Breaking the Image

 Following next few series of post I am planning to pen down memories about my recent journey to two Western countries recently - Second visit is still going on.  To US and to Spain.

Both visits have been instrumental in breaking my image of what to look towards in western countries in general and towards what makes a society successful. 

Firstly about todays adventure.

I am in Spain's city of Sevilla.  Had decided to go for a walk towards the city centre from my hotel which happens to be about 5 Km.  It was a known route and I had traversed it in car on more than one occasion and on foot once with a company a couple of days back.  The roads leading to the city centre and back, we found them to be isolated on most of the occasions.  Same was the case today.  On more than one occasion, it felt like city has very limited population.  Now, I can be having this feeling because I am from India and am used to see a lot more people on the road than this place had to offer.  

Coming back to today's adventure, I was walking back from city centre at a much more agreeable time than the last time I did so.  The sun was still shining bright and although too few, but still there were a few more people on the street than the last time I was on this route.  So, on a particular stretch, Google map showed me a left cut to move to the hotel, which was also the shortest route to hotel.  We had avoided this route last time as it was late in night and there was minimum light on subject street and moved from right.  This time I felt confident given the lighting condition, I can move through from the left.  Route was a detour about 500 m before joining my old and known road.  200 m on the route, I mistook the Map route and took about 10 steps in a direction straight from where I should have taken left.  

I quickly understood the miscalculation, turned back and moved towards the route Map showed me. It was a sharp turn to the left in a kind of a semi-circle. Suddenly a ferocious looking dog barking at a top of his voice came screaming towards me. It was a ferocious brown coloured hound, literally looking capable of some serious damage.  As I turned back, I realise he was not alone and there was atleast one more dog coming just behind him.  First things first, I decided not to run and tried to calm the beast down.  He barked a few seconds and I literally thought I am in for a few painful injections at least, if not more.  And by the look of it, the dog looked capable for a lot more.  But better sense prevailed in him and he turned back.  But just behind him a similarly menacing looking dog came barking aloud.  It had a blue collar around his neck,  so in the few seconds it looked at me, I still thought this was not as bad as the first one.  

He did the same thing though.  Barked a while and turned back. I stood my ground, with no self defence weapon in sight.  Once these two were gone, I decided to walk back, not sure should I walk fast or slow, because their barks were still loud and clear.  Then suddenly a third bark could be heard.  I turned back and it was a small puppy giving me a piece of his mind.  I did the same thing. Stood there till he turned back.  For sure, the puppy turned back, but only to the return of first two sequentially.  

I still had about 300 m to walk to my know route, so I started to look at other options. Run, stay put, look for stick or metal bar or something around, look for assistance which did not seemed anywhere near.  Because looking at things at that moment, they seemed to be in mood to return.  Just then I heard a shout of some people in background.  Three men, most probably their owners ran towards me to isolate the dogs.  They seem to reside in huts nearby.  They controlled the beasts and confirmed I was OK (I hope they did that, as they spoke Spanish which I couldn't understand).

The horrible experience on secluded street reminded me of a conversation between Sherlock and Mr Watson.  Both were travelling on train to an English village when Watson says that how good country side was away from all the commotion and crime of city.  To which Sherlock say he is more concerned about how easily a crime can passed-by in these secluded places without being detected and how he considered safety in city crowd.

This bring to the fact that maybe there is an optimum population required for a town/ city.  The figure of 2.1 children per married couple as considered minimum required to sustain a population is really the most important figure for a society.  And worringly for many countries, it is going the wrong side.

Jaya by Devdutt patnaik notes

Notebook for

Jaya: An Illustrated Retelling of the Mahabharata

Pattanaik, Devdutt

Citation (APA): Pattanaik, D. (2010). Jaya: An Illustrated Retelling of the Mahabharata [Kindle Android version]. Retrieved from Amazon.com

Author’s Note: What Ganesha Wrote

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His name was Krishna Dwaipayana which means the dark child who was born on a river island. His father was Parasara, grandson of the great Vasishtha, one of the seven Rishis who heard the Veda first. In time, Krishna Dwaipayana became known as Veda Vyasa, compiler of the books of wisdom.

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Bhima’s son, Barbareek, who was worshipped in Rajasthan as Khatu Shyamji.

Prologue: The Start of the Snake Sacrifice

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‘Do not be distracted by the plots. Within the maze of stories flows the river of wisdom. That is your true inheritance.’

Jaya

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In time, the Chandra- vamsis would forget the gender ambiguity of both Budh and Ila. They would mock it when it would become manifest in Arjuna’s brother- in- law, Shikhandi. They would stop him from entering the battlefield. Such is the nature of man- made laws: ignorant of the past and insensitive to the present.

Highlight (yellow) - Book One: Ancestors > Page 16

The obsessive passion of Pururava for Urvashi that led to his downfall would become manifest generations later in Shantanu, not once but twice, first in his love for Ganga and then his love for Satyavati, with the same disastrous consequences. Because human memory is short, and history always repeats itself.

Highlight (yellow) - Book One: Ancestors > Page 19

Kalidasa’s Shakuntala is very conscious of social stigma while Mahabharata’s Shakuntala is indifferent to it. This perhaps is a reflection of change in social values over time.

Highlight (yellow) - Book Three: Birth > Page 51

Were the ‘gods’ who made Kunti and Madri pregnant actually Devas or simply priests performing a ritual role to compensate for the inadequacies of Pandu? This has been elaborated in Bhyrappa’s Kannada novel, Parva.

Highlight (yellow) - Book Four: Education > Page 63

Because of this he became renowned as Gudakesha, he who has conquered sleep. Arjuna also was able to shoot his bow using either his left or his right hand. Hence, he came to be known as Sabyasachi.

Highlight (yellow) - Book Five: Castaway > Page 75

Not wanting the vegetables and spices to be wasted, Bhima offered to cook a special meal, something different to indicate his new life. He mixed all the vegetables and spices, added coconut milk, and prepared the famed Tamil dish known as ‘aviyal’ or the mixture. This was quite different from a typical Vedic dish where mixing of vegetables was prohibited.

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Sudyumna, who became the woman, Ila. Thus will she be the cause of Bhishma’s death,’ said the oracles, who also divined that Drupada’s daughter was Amba reborn.

Highlight (yellow) - Book Six: Marriage > Page 88

From the flames emerged two children: a man called Dhrishtadyumna who would kill Drona and a woman called Draupadi who would marry into the Kuru household and divide it.

Highlight (yellow) - Book Seven: Friendship > Page 104

But the eighteenth time, Jarasandha’s army was led by one Kalayavan who was destined to destroy the city of Mathura.

Highlight (yellow) - Book Seven: Friendship > Page 104

Dwaraka was ruled by one Revata. Long ago, he had gone to the abode of Brahma, father of all living creatures, to find out who would be a suitable groom for his daughter, Revati. Unfortunately, he had not realized that a day with Brahma is equal to a thousand years on earth. When he returned with his daughter, all human beings had shrunk in size and no man was ready to marry his giant of a daughter.

Highlight (yellow) - Book Seven: Friendship > Page 105

The name Kalayavan means ‘the black Greek’ suggesting Indo- Greek roots. Following the invasion of Alexander of Macedonia, the Indo- Greeks played an important role in the history of North India, from 300 BCE to 300 CE, about the same time that the Mahabharata was reaching its final form. Krishna lore is closely associated with many things Greek. Like a Greek hero, Krishna escapes death as a child and comes back as a youth to avenge the wrong done to his family. Mathura, with its ruling council, and aversion for monarchy, was clearly influenced by the Greek political system. Megasthenes, the Greek ambassador in the court of Chandragupta Maurya, identified Krishna with the Greek hero Heracles.

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Dhritarashtra gave the Pandavas the forest of Khandava- prastha.

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Draupadi bore the Pandavas five sons. They were: Prativindhya, son of Yudhishtira; Satsoma, son of Bhima; Shurtakirti, son of Arjuna; Shatanika, son of Nakula; and Shrutasena, son of Sahadeva.

Highlight (blue) - Book Eight: Division > Page 121

quivering

Highlight (yellow) - Book Nine: Coronation > Page 136

preordained. To protect her son, Shishupala’s mother gets from Krishna a boon that he will forgive a hundred crimes of her son. But she does not bother to warn her son never to commit a crime. Thus Vyasa draws attention to a peculiar human trait of trying to solve a problem through external means without bringing about any internal transformation.

Highlight (yellow) - Book Ten: Gambling > Page 141

The aim of his narrative is to remind all not to judge people without knowing their story. Even the worst of villains has a story that perhaps explains their actions, without condoning them.

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Civilization comes into being when the small fish is rescued from the big fish; civilization comes to an end when the fish keeps growing bigger than its pond.

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solar eclipse is supposed to have occurred when the Pandavas went into exile. This is described by Vidura in the Sabha Parva.

Highlight (yellow) - Book Eleven: Exile > Page 157

Even though Draupadi had humiliated his son, Karna, on grounds of caste, the sun- god helps Draupadi by providing her with the magic vessel of food, yet another instance of forgiveness in the epic.

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Ram’s story is part of the Mahabharata but the poet Valmiki made it an epic in its own right. Known as the Ramayana, the story of Ram speaks of a model king and his model reign. The Mahabharata, by contrast, is more about imperfect kings and their imperfect reigns. In the Ramayana, Vishnu upholds rules as Ram, while in the Mahabharata, Vishnu changes rules as Krishna. In the Ramayana, God is king, while in the Mahabharata, God is kingmaker.

Highlight (yellow) - Book Eleven: Exile > Page 168

She was dressed in the sixteen love- charms of marriage— a red sari, flowers in her hair, betel leaf in her mouth, bangles, armlets, anklets, bracelets, toe rings, rings on her nose and ears, necklaces and bejewelled belts around her waist.

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The world that is perceived through any measuring scale is called maya.

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confrontation and conflict does not necessarily happen when one is right and the other is wrong; it can happen simply because two people follow different value systems.

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Twelve years is less than a blink of Indra’s eyes;

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In Hindu tradition, telling and listening to stories are critical as they are vehicles of profound truths; they shape a person’s understanding of the world.

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The tragedy of exile thus seems very much part of a divine plan to help men be better rulers.

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Draupadi broke down. She did not want her secret to be the cause of a Rishi going hungry. She revealed the truth, ‘I love Karna. I regret not marrying him on account of his caste. If I had married him, I would not have been gambled away. I would not have been publicly humiliated. I would not have been called a whore.’

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(do not aspire for things until you are worthy).

Highlight (yellow) - Book Thirteen: Gathering > Page 221

Vidula’s speech to rouse her son inspired many men to rise up against the British during the Indian freedom struggle.

Highlight (yellow) - Book Thirteen: Gathering > Page 222

His advice that Shalya should try and demoralize Karna is perhaps the earliest reference to psychological warfare,

Highlight (yellow) - Book Fourteen: Perspective > Page 234

If you were enlightened, Arjuna, you would have fought without anger, killed without hate.

Highlight (yellow) - Book Fourteen: Perspective > Page 236

Why do you feel what you feel? Are you being spurred on by your ego? Why do you wish to fight? Is it from the desire to dominate your enemies and win back your territories? Is it rage which motivates you, the desire for vengeance and justice? Or are you detached from the outcome, at peace with the act you are about to perform? If these questions don’t come to your mind, Arjuna, you are not practising gyan yoga.

Highlight (yellow) - Book Fourteen: Perspective > Page 236

When there is faith, there is no fear. Is it faith guiding your hand, Arjuna, or is it fear? If it is fear, then you are not practising bhakti yoga.

Highlight (yellow) - Book Fourteen: Perspective > Page 237

Do you fight this war to break the stranglehold of jungle law in human society, Arjuna? If not, you do not practise karma yoga.

Highlight (yellow) - Book Fourteen: Perspective > Page 239

The founding fathers of the Indian nation state read the Gita for the first time, not in a regional Indian language, or Sanskrit, but in English.

Highlight (yellow) - Book Fourteen: Perspective > Page 240

Rationalists wonder how such a long discourse took place with two impatient armies on either side. Since this was a discourse by God, the rules of space and time did not apply. What seems like a long discourse to humans, must have taken place in the blink of an eye on the battlefield.

Highlight (yellow) - Book Fifteen: War > Page 248

Krishna took the female form known as Mohini, married Iravan, and spent the night with him as his wife, bringing great delight to his heart. The next day when Iravan was beheaded at dawn, Krishna wept for him as his widow. No widow had ever wept for a man as Krishna did for Iravan.

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The time when Bhishma is pinned to the ground falls in the period before the winter solstice when the Pitrs or ancestors are close to the earth according to the traditional calendar system. Bhishma, who chose never to give birth to a child, perhaps is ashamed to meet his ancestors and so chooses to die in the next half of the year after the winter solstice when the Pitrs pull away from the earth.

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the ninth night marks the shift from binary logic to fuzzy logic, where lines are not so clearly drawn between points of view.

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Krauncha vyuha— Heron formation Makara vyuha— Dolphin formation Kurma vyuha— Turtle formation Trishula vyuha— Trident formation Chakra vyuha— Wheel or discus formation Padma vyuha— Lotus formation

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One should have faith in one’s friends and family and not let one harsh word break the bond of trust.

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when a man praises himself, it is intellectual suicide.’

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a decision taken to please the ego turns out to be dear in the long run.

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When Vishnu took the form of Ram, he took the side of Sugriva, son of Surya, and killed Vali, the son of Indra. As Krishna, Vishnu clearly sides with Arjuna, the son of Indra, against Karna, the son of Surya. Both Vali in the Ramayana and Karna in the Mahabharata are shot in the back. Thus balance is achieved across two lifetimes.

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jeered

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The tale of Barbareek is part of oral tradition in Kerala and Andhra Pradesh. In Rajasthan, he is worshipped as Khatu Shyamji, he who always fights for the loser.

Highlight (yellow) - Book Sixteen: Aftermath > Page 301

Thus all creatures die not because of external factors but because of their own karma.

Highlight (yellow) - Book Seventeen: Reconstruction > Page 306

knowledge must outlive death, so that the next generation is more enlightened.’

Highlight (yellow) - Book Seventeen: Reconstruction > Page 310

Animals spent their entire lives focused on survival. Humans could look beyond survival, seek meaning in life, harm others to save themselves, help others by sacrificing themselves.

Highlight (yellow) - Book Seventeen: Reconstruction > Page 312

unlike wealth, knowledge does not outlive death, hence has to be passed on to the living so that it is not lost forever.

Highlight (yellow) - Book Seventeen: Reconstruction > Page 319

‘What is this heaven located even above Swarga?’ asked Yudhishtira. The Rishis replied, ‘It is a secret known to few. We do not know it.

Highlight (yellow) - Book Seventeen: Reconstruction > Page 320

Three months later, Yudhishtira, your yagna will conclude and the Kali yuga will dawn. A new age will dawn where nothing will be as it was. Only a quarter of the values instituted by Prithu at the dawn of civilization will survive.

Highlight (yellow) - Book Seventeen: Reconstruction > Page 321

The Rishis realized that Yudhishtira’s sacrifice, though grand, was less about charity and more about royal power. Hence, it was a lesser ritual.

Highlight (yellow) - Book Eighteen: Renunciation > Page 327

Despite learning from Krishna the value of outgrowing the beast within man, the Pandavas cling to their grudges after the war, like dogs clinging to bones. No lesson is permanent. Wisdom thus is always work in progress.

Highlight (yellow) - Book Eighteen: Renunciation > Page 329

Krishna’s son, Samba, is portrayed in the scriptures as an irresponsible lout, perhaps to inform us that the child of a great man need not be a great man; greatness is not transmitted through the generations. Every man ultimately makes or destroys his own legacy.

Highlight (yellow) - Book Eighteen: Renunciation > Page 329

While all the Yadavas crossed the Vaitarni and entered the land of the dead awaiting rebirth, Krishna returned to the heaven known as Vaikuntha, located even above Swarga, and took his place as Vishnu, God who sustains the universe. Balarama was already there as the thousand- hooded serpent of time, Adi- Ananta- Sesha, ready to receive him in his great coils.

Highlight (yellow) - Book Eighteen: Renunciation > Page 332

Vajranabhi asked artisans to carve images of Krishna based on descriptions given by Abhimanyu’s wife, Uttari. But the description was so grand that each artisan could capture only part of the beauty in each image. These images were lost to the world for centuries and later discovered by holy men who enshrined them in temples. The image of Srinathji at Nathdvara is said to be one such image.

Highlight (yellow) - Book Eighteen: Renunciation > Page 338

The epic ends not with the victory of the Pandavas over the Kauravas but with Yudhishtira’s triumph over himself. This is spiritual victory or Jaya. This is the ultimate aim of the great epic.

Highlight (yellow) - Epilogue: The End of the Snake Sacrifice > Page 344

All Hindu rituals end with the chant ‘Shanti, shanti, shanti’ because the quest for peace is the ultimate goal of all existence. This peace is not external but internal. It is not about making the world a peaceful place; it is about us being at peace with the world.

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Itihasa is not history, as is conventionally believed; it means ‘an account of life as it was, is, and always will be’. Itihasa is that which is timeless or sanatan. The sages therefore consider the Mahabharata to be the fifth Veda, the final whisper of God.

Living detached

A few days back I had this horrible dream.
Me and my parents were at a railway station going someplace.  At the entrance my father took a different route to go towards the platform for some reason.  Although dreams are supposed to be colourless, I distinctly remember him wearing a pink shirt. As me and my mother made way to the platform we saw couple of people walking on the track towards us. The person in front seemed very much like my father with his pink shirt and orangish hairs. Suddenly just behind them I could see a train moving in fast speed. It seems like He saw the train but moved his back towards it as it move forward.  I thought the train was about to stop, but it in fact accelerated. Before we could blink the train moved past the platform. The people on the track seemed to have been crashed by it. The bodies of victims was dragged into a tunnel into which the train went.  I ran towards it shouting I wasn't him. On the edge of the tunnel I saw a mangled body in pink shirt, but I still kept on saying it can't be him. Then his blood soaked face turned towards me, and I woke up from the shock.
It was 3:30 in the morning. All were sleeping around me. Nothing had happened but all seemed so real. I put some water on my face and came back to ask Google for meaning of what I had just seen.
Some said depression, but that was out of question as there was no pressure on me of any kind.
One of the reason was some graphical discription which has gone in to your subconscious mind. I thought about it and this seemed possible. A couple of days back a colleague had graphically explained how his mother-in-law while crossing a track in village had met a similar accident. Although I thought I had forgotten about the incident then and there may be it had stayed in my sub conscious mind somewhere and resurfaced in this way.
Had a hard time sleeping for next couple of days.
Got to learn how to keep myself detached from things out of my control.

REVIVING HINDUISM

REVIVING HINDUISM

I was reading this book "Rediscovery of India" by Meghnad Desai and came across this connotation about how Buddhism and Hinduism had this great debate in India at time of Adi Shankara.  On further reading came to know how Adi Shankara revived Hinduism in his time by debating basic tenants of religion and putting forward positive changes in how people saw religion itself.

Also in the same book there was a mention of how Muslim rulers came and conquered Northern territory.  Islam was spread across the country especially amongst people who were marginalised in the present system of Hinduism.

Get a feeling that a similar debate is a need of the hour for India today.  And for Hinduism to continue its existance and bring back its glorious days and ally the misconceptions or misgivings of some of its members, it will be important for it to rediscover itself and a religion of equality.  It can be argued that the cast system was a way to divide the work and not status.  Also it doesnot matter if you celebrate ten gods or one, you can still be a hindu.  You can give a shape to your god or it may be a stone or  a book you can still be a Hindu.

The idea is to make the term Hindu general and acceptable to all and tolerant to every concept except the ones which are oppressive.

A Resting place for her

A few days back a colleague of mine lost his 8 years old daughter in a freak accident on a swing.  But the following blog is not about the pain that this father went through, because I think I will never be able to see through his eyes what he saw and what he felt.  But the following blog is about the apathy of the system that came to fore in the subsequent hours of her death being declared. 

This was the first time I came to know that children below a certain age are buried in Hinduism and not burnt in the funeral pyre.  We took her body from hospital in a vehicle, all covered in white sheet and with her father and uncle occupying space next to her feet.  As we turned towards the cremation ground next to Yamuna, a series of permanent structure came up on our left.  They were the dedications made by family members of the departed souls, small four pillar shades with inscriptions remembering memories of their loved ones. 

We stopped near one such structure and two workers were called for to carryout digging.  I could not find myself standing next to the silent father, so I decided to go out in search of a suitable location where we were to bury the child.  We followed a narrow path between these pillar structures to a small stream behind them.  It was not a stream actually, it was a drain.  About 10 feet across discontinued with bricks and tiles was a drainage bringing city’s filth to the river.

We crossed the drain to come to what appeared to be the banks of river Yamuna.  There was loose sand everywhere.  But it was hard to find our path across there as whole place was marred with Babool and other thorny shrubs.  There were also torn pieces of clothes everywhere and big pieces of red sand stones.  The sand itself was dug up at certain places making inconsistent pot holes every few feets.  I was told this is where we will have to find a suitable place to bury the young girl. 

And then I realized I was in the middle of the dead.  All the shrubs and stones and inconsistent pot holes had bodies of loved ones inside.  As I started to make a left turn, the curator asked me not to turn towards that side as a body had recently been cremated there and it will not be a good sight for me.  As we took a right turn, we unknowingly or forcibly stepped over some graves.  We found a comparatively less crowded place and directed to workers to dig.

As they went about their job, we decided to find another route to bring the body of the departed soul and the father.  We cut the shrubs and made a small path parallel to the drain to create a more respectable route.  Once the workers had dug deep enough, we went back across the drain, and carried the body, wrapped in a coir mattress down the road.  For the first time I realized how light she was.  All of eight years kid, although I had never seen her, her smile must have made her parents hearts melt I am sure. 

Her father was also there with us, as we tried to balance ourselves and the body over the bricks and tiles across the drain.  We chanted the “Ram naam” as we moved through the alternate route and brought her next to her last resting place.  We all had removed our shoes in respect despite the thorny shrubs.  We slowly lowered her into the pit and as the priest said the prayers, I saw the father peaking below the sheet to have a last look of his daughter.  He positioned her favorite possessions along with her in the pit.

On the priest’s instructions we started to put sand over the body.  Half way through, the workers stopped us and brought big red sand stones and filled up the half filled pit with them.  Another layer of sand followed before topping it up with more stones and shrubs.  I was told this was the precaution taken against dogs, who had already started to gather around us.  We shooed them away for now and conducted a last prayer.  All prayed for the soul to rest in peace. 

As we started to move back, the father attempted to look back at the site, but the priest stopped him midway as it was considered inauspicious.  He was asked to come back again after three days for some more rituals.  Although I wondered how will he be able to locate the same spot again?  As we came back across the drainage to the main road, the haggling with the workers over the fee for their services started.  We escorted the father to the transport and settled issue with the workers who left unsatisfied.  But the elders next to the pillar structure still brought out that we were cheated and had paid a lot more.  

When everybody left, I continued a little ahead on the same road to see the place where last rites were being performed over adults in the Hindu traditional way that I was aware of, burning.  Maybe it was a bit of a relief after seeing the unceremonious burial.  I had a vision of how burials were done because of what I saw in movies and serials, but that image was definitely shattered today.  We cannot see souls with our eyes, but know them only from their physical manifestation in this world i.e. our body.  But somehow we have failed to respect them as living and in dead.  Bottom-line if we plan to continue with Hindu tradition of burying our young ones we need to find better ways of doing it.

Chanakya's Chant My highlights

My highlights from Chanakya's Chant

‘Three may keep a secret if two of them are dead,’

man who opens his mouth too often may end up meeting a tragic end, either from indigestion or execution!’

One does not need to pluck fruit from a tree that is about to be chopped down. The fruit will fall by themselves. Focus on the bigger purpose and the rest of your manifesto will follow as a matter of course.’

In order to become master, a ruler must profess to be a servant of the people.’

‘Character is what you are. Reputation is what people think you are.

‘It’s foolish men who die for their country. The intelligent ones make others die for their country instead.

a battle is never about who’s right. It’s mostly about who’s left!’

‘War is all about deception.

it’s often easier to get forgiveness rather than permission!’

Wise men think all they say, fools say all they think.

Afghans who inhabited the rugged mountains along the Kabul River derived their name from their ancestors who lived there—the Ashvakans.

Honesty is a most dreadful quality—it makes people difficult to manipulate,’

Bravery is simply being the only one who knows that you’re afraid!

the question is not whether we’re defended or not. The more relevant question is whether we can make our enemies believe that Magadha is defended.’

If I need to use religious differences to create unity, so be it. The ends justify the means.’

a clear conscience is usually a sign of bad memory.

you can only stab someone in the back if you’re standing behind him,

‘The early bird catches the worm but it’s the second mouse that gets the cheese,’

Guerrilla warfare is an economical method of unconventional armed struggle.

One should keep one’s friends close and enemies even closer,’

‘I must be cruel, only to be kind. Thus bad begins and worse remains behind.’The Red Fort—the largest monument in Old Delhi— wasn’t merely a site from which the prime minister of India addressed his countrymen on Independence Day. It was also a labyrinth of cells and tunnels. During Mughal times, more than three thousand people lived inside the fort.

‘God defend me from my friends, from my enemies I can defend myself,’

‘They are indeed identical, my friend, but the first one contains oil that has been supplied from the government treasury while the second is supplied with oil bought by me personally. Since your visit is not official, why should I expend state resources?’

‘If a snake isn’t poisonous, all the more reason that it should pretend to be so,

‘My problem,’ said the acharya, ‘is that you have a strong will but I have a weak won’t!’

‘Worry is like a rocking chair; it keeps you in motion, but gets you nowhere,’

Political power hopes to control the economic resources of the country. Economic power hopes to control the politicians,’

winning isn’t only about increasing our strength but also about reducing the enemy’s.

Organized chaos

ORGANIZED CHAOS

"Your mind should be like a well stored library."

One of the question I always ask myself at work and in personal life,  how to organize things.  What do you do when you see chaos in your house.  I believe one of the best way to reorganize is to completely turn the slate blank.  It is not going to help if you come to a partially unorganized state and then try to reorganize it from the beginning.  My personal experience says each subsequent iterations of organizing produces better results.  Just like a kaleidoscope.

I think same thing applies to electrons.  The reason we have uncertainty about their position may also be because that is how nature functions.  Just that the time span is very low.  The negative charges of electron shells want to reorganize themselves, but find chaos in each subsequent iteration.  And so they completely dissociate themselves again.  Only to reorganize again.