Big dent to Indian democracy

 It's usual for the political parties to put up allegations against each other in a democracy. But the levels of allegations against the election commission have surpassed all past records. Where have these allegations come from? It's the election commission's own doing. It can't just say that the opposition is spreading rumours and go scot free. Its partial and biased approach to election related issues in favour of the government have given the critics enough valid reasons to raise a finger against its neutrality. Fairness doesn't reflect from what it has been doing for the past few months, so naturally lots of questions are being raised against it. It has given a huge dent to the image of Indian democracy. Because if the very election conducting machinery comes under suspicion in an unprecedented manner then the foundations of democracy are shaken. Apart from this, the level of selectively misusing the government agencies against the opposition has touched a new peak in India. No wonder Indian democracy stands hugely dented. It's no longer a question of who wins and who loses. It's about the harm to the democratic process in the country. There are enough reasons for a common man to feel disappointed with the functioning of the election commission of India. It harms the spirit of democracy. I can see Indian democracy getting diluted to take autocratic shape in future.

Congratulations China for Change'e 6 mission

China's robotic Chang'e 6 mission landed inside Apollo Crater at the giant South Pole-Aitken basin. With eternal optimism I would take it as the next step in mankind's quest for more scientific truths. So congratulations China in the name of collective human endeavour for scientific spirit, exploration, research, analysis and data. Irrespective of how many punches we give each other--as different nationalities--in the ring, this little planet will face common problems. Climatic ravages will heat, beat, treat us the same irrespective of geographical variations and national interests. Scorching heat will bake us the same. The floods will drown us the same. Pollution will ravage our lungs the same. Wars will spill the blood all the same. Some hostile alien life form will, this I consider very likely, treat us the same--the weird dwellers of a far off planet. They will twist our ears the same irrespective of our racial and national differences. So while we give each other bloody mouths with solid punches, it will serve humanity to chalk out a collective framework to deal with global level threats, dangers and risks that will challenge our very existence as a race.

A tragic comma in a fastly scrawled sentence

 

The other day, on the way to the town, a sad spectacle unfolded on the road. A hit and run case. A crime, unaccountable though because the life lost didn't belong to the Homo sapiens. It was a dog and since the law-books give enough space to the mankind in this matter, people drive rashly, trample over the so-called lesser lives, and move on nonchalantly. It doesn't even count as a happening. Happenings, or mishappenings, are classified according to their human-centric valuation and assessment.

The poor thing was lying on the edge of the road, a pool of blood by its open mouth, making its loud statement of a murder. But unfortunately such statements are majorly heard by poetic people or the ones carrying soft hearts. They at least ought to pay a silent homage.

Another dog was tentatively, after all death is such a big event, sniffing at the blood. It was a very sad sight. ‘What must this living dog be thinking? Has the event somehow changed its normal perception of taking blood as food?’ I moved on with my sad, brooding reflections.

Mother existence has her own ways of providing us the answers that we need. On my way back after an hour or so, I saw my answer written on the scene. The other dog was sadly sitting by the dead one; its front paws stretched out, head supported on them, sadly looking at the canine dead body. So this one was the friend of the dead dog, sitting there in condolence and companionship! Look at the bond. They must have played together so fondly and then some uncaring human trod over their bond, cleaving it apart.

Well, the law-books don’t have any space for such smaller murders. But at least the book of values in our heart and conscience ought to have some lines of empathy for the so-called lesser lives. Those unwritten laws should hold us responsible for our legalized transgressions. They should hold us accountable for the injuries and harm done by us to the so-called smaller forms of life. They should remind us to drive carefully in order to spare not just humans but cats, dogs and reptiles also.       

A page in the book of an old school guy

 

I know I'm from the old school. But here is a message for the new-age people grappling with the issues of relationships. Don't tear away the bond suddenly, turning the other one as a redundant item. Talk it over and transform it into a milder bond, put your case gently. If the person isn't suitable in the new phase of life, don't make him/her a dark angel at least. Transform it into friendliness (it's possible by the way—with open heart-to-heart talks) and drift away gently. There aren't bloody cleavages in this, leaving one party broken and the other one guilty. Why run away? If you run away in haste, you will carry lots of pain with you and this will draw you into similar circumstances with a different person in future because of its sheer momentum in your system.

I know ex-lovers can still become possessive and take your friendliness and nicety as willingness to come together again. But that's just an impulse at the initial time. If you maintain your courtesy, friendliness, dignified respect, impersonal aloofness and sufficient detachment (that separates friendliness from a love relationship), the other person will get the message very soon. Then you won't have a big block list in your phone. And blocks in our phones are merely forced attempts at negating a still nagging reality, an artificial attempt to bury a pain. It stands for either a feeling of victimhood or guilt.

If you drift away gently, allowing him/her to see you walking away, sometimes looking back with a friendly smile, sometimes waving a bye, then he/she won't feel cheated or broken or dumped. Why leave someone broken? You have every right to proceed with your choices for the future. But why run away? Because if you run away, those same circumstances follow you in a similar relationship with another person. So walk away, if that’s necessary, into the sunset with a friendly smile.

Crawling fluidity

 

Have you seen a snake beautifully crawling across little spaces, tiny crevices, stony earth, prickly branches and thorny boughs? It slithers away so majestically; with a fluidity matching the water’s. I think a snake is almost a more tangible manifestation of water in fluidity; a crawling mellowness. So the next time you come across a snake, don’t jumpstart and put your body in panic gear to saunter away. Just gently stay there. Believe me it won’t turn back to kiss your skin. It has far better things to kiss including his woman for love and frogs and mice for hunger. So as long as you are an appreciating spectator it would mind its business and allow you to mind yours.

A snake crawls so beautifully even across the big heaps of prickly boughs and branches of thorny keekars without injuring itself. Its mellow fluidity allows it to circuit around the thorns and obstructions. I think a snake has a message here for we humans as we move on the prickly path of life. To move with gentleness, fluidity, acceptance and liberty across the thorns of judgments, hate, complexes, anger, fear and insecurities. These are the thorns put on our path through which we have to crawl. Run or walk with all the negativities and rigidities of fears and insecurities and they bleed our feet. And move with the streaming gentle fluidity of acceptance and non-judgments, we simply find ourselves beautifully crawling across the pinchy, thorny obstructions. Mother nature has scrawled beautiful life lessons across the vast sprawl of her book of nature. We just need to be a bit more aware to read it. Ahha, the wonders of the book of life!