Forgiveness

It is not easy to forgive. Forgiveness takes time. And not everyone is capable of truly forgiving - It is a virtue of the noble. Even if you forgive, the karmic law operates relentlessly. Ask the ant that was once Indra.

Chinese Fire Dragon 1976

Dragons are the most eccentric in the Chinese Zodiac. Soaring high into the serene heavens, they can be stubborn, passionate, excitable, honest, and brave, wear purple and walk barefoot in public fountains. They listen to their own drummer, thank you very much, while the rest of the world stands in amazement. People always admire their individuality and feisty personality. Dragons are capable of doing great work for mankind and they inspire trust in almost everyone. The Dragon symbolizes life and growth and is said to bring the five blessings: harmony, virtue, riches, fulfillment and longevity. Chicken Soup and Bamboo Shoots are among keys to even greater good health ! 

Downright electrifying, Fire Dragons breathe vigor and power. These natural leaders smile at adversity, turn complainers into optimists, and lead lives as inspired as a Beethoven Sonata. They are square shooters in dealing with individuals and are often called upon to mediate disputes. Because they care so much about people, Fire Dragons like to support charitable causes and bring friends together for elegant evening soirees. These Dragons are fired with ambition, unflagging enthusiasm, and intelligence and enjoy most impressive careers as a result. Despite all the money they make, Finance is a big question mark. Money is easy come easy go. Until they control their spending habits, money will just go flying in the wind. Romantics at heart, Fire Dragons can't help playing Matchmaker. They're pretty lucky, too! As for themselves, they ooze charisma and never need anyone to fix them up. Successful in love, often placed on pedestals, Fire Dragons are attractive and have fire in the belly. The opposite sex feels very secure.

A child is born blind,

to the ways of mankind

Hope...Tatiness Incarnate & A Royal Wedding

Random notes from a seaside town :

"We all start our lives with scruffy furniture" - a former landlady had once told me. Some are condemned to live with it and lead complicated lives. Count the number of Eddie Stobart trucks they spot in their lives. And listen to the old car guzzle gas by the gallon. And get used to semi-sympathetic looks when loading the trolley with bottom-shelf cans. And rub shoulders with lap dancers, ex-plumbers and multiparous thirty somethings at the job center waiting for the fortnightly sign-off. And take pride in saving money buying used designer apparel at the charities. And use Peruvian banana skin to shine suede shoes for an interview whose outcome is a bygone conclusion. Then come back and read 'History of the Future'. And learn to live with the "This is embarrassing" page than risk a rip-off. Talking of unequal distribution of wealth - during the run up to the royal wedding, someone commented that all the kingdom's tax-payers were cordially invited. What a beautiful thought ! Marx would have stirred in his London grave at the ostentatious display of wealth, his seminal work lost in translation. I had no plans to hang by a lamppost in union jack boxers just yet. Half-a-million public jobs to be axed as a result of largest ever spending cuts since WWII is not a reason to be merry for us commoners. But there is something so reassuring about the sound of the kettle.


Contemporary wisdom says that to keep life reasonably fluid, men must keep 3 things in top nick - wives , computers and cars. With them three occupied, insured and oiled, you are pretty much sorted. An ozzie friend leading a colorful life claims to exploit 'loop holes' in female psychology and insisted that i download gigabytes (of theory and techniques) on his love guru's work. Ever persuasive, he turned up at my door with a memory stick expecting distressed vowels to emanate the following nights. Its been months since and i have never gotten myself down to reading it, never mind that the work's never been 'field-tested' under desi conditions ! The thought of not being myself doesn't gel with me. I have been toying with the idea of a new Freudian stage that he perhaps overlooked, and i want to call it "Sexuality v Spirituality". Maybe Freud called it something else, or maybe he was an atheist. Rubbished by the stalwarts, his largely rejected work does leave a void to be filled. Maybe my 2 cents fit in here and of course, i am a nobody in the field. If two abstract concepts have ever been so mutually exclusive yet so all-pervading, its these. The sexual excitement induced naughty thought bubbles are believed to obstruct the cosmic grace that God showers equally on us all. Hence the proponents of a 'thoughtless' state lobby for a thought-free (yet mindful) existence to fully harness God's love, enhance virtues and hasten spiritual evolution. Not as easy as making gluten-free crispies.