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  • Madhusala – Bachchan

    Madhusala by Harivansh Rai Bachchan is one of my favourite Hindi poems of all time. Below are a few excerpts from it. You can read the entire thing here.

    मुसलमान औ’ हिन्दू है दो, एक, मगर, उनका प्याला,
    एक, मगर, उनका मदिरालय, एक, मगर, उनकी हाला,
    दोनों रहते एक न जब तक मस्जिद मन्दिर में जाते,
    बैर बढ़ाते मस्जिद मन्दिर मेल कराती मधुशाला!।५०।

    आज करे परहेज़ जगत, पर, कल पीनी होगी हाला,
    आज करे इन्कार जगत पर कल पीना होगा प्याला,
    होने दो पैदा मद का महमूद जगत में कोई, फिर
    जहाँ अभी हैं मन्दिर मस्जिद वहाँ बनेगी मधुशाला।।५३।

    कभी न सुन पड़ता, ‘इसने, हा, छू दी मेरी हाला’,
    कभी न कोई कहता, ‘उसने जूठा कर डाला प्याला’,
    सभी जाति के लोग यहाँ पर साथ बैठकर पीते हैं,
    सौ सुधारकों का करती है काम अकेले मधुशाला।।५७।

    छोटे-से जीवन में कितना प्यार करुँ, पी लूँ हाला,
    आने के ही साथ जगत में कहलाया ‘जानेवाला’,
    स्वागत के ही साथ विदा की होती देखी तैयारी,
    बंद लगी होने खुलते ही मेरी जीवन-मधुशाला।।६६।

    PS: A few spellings may be incorrect but there is only that much a transliterator can do.

  • Love & Hate

    Excerpts from the same blog on which I tumbled on to the song in the previous post. Something from the guy’s personal dairy. Somehow touched a cord with me. That explained a lot to me. Now, I think I know exactly how they felt at that moment.

    She smiled and after a silence she said “I hate you too … I hate you because you can read my mind .. I hate the fact that you instantly know what thought I just had .. and what will be my next step .. I hate the fact that you think exactly like me .. This shouldn’t go on like this .. ”

    So we sat there hating each other but never for a moment not loving each other ..

  • Yakeen

    Got this song by Atif Aslam, of Tere Bin fame recently, from some blog on the net. Contains very melodius music and awesome lyrics. You can download the song here.

    आज दिल दुखा है .. तुम याद आए
    अनजाने लोग हैं .. अपने कहाँ ढूँड पायं

    जागे हैं .. सोए नहीं .. ऐसी है मेरे एह बेचैनी ..
    दिन भी वही .. रातें वहीं .. साँसों मैं साँसें हैं नही

    शामें अब ढलती नहीं .. आँचल जो तेरा सिमट जाए ..
    आ अब यहाँ हमेशा रहें .. दूरी रहे ना हों फ़ासले ..

    जागे हैं सोए नही .. ऐसी है मेरी एह बेचैनी ..
    दिन भी वही .. रातें वाहें .. साँसों मैं साँसे हैं नही ..

    अब अगर तुम मिले तो .. इतना यक़ीन हैं
    हँस देंगे हम तो रोना नहीं है .. 

  • Tech and Art

    Do you see beauty in a recursive loop?? Do the curves of a V-twin engine of a Harley Davidson remind you of finely carved Greek statues?? Do you hear music in the sound of a V-10 F1 engine (you will be missed)? If your answer to all of these is a yes, then you are a technologist at your heart, whether or not you have a tech degree.

    Ever since I joined Evalueserve, I had always wondered why they called it the state-of-the-art instead of state-of-the-technology, or why they called it prior art instead of existing technology. Finally stumbled on the answer yesterday while reading Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance.

    Turns out that the word technology is derived from the Greek word techne, meaning art, skill or craft. One of the wisest races to have ever existed, the Greeks, in all their wisdom, never saw any difference between art and technology and never had different words for them. No wonder their buildings are considered works of art in the modern world.

    So next time you find yourself comparing Bach to Knuth or Michelangelo to the engineers of Ferrari, don’t be surprised.

  • Top 5 U2 Songs

    Ojas once said, “Anybody who likes music cannot hate U2”, or something to that effect. I sure like music and U2 is a personal favourite. Here is a list of my 5 personal favourite U2 songs:

    5. The Hands That Built America: Sheer melody and awesome lyrics. Also contains one of the most memorable lines in any song.

    You gotta live with your dreams, don’t make them so hard.

    4. I still haven’t found what I am looking for: When you get what you want, but not what you need. Laced with religious symbolism and great vocals, it makes you think hard.

    3. Mothers of the disappeared: This song is dedicated to the mothers of the revolutionaries in Argentina, but I have always connected it to mothers of those who gave their lives serving the armed forces. Different music and a hymn like feeling makes this song very special.

    2. Sometimes you can’t make it on your own: A song that Bono sang at his fathers funeral. A touching song, specially this part of it:

    You don’t have to put up a fight
    You don’t have to always be right
    Let me take some of the punches
    For you tonight

    1. With or Without You: I first heard this song long before I actually knew it was a U2 song during an episode of F.R.I.E.N.D.S (TOW Ross and Rachel break up), and immediately liked it. One of the most sentimental U2 songs and also has a very nice and smooth guitar riff at the end. Also happens to be a favourite of most of my close friends.

    It is special because of many reasons. For Ross and Rachel, for F.R.I.E.N.D.S, for Psenti Music Nites, for Psentisem, for BITS – Pilani, and for many more.