From & To Sathish #5 - Page 39

On behalf of Avan, Aval, Adhu and Vaanathai Pola, I Satish, wish the administrators of the forum and all its members a Happy new year. I hope, pray and wish that 2022 is a whole lot better, safer and luckier for all of us. Jai Hind.

Avan, Aval, Adhu 107

A world of dew,

And within every dewdrop

A world of struggle.

Haiku by Kobayashi Issa

One does not have to say it in the form of sounds that travel in waves. The words they speak from their soul bubble through their lips and into your ears and into your soul. I repeat it is not about what they say but how they say it.

Inspector Sargunam saw and heard Gayatri speak about his Master sir and he felt all that she was feeling in his mind and soul. Relief. Happiness. He felt both of them and also felt a void being filled up.

Gayatri too was watching him, reading him and hearing all that he was speaking but feeling all of it in her heart.

' I might be wrong about it. But, did you just sigh?'

Guna nodded and asked, ' Why?'

' No, just that I felt it was a sigh of relief in which I sensed happiness' spreading her hands, ' in today's world, you hardly see that for most sigh in sadness or in dejection and mostly in quiet desperation.'

With inquisitive eyes, she asked him eagerly, ' why? why that sigh of relief, a sigh of joy?'

' Because, hope has begun to fill the void, the abyss in my heart, in my mind, ma'am.'

' Are we on the same page in the book called Master?'

Inspector Sargunam's eyes shrunk in question which forced them to pull down his forehead for company, and asked, ' yes, why this sudden doubt?'

' because of the words you just used in the context of this conversation.'

' You mean, void, abyss and filling them?'

Gayatri nodded, ' yes.'

Sargunam stared, studied and enquired, ' why are you following master sir when it is obvious that he wants to be left alone' and smiled a smile that displayed sadness, understanding and a bit of naughtiness for topping.

Gayatri's lips quivered in the sudden burst of emotion that raced all over her body and unable to hold his gaze turned away and whispered, ' I myself don't know what has come over me but I know one thing and that is I feel so happy and safe and comforted when I am with your master. I have never felt that way with anybody else and I mean that.'

' Ma'am, your words just described the way I and all the other students feel about master sir. But, my question still remains unanswered?'

Gayatri looked at him with a hint of frustration flaring in her eyes and she quickly shot back her reply, ' so does mine that came before yours and in case you have forgotten it, then let me repeat it. Why did you sigh? why was that sigh more out of joy than the usual sighs of sadness.'

Guna smiled with eyes that shone understanding and appeasement and replied, ' your answer perfectly answers your question.'

Leaning forward, ' I feel the same way about Master sir and when a person whom we care about and love so much has a chance of finding love again, then one like I did can only sigh in relief and joy for I feel better. A whole lot better knowing my master sir is leading a happy and contented life.'

Gayatri shook her head and shrugging her shoulders exclaimed, ' Ravi, your master is really a piece of work, Inspector.'

Pointing to him and to herself, ' see, see what he is doing to us while he is up there cooped in some place called the Whispering Rocks.'

Breathe. Owing.

Yesterday was the first day of 2022 and since I am one of the senior guys around ( age-wise. I don't know when it happened and am not aware that it is happening) one of the cast asked me, ' Sir, Any resolutions for the new year.'

I looked at her and looked at all the other hers and him's and said, ' I want to do better.'

All of them sniggered and the boldest boldly said, ' Sir, you are already doing a great job and you have a huge fan following. So, how?'

' You mean how I can do better' I asked and continued, ' I mean to do better in life, not in this role that I am playing.'

Early to bed in case, I am not working. Early to rise even if I had been working and came home late the previous night and so it follows with me always the first to reach the shooting location. From those days when people used to stare at me as if I was jobless and homeless for being in the location at 7.00 when I could have arrived an hour or two later, people now shy away in embarrassment when they arrive much later than the scheduled time.

Better. Easy. Listen better. Understand better. Empathize better than before and yes, try to give better than before.

We come into this world already burdened in debt. Your thoughts, "WTF satish. You were kind of making sense although it was bordering in the corny region and now you have crossed it into the zany region."

Yes, more than owing our family, friends and colleagues, we owe life itself for giving us life and bringing us into this world.

How then do we repay our debt to life, you whacky SOB?

Breathe. Yes, breathe not just through your lungs which is a physiological process of inhaling and exhaling. Oxygen in and Carbon dioxide out.

I mean breathe through your mind and soul. It would have been so easy if the brain too had a pair of lungs that inhale thoughts and exhale out only the bad thoughts. It would have been so cool and beneficial if the brain had had a liver and kidney type of organs that filtered out all the negative thoughts, anger, ego in our mind and purified our thought process.

Talk to yourself. Forgive yourself and heal yourself and through that understanding comes empathy and sympathy and the capacity to understand what others around you are going through.

Easier said than done.

I know sometimes the day feels like being on a boat with a hole through which water is gushing in and you have just a small mug to scoop it out and return it to its rightful watery place. All the while the boat is drifting out into the open sea and deep waters.

Like many of you, I too am seeking not answers but the capacity to better understand my role in this world so that I can play it better with the others who are playing their own roles and also fumbling and botching their lines like me.

If the whole world and life is a stage then surely that It, God, Power is the one who is in the audience and filling the seats.

As the curtain falls, I hope that It brings its hands together once or twice and whisper, ' Bravo child. You did not win but you tried. At least you tried to pay the debt that you owe me and life. Hypothecation cancelled. You are free of debt.

So, this year I want to do better. Less anger. Less harsh looks and sometimes, words. Lesser sleep. But, more empathy, starting with myself.

I is a good place to start. F..k the Ego hassles and all that crap about Ego. I is good for without I there is no you and there is no us.

Lots of I's make this life.

Okay. Okay. I will stop with that.

Good morning. I wish you a beautiful day.

Vaanathai Pola 418

The seemingly terrorist attack on Chennai through the hijacked Qantas A 32 flight that was scheduled from Singapore to London had been thwarted. We came to this part of the story in chapter 368 and with it the paths of Azhagan and Raman crossed, met and became a junction. Azhagan destroyed the Biological bomb that had been traced out by his companion Buddha by placing it in a microwave oven and then had revealed to Raman that the " Sons of Gaia " had been behind the plot to infect all the passengers on the plane and use them to spread dangerous and highly fatal diseases all around the world.

The small jet that was exclusively used to fly top officials of the Indian Government landed on the runway in Chennai carrying Dr Raja Rao, head of the Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology, Hyderabad along with Dr Sathya and six other members of their Team.

Operation Sanjeevani was on but that fact was known only to Dr Raja Rao and a few others and all of who had been sworn to secrecy and had sworn that oath in front of none other than the Prime Minister herself.

Dr Raja Rao sighed sadly as he reminisced about Project Sanjeevani that had been launched by the late Prime Minister Indira Gandhi on Januray1977 and while India lay under The Emergency rule that had been declared in 1975.

He remembered clearly each and every word that Shrimati Indira Gandhi had told them even as her laser eyes seemingly bored into each and everyone's minds over her beaky nose. She had looked scary and every bit like the nickname "Iron lady" that people used only behind her back and when she was far, far away. But when she was around, she was lovingly called, " Mother India" by all her chamchas and by half of India's population.

For many in those times of Emergency felt that it was better to be ruled by an Iron Lady rather than by weak and feeble-minded politicians. In case you have doubts over this point, please compare where China is today and how far India lags behind it. Sometimes, I feel that a little bit of freedom and democratic powers can be given away for the nation's growth. Not just in economy, but in the overall Character of this nation's thought and that of each and every citizen who call themselves Indians.

She had stared at all of them and said, ' You will be both the first and last line of defence of our nation in terms of medical calamities and when our land is facing terrorist threats of biological nature. There will come a time when you will work for another Government and serve this nation under another Prime Minister but you have one master, one purpose and only one who will serve and that is India and its citizens. Swear an oath and take the pledge to do your best and to do it constantly.'

Prophetic words indeed. Two months later the Emergency rule was lifted and General Elections were held in which Indira Gandhi and her Congress party lost badly and were ousted. In a display of anger and to show their protest against the Emergency, Indians ushered in the Janata party coalition and placed them in Delhi but soon found out that they were useless and spent most of their time scrapping like street billies ( Cats in Hindi).

The only thing best remembered of the late former prime minister Morarji Desai from that brief tenure was that he drank his own urine.

Desai was also a long time practitioner of ‘Urophagia’, also known as Urine therapy, the practice of drinking one’s own urine. It is a popular fact that Desai used to practice urine therapy and would also recommend the same to others. In an interview to Dan Rather, American Journalist, he spoke on the therapy for about 60 minutes. He stated that drinking urine is the perfect medical treatment for those who cannot afford medical treatment. He also believed that if an individual washes eyes with urine, the person can never get cataracts.

WTF, then why does the body expel it, Mr Desai? You may answer that when I meet you one day, up in heaven or down in hell. Seriously, urine therapy?

The Janata party were themselves ousted in 1980 as all Indians realized that for a nation as diverse and divided, they indeed needed a strong leader and so ushered back in The Iron lady.

Dr Raja Rao's eyes misted as he recollected that fateful day in 1984 and that tragic moment when he had been hunched over a microscope and the telephone had rung loudly and had startled his ghost out of his body.

His boss had informed him in his heavily Telugu influenced English, ' Raja Rao. Our boss is no more. She was shot to death by her own bodyguards.'

He raised his right hand and after staring at it for a few seconds, gently clasped his fingers and reminisced back to that moment when she had gripped his hand and shaken it and he had realized the reason why Indira Gandhi had been called "The Iron Lady" and a few moments later she sat sipping coffee with all of them as photographs were being taken and her kindness, patience and grace made him realize why she was called Mother India.

He whispered softly into the chilly night air, ' Ma'am, you might be gone but your iron spirit lives on in me and a few others from that 1977 batch and will live on in others after we too are gone.'

Dr Sathya stood in quiet awaiting instructions for after having spent 10 years working with him, she had learnt to read his cues and nervous tics. She stood watching him as he whispered, answering the call of an old memory and knew that the situation that they had been placed in was indeed dangerous.

They stood like the first moon astronauts in their white level four Hazmat suits and then all of them heard Dr Raja Rao point to the gigantic Qantas plane and say, ' three of you will accompany me into that plane while the other three will work with Dr Sathya and do a perfunctory medical check on all the army personnel around us. Have no doubts about the situation for this is ground zero right here. If there is indeed a dangerous pathogen here then our fight against it starts here. You all know the drill by heart and know what to do. All the best.'

Then he turned and began walking towards Brigadier Sooryanarayanan who stood waiting for him with Major Param Singh, the second in command of Chakravyuh.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tY-VKazOz24

https://www.indiatoday.in/india/story/the-last-day-of-indira-gandhi-1379440-2018-10-31

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V5o5atKIOLQ

Avan, Aval, Adhu 108

About 80 to 90 million years ago, the Indian sub-continent was still stuck to the side of the African Continental plate and was hanging on as a sidekick of its more massive brother or should I say, father. Then God probably said " Roll cameras" and screamed " Action" so loudly that it scared the daylights out of the surface of Planet Earth and the quiet of a few million years was shattered and things began to move again. The surface of Earth has formed, broken up, drifted away forming new plates and although we don't realize its motion, the bloody ground that we stand on is moving as I am writing these words and even as you are reading my thoughts.

The Indian Sub-continent broke away and began to drift up north towards the gigantic Asian plate and about halfway through its journey across the waters that is today called the Indian ocean, it crossed paths with a hot spot.

In today's world, Hot spot means a physical location where people may obtain Internet access, typically using Wi-Fi technology, via a wireless local-area network (WLAN) using a router connected to an Internet service provider.

In geology, a hot spot is an intensely hot area in the mantle below Earth's crust. The heat that fuels the hot spot comes from very deep in the planet. This heat causes the mantle in that region to melt and molten magma rises up and breaks through the crust to form a volcano.

While the hot spot stays in one place, rooted to its deep source of heat, the tectonic plate is slowly moving above it. As the plate moves, so does the volcano, and another one forms in its place. The volcano that moved is no longer active. This is why a chain of extinct volcanoes is often found extending from a hot spot.

lava explosion in Hawaii

Hot spots are found around the globe, on land and in the ocean. The Hawaiian Islands are the youngest volcanic mountains in a long chain of volcanoes that formed over a hotspot. They are still forming today. Another hot spot is under Yellowstone National Park, where the heat causes boiling mud pools and geysers like Old Faithful.

The hotspot that the Indian plate crossed over is today called the Reunion hotspot and their meeting point is what led to the formation of the Deccan plateau. From that opening, the earth churned out its insides and poured itself out as hot magma that later cooled and became all that we call the western and eastern ghats.

The Indian subcontinent moved on from that hotspot and then rammed into the Asian plate giving rise to the Himalayas.

From this rather brief and amateur description, you can begin to understand one important fact and which is the age of the western ghats compared to the Himalayas. Yes, the Deccan plateau is much older than its northern giants and it is the erosion of all that volcanic lava that welled up in the middle of the Indian ocean that created Kodai and all the beautiful scenic spots and hill stations along the western part of India.

' Guna ' Gayatri said and then realized her mistake of breaking protocol, she quickly began to apologize but Inspector Sargunam waved it off and said, ' It is okay, ma'am for that is how my people and close friends call me and you are both of that.'

' I can state this with certainty that you must be the most honourable policeman in the entire department and not just in this state but from all over the country.'

Guna shook his head and corrected her, ' Honorable, well ma'am that judgement will come at the end of my career but for now, I think I will err on the side of being selfish.'

' Selfish. How can you label your kindness and care as being selfish, Guna?'

' Because it concerns just what is important to me and you and is of no concern to anybody else. I don't think I would have allowed it or you would have dared say it if we had met under any other circumstance and if master sir had not been the connection between us.'

His words were fair and true and Gayatri nodded, ' In fact, it makes it all the more precious this love and respect you and the others have for your master.'

She looked at him and quickly looked away and then when she slowly turned to face him, Inspector Guna smiled, ' I just told you that you are both friend and family, so, ask away the questions that you want answers for, ma'am.'

Gayatri whispered her question tentatively, ' Whispering Rocks. Ravi is headed to that place. His mother told me that he goes there whenever he feels the need for a break from his normal life. She also told me that his close friend runs that place.'

' Yes ma'am. What master sir's mother told you is correct. But, Whispering Rocks is not just a Tea estate for it doubles up as a resort too but a very exclusive one and needlessly to say a very expensive one.'

Gayatri smiled and said, ' Money is not a problem, Guna' and looked at him with a cautious look in her eyes and asked, ' Who is this friend of Ravi's who runs this place called Whispering Rocks and how do they know each other.'

Guna smiled, ' His name is Mr Parthiban and he not only runs Whispering rocks but owns it along with his wife. He was Master sir's senior in school and that is all I know about them and their friendship.'

' Is Parthiban the only friend your master has in this whole world?'

' No ma'am. There are two others who I know for certain are his very close friends but have never met them for they live abroad.'

Squeezing his forehead, he recollected another friend and raised his hand, ' There was another friend master sir was very close with, although this bit of information comes from well before my time and I have passed it off as a rumour.'

Gayatri shook her head, ' No Guna. It is not a rumour. There was another friend, another person who he was very attached to and who he also seemed to have fallen in love with and has stayed in love to this day.'

Far away from them and far above them, Partha heard the deep " dhub, dhub" thumping sounds of the Enfield bullet's exhaust as it roared up the curves heading towards him.

His face creased and filled with a large smile for he was familiar with the sound even though it had been more than a year since he had heard it.

' Ravi ', he whispered and a ghost of memory flitted across his thoughts and smiling sadly, he removed the muddied apron that he always wore when working in the garden and walked towards the large cottage that dominated all the other cottages that lay scattered around it.

Daksha, his wife looked up from her laptop and said, ' Yeah, I heard it too.'

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A_K6LSSZ_34

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PDrMH7RwupQ

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wNT3ka9QV0I

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aH0pHjszsXc

Avan, Aval, Adhu 109

Friend. Dost, Mitr, Buddy, Bro, Snegithan, Amigo, Thozhan, companion, Ven, Nanbanda

The word 'friend' in English, is derived from the Old English word 'freond' which meant to love or to favour.

Friend. A simple word, yet one that holds such a multitude of meanings for so many people. This is a word that is said thousands of times a day, around the world and in a huge variety of situations, to people of all backgrounds and cultures and perhaps with a slightly different meaning each time it is used. On the surface of it, it seems fairly simple to translate ‘friend’ into any number of languages. But what happens when you dig a little deeper into the etymology of the word and see how it has evolved – does it mean the same thing for us as it does for people from another country?

Looking at the word ‘friend’ in English, it is derived from the Old English word ‘freond’ which meant to love or to favour. This is similar to Italian, Spanish and Portugese that their word for friend is also derived from the verb, to love. However, when you look at Arabic, for example, ‘Sadeeq*’ (صديق), (from Sadaqa (صدق)), one of many words for friend in Arabic, the root of the word means ‘truth’ from a saying ‘Who is your friend? The one who tells you the truth’. In Danish, the root of ‘ven’ means beautiful.

Aristotle figured there were three kinds of friendships

1) Friendships of utility: exist between you and someone who is useful to you in some way.

2) Friendships of pleasure: exist between you and those whose company you enjoy.

3) Friendships of the good: are based on mutual respect and admiration. These friendships take longer to build than the other two kinds--but they're also more powerful and enduring. They often arise when two people recognize that they have similar values and goals; that they have similar visions for how the world (or at least their lives) should be. Not infrequently, they begin in childhood, adolescence or college--though plenty form after that, too.

If you've ever had a friend that you could laugh, cry, and share your most intimate secrets with, then you know how powerful friendship can be. It's having someone in your life that can lift you up when you're low and celebrate your victories with you.

Friendships can have a major impact on your health and well-being, but it's not always easy to build or maintain them.

The exhaust noise of the large single-bore pistoned engine that had reverberated around the hills a few moments ago announcing the arrival of Ravi Kumar died down abruptly drowning the whole place in silence. Silence for the loud exhaust noise had startled all the birds into flight and now they returned back to their nests, roosts and trees. Sounds of insects buzzing, birds chirping and tweeting again filled the air.

Removing his helmet, Ravi closed his eyes and taking a deep breath ,inhaled the fragrance and essence of Kodai and then turned as he heard the noises that heralded the presence of his friends, Partha and Daksha.

One of the most significant traits of a beautiful friendship is trust and the understanding that stems from that.

There are several ways through which close friends display their love for each other, especially when they meet once again after a long time and all of us have done it and experienced it many a time. It is the expected norm to hug, yell, whisper endearments and generally exude exuberance but then it is not the same for all and definitely not for Ravi Kumar, our man of this story.

Placing the helmet on the large tank of his motorcycle, he smiled softly and greeted his friends.

' Hi, Partha. Hi, Daksha.'

Parthiban nodded, ' Welcome back, Ravi. How have you been?'

' I am fine.'

Daksha smiled, ' Still the man of few words.'

Parthiban added, ' A leopard cannot change its spots.'

Ravi smiled and looked at them, ' Or, you can't teach an old dog new tricks.'

The only problem with old friends is that they can read you and understand you as well as you do yourself. Even if they cannot fathom the reason, they still observe the symptoms that you or they exhibit which means stress, strain and problems.

Parthiban's eyes ran over the holdall tied down on the carrier of the motorcycle and remarked, ' More clothes than usual, Ravi.'

' Yes. Unusual situations demand more time off and that demands more clothes' Ravi answered with both joy and sorrow.

Daksha stepped forward and taking Ravi's hand, said, ' Then it will have to keep until you return for now you are among friends and in our home. Come, rest, relax and we can talk about it if you need to talk about it.'

' Thank you, Daksha. I might just take you both up on that offer.'

Parthiban clapping his hands loudly turned to his wife Daksha and exclaimed, ' that will be the day of all days when our childhood friend talks and I mean really talks.'

Far below on the plains and outside Madurai, Gayatri looked at Guna, ' Isn't that a wee bit strange, Guna for a senior and junior to become friends?'

Inspector Sargunam smiled, ' yes ma'am. But, then Mr Parthiban did not remain master sir's senior for he lost two years when he was involved in a farming accident in which he lost both his lower legs.'

' Oh God, no. That's so tragic, Guna.'

' It was ma'am and it was master sir who is supposed to have saved Parthiban from certain death.'

Gayatri thought for a second and remarked, ' those are special kinds of friendships. Eternal Bonds even. The ones that are forged in blood and bone and tragedy.'

Both men stood watching Daksha leave and Partha smiling happily lifted his pant bottoms and Ravi whistled, ' New legs, Partha.'

Parthiban nodded happily, ' Genium x-3. The latest technology, developed by the US army. Got them done last year in England when we were there visiting Daksha's parents.'

Ravi went to his knees and carefully observed the bionic legs and looking up asked, ' Lots of titanium, I see.'

' Yes, master sir. That's why it cost me upwards of a crore and more.'

Ravi whistled softly, ' But I bet it is worth every pound that you spent.'

Partha grimaced, ' I guess so but my dancing skills still suck and suck as badly as they did back then.'

Both burst out laughing and then Parthiban got the biggest but most pleasant shock of his life for Ravi suddenly hugged him tightly and with great emotion.

It was a shock for Partha as this was the first time, Ravi had hugged him and that meant his friend was under great stress and more than usual.

He whispered softly, ' It is okay. It is going to be okay, Ravi'

“Friendship is the purest love. It is the highest form of Love where nothing is asked for, no condition, where one simply enjoys giving.” Osho

https://bionicsforeveryone.com/ottobock-genium-x3-knee/#weight

https://www.ottobock.co.uk/prosthetics/real-life-stories/graham%27s-genium-x3-story/

nanbanda

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_bpt7FxpcSs

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bSEE_ZPdpdk

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1T8G_d5o5Gs

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g21ohGS0_34

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f1ymfTq4Z14