The Morbid TOP - 5

Blog: Hey Man, whats up? I was expecting you to do a review on Om Shanti Om but you did not!

Atul: Well, yeah. The blogosphere is already choking with the number of reviews on Om Shanti Om and Saawariya. And some of them are so interesting that they were more entertaining that the movies itself. But most of them are totally biased and since I am an obsessed Shahrukh Khan fan, my review would have been a waste too. Web 2.0 garbage is already a reality. So you should be glad because I saved you from a torture.

Blog: Thanks a lot! So whats this Morbid top - 5?

Atul: These are the top 5 reasons or ways that THIS WORLD WILL END, well according to me.

Blog: Oh, thats morbid! But do we need to know that?

Atul: Of course not! When you don't know how long you yourself are going to live how does it matter if you know that the human beings will be extinct in next 1000 years or so. But IT IS important to be reminded every now and then that ultimately every thing comes to an end. And IT IS important to constantly be aware of our innate powerlessness. This is the only way spirituality blossoms in you. Understanding of Death has the capacity to enlighten you to attain Buddha hood or Krishna consciousness. And only when you know that you might die another day, you feel silly living as a Hindu or a Sikh or a Muslim or living as an Indian or an American; only then you laugh at your prejudices and stop feeling sorry for yourself. By the way, when you are at it, why don't you check out the chapter on Death from the Prophet by Khalil Gibran; which I have told you so many times is my favorite book.

Blog: All right! Can we now please have the list? By the way this list contains the reasons why Human Population may get extinct or all the species on Earth or something. And whats the order?

Atul: Both. And its kind of same, isn't it? The order is based on the probability of occurring, ability to avert and the SCARE INDUCING index of that method.

Blog: Ok, got it. So whats the number 5.



Atul: On number 5 is WAR. Where War is a super set of any act of terrorism, genocide, a world war, a civil war or any accident involving a nuclear bomb intended for warfare.
I know I know, a cynic (read an optimist) will disagree and say 'We have been fighting since Stone Age and still the human race has grown' and stuff. But that's exactly why a WAR has the ability to completely annihilate us because we have never stopped fighting. And when we have nuclear bombs that have the capacity to totally wipe out nations in seconds, the fear seems more real.
And do you know that there is even a theory that Dinosaurs got extinct due to behavioral changes rather than climatic changes. According to this theory those dudes started killing and eating each other, eventually leading to their extinction. And hell, we are not smarter than Dinos; because they at least killed to satisfy their hunger, we kill to satisfy our ego!!
So that's number 5 for you, WAR; a suicide by an entire species.

Blog: hmm, I thought you were going to talk about Star wars aka aliens and stuff!! Ok, so whats number 4.



Atul: Number 4 is DISEASE. Yeah, we have made a considerable growth in medical sciences but still there are incurable diseases and still there are undiagnosed diseases and still there are new diseases coming up which have never been heard of. And more over we have a history of diseases like Plague or Cholera decimating entire civilizations. So a new disease may come from no where and if not instantaneously, gradually taking its toll. And if you add to it diseases to our food crops or our livestock leading to widespread famines; the fear factor really increases.

Blog: And yeah, if you add to it the prolificness of Indian doctors going on strikes and fubared Health Insurance systems around the world, even I would agree with you!



Atul: Number 3 is a Meteor strike. Is it possible? YES. Is it probable? Why Not! But the fear of a meteor striking the planet Earth is the 'Mother of all fears'. I don't even need to mention what can happen if a meteor strikes us. Just look at that expression on the face of people when you discuss this! I mean, its like Universe is playing a multi dimensional Billiards and it has already hit the ball towards Earth and just waiting for the HIT.

Blog: Well I agree, its really scary. More scary than Ram Gopal Varma making 'RGV ki Aag - part 2'! Anyways, check out this video.





Atul: Number 2 is Climate Change. Actually it should be Number 1, but I will tell you why it is not. In fact I believe that this is going to be THE only reason of extinction of mankind.
I don't know what will be the change, will the Earth get warmer, or the Ice Age will advent again. I even don't know will the climate change be caused due to natural reasons or human intervention, but I am convinced something will happen.
For example you must have heard about this cycle the Earth goes in while revolving around Sun, when for a considerable period its very near to Sun and then very far from Sun may be causing an Ice Age.
Global warming is a big threat too but it is really over hyped. Who would have thought that you can win a Nobel Peace prize just by making a Power Point presentation!! (On a side note, 'An inconvenient truth' by Al Gore is a must see movie, if not for the content; definitely to learn how to use power point :-). But let me not undermine it, with some scientist even claiming that in 30 years Glaciers will melt enough to increase the water level by 1 meter; effecting half of the entire human population and displacing millions especially in developing countries like India and China. Dude, I am shifting to Denver :)

Blog: You are right man, there was a deluge of videos on youtube when Al Gore won the Nobel Peace prize, and check out the trailer of the spoof by South Park on Al Gore. Ok, time for the Numero One!



Atul: Number one is the DEATH OF SUN. Our Sun is a star and every star has its life cycle. Yeah, I am talking about the White Dwarfs, Super Novas and Black Holes!
Its number one because its inevitable, it might happen after million of years or after million of species are already extinct. But that will be THE END of the planet Earth and the whole Solar System.
Its number one because its so awe inspiring and beautiful. I can't think of any other example where insignificance is manifested in such a majestic way. If you see a picture of Supernova you will think if God is playing Holi and Diwali on the same day, or turned into a painter and decided to do some modern Art.
Its number one because there are Black Holes involved in it and our Sun may end up into a Black Hole too. And whats more mysterious than a woman's heart and more pulling than a woman's eyes! (if not having an infinite capacity of a woman's shopping bag). It's a Black Hole, the best poetic expression of God.
And its number one because it has a spiritual message to it. God is trying to make us see the underlying unity in everything by making everything ONE in the end. And by Black Holes God is giving a message that even though there is no escape from death, and there is no escape from that void and emptiness, there is still something about that absolute nothingness.

The Explosion - Part 1

Due da Blog: OH MY GOD! Where have you been Atul? Its nice to have you back. I thought you forgot me.

Atul: Hey bloggy, I know I have let you down. But what to do! So, tell me how did you pass your time dude.

Blog: Ah, don't worry about me. I was busy enough. There is so much crap out there on youtube that I hardly have time to feel offended. I am always busy watching a funny add or some documentary. And you know what, my favorite videos are of pakistani cricket players, like this one of Mohammad Asif. I guess if I was not a blog of an Indian, pakistan will be my favorite cricket team (may be it still is).

Atul: Good man, good to know you have been keeping busy. But tell me something honestly. Don't you feel that YOUTUBE has killed the BLOG?

Blog: Hey dude, its in the nature of human beings like you to hate each other, not tools and concepts like us. I consider youtube as my cousin and I am very proud of it. And even youtube is in a nascent stage, I am sure it will become a better mode of self expression soon. And really, that has been the aim of all the Web 2.0 brothers, be it orkut, youtube, wikipedia or blogs. But well, never mind about me, you tell. Whats this EXPLOSION all about, the title you gave to this entry.

Atul: An explosion of thoughts. I am glad I have a friend like you to vent it out.

Blog: All right, so what are you gonna talk about?

Atul: Kashmir, India, Gujarat riots, Tehelka Sting, Osho, Bobby Jindal, Bollywood, Rahul Dravid, Pakistan, Musharraf, Ravi Shankar, Rajni Kant, Shahrukh Khan, American Desis, Stock Market, Currency Trade, Love, Betrayal, Life, Death, Truth .....

Blog: HOLD ON. One at a time please. All right, let me do it like what my grand father, News Paper would have done. Write about one political or socio thing, one entertainment or sport and I give you one space to write about anything surreal or spiritual stuff like your Osho. Man, how did you get into this spiritual crap? Don't you just like watching funny clips like those of Russel Peters?

Atul: Thanks bloggy. Since I have limited space, I am not going to talk about the most current development of Pakistan Emergency, or even the Tehelka Sting. I am going to talk about some basic issues with examples of Kashmir and Khalistan.

Blog: Khalistan? I thought it was a dead issue. Why even bother to talk about that?

Atul: You will understand. First let me tell you about some of my back ground. I belong to a Hindu family; My grand parents (mothers side) migrated from the Punjab now in Pakistan and my Nani used to tell me how some of the family members were lost (read killed) during that time. My Grand Parents (Dads side) also more or less belonged to the Punjab that is now in Pakistan. And now when I think of it, I of course feel sad of the human life loss but also because some one had to leave his home where they stayed for generations. Its true for a muslim too who went to Pakistan from India. And 30 years after partition, a movement called Khalistan rises that demands a separate state for Sikhs which would eventually mean that all the Hindus and that includes me leave their home again. Well, as a Punjabi I feel really sad and enraged about everything that went wrong but equally proud that we fought back, the terrorism was controlled and except some elements in Toronto, California, UK or ISI, no one really bothers about Khalistan.

Blog: Thanks for the history man, I would have read that on wikipedia. So will you please tell me whats the point?

Atul: Hey, thanks for not letting me go out of control. Well, the similarity I want to draw out of it is that there is something called 'HOME'. Punjab (Indian Punjab I mean) is not about a piece of land that is politically part of another piece of land bound by Himalayas in the North and the Indian Ocean in the South called India. Punjab is about the Punjabis and people that stay there. Similarly Kashmir has always been talked about as a piece of land that we have been taught over and over again is 'an Integral part of India'. But it is not, and neither its a land where Bollywood movies can be shot. Kashmir is about Kashmiris, the people who stay there. It doesn't matter if they are Muslim or pundits or Buddhists. It doesn't matter if they celebrate Pakistan's victory in an Indian cricket match. And the reason I am saying all this now is because I really feel guilty of cheering to those lines like 'Doodh maangoge to kheer denge, Kashmir maango ge to cheer denge'. Not only I was being arrogant, I was being ignorant. There is no doubt that Kashmir's annexion by India was not a smooth affair, and no doubt about Indian Army having committed human rights violations in Kashmir. And I have no right to say something like 'Kashmir is ours, if you want to go to pakistan, you can go'

Blog: Hey man, are you leading to a suggestion that Kashmir should be resolved with a plebiscite?

Atul: No, not at all. I can't make the same mistake twice. All my life I have been ignorant and said things I don't know about, I will not do that now. There are so many political, economic and god-knows-what concerns on all the sides that there is no ready solution for it. And neither I am a politician, or a scholar or most importantly a Kashmiri to even dare open my mouth on this issue. But yes, I have my sympathies with everyone who has suffered; be it an Indian jawan who lost his life in Kargil, or a Kashmiri Pundit staying in a camp in Delhi, people who have died in terrorist attacks, young kids whose favorite toys are AK-47s and in general towards all the residents of Kashmir whom I consider as the most gentle race in the Indian sub continent. I can only wish, that peace be there in the awe aspiring land of Kashmir.

Blog: hoof, that was really heavy stuff. You better not talk about anything related now.

Atul: Yeah sure. This is about OSHO. I have been reading his books and listening to his discourses for some time now. And nothing has ever been so convincing, moving and seems-to-be-truth-types, probably with the exception of The Prophet - Khalil Gibran. But then I also read about his history and the rise and downfall of the Osho commune, both in India and other countries particularly in USA. He was banished in USA as a tax evader and there was allegation on his commune of poisoning a whole town. He was touted in India as a sex Guru, which is really ironic because India is after all the land of Kamasutra (supposedly a scientific investigation), Khajurao Temple (mind you, a temple) and where one of the prominent Gods@ Lord Siva is depicted as the male reproductive organ as a symbol of creation.
Well, so some people condemn Osho for being cunning and manipulative and some even say that his discourses were not his own discourses, they were written by some of his employee and Osho just happened to be a good orator!
What I have to say about all this is that first, so many Osho critics have not even read some Osho ever and second (and its my theory), that even if in the later stages Osho lost control of the movement and got disillusioned by his success; does that make Truth a non-Truth? After all is it the person who matters or his words, is it the intention behind the spoken word that matters? Let me give you relevant and not so relevant examples.
Legend has that Valmiki was a dacoit who was transformed to a good guy by a chance encounter with Narad Muni and then he wrote the epic - Ramayana. Does it matter that Ramayana was written by a killer?
A guy likes a girl because she is very sexy, he courts her, they start seeing each other and in the process they fall in love. Does it matter what was the initial intention of the guy? After all isn't platonic love and amorous love both Love?
Salman Khan and the characters that he played in Hum Aapke hain kaun and Maine pyar kiya are like South Rim and North Rim of Grand Canyon. Does it bothers any one to appreciate his acting talent due to this?
So why do we have to challenge spiritual Gurus and condemn them for forming cults and say that their whole theory is False and that they always had a secret intention of gaining publicity so that they can have free sex and amass wealth. Even if the self styled Guru Gobind Singh of Dera Sacha Sauda is a scumbag, does it nullifies all the good that sect has done and the basis on which it gained its popularity@everone is equal?

Blog: I am sorry dude, but please don't ask me so many questions as if it was Bournvita Quiz contest. I can tell you what is the capital of Peru by looking at wikipedia and if you want; I can also try and find if Om Shanti Om will release in Portland. But I am at loss when you start asking esoteric questions like what is purpose of life and stuff. Unfortunately on Internet you can't find the answer. And by the way, I need to leave now and watch this final scene of Unforgiven, which according to me is the one of the best scene of all the movies I have seen.

Samjhauta Express bomb blast and the comet KL-13

When I read this news of Samjhauta Express Bomb Blasts, my first thoughts were again 'Fukk you Islamic fundamentalists, when are you gonna take a break'. I mourned the victims and cursed the bombers.

But then I read the details, that it was not Indians who were killed in the attack but Pakistanis who were visiting India and going back on that train. And suddenly I didn't feel the same remorse and was a bit relieved.

But right now, I only feel guilty, guilty of evaluating the number of tears that have to be shed if an Indian dies than when a Pakistani dies. And I am sure, it is not only me, because I know back in India there are people who will be saying 'Its OK man, Pakistanis deserve this' and in Pakistan plans will be made to blast the same train, this time carrying Indian pilgrims back home.

And about USA, I should not even venture to mention, because fifty percent of the American youth can't even locate Iraq on a blank world map where people are dying as if it was a poultry farm and all the birds were being killed due to this bird flu.

All in all, the whole Human Race is pathetic. Dinasores killed each other, even their own kind. But atleast they did it for food, not for the cross (read religion) or for a banner (read flags).

Its time the comet KL-13 strikes the planet Earth and destroys us. So that after million of years when some one finds the reason of the extinction of homo sapiens (who once ruled the planet), they don't find that the homo-sapien species was self destructive.