Blue rose given to a woman

Self Portrait
Olympus C170/D425


Blue rose given to a woman,
Considered sacred from a heart of silent souls,
Words spoken, silence was a bond created;
Her boldness spurred from a single blue rose...

- Hanger

Wish you all a very happy new year. Well....tell me what are your resolutions for 2010 :D.

Mine are -
1. Start chanting regularly. I joined Soka Gakai a year back but I still don't chant when I really should. May Buddha give me the strength to do it now.

2. Lose weight

3. Get a job.

4. Get my 1st DSLR

5. To try harder to make photography a means of living.

oh yes and

6. Take up singing a little more seriously now. I plan on recording few songs and uploading them here somewhere. I plan 2 become more than just a bathroom singer.

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If I ever write this letter

Olympus C170/D425

The Letter -
Natalie Merchant

If I ever write this letter
Oh the pages I could write
but I don't know where to send it
you have vanished
heaven knows where you live
heaven only knows

if I ever write this letter
bitter words it would contain
just and unrequited lover
wishing she had never
spoken your name
had never known your name

but if I ever write this letter
the truth it would reveal
knowing you brought me pleasure
how I'll often treasure
moments that we knew
the precious, the few


I love this song and this singer.
To hear it click here link

Merry Christmas everyone :)

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I WISH I knew that woman’s name

Canon Powershot S3IS
Way back from Badrinath

I WISH I knew that woman’s name,
So, when she comes this way,
To hold my life, and hold my ears,
For fear I hear her say

She ’s “sorry I am dead”, again,
Just when the grave and I
Have sobbed ourselves almost to sleep,
Our only lullaby.

E.D.

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My Daydreaming place...by the lake

Renuka Lake, Himachal
Nikon D70

I watched the ripples, as I drifted away
the lake was deep, on this golden day
Lured by reflection, in this tranquil deep
I lost my mind, then I fell asleep

Trees were talking, murmered rustling leaves
sunlight glistened, on catkin weaves
Dragonflies, and fish that spawn
could not awake me, from this dawn

I floated far and I drifted near
there was no time, as was not fear
Taken away, on this autumn noon
stars were shining, behind the moon

When crickets struck their evening call
the bullfrog chirped, his sombre all
And as the sunset shone, upon this land
the moon took me quietly, by the hand

I stretched and weeped, the night, it fell
I returned my spirit, to this inspired shell
The lake, my friend, shall always be
my place of relaxation, next to, and within me


by Jon Coe

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M a a . . .

Canon Powershot S3IS
Sariska

“A mother loves her child most divinely,
not when she surrounds him with comfort and anticipates his wants,
but when she resolutely holds him to the highest
standards and is content with nothing less than his best.”

Hamilton Wright Mabie (American writer, 1845-1916)

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I know great horses live again

Sar Pass Trek, Himachal
Canon Powershot S3IS


Somewhere in time's own space
There must be some sweet pastured place
Where creeks sing on and tall trees grow
Some paradise where horses go,
For by the love that guides my pen
I know great horses live again.
~Stanley Harrison

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The hijra of India

Badrinath, H.P.
Canon Powershot S3IS

The hijra of India

The Ancient Indian Kama Sutra refers to people of a "third sex" (triteeyaprakrti), who can be dressed either in men's or in women's clothes and perform fellatio on men. The term has been translated as "eunuchs" (as in Sir Richard Burton's translation of the book), but these persons have also been considered to be the equivalent of the modern hijra of India.

Hijra, a Hindi term traditionally translated into English as "eunuch", actually refers to what modern Westerners would call male-to-female transgender people and effeminate homosexuals (although some of them reportedly identify as belonging to a third sex). Some of them undergo ritual castration, but the majority do not. They usually dress in saris (traditional Indian garb worn by women) and wear heavy make-up. They typically live in the margins of society, face discrimination and earn their living in various ways, e.g., by coming uninvited at weddings, births, new shop openings and other major family events and singing until they are paid or given gifts to go away. The ceremony is supposed to bring good luck and fertility, while the curse of an unappeased hijra is feared by many.

Other sources of income for the hijra are begging and prostitution. The begging is accompanied by singing and dancing and the hijras usually get the money easily. Some Indian provincial officials have used the assistance of hijras to collect taxes in the same fashion; they knock on the doors of shopkeepers, while dancing and singing, and embarrass them into paying.

Recently, hijras have started to found organizations to improve their social condition and fight discrimination. There has even been a wave of hijra entering politics and being elected to high political positions. In the epic Mahabaratha of India, Arjuna, one of the 5 heroes who is originally a handsome man, warrior and great archer becomes Brihannala, a eunuch when they spend their last year of exile in the kingdom of Virata. Brihannala/Arjuna lived among the palace women as a teacher of song and dance.

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I wish I was a boy...

Canon Powershot S3IS
Manali

Local kids at Manali. Boys have so much fun in life. They are truly freebirds from childhood. They can and are allowed to do so many mischievous things which girls don't or can't do. No pressure of looking pretty to find a suitable groom. Carefree life, skinned knees and scars from play, all are just a part of the life for a boy.

I wish I was a boy.

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L o o k

Canon Powershot S3IS
Delhi Zoo

U know what they all are looking at? Rather oggling at.....a Handsome Male black buck

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Weathered faces lined in pain

Canon powershot S3IS
Badrinath

Portraits hung in empty halls,
Frameless heads on nameless walls,
With eyes that watch the world and can't forget.
Like the strangers that you've met,
The ragged men in the ragged clothes,
The silver thorn of bloody rose,
Lie crushed and broken on the virgin snow

-Don Mclean

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~ EID MUBAARAQ ~

Nikon D70
From Old Archives

I know its a little late for Eid Wishes but still.... :)

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THERE is another Loneliness

Canon powershot S3IS
Manali

THERE is another Loneliness
That many die without,
Not want or friend occasions it,
Or circumstances or lot.

But nature sometimes, sometimes thought,
And whoso it befall
Is richer than could be divulged
By mortal numeral.

E.D.

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THERE is a flower that bees prefer

Canon Powershot S3IS

THERE is a flower that bees prefer,
And butterflies desire;
To gain the purple democrat
The humming-birds aspire.

E.D.

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Why 17?

Today 17 babies will die, the tragic victims of stillbirth or neonatal death. This is a statistic that is seeing no signs of decreasing, and behind each number is a family rocked to the foundations by the death of their baby.

This shocking figure, the loss of 6,500 babies every year, is something the public is not generally aware of. Most people think stillbirths don’t happen in the 21st century. Yet stillbirth in the UK is 10 times more common than cot death.

At Sands, the stillbirth and neonatal death charity, we feel this number of deaths is totally unacceptable. We have launched the Why17? campaign to raise awareness of this devastating loss and to ask the question:

“Why are 17 babies a day dying and what can be done to halt this national tragedy?”

“I just want to raise awareness of stillbirth.

1) Follow this link, fill in your details to email your MP to make them aware of the parliamentary launch of Why17? on March 4th 2009: www.why17.org/Get-Involved/Contact-your-MP.html

2) Add your name to the list of supporters (petition) : www.why17.org/Pledge-Your-Support.html

3) Make a contribution: donate online; buy a window sticker / wristband / balloon; or plan a sponsored event. More ideas here: www.why17.org/Get-Involved.html

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A SEPAL, petal, and a thorn

A SEPAL, petal, and a thorn
Upon a common summer’s morn,
A flash of dew, a bee or two,
A breeze
A caper in the trees,—
And I ’m a rose!

Emily Dickinson

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BEAUTY crowds me till I die

BEAUTY crowds me till I die,
Beauty, mercy have on me!
But if I expire today,
Let it be in sight of thee

E.D.

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Wishing a fish or Fishing a wish

This picture was taken at a very small green algae covered pond near vasant kunj. It was a very secretly tucked away pond. The main road goes right around it but the thick wall of trees n bushes would not expose much of it. Well not its gone. Now the place is under construction.

Delhi has so many such hidden places which people here do not know about much. Places which give a breather from the hard world of concrete and corporates. One such place is this small tomb behind Essex Farms near IIT chawk. It has a high terrace which overlooks most of the south Delhi. I have always loved that place.

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BLAZING in gold and quenching in purple

Canon Powershot S3IS
Ranthambore

BLAZING in gold and quenching in purple,
Leaping like leopards to the sky,
Then at the feet of the old horizon
Laying his wrinkled dark face, to die

E.D & lil me

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Sound sleep needs no Master bedrooms

Canon Powershot S3IS
Nehru Park

I guess a sound peaceful sleepis something so rare now in THIS age. Almost everyone is so stressed. Mostly the culprit is work. Corporations today suck the life out of the emploers and i don't know....i visualize them as those big factories where humans walk in and come out as robots. I see people spending 14 16 hours normally at thier work places. Home is more like a station.

You know today a recent 12th pass kid said that he pity's my life. After I told him that I spend most of my time traveling. He pity's my life because I don't have a career, hence i don't have a life. And I told him. One cannot have wings and work at the same time. Its a choice. And almost always people choose work. I chose my wings. I pay some very heavy prices for my set. Being broke is one. Then having to be perceived as a loser by the working class, which includes friends and family.

But all of this still does not change my mind about my vagabond life. You see the truth is....these early 20s of life are the only years when you're old enough to be on your own and young enough to do what you want to do. This is the time when the body can take all the bumpy rides and one is free enough to see the world. People give up this time in working and accumulating experiences for their resumes. And before you know you've hit 40 and have kids hitting their teens. And its too late to have your own life.

Have you ever noticed? the sentence "i have a life" is always followed with "i have a job" ??? I don't believe having a job means having a life. It is a very rare combination which only lucky few have been blessed with. Mostly people who work hate their jobs and their bosses. So how is that having a life? People confuse having a "life" with earning a living. Life is that little time which you have apart from your work and home. Most of the people now I come across don't even have a passion in life. Hardly any hobbies for that matter. So what are you doing for yourself? Apart from hitting the happening places in the city every weekend?

It is so FUNNY now when I hear the answers when people are asked about their hobbies. The most widely used words are - Listening to music, making new friends, WATCHING TV, surfing the net (is a new one nowdays)...............................................................??????????? Since when are these daily routine small scraps of entertainment become hobbies?

Well just some food for thought. Think about it.

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Cat life = Best life

Canon Powershot S3IS

Sometimes I wish I'd rather come back as a cat in my next life than a human. They have just such perfect lazy lives. They sleep through more than half of their life and rest is spent in idleness. They are not dependent and attention craving like dogs and neither are they timid or scared like rats. They can take care of themselves and would need practically no one.

A cat's life is a beautiful life...

p.s. - thats a big male lion though.

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OF so divine a loss

Canon Powershot S3IS

OF so divine a loss
We enter but the gain,
Indemnity for loneliness
That such a bliss has been.

- Emily Dickinson

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I carry your heart

Canon Powershot S3IS

i carry your heart with me(i carry it in
my heart)i am never without it(anywhere
i go you go,my dear; and whatever is done
by only me is your doing,my darling)
i fear
no fate(for you are my fate,my sweet)i want
no world(for beautiful you are my world,my true)
and it's you are whatever a moon has always meant
and whatever a sun will always sing is you

here is the deepest secret nobody knows
(here is the root of the root and the bud of the bud
and the sky of the sky of a tree called life;which grows
higher than the soul can hope or mind can hide)
and this is the wonder that's keeping the stars apart

i carry your heart(i carry it in my heart)

ee cummings

Dedicated to the one who has been a cushion to all my falls in the past 2 years. Thank you Shadab :)

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FINITE to fail, but infinite to venture

FINITE to fail, but infinite to venture.
For the one ship that struts the shore
Many’s the gallant, overwhelmed creature
Nodding in navies nevermore.

E.D.

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My Flirting Feet

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A r c h s

Canon Powershot S3IS
Surajkund crafts fair 09

Hey...stick to your sides !!

Nikon coolpix S200

At Ranthambore safari gate.

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Lazy gazy

Nikon D70

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High on Himalayas

Olympus C170/D425

On our way to our 5th camp on Sar Pass trek.

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PORTRAITS are to daily faces

Canon Powershot S3IS

PORTRAITS are to daily faces
As an evening west
To a fine, pedantic sunshine
In a satin vest.

E.D.

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The Dancing King

Surajkund Crafts Fair 09
Canon powershot S3IS

At Surajkund Mela.....

This is a Dancer named Paris (or something like that) from Egypt performing on stage.

Arms stretched out above my head as high as i could go to avoid the sea of heads in front of me...God bless Canon ppl for making the rotatable LCD display, helps me a great deal at such times.......

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Mr. Lonely

Canon Powershot S3IS

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Leopard Love

Canon Powershot S3IS

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HanUMAN

Surajkund Fair 09
Canon powershot S3IS

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The Family Ties

Ranthambore Tiger sanctuary
Canon Powershot S3IS

At Ranthambore.....So many of them ...just so many of them....

lolz and they were on the branches right above our Truck, and they shat...thank god no one was attacked by the stink nuke tht time.

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V u l n e r a b l e......am i?

Paint your face
hide those tears
Don't let them see your fears

Put on a smile
Sparkle your eyes
let them not hear your cries

This is the custom
to survive here
for here the vulnerables are not spared

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A butterfly's Kitchen

Canon Powershot S3IS

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Kahe ccherre mohe

This is my fave fave fave self portrait. When i got my 1st digital cam, a small Olympus point n shoot, 4mp....i started photography with myself as the 1st subject. This is handheld, so thats why the little blur...at the time i din't quite know my way around the timer. Was just starting to learn everything about a digital cam.

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Titles Needed

Lets test your creativity now....

I cant think of a good title so u guys come up with something. Lets see how high can your imagination wings take you.

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Bright bright sun shiny day

The morning at our highest camp(14,000 ft)...tila lotni.....from Sar pass trek in Himachal....

Boy was the night so chilly....And i was such a bonehead...no1 told me this was the place we had been carrying all the warmers for. So i saved them for the next day and slept in FREEZING COLD.....so basically i din sleep much...temp was in minus....i was shivering to my bones....Plus icing on the cake...it rained alot too....to make it more ch ch ch chillier...

Next day when i realized abt my stupidity and the waste of carrying all the warmers, i was carrying the jackass ears on my head for the whole day long thereafter.

Explored Jan 30, 2009

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VIEWER'S DISCRETION STRONGLY ADVISED

People call this Chinese tradition. Chinese delicacies. Just because something this horrendous is being practiced since ages, has no reason to be termed as tradition. An evil tradition is still evil.

This is open animal cruelty. And no one would have a lower opinion than me right now of Chinese tradition, if this is what goes on in the name of tradition.

I don't know what happens in the whole of the video. I could not watch after seeing the snake pieces still moving on the plate.

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The Dancing Queen

Surajkund mela
Canon Powershot S3IS

Except for the folk dances and the food, rest everything was BORING. Esp coz i dont happen to be a shopoholic. But lovely dances. This one is from Rajasthan.

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The Ghost or The Darkness???

Well....with this picture...I would STRONGLY recommend u all an AMAZING movie.

Please guys go see 'The ghost and the darkness'

It won an Oscar for sound. It is based on a true story of two maneater Lion in Tsavo in Africa, who killed around 140 men in a Bridge construction site.

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Trickling down my cheek was a tear...

Trickling down my cheek was a tear,
when your sweet memories came back again
they came along with a silent pain
because now you were nowhere near...

Trickling down my cheek was a tear,
when in my mind came your face so fine
you can never be mine
to me you had made that so clear...

Trickling down my cheek was a tear,
when i was unable to find out why you did not love me,
what reason could it be
was it someone else?? i was haunted by this fear...

Trickling down my cheek was a tear,
when i found out that you were made for someone else only
my heart broke i felt so lonely
because iv been loving you for years...

Trickling down my cheek was a tear,
when everything is over now
in front of my fate i had to bow
but you were the only one whom i had ever loved my dear...

- wrote this when i was in high school

A self portrait, in my deepest darkest hours.....life is riding on really rough terrains nowdays...Ever since Gabbar died, nothing seems to go right. Lost someone so close to my heart recently. Forgotten how it feels to be happy. How it feels to be happy....

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Mitti se bani, mitti mai mil jaungi

Not yet six feet under
not completely alive either
hanging in the middle
waiting for u to come n save me

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Grieving on my death...

There it is
wrapped in the shroud of the dreams i spun once,
there it is
delicately lying in the coffin,
there it is
Going six feet under,
there it will be
buried forever,
there it is
a part of me,
and here I'm
witnessing my own death...

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See through me...

By default I happen to be a very see-through person. Never cared to hide or lie about anything with anyone. Not that i'm some righteous Harishchandra wannabe. Just that I never cared enough for anything or anyone to be lying or hiding. Never cared for what people may think, never feared being judged either.

I ended up in tasting the bitter side of life due to this manytimes. Being honest always din't really pay well most of the time. Somehow we still have the backstabbers infestation. My friend use to really despise this trait of mine but inspite of me tryin, i could never change it.

I still dont want to. I want to remain see-through.

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DEPARTED to the judgment

DEPARTED to the judgment,
A mighty afternoon;
Great clouds like ushers leaning,
Creation looking on.

The flesh surrendered, cancelled,
The bodiless begun;
Two worlds, like audiences, disperse
And leave the soul alone.

Emily Dickinson

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K i s n a

Nikon D70

featured in nikonstunninggallery.com

at haridwar....a roadside seller.

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Tiniest Butt

Old Delhi
Nikon D70

Thats one butt i would love to kiss

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AS by the dead we love to sit

AS by the dead we love to sit,
Become so wondrous dear,
As for the lost we grapple,
Though all the rest are here,

In broken mathematics
We estimate our prize,
Vast, in its fading ratio,
To our penurious eyes!

Emily Dickinson



True...our hearts always yearn for what's not. Not for that which is. You kill people in your mind, but like a heart beat they still live on in your heart. Now how do u ever kill a heart beat without killing yourself 1st?

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Life is moving on.....why am i still stagnant...

Trickling down my cheek was a tear,
when your sweet memories came back again
they came along with a silent pain
because now you were nowhere near...

Trickling down my cheek was a tear,
when in my mind came your face so fine
you can never be mine
to me you had made that so clear...

Trickling down my cheek was a tear,
when i was unable to find out why you did not love me,
what reason could it be
was it someone else?? i was haunted by this fear...

Trickling down my cheek was a tear,
when i found out that you were made for someone else only
my heart broke i felt so lonely
because iv been loving you for years...

Trickling down my cheek was a tear,
when everything is over now
in front of my fate i had to bow
but you were the only one whom i had ever loved my dear...

- wrote this when i was in high school

A self portrait, in my deepest darkest hours.....Missing Gabbar...coming back home is the hardest thing to do now. Not having him at the door with the 1st ring of the doorbell, and jumping all over me.