"My Old House"

The monsoons have set –in and it rained heavily today. I had come back home after a satisfying teaching session, enjoyed my siesta and on waking up was welcomed by the sweet smell of the parched earth and  heavy rain. I sat amongst the greenery of my verandah with a large mug of tea in my hand and head filled with thoughts.

I was lost in my reverie when large drops of water started falling on me. Lost I was in praising the nature for its selfless service; I did not take note of the drops and became aware of them only when their intensity increased. I looked up in anticipation to see the heavens opening up above me but saw that the drops were falling from the ceiling. “The rain water drain must have got clogged” I thought and went up to the terrace. I found that the terrace was full of water, went near the opening of the drain and saw plenty of dried leaves and dust have blocked the pipe. Though it was raining heavily, I cleaned the drain, channelized the water into it and came down satisfied with the job.

I changed into dry clothes, took my favourite seat in the verandah and sighed “my house has become old”. As if I was speaking to someone I said “it is more than three decades old and needs lot of maintenance. There is seepage, it needs painting, is in urgent need of electrical, sanitary, carpentry and hardware works. In these days of cost explosion it will cost a fortune and I have decided to manage and not change anything”

“What about the Soul of your House”? I heard a loud, clear voice and felt an invisible face staring directly into my closed eyes. I was shaken up from my deep thoughts and concentrated on the voice. “What about the Soul of your House”? It asked again and gave a big smile. The smile was beguiling and I knew that there was something more than the smile.

The voice continued “how do you feel when you enter your house? Do you look for its physical appearance or are connected to something inner? Did you ever think that your house has a soul? Were you ever connected to its soul? If yes, how did you feel?”

I was enamored with the volley of questions and an entire new horizon started opening up in front of me; a horizon full of brightness and divinity.

I closed my eyes, went into myself and started experiencing the radiance, positive vibrations and the Soul of my House. The soul of my House welcomed me into its fold with love and said “I am ever bright, ever new, ever fresh and will more than make up for the oldness in my external appearance. Sit back, relax, connect to my Soul and enjoy the bliss. Sitting in my precincts, you will realize your own self and the divinity within you”

“Is it the Soul of my House which made it possible to connect to my Soul”? I wondered. While thinking so, I saw the invisible face still smiling at me and a question came out of me involuntarily.

“What about my old and ailing body? I suffer from many illnesses which are chronic in nature and seem to be taking their toll slowly. My appearance is fast changing and I can do very little about it”

“As rightly said by you, very little can be done about your external appearance but, there is a lot that can be done about your soul. Keep it healthy, shining and beautiful”.

I wanted to say something more but, the invisible face and the voice had vanished and so was the rain.

“Was the rain, God sent to bring home a lesson” I wondered and continued my inner journey.