Yugen in A to Z

It’s April of 2024 and Day 25 of the A to Z challenge. This year I am doing the theme of ‘26 Moments’ on my blog. I plan to pull out A to Z parts from diverse set which are more than just the parts and possibly describe the world of their own.  It can be a wonder, an invention, a community, the philosophy, a thought, a lead, a culture, a design, or basically anything that would make one wonder and ponder on.  26 imperfect petite flashes that are amongst and around us.

My everyday will have a selection, description, an eight line poem followed by an interpretation.

---

Day 25:Yugen

There are several Japanese words and concepts that have a deep meaning. Yugen is one of them.  It is a concept borrowed from traditional Japanese aesthetics and these are heavily influenced by Japanese Buddhism. In Buddhism, as I read, everything is considered to be either evolving from or dissolving into nothingness. Yugen is a mysterious sense of the beauty of the universe that triggers a deep emotional response. It could be something as simple as a flock of birds disappearing among the clouds. However I found this particular explanation profoundly touching – “beauty that is only partially perceived, fully felt, barely glimpsed by the viewer”. Yugen is that which exists beyond what can be said and it is also not a reference to another world. It is about our world and our experiences.

The Dragon of Smoke Escaping from Mt Fuji, The beauty of dragon in a smoke.  Image reference: By Katsushika Hokusai – [1] and Jim Breen’s Ukiyo-E Gallery – Hokusai., Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=172499

Poem:
While we see,
Feel and go lost,
Lose and go dreamy,
Is our moment of joy.
There are ones,
Missing every side of it,
Thinking that moment,
Will come again.

Though there is sunrise every morning, it’s never the same. Of that beauty that we get to see is only one side of it. I wonder what everyone else is seeing!  

Tunnel of Love in A to Z

It’s April of 2024 and Day 20 of the A to Z challenge. This year I am doing the theme of ‘26 Moments’ on my blog. I plan to pull out A to Z parts from diverse set which are more than just the parts and possibly describe the world of their own.  It can be a wonder, an invention, a community, the philosophy, a thought, a lead, a culture, a design, or basically anything that would make one wonder and ponder on.  26 imperfect petite flashes that are amongst and around us.

My everyday will have a selection, description, an eight line poem followed by an interpretation.

---

Day 20: Tunnel of Love

We always often fall in love with the routes while we travel for several reasons. What if there is a place where the train travels for 5kms and offers a breath taking scene at all the times of the year – shades of green in summer and spring, palettes of red, orange, brown in autumn and snow in winter. The tunnel of love is in Klevan, Ukraine which starts from Klevan and goes till Northern area of Orzhiv. The route has trees lined up as an arch and railway going in the middle – how fairy tale like is that? History says the train was built for military purposes and the trees were planted because of the cold war. It was later used to deliver wood and the train runs even today. I don’t think we can look for anything else that can qualify for a better – tunnel of love. I would recommend exploring more picture of this beauty on internet.

Image Reference: By Dmytro Chapman – Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=40306776

Poem:
If you hold my hand
And walk along
I will hold your hand
And walk along.
Be there
For each other
And every path
Is tunnel of love.

Love can turn everything into wonders. However, there are places like ‘Tunnel of Love’ that add extra love to the moment. Carry a book, music, or whatever you love to a place and it becomes a happy place.

Everyday Matters

Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus in Mumbai has a long and continued history.

It’s okay, if you feel lost!

Well, now who would agree that the above wonder is the entry to a railway station? It’s altogether a different beauty with lights at night. For me, it’s one of the places that I stand for seconds (many) whenever I visit and feel the charm it carries.

I wonder the effort it took to make it look like that. I wonder what was in the designers mind to weave those intricate complicated designs. I wonder if each part in it has a story that we don’t have ears for. I wonder how satisfying it would have been on the day-end when it stood completed.  I wonder for all the things that I don’t know and would never know the history behind. I wonder who will tell the lost glory!

I have spent a lot of time where I zoom the image and watch carefully each of its parts. I have many such in my collection and it’s this that inspire me to work hard and deliver better every single day.

Wabi-Sabi

It’s April of 2022 and Day 23 of the A to Z challenge. This year, I am doing the theme – “Wordy Wonders.” I am selecting words that have deeper and graceful meanings, from across the globe and an eight-line poem along

Day 23 – Wabi-Sabi

Origin: Japanese

Meaning: The beauty within the imperfections of life and art – an imperfect beauty. The thought of finding beauty in every aspect of imperfection in nature.

Poem

There is always,
A stranger in you,
Looking for perfection,
And another stranger in you.
The only perfect,
Ever to be,
Is possibly,
The wabi-sabi.

We all know the ending. But we still need to live through the parts of the story. That is why imperfections make it worthy of living.

Word Pronunciation: wah-bee-sah-bee

Wallis and Futuna – Islands

It’s April of 2021 and Day 23 of the A to Z challenge. This year, I am doing the theme – “Travel the World.” I am visiting countries from A to Z and presenting stories with 8 line poems.

Day 23 Country: Wallis and Futuna

Wallis and Futuna is a small country, islands, with around 15k population. It is a territory made up of three main volcanic tropical islands and a number of tiny islets. The original inhabitants built forts and other identifiable structures on the islands, many of which are in ruins, but some of which are still partially intact. Only 5% of the islands’ land area consists of arable land. There are some villages in the islands which do not have telephone and internet connection yet (I personally feel that must be a bliss).

Credits: by Anna Vinet – Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=71524224

Poem:

In the land of waters,
Sits a monk,
Defining new seasons,
Guarding aspirations.
Let it go,
Let it grow,
Wait and watch,
The monk and his fable.

We think we can do a better job. We think we can handle it well. But some thrive and grow, only when let free.

Norway – Northern Lights

It’s April of 2021 and Day 14 of the A to Z challenge. This year, I am doing the theme – “Travel the World.” I am visiting countries from A to Z and presenting stories with 8 line poems.

Day 14 Country: Norway

Norway, having one of the lowest crime rates in the world, ranks first on the World Happiness Report. Also, ranks first in better life index, freedom index, public integrity etc. Lofoten in Norway is known for its dramatic scenery – you will be awed by the pictures. Northern lights or Auroras, are pretty famous in Norway. No, not that it’s only Norway where you get to see the northern lights but Tromso in Norway, is widely regarded as one of the world’s best places to see the Northern Lights. Auroras are the result of disturbances in the magnetosphere caused by solar wind. You can see a compiled image below.  

Credits: original uploader was 14jbella at English Wikipedia and Transferred from en.wikipedia to Commons

Poem:

The lights,
That paint the sky,
Like a magic charm,
Like someone there,
Wants us to wait,
Wants us to experience,
The beauty that is,
In every little moments.

It’s not always snow that gives you a chill. I am sure being there, amidst the greens in nothing less than magical.

Beauty, Blind Eyes

This post is written for Three Line Tales Challenge Number 38.  It is a challenge put forth by Sonya from Only 100 Words, where we write a three line tale for the supplied image.

Photo Credit: William Bout

Whenever he was worn-out, he used to stare at this picture and write a new story.

He had scribbled hundreds of stories by now and the picture never lacked a motivation for a new perspective.

Today, he sits at a blind school, explaining this picture and all that flow are tears, not the words!

The Mirror Upside Down

This story is written for Mondays Finish the Story Challenge – 06 April 2015.

Task: For the given image and starting line, complete the story in 100-150 words.

Once upon a time in a land far, far away people had gathered to fix colors to the world to make it look beautiful. It was gathering of two teams.

Team ‘sunrise’ exclaimed; let land be red representing love, let air go blue spreading calmness and let sky show green keeping the nature lively.

Team ‘sunset’ exclaimed; Let sky go red spreading love, let air go blue spreading calmness and let land go green making a better place to live.

Both the arguments had equal weights and investigating to all, God finally said, “Every sunrise has a sunset and hence I declare, beauty lies beneath the eyes” and disappeared.

You can read the stories written by others here by clicking on the blue fellow:

Beauty in Ten Sentences

Thank you themissiontomars for the challenge!

Task: The challenge is to write ten sentences on “Beauty” and each sentence to have “six words” one of which must be “beauty” and ending it with a favorite quote on “beauty“. Also to nominate your friends to participate and spread the “virus“.

My Ten Sentences:

Beauty is of its own kind,
Beauty is the imperfections in bind.

It’s beauty not so known unkind,
It’s beauty everything in our mind.

Skin is beauty, said no one,
Mind is beauty, said every one.

Being strong is beauty, one duty,
Being wrong is beauty, another duty.

Shines of good heart, beauty is!
Power and smile starts, beauty in.

Note: I have shifted the position of beauty after every two sentences. Two more sentences would have made it perfect. I wish some readers will complete it!

Quote:

“Beauty is the imperfection”

Nominations:

I would like to keep it open. Please feel to nominate yourself for the task. I am sure it it no less than fun!