Fading Light

what's better than fading sunlight at dusk

does the heart feel a slight chill

as the sun escapes into the thick of the trees

or do those receding rays leave their last touch

of warmth on your face

with the breeze blowing gently in your hair

and the sun glowing its way about

what's better i ask of you my dear friend

than this time that fades in, and fades out

.....written on an aimless Saturday as I sat in office looking out at the rays of winter light.

[Photo: Moonpeak Cafe, Mcleodganj - I clicked this on our last day there during our trip in 2007]

Little Thinker and Miss Curious, Kaza

Mother and Child
Ki Monastery, Kaza

I saw women
carrying their children
on their backs
as they ploughed and walked,
I looked at one and saw the other
as they were one

I drank endless cups of tea

that flowed from pots

and not cups....

tea, tea, tea

ginger, lemon and honey....

is the soulful combination

of divinity

The woods are lovely, dark and deep.....

.......while walking to naddi village, mcleodganj

“Thousands of candles can be lit from a single candle, and the life of the candle will not be shortened. Happiness never decreases by being shared.”

--Buddha

....inside the Dalai Lama Monastery, Mcleod.....

[Photo Credit: Harmanpreet Kaur]

It's all in the mind.......

I met these two nuns at the Dalai Lama monastery in Mcelodganj. I asked them to explain me a tibetan quote painted across the door of the monastery. Despite the language problems, they explained to me that if one lets go of all suffering from the mind, it can free you. Their faces are peace and joy personified.

Buddhism is so simple. I've been facinated with it for some time now, and the peace that one can observe in dharamsala on the faces of tibetans and monks alike, makes me wonder why we lead such convoluted agitated lives sometimes.
It's not easy to let go of pain, but if one really thinks about the simplicity of it all, it's easy to emancipate the mind.
I've always felt that life is about balance. And Buddha felt that the middle-way is the best way. All the excesses of life in a palace left him dissatisfied. When he stepped out into the world and saw suffering, he realised pain. When he penanced without water, food and even air, it left him feeling ill. The middle path--within neither extremes, was the way to live a life of happiness, he felt.

Is that tough to practice?

I feel it is not about "letting go of desires"...as I assumed it. If one reads the buddhist philosophy, you realise it's all about knowing yourself, crystal clear.

“We are shaped by our thoughts; we become what we think. When the mind is pure, joy follows like a shadow that never leaves.”
---Buddha

[Photo Credit: Harmanpreet Kaur]

Old and Gold.........some pictures from Delhi -6

[Photo Credit: Harmanpreet Kaur]

Through my lens, looking at you

I love the feeling of strangers smiling into my camera. Travel Portraiture fascinates and haunts me. I wish I could capture every face I saw. Every face I see. Some pass by so quickly and stay in my mind forever. Some smile, while others stare through.

I enjoy imagining what it'd be like for that cute American or Spaniard to spot himself in one of my photographs online on sharing websites like flickr.com. Would I fill him/her with the same joy as they filled me with? Not just when my shutter clicked, but endlessly as I look at them now and then. These collection of faces are not just pictures of people frozen in time. They are experiences. A Treasure trove of real people, preserved in photo chemicals. 

That they are strangers, makes them more attractive and mysterious. I dream about their back-stories and write these set of words........for you and for them.

Look at Me

As I look at You

My Lens is your Mirror,

And my Window

To your Soul

Say what you feel

With your Face

And I'll preserve You

Ying and Yang

Beautiful Wide Unknown - Pahalgam

Somewhere in Gulmarg

Monk - Leh

Barren Flowers - Leh

Pray - Leh

Woolies - Pahalgam

Mystery in Leh

There is a God - Gulmarg

Cafe on top of the world - Leh

Sea of Poppies - Srinagar

[Photo Credit: Harmanpreet Kaur]

--

Ladakh
--

Misty mountains,
Barren crags and blades of grass,
How are you so beautiful?

Winds and snow have carved you,
Made you unique and,
Filled you with mystique
Brown mountains of Ladakh
Love owns you
And peace flows from within you

You’ve been more human
Staying still,
Watching me as I went by you
And left me drunk
Wanting more

Harsh mountains of Ladakh
Your beauty shines through
Trying to survive you

You were music to my eyes
Memories are your stage
Perform for me
The dance of life

---- Harman

[Photo Credit: Harmanpreet Kaur]