The Phoenix..

Tiny hands clad with dust and dirt, lifting  bricks and cement,
keeping them on his head, Climbing the dangerously ascending half constructed stairs,

Dizzy in the head, hungry in the stomach,
cold in the body , sad in the heart,
still pulling out every bit of strength from the core of his existence
to just go on and on..

For if he stops, he knows not what awaits him next,
he knows not where to hide, he knows not where to go and cry,
he knows not whether he ll be alive..

What must be the thoughts crossing his mind..
Why him ? Why was he chosen to suffer like this,
while others go to school and have an education,  have parents to hug,
siblings to share with, a home to come back to , a cosy bed to sleep and so much love..

What must be his crime..? He thinks probably he is some other species who looks like human,
but not exactly a human.. for if he was human , Wouldn't have other humans shown compassion,
for if he was human , no one would have dared to punch him in his stomach for asking for a tiny morsel of food,
for if he was human , he would not have been forced to search for food from a garbage bin along side a few dogs..

The dog was dearer to him than any human , as he could connect with him ,
feel the pain of hunger when he howls, could hug him without being kicked for being a dirty creature..

One day when he had put his head between his knees and had gone into a light state of trance(neither sleep nor awake) after sobbing for a while,
he felt a gentle touch of hands stroking his head..

So wonderful it felt that , a flurry of thoughts ran through his mind..
"Is it how it feels the touch of a parent.. or wait is he god himself??"
For nothing had felt like this in his entire tiny life of 9 years...

The person standing before him wearing a gentle smile on his face,  held his hand tightly
took him to a place called "home" and hugged him..

The boy shivered in utter disbelief..
"How can someone behave with him in this way",
expecting a punch anytime coz that's what many well behaved and seemingly gentle people have done to him in the past..

His angel gave him some food to eat , and some clothes to wear,
and told him "You are going to school soon.."

Not understanding what is going around him , or what a school is..
he just nodded his head ......

A few years down the lane , after failing in a single class for quite a number of times..
this boy finally managed to have a grip on his academics and became a clerk at a reputed bank with the help of his angel's dedication and hard work....

Thus, rising above the horizon like a powerful "Phoenix" from the ashes....
leaving behind every bad memory of past...


Note: Not every child is as lucky to have an angel or godfather/godmother like this kid had. I know not many of us are capable of supporting a child, as illustrated
in this piece of writing of mine. But friends , do have the heart to call 1098(children helpline in India) whenever you come across child labor . Let's try to do our bit. Thanks.

A tribute to my first pet - my cat

When the hopes were dim , enthusiasm low,
future obscure with clouds of doubt ,

I needed someone ,
to hug me and say it was alright to fail ,
that it was alright to stay behind in the race

I needed someone to not judge me by the marks I score ,
or the clothes I wear , or the rules I follow..

Oh ofcourse , I had my parents , and my brother
but what I needed at that phase , was some 
love as well as aloneness , and the non-commitment to answer anything ,

Well , that was asking for too much I thought ,
but all of a sudden, as if an answer from the heavens,
popped up a cute flurry face at my window sill one day,

Oh such a cute face it was, the lovely eyes, the tiny lips,
majestic whiskers , and naughty tail , enough to knock me out of my feet to say 'Wowww..'

The love affair starring kitty and me had just begun ,
Oh what a time of my life that was ...

With her, there was nothing to prove,
nothing to hide, her meowing and purring music to my ears

there was a baby in her, who needed to be cared , who needed to be forgiven for mischiefs,
who taught me to how to care for someone, to be responsible in my life,

The secret that no one knows till now is that
kitty was my sleep mate...
with her rounding up and sleeping next to me ,
I couldn't have asked for more trust , more love ..

Then there was time to say 'GoodBye', the hardest 'GoodBye' I have ever said in my life..

I miss you my baby doll,
Hope you are happy wherever you are, and I wish we can be together in some other life again,
Love you lots my furry ball of love ...

The equation of 'Imposed' Relationships

Hi Friends, I know I am writing after a long time . Sorry , a few things in my life were demanding more attention and space from me than expected, hence this long a pause in my love of 'pushing the pen or rather my laptop keys ;)'.

The caption of this post may make you think that I am going to vent out my feelings of frustration/anger in this space. You may be right to an extent , but not entirely . It's more of just expressing how I feel about certain things / beliefs/structures in our society 'as it is' without any exaggeration or manipulation. Till date , I have never understood why certain or most parts of society believe that after marriage , it is solely the bride's responsibility to keep the groom's family happy and contented . Then why do the wise say that marriage is a union of two souls .... Rather they should have said that it is a union of a master and a slave , where the slave is supposed to not only serve the master but also his family , no matter how mannerless idiots they appear to be.

When we were kids, we used to think that when we grow up into adults , our generation won't have to go through all these non-sensical ideas propagated by semi-educated /illiterate people . But Alas, here we are still fighting for the most basic of human rights - the right to live according to our own wishes and choices. Although many women are doing so , but not without struggles.

The moment, a daughter-in-law comes to the house , this class of people believe they have purchased a new 'toy' for themselves whose emotions they can play with, mouth-off harsh and malicious comments on her and her family, making her realize at every step that she is a subservient to them . The sad thing is only a few girls stand up for themselves because they fear so many things - the fear of being outcasted by the society , lack of financial independence, or simply being too lazy to even stand up against what they think is so incorrect.

And the result is a vicious cycle of churning more and more hypocrites, who under the name of 'culture' promote this obsolete way of differentiating between a man's right and a woman's right. These hypocrites think that a woman's primary and only duty is to only satisfy or fulfill the man's needs, obey his commands and be a good bahu(daughter-in-law), a good patni(wife) in short be like a gaai(cow) in their parlance.

Then why should the girl be educated at all , when all she is going to be is like a gaai.... ( a faithful cow who doesn't have any primary desires of her own and who knows only to nourish others and sacrifice for others) .

We always talk of growing imbalance of sex-ratio in our country, the current stat being 914 girls for 1000 boys i.e. 86 girls less for each thousand of boys . Don't you think these stats have a strong reason behind them , a gory and most heinous of stories to tell. In India, we always try to look at the surface, rather than probing deep. We blame the doctors for sex-determination tests , parents for killing their female foetuses inside the womb . But do we ever realize what is causing them ? I agree, that it is the most dastardly and hateful of crimes that mankind is capable of committing , but mates have you ever realized what is causing these acts ?

It is the same class of hypocrites , who are to be blamed. If a girl is born and brought up only to eventually bring insult to herself and her family, why go through the pain of giving birth to a daughter , why not abort her and save her from a life full of slavery and insult . This is how the parents probably think while committing the crime of aborting their own child . And they are not the lone culprits. The major culprit is the system that we have cultivated in our society.

The system of differentiating between a male's and female's right to their own lives. The thought that a boy becomes a god for his wife (pati parmatma) after wedding . The thought that a son-in-law has the right to behave however he wants with his in-laws, but a daughter-in-law has to treat everyone(even the younger members of the family) in the groom's family like demigods. These things have to be changed and they are not very difficult to get-rid of.

The solution is to empathize with others feelings(irrespective of gender) and not think that the female gender is differently made. And off course good education (not the kind of education that is sought only to earn a degree) and last but not the least , a basic amount of spiritual dosage .
Bhagavad-gita says a soul at times incarnates as a male and at times as a female. Hence, at the soul level there is no difference between being a male or a female.

At the end, I cannot say 'Hope you enjoyed my post friends' , but I  would rather like to close by saying 'Hope I could make some sense friends'.......................

Walking down the memory lane .....

Walking down the memory lane,
is sweet like rose petals kissing my cheek..
fresh like seeing the rising sun..
tangy like having a tamarind with a dash of sugar..


Playing under the sun with an unhibited carelessness
putting mounds of earth in my small frock
Gazing through the little kanchas(glass balls)
is what I treasure the most after growing up.. 


The joy of hopping and not walking at all,
holding each of my parents hand on either side
while taking an evening stroll with them is 
a priceless treasure that can never be encashed..


The dread of sitting to study maths from my father is
unmatched till date.... 
Not even failing in any of the prestigious entrance exam can 
match the fear generated by it in those little eyes !!


The arrival of adolescence with an unfelt dreamy fragrance ,
bringing with it so many dreams and expectations from life,
from getting a cute, caring, understanding, broad-minded,
educated, sought after guy to cracking the most prestigious of
the entrance exams in the country...


And here I am now, 
with some achievements, some regrets..
some mistakes , much aware of the bitter realities of life..
but ready to face them if not with a smile on my face(yet to learn that !!!)
but an acceptance in my heart..

The people and culture of Meghalaya

I have lived in Shillong, the capital of Meghalaya for 4 years. And it was a beautiful city to live in . Its a hill station and a traveller's paradise, especially for one who wants to have a special tryst with mother nature.

The population of Meghalaya mainly comprises of three tribes - Khasi, Jaintia and garo and belong to Proto Austroloid Monkhmer race.

A large percentage of the population of Shillong belongs to the Khasi tribe. They mainly inhabit the eastern part of Meghalaya in the khasi and jaintia hills. 

Dress:

The traditional female dress, better known as "jainsem" is a two pieces of material pinned at the shoulder and a "tapmohkhlieh" or shawl, giving the body a cylindrical shape. On ceremonial occasions, a crown of silver or gold is worn on the head. A spike or peak is fixed to the back of the crown, corresponding to the feathers worn by menfolk.

The khasi traditional male dress, known as "Jymphong" is a longish sleeveless coat without collar , fastened by throngs in front. But they have turned to the western attire in a big way - trousers and blazer/shirt. Jymphong is worn with dhoti only on ceremonial occasions, usually along with an ornamental waist band.

Social Structure:

The main difference of Khasis which sets them apart from other tribes is that in Khasis the descendents are recognised from Mother and not from Father (Matrilineal Society). This is the unique feature of Khasi Tribe. The children inherit the mother's title and property. According to Khasi Laws the Marriage is purely a Civil Contract. Arrangd marriages do occur but not in a preferred form. Young men and women are given freedom to choose their mates. According to Law, a woman cannot be forced into marriage; she owns the children and properties. A woman may end the marriage at her will with no objection from her husband. The youngest daughter is the custodian of the family property.


 Inheritance:

Khasis follow a matrilineal system of inheritance. In the Khasi society, it is only the youngest daughter or 'Ka Khadduh'; who is eligible to inherit the ancestral property.

If 'Ka Khadduh' dies without any daughter surviving her, her next elder sister inherits the ancestral property, and after her, the youngest daughter of that sister. Failing all daughters and their female issues, the property goes back to the mother';s sister, mother';s sister';s daughter and so on.

The Ka Khadduh';s property is actually the ancestral property and so if she wants to dispose it off, she must obtain consent and approval of the uncles and brothers.

Among the War-Khasis, however property passes to the children, male or female, in equal shares but among the War-Jaintias, only the female children get the inheritance.

Religion:

The Khasis are now mostly Christians. But before that, they believed in a Supreme Being, The Creator - U Blei Nongthaw and under Him, there were several deities of water and of mountains and also of other natural objects. The Khasi believe in a creator god (U Blei Nong-thaw) who is considered feminine in gender (Ka lei Synshar). She is invoked when sacrifices are offered and during times of trouble. The propitiation of good and evil spirits is also part of this system, as is the worship of ancestors. The following major spirits are worshiped: Ulei Muluk (god of the state); Ulei Umtang (god of drinking water and cooking water); Ulei Longspah (god of wealth); and O Ryngkew or U Basa Shnong (tutelary deity of the village).

Food:

Khasi usually take two meals a day, one in the early morning and the other in the evening. They are nonvegetarians, eating pork, beef, and chicken, as well as the flesh of many wild animals. They are said to enjoy a curry made from a particular kind of green frog. Dried fish with rice is a staple of the Khasi diet. When rice is not available, millet or Job's tears (the seeds of the grass Coix lacryma-jobi) is used instead. The inner bark of the wild sago palm is dried and made into a sweet, reddish flour and mixed with rice or eaten in the form of cakes. Milk and milk products are not used, a trait common among peoples of Mongoloid descent. This no doubt reflects the high incidence of lactose malabsorption (the inability of the body to use milk) that is found among peoples of this ethnic background. Beer made from rice or millet is widely consumed by the Khasi, as well as being used for ritual purposes. Some clans among the Khasi have specific food taboos originating, most likely, from totemic considerations.

Death:

Upon death, the body is kept for three days so that the loved ones can come and pay homage to the dead, after which it is buried ceremoniously.

Real Beauty Through My Eyes....

What is Beauty? According to Wikipedia, beauty is a characteristic of a person, animal, place, object, or idea that provides a perceptual experience of pleasure, meaning, or satisfaction.  

In my words, I describe beauty as that captivating feeling, the one that makes u look at the source of beauty with great awe;  it just infuses such a feel-good emotion, similar to the one while having our favorite chocolates!, but much greater in magnitude.

But real beauty is something that is persistent, that can keep the beholder captivated for a much longer time. And in my view, real beauty is a combination of looks and personality. Even with average features, a person can become very beautiful if he/she has the right attitude and personality to carry it!

In context of a woman, here is how I describe real beauty !

Your face so beautiful,
enchanted my soul ,
The twinkle in your eyes ,
the softness in your voice,
the confidence in your gait,
envied by many,

You were born to show the light,
to millions like you ,
rotting in the abyss of stubborn and useless traditions,

Yes, you were the daughter, the sister,
the wife, the mother,
Your tender touch, enriching many barren and dry lives !

But your most important identity was you, yourself !
You the person, with your strengths and weaknesses !

You made your own choices in life !
No you didn't want to rebel !
But career and love are sacred !
and u were the best judge of your own decisions !

A few thought u were reckless !
But deep inside, you were a child who needed to be pampered,
who needed to be loved, who needed to be assured that she is the most adorable !

Deep inside, you wished you were not the rebel,
you were made out to be,
you wished you didn't have to tire yourself with an attempt to live
your own life wishfully !

But you would rise above this tiredness very soon,
to continue inspiring many...
to continue enriching others lives...
and most importantly ,
To continue being the UN-ADULTERATED You, the BEAUTIFUL You....

My woman is strong yet sensitive,  tough yet caring, does have her own lows , but comes out strongly with flying colors, winning the world with her charm ! 

Someone has rightly said... 

 
“Beauty is not in the face; beauty is a light in the heart.”  

Want to know more about real beauty ? Discover it here...

I am so frustrated ! I didn't get the entry ticket and a chance to meet jerry !!!