Fulbright requires J1 Visa

This essentially means that you will only get visa for the duration of your study and will have to immediately return after the completion of your program. This also means that you won’t be able to engage in any OPT afterwards.

Fulbright requires excellent health

As the website states, you’d require a physician’s letter testifying this. The letter, however, does not necessarily mention that you are in excellent health. Instead, an accurate evaluation of your current health issues (diabetic, blood pressure, arthritis etc) is desired by the selection committee. They seek this in order to ensure that there is enough funding for your medications so that you may complete your studies with ease.

You can work while in Fulbright scholarship

While the stipend provided by the Fulbright scholarship is more than enough for your sustenance, you can still work as TA/RA or any other job for limited number of hours subject to J1 employment clauses.

You might not necessarily get your choice of University

Yes, you are encouraged to apply to ambitious programs such as in MIT, Havard etc but you’d only get the scholarship if the funding allows it. In case you are selected for Fulbright program, the committee might ask you to select other universities depending upon how much fund they have on hand.

Fulbright is a Masters’ Program

Sadly, it means that you can’t go for a PhD. Curiously, there have been a few cases where applicants went to a PhD program with Fulbright funding for the first few years.

Fulbright requires work experience

This work experience is counted only after you’ve obtained your marksheet for the final year (i.e. transcript and not the actual certificate). If you started working even before your results were announced, it sadly doesn’t count towards your work experience.

You can still go on Fulbright even after completing your Masters

If you’ve already completed your masters from anywhere except USA, you are eligible to apply. If you’ve already completed Masters from USA, you do not qualify.

Fulbright’s GPA requirements are different

If you’ve done four years of Bachelors, only your GPA/Percentage from Bachelors is considered. If you’ve done three years of Bachelors and then also done Masters, then the average of the GPA/Percentage is calculated.

A charming and hypothetical friend of mine suddenly exclaimed, breaking the reigning silence, “Lord Ram was wrong!”

I lazily replied, “Yes, he was.”

My friend, taken aback by my apparent disinterest, pushed on,

राम चन्द्र कह गए सिया से,
ऐसा कलियुग आएगा,
हंस चुगेगा दाना तुन का
कौवा मोती खाएगा

“Do you get it?” He asked with bubbling excitement which was surprising considering the fact that the one imagining this conversation was a picture of lethargy.

“Nope,” I answered, trying in vain to impart him some of my disinterest.

Didn’t work.

“And so tells Lord Ram to Seeta that a reversal of fortune shall occur. The white swan shall eat husks while the black crow shall feast on pearls,” he explained

“So?” I asked, now with a smudge of interest.

“Lord Ram was entirely wrong!” He reiterated his epiphany.

“In explaining the KaliYug, he has taken the metaphor of the fate of two birds. He says that Swan — the white and the pure — shall suffer while Crow — the black and the wicked — shall prosper. However, this metaphor is entirely incorrect!” He concluded.

“Why do you think so?” I imagined myself getting up.

“Swan, which is supposed to represent someone deserving, is not actually the example of pure or innocent. They are vicious creatures known to attack with extreme prejudice under the slightest or even non-existent threat to their eggs. Whereas, crows are immensely intelligent avians that are known to bring gifts to their benefactors and come together to defend their kin under peril.

“So you see! It’s actually the crows that are good guys here. I mean, it’s what? Twenty first century? We have finally learned to look past the color and form opinions based on an individual’s merit.

“If we use that same lens in this narrative, Swans — bad guys — get husks whereas the Crows — much more deserving — get to feast on the pearls. Which is to say, everything is right with the world and not starkly opposite as what Lord Ram tried to convey.”

Having said his part, my hypothetical friend, who was now a picture of intellectual smugness, paused for my reply.

That was a compelling argument, I must confess. However, far be it from someone of my own creation to easily sway my opinion towards the virtuous Rama.

“You know,” I started, “Most people would have taken those words at their face value. But you didn’t. You reasoned, you argued, you evaluated and then reinterpreted that, which has multiple layers to it.”

“Thank you, I pride myself in my critical ana-”

“But!” I interjected. “Having done so, you actually fudged everything up. What Ram said was entirely true and you have missed your mark by Kilometers.”

“How can that be!?” My friend shot back, “My reasoning is sound. Totally unlike how Kali Yug is supposed to be, Crow the intellect getting pearls and Swan the aggressive getting husks is, I dare say, seamlessly aligned with the principle of Dharma and Karma. That example is wrong.”

“Oh?” I said, taking a coin of Five rupees from my pockets, “Here, eat this.”

My friend looked at me incredulously, then gaped like a goldfish for a few seconds and intonated, “Are you barking mad? How am I supposed to eat metal?”

“And do tell, my supposedly critical and analytical cooked up figment of imagination, how is a crow supposed to feast on pearls?

“Crow is virtuous, true, but goes hungry. Swan, which is undeserving, as you said, gets a full belly. Is this not how KaliYug supposed to be? How is Lord Ram wrong here?”

My friend thought for a moment… tried to come back with an appropriate retort… and at the end, deciding that he has had enough of this silly game of one sided dialogue with a madman, un-imagined himself. I have since tried to bring him up in my daydreams once or twice, to no avail. Meh, I’ll just let him calm down for a few months.

Time: 9:57 PM

Look, I’ll be honest with you, I am not that great of a writer. In fact, I cringe when reading some of the things that I have written in the past. Not all of it, of course. Some are good, I’ll admit. Boast even. But hey, this is besides the point.

You’ll ask me, hey Pravesh, why so much of introspection today? Anything special? And I’ll answer. Nope. I always introspect. It’s nothing to do with a special day. The sole reason that I began like how I began was to teach you about a single most important thing. How to write.

Yes. Most of you have got a great potential. Much greater than my puny one. But while I boast about five or six articles under my belt (relatively unknown, but published publicly (yes, I mean Medium) nonetheless). What about you though? What do you do with that potential of yours? Barbecue it in winter and gulp it up with the wine of i-am-just-not-good-enough?

Look, writing is a simple thing really. There’s nothing much to it, you just gotta write. Yes! It’s that simple! Why do you think I mentioned the time in the very beginning of this article? It was the exact time when I started writing this and I want you to take my word for it (however flimsy you might consider it) that it was the correct time of my beginning of this writing. You know what I thought when I started writing this? Hey, why don’t I write? And that’s what I’m doing. I’m writing.

Granted that alcohol sometimes makes it easier. It’s truly fascinating that they somehow managed to bottle courage as a liquid. Science, huh? But the greater thing is your willingness. You just have to do it man, really. Vocabulary is also quite important. You gotta think your vocab as your special little pouch where you keep your feelings. After all, writing is about expressing yourself. So the more words that you have, the more you can express succinctly.

It also brings me on to the next topic. Be concise. No one wants to read a wall of text that conveys very little meaning. It’d just be a waste of time. You gotta be engaging. Don’t confuse it with humor though! It’s an entirely different concept. Engaging is like presenting what you want to present in a way that just doesn’t bore your audience. Humor is about making them laugh.

I am a few minutes into writing this blabber and look at how much progress I’ve made! It helps if you have a fast typing speed :D :D (120 wpm, I am shitting you not). You know, I tend to speak faster than most. Those who meet me have a tendency of repeating “I’m sorry, what!” I consciously dial down my speech rate but whenever I get excited, I just end up muttering blabbering this really rapid unintelligible garbage. To all those who have faced that part of me. Sorry guys.

Now to wrap it up. Do you realize what I have done? I have written. And written it really fast. Of course, I’ll end up cringing when I read this later but hey, for now, I wrote something and that is what counts really. I want you to know that if and when you repeat this kind of tomfoolery often, you’ll eventually end up writing some things that will not make you cringe after all. And that, ladies and gentlemen, would be a pleasure to read. Would it not?

Time: 10:10

पेशाले उनी ज्योतिष थिएनन् । उनी त एउटा सानो प्राथमिक विद्यालयका शिक्षक मात्रै। तर बनारसमा शिक्षा आर्जन गर्ने क्रममा, ज्योतिष पनि सिकेरै आएका थिए। सुरुसुरुमा गाँउका मान्छेहरुको चिना हेरिदिने, न्वारनको नाम जुराइदिने, शुभ साइतहरु निकालिदिने गर्दागर्दै उनको ख्याति बढेको थियो। बनारसमा उनले कति ज्योतिष सिकेका थिए त कसैलाई थाहा थिएन तर जति पनि सिके, अद्भुत नै सिके भन्ने सबैको विचार थियो। जे भने पनि ठ्याक्कै नै मिलाइदिन्थे! सरकारी जागिर लाग्छ कि लाग्दैन भन्ने देखि यसपाली छोरा हुने कि छोरी भन्ने सम्म जान्नका लागि वरपरका गाउले उनको आँगन नै ढुकेर बस्थे !

केहिले सुखद् समाचार पाउँथे, धेरैले दुखद् पनि।

“गाई त किनिस हेर श्यामे, तर यो तेरो गाई बाँच्दैन। तैले व्यापार गर्दा राहु काल चलेको थियो, त्यो कालमा केहि पनि शुभ गर्नै हुँदैन्थ्यो! राहुको नजर ठ्याक्कै तेरो गाईमा परिगो हेर। विरामी पनि त्यही कारणले नै भएको हो। अब, मैले चै केहि उपाय देखिन हेर, के गर्छस र, आखिर सब प्रोभिडेन्स त हो।”

यता श्यामेले प्रोभिडेन्स के हो गुरु भनेर सम्म पनि सोध्न नभ्याउदै उसको गाई बितेको समाचार पनि आइहाल्यो। त्यतिखेर भगवानदास पनि सार्है खिन्न भएका थिए।

“कहिलेकाहि त यो ज्योतिष विद्या पनि श्राप नै हो जस्तो लाग्छ, प्रोभिडेन्स न पर्यो, कहिले राम्रो कहिले नराम्रो, फेरि देखेको पनि बताउनै पर्यो।”

साच्चिकै भगवानदासको ज्योतिष श्राप थियो वा दैवि वरदान, त्यसको समिक्षा गर्न त सायद उनले पनि आजिवन सकेनन् तर एउटा कुरा चै प्रस्टै थियो, उनको ज्योतिष साचिकै अभुतपुर्व थियो। विदेश जानेहरु र बिहे जुर्नेहरुको भविश्यवाणी गरेबापत लड्डु त उनले कति खाए कति, त्यहि कारणले पछि उनलाई सुगर पनि भयो।

“नआत्तेव न हौ,” भगवानदासले त्यसताका आफ्ना परिवारजनलाई भनेका थिए, “मेरो हाल यो सङ्कटा दसा चलिरहेको छ । अलि अलि रोगब्याधि त्यसैकारण हो। यो दसा जाने बित्तिकै सुगर पनि जाइजान्छ।”

तर उनले जति जे भन्दा पनि परिवार मानेनन्, आखिर उनको उपचार गराउन काठमाण्डौ ल्याइ छाडे।

गजब छ प्रोभिडेन्स पनि, उपचारकै क्रममा काठमाण्डौको विर अस्पतालमा उनको भविष्यले अनौठो फड्को मार्यो। उनी जचाउन गएकै डाक्टरको मा अर्का महाशय पनि जचाउन आएका रहेछन। सरकारि डाक्टर अब आउने कहिले कहिले भनि कुरिरहेकै बेला दुइ सज्जन विच कुराकानि सुरु भयो। ति महाशय पनि मिजासिला नै रहेछन, मज्जाले नै कुरा गरे। कुरा कै सिलसिलामा, भगवानदासले तिनको जन्म मिति, स्थान र समयकै भरमा तिनको नालिबेलि खोलिदि हाले।

“ओहो हजुर, यहालाई त नशाकै समस्याको सङ्केत छ हेर्नुस। तपाईको राशिका स्वामिलाई अहिले अर्कै ग्रहले वक्रदृष्टि लगाइरहेछ। तपाईलाई त यो समस्याले दुख दिने देखिन्छ। स्वास्नीलाई पनि यहि समस्या देखा पर्छ जस्तो छ। चिना ले चै यहि बताईरहेछ।” रोग, व्याधि देखि लिएर सन्तान र दाम्पत्य सम्मको कुरा मिलाईदिए भगवानदासले। ती महाशय त ट्वा नै परे।

त्यसको भोलिपल्ट, जसरि ती महाशय ट्वा परेका थिए, भगवानदास पनि ट्वा परे। कारण, भगवानदासलाई लिन उनको घरमै चिल्ला चिल्ला गाडि लिएर मान्छेहरु आए। पछि पो थाहा भयो, साधारण वस्त्र लगाउने ति महाशय त राजदरबार का ठुला भारदार पो रहेछन! भगवानदास गाडी चढेर दरबार गए, चिना हेरे, भविष्यवाणि गरे र हेर्दा हेर्दै सुगर जचाउन गाँउबाट आएका उनि प्रोभिडेन्स कै कारण राजज्योतिश बन्न पुगे।

त्यसपछि त के थियो र?उनको भविष्यवाणि मिल्दै गयो र राजपरिवारमा उनको ख्यातिसमेत बढ्दै गयो। हेर्दाहेर्दै परिस्थिति यस्तो भयो कि दरबारमा जुनसुकै शुभ कार्य हुँदा पनि उनको राय लिनै पर्थ्यो। बिस्तारै उनको दरबारभित्रको ख्याति दरबार बाहिर पोखिदै गयो। पत्रपत्रिकामा उनका वाणि र ज्योतिष सम्बन्धी व्याख्याहरु प्रकाशन हुन सुरु भए। रेडियोमा, टिभिमा, उनी कार्यक्रम सञ्चालन गर्न समेत पुगे। ठुलाठुला ज्योतिष सम्मेलनमा उनी विशेष अतिथि समेत भए।

“सबै कुरा प्रोभिडेन्स हो। मानिसको जन्मदेखि लिएर मृत्युको घडि, पल र निमेश सम्म पनि भाविले लेखिदिएको हुन्छ।” एउटा सम्मेलनमा उनले भनेका थिए। “अब मेरै कुरा गर्नुस न, ठ्याक्कै ७२ वर्ष पुगेको तेस्रो दिनमा मेरो आयु समाप्त हुन्छ। म ठोकेरै भन्न सक्छु! मानिसको प्रोभिडेन्स अकाट्य छ।”

उनले अरु पनि धेरै कुरा भनेका थिए, जसमध्ये एउटा थियो, “नेपालमा राजा र राजसंस्थाको अमरत्व कायम नै रहने छ। हेर्नुस, राजा र प्रजाको बिच यो सुमधुरता अबको सयौ वर्षसम्म कायम रहने छ भन्ने भविश्यवाणी छ मेरो!”

अफसोस, भगवानदासले गरेका हजारौ भविष्यवाणी मध्ये, त्यहि एउटा चै फेल खाइदियो। उनले सो मन्तव्य देको ६ महिना नबित्दै राजसंस्थामा त्यो घटना भइदियो। त्यसपछि राज्यको संस्थागत परिवर्तन समेत भयो। मान्छेहरु लोकतन्त्र, गणतन्त्र, संघियताको नारा लगाउन थाले र अन्तत: राजसंस्था लोप हुनगयो।

आज, भगवानदास ७२ वर्ष पुगेको ठ्याक्कै तेस्रो दिन थियो। घरको छतमाथि सधै झै उनि साझको हावा खान भनि उक्लिएका थिए। संकटाको दसा उनको सायद अझै सकिएको थिएन किनभने उनी अझै सुगर बारिरहेका थिए। राजसंस्थाको लोप सँगै उनको ख्याति पनि गुमेको थियो। प्राय त उनलाई कसैले याद पनि राखेको थिएनन् तर याद गर्नेहरु पनि उनलाई राजसंस्थाको अमरत्वको दावि गर्ने पाखण्डी ज्योतिष भनेर सम्झन्थे। उनलाई खासै मतलब पनि थिएन, आखिर सबै कुरा प्रोभिडेन्स नै थियो। ख्याति पाउनु, गुमाउनु, जिउनु, मर्नु, सब थोक प्रोभिडेन्स हो भन्ने उनको मान्यता स्थिर नै थियो।

उनी एकछिन छतमा यस्तै कुराहरु गम्दै टहलिए। तेस्रो तलाको घर थियो, छत वरपर केटाकेटिको सुरक्षाको लागि दर्है रेलिङ्ग हालिएको थियो। एउटा ठाँउमा भने अलि लिरिलिरि गरेर हल्लिने भएको थियो। भोलि नै मिस्त्री बोलाएर मर्मत गर्नुपर्यो भनेर भगवानदासले सोचे पनि। खाना खाने बेला हुन पो लाग्यो कि भनेर घडी पनि हेरे। बेलामा गएन भने फेरी बुढीले कराईहाल्थी।

तर उनी त्यस रात खाना खान गएनन्।

भोलीपल्टै एउटा पत्रिकाको कुनामा सानो खबर प्रकाशित भयो:

घरको रेलिङ्गमा अडेसा लाग्दा रेलिङ्ग भाचिइ तेस्रो तलाबाट खसेर एकको मृत्यु।

यो लेख सुरु गर्नु भन्दा पहिले नै तपाईलाई जानकारी गराउँदछु, यसले डाइरिया दिनसक्छ। भन्नुको मतलब, यो लेखमा भएको कुरा तपाईलाई नपच्न सक्छ। त्यसो भएमा इनो खानुस, राम्रो काम गर्छ… मेरो पर्सनल अनुभव हो।

रहिमन बात अगम्य कि, कहन सुनन् कि नाहि,
जे जानत ते ना कहत, जे कहत ते जानत् नाहि।।

कहिल्यै सद्गुरुका वचन शेयर गर्नु भएको छ फेसबुकमा? अथवा अोसोका? वा अन्य कोहि महापुरुषका विचार विमर्श? शेयर गर्दा वहाँहरुको वचन मन परेरै गर्नु भएको होला। सक्दो ती दिव्य वाणीहरुलाई आफ्नो आचरणमा पनि उतार्नु भएको होला। राम्रो हो। आफुलाई मन परेको कुराको अनुसरण गर्नुपर्छ, साथीहरुलाई सुनाउनु पनि पर्छ, अनि सकेसम्म यत्र तत्र सर्वत्र शेयर समेत गर्नु पर्छ। सत्संग, अर्थात, सन्त महात्माहरुको संगत गर्नु भनेर त परापुर्व काल देखिन् नै सबैले भन्दै, सुन्दै नै आएका छन। तर… भनेको र सुनेको, गर्नै पर्छ र?

मलाई मन परेको एउटा सानो संवाद छ, हर्मन हेस्सेको सिद्धार्थ नामक उपन्यासबाट। नपढ्नु भएकाहरुको हितमा वा पढेर पनि ठ्याक्कै याद नहुनसक्नेहरुको सुविधाको लागि, म यहाँ सो संवाद संक्षेपिकरण गर्दैछु।

सिद्धार्थ नामको युवक सत्यको खोजमा एकदिन गौतम बुद्ध भएको ठाँउमा पुग्छ। बुद्धलाई देख्ने बित्तिकै, सिद्धार्थले महसुस गर्दछ कि यो मानिस दिव्य छ, र यसले साच्चिकै नै अगम्य बुझेको छ। तथापि, बुद्धको शरणमा केहि समय व्यतित गरिसकेपछि, सिद्धार्थले बुद्धको आश्रम छाडेर जाने विचार गर्दछ। यसै सन्दर्भमा आश्रम छाड्नुअघि, सिद्धार्थले बुद्धलाई भन्छ:

“हे मानवश्रेष्ठ, तपाईले आफ्नै जप, तप, ध्यान, ज्ञान, सोच, समझ, खोज, विचार र संघर्ष मार्फत अन्तत: मोक्ष प्राप्त गर्नुभएको छ… कसैको अनुसरण गरेर हैन। र — मेरो बुझाइमा — कसैले कसैको शिक्षादिक्षा मार्फत अगम्य प्राप्त गर्न पनि सक्दैन। त्यो दिव्य क्षणमा के व्यतित भएको थियो, तपाईले कसैलाई बताउन वा सुनाउन पनि सक्नु हुन्न। तपाईले दिने ज्ञान त केवल हितकारि मात्र छ, आनन्दकारि मात्र छ… तर, हे मानवश्रेष्ठ, मोक्षकारी कदापि छैन्।”

(अनुवाद गर्नै भएपनि, सानोमा स्वस्थानी पढेको काम लागि छाड्यो आखिर)।

सिद्धार्थ के भन्दैछन् भने, बुद्धको अनुसरण गरेर, उनी ज्ञानी र सज्जन मानिस त बन्लान तर बुद्ध कहिल्यै बन्ने छैनन् र बुद्धत्व कहिल्यै महसुस गर्ने छैनन्। कथामा सिद्धार्थले अन्तत: मोक्ष पाएको वर्णन पनि छ, तर त्यो यँहा अटाउँदैन। रुचि हुनेहरुलाई सो उपन्यास नै पढ्न आग्रह छ।

भनिन्छ भाषा भनेको मानव प्रजातिको स्रवोत्कृष्ठ आविश्कार हो। यहि मात्र एउटा यस्तो विशेषता छ हामीमा, जसको कारण हामीले पृथ्वीउपर विजय हासिल गरेका छौँ। आफुमा रहेको ज्ञान अरुलाई सहजै समन्वय गर्नसक्नु भनेको कुनै सामान्य कुरा हैन। शिकार र शिकारी को बारे इत्तिला गर्नु देखि लिएर, भावना, कला, साहित्य इत्यादि जस्ता अमुर्त अवधारणाहरु समेत एकआपसमा बाड्न सक्नु भनेको साच्चैमा अद्भुत हो। तर, भाषामै सबैकुरा समेटिन्न।

उदाहरणको लागि, समय भनेको के हो? यसको परिभाषा के हो? एकछिन आफै सोच्नुस।

सोच्नुभएन, थाहा छ मलाई, अल्छे जो हुनुहुन्छ। एनिहाउ, समय भनेको घडि त अवश्य हैन। त्यो त समयको सुचक मात्र हो। समय भनेको बुढापा पनि होइन, त्यो समयको असर मात्र हो। समय भनेको भुत, भविश्य र वर्तमान पनि होइन, ति त समय वर्गिकरणका अधुरा प्रयासमात्र हुन्।

कस्तो विडम्बना छ। समय के हो भनेर भलिभाति थाहा छ, तर अहिले ठ्याक्कै के हो भनेर भन्न पनि सकेको छैन। समय भनेको के हो त? भन्दा खेरिन…

समय अगम्य हो

अगम्य भनेको — मेरो बुझाइमा — त्यस्तो कुरा, जुन पढेर जान्न सकिदैँन, बुझेर बुझ्न सकिदैँन… सकिन्छ, त केवल महशुस गर्न मात्र। अगम्य भनेको भाषाको परिधि बाहिर रहने कुरा।

साच्चिकै, समय अगम्य हो। जीवन् अगम्य हो। शुन्य अगम्य हो। र ईश्वर अगम्य हो।

अब कुरा फेरि ओशो र सद्गुरुकै (घुमिफिरि रुम्झाटार)। के बताउछन् तिनिहरु? असल कसरि बन्ने भनेर? शान्ती कसरि हासिल गर्ने भनेर? वा सफलता को बारेमा केहि? त्यस्तो हो भने सुन्नुस। खुब सुन्नुस। आचरणमा उतार्नुस। राम्रो बन्नुस, सफल बन्नुस, शिष्ट बन्नुस र शान्त बन्नुस।

तर एकचोटि गहिरिएर सुन्नुस, काहि जीवन के हो भनेर त सिकाउँदैनन्? चेतन र अचेतन के हो भनेर त बताउँदैनन्? आत्मा के हो भनेर त चिनाउँदैनन्? र इश्वर के हो भनेर त बुझाउँदैनन्? यदि कसैले पनि यस्तो भनेको सुन्नु भयो भने, एक चोटि सन्त रहमान ले भनेका वचन याद गर्नुस।

रहिमन बात अगम्य कि, कहन सुनन् कि नाहि,
जे जानत ते ना कहत, जे कहत ते जानत् नाहि।।

Note: This is only tested in heroku-16 and not in cedar-14 (fyi).

Steps

Add heroku-apt-buildpack using the command:

heroku buildpacks:add --index 1 https://github.com/heroku/heroku-buildpack-apt

Create a file named as Aptfile in your app directory and paste the following:

tesseract-ocr
tesseract-ocr-eng

Note that tesseract-ocr-eng is the language file for tesseract. If you want to enable languages other than English, you’ll have to specify it accordingly (e.g. tesseract-ocr-spa for Spanish).

Next you’ll have to set a heroku config variable named TESSDATA_PREFIX. This is the path to the data downloaded by the tesseract-ocr-eng package.

heroku config:set TESSDATA_PREFIX=/app/.apt/usr/share/tesseract-ocr/tessdata

If for some reasons, this does not works out for you, you’ll have to find the path of the tessdata directory yourself. To do this, go to your heroku shell using heroku run bash and run the following command:

find -iname tessdata

Then you can change your TESSDATA_PREFIX config accordingly.

Hope this helps out!

As my friend Krishna put it one fine evening while high on sugar from the masala tea both of us were having,

“life is all about taking one’s own path.”

“You won’t find me arguing,” I supported; but he was not finished.

“Imagine two flower pots on either side of a window,”

This tea is too sweet, I am never going to lose my weight this way, I nodded.

“See, a sentient flower on the right side would lean towards its left to seek the sunlight. But if the flower on the left, copies its neighbor and leans the same direction then it would never get the sunlight!”

Should I really join BSc? What if it’s too tough? What if I can’t manage the time?
I nodded again.

“There you have it then; each individual has his own path. Following others will never lead you to the sunlight.”

“But what if it’s a fern?” I asked.

He ended up paying for the tea.

“Mother, what is up there?” a small boy dressed in animal hide asked his mother in what one could call a primitive language. His mother smiled at him and answered softly, “That is the shiny orb, silly child. It shines at night when the fiery red ball has disappeared.”

“But mother, why does the shiny orb only shine when the red ball has disappeared?” The child asked, brimming with curiosity.

“Because of the great hunter god of course. His are the two trinkets to play. When he plays with the fiery one, he makes day and night falls when he takes out the shiny orb. One comes after the other, silly child. The hunter god can’t play with his two toys at once you see.”

The boy smiled.

“I can juggle three pebbles at once!” He exclaimed.

His mother gently caressed his hair, “Of course you can, sweet child. Of course you can.”

“So the great dragon swallows the moon?” said the farmer’s child to his father, a bit fearfully. He had heard the legends about the dragon, of course. The one which ruled the sea alongside the immortal phoenix of the skies and the mighty Qilin of the land.

“Indeed,” His father replied jovially, “The great dragon takes fancy to the moon every once in a while and swallows it whole.”

The child was puzzled, “But if he swallows the moon, then why can I see the moon over there?” He pointed his tiny hand at the winter sky towards the waning moon .

His father burst out laughing, “Why you little rascal? Do you think that the great dragon will eat up the moon for real?”

“He won’t?”

“Of course he won’t! He likes the moon, yes, but he can’t really eat it. Without yin there can’t be yang and without moon, there can’t be the sun. How could the great dragon just violate this principle?”

“Is that why the moon will come back again after it disappears?” The child asked skeptically.

His father nodded joyfully, “Yes, the great dragon spits it out after a while.”

“I wish I could see the great dragon,” the child said in a longing voice, “I want to be there. Really really close, and see for myself when he devours the moon of the heavens for a single night.”

His father could only smile helplessly at him, “Alas my child, you and me can’t fly to the heavens, not like the great dragon.”

“The demon Rahu was denied the immortal elixir and he comes again and again to eat the sun god? That’s just stupid of him,” a sweet little girl said to her grandmother.

“Really my child? Why do you think so?” Her grandmother asked delicately.

“I mean, he can’t really swallow the sun god, grandmother! You said it yourself, didn’t you? The sun god is very very powerful and not even the monkey Hanuman could contain him so how could a demon do that?”

Her grandmother smiled fondly, “My dear child, the demon is immortal, remember?”

The girl wasn’t convinced, “Still, he couldn’t hold the sun last month, when the sky went dark. And didn’t you say grandmother, that the same thing happened while you were little? It turned night in the midst of a day but the sun came back again.

“This demon Rahu, he does this countless times but he hasn’t been able to keep the sun in his mouth for very long.”

“And still he tries,” her grandmother said lovingly.

“But why? He clearly can’t succeed. I mean, can he?” the girl asked, a bit afraid.

“No no dear child, the demon Rahu might be immortal but he will never ever succeed!” Her grandmother reassured her.

The little girl was relieved.

“You know grandmother, I wish I could meet the sun god.”

“Oh? But don’t you see there child? In the skies? The sun god is already looking upon you and smiling at you.”

“But I can’t see him can I? I can’t see him or his great chariot or the seven horses!”

“Alas child, it’s too far away,” her grandmother sighed.

“The moon is actually illuminated by the Sun. It doesn’t have light of its own, therefore, we can only see it if it reflects the Sun’s light adequately.”

It was actually a teenager who was explaining things passionately to his Grandfather.

“The angle at which the sun’s ray fall upon the moon determines its phases. This angle changes as the earth orbits the sun and the moon orbits the earth. So you see gramps, it’s actually basic geometry, not that Tsukuyomi — the moon goddess — bullshit,” he concluded.

His grandfather, a man of eighty, was amused, “My grandson sure is smart. He knows so many things.”

“Stop it!” the boy was visibly embarrassed. He mumbled, “It’s just simple fact. I don’t have to be a genius to know that.”

“Hey, do you think everyone understands such a complicated thing?” the old man said, “At least I didn’t. The folks here have always believed differently. Tsukuyomi, the moon goddess — ”

“Yea yea, you’ve told me that story a hundred times. How Tsukuyomi-no-mikoto hid into a cave and how she always peeps out of the cave, occasionally showing herself, hence the moon phases. It’s quite dumb actually,” the boy proclaimed.

It was kind of sad. The boy always loved to hear stories from his grandfather. The story about the moon goddess in particular was his favorite along with Susanoo, the storm god’s adventure with Yamata-no-orochi, the eight headed serpent.

Recently though, Tsukuyomi had been replaced by a giant floating rock in the sky and Susanoo had been explained by the difference of air pressure, amongst other things.

“Oh, you think it’s dumb?” His grandfather asked playfully, “Does that mean you no longer want to hear the story about how Amaterasu — the sun goddess — came to be? And I even thought that you’d like it.”

The boy promptly changed his tune, “I mean, it’s not that dumb, not really. I only said that cause, you know… never mind.”

“…”

“About that story gramps… you will tell me right, won’t you? Pretty please?” He begged.

The old man smiled, this tactic did always work on his grandson, “Sure, if you insist. Now the story goes as follows: Once upon a time, Izanami, the goddess of creation and death, created the… ”

Zerone is an undergrad publication at I.O.E, Pulchowk focusing on People (their creative side, their thoughts, their lives) and Technology (the new, the old, everything).

Follow us for more articles, stories, poems and other cool writings.

Stories of The Heavens was originally published in The Zerone on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

Welcome to Engineering! It has been a long journey for you from school to high school; through entrance preparation classes finally to Engineering. The road has been difficult with lots of twists and turns along the way but you have persevered through hard work and dedication. For that alone, kudos to you!

I do not think very fondly of my first days at college. But rest assured, it is only me. Almost every single of my friends and peers get a delightful look on their face whenever we start talking about their first days. They talk about excitement at finally arriving to the place where they belonged; about their relief at successfully overcoming the hurdle that is IOE’s entrance examination; and about how they looked forward to new adventures with new friends.

However, there were a few of those who couldn’t share on the aforementioned sentiments. They were afraid. Uncertain. Unlike others who had arrived with a set goal of becoming this and that engineer, they had just “gone with the flow,” so to speak. They joined simply because there wasn’t anything else that they wanted to study or because all of their friends were joining the engineering preparation classes and they didn’t want to be left behind.

It could be that you identify with these groups and are similarly anxious about your future at a subject that is hailed on social media as the most difficult one. I’d say: don’t be afraid. The friends that I mentioned before, all of them did exceptionally well for themselves. I am sure that you will do too. You will just have to believe in yourself and persevere.

There are certain events in one’s life which makes you feel more mature. Your school and high school graduation, your first bike, first girlfriend! The list goes on and on. Starting your Bachelor’s study is one such milestone of your life. You feel mature, more independent. Some of you have come from your hometown to Kathmandu and are on your own for the first time. You are probably homesick. My heart reaches out to you. I would say, however, that as you make new friends, this homesickness will fade away, replaced with an impatience: just when will you go home and regale your adventures to your friends and families.

While I am sure that you will not abuse this independence (let’s be honest though, you will), I’d still like to offer some words of advice. Like many things in life, this freedom also comes with responsibilities. In this case, this responsibility is towards yourself. These are the days when you define yourself. I find that it is very easy to let go if you are not careful. So do be careful. Of course, it doesn’t mean that you shouldn’t have fun. You absolutely should. But be sure not to lose yourself.

You know what the most difficult thing that I found in engineering was? (Actually, this only applies to some colleges so it might not apply to yours) You will not have a proper academic guidance throughout the course. That is not to say that you won’t be taught classes or labs. You will. But, only a few will bother to check your works and offer you criticisms. This was one of the biggest hurdle for me. I found it most difficult to maintain my self-discipline (I still doubt if I actually did) and I can’t help but think whether you’ll fall into the same trap too.

What do you do then? How do you improve yourself when it is so easy to let go? Can you improve at all? Of course, the answer is yes. Yes you can improve. But not on your own. You will require a little help from your friends.

Your peers are probably the most valuable resources that you will have. There’s a diverse group of students who come to study engineering. Some are musicians, some painters, dancers, computer wizards, and so on. Association brings involvement; so go associate with them! They will help you along the way to learn new things, and improve upon those which you already know. Of course, the trade goes both ways. In return for their help, you must offer your expertise on whatever you’re expert of.

Actually, it need not even be expertise, just your insight will suffice. Imagine an entire class of people dabbling on all sorts of things, helping each other along the way to excel in their respective fields. Looks promising right?

Another such resource are your seniors / alumni. They have been there and they have done that. As a college freshman, you will have multitudes of question about the courses, administration, culture etc. Your seniors will help you understand. Don’t be fooled by Bollywood’s portrayal of engineering colleges. Here, no one rags you. Yes, you will be pulled here or there in the waves of student politics (a different topic for a different time) but no one is going to disrespect you. Seniors are helpful. After all, they too needed help at one point. This culture of helping your juniors is what defines most of the engineering colleges in Nepal. We were helped and we also help. So it will be with you.

You might also want to contact the alumni of your college. They know the market as well as various job opportunities inside that market. Connect with them on social media. You will find that the mere fact that you belong to the same college will make them accept your friend request. Chat them up and ask them about various things: their work, market trends; what might be a good skill to have in your field; what might allow you a better chance at a better job? Ask and you will be answered.

At the end, engineering is all about learning while having fun — at least until the exams come over. But hey, those are months away right?

Welcome to Engineering was originally published in The Zerone on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

जागीरको केही महिना सकिँदा, म बानेस्वरमा कोठा खोजेर बस्न थालेको थिए । खासमा म अलिक हतारिएको थिए । सल्यानबाट श्रीमतीको हप्तै पिच्छे फोन आइरहेको हुन्थ्यो, “हजुरले कोठा खोजी सक्नु भएको छैन ? यहाँ रमेश बाबाकोमा कहिले जाने भनेर हत्ते-हिरिक भै सक्यो”

“अ! अब बिस्तारै, भर्खरै त आएको छु” ,भनेर टार्दा टार्दै ढिला नै भै सकेको थियो। भने जस्तो कोठा पाउन वास्तवमा समय लाग्दो रहेछ। अन्तिममा चिटिक्क परेका दुइटा कोठा खोजेपछि, म क्वार्टरबाट सरेर कोठामा आएको थिए। त्यसको लगत्तै, श्रीमती शुशिला, छोरा रमेशलाई लिएर उपत्यका आइन ।

रमेश आठ वर्षको भै सकेको थियो । सल्यानमा चार कक्षामा पढ्थ्यो । वास्तवमा, म उस्कै लागि उपत्यका आएको थिएँ। मैले आफैँ पन्ध्र वर्षको हुँदा बल्ल अङ्ग्रेजी अक्षर चिनेको थिए। त्यै भएर नै होला, आफ्नू छोरालाई भने उच्च स्तरीय शिक्षा दिने मेरो अठोट थियो।

त्यसैले, मैले रमेश आएको महिना दिन नबित्दै उसको लागि त्यैँ बानेस्वर वरि-परि, जोडतोडले स्कुल खोज्न थाले। उपत्यका आफैमा महँगो शहर थियो र त्यसमाथि हामी तिन जना। त्यै पनि छोरालाई राम्रो पढाउँनु पर्छ भनेर नाम चलेको स्कुलमा हालि दिए। ‘सेसन’ सुरु भएको नि त्यति धेरै समय भएको थिएन, त्यै भएर स्कुलले पनि सजिलै भर्ना लियो । तर गाउँमा पढेको भनेर भर्ना गर्दा एक कक्षा तल झार्न जोड गर्यो ।

“ठीकै छ त , आखिर अङ्गरेजी माध्यमको स्कुलमा हो। चार कक्षा पढ्न त गाह्रै हुन्छ होला”, भन्ने सोचे मैले ।

बिहान छोरा स्कुल जान्थ्यो, शुशिला घरैमा एसो सिलाइ बुनाइको काम गर्थिन् र मेरो ‘अफिस’ छदैँ थियो । एवंरितले हाम्रो जीवन चल्दै थियो। एक दिन भने अभिभावक भएको नाताले, एउटा समस्या आइ पर्यो मलाई।

म बानेस्वर चौकमा छोरा रमेशलाई लिएर तरकारी लिन गएको थिए। सके जति म रमेशलाई आफूसँगै घुमाउन लान्थे। मलाई उसँग समय बिताउन रमाइलो लाग्थ्यो र उ पनि बाबासँग घुम्न पाउँदा मख्ख पर्थ्यो। तरकारी किन्ने क्रममा हामी एउटा तरकारी वालाकोमा पुगेका थियौँ । किनमेल सकिसकेपछि म पैसा छुट गराउन यसो तोलमोल गर्न थाले । पसले भने घटाउन अफ्ठ्यारो मानि रहेको थियो । त्यतिकैमा रमेशले अचानक बोल्यो,

“ओइ धोती, धेरै न बोल् “ ।

मेरो आठ वर्षको छोराको मुखबाट यस्तो सुनेर म तिनछक्क परे । मैले तुरुन्तै उसलाई हप्काउँदै भने, “यस्तो भन्नु हुँदैन बाबु” ।

“अनि धोतीलाई धोती न भनेर के भन्नु त ? “ उसले पनि फर्कायो ।

मैले आश्चर्यचकित पर्नु स्वाभाविक नै थियो। घरमा उसको वरिपरि बोल्दा, उसकी आमा र म अत्यन्तै सतर्क हुन्थ्यौँ। सके सम्म सौहार्द सिकाउन खोजेको थियौँ हामीले उसलाई। त्यसमा पनि, कसैलाई चित्त दुखाउने कुरा उसले कहिल्यै नगरोस् भन्ने हाम्रो उद्देश्य थियो। यस्तोमा छोराले अचानक आएर यस्तो हेपाहा शब्द भनिदियो मेरै अगाडि। मलाई एकदमै नराम्रो महसुस भयो। त्यहाँ त मैले उसलाई “अङ्कललाई सरि भन” भनेर जबर्जस्ती माफी माग्न लगाए तर त्यतिले समस्याको समाधान हुन्छ भन्ने भ्रममा चै परिन ।

घर पुग्ने बित्तिकै, पहिले त म उसको व्यवहारको जरा तिरा लागे । सुरुमा त उ भन्न हिच्किचायो तर अलिकति माया र अलिकति चकलेटको लोभले उसले कुरा खोल्यो। उसको कक्षामा एक जना मधेषी साथी पढ्दो रहेछ। सुरुमा त रमेश स्कुल जाँदा एक्लो भएको थियो र त्यही साथीसँग बस्ने गर्थ्यो अरे। तर पछि अरुहरूले “धोतीको साथी” भनेर जिस्काउन थालेपछि , बस्न छोडिदियो। त्यसमाथि झन् अरुहरूसँग मिलेर उल्टै त्यो साथीलाई जिस्काउन थाल्यो।

मलाई एकदमै नराम्रो लाग्यो। मेरो छोराले अरुले भनेको कारणले एउटा साथी गुमाएको मात्र थिएन तर उसको चित्त समेत दुखाएको थियो। म आँफैलाई सानो हुँदाको कुरा सम्झना भयो; सल्यानमा स्कुल पढ्न जाँदा त्यहाका गुरुङ्ग र लिम्बुहरूले, टुप्पी बाहुन भन्दै मेरो टुप्पी तान्दै मलाई सताउने गर्थे । त्यही यातनाको कारणले मैले घरमा स्कुल समेत जाँदिन भनेर झगडा गरेको थिए । धन्न मेरो बुवाले कुरा कतैबाट थाह पाएर मेरो गुरुलाई भन्देका थिए र मेरो कक्षामा मलाई सताउनेहरूलाई गुरुले सम्झाइ बुझाइ गरेर त्यसमा रोक्का लगाएपछि मात्र म स्कुल पुन: जान थालेको थिए। त्यसै घटनाबाट मलाई आभाष भएको थियो, बालबालिका एकदमै कठोर हुने क्षमता राख्दछन् भन्ने।

मनमनै मैले अठोट गरे, रमेशलाई केही गरेर भए पनि सम्झाएरै छाड्छु र त्यो मधेषी केटासँग पनि माफ माग्न लगाउछु । त्यसको भोलीको दिन नजिकैको कपडा पसलबाट एउटा धोती किनेर ल्याए र बोलुकी अफिसबाट आउना साथ लगाएर बसे । रमेश खेलीसकेर बाहिरबाट आयो र मलाई देख्नासाथ सोध्यो, “बाबा! के लगाउनु भएको यो? “ अनि मेले हाँस्दै जवाफ दिए, “यसलाई धोती भन्छन् । हेर न आजकाल कस्तो गर्मी बढेको छ त्यसैले मैले यो लगाएको हो। कस्तो खुल्ला हुन्छ नि यो लगाउँदा। “

रमेशलाई अचम्म लाग्यो, “यसलाई धोती भन्छन् र ? धोती त कालो पो हुन्छन् ।”
मैले पनि सम्झाए , “हैन छोरा , धोती भनेको त यो लगाउने चिज पो हो त। मान्छेलाई पनि कहि कपडाको नामले बोलाउन मिल्छ र? सोच न, तिमीलाई मैले भोलि देखि पेन्ट भनेर बोलाम् ?”

“त्यो त मिल्दैन”, भनेर उसले भन्यो । अनि फेरी सोध्यो, “उसो भए, मेरो क्लासको त्यो कालो केटालाई किन सबैले धोती भन्छन् त ?”

मैले मुस्कुराउँदै भने, “त्यो त अरुलाई थाह नभएर हो। अब भोलीदेखि गएर उनिहरूलाई सम्झाउने जिम्मा तिम्रो । अनि यत्रो दिन जो तिमीले उसको नाम बिगारेर बोलायौ, त्यसको लागि उसँग माफी पनि माग्नु पर्छ तिमीले ।”

रमेशसँग यो कुरा गर्नु अगावै नै मैले उसको कक्षाको शिक्षकसँग कुरा गरि सकेको थिए। त्यसको भोलिको दिन जब रमेशले गएर त्यो केटासँग माफी माग्यो, शिक्षकले सबैको विद्यार्थीको ध्यान आकर्षण गराएर ताली बजाउँदै उसलाई प्रोत्साहन गरिन् । रमेशले पनि मैले भनेको कुरा साथीहरुलाई सुनाएछ, “मेरो बुवाले त धोती लगाउनु भएको , लगाउने चिजलाई काहा मान्छेको नाम राख्न पाइन्छ ?”

पछि घरमा आएर रमेशले मलाई भन्यो, “बाबा, मैले सरी भने नि उसलाई । अनि उसको नाम त मुकेश रहेछ नि। क्या मिल्ने हाम्रो नाम त; म रमेश , उ मुकेश ।” म पनि दङ्ग परे छोराको उत्साह देखेर। साथै, उसको सफल मार्गदर्शन गर्न सकेकोमा मलाई अलिकती गौरव समेत महसुस भयो। पछि सम्मै रमेश र मुकेश साथी रहि नै रहे। शायद , मैले बेलैमा हस्तक्षेप न गरेको भए, यो सम्भव हुँदैन थियो होला ।

Just a piece of cloth is not enough to form an identity. Lets rise above it and discourage racial slurs! Support this movement with the hash tag #ClothesAreNotNames

Shoutout to Prasanna Koirala for helping me with this