कविता - "कहाँ हो कृष्ण"

कमल सों पुलकित तुम्हरे नैना,

मन को इन नैनं में चैना।

मुरली से जब स्वर रस निकले,

कृष्णं-वन्दम सृष्टि करे तब।

जग-जग माटी, पग-पग पाथर,

कैसे निकलूं चक्र से बाहर?

जो तुम अपनी दृष्टि बिखेरो,

द्वार खुलें सब, जागे ये मन।

धर्म से कर्म के पुल हैं गिरधर,

मानस पे अंकित मुरलीधर।

प्रेम से तत्व का ज्ञान दिलाते,

कृष्ण सभी को राह दिखाते।

युग-युग आकर, कण-कण छूकर,

कृष कर दो मन के सब अंतर।

सब रंग तुमसे, सब रस तुमसे,

स्वयं से निर्मल, तुम्हीं हो भगवन।

कहाँ हो कृष्ण, कहाँ हो गिरधर ?

Rant-ology (Chapter 2: Root or Route? )

Big Bang Theory. 
A widely accepted scientific theory about the age of Universe and its being. I don't want to delve into the nitty-gritty of it. I assume most of us have a common knowledge of this idea and anyways I am not an expert on it by any means. Basically, the bang refers to an explosion from a very hot dense state into the known universe today. It is still expanding. Galaxies are moving farther away from each other - they used to be closer - may be in a cluster near the beginning. Much like human families in the beginning.
What are my roots? Or should I ask what was my route? Or which one matters the most? The root I belong to or the route I took? My grandfather wrote a book. It was a compilation of family tree records of the clan I belong to. He may be back tracked the family tree 200 years - may be 300 - I can't be sure. He couldn't find any specific information past a certain point which directly relates to my caste. I wonder if he would have  been able to go past that point - where would it lead him to? Also, at the same time if someone else was doing the same thing somewhere else - backtracking the family history - if he or she would go past a certain point - would they coincide with my grandfather's search somewhere? Like the picture shown above? That means - at some point - both the individuals are searching for a common ancestor - a humanoid. Its not that simple however. You see,  we just ignore this scale of time and just live in our little bubble of existence and the history of our making. We are unable to extend our vision further to that point, where no concoction of our own musings about ourselves mattered. Whatever roots I belong to does not change the fact that I am human and my species came into existence some 2.3 million years ago in the form of a homo habilis.
I've heard this statement many times - "go back to your roots" - which suggests that I must know where I have come from. I respect that - but how far should I go back? Technically, my quest towards my roots will matter only until the point it is related to my current age, belief system, rituals and family ties. Any further beyond that point is a moot point. Is that a fair quest though? What is the need of such a quest which just re-confirms my present? The only real need is to tell the story of the route my family took. The question shouldn't be, "from where?" - it should be: "through where?". The route is the interesting point and we should keep on telling that story. Incidentally, the most interesting part of my grandfather's book was towards the end - past all the various family trees - where he laid out the different rituals, remedies, festivals and other stories about our caste. Those stories gives us an idea of the changes we have gone through in past ages. It tells us what our belief system used to be and how much of that is still applicable or obsolete. Based upon that we can somewhat determine what we will be in the future - by using the information of the route we took and our reactions and behavior towards it.

Bird's View: Universe is expanding - its reaching newer distances and finding newer realities. It never looks back - just keeps on going forward - in a quest of something new. New - which is present - and real.

Rant-ology (Chapter 1 - Universe)

This is Jupiter. The biggest planet of our solar system. I remember this image of Jupiter since my childhood. I remember the big red dot of Jupiter. My new-found love of astronomy has led me to the knowledge that the red dot showing on Jupiter is a storm that has been brewing since 300 years now. Now, I don't know how  300 years feel like. I don't even know how a 100 or even 50 years feel like. I will shortly experience 30 years though.

However, this gives me some perspective about time and its scale. For me, my childhood feels like millions of years ago and my youth slipping from my fingers - this is how I perceive time. This does not change the fact about Jupiter and its eternal storm. I am nothing but a split second when marked on Jupiter's scale of time, although, I still have time - may be another split second on Jupiter's scale. While Jupiter laughs at my puny existence - there are much bigger beasts in the visible universe which belittle its own scale of time and size. There are bigger and much humongous events taking place in this Universe while we cry, laugh, fight and enjoy our split seconds - and worse - don't live them completely.

One of the nearest galaxy to our Milky way is Andromeda. It is approximately 2.5 million light years away from our galaxy. A light year being the distance traveled by light in a year. Light whose speed is 186, 000 miles per second. The farthest I have been away from my home is Canada - where I live right now, which is a mere distance of 6924 miles. I feel light years away from home-on my scale of distance. People get home sick very easily and very quickly. What is the definition of home though? Is it my country? My province? My city? My colony or my actual home of brick and mortar? Or is it this planet? Or the solar system? Or our galaxy? In my remaining life - or the split second that I am living - even if by some miracle I happen to become an astronaut - I am pretty sure I won't be able to go to Mars. My scale of time won't allow it because it lacks in size when compared to the scale of time of human advancements in astronomy and inter planetary travel. I will die for sure before we are able to send a human to another planet. At the least I will be very old - old enough to fancy that kind of travel. However, it will be a shame if by the end of my existence, I am not able to travel the planet I live in.

Bird's view: Anything that we do and achieve - or we are not able to do or achieve is not worth losing the perspective. The perspective that gives us a better understanding of reality and control over action. It lets us have the rendezvous with truth. 

Truth - the ultimate god.