Have you ever performed on stage or given a speech?
Hey…
I hope all of you are doing well…
Yes, I’ve had a few opportunities to present myself on stage with and without a group;
I presented a speech all alone twice and I had all of the fear before it, legs feeling like jelly, those eyes staring at me like I owe them something, but once in my zone I performed what I had to it was a speech about a religious leader the topic that I picked way back…
Another one was a rather small group that worked in an informal setting a few strangers and a piece of information that we shared and debated it to come to a standard conclusion,;
A mere two person discussion turned into a few people taking their side and my side, it was a topic that has such a deep belief that we all had views on it “God’s existence and his overlooking those who were unfortunate…”
And after the heat of discussion subsided we all had tea and called it a night as we walked away a bit better person, by learning someone’s side and some facts that even changed our beliefs…
There were instances that we had musical performances during schooling too, which were often in groups because they shifted the focus and stress from a single child to the group, which was fun and enjoyable even for the audience because they were a part of us too as they enjoyed it as much as us…
A few instances but they shaped a version that can be traced deviated from a standard path to what it is now expanding forever…
To experiences like these that shape us for the better;
What part of your routine do you always try to skip if you can?
Hey…
I hope all of you are doing well…
The part of routine that I can avoid or skip would be the stress associated with work that constantly looms over my head…
The constant pressure of preparing, of being active and on my toes has broken the foundation that I stand on;
Some days it feels like a break from it would be better,
But returning to it feels like a trap that I exited for a little while,
after seeing clear open skies I have to walk into the cage to be trapped yet again and work within these tubes that trap my existence within them for 10 hours daily…
Well there aren’t many podcasts that I’m in these days but there are a few that bless my ears…
One of the podcasts that I used to listen to was “Violating community guidelines” by Sarah Schauer and Brittany Broski;
I know weird names but they complimented each other and the funny instances on their podcasts were so hilarious that I often laughed out while working making people think that I’ve gone crazy 🤪..
48 episodes discussing the trends on the social media and what went on during the year 2022 and the end of it,
Started in January of ‘22 ending in December of the same year, Ive found myself to go back to it year after year and boost my mood and give me laugh whenever life pins me down…
These days I’m invested in a podcast called Alan watts daily wisdom and yes they’re sharing the timeless teachings of the philosopher Alan watts through ai in his voice to all the world to listen and view too…
Started a month ago and 24 videos in gathering a whopping 108k followers as we speak (on yt) I’ve found it very helpful and informative by giving me insight to live this life better in ways that are often overlooked…
I’m pretty sure most of the world is suffering with this disease of a very long screen time, hooked on Instagram reels, YouTube shorts and videos, clips on TikTok and many more…
Time seem to pass by so quickly when we are hooked on them that it feels unreal;
You started watching them at 10 at night and suddenly it’s 1:30 before you can see the time on the phone which was there all the time…
There are a lot of things that I use to achieve my goal of reducing screen time a few of them are->
Having a separate phone for doing writing without any distractions so that I can focus when otherwise I would find a way to stop writing and doom-scroll Instagram..
Tracking screen time on both my phones just to keep in touch with how much I used a single app and how much I need to cut back…
Presetting a timer on each app which I use a lot for example I set a timer for an hour on Instagram which is a lot less from 4-5 hours which used to happen without knowing…
Trying to avoid using phones for the first few hours I usually wake up and pen my ideas or any dreams that I had, which makes all of it interesting as it boosts my writing skills and also imaginative skills which help me remember what happened in my dream world…
And at last, I keep my phones a bit away from me like for charging away from me when I have free time so I’d have to walk to it to get it as I’m on my bed, which cuts the interest in getting up and grabbing it a bit more…
Well, The country that I belong to, has very deep-rooted spiritual beliefs, which makes it one of the most populous, religious based countries in the world…
A place like India, which is the birthplace of many religions, including,
Hinduism
Jainism
Buddhism &
Sikhism
There are widespread religious beliefs around the place I exist, A big Hindu temple within 500 meters of my residence, A mosque within the same distance, And within a 10-minute drive, a Sikh temple called a Gurudwara, and a Jain temple too within that, and crossing the gurudwara you’ll find a church too (In opposite directions tho)…
I mean, all the hustling bustling goes on during the day, and by the night, those people who sat Infront of the religious places, begging for money, become the richest as they buy alcohol and other intoxicants, and do it yet again Infront of the said religious place and take rest on the pavement or the sidewalk, when nothing else matters, because they have already eaten their full, during the day…
This is the enabling that religion has done, Of course, when asked it’s said, “They’re not responsible for what goes outside the premises…” like they can’t physically enforce the stoppage of this, by appointing people whose sole responsibility is to deter such people…
But, things like this happen, Again and again, because they just up and move themselves away from the area, the area which they have to “keep clean”, the entire crowd moves, and the same thing happens, a few meters away… (Us Indians and our way to hack anything’s that’s enforced right…?)
Coming back to the prompt’s question…
The things like these, the hacks, the people who become these addicts by the night, the people who among the chaos, become the thieves, snatchers, took a long time ago my faith on religion…
The way, the internal management of a religious place functions, is the same as a business, they do take up cost cutting, the prasad (the food presented to the deities), is used and recycled, for those who don’t take it home, and sold to the same devotees yet again…
Being one of the most religious countries, and praying the G0ds and G0desses, and on the other hand, we hear news of a girls being brutally Rped, people being killed over little things, family disputes making people kill their own flesh and blood, but, on the other hand, this becomes a birthplace of religions, and a hub of spiritual beliefs…
The stark contrast, in what’s told, what’s heard, what’s seen, and what’s reported…
A toast to chaos, and such a widespread nature of ill management of it…
Cheers 🥂
Ashamed Waakiye🤍
A star here, Another there, another one, where it shouldn’t have been, A havan, an offering, and all of it shall go away…
The already G0d fearing, Thinks, “G0d forbid, another problem…” So, they set the appointment, and a priest appears, at the given time…
Taking place of a G0d, Or his minion, he prays and prays, and burns incense, using wood using camphor, creates a place packed with soot, and smoke, a heavenly fragrance it leaves, until its cleared, and things become the same, same as the day before…
The same chaos, the same panic, the same things, repeat the next, and the same problems, become the common, like it was the day before…
There are constant fears that stay on this mind, bugging it, making it worry unnecessarily, by taking a good chunk of mind and its processing…
Imagine you’re at work, and a random thought comes and interrupts your thinking, sometimes it comes when you’re sitting at your desk, or in a meeting, explaining a presentation, that can be make and break type thing, But, being human, there are many things whose answers are unknown to us, till yet, even with all of the advancements, in the fields of science and technology…
The question in question… “The Paralyzing fear of death and what follows…”
The question whose answer is unknown and shall remain until the near future, but, seeing many from my family taken up by it, and making numerous trips to places like Haridwar, where remains of the deceased are taken and scattered as per our rituals, but, there’s something that even that fails to answer..
WHY, WHY DO WE DIE…?
The fear stays as we watch our elders grow weak, their movements, their agility take fall, they aren’t as strong as they used to be, but, it feels like they are using their remainder, to live, and within a few more years they’ll be using their reserve too, and after that, when we will reach a stage where, their existence will be replaced by us, and our young ones and the cycle shall continue forever…
Maybe, the day we are supposed to leave and go back to the constant, the non-existence of life, or a free space where we reside permanently away from the cycle of life or death, our departure is calculated at the very beginning, so is our birth at the time of our conception, but away from it all, where we live without this fear, the constant fear of running out of time…
Cheers 🥂
Love Waakiye 🤍
Maybe, just maybe, this is how it feels…?
A path that’s darkened, with a door that stays open, waiting for our return, waiting to come back to a place that we left, those whom we left…
Maybe a few moments have passed, as they inquired my whereabouts, where have i been, and with a smirk, I reply, I was just here, went out for a breather…
And, just like that i lived a life, entirety of it, within a few moments, and no-one batted an eye, as we continued to sit in that room, staring at the walls, occasionally talking, letting out a sigh, and someone leaving the room, returning after a few minutes, with changed expressions…
Some faces had dread, some were epitome of happiness, some were neutral, and some had fear that resembled a loss of life or, a broken bone or a severed limb, waiting for their turn yet again…
On this floor, a big hall with uncountable rooms on this side and other side too, stretching as far as eyes can see, with a lift on one side that goes on floors wherever there’s room, last i checked as i went to get a breather, it was returning from floor 1618…
I really wanted this to be one of the questions/prompts, well before I started, because, i like to study people and their religious beliefs, and the way they carry it forwards after getting it from their grandparents to their parents, and now it’s finally their turn to pick up the rituals that their parents carried, watching it happen ever since a child, and now they embrace it with their open arms…
I don’t practice any religion, or openly say that i am a part of any religion, but, in our household, both Hinduism and Sikhism are practiced;
Upbringing of your parents and their place of birth matters a lot, My father’s origin was from Panjab, whereas my mom’s were from Haryana,
both the places had a connection with Both of the religions, But, Haryana tended to have a deeper connection to Hinduism, her place of birth being next to Kurukshetra which is associated to the Mahabharata war, and birthplace of Bhagavada Gita, … And Panjab, on the other hand has deep rooted beliefs with Sikhism, being the birthplace of the religion, that people follow worldwide…
So, a mix of both is followed and respected in our household, but, that doesn’t mean we degrade other religions, we respect those religion that we don’t follow, because that’s how we are…
I was taught to be a better person before practicing any religion, if someone follows Islam, Christianity or any other religion, it has been ingrained in my being to let people follow and practice their faith, until it becomes a problem for me, forced conversions and such, (a big issue here…)
But, answering the question, do i practice any religion, actually i don’t…
i believe in atheism, that there is no belief in me of deity worshiping, or praying a stone or a clay made and painted figurine, that most of the people follow around me…
BUT, that doesn’t mean i forbid anyone else of their choice, they can and should do it, if they feel like, and they won’t ever hear it from my mouth that this is wrong or right, until they want, truly want my answer…
WOULD YOU EVER WANT A MORAL COMPASS, THAT ALLOWS OR DOESN’T ALLOW YOU TO DO SOMETHING, OR, A BELIEF, THAT WHATEVER YOU DO, IT’S ADVANTAGE OR BLAME SHALL BE PAID AFTER YOUR EXISTENCE HAS LEFT THIS EARTH…?
So, you do bad things, and justify it with religion, or, make others suffer just because you won’t have to face consequences now, but in an afterlife that you don’t even know exists or not..
Food for thought
Cheers 🥂
Love Waakiye🤍
As i watch, the world run down…
Run down into ruins, by those who call themselves, the saviors…
The savior that believes, by hook or by crook, his word shall remain the truth…
The sole truth that prevails, is that we are humans, before being divided by faith..
A faith that i follow, a fight that ensues, my fight, the fight, it goes on between me and my fate…
Between me and my faith, a person who sits back like a wraith, all observant, until it’s his turn, to narrate…
“A personal quest… To reclaim the voice, I let silence arrest.”
Waakiye 