Diary of an Astro-nomad – I

In July 2009, India witnessed  the longest total eclipse of the millennium and I traveled to Patna, Bihar with a group of amateur astronomers to see it. Unfortunately the weather played spoilsport and when it began, the eclipse was completely occluded. I saw nothing, except the rain, the darkness and the euphoria of every astronomer on the roof.  I have never been as aware of my position on the Earth as I was at that moment. And I had this intense sense that there was something there, something tangible, something that could be channeled, something extraordinary. I realised then that it may be possible to create a sense of engagement with someone else’s experiences even when they were of the single most transforming celestial event, a total solar eclipse.