Soulful cities
There
are cities that are ‘beautiful’ and then there are ‘soulful’ cities in the
world. The ‘beautiful’ cities are like scotch or single-malt whiskey. Once you
gulp it down, you strongly feel the presence of a bevy of fairies invading your
mind-space. We sense the importance of life and its different colours. Such
cities fill our lives with goals, purpose, and happiness. For instance, Mumbai,
Delhi , Bangalore
are some such ‘beautiful’ cities in India
Yet
we cannot dismiss the importance of 'meaning' in our daily lives. Cities that
are ‘soulful’ are unbounded by time, wealth, money, sex. These places have
their own rhythm and the world revolves around them. Such cities are pulsating
with life, movement, music; brimming with an inward energy that cannot be compared
with anything. Kolkata is one such city which is like a gurgling spring. The
city of joy breathes and exudes 'meaning' and 'ecstasy'. It cannot be shaped or
defined by any external circumstances. The city just lives by its own whims and
fancies.
We
slowly realize Kolkata is basically a blend of real complex emotions which are
everlasting. The chaotic life here takes shapes and forms, becomes lighter and
flows through the mind like whirring mild breeze. Life in Kolkata helps us
get to our deeper selves and get intimate with our emotional core. We sort of
understand who we essentially are, what are needs are and what we must do,
without evasion. It helps us become more enlightened by a thorough acceptance
of pains and losses in our lives.
We
learn the virtues of forgiveness, love and compassion; pity people who backstab
us and develop a greater self than our own. The stories of many evolved minds
are rooted in the place they come from. It’s quite amazing. Soulful cities
teach us the importance of staying afloat in an ideal reality far removed from
the ‘quotidian’ world and not necessarily quit the sensuous world in pursuit of
a higher realm. It’s indeed wonderful to live in such ‘soulful’ cities of the
world.
Meghna Maiti
ENDS
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