It’s monsoon season in India, and there is water all over the place, up and down. I reside in a small village, on the excessive north periphery of the most important metropolis park, surrounded by open countryside. There are small homes, right here and there, primarily one ground bungalows with lovely, sky-facing terraces. In certainly one of these I’ve a room.When it rains, it rains, and large toads seem throughout, croaking within the foot-deep water. An enormous one, nicknamed King of Toads, is all the time at my door. I reside actually primary; the room is only a room, or an empty dice. There’s nothing in it, aside my mat. I nonetheless need to reside like a fakir; it isn’t but time to purchase a coconut fibre mattress. I am sharing the toilet with two different individuals; a person and a girl.

I get dwelling and it’s all moist because it’s raining repeatedly for days, and even weeks. Partitions are moist, so are the steel railings of the 2 room home windows, one dealing with north, and farmlands, the opposite one southwards, over wild pastures. Electrical energy in India has by no means been their robust level; it jumps on a regular basis, daily.I am drained and soggy and simply need to relaxation on my mat. I’ll shut each home windows first, to keep away from chilly wind on my pores and skin. I put my hand on the railing and obtain a 240 volt shock. Electrical energy is scattered all over the place, spinning round as in a non-Faraday cage. This 240 devastates my nervous system and I am about to lose steadiness. I lean in opposition to the wall, moist in fact, and get one other 240 giving me an extra metaphysical shock.With the final remaining little bit of mind actions I resolve to change off the primary, which is above that of sunshine, and get my third and closing 240. That is why I’m how I’m now; I wasn’t born this manner. I drop, assured and determined, in a reassuring and tremendous contracted foetal place, on the mat and keep there, for the way lengthy I have no idea, and it actually would not matter, since I am simply utterly shocked and grinning. What was I saying?

That wasn’t the primary time it occurred. I’m some place else in Goa, throughout monsoon. It is raining, all moist as typical, and my room has solely a dim gentle within the nook. I pull a cable throughout, from the outlet, with one other bulb. I am with mates; we’re laughing and joking, whereas portray the partitions psychedelic. We snicker, and snicker. I flip round, my mouth open, and I contact the cable with my incisors. The shock goes straight to my mind. Because it occurred earlier than, which in actuality was after, I fall in a brilliant contracted foetal place. The lightening burns all my chakras and fortunately goes out someplace. I preserve laughing, it is too far-fetched.