खालीपन, अंत औऱ नयी शुरुआत ....

खालीपन, अंत औऱ नयी शुरुआत ....

भरी भरी सी वो
अचानक ख़ाली हो गयी
जैसे किसी ने
उलट दिया हो....
मन में भरी ऊर्जा
लुप्त सी हो गयी
जैसे किसी ने
कुछ पलट दिया हो...
शून्य सी हो गयी वो
जैसे किसी ने
कुछ हटा दिया हो...
तुच्छ भी हो गयी वो
जैसे किसी ने
छांट दिया हो....
लघु सी कुछ
जैसे किसी ने
घटा दिया हो.....
अभागी सी कुछ
जैसे किसी ने
वंचित किया हो....
अकेली एकाकी
जैसे कोई
हीन गृहीन हो....
मगर,  मन ने, फिर एक बार

सच्चा मित्र बन 

थाम लिया उसको....
हौसला देकर
याद दिलाया
ज़िन्दगी हैं अनमोल...
कहा उससे
आत्मनिर्भर बनो
खुद पर विश्वास रखो....
ताकत हो तुम स्वयं की
और दूसरों की भी

पहचानो अपनी ताकत को 
दृढ संकल्पित रहो 
कर्म करते रहो ....
हार कभी ना मानो
ईश्वरी शक्ति
मोड़ बदलकर
रास्ता दिखलाएगी...
औऱ बतलाएगी
यह अंत नहीं
एक नयी शुरुआत हैं...
आगे बढ़ो
यह अंत नहीं
यह तो एक नयी शुरुवात हैं....

मन विमल

Beed, Banjara crafts and The Mahalakshmi Saras Mart, Gram Vikas Bhavan, Kharghar.....

Beed, Banjara crafts and The Mahalakshmi Saras Mart, Gram Vikas Bhavan, Kharghar.....

Tucked away in the heart of Maharashtra, almost at the centre is Beed. Not many people , even in our own state must have heard of this district. Hot, rugged and historical, it is even spiritual as the famous Parli Vaijnath Jyotirlinga Shiv temple is located here. It does hit headlines when there is discussion on the plight of sugarcane labourers. The district also has a large number of women from the banjara community. The challenges here are many and so MSRLM had identified it as a district which needed to be included in the "intensive strategy" which meant providing it with dedicated staff and team at the district, block and village levels.
Two years of dedicated work by the team has resulted in the creation of over 14000 Self-help groups and many opportunities for livelihoods, some farm and some non-farm. Amongst these the Banjara handicrafts have been unique and significant.
It is therefore heartening to see thirty SHGs from Beed at the Mahalakshmi Saras Mart in Gram Vikas Bhavan, GVB, Kharghar. They have come from different talukas of Beed, Parali, Ambajogai, Dharur, Gevrai, Majalgaon and Shirur. Each one of them has worked hard and put in great efforts to make good quality products and bring them for the ten day exhibition and sale at GVB.
An array of products in the processed food section include various types of paapads, kurdaayi, saandge meaning fryable items. There are different types of mouthwatering chutneys, pickles, murabbas, masalas, shevaaya. Organic jaggery, thaalipeeth flour, baajraa flour and aamla candy are other interesting products. And must certainly not miss out rural fruits like kavit (wood apple)  and bael fruit ( golden apple).
The health freaks can get different kinds of organic pulses like moong, toor, harbaras, groundnut, millets. And after you have had your fill of spices and food products you can indulge yourself in purchasing bright and multicoloured Banjara artefacts. These include colorful bags, jute bags, pouches, purses, mirror work patches, bangles, sofa covers, wall hangings.
The ethnic ghaagra odhnis in colourful combinations will certainly be difficult to resist. With Navratri barely three months away it would certainly be a good idea to stock up the original, handcrafted ethnic products which will make you stand out in the crowd during Daandiya and Garbaa Raas.
At Parali taluka in Beed district is the temple of Lord Shiva which is one of the jyotirlingas. Every year, a very big fair is held here on Mahashivratri.
Women from such a holy place are now at the Mahalakshmi Saras Mart, in Gram Vikas Bhavan at Kharghar exhibiting tgeir products. Besides selling their products, they may have many interesting stories to share. Wouldn't it be great fun to join them and know more about their lives?
MSRLM will be organising free classes in bangle-making, warli and mehndi during the weekend on the 18th and 19th May 2019 at the Mahalakshmi Saras Mart.
Let your hair down, indulge yourself here because it wouldn't mean having fun only but also add value to other women's lives.....

Amma....and my 100th blog....

Amma....

It's Mother's day today and the posts about mothers on Facebook, Watsap and Twitter haven't stopped since morning.
Two days ago when I read an advertisement for purchasing a gift for mother's day my eyes moistened remembering Amma. She loved buying things and getting gifts on every occasion. My siblings and me humoured her and made it a point to shower her with gifts by way of sarees or jewellery.
Life had not been easy for her or for any of us. Married into a middle class family, migrating to Maharashtra-Mumbai from a remote village of Tamil Nadu must have been a great challenge. Yet I had never seen her complaining even once about this or talk about all that she did to endure this peculiar situation.
My father was an officer with the Railways, a man of modest means.
Managing four children in the limited income must have been a task. However, i don't remember her cribbing or grumbling any time.
She was cheerful, welcoming and friendly ensuring that every person who visited our house had that lovely cup of tea she was known to make. Her generosity was inimitable because despite our sparse life she still managed to donate and give away things to the poor and needy.
She was intelligent no doubts for she lost no time in learning the local language, Hindi. I always found her comfortable while speaking which reflected her confidence and mental strength. She was beautiful no doubts but what added to her charm was her simplicity.
Her memory was sharp and her knowledge practical. She could quote verbatim and also sing melodiusly many of the verses from our scriptures. This mirrored her capabilities.
Being a home maker , she was always there to support us emotionally. We may not have had "intellectually stimulating " conversations with her as is expected from mothers now but she was always there in the background standing tall like the Gibraltar rock to provide support to my father during any unforeseen circumstance. So she never hesitated to sell or pawn her limited pieces of jewellery when cash required to send our brother to IIT or for my sister's marriage or for any of our needs.
Her reverance for values like honesty and truthfulness were exemplary. What is more important is the fact that she ensured each one of us imbibed that spirit of honesty and integrity.

Probably what antagonised some people was her no-nonsense straightforwardness. She made no attempts to curb her opinions which at times were sharp and hard hitting. As mother and daughter,  we had our own differences of opinion too but that did not prevent her from caring for me like a child. Her concern for my safety and security in my profession, during my travel were adorable. She would always sound me to be careful and exercise caution. In her words, prevention was better than cure.
The void in my life ever since she passed away has been like an abyss which can never be filled. An inexplicable sense of helplessness engulfs me at times specially when I feel the need to be protected and loved unconditionally.
Some well-wishers say that garnering such feelings causes agony to the departed soul.
One must come to terms with life and move on. Yet it has been difficult for me to fathom out how one moves away from the bond with one's mother.
The umbilical cord isn't just a means to provide oxygen and food to the foetus in the womb. It is much more like a bridge between the past, present and future. A bond that would last till eternity. No wonder I always feel that Amma is around watching, walking with me hand in hand, looking into my eyes , smiling and saying , "Don't worry, me and my blessings will always be there for you...."
Surely her blessings are with me as I pay my tribute to her through my 100th blog today. It was her undying spirit which goaded me to start a blog two weeks after her sad demise chanelising my trauma to creativity.
As if in her death too she had maneuvered me to rationality...

Happy Mother's Day...

Mothers.....

Mothers.....

Maa, Amma, Aai, Mamma, Baa are some of the different ways in which children call their mother. The one thing common among these different ways of calling is the softness associated with the word mother. Shakespeare has rightly said, the rose by any other name would smell as sweet. And so our relationship with our mothers is always sweet.
Maybe mothers are more special because our bond with our mother begins nine months before our birth. This revelation dawns on most women when they themselves become mothers.

For me too it was no different. I still remember the day when I was able to see the foetus growing in my womb. Faceless, bodyless, yet a part of my own being. Technology has made things so much easy for modern day mothers. It is possible for them to keep track of every single development of their child.

I can never forget the day I saw the spinal cord of my child during the course of a sonography. I have never felt so excited as i felt then. It was the most beautiful image I have ever seen, straight , clear, every segment, delicate yet strong. After all this was the path to our reflexes and thoughts leading to our brain. All at once , I had been enveloped in so many emotions which included gratitude to God, a feeling of wonderment at his creations, a sense of belonging to the bundle of joy that was growing in me. I could barely contain my joy. My touch transformed thereafter for everytime, I touched my stomach I started feeling one with my child. An inexplicable bond had been established.

It was therefore impossible for me to consider termination of pregnancy when during one such visit to my doctor it was announced that my foetus may not be normal. I was adviced to ascertain myself with further tests before taking the decision of going ahead. For me however, my bond with my child as a mother had been established and there was no looking back.
Maybe that soft and tender feeling of mothering my foetus gave me strength or my strong and innate belief in God that eventually all things would be alright made me hang on.
Till today I derive strength during my most difficult moments from that single source that everything happens for the good. However motherhood with all it's challenges became possible due to the constant support of my family.

Modern day working mothers and even home makers knowingly or unknowingly have to bear the brunt of guilt tied with responsibility for bringing up a child. Many homes or work places are not conducive in providing the required support. So women end up being glorified super humans or get dubbed as being bad mothers.
Though the glass ceiling may have broken, in reality women are still sruggling to find their true place in the economy specially in the high end value chain of agriculture or any other industry. So they may be agricultural labourers but will not be considered as farmers.

Just the other day during a brainstorming session for inclusion of women in the high end value chain of agriculture, an anecdote of mothers regretting their own financial growth as their sons were going out of hand with upmarket gadgets was quoted as if to reaffirm that the proper development of a child rests solely on the mother.
Mother's day should therefore not become a single day for glorifcation of mothers. Society needs to think and work ways and means to balance life. A mother is certainly not someone who has to live upto the expectations of every single person around the world. She is as human like every other man and has a desire to grow. This growth is certainly not possible in isloation and can happen only when the family actually functions like a unit.
Mothers of the previous generations certainly sacrificed their lives and time for us staying at home. I still remember my mother being home for us all the time. We may not have had "intellectually stimulating " conversations with her as is expected from mothers now but she was always there in the background standing tall like the Gibraltar rock to provide support during any unforeseen circumstance. So she never hesitated to sell or pawn her limited pieces of jewellery when cash required to send our brother to IIT or for my sister's marriage or for any of our needs. Many mothers must have done that and may be doing many other things to support their families just like their fathers.
Parenting is therefore a unified effort of parents as mother and father in the family.
Surprisingly buttressed wrongly with the concept of the ideal mother are real women, who maybe wives or sisters of other men and are mothers too. More often than not they are at the receiving end of jokes or lewd conversations or get attacked in cases of domestic violence, rape and molestation. Motherhood certainly does not come to their rescue then. The softness and warmth of a mother who has given birth to a child and who would never want any wrong to be done by her child boy or girl is conveniently forgotten. The most important thing a man or any father can do for his children is to teach their children to respect and love their mother. That would be the best tribute to woman as an individual, a human being and of course as a mother.
This maybe a distant dream but certainly not utopian. On Mother's day let's rededicate ourselves to the cause of an unadulterated, undivided, equal and unified society.

Osmanabadi products at the Mahalakshmi Saras Mart, Gram Vikas Bhavan, Kharghar....

Osmanabadi products at the Mahalakshmi Saras Mart, Gram Vikas Bhavan, Kharghar....

Osmanabad, the name conjures images of the 1993 earthquake which devastated parts of Latur and Osmanabad districts of Maharashtra. In contrast is MSRLM, resurrecting lives of the poorest in the villages through social and financial inclusion and leading them to sustainable livelihoods. The efforts made by MSRLM under the Department of Rural Development, Government of Maharashtra during the last five years are now bearing fruit. The SHGs who have been capacitated are now able to initiate small enterprises and make a living. MSRLM is providing support for sustainable agriculture or allied activities like poultry, goatery, food processing, handicrafts, handlooms and marketing to about 4 lakh Self-help groups and 40 lakh households. More than 12 lakh livelihoods have been made possible due to the interventions of MSRLM.
Market linkages to the SHGs are provided through various Saras exhibitions in districts and divisional headquarters. The Mahalakshmi Saras held every year at BKC, Bandra at Mumbai has a special status. It is the most sought after event by Mumbaikars.
There is a constant demand for authentic products made by the women of Self-help groups by citizens  of Mumbai and Navi Mumbai. It was with this idea that the Mahalakshmi Saras Mart has been set up at Gram Vikas Bhavan, Kharghar, Navi Mumbai. Every ten days one district form the state comes to exhibit and sell their products there.
Presently products from Osmanabad district are on sale.
The women have brought unique goods like Banjara jewellery, mirror work articles, handmade bags, footwear. The agarbatties, incense sticks with a variety perfumes brought by one SHG can make your homes divine. There are different kinds of masalas, organic jagerry, papads, pulses, ghee- calrified butter . The special Osmanabadi pedhas made from pure milk melt in you mouth and make you ask for more. Gio Goat milk soap made from goat milk will make your skin glow.
Two SHGs are also cooking special Osmanabadi food like Dahi Dhapaate, thaali peeth, bhaji and Osmanabadi non-vegetrarian dishes.
And of course the mangoes from Konkan Ratnagiri and Devgad are still there as also the permanent shop selling gift articles and other items made by SHGs from all over the state.
A visit to The Mahalakshmi Saras Mart will not only introduce you the work being done the SHG women of MSRLM but also give you an opportunity to buy genuine products made by SHGs Osmanabad.
On my visit to make purchases yesterday,
I was so overwhelmed by their warmth and enthusiasm. Each one of them spoke about how much effort they put in to make products of good quality. Their motherly feeling and earthly touch was so ingenuous. As if each one was reveberating the aura of Ma Tulja Bhavani of Tuljapur in Osmanabad.  Legends say that it was Her blessings which made the great Chatrapati Shivaji Maharaj what he was. So do visit The Mahalakshmi Saras Mart to see and purchase the products of SHG women from Osmanabad. I am sure their blessings combined with those of Maa Tulja Bhavani will make you ferl enriched.

Swami Vedant Desikan, poet, philosopher and proponent of Sri Vaisnavism....a contemporary of Sant Dnyaneshwar...

Swami Vedant Desikan, poet, philosopher and proponent of Sri Vaisnavism....a contemporary of Sant Dnyaneshwar....

It's almost a week since I attended a community chanting of shlokas, stotrams and prabandham composed by Swami Vedant Desikan at the Desika Sabha in Matunga, Mumbai. The serenity I experienced set me thinking. Swami Vedant Desikan was a contemporary of Sant Dnyaneshwar yet many would neither know him nor know the fact that he has composed over 100 works on every aspect of life in about 7 languages.
Born in 1268, a poet, philosopher and disciple of Swami Ramanujam, he was a proponent of Sri Vaishnavism. Legend says he was born out of the divine bell of Lord Venksteswara of Tirupathi and so known as
as Ghantaavataara.
He was truly blessed with great intellect as he was able to impress great scholars from the time he was five. He became a disciple of Saint Kidambi Appullar when he was 7 and by the age of 20 he had gained mastery over poetry, logic, linguistics, science, vedanta. He had a rare mastery over several languages such as Tamil, Sanskrit, Prakrit and Manipravala (a mixture of Sanskrit and Tamil). His literary works include 28 devotional poems in Sanskrit, 24 devotional poems in Tamil, 11 philosophical treatises, 10 commentaries on acharyas, 5 narrative poems, 32 esoteric texts, 1 drama, 13 works in art an science, 4 works on religious rites and practices. His shlokas and stotras touch every aspect of our life. Their uniqueness is in the 32 metres he has given to them which makes their chanting a real pleasure.
His debating talents were avant-garde as he accepted many such challenges and composed something unique each time.
Knowledge was something he was always seeking and blessed he was by none other than Lord Hayagreeva, the God of learning. The Hayagreeva stotram dedicated to Lord Hayagreeva transformed his life. He was blessed with such deep knowledge that he could compose poems in a fraction of seconds. So he composed the Abhiteestavam for becoming fearless and to drive away fear, the Dashavataaram stotram on the Dashavataras, Daya Satakam seeking God's benevolence, Sudarshanaastakam for fearlessness, Kaamaasikatakam for surrender and self- realisation.
Sri Stuti was composed by him when some malicious elements wanted to scorn his poverty by sending a friend to seek financial aid for his daughter's wedding. Swami Desikan quietly took him to the shrine of Goddess Lakshmi and composed the Sri Stuti which resulted in a shower of gold coins from the Godess herself.
Despite seeing such riches he was cut off from all desire. He even refused the position and riches offered by his friend, Vidyaranya, a Court official in the 'Vijayanagara kingdom' and composed the famous ' Vairagya Panchakam' emphasising on his renunciation and detachment from worldly wealth.
Paaduka Sahasram, the 1008 verses are unique as they were composed in just one night, and set to 32 metres of music. This was in response to a challenge by another scholar and Swami Desikan stood tall as he accomplished the impossible task of not only composing 1008 verses but also setting them to metre.
The Yadavabhyudaya, a unique composition on Krishna is as decorative as the poetry of Mahakavi Kalidasa.
His mastery over any subject enabled him to compose even on Aahaara, food. Thus the Ahara Niyamanam, tells us what should be eaten by us and how.
When he was put in a corner by being asked to construct a well using uneven bricks he accomplished the task and even composed a stotra for the same. This well still exists at Tiruvaheendrapuram.
'Sankalpa Suryodaya'- a marvelous allegorical drama on human emotions like greed , jealousy and qualities like wisdom, was written by him in one night.
'Rahasya Traya Saram' an important book for any Sri Vaishnava written in Manipravala style (a mixture of Sanskrit and Tamil) is his magnum opus and explains the philosophy of Tattva, Hita And Purushartha.  
There are several such literary works to his credit and he was therfore conferred the title of Sarvatantra Swantantra and Kavitaarkika Kesari.
His devotion to the Lord blessed him with every skill so much so that he could take up the challenge of sculpting his own idol which can be seen at Tiruvaheendrapuram even today.
Such was his devotion to the Lord that in 1327 when Malik kafur was forcing plunder and massacre, he dared to hide himself and two other shisyaas among the dead bodies to protect the Archana idols of God.
Swami was a great traveller and went on a pilgrimage to several Kshetras like Kadigai, Ayodhya, Kaasi, Mathura, Avanti, Badarikasramam, Puri, Brindavan, Dwaraka, Triveni, Gaya , Salagramam,
He was egalitarian by nature and despite opposition he insisted on installation of idols of all Alwaars including those who were from other castes in temples since they were devoted Sri Vaishnavas.
Blessed with a long life, he lived to be a centenarian as he served the Lord till 1369.
He always emphasized on the need for purity of thought, word, and deed for realizing God and eliminating feelings of desire, sin, false knowledge.
The human mind has the innate ability to gain knowledge and use it for one's own growth and the development of society. Through innumerable examples in his life Swami Desikan has shown us this path. It is for us to realise our true self, gain true knowledge and follow the path of Dnyana, Karm and Bhakti leading to our own salvation.

Ratnagiri's jewel like products at The Mahalakshmi Saras Mart, Gram Vikas Bhavan, Kharghar....

Ratnagiri's jewel like products at Gram Vikas Bhavan, Kharghar....

How little it takes for our hearts to be happy and how little does someone need to become happy is what I experienced with the SHG women of Ratnagiri who presently are at Gram Vikas Bhavan, Kharghar.
About twenty self-help groups have sent their representatives with the varied products they make.
So we have the best of Cashew nuts, spices, godaa and garam masala, fish masala, kokum, different kinds of flours, tasty chivda, pohaa, rice and original Ratnagiri Haapus ( 🍑 all sold-out, fresh stock coming again !!! ) Some have brought garments like gowns and blouses, bags, purses, jewellery and footwear. And of course , MSRLM has it's permanent shop with products and gift items from all over the state.
The place looked bright and peppy with the enthusiasm of the ladies. Their joy was infectious, their enthusiasm unbound. The exhaustion from my longish meeting since 11 a.m just evaporated.
I was so enthralled by their enthusiasm in showing me their products and coming together for group pictures. Each one had a sense of pride as they talked about their products from Khed, Sangameshwar, Chiplun, Ratnagiri and Mandangad. I was really touched when they expressed how grateful they were for this opportunity. Their sales had been good too.
As we clicked pictures, one lady from the groups expressed her desire to sing a community song. All the ladies joined her enthusiastically singing a motivational song in honour of our nation and the need to have feelings of patriotism, unity and nationalism. The importance of being a part of the SHG leading to the development of the village and the victory of the SHG was also in it. Her confidence in singing and leading the group was remarkable. The whole atmosphere was electrified by that energy. My heart resonated with their joy.

I was also engulfed in a spate of emotions. These women had travelled miles away from home to promote their enterprise and do business. Their aspiration for growth was phenomenal.
MSRLM through its various interventions is supporting SHGs through social, financial and economic inclusion for sustainable livelihoods. Providing backward and forward linkages is being done by way of Mahalakshm Saras snd other divisional exhibitions.
The Mahalakshmi Saras Mart at GVB, Karghar is another platform where SHG women from different districts are allocated space to market their products. Every ten days SHGs from a district in Maharashtra come here for an exhibition  and sale of their products. 
This week, the jewels of Ratnagiri are shining bright with their goods and spreading joy at the  Mahalakshmi Saras Mart, Gram Vikas Bhavan,  Kharghar. Add a dazzle to your life, a twinkle to their eyes when you go for shopping there....