2. The Experience.

Why do I want to travel several miles to cater to needy people with food, clothes and vessels? In a country of 117 million people with per capita income of mere 1000 USD /year, where a majority live below poverty line, what difference am I gonna make by spending a day or 2 in entire year and understanding their situation?

Probably, I will wish that such situation never arises in this life and others to come; perhaps, I might avert grumbling for a couple of days about the things that I don’t have or possibly I will pray for their betterment for a few days, while also seeking strength and courage for myself incase I fall in such a situation.

The biggest and the most hidden of all maybe I can boast the activity to whomsoever I come across by making others feel that I have executed one of the most complex and challenging tasks without any selfish motive. The other way of bragging could be to talk about a selfish motive of seeking their love and blessings by just being with them for an entire day and making a purposeful day for self in a one-track life where I crave to do something different to look unique in the eyes of my near-dear ones.

Having said all the above, I still would go ahead and pat on my back by quoting that despite having other options to entertain myself, I did chose this one with a reason of gaining peace, bliss and self-satisfaction.

Undeniably, it was a soothing event that was pioneered with an extensive willingness to execute the entire activity and involved an immense amount of preparations, sincere and dedicated team-work, strong thrust towards the purpose of serving the mankind, crafting an efficient project plan and implementing it to the best possible level by investing the raw material of time, efforts, money and resources through the medium of body, mind, heart and soul.

Most definitely, I would like to continue with these activities with multiple purposes viz. being a small reason of generating smiles and pacifying hearts; experiencing the peace within and above all, to get connected to the self.

To achieve many things in the materialistic, I forget to ‘LIVE’ those moments while I am in the process of achieving whereas this can be one reason where I can ‘LIVE’ and experience the best of ‘LIFE’ without any materialistic achievement.

1. Basic.

After a breath-taking experience over a period of last 4 days, while I take a shower cleaning my external dirt, I realize that I have already started accumulating the dirt on my interior, the area which I had attempted to cleanse and thought of continuing the cleansing process.

However, as nothing goes in vain, this internal pilgrimage also does leave me with a fruitful (to an extent) self-experience.

These are opportunities where people like me get cut-off from the external world to a greater extent and have a chance to peep into the undiscovered peace and bliss. During most of the earlier such opportunities, I had been putting efforts to stabilize myself and getting into the inner self. This time I attempted something new. I was just observing things as they come and be almost non-judgmental on most of the things happening. Rather, I would feel the things “happening” and allow them to happen.

The conversations around the way of life, survival, infinite potential, state of non-comparison with others, being and living as per own definitions, setting a goal which I want to set rather than what the world feels it, coming out of the stereotypical mentality of accumulating all possible money by all possible means, so on and so forth were pretty stimulating and thought provoking.

Everything is a mind game and to initiate with the implementation on the above, I got to train the mind to act according to way I want it to behave. For this, knowing the breathing pattern and concentrating on it throughout certainly would help in all the situations especially those hyper ones pertaining to agony, excitement, stress, etc.

These are some basic level things which are of utmost importance for success. To transcend from the existing way of life, the first and foremost need is to start implementing the desired way of life from the scratch rather than just going ga-ga over theories. As an analogy, I want to construct a new building while getting rid off the old one. Will I extend the floors above the roof top or do I need to demolish the existing structure, clean up the debris, dig deeper and build the base and from thereon start constructing the new structure?

Doesn’t matter if I have spent years in the futile attempt of extending the floors, I can still attempt to start demolishing the existing structure.

1. (Extra)Ordinary.

All I crave in life is being extra-ordinary, showing off extra-ordinary and living it up extra-ordinary.

Besides, I want an extra-ordinary group of people around (although I strive to prove them ordinary), an extra-ordinary family and overall an extra-ordinary relationship with an extra-ordinary soulmate

Well well well, I take like ages in selecting (may be a wierd word but an apt one too) the soulmate that is extra-ordinary. Coincidentally, I find one too.

Alas! soon (not-so-soon for some and some-time-later for some) he / she becomes ordinary as the relationship becomes ordinary. Eventually, life becomes ordinary and since gradually everything around is turning it to be ordinary, I attempt to catch-up with the race of getting extra-ordinary.

Today-owned extra-ordinary assets, tomorrow (most of the times literally and if not in a few days/weeks/months) becomes ordinary and day-after I resume to get something else that is extra-ordinary as I don't have the potential of extra-ordinary turned ordinary things to make extra-ordinary again.

I boast about being extra-oridinary but saying that I am an ordinary being but the irony is I happily categorize myself as ordinary waiting for some one to come and categorize me as extra-ordinary. Unfortunately, this is not the climax and the today-tommorow-day-after cycle continues as mentioned in the paragraph above.

2. The World's Fastest Indian.

Last night I happened to experience last one hour of "The World's Fastest Indian", a 2005 New Zealand biographical film based on the Invercargill, New Zealand speed bike racer Burt Munro and his highly modified Indian Scout motorcycle. While I appreciate Sir Anthony Hopkins' performance, I was really amazed visualizing the life and passion of the historical Burt Munro.

I don't wanna discuss the movie as it's simply worth witnessing to rejuvenate the vigor within. However, I can't resist mentioning one sequence that absolutely reflects the hunger and passion of the legend.

Due to the heat generated from bike at higher speeds, the likelihood of his legs getting burnt had increased and hence he was advised to put asbestos filters on both his legs. However because of the cramped leg room in the motorcycle the legs covered with asbestos wouldn't fit in. Hence he decided to go with asbestos on just one leg. His folks were concerned and asked him not not take such a step as one of his leg might get roasted to the fullest possibility due to the amount of heat anticipated. To which he replied - "I have a spare one".

The passion of the soul killed the lust for his own body. Phenomenal.

1. Fiction.

Why don’t you pen down something in fiction – a short story or a novel or something?

Well, no one has asked me this question hence I asked my self and thought of writing something. The first thought that struck my mind was Love story. Nature reflects well. Anyhow, the next popping thought was - what kind of love story it could be? Two guys and a gal, Two gals and a guy, N gals and N guys, A guy and a gal with egoistic parents, just 2 guys, post-marriage break-up, Love one-Marry other-meet again. Enough! Well, my conclusion was - most of the love story concepts are either written or else they are quite stupid. Writing on the lines of already written might sound clichéd. The stupid ones obviously I wanna stay away with.

It was a good idea to take the love story idea out of mind and concentrate on another genre. Suspense. This sounds amazing. Impalpable ideas started hitting the corners of my mind and before I get to the core of it, I would get lost. Suspense is not your cup of tea, dude. Well it’s still a suspense – Who said the above line. I move on to next variety, nevertheless.

Comedy is the word that made me smile and I got a peppy feeling of making my pen run on the paper with bloating ideas on the comic events happenings and occasions. The only ingredient that was missing was a STORY. Two friends and their girlfriends plus a comedy of errors sounds pretty naïve whereas humor related to extra-marital affairs may result in a tacky outcome. Probably some multi-meaning script may work but then it would be too slapstick rather. Off-color was not the area I wanted to touch upon. Infact, humor was eventually something I felt I should give up.

Ghosts and re-incarnations is fiction within a fiction so don’t even want to give it a shot. All said and done, the time was to think beyond Love, Suspense, Comedy, Ghosts and re-incarnations.

Before I stress my brains anymore, I decided to stretch a bit by taking a stroll. As I peep out of my balcony, what I see is an 8 year old child is twisting hands of another similar aged boy and there it starts. They fight cats and dogs. Hey, why am I concentrating on their fight; it’s time to get back to my story. As my eyeballs set on the paper still looking like a clear sky, my blue sky thinker mind was still hovering over the action packed sequence. No marks for guessing but I was up and set for an action packed adventure. Soon the conjunction between up and set vanished and I turned upset as I was not able think beyond fights.

How do the greatest of fiction authors do it ya? Well, nothing is working for me – Love, Suspense, Comedy, Action – all futile. Enough is enough, no point in thinking further. Let me just put the pen and paper off the shelf and shelve the idea of developing a fabricated story. Time to take a short break and move on to something else buddy!
The next best thing to do was switching on the TV – the most effortless entertainment I believe. As I switched on, the running strip and the video being exhibited were displaying a murder story. Am I still thinking STORY STORY? Yes! And hey, Eureka! I was all set to pen down the most complex murder mystery of the world that might just create history. This was the best fiction genre of the world that had suspense, thrill, drama, action mystery and above all love & violence.

Two friends - One girl - Love triangle. Passion results in murder – huh! Pretty clichéd

Two brothers – Property dispute – One of them snatching away. Greed results in revenge and murder – I have already started yawning. What about readers?

Business magnets – Cut-throat competition – Rivalry – Setting up plan to get ahead of each other. Hunger results in murder. – This appears everyday in newspapers. What is new on my platter?

A common man entrapped by a dictator-type personality in village – Saga of sufferings – Faces murder charge – Life sentence – Freed after 14 years – Come back with a vengeance. Murder in public and surrender. Alas! Totally on one track.

Psycho killer on the move – Attractive personality – Traps females – False commitments – Murders them and vanishes. Too yucky!!!

Underworld – Clash of the Dons – Who will rule – Bloodbaths. Sounds more like an encyclopedia of murders

Political warfare. The first word itself is worse than a murder. Nothing to say further.

By now, I am totally out of my mind and need some peace. I am really far better-off with my non-fictional compositions.

2. Need and "To-Do".

As I write down my need list, the first thing that comes into my mind is a lavish 3BHK apartment that can make me feel content in life. To satisfy this "need", I start penning down a "to-do" list that mainly focusses on all the modes of making money, saving targets and approaching the ultimate objective as above.

On 24/10, I came to know a varied definition of "need" when I visited a few downtrodden places located a couple of hundred kilometers from Mumbai, the name that immediately creates a lavish feeling in practically everyone's mind as it is termed as a city where one can dream of everything and achieve anything. Coming to my experience, I would like to pen down a few things about my day visit to Mokhada and a few villages in there.

It is a mix of many things viz. Motivation, Empathy, Grief, Frustration, Eye opening facts, Eye-witnessing the definition of "Need", How a Social service should be defined, What is the difference between visiting an old age or orphanage entertaining them with movie / snacks and serving these people who in real sense are in absolutely downtrodden state. Most of the houses (on average approximately 100-120 sq. ft. floor space) had just a few vessels and that's all about it. A few may be had another pair of clothes and some food that would last for 3-4 days and that was their ultimate asset.

Also there were things to learn implement and developed within. It was more of a stimulation for me rather than assisting in contributing towards their needs. I was not even a "nimit" or postman. I was just an observer of things. It was just my good destiny that i could observe this. Besides, it was a little destiny for them that they could get some aid from donors and the folks who arranged the logistics for the visit. I did nothing but just went, saw and came back.

Ofcourse, did realize a lot of things, learned by experience but today when I m typing this I feel it was just an event. Although I am still visualizing their faces, it's a very shallow thinking of an "additional activity" which can be done once in a few months provided that I am not held up with anything else and the circumstances support. Having tagged myself as a spiritually inclined person, I just want to entertain myself with religious activities. When I say that, I focus on attending spiritual discourses and conferences at my convenience and go ga-ga over it. I easily manage to wash out everything at the end of it, most of the times much before the end of it.

Seva (Serving Society) is an integral aspect which I easily manage to skip from my heart, mind and soul. I strongly propose a few days of visit at such places with a very selfish reason of self-upliftment. I simply want to go and stay with them for 3 days, Cook food and Eat with them; all with an intent of realizing the value of "need".

My "need" and "to-do" list today is much above all the luxuries these people can even think of. Forget about LCD TV and DVD player, even a cell phone is apparently a pretty far fetched thing for them. Getting food, clothing and roof for the current day and witnessing tomorrow's sunrise is their "need". While I comfortably talk and listen about spiritual being, self-realization and salvation, I am unaware, untouched and unexperienced about the miseries of life. I crave for the maximum possible comfort before sitting for meditation / discourses and getting involved in any activity related to serving the society. This is nothing but a pity situation nonetheless.

225 kms away from the Maximum city where I comfortably throw away a couple of grands on a movie and dinner per couple, this is a bitter fact of the human beings (where entire family survives with the same amount for entire month and moreover it is extremely hard to earn the same for them)there that makes me feel pathetically ashamed of being human.

1. 10 years.

A couple of days back (2-Oct), I accomplished a decade in the IT industry. Am mostly on the happier side to yet stick on to the same industry although have traveled through 4 organizations and umpteen locations.

Just thought of re-connecting to all those I knew and also started their IT career on the same day (3-Oct-2000).

This is what I wrote -

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Hey Folks,

Just thot of dropping a Hello. 10 years back on the same day, most of us (I guess almost all) got their first earning on paper. It was indeed a great feeling.

There are many things to write about from Holiday Inn to the Maximum City (Mumbai) to the Capital (Delhi) to Krishna Continental to Bahrain to Gulf to Yiatros to Domios to Lophitis to Israel to Germany to UK to several EU countries to Maritime to Cards to Currium to Mitsis to Ariel to Downtown to Binges to 2 Rupee coin in Pool table to Agia Napa to Four Season to accidents to Nightlife to Fights to Bonding to Love to Timepass to Timekilling to Work to Culture to Food to Maggi to Indian Restuarants to Nicosia to Flag Hoisting to India Amabasaddor (Pawan I guess) to Crish Cash and Carry to Sevdas to Refugee to all those good, very good and extremely good experiences to relocations to settling in varied co-ordinates to future to marriage to kids to and until the current day....

I am sure I have missed a lots and lots of things as thinking of everything in 3 minutes was kinda difficult task for not-so-intelligent person like me :-). You may certainly wanna add more that will result in sheer fun along with a fantastic nostalgia.

However it's been a decade of our dosti-yaari and its amazing to know that we are going strong, stronger and strongest...

Love you all. :-) Hats off to each one of you for being an integral part of Dilip's life.

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Although most of the write-up won't make much sense to those who haven't been a part of the journey and experience, I still thought of blogging it up :)

In ten years, I must have traveled thousands of miles
Having made a bunch of friends, brings loads of smiles
It's a great feeling to cherish the past, peep into the files
Relations are the strongest foundation, not just bricks and tiles