SoulScript by Niharika

  ​People say you need silence to meditate. ​Honestly? Give me a heavy trance beat, close my eyes, and let the music drown out everything. That driving rhythm just washes the noise right out of my head. The drop is my deep breath. ​Quiet rooms are great, but I'll prefer a good beat any day. ​For years, I was under the exact same misconception. I thought meditation was a chore. Having done certification courses in yoga, I’ve been trained in various meditation techniques and breathing exercises. So, naturally, I would try to do it "right": find a quiet room, sit cross-legged in padmasana or siddhasana , and force myself to concentrate in complete silence. ​And what happened? Almost immediately, I would get completely caught up in my thoughts.....playing back the events of the day or dragging up the past. Instead of finding peace, I’d have a hard time focusing, and my anxiety would actually go up. I was being pushed right back into the very thoughts I was trying to esca...

  ​I belong to a small town in Bihar, but I have spent most of my life away from this state. Due to education, work, and personal reasons, my journey has involved a lot of travel. I have lived in 10 different cities and traveled to 45. ​Yet, there have been phases where I returned for short periods, and I couldn't help noticing the deep differences in mindset and culture. These are the contrasts between small towns and big ones, developing places and metropolitan hubs. ​The Subject Matter of Our Days ​To start with, there is a noticeable difference in the everyday discussions and debates. In smaller towns, the three topmost topics tend to be religion, politics, and other people's lives. ​It always makes me wonder why something as deeply personal as religion becomes a topic of general public debate. It often leads to divisions, conflicts, and misconceptions because no faith is inherently superior or inferior, right or wrong. Similarly, an intense love for politics is prevale...

  ​These days, you open a news channel or scroll through your feed, and you’re instantly flooded with the same thing: crime, politics, or celebrity gossip. It really feels like hate and sorrow are the only things that "sell" in this media world. And the sad part is, most people seem to love reading these stories more than anything else. ​We’re Trapped in "Doomscrolling" ​We’ve become so used to this endless "doomscrolling" that we just absorb all this gibberish without thinking. It’s information that has no use for us, yet so many people feel the need to jump in and engage. ​Think about it. One sad or sentimental picture pops up, and it gets thousands of comments full of "sympathy." But how many of those people would actually do something real to help? It feels like we’ve traded genuine action for a quick comment. ​And don't get me started on politics. Everyone is so quick to jump into the comments section to tear apart what a politician di...

  ​There is a profound, almost sacred space that exists between a wandering thought and a blank page. For many of us, writing begins as a simple school exercise—a string of rhyming words or a desperate attempt to meet a deadline. But for those who lean into the practice, writing eventually reveals its true identity: it is not just a hobby; it is a lifeline. ​From Schoolgirl Rhymes to a Sanctuary of Self ​My own journey began in the classrooms of my youth. Those early, simple poems were the seeds of something much deeper. When I entered boarding school, the act of writing became more intentional, evolving into a tool for expression as I joined the magazine editorial team. ​At the time, I didn’t realize that this hobby was preparing me for the "dark times"—those moments in life when speaking aloud felt dangerous. When you fear being misunderstood, judged, or labeled as "over-emotional," the world can feel incredibly small. In those moments, I found my escape: I wou...