Bashir Badr - V

Socha nahii.n accha bura, dekha sunaa kuch bhi nahii.n
Maangaa khuda se raat din tere siva kuch bhi nahii.n

Jis par hamaari aankh ne moti bichhaaye raat din
Bheja wohi kaagaz use hamne likha kuch bhi nahii.n

I didn’t think of good or evil, didn’t see or hear anything
Day and night, I asked God for nothing but you

On which my eyes dropped pearls day and night
I sent her that sheet without writing anything

*** *** ***

Mujh se bichad ke khush rahte ho
Meri tarah tum bhi jhoothe ho

Separated from me, you keep happy
You are also a liar like me

Another of Badr’s masterpieces, and beautifully sung by Jagjit singh!

*** *** ***

Koii phool sa haath kaandhe pe tha
Mere paanv sholo.n pe chalte rahe

Wo kya tha jise hamne thukra diya
Magar umra bhar haath malte rahe

Muhabbat, adaavat, wafa, berukhi
Kiraaye ke ghar the badalte rahe

A palm like a flower rested on my shoulder
My feet kept walking on embers

What was it that I rejected
But kept regretting the whole life

Love, enmity, loyalty, indifference
Kept changing like rented houses

*** *** ***

Yuu.n dil ko gududaayaa ki har gham jagaa diya
Usne hansi hansi mei.n hamko rula diya

Poocha bahut jo hamne kis or ab miloge
Chutki mei.n ret lekar usne uDa diya

She teased my heart so as to awaken every sorrow
In jest, she made me cry

When I asked a lot, where to find you
She took a pinch of sand and tossed it away

*** *** ***

Dhadkanei.n dafn ho gayee ho.ngi
Dil mei.n diivaar kyu.n khadi kar lii

Heart-beats would have been buried
Why did you erect a wall in the heart

Sense and Sensibility

Sense and Sensibility
[by Jane Austen]

I had not read before classics of the 18th century, at least not in the original form; I had only read abridged versions of a few of these quite famous novels, like 'Pride and Prejiudice' and 'Wuthering Heights', but could not find the patience to read the complete versions. I mostly read contemporary fiction, so getting a novel written in early 1700s was rather out of character for me. How did I happen to buy it, is quite another story.

This is the story of two sisters, Elinor and Marianne, who represent Sense (rational thinking) and Sensibility (emotional and impulsive behavior) respectively. The plot is very precisely outlined on Wikipedia.

The story is good, and the characters are finely described, which is perhaps the reason that Austen's works are still popular. However, I found it difficult to identify with, because the complete context is of a culture alien to us, and mannerisms which are outdated even for the current generation of people belonging to that culture. The language, of the prose, as well as the dialogues, was quite flowery, so that it was rather unnatural to me, and difficult to follow in some places. I found it difficult to understand why would people address their own family members in such a formal manner, and why one's mother and sister think it improper to ask what troubles them. Once or twice, it tired me so much that I thought of abandoning it; only the curiosity about the story stopped me from doing so. :-)

In all, I think it was fairly good read, but for now I am cured of "period classics". :-P

Now to the story - and I am still laughing at myself at this - although I knew that it was not my cup of tea, how did I happen to get it. Quite some time back, a book was recommended to me. By the time I went to the book fair, I had completely forgotten the name of the book, as well as that of the person who recommended it. Browsing in the fair, I saw Sense and Sensibility, and thought that the name sounded familiar, and thought that perhaps this was that book. I was also keen to see what it is in these works, that they continue to enthrall people for almost three centuries. So, I went ahead with my purchase. Shortly after I searched my Inbox, to realise that what I had intended to look for was 'Wise and Otherwise' on a recommendation by Cuckoo.

What flower are you

Came across this fun-to-do quiz while blog-hopping.

This is what it told me ...

This is What Kind Of Flower You Are

You Are a Daisy

"You are just a sweet person. When a friend needs a shoulder to cry on, you are happy to offer yours with a box of tissues as well. Once in awhile, you wish you could be a little more dramatic but then sensibility sets back in and you know that you are perfect the way you are."

What flower are YOU?

The Book Cover Tag

I have been tagged by Cuckoo. And it was quite an interesting one.

Rule (there is only one):

Go to the advanced book search on Amazon, type your first name into the Title field, and post the most interesting/amusing cover that shows up.

I expected the search for my Id [Sigma] to yield interesting results. But contrary to the expectation, it threw up hundreds of references to "Six Sigma" amongst the top results., which was definitely not an interesting subject. Filtering off the "Six Sigma" results, I still got a lot of results referring to Data converts [Delta-Sigma Data Converters: Theory, Design, and Simulation and Continuous-Time Sigma-Delta A/D Conversion], and also a number of scientific, theological or philosphical organizations/groups [Delta Sigma Theta- society, Sigma Nu Fraternity and Sigma Phi Epsilon Fraternity]. It was quite difficult to find an article of interest amongst these :-) My real-life name, as expected, yielded no interesting results :-)

Editorial Review

Robert Ludlum's trademark skills of intricate plotting, breakneck pacing, and high-wire drama are all on display in this gripping thriller. After his twin brother dies in a plane crash, Ben Hartman reluctantly takes his place in the investment firm started by their father, a Holocaust survivor. But then an old college buddy tries to kill Ben on a crowded Zurich street, setting off a chain of events that ultimately leads Ben into the thick of a worldwide conspiracy. Behind it is Sigma, a multinational cartel built on the rubble of World War II by industrialists and financiers bent on exploiting wartime technology and protecting their wealth from the threat of communism.

Accompanied by a beautiful American justice department agent, Ben eludes the assassins on his trail and follows Sigma's tentacles across Europe, to Brazil, Washington, and finally to a sanitarium known as the Clockworks in the Austrian Alps, where the horrifying agenda of a perverted new world order is revealed. Ludlum, who died between the writing and publishing of this book, was a master of the genre he helped popularize, and The Sigma Protocol shows him at the peak of his craft.

Reader Review [By Geert Daelemans]
The least you can say about Number 9 is that it is a remarkable book for many reasons. Not a lot of non-fiction books have the guts to address mathematics in such a personal way. The author Cecil Balmond even creates the character of Enjil to accompany the reader during his search for the truth behind the number 9. The claim of the author that it reads as detective story is certainly true for the first half the book. But be warned, you will not get a definite answer to the questions posed. Although more than once the author claims that the riddles have been solved, she does not seem to be aware that her so called solution is actually a redefinition of the same questions. But then again, you can ask yourself if a real solution would have fitted together with the magical atmosphere nourished by this book.
The weakest point, without doubt, is the fact that Cecil completely ignores to place Number 9 in its true context. Never during the whole narrative does she mention that number 9 is only magical in a decimal system. For the same reasons that number 9 is special in a system with ten digits, 15 will be magical in a hexadecimal system. It is clear that this kind of information will diminish the magical power behind number 9, but that cannot be enough reason to just ignore the facts. From an academic point of view such a denial is unforgivable.
But maybe this book was never intended to be an academic thesis and must be perceived as a declaration of love to the exciting world of numbers. Cecil has definitely succeeded in putting her passion for the subject on paper. After reading Number 9, even the most ignorant soul will have difficulties in trying to deny that mathematics is truly the science of beauty.


And now for the victims though Cuckoo has already laid her hands on most of my potential ones :-D]
BendTheRulz
LeziBlogger
Maverick
And anyone else who wants to try it for fun ...