पद

पद 

कुर्सी पर विराजे वो 

पद ने दी प्रतिष्ठा 

करामात मौके की  वो 

आसन दे गयी निष्ठा 

बदले बदले से हो गए वो 

अंदाज़ हो गयी विशिष्ठा 

औरों से भिन्न जैसे वो 

मति हो गयी भ्रष्टा

साहब साहिबा बन गए थे वो 

चलना बोलना बदला 

रौब झाड़ने लगे ऐसे वो 

करें गर कोई चेष्टा 

बातों मेँ कभी अंगारे 

बर्ताव मेँ कभी घमंड 

रवैये  में थोड़ा ग़ुरूर 

भूल गए जनाब 

काम लोगोंके ज़रूर 

भावों के तरंगों मेँ बह 

कभी हठी कभी दम्भ 

हर पद का वक़्त गुज़रा 

निवृत्ति पर हुए दंग 

ना पद रहा ना कुर्सी 

ना ओहदा रहा ना रूतबा 

हताश से रहते वो 

चेहरे पर थोड़ी चिंता 

याद कर सुनहरा अतीत 

मन हो जाता व्यथित 

काल असीम अनंत 

पद मात्र क्षणिक 

याद रखे इस बात को 

बलवान दृढ और प्रबल 

सार्थक बनेगा जीवन 

पद पद कुशल मंगल.... 

मन विमल

Of Holi and viruses in mind and body.....

Of Holi and viruses in mind and body.....

This Holi was different. Our building which normally reverberates in the festivities of colour decided to keep safe distance from water and colours thanks to corona virus. The only thing which remained unchanged was the breakfast and lunch followed by the boisterous game of housie. Conversations coloured our day in the absence of water and colours. However they proved to be a poor second for they were surely not as much fun as coloring friends or throwing water on them.
The children were most disappointed, specially Vishnu as this is his favourite festival but they switched over to playing cricket.
Holi of course is laced with traditions. The celebrations begin with the 'Holi ka Dahan' or the burning of Holika which is symbolic of Prahalad's victory over Hiranyakashipu and the blessings of Lord Vishnu in His Narsimha Avtaar.
There are many temples dedicated to Lord Narsimha but how many would know that a temple dedicated to Lord Narasimha exists in Multan which is now in Pakistan? Of course it is now in ruins but legend says that the temple is located at the site where Prahalada had himself constructed the original temple. It is the place where Lord Narasimha is said to have appeared out of pillar to save Prahalada from his father Hiranyakashyapu. The tradition and the festival of Holika Dahan is also believed to have started here. According to Prahalad Puraan the place came to be known as Prahaladpuri.
Interestingly there is a dargaah adjacent to the temple and it was known for its Mela or fairs. Since this place was the mool sthan or place of origin of Kashyap Rishi it was also known as Moolsthan. As the temple fell into ruins, the idol of Lord Nasrsimha has been shifted to Haridwar. However this is the folk lore of Multan's probable nomenclature.
It is said that the temple was totally destroyed in retaliation to the Babri masjid demolition in 1992 reflecting on the attitude of fanatics.
Spiritualism is way above narrow parochialism. No religion preaches hatred or animosity unfortunately a few unmindful and opportunistic individuals deepen the rife.
These feelings of animosity are worse than any corona virus and can cause much more harm to society. While pre-recorded caller tunes and several watsap messages may teach us how to prevent and avoid getting infected or affected by corona virus yet there are no ways to teach us to reach out to the parochial minds.
It is time we learnt to overcome the virus of hatred and animosity and learn to co-exist in peace. As Martin Luther King Jr has said, "Darkness cannot drive out darkness: only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate: only love can do that."
The festival of Holi in reality is an expression of love, affection and bonding in the community. It signifies the bonding of mind and souls and unison of our spirits. It may have originated with Lord Krishna at Mathura and Vridavana but has spread all over the country. These colors bring the message of love and brotherhood.. So whenever we splash colors on somebody, we are bound by brotherhood and commitment for life.
Holi makes us rise above all base feelings, reach out to people and revel in joy. It teaches us to forget our grudges, forgive even our enemies and rejoice. And as we wash off our grudges let us not forget to wash our hands, maintain hygeine and keep away the corona virus.....

Of Women's Day, Celebrations and guilt....

Of Women's Day, Celebrations and guilt......

I was born a girl. The colour of my skin irked my maternal grandmother all the more. Fortunately my parents were different. They never differentiated between me and my siblings. We were two girls and two boys. Times were difficult but our parents ensured we had the best of education and were given equal opportunities in the given circumstances. Neither did they ever object to me being outgoing, straightforward or tomboyish. Each one of us had our own personalities and we flourished with them. We were never restrained or held back. This way of life has remained with me throughout and has enabled me to learn, grow and perform.
I have always tried to excel in all the tasks allotted to me. Being a woman has been enriching though the path has been full of challenges. No doubts, for women the path to progress has always been full of struggles whether she was seeking to get educated or employed. The distinction always existed and still continues to exist in many spheres. In the field of agriculture too till this day and age too women have to face discrimination. While they perform all the back-breaking tasks it is the men who go the markets and pocket the money. What is even worse is violence and disrespect against women which still exists in society.
And above this all is the sense of guilt among working women.
Although we constantly talk about gender equality and feminism where both men and women have multiple differential roles as son or daughter, brother sister, wife or husband, father or mother, but for some reason a woman is constantly expected to be perfect and more perfectly performing all her roles with accurate precision.
In my opinion, it is the woman who in most cases experiences the feeling of guilt or is made to feel guilty in not being able to fulfill all her responsibilities perfectly. Her day starts with being a mom, a wife, a daughter, an employee, a leader; list being endless. In pursuit of trying to do justice to all her roles somewhere she is walking a very thin line where she is constantly judging herself and is also judged about the justice she gives to every role.
An average male probably escapes this sense of guilt which most women are saddled with specially in their homes. It is the women who bear the brunt of feeling guilty of not being emotionally available for her family and loved one in times of need !
What concerns me the most that I am associated with an organisation which is working towards strengthening women through livelihood opportunities where we are empowering women to walk out of their comfort zone and homes to stand tall and make a living for themselves. More than a thousand women stayed away from.their homes at Mumbai for 15 days during the recent Mahalakshmi Saras.
The Wardhinis of MSRLM spend 45 days outside their homes when they go to create self help groups in other villages. I always admire their grit and determination to stay away for such long periods.
My organisation has more than 70 percent women staff who relentlessly work and travel extensively for the welfare of the women self help groups. They must be certainly seeking support from their families to manage their homes while they are away. I am sure they all must be experiencing this sense of guilt to a large extent.
So on this women's day the foremost thought in my mind is that the roles of men and women in society may have changed yet the mindset has not. Till date it is the woman who is essentially held responsible for the welfare and well being of the child and their family.
Isn't it time to acknowledge the fact that she
is just as human as a man and needs to be treated accordingly ?
Isn't it time that she also learns to outgrow this sense of guilt and learns to treat herself with dignity ?
Honestly, our race could have perished had we not learnt to help and support each other.
We cannot exist without mutual help. Women therefore need to be more vocal in seeking help from their families, friends and society to enable them to work optimally. They also need to learn and get over this sense of guilt because they are not the sole sustainors of society. This women's day let us not forget this. As we celebrate women's day, let us acknowledge her being human as much as being woman.....

MSRLM, Paani Foundation and Umed Satyamev Jayate Samrudh Gaon Spardha.....

MSRLM, Paani Foundation and Umed Satyamev Jayate Samrudh Gaon Spardha.....

MSRLM Umed works for the empowerment of women through self help groups and community based organizations. Social, financial, economic inclusion leading to sustainable livelihoods are the four pillars of the mission which have led to its phenomenal growth. Today the Mission has more than 4.2 lakh self help groups and over 48 lakh households associated with it. It has created over 17000 village organizations and over 600 cluster level federations. It has over 1500 prodcer groups, 15 FPOs and over 8000 enterprises. It has created over 12 lakh livelihoods in the fields of Agriculture, Animal husbandry, Fisheries, Food Processing, Handicrafts and Handlooms.
The Mission derives its it strength from Dashasutri, the ten cardinal principles which not only keeps the groups together but also instills a sense of discipline in them. It is the regular weekly meetings, savings, internal lending, repayment of loans, writing books of accounts which makes the SHGs prosper economically. The emphasis on health-nutrition and sanitation , education, participatory governance, right to entitlements leading to the most important principle of sustainable livelihoods provides them with a vision to develop comprehensively.
Some time during April 2019 one of my colleagues, Mr Nanaaware who has joined the Paani Foundation on his retirement contacted me with a request to collaborate with Paani Foundation by providing support to the Water Cup in 75 drought stricken blocks of Maharashtra.  Since Paani Foundation was making efforts to motivate and chanelise people to vountarily undertake water conservation and water harvesting activies in drought stricken Maharashtra, MSRLM decided to collaborate with Pani Foundation.
More than 1000 members of the staff and cadre of MSRLM were trained and due to their combined efforts more than 5 lakh women participated in the campaign period of the Water Cup.
MSRLM was invited for the awards ceremony at Pune and was also felicitated by the Paani Foundation. It was during the awards ceremony the idea of collaborating for livelihoods and sustainable development with Paani Foundation occurred to me and I kept following up with Mr.Nanaware and Mr.Bhatkal.
A chance interaction with Mr.Amir Khan at the Mumbai airport on my journey to Delhi gave me an opportunity to show case the efforts being made by MSRLM to propagate sustainable livelihoods.
Working for water conservation singularly without a plan for the overall development and growth of the village was incomplete. I was able to drive home the point that it was important to work for sustainable livelihoods. The Paani Foundation took it's time to do their due diligence and homework.
Mr.Satyjit Bhatkal's visit to Mahalakshmi Saras 2020 and our further discussions enabled us to come up with a plan and from it emerged the " Umed Satyamev Jayate Samruddha Gaon Spardha".
Going beyond water conservation, this competition aims at transforming the ecology and economy of the villages and creating a movement in sustainable livelihoods.
The competition is a step forward in the Water Cup as it has set certain benchmarks. Only those villages which had attained at least 30 percent success during the water cup are eligible to participate in the Umed Satyamev Jayate Samruddha Gaon Spardha. So only 1130 villages in the 40 blocks of 18 districts can participate.
The competition will begin from 1st April 2020 and end with the awards in June 2021. In the period of one year apart from water conservation all men and women in the villages have to undertake soil conservation activities, water management, afforestation, fodder cultivation, soil health and preservation. The program emphasizes on creation of Self-help groups and undertaking income generating activities leading to sustainable development. The concept of Lakhpati Kisan is also an important aspect.
Capacity building is the strength of MSRLM and it will collaborate with Paani Foundation to build the capacities of SHGs and their households which will actively participate in the year long competition. These will include the SHGs, VOs, CLFs of MSRLM which will work towards making their villages prosperous and also get an opportunity to be a winner in the Umed Satyamev Jayate Samruddha Gaon Spardha.
The program kick-started with a video conference of the team members of both the organizations to understand each other and etch the way forward.
As individuals, we cannot seek achievement for ourselves and forget about progress and prosperity for our community. Our ambitions must be broad enough to include the aspirations and needs of others.
Also real prosperity comes from everybody in the country working together in a growth mode. It comes as a result of people's own initiative and efforts. As Rush Limbaugh has stated, "Prosperity, if it comes from the government, is not prosperity. It's an existence or a subsistence or whatever, but it isn't prosperity."
It is therefore important that the people work towards their own prosperity. MSRLM Umed just does that by facilitating sustainable livelihoods. I hope that the changing face of Paani Foundation and MSRLM 's Umed Satyamev Jayate Samruddha Gaon Spardha will facilitate transformation of many villages and lead them to neverending prosperity.

6th February and Amma....

6th Februray and Amma....

I got up today morning and remembered the date, 6th February, the day on which our mother left for Vaikuntham. Two years, 730 days, 17520 hours, 10,51,200 minutes , 63072000 seconds without her. Initially these included moments of pain, anguish, sadness and suffering which got transformed into a perpetual sense of loss. In absence of her touch, words and presence feelings of helplessness would often seep in. At times it would be difficult to hold back my tears. Each experience thawed the pain, the anguish , the suffering and the sadness. Time of course is unstoppable and continued to elapse yet the void left behind in my life due to my mother's demise is still unfilled.
Today morning too, I missed her so much. Accepting the fact that she is no more is difficult even now. Unknowingly her thoughts creep in and I often feel that she is just around and will just bounce back.
This morning, I lingered on the bed thinking of her and my day ahead which would be full of activity. How much time would I be actually devoting to her memory? Was this day going to pass off like the others with things happening but with her surely on my mind? Or would I be able to spend time looking back and dwelling fondly on memories associated with her?
My earliest memories of my mother was when one day I returned home from school and did not find her home. She had gone to the market and returned home shortly only to find me howling. I settled down as soon as she chided me in her no-nonsensical manner. She was always like that, extremely forthright and unassuming but in that one moment I realised that she was the pillar on which our family rested. Simple, kind and generous she believed in giving more than receiving. We owe our existence to the several sacrifices made by her. Every person who came in touch with her would certainly experience her generosity.
I always wonder how a woman from the remotest village in Tamilnadu managed to live and be comfortable in a city totally different from her village. More astonishing was her ability to communicate in Hindi with ease despite the fact that she had spent over twenty-five years in Tamilnadu and had never spoken the language. Yes , she was very intelligent which is why she knew much of our religious literature by rote and could chant them with ease. An ethereal beauty, Amma, was certainly different in every way.
Her peaceful transition into Vaikutham is reminiscent of the fact that she was a noble soul. Her premonition and the visuals of various God's in her last days reflected as if all Gods were beckoning her. Her peaceful demeanor in death also stood out.
Today, I am able to think of Amma without anguish or pain and with feelings of gratitude, love and affection. She not only encouraged me in performing my duties diligently but has also been proud of my work. She may not be there with me physically but mentally she is always there goading me to put in the very best in every single thing I do. That is what mother's are for , to love unconditionally and support unflinchingly.
6th February's may come and go but her special memories will always remain just like the legacy of her love. 

Memories of a legend : Pandit Bhimsen Joshi Smruti Samaroh 2020 by GSB Sabha, Mulund and soul stirring music.....

Memories of a legend : Pandit Bhimsen Joshi Smruti Samaroh 2020 by GSB Sabha, Mulund and soul stirring music.....

Pandit Bhimsen Joshi is synonymous with Hindustani classical music and as the doyen of the Kirana gharana. For those unfamiliar with this genre of music it would suffice to remember " Mile Sur Mera Tumhara" the famous song on national integration which was seamlessly presented by renowned singers and magically composed by none other than Bhimsen Joshi.
This Bharat Ratna needs no introduction as he is a name to reckon in India and abroad. His demise in 2011 left a void in the world of music. Music lovers all over the world celebrate his birthday in different ways.
The GSB Sabha, Mulund, has been organising Pandit Bhimsen Joshi Smruti Samaroh to pay homage to the legend. On this occasion a prominent musician associated with Panditji is recognized for his or her contribution to Music and is felicitated with an award. The GSB Sabha had chosen Pandit Ravindra Yavagal , renowned tabla soloist and sensitive accompanist for the award in 2020.
An upcoming artist also gets the opportunity to perform at the forum. Vibha Nayak was definitely the chosen one in more than one way since her invocation to Karveer Nivasi transported us to the spiritual world.
Indulging in meditation, Dhyan and immersing oneself in music Kirtan, Abhang are different ways to reach God. It's power is so enduring that Saint poets like Sant Namdev and Sant Tukaram and Sant Eknath transformed society. Vitthal was the favourite deity who absolved all his devotees. Wasn't He the one who made Sant Namdev's search for the mortal remains of Sant Chokha Mela easy by saying that finding his bones would be easy as they too would be chanting the name of the Lord. 

Faith and belief are like electricity, you cannot see the current or electricity but you can see in the light. Spirituality is beyond language, how else could one find God even in deserts ? Bolava Vithal Pahaava Vithal was the incantation.
Pandit Bhimsen Joshi also manifested Lord Vithala through his Abhangas. Pandharpur was never at a distance as one could immediately etch out Lord Vithala in Panditji’s abhangas. His singing had such a magical power . No wonder he is revered as ‘Swara Bhaskara’ , which means ‘the Sun of Music’.
Shri. Ravindra Yawagal , renowned soloist ( Tabla ) percussionist has performed with stalwarts including Bhimsen Joshi, Gangubai Hangal. He had the fortune to be performing along with Pandit Bhimsen in the Mysore Palace when he was just eighteen years of age. His fingers moved adeptly in rhythmic consonance and transported us to a different world. His felicitation at the Pandit Bhimsen Joshi Smruti Puraskar Samaroh was befitting his stature.
The icing on the cake were the renderings by Pandit Shaunak Abhisheki, the able descendant of Pandit Jitendra Abhisheki. His father and Pandit Bhimsen Joshi were of the same generation and  had high regard for each other.
In 1991 when he was accompanying his father at the famous Sawai Gandharva Festival at Pune, Pandit Bhimsen Joshi exhorted that he should be performing next year. And sure enough he was given the opportunity to perform. Shaunak found his performance was wanting and shared his agony with Panditji. He has never forgotten the advice received from him. One may possess a sea of knowledge but displaying it all would drive the wind out of it. Knowledge would be useful only when it had the sharpness of the sword said Pandit Bhimsen Joshi.
No wonder Shaunak with his dedication, ( Sadhana ) had conquered eons in the field of music. His renderings were soul stirring and immersed us in colors of joy, just like the Abhang, " Abir Gulaal udhadit rang"
One has to blessed to be a part of such mesmerizing music which makes you one with God. It was our dear neighbor, Mr.Baliga, the President of the GSB Sabha, Mulund who had made this possible.
The grand finale of the program was the Bhairavi "Sarvātmakā Sarveshwarā' " written by revered Marathi poet V. V. Shirwadkar alias Kusumāgraj and immortalized by Shounak's father Pandit Jitendra Abhisheki. As we invoked the supreme being for the enlightenment and upliftment of our souls by the wise, the one whom all mortals worship seeking His mercy and enlightenment through values combined with the ability to do good and see good as well as the courage to live virtuously, I felt one with God. After all " Mazhe Maaher Pandhari...."

Au Revoir, Mahalakshmi Saras 2020.....

Au Revoir, Mahalakshmi Saras 2020.....

Mahalakshmi Saras, the annual exhibition and sale of products made by rural women entrepreneurs from the self help groups of the state rural livelihoods mission from all over the country and NABARD ended yesterday.
The 13 day extravganza stood out in its magnitude as it proudly displayed the various products made by women entrepreneurs in its 511 stalls.
Yes, the women from self help groups are known for the variety of papad, pickles, spices, masala they make. This certainly gives them recognition and an identity. And wouldn't life be dull without all these spices in our life ? And so Mahalakshmi Saras had a variety of masalas and spices from all corners of Maharashtra and the country. However, Ms. Vanita Trambake member of Priyadarshni SHG from Solapur took me by surprise when she conveyed her thanks and said that this would be the last time she came to Mahalakshmi Saras because this platform had established her as a brand and she no more needed our support. She represented the true spirit behind the exhibition which promotes marketing of the products made by SHGs. Ideally any SHG is allowed to participate only two times at the exhibition so that more and more groups get the opportunity to explore and understand the urban markets. They should then be ready to make it on their own. The entire cost of the exhibition including lodging, boarding, publicity, travel and transport along with space in the stalls and logistics at the venue is entirely borne by the government. The ideology behind this effort is exposure of the rural women entrepreneurs to urban markets twice in their life cycle so that they understand what sells and also providing a platform for the urban residents to purchase handmade rural products.
The women groups also practice organic farming so the varied grains like unpolished rice, dal, pulses are popular products for sale and attract many due to the their low residual chemical content. Staples like jaggery, honey, tamarind, ghee are absorbed quickly. The ready to eat foods like cookies, biscuits, including soya, bajra, ragi products,bhadang, chivda, baakarwadi are extremely popular . This year MSRLM made special efforts to introduce Nutri cookies in Ragi, Jowar and Bajra from Wardha, Solapur and Yavatmal in their Nutri Villa. These products had been made after taking technical support for research and design from the Krishi Vigyan Kendra of Amravati and Solapur and attracted a lot of customers. The noodles fortified with moringa - drumsticks leaves were a healthy alternative to the regular noodles. The papaya and fruit jam from Yavatmal stood out distinctly. However what stole everyone's hearts were the jaamun shots and the sitaphal( custard apple) rabdi from Gadhchiroli. Seeing women from the remotest villages of Gadhchiroli doing brisk business of these two unique consumables was heartening.
The livelihoods pavillion introduced the visitors to the phenomenal work being done by MSRLM. The strong pillars of social, financial and economic inclusion led them to sustainable livelihoods. These included over 10 lakh households practicing sustainable agriculture and animal husbandry and about ten thousand in the handlooms and handicrafts sector. The seed bank from Nandurbar having 125 varieties of seed of jowar and maize was an eye opener to the efforts being made by the mission to preserve agriculture. The pavillion of organic manure and vermi compost attracted people and specially children with its demonstration having live earthworms. 

Some SHGs had dared to innovate and make new products, for example  Hari Om SHG, from Gondiya district had manufactured LED bulbs with inbuilt batteries which would light up by itself during  power cuts. Kavitha Dhamale , the SHG member was happy to market the same. 

Asmita plus Sanitary napkins with super absorbency were competitively priced at Rs.100 for 5 packets with 8 Sanitary napkins in each pack. Having used them personally I could vouch for their quality against established brands like Whisper and Stayfree. 

The rural skilling sector was amply represented by the beneficiaries of DDUGKY, the popular skilling program of rural skilling department of the Ministry of Rural Development. Youth between the age of 18 to 35 could benefit from this placement based program of rural skilling through private agencies.
In fact the exhibition was a one stop shop for purchase of goods from footwear, to clothes, readymade garments, sarees, shawls, stoles, exquisite jewellery, decorative articles, artefacts, paintings, woodwork , bamboo work, furniture, furnishings, gift items not only from Maharashtra but from the 29 states of our country. Such variety under one roof is unheard of elsewhere. So thousands of people thronged the exhibition and found it extremely useful. 

They were particularly attracted to the food court which had 70 stalls serving mouthwatering delicacies from all over Maharashtra. They carried the distinct taste of various regions from where they came. So konkan was reflected in a variety of sea food like fish, prawns and crabs as also sol kadhi, Kolhapur was known for its tambdaa paandhraa rassa , Nagpur for its Saoji, Marathwada for its chicken and mutton, dahi dhapate,  Solapur for its chutneys and gul poli, Jalgaon for its Bharit and Shev Bhaji. The vegetarians feasted on Puran Polis, modak, thaalipeeth, bhel, misal, bhaji. For the first time Rajma Chawal from Uttarakhand, Gujarati food ,Rajasthani food, were also introduced.
The highlight were fresh vegetables , chicken , fish and mutton provided by the Women led Farmer Producer Organization of Palghar which gave it a distinct taste. The eggs were also provided by the women who are a part of the Yellow revolution project of MSRLM.
With food to chew on entertainment was not behind as artists like Suresh Wadkar,  Kailash Kher, Kalinathji Mishra, Avdhoot Gupte, Milind Ingle, Sanjeevani Bhelande and Dr. Rahul Joshi enthralled the audiences with their soul rendering performances. 

The pinnacle was the fashion show put together by the women of the SHGs displaying their own products. Walking confidently among them was a 75 year old lady speaking volumes about the transformation of women from being ordinary women to extraordinary achievers.
In short it was fun for shoppers with a variety to shop, food to eat and soul stirring music to unwind in the evenings.
The public conveniences like clean toilets and a play zone for children, trolleys for shopping and wheel chairs were add ons for families. So Mumbaikars, Navi Mumbaikars and the others including international visitors thronged to the exhibition. These of course included many regulars. Their repeated visits spoke highly about their satisfaction of the variety, quality, range and price of the products. That we were able to make business of about Rs. Fifteen crores in just thirteen days speaks volumes about the capabilities and capacities of women entrepreneurs. It also provides a glimpse of the efforts made by our team members to make this event a grand success.
As I left for home after making my last round in the exhibition, my heart missed a beat, the pavilions would be dismantled and only memories would last. However it was a solace to see the contended and satisfied faces of all the women entrepreneurs and stall owners. Each one was going home after doing good business, each one was happy with her own experience. It was the shoppers and the patrons who had made this possible. And of course to Goddess Mahalakshmi who had transformed herself into Goddess Dhanalakshmi and was going home with the women. I felt satiated and gratified and my head bowed in prayers for their everlasting prosperity. Mahalakshmi Saras, would surely be back again with gusto in January 2021. Till then Au revoir....