GOD 'i' God

"Group of Disbelievers 'i'n God, a group of atheists!!”

Atheism is a religion which has its own set of principles, mythology, a deity to worship, a shrine to visit and prayers to recite. Taking leaves from the books of the theists, atheists have also designed and developed their religion with all the necessities to compete and counter the theism. The epitome of the philosophy is stated here, the philosophy of atheism dates back to 5th century BCE and I audaciously name my first atheist as “Philosopher Diagoras”, and I am aware that the theists cannot name any one. “The Origin of Species” by Charles Darwin and “The Theory of Relativity” by Albert Einstein are considered the holy books and few epics to supplement of various thinkers and philosophers all around the world. The modern day masters like Karl Marx, E. V. Ramasami Naicker and Friedrich Nietzsche etc helped the religion to spread around the world.

As theists go by the philosophy that God protects, helps and takes care of them, atheists also had found out a deity that takes care and protects them. It’s nothing but ‘a boot’, ‘a shoe.’ Among all the things that protect atheists, shoes are the best. They protect one’s feet from the wetness and the path of truth can be found only in the footwear that was capable of keeping one’s feet dry. They keep you active and abide by you to continue your journey and follow a path unharmed by stones, bushes, thorns, reptiles and what not.Like the different religions, there are shoes made of different materials, types, which are durable for different terrain, climatic conditions etc, but the almighty is one.

One may annoy regarding, “How do you start on the path of the shoe?” It’s pretty simple, “You start one foot at time!” That should continue, one after the other to walk along the path of the truth and reach the destiny, which is eternal. The destiny is the reason for you being in this world. It’s the real meaning of life. So, trust the boot and lead a happy life, even they would come with you after your death, so that you can continue worshipping your deity after life. The CERN laboratory at Geneva is regarded as the holy shrine and every atheist must visit it once in his/her life time.

If you face any hurdles or harm yourself, shop for a different boot, that the ritual to be followed. The boots vary from the terrain and your requirement, so be cautious enough to take a note of it. It tests your patience at times, like any other deity. The prayer to follow twice a day, both at dawn and dusk is prescribed below.

I am an atheist as,

I am rebellious and I want to take the road less traveled.

I will not pray to God.

I will study about out my heritage and mythology as a disbeliever.

I would love all the people, atheists and theists alike.

I trust myself more than God

I don’t believe in God and I am not alone.

I will just think of him whenever anything happens around me.

I shall preach about atheism as dictated by my masters and

I shall visit CERN at least once before I die.

Needless to say, this is my small attempt to make the people relax and laugh. Forgive me if I had hurt any of the sentiments of yours in this process. I am sorry if it’s ridiculous.

Happiness: Eureka Concept

What do one need to be happy? Is it presence of loved ones around or professional success or money and fame or any other material thing? What does make you happy? Does one need any of the above to be happy? Are you sure that you can’t be happy without one of them? And more importantly, how do you rate happiness? Is it by comparing yourself with others or by your own terms? Think a bit and follow!!!

Happiness has been the quest of every human being from the start of the world. Many of us do something or the other as it is done by one of our close associates. It’s just that they are happy doing it, doesn’t mean you would also achieve happiness by doing the same. You might just be a cheetah or a turtle or a hare in this rat race. Your happiness is related to you and not to others. Its just shouldn’t be the case.

You know it is easy to be a victim of the rat race and let your life revolve around some people who unnecessarily become an important part of your life. So much that, you start emulating everything they do. If your success is not on your terms; if it looks good to the World but does not feel good in your heart, it is not a success at all. But just ask yourself- is your life worth going round and round in every thing on the foot steps of others?

It’s very important for every individual to realize his/her positive & negative traits, his/her strength and weakness. One should live life on their terms and in accordance to one self and own life circumstances. You end up losing your identity, desires, feelings and ultimately existence simply because you benchmarked yourself up to someone.

I tell you the reason for all this; it’s just to feel important, to gain name and fame. How stupid it would be to give importance to others just to feel important? So, stop being in the shoes of someone else and realize your worth, set your own goals, ambitions and fulfill them in your own style. Stop being a part of the rat race and discover your own individuality.

You have to be original, because if you were like some one else, what do they need you for?

Think about your self, your priorities, what are your passions, desires, without comparing with others and not bothering about the outcome. Don’t worry thinking that your peers are growing and succeeding in what they are doing. It might be just what others perceive as success; but to them, the success might be different. Don’t get stumbled upon hearing such successes. Jealousy arises from the lack of confidence, not in others, but in one self. There would be no end to these kinds of issues. Enjoy your own life without comparing it with others.

You are not born to please others, you are born to enjoy, celebrate and rejoice life. Just remember that pleasing others is the key to failure and not to success. Don’t ask me the key to success, I don’t know exactly, but just learn the art of using the knowledge and experience of others. If you want to be happy, don’t care for the opinion of others. It is worth remembering that others judge you by what you have already done, and not by your capabilities. So, the greener shades are yet to come which are known to only you.

Doesn’t worry even if you fail initially in what ever you do, learn to laugh at yourself when you make a mistake instead of whipping yourself emotionally. Humour is good for you; it reduces stress hormones like cortisol and adrenaline like-substances and increases endorphins in the bloodstream which are responsible for the feel-good experience.

It’s not necessary that you need to succeed to be happy. In fact, all wants to be happy, but some only know the ways. Many think that they would be happy only after achieving something, doing something, but its not the case, the truth is that you must feel the need to be happy, instead of waiting for some thing to happen.

There isn’t any road to the happiness, it is the road…Happiness is not the destination, but it is the voyage. The truth is that there is no time to be happy than right now. If not now, then when?? Nothing is to be done to be happy; it’s just that you must have the desire to be happy. You need not achieve anything or succeed in any field of work to be happy, it’s when you feel the need to be happy that happiness emerges from within. Nothing is needed to be done to be happy. This is what I term as "Eureka Concept."

Your life will be full of challenges, it is better to admit that as much and decide to be happy in spite of it all. "Make happiness a habit" and 'no worries' your motto.

A "sage" dwells in each one of us. Once connected to this sage, our decisions are taken from deep within and we no longer need approval of others.We stand tall and empowered, yet simple, natural and in harmony with self and others.

Spirituality & Sex - III

How stupid it would be to think about the “after life,” which is uncertain and unknown and give-up the present life, at hand, following some stupid priests? It has nothing to do with your right or wrong, it is natural and the necessity of the body and soul, for every being. Nature wholeheartedly designs the human body for the propagation of the species.

In fact one can see the eternity during the climax or when one orgasms. I am sure everyone is going to forget all the anxieties, problems and stress during it. It is scientifically proven that having an orgasm relieves you of your stress and also acts as an antidote for few cardiovascular diseases; it’s also a kind of exercise. Note that the temples are places built to encourage and have sexual intercourse in the ancient India; even the Siva Linga signifies the male genital organ.

The Siddhartha of Lumbini embraced celibacy after he fathered a son, and going through all the relationships, marital bliss. He couldn’t find solace in all of them and gave them up and gave in to celibacy. The circumstances that had guided him in embracing celibacy, the reasons that made him follow a certain set of principles is more important, which may or may not exist now. So, it’s not true that each and every individual could find solace and peace by following the same principles. Don’t be pathological, he might not know the ways to enjoy and find solace except celibacy or he might have become Cypridophobic, fear of sexual intercourse. Celibacy is not a virtue for all.

Life is multidimensional. One should accept to enjoy, celebrate and rejoice in it. Celebration is the highest growth of consciousness, expression and manifestation. Some of the ancestors might not have found any enjoyment in sex and started practicing celibacy. It’s just might be the case of Siddhartha or Gowtham Budda or even Mahatma Gandhi, who practiced Brahmacharya. Gandhi even made experiments to test his celibacy, restraints etc., by sleeping naked with wives of his close followers, and even with his grand nieces.

So, don’t take it for granted, that celibacy is the way Hinduism is built. The success - howsoever temporary - of the fake swamis exposes the alarming levels of ignorance in society. Just start trusting yourself again. Once you start trusting your own being, no politician, no priest can exploit you. I prefer trusting something that has shown proof in the past rather than some random faith that promises to give me something after my body parts stop functioning.

Leonardo da Vinci puts all this from the artist’s perspective: “The art of procreation and the members employed therein is so repulsive, that if it were not for the beauty of the faces and the adornments of the actors and the pent-up impulse, Nature would lose the human species.”

for additional reading... visit How long can you last without sex?

Spirituality & Sex - II

Spirituality is not the state or quality of being dedicated to God, and not an integral aspect of a religion. It emphasizes complete inner freedom and responsibility of the individual to himself, demanding no superficial behavioral changes, but a deeper, inner transformation. Desires were to be transcended, accepted and surpassed rather than denied. An individual with spiritual outlook is one who is more personalized, less structured, more open to new ideas and more pluralistic than that of the doctrinal faiths of organized religions.

Forced celibacy was not just wrong, it was damaging to the soul of man. It was against man's natural instincts and his essential nature, independent of any religion. In fact a religion should be an art that should show us the way to enjoy life, but the orthodox religions are dead, filled with rituals, oppressing the followers with fears of damnation and the promise of blessings.

Remember that you are not granted life and are not answerable to anyone after your death. One should not be a victim of fear psychosis as is done in all religions, to worship God or fear God to avoid hell, gratify God by practicing rituals, and lead a life that is laid out in some book to go to heaven- to avoid hell. In this way, they had denied and destroyed life. In the name of religion, man was exploited. They made man afraid, made man feel unworthy, made man feel guilty, made man feel that he is just on the verge of hell. All this was done to make you to do what they wanted to and make yourself believe in life after death.

How to make man so afraid? The only way is: condemn life, condemn whatsoever is natural. Condemn sexual intercourse because it is the fundamental of life; condemn food because that is the second fundamental of life; condemn relationship, family, friendship, because that is the third fundamental of life -- and go on condemning. Whatsoever is natural to man, condemn it, say it is wrong: "If you do it you will suffer for it. If you don't do it you will be rewarded. Hell is going to descend on you if you go on living naturally" -- that is the message of the whole past -- "and heaven will be given to you if you go against life." Everyone was fooled by saying that life was ugly and sowed ideas of life after death, by teaching them celibacy and all. On the path of salvation, celibacy is not a prerequisite but a consequence – an effortless by-product. Celibacy is a kind of birth of consciousness and not a moral given, as most sermons would have us believe.

Thus, if you give your life, if you are suicidal, only then God will accept you. If you slowly commit suicide in the senses, in the body, in the mind, in the heart, and you go on destroying yourself, and the more you succeed in destroying yourself, the more you will become beloved to God. One shouldn't drop the idea of sexuality because it is told be a hindrance for entering heaven.

More on these lines in the next post
with some ideas of Osho Rajneesh...

Spirituality & Sex - I

The recent incidents involving swamis and gurus who are known and recognized for their spiritual being and training had provoked me to think on the connection between celibacy and spirituality. Here are some of my findings based on some facts and my own perspectives. It’s a commonplace agreement in India where people seek guidance from learned or holy individuals the way people elsewhere might consult a psychologist or a counselor.

First of all there is a need to understand the monastic order in Hinduism and its provenance. Hinduism borrowed the concept of monasteries - and its peculiar kind of celibacy - from Buddhism. This was because Buddhism had grown to become one massive umbrella that held vast swathes of the Indian subcontinent in near-total control by the 8th century. When Adi Shankaracharya arrived on the scene to take Sanatan Dharma out of the morass, he selected some of the attributes of Buddhism to reinvent Hinduism.

In other words, there was no concept of renunciation in Hinduism until Shankaracharya arrived, at least not in any organised sort of way. The best that exists in Sanatana philosophy on the subject is Patanjali's statement, 'Swa-ang jugupsa, parai asansargah'. It means that with increasing spiritual insights, with greater realisation, with the mind's constant attachment with truth, there develops apathy for the physical body, and it loses its physical affiliation with others. This is considered a high state of spiritual being, and that is what has made celibacy the plinth of sanyas. Before Shankaracharya, Indian rishis were known to have families and children.

As was the case in any era, most of the people were discontent with their lives. They thought that the natural way of life and the kind of relationships they had were the reasons for their discontent and dissatisfaction and started looking for a new way of life. That’s when Buddhism showed them a new set of principles, ideals and a whole new life. So, most of them were moving to Buddhism from Hinduism. In order to avoid this, same kind of concepts were borrowed to Hinduism by Shankaracharya.

Also, Shankara travelled across India and other parts of South Asia to propagate his philosophy through discourses and debates with other thinkers, which the disciples of Buddha had been doing from centuries. He founded four mathas ("monasteries"), which helped in the historical development, revival and spread of Advaita Vedanta, same on the lines of Buddhist Monastries. So, he merely followed the "market leader" of the time, Buddhism, and in the process institutionalised renunciation to help Hinduism survive the crisis it was in because of the Buddhism

What's truly lamentable about those donning saffron but flouting the principles they erroneously pledged to uphold - including celibacy - is that they have forgotten the deep Sanatana value that their raiment represents. Interestingly, the idea of a single colour garment is also from the Buddhism, which floats yellow for renunciation. Yellow represents the shade of falling leaves in the winter, representing the departure from the world (of desires). So, in order to compete with Buddhism, Shankaracharya found the colour saffron, from the sacrificial fire According to him, anyone who is wearing this saffron robe is sitting on the funeral pyre, burning all his samskaras and making sure that no new ones are added. For it was only after all the samskaras were burnt that vairagya or dispassion could develop, and with it the spiritual insights for which one had made the conscious decision to become a sadhu or a sanyasi.

What do you think would be the reason for all the idols and impressions of erotic and compromising positions in the vast temples of India? Don’t you think that celibacy would finally lead to extinction of human race? Don’t you realise that our ancestors who had written the epics weren’t so stupid to make that happen?

Having understood the origin of celibacy and the significance of saffron, let’s go deeper into the world of spirituality, celibacy and renunciation, in the next post.

Relationships : Express Yourself

Does any of you was told that “I don’t like the way you think, talk and behave” in just a single statement? Or did you tell any one without beating around the bush? Not many I presume. So, what is it that prevents many to tell a thing that could be told in just a simple sentence, to tell in a paragraph and even more at times? Do they think that the listener is so stupid to understand a simple and single statement? Also, there would be some instants where even one doesn’t tell about their feelings for him/her to the listener. Is it their inherent fear to tell others frankly or the inability to face the reactions and ire of the listener from doing so?

If the answer is fear, then do give your relationship a second thought. For if you are in any kind of relationship, there should be no place for fear and insecurity. If that is the case, then your relationship is not going anywhere, instead it is there where it really started or worsened. So, if you fear your partner, then there is something wrong in the way the relationship is built; may be the foundation is built on compromise, false notions and lies. As I always say, any relationship, friendship or love should be built on mutual trust, honesty and by giving complete freedom to the other.

A friend is one with whom you dare to be yourself, so if you fear to express your feelings; then take it for sure that he/she is not your friend. Also, be mindful of your judgments, for they reveal your own fears and prejudices. Don’t be certain that your opinion will be accepted; not everything that is faced can be changed, but nothing can be changed without facing it. Go ahead and express your feelings, simple and short. Nothing in the life is to be feared, it is only to be understood. Don’t be of the opinion that he/she might learn him/herself or someone else will tell them. Most importantly, don’t accept any of them just because the person concerned is a friend or lover. A bad peace is worse than a war.

Our fear of disasters that may never happen robs us of the courage to meet the ills that do occur.

Once you tell them your feelings and thoughts, it is up to them regarding how they take it. If one is intelligent enough, one would introspect oneself. Remember that its only true friends who can stab you in the front. Don’t curse and blame them for pointing your mistakes or expressing his feelings that hurt you. Just listen to them patiently and give your response verbally and don’t be in haste to break the relationship. Be mature enough to accept one’s own flaws and take the responsibility for your deeds. "Maturity isn’t measured by how you live, look, act, talk or dress. True maturity is measured by the way you respond when faced with a difficult situation."

In fact, they are the ones who tell you what needs to be improved in you so that you become a better individual. There are very few people from whom you could learn about the various short comings in your personality. In order to raise your bar, it is important for you to overcome them. Unless, you don’t know what the short comings are, how do you handle them? So, it is important for you to allow them to be frank enough so that they can speak up their heart and you have a chance to introspect regarding their comments and take necessary steps if required.

Don’t think that you know more about yourself and you are perfect. It is this misconception that prevents us from learning. Respect one’s views and one’s right to express their feelings, desires and the things they hate. Just accept the fact that it is the fundamental right given to every citizen of the nation. Who ever do not know the truth is ignorant, but the one who knows the truth and denies is a criminal. Only an idiot persists in his/her mistakes or errors. Most of the people don’t try to accept the short comings with in them and or even if they accept, they put the blame on others. One tries to avoid the responsibility.

"The toughest opponent you will face ever is the “fear” within. Once you conquer it, you can conquer the world."

A friend is one who wants to help you mentally and spiritually, in building you on noble virtues that he thinks. You decide yourself whether they seem the same to you or not, after all everyone should have his/her opinion on the topic of discussion and just shouldn’t accept with out giving a thought. Don’t just go do what someone says, take interest in it, then debate it, ponder it and consider it from all angles. Never obey anyone's command unless it is coming from within you also. It is the mark of an educated mind to be able to entertain a thought without accepting it. It is the ability to listen to almost everything without losing one’s temper or self-confidence. Be wise to know yourself, if you can’t accept it from others mouth. The principle mark of genius is not perfection, but originality and open-mindedness.

Everyone speaks well of the heart, but no one dares to say it out of the head. Also,” In order that all men may be taught to speak the truth, it is necessary that all likewise should learn to hear it.”

Courtesy : Airtel, for their caption.
Also Edited by Diwakar...

Relationships - II : The New Avatar

Continued from the previous post: An individual’s self concept that is defined as the ‘sense of me’ is vulnerable to change. Usually partners, over the time they are together, develop shared friends, activities and even sometimes overlapping self-concepts. When ideals, principles or activities of your partner seems good and not come in a way to change your founding concepts and personality, there is no harm in imbibing them with you; but if you find them against your ideologies, just tell them your feelings and even dissuade them in doing them. In doing so, you yourself might change. It is this sense of ‘loosing me’ that hurts one more that leads to emotional distress post break-up.

The way in which the breakup happens also affects one and it shatters the person if the partner is cruel or unfaithful. It makes one unable to trust anyone for a longtime. One has to relieve the existential fear of being alone or else their deepest un-healed issue of ‘no one loves me’ can surface, and for some a plain simple sense of lack of confidence in ‘I am not good enough’ comes alive. So, one has to deal with the distress that should eventually lead to Introspection. I believe that being in distress is good for one as long as it is for a limited duration; for it is in those situations we discover ourselves truly, the mistakes committed and their reasons. One should develop the courage to accept one’s mistakes and faults before throwing the blame on others. This introspection helps us to come out in a new avatar with energy to face any challenge. It eventually make one ready for a new relationship; remember “Anyone can start, but only the thorough bred will finish it successfully.”

There are individuals who cannot deal with this distress and go into oblivion and tend to go into a shell. They fear to enter any new relationship in the future and start to live alone, assuring themselves that they are not fit for it and they had enough of it. Nothing is so firmly believed as what one least knows. So, in order to deal with the distress of a breakup, one needs a very strong support system. A support system includes friends; social meetings, career or physical workout. Just give some time for “Time is a master worker that heals the wounds of temporary defeat, and equalizes the inequalities and rights the wrongs of the world.”

Every situation is an opportunity to heal only if you allow it. Just work on loving yourself and build your self esteem by bringing back to life your Identity, about which I discussed in one of my previous posts. Make yourself a better person and know who you are before you try and know someone else and expect them to know you. Loving yourself leaves you with no rivals as you indulge in yourself so much that you loose the ability to compare with others.

Also, some may tend to run into a rebound relationship as a source of comfort and a way of temporarily blotting out painful feelings and memories, while some become Gamophobic. It is for this reason, I think that the concept of Marriage is invented that helps one to come out of all the emotional distress and start a new relationship. After all, every notion can change with circumstances and time. It’s just that we have to give it a chance and leave it free so that a durable, indestructible and invulnerable relationship builds up. No feeling is either congenital or posthumous, and change is imminent.

Throw yourself out of the notion that all human beings are alike and all relationships end in the same way. How stupid and irrational it would be to think that all human beings or individuals of opposite sex are the same? The best way out of a difficulty is through it. The greatest glory is not in never falling; but in rising every time we fall. Love, beauty and joy are forever building, tearing down and rebuilding the foundation of each man’s soul.

My advice is, “Get into a Relationship: If you find a good partner, you will be happy; if not, find another one.”

With valuable inputs from Diwakar.

Relationships - I : The Inevitable Expectations

You can find many young people in relationships may be in love or friendship around every corner of your life; almost equal in number are those who broke out of it. An individual enters into a relationship to do way with his/her loneliness, for emotional or moral support or for carnal desires etc. There would be equal number of reasons for breaking-up which vary for each and every relationship. All these human actions have one or more of these seven causes: chance, nature, compulsion, habit, reason, passion and desire. Here I want to mention some of the intricate details of the relationships.

The most important facet of any relationship is “Expectation.” One simply can’t deny that it’s the nature of every ordinary human being to expect something in return for a favour one does. Everyone enters into a relationship expecting some or the other things like trust, faithfulness, love, romance etc. This may not look obvious on the surface but if we analyze properly, we can surely find out our expectations.

You introspect yourself thoroughly to find out your expectations. Each and every individual expects something or the other that vary according to the situations. It would be better if everybody knows their expectations from the relationship (partner) and proceed further only if they are absolutely sure that their expectations are going to be met. The one who actually knows just what one wants in life has already gone a long way towards attaining it. Don’t look for a partner with out faults, for you would find none in this crooked and contaminated world.

Many of you don’t agree that most of the relationships are selfish. We enter into relationships just for mutual benefits and not for charity. I agree that there are very few relationships in which a person does not expect anything from the other, but let’s be human and accept that we are not completely altruistic. You trust your partner or friend and help him/her with complex situations or needs and expect something in return like sympathy or love etc as and when we need it. We take it for granted that the partner would give in those kinds of situations, which doesn’t happen in most of the relationships. So, what if your partner turns his/her back at you? It is at this moment the relationship trembles, which might eventually, leads to a break-up.

Some prolong the relationship with the intention of utilizing the partner as and when needed and stay quite the rest of the time. Even they negotiate and make a compromise to nourish the relationship. I call it “Use and Keep,” it’s different from the much renowned phrase use and throw. This has become a very common phenomenon in many of the present day relationships. No position is life is secure and no relationship is permanent unless built on truth, justice and sincerity. It is also important to note that every person changes with time, in fact some change every moment, which may change one’s expectations, behaviour etc. These changes look tiny but they may turn out to be magnanimous for a relationship to sustain, in a way that these make the partner unable to meet your expectations, ultimately leading to a break-up.

These kinds of break-ups make one think about the need of doing things for others or helping others and the necessity of an eternal relationship. Just a couple more of these kinds of humiliations will make one self-centered, malevolent, greedy and selfish. He/she just gives up the idea of a relationship. Remember that the moment you stop helping others, you die as a Human and loose your status as a citizen of the society.

So, what is the ideal way to make oneself comfortable in any relationship?
“Minimise your Expectations.”
That’s the only best thing as a human; we can do to build a strong relationship and make ourselves comfortable. Even if we make sincere efforts in establishing a relationship, it may fail due to the partner. It leads to distress, agony and also at times to a reduced sense of “me.” Dealing with emotional distress post break-up can be tough. When a relationship ends it brings with it not just the agony of the partition but sometimes may also shatter a person’s self-concept that would be dealt in detail in the next post.

With valuable inputs from Diwakar...

The Identity

Ever since we were born, we were given a name by our parents, but how do people remember us? It’s by the name of our parents, that he/she is son/daughter of somebody, and not by one's name. It’s just that some one has to be a reference so that we gain an identity in the society or among our relatives. But, how do you your friends call you? It’s just by your name and nothing else, no parents and nothing in between. It’s from there we start feeling and thinking about individuality. There starts the need for an individual to gain an identity for him/her self. That one of the reasons for which one struggles so hard during the adolescence and the rest of the life as well.

Even if one tries hard to establish a career path for self, one’s profession would be made one’s identity. Even though one finds a place in the society, he is known by his profession rather than anything else that you are actually built and made of. People are of little concern to think of your character and your personality. The mask that we wear at work often becomes our face. We also think the same about others, that he is a doctor, software professional or a businessman etc. Is that the only thing that we are made of? One can find many examples of the atrocious, cruel and wild incidents and tragedies that are committed by people at authoritative positions and who come from well read and brought up families.

Does only our professional success, educational and family backgrounds entirely describe us? If not, then what’s the important thing that makes each one of us different? It’s the fundamental character that makes it all different and what’s this character made of? You don’t require any degree or a well established family to help others, to fight for the society and the environment and most importantly to find yourselves. Even you don’t require them to be happy either!! You need empathy, compassion, determination, sincerity etc, which are the building blocks of your character. It is by this character that you choose your friends.

So, what does this character made up of? How can one say about the character? How can one build a good character? Let me tell you my perspective of character and its identity. Character is the way one reacts to the happenings both involving and surrounding him. It is the willingness to accept responsibility for one’s own life. It is the source from which self – respect springs. Watch a man do his most common actions, the way he eats, dresses and talks etc; those are indeed the things which will tell you the real character of a great man. Just observe the way one behaves with a less stature human than himself, the way one reacts to the responses of other humans, nature and animals. In western countries, they identify you by your hobbies, and not by your profession. When a westerner asks you, “What do you do?” he expects you to tell him about your hobbies.

Never judge a person by his position, because some rise by evil and some fall by virtue; instead measure the glory of men by the means they had used to acquire it. If you want to know a man’s character, place him in authority. Fidel Castro is the best example, he was a good revolutionist and freedom fighter, but became a ruthless dictator after he became the president of Cuba. The real test of a man’s character is to look at the way one behaves in difficult situations; Adversity reveals and shapes character.

First of all, be sure that Character is not readymade, but it is created bit by bit & day by day. It is a by-product produced in the great manufacture of daily duty. Even one can improve one’s character by observing others; when we see men of contrary character, we should turn inwards and examine us. To know your own character, look at the world. It is your mirror, and your mind is a magnet. What you perceive in the world is largely a reflection of your own attitudes and beliefs, which are the binding principles of your character.

The most important product of your effort in life is your own character. It’s the crown and glory of life. Remember that, character is like a white paper, if once blotted; it can hardly be ever made to as white as before. Don’t measure one on one’s professional success and educational and family backgrounds. Following is a simple way to build your character and your destiny:
Sow a thought, and you reap an act;
Sow an act, and you reap a habit;
Sow a habit, and you reap a character;
Sow a character, and you reap your Destiny.

You have no need to prove to the world what you are, just do what you like and desire, without hurting others and exploiting the nature. That’s better than helping others and all other deeds.

The Three Mistakes of My Life

The Three Mistakes of My Life in alphabetical order are

Arrogance
Intimacy
Obsession

Like every human being, I also made mistakes that I myself cant digest. I had committed mistakes with the fears of Loosing my close friends and Inability to keep my own promises

[1] I turned my back at some of the close friends when I am needed the most. I promised one to teach him a subject that I topped during my engineering. But, just before the day of the exam, I did not teach him; even I did not tell him that I couldn't come. All this is to spend some intimate moments with my so called girl friend, ignoring the fact that it was the last chance for him to obtain his degree.

[2] As with any of the colleges, my class also had few love stories, in fact all one-sided. With those come the problems like egoism, possessiveness etc., that make even close friends fight among themselves. So, when one of my close friends planned to trash another one; without dissuading him, I encouraged him to teach the other a lesson. The reason is so stupid that just, I wanted to make him think that girls were not as good as he thought and they are responsible for all this bullshit, so that he would agree with me and ignore the girls; as a friend is another self. I am thankful to him for moving with me as though nothing had ever happened. This arrogance made me loose a good friend.

[3] As one of my close friends came from abroad, I recently planned a get-together of my engineering classmates in Hyderabad. During the same dates, another batch of my friends came to Hyderabad and planned a day out in a resort in the city outskirts, without notifying me. I was obsessed by the moment in hand, forgot and neglected my engineering friends. As with the earlier cases, I didn’t inform my friends regarding the situation; dumbstruck thinking the way they would react at that high moment. At moments, I am a coward, unable to face these kinds of situations in a diplomatic and amiable way; rather I would enjoy the moments at hand to its full extent without thinking of what would happen later. On the whole, it’s a Fiasco.

I am not a dipsomaniac, nor a recluse but a person who lives for pleasure and happiness, a Hedonist. According to me, true friendship is built on mutual trust, non – possessiveness and complete freedom. Friendship is not a responsibility to be fulfilled, but it is an opportunity to move heaven and earth. A true friend should accept all these to enjoy the relationship. Give someone their full freedom, and they won’t abuse it. I am afraid of telling some things to someone as they don’t give me full freedom and insist that I should be with them. A friend is one with whom you dare to be yourself, but I am afraid of loosing them. Friendship is not a give and take policy; it’s a greatest gift given with the arms of unconditional love and acceptance. It is not what the other person can do for you; but what you can do for him that binds him to you.

Everything fades, everyone dies eventually, and nothing is permanent. People die; relationships die and even love dies. That why I say again, set the friends free, they are not yours anyway. One should be liberal and mature enough to understand this. I don’t know the ways to describe my feelings, except a simple quote: “The best way to understand someone is to understand their silence, and then their words; for if you can’t understand their silence, how can you understand their words?” Just think about the reasons for one’s silence, one’s inability to inform about the issues at hand, and then you would get some answers.

Let me make it clear: It’s not that new relationships are more important than the old ones, it’s just that I enjoy the moments with who I am at that instant of time, irrespective of the length of the relationship. If I doesn’t enjoy the present moment, I would look for another way to enjoy. That’s what every one of us does, enjoy the life and I am not a sales person to convince anyone. I opted and decided to live like that. No person is a friend who demands my silence or denies my right to freedom and enjoyment, and anticipates to see me suffer, struggle and retrograde ultimately.

“A real friend is one who walks in when the rest of the world walks out;” he shouldn’t be like the gatekeeper looking forward to throw him out of the world.

All the mistakes that I had committed towards my friends and the suffering I had undergone had led me to understand myself much better than ever before, regarding my priorities, my character etc..

Courtesy: Chetan Bhagat, for using his title.

My Views on Religion and God IV

Answer: It’s the Human desire, the longingness and the mere disbelief in pure coincidence, for they believe in supernatural existences. It’s not God who had created what we have today, the things without which one can’t live today. It’s the human need and the desire, as the famous saying goes, "Necessity is the mother of all inventions." I would also like to add, "Greed is the father of all the Destructions and Mishappenings." Do you agree with me that "True miracles were created by men when they had used the courage and intelligence they had?"

Also, the things we do land us where we are today. If you don’t understand what you want, the correct path you should follow to achieve or attain your needs (without harming others); you are meant to land in troubles for sure. At times, even an individual beside you might be responsible for the problems and dangers you face. Then, what in the world makes one to regard each and every thing in the name of God?

If you still believe that there is someone who is responsible for all these chaos and mishaps, then is it not God? It is he who had created the world with the hostile and wicked men in it, who were responsible for all the misdeeds, homicides, genocides and what not. It is the greedy desires of these well placed and responsible humans that made the world a Hell. So, what’s the point to believe in god and his existence if he is above all this? He is not much less than an Emperor, a wicked, unforgivable and merciless Emperor. Even, the history had overthrown emperors of this nature, so what should I do regarding this emperor who is invisible and shapeless? And I had done what I felt reasonable, out thrown him by disbelieving his very identity and origin as put forward by our ancestors.

Now, I follow my heart and "Believe in Reality and Think at practically." Also, I would stand alone and do anything confidently and courageously to succeed.

I wish all of you to think if you consider yourself being worthy and human, "A superior man seeks in Him, and the inferior seeks in others." Don’t enjoy the comfort of others opinions, without the discomfort of your Thought. The day a great number of men and women with this psychology, who can devote themselves to the service of humanity (in what everyway one can) and emancipation of their suffering and on a larger platform to maintain the ecological balance, that day will inaugurate the era of Liberty and Happiness.

“Fear that man who does not fear god.”

My Views on Religion and God III

So, Is the World happy, which was the purpose our ancestors had created and coined the words God and Theology. The answer would be a Unanimous 'NO,' instead they have becomes reasons for a majority of the genocides, wars, hostility and wrath. One can quote many of them which were carried in the name of God and religions worldwide.

What had the millions of ignorant civilians done that they deserve a pitiful death, except their Belief in god?

The word 'Belief,' also came into existence almost at the same time when the whole mythology had happened. It softens the hardships, even can make them pleasant. In God, man can find very strong consolation and support. Without Him man has to depend upon himself. To stand upon one's own legs amid storms and hurricanes is not a child's play. This adds to my arguments in the previous blogs.

Self-reliance is always interpreted as vanity. It is sad but there is no help, stand alone when others are not willing to join you. You go and oppose the prevailing faith, you go and criticise a hero, a great man who is generally believed to be above criticism because he is thought to be infallible, and the strength of your argument shall force the people to think that you are an arrogant bastard. It’s because our forefathers had set up a faith in some Supreme Being-the Almighty God-therefore, any man who dares to challenge the validity of that faith, or the very existence of that Supreme Being, shall have to be called an apostate, a renegade. Remember that, "The strongest man in the world is he who stands most alone."

At such testing moments, vanity if any evaporates and man cannot dare to defy the general beliefs. If he does, then we must conclude that he has got certain other strength than mere vanity. Mind that this is not philosophy, which occupies important place when one lacks direct proof. Philosophy is the outcome of Human weakness or limitation of Knowledge. But, all the things I had stated and will be mentioning here after are a pure outcome of my reasoning and I am not weak to obey and follow as many of us do. So, being strong, I am not to compromise.

Next crops another question, what would be the reason for all the things happening around?

I would give my answer to it in the next and the last in this series of blogs.

Ecological Balance

Where would you go when you are free and fed up watching the idiot box or sleeping in the home? In short, what recreational facilities would you look for? I think many of you would go for a multiplex, a restaurant, a relative’s house or a mall. Of course that’s what even I would do if I have just few hours at my hand, but I wouldn’t think of them if I have few days at my service. I would go and enjoy the nature in its raw form, distant from the polluted cities and industrialized town and villages. I would go and have a pure breath in some deep forest or a valley. It’s not only healthy, but makes one forget and move away from the day to day worries, and chores a human is entitled to undergo. I would like to change the definition of the word “Aesthetic sense” if given an opportunity by associating it with the “Nature.”But the credentials of these so called natural heritage sites are changing drastically due to various human activities like industrialization, deforestation, poaching etc.

These natural heritage locations vary in the genre; like lakes, mountains, forests, wildlife etc. But, visiting and enjoying these beautiful places need to be done with utmost care and caution so as not to harm the very nature of it. I think many of you had seen the advertisement of “Save Our Tigers,” but how many of you had visited the website?? Not many I think, but among those who were aware of the campaign, what would be the number who helped it by donating? If not, there are few other ways for fighting the cause. But, how many had ever thought of doing any thing for this cause? I know few who would love to donate to the orphanages, but how is a tiger’s life less valuable than an orphan’s?

There wouldn't be any difference even if a thousand orphans die, as we have lakhs of them and even their number increase every year even though many of us help for their upliftment. But if the same thousand of our national animal "Tiger" die, we would take the distinction of "The Only Country whose national animal is not found in its territory." Would you be happy with such a distinction to our country? If so, then rip of your title of a social animal and rename yourself as an egocentric animal. But if you want to help in preserving the nature, there are many other ways like green living etc, the details of which can be found in the web. Encourage the tourist guides by hiring them in the places of Natural or Environmental Heritages as they might indulge themselves in poaching, deforestation etc., for their livelihood. Don’t think that they are burning your pocket, but assure yourself that you are protecting the nature. Also buy some useful handicrafts made by the people living in those areas.

If all these small things are not feasible to you, then it’s high time that you should encourage the government to rename our National Animal as, “Human Being,” for us a billion strong people whose count increases every second. Also, one might encourage consuming their meat (like chicken, mutton) for they would be brought up in farm lands like the hen, goat etc. Remember these are not among the endangered species as many people breed them in the farms to earn money, which might become the case even with tigers. If the wild animals are killed, people would feel free to exploit the forest, the rivers and flora and fauna disturbing the ecological cycle of the planet. So, be certain of the path you choose.

Another important beauty that needed to be taken care of is the shoreline of the country. The seas not only reduce our prominent malignant neighbours, but they also boost the tourism of the cities that are along its shore. Now-a-days, we see many of the seas/beaches being polluted by draining the sewage water in to them, making them in habitual for the various species. So, is it not our duty to protect the greenery, forest cover, wild life and beaches of our country? There should be an ecological balance for the humans to survive. So, we should preserve the nature in order to protect over selves from the natural disasters. Yes, it has a selfish touch too that many of us love!!! So, what are you waiting for??

Even the government had taken initiative in order to preserve the greenery and the beautification of the beaches of Goa by allocating a huge fund of Rs. 200 crores in this budget. So, why only we should lag?

Loneliness

Ever since I grew up, I was of the opinion that I am nothing without my friends. They made me happy, sad, celebrate and enjoy the life. But, the year 2010 started with a sad note, I started to live alone in Gurgaon (NCR), the Las Vegas of India, doing an intern in a renowned R & D unit in the power back-up sector. Though I had waited for this kind of work for few years, there is some emptiness, dullness and slack in this life. Did you also face these kinds of dull moments in your life?

No doubt, History has been a witness to the loneliness of great men, who were geniuses. Almost every Genius has a need for being alone. There are long moments of loneliness for men in politics, research, business and sports. Loneliness was fundamental for the scientists who made great inventions and discoveries. There are some who prefer the lonely isolated road, by choice. It's their success formula which makes them independent to take tough decisions either in the area of politics or business.

But, I am not one of those kinds, I didn’t choose loneliness, but I am appended to it. There are no friends except a couple of acquaintances in this great city. This loneliness is haunting me and ultimately self threatening. I am unable to make new friends in this fairy land where everyone are running after money and luxuries and most importantly, they are selfish. So, in order to protect myself from the prince of darkness, going by the saying, “Idle brain is the Devil’s Advocate,” I stopped to think about myself. This made me to think about the society and the surroundings, from this thinking cropped the idea of my blogging. It had become a media for letting off my loneliness and communicating my thoughts to the friends worldwide. Social networking has not helped as it is a remote contact.

Books, one of my belongings ever since I grew up, came to my rescue when writing had become superfluous. A new thing that’s been added to my belongings is my laptop, which is a reserve of knowledge, documentaries of NatGeo, Discovery and BBC. So, I created a new world for myself in which I am the only citizen. But, how long does this world of mine survive? Is it worth the attention and importance I am showering on it? How long can I survive without walking into oblivion? Can I accustom myself to this new world and live happily ever after?

What is the need of money, power and luxuries if one is alone? Can one admire those unless they are shared and whom do you tell that you are happy with them? Some of us go to distant lands not only to earn money, name and fame, but to earn a tag of being in the dream land. Can they be happy without anyone to share their happiness? I yearn it be a ‘No,’ to satisfy my ego. I know that some lone crusaders have turned loneliness into their comfortable companion, but can I turn it into a long-lasting companion?

Only time has the answers for the above questions that I had put to myself. If you don’t want to be lonely, don’t guard yourself too closely and make acquaintances as you advance in your life, otherwise you would soon find yourself alone. Don’t love someone to such an extent that it makes you impotent to live with out them. Instead, give birth to yourself to know what you are capable of. The most important product of one’s effort is one’s own personality. Also you would have no rivals if you fall in love with yourself. Remember that at some point in life; almost everyone could face this issue of loneliness.

So, I live according to the quote by the Nobel Laureate Rabindranath Tagore,”If no one is willing to walk with you, walk alone,” singing

“I walk on lonely road, the lonely one that I had never known, don’t know where it goes, but it’s only me and I walk alone….”

"Manmadha Din," The Indian Version of Valentine's Day

Here is another day of the year where the Hindu Fundamentalists can come out of their hibernation. Its St.Valentine's Day, the Day for celebrating Love and Affection between intimate companions. It is tradionally a day on which lovers express their love for each other by presenting flowers, offering confectionary and sending greeting cards. There are various facts and myths about the origin of the Valentine's day, one can find them googling. But, the celebrations had caught the attention of the fundamentalists yelling that it is a festival of the west and is against our culture, Hindu Culture.

There are certain questions that need to be answered first, Is it the idea of a day or the open expression of love and affection thats irking these fundamentalists? Is it the idea of borrowing a foreign culture that they are against? or Is it the insecurity they are feeling to protect their cultures? These are to be answered only by them, for they aren't giving any reasons except saying that its against their cultures, its their thinking that made the difference.

But, they are the citizens of this country with a well laid constitution and its elements. They are entitled Fundamentalists, but why aren't they not obeying the Fundamental Rights? According to the constitution, six fundamental rights were recognised that include right to freedom of expression, cultural rights, and freedom from exploitation, which they are violating. They are to be punished according to the law, but let off due to the sheer pressure and fear of losing faith in the government. So, with the government not coming to rescue us, its time we take it on our shoulders and sort out the matters. One should appreciate the 'Pink Chaddi Campaign' organised by the consortium of pubgoing, loose and forward women to protest against the right wing hindu group, shri ram sena.

First of all imagine what one would think of this situation if you were one of the citizens of a western country? How rude it would be to disobey others culture in such a hostile way? Why India, known for its many renowned virtues of Tolerance, Friendliness, brotherhood, Non-Violence and Truthfulness (by the Gandhian Philosophy) could hate a foreign culture? Why havent they cried foul over India accepting the English language, their calendar and constitution? From the ages, India has been a land of many religions, cultures and traditions If Indians can live happily in brotherhood with others, can celebrate Eid, Christmas, Gurunanak, Bhudda in the same manner as Duesshera, Holi and Diwali etc., why is this Valentine's day, a festival of Love, much like other festivals/celebrations is treated in such a manner? So, the reason they are stating is against the Indian Culture itself, of showing hatred against the alien cultures. So, it might be the insecurity they are feeling to protect their cultures, in this globalised World, in this cosmopolitan culture where new ways are invented to celebrate now and then or may be some of the senior members of the sena group must have faced the brunt of Love in their lifes. The latter one gives the issue a personal tone and leads to Hypocrisy, which has to be of great strength to withstand the hatred of the majority of the nation.

So, let me suggest an idea, a probable solution, one which all can unanimously agree on, the festival of love can be celebrated along with the fundamentalists, as per their reason, of the Culture. Lets change the name to "Manmadha Din," in commemoration of "Manmadha,"the mythological symbol of love and passion. He also lost his life for the sake of love as does St.Valentine is believed to. Manmadha was burned to ashes by lord shiva for disturbing his meditation. He was responsible for the marriage of lord shiva and lordess parvathi, reborn as the daughter of Himalayan King. Lated he was given life by lord shiva himself on the insistence of parvathi and rati (manmadha's lady love).

The Hindu mythology portrays Manmadha as an equipped and accomplised facilitator in the domain of the 'chemistry of love' and a strategist and an executioner waiting in the wings, to get his assignments and acting at the right moments, as the material cause, to serve a higher puppose for the larger good. His armoury is so appropriate: a bow made of sugarcane with string of beetles and flowers as the tips of his arrows that can cause righteous desire and fire for creating the proper vibes for falling in love. his vehicle a parrot. So, in a whole he resembles the western Gods of love and passion, cupid and zeus. Also, the entire episode of manmadha - shiva took place during the 'Maghmasam,' which falls in month of february, one can refer the mythologies for details. Anyway the argument on the date cannot be settled, but can be compromised on the same 14th of february with the fact that the mythology doesnt mention any modern calendar dates.

So, I think this would serve the purpose of "Our Culture," required by the fundamentalists and "Day for expressing our love" as desired by the youngsters. So, give it a shot and feel free to suggest a name...

The Unanimous Religion of India....Cricket !!!

My previous blogs discussed my views on religion that have come from the ages and the things that the Britishers had given us. Let me mention to you another religion that was given to us by the same old Britishers, the Cricket. Yes, “Cricket is a religion in India” and the God changes for every generation, contrary to that of the age old religions that were build on a particular individual (God, except the Hinduism). If it is Sachin for the present generation, it was Gavaskar for my father’s generation and it well could be Yuvraj, Gambhir or Dhoni for the future generations. Well, if the birth of an individual mainly decides one’s religion and customs, Cricket is the only religion that is bestowed upon an individual from the childhood, by majority of the country irrespective of the family they are born in. But, it too has its flaws according to me and here I mention them.

How did the sport of cricket start, I mean a match and not its origin? Not to mention the recently invented pre-analysis of the match, it starts with the Pitch report and flip of a Coin follows immediately that decides the team that is going to bat first. So, what does winning of a toss depend on? Before answering the question, let’s discuss about the various factors that decide the winner of a match. The pitch decides most of the match; even one can say who’s going to win depending on who batted first. Even the skill of a player is out beaten by the pitch, like sometimes the ball comes on to the bat and sometimes not, which many of the players cant adjust to.

Another factor is the number of overs a ball is used for and also the way it is used, as it decides whether the ball would swing or not most of the times, of course along with the ability of the bowler. Next is the atmosphere, which dictates the moisture content in the pitch and the velocity of the wind that help a bowler to change the way one is bowling. These are the factors that make the kind of delivery one is going to deliver. Even at times, rain can be a spoilsport. Then, comes the ability of the batsmen, the way he takes on the delivery depending on his mental and physical ability.

As with any other competition, skill is required to win and not Luck (regarding the toss); that’s determined by a supernatural being. Let me tell you that, “Good luck is the lazy man's estimate of a worker's success.” Thus, a match of cricket depends mainly on the Toss of a Coin and not on the team’s overall ability. That’s the reason the same team that had won the previous match loses the next match depending on the pitch and the toss.

Considering all these factors, should a cricket match with our twin, Pakistan decide the animosity towards each other? It is taken with utmost pride and a loss is almost viewed as a self degradation. Should it be the case? If so, it should be viewed as a competition between two Religions and Gods, not between two Nations. Don’t you believe in Luck that is determined by your God? Then agree with me that it should not be viewed as a competition between the twins but two Gods, otherwise think over the various issues mentioned and just be a sport, not hostile. Come on, don’t be a spoil sport...

Now, consider the most widely viewed sport of the world, Football which could be viewed much better than the cricket. In football, a simple toss of a coin doesn’t dictate a winner as there would be no pitch, instead it’s the overall ability of the team that decides the winner and the same ball can be used for the whole match. Rain adds to the fun and even tests a team’s ability more profoundly. More over it has the advantage of sooner ended than a match of cricket that keeps in mind the ever time hunger globalised world.

So, what’s wrong when George Bernard Shaw said, “Eleven fools play and eleven thousands fools witness,” of course the latter has to be multiplied by the same factor in the case of India.

What did the Britishers Give Us?

From the word go, any one who was asked to tell about the British rule in India would start with the battle of Plassey and end with the partition of India. Everyone of us talk about the Imperialism, the looting of our precious wealth and the lakhs of lives lost in the struggle for Independence. Everyone yells about the Kohinoor diamond, the Peacock throne and various other valuable things that the Britishers had taken away from our Motherland and I do agree with all of them. Was it the only way we should see them? How many of you ever thought of the things they had given and bestowed upon us, without which India would have been bits and pieces of the age old princely states ruled by the Kings? If not, let me give you some ideas.

Haven't you ever ridiculed one who was unable to speak english as he/she was from a non-english medium background, perhaps one's mother tongue? Have you ever seen atleast a person who hadn't travelled on a train? Have you thought of reading the blogs in a language other than english? The answer to the first question might depend on the individual as he/she is, but for the next two questions, it would be definitely be a unanimous NO. I think all of you know that English came to India through the Britishers who had ruled a majority of the peninsula for over two centuries. What would have been the fate of the IT industry if English wasn't the medium of our learning, think of China, Japan and some the far east countries? We boast off saying that Aryabattha invented or coined "Zero," without which computer would have been just an idiotic box. But, what would you do with a zero if you dont know how to use it? Also,what would be the state of our economy if IT industry hadn't given its huge share?

The Indian Railways, the largest employee organisation in the world was started by the Britishers, no doubt that they had started it for transporting our resources to the ports so that they can ship them to their Queen's land. The first platform that was built over 155 years ago was still as solid as the rock, at Mumbai's Victoria Terminus.But, its a fact that railways had become the backbone of our country. Not to forget the communications, no not only the telephone, but also the good old Postal Mail that had reached a proportion where it can deliver a mail with in 2 days ever to far off places. We Indians were successful in Adopting, Adapting and Improving the network.

Have you ever seen the map of India before the Britishers started ruling our country? I guess, not even few. If you find one, just have a look, but let me tell you that it looked like a continent with small countries with their own guiding priciples, ruled by the Mughals, the Rajputs, the Cholas etc. And how do we get it after Independence?, forget about vivisection, its all a different issue. We got a United India, which had grown in its proportion and population. Ofcourse, ruling such a large country, maintaining law and order had been dificult for our elected leaders, do remember that the idea of Democracy and a major chunk of our Constitution was also inspired by the England's.

So, never only accuse the Britishers for what they had done to us, but also thank them for what they had done to us unknowingly. I follow that, "Believing that some good can be derived from every event is a better preposition than believing that something happens for the best, which is assuredly does not."

My Views on Religion and God - II

Straight after the introduction in my previous blog, here I go deep into my own way of reasoning. Let me mention few questons that had bothered me ever since I started thinking on these lines, starting with the first that I had already mentioned in my previous blog.

[1] Why didn't the God had the highly reverred virtue of Fogiveness?

[2] If, there is an almighty, omnipresent, omniscient and omnipotent God, who created the earth or world, why did he create it? This world full of woes and miseries,a combination of number-less tragedies, Not a single soul being perfectly satisfied.

[3]Why did he create humans like Hitler, Saddam, Chengis Khan, Osama and all who committed genocides, when he had the power not to do so and not many like Mother Therresa, Gandhi etc?

[4] Why doesnt a God stop a man commiting a crime?

The questions like these crop up one after another making me find out a possible reason. Any man who has got some reasoning power at his command always tries to reason out his environments. Nothing in life is to be feared, it is only to be understood. So, here is what I found after few days of deep thought, starting with my idea of the birth and growth of the faith in the exixtence of a supernatural being above the human race that was presumed to have created the world.

When our ancestors had leisure enough to try to solve out the mystery of this world, its past, present and the future, its whys and wherefores, they having been terribly short of direct proofs, everybody tried to solve the problem in his own way. Hence we find the wide differences in the fundamentals of various religious creeds, which sometimes assume very antagonistic and conflicting shapes.All these creeds differ from each other on the fundamental question; and everybody considers himself to be on the right. There lies the misfortune. That was the point at which different religions had started.

As regards the origin of God, my own idea is that having realised the limitation of man, his weaknesses and shortcoming having been taken into consideration, God was brought into imaginary existence to encourage man to face boldly all the trying circumstances, to meet all dangers boldly and to check and restrain his outbursts in prosperity and affluence. God, both with his private laws and parental generosity, was imagined and painted in greater details. He was to serve as a deterrent factor when his fury and private laws were discussed, so that man may not become a danger to society.

So, rules were framed, termed as vedas, upanishads, preachings of Prophet or the Jesus and passed on to the human race so that there would be no untoward problems and all men would live happily everafter...Is it So??

More on these views in the next blog.

My Views on Religion and God

I was born in a Brahman family, profoundly known for its superiority over other races, castes an what ever one calls. so, since childhood I was listening to the Hindu Mythologies and the basic principles on which the religion was built. As I grew, I came to know the world in its true essence., heard and saw people's suffereings, deaths, poverty and misery etc. When I popped questions regarding these, I was told that its because of their sins in the previous births and what not, along with some supporting stories. Once, read a proverb regarding the Men's greatest virtue, think all of you have come across, i.e., "Forgiveness is the Greatest of all the Virtues," and collecting quotations and proverbs had become a hobby ever since.

Among many of my collections, the one that caught my attention is the above one, and I started thinking of the basic building principles of the Hindu religion and the Almighty. If that was regarded as one of the greatest virtues of Humanity, then why didn't God had it? Was it only the virtue of the Human beings and not the God? If the highly reverred God couldn't forgive those who had committed sins, then why is it regarded a a virtue at all. So, in order to satisfy myself, I started to look for the answers from various books on religion as following the footsteps of a man before you is a good way to start. But, I couldnt find satisfactory answers for my few questions as I had the habbit of not accepting anything so easily, that it is told/written like that and I should accept it, its not my way of understanding things.

So, I started to find the answers from my own reasoning and some of the briefings that I could come across from here and there as making our own footsteps is a better way to end though we started on someone else's footprints. So, here is what I got from my ability to think and find reasons for my own questions, I started to disbelieve in the presence of the God, what dictionaries describe as an Athiest which I am going to write in detail in my short series of blogs on My Views on Religion and God.

My Idea of Education...

Here comes another view of me regarding the ‘help’ that I had discussed in the previous blog. I made a statement, “Help others in what ever way you can.” So, naturally questions crop in the mind regarding the ways/methods to help others. In this blog, I want to tell my views of helping others by broadly classifying them as…

[1] Education
[2] Emotional/Moral Support
[3] Social help

This blog is dedicated only to education and would write on the remaining two in my consecutive blogs. Education doesn’t me to teach them regarding the latest technologies and know how, but to first make them read and write in any language, in which they are comfortable. Discuss with them one subject at a time in a broader way. Let (or help) them find their own interest. Then according to their interests, guide them in proper directions.

Starting from the age of 4 years, teach the children, the basics of all the subjects like languages, mathematics, science and social studies (both with their 4 constituents). Also include in this duration, ample time (almost equal) for arts, crafts and sports for all round development of the children. Increase the level of difficulty of the subjects in phases over a span of 8-10 years. If they exhibit good performance in arts and sports, discuss the pros and cons of selecting them as their career paths or else suggest them to take it as a hobby or some extra-curricular activity.

If they exhibit greater interest in formal subject, let them find the subjects in which they are weak and strong, so that they can excel choosing one of them as their career starting point. Then, guide them through the particular subject in a broader sense, its constituent branches, the basic education one should have in order to excel in that particular field, available career paths, and the problems and challenges they can face etc. The student should be helped to chalk out a clear cut strategy to enter into the field they are interested in along with a few alternatives in their area of interest. Then, give them ample time to ponder over the various areas and pick up one career so that they can excel in their favourite area.

This would put off the pressure from the students as they study only the subjects they are interested in. Just teach the subjects in the class and counsel the student individually to analyze their areas of interest; there would not be any need of exams, compare and grade them. Also, there wouldn’t be any reason for the parents to scold their children. But, this doesn’t make it full, make them update their general awareness, not only bookish but also that are not bookish. Let me give an example: make the children to do basic activities like bank transactions, railway reservations, buying groceries, traveling etc. Make them an individual who can live independently, that they can do their jobs themselves and take suggestions for perfection now and then. Whets the use of a Master’s degree if one doesn’t know how to book a railway ticket or take a demand draft.

This would make the children do their daily needs independently, with out depending on their parents for each and every thing. For this to be successful, the parents should understand the concept and not spoon feed their children. Let the students decide what is good for them and don’t make their pride rule over their children. Don’t forget that great inventions in the history have come from individuals who excel in their areas of interest and not their parents.The noble man understands what is right. The inferior man understands what is profitable.

"Success in life comes not from holding a good hand, but in playing a poor hand well."Even spreading these kinds of ideas is also education.

The blog name comes from here...a small voice

What do you think of the Country you were born in? Did you ever think of the rich heritage it has? Do you think the way the country is progressing is good in the long run? Were you satisfied with all the functionalities of the nation? I am sure that every one of us would come out in a dissatisfied and frustrated tone. So, what are you going to do? We have two possibilities before us; either to help in bringing about a change in the system or to remain idle, silent and follow the system. The latter must not occur, as, though we are small, we are a force. If we stick close together and keep bringing in new people, we will definitely, be victorious over the system.

Even, every one of us must have thought at least once that this country and the people need to change. Who do you think should come forward to make a change? Is it the government, who had enough problems with the neighbouring countries? Then, think again... It should be “US.” We are the power of our country and we have to create the difference. Are you thinking whether you have it in you or not? Yes, you have it in you. Every one of us has the potential to bring change, might be small, enough to make a change.

In order to help in bringing any change, we must prepare ourselves by first understanding our responsibilities towards other human beings, our society, our country and whole universe. That itself is the beginning to bring about this change. Are you thinking how can a single person change the Indian society???? Let me make it clear.

Imagine a drop of water on your palm. It won’t calm your thirst nor destroy your city. But, what about the droplets that gets collected together to form into an ocean? Ocean has got its strength from all of its individual drops. Remember, without these drops, it wouldn’t be the same as. In a similar way, if every individual starts playing his/her part in nation's upliftment, all of us, together, can bring a revolutionary change, a change which some of the individuals, like today’s selfish bureaucrats, can't stop.

In order to make all these small droplets into a great ocean, you need a great visionary, to influence and inspire these droplets, without whom these droplets will only complain about the system and pollute the ocean as a whole. So, I take the initiative to mention a few elements that are needed to lay the foundation for the CHANGE I intend to make.

Before going to the details let me tell you my deepest emotion, I recognize more profoundly than ever before; that as a true Indian,

“I have no duty to allow myself to be cheated, but
I have the duty to fight for truth and justice,
I have the duty to fool those who think that we are impractical, fanatics, showy and airy,
I have the duty to yell at them that it’s none of their business,
I have the duty to request them to leave us alone, and
I have the duty to see to it that our nation does not suffer a catastrophic collapse despite the richest culture. “

If you obey, then, nothing at all, can make you out of it unless you yourselves have no faith in your prescriptions, if so, THEN REMAIN WHERE YOU ARE and leave, otherwise join me in making the society a synonym of Heaven.

So, if you are among those who want to change the system that tries to exploit you, you have to first change yourself, the way you think. Focus upon the wrongs we encounter each day, think of a way you want to change it or how you want to see, don’t accept just because we have to. Just think out of the box, to be simple, be a REBEL.

Rebel doesn’t mean what some of you think; a kind of ferocious human, with a sword with the desire for killing others!! He is a person who think what others don’t. Do’s what many of us don’t. I would try to be clear with a couple of examples.

[1] You see an accident, rush to the spot, go and help the injured, call the ambulance, inform his/her family/relatives. This wont cost you a single rupee, but, how many of us do this??

I think, you know the answer, “Not even a few of us.” But you feel compassionate for him/her.

[2] In a recent survey conducted by an international agency, to rank 150 cities based on the kind of people living in there considering the factors like being friendly, cooperative, responsibility and humbleness, Mumbai was ranked among the last 3 in all the parameters. It signifies how kind our people are!!

So, this is my attempt to make you one of those kinds, a rebel. The only ignition point is your realization, which makes you feel responsible. By this time, you might have understood the important qualities of a rebel. Yes, a person with the virtue of Humanity and courage make a rebel. Both the qualities are important as only the latter makes one hostile, futile and outrageous and the former makes one lame and compassionate.

I don’t care who don’t agree with me. But, those who whole-heartedly feel what I told is true, do try to change yourself such that both these qualities would be imbibed in you forever and join hands, remember the Ocean. Just remember that “The toughest opponent you will face ever is the fear within. Once you conquer it, you can conquer the World.”

One must realize now how much happier one’s life would be when one is working with others. “The rent we can pay for living on this Earth is to help others.”

Whether they are helping you, or you are helping them, burdens seem a little lighter and time, a little sweeter. Then, the country will change itself.

I would like to end by quoting that,

“WE MAKE A LIVING BY WHAT WE GET; WE MAKE A LIFE BY WHAT WE GIVE.”

Pehla blog

Till now I didn't see any strong reason for blogging, and some of my views changed through the long run ever since the blogging started. I came across some of the blogs from my friends, found some interesting thoughts and thought that it would be a way for me to tell the world (of course a small one comprising my friends) what I feel and felt at some memorable moments, to share and discuss few thoughts with my friends (who all read to my blogs). So, hope all the bloggers would encourage me through this journey and cherish some happy moments along with me.