Palmistry Chapter 1: Texture Reading

Palmistry

i have just started reading this book on palmistry from my dad’s old collection of books. it is in hindi and with very rich vocabulary. it’s taking a lot of time to understand as we are no more accustomed to the same language which is also supposed to be our national language. Since I wanted to share my knowledge with my friends, I decided to translate it. starting with the first chapter, which is about reading the texture of skin on palm.

chapter 1

Reading The Texture Of Skin On Palm

Rough : wild in nature, rustic. roughness in behavior & work style. Less respectful & straight forward. works hard for livelihood. they don’t expect but believe in one’s moral values.

Soft (reddish) : they listen to their heart. shy away from facing harsh realities of life. like being in the world of fantasies & imagination and escape from all sort of hard work. but they prefer mental work instead. aspire to be famous in life.

Combination Of Rough & Soft :mostly successful in life. practical approach with correct blend of creative imagination. they find success almost everywhere. go-getters. good decision makers. present neat and clean work always and on time

A New Journey To A New Destiny

Restlessness is giving up.

Its going to give up soon.

That’s the only thing I have in me

That is all I have ever preserved within

That is all I really care for

Nothing much.

But then what else do I exist for.

Why does this entire persona exists.

Why was it born at all

I ask

I ask with a pain, wrath & helplessness

I cry & cry aloud & then wipe my own tears.

Sometimes stay awake till late

sometimes sleep all day & somedays

simply go by, as I lay in

my bed wide awake.

Forget to change sides even.

But why do I exist.

Why can’t I gather  the courage,

stand up one day & fall from

the height, never to see such

helplessness ever again.

And the question remains to be the same

-why do I even exist.

Or why can’t I shed all the tears

Once and forever.

Stand up dust off myself and move on.

To a new road to a new life

A new journey to a new destiny.

To Give Up All To Become A Rover

What if we were not born from wombs but seeds from the ground?

With no branches or roots around.

With absolutely no heart to feel

And no wound, pain or sorrow to heel

What if we were allergic to each other?

With no family to call our own, no father no mother

And if we were all born brainless

And if this life was absolutely painless

What if we could never ever feel hungry?

And nothing on the earth could even make us angry

Then we had no dreams, no aims no expectations

No trust, no friends, no partners and no affection

No city, no state, no nation, no boundaries

No team, no group, no leaders, no visionaries

If we could fly like birds, go in the middle of the sky to hover

And if we could give up all to become a rover.

Where My Heart Resides

Waking up in the middle of the night

to find no one around

attacked by a sudden feeling,

feeling of hollowness all around.

To find that moon shining,

Shining all alone

and it’s called an epitome of love

then why you standing alone.

And you make me all the more sad

I feel your loneliness in me

and then there is no end to it

only a continuous process of waiting endlessly

Sometimes caress my own curls

rub my eyes to see an empty bed.

Changing sides all night

praying it's not my end

Looking at those lines on my palm

with wide moist tearful eyes

and pray I become a stone heart

Or meet the heart where my love resides.



To Be An Insignificant Part Of You

Running wildly in the woods

gulping cold, fresh air

trying to have a taste of you

flail my arms in the air

trying to touch you

but find you nowhere

thats an ongoing tragedy

Yet hope prevails.

Everyday I have a new path to ride

every day ends with a sigh.

At times I feel you so near

other times you are a distant dream.

yet hopeful are my eyes

to meet yours once.

And walk several miles

not with you, but like a silent shadow of you

All I want is to be  a part of you.

anything absolutely anything.

A strand of hair

Or your beautiful blue eyes

your rude lips

or those harsh hands

or those fate lines in your palms

or a speck of dirt resting on your shoulders.

Can't Escape From Being Human

Just observed that the title of this article came into my mind before i could start writing the article unlike other times. well this abrupt piece of information has nothing to do with the real article but one thing is that this time ( for a change) I clearly know what I wish to talk about.

Last night from an ancient collection of books(thanks to mom for preserving) I found few letters writen by my grandfather to my father and mother. onc side dedicated to thoughts specific to his son-in-law in poetic 18th century English & the other for his daughter in ethinic Bengali.
since you and I would not be able to comprehend the bengali part of the letter & also it was the English part which attracted me the most.

Almost Thousand words written in a space of 2-3'' with such a microscopic writing yet a flamboyant calligraphic expression which was enough to put me to shame with my rediculous handwriting.

since we have enough discussed about the medium of expression, what was most interesting was the expression itself. honest confession of a father who finds himself absolutely helpless infront of his daughter's will. a regret for not being able to give her all his time. guilt of not being able to save the daughter form that hollowness which was created after the mother had died. and a request to his son-in-law to fulfil all that he could not fulfil as a father. and to treat her like a princess as he always did & to forgive her for all her mistakes as he did. and to always bring smile on her face & happiness in her life as he always wanted to.

in the letter I saw a helpless father who was not hopeless.

love you nanu.  :)

being a Sagittarian

Being a True Sagittarian

1. devotees of truth (especially which is raw in nature)

2. sometimes even embarass oneself with such truthfulness

3. find it really difficult to digest/ act normal & reciprocate when people give them a huge smile/hug/kiss with no reasons.

4. very emotional but at the same time too strong to let it reflect.

5. Feel extremely shy/find no words to compliment/ wish on birthdays or anniversaries/ speech on demises & even “ I love you’s”.

6. can be best of friends waking up till late to nurse a sick friend or waiting at the at the airport earlymorning to receive a friend.- these are the everyday work of a Saggi.

7. can be best of enemies too if you mess with their wrong side.

8. trust worthy such that their left ear would not know what you told to the right one.

9. feel most offended if you distrust their honesty, trustworthyness or their intentions.

10. exteremely imaginative & positive

11. capable of adopting silence when offended by others.

12 they don’t mind being called rude, though they are hardly ever

13. moderately revengeful

14. hardly ever seek acceptance from society¸friends or family.

15. they don't think they belong to this world made of concrete. They would rather spend their whole life living on a tree eating apples & hunting for deers.

16. fond of travelling/ adventure- correction “ thats the purpose of their life "– jobs, family, house, car, luxuries, money all these are only fillers in between & the main act is always the travelling.

17. can cry over simplest of emotions such as a small child waving at them & can be strong enough to look across a traitor dying.

18. fond of kids of every form- dogs, pigs, cat, rat & even humans

19. popular among opposite sex for their wits & brains & smart talks.

20. would rather die than asking for a favour.

21. always stand against the emblem of fake authority.

22. addicted to helping people

23. self obsessed. you Will never find a saggi who would become a devdas for a girl..they love themselves beyond everything else

24. very fond of creating dialogues of their own. For them life is like a movie & they are the protagonists. They want every shot to be perfect.

25. perfectionists , hard workers, happy workers, organized by birth.u will even find a baby saggi arranging his feeding bottles and nappies on time.

26. fond of movies of any genre.

27. in an argument , you will never find them justifying. That would be the last thing they would ever think of doing. They believe in winning the arguments with logic. And they master that skill.

28. they will be the first ones ot realize their own mistakes and rectify them even before you notice.

29 . u can never insult them as they know the art of laughing at oneself

30. can be multitalented & hide it from everyone. They might surprise you one day by playing a guitar and suddenly drive a sports bike around like a pro.

And that is not all………..they are of the types who keep on evolving each day.

If you know of some more qualities please add.

Proud to be one



If I

If  I don't stand up when i must
i weaken my self respect.
if i ditch my soul and sleep with power
my existence can never rest.

if i don't dare to speak the truth
i was better born mute.
if i stab someone for power or money
i was better cursed to stay destitute.

if i close my eyes and do not see the reality
i must rather turn blind.
if in pace i don't see my mistakes
i would instead make my life rewind.

if i kill my friend and his friendship
i must stay friendless ever.
if even a day i act like an animal
i should turn into one forever.

As You Always Owned

The cold breeze which touches my eyes
touches you too
some empty moments & some stories
to share with you.

i humm, write & sing songs
and play their notes
& jumble, mumble and fumble
letters & words into quotes

i try to do anything & everything possible
to spend time till we meet next
waiting endlessly with tearful eyes
for your shoulder to rest

and then fill my mornings & nights
with folded hands & prayers
to be able to reach deep down your heart
peeling all layers

to fall like a leaf & sit beside you
and still like being stoned
and you touch me pick me &
take along as you always owned.

Being In Love Forever



to give thousands of smiles

to win over a heart

love can never be learnt

its a unique art.

capturing every moment of it

frame by frame

loosing everything for the one

and yet no claim

and to know that its such a game

that you will give in all

and kind of bout lost already

thats what you can call

but no matter how many battles you loose

you feel delighted in the end

you need to let it sink in the experience

and let happiness blend.

it was not about

happy endings ever

its only about the feeling of

being in love forever.

Remembering KASAULI

Entering PARWANOO

PARWANOO AGAIN

Bye bye PARWANOO

tank in the AMBUSH

remember the dog story

early morning in the hills

road to PEACE

morning sun burning bright

Trip To Kasauli: chapter4

Chapter 4

While my way upto a food joint, saw a Sikh kid delivering dialogues from the movies of Sunny Deol that too with expressions better than Sunny paji himself. I found the 6 yr old very talented but the people around were not as surprised and impress as I was. It was probably his daily routine. While having my favorite Chinese food I was talking to a dog who was supposed to be guarding the place. Any slight sound or movement would catch his attention followed by an immediate action. He was no less than a CIA agent.

Was enjoying the serenity & the calmness in the wind when my friend called up. He had reached Chandigarh safe(to my surprise) & was advising me to go to my room ASAP. I was happy to see that he didn’t die on the way as I expected him to be. But at the same time was wondering why people feel scared of the things they can’t even see. While going back to my hotel room, I saw a group of college girls posing in the middle of the road under a lamp post and posing for their profile pic on FB while I saw a statue of a black dog outside a liquor shop & found it worth a click. But why a statue of dog outside a liquor shop?

Back in the hotel room, had a cup of tea while watching a very hilarious series which I had never seen before. My friend’s talks had made me a little fearful too. So I kept all the lights & TV on while I was getting into deep slumber of sleep. But when I woke up next morning, I found the TV switched off. There were surely some energy saving entities around

TRIP TO KASAULI: Prologue

Time passes by and so does the age. Never to reoccur never to replay.

I wish to see the whole world till I am still young

Till I have the courage & strength to follow the most difficult terrains.

Till I still have the right eye sight to look at the amusing beauty around

Till I can still smell the clouds, touch the dew.

I wish to keep running away to destinations unknown.

But it’s not just the destination, but the journey I wish to cherish all my life

So when I will be nearing my death, I will still have the same smile which I had when I first saw the mountains.

And the words which I write now will bring back all the forgotten memories

All forgotten tales of my escapes to these hills

 who have enchanted me forever.

-          Nandita Prakash

No Substitute of Love

You infected me with a touch
a touch of your sight
and i could feel you
see me all over

and then came in
a pat on the shoulder
and i was assured
that i was doing fine

and those cuddley hugs
being loved like a pup
and a feeling of fulfilment
that yes i am loved enough

and those harsh days
when you would look away
treat me like a cold morsel
and about to throw me away

and things falling in place
along with your smile
bringing back all the pats and hugs
as there is no substitute of love.

Delhi To Leh- 100 Rupay Jeb Main : From Travel Agents To Roof Top Restaurants

Found a lovely hotel, a little away from the  main market. Almost on the outskirts of Leh, home like interior, warmth & an excellent view. A trip for all travel lovers – always find a place to stay in the outskirts of your hot tourist destination. It’s not only relatively economical but it also gives you that peace & view which you would require once you are tired after the daily travel. It also gives you a beautiful view of the entire area around. I have tried it in Manali, Mussorrie, Shillong & now Leh.

After freshen up, we went out to the main market  to find out certain possibilities & some food. Possibilities of moulding our journey ahead. Since it was getting too much time consuming & tiring, we were divided into two minds- To ride ahead or to stay & go back. The first travel agent we met was a middle aged Ladakhi guy who laughed at us when he heard that we had come there all the way from Delhi. He told us that when he was young, he had travelled on his scooter from Leh to Delhi & then he had to lie down on his tummy for the next fifteen days. Thank God, our situation was much better. He said it would be unfair if we don’t see the place & go ahead. He suggested us to send the bike through some transporter & roam in and around Leh. He also suggested a transporter with the name “ Chinar”.

Checked airfare with a couple of travel agents, But still in double minds. Surprisingly,  nowhere could we see any restaurant. A very wired observation but do people really eat food here or do they all have the problem of lost appetite like me. Then another observation that the place had the beautiful trend of terrace restaurants. Fresh food with fresh air & awesome view of the entire city. Lovely combination.

On the same terrace, amidst a number of groups of foreign tourists, I saw a Ladkahi couple sitting in a corner table & looking at each other with dove like eyes. College lovers may be. Small town love story. I could not comprehend their language but could see them very much in love.

Breaking the calmness around, I could hear the shrieking bikes rushing in the town. The three musketeers were in the town now. We were separated on the way but now could see them again. We waived at them but they could not catch a glimpse.  We knew they would meet us again. The town wasn’t that big.

Delhi To Leh- 100 Rupay Jeb Main : If This Is Paradise, I am Better Without It.

Now we were amidst huge peaks covered with snow which never defreeze. One can see huge black mountains but in a second look, one would realize they are glaciers painted with pollutants. Pollution created by us can affect places we can’t even imagine. It destroys the beauty we couldn’t even see.

The roads were getting bad. Water from the melting glaciers was making the road slippery, filthy & muddy. Even a 25km drive was taking hours. It was frustrating. No vegetation, no humans, only a few bikers who can be seen now & then.

Every biker who passes from the road gives a thumb up to the other biker. A very crazy tradition which I was absolutely unaware of. With every biker passing by with a thumbs up, I asked my friend if he knows them. He smiled & said that I would know them too. But then the tradition infected me too. Every worker working on the road also waves at you. Amazing. It is probably the spirit of adventure they wave at, not u or me. it is the same spirit which unite nationals of different  nations  among  this killing terrain.

Then we reached Sarchu which is half way between Manali-Leh. I was getting impatient. The monotonous terrain & lack of oxygen & time consuming bad roads - they all were making me extremely depressed. When we got down at Sarchu for a Police Check, I was fuming & the target was everything around. What made the situation worse was the knowledge from the Hawaldaar at the post that the road ahead was going to be even worse. Leh was now 252kms away & I had to reach there before I die. The beautiful terrain could no longer hold my attention. But since no one dies of boredom, I survived.

Amongst all these depressing issues, I saw a sign board which said “Welcome to the Paradise on Earth”. Yes we had touched Kashmir. The Kashmir I had seen in magazines was so different from the one I was experiencing now. Believe me, it was no Paradise but a scary hell & the devil was doing everything possible to make us stay there forever.

In the very next curve, we found a bridge broken & hanging midway. It was a big bridge & repairing could have demanded at least two days. What irritated me the most was people saying around “all this is common here”. Well now those common thing s were going to take away my precious two days. But then as they say “ no one stops bikers” we saw a group of bikers pushing each other’s bike through a ditch near by to reach the road on the other side. We followed them & saved out two days from getting wasted.

 It was there when we met a small group of three bikers from Delhi & became friends instantly…...

Delhi to Leh : 100 Rupay Jeb Main – Tandi to Jispa( I proved my smartness again)

It was 5 o’clock in the morning and we could hear the army trucks moving out of the camp. We felt so ashamed of sleeping till late. A peaceful breakfast at the officer’s mess & we left the comfort behind at 5:30 a.m. Next stoppage was a petrol station few kilometers away from Tandi. The precious one as the next one would be available after 365kms. If you miss this one, you will be out of fuel in the middle of a desert. It was 6 in the morning and the station was locked. Unlike other filling stations, this one remains closed at night till the owners come at 6:30 in the morning.



Meanwhile we met a middle aged man who had come in a fragile looking 120 cc bike & cans & bottles for petrol. A yellow flag “ Om Namah Shivay” written over it. He was a part of a bike rally which starts from Jaipur to Amarnath shrine every year. He has been a part of this rally for the past 11 years. People can be so incredibly crazy. The road ahead took us to an unseen journey among beautiful & rare terrains & absolutely breathtaking sceneries. We could also see some amazingly planned villages & small monasteries.



On our way, we had to cross several natural springs ‘nalas’ as they are called. Some were very light & could be crossed while still riding the bike but some had such force that we had to get down from the bike & drag ourselves through the water pressure. I was almost about to get swayed with the flow a couple of times. We were all drenched in water up to our waste. My feet had started freezing. I was advised to keep my fingers moving so that they could continue to feel & do not freeze.



We had crossed Kelong & were somewhere between Gemur & Jespa, when we saw an extreme high spring flowing over the road. We could also see few bikers drying themselves up on either side of the spring, I had already given up. There as no way we could cross that gigantic spring. But my friend said it was possible. I didn’t wanted to risk my life so I got down & stood at one side to see what was coming up next. He got off the bike too, with full throttle, he got into the water. The next second I could neither see him or the bike, but we could still hear the bike roaring. Two bikers from the other side jumped into the water & pulled the bike & the rider out. And there they were on the other side of the spring, water dripping all over. Now that is called being courageous. I was happy to see both of them alive.

Oops! But now it was my turn. Well I might sound like blowing my own trumpet but girls have always been smarter & so am I. I waited for another couple of minutes till I could see a truck approaching. Got a lift till the other side of the spring. SIMPLE. You don’t always need to have courage. Sometimes even brain also saves. I could see all the bikers smiling at their foolishness & my smartness

In the middle of all these brave acts, we found two Australian cyclist crossing the same spring on their cycles. Now that’s called being extra courageous. We all clapped for this undying unfazed spirit of adventure.



We took an idea about the road from those bikers & moved onnnnnnnnnnnn………….

Delhi to Leh: 100 Rupay Jeb Main :Manali –Rohtang-Tandi(107kms of mud, rocks & no oxygen)

The room was familiar. Last year, on my runaway trip to Manali, this guest house was my escape & the same Room No 205 was my haven. When I woke up next morning, it felt as if I never moved out of that room. That I never went back to Delhi. That I have always been there. That I always belonged to that bed & that cozy smell of wet woods. Never felt so secured & safe as I did rolling under those white sheets & velvet blankets.

But then to taste the adventure, one must leave all sources of comfort & simply plunge into the stream of impossibilities which then turn true. I was as fresh as I was when we started from Delhi. No pain, no tiredness, I had started tasting adventure. My friend wanted me to rest that day as it was my first long route experience. But I was getting impatient. I had seen Manali several times but this time I wanted to go beyond & see more.

We carried an extra can of petrol & started for Rohtang at noon. It was bright, warm & sunny. As we moved up, the clouds became very heavy. Rohtang has never been fair to me. Previous two experiences had been deadly but this time I had to win. There were fresh landslides at different places. Mud till the knee & sometimes even above it. Dangerous narrow roads. Traffic on both the sides was still, yet all bikers were somehow moving. I had to walk several meters with the luggage as the bike had to appear lighter to cross the swamp. Those few meters made me so tired, exhausted & breathless as if I had been walking since Delhi. The clouds had settled on the ground. Zero visibility & killing chill & there I encountered snow for the first time. I have been to many hill stations but could never see snow. On one side of the road, there was a huge chunk of snow, black & white. I touched it, kicked it. It was exactly same as the snow in the frost freezer. Or like the ones “Chuskis” are made of. We had crossed Rohtang & those dense clouds too. Two of my dreams were already fulfilled.

The terrain had entirely changed. There were only rocky mountains around & almost no habitat. We had no idea about our next stoppage. The landslide at Rohtang road had taken up a lot of time. It was going to get dark soon. We stopped at Khokhsar to sip a cup of tea & get an idea about the road ahead. The ladhakhi guy at the tea stall advised us to go to Tandi. It had camping sites & an Army Transit Camp as well. It was almost dark when we began to see a well constructed colony from a distance. White lights & shelters made of plastic & tin. It was a transit camp. With few approaches we got a permission to spend the night at the transit camp. So we night stayed with almost 600 soldiers from three regiments in a transit camp. And what a camp it was…………………….

Delhi to Leh: 100 Rupay Jeb Main (departure morning) : G.T Karnal Road: Worth a Chapter

It was still pretty early on G T Karnal road, when I realized that people of my city appeared to be more health conscious than I thought they were. People of all ages & genders were walking, running, jumping or working out on both sides of the highway. It also made me realize the grave unavailability of community parks for these health conscious people who had to come to a highway to take in fresh morning breath.

Next was a filling station with semi-naked attendants. We had disturbed them pretty early. But arn’t they supposed to be serving 24x7. Next was the most atrocious thing one can do. The cruzer had to undergo a pollution check before we move ahead to stranger destinations. The poor guy responsible for the check was sleeping in his 5x4 cabinet with only loose underwear on. Must be really deep in his dream that we actually had to stuff ourselves in that cabinet, shake him well to get up & do the needful. He must have cursed the infiltrators the whole day.

It was getting cloudy. The roads were all wet. As if the rain was preceding us & guiding us towards the hill

Next stoppage was for the breakfast. The only Mc Donalds on G T Karnal road, opposite famous Cheetal Dhaba near Kurukshetra. So what is so special about a Mc Donald’s outlet? Well a Mc D corner in city matters nothing but a Mc D corner in be wilderness means a lot. It somewhere symbolizes modern day civilization. God knows, when will be the next “Aaloo Tikki burger be available?

We were almost going to miss it, when I saw the familiar “M” hiding on the other side of the half built flyover. Nice complex with other familiar food outlets like Subway & Sagar Ratna and some swans floating around. But only Mc Donald’s could offer food for early travelers like us. We even took an advantage of Mr Mc Donald sitting outside his own outlet & went inside to see how those egg muffins were made. We were probably too fond of infiltrating.

Newly arrived books, looking through the closed glass doors of those book shops. As if they wanted to come along. Break free from those glass cages & runaway with us to the real world. It was then that I decided to write a travelogue when I return.

Witnessing pollution coming from all big & small industries, we reached the famous city of Chandigarh. I had never seen this city before but had heard a lot. Well planned city, where sector 2 comes after sector 1 & not sector 10. So well planned, that every round about has a liquor vendor for sure. It surely shows the effect of joyfulness of the state over the state government. The traffic jam was very similar to that in Delhi.

The lunch was at Punjab- Himachal Border. The journey on plains was good but the difficult time was ahead……..

Delhi to Leh: 100 Rupay Jeb Main (departure early morning)

For all those who know me & my fondness for running away, would also remember my last “ Runaway trip to Manali”. It was almost the same time of the year, when I could not live the city life anymore & had to run away to destinations unknown. This year, it was again full of exhaustion . frustration piled up since one year. Working for weeks back to back, no fun, no time for oneself & absolutely no existence.

I am a Sagittarian. a traveler by soul. Vacations for me are not as they are for you : mere pleasure time. Traveling for me is like Oxygen is for you.

This journey was absolutely unplanned, as all my trips are, but yet it was exceptional from the rest. The trip was planned by my destiny. It was almost as if someone wanted me to visit specific selected places of His choice. The most beautiful places out of beautiful ones. The trip made me question my own limitations & the height of courage

I cannot move ahead without telling you about someone who made this ‘Best ride of my life’ possible. Someone who made me realize that I have much more substance in me than what I thought I had. For all the curious ones, who would be eager to know the name: ok! I am not telling

But what I am going to tell you now is the beginning of the journey. Slept early the previous night. As we wanted to start the journey early. It is always advisable to complete the journey of plains before its noon.
4 a.m, Day 1 is when we started from my home. Not much of luggage. A saddle bag on the cruzer, two separate bags for us & one tent.

Again the curious ones must know that in this trip, I was strictly a pillion rider. The Delhi roads seemed to be so calm at those early hours. Had never seen them such ever before. Gurgaon to Dhaula Kuan, to Azaadpur mandi to G.T Karnal road- it took us less than half an hour.

Hey , would like to digress here. Anyone interested to know the story behind “100Rupay Jeb Main” ? Well, for the curious ones, this was the only amount I had in my wallet in the whole journey. I was never able to withdraw any money from my account, nor did this “100 Rupay” got spent. Thanks to my notorious bank who bluntly refuses to give money even if you hang on to an ATM for hours. Again I m not going to disclose the name, but what I am going to disclose is that we must get back to our track, our travel tale. Which will now resume in the next day coverage…………………..