My Prayer Today

Thank u God for all your blessings,
Blessed am I- to be  a particle of Your Divine light,
 A droplet in Your Vast Ocean of Love,
A part of Your Divine treasure of bliss,
To be born in a family where every member is
A unique powerhouse of understanding n creativity,
To have a life partner so loving ,supportive n inspiring
A beautiful home which has the Divine presence
 n peace of a temple;
Children who are more beautiful,loving,
and fragrant than any other flower in the world;
And  friends who are the most beautiful human beings-
loving,understanding and a constant source
of happiness n inspiration;
What more does one want in one's journey
 backward  towards one's real home?
There have been a few persons in my life too
who did not seem as kind as others n
did not accept my love ,
but now I know I must have sought
to be a forgiving individual and You 
provided me that  opportunity,
I am grateful to You for this kindness;
I seek  from You ,oh Lord , forgive me
If I have ever hurt anyone through thought ,word or deed.

Today my prayer to You is-Please
make me an instrument of. 

 Your light,bliss,love,peace and goodness 

To flow through  me.

-@ Sudesh Prakash 

Inspiring people

In our life we come across a vast variety of human beings , each individual being unique connects,impacts or contributes differently in our life.Those who inspire us leave a distinct mark and stand out on the  vast canvas of life.
When we saw the movie Anand, it touched us,made us cry but somewhere it made us reflect and inspire
also to fight the battle against disease  and death strongly,courageously ,coolly n as happily as possible which is normally not seen .Generally the patient becomes so depressing that it is difficult to face him and whole atmosphere around him gets awfully pathetic and oppressive.It is difficult to believe that persons like Anand exist in real life too.
Last evening we went to visit my friend's place  to  see her  elder brother Deepak Tandan who  came back home after remaining in the hospital -I.C.U.,C.C.U for more than one and  a half months with multiple problems and there was no hope of his survival.He has been an asthmatic for a very long time and has been on steroids.He lost his wife long back and does not have any issue.Despite being lonely at heart he has been full of zest for life.  What sustained him through has been his love for urdu poetry .He has a vast treasure of  collection of rare gazals written in his beautiful handwriting,has been a regular visitor to Urdu academy Panchkula .very keen participant in Urdu Mushairas and academic discussions ; has been writing on various urdu poets and poetry in the newspapers also.
He suffered  a very serious asthmatic attack in December and was taken to the hospital where he was taken to I.C.U.Since he was not responding to treatment ,all medical tests had to be conducted including C.T.Scan.He was diagnosed to be having very low heart efficiency hence nothing could be done despite serious blockages.His lungs were very weak ,had serious infection in the lungs and he ,also, had prostrate cancer in a very aggressive stage.His condition was precarious  and life endangered.After one and a half month he had  been relieved from the hospital but had to be taken to the hospital for chemeotherapy every Monday.After four weeks his legs  have developed serious odema,he was finding it difficult to walk,he had  serious tremors in his hands and was finding it difficult to hold anything .
Despite all these problems and so much suffering he was as lively and cheerful as he had  always been .He gave a spirited account of his hospital experiences full of wit and humour ;and adding very apt couplets and urdu shers on life and death.There was not  an iota of depression in his tone and expression. The only regret he had was that he could not read nor write as was not able to hold a book or a pen.We felt  like saluting his spirit, we had seen  Anand in real life.We were sad when we went to see him but came back full of renewed energy  It is so rare to meet such inspiring beings who love every moment that life offers whatever way it is.

Reflections

As I reflect,I believe that
Our love has been like a river,
Flowing silently,moving forward;
Making its way through hard rocks,
And stumbling blocks,
Without any demands or expectations;
Enabling us to meet all the challenges,
Battle situations and wade through
Rough waters with dignity;

As we sit in the cozy corner
Of our sweet home-relaxed and fulfilled,
Facing the challenge of old age,
with faculties slowing down and
Energies waning;I am sure
That the river of our love
Shall continue to sustain and nourish  us
With its sublime serenity
till the river of life
Flows into the
Ocean of eternity.
Sudesh Prakash(C)
On our 40th wedding anniversary -Sep.2011

Call of a female foetus

Now that you know
That I am a girl,
You are going for foeticide?
Do not do it mom,
Do not do it Dad,
Do not do it Doctor;
When you kill me
You kill the human being in you,
You kill the Creater
Who manifests himself through us;

When the life-givers turn into the killers
humanity gets a set back,
Demonic forces come to the fore,
Giving rise to violence,hatred,
Crime and disharmony;And today
That is what you see around;

God made man and woman
for each other,
Gifting both with powers
that are complementary
In such a balanced way that
Together we have created
Such a wonderful civilization ,
For which even God must be proud of;
Since the time we were created
Did we not battle all the situations
marching ahead together hand in hand
In perfect  love and  understanding?
Did I ever remain behind ,indifferent or
apathetic in any of the struggles of life?

We have always been a source of
love,inspiration and strength
To each other ;
We  both know that love ,peace
And understanding are essential to
Sustain and nourish life ;

So where have the things gone wrong?
I am not worried about me,
I will come back in some other form,
But you will live with guilt,
Always a sinner,never at peace;

Do You  understand
Mom,Dad , Doc.and all of you
Indulging in this crime;
The disharmony being created
Will perish the society;

We must learn to live together
In harmony
With love and understanding;
Or we perish together like fools.
-Sudesh Prakash (C)

Railbandhu-a fulfilling experience

We all find trains very fascinating and enjoy the journey  as it is far more comfortable than all modes of transport.I have always loved travelling by trains.It makes you reflective,seems like life's journey.Only if we could learn how to transcend the pleasure of meeting and pain of parting how easy life would  be!Only if we just become witness to all the passing events n activities of life as we do during the journey how comfortable life would be without any complexities n complication which result from our participation!
I love travelling by Shatabadi Express between Chandigarh and New Delhi which takes just three hours fifteen minutes during which half the time you are busy with snacks,tea,coffee/meals etc. which are served.
Last evening my journey started as usual.As I was alone I started reading the newspaper to keep myself busy and spent about half an hour reading useless news and articles of no substance  which is  common these days and leaves us with an insipid taste.
In my quest to find something else to read I laid my hands on a magazine captioned ' Railbandhu' which had been lying at the back of the seat in front of me.It was Jan2012 issue,published by Indian Railways  .While scanning the pages I was surprised to find it as one of the most interesting magazines I had ever read and it did not allow me to lay my eyes off it till the end of my journey.It contained a wide variety of very interesting ,informative,refreshing,beautifully   and aesthetically presented articles  with lovely photographs.
Two articles on Indian Railways related to two very prestigious trains- one The Punjab Mail and the other The Dibrugarh-Kanyakumari.The Punjab Mail  completes 100 years in 2012,it used to connect Bombay with Peshawer before partition - a distance of about 2500 kms and after partition connects Mumbai with Ferozpur in Punjab( about 1800 kms.).It started with steam Engine in 1912 but now runs on an electric engine . Railways' Tableau  represented this train  with the three different engines-steam,diesal.and electric  on the Republic Day this year.
The train connecting Dibrugarh with Kanya kumari is the longest more than3000kms and passes through a vast variety of relief features,cropping patterns and cultures.
Articles on hill resorts of western ghats,temple of south India,Beaches of south India,Indian Tiger,Skiing spots around Manali and cultural fairs and fests of India were equally enjoyable.
Many readers in the letter to the editor column had requested Indian Railways to make this  magazine  available on book shops  and online also so that all the interested   people can enjoy this treat.At present it is available only on Shatabadi Express and Rajdhani Express trains to be read by the passengers during the journey .I did not see anyone reading it in our compartment.
It was indeed a very fulfilling experience which uplifted my spirits.I wish it is made available to public.