Dreams Without Measure

“When you were a wandering desire in the mist, I too was there, a wandering desire.
Then we sought one another, and out of our eagerness dreams were born.
And dreams were time limitless, and dreams were space without measure.”
(Kahlil Gibran – Lebanese-American artist, poet, and writer, 1883-1931)

The City Palace is a palace complex in Udaipur, the City of Lakes, in the Indian state Rajasthan.
It was built by the Maharana Udai Singh in 1559 in a flamboyant fusion of Rajasthani and Mughal architectural styles and stands on a hill top that gives a panoramic view of the city and the Lake Pichola.
This picture was shot in the Audience Room of the maharaja’s apartments and symbolizes what I always dreamt of India when I was younger.
Each time I have an opportunity to escape for a few days to Udaipur, I come back there and the dream is untouched, flawless and without measure…

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Closed In A room

“Closed in a room, my imagination becomes the universe, and the rest of the world is missing out.”
(Criss Jami – American poet, existentialist philosopher and lead singer of the rock band Venus in Arms, b. 1987)

The City Palace is a palace complex in Udaipur, the City of Lakes, in the Indian state Rajasthan.
It was built by the Maharana Udai Singh in 1559 in a flamboyant fusion of Rajasthani and Mughal architectural styles and stands on a hill top that gives a panoramic view of the city and the Lake Pichola.
This picture was shot in the maharaja’s apartments.
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Sacred Moments

“A ritual becomes the match that lights the kindred celebration candle of sacred moments long ago… tantalizing these entombed spirits to surface again.”
(Wes Adamson)

This was shot from a boat on the Ganges in Varanasi (Benaras) during the celebrations of Dev Diwali on the occasion of Kartik Poornima.
The festival of Lights is a mark of welcome to the Gods as it is believed that they descend on earth on that special day.
In the evening under the full moon reflecting in the holy waters each ghat is performing Ganga Aarti with vedic hymns chanted by priests in order to please and welcome the Gods.

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A Cosmic Journey

“We are travelers on a cosmic journey,stardust,swirling and dancing in the eddies and whirlpools of infinity.
Life is eternal.
We have stopped for a moment to encounter each other, to meet, to love, to share.
This is a precious moment.
It is a little parenthesis in eternity.”
(from “The Alchemist” by Paulo Coelho)

This picture was shot at Manikarnika Ghat along holy waters of the Ganges in Varanasi (Benaras) during the celebrations of Dev Diwali on the occasion of Kartik Poornima.
The festival of Lights is a mark of welcome to the Gods as it is believed that they descend on earth on that special day.
While all the banks of the sacred river are celebrating with hymns and fireworks, the burning ghat is still at work, the pyres carry on the eternal fire which has been burning continuously for more than three thousand years.

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A Second’s Encounter With Eternity

“Tell your heart that the fear of suffering is worse than the suffering itself.
And that no heart has ever suffered when it goes in search of its dreams, because every second of the search is a second’s encounter with God and with eternity.”
(From “Alchemist” by Paulo Coelho)

This was shot from a boat on the Ganges in Varanasi (Benaras) during the celebrations of Dev Diwali on the occasion of Kartik Poornima.
The festival of Lights is a mark of welcome to the Gods as it is believed that they descend on earth on that special day.
In the evening under the full moon reflecting in the holy waters each ghat is performing Ganga Aarti with vedic hymns chanted by priests in order to please and welcome the Gods.

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The Humanity Of The Moment

“Black and white are the colors of photography.
To me they symbolize the alternatives of hope and despair to which mankind is forever subjected.
Most of my photographs are of people; they are seen simply, as through the eyes of the man in the street.
There is one thing the photograph must contain, the humanity of the moment.
This kind of photography is realism.
But realism is not enough–there has to be vision, and the two together can make a good photograph.
It is difficult to describe this thin line where matter ends and mind begins.
(Robert Frank – American photographer and filmaker, b.1924)

This sadhu was walking at Scindia ghat along the Ganges in Varanasi (Benaras), it was after sunrise and he was holding a traditional tiffin-box containing a meal prepared by some generous soul…

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Elevation

In Varanasi (Benaras) there is a temple dedicated to Lord Shiva between Scindia ghat and Manikarnika ghat which doesn’t look like any other in the city because of its amazing sculptures with angels which are all around the shrine playing different music instruments.
This place is a kind of gate to after death as the cremation ghat is underneath with funeral pyres burning day and night.
It is not easy to climb the high and narrow staircase plunged in total darkness.
However each stair allows to ascend towards the light and to take the time to elevate oneself…

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From Boredom To Fascination

“The Chinese have a theory that you pass through boredom into fascination and I think it’s true.
I would never choose a subject for what it means to me or what I think about it.
You’ve just got to choose a subject – and what you feel about it, what it means, begins to unfold if you just plain choose a subject and do it enough.”
(Diane Arbus – American photographer and writer, 1923–1971)

This picture was shot at Assi ghat along the Ganges in Varanasi (Benaras).
It was during the morning when things were quiet in a state of sluggishness.
I was straining the lense for the faintest stir when thinking in black and white allowed to pass through boredom into fascination…

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Eid Mubarak

“ Abraham said:
“I will go to my Lord! He will surely guide me “O my Lord! Grant me a righteous son!” So We gave him the good news of a forbearing son. Then, when the son reached the age of serious work with him, Abraham said: “O my son! I have seen in a vision that I offer you in sacrifice: now see what your view is?” The son said: “O my father! Do as you are commanded: you will find me, if Allah so wills, one of the steadfast!”
So when they had both submitted Allah and Abraham had laid his son prostrate on his forehead for sacrifice, We called out to him “O Abraham! You have already fulfilled the dream!” – you are indeed Do We reward those who do right.”
(Qur’ân – verse 37:99 to verse 37:109)

Islam focuses on Abraham more than either Judaism or Christianity, but with an important difference: where Judaism holds that one becomes a descendant of Abraham through birth, and Christianity that one becomes a descendant through faith, Islam holds that descent is unimportant – Abraham, in other words, is not the father of the believing community, but a link in the chain of prophets that begins with Adam and culminates in Mohammad.
Islamic traditions consider Abraham the first Pioneer of Islam (which is also called millat Ibrahim, the “religion of Abraham”), and that his purpose and mission throughout his life was to proclaim the Oneness of God.
When Abraham was asked for sacrifice, he took Ishmael to sacrifice. When he was about to use the knife, God placed a sheep under his hand.
Abraham had shown that his love for Allah superseded all others: that he would lay down his own life or the lives of those dearest to him in submission to Allah’s command.
As a reward for this sacrifice, God then granted Abraham the good news of the birth of his second son, Is-haaq (Isaac).
Muslims around the world commemorate this ultimate act of sacrifice every year during Eid al-Adha, to follow the path of Abraham that is called Qurbani (sacrifice).

During this festival in Varanasi (Benaras), it is common for Muslims and non-Muslims to visit their Muslim friends and neighbours on Eid to convey their good wishes and share a meal or sweets.
This is a view shot from the upper terrace of the Bara Imambara in Lucknow built by Asaf-ud-Daula, the Nawab of the city, in 1784.
The two minars on the left belong to the Asfi Mosque and on the right stands the Rumi Darwaza known as the Turkish Gate.
This picture of the City of Nawabs, the capital of the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh, allows me to wish everyone a happy and peaceful Eid Mubarak.
“May Allah ease the suffering of all people around the world…”

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A Solitary Tear

“The Taj Mahal rises above the banks of the river like a solitary tear suspended on the cheek of time.”
(Rabindranath Tagore – Indian Poet, Playwright and Essayist. Won the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1913, 1861-1941)

There is nothing left to take away to this solitary tear which reflects on the Yamuna river.
In this cruel and imperfect world, the Taj is the proof that Love can still create perfection…”Dilruba”…

For all the Taj Mahal lovers, this is the new commercial by Guerlain for “Shalimar”, the unforgettable scent since the 20’s…
youtu.be/vL6XJw8Oe5M

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