Hyderabad 8

The office is a cold, cold place. I can actually feel the stream of cold air landing on my hands as I type. I'm waiting for the jerkin and gloves that Amma bought for me. I got in touch with two of Sai Gopal's contacts today. One, the former APJUDA president, over phone and the other, a dental surgeon in Gandhi Hospital in person. The phone call was more rewarding. Another day has flowed away, without much progress. What to do.

It is in the nature of man to detect patterns, spot symmetry in life as we see it. It's an amazing trait, really. The search for symmetry is the atom of human nature. Where and how we look for symmetry defines us. Let me elaborate, for the sheer joy of it. Imagine a detective, standing before a mountain of fact, circumstance and emotion. Imagine the master sculpture, looking at a block of stone. Imagine a loving mother, intent on making her home. Imagine the thinker, watching the world move through astounded eyes. Imagine the aspirant, watching life itself dance in the waves of the sea. They all look for symmetry. They all find it, and in the process, find themselves. Each person in this world has a world unto himself. Isn't it amazing that each of us lives in a different world and is connected by the very same thread that separates us? Even more incredible is that sometimes, we might even be looking at the same symmetry. Symmetry is the thread that separates us, the bridge that can connect us. It is a quest that is at the very core of evolution.

Makes you wonder, doesn't it? Every time you take four steps, every time you put your slippers one beside the other, every time you part your hair, every time choose a shirt, every time you laugh, every time you speak, every time you listen to music, every time you grasp someone's hand, every time you chew your food. Every single time you breathe! Do you see it? You can breathe without symmetry. Beauty, man, that's the word we use for symmetry. It's so strong we can get high on it. We stop caring if something is true, if it is symmetrical, if it fits.
Even the words we use beg to be symmetrical. Symmetry is beauty. In words and in deeds too. Even in thought, symmetry is beauty. The steady stroke of a swimmer is so invigorating, the perfect verse of a poet is such a pleasure, and when a thought is formed, with the pieces of the puzzle sliding into place, that moment when everything 'clicks' into place is exhilarating.

Happy New Year.