Oh how smoothly, how swiftly and horribly, how cruelly and thoroughly, one discovers the powers and prowess of Maya, the Supreme power of Illusions! With a simple sleight of her hand, léger de main, everything changes in a moment; electrically charged, awesome and exciting years of life shrink to moments - just to realize that all that fascinating reality had been a dream. Perhaps all that had happened previously had been a continuous sequence of beautiful images that one would admire and fall in love with, and to realize that it’s all the game of dreams, illusions and Maya. The reality also strikes, at the same moment, that everything one would still experience in the future, would see with one’s eyes and feel with one’s hands, up to the moment of one’s death — that everything is not going to be any different in substance, or any different in kind. Why would it be? It’s always all a game, all foam and all dreams. It’s Maya, the whole lovely and frightful, delicious and desperate kaleidoscope of life with its searing delights, intertwined with its searing sorrows, the amazing show that has been ongoing since the dawn of Universe.

More Quotes by Deodatta V. Shenai-Khatkhate

Sharing a strange experience from my student years at Manchester, England, during late 1970's. I had just arrived in England from India, and was searching for an accommodation, basically a room to rent. I always used to call the English landlords by phnoe first, to ensure that a room was available, and then visit those addresses, located miles away, by taking the bus or a train. Upon my arrival, I was always told that either there was no room at all or that the room was just rented. After a dozen or so such frustrating experiences, it became clear to me that the room was always available - but those English landlords and landladies were reluctant to rent it to someone like me, an Indian or a non-white person. Interestingly, the room was always available to my voice on the phone, because my voice could not reveal either my skin color, or my race, or my national origin. The mystery was thus dispelled, and yet that realization was surely a rude awakening to the true color of English society. It was my first encounter with prejudice and discrimination, and the most shocking moment that shatters one's innocence completely - especially after coming from a noble culture and the best upbringing that takes pride in Equality. I shall always remain thankful to England for the best education that I received during my M.S. and Ph.D., as much as for such exposure to the dark side of the real world. Years later, after coming to America, I realized that America is a whole new wonderful world that welcomes all, and treats everyone with respect and dignity they deserve. God Bless America!