Tuesday, June 29, 2010

जिन्हें नाज़ है हिंद पर वो कहाँ हैं ?


यों खड़ा मौकतल में कातिल कह रहा है बार-बार,
क्या तमन्ना-ए-शहादत भी किसी के दिल में है ?

The moment I landed here in Thailand, the greenery, the cleanliness ,the beautifully decorated houses and malls and the smooth roads caught my eyes. The land of smiles, the land of elephants and of course the most amazing land is Thailand.

People of this alien land are cool, peace loving, and polite. They quite often giggle for no reason, may be to prove that they are from the land of smiles. Whenever i look at the beautifully trimmed shrubs and neatly mowed lawns with Palm trees, I always become nostalgic thinking of my beautiful Kerala.

The smooth roads reminds me our former prime minister A B Bajpai, who used to say that beautiful roads are a sign of prospering country. I found the land a perfect blend of European and Asian culture .

Gradually i started mingling with my own Indian folk residing here. I was too happy to find too many well educated women here as friends. Architects, doctors, engineers, CA, MBA s and professors friends. Unfortunately they all had to compromise with their career and opt for being here for the sake of husband's job and family. Anyways i started enjoying their company with long conversations in evenings.

The euphoria didn't last for long. It was my turn to discover the bitter realities associated with expats here. Men were busy with their jobs and minting money. Women were forced to pick up something of choice that can keep them busy and engaged. Unfortunately there were not many options to engage with , so a bigger lot of educated women got busy with kitty parties or gossiping in the beautiful parks in the evenings. What a waste of education !

Anyways, i couldn't adopt the social norm prevalent here among Indians, so i preferred to stay back at home in my solitude and with my only companion, my laptop and internet. Neighbors and acquaintances here started labeling me as unsocial and a loner, but i was comfortable with this adjustment.

On and off, sparingly first and later frequently i get to hear by my fellow Indians that India is bad. Not a place worth living, too much of population, corruption, filth, crime, lack of discipline, sense of responsibility , no respect for time and sincerity and so on.

Once ,a friend said, " See, how quick the service here is. Just in 5 minutes of phone call, they deliver a gas cylinder. I advocated- Can't you appreciate that in a poor country like India, with huge population, every person is availing the facility of having two LPG cylinders?. But they ignored my point.

When i purchase drinking water [45 baht per bottle of Neptune ] and spend roughly 3000 baht per month on water only, i think of our India where we get gallons of water free of cost.

When a Thai person talks politely with Indians here, they get mesmerized by their modest behavior. But i start missing my country people there ,who in majority are still polite, modest, humble and smiling against all odds.

To my utter surprise i found every second Indian here criticizing India and Indians. I was kind of tired and disappointed over such reactions of my own people about their own motherland. How one can stop loving one's own Mother?. And do we have the right to criticize India when we , ourselves are not giving our services to our own country ?

'You can take an Indian out of India, but you cannot take out Indian-ness out of Indians "

The spell is broken now.

Being nostalgic and sad somewhere, i am humming the following lines....

ओ देस से आने वाले बता, ओ देस से आने वाले बता
किस हाल मे है यारां-ए-वतन, वो बाग-ए-वतन, फिरदौस वतन
ओ देस से आने वाले बता, ओ देस से आने वाले बता

क्या अब भी वहाँ के बागों में मस्ताना हवाएं आती हैं
क्या अब भी वहाँ के पर्बतपर घनघोर घटाएं छाती हैं
क्या अब भी वहाँ की बरखायें वैसे ही दिलों को भाती है
ओ देस से आने वाले बता, ओ देस से आने वाले बता

क्या अब भी मेहकते मंदिर से नाकूस की आवाज आती है
क्या अब भी मुकदस मस्जिद पर मस्ताना अज़ान थर्राती है
क्या अब भी वहाँ के पनघट पर पनहारियां पानी भरती है
अंगडाई का नक्शा बन बन कर, सब माथे पे गागर धरती है
और अपने घरों को जाते हुएं हसती हुयीं चुहलें करती है
करती है?
ओ देस से आने वाले बता, ओ देस से आने वाले बता..

Sunday, June 27, 2010

राजनीति - The Dirty politics

Rajniti is a must see movie by Prakash Jha. It is a realistic movie.In the film , director has beautifully portrayed the character of men and women. I admire the writer and producer for wonderfully presenting the sad state of politics, the lure of power, the ignorance among common people,the sick mentality, misuse of power and money and the negligible role of women in society.

A woman [Bharti],who is fascinated by a man. She respects and trusts him . He takes undue advantage of her submission and leaves her pregnant. He runs away from her after making her life miserable.

Bharti who is rich, educated and independent in her views,rebelled against her father and joined the rival party. But she turns into ashes by the cruel mockery of someone loved and trusted by her. Her life ends with the decision of marrying and settling down without raising a voice against injustice done to her.

Another face of man is beautifully revealed when Samar ensures his elder brother's marriage with his own beloved for sake of money and power. He mocked her sentiments to achieve success in his dirty motives of gaining fund by her father and winning the election.

Here Indu [Katrina] is being used and traded by her father and lover. Later again they used her to save the party and asked her to take reigns of the political party which she accepts without resisting. The woman she portrayed is pathetic and disappointing. How and why she chose to be a puppet in the hands of a handful of men.

The three women,Bharti,Indu and Sarah were all rich and well educated, but badly used by the men [their own father ,brother and lover]. They allowed them to misuse them by going blind towards the filth they carried in their mind. The three of them compromised with the circumstances and gladly continued to live with the wolves in their respective families. These women who had all the riches on earth , couldn't contain the urge to stay away from luxuries, nor they anywhere tried to object the unfair games their family members were into. Indu accepted being an escape goat. The two rich and powerful families united at the cost of an innocent woman.

Why women are so dumb and naive? Why they do not bother to take their own decisions. Why they surrender before the wolves? As the movie progressed , men were all blinded by the money and power and they turned into criminals to retaliate the rivals. The revenge and lure of power was endless.

The pathetic state of women in our society is revealed beautifully. Since time immemorial, women were gifted, exchanged and married off shrewdly to achieve their hidden targets. Draupadi was kept on stake to win the game. Jodha was married to Akhbar, just to save the kingdom. Now after centuries even, the status of women is miserably similar. Indu type of women are made chief minister. Did she achieve this by her own caliber? How long women will continue living like slaves and being treated like commodity? Fathers, brothers and friends must stop trading their daughters and sisters.

In the movie Samar [Rajveer], returns from abroad and uses his intellect in playing with emotions and killing his own countrymen. Later when he lost the battle he returns to America to live in peace after playing Mahabharata in his own country. I wonder why such wolves come to India to make us more miserable and what our children are gaining by the education abroad? What kind of traitors we are nurturing? Damn ! The brain drain.

Sharing one more disturbing thought here. In the movie another bitter reality is revealed . Muslim voters are sold and the deal finalized in 50 crores. My question to my Muslim brothers and sisters,"How long they will be on sale , playing with the democracy of their own country India ?"

Giving rest to my thoughts with accolades to Prakash Jha.

Sunday, June 20, 2010

Men versus women !

Many times I have heard of 'India versus England', Kangaroo versus kiwi' and so on but to my utter surprise, topic of "men versus women" is on top in our society.

Can anyone explain me how the two human species are different from each other?. If we talk of anatomy of the two, indeed we are different but otherwise we are equal and each others' strength.

It is a futile effort to prove our gender superior or equal. Equality or anything else lies in our head only. The day we will start respecting each others' wishes, dreams, desires, virtues, caliber and personal space, everything can be set right.

Quite often I wonder which one is bigger or more significant-

My Mother or my Father?
My sister or my brother?
My daughter or my son?
My friend Sanjay or my friend Sarika?
My husband or myself?
Male bloggers or the female ones?
Dr. Manmohan Singh is more capable or our president Pratibha Patil?
Kalpana Chawla or Rakesh Sharma?
Dr Divya or Dr Hiten?


I tried hard but failed to see anyone lesser than the other one by an iota even.


Why these comparisons always? Can't we accept each other in totality with their natural attributes and capacities. Cannot we live peacefully together? After all we are sharing the same planet earth. Why do we need to prove that we are from different planets Mars and Venus, every time.

" Unity is strength ". Hope we all are aware of this. Why can't we believe in this simple proverb. A wife and husband together constitutes a beautiful relationship. All the relationships are just offshoots. When we look at our parents, we always feel proud of them and see them as our role models. Can't we be like them?.

If a father takes lot of pains to give the best education and wishes best for his daughter, then the same should be carried forward by a husband as well for the same girl who is his wife now. Likewise a girl who always adored her mother and respected her for being so loving with her father must give all the respect and love to her husband .

It is quite natural that a well qualified man looks for an equally qualified woman as his spouse. So he must prepare his mind that he must adapt himself with the trivial troubles arising in looking after the kids and household chores if she is also working. Share every responsibility together.

Nine months of gestation is assigned to women, but a man must wait eagerly to look after the baby for the next nine months and share the responsibility equally. Is it
a big deal guys?. Men and women can easily contribute in each others domain. Just a little will is required.

Women must boycott reservations in all spheres. They should not be lured by such mirages. Reservations are outright insults of women folk. If we have to move ahead, we ought to prove our worth by our actions .

" A woman who rocks the cradle can rule the world also ". It is proven now.

Time is changing , so are the people. Let us welcome the changes with a positive mindset. We cannot achieve anything by being bitter with the other half.

Respect each others personal space and give importance to small-small desires your spouse has.

Being a woman, my appeal to all the wonderful men is to extend your support to your wives in fulfilling their dreams. Make their dreams come true.

She expects silently...

Lovingly quoting my husband's signature here-- " Together we can "

Saturday, June 19, 2010

ॐ सर्वसिद्धिप्रदाय नमः

गणेश जी के बारह नाम !

प्रणम्य शिरसा देवं , गौरी पुत्रं विनायकं ,

भक्तावासम , स्मरेन्नित्यं , आयुष कामार्थ सिद्धये !


प्रथम वक्रतुन्दम च , एकदंतं , द्वितीयकम ,

तृतीयं कृष्नापिन्दाक्षम , गजवक्त्रं चतुर्थकम !


लम्बोदरं पंचम च , षष्टम विकटमेव च ,

सप्तम विघ्नाराजेंद्रम , धुम्रवार्नाम तथाष्टमम !


नवं भाल्चंद्रम च ,दशमे तू विनायकं ,

एकादशं गंपतिम , द्वादशं तु गजाननं !


द्वादाश्शैतानी , नमानी , त्रिसंध्या ये पठेन्नरः ,.

न च विघ्नाभायास्य तस्य , सर्वसिद्धि करम परम !


विद्यार्थी लभते विद्याम , पुत्रार्थी लभते पुत्रान,

धनार्थी लभते धनं , मोक्षार्थी लेते गतिम् ।!


जपेद गणपति स्तोत्रं , षड्भिरमासे फलं लभेत ,

संवत्सरें सिद्धिश च , लभते नात्र शंशय : !


अश्ताभ्यो, ब्रह्मनेभ्याश्च लिखित्वा यह समर्पयेत

तस्य विद्या भवेद सर्वा , गणेशस्य प्रसदात्तः !


1-वक्रतुंड

2-एकदंत

3-क्रिश्नापिन्दाक्षम

4-गजवक्त्रं

5-लम्बोदरं

6-विकट

7-विघ्नाराजेंद्रम

8-धुम्रवर्ण

9-भाल्चंद्रम

10-विनायक

11-गणपति

12-गजानन


नारदपुराण से लिया गया ' संकटमोचन' गणेश स्तोत्र !




Friday, June 18, 2010

Eleven days !

In 2003, I was doing my internship and i had to travel 12 km daily to reach hospital. I used to go by Vikram-auto [common in Lucknow] in rs five and ten minutes. My hard luck always moved ahead of me and there was indefinite strike by auto drivers . It was a trouble for many of us but i was in serious trouble, waiting at the stop, looking for Rickshaw and bargaining with Rickshaw puller as their rates went irrationally high due to strike.The time to reach hospital and return home increased five folds. The situation was annoying but i had no other option.

At that time I was posted in Pediatrics under Dr. V P Singh. All my mind was focused about standing at Hazratganj square and looking for Rickshaw in the scorching heat of May month.

Around quarter to two, Dr. Hiten [ My fellow Intern ] came in our room, he greeted Dr. Singh, kept his Helmet aside and sat silently as if he was waiting for someone. Senior doctor Singh and I was unable to understand for whom he has come and what he is up to.

Around 1400 hours, when the time was over and Dr. Singh left for his home, I also headed to the gate, cursing the auto-tempo strike. Dr. Hiten softly asked me to follow him . I followed him to the Bike stand. He started his Bike and asked me to sit. I was hesitant, the fear was evident on my face. We were at a very formal terms with each other. He guessed my fear and reluctance . In his graceful voice he said, "Divya , i will pick you and drop you to home till the strike is called off and you don't have to stand in sun , looking for conveyance.". I was speechless and obeyed his command in a mechanical way.

Next morning, when i came out of my house, he was there to pick me up. After a formal exchange of greetings , we were again on road, with hardly any exchange between us.

From hospital to home and home to hospital,it was the most beautiful routine of my life. Along with me, my senior doctor Singh also kept wondering that who is he, what is the relation between two of us and how particular he is in coming to Dr Singh's room and sitting there silently till the clock tells two.

The strike was called off after eleven days and the beautiful routine was broken. But next month we were posted together in Dermatology under Dr.K P Pathak. From eight till two in the noon it was a great experience being with him. He used to discuss diseases and topics and follow up cases with great expertise. I was mesmerized by his knowledge and intellect. He motivated me to purchase Kinetic Honda or a scooty for myself . I paid heed to his advice and purchased 'Sensation scooter' of LML.

On my first day to hospital with my scooter, i was scared of entering the hospital gate , as the area near gate was in a bad shape and a new driver like me was very likely to trip and fall. But to my utter surprise Dr. Hiten was waiting there and saved me from the embarrassment of falling at entrance. Since then it was again a routine for him to park my scooter in the stand in mornings and take it out for me in the noon daily.

He completed his internship and left after five months. I continued for another seven months.

After four years i received an invitation card of his marriage, which i did not attend due to my own busy schedule.

I still wonder who was he? A friend? or an angel in disguise?

Wednesday, June 16, 2010

I love my solitude !

"हर तरफ, हर जगह, बेशुमार आदमी !
फिर भी तन्हाइयों का शिकार आदमी !! "

The most peaceful place is my home. For last one decade, my home is my favorite place.I came across a number of wise , learned and educated folk. All are busy with their motives. Some selfishly, Some selflessly.

Everyone is ready to advise as if i am a toddler. But aren't they aware that- "Advices are given by fools and taken by idiots ".

It is shocking to learn that that we do not know the art of living. An old adage goes thus- "Live and let live ". But do we live peacefully? Do we let others live peacefully? No, we are in a world of violence . Every second person is ready to fight.

Do we need any reason to argue or to fight? No, we can fight without a valid reason or purpose. In fact we are blessed with tremendous energy, which is not properly channelized . No one believes in conservation of energy. May be they do not know how much body fuel they are burning by arguing and fighting.

If we talk of statistics, we are spending roughly rs 5000/pm on one person. But probably we are not aware that we burn our blood many-fold costlier than the amount spent on its production.

Is their any word like 'forgiveness'?

Why do we allow our ego to rule us?

Anyways i am back in my shell, where i feel cozy and safe and at peace.

दुनिया वालों से दूर , जलने वालों से दूर...
कहीं दूर ...कहीं दूर ... कहीं दूर...

Marriage - A union of two souls !

Dear Husband , Are we not one?

we are ! of course.

Do you really think there is union of heart , mind and soul in a marriage?

Yes, i think so.

You think so or you believe in this?

ummm..

Is it possible that two souls can merge and become one?

Yes, it is possible because of the existence of love between the two people.

So you think love has to exist between the couple for souls to merge?

Yes , i think so.

So the love works as a binding force for the souls to unite. If it is correct then the soul must unite with parents first . Can a soul unite with many at the same time or the attachment and detachment continues?

If the soul continues to connect with many people coming in life , means the connection is not eternal? If it is eternal but connected with many, then there is no commitment. If a person can do justice with all the connections , then why someone becomes possessive? Can a soul be possessive?

What is that which becomes possessive? Heart/ mind/ body or soul?

Poor heart is busy pumping blood. Body parts are busy performing their respective functions. Soul is something which no one has seen and probably its a part of the supreme power we are ruled by.

Now what is left ? Ah..mind !

So mind is the real culprit . It involves us in mind games. Love, union of souls, attachment, detachment, commitment are all mind games. Mind keeps us in euphoria and can quite often throw us in depression, utter anxiety, hurts and so on.

So when we think that our souls are connected, then it is nothing but a mind game.

Mind gives us clarity of thoughts or it keeps us in illusion?

Mind is the supreme power. It indeed gives us the clarity of vision and thoughts. Also it keeps us in illusion. It shows mirages. It makes us dance in euphoria. It forces us to go in utter agony.

We have many worlds..Real world,Virtual world and of course a world of mind.

Do you agree with me husband?

Hey !...Where are you?...Gone to office?...was i blabbering alone?

Ah!..soliloquizing is my destiny or hobby?

Tuesday, June 15, 2010

Unconditional love !

" Magar pyaar sharton pe tumne kiya..."

A friend said - "Divya , my heart aches when i see you writing in English. You should try to write in Hindi, as it takes seven days only to learn typing in Devnagri. "

I feel , we must have the freedom to express our thoughts in a language we feel comfortable with.

I wonder what is important. Sharing of inner churning, or the language used to express ?

If we can have 18 official regional languages then what is the harm if someone reads or write in English also? Why to deprive ourselves from loving as many languages as we can?

Why we feel offended with the use of English? I feel one Thackeray is enough to divide the country in the name of language. I know Hindi very well as i verbally communicate in Hindi always. But i truly feel the need of learning 'Marathi' to stay safe in Mumbai and i need to learn 'Thai' to bargain well while shopping here.

So we prioritize our needs. To learn typing in Devnagri is on my agenda, but it is not on priority. 'Aur bhi bahut gam hain zamane mein bhasha ke siva'

When parents choose to put their child in English school then why some people expect them to speak pure Hindi while speaking and writing?.

Our country is secular. The world is going global. Everything is just mixed up ! This mixing and mingling is the true color of Love. Just do not desert me for my incapability of typing in Devnagri. Love me and support me unconditionally.

Can you be with me patiently in my struggling phase? I need you more today than tomorrow.

I thank my friends , those who have accepted me by rising above gender and language.

Be with me and extend your unconditional love.

" Be to my virtues very kind,
Be to my faults a little blind "

Will you?

Monday, June 14, 2010

" Nari aur Purush "...Mere mann ke Udgaar !

Once I was having a discussion with my elder sister, who is professor in Physics. The discussion went on very interesting as it naturally came to the feelings of men and women. This discussion prompted me to write the following poem. The poem is dedicated to my elder sister.




"Nari aur Purush"


तुम अनंत, मै बिंदू
तुम चांद, मै चकोर
तुम बूंद, मै चातक



मै याचक, तुम निर्मम
मै माया, तुम ज्ञान
मै प्रस्तुत, तुम अलभ्य
मै समर्पण, तुम नियंत्रण

मै प्रवाह, तुम अवरुद्ध
मै राग, तुम वैराग्य
मै अनुराग, तुम तटस्थ
मै भक्ति, तुम तर्क

मै फेन, तुम सत्य
मै संकीर्ण, तुम विस्तृत
मै अपरिष्कृत, तू अभ्यस्त
मै क्षूद्र्, तू विशाल

मै उथली, तुम गहरे
मै समतल, तुम दुर्गम
मै अवांछित्, तुम आगम
मै लिप्त, तुम विर


मै धूल, तू नभ

मै व्यर्थ, तुम सफल
मै उदासी, तुम मुस्कान
मै सरल, तुम प्रबुद्ध
मै अभिव्यक्ति, मै उच्छ्रुंखल, मै स्वच्छंद.... तुम सन्यत

Sunday, June 13, 2010

श्री गणेशाय नमः

वक्रतुंड, महाकाय , सूर्यकोटि समप्रभा !

निर्विघ्नं , कुरुमेदेव , सर्व्कर्येशु सर्वदा !!


देवताओं के सिरमोर भगवान् श्री गणेश की स्तुति के साथ , मैं अपना प्रथम ब्लॉग सम्पादित कर रही हूँ ।


आप सभी की शुभकामनाओं की आकांशी ,


आपकी दिव्या