Tag: #nature

The sound of “Silence”


I love the sound of “Silence”.  When you are in the midst of a rain forest, the only sound you hear is that of the dew drops on the tree leaves or the song of the birds.  It makes you reflect in solitude.  The greenery around you makes you fresh like the morning dew.  It energises you and enables you to sync with nature.  The tweaking of the old branches in the cool breeze of the forest or the thumping paws of a wild animal on the morning wet pathway are the only sounds around you.

The farther you are away from the city, the more the forest haunts you.  It makes you realize how much mankind has killed nature in the name of development. The orange forest flame ignites your mind.   The butterflies kindle your imagination. The whistling sound of the wind calms you down and makes you sit up.  All this makes you realize that the pollution of the traffic and noise of the roads do not drain you any more.  It is the fragrance of the forest, which soothes your soul here.

I got up early in the morning, went for a short walk and then a therupatic ayurvedic massage rejuvenated my body.  The breakfast filled my stomach and then it was time to sit and reflect in this lap of nature. When you are drowned in the noise of the city, your thoughts get choked, your emotions drained and mind wanders in the quest for materiality of life.  You forget to live life to its full potential.

What does nature offer us ?  We have huge trees giving us oxygen, the leaves brightening our sight, the birds singing the melody and the smell of the forest calming our mind.  You realize that nature has so much to give us and we give nothing back in return.  On the contrary, we give back trash, pollution, noise and tonnes of plastic to ruin the earth.

I can be myself when I am in the lap of nature.  It brings out the best in me.  It can connect the mind, body and soul.  It brings you closer to God. It makes you realize the power of the super power.  The sunlight appears brighter, the air is cooler and the music of nature is melodious. The environment makes your reflective.  You are willing to be one with nature.

Why do we ruin nature inspite of all that she gives us every day ?  I have no answer except to believe that human beings are greedy. We always want more from nature than we give back.  We want life to be better every day and are willing to squeeze all the natural resources around us without worrying on how we could nurture nature for the future.

It is time to wake up.  It is time to commit that we will give back at least half of what we get from nature.  We can make simple commitments.  We will not pollute the environment around us.  We will live more organically.  We will reduce the use of plastic.  We minimise the use of cars, bikes and aeroplanes.  We will plant more trees and nurture nature in all possible ways.

We need to remember that our kids will get what we leave behind.  Our fore fathers gave us such a beautiful world.  We need to commit to leave behind a better world for our future generations.

S Ramesh Shankar

Learning from the Elephant


The elephant is one of the most fascinating animals in our life. It epitomises power and vitality.  It is tall and strong and one of the best friends of man.  It has multiple facets of its personality.  It disproves the myth that being a vegetarian, you cannot be strong and healthy.  It is useful in transportation in the forests and also helps human movement in difficult terrains.

Each part of the elephant teaches us something.  Its tall and strong personality emphasises the need to be like that in real life to face all of life challenges.  Its healthy body proves that vegetarianism is not a deterrent to good health.  Its tusks tells us to be ready in self defence in case of any enemy attack.  Its height teaches us how useful it is to deal with everyone around you.  Its calmness teaches you not to panic unless attacked.  Its wagging tail teaches you to be grateful in life to everyone.

In the temples, the elephant is used as the guardian of the Lord and also blesses everyone with its long trunk.  It is also used to take the God in processions around the town during festivals and fairs.  In the forest, the elephant by it sheer size can even scare a tiger.  So, in tiger resorts, elephants are used to spot the tiger and go near them to admire them.

In the villages, the elephant is also used in the agricultural fields to transport produce and goods.  It can also be useful to guard the villagers from wild animals and attack by dacoits and intruders.  It can help in pulling carts and also defending in any type of attacks.  History tells us that elephants were used in wars against enemies.  Their loyalty is unquestioned.  

What are the qualities one can learn from the elephant ?  You can learn to be loyal.  Loyalty of an elephant to her master is for their lifetime.  Their calmness in normal circumstances can teach us to be patient and unrfuffled in life.  They turn violent only when attacked and that too in self defence.  It may be worthwhile to know they can run at 40 km per hour despite being bulky and even swim non stop. The elephant is caring and one can learn to bestow motherly love from them. 

We have an opportunity to learn from all the animals and birds around us.  But we neither have the time to admire them nor the patience to learn from them.  I was in an elephant orphanage in Sri Lanka recently and this gave me an opportunity to learn from the elephant.  One of man’s best friend, an elephant can teach a lot to us, which other human beings may not be able to.   It is time to sit back and learn from them.

Long live the Elephant.

S Ramesh Shankar

To be with Nature ……..

Our life has become hectic today. Most of us live in cities not by choice but because of better opportunities and facilities. We are surrounded by concrete all around.

We begin our day by looking at other buildings and cars and trucks on the road. We are impacted by the pollution all around us. Many times, we are not able to even go for a walk or pursue any hobby of our choice.

We do not have the time to even admire the beauty of nature. However, I am lucky to live just opposite to the Arabian Sea in Mumbai. It has been a dream come true for me. The largeness of the ocean keeps me grounded. As I set to office, I am again in the midst of traffic and pollution. Even at work, it is just concrete all around and hardly any trees, flowers or birds to admire.

I sometimes wonder whether it is worth leaving our villages or towns to a distant land in search of a vocation. Although, it is true that most of us have moved to cities more by the call of duty rather than our preferred choice, it is sad that we miss nature all around us every day of our lives.

I had been spent three weeks recently in a village on the outskirts of Coimbatore in south India. It is surrounded by the western ghats. I woke up to the call of the rooster and then hear the melodious sounds of birds with the morning coffee. When I go for a stroll, I see peacocks, cattle, birds and other animals co-existing peacefully and harmoniously with the villagers around them. If I look around, we have green banana groves or rice fields ready for the next sowing season. I can hear the sound of the train gushing through the horizon on the hill side. The western ghats are daunting and beautiful in the backdrop. They make you realize that as human beings we are tiny tots in front of them.

The happy and contended people around makes you realize that it is not money and material facilities alone, which keeps you happy in life. You sync with nature and enjoy the smell of the earth and the song of the birds around you.

I also wonder how we have have forgotten to enjoy these small and beautiful things in life. We justify ourselves by stating that we are working hard and building the future for our families and so on.

I would recommend that each of us should spend at least one week every year in the hills or the plains in the villages and be with nature. We may not realize what we miss unless we experience it.

Let us be humble and enjoy the beautiful things Mother Nature provides us.

S Ramesh Shankar