The year was 1290 . A crowd had gathered around a clearing, where broken down pillars marked the presence of an ancient temple, now long gone. A young boy, just 14 years old, leaned against one of those pillars, deep in thought. Then, he began speaking, and the crowd fell silent, listening to his every word. He spoke without any notes, translating the Bhagavat Gita, from Sanskrit, which only the pundits knew, to the language everyone in the village knew and spoke – a variety of Prakrit which developed into the Marathi language. Even as he spoke, one of the men in the audience realized how momentous this event was, and how important this composition would be. He began writing down the words the young boy spoke, and this composition was named by its author and composer, the Bhavartha Deepika – the enlightening meaning (of the Bhagavat Gita). Now, the ancient, holy text, was no longer restricted to the pundits, but accessible to all, understood easily by them, composed as it was, in their...
On our recent summer vacation, we woke up at Cherai to heavy rains. These weren't the usual summer rains where it rained now and then, but the skies opened up with a vengeance, and made it impossible for us go explore the area. I opted instead, for exploring the resort, and enjoying the peace, since most people were enjoying the cosy comforts of the resort, indoors! Walking towards the backwaters, the sight of these lone fishermen made me stop and watch them for a while, appreciating their hard work, and their perseverance. This isn't a black and white photo, but the dark clouds and the fog make it appear so