Dance of the Seasons / American Amavasya rahul - You mean E D Galgotia was the wrong place to be looking?! Only kidding - wish I knew this when I was in Delhi ... next time .... Your book chasing adventures sound like fun! Unfortunately travelling with nazuk nri kids limits what one can do to making sure they`re ok and little else. I do treasure the book I found though. BTW the ``bahooria`` quote is awesome.

sadna, Thanks for the info.

``Have you noticed how people from the older generation often come up with an appropriate doha/saying from appropriate source (including Kabir) to make a point? ``

Oh yes ... and it didn`t come from reading books either!

Dance of the Seasons / American Amavasya Rahul,t,Sadna

... about Kabir, on my last trip to india I searched for a compilation of Kabir`s dohas in all the fancy-shmancy stores in Delhi and Gurgaon but found nothing. Then on a a train trip whistle-stop at Mughalsarai in UP I found the best compilation of Kabir ever on one of those railway platform thela bookshops. It was by Raja Pocket Books and honestly all the Kabir we know is the tip of the iceberg going by this book ... for example you know the dohas

sukh mein sumiran sab karen, dukh mein karen na koy
jo sukh mein sumiran karen dukh kahe ko hoye

and

mala pherat jug bhaya, mita na man ka pher
kar ka man ka dari de, manka manka pher

well these are only 2 dohas out of 69 (yes sixty nine!) from ONE poem called ``Sumiran ko aang`` in this book.

There are 70 poems all with titles ending with ``ko aang`` such as Guru ko aang, Prem ko aang, Saangat ko aang etc. even a Maasahari ko aang (a very stern scold of maasaharis)!

I also found a good compilation of Urdu poets in devnagri with explanations of difficult terms on one of these railway thelas, this time in Jabalpur, MP.

I think appreciation of literature is alive and well among the masses ... now if only it would trickle up we might see some of this stuff on the internet.

Dance of the Seasons / American Amavasya t, nice site thanks for sharing. the hindi ones are not available in that many scripts yet, that I know of, but it will come in time (I hope) - hindinest has a lovely section on kabir that has ``roman hindi`` and english and french translations ... http://www.indianest.com/kabir/

all I can offer, sorry

Dance of the Seasons / American Amavasya Hello t,

Have I confused you enough :) ? Yes the same ... kids are a little older, one started Kindergarten this year! I did try and get a new handle with my name but they were all taken - just figured how many will read anyway.

Hindi sites ... the ones I know are all in devnagri which would be a problem no? If not they are

http://www.hindinest.com/

http://www.manaskriti.com/kaavyaalaya

http://www.anubhuti-hindi.org/

take care

Dance of the Seasons / American Amavasya Rahul/Sadhna,

I like the chayavaadis also. Nirala, Pant, Mahadevi Verma and Jaishankar Prasad even Amitabh Bachchans Daddy. Funny after all the english poets I read the strongest influences when I started to try and write poetry were Hindi poets I probably only read in grade school textbooks!

BTW does anyone remember the name of the poem by Subhadra Kumari Chauhan that started this way ...

maa keh ek kahani
beta samajh liya kya toone
mujhko apni nani?
kehti hai mujhse leh cheti
tu meri nani ki beti
keh maa keh leti hi leti
raja tha ya rani?

tum ho hati mandhan mere
sun upvan mein bade savere
tat bhraman karte they tere
jahan surabhi manmani
jahan surabhi manmani?
han ma yahe kahani!

or something like that anyway from what I remember ... It was the story of Prince Sidhartha (Buddha) and the swan as told to son Rahul by Yashodara ... anyone remember it?

T,

Thanks … !

Nandini

Dance of the Seasons / American Amavasya hey sadna,
long time ... glad this worked for you.

trinity, rahul,
thanks.

Tragic Deaths of Three Great Scientists Mr. Gill,

Thanks for writing about Hypatia ... in the atmosphere we live in now it`s worth reminding people that religious fanaticism can touch all religions.

(As you well know) Hypatia was not just a scientist but a neo-platonist philosopher at a time when christianity and ``paganism`` were in a death struggle. Her death has implications beyond science ... and many of her students were prominent christians who used the philosophical concepts learned at her feet in their christian theology. BTW I find the parallels between neo-platonism and upanishadic vedanta very interesting ...

Anyway, thought I`d mention another intriguing woman of mathematics from our part of the world ... Lilavati of Ujjain ... she was the daughter of Bhaskaracharya the head of the astronomical observatory in Ujjain in the 12th century. This kid was obviously smart as a whip because his manual on arithmetic is named after her (all the problems are addressed to her) not any of his sons, good for her I say!!

Fuji - Come on, you`re being a snobby scientific show-off on the one hand and accusing Hypatia/scholars of being ``disjointed`` with society on the other hand ... and she was very popular in Alexandria by many accounts, and even if she was why not, does that make the barbarism of her death commonplace to you? How in the world did you subject yourself to something as simple minded as Cosmos anyway?

Careless Consciences Hey Farzana,

Thanks for writing about Satyendra Dubey … here is one guy who didn’t have a careless conscience (and see where it got him …? damn-it it really sucks)! I was in India late last year he was in the news a lot and bumping along the UP/Bihar sections of the Golden Quadrangle I was really glad someone was doing something about corruption on the project. The Delhi-Jaipur highway section was a Dream compared to the UP bits … but anyway. Then he got murdered …

I hope his legacy will spark some consciences … here are some people who seem fired up right now, hope it lasts …

http://www.skdubeyfoundation.org/index.php

http://www.kalam2020.com/kalam2020/index.php

BTW The other murder for an careful conscience that I found really shocking was a young relative of Vajpayee who was trying to stop some creeps from attacking girls on a local train … another waste of life

Careless Consciences #145 Veeresh - A Jhadoo update was the perfect antidote to the gloomy ``Lahin to maat kha gaya Hindustan`` mood this article put me in ... while the enterprising folks of India can check up on their representatives and use Jhadoo selling to finance this effort there is hope ... Jhadoo Jindabad !
BTW my brother-in-law in Delhi knows you well apparently, he does a show on cars or something hence ...

My Pakistan Diary: Roots! A Spiritual Journey yes still here - where am I going to go ... ? just have too much going on to get sucked into cyberspace like you timepass chokras (just kidding :) wish I had more time) good you had the akal to visit boston before the DNC madness descends on us ...

Pink Flowers WOW - you really made this character real Revathy ... I love how Didi and Anandi seem to be the real family not Didi`s fat sister & Anandi`s family. Talk about girl-power-shakti !! I hope Anandi goes to the fancy college in some smart-smart clothes and does better than all the kids with the short shiny hair !! Great work, keep them coming!

My Pakistan Diary: Roots! A Spiritual Journey Dear Dost-Mittar,

Thanks for this great travelogue series. It was wonderful to read it and share the experience of your travels. I think you are really very lucky to have in your wife a companion who shares your interests. That you are taking the time at this stage in your life to travel together and discover both your roots and reflect on your personal histories is really so sweet !! I learnt a lot from reading about your impressions of this trip. Hope this material gets published elsewhere as well so other people can read it too!

Vajpayee’s Srinagar offer of Talks to Pakistan Hassan

Curious ...

How do you feel about 2 million Kashmiris in an area that has been denied elections for 56 years ?

http://www.balawaristan.net
http://www.tehelka.com/channels/currentaffairs/2001/dec/3/ca120301abdul1.htm
http://in.news.yahoo.com/020313/43/1inm2.html
http://www.tibet.ca/wtnarchive/1998/6/21_4.html

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How about a nice chunk of Kashmir (Aksai Chin) that was bartered off to China?

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How about JKLF marginization by the Pakistan Government ?

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How do you feel about 500,000 Kashmiris that were hounded out of their homeland by horrific violence ?

http://www.ikashmir.org/Atrocities/index.html

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Samjha karo ... the state of Pakistan and it`s methods and motives are not as pure as you think (or pretend) either

Being a Girl... Happy Navratri Swaroop ! Thought this is good one to post today ... enjoy !


The Garba
-- Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni

The nine sacred nights of Navaratri
we dance the Garba. Light glances
off the smooth wood floor of the gym
festooned with mango leaves
flown in from Florida. The drummers
have begun, and the old women
singing of Krishna and the milkmaids,
Their high keening is an electric net
pulling us in, girls who have never seen

the old land. This October night
we have shed our jeans
for long red skirts, pulled back
permed hair in plaits, stripped of
nailpolish and mascara, and pressed
henna onto hands, kohl
under the eyes. Our hips
move like water to the drums.
Thin as hibiscus petals, our skirts
swirl up as we swing and turn.
We ignore the men,

creaseless in bone-white kurtas.
In the bleachers, they smile behind their hands.
Whisper. Our anklets shine
in the black light from their eyes.
Soon they will join us in the Dandia dance.
The curve and incline, the slow arc
of the painted sticks meeting red on black
above our upraised arms. But for now
the women dance alone
a string of red anemones
flung forward and back
by an unseen tide. The old ones sing
of the ten-armed goddess.
The drums pound faster
in our belly. Our feet glide
on smooth wood, our arms are darts of light, Hair, silver-braided,
lashes the air like lightning.
The swirling is a red wind
around our thighs. Dance-sweat
burns sweet on our lips.
We clap hot palms like thunder. And

the mango branches grow into trees.
Under our flashing feet, the floor is packed black soil.
Damp faces gleam and flicker in torchlight.
The smell of harvest hay
is thick and narcotic
in our throat. We spin and spin
back to the villages of our mothers’ mothers.
We leave behind

the men, a white blur
like moonlight on empty bajra fields
seen from a speeding train.

Do Foes of Gay Marriages Simply Fear Joy? dost saab - I did not see your last posts ... you and others are far more capable than I of discussing this issue in a productive way ... for me at this stage in life it is very personal ... so I leave you to it

Do Foes of Gay Marriages Simply Fear Joy? dost -

PM has not admitted any (legal) wrong doing but he has argued endlessly that sex with a minor boy is NOT wrong.

Given that he

1. admits to being an unapologetic pedophile (his words)

2. admits to boys ages 10-15 being his primary erotic focus

3. admits to mutual fondeling of a boy of 11 he had charge of

4. admits abusing the trust of his students parents in his position as a teacher

5. has argued endlessly that sex with a minor boy over 12 and an adult man is NOT wrong

Given these facts ... do you believe he should be trusted with boys in this age group as a teacher ? What is to stop him from trying to seduce some boy he ``falls in love with`` ?

Do the parents of his students and the Principle and Faculty of his School have no right to any warning/knowledge about his background ?

Assertions like sheltered middle-class (I assume) subcontinental children as young as 11 or 12 are mature enough for the age of consent and know abuse and ``will not take it`` are RUBBISH in my experience as a student and as a teacher in New Delhi. Unless something in the Hawa-Pani changes more drastically than I ever imagined at Wagah - the average middle-class Pakistani 11 year old is not any more mature.

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tahmed32 - I`m glad I make sense to some one ...