A Little Note

My life is not as big as the car I drive or the mansion I live in or the jet that I might someday travel in. It is, instead, as big as the reach of my heart, as big as the smile I leave on someone else's face. As precious as the lives I touch. As kind as I am to the person who owes me nothing in return. As noble as the deed I do to the man who will never praise me for it. As significant as the difference I make to the world. 

What have I done in life, if all I did was to fulfill a duty? If I have done something worthy it is that compassionate gesture for that soul who did not see my face, who does not know my name and never will. It is that hand which pats that mute animal who longed for a loving touch more than a piece of stale bread. It is the nurturing of that sapling which craved a drop of water to survive. It is the quiet blessing of that blind man who needed a helping hand. It is the gratitude of that widow who needed a shoulder to cry on. It is that sacrifice which will forever remain unsung. 

For it is not public eulogies that I seek; what I seek is peace of mind. A content heart that knows its worth, knows that it has helped ease the world of a little pain. For like everything else I, too, am here for a little while. Before I know I, too, will be nothing but a memory. My material possessions will not define the life that was; it is how great a memory I become, that will.

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More Tales From Meg-O-Land

Certain things in life, inadvertently, evoke the same emotion(s) in me. No matter where or when these circumstances may surface or resurface. It's the exact set of feelings rushing back, each time. The case in question, at the moment, is examinations. I have loathed studying for exams right from the time I was a child. On professing this point of view aloud, many a time in the past, I was asked how else would one's progress be evaluated on the course being undertaken. No doubt it is a necessary evil and apparently the sole method of measuring a student's progress and all the other balderdash. I have, however, never quite made peace with the concept and the whole examination ecosystem. Studying per se does not annoy me. But something in my head just goes berserk when I have to study for a particular reason. I prefer to decide what I like to read, never be told what to. More often than not, I want to read/ study something other than what I am 'supposed' to at the given moment. 

Having spent a more than significant part of my life in the education arena - receiving it, so far - I still have the same issues with it that I had as a child in school. It was probably worse back then; but I still put up my examination schedule on a post-it strip on the wall, cross out each subject the minute I am back after the exam and feel the excitement increasing as soon as half the post-it is scratched out. Also, my day dreaming is at its peak while I try to study, the entire world's pending chores coax me to finish them right away, and I never cease to  plan what I will do the minute I finish writing the last darned exam - irrespective of the fact that I almost always never really execute those lofty plans. Surely, a part of me will never grow up.

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The Chord of Harmony

"Music expresses that which cannot be said and on which it is impossible to be silent. "
~
Victor Hugo

For the many things that I am thankful for having inherited from my parents, one is surely their taste in music - particular reference to Ghazals and Sufi music here. I was exposed to their culturally varied and rich taste in music at a very young age. My earliest memories of a typical Sunday afternoon in our household are not complete without the melodious voice of Jagjit Singh in the backdrop. Initially, I did not understand the intricacies and exact meaning of the Ghazals, but subconsciously developed a fondness for them. As I grew older, I began to fathom the meaning of the words and thus began appreciating them all the more. The only Urdu I know is thanks to the Ghazals I have given my ear to.  Eventually I developed my own sense of and taste in Ghazals and Sufi music. Two diverse genres, the former chronicling the melancholy of love and the latter praising the Lord and love with utmost gusto.

This is the kind of music I find solace in. It's the perfect remedy to soothe an agitated mind.  Most conducive for day dreaming and thus suits me fine! The more you dwell in it, the more it grows on you. In no time you will find it reverberating through your soul, leaving behind a strange lingering serenity. All said and done, this feeling is always better understood by a personal experience. So I will sign off with a list of my favourites in both genres. It may not be the finest pick - my father will be the best person to draw out a classier selection in Ghazals, and mother for the Sufi songs - but works for me, nevertheles. You will find ghazals, qawwalis and other sufi songs in multiple renditions.  Every artist moulds the words in his or her own distinct way; that is why I have mentioned the singers' names too, clearly to indicate the rendition I like. 

Ghazals

1. Sarakti jaye rukh se by Jagjit Singh
2. Humko dushman ki nigahon se by Chitra Singh
3. Kaise sukoon paaun by Talat Aziz
4. Kal chaudvin ki raat thi by Jagjit Singh
5. Ranjish hi sahi by Mehndi Hasan
6. Wo kagaz ki kashti by Jagjit Singh
7. Hazaron khwahishein by Jagjit SIngh
8. Jeevan kya hai  by Jagjit Singh
9. Desh mein nikla hoga chaand by Chitra & Jagjit Singh
10. Hoshwalon ko khabar kya by Jagjit Singh
11. Hothon se choo lo tum by Jagjit Singh
12. Badi nazuk hai ye manzil by Jagjit Singh
13. Tumko dekha to ye khayal aaya by Jagjit Singh
14. Chupke Chupke Raat Din by Ghulam Ali
15. Tum itna jo muskura rahe ho by Jagjit Singh

Sufi

1. Mast Qalandar by Runa Laila & Abida Parveen (separate tracks)
2. Ali More Angana by Shubha Mudgal
3. Chaap Tilak sab cheeni Sabri brothers and Abida Parveen (separate tracks)
4. Aaj rang hai by Abida Parveen & Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan
5. Tere Ishq Nachaya by Abida Parveen
6. Tere bin by Rabbi Shergill
7. Bulla ki jaana by Rabbi Shergill
8. Chaandan mein by Kailash Kher
9. Afreen Afreen by Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan
10. Khwaja mere khwaja by A R Rehman

Happy listening (if at all) !!

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