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Saturday, November 12, 2011

Because I could not think of a Title




Do you know that this is one of more than 184 million blogs on the internet?
That is 184,000,000.
The population of human beings on earth just crossed 7 billion.
That is 7,000,000,000.
You are 1.
You and I make 2.

There is so much that you and I have not seen.
There is so much that you and I, given ten more lifetimes, could not possibly see.
There are so many places I want to see.
That yet undiscovered beach on Africa’s western coast. The grand canyon on a moonlit night. The Inca ruins of Machu Picchu. The canals in Venice. Gangotri, where the world’s holiest water body is born. Base Camp below Mount Everest. Stonehenge.

The white light at the end of the tunnel.

We are so afraid, you and I.
We are afraid of consequence. The unforeseen, we are afraid of it.
The dark is unforeseen, and so we are afraid of it.
Death is unforeseen, and so we are afraid…
We are afraid of what MIGHT happen.
A girl will not go out with a boy because she’s afraid that this MIGHT end up messing up their friendship. She does not know that they might end up living that great fairy-tale life, having babies, growing old together. Being happy for the rest of their lives together. How many of us will get to experience that?
A father will not let his son join the navy because he’s afraid that this MIGHT end up in a situation, an unlikely situation, where his son is in mortal peril. He does not know that his son might end up living an extraordinary life, that he might end up finding mates and friends the likes of which he could never have thought of. Brothers. How many of us will get to have such friendships?
A friend will not go on an ‘illegal’ (at home) vacation with his college buddies, because he’s afraid that his parents will find out and it MIGHT end up making things difficult at home for a few weeks. He does not know that this trip will be their last together, one they will remember for the rest of their lives, one which will affect each of their lives in such a profound way… How many of us will get to have such memories?
We are afraid…

Do you know you are standing on a rock, flying around another rock, which just happens to be on fire, at more than 100,000 kilometers an hour? And that this rock has been doing this for the last four and a half billion years?

A girl is in love with a boy. This boy lives a very long distance away. There is absolutely no chance of them being together.
A boy, being a boy, is in love with this girl…this girl who is in love with some other boy. There…is…absolutely…no…chance…of…them…being…together.
What do you expect him to do?
What do you expect her to do?

Do you know that there are more than 7 trillion galaxies in the observable universe?
Most of these galaxies have more than 100 billion stars.

You, sir, are a speck…like I am.
No, wait…we are not specks. The sun might be a speck, or perhaps the Milky Way is a speck.
We? We’re nothing. In the grand scheme of things, when you look at it as a whole, we are a cosmic accident. We are an anomaly in a vastly barren universe.
God? Perhaps he has not yet had time to look over at this side of the universe to see that something is going on here, which he probably did not intend.
Life, we call it. It is inexplicable.
It seems like simple chemistry, yet it is not.

Do you know that the observable universe is a sphere with a radius of about 45 billion light years.
That is 45,000,000,000 light years.
That is 425723778000000000000000 kilometers.

Are you naïve enough to think that you matter?
Yes you are…I know I am.

You will, in this lifetime, or in some other, spend 14 years in school. You will then probably spend 4 years in college. And then for the rest of your life, you will work.
Throughout this, you have already met, or are going to meet, so many unbelievably extraordinary people…they will be your friends, your siblings, your teachers, your lovers, your parents, your children…

We…are afraid of what might, or might not, be.
People will come to be infinitesimal distances close to you. And then, poof!
People will pledge their undying love.
You will swear that things will never change.
You will swear!
And then…
You will swear at the way things turned out.
You…will…swear!

If it makes you happy, do it. You are afraid of what might, or might not…be.
If it is morally wrong, but it makes you happy, do it. Morals, or laws, or rules might, or might not be written in ink, but you are that one unique cosmic accident that got you where you are now.
Nobody has lived your life. Nobody has ever felt what you have felt.
I may be paraphrasing Dr.Manhattan here, but it’s true…it’s true that if out of all those years of evolution, your dad just happened to meet your mom, and that one cell won the race against a million others, and out of everything that has happened in the entire thirteen and a half billion year history of the universe, it all resulted in you sitting exactly where you are sitting right now.

You simply cannot ignore that you are a miracle… and yet you are afraid of what might, or might not be!

If there is that girl who you’ve been putting off talking to for the last six months, talk to her. If nothing else, it will be a flattering experience for her.
If there is that story you always wanted to put down on paper, write it down. If nothing else, atleast your mom will love it.

You do not know what is going to happen . Then why be afraid of it?

Why am I writing all of this down?






31 comments:

  1. gosh! i love this. this is one of THE BEST things i've read in a long long time. you.are.brilliant.angad.

    ps: music makes it interesting.

    Hiral

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  2. Bhai .. amazing stuff. Felt a shiver running through.

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  4. Very good stuff. This is one of the blog other than related to computer stuffs i read a to z. Love it.

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  5. Well, I am so very glad that YOU decided to write this. I am certain that a lot more people than just your mom are going to love it! Cheers!

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  6. Found this via Shashi Tharoor's tweet, great post! I'm mesmerized...

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  7. what a way to describe our position in observable universe!mind blowing!

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  8. Man, YOU are a LEGEND.
    Ultimate. Loved the music.


    ...and he would still pick the dark side despite the odds. And I'm gonna quote you, "You do not know what is going to happen . Then why be afraid of it?"

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  9. half of these(at least)are lines i used to get my (now)wife to say yes. lol. wish u luck, man
    as usual
    old anon

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  10. unpretentious, sensitive, beautiful! Keep at it!

    Nikhil

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  11. Thanks to a friend, recently discovered your blog. It is impressive; however this post is beyond impressive. Liked your style but loved the message. Fear is our biggest hurdle. Also loved the way you set a prospective of our “speckled” existence in the grand-grand scheme of things.
    Dude, with my limited knowledge of the Shri Guru Granth Sahib’s teachings, I can tell you both are significant realizations, and the practitioners are enlightened ones!!

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  12. Impressive. Someone posted this link onto my wall in the hope that I may not be lazy and decide to read it and it was well worth it. Grabbed my attention right off the start and made sure things stay that way until I'd read the entire thing. Your writing is... interesting and pretty good!

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  13. Good Stuff, Angad! I actually read this until the end and could relate with most of the things you have written - you have inspired me to write.......

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  14. Just one word "awesome"
    -DHRUV

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  15. A thoughtful piece..abstract thoughts but yes all relevant at some pint or another in our lives ..as a fellow wannabe writer..I'd say..take a bow!!

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  16. thank you...all of you...

    write...draw...sing...speak...

    express!

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  17. Dude! There is magic in your words and your thinking. Loved it. Its like coconut vodka martini and that too bottoms up! Im overwhelmed and glad to have shared that hair of the dog that bit you last night moment with you. Didn't realize I was having it with a Master!

    Gosh! Its actually from our discussion that night. I'm having goosebumps!!

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  18. haha thanks zubin...
    and kartik!

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  19. "There is so much that you and I have not seen.
    There is so much that you and I, given ten more lifetimes, could not possibly see.
    There are so many places I want to see.
    That yet undiscovered beach on Africa’s western coast. The grand canyon on a moonlit night. The Inca ruins of Machu Picchu. The canals in Venice. Gangotri, where the world’s holiest water body is born. Base Camp below Mount Everest. Stonehenge."
    a little late- but that part right there is something i am gonna use! awesome

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  20. read it in november last year, read it yet again today. Awesome
    Such stuff doesnt come up too often, and i hope it does soon ;)

    Mantaj

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  21. I read one, then two then I read almost all posts on your blog and you, Sir, can now add another name to the list of the fans of your writing!!

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  22. Very well written, Angad. I like the title as well, very catchy and intriguing. Keep it up

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  23. Well written, Angad . The title is very intriguing which prompted me to read on .....good... keep it up.

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  24. The first 1 dat i read was 'The answer to life' n now this. I have become a fan. I love reading your posts.n Your blog has been topping my most visited list on the browser now ! :D

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  25. this is how i feel every second of every day of my existence on this beautiful planet. it motivates me to do everything i do. some of these actions people deem 'good'. some of them they deem 'evil'. but that is a gross oversimplification. opportunity is knocking every second. you are here to allow the divine purpose of this universe to unfold. that is how important you are. what will you choose now?

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