Dee-Jholoo

Aala re Aala, Gopal aala

2006-07-05T21:54:00.000-07:00

June 24th, 2006

Hi,

The rains have been really coming down in this part of India. Gopal (my school friend) came over to Pune from Bombay the night before the day we would start our journey to re-discover our life with Jholoo. Jholoo wasn’t very happy when he heard that he would have one more lousy human being on its back. He grunted but then did he have a choice? I picked up Gopal at around 3 a.m. from the bus stop. He had a hectic 4 hours journey from Bombay to Pune after completing his day’s work. I quickly introduced Gopal to Jholoo and off we went to sleep as we had to start early on Saturday morning. I had also picked up a fresh book for this weekend. It’s about the oldest & the most precious legacy which India has and it claims that it is as relevant now as it has been before. It starts off with something like this “Take the example of a man who has everything, young, healthy, strong, good and cultured, with all the wealth the earth can offer; let us take this as one measure of joy. One hundred times that joy is the joy of gandharvas; but no less joy have those who are illumined”. The book is “The Upanishads”. It deals with the study of mind. It is not concerned with what are the results, when the mind and other senses are focused as a laser. Rather it is interested with the process of focusing a mind to attain a particular result. It also attempts to answer “What is life and death? What is the purpose of life? Does everything happen by chance or in an orderly fashion?” (Einstein used to think “God doesn’t play dice”) Hmmm… This sounds interesting but sounds a bit lofty too. How relevant would this be in today’s dog-eat-dog world? Am I too young to read this as I have always heard that such books are read only by the old or the wise! But somehow my soul has found some kind of solace while reading it. With the book in my arms, I dozed off waiting for an eventful day ahead (Yeah! Somehow I go off to sleep as soon as I have the book in my arms)

Pune was nice and easy in the morning when we rode off with Jholoo. The air was wet with the rains and the roads sparkling clean. Considering the changing weather and the increasing intensity of rains, we decided not to travel to Bombay. Instead we chose Khandala (Yes, it is the same place which Aamir Khan made it famous in his song “Aati Kya Khandala”). Khandala would be around 80 kms one way and we should be able to cover the distance within a day’s time if the rains don’t play a spoil-sport. As soon as we got on the highway, Gopal asked me if he could get into the drivers seat. I wasn’t very happy but then I said “What the heck? Gopal is my good ol’ school-friend and he would give Jholoo back to me in an hour or so”. Later I would discover that I would never get to ride Jholoo for that whole day! Gopal and Jholoo started to enjoy each other and drove pretty well. I haven’t seen better bike riders (Gopal and Ram are some of them). Most of the bikers looking at a 350 cc bike, would start speeding it up to 100 kms/ hour or so. However, Gopal kept Jholoo at around 40 km/ hour initially and we starting enjoying the drive & the greenery around us. The Sahyadri’s criss-cross in the western regions and we could see hundreds of mountains on the way. They had become green with the grass and trees dotting them because of the rains. It was a beautiful sight! Riding a bike in rains is more fun and pleasant for the eyes than most people think. It is a bit risky but overall I think it is a treat which no-one shouldn’t miss! And believe me, traveling on a bike and traveling in a car to such places are two things which are poles apart. The car ride is mostly dull whereas the bike ride is a very eventful affair as you are always one with the environment. I was finding myself more at peace just as I felt after reading the “The Upanishads”. The sages who wrote the Upanishads didn’t care to leave their names behind as they didn’t feel it was all that important. But these sages were from the fusion of the Aryan and Indus civilization. There are ten principle Upanishads which tell us about the reality underlying life which do not need any rituals, priests or any of the structures of organized religion for its realization.

Gopal has matured considerably. His receding hairline and the heavy look in his eyes bore testimony to that fact… :).. Either-ways I decided that I should relax and take a back-seat for a day as he took control of the things happening around us. The old Bombay-Pune highway was in pretty good shape and with the tar roads, the grip of the bike was good. We could soon see lot of village folks walking towards their work and children walking to school. Hearing Jholoo’s thumping noise, the children waved at us and I waived back at them. Gopal kept his hands on Jholoo and we reached Khandala within 2 hours. That was quick and we decided that it might be a good idea to visit Lohagad. We asked for directions from one of the country folks, who was more than happy to tell us. He was so enthusiastic as if he was imagining that he was himself traveling. That was nice. We bid him farewell and took off to Lohagad. My thoughts started swaying towards the teachings of the Upanishads. The interesting thing about it is the depth & that you can learn something more with each reading. It explained the big bang theory and the uncertainty principle 5000 years back! The fundamentals of space and time were also detailed out. And all these theories were only explained by eminent scientist in the 19th & 20th century. Phew!

On route, we stopped at a dhaba on the highway “Sunny da Dhaba”. Most of the dhabas normally, we had visualized, would be small part time affairs. However times have changed! This dhaba was quite up market with an ambience and service of a 5-star restaurant. It served liquor J and most of the types of cuisines. The food and service being excellent, we ate to our stomach’s fill. The girls were pretty too. A drive to Khandala and some nice food at one of these dhabas would be a refreshing change from the day-to-day routine city life. It was around 2 p.m. and we decided to drive back home as a trip to lohagad would now ensure that we wouldn’t return during day light. Instead we parked our bike on the highway, and trotted to a mountain which was a bit lonely and untouched by most of the people passing by. We could only see a cow gazing at the grass. We circled to the top of the mountain. The view was awesome. The neighboring mountains were looking heavy as they were covered with clouds. A Kodak moment! On our way down we discovered a few snake holes. Actually lots of them but we couldn’t see a single snake. Neither did we try hard looking for one! Good for us :) It started pouring down and our last pit stop for the day was a welding shop. We took shelter where a worker was toiling hard with metals and fire. Gopal looking at the sky said “The rains would pass out in an hour”. I looked up and couldn’t see much except for dark colored clouds. I wonder what is it that he looked at! But indeed, and not to my surprise, the rains stopped in about an hour’s time. Gopal is always good at such things. We drove back home (Pune) and were in time to catch a bus back to Bombay. In the evening we all friends would spend the nite doing barbeque and chit-chatting about life and the day’s events. We dozed off early as compared to Bombay standards. And as usual thoughts from the Upanishads would come to haunt me. A disciple asked a sage “Do I need to give up all worlds’ possessions in order to achieve immortality”? The sage replied “No, you don’t need to give up all these possessions, only give up the possessor”. I was happy to read the first half of the reply of the sage, but the second half has so much depth that I am still lost! The sage was none other than Gandhiji. I recently read in an article that Bill Gates and Warren Buffet, two of the richest people on earth would give away their entire wealth to the poor & needy. All these fundamentals form the essence of the Upanishads

With the heavy rains and so much food for thought, I think I am gonna take a break for a while from traveling and reading. I have picked up some comic books like Phantom, Mad, Peanut, Tintin and am gonna be enjoying them for a while. :)

So long! May the force be with us.

Yours,
Deepak

Anne, Hitler and Tanaji

2006-06-29T01:56:00.000-07:00

June 18^th, 2006

Howdy?

I got up a bit early in the morning with a slight fever as a result of a viral infection in the throat. But the call of the mountains within me was too great to resists. My bike hadn’t had a wash since weeks, so I decided it to clean it up first. As I was enjoying givin it a wash, I heard a voice behind my back “You need to clean the engine first!” I looked up and found a 45 year old guy (I guess he was cleaning his car and he came over after lookin at me washin my bike). He didn’t stop a second and started telling me everythin about the art of cleaning a bike that I need to get a brush to clean the tires. Then I need to get a spray so that I don’t have to clean the bike everyday. Mirrors are best cleaned up with newspapers. Seats need to be cleaned with wet cloth and he went on for 10 minutes or so. I was getting a bit annoyed but that’s the way it happens in India. Advice is for free and that too in generous doses! I shot back with a cloth in my hand “Sir would you be kind enough to demonstrate how do I clean the bike as it is my first time” and I looked at the bike after saying that. I didn’t hear any response and got a bit curious. I looked up and found that the guy was nowhere in sight! I looked around and wasn’t able to trace him. So long! Aaah, if only I knew this before I would have said it right at the beginning. Btw I have named my bike “Jholoo” as it does exactly the opposite of what I am hoping it to do. It pee’s the oil all over the place (I need to get that fixed) and drinks gallons of petrol as I have never fed it any food or water for days. And off-course the electronic start never works due to which I have to kick-start the 175 kgs gorilla most of the times!

Anne Frank as in her diary was a very high spirited and beautiful girl. She was just 14 when Germany declared war (World War II) on the allies (1942). Being a Jew, her rights were very much curtailed. Jews had to wear a band on their shoulder in order to distinguish them from others. They could get out of their homes and shop only in particular hours of the day. Restrictions were there on their work, way of living, clothes and everything actually! Atrocities against the Jews were rising as the war was progressing. Germans started taking Jews to labor camps and gas chambers where they were killed eventually. Anne’s family decided that it was time to get into hiding as it was too dangerous to stay in the open. They decided to get into a “Secret Annex” which was built under Anne’s father’s office. And her father’s business partner would help them out with food, water and other basic necessities. Anne took her clothes, some books and started living in this annex. This place had 4 rooms and was completely cut off from the outside world. Sunlight and fresh air would be luxuries for months too come. Gosh! Is this a horrible dream? I decided against lohagad (150 miles both ways) as it would be too exhausting for me considering my illness. Instead, I picked up on Sinhgad which is one of the closest forts from Pune. 75 miles to and fro. I packed some biscuits and a fruit with a bottle of water in my bag and off I was to Sinhgad. Tanaji, who had his loyalty to Shivaji, captured the forts against all odds. The quality of air was getting better, a sure sign that I was approaching the countryside. I was in high spirits and was of the view that the bike trek would be pretty easy considering my recent expedition to Mahabaleshwar. Even Anne started her life in the Secret Annex with a very high spirit and a very optimistic outlook. Little were we aware of the hardships and surprises’ which were stored ahead for both of us. Anne and I both were in love with life and wanted to discover the world.

The road to Sinhgad immediately became a one lane affair. Also as I was approaching the top, it became steeper and steeper. With lot of turns and the roads with a lot of pot holes (big ones!), I was quickly realizing how difficult it would be for me to get Jholoo to the top of the mountain. As I looked at the side, I could only see a deep valley. There was no protection. If I slipped, it wouldn’t be a very glorious farewell to jholoo and me. Aahhh! A thought ran across my mind “Have I got into something which is gonna be difficult to chew?” As Anne had spent around 6 months in the “Secret Annex” completely cut off from the outside world, it was getting a bit tough mentally as well as physically for her. She could only read books, learn languages and remember here good ol’ days (her first love, her first kiss). Sleep was a luxury due to the constant fear of getting caught and the sound of the bombs which were ticking off nearby. At the same time, she was also maturing with a new strength within her as it is for every girl who is on the crossroads of puberty and of becoming a woman. She also fell in love with one of the other fellow-mates living in the “Secret Annex”. With her high spirits and the love to live life even after death, she and her family among with 4 other people spent around 25 months in the “Secret Annex”! At times, she used to feel like running away in the need of freedom. However, the news from the radio constantly reminded her of the war and the atrocities of the Germans on Jews. Her best friend was her diary “Kitty”, who she used to religiously update.

“Thump”, Jholoo went into a pothole and sputtered to a stop. I tried starting Jholoo once again with the electronic start button but it refused to budge. The only option out was to kick-start it. I was stuck with a steep slope which made balancing the bike difficult while kick-starting it. Soon I could hear horns blaring from both the sides as this was only a single lane with jholoo & me right in between. I had to do something pretty quickly! I prayed to Jholoo, but it was adamant. I then got Jholoo across the road so that jholoo would be perpendicular to the road and balancing it would be much easier. I kickstarted Jholoo and it sprang into life. I got Jholoo into the 1^st gear and off we went with the famous thumping sound of a bullet. That was close! The rest of the trip went smooth without any major mishaps. On-route I saw some bikes stuck in mud, some in the slope. Phew! Sinhgad was a well-defended stronghold located atop steep cliffs. It was almost considered impossible to capture it with force. Tanaji mounted a surprise attack. With a band of about two or three hundred men, he approached the fort at night from the base of its highest and sheerest cliff -- this part of the fort was considered so impregnable that it was lightly guarded. He laid down his life but the fort was ultimately captured. I wonder what makes a man give up his life. Is it the sense of duty, the love of freedom, or an innate trait in a man to do extraordinary things when required? When Shivaji learned of his friend’s death, he remarked “gad aala pan Sinha gela”, meaning ”the fortress was won, but the Lion was lost”. Pregnant with these thoughts, I sat down next to the tomb of Tanaji finishing off the rest of Anne’s diary. She spent her next 18 odd months developing her relationship with her father, sister and her love “Peter”. And off-course dreaming of freedom and the beginning of a new life for her. Aren’t we very lucky to be leading a free life? Imagine being in a “Secret Annex” for 25 months with constant fear of death, lack of proper food, sanitation. Some of the things which we take for granted in our current day-to-day life.

Anne’s family was eventually discovered by the Getaspo and they were taken to the concentration camps (after living 25 months in hiding!). The whole family was separated. Her mother was killed, and her sister died of illness in the camp. Anne shortly died after hearing their deaths. The only person to escape was her dad who later discovered her diary in the “Secret Annex” and got it published. Anne had to face death just at the age of 16! What a tragedy? My heart felt very heavy just imagining what all Anne must have gone through only to discover death! I ate up whatever I had packed for myself and rode back home. I wasn’t in the mood of discovering or enjoying anethin on my trip back home. I wanted to live a bit more with Anne but her journey was unexpectedly cut short. A slight drizzle made the roads slippery and managing Jholoo was getting a bit difficult. I skidded twice but mostly managed to keep jholoo on track.

I got back home and had a warm shower and was off to sleep with Anne’s thoughts still lingering in my mind. I could see “War and Peace” by Leo Tolstoy, the greatest novel ever written, lying on my shelf. I would also be spending my next weekend traveling to Bombay on Jholoo with one of my best friends. We haven’t met for a long looong time. I guess it has been at-least 15 years since we have connected. We need to relive our good-ol’ childhood days. We need to start dreaming again and enjoy the most prized possession we have (our freedom)!

May the force be with us.

Yours,
Deepak

Meeting Gandhi through a Bullet

2006-06-29T01:50:00.000-07:00

June 17th, 2006

Yahoo!

Last week, I was looking out to read some good books and for some adventure. I went to a bookstore "Crosswords" near my home and was lookin out for an intersting read. Normally I go prepared by preparing a list of books i would wanna read. But this time I was generally looking out when i saw "Bapuji" staring at me. I picked up the book "My experiments by Truth" By Mahatma Gandhi. Hmmm.. I said. He was one of the most important folks of the 20th century and i hardly know much about him. I quickly picked up the book and got back home to meet Gandhiji.

My new bike was still very new. The speedometer read 60 kms. I havent driven it much and i am still getting used to it (My first bike experience!). Weekend was near and i thought i need to pratice a bit to get a feel of the bike. I though about driving to Satara.Why Satara? Well, I used to always see the directions to Mumbai and Satara on the boards on the Pune Highway. Mumbai and Satara are exactly on the opposite sides! So somehow it struck me i need to go to Satara. So on saturday morning, I packed a sandwich and a mawa cake and started off for Satara. Meanwhile I was still shadowing Bapuji with his experiments with truth. I was literally spellbound by the dedication, sincerity and the energy of this man and was almost in a state of shock. I mean, you have to read this book to understand the kind of work done by him. Human spirit at its best! He did some amazing social service in South Africa and India. He used to treat people who had leprosy, plague even when doctors refused to attend them of fear of thier contagious nature. And offcourse he had a very simple living. A very simple living I must say! He used to live on fruits and nuts. And barely had any savings.

I had initially thought the ride to Satara would be like a 2 lane highway all the way and would be comfortable and easy. Straight Straight! I dont know why & what made be think like this. As I took off the highway was pretty empty as compared to a normal city traffik. Just as i had thought. I was happy and kept the bike at 40 miles/hr. But soon I something else stored in for me. More adventure! While i was driving, my subconcious mind free from everything started thinking about the experiments with truth. Bapuji became a brahmachari in search of truth and ahimsa. He used to say one has to reduce himself to zero to attain truth and true compassion. Hmm all his experiments and words starting ringin in my head. His initial life with his wife where he has acknowledged that he had lot of lust. And then as he was growing up, he was trying to overcome the lure of lust. And then he started working on his diet. Reducing it to nuts and fruits. He had also abandoned drinking milk till he was nearly on the deathbed. On the instince of several doctors he then had to take (with regret!) goat's milk. As he had taken a vow not to take milk and milk products, he was very dissapointed with himself. He also had started experimenting with the idea of satyagraha, non-coperation and civil disobedience. Is this true power? Not by agression or voilence but purely by thought. Hmmmm....

As I had travelled around 20 kms, i found that the traffik was getting thicker. And the road was leading to a ghat! Wow. I had not expected this. And then i found myself travelling through a mountain. I got the bike to the 4th gear and reduced the speed to arnd 30 miles/hr. The road became a bit bumpy and plus with the increased traffic, i was quickly getting a feel of the bike :) I kept the bike on the left lane and got the speed to around 20 ml/hr as the road was getting steeper & the view was also getting prettier. I could see the neighboring areas from the mountain (mostly empty areas and some huts n trees in between) however i kept my eyes mostly on the road. And then i saw a tunnel approaching me. There were only two narrow lanes in it. One for either side of the traffik. I reduced the speed to 10 ml/hr, switched on the head-lights and got into the tunnel. Suddenly I found that i could hardly see anething. And i was wondering why? I had to quickly think and do something. My mind raced with the probability of an accident as i couldnt see much. Then it struck me. I had my shades on my eyes! How silly one can get? I quickly took them off and then everything was crystal clear. HAHAHA! Onroute, i could also see the 'REAL INDIA'. Lots of people scantily clad (no no, not like the models n actress, they were dresssed like this bcos of lack of monie) walking around, doing work, etc. I saw a farmer begging a cow to plough his field. The cow was looking the other way with its bum facing the farmer. I guess it was pretty tired. And then there was a farmer with a tractor and probaly his kid on it. The kid was pretty happy and jumpin. I guess just like me. Mebbe his first ride on the tractor.

The rest of the route was pretty ok till i reached a junction which said 50 km to satara and 48 km to mahableshwar. I parked my bike and took out my bottle of water and had a sip. I started thinkin. Do i wanna chk out Satara or Mahableshwar. And then i said mahabaleshwar to myself. I was a bit tired driving on the highway and wanted to relax a bit on the small roads with less of trucks and buses. The remaining drive to Panchgani and Mahableshwar was just amazing. The view was very pretty and the roads very very zig-zag. i had to change the gears several times and balance the bike a lot. I guess its the best way to learn a bike. Drive to Mahableshwar :)Returning from Mahableshwar, I took my first pit stop at Panchgani. I went to a nearby restaurant washed my face and hands. I then came back to my bike which i had parked near a school. There were some kids playin cricket in the school. I could see myself in one of them. :) I took out the sandwich and started reading the book under a tree. Bapuji had travelled to most parts of India. To bihar, to the sounth and to the west (bombay, pune) and the north (punjab) of india. He used to travel mostly by taking a third class seat in a train and by walking. Always. He wanted to develop humility and get a sense of the hardships of an common man in india. Very novel. My mind was now completely under siege from his ideas and his actions. I can't say many people or books have struck me so much as Bapuji.

The rest of the ride back was a breeze. I had mastered and got a very good feel of the bike. There were three girls on the opposite side of the road walking to a store perhaps. One of them smiled at me. :) Also I forgot one essential thing. I forgot to apply suntan lotion on my body. The part of my body which was exposed was severly tanned and became dark black as compared to the rest of the body which was white. I could now sing "Black or white" and feel it too! Hehehehe. I got back home in one shape, tanned and hungry! The trip was around 180 miles long bothways. I had almost finished meeting bapuji. His last chapter was asking me to join him in the pursuit of truth and ahimsa. My mind is completely in these thoughts for the last few days and my soul is somewhat empty and with hope also after a lonngg loong time.

My bike is goona take me next to Lohagad (one of Shivaji's improtant forts) and i am gonna meet Anne Frank in her book "The diary of a Young Girl". My boss has suggested me to join a bike/ enfield gang so that i would have company. Not to forget, I need to get a bike license and a helmet quickly. Kiran and Ganesh are very excited and Gopal is jumping up and down! Hopefully someday my friends would also join me In the pursuit of truth, love and the discovery of the purpose of life :):):).

Let the force be with us...:)

Cheers
Deepak