Far from the Madding Crowd

The Way We Spend Our Times Defines Who We Are

              Relaxing in the arms of nature, a sense of solitude, yet, completeness has always endured me. In the busy and fast paced life, lucky are those who chance upon solitude. With the tag of being social and being connected pressurising even the remotest of cavemen, at times, the soul needs to be unchained. Away from this chaos, into the thoughts, an unending self-realisation is my dose for revival.

In a bustling city, where it’s hard to find a place alone, away from worldly affairs; I happened to chance upon this location, to find what I had always craved for. An early morning drive to this offbeat location strips down the minutest of worries, refining emotions and ideas to the point where mind reveals as much as it conceals. A lot of emotional and lovely stances I share with this place.

LakeView Road, A place one would usually find flush with those restless personas, who seek rest away from the rests. The perfect symphony between the eternally beautiful Sunrise; the sweet chirps of almost extinct Gauraiyyas, shadowing  even the best of Oscar Winning Melodies, and the ever new ripples in the silent carpet of Lake is always mesmerizing. Words are always less, and canvass is always small to picturesque the beauty of this location. The worldly complications flow out so effortlessly and the aura is so irresistibly ebullient that one can always relax in the hands of Mother Nature.

It’s always difficult to stumble upon persons who really admire the importance and rich feel of such places. Almost every time, I visit this place, it’s just me alone. But, lately, I found that visiting the places you love, with people you admire is an even beautiful experience. Sharing, one of the drive experiences, for my beloved readers.

Myself being a reserved person and of course not a cool guy, either people don’t notice me or prefer not to notice me. Well, I prefer the both. With such an attitude of mine, it’s well understood, I have very few friends in my bucket. Though my bucket may be half filled but I prefer to keep it very near to my heart and soul. Quantity is not what I look for; Quality is what I crave upon. With the place in topic being much attached to me, I have shared it only with the persons I love the most.  Dii, Mummy, Papa, Tushar, Deshdeepak, Dhairya, Eva, Daadiji; this article would have never seen the light, without you accompanying me. The drive with you all to this place has left a memory with me. I bow to all of you for enduring my useless talks while we drove aimlessly. The presence of all of you has always brightened up my way.

To The Queensland

               It’s time for me to return back to sea, and for the hundredth time it reflected on the irony that I am upset to leave my loved ones yet a part of me is joyous to find myself at sea. I wondered again, which part of me is right. Before I leave, A drive to LakeView Road is inevitable even so because The Queen would be accompanying me this time. Life is all about moving ahead, when my last drive happened to be with the Princess, this one is going to be with the Queen.

It’s still dark and the first ray of sun is yet to touch the blushing cheeks of Mother Earth. Through the windshield of the car I watch the buildings running in a slow dance of disintegration. It is an early morning illusion that never ceases to bore me. The streets are deserted; the few pedestrians, up from their dreams are too lethargic to give more than a passing glance. To those sleeping bugs, who miss the beauty of this restless city; “poor them”. A few hours from now this silence would be broken by blazing horns and speeding motors. When half of the world is still gliding in dreams, here I am, living in one. To be specific, I have already embarked upon an early morning wisdom date, to be cherished for my lifetime.

There happens to be two types of people: The one you admire and the one you don’t. The former are your loved ones, latter might just fall in as acquaintances. Beautiful is the time and space when you share a moment with the person who is admired by the one whom you admire. In an abstract sense it’s a maze of admiration, in which only a blessed is lost. 

The famous Geeta Vatika temple, which is in no way an ordinary temple, is our first stop. We are just on time when the first holy chants of the day “Harekrishna Harekrishna Krishna Krishna Hare Hare” have begun. The early morning numbness is still in the air. At first it seemed; the cold granite floors, freezing even the deepest of veins, might force us to reconsider our visit to the temple. But I am startled with the determination of hers, to continue onto the path of godliness. Holding the Queen’s hand and walking into this sacred aura brings me face to face with the situation when I am walking beside a lovable and cherished person I have till now only heard of. Nothing seems better when you wish a dream to come true and it’s actually coming true. Next 1 hour spent in the temple, and I realise that the best gift to an elderly person is helping her recall her beautiful, old, energetic days. It is as though the mere memories of the past can dissipate the years that separates this day from those days. While she was a young, sharp, vigorous and entertaining lady in her twenties; she is still young at soul, tender in heart and, determined in her actions, in her seventies.

Though I have visited this temple quite few times earlier but today it seems different. In this early hour of day when purity of thought is still lingering in air, I am awestruck by the craftsmanship around us. The pillars are strikingly similar in shape and structure, the patterns on roof exactly similar to each other; not a slightest difference on any of them. Every etching, every figure is perfect to the corner. Each petal and leaf is exactly identical, as if multiple copies of the same design were produced at a factory. It is beyond my imagination how every single of these were carved. As if, the concept of error never existed.

On our way out from temple, we stumbled upon this flight of stairs leading to the GarbhaGriha of temple. When I held her hands like a kid not wanting his caretaker to leave, she asked me to go ahead and pay visit to the GarbhaGriha while she, aka, The Queen, waited down. That was exactly when I pinned her in my list of first type of people. Daadiji is a Queen adorned by her soul. Caring is not always holding the fingers, but sacrificing ones luxury and needs, to see the other person rising.

Sharing an early morning snacks of roasted groundnuts, tea and some not so lavish cookies, in my darling Ford Figo, withers away even the best of royalty served at any five star restaurant. The tea I had picked from a local morning tea stall, might not taste as any of the finest Assam teas, but the bond and love it helped to create with the Lady sitting beside me, took me to an altogether different space. The transience of the tea does strike a contrast with its physical imprint as one of my best memories.

A quick drive further ahead and we are standing at the farthest tip of the city, stranded at LakeView Road. Merely a few steps away from the gigantic RamgarhTal Lake, as it is called. The lake is right in front of us and quiet, speaking well of peace, harmony and inexpressible joy. We are at right time to catch the beauty of the rising sun against the reflection in the glittering water of lake. Though, the fog hovering over the city skyline might ruin our view of sunrise, yet I’m not cursing. Visiting the ground zero, with Daadiji, is enough to flush down the curses and worries. There are few shrubs and even fewer souls around us. It is not the usual beach holiday but more of a satisfying moment which takes a while to get absorbed into the soul. The mysterious healing power of the lake, the fresh air and the unpolluted aura lends a sense of strange accomplishment. Away from the hustles and bustles, this place, till now, has brought me near and face to face with myself. But, today it’s different. The mirage is soon to transform into a crystal clear reflection.

While driving along the lakeside road, we talked upon and continued. In this corporate world, when sharing is more or less limited to sharing through posts and pictures; it’s always amazing to find a person to whom you can open up with your ideas and emotions unconditionally. The stories I learnt, wisdom I gained and purity of ideas and thoughts I explored on date with the queen, evoked a strange and desperate longing to which I could not put a name. The crude idea of taking a leisurely walk along the stretch was dropped; the weather was a challenge. A stopover at the perfect point where I had always witnessed the sunrise did serve the purpose a bit.  With windows rolled down, the first touch of the cold air, drawing me to state of numbness, stood null and void in front of warmth and care, Daadiji is endowed with.

Although it’s now time to return, yet I wish the clock stops ticking. Wish there would be enough time in hand when we could have spent hours sitting on the bench at the ridge. Driving back home, while I silently thanked my best friend for sharing the most lavish gift of her with me, a beautiful instance of her childhood days, when she stood with her fists clenched and shouted at the peak of her voice “Hum gande hain kya, Hum aapka kahna nahi mante hain kya” (Am I mischievous, don’t I follow your advices), brought miles of smile with the break of dawn. After Daadiji hugs me a goodbye, I spend the entire drive back apprehending the commission and price to pay for arranging this meet. Adding to my debts, I realize, many a gifts can never be paid for and one has to remain indebted for rest of his life.

                         

                     

                      Today, I stand at the shipside watching the harbour moving away. Enjoying the sea voyages because it is one of the opportunities to escape from the Madding Crowd, yet missing my loved ones because it’s always hurting to Let them go. It is around five in the evening and the sunset at sea is about to bestow its enigmatic charisma. The beauty of the serene skyline and an unending horizon all around me helps me recall the days and moments I cherished while being with the persons I admire. I plug in my earphones, scroll down the playlist to listen to my favourite Passenger track ‘Let Her Go’ before I retire to bed.

You only need the light when it’s burning low,

Only miss the sun, when it starts to snow,

Only know you love her when you let her go.

Only know you’ve been how, when you’re feeling low,

Only hit the road when missing home,

Only know you love her when you let her go,

And you Let Her Go.

*****