My Spiritual Yatra

The Ritual of Eating A gentle cry for life marks the arrival of a new soul into this world. The foremost act at that moment is to comfort and feed the neonate. How the little one intuitively clings to his natural source of nourishment with devotion, is nothing short of a miracle. From this moment, when food is nourishment, to how we steer to the juncture, where it becomes a toxin, harming not just us, but the society, is worth a serious thought. I was born in a Punjabi family, which means there was always, unhindered laughter, food and appetite. We never said to our mother in our growing years “Pet bhar gaya” or that ‘I am full’. Rather, the food would stop coming from the kitchen, after my mother had ascertained that we had had enough. Looking back, I have immense gratitude for my parents, who like most parents of that era, inculcated in us simple eating habits and the importance of staying healthy.

Friends – A beautiful relation you are not born with! -The Belonging Part2  April 06, 2017 Whenever one moves out of a familiar zone and into new surroundings, finding people with similar mindset and making them our friends, becomes an important part of the transition . Due to certain planetary motions, I have been moving places practically all my life, with a deep yearning inside for the magical word called ‘Settlement’ (More so now, as I have completed nearly four decades of existence). Whenever, I have faced a change in my environment, the brigade of my well-wishers, specially give me a call and ask “Friends ‘bane’?”(Have you made friends?). When I say “Yes”, it is usually followed by a sigh of relief from the other side. Well, looking at it deeply, the fact that we are looking for friends in a new unfamiliar environment, carries a variety of implications: 1.        We crave for a sense of belonging, means we look for people with whom we feel we can identify and

छुट्टी   कोई है! अरे कोई है ??? जो मुझे ज़िन्दगी से दो दिन की छुट्टी दे दे । न ऑफिस का डर हो, न हो घर की फ़िक्र। न फ़ोन की घंटियों का हो बवाल, न ही इंटरनेट और wifi   का मायाजाल। न हो बढ़ते वज़न का डर सबके सर, न हो हेल्थ फूड्स की इनफार्मेशन का ओवरलोड सबके सर। जहाँ परांठे और माखन खाने का गिल्ट मुझे न मारे, गन्ने का जूस पिएं बेहिसाब , और गोलगप्पे खाने की रेस लगाएं मिलके सारे। जहाँ  खिड़की से धुप छनकर आती हो कुछ कच्ची और बहुत सच्ची मेरे आँगन, जहाँ  कट्टी अब्बा के बीच किलोल मारता हो शैतान बचपन। जहाँ पतंगों की डोर हो असीमित और असंखय कंचों का खज़ाना, पकड़म पकड़ाई की होड़ हो और विष अमृत का ज़माना। ऐसी छुट्टी जहाँ हो मन के ठहराव की आरामदायक चारपाई, सुकून हो गिलाफ और गरम गरम प्यार की रज़ाई। जहाँ अपनी ही सांस को आने जाने की न हो कोई जल्दी, फेस वाश की जगह हो खुशबूदार मिटटी और मेक अप हो कुमकुम हल्दी। जहां चुप्पी की आवाज़ में अकेलेपन की चीख न हो, जहाँ बीच दीवार में reinforced सीमेंट से पुती हुई ईंट न हो। ऐसी जगह कोई कृपा कर मुझे ले जाओ, कोई है अरे कोई है ??

Myself, Bali and Freedom again!! The calendar reads 5 th Feb 2016 and I am on a holiday in Bali. Its nearly 9:30 PM, post dinner, I am sitting across a square table, facing the sea in darkness and a soul warming melody is playing in the background. There is a walking track, paved with grass on borders, followed by a sandy slope (granular and non sticky), merging very lovingly into the sea in front of me. On this table are very unattractive table mats, a closed cube shaped candle stand and again very unattractive salt and pepper shaker. A furlong ahead on the beach, nearer to the sea, the hotel authorities have put very attractive covered beds for special candlelight romantic dinners, to create those magical moments. These beds are bordered by very unique fire stands. Amazingly the stands are not really visible and you can get this illusion of fire floating in air. This zone where I am writing is fairly dimly lit and is on very friendly terms with mosquitoes. I am being mu

I Belong Therefore I Am Life has been a tumultuous experience for me in the last four years. We have moved 4 times across 3 countries in the last three years, owing to the professional moves of my partner and this has in turn provided me with an opportunity to observe people and life very closely. We all have this opportunity in our daily life but it is usually hidden behind a large boundary wall of routine, the gate to which is gently unlocked, when we are snapped out of our habit and surroundings in some way. Although, some people e.g. a good theatre actor, are naturally very observant about people and situations and use that observation later to recreate that experience magically on stage. I remember a friend who is a counsellor by profession, telling me when I was moving for the first time, “It’s amazing that you are moving, and you must go because you have to break this mould of self-identification with your environment that you have hopelessly identified wit

Freedom!! When I was a child, (actually until I was about eight or nine years old), I had this queer habit of staring at the sky while walking. I always looked up in the sky. In fact, very frequently I used to get scolded for this by my mother. I would stumble upon something so often, resultantly breaking the mugs, I was told to put in the kitchen after my parents had their evening tea. Why did I look up, when I think about it now, I realize that I was always wondering at the flocks of   flying birds( how typically they form a V when they are flying together)   and probably secretly nursing the wish to have wings myself, to venture unhindered in the limitless sky. Eventually, much later in life, my sight and skeleton attained the right alignment and I learnt to walk on road, without accidents by looking either straight or low. Much later to my content, I realized the flight was not unhindered entirely as there are hawks up and cats below. But why did I want to fly?