DDA Housing Draw...RESULTS

OK friends...

Something purely in public interest!!

:))

You may access the DDA result from the following link:

http://sunanda.bharti.googlepages.com/ddahousingdrawresult2008

BTW, this is just because the DDA website is not opening...

Good luck then!

A wonderful Daadi-poti story ; )

The Shiva temple within the fort complex of Kumbhalgarh...simplicity is magnificence!
Legend says that the Rana was killed in this temple, by his son, while in prayers...for interiors, see the pic below...

So mesmerised had I been with Mughal history and architecture till now that it resulted in a step-motherly treatment being given to Hindu buildings and personalities. My recent wanderings into Rajasthan changed that and it is Maharana Kumbha who made a marked dent into that confined and biased mindset. An amatuer blog post as this would not do justice to the personality he was., so I would not attempt that...however, there is something that stuck to my memory from the 'light and sound show' at Chittorgarh fort...

...it was a couplet that ended with ..."कामधेनु तांडव करिए"

and so strong was the urge to get the text , meaning and background of this verse, it made me frantically, almost madly, surf the Internet and other accessible sources, so that I could tell you the story...and I admit that this post would make more sense to those who have been to the place...

Anyways, here is how the the fairy tale fable goes...

MAHARANA KUMBHA died in A.D. 1468.

What the light and sound show missed out on, and perhaps deliberately as it would have portrayed their 'maharana' in poor light, was that sometime before his death, Kumbha's mind showed signs of derangement. He, as has been documented, sometimes talked incoherently and to himself. In this state, once he left Kumbhalgarh to visit Eklingji, a temple in Udaipur. As he arrived near the temple, a cow standing by began to dance, making a long loud sound, usually made when cows are happy.

The Maharana, who am sure must have been dazed at the antics of the otherwise calm creature, said nothing at the time, but on return to Kumbhalmer, as Kumbhalgarh was then called, in a Durbar the next day, he suddenly uttered aloud कामधेनु तांडव करिए ...and kept on repeating this till everyone around him got worried and uneasy...

As the legend goes, an astrologer had told Maharana Kumbha that he would die by the hands of a Charan, (community, the members of which write poetry, are constant companions of the Rajputs, and sing their brave deeds.). Consequently, the Maharana expelled the whole of the Charan community from Mewar and confiscated their lands. One of them, however, had remained in the guise of a Rajput and he now told the nobles of the court that he understood the reason why the Maharana repeated those words, and that he could make the Maharana stop repeating them.

The nobles took him to the Maharana and as was his habit, Rana repeated the verse to him...

The Charan got up and confronting the
Maharana, recited the following चौपाई (short poem).

जद्द धर पर जोवती दीठ नागोर धरन्ति।
गायत्री संग्रहण देख मन माही दरंती॥
सुर्कोटी तेंतीस आण नीरंता चारो।
नहिं चरन्त पीवंत मनः करती हंकारो॥
कुम्भेन राणा हणिया कलम, आजंस उर डर उतरिए।
तिन दीह द्वार शंकर तने, कामधेनु तांडव करिए..

Translated into English (taken from 'Maharan Kumbha', by Har Bilas Sarda)...it would mean:

"Seeing that cows were killed in Nagor, gayatri (cow) was in great fright.
Thirty three crores of gods used to bring grass and water for her,
but she neither ate nor drank anything.

When Rana Kumbha after killing Mussalmans (conquering Nagor) has given protection to the cows, then the cow has became delighted
and dances with joy at the door of Shankar (Mahadeva)."

The Maharana might have been temporarily upset in the head, but was no fool. Upon hearing the verse so wonderfully completed in the form of a couplet, he remarked to the Charan:

"You are no Rajput: you are a Charan, but We are very pleased with you."

The man confessed to his true identity and asked for amnesty for his brethren...begged the Maharana to permit their return. Maharatta Kumbha, magnanimous as he was, granted the request, restored their lands and yes....from that day, gave up repeating those words.

: ) Intersting story in my opinion.

Anyways, one last word...he did not die at the hands of a Charan, but his own thankless son, who, as the legend says, stole up to the Maharana while he was in prayers and stabbed him to death.

The Shiva lingam made of Kasauti, the rare black stone used by goldsmiths for testing the authenticity of gold...the Maharana died while praying before it, as per the legend.

Keep the faith...

when rhyme loses reason
when moods suddenly change season
when a loved one dies
the mourner wails and cries
when answers need to be sought
and all is distraught...
when helplessness strikes
we look to the skies...


HE says "do not look at me"
you have the strength you seek
so rise O creation of mine...
the world was never for the meek.

So says my horoscope...

Often, I love to take a peek into the unknown realm to know what the future has in store for me, and more than often have I found wonderful advice in the most unlikely places...a tiny portion of that newspaper which foretells or rather claims to predict how your day is going to unfold...see what mine read:

"Your ideals aren't the law. While having a moral backbone is important, stay away from giving friends constant lectures on how best to live their lives. Show by example, not by nagging."

Not that it said something new; it has been my lives funda till now; but that I would find it staring at me from some obscure corner of an old newspaper, is what was bewildering!

Hmm...it is nonetheless a relieving feeling to know that there are people who think like me; that I am not alone on this planet...

Just a fleeting thought...:)

Lessons Life Teaches...

Two episodes happened recently which left me pensive as ever...

1) managed to lock myself out in the faculty, in the dead of the night (9:30PM) without my cell phone, car keys and worst of all without a penny on me (all locked up in the locker inside the teachers room, the watchman/caretaker nowhere to be seen) to even make a distress call...do not ask me how it happened, it just did: my fault

2) and then, on another day I was to take a special lecture with the help of a PPt and voila! the system bonked!: not my fault ;)

Baba used to say one thing, which just flashed in my memory ...

विद्या जो कंठ, और
रूपया जो अंट...केवल वोही आडे वक्त पर काम आता है!

And it is so very true. One might be having a great collection of books, treatises to flaunt, might have made elaborate notes for teaching...one might be having crores stashed away in lockers and banks, yet all may go in vain and what you have, with you always, something that cannot be taken away might bail you out!

You were great baba...your grand daughter was however, a tubelight! Pardon her ignorance.
Good thing is, she has learned it during this lifetime itself. That is some achievement!

:))
Leaving you with a thought...comments invited

Yes, newsreading was a childhood dream...and yes, I know you could do that

Part I, Scene I (Chitchat in common room)

"Yeah have been reading English news for the All India Radio for some time now" ...

[xxx] What?!!But why dear, what would you do with all the money?!

"---???"
[Money? Where does that come from? Everyone is not after $$$ dearie! Otherwise I would not have left the job that paid me almost double of what I take home presently]

"No no...it was just a childhood dream."

[xxx] You dreamt of becoming a Newsreader???!

"Um...well yeah, was never the ambitious kinds you know..."
[What's wrong with dreaming to be a newsreader...if I tell you that I wanted to be a sniper, a jockey, a bus driver, a painter, a potter, you would hit the ceiling perhaps...let me avert a casualty then]

Part I, Scene II

[xxx] Hey, I heard you the other day...it sure is an easy way for some extra bucks; let me know when they are recruiting next. You know I could do better than you. One just has to read the script man!

"Hmm...am sure you can; am new to things, would take some time to figure out how to do it well."
[It's an easy thing to snipe at dearie. If it's done well it looks very simple, but if it's done badly, everyone can tell. But recruitment? Didn't you consider it meanly?]

Part II, Scene I (flashback to training sessions)

[yyy] It is 'in creeeeese', used as a verb dear, and not 'innnn crease', which is a noun. Why do you confuse your verbs with nouns??

"Uh...yes, I would take care the next time"
[Well, because they spell the same...how on earth am I gonna get the difference so quickly...while reading the text in a rapid flow?! Give me a break!]

[yyy] No no no...you are just so staccato. Clearly, you have not been practising, I am so disappointed!

"Just a bit nervous, I guess..."
[Stakatu..wazat? ...Would definitely look it up in dictionary and correct myself]

[yyy] Are you fond of music?

"Sort of..."
[??? where did that come from?]

[yyy] Well, you seem to be, because you are rendering a musical score here...why such sing song?

"---"
[Ouch! That was nasty and mean; sob sob...]

Part III, Scene I (On air finally)

"This is All India Radio; the news read by Sunanda Bharti"
[Wow! they are truly music to my ears...: )]

[ZZZ] Shuffle shuffle...rustle rustle (order of the news sheets being changed to accommodate a breaking news) Whisper...Raj Thakery's arrest to go first madam.

"MNS chief Raj Thackeray was today arrested for his alleged involvement in the attack on north Indian candidates appearing for a railway recruitment examination."
[yes, yes I got it, now get out of the studio and let me concentrate on the news @#$%@#$%!]

"Reports form the war front suggest that Sri Lankan military has pushed deeper into LTTE heart land of Kilinochchi and Mullaithivu; fierce encounters took place at Akkarayankulam and Iranamadu yesterday"
[They should be taxed extra for keeping such names for places...@#$%&]

And finally, a word from me directly...yes newsreading might sound easy, but it sounds easy because the newsreader is good, believe me on that!

Imagine yourself in a studio environment, time-out has been signalled and you are on air, live that is. And now you have 5 minutes to read the news, which the world is ready to tune in to...someone whispers a new direction in your ear, or simply the editor enters the studio to put a new sheet of paper carrying a new news piece...something which you did not get time to read through and rehearse before...try and read something out loud while someone whispers something in your ear. You mustn't stop, pause or react, yet you must understand what's being said.

it is anything but easy...

"You need to be a swan", says Anna Worcester, UK and I agree...you need to be cool, calm and in control on the surface, with your brain working overtime in order to keep to time, sound authoritative, fluent, give correct pauses and emphasis, use correct intonation and modulation... and ofcourse understand what you're talking about.

I have just started and I feel it's fun once you get the hang of it, and provided you are passionate enough.

Wish me luck! :)

दिवाली की बहुत बहुत शुभकामनाएं

दोस्तों, पता नहीं आप लोगों को ये कविता याद है कि नहीं...दूसरी या तीसरी कक्षा मैं पढ़ी ये प्यारी सी पंक्तियाँ, स्मृति मैं ज्यों आयीं तो चेहरे पर मुस्कान तो बिखेर गई, साथ ही ये एहसास भी करा गई कि दीपो का ये त्यौहार अब उतना सरल रहा नहीं। पटाखों के शोर मैं इसका औचित्य कहीं खो सा गया है...खैर, ये समय है खुशियाँ मनाने का...तो आशा है कि आप कि यह दिवाली आप सब के लिए खुशिओं कि सौगात ले कर आए...

दीप जलाओ दीप जलाओ
आज दिवाली रे

खुशी खुशी सब हंसते आओ
आज दिवाली रे

नए नए मैं कपड़े पहनू

खाऊन खूब मिठाई

हाथ जोड़ कर पूजा कर लूँ

आज दिवाली आई

मैं तो लूँगा खील खिलोने

तुम भी लेना भाई

फुल्झादियाँ अब खूब जलाओ

आज दिवाली रे

आज दुकाने खूब सजी हैं

घर भी जगमग जगमग करते

सुंदर सुंदर दीप जले हैं

कितने अच्छे लगते

दीप जलाओ दीप जलाओ

आज दिवाली रे

नाचो गाओ खुशी मनाओ

आज दिवाली रे

:)

My Circle Has a Few Corners

Just bumped into this phrase while watching a street play and it clinged to my conscience.

Life comes with a geometrical shape...a circle. My circle has a few corners :) and I am thankful for that! Because of two reasons: one, they are 'few' ...for I know many people whose life is brimming with complexity and negativity. Do not know how they live to carry so much burden!

Secondly, I am thankful that they are there...those edges keep needling me into not repeating the mistakes I committed. After all, to make a mistake is not a mistake, to repeat one, is.

Understanding the circular nature of this life, we should always be ready for two things...life does come a full circle...and secondly, since it is a circle, we are bound to meet, even those we would rather not!

Okay, I know it is rather heavy stuff. :)) ...just a thought ...take is lightly. A pinch of salt may help digestion :))

Enjoy and celebrate life!

When Chevy lost her voice....

Realised the real feelings behind ‘Without Glasses’, the masterpiece of HH Munro, aka Saki though in a different scenario—which would be disclosed shortly.

People who know me would also be familiar with my convertible (literally, as once, thanks to some overfriendly simians, its roof lining had almost fallen off), often referred to as ‘Chevrolet Optra’, my version! Pristine white, with envious curves, a few added post production, the four wheeler has been a faithful buddy for 11 long years now. Those who are wondering on what happened…sigh…here it is:

Well, that fuel guzzler recently lost its voice as an aftermath of intense rains. My Chevy does not like rain water, especially when its force fed. So, it decided to adopt a ‘maunvrat’, leaving me distraught…and that too in the middle of a busy road. Made it to home somehow!

And then, an overload of pending work prevented me from taking her to the mechanic. Feeling neglected, she refused to ignite for a whole 5 minutes the next morning. And what to say of the experience of driving on those busy roads without honking!

Thanks to the problem, I lived the joys of driving behind crawling rickshaws, bicycles and other forms of slow traffic. At times the situation was simply AAAaaarrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrGh!

10 days since the episode, the circuitery problem of Chevy still persists. It has however given me, a honk happy person, an invaluable lesson in being patient! No kidding…try driving in Delhi without honking—it would make you realise how in the Western world it is possible.

Death...business of Lord Yama?

Why is death such a morbid topic to discuss when it is a gospel truth? Just as we speak of life, why do we abstain from talking about lifelessness? Why is it unsavory? If it is for you too, PLEASE DO NOT READ FURTHER.

: )

Long ago, I read a quote which has stayed with me since-“death is in love with life and it is a mad, obsessive love; that is the reason they never part”. I find it so beautiful that any explantion is very likely to marr its inherent appeal. So let me leave it at that.

Regulars with this blog would definitely have read “When I die” (http://sunanda-offthebeatenpath.blogspot.com/2007/02/when-i-die.html), a satirical poem on the subject I teach…but leaving jokes apart, I have often wondered and imagined how I would ideally like to depart from this planet, or whether I fear death and introspection has revealed a negative answer. I do not ‘fear’ death-I just fear misery. Blackness should envelope me while I am still hale and hearty; not striken and infirm. And I guess that is what most of us fear, not death.

Ideally, I would like to be assasinated or be a martyr. Okay, so it sounds dark, but then I feel that a situation where the nation pays tribute to the departed soul or your body is shrouded with the national flag-honoured with a 21 gun salvo are deaths worth dying for! After all, they reflect on how you lived! Is it not? The last few dialogues of ‘The Last Samurai’ resound within me where the deceased Samurai’s son asks the hero: “Tell me how he died”. And the hero replies, “No, I would tell you how he lived!”

Just as I write this piece, I am reminded of a friend who compliments me on my sunshine smile. : ). She advised me against writing this piece saying that one just cannot connect death with me…someone who is so vitally alive and whose every fibre lives so intensely! I take it as a compliment! Thanks dear and take some more of that ‘SUNSHINE’ smile : )

If I throw modesty to winds, I am reminded of two songs; one from Jab we met and the other from Tashan:

“तुम से ही din होता है

सुर्मिये शाम आती

तुमसे ही तुमसे ही”…lovely and it means so much.

And the other one…

“इस बात पे चाँद भी bigda, कतरा कतरा वह पिघला

भर आया आंखो में मेरी

तो सूरज भुजा दूँ, तुझे मैं सजा दूँ

सवेरा हो तुझ से ही कल”…if I am sunshine, savera tow mujh se hi hoga…kyun? : ) Vanity Vanity…I know!!

Hey by the by…I would like to be reincarnated as “Hope”; for it always remains. Remember Pandora’s box! Yeah, some of you do.

Take care and enjoy life…(http://sunanda-offthebeatenpath.blogspot.com/2006/05/journey-of-life.html)

PS: Continuing with my dark humour- you may consider this as a part of my unregistered will!

:) Smile dearies...just kidding

India Lives in Villages…

Gone are the days when I had the privilege of accompanying Ma, my grandmother, to her village in Uttar Pradesh. The memories of some episodes are so vivid; they refuse to leave my psyche. For instance, I was around 6 years when I, with my wide eyed amazement, for the first time saw what a pulia looked like and how risky it was to cross the muddy bog for which it was meant. The village kids on the other hand crossed it with reckless abandon, running after the ice candy man. Portions of that swamp moved every now and then, only to reveal one lazy buffalo or the other raising its head to catch a breather. My emotions moved from that of amazement to shock and fear and settled with fascination—with everything. It was a different world and I fell in love with it.

Do not have pictures of those memories, but luckily a friend recently sent a few snapshots of Madhubani and nearby areas, which inevitably compelled me to recollect…


This little girl took offence to the blatant invasion of privacy and ran away utterly shocked! Cute picture though! : ))


A bit hazy, but good enough considering the fact that it is from a mobile camera and perhaps taken in a jiffy…and one thing about the Indian buffalo; they are OBSTINATE. Really, when it comes not to move, they can give any donkey a run for his money! Many times they have to be literally bribed to be taken out of water bodies.


Lovely pic. It is a pokhar. Ma used to tell that every village has one atleast and its upkeep is community responsibility. Ah! Don’t you envy those children taking a dip to beat the heat! : ). No ultra modern swimming pool can beat this luxury.


Now does it not remind you of those clay and metal models of Mohenjo-Daro and Harappa excavations that used to beautify our history books? Come SX4 or whatever, some models are evergreen. Aren’t they? Btw, can you see the goat posing!


THE most sought after man during summers. Lick lollies are not an urban invention dearies…ask your grandma and she would regale you with stories. Notice the damroo which he uses to announce his advent. Some even keep a lathi to prevent themselves from being mobbed by irate kids! No kidding!

Necessity is the mother of invention! A line of chulah’s…and connected too so that the heat does not escape to get wasted. Ingenious or what!

No Indian village is complete without its cattle…no?
Their condition however, in most of the places is not happy. That is the reason why someone has remarked, "I would rather be a cow in the USA--well fed but slaughtered, than be a cow in India--worshipped and starved!" So apt...yeah, something needs to be done here.


Ok…ruins of some structure but picturesque in its own unique sense. You know, ruins have a strange feature…they turn eerie by dusk. I bet mothers of this village would use this as a stratagem to lull their little ones to sleep by concocting stories of that imaginary bhoot that dwells there.


The village Panchayat tree minus that chabutra encircling it. Notice the amount of shade that it gives. Are you also resisting the strange urge to climb it! : ))


Kluck kluck klan : )). They are an absolute treat to watch. The chicks would blindly imitate the hen and peck at everything that comes in their way as if they are pecking at food…and look quite silly in that attempt to masquerade their inexperience at pecking. And one thing more…they would follow the hen to wherever she goes.


Water bodies have that innate capacity to put anyone on an even keel…the picture looks so peaceful, you would want to sit by its side and philosophize. No?


Poor solitary soul…appears to be tied at the feet to prevent it from escaping. So, waiting for its release…don’t worry mulie, rescue ranger approaches!


Tracks of development…


I would love to own one of these…the Indian hut. Lovely beyond words!


This was unbelievable…Bapu still has followers and his simians still manage to moralise people. Kudos to whoever made it!

Hope you enjoyed the collage dearies! This is India, my homeland.

Determination-Wisdom-Logic

Was reading the news article about the selection of Femina Miss India and was reminded of 'Miss-India-type-answers', wherein all the contestants vouch for making this world a better place--plastic smiles and show of that leg-from- in between-the-slit-gowns intact! Oh! how pretense of the grossest form get applause...

Anyways, often I have faced such questions from my conscience, of which the latest has been this: 'What is that one virtue that is most important for your life'? (yes, those who have read Christopher Paolini's Eldest would immediately get the cue)

It was close competition between three--Determination, which personifies me and seen me through the most difficult of situations; Wisdom, which enchants me and Logic, that I find irresistible.

I was close to pronouncing the results in favour of the first one when something I read in Eldest, by Christopher Paolini, stopped me.

Determination can move mountains, but it cannot make you realise or assess if your goal is worth fighting for or whether you are worth fighting for that goal.

Wisdom has one handicap...it comes only with the passage of time, unless you have had an eventful young life which has made you rich in experience.

Logic, on the other hand would never fail you, unless ofcourse, driven by your heart, you deliberately shut your eyes to certain facts and inevitable consequences. Pure logic, agreed, can be ruthless and make you insensitive to things, but if used properly, it would never let you down and make you suffer. It is one virtue that is worth aiming for.

What say?

Spring is here...yet again

Oh yes, it is here…yet again
Every morning when you get up with this warm feeling that soothes your soul, you know spring has arrived. No matter how down your spirits be, Mother Nature peps you up with all its visual treats and you feel blessed. Sharing some of the pics depicting this infective, joyous mood!

Totto is loving it too : )

Sunshine Yellow to light up your day…truly a drop of the golden Sun!
Enjoy the season…see how every new sprig of leaf has a message to convey;
…message that it’s a new dawn, a new day!
Cheers!