Of days gone by

I often look back at days gone by,
Silently wishing them nigh,
Engulfed in wistful thoughts,
Peering at shrouded materializations,
Through memories' nostalgic haze...

At your form do my eyes rest,
My recollections stand refreshed,
And memories come flooding by,
Of the starry night skies, the long walks,
The beautifully renditioned songs, the stimulating talks...

The days that were,
The days that no longer are,
The days that seem so near,
The days that are so far.

In words do I find refuge,
From the torrent of emotion,
So do I pen my thoughts,
Each line and every verse,
Be these memories etched away in rhymes,
Staring back longingly at past times.

In search

No sight of it I catch,

Frantic grows the search,

For this is no thing to lose...

Friends are consulted,

Acquaintances few,

And people who I thought I knew.

Alas, tis of no use.

Time ticks along,

I grow restless,

Almost sealed is my fate,

When, I catch a glimpse,

Rummaging through the baggage of time,

And emotion,

The byways of the mind,

And heart,

Do I find it at last,

Elusive as it were before,

I glance inwards, introspect,

And behold, it is revealed.

There it stands -

Solace...peace is at hand.

At the tea stall

**Part 1 of n. Attempts at describing scenes from India as I remember them**

The gold plating atop the minaret of the nearby mosque had long stopped sparkling, the sky was beginning to  lose its orange tint and day was fast fading away into darkness.

"Bhai, ek strong chai dena", said Amit to the chai-waala stationed on the pavement outside Anupama's office. The falling darkness heralded the beginning of work for these chai-waalas, whose mobile stalls, host to simmering kettles and various other paraphernalia, provided much needed respite from work for many engineers like Amit. For Amit, the visit to the tea-stall, as he waited to pick Anupama up, had become a ritual - a stimulus to transition his mind from work-issues to family. The vendor duly acknowledged his loyal customer with a quick grin of recognition, despite being flooded by numerous other requests. "Saab, memsaab lunch ke baad aayi thi chai peene", he added as his callous bare-hands lifted the simmering cauldron of milk without a flinch. He poured the hot-milk into a glass containing sugar, moving the cauldron farther from the glass over time, allowing Newton's gravity to work on dissolving the sugar. The addition of sieved tea-water, boiling in a different container, followed by a round of gravity induced stirring, and soon, Amit found himself accepting the glass of tea from the chai-waala. He placed a five rupee coin on top of the steel box that had been converted by the resourceful man from a discarded gift-box, found scavenging at a scrap-dealer's place, to the container of his earnings. 

Amit walked a short distance away from the stall, trying to shut out the clamorings of fellow tea-connoisseurs. Blowing gently on the glass, he cautiously took his first sip of the tea. The taste was not lost on him, and it had the desired effect -- it had been a long day, of work, sandwiched between numerous meetings, and he was glad to have it behind him now.

An ode

**Disclaimer** In "light" of not too old scientific discoveries, this poem may not be technically correct ;).

The healer, the revealer,
The herald of change,
Always on the move,
Striding forth regardless,
With naught to prove,
The witness to it all,
From ebb and flow of  the tides,
To seasons spring and fall,
The constant companion,
From cradle to grave,

The oft taken for granted,
Oft over-estimated,
Oft repented,
Oft enjoyed,
Oft reminisced,
Self-contained marvel.
Time...

The Happy Place

**Note to self: read when the going gets tough to get to your happy place**

** *
Buried deep in work and irritable too?
Worry not, here's what I cooked up for you
***

Do you remember the morning at the park,
I'll recount it for you,
Take you down memory's lane,
To a time when all was peaceful and sane,
Let your imagination run wild,
Imagining what follows as would a child.

Twas a memorable day,
Heralded by a cold breeze,
Indeed, in the month of May.
The flowers scented,
Swayed gently, caressed by the wind,
The morning sun streamed upon dewy grass,
And the moon did rescind.
The sky was lit with an orange tint,
The birds hopped and skipped,
From their each step, joy dripped,
The little children frolicked about,
Filled with innocence, their big eyes,
Their little hearts brimming with zest and life,
Each of them beaming a smile.

The festive spirit - Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving is a wonderful occasion - it gives one the time to look back at the year that has passed, and be thankful to the divine power above - God, Bhagwaan, Allah, Waheguru - for the many experiences that the year has enriched you with, with His blessings and grace.

It also allows you to be thankful to many of His embodiments in flesh that have graced your life and made it more meaningful and, well, full of life :). I'd like to take this occasion to thank everyone who
I've had the pleasure of having known in my life. Each and every one of you have impacted me in more ways that I can possibly pen down.

Be it playing games of dice with my Nanaji , eating sumptuous gaajar-ka-halwa prepared by Nani, or the tangy kheere-ka-raita by Dadi, the proud walks on the farm organized by Dadaji, all have gone a long way in shaping my personality to what it is today. Thank you for passing on your words of wisdom and showering me with unadulterated love.

The Panchtantra stories taped down by my Mom for me to listen to while a child, the Hero Ranger cycle that was gifted by Dad, the innumerable times I've fallen back on my brother for guidance and support (boy that was hard to admit!) - I've actually come to take all of you for granted. Thank you always being there for me, through thick and thin .

The wonderful teachers that I've been blessed with, throughout my life, who've served as my mentors and guides. Teachers who would actually cook up aalo-paranthas for all hostelers when they won an inter-class elocution, teachers who'd make you appreciate literature, by reading Enid Blyton, teachers who were completely invested in just making you better people - I don't think we can put a salary on such a job. Highly indebted indeed. Guru Govind dono khade kake lagu paay. Balihari Guru aapki Govind diyo batay - Sant Kabirdas

And if this was not blessing enough, extraordinary friends, strangers I just happened to share the same space to begin with and have come to share the unique bond of trust and affection, and who have become the go-to people for some quality time-pass :). Thanks a lot Semites, Columbans, NSITitans, Microsoftians and fellow Georgia Tech students for making the journey, that much more fun and fulfilling.

Needless to say, whatever shortcomings I demonstrate today, stem from not exactly embodying the ideals that you all have espoused for me, and are thus, due to my own shortcomings. Forgive me for some non-ideal behavior that I might have exhibited :( - I'll try to improve, and with your company, I shall :).

Here's wishing you all, all the very best for the year ahead, and a big THANK YOU for being His embodiment in my life!

The times go by; caught in this busy world,
Carrying out our little tasks you and I,
There shall be times, when we do not meet,
When, for long, each other, we do not greet,
Yet, forever in my thoughts, you will remain,
You are the only thing in life I did gain,
You pushed me when I needed a lift,

Held me back, when you felt I needed restrain,
And gave me love and affection without refrain.
There have been times when I've this fact hid,
But not today - thank you for all the things that you did!


-With love,
Mukul

Straight from the heart

Straight from the heart

Ok, if that's too sensational a title, might I suggest - "Jottings on thoughts that are presently swirling in my mind in matters pertaining to live, love, studies and work?" :). I approach this from a somewhat different setting, writing down things that just flow from me, instead of framing stuff to cater to a more literary inclined audience .

Karmanye vadhikaraste
ma phalesu kadachana

In his discourse to Arjuna, Lord Krishna, mentions this to Arjuna to ease his doubts on the battlefield: You have a right to perform your prescribed duty, but you are not entitled to the fruits of action.

I still continue to be amazed how this thought pervades life as we live it, and governs to a large extent the happiness that we experience in it.
Work, studies, love - look back at instances in your life, related to each of these three, that were the source of sleepless nights and bouts of sadness.

The night before the exams, you realize that your preparation is not sufficient. Thoughts of not performing well creep in. If instead, one were to put in the best effort, without pondering on the possible outcomes , it sure will turn out to be better than all odds . 

Extrapolate this, and you notice shades of yoga creeping in here as well - single minded unflinching unwavering concentration on the task at hand - what will it lead to, what next, etc, these are questions that just don't arise. I think yoga flows naturally from the above mentioned philosophy of "karm kar phal ki ichha mat kar".

This is not just applicable to times when you are lagging behind. You are a diligent worker. What drives you? Is it an upcoming promotion, respect of team-mates? Expecting one of these, only to have your dreams fade away, is bound to be the cause of major grief . In-fact any place where you interact with any other human, the only way to avoid grief due to expectations not being met is to undertake, the proverbial Nishkam karma - action without the desire for results, culling the very beast that might bite you back - expectation.


The attitude is also closely related to the pursuit and acquisition of "true" knowledge. There it is, right before you - knowledge. It is not a means to an end. It is not even an end in itself. Its just itself - knowledge. The karma is to acquire it, immerse yourself deeply in understanding it, without concern for how "good" will it make you as a result of you gaining it.


Now, this is where we get tricky, and I'm not sure I have all of what follows figured out in my head.  This is also the portion that, as a Capricorn, I think I should be having the maximum of troubles :P - personal relationships . So these are mostly in the form of questions - swirling thoughts in my head, bubbling around till I have the 'eureka' moment, and see the light:

Detachment from expectations doesn't need to imply an emotional detachment from a person? - I think if one were to just give without any expectation, you are essentially failing to single out a set of persons, who are "special" to you. Can we form bonds of friendship and love in such cases? What is the "spark" if you get what I mean? Does this make us to mechanical? Free from hurt yes - but also deprived of the sheer happiness of seeing your loved one bend down on her knees and propose to you, from the sheer joy of hearing "aaj meri treat" from you friends? The jubilation of when you do get that promotion? The euphoria of when you finally bring home the Nobel?