If only I met Thee

If Only I met Thee

Today, My Gurudev, H H Sri Sri Ravi Shankarji embarked on His second peace mission to Pakistan .He is traveling to share His message of peace , love and joy with our brothers and sisters across the border.

I feel a deep connection of some sorts with Pakistan.

For starters , my husband Ajays family relocated to India from Peshawar in 1947.
Many late night family conversations with his grandmother would be about the havelis ( large family homes) left behind, the grandeur of life , & the warm large hearted nature of the Pathans. Through her stories and memories, I felt like I virtually toured those beautiful mountainous terrains and met the people of a country , who in color and look were not very different from me.

More recently, in a rather unexpected setting, I had a chance to come face to face with some youngsters of the same nation , when Mumbai was attacked by terrorists on the dreadful night of 26/11/2008.We were caught in the Taj Mahal Hotel and were rescued safe only 14 hours later.

This incident made a big impact on the world . Nations erupted in anger and humanity cried hoarse about the most severe punishments to be meted out for this unthinkable act of terrorism

The incident also left a big impact on me. As the anger and shock started to subside, I would spend many sleepless nights wondering why anyone would engage in a inhuman carnage like this ?

What would be the mindset of these people who could almost robotically destroy lives ?
Who were these young boys and what made them turn to this path?
Can this be avoided ?
Can peace and love prevail ?
Even if we belong to diverse ,cultures, religions & nations, can we coexist harmoniously ,because we are after all one human race?

For me , the answer is a resounding Yes!

This Yes is being made possible by spiritual masters like Gurudev, who are traveling the length and breadth of the world spreading the message of love and peace. His knowledge and simple breathing techniques transforming the lives of millions of people , so the people of the world can live a stress free, peaceful and joyful life of meaning. He is in a hurry , so that hearts may blossom in love before hands pick up a fight.

Let us reach love in every corner of the world, before hate reaches there, so our world becomes a more beautiful place to live in

I penned a few of these thoughts in a poem titled "If only I met thee".

"If only I met thee"
You must have
been a cute baby
had a favorite toy
chased little chicken with glee

I was just like that too, Though I never met thee

You must have
had a best friend
made paper boats in the rains loved the fluffed up hot puri *

I was just like that too, Though I never met thee

You must have
loved the warm cuddles of your mother
had joyful rides on the rickety merry go round
cracked fresh winter mungphali **

I was just like that too, Though I never met thee

Then when did our lives change?
How different our paths became
I turned to spirituality to heal minds
You picked up the gun against mankind?
At our cores we were still the same
Though I never met thee

That night we came face to face
I thought it would be nice to meet thee

I ran fast, only away from you
coz you had come to kill me

Later I read that you died instead
While I live on to a greater destiny
My faith was more powerful than your weapon
When you came to kill me

You taught the world that violence never wins
No one should be where you have ever been
I am sure your heart knew you were wrong
Then why did you come to kill me?

Your hatred has made my love stronger
I will work more for peace and harmony
You would have been a different person too
If only I had met thee!

*fried wheat pancake ** groundnuts

# Today is also the 20th year anniversary of the serial Mumbai blasts of 1993 , when as a young MBA who had joined a foreign bank, I missed the Air India building blast by a few minutes. For all the loss of life and property, those culprits are still at large