lone traveler

fascination in travelling alone

can be felt like I've reborn,

no consideration for giving ear

futile talk of others like I dont hear

planning whole day

not following any way,

and still no regrets

mode of my life as it gets

biggest incentive is that

I can never get lost,

for 'the lost way' and 'the path way'

similar, and taking me away

carefree mind nutures well

hidden thoughts I can tell,

imagination get its awaited wings

aha! here my delighted heart sings

a non-practicing aethist

trying to prove existence of your almighty

is like hearsay of negation

similar is denial to gravity

when abeyance from ground is observation

dont rope your ideology unto me

for i may bow at the moment

bending is requisite of tree

as wind strikes in torment

move on

torch-bearers lamented for mayhem

and disappeared in quick succession

leaving afflicted proletariat,

obfuscate in anarchy

what good have they brought upon themselves

oh! but why to repent foolhardiness

for it will bring no pacification

to their melancholy

sanguinary was lead by their malleability

now they have nothing left but vengeance

why i do what i do

i cling onto and i know i am wrong

for every attachment has to end

i fear solitary and at same throng

am i inwardly insufficient to pretend

i say 'you are mine' and i possess you

do i have nothing deeper, more vital

i was incongruous with my environ

as if i am making a moribund immortal

in search of miragical treasure

why do i travel inconsequent errand

have i no idea of the pain and displeasure

which failure subtend

my first poem..

why dont you come back to my arms

where i feel most secure without any harms

for all sweet memories that stand

to bear them now is beyond my command

your one innocent smile

which vaporizes my anguish

your one serene touch

which soothens my bullish

what a happy happenstance 'tis with you

even scorching sun milds for a few

i hanker for you and i do it often

as my despair doesnt soften

Reinterrograting Savarkar

First comes first. Credit for citing the 1857 Sepoy-mutiny as The First War of Indian Independence - 1857, which was the title of the book written by him, goes to Vinayak Damodar Savarkar. By all accounts it is now a known fact that the insertion of the word "first" is a later interpolation. TheSavarkar Samagra mentions it as Atthharahasau Sattavan Ka Svatantrata Sangram (ie. The War of Independence of 1857). Variuos historians such as Harindra Srivastava and Varad Pande(a Savarkar admirer), writing about Savarkar in a much later period included the words "Indian" and "first". Dhananjaya Keer, author of a hagiographical biography of Savarkar cites the title as The First Indian War of Independence - 1857. Going by the original title, cited in the Marathi(Atthharahsau Sattavanche Swatantrya Samar) and Hindi versions of the Savarkar Samagra, it is clear that the title isThe War of Independence of 1857.

This signifies that the critics of Savarkar are unaware and blatantly add this as a fact while bashing him as a Hindu fanatic.

Savarkar's account of 1857 is replete with instances of "white flesh" being slaughtered. It is a theme that is a constant refrain throughout the text. It is important to note that Savarkar's politics was one that divided the world between 'friend' and 'foe'. It was not material who the 'foe' was as long as an enemy could be found at all times.

While killing was the chosen instrumentality, the essence that circumscribed Savarkar's account of 1857 was the establishment of 'swadharma' or one's own religion and 'swarajya' or self-rule. It has to be pointed out that 'dharma' in this instance means religion and does not have the other philosophical connotations that are also associated with the term.

Savarkar argued that there was an inextricable link between swadharma and swarajya. He further refines the link to argue that "swarajya is worthless without swadharma, and swadharma is powerless without swarajya".

Savarkar strongly admitted that words like revolt, revolution, rebellion and revenge, therefore were legitimate in order to remove injustice and bring about parity and justice. Revolt, bloodshed and revenge were at once the instruments of injustice and of bringing about natural justice. Revenge, therefore, was the establishment of natural law and justice. From this axiom, Savarkar derived a principle of nationalism. He claimed that wherever nationalist wars were fought, in such places revenge for injustices that the nation suffered were taken by killing the prepetrators of injustice of another nation.

Even those who differ from his conception of Hindutva seem to acknowledge his nationalism, patriotism and commitment to the cause of India's freedom, often overlooking the model of retributive violence and its philosophical justification that informs much of his conception of nationalism and patriotism. Along with a critical view of Savarkar, there is also the need to examine the content of such terms as "nationalism" and "patriotism", used frequently these days to justify inflamed states of emotion and violence in the name of abstractions.

Clouded Reparation

In the opening soliloquy to Shakespeare’s Richard III., Gloucester, who subsequently becomes King, says:

But I, that am not shaped for sportive tricks,

Nor made to court an amorous looking-glass;

I, that am rudely stamp’d, and want love’s majesty

To strut before a wanton ambling nymph;

I, that am curtail’d of this fair proportion,

Cheated of feature by dissembling Nature,

Deform’d, unfinish’d, sent before my time

Into this breathing world, scarce half made up,

And that so lamely and unfashionable,

That dogs bark at me as I halt by them;

* * * * *

And therefore, since I cannot prove a lover,

To entertain these fair well-spoken days,

I am determined to prove a villain,

And hate the idle pleasures of these days.

Richard seems to say nothing more than ‘I find this idle way of life tedious, and I want to enjoy myself. As I cannot play the lover on account of my deformity, I will play the villain; I will intrigue, murder, do anything I please.’ So wanton a cause of action could not but stifle any stirring of sympathy in the audience, if it were not a screen for something much more serious. And besides, the play would be psychologically impossible, for the writer must know how to furnish us with a secret background of sympathy for his hero, if we are to admire his boldness and adroitness without some inward protest; and such sympathy can only be based on understanding or on a sense of a possible inner fellowship with him.

I think, therefore, that Richard’s soliloquy does not say everything; it merely gives a hint, and leaves us to fill up the indications. When we complete it, however, the appearance of wantonness vanishes, the bitterness and minuteness with which Richard has depicted his deformity make their full effect, and we clearly perceive the bond of fellowship which constraints us to sympathy with the miscreant. The soliloquy then signifies: ‘Nature has done me a grievous wrong in denying me that beauty of form which wins human love. Life owes me reparation for this, and I will see that I get it.

I have a right to be an exception, to overstep those bounds by which others let themselves be circumscribed. I may do wrong myself, since wrong has been done to me’ – and now we feel that we ourselves could be like Richard, or that we are already a little like him. Richard is an enormously magnified representation of something we can all discover in ourselves. We all think we have reason to reproach nature and our destiny for congenital and infantile disadvantages.

watch your laugh

They say 'A man is known by the company he keeps ' . I say that can be dubious as choice of company is often governed by several factors which most of the times are beyond one's control. So what can be the other criterion? I prefer laughter to be the best medicine yet again. Its not only easily comprehended but fun to observe.

But the million dollar question is how to draw someone's psyche out of his laughter. The cause effect thesis is of help here. People laugh due to many reasons, and intrestingly most of them are related to others. By simply noticing the cause of their laughter, a lot can be concluded about their personality traits. Like a person who laughs when some one slips on road while walking or giggles on someone's misfortune, is certainly not the kind of person you would like to share your time with. In the same manner people enjoy teasing the other fellow intentionally. Despite of boasting about the civilized world we have created around us, we wont let a single occasion go in vain when we can deride the vulnerable. 'One man's deficiency is another man's reason to smile' seems to be the rule followed. From the sheer joy of hurting animals to ridiculing the differently abled, we just dont resist the ecstatic feel.

scholarly book

Indian partition fiction in English and in English translation
a text on Hindu-Muslim relationship
by Basudeb Chakraborti

read this book yesterday in library. quite a work as it summarily includes major fiction written on or during the mass migration of Indian sub continent. excerpts from the books of khushwant singh(train to Pakistan),chaman nahal(azadi),bapsi sidhwa(ice-candy man) were made, along with special emphasis on certain phrases or dialogues by the author basudeb. 'train to Pakistan', on which a movie was featured by the same name, and 'ice-candy man' on which the movie 'earth-1947' was made, portrayed the mass psyche engulfing the two major religions, or better say two major socio ideologies followed by the people living in what is called Hindustan. novels in their true sense depicted how the foreign educated persons (nehru and jinnah,along with many others), leading major political forces, decided to share power, leaving in destitute the millions of people living in existential harmony(to say at least). Muslim alienation felt by and leading to the need of separate state(two-nation theory) and further communal hatred, not only caused the most horrific and barbaric acts of humanity, but continues to haunt the social orders by babri masjid and kashmir insurgency issues.

shattering of innumerable families, with loss of human dignity mainly incited upon the women, was a shameful act in the history of mankind. sorry state of women status, where an abducted women by the other community was unaccepted by the kin and family, is somewhat present in contemporary times too. many fiction works examined in this very book are worth in understanding the driving force of the mad violence tsunami which shook the auhtority of human lives for many many years to come.

self help books!!

an extended glance over the self help books section in a book store will allow one to see the diverse populace deeply indulged in the first few pages of the high profile writer's works. with the students tensed over exam results, to the young professionals pissed upon meeting the targets, to the middle aged men finding some content(women in this phase of life are still not bothered about contentment) - all are busy finding those magical words which will soothe their anxiety. and as soon as they grab their alchemy, they feel like an aura has started to built up, somewhere not only behind head but surrounding their whole body. this aura helps them overcome the exaggerated price marked on the lucrative designer back cover.

now comes the mammoth task of completing the book in one go! this is tricky because the sound advice given by that well-wisher,who also recommended for the book, was to finish it off in a single sitting otherwise the 'due effect' the book has to cast will not take place. to overcome this, reader places a deal with inner conscience to allow him a 5 min break halfway. this automatically makes room for the mandatory chores he is expected to attend in a normal day which will show up abruptly. some fortunate ones will hit for a bench in a peceful park or a place where solitude is guranteed.

so after the much hyped reading exercise, end result- a bigger question looming in large- is nearly same for the varied titled self help books - why the hell i wasted my time and money for this shit? but what is forgotten by people is the fact that this book helped them to be away from that very depressing feeling which was eating them up. yeah, its true that they could have adopted some constructive remedy instead of self helping themselves in this manner; its also true that the very reason of their anxiety suddenly seems to be just momentarily,in a transition state. nevertheless, self help books are ought to help you one way or the other. even if thats not the case, they are certainly helping the author and his publishing house making a fortune.

frame of reference..

i often wonder about the whole concept of 'frame of refernce' or what Newton uncle preferred saying 'referential frame'.

what is good for one person, may not necessarily be liked by the other. most common eg being the clockwise(cw) n anticlockwise(acw) motion- for a cw/acw motion occurring between 2 people, it will be different to both of them. in such a case why is it that by convention cw is accepted to be right or positive or well accepted n acw is taken as opposite or negative? ofcourse no acedemic consideration is made here, otherwise the most obvious answer will come as 'to have a clear understanding of the concept and for the applicability in problem solving'.

there is a constant judgemental feeding in all of us which leads to apprehensions. be it a person, a situation, a place- you name it n with all data available to us we jump to a conclusion. or thrive upon our opinion n justify it without weighing the facts/data wrt to that other 'frame of reference'. extremeism or (religious) fanaticism is based upon such irrational striving tendency. constant degradation of humanitarian values is the after effect of a prolonged divergence from the core societal norms.