What is the darkest secret of Ravana?

What is the darkest secret of Ravana? Ravana desired to have intercourse with a woman against her will in a grove. Once Ravana came across a beautiful grove near Indraloka. There was a large pond in the grove filled with the waters of river Mandakini. It was the night of full moon. At that time the divine apsara Rambha came there to have a bath in the pond. Ravana noticed her from a distance. He swiftly went to the pond and seized her by the hand. He praised Rambha's beauty and desired to have intercourse with her. Rambha was shocked by Ravana's behaviour. She reminded him the fact that she was married to Kubera's son Nalakubara. Kubera was Ravana's half-brother and thus Ravana was Nalakubara's uncle. This made Rambha the daughter-in-law of Ravana. Rambha reminded this fact repeatedly to Ravana but the demon didn't pay any heed to her words. Ravana dragged Rambha with his arms and started to have intercourse with her. Rambha trembled with fear and repeatedly felt ashamed. She freed herself from Ravana's grasp and directly went to her husband Nalakubara. She told everything about Ravana's conduct to him. In a fit of anger, Nalakubara imposed a terrible curse upon Ravana. The curse was that Ravana's head would burst into seven pieces if he dared to engage in intercourse with a woman against her will in the future. Nalakubara's curse echoed through the three worlds and caused a terrible fear to Ravana. All the residents of the three worlds including Brahma and the gods were extremely delighted. Ravana refrained to have intercourse with women against their will in the future owing to the terrible curse of Nalakubara. This secret of Ravana is mentioned in Uttara Kanda the seventh book of Ramayana.

Once there was a very poor and devoted woman who always prayed to the Glory of God, asking very little, if anything for herself.

Once there was a very poor and devoted woman who always prayed to the Glory of God, asking very little, if anything for herself. But one thought, one desire continued to recur and finally she asked: petitioning the Lord, that if it were possible she would love to prepare a special meal and have God share at her table. And God, in His Love for this goodly woman, said He would indeed come the next day and share a meal. Filled with ecstasy, the woman went out the following morning with her meagre purse and purchased such delicacies that she felt would please the Lord. Returning home, she prepared a banquet and waited patiently for her most honoured guest. Soon there was a knock on the door, and when she opened it, there stood an old beggar asking for something to eat. Being a woman of God, she could not turn the beggar away, so she invited him in to partake of her table. The beggar felt as if he was in a dream - such a feast set before him. He finished all the food, thanked his hostess and left. The woman was only slightly disheartened, she gathered up her purse, her coat, and hurried back to town to get more food for her special guest. Her funds were less now and so the food was not quite so elaborate. Nonetheless, she lovingly prepared another meal and sat to await the arrival of the Almighty. A few hours went by and there was a loud knock on the door. This time it was an old gypsy woman with no teeth, who was deaf, who spoke quite loudly and was, rather rudely, insisting that any true believer in the Lord would not deny her something to eat. Though the woman had no more money with which to buy more supplies, she invited the woman in and offered her a seat at the table. The gypsy ate everything, did not even thank the woman and left without closing the door. By now it was beginning to get dark both inside and out. The woman's faith was strong, so that, though somewhat distraught, she did not give up, but rather, looked around her humble house to see if there was anything she could sell in order to buy more food to set before the Lord. She hurried to town with a little silver cup that had been in her family for several generations, but she was willing to part with it for the great honour that God was going to bestow on her - the sharing of a meal. Late in the night she rushed home to prepare yet a third meal. She waited and waited until, once more, there was a knock on the door. Holding her breath, she slowly opened the door to find yet another poor man in the guise of a wandering monk, in search of a meal. Again, she offered hospitality, with as much grace as she could muster in her disappointment. This man also ate all that was set on the table and left after blessing the woman for her kindness. So discouraged and dismayed was she that all she could do was nod slightly, in acknowledgment of the thanks. Now it was too late, with no way to buy any more food and no more money with which to buy it. She got down on her knees, weeping such heart-broken tears. She asked God what she had done wrong. Why had God not come to share at the table as He had promised? And God, in all His Divine compassion and mercy, lifted the woman off her knees, and holding her close to His Heart, said, "My child, I enjoyed your hospitality so much that I came three times!"

*What is happiness?*

*What is happiness?* A famous Turkish poet once asked his painter friend to capture happiness on canvas. The painter chose an unexpected scene: a family sleeping peacefully on a creaking bed. One leg of the bed was broken, supported by two bricks. The roof of their modest home leaked. Even the family dog slept calmly beside them. That painting became immortal because it revealed a powerful truth: happiness is not the absence of problems. It is the ability to rest your heart even when life is imperfect. It is acceptance, gratitude, and inner peace amid uncertainty. Happiness is being grateful, finding comfort in what you have, seeing light despite cracks, and letting go of sorrow over things beyond your control. Whenever your heart feels heavy, remember this painting. Be content, Be grateful, sleep peacefully & stay blessed forever.

In the killing silence of the Rann of Kutch,

In the killing silence of the Rann of Kutch, India’s most powerful weapon once wasn’t a drone, a satellite, or a radar screen. It was a barefoot camel herder. His name was Ranchhodas Pagi. Locals called him Pagi, the man who could read footprints like a living map. During the 1965 war, when the Indian Army lost track of Pakistani troops after the capture of the Vidhkot post, Pagi studied camel tracks in the sand and quietly told the officers something unbelievable; the camels were carrying supplies, not riders, and the enemy strength was close to 1,200. He was right. From that day on, the Army began to rely on him as its eyes in the desert. But his most extraordinary moment came in 1971. India planned a surprise push towards Nagarparkar through terrain filled with landmines. At nearly 70 years of age, Pagi walked ahead of an entire armoured convoy, reading faint disturbances in the sand to detect buried mines. For 12 hours, in darkness, he guided Indian tanks safely through a death trap. At dawn, the armour appeared where Pakistan never expected it. The post fell with barely a fight. Later, Sam Manekshaw personally embraced him and flew him over the battlefield, an honour almost no civilian has ever received. Pagi passed away in 2013, at the age of 112. Today, borders are watched by satellites and sensors. But once, when technology was not that advanced, a quiet old man reading footprints in sand became India’s greatest surveillance system. Salute to Ranchhodas Pagi. He showed a nation the path to victory — one footprint at a time.

I have cheated on my husband but successfully ended the affair.

I have cheated on my husband but successfully ended the affair. I feel guilty whenever I see my husband, should I come clean to him? Probably not a question you've received yet… but I want to challenge you with this. Would YOU still be able to respect him if you successfully keep it from him and he continues to be loving towards you? The answer is no. You already don't respect him. If you did, you wouldn't have been capable of cheating on him. Whether or not he can forgive you is irrelevant. You have a partner who you can comfortably bullshit. With this fact accounted for, it can be concluded that what you feel for him isn't love. It's toxic possession. And nothing good will come of its continuation.

A few years ago on a Sydney-Mumbai flight, I noticed a young woman travelling alone with her baby.

A few years ago on a Sydney-Mumbai flight, I noticed a young woman travelling alone with her baby. For most of the journey, the baby wouldn't stop crying...the kind of crying that's relentless and slowly wears everyone down. The mother tried everything...She paced the aisle, up and down...rocked him...whispered to him...kissed his forehead...patted his back. Nothing worked. At one point, I leaned forward and asked quietly: "Would you like me to hold him for a while?" She gave me a tired smile and shook her head. "No, he'll only cry harder. He's scared of strangers." There was quiet resignation in her voice. Occasionally, the baby would fall asleep in the bassinet. And every time he did, the young mother's eyes would close instantly...as though her body had been waiting for permission to shut down. But the moment she drifted off, he would wake up and the cycle would begin all over again. It was a long flight, and by the time we began our descent, she was trying hard not to cry herself. At the arrivals section, I saw her again. Her parents waited, faces lit with excitement, eager to meet their grandchild, possibly for the first time. She placed the baby gently into her mother's arms. Her mother's face softened instantly and she cooed gently to the baby. And then...the young woman turned towards her father. He didn't say anything...just stood there with arms wide open. She flung herself into her father's arms and finally let herself cry...not loudly or dramatically....but with the kind of quiet sobbing that comes when you've been strong for too long, and suddenly don't have to be anymore. I was struck by the tenderness of the moment, and it has stayed with me. We don't stop being daughters when we become mothers. Nim Gholkar, 2026

*Love and Lust*

*Love and Lust* In love, even an object gains life. Stones speak to you, trees speak to you, the Sun, the moon and the whole creation become alive. Any obsession, including sex, devoid of love, is lust. In lust, even a living being becomes a mere object. You want to use even people like objects. Love and lust are so close yet so different! Lust brings tension, love brings relaxation. Lust focuses on the part; love focuses on the whole. Lust brings violence, love brings sacrifice. In lust you want to grab and possess, in love you want to give and surrender. Lust says, 'I want you to have what I want;' Love says, 'I want you to have what you want.' In lust there is effort, love is effortless. Lust causes feverishness and frustration, love brings longing and pain. Lust imprisons and destroys; love liberates and sets you free. Lust demands, love commands. Lust gets you mixed up and confused; In love you are focused and spaced out! Lust is dark and monotonous; love has many modes and colours. If someone's lust is interrupted, they get angry and start hating. Hatred in the world today is not out of love, it is out of lust. Love is playfulness, and in lust there is cunningness and manipulation. Once Lord Śiva, the embodiment of innocence and love, was meditating. His meditation was disturbed by an arrow of flowers from the lord of lust. As soon as Śiva woke up, he opened his third eye and the lord of lust, Kāmdeva, also known as Manmatha (one who churns the mind), was reduced to ashes. During the Holi festival, an effigy of Manmatha (Kāmadeva) is burnt, which is known as Kāmadahana. Everybody celebrates by throwing colours on each other, realizing that life is full of colours. We play many roles in our lives. If all the roles get mixed up, it becomes dark, like when you mix all the colours. The wise play each role distinctly, like the colours displayed side by side form a rainbow.