MY FAVOURITE GAMES (or) GAMES I LIKE THE MOST
I had a fancy for some of the games played in developed countries and dreams of creating records in the international jamborees of Asian, Commonwealth and Olympic games. But the dream was smashed to pieces after the Sydney Olympics of 2000- the first in the new millennium. The fancy for cricket was already over by the match fixing scam. It is all the result of copying the West in all spheres. So that my imaginative faculty does not get blurred my mind came back to my homeland where the sum of civilization rose seven thousand years back.
So far as our games are concerned we have an egalitarian approach. Our games, in the past, were played by the rich and the poor alike. The most common game played in all the states of our country is kabaddi or TuTu. It has different names in different areas. But I have seen it being played everywhere. I like it the most as it is based in the spirit of cooperation of the whole team. If the opponent comes to say kabaddi all the six members of the team catch hold of one another’s hand making a chain so that once caught the opponent may not go out of their grip. All the six becomes a single chain. The opponent also tries to come out of their clutch as abhimanyu did in Mahabharata. He was not able to get out the kabaddi player may.
I am also interested in different types of races. I secured cups 200 meter race in the lower classes. I still run in the park and aspire for a better performance. Judo and wrestling too are of my liking. But of late I have taken fancy to yogasans. I wish they too are considered a part of sports. Sarvang asan and Surya namaskar are the two I have practiced. Surya namaskar is a combination of six asans and is very useful for keeping one healthy.
Another two games I have liking for are hockey and football. In these two too team spirit is very necessary. One has not to have the arrogance that he can push the ball in the goal himself. Passing the ball from player to player is necessary. Similar is the case with volleyball. Passing the ball for the final stroke by one who is at the net is very interesting. These three games are rather universal. India was once considered champion in hockey. For the last so many years we have lost our status as we are not able to practice it seriously.
I haven’t much fancy for indoor games. Let us leave table tennis and carom for the girls. They too have specialized in something. Of course they are entering the games on which formerly only men had a monopoly. India got a bronze in the Sydney Olympics-won by a woman-Malleshwari-in weight lifting. Let them enter their world of kho-kho. Let me be a champion of yogasans that require a little of meditation too.