws and leave the other party bleeding. Instead acknowledge that the other person made you happy and whilst the relationship is over, you will always respect the fondly remember the times spent together. Treat a breakup like the death of a relationship; you cry and feel sorrow for the death, but its wise to have a memorial and highlight the "good times" rather than spiral into a unending pit of worst possible human emotions. Like you "let go" of the person who has died but use their memories as a memorabilia that would live with you forever, you must let go of your loved one and wish them good luck in the life beyond you. Wish them well. Do not, at any cost bad mouth the person in front of friends and close relatives, always remember you loved that person more than yourself and in the death you do not insult your love.
In the end, you must use every experience in life to improve yourself as a person and a human being and if the best experience of your life is making you take an extreme step or pushing you close to insanity then it somehow isn't fair to you. I read this quote in a book " Don't love anyone so much that you cant let go", I learnt its meaning recently.
So long....
Love is one of the truest emotions known to mankind and one of the happiest because while "in love" one learns to give rather than receive and puts other persons interest above their own. In short one feels powerful than the beloved and feels the control in the relationship. This works both ways. However, I am not gonna harp about the bliss of love; I am here to discuss the aftermath of a breakup. People who have gone through a breakup in life will tell you it makes you feel vulnerable, used, in some cases dirty and in most cases a loser. Well, I am here to say that you need not feel this way. You know that you did nothing wrong in loving the person and did all things possible to make the relationship work, so you don't deserve to feel so low, in fact you should feel pity for the other person and learn to "let go".
Never use a breakup to highlight each others flaws and leave the other party bleeding. Instead acknowledge that the other person made you happy and whilst the relationship is over, you will always respect the fondly remember the times spent together. Treat a breakup like the death of a relationship; you cry and feel sorrow for the death, but its wise to have a memorial and highlight the "good times" rather than spiral into a unending pit of worst possible human emotions. Like you "let go" of the person who has died but use their memories as a memorabilia that would live with you forever, you must let go of your loved one and wish them good luck in the life beyond you. Wish them well. Do not, at any cost bad mouth the person in front of friends and close relatives, always remember you loved that person more than yourself and in the death you do not insult your love.
In the end, you must use every experience in life to improve yourself as a person and a human being and if the best experience of your life is making you take an extreme step or pushing you close to insanity then it somehow isn't fair to you. I read this quote in a book " Don't love anyone so much that you cant let go", I learnt its meaning recently.
So long....
Thursday, September 30, 2010
Living the Indian dream...
July 4 1776, the day United States of America declared its Independence from colonial rule using an charter called the United States 'Declaration of Independence'. The US as we know it today; is based on the constitution formed then, by its founding fathers and they swear by it even today, in the 21st century, nearly 234 years after its Independence. The founding fathers gave every American; an inalienable rights of Life, Liberty and Pursuit of happiness and people to this day call it living the American dream. Elections are fought and won on the ability to provide a conducive environment by the candidate to his fellow Americans to live the "American dream". Its this simple concept called the "American dream" that unites 350 million Americans under one roof; they are no more blacks and whites, immigrants and locals they are only Americans. They are proud of the fact that they are a beacon to a democratic world and they preach and practice it.
India was liberated from its colonial masters some 60 odd years ago. We are still a young democracy and have not yet perfected the art. There are sections of public life that are conducted as part of dynastic politics or personal fiefdom. There are many a loop holes in our "system" and no one denies that; but we are a great country despite these shortcomings. The constitution came into force in 1950 and our founding fathers put a lot of thought into the draft and kept it a live document rather than a snapshot of the past, meaning there have been constant amendments based on change of times. There are so many provisions of our constitution that we know not of, so many rights given to us that our masses don't exercise and the political class have done very little to sell brand India to its masses. Why are we so proud of America and its "system" while know very little of our own. We do not bother to know who our leaders are and what do they stand for, when the elections are held; but we know every single detail about the US president including his personal life and its gory details. Why are we so unwilling to contribute to our society and create and build brand India but more than willing to contribute to the research and economy of western nations. Its a sad state of affairs and being a proud Indian, I feel pity that 1.2 billion people are failing a great nation. We are split into people who are unaware of what they can do to help India and people who are unwilling to do anything for India.
Commonwealth games is an excellent example of the same. People like Suresh Kalmadi and his cronies knew what they had to deliver and on what timeline, some 8 years ago, yet they messed it up willfully. They failed their nation because they were unwilling to do what was required. The rest of us were so apathetic about athletic sports that we were unaware how we could help. Even now, we do not care to go and cheer our team when they are competing. Its people like us that allow the Suresh Kalmadi's to stick to an important post of IOA president for freaking 15 years, milking it dry of funds. I don't remember the last time India has won a medal in athletics, mostly because of lack of infrastructure and proper coaches and add to that corrupt officials who are willing to siphon off all the funds allocated for the players. The sad part is, this is not all that is wrong with us. There are so many ways corruption has crept into our systems that now we have began to accept it as a way of life. When was the last time we went into a government organization and got through without paying a bribe? That's the problem, accepting that we are corrupt and living with it. We, the citizens of this great country have done a great disservice to our nation and are diluting its brand value oversees. People look at us as smart and industrious; but in the same breath say we cant be relied upon and are easily corruptible.
The first thing we have to change, and quickly is refuse to be corrupted and take accountability of our actions. The moment you realise that what you do matters to the country and you are in a very small way contributing to the brand India, you will know how to differentiate the right and wrong. Chinese are fiercely patriotic in this field. They know the don't deliver best of the goods (quality wise) but every person swears by Chinese goods. They don't have best of the governments but they still stand by it and don't like to hear people bad mouthing their government. They don't have free hand to express themselves but they don't complain and find ways to make the best of existing circumstances. If they can be proud of a nation that does not even give them freedom to vote, then why not us. Why are Indians the first to bad mouth our systems rather than making an effort to change them. Why are we the first in line to abuse our rights and break our laws then use our positions to get away with it. Why don't we realise that we are the "system" and its deficiencies are our deficiencies. Just ask yourself, if we the people of India don't work for our country.... who will ???
So long....
India was liberated from its colonial masters some 60 odd years ago. We are still a young democracy and have not yet perfected the art. There are sections of public life that are conducted as part of dynastic politics or personal fiefdom. There are many a loop holes in our "system" and no one denies that; but we are a great country despite these shortcomings. The constitution came into force in 1950 and our founding fathers put a lot of thought into the draft and kept it a live document rather than a snapshot of the past, meaning there have been constant amendments based on change of times. There are so many provisions of our constitution that we know not of, so many rights given to us that our masses don't exercise and the political class have done very little to sell brand India to its masses. Why are we so proud of America and its "system" while know very little of our own. We do not bother to know who our leaders are and what do they stand for, when the elections are held; but we know every single detail about the US president including his personal life and its gory details. Why are we so unwilling to contribute to our society and create and build brand India but more than willing to contribute to the research and economy of western nations. Its a sad state of affairs and being a proud Indian, I feel pity that 1.2 billion people are failing a great nation. We are split into people who are unaware of what they can do to help India and people who are unwilling to do anything for India.
Commonwealth games is an excellent example of the same. People like Suresh Kalmadi and his cronies knew what they had to deliver and on what timeline, some 8 years ago, yet they messed it up willfully. They failed their nation because they were unwilling to do what was required. The rest of us were so apathetic about athletic sports that we were unaware how we could help. Even now, we do not care to go and cheer our team when they are competing. Its people like us that allow the Suresh Kalmadi's to stick to an important post of IOA president for freaking 15 years, milking it dry of funds. I don't remember the last time India has won a medal in athletics, mostly because of lack of infrastructure and proper coaches and add to that corrupt officials who are willing to siphon off all the funds allocated for the players. The sad part is, this is not all that is wrong with us. There are so many ways corruption has crept into our systems that now we have began to accept it as a way of life. When was the last time we went into a government organization and got through without paying a bribe? That's the problem, accepting that we are corrupt and living with it. We, the citizens of this great country have done a great disservice to our nation and are diluting its brand value oversees. People look at us as smart and industrious; but in the same breath say we cant be relied upon and are easily corruptible.
The first thing we have to change, and quickly is refuse to be corrupted and take accountability of our actions. The moment you realise that what you do matters to the country and you are in a very small way contributing to the brand India, you will know how to differentiate the right and wrong. Chinese are fiercely patriotic in this field. They know the don't deliver best of the goods (quality wise) but every person swears by Chinese goods. They don't have best of the governments but they still stand by it and don't like to hear people bad mouthing their government. They don't have free hand to express themselves but they don't complain and find ways to make the best of existing circumstances. If they can be proud of a nation that does not even give them freedom to vote, then why not us. Why are Indians the first to bad mouth our systems rather than making an effort to change them. Why are we the first in line to abuse our rights and break our laws then use our positions to get away with it. Why don't we realise that we are the "system" and its deficiencies are our deficiencies. Just ask yourself, if we the people of India don't work for our country.... who will ???
So long....
Monday, September 13, 2010
Little victories......
Hello friends.. I recently heard a song which kinda made sense to me in many ways and I thought more people should hear about it that's why I am posting it here. Funny story, it gives out a different meaning to every reader depending on whats going on in your life. So enzoy.....
This time, I'll be sailing
No more bailing boats for me
I'll be out here on the sea
Just my confidence and me
And I'll be awful sometimes
Weakened to my knees
But I'll learn to get by
On the little victories
This time, I'll have no fear
I'll be standing strong and tall
Turn my back towards them all
I'll be awful sometimes
Weakened to my knees
I'll learn to get ; I'll learn to get by
On the little victories
And if the world decides to catch up with me
It's a little victory.
Here's to all the little victories of our lives that help us motor on despite all the setbacks and failures that we face. Cheerz :)
So long..
This time, I'll be sailing
No more bailing boats for me
I'll be out here on the sea
Just my confidence and me
And I'll be awful sometimes
Weakened to my knees
But I'll learn to get by
On the little victories
This time, I'll have no fear
I'll be standing strong and tall
Turn my back towards them all
I'll be awful sometimes
Weakened to my knees
I'll learn to get ; I'll learn to get by
On the little victories
And if the world decides to catch up with me
It's a little victory.
Here's to all the little victories of our lives that help us motor on despite all the setbacks and failures that we face. Cheerz :)
So long..
Thursday, September 9, 2010
Whatever I do is insignificant... but its important that I do it.
Hello guys, been reading a lot lately and came across this particular quote and I found it interesting. Add to that, another quote I heard President Obama use a lot, "Be the change you want to see in this world" and you have a recipe for a short story. Frankly, I do not idolise Barack Obama and I find the story of his life pretty regular, even though it may seem like "living the American dream" to many. However, I do like his views, the articulate manner in which he puts them forward and certain motivational quotes he uses from time to time in his speeches. I would pick one of them and give my 2 cents worth on the same.
Every time I think of doing something out of the regular, I used to ask myself will it matter to anyone what I do? Will anyone notice that I did a good thing towards XYZ ; will the world ever know my story. Turns out, no one cares what I do and no one is interested in it.. then should I go ahead and do it? I think I should, cos its important to me. Anna Hazare, the eternal crusader against corruption or say the countless NGOs that are working in India today, worked / work / will work despite the fact that people like us show general apathy towards the cause they take up. They do it to validate their beliefs and most importantly to be the change they want to see in this world.
Sister Teresa started the Missionaries of Charity at Calcutta when she was merely an 20 year old Nun. She used to go into the slums on Calcutta and try and nurse the poor and homeless. She had a small group of people assisting her and at that point of time. She neither had the financial or moral support to go on in this manner. Imagine, how many people must have told her to go back to her home country and run an educational institution, as most Nuns do. Imagine being in a foreign country; not knowing the language and going into the city's underbelly areas (normally infamous for shady activities) and trying to shelter the homeless; feed the hungry; clothe the poor and nurse the sick at cost of risking personal security. How many people would undergo so many adversities to take care of people you do not know, who are not even your country men with no publicity and with no one even bothering to ask "why are you doing this". Today, Missionaires of Charity is a renouned organization; Mother Teresa is a world citizen and soon the Vatican will grant her saint hood. But am sure if you asked Mother Teresa, she would say that she would have worked with same enthusiasm even without any recognition towards her work. That was because, she never did it for others to recognise, she did it to validate her inner call, to give the love of God to his less fortunate sons and daughters... most importantly to show respect towards human life.
Brings me to the original point, when we decide to do something, never think about how it is going to impact others; how many people will recognise the work, effort etc.. Always understand, whatever you do will always be insignificant at a world stage, but you must still go ahead and do it.. just for yourself... and for a fact that "If every person tries to be the change he wants in this world.. together, we can make this a better place for all" .....
So long .....
Every time I think of doing something out of the regular, I used to ask myself will it matter to anyone what I do? Will anyone notice that I did a good thing towards XYZ ; will the world ever know my story. Turns out, no one cares what I do and no one is interested in it.. then should I go ahead and do it? I think I should, cos its important to me. Anna Hazare, the eternal crusader against corruption or say the countless NGOs that are working in India today, worked / work / will work despite the fact that people like us show general apathy towards the cause they take up. They do it to validate their beliefs and most importantly to be the change they want to see in this world.
Sister Teresa started the Missionaries of Charity at Calcutta when she was merely an 20 year old Nun. She used to go into the slums on Calcutta and try and nurse the poor and homeless. She had a small group of people assisting her and at that point of time. She neither had the financial or moral support to go on in this manner. Imagine, how many people must have told her to go back to her home country and run an educational institution, as most Nuns do. Imagine being in a foreign country; not knowing the language and going into the city's underbelly areas (normally infamous for shady activities) and trying to shelter the homeless; feed the hungry; clothe the poor and nurse the sick at cost of risking personal security. How many people would undergo so many adversities to take care of people you do not know, who are not even your country men with no publicity and with no one even bothering to ask "why are you doing this". Today, Missionaires of Charity is a renouned organization; Mother Teresa is a world citizen and soon the Vatican will grant her saint hood. But am sure if you asked Mother Teresa, she would say that she would have worked with same enthusiasm even without any recognition towards her work. That was because, she never did it for others to recognise, she did it to validate her inner call, to give the love of God to his less fortunate sons and daughters... most importantly to show respect towards human life.
Brings me to the original point, when we decide to do something, never think about how it is going to impact others; how many people will recognise the work, effort etc.. Always understand, whatever you do will always be insignificant at a world stage, but you must still go ahead and do it.. just for yourself... and for a fact that "If every person tries to be the change he wants in this world.. together, we can make this a better place for all" .....
So long .....
Wednesday, September 8, 2010
An eye for an eye makes half the world blind...
'Retribution' is one of the strongest word in English dictionary not quite as strong as 'Forgiveness' , but still strong enough b'coz it is involved in a major chunk of criminal motives. We have always heard people commit horrendous crimes to get even with each other and that brings us to the original question, why is retribution so important to us ? In other words, why is getting even with each other so important that we end up losing our minds and in many cases end up losing our lives for it.
In an Interview to the Press in Karachi about the execution of Bhagat Singh (23 March 1931); Gandhi begins by making a statement on his failure "to bring about the commutation of the death sentence of Bhagat Singh and his friends." He is asked two questions. First: "Do you not think it impolitic to forgive a government which has been guilty of a thousand murders?" Gandhi replies: "I do not know a single instance where forgiveness has been found so wanting as to be impolitic." In a follow-up question, Gandhi is asked: "But no country has ever shown such forgiveness as India is showing to Britain?" Gandhi replies: "That does not affect my reply. What is true of individuals is true of nations. One cannot forgive too much. The weak can never forgive. Forgiveness is the attribute of the strong."
In today's world being a Gandhi and thinking like him is impractical, but if at one point in time we as a nation could forgive so many wrong doings of a foreign power then surely we can extend some bonhomie towards our own country men. Lets try walking past few bitter instances of life and dwelling on them, for life is all about living it up. If its impossible to forgive certain things in life, then we can surely let go of the person involved rather than seek mindless retribution. For once spake a great man, "An eye for an eye makes half the world blind"...
So long...
When someone does something wrong towards us, that person knows it and is in a way burning in the guilt of it, the retribution that we seek is only gives a chance to justify that person's action in the first place and gives them even more reason to hate you. This is a vicious cycle that will never end. Whats funny though, is that none of the parties involved dare to forgive and end the matter. Its a simple solution and it seeks your revenge too. The next time someone does wrong towards you, acknowledge the fact that the wrong was done and then forgive them. Trust me, the guilt of wrong doing burns in them and brings about a change of heart and change in attitude. Its not an immediate effect, but we all know that instant solutions have never solved the problems.
In an Interview to the Press in Karachi about the execution of Bhagat Singh (23 March 1931); Gandhi begins by making a statement on his failure "to bring about the commutation of the death sentence of Bhagat Singh and his friends." He is asked two questions. First: "Do you not think it impolitic to forgive a government which has been guilty of a thousand murders?" Gandhi replies: "I do not know a single instance where forgiveness has been found so wanting as to be impolitic." In a follow-up question, Gandhi is asked: "But no country has ever shown such forgiveness as India is showing to Britain?" Gandhi replies: "That does not affect my reply. What is true of individuals is true of nations. One cannot forgive too much. The weak can never forgive. Forgiveness is the attribute of the strong."
In today's world being a Gandhi and thinking like him is impractical, but if at one point in time we as a nation could forgive so many wrong doings of a foreign power then surely we can extend some bonhomie towards our own country men. Lets try walking past few bitter instances of life and dwelling on them, for life is all about living it up. If its impossible to forgive certain things in life, then we can surely let go of the person involved rather than seek mindless retribution. For once spake a great man, "An eye for an eye makes half the world blind"...
So long...
Friday, August 27, 2010
I gotta crush on Obama..
This song rang the ears of millions in the year 2007 /08 when the then Illinois senator Barack Obama was running for Presidential election primaries. The Obama campaign was marked by visits from many celebrities, but this song was kinda a cornerstone of the entire campaign and the "Obama gal" was present in many of his campaign trails.
Personally, having followed the campaign closely, I never gave Obama an outside chance to win the Democrat primaries.... let alone be elected the President of the United States. I had my reasons to believe that he was not a President material and him being black was not the one on my list. I remember having long discussions with my peers on his electability and the most colorful one I remember was from this guy Kwan; he said " the day a black man enters the White house, Ill run butt-naked on the school campus". That summed it up for me, it seemed the most obvious vote-bank of Barack Obama had more faith in Hillary Clinton than his candidature. People said all sort of things in the debates and the writing was on the wall.. if California and New York voted for Sen. Hillary Clinton, Obama would have no choice but retire. Guess what California and New York did vote for Hillary... rest is history.
Very few times in the history does an underdog perform, and many times you find the world cheering for an underdog to perform. The entire world was chanting "YES HE CAN" and come November 04 2008, history was made in America as Sen. Barack Obama became the first black president of the United States of America. I remember seeing millions of Americans in tears when he gave the acceptance speech and I also remember millions thronging the Capitol on 17 th Jan 2009 for his inauguration. World media covered this live..the first foe any US president.. and frankly, even before he officially took over as the President, Barack Obama seemed like the messiah who would shepherd the world out of many a crisis.
The message in this is not political.. not even a bit.. whether President Obama will stand the test of time and deliver, will he be the messiah the world hoped he would be, future holds the answers to these intricate questions. What we must understand is this, whenever in the history a great battle was won, it raised the hopes of millions that the victory will bring a new lease of life to humanity and it becomes the sacred obligation of the victor to serve this expectation to the best of his abilities.
So long.....
Personally, having followed the campaign closely, I never gave Obama an outside chance to win the Democrat primaries.... let alone be elected the President of the United States. I had my reasons to believe that he was not a President material and him being black was not the one on my list. I remember having long discussions with my peers on his electability and the most colorful one I remember was from this guy Kwan; he said " the day a black man enters the White house, Ill run butt-naked on the school campus". That summed it up for me, it seemed the most obvious vote-bank of Barack Obama had more faith in Hillary Clinton than his candidature. People said all sort of things in the debates and the writing was on the wall.. if California and New York voted for Sen. Hillary Clinton, Obama would have no choice but retire. Guess what California and New York did vote for Hillary... rest is history.
Very few times in the history does an underdog perform, and many times you find the world cheering for an underdog to perform. The entire world was chanting "YES HE CAN" and come November 04 2008, history was made in America as Sen. Barack Obama became the first black president of the United States of America. I remember seeing millions of Americans in tears when he gave the acceptance speech and I also remember millions thronging the Capitol on 17 th Jan 2009 for his inauguration. World media covered this live..the first foe any US president.. and frankly, even before he officially took over as the President, Barack Obama seemed like the messiah who would shepherd the world out of many a crisis.
The message in this is not political.. not even a bit.. whether President Obama will stand the test of time and deliver, will he be the messiah the world hoped he would be, future holds the answers to these intricate questions. What we must understand is this, whenever in the history a great battle was won, it raised the hopes of millions that the victory will bring a new lease of life to humanity and it becomes the sacred obligation of the victor to serve this expectation to the best of his abilities.
So long.....
Wednesday, August 25, 2010
Confessions of a dangerous mind....
All my life I stood by a code..Love your friends more than they deserve and harm your enemies more than they deserve. I was born this way.. not something I could change about myself but yeah.. that made me a dangerous person.. as if to say.. you better be in my good books or else..
Life seems to be slipping away lately.. and like all prized possessions, I wanna hold on to it.. just a little longer.. but life is just like sand held in your hands. the more you clench the fist..the more it slips away using the gaps.
There are days I wanna kill myself, there are days I wanna kill others.. am I crazy?? I think I am.. but this is me..
I was born cheerful and thats how it seemed Ill be all my life.. why did life take a cruel twist.. now I ll never smile again...
I did things for others.. that they never asked for.. but I did it all the same.. with no expectations.. little did I know expecting me to be treated as a human was a great expectation...
This life is over and it will never be the same again... will it matter.. I dont think so.. not to the world.. not even to the person who meant the world to me...
Some emotions are better bottled up.. some emotions are better let go.. I have one... its gonna live with me forever... does this mean I stop living.. nah.. life is beautiful...
So long...
Life seems to be slipping away lately.. and like all prized possessions, I wanna hold on to it.. just a little longer.. but life is just like sand held in your hands. the more you clench the fist..the more it slips away using the gaps.
There are days I wanna kill myself, there are days I wanna kill others.. am I crazy?? I think I am.. but this is me..
I was born cheerful and thats how it seemed Ill be all my life.. why did life take a cruel twist.. now I ll never smile again...
I did things for others.. that they never asked for.. but I did it all the same.. with no expectations.. little did I know expecting me to be treated as a human was a great expectation...
This life is over and it will never be the same again... will it matter.. I dont think so.. not to the world.. not even to the person who meant the world to me...
Some emotions are better bottled up.. some emotions are better let go.. I have one... its gonna live with me forever... does this mean I stop living.. nah.. life is beautiful...
So long...
Tuesday, August 24, 2010
The irony of my life....
10-September-2010
Today is the last day of my life.. how do I know; cos I plan to end it today. I always felt life was not fair to me; I got a raw deal and frankly I am fed up. I will put an end to this fooling around and get some peace of mind at last. I will never have to wonder why bad things happen to good people; never have to wonder why life plays a trick where in it gives me a taste of goodness and then ruthlessly takes it all away. Life teaches us all a lesson... maybe my lesson was "life is ruthless.. end it".. and so I decided that this would be my last day.
I woke up in the morning and realized that this would be special.. no other days in calendar meant more than this day.. I wanted to enjoy all things in life before I say my byes tonight. I quickly freshened up because I didn't want to lose any minute of my last day. All throughout there was a realization in my mind that whatever I am doing was the last time in my life.I rushed to work. I told my boss that I wanted to leave early as I am planning to go on a long vacation. I took up all the work at my desk and cleared it. I was working efficiently and quick. I said my byes to my colleagues before I left...little did they know they will never see me again.. ever !!!
I got out at 2 pm There were so many things to do, one last time. I went and bought myself an expensive perfume and some nice jeans. Hell I wanted to look and smell good when they found my body. I was secretly laughing at the credit card company as I was never planning on clearing the bill ;). I went to Subway and ordered my favorite meat-ball sub.….yummm!! This is one thing I would miss. I ate my lunch leisurely and left. Damn. it was 5 pm already, just 7 hours to go and lots to do.. I reached home and quickly prepared the note. I also left all my belongings to a certain charity and some clothes to be sent to my parents as memories.
When I was done, I realized I always wanted to go to a pub and have a drink, omething I resisted all my life. I drove to the nearby pub and ordered one large drink. As I sat there sipping my drink slowly, my entire life flashed in front of my eyes. People whom I loved, people who loved me, parents, relatives, friends all the good times.. I was going to miss all of this, but it was time I left this world. It was decided. Then her face flashed in front of my eyes. I loved those eyes the most, I remember telling her that they give me zest to live.... it was ironic that those eyes will be the last thing that will flash in my mind... I slowly picked myself and walked to the parking lot. It was 9 pm. I still had to call my mom one last time, tell her how much I loved her and what she means to me. She would not forgive me but lately I was more of a liability to her than an asset. I am sorry mom I have to go. After an hour long chat with her, I felt at ease. I felt I said all things I had to tell her. I talked to my dad too.
As I drove out of the parking lot, I hit a kid. He was there all evening wiping car windows and was having shut-eye. I quickly picked him up and drove to a nearby hospital. While seated beside me, he told me that he was born to a drug addict mother. His mom was 16 when she had him and he had never seen his father. From a very young age he learnt to live by himself and take care of his mom for whom he never existed. I asked him how it feels to love and take care of a person who doesn't even acknowledge his presence, and he was quick to retort." She doesn't remember I am her son, but I do. Isn’t that enough ?". I was shaken to the core. Here I was complaining about life being harsh to me and this kid, who had never seen what love was in his entire life, was out all night earning to support himself and taking care of his mother.
I was having second thoughts on ending my life, all of sudden this kid had given me some perspective. Life was always worth living. No matter in what situation you were. I reached my apartment at 11:45 pm and quickly tore my suicide note into shreds and flushed it down the drain. I thanked God for making me realize the value of life and how I would cherish the rest of my days. Then I drank some water and as I lay in bed planning to start afresh the next day..... I realized I was planning to kill myself consuming cyanide pills and that I had mixed it with the glass of water on my bedside.. As the last few breaths left my body, I realized that life was ironic... I wanted to kill myself for so long and death did not come to me... it gave me a taste of life and then as I was enjoying it... it ruthlessly snatched it from me.... again !!!
So long...
Today is the last day of my life.. how do I know; cos I plan to end it today. I always felt life was not fair to me; I got a raw deal and frankly I am fed up. I will put an end to this fooling around and get some peace of mind at last. I will never have to wonder why bad things happen to good people; never have to wonder why life plays a trick where in it gives me a taste of goodness and then ruthlessly takes it all away. Life teaches us all a lesson... maybe my lesson was "life is ruthless.. end it".. and so I decided that this would be my last day.
I woke up in the morning and realized that this would be special.. no other days in calendar meant more than this day.. I wanted to enjoy all things in life before I say my byes tonight. I quickly freshened up because I didn't want to lose any minute of my last day. All throughout there was a realization in my mind that whatever I am doing was the last time in my life.I rushed to work. I told my boss that I wanted to leave early as I am planning to go on a long vacation. I took up all the work at my desk and cleared it. I was working efficiently and quick. I said my byes to my colleagues before I left...little did they know they will never see me again.. ever !!!
I got out at 2 pm There were so many things to do, one last time. I went and bought myself an expensive perfume and some nice jeans. Hell I wanted to look and smell good when they found my body. I was secretly laughing at the credit card company as I was never planning on clearing the bill ;). I went to Subway and ordered my favorite meat-ball sub.….yummm!! This is one thing I would miss. I ate my lunch leisurely and left. Damn. it was 5 pm already, just 7 hours to go and lots to do.. I reached home and quickly prepared the note. I also left all my belongings to a certain charity and some clothes to be sent to my parents as memories.
When I was done, I realized I always wanted to go to a pub and have a drink, omething I resisted all my life. I drove to the nearby pub and ordered one large drink. As I sat there sipping my drink slowly, my entire life flashed in front of my eyes. People whom I loved, people who loved me, parents, relatives, friends all the good times.. I was going to miss all of this, but it was time I left this world. It was decided. Then her face flashed in front of my eyes. I loved those eyes the most, I remember telling her that they give me zest to live.... it was ironic that those eyes will be the last thing that will flash in my mind... I slowly picked myself and walked to the parking lot. It was 9 pm. I still had to call my mom one last time, tell her how much I loved her and what she means to me. She would not forgive me but lately I was more of a liability to her than an asset. I am sorry mom I have to go. After an hour long chat with her, I felt at ease. I felt I said all things I had to tell her. I talked to my dad too.
As I drove out of the parking lot, I hit a kid. He was there all evening wiping car windows and was having shut-eye. I quickly picked him up and drove to a nearby hospital. While seated beside me, he told me that he was born to a drug addict mother. His mom was 16 when she had him and he had never seen his father. From a very young age he learnt to live by himself and take care of his mom for whom he never existed. I asked him how it feels to love and take care of a person who doesn't even acknowledge his presence, and he was quick to retort." She doesn't remember I am her son, but I do. Isn’t that enough ?". I was shaken to the core. Here I was complaining about life being harsh to me and this kid, who had never seen what love was in his entire life, was out all night earning to support himself and taking care of his mother.
I was having second thoughts on ending my life, all of sudden this kid had given me some perspective. Life was always worth living. No matter in what situation you were. I reached my apartment at 11:45 pm and quickly tore my suicide note into shreds and flushed it down the drain. I thanked God for making me realize the value of life and how I would cherish the rest of my days. Then I drank some water and as I lay in bed planning to start afresh the next day..... I realized I was planning to kill myself consuming cyanide pills and that I had mixed it with the glass of water on my bedside.. As the last few breaths left my body, I realized that life was ironic... I wanted to kill myself for so long and death did not come to me... it gave me a taste of life and then as I was enjoying it... it ruthlessly snatched it from me.... again !!!
So long...
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