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By Devendra Gautam

By the roadside, a pond full of water hyacinth—and devoid, perhaps, of even a trickle of water—offers an eyesore (a rare treat for this sapien’s dry eyes!), along with an ensemble of buildings, votive chaityas and the like. 

Sapiens spill over onto a narrow road along with dogs on the loose and monkeys on the prowl, and a steady stream of vehicles moving towards you don’t know where in a fast-atrophying world. 

A little above, a piece of the pangea beckons, further divided by a civilisation that takes pride in all things cement, concrete, iron and such inorganic materials that will take eons to decay. 

Call it human ingenuity: Long and winding steps wend through a segment of the ancient woods fenced on either side, giving birth to two separate simian nations. 

A fine example of nation-building in this ancient country turned into a banana republic, right?

Much to the relief of this occasional walker, monkeys on either side of the divide seem to be at peace with themselves and the rest of the world under a close watch of alpha males on either side, even as peace remains in pieces throughout the living planet, with or without our ancient mantras wishing for peace and bliss everywhere and in everything. 

A peace is a peace after all, whether it’s simian or sapien, right?

Here, a note of caution to the dwellers of Singhadurbar and other burnt-out centres of state powers: A simian truce in the woods may prompt Nepali sapiens to stage protests demanding a simian rule in the country. For the longevity of this regime, therefore, our rulers would do well to restrict the entry of Nepali nationals into these woods and think about earning money big time by imposing hefty entrance fees on foreign nationals. 

By the side of those winding steps lies a sapien, probably full of his day’s fill, breathing peacefully and rhythmically, as if he has found the station of life he wanted to be in for long, beneath a lovey-dovey couple seeking a quiet corner far away from an urban jungle that appears to be advancing toward these woods like the columns of the Birnam wood from the Macbethian times.    

Winds with fragrance of herbs blow from the ancient woods, mixing freely with modern air carrying the fragrance of incense wafting from nearby homes along with emissions from a bustling metropolis. 

Leaving monkeys holding a fragile peace, a granny burning the calories with her rather unwilling grandchild and monks strolling around, this sapien makes himself comfortable beneath a tree and turns on the pages of Chris Miller’s much-talked ‘Chip War’. 

Ah, another war in a world already grappling with several wars!

In the segment that this sapien is currently in, Japan has left the United States way behind in the industrial-scale production and use of semiconductors (chips), a very important component in diverse products ranging from mobile phones to precision-guided missiles to warplanes. 

Alas, one cannot remain in—and survive amid—woods (fenced woods in particular, with entry restricted from every corner to turn them into exclusive zones for powerful interests), right? 

So, after soaking in enough of the sun, the wind, the ether, the fire and the water for the day from a piece of the ancient Gaia that seems to be atrophying a bit less, this sapien returns to catch up with a world in a state of flux, leaving behind the drunk sapien, monkeys observing a solemn peace and all other entities under the watchful gaze of the presiding deity.    

Upon his return home, a barrage of headlines greets this sapien. 

‘A journalist found dead in suspicious circumstances’. 

‘An ink attack on a youth leader of a party past its prime’. 

‘An ancient press comes home from a museum’.    

Amid these headlines, a question flashes in this sapien’s mind: Have we been waiting for a Jung Bahadur on steroids and a pacemaker to come, rein in the chaos and establish in this fatherland, motherland and spiritual refuge of ours his version of ‘democracy’?