Our friend - the sparrow

Every morning, at around 8, we have this tiny visitor who drops by to say hello. The little guy is almost punctual every day. He would fly onto the window sill and spend sometime trying to converse with us ... fearless and extroverted, unlike his fellows! Over the time, we started leaving crumbs of biscuits and a little bit of water for this little fella and he made visiting our house, his routine. Our friendship continues...

A while ago,I came across an article that listed the common house sparrow as a soon-to-be endangered species and requested its readers to do their bit in preventing it.Discovering that the sparrow would very soon join the list of endangered species was horrifying. Where are we headed? Rapid deforestation - ruthless felling of trees to expand roads, to create new infrastructure, to build extra luxurious apartments,office,commercial spaces meant very minimal greenery around. The result? Well, drive the most common bird, close to extinction!!
Is man becoming so selfish that he thinks he can very well do away with the other species? Isn't there beauty in balance? Thats what Nature teaches us,doesn't it? Then why are we so overwhelmingly selfish? Why are we bent upon protecting and nurturing just our own species, at the cost of everything else?.....
How would it feel if our kids would have to visit a zoo to get a glance of say a sparrow, cow, goat or a crow! - all them which we could so easily spot around us while growing up?! Think about it...
Habitat loss is a major reason that is driving many species towards extinction. We can do our bit in protecting and nurturing our environment by planting more trees and protecting the existing ones.

Nine nights

Brightly decked up shops screaming out 'SALE' , streets filled with incense fragrance, exotically decorated pandals at every community park and a slight nip in the air - this is the charm October brings in. Come October, one of the biggest Hindu festive season sets in - Navratri followed by Diwali. Navratri (Nine nights, literally) has a special place in my heart. The kind of cheer and happiness this festival spreads - one has to experience it, to truly adore it.

While in school, Navratri meant 10 days of break from waking up at 6 a.m. every morning. It also meant shopping, new clothes, visiting friends , eating delicious food everyday in the name of God. The meaning more or less remained the same to me over the years, except that the 10 day breaks are replaced by a long weekend. An article I stumbled upon recently, threw open a different perspective on Navratri.While reading the article, I told myself to blog about it without fail. So here goes! A few excerpts from the article: Navratri is observed to celebrate the victory of spirit over inertia,pride,shame,craving and aversion. The first 3 days of Navratri are attributed to 'tamo guna',signifying depression,fear and emotional instability; the second three to 'rajo guna' characterised by anxiety and feverishness and the last three days to 'sattva guna' that pertains to calm, peace and dynamism. Though Navratri is celebrated as the victory of good over evil, the actual fight is not between good and evil.It is the victory of spirit over inertia and negative tendencies... Navratri is the time to reflect on and renew the inner depth of our lives. I shall leave you with that. May the true meaning of Navratri sink in and may we all rediscover a humbler and more peaceful side in us. Dussera Subhakanshalu!