‘సద్విమర్శలే మనిషిని సన్మార్గంలో పెడతాయి. కత్తిరించినప్పుడే కదా మొక్క కొత్త చిగురులు తొడుగుతుంది’ అంటారు ఓ కవి. ఎవరివైపు అయినా
ఓ వేలెత్తి చూపుతున్నప్పుడు, మిగిలిన నాలుగు వేళ్లూ మనవైపే చూపిస్తాయని అర్థం చేసుకోవాలి. అప్పుడే, మన నోటికి బాధ్యత తెలుస్తుంది. మన మాటకు
విలువ పెరుగుతుంది. ఈ సంభాషణ సారమూ ఇదే.
Vishnu: Going for a walk?
Rakesh: Going to meet Anup. Would you like to come?
Vishnu:Anup? No. I swore never to meet him again in my life.
Rakesh: But you are very close friends, aren’t you?
Vishnu: Friend? A foul-mouthed fellow! Our friendship is history. We fell out last week.
Rakesh: Why?
Vishnu: I had said something to him, innocently and in a friendly manner. And he went on criticising me nonstop.
Rakesh: What did you say?
Vishnu: I said, Your hair is unkempt. And the front looks like the nest of a bird. No girl will ever love you.
Rakesh: What did he say?
Vishnu: He said, You don’t know how to shake hands. When you shake hands with others, they writhe in pain.
Rakesh: Do you shake or squeeze hands?
Vishnu: He said, You are not handsome. You look more like a jackal than like a young man.
Rakesh: He’s wrong. You’re quite handsome.
Vishnu: He said, When you smile, you seem to be frowning.
Rakesh: You have an infectious smile!
Vishnu: He said, You don’t know how to walk. When you walk, you look like a bull.
Rakesh: You have a graceful gait!
Vishnu: He said, You don’t know how to ride a bicycle. When you ride a bicycle, you look like a monkey in a circus.
Rakesh: Not at all!
Vishnu: He said, You don’t know how to eat. When you eat, you look like a bird pecking at a fruit.
Rakesh: No, don’t say that!
Vishnu: He said, You don’t know how to hold a pen. Holding a pen, you look like a thief holding a knife.
Rakesh: Like a thief?
Vishnu: He said, You don’t know how to sing. When you sing, you mew like a cat, bark like a dog and bray like an ass.
Rakesh: Vish! If you point one finger at others, three fingers will point at you.
Vishnu: You mean my one remark prompted all this carping criticism from him?
Rakesh: Yes. People living in glass houses should not throw stones at others.
Om Shanti
Dilip:Why Shanti said three times?
Pankaj:That prospective bride to the would-be mother-in-law? She said, My name is Shanti. Meri naam Shanti hai. Naa peru Shanti. To the amused and bewildered would-be mother-in-law, she again said, Madam, I’m a railway announcer.
Dilip:My dear humorist! That’s a stale joke. My question is: Why is Om Shanti said three times?
Pankaj:So that God may protect us from three kinds of suffering – adhyatmika, adibhoutika and adidaivika.
-సూర్యారావు ఎం.వి
వివేకానంద ఇన్స్టిట్యూట్ ఆఫ్ లాంగ్వేజెస్,
రామకృష్ణ మఠం.