Do snakes have OCD?

Indian Rat Snake

Sneak-Peak! How often do we peek into others life?

I say we rarely peek into our own life.

We live for others.

On a dry sultry Sunday evening, after a refreshing dip from the revitalizing waters of kadakwasla dam, I encountered a miracle. An elegant miracle, that appears only in Television.

I lowered my car window and peeked out to witness what stole the spotlight.

It was a big golden brown snake.

So elegant and stylish, immediately I said to myself “GO FASHIONABLY KADAK”.

Never mind, just a blend of kadakwasla dam and a style tag line. It comes with my job. (Copywriter)

Like a spectator awestruck by awesomeness, I followed it for 30 seconds. It was the most enticing 30 seconds of my life.

Well,

There used to be a saying that a snake can follow you wherever you go. But, in my case it was quite opposite. I was following it.

To define it as a person, this snake was the most beautiful woman I have ever met. Her golden complexion , gentle bends and curvy movements can make any man go crazy.

She carried an attitude, which made men move behind her movements.

Quite a chic right?

After 30 seconds she just ignored me and vanished behind bushes.

But, men are men.

Being pulled and mesmerized by sheer beauty, they give up.

They become a victim every time they meet pretty women.

Is it the law of nature?

No, it’s OCD. (Obsessive-compulsive disorder)

Every living being has OCD. It symbolizes through patterns. The groovy movements of the snake unveiled my passion to notice unnoticeable things.

We all have a set of principles, character and distinct way of dealing things which makes us unique. Over several years, we nurture an obsession for our actions and create a compulsion to pursue it.

Well, as we all know, its what we do that defines us and not who we are.  So, every action has a pattern and every pattern has a style. So OCD is a style statement.

And this obsession and compulsion characterize who we are. 

Oh yeah, I got my answer now. 
Snakes do have OCD.

Ashwin Muralidharan:- Hey people. If you like my story give your valuable comments. 

Lady and the Landscape

(Dedicated to Padma Narashiman)

­­­­­­True elegance.

So wide & so curvy, a classic contrast indeed.

Is it the sprawling white? Or the vast solid ground?

It’s really difficult to pinpoint what makes this space so special.

It’s quite a breathtaking landscape.

She said to herself…

What happened to my emotions? Why there is tranquility suddenly?

Even the wind goes gentle today. It seems to have a spot for old beauty.

She chuckled to herself…. And went back to her tranquil thought processes, finding a fulfilment from the absence around her.

She reached an elevated podium and whispered to the winds…

The podium where I stand reminds me of the 8 decades, which gave a genuine silence. Still boundless boundaries beyond this land target me like a bull’s eye, but my experience make it as blissful as a morning walk. My aura filters all materialistic manifestations around me. Neither land nor heavenly emotions can harm me now. What I see and get is way beyond your reach because this aura is nurtured with a nature to sacrifice. It’s soaked with countless souls lost in their road to paradise.

Getting used and abused on all four corners of life, my immunity to swallow these materialistic manifestations grew stronger. No more roots.

She swayed her legs twice….

My legs are no more rooted to these lands.

How do you call me then?

Call me a saint.

Now, I stand here in the centre of this mercury dipped bright land, observing petty people hoping for sliver lining.

Sarcastic grin on her lips…

Trust me,

Only your hair gets the silver lining, not your heart.

You may ask,

Why are we here? What do we truly need?

Yes, what you truly need is renunciation.

Her lungs winded, she took a deep breadth….

Emptiness is a big fat zero.

Be aloof.

True revelation comes from a loss.

“Live through life to loose it”

Life is just an effort to impress and gain identity.

It may sound hard, but these silver lands feeds completely from you, inside out.

So what?

Sow your seeds of success my silly kids.

The irony of life is to do the obvious unwanted things to attain the fruit of our problems.

You have a long path to acquire my genuine silence.

And all your problems are defined in one word, acknowledgment.

Take it head on.

She again glanced through the vast meadow of pain and pleasure …

Come to my spot one-day.

Say it,

I have been there,

I have done it.

“Live through life to loose it”

With nothing to loose, I am ready to let loose.

She slowly raised her toes and started to levitate in the gust of heavy air.

There she goes with a hearty smile of satisfaction on her face.

Farewell…. My kids. Oops there is no my, you or us.

We are all, just a balloon drifting off to a single direction of hope.

Inhale my words and inflate.

Push yourself to extreme and poke yourself. 

Let your inner air join the atmosphere.

Become the atmosphere my kids.

Farewell…



Ashwin Muralidharan:- Hey people. If you like my story give your valuable comments. 

Crimson Moon

On the day of lunar eclipse

Signs and symbols revealed everything round around me. An obsessive O, a fluffy donut and the reflection of the centripetal CLF bulb reminded the mystic moment that I experienced few days back.

A circle is a perfect significance of symmetry; a prominent measure of satisfaction and literally it is an amalgamation of nothingness and completeness, which is life in itself.

The bell rang so loud, alarming my sensitive sensors to respond to the ambience around me. I stood there gazing at the most mysterious and mystical moment happening before my eyes. It was the lunar eclipse.

For an instant, I felt pity for the paramount television players in the market. The real high definition TV was right through my veranda and this is what I call an eye candy.

But no, my curiosity slapped me to come out of this illusion.  It can be a figment of my imagination or it can be a processed program designed by a higher form of life.

And again my left-brain wanted to follow its sense of imagination.

I said to myself, just let it go.

Some bitter beer, some crispy, crunchy chips and a convenient couch made my sight more comfortable.

The serene celestial painting was black and white. Slowly, it revealed its true colour. To describe in desi tone, I witnessed a vishwaroop that night. The moon got an adrenaline rush and indulged itself into multiple colours.

Here, my spectrum was limited to crimson – the shade of introspection, the shade of distraction and the shade of spotlight.

Yes, it’s the shade of attention. It got my attention for a long time.

As simple as that!

I opened my memory palette and filled it with the crimson ink of memorandum.

This was the best movie I have ever watched. A fictional - anti - fictional movie, that gave me a heavenly experience.

So save your dates and balcony seats, the movie will reach you shortly.

Ashwin Muralidharan:- Hey people. If you like my story give your valuable comments. 

The yellow syndrome

The yellow syndrome

It was broad, long and flat, but mute. It redefined freedom, it reshaped my thoughts, and it realigned my actions, all restricted to four corners. The corners added a perfect symmetry, making me anti-socially squared. I made a turn. Muteness continued. The muteness provoked my sense of judgment. I sat there getting accustomed to the familiar warmth and introspecting myself for many months. Things were just the same. It was like a cruise boat which got stuck and mesmerized by the voice of sirens. I was tripping on an array of attractive stuff which soaked me deeper and deeper into the pits of illusion.

 Yeah, the help alarm rang every morning and night to pull me out of this dimension. It was my 10-10 job. I went closer and closer to know what I was doing and what I was following.  It has been just a targeted deception. Was I making a fool out of myself? Were things meant to end like this?

I went back to my square everyday to analyze what I was doing. Living inside the square was like a solitary existence with loads and loads of drugs to make me elevate and levitate with feelings and fantasies. These walls got engraved with one more persona called Anupam, (My roommate) a perfect buddy to share your craziness. Our moments in the square were hilarious. We were like two fictional characters from a comic book. The time we spent together was like two short lived dragon flies. We slammed our wings again and again inside the square. With some kick to kindle and energy to get us high, we explored all possible options in and around the square.

But, the muteness is a syndrome. It slowly consumes you from inside. Anupam fell for it. Cluttered with confusions and eroded with emotions, he broke his wings to evolve. He drifted away.

What’s next? Image me alone in the square. I was a complete victim for it.

I had no other option than giving in to the muteness. The silence devoured me totally. Surrounded by darkness, all you can see is black.

Black was creepy. Black was scary. Black was mute.

The muteness conveyed a lot to me. It taught me a language only I could speak to myself.

You know what, this was not bad. I started enjoying my isolation. Different personalities popped up inside me and started observing things outside the square.

Black was better. Black was bold. Black was beautiful. It was colorless but powerful.

The black essence seeped into me little by little.

 Like a matured butterfly out of a cocoon, my spectrum widened. I noticed different colorful lifelines. They were hammers and screws.

I got screwed, hammered and then I improvised, overcame and adapted.

Though black was not a block. 

Yellow was a sign to enhance.

Here comes the yellow syndrome. 

First, to be clear, a syndrome is a symptom to indicate disease. Normally people see the reverse effect of syndrome and get panic struck. If you see it in a simple sense it’s a condition to improve your immunity. It’s an alarm to signify change. Then how do I fit in yellow with it?

Yellow gave warmth. Yellow was thought provoking. It was cheerful. It reflected the color of my mind.

I sat straight and observed the series of bustling busters around me. It was like crackers bejeweling the navy blue nights. They were the electromagnetic impulses which diminished the concentration of my black emotions. The darkness got diluted. To call it a cliche – I saw different shades of grey. 

 There was nothing black anymore. No more corners and the muteness broke up with me.

Well grey was out of my choice. According to color psychology and my psychology I named this phase of my life as the yellow syndrome. It was so fresh and pleasant like a new chic next to your cabin. (I wish)

Now things are broader, bolder and better. I was socially circled, expanding my horizon beyond and beyond. Every symbol and symptom were clearly visible around me. These are different steps to scale greater heights. Finally, yellow taught me not to give in or give up.

A square to circle- sounds silly right? That’s what yellow does to you.

Well to put you back on track, what I was trying to say is accept the change. The change is amazing.

A comfort zone will corrode you completely. Change can influence you in any shape, color or situation. It even signals you before it arrives. But, what matters is your attitude, whether to accept it or not.

If you are noticing any symptom or completely puzzled, just accept your situation. Just let it go. Gradually you will find your philosophy out of it.

Change is inevitable. But changing for a change is optional.

I wish you all the best.

See you soon.



Ashwin Muralidharan:- Hey people. If you like my story give your valued comments.