STOP! IT'S A TRAGEDY!

BE HUMANE AND PLEASE STOP MAKING FUN OF A TRAGEDY!

It is so disheartening to hear about the two students who took the worst decision of their lives and ended their precious life. No one can determine the reason behind and fate is sometimes too harsh. My prayers for the departed souls and deepest condolences to the parents.

The news is a tragic one but few people are playing fun with the tragedy. A stupid person forgot all its human values when it clicked a photo of the two students hanging dead. I am purposely using 'it' to describe the person behind it as the person cannot be a human but certainly a brainless heartless idiot. It didn't end there. The animal started to use social media to circulate the photo, which is so disturbing. Put yourself in the shoes of the parents and relatives of the deceased...how would you feel?
I strongly request the concerned authorities to investigate the case and bring the culprit to justice. It is a great loss and a tragic incident. The time is to offer our prayers and condolences. The circulation of the photo should stop! Lets not make fun of a tragedy!

Photo courtesy: www.rasnicjewellery.com

…before we carry Oxygen cylinders on our backs!

Global warming is a known fact. So I’m not going to explain the fact as it is an overridden explanation done by everyone. I just want to pass the message that it is true and hitting us real hard. Thus we got to do something before it is too late. We need to come together and fight this dreadful global threat. It is not the responsibility of the leaders, specialized organizations or countries. Each individual ought to contribute in curbing the apocalypse as each one of us equally contributed to the birth of the disaster.

Go green and inculcate greener habits! Be extra responsible and act in our own small capacities. It is high time we don’t wait for someone to do something. The time is more than now, so it is now that we act before we carry Oxygen cylinders on our backs!

Tidbinbilla: A Sanctuary in the midst…

4^th May 2014, a usual sunny Sunday filled the Australian Capital city of Canberra. It was a deserved recreational period for the weeklong hustle of work and university.  A five-minute planning decided the course of the day. We decided to make a day trip to Tidbinbilla Nature Reserve.

It was a smooth 50 minutes drive on the lovely Canberra highway. The journey was filled with GPS sounds and Dzongkha songs in the background yet we could find the ears and mouth to discuss our thoughts. Canberra is a unique capital city of small leafy suburbs and scatter of not-very tall buildings, where some are office buildings and others are mostly town centers of respective suburbs. As the journey gained momentum, the yonder hills beckoned a nostalgic feeling of home and even the road seemed like driving down a Bhutanese highway (except for the smoothness though). The vast stretch of greenery on the sides of the road was breathtaking. We could see countless sheep mulching the juicy grasses and I wondered how in the world could one recognize his sheep as every single sheep looked like the other. The occasional brooks and farmhouses were a great treat.

As we were thoroughly enjoying the drive, we encountered our first wildlife and it was none other than the country’s iconic animal, Kangaroo. It was also my first close encounter with the animal who was talked of and signposted everywhere. Indeed, the Kangaroo is a beautiful being. The most interesting of its view was the (assumed) pose it gave when we readied our cameras.

Then, we reached our destination at 11.30 A.M. We had to get a ticket for $10 per car (I thought it was very cheap for the treat we expected). Whilst waiting for the formalities, we got a chance to see few animals that were preserved in the visitor’s center. The diamond-back python and another type of python were kept alive in a glass box. The sight of these reptiles gave in to some discussions of our beliefs wherein we have a stereotyped belief that the sight of a python is considered ill omened. Yet, I found them so gentle and attractive. A Myna’s description was also an interesting as I learnt that the bird that is so common in Bhutan, was an “introduced” species here and considered a threatened species. Another funny incidence was when I thought the Shingleback lizard was a plastic one on my first view and on a closer observation it winked at me. 

We finally got our ticket to the park and so we started our 16 Km drive into the ring road of the reserve. As we entered the gates of the park, we could feel calmness and a strongly felt similarity in the air. The roads and trails were so well designed and we could access the area with ease and comfort. With our car safely parked, we walked the trails and admired the way they maintained the paths and the other amenities. The Kangaroos were in abundance as we walked through. Then we reached many ponds where we could see a variety of water birds. It was an enticing adventure and we expected an animal sighting on every curve. We were rewarded with few Wallabies, many kangaroos, assorted cranes and birds and three sleeping Koalas. The Koalas were very cute to see especially their black tip nose and the way they curl to sleep so soundly. The Koala path showed tips for us to encounter some Koalas but in vain and I thought the Bush fires might have claimed these cute animals. I also wanted to see a Lyrebird but could only see it in the photos. The walk in the sanctuary lasted for about two hours. We took a quick lunch and resumed.

Shingleback Lizard 

Though the park offered more (as seen in the guide), we couldn’t get everything of it. So, we drove back, tired yet rewarded. The trip was an indeed a well-deserved break. It was a sumptuous treat to our daily felt homesickness and a fulfilled recreation. The journey also reminded the human-wildlife coexistence. At least on this trip, we had free minds where we forgot our work pressures and the assignments too. It was a perfect incidence of Nature’s healing.

Thank you Tidbinbilla, You provided me a Sanctuary in the midst of my busy days!

Note:

Tidbinbilla Nature Reserve is Canberra’s leading ecotourism attraction. It is a comfortable hour’s drive from the city. The Reserve offers wildlife and nature based experiences in a natural setting as well as opportunities to discover the conservation initiatives. The sanctuary protects wetlands, grasslands, woodlands and eucalypt forest habitats and more (Discover Tidbinbilla Brochure, 2014)

              

              

                 

             

                

               

                

                  

                    

                     

Brush tailed Wallaby

Realization: I am ‘somebody’

To be a social agent of positive change, you don’t need special talents, work under catchy themed organizations, wear T-shirts with creatively unrealistic slogans or seek budget. If you realize that you are somebody who can do something constructive for the society in your own capacity and enact it, you qualify as a great social agent. You can fight against endangering the endangered!

Realization is what Buddha perfected and he attained enlightenment through it. When we live life, questions arise in our minds and doubts too. Imagination is always wonderful but lower than reality applications. We face a mixed variety of emotions and responding to it is necessary to meet satisfaction. When we face a problem, we think many thoughts but seldom do we realize that we can do something to confront the conflict. The human tendency of blaming or waiting for someone is the biggest obstacle of realization. The power within us is released when we realize our true potential rather than waiting for some magic to happen. 

For instance, your immediate environment is full of waste and you hope for somebody to do something about it, then the solution to the issue may or may not come in time. But if you realize that you can be that ‘somebody’ and then act, the solution is within your reach. It is a stereotyped concept or some other tendency for people to depend on someone or the government to do everything. Nevertheless we must know that we possess certain potential to do something in our own capacity. Remember the government is one and we are many. We can act in our own simple ways to contribute to the bigger purpose. 

So, the next time you see a problem (within your ability), please realize that you are somebody who can do something to solve the setback.

Of Flying Gods and Goddessess: Lhading Goenpa

*Anecdote of my Trip to Lhading, Paro*

16 January,2014

Lhading is some 25 km of rough ride from Drugyel dzong. It is a privately owned lhakhang and very sacred. According to local legend, a Sacha lama had a dream of flying gods and goddesses (thus the name Lhading which means flying/hovering gods and goddesses) above a lake. Thus the saint visited the place that he saw in his auspicious dream. As in the dream, there was a lake (the present location of the temple). So it was a divine prophesy that he should built a lhakhang over the lake. The present lhakhang is supposed to be built over a lake. The main statues consists of a Jow, Buddha and Chenrigzig. The temple biography states that all these statues were sculptured in Tibet and brought there. Also, the Buddha and Chenrigzig statues are supposed to be made of a very precious metal (much precious than gold). The Jow is supposed to be a wish fulfilling statue and it is said that the statue showed various auspicious and supernatural signs and manifestations. 

 The temple also has a huge Chow poti (sacred book). It is believed that if one can lift and hold it over one's head, your sins will be cleansed. (I did it but with much effort). More, there are five statues known as Ringas and amongst them, one is a sung joenma statue ( a stutue who spoke). The account mentioned herein are translated from the local lama's explanation on the temple. Lhading is a sacred and isolated gonpa that one shouldn't miss if you visit Paro. But, a word of caution- you should ride a pickup or a hilux or any other off-road vehicle as the road gets tricky and bumpy as you cross Drugyel dzong.