FBS

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"This is only a temporary setback."
“What is temporary,?” I asked.
“The unavoidable."
“And what is lasting?”
“The lessons of the unavoidable."
Saying this, the angel disappeared.
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Introduction
Long time back there was a little boy barely in his teens who had a strange
hobby. He collected thoughts and captured them in a diary. He continued to do
so for years but then realized that he should free them and let the thoughts
reach out to the world. With this ambition, he came and handed over his diary
to me. “To understand the magic of words you need to understand the blank
spaces between them. A sentence would have no meaning without blank
spaces,” he said. Just as we were talking, the mirror fell on the floor and
cracked.
It has been 3 years since then, and now I am here presenting before you some
of the extracts from the diary. Hope you would have a great time reading it.
I am reachable at fillingblankspaces@gmail.com.
fillingblankspaces@gmail.com A mail from your side would
certainly fill in the blank space.
Web blog - http://fillingblankspaces.wordpress.com
Pankaj Goenka
11th July, 2009
Kolkata
Contents
Section One
A Prayer to the Almighty
The Other
Golden Bird
Magic Moments
Section Two
“Men should use common words to say uncommon things,
But they do just the reverse.”
Section Three
“Success consists of going from failure to failure without loss of enthusiasm.
When you stand for what you believe in, you can change the world.”
Section Four
Poems (English)
Section Five
The Greatest Epics
Section Six
Expressions Unlimited
Celebrations
Definitions-As You Like It!
Section Seven
Quotes
Section Eight
Poems (Hindi)
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Section One
A Prayer
Prayer to the Almighty
O Lord!
Have pity on those who pity themselves and who see themselves as good people
treated unfairly by life- who feel they did not deserve what has befallen them.
And pity those who are cruel to themselves and who see only the evil in their
own actions, feeling that they are to blame for the failure. Because neither of
these people know thy law that says, ”But the very hairs of your head are
numbered.”
Have pity on those who command and those who serve during long hours of
work, and who sacrifice themselves in exchange merely for a Sunday off, only to
find that there is nowhere to go, and everything is closed. But also have pity on
those who sanctify their efforts, and who are able to go beyond the bounds of
their own madness, winding up indebted, or nailed to the cross by their very
brothers. Because neither of these kinds of people knows Thy law that says, “Be
ye therefore as wise as the serpents and as harmless as the doves."
‘Have pity on those who may conquer the world but never join the good fight
within themselves. But pity also those who have won the good fight within
themselves, and now find themselves in the streets and the bars of life because
they were unable to conquer the world. Because neither of these kinds of people
know thy law that says, “He who heeds my words I will liken to a wise man
who built his house on rock.”
Have pity on those who are fearful of taking up a pen, or a paintbrush or an

instrument, or a tool because they are afraid that someone has already done so
better than they could, and who feel themselves to be unworthy to enter the
marvelous mansion of art. But have even more pity on those who, having taking
up the pen, or the paintbrush, or the instrument or the tool, have turned
inspiration into a paltry thing, yet feel themselves to be better than others.
Neither of these kinds of people know thy law that says, ”For there is nothing
covered that will not be revealed, nor hidden that will not be known.”
Pity those who eat and drink and sate themselves, but are unhappy and alone in
their satiety. But pity even more those who fast, and who censure and prohibit
and who thereby see themselves as saints, preaching your name in the streets.
For neither of these kinds of people know thy law that says, “If I bear witness of
myself, my witness is not true.”
Pity those who fear death, and are unaware of the many kingdoms through
which they have already passed, and the many deaths they have already
suffered, and who are unhappy because they think that one day their world will
end. But have even more pity for those who already know their many deaths,
and today think of themselves as immortal. Neither of these kinds of people
know thy law that says, “Except that one is born again, he cannot see the
kingdom of god.”
Have pity on those who bind themselves with the silken ties of love, and think
of themselves as masters of others, and who feel envy, and poison themselves,
and who torture themselves because they cannot see that love and all things
change like the wind. But pity even more hose who die of their fear of loving and
who reject love in the name of a greater love that they know not. Neither of
these kinds of people know thy law that says, “Whoever drinks of the water
that I shall give him will never thirst.”
Pity those who reduce the cosmos to an explanation, God to a magic potion,
and humanity to beings with basic needs that must be satisfied, because they
never hear the music of the spheres. But have even more pity on those who have
blind faith, and who in their laboratories transform mercury/zinc into gold, and
who are surrounded by their books about the secrets of the Tarot and the power
of the pyramids. Neither of these kinds of people know thy law that says,
“Whoever does not receive kingdom of god as a little child will by no means
enter it.”
Pity those who see no one but themselves, and for whom others are blurred and
distant scenario, as they pass through the street in their limousines and lock
themselves in their air-conditioned penthouses offices, as they suffer in silence
the solitude of power but pity even more those who will do anything for
anybody, and are charitable and seek to win out over evil only through love. For
neither of these kinds of people know thy law that says, “Let he who has no
sword sell his garment and buy one.”
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The Other
A man runs into an old friend who had somehow never been able to make it in
life. “I should give him some money,” he thinks. But instead he learns that his
old friend has grown rich and is actually seeking him out to repay the debts he
had run over the years.
They go to a bar they used to frequently together, and the friend buys for
everyone there. When they ask him how he became so successful, he answered
that until only a few days ago, he had been living the role of the “Other.”
“What is the Other?” they asked.
“The Other is the one who taught me what I should be like, but not what I am.
The Other believes that it is our obligation to spend our entire life thinking
about how to get our hands on as much money as possible so that we will not
die of hunger when we are old. So we think so much about money and out plans
for acquiring it that we discover we are alive only when our days on earth are
practically done. And then it’s too late.”
“And you? Who are you?”
“I am just like everyone else who listens to their heart: a person who is
enchanted by the mystery of life. Who is open to miracles, who experiences joy
and enthusiasm for what they do. It’s just that the Other, afraid of
disappointment, kept me from taking action.”
“But there is suffering in life,” one of the listeners said.
“And there are defeats. No one can avoid them. But it’s better to lose some of
the battles in the struggle for your dreams than to be defeated without ever even
knowing what you’re fighting for.”
“That’s it?” another listener asked.
“Yes, that’s it. When I learned this, I resolved to become the person I had
always wanted to be. The Other stood there in the corner of my room, watching
me, but I will never let the Other into myself again though it has already tried
to frighten me, warning me that it’s risky not to think about the future.
“From the moment that I ousted the Other from my life, the Divine Energy
began to perform its miracle.”
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The Golden Bird
“When old words die out on the tongue, new melodies break forth from the
heart, and when the old tracks are lost,
lost, a new country is revealed with its
wonders.”
wonders.”
Long years ago we made a tryst with destiny, and now the time comes when we
shall redeem our pledge…At the stroke of midnight hour, while the world
sleeps, India will awake to life and freedom. A moment comes, when we step
out from the old to the new, when an age ends, and when the soul of a nation
long suppressed, find utterance….
It has been 60 years since this historic speech. We know that India had more
than a fifth of the world’s wealth & a quarter of the world’s trade in textile in
1700. It has seen its share decline to less than 5% of the world income and less
than half a percent of world trade in 1995. It may have not become poorer in
absolute terms, but relative to rest of the world it did get left behind. The story
of India is story of how a rich country became poor and will be rich again. 21st
century would see India & China to take over again. By 2025 India and China
will account for 39% share of global output, which is about equal to the present
share of US & Europe combined.
America has got it all wrong; the first quarter of the 21st century will be
remembered in human history not for 9/11 but for rise of India and China, an
event that is as momentous as coming of the Renaissance or the Industrial
Revolution of the west.
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Magic Moments
“You have to take risks,” he said. We will only understand the miracle of life
fully when we allow the unexpected to happen.
Every day, God gives us the sun—and also one moment in which we have the
ability to change everything that makes us unhappy. Every day, we try to
pretend that we haven't perceived that moment, that it doesn't exist—that
today is the same as yesterday and will be the same as tomorrow. But if people
really pay attention to their everyday lives, they will discover that magic
moment. It may arrive in the instant when we are doing something mundane,
like putting our front-door key in the lock; it may lie hidden in the quiet that
follows the lunch hour or in the thousand and one things that all seem the same
to us. But that moment exists—a moment when all the power of the stars
becomes a part of us and enables us to perform miracles.
Joy is sometimes a blessing, but it is often a conquest. Our magic moment helps
us to change and sends us off in search of our dreams. Yes, we are going to
suffer, we will have difficult times, and we will experience many is
appointments—but all of this is transitory; it leaves no permanent mark. And
one day we will look back with pride and faith at the journey we have taken.
Pitiful is the person who is afraid of taking risks. Perhaps this person will never
be disappointed or disillusioned; perhaps she won't suffer the way people do
when they have a dream to follow. But when that person looks back—and at
some point everyone looks back—she will hear her heart saying, "What have you
done with the miracles that God planted in your days? What have you done
with the talents God bestowed on you? You buried yourself in a cave because
you were fearful of losing those talents. So this is your heritage: the certainty
that you wasted your life."
Pitiful are the people who must realize this. Because when they are finally able
to believe in miracles, their life's magic moments will have already passed them
by.
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Section Two
Men should use common words to say uncommon things,
But they do just the reverse.
“True pleasure is the pleasure of pain not happiness.”
If you want to achieve your objectives you have to be prepared for a daily dose of
pain or discomfort. At first it is unpleasant and de-motivating, but in the time,
you come to realize that it’s a part of the process of feeling good and the
moment arrives when you don’t feel any pain, you have a sense that the effects
aren’t producing desired results.
*****
“People want to change everything and at the same time want it all to remain
the same.”
I have always believed that in lives of individuals, just as in society at large, the
profoundest changes take place within a very reduced time frame. When we
least expect it, life sets us a challenge to test our courage and willingness to
change; at such a moment, there is no point in pretending that nothing has
happened or in saying that we are not yet ready.
The challenge will not wait. Life doesn’t look back. An instant is more than
enough time for us to decide whether or not to accept our destiny.
*****
“… And when you want something, the entire universe conspires in helping you
to achieve it. It always helps us fight for our dreams, no matter how foolish they
maybe.”
There are two things that prevent us from achieving our dreams: believing them
to be impossible or seeing those dreams made possible by some sudden turn of
the wheel of fortune, when you least expect it. For at that moment, all our fears
suddenly surface, the fear of setting off along a road heading who knows where,
the fear of a life full of new challenges, the fear of losing everything.
But we must not stop dreaming. Dreams provide nourishment for the soul just
as the meal does for the body. Many a times in our life we see our dreams
shattered and our desires frustrated but we have to continue dreaming. If we
don’t our soul dies, and agape cannot reach it.
*****
“Man was born to betray his destiny.”
He turned back. He walked up the path .Soon the sun would be up and blazing.
The day would begin with its calamities. They would flash out of the sky and
would cut him like swords. He would run to meet them. He ran, only stopping
to pull a bunch of thorns from under his foot.
God placed only impossible tasks in human hearts. Why,? Perhaps because
customs must be maintained.
*****
“The happier people can be the unhappier they are.”
God to a Guest, “You where in Paradise but you dint recognize it. It’s the same
with most people in the world you are coming from; they seek suffering in the
most joyous of places because they think they are unworthy of happiness.”
*****
“One never knows the answers to the questions of life until one is asked.”
She knows so little of life and love, and now with her eyes blindfolded and with
all the time in the world, she is discovering the origin of everything and
everything begins where and how she would like to have begun..
*****
“Hope accepts tragedy with faith and courage.”
“God, I did not deserve what happened to me. If you did that to me, I can do
that to others. This is Justice.”
*****
“Money was invented so that we could know exactly how much we owe.”
It is a special piece of paper decorated in somber colors which everyone agreed

was worth something and everyone believed it – until you took a pile of that
paper to a bank, a respectable, traditional, highly confidential Swiss Bank and
asked - “Could I buy a few hours of my life?” No sir, “We don’t sell, we only
buy.”
*****
“The war between evil and good is always on.”
The fight between good and evil is raging all the time in every individual’s heart
which is the battle field for all the angels and devils. They would fight inch by
inch for thousand of millennia in order to gain ground until one of them finally
vanquishes the other.
*****
Thank You God

For the World so sweet,
Thank You God
For the things we eat,
Thank You God
For everything!
In present world a lot of people talk about the horror in other people’s life as if
they were genuinely concerned to help them, but the truth is that they take
pleasure in the sufferings of others because that made them believe they where
happier and that life has been generous with them. Thank You God!
*****
Above is the word ‘Crisis’ written in Chinese. It is composed of two

characters– one represents Danger and other represents Opportunity. A crisis
provides an opportunity for change and growth as well as a danger of regression
or stagnation.
(In Chinese the word for ‘crisis’ is wei ji which is a combination of wei xian
meaning danger and ji huay meaning opportunity. Moreover, the interpretation
given above is controversial as native Chinese object to it.)
*****
“Rest I leave it to you God.”
Life or to be more precise the path which lead us to our dreams is full of hurdles.
One has to cross these hurdles and come out victorious. Take any motive, take
any path but then proceed on that path whole heartedly, after doing so one must
leave everything else to the Almighty and hope for the best because it’s one of
the things where with best of intention, dedication, devotion, education,
judgment and enthusiasm one can fail (Read ‘fail’ as- unable to achieve the
ultimate aim)! This is the dark truth of life my friend.
*****
“Let’s meet at Café Coffee Day tomorrow at 4:45 pm”
The busiest people always have enough time to do everything. Those who do
nothing are always busy and tired and pay no attention to the little amount of
responsibilities that they are required to undertake..
*****
“Death is our constant companions and it is death that gives each person’s life
its true meaning.”
Humans are the only one in nature who are aware that they are going to die.
Even knowing that their days are numbered and that everything will end when
you least expect it, people tends to make their lives a battle that is worthy of a
being with eternal life.
Still, being fragile creatures, humans always try to hide from themselves the
certainty that they will die. They do not see that it is the death that itself
motivates them to do best things in life. They are afraid to step into the dark,
afraid of the unknown, and their only way of conquering that fear is to ignore
the fact that their days are numbered. They do not see that with an awareness
of death, they would be able to be even more daring, to go much in their daily
conquests, because they would have nothing to lose-for death is inevitable.
*****
“We never win; it is our enthusiasm that wins”
Normally we allow enthusiasm to elude us when we are involved in such

mundane activities, those that have no importance at all in the overall scale of
our existence. We lose enthusiasm because of the small and unavoidable defeats
we suffer during our fights and since we don’t realize that enthusiasm is a major
strength able to help us win the ultimate victory, we let it dribble through our
fingers, we do this without recognizing that we are letting the true meaning of
our lives escape us. We blame the world for our boredom and for our losses and
we forget that it was we ourselves who allowed this enchanting power, which
justifies everything, to diminish within ourselves.
*****
A line from Gospel :
“Behold, the man is become as one of us, to know good and evil.”
Confronted by temptation, we will always fall. Given the right circumstances,

every human being on this earth would be willing to commit evil. Only man
knowing good can do evil. Only man wears masks. Only man is a
disappointment to himself. Only man…
*****
New Testament verse in the Gospel of Matthew :
“For unto everyone that hath shall be given and he shall have abundance. But
from him that hath shall be given and he shall have abundance. But from him
that hath not shall be taken away even that which he hath.”
It is those who are successful, in other words, who are more likely to be given
the kind of special opportunities that lead to further success. It’s the rich who
gets the biggest tax breaks. It’s the best students who get the best teaching and
most attention. And it is the biggest nine and ten year old who gets the most
coaching & practice. Success is the result of what sociologists like to call
“Accumulative Advantage.”
*****
“He, who wants to please all, will please none.”
“Whenever you like, whatever you like just do that. Weather it is morally,
socially correct or not, should not be a point. If it’s morally, socially correct you
would be a satisfactory figure outside but if you are socially wrong you will be
happy within.”
*****
“Talent is nurtured in solitude; Character is formed in the strong billows of the
world.”
Character cannot be developed in ease and quite. Only through experiences of

trivial and suffering can the soul be strengthened, vision cleared, ambition
inspired and success achieved.
*****
“Butterflies are like random thought people have… They live, they die, they are
pointless.”
“What are you good at?” he asked. “Going after what I believe in.” This was
the only possible reply; She spent her life in path of what she believed in. The
only problem was that she believed in something different everyday.
*****
“Time isn’t something that always proceeds at the same pace. It is we who
determine how quickly time passes.”
The day is made up of twenty-four hours and an infinite number of moments.

We need to be aware of each of these moments and to make the most of them
regardless of whether we are busy doing something or merely completing life. If
we slow down, everything lasts much longer.
*****
“Don’t make an effort because best things happens when you least expect
them.”
Often life takes us by surprise and orders us to move towards the unknown-
even when we don’t want to and when we think we don’t need to. At any given
moment in our lives, there are certain things that could have happened but
didn’t. The magic moments go unrecognized and then suddenly the hand of
destiny changes everything.
*****
“What an Idea Sirji!”
The most vivid memories are of encounters with ideas rather than persons.
Over time the memory of person grows paler whereas the ideas grow & become
richer.
*****
Section Three
“Success consists of going from failure to failure without loss of enthusiasm.
When you stand for what you believe in, you can change the world.”
In 1954, Jimmy Denny manager of the Grand Ole Opry, fired a singer after one
performance .He told him “You aren’t going nowhere .You ought to go back to
driving a truck.”
The singer was Elvis

Elvis Presley.
In 1944, Emme Smirely, director of the Blue Book Modeling Agency told
modeling hopeful Norma Jean Baker, ”You’d better learn secretariat work or
else get married.”
Norma Jean Baker was later known as Marilyn Monroe.
In 1962, four young musicians played their first record audition for the
executives of the Decca Recording Co. The unimpressed executives said “We
don’t like their sound. The group of guitarist is on the way out.”
The Group was called “The Beatles.”
In the 1940’s a young inventor named Chester Carlson took his idea to 20
corporations including some of the biggest in the country. They all turned him
down. In 1947, after 7 long years of rejection, he finally got a tiny company in
Rochester, New York, the Haloid Company to purchase his invention-an
electrostatic paper copying process.
Haloid became Xerox Corporation.

Corporation.
When Alexander Graham Bell invented the telephone in 1876, it did not ring off
the hook with calls, from potential backers. After making a demonstration call,
President Rutherford Hayes said, “This is an amazing invention but who would
even want to use one of them?”
Rest as you know is history.
The author took 7 years to complete the book. On completion, it was rejected by
twelve publishers, some of whom declared that it was "too intellectual, too
controversial and would not sell because no audience existed for it.” But finally
Boobs-Merrill Publications published it. It has been 69 years since then, and the
book is still in print.
Well, book
book is The Fountainhead, author was
was Ayn Rand.
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Section Four
“To everything there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven.
A time to born and a time to die….”
An Equal Music
And into that gate shall they enter,

And in that house they shall dwell,
Where there shall be no cloud or sun,
No darkness or dazzling, but one equal light,
No noise or silence, but one equal music,
No fears or hopes, but one equal possession,
No foes or friends, but one equal communion and Identity,
No ends or beginnings, but one equal eternity.
(by John Donne)
Waiting for the Music
This is the news: two sounds

At a guarded melodious distance
Follow each other wherever
Either chooses to go
And all our lives we are
Waiting for the music
Waiting, waiting for the music
Scanning the instructions,
Hand reaching for hand
Waiting, for the music…
(by John Fuller)
Despair
The world for me has come to an end,
I have reached the dead end
They say death is end of the life,
But what is use of going on
When there's no one to trust in life
For me world is mere illusion,
Death is the only solution
Pain is my healing,
Suicide is the mercy killing.
Hope
With your body,
Open your mind,
Bring up the courage
You have left behind.
To have this strength,
To keep the faith,
You can fight the odds
Against your fate.
Just believe in yourself,
For the dream is alive,
Don't hide your emotions
Keep up your pride.
You can achieve success
In everything you do,
Just let yourself go,
It's all up to YOU!
Each Day brings in with it
New Spirits
So don’t waste them
Especially, When there are –
Miles to cover,
Before getting the Milestone…
Every Beginning has an End,

Time has come to bid adieu.
With Numb eyes I bid you farewell,
A new ray of light has just arrived
Which needs to be nurtured,
I will surely return to you,
But for now what I can say is –
Just a Goodbye.
If you have hard work to do

Do it now.
Today the skies are clear and blue,
Tomorrow clouds may come in view,
Yesterday iss not for you
Do it now.
Work, for the night is coming,

Work through the sunny noon;
Fill brightest hour with labor
Rest comes sure & soon,
Give every flying minute
Something to keep in store;
Work, for the night is coming
When man works no more…
I see a man stare upwards
And wings his hand from the force of his pain
I shudder when I see his face
The moon reveals myself to me.
You smile upon your friend today

Today his ills are over
You hearken to the lover’s say
And happy is the lover.
This late to hearken, late to smile

But better late than never.
I shall have lived a little while
Before I die for ever.
Here are the skies,

The planet seven,
And all the starry train:
Content you with the mimic heaven
And on the earth remain.
The end of the year fell chilly

Between a moon and a moon
Through the twilight shrilly
The bells rang, ringing no tune.
Road Less Traveled
Two roads diverged in a yellow wood

And sorry I could not travel both
And be one traveler, long I stood
And looked down one as far as I could
To where it bent in the undergrowth
Then took the other as just as fair

And having perhaps the better claim
Because it was grassy and wanted wear
Though as for that, the passing there
Had worn them really about the same
And both that morning equally lay

In leaves no step had trodden black
Oh, I kept the first for another day!
Yet, knowing how way leads onto way
I doubted if I should ever come back
I shall be telling this with a sigh

Somewhere ages and ages hence
Two roads diverged in a wood
And I took the one less traveled by
And that has made all the difference
(by Robert Frost)
Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening
Whose woods these are I think I know.

His house is in the village, though;
He will not see me stopping here
To watch his woods fill up with snow.
My little horse must think it queer

To stop without a farmhouse near
Between the woods and frozen lake
The darkest evening of the year.
He gives his harness bells a shake

To ask if there is some mistake.
The only other sound's the sweep
Of easy wind and downy flake.
The woods are lovely, dark, and deep,

But I have promises to keep,
And miles to go before I sleep,
And miles to go before I sleep.
(by Robert Frost)
(Perhaps, there would be hardly anyone who would not have come across these two poems in
his life. Truly this book would have been incomplete without a mention of these two poems.)
Section Five
Five
The Greatest Epics
“I trust that no one will tell me that men such as I write about don’t exist. That
these books have been written and published is my proof that they do.” – Ayn
Rand, author of The Fountainhead & Atlas Shrugged
[Howard] Roark smiled. "Gail,

"Gail, if this boat were sinking, I’d give my life to save
you. Not because it’s any kind of duty. Only because I like you, for reasons and
standards of my own. I could die for you. But I couldn’t and wouldn’t live for
you."
The Fount
Fountainhead tells the story of desperate battle waged by architect
Howard Roark, whose integrity was as unyielding as granite...of Dominique
Francon, the exquisitely beautiful woman who loved Roark passionately but
married his worst enemy...of the fanatic denunciation unleashed by an enraged
society against a great creator. Its theme is one of the most challenging ideas
ever presented in a work of fiction - that a person's ego is the fountainhead of
human progress.
*****
Who is John Galt?
….When he says that he will stop the motor of the world, is he a destroyer or a
liberator? Why does he have to fight his battles not against his enemies but
against those who need him most? Why does he fight his hardest battle against
the women he loves?
You will know the answer to these questions when you discover the reasons
behind the baffling events that play havoc with the lives of the amazing men
and women in this book. You will discover why a productive genius become a
worthless playboy… why a great steel industrialist is working for his own
destruction…why a composer gives up his career on the night of his triumph…
why a beautiful women who runs a transcontinental railroad falls in love with
the man she has sworn to kill.
If you want answers you got to read Atlas Shrugged.
(Throughout this book I have not quoted any portion from The Fountainhead or Atlas
Shrugged. I think it is a crime to do so, because if you don’t read these books in totality you
would not understand it.)
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Section Six
Expressions Unlimited
Nigahen nigahon se mila kar toh dekho

Naye dost bana kar toh dekho
Haasratein dil mein dabanein se kya haasil hoga,
Apne hoth hila kar toh dekho
Khamoshi se kab hoti hai khawaishe puri
Dil ki baat bata kart oh dekho.
Jo Dil mein hain ussey kar do bayan,
Khud ko ek baar jata kar toh dekho
Aasma Simat jayega tumhare aaghosh mein ,
Chahat ki bahein phala kar toh dekho
Dil ki baat bata kar toh dekho.
An awkward question. A difficult answer.

Am embarrassing truth. A flattering lie.
A frank yes. A blunt no.
A warm hello. A cult good bye.

A sincere sorry. A heartfelt thanks.
Makes the most of ever moment.

Leave nothing unsaid.
(These were the jingles of Airtel under the advertisement campaign “Expressions
Unlimited”, Ad agency: Rediffusion DYR )
Celebrations
Celebrations
A winter evening. Rain on a hot tin roof.

Four friends. Pakoras deep-frying.
One barsaat. Neighbours dropping in.
Four glasses of chai. A party.
Hundred bucks of gas. You and mom.

A rusty old bike. A summer night.
And an open road. A bottle of coconut oil.
A head massage.
Maggi noodles. Gossiping about absent family members.
A hostel room.
4.25 a.m. You can spend
Hundreds on birthdays,
3 old friends. Thousands on festivals,
3 separate cities. Lakhs on weddings,
3 coffee mugs. But to celebrate
1 internet messenger. All you have to spend is your Time
(A widely circulated electronic-mail)
Definitions
As you like it!
Junk - The things we preserve for years and throw them just 10 days before we
need it.
Cigarette – Fire at one end, Fool at the other.. (Definition holds good from time
immemorial.)
Drink – The colorful liquid that makes you feel top of the world only to leave
you with a headache and an empty space in your soul.
Drugs – Ditto.
Committee – A group of men who account and maintain minutes and waste
hours.
TV – Chewing gum for eyes..
Women – One of the God’s agreeable blunders.
Computer – One of the Man’s agreeable blunders.
Cell Phone – The only subject on which men boast about who’s got the
smallest.
Character – A perfectly educated will.
April 1 – This is the day on which we are reminded of what we are on the other
364 days.
Money – In God we believe others must pay cash.
Education – The thing which ruins intelligent people. (reference : I was born
intelligent, but education ruined me.)
Specialist – A person who knows everything about something and nothing

about everything else.
Economist – An expert who will know tomorrow why the things he predicted
yesterday did not happen today.
Comedy – The most serious business in the World.
Death – Last chapter in one’s life.
Historians – They are the ones who can do what even God cannot – alter the
past.
Busy People – Sorry, I am too busy to comment on them.
Love – What a miserable world!! Trouble if we Love and more trouble if we don’t
love.
Antique – Something which we collect after it has gathered enough dust.
City – A vastly populated area, full of lonely people.
Punctuality – The art of waiting for those who are unpunctual.
Elevator – A tiny metal box hanging in an enclosed shaft used for upliftment of
people.
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Section Seven
Quotes
A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.
An Age builds up character; an Hour destroys them.
The night is just a part of the day.
Luck is what happens when preparation meets opportunity.
Champion is not one who never fails but one who never quits.
The more precisely you plan harder the destiny would hit you.
The greatest events aren’t the loudest, but the most quite hours.
Worse than failure is the fear of failure.
When a problem is solved, its simplicity is always amazing.
Get the facts, or the facts will get you. And when you get them, get them
right, or they will get you wrong.
Never under estimate yourself. If others can do it so can you.
We promise according to our hopes and perform according to our fears.
Never ruin an apology with an excuse.
Speech is of time, Silence is of eternity. Silence does not make mistake.
One must take care of the minutes, for the hours will take care of themselves.
It is easy to promise and Alas! How easy to forget.
Believe Everything! But trust Nothing.
Everybody sees how you seem, however, only some know who you are.
Come hail come snow, What is to be done has to be done.
We seldom think what we have, but always think of what we miss.
What happens, happens for a reason.
When you are an outcast, even the untossed stones can be cherished.
Don’t ever slam a door, You might want to go back.
Anyone who is not confused doesn’t really understand the situation.
What is death? Death is an instant, nothing more.
Winners don’t do different things, they do things differently.
The ship is safest at the port, but that’s not what ships are meant for.
Don’t cry because its all over now, laugh because it happened.
It is only to the happy that tears are a luxury.
Talkers are no good doers.
Everybody speaks of it but few know it.
Of all the days in our life, which is the one that never comes? -Tomorrow
Cheer Up! The worst is yet to come.
Amor est vitae essentia. (Love is the essence of Life)
It is nice to be important but it is more important to be nice.

In love we are all fools alike.
You don’t have to climb a mountain to find out whether it is high or not.
Rich men never waste a penny only poor people do that.
The time to repair the roof is when the sun is shining.
Like our shadows our wishes lengthens as our sun declines.
Lies are always invented, Truth is always discovered.
Where all life dies, Death lives.
Our worst enemies are often the friends we once talked to as only a friend
should.
He is not cheated who knows that he is being cheated.
Some people with great merit are very disgusting; others with great faults
are very pleasing.
If you can’t resist something, it’s better to abandon it.
Get rid of addictions or else get rid.
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Section Eight
This poem was written in 1996-1997, an era that was marked by political instability,
corruption, retarded economic growth and population explosion in India’s history.
अन पर ा
आज़ाद िमली सन ् 1947 म, ःवतंऽता सेनािनयो का था एक सपना
पर या हम आज़ाद है ? जो क) नह हो पाया पूरा,
ग़रबी बेरोज़गार ने है हमको मारा, नह बन पाए भारतवशी ईमानदार
भड़ती जा रह है आबाद, नह हो पाया ख़ा1मा उच नीच का,
िस ा कोई महण न कर पता| नह हो पाया भारत आज़ाद
सब दे श कर रहा है उ(नित, चले गये ःवतंऽा सेनानी,
पर भारत क) है यह ःथित पर छोड़ गये उनका एक सपना,
कोई सरकार ,टक नह पाती, जो क) करना होगा हमको पूरा -
एक दस
ू रे पर लगाती ू1यारोप यह होगी मानव क) अन पर ा|
और झेलते है बेकसूर लोग|

बात सब करते है बड़ बड़
पर काम करते है कम
या हुए हम आज़ाद?
,दन पर ,दन,
कुसंगितया जगड़ते जा रह है हमे,
नह कर पाते हम आचे बुरे म फ़क8
िसफ़8 लालच का है बोल बाला,
िसक8 धन है ,दखता सबको,
बाक) सब है अंधकार
या हुए हम आज़ाद?
चुनौती
ठन गई!
मौत से मेर ठन गई
समझौते का मेरा कोई इरादा न था,
मेने यम से कहाँ-
लौट जा
अभी नह आया है वईत तेरे साथ चलने का|
सुन ए मौत
कभी हार कर भी मेन,े चुनौती को चोनौती दं,
कभी Fबन बादल के ह छाता तान ,दया
जीवन से लड़ता, जीवन से पाता,
जीवन पर (योछावर करता म चला गया|
पर जब आख खुली तो पाया ,क -
छोट छोट उपलGधयो पर अ1यािधक उHलास जताया
और खुद को मुसीबतो से िघरा पा
म छन छन आशु बरसया|
पर ए मौत
अब मेने ठान ली है ,
जीवन के दये को ,दखाना है उजाला,
तू भी सुन ले मेरा यह संकHप
न केवल है मुझे जीवन पर Fवजय ूाJ करना
पर तू भी मेरे ूकोप से बच न पाएगा
तू दबे पाव, चोर िछपे से न आ
सामने से वॉर कर, ,फर मुझे आज़मा|
लौट जा
म कहता हू लौट जा
अभी नह आया है वईत तेरे साथ चलने का |
उँ चाई
उँ चे पहाड़ पर,
पेड़ नहं लगते|
पौधे नहं उगते,
न घास ह जमती है |
जमती है िसफ़8 बफ8,
जो कफ़न क) तरह सफेद और
मौत क) तरह ठं ड होती है |
खेलती, खलखलती नद,
जसका Nप धारण कर
अपने भाय पर बूँद-बूँद रोती है |
सOचाई यह है ,क
केवल उँ चाई ह काफ़) नहं होती,
सबसे अलग-थलग
पPरवेश से पृथक,
अपनो से कटा-बँटा,
शू(य म अकेला खड़ा होना,
पहाड़ क) महानता नहं,
मजबूर है |
उँ चाई और गहराई म
आकाश-पाताल क) दरू है |
जो जतना उँ चा,
उतना ह एकाक) होता है ,
हर भार को ःवयं ह ढोता है ,
चेहरे पे मुःकान िचपका,
मन ह मन रोता है |
ज़Nर यह है ,क
उँ चाई के साथ Fवःतार भी हो,
जससे मनुंय
ठू ं ठ-सा खड़ा न रहे ,
औरो से घुले िमले,
,कसी को साथ ले,
,कसी के संग चले|
भीड़ म खो जाना,
यादT म डू ब जाना,
ःवयं को भूल जाना,
अःत1व को अथ8,
जीवन को सुग(ध दे ता है |
धरती को बौनौ क) नहं,
उँ चे कद के इं सानT क) ज़Nरत है |
इतने उँ चे क) आसमान को छू ल,
नये न ऽT म ूितभा के बीज बो ल,
,कंतु इतने उँ च भी नहं,
क) पाव तले डू ब ह न जमे,
कोई काँटा न चुभे,
कोई कली न खले!
न वसंत हो, न पतझड़,
हो िसफ़8 उँ चाई का अंधड़,
माऽ अकेलेपन का स(नाटा|
मेरे ूभु!
मुझे इतनी उँ चाई कभी मत दे ना
गैरT को गले न लगा सकूँ
इतनी Uखाई कभी मत दे ना|
(A poem recited by Atal Bihari Vajpayee in his acknowledgement speech for Padma Bhusan Award in 1992)
गीत नह गाता हूँ
बेनकाब चेहरे है ,
दाग बड़े गहरे है ,
टू टता ितलःम, आज सच से भय खाता हूँ
गीत नह गाता हँू |
लगी कुछ ऐसी नज़र,

Fबखरा िसशे सा सहर,
अपनो के मेले म मीत नह पाता हँू
गीत नह गाता हँू |
पीठ म छुर सा चाँद,

राहु गया रे खा फाँद,
मुFW के छणो म बार बार जाता हँू
गीत नह गाता हूँ|
(by Atal Bihari Vajpayee)
गीत नया गाता हूँ
टू टे हुए तारT से फूटे वस(ती ःवर,

प1थर क) छाती म उग आया नाव अंकुर,
झरे सब पीले पात,
कोयल क) कुहुक रात,
ूाची म अUणमा क) रे ख दे ख पता हूँ|
गीत नया गाता हूँ|
टू टे हुए सपने क) सुने कौन िससक)?

अंतर को चीर Xयथा पलकT पर ,ठतक)|
हार नहं मानूग
ँ ा,
रार नई ठानूग
ँ ा,
काल के कपाल पर िलखता-िमटाता हूँ|
गीत नया गाता हँू |
रोते रोते रात हो गयी
झुक) न अलके
झपी न पलके
सुिधयो क) बारात खो गई|
दद8 पुराना,
मीत न जाना,
बातो ह बातो म ूात हो गई|
घूमड बदली,
बूँद न िनकली,
Fबछूड़न ऐसी Xयथा बो गई|
अनपथ
वृ हो भले खड़े ,
हो घने, हो बड़े ,
एक पऽ छा भी,
माँग मत, माँग मत, माँग मत,
अनपथ, अनपथ, अनपथ|
तू ना थकेगा कभी,
तू ना थामेगा कभी,
तू ना मुड़ेगा कभी,
कर शपथ, कर शपथ, कर शपथ,
अनपथ अनपथ अनपथ|
यह महान Yँय है ,
चल रहा मनुंय है ,
अौु, \ेत, रखत से,
लथपथ, लथपथ, लथपथ,
अनपथ, अिनपत, अनपथ|
(by Harivansh Rai Bachchan)
Some of my favourite verses from
Harivansh Rai Bachchan’s
Madhushala
मृद ु भावो के अंगूरT क)

आज बना लाया हाला,
Fूयतम, अपने ह हाथT से
आज Fपलाऊंगा ^याला;
पहले भोग लगा लूँ तुझको
,फर ूसाद जग पाएगा;
सबसे पहले तेरा ःवागत
करती मेर मधुशाला|
*****
भावुकता अंगूर लता से
खीच कHपना क) हाला,
कFव साक) बनकर आया है
भरकर कFवता का ^याला;
कभी न कण भर खाली होगा,
लाख Fपएं, दो लाख Fपएं!
पाठक गण ह पीनेवाले,
पुःतक मेर मधुशाला|
*****
म,दरालय जाने को घर से
चलता है पीनेवाला,
',कस पथ से जाउ' असमंजस
म है वह भोलाभला;
अलग-अलग पथ बतलाते सब
पर म यह बतलाता हूँ...
राह पकड़ तू एक चला चल,
पा जाएगा मधुशाला|
*****
एक बरस म एक बार ह
जलती होली क) `वाला,
एक बार ह लगती बाज़ी
जलती दपT क) माला;
दिु नयावालो, ,कंतु, ,कसी ,दन
आ म,दरालय म दे खो,
,दन को होली, रात दवाली,
रोज़ मनाती मधुशाला|
*****
दत
ु करा मःजद ने मुझको
कहकर है पीनेवाला,
ठु कराया ठाकुरaारे ने
दे ख हथेली पर ^याला,
कहाँ ,ठकाना िमलता जग म
भला अभागे का,फ़र का
शरणःथल बनकर न मुझे य,द
अपना लेती मधुशाला|
*****
आज करे परहे ज जगत, पर
कल पीनी होगी हाला,
आज करे इ(कार जगत पर
कल पीना होगा ^याला;
होने दो पैदा मद का महमूद
जगत म कोई, ,फर
जहाँ अभी हb मं,दर-मःजद
वहाँ बनेगी मधुशाला|
*****
यम आएगा लेने जब, तब
खूब चलूँगा पी हाला,
पीड़ा, संकट, कc नरक के
या समझेगा मतवाला,
बूर, कठोर, कु,टल, कुFवचार
अ(यायी यमराज़ो के
डॅ ड
ं ो क) जब मार पड़े गी,
आड़ करे गी मधुशाला|
*****
यम आएगा साक) बनकर
साथ िलए काली हाला,
पी ना होश म ,फर आएगा
सुरा-Fवसुध यह मतवाला;
यह अंितम बेहोशी, अंितम
साक), अंितम ^याला है ;
पिथक, ^यार से पीना इसको,
,फर न िमलेगी यह मधुशाला|
*****
मेरे अधरो पर हो अंितम
वःतु न तुलसी-दल, ^याला,
मेर जfवा पर हो अंितम
वाःतु न गंगाजल, हाला,
मेरे शव के पीछे चलने-
वालो, याद इसे रखना-
'रामनाम है स1य’ न कहना,
कहना ‘सOची मधुशाला’|
*****
मेरे शव पर वह रोए, हो
जसके आँसू म हाला,
आह भरे वह, जो हो सुरिभत
म,दरा पीकर मतवाला,
द मुझको वे कंधा जसके
पद मद- डगमग होते हT,
और जॅलू उस थोर, जहाँ पर
कभी रह हो मधुशाला|
*****
और चीता पर जाय ऊडे ला
पाऽ न घृत का, पर ^याला
घंट बंधे अंगूर लता म,
नीर न भरकर, भर हाला,
ूाणFूये, य,द ौाद करो तुम
मेरा, तो ऐसा करना-
पीने वालो को बुलवाकर
खुलवा दे ना मधुशाला|
*****
यात हुआ यम आने को है
ले अपनी काली हाला,
पं,डत अपनी पोिथ भुला
साधु भूल गया माला,
और पुजार भुला पूजा,
gान सभी gानी भूला,
,कंतु न भूला मरकर के भी
पीनेवाला मधुशाला|
*****
अपने युग म सबको अनुपम
यात हुई अपनी हाला,
अपने युग म सबको अhभुत
यात हुआ अपना ^याला,
,फर भी वृaT से जब पूछा
एक यह उiर पाया-
अब न रहे वे पीनेवाले,
अब न रह वह मधुशाला!
*****
बड़े बड़े नाज़ो से मbने

पाली है साक)बाला
लिलत कHपना का ह इसने
सदा उठाया है ^याला,
मान-दल
ु ारT से ह रखना
इस मेर सुकुमार को;
Fवँव, तुjहारे हाथT म अब
सौप रहा हूँ मधुशाला|
*****
Acknowledgements
Now, the protocol says that I must thank all those who helped me in bringing
out this edition. So I went through the acknowledgement section of 20 books to
finally write one for myself which I know no one would care to read.
But still the list in priority order goes as follows:-
I sincerely thank all those intellectual giants who advised me to read books (for-
you-know-what) but it surely helped.
Secondly, I thank all the poets and authors specially Paulo Coelho and Ayn
Rand. These two writers definitely changed my views towards many a things in
life. I thank them for teaching me just two words “Be Yourself!”
Thirdly, I express my gratitude to British Council Library & Crosswords Book

Store for providing me books (for the records, I paid them for the services), but
my heartfelt thanks are to Hawkers of Park Street for providing 1000 rupees
books for 100 bucks. I am in no way promoting piracy but then as a student (well
I would be still 6 days away from my job at the time of publication) you can’t
spend a fortune on them.
Fourthly, I thank Microsoft for Office 2007 and all those hackers for cracking it,
Quillpad.com for converting all those hindi poems into hindi. I know I am
sounding like Chetan Bhagat, but you see it’s just that 20 books
acknowledgement effect. I mentioned it earlier, didn’t I?
Finally jokes apart, I thank you for going through this book. It is indeed very
kind of you that you read this bit also.
Credits & References
At various instances, footnote regarding original author is not given. I am
hereby listing all the books and authors whom I have quoted in this work. Well
this book is 15% mine and 85% their’s.
1. Coelho Paulo, Eleven Minutes

2. Coelho Paulo, By the river Piedra I sat and Wept
3. Coelho Paulo, The Alchemist
4. Coelho Paulo, The Fifth Mountain
5. Coelho Paulo, Eleven Minutes
6. Coelho Paulo, The Zahir
7. Coelho Paulo, Veronica Decides to Die
8. Coelho Paulo, The Witch of Portobello
9. Coelho Paulo, Brida
10. Coelho Paulo, The Pilgrimage
11. Rand Ayn, Atlas Shrugged
12. Rand Ayn, The Fountainhead
13. Albom Mitch, Tuesdays with Morrie
14. Albom Mitch, The Five People you meet in Heaven
15. Albom Mitch, For one more Day
16. Brown Dan, The Da Vinci Code
17. Desai Anita, In Custody
18. Rushdie Salman, Shalimar the Clown
19. Gladwell Malcolm, The Outliers
20. Gladwell Malcolm, Blink
21. Bach Richard, Jonathan Livingstone Seagull
22. Das Gurcharan, India Unbound
23. Vajpayee Atal Bihari, Meri Ekkyavan Kavitaye
24. Bachchan Harivanshai, Madhushala
Certain articles and poems in this book are intellectual property of the author, while all other extracts &
poems are property of original authors/poets as listed above.
This book is for non-commercial purposes only.
Challenges are high, The Dreams are new,
The world out there is waiting for you,
Dare to dream, Dare to try,
No goal is too distant, No star is too high.
Just Believe in Yourself and Get Going !
Everyday, I look into the mirror, Waiting,
Waiting for The Other to disappear;
A day would soon come
When the mirror would reveal myself to me.

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Have pity on those who are fearful of taking up a pen, or a paintbrush or an

“What is the Other?” they asked.

“And you? Who are you?”

“But there is suffering in life,” one of the listeners said.

“That’s it?” another listener asked.

“True pleasure is the pleasure of pain not happiness.”

“Man was born to betray his destiny.”

“Hope accepts tragedy with faith and courage.”

It is a special piece of paper decorated in somber colors which everyone agreed

Thank You God

Above is the word ‘Crisis’ written in Chinese. It is composed of two

“Rest I leave it to you God.”

“Let’s meet at Café Coffee Day tomorrow at 4:45 pm”

“We never win; it is our enthusiasm that wins”

Normally we allow enthusiasm to elude us when we are involved in such

A line from Gospel :

Confronted by temptation, we will always fall. Given the right circumstances,

New Testament verse in the Gospel of Matthew :

“He, who wants to please all, will please none.”

Character cannot be developed in ease and quite. Only through experiences of

The day is made up of twenty-four hours and an infinite number of moments.

“What an Idea Sirji!”

The singer was Elvis

Norma Jean Baker was later known as Marilyn Monroe.

The Group was called “The Beatles.”

Haloid became Xerox Corporation.

Rest as you know is history.

And into that gate shall they enter,

Waiting for the Music

This is the news: two sounds

Every Beginning has an End,

If you have hard work to do

Work, for the night is coming,

You smile upon your friend today

This late to hearken, late to smile

Here are the skies,

The end of the year fell chilly

Two roads diverged in a yellow wood

Then took the other as just as fair

And both that morning equally lay

I shall be telling this with a sigh

Whose woods these are I think I know.

My little horse must think it queer

He gives his harness bells a shake

The woods are lovely, dark, and deep,

[Howard] Roark smiled. "Gail,

Who is John Galt?

If you want answers you got to read Atlas Shrugged.

Nigahen nigahon se mila kar toh dekho

An awkward question. A difficult answer.

A warm hello. A cult good bye.

Makes the most of ever moment.

A winter evening. Rain on a hot tin roof.

Hundred bucks of gas. You and mom.

(A widely circulated electronic-mail)

TV – Chewing gum for eyes..

Women – One of the God’s agreeable blunders.

Computer – One of the Man’s agreeable blunders.

Character – A perfectly educated will.

Money – In God we believe others must pay cash.

Specialist – A person who knows everything about something and nothing

Comedy – The most serious business in the World.

आज़ाद िमली सन ् 1947 म, ःवतंऽता सेनािनयो का था एक सपना

पर या हम आज़ाद है ? जो क) नह हो पाया पूरा,

ग़रबी बेरोज़गार ने है हमको मारा, नह बन पाए भारतवशी ईमानदार

भड़ती जा रह है आबाद, नह हो पाया ख़ा1मा उच नीच का,

िस ा कोई महण न कर पता| नह हो पाया भारत आज़ाद

कोई सरकार ,टक नह पाती, जो क) करना होगा हमको पूरा -

पीठ म छुर सा चाँद,