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" Unto dust you shall return "

" Remember O Man, you are dust and unto dust you shall return. "
 ( Genesis 319)

Since last few days, while watching mother Nature's fury in Japan and the devastation it has caused, I have felt very humbled. Entire world has been grief stricken, watching shocking news of earthquake and Tsunami in Japan. How ephemeral everything we take for granted is! Death, at such a scale and tragedy of this magnitude are brutal reminders that must be embedded to save the moment of ultimate truth about life from its tragic destiny of transient epiphany.

I have recently experienced what death really means by losing one of the most important person in my life. Past two months have been emotionally extremely traumatic for me and my family. I lost my mother last month. What happened a month before she passed away was a completely unknown domain in my life experience, till then. Death, has completely different significance when we lose our loved one! There is a small corner in my heart that is emotionally still wobbly after mom's demise and it successfully hides (or so, I like to believe) behind my tough exterior.  

While I was engrossed with mom's hospitalization and ultimate, inevitable death, life planned some new lessons for me. I was shattered by the tough challenge life suddenly compelled me to face, sulking silently, asking God why he had been so unfair to my mother (after all, she didn't deserve to suffer like that!). During mom's hospitalization, I observed myriad sides of life which were disturbing and was taken aback by life's perfect sense of timing in imparting interesting perspectives about some harsh realities.

I came across some cases that pushed me to realize insignificance of my pain and question myself if I was truly entitled to complain at all. I met a man in very critical condition, who was hospitalized by his son and was later completely abandoned! There was a case of a woman, from a remote village who lost her baby during delivery and was denied possession of  her baby because she wasn't in condition to pay her hospital bill. Someone was suffering precariously due to chronic neglect and callousness towards life and some were very young to suffer or experience pain, life had destined for them.

Endless cases of heart wrenching reality and countless lessons were right before my eyes and how could I complain about God being unfair? Far too often we are engrossed in our tiny bubbles of existence and fail to have vision beyond it. Sadly, we realize what a true gift life is, only when we are faced with some loss or tragedy.

After watching latest news about Japan and the horrific scenes of loss and pain I am unable to sleep peacefully. If my mom's loss has created so much void and made me feel as if a BIG part of me has died, what must be people of Japan going through? I shudder to think. All I wish to do is pray for them and be thankful for all the blessings God has generously bestowed upon me.






Raghurajpur, an emblem of heritage arts and crafts of Odisha!!!

About fifteen km from the revered city of Lord Jagannath, Puri, there is a tiny little hamlet Raghurajpur, nestled on the southern bank of r...