She was quite hot. As he prepared himself for what could be a long night, he rubbished the theory that a married couple’s interest in each other waned over time. He still loved his wife as dearly as before. So he was quite worried when he found her hot. He looked around for the thermometer.
until next time, fever
We’d not visited Tamarind for a while, though its quite nearby, and what better than a lazy Saturday to drop in? Its located on the Koramangala-Indiranagar intermediate ring road. When coming from Indirangar, you’ll see it on the right after the Sony World junction. Actually, the pub on the ground floor-Enigma is more visible. Tamarind is on the first floor.
Tamarind serves Chinese, Continental and North Indian, but we’ve always had only the last, perhaps because the market leaders in the other verticals have already been clearly defined 🙂 The soup, of course, is an exception and we went with our favourite Cream of Chicken Soup. D claimed there was garlic in it, though I couldn’t sense it. I’m not too sure of this, since D was a bit woozy and even managed to pop the plastic sauce container like a champagne bottle.
For the main course we ordered a Fish Tikka Masala, which is “fish tikkas in tomato and onion gravy”, and (okay, I saw this one and though it left me speechless, I had to have it!!) Chicken Madrasy (sic), which is “chicken cooked in cardamom and coconut milk topped with cashew gravy topped with curry leaves”. We also ordered an onion kulcha and a roti to go along with it. The fish gravy was quite good, but a couple of the tikka pieces were a bit burnt. The chicken was certainly different with a distinct coconut milk flavor, which questioned its supposed Madras origins in favour of Kerala. The quantities of both were sufficient, but we had to order an extra Naan. Though there were quite a few dessert options, we were too stuffed.
The person who took our order was quite tardy, but the guy who served our table made up for it quite well. Tamarind also serves alcohol. A 330 ml Kingfisher costs Rs.85, that should give you an indication of the costs. Its quite a good place if you are a large group, I’ve never seen a place with so many seating options for large groups. I think they also have a roof top option.
All of the above cost us just above Rs.500, which was quite value-for-money, considering the quantity and quality.
Tamarind, #2, 100 ft Road, 5th Block, Koramangala Ph: 25633999
PS. Have installed a lifestream service, check it out here
Pankaj Mishra
I’ve always been a fan of Pankaj Mishra’s melancholic way of writing, which just borders on cynicism. This book, while a study on the evolution of Buddhism, is also a travelogue of sorts. It even manages to touch upon the author’s personal growth – material and spiritual, and the gradual growth in his confidence, which was necessary for the book to be written.
It focuses a lot on Buddha’s teachings, the way it has been transformed in various regions and times in which it has been practised, and also manages an analysis of how it could still be pertinent in a world that has changed much, since the time he lived in. The book simplifies Buddhism to an extent, and while it cannot be a complete guide to the Buddha (that wasn’t the idea anyway), it does manage to chronicle the times that the Buddha lived in, and makes you curious enough not only to read up more on the subject, but also check out the works of David Hume, and Nietzsche, who have been extensively quoted.
A good start for those who seek to understand themselves.
The complexity of the human mind is unfathomable, and its not a new thing. While I differed with Austere, and said that its possible for one to know their self completely, I also realise that in this age, we perhaps don’t have the skills to do so. More importantly, we may not be inclined to. There are too many distractions that draw us away, in our routine life. Like I keep saying, we have forgotten the differentiation between wants and needs, and so, are too caught up in existence to live.
From the couple of books on the Buddha I’ve read, I’ll agree to the premise that the first step in knowing the self is to be aware that its not a constant, and changes according to many things we experience – the stimuli around us, the way we react to them, what they leave behind with us, and so on, all part of the 12 point chain that the Buddha had defined.
There’s a wonderful story in the book “An End to Suffering” by Pankaj Mishra, taken from the Chandogya Upanishad. Its a dialogue between a father and a son, an abstract speculation, on the self. The father tells the son to fetch him the fruit of a banyan tree, to break it, and tell him what he saw. The son says seeds, and the father asks him to break the seed, and tell him what he saw. The son says ‘Nothing’, and then the father says that in the ‘nothing’ he saw, was the essence of the Banyan tree. And in that essence, is the key to the self.
With the technological advancements we have now, it is possible to go beyond the seed, and see what lies at sub cellular levels. The irony of it is that it still doesn’t take us any closer to the self. Its a snapshot of the lives we lead, proceeding with our existence at breakneck speed, trying to make our living faster but easier, but leaving some gnawing questions unanswered.
until next time, be aware
That’s what you need. When you go for a movie, when you go shopping for groceries, when you decide to dine out, on a Saturday night. Because after all, in the secular, tolerant country we live in, now you SIMI, now you don’t. So right here, right now, make your will, before its too late.
until next time, where does the similarity end?!