The lights near and far !

Diwali always reminds me of Benaras , because I used to spend all my early Diwalis there. I was used to theDhanteras culture long before is became a rage in Kolkata for the people to buy gold ! the D-day meant going to the market with Didi and buying steel utensils for the kitchen. And buying a shopping bag full of baji and diyas for rupees 10 ! That was my Diwali high! I never really liked the noisy ones but our house helper at Benaras AmarSingh used to revel in them.The kali pataka would go into the jam tin to make the most

ear -splitting noise. I remember burning a hole in Dada's dressing gown cos i tried to run away with a phuljhuri in my hand !

And I loved decorating my grand-parents bunglow with diyas and candles and enjoying that nip in the air !

I remember Kaku once taking me to Mallick bari in Kolkata and we were treated to some amazing home made Tubris !

Over the years I have traveled through states from Gujarat to Delhi to Kochi during Diwali ...but I still remain sentimental about Benaras. Diwali at Mainak is more of a Chibu thing ! His repertoire of anecdotes are endless - from bursting tube lights to being lifted by cops for bursting the chocolate bombs. Every year there after Bhaskar keeps telling him, "I will not bail you out this time!" but for a different reason ! Last time when the cops picked up Chibu, Bhaskar had to abandon his "jua" with the ladies ( very reluctantly..he would rather have his son in jail!) to bail Chibu out ! Like Anjana told me later " Baap juari ! beta farari..kya family hai !"

And amid the lights and sounds I missed ma last evening ..she loved to see the lights and the starbursts in the sky !
And Diwali reminded me of those big yellow "rangta-mora'' laddoos in a golden colored box that came from the house of Haralalka's for my Dadu - who was a physician ! And thakuma always saved one for me so that I can have it after our sojourn at Benaras ! Today at Gangotri's just could not resist buying one at 75 rupees a piece - damn the price and damn the tri-glycerite !

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A holiday with self :)

A long overdue blog about the path that I was seeking , or did the path seek me out ? Over the years the sheen of belief was wearing off and I was beginning to question the master about the magic - about faith becoming commercial, about what Bhaskar stated, "This is all about money". Packing my bags off and going solo isn't very uncommon in my life, but this time I was not on work per se. Checking-in into the Ashram, was on my bucket-list for ever-since, and it was an amazing experience. Despite the crowd, the ambiance just reverberated with a mix of reverence, energy , faith, hope, prayer - and questions too ! Like I mentioned before meditation was not about spiritual pyrotechnics, but a metaphor connected to life. Like the corner I chose had a vantage view of the stage and despite a stench that started emanating from the corner, I just could not leave that place, for the view that corner offered got me stuck there. Life is like that, we are often stuck in the rut , ...

Morning bells are ringing ......

Heidi lived in Alps with her Alms uncle - I read this story in a book that was called The Big Big Story Book and it had a compilation of amazing stories that were my first foray into the world of English story books. Recently on a long flight I watched the movie much to delight of the young steward who was our attendant that night. My first glimpse of the Alps was from our flight ...the dawn breaking to spread the orange hues over the snowy terrain...looked mesmerizing even to someone who is not too fond of the mountains. Switzerland was beautiful, with its manicured terrain and flowers like pretty maids all in a row, picture perfect setting and breathtaking, like a touch me not porcelain beauty. Coming from my "elo melo" city I wondered how people managed to keep a country so organized , I have trouble keeping my room in ship shape...... No, I would not like to live there ......it's too distant and too cold ,but what I will carry in my heart is the awesome time .......

rain on me .....

And the rains came....after days of heat, sweat and grime, suddenly everything looked washed clean , like freshly soaped linen ! The droplets hung on the leaves and the single rose in the bush, and the car got badly sprayed with mud....but who cares ? The sound of rain is the best music I heard in a long long time. And I could finally spot the elusive squirrel that was making a racket all these days and I just hoped the cat doesn't kill the squirrel.... It is a dog eat dog world...both the kittens died, one killed by the dog and the other run over. Only last Monday I was watching them frolic as I sipped my tea. Terrorism and unmindful killings do not have a boundary, from my garden to the world outside , no one is safe anymore. Just the other day I was thinking , these kittens are safe within the four walls of the garden and good that they have learnt to climb trees....but I did not foresee that they too would venture out. And my Tarot prediction on Facebook was ...

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