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2023 - The Year That Was

Places impact you for a variety of reasons. And the same place impacts different people in different ways. This is especially true when it comes to spiritual experiences, where every single person’s experience is unique. And personally, every spiritual experience is unique, the same person can have different deeply spiritual experiences at different places, at different times. This thought has emerged because of my own experiences over the years, but especially so this year, with different and unique experiences at various places I have visited recently. I began this year with a visit to Baroda (Vadodara) with friends. It was meant to be a relaxed trip, a touristy trip, with our sons. We enjoyed ourselves to the hilt, but the highlight of that trip was a visit to the Lakulisha temple at Pavagadh. It was the iconography of the temple that I connected with, and I spent a few hours simply lost in the details of the figures carved around the temple. There was an indefinable connect with

Birds from my window - Oriental Magpie Robins

I know its 8:00 AM when I hear them sing. These are the Oriental Magpie Robins, the most musical among the birds I see from my window. These days, this pair seems to be busy courting, for the music is even more pronounced!




The one on the left is the male, clearly identified by its black head and throat. The one on the right is the female, her lighter, greyish, head and throat distinguishing her from her partner. You can see them more clearly here, as seen from another window! 


These birds are fairly common across India, and, at one time, were in great demand as cagebirds, due to their melodious voice. Thankfully, they seem to be plentiful these days, across the subcontinent. Here is a closer look at the female....


Incidentally, the Oriental Magpie Robin is the National Bird of Bangladesh! Not really relevant, except that I am reading a book on Bangladesh right now :) Here is the male again, using its vocal chords to full effect!  


On another note, this happens to be the first bird Samhith learnt to identify. To begin with, it was quite easy to spot! Second, we saw it wherever we went... and finally, its name sounded so exotic! Years have passed since then, and as today Samhith is sitting down and writing down a bird list (for a long delayed post on Dandeli), I can't help remember that his enthusiasm for birds began with this one! 

I live in Mumbai, in a colony lucky enough to still have plenty of trees and open spaces. The best part of living here are the birds I see from my window, every single day. "Birds from my Window" is a series, where I regularly feature photos of birds I see from my home. To see all the posts in this series, click here

Comments

  1. A lovely set. Sometimes a window can provide for such lovely pictures!

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    Replies
    1. Thank you, Mridula! My window is sometimes my best inspiration!

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  2. Nice photos, Crisp article. I cannot imagine how eventful surrounding you have got!!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you, Dilip Mantri! we are lucky that way :D

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  3. Hey! Thanks! I used to see these birds from my window right below yours a few years ago :)

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  4. Nice to wake up to these - and even nicer to know Bombay is home to so many birds :)

    ReplyDelete

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