Gerald D'Cunha

“Do you understand the violence it took to become this gentle?” Nitya Prakash   M ore than two decades ago, I had published a book by the title – ‘Why The Sun Burns’. It carried some of my notes, which I had scribbled in my diaries over the years. One such note – passage – was this: “The light doesn’t emerge unless the candle burns; It’s not my wish that I should suffer, to spread a little goodness around.” Anger, hurt, pain – these are very much present in our lives. No matter how sagely you may find me from outside, that’s not what I am inside. Inside, yes, inside this mountain, there is burning lava... waiting to be exploded... and, now and then, it does... But, anger is like the poison a cobra is blessed with. Did I say, ‘blessed with’? Yes Sir, I did say that... The presence of poison and the presence of anger inside us – both make us who we are. The cobra doesn’t go on a rampage, just because, there is poison inside its head... Likewise, you and I do...

  “A clear mind heals everything  that needs to be healed.” Byron Katie   I think, Gratitude, Grace, Prayer, Blessing, Peace, Healing and many such words have entered our lexicon mechanically – yes, just like that. To be frank, you and I very, very rarely feel their profound meaning when we voice them, several times a day... The reason for that - again, I think – is, that we rarely get into a silence before we voice these words... Only in silence we can really feel the profound meaning of such words – Gratitude, Grace, Prayer, Blessing, Peace, Healing and many such... T wo days ago, I was waiting outside the Cath lab of Parel’s Gleneagles Hospital (earlier known as Global Hospital). My wife was taken inside for the angioplasty of her left coronary artery (LCA) which had ninety percent blockages. Just a month ago, she had under gone the angioplasty of her right coronary artery (RCA) which had hundred percent blockages. The long passage of that waiting area had ma...

  “In prayer, it’s better to have a heart without words than words without a heart.” John Bunyan   A lmost every day, while speaking on phone or through messages, I say this to people close to me: “I am praying for you.” Sometimes, “I am praying for your family,” or “I am praying for your your parents’/children’s health”, or, some other times, “I am praying for the departed soul,”… and, even this: “I am praying for my country… leaders… neighbours… enemies,” and so on… Yes, I say that so many times a day, every day… But, I have never seen myself, after saying that, going down on my knees, closing my eyes, and really praying to God - “Dear God…. “ Frankly, I have never, ever done that… So, what does this tell? “I say it just to please my loved ones… Hollow words?” Or, “Am I the only one feeling like this?” J ust early this morning, on receiving an inspiring message (on Forgiveness) from a dear friend of mine, I said this in my reply: “Good morning, my frien...

  “When I took a heavenly ride through our silence, I knew the moment had arrived For killing the past and coming back to life.” (From the song ‘Coming Back to Life’ by Pink Floyd)   I think, one of the most amazing graces in life is the grace of coming home; which, truly means the grace of coming back to life! In this complex world, the consoling fact about living is, that we all are fellow-humans with our respective flaws. None of us – I say ‘none of us’ – here on this planet, is a flawless soul. We are programmed to operate in this world with our respective ‘defects’. An honest awareness of this fact about us is enough to keep us firmly grounded… be kind not only towards others, but also towards ourselves. Most of us find it difficult to adjust with others, essentially because of   our inability to be kind towards others and ourselves. Others make mistakes just as we do. Others have the right to make amends just as we do. We need to overlook others’ flaw...

  “Lean on me when you are not strong, And I will be your friend.” From the song ‘Lean on Me’ by Bill Withers   O ne of the phrases which I, often, use to console a near and dear one on the loss of someone in his/her family is - “Be strong”. It comes to me without any pretense or dishonesty… I know the person whom I am trying to console with this phrase – ‘Be Strong’ – is cracking and weak, at the moment… I know it’s not easy for him/her to be strong, at the moment… I know he/she is not in a position to see light at the end of the tunnel, at the moment. But, I, also, know this: The strength inside the bosoms is what remains when one has grieved enough, and been healed enough. That’s why, I believe, that we need each other to lean on… I need you as my friend, and you need me as your friend. And for this, we need to ‘open up’… Show our true emotions… There is strength in our honest emotions… There is healing and freedom. Joe Biden, as on today, is still a ‘Presiden...

  “Every man has his secret sorrows which the world knows not; and, often times, we call a man cold when he is only sad.” Henry Wadsworth Longfellow W henever people start participating in an online challenge – such as the recent ‘Couple Challenge’, ‘Daughter Challenge’, ‘Son Challenge’, ‘Saree Challenge’, etc. – I look at some of them and smile, or simply let them pass by. Rarely, I try to ridicule them. Yes, they may seem to some of us as shallow or cosmetic; but, if they make the rest of us feel a little lighter and alive, why don’t we just let them be? Personally, I don’t believe in either inviting someone to accept any such challenge or in accepting anyone’s invitation. Life throws fresh challenges everyday; and, therefore, I don’t need more of them to prove how strong or powerful – or even how happy and playful – I am. So, let all those social-media challenges be… Let people participate and feel happy, or make fun of them and feel happy… My Post, today, is in ap...

“ If you are afraid of being lonely, don’t try to be right.” Jules Renard W e will be completing four months of State-imposed isolation… Call it by its much-detested name - ‘Lockdown’. Some of us – which includes me – have never stepped out of our doors during these four months. And, we have no idea as to how long it may continue. Little children, young boys and girls, adults and elderly - all are ‘forced’ to be locked inside. Yes, for our own good… No doubt about it… No complaints about it. But, then, we were never used to live like this… We were social animals – We were out most of the day… We loved to be with our friends and colleagues… We loved to attend social events, prayer services…   We went out for movies, shopping and outings. Young boys and girls, who were head-over-heels in love, now must be dying! No one is spared… No one. So, in times like these, when someone checks on me, with a call or a text message -   “How’re you?”, what should I say? -...

I t’s never too late to change course and start afresh! My wife was not even thirty when she learnt about her diabetes. It was genetic in her case. Yet, when she learnt about it, her initial reaction was denial, which caused in her a lot of sadness. She took time to accept the reality that she was diabetic and she had to learn to live with it. As usual, many people gave many suggestions… do this and do that… eat this and eat that… don’t do this and don’t do that and don’t eat this and don’t eat that. The doctors, too, could be so different in their approach to this desease… Some could be conservative and some, brash! In the process, a diabetic patient’s body would become a guinea pig for all sorts of experiments. My wife, on the advice of one of our well-wishers, Dr. (Mrs.) Kapadia, an Ayurvedic doctor and a yoga consultant, one afternoon, decided to consult Dr. Anand Gokani, a well-known Diabetologist from Bombay Hospital. She had been consistently lo...