Wild Bitter Melon / Bitter Gourd

Wild bitter melons grow in the forests in India. Called kaatu kaipa ( കാട്ടു കയ്‌പ ) / kaatu paval ( കാട്ടു പാവൽ ) in Malayalam and करेला in Hindi, the little green fruits are delicious in stir-frys, curries, and fritters. They grow on climbing vines enfolding bushes and small trees. The vines look like those of the regular bitter gourd, but the leaves are more densely packed and disease resistant. They need no chemical fertilizer or pesticides, and can be grown organically. The fruits are oval or round and just an inch or so in size (2 cm to 4 cm).

Propagation in nature is carried out by rodents, birds, and bats who carry away the ripe fruits. The seeds germinate with the onset of the rains, and start yielding in a couple of months. They continue to bear fruit until the dry season, when the plants dry up. In our garden, the vines are grown on farmyard manure and are watered in summer. So we have these throughout the year. You can grow them in pots on balconies too, provided they get sunlight for at least 3 to 4 hours a day.

One!

One who plays without playing has won!
One that speaks without speaking is one!

Heaven and Earth!

Heaven and Earth,
No one knows,
Where one ends,
And the other begins.

With threads of dreams,
They are woven so close,
And myriads of worlds,
Float in cosmic consciousness.

Now just observe,
Now just witness,
Everything rests in silence,
In pure awareness!

The Lotus Seed!

Large and oval, shining black,
Is the seed of the sacred lotus.
Yearned to grow the heavenly blooms,
In my garden pond, did I.

A few I didst plant,
In the mud at the bottom,
Some I just put in the water.

I waited and waited, but alas!
Not a single leaf, did soar!

One day, walked in, a dear old friend,
Gazing gloomily at the placid water, found he me!
On knowing, said he,
“Do ye ken that the lotus seed,
Can sleep for thousands of years,
In mud and in water,
Till the bell rings for it to wake!
The wise say that a mere glance,
Of love divine, dost enter a heart,
Full of mud of the world;
It rests there forever, if need be,
Until the time doth come,
When out of its shell, it breaks!
It sprouts, it grows, and flowers,
Into fragrant blooms of love!”

So saying, he took out a seed,
Rubbed its eye, rough and hard,
On the coarse cemented floor, did he.

“Now plant it in the mud,
Or let float in the pond, and see!”

Three days passed, and in wonder, I beheld,
Oh! A little white sprout!

Soon, large and proud, it grew,
Leaves came out, each bigger and thicker,
And in months, the pond was full!

Blooms dispensed of bewitching beauty,
Maddening bees and butterflies alike,
People passing by forgot their troubles,
Touching the flowers, they smiled and said, hi!

Soon, the petals gave way to seeds,
And taking them in my hand,
Realized I, in a flash,
We cringe and run from pain,
Yet a painful rub doth nature give,
To bring out the best in us,
In accepting the pain, we grow,
And growing and blooming,
Smiling and spreading smiles,
In joy, we find ourselves!

Sketches by Girija Giridhar Kini (kitchenarchives.com).

Nothing is Lost Forever!

Nothing lasts forever,
So the saying goes.
Believe it or not, says Nature,
In me, nothing is lost forever!

Everything exists in me,
As ideas in me, they remain.
Some I bring forth to life,
Then I melt them back within!

Take this bloom for instance,
Yore stood it, bright and proud,
Now wilts it back to my bosom,
To give way to another, more proud!

The Way of a Blessing!

A blessing received with an open heart,
Does not end with the passing night!
A blessing received with total faith,
Ever takes root, grows inside and out!

To Transform Lust to Love!

What is controlled, rebels!
What is suppressed, erupts!
Passions and emotions,
Sway body and mind!

To fight them and to win,
Is sooner said than done,
For to rise in awareness,
The passions must begone!

The passions are energies,
Be they of physique or of mind,
Impossible to destroy,
Yet so easy to transform!

Newlyweds, couples on path,
Do take heed and arrive!

Whenever you make love, do so,
Only your partner to please,
And in all joy and earnestness,
Let your spouse do the same!

Just to please your darling,
Make every kiss and caress count,
Take your time, let your starburst wait,
For the orgasmic joy of your dear!

Find your happiness,
In the glee of your spouse,
Be it in the stolen glance of love,
Or in the muffled moans of pleasure!

Living together with one sole goal,
To strive to please the other!

See your spouse as divinity manifest,
Let your love mature, sweeten, mellow!
Just as sweeter the fruit becomes,
As ripens it all the more!

Through the inexorable,
Tumultuous ride of life,
With all your care and love,
Keep the lamp of love, aflame!

As you give yourself fully,
Expecting nothing in return,
Lust transforms to love,
And in love, awareness is born!

For those living alone,
A word before we part,
Spend time in selfless service,
And find Him in your heart!

Tandathi Payar!

An amazing pulse resembling the mung bean (green gram), grown by the ancient settlers in Wayanad, now so rare that most people have not even heard about it. Said to be the tastiest of pulses to make a mouthwatering stir-fry, I was lucky to come by a few seeds. Unlike mung beans, the plant is a strong vine that grows quickly and is 10 feet long by the end of the second month. Now, it produces beautiful yellow blooms in clusters followed by the bean pods. I do not know what it is called in English or whether it has a botanical name. The hermit who gave me the seeds says it is called Tandathi Payar in Malayalam. Definitely, a candidate for conservation, if not as a food crop, then as an ornamental vine on your trellis!

Organic Fruits!

A few organic fruits - love apples and sweet starfruit - ready for the market. They are usually snapped up in minutes by customers anxious to have safe and tasty organic produce.

Happy Buddha Poornima!

As the sun sets right on time,
To give way to today's full moon,
As nature seeks rest in meditation deep,
After the restless travails of the day,
Humanity remembers Sri Buddha,
Worships the great light of compassion,
While the rising full moon bids you,
Come, enter the door to nirvana!

Ringed Cowpeas!

A precious new guest in our vegetable garden. Unlike other cowpea beans which generally grow hanging down long and straight, this rare plant produces beans which start curling soon after they emerge from the blooms. As they grow, they curl back upon themselves, each quickly forming a beautiful ring! As for the taste, we have not cooked them yet, but the old farmer who gave me a few seeds assured me that they taste just fine!

Life, a new dawn!

The ivy gourd vine sprouted lush green shoots. Soon, they were hanging down, touching the ground. For want of a trellis, I just rolled them loosely around the iron pipe. Hardly a week had passed before the tips touched the ground once more. Once again, I coiled them upon the pipe. A couple of young Bulbuls flew around, surveying the vine. With noisy clucks, and delighted cackle, they inspected the ivy gourd vine ring. It swayed with the wind, a living swing, a cozy sheltered spot amidst the cherry bush, the curry leaf bush, the grape guava tree and the mango tree. They perched on the ring, chirping and singing with enthusiasm. Soon, they were flying to and fro, bringing dry leaves, twigs and pieces of dead vines.

Lo! A beautiful nest was born. It was shaped like a bowl, the insides lined with the softest dry vines, carefully, painstakingly built. In between, they flew off, mating in glee, foraging for insects and ripe little fruits. A couple of days passed, and I found little mama Bulbul sitting in her nest, warming her eggs. Even when she found me watering the plants close by, she would sit there gazing at me in such absolute trust, in motherly love and helplessness, that it pierced my heart. Anxiously, we waited for the day the beautiful marbled eggs would hatch and the cute little babies, emerge. The mother would leave the nest only for a few minutes each day, that too when it was warm and sunny, to get her grub and a drink of water.

One morning, there was a hue and cry, the parents screaming and fluttering around the nest, terrified, not daring to go too close. There squatted a Crow Pheasant (Greater Coucal) on the vine near the nest, a gigantic intruder, preening himself in utter disdain of the little Bulbuls. Seeing me come running, the villain made an undignified exit, but for the Bulbuls, it was too late. The eggs were gone.

They flew around the empty nest for a few minutes, and soon left. An hour later, mama Bulbul was back again searching all around the nest. Finding nothing, she perched on the guava tree, her back to the nest, desolate, mourning, all her golden dreams broken. And with her, silently, I grieved.

The night passed, and then a day, without a sight of my feathered friends. The next morning, with a heavy heart, I went out to the compound, my eyes roving the trees, trying to spot them. As I neared the thickly entwined fava bean vines, poof! A flutter of wings, and who should fly out, but our mama Bulbul, with a sense of urgency in her flight. Soon, she was back, in her beak, four or five little twigs, and she disappeared into the thick foliage of the vine. Watching her, my heart skipped a beat, and raced in a flutter of joy! Here were my dear friends, working industriously, enthusiastically, their tragic trauma forgotten as though it had never happened. Life, every moment, a new dawn!

Secure in His Arms!

At times, when dark clouds,
Cover thy horizons,
When the thunder of troubles seeks,
To make thee tremble, at thy knees,

When ominous signs and cares,
Seem to take over thy life,
Rejoice, for surely ‘tis to make way,
For a blessed shower of grace!

So be the law of life,
That thou shalt findest,
Whatever thou seekest,
That every desire be fulfilled,
Ere contentment be thy name!

So never give up hope,
But light thy lamp of vigil,
And with dawn of awareness, see,
That He ever carried thee,
Safe and secure in His arms!