Amritsar: The Lake of nectar or a city of massacres

I was in Amritsar on the fateful Dussehra day when more than 60 people were massacred in a bizarre train accident. Tragedy struck Amritsar on Friday the 19^th of October 2018, when a speeding train ran over scores of Dussehra revelers standing on the railway track after having been induced away from a burning effigy of Ravana during the Dussehra celebrations at dusk near the Joda Phatak. Men, women and children had spilled over to the tracks, and no one saw or heard the speeding train in the glow of Ravana’s flames and the din of celebratory fireworks.

The Lore of Age

If you have been a storytelling parent, you may feel this way:

My poem published in the Assam Tribune on 7th Sep 2018.

Cosmic Homage

A tribute to my mother in the form of a poem published in the Assam Tribune on 31st Aug 2018.

Stateless

The National Register of Citizens (NRC) draft for Assam was recently released. While the state endeavors to ascertain sons of the soil, a handful of humans stare at the prospect of being rendered stateless. While my patriotic heart is elated at the draft list being out, my humane soul sheds a tear on the possibility of the innocent being shoved into turmoil. I describe this in my poem " Stateless" published on 10th August 2018, courtesy the Assam Tribune. The government has assured that no citizen of India will have to leave the country, and people whose names have been missing in the released draft list shall be given adequate opportunities to get their concerns addressed.

The Winner takes it all

(My article on how encouragement of the right behavior by leadership boosts that behavior in the ecosystem)

Published in the Assam Tribune dated 27th July 2018 

Prime Minister Narendra Modi recently tweeted that he was deeply moved when he saw Hima Das reach out for the Indian tricolour immediately after finishing first in the 400m final race in the IAAF World Under-20 Athletics Championships in Finland. Later, the Prime Minister, while addressing a public rally in his parliamentary constituency Varanasi, also showered praise upon the young girl from Dhing, a nondescript village in Assam’s Nagaon district, for her determination and patriotism. Hima Das has also been assured of government funding for her preparation for the 2020 Olympics in Tokyo, under the government's Target Olympic Podium Scheme (TOPS). The Chief Minister of Assam, Sarbananda Sonowal too announced a reward of Rs. 50 lakh for her, and personally visited Hima's home in Dhing to congratulate her parents, Junali and Ranjit Das. The Chief Minister praised Hima's historic success and thanked her for bringing glory to the state.

The Valley of Wonder

This poem of mine was inspired by the beauty of the foothills of the Himalayas as witnessed from Mussourie, India.

Published in the Assam Tribune, 22nd June 2018.

Yours Technologically

Dear readers,

I am launching a dedicated page for my technological blogs - "Yours Technologically"

https://yours-technologically.blogspot.com/

This will allow me to continue using the "Footprints on the sands of time" to catalog my thoughts on life, philosophy and nature.

Thank you for your support and encouragement.

Regards
Bedanta

Crossroads

Published on 28th Apr, courtesy the Assam Tribune

Aping the caveman

 

Health is primarily a product of our lifestyle – what we eat and drink, how we work, how we rest, and what thoughts and feelings we entertain. The caveman was closer to nature, and hence his lifestyle was arguably more in sync with nature. In order to stay healthy, we can emulate the lifestyle of our ancestors. The caveman would wake up at sunrise, and move out of his cave early, in pursuit of food, and in order to be ahead in the race for food. He would not have been a nighttime hunter, because of average eyesight, and more powerful nocturnal predators on the prowl. He would, probably, return to his cave before darkness set in, and retire soon into night’s slumber. On the other hand, in the modern world, thanks to advancements in science and technology, the hours after sunset are available for human activity, thereby procrastinating bedtime, and consequently, the time to rise in the morning! Modern man would definitely do better by adopting the caveman norm – early to bed and early to rise – what humans were designed for.

Published in the Assam Tribune, Horizon, 21st Apr 2017

Where daffodils bloom

I had the privilege of experiencing the enchanting Lake District in the United Kingdom, in the heart of which nestles the famous Dove Cottage, in which William Wordsworth wrote some of the greatest poetry in the English language, during the eight years that he lived there. Cuddled between a rocky hill popularly known as the Old Lady at the Piano, and the Grasmere Lake, this little nook is a splendid retreat. Wordsworth, who lived in Grasmere village for fourteen years, had described it as "the loveliest spot that man hath ever found" As a connoisseur of poetry myself, I felt enchanted as I walked around the house and the neighborhood. It is a sight that cannot be described in words, one that naturally inspires creativity, romance and poetry. The low hanging clouds that kissed the hill, the pleasant breeze that blew from across the lake, the sight of flowers, and call of birds, created a magical ambience. Today, the neighborhood also houses other buildings, which in Wordsworth’s time did not exist, and I realized what a pristine view William Wordsworth would have had from his window – as if witnessing a live painting of the lake, the hill and the grasslands.

Published in the Assam Tribune, Sunday Reading, 12th Feb 2017

Poetry digest

Following are some of my recent poems published in the Assam Tribune, Horizon supplement:

Publications digest

Following are three of my articles published in the Assam Tribune, Sunday Reading editions in the last months:

---

A unique event held in the heart of India's capital,

that sent out a strong message of universal brotherhood. To read the article, click below:

Wedded to a mission, 03 April, 2016

---

A rare exhibition of a precious legacy in the British Museum, London.

To read the article, click below:

Silk Route, 27 Nov, 2016

---

The unprecedented convergence of different generations and sections of society on a unified platform is throwing up questions about social networking etiquette. To read the article, click below:

Facebook etiquette, 08 Jan, 2017

Back to the basics

(A revelation of the fundamentals of life and living during my tryst with surgery and hospitalization)

Ambitions of life normally pivot around achieving success in academics and career, becoming rich and famous, travelling, writing, attaining spiritual bliss and other such stuff. These are the “big rocks” of life, which when successfully addressed, give one a sense of expansion and growth. Ambitions vary from person to person, and are based on ones values and outlook towards life. I too have my share of such worldly ambitions, and I have been extra passionate about them until recently when I had to undergo a surgery. The view of the world was quite different from the operation table and the hospital bed. They brought me back to the basics, and obliged me to recalibrate my world vision, in juxtaposition to the lofty dreams spun in the comfort of home, and within the board rooms of corporate world.

Erroneous process of NRC update

By Prabin Choudhury
The following is my father's letter to the Supreme Court of India protesting against the discrimination towards the indigenous people of Assam owing to the erroneous process adopted for preparation/updating of the so-called National Citizens Register (NRC) in Assam as a proposed step towards identifying illegal immigrants.

LOVE RAIN

Passion clouds fill up my sky Pouring love incessantly; As the planet's lust gets satiated My own desires get the better of me. As I sip from my passion cup My mind takes a flight of fantasy; As I watch you dance in the rain My love drenches you silently. Fairy bird all wet in love You walk mercilessly towards me; Each step of yours brews a thunderstrom I cannot contain my ecstacy. As we submerge in passion flood The rainfall intensifies outside; The sound of rain, the smell of earth A concoction that leaves us inebriate.

Published in the Assam Tribune, Horizon, on 24th July 2015

The success model

What is success after all? Is it the golden light at the end of the tunnel? Is it that ultimate defining moment which makes the dearest of dreams come true? Is it that ultimate victory that justifies millions of sacrifices? Is it analogous to the zenith when you target an ascent, and the nadir when we aspire for a descent? In this article, I make a modest attempt at modeling it.

Dispassionate engagement

"How I wish you were drunk too

And your sensibility subdued

We would have shared then

What we otherwise keep subdued"

I have always believed that it is extremely important to be engaged to one's work in order to be effective in generating high outcome. And I have always believed that true engagement comes from one's belief that one can make a difference in a certain area that one is passionate about. And I have personally almost always been engaged to my work so far in my career, and I consider myself as a good example of an engaged worker.

An Indian spring of destiny

Year 2014 is a year of destiny for India. As I write this, spring is blooming in the gardens of this great nation and the backyard of our modest homes. We have always hailed the cuckoo as the harbinger of spring. This time, it is also manifesting as the harbinger of change. As the cuckoo spreads melody, incidentally the vast sky reverberates with a clarion call. A battle is round the corner. A battle of ideologies and personalities. A battle of promises and performance. India is going to the polls to decide its next bhagya vidhata (destiny writer).

Poetic winter

I wrote nine poems in Janurary 2014 to mark the completion of nine years of the annual department event at my workplace. I have been part of its organizing committee since the inception of this annual event in 2005. I have a deep emotional connect with the event that touches the lives of 500 employees of our department.

I present five of these poems below.

THE NINTH ROSE

For nine years, I have known you

For nine years, I have loved you.

Thus nine roses I send your way

Nine poems make a special bouquet.