Rivers

Rivers are traditionally viewed as feminine. When it starts from a glacier high up in the mountains its a very narrow stream of water, very delicate like a new born baby. Then slowly as she descends from the lap of mother nature, she starts to grow in size, as water from other streams gets added to her. She runs here and there, like a small playful girl who is exploring things on her own. As she moves further down she starts to take shape, her banks are quite narrow like the slim waist of a beautiful young girl. She is very attractive, full of raw energy and ready to explore any new path. Even the best of swimmers find it difficult to resist her current and anyone who is careless would be swept away by her force.

As she leaves the foothills and enters the plains,her banks widen and now her gait is like that of a beautiful young woman. In due course she meets several other small and big rivers which add to her experience and give her depth. Moving further downwards she acquires maturity and now moves with very gentle pace with the grace of a family matriarch. She becomes the lifeline of millions, like the lady of the house, she takes care of her household and her children. Her life giving waters are used for drinking, irrigation of fields, transportation etc. At times she do gets angry when her children stop respecting her and then she also punishes her errant children. She shows her wrath on those who have encroached upon her space., but like a true mother her fury is short lived and in few days she's back to her usual self.

As it moves towards the ocean, its final destination, it carries with itself the burden of millions of people. Its long journey ends when it finally merges into the infinite to be reborn again as the daughter of the mountains.

Journeys

Journeys are undertaken to discover something, it can be either about places, people or about self. In the days long gone, when people used to go out on journeys, no one knew if they would come back. There were no means of communication and sometimes it used to be several years before a person returns. These occasions called for celebrations as it would be like a rebirth for someone long assumed to be lost.

These journeys would make people wise, they would encounter several dangers on the way in the form of dacoits, thugs, natural calamities, disease etc and then they would meet fellow travelers who would become like family members sharing their fortunes and misery. They would also meet saints and men of knowledge who would share their experiences and teach them about the way of life. These travelers would go to places which were hundreds of kilometers from their home into places completely unknown to them, without any kind of the support and leaving everything behind.

Nearly all great philosophers had done these journeys sometime in their life. Adi Shankaracharya went to all the four corners of the country, Guru Nanak went even a step ahead and went to Leh and then on to Mecca. What used to drive these people to places so far and even unheard of? These ancient people must have realised something which the modern man fails to see.

People these days even refuse to venture out of their cities. Their journeys are restricted to the nearest mall where they enjoy a movie with scenic locations, else staying at their air conditioned homes watching "Travel and Living" and doing pseudo traveling!!Some of us do undertake journeys and instead of leaving homes behind we carry them along with us. So we keep the windows of our vehicles up with the boot of the car filled with all kind of food items and come back to the comforts of our homes in a couple of days when we run out of supplies.