काही शतकांपूर्वीची गोष्ट. तिबेटमधील एका मोठ्या बौद्ध आश्रमानं सीमावर्ती भागातील एका छोट्या आश्रमाच्या उभारणीस हातभार लावला. बांधकाम पूर्ण झालं. आता तेथील प्रमुखपद सांभाळण्याकरता योग्य भिक्षु पाठवणं तेवढं बाकी होतं. मोठ्या आश्रमाच्या प्रमुखानं दहा भिक्षुंची निवड केली, त्यांना नव्या आश्रमाच्या दिशेनं पाठवलं. सर्वांना प्रश्न पडला: 'गुरुपद ग्रहण करण्यासाठी एकाच व्यक्तीची गरज असताना दहाजणांना का बरं  धाडण्यात आलं? तिकडूनही प्रश्न आला: 'एकाचीच गरज असताना दहाजण कशाला? त्यांतील योग्य कोण ते आम्ही कसं ओळखावं?' "जरा धीर धरा. पहा, म्हणजे आपल्या लक्षात येईल," इकडचे गुरु म्हणाले. दोन्ही आश्रमांमध्ये पुष्कळ अंतर होतं. मार्ग खडतर, पहाडी होता - पायी प्रवास. साधारण तीन आठवड्यानंतर तिकडून निरोप आला: 'तुम्ही जे दहा भिक्षु पाठवले होते त्यातील एकच सुखरूप पहोचला आहे.' तेव्हा गुरु म्हणाले, "पाहिलंत? दहा पाठवले की एखादा पहोचतो !" मागाहून सर्वांना पूर्ण कथा समजली: दहा भिक्षुंच्या गटाला प्रवासात पहिलं गाव लागलं तेव्हा गावच्या वेशीपाशीच एका गावकऱ्यानं सर्वांत पुढे चालणाऱ्य...

'Meaning-making' happens at the expense of implicit meaning - meaning which is already present in a poem, in a painting, a film, a novel etc. Subtle or pronounced, it shall come upon you in its own way, in its own time - all you have to do is to be there, be aware, be naked, listening, watching, receptive. It shall often ferry you to the realm of silence, through the landscape of your own self. You can't make anything out of this import, so light yet so charged it is! and solid like a tree laden with fruit! You shall fail to 'capture' this significance. Your words shall repudiate you,  your tongue shall misstate you. 'Let me explain more, let me illustrate further,' you may think. But that never was the issue. You tried to express the inexpressible. You didn't leave room for silence and surprises, you didn't let the snorts and sighs and tears and laughter take over.. you didn't let the enchantment work. Who asked you to take the entire burd...

 A good film is what she is. And that's enough. She feels no need to shout from the rooftop, to turn you towards herself. Some people, it's their job - she doesn't mind them doing it for her. That's alright. A good film doesn't try to 'hook' you. A bad film, a premature work may seek to be attractive because, for her, the sheer fact of existence isn't a good enough reason to be. A good film may captivate you, it may fail to captivate you. She wouldn't try. She wouldn't beg and, trust me, she never wants you to beg. She is not decidedly inaccessible or upsetting. She doesn't mystify herself on purpose. That would be just another way of trying to hook you - what's the need! ...Someone wished to talk of things that touched them, moved them; to talk from their gut. They managed to get the kind of producers, the kind of finance required; a good casting director, good actors, good cameraman, good composer - and a film happened. Of cour...

Consent is part of that honesty in relationship, is it not? And honesty is so superficially understood! But we've build a concept, a defensive wall out of consent now. We've turned it into a guard, and we forget how complex, or simple it could be. Consent is to listen, to respect the other person even in the heat of one's own passion; an understanding of a sort, no? When love is, this happens more or less easily. But we've made consent into a discourse, a big fuss. This way it stinks.   It seems to me that human sexuality in urban times and spaces is getting duller on one hand, and more violent on the other. The damages in relationship are getting quicker, uglier and more irreparable, just like the numerous consumer products we use. Disconnect from nature, from its vast expanses, from its challenges certainly makes us excessively intellect-driven. And intellect alone can't help.  We don't understand what to do with our own animality, how to relate to ourselves...