Whiskey

In 1952, Noah S. Sweat, Jr., a member of the Mississippi House of Representatives, was asked about his position on whiskey.

Here's how he answered:

If you mean whiskey, the devil's brew, the poison scourge, the bloody monster that defiles innocence, dethrones reason, destroys the home, creates misery and poverty, yea, literally takes the bread from the mouths of little children; if you mean that evil drink that topples Christian men and women from the pinnacles of righteous and gracious living into the bottomless pit of degradation, shame, despair, helplessness, and hopelessness, then, my friend, I am opposed to it with every fiber of my being.

However, if by whiskey you mean the oil of conversation, the philosophic wine, the elixir of life, the ale that is consumed when good fellows get together, that puts a song in their hearts and the warm glow of contentment in their eyes; if you mean Christmas cheer, the stimulating sip that puts a little spring in the step of an elderly gentleman on a frosty morning; if you mean that drink that enables man to magnify his joy, and to forget life's great tragedies and heartbreaks and sorrow; if you mean that drink the sale of which pours into our treasuries untold millions of dollars each year, that provides tender care for our little crippled children, our blind, our deaf, our dumb, our pitifully aged and infirm, to build the finest highways, hospitals, universities, and community colleges in this nation, then my friend, I am absolutely, unequivocally in favor of it.

This is my position, and as always, I refuse to compromise on matters of principle.

Vodafone Day 2010

Following lines of Dr. Harivansh Rai Bacchan inspires and communicates a lot:

आज तक जो कुछ भी किया है मैने, नहीं किया है आधे ह्रदय से;
ना आधी हार से मानी पराजय, ना की तस्कीन ही आधी विजय से ..

on this day, what does it mean ..

In those early years in New Delhi when I was a stranger in this big city, it was the friendship and later companionship which I was offered in the acquaintance of whom that is the most important thing in my life.

On even the worst days, when nothing works anywhere, I know that at home I would find warmth, peace, companionship, and encouragement. As a consequence, the next day would surely be better. The more one does and sees and feels, the more one is able to do, and the more genuine may be one's appreciation of fundamental things like home, and love, and understanding companionship.

Now what it companionship means to me: a happy life, of course, companionship, of course. A common objective, I think and we are working everyday, together, to look at each other when we grow old and smile together on memories of yesteryears spent together.

Companionship ..

The day was 4th November, 2007 .. did it start here ?? May be I cannot answer this but yes, I can sum it up in the following ..

Companionship .. when I thought of the idea, I started to understand why a person can feel lonely though he/she is surrounded by people who love him/her (tough most of it have usually been explained best by Bollywood) .. but as per knowledge goes, it is not all about love, it is more about companionship: Sharing your feelings, thoughts, interests and whole being NOT merely sharing activities .. finding someone or ONE to understand you .. someone with whom you can talk without boundaries .. someone you understand and ready to listen to with without boundaries ..

I believe that this kind of companionship can apply to any kind of relationship:  however, if you are lucky enough and your partner became your companion, this would be the most amazing and fulfilling relation you may ever have ..

Time

Back in the beginning of time, they trapped illness in sachets and buried them in the great walls of the city. Then many years after, during the revolution, the wall fell into pieces. The new people found the sachets, opened them, as they did not know what was in them, and the illness fell mercilessly upon everyone. One of those diseases, the worst one, went around each night from house to house and randomly blew her poisonous breath leaving a mark on every house she touched upon, and that mask could not be removed ever, by anyone. Not even to this present day.

You in Me {dated: Jan. 29th ‘I}

Time is a companion that goes with us on a journey. It reminds us to cherish each moment, because it will never come again. What we leave behind is not as important as how we have lived. Any life, no matter how attenuated and perplexing it may be, is made up of a single moment - the moment in which a man finds out, once and for all, “ who is he¿ ”. Today when I look up at the memories of yesteryears, when I try to recollect my reminiscence, I am indicted to a world of plangent feelings mixed with days of hope and despair. It is only by considering these that I can write a sentence that is good to look at and good to listen too.

It was a woman who drove me to write, and I never had the courtesy to thank her. There are also some Men who have taught me a lot to learn out of life. They are the one who changed my philosophy and helped me to bring out a new principle out of life. They are the one, who taught me that, "There are no mistakes, only lessons". In everyone's life, at times, our inner fire goes out. It is then burst into flame by encounter with another human being. We should all be thankful for those people who rekindle the inner spirit. Because some people come and go, some stay for a while and leave footprints on our hearts. And we never, are the same.

A man’s life starts only when he believes in himself, and this assertion for the divulgence of veracity elaborates only with his experiences, no matter whether his experiences are good or bad. My evaluation for self started way back during my formative years. It was only that period when something shocked me for the first time and made me to ponder over things with a different perspective. To become from what I was to what I am took a lot of my time, courage and discipline. Maybe because I never wanted to accept that I am growing and that time is leaving behind traces on its path. But early or lately a time came, when I was forced to reside to my gauche thoughts and to ponder over how life goes on.

It really isn’t a matter of life and death but all together it is something else. Your chattels are certainly not the materialistic things that you possess but they are the people around you. And the biggest failure of anyone’s life is when he becomes a liability for his assets. And moreover apart from all the exultation and distress there are many more things that revolve around us to make this life prettier or hideous. It is only how you want to see the orb, as an optimist or as a pessimist. One thing we should always try to follow is that; respect an existence when it is in front of us, not when the entity has departed to a world beyond horizons. Because, give and take does not mean we cannot be poignant enough to give at first. It only by this we can make sure that not even any minion hinders the path of progress of a strong relationship.

God never asks anyone whether he will accept life; it is not a man’s choice. He has to take it; the only option to him is, how. My Må always say, few men are like stars, who generate their own light while others reflect the brilliance they receive. It is not wealth, nor ancestry, but honourable conduct, and a noble disposition that make a man great. I am sure that acceptance of other person’s greatness won’t make me weak and that is the one thing that helps me to attain some judiciousness towards life. I always tried hard to gather some sagacity towards the acquaintances of the human repertoire. To understand what is that makes people bound together, in joys and sorrows, in pleasures and pains, in calm and angst, in conquest and subjugation, or virtually in each and every facet of living. And what I end up today is that it is only ‘You’, which makes a ‘Me’ in myself. A person is only an expression of what he wants to become or it can be said that he is just an impersonation of deems of his sage.

I had to reach a position to ponder over things, when Må fell ill, and a time came when I was not confident about her recovery. And from then what I was and what I became is hard for me to explain. For all the experiences that I have pleated provides me enough knowledge to dissect both situations and people. It was only then that I learned that no matter what goes on with you and your life, a man should or a man must be prolific enough to evaluate things passing him by. All my experiences erudite many things and have often told me to make good rules in life. Of all the judicious and sometimes reckless things that my experiences have provided me, reminds me that, what seems to be preposterous is sometimes just an esoteric acquaint. It is only the perception towards the veracity and the gut to acknowledge the nix that makes a complete man.

From my early childhood I was a very reserve and introvert kind of a personality. I used to talk only when it was of utmost necessity. My younger brother and myself share a seven years difference, so even he came to me as a puerile affair rather than a chum. During times of celebrations and festivity in my clan, I always avoided to make an appearance. For what reason I don’t know but what I do believe was that only isolation can make me schismatic. Now things have changed, an ardent follower of nihilism is turning to get more optimistic for his entire recrudescence.

All those asinine achievement of mine used to asphyxiate my Må’s tender soul and for me it used to give a gallant glee. But sometimes now I feel I was wrong and you all are the people who made me feel so. I will be highly indebted to god (the one thing in my life that I do not want to believe in) for you people as an asset for my existence. Where ever I may end in my life, wherever I leave to and where ever I position myself but you will be oblivion to be felt after your absence. The days shared with you people are the ones that will guide me to pleasant mood whenever I will feel staid in future.

Avowal:

I never came here with very big ideas in my mind & with almost no dreams for the future; the only thing I used to collect in my reverie was face of my Må. But, a whole new story was to be written; Ashish crawled into my subsistence just like a blessing to me. Along with, I was bequeathed to have all those who now heap a new ‘Léturángér’ in this world. Never knew that this place will give me anything precious for my future. Now, you all share a position in my heart that is impalpable for words to explain. With all the esoteric feeling that I posses for you all, I sum up these snug thoughts and pray that may this year and the coming ones be filled with all the immeasurable pleasures of life.

[Published in Pratishtha - 2001 (Annual Magazine of Prestige Institute of Management and Research, Indore)]

Death: A Cynosure

Decipher:

One thing that is more universal than life is death; everyone dies but not everyone lives. I have been thinking of death a lot, & I am amazed by it’s inevitability, frightened as we all are, of the totally unknown and yet feel a long sleep is earned by those of us who live on the edge. For me it will be an eternal sleep, there will be nothing that will effect me at once as my own death. As I know now that I can’t get out of life alive. To die will be an awfully big adventure.

This world is a monotonous example of livinghood. Each and everything is turning bad, if not bad they are not good even. My thoughts, my desires, and I myself are too odd for the protuberance. Sometimes I really don’t like this orb, everything here is good & beautiful but people impersonate an ugly and bad sense of their souls at others. People want to remember you only when you are gone, nobody respects the existence of an entity when they are available to them. And they term this kind of living as a pragmatic form of verisimilitude.

I always feel that love makes me a poet, a love that is sacred; it is true, and above all, an everlasting affair. Still I have to confess it and approach of death should make me a philosopher and help me attain it. For me death will never become the last sleep, but it will be the final awakening. I find death a true friend or I can state that it will be a conjugal affair. I find it nubile yet I am not uxorious as my dreams are yet to be achieved.

I will never seek death; she will find me, as I will ensure the road that makes death a fulfillment. I foresee death as an imorata. Since many live as they are afraid to die, I want death as I am scared to live. It doesn’t mean I am a coward or a pessimist. People say suicide sometimes proceeds from cowardice, but not always, for cowardice sometimes prevent it. In my not so humble opinion, if you kill a man, you are termed as assassin, if you kill thousands of men, you are known as conqueror. If you kill everyone, you are god & if you kill yourself, in my words you are more than god. Because suicide kills two people …… & that’s what it is for.

avowal:

When I am dead I don’t want my body to be kept for anyone’s last vision. I will never be pleased nor admire people coming and putting a bunch of flowers beside my dead body. Who wants flowers when you are dead? “Nobody” I pray that may this becomes true and my body is not available for anyone, because the sole purpose of a funeral service is to comfort the living. It is a pre-requisite of any funeral service to show others how kind hearted & loving you are and their improved opinion for you will be very comforting. So, don’t anyone be at mine as after that I won’t be at yours.

As when anyone asks me if I am still alive, I have no answer to that. The “I” is always a “you”, as we inhabit each other in other’s irremediable singleness. Before my memory came into being, there was a teal moon and I went by it, walking, as a passenger of this earth. Now when I think that I can think, I see myself sitting on it’s back, choking it and making it carry me, and yet assure myself and others that I am very sorry for this and wish to ease it’s lot by all possible means – expect by getting off it’s back. And what I term myself should be better abbreviated FOE (friend of entity).

divulgence:

I have observed that no matter how much a man loves a woman, it will still give the lady a glow in her eye to see the man commit suicide for her. Why, I often ask myself, why are we so rude to life, is death we love, the answer I get is baffling me. Because it has been neither death nor life we are worried of. We are still complaining to our retrospection, and no one is bewailing of his/her sagacity. I am least concerned with beauty or perfection, I do not care for the great centuries. All I want to care about is life, struggle and fervor. I have studied the lives of great men and famous women who reached at the zenith of their times. They did the jobs they had in hand with everything they had of energy and enthusiasm and hard work.

When I was a kid I always was in a hurry to grow up. I even acted in a very elderly fashion with my friends. At times when we had any quarrels, I used to get out of the way and always admitted that may be I am wrong and gave room to he other party. Then a time came when guys started felling like may be it’s my duty to do so and took me for granted. There were times when I felt like getting dejected but at last I had hopes that may be one day I will prove myself that I am on the right side of this repertoire of human conscious. And I should always neglect me first, my first attitude. Although I never expect anything in return but I always remember what my Ma always teaches me. She says, “if you do some good for Ram & he doesn’t recognize, a day will come when Shyam will certainly recognize you for your deed”. And now I am a strong orator of this thought as I have watched it becoming a truth.

I want all to remember that people always forget what we say, they forget whatever we did but never forget how we made them feel. No matter how thin we slice there are always two sides, even the bad things have a lot to teach us. Maybe this attitude of mine always fascinated me towards the harder aspect of life i.e. death. And lately I learned that life is a one-way street, no matter how many detours we take, none of them leads us back. Once we know that & accept that, life becomes much simpler. Cherish the love we have, we should cherish the time we have.
Today I owe a lot to my friends, they are the one who taught me, what to do & what not to do. They are the people who taught me, that our background & circumstances might have influenced who we are, but we are responsible for what we become. Now due to them life seems to be a myrmidon & makes me focused to be more alert before it turns into a nemesis.

Lastly, as I always say, “any life no matter how attenuated or perplexed it may be is made up of single moment, a moment in which a man finds out once and for all, who is he”. I know my freedom with life and servitude to death. I wish before I earn that eternal sleep I may lit those darker skies of my mind which makes me disturbed on being misunderstood & will make me disturbed on not being understood.