The year was 1290 . A crowd had gathered around a clearing, where broken down pillars marked the presence of an ancient temple, now long gone. A young boy, just 14 years old, leaned against one of those pillars, deep in thought. Then, he began speaking, and the crowd fell silent, listening to his every word. He spoke without any notes, translating the Bhagavat Gita, from Sanskrit, which only the pundits knew, to the language everyone in the village knew and spoke – a variety of Prakrit which developed into the Marathi language. Even as he spoke, one of the men in the audience realized how momentous this event was, and how important this composition would be. He began writing down the words the young boy spoke, and this composition was named by its author and composer, the Bhavartha Deepika – the enlightening meaning (of the Bhagavat Gita). Now, the ancient, holy text, was no longer restricted to the pundits, but accessible to all, understood easily by them, composed as it was, in their...
It has been a while since I posted photos of birds, so here is one I see the most these days - the Oriental Magpie Robin.
There are three of these birds in our garden, and I see them frequently flying around, and can hear their distinctive, melodious call even before I see them! Capturing them on camera, however, has been another matter entirely, and I managed these only because the birds were nice enough to sit on the window ledge near my house, and also pose for a while on the tree right opposite my window!
There are three of these birds in our garden, and I see them frequently flying around, and can hear their distinctive, melodious call even before I see them! Capturing them on camera, however, has been another matter entirely, and I managed these only because the birds were nice enough to sit on the window ledge near my house, and also pose for a while on the tree right opposite my window!
Nice little birds. Nice photos, well taken..
ReplyDeleteThanks Shalu!
DeleteSuch womderful captures, extra special as they are birds and that means a lot of patience :D
ReplyDeleteThanks Mridula! for such reasonably big birds, they are hard to capture! am unsuccessfully trying now for the purple sunbird. its flitting around, but cant get an image!
DeleteMy God! I can't believe it! In Mumbai? What lovely luck, Anu :))
ReplyDeleteWe are lucky to live in an area which is covered with greenery, Julia! tho it comes with its share of problems! and this one is a regular visitor...
DeleteLucky you to get visitors like them. :)
ReplyDeleteYes, Indrani! we are indeed lucky to see such beauties!
DeleteBeautiful bird.. I think ot is cached in Dandeli Jungle.
ReplyDeleteThank you for sharing with us.
Thank you, Madhukar... this is quite a common bird, seen everywhere in India.
DeleteNice... I miss the sounds of birds chirping (even crow)! You must be hearing that all the time, no?
ReplyDeleteoh yes, Neeraj! birds chirp here all the time , as for crows, they are here all day long!
DeleteSo pretty!!
ReplyDelete