Whom should I care?

I read this somewhere - "Don't let someone be your priority when you're just an option for that someone".

This affected me so much that I spent days pondering over it. But it was actually better than ruminating about people who don't spend any significant amount of time thinking about me. There've been so many sleepless nights wondering about some of my friends whom I consider close enough; about something that worries them, annoys them, exults them or whatever be it. But then I failed to realize for so long that I can only go half-way, and that I can't meet them unless they come half-way the other direction. I usually like to put friends into three buckets:
A. Friends who're really close and whose reaction to a random situation I'll be able to guess.
B. Friends who're not too close, nevertheless we like each other and our wavelengths match.
C. Friends who're just acquaintances and I'm usually not too bothered about what they do.

"A" are normally not a problem, "C" could be a problem, but I don't care. But those in the bucket "B" are people whom I like, for whom I care and about whom I'm bothered. The problem is those in my "B" might not be having me in their "B", I could be even in their "C" (whether I could be in their "A" is a difficult question to answer, it's totally subjective). I can knock at their doors and wait for sometime, but then, I should start walking back at some moment. As I walk, I can even turn back every now and then to look if the door's opening, but beyond that I have other things too, there are other people who're bothered about me and I need to respond to them. After some thought, I think I have classified friends into how I need:
1. Friends for whom I'm a priority.
2. Friends for whom I'm definitely an option, but not a priority.
3. Friends for whom I'm just an option or not even an option.

The A-B-C classification was based on what they're for me, but I guess I need to quickly learn about the 1-2-3 classification, which is based on what I'm for them. I think I know whom to place where, but I want to find out soon enough how exactly to befriend them, how much do I care for them, how much do I bother about them and how much do I actually think about them. I only hope that I don't misclassify people and that I don't lose some of them because of the misclassification.

I'm already starting to feel I've got a lot of time these days because I've almost stopped thinking about some of whom were a priority to me but for whom I was probably just an option. I can instead use this time to think about so many of those who don't have anyone to care about. I think I'm proceeding in the right direction, to what I should be doing when I'm 40, to what will give me the feeling of bliss, probably for which I came to exist in this world. I want to, as early as I can, stop doing things that I'll not be doing at 40 and start doing things that I desire to be doing at 40. What exactly is it? I'm still trying to find out.

Vegetarianism mystified

This is just a funny post, that blossomed through some lateral thinking. I have no intentions to hurt anyone. So, read it and forget it.

Search for "Fruits continue to live and respire after picked" in google, there are so many articles that say how fruits and vegetables continue to breathe long after they're picked. Besides uprooting and killing plants of potatoes, onions, carrots, beetroots, radishes, etc., vegetarians not only inflict pain on other plants by plucking their fruits and leaves, but also gain satisfaction from eating them live! At least non-vegetarians kill the animals before eating! If vegetarianism is about not killing, I'm not convinced that it does what it wants; if vegetarianism is about not inflicting pain, I'm still not convinced because plants do respond to stimuli; if vegetarianism is about not causing blood shed, well I remember reading about xylem and phloem in plants.

God has given us canine teeth (no herbivore has canine teeth) and the inability to digest cellulose (no carnivore has this ability). He also gave us the sixth sense I agree, but who knows, probably a lion has a seventh sense. Jainism mandates pure vegetarianism to an extent of avoiding anything that involves uprooting. But I'm not sure if Jains don't do woodwork for their fancy houses. Sikhs don't serve meat during religious occasions, but the rest of the time they do balle-balle. There're conflicting evidences for Buddha preaching vegetarianism, but then no Buddhist country follows vegetarianism. When it comes to Hinduism, there are evidences of the Veda allowing ritual sacrifices of animals though it opposes meat-eating because of the negative Karma that surrounds it (Disclaimer: I don't understand sanskrit, so I don't know what the Veda actually tells, I can only believe what I read and what I was taught). Interestingly, the concept of vegetarianism started and has been religiously preached only in India, I'm not sure if there is any other country that practices vegetarianism in religion.

Well, my intention is not to justify or unjustify anyone or anything, but then I'm slowly starting to believe that nothing is good and nothing is bad and that nothing is more important and nothing is less important. I don't think God created man presuming he should be the most sovereign race on earth, but then somewhere down the line, something has gone wrong. I was not born a billion years ago to understand all of this! I could be right or I could be wrong, but I'm not going to regret when I disprove myself later. I only know so much now, I can only do so much; when I know more, I'll do more. For now, let me continue to float in thin air.

Vaishnava Janato

Vaishnava Janato

I've heard this song multiple times but never knew the meaning, a wonderful Gujarati song. I found the transliteration in Wikipedia, thanks to Shubha for pointing it out. If only everyone does what is said in the song, what a wonderful place will this world be! Though the song mentions about Lord Rama, it has nothing to do with Him, you can as well substitute Him with any other God or with no one at all. [Well, the God here needs capitialization because the song refers to the God himself and so let's not bring in discussions of the previous post here :)]

1. vaishnav jan to tene kahiye, je peeD paraaee jaNe re
[He is the true Vaishnava who knows and feels another's woes as his own]
par dukkhe upkar kare toye, man abhiman na aaNe re
[Ever ready to serve others who are unhappy, he never lets vanity get to his head]

2. sakaL lok maan sahune vande, nindaa ne kare keni re
[Bowing to everyone humbly and criticising none]
vaach-kaacch-man nischaL raakhe, dhan-dhan janani teni re
[He keeps his speech, deeds and thoughts pure; blessed is the mother who begets such a one]

3. sam-drushti ne trishNaa tyaagi, parastree jene maat re
[He looks upon all with an equal eye. Having rid himself of lust, he treats and reveres every woman as his mother]
jihvaa thake, asatya na bole, par-dhan nava jhaale haath re
[His tongue would fail him if he attempted to utter an untruth. He does not covet another's wealth]

4. moh-maayaa vyaape nahin jene, draDh vairagya jena manmaa re
[The bonds of earthly attachment hold him not. His mind is deeply rooted in renunciation]
raam-naam shu taaLire laagi, sakaL teerath tena tanmaa re
[Every moment he is intent on reciting the name of the Lord Rama. All the holy places are ever present in his body]

5. vaNa lobhi ne kapat rahit chhe, kaam krodh nivaarya re
[He has conquered greed, deceit, passion (lust) and anger]
bhaNe Narsaiyyon teno darshan kartaun, kuL ekoter tarya re
[The sight of such a Vaishnava, says Narsinh, saves a family through seventy-one generations]