My bike accident exprience

It was only in 2007 I could breakthrough my long waited dream of visiting Thimphu for the first time ever. Until then back in the school we used to mock each other that we haven’t been to Thimphu for last so and so years (based on our age) which means we have not been to Thimphu ever since our birth.

I was for orientation after completing plus two. By the time all selections interviews for both in country tertiary education as well as ex-country scholarships were over it was already spring then. I would have been around three months in Thimphu. Still newbie in Thimphu. I could barely locate the favorite visiting hubs of Thimphu because of which I had to confine most of time at home before television.

How beautiful is Bhutan especially in spring with green environment and full of varied colours of flowers blooming all over Bhutan. Thimphu, being capital far better than all other places surrounded with apple buds and flowers especially in spring. At least to newbie like me I could view so beautifully. That time I did not know that Sang Gang is a rendezvous for love birds as well as favorite place for people to have bird’s eye view of Thimphu town.

Timely, few days before I left for home, let’s go to Sangay Gang ’, my friend phoned me on one of the weekends, to which I agreed blindly without knowing where that place could be.

After some time he came to pick me up with his bike. Through Zelukha with one of his friend we were heading to Sangay Gang. I was riding with him on his bike but his friend was alone on his bike who was speeding ahead of us. We were following him at a normal pace, not that speedy. By the time we crossed the crossroad that leads, one way to Motithang and other to Sangay Gang, his friend was nowhere seen, far ahead of us. We were speeding then.

Just before reaching the zoo where there is sign board about Takins, from seeable distance of that board, there is one small right turning while going towards Sangay Gang. We were wending through this turning. Meanwhile he was talking with me every now and then turning back at me which he was not supposed do it. And also while we were going up we were supposed to be on left side. But we were heading on right side of the road.

As we moved on and about to cross that turning, my friend was still talking with me side by side. By the time we crossed that turning it was already late. The Maruti car from the opposite side was already close to us from the right side of the road. We did not see the Maruti Car coming as we were busy talking as well as travelling. As we were on wrong side, seeing Maruti car very close my friend did not do anything. He was confused, he went on same side but Maruti car tried to go left side but no way to safe, it was very close. Instead of pressing brake the Maruti car driver pressed accelerator. As a result we were knocked down and thrown to right side  of the road. Fortunately, not thrown to left side of road. If it had we would have gone off the road.

By the time I realized that we were thrown by a car I was lying on right side of the road. Thank God! It was not against the wall. I could see the car about to veer off the road but that small rock safe it. Our bike was crushed especially front part. It was lying with leaking the patrol and with patrol stains on the right side of the road. My friend was also sitting with blood stains on his right leg.

I checked out all my limbs but it was all stable except with few scratches. I tried to stand up but I could not lift my right hand properly. Then I saw my right hand was hurt.

I looked at the car. With almost dead face, with full of annoyance expression, a middle aged monk and a gorgeous girl of early twenties slowly came out of the car. They looked below the road and seeing quite steep I saw them sighing, Oh god!!.If there was no rock surely they would have been either injured gravely or died.

Being Sunday, by the time we all came outside the road there were many cars lined up from both the directions. What happen?, many asked. As if nothing happened we dragged the bike aside and cleared the road for traffic.

You were on wrong side, you have to repair my bike,  my friend demanded..

 No, you were on wrong side, I was on my side, the monk reacted back.  Fuss went on for some time. But luckily no traffic officers were turned up.

The monk admitted that the girl was driving the car without license .Actually she was learning driving and the monk was guiding her which is why he did not want to call traffic police. He was afraid he would be fined if my friend calls police. But he did not know my friend did not have license too. He did not mention anything about license. He was afraid only because of the girl was driving the car.

My friend went on insisting him to repair his bike. I knew it we were on wrong site and it was our fault. But I did not say anything. I was troubling a lot with pain on my right hand. I did not care about his bike. I was just sitting on the pavement. The monk was arguing a lot but the girl was silent she was still frightened and she did not say anything. But she was beautiful. When they were having hot debate I was laboring with so much pain but still then I did not spare to look at that girl. So cute, she was. Guys’ eyes so crazy.

After much argument the monk finally agreed to bear 50 % of repairing cost of his bike.

After that we dispersed .My friend and I went to hospital. His leg was severally hurt. If there was no helmet on our heads I don’t know what would have our heads been up to..

That day was on 1^st April, 2007, fool’s day. But, had we been crushed to dead that would not have been worked as a fool’s day. We were not fooling each other it was a accident, no intention.

Latter only I came to know that most of the Thimphu residents go to Sangay Gang for learning driving.

Today I still fear to  ride  on two wheelers. Still then sometimes I ride it, as some say that if we were to die then we‘ll die even if we stay within four walls of our room..But I ride with care and cautious always………..

Hindi, will i ever know perfectly?

“By the time you complete your course you will know Hindi perfectly“, said many of my mates before coming to Indian when I told them I’m placed in India. Being I hail from far-flung village they knew it I barely know a word of Hindi, which may apply to all most all students who were born and bought up in the village.

Being  born down to the dust, brought up in the jungle almost like a jungle creature, just merely born as a human creature, no bare minimum entitlements as a human were offered, not deliberately but world itself was like that during 1990s still laboring for globalization, transformation, etc. None to blame. What to say about Bhutan during 1990s it was far behind in everything but today no more Bhutan is at same level it used to be in 1990s, far better today. Everyone knows that. Today, we have road at our door steps, electricity, and lot more. Even in my village some villagers own television.

During my time forget about television, there were no road, no electricity and no solar panels either. To the nearest road minimum we had to walk 7-8 hours. I still remember how we used to rush when our head master wanted any one of us to go for shopping of his necessities or for school party to the nearest town. Because when we get to visit town and see different cars plying once in a blue moon, may be once in a year we used to feel so happy as if we have reached to our dream land. By chance if we get a lift or get to see television then what more we would have wanted to be happy?, so excited we would be.

Candidly speaking I saw television properly only when I reached to Junior High School. Many say they learn Hindi automatically when they watch Hindi serials and movies. That would have been possible only if I were in the town. But sadly I was back in village. I started watching Hindi movies only after reaching here. For some, they learn Hindi when they are in the school through their friends in case if they happen to meet friends who are well versed with Hindi. But throughout my school life until plus two I did not meet any friends of such sort. So how would have been possible for me to learn foreign language in this condition? It was no way then, although I knew it, its importance.

I still remember so many funny things I had been through when I came to India for the first time, for not being able to communicate in Hindi.

The only hope was when I came to India for study. As my friends said I too thought that I would be able to know Hindi by the time I complete my course which could be the only benefit I could reap besides my course, being in India for half a decade.

Do you know Hindi?, asked some of my friends . Not bad, I defended. But it’s been four years in India now, so where am ‘I standing today then? In four fours did I learn something as I expected? Did I really know Hindi “not that bad?

After coming here everything was just topsy-turvy, nothing went as expected. I being placed in the south, it has been very difficult to learn. The University where I study being a National University, students come from all over India. Owing to their diverse regional language some of them hardly know Hindi, but just a handful, not many, although they know their regional language very well which differs from place to place.

 In other colleges I was told that they communicate mostly in Hindi and they were being taught in Hindi as well. Owing to which some of them knew it within a year though they pissed off in the beginning. But here it seems students were born with English on their month. They communicate mostly in English. When it comes to Hindi, sometimes they speak within themselves fully or just few verses in cocktail with English. But whenever they speak their speaking is not lesser than our monks chanting prayers, so fast. I hardly get it. There I lost blinking.

I would be the first person to shout, ‘in English please’, if they make any announcement in the class in Hindi. But sometimes I have to laugh with them without getting what humorous thing they said which is why sometimes I wish I was also born with television.

The persons we communicate in Hindi here includes cooks, security guards, non teaching staffs and auto drivers. They don’t know English. They are the ones whom we communicate in Hindi most of the time. Even if we don’t know Hindi with them we have to make it out one way or other. So, I have to face it with little I know. Sometimes I find them shaking their heads which seems they don’t understand my Hindi when my Hindi goes mixing with my broken Nepali. Sometimes I try throwing my broken Hindi to my Indian friends which I find it comfortable while throwing to them whatever I know but on return I’m dead, I hardly get what they are telling. There again I lost scratching my head. I surrender then. But with auto drivers I never surrender. They speak kind of typical Hindi here which I can get it at least some part. So, with them my broken Hindi works well.

Before coming here I would not have known even if I were to be sold to somebody but today, after living here for four years, occasionally speaking in broken Hindi with aforementioned persons and watching many Hindi movies with subtitles, I understand at least something as well as I can speak to some extent, at least basics though brokenly. Nobody can sale me now rather with my little basics of Hindi I can even tour whole India. Nobody can ridicule me either, with those Hindi slangs.  Before I never used to go to city alone but today I’m able to go alone.

I just know little bit of basics still then I’m happy. At least, something is better than nothing. I know one day or other I may even get to deal people who speak only Hindi but I’m hopeful that I can handle it with my little basics which by the time it’ll get matured, if not fully at least to some extent, capable of understanding what they are saying and convincing what I’m trying to say. . Long way to go for perfecting ……………

Suicide; is it the only last remedy left in this world? Why not resort to other remedies?

We the human beings on the earth are considered as one of the six realms of rebirth which is only the most possible realm for attaining nirvana. Though being as human being is not in nirvana which is just an en route for attaining nirvana, however still I feel we are so fortunate for having blessed with the proper human life which is so precious than anything else. Many in other realms of rebirth must be craving desperately in need of human life which is so difficult to happen unless be a luckiest of the luckiest that is also only after many years of horrible suffering. Out of hundreds and thousands of creatures in other realms the benevolent god granted our lives to be humans which could be just one time gift. So, being human itself it gives an enough consolation and reason to be invariably happy and proud of even if we don’t have enough material or intellectual wealth as humans to be happy and proud of.

No doubt, having gotten the proper human life without any defect we rejoice with pride and pleasure. Then, what do we care and afraid of losing the most other than life? Everyone knows how important and precious is life which is why we always, of all other things, we care life the most and afraid the most of losing life. When worst happens to life people lament to the extent that ‘life sucks, ‘I’m so unfortunate human on this earth’, ‘I hate life’ and so on. But this happens to everybody given the fact that life is always subject to ups and downs. This does not go beyond our lips. It withers away within our lips only. But not same for everybody, for some people they really mean it. They go beyond their words of hating life with real action.

I don’t know why people hate life to the extent of resorting to real action of killing oneself when there is plethora of remedies available besides killing oneself no matter however grave the circumstances could be that lead to resort such a worst of the worst remedy. Life, as a precious gift from god is supposed to surrender only if god takes away himself in which case it is inevitable which every human being is subjected to. The only difference is matter of time, one day or other naturally we are bond to surrender if god takes away. But killing oneself is too much to parents, relatives and society at large. Even some say that such people don’t deserve proper funeral rites also. From religious point of view, we Buddhist believe that committing suicide is a sin and there are many other beliefs behind this. From legal point of view also, though committing suicide is not crime but attempt to commit is a crime.

I’ was really disturbed when I came across three suicide cases consecutively last month within two weeks in my village. As far as I remember I did not see any such incident before in my village, this was first time I saw in our village though I heard many such cases in other parts of Bhutan. Of three cases two succeeded but one failed and escaped the death. It seemed a rope from which she hanged and jumped was not that strong. As she hanged and jumped from one of the branches of tree the rope could not resist the force of her weight so the rope frayed and she escaped with minor injuries. Another one was a student in plus one standard.

I don’t know what prompted him to suicide. He was found hanged himself behind his dormitory with his kera. He was by nature very good and industrious person who would not have ever resorted to such act. As a student he might have lots of dreams and aspiration pursuing which in 10 years of his education he might have gone through lots of hardship that every villager’s son as a student goes through. He might have experienced hell lot of trouble in walking to and from the school in rain and in the sweltering sun thinking that one day he would not have to suffer like his parents back in the village in between the oxen and with spats until doomsday. His parents might have tried every possible way to send him school with at least basic necessities by providing whatever they have if they have and if they don’t have enough then lending from others and if they don’t get from lending then disposing little wealth they have or if they don’t have anything to dispose then earning through working for others for months. But not only his parents, during his vacations most of the time he used to be found in the forest and away from home working just to meet his schooling expenses. But sadly all his 10 years effort turned to meaningless and blown off himself uselessly neither helpful to the ones alive and nor to himself rather a blow to parents and society. Whatever, he might have acted what he was destined for. So, that must have been his fate.

The other one was a village girl who phoned almost all her friends from the tree where she hanged that she was committing suicide. When one of her friends went to safe her she jumped off the moment she saw her friend coming and her friend could not safe it. So, people suicide as if they are going for vacation and would come back after some months. Everyone’s life is subject to ups and downs but when there is worst downs in life it does not mean that suicide is only last remedy.  There is always better way out, at least better than suicide. I pray for all of them that, may their souls rest in eternal peace!!.