Lockdown and prolonged social distancing can take a toll on our mental health. Here are a few tips that could be helpful:-

1. HAVE A ROUTINE – Structure your day even if you are working from home and try to stick to it as much as possible. Set times for healthy meals, exercise, adequate sleep, work, hobbies et cetera.It’s not meant to be a strict timetable, but a rather flexible one. Not having a routine can increase the chances of boredom, stress, anxiety and cause a “decision fatigue’’, the exhaustion that stems from being suddenly bombarded with too many options.

2. MEDITATE/TAKE CONTROLLED, DEEP BREATHS – It helps you focus in the present moment and has a calming effect.

3. SOCIAL CONTACT – Remain connected with your dear ones with the help of technology. Social distancing does not equate to emotional distancing.

4. LEARN SOMETHING NEW – Or rekindle an old pastime. Setting an achievable goal will give you a sense of satisfaction at the end of this period. The newly learnt skill/habit can stay with you as a legacy of these days, a testament to your fighting spirit and creativity. Five to ten years down the line, you might think, “The Covid-19 lockdown phase brought out the artist/writer/blogger/poet/pianist/voracious reader/coder/polyglot/dancer/courage/hope/resilience/resourcefulness within me’’.

N.B – Make sure that your chosen pastime does not lead to a resource crunch [eg: cooking experiments] or put you at loggerheads with the rules of lockdown and social distancing.

5. UNDERSTAND IT IS NORMAL TO GET ANNOYED ONCE IN A WHILE – This is unfamiliar territory for all of us and we try to cope the best we can.Nevertheless, we can get weighed down by the frustrating uncertainty.Make sure your concerns get a positive outlet which could be through conversation,writing on a journal or artistic expression. Instead of viewing this as a forced hibernation, treat it as a special once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for rejuvenation. Perception matters.

We can’t see light at the end of this tunnel for the time being, but every day, every moment we are certainly getting closer to it. While there is life, there is hope. Bungling up social distancing and personal hygiene now could eliminate the chances of it ever getting better. If social life has been locked down, unlock a rich inner world that will open up new avenues to keep you motivated and entertained during this period. Surviving this pandemic is no mean feat,it would be a victory in itself. If we could learn something new and emerge more skilled out of this experience, that will be an icing on the cake.

Unlocking is underway but the world is nowhere when it comes to a real solution,the aforementioned light at the end of the tunnel.If we have no choice but to march ahead and coexist with the virus out in the public space during its reign,let's do that smartly.

1. Stick to social distancing

2. Hygiene and washing hands,ensuring we don't touch our faces so often

3 Wear effective and protective facemasks.

4. Avoid unnecessary outings even after withdrawal of lockdown.


P.S - The first part was written when lockdown was first introduced in March.The last paragraph is a relevant addition at this point in June.

princess OF PASSION-STORY OF another MAITHILI
WRITE-UP ON "SITA'S SISTER" BY KAVITA KANE
Genre:           Revisionist mythology
Publishers:   Rupa Publications

Ramayana is replete with a host of complex,intriguing characters,which is probably why the epic easily strikes a chord.The light and darkness  within each person surface so naturally,with the depicted range of emotions too familiar to identify with.Unfortunately,there are several unsung heroes and heroines whose stories do not get the attention they deserve.

Kavita Kane brings out an outstanding portrayal of one such woman,relegated to the background when the world got too busy ballading the much-repeated core of the epic.Urmila,Sita’s younger sister,also entitled to be called Janaki,Vaidehi or Maithili as the only biological daughter of King Janak and Queen Sunaina of Mithila is every inch what her given name symbolizes.Urmila means a wave of passion,where the heart and the soul meet.She is indeed a cool wave of endless passion for life,uniting the sea and the shore.

Urmila was always wise,having had to grow mature beyond her years.The trucemaker skills she honed throughout childhood,being the emotional anchor of her sister and cousins,help her wonderfully at her in-law’s.She takes after her father’s sagacity, mother’s fiery outspokenness and is shown to be an extension of both her husband and mother-in-law in temperament and insight.Some legends say that she went into a deep sleep for the entire duration of the trio’s exile,taking over Lakshman’s share too,enabling him not to falter in his duties and even kill Indrajith in the war as only one who had not slept for years altogether could achieve the near-impossible feat.It fits well with the mainstream view when all one cares about is the ultimate outcome of good winning over evil.But it is not any less charming,what’s more,it’s infinitely more beautiful to see Urmila evolving into a greatly accomplished scholar during these years,refining her painting skills,voicing the rights of women when the men seemingly favour promises given to fathers and brothers over duty towards mothers and wives,expelling the pall of gloom that hung over the royal household of Ayodhya and binding the family together,building it up from where they hit rockbottom with love and solidarity,all the while protecting Lakshman with her undying love and prayers,invoking more power than the romanticized notion of the long slumber.In Shatrughan’s grateful words,she turns the cheerless,sorrowful palace into a home they yearn to return to.

What really steals the limelight at one stage is the startling discovery made about Kaikeyi, presenting her in an entirely new light. Her actions have mildly been redeemed by the faint,philosophical justification that she was merely catalyzing what was pre-decided. It won’t be surprising if the new theory or revelation takes the long-hated Queen to your list of favourites among women of substance.But this version is not going to be a downpour of goodness as the wily Manthara still spews scathing venom but makes one realize that negativity cannot be dredged up from the heart without consent.

Urmila may not have become the queen of her land,but Soumitra’s warrior wife,his enchantress Mila is truly a queen of passion,of a million hearts.

ONE BIG JIGSAW

BC 2300,Shinar,Mesopotamia.

A nomadic group arrives in the town of Babel and  decides to build there a tower that soars up to the heavens; one that is great enough to be a symbol of their solidarity.Work progressed enthusiastically at an  amazing pace.They were proud of their camaraderie,and rightly so, but it gradually gave way to arrogance,making them want to rise beyond heaven.That was the defining moment when the innocently zealous project became an attempt to one-up God,the master builder.Suddenly,out of the blue,each worker started speaking in a  different language and one’s instructions began to be treated by others as gibberish.Chaos sprang forth and the project got interrupted.

The legend of Babel is perhaps the most popular story explaining the origin of multiple languages.Hence,we may hypothesize that if not for Babel,we could have had one universal language and  less confusion.There would neither be tricky moments during a foreign trip nor the need for frustrated attempts to mime your way out of potentially sticky scenarios!

But irrespective of whether it’s a true account or myth,it seems logical to believe that differences in history,geography,culture and outlook of a set of people who share those will lead them to coin words to express those experiences.Therefore,plurality in languages is the natural order rather than an aberration,where each has its own beauty and  creative identity.Every form of expression imbibes a bit of the thinker’s spirit.One language may express in a word what still could be an abstract feeling for another.In fact,knowing a different language has been likened to having a second soul.

Hadn’t we known there exists a Turkish word “Yakamoz” for the specific reflection of moonlight in water,the dazzling sight would forever have to be described.”Rimjhim” plays out the musical pitter-patter of raindrops in those two syllables.Have you ever appreciated the golden sunrays being filtered through the lush green leaves?It’s known in Japanese as “Komorebi”.It’s surprising to realise that someone paused long enough to absorb that spectacle and name it.Being so deeply moved by nature is an indescribable feeling.But “Duende” in Spanish totally captures that. In a lighter vein,the regret experienced after a haircut that did not go as well as expected is called “Age-Otori” in Japanese.When someone annoyingly quizzes you on your opinion while having in mind an answer that they expect,the situation is called “Dapjeongneo” in Korean.Even the act of scratching one’s head hard in order to remember something goes by the name of PanaPo’o in Hawaiian.Trust the foodie Italian bunch to come up with Abbiocco ;the sleepy feeling after a large,sumptuous meal.To this date,we probably do not have a better counterpart for “Déjà vu” that we no longer consciously remember its French origins.

Hence,while the words may be foreign,the experience is universal,which reflects the essential oneness of mankind,regardless of where we live and how we speak .Knowing those differences and the underlying shared emotions expands our perception of others and dissolves the boundaries that exist within our minds . It proves that the world is one huge jigsaw puzzle of which we are unique pieces;each different on their own but a lot more enriching as an intact whole complementing each other.We may not possess every resource for ourselves or have fleshed out every idea that counts.But we can express ourselves better when we ally with each other and exchange what we do have.Moreover,there would not be a language that has not borrowed words from another.Every one has to put in their uniqueness forward to fit in and find the ultimate solution.But humans have always exhibited the uncanny ability to highlight differences and sideline the similarities beneath.We choose to focus on the extraneous differences assuming that it has to equate with discordance,just like what happened at Babel.The teamwork crumbled when miscommunication crept in.Instead of the tower,we have been building walls when what we really need are more bridges.

 Language is just a metaphor for anything in the world that is claimed by a group as their own and yet belongs to anyone who can savour its beauty and essence.Cognitive research has found that learning another language increases the connectivity between neural cells and changes the dimensions of brain.But those  apart,understanding another viewpoint increases connectivity between people,changes the dimensions of our mind and not to mention,it’s a humbling experience that  blurs fixed concepts like nationalities and makes us true citizens of the globe.The key to accepting difference is effective communication and a genuine interest in it. As the lyrics goes in “Colours of the Wind”,”If you walk the footsteps of a stranger,you learn the things you never knew,you never knew”.

Words are the closest we have to wizardry in our lives.They can hurt or heal,spread joy or fear, incite revolutions or stop wars. They are the vessels that contain our emotions,irrespective of their origin or structure .A foreign word is like a magical spell that summons us what we need and conjure new thoughts in a different land.It unlocks a world that has long been hidden and that awareness is the first step towards understanding that we are all similar deep down.It’s indeed a small world,after all.Let’s wrap it at that.

Words fall short to thank you for your patient reading.So,

Grazie..Obrigada..Kahmsa hamnida..Dankie..Efharisto..Merci..Arigato..Shukraan..Tak..Terima Kasih!

Good luck decoding that !!!

Image from laravel-news.com

                                                                                                                                                                                                                  

In the country of longing

In the country of longing -by Riyas Babu

A moving tale of countless lives and dreams  gambled away by powers spurred by self-centred pursuits.Over a spectrum of instances,their trajectory in life follows a constant fear about survival.A feeling that is very much similar once you look beyond the extraneous differences,be it in the swarmed Darfur refugee camps in Sudan or the Himalayan hilly town of Dharamsala.Regardless of their nationalities,the disasters that toppled their lives or where they fled to,they all happen to be the citizens of a country of longing.Universally,they are bound by their shared nationality of the land of the exiled.

The novel follows the narrative of a  journalist,who feels distraught about his inability  to make a worthy change in spite of his popular, eloquent stories on the unjust perpetrations he has witnessed.As he faces deportation for an especially provoking article during his assignment in Sudan,it breaks his heart to leave behind Hawwa,the orphaned little girl he met at the refugee camp.He returns to his native Norway  determined to save the child.When attempts for legal adoption fails,he prepares to smuggle the child across the Mediterranean to Italy and begins to coordinate with his refugee friends, who illegally transported themselves to Europe and continue to wait for their resident’s permits.Meanwhile he’s sent to Tibet on another assignment where he finds himself facing a similar situation that he can’t help but approach emotionally.

Even as the landscape shifts across the bleak camps,the blue Nile,Norwegian fjords,jammed Delhi streets,serene monasteries and a packed boat over the  rough Mediterranean sea,the dominant theme is a desperate will to survive when you do not belong anywhere and the world seems thirsty for your blood.Even so,there is no dearth of hope as we find three individuals from different corners of the world,bound by love and destiny,coming together to make their own little family.