Only thought, no title

About a search for identity



Where is my home, here or there?
My aunt Rajalakshmi, (who my niece Vibha has renamed Puttajji) over a cup of coffee and kodbaley quotes this line in Kannada:
Alli idey nanna maney,
Illi ideeni summaney.
These lines are by Kuvempu, a noted Kannada writer, thinker and poet.

I can roughly translate that to:
My house is there, elsewhere
I am here, but simply, just like that.
The lines are deeply philosophical. The poet refers to life on earth and the yearning for the Supreme Soul.



Rangoli at the doorstep, are you inside or outside?

 The quote sets me thinking.

Bangalore has nurtured me through hectic college days, turbulent joint family days, blurry kids' school days, effervescent daughters in college days and radiant oh! they’re getting married days.
In Delhi we are living out the excitement of a second innings in a new city.
But today I am on a visit to Bangalore. I am a guest in my uncle’s house.

I wonder
Yelli idey nanna maney, yelli ideeni summane?
Where is my real home, and where am I just visiting?

My house with all its things, my kitchen and its familiar aromas are in Delhi.
My heart with all its tugs and pulls, with all its hopes and disappointments is in Bangalore.
So
Yelli idey nanna maney,
Yelli ideeni summane?
Which is my real home?
And which place am I just visiting?

I conclude
My home is, where I am. Only the present exists. Only the NOW is true. The rest is merely in the mind.
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