Mythical truth confirmed

Headlines in The Hindu- Women put on weight after marriage: study

The research team followed 6,000 women aged between 18 and 23 over a period of 10 years to come to this joke of a truth. They took this long in Queensland University to figure out what anyone awake will tell you. Could not all the money devoted to research in stating-the-obvious be used for more meaningful causes like PR campaigns to downplay racism in Australia?

This result comes in the wake of another ground-breaking study by a PhD (yes!) student, in Germany (not kidding), also a woman (oh my God!), whose research proved that women are actually worse than men when it comes to parking cars.

Paradigm shift in Aristocracy

This morning, I was significantly surprised. Not pleasantly, nor unpleasantly. Just significantly.

I had gone to Dhanya's hospital for a blood-test to determine how my tongue is screwing my health. We were in their staff canteen after the test for a late break-feast. To the table on the right were four Emarati ladies, who, according to Dhanya, were Resident doctors, some of whom work with her as well.

One of them came over to our table and requested for the sugar-dispenser. I offered to let her have it. As she stretched forward to collect the bottle, I noticed that she was wearing a diamond-encrusted Rolex, which would cost approx. AED 100,000/-. It took me a while to collect myself and exhale.

When I slowly mentioned this to Dhanya, she replied that just about every Resident there wears a Rolex! Now comes the interesting part. Apparently, one of Dhanya's local patients was being examined by her. And we know how much some of the less educated patients respect Indian doctors. Anyways, here comes a Resident, and this patient suddenly stands up to wish her in a sign of unfathomable respect! Apparently, she was of very high birth. And Dhanya told me that, she actually was a very down-to-earth person who would really do a lot of work.

What's the paradigm shift here with respect to the Residents? They didn't need to work. They chose to. Sandstorms of change sweeping our nation.

Faking it, sincerely

Another SABN Classic:

For humble mortals the trick is to fake it till we make it!

I second it. Even now, the closest I have got to meditation is the posture. The mind wanders in gay abandon, and the Jyothi envelopes everyone barring specifically those I can't relate to,- the ones it must actually envelope! But I haven't given up on meditation; Karmanye Vadhikarasthe...

Try to LOVE ALL, SERVE ALL in Need

Looks like there is more than one Mensa-mind commenting in this blog! SABN stand-outs:

Love expands consciousness.

Service expands consciousness.

My response: Because I cannot see Swami in everyone, and honestly don't attempt to most of the time, I try the next step as much as I can, however small it be, however menial it be, however backstage it be. Since I always aver that God is but the Divine Accountant, I try to add as much minute credits to my account to offset the piling debits. My general strategy in most cases is to try to serve those who need it in lieu of try to love those who need pampering.

Each man to his own idiosyncrasies.

Comments, anyone?

Freshly brewed controversy

SR speaketh: One thing to remember is talent exemplifies and aggravates body consciousness- be it talent for art or talent in sport or speaking writing etc. That is why Bhajan singers have the greatest amount of ego!!

Thankfully, this controversy is not propagated from my end! No comments from my side, save that in my knowledge, no Centre in the history of Our organization has split on account of any Wing other than the one you just mentioned.

Counter-comments, anyone?

Poles asunder

SR at his best (again): There is perhaps a causal link between our capacity for selfless behaviour and our ability to exercise freedom and personal choice.

My response: Selflessness was supposedly the opposite of personal choice,- the sacrifice of personal choice. It seems ironical to mean that the more freedom of choice we have, the more we choose to be selfless. If I have misunderstood you correctly, America is the motherland of freedom; is it of selflessness? Maybe you could elaborate some more!

Survival of the fattest

Gentleladies and gentlemen! We finally know who Anonymous is,- 'The Secret' is no longer one. But for his sake, I will prefer to keep it so.

As usual, he raises too many points in just one comment, but something that stood out is open for discussion: If all humans became selfless and became vegetarian would there be enough vegetarian food to feed humanity?

I don't remember his name, but, there was one Economist or some similar pessimist who mentioned decades back that we would soon have too many people than we have food (forget the specific vegetarian type). And man would go back to fighting what he first fought for,- food. Strangely enough, we are still alive, and fighting,- though for more civilized causes like religion.

But the question again,- will there be enough vegetarian food? Anyone else's comments?

A pick-up load of mutton

Snapped from my car, a pick-up load of goats on their way to moksha. It felt as if they were bleating with some kind of prescience about their imminent doom. The way these animals were led to the dinner plate shows how we animals never allow other animals any dignity even in death, much less in life.

It takes courage to be vegetarian. A certain element of courage to think outside the delicious bun. A certain element of courage to ask ourselves if we truly have to succumb to our taste-buds, fully aware that, even beyond the committed sin, is the knowledge that,- food which is good for the tongue is rarely good for the tummy. A certain element of courage to come to realize that,- change has to start with us, with attacking what comforts us most.

But, man, being man, always prefers to retain the option of forced indifference to even the most glaring of all truths. We live by the tongue, and will, quite appropriately, die by it.

Yearning without yearning

I am kept reminding once in a very odd while about the need for a family trip on the Metro, as we haven't gone through this ritual yet. But somehow it hasn't happened till date, although it keeps popping up sporadically over dinner. Moot point:

With the Metro, and with life, you only get done what you need to get done. If there is no passion in the want, it never becomes a need. If there is no need, it's not needed.

All mighty accomplishments have been underscored by this one element,- passion. Armchair ambitions have rarely risen beyond the hand-rest.

Hiring your brain

This Anonymous is too good to be anything but anonymous. Here's me reproducing his Top Secret Tip for Hiring:

Always hire a person who, some day in the future, has the talent to be your boss and who you will feel happy working under.

Learning experience

Somewhere in Oxford University. Different in many ways. There is no formal class-room setting. Here, teachers and students form a mentor-kinda relationship, and communicate through assignments and homework.

This is also the same university where Isaac Newton didn't study (he was from Cambridge!), and where Bill Clinton was caught (only twice) for smoking marijuana.

Jokes, apart, salute to the world's oldest university in the English speaking world.

Kaalam

Dhanya stands in front of Big Ben at 6:27:14 PM.

The famous clock is well-known for its accuracy and notes the exact time to the millisecond, including events of great British significance, like when Prince Charles finally married his mistress, when Maradona used God's hand to score that goal, and also when the sun actually set on the British empire.

London, 7th January, 2010, somewhere below 0 Celsius anyway.

Cold to my cells

Standing next to a plaque that says that Robert Boyle did some un-printable things here more than 350 years back. He also came up with the Boyle's law in this very spot, though not necessarily at this time of the year.

For those who choose not to remember: Boyle's law says that when temperature is constant, the pressure of a gas is inversely proportional to its volume.

In simpler terms, when there is no heat on you, the pressure on you to perform is inversely proportional to the volume of your own rhetoric.

Apparently, the first living cell was also identified here, following which descended upon humanity, all kinds of nightmares like AIDS and leukemia. Till then, they just assumed comfortably that these guys died young.

Oxford, 8th January, 2010, -4 Celsius.

I(a)mperfect

An anonymous mensa-mind has made some brain-blowing comments to one of my posts, part of which is reproduced for the benefit of anyone reading my blogs:

In a state of ignorance, imperfection is natural and perfection is an effort. In a state of wisdom or enlightenment, imperfection is an effort; perfection is a compulsion and is unavoidable!

Perfection is taking total responsibility, and total responsibility means knowing that We are the only responsible person in the whole world. When we are in total vairagya (dispassion), we can take care of even trivial and insignificant things with such perfection. Perfection is the very nature of the Enlightened one.

... a bittersweet moment in eternity. The video says it all.

Zen and the art of Herbal Tea-Drinking Ceremony

I switched over to green tea ever since Dr. spoke about the positive aspects of this medicine. After a number of rounds of retch-inducing potion, I have now figured out how this suspension relaxes and calms you.

To suffer this potion, you first need to spend some time taking breaths, detaching yourself from the agony of the experience and focusing on things that will promote peace, calm and serenity. Once in this state of mind, steel yourself into submission, think it's karmic, and please go ahead and have the tastleless tonic.

You will gain peace, calm and serenity.

Gimme proof...

Br. Vasu was mentioning the other day about how study circles with personal experiences elevate the spirit and buttress faith. Very true!

However, I think it's the Bible which says that Blessed is he who has seen and believed, but even greater is he who has not seen, yet believes. He who is devoted despite any experience, he is truly the exalted devotee.

Freedom of (drafted) speech

To anyone reading my blogs, I must say that someone really, really mature in thought, and intelligent of age has made some profound comments in the last couple of days that, I thought I might add them as a post, rather than as comments, so that everyone might benefit from the wisdom in print. In abstract, he/she (sounds like he, albeit) says:

Divine love and divine perfection- both principal objectives of the "organisation" and "Brains" are not mutually exclusive..in fact they are complmentary. By Brains I mean creativity, innovation, lateral and out of the box thinking. Ego and motivation of ego is required to convert divinity to human excellence in as much as copper is required to convert pure gold to a fine jewellery. Freedom, and respect are therefore not out of place in a spiritual organisation

To respond:

I really admire these wise thoughts and appreciate your time, and my respect for you has increased manifold. Unfortunately, I always like to respect a name/face that goes behind a wise thought! But I respect your privacy.

To your comment, I would like to note as such:

Honesty is a difficult policy, But, let's face it, freedom and respect are out of place in our organization. But, as I see it, this could actually be Swami's way. In my professional organization, some of the senior people have earned their respect, and consequently, their freedom. I really don't interfere in what they do, as I know that they do what is expected.

But in our spiritual organization, we are marionettes, spanking each other through external strings by higher dictate, while we flog ourselves with internal strings of conscience. When we are not allowed to think even inside the box, I doubt it's worthwhile to think outside it. We are just foot-soldiers, marching like lemmings. Probably that's how Swami is teaching us to crush our ego. Besides, I figure out that, when we are not respected, we feel humiliated. And, according to Sri Sri Sri Ravi Shankar, humiliation is actually good for us. It crushes our ego,- which is exactly why we are all here.

When you are an office bearer, and when you are asked not to think, only to act, you submit fully to this assault on the intelligence and asphyxiation of the ego, because, the latter is what Swami wants, though probably not through the former. As long as I am willing to accept that I am to do what is told, in spite of the sheer ludicracy of it all, I am absolved of sin. It may hurt to do some of the things that we are told to, but then, only with personal attachment comes karmic accountability. I would prefer to avoid anything that adds to my already overburdened karma.

Eg. Going back specifically to my choice of succession, I feel personally devastated that my choice was not considered, not because it was my choice, but because i thought i knew the Youth Wing enough to determine that he was the best choice. However, Swami (ultimately) had other ideas. But I can only play silent witness, and maybe that's what I am supposed to do. What is your opinion???

Also, beyond the philosophy, let me ask you a question? How does love function in such a milieu? I am not being cynical (at least this time), I am really asking a question.

Overspeeding for the family

Was touched by the Traffic Department's consideration to send three smss to confirm that I was over the speed limit by around 10 kmph on a dead road in the dead of night (actually early morning 5.40 AM) on New Year's Day, 2010.

But what actually moved me to tears was that, they have shown that loving personal touch to attach a cute picture of my car in that very compromising position of being lawless (when you look up their website for fines). And I only end up paying AED 600.00 for my car to appear there.

This level of consideration of the Traffic Department would make you think they're family. And, if they are, we could collectively settle the USD 80 billion debt by, let's say, a few hundred million instances of recklessness.

Tectonic shift in awareness

I recollect that my first official meeting as a Youth Convenor was preceeded by an earthquake in Turkey. And, as a naive member, just getting to learn the ropes of insouciance, I presumed that the meeting would include some kind of discussion on disaster relief. Of course, it dealt with more relevant topics like the sequence of bhajans. That was the first of many reality checks.

My last days in the Youth Wing have also been preceded by an earthquake in which a mere 200,000 people died. But by now, I have realized that I should do what I can do. Not what someone else ought to.

When we realize that we are all marionettes at the hands of the great wire-puller of the Universe, everything falls in place. It also always helps to recollect that the Avatar has categorically mentioned that the organization is our family. Do we abandon our family? No. Similarly. Although I am an outstanding social disaster in many ways, my parents have not abandoned me (till date). In spite of It all, we have to remain one,- at least for Him.

From the depths of the lips

Reading about Haiti. Moot point:

True service lies at helping those we don't know, whom we have never met, and who will never thank us. All else is lip service, or far worse, propaganda.

The Journey Has to go on

As of 9.00 PM, Pongal day, 2010, my association with the SAI Youth Mission, Dubai, came to an end.

From the year of inception, 1995 to 2010, we have come a long way. And I have come a long way as well. Right from the early days in Pooja's house, to our Youth Home in Priyanka's house, to our Suri sir's house, back to our Youth Home, to our Centre, to our Mandir, I have had the time of my life!

I got drawn into the Sai fold through the youth, and it is through the youth that I have seen genuine Love for God. In many ways, the Youth Wing of Dubai laid the foundation of my spiritual life. But life must go on, and attachments must die. For man is born through attachment and lives through attachment, but has to leave detached.

The anguish of the last couple of days is amazing, even for my usual standards. Sometimes, you don't realize how much you value an association till you are asked to grow out of it, and by when you reckon that your Gmail inbox will never be the same again.

When I look back and realize that it's over, it dawns on me the enormity of Swami's words, when He says that let us do what we can while we can. I realize how I could have done more, done better, helped more, helped better... how I could have been more kind, less harsh, more gentle, more humane, and more considerate.

I now realize more than ever, how one should never waste any opportunity to do good, be good and say good. I really hope anyone who reads this realizes that they should never think twice about leaving their Anchor Wing(s), even if the going gets painful.

For, there will come a time when there will be no more time, and we will be able to only look back and ask ourselves why we could not have been better than we had. Never bid Farewell before making it a better place.

Never bid Farewell before you have to.

Deputizing Responsibility

I was telling my mother yesterday how my right-hand man at the office does so much of my work, I can focus a lot more on my real work.

Reflection: A good deputy does all what is instructed. A smart deputy does what is expected.

Snow White

In Oxford now. With this weather, the whole city seems to be one mighty blanket of white with a pall of surrealistic grey above. There was so much snow in Gatwick that the plane diverted to Birmingham and literally collapsed on the runway. I have been on a plane many times in my life, but have never been part of such a landing.

With the temperature at -4 C, I would have really deliberated on having something warm to keep me warm, hadn't it been for Swami always keeping a watch on me (and you as well!) at even the most awkward of times.

Just waiting to get back from the depressing weather to the depressing economy.

One's duty above one's duties

Something more applicable for me than to anyone else:

Absolute focus to duty should not be to the exclusion of everything else, rather, in spite of everything else.

Citing off the New Year

Ushered in the New Year with a fine for overspeeding on the way to the Mandir. Ushered in the last New Year with a fine for wrong-parking near the Mandir. There seems to be a karmic connection between me and the Dubai Police coffers.