My young friend, let us call him ND, who considers me as his friend, philosopher and misguide recently bought a book on the recommendation of a well wisher and could not understand some esoteric stuff in it. He promptly rang me up and asked me if I would read the book and explain to him the portions that he found difficult and I readily agreed. I however insisted that he would have to arrange for Guru Dakshina to which he readily agreed.
The book duly arrived and has just come back after my usual rite of getting books covered in plastic to extend their shelf life.
Just before the book returned from the binder, the Guru Dakshina also arrived.
Before I proceed further, some explanation to a Urdu word Aflatoon. Originally, it meant Plato, yes, the Greek philosopher. In Mumbai, it is used to describe sweet gentle souls who are great team players but, who will not participate in the more masculine pursuits like pub crawling, gambling etc. In other words Wimps.
Aflatoon is also the name for a famous sweet made and sold in Muslim bakeries of Bombay, the most famous of which are Suleiman Usman and Zam Zam Bakeries.
ND is well aware of my fondness for both uses of the world Aflatoon. There are many mutual friends whom I call Aflatoon and I also enjoy the occasional indulgence of the sweet.
So, the Guru Dakshina turned out to be:
Guru is very happy. Shishya’s dakshina will not go waste.