Finding Nemo

I have been writing a lot about Brahma. But please do not assume my writing as if I am pro-Brahma or against Brahma. I am just trying to understand the universe created by him and the universe we all live in. As I said, the journey is my quest and not the goal itself, because there are many goals depending upon one’s thoughts and mights. Looking back at some of the ideas as discussed in the previous posts, Brahman comes from the summation of two words – Briha and Manas. While Brih means expansion and Manas means the mind. Thus I understand a Brahman to be a person who helps expand the mind. At the same time, he is able to expand his mind trough knowledge as well. The process of expansion is understood by the thoughts provoked and understood by the mind – which is the seat of thinking and imagination. Imagination is quite beautiful and also awful. Imagination helps the humans to understand their future and the life they want to lead within the realm of nature. Imagination also helps th

I wrote about the fifth head of Brahma and also on understanding the Brahmin . Today, I just wanted to touch upon the same very topics with a fresh new idea! Brahma is the creator but is not worshiped. He is considered and is admired as a supreme God along with Shiva and Vishnu, but does not has any dedicated temple or even a faith for himself compared to Shaivites or Vaishnavites! However, wikipedia article  mentions a Brahma Sampradaya and very few dedicated temples for Brahma. Thinking of which, the question arises - why? Brahma in his quest for knowledge of his existence, created the anomaly called COMPARISONS and hence led to rat race we are all competing in even today. It was one such competition where in he lied to Shiva and Vishnu to have reached the end of and endless fire pillar (Shiva himself) to win over Vishnu. Brahma realizing his mistake, resorted to learning and enchanting Vedas to absolve himself. The Brahma Sampraday is dedicated towards extending the knowledge of

Last week I was on an assignment where I attended a brainstorming session to come up with the mission and vision statement for a small emerging organization. We spent a long time explaining the importance of the statements and the difference amongst them. During the process, we analyzed and looked at the mission and vision statements from various organizations. Some of the common themes that we analyzed helped us understand that the mission statement is the internal view of the organization’s philosophy and the vision is the goal that helps other’s estimate the worth of the organization. Also did our analysis showed a few common elements, that are best described in the two columns –   Mission Statement Elements Vision Statement Elements Integrity Profitability People System (self-sustained) Service Market share Measure Purpose Philosophy Goal People, Integrity, Service and welfare are the always portrayed in the mission of any organization. This help

A few days back I needed to call the customer service for one of the utilities at home. The call went pleasantly. The representative listened to my issues, tried to resolve or provide me solutions and my problem was solved. I was happy. When I reached home and I opened my emails, I saw an email asking for feedback on the service provided by the representative. Along with the request for the brief survey, a transcript of our telephonic discussion was also provided as a documentary proof of our conversation. A document is thus a summarization of the ideas that flew across two or more people in different communicating ways. The document lists important information that is mutually agreed upon and also the action items if any. The document is therefore the knowledge bits that may be required for a task. The document serves as a reference point for anyone using it for a task. The document also serves as a knowledge bank for anyone who reads it. This helps particularly in the customer servi

After Bhishma was sent to his death bed by Arjuna, Drona took charge of the Kaurava army. What a great warrior he was! He was a great teacher too. He taught both Kauravas and Pandavas and knew the strengths and weaknesses of everyone involved. He was almost invincible with his knowledge of war schemes and weaponry. Sri Krishna understanding the frustration of Pandavas devised a plan to remove Drona from the war. Per his scheme, Yudhishtira will announce the death of Ashwathama. And the Pandava army would kill an elephant on their side named Ashwathama. Since Yudhishthira would not tell a lie, he was suggested to break the announcement in two parts – “Ashwathama is dead, though it could be human or the animal”. All the warriors were instructed to blow trumpets and conches to celebrate the victory as soon as Yudhisthira says the first part. Drona heard the news but couldn’t hear the second part. Filled with grief, he gave up fighting. Dhristhdyumna – son of his arch rival – Drupada, then

Sequels are in fashion. Why should I be left behind? So, here is my sequel - In my previous blog – “ What happened to us? ” I touched upon the topic of relationship between couples. We saw the two extremes and hence can understand the shifting balances to find the perfect equilibria. Also I did state that we have somehow deduced that anything attached to female is inferior. There are many stories to that which have been concocted in multiple ways to suit our own progenical ideas. One of the most popular one being the sharing of Indra’s guilt for killing Viswaroopa – the teacher of the gods. Indra being the king of the gods needed someone to share his sin and absolve himself of the same. He then shared his sin with the earth, ocean, trees and women. The earth has seizures – volcanic eruptions as a result of the sin. The ocean produces foam / froth. The trees excrete gum. And the women have their menstrual cycle as a result of this sin. At the same time all four were given enormous boon

We just celebrated the international Women’s Day on March 8 th . A great day dedicated to women and thanking them for the society we are in. while exchanging messages from different contacts and relaying them to my wife, I was reminded of the season 1 episode 1 of “Satyamev Jayate” program which was aired on May 6 th , 2012. Anchored and and beautifully tackled by Amir Khan, the show focused on the topic of “Female Foeticide”. Looking back at the statistics recorded in the 2011 census in India, the rate shows killing of about a million girls a year. Considering the demographies, it is noted that the rate of female foeticide is higher in both literate and as well as illiterate communities. Even affluent communities have shown this mortal sin at skyrocketing rates. In another disturbing news, a few weeks ago, a high ranking official stabbed his wife suspecting her of infidelity. Rapes have become a regular feature. Even while we consider the rest of the crimes (molestation, eve teasing,

A six pointed star holds a great significance in various culture and religions. Referred to as the “Star of David”, it represents the identity of the Jews. Christians revere the star as the Star of Creation and each point denoting the day of creation. Muslims also consider the star an important symbol. It represents the “Seal of Solomon”. Quran says that David and King Solomon were prophets and kings and hence their symbols are revered too. Figure 1: The Star of David Figure 2: The star on Pope's crown Figure 3: Hexagonal structure in the Qutab complex - Islamic Architecture Figure 4: Use of the star in Humayun's Tomb The Mormons or the Latter-Day Saints symbolize the star as the union of God and the man – the downward triangle representing the descent of god from heavens upon mankind and the upward triangle represents the man rising up to god through his deeds. And I bet all the symbol enthusiasts must have been waiting to hear about the free masonry and the

Few days ago, friends and I got into a discussion – a discussion that I just try to avoid at all costs – the Varna system. I try to evade the topic as much I can, because it has been blown up out of proportions already. It has become such a political hot potato that not only everyone wants to get it off their plate, but also want to add spices to be able to eat it. Hence, in a nutshell, everyone hates this topic, but would like to keep the debate to make whatever gains they can. Who am I to fight the world? Here we go again! Varna or caste system started with the Hinduism, but has been exploited by many. The earliest examples of the caste system may be many but the few notable ones are – Kevata and Shabri in Ramayan, Karna and Eklavya in Mahabharata. Not only the Shudra’s or Brahmins talk about it, but even Arjuna and Krishna spoke of the caste system at length in Geeta. चातुर्वर्णयं मया सृष्टं गुणकर्मविभागशः । तस्य कर्तारमपि मां विद्ध्यर्कतारमव्ययम् ।। ४\-१३ Sri Krishna tells Arjun

We discussed the concept of hunger in my previous post – “What’s your promised land?” It’s the hunger that defines the needs and the goals for oneself. We also discussed the need for motivation in the other post – “Who needs motivation?” In this post let’s examine how we should motivate using the concepts defined earlier! It is a known fact that the life is a sequence events and our life is shaped by how we handle these events. What we should also see that our desires change at every step. Thus changing the desire for the Promised Land. The sequence and the decisions may be different for every human, and hence our lives are different too. It is very difficult to define a common path or a common stand for all to measure up. How do I motivate others in such a case? The answer is simple – communicate to them by realizing their Promised Land. Look for what they want. Watch what are they hungry for? Once we determine other’s hunger, it is easier to empathize and motivate. Remember, Vish

When Hanuman and his group of monkeys reached the sea shore in search for Sita, all of them discussed ways to cross the sea. Some said that they could jump upto 100 yards but it may not be enough to reach Lanka on the other end of the sea! They even started to think ways to lead their lives without returning to their home – Kishkindha and face the wrath of failure. Then, amidst all the discussions, an old bear – Jambvant spoke to Hanuman – “Oh Vayuputra Hanuman! Only you can cross the ocean. You can easily jump across the ocean and reach Lanka in no time. You have descended on the earth for a purpose. You had once flew and ate the Sun itself. Your power and reach has no bounds”. Hanuman had forgotten his powers due to a curse. Jambvant was praising Hanuman and motivating him to realize his potential. He chose his words carefully, realizing his power and putting the overall goal in front of Hanuman inspiring him to achieve. In Bhagwad Gita, Krishna told Arjun that one must lead the

The following work is my own. this is my attempt at understanding self and one's identity! अस्तित्व की खोज में निकला था मैं, अस्तित्व ही खो कर आ गया मैं। सुना, देखा पर पाया नहीं, उसे तो कोई समझा ही नहीं।                वन में वृक्ष का अस्तित्व,                वृक्ष में पत्तों का अस्तित्व,                क्या पाया है कोई?                समझ पाया है कोई? सागर में जल का अस्तित्व, जल में बूँद का अस्तित्व, प्रेम में प्रेमियों का अस्तित्व, क्या समझा है कोई?                 अस्तित्व तो समर्पण है,                 अस्तित्व तो रचना है,                 अस्तित्व तो प्रेम है, ना ईर्ष्या है,                 देखा, पाया और समझा बस इतना ही। 

The book of Exodus tells the story of the Promised Land – the land promised to Abraham by God. God promised Abraham and later his descendants a land full of milk, honey and bread for them and all of their followers. This is a very well-known story and am sure many of us must have heard it as well. One must note that there is only one Promised Land where a person gets all that he wants or rather promised by God, provided he fulfils all the duties and complies by the rules laid out for him. In the Hindu way of thinking, we have not one but 3 promised lands – Swarga, Kailasha and Vaikuntha. Let’s examine and understand! Swarga or Heaven Swarga or the pinnacle of all human wants is ruled by Indra. Full of all riches and dancing damsels, it is the dream of all humans. Asuras fight all their life gain control of the Swarga. Indra is the protector of Swarga and keeps both Asuras and Humans away. There are three main things which make the swarga – Kamadhenu (an all-giving cow), Kalpavriks

Arjuna asked Sri Krishna – “O Janardana, O Kesava, why do you urge me to engage in this ghastly warfare, if you think that intelligence is better than furtive work?” – Why should I engage in fighting with the people I I grew up up with? Why should I fight the teacher, who taught me the art of war? Why should I kill the cousins that I played with? Why should I kill so many innocents who have nothing to do with me or Duryodhana? Why should I fight with my elders, who always taught me the way to lead my life?” I ask the same question – When Shiva closes his eyes to the Maya and realizes that the Maya is the cause of grief, why should we go on the path of Maya? Sri Krishna answered Arjuna – “Partha, the prakriti or the nature is supposed to recreate itself. Its nature is to procreate and move on continuously. This is the way Brahma created the universe. This is the way I engage with the world.” For the cycle of nature to keep moving, we all need to play our part and keep performing

Pravritti –personality –behavioral traits – is often considered as someone’s nature. This explains how a person reacts to a situation. The key in this scenarios is the external stimulus. Nivritti on the other hand defines abstinence or denial of acts that have no meaning. All acts in Nivritti state comes from the internal stimulus. The hindu scriptures have very well laid out the two paths of life as Pravritti and Nivritti and have as usual left it to us to decide the way. External stimuli or the desire is abundant all around us. The more you satisfy it, the more it grows. Knowing the purpose of your actions will help performing the actions better. This is where we can combine the external and internal stimuli. Vishnu on one hand, indulges himself with the creation and helps the worldly creatures to lead their life meaningfully. In his acts, not only he desires he also plays along with the humans. Shiva on the other hand, meditates and turns his back on Brahma’s creation k

Long time since my last post. Actually I have been reading less these days and watching more television. I have been looking at the news channels too sometimes and watched how the media has been covering the so called crime stories. More or less every time a crime is reported, the reporters use the word “animal like behavior” to depict the criminals acts. Along with the same, the media is full of developmental stories displaying the progress the mankind is making today. The question is what progress have we made? What instinct have we understood and how have we conquered? As the story of the Hindu Trinity goes, Brahma had multiple sons who were born of his thoughts. Each of the son was born with a purpose. Narada, Sanaatan Kumars were amongst the glorious ones. And also was Daksa Prajapati. Many would remember Daksha as the arrogant father who did not relent to acknowledge the love of her daughter Sati. Due to which, Sati had to jump into fire causing Shiva to take the Rudr

In my previous post – "Main or May" , I started a thought on the pride. Pride can come to a person in many forms – overconfidence being one of them and probably the most destructive too. Pride is a great feeling to have and is a great asset if in moderated quantity. Being a necessary evil, it helps one to move forward and overcome the inherent fear of failure, and at the same time, creates a path for self-destruction through complacency and too much of confidence on self or other. Pride comes with the sense of belonging and ownership. However, the nature makes no such claim. This is a human mind construct and creates boundaries. We have all seen both the benefits and the destruction caused by pride. Let's see the symbolism of the same as seen in our scriptures! Who better to kill pride or tame the feeling than Lord Shiva. Shiva took the form of "Bhairava" as a young child devoid of all the emotions of ownership and pride. Bhairava is always accompanied with

I am sure that all of us have been stirred by the Devyani Khobragade arrest incident that has shaken the diplomatic ties between India and US for now. I spent much time yesterday reading through the news reports and talking to people with experiences into diplomatic scenarios. We spoke at lengths on the measures being taken by the various authorities and the excessiveness being exercised in matters deemed necessary. We all concluded that there were some gaps in the manner the situation was handled. This article today is dedicated towards the lamentation of these gaps. In the Devyani case, the US officials have reported to have acted as per their rules and regulations. Their reports said that since the Indian Diplomat failed to align with their rules and regulations, they were supposed to take a corrective action and force the punishment on the accused. What were these rules? Putting appropriate salary to the domestic help (which is allowed as per US rules and regulations) in the visa a

Last night we were watching the movie "Dashavtaram" for the umpteenth time. We love the movie and also have many good memories attached with the song – "Mukunda Mukunda". My wife taught dance to this number and the kids performed beautifully on the stage. Now that we watched it again and again, we tried to make sense of the name – "Dashavtaram" which undoubtedly refers to the 10 incarnations of Lord Vishnu. Interestingly enough, Lord Vishnu is known to have descended upon the earth many a times to uphold the dharma or the laws of nature. Though our scriptures and wise learned people have often differed on the number of times Vishnu took different forms, there is no difference in understanding the common themes and the principles in each of these avatars. My attempt shall be to just have a look at those and understand the same. As per the most well-read purana scripture – Bhagwat Purana describes 22 avatars of Sri Vishnu. While the most commonly known 10 av

Still full of the joy of our anniversary and pondering over the bliss of togetherness, I want to take another deeper dive into some of the well-known couples to all of us. This time, I just want to touch upon the ideas that brought them together and how they complemented each oher. May be if we are able to imbibe some qualities, we can rise to some heights as described. Ram and Sita The Sita-Ram couple is definitely the most revered and most worthy candidate of an idealist couple. Sita is the most obedient wife and offers every comfort to Rama. Rama in turn, loves her the most and performs every duty as needed for a husband. Sita follows her husband, when he goes to the forest as exile to keep up with the laws / principles of the Raghu clan. Sita leads her life in simplicity though being a princess, just because her husband chooses to do so. Ram vows to take care of his wife and fulfills all her needs. Sita observes the chaste of her husband when he shooes away the deautiful form of Su