A tryst with more than destiny -- India beyond midnight -- "Terrorism is terrorism" -- Caste and crass -- Dung and decency -- The Nehrus -- Winning at any cost -- The soul of a nation -- Nearly going communist -- Presuming too much -- Back to the past -- The only option -- A historic turning point -- Finally the future beckons -- Violence, alignment, and the bomb -- Debacle in the High Himalayas -- Talking peace and waging war -- Between Dragon and Serpent -- An unlikely expression of hope -- Vale of death -- Testing and fighting -- No Mahatma to wait for.