From & To Sathish #5 - Page 36

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Avan, Aval, Adhu 100

Dayanidhi the cab driver who had been hired to take Gayatri to Kodaikanal from Madurai switched on his right Indicator and slowly turned into the narrow lane and after about 100 feet parked the car in a small open clearing. Turning he told Gayatri, ' Ma'am, the temple is about 40 to 50 meters from here. Sorry ma'am, no way for a car to drive through. So, you have to walk from here.'

Gayatri smile and said, ' No problem, Mr Dayanidhi. It will be good to stretch my legs and body after spending more than an hour in the car' and looking at him asked, ' Please, why don't you join me? '

Pointing to her camera case and opening it, Gayatri said, ' My job is photography and journalism but it also happens to be my passion and work which I enjoy the most.'

Staring at the small temple tower that lay ahead of them, she asked Dayanidhi what he knew about the temple and if he could share it with her. Dayanidhi smiled, ' ma'am, I am not much temple going man. Many years, drinking, bad habits, no temple. Afraid of God.'

She looked at his clear eyes and heard his clear speech, ' but you look all right and exhibit no symptoms that scream alcoholic addiction.'

' Three months now ma'am. No drink after Appa dying. Poor man, working very hard and giving money for me to drink also and food also.'

' I am so sorry, Dayanidhi. I am really sorry for your loss' Gayatri told him and her thoughts immediately filled with memories of her own father and how he had fought until the end before the cancer finally ate him alive. But, she knew that it was not just cancer that had killed him but the pain that she had caused him and her step mother Madhu by walking out of the house and flinging herself into a dangerous relationship that had ended in marriage and very soon in a messy divorce.

She looked at him with eyes full of empathy, ' It is sad Dayanidhi that most of us don't realize the value of our loved ones until they have left us forever. One only realizes and feels the full impact of the void and loss of a parent, sibling and friend after they are gone and it is too late to reach out to them and tell them how much you love them and how sorry you are for having hurt them when they were around doing their best to love you and protect you.'

Dayanidhi turned away and Gayatri saw his shoulders shake in sorrow and heard him tell his story. A familiar story of almost all alcholics.

' Nothing mattered to me, ma'am. All that mattered to me was drinking as much as possible and as early as possible. There were so many times when I lay totally drunk in my own vomit, urine and shit by the roadside and it was my father who always came searching for me and who would then carry me on his shoulder and walk home for no auto would dare stop to carry me in such a filthy state. But, my father, never abandoned me even though I abandoned him and my mother and the great man did not do so even in death.'

' Why, what did he do, Dayanidhi? ' Gayatri asked him and Dayanidhi wiping his eyes, looked at her sadly , ' the stupid man had a life insurance policy and he left it all to me. 3 lakhs. He left it all to me an alcholic.'

' What did you do, Dayanidhi?'

' I did not touch it, ma'am and gave it all to my mother.'

Gayatri gently gripped Dayanidhi's hand and said , ' That shows that your father still trusted you, kept his faith in you and knew in his heart that you would return a better man.' Firming her grip on his hand, she told him, 'well, brother, you are not alone for now you have a sister in me. Is that okay for you?'

Dayanidhi hurriedly pulling back his hand, looked at her with shock, ' ma'am, you big people. I am small, backward caste. Not possible.'

Gayatri stared at him for a second and smiling mischievously, extended her hand to Dayanidhi and said, ' Take my hand as my friend and brother or else, I will get out of the car right now and start walking on foot to kodaikanal.'

Dayanidhi's eyes opened wide in horror and he protested hurriedly and loudly, ' Aiyo, Amma. Vendaam. Stop' and taking Gayatri's hand, shook it.

She looked at him approvingly, ' now, that's the spirit, bro' and looking at the temple, ' come, lets go see this God called Sadaya Perumal and also tell me all you know about him and the origins of this temple.' Removing the lens cap, Gayatri zoomed in on the small temple tower that stood dwarfed by all the large trees around it and only seemed to have managed some pride by peeping over the compound wall that surrounded it. She clicked a few pics and then zoomed in on the statues that were mounted on the wall and was surprised to see a bull next to a lord Hanuman figurine and lowering the camera asked Dayanidhi, ' Perumal means vishnu. So, why a Nandi next to Hanuman.Strange, for you only find a nandi statue in a Shiva temple.' Dayanidhi nodded happily, ' that is the story of this temple and why lord vishnu is worshipped here as Sadaya Perumal. For, sadai in tamil means matted lock of hair and legend has it that Lord Shiva appeared as a beggar before Lord vishnu who had come down to earth while in the avatar of lord Krishna.' Spreading his hands as if to indicate that what he had just could be true or false, he looked at her, ' ma'am, maybe it is just a fairy tale but in the end everything comes down to a question of faith and devotion. If you think it is God then it is so or else it is not. I don't think God is a silly and vengeful tyrant who will punish you for not worshipping him or if one does not go to a temple.' Gayatri stared at him for a few seconds and then clapping loudly said, " bravo.bravo.Wow! So beautifully and elegantly said.' Dayanidhi blushing like a girl, ' all learning from life, ma'am. School, all bore but life good teacher.'

Mutant strain

Countries are scrambling to stop a new covid variant

How big a threat is Omicron?

IF THERE is one lesson the covid-19 pandemic has taught the world, it is that acting early pays off. Wait a week for better data on which to base a decision and you can find yourself down a path of no return, with cases rising steeply. So when news emerged on November 25th in South Africa of a worrying new variant of the SARS-CoV-2 virus, many countries in Europe and elsewhere banned travel from countries in southern Africa within a day. On November 26th the World Health Organisation named the variant Omicron, a Greek-alphabet designation which, as a rule, it reserves only for “variants of concern”.

The concerns with Omicron are indeed many. The biggest is that it may have the ability to spread more easily than Delta, the variant that dominates cases of covid around the world today. If so, Omicron could supplant Delta within months. In that case, Omicron would cause bigger outbreaks that flare up faster than Delta and are harder to stop. Another worry is that today’s vaccines and drugs against covid may be less potent against Omicron and may therefore need to be redesigned.

At the moment, these are only fears based on hints drawn from early data on Omicron emerging from South Africa. Whether these fears will come to pass is far from certain. It will take weeks or even months before there is solid evidence from laboratory and other studies on how much of a threat Omicron really poses. In the meantime many countries are trying to stop the new variant from arriving on their shores inside travellers—and rightly so. They are buying time to prepare for the worst while hoping for the best.

The first signs that a new variant may be spreading emerged in South Africa earlier this week, when covid infections increased suddenly and sharply, from fewer than 300 cases on November 16th to more than 1,200 on November 25th. The vast majority of these infections were in one province, Gauteng, which has Johannesburg as its capital.

At first it seemed as if the infections were linked to one big superspreading event, such as a student party. That would be the sort of outbreak in which a new variant erupts briefly and then dies away. But new cases in Gauteng instead became more dispersed over time. That prompted South African scientists to look at the genomic sequence of viral samples, which is how they spotted the new variant.

Further analysis confirmed that the new variant was spreading fast in many other provinces in South Africa, even though the numbers were still small. This pattern suggests that Omicron may be outcompeting Delta. The nature of Omicron’s mutations adds backing for this hypothesis. It has about 50 of them, an exceptionally large number. Most worrying are ten found in the receptor-binding domain (RBD) of the virus’s spike protein. The RBD is the part of the virus that attaches to human cells, enabling the virus to enter and infect them. By comparison, the Beta variant has three changes to the RBD and Delta only two.

With mutations, quantity is not necessarily quality. But several of those in Omicron have been found in studies of other variants to make the virus more infectious. Some of them make it easier for SARS-CoV-2 to evade the body’s innate immune response (the immune system’s first reaction), others weaken its antibody response (a defence mechanism built as a result of prior infection or vaccination). Various combinations of Omicron’s mutations are present in all of the variants of concern to have emerged so far.

If the mutations in Omicron turn out to make covid vaccines less potent, the jabs may have to be tweaked. On November 26th Pfizer and BioNTech, makers of the covid jab that is most widely used in Western countries, said that they would be able to rework their mRNA vaccine within six weeks and ship the first batches within 100 days. The mutations in Omicron do not appear to be a threat to the efficacy of antiviral medicines for covid, but they could defeat some antibody therapies, which are given to people unable to mount an immune response.

Even if Omicron comes to dominate in South Africa, it is unclear that it will displace Delta in other parts of the world. South Africa had a wave of the Beta variant that did not become established elsewhere. Likewise, Alpha, which swept across Europe, never became established in South Africa. These patterns may have to do with variations in demography and with common infections that interact with SARS-CoV-2 in poorly understood ways.

All in all, lots about Omicron remains to be discovered. What is clear, however, is that the world is better placed to resist it than when Delta emerged in India at the end of last year. By the time Delta had been identified as a variant of concern, it had already spread to many parts of the world, eventually seeding wave after wave of the pandemic. It remains to be seen whether Omicron poses a global threat on such a scale.

=r.

I am not very sure about the date and year but I am pretty sure I must have been 6 or 7 years old when I saw this film. A mythological one at that and it was about Lord Krishna. Sorry, but I cannot recollect the title of the film but the late NTR was in it. One scene in that film that has stayed with me till now is the one where Baby Krishna is caught eating mud by his mother Yashoda who warns him not to do that and asks him to open his mouth and he does so.

I had no idea or clue as to what I was seeing on the big screen. All my young eyes could see was dark skies, round pumpkins and shining diamonds and it stretched on and on. Many years later, I sat in a planetarium and watched as the lights grew dim and pitch dark and the heavens above me opened wide like baby Krishna's mouth and I travelled out into the cosmos and on an eternal journey.

Everything is everything and nothing is nothing. It is a vast cosmos, empty or it is beautiful and a vast fabric full of life.

From the time he was born, Baby Krishna's feet never touched the ground, the soil, the Earth for he was always protectively and lovingly carried around. Mother Earth sought and prayed for Lord Vishnu's feet on her chest and so came that day when Yashoda placed baby Krishna down on earth in their garden and left him to play. Bhoomi Devi aka Mother Earth appeared before him and told him that she had nothing to give him as a gift but her fertile soil and Krishna accepted her offering and placed it in his mouth.

Maybe to show Yashoda and through her to the world that he was the universe and in him lay the entire universe. But, he took the soil offered by Bhoomi Devi and ate it to show that he accepted anything and everything that his devotees offered him. From soil to the small packet of pounded rice offered to him by his poor childhood friend Kuchelan, Krishna aka God accepts everything that is given to him with love, faith and trust and even when it is lacking it.

Astronomers all over the world have concluded that something very powerful and mysterious and yet unknown power is the binding energy that keeps everything in place. From stars to galaxies to supergalaxies and for lack of a better word have called it dark energy.

Dark-skinned Krishna and dark energy and God. Okay, okay. A power beyond understanding.

“Yesterday I was clever, so I wanted to change the world. Today I am wise, so I am changing myself.” Rumi

There was a time, a phase in my life when I wanted to know, understand, feel everything and struggled to that end. Today, I am a wiser monkey and am happy to be hanging around in my tree called my life.

Yashoda looked into baby Krishna's mouth and saw the universe. I too saw that inside me for I too am a grain of life. An atom of life, and we are all parts of that universe called Krishna which when translated and read with the language of souls, reads as LOVE.

It is the matter, the dark matter that pushes and pulls. It is that energy that binds together and at the same time cuts and casts us away, weeds tumbling in the wind.

As always, I hereby declare that my intention is just sharing my thoughts with you who I trust my thoughts are safe and will not be misunderstood.

“Yesterday is history, tomorrow is a mystery, today is a gift of God, which is why we call it the present.”

Whatever happened, happened for the good. Whatever is happening, is happening for the good. Whatever will happen, will also happen for the good.

Vaanathai Pola 406

Suddenly, everything came sharply into focus. Every piece of the puzzle seemingly began to fall into place. The case concerning the missing Brigadier Prakash Malhotra and the attack on the now comatose Brigadier General Rajashekar that had appeared like a wild maze until now seemed connected.

Raman stood looking down on his late boss V.K.Singh and whispered, ' I am leaving you now boss for one final mission and when it is done, I hope you will not judge me too harshly when I turn my back on this job and return to my old life as an advocate.Bye.'

Raman exploded out of the ambulance, and his mighty legs pumping furiously, he headed towards the hangar, passing Mallika Kapur who was standing there waiting for her cameraman Milind to return with a fresh set of clothes.

CNN's Asian region anchor Mallika Kapur recognizing Raman raised her hand and cried out his name desperately and watched dejectedly as the man of the hour soon ran out of sight and at the same time heard Milind running towards her with her tiny holdall.

Pointing towards the runway, Mallika Kapur informed Milind that Raman was not in the ambulance anymore and had rushed off in great speed towards the plane that sat on the runway looming like a massive bird even when standing still.

Milind smiled happily, ' Good. This means that you are in the clear and our boss cannot blame you for not interviewing this man Raman.'

Mallika Kapur nodded her head vaguely and mumbled, ' Maybe but that is not the point, Milind. The point here is that we have a plum of a case on our hands. we have to use it to the maximum and make our careers out of this god-sent gift for there is no telling what the future will bring for us.'

Milind looked at her, ' All that is okay. But, the man is not here and is there' and pointing to the plane, ' if we try to follow him and even put a foot into that area, they will shoot first without any warning and then ask us questions if we are alive.'

' idiot, I don't want to go there. I know what the situation is right now. My thoughts are all about the reason for this man Raman to head towards the plane in such haste. Why? Has something happened on board the plane or have they discovered the explosives meant to destroy the plane and its passengers?'

She looked at Milind, ' We need to get as close as possible to that plane and see what's going on.'

Milind nodded his head and handed her bag to her and Mallika reached into it, and took out a new set of black pants, quickly slipped out of her stained pants and into the new ones.

Milind's thoughts were all about the thin thong she was wearing and the lack of hair around her which meant that she was clean-shaven and sighed hornily.

Raman brought the jeep he had borrowed to a screeching halt near the stairs of the giant plane and his eyes quickly searched and finding Brigadier Sooryanarayan, yelled to him, ' Nobody enters the plane and I mean nobody. Do you hear me ?'

His eyes scanned all the commandos who stood around the Qantas A 380 plane and then looked at Brigadier Sooryanarayan, ' Make a list of everyone who entered the plane and see to it that they to stay put in the hangar and tell them not to venture out of that perimeter. Not until I have personally called you and told you to do so.

Brigadier Sooryanarayan nodded, ' Okay, Raman. But why? what is going on?'

Raman looked at him grimly, ' I am not a hundred per cent sure but I think we might be under an attack.'

Pointing to the plane first and then towards the airport, the Brigadier looked at him, ' what attack are you going on about? We have the plane and have secured all the passengers. All the terrorists are in jail. Who can attack us now?'

Raman looked at him and mouthed one word, ' Bioterrorism' and before the Brigadier could say something, turned and running up the stairs, disappeared into the belly of the plane.

' Bioterrorism, Bioterrorism' Brigadier Sooryanarayanan whispered in fear and felt his blood freeze in its veins as the full impact of Raman's single word finally hit home into his heart.

' Oh F..k. OMG. What do we do now? How do you I go about this?' he stood whispering to himself and then began to breathe heavily and screamed angrily into the night sky, yelled, ' All you f..king majors, right here, right now and move your f..king feet?'

He stared at his three majors and said, ' guys, I am sorry but I cannot go into the details right now for I myself am in the dark. But, I want you to put a quarantine perimeter around this plane right now. Nobody leaves the perimeter and that goes for all of you and applies for me too. Nobody comes in and nobody goes out.'

He looked at all three of his majors and barked loudly, ' do you hear me, soldiers?'

They roared in one voice, ' We hear you, Major. Loud and clear.'

Raman raced up the stairs and onto the upper deck and ran as fast as possible towards the front end of the cockpit and he caught sight of Azhagan standing there dressed in army greens with a fat labrador dog standing near his legs.

Azhagan pointed into the small room and Raman stepping closer to the door saw the rear panels of a built-in cupboard lying open and then saw what he had been brought to see.

The four clear glass tubes stared back at him innocently each with different coloured seals but all seemingly interconnected by thin tubes. Each step Raman took were cautious and measured and placed with the softness of a cat and he slowly made his way towards the suspicious-looking bomb.

Buddha who had changed into the form of chunky, the fat labrador dog glanced at Azhagan and spoke in his head, ' Not bad at all. The man has sense enough and realizes that the bomb might have sensors that might be triggered by movement. But, he is wasting his time with so much precaution. So, just tell him that this package does not possess such sensors.'

Azhagan called out to Raman, ' No need for such caution, Raman. This does not have any such sensors that you are worried about.'

Raman nodded and replied, ' Thank God ' and pointing to the four glass tubes, ' What is in them and how do you know that they are dangerous?'

Azhagan hesitated but Buddha posing as Chunky answered first by barking angrily.

Raman looked at Azhagan and pointing to Buddha, said, ' Looks like that dog is hungry and needs to eat. Maybe, it is better if we send him out while we handle this problem.'

Then with a smile, he added, ' I wonder how the army lets its bomb sniffers grow so fat and unhealthy. I don't know what this dog is called but he looks like he should be called Chunky or fatty.'

Buddha had heard enough and growling he changed, morphed from Chunky the fat Labrador to his original shape and stood filling the entrance of the door glaring at Raman and said in perfect English, ' Mister Raman, this is the real me. Now, be so kind to share your thoughts about my real form.'

If this had meant for Raman to be scared, then it was a waste of time for his reply was, ' I don't know what is scarier, a dog that looks as big as a lion or a dog talking in flawless English.'

Buddha totally disappointed in failing to scare Raman by revealing his real form sniggered and whispered to Azhagan, ' not bad for a human and I must admit that he does have a pair of brass ones for Ba..s.'

All three stood looking at each other and then in the quiet of the moment they heard a beep and a click and all three turned slowly and stared at the bomb whose small screen came alive in numbers and proceeded to begin a countdown.

10.00 9.59. 9.58. 9.57 9.56 9.55.

Raman's eyes full of desperation looked at Ahagan and asked, ' Is this is it? What do we do now?'

Vaanathai Pola 407

In the end, all our lives are dictated by the amount of time that has been given to us. In the end, our lives are but a countdown to the finish line. One might not realize it. One might not even want to recognize it, the fact that we are all mortals and that time takes its toll on all of us through age and sickness. Even those who are not touched and marred by disease or other physical problems and even those who are well preserved have to harken to the call of the gong as it rings the final bell for the final time.

Not timeout but time over.

Raman looked at Azhagan and the huge dog called Buddha, ' Please, help me to stop this countdown.'

Azhagan looked at Raman, ' why?'

Raman's face changed with anger and he yelled it out from the depths of his soul, ' What kind of question is this, why?'

' My question to you Raman is, why not? Why not let this weapon do what it is so obviously meant to do?'

' Azhagan, Mister, are you out of your mind? This is evil. There is nothing natural about its creation. Even mother nature would not conspire to do such an evil thing?'

Azhagan smiled calmly, ' the question stands, Raman. Why don't we let this evil permeate and take its toll on the world?'

Although, every cell in his body raged with anger and violence and which clearly radiated out through every pore of his skin and eyes, Raman somehow managed to summon patience and calm to his mind and he asked in a soft voice, ' Is this a test? Is this the time to talk about morals and ethics and how a man should live or not live?'

Azhagan nodded, ' It is a test, Raman and all you have to do is answer my question' and stared meaningfully at him, asked,' What are you willing to do to stop this evil?'

' Anything. I am willing to do anything. I will give you anything you want' Raman screamed and then removing his gun from the holster on his hip, placed the muzzle on his right temple and said softly, ' my life. If it is my life that you want then it is yours. But, please help me stop this evil from exploding' and pointing to the clock, ' please, I beg of you. We are running out of time.'

Azhagan smiled and looked at Buddha, ' did you hear that my friend. I hope any doubts you had about Raman are cleared as of this moment.'

Buddha smiled, ' Yes, my Lord Azhagan. I have no doubts about this man and to be honest, I never really did. But, I am still upset about being called Chunky and a fatso.'

Raman's head felt it would explode before the bomb did for his anger and frustration were at their peak and reflected in the bulging and pulsing veins in his throat and temples.

Azhagan smiled, ' Okay, let's do this before Raman here suffers a heart attack ' and went towards the bomb and stood staring at it. Then gently picking it up he calmly walked towards the pantry that was on the opposite of the small room and opened a large Microwave oven door, placed the Biological bomb inside it and set the temperature to maximum, set the timer for 5 minutes and was about to power it on when he turned and looked at Raman, ' You should take a few photos and videos of this bomb before it is destroyed.'

Raman without saying a word did what Azhagan told him to do and quickly snapped a few pics and shot a few videos from different angles and with a few zoom in on the clock counter that was counting down.

Once he had done that, Raman stepped back and watched as Azhagan powered the large Microwave and stared in fascination as the inside of the oven sparked as the waves encountered metal pieces. Lightning sparks raged all around the inside of the Microwave oven and all three watched as the heat inside killed anything that was in its proximity.

Azhagan looked at Raman, ' Now, for more serious matters as to why that bomb began its countdown the moment you approached it or maybe the moment someone saw you board this plane.'

Raman's head swirled in confusion, ' what do you mean by that?'

' I mean you have been marked for termination.'

Of Bugles, Polished Shoes and Elephants

The year was 2014. I was to fly on an early morning long haul returning home to Bangalore from New Delhi. The Delhi air being notoriously nippy in early Jan, I wore my leather brogue shoes instead of the denim slip ons that was derigeur. Warm feet traps heat being the logic.

I came through the security lines quite early, hoping to get a spot of brekker. Picked up a hot and surprisingly tasty egg roll and moved back to sit in the lounge while trying to finish off a crossword in the Hindu.

A few minutes later I heard a set of squeaking wheels and didn't give much notice till the wheels came to a stop right in front of me. On an usher assisted wheelchair sat an elderly gentleman wrapped up in a shawl.Twinkling sharp eyes poked through the brim of a fedora accompanied by a walrus silver grey moustache. Accompanying him was an exceptionally delicate and pretty steel grey haired lady carrying her handbag and what was possibly his bag...a leather satchel, wrinkled, but one could note the top quality shiny leather it was made from.

She intended to sit in the seat on tbe right of me but then there would be no space for the bags. I unconsciously got up, moved one more seat to the left, and said..." allow me Ma'am".. took the bags from her and placed them on the seat. I continued to stand till she sat and the usher had placed the wheelchair in the passageway next to her. I nodded as the gentleman smiled and said "Thank you" and went back to my crossword.

A few moments later I could hear the two mumble. The lady's voice rose and said "I can't. He will think we are nosy". A few mumbles later she patted me gently.."excuse me...My husband wanted to ask you something. I apologize if you find us rude." I shrugged and said "sure". I looked into those querying twinkly eyes..."you Army or NDA?".. I laughed. " Neither Sir. Something worse." As his eyes quizzed up, I said "Army kid. Dad was an Infantry Colonel...but how did you guess?". Almost simultaneously both spoke...He said " the shoes" and she " you stood up for a lady.".

The next 45 minutes went on in a breeze. The gentleman was a retired Lt Gen from the army, himself an army kid. His wife came from an Air Force family and had lost a brother in 1971. We talked about the "old days and old ways" and how it was so easy to spot out faujis and fauji kids. The General then made a statement "army kids have more paltan in their DNA than their fathers who served the flag".

Cut to November 2021 and one of our Banks sent in a wealth manager to talk to us. As the gentleman crossed the threshold of our home the thought was on my mind..."another fauji kid', the giveaways being the shoes, the haircut and the way he addressed my wife.

It's been decades since my Dad left the army. For him age has dimmed the ability to recall clearly many of his postings. But in no way has it dimmed the fervor for the paltan in my brother and me....and in millions of army brats who over time have moved into careers in civvy street and still bore their millenial children with tales and memories of days gone by.

Who can forget the early morning bugle call as you snuggle under the razai in the cold, damp walls of MES officers housing and your Dad grumbles and hunts for his blancoed PT shoes in the dark not wanting to wake up his unofficial CO from her bed,... or the cycle convoy as a Bhaiya leads a troop of eager beaver chatty brats from the unit lines on their way to school..if you were in a larger station the there was the Shaktiman School Bus where you made friend for life, early romances and in 3 cases I know went on into marriages.

The Unit was everything to you. The cookhouse or langar being the startpoint for an addiction to rustic food...my Dad served and commanded a Madras unit and I still prefer Sambhar with Chapatis and another combination of Rotis/Dosas and fried eggs...and Yes...Chai is still tastier in a tall steel tumbler.

As you inched into your teens there was the shift to allowing you more liberty in the Unit lines... you got to accompany your Dad for PT and even the evening games and if you went into a private school, students there slowly got to respect the fact that you knew to play most games moderately well. They didn't know that you didn't do it for the honor of the school...heck you changed schools every two years... but for the izzat of the PT ustads and company sportsmen in the unit who made your evenings hell teaching you everything they knew... "Tu Bravo Company Tiger ka beta Hai, tu CO Saab ki sherni ho".... it was Bravo company, 4 Madras (Wallajabad Light Infantry), 121 Brigade... all the formation structures of your father's unit, it's demigods and its pedigree that had to be honored. It did not matter if your team.lost the match...what mattered was whether you played like a Sher or a sherni and gave it all you you got.

And they would know it. The bhaiya who was your Father's No 1 man was also the unit spook who would be the first line of information on your Father's mood for the day to what were his kids marks in school...and woe befell you if you hit bottomline... I remember a time when my Hindi grades slipped and suddenly there was the Education JCO making a visit home and offering to teach me enough not to shame my parents... that was the sell in to Mom... the real issue of course being paltan ka izzat...

The army taught us kids something for free, what our Dad's swotted and sweated out in NDA and IMA to imbibe...loyalty and bonding. All army kids grow up with a belief that their paltan was the best one in the Indian Army.... no questions asked. The blind faith is unshaken even today. The Assaye elephant in the Madras Regiment crest became a charm. It extended to my always being a collector of Ganesha idols and elephant figurines. Maybe a way of staying in constant unconsious touch with what were the best years of one's life.

Bonding was something that got ingrained as one spent time with the young officers of the unit... in a way they were the elder brothers and extended family...and funnily even today when in doubt...or a spot of trouble...they are the first port of call..not to mention the fellow faujikids... siblings.from another parent...and given a special place in one's life way over cousins, aunts and uncles.

And then there was the etiquette one learnt from everyone in the unit. Love for the flag, respect for ranks and respect for elders. You stood up and wished when an elder person or lady entered a room...no questions asked. You combed your hair. You never wore unironed clothes....and Yes, you bloody well polished your shoes to a mirror shine.

Years later even when I went into advertising and post that onto the client side, where informal wear and corporate attire rules blended and jeans became acceptable...my shoes were always a giveaway... as the General and his wife honed on.

Much water has passed under the bridge of time. One doesn't hear the call of the bugle anymore. But 6.00 am is still wakey wakey time. The fetish for a neatly ironed and stacked clothes cupboard continues...even during Covid, which drove my unofficial lady CO round the bend as every evening I commandeered the ironing table at home. The Regiment stays in focus on the regimental faujikids group..the most recent excitement being one of a sister unit 7 Madras exercising in the US snows... Ganeshas and Elephants get their morning dusting...

And you will never catch me dead in unpolished shoes...

I am a son of the Paltan. I am a Wallajahbadi.

Praveen Paul

*"இந்த விபூதியைத் தயங்காமல் கொண்டுபோய் கண்ணதாசன் நெற்றியில் பூசு. சூரியனைச் சில சமயம் மேகம் மறைப்பது போல் நாத்திகமேகம் இதுவரை அவனை மறைத்திருந்தது. இனி அவன் சூரியனாகத் திகழ்வான். அவன் எப்பேர்ப்பட்ட பரம்பரையைச் சேர்ந்தவன் தெரியுமா?"*

சாண்டோ சின்னப்பா தேவரும் கண்ணதாசனும் மிக நெருங்கிய நண்பர்கள்.

இருவரும் ஒரு படப்பிடிப்பு சம்பந்தமாக காரில் போய்க் கொண்டிருந்தபோது மிக மோசமான விபத்து ஏற்பட்டது.

அதில் சின்னப்பாத் தேவருக்கு அவ்வளவாகக் காயம் இல்லை.

ஆனால் கண்ணதாசனுக்கு படுகாயம் ஏற்பட்டு நினைவிழந்த நிலையில் மருத்துவமனையில் இருந்தார்.

காஞ்சிப் பெரியவரிடம் மிகுந்த பக்தியும் மரியாதையும், அளவற்ற ஈடுபாடும் கொண்டவர் தேவர் அவர்கள்.

மருத்துவமனையிலிருந்து நேரே புறப்பட்டு, சிவஸ்தானம் எனப்படும் பிரம்மபுரீஸ்வரர் கோவிலில் பெரியவரைப் பார்த்து வணங்கி ‘விபத்து நேர்ந்து விட்டது’ என்று விவரித்தார்.

சொன்ன மாத்திரத்தில், மற்ற எதையும் விசாரிக்காமல், ‘கண்ணதாசன் எப்படியிருக்கிறான்’ என்றும் பெரியவர் கேட்க, அதிர்ந்து போனார் தேவர்.

கண்கள் கலங்க வியப்பும் வருத்தமுமாய் “அவர் படுகாயத்துடன் நினைவில்லாமல் மருத்துவமனையில் இருக்கிறார்” என நா தழுதழுக்கக் கூறினார்.

தேவரின் கவலையை உணர்ந்த பெரியவர், ‘சரி, கவலைப்படாதே. இந்த விபூதியைக் கொண்டுபோய், அவன் நெற்றியில் இட்டு, வாயிலும் சிறிதளவு போடு, மீதி இருப்பதை அவன் தலையணைக்குக் கீழ் வைத்துவிடு’ என்று தன் திருக்கரங்களால் விபூதி எடுத்து மடித்துத் தர, தேவர் விதிர் விதிர்த்து விட்டார்.

தான் முருகனாய் பாவித்து வழங்கும் பெரியவரை மறுத்துப் பேச துணிவின்றித் தயங்க, மீண்டும் பெரியவரின் கட்டளைக்கிணங்கி தயக்கத்தோடு கைநீட்டி விபூதியைப் பெறுகிறார்.

தேவரின் தயக்கத்திற்குக் காரணம், கண்ணதாசன் நாத்திகத்தில் தீவிர ஈடுபாடு கொண்டு, திராவிட கட்சிகளின் சார்பில் பிராமணர்களையும் சனாதன தர்மத்தையும் நாக்கில் நரம்பில்லாதது போல் மேடைகளில் பேசி வந்த காலகட்டம் அது.

விபத்து நடந்த ஒரு வாரத்திற்கு முன்புதான் காஞ்சிபுரம் சங்கர மடத்திற்கு எதிரிலேயே நடந்த கூட்டத்தின் மேடையில் படுபயங்கரமாகப் பேசி பெரியவரை இழிவுபடுத்திப் பேசியிருந்தார்.

எனவே அவரிடம் போய் இந்த விபூதியை எப்படிக் கொடுப்பது என்பதுதான் தேவரின் பெரியத் தயக்கமாயிருந்தது.

ஆனால் முக்காலமுணர்ந்த ஞானியாகிய பெரியவர், தேவரின் மனத்தயக்கத்தை உணர்ந்து ‘தயங்காமல் கொண்டுபோய் பூசு. சூரியனை சில சமயம் மேகம் மறைப்பது போல் நாத்திகமேகம் இதுவரை அவனை மறைத்திருந்தது. இனி அவன் சூரியனாகத் திகழ்வான். அவன் எப்பேர்ப்பட்ட பரம்பரையைச் சேர்ந்தவன் தெரியுமா?

கோவில் திருப்பணி செய்வதற்கே பிறந்தவர்கள் போல் திகழ்ந்தவர்கள் நாட்டுக்கோட்டைச் செட்டியார்கள்.

வரதராஜப் பெருமாள் கோவில் கோபுரத் திருப்பணியைச் செய்தவர் கண்ணதாசனின் கொள்ளுத் தாத்தா.

ஏகாம்பரநாதர் கோவில் திருப்பணியைச் செய்தவர் கண்ணதாசனின் தாத்தா.

காமாக்ஷி கோவில் திருப்பணியைச் செய்தவர் கண்ணதாசனின் தகப்பனார். இப்ப புரியறதா?’ என திருவாய் மலர்ந்தருளினார்.

தேவர் மனந் தெளிந்தவராய் பெரியவரை வணங்கி விடைபெற்று, நேராக மருத்துவமனைக்குச் சென்றார்.

நினைவிழந்து படுத்திருந்த கண்ணதாசனின் நெற்றியில் விபூதியைப் பூசிவிட்டு சிறிது விபூதியை வாயிலும் இட்டு, மீதியை தலையணையின் கீழ் வைத்துவிட்டு வீடு திரும்பினார்.

அவர் சிந்தனையெல்லாம் கண்ணதாசன் நினைவு திரும்பி நடந்ததை அறிந்து என்ன சொல்வாரோ என்றே நினைத்தது.

மறுநாள் தேவர் மருத்துவமனை சென்று கண்ணதாசனின் படுக்கையை சற்றே படபடக்கும் நெஞ்சோடு நெருங்கியபோது கண்ணதாசனுக்கு நினைவு திரும்பி கண் விழித்திருந்தார்.

தேவரைப் பார்த்தவுடன், ‘வாங்க, எத்தனை நாளா இப்படி படுக்கையில் இருக்கேன். கொஞ்சம் கண்ணாடியை எடுத்துக் கொடுங்களேன். என் முகத்தைப் பார்க்கணும்’ என்றார்.

நேற்று இட்ட விபூதி இன்னமும் நெற்றியில் திகழ, தேவர் தயங்கியபடியே தந்த கண்ணாடியில் தன் முகம் கண்ட கண்ணதாசன் ‘இதென்ன விபூதி?’ என்று தேவரை ஏறிட்டுப் பார்த்தார்.

வேறு வழியின்றி வந்தது வரட்டுமென தேவர், தான் பெரியவரைப் பார்த்ததையும், பெரியவர் ஆசீர்வாதம் செய்து விபூதி கொடுத்ததையும் சொல்ல, கண்ணதாசனின் விழிகளில் அருவியெனக் கொட்டியது கண்ணீர்.

திகைத்து நின்ற தேவரின் செவிகளில் தேனாகப் பாயந்தது கண்ணதாசனின் வார்த்தைகள், ‘எனக்கா? என்னிடமா இவ்வளவு கருணை? போனவாரம்தான் அவரை, ஐயோ....

என வாய்விட்டுப் புலம்பி அழுததோடு, தேவரிடம் ஒரு வேண்டுகோளையும் சமர்ப்பித்தார்.

"எனக்கு உடல்நலமாகி மருத்துவமனையிலிருந்து வெளியேறும் சமயம் நான் வீட்டிற்குச் செல்லமாட்டேன். இந்தப் பாவியிடம் கருணைவைத்த அந்த மகானிடம் முதலில் என்னை தயவுசெய்து அழைத்துச் செல்லுங்கள்’ என மனமுருகி வேண்டினார்.

கண்ணதாசன் வேண்டியபடியே அந்த நல்ல சந்திப்பும், பாவமன்னிப்பும் நடந்தது.

மாறியது மனம், நன்றியில் ஊறியது தினம், வீறிட்டு வெளிவந்தது ஒரு கவிதை. அக்கவிதையை எடுத்துக் கொண்டு, பெரியவரை நேரில் கண்டு வணங்கி, கவிதையைச் சமர்ப்பித்தார், கண்ணதாசன்.

அக் கவிதை இதோ :

"பார்த்த மாத்திரத்தில் பாவத்தை அலம்புகின்ற

தீர்த்தப் பெருக்கு, திருவாசகத்தின் உட்கருத்து

கூர்த்த மதியால் மெய்ஞானக் கருத்துணர்த்தும் முழுமூர்த்தம்

கலிமொய்க்கும் இவ்வுலகைக் காக்கவந்த கண்கண்ட தெய்வம்

எம்மதத்தோரும் சம்மதத்துடன் தம்மதத் தலைவனென

தொழுதேத்தும் தெய்வக் கமலக் கழல் தொழுவோம் வாரீர்!"

கவிதை வரிகளைக் கண்ட பெரியவர், கண்ணதாசனைக் கனிவோடு நோக்கி,

"அனந்த கோடி அற்புத லீலா சாகித்ய மாயமானுஷாய நமோ நமஹ, அர்த்தநாரி திருவண்ணாமலை சேஷாத்ரி மகானுக்கல்லவா இது பொருந்தும்’

என்று அருளாசிக் கூறி,

‘அங்கிங்கெனாதபடி எங்கும் நிறைந்திருக்கும் நிர்மலப் பொருள் ஞானசூரியனாம், நம் மதத்தின் பெருமையை எழுது’ என்று திருவாய் மலர்ந்தருள,

அக்கணமே கண்ணதாசனின் மனதில் *“அர்த்தமுள்ள இந்துமதம்”* அழகாய் அரும்பி பலநாள் உழைப்பில் இதழ்விரித்து மணம் வீசியது.

மஹாபெரியவா திருவடிக்கே...

🙏🙏🙏🙏

Vaanathai Pola 408

Raman only felt a mild tremor of emotion that was more curiosity rather than fear and panic which is normal for most human beings. He smirked, ' Just seven months and a few days into my career as a consultant to R&AW and I have been marked for termination.'

He looked at Azhagan, ' That means that I have done something good for it obviously means the bad people are pissed off with me and want me out of the way.'

Azhagan nodded, ' Yes. They do want you out of the way' and after having said that looked at Buddha who turned away muttering, ' Sorry boss. This is on you and you alone.'

Azhagan glared at Buddha, ' and here I was under the impression that a Dog is man's best friend. Brutus.'

Buddha opened his huge jaws in a manner that could not be mistaken for anything else other than joy and fell to the ground barking madly, ' You are killing me my lord for I am neither whole dog nor are you a whole human. So, this man and dog friendship and bonds are for earthlings only.'

Raman folded his hands and whispered, ' I guess a bit of banter, ripostes and wisecracks are in order after having destroyed that biological weapon that was so obviously meant for Global genocide. But, time is running short and I have to leave to report to the Defence Minister and also check each and every person who came into contact with this plane. So, please, continue about my termination and the person who was behind this scheme?'

Azhagan looked at Raman, ' Yes. I think it is time that you knew all that we know about this biological weapon and why it was planted on this plane and why I took over and landed it here in Chennai.'

Raman raised his eyebrows in surprise, ' Really. Mr Azahagan, do you really mean that you are going to confide everything that you know about this plane and the bomb and how they happened to be connected to the case that I am dealing with.'

Azhagan nodded, ' Yes. I am going to tell you everything ' and began to speak.'

' This case that you are currently handling and which concerns the sudden and mysterious disappearance of Brigadier Prakash Malhotra is directly related to this biological weapon that we just destroyed and it is not one person but a group of people who are members of a secretive group.'

Raman shook his head, ' Secretive. I am sorry sir but I find that hard to believe for we would have learnt about them by now through our Mossad or CIA counterparts.'

Azhagan looked at Raman with a vague expression that seemed to convey sadness and frustration and in a grim voice he replied, ' There is so much that you and the others in your field are not aware of and will never be aware of them in your lifetimes.'

Waving his hand, he smiled, ' All that for a later date but right now this is all about those members of this group who call themselves " Sons Of Gaia."

' Gaia, wait that means Mother earth, Nature' Raman said and looked at Azhagan who acknowledged it with a nod.

Raman totally flabbergasted spread his hands and asked, ' If they are calling themselves Sons of Gaia, why then are they plotting to kill millions, even billions of people who are also children and the creations of Mother Earth. What is their problem with human beings?'

Azhagan looked at Raman but it was Buddha who stood tall, as tall as a horse and said, ' My lord, let me answer this for Earthman here' and turning to Raman asked him, ' Mr Raman, quickly run through a checklist that ails this world and tell me who is the reason for all those problems that are destroying this planet.'

Raman's soul bloomed like a lotus and his eyes opened wide as if the soul was spreading its petals to take in the life-giving light that was lovingly being gifted to it by the sun and his eyes slowly filled with tears as the knowledge hit home.

But this did not stop Buddha from spitting its venom of knowledge that was more of a list of accusations at Raman.

Raman had seen and heard of many bizarre and weird things while he had been practising law but talking to a talking dog was a bit too much and his face expressed it clearly enough and which in turn forced Buddha to sarcastically joke.

' You think of me, a dog as weird for talking but let me tell you that I find you human species more weird and bizarre. This planet and Nature have blessed your species with something called Intelligence that has taken you right from caves to living in super skyscrapers and in space too. But, you have polluted everything with your greed and selfishness which are but traits of an evil predator.'

Raman nodded wearily for what Buddha was saying was all true and he replied, ' I know the law a little bit and with that knowledge, I bow my head in guilt and accept all the charges that are being laid against my species.'

He looked sadly at Azhagan and Buddha, ' I wish, really wish that there was something that can be done to stop, stem this rot of our planet that is slowly but surely dying away. I wish there was a magic wand that could be waved and make all of earth's problems vanish away.'

Buddha growled like a lion, ' Stupid man, that is exactly what the Sons Of Gaia were trying to do when they somehow managed to plant this biological weapon on this plane.'

Raman stood stupefied for the meaning of Buddha's words were ominous in their threat and he asked Azhagan, ' what is he saying and does he really mean that?'

Azhagan nodded, ' Yes. He means it but as always my friend gets very emotional and touchy about such topics.'

Buddha snarled at Azhagan, ' My lord, this is not just any topic but a burning forest of a topic.'

Azhagan raised his hand, ' Enough Buddha. You are here, by my side as part of this team. So, please hold back your anger for now is not the time for us to get all heated up and emotional. Now is the time to put our plans into action and see if we can rescue this planet before the sons of Gaia strike once more.'

Raman gasped in fear and Azhagan turned to him and said, ' Yes. They will strike again and when it happens, we might just not have enough time to attempt any sort of rescue.'

' But, Mr Azhagan, what do these people want? money, power?'

Azhagan smiled and shaking his head, replied, ' They want just one thing and that is justice and protection.'

' Justice for whom and who do they want to protect?'

Buddha growled and said, ' They want justice for this planet and all its inhabitants. They want protection for all life on this planet and they want it right now.'

' But, Buddha, this is not the way to go about it. Surely, not by killing innocent people ' and turning to Azhagan, ' I don't know what was inside those glass tubes but I am sure that they were deadly and dangerous and would have killed thousands if not millions of people if we had not destroyed it.'

Azhagan whispered, ' You are wrong, Raman.'

' Wrong. You mean those glass tubes were harmless.

Azhagan gently patted Raman's cheek with great affection and said, ' No, the glass tubes were dangerous. I meant to say that your figures of thousands and millions were wrong for if the biological bomb had done its job, nearly the entire population of the human species would have died in a matter of weeks if not in a few months. But for those who would have prepared for that outcome.'

' Holy f..k. WTF are you saying' Raman swore badly and looked at the microwave, ' what the hell did those glass tubes contain?'

Azhagan glanced at Buddha who sighed and said, ' I was able to trace out what kind of death lay in the first two. As far as the other two, both were brand new creations who may have had their genesis from older pathogens.'

Buddha looked at Raman, ' The first two jars held Botulinum toxin (BoNT) and Plague in a potent state while the other two held what looked like viruses from the Spanish Flu and Ebola.'

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