Random Thoughts

I have a fraught relationship with the country of my birth. I love it dearly. Inasmuch as one can love a country. Or rather the idea of a country. I expect better from it. Nearly every time, it lets me down. And yet, I have faith, respect and love for what is, possibly the most amazing idea on earth today. Not to put it above Alexander the Great's empire, or the British empire for that matter. Not to compare it to the Greeks or previous incarnations of a unified nation under various rulers, local, foreign (are any really foreign though?) or a mixture of something in between. No. Just the current and present form of the nation.  You may wonder why I say that. I am biased. I have spent more time outside of that country now, than I have inside the country. I have spent more time being aware of who I am (or at least watching myself evolve into who I am today) outside of the country rather than inside. I do live in a vast country. In some ways, it is a lot more diverse than the R...

For some of you, this might be a bit off. I trust that you will follow your instincts and learn something new today. I heard Bhishma speak today. There he lay, on a bed of arrows, asking for deliverance and some water. He was supposed to fight for the Kauravas, but we all knew, his heart lay on the side of the Pandavas. Only, in the modern day world, Bhishma happens to have a very famous New England surname, almost American regalness. Sure, he does not have a lion rampant or one that is passant or salient for that matter on his standard, but Bhishma was there in all his glory, renouncing everything, waiting for Hastinapur to go back into the hands of the righteous before he dies. He even made the pledge to not die until Hastinapur changes hands back to the Pandavas. Somewhere along the way, the children of Hastinapur get confusing. They mould swiftly from the Elephant and the Ass to Hillary and the one that is Arjuna. Not Ranatunga mind you, but the real deal. Arjuna who is the third ...