Sunday, 13 December 2020

I Am Insubstantial

Where does the road lead me 

to which unknown place ,

I chase an uncertain life battling 

like Samurai with no sword in hand,

What does the planner has in mind

for me  I do not know

I am amidst the scented phenyl,

running to deposit the pharmacy bills

doing baby sitting in front of ICU

watching the change of staff shift by shift,

scrolling the medical terms told by doctor's in google , 

trying to learn online money transfer

that  bounces over my head. 


I miss  my black coffee,

I search for my virtual talks

My Prince's calls do not reach me

though I am not deaf

He waits for me on the other side 

of the wall that is invisible,

I am waiting here measuring the 

length of space and time

counting the distant stars

that are hardly visible from 

my window sill..


Sabita Sahu.




Sunday, 6 December 2020

Never Defeated

In open worlds men and women

move hoping to change mountains

into plateous of private space,

wishes get wings in closed rooms

only to crash at the brick walls .

In hospital beds war goes on

hope and despair clash for victory.

The apron clad midwives  push 

and pull the fears of dark webs.


I am in the lobby watching the war

my own war is always won, for I

accept defeat to throw it away

when I see the nodding flower

assent my will's stubbornness. 


Sabita Sahu


Due to unavoidable circumstances we could not publish this week's Professor  Prafulla Kumar Mohanty's article.

Sunday, 29 November 2020

Me- You You -Me


A dark night ,

the half moon afflicted by

shadows of other planets

all power, glory and dross

in waterfall measures

eating away youth, life

in half starved 'long sighs'

That's my life.

 

A life of light no heat

 A life of glory no peace

A life of hard work no solace

A life of love no fulfillment.

Yes, garlands, applause crowds

but inside hollow and empty

who will live my life

except me, the cursed angel!


Transposition is ever denied

You are You and I am Me

you are full, complete happy

I am incomplete without your love

but to your happy melody, I am a sod.


Sabita Sahu

 

Anger Management


Prafula Kumar Mohanty

I don't know whether the Business Schools have designed a course in Anger Management, but I feel it is high time such a course was offered to every student of life. Anger is one of the basest emotions which blinds a person to all illumination of the mind and heart. Anger makes the eyes burn like demented suns destroying all life on the planet. The first impact of anger is sudden rush of blood to the system of the brain which loses the balance of judgement. The mouth foams and the limbs tremble, the mouth tongues a high pitched register alien to the personality. Anger makes the inner world of a person "out of joint". When anger rises a wanton energy radiates in all directions dissipating order, balance, harmony. It darkens the soul and blackens the divine conscience which is basic human essence. Nature always moves towards order balancing her three attributes - Satwa, Raja and Tama. If Tama rises Tamas (darkness) is created, nature's satwik traits are lost. In Hindu myths, Kali is Durga's anger. When Chand and Munda, two demons were sent to torture Durga after she killed Shumbha and Nishumbha, Durga lost her cool and became furious. From her darkened eyebrows Kali was born, that is kali was an embodiment of Durga's anger dark diabolical and disruptive energy which disintegrates nature's creative process. Anger in god or man is an anti - cosmic blasting force which breaks order: the degree and place are lost at least for the time being. The Panchavayu, the respiratory system gets totally disrupted as the Samana  or Samat, Prana, PranaVayu, Udana Vayu, Apana Vayu and Vyana Vayu, the energy regulators  of the body lose equipoise and cause total chaos in the body. The mind and emotions flow as per the force and magnitude of anger in negative directions.

 

Anger is very natural to humans, animals and even gods because no creature is self-sufficient or auto fulfilling including, the Creator if any. Anger stems from frustration, unfulfilled desires, insults, undeserved, unmerited suffering, ego hurts and challenge to one's own sense of superiority. A man has his personal intimately private world of reality, wishes desires, dreams and fancies which are unique. In short a person is God of his little acres of reality. When that god is rivalled, opposed, challenged his mirror reflects a defeated face. His reactions, spontaneous and immediate, is anger. He musters his energies to smash the enemies; physical, emotional, intellectual, and spiritual. The enemies at times are invisible like fate but he fights in the dark, shoots arrows against the formless, shapeless chaos of his imagination and often turns masochistic in helpless rage. The Christian God because of his powers punishes the Archangel Lucifer (who becomes Satan) only to be unrivalled. God punishes Adam and Eve for disobedience. The Hindu gods, goddesses too never pardon, they always kill, punish, cause immense suffering in others. Zeus , Indra and the higher ups Vishnu, Shiva, Durga - all get angry at the slightest tap on their egoes. But there are many great men who know how to manage their anger. They nurse it in silence but plan, plot and strive to achieve what they wanted.

 

Anger's first victim is Reason. An angry man kills like  Hercules, becomes stubborn and irrational like Duryodhana. Anger is often born out of hate, racial, religious and ideological. Colour and caste too often lead to hate and anger.  We saw in Osborne's Look Back In Anger how an Oxford educated young talented and ambitious man nurses his anger against the state after the War II brought in its trail the social misery, poverty and unemployment. He hated the church Bell, the peaceable housewife, he had no respect for values of all kinds. He became what in the 80's we called Angry Young Man. Bollywood exploited this theme commercially and many minor writers wrote Penny Dreadfuls for a living.

 

Often intellectuals and geniuses are angry at the human condition, at the nature of reality. Others are angry at the state of administration and governance. But their anger is filmy, for pretentious an intellectual showmanship. Some people of course write poetry, some like Botticelli paint hell. And yet others of the left leaning pseudos verbalize their anger. Raspy fuming temper flows out their anger like uncorked champaign in an empty room. This anger is not wrath, often infantile pressure releasing rant, of the Jimmy Porter variety.

 

Anger is a very potent energy in a great man and he harnesses it to accomplish things for mankind; he utilizes the energy for a great cause. The art of Anger Management, therefore, is a rare talent in man. Mostly anger becomes self stultifying because people do not know its potential. If one is angry for a cause, he must channelize in a manner suitable to achieve the cause. The best illustration of anger management, in my view, was in Bishnu Gupta( Chanakya). His father Chanak, a diplomat and thinker was tortured and killed by Dhana Nanda. Chanakya made his anger grow, mature adding other patriotic values, into the most powerful energy which would free the then Bharat foreign invaders like Alexander and corrupt tyrants like Dhana Nanda and Ambi. He selected a boy Chandragupta while he was a professor of political science, and groomed him as a strong, patriotic, politically aware and morally alert Bharatiya who would dedicate his life to unite Bharat into a cohesive, independent political unit powerful, wealthy and culturally emancipated. In the first chapter (Prakarana-" Vidyasamuddesha" of his Arthashastra  Kautilya uses the word Annvikhiki Sthapana that is cultivating the power of thinking. We know how he thought and what he thought. The wrath which he nourished with single minded devotion for his avowed purpose was for acquisition and protection of the earth. He managed his anger not by anulom belom or varstrikas but by annvkhiki which is a  Science of thinking. And there has not yet been a second Chanakya in India or the world.

Anger is a wild horse, If you cannot tame the stallion you will come under its hooves but if you can control it the stallion will turn into Pegasus and you can connect heaven and home on a gold line.

Sunday, 22 November 2020

Future Tense


Prafulla Kumar Mohanty

The incorrigible optimist in me had hoped for a neoliberal temper in the post covid world. The old dictum, sweet are the uses of adversity, was I thought still had moral currency. All scriptures, philosophies, literatures and moral realizations have taught men how pain and suffering refine the human sensibility. Suffering is purgatorial fire which burns away the dross, the inhuman, hateful elements. Dante, Goethe, Shakespeare and all great men of letters have warned man against the self- indulgent sins: the wages of sin is the fire that burns the vile – evil elements. A man who passes through tragic experiences grows in moral stature. He becomes more charitable, loving and pardons the petty criminals to elevate them to the moral mainstream of life, “Pardon is the word to all“ is the final message: he who has passed through the baptism of fire never again nurses revenge or hate. He develops an insight into life which is simple: live and let live. Settle for half. Love all life as your own. But history has repeatedly demonstrated that man carries burn wounds to remind him of revenge, hate, greed, exploitation and what not! Suffering destroys the finer elements and when he gains back physical and economic health, often by unwholesome means, he takes it out on the guilty as well as the innocent. The current pandemic baffles me: is the wisdom of the past centuries effete, or has man of the 21st century outgrows all wisdom?

 

The same matsyanyaya, big fish eating the small fish goes on unabated. China in six years, 2013-19, psychologically enslaved almost two thirds of the human population by laying money trap. Poorer nations of the world choicelessly surrendered to China for survival. The United Nations is gradually becoming a captive organization. People and nations support the stronger, richer and powerful. China has almost blocked India’s entry into the United Nations Security Council. Although America, Russia and France support India’s entry as a permanent member China’s Veto has become an impenetrable shield for the powerful nations of the world despite their sympathy and support for India. China has created a permanent enemy for India in Pakistan which is under China’s thumb rule. There was a time when China was a Communist country which it officially continues to be, but in reality China today is a capitalist country which it officially continues to be, but in reality China today is a Capitalist country with global power ambitions. Although everyone knows that Corona Virus was tested and leaked out of Wuhan Lab no one, including America, has the guts to raise an accusing forefinger at China. Trump called it as the Chinese Virus but never could take an official position. He did not raise the issue in the Congress nor at the UN. It was a personal jibe, half serious, half comical as everything of Trump was. Trump is a perfect illustration of human unwisdom in the post Covid times. The man has not yet acknowledged defeat at the hustings and gives statements which are unbecoming of an American President.

 

We expected that the world will be sober, nations would cooperate with each other in trying to find out a remedy, a vaccine to help mankind tide over this crisis. But no, there is an undeclared vaccine nationalism going on. Nations who would come up with the first vaccine would definitely mint money. And here is the painful question: should you exploit the helplessness of the people? Is not gratitude of a grateful world enough? Honours and accolades would pour on the person or institution from all over the world. But people think in terms of making a fast buck. This is what I call inhuman. It negates all human values of civilization.

 

The WHO has warned that the vaccine will not be enough. Covid will continue to plague us unless we do not slacken the precautions. But the most horrible warning is world famine! United Nation has warned of extreme food shortage in some poor countries. The UN has already confessed that it may not rise up to the occasion. China will not have any problem in feeding her millions. However, if there would be hungry people in China the world may not know. If China can jail journalists for having reported Covid 19 cases who would dare report hunger and starvation? But if there is famine in half of the world, as the UN predicts will the rich countries America and China come forward to feed the hungry and save mankind? And that too without strings attached? That remains to be seen. India has enough stocks for her own population. The world knows in 2020 about 80 crore Indians have been given free rations for eight months. But if the humans in other countries face famine like situations India should extend the hands of charity without bothering about Rupee or Dollar. And I am confident India will do her utmost to save men and women from hunger without demanding loyalty or gratitude.

 

But my real worry is the clash between religious fanatics. We saw in France and see almost daily in Jammu and Kashmir, how religion is abused for political games played by power hungry fanatics. The Gupkar gang will definitely try some mischief supported by our western neighbour. The European situation may suddenly flare up if joblessness and food shortage become more punishing. We are in a  crisis which refuses to die down. But instead of learning from the crisis we try to blackmail countries and browbeat the weak. It is time all nations met under one roof without  anyone enjoying a Veto; all nations must resolve to rescue man whenever and wherever required from the quagmire of the oldest problems: hunger, disease and war. Globalization in its true spirit must be revived without the Multi National Companies poking their noses in the governance of a host country. If any country proposes aggressively to annex, occupy or capture another country all nations will unite to crush such designs. But will this happen? If not who cares!

You Have Crowned Me


You have crowned me on many thrones

pulled me out of self imposed hibernation

my sloth my nervy agitation are over

I have gained in beauty fashions and

my vocabulary has now changed from

the rustic to the sophisticated.

 

I have become a moon gazer again

my mind receives the signals that you send

which in the past were lost pearls in wilderness

I now know  right and wrong when I choose

sin and merit do not bother me, I work

unhindered by duty and futile obedience. 

My mirror now reflects me not a made up face

by morals and mores of the authorities.

I am free to sing and treat humans

with the new eyes and   ears you have given.

 

But honest to god the crowns didn’t fit me

some loose ends still haunt me like the past

don’t frown, come and fix them up soon

and sit on my right to lead me on

 else the throne will have only three legs

and your dream will crash in vain.


Sabita Sahu

 


Forever New