Praying For Peace

Most of the discussion that happens on the Israel-Palestine conflict these days confines itself to the controversial (in fact cunning) Belfour Declaration and the events that happened as a result , especially after 1948 , a time when Britain and America were acting like the owners of this planet !

By the way , they still are behaving like that only , putting their feet and fingers anywhere and everywhere !!!

But the earliest accounts after Hazrat Moosa led his followers to safety and the army of Pharaoh was drowned in the Red Sea is absent from the popular discourse 

Daadi Ammi hamaari bachpan meiN Hazrat Moosa (Prophet Moses) aur unn ke bhai Hazrat Haroon (Prophet Aaron) ke struggles ki kahaani sunaya karti thiiN , and I would always be overwhelmed with awe and respect in honour of Prophet Moses ... the food that they used to get from Heaven (The Manna-Salva) ... his magical staff and the miracles associated with it ... his closeness to God so much so that he is referred to as “Moosa Kaliimullah” because he used to converse with God ... And of course ! God’s “Promised Land” to Bani Israel !!!

My ... My ... What a divinely gifted Prophet Hazrat Moosa was !!!

That was childhood, so pure and innocent, that's a time you are learning what is good about the faith / religion you are born into 

But as one grows up, some blessed ones are destined to realise that in politics religion is twisted and then politicised , hand-picking some sentences and words from religious texts to craft a narrative to suit the political agenda that is being worked on continuously to divide people for materialistic , monetary or territorial gains 

Let us never forget that every religious text , even the Qur'an which Muslims believe has not changed from the time it was revealed to Prophet Muhammed , is open to various interpretations , and have been interpreted differently at different times to please political powers and patriarchal forces 

And hence the understanding that the Message contained in these divine books have not changed is the biggest illusion 

Coming back to Prophet Moses ...

After the Ten Plagues , Prophet Moses led the Exodus of the Israelites out of Egypt and across the Red Sea , after which they based themselves at Mount Sinai , where Prophet Moses received the Ten Commandments.

The “Promised Land” that is so much being talked about these days was , as per one information available on Wikipedia , promised to Prophet Abraham even before his sons were born 

But according to subsequent confirmation , God had promised Abraham that there would be a "Promised Land" for the nations to come out of his son , Isaac

So be it , let us believe in the subsequent confirmation

The land of Canaan that the Twelve Spies were to explore was the same Promised Land. 

The Twelve Spies , as recorded in the Book of Numbers , were a group of Israelite chieftains , one from each of the Twelve Tribes , who were dispatched by Moses to scout out the Land of Canaan for 40 days as a future home for the Israelite people , during the time when the Israelites were in the wilderness following their Exodus from Ancient Egypt.

Moses asked for an assessment of the geographic features of the land , the strength and numbers of the population , the agricultural potential and actual performance of the land , civic organization (whether their cities were like camps or strongholds) , and forestry conditions. 

He also asked them to be positive in their outlook and to return with samples of local produce.

Ten of the twelve chieftains came back with negative reports about the land , thus slandering what they believed God had promised them. They did not believe that God could help them , and the people as a whole were persuaded that it was not possible to take the land. 

As a result , the entire nation was made to wander in the desert for 40 years , until almost the entire generation of men had died. 

After 40 years of wandering in the desert , Moses died on Mount Nebo at the age of 120 , within sight of the Promised Land.

Joshua and Caleb were the two chieftains who had brought back a good report and believed that God would help them succeed. 

They were the only men from their generation permitted to go into the "Promised Land" after the time of wandering. 

(Source of info: Wikipedia)

(Waise The Twelve Spies vaguely remind me of the people mentioned in Sureh Kahef in The Holy Qur'an , have been curious forever to know more about them) 

Anyway ... So wasn't the search for "The Promised Land" complete after Joshua and Caleb entered the land of Canaan ?

Their future generations must have lived on that land and made it their home 

So now which other "Promised Land" is being talked about ? Were the present day Americans also on a mission to find some "Promised Land" when they drove away the natives from the land they occupy ???

Quite clearly this occupation under the pretext of "Promised Land" initiated by the British through "Belfour Declaration" is a play of power and politics in the most inhuman manner that is so typical of the colonists 

There is most certainly no love for God or religion involved 

Ilan Pappe , the British Israeli historian has rightly said ...

"Most Zionists don't believe that God exists , but they do believe that He promised them Palestine" !!!

But we do see what people who love God and respect their religion do 

As Christmas draws nearer , a church in Bethlehem , the biblical birthplace of Jesus , is receiving attention for its decision to redesign its Christmas nativity scene to reflect the impact of the ongoing Israel-Hamas war.

Just weeks before Christmas , the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Bethlehem , located in the West Bank , unveiled a new display of the nativity scene that shows baby Jesus lying in a manger amid rubble. 

The imagery symbolizes the destroyed Palestinian communities in Gaza and the ongoing war between Israel and the Hamas , a church official said.

"Church families met last week and built it together. It was a moving experience for our families. During the service on Sunday, some people were in tears," Reverend Doctor Munther Isaac, the church's pastor, told The New Arab. 

"We are pleased our message has reached the world. This is what Christmas looks like in Palestine this year, the origin of Christmas."

(Report by Richard Lawrence , published Dec 8 , Fox News)

Peace and Sanmati

Throughout its long history , the holy city of Jerusalem has been destroyed at least twice , besieged 23 times , captured and recaptured 44 times , and attacked 52 times. 

It is one of the oldest cities in the world , and is considered holy to the three major Abrahamic religions ... Judaism , Christianity and Islam. 

Jerusalem is holy to Muslims for a number of reasons  

Islamic tradition holds that Prophet Muhammad led prayers towards Jerusalem and hence it was the first Qibla , until the 16th or 17th month after his migration from Mecca to Medina 

Another part of Jerusalem's significance and holiness to Muslims derives from its strong association with Abraham , David , Solomon and Jesus. 

They are all regarded as Prophets of Islam and their stories are mentioned in the Qur'an

In Islamic tradition , Prophet Muhammad made his Night Journey(The Meraaj) there in 621 , ascending to heaven where he speaks to God , according to the Quran.

As a result, despite having an area of only 0.9 km2 (3⁄8 sq mi) , the Old City is home to many sites of seminal religious importance , among them the Temple Mount with its Western Wall , Dome of the Rock and al-Aqsa Mosque , and the Church of the Holy Sepulchre.

During the Canaanite period (14th century BCE) , Jerusalem was named as Urusalim on ancient Egyptian tablets , probably meaning "City of Shalem" after The Canaanite God of dusk.

During the Israelite period , significant construction activity in Jerusalem began in the 10th century BCE (Iron Age II) , and by the 9th century BCE , the city had developed into the religious and administrative centre of the Kingdom of Judah.

In 1538 , the city walls were rebuilt for a last time around Jerusalem under Suleiman the Magnificent , of the Ottoman Empire. 

Today those walls define the Old City , which since the 19th century has been divided into four quarters :

Armenian

Christian

Jewish

Muslim 

The Old City became a World Heritage Site in 1981 , and is on the List of World Heritage in Danger.

Today, the status of Jerusalem remains one of the core issues in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. 

All branches of the Israeli government are located in Jerusalem , including the Knesset (Israel's parliament) , the residences of the Prime Minister and President , and the Supreme Court. 

The international community rejects the annexation as illegal and regards East Jerusalem as Palestinian territory occupied by Israel.

(Source of all above info Google / Wikipedia)

As we are beginning the eight day Festival of Lights , Hanukkah , from this evening to 15th Dec , let's pray earnestly for peace and enlightenment 

May God help the oppressed and the underprivileged like He helped His people back then when The Maccabees successfully revolted against Antiochus IV Epiphanes. 

According to the Talmud , the Temple was purified and the wicks of the menorah miraculously burned for eight days , even though there was only enough sacred oil for one day's lighting

(Talmud (/ˈtɑːlmʊd, -məd, ˈtæl-/; Hebrew: תַּלְמוּד‎, romanized: Talmūḏ) is the central text of Rabbinic Judaism and the primary source of Jewish religious law (halakha) and Jewish theology.)

Sab ko sanmati deiN Bhagwaan

On the eve of Hanukkah , here's praying for everyone's Happiness , Health , Peace and Prosperity Amen🙏💖💐💐💐

Wishing everyone a blessed Hanukkah

Blessed and Happy Thanksgiving

Eating Thanksgiving leftovers for a fusion brunch , this morning while watching some deliciously enlightening and informative history of what could have been the first Thanksgiving meal , I stumble upon one of countless instances that go unnoticed as we take for granted the quiet cycles of Nature that determine among other things various food chains and the behavioural patterns of the many diverse living beings who co exist with us ...

Served at the first Thanksgiving were corn , beans , and squash. These three vegetables were brought to the table by Native Americans , and they were the three crops that Native Americans taught pilgrims to grow in their new terrain.

Three sisters , as these are called  Corn , Beans and Squash can grow in one field and they actually support the survival of one another 

Maize (Corn) the tallest , supports the Bean creepers that in turn support the Maize to stand firm in winds as it entwines itself to the stalks of Maize plants

And the Squash spreads itself on the soil controlling the growth of weeds , and also capturing sunlight and preserving moisture in the soil.

Agronomist Jane Mount Pleasant writes that the Three Sisters mound system "enhances the soil physical and biochemical environment , minimizes soil erosion , improves soil tilth , manages plant population and spacing , provides for plant nutrients in appropriate quantities and at the time needed , and controls weeds".

These life-supporting plants were supposedly given to the people when all three miraculously sprouted from the body of Sky Woman's daughter, granting the gift of agriculture to the Iroquois nations.

To the Iroquois people , The Three Sisters ... Corn , Beans and Squash ... are the physical and spiritual sustainers of life. 

In the mythology of the Iroquois and Huron of North America , the Woman Who Fell from the Sky is an ancient ancestor. 

Also known as Sky Woman or Ataensic , she plays a central role in the creation of the earth and all living things. 

She is also a figure of fertility who provides the first corn to people.

Isn't it interesting to see how science and mythology team up to add charm , spice and meaning to human existence ...

ay we learn to enjoy our histories , not take the ancient bows and arrows too seriously , live in peace , mutual respect and love , and may God bless us , our loved ones , our ancestors and our future generations 💖🎊🎉💐💐💐

Hatred and Revenge: A sinful circle

Indira Gandhi fell to assassins' bullets this day 39 years ago , on 31st Oct, 1984

India has come a long way since then , "which way" is a question that will be answered with extreme bias , 

So nahi detey jawaab !

I hear people talking of their proud history of five thousand years and more ... Ask them what is the pride about ... And they ll narrate stories , which are nothing but hearsay , of how one dynasty fought and conquered the other , and so they have to either settle scores or take the credit of all those wars and be proud of their scheming ancestors ... 

And they have to thus justify all the violence , crime and sin that is happening in the present time 

Urkrain-Russia to kal ki baat ho gayi 

Ab to market meiN nayi war aa gayi hai ... 

Aur logoN ne gyaan baaNtna bhi shuru kar diya hai 

Unn ka kya jataa hai ...

Social media par bakwaas kar ke koi vulgar si maa-behen karti hui film dekh leiNgey ... Phir vegan food khaa kar insaanoN ko marta dekh kar apna qeemati izhaar e khayaal share kareiNgey ... !!!

They are not bothered about hunger , thirst , disease , killing ... 

And why should they bother ?

Unn ka kaun sagaa wahaaN suffer kar rahaa hai ? 

Remind them of insaaniyat , but they are still not bothered ... after all insaan ka roop to mil hi gayaa hai ... Ab to "Sher" ban-naa hai sabhi ko ... !!!

As we in India remember the brutal assassination of Mrs Indira Gandhi , and the mayhem that followed , the memories of that dreadful time are blurred by posts on social media about the Israel-Hamas war 

One of the holiest patches on Earth ... the place that should have ideally been the meltng pot of cultural and religious heritage and a treasure chest of shared natural , ancestral and spiritual opulence , and hence one of the most peaceful places on Earth ... is burning with animosity , antipathy and intolerance

What a pity ... 

Even as history repeats itself , people hardly learn 

No solutions ... only war , killings , barbarism ... ?????????

And me the idiot was wondering why do civilians need firearms ? Or any weapons at all ... 🤔🤔🤔

#banfirearms 

#stopviolence 

#unityindiversity

#sharedhistory

#sharedreligiousheritage

https://m.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=pfbid02ggdXz8SuwgeTf15te1Bhndyi58dbBTVcJd38fZWzPT3GBuqTf9X4g7759WWf7qH5l&id=100002153031708&mibextid=Nif5oz

Live And Let Live

As she hums a lullaby putting her baby to sleep , the woman is in deep thought ... she is thinking of the hundreds of lives her husband , a dacoit must have ruined ... perhaps she tries to imagine the suffering he (the infant's father) and his gang of dacoits must have caused to thousands of others when they plundered and looted homes and villages ... !

The mother's heart is aflutter !

"Tere bachpan ko jawaani ki dua deti hooN ... Aur dua de ke pareshaan si ho jaati hooN "

She is frightened that the curse put upon her husband by his victims may bring harm to their child ... 

This intensely soul stirring poetry , set to music by Jaidev , sung by Lata Mangeshkar (on screen lip synced by Waheeda Rahman) , stands out in the classic and timeless album "Mujhe Jeeney Do" , a film based on real life dacoit stories from the Chambal Valley

An extremely heart wrenching prognostication written by Sahir Ludhianvi , poignantly expressing the fears of the disquiet wife of a dacoit over what the future may hold for her child , is relevant for all times and ages 

Mothers of the children of plunderers / hate mongers / terrorist / rioters / war mongers and anyone anywhere who destroys the peace and resources of this planet and kills people should be similarly worried for their Gen Next ... !!!

Imagine how beautiful this world would become if the Think Tanks , The Masterminds and The Footsoldiers who plan and execute wars and violence , hatred and destruction would start thinking like this mother ... if not for themselves , then for their coming generations ... !!!

 https://m.facebook.com/notes/zohra-javed/din-jo-pakheroo-hotey/114273708659777/?mibextid=Nif5oz

Maazi meiN jhaaNktey chaleiN

Had written this in May 2019 

Somehow it remained in my notes and could not be posted earlier 

***************************************

Recently a cousin of my late mother lost his wife 

He had migrated to the neighbouring "enemy" country many many years back and had taken a portion of my mom's life too with him 

And indeed a slice of his life remained alive on this side too :-)

On either side of the border the cousins must ve most longingly relived the same stories over and over a thousand times and more ... because what he left back here was his bachpan and adolescence

And what he had taken away was a part of my mom's bachpan and adolescence

Although politicians on either side who created this sinful divide are free to show hostility or friendship to each other as per their moods and requirements , the common man cannot lay claim to such luxuries 

Pakistan kya banaa rishtey aur Khaandaan sab buri tarah bikhar gaye ... Bachpan baNt gaye , jawaaniyaN alhadpana bhool gayiiN ... Budhapaa apne umar daraaz aaNsoo chhalkata rahaa ... 

Kisi qaum ke rehber ne nahi socha ke ghar to phir bass jaatey haiN lekin ujdey huay log chaahey iss paar hoN ya uss paar adhoorey ho kar reh jaatey haiN ...

Kuchh idhar reh gaye kuchh udhar chaley gaye ... Aur duuriyoN ke shuruaati daur ke uss shadiid dard ki , uss adhooreypan ki dheere-dheere aadat si ho gayi 

Zindgi ka safar chalta rahaa ... Chalta bhi rahey ga ... 😊

Lekin kabhi jab koi buzurg inn jhameloN se alwida kehta uss duniya meiN chalaa jataa hai , ki jahaaN koi bhed - bhaav nahi , tab baith kar kuchh der ko zaroor bachpan meiN suni apno ki kahaaniyaN bahot yaad aati haiN 

Kya aisa bhi koi daur guzra hai ... Yaqeen karney ko dil chaahta hai ... Aur ye bhi ke kaash wo din waapis aa jaaeiN ...

Wo shaaerana guftgoo , wo laziiz sense of humour , wo baasmati chaawal ki mehek , wo lakdi ki aaNch  , wo mitti ke choolhey , aur unn par tavey par siNkti rotiyoN ki soNdhi khushboo ...

Wo chamakta paandaan , wo leheriye waale malmal ke dupatte , wo aaNgan meiN phaili lal mircheiN , Naani jin ka achaar banaati thiiN ...

Wo anNgrez miyaN-biwi jo hamaare nanihaal ki kothi ke ek portion meiN rehtey thay , wo aamrood ka bagh jo Naani ke chhajje se dikhaai deta tha , wo Daadi ke ghar ke ahaatey meiN giant Neem ke ped , aur uss meiN padaa jhoola ...

Daadi ke ghar garmiyoN ki chhutiyoN meiN wo thaali-bhar gol gappe zeera-paani aur chatni , aur Naani ke ghar ki wo guava jelly ki khushboo jo aNgrez mem-sahiba banayaa karti thiiN ... 

Mummy ki generation ke saath ye aur naa jaaney aisi kitni hi dilnawaaz aur anmol yaadeiN bhi dafan hoti jaa rahi haiN  

Itney bikhar gaye haiN ... Log bhi , ghar-makaan bhi ... ke ab waapis puraani soorat bananaa naamumkin hi hai 

Bass itna karam rahey ke kabhi phone par apney-apney zindgi ke tukde jodd kar khush ho sakeiN 

Unn waqtoN ke mazaar par ek kamzor si shamaa jalaa kar apne guzrey buzurgoN ki yaadeiN raushan kar sakeiN

Unn bhooli-bisri mohabbatoN ke saaye meiN ghadi bhar aaNkheiN mooNd kar koi tazaa-dum khwaab kal waastey dekh sakeiN ...

 Subah to roz-marra jaisi hi hui thi 

Aur subah ki meri thoda-aur-so-looN waali chaahat bhi rozana jaisi hi thi 

Khidki ki jaali se chhanti hui dhoop aNdar rakhey money plant ke pattoN par waisi hi chamak daal rahi thi jaisey roz daalti hai 

To phir aisa kyoN lag rahaa tha ke mausam koi romantic sa geet gaa rahaa hai ... jaise Gulmohar Neem ke saath batiya rahaa hai ... 💞🌳💞💐💞

Shaaed raat koi pyaraa sa khwaab dekha hoga ... 

Tabhi to ye undefined suhaana-suhaana sa ehsaas iss garmi meiN bhi mere khayaaloN ki canvas par bhiigey-bhiigey bhiiney-bhiiney gulaabi-basanti-harey-zaafraani raNgoN se gulkaari kar raha tha 

Khwaab dekha bhi tha ke nahi ... 🤔 ... 

Yaad nahi hai bhai 🤗

Lekin halki-halki taazgi waali feeling badi delicious thi , jo chaai ko thaNda hi nahi honay de rahi thi 😍

Kisi khwaab meiN titli ki tarah udti hui maiN , 

zindgi ke aaNgan meiN bedaar ho kar , 

bahot saari khoobsoorat taabeeroN ki khwaahish meiN subah se saNwarti rahi , nikharti rahi ... 💃

Chaai piiti rahi ... 😄💖☕☕☕

Phir raNgoN ki ek tasveer WhatsApp par meri ek dost ne mere saamney rakh di , aur kahaa bataao iss meiN kya dikh rahaa hai tum ko 

Painting ke raNgoN meiN kho si gayi , kabhi kuchh nazar ataa , to kabhi kuchh chhup jataa ...

Chaai ke kai cup meri sochoN ko garma chukey haiN , kai baar wo ghazal bhi suun chuki hooN jis ke shaaer Google Bibi Ji bhi nahi bataa paayi haiN abhi tak ... !!!

Aur tabhi door bell bajti hai ... 

Mere khwaaboN ki malika , meri kitchen helper khadi muskura rahi hai 

😊😊😊

Ek reluctant cook and a lazy home maker like me ke liye ye koi kam khoobsoorat taabeer nahi hai ek aisey khwaab ki jo abhi tak yaad bhi nahi ayaa hai ... 😉🙏😄😄😄

Chaai bina chaain kahaaN re

 Tea is a thing that is subconsciously woven into our cultural and social fabric in an extremely inseparable way that in many many homes across the globe mornings are ushered in with keeping water for tea on the choolah first thing in the morning 

Some years ago I was rushing to catch a local from CST early in the evening 

It had been a rainy afternoon , but the rain stopped for a while at that time 

Crowded as the place always is , the daily commuters don't have much time to look here-and-there 

But being a home maker I am an occasional traveller , so I have the luxury to observe my surroundings 

Meri yaad se nahi nikalti wo aurat ... wet and hungry in her shabby clothes ... I gave her a packet of biscuits that I was carrying . But she didn't take it 

She said "Taai ! Mala ek cup chahaa de ga ... " (Sister ! Give me a cup of tea) !!!

I make such bitter-sweet , heartwarming and soul stirring memories wherever I go 😊😊😊 and Chaai has a way of making its way into almost all of the sweetest memories in my life 

I have collected a lot of sweet pic msgs about tea , and some thiik-thaak ones I ve made myself too 😄💖😍 !!!

They are all over in the photo gallery of my phone , but sab scattered haiN , so aaj socha ek unn pics ka album banaa looN 

Din bhi special hai naa tea lovers ke liye 😊

In 2019 , the United Nations General Assembly adopted a resolution to establish May 21 of each year as International Tea Day

It is a globally recognised observance that celebrates this prosperous industry and the cultural significance and health benefits of tea 

We also take this opportunity to ponder over the conditions under which labourers work in tea gardens 

It is because of their hard work that we enjoy and spread the warmth of love and care through is amazing beverage 

Happy International Tea Day to my dear Chaivinists and to all friends 💖☕🥰💖☕🥰💖☕🥰💖☕🥰☕☕☕☕☕☕☕☕☕☕☕☕

 She was asking me if I was enjoying my stay 

" Yes ! Yes ... very much ... " I replied in all honesty 

Then the feminine instinct that had been andar-hi-andar pestering me for the last few days for bringing only one set of warm clothes , nudged yet again , and I added : 

" But I have brought just one set of warm clothes ... So you ll get bored seeing me in a black sweater and black shawl every day and everywhere ... !!!"

" Oh ! No ... In fact each time I ve seen you , I find you wearing a different style of outfit , interesting colour combinations and patterns ... I wish we had more variety and colour too ... " She said 

" We are too bland " remarked her nephew 

This was arguably a most earnest appreciation of the vibrant Indian diversity which I had carried with me to a foreign land , and which reiterated for the Nth time , that as a country we are attractive and charismatic because we are so amazingly heterogenous , enriching our Janamabhoomi in our own beautiful ways without compromising our life styles , customs and values 

This was and will remain my Vishwa Guru Moment 

And it has been forever so because this is the culture I was born into and this was true of my parents 

Their parents 

Their parents' parents 

Their parents' parent's parents   

 And ... All the previous generations 

And will be so for all our future generations too ... 

Inshaallah

Ishq Insaaniyat

The concept of Ishq in Sufism is resplendently enriching and absolutely humbling 

Ishq is a canopy of blessings that shelters and soothes the restless 

It connects the seeker with The Sought , the wanderer with The Guide ,  the lost with Enlightenment

While Hatred / Nafrat is a whirlpool created by the Devil leading to a chain of destruction , Love / Ishq is the calm that God bestows upon His Creations when He wishes to bless them for their righteousness 

While everyone apparently longs for peace , yet the path of love , that is invariably the path of God remains less travelled since times immemorial 

Koi ek Gautam Buddha sadiyoN meiN janam letey haiN aur koi ek hi Samrat Ashok jaisey diggaj yoddha hotey haiN jo ahinsa ki raah paa kar dhanya ho jatey haiN 

Ahinsa and Sufism seem interwoven in the Eastern sabhyata , but somehow elude the human psyche 

It is extremely heart breaking to see peace being repeatedly and ruthlessly uprooted 

And vested powers infesting the minds of ordinary citizens with enmity and animosity towards the "other" that these powers create from among the vulnerable ordinary citizens only

Sab ko sanmati deiN Bhagwaan

Extraordinary is actualy ordinary

My children will remember that I used to sing "Naani teri morni ..." to put them to sleep 💤😴😊

( Maa kitna hi besura kyoN naa gaa rahi ho , bachchoN ko sureelaa hi lagta hoga 😉 !!! ) 

And when they grew a bit older they got to listen to a couple of "mere bachpan ke dilchasp qissey" as bed time stories 🤗😄😍

But we , as children never got to hear any bed time stories  

Lekin hamaari Amma would often take time out in the evenings to share stories , quotes and shaaeri with us ... 🙂 

In between normal conversations too her language used to be laced with wit and humour ... That most certainly came to her pretty effortlessly as a family trait 🙂

The stories she narrated to us were about ordinary human beings ... some real life , some folklore ... as I now realise , even the shaaeri that we heard from her in our growing up years was interspersed with thoughts that would infuse in us the ability to appreciate and respect everything ... living and non living ... that we come across in life 🙏

I remember some of them even now 🙂

Like this story from an imaginary place and time ...

Ek bahot ibaadat-guzaar shakhs apni biwi aur bachchoN ko chhod kar ghar se Khuda ki talaash meiN nikla ... taking with him what he thought were bare necessities of life for him : 

ek takiya , ek katora aur ek tasbeeh ... Bass itna hi !

Kuchh duur gayaa tha to uss ne dekha ek aadmi sar ke niichey haath ka takiya banaaye so raha tha 

Iss shakhs ne socha takiya bekaar hi layaa ... Faltu ka bojh ... Soya to aise bhi jaa sakta hai ... So takiya wahiiN chhod diya 

Aur aagey chalaa to dekhaa ek aadmi chullu se paani pii rahaa tha 

To iss shakhs ne katora bhi tyaag diya 

Faaltu ka ek bojh aur kam hua 

Khoob halka mehsoos kar rahaa tha 

Ab na takiya tha naa katora ... So kisi chiiz ki rakhwaali nahi karni padey gi aur ibaadat meiN dhyaan bhi nahi bhatkey ga 

Khoob khush ho kar din -raat ibaadat karta tha

Khoob tasbiheiN padhta tha 

Ek din uss ne do aurtoN ko baateiN kartey suna 

Gehri dosti lag rahi thi dono meiN aur wo kisi len-den ka hisaab kar rahi thiiN 

Kuchh der ki bahes ke baad ek boli ... 

"Chhod na ye ginti-vinti ... Thoda kam-zyadaa se kuchh faraq nahi padta ... Jan aapas meiN mohabbat hai to phir hisaab-kitaab kaisa ... !!!"

Ab to tasbeeh bhi bekaar lagney lagi

Jab dosti - yaari meiN hisaab-kitaab nahi hota to Khuda ki ibaadat meiN kaisi ginti ... kaisa hisaab ... !!!

Uss ne apne aas-paas hi issi duniya ke jhameloN ke biich Khuda ka nuur dekh liya tha 

Jaan liya tha ke Khuda apni har makhlooq , har takhliiq meiN basta hai

Uss ko khojney ki kya zaroorat hai wo to har pal hamaarey saamney rehta hai aur sachchi ibaadat Khuda ki banaayi duniya ko sajaney-saNwaarney meiN hi hai 

Ek dum se ussey apne ghar ka khayaal aa gayaa 

Uss ki biwi-bachche kaise reh rahey hoNgey ...

Kis haal meiN hoNgey 

... Aur wo waapis apne ghar ki taraf chal padaa  

Insaan ka janam jiina asaan nahi 

Kitna chhodeiN kitna pakdeiN iss duniya ko , issi kashmakash meiN subah se shaam ho jaati hai

💕💕💕💕💕💕💕💕💕💕💕💕💕

Back then one may not have understood the philosophical connotations , but the moral of the story which was woven in how the situations were handled by the characters stayed back in one's impressionable mind , and it inadvertently keeps coming back , not just as nostalgia but many a time as guidance too 😊😊😊

I am so GRATEFUL that my mother NEVER told us the stories of KINGS and QUEENS

And FOREVER IN GRATITUDE that my father NEVER behaved like a KING in the house !!!

Happy Mother's Day to my parents in Heaven 

They could so expertly and adorably exchange roles 

I think all parents can 😊😊😊

Momzee

 Mummy ... My friend , my sweetheart , my first love ... She loved three things in life ...

Books , Chaai and Children ... 😊🥰💕💕💕

And they were all her first love 😊🤗🥰 

But she had no interest in watching  movies 😐 !!!

Before her marriage , as a teenager in her father's sprawling ancestral kothi in Shahjahanpur , going to watch films in cinema hall was a big No-No !

Back then , a close friend of my Nana's owned a cinema hall and he used to often tell my Nana , "Khan Bahadur Saheb bhej diya kariye khaandaan ki aurtoN ko , itni bhi koi buri chiiz nahi hai film dekhna , maiN pass bhijva dooNga " 😊

So , kabhi-kabhaar , accompanied by at least one family elder when the young burqa-clad girls of the family would excitedly go to Chacha Ji's cinema hall , Mummy would prefer reading or doing some household chores over this rare movie outing 😊

After her marriage , she moved from her small-town-broad-minded Muslim joint family to the nuclear family system in cosmopolitan and modern residential camp of Tata Hydro Electric Cos in Khopoli at the foot of the Sahyadri mountain in Maharashtra ... 

They used to have film shows every weekend in the colony club 

Away from the hustle n bustle of her huge khaandaan , Mummy gave in to the wishes of her friendly neighbours and soon adapted to a life that in time would give her opportunities to evolve into the human being that she wanted to be ... 

Films also found their way into her life , but still books , chaai and children remained her first love 😊💖🥰

As I grew up , books and later chaai and poetry entered my life like family heirlooms ... But Bollywood sneaked in from all corners of my being to claim my heart and before I knew it had become my second love ... 🩷🩷🩷 ... First to Mummy thiiN aur raheiNgi 😘😍🥰

So apart from the film shows in our colony , I wanted to see all the new releases in the nearby town 

But you don't go to the movies alone ... Right ... 

So Mummy used to go with me 🥰🥰🥰

We saw quite a number of films together ... till my husband , an equally unenthusiastic film-goer , came along and became the second love of my life ... 😊😊😊 ... First to Mummy ... 😉🤗😄

Of all the films Mummy saw in her life , "Teesri Kasam" and "Mera Naam Joker" she saw on her own and loved them immensely for their story and philosophy , and for a couple of songs too 💝🤗😊

Happy Birthday MomZee ! 

Remembering you so longingly ... 🥰🥰🥰

Aur yaad aa rahi haiN all those midnight maggie-chaai and jam-bread parties celebrating April-May birthdays in the summer holidays ... ☕🥪🍜🧈🍲

Wo bhi kitney massssssti bharey din thay ...

Aap ke paisoN se cake-biryaani khayaa kartey thay Mashaallah aap ke sab bachchey ... 💖🥰💕💕💕

Mubarak Eid Mubarak

 We siblings and our children , all of us call him Mama 

My parents used to address him by his first name : Niranjan 

He is our family well wisher 

He used to work for Dilip Kumar / Mehboob Khan and family and used to stay inside the iconic Mehboob Studio in his younger days , even remembers the number , make and model of "Yusuf Saheb's" personal car back then !!!

Later he moved out of Mehboob Studio and started driving a taxi 

Bombay ( or had it become Mumbai by then 🤔 ?) was under a spell of riot , violence and curfew in 1992 

My father who was working on a couple of TCS projects abroad in the 1990s , had to go back to work after a holiday at home , and needed a taxi to go to the airport 

Taxi milna , at that time was a huge task and my father looked quite maulana-like with his graceful white beard 😊😊😊 !!!

So it was all the more difficult to find someone who would be ready to take so much risk for even a super-hiked up fare 

It was at that testing time that my family found Mama 

He took my father to the airport safely , and unbelievingly charging the regular fare 

After that he became our trusted navigator for all our travel requirements in and around Bombay ,  and soon became almost like a family member 

Now he has become frail and his health has deteriorated so he cannot climb four flights of stairs to the residence of my brother , an apartment in one of the older buildings that doesn't have a lift 

So whenever he wants to meet our family , he comes over to my place , a first floor apartment in an equally old building , also without lift 😄 ...  and then Mashaallah we have a family reunion 😄 !!!

So yesterday he came to wish us Eid Mubarak ... And baatoN-baatoN meiN he mentioned that two days back was his birthday ... 😊

So Usman and Mehmood ( my son and nephew ) ordered a cake 

And we had a surprise Birthday Party for Mama 😊

His childlike delight and joyous amazement can neither be expressed in a thousand words nor in any number of emoticons 🥳🎉🎊🤗😄😄😄

And that happiness of his , so pure and innocent , is the most treasured and priceless Eidi that we have gotten in a long time ... 🙏🌟🌙✨⭐🎁💕💕💕

 "When God blesses you financially, instead of raising your standard of living , raise your standard of giving."

"When you focus on being a blessing , God makes sure you are always blessed in abundance"

A lot of us must have only perfunctorily read / sent these (and such other) quotes in our GM msgs on WhatsApp

Aajkal when WhatsApp Universities are awarding PhDs in subjects like EPS  and Communalism , such quotes are precious reminders , that every so often awaken the insaan in us , thus helping voices for empathy justice and equality to not be totally herded away 

 

So ... I read these quotes in a couple of GM msgs fwdd by friends / family ... but saw them being put in practice by my kitchen helper !

She had started working as a cook and helper about two decades ago because she couldn't see her children living a life of deprivation under a drunkard head of the family 

Her first employers were amazing human beings who looked after her and her children like their own 

They also talked to her husband ...

Soon enough he started mending his ways and stopped drinking too

Happiness and better luck soon followed 

Not that she has everything in life now 

And not everything is going the way she wants , but her struggles have never stopped her from sharing her blessings with others 

She even offers her own "kaam" to other women who are more deprived than her !!!

And as she shares her blessings , I ve seen God's nemateiN increase as she keeps getting more and more work opportunities Mashaallah 

Touchwood

 

Another rare quality she has is that she is extremely sincere and respectful of her "rozi" (zariya e maa'ash , livelihood)

I often jokingly tell her to open an employment agency considering how much she helps needy women get work 

She laughs it away 

I thought Ramzaan is the most appropriate time to share this story because this is the month in which Muslims try to do a lot of nekis (नेकियाँ) which include ...

Reading duas in Arabic (which someone else has written) 

Reading Qur'an (there's often a competition of sorts as to how many times one has completed reading the entire Qur'an in this Holy Month) 

Giving zakaat (can be given at any time of the year but the general understanding is that rewards from God in exchange for this neki increase manifold in Ramzaan)

Giving Fitra (charity specifically distributed in Ramzaan)

Reading the taraveeh ( the long night prayer specific to Ramzaan where Imaam Saheb , who should be a Haafiz too reads portions of the Qura'an in such a manner that the entire Qur'an is read at least once during the month of Ramzaan) 

Hosting Iftaar parties ... 

etc etc etc 

But here this humble , uneducated , ordinary woman has risen hugely in the ranks of kindness and humaneness , which is the ultimate msg that every mazhab preaches 

The universal law of Nature works irrespective of any discrimination Kaaynaat ka nizaam mazhab dekh kar nahi chalta 

kyoN ke Qudrat naa Hindu hai naa Musalmaan

#GodAllahBhagwan

#Waheguruji 

#ElElohim

#ShaddaiAlmighty