Enthralling Trails

“Enlightenment is not a goal to be attained, it is a state-of-being to be regained.”   ―   Kim Chestney , A few days back we had a workshop on Yoga both for the students and teachers.   Yoga is a physical , mental , and spiritual practice or discipline that denotes a variety of schools, practices and goals in Hinduism , Buddhism (including Vajrayana and Tibetan Buddhism and Jainism . (Wikipedia) The instructor was an experienced lady, a pleasant person, mature and beautiful in her thoughts and expressions. The teachers were included in the afternoon session while the students had their session in the morning. It went on for two days to cover up every one. We all loved the session as it was an exceptional one on healing oneself through the art of forgiveness and being good to others. It is a difficult trait as our ego nev er lets us forgive another person who we feel has sinned because of our own perception of thoughts. The auditorium on the second floor w...

“Courage is not having the strength to go on; it is going on when you don't have the strength.”    Theodore Roosevelt He appeared young, and looked striking as he faced the interview held by a famous news channel. The line ‘ I desperately wanted to walk though the doctors had said that I would remain  handicapped, a stumbling block for the rest of my life’ trapped my attention. I saw a handsome face called Vikram who was a Tamil Actor, despite the fact that he had acted in a few Hindi movies too. An accident had kept him immobile for a long period of four years, but now when I saw the clips of his movies it reminded me of the grit in man. He said he was forty eight years old although he seemed  in his early thirty's. There was a seeming goodness in his eyes and conduct which he attributed to the difficult experience in life that has always kept him grounded regardless of his growing success.  A torrent Memories pushed me back to the year  2000 t...

“Joy multiplies when it is shared among friends, but grief diminishes with every division. That is life.”   ―   R.A. Salvatore , The lake glistened in the moonlit night, the trees stood nonchalantly while the majestic coconut tree bent downwards a long leaf as if it were greeting me. The vast expanse of land with the multitude of plants and animals was strikingly beautiful with the gleaming lights in the darkness. Every half a meter there was  a fluorescent light to give sufficient light to look around and move on. I looked at the muddy stretch hoping to meet someone as now the place seemed forlorn and abandoned. I walked a little, looked at the early morning sky beseechingly to see the sun rise. I heard a rustle and a groan in the hedges. I started running to meet my husband who wondered at the slackness in my morning walk. It was 5.45 am on a winter morning, perhaps people preferred being at home. I gladly hastened my pace considering myself luck...

“Live as if you were to die tomorrow. Learn as if you were to live forever.”―   Mahatma Gandhi It was a cold day, the tempe rature  seemed dipping each day to make us shiver. The green foggy expanse at the  University of P u n e made us aware of the wintry afternoon. The English Department was cold that afternoon, both literally and symbolically. It was just after lunch time, the clerks were slowly regaining their composure. A few were yet to come back to their seats while a few others were with the Head of the Department. I wanted to meet the Head to inquire a few things but he was busy attending to many others. I stood to look around patiently as there seemed nothing much to do. The office has a glass barrie r like the banks with a wooden board jutting out for students to use it as a support to write. There is a cane sofa in the corner near the door. The doors  were wide  open and the chill could be felt as the room faced an open courtyard. I saw her ...

“All the statistics in the world can't measure the warmth of a smile”   ―   Chris Hart She saw the pictures of the assassinator in the newspaper. The news said that a teacher was burnt alive to terrorise the students and then the students were shot dead. The terrorists looked like any other young person she had seen. They looked straight into peoples’ eyes as there was no fear, just unpleasantness. Perhaps their eyes gave away the nastiness they bore. As she peered closer she saw him standing third, in the center stood he, he was none other than her adorable son.  How handsome yet so ugly. A sob escaped through her mouth. Where did she go wrong? How painful it was to watch her little one thus. Little was he? He was a full grown adult but for her he was her ‘cheeko’. As she mused she recollected the day he was born. It was a bright morning when this lovely child made way into the world. He was fair and divine looking.  People congratulated her saying that he wo...

“Don’t let mental blocks control you. Set yourself free. Confront your fear and turn the mental blocks into building blocks.”   ―   Roopleen ,   After thirty odd years, I met a few of my childhood classmates. After we exchanged a few pleasantries I had the opportunity of seeing the pictures of their recent visit to our school ‘Kendriya Vidyalayas Golconda No1’. All Kendriya Vidyalaya look alike maybe due to the layout. I had taught in one of the KVs at Pune for more than a year. Each day I would be hurled back into the past when I would hear the prayer ‘Asthoma Sadgamaya…….. Twelve years in a school is a long time. The pictures of my classmates included their banter with our childhood teachers who have grown old but remain pleasing. My classmates showed me my first form teacher, the art teacher and many others.   Looking at my art teacher Mr B.A. Reddy a torrent of memories arose. I recollected the art period in the school which was a lovable brea k during...

“The magic moments go unrecognized, and then suddenly, the hand of destiny changes everything”   ―   Paulo Coelho The picture in the newspaper illustrated the incident, it showed people, men, women and children bent in an engrossed state as they collected coins, money and other  things after a funeral was performed on the beach. They did not notice anyone clicking their photograph to be published in a newspaper. The photograph showed these people rejoicing the death of the person as they showered their blessings on the large-hearted relatives. I kept looking at the picture for a long time recollecting my past. Andhra Pradesh is known for cotton and silk clothes. The festival season begins with Ganesh Chaturthi though people do celebrate Po ngal, Ugadi and many other festivals in the months of January and March. The shops begin a sale of clothes which attracts crowds.  In the olden days, there were no malls but we had  shopping alleyway at various...