yes, i have changed the blog title. why? because the jobs part was not relevant anymore- I got a job, got the visa, cleared the interview barely a month back..so all’s good! and to think barely 21 posts back I was stuck in a period of long unemployment. like they say, life is all about phases. and what we all need to remember is that they are all temporary.

so since jobs is no longer important, I decided to replace it with something I love literally to bits- mythology!

I’ve been fascinated by mythology courtesy Uncle Pai and the Amar chitra Kathas ( believe me, cocaine is nothing compared to this…not that I have tried cocaine to know:):)) and my interest has not dimmed over the years. So my new endeavour is to talk about what i think these stories stand for in today’s times. Mind you, it’s just my opinion on what I think they stand for in this day and age….in no way am I negating what they stand for traditionally, so don’t get on my case…

with that little disclaimer, let’s get ahead. My first post will be about my all time fav mythological character, Sudama. i don’t know what it is about that story but from the day I first read it, I fell in love with it. and i feel strongly about it even to this day. To those who don’t know, Sudama was Krishna’s friend at gurukul. Sudama later fell upo bad days and his wife beseeched him to go and visit Krishna and ask for his help. Sudama was loath to go- how could he ask? But for the sake of his wife, he did. after a long journey, He met Krishna in his palace along with Rukmini Devi. Before leaving and since he was very poor, he had taken some poha along with him as a gift for Krishna ( he remembered that he was very fond of it.) Krishna receives him graciously and is overjoyed to see his childhood friend. he spies the poha and immediately starts consuming it (note: the littleness of the gift does not strike the lord). If i remember correctly, Krishna is about to take a third mouthful of the poha when Rukmini Devi stops him and says that it is enough for the next 3 janmas (not too sure about this). sudama is unable to ask Krishna of anything, is happy in his company and returns back home with the thought weighing in his head about how to break the news to his wife that he could not do what she asked of him.

but when he returns, he sees that his hut is replaced by a grand castle and his wife comes out to greet him ,decked in jewellery and finery. and then sudama understands the significance of what transpired in Krishna’s palace and the ways of the lord. He lives happily ever after, his bad days behind him forever.

Other than the fact that the story ends on a positive note and I am such a sucker for such things; one of things that drew me to the story was Sudama’s temperament. I always felt that I was just like him :).

sudama struck me as a simple person, happy with the little things in life and shy and timid to a certain extent. he treasured friendship and was happy with the intangibles in life- the tangible symbols of life that the rest needed somehow did not interest him. one could say that he lacked drive and may have been resigned to his poverty stricken fate but there is always another dimension: i prefer to look at Sudama as someone who was content with his lot…how many of us can say that? i am sure that Sudama’s innate goodness appealed to the Lord on some level when he gave all those riches to him… the best part is that Sudama never needed to ask…something he was just not happy doing…what he needed simply came to him….

wow! gives you goosepimples, doesn’t it? makes you feel good. at least it made me. I always believed that I shared the same characteristics as Sudama (time proved otherwise:)) and his was the fairytale I had in my eyes everytime I went to sleep. If you ever see me, you’d probably agree (ok, lie for my sake, it’s my fav story:))…straggly haired skinny kid -never cared about the way I look as long as there was a dream that I could waste the day about. shy and timid but very happy with intangibles in life…it’s ok if i do not have the Lexus as long as I can have my filter coffee and chai at the end of the day….

being simple is ok-it’s not something that has to be looked down upon and derided- it will pay in the long run. society is the one that just doesn’t get it.

in today’s times when our lives are overwhelmed with materialism, Sudama’s simplicity may hold the key to mental peace…

speaking of simple, one can’t use the word to describe what just took place in bihar when a mob lynched to death a group of ten people whom they thought to be thieves.

http://us.rediff.com/news/2007/sep/13bihar.htm

yes, its wrong- no one is saying no but I have always tried to go to the root of the problem when analyzing these cases. just like in all the other cases, this too reflects the desperation of the citizens. it is a call or help, albeit macabre. in order to stop this from happening we need to stop blaming them and start questioning the system : what can the system do to make their lives better so that they do not take the law into their hands?

they don’t feel safe, they are disillusioned and desperate….and a bunch of desperate people are capable of anything.

in my view, if the public percieves that they are some positive steps being taken by the government, their desperation may be allayed to an extent. then there will be greater chances of success of educating them about the wrongfullness of their actions. the onus i feel is on the government. it’s a long haul but they need to reagin the trust of the people in oder to prevent such things from taking place again.

p.s some other reports have said that in the end, the ten that were lynched were innocent of the crime accused…makes the situation even more heartrending.

anyways, would love to hear from you…great ideas come from collaboration. if we can solve one problem then our nation can at least move one step forward.