Past few weeks...

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~Impenetrable Amber Fort - ancient capital of Jaipur state~



~A grand entrance~



~The surrounding hills of the Amber Fort are protected by lookout posts and secondary forts - Amber Fort was founded by Maharaja Man Singh, the Rajput commander of Akbar army~


~Who ever they had to feed by cooking in these must have been really hungry!! umm may be an army??~



~Sun set over the glamorous city of Jaipur, viewed from the Tiger Fort, a truly tranquil place~



~Taj Mahal, what Love can do to the soul of a man~



~North West post of Taj Mahal - on the horizon with the Yamuna River lies Agra Fort (hard to see), where the Emperor Shah Jahan was held imprisoned during his final years. His only wish upon custody was quarters where he can watch the sun rise over the Taj Mahal, for which he said, "the sun and the moon shed tears from their eyes".



~My father and I~


~Three weeks ago~

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Wake Up

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From time immemorial, I am trying to wake you up but you don’t.

Not complaining, for such is not my nature; mine is to wake you up.
Not frustrated for I can’t be, just know that I have to wake you up.

I put melody in bird’s chirping, coolness in the summer breeze,
Burning heat in midday sun and deafening noise in monsoon thunder
To just do one thing, wake you up.

Spark in your first kiss, comfort in mother’s embrace,
Rush in your home run and the musky flavor in lobster bisque,
I did it all to do just one thing, wake you up.

Desire to own, taste, destroy, love and hate,
I placed so you’d WANT to wake up.
Also put the fear in you
So you’d keep on desiring all and to wake up.

I made life beautiful,
So you can love the beauty and wake up.
I made it miserable
So you will hate the misery and wake up.

Now I think it is time you woke up.
Don’t argue about genetics, Darwin, evolution and creation.
I made them so, don’t ask me how and when,
All I know is why, and that is to wake you up.

You say, you can’t or you don’t know how?
For millions of years, in thousands of ways
As guru’s, gods, priests, friends and lovers,
I have been telling you how.

As Krishna, I told you to see me, see you
Not yours who you kill, to rid the world of evil.
As Buddha, I told you to pay attention
Be mindful of sufferings (good, great and bad).
As Shiva, the Tantric, I asked you to find me
In all ecstasies, from sex to breath of fresh air.
As Nisargdatta Maharaj, I told you,
You are That whom you look for.

Do ask me why I want to wake you up?
That is simple; you are asleep.

Do ask me, who am I?
That too is simple; I am you, asleep.

~ by Sunil K. Vidyarthi

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