animal lovers

There is python caught by the village boys yesterday and what a sight it made with the huge python being captured by these boys and tied like a rope in the carrier of a bicycle! It is wonder how such a hugs python can be actually lifted up and tied in the carrier, making several circles to complete the process of securing it and tying it to the cycle. The news of the capture of this giant reptile spread like wildfire in the village and all the kids made a beeline to have a glimpse of the massive creature and touched it to feel its texture. The python, on the other hand, was as cool as a watermelon and stared at the onlookers with placid eyes. The youths took the python to the nearby security enclosure and animal lover groups at the city was contacted and at their behest, the boys were give a sum of Rs.500 in exchange for the Python. It is a good thing to know that the Python is unharmed and is in custody of animal lovers. Earlier the local zoo was the place where most of the pythons captured were deposited but there is no more space to hold more and the captured ones in all probability would be released in forests and that is the best possible place this giant creatures could go.

Lake Placid

Last week, while sauntering to my balcony in the morning with my honey lemon drink, with my habitual blissful state, I looked afar to the wetland down below and to my utter shock, I have encountered a site which jabbed at my heart like a dagger. The flock of frolicking birds that were a frequent and natural sight till then were found missing. I scanned the water for any sign of disturbance which might have scared the birds away and to my amazement I saw small heads of bamboo poles sticking out from under the water. On closer inspection, the shocking realization dawned on my that it was in fact a large fish net strewn across the water, secured by bamboo poles for catching the lovely birds. The heinous act made my blood boil and later investigation revealed that those culprits were non other than the construction labours who wanted to feast on those tiny birds. Although, that net has been confiscated and the labours are duly warned, the damage has been done and the birds flew to safer places when they have got the premonition of the impending danger. They have taken away with them the heavenly bliss which I always encountered while basking in the panoramic view of flock of birds taking flight in encircling precision. Carnivorous human being seems to seems to have invaded our tranquil campus which till now have been heavenly abode of endangered and migratory birds. Thankfully, other water bodies in the campus are still safe from the flesh hunters and birds can be seen serenely sitting at those placid lakes. I pray fervently each day for the birds to return but except for some stork varieties at random, the flocks have simply disappeared. Amazing is human greed, still amazing is their immunity to the ethereal beauty surrounding them..I feel immense pity for those soul who are not only blind to nature's bounty but they are actually capable of destroying the very beauty which can give them solace and eternal bliss..

Cobra worship

Amazing things people can do in the name of faith, belief and superstition. I have known a number a people who are great worshipers of Lord Shiva. Just a month earlier, in a village household, a cobra was discovered who just refused to budge from the corner where it coiled up and took shelter. Thinking it to be an auspicious event and a blessing from the almighty, the head of the household started offering him frogs everyday so that the snake did not go hungry and they didn't have to face the wreath of god. People too started flocking to that place just to have a glimpse of the miracle,.i.e, the snake, who stayed there for quite some and led quite a luxurious life and finally slithered away one fine day out of boredom. In yet another household, two black cobras used to frequent the backyards and were offered a bowl of milk everyday. Although, this pair never did any harm to anyone, yet it gave one a creepy feeling seeing them coming and drinking the bowl of milk. It always gives me shivers to see creepy creatures, and as for snakes, I can never dream of offering milk and keeping them in my backyard. I really appreciate the courageous act of those who can face a snake without as much as blinking of an eye. However, I can never see and tolerate people killing and dousing phenol on snakes out of fear. It is so pathetic and sad to see a snake die writhing in pain that it gives me goosebumps.During ancient times, snakes were generally confined to jungles, hilly and forest areas but in recent times, indiscriminate cutting of trees and clearing of forest areas for construction purposes have reduced the areas for these wild creatures and they started frequently the areas of human habitation. Snake menace in huge campuses like ours is a pretty common phenomena. It is like usurping lands which were rightfully theirs...Man made imbalance in the environment while making the life of wild creatures miserable, also put our lives at stake. Time is running out and we must create a balance to our habitat.

Cuckoo, the manipulator

Once I wrote something about cuckoo in my previous blog post. It seems that cuckoo has once again drawn my attention for yet another reason,i.e for their shrewd way of hatching eggs in the crows nest. The female crow in the gulmuhar tree nearby recently started hatching and one fine day, a male cuckoo came near the nest, sat on a branch and started crowing at the top of his voice incessantly.Both the crow soon left the nest to chase the cuckoo away and meanwhile the female cuckoo came out from her hiding and laid eggs on the crows nest. She threw some of the eggs below so as to make the quantity of eggs appear the same. The female crow returned after a while and didnt see anything amiss and started hatching again. After a couple of days, chicks came out of eggs and the female crow still weren't aware of the deception. When one fine day, the cuckoo chick started uttering the first cooing sound, the mother crow realised that she had been duped by the cuckoo duo. Mad with raze, she threw the cuckoo chicks from her nest and not even satisfied with that, she started pecking at them angrily. Fortunately, some villagers nearby rescued the chicks and caged and reared them till they were able to fly.
Most of the time it so happens that the mother crow do not even realize the deception and the cuckoo chick grows up under her care and later flies away. What a blatant example the cuckoo shows of forfeiting one's duty.

Tiger on the prowl

Wonder of wonders, there is a female leopard on the prowl, seen in our campus for quite sometime now along with her two cubs. Seen at first atop hills surrounding the campus, it later started venturing out, perhaps on the look out for food for the cubs. People's apprehension knew no bound and evening walk has become a thing of the past. As the campus was a big forest earlier, and trees have been mauled down to build this concrete world, the wild inhabitant's life became jeopardized and they had to hibernate in whatever small forest area that remained within the campus. Now that food is getting scarcer, in spite of the danger involved, they venture into human territory. As of now, the leopard has not harmed a soul but as a tiger is a tiger, people are paranoid. Oblivious to all these commotions however, the leopard is roaming around, sometimes seen sitting leisurely on the roadside or sometimes mistakenly entering half constructed quarters. Our quarter is located near a small wetland and I for one is wishfully thinking that perhaps the leopard will frequent the wetland at night at least once and I could see it for real. But till now, luck is eluding me..I can visualize in my mind's eye what a spectacular scene it would create, the spotted beast amidst pristine green and sparkling water..I have seen only deers amidst greenery and that picture is still imprinted on my mind..roaming free spirited wild animals with their multi hued colors, seen in the wilderness is a million dollar view and I would thank the almighty a thousandth time when i am blessed from experiencing such a view..that too from my own balcony...

nature's fury

There goes a proverb in Assamese which when interpreted means thus; On the onset of spring, BORDOICHILA (wind) goes to her mother's place. However, when she returns, she returns with a vengeance, destroying whatever comes on her path. I have seen BORDOICHILA yesterday night, and oh how!

Yesterday night, while basking in the ambiance of spring cultural fest in the campus and getting soaked in the heady and scintillating bihu dance performance, we heard the distant rumbling of an approaching thunderstorm. However, before we could reach our car, big pelting raindrops and gushing wind hit us on the face, taking our breathe away. We anticipated the thunderstorm late at night and was completely taken by surprise. The wind was so powerful that it blew away most of the roofs of the thatched housed in the nearby village. As the wind blew in a spiraling pattern, it just demolished whatever came on its path. How transient and small we felt as we just watched nature's fury being unleashed and was helpless and powerless to do anything about it!

At this juncture, numerous thoughts has crossed my mind and I felt an urge to unwind and share my musings. While there is tremendous advancement and hi-tech inventions every other day, at the other end, natural disaster is claiming more and more lives in different parts of the globe. It is a pity that despite numerous disaster mitigation and management workshops, seminars and conferences, and despite chalking out agenda of action, disaster is causing and will continue to cause untold misery and havoc in people's lives, be it in J&K, or Pakistan or Italy. One of the most important factor causing maximum causality and damage in a disaster like earthquake and storm is poor housing condition. So quality housing should be one of the priority action in any disaster management and mitigation plan.

My new abode

I have recently moved to my new abode, overlooking an unique wetland, frequented by varieties of migratory and local birds. From our elevated balcony, which is some 50 mtrs above the wetland, the view is irresistibly beautiful. Most of the wetland is covered with vibrant green grasses, and pools of water can be seen only intermittently. Unseen to the naked eyes, birds settle in the grassy parts of the wetland and only when they takes flight are they visible to viewers. And what a spellbinding, soul stirring scene it creates!

Right there in the middle of the wetland, there are two date trees, laden with fruits. These are wild dates and not the delicious ones imported from Arab countries. Yet,the trees give a panoramic view of the wetland, like an artist's canvass unfolding before the eyes. Towards the far end of the wetland, there are naturally grown trees, creepers,shrubs and bushes, giving it a unique appearance, as if there is a rainforest in the vicinity of the wetland. Along with birds and insects, there are reptiles too including python and green flying viper. The other day, a python was seen lying across the road leading to our quarters, blocking traffic for a while. It later slithered towards the wetland below.

From the ripples created in the water and from the attentive stork's unwavering and alert stance, it is logically deduced that fish population is present in the pools of water, although we are yet to see a stork catching it's pray. The specialty of the wetland is that it is not fed from rainwater, rather from a spring from below. For this reason, water always remains, despite scorching heat.At one time, the grassy part was utilized by the villagers nearby to grow one variety of rice named "Bao Dhan" during rainy season and Corn was grown in the relatively drier area
during summer.

Be it rain or scorching heat,when I look across my balcony, I can feel a somnolent serenity enveloping the atmosphere and it inundates my soul as I inhale the fresh air and raw earthy scent wafting through the air. To me, it is an epitome of spiritual fulfillment and inner bliss.

Oh..heavenly bliss! Finally I could hear the sound of thunder yesterday night. I was jolted awake from my deep slumber and I hastened to the balcony to get the feel of first drop of rain on my upturned face. For the first half an hour, there was just the wheezing sound of wind blowing and i was feeling almost disappointed when first drops of rain fell on my face. My ecstasy knew no bound..The steady downpour thereafter lasted for almost half an hour and the smell I longed to inhale pervaded all my senses. The trees with dancing leaves already promised me a vibrant, beautiful and heavenly morning and I could already visualize the excited chirping and frolicking of morning birds.The panoramic view of the mountains afar, which I have been missing for the past two weeks will unfold before me tomorrow like a Michelangelo painting. How content I'm feeling today after days of restless longing! i love u mother earth and always want to see u in ur majestic glory..

Parched earth..parched soul...

What has gone wrong to the mother earth? The blanket of dust, for the past two weeks, have enveloped the green surroundings, the mountains afar, and the azure blue sky above. Such bleary is the scene that it is sucking the life force and rendering us limpid and dehydrated like a squeezed out sugarcane.The trees being already devoid of leaves, this feeling of barrenness is exacerbated by the dust spell. While crossing the mighty river Brahmaputra, I was distressed to see the magnificent panoramic view of the river being submerged in the dusty haze. We are longingly waiting for the sound of thunder and pitter pater raindrop. But alas! It's almost two weeks now and there is no sign of rain coming..We all are parched..humans, animals, and trees all around. Oh..how lovely it would be..to smell and inhale the scent of drenched mother earth!

How do u feel when a cuckoo crows?

Spring is still a month away and beautiful voice of cuckoo is associated with the heralding of the spring season. I too used to wait longingly for this melodious voice coming from afar in rhythmic phases which gives one the feeling of intoxication. However, satirical as it may sound, from last year, cuckoo’s melody has become cacophonous to the ear. One sole cuckoo started frequenting the tree right near my bedroom since last year and wonder of wonders, it started crowing right from January in its incessant drawl. Initially it was a real treat to hear a cuckoo from such a close quarter as it is so rare now-a-days to hear this seasonal wonder. Initially, the bird used to come at a particular time of the day, and we were used to the rhythmic singing for a short span of time. However, as the days went by, the cuckoo broke it’s routine and started crowing at odd hours, disturbing our peace and tranquility. It would start crowing from 3 o'clock in the morning and would continue doing so till the wee hours in the morning. Sleep eluded us as it was impossible to sleep blissfully when cuckoo's singing at it's highest decibel invaded the tranquil night everyday, jolting us awake from deep slumber. However hard we try to drown the noise by stuffing pillows in our ears, it was of no avail. It had become such a curse that at one point I had some wild thought of bringing firecrackers to scare the bird away. But the least I did was throwing a stone wildly at the tree which had become the cuckoo's night abode. Although it helped give us some quiet moments, but it was short lived and the symphony started and continued unabated. And this misery of sleepless night is still continuing..

I have found out for the first time that most birds have certain enmity towards cuckoo and keep chasing it whenever they come across one. It is beyond my comprehension why a bird with a lovely voice should be hated by fellow birds and why it had to hide and make itself less visible from fellow birds. The enmity between cuckoo and crow is well known because cuckoo always kept their eggs in a crows nest during hatching time and the deceit is noticed by the crow only when the babies grow up. For this reason, crows and cuckoos are fast enemies but what about other birds?

This experience of mine is a bit funny and I wrote it from satirical point of view. For a nature lover, like me, cursing a cuckoo is the last thing i want myself to be associated with. But considering the number of sleepless night I had gone through, amazingly that was what I actually did! Now I know why cuckoo’s singing sounds sweeter when coming from afar. It gives a kind of spread effect and sounds like a symphony. From close quarters, the beauty of cuckoo's voice is lost.

Can anyone be beastlier than human being??

The animal mayhem carried out in the village nearby and cruelty of humans against unsuspecting living creatures like birds, tortoise and amphibians in the vicinity of the village made me recoil with anger and disgust. The villagers, particularly the Bodo tribals spare no pain in killing whatever birds or animals come their way. Even snails, crabs, frogs, grasshoppers, and dragonflies are not spared. Silkworms after they mature become a delicacy for the tribal folks. Leave alone tribals, even other communities residing in the village put traps at night to capture bats in hundreds and although there is hardly any flesh one can find in a bat, because of their curative properties, bats are in great demand amongst the villagers. Our abode, when we first came here was a paradise with storks and varieties of other birds roaming around in the vicinity. However, within a span of five years, most of these birds have disappeared, either because they are annihilated or they no longer found it safe to stay in the proximity of the village. Not only birds, even a seemingly innocent creature of crocodile species is being killed mercilessly whenever they come out of water to lay eggs. Villagers wait for this creature to come out of water and as it cannot crawl fast on ground, it becomes easy target for the prowlers. Not only is this creature killed and eaten (greatly in demand for curing chronic blood dysentery and internal laceration and ulcer) but its tough outer skin is used to make instruments like tabla. When my helping lady narrates these episodes in a matter of fact way, I try hard not to show my welled up eyes to her. We talk about peaceful coexistence of people of different cast, creed, and religion but what about peaceful coexistence between humans and other living creatures?? Wish the villagers can see the eyes of those killed before they are mayhemed...if only they look closely enough.. I am sure their hearts will cry too..to see those pleading eyes...

Secrets to happiness and success

As our universe is governed by some natural forces and laws, like the force of gravitation and law of motion, similarly, (as put by Rhonda B in the book "the Secrets"), our life too is governed by our thought processes. Positive thoughts attract positive energy and it is a cumulative process; when we think, believe and act positive, nature conspires to give us nothing but positive energy and it becomes an all-pervading force. It is like a constant flow, which however, is disrupted whenever we have doubt in our ability or belief. Any negativism in our thought process needs to be diverted consciously through activities which gives us pleasure. For instance, if music, reading, or nature walking lifts your mood, you can switch your mind to such activities whenever you have a negative thought. When negative energy is channelized into positive energy again..the flow is maintained and balanced is restored. Mostly, unknown to us, negativism creeps in our psyche, setting a process of cumulative negativism, affecting our productivity and creative ability. The power is within us to make the most of our life through a change in our thought process and attitude. Believe in yourself, think and act positive and you can make things happen the way you want it. Let's make this world beautiful with our positive thoughts and energy...life would be so much better if people's mindset changes to usher in an era of positive radiance.

chakra activation and color of chakras

I've heard from people who are into Reiki and Kundalini that when the seven chakras in our body are activated, we can see different lights, depending on which chakra is being activated. For instance, when the crown chakra is aroused, we see violet light. The third eye chakra is of indigo or purple color and activation of indigo means clearing of sub consciousness to channalize intuition, whereas, activation of purple means balanced state of mind or attaining divinity. I have never done any reiki or learnt meditation as such. A few days back, when I was down with viral fever and was lying in bed in the evening, suddenly my mind was focussed on a black spot just at the centre of my forehead and that spot started spiralling like a whirlpool, going down and down, as if I have entered a dark tunnel. Then suddenly I could feel light emanating from the tunnel, and guess what colour light it was.. bright violet! The light was coming back to me at a blinding speed and going back to the source of origin, i.e. the point at my forehead. The color was so blinding that I just opened my eyes and the feeling was exhilarating. When I asked my friend who is a Reiki master, he told me that it is a beautiful thing to happen and needed to be practiced everyday to activate that chakra. I want to share this experience with my friends and to let them know that they too can activate their chakras on their own and keep the positive energy flowing.

Love is flow...limitless like horizon..

When do you feel the love within you overflowing? Is it only when you are with your beloved or are there many instances when such feelings overpower you? As for me, when the morning sun emerges out of the horizon like a floating red ball, it makes my heart overflow with an immense love for nature's wonderful creation. When I see early morning dewdrops on leaves dazzling like diamond, when the mountain gets misty after a shower, and when birds fly in the azure blue sky in perfect symmetry, a peculiar sense of contentment overpowers me. If that is not love, what else it can be?? When I see birds building nest in front of my eyes, laying eggs, hatching and finally emergence of babies, these whole processes leaves me awed and an exquisite feeling of happiness flows over me. And rain is like an elixir to me. When drizzling raindrops fall on my face, it is like I have been caressed by my beloved. Even the trees drenched in rain after a shower seem to bask in the glory of a lover's touch. In essence, love surrounds me, wherever I go. And of course the obvious conclusion is that I am in love with nature, with all its glory.

Bountiful tree

[olive]How time flies... it's almost a year since I started this blog.. and guess what..the olive tree is bearing fruits again...tiny fruits in almost every branches..wow...and the activities around the tree is seen to be believed..bees, wasps, caterpillar, birds.. all are making this fruit laden tree the center of their activities..just standing under the huge tree, I feel mesmerized by the buzzing sounds all around..the feeling of intoxication, is almost like getting drunk..This tree, from a tiny sapling has grown into a giant of a tree right in front of my eyes, and is growing still. I have never in my life, have seen such a big olive tree, with beautiful shiny leaves, and all the branches growing in total symmetry. The olive tree dwarfs several trees growing nearby and the orange tree is almost getting interlocked with the giant olive. However, I can never bring myself to cut the branches of that lovely tree..and for that matter any other tree. The orange tree has to adjust and co-exist side by side. I just hope that when I leave this house, this beautiful tree remains intact with its majestic glory.[olive]

Think green for pure bliss

The beauty of the world can be seen through the beholders eyes. The world has so much to offer in the form of friendship, networking, mind-boggling career options as never before. However, losing touch with mother earth and disassociating ourselves from the joy of connecting with nature will slowly kill our sensibility and make us no more than the computer we are working with. True, one should strive to achieve a certain goals in life but not at the cost of losing touch with our natural surroundings. One doesn’t have to go to a hill station or some resort to understand the essence of nature. You don't have to seek God in some faraway temple. God resides in our soul. The same can be said about nature. Modern days work stress and related ailments can to a great extent be eliminated if only people have a think green, act green attitude. Nature can calm your jittery nerves, and hyperactive brain. So indulge and luxuriate in the serene natural surrounding for a few minutes every day. You don't have to frequent a spa, or oxygen clinic to have the benefit nature has to offer. Indulge and fill your lungs with nature's bountiful oxygen and look at those beautiful green mountains around u to make your eyes sparkle. It will be truly exhilarating, and I can vouch for it.

Insensibility

How insensible human beings can be? It's seen to be believed how much! In this otherwise beautiful world, it saddens one to see the indifferent way some people can chop off trees, pluck flowers from somebody else's garden to offer it to God (as if God will love them more for such offerings!). The other day, our neighbour chopped off the berry tree (big variety of berry tree) without any thought what so ever about the lovely juicy fruit the tree had gifted us last January. I felt as if she's chopped off my legs instead. I obviously asked her why she did so, and with an expression as cool as a watermelon, she quipped, "I don't want to make a jungle in my neighbourhood". Think about conscience! Even the old lady who regularly worship God with nature's stolen wares, gave me contemptuous glare when I politely asked her not to make the neighbourhood flower trees bereft of flowers. Have these people ever pondered and revelled at the glory of Mother Nature! Absolutely not! If you don't feel the kind of ecstasy when you look at the trees, flowers, birds, mountains around you, something is missing in you and unless you fill that void in you, your life is imperfect. Simply rejoice at the bounty nature has to offer you and love will overflow.

Resplendent mood

Today, my mood is euphoric since morning. Got up much earlier than usual and went to the balcony to have a peek at my little garden and lo and behold! Right in front of my eyes, the huge olive tree was swaying in the gentle morning breeze with tiny fruits appearing in every branch. I could see thousands of honeybees making buzzing sound around the tree and my soul was filled with some unnamed happiness and tranquillity. Still further I could see the banana tree bearing fruits with a huge purple banana flower hanging from the tip of the bunch. The bakula tree too has grown much taller, taking the form of a triangle. Attracted by the budding yellow bakul seed, tiny birds with pointed beak make the tree the centre of their daily activity. Being a nature lover, I could have asked for more. The weather was misty with patterns of clouds forming in the sky and at the horizon I could see the breathtaking views of hills covered with morning mist. The scenery unfolded before me could beat scenic view one can experience from any hill station. I am blessed to be a part of such wonderful surrounding and I can't ask for more.

Down the memory lane- 2

Our neighbours in Shillong were like an extended family and most often special dishes and delicacies were exchanged between us. There was this sense of peculiar bonding, which is so much rare, now days. We children knew exactly where to get what varieties of fruits and accordingly we spread our net everywhere to get hold of different varieties of fruits. Our immediate neighbour had one very sour fruit tree in their house and somebody in their house will always sit on the veranda to shoo us away. Still we tried our luck from time to time, and sometimes with success. When dusk will set in, father would come from the office, carrying a packet of hot jalebis from the Delhi Mishtan Bhandar and we will devour it like famished children. On cold chilling evenings, all of us will sit in murha (Bamboo seat) around the chulha and father will roast alu or peanut on the chulha. All of us children will wait eagerly for the roasted aloos to be served by father, sprinkled with salt. The delicious taste used to linger in our mouth. Occasionally, father will roast papad on the chulha and each papad was divided in half to be distributed among us. Father's ghost story was very much popular among the neighbourhood children and they would pester him to tell ghost stories, which they always listened with avid interest and bated, breathe.

Down the memory lane

My children would often pester me, " please ma, tell us about your childhood days in Shillong. They simply love to listen to stories like how I grew up in the rugged surroundings with beautiful hillocks, and streams. I still distinctly remember the season flowers adorning the flowerbeds in all neighbourhood houses, which spread riot of colours all around. Some of the flowers which I remember are dahlia, sweet peas, snap dragon, Zarbera, poppy, Zinia, gladioli and of course varieties of roses. My children particularly love to hear about the fruit laden trees from which we used to pluck ripe plums, pears, peaches, apples, and so many other fruits, which they never heard of. Our regular trip to the berry farm to pluck and relish the juicy berries is still etched in my memory. How I wish my children could grow up in such pristine surroundings! I am trying my best to make our barren locality as green as possible and fortunately, through rigorous planting of trees, our surrounding is getting greener with a huge fruit laden olive tree, and trees like bakul, custard apple, orange, mango, and banana. One beautiful gulmohar tree, which is bearing flower this year, becomes the activity center for varieties of birds. My children enjoy sitting at the balcony enjoying the cool breeze and listen to the chirping of birds. I am happy that at least, they too have become attached to the trees around us and don't want to shift to a new house leaving these trees behind. I want them to remember that they too grew up in a green surrounding and this way they can convey the message of greening our environment to the future generations with more conviction.

Green Consumer attitude

Green consumers strongly identify with learning about environmental issues and have pro environmental behavior. They are receptive to environmental appeals and relatively well informed on various environmental issues. Consumer’s attitude is the most important factor for the success of green goods and services. Come on, let's make green choices and save our earth from further degradation.