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My own Path
In life, I know not words so wise,That saints and sages memorise.Their chants and verses, deep and old,Are tales I’ve heard but never told. Unbound by another’s song,And borrowed truths don’t belong.I only crave to call You mine,To feel Your presence, pure, divine. Am I indolent, lost in ease?Too quick to doubt, too hard to… Continue reading
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Safety Shouldn’t Be a Privilege
Something happened recently in our neighbourhood, and I haven’t been able to shake it off. A young girl was harassed by a casual worker. She was lucky. She managed to escape before it got worse. And thank god, the man was caught. But I am shaking. Because this is my neighbourhood. The same place where my daughter,… Continue reading
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Beneath the Banyan Tree
The roots await beneath the tree,The banyan old, and wise, and free.I sit in peace at its base,And breathe the calmness of this place. A breeze just right, no heat, no chill,It wraps me close, and time stands still.I close my eyes, the world turns thin.That’s the moment You walk in. You sit beside me,… Continue reading
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Stomach and the Limbic System*
I’m not a nostalgic person. I don’t sit around thinking my past was all sunshine and roses while the present is going to pot. Yes, the present is certainly going to pot, as has the present at all times, but that has had (usually) no bearing on how rosy the past was. The reason for… Continue reading
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Grumpy, Gassy, and Glistening (with Sweat)
I’ve been trying to keep the ennui at bay telling myself life is precious and such other instagrammy quotes with AI-generated images. It’s not helping and so here I am, hoping that putting it into words might, if not cure the condition, at least air it out a bit. Technically, ennui is defined as “a feeling of… Continue reading
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Pack. Pray. Proceed. – Part 4: The Food
Like the end of the trip, which left me exhilarated and exhausted in equal measure, so does this post. Writing the final part of this series feels a bit like getting into the car for the 8-hour journey back home—you’re not quite ready for it, your back already hurts just thinking about it, but you have to… Continue reading
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Pack. Pray. Proceed. – Part 3: The People
People are my favourite part of any journey. Not my people (ahem!), but other people. Unknown people. People at railway stations and in trains and in roadside tea shops. People in faraway kitchens lit up at dusk. People who talk to you uninvited and tell you their life stories. Those people. That’s why I love train travel. People-watching on… Continue reading
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Pack. Pray. Proceed. – Part 2: The Destination 3
After much discussion (read: one proper argument, two sulks, and one peacekeeping bribe involving mysore silk saree), we chose the most boring-sounding of all our options—retrace our path and break at Mysore. The other choices involved: a) heading west into stormy hills and potential landslides, b) dropping in on a relative we sort-of knew existed,… Continue reading
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Pack. Pray. Proceed. – Part 2: The Destination – 2
Our original plan was ambitious: head west from Melkote, soak in the Hoysala magic at Belur and Halebidu, wind our way into the misty Western Ghats, and on the return leg, find where the sacred Cauvery began her journey. But with Google Maps flashing red like a wet blanket (don’t ask how wet blankets can… Continue reading
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Pack. Pray. Proceed. – Part 2: The Destination 1
Sometimes you arrive at a place, look around, and realise you’re in the middle of something ancient and sacred and politically complicated — and you don’t know where to begin. Melkote is one of those towns where mythology, history, religion, and the occasional politics all blend together like a giant bowl of temple puliyodarai (which,… Continue reading
