Ona Pookalam 2020

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Just a Chameleon Lazing Around!

7 Must Read Books on Amazon - Wahsome!

7 Must Read Books on Amazon - Wahsome!: Presented aesthetically in this article is a list of 7 great titles available on Amazon India that are must read books across different genres.

Gandhian Gleanings! [Originally posted on 02 Oct 2013 on Tumblr]

On the occasion of Gandhi Jayanti, re-posting a humble tribute to the Father of the Nation by my dear friend, Aam Aadmi (@MeMangoMan) that was written 2 years ago… with due permission from the author. [Link to the original: http://memangoman.blogspot.in/2011/10/gandhian-gleanings_01.html]

02 October 2011. 142^nd Birth Anniversary of Shri Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi. To us in India, he is the Father of the Nation, Mahatma Gandhi. The day is celebrated as Gandhi Jayanti. The day is also celebrated as International Day of Non-violence across the globe.

There is so much written about this Mahatma or ‘Great Soul’ and so many interpretations about his words of wisdom, that it would be futile to add more chapters on him. This is just a small attempt at a bit of gleanings from the life of Gandhi that would perhaps be of some help to those who seek just that.

‘Gandhi’ means Grocer. He belonged to a family who were grocers by profession.

As a child, Gandhi was not very good at studies and had particular difficulty in learning to multiply.

He got married to Kasturba at the age of thirteen. Kasturba too was 13 then.

Gandhi’s political mentor was Gopal Krishna Gokhle.

A few golden quotes from the Great soul:

"Yes I am (a Hindu). I am also a Christian, a Muslim, a Buddhist and a Jew."

"There are many causes that I am prepared to die for but no causes that I am prepared to kill for."

“You must be the change you want to see in the world.”

"As long as you derive inner help and comfort from anything, keep it."

“The weak can never forgive. Forgiveness is the attribute of the strong.”“An eye for eye only ends up making the whole world blind.”

"I cannot teach you violence, as I do not myself believe in it. I can only teach you not to bow your heads before any one even at the cost of your life."

“An ounce of practice is worth more than tons of preaching.”“I do not want to foresee the future. I am concerned with taking care of the present. God has given me no control over the moment following.”“I claim to be a simple individual liable to err like any other fellow mortal. I own, however, that I have humility enough to confess my errors and to retrace my steps.”“It is unwise to be too sure of one’s own wisdom. It is healthy to be reminded that the strongest might weaken and the wisest might err.”

“First they ignore you, then they laugh at you, then they fight you, then you win.”“I look only to the good qualities of men. Not being faultless myself, I won’t presume to probe into the faults of others.”“I suppose leadership at one time meant muscles; but today it means getting along with people.”

“Happiness is when what you think, what you say, and what you do are in harmony.”“Always aim at complete harmony of thought and word and deed. Always aim at purifying your thoughts and everything will be well.”

These sayings by the Mahatma hold good in today's selfish and brutal world and would be worthwhile to put into practice. Surely, if applied in good measure and with patience, it would make the world a better place to live in?

Tribute to a Dear Friend [Originally posted on Tumblr on 04 Aug 2013]

"Only a life lived for others is a life worthwhile." ~ Albert Einstein

Today is Friendship Day. It is also the 4^th of August. I remember the 4^th of August as my best friend’s birthday. A true friend if I had one, Anna Rao. I wish he were here and I could personally wish him as I have done for so many years. Alas! This time around, he is not physically present to answer my call, thank me for the wishes! He is, perhaps, in the Kingdom of God. “Away from the body and at home with the Lord.”

 I remember Anna as a shy, unassuming, loner. We met in the year 1979, in Delhi. At first some of us -his colleagues- were distraught with this guy- keeping aloof, sleeping most of the time, with a pillow placed over his head, to drown the sounds emanating from outside, perhaps. We wanted this guy out and fast. But he stayed put and we soon began to like him. Over a short period of time, I noticed that we got on well together- we had the same taste in music, movies, books….

 These similarities perhaps goaded our friendship to a higher plane and soon we became quite inseparable. Discovering previously unheard music, digging deep into the archives for unread stuff and watching the latest releases at Chanakya and Archana cinemas became a favorite fad. We were together except when our work schedules were different.

Years went by, we were separated geographically, but yet we remained connected. Through regular hand written letters, occasional cards, or a rare telephone call. By the summer of ’85 I was posted to Bombay. In a few months, to my pleasant surprise Anna got posted there too! And once again we were together, and though I was married by then, our bond only strengthened.

In two years’ time, we split again. I went on to Calcutta and then returned to my home in Bangalore. Anna moved on too and finally he too got back to his home town Madras, by then rechristened as Chennai. He was married too and it was fun visiting each other whenever we could.

Towards the fag end of last year, Anna spoke with me over the phone. He sounded rather unusual, dwelling on a few trifles back home. I took it a bit casually- maybe it was one of those moods. Perhaps I should have heard him out. Perhaps I should have visited….

Sounds fine on hindsight, but it was not to be. In early February this year, Anna moved on from this life. He died just the way he lived all his life- being too good to those around him. He always lent a helping hand or shoulder, unmindful of any discomfort it would cause himself. He was forever ready to take that extra bit of effort to placate people who were in any kind of anxiety.

To transcript 34 years of friendship in words is not an easy task- the silence we shared itself would run into several volumes. Thus, attempting the task here would be futile. I write these few words just to start believing that Anna is not in our midst, physically. I shall not miss him because I know he is around me, somewhere. Only he is silent. And I also know he is doing what he likes best- being a Good Samaritan.