Churning the Ocean

The devas and asuras were in desperate pursuit of the elixir of immortality. They discovered that the amrita could be obtained only by churning the cosmic milky ocean. To accomplish this, they chose Mount Mandara as the churning rod and the great serpent Vasuki as the rope. The asuras held Vasuki’s head, while the devas took his tail. To support the mountain and prevent it from sinking, Lord Vishnu assumed the Kurma (tortoise) avatar, holding the mountain on his mighty back.

As the churning grew intense, Vasuki could not bear the strain and released a deadly poison known as Halahala. The venom threatened to destroy the entire universe. In his compassion, Lord Shiva consumed the poison to protect all beings, while Goddess Parvati gently held it in his throat, turning it blue. Eventually, amrita—the nectar of immortality—emerged. When the devas and asuras fought over it, Lord Vishnu appeared again in the form of the enchanting Mohini and skillfully distributed the nectar only to the devas.

This timeless story holds a powerful message for our modern lives. Lord Vishnu, though capable of performing miracles, chose to involve both devas and asuras in the process. He could have achieved the result through his own avatars, but instead, he allowed the opposing forces to work together toward a shared goal. It reminds us that even in conflict, cooperation can exist. Real progress often requires the participation of contrasting energies.

In our daily lives, we too face challenges and people who seem to obstruct our plans. We label them as hurdles or even enemies, focusing our energy on resisting them. But if we view them as part of the process—forces that help refine our purpose—we can work with greater calm and clarity. Just as churning requires both push and pull, our efforts toward any meaningful goal involve a natural back-and-forth. Through this dynamic tension, the amrita of wisdom and success eventually surfaces.

A Journey to Inner Peace

 A Journey to Inner Peace explores the art of living a balanced, harmonious life amidst daily challenges. The book delves into understanding emotions, managing stress, and fostering meaningful relationships while offering practical insights and actionable tips. Drawing from psychological principles, real-life experiences, and timeless wisdom, it guides readers toward self-awareness and emotional resilience. With relatable anecdotes and thought-provoking exercises, it empowers individuals to overcome life's hurdles and rediscover calmness. Whether you're seeking personal growth or simply striving for a more peaceful existence, this book serves as a compass for navigating the complexities of modern life with grace and clarity.

The book is available at https://www.flipkart.com/journey-inner-peace-tranquility-guide/p/itmac7bac57e4af9?pid=9789334208931

Stay in Your Comfort Zone

 Stay in Your Comfort Zone by Jeya Balaji challenges the popular notion that success lies outside your comfort zone. This insightful self-help book explores the value of embracing your comfort zone as a place of happiness, security, and inner strength. Drawing inspiration from thought-provoking anecdotes like the Mexican Fisherman parable and Diogenes' wisdom, the book offers practical advice on navigating risks, avoiding unnecessary struggles, and finding fulfillment in simplicity. Written from an introvert's perspective, it advocates for calm reflection and strategic action to expand one’s potential without succumbing to societal pressures. A refreshing take on personal growth and contentment!

You can find the book at https://www.flipkart.com/stay-your-comfort-zone-finding-peace-familiar-places/p/itmb1513f1760ef7?pid=9789353510961

Virus

Year 2050 AD

Yesterday I started feeling strange things at house.  The microwave burnt the food, thou I set the right timing.  Couple of light bulbs are glowing dim.  Today the bathroom shower was focused towards bedroom, beds got drenched.  Even the medicine cabinet got shuffled.

I think all these things started after my son downloaded a game in the TV.  Some malware got into the home activity system. 
I don't want to call the VET(virus eradicating team).  They will seal off the house to prevent contaminating other houses.  Instead let me check if my son can fix the problem.

Hope nothing worse happens.  This is the problem connecting everything online.

a farmer's suicide

I am a farmer owning a fertile land portion near a river. I remember good times when the crop yield was high and generating surplus money. Gone are those days. We, farmers, started using fertilizers and ended up with corrupt land. We spoiled the fertility with chemicals and now suffering from surprising results.

The city used to be a distance place and we had our own undisturbed life. These days the city is sprawling out of proportion and had grown very near to us. Soon it will gulp our little village. The cost of village has already started growing up. Our life style seem to modernize and improve with city air, but that is leaving a gloomy heart at the end. Even the crops, land and water are turning impure, pollination has reduced.

I had to spray chemical bottles thrice a season. Each bottle costed me Rs 300. The seed cost, preparation, labour etc ran into few thousands. The money used to be on rotation. Borrow the money from the merchant and sell the cultivated crop back to him. Good yield goes through smooth. However, difficult times like now is what mounting stress at many points.

I contemplated on selling off the land and settling the few thousand outstanding. However with improper title records, complexities of selling agricultural land, bureaucracy etc stopped me from attempting that.

I cannot hold any more. This is too much for a tiny man - to face the gigantic problems, stir through the trouble, reach a safe harbour - no, I dont think I can do. I had decided to put a stop this flow; it is just like cultivation .. you grow the crop and cut it when rip. I see my life like that. Only that I feel like going towards rotten state. Let me reap myself.

Oh river! you had breathed life into the crops year after years, generation after generation. You had given life to all of us. In return I could give only by swollen body. Be kind to shovel it off to the shores.

The water flow is calm but strong at this time of the year. I am standing at the brink of a small bridge. Last thing I want to do is pray good for my family. Let them flourish with whatever support they could get.

A car from the city stopped by on the side of the road. Had someone seen me at stopping to help me out? No, nobody is shouting or rushing. A man in thick suite got out of the car and moved towards the edge of the bridge. He dragged his heavy frame of body over the bridge railings. That is the time he saw me. I could sense his feelings through his eyes. The same destructive forces. There was a stillness in the air. He slowly started the conversation and enquired about me. I told my situation in short and asked about him.

He: I am a businessman. Thought of givings up my life due to recent transactions.

Me: Lot of loss?

He: No, it should be a profit.

Me: How much?

He: Petty. Should be near 15 million.

Me: WTF?!!! Then why?

He: Well, it is not the kind of money I used to make. These days I am doing bad enough to get into deep depression.

I started walking back to my home.

Thank god, got the long awaited government job

That is the title of the story.

Story:
14th Aug 1947 11am IST

Modern life

Delhi was chilling by the Sunday early morning fog. Grandma was shiveringly waiting at the bus stop. A skoda car skid through the wet road and stopped in front of her. Grandma was glad her grandson, Aditya, came on time to pick her. She had quite a good amount of luggage from the far off village, mainly eatables for Aditya's family. Also as this is her first trip to the metro, she had equipped herself with enough clothing to sustain winter climate.

Aditya and the car gave a warm welcome to the guest and they were on their way to home. Aditya's home is a mini villa tucked in a quite corner of the city. Few minutes of distance from the buzzing main road gives them enough silence amidst the crowd. An architect designed compact house with all essential features and tipping towards luxury.

Aditya's wife Sinu received them well. Thou married for 5 months, she had interacted with Aditya's relatives over phone and jelled nicely with them. Sinu took grandma to guest room and showed her the house. Breakfast was ready in short while and they were enjoying the day.

Grandma was quite comfortable in two day stay and got to know much about the new member of her family. One thing started bothering grandma in her visit. The bedroom. She happen to notice that Aditya and Sinu happen to come out of different rooms in the morning. Aren't they sleeping together?!! This was a shock and worried if there is a drift between the newly married couple.

Thou an experienced women, grandma was hesitant to raise the matter to the city girl. She was afraid of the repercussion of a straight talk. However she couldn't take the matter lightly. Things were bothering and clouding in her mind.

As she was helping Sinu in the kitchen (when Adi was not around), slowly grandma brought up her doubt. She politely asked without being nosey, to find why they sleep in separate bedroom. Sinu burst out a spontaneous laugh upon hearing grandma's disturbing question. She controlled her laughter and answered to puzzled grandma, "No ma, there is no friction between us; except that I need a bed lamp while sleeping and Adi want pitch dark room, he cant sleep with light. So, when we feel really sleepy, he goes to the other room!". Grandma responded with a relief, embarrassingly smile.

Retreat

The revenge of the nomad
Chapter 3. Retreat

Ramraj slowly healed out of the trauma. Took months for him to move around. All emotional feelings had died away from him. He became analytical and view his life from different perspective. He realized someone with muscle power is going to dominate. At the same time, he can sharpen his intellect to overcome the physical forces.

With that in mind, he schemed a master plan. As a first step, he wanted to eliminate Mr Rao's right hand, Das. Das is the brain of Mr Rao. Rao consults him for all activities and executes his task thru Das.

Ramraj started to observe Das's routine. Instead of trying to bring down Das by himself, Ramraj was passing the information to Rao's arch-rival. Weak moments of Das were studied and on a chosen day, men surrounded Das to hack him down.

The arch-rival, Mr Valliesh, was happy to hear about this. As per his estimate, Mr Rao would soon fall apart from his business empire.

Mr Rao was also analyzing the events. He happen to know that Ramraj had helped Valliesh.

Ramraj expecting trouble, travelled to a far place.

End of chapter 3 out of 7.

To be continued.

The land shark

The revenge of the nomad
Chapter 2. The land shark

Cacophony Rao is the villain of the story. He got his title for his loud and shrill voice. People are fearful to face his screaming shout more than his violent behavior. His family owns enormous wealth. In fact, most of Vijapura city belongs to them. Among multiple business they do, they are famous for real estate. Mr Rao make profit out of layouting land and selling for a margin. He also pockets out of forgery and threatening people to transfer their land. Our hero, Ramaraj, had bought a site from Mr Rao. After five years, this particular layout had appreciated a lot. Mr Rao couldn't digest the fact that his layout is no more with him and it is valued high. He started with usual way of bringing muscle power and trying to retrieve the land back from the purchasers. He was willing to pay them back the money they had given 5 years back.

Obviously site owners were unhappy. They protested, without much use. Many gave off the site fearing the consequences. Few people like Ramdas were trying to save their valuable. They can never acquire a site as the land price had raised up beyond reach. Their only chance is to hold on to what they have.

In order to clear off the problem, Mr Rao applied the ultimate weapon. He choose one of the protesters and made a hit. Alas, it happened to be Ramraj. Ten or fifteen gundaas came to Ramraj house in the mid night. They smashed opened the house and hit the couples with heavy iron and sticks. The attack went on for 30 minutes and both suffered a major injury. Neighbours dare not to intervene, they called for the police after the tough guys left the place.
Seethalakshmi couldnt bear the beatings and she breath her last on the way to hospital. Ramraj had to be administered in the hospital for months and slowly his body parts recovered.

Did police took action? Nope, Mr Rao took care of the matter through money. Beyond that his brother, Karan Rao, is an influential politician. None of the government bodies function beyond Karan's power, atleast in the Vijayapura vicinity.

continued.

Joyful life

The revenge of the nomad
Chapter 1. Joyful life

Ramaraj, our hero, has an ideal life. He is employed as a manager in a paper mill. His wife, Seethalakshmi, works as a clerk in a central government department. They lead a happy life; in fact they are expecting a baby in few months. Financially they are sound. Out of their small income, they purchased a piece of land away from the city. After five years of purchase, now that the city had grown and the area is developing good. Ram and Seetha are slowly thinking about constructing a dream house there.

All seem to be going good. Peace before the storm? Let us see.

continued.

Bad dreams

It was a lazy, fine Sunday morning. One could feel the freshness, the slow change in color & hue, the chirping of the birds, silence of the morning. It was a nice morning, except for a bad dream I had minutes ago. Still didn't come out the dream+sleep state. I looked at my wife who was still at sleep and about to get up. Slowly I woke her up.

It is our habit of narrating each other's dream. I started telling about the dream where I was chased by a man. While running, I saw my wife shopping on the road side. I pulled her and started running with her.

While talking about this dream, suddenly my wife's face turned pale. She was frightened to the core. I asked her if she is fine; she still couldn't speak. I got a glass of water for her (rare moments). After sipping it she slowly gained herself and with a shaky voice asked, if that was a fruit stall where she was standing by. It was a shock for me! Yes, indeed it was. The dream was etched into my mind and quite clear to play back.

Now she continued the narration. We both ran couple of streets and found ourself surrounded by goons. Yeap, just like movie style. They were pulling out weapons and that is the time I woke up. My wife also got the same dream and woke up at the same point.

What a coincidence! Can there be a meaning to it? Is this a prophecy? To be on a safer side, we thought of not going out for few days, particularly towards the market area. Even then we couldn't come out of spooky incident. Googling gave few cases reported by people but none was authenticate.

Luckily we have a neighbor who is a psychoanalyst. She is our family friend and we move along well. We checked when she will be free and thought of talking out with her. Once we met, we both explained our experience and sounded our concern with such freaky dream. We could see a smile coming out of her. She apologized for what she was trying out. As part of her research, she was working on a alpha ray generator. The project aims at studying the ray's influence on dream. Seems like she can play a particular frequency through the player she has and expect people to react within the range. As the concept is still under study, she didn't reveal more. I asked about the side-effects and health hazards. So far no complains ...

While coming back, I requested her to play some romantic frequencies here after.

PS: this is my first attempt on a short story :-)