On Pain

Buddhism does a good analysis of Pain as experienced by humans. It is so very interesting to discover that this in accordance to what the science of psychology has also investigated –
Going deep into the nature of Pain – Buddha found following are 4 dimensions of it has. I name these dimensions as - 
1.    The Reference Frame –
Whatever humans experience is out of this world – this life – Our Reference frame. By design life entails a great deal of sufferings. This ranges from commonplace feelings (grouchiness, fear, anger, boredom, depression, heartaches and pains, loneliness, etc) to acute forms (produced by wars, famines, disease, natural calamities, etc).
Buddha characterizes a world in which there is a great deal of unhappiness, ranging from abject pain, loneliness, anxiety, hunger, being with hateful people, lots of those we love, to unpleasant states of feelings as described above.
Having said this I am not propagating the idea that world is a hopeless land of limitless suffering. On contrary, I am by temperament immensely optimist. The idea is just to bring to ones attention that pain is inevitable in this world – by design.
2.    Transitoriness of pain –
Pain includes an idea of change, perpetual flux, what Buddha refers to as “transitoriness”. It implies that misery is always potential – in coming. For example if a person says, “All these suffering does not apply to me. I have a well paying, interesting job, a happy marriage, and good health.” The Buddhist thesis would be : All good the person sited is subject to change. For example, the man’s wife may one day stop loving him. Or he may wake up one morning realizing that he no longer loves her. And the loss of job, health, or stability is notoriously common. The conditions of our happiness are all subject to change. The idea is that there is nothing like – “live happily ever after”.
If one is happy – she is fortunate indeed. She should obviously savor and relish it. But she should have the awareness that pain in some form is always potentiona – either in the form of commonplace feelings or acute forms as described in the point 1 above.
Again the idea is play life fully. Cherish happiness as if this is the last day of one’s life. But when pain comes, accept it as natural and normal – by design.
3.    The Causal Matrix –
This idea being adopted as-is from Hinduism, Buddha establishes another dimension of pain. The idea is that we live in a world which is highly interdependent. The events in life are related to a matrix of numerous other factors and coincidences. This has been explained in the Karma Theory of the ancient Vedantic philosophy.
This dimension has been poetically articulated by the famous Buddhist monk – Thich Nhat Hanh. He describes one of Siddhartha’s insights as he was coming to enlightenment  -
“He looked up at a pippala leaf imprinted against the blue sky, its tail blowing back and forth as if calling him. Looking deeply at the leaf, he saw clearly the presence of the sun and the stars – without the sun, without light and warmth, the leaf could not exist. He also saw in the leaf the presence of clouds – without clouds, there could be no rain, and without rain, the leaf could not be. He saw the earth, time, space and mind – all were present in the leaf. In fact, at that very moment the entire universe existed in that leaf.”
This interdependence applies, of course, to all life, including each human life.
This causal nature of suffering brings the Buddhist conception closer to the western scientific world outlook. All of science has its foundation “this is like this because that was like that”. For example, the cause of the annoying behavior of a tyrannical and abusive boss might be the ill grooming of his during his childhood by an alcoholic father. The idea is that all forms of pain might have its seed in a remote an seemingly un-related event. Life is thus a mosaic of such varied interdependences.
4.    The last link within –
The Buddha places the ultimate cause of suffering squarely within the individual. This can be explained with the following example –
We may think that a person who cheats us is the cause of our suffering. In the Buddhist view, it is our anger at being cheated, our craving to retrieve our money, our brooding over the event that is immediate cause of our suffering. The fact of being cheated is an important event in the causal sequence, but is one step removed from the final cause of suffering. This view, then, focuses not on the external, more instant causes of our suffering, but on the immediate inner link of the causal chain, on our motivational and emotional makeup.
This emotional makeup – the final link to push us into distress – is dependent solely on the human being’s inner state of heart and mind. This is ofcourse an outcome of the social conditioning of the individual.
For example the 1930s middle class American culture, in which it was made to believe that promiscuous girls were bad, homosexuals were bad, and it was important that a girl should marry being virgin – were social conditionings – which cause vulnerabilities in a lady, causing not only pain in her internal psyche but also pain in others.
So, life can offer us as many touch situations as possible – as a result of many other interdependent happenings, on which we might not have least of control. But the best part of life is that the quality of our life – our inner state of bliss or un-rest is solely dependent on that critical and last link in the causal chain – how we take it. If we re-design our inner self such that it is not affected by these un-controllable outer causal happenings, we might have a way out of the suffering.

[This article is my synthesis of the initial chapters of the book - The Positive Psychology of Buddhism and Yoga by Dr. Marvin Levine]
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The Immortal Traveler

Ageless, timeless bright and sunny,
The Traveler is in his journey through eternity!

Once upon a time he was born as the river Mississippi,
Once he was born as the seagull of the seventh mountain!

Then there was a time when he was the Road to the clouds,
Guiding and taking countless Pilgrims’ caravans!

Then there was this time when he was born,
As the poem from the heart of the lovelorn poet,
Swinging in the rhythm of the Charm
Of those Most Beautiful Eyes!

There was one age, when he was
The rapture of the ageless sage having the glimpse of his God!

And then there was he born,
As the painful throbbing of the despaired heart,
Of the sculptor in love with his stone and indifferent sculpture!

Then he was born as the profound attraction
Of the droning bee,
For the nectar of the luscious flower red!

And again as the pious and peaceful prayer,
Of the silent nun behind the walls of the convent!

Life span varied of the traveler –
From the few moments of the lover’s moan
In the moments of those ecstatic unity!
To the eternal wait of the
The longing hearts of the banks of the Ganges!
Waiting in vain, since millennia
To kiss each other, To touch each other, To hug each other!

The traveler lived though civilizations many!
From the hunter-gatherers Shoshones,
To the Greeks and Romans!
To the barbarians,
To the New World,
Through revolutions many,
Civilizations after civilizations!
Wars after wars!

Each time he evolved,
He grew and flourished,
Using minds of men women,
Boys and girls,
As vehicles in continuum –
Ages after ages!

He was in the form of the
Human ideas, insights, and innovation!
Hopes, dreams and inspirations!
The longing love and compassion!
 Manifested in the world of form,
As poems, songs, scientific insights!
As religious raptures, paintings and sculptors!
As lofty bridges, Engineering marvels, forts and damns!
Spanning through eternity!

He was born as an innocent wish,
Of the little girl gazing the stars,
He lived through as the
Enthused heart of the lover
Held in tight embrace of his beloved!
Living in vigor and youth,
All through eternity
As the never ending love
Of the Sky and the Earth!

Men were born,
Both Great and Wretched!
Civilizations started, pinnacled and
The fated with the inevitable death!
Springs came, and Winter passed!
Many came, many went.

Remained but forever
The traveler – beyond the dots of eternity!
Throbbing with life,
Was the ardor of being Human!
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The uniqueness of Gautam Buddha

Being a creative social innovator, Siddhartha had a remarkable novel idea that he created on the top of his synthesis of his “Middle Path” based on the Hindu philosophy. This idea was his rejection of the concept of Atman/God. Unlike what he had read about and had been taught by his senior Hindu counterparts, he considered human to be a conglomerate of psychological propensities – like – joy, pain, love, hatred, jealousy, hunger, craving, etc. He always propagated the idea of meditation as a way to calm down these psychological pushes and pulls and knowing one’s own real self. The idea was to create peace for oneself by reducing the entropy in consciousness, by letting these temperamental disturbances settle down. This obviously causes an increase in perceptive and cognitive abilities.
Instead of preaching his ideas strictly as a series of sermons, Siddhartha invited his followers to go through their personal journey of self realization by doing meditation. This is very close to the western outlook of the science of psychology. The beauty in the thought process of Siddhartha was that he was disruptive in the sense that he felt that the need for the Hypothesis of God was not required to present a discipline for attaining Nirvana. For him Nirvana was not the attainment of the union with a Hypothesis of God. Rather it was about going to the depth of ones own self, knowing one better and better.
By abandoning the Atman concept, Siddhartha produced a change in the Hindu outlook, making it more akin to the contemporary scientific view. Siddhartha never invokes a Deity concept to explain the causes of Dukkha, indeed, of anything in the universe.
This was I guess a very important step forward towards a scientific and evolutionary outlook of life. I am not going to the correctness or in-correctness of the philosophy of Siddhartha. It is just that it was a disruptive innovation in the discipline of thought – in an attempt to explain life. Something as disruptive as the explanation of solar system to Napoleon, by the 19th century French astronomer – LaPlace – without the need of the Hypothesis of the presence of God, for any role to be played in creation of the solar system.
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The Verdict of History

They say that Rome was not build in a day. One of the richest civilizations every formed – The Romans were astounding in many ways – Their strong military, the economic system based on markets, Their effective governance and bureaucracy. All these were comparable in many ways to the modern system of society. It is commendable for humans to have reached that high level of sophistication around 500BC!

But then this dominant civilization became stagnant and decaying after reaching their pinnacle of evolution. Barbarians came and the great Roman Empire collapsed. To be precise the Western part of the empire went on the hands of the barbarians. There is one thing very interesting in all these. Till the Roman civilization was prospering and continuing to grow things were ok. But when it became stagnant, contributing little if anything to the march of its evolution, it was taken over by the Barbarians.
Barbarians had a great affinity to the civilized way of living that they inherited from the Romans. They immediately adapted the same, and continued the evolution of Roman memes.

The barbarian role of cultural demolition crew is especially important when you consider how often cultural reconstruction is needed. Many of Rome’s glaring defects – slavery, exploitation, authoritarianism, corrupt self-aggrandizement – flow from deeply human tendencies. Time and again these human vulnerabilities have transformed promising civilizations into decaying, oppressive monstrosities.

It is just not that Romans were now lethargic and were not being able to maintain their cultural supremacy. Rather things are a bit more involved. Romans were just not able to adapt to the technological evolution they themselves started. With coming of standard, universally accepted coins and fully phonetic alphabet, complete with vowels, the potential existed for a more decentralized economy than ever before. So, for example, slavery – the ultimate in exploitation – now carried a higher cost of forgone productivity; the better lubricated the market, the more it can benefit from untrammeled participation. A mind, as they say, is a terrible thing to waste.

The Eastern half of the Roman Empire which survived the collapse of the west, was less guilty of some of these sins. The east seems all along to have had fewer slaves than the west. In the east the economy was less afflicted by such stultifying policies as the virtual ban on changing convocations. And, for historical reasons, the east had a more integrated economy.

The historian Chester Starr once wrote – “Every so often civilizations seems to work itself into a corner from which further progress is virtually impossible along the lines then apparent; yet if new ideas are to have a chance the old systems must be so severely shaken that they lose their dominance”.
Of course, technology isn’t some extraneous force, visited on the planet from outer space. It is selected by human minds through cultural evolution; people are the arbiters of technology. But technologies – in a broad sense, at least – are in turn arbiters of social structures.

The same evolution of memes is so much apparent in the companies and their products. There have been a definite direction apparent in the whole drama in the computing industry – starting from mainframes, to ascent of the Windows, to the rise of Apple, Google, Amazon etc. There have been a directed evolution towards more and more freedom, openness, collaboration, higher sophistication and complexity in every product and service.

Its looks so amazing that these units of culture use humans as vehicles to expand themselves. When one meme becomes stale another meme takes its place, which is more vibrant and complex. The story of the evolution of civilizations after civilizations have been an artifact to this unique dynamics of ideas, information, dreams, hope, expressions, innovations – all creations of human mind!

Certainly it is our responsibility to keep the mind nourished with Newer Ideas, Bigger Dreams, Brighter Hopes, and of course every expanding Love and Compassion!
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An Interesting Experiment by a Prince

I was reading this book – The Positive Psychology of Buddhism and Yoga : Path to a Mature Happiness by Marvin Levine. Some of the illustrations in the following article are taken from this book. The theme of this article is to give an overview of cognitive approach Siddhartha took to formulate what was later called Buddhism. It was a unique experimentation by a creative man – trying to synthesize the esoteric philosophy of the then prevalent Hinduism – into a simple, practical and scientific approach towards living a peaceful and happy life. Interestingly the same thing has been the pursuit of the western approach of developing the science of Psychology.
Around 500BC northern India had certain religious and philosophical parallels to ancient Greece. This is probably no coincidence. Some 4000 years ago, the same people in the northern part of the globe drifted south, some towards Europe and Greece, and some towards India. Knowledge of the classical Greek language, is of great benefit in studying Sanskrit.
In Greece, religion functioned on two levels. There was the pantheon of Gods that was part of the popular religion, but there was also the abstract characterization of the world and of man’s place in it, which the philosophers were developing. The disparity between the two Greek views of the divine was made painfully clear by the death of Socrates. He, who taught the importance of contemplating the sublime essences, was executed for leading the young away from their (the popular) religion. The same duality of religious beliefs existed at the same time in India. There was a pantheon of Gods, with accompanying stories, symbols, rituals, and rules of worship. There was also, however, the more philosophical approach that saw deity in a more abstract form. It is this latter philosophical approach that gave rise to the movement we call Yoga and that influenced the Buddha. By first reviewing certain basic ideas in this philosophical context, we gain a better understanding of the Buddha’s teachings.
In the Hindu-philosophical view, the personalized gods are replaced by a universal spirit, referred to as Atman. Atman pervades everything – sun, planets, stones, trees, insects, monkeys, you and me. Our spiritual goal is to discover this Atman within ourselves and thus to connect with the all pervasive Atman. The Atman within is to be discovered in a deeper place than our cravings, fears, and agitations, deeper than such ordinary mind activity as brooding, daydreaming, and planning. The Atman could only be glimpsed when all this restless craving and mind activity is stilled. The mind is likened to a lake. When turbulent, it is opaque but, when calm, it is transparent. Yoga was founded on this conception of an all-pervasive, inner and outer Atman. The term Yoga means “linking”, and is usually interpreted to mean linking the inner Atman with the outer.
Drawing parallels from likes of Socrates from Greece, and proponents of Vedas and Upanishads from India, it appears that both these magnanimous civilizations of the world had their framework of civil psychology pretty robust. For people who were into day to day work, and had nothing much to do into the domain of contemplation, there was this easy story created of personalized Gods. There were thousands of Gods for both Greek, Romans and in Indian societies. And for the more contemplative class – people who had time to think and contemplate – there was this philosophical framework of an “Atman”.
The concept of Yoga – (literal meaning is addition or linking in Sanskrit)- was an interesting discipline created with all its ramifications – with the sole motive of establishing the connection with the Omnipresent, Omniscient – The Absolute. This abstract form of the Absolute was given various names – “Param-Atma”, “Param-Brahm”, etc. The sole objective of a spiritual journey was about establishing this connection. This was achieved through calming the mind, and detaching it from various stimuli of the external world. Having done that, there was a significant reduction of entropy in the human consciousness. No matter which path was followed – the general mass easy way of personal gods, or the selective high class philosophy of abstract power – the end goal of these civilizations was commendable – achieving peace of mind – reducing of entropy in the consciousness.
This pursuit of mankind was a threshold in the evolution of human thinking. Among many other factors [other memetic influences from other competing civilizations] this discipline of thought kept the human mind away from slipping down to the innate human tendencies of exploitation, authoritarianism, and self-aggrandizement.
Pain of the real world (Dukkha), Atman, re-incarnation, Karma – these formed the conceptual framework in the Buddha’s cognition of the world – as he was strongly influenced by this unique philosophy prevalent in India – around 500 BC. Synthesizing the abstract philosophical aspect of Hinduism, Siddhartha formulated a unique way of living based on Four Noble Truths. He called his way as the Middle Path – A path between being a selfish materialists and an ascetic. He laid out a unique framework which was mostly atheist – solely aimed at liberating humans from pains inherent in being a human.
The Four Noble Truth are outlined below –
1.    The Truth of Dukkha (Suffering) – We are vulnerable to a multitude of suffering such as hunger, pain, fear, loneliness, hatred and so on.
2.    The Truth of Tanha (Craving) – We are vulnerable because of the way human nature is constituted. Specifically, we are a bundle of urges that push and pull from within. Urges for example, to obtain food, drink, sexuality, companionship; to escape boredom, pain, irritation.
3.    The Truth of Nirvana (Liberation from Dukkha) – Our vulnerability can be ended. We can attain freedom from Dukkha. We do this by changing ourselves, by transforming our cravings. We can subdue those overpowering urges that push us now one way, and then another.
4.    The Truth of Magga (Eight fold path) – Liberation from Dukkha is attained by practice of eight disciplines. These disciplines entail the cultivation of
a.    Right Understanding
b.    Right Thought
c.    Right Speech
d.    Right Action
e.    Right Livelihood
f.    Right Mindfulness
g.    Right Effort
h.    Right Meditation
It looks amazing that how scientifically Siddhartha laid out a framework for humans to achieve a state free from suffering – he called Nirvana. It was about re-designing one’s understanding of the world, to make the forces of circumstances irrelevant in deciding the state of mind for a person.
Now, inherent in this 8 fold path is the ambiguity of what is “Right” in all these points. I see it this way. As Buddha followed the Hindu way of the goal of spiritual journey is to establish ones connection to that “Param-Atma”, which resides deep inside one’s self. Having this as the primary goal of life, everything else looks of secondary importance. This stance creates lots of freedom. This is because now, for the seeker, all the humane vulnerabilities are secondary to her existence. This stoicism creates a launch pad for the seeker to create something big, difficult, huge and unique – in defiance of the real limitations and inherent failure modes. There is a gradual elevation of human psyche – from the feeble self oriented fearful existence, to a robust, creative and fearless expression of humanity. When the primary goal is something non-cognitive (knowing the Param-Atma), any cognitive dilemma of life does not shake the seeker.
This formula helps in reducing entropy of human consciousness thereby bringing to ones disposal and extra psychic energy, which otherwise would have been wasted in dealing with human sufferings. This increases the probability of the seeker to enter to FLOW, getting into a domain of her choice, and thereby creating artifacts of creativity – which leaves a legacy for humanity.
To be able to continue the evolution of mankind towards an optimal direction, such a homework looks like a smart option. It is certainly a reasonable way to orient the mind and transcend the weaknesses inherent in being human. At the same time, it transmutes these weaknesses to absolute unique human faculties which play a vital role in beautifying further the evolution of human civilizations. 
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The Rain and the Tree

By the side of an ordinary pathway,
Stands a great Banyan tree.
An ordinary one.
Silent, peaceful,
Has he been standing there,
For last 500 years!
Being a spectator,
Of the changing world,
With scars in heart,
And smile on face!

Among all the commotion,
Of the market place
By the pathway,
Among all hues and cries,
Shrills and shouts,
Stands he with peace of mind,
For he is deep into
The Penance Long!

The Rain
Ever enchanted with
The Banyan tree -
For years, across many births!
Every season in her full youth,
During the time of monsoons,
Would come with all ardor,
With passion filled bosom,
To take the Banyan tree with her,
To that uncharted land,
The land of fairies and angels!
She wanted to hold
The hand of the Banyan Tree
And be cocooned in his embrace,
For this life, and all the rest!
Protected from world around,
Supported and cuddled,
With his strong presence.

But fell short the rain,
Could not move she the Tree,
All efforts in vain!

Same did she do,
Every year,
With every new birth,
With love renewed all over.
But could not move she the
Great Banyan Tree!

500 long years did pass!
And the rain could not give up,
Her innocent lust,
Her arduous love,
All for him - The meaning of her existence!
For she loved him,
More than her life!

It was the 501st year,
The rain did come again -
Same were her ways,
As 500 times in the past!

But this time was different.
She was curious, she was perturbed
What is this Tree made of?
She asked herself!

There were so many
She had swayed
In her seductive power!
Many in one birth!
But what was this
So very special
In this Great Banyan Tree!
That in so many births,
Could not she move?
Even an inch!

Decided to confront the Tree,
She came to him in all her mellowness.
Drenched him with warmth and care,
With all her love,
She held him tight in her arms,
She did ask straight to his heart -
What is that for which you are alive!

The Great Banyan tree,
Turned his eyes,
Looked deep into hers,
Opened his mouth and spoke
For the first time!
I love you and your ways!
Always had I wanted,
Be with you forever,
Together we stay in the
Land of fairies and angels,
Happily ever after!

But my life is not for me.
I am not a creeper, a vine.
For opportunity bigger have I -
Being the Great Banyan tree!

The essence of my existence,
The relevance of my life,
Is more than what I love for myself!
It is more than my love for you!

My life is an unending toil,
Creating the vital ingredients of life,
The enlivening air to breath,
Taking away the poison from the world!
I am destined to Transmute,
All the pain into peace,
All the tears, into laughter!
I create beauty,
I create life!

I am not even a single identity -
Continued the Great Banyan Tree,
For I am many in one,
My branches are all distinct,
With individual leaves -
All purposefully engaged,
Working with Sun, creating life
With air and water,
Nourishing the world around!
I am a macrocosm,
A unity of so many
Individual Meanings,
Individual Purpose,
Individual Perspective!
Giving a holistic Purpose -
The purpose of Being
The Great Banyan Tree!

My love, my rain -
Do you want me to break away?
And curse this Grace?
I know I am in pain.
For I too like being with you,
As did that creeping vine!
But I don’t want to perish,
Being an insignificant filth,
Given into my urge!
For I am the Great Banyan Tree!

Hurt and Angry, did Rain retorted –
Your pride will fall – you insignificant tree!
You too will end up being the dry wood
To be burnt for fuel.
Where will all your meaning,
All your pride go then?

Tranquil and still,
With a smile did the Tree reply –
It is not the pride of my identity Rain.
It is the pride of what I create.
My creations are immortal.
I might turn into a fragile log,
But what I have created these many years,
Will be immortal!
The cool solace of my shade,
The fresh rejuvenating air I spread,
The firmness I provide to the soil,
Those lovely mythic songs of women,
Singing rituals going around me!
Those decorations of vermilion,
Flags and chants all around me!
That veneration of sanctity I carry around!
All these are immortal!

I will perish my love.
So shall you!
But what will always remain,
Immortal for ever – What you and I create!

The Rain calmed, and brimmed in tears.
Realized for the first time she –
Life is more than sheer me and mine!
Its much more than our urges and emotions!
Life is about a meaning - a purpose - a context!

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Being Alive..

Being alive for me,
Is not about
What I can get from the world,
From Its people, Its institutions,
And from its ways.

Rather it is about,
Being relevant
To the panorama of life,
In all the games,
All fanfare,
All drama!

It is not about
Was I loved,
Or recognized.
It is neither about
What I hoarded,
What I gained,
Or what I posses.

Being alive for me,
Is about using what
Life has to offer to me,
And engaging in an endeavor
To contribute meaningfully,
To people around me,
To the institutions I belong,
To the civilization I am part of.

Being alive for me,
Is about being used up,
Completely for a meaning -
For a mission -
Bigger than my life itself!
It is about contributing to
The ongoing evolution of mankind,
Either by being part of a team
Making a next generation product,
Or being a better father,
A better friend.
Or in working on an idea,
A concept, a thought,
Something that gives direction
To the march of human evolution -
Contributing to the overall
Increase of beauty around!

Being alive for me,
Is about having that grace,
The style and pride,
Of loving whole heartedly,
Without expecting an ounce in return!
It is about having the courage
To love, and truly love!
To express right from
The deepest recesses of my heart -
What I feel right about!

Being alive for me,
Is about making friends,
Being in love,
Understanding life,
In all its shade!
And knowing myself and the world!

Being alive for me,
Is always keeping the context alive -
The context of pure unconditionality.
The context of,
Being relevant to the world
For its own good,
Not to the narrow urges,
Of my smaller self!

Being alive for me,
Is creating lovely memories
Each moment,
With my words, my action, my thoughts!
Being part of lives of
Friends, family, and others -
Loving, and expressing,
Writing, and working,
Playing, and laughing,
Caring and Nurturing!
It is like being a sculptor
Busy in flow
creating the most beautiful work of art -
His Life - his muse!

Being alive for me,
Is being part the life of Others,
Sharing their lives,
Their moments,
Moments of happiness and sorrow,
As all are parts of me,
And I part of them!

Being alive for me,
Is making the best in others
Bloom out to flamboyance!
Enabling wellbeing everywhere.

Being alive for me,
Is being an obstinate optimist,
An incurable romantic,
Being intoxicated in love,
Working in the Temple of Human Potential,
Living in the paradise of Angels,
Being citizen of the country
Of Gods, Cultures, Food and Festivals!

Being alive for me,
Is an attempt to see God
In a beautifully written poem,
In those Most Beautiful Eyes,
In those states of being in FLOW,
Engaging in my strengths,
Creating a work of art,
Playing with my daughter,
Hours long – tireless and sleepless!

Being alive for me,
Is returning home after
A long tiring day of work,
To the peace of home,
My daughter and my better half –
Who have always loved me
With my shortcomings and flaws!
Exactly the way I am!

Being alive is,
Getting drenched in the rain,
Barebody and with friends,
Running with the football,
On the cozy and soft marshy ground!

Being alive is,
Reading, contemplating,
On thoughts and ideas of great souls –
Philosophers, scientists and poets,
Creating new ridges of thought,
In the contours of the grey cells.

Being alive is,
Challenging myself,
With a difficult task,
With a gallant goal,
With a grand dream!

Being alive is
Breathing in the hope,
Of the impossible!
Waiting patiently,
For that beautiful coincidence!
To take the breath of life out!

Being alive is,
Living life to the fullest!
Loving with ardor intense!
Falling down, getting hurt,
Bleeding and Sweating!
But still continuing the journey –
In the march to be relevant!


Being alive is
Making love with the solitude,
Deep and intimate and intense!
Getting into
The gaps between the thoughts,
Tasting the absolute stillness –
A realm of thoughtless bliss!

Being alive is,
Living with the pride,
Of being able to love the most,
Give the most,
Care the most,
Contribute the most,
With the grace
Of simplicity, silence,
And pure unconditionality!

Most of all,
It is being aware -
Each moment is ticking by,
For never to return!
Gradually heading are we,
To the end of this dream!
Why then to live a life small,
A life constrained and in fear!

For time is less,
Joys are many!
It is about being indulged in Life,
With heart, body, mind and soul!
Truly being alive!
Every moment every day!

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Missing was I..

The warriors fighting the GREAT BATTLE!
Faces covered with dust and spite.
Tired and bleeding are they!
But riding are they on their horses,
With unstoppable spirit!
With full speed and might,
Cutting out the darkness
With their swords,
Continuing are they
Their journey to win!!

I smell the dust and sweat.
I see great fire in the eyes of the warriors.
I see catastrophe all around.
Commotion, pain, unrest everywhere!
But then realized with astonishment anew
Something Missing was I!

Missing was I
The delight in their heart!
That Immense delight in the heart of those,
Who are engaged in the battle!
For them victory or defeat was not important;
Only what mattered was that
They are fighting the Good Fight!

Missing was I
That life for them was not a Sunday afternoon!
Peace, lethargy, and rest were not their lookout.
They were in askance of something grand –
Grander than their own moral existence!
That youthful dream was alive in their heart –
Throbbing with passion wild!

Missing was I
That they were not looking for
That fake certainty!
That homeostatis of nurturing the
Feeling of being matured,
Playing the lesser games,
To avoid the combat – disappointment and defeat!

Missing was I
They were not looking for that
Coward  immediate tranquility!
Being satisfied with the ordinary.
Rather they were on a pilgrimage –
On a journey towards Mission –
A mission which was bigger than their own lives!

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On Frankl..

One of the most influential people I have read about is Dr. Viktor Frankl (March 26, 1905, Leopoldstadt – September 2, 1997, Vienna) was an Austrian neurologist and psychiatrist.
He was one of those very few souls who survived the Holocaust! After his grueling experience in the concentration camp of Hitler, he came out of it, victorious and started a new field of psychiatry known as  "Logotherapy" (A therapy in which the patient is helped in finding meaning out of his life). I always remind myself, if a human being can craft the heinous concentration camp to a real life workshop for his research on a world transforming new discipline of psychiatry, any human can make best of what life has to offer to her.

Few of my favorite musings of Victor in his book - "Man's Search for Meaning"

1. Fear may come true that which one is afraid of.
2. I recommend that the Statue of Liberty be supplemented by a Statue of Responsibility on the West Coast. (He was mentioning on the importance of "responsibility" and "ethics", over "freedom" and "liberty")
3. Everything can be taken from a man but one thing; the last of the human freedoms—to choose one’s attitude in any given set of circumstances, to choose one’s own way.
4. Between stimulus and response there is a space. In that space is our power to choose our response. In our response lies our growth and our freedom
5. Each man is questioned by life; and he can only answer to life by answering for his own life; to life he can only respond by being responsible.
6. Life can be pulled by goals just as surely as it can be pushed by drives.
7. Everyone has his own specific vocation or mission in life; everyone must carry out a concrete assignment that demands fulfillment. Therein he cannot be replaced, nor can his life be repeated, thus, everyone’s task is unique as his specific opportunity to implement it.
8. When we are no longer able to change a situation, we are challenged to change ourselves
9. What is to give light must endure burning.
10. Love is the only way to grasp another humanb being in the innermost core of his personality. No one can become fully aware of the very essence of another human being unless he loves him. By his love he is enabled to see the essential traits and deatures in the beloved person; and even more, he sees that which is potential in him, which is not yet actualized but yet ought to be actualized. Furthermore, by his love, the loving person enables the beloved person to actualize these potentialities. By making him aware of what he can be and what he should become, he makes these potentialities come true.
11. Don't aim at success - the more you aim at it and make it a target, the more you are going to miss it. For success, like happiness, cannot be pursued; it must ensue..as the unintended side-effect of one's personal dedication to a course greater than oneself

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The temple of Human Potential!

I am an ordinary Engineer,
Working 12-15 hours everyday.
On Saturdays too I slog –
Either in the hardware lab,
Or with my laptop – coding, designing, testing!
Every morning to night,
With strict deadlines,
Am I expected to produce
“World class artifacts with the best quality”.
Relentlessly, with ever increasing complexity –
Both in challenges of scope and time!

They say I am creating a history!
Well, that might be true.
But what about my life?
I don’t have even 2 full days in a week
To relax and do what I like to!
Those were the lost days –
I had Saturdays and Sundays!
Dedicated to me, my family and friends!
Such a Paradise which I have lost!

I am an ordinary Engineer,
Sitting in the 10:00pm cab,
On my way back home,
Thinking about my Paradise Lost.
Was I astonishingly intrigued –
Why I still love to come here?
To the same office?
Day after day – years after years?
Why is it that I feel so proud about my work?
Why is it that I feel I am different,
I am unique!
Why is it that I feel
I am whole and complete,
In my beloved place of work!

I am tired, I am exhausted.
But why do I look forward to
Come to the same office –
My love – My Temple!

Then I realize –
They are the small, cute stories,
Those I am part of every day,
That pulls me to this place –
I call temple of Human Potential!
The valiant gestures of
Engineering ingenuity,
Young boys and girls,
And veterans as well,
Putting their minds into
Solving otherwise seemingly
In-conceivable problem –
Day in and day out!

The spirit of invincibility,
Of the newbie to make sense
Of that complicated task,
Trying to learn and make a difference!

That patience and care,
Of the expert,
Shaping the world of
The rookie – guiding him through
Unchartered avenues of Engineering Excellence!

With scores of hurdles every day,
I get amazed how people are being –
A true Engineer!
Fixing issues, creating amazing stuffs!
It is absolutely Inspiring!

The spirit of invincibility and creativity!
No matter what!
That beautiful interdependence –
Each doing their Best!
Creating a Whole –
A NON-ZERO game!
A BIG GAME!
A game that is making me grow,
As a better Man,
A better father,
A better friend,
A better professional!
Creating a better tomorrow!

I know – every moment –
I have a choice –
Either to be a victim,
Or be an invincible spirit –
Creating What Inspires me!
May be so they say –
I create therefore I am!

Salute I with heart filled with respect –
To the temple of Human Potential!

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The Admirer!

A new reader,
A new admirer,
A soul who understands the depth of
The strokes of art,
Someone who took time to
Read my musings,
Made an attempt to
Gauge the depth of my feelings-
Amazed by their profundity.
Comes and with a big smile,
Says - "What a FLOW!"
With a great concern,
Does he advice me -
Be a writer, go out -
Play the game of your soul!
What are you doing here with –
“Vector Cast”!!
Spellbound was he to know
The fate of Michel Simoni,
And how he was redeemed
On the altar of the Stream!
[refers to my poem - http://criativ-mind.blogspot.com/2011/04/sculptors-sin.html]

His amazement,
His understanding,
The resonance, the kinship!
Moved me - For this was the first time,
Someone could get even an inkling
Of the depth of my writings!
Or might be many had felt,
But none had expressed!
Or might be chose not to express!
So clearly he articulated,
His enchantment!
May be there is poet hidden in me too!

The most amazing thing about
An appealing work of art
Is the attempt of the piece,
To be able to hide the horrific predicament
Of the creator!
It is an attempt to transmute the
Bleeding pain of the writer,
To the most gallant and pleasant
Work of Beauty!
Such a noble is the occupation!
Being an Alchemist!
Transforming the tears, pains, and sweat,
To rapture, joy and Bliss!
To Inspiration and Elegance!

Thank you Yeshwant!
It is the understanding and love,
Of souls of your like,
Which keeps the beauty Alive!
It is your listening,
Which transforms a naive lad,
To graceful wordsmith!
You guys transform an existence,
To a thriving!
You make life worth living!
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The New Birth

Shaking off his old ways,
The sheepish, wining lad,
Stands out as a gallant Man!

Tired of being a creeper,
Decides the ivy vine,
To be a Tree – with a backbone!
Straight to stand against the storm,
For a cause – for a meaning!

Though being alone,
Without a one to support,
The Tree shall stand out in its own Grace,
In its own Signature Stance!

No more the wining lad,
Weeps on the forgone past,
Nor does it throbs with expectation
Of the lovely future!
Does he what is right.
Every moment, being in the action spree!

Chooses he not to waste his time,
On people and things,
Those do not deserve his grace.
For cares he not,
Who care not him!

Sticks he still,
To realm of unconditionality,
But cares he not,
Whether he is loved or considered!

He is no more the shimmering star,
But he is the glaring Sun,
Who stands for his cause,
And is sure what he is,
And What he wants!
He proclaims to all,
Close and Far,
Known and unknown –
I am a giver!
Need I none from you!
For what will you give to one
Who already has everything!

More than feelings,
More than emotions,
It is the cause – the purpose of existence.
That is important – that is relevant.

The new life is an opportunity,
To be an expert – in a domain –
Creating one’s worth with
Intellectual and Psychological Capital.
Being richer with many and more
Relationships – friends and family!
But at the same time,
Maintaining ones own space,
One’s own grace,
Doing what is in style,
Creating what is Beautiful!

Growing up from the world of a dog,
To the kingdom of Chiefdom!
Nourishing, guiding and shaping the world,
With the most inspiring character –
Something on which all are proud of!

It is coming to the realization
That it is more important to be RIGHT,
Than being just GOOD!
It is about caring for a mission,
And standing by it – no matter what!
It is about having the veins of the steel,
To tame the lowly and stupid genetic urge –
Gifting to oneself the artifact of being Human!

Life is living in action – perennial action,
Working always towards something bigger than itself!
It is about creating a legacy,
Not out of the stance of an egoist self,
But from the place of being a link – a carrier of goodness!

It’s nice to have woken up,
From a long slumber,
Metamorphosis it was gallant,
The journey from the caterpillar to the butterfly!

Life is nice, life is good!
The best part of it,
Is the continuous lesson it teaches,
Ushering to realizations anew!
Leading one to the New Birth!
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The Sequel - The Sun Redeemed!

This is the sequel to the poem - The Sun's Redemption.
To read the Part I refer the link - http://criativ-mind.blogspot.com/2011/03/suns-redemption.html

- Part II -
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For the first time he stood for
Not the self,
But for the world!
For a cause!
For something he cared!

Glaring all his way,
From dawn to dusk,
Did one thing he remember -
He exists for something,
Bigger and greater than his own life.
It was not about his love for his Moon,
But it was his love for life as a whole.

Disgusted was he living
The small life,
Of the shimmering star,
Fragile and anxious,
For being loved and cared!
Forever captivated in the
Expectation of understanding and kindness,
In the ever deepening thirst
For being understood and loved!

Now and for ages to come,
To the endless eternity,
He was a glaring Sun,
Being center of an ongoing rhythm of life!
For the planets, asteroids and
The celestial bodies innumerable!
For the Flora and Fauna,
For the glory of warmth and light,
In the life of the countless life forms!
Gradually the glare of his,
Had expanded beyond his own self!

Civilizations many came up,
Evolved and grew,
To higher states of complexity,
To higher levels of culture and beauty!
Undertaking “Non-Zero” games!
All under the expanse of
His nourishing warmth of Blessings.

With wonder he would look down,
From the clear blue sky.
Expanse of bright Sun flowers
All smiling at him,
Following him wherever he goes!

And then there were the plants and trees,
The clear streams and glistening waterfalls,
All whose existence depended on his glow!
For with their silent heart filled with gratitude,
All of them acknowledged his presence!

There was the little child,
Opening her eyes early in the morning,
Enchanted with the happy glow of the day outside!
Glory on the top of glory,
Her cheeks and his Glow!

With the call of the rooster,
Did the day of activity start with his first rays!
Men and women, busy in their work,
Giving humanity a push
Towards a newer and better tomorrow!

He was the harbinger of
Bright, new happy day of creation and acitivty,
Eradicating the Sedenteriness,
The laziness and darkness of the night!

So fulfilling was his existence,
Seeing people in “Flow”,
Constructive using their talents,
Shaping their dreams,
Creating things which never existed,
Enabling mankind doing things
Which it never was able to do in past!

Ushered into a new realm of existence,
The Sun proclaimed -
I create - therefore I am!
His existence was all about
Being used up - burning every moment,
To provide for a cause - for the world!
He cared none for himself,
Continued he to burn!
For the only purpose of his existence,
Was to give and give!
He had nothing for his own,
To take and hoard!

Sometimes, distracted falls he prey,
To his lost passions and old fancies,
Eclipsed is he sometimes in the shadow of his Moon!
Then there is darkness - gloomy and sad!
Quick realizes he,
Awakes from the slumber long,
Snaps away he from the human urge,
To again start living a life of the Sun!
Glaring with meaning,
For a cause and mission!

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The Sculptor’s Sin

During the heydays of Italian Renaissance,
In the city of Florence,
There lived a Sculptor – Michel Simoni.
Loved he to sculpt his ideas, his dreams, his passion!

Since 3 years long,
He was sculpting an angel!
An angel with the Most Beautiful Eyes!
With the most beautiful Soul!
And a Charming Smile!

It was the ides of March,
In the wee hours of the morn,
Did he put the final stroke of his chisel –
 His dream angel was standing,
With all her glamour and radiance,
Looking directly to his heart!

He was happy,
He was proud!
For he made it possible,
The Divinity descend to the
Land of the mortals!
There was standing with all her glory,
His amorous beautiful angel!

The sculpture was new,
But why he felt that he knew her?
Not for just years few,
But since eternity long!
Then, now and forever!
Yes, he was in love!

But then the king’s men came,
On dark horses, with armor and sword.
Took they the angel,
For it was the deal done – a 3 years contract!

Michel Simoni stood still
Cold as a lifeless statue,
Even tears denied to flow,
For he was parched deep down the heart!

He was in love with his Angel.
Deep and profound,
A primeval deep bond,
Something he had never experienced!
Something so special so divine!
Nothing much could he do,
For his beloved was a lifeless statue.
Indifferent on anything and everything!
For she was just a cold marble,
With no heart to throb, no mind to think!

Stuck on to his indifferent Angel,
Lost he his peace of life,
Always lost was he,
In memories of her
Most Beautiful Eyes,
Her bonhomie Smile!

With every new work he took,
With every new sculpture,
He tried to bring his lost angel
In form, with the same fervor!

Kept he on his search,
For exactly those eyes,
And that Smile,
And that Soul!
In every new work he did,
With every stroke of his chisel!

For life gives to the new,
The archaic perishes for the modern!
Knew Michel Simoni none of these,
Stuck was he in his life!

Years passed by.
Seasons came new.
With new winds from the heavens,
New rainbow decorating the new sky!
The Sun rays were new,
None were the trace of old!
But who could convince
Michel Simoni!
For he was stuck with his Angel –
With the Most Beautiful Eyes!

Now Michel Simoni was old and fragile.
In his late 70s was he.
The silver long hair,
The wrinkled skin,
Were doing their best,
To keep the throbbing heart alive-
All tired of waiting for the past to return!

It was a turbulent night,
Tumultuous Ocean kept shouting of omen.
 Vultures crowded the sky.
Michel Simoni was no more!
Stuck with his Angel in heart,
Did his soul part –
In search of those Beautiful Eyes,
In some new land – stuck in the past – Still!

They poured his ashes
To the flowing stream,
That turbulent and dark night!
The stream patted the back of the ashes,
And asked with concern –
Why dear Michel Simoni,
You still are stuck to the past – the stale!
Past is dead. Life is the present!
Why dear Michel Simoni,
You became that stagnant pond,
With the stale water of the past!

For the Pond is so dead and stale,
That even the humble and lovely Lotus,
Never even touches it,
And accepts its wetness on his soul!

The Stream continued –
Live like me –
Flowing with life to newness ever!
Being pulled by life –
With all its Novelty and Hope!
I keep flowing through eternity,
Never stuck to the past!
There is always that new promise,
The new world, the new shore,
I look forward to!
I have not gone the way of the Pond!
My life is about keeping on the move,
Exploring newer depth,
Creating new meaning!
I am not just a river,
I am a “Rivering”!
I am not a noun,
I am a Verb!

Winnowing in the rhythm of the stream,
Michel Simoni did realize his Sin!
Redeemed was he,
At the altar of the Stream!

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The Eternal Togetherness

Through the exotic Gold Pen,
Embellished With the Gold Nib.
Decorated with the
Lustrous peacock feather.
Was in conversation,
With the serene and silent,
Pristine white paper,
The throbbing red ink!

With emotions from the Stars,
Right from the celestial abode,
Did flow in spontaneity,
Carving out the
Divinity in form!

One at a time,
With every stroke of the nib,
A drop of blood-red pearl was born,
And it dedicated his life -
His whole being in carving out -
His love for her,
In words anew!
Countless such red pearls were born,
And they died -
With a smiling face,
For they could lay their lives,
Right on the bosoms of the paper!
The ink was determined,
Till the last ounce,
To be used for a cause,
He was proud of,
For his only love!

The Poet kept writing,
In awe each moment,
For he knew those were not
his words, but were from
Some uncurable romantic maverick.
For he never had seen,
such purity and depth,
In every turn and twist!

Dying and then being re-born,
Just to die again,
In the hope to be born,
Again to carve another stroke,
In that heart of his beloved!
And then to die with a smile!

Many lives did pass,
Many births did he take!
Many poets came and went,
Writing in their trance –
Some wrote about their beloved,
Some about Gods and Demons,
Some about country side and
Beauty of Nature!
The ink kept flowing through eternity -
For he had to sing his song –
He had to participate in
The Eternal Togetherness
With Her – birth after birth!

With every short but intense life,
Was strung beads by beads
An expression for posterity!
A beautiful legacy –
A heritage of harmony, calm, peace and love!
Some called it Shakespeare’s Sonnet,
Some called it the Milton’s epics,
Some venerated it as Blake’s mysticism,
Some worshiped it as Rumi’s Grace!

All the mortals,
Ages after ages,
Always praised the poets,
And swore by them!

But none knew –
It was that urge for eternal togetherness,
That made things magical!
The ageless passion of the Ink for his beloved –
The pristine, charming paper!

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The Deeper Truth

We are living in the middle of a revolution in path breaking research in human consciousness. Over past few years, geneticists, neuroscientists, psychologists, sociologists, economists, anthropologists, and others have made great strides in understanding the building blocks of human flourishing. And a core finding of their work is that we are not primarily the products of our conscious thinking. We are primarily the products of thinking that happens below the level of awareness.
The unconscious parts of the mind are NOT primitive vestiges that need to be conquered in order to make wise decisions. They are NOT dark caverns of repressed sexual urges. Instead, the unconscious parts of the mind are most of the mind - where most of the decisions and many of the most imperssive acts of thinking take place. These submerged processes are the seedbeds of accomplishments.
If the study of the conscious mind highlights the importance of reason and analysis, study of the unconscious mind highlights the importance of passions and perception. If the outer mind highlights the power of the individual, the inner mind highlights the power of relationships and the invisible bonds between people. If the outer mind hungers for status, money and applause, the inner mind hungers for harmony and connection  - those moments of self consciousness fades away and a person is lost in a challenge, a cause, the ove of another or the love of God! Mihaly calls this state of awareness as being in FLOW.
The unconscious is impulsive, emotional, sensitive, and unpredictable. It has its shortcomings. It needs supervision. But it can be brilliant too! It is capable of processing blizzards of data and making daring creative leaps. Most of all, it is also wonderfully gregarious. Your unconscious, that inner extrovert, wants you to reach outward and connect. It wants you to achieve communion with work, friend, family, nation and cause. Your unconscious wants to entangle you in the think web of relations that are essense of human flourishing. It longs and pushes for love.
Of all the blessings that come with being alive, it is the most awesome gift!
There are various sources of this unconscious dimension of the mind. Some are genetic. Some are memetic.
The source and inspiration of such a dimension is another topic of discussion, which I will save for another article.
But the point here is being aware of that deeper truth - that hidden aspect of being human! It is about being present to the fact that when someone loves or hates the other - the motivation of doing so - might be totally beyond the conscious self of that person! Whatever the person reasons out explaining his/her reaction or action, is just cooking up a story to fit to a conceived form of artificial reality!

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The Sun’s Redemption

Thousands of Billions of light years ago,
The world was dark and dull.
Only were the stars in the far away land,
Safe and hidden in their homes,
Among their near and dear ones –
Twinkling each in their small worlds.

One among the stars,
Broke out from his kin –
Went away to further land,
The new world – world of glitter and radiance
Of the golden and lovely Moon!

The start struck by the cupid’s arrow,
Spellbound by the beauty of the Moon,
Was head over heels for her!


The star went to the kingdom of the Moon,
Held out his throbbing heart!
For he wanted to give it to the Moon!

His heart was shiny, full of love and passion,
Bright and young, brimming with life!
The Moon glanced at it,
But then turned away – For it was too ordinary and naïve.

With a polite smile,
Did the Moon turned and said –
“Go back to your smaller world, you lowly star!
You don’t have light – just a fading twinkle!”
The Moon left the star lonely with indifferent gaze.

Star’s heart bled, wept and cried!
The Moon never turned back,
Disappeared she, in the lifeless cold mist.

The star knew now, the Moon was not his!
For she was from the world of riches,
Bright, glittering were her ways,
Brimming with radiance were her
Most Beautiful Eyes,
And resonated with life,
Her angelic voice!
He knew he cannot posses the divine,
But couldn’t he admire the divinity?

The little life that was left in its light,
The star decided to dedicate
To his Moon – his Love!
Decided he to spend rest of his existence,
With thoughtful reminiscence
Of those lovely memories –
Her silvery radiance,
Her tranquil presence,
Creating a new world,
Bathed in the golden glow
Of her love!

Retreated the star,
In dark cavern among the woods,
Where none can reach,
Even in thought.
In the heart wrenching solitude,
Aloof from the world,
The star closed his eyes,
And got lost in memories of his beloved!

There was his profound Love,
Already kindled in the remote corner of his heart,
The lamp of love was twinkling,
Amidst the stormy night of indifference!

Closed was his eyes,
Looked he rock still,
But was there roaring emotions,
Passions of deep un-fulfilled love,
Beating were strongest waves,
On the walls of his tender heart!

The heart throbbed,
Cried out loud – in deep silence,
Was it wet with tears, sweat and blood,
It was restless, and turbulent.
All was dark, all was still,
None was there to witness,
The lover’s fate.

Eons passed,
The star was still,
Idle at the same place,
His eyes still closed.
Passing time had changed things,
Now there was no woods,
No darkness!
Things were different!
The love filled heart of the Star,
Was radiating out bright light of bliss!
The twinkling lamp of desire,
Was now full blown bright fire!

Bright red and hot,
With all its fury and elegance,
The Star was no more just a lowly twinkle!
It was a full blown fiery fury!
The pure true and pristine love,
Had been nurtured
In the cradle of patience, longing, and passion!
More light was created,
One quantum at a time,
Over thousands of centuries!
True love had the ability,
To culture within itself,
More and more light!
More and more radiance!
It did not need someone to love him back,
It did not require someone to understand!

Along all these years,
Darkness was gone!
For the Love of the star,
Had evolved him to the SUN!
Bright it was! Glaring and Fiery!
Still he was in deep love,
With a forgone past,
Eons ago – The lady with the Most Beautiful Eyes!
He did not know where was the Moon,
Or where her kingdom lies!
He even was unaware how she looked,
And how were her ways!
Only thing he knew – He loved her,
As fervently as he did – ages ago!

Continued the Sun in his new fire,
Nurturing his age old Desire!
Spreading life giving light to the Earth,
To all Flora and Fauna!

Each day across the sky,
The Sun kept traveling,
In his solitary journey,
Burning in the agony,
The world knew nothing of this thirst!
Of this pain, and this ardor!
For they worshipped the Sun,
As he showed all - what life is!
Bright and lively were the streams,
Trees and birds,
Animals and men!
Flourishing was nature,
Civilizations many great!
Awesome work of art!
Ingenuous human creativity,
All was visible in the light of the Sun!

Till today the Sun continues its journey,
Burning in deep love,
For his age old love!
Clueless is he about the Moon,
And her ways!

Watches the sky,
Silent and Calm!
Both Sun and the Moon.
Each continuing its own rhythm,
Unknown of each other!

The Moon is as indifferent as ever.
Beautiful it is the most!
And her Beautiful Eyes!
With more lovers and admirers!
From distant lands!

Her glamour though has reduced an inch.
Her countenance has a wrinkle
Of the past – an indelible memory of Eons ago,
About the Star who loved her more than any!

Mortals of the world,
Still see the dark patches on the Moon,
Silently speaking her tale of emptiness profound!
Unknown of the real reason,
World has woven many myths!

Sky is calm and silent!
Never did it care to whisper to the Sun,
Or for that matter to the Moon,
For if any one waits for sometime,
In its journey across the horizon,
The age old sweethearts might meet!

Weary of the shallow selfishness,
I did confront the sky!
“Don’t you have a heart!
Why don’t you make them meet?”

The Sky smiled and replied –
It is the distance that has kept the love alive!
For this un-fulfilled love,
Is that what has made the twinkling star – the glaring Sun!
And the fragile beauty – the gallant Moon!
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Towards an Inspirational Tomorrow!

The mixture of cooperative and competitive human instincts, the subtle but potent quest for status, has played a very important role in evolution of mankind towards better and more beautiful. In the eighteenth century, Immanuel Kant noted the "unsocial sociability" of man, with special emphasis on the "unsocial" part and its ironic consequences.

Kant's in his essay "Idea for a universal History with a Cosmopolitan Purpose" writes the following -
"Through the desire of honor, power or property, it drives him to seek status among his fellows, whom he cannot "bear" yet cannot "bear to leave". Via this quest for status, "The first true steps are taken from barbarism to culture, which in fact consists in the social worthiness of man". This commences "a continued process of enlightenment" as "all man's talents are gradually developed, his taste cultivated".

Without these "asocial qualities" human beings "would live an Arcadian, pastoral existence of perfect concord, self-sufficieny and mutual love. But all human talents would remain hidden forever in a dormant state, and men, as good-natured as the sheep they tended, would scarcely render their existence more valuable than that of their animals". In that event, "the end for which they were created, their rational nature, would be an unfilled void. Nature should thus be thanked for fostering social incompatibility, enviously competitive vanity, and insatiable desires for possession or even power".

Perhaps as history unfolds, Kant wrote, we will see "how the human race eventually works its way upward to a situation in which all the germs implanted by nature can be developed fully, and in which man's destiny can be fulfilled here on earth."

This was all conjectures, Kant stressed. Writing in 1784, before the harnessing of electricity, before the telegraph of typewriter or computer, he admitted that so far there was just "a little" evidence of such a "purposeful natural process". Only time would tell. "For this cycle of events seems to take so long a time to complete, that the small part of it traversed by mankind up till now does not allow us to determine with certainty the shape of the whole cycle, and the relation of its parts to the whole".


Well that was back then - in 1784, when the great Immanuel Kant had this visionary thought.
Today in the era of facebook, google, apple, durex, cloud computing, space exploration, quantum physics revolutions, path breaking advances in neuro-science, the human civilization has certainly come a long way towards a highly complex evolved state with a future more glorious than the Roman Gods.

In this globalized world closely knit with internet, things are much more easier to do than in those dark ages of Kant. Being alive at this point of the evolution of this planet and its inhabitants, we have this utmost privilege to build upon with more beauty on the legacy we already have.

The need of the hour is for the general demography to understand and appreciate that they belong to an inflection point of human destiny, and the way they spend their lives today will determine the degree of greatness humanity reaches tomorrow. The choice is yours - use this life for something bigger than your own existence- something which enables mankind to achieve further complexity and beauty, or just wade away in the life aimlessly - drugged with the genetic urge of indulgence. Also it is in urgent need that mankind shakes off its age old propensity to cling to idealistic perception of morality and goodness - giving mystical turns - making a good myth out of humanity - but of negligible pragmatic importance. As Kant had rightly pointed out 3 centuries ago that it was in Natural Selection's interest of human to be "humane" and NOT "divine". We certainly would have lost the race and be "good and harmonious herd of sheep" today, haven't we had the humane tendency to be better and more beautiful - sometimes labeled as "asocial" the attributes of envy, jealousy, being possessive, and enamored by the lust of respect and status.
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Growing In Love!

 They say -
I have “fallen” in love!
But wondering was I
Is it really a fall?
Or it is a Continuous Growth?

Each time I have been
In the state of love,
Haven’t  I grown
Up to avenues higher!

Being in love
Made me feel the
Phantasm of mind
Which magically transforms
A damsel to divine!
It allowed me behold in the ordinary -
The most beautiful being!
More beautiful than the divine!

I came to know
Life is not what is -
Rather it is what I create!
It is my perception which is real to me
Not the reality!
For the first time,
I had the visceral feeling
Of what they say -
Story is truer than the Truth!

Being in love
Made me transcend my ordinary being -
My wishes, my dreams, my desire!
To a much higher plane -
Of what she wishes, she dreams, she desires!
And then the transcendence extended even further -
To what they wish, they dream, they desire!
And then even further I grew -
To what the institution wishes, it dreams, it desires!

And then did I think for the first time –
Life as a whole - humanity together -
What it wishes, dreams and desires!
What a beautiful state of being I am!
Living for the beloved -
In the form of the muse with the most beautiful eyes,
In the form of a vision so inspiring to keep me charged,
In the form of a meaning of life, making myself relevant!

Being in love,
Made me honor the space of others!
It is that an expectation of something in return could
Immediately thwart away my being in love,
Into a parasitic urge of possessing which can never be possessed,
Into downgrading the divine,
Into lowly worldly clinging and clasping,
Leading to a commoditized degradable familiarity!

Being in love,
Made me feel the pull of life,
In the form of a desire not granted,
Looking forward for miracles,
Cherishing the indifference of
The universe and the beloved!
Thereby for the first time,
Appreciating the love what I already abound!
My family, my friends, my job, my poems!

Being in love,
Made me appreciate in cellular level,
The profound force of Natural Selection,
Ingrained deep into the genes,
Totally hidden from the conscious awareness!
It made me see the world most of it going totally pup petted
By the genetic urge -
The invisible and unconscious - force of evolution
Using mortals as vehicles -
In its own journey to Higher Complexity!

Being in love,
Made me see God,
Who was greater and more beautiful
Than any of those, who they talk about,
In fairy tales and mythologies!

It was not only the pleasure
Of seeing God in those most beautiful eyes!
But also cherishing the Omnipresence -
Literally for the first time!
Either in those sweet memories of love,
Or in that moment of caring –
Holding my infant baby in hand just after she was born,
 Or helping that blind couple cross the busy road,
Or hugging that embarrassed person who was
Un-dignified by the world being mis-understood by all!
Or the moment of that fulfilling smile –
Having written that poem – “The Ocean and The Moon”!


Being in love,
Made me feel that pain – which is death to hide!
Increasing the appreciation of
Kindness and understanding!
It taught me the value of being loved
Each long hard and thorny moment spent in
Empty and Silent Solitude!

They say -
I have fallen in love!
But wondering was I
Is it a fall?
Or a continuous Growth?

I have learnt –
More I love –
The more I am alive, The more I learn – The more I give - More I grow – More I am relevant!
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The Old and The New!

Since ages long,He survives!
Through accidents many,
Unconsciously harmonized,
Amid random chaos!
Evolving along the plot
laid by the natural selection.

Not much has changed in his being,
Nostalgic of the days eons ago,
He continues in his old ways!
Surrendered fully
To the Selfish genes,
The ancient insticts,
The archaic ardour,
The prisine passions!
Lives he chained,
In the dark and Tiny
Dungeon slimy.
Captivated forever,
By the lustful craving,
Centered in the self!

Blind to the evolving world,
Beautiful trees,
And sparkling stars,
Goes his life behind the bars.
Drugged with his self importance,
Craves he deeply to be loved and cared!
Living his own ways,
Weeps he in despair,
For the love lost,
And Gold snatched!

Busy is he,
Warring with all,
Fighting his battle,
To kill and defeat!
For he has to win,
He has to win!

His life is taken away,
By jealosy, fantasizing, and dreams!
All drugged and puppeted
By the selfish genetic urge.

His reason to be happy,
Derives from his possessions,
And his feeling of worth,
From the sense of being loved and understood!

Enslaved by his instincts,

He has loved with full ardor,

But each time conditioned

With the desire to be loved back.

He has lived with energy,

But each moment in the rush to win more and more.

Then from nowhere,

Was the New Born!

The New was not an identity!

Neither a noun he was.

But was he just a Verb!

An action – a thought – a stance – a poise!

He needed nothing,

Expected none,

For the essence of his existence

Was to Love and just Love!

He was in love with her,

He called – The Lady with the Most Beautiful Eyes!

He was in love with the vision,

He was in love with his work,

He was in love with his poems,

He was in love with his family and friends!

He was in love with everything life had to offer -

Today, tomorrow and thereafter!

He was just a means towards

Something more beautiful,

Something more creative,

Something more inspiring!

He was the channel of the divine,

A solution to a problem,

A resting shoulder to the friend!

He was the valiant heart

Ready to lay his life,

Anytime for the Right,

For the Beautiful

For the Inspiring!

He was an Obstinate Optimist!

Always having a countenance of smile

Hiding all his pains,

For he knew all those are just illusions!

What was real – was just Love – Just Love!

Needed he none to love him back,

Needed he none to understand him,

Needed he none to care for him!

For he was not an identity,

He was neither a noun,

Just he was a verb – an action – a thought – an idea!

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