After a long drawn battle with the biggest catastrophe in our living memory, global humanity is finally getting to see some quintessential ray of light at the end of the treacherous tunnel in the form of COVID-19 vaccines, currently being rolled out to all parts of the globe.  A ‘COVID-19 free world’ is still some distance away as we continue our march there, slowly but surely. The year 2020 was ...

My first memory of LIGHT I do not recall, But my ‘daak naam’ seemed to have a luminous circle around it. I guess it pays to choose to come into the world on days like Diwali. When I realized that I am actually called LIGHT I kind of laughed out loud … yeah right! Light on my feet I am certainly not. And light as a … feather(?) …no, don’t even go there.   At three, I was fascinated by ...

It was recently reported that the Indian Medical Association called on the health minister, himself a doctor (Dr. Harsh Vardhan), to provide evidence that Ayurveda and yoga are effective in treating the coronavirus.1 This has been the source of ongoing, and sometimes contentious, discourse. The story of Asha (not her real name) illustrates this point. A year ago, Asha pleaded with her Ayurveda pr...

‘Bengali’ is not a pejorative term, but endows the recipient with a sense of self-worth and respect rooted in glory.   “Say their name. Start there,” said President Dalton, a character in the popular American television series, Madam Secretary. In this fictitious story, the president encouraged the leader of Myanmar to recognise a faction of its citizens, the Rohingya. In various parts...

Buddha Statue - Cambodia (2018)[/caption] I recently watched a movie on Netflix about the life of Gautama Buddha and it had a profound effect on me. I was eager to learn about the life of this prince born into privilege who gave up everything and everyone to search for the ultimate truth. When he was born, Gautama Buddha was given the name Prince Siddhartha. During the celebrations to celebrate...

Is looking after a dog one dog too many? How about 40? There are some rules and habits you can stick to, though, to make it all work. Aneeta, who manages this website, has often remarked, “I can’t think of taking another dog yet. It’s so much responsibility. And I only had one. You have 40. Die!” One dog? That’s nothing. Over the years, as our dog population increased, there are a few rules a...

I want you to know that you are the best thing to ever happen to me. I have loved many of your kind my whole life, but you are something special. For you, I feel my heart grow bigger and beat louder. I love you with a love that I have never experienced before and I believe it is because you are different from anything that has ever entered my life. Even when I am not perfect you still look at me l...

Seema and Duchess Even at four months of age, anyone could see that she was no ordinary dog, IF they looked beyond everything that WAS ordinary about her and looked into her eyes. She had already seen too much for a puppy that young. It was like her heart was already broken, but until her body broke, too, she would still need to feed it. But her eyes were there for everyone to look into - a pecu...

Echo, as we came to name our sweet Dalmation, was born with his disability. Despite being deaf in both ears from birth, he is the calmest and happiest puppy I have ever met. He doesn’t know any differently and perhaps thinks that silence is just life. He will never know or hear his name being called or hear other dogs bark at him or be afraid of the sound of thunder. Echo   [Watch a YouTube ...