No Escape from Numbers

Years ago, a friend who loves lecturing was making an attempt to make a block head like me understand the meaning of cardinal and ordinal numbers – which I did not make much of at that time as both pointed to a sequence. Only that the cardinal sequence went as one, two three ………and the ordinal as first, second third ……… and so on. Years later , now I do realize the significance of numbers. It is the numbers that decide so many things - for example which party is going to form the Government, who is going to be the PM or the CM as the case may be. So much so that even movies’ names had to be like, Ek Musafir Ek Hasina, , Do Thug, Do Gundey , Do Bigha Zameen , Do Dooni Chaar ,Do Kaliyan, Do Raaste, Teen Deviyan , Teesri Manzil, Five Rifles , Saat Hindustani, Nau Do Gyarah etc etc. Even we have had masterpieces like A Tale Of Two Cities, Three Musketeers etc .
The phobia attached to the number thirteen worldwide is still an enigma . However one may recall that in a popular Bollywood number there is counting from Ek do teen….. to Barah terah .
Phrases like First Love, -as also the song -pehla nasha pehla khumar -are very popular and so are first crush, first impression, First born , second thoughts , third world, fourth column, sixth sense , seven day wonder, seven year itch , the eight fold path cloud nine , ten commandments , which are so frequently used that they do not need any explanation.

A gift of Nature or ..........

I am afraid, prohibitionists will be after me hammer and tongs when I write a few words of praise about wine or liquor but admittedly, wine is one thing which has inspired high level poetry, from the pen of poets like, Omar Khayyam for whom

“a book of verses, a goblet of wine and thou by my side ” was all that he wanted.

And a shayar who wrote

“ ......meri baada parasti par na jao
jawani ko sahara mil gaya hai......”

found in it a support system
And back home our own the late Dr. Harivansh Rai Bachchan , the widely acclaimed Hindi poet ,who though himself a teetotaller , went on to write a trilogy – Madhubala, Madhushala & Madhukalash- eulogizing the gift of nature , more metaphorically than in the literal sense. We know that the great Mirza Ghalib was given to this addiction and himself admitted that but for this “vice” he would easily be considered a “wali” – a saint or a holy man. Who knows, the diwan -e- Ghalib, which immortalized him was the outcome of this addiction, as the manna makes your imagination run wild and the magical lyrics come out spontaneously.Gems of urdu poetry have flowed from the known addicts like Majaz Lakhnawi . Even Shiv Batalvi the Punjabi poet wrote paeans in praise of wine and himself was given to this habit. It is said that the great singer, K.L.Sehgal could not record a song unless he had downed a peg or two. Generally, those given to this habit are basically nice people, whose all negativity is drained away with a peg or two of wine. This I say out of my personal experience. Myself a teetotaller, I have enjoyed the company of people who get tipsy on special occasions and once you have a peep inside them , most of them emerge as nice people-kind hearted, least calculative and generally do-gooders. If at all , most of them are enemies to themselves , perhaps to their family also when , wearing an escapist attitude, they shirk responsibilities. Sometimes, I feel that being a teetotaller, I have been a loser. I have few friends, to keep company, can’t get things done easily and for all that professed goodness , am considered a big bore.

KAJRA RE…….KAJRA RE…

Since times immemorial, Kajal is used for the eyes to enhance the beauty and attraction. Not that it suits all eyes- it depends on the shape and color of the eyes as well as the total impact, it is able to make. Two female members in my family, who , for my own security reasons, I dare not name, are a living example . The one ,if she does not apply it, gives a sickly appearance, and the other, if she applies it even by mistake, makes one wish that the black device were not invented or discovered in the first place. But this does add to the looks of some and ravishingly so. Perhaps, Cupid used this device to strike some unsuspecting lover through the Kajal.
Long long ago, a legend was handed down to me, by a literary and very knowledgeable person, as to how Kajal came into existence.
It is so believed that Moosa, the great paigambar, who being either too early or too late in offering morning prayers to the God, saw a mountain coming between him and the Sun , thus obstructing his view . In a fit of rage he angrily gazed at the mountain and the mountain turned black and virtually into a heap of Kajal.
While poets and shayars have waxed eloquent about the lover being smitten by the kohl-lined eyes i.e. Kajrare Naina of the beloved, the following couplet, spells out the plaint or complaint of a lover so smitten:

Dawa karungaa khoon ka Moosa pe roz-e –hashr,
Kyon usne taab di mere Qatil ki teg ko.

There is going to be no escape from the effect of Kajrare Kajrare Naina .

Dil Da Mamla

Though basically I am a fan of old bollywood songs, occasionally I listen to songs like – Dil da mamla hai and dil ka mamla hai dilbar and enjoy them and after a while forget about them. But not so any more, as dil da mamla is not so simple as one may think it to be. “Times Life” the magazine section of Sunday Times dated 26 th Sept, 2010 was mostly devoted to stories and articles on Heart, the day being the World Heart Day. The lead article was “ Back from the Brink” showing celebrities like , Rohit Bal, Arpana Caur, Rakesh Roshan, Randhir Kapoor, who have had their brush with heart ailment of one type or the other. This does ring alarm bells in all of us particularly those on the wrong side of fifty. The best way would be to do some exercise or brisk walking, abstain from drinks and fats , keep tension at bay and not to respond positively to the urge of the dil which always maange more and not to allow any khalbali.

“ तैमूर लंग ”

बचपन में, जब मैं पाँचवी कक्षा का छात्र था , हिन्दी के पाठ्यक्रम में एक कहानी थी “ तैमूर लंग ”। कहानी मुझे इसलिए भी याद है कि उस समय कहानी और शीर्षक का दूर दूर से भी कोई संबंध मालूम न पड़ा क्योंकि एक तो इतिहास की इस क्रूर हस्ती से परिचय कुछ बाद में हुआ , दूसरा , कहानी में शीर्षक केवल एक बार आया है वह भी अंत में। लेखक का नाम मुझे याद नहीं पर कहानी प्रथम पुरुष में थी और दो मित्रों के बारे में थी जो एक ही नाटक कंपनी में काम करते थे ।कहानी का लेखक नाटककार था और उसका मित्र अभिनेता। दुर्भाग्य वश एक नाटक के मंचन के समय अभिनेता मित्र के पाँव में कील चुभ गयी और सेप्टिक होते होते पाँव कटवाने तक की नौबत आ गयी । अभिनेता मित्र तो जीवन से निराश हो ही चुका था क्योंकि अभिनय क्षेत्र की समस्त राहें बंद हो चुकी थी । कई दिन दोनों मित्रों की कोई मुलाक़ात न हुई । उधर लेखक मित्र को चैन कहाँ , वह अपने मित्र के लिए कुछ करना चाहता था । उसने अपने मित्र के लिए एक नाटक लिखा और पांडुलिपि उसे दिखाने के लिए ले गया । नाटक का शीर्षक था “ तैमूर लंग ” ।

कृतज्ञता से भाव विभोर हुए अभिनेता मित्र ने कहा “ इतनी प्रबल उत्तेजना किसने दी ? “

लेखक मित्र का उत्तर था “ तुमने , तुम्हारे प्रेम ने ! ”

कहानी का मर्म जब कई वर्षों के बाद जान पाया तो सच्ची मित्रता का भी अर्थ समझ में आया कि यह नाटक इसी लिए लिखा गया था कि लेखक का मित्र, जो अपना पाँव गंवा चुका था , तैमूर लंग की भूमिका निभा सके ।

सच में ऐसी कालजयी कहानियाँ हर समय तो नहीं लिखी जाती।

KHIDKI OR WINDOW

The very mention of the word Window as the English translation of Khidki evoked the image of an opening in the wall , with a wooden frame with one or two pallas with glass fixed in between so that one could have the view of the outside world without any fear of wind or storm, as also bask in the warmth of sunshine in the winter months . Khidki, used to be a source of romance blossoming between two young hearts looking wistfully at each other through the windows and in case of lucky ones , often maturing into life long relationship through matrimony.. There are many instances when some daring ( sic ) lover would jump out of the window lest he be caught meeting the beloved chori chori red handed – and breaking his leg in the process.I remember, as youngsters, we used to recite lines like Khidki khuli zulf uri.....without knowing the meaning, much to the annoyance of our elders. Similarly, the lines - Kharak Singh ke kharakne se kharakti hain khidkiyan , khidkiyon ke kharakne se khadakta hai Kharak Singh - were only an exercise in alliteration . There are a number of songs and ghazals finding mention of the word Khidki, like the one in film Padosan- Mere Samne wali Khidki Mein ik chaand ka tukda rehta hai or yeh Khidki jo band rehti hai. Or as in a Ghazal, Khuli hain Khidkian har ghar ki lekin, gali mein jhankta koi nahin hai.. Khidki was not only a passage for light to enter into our rooms but also our lives both literally and metaphorically.
But now the mention of Windows transports us straight to the Computer world where Windows denotes user friendly interface , making things easier. We have been introduced to different versions of Windows e.g. Windows, 95, 97, 98, 2000, 2003, 2007, XP, Vista and now, Windows 7, denoting various configurations and specifications which terms are all Greek to a layman like me and at the same time sound so unromantic

उपेंद्रनाथ अश्क

2010 भी दो तिहाई समाप्त हो चुका है और महान रचनाकार उपेंद्रनाथ अश्क की जन्मशती के बारे हिन्दी साहित्य जगत की चुप्पी समझ से परे है .कविता, कहानी , उपन्यास , नाटक यानि लेखन की सभी विधाओं में प्रभाव पूर्ण ढंग से क़लम चलाने वाले अश्क जी अपने समय के हिन्दी साहित्य के महत्वपूर्ण हस्ताक्षर रहे हैं . उनका उपन्यास “गिरती दीवारें " उपन्यास लेखन में यदि मील का पत्थर साबित हुआ है तो “बड़ी बड़ी आँखें " और “ एक नन्ही किंदील" भी अपने आप में बेजोड़ हैं .
“ डाची ” कहानी भी कम रोचक नहीं. उनकी कविता “मरुस्थल से " बरबस याद आती है इसलिए भी कि यह कैसा मरुस्थल है जो किसी महान लेखक की याद को हरा भरा रखना तो दूर, पनपने देने में भी अक्षम है ।