a phoenix

Small Essay- Ceci n'est pas une pipe

2010-03-26T17:11:00.001-07:00

Presumably the most famous pipe in 20^th century has a caption associated with it, “Ceci n'est pas une pipe”, the artist, Margritte has justified the statement by saying “it is not a pipe; it is an image of pipe, try filling it up with tobacco”. Margritte, I think was trying to make a point that no matter how realistic your paintings or portrayals are, they can never really be “real”. Quite profound thought I must say; a thought which can be so easily experienced and tested by almost all of us in our day to day lives.

It also underlines another famous and cliché quote “Looks can be deceiving”, so next time when you get swept off your feet by someone or a thing, just hold on a second and remind yourself “Ceci n'est pas une pipe” which will allow you to take a moment and try looking through obviously charming exteriors!!

Yours Truly,

A Phoenix

Small Essay- Compassion

2010-03-26T16:44:00.000-07:00

As humans we are supposed to be compassionate about others’ adversities and predicaments, but is it empathy or sympathy that determines compassion, I have noticed a very few people can actually distinguish between the two, most of them would tell you the different meanings, but as to present or emulate empathy or sympathy, they are mostly baffled.

Empathize: (verb) understand and share the feelings of another

Sympathize: (verb) agree with a sentiment or opinion

As the most of us can “see” there IS clearly a visible, tangible and yes behavioural difference between these two (though these two are so often used interchangeably). To me, compassion is not sympathy but empathy which gives us the unique ability to feel the other person’s pain, a hurt person does not need sympathy or pity, he/she needs empathy which helps to digest the horrible feeling of loneliness and gives us the hope that “we are not alone”

So next time onwards, if you feel like showing compassion, practise empathy, not sympathy

Yours Truly,

A Phoenix

कुणी कराव हे प्रेम

2009-09-18T14:11:00.000-07:00

कुणी कराव हे प्रेम, कुणी कराव हे प्रेम,

दुसर्याचा आनंद स्वतःपेक्षा जास्त जोपासु शकत असाल
तरच करा हे प्रेम,

स्वतःच्या सुख समाधानाची आहुति प्रेमरूपी हवनात करू शकत असाल,
तरच करा हे प्रेम

त्या ख़ास व्यक्तीच्या एका स्मीतहास्यासाठी वाटेल ती किम्मत मोजू शकत असाल
तरच करा हे प्रेम,

अस्मानी कळा सोसून त्या व्यक्तीला दुसरयाबरोबर बघण्याच धाडस असेल
तरच करा हे प्रेम

अपेक्षाभंग होउनही हसरा चेहरा ठेवण्याची क्षमता असेल
तरच करा हे प्रेम,

त्या व्यक्तित लाख दोष असले तरी प्रत्येक वेळी ते नजरेआड़ करू शकत असाल
तरच करा हे प्रेम

आपली दुखः पचवून त्या व्यक्तीला खुश ठेवण्याचा यत्न करण्याची ताकत असेल
तरच करा हे प्रेम

पूर्ण जग त्या व्यक्तीवर फिरल तरीही तिची साथ न सोडण्याची शक्ति असेल
तरच करा हे प्रेम

काळजावर दगड ही ठेवून त्या व्यक्तीला ती आपल्याबरोबर खुश नाही म्हणुन मोकळ करण्याच साहस असेल
तरच करा हे प्रेम

फारच बोललो... पण एक गोष्ट खरी..प्रेम हे काही ठरवून करता येत नाही,
ठरवून जर करू शकत असाल तर करून दाखवाच हे प्रेम

A Lonely Journey back

2009-09-18T13:39:00.000-07:00

And he walked thru’ the mist

Towards my waiting arms

A shadow on his face

And doubt on my mind

Not the same he was as I had known him

Creases crowded my forehead

But placid was his face

Long did I wait for him to respond to the embrace

Long did I wait fruitlessly

Withdraw I did my embrace

He had come… surely

Without any doubt... as I had thought he would

Alas... but not as to fill the void n vast chasm in my life

But to leave me alone with my shadow in that sleepless night

So silent was the night that even breaking of my heart could be heard

After few moments that felt like eternity I saw his shadow disappear in the dark

I waited there… silently

With crushed heart n shattered soul

With burden of realization on my mind and shoulders

I then started my journey back

Into the shadows and darkness

Where even my own shadow forsakes me

Where utter loneliness and void envelopes a yearning heart....

[PS: This poem is written for a friend of mine who suffered heart ache, it is an effort to verbalize her pain. I hope you like it]

A Broken Heart

2008-11-06T23:00:00.000-08:00

Unbelievable that I am falling in love again,

My broken mind and heart have no strength to regain,

I am hurt and scarred beyond repair,

God only knows when this suffering will end

I thought those small things I did made u feel better

But according to you all they did was to make u embittered

Why those intimate times we had if you never wanted it right

Why to show me dreams when all u wanted to take a flight

You made my past scars n wounds disappear

Then you left me alone with my countless fears,

When all I did for you made you just sigh,

I already knew that the end is just nigh.

And it seems to me now that this is how it really goes

Why the hell this has to happen this way god only knows

I am hoping that there will be light shining some day,

But until that day I guess its best that I wither away

समुद्र !!!

2008-09-29T23:58:00.000-07:00

समुद्र … अथांग आणि विशाल,
असीमित असला तरी सगळ्याना आपल्यात सामावुन घेणारा,
कोणी काहीही दिले तरी निमूटपणे सहन करणारा,
पवित्र निर्माल्य असो की दिवसभराचा कचरा असो,
निश्चल मनाने स्वीकारणारा समुद्र …

अशा ह्या समुद्राचे आणि माझे फार जुने नाते आहे !!

आठवडाभराच्या त्रासदायिक आणि घायाळ करणाऱ्या गोष्टींपासून मला दिलासा देणारा हा समुद्र,
सगळ्यानसाथी असुनहि नेहमी एकटा असणारा हा समुद्र,
“गोष्टी कितीही दुखवणाऱ्या असल्या तरी आपण आपली सीमा सोडु नये” ही शिक्षा मला देणारा हा समुद्र,
अंगाची आणि मनाची लाही आपल्या शीतल अस्तीत्वाने शांत करणारा हा समुद्र,
माझ्या मनाची व्यथा बघुन माझ्याबरोबर माझ्याचसाठी अश्रु ढाळणारा समुद्र ...

अशा ह्या समुद्राचे आणि माझे फार जुने नाते आहे !!
अशा ह्या समुद्राचे आणि माझे फार दृढ़ नाते आहे !!

(English Translation)

"Ocean...bottomless and vast

Although endless, it accepts almost everyone and everything

No matter what a person gives, may it be flowers or may it be trash...it quietly tolerates and accepts it

Such an ocean and I have an old relation

Ocean.. the one who consoles & alleviates all of my week long work and pain

Ocean.. although it is there for everyone, still being utterly alone

Ocean.. teaching me "no matter how painful a thing might be we should never leave our limits"

Quenching the heat of body and mind by its mere presence

Ocean... looking at my pain n agony.. cries along with me for myself

Such an ocean and i have an old relation

such an ocean and i have a deeper and profound relation"

I have learnt

2008-06-10T01:17:00.000-07:00

I have learnt that history doesn’t repeat itself on its own
but we do make it repeat through our repetitive mistakes

I have learnt that we don’t learn from our past
ppl who should remember the past conveniently forget it and
ppl who should forget the past can barely forget it

I have learnt that memories of past are the most comfortable abode
that our mind needs many times, it might not be only sweet memories
but can be painful memories too.. what makes them so cozy is that they
are past and therefore known unlike unpredictable present and future

I have learnt that the love happens to be one of the things which give
us both joy and pain.. and they are not dispensable..
what makes love so terribly beautiful is the pain that it inflicts on
us while we pursue it

I have learnt that nothing in this world is far greater than our mission
to carry on and live the life.. no man/woman is so much important that
we should stop living without them. this may sound harsh and untruly
but everyone in this world has come with fixed tenure and they will have to
leave the living when the time comes.. but if our time has not come then
we should really indeed carry on... even without those whom we consider dear

I have learnt that no matter how many friends or relatives we have..
what matters in end is how much skillfully we can help ourselves
to live and to carry on.. because if there’s anyone who’s with us till end
then it’s.... no one but our true self....

I have learnt that loneliness is not so bad as many of us perceive
sometimes its indeed best to be alone...to introspect to check to plan to ponder
some battles of life are to be fought on our own..
without anyone’s help or aid....

I have learnt that the most powerful thing that make or break mountains is
faith ....what makes few ppl so remarkably great is their
determination and faith in them ..

I have learnt that among all the keys to success, the most important are
perseverance and sustainability....getting on top of peak is easier than
remaining on that zenith

I have learnt that success n failure are relative terms.. and their meanings are different..
even a graceful loser is winner...n a proud winner is a witless loser...

I have learnt that what we choose today builds our future for tomorrow
our choices reflect what we truly are n not our capabilities and skills

I have learnt that it doesn’t matter if we win or loose what matters is never
giving up on what we have set to do..

I have learnt that following a path that has been followed by many others
doesn’t lead us to growth.... for growing choose a path that has not yet
been trodden..

I have learnt that no matter how senseless a thing might look
but there is always a method in madness as well..

I have learnt that life always shows us wonderful illusions.. it’s easy
to get distracted but what is difficult is to see right through those false
appearances..

I have learnt that it is not skin or looks that make someone beautiful
but it is kindness, compassion and love in heart that makes someone
so enticingly beautiful

I have learnt that we are what we believe
I have learnt that we are whom we protect
I have learnt that we are what we guard
I have learnt that we are what we follow

Distance

2008-05-30T20:42:00.000-07:00

Distance...

I was chatting with one of my degree friends on Gmail after a very long time...the thing to note here is we hardly chatted with each other when we were together in same class in degree (for almost 3 years can you imagine)...that day we chatted for almost an hour...exchanging latest happenings in our lives...talking as if we were best of friends, meeting after long time... I remember telling him that time...”distance does seem to change things...don’t you think"...Perhaps he was thinking on similar lines...on that very day...we confessed that we always held each other in high regard, yet never conveyed it...we considered each other very fine individuals...but never said it....

This incidence had happened a couple of months back...but I m still intrigued and astonished and still wondering, thinking about this insidious question. Why is that?? Why people never convey their feelings when time is there. Why is that people wait till it’s almost too late to tell others what they feel for them...Is it so silly to tell someone that we cherish them? Is it really too much to say??

I don’t know if any of you readers will answer "YES" to this question...but if any of you do say "yes" then forgive me for differing...

I won’t say I have seen a lot...but I would say I have seen a little more than average person of my age...I have seen relationships blossoming. I have seen relationships dying...I have seen new relations rising out of ashes of the old ones...I have seen one relation spinning out of another....and therefore...my answer to this question is "Nay"..

It is not silly to tell people you love/cherish/respect them...It is not too much to say when you tell them that you adore them or even love them.....sometimes I have seen.. the biggest barrier in any relation...is failure of expressing each other...May it be Friendship, Love, or any form of relation...I have always emphasized on free expression...n I think rather I believe that it IS the key to free ourselves from the deadlock of eternal loneliness...

Don’t get me wrong...I cherish solitude...Oh boy I love solitude...but only when I want it...check that. I said I WANT it...not that I NEED it...sometimes...we are best as lone....when we need to silently assess something...quietly to decide on something...

I recollect another conversation with another friend of mine...who was saying "I hate when someone says that "I like you", "I love you"" (if it is done in excess). My defense to that is, of course it can overbearing if someone is telling you this...But if that person truly MEANS it when he/she says it...then I welcome such thousands of blessings..(yes I will consider them as blessings)...because...one "I love you" or” I care for you" or "I respect you" can lift up your spirit and morale greatly... (I have seen it happening so be rest assured of its success)

Err… I can see that I am drifting from the point in discussion…distance!! So I will get back to it :)

Somehow, we feel secured to tell that we adore/respect/cherish them when they are afar. This makes me wonder is it because now we don’t have to face the consequences of our feelings towards that person? Is THIS the reason…consequence…? That acts as the biggest deterrent to express ourselves to others… my guess is…. ”May be yes”. We feel extremely relaxed conveying this when that person is not around…. I don’t recollect why I dint tell my friend that I cherish his friendship…. It may be partly because I thought he might not appreciate it…. So now there are two…. Consequence and Reciprocation of the feelings…. Phew…the list seems keep on growing isn’t it? I am sure…circumstances… and many other factors might kick in to affect our decision to tell someone that we care/love/cherish…. My only point is... “Take your chance” …. Tell the person what you feel… the worst come worst would be that the person doesn’t feel for you same way you feel…. But hey it will make you feel better…. I will tell you why… All of us (I am saying all of us…. forgive me if I am wrong) have tendency to look back in time and think how we could have changed what happened (especially in heart and relationship matters)…. Do you really want to have that guilt that the relation partly did not live because you failed to tell that person that you loved him/her? At least I won’t be able to bear this guilt. And if you are like me and wont be able to bear this guilt… then go ahead…express yourself…. Tell that person how you feel…. Trust me… even if that person turns you down, you would at least be glad that the end or lack of reciprocation was not because of your part and I believe that is something to cling to in your dark hour when you are contemplating on why did the relation end…. And try to look at bright side…. That person might be waiting for you to make the first move ;-) …. So don’t hesitate…. Express yourself…. That’s the whole point of this discussion… because today it might be late….but tomorrow might be too late…

Yours truly,

A phoenix

(PS: I don’t pretend to be expert on relations, and I am sure this is not exactly a fine piece of work…. but again I have done what I have asked you all to do…Express yourself… I have done it on my part…. I am waiting for you all to do it too :))

How is the feeling..

2008-05-30T03:54:00.000-07:00

How is the feeling...

How is the feeling to be in presence of that special one?

How is the feeling of the warmth of a simple loving smile?

How is the feeling of being exhilarated by their simple skin brushing?

How is the feeling of being overburdened of listening to their stories,

yet thinking that he/she should talk.. Relentlessly so that you can gaze

at him/her for some more time?

How is the feeling of having someone whom you can call at any hour of day

and being able to say any garbage that you want?

How is the feeling of having someone on whom you can hang up,

knowing that he/she will call just to ensure you are alright?

How is the feeling to have someone who will be worried sick if you just sneeze once?

How is the feeling to have someone who will call you back because he/she missed you,

even though you just talked to him/her a minute ago?

How is the feeling to have someone who will wait for hours just to have few glimpses of you?

How is the feeling of a walk in moonlight.. where your lips don’t do the talking

yet your eyes tell all?

How is the feeling of holding hands of a person whose eyes always tell you

"I love you"?

How is the feeling to know that every night someone prays for you to come in his/her dreams?

How is the feeling to have someone whose last thought of day lingers all around you?

How is the feeling when you get up with his/her call to tell you that "I missed you" which brings broadest smile of all?

How is the feeling to have someone who misses you and wishes you were there?

How is the feeling of being important for one person who means world to you?

How is the feeling of being loved by your own love?

How is the feeling when you are with that special person

and when infinity is right there in his/her embrace and eternity in that moment?

Felicité éternelle

(Everlasting bliss)