This Year In Retrospect!

  1. I searched for the Dussehra post in 2020. It was done on 26th of October. I could see how the event was reported by reading that post.
  2. It’s a lunar year since that day. I didn’t go out to attend the event of burning of Ravana (antagonist of epic Ramayana) effigy in stadium this year. I saw that Ravana’s head was visible from the roof of this house.
  3. Compared to the last year I spent almost no money this year. Lockdowns and pandemic were big events. I didn’t go for long walks. I didn’t even publish much on this blog.
  4. To say that this year passed by smoothly would be inaccurate. One of the AI chatbots asked me about the most meaningful events this year: I replied that there were no such events which left any impressions on me. My memory is like a blank slate : without any impressions of events.
  5. I learnt to solve Sudoku puzzles this year. Watched classic movies which have been restored to color. That’s all!

Grand Success!

1. It was the only public event in which I participated in the year 2020. It was a grand success.

2. Yesterday evening: someone working on lighting told me that it was supposed to finish within one hour: 6 to 7. It actually finished by about 8:30. Which means a ninety minutes lag. It was enjoyable.

3. There were at least one thousand people. There were stalls for momos, popcorn, icecream both inside and outside the stadium.

4. There was a water tanker on the Eastern entrance.

5. The organization was done by Ramlila committee Galla Mandi. The head of the committee was apologizing for lack of arrangements : it surprised me because I felt it was almost perfect.

6. Music was excellent.

7. Acting was top notch: especially by the actor playing Ravana: a veteran. His ability to laugh a devilish laugh comes with great practice.

8. Police was alert like municipal corporation workers. I felt for the first time to be in a public place without being cornered. It might be because I have been visiting stadium for about two months since it opened.

9. I was feeling low when I woke up in noon. Attending this mega event, taking pictures, bowling and having some salty popcorns and momos made me feel much better. I may say that I never felt better in public this year. I am absolutely healthy.

10. The event was an entertainment event. I spent 50 rupees within one evening: which is way too much if you look at my income: one thousand rupees per month. I need to buy milk and bread everyday to stay fit and healthy: which cost nine hundred rupees per month. I hardly have money for getting my mobile recharge vouchers. This is: when I have earnestly tried to coach students in English and Grammar for about a year. Whoever said that you get work if you’re sincere : might be wrong. It doesn’t work that way.

11. The event will be etched in my 2020 memory: along with the Chelpa bird, Vallalar, Narayan Vaasudev, Gandhi Smarak Bhavan library, Vrijpura walks and Blogger’s World author access regained. I have gained more than I lost but without assurance of future.

12. I have no doubt about being immortal. No doubts about having travelled in time. No doubts about being widely popular (infamous.) I was given a terma by Padmasambhava which I completed by 2020. I have a better understanding of unity of material and spiritual worlds. Though I clearly fathom why death, fear and sex are taboos: like left hand tantric rituals: I can’t fully reveal them to many people without first selling my soul to governors of this universe. Which also gives me freedom: to be free from having violated any teacher’s injunctions in past, present and future. Only the most deserving can gain access to the hall of gnosis and bliss.

13. I regained the shape and strength after a decade of trial and error but the ugly face of documents being controlling devices by family, cabals, companies and governments was revealed with full effect this solar year. I was trained to be a man of letters and then renunciation of a peculiar kind took away from me all the basic necessities. Most of my teachers were people who were well off and took a great deal of support from people in government or aristocracy. I took only the needful. None of my teachers, perhaps with an exception of Kabir could live as humbly as I did. This doesn’t mean that there aren’t people around me living more humbly: but means that my spiritual teachers who had a published body of works were all well off.

14. I had to borrow another 100 rupees from Vandana. I have to now pay 300 by the first of November plus I need to buy a new earphone as this one has one of its plugs dysfunctional. The size of the Oppo A53 model earplugs was way too much for my ears : why?

Kingfisher!

1. I had some sleep using white noise.

Face of Ravana: 10th head is mule!
Torso of Ravana!
Legs of Ravana! Crackers!

2. I used to see Kingfisher on Dussehra. One of the granduncles used to show the importance early morning. I had been going on walks in August and September but here I have been working on bowling inside stadium and didn’t observe any kingfishers. Today morning: as I was relaxing after having bowled: a kingfisher was spotted. What are the odds? Divine.

3. Air is getting cold. You need some caution regarding water and air consumption. I read Laladyad’s verses for my student. The poet from Kashmir was said to be one of the very few ladies like Meera who attained perfect enlightenment and sang verses. I did ask her whether she found verses by Kabir to be more effective and she agreed. Kabir was prolific: like Tulsi and Shoor.