|| Swanta Sukhaya ||

Greetings! T'was a beautiful evening early in Fall season.  It seemed like the blue sky's got smitten by the splash of colors on leaves. I was still new to this place. I was still in awe of diners with their coffee aromas. Tranquil trails, with sporadic boards that warned about a mysterious but cute sounding Lyme disease, were yet to be trodden.  A friend of mine was driving me to a Jazz Cafe (for the very first time in my life). I had heard the magic of walking baseline and swing in Bollywood music before, but didn't know it was Jazz (yet). He asked me, have you ever heard Jazz. "..hmm... not sure..." was my answer. He smiled and just put in a cassette in his car's cassette player...      A guitar started strumming through the speakers... my mind had caught on the rhythm and the feet tapping with the walking baseline.  "...hmmm... the thrill is gone..." B.B. King's sonorous voice started wafting in and led me into the magical musical world of bl

Greetings! Here is an anecdote that made me think about an insidious infliction that affects humanity. A 'normal' shepherd is chatting with an 'educated' shepherd. Let's call them Norm and Ed. Norm: How many sheep do you have? Ed: White or Black? Norm: White? Ed: 50. By the way I have 50 Black sheep too. Wonder what you have against the Black sheep? Norm: But I asked about all the sheep? Ed: Oh! Did you? You just said, "White?" Norm: Hey Buddy, I don't have anything against any of the sheep. By the way, do you get enough wool ? Ed: From which one? White or Black? Norm: Black? (Thinking he won't repeat the mistake this time!) Ed: Well I get enough from Black ones. By the way I get enough from white ones too. Wonder why are you bent on exploiting the Black sheep for their wool? Norm: (Gives up) I call Ed's infliction as "False Dichotomy". This has been a cognitive conditioning for gullible ones, usually perpetuated by those with ulterio

Greetings! Shivaji Maharaj is one of the legendary Kings, hailed for his greatness all over the world. According to Prof. Narhar Kurundkar, the greatness of Shivaji Maharaj lies in his ability to inspire people to such an extent that not only the soldiers, but even a common man was ready to lay his life for the Swarajya (Independent Government) led by the great Shivaji Maharaj.  This great King was nurtured to greatness by his mother Jijamata. There was another mother who left an indelible mark on Shivaji Maharaj and inspired him. Her name was ‘Hirkani’ (the name means "A Sparkling Diamond Speck") Those hailing from the western state of Maharashtra in India are aware about the extra-ordinary story of Hirkani. For those who don’t know - here is a short version of the story. Shivaji Maharaj, who reigned the land as well hearts of people, was being coronated. The coronation ceremony needed a lot of milk. Hirkani was the mother of an infant and a milkm