Slums Mushroom Because People Are Sentimental

It started with one man..he had just come to rest at the foot path at the end of the lane. He stretched and leaned against the wall. The woman on the other side of wall gave him a glass of water and some stale bread. He was happy that people cared. The word spread..soon it became an everyday affair. sometimes alone and sometimes with his family and friends, who realised this was a friendly neighbourhood. Mats, utensils made their appearance and the comfort zone became so popular that the people increased. Over the period of five years..there are now around twenty people on this footpath..they cook, sleep and even sell drugs to young people. Police have no power to vacate them...they disappear for few days but are back again..neighbours continue to give them blankets, water and food...soon...there will be sheltered tin houses.....the environment is filthy and unpleasant. There is nothing anybody can do..neither the people who live in this street nor the police...

In India, people are very sentimental. Even if they see something wrong they will not say anything if they cannot help. 'Let it be, live and let live" is the attitude. If they see people occupying space on the footpaths, they will not complain. their reason being that where will they go? They don't have any other place to go, poor things! Even the hawkers are encouraged. the end result is that slums keep mushrooming every where.

I have travelled to different parts of the world and even in most polished and successful cities, there is at least one lane hidden some where where you might find cluster of slums. 

Slums prosper when government loosen their grip, when police look away. This is the place where crime rate is high and illegal activities flourish fearlessly. Slums is not the the sign of poverty, in fact there is hidden money there. lots of it, so much that they can buy people to help them in their wrong things. It is the place where people live fearless and know that they are more powerful people in society. 

Your thoughts??

Visit to Nakki Lake at Mount Abu

During my visit to Mount abu, we rented a car to tour around the city. The ride was through the narrow, winding hilly path, passing through dry barren valley. We saw many monkeys on route. The ride was quite scenic especially when we passed through a lake.

The lake looked serene and calm and we decided to stop and spend some time jaywalking around the lake.

After a short walk, I sat down on a bench while my friends went further down to go for a boat ride. It was lovely afternoon, my friends came back half way, insisting that I join them for a cup of Rabdi, a sweet dish, the city is known for. It was delicious, although a bit watery.

#NakkiLake is the ornament indulgence of#MtAbu..the story as narrated by our taxi guide is that lake is believed to be dug by sage with his nails(Nakki) to satisfy the eligibility criteria set by parents of his beloved. Today it stand as testimony of their eternal love.

There was a large garden behind the lake where I saw many people dress in a traditional rajasthani costume to pose for a photograph.

Outside the entrance, in the opposite lane, the road led towards market place selling the local handicraft items of the city.

We had just limited time to spend at Nakki lake but this market seemed like shopper’s paradise. It was so colorful and vibrant.

I thought I would return on another day, not realizing the distances. It was quite far from where we had put up at Abu Road, at Brahmakumari Center and going back up the hill was not possible.

But spending two to three hours at this beautiful venue during the evening hours, watching the sunset by this Nakki Lake and going for a peddle boat ride would have been a better option.

Lost in Wilderness: Part 1

I stand in the darkness, behind the veil of my mind, fighting with my own attributes buried deep inside me, desperately trying to find answers. All kinds of thoughts flood my mind and I am confused. Have I have hurt somebody unintentionally? I am the type of person who takes things lightly, and cast away the minor problems, all in jest. Jokes come easy to me. People who know me well, dote on me and never take my comments on a personal level, because they understand that I mean no harm and my opinions are made from my candid observations, comments made on the spur of that moment and not carried forward, but those, who know me not, do not understand me and may feel insulted by my off-handed behaviour.

Wrong thinking brings negativity in my life.

You may say “There is nothing wrong or right, who is to decide?” Its all perception of the mind. What may be wrong for one person may be completely right for other, and vice versa, how are we to judge who is right and who is wrong?

I think wrong is the intention, the motive, with which the evil deed is performed. If the intention is to bring harm, pain and injustice in other people’s life, then you are clearly wrong in your action. Wrong is also manipulations, conceit, breaking the trust of a friend. It all bounces back and brings pain, not only to others but to self too.

In the first Chapter of Gita, Arjuna is in turmoil, he is not sure whether it is right or wrong to engage in the big fight. The war is between Kauravas and Pandavas, between good and evil. He seeks the advise of Lord Krishna to guide him in making the proper decision and get that courage to fight

Geeta points out that the ‘Kauravas’ hundreds in number, represent the innumerable ungodly forces of negative tendencies within Man’s bosom, and ‘Pandavas’ represent the divine impulses in him. A constant ‘Mahabharata war’ is being waged within every one of us at all our crucial moments of action between the negative and positive tendencies within us. Geeta teaches us that if the same is organised fully and brought about under the guidance of the Supreme Lord ‘Krishna’, the Self, our intellect, they can easily be ushered into true and permanent victory over the outnumbering forces of lust and greed.

So today I start, under guidance of Geeta and few selected close friends to discuss, review and understand the deeper layers of Geeta and unfold the mysteries of life.

cross posted at https://www.facebook.com/notes/pushpa-moorjani/lost-in-wilderness-part-1/10154029016239524

Are You Sure?

I wanted to do one experiment on human behaviour. I put this sentence "Are you sure? " in different WatsApp groups and got different responses from different people . 

Some went silent after my remark and some started defending their messages, even though they were just forwards and they were only copy-pasting the message, it was not even their own opinions. 

Some took it lightly and replied with witty remarks and some were angry that I was doubting them.

All the answers were the reflections of their mood at that.moment...

Our thoughts are dependent on our state of mind at that moment and words may make or break relations. It is not what the person said, its what you heard or understood, and how you reacted to the situation..

My thoughts on Neerja

Not for a minute did I feel I was watching a film.I was there sitting tight on my seat, fear writ on my face as I watched the gun and granade toting men hijack the plane with so much ruthlessness, violence in their attitude towards.helpless passengers, and the plight of crew members as they handled the dangerous situation.

What if I was in that PanAm flight? 

This thought came to me several times..Such was the reality in the acting of Shabana Azmi, (who can bring you to tears with her personal pain) Sonam Kapoor, the brave flight attendant (who makes us believe that she is the real Neerja) and the rest of the actors..

Superb

 acting of all the characters in‪#‎Neerja‬ (including children, women and.old) that.kept me glued to the.edge.of.my.seat.... ‪#‎GoWatch‬

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