JUST ANOTHER DAY IN THE LIFE OF VENKAT-part III

What did guruji do?
The very second we took the mike to sing, guruji took his mike to talk!! HELL. FREEZE. STORY OVER. WISH, CRUSHED!
We can’t even blame anyone now! But guess what!!!!! The very second after that, he saw us with the mike and adorning that ‘all-knowing’ smile, he indicated us to sing, pushing away his mike and gently closing his eyes to meditate. Wow. The moment felt too perfect to be true! Srivi and I mentally broke into a dance and sang the song, albeit pretty beautifully. Oh my god, we were so happy to sing for Him!! From a distance, Bhanumaa waved and smiled acknowledgingly. Utterly elated we were!;)

Satsang’s with guruji always end with, “People with birthdays come forward…” and I plunged happily towards my guru. In a flash, like a flash, abhiram appeared magically producing a gorgeous strawberry cake and frizbeed it into my hands. guruji garlanded me and blessed the cake. the cake then magically vanished as magically as it had appeared.;)

My venkat day spree was summing up glamorously! Further, at 10pm, i even got to walk few meters with guruji and ask him if he enjoyed the now famous dahi wada. Guruji said, ” I ate little bit, but the garnishing was very good”. Man, I dissolved in ecstasy. By the end of it all, I felt so loved and content that I totally forgot to be miserable over turning older.

However, it doesn’t pinch so bad when friends (read Eby Felix) write such poetry for you..
I humbly present to you one among my precious birthday gifts’ this year.

“happy birthday”

” to your eyes, intimidating
otherwise telling a story
of innocence jaded
with pastel colors…”

” to your existence, powerful
otherwise with a simple taste
of exquisite flavor
from food to meditation”

” to your laugh, overpowering
otherwise making sounds
of nocturnal seas
that reach your soul within”

” to your love, exclusive
otherwise like all good things
free…for them who find meaning
in those subtleties, like me”

What is the moral of the story?
Hell, I AM 25!!

JUST ANOTHER DAY IN THE LIFE OF VENKAT-part II

Did guruji eat the dahi wadas’?
Well, that I will save for little later. 3 more lots of dahi wadas was made for local consumption from noon to dusk cos apparently they tasted like ambrosia in semi solid state. I served it to the who’s who of the ashram namely, Swami Vishnupaadji (he granted me a wish for my birthday;)), young and very dashing Swami Gyantej who shared his interesting life story in return, Vinod Menon (*take a bow*) who gave me 7.5/10 for my creation ( now that score from him is like getting into IIT without evening writing IITJEE;)) and needless to say, BnD who mean the world to me & most of the rest of the world.;) The wada’s had been lucky to enter the oesophaguses of such higher (im)mortals.

Satsang time of day was nearing. Srivi (one of my crazy beautiful room mates’) and I had decided to sing a devi bhajan ‘Vishalakshi devi, ananda roopini’, cos 7th jan also happens to be guruji’s mum -vishalakshi amma’s birthday. Yes, I am one lucky thing. No, I am not all that whiney.;)

Coming back, Srivi and my decision to sing did not mean anything to the VVIP singers who have been singing to guruji in satsangs for gazillion years and continue to itch for the mike as if they suffer from acute chicken pox. So when guruji walked into the Vishalakshi Mandap and sat, one among the VVIP chicken poxed women, converted her bhajan into a medley long enough to feel married to the mike. But the two of us managed to procure the mike the very moment she fell silent. What guruji did after that nearly killed us both from within.

What did guruji do?
Your turn to ‘itch’ with impatience;) until tomorrow;) You could read the other posts in the meanwhile;)

kaay tumche paay, om namah shivay!!

how can i not write about god.no 2 after writing about god no.1 in such detail. please refer earlier post if the bulb hasn’t lit up yet. if u have taken an art of living course, then u must wonder how deceited i am, cos guruji shud ideally fit in no.1 position. honeys, guruji makes gods for a profession. clear? can i continue? i take the silence for a yes;)

god no.2.

if u have ever seen the waves in the ocean, then u have seen dinesh bhaiya; this is wat most yesplussed souls know him to be. but some lucky ones like me know of the multiple personality syndrome he is bestowed with. to put it loosly, that of a bhramin and that of a maratha.

lets deal wit the bhraminical inntonations of his wise existence:
the unfathomable blob of satva that dada is, the moment he glides into an advance course, thousands of hyper youth break into a frenzy. (ur nodding right.?cos u are one of them. he haw haw.) many drool even. i swear! it’s very clear, that he owns the world with great ease, when he walks that walk and talks that talk.
a shloka or two in sanskrit, and a whole bunch of urban youth melt as if amul butter on hot paratha.
a few yoga postures, and madonna can plead for forgiveness in some court.
that one look directly into your eyes among so many, and u know for sure, all the troubles u had housed for years are now homeless.

now for the kshatriya section of his vice exsistance:
as i get stupified ‘punah punah’ while observing all of the above, i know of the packet of rajas which explodes in vishwamitra territories- wild tickleing, biting if need be (male bonding they say!), violent display of football skills, rigorous workout, desperately sad marathi jokes (this post’s title is not any sentence, its dada’s joke), and then few sadder attempts in english, extensive cheating, cos dinesh dada’s aura doesnt permit losing, unless it is to bawa, even then actually, and heavy consumption of junk food;) the SECRET IS OUTTTT.

but then to embrace the ram and ravan within us is the art of living, isn’t it? atleast mani rathnam agrees.

top secret

i have contemplated posting this poem from the very inception of this blog. because i consider what i am about to post, supersonically personal.
the relationship between me and my guru.
after pondering forever, and waging a cold war with my intellect, i decided today to make this poem public. by doing thus, if it stirs an ounce of curiosity even in one soul about experiencing what one calls ‘a guru’ , then my purpose of putting the poem up here will be served.
it is said that u don’t choose a guru, the guru chooses u. well then, in that case, my guru has good choice;) haha
so to my valentine of lifetimes, my dear guruji, this one’s for u! pls use ur siddhis and read it;) and use some more siddhis to comment!

MY GURU

I surrender
Each day. Each week. Each month. Each year.
Every moment.
Your presence gives direction.
The knowledge that I am.
Part of whole,
whole myself.

The enticing world beckons me,
I do not yield.
Knowing that the presence is stronger.
Is the Truth.

Unabated enthusiasm.
Untouchable love.
I slowly resemble you,
My Guru..

My questions turn into wonder.
My doubts into thin air.
So You said.

I learn the joy of service
Sowing the seed
That You once sowed in me.
Do You yearn for me?
Do Your eyes wet when I tear?
Do you ache in my pain?
I wonder?
I know.
Thank you for the womb You’ve built around me.
Thank you for me.

Shedding my outer layers,
Being one wit You,
Overcome by tears of the Self,
Every cell craves for You.
That’s my prayer..

I bless You, in doing thus;
I bless mine own Self.

Parting is painful

today is my last nite at MICA… the 7 month sabbatical from the speedy life i lead back home. wat i will miss most among many things is the MICAN greenery and the lake in the nearby village where i wud often spot peacocks coming to quench their thirst and buffalos who wud come in for a swim. these are sites that one possibly cant find even in the borivali national park back in busy bombay.. or shud i say mad mad mumbai!!

i had all the time in the world to spend wit myself… catching up on movies, music, meditation.. just doing nearly nothing definitely felt beautiful! nites went onto become days and when the sun came up.. we came out of our precious Imac lab and absorbed the morning rays. after this we all died in our beds until dusk!.. funny.. we lived like U.S citizens. all of us were pretty much zoned out, dint know which day of the week it was, absolutely high on life. no questions. no answers. 100% living.

The pic is that of our convocation. My first and last i am guessing… see how chic we look!! My course in MICA was made extra spcl simply becos of my 23 fellow mates.. we had a louly emo party today for which my roomie and i wrote few lines for each one of them! I am gona put it down here, though its rather private…but those of u who read my blog are private to me too !!

LOU U GUYS SO MUCH!!

AND THANKS A MILLION!!

pyar, ishq aur mohabbat

while i was getting myself a bachelor’s degree, i made sure i was busy doing everything except romancing my fat engineering books. luckily on the first few days of a 4yr college life, my eyes fell upon a guy who made me go week in my knees. when i mentioned it to a few pals, they equalled him to a lot of ugly things.. including vomit.  but i cudnt stop blushing when i thot of him. i wud tolerate a horrible ST bus ride of an hour with a big smile, all excited only to catch one glimpse of him in the treacherous day of college. i even brain washed those mean pals to think that he’s a dude of substance.. and thus we started a club in his name. a virtual club. we sent him reallyy funny rose cards on rose days and sneaked into his class to check his reaction. bascially did a whole lot of horribly, atrociously silly things to catch his eye. those amazing deep eyes…

i remember dedicating my daily meditation practice ka energy to him when he was very sick  in hospital.. i went to visit him at the hospi which was the very first time i every really spoke to him.. believe me my legs were shaking all the while. and i remember so well that i spoke utter shit when i got my chance. for those who knw me, knw that i can make interesting convo wit brad pitt also wit ease.. but this dude was so much more..

so one day i gathered the guts to take his only note book for some work.. hehe .. this is really funny guys..(promise u wont laugh!!)…i took the note book, n last page mein i wrote him a poem.. my 1st ever poem.. man!!! i thot this happend only in the movies.. wrong!

it was perhaps the cheeziest things i hv ever done when hit by cupid real bad! next day i waited anxiously for him to talk to me.. well.. he dint really.. but hes the one who inspired me to write.. i dint even know until then that i cud write decent poetry,, and today its a different story.. u cud check the poetry section on my blog to understand wat i am talking of ( so much for humility:))

so coming back to this heart of mine;  he never gave me even one milligram of bhaav; but i later realised that my love was utterly unconditional.. fully amazing it feels even today to have loved someone so innocently expecting nothing at all.. not even an occasional ‘hi’. infact i used to get an adrenalin rush even when he walked through me,, which he often did! weird eh?

in the past few minutes, i feel i hv lived those 3-4yrs of romance! thanx blog!

thanx boy. ur a permanent in my heart!

here is the poem on his note book;

you are burning.. let go

catastropic, metamorphic, caustrophobic,

get a cusion, get a life.

slump it all, rise

end the drama, behold

act this scene, play this play

I’ll get you a cusion, please get a life.

you are famished, fill the void

crack the nut, create noise

stuck in the head, you’ve left no choice,

let go , let go.

gimme a cushion, I’ll get me a life!

Divine Love

This one is among my favourite stories of all time..

The Radha-Krishna amour is a love legend of all times. When Lord Krishna left to fight His uncle Kamsa, Radha wept. Krishna told her that her tears were a hindrance for Him to leave on His mission and told her to stop crying. Radha didn’t shed a tear after that day. She longed for her beloved for years and years. The divine love she shared with Krishna was unparalleled.

Lord Krishna overthrew and killed Kamsa and went on to Dwarka where He married Rukmini. Krishna is said to have had 16,108 wives. Rukmini continuously kept complaining about him giving special attention to Radha. She said, “What is the big deal about her. What can she do for you that I can’t?” Rukmini was hopelessly jealous. She complained further that Krishna loved Radha the most though she lived far away in Vrindavan.

One day, Krishna had a terrible head ache. Rukmini and the other queens rushed about with all kinds of remedies but to no avail. They consulted a vaidhya and he asked the Lord Himself to tell him which drug would cure Krishna. Krishna told that his head ache would stop when the feet of a true bhakta is kept on his forehead! Listening to this, Rukmini and all other queens were aghast! They refused to keep their feet on Krishna’s forehead as it was a great sin! They said, “You are god’s manifestation on Earth and our dearest beloved. How can we dare step on your head? We would do anything for you but that!” Thus, no one volunteered and Lord Krishna continued to be in great pain.

The news reached Radha in Vrindavan and she immediately left everything to rush to her beloved. She immediately kept her feet on Krishna’s forehead to rid her Lord of His head ache. Seeing this, the people exclaimed that she would go straight to hell for such a grave sin. Radha smilingly said, “What does it matter if I have to go to hell as long as my Lord is relieved of His pain. I would readily go to hell a hundred lifetimes also!”

This act of Radha made all the other queens realize the divine love she had for Lord Krishna. It was so strong that she put her beloved before everything else, even enlightenment. Thus, Radha’s name is uttered even today whenever Krishna is referred to although she wasn’t married to Him.

Really insightful, isn’t it?

Jai guru dev..

i am SHARING my valentine this year!

romantic day is round the corner! this year i am sharing my valentine with more than a lakh driven youth who are gona stand up against terrorism and corruption! cool na? this year  ‘my country my valentine’ ! if u wana share my gorgeous valentine, your invited! join me in the MARCH IN MARCH. Visit www.themarch.in and register!

happy valentines day!

(dont forget to hug ur parents tomorrow! after all, they have been loving u from the time u pooped around the place!;))

door-darshan

hello everybody! somebody….anybody ( copy cat dialogue of simba from lion king lou it. besides its quite relevant here. hehe)

interesting person i meet at mica today. Ogilvy Outstretch ka National Creative Director-naam Rajkumar Jha.( O&M ka O stands for Ogilvy, its among the top ad agencies of the world). firstly he looked like a bald teddy. so eyes were happy. and his jokes were super cute. now i called him interesting because i gathered that he and his then boss were behind the making of ‘Mile sur meraa tumhara’ and ‘ Mile sargam har taraf se, gunje mann mein desh raag’ and also the instrumental torch bearing sportmen film. remember these? in mile sur mera u have all the greats of states of india singing this sentence in their mother tongue. and  desh raag showcases our Indian classic music and dance. they used to come in doordarshan eons ago. man! i got goosebumps. wat a brilliant country i am a citizen of, was reinstated. i wonder why they dont show these films on tv today. it’s so positive and fills an entire country with hope in times like these. need of the hour i think.  justifying calling Raj sir ‘interesting’ further, he works for selling stuff to rural india which makes up 80% of our country’s population. he was showing us a series of social ads made for educating rural india about contraceptives, family planning etc. it made me think of how much of India am i really in touch with? majority of my country’s fellow citizens cant even read my ad let alone make any sense of its all important “hidden message”. wat do i knw of their lifestyle when i am blessed with so much freedom of everykind. like some countries have compulsory military training for 2 yrs after schooling, we here instead shud have compulsory service for the upliftment of our villages for a year atleast. kya kehte ho?

check out the films and get nostalgic!

 godbless

jai guru dev!

 

to whomsoever it may concern:)

from the moment my eyes touched yours at the satsang, magic bells rang. and my eyes searched for yours ever since. till we came face to face and blabbered. you are my roller coaster ride. you are my expression of sweet love. i long for you more than you think, i long for u more than i thought i would, i long for you most in my happiest and saddest times. everybit of you i love in the present, and i know not wat i found; save a love, deeper and more fulfilling than i can offer. i thank you for every moment spent with you, for our outings, our bike rides, our kisses and our fights. i wont thank you for the love because i know it was meant to be.
kisses

(phew! do i suck at this or wat?! but it made perfect sense to the “whomsoever” ..so my job here is done///////)