The Vagary

Throughout the write-up:
A=Anonymous
F=A’s friend
(Over phone)

A : What do you think of XYZ’s (third friend) decision?

F : I didn’t get you..

A : I mean, do you think he’s right?

F : hhhmmm…..well….the coin has two sides. The dilemma of what to do and what not to, was troubling him. Even the phlegmatic wind had no effect. One part was saying to maintain
the candor n the other was suggesting to keep mum. A situation like this, where heart and mind become poles apart, is painful.

A : yeah….I met him a couple of days back. His soul seemed to be torn in two parts. He was sitting on the fence!!

F : Right. And today, we’re aware of his decision.

A : I wonder how people struggle through the odds and arrive at a conclusion!! And that too…..
(gets interrupted by F)

F : Sorry buddy, another call’s waiting. I’ll catch u later…..buh-bye!!

A : Okay….cya.
(Telecom disconnected. A yawns.)

A (to himself) : I wonder, I really wonder….how….zZ…..zzzzZZZZZ……I’m feeling sleepy…..it’s already 1 a.m. ….O’Lord , bless me!!....zzzZZZ.


( A is fast asleep)

Where am I going? It’s all dark here. I can’t see anyone. (Suddenly, the path brightens up resembling the arena of mind.) I had been here several times. I know this place. Yes,yes….I had been here before.

(There were some huge pillars forming a circle. They were : Humbleness, Selfishness, Love, Sadness, Attitude, Humour, Philanthropist, Anger, Betrayal, Boastfulness, Rebellion, Hatred, Happiness, Jealousy, Arrogance and Peace-the Queen, was at the centre. A was standing near the Queen.)

Oh, hello everyone!! I’ve travelled a long way…right from my heart to this brainy mesh. I need help to get out of the obfuscation. That’s why I’m at the other end of this jugular vein. My heart says something else and now the ball’s in your court. Help me!!

Humbleness : You are welcomed, sir. I think you should low-down yourself.

A (looking straight) : Right…..

Attitude (A is turning 90 deg to rt) : No, not at all. Why should you?? There’s no one superior to you. You are your own boss. Nobody can order you.

Humour (A , to the next rt one) : That’s right, no, that’s wrong. After all, Humpty Dumpty sat on a wall. Humpty Dumpty had a great fall. Ha ha ha…

A : he he he …very true….

Selfishness (A turning 90 deg to left) : Oh, just shut up you ass!! Hey, listen to me. No need to think much. Just do whatever is in your favour. And enjoy your life.

A : But…..

Arrogance( A turns to rt. of humour) : I agree. At the end of the day, you are the only deserved candidate in the long run. You are presumptuous.

Philanthropist(A turns 180 deg) : What nonsense!! Pay attention here. These guys are leading you the wrong way. Life is for others. You should think of others before yourself, always.

(Anonymous is now feeling the real heat…..head’s spinning….)

Anger( A’s turning to left of previous) : I don’t want to hear anything hereafter. You just go for it. Give the situation a tight slap……tit for tat.

Betrayal( A turns to left of previous) : But no need to let the other person know. Keep a low profile, understand?

Love(A turns diametrically opposite) : Pyar deewana hota hai mastaana hota hai ; har khushi se, har ghum se, begaana hota hai…..

Sadness(A turns to left of Love) : I really pity your sight. But what can be done? Everything is so painful…no one to care.


Rebellion(A is turning to opp. Direction) : What rubbish!! Why to care when others don’t? You want what u wish and you have the right to do it your way. If not,give a punch…

A : But it’s wicked….

Boastfulness(A turns to rt. of previous) : Huh…now just end this commotion. I know the solution. A is very strong. No worries, no pains. Actually, never had one. Can tackle the problem as if it were a child’s play.

A : I don’t think so…

Hatred(A’s head movement towards rt.) : This is not the end. The world around you is insane. Don’t be compassionate or else you’ll end up being a loser. Keep a distance. No one is yours. Remember!!

(Anonymous’ neck is paining coz of the jerks)

Happiness(A turns to RHS) : No matter who you are and how you live. These things don’t bother people. They are not going to remember such daft things. The only thing they’ll remember is how you made them feel. Spread happiness all around and the world is yours and everything in it..

Jealousy(A turns to RHS) : If you are not getting anything, don’t let others enjoy. Snatch away everything you can….


A : How can I think….(interrupted)

Peace(A pays attention to the centre) : Silence everyone!! Listen child. These are bound to make you unstable. First attain your stability n then arrive at a decision. I suggest you to choose the dexterous among these . Make it stand if front of your heart. Weigh them. Go with the strongest. Wish you luck on your return journey.

Thanks a lot!! This was the path I came from. It’s bright. I can still see the way….Oh no, no, no….It has become dark again…..where’s the light??....I can’t see the way….where am I going??.......where am I????....whereeeeee???

ALARM : It’s morning! It’s morning! Wake up!! Good morning!!

A : What was that?? I’m OK…I’m fine…. What a dreamy reality!!
(gets up…rubs eyes, trying to see the sunlight coming through the window pane. Sits straight with hands joined, looking upwards..)

O’ Lord, thank you for this beautiful day. I don’t know whether there is going to be a situation like this in my life. But give me the courage to face it n emerge as a true winner. Amen.

Come on….get to work….yet another day….
There shall be showers of blessings……

Labyrinth of Faith

The following lines express the feelings of an old man who, at every stage of his life, finds himself vexing between two ends; not able to trust anybody or choose the dexterous stuff. The whole write-up, in the form of a poem, takes the reader through all the obvious happenings of one’s life.
Disclaimer:All characters appearing in this work are fictitious. Any resemblance to real persons, living or dead, is purely coincidental.


Again a new beginning,
Again a new day,
But I know this wait,
Will end in the labyrinth of faith.

The story started way back,
When I enjoyed being on my mother’s lap,
And others’ efforts to lure, went in a pack,
As I doubted their every knack.

The days of crawling were gone,
Came hurriedly the ebullient storm,
which carried with it, different norms,
About people, surroundings and sweet corns.

I made many pals in my school days,
But wonder about the wrong chase,
Never took seriously that important phase,
Which bought along with it, misguiding rays.

Then came the moments of flamboyant juvenile,
Which had ambitions longer than the Nile.
Mind knew that it had to go miles,
But ignoring the spurious files from the old pile.

The course of life was diverting at every act of distrust,
And so I had to remove the surfeit dust,
In order to prevent the new poppings from rust.
And then I understood that it is a must.

Shades of light started changing,
I heard bees humming,
Also saw the flowers blooming,
Felt like promulgating.

Was waiting for the only one,
With whom life would be an absolute fun.
Didn’t know that in the course of such sate
I would find myself in the labyrinth of faith.

Understanding, understanding and more understanding,
Felt like the world was revolving,
Finally found one soul blending,
And I started subliming.

Everything was in place,
When I was enjoying with her, life’s every race,
One day she withdrew her pace,
As I laid her soul at rest taking with me, her adorable face.

Now this old heart doesn’t allow that perfect gait,
There is strength, neither to gape nor to wait,
This soul pleads for a peaceful state,
Through the heaven’s gate.

I’m skeptical about the Almighty’s wish,
Don’t know what will be in His wand’s swish,
But when I think of His majestic lathe,
I find myself in the labyrinth of faith.

Que Sera, Sera

They say, full stop is not the real end. Very true as far as human emotions are concerned.But at the same time we have a priori intimations coming our way. The more we try to avoid, the more they follow us. To Emote is the strongest tool a human possesses. Imagine a day when u’ll be devoid of ur emotions. A paragon of inferno!! Don’t believe it? Give it a try and the realization will make u ponder why man is at the apex?!?! Talking about emotion, it again is a Pandora’s box – full of surprises. What comes after, is hard to tell. Happiness, sadness, excitement, candor, vilification etc, etc…….the list goes on. Every time a new popping!!

A very crass but true muttering is – “WHY ME?? “ which is the outcome of setbacks: back-to-back. When we talk about the alpha and omega of the journey called life, both the ends are uncontrollable and unconquerable. The remaining(the middle one) phase is under our supervision.

It’s not so important to add years to your life as it’s to add life to your years. Difficulties are bound to come (in the form of situations, people who try to demoralize …..), but how one faces it, is imperative. It is not at all true that all the hell’s fury was bestowed upon one. It was just the testing time to make the tree stronger when heavy wind blew, to make it firmly rooted at the time of crises. Just lamenting over the issue that the day/month/year was an awry, is not a good sign (though we r helpless at times….:-(). Agreed that things do go wrong, but still, for some good! I remember the Murphy’s law which says that “Anything that can go wrong, will go wrong.” No matter who u r and what u do.

Another facet is the Mea Culpa where acknowledgement gets eulogized. Believe me, it needs a brave heart! The problem is not that there is a problem. The problem is thinking that having a problem is a problem. Keeping this attitude really helps combating failures. But while doing so, one thought which keeps hammering is “why was this supposed to happen to me?” And at this juncture we r forlorn n avoid interactions. The other side of the coin speaks differently. I’ve never heard a Nobel Prize winner asking – “why me?”, or for that matter, any individual receiving prestigious positions, handlings, responsibilities, etc. That is probably because “self” gets enveloped by the merriment around. A paradigm which explains the ecstasy of life follows:
Arthur Ashe, the legendary Wimbledon player was dying of AIDS which he got due to infected blood he received during a heart surgery in 1983.
From world over, he received letters from his fans, one of which conveyed : “why does God have to select u for such a bad disease?”
To this Arthur Ashe replied:
The world over-
50 million children start playing tennis,
5 million learn to play tennis,
5 hundred thousand learn professional tennis,
50,000 come to the circuit,
5000 reach the Grand Slam,
50 reach Wimbledon,
4 to semi final,
2 to the finals,
When I was holding a cup – I never asked God “why me?” and today in pain I should not be asking God “why me?”

The worth of living explained within the small window said a lot!! Frustration, anger are things which harm us without our permission. If it’s gonna happen, it will. Everything’s decided. We r just puppets(emotional, of course).Now that doesn’t mean we start taking things lightly. Matured thinking is needed. So rather than wasting the much stored energy in mourning, it’s always better to be cheerful and accept the truth coz :
Everything that happens, happens for good!!

People who 'LOOK' are many, People who 'SEE' are rare..

"Hah!…..are u kidding? What can b d difference between the two infinitives – ‘to look’ and ‘to see’?” This may b d question with which I may b greeted for the first time I throw it. If I say so, then it’s obvious that I need to provide, all those reading this, with a justification. Done! And I’m sure, u’ll be satisfied. But in case u’re not , u’re free to express.
So, I begin with the scenarios these two things have. When anybody makes a statement, the first thing which strikes our mind is, the usage. And it automatically converges at it’s grammatical meaning. By uttering these two words and using them in sentences , people hardly know their respective meanings. This group of people includes even our most trusted teachers in schools and colleges (avoid if it’s not true with u). I was talking about the two faces of the words. Here we go….
1. Grammar
When I say ‘look’, the verb here means that the person being commanded is supposed to visualize or observe the things around him/her. Whereas, when I say ‘see’, it means that I’m pointing at some specified location. And this holds the key. The difference is in perception. ‘Look’ refers to all directions without specification and ‘See’ refers to a specific thing. The true meaning of ‘see’ is to perceive mentally. Agreed that they are synonyms but differ in deep meanings. This explanation is shorter and bereft of complications. Next comes the deft process as it involves functioning of minds with brains.
2. Abstruse
Under this category comes all the world’s pleasures right from beginning a thing to it’s completion. Still misunderstood by many;-) Anyway, whenever we meet a person, a dichotomy of his/her existence is made by us. Reason - to know them well. Truly speaking, it is essential also. For we cannot trust anyone without testing (law of nature…..u follow it or not is purely ur wish). Now, to test a person u need to know about him/her. This is where the importance of the two words discussed above comes into action. I totally disagree with the most believed Bon Mot: “The first impression is the last impression”. How can a person judge another on his/her first meet?? Some of the common emotions after the first meet are:
-‘Kya banda/bandi hai yaar!!...”
-“Is he/she insane??..”
-“A total gone cassssseeee…”
-“Did u ever hear him/her say-YOU CAN??”
I think the list is enough for the time being. Did u notice the common thread? The certainty in speech. Though they are not at times, but mostly they’re the same. People waste their time in trying to find all the wrongs in a person as much as they can. This refers to ’Look’. All that is not specified ,but evident. Haywire. But the other side of the coin is much more interesting. The positives. And this refers to ‘See’. I strongly believe that every person born on this earth possesses some or the other kind of good within. No matter how hard or boisterous he/she is while portraying self. The fault rests with the circumstances, company, dearth of cheer in living, etc. To ameliorate self is the only way out. This is the remedy for one side. The other side i.e. people who observe are needed to ‘see’ others. Extol the needed ,the beauty of it. To chastise others is simple but when it comes to self , it becomes the hardest, toughest thing in life.

Keeping all the things aside, for some time, it’s the ATTITUDE which matters the most as it makes the 100% . (If we start numbering the alphabets from A,B,C…… Z as 1,2,3….26 then we find that ATTITUDE adds up to 100.The only attribute of a human being which satisfies the 100% mark. All the rest are less than 100.)You know people better, the stronger you get hold of them. Start analyzing things . It really helps. Hope for an increase in the number of people who ’SEE’………..

Indeed a Pity....

We come across myriad happenings in our day-to-day lives. What effect they have on us or our mental status is imperative....We have different types of people thinking differently.......Also human nature can b categorised as:
1. People who want to do, but can't.
2. People who can do, but don't want to.
3. People who can't.
4. People who think they can do and go for it diligently.
5. People who believe in themselves and accomplish their tasks.


Now,to which category one belongs, is the real issue.Every coin has two sides. If we consider it right from the grass-root level then it'll really help figure out the mistake. The topic in which I'm interested to discuss, is very subtle, but in the present scenario ,necessarily needed.

Every single deed we carry out daily, or be it any joyful moment, any sad news, any act of criticism, any noble deed - there's always one thing which brightens the view(for a certain group of people..)- RELIGION. To which religion one belongs decides the person's whole being (ridiculous!!!...). This has become the common(frankly speaking,CRASS...) attitude of people from every background - impecunious,affluent,bourgeois......The question to be asked is - WHY??.....and the answer lies in our teachings. I don't remember any moment other than the 1947 struggle when people from different regions became ONE,fought together and freed our nation. And the ultimate end was - Tears of immense joy......This is what, feeling of oneness all about. And see the scenario today. We are proud to be a part of a nation having diverse cultures, but why is this diversity resulting in revenge and malice towards our fellow countrymen?? Why can't people think with their own brains?? Why is their an influential effect when it comes to moral convictions??WHY???


We have our respected politicians (the so-called leaders) who(not all) are best at fooling people, and we people, easily fall prey to their utterings.
How can one forget the Godhra riots? The major thing which spread like a wildfire was - HINDUS Vs MUSLIMS. We also have the example of destruction of houses in Orissa due to the HINDU-CHRISTIAN outrage. The list is endless............



Now, the matter of concern is - National Integrity. How can we save our nation from outside threats when we have disputes within?? Let's have a look at some instances :
- A small quarrel taking the form of a major fight at a railway station and spectators enjoying it just because the people involved in fighting are no one to us.

- Two kids enjoying their freedom and playing joyfully are suddenly seen apart just because their parents are not feeling the needed compatibility.

- Two souls loving each other are left to face the annoyance of the world, reason being - they do not belong to the same caste or creed.


Aren't these paradigms thought provoking? We all take them mildly but the effects which they have are affecting our lives some or the other way. I would like to remind all 'honorable' people that the basic teaching of moral science, which we learn during primary education, is - " All men are equal." The Almighty has created us equal then who are we to discriminate? Even then, educated people are the torch-bearers. The real meaning of democracy gets camouflaged under the illusions of negativity.


To tackle with these problems, the necessity is - thinking practically,really. The actual motive of every soul should be to give his/her best till he/she survives on this earth. And to accomplish this , the thing which is needed is : self-belief. The right thing, done at the right time, with the right attitude always returns the rightful. People come and go but what lives forever is their doings. Birds of sorrow hover around us, but it's upto us whether we allow them to build nests above our heads or not.

"As u sow, so shall u reap".It's now or never. Let's think of the time 20-25 years from now. What the GenNext should follow is to spread love and affection among their countrymen rather than looking at others with hatred. For this, it is essential to open our minds(not brains coz it knows calculations..;-)) to think what is right & just . People who are busy in making plans of converting INDIA of INDIANS into INDIA of HINDUS should have a look at the golden pages of history which scream out the power of BROTHERHOOD. Agreed that there are some who are never to be forgiven but that doesn't mean that the entire pool is of no use. So, wise people will definitely try to strengthen 'The unity in Diversity' and for the others - do consider the benevolence of man and contribute in making our country a better place to live in......

It's indeed a pity currently but every cloud has a silver lining !!!

The changing nature of CHANGE

Change is for good……?!?!......nah!……not always……it’s d reflection of your being. Considering everything with both the angles is what life-cycle all about. I’ve seen many people changing their state of minds ,often. The reason being –nothing special, just for fun or jeopardy. Choice is individualistic. If it’s for the benevolent side of man, always just ; but if the other way round, beware!!

Well, I think the problem is not going for a change, the problem is the way to go for it. If it’s giving u cheers, continue with it. But if it’s affecting your true-self, no use going ahead.

Analysis holds the key. I remember Meredith’s dictum-“We are betrayed by what is false within”. Knowing the true-self will definitely help ameliorate the real YOU.

Many attributes contribute to this change. The philistine attitude is going to lure, at some point of time, for sure. And this is the real test. It’s upto us- to be agnostic or compromise. I totally agree with the idea of taking chance(with every door opened cautiously..). Give it a try. Things are coming your way that means change is for good. The story is showing a different picture that means change is not for good. Live life to its fullest. Enjoy the sweetness, keep sourness at bay.

Afterall, a NO with conviction is better than a flattered YES.