To-morrow, and to-morrow

To-morrow, and to-morrow, and to-morrow,

Creeps in this petty pace from day to day

To the last syllable of recorded time,

And all our yesterdays have lighted fools

The way to dusty death. Out, out, brief candle!

Life's but a walking shadow, a poor player

That struts and frets his hour upon the stage

And then is heard no more: it is a tale

Told by an idiot, full of sound and fury,

Signifying nothing.

                                           -- William Shakespeare, Macbeth

Love is a Terrible Thing

There are times when love tires the heart that yearns to break free of all the nets and strings and dance with the wind under the blue sky...

I went out to the farthest meadow,
I lay down in the deepest shadow;
And I said unto the earth, “Hold me,”
And unto the night, “O enfold me,”
And unto the wind petulantly
I cried, “You know not for you are free!”
And I begged the little leaves to lean
Low and together for a safe screen;
Then to the stars I told my tale:
“That is my home-light, there in the vale,
“And O, I know that I shall return,
But let me lie first mid the unfeeling fern.
“For there is a flame that has blown too near,
And there is a name that has grown too dear,
And there is a fear …”
And to the still hills and cool earth and far sky I made moan,
“The heart in my bosom is not my own!
“O would I were free as the wind on wing;
Love is a terrible thing!”                                                   -- Grace Norton

The Lord is my shepherd

The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.
He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: he leadeth me beside the still waters.
He restoreth my soul: he leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his name's sake.
Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me.
Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies: thou anointest my head with oil; my cup runneth over.
Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life: and I will dwell in the house of the Lord for ever.

This is from the Bible.

I had heard this before and it had sounded so full of hope. I heard it, again, being recited while I watched Lost yesterday, and it touched me to feel how faith can be that ray of hope for people who have lucked out in life. Sometimes I think I can remain an atheist because I have not faced the soul wrenching trials and desperation that makes one yearn for the hope of faith; I would never know though.

Btw, this guy Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje, who plays Mr Eko in Lost impressed me by his acting. Its amazing how he was able to transform himself into two completely different characters so convincingly. His rendition of the verse above was very meaningful.

Children

Your children are not your children.
They are the sons and daughters of Life's longing for itself.
They come through you but not from you,
And though they are with you yet they belong not to you.

You may give them your love but not your thoughts,
For they have their own thoughts.
You may house their bodies but not their souls,
For their souls dwell in the house of tomorrow, which you cannot visit, not even in your dreams.
You may strive to be like them, but seek not to make them like you.
For life goes not backward nor tarries with yesterday.

You are the bows from which your children as living arrows are sent forth.
The archer sees the mark upon the path of the infinite,
and He bends you with His might that His arrows may go swift and far.
Let your bending in the archer's hand be for gladness;
For even as He loves the arrow that flies,
so He loves also the bow that is stable.

-- Khalil Gibran

I especially love the last stanza... very aptly put.

The Secret of Death

You would know the secret of death.
But how shall you find it unless you seek it in the heart of life?
The owl whose night-bound eyes are blind unto the day cannot unveil the mystery of light.
If you would indeed behold the spirit of death, open your heart wide unto the body of life.
For life and death are one, even as the river and the sea are one.


In the depth of your hopes and desires lies your silent knowledge of the beyond;
And like seeds dreaming beneath the snow your heart dreams of spring.
Trust the dreams, for in them is hidden the gate to eternity.
Your fear of death is but the trembling of the shepherd when he stands before the king whose hand is to be laid upon him in honour.
Is the shepherd not joyful beneath his trembling, that he shall wear the mark of the king?
Yet is he not more mindful of his trembling?


For what is it to die but to stand naked in the wind and to melt into the sun?
And what is it to cease breathing, but to free the breath from its restless tides, that it may rise and expand and seek God unencumbered?


Only when you drink from the river of silence shall you indeed sing.
And when you have reached the mountain top, then you shall begin to climb.
And when the earth shall claim your limbs, then shall you truly dance.


-- Khalil Gibran

Most of the times, Gibran reaches the heart. But here I know not what he is talking about... maybe I need to believe.


When hearts of men are not content within the world, and find no rest therein, they can seek beyond the world and its confines. They are not bound to the Earth.  Their spirits can truly leave the physical world, and do not return. This knowledge that they have a short time in this world motivates men to create their own destinies amidst the powers and chances of the world and shape their lives in defiance of the whims of fate.

Some good blog posts

A couple of interesting blog posts from neoindian:

1. Why it is meaningless to say you’re proud to be an Indian

2. Why you should read the Vedas, and why the religious will never understand them

3. A quick refresher of ancient Indian history, in case you forgot what you learnt in school

Simplicity

I love this song. For one its Kishore, and has beautiful lyrics. But what I love more is the simplicity of the room portrayed - a bed, bookcase, rocking chair, table and easel - what more does a person need...