The Girl in the Glass box

The girl in the glass box
she never slept.
She looked at the painted glass walls,
Frantically searching for a way out.
She wasn't unhappy,
even though in a box,
Because she was herself
and followed her heart's whims!
She sang and danced and dreamt sky high,
and wrote and painted the tall glass walls.
She cooked and played 
and lived life her way!
But she was here..
all locked up and alone.
Surrounded by glass walls,
with not even  a hole.
She dreamt of the day,
she would be free..
She did what she loved
and didn't follow the crowd.
She didn't hide behind curtains,
when society scorned!
Instead held her head high
and walked straight by!
People and opinions ,
she heeded not!
Coz with bricks and bats,
She could make a home!
Fearless and bold ,
she was meant to be!

The Golden Lantern

I hung above the "Golden Lantern Inn",
been hanging here since the beginning.
I was all bright and dandy,
but now turning ninety.
I flickered now and then,
but I was alive and could ken.
Been guarding the Inn,
though inside,it's always a din!
But age was taking a toll on me,
my glasses cracked,
hinges hanging,
and light a tad dimmer.
I hung there everyday,
smiling on passer-bys.

One day,there she stood.
A chick ,she was, in a single glance.
Straight and streaked burgundy hair,
Pouting lips in bold purple lipstick,
a ring adorning her nose and belly,
cropped top , ragged denim shorts
and knee long black boots.
But she wasn't sexy,
until she looked up at me!
Her eyes lit the filament in me!
I glowed a little more brighter!
I hung staring at her,
as she waited long for her cab.
Bullies around ,gave dirty looks.
And whistled around her as she left.
She glanced not their way,nor gave a damn!
If a pet dog,I was,
would have bitten their asses!!

A regular ,she was at the inn
and customary became our visits.
Though she kept me alive everyday,
I was dying day by day.
Then came a day,so mean and cruel.
The winds blew hard
and the moon under hiding.
I tried to stay hooked,
to the hinges,clinging.
There she arrived unusually late.
Her hair tied into a twisted bun,
a full sleeve shirt and striped trousers.
Today looked like business for her,
though she was a party animal.

The winds gushed stronger,
the trees holding on to their roots!
She stood there waiting,
but her cab was found,no where near.
Came the bullies once again!
And today was their golden day.
They circled round her,
like hungry hounds.
They barked at her and closed on her.
She,not giving a bloody damn!!
But the alarms rang loud,
when they pushed her down!
She resisted with all the strength of hers.
But they began ripping and stripping,
and  longer I could not stare!

My light flickered and grew dimmer ,
and almost died out,
hanging by a small rusty hinge.
But ,let her die,I wouldn't.
I mustered my strength and
forced the filaments to light!
As I opened my eyes,
my anger began to rise!
Trying they were to eat her alive!
I had to fight for her life!

I rocked myself harder with the winds,
to rattle the shards of old glass within.
Fell a few pieces of broken crystal.
She picked them up and poked their hearts.
Still ,stood up one to strangle her!
but let go, she didn't ,any one!
Even then,came another big bully,
grasping her from behind!
The winds,now a banshee ,raging and furious!!
The moon came out from behind the clouds.
Now was the chance to strike!

I rocked myself harder and harder,
till the hinges were creaking and breaking.
Came I,falling down right on his head.
Fell I did,along with the bully.
But dead was he and safe was she.
Happier than ever was I,
As I saved her life.
She picked me up,
as my lights dimmed out,
Thanking me -"The old golden lantern",
As I fought for the ladies of the world!!!

Barefoot College - Spreading Light

I was zapping channels, disappointed and demotivated at life. Even my favourite channels didn't have anything to enlighten me .Suddenly, I stumbled upon a program on a channel I rarely visit –The great DoorDharshan.

But the story was a great one!! It just took a few illiterate women to instil a confidence in me and make me feel better.

The program takes us to the village of Tilonia, a remote village in Rajasthan close to Ajmer. A group of illiterate and semi –literate women from different countries in Africa were being taken to Tilonia .They understand and speak broken English and the rest of the conversation with the college folks includes just signs and gestures. They have left their families and villages to come to India and start their new careers. They have come to become ENGINEERS!!!

Solar Electrification classroom

Barefoot college, Tilonia is a college run by NGO -Bunker Roy, to help people from underdeveloped countries to become self-sustainable and independent .The aim of this initiative is to utilize the skills and talents available in the village rather than depending on the urban crowd.One of the initiative includes  a 6 month course where women between the age of 35-50(They are called grandmamas or mamas) are invited to India to study solar electrification. And to return to their homelands to help light their villages!! Can you believe it? A bunch of women who don’t even know to read and write are going to light up a village! The next surprise element would be that the teachers and students do not have a common language that both groups understand!!How do you expect to teach a group about resistance, capacitance, transformers, voltage, diodes and resistors without a language they can understand!! And for 6 long months!!Well, the people at Barefoot College have made it happen and they have helped light up 4,50,000 villages around the world.

Never Knew...

Never knew when it started
Never knew when you crossed my path
Never knew what I saw in you.

Never knew I was so obsessed with you
Never knew you would haunt my dreams
Never knew I would chase yours too..

Never knew you would be the only one I saw
Never knew why I felt different about you
Never knew how to express what I had for you.

Never knew that days would end thinking of you
Never knew you would change me inside out
Never knew I could feel you ,even though miles away.

Never knew your eyes could mesmerise me
Never knew I was falling into you
Never knew I was yearning for you
Never knew you could make me feel this way..

But...

Never knew that the fire inside was burning a hole.
Never knew you wouldn't read my eyes
Never knew you were someone else's.

Never knew I wasn't destined for you
Never knew you would be the cause of my tears
Never knew you would teach me what pain is.

Never knew you were living inside me
Never knew I would have to live without you
Never knew you wouldn't know that I was in LOVE ....with you......

Petrichor

When the drops touch my face,
When the drops bounce on my palm,
Each little drop douses the fire in me,
Each little drop evaporates in the heat of my worries.
All the memories that daunt me washes away,
All the illusions dissolve in the rain.

When the drops tickle my eyes,
When the drops kiss my neck,
Each little drop quenches the thirst within ,
Each little drop clears the windows of my heart.
All my woes are flushed away,
All the pretentious masks melt away.

When the drops drench my hair,
When the drops trickle down my skin,
Each little drop delves deep into me,
Each little drop rejuvenates my soul.
All my breaths seem fresh and anew.
All my dreams are reborn..

The Magic of Krishna!!!

She saw with wide eyes and praying hands  , Guruvaayoorappan just metres away.For a minute ,she closed her eyes and there Krishna danced,his peacock feather swaying ,the naughty glimmer in his eye , his butter smattered lips chuckling and tiny fingers beckoning us to him.But he disappeared running.My mom was awakened from her deep thoughts by the loud voice of the priest telling her to move on.Her heart was content after getting dharshan of Sri Guruvaayoorappan at the Guruvayoor temple. She now walked to the Prasadam counter with her receipt to get a small jar of paalpaayasam that she had promised to the lord.Waiting in the long queue patiently ,the smell of the paalpayasam filled her nostrils.She inched closer to the counter ,where a bare chested priest with a perfect round belly and sacred thread around him was serving hot  paalpayasam from a large copper urulli.My mom reached the counter and presented her receipt.Instead of giving her the payasam in exchange ,to my mother's surprise ,he replied that the order wasn't placed!!!

My mom woke up sweating from her vivid dream. Amma , an ardent devotee of Guruvaayoorappan knew this dream meant something was wrong. She always believed her dreams and they were real. Guruvaayoorappan had his own ways of speaking to his devotees and my mom's was through dreams.

A few months before her dream,she had prayed hard to Krishna and promised him payasam.It was the year when mobiles were not born and international calls were a rarity .Those were the times when our vacations were on alternate years and this was one such year.But Krishna had to be given what he was promised and so did he get it.Amma called my grandmom and requested her to place an order on behalf of her to Krishna.As grandmom couldn't go ,she passed this to my uncle ,who then was a newly married couple on his way to see the Lord.Uncle made the visit all the way to Guruvayoor ,got blessed by the Lord ,placed the order and received the paayasam.Happiness is in sharing the lord's blessings ,so the payasam was shared with everyone around and amma's wish was fulfilled.

Month's later ,Amma narrated her odd dream to Ammamma(grandmom) and explained the lord's dissatisfaction.In reply , Ammamma narrated my uncle's visit to the temple and placing the order for the payasam too.Then what went wrong ?? What was Krishna trying to tell Amma through her dream?? Amma then realized the hidden message in her dream. The message the lord wanted to convey .She asked my Ammamma what payasam they had prayed for. She promptly said " Neiypayasam" .The mystery was solved ! My mom prayed for paalpayasam and instead ,my uncle prayed for neiypayasam ! .Naughty naughty Lord Krishna!! He has his own ways to get his " paal"payasam!! ;) The magic of Krishna!!!The magic of Krishna!!! 

Cry

Sorrow wreaked havoc inside her,
restless as a furious beast,
banging hard on the walls of her heart.
No longer could she suppress it.
Her heart ached,ached hard.
But a consolation there was, in the pain.
Her nerves taut,blood rushed 
through her nimble fingers and delicate face.

Her beautiful eyes turned glassy.
Resisting to fall and blurring her vision,
her tears waited for the right moment.
Her obscure vision ,not a hindrance
to her crystal clear thoughts.
Her gaze as penetrating as the laser beam.
Without batting an eyelid,she reminisced
the moments of the past ,to no avail.
Breaking the bunds,relentlessly they flowed,
the crystal drops of yesterday's woe.
Stop she dared not those,nor wipe away.
She let them flow,till her heart's relief.
The voice of her sorrow screeching inside
incessant her weeping became.
More stronger each second her memories grew,
and lament she had to..

Her endless tears rolling down,
her lips and nose as red as ever.
The trickling tears and her pillow damp.
Not a word ,could she utter.
So choked ,her throat and nose.
Still cried out she,louder and louder.
Her pretty eyes grew tight,
shrinking,wrinkling and red.
Still stopped not she,her lament.
Cried and cried and cried she did,
till the beast in her had died.
She cried till her eyes hurt
and not a drop she could shed.
Not open or close could she ,her eyes,
swollen by the tears she left behind.
But lighter she felt,for the beast was dead.
What remained,just memories of the golden end.

If only....

I swerved my babe to the right slowly ,the little bells hanging on the mirror swayed to the left tinkling .That was Swathi's gift for our 1st love anniversary.She had a reason for gifting me those.The cute chimes always remained together and tinkled only if either of it touched each other,she said we were like the bells and just like them we would be always be together and make noise together. Hahahahah !!! So true!! We were the noisiest couples in our clique.We are always up to something or the other and those memories alone made us the happiest.

I pulled over to the side of the street to get a case of beer.The boys were getting set to celebrate the weekend.As I got close to the car ,I stood still a few steps from my babe admiring her.She stood there in elegance and style.She was a beauty.I patted her black glossy body before getting back in. I placed the beer case on the back seat and got in inhaling the vanilla scent from the car freshener.That's my babe's scent.I got my babe back on the road.She was a delight to drive ,to see the needle moving right as I try to floor the pedals.She never ever ever let me down.That was my babe !! Just like Swathi always there for me.I drove happily with the windows down and the wind blowing on me.My favourite love songs playing in the car and me lip-syncing all the way.

My stomach was grumbling,after the two glasses of whisky from Vicky's house.Wondering if mom made something at home.Balancing the steering wheel on one hand, I dialled home.No one's picked up.So I decided I had to stop by somewhere and get something.As I put the handbrakes and unbuckled my seatbelts ,I noticed a boy and his sister on the street.They were munching on the last few remains of a biscuit given to them.I called them with me and we walked to McDonalds for a snack.Their eyes popped out with wonder and they laughed from their hearts when they set their hands on their burgers and coke.It was Swathi who taught me these little things which meant a lot for others.I clicked a photo of the priceless moment and sent it to her.She was so excited and I got a quick kiss in return.

Now Or Never

I give u one more chance,

Not becuz that I’m so lost.

But baby truly saying,

I really missed u a lot.

Those times I livd my lyf,

Just with u by my side.

Sooo lets give it a try,

Say now or never tonyt.

Say now or never ,now or never ,say now or never.

I dunno whos on d wrong,

V had to just bring it on.

But I know v weren’t ryt.

Sometimes v get into fight,

Dats all so justified,

In relations  defined.

Sooo lets give it a try,

Say now or never tonyt.

Say now or never, now or never ,say now or never.

So many ppl I saw,

Cud find no one so raw.

They were just so unreal,

I swear  I cudn just feel.

Through their painted layers,

I saw a luv so unfair.

Sooo lets give it a try,

Say now or never  tonyt.

Say now or never ,now or never ,say now or never.

I dunno why,

My luv for u died.

But nw I realize,

It was ryt here inside.

I hope u come back,

coz now I know I luvd u like mad!

Sooo  come on lets just  give it a try,

Say now or never tonyt.

Say now or never ,now or never ,say now or never.

Coz now I know I luvd u like mad!

And I’m feeling so bad..

Sooo  come on lets just  give it a try,

Say now or never tonyt.

Say now now or never never never,

Say now or never tonyt... 

A visit to serenity and spirituality -Mookambika Temple

Imagine standing on the top of a hill,breathing in fresh cool air,surrounded by low hills and the mist slowly settling down on you.This is Kodachadri -where serenity and spirituality fills your deprived souls.
The Sri Mookambika Temple is always a part of our family's spiritual itinerary .In fact ,the temple has a special place in the hearts of all Malayalees.

The Sri Mookambika temple is situated in Kollur ,Karnataka.The temple is built adjacent to the 'Souparnika ' river which has its origin at Moolasthaana. History tells us that the godess  has been named so, after she killed the demon 'Mookasura'.The godess also is considered to be a manifestation of 3 godessess -Shakthi,Saraswathi and Mahahlakshmi  and hence the name 'Mooka -Ambika'.This was our fourth time in Mookambika. We reached there in the early hours of May,with a golden reception from the sun.We got refreshed and started our journey.The three main places to visit are :

• The main temple at Kollur
• The Moolasthaana at Kodachadri
• The Sarvangna Peeta at the Kodachadri Peak

Our first visit was to the main temple which housed the great godess Mookambika.
Draped in a gaudy red saree,adorned with jewellery ,surrounded by lamps bathing her in divine golden light ,there she stood in all her splendour.With intense devotion we prayed without batting an eyelid ,revelling in the holiness.The goddess is most beautiful after the evening prayers where she sits in the illumination of just the lighted lamps. The radiating holy light engulfing the darkness around as well as within us .The evening offerings are followed by the distribution of the 'Kashaya theertha' ,prasadam which is known for its medicinal values.Unfortunately ,this time we couldn't stay for the evening prayers.There is a Saraswathi mandapam where people display their god -gifted talents whether its singing ,dancing or an playing an instrument. Vidyaarambam is also done in this very mandapam. Another important event is the 'Rathothsav',where the grand chariot carries the godess every year.Coins are thrown to the devotees during the annual chariot festival and is considered very lucky.We then stepped out ,where a little elephant blessed us just at the entrance of the temple.:) 

The temple has a fascinating history dating back to almost 1200 years.According to the myths, Sankaracharya or Adi Shankara ,travelled all the way from Kerala and meditated in the pristine hills of Kudachaadri(at the Sarvagna Peeta). After years of penance ,Devi presented before him to grant his wish. Shankaracharya requested her to accompany him to Kerala.Devi agreed to his request on one condition.She said she would follow him but he shouldn't turn back. Shankaracharya lead the way,the tinkering of Devi's anklets assuring him she was there.After a few miles,the sound of the anklets ceased.On doubt, Shankaracharya instantly turned to see Devi, standing right there.He had broken the promise and Devi said she wouldn't come any further.But she promised that she would visit her devotees in Kerala everyday between 4 to 5 at Chottanikara temple.It is said that the vigraha of Devi was installed right where  Shankaracharya turned and this is where the temple stands today.Interesting huh?

Next is the most exciting part of our journey.The uphill trekking to the Kodachadri hills.The journey is negotiable only by Jeep. So we hired a Jeep and got ready for the climb.The journey is just some 35 kilometres but the experience is an adrenaline- pumping one!The first few kilometres have a road now (compared to 12 years earlier).The road gives way to narrower paths as we move further up.This time we had to choose a longer path as road construction was going on on the usual route.As the concrete road vanished slowly we were riding over rough and rocky terrain.We travelled along the edge of the slopes with hairpin curves all along the way.We had to hold on to the jeep's hand rails so tightly so that we wouldn't fall of the jeep!! The ride is such a rugged one with branches,stones,rocks and steep slopes.The ride got scarier when another jeep approached us in the opposite direction just at a steep curve!On one side we were looking at a picturesque scene but look down below ,the dearths will take you to a place you never want to be!The drivers manoeuvred the vehicle so tactfully and we were back on track.In between we stopped at a temple where we were served lunch.We resumed our journey and the driver entertained us with a few of his own stories.After that bumpy and rocky ride we finally reached our second destination -the Moolsthaana.

At the Moolasthaana ,there are two temples.You can also see the Iron pillar which according to mythology was used by the Devi to kill Mookasura .It is made of iron but has not rusted over the years! As I had earlier mentioned the origin of Souparnika river is also here.The water trickling through the crevices of the rocks have been collected in a small temple pond .A dip in the divine waters will definitely cleanse you inner selves. The priest and his family also have been staying here for ages.We offered our poojas and geared up for our final destination.

Even though we have been to the Moolasthana before, we never got a chance to  see the Sarvagna Peeta. So this time we were determined to do so.The Sarvagna Peeta is located just 2 kms away from the Moolasthana. The journey has to be made on foot,no jeeps!! 2 Kms may sound easy unless you see the path( or is there a path?).The journey starts with pebbles ,gravel,branches ,roots and some trees.Late we were walking through course sand and a breathtaking view of the hills and the descending mist even in the middle of the afternoon!!The sun disappearing behind the clouds and mist,the grass and shrubs along the path.You definitely will stop a while to take in the beauty of nature and also because just a few kilometres of walking  will leave you panting for breath.'Breath'-taking indeed.But the anxiety to reach the Sarvagna Peeta will give wings to your spirit! I was surprised when middle aged and old people were easily clambering up the slopes.Halfway through, there is a detour which will take you to the Ganesha Caves.The journey continued after a brief visit to the caves.

After a few more metres ,we could see the silhouette of the Saravagna Peeta at a distance.The sun gleaming behind the temple, we hastened our steps to reach our 'destination' .An overwhelming feeling of accomplishment and joy took over us as we had finally made it.The prize off course ,an awe-inspiring view at 1343 metres above sea level(4406 feet Whoa!!) with lush green vegetation , overlapping mountains and a sense of purity,fulfilment,serenity and spirituality . An enlightenment dawns on us making the hassles and frustration subside.Can city life offer you this?

The Saravagna Peeta is a small temple made of stone.This is where Sankaracharya had performed his penance.A priest daily performs pujas here too.We stood there for a while basking in the beauty and rejuvenating ourselves.It was now time to go back as the Jeeps said they would leave in an hour.The trip definitely satiated the barren soul.Returning for now but awaiting another trip back soon to the enchanted Kudachaadri hills....