Ink Stained

An old Physics teacher, the one whom I looked up to, once told me it doesn't matter what you know. What matters is if you can tell what you know. He was referring to my very disturbing habit of eating up steps while proving theorems. I always used to skip the very obvious steps thinking the examiner would know that I know. Not surprisingly, as it seems now, I lost marks here and there. But after that brief talk which was more of a lecture though, and a couple more, I realized what he was trying to tell and I did correct those mistakes. But today, four  or five later, I find the saying true, but in a different setting. Today we see people commenting on various political parties, their ideologies, social issues, their causes and criticism, preach feminism with blindfolded eyes, and propaganda of all sorts. These people sit in their comfort zones, in their warm rooms with phones and computers with thousands of rupees, with good internet facilities that too is not cheap in any existi...

Little Miss Flappy Bird, where is your calm? Is it your little stomach, Or your itchy palms. What makes you jump, and jump over again? What makes you turn, and turn over again? Little Miss Flappy Bird, Where do you come from? Is it some place far, or close some place, that is known to all as the Fidgety Town? Here this Sunday morning, you sit on the highest cable. You sit for a moment still, and then jump over again. You watch me with your one side eye, and then turn around your place. You watch me with your other side eye, and then turn over again. Is it me that you find amusing, or is it in your nature? Or is it my smile charming, that you descend from your cable stature? What in your chirping voice you tell, what from the little beak mask? Oh you want me to come with you, so sweet of you to ask. As much as I admire your joyous life, your jumping off the twigs and leaves; my life is chained in thorns, and am made to live it like t...

Here in this part of the world, where sometimes relations have a value more than transactions and where also strangers sometimes become more valuable than the once closest blood relations; exist certain questions. Certain questions to which answers were never made our found. Why did the younger son of the two couldn't grow? Why couldn't he join swimming in his primary school days? Why couldn't he go to school on the scooter? Why couldn't he work as he desired? And most importantly, why did he give up on it? Why does a beating from dad, which once left you horrified for days, leaves a smile on your face, more inclined towards laughter today? Why on a Rakshabandhan, where on one hand none of your cousins sent you a Rakhi, an year old sister sent one four days prior? And why to that you wrote a lengthy letter in a language she hardly understood(targeted audience)? These are the few locks the blacksmith made without a set of keys to open them. Or he must've lost t...

Hi Anuj, Well, you must live a few more years loving that name because in a few years a theory would level up from bade guru baba's ashram and snatch away that name and leave you with a very boring one. Oh by the way, I'm writing this letter to you because I think if you'll know your future, maybe you'll make amends in your favour. So first of all, forget about that helicopter and the aeroplane you've been dreaming about. You're never going to be a pilot. I know this is your dream and you tell the same to all the teachers that come for the visit but what's true is true dude. You'll come to know the reasons for yourself. ("dude" is the word you'll learn later, it means friend. There will be many more synonyms too). Second, live as much as you can in this school, because you're here only till you pass your high school. Then you'll move to a totally newer section of the city where there won't be any chicken(both eatable and wear...

मैं किनारे पे खड़ा उस कश्ती को देखता हूँ, उसपे सवार उन मछुआरों को देखता हूँ, डूबते हुए सूरज की कमज़ोर किर्णो में, उस कश्ती की शांत परछाईं को देखता हूँ|  पूरा सागर शांत है, लहरें उसकी खामोश हैं, किनारे पे मेरे कदम भिगाती, ये लहरें अभी भी बेज़ुबान हैं| ये वही लहरें हैं जिनसे मैं डरता हूँ, दिन में, इनके रूप से डरता हूँ, बारिश में, इनके गुस्से से डरता हूँ, शांत महासागर, में इनके उछाल से डरता हूँ|  अभी ये खामोश हैं, पर ये खामोशी भी मुझे डराती है, पता नही क्या छुपाति ये हैं, मेरे ज़हन को हल्के से हिला जाती हैं|  कितनी ही कश्टियाँ डूबा चुकी हैं ये, कितनी ही ज़िंदगियाँ उजाड़ चुकी हैं ये, पता नही है कितनी भूख इन्हे, की अभी भी उस कश्ती पर मु फैला रही हैं ये|  कुछ तो होगी वजह, जो हैं इतनी तुनकी ये, जो भूख इनकी इतनी असीमित है, जो ताक़त इनकी इतनी अतुलनीय है|  पर उससे भी ज़्यादा है ताक़त उनकी, जो है जाते लड़ने इनसे, और है ज़्यादा हिम्मत उनकी, जो हैं जाते खेलने इनसे|  होती उनकी है जीत कभी वहाँ, तो कभी वहाँ हार भी जाते हैं वो, जिस डर ...

The poem ( http://sudhir-swarup.blogspot.in/2014/08/torn-edges.html?m=0 )unlike on what seems from the face of it, is not only about a dog, ignorant and playful, being ultimately run over by a vehichle. It's not just that. This may be called an inappropriate approach of the poet that he couldn't bring out his point and he gets lost in the story while creating it; loosing on the rhyming edge too. But an english translation is what it deserves atleast. The translation would not be traditional line-by-line explanation (which no doubt has bored us all in our years of literature) but a very brief reading of the thought behind the dog, its paper toy, and the vehichle. Our proverbial dog is you, me, or any other youngster today. He is weak in the context of the open world but has enough strength to control his life. He may not be very ready for the going traffic, but has enough spirit to cross the roads by himself. He with all the strength he has gets lost in small games life plays...

His jaw was weak, but then he had an inquisitive will, His paws were small, but they were strong enough to hold on the edges; His eyes were dirty, but they had a shimmering twinkle in them, His mother was far, but then he enjoyed playing with his toy. He jumped on the right edge and grabbed it with his small paws and his wet jaw, he went right with it, and he went left; But poor he, his paws were small, small only to hold on one edge. As he grabbed on one edge, the air blew his toy from the other one, he left first and grabbed the second, but poor he, his paws were small, small only to hold on one edge. He tried tearing it while keeping his little paws on it, he tried tearing his hard toy; But poor he, his jaw was weak, weak only to wet it not tear. As he angrily nodded with it in his mouth, he put in his full strength; But poor he, his jaw was weak, weak only to wet it not tear. As he played on, he was overlooked by many, and smiled on by few; He ...