OrthocoronaVirinae - Chapter 2

Chapter 2

Trump, Putin and Bolsonaro have been complacent. Now the pandemic has made them all vulnerable 

As hospitals in Brazil teeter on the brink of collapse, Bolsonaro does pushups with supporters

The health care system in Brazil's largest city is wavering on the brink of collapse and coronavirus deaths throughout the South American nation are soaring -- but President Jair Bolsonaro nonetheless reveled in crowds of supporters on Sunday, joining yet another anti-lockdown protest in Brasilia.With Brazil still approaching its peak of cases, Sao Paulo's mayor warned that the health system could be overwhelmed very soon if residents don't follow social distancing guidelines.

Palácio do Planalto was eerily quiet. There was a murmur among the staff. They had no clue what the next directive would be. They waited for the President to step out of his office. He had been tucked away in there for 7 straight hours. No one knew what was going on. He was meeting with an blonde eyed gentleman again. This was the fourth time.

Jair sat there staring into the abyss. He was confused. He did not want any of this to happen. Why was he doing this? Why were people still following him? And then a calm descended him. The confidence oozed back into his system. This was the only path for Brazil. Yes the Amazon was burning but it was small price to pay. After all every other developed nation on earth built its wealth on the misfortune of nature and human life somewhere. There was greater goal to achieve here.

He looked up at his calendar. The date read “ 19-Sep-2019”.

He was convinced and he looked up,“Yes Mr. Lentin. Always a pleasure doing business with you”

October , 990 AD

I looked up at the sky. The clouds above had formed a shape that was bearing some message. It wasn’t a positive message. My vibe was strong. I moved fast heading north in the mountains.

I had made my base here some 500 years ago. My people originated somewhere in the centre of the universe. A civilization as old as the big bang itself almost. I had been on earth now for some 10000 earth years that equated to about 2 years of my life. I didn’t like the loneliness but this what I had signed up to be. A historian. People of other civilizations would have thought us to have evolved to such a state that we had super-powers and could bend the will of physics. But our evolution had taken no such path. One thing we do obsess about is our origin planet which had been lost in the first 10000 or so years of our existence ( in our time not earth time) and research galore to find that missing link. Which is what had brought me here in the first place. The genetic material (rna) found in obscure places on earth gave a clue to the origins of our civilization and what I had come to learn in the last year much more. This could be path breaking.

There was an opening up front. And that is where I found her. She was oozing something benetian in color from her temple. I looked around to see who could have harmed her. There were no human tribes close by. I first created a force field for a 5 km radius. And then placed the palm of my hand under her head. She looked up and said,” There is a small jar in my robe. Please… “. I found it and opened it. There was putrid smell that filled my surroundings. But did nothing to me. She was surprised. I laughed, “Stranger, I am not from this world either. But I mean you no harm. I found you because my vibe tingled of something evil in the vicinity, but you reek of nothing of that. The presence is gone. I can restore you to your normal self. Trust in me”. She did not resist.

I carried her back to my lab disguised as a cave. People from the surrounding villages saw me as something called a “Munir”. They had given me the name Agastian, for I had empowered them with grammar and the knowledge of communication to take forth what they learned. I was after all a scribe. I laid her on the crotarian chair. And started the process of reverse polynism. She must have felt a short burst of immense pain for she screamed. And then she passed out. She would recover but she needed some time.

July , 992

She woke up. It had been a couple of earth years. But now she was completely healthy. She looked at me and asked,” Who are you? Why did you help me?”. I looked at her and said,” Taiheiyō san.. I am person who goes by vibes. I cannot save all but the universe pointed me to save you. There is a power you possess that scares me. I have observed you all this while. At times I contemplated but the answer is clear. You will learn to harness it. The evil to turn it to good.”

She was confused but she continued the conversation with me…

To be continued

OrthocoronaVirinae

Time is an illusion

For what is 1 minute

Can be stretched to an hour

Or sometimes a day

Or even years

-Anonymous (Circa Big Bang)

Chapter 1 - Origins 

They looked down upon the experiment that had been started 2 years ago. This was the last hope many felt. If the result of the experiment did not yield a concrete solution, then it was the end of the civilization. The end of the Crotominians. The end of 30000 years of evolution.

There was a definite imbalance that was beginning to cause the parameters of the experiment to twinge towards a path that did not seem fruitful enough. Something had to be done but there was a big debate. The principal investigator just did not want to tweak the parameters yet but there was huge pressure from the Elders. Hence after a long debate in the room of silence as the minds melded to one- the elders, the principal investigator and the observers. Time was brought to a stop as the room of silence only existed in the 7^th dimension. They came out.

Earth – Late 2019

The Preserver had her orders straight. She did not like it, but she would not disobey. She understood the consequences.  She knew the rules. Nothing could be brought from the outside that which did not already exist. There were totally 7 Virology research centres that had been set up across the planet earth. These were above that of the governments of the world. A secret alliance to combat the effect of genetic material left over from a civilization unknown. Not even the Crotominians understood the origins. But what they did understand was the science of its existence. She took a strain from the lab in the depths of the “Artics” back to her lab. There was some tweaking to be done. It had to be muffled… the origin.

Somewhere near Tirunelveli – February 2020

I got up from my slumber. I had been sleeping in Podhighai Malai for about 1800 earth years. I was woken up suddenly. There she was standing by the window. The only other being on the planet that could not only detect my habitat but also walk in like there was no security system in place. For anyone else they would feel strange vibes. There were rumours spread that eternal beings lived there who were above that of the world and were the creators of the ancient language of Tamizh. There were people who had witnessed miracles. But all of that is story for another day.

“What have you done Unmei?”. She looked at me with conflict in her eyes. “Taiheiyō san.. I did not know whom else to seek counsel from. My civilization will be wiped out if this experiment fails. So, I do what I am told. I do not question. But this will lead to widespread…” and she broke down. I did not understand. I had not followed the humans for a while. My mission was that of a scribe. The origin of my people is lost but there is strong evidence that the answer to it will come from breaking down the genetic material that found its way to Earth over a 100 million earth years. I did not interfere with Unmei when she showed up some 5000 earth years ago. I saved her life once and since then she showed up every few decades to check in on me. I fell asleep and then did not feel the vibe to wake up. I am getting too old for this shit, but I must see out this mission.

She explained. I started getting a grasp of the where the humans were at with their science. She put her finger on my temple. Two months in earth time would have passed.

April 2020

I knew what was going on- world leaders, cultures, wars, famines, love, ambition, power… all of it. I opened my eyes. There she was in front of me fidgeting. She took out some device and turned it on. I could see humans on there.

China Bat Expert Says Her Wuhan Lab Wasn’t Source of New Coronavirus For the past 15 years, Chinese scientist Shi Zhengli has warned the world—in English, Chinese and French—that bats harbor coronaviruses that pose serious risks to human health 

She flicked something

Trump blames China for outbreak. See how they responded.CNN's David Culver reports on how Chinese state media is responding to blame from the US for their coronavirus response.

She looked at me, “ I made sure the origin is obscured. But Lentin is using this as an opportunity to cause the destruction he has always wanted…he is implanting ideas in the so called far right across the earthly humans “ and she broke down. I was confused. I asked her, “Who is Lentin?”. She took a deep breath, “Lentin was sent here some 1000 years ago. He is a junior associate to me but now he is ambitious. He does not understand the consequences. He wants to get to the solution the quickest. The way he sees it the only way to the solution is if the control variable is at 22/7 percent. The principal investigator gave me strict instructions not to touch the variable but let it evolve. Lentin is of cult who believes accelerating it to 22/7 will result in what will save the Crotominian civilization. He does not care about earth, the life created here or the humans. The outcome will be 1.82 trillion deaths across all life on earth, 1 billion humans.”

I looked at her with shock. The only words that came out were, “Lentin has to be stopped”.  

It was few minutes before I could find more words,” I am but a lowly scribe. A historian. A message to my people and for getting help will take at least 5 earth years. We don’t have time like that.How?” 

She looked at me and smiled for the first time.

To be continued

Peking Yang - An Alternate telling

Chapter 1 - Origins

Gandhi had got us freedom in the summer of 1922. The non-cooperation movement had been a success. It had been a tenuous path that Gandhi had chosen and had turned the massacre at Jalianwala Bagh into a positive notion to rally the entire nation against the British. This had resulted in the independence with the first Prime Minister being Muhammad Ali Jinnah. Subash Chandra Bose a radical thinker in the roaring thirties along with his trusted advisor Sardar Vallabh Bhai Patel had led India into a new era by playing an important role in World War 2. The British Empire owed India 30 billion tonnes of gold by the end of the war. 

History was so intriguing. India has been in economic doldrums for the last 10 years. But the romantic in me thought of the golden age post world war two all the way to 1990 between which India grew into a super power. The cold war with China that defined world politics! And its inglorious end with World War 3! The Narasimha Rao / Manmohan Singh government could do little to stifle economic stagnation though India had obviously been on the winning side. Half of China became a part of India making India the biggest nation in the world that spread from Mongolia to the Kanyakumari while the other half was annexed by Germany. The annexation had not been a simple one. Rebel groups from East China have constantly worked at liberating the West Chinese Provinces. The bloodshed had not stopped and the internal war had now lasted for 20 odd years.

I don’t know why but I have always felt Indian though many around me are bitter about the annexation. I believe in India and am very much Indian. My father had roots that could be traced to the ancient Ming dynasty while my mum was a peasant woman of Kashmiri descent. If you did not know my name is Taiping Yang which means the Pacific.  I work at Infosys in the city if Shenzen. Narayana Murthy who founded the company just after the war ended, is said to have been an army infantryman who had stayed back in Shenzen post war and founded the News/ Media Empire of Infosys. It’s the kind of rags to riches story that inspires the youth that even in this economy it is possible for ideas to reap benefits if one has the passion and determination.

“Yo Tai stop day dreaming we got to move. News story breaking in the frontier town of Pok! The chopper is ready” yelled Macsan. I was her cameraman. And you don’t sit in lethargy when you hear her voice. I got into the chopper and as I did I got this strange smell. Something wasn’t right. I felt really uneasy. Kind of a premonition, I thought hard. The chopper lifted as I saw the fleeting figure of Macsan running on the tarmac and her shocked expression. I was confused and then I passed out.

I got up and found myself bound and blindfolded. I could feel and smell the damp floor. I heard a voice in the foreground and then I was shoved onto a chair. A whisper told me what to say and my blindfold was taken off. The Blinding light and I rambled, “ I am okay…. Disoriented… please give into their demands… whatever it is…” and then I was gagged again… time passed … I pissed in my pants… the stench… I blacked out.

I heard shelling. I heard bombs. I heard strange voices shout in fear. I blacked out again. When I got up I was alone. But my bonds were loose and I broke free. I grasped for air and looked around. I was in a strange cave and there were bodies around me. I started to run in the direction opposite to the blazing fire. I did not realize it then but I was running deeper into the mountain rather than out. I stopped to take a deep breath once I felt safer. It was really dark. I put my hand on the cold rock. I felt something trickle on to my fingers. It was a cockroach. I ate it. I was hungry.

I was totally lost in the unknown mountain and I kept walking deeper into it in the hope that I find an exit. And then I saw a light. I ran with joy thinking that I had finally reached sunlight. And I ran straight into a big opening and was surrounded by crystal that sparkled. In the centre was a strange vehicle and a being in a form I had never ever seen ever. I gasped. The being looked at me strangely and I felt a piercing pain and the last words I heard were, “You have finally reached your destiny child. Spread pacificity with what you will get.” I passed out.

I got up in an ambulance and when I gasped for air the male nurse told me to relax. I passed out again. I woke up in a hospital bed to the beautiful face of Macsan. She was looking very concerned and when I smiled she relaxed. I asked where was I and she said I was in a hospital in the frontier town of Pekren. Her face then grew dark. She looked at me with pity. I asked and she replied, “ Subramanian Iyer was released earlier today in a bid to free you. The black ops masterminded a plan such that he would die with the rebels and you would be freed. But everything went wrong. The rebels died alright but Subramanian Iyer escaped. No trace. And you were miraculously found in a field 20 kms away. The black Ops lead reported you to the government. The roumer is that you masterminded the whole thing such that Subramanian Iyer would escape. You of all the people , such a beautiful hearted person… you of all the people they would suspect… “ 

She was bitter.

I could not believe it. What was happening? I was an enemy of the state. I closed my eyes and then realized something with shock. I opened my eyes and I was in a field … I was able to tell Macsan from there to trust me and then I made sure she fainted with an injury to the back of her neck. I had a power I did not fully understand. I ran.

To Be continued. Filarial needs encouragement :D

~(_8-(!) -- did not know the existence of Sibyl

“Don’t Ever Trust Yourself”

                             --- Filarial (3000 AD)

The governor of Alpha Centauri lay dead before us. I couldn’t believe it. All the precautions and nothing had helped. It had to be one of us. There could be no stowaways on this ship. I had calculated the amount of air to be supplied based on the ships size and the number of people to the last atom. This had been a precaution I had always taken without my crew knowing for if I saw a drop of sweat I knew things were not right. I knew! That was key to providing the kind of security the governor had needed.

And the strange thing was I trusted each of my crew more than myself. There was Sibyl (oh beautiful Sybyl… but I digress) Randy, Chad and Periyakarupan. I looked at each of them.  The stranger thing was that we had all been sweating from about 36 seconds before the governor dropped dead. And then everyone was breathing normally. I couldn’t make head or tail of it. “Report to your quarters and do not budge your tail or else you will be killed” I said quietly.

I thought for about 30 minutes looking at the monitors trained on each room. Randy paced about the room nervously, Sibyl was crying like a baby, Chad and Periyakarupan on the other hand were sitting quietly and patiently. I walked straight to Randy’s room and opened the door. As soon as he saw he whispered quickly,” Have you talked to anybody else? ” He saw the look on my face and said,” I was hoping when you saw me pacing you would come to me. I hoped in hell that you did. You don’t understand. I saw something. I cannot for the love of god figure it out. I saw... “And his voice broke into a whisper… his eyes wide open… and

Blackout.

The governor of Alpha Centauri lay dead before us. I acted per protocol and grounded the whole crew to their quarters.  I was observing them on the monitors. Sibyl (oh beautiful Sibyl… I slapped myself on the face… focus…) Periyakarupan and Randy were sitting down with an eerie calm. Sibyl was crying uncontrollably now. I could feel the air becoming thinner, she needed to calm down or all of us were in danger of cerebral hypoxia for we were still a million miles from Gyna.  I would get to her but she would be second. I headed to Chad’s room. I opened the door and his eyes were wide open waiting for me to walk in. I said calmly,” Chad … why did you do it… Chad? “And his eyes moved towards me and without any warning he jumped on me. The bastard had a hidden weapon. He must have used it on the gov…

“You are not the CAPTAIN.. YOU ARE NOTTTT.”… I felt Blood ooze out of my shoulder… I was having double visions as I staved off Chad with the last reserves of energy that I had left… He suddenly stopped looking horrified and said,” Captain is that really… really you???”... I screamed, “You Dumb MF what the... “I could feel myself blacking out. The ship’s computer was saying something about slight turbulence or something. I was losing consciousness. I poked my wound with two fingers harshly and screamed in pain as blood rushed to my head as well and I saw a little more clearly. Chad said,” You don’t understand captain… I… Saw… I….”

Blackout. .

The Governor of Alpha Centauri’s mangled body lay before us. I was a little disconcerted. I had sent the rest of the crew to their quarters. I wanted to go to Sibyl’s quarters and comfort her. I couldn’t bear her cries. But when I did look at the monitors, I looked at but one monitor. PeriyaKarupan was looking at the monitor almost smiling almost signaling to me. I walked straight to his quarters and opened the door. I let it slide shut behind me and heaved a heavy sigh. “I saw… “He smiled and said,” Don’t jump to conclusions. “ and he closed his eyes and said, “ Let us think rationally captain, calm your thoughts and lets then go to Sybil’s Quarters.“.  I said, “I am calm enough - let’s go.” We were inside Sibyl’s Quarters and as I approached her… I  ...”aaaaaaaaaaaaaaah”

PeriyaKarupan looked down upon the captain’s dead body and then at Sybyl, “Come on Sybyl, we don’t have much time… “ ... The ship’s computer was saying something about approaching turbulence.  He half dragged her to his quarters and pulled her over a body. A badly disfigured body of…. Periyakarupan. She was almost hysterical. TURBULANCE…

Blackout.

The Governor of Alpha Centauri’s body lay still before me. I looked at the monitors desperately. I had sent everybody to their quarters and yet nobody was there. I saw no one in their quarters. I walked out of the control room as the ships computer talked about turbulence. As I walked out … I saw someone approaching. I ran towards the figure and tried to … my eyes opened wide. It couldn’t be… I backed away… and then he jumped at me. I screamed in pain as something struck and I felt blood spurt out and screamed …. And screamed…..

Turbulance and Forward…..

I stood there shaking. And behind me- the Governor, Chad, Sybil, Randy and…  Periyakaruppan. I had used the modulator, the only one on the ship… on…. Me. I wanted to cry, to vomit but we couldn’t afford me to do that for we were still a million miles away. I controlled myself. We all sat there looking at each other as if each were a ghost. Finally Periyakarupan spoke slowly, “it had to be done to break away from the anomaly. That was the only way that I could think off. Each of us… had to kill …. Ourselves… to break from the paradox…. It was the only way… it was the…”  

I looked at Sybil and said, “Explain.” 

She looked up through her tear soaked face and said, “When the turbulence hit the ship for the first time… I was pulled through some sort of anomaly and as I traveled I could hear all of your screams. And then I was back on the ship but 20 minutes before the turbulence hit. I tried warning us but the first time, all of you including a “copy” of me freaked so much at the sight of future me that you tied me up and put me into what was my quarters not listening to me. And again it was only I that survived. I tried through different combinations to drive the ship of path but I found I did not have control. Captain you para-programmed the ship to listen to only you. And then I tried to catch someone, anyone's attention. First Randy, then Chad, in that sequence by showing me at a certain angle while killing the most important person on the ship- the Governor. Both of them could not understand the paradox. And then Periyakaruppan...   

She stopped and Periyakaruppan continued, “As we started saving each of us we had to kill the so called “copy” the anomaly created of each of us. That was the only way. Believe me captain… “And he closed his eyes.

We were lost upon the act of violence we had had to commit… and yet we were alive… all of us… I could not understand…. Somewhere distantly I could hear ship’s computer say “400 thousand miles to Gyna”

PS- Some people like to use quotes of great men in History to make a point. So I decided to use a Quote I will make in the future at the beginning of the story.  K

PS PS- the story’s title- did it make you think? :D…. As I researched the theme, I found a quote in wiki which went like the “Homer seems to have been unaware of a Sibyl” Hence I assumed the reference to be the one person I turn to in a time of great despair… The one only philosopher of interest-- ~(_8-(!)  (Turn these characters by 90 degrees and you will see Homer Simpson!)

Illusions may be false but sometimes they are the Truth

There was once a little girl

And then there was not.

For she had been exposed

To mesons in the Cryon

No one knew how

-          On the walls of the ruins of the Babylon Research Facility (Circa 2566 AD)

Humankind had finally mastered space travel in the year 2333 AD. Since the first settlement on the moon of Saturn had been successful there was flood of settlers all across the galaxy. Dr. Gaber Wallpee’s ground breaking research in the field of Mesogentic travel had opened the way for the future of mankind. He had led the greatest to the planet Babylon in the beta quadrant of Sector G. At its heyday something happened. No one knows what. Why am telling you all this rubbish you ask? I am a Reperto Historian and I came to the ruins of Babylon 10 years ago. We are considered a cult, us Repertos. Fuck people don’t know the importance of the Reperto History research. The incident needs to be uncovered soon for the all our futures are tied to it. People are such dumb fucks.

Anyway I walked into my office with my cup of Joe and saw Parka was already there. She was always there before me. Everyday this past 10 years, she was always in that seat when I walked in. I began to wonder if she even slept. I knew everything about her and yet I did not. She Said, “Heyy… we going down the tunnel today?” I nodded my head.  We started walking. One sip of my coffee is all I enjoyed anyway. We took the elevator and then the beast.

I smelt her hair sitting behind her as she drove the beast full speed. I closed my eyes and stopped. We would soon be at the cusp of the tunnel, at the doorway. No one knew what lay behind the doorway. We had not yet figured out what Dr.Wallpee had intended it for. We started the work of painful restoration. We had 10 hours before the LUPP set and the Lumsar cycle started, after which it would be too cold to work. I went to start work on sector 72. I was the only Reperto who could translate the ancient symbols. The story so far on the Doorway was “There was once a little girl…”

I was ready for some coffee.  I didn’t realize it had been 6 hours. I had added a full two line today which was extremely fortuitous. We would have been lucky with a few letters. The new line read

But there is a legend of a Circle

And that is an Aakrap

I wondered what that meant. That was when I heard her scream. I ran and I ran. I came to Sector 64, it had taken me exactly 7 minutes. She was not there. I looked at the doorway section and saw no clues. I looked around, closed my eyes and thought “Fuck!”.  I started the technique of Labarynth Math. It was the only way to stay calm. It was a method discovered by the great yogi Japurandakudi of the planet Kudra in the year 2453 AD. She was the first Reperto. I concentrated. I didn’t realize it but I played around with the pattern in my mind in a different way. I wondered why was I seeing these strange patterns. This was not calming me down but rather it was making me sweat. And yet I was cold. I tried opening my eyes I could not. I felt an intense pain and I passed out.

I got up, I had a pain in my elbow. I wondered why and looked forward but there was no doorway. I looked behind me and there it was the doorway. I was confused. The patterns in my head were now bright orange in color. I opened my eyes and started walking forward. I heard the calm voice of a little girl. And then she was in front of me and she smiled. I felt at complete peace with myself.  She sang,

Have you come to rescue me

Finally after all these years

Panda San do you not see

It is futile to save Aakrap

For without the meson accident

There is no humankind

And this circle will destroy

You Panda San

At least this time leave

While you still can for

You cannot solve the puzzle

Panda San

I was confused. Why was… I not horrified at finding myself on the other side? Why did I know this little girl? Why did the words she said make sense? I closed my eyes. The patterns had changed and I had this sudden urge to push the Cuboid I saw. It changed. A flush of memories flooded past my neural network and it all came back to me. I understood.

“Parkaa”, I said, “When were you caught in this time loop?” She looked at me confused. She said “ I am Aakrap Panda San”.  I continued, “ Parkaa, you were not the cause of the accident. We need to get out of here. I know how now” She looked at me confused. And suddenly she found herself fully grown. She took my hand and realized who she was. I turned and the doorway disappeared and we walked through.

Epilogue

Panda San was just a creation

Something of a mindmeld

What was real was but false

and what was false was really

something like the truth.

She looked at me with her eyebrow raised. She said “ So when I was a baby I was caught in the vortex when the Cryon generator broke down.  I understand that but why were you the one to figure it out?”. I smoked some berrylthum and said,” Its simple Parkaa, Labyrinth Math allowed me to connect with you in the warp hole. You were able to project yourself out of it into the real world without realizing it. You thought the real world was an illusion or a dream while you slept. And these last 10 years I have always wondered when did you sleep? You knew me and I knew you and yet in the warp your mind kept you at an age that was comfortable for the body. Once I realized that the rest was simple.” She smiled, and I smiled back. The world needed to know. This was going to .,….

A Filarial Special Story

  

UPON REFLECTION

Akṣapāda Gautama’s Gurukul…

“What is the difference between good and evil Guruji?” I asked. Gotama replied without opening his eyes,” Good is what you do onto others without expecting anything in return which is beneficial in its effect. Evil is what you do with the intent of harm onto others.” I absorbed what was said and queried further, “Guruji, why is it important to do good deeds and not what is called evil?” Gotama still did not open his eyes. He never got tired of the questions his sishyas came up with. But over the years his responses had become stereotypical. He replied,” Young one, I have already introduced you to the theory of causation. You should have inferred by now that cause and effect should be homogeneous in nature, and yet the effect is a new beginning and was not already contained in the cause.” I was ready for this response. I had contemplated for half a year now and this was the way I had decided to draw out Guruji. I responded,” Guruji, I have been doing something for six months now. I steal half a liter of milk every day because I know like clockwork the cowherd’s schedule. The conundrum has stupefied both Mataji and the Cowherd as to why the cow has been giving half a liter of milk less for the past six months as he knows through inference of the milk giving capacity as related to the weight of hay fed and its ankle size. Now though the Cowherd does not say anything in front of Mataji he curses the cow when alone for his repute is at stake. If I did not confess now nobody would ever have known. I did so called evil deed and yet other than the silent curses there was no other effect. And I am also at peace with myself. And yet it is evil… What is that explains this situation?” Gotama opened his eyes,” Young one… what is it that you seek?” I replied honestly, “The truth guruji…” Gotama,” Young one, it is time for you to continue your journey. I have imparted all the knowledge that I can… I can give you an answer but you will not accept it because you want to back anything that is said through the experiment of self. But young one- Do not forget the primary knowledge of Causality that I have imparted. In the case that you present your inference of the effect was easy because the inputs were controlled. Remember that young one.” I was scared at the answer that I got for this was not what I expected. But I said abhivadhaye and asked, “Guruji, what is it that I can offer as guru dakshina… “

Zen Arcade- 2000 so years later…

Have you ever heard of the band Husker Du? They came out with this album in the eighties called Zen Arcade that changed the phase of music. Almost every decade had such an album one could argue but it (actually an album, a book or a movie) took meaning when one comes across the idea being presented for the first time in his or her life. The album followed the adventures of a disoriented young kid who is disillusioned by his parents and the environment he is in and decides to head out into the world to seek the truth. As the album progresses so did the young kid – he experiments with sex, religion and drugs along the way and then returns home, apparently back to square one, having discovered the world outside is even worse than the” safe haven” that was his family. The album ends with a ghostly song called “Recurring Dreams”. To me everything in the album made sense. I have always toyed with this idea. What If there is no ultimate truth? But the thing is each has to experiment in order to prove to him or herself. Some of us accept it after a little experimentation that we have found god and ultimately it will be revealed as to why is that things happen as they do. Insanity I say! But what is the alternative.
I had an alternative that I had pondered with for years together now… and it made sense….

1930 years ago…

It had been thirty years since I had left the Gurukul. And yet I found myself walking into the valley again. Guruji was on the throes of death and had summoned me. I somehow did not feel pity at his shriveled old body when I saw him. I had found that death did not affect me as much as life did. I don’t know why but over the years I had learnt that dealing with my inner thoughts was the first step to learning to deal with others. I touched his feet and sat beside him. He whispered,” Young one … “and he looked at me fondly. He continued,” What is it that you have learnt? Tell me…. “I looked at him with almost anger…. “Nothing guruji… absolutely nothing! I do have a better understanding of the world around me or the people that reside here. But the question that I asked you years ago still hounds me. And now I have thirty years behind me to make a perfect argument that even you Guruji will not be able to counter. Yet I cannot get myself to do something truly evil” I sighed. Guruji smiled at me, “Young one to me it was not as much as finding the answer as developing tools of thought. The fire you had in you and that still burns in you burns in me even as I feel death come upon me. I am sure you have by now thought about…. “And I looked at him… it was not possible… how could he possibly know! And he smiled and continued, “There is one explanation that conscience must hold the true answer to all that… “

1945 years since the Gurukul was left for the first time

I stood there observing a two week old kitten. He was furiously scratching the concrete floor and looking confused and then sat upright and… I yelled, “Bad Kitty!” The next day I saw a similar confused scratching and I carried him outside and put him on the ground. He continued to scratch and then I realized he wasn’t scratching but digging. He dug a neat hole and the sat in the hole and did his thing. When he was done he got up and covered his poop with mud making sure the hole was filled! I was pretty amazed and it got me thinking. I wondered about the preprogramming that was innate to every living thing. I contemplated the concept of conscience and how it hounded humans into doing the right thing in more cases than less. Where is it that this was passed on from for you were born with it. I wondered.

1930 years before the Husker Du incident:

I looked at Guruji and said, “But you have never fed that idea to me Guruji.” I was a little out of my element. Guruji smiled,” Young one, the day that you put forth the conundrum for the first time I inferred you would reach the same conclusion. But I had to wait for the experiment to happen and confirm the result. So what is it that you concluded? Did you reach the same conclusion? The only way to truly break away from conscience and yet not affect causality! ” I slowly replied, “I think Yes… that you …. “I stuttered a bit”You… ummm commit... “He looked at me eerily and completed, “SUICIDE! But how? But how? … How do you create the perfect accident?” I looked at him and whispered… and with that he took his last breath … I got up.

1930 Years before the Husker Du Incident and at that time too

I walked into the empty space. It was time to commit the act. But it was very important to create the right conditions. It meant freedom. True freedom. Maybe many people had come upon this conclusion and had carried it out. But the knowledge truly remained a secret because no one had lived to talk about it. Ha! I smiled ironically. All knowledge that Is passed on can only be applied with the physics of this world that surrounds us i.e., the interaction of Purusha with Prakarthi. But that was all an illusion and the conclusion that I had independently reached had been inferred by guruji as well. It had to work!

I walked into empty space. It was time to commit the act. But it was important to create the right conditions. It meant freedom. True Freedom! Maybe many people had come upon this conclusion and had carried it out. But the knowledge truly remained a secret because no one had lived to talk about it. Ha! I smiled ironically. It had to be done this way; the inference of the kitten was but the start point. This was the only way to let’s say short circuit the system!

The conditions were right. I had planned every detail to the second; death came at all simplicity and…. I was free! I opened my eyes…. I was blinded and I heard a voice….. A strange form of communication but I somehow understood, “You almost got away the very first time you tried this... To think! Ha!” I felt a sort of eeriness… It was unbearable….
A baby was born somewhere… somewhere… and she cried…



“Filarial was listening to two bands as he inferred the truth- “Pavement” and of course “Husker Du”. He likes to back his fiction with facts.”