इनको और पनपने दो

इनको और पनपने दो 

मत बांधो इन आशारों को      (ashar - couplets)

दायरों की ज़ंजीरों में,

मत जकड़ो इन रंगों को 

फ्रेम लगी तस्वीरों में 

इनको और पनपने दो!

मेरे जो सामईन शुमार हैं बेहतऱीनों में    (samaeen -audience, shumar--counted amongst, behatareeno -better ones) 

मेरे ख़त ढूंढते हैं 

मेरे नग्मों की ताबीरों में           (nagmo -songs, tabeer -interpretation)

रिश्तों के पैरहन में                (pairhan - dress)

मत लपेटो इन ग़ज़लों को 

इनको और पनपने दो!

 

बचपन

बचपन 

कितना सरल होता बचपन
फिर भी कितनी अजीब होतीं कुछ बातें
दिन केवल खेलने को
और सिर्फ सोने को होती रातें,
सड़क के शोर से दूर हो घर,
पर दरवाज़े पर हो बस स्टॉप, ऐसा हम चाहते,
जो मन किया वो बोलते
जो नज़र आया वो खाते
जिस चीज़ का मन किया
बस मांगना होता, और हम उसे पाते
चुप्पी का मतलब उदासी होता
वर्ना यूं तो हम खूब शोर मचाते
हमें तो मन-मानी करनी होती
चाहे माँ-बाप जितना भी समझाते
रात को जितना भी झगड़ा किया हो
सुबह उठ हम सब भूल जाते
कितनी गज़ब की आस्था है, हमारी प्रार्थना में
भला भगवान से माँगा हुआ न मिले
ऐसा हम सोच भी न पाते
बचपन का जादू कहीं खो न जाए
अगर हो सकता तो हम सदा बच्चे ही रह जाते !

हिरणी का ध्येय

हिरणी का ध्येय ** (see below for another version)

मात्र एक हिरणी थी वो,
फिर भला कैसे सामान्य से विलक्षण हुई?
मातृ-हिरणी थी वो
होना ही था उसे, जननी वो जिस क्षण हुई!

वन में विचरण कर रही थी,
उदर में शिशु को लिए,
कुछ भोज्य खोजती
शिशु के उदर के लिए!
शीघ्र ही उसे प्रसव से पारित होना होगा,
घड़ी अब दोनों की परीक्षा की थी,
तृष्णा उसे कस्तूरी की नहीं
अब केवल सुरक्षा की थी।
पर क्या इस रात इस वन में
सुरक्षा भी उसके लिए मृगतृष्णा बन रह जाएगी?
क्या वो माँ बनने से पूर्व ही
मृगया पर निकले आखेटक का जयचिन्ह बन रह जाएगी?
अनभिज्ञ किसी विपत्ति से
ढूंढ लिया वो स्थान जो बिछा था सूखी फूल-पत्ती से,
संभवत: अनुकूल ये स्थान होगा शिशु के जन्म का,
कहाँ विदित था की एक सिंह को अभिज्ञान होगा उसकी गंध का।

भाँपने लगी थी वो
कि  बायीं ओर के झुरमुट में छिपा है आखेटक
और दायीं दिशा में सिंह खड़ा है आँखें लगाये एक टक
किन्तु भागना तो दूर हिलना भी असंभव था
आरम्भ हो चूका प्रसव था।
मानो आकाश को अपने अस्तित्व की चिंता लगी,
भला ये हिरणी क्यों न डर से मरी ?,
तभी आकाश से दामिनी
दावाग्नि बन वहीँ सूखे पत्तों पर गिरी,
और चेतावनी से चुनौती बनी।
नीरद ने भी पूरी शक्ति से नाद किया,
तब उस हिरणी ने केवल अपने ध्येय को याद किया।
"बनूँगी व्याध का लक्ष्य, या सिंह का ग्रास,
अग्नि तपाती मुझे, नभ भी देता त्रास,
अवश्य ही घिरी चहुँ ओर से हूँ,
किन्तु जुड़ी अपने शिशु से एक डोर से हूँ,
इस समय केवल जनना मेरा कर्म है,
मुझे इन सबकी व्यथा नहीं,
सरल बहुत ही मेरा धर्म है"

द्रवित हुआ व्याध देख कर नवजात छौना,
जल में प्रतिबिम्ब अपना प्रतीत हुआ घिनौना,
तब दिव्य होने का अवसर उसने नहीं गँवाया
और एक ही बाण में क्षुधित सिंह को मार गिराया,
मेघों ने भी अपना आशीष बहुत बरसाया
और दावानल को पल में भस्म बनाया।
अकस्मात् ही परिस्थिति सम्पूर्णत: बदल गयी
ध्येय पर केंद्र से, सारी विपदा टल गयी।

बड़े ही गर्व और स्नेह से लाड कर
वो हिरणी बोली शिशु को चाट कर
कि  जीवन अपनी संतान को माँयें देती हैं सभी
किन्तु नवजात शिशु अपनी माँ को जीवन दे
क्या ऐसा देखा है कभी!

(For a simpler version see after the story)

 Inspired from the following whatsapp story!

THE PREGNANT DEER 

In a forest, a pregnant deer is about to give birth.
She finds a remote grass field near a strong-flowing river.
This seems a safe place.
Suddenly labour pains begin.

At the same moment, dark clouds gather around above & lightning starts a forest fire.
She looks to her left & sees a hunter with his bow extended pointing at her.
To her right, she spots a hungry lion approaching her.

What can the pregnant deer do?
She is in labour!

What will happen?
Will the deer survive?
Will she give birth to a fawn?
Will the fawn survive?
Or will everything be burnt by the forest fire?
Will she perish to the hunters' arrow?
Will she die a horrible death at the hands of the hungry lion approaching her?

She is constrained by the fire on the one side & the flowing river on the other & boxed in by her natural predators.

What does she do?
She focuses on giving birth to a new life.

The sequence of events that follows are:

- Lightning strikes & blinds the hunter.
- He releases the arrow which zips past the deer & strikes the hungry lion.
- It starts to rain heavily, & the forest fire is slowly doused by the rain.
- The deer gives birth to a healthy fawn.

In our life too, there are moments of choice when we are confronted on αll sides with negative thoughts and possibilities.

Some thoughts are so powerful that they overcome us & overwhelm us.

Maybe we can learn from the deer.
The priority of the deer, in that given moment, was simply to give birth to a baby.

The rest was not in her hands & any action or reaction that changed her focus would have likely resulted in death or disaster.

Ask yourself,
Where is your focus?
Where is your faith and hope?

In the midst of any storm, do keep it on God always.
He will never ever dissapoint you. NEVER.

Remember, He neither slumbers nor sleeps.

-Unknown



कभी आम सी ज़िन्दगी में,
केवल सोच की सरलता से,
दिव्य बन जाते हैं जीव,
छुटकारा पाते अपनी दुर्बलता से।

गर्भ से एक हिरणी थी,
उस जंगल की रात में,
रह-रह कर बिजली चमकती थी,
और वो भीग रही थी बरसात में,
बच्चे को जन्म देने को
ढूंढती थी ठीक सी कोई जगह
मन में कुछ डर भी था
न जाने किस वजह।
घने पेड़ो से निकलकर
पहुंची एक नदी के पास,
एक मचान नज़र आई
जिसके नीचे थी कुछ सूखी घास,
"यहीं जन्म दूँगी अपनी संतान को"
पूरी होने को थी अब उसकी आस!
पर मन फिर खटका,
भरे जंगल में ख्याल आ रहे थे शमशान के,
मालूम न था कि
एक शिकारी बैठा है, ऊपर मचान के !
पास ही एक शेर भी था
यूं तो नदी से पानी पीने आया था,
पर हिरणी को देख
उसके मुँह में पानी आया था।
जान लेने को किसी प्राणी की
बस खतरा एक ही काफी होता है,
न जाने उस हिरणी की क्या किस्मत थी
कहते हैं कभी बुरा वक़्त हावी होता है।
इतने में बिजली गिरी बड़ी ज़ोर से
और वो आग से घिर गयी चारो ओर से।
शिकारी का शर,
शेर का डर,
आग की लपटें,
भला कोई तीन-तीन मुश्किलों से
कैसे निपटे!
ऊपर से शुरू हुआ प्रसव का दर्द,
ऐ भगवान मदद, मदद!
अचानक न जाने कहाँ से मन में विश्वास आ गया,
बच्चे के प्यार की सोच से, उसे फिर सांस आ गया!
"बस एक मेरा काम है
और कर सकती हूँ क्या,
अपनी जान की मुझे परवाह नहीं,
बच जाये बस जो जीवन दूँगी नया!"
फिर आँखें मूँद कर
जन्म वो देने लगी
परायी थी जो परिस्थिति
यकायक होने लगी सगी,
शिकारी का बाण उसके धनुष से निकल गया
पर शायद उसका मन पिघल गया
हिरणी को छोड़ उसने शेर को मार गिराया
और तभी बादलों ने भी खूब पानी बरसाया
बुझ गयी सारी आग,
खुल गए हिरणी के भाग!
अपने सुन्दर शिशु को देख बस रम गयी
आँखों से बहने लगी वो बरसात
जो आसमान से थी थम गयी,
वो बोली "जीवन अपनी संतान को माँयें देती हैं सभी
किन्तु नवजात शिशु अपनी माँ को जीवन दे
क्या ऐसा देखा है कभी"!

जश्न-ए-ज़िन्दगी चलता रहे, कभी ऐसे कभी वैसे

जश्न-ए-ज़िन्दगी चलता रहे, कभी ऐसे कभी वैसे 

जब भी उदास होता, तेरे दर पे चला आता
"जश्न-ए -ख़ुशी को सदा खुला है"
ऍसे वहाँ  झंडे गढ़े थे!
आज जब मैं बेइन्तहा खुश था,
आया तो पाया, कि तेरे दर पे ताले पड़े थे!
न कोई जश्न, न ख़ुशी, सिर्फ एक सन्नाटा,
पर हम भी हम थे, ज़िद पे अड़े थे,
कभी तो खुलेगा, कभी फिर शुरू होगा
ज़िन्दगी का शोर, रौनक-ओ-ख़ुशी होगी
हम सहर होने तक वहीँ खड़े थे!
आख़िर वो हँसी आ ही गयी तेरे लब पे,
कैसे न आती,
बहुत बाशिद्दत हमने ये रिश्ते गढ़े थे!

Pachmarhi - Caves, Forest,Hills & Waterfalls

'Ghats' - One term that confused me more and more as I grew up! Being brought up in Ganga-Jamuni culture, sort of, and my parents being quite pious, my first introduction to the term 'ghat' was on a trip to Haridwar. The bank of river Ganga that had well constructed steps so that devotees could take the holy dip, comfortably and safely, was called 'ghat'. To be precise 'snan-ghat' or bathing ghat. Then I came across not that well developed ghats & so I interpreted that the bank of river from where one could access the river was called a 'ghat'. Then we studied about the Eastern and Western ghats of Indian peninsula. By extrapolation, I presumed that the shore-line of Bay of Bengal and Arabian Sea is called Ghat. So I started to understand that Ghat is a hindi term for a beach. None of my social studies teachers picked up my notion!

Ignorance is bliss and I was blissful! One day while looking up for my Kerala trip, I realized that ghat was at a distance from the shore. So I presumed that ghat is that area which extends from foothills to the shore but not the shore. Then came my journey from Mumbai to Pune. On the way, there were hoardings, 'ghat prarambh', before the hilly terrain and 'ghat samapt' after it ended. But I had never seen such terminology being used when I would travel to hills of Himachal or uttarakhand. So hills can not be 'ghats', but then what is??

I had been to Madhya Pradesh earlier, and again that was also a bird flu outing. I had gone to Burhanpur from Indore via Khandwa. Though, I visited Bastar last year, but Chhattisgarh is a separate entity now! I was always intrigued by M.P. At the mention of the state, various images would pop-up in my mind, Gwalior, Jhansi, Chambal, Narmada, Khajuraho, tribal people, dense forests, Bhopal gas tragedy, erstwhile largest state and Panchmarhi. I had heard about the natural beauty of Panchmarhi and was on my cards for sometime as a short vacation. It materialized this time as I did not get train reservations for Udaipur-Mount Abu.
Kids were excited to be travelling in train. We had to get up early but we reached in no time and realized the difference between boarding a train and a plane. Definitely, boarding a train is much easier! Our train left dot on time and reached Palwal after crossing Faridabad in no time. After Mathura some announcement was made, when they repeated I realized it was for any doctor in the train as one gentleman had become sick in another compartment. I started moving towards E1, there was one gentleman ahead of me, who was also moving briskly in the same direction. After we crossed 3 bogies, it became clear to both of us that we were going to the same place. After 6 bogies, we asked, "is it E1". A lady replied, "Oh 3 doctors have already gone, I am also a doctor but I am not going as they have already gone!" We ignored her comment, as there was no time to reflect. In the next bogie, we saw a man lying flat in the aisle, one man keeping his feet up, another man doing cardiac massage and a lady trying to turn him sideways. As both of us reached there, I asked the gentleman doing cardiac massage that may be I should do it as I felt I would be more effective. I asked them to lay him flat. Then the lady told me,"he is vomiting, we are turning him into recovery position". I noticed vomitus on the floor and his clothes. I checked his pulse, it was good volume and regular. I asked them to stop cardiac massage as there was no need. I thought he must have thrown a fit. Within a minute I was informed that he was pulseless, was sick with multiple ailments, had gone to Ganga Ram for treatment, was returning when this happened. The patient seemed to be moving his eyelids, I asked him, "are you Ok" and he nodded. I was relieved! We talked to the railway staff, who informed us that a medical team with ambulance would shortly be there at Agra, where he could be de-boarded.The three doctors, who reached before me had done the needful and revived a probable cardiac arrest. I was satisfied with the situation!
At Agra, all the foreigners got down but few boarded also as the train moved to Gwalior.
I did not know that we would be travelling through Rajasthan also. The train moved to Dholpur, that we know for the stone used widely in house construction. Looking out of the window, after Dholpur, I saw a mud plateau of around 10-15 feet that appeared to be carved by a meandering river. Then I saw some people walking through those narrow alleys. I realized that it would be impossible for a new person to find his way or know if somebody else is there 5 feet ahead or behind him. Suddenly a revelation dawned upon me. I was gazing at the great ravines of Chambal! Like 'ghats', 'ravines' was another term that I was never clear about. Today I was seeing them 'sakshat'. The dacoit movies, stories, bundeli folk, Phoolan devi, Paan Singh Tomar, Daku Maan singh, even Sholay started revolving in my mind!The train reached Gwalior and then moved towards Jhansi. Jhansi, always felt like that it should be in Madhya Pradesh, but I know it's in U.P. It's not difficult to understand this illusion as culturally it is very much a part of Bundelkhand and in that area of Uttar Pradesh that insinuates into MP. There must have been some political reasons for keeping it in Uttar Pradesh at the time of state formation. That I need to decipher!! From Jhansi the train deflected towards Bhopal. We reached Bhopal in afternoon.

'Satpura' is a mountain range in central India that starts from Gujarat in west  and extends probably towards Chhattisgarh in east. It is one of the lesser sung mountain ranges, though 'Vindhyas', it's neighbour, finds mention in our national anthem. Although, I can recollect that there was a chapter or a poem in our hindi text book called 'Satpura ke ghane jangal', probably by Makhan Lal Chaturvedi. By logical extension and combining with the proximity of 'Dandakaranya', I presume that this mountain range is all covered with dense forest. It's low height signifies that it must be a very old mountain range unlike youngster Himalayas. There is mythological story where Satpura is clubbed with Vindhyas as one range. It is said that when Agastya rishi travelled from north to south, Vindhyas bowed in reverence and to facilitate his journey. The rishi told him to remain bowed till he returns. The rishi never returned to north and Vindhyas remain bowed forever!
In fact, all mountains south of Himalayas & Aravalis may be referred to as Vindhyas. If we  study, we find that India is capped by a mantle of mountains comprising of Karakoram in North-west, Himalayas in north and Purvanchal in North-east that would include Patkai, Lushai & Garo, Khasi, Jayantia amongst others. Eastern & Western ghats outline southern peninsula. Aravalis and Vindhyas inclusive of Satpura inside India. Himalayas are no doubt the most majestic of all. They stop polar winds from reaching India and prevent monsoon winds from leaving India. Though Mt Everest, the highest peak in the world is not in India but K2 the highest peak of Karakoram is only few 100 feets (800 or so) shorter than Sagarmatha. However, even that is not under Indian governance. So Kanchanjunga, the second highest peak of Himalayas becomes the second highest peak in India followed by Nanda Devi. Himalayas has large number of peaks that are perennially covered with snow. The north-eastern hills are similar to Himalayas and Karakoram as all got birth together but are not conjoined triplets. Phawngpui in Manipur may be the highest peak of this range.
Guru Shikhar in Mount Abu is the highest peak of Aravalis. I could have visited that (though I have been there in 1993) but destiny took me to Dhoopgarh near Pachmarhi, the highest peak of Satpura. Amarkantak, if counted in Vindhyas may be the highest peak of this range, but usually it is counted as a part of Satpura only. Anamudi near Munnar is the highest peak of western Ghats. Dodabetta near Ooty is the highest peak of Nilgiris, the garland between Western & Eastern ghats. The Shevaroy hills are said to be highest of the broken eastern ghats. So I have visited Dodabetta, Anaimudi, Dhoopgarh, Gurushikhar and Mount Everest!!???? Obviously not Mount Everest :-)
so the triangular mountain range between Narmada and Tapti is that part of Vindhyas that is called Satpura. 

We left for Sanchi the next morning. The impression in my mind was that Sanchi must be a big place in Bihar where Stupas were built. Sanchi is and was a small village about 50 kms from Bhopal. It is close to Vidisha, that was the 'sasural' of Ashoka the great. So here he found a hill of quietude and decided to built 'the great stupa'. I never knew the meaning of the word stupa, neither that it had synonyms in other asian languages. The website www.detongling.org gives a brief about stupas as follows:
"Stupa is a Sanskrit word that means “to heap” or “to pile up” and refers to the mound-like shape of the earliest stupas.

The Mahaparinirvana Sutra tells us that it was the Buddha himself who outlined the basic design of the stupa. The story begins at Buddha’s deathbed. When he realized that death was imminent, Buddha gave instructions about the disposition of his body. He said that his body should be cremated and the relics divided up and enclosed in four different monuments. These monuments were to be erected at the following places, marking important milestones in the Buddha’s spiritual journey: at Lumbini, where he was born; at Bodhgaya where he attained Enlightenment; at Sarnath, where he gave his first teaching; and at Kushinagar, where he died, entering parinirvana, or ultimate liberation.

Giving a practical demonstration, he folded his outer yellow robe over and over until it became a rough cube. Then he put his begging bowl over it. These two elements, the square and the dome, are present in every stupa (India), dagoba (Sri Lanka), chorten (Tibet), chedi or pagoda (Burma), t’ap (Korea), ta (China), tarp (Vietnam), thaat (Laos), sotoba (Japan), or chandi (Java).

The five elements from left: Air, Water, Earth, Fire & the circle of space, above & beyond is the jewel, the stupa!

• "Earth, which spreads out in the four directions, provides the solid basis.
• The dome is the garbha (“womb”), primordial, creative Water – formless potentiality. It is also called the anda, or egg.
• The conical spire is Fire, which always rises upwards. It represents the wisdom which burns away ignorance.
• The crescent moon is Air, expansive, waxing and waning (an ancient symbol of the feminine).
• The circle is Space, wholeness, totality, with no end or beginning.
• Finally, above the circle is a jewel, which represents a higher state of reality, gone beyond the five elements. It is the ushnisha, present on the crowns of all Buddhas, revealing their perfect, enlightened state. This ascent to perfection is laid out with precision in an Enlightenment stupa."

The stupa, universal throughout Asia, evolved into more than a reliquary monument. It has become an expression of the ideal of Enlightenment. Statues represent the Buddha’s body, Dharma texts his speech. Stupas are representations of the Buddha’s mind. They reveal the path to enlightenment, or how the mind can actualize its full potential and be transformed into enlightenment. Stupas can be seen as an expression of the five elements."

We came to know that Ashoka had taken out the relics, the asthiyan, from the original eight stupas so that many more could be built. However, even the great stupa may not have Budha's relics now as they could have been taken out. That in any way does not reduce the sanctity of this stupa. Ashoka had built stupa of bricks, later kings plastered it with an interesting composition that had pulses and vegetables in them, then the surrounding wall and then the 'torans' or 'dwars' were built. Four of them in four different directions.

The archaeological Survey of India guide that we got made our trip exhilarating. He had sound knowledge of historical facts and separated them from popular myths. His philosophical approach made it an interactive learning. All the four torans have similar structure: three horizontal slabs supported on two pillars. They are engraved with stories from Lord Budhha's life and Jataka tales. 'Bodhi tree' a tree with leaves of 'peepal' tree, is used to represent Lord Budhha or Dharma repeatedly. There is a representation at the bottom of a pillar that has tail of a fish body of a crocodile and proboscis of an elephant, and from it's mouth emanates a stem that gives rise to multiple flowers. This is supposed to represent evolution of life. Another interesting depiction is where four men, 'sewaks', are seen to be bearing the load of the pillar facing in four different directions. However, all four have different expressions: laughter, anger, sadness and grief. Philosophically representing that one can bear the burden of life with different attitudes but one must! The laughing sewak has an uncanny resemblance to todays 'Laughing Budhha'. May be they are linked!!

Budhhism did not have idol worship. Gradually, to show their reverence, people started making statues of Lord Budhha. Then they were being placed n the budhhist temples. It is natural, especially with 'sanatan' practices being prevalent, that people started to greet, bow and gradually started to make offerings. Somewhere, it became idol worship, although technically, it is just remembrance of Lord Budhhas teachings. Whether it started in a particular phase of Budhhism, known as 'Yanas', is not known to me. Initial phase is that of achieving simple principles and after that of achieving greatness. The second one is called 'Mahayana' and so, in comparison and retrospectively, the first one is called 'Hinyana' or the lesser vehicle. The third one is 'Vajryana'. My understanding of Budhhism is very poor and I need to learn a lot about it so it's not possible to correctly talk more about it here.

Once we enter inside the torans, we see that the outer walls are made of big stones that have something inscribed on them in 'Pali'. Our guide demostrated that they all ended in 'danam' meaning that they were names of the people who had donated them. There are four statues of Budhha installed just inside the Torans. All of them, except one, does not have the head. The one, that has,the head has been re-installed. Outside, in a roofed structure lies the broken 'Ashoka Pillar' that has a remarkable shine. It is said to be shining because it is made of sandstone but looks quite polished. The four lions that were on top of this pillar are kept in the nearby museum.

This pillar must have been very similar to the 'Ashoka Pillar' in Sarnath, near Varanasi, that holds the national emblem. Ashoka is said to be the first Indian ruler who got 'edicts' written on rocks and pillars for people to know the royal commandments. It is said that the pillar was broken so that it could be used to make huge rollers for squeezing out sugarcane juice. Sounds ridiculous! Man is often so! However, the beheaded Budhha idols and broken Pillar do convey that there was willful destruction of this unparalleled legacy. The era, the people and thinking behind it is a matter of research for me. I was reminded of the 'Bamiyan Budhha' destruction by Taliban, which is not that old.

The great Stupa is surrounded by many structures. Many of them are smaller stupas, of monks who lived and died in the monastery. There is a temple without an idol that shows classical Mauryan Architecture where pillars had a square base that supported an eight edged column with an inverted lotus on the top. There is also an structure in Greek architecture, It is known that Greeks had interaction with India during that period. It probably started with Alexander's invasion in 4th century BC, he left his governors in India upon his return. One of them Seleucus Nicator is said to have been supposedly defeated by Chandragupta Maurya (Sandrocottus in Greek). He married Chandragupta's daughter, gave him large territory near Indus and received 500 war elephants in return. These elephants played crucial role in his later wins in middle-east. They had learned the importance of elephants in war during their war with Porus earlier.  Megasthenes' account 'Indika' told the western world about Indian culture and administration from his point of view. This greek interaction continued for few generations and it is said that Ashoka's empire may have extended till Greece, though we need to verify that. 

There is also a large monastery similar to Nalanda built on a ground facing the valley, what a location to study!
It appears that Mauryan was the first large empire of India, but is it true? May be if we are implying post-vedic age. To understand that we need a lot of deeper understanding. First, what is the period from which we have definite facts available as so we can differentiate facts from myths & mythology. As far as India is concerned, the written texts appeared from Vedic age and later, prior to that only oral tradition was there. Another way of saying it is what we know is historical and what we don't is pre-historic. Man, as Homo sapiens was there in stone age that is divided into paleolithic, mesolithic and neolithic periods. It was probably neolithic period where man converted from hunter-gatherer to crop-grower and then started to form societies and build houses rather than live in naturally formed caves. After the stone age came the copper age and the period of transition is called chalcolithic period. The Indus river civilization belongs to this transition phase. After that came the early and late Vedic age where major transformations occurred in the societies as the population grew. It seems that the nature of man started becoming more complex and above the basic human instincts during this age. After the vedic age came the age of empires, the era from which history is available in quite certain manner because of edicts and texts. In fact, the terms era, period, age can not be used interchangeably and have defined implications.According to stratigraphy, half a billion year period is called Eon, several hundred million years are called Era, tens of million years are called Epoch while millions of years are called Age. Earth is supposed to have formed some 4.5 billion years ago. There was no life for initial 500 million years and is pre-fossil time called 'Hadean Eon'. Around 4 billion years ago started the Archean Eon where first forms of life and photosynthesis started. Then came the proterozoic eon and then the last 500 million years that are Phanerozoic eon. Phanerozoic eon is divided into Paleozoic, Mesozoic and Cenozoic eras. First vertebrate land animals appeared around 380 million years ago in the Paleozoic era. Dinosaurs appeared in the mesozoic era around 230 million years ago. Mesozoic era is divided into Triassic, Jurassic and Cretaceous periods. It was the Triassic period from 250 to 200 million years during which the Pangaea of earth started to break into continents. However it was during the Jurassic period from 200 to 145 million years ago, that pangaea broke into two, north - laurasia and south -Gondwana continents. It was, as we know courtesy  the great movie 'The Jurassic Park', the times of Dinosaurs and the time when flying animals started to appear. The Cretaceous period saw the climate becoming warmer and appearance of angiosperms. The last 65 million years are called Cenozoic era.  The first period of Cenozoic era is the Paleogene period from 65 to 23 million years ago. Mammals appeared and diversified during this period. After the Paleogene was the Neogene period from 23 to 2.5 million years ago, during which the ancestors of humans appeared. Hominids appeared around 2.3 million years ago in the last period of the Cenozoic era called 'Quaternary period' from 2.5 million years till present. It was with the beginning of Quaternary period that Glaciers started forming and the much familiar term 'the Ice Age' began. The first epoch of the quaternary period from 2.5 million years to 12000 years ago is called Pleistocene epoch. This is the time that roughly corresponds to the paleolithic period (as used in archaeology). In fact, stone tools are found with the appearance of humans or may be its vice-versa that we call the hominids to be present form humans when they started making stone tools. Is it possible that they made other things but they perished? The stone tools became more complex into middle and late paleolithic period. The last epoch 'Holocene' started 12000 years ago till present. It corresponds with the start of Mesolithic period. However, in certain parts of the world even Neolithic developments started. As we discussed earlier, it was during the neolithic period that that revolution of man becoming into a farmer and starting to form societies occured. Neolithic period gave origin to Copper, Bronze and iron ages, may be during different times in different parts of the world. Approximately 3000 to 1200 BC may be the Bronze age for many parts of the world. So may be 12000 to 8000 BC was Mesolithic, 8000 to 4000 was Neolithic followed by Chalcolithic (both copper and stone tools) from 4000 to 3000 BC. From 1200 to 200 BC can be called the Iron age in India. So we have definite history available from this period with large level of confidence.

आवाज़- ए-परवाज़-ए -बुलंदी

आवाज़- ए-परवाज़-ए -बुलंदी 

ये परिंदा यक़ीनन सुकूँ में है 

पर तजस्सुस इसके भी खूं में है

एक अदना सी हवा की लहर 

इसके पंखों को परवाज़ देती है 

इसे भी कोई बुलंदी आवाज़ देती है 

शायद वो लम्हा आने को है 

अब कोई नया रंग 

फ़लक में छाने को है!

यक़ीनन अब वो दुनिया बनने को है 

ग़र कुछ और कदम हम साथ चले 

अहलियत अब ज़्यादा नहीं 

बस कुछ और तेरी-मेरी बात चले!

 

Word meaning: Tajassus: curiosity. Parwaaz- flight, ahliat - effort

सम्पूर्ण साक्षात्कार

सम्पूर्ण साक्षात्कार

शीतल पवन करे यूं भ्रमण,
ज्यों चपल चंचला नार कोई,
धवल चांदनी, श्यामल रात,
उज्ज्वल तारे अपार कई,
ऋतु  मीराबाई,
सिमरन करते जो श्याम का
है पागल भई

सुन्दर सुगंध सुमधुर संगीत,

है बज रही पवित्र झंकार कोई,
कोपल कपोल कोमल कोमल,
नहीं मोहिनी यही प्रकार कोई,
अति आनंदित प्रसन्नचित,
कर रहा मुझे विचार कोई,
स्वच्छ मन आनंद विभोर,
मिला रस का सागर कोई,
निष्पाप हुआ जग, सरल सब कर्म,
मलीन नहीं विचार कोई,
मुक्त हृदय, सुशोभित चित्त,
है कर गया श्रृंगार कोई,
हे प्रभु सम्पूर्ण हो,
नहीं ऐसा और साक्षात्कार कोई!

A Martyr's epistle

मेरी शौर्यगाथा को मेरी मृत्यु न बनाओ दोस्तों,
आज तुम आंसू न बहाओ दोस्तों!

मुझे जो कन्धों पे उठाया है आज,
मेरी विजय का उत्सव मनाओ दोस्तों
इसे न मेरी शव-यात्रा बनाओ दोस्तों!
आज तुम आंसू न बहाओ दोस्तों!

तुम्हारे जीवन में, तुम्हारे उल्लास में,
जीवित हूँ मैं सदा,
मेरे जीवन को न इतना छोटा बनाओ दोस्तों,
आज तुम आंसू न बहाओ दोस्तों!

*"कन्धों से मिलते हैं कंधें, क़दमों से कदम मिलते हैं,
चलते हैं जब हम ऐसे तो दिल दुश्मन के हिलते हैं,"
चलो, जीत का जश्न  मनायो दोस्तों,
आज तुम आंसू न बहाओ दोस्तों!

-----------------------------------------------

मेरी शहादत को न मेरी कज़ा बनाओ दोस्तों,
आज तुम अश्क़ न बहाओ दोस्तों!

मुझे जो काँधों पर  उठाया है आज,
मेरी फतह का जश्न मनाओ दोस्तों,
इसे  न मेरा जनाज़ा बनाओ दोस्तों,
आज तुम अश्क़ न बहाओ दोस्तों!

तुम्हारी बेख़ौफ़ ज़िन्दगी में ज़िंदा हूँ मैं,
मेरी कुर्बानी को न सज़ा बनाओ दोस्तों,
आज तुम अश्क़ न बहाओ दोस्तों!

बेशक तुम मायुस  हो,
मुझसे जुड़ा होकर,
पर इसे न दिल से लगायो दोस्तों,
आज तुम अश्क़ न बहाओ दोस्तों!

पैरहन हो हंसी का,
और जियो बेइन्तहां,
मेरी मौत को
पैगम्बर ज़िन्दगी का बनाओ दोस्तों,
आज ये करिश्मा कर दिखायो दोस्तों,
आज तुम अश्क़ न बहाओ दोस्तों!

----------------------------------------------------
Let not the tears sog your cheek,
let not my gallantry be my death so meek!
Be it my victory lap
Your shoulders that I am on,
let it not be
an obligatory funeral moan,
Jubilate for that I am alive,
In your fearless life
I continue to survive,
Wear a smile and live, live more,
for it's the vigor of life
even in my death
that I adore!

vaicharik anemia

देश में एनीमिया व्यापक है, ये मैं मानता था,
पर खून की इतनी कमी है , मैं ये न जानता था!

एक बालिका से उसका बचपन चुरा के,
रजस्वला होते ही ब्याह दिया गया,
जीवन सरिता में एक अनजाने देव को
अर्पण कर प्रवाह दिया गया।
उस कोमल कोपल से फिर कहा
तुम हमें एक वृक्ष बीज दो,
तुम सुता नहीं, सुर-सरिता हो,
हमारे कुटुंब को सींच दो,
स्वयं का नारी होना चरितार्थ करो,
हम कृतघ्नों को कृतार्थ करो।
प्रचुर नारी नहीं, गृहलक्ष्मी नहीं,
उस अनभिज्ञ बालक ने गर्भ धारण किया,
हे प्रभु! ऐसा उत्पीड़न तूने किस कारण किया!

जिस रक्त की पहले ही बहुत कमी थी,
गर्भस्थ शिशु की आँखें भी उसी पर जमीं थीं!
अचानक सबको ये आभास हुआ,
अन्याय ये कैसा अनायास हुआ।
जब मन पर पड़ा बोझ,
तो आरम्भ हुई रक्त की खोज!

…………………………………।
रक्त की खोज 
सास ने कहा अपने लाल को,
रोना आता है मुझे देखकर तेरे हाल को,
माना तू इसका पति है, पर तू इस बालक का भी पिता है,
तू रक्तदान कदापि नहीं करेगा,
कमज़ोर पिता की कमज़ोर संतान होती है,
ऐसा शास्त्रों  में लिखा है
हमारी उम्र न हुई होती
तो मैं और तेरे बाबूजी
रक्तदान क्या जीवनदान करते
अपने रक्त से तेरे वंश में प्राण भरते
बहन बोली मैं तो खुद लाचार हूँ,
अपने चार प्रसवों के बाद, जीवन प्रयन्त बीमार हूँ।
पडोसी लेटा हुआ था अपने बिस्तर में औंधा,
रक्तदान के नाम से उसके दिमाग में एक सुझाव कौंधा,
मुझसे तो अपने वज़न के कारण हिला भी नहीं जाता,
वरना क्या मैं तुम्हारे साथ रक्तकोष तक न जाता।
अरे भैय्या अपनी किस्मत आज़माओ,
सुबह सवेरे पार्क चले जाओ।
कहते हैं सभी स्वस्थ लोग वहीँ होते हैं,
और दूसरों का भला करने को आतुर होते हैं।

पार्क में दो महिलाएं गहनों  पर गहन चर्चा करती हुई मिलीं
रक्तदान का नाम सुनते ही बेंच से उछली
हम इन चक्करों में नहीं पढ़ते,
न जाने लोग कैसी कैसी कहानियां हैं गढ़ते!
हमने तो अपना नुक्सान नहीं किया
जीवन में कभी रक्तदान नहीं किया!
सुना है रक्त से नई -नई बिमारीयाँ होती हैं,
अरे हम गृहणियाँ  क्या रक्तदान के लिए होती हैं?

जॉगिंग करते हुए भाईसाहब ने ज्ञान दिया,
आपने ब्लड बैंक से क्यों नहीं लिया,
अच्छी क्वालिटी जैसे ऐ प्लस ले लेना,
आजकल मार्किट में क्या नहीं मिलता,
बस थोड़े पैसे दे देना।

ताली योग करते हुए सज्जन ने पहले ताली पीटी
फिर कहा मुझे तो है डायबिटीज
और फिर से ताली बजाई
मानों रक्तदान की खिल्ली उड़ाई

गंजे महानुभाव ने चिढ कर किया बखान
कमी तो सभी में है,
क्या कोई हमें करेगा केशदान।

कपाल भाँती करते हुए अकाउंटेंट ने कहा
चार सौ सी सी का कॉन्ट्रिब्यूशन!
हम तो पहले ही कर चुके है,
एट्टी सी सी में डोनेशन।

एक युवा एग्जीक्यूटिव ने हाथ पे लगी बैंडऐड दिखाई
मैंने तो कल ही खून दिया है,
अभी तो रिपोर्ट भी नहीं आई।
 
हताश हो मित्र से कहा, "मित्र खून नहीं मिला",
"अरे उसका तो अभी आविष्कार ही नहीं हुआ
तुमने अखबार में नहीं पढ़ा"।

एक-एक कर अनेकोअनेक लोग आये,
कुछ दौड़ते, कुछ चलते, और कुछ थे कुत्तों को साथ लाये,
स्वयं का स्वास्थ्य  लाभ सभी का प्रयोजन था,
पर न कोई भी कर सका रक्त का संयोजन था!
…………………………………………।

किन्तु खोज से मिलता वो है जो हो चाहे वो गुप्त है,
आजकल नसों में तो स्वार्थ दौड़ता है, रक्त तो हो चुका लुप्त है।
शारीरिक एनीमिया का फिर भी उपचार है,
दृष्टिकोण की रक्ताल्पता से समाज लाचार है,
अफ़सोस! रक्त किसी कारखाने में नहीं बनता,
और शुक्र है की इसका शिल्पगृह हम सभी के पास है,
हम रक्त का स्रोत हैं या हमको वैचारिक एनीमिया है,
ये तो अपना अपना आभास है!

Dhyey mere jeevan ka, aur meri mrityu ka...

कहने को केवल इक दिशा है,
किन्तु निर्भर इसीपर  मेरी सम्पूर्ण मनोदशा है!
प्रतिदिन, आँखें जमाये शत्रु पर
अविरल खड़ा मैं सीमा पर
जब पूछते हैं नेत्र मेरे की कैसे है रिपु पहचाना जाता,
सटीक उत्तर है मेरा, 'दिशा' जहाँ से वो आता!
मैंने भी उसको देखा नहीं है,
किन्तु जानता  हूँ की ये दिशा सही नहीं है!

यूं तो मैंने उनको भी नहीं देखा,
जिनके वास्ते मैं युद्ध करता हूँ,
अनजाने हैं वो, जिनके लिए मैं
सरहद पर मरता हूँ,
मेरे पीठ-पीछे से आती है जो दिशा
उसी को पीठ दिखा सकता हूँ कैसे भला!

अज्ञात है मेरा शत्रु,
अपरिचित ही हैं, मेरे अपने भी,
किन्तु मैं भी अनभिज्ञ  हूँ,
उस भय से जो शत्रु मेरी आँखों में है खोजता
निष्चय दृढ़ है,
वक्ष पर गोली खाने को
न एक पल भी हूँ मैं सोचता

चाहे वो मेरे मित्र न सही,
निश्चित ही वो मेरे स्वजन हैं,
न्यौछावर उन पर करू,
इसी हेतु हुआ मेरे जीवन का सृजन है,
किसी व्यक्ति से नहीं,
फिर भी ये युद्ध मेरा व्यक्तिगत है,
क्यूंकि न केवल उनका जीवन,
अपितु उनकी हंसी भी
मेरी धरोहर है,
रक्षा करूँ  अपने राष्ट्र-कुटुंब की
मेरे जीवन का ही नहीं,
मेरी मृत्यु का भी और कोई
ध्येय नहीं!
इससे अधिक प्राप्त हो,
ऐसा कोई श्रेय नहीं!

ye kaisa vasl

ये जो तेरी लम्बी सी आह आई है,
                                                 तू ही बता, दुआ है या दुहाई है?
रु-ब -रु होते ही जो तेरे माथे पे शिकन आयी है,
                                                  इसको वस्ल कहूं या जारी अभी जुदाई है?

ज़िक्र पूरे ज़माने का है, तेरी-मेरी बातों में,
                                                            बस तेरा-मेरा ज़िक्र नहीं,
दिखा रहें हैं दोनों की फ़िक्र तमाम कायनात की  है,
                                                             बस तेरी-मेरी फ़िक्र नहीं,
हम शायद तिफ़्ल थे,
                               पर रिश्ता अपना जवान था,
कभी और कुछ नहीं था,
                                   बस हम दोनों से ही जहान था,

अब बस हम नहीं हैं, मैं हुँ, तू है और पूरी खुदाई है,
                                     तेरी तिरछी सी हंसी में, हंसी शायद नहीं है,
पर तेरी काँपती  पलकों में
                                  यक़ीनन एक रुनाई है,
मैंने कब तुझसे शिकवा किया है,
                                      पर ये भी जानता हूँ,
मेरी काफ़िर निगाहों ने
                                  तुझे एक कहानी सुनाई है!!

tu meri ho..li!

देख-देख रंग, रंग संग उड़े है उमंग,
बिन डोर कि पतंग,
मन हो रहा मलंग,
रंग ने रंगा जो रूप तेरा, तेरा रूप-रंग
देखूं तो हूँ दंग, न देखूं तो भी तंग!

रंग ने मिलाई भंग गोरी तेरे रूप में,

मन में उठी तरंग देखो भरी धूप में!

कैसे हैं करारे,
गोरी तेरे गार प्यारे,
हैं जीने के सहारे,
या लेंगे चैन हमारे,
धीरे-धीरे मारे जो तू पिचकारी धारे
ध्यान संग प्रान भी खींच ले हमारे। 

परा जो पानी तोहपे, बदला रंगों के ताल में,
गिरते-गिरते कह रहा, न छोड़ो इस हाल में,
कर रही कमाल तू होरी के धमाल में,
या होरी का बवाल है तेरे ही जमाल में। 

जैसे रंग मिल रहे,
यों तोहसे मिलने कि गुहार है,
अपनी नहीं ये,
इनकी भी मनुहार है,
नशा है तेरे रूप का,
या होरी की  फुहार है,
 बावरे हुए हैं बस,
ये ही समाचार है,
ये ही समाचार है!

rahu kalam

जैसे कि ' राहु काल' था,
अचानक सर से हट गया,जो  बवाल था।
कभी क्या खूब था,
फिर गया  सारा तिलस्म डूब था।
फिर नज़र आने लगा है एक ताज महल
फिर उसमे क़दमों कि है चहल-पहल,
जनाब! मैं तो वोही था, हूँ और है मुमकिन,
कि रहूँ,
ये तो आपकी शाही नज़र है,
जो कभी नज़रे-शिकायत थी,
वो फिर नज़रे-इनायत है,
यूं लगता है कभी, कि हमारी ज़िन्दगी
सफाई देने कि एक कवायद है।
अरे अरे रुको, चल दो न यूँही
ये शिकायत नहीं, ये तो मेरी खुद से गुफ़तगू है,
कम से कम अभी तो  नज़रे करम है
इतना ही सुकून है!