The Rain and the Sun

I want to see the plants destroyed
I wish to see the soil disappear from the ground
I want to see the roads deserted
I long to see people running in chaos
I want the clothes I wear to stink
I desire to be disturbed by the sounds outside my window
I want to slip and fall down under.

The plants I mentioned are the small growth in the pathway that collects the rainwater.
The soil I told is the one in the bed of pond which has gone dry due to the summer
The roads I mentioned should get deserted due to heavy downpour
I want people running in chaos because they would look for shelter when it rains.
The clothes may stink because I wish it rains so much that the Sun doesn't come out to dry my clothes.
I wish to be disturbed by sounds of thunders, thuds and the heavy rains
I don't mind slipping the steps and falling down under if they are soiled by rains.

It's not that the sun is shining any brighter
It's just that the clouds are absent now.

You get there when u get there

Sitting on a wooden bench and reading a lazy book is almost forgotten

Gazing at the stars and opening your mouth in bewilderment has become old school

Listening to the distant drummers at the temple is laughed upon

Watching the distant lights and trying to figure out a pattern among them is retarded

Feeling the gentle winter breeze and smelling the odorless roads is almost non-existent

Waiting for the lights to go out and watching the naked sky in amazement is almost forgotten

Marveling at the old songs from the radio is now only found in books

Doing nothing and penning down a poem Might almost seem historic

If leaving behind all of these is modern, sophisticated and wise

Mother nature, I'm happy to be archaic, simpleton and foolish. 

On Evolution

As I dig deeper into the literature of human evolution, I’m filled with anger. On one side it’s my foolishness to be angry at the human evolution because that’s the very reason, I’m currently typing in my laptop with my favorite snack at my disposal and in all probability the sole reason for my birth in the first place.

The term “Evolution” popularised by Charles Darwin, although represents a widely accepted theory of origin and thrival of our species, represents something more than that. On one hand (radically), it represents the refusal to the biblical way of human birth and argues that humans evolved as the greatest species because, well, “Survival of the fittest”. This side of the argument doesn’t bother me, in fact, it does enlighten me in understanding how we came this far. It merely tries to tell the tale as it is. In research jargon, it’s just a theory which states the occurrence of a phenomenon. The other, rather crude and disgusting side of the story which gives me sleepless nights is the story of ruthless murder and mass execution by our species which got us so far. There is, however, one disclaimer that I wish to bring to your attention before I proceed with my further story. Given that I believe in the evolution story of Darwin, maybe I can’t call this whole route taken by the human race as barbaric because, when I don’t subscribe to popular beliefs of any religion, I can’t judge an act to be correct or wrong, let alone me getting angry at it.

Records show that humans are in general ruthless and born to kill. Take for instance the case of Australian Megafauna which was home for thousands of species of giant animals. Most of them mysteriously disappear once the human settlement begins there. The same story repeats in the American continents and many other places. Although the scientific community is divided into many opinions, the popular conclusion is that the Homo sapiens kill all the species that are wild and untameable and let those species live, which could be domesticated.

The fight which begins between species millions of years ago boiled down to inter-species conflict, where one clan displaced others like how the natives of America were driven out, how the Indian were suppressed, Moriri’s were usurped by Maori’s, the list is never-ending. If this phenomenon of driving out and settling down is what we term as evolution, then I’m sorry to have been born. While some of you might argue that change is the only permanent thing and the evolution is nothing but a form of inevitable change, I would still agree with you. First, the humans were hunter-gatherers, then came the agricultural revolution and now the industrial revolution. Those who couldn’t keep up with the pace and get on board any of these revolutions has perished. History has told this story again and again.

However, one indisputable fact is that we humans have “evolved” to be more intelligent creatures. I’m not sure if we have become so capable of overpowering the nature and resist change. But I strongly believe (or at least want to believe) that we humans are capable of changing the direction of change/evolution. Thus given that change is inevitable, why we don’t change for good or evolve into a more “caring” species than continue to be a dominating one.

With two questions, I would sign off for now, how do we define a more “caring” species and how can we become one.

Deconstructing "Peniviti" Song from Aravinda Sametha

This song is bound to shed a tear or two in the eyes of the people of Rayalaseema and those who have been part of this barren yet fertile, ruthless yet kind, violent yet peaceful land.

Sung by Kaala Bhairava, this song depicts the cries of a typical woman from Rayalaseema who awaits her husband who has gone hunting down and to take part in violence. Hats off to Ramajogayya Shastri for such wonderful lyrics.

The least I could do is to make a literal translation of this song and tell others the tragedy and the sadness that has inflicted our region and its people in past.


Telugu: Niddarani irisesei Reppalni therisaanu
Nuvvocche dhaarullo Choopulni parisaanu

English: I have forsaken my sleep and opened my eyes
I have laid my sight at your homecoming path.

Onteddu bandekki raara..
Sagileti donkallo padilanga raara

Come home safe in atleast a single ox driven carriage.
Come home on the banks of the river Sagileru (Tributary of Penna river, which flows through rayalaseema)

Naligeti naa manasu Guruthocchi raa raa
Galaboti koorondi Pilichina raa raa

Come home to my worrisome heart,
Come home to the galaboti (made of mutton) curry, 

Penimiti enni naallainadho
Ninu zoosi kallaaraa
Ennenni nallainadho
Ninu zoosi kallaaraa

Its been long since I've had a glimpse at you, my Penimiti (husband)
Its been very very long

Chimmati cheekati Kammati sangati
Erraga kumpati Ecchaga duppati
Kommallo sakkati Koyile okkati
Kommallo sakkati Koyile okkati

The dark night, the delicious sangati (Staple delicacy of Rayalaseema)
The red brick stove, the warm blanket
A beautiful koel amongst the branches of the tree

Gundene gonthu chesi Paadathandhi
raa raa penimiti

All of them have turned their heart into their voices 
To call you back home, Penimiti

Polimera dhaati poyavani
Polamaaripoye nee dhaanini

I get sick when Im reminded that
you have crossed the boundaries of the village

Kodavali laanti ninnu Santi vaadini
Konguna daasukune aali manasuni

Im the wife who hides a small kid who holds the kodavali (a farm tool used popularly to inflict violence) in the folds of my saree

Soosi soodaka sulakanu seyaku
Naa thala raathalo Kalathalu raayaku

Dont ignore me, Dont belittle me
And dont you change my fortunes with your doings

Thaalibottu thalusukoni
Tharali tharali raa raa penimiti

At the least, come home to the memory of the holy knot/thread 
You have tied to me, Penimiti

Naragosa thaake kaamanduve
Nalapoosavainaa kantikandave

Come and stay in my eyes, you, who 
is always in embroiled in the violence of killing others and getting killed

Katiki yendalalo kandipothivo
Ragathapu sindulato thadisipothivo

In the scorching heat, are you hurting yourself
Are you drenching in the bloody bloodshed

Yelaku thintivo ettanuvvuntivo
Yeta katti thalagadai Yeda pandukuntivo

Im not sure if you are eating on time
Or if you're sleeping with the hunting knife as your pillow

Nuvvu ganna nalusunaina
Talasi talasi raara penimit

At the least come home to the 
memory of the kids you have given birth to Penimiti
Come home Penimiti, Come home.

Why so happy about "Happy Birthday"??

29th of August was my birthday. Everything was just fine, except that I wasn't extraordinarily jubilant just because I was born on that day 25 years back (the idea of "year" is itself a fictitious one) (and among those, the one we follow, i.e. Gregorian is another fiction (fictional construct, to be more specific) humans came up with).

And why should I be jubilant? If we look at it from another side, we are actually, on our so-called birthday's getting closer to our death. We are getting a year closer to death (assuming that the cause of our death would be natural aging). Or should we celebrate that we survived another year in this brutal world? If that's the reason, then why don't we celebrate every month, or week or even better, every day.

Come to think of it, we feel good just because all the people we know, wish us "Happy Birthday" and it satisfies our ego or self-centeredness. We all want people to pay attention to us, and birthday is the day when we get the most of the attention (except some exceptions). So are we celebrating a day just because our ego is satisfied? How good or sustainable is that joy?

Some people may argue, what is the fault in finding a reason to be happy? Absolutely nothing. But is that (fictional) construct sustainable and sensible in the first place? If not well founded, it might lead us into hurting us more than bringing joy

Or maybe its the conspiracy of the capitalists that we celebrate something called a "birthday" so that we end up spending non-productive expenditure on birthday cakes, balloons and all the usual useless garbage (which are highly not-environmentally friendly). Do not mistake me for a sadist or a perennial negativist. In fact, I'm the opposite. When we mark a specific day for celebrating our birthday, aren't we making ourselves sad on the very next day, when it's not our birthday? We "may" end up being not so happy for no good reason. Think about it.

You may then argue, why do we have festivals? Most of the Indian ones I know are celebrated because our ancestors identified some deep rooted reasons. For example, my favorite Makara Sankaranthi is celebrated to mark the arrival of farm harvest. Our forefathers mostly being farmers, used to feel happy and celebrate the welcome of harvest and thank the gods (by gods, I mean nature, not the one who "reside" in stones or pictures).

In the midst of all this confusion, when my mom called up me and asked, "Did you wear a new dress today??" all thoughts just went belly up.

Sustainable Love

It would be nothing short of a daring adventure to start off with a title like this which in itself could be understood to be an oxymoron or an impossibility or at least something very weird. Love or relationships, more specifically are tainted all the time with being in suffering or going through hardships, among many other things.While the word sustainability, in terms of natural resources, means avoidance of depletion of natural resources in order to maintain ecological balance. Converting it into relationship terms, could be seen as avoidance of depletion of our resources (mental (more importantly) as well as physical) in order to maintain our inner peace. So how could something as unsustainable as love become sustainable. At the outset, I would like to highlight that it requires some effort and it might not come naturally. So read on only if you are willing to go that extra mile to reach a better destination.

A good starting point would be to look why love is slightly tainted with challenges. The answer is in the basic differences of idiosyncrasies of two human beings. As they say that its better to be with someone who compliments you rather than supplementing you, it does come with a certain cost. Now you may ask me why this "basic differences of idiosyncrasies of two human beings" is not so evident in any other relationship. The answer, quite obviously lies in the fact that this relationship is deeper and stronger than any other we had previously held and adding to the fact :this is something that doesn't come to us from our childhood (unlike the relation with our parents or siblings). And as you know, all the changes which aren't part of our childhood or our adolescence are hard to accept. Now what do I mean by basic differences. It can be one of these following things among many others: nature of individual- being individualistic or collectivist, being introvert or extrovert, being feminine or masculine and also more importantly the order of priority you give to your respective partner. So naturally being with someone who is poles apart from you might appear counter intuitive, but on contrary, that's what gives you bliss (bliss is a state of being more satisfied than being happy), provided you are mature enough to be more open minded.

As a philosopher (amateur), lover (budding) and a man of common sense (a little, maybe), let me offer you my pieces of advise.

1. Recognize and accept the differences - Like we agreed in the previous section, there are always some differences between any two persons and hence they might not act like you even though they face same situations/constraints like you do. Remember that's what makes us humans different from machines (that's why research in social sciences can never be deterministic, but that discussion is for some other time). We first need to spend sufficient time in recognizing the differences of our partners with us. This could be done by evaluating the way they were brought up, their living conditions (present and past), the environment they live in, their nature of job and very importantly, their nature as a human being (as pointed above). Once this is done, acceptance comes naturally and you begin appreciating what the other one is going through and you stop being pain in the ass and become their super power (or superman). Luckily, in trying to achieve this state of being, one also becomes a better human beings (so do not forget to thank your partner for making you a better person)

2. Do not put yourself into their shoes- We all have a natural tendency of imagining the actions of others in line with our expectations. This will only push you into deeper sorrow. Rather give them their space and let them express themselves in the way they feel best, if not, remember, you end up loosing in that person, those traits which made you fall for them in first place. Be like a sponge to absorb the other rather than being a paint brush, where you end up enforcing your ideals onto them.

3. Be generous- Generosity holds the key. Many times, the other one might be going through a rough day due to some stuff at work or due to many other innumerable things. You will be a doing a great job if you become their punchbag and let them vent out whatever/whenever they want. Remember, relations are like a ship in the seas. Only one of them can be turbulent at same time, either the ship or the seas. We all know what happens when both become turbulent at the same time, it will lead to ship wreckage. So when ship is going berserk, the seas need to calm down and vice versa.

4. Love them like you love kids- Imagine you take effort in making breakfast for a kid, but he throws the food all over. What would be your reaction? Would you shout at the kid or try to comfort that kid into eating food. Obviously, the latter (unless you are from outer space). Try the same with your partner. You will get it back when you require it the most. And for brownie points, you will be loved even more.

5. Stop being a kid- Maybe that's the reason, relationships in early teenage are frowned upon. By asking one to stop being a kid, I literally meant it. We need to stop caring for attention, stop expecting that someone will always come and wipe our tears, stop being demanding, stop expecting others to solve our problems etc. This doesn't mean one shouldn't share his/her troubles. But expecting to be treated like a baby is not reasonable.

6. Love unconditionally- Do not set any benchmarks, any conditions or any boundaries. Give it your fullest. You will either get the best person or best lesson (or both).

7. Stop comparing - Comparison holds the key to many problems. There are few who talk 3-4 times in a day while few others who talk once in 3-4 days. These lame comparisons cannot in anyway act as benchmark and hence should be immediately done away with.

8. Do not be afraid to change and apologize. - Remember : change/improvement is good. The one who changes/improves the most benefits the most out of a relationship. And a lot maturity comes in when one goes through this psychological evolution. So, do not hold on to any thing, by saying, this is me and I wont change for someone else. Are we today the same person, the time we were born. NO. So why hold on to something if changing yourself as a better human being helps.

9. Do not be a perfectionist- This is more important for the perfectionists (also read as "persons with OCD") in daily life. Never ever apply perfectionism in your relationships. Because true beauty, undoubtedly lies in imperfections (little or big) we have in all of us. Also, what is perfect for one might not be perfect for another. So think of it in that way too.

With these points, among few others, one can reach the ideal state of "Sustainable love" (I believe) and the benefits are:

You have lot more peace of mind
You love your partner even more
You will be also loved even more
You will be more productive in your work
You will not just survive, but thrive.

P.S: Points 3 & 4 in the above blog are taken from "School of life"- Youtube Channel.

From boy to man

In one of the most painful transitions no one ever talks about,
Let me walk you through o my son
Funny thing is not everyone treads onto this path and
no, they are not a choosen few
Neither are they born into brave clans.
Although it is partly by choice
Almost all the times it's decided by fate
You will have to do things you never fathomed
Somewhere between destroying your ego
And loving unconditionally
the journey will be rough
And as usual people will be tough
You will introspect, retrospect, brood and weep
You will burn into ashes and become unrecognisable

But son if you have the courage,
Rise from the ashes to be born again
And you will embark on a new journey
Where you are affected minimally externally
You will seldom complain or regret
But always smile
You will value people more, incidents less
And realise how great women are
You will find harmony with your love
You will stop wanting to receive
And ceaselessly only keep giving
Only then my son, you may call yourself a man.