Babaji’s Message in Mumbai on 4th January 2009

Babaji came to my town this week-end and I am reminded of those days when the satsang used to take place in Bandra and my whole lane, of 36th road, used to be filled with satsangis who would come from different parts of the world to attend the satsang and there would be so much cheer in my town. I was too young to understand the significance of Hazur Maharaji’s visit to my town but there used to be lot of excitement in my house. For me it was like Hazur Maharaji has come to Bombay and there will be Langar in my lane and I will enjoy the meals and drinks that can be purchased with coupons. The meals had special flavor and were enjoyed by non-satsangis as well. There would be many families in my lane who would not cook during the whole week. There were many guests in my house too, who would talk about the satsangs and about Hazur Maharaji’s life styles, which was normally after attending the discourse. They would meet with family and friends in my house and discuss the teachings and I would listen to them, not understanding a word. My family and my guests talked about meditating on Naam, about abstaining from meat and about adopting a simple and pure life style. Over the years, the venue for Satsang has changed. It now takes more than an hour (depending on traffic) to reach Bayander and listen to the satsang and get a glimpse of Babaji. Although the sangat has multiplied ten fold, the message has not changed over the years Babaji had same message to convey that Hazur Maharaji had repeated for forty years. Babaji preached the significance of Naam and our ignorance on understanding the true path of reaching God, and that path resides within us. And Babaji conveyed the same message, once more, this week-end. He began his satsang by saying: “Which spiritual route can be taken so that we are able to accomplish our goal of reaching God?” He stressed the importance of meditating on ‘Naam’ which is the true path and not to get discouraged easily. Every deed is recorded and according to the law of karma, we come back to this world again and again and built up more Karma and getting entangled in this vicious circle of birth and death. To be released from this cycle, we have to find the right path of truth. Our thoughts are scattered in the external world. By collecting all our scattered thoughts from nine apertures of our body and converging it to the eye centre, concentrating on ‘Naam’ we are able to connect the ‘Word’ with the ‘Sound’ which is within us and get the strength in liberating our self from this cycle of birth and death. ‘Naam’ is strength which is inside us and without which we cannot be alive, without ‘Naam’ there is no life. Shabd is the strength which has made the creation and without shabd everything is scattered. If we look outside in the world, we will never find it, the strength is inside. Although externally, it is known by many words, we cannot understand its strength unless we experience it our self. It is not connected to any one particular religion because it ihas stretched over centuries; it is this strength which is the basis of creation. Gurus and spiritual guides are just physical human being who show us the path and help us to recognize and connect the ‘Word’ with the ‘Light’ and ‘Sound’ which is within us. They are not Gods. We cannot get salvation by touching their feet or their clothes. To get salvation, we have to understand their message, absorb it and work hard on meditation to find its’ strength inside us. He cited the example of a child who is admitted in school. The child cannot pass his exam merely by touching his teachers’ feet and bowing down, he has to listen to what his teachers has taught him, understand it well and absorb it. He cited another example of a chef, who cannot fill his stomach by merely reading the cook books. Understanding and absorbing the method and then actually cooking it and eating the food will fill his stomach eventually. Similarly, we have to concentrate on the message of God. If there is no improvement in your behavior; if you cannot absorb the message and make your own life meaningful then, it is of no use of attending endless satsangs. The true value of satsang is maintained only when you understand the real purpose of attending it. Therefore it is important to understand the true meaning of ‘Naam’ which is the strength within us, a life supporting system, without which, our life is useless. We are so engrossed in ‘me’ and ‘Myself’ that we lose contact with the real thing and forget to concentrate on ‘Naam’ to reach the supreme goal. If you have true love for your Guru, then you should understand and follow his true message. He ended with a shabd that said, “Naam ki ghat Niyari….Gur prasadi karm karo….Bin satguru, Naam nahi jagge…. Radha Soami

Can College Students Work Without A Crown?

Doctors have advised me to take walks to stay healthy. The best place to have long walks is by the sea shore. I often go to Bandstand or Carter road for my evening walks. But there are times when I am too lazy to go to a sea shore, and the next best option is to go to a park on the linking road. That means walking on our Mumbai road. And it is a night mare walking on those Bandra streets. The uneven roads and open gutters are eye-sore. The road outside National College is in pitiful state. There is no proper footpath. Broken tiles and uneven roads make it too dangerous for walking. One false step and I could land in hospital with broken bones. Is our Bandra ward so poor that they cannot mend the roads? They use cheap materials that last only a week. Small pebbles and dust is scattered on the streets. This road is just outside National College but it does not affect even the young college students who use these roads everyday. Many years ago, during my short visit to Holland, I had seen young college students helping with the civil work of repairing and restoring the government buildings. It is the part of the curriculum in college to contribute to the community with their services and care. But would our college students in Mumbai do that? They would consider this too lowly a job to undertake. The college students in Mumbai take more active part in organizing noisy parties and having social entertainments. Are they capable to giving anything back to society? Everybody plays a blame game and pointer is always outward. After the Mumbai 26/11 terror attack, we saw many college students start a temporary uprising, shouting slogans, lighting candles and organizing loud street plays to divert the TV camera on their ego, but how many of them are really disturbed by the poor state of our Mumbai streets? Will somebody work without a proper crown to show off their credentials? Light off. Action Shoot.

Journeying through the airports…

During the last few months I have passed through several airports such as Mumbai, Dubai, Lagos, Accra, Paris, Madrid and Tenerife. Mumbai airport is a complete chaos. Mumbai airport has no sympathy for travellers. On the route towards airport, there is a narrow bridge leading towards the departure, which leads to traffic jam, At te airport, there is no seating arrangement nor any waiting lounge for visitors who come to see off /or receive their relatives, moreover, the airport stinks of strong phenol detergent and the bathroom attendants expects you to pay for the tissue paper that you need to wipe yourself clean. In sharp contrast is the Dubai airport, which spells luxury. It is pleasure to walk through Dubai airport; they have shiny crystal chandeliers, artificial plants and lots of shopping and have the capacity to receive 120 million passengers per year. Lagos and Accra airports are small airports, but they are better than Mumbai airport that there is place to sit with your family in the waiting lounge or in the restaurant while you wait for the flight to arrive or depart. Paris, Madrid and Tenerife are similar in design with glass and steel that offer a panoramic view of the runways and airplanes. In Paris, I loved the waiting lounge which even had easy chairs facing the runways. When there are long flights and there is a transit of few hours to rest at the airports, the passengers respond to their services on offer and benchmark their services against other airports around the word. I saw lots of constructions at Mumbai airport. I am hoping that Mumbai airport will keep in mind the comfort of the passengers and be more hospitable in its attitude towards the passengers to make the wait at the airports more pleasurable and worthwhile.

March Read Meet under Open Skies.

One more lovely evening, I attended with my Caferati folks, this time in South Mumbai, Kemps Corner, to be exact. The theme this month was on sharing notes on the workshops that we had attended during Kala Ghoda Festival in February 2008. I was surprised by the number of people who were anxious to attend. The members at the read-meets were dwindling lately, sometimes as low as five members, but this read-meet was choc-a-bloc. Writers were waiting for some other members to drop out, so that, they could be accommodated. Was it because there were notes to be shared or was it because it was at a convenient location? Whatever, I think people always need a reason to attend, especially if they are not a regular. And, members who attended were not disappointed. Who would? A read meet on a terrace, facing the sea, a generous crowd, who is willing to share their knowledge with people, some of those, whom they are meeting for the first time, a perfect hostess, Kareena Merchant, who made everybody comfortable with her warm chats and tasty chaats and a meticulous organizer, Suniti Joshi, who did lot of leg work alone and yet, so precisely perfect. Hats off to Suniti, who always takes extra effort and time and responds to every member patiently! I was lucky this time to find two friends, who were willing to share a taxi with me and we reached at the venue on the dot of 5pm. After warm up and the introduction of 27 members in Kareena’s house, we went upstairs to the terrace to bathe in the sunshine amidst the cool winds of the open seas. The meeting continued with poem read by Jaya Bhandari, a fiction by Soma Sarkar and a descriptive poem by John. So engrossed was I in their readings, that I forgot to watch the sun-set. (Actually I was sitting in a wrong direction, facing the tall buildings and a cliff of the ‘Hanging Gardens’), But I saw a black bird, resting up there, on a TV antenna, who wanted an audience too, but his verses swayed in the breeze. A short break after the readings was not very short because the snacks were too tasty. It takes time to eat Sev Puri, sandwiches, batatwadas and walnut cake and drown it with a cup of tea/coffee. Second session started with Suniti sharing her ‘Performance Poetry’, Ramesh on ‘Writing for Children’, Samarth on ‘Screen Writing’ Archana on ‘Pastoral Poetry and Kareena on “Freelancing’. I was aware of the time limit of the read meet, and I wanted to hear about other’s experience (and not waste my time, hearing myself speak,) therefore I had prepared notes (Xeroxed it 15 times) on the points that were discussed during the workshop on ‘Getting Published’ and I was happy to distribute it to those, who were interested. I am glad I did that, because the meeting had extended for too long, (9:30pm) and it was getting very late to reach back home. Some of the busy members had to rush off half way to attend to their other commitments, and I was glad that I was able to share my notes with them too.

Celebrate Bandra starts with a ......Bang!

One more (third) edition of Celebrate Bandra commenced on November 17th 2007 and the festival was started with much vigor. There were people in thousands, all on the streets, waiting in the hot sun, for the parade to pass. People, young and old, stood on the streets to watch the carnival parade of Bandra-ites that was flagged off from St. Andrew’s school grounds and wound its way to the end of Carter road. It was a visual spectacle with people dressed in most obscure attire, dancing to the loud music, with marching bands, cheerleaders, school children, stilt walkers, mobile floats, skaters, bikers and cyclist. The parade took nearly three hours to reach the amphitheatre, and then there was a stage show with preview of dances and their performances of each group that included classical singing, classical dances to dancing to the Bollywood tracks that will be showcased over the next seventeen days. The star of the show was the chief guest Amir khan, who lit the lamp and released the souvenirs. For next seventeen day, Bandra will be dressed with lights and festivities, with the intention of bringing all the people together in the spirit of community with a festive theme of ‘Harking back to heritage’

What I like about Mumbai

is that if you are not in mood of cooking you can always eat outside, and if you are alone, you can stand at any street corner and eat. There are hawkers almost everywhere. This sandwich man is savior on the days when my maid does not come and especially on those days when I am too lazy to cook. He stands with his portable stall that has all the ingredients for making a tasty sandwich, bread, butter, chutney, tomatoes, cucumber, beet, onion, boiled potato. He makes a sandwich that costs only rupees ten and two sandwiches can suffice because it is quite filling, with so many veggies, we ought to be full. A drink also no problem. At rupees twenty he squeezes out a fresh glass of juice. Voila! A healthy, filling lunch is just under rupees forty. It is not even one US dollar or one Euro! Where in the world will you find such affordable lunch? Sluurrp!

The Mumbai Times Café (Review)

Ever wondered how these youngsters pass their time when they are not in the college? Well, you will find them hanging around in one of the countless cafes that are scattered all over the city of Mumbai. Bandra is the suburb with more than 200 places to hang around. There are restaurants everywhere. If you are hungry, you only have to walk for two minutes and you are sure to find a restaurant. From this week onwards, there is one more place to hang around. The Mumbai Times Café (It is not the name of any newspaper, now they have started naming cafes after newspapers too. How innovative they can get!). On the 5th floor of Crystal Shoppers Paradise Mall, Linking road, we saw the opening of yet one more place to hang around. What I was amused and liked it, was a private terrace beach-like-look (sans sea) with muddy floor, fishing net and two boats. They plan to put Mumbai chaat stalls around that area. People can just hang around there, standing, eating and dining. The overall ambience and the concept of coffee are good. The menu resembles a new-paper, (what else? as the name suggests) In one corner, at far end, there is a newspaper-rack that resembles the broken dhabas and basket of dhabbawallahs of Mumbai.(Did they steal one from some railway station?). There is a mix of authentic ‘Mumbaiya’, Indian and global dishes throw in. (The prices are steep and cover the cost of bread, service and ambience). They have Wi-Fi broadband facilities, (you can take your lap-top and surf the net for free), LCD screen airing all major news channels (you can watch five news channels, all at the same time) and also separate lounge and outdoor areas. (Forget about chatting with your friends, the music murders all the other sounds). Just eat, dance and drink till you drop dead. If you are going late evenings, (8pm to 10pm) then there is ‘Live Band’ on Mondays and Wednesdays, ‘Karaoke night’ on Sundays and ‘Ladies Night’ on Fridays when there is one complimentary drink for every lady entering the café (they want to encourage ladies to become drunkards so that they can stop complaining about their man) There is ‘happy hours’ till September 30th and we took advantage of this offer. I ordered spicy fish and chips and my friend ordered Pav bhaji, but we paid for only one dish. We bought the assorted range of breads and cakes too (since the offer was to pay for one and get one free). The drawback is that there is no separate lift for this restaurant, it is shared with supermarket, which is on 3rd and 4th floor, and if you don’t wish to wait for lift then you have to use staircase, which is dirty and full of paan stains. (But, then this is the common sight, you get to see dirt and ‘Paan-stained Arts’ at all the stairways in Mumbai.) Well, nothing is perfect….. It is not supposed to be.

Auto drivers of Mumbai

Yesterday, I was stranded on the road. There was a row of six auto rickshaws parked in front of me and all refused to take me. It was raining heavily and I was very tired but I could not find one auto that was willing to go. They were all waiting for long distance passengers.

I lost my head, screamed at the driver, removed my note pad and pen and started to note down their auto rickshaw numbers.

Suddenly, they started to protest,(Surprise) one of them came forward and told me not to jot down his number and went to the other end and fetched me another passing auto and I smile victoriously as I settled comfortably to reach home.

Now I am wondering, what could I possibly have done with those auto numbers? Whom would I send? Would any action be taken against those drivers? And why were they afraid that I might report? I was only threatening them and I am unsure as to what I could possibly do?

The auto-guy, who ferried me to my destination was actually forced by these morons to take me and he was arguing with me throughout the journey. He challenged me that I could do nothing and he boasted about the tricks that he had used to confuse his other passengers: for example-

1. He would tell the cop that his meter was down and that he was waiting for somebody else, and he would accuse me of forcing him to abandon his previous passenger.

2. That it was time for him to give his auto back to the owner and he was getting late and couldn't take any more passengers.

3. He even boasted that if the traffic cop had forced him to allowa passenger into his auto then he would drive for few meters and then pretend that his auto is spoilt and will not drive and just present to look into the engine to see the problem with his vehicle. The passenger had a choice of waiting till he explores the problem (in that case the meter will still be running) or they, the passengers decided to change over to the another auto.

“Madam,” he said, “if you are smart, we are smarter. We live in a country where everybody is corrupted and you can do nothing about it.”

But yes you can do something. I discussed this with few of my friends and they told me that I could post my complaints at www.trafficpolicemumbai.org.
In general, locals and visitors can expect an unusual outlook on life, navigation and find out that what might seem like a simple process of getting from point A to B is, in fact, not.

Traveling back to his parents home in India after living abroad a young man hired an auto rickshaw to complete his journey. Giving the driver the address and attempting to settle on a price the journey began. Passing through a new district the auto stops to refuel. Soon they are off again but before the young man can determine where they are the driver has parked and joined some friends in a food stand. Infuriated the young man looks over to see another identical rickshaw pulled up along side his own with an older man waiting inside. "I have been sitting here waiting almost two hours and still have not arrived at my destination!" He declares in rage. "Two hours, is that all?" asks the older man in a relaxed voice. "I have been waiting here since they opened the food stand."

That's auto ride for you!!! Enjoy!!

BEST Bus Conductor of Mumbai city,

Today, on my way to school to Belapur by BEST bus, I noticed there were three conductors, all of them having same leather bag that contains money, and other steel box of tickets. I was wondering whom to approach for buying a ticket as they, all three, stood side-by-side. The mystery was solved when I was approached from the real one on duty. The other two were hitching a ride to the next bus depot. But, on second thought, (I am wondering) are they prohibited from occupying the passenger’s seat when hitch-hiking? Although there was an empty seat, none of the other two made any attempt to rest their feet. So what happens to them at the end of the day? Remember they are standing all day. We, Mumbaites, cannot stand in bus, not even for fifteen minutes of travel. Whenever we travel, we keep eyeing at those sitting comfortably and are alert to run to an empty seat immediately. (As though we are playing musical chairs) Sometimes we occupy the seat when the person has only got up temporally to peep from other window for a better view when he sits back, he feels a soft lap to sit on. It must be tough life for bus conductors. They stand all day, in the moving bus, keeping their balance during sharp jerks and turns, snaking through the standees in a crowded bus, diligently issuing ticket to every traveler at his seat. Why doesn’t he have a proper seat, a special seat, in the bus? Everybody can go to him and buy a ticket while he sits all comfortably at his seat. System in western world is better. There is no conductor in the bus. People have either to buy a ticket card which can be used for several trips or the bus driver has the ticket to issue and each person buys his own ticket before boarding the bus. But will this system work in Mumbai? Bus driver in Mumbai drive off with a speed and sometimes do not even bother to wait at the bus stops! (Why do they rush off like that? Do they get extra perks for extra mileage?) Many times, we, here in Mumbai have to board or light from a running bus. If we miss our balance, we may meet the ground in an awful poise that can be the photographer’s delight. Also, there are many dishonest travelers who get cheap thrills by saving small change that they can cash it on booze. Hic! Nah! It won’t work! Bus conductors will continue to suffer! Tsk! Tsk!

I Can Prove that I am a Mumbaite.

I will say "town" and I expect you to know that this means south of Churchgate. (In Bandra, it is a suburb) I speak in a dialect of Hindi called 'Mumbaiya Hindi', which only mumbaites can understand.(Samjhe kya?) My door has more than three locks (Two strong one and one latch). Rupees 500 worth of groceries can fit in one paper bag.(its quite expensive here) Train timings (9.27, 10.49 etc) are really important events of my close friend’s life.(and they won’t speak to me, not even on their mobile) I spend more time each month traveling than I spend at home. (it takes me more than four hours to pay a visit of two hours at my school) I call an 8' x 10' clustered room a Hall. (Can’t help it) My paying guests are paying Rupees 10,000 for a 1 room flat, the size of walk-in closet and they think it's a "steal." (and I let them believe it) I have the following sets of friend: school friends, college friends, neighborhood friends, office friends and yes, train friends, a species unique only in Bombay. Cabbies and bus conductors think I am from Mars if I call the roads by their Indian name, they are more familiar with Warden Road, Peddar Road, Altamount Road . Stock market quotes are the only other thing besides cricket which my nieghbours follow passionately. (and they are happy to share) The first thing that we read in the Times of India is the "Bombay Times" supplement.(or a midday) I take fashion seriously. (I update my knowledge on TV) I am suspicious of strangers who are actually nice to me. I cannot see Hookers, beggars and the homeless at traffic signals (I am always short of change) I always compare Mumbai to New York's Manhattan instead of any other cities of India. (NY’s Queens suburb is quite backward) The most frequently used part of my car is the horn. ( I wonder how they clear traffic in western world) I insist on calling CST as VT, and Sahar and Santacruz airports instead of Chatrapati Shivaji International Airport.(Why did they change it any way?) I consider eye contact an act of overt aggression. (what do they want, huh?) My idea of personal space is no one actually standing on my toes. (my friends can call me before every visit) Being truly alone makes me nervous.(I would rather go to a crowded mall) I love wading through knee deep mucky water in the monsoons, and actually call it ''romantic'.(specially if we fall in the open manhole) Only in Mumbai I can get Chinese Dosa and Jain Chicken. (and it is available at every cross road) Don’t get confused when in Mumbai, follow your instinct not the name...Because.... Churchgate has neither a church nor a gate. It is a railway station. There is no darkness in Andheri. Lalbaag is neither red nor a garden. No king ever stayed at Kings Circle. Nor did Queen Victoria stay at Victoria Terminus. Nor is there any princess at Princess Street. Lower Parel is at the same level as Parel There are no marines or sailors at Marine Lines. The Mahalaxmi temple is at Haji Ali not at Mahalaxmi. There are no pigs traded at Dukar bazaar. Teen bati is a junction of 3 roads, not three lamps. Trams used to terminate at Kings circle not Dadar Tram Terminus (Dadar T.T.). Breach Candy is not a sweetmeat market, but there is a Hospital. Safed Pool has the dirtiest and blackest water. You cannot buy coal at Kolsa street. There are no Iron smiths at Lohar chawl. There are no pot makers at Kumbhar wada. Lokhandwala complex is not an Iron and steel market. Null bazaar does not sell taps You will not find ladyfingers at Bheendi Bazaar. Kalachowki does not have a black Police station. Hanging Gardens are not suspended. Mirchi Gully does not sell chillies. Figs do not grow in Anjir Wadi, Sitafals do not grow in Sitafal Wadi, Jackfruits do not grow at Fanaswadi But it is true that you may get fleeced at Chor Bazaar!!! so Beware!