Living under a rock

It is when you are involved in a task that usually your mind conjures up strange stuff, the shower thoughts being immensely popular already.

It was during one such moment that I thought of someone who might have been living under a rock for the last one year. If that person( here its myself ) comes out and gets back into civilized life,certain aspects would need a detailed explanation by those around.

Credits:http://activerain.com

I would definitely be surprised by the lowered rates at which I'd be getting mobile internet in India, thanks to Jio whose weird-one-year free packs would take me equally long to understand.

Thinking of getting cleaned up and buy a few groceries if I head to the nearest shopping mall, I would have the surprise of my life when they wouldn't accept the currency notes from my wallet. I would even have a terrible time if I were to be incarcerated for owning money!!

Supposing I didn't get arrested and managed to buy from my card ( whose pin I surprisingly remembered ) and head to the petrol pump with my vehicle, I'd be surprised to face the pink notes and the daily changing rates concept.

Faced with a currency shortage, I would walk to my bank's nearest ATM and find that all ATMs in the vicinity are either super crowded or out of cash. After half an hour of waiting in the queue for another bank's ATM when I manage to get in and swipe my card, I would be horrified to see it complaining that I need to visit my bank before I can do this.

Infuriated I walk into my bank's crowded branch, wait the queue out and finally talk to the personnel, who informs me that I can't get any cash out without my Aadhar card being linked. Drat!

I visit a friend, beg him to withdraw cash from his account and he informs me that the bank now charges withdrawals too. Having seen so much, I find it surprisingly easy to digest and get my purchases done and go into a deep sleep.

Within a week, I stumble upon these significant and complex changes:-
a) The cow has replaced the tiger as the national animal and it is easier to kill a tiger claiming that it is a threat to the cattle population.

b) Secularism has become sickularism and the thought of being equal is highly despicable in society
c) There is a clown leading America into disaster

d) Trolls are the best source of online humour
e) A monopolistic power rules over entire India, almost
f) All news is fake

g) The newborn state of Telangana has taken flight, and there are many more in gestation and conception stages
h) People are talking about metros, highspeed trains, hyperloop and what not..
i) There are more things being banned than being invented
j) Exchange deals seem to look like a thing of the past as GST( its the Indian Area-55) kicks in
k) America isn't everyone's blue-eyed boy anymore
l) Europe has turned into a refugee camp
m) Britain is no longer part of Europe!

n) Govt jobs are the fad now
o) We have more entrepreneurs and religious zealots per sq.km to compensate for the decline in large private enterprise

 p) Yo-yo Honey Singh isn't composing anymore, but his inspired versions do!

q) There are more really innovative new Indian startups and individuals making a difference out there
r) More people have become sensitive to balancing development with ecological health
s) The railways have become much neater but long long distances to go

What I am glad (or not so ) hasn't changed:-
a) Prices of things are still increasing

b) The crowd and heat of the cities keep increasing
c) More farmers keep sacrificing their lives and livelihood
d) Number of super rich Indians keep rising
e) Super rich and powerful criminals stay out of reach of law and stay in vogue

Phew!

I think I should return to my rock and shut this mad world out before it floods me with the idiosyncrasies and paradoxes.

Diwali musings

Lying on a dusty bench on the platform, with my eyes shut, I was trying to catch a few minutes of rest. Hardly a minute would have passed, when a loud rumbling noise woke me up, and I found a column of dust settling down on me. As I struggled to cup my eyes and mouth to prevent the dust from entering in, I caught a glance of the source of interruption.

The rumble of clanging wheels and screeching brakes turned into a cacophony of human voices as the passengers milled out of a multitude of exists - doors, windows and emergency exits as well. Rubbing my eyes, partly to clear the dust and partly to clear the sleepiness, I could see black forms of people carrying an odd assortment of bags and baskets, chattering loudly. Loud enough they were for this unearthly hour, and the language too I couldn't make out. But it sounded a bit like Odiya/Bengali and I tried to read the train's plate in the dim light. I could make out Howrah in the name and assumed these were migrants, and judging from their assorted luggage, mostly labourers.

They talked with high energy, and in my sleepy state I imagined them to be relatives coming to visit their kin working in Bangalore for the Diwali festival, but I realized I could be wrong by miles. Slowly this mass of people moved on to the railway station's exits and silence descended once again on the railway station. The cold wind had driven the passengers waiting for their trains and the vagabonds to seek refuge under their warm clothes/blankets. Many fully shrouded figures lay sprawled or hunched over the otherwise deserted railway station. Some were still moving about, mostly trying to find a good spot to keep them warm.

After a few more minutes of scanning the scene, I decided to get back to my pseudo nap. Hardly an hour had passed since the announcement was made about the train's delay and there were couple more to kill. I adjusted my backpack to get the softest parts right underneath my head and closed my eyes, telling myself to take a controlled nap. I must have dozed off for 10 minutes, before the buzz and bites of the blood suckers harrowed me out of my peaceful existence.

Unable to sleep, I lie there thinking of the exams I had and felt the tiredness grow within me. Having sent my wife ahead of me, I was supposed to write my exams and catch up with her at Chennai for out first Diwali. Suddenly, feeling the strong urge to jot down after a long time, I sat there keying with typos on my phone's notepad app. The last minute preparations, tiring journey to the exam centre, and the nerve racking exam itself. All these floated past my mind in those few minutes of reflection, slowly drawing away the tiredness.

Catching the shady figures moving around from the corner of my eye, I decided to stop the jottings and catch a final session of rest hoping not to fall into deep slumber before the train finally arrived. I was glad for this solo journey, having had taken a long break from it for over a year. Like the hundreds of life forms that take refuge in the crevice of a rock or a tree, such pockets of solitude offer much to the creative life forms within your head.

Adios.

where the name comes from

I saw a mail in my spam folder from Alstom and after diligently deleting it, I googled it up and found its some French company in energy solutions, blah blah.. 

But what stuck me was there is Alstom and then there is Alcatel, both from France. What does 'al' mean so much to the French? Some rounds of wiki searches led me to the conclusion.

Alcatel (originally short for the Société Alsacienne de Constructions Atomiques, de Télécommunications et d'Électronique)

Alstom (originally as Alsthom) was formed from a merger between Compagnie Française Thomson Houston and the Société Alsacienne de Constructions Mécaniques

Now, Alsacienne points to the industrial region of Alsace in France bordering Germany that was very popular for being in the the treaty of Versailles and subsequent tensions that led to the second world war. 

The industrial conglomerates of those days have come a long way, playing significant part in the industrial transformations world over. Good to know! :)

Now that one chapter is over, I wonder what "Al" means in the middle east beyond the obvious ... 

one step

need to put one step ahead. else the journey of a thousand steps won't just start..


keep watching this space :-)

regain the step

the pen is drained
the mind is sprained
the leg is draped
and the wings are clipped

I breathe no air
I gasp in despair
there is no fear
but only this nightmare

its a time for patience
and to stare at patients
to be blatant
and to sit as another patient

to bring in the energy
I need to find the synergy
i don't need any swamiji
but I need to regain my chi

the road might be tough
but the roadie is rough
it ain't about being buff
but about regaining the hoof

flame wars everywhere

News is all around us, and many of us devour upon it. I am a mild consumer of news.
News itself might be ranging trivial or funny stuff for leisure reading for people with specific interests to really breaking and important ones which everyone reads.

I occasionally get to read many articles from various news channels on interesting topics. I read quite less, as in I click on news articles in FB timeline,twitter timeline or in some news websites, only if I really get attracted to the headlines.

First I read the article, think upon it, and see if I agree with the author and his/her viewpoints depending upon my expertise on the topic. Then the mind seeks to know what other people or friends think about it if I feel it is something others might be interested in. So, I head over to the comments section to see the public perception.

The responses are interesting topic to study for data statistics and understanding the mindset of the readers. Comparing the responses to the same news topic in multiple media gives a good idea of the coverage of the media and the nature of their readers.

But there are also lots of news of high importance, for which the amount of public response seems strangely insufficient. I often feel short of content after reading some articles and wish to know what the general public reading it thinks about it. But almost all articles of interest to me garners no interest from the public that 'freely shares opinions'.

But among the few that do, I have seen such little useful and sensible comments that I subconsciously don't scroll down to the comments section for good articles. Take a news that even remotely relates to politics, war, religion etc and you get to the other extreme. There are lots of points, data and perceptions to read, but what spoils the apple cart is the flame wars.

Flame wars are fun to read upto some point, if the opposing sides have enough valid ammunition. But I have observed that most of the comments in the Indian media are very immature or sounds like plain propaganda message. I can immediately imagine a furious fanatic typing away on his keyboard trying to block the points made by the other side. The shit hits the fan when the topic covers sensational topics for no reason.

For this reason, sometimes I stick to respectable news media like The Hindu or some other foreign media for news that is of interest to me. Also I trust the category specific news feeds more as they don't tend to deviate from topic..

sounds good..

background scores, i feel were the most underestimated elements of  entertainment media. be it movies, games or tv shows. I mean there was lots of effort put into it, but the recognition and experimentation with it didn't begin until recently.

but even the old ones if you check, there is a certain old world charm to them. consider the Indian movies of a certain era like the 80s where a common theme existed over all regional movies copied and adapted from the English and American movie industry. But the bgm and music were quite original for many movies. We had a rich culture of bgms with good taste. Probably the work of many skilled people behind it. But in those days, people never used to recognize brilliance in that section.

Nowadays people comment on BGM if not about the movie when movies tend to suck and BGMs rock. The composers of BGMs get much popularity and support these days. Remakes, remixes, covers and so much more gets involved with BGMs. They have a unique way of marking out the movies, scenes or themes. Hollywood examples of Matrix, Mission Impossible,  and many more are successful examples of good BGM becoming a brand artifact for the movie.

Likewise for video games, those with intense and captivating background scores tend to keep the players engaged and leaves them with a satisfied feeling afterwards. Gaming for long hours is a physical and emotional tasks of gargantuan proportions. So BGM that suits the playing mood greatly helps the player attach to the game, its theme, the adrenaline rush and the time he/she had playing it. Even today I feel almost at ease listening to the complex themes of Age of Empires, Age of Mythology or Prince of Persia as while playing the game itself.

then there are these BGMs that become cult..  :)

not limiting myself to the small window of the movie, game or whatever media content for which the BGM was designed, BGMs also serve as reminders of many many things.. for example a well made oriental theme can take your mind to many a zen classes, many kendo classes, dojos, rice balls, japanese rains, battle scenes etc. Middle east does same. Sound has a way of triggering multiple nerve points in the brain and simulating lots of weird stuff that would have remained hidden in our memories. This quality I have observed doesn't exist for pictures, as they always give more detail and a concise picture. There is no scope for ambiguity or further interpretation in those cases. I have had many experiences with music wherein I would love a track a lot and listen to it in extensive loops, but the moment I see the video of it, I say WTF and soon the song drops out.

Sound is everywhere and for everyone, but still its personal and it can be enchanting to enraging depending upon the filter that you apply :)

Dayalu Ammal and the 2G scam - a scene out of the movies?

The news about Dayalu Ammal and her appeal to not be brought before court seems normal on the outset. An aging lady trying to be exempted from having to travel long distances and involving in legal hassles.

But given the machinery of politics and legal power play involved in the background, my CID mind starts spinning..

Lady in trouble?

An aging lady who has “abrasive behaviour, clumsy habit with sudden hitting or punching people, inappropriate talk and action and inability to take care of day-to-day activities"  but has been alleged to be involved in the key meetings where the agreements were signed. That sounds like a conspiracy to me.
But I have no way of knowing the truth.

If it is a conspiracy to prevent her statements, and if the appeal is approved, then it would be a major win to the people behind the 2G scam.

Anyway more than the possibilities of an aging lady getting involved in dirty underbelly of family politics, I am interested in the mindset of the legal setup in the country. The way things can be twisted, or made to look innocent to the public is an art. Its the art of deception, and as old as the earliest settled man! :)

chew on that..

the river

He once asked him, 'Have you also learned the secret from the river;that there is no such thing as time?'

A bright smile spread across Vasudeva's face.

'Yes, Siddhartha', he said. 'Is this what you mean? The river everywhere at the same time, at the source and at the mouth, at the waterfall, at the ferry, at the current, in the ocean and in the mountains, everywhere, and that the present only exists for it, not the shadow of the past, nor the shadow of the future?'

'That is it', said Siddhartha, 'and when I learned that, I reviewed my life and it was also a river....

An untimely analysis of media involvement in the Aarushi-Hemraj murder case

The Aarushi-Hemraj murder case.

This is easily one of the most notorious crimes in recent times. A family murdering their loving daughter for alleged relationship with the domestic help. And equally notorious for the legal mix ups, media judgements and heated debates. Its been 5 years, and nothing has been more clearer than that it stinks all over.

In a country where thousands get killed for honour, money and reasons only the perpetrators can justify, this case still holds an important position. While the loss of every single life is unfortunate, one has to view it in an objective manner w.r.t the legal system to perceive and judge the legal system that we live in. Compared to the cases of old people being killed by their domestic helps, Jessica Lal murder, many sexual harassment cases, honour killings in rural areas, political vendettas, business hits, mysterious police killings, largely noisy shootouts, chaotic communal riots, state crackdowns, and witch hunts( phew, the list keeps growing, to my alarm) - the Aarushi murder case is still a unique case.

Let me try to perceive the aspects of the case without going into the details of the crime, but rather the aftermath. I remember the days when the news was out. People were horrified by the ramifications and the daily scoop provided by various media networks. People followed the developments as it was a crime scene from some popular movie unfolding in public. Then there was the public outrage, candle walks, special reports, 'expert analysis' and very lengthy and details reports in almost all newspapers for months together.

It was a field day for media networks. I assume many a newbie news network made ad deals for billions during the coverage of this case. This was 2008 and I recall that not many private channels were on air as it is today. And those days, people perceived and respected news a bit more compared to today. It was the time when big, respectable news establishments were slowly being bulldozed by cash rich, entertainment and profit minded news networks. I recall that it was during this period of time that I heard of many new News channels.

The media did a full tight job of mopping up the crime scene, showing scene by scene footage of what exactly happened, later followed up with who the perpetrators were and some even went as far as correctly 'identifying ' the motive for the crime as well. They were even able to dig up supporting stories about the Talwar family's behaviour in the past that could explain their shady nature. All the news channels had special experts and analysts available round the clock, to discuss the same matter from various aspects. The legal aspect, the crime scene investigation, the moral perspective  and even the psychological aspect of it was dissected with clinical precision and brought before the wild eyed audience of a billion. There were even various articles and special analysis on the philosophical ramifications of such crimes on the social order of India. phew.. the media-men were surely up for a raise back then!

As for the public, the same public that is part of all the notorious news in the country, behaved as it usually does. People with special interests and expertise in the matter sought platforms to air their views and move their lives and careers forward. Those innocent sheep who depend on the TV got a lion's share of the hot news. They knew everything about the case even before the police did. The judgement was passed and all that was left was to see was that if the establishment was smart enough to apprehend the criminals in time and get them the deserved punishment without letting them escape from the clutches of law. Blah! This is the same story every time. Guided by media's involvement in twisting statements and stories a bit here and there to make it spicy, the public often reaches its own judgements. And after all this and at the end of years of long legal process, if the expected doesn't happen, then all hell breaks loose and the circus begins again. This time around, it would be targeted against the policemen and the people in the administration and legal system for letting out a 'known' criminal into the crowd. LOL. what a joke. The crowd is the biggest set of criminals out there. Judging and taking power into their own hands.

As it would usually happen, there were even some media houses and intellectuals of various walks who didn't take this gravy train. Opinions, blogs and some thoughtful inputs by such people in limited networks continued to be available , even when the mass media lost interest in the case for sometime while the legal process was in progress. Even in my student networks, a general interest and mostly concern was present. I am sure many a thinking guy/gal would have reached their own conclusions and kept it to themselves or a few people smartly.

What concerns me is that many vital evidences and much needed restraint from the public was lost in this case and the accused became the convicted in a matter of hours. This is not acceptable in a society committed to be led by the power of law. Its not the power of masses that should rule this society. But I am afraid, we are reaching a point where the society is slipping into a vortex. The power of masses is being misused in all corners where law can't cut its corner,and given the limitations and beautifully crafted loopholes in the system, the legal and constitutional system is challenged everyday. And I rarely see cases where the judiciary wins against mass appeal. It is a double edged sword, this power of masses. Arm the masses with pens and books, we have a mature population who can use the power vested in them. But arm them with poverty, hunger, unwanted hatred towards each other, suspicions and insecurity, and we have a very dangerous and explosive population who can't be trusted to wield the power responsibly.

So again, was democracy the right way for a country like India? I can only shake my head in regret.

Your own Social Network Doll House :)

Imagine all the social network tools we indulge ourselves with in day-to-day life. We have built ourselves a nice doll house to live a virtual life in.

There are so many and very few people have actual use and purpose for all these tools. Others just follow blindly the crowd.

Alright.

The following analogies came into my mind while chatting about Quora with my friend whom I call Birdiee Didi.

To me, my bedroom is Grooveshark,my mp3 collection, the equally illegal movie collection and the music videos downloaded from Youtube. They help me sleep,relax and enjoy life.

I wake up to read news from nowhere. So my drawing room is Quora, nowadays. Used to be Yahoo answers once upon a time. But Quora beats Yahoo Answers hands down. It has everything akin to a newspaper except real news. Its all analysis and curiosity satisfying answers to the most itching questions of mankind. Quora is my drawing room because I feel like I have invited friends and people I know and discuss all kinds of topics that is of common interest. We end up chatting for hours together without even noticing the time.

Stumbleupon and Goodreads are like my reading room. I use them to explore and find experimental stuff that are of interest to me. I seldom discuss about these matters, but surely put lots of research time. Each wonderful page I stumble upon gets saved and savoured for a long time. Goodreads provides me the platform to plan my next reading and acquisition cycles. It allows me to sit on my chair dreaming about places I can visit, people I can meet, things I can experience and I end up planning adventures. But they all remain in their places once I leave the reading room.




Twitter, to me is like peeping out of the window into the streets. You watch the people pass by, seeing only a glimpse of their real lives and make impressions about pretty much everything about them from it. I also sometimes shout out random stuff that I am doing in my house to the street. Someone might cock their head and grin their teeth, while most of em just pass by without minding. Thats twitter in all senses to you.

Now, the king of it all, facebook. Facebook was a bit difficult to decipher. But I now believe it is like going to the market. You set out to buy something, but end up buying that and more. And sometimes you never buy what you intended to, but quite happily return buying something else. It is like a mad crowd out there. The hawker with the most attractive wares gets all the customers, and the others soon have to close shop. The attractive ones continue making waves in spite of not bringing in quality items for sale. And with all this money and attraction comes the dirty side of it too. Criminals, hypocrites,show-offs,mafia and what not.

I believe that was a very accurate depiction of what the social networking doll house looks like, in which we are all lifeless dolls, taking the form of lively ones in some imaginary world of ours :)

adios amigos..

energy to transform your life

omg I have so much energy stored in me. this is exactly the same feeling I get after a workout.

I always wonder how the lazy me could be transformed into this high energy machine after a few key exercises. Also during my recent high endurance bike rides, I was finding out hidden pots of energy when I seem to be at the end of my energy. So now each endurance activity is not just a long drawn affair and hence can't even be judged ahead of time as well. It all depends on the level of dedication, concentration and the push you give at the critical point when one level gets dried up.

And now my point is not to talk about some superhuman strength of mine. I have enough bandwidth inside me and my friend circle to boast about that. But my point is that I just start wondering whether the other lazy people around me would feel the same way if only they dared or rather cared just enough to get it started. I had seen many people recently who might be sulking and sitting lazily for a large portion of their lives, but at some point turned to some sort of activity(gym,playing some sports, trek,cycling,swimming etc) and turn into bloody addicts. Also their overall energy in life seems to go to a very high peak. Then I start seeing the signs of what I spoke of in the first paragraph.

This makes me realize that most people around us have the starting trouble and inertia for workouts or any kind of physical activity. I am talking mostly of people I have contact with i.e people in the technology field, the young and middle aged ones. Also to note are people in family and people in neighbourhood. The biggest problem in that these people who have fallen into this pit, simply refuse to acknowledge the fact. Unless they start the first bit, no one is going to help  them out. Many people even worry that others would laugh at them if they go for workouts. But they just have to think a bit more about what would happen if they don't. Then it will be life laughing at them!
 
Responsibility and natural need to do some work in their day to day lives make most of our parents and old people in the family very active. I have always wondered at the energy with which my grandfather used to perform the daily rituals,walk any distance in a day how many ever time he felt like without grumbling even once, and doing insane acts of labour. And I am talking about the time when he was 70+. Even the womenfolk amaze me with the amount of energy they spend in the kitchen and to take care of hundreds of things in the household. Almost all 70+ women in my family fall into this category even now!

I see people driven by passion and interest in doing things, just doing it inspite of disabilities and health problems. And remember, I am not talking about forced actions, but purely voluntary. And they find time to pursue hobbies that require lots of energy in between tight schedules of life as well. I have always respected people with the energy and who are in control of it.

All this makes me only want to keep the energy levels up, not just for me , but for the people around me as well. Because I believe energy is what makes us alive. To think broadly, to understand, to sense, to talk, to walk, to see, to love and to live, you need energy, and whatever you get, don't waste it on negative things like anger,greed,jealousy, laziness etc.

I remember couple of slokas I learnt in school and can fully relate to them now. 

Nidra tandra bhayam krodha a’lasyam diirghasutrata;
Sadadosah puruseneha hantavya’h bhutimicchata’.
It means that men have 6 grave mistakes or Doshas that can ruin their entire life irrespective of anything. They are Slumber, Drowsiness, Fear, Anger, Laziness and Procrastination. Get rid of those to gain full prosperity.

[didn't get the slokas text.my sloka searching ability is bad]

but the meaning was that if it wishes to, even an ant can cover thousands of miles, but if he doesn't wish to, even the very powerful Garuda can't move an inch. It sort of summarizes the significance of will power to makes things right for yourselves in your life.

adios amigos.. Live Life.. King Size.

Whats wrong..

This topic has been running around my mind for some time now, so just thought of posting it. I have never been good in essay writing or any such literary matters as a matter of fact. But I always have points,and this is gonna be disorganized..but I do hope to reduce its effects.On to the field now..

I have been thinking about America and its influence on the world economy,politics,science and most importantly on the minds of each and every individual of the so called third world. What gives it the image of Mr.Invincible, even though a peek into its history would reveal lots of flaws and even now there are lots of deep flaws in its systems(ok residents of glass houses shouldn't pelt stones at others).

What gives them the infinite power to get things done,to move on in any field,unlike in our country where every project comes to a standstill days within making a decision? Ok, these questions lead to thousands of reasons and points of accusations and discussions.But I want to examine a few points that arrived at via some particular route. Let me unfold those as clearly and coherently as possible..

My thoughts emanated from a brief overview of what each major country was renowned for(1900 onwards). It was in this stream of thoughts that I came upon this block and strange connection of America to India. As most of you know, the Germans were known for their machinery and perfectionism, the Brits for naval supremacy and economy, America for the oil and many other rare materials found only in that continent..etc etc. In addition to these, all the countries were colonial in nature, having colonies at far fetched places, earning them military power and revenue. In a single peek, we can say the World War weakened every colonial country and practically brought colonialism to its end,but not USA. It started becoming a major player in world politics from then.

India, being a colony at that time, didn't have enough strength to free itself become a global player. But,I feel that India, with all that we had then could have made a huge uprising and routed out all weakened colonial fools and changed the course of the world. Though there are many logical and valid reasons that prevented such a course of action, lets examine closely. This is where I make my point..and its significance is at the peak in current times. Lack of unity, fueled by regionalism,communalism and petty issues is what had originally led to the colonization of India..and is still the issues plaguing our progress and allowing the USA to retain the spot we could have had.

Consider the rich and developed nations of the world, all except USA and India have fairly homogeneous population in terms of race,colour,caste,religion,language and culture. A few exceptions do exist,but the magnitude of variety is highest in India, followed by the USA. USA, being a fairly new country, and home to immigrants draws its strength in all fields from its multicultural population. On the other hand, the same variety is what hampers all kind of progress in our country.Why is that?

I would say, our sense of nationality and attachment to our different cultural,lingual, regional and communal identities all together make us such dumb fools, incapable of thinking and acting straight. In my point of view, the Americans don't have much of a sense of unity, but then don't have any objection to the presence and progress of others. They seem to be just motivated by the profit motive.
Lately, that has been proved wrong as America is slipping in power and respect. How many Americans care if something happens in their neighbouring state?

EDIT:The above text was typed up in 2009 June and kept in draft as I was sure it was a biased and half correct view of things. But I am publishing it nonetheless as I neither intend to keep it in my dry dock nor just delete such a valid set of ideas.
Off late I hate the vested interest groups that run the things in USA and India as well. And such agencies are working all over the world, spewing out lies to the people who end up just gobbling up those, without getting to taste the nectar of truth(though truth is much more harsher than the lies in most cases).

Anyway I am not qualified in any sense to make authoritative claims regarding policies and operations of Governments, societies and cultures. I am just another speck in the desert. Adios amigos..

food for thought

Thanks to Zenpencils for another wonderful piece

a silent strongman speaks out

Disclaimer
this post is purely for the martial minded, highly energetic readers who don't mind subjecting themselves to some pain and don't find such indulgences sadistic.. just challenging.

its been in the dry docks for many hours together. hence ended up quite big. if readers get bored, head on to the last for some juicy philosophy instead :P
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

i wonder if people out there know these things or not. anyway i share what i know..

you ever tried punching walls? if so, have you reached a point where pain doesn't appear until a good amount of blows? and mind it, punch on the columns of the wall for your good and for the good of the building you are in(telling this based on some bad experiences).

well, you might observe that during and after these exercises your knuckles would get bigger and pointier. this is because the bone fractures inside on impact and then reforms as bigger formations with tighter connections. this makes your bones much stronger than their original form and often allows you to surpass the normal resistance levels obtained by natural properties. I have very pointy and tough knuckles, especially on the middle fingers.

a down side of these hard hands is that, it would become next to impossible to take innocent jabs at your friend's fat tummy without making them cry with serious pain. its really true what spiderman said about power. :( restraint and patience. you need to bring them along when imbibing such strength into yourself.

anyways, that part is always there for us strong men of the world to handle. lets get on with our stuff..

i don't know how many of us natural strong men go to gyms to maintain and condition the body. atleast those stuck in the lazy IT industry which involves almost no action should be continuously upto something to live our 'natural' lives. but I don't fancy gyms. i kinda feel bad being in there. maybe i didnt find the right reason or trainer yet. well, I haven't even tried to :) thats the least my ego can do for me :D

but its very necessary to not lose the various strengths of our bodies. it is not just about being presentable.  its about being comfortable, being full of our energies and upto the task when the time comes. and each one of us has a reason to stay strong. lets remember them as they are the flames of our passion for strength.

another key strength point is the forearm. it helps in our day-to-day tasks. strong hands help in umpteen ways. also the arms are part of the body that is mostly visible to others and people form impressions based on appearance of the upper body. but leaving the appearance part, a fully functional and powerful upper body is key to any practitioner. from power abs to help you balance weights and lift yourself ,to strong fingers for tight grips, each part along the upper body plays an important part.

sometimes you can't tap the complete potential of one part without developing another. to know of such key points and train accordingly is where you need expert support of trainer and equipments. but these need not come from traditional gym environment either. as I have been always looking for alternatives to a gym, I know quite a few stuff to train myself with ,without too much advice and equipments. thanks to the internet and random things all around us :)

there are lots of simple things you can do if you are lazy as I am. stretch a lot whenever you feel like. you should get back to your comfortable level after these stretches. they help relieving pain and stiffness caused by prolonged sitting, laying down etc, which is natural in our sedentary lifestyle. a series of air punches can return the life into your system anytime. punch walls if you have a chance, because they do more for you :D

frequently clench and unclench your fists to strengthen the wrists. check if you are automatically clenching and unclenching your jaws as well. this, as far as I know is a sign of aggression. if you observe such a relation, practice slow clenching of fists to get rid of the connection and after sometime you will yourself being calm even when you clench your fists. also when you get angry you would no longer clench your fists, the way normal people do. that way you suppress one obvious gesture that gives away your intentions. very useful during street arguments :) you obviously need every advantage possible to have.

and for the biceps, triceps and shoulders, all must be knowing the pushups and many such well known exercises out there. i love mixing them with some extra moves to make em difficult so that instead of repeating them, i end up exerting same effort by doing just a few. talk about laziness being the mother of innovation. but right now, I am not sure if repeating simple exercises is better than doing a few complex ones.

my understanding of the body, its functions and its limitations come from the Ayurveda and the Eastern martial arts areas. The modern workout practices, as with most things modern focus on exterior and individual aspects, without considering a holistic view. A select few trainers understand the body well, and they lavishly mix concepts from East and West to customize workouts as per individual person's body and character. I wish some such trainer would come by and make me a superhero martial artist.. sigh..

the various forms of Kung Fu use the knowledge of the body to train the various parts rigorously. Although the various styles differ in many aspects and you have to find the right style to suit your body and personality type, they all involve lot of common work outs. The same goes for Yoga, which has umpteen variations. Even all the well known and not-so-well-known martial arts and healing practices stem from the basic concepts. Knowing one allows you to tap into the larger cauldron eventually. I am sure not many are aware of such variations. Yoga is not just about stretching,bending and breathing on yoga mats with meditation. Kungfu is not just about flying,kicking and fast moves that take the breath away. There are lesser known forms of the two where the roles are reversed.

I realize this is such a vast topic and stuff keeps coming out of my head continuously. Alright, moving on..

Abs. Now there isn't a single part of the body more closely scrutinized and lauded than this in terms of fitness. Six packs and eight packs are the definitions for fitness nowadays. Nothing less matters. I say that is a bag of dogshit. Pardon my language, but such narrow views only damage the ability and motivation for many of us to remain healthy. Please don't follow wealthy celebs in building bodies. They get paid and their entire lives depends on their looks and appearances. Lets not get our heads too high. If you already have good abs, then its good for you. Focus on other aspects of health too :)

If your abs allow you to balance your upper body against the lower and perform movements and stuff you love to, you have done enough to strengthen it. Let another layer of fat remain on top of it, if you like. Don't you sacrifice your favourite dish for that. :-)

To strengthen it, do only the crunches of various kinds. Anything that places load and pressure on the abs point also helps. Its fun to exercise your abs. I am testament to the fact that you can have rock hard abs under layers of fat tummy :)

Next comes my focal point, the lower body. Starting with the strong thigh,stable knees,big calf muscles and flexible ankles plus rigid foot. Its a killer combination! Legs are everything. They propel, they balance, they give you poise, they help you climb over anything, kick open stuff, break things and what not!
 
A mountaineer lives and dies by the strength of his toes,calves and every single part of his legs. A wrong twitch can end everything for him/her. A footballer, a cyclist, a martial artist, a dancer, and what not. Everything we do involves our legs. Losing it, thereby is the largest blow that can be given to someone. Pray no one gets such a punishment.

As a mountaineer,hiker,cyclist and a martial artist, I too love my legs. Among the parts of my body, I have always been partial to my legs. Hence they are still strong after years of relative inactivity. Recent cycling adventures helped regain the lost endurance. But they need to be regularly used and kept well oiled like rifles for perfect action.

Weak points are the knees and the ankles. They get bent,sprained, broken or swollen easily with impact. Such injuries can render you useless and prone to mortal danger. Hence always take good care of your feet. Run, exercise, lift weights on your feet, stretch, kick, do whatever you want to keep them in good 'running' condition.


Stances which involve balancing your body weight on individual legs, the knees or the ankles and toes are some basic stuff which can significantly increase their reliability on the field. And you don't need special time or equipments for any of these. That is another reason why I fancy leg training. Even sitting in the traditional Indian way is very good for the legs.


You can walk on your toes occasionally for fun and training the tendons.
Run occasionally. Jog. Hang by your legs.
Take longer strides than usual while walking. Walk fast. Walk really slow.
Hop over tiles, jump over obstacles instead of climbing over.
Kick things at different heights, kick backwards, kick sidewards.
Bend you leg backwards, lying down and with your arms bring them over your shoulders.
Bend your legs and touch your shoulders with your knees.
Jump up so that you can hit your palms kept at face level with our knees.
Do splits.

Jump over low walls.
Sit on slightly tall tools by springing onto it than climbing.
Cycle. Climb rocks. Climb really tall peaks.
Climb a vertical wall use bare hands and foot..
Raise your right leg 90 deg to right and hold it for long.
Raise it forward and hold it longer.
and many many more :-)

phew. been writing this from morning! i think i had enough, and I assume that you too have. if you have read till here with interest, then contact me. We can train together :)
 

nowadays people don't respect strength. they only end up fearing strength. i hate the kind of strength that can only inspire fear and no respect. such a strength is caused not by pure strength, but when weakness causes you to use your only strength and impose your will upon people with lesser strength. I can only see the pure strength in select few, and the number of such people are dwindling. I think the older generation had more understanding of such a strength. I find such references in lots of characters and stories from various books etc.  and idolize them.

To be a real strong man, you don't just have to have large muscles and lots of physical strength. Even with a little less of it, what you need most is a large heart to accommodate people with all their imperfections and hateful views. A strong man should be able to take it all in and give out good vibes. He/she should be the filter that cleans things around them. It takes time to become one and the path is full of struggle, pain and isolation. I am on the way I believe and I have seen many others too. Believe we will meet up sometime :-)

PS: Here, by using the word 'strong man' , I don't intend to isolate women from this role. In fact strong women are more common than strong men.

Refer to this article from Lifehacker for some very useful follow-up information from a more credible source about things I have spoken about here  :-)

silvery waves

It was close to 10.30 at night. We were in the middle of our Goa trip. In the summer, the nights are active and days are for slumber. Plans were been made for dinner, as one by one everyone was returning from the beach hangout.

I saw the gap and nicked the Royal Enfield Bullet's key. Oh, the bike was none of ours. It was taken on rent, and we had quite a big fight during the day on who gets to ride it. The poor guy who has ordered a bullet was ultimately given the advantage of sympathy. In a moment of his weakness, the key was in my hand. I had a window of about one hour, but the fuel was dangerously low.

I had to take it out of the north part of Goa and onto the petrol pump in Panaji road, a good 10 minutes away. And I came back as my mind was set on a target in the opposite side. I had stumbled upon this gem of a beach after lunch, like all treasure finders do. All I remember was some landmarks, without any clear idea of location or distance. But thanks to the straight roads, and simple directions, I was soon thumping on my bullet, learning to control the behemoth at full throttle.

Weaving around the crazy drunken crowd on the road, I managed to reach my destination without much delay- Sinquerim Beach. I don't recall too many features of it, except what I engraved in my mind. A long wall of the fort encircling the Taj Vivanta on the seaside, and a major bastion jutting out into the sea. The beautiful beach on the right side was always peaceful and serene, even with the evening crowd. Now, at this time of the night, there wasn't a soul in sight.

I rode my bike in and parked it with a satisfied smile. I had another 20 minutes in my hands, and no one knew where I was. So I quickly informed one of the guys about my whereabouts and came to know the guys were being mustered to leave. It was still in 'mustering' stage. So I knew I had more time than expected. But I had to get to business.

There was an eerie silence near the fort. But I could clearly hear the distant roar of the waves as they hit upon the strong bastion and broke apart. The waves were stronger than they were in the day time. The full moon was up and cast long shadows along the bastion walls and through windows slits. As I walked closer, I realized the full beauty of what lay ahead.

I immediately regretted not having had more time and not having come here ever before in my life. Unlike the other beaches where the same moon shone and the same sea roared in, this beach somehow had more life and more solitude. The other beaches looked crowded even at midnight, with all the abandoned sand beds,umbrellas,tents and boats stacked up near a long line of shacks closed for the night.

I had this uncomfortable feeling in the bottom of my heart until then. This was my first time in Goa, and on a bullet, and here I was, 10kms from all my friends, without their knowledge, at midnight, all by myself wandering near a completely empty beach. One wrong step on the bastions would land me into the hard rocks below and my body won't be found until the day after and identification might take even longer. Goa isn't exactly crime free either. I was fully aware of these implications while I continued strolling up the bastion walls and climbing the rocks in the dark. Staring into the roaring waves underneath only caused more fear. The sea had climbed much more inwards than I recalled.

It was like a beautiful seductress pulling me to her like a magnet. I didn't stop until I was right on top of the bastion and then I cleared my head and came down to a safer position, realizing that I could very well fall over in case sleep or absent mindedness took over. It was then I realized that I wasn't completely alone there. It gave me the creeps when my ears registered the scuffled sounds around me.

I think I turned quite fast to see who was there, and it startled the person standing next to me. He was a burly man with a long rod in his hands. We exchanged stares for sometime before I realized he wasn't dangerous and the rod in his hands was for fishing. I chuckled at the thought of fishing in such a violent beach location. I wondered which fish would be swimming in those violent waves that were bombarding the bastion. He too would have wondered what this lone guy would be doing at that time of the night in that location, that too without either a girl,a bottle or a fishing rod. I imagine he would have eyed me more suspiciously than I did him. Suicide cases aren't so strange in those parts.

I identified a couple of his friends perched in the shadowy corners of the bastion trying their lucks with the rods, as I walked around the round shaped bastion to get to the side of the beach. I sat on the walls and tried to take in the view. It was overwhelmingly soothing while being highly thrilling. There was so much to do, so much to take in. I felt like an empty container which could take in the entire sea. I restrained myself and just sank into the hypnotic undulating ocean of silver.

The moonlit sky was somewhere joining the ocean of silvery waves and from there the glittering waves came crashing one after the other on the boulders at the foot of the bastion, or on its strong walls, or simply wash over the beach making new wet shapes before going back, all spent. I must have sat there for a full half an hour, before I realized I should get moving or be left behind. As I was getting up to move, I almost froze and lost my balance, swaying half way over the boulders 10 feet below. There were two white shapes barely moving in the window slit directly below me. It took me a few seconds to register that a couple was seated right below where I was , and were involved in deep yet silent conversation. Their reaction too was of momentary shock. I decided it was time to walk away, and walk away I did, physically from the location, but my heart and mind still stays there.

Sinquerim Beach- as seen and photographed in daytime

For, every night after that I get pangs to walk out, ride out or simply peek out at the moonlit skies. Maybe it's the heat of the summer which is keeping me awake every night past midnight, or maybe its something more. I know not of what happened that day, but I do know that the world doesn't seem to be the way I knew of it any more.

Pope washes off centuries of narrow mindedness

The news of the new Pope washing the feet of women, that too one being Muslim, as part of the rituals has come as a surprising relief to me. I see this as a sign of more relaxation and inclusion from the other wise tight controlled and exclusion oriented policies of the Church.

It was always a pain to see the gap between the real preaching of Christ and what the Church in his name imposed on the believers all around the world.

Compared to Hinduism at least, Christianity was expected to be more humane and based on human conditions rather than rituals and rites. But then in its drive to conquer lands and people's support, they broke all these and went ahead to just bring people under the umbrella of Christianity. The ripple effect of such practices can be seen even to date with lots of mindless rules that excludes people of certain social strata from the Church's ability to improve standard of life.

There has been lots of efforts from many people and associates of the Church to rectify these. But not so much was forthcoming from the higher echelons of the Church. Now, with the new Pope starting off with simple robes and now breaking liturgical rules to reach out to more people,it seems promising and hopeful that more acts of forgiveness,charity and well being would be carried out by the supreme body of Christianity.

From the time I first laid my eyes and mind on the teachings of Christ and the way priests and nuns like Mother Theresa have laid out their entire lives for the well being of the downtrodden without caring much about the rites and rituals of the Church, I have great hope and respect for Christianity. Nurtured in the right way, its teaching could bring a lot of relief to the pain stricken world.

Amen. Wish you all a wonderful Easter season.

run baby run..

close your eyes and imagine running in the cold morning in the mist. the feeling of experiencing your warm breath against the cold mist rubbing all over your body. the pain in the muscles tearing your apart from one side.

while the stinging pain in the lungs tearing from another side.the new and fitting running suit hangs around and moves around with each movement of your limb. that is the feeling of being up on the first break of dawn and panting like a horse on the spoiled roads when the dust has  not yet been kicked up the vile traffic.

run like a jet, run like lightning. run at the top of your speed. that is the key to running at the break of dawn. nothing else matters. run till you pant like horse in all senses. let the pain run down and settle things for you. you would never feel better in life. the sad truth is, its been quite a long time since that experience has touched the heart and body alike.

though not good at running, give it your all. you would never have to regret it. that is the best way to begin your day. everything else, as is recommended by others are just substandard.

run .. run like crazy.. run like forrest, run like lola, run like PT usha , run like bolt. tear off the masks of unreality and pierce the limitations of dimensions. run for your life.
(i typed all the above stuff with my eyes closed and only did corrections and added images afterwards. try closing your eyes after reading this..)

the thinking idiot speaks what a new year eve is all about

every year, the counter increments, people rejoice, spend, do exciting things,promise nice things to themselves.. and the game starts again once they are back to what they were doing the last.. (the innocent sarcasm is always good to keep the feet firmly rooted :) )

a society that discards the bad of a year and reflects upon the good of it while stepping into a new one. Change has always been celebrated in all communities, and we have lots of regional festivals to justify that. This is just another one we celebrate along with the international community.

lots of people believe in new year resolutions, and I have seen and heard of people transform themselves on this pretext. But mostly those who claim the resolutions are onto small stuff and sometimes never serious. It is just fun to think about improving something atleast once :)

Some believe that what they do first thing on the new year's eve has an impact on the year ahead. I kind of like that approach. As it builds lots of suspense and thrill on a single moment. I have had some amusing moments in life after I started observing such things. In childhood or earlier days, I would be perched on the sofa watching the bursting of crackers Down Under  or watching some other special shows. Those days I never bothered to think much other than wishing as many people as possible at the earliest and receiving their wishes in return. That was the fun those days.

After the great departure, its all about being meaningful about something :) Seeing the first rising sun, travelling, being with friends, being somewhere, doing something, thinking something good, seeing pleasant dreams, hoping and beaming with confidence. Those are benchmarks of a good new year's eve. I, not being a party animal, am obviously not found in large parties and gatherings for this purpose.

One year I was in the bus travelling home. Only two friends were accompanying me, and that too in distant seats. They arranged to have me seated near by 11:50pm, so that I wouldn't have to spend the new year's eve alone. First time in my life I experienced the joy of wishing the slumbering unknown fellow traveller and getting a warm response in the middle of the night. There was a minor light show with phones as well :) It was followed up by the awesome view of the rising sun while the bus roared through the open highway near Thrissur. It was a during a difficult time in life and being able to thank the driver and conductor for the smooth drive while wishing them was a liberating feeling.

 The next year, being more challenging and excruciating the new year's eve fit right into my first day off after nearly 4 months. It was my first 3+ days leave as well. Sounds funny when I recall how frequently most of the people avail leaves. :) That was a time well spent with my family, having been absent mostly over the previous 1.5 years. Acquired my camera and a new perspective alongwith it too. The eve itself was quite boring in contrast. I was seated in front of my laptop watching the clock tick into position, before releasing a timely facebook status and tweet, kind of like a press statement. :D

2011 - That was the year of fundamental change for me - for worse or better. The changes and their impacts were phenomenal. With the bike, camera and the spirit to wander, I was a wanderer in all terms-no longer wedded to work, and full of the attitude currently identified widely as sarcasm for the material world. And the transition to 2012 was along similar scales, when after moving to Bangalore and a new job, I climbed a near impossible peak with some of my best friends I made in my life in Mysore. That is by far the best new year's eve. Though I accidentally snoozed through the eve owing to the aching muscles and bone numbing cold. Only when the fire died down at 00.35 did I wake up and wake up the few others to rejoice a bit.

2012 - being a year of togetherness with lots of friends  and families from various networks, was symbolized by the simple celebration we had. A simple plum cake cut and shared among us fellows, while deciding on which movie/song to play. Ended up watching the super flop Simhasanam for a few minutes until the desperation forced us to revert to 3 Kings - the super duper comedy movie. Laughing together and enjoying the moment was the key, until sleep overcame and all slowly retired :D

welcome 2013 - wonder what you have in store for me and my near and dear ones. One thing is sure. You can be lethal if I wish to, or be a simpleton if I play by your tunes :)

Wish you all readers a challenging,interesting,flashy,calm,blasting and a happy new year. Wish that all your dreams, hopes and plans come closer to being true.. and a special wish to all my friends who are tying the knot, or entering interesting phases in their personal and professional lives.

Vamos vamos..

why is the North east part of India?

I love the culture and people of the North East very much. By virtue of history they even belong to India and ended up being addressed as the North-East as well, instead of maybe western China.

I don't know from when, but maybe from when I became aware of the extent of troubles in the area, I have always imagined the frustrated youth and angry population trying to bring balance and seek out justice. Their spirits might have taken different forms, corrupt or maligned or still might be upright. I don't have an first person or even second person experience about the ground realities over there.

There is just the vague picture painted in my mind by the scant news articles, comments and views of experts and travellers to the area. The picture it paints ain't too sweet either, and that has very well served as a block for me convince my friends for a trip to the exquisite locations there. But leaving aside the concerns of a nature lover and wanderer, I wish to address the social and political problem faced by the common man there. By addressing, I don't really mean I am doing anything for them. I am just sharing what my thoughts are on those, and I admit that I am ashamed by my inability to do more.

The people in that area.. hmm even this article of mine separates them by area, and address the people of this very same nation as them. But then practically there is no way to continue with this without accepting the irony. These people belong to same country that I sang anthems and songs about from my childhood with a burning passion. All descriptions and claims of a unified and free country .. ah they were laid to rest when the central government decided to crack down on the militants and thereby brought the daily lives of the people also to a frozen state. I hope things are not too bad, but I know that more often then not, they turn quite ugly.

Being residents of a troubled area, affected by rough terrain unlike that of the rest of the nation, the fellow countrymen of this area have to fight to get their daily livelihood. On top of that the corrupt system that rules the Indian democractic behemoth sucks dry their other means of help. As with any country with such diversity, the riches of a part should help in balancing the grief and disasters of another. But the corruption burns out everything as the bulk of wealth and facilities remain with the rich areas. The rich get richer, while the poor get poorer.

No wonder movements like the Naxal and separatists spurt up. Most of them are directly caused by the Government, whereas the rest are the results of an amalgamation of a state of anarchy coupled with a corrupt system. Anti-social elements need only so much to thrive and strike at the heart of the 'golden' principles of the great democracy. What is right and what is wrong is a very difficult decision to reach with so many complex issues and facts remaining in half exposed states.

It hurts to think a lot of educated and able young people of these areas have no other option other than migrating to the 'rich' lands to get a decent job and a life. As much as I respect the armed forces, I desist the inappropriate use of such draconian laws on our own brethren.

Maybe our nation will never be an ideal one, maybe we shall have no peace forever. The people might not respect each other as described in the text books, in the words of the freedom fighters, politicians or great visionaries. We might fight each other and stop existing as a nation of ideals, knowledge, peace and happiness. But I feel a lot of pain when those distant countrymen of mine don't get to experience the freedom I enjoy, the ability to make choice, win a livelihood, have good times with friends and family without having to fear death and sorrow. I wonder what would be the reaction of the natives if I made a visit to their homes. Would I be looked upon like European visiting the slums of occupied India? It pains to even wonder about this painful disparity..maybe they shouldn't be maintained as part of India. It hurts to lose such beautiful people and land, but if pain is all the relationship brings, is it not better to severe it ?