Heck, you don't even get to take that which you are possessive about the most. The body that you once inhabited is either burnt or buried. We exhaust our life aiming for all that which ultimately comes with a time cap. In all this, we pay no heed to the accessory that lies within our bodies. The only commodity that can transgress even death- our soul. Contemplating about the soul also brought forth the idea that maybe it isn't the humans who evolve. Because if they did then the feelings of hatred, animosity and a bunch of other "primitive" feelings would've become history. No, humans are just containers of souls. Instead of rampantly running behind things that are as temporary as us, why not strive to work on nourishing and bettering our souls instead? After all, it the only thing we get to take with us after death and possibly into a new body.
How many lifetimes does it take for the person to realize that all that they frantically run behind is just as temporary as they are ?
Heck, you don't even get to take that which you are possessive about the most. The body that you once inhabited is either burnt or buried. We exhaust our life aiming for all that which ultimately comes with a time cap. In all this, we pay no heed to the accessory that lies within our bodies. The only commodity that can transgress even death- our soul. Contemplating about the soul also brought forth the idea that maybe it isn't the humans who evolve. Because if they did then the feelings of hatred, animosity and a bunch of other "primitive" feelings would've become history. No, humans are just containers of souls. Instead of rampantly running behind things that are as temporary as us, why not strive to work on nourishing and bettering our souls instead? After all, it the only thing we get to take with us after death and possibly into a new body.
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What if,
The play of thesis and antithesis The polarity of objects The seeming contradiction between situations Is nothing but an illusion? Or maybe our inability to look at the bigger picture? It’s like the waves of the ocean The tide and the ebb together create the waves Or like sunrise and sunset The combination of two completes a day Perhaps like childhood and parenthood The phases that can never be exclusive of one another How about, The opposite genders? The ying and the yang are known to balance each other. Or like hope and despair The two being equally essential to the experience of being human Maybe like past and the present The culmination of two foreshadows the future to come Maybe the idea of opposites is just a delusion And after all It is like the two ends of the same spectrum. Dear Rajkot,
Addressing a letter to you feels weird. No, not because you’re just a city. You’re much more than that. I could say that you’re an emotion but I guess that would be too dramatic. All those who have spent the major part of their growing up years in your lap wouldn’t help agreeing when I say that over the years you’ve come to resemble a safe haven for us. We seldom value the things, people and places while we have them and only their absence makes us realize that they had become an indispensable part of our lives. That is why writing a letter to you feels weird because we took you for granted and never anticipated that one day, we would miss you the most. Dear Rajkot, while we were in your cocoon we complained of your insufficiency. Strangely enough, we now crave for the same insufficiency which made our lives simplistic. It’s only when we moved away from you into the chaotic lives of larger cities did, we realize what a laid back town you are. After all no other city has the custom of complete closure simply for sleeping! Who knew that over the years the circumference of Race Course would mean different things to different people? From playing the role of a mini-amusement park for kids to providing a place for “hangout” for teens and working as a reunion destination for adults, it has been a “go-to” place for all of us. Unlike other cities who have have ascended great levels of progress in terms of infrastructure and technology, you are still treading your way slowly to the top. Even though, your pace of development may have been a cause of concern at some point, we have come to realize that by far you are the safest city in our state which is more than anything we could ever ask you for. The feeling of not belonging is a rarity in your case because the city as a whole is more like a closely-knit family. In larger cities, it is possible to blend into the crowd and go unnoticed but in your case it almost next to impossible. Wherever you go, whether you like it or not you are bound to come across someone you know! By now, you must have realized that the whole point of writing a letter to you has been reminiscing the good old days and thanking you for providing us with all that you have. Thank you for being a city that we can fondly call HOME. Words.
One need not personify them. Because that would mean abstractly assigning them qualities of the living while they’re actually non-living. No, words are as much alive as the next person you come across while reading this. A number rhetoric’s should suffice to explain how. Do not words have the power to be remembered years later, when the only thing retained in your memory would be what they spoke and not what they wore or how they looked? Do not words possess the capacity to lead or mislead the person depending upon their use? Aren’t words sufficient to provoke or pacify the people, again depending upon the context? Is it not the fine usage of vocabulary that leads us to be mesmerized by someone or something? Isn’t it true that not all things are better left unsaid? The answers to these are insignificant, but what they stand to signify is something to think about. Words have the power to exercise independent control over individual’s thoughts and emotions just like any dominant person would have over the others, which makes them existential. It’s all a matter of power struggle then. Do you control words or do words control you? Our life provides an answer to this.
She woke up one day. It all began with her falling off to sleep After being heavily drugged with MORALITY. And thus, she slept to herself and woke up to the world. Here began her life of principles and subtexts. Started believing that everyone should be treated fairly The subtext being – Only those who do not pose a threat to her Decided to help those in need The subtext being – Forcing her ‘help’ on especially those who do not ask for it Practised considering things from everyone’s perspectives The subtext being – Only accepting those that befit her Greeted everyone with a smile The subtext being – Even a fake one would do Carried out a daily ritual of complimenting everyone in order to ‘make their day’ The subtext being – Whether she genuinely meant it or not Preached about how one must not interfere in someone’s life The subtext being – Prying under the mask of concern Vouched for reality being multi-dimensional The subtext being – Created one of her own if the actual didn’t make sense Passionately stood against the idea of gossiping and rumours The subtext being – Though a ‘healthy discussion’ was must Insisted the importance of looking for goodness in everyone The subtext being – Practised the same only as per her convenience She woke up one day. And realized that she had been sleeping all the while. Realized that she had done it all wrong. Realized that goodness was something that came naturally Unlike MORALITY that required her to 'practice' being good Realized that the MORALITY that she was so fond of Was just another gate pass into the lives of anyone but herself. “Managed goodness is not goodness at all. It is pseudo, it is pretension, it is hypocrisy.” -A wise man You. Yes you! The Human Race.
You are a paradox. You sing songs about my purity. You claim that I came down from heaven. You believe that one dip in my vast bed can free you from all your wrongdoings But yet you are a victim of habits. Time and again you have made me, the element of heaven experience hell on earth. Everyday millions of ‘YOU’ exploit my purity by using me as a garbage dump or a natural washing machine You have misused me past the endurance of any living being. Dear Humans, I am the birthplace of civilizations It is ‘I’ who quenches your thirst, who subsides your hunger Who keeps you clean and hydrated. All I’m asking for is some empathy You don’t need to do great things for me You could grow trees near my banks or simply not throw things in me. And believe me, at the end it is ‘YOU’ who is going be to be the biggest beneficiary. Dear Humans, It is ‘YOU’ who devised the saying ‘Actions speak louder than words.’ It’s about time that you realize that your songs of my beauty and purity will mean nothing as long as your actions continue to suggest otherwise. ‘What is the most precious thing that you’ve lost over the years?’ a man once asked.
I replied. I was a child once Until growing up became mandatory Innocence was my area of dominance Until the army of shrewdness invaded Stupidity came naturally to me Until intelligence was artificially injected Creativity was like a pair of shoes that went with every dress Until the dress called examination refused to go with it Emptying the bottle of emotions by crying was a habit Until a lid to subdue the outflow was provided Screaming to the lung’s fullest capacity upon hearing a horror story was instincts Until pretending to be bold for reputation became essential Stubbornness to get ‘that pink balloon’ was the only known way Until someone introduced the concept of compromising Talking my heart out to express joy over trifles was always welcomed Until the art of appreciation was lost into oblivion Laughing out loud over the lamest of jokes signified carefreeness Until ‘simply smiling’ became a sign of sophistication Thanking God before every meal was a lesson taught in every moral science class Until eating like a robot to save time was encouraged in every Corporate Bibles Giving parents, a bear hug each night was the best feeling in the world Until being embarrassed just by their presence kicked in Sleeping for as long as the heart desired was a norm Until sleeping only to avoid dark circles became a requirement Loving unconditionally was the only condition heard of Until ‘Terms and Conditions’ replaced the above. What is the most precious thing that I’ve lost over the years? The younger me. The world is a funny place
You laugh too much and you shall be called mad You laugh too little and you shall be called sad The world is a funny place You’ll be tagged Secretive if your tongue is short Or Talkative is your brand, if you’re talking a lot The world is a funny place If you work too hard, you are deemed Ambitious If you work too little, you are condemned as Aimless The world is a funny place You speak up and arrogant is the word You hold your tongue and you’re a coward The world is a funny place Worrywart you’ll be termed, if you worry too much Careless your petname, if you don’t worry as such The world is a funny place A gossip you are, if you talk about others Selfish you are, if you talk about your brothers A funny place is the World You cry over trifles and you become over-sentimental Stifle a cry and you shall be called cold-hearted The world is a funny place Impatient you’ll be nicknamed, if you can’t sit still But if you simply sit at one place, Lazy is your bill Why does the world judge? Confused, so utterly confused,such grudge! The World is a funny, funny place. Indeed, there is a caste system in the world: Male and Female. So today is a big day for the latter. International Women’s Day! I congratulate all the women on ,well ,being a woman- a role that demands ‘multi-tasking’ to be an ingrained quality.
I would like to grab this opportunity to share something that that I’ve been dying to share (not literally) ever since I attended my friend’s book launch and heard one of the prominent lady figure talk about over feminism. The person who believes and fights for equal rights for women is entitled to be called a feminist. Some of the radical feminists today, have developed a tendency to take the chivalrous term ‘ladies first’ a little too seriously. God created two types of humans , the former being termed as HE and the latter as SHE. Ever wondered why he had to create two different types of humans and not just one? It could’ve saved him a whole lot of time, energy and resources if only he had created one type of human if anyway both were expected to do the same mundane tasks on this planet. But no, the ‘he-knows-it-all’ had to differentiate. Why? Because both have to play different roles on this planet and no one actor can replace the other. While the “HE” may have to act as a protector of the family by being courageous and fighting wherever required the “SHE” may have to act as the protector of the family by radiating love. And just in case, being loving and supportive and not being able to act like “HE” during the time of crisis sounds like a menial job then let me tell you , acting as a support system is just another form of courage. “Real courage is not a man with a gun in his hand”- Harper Lee (Yes, I’m madly in love with that book) I do not disagree to the fact that inspite of the maddening wave of modernization, women in some parts of the world are denied co-equal rights with men. Yes, women do deserve to be treated equally. They deserve to be treated equally as just another human being would and not simply because they are women. Having said this, I have a terrific idea (you can of course decide whether it’s terrific of not.) Let’s change the term “Feminists” to “Humanists” instead. It’s definition could be- A person who believes and fights for the equal rights for HUMANS. And yes, while we are redefining feminism, why not redefine the term ‘equality’ too? As stated in one of my previous articles, differences are what make us unique. We need not fight for superiority or as a matter of fact, equality in everything that men do. We the “SHE” have our own set of purpose on this planet and hence let’s embrace and take pride in that fact. Happy Women’s Day! (Can we also change it to International Human’s Day? Haha! I know I’m getting on your nerves.) |
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