We the living

Elevating the stature of the sidewalk,

For it is our palace and the citadel.
Bestowing pride to the ruined walls,
For it is our wardrobe and the closet.
Adding value to abandoned plastics,
For it is our warehouse, though empty.

The sun lights our day;
The moon cools our nights;
It rains to cleanse our house;
It breezes to fan out heat;
The smoky exhaust we breath;
The muddy water we bathe in;

Privacy is not our concern,
For innocence, our only strength.
Nothing to deprive our pleasures,
For ignorance, our only knowledge.

Past and future, not for us;
Living is here and now;
We, the true sons and daughters
Of life and nature,
Living here and now!

Photograph Courtesy: The snap was taken by Sujathaa, my wife while we were waiting in a traffic signal near Central station in Chennai.

Similarities shared

It’s time to do the tag from Vishesh pending for a long time. I am supposed to write:

A. List 5-10 things of commonality that I have in common with the human race and/or nature.

B. List 5-10 things that I might have in common with the human race and/or nature.

I don’t see a lot of difference between what I have and what I might have. If I might have something in similar, it just means that I already have that similarity. How else could the very thought arise? Is it not the projection of what I already possess? There might be a difference in degree, but what I think as what I might have in similar is just what I already have in similar. May be, this is how I have interpreted the questions …

This is a highly introspective exercise. Though, the greatest and the smallest of human are all too similar to each others and human all too human, it is always difficult to accept and reveal the similarities. On the hand, it’s very easy to identify the differences. If you ask me, how different I am from the human being and all the natural laws, I would have more points to quote than how I would relate myself to the similarities that exist. Finding similarities requires stripping ourselves naked of all that we have accumulated as an individual over these years while finding differences means reinforcing all that we have accumulated to be come an individual with all the uniqueness. Do you remember enjoying while identifying 6 differences between 2 pictures in some magazine? Yes. It’s easy and pleasurable to compare and differentiate things. But it is very difficult to see the similarities unless there is necessity to be under the umbrella of a group. Let me stop this here and do the tag…

Here are 10 similarities I have/might have with human race and/or nature.

1. An upright ego with its contradictions and perplexity

2. A rope stretched between animal and divine

3. An intoxicating joy in the dream and diction of God

4. All facets of love projected in varied degrees at different times

5. A poor ignorant weariness wanting to attain the ultimate in a single giant leap

6. The itch to discover – to circumnavigate every domain

7. A burning conscience

8. Can do! – Lately changed to “Can do it!”

9. Amoral when morality is questioned

10. The illusion of being the center of the universe

Let’s share our similarities and celebrate our differences – Scott Peck

Recommend reading - “The Road Less Traveled” by Scott Peck

It was fun doing this. Thanks Vishesh! Whoever wants to do it, please go ahead and do it..

A Blessing

This is a tag called the blessing tag. I was blessed and tagged by Dawn. The idea behind this is to pray for and bless 3 blog friends and this tag propagates across the blog world taking many forms and blessing many people. Interesting and worth doing.

As this from Dawn, the blessing has to be a quote from someone. Let me quote this poem to bless my blog friends who recently brought in new life into this mother earth.

Anand, Bharath and Kamal - their cute little ones Dishita, Arjuun and Krrish are blessed.

The next part of the tag is to eloborate our view on the following 10 points

1. It is important to be liked by others
2. Obedience is a virtue
3. People are not malicious but they become so because of bad experiences or circumstances
4. Education broadens our view and makes people more humane
5. People who have no money troubles are happier
6. As people get older they get wiser
7. You can live on love and fresh air
8. There is a celestial guardian angel looking after each one of us
9. All living beings reincarnate
10. Heaven and Hell are places you go to after death

Dawn has done a faboulous work eloborating these points and saved me from thinking hard on this:). If you have not read this post, please do it now. Greats quotes and insight. Good topics for a debating competition as well - make yourself a Great Debator!!!