It is estimated that as many as 90 per cent Indians believe in some form of futurology. Apparently, the former president, A.P.J. Abdul Kalam, is not among them as he refused to indicate an auspicious time for his swearing in. But he still became one of India’s most popular presidents.My first brush with futurology came in my early teens. Swayed by the ads “Join the Navy and see the world”, I set my heart on joining the navy. A renowned astrologer visited our home and, after scrutinising my horoscope, declared that I would never go abroad. With doubts about a future career, I appeared for the National Defence Academy entrance exam and was selected to join the navy.Three years later, after graduating from the NDA, I was appointed to the INS Kistna along with the other cadets. We embarked at Madras and headed for Trincomalee in the old Ceylon. All this while, the astrologer’s words buzzed in my head. Eventually, the ship entered harbour and was assigned a berth at the naval jetty. There was the usual shore party standing by to secure the ropes and place a gangway for us to go ashore. But I could not wait! As soon as the ship got close to the jetty, I jumped across with one of the ropes and secured it to a bollard. Thereafter, I stood contentedly on foreign land, putting an end to all the earlier apprehensions. Many more foreign visits followed as well as a posting abroad. Coincidences and even miracles are, however, a fact of life. My grandfather was a judge in the erstwhile state of Bharatpur. After Independence, Bharatpur became a part of Rajasthan, and Grandpa was told that he was in the running for a judge’s post in the new state’s high court. But the order was not forthcoming, causing him much anxiety. One day, as his car waited at a traffic crossing, a beggar came along and pestered him for alms. Grandpa kept ignoring him till the persistent beggar averred, “Bhagwan ke ghar der hai, par andher nahin.” (In God’s house, there are delays, but never injustice).These words struck a chord in Grandpa’s heart who promptly gave the beggar a big tip.The next day he received his letter of appointment as a Rajasthan high court judge.
