Closing remarks...

And another year comes to a close. 

Lots of fun and excitement ahead of us as we leave the past and look forward to the future.

Retrospection of 2012 leaves us with a mixed bag of emotions. Lots of bad and some good in the kitty. Looking at the picture on a larger scale - it is still the same. I had a tough year. My friend did warn me about the same and it did come true. He is a numerologist.  We celebrated a lot of good things and our head did hang in shame for all the misdemeanour's that we went through. The world has changed as we know it from bad to worse. It makes me wonder, why has the Avatar that comes once in 1000 years not come? Is he yet to arrive? I think the arrival has been delayed as there are still good people left in the world. Looks like the gods still have faith in the goodness of humanity. There is a problem of negativity in the world altogether. People feed on negativity. The media highlights negativity more as the circulation / viewer ship increases on sympathy and tears. Yes, there has been movement against negativity on the whole. The younger generation has started to stand up and fight against it as a single unit. Anna Hazare, Arvind Kejriwal & Kiran Bedi have stood up for truth, justice and for change that is required so badly to the country right now. The people who are in power are not interested in making a change. It is time that the overhauling is badly required from the top to the bottom. Glad to know that the wind of change has started to swing against negativity.

• Why do people take things for granted?
• Why do people fade away? 
• What makes one think that the other person will accept whatever we dish out?
• Why are we so judgemental?
• Why can’t we take things as they are, accepting it and move on?
• Why are we not optimistic?
• Why can’t the newspapers print something positive on their front page, so that the world wakes up into positivity?
• Why can’t people take religion as it is meant to be?
• Why are people so greedy?
• Why are people so dumb?

Hope is the quintessential part of our existence. The knowledge of tomorrow being a better place makes us want to move on instead of putting a full stop in our track. It is this thought that makes good people put up a brave fight knowing very well that eventually good will come out supreme. 

Thank you for all the people who took out time to read my blog(s). Please donot hesitate to comment [good/bad] Its the comments that make blogger like me improve. Nobody can keep the sun from shinning.

Trust you will have a better new-year and hope it will be prosperous and peaceful.

Argument...

A boy once asked his father, "Dad, how do wars begin?”

 "Well, take the First World War," said his father. "That got started when Germany invaded Belgium."

Immediately his wife interrupted him, "Tell the boy the truth! It began because somebody was assassinated

The husband drew himself up with an air of superiority and snapped back, "Are you answering the question or am I?" Turning her back upon him in a huff, the wife stormed out the room and slammed the door as hard as she could! When the dishes stopped rattling in the cupboard an uneasy silence followed, broken at length by the boy: 

"Daddy, you don't have to tell me how wars begin; I KNOW now!"

We all do it sometimes! We all know what it is to walk away from an argument with the mouth dry, tummy in a knot, head hot and spinning, and heart sick--wishing that it had never happened, deeply regretting the unkind words that were said!

Believe it or not, more homes are destroyed by arguments than by fires or funerals.

We all know that arguing for the sake of arguing is a pointless waste of time.We have absolutely NOTHING to gain instead  we loose our time, energy and friendship is  LOST! It is said that the only people who really LISTEN to an argument are the neighbours. So darn true. Some people love to argue, and will do anything to prove their point! They'd rather lose a friend than an argument. For others, arguing has become a HABIT, an automatic reaction of saying something contradictory to whatever is being said.

One compulsive arguer was the early American statesman, philosopher and author, Benjamin Franklin. As a youth he loved nothing more than a good argument until a close friend took him aside and said, 

"Ben, you are impossible! Your opinions have a slap in them for everyone who differs with you! Your friends enjoy themselves better when you are not around! You think you KNOW so much that no one can TELL you anything. Indeed, no one is going to try, for the effort would only lead to discomfort and hard work! So you are not likely ever to know any more than you do now which is actually very LITTLE!" Ben Franklin was BIG enough and WISE enough to accept these stinging truths, and to realize that he was headed for failure and social disaster! So he immediately began to change his bigoted, argumentative ways! He became one of the best loved, wisest and most diplomatic men in American history, and was actually remembered for saying:

"If you argue and rankle and contradict, you may achieve a victory sometimes. But it will be an empty victory, because you will never get your opponent's good will!"

NO ONE ever really wins an argument! You can shout and scream and argue until you're blue in the face, but people are not going to believe that you are right unless they WANT to believe it! And even if they would LIKE to agree with you, your tone may have put them so much on the defensive that it would be like an utter humiliation, a defeat on the battlefield, for them to confess you're right or even partly right! And remember, no amount of logic or argument will make anyone change his mind if he doesn't want to! 

Nine times out of ten, an argument ends with each side more firmly convinced than ever that he is absolutely right. You can't win an argument because if you lose it, you lose it! And if you WIN it, you still LOSE it! Well, suppose you triumph over the other person and shoot his argument full of holes and prove that he's an absolute idiot. You'll feel fine, smug and satisfied. Ever thought about the fallen person? You'll have made him feel inferior. You've hurt his pride. He will resent your triumph, Always remember, “A man convinced against his will, is of the same opinion still!"

Haven't you ever thought on why fights or argument starts?“Don't they come from your lusts and desires that battle within you? You want something, but don't get it...so you quarrel and fight.So greediness and selfishness can be one of the root causes of arguing, trying to get the things you selfishly want. Other arguments are caused by PRIDE. Only by PRIDE come quarrels, but wisdom is found in those who take advice. Also, as we've clearly seen, many arguments are caused by SELF-RIGHTEOUSNESS. Pushing your point, thinking that you're so right, putting yourself up and the other person down by contradicting them. And what it all boils down to is a lack of LOVE! Arguing isn't the real problem, that's just a SYMPTOM! A LACK OF LOVE is the REAL problem! 

That's one of the major lessons that God wants us to learn how to LOVE people, how to work with them, how to treat them, how to give the other person the advantage and the benefit of the doubt, how to build them up unselfishly, instead of selfishly tearing them down through contention and argument! All this is a part of LEARNING TO LOVE, to put ourselves in other people's shoes. 

So do unto others as you would have them do unto you!

FOOD FOR THOUGHT...

Madambi...

Strange title given to a write up on a song. I will share the link at the end of the write up. I heard this song yesterday at night and wanted to pen upon it immediately. Unfortunately the sandman had sprinkled a wee bit extra sleep dust in my eyes, so the priority changed. So here I am, completing what was supposed to have been my midnight creativity, now being performed in broad day light. 

The title is MADAMBI is defined as Feudal lord. The song that I am trying to put some light [my 2 cents] is Amma Mazha... I am sure there are many reviews that you have read from various places. Maybe mine will be part of the flow or may stand out. That is for you to decide. Why am I writing on this song? I was moved by it. There are very few songs that has literally brought me to tears. And this is one of it. The first time I ever saw a person cry hearing a song was the hero of this movie in his first home production called His highness Abdulla. In that movie he is drawn into a musical duel by the kings court musician and all the three run into tears because they sang the song with such dedication and purity. Why do people move into tears when they hear good song? The reason is simple. At that one moment they are one with god. There is nothing between the listener and the singer. They become one. That moment is what language feebly tries to encompass in a word called BLISS/NIRVANA. How does one come to understand which song can move us to bliss? Simple, the ones that can connect us to the song on a different plane. Not tapping feet or stuff like that. You stand/sit spell bound. That's the song you are looking out for. The one that connects your soul to the almighty. 

In this particular song, the lyrics are not upto the mark. Its like Kaithapram Damodaran Namboothiri style... devoid of any meaning. However M. Jayachandran the music director, Dr. K.J Yesudas the singer, the photography and the people who acted in it made the song a memorable one. The song is mellifluous and melancholic blended to perfection on the same plane. Rain in the background is a cliche, but a necessary one is what I would say. It gives the song the subtle layers required to portray  his sorrow and it depicts Mohanlal emptying his heart out to his mother KPAC Lalitha, that her husband is dead and has been, for a very long time. He has been bearing on his shoulders the hope and salvation for his mother and the entire family. The other frames depict his mothers transition from a wife to a widow and the lady who used to hate Mohanlal to the one who realises the extent of the burden and sacrifice he has done for the existence of the family. The subtle emotions [for which Mohanlal is lauded for] depicted by the hero has no comparison. He reminds me of Sidney Poitier, the African American actor who could display a spectrum of emotions with his eyes. Its people like them who reminds us that, "The eyes are the windows to the soul." The other frames shows him as a loner who has been fighting all that life has thrown at him, all by himself. All in all... PERFECT!!!

Skyfall...

Watched the much awaited movie. It was refreshing, bold, crisp and not the usual cliche. The threat displayed is very real and one can correlate to the current scenario. The fact that the previous 007 "ROGER MOORE" has acclaimed it to be the best bond movie till date. 

007 celebrates 50 years in service to the crown. And what a way to celebrate it. I was wondering why such a name was given to the movie. On seeing it I came to understand that it was 007s home. The place where he was made orphan. This movie also shows that 007 fails in his mission by winning it. The villain, Silva, played by Javier Bardem is a man who has nothing to loose and is all out to dish out his vengeance even though it means loosing his life in the game. Did 007 actually win? It makes us ponder. Sam Mendes, known for the movie "The Road to Peridition" has taken bond to a new height. To put it straight, the next dude who comes in has a formidable task of beating Skyfall. Now all bond movies will be bench marked against this. 

The title song is marvelous too, Skyfall by Adele composed by Thomas newman.

Verdict :- MUST WATCH, If you have IMAX near you, watch it there.

Happy birthday Voyager 1...

Think about the different pieces of consumer technology you own: probably a cell phone, a computer, maybe a watch, an e-reader, a few other things here and there. How old are they? For my gadgets the average age is, I'd say, about three years. Perhaps the figure ticks up a bit if you take into account your car, your microwave and toaster over, and a trusty stand-mixer (those things, people like to say, can last "forever").

But these things are all babies -- babies -- when compared with our two Voyager spacecraft, the first of which celebrates its 35th birthday today. (Confusingly, that Voyager, the first one, is Voyager 2. Voyager 1 lifted off 16 days later.) Last Monday Voyager 2 became NASA's longest-operating spacecraft of all time. Voyager 1, which has traveled a more direct route, is on the verge of becoming the first man-made object to ever leave the heliosphere, the bubble of solar winds coming from our sun.

What's so incredible is that in the intervening 35 years, the Voyager spacecraft have journeyed billions -- literally billions -- of miles (Voyager 1 is now 11 billion miles away from the sun and Voyager 2 trails about two billion miles behind), borne the extreme cold of outer space (mission managers recently turned off a heater on Voyager 1 in order to conserve energy, bringing its temperature below minus 110 degrees Farenheit), and still, miraculously (in a strictly scientific sense, of course), the little Voyagers continue to send data back to Earth every single day, updating us on the very outer edge of the heliosphere known as the heliosheath.

Earlier this year I had the opportunity to speak with Edward Stone, featured above, who has been working on the Voyager mission since the 1970s. I asked Stone what we could expect as Voyager 1 leaves the heliosphere, and what it felt like to see this mission reach that historic achievement.

It would be nice, fulfilling even, if at the edge of the heliosphere there were, well, an actual edge, a boundary between our bubble and the cosmos. But, it's probably not going to be so cut and dried. "The boundary," Stone postulates, "will not be an instantaneous thing. [Voyager] won't suddenly be outside." Rather, the exit will be turbulent, "a mix of inside and outside," and the work of Stone and the other Voyager scientists is trying to square the different data -- the particles and the magnetic field -- to try to understand what that transition from inside to outside looks like. That turbulent region may take several months to get through.

But even without a clean break in the offing, it's hard not to sit on the edge of your seat to wait for this moment -- this months-long moment -- to pass. "We're looking at our data every day -- we listen to these spacecraft every day, for a few hours every day -- to keep track of what's going on. ... It's very exciting from a scientific point of view, when you're seeing something that nobody's seen before."

So perhaps Voyager won't make its mark with a sudden, defining event that echoes across generations as a sort of before-and-after dividing line through human history, like the line separating the time when a human's voice had never traveled across a wire to an ear miles away -- and when it had -- or before a human foot had left its imprint on the moon, and when that print was there. But Stone is okay with that: "Well you know actually Voyager has had a lot of those moments as we flew by Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune. One after the other, we found something that we hadn't realized was there to be discovered."

With that, we wish a very happy birthday to both the Voyagers, and many, many more.

COURTESY :- http://www.theatlantic.com/video/archive/2012/08/nasas-voyager-35-years-later/261346/

Essence of being an Indian...

I met a Swedish national in Berlin while I was taking rest in the Press Centre during IFA 2007 trade show. He said he is a part-time technology journalist and part-time pastor. He did his higher studies in UK. “So…you are from India…are you a Hindi?” he asked, while having coffee with me.

“Hindi is our national language. You mean to ask am I a Hindu?”

“Yes – I mean religion…”

“Yes. I am a Hindu by birth”

“Do you have Christianity there?”

“Yes, of course. Christianity came to India, centuries before it reached
you in Europe” I said.

“Oh, really? Still you are a Hindu?” he asked again.

“Yes – why?” I was curious.

“Don’t tell me you worship monkeys and rats…” he said with a smile.

“As a matter of fact, yes, we do”

“You can’t be serious. You look like an educated person…”

“I am very serious and I worship monkey-god and an elephant-god…what’s that
to do with education?” I said.

“You must be joking….People were worshipping animals and trees during
pre-historic times…but todays educated people, no way!”

“In fact, we have a pantheon of many gods and we can worship god in any
forms…”

“Hey, come on….there is only one GOD” he said.

“Really? I am not sure about it…”

“There is only one GOD…a singular GOD…”

“Better say, you have the concept of a single god…that’s your belief…”

“Concept? Belief…I am telling you the truth…”

“Who said so…?”

“All religious scriptures and sacred books say so… Christianity and Judaism say there is only one God. Islam also says so…”

“Those are great religions…what they say must be true. I don’t know about it… I am not a scholar in Semitic religions or in Hinduism. So let’s don’t talk about the Holy books and religions…I am not capable to discuss it….But about GOD, I have a question.”

“Yes – of course…”

“Ok… you shouldn’t feel angry…I didn’t feel angry when you ridiculed my gods…My question is based on your opinion of single god concept…” I reminded him.

“Shoot”

“You say that there is only one god – single god, right?

“That’s right”

“Your single God claims that he is the only God, who demands you to should worship him failing which he would roast you in hell fire…”

“It is not fully correct…but continue…I am listening…”

“That means. You are following Monotheism – that is the belief in a single god. Monotheism insists that only a single God exists. Other gods are “false” or even demonic…”

“Yes- you can say that…”

“For me, it is difficult to accept…”

“Why?” “If a God says: “You will worship none but me, that you will associate none with me, and that none of you shall set up mortals as deities besides me. If you commit the foulest sin by worshiping any other Gods (other than me) or associating partner with me, I shall throw you in hell fire as a punishment for this sin.” – That’s what, in a nutshell, your GOD says right?”

“What’s wrong in saying that? You need to have faith in Him”

“Friend, isn’t this self-contradictory and dangerous?” “How come?”

“First, explain to me about the contradictions…Had there been really only one God, it would not have been possible for man to find another God to worship, right?”

“Hmm…”

“Had the God been confident that there is no other God except him, he should not have been jealous of another God, right?”

“Yes – but who is jealous here?”

“Think…If the GOD knew that there is no other God, he would have been confident that people will not find any another God to worship, right?”

“These are all mis-interpretations….that’s not just right…” his voice became bit feeble.

“Think without biased, without conditionings…think with clarity….”

- The behavioral pattern of any single GOD in such concepts suggests that he is not confident that he is the only God. He seems always to be suspicious that there may be other Gods and people may worship those Gods instead of him.

- So the insecure GOD warns man not to worship another God. It, of course, is not a real god’s message. Can’t you clearly see the insecurity and whims and fancy of a narrow-minded human being behind this message?

- Can any GOD be always feel threatened that a member of his followers’gang may slip out of his grip and start to worship another God (probably the real creator of the universe)? So he had to enforce strict law that if any one of his gang tries to desert Him, he should immediately be put to death for apostasy.

- How can any GOD be so insecure? The single insecure god theory converts the basic instinct to insecurity right from the childhood. The follower’s behaviour may be fostered by GOD’s violent teachings for establishing Himself as the sole proprietary God of the world.

- And one more thing – you say, your singular god does everything. If there is only one powerful god who controls everything, doesn’t that also mean he creates bad things and causes bad things to happen?

“Do these reflections make any sense? Should I believe such a story or such a GOD?”

“You are talking non-sense, ridiculous…” his face turned red.

“Sir, I told you – why do you feel angry and insecure when I talk about your concept of god? We are having a dialogue here…”

“Shouldn’t I defend my beliefs?” he asked angrily.

“Now you are saying those are just your beliefs…”

“Sorry…Truths…”

“You may. But why should a human try to protect GOD? Why should you feel so insecure if somebody criticizes your concept of God? Isn’t it insecurity?”

“You won’t feel hurt when somebody criticizes your beliefs? You people worship cows…even dogs…are you not ashamed of it…”

“Do I look hurt? But fanatic followers – even in Hinduism – will get angry and violent. I am not fanatic or fundamentalist…I am a humanist…”

“Ok…ok…so you say defending the GOD shows insecurity?”

“One may feel insecure when somebody questions his beliefs. If somebody questions truth, why should you feel insecure? Its truth after all…Should you defend the existence of sun? Your defending won’t change anything with sun…Don’t you think that fanatic god theory is the very root is insecurity
– that is why we see a lot of followers have aggression and blind faith. We can find the seed of the real insecurity when a GOD is not confident that he is the only God in the world (and not in the universe)….”

“Your god doesn’t ask you to fear Him”

“No…Never…There are two things. One -The concept or notion of a personal God, hiding behind the clouds of secrecy, telling us irrational stories through few men whom he sends as divine messengers’ time-to-time, demanding us to worship him or punish us, does not make any sense to me.”

“What’s the second thing?”

“Is God as silly autocratic emperor who wants others to respect him or fear him? Can God stoop to such a low level of narrow-minded like a jealous human being? Or is it those human beings created such God?”

“So you don’t fear GOD…”

“I am afraid, I don’t…”

- The Monotheistic God is jealous and wrathful. There is one God, and one correct method of worship. Those who deviate are heretics and may be punished, tortured or killed. In its exclusive devotion to the worship of one God, monotheism has inspired much ferocity and fanaticism….that’s how fear comes in.

- At the heart of monotheism is the sure conviction that only a single god
exists, a tendency to regard one’s own rituals and practices as the only
proper way to worship the one true god.

- When one starts with the presumption that one is absolutely and utterly
“right” and anyone thinking otherwise is just as completely “wrong”, it
does not promote the flexible thinking required to keep pace with the
rapidly fluctuating pace of modern civilized society.

-Monotheism “demands” a right/wrong, heaven/hell, black/white worldview.

-On the contrary, Polytheism is an open-ended and easy going approach to
religious beliefs and practices, a willingness to entertain the idea that
there are many gods and many ways to worship them. Many roads lead to the
mountain top. A person may choose any path.

- Polytheism accepts that there can be more than “one true way”. This
allows for more rational thinking when discussing things like belief system.

Hence, polytheism is more compatible with a naturalistic view of the
universe than monotheism.

“Ok…I understand your view points, though I don’t agree with you… But you
didn’t answer my question. What does your gods say about worshipping them
and fearing them?”

“Very simple. An Indian saint, Adi Shankara said: “Aakashat patitam toyam,
Yadha gachhati saagaram, Sarva deva namaskara: Keshavam prati gachhati!!”

“What- what’s that? Come again?”

“It is in Sanskrit. It means: Just as every rain drop that falls from the
sky flows into the Ocean, in the same way every prayer offered to any Deity
flows to the divine cosmic power (Kesava).”

“Oh…”

- “In short, you may worship or believe in any God. No problem…Even if you
don’t worship or don’t believe, still it is no problem….This message from
the GOD is so confident, so secure, secular and broad-minded. Because it
can only come from the true creator of the universe, if at all there is a
creator. And you are not asked to protect this GOD and resort to violence.”

“Ah..That’s why you don’t get angry?”

“Yes – You don’t have to spread the message of this God. You don’t have to
defend the God. If somebody says badly about this God, I don’t have to get
angry or fight for this God. A true Hindu believes that God protects us; we
don’t have to protect God. So a true Hindu cannot get hurt in the name of
God or religion….”

“So your religion is against single and personal god”

“Not like that… You can worship personal god or impersonal god…everything
is manifestation of the same cosmic divinity…so no problem…you have freedom
there too…You don’t have to market this God and convert others into his
fold and increase market share. That’s why I remain as Hindu. How can you
believe in concepts of any other insecure Gods?”

“OK, you made your point clear. But why do you worship monkeys, cows and
elephants?”

“An ancient scripture says: “Isavasyam idam sarvam” (Isopanisad)
…Everything animate or inanimate that is within the universe is Divine.
This entire manifest Universe is enveloped by the Divine, the cosmic
power….Hence you can see God in everything – the monkey, donkey, rat, and
elephant or even in protozoa….”

“That means you can worship anything in this universe?”

“Yes – Be it Sun or Moon, Be it Hanuman or Ganapathi – whoever you worship,
you are worshipping the cosmic power. My favourite God is Hanuman
(Monkey-God). My traditional village God is Narasimha (Lion-God)….”

“Don’t you feel awkward? Shameful?”

“Why should I? I am not ashamed or apologetic to admit it….Nobody forced me
to worship or believe in them. I had a choice there. I am in a democratic
country. Nobody told me that this God would roast me in the hell, if I
don’t worship it. I just love the stories of Hanuman and Narasimha. And I
am free to criticize or make fun of those stories….”

“But, the animal gods are not scientific… So ancient tribes considered
everything as GOD…There is no science in it…”

“On the contrary, there was scientific advancement among our
ancestors…While my ancestors were learning and teaching the secrets of life
and universe, the homo sapience of the West were still crawling in all
fours and living in the caves….”

- While my ancestors were calculating the exact distance to the minutest
details, between the earth and sun or teaching Vedic mathematics and
astronomy, the West was believing the earth is flat till a couple of
hundreds of years ago.

- Should I challenge my ancestors and convert my belief to the extent that
Coco Cola is better than natural honey?

No – I don’t need a certificate or empirical scientific proof approved by
any international scientific body to understand the presence of God in
monkeys and lions. At least monkeys are our ancestors and lions are the
kings in the forest. It is anyways better than worshiping an insecure GOD.
And I don’t expect monkey or lion to show any magic and miracle to prove
that they represent divine energy…

Every God -everything in the universe- is manifestation of the divine power.

And the Hindu scripture neither demands you to worship the GOD nor will a
Hindu be roasted in hell. Even if you don’t worship GOD, nothing can change
– because your karma decides your destiny- the God has little or no role in
it – The Gita too assures this.

- “I hope this answer to your question – why do I continue to be a Hindu? I
follow “THIS” Hinduism; hence I cannot be a fundamentalist or fanatic….”

“Hmm…Somewhat…but don’t say that you are right and I am wrong…”

- “I don’t. What’s more, let me admit – the entry level Hinduism has some
mal-practices and superstitions without any scientific base. (Read
up-to-date science. tomorrow this can change). Most of the people blindly
follow lot of tradition without understanding its true meanings or
relevance. Some of those practices are either unessential or irrelevant in
today’s life….”

“That’s true in all religions…”

- “In all other religions you can see the follower has learned everything
about his/her religion and can beautifully explain all aspects his/her
religion. An ordinary Hindu doesn’t know or learn about his religion. The
Gita is read by less than one percent of Hindu population. That’s the
problem with a Hindu….”

“You told me about worshipping trees…And why do Hindus worship trees?”

“Hinduism has always been an environmentally sensitive philosophy. It is a
totally green religion. Our ancestors were not very much interested in
automobiles, petroleum products and plastics. What pollutes the earth? What
causes cancer? A cow or an automobile?”

- God exists in everything. The trees are held in a special esteem in
Hinduism as they provide food, oxygen, shelter, etc. By associating
religion with plant kingdom, our ancient Indians tried to instil in us a
reverence for them, so that we may protect, preserve and cultivate these
beneficial plants in the future.

- Plant kingdom gives me everything I that I need – so what’s wrong in
worshiping it? Worshiping a tree is better than worshiping an imaginary
God, isn’t it?

“OK – but I have a genuine question now…If you don’t have a personal God,
how will you pray? What will you pray? What will you ask for?”

“Should we pray? What should I pray?” When we know that isavasyam idam
sarvam, what’s there to pray? I am part of GOD and the GOD is part of me. I
cannot exist without GOD and GOD cannot exist without me.

* Aham Brahmasmi (Brhadaranyaka Upanishad) = “I am Brahman” I am integral
part of cosmic energy.

* Tat Tvam Asi (Chandogya Upanishad) = “Thou art That” The identity of
individual self as a part of the whole which is ‘tat’, Brahman.

* Ayam Atma Brahma (Mandukya Upanishad) = “This Self (Atman) is Brahman”

* prajñānam brahma – “Consciousness is Brahman” (Aitareya Upanishad 3.3 of
the Rig Veda).

“As everything in the universe belong to me, what else I need? What would
anybody gain by a prayer? God has provided me everything I need (not what I
WANT)”

“That means you don’t need anything?”

“If I answer philosophically, I need something, only if it is lacking in
me. Nothing lacks in me. I don’t feel I am imperfect or anyways inferior to
anybody. Because, I am created by a perfect divinity. It just can’t go
wrong.”

- There is a divine assurance for this:”Om Poorna Madah Poorna Midam
Poornaat Poorna Mudachayate Poornasya Poorna Maadaaya Poorna Mevaa
Vashishyate” (That is perfect; this is perfect. What comes from such
Perfection truly is perfect. What remains after Perfection from Perfection
is yet again perfect)

- The cosmic created me just as it created you. So nobody can be imperfect.
At least accept this truth: “I am perfect with all my imperfections”

– I don’t have to pray for anything as the force behind creation has seen
to it so perfectly that everything is perfectly managed for me. For
instance, before I was born, the cosmic has in-stored my food as my
mother’s milk – who can take care of better than this? Everything is being
taken care, so meticulously – so what should I pray.

- Whatever I need will be given to me by the divine. Am I a fool to think
that even a grass can move without the cosmic knowledge? No, I don’t have
to remind the cosmic what I need. It knows better what I need. Any
situation in life appears with cosmic wisdom – who am I to question it or
challenge it or pray against such a situation?

“You mean to say you don’t have prayers?”

- “We do have…. my ancestors taught me three most important and
non-personalized prayers”

1.       “Asatoma Ma Sadgamaya tamaso ma jyotirgamaya mrtyorma amrtam gamaya Om
santhi, santhi santhihi” (Brhadaranyaka Upanishad).

Take us from darkness to light’; from ignorance to awareness; from incompleteness to totality.
Let there be peace everywhere. This is not a personal prayer.

2.       ”Loka samastha sukhino bhavanthu.”

May happiness be unto the entire
world. Not just me. I should not pray for any selfish gain, my ancestors
taught me. If your neighbor is starving and I am binging, where is the
happiness? The entire world should be happy.

3.       “Om Bhur Buvaha Suvaha Thath Savithur VarenyamBhargo Devasya Dheemahi
Dhiyo Yonaha Prachodayath” (Gayatri).

We contemplate the glory of Light illuminating the three worlds: gross, subtle, and causal. I am that vivifying power, love, radiant illumination, and divine grace of universal intelligence. We pray for the divine light to illumine our minds. 

Wind chimes...

Using wind chimes to enhance the feng shui of your home is one of the most powerful items you can use. Depending on what your requirements are for your feng shui enhancement, they may be used to attract personal wealth, friends, improve your vitality, and to genuinely enhance the atmosphere of your home.

Feng shui is an ancient Chinese practice of harmoniously placing your furniture and objects within that space to flow with the Earths own energy spheres.

Choose your wind chime according to the space you are trying to enhance, for example you would not place a meter long wind chime in a home hallway. You need to choose the type of chimes you buy, whether they be metal or made from bamboo according to how pleasing the sound is to your ears. Make sure its rods are hollow, promoting the flow of energy through them.

Read below for tips on what types of chimes to place in which area

What Not To Do:

• Place your wind chime is such an area that it is going to interfere where you walk.
• Don't place a wind chime over the area where you eat, work or you sleep.
• Particular areas of your home determine the wealth, health, relationship, fame, family, children. knowledge, career, and helpful friend directions of your home. This is called the Feng Shui Bagua. 

Depending which hemisphere you live in it is determined as follows:

• Northern Hemisphere: Centre/Health, NW/Wealth, N/Fame, NE/Relationships, E/Children, SE/Helpful friends, S/Career, SW/Knowledge, W/Family.
• Southern Hemisphere: Centre/Health, NW/Helpful Friends, N/Career, NE/Knowledge, E/Family, SE/Wealth, S/Fame, SW/Relationship, W/Children.

According to which areas of your life you would like to enhance, place your wind chime in the area of your home that corresponds with the Bagua.

Area of Home and Type of Wind chime:

• Wealth Area - use bamboo or wooden chimes, or choose wind chimes that have coins or water themes.
• Career - Use metal wind chimes
• Family - Use bamboo or wooden chimes
• Children - Metal wind chimes
• Fame - Use bamboo or wooden wind chimes
• Health - Use bamboo or wooden wind chimes

Must Do's:

• Always hang a wind chime where two doors face one another in your home. This will slow down the energy running between both doors.
• Try to use crystal enhancements in bathrooms and toilet areas, if you must hand a win chime in a bathroom or toilet area, make it a wooden one.
• Make sure your wind chime has hollow rods to promote the flow of energy.

COURTESY:- http://www.helium.com/items/680319-placing-wind-chimes-for-feng-shui

Jism-2

Man... what a waste of money. The story line is not even close to thin, Its pathetic. Sunny Leone has veins popping out from her racks. How disgusting can it get. I thought I would puke then and there itself. She turns into a prostitute after her boyfriend dumps her, whats wrong with you Pooja and Dino Morea.

Verdict:- EVEN IF YOU GET FREE TICKETS, DON'T SEE IT.

MILK... protects your from HIV

 Cows' milk can be potentially developed into affordable creams that can help protect humans against HIV, a study has claimed. 

Lead scientist from University of Melbourne Marit Kramski found that when pregnant cows were vaccinated with an HIV protein, the first milk produced by the cow after giving birth, called colostrum, produced high antibodies to protect its newborn against disease. 

Researchers were now planning to test the effectiveness and safety of the milk before turning it into a cream which will hopefully allow women to protect themselves against contracting the virus during sex, without relying on men, the Herald Sun reported. 

However, the final result could be a decade off. The researchers were able to inhibit the virus from infecting cells when combing the virus cells with milk. 

"We think the antibodies bind to the surface of the virus and blocks the protein which needs to be freed to get in contact with human cells - like a key and lock system. If the key's not accessible or you change the key, you can't open the door," Kramski said adding "It's a very cheap and easy way to produce a lot of antibodies." 

Kramski had partnered with Australian biotechnology company Immuron Ltd to develop the milk, and would continue working with them to produce a preventative cream. 

"We have the antibodies at the moment - the next step will be formulation," Kramski said. 

Condoms were "cheap and easy" but not an option for everyone with millions of people getting infected with HIV every year, she added. 

"A lot of women, especially in Africa or South America they don't have the power to say you need to use a condom before we have sex. 

"This milk looks like it can be a cheap, easy new prevention tool, because if you use drugs it's really expensive," she said.

COURTESY :- http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/home/science/Cows-milk-protects-against-HIV-Study/articleshow/16847978.cms

Why do we chant OM?

Ever thought of it? OM as I have come to know is the name of the singularity. In laymans term GOD. Om is the name of that omni-present, omni-potent entity. We have named it in different names and known differently by different cultures.
OM is one of the most chanted sound symbols in INDIA. It has profound effect on the body and mind of the one who chants and also on the surroundings. Most mantras and vedic prayers commence with OM. All auspious actions begin with OM. It is even used as a greeting. It is repeated as a mantra or meditated upon. Its form is worshipped, contemplated upon or used as an auspicious sign.
OM is made up of 3 letters A U & M. The process of chanting OM is that the sound emanates from the throat as A and completes in the lips coming together as 7 and the closing of it as M. The three letters symbolises the three states
- Awake
- Dream
- Deep sleep
The three deities
- Brahma
- Vishnu
- Maheshwar
The three vegda
- Rig
- Sama
- Yajur
The three words
-Bhuh
- Bhuvah
- Suvah
The lord is all these and beyond. The formless, attributeless - Lord (Brahman/Singularity) is represented by the silence between two OM chants. OM is also called Pranava which means "that (symbol or sound) by which the lord is praised". The entire essence of the vedas are enshrined in this one word OM.
It is also believed that the lord almighty began creation of the worlds after chanting OM and atha. Hence the sound is considered to create auspicious beginning for any task we undertake.
The OM chanting should have a resounding sound of a bell. The sound fills the mind with peace, makes it focussed and replete with subtle sound. People meditate on its meaning and attain realisation.
Thus OM symbolises everything - the means and the goal of life, the universe and the truth behind it, the material and the sacred, all forms and the formless.

The amazing Spiderman...

This movie takes a real look at Spiderman. The real deal. Comparing to the previous one I feel this one takes the cake. It has supported the ardent comic fans through and through. The reasons portrayed are believable. 

Verdict :- MUST WATCH

Spirit...

I am penning down after a long gap. Nice to be back. I am be ginning with a movie review. Its about a malayalam movie acted by Mohanlal. The movie revolves around Keralas biggest problem, ALCOHOLISM. It depicts the real life story of a chronic alcoholic and the trials and tribulations that they go through. It also depicts how people forget their manners after the invasion of the cell phone.

Verdict :- MUST WATCH 

Careening mire...

This is an account of my stay in Dubai, a state of the U.A.E, for a period less than one month. The purpose of the stay was to search for a job. Here is my account of what happened to me and what you need to be prepared and the trends that I have observed.

To get a job in the U.A.E, you need to be well networked or you need to know a person who is well networked. Its only by referral that you will get a job here. No matter in what appellation you have worked or the qualification that you hold, when you come here be prepared to restart you career. I mean, beginning from the bottom and crawl your way up. Although you may have done it once or in my case twice [don't ask]. The principal pre-requisite for acquiring a job here is to have the fabled GULF EXPERIENCE. The but obvious question that is bubbling in your mind is "What the hell is that?" Exactly, my thoughts too were the same. It simply means do you know someone here to recommend for this position. The higher the hierarchy better the package. Somehow this is not applicable to the pale skinned. Yes, that's true. You have a European/US passport then all is well. Even if you are as dumb as a door knob you will still get a good job. Mind you, not a decent job but a good job. I am sure all those who have been here would definitely nod their head in agreement of the above said statement. The whole point is, I donot have the faintest of hope in getting through to a decently paid job here.

Life here, like all the other super metros, you need to be street smart to survive if you fall under the lower bracket of the salary strata. If its the other side of the coin, then nothing to fear, the world is your playground and you drive a Rolls. I did have the best of food cause only the best of the stuff comes here. How I wish my country was like this too. Rule of the stick is required to get the wayward back to track. Like Jesus said, "For all the lambs who has strayed off, I will find you and bring you back." He forgot to mention that your ass will be spanked silly for being naughty. Anyways, here everything has a time limit. It needs to be done within that time frame. There is a boundary for everything. As long as you are in it, all is well. The time you try to push those boundaries then all hell breaks loose. Its these boundaries that has made this country spick and span. All are maintained well. Anything out of place is fixed ASAP. Corruption, it is everywhere because of the meager pay. You need something to be done flash some notes are you are whisked away to another service level altogether. I guess its the same throughout the world. However corruption is unheard in the political ring. Or it is kept under wraps. Who knows, as far as we are aware Dubai is corruption free. That helps the money that comes into the country to be in the country and for its development. Unlike other nations that I know, whose politicians siphon the money of the nation and her tax payers to swiss bank.

I was staying in a place called MIRDIF along with my friend, who was my college mate. Very close to the airport, saw lots of aircraft taking off and landing. Unbelievable it was, during the peak periods I could see an aircraft taking off or landing every 2 minutes. The location is good. Family crowds. Quiet. You have a park called MUSHRIF next door. I have been adviced not to wander at nights [I go for walks at night] as the area is haunted! The best part is I did see some weird lights and activity during some of my walks. Later on I came to understand that they were off-roaders who use their huge trucks and jeeps to conquer the sand dunes. What a relief! Now I am back to my walks. I think the fear of the unknown always plays up in our mind and thanks to the movies, for people like me who are vividly visual, that would be the nail on the coffin. Guess a little bit of investigation using the art of deduction will always prevail.

My friend, whose name I will not reveal here as per his request, was more than kind enough to take me give me shelter and food. He has an AUDI A4 turbo. Good car, did drive it. It is so comfortable and the balance is perfect. The top speed as of today I enjoyed was 160 km/hr. It seems there is an area in Dubai where one can floor the accelerator of the car and push it to the maximum. I am waiting for that day. One of our favourite places to hang out after the depressing negative responses one accumulates from the application that you know you will confidently get through, is MIRDIF CITY CENTER. Its a huge mall with almost everything under the sun. Comparing to the MALL OF THE EMIRATES this is a dwarf. So one can imagine how big the later could be. Carrefour is the hyper market that we frequent. And it contains everything, everything I mean everything. If there was a chance to put kids for sale they would do that. Fortunately that is restricted to the JUST FOR LAUGH guys.

Did manage to see some movies here [vox cinemas]. Its a bit expensive. But the size of the screen and the seats are real comfy. All movies, irrespective of the nation, come subtitled in French and Arabic. The surprising fact is that I went to see this movie called "Agent Vinod", the movie needs to be tweeked more. Seems there are no good people to advice the director on reality checks from the real world. I did see a lot of Arabic people who came along with their family and enjoying the movie just like a normal Indian family. I was like WOW, subtitles did help them, but they still did enjoy the movie.

The thing about Dubai is that, everything is in ASTRONOMICAL proportions. They have nothing called small. If its small then it has to be a precious metal or stone. Even the cars are huge, the interstate / highways are a min of 6 track and certain point reaching 8 tracks. All roads are well lit, one does not need lights to drive, just the parking lights to let the other drivers know your presence. There are dark patches, but not in the major roads. I did experience this in prior when me and my bro used to visit our parents in Kuwait. My dad did show me this. Strange enough, I am yet to see a Rolls Royce glide past me. Definitely seen some high end sports cars but not a Rolls.

One of the neighbour, a Romanian lady. She was hit by loneliness one day and came running into the house. She wanted to buy a monkey. Then the planning began, roped in one of our local neighbour who used to have exotic animals before getting married, he kindly consented to help the lady in distress. Next day evening a convoy of people, the entire neighbourhood went along with this person to see the exotic animals. I was quite surprised to see a parallel zoos being conducted under the guidance of the government. And in the end nothing was bought. Two days later she buys a dog. She has a cat and now a dog. No prizes for guessing whats the state of her home now.

For 1 A.E.D ice-cream is available from Mc.D's. Post meal it is mandatory for us to have it. On one such occasion his friend who is an Indian born in UK looked at his shoe and said that he needed to get a new pair of sneekers. We took the ice-cream, went home chowing down on it, parked his car, got into the Audi and zoomed off to this mall called THE OUTLET MALL in a god forsaken place en-route to Al-Ain. The speciality of this mall is that it is way cheaper than what you get in the cities. The reason why it is so far away is to deter people off. Only the people who are hell bent in coming over pops in. Mind you, all top brands of the world were present. Coming to think of it, I did not see Zaras. Maybe its in another wing. His first choice was nike, so we went to the nike showroom. The selection was deplorable. We came out in ten minutes. The rates were not so cheap too. So, the next option that I suggested was my personal favourite ADIDAS. And I was right, they had a wide variety of shoes and articles. My friend ended up buying two shoes. One for jogging and the other for his outdoor activity. In case you did not know, He is a landscape artist and is always on the move.

I did have the pleasure to visit "THE PALM - JUMEIRAH" my friend works there. Had a tryst with the fabled ATLANTIS hotel. My-O-My what a sight. I could manage to explore the property for thirty minutes only. In those thirty minutes I was transported to a another dimension. A place of fantasy, grandeur & extravaganza. It has more than 1300 rooms and there is a suite room that is right in the middle of both the wings. It is called the bridge suite. It looked for a second that it is hanging in midair. The entirety of the hotel or should I call it a district' has been done up like it is the castle of the lord of the water POSEIDON. Everything that you gaze upon has a connection to the sea in one way or the other. The pillars are intricately designed with figurines from the ocean. There is a massive art form right in the middle of the lobby which is made from glass. The base begins as deep blue and it fades as it goes up to the top where it is deep red. It signifies the evolution of mankind from the oceans to the land. Why red colour on top? It signifies man changing into a warm blooded creature and the great role that the sun plays in our life. They have a massive aquarium which has a variety of fishes in it, including the black tipped reef sharks. It has 11.3 billion gallons of sea water in it and it is well fed from the sea too. There is an option of diving into such an environment too. You have helicopter rides, Deep sea angling and what not. You have all that one needs to do. They even have Rolex showrooms! As I said, its a different dimension altogether.

My days here are winding up and still no sign of a job. Well, maybe its my destiny not to work here. Maybe something else is stock for me, somewhere else. The journey so far was uneventful. I did come to understand that I am capable of walking eight kilometers at a stretch. It makes me wonder, why do I tend to do these kinda walks outside the country? I can easily do a eight kilometer in my place. I think I need to try it back home. We did have an uninvited person popping up in the garage one night. My friend went out for stroll and found this person running away from our porch. Maybe he is a homeless person looking for a shelter or a thief. God knows.

The day started with a sand storm. My-o-my what a sight it was. I though we were driving through some lost planet, the roads were empty. It was sometime before we got to see somebody. Visibility was poor. Usually from where I stay we can see the flights take of and land. There is a point called UPTOWN MIRDIF from where we can hit the plane with stones if we fling it hard enough. The planes were invisible I tell you. You could just hear the din of the engines. Last night in Dubai and we have no clue where to go. Lots of ideas on the table. For the moment its PS3. And we finally hit Park Regis hotel. Had a couple of rounds and went back home. The hotel is centrally located but it is a bit of a bummer to reach there. Too many exits and turns. You miss one and you are gone. We went to the roof top bar and what a sight it was. We could see the entire Sheikh Zayed road bedecked with Rubies and Diamonds. Had lunch from a traditional Arabic restaurant near to Deira city center, we had The MANDI amazing experience it was. The three of us had it from a single plate like the way its meant to be eaten. Usually you feel stuffed after consuming it but not here. There was lots to eat and we polished everything down along with a can of chilled pepsi followed by a round of ice-cream. Fitting finale to the final lap. Now waiting for my flight at Terminal 3 gate 213.

So, till we meet again Hasta la vista, Dubai...

Attitude...

I am sure all of your would have read or at-least heard about the story of the king and the spider. The mere spider inspired the king to wage war against the intruders to win his kingdom back. The highlighted trait in this story is perseverance of the spider. Coming to think of it, where did this perseverance come from? I say, it’s the attitude of the spider. The attitude of never giving up, the attitude of rising up in face of calamity, and the attitude to survive no matter what the adversity we face. In the same tempo let me cite another example. Yuvaraj Singh-the man who fought cancer and won. He is another legend in the sports fraternity who has fought this infamous disease and lived to tell its tale. How did he manage to get free from the shackles of this monster? It is his attitude of fighting to the finish that has helped him on and off the field. Yes, he did have leverage to the fact that his malady was diagnosed early. The real victory, snatching it out right from the jaws of death is the cycling legend Lance Armstrong. He was diagnosed with cancer in the last stage and the doctors had given him couple of  months to live. The cancer had gone malignant. He is still with us and went on to win the most grueling of cycling feat Tour-de-France consecutively for 7 years. I read this story about a man who got shot when he was clearing out the garbage from his restaurant. His spleen and lungs were perforated and the bullet was in an extremely difficult scenario. Just before the doctors took him into surgery they queried if he was allergic to any medicine his reply was,” I am allergic to bullets.” This one small sentence of right attitude eased the tension in the room and built in more confidence to the team of doctors and they saved his life. It just goes on to prove that whatever the situation we are in, it all depend on your attitude. 

Like the great master of Kalaraipayattu said, “When beaten down on the battlefield or in life it is your attitude to get up from the fall or to remain on the ground beaten will make your name etched in the halls of history as a winner or looser.”

Evolution...

Evolution is defined as the process thought to be development from a simple organism to a more complex one in nature.

Anchoring this as a point, let me pose to you a simple question. Have we actually evolved? If we are complex and on top of the food chain as we claim to be, then why are we doing horrible thing to our environment and to rest of the humanity? I think we take things for granted. All the things that are found free, that are essential for our survival are plundered. The rest of the animals are always live in harmony with nature. I said rest because man is also an animal. We human beings are a virus, we are a disease a bubonic plague of astronomical proportion. We reach a place take over it by any means necessary and then exhaust it completely and move on. The things that we see in alien movies, they are our mirror image in a gore mode. We are a race that are capable of doing great things and real regretful stuff. It always makes us wonder, how can a human being be so cruel.

The real gore happens when there is a war. War can be between nations or races or culture, the end result is humans die and there are heavy casualty on both sides and the environment takes its own toll. Like Bertrand Russell said, "In war, its not about who is right but who is left." An entire clan gets annihilated from the earth over night. Jews nearly reached there, thanks to one persons hatred to a particular clan. We have seen this happening in Africa too. The new terminology that is used for genocide is ETHNIC CLEANSING. That's what they do. See the movie TEARS OF THE SUN starring Bruce Willis as the head of an Elite commando force posted in one of the war torn nation in Africa. The movie shows the tip of the ice berg of Ethnic Cleansing and what human beings are capable of doing. Like one of his team mate said "We get the ring side view of ethnic cleansing." There is a scene in which a lady gets raped after her mammary are chopped off. Why did they chop it off? So that the women die of massive bleeding and even if she survives she is not able to feed the kid and the child dies of starvation. What do they gain from such action? Simple, the line of that particular tribe is terminated forever. This is just a small case of the frightfully hideous acts that we human beings are capable of.Why do we do such unholy acts? Even the devil does not accept human sacrifices if you were not aware. The persons committing this act does not escape from dungeons of hell. The selfish motive of some people are the real facts behind majority of such trails.


You think some to be a freedom fighter, for the others they are terrorists!

Its for some good people that the gods have not foresaken us humans. Else we would have been fish food long time back.

Food for thought


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