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Showing posts from 2014

Forgive us!

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Jai Guru Deva My deepest condolences to the affected families in possibly the worst attack on humanity. People witnessed 9/11 and moved on, People suffered 26/11 and moved on; But this is something very very difficult to move on. For a long long time to come this will remain as the haunting memory to the collective conscience of humanity. I cant help but beg for the forgiveness of the children who had to face such a wrath of fate for no fault of theirs. Sarvejana Sukhinobhavantu, -Karthik

Learnings from Mahabharath - 6 : Ethics & Morals

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Jai Guru Deva, I am completely cognizant of the fact that we are living in an era where ethics and morals are just mere literature and they dont have any significance in the practical world. Nonetheless, I keep harping about them because I value any person only based on their ethical base. I dont care anything else. Real character is not about money or hard work or intelligence its the commitment to ethics in trying situations, its the capacity of self restraint in vulnerable situations. I know day by day all these things becoming meager in the society and I have my own experience someone blamed me that I have expectations in the name of trust. I spectacularly failed to understand that logic.  Coming back to Mahabharath, there are several instances where different characters stood for highest level of ethical behavior which stands as an inspiration for me. In this post I am trying to recall as many of such cases as I remember: 1. Grandsire Bhishma: nobody more than

My condolences..

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Jai Guru Deva, Today is the anniversary of the great tragedy of 26/11. My deep condolences of all those who are killed. On the fatal day, I had slept early and did not know till I saw The Hindu next morning. It was one of the most shocking moment of my life. In 2008 I was already half dead with several of my personal problems but this was beyond my imagination. I knew Islamic terrorism has done for several centuries. From Nalanda library to Bamiyan statues but 26/11 was something that I am witnessing and I am connected to. Atleast four people who I know have escaped the massacre very narrowly. My deepest condolences to all the people who lost their lives in such a ghastly attack. Sarvejana Sukhinobhavantu, -Karthik

Learnings from Mahabharath - 5 : Yudhishtir

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Jai Guru Deva, Dharmaraj Yudhirshtir, the name needs no introduction. For the last 2000+ years, anybody in this country living a pure and principled life is compared with him, such is the glory of that man. Being the eldest son of Pandu raj he has every right to be the king of Hastinapur but Dhritrastra was not going to yield. A visionary like Vidur had anticipated that only Yudhishtir can give a stable and harmonious rule to the people of Hastinapur. However, Duryodhan's greed for power ensured a great war for the crown of Hastinapur.  There will be no famine in the land where he lives and in the land which tastes his blood there will not be so rains for so many years as his drops of blood. I just wonder how principled should he be to alter seasons and dictate nature. Take a bow! But the biggest mistake of Yudhishtir is the dice game he had participated. I take that as a biggest learning from his life. For some reason I am not addicted to any kind of gambling for the

Learnings from Mahabharath - 4 : Dronacharya

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Jai Guru Deva, Let me write about the great teacher of Hastinapur: Dronacharya. Guru Dronacharya was born in a brahmin family Bharadwaja clan and was a disciple and student of Sage Parasurama. Parasurama was himself an embodiment of Narayana. As a student of Parasurama his prowess with weapons is beyond the reach of any ordinary man. Arjuna who is the greatest warrior of this country mentions that "only Grandsire Bhishma, Guru Dronacharya, God Indra and God Mahadev can break his bow" which means Guru Dronacharya's archery skills are nothing short of God Indra and Lord Mahadeva. What can be a bigger praise for a mortal life? Apart from his skills of archery he also knew the Divine weapons which are invincible but also he is a master strategist. Whatever victories Kauravas had won in the war are majorly because of him. He is the architect of chakravyuh which killed Abhimanyu. On the other side of the great warrior there stays a poor Brahmin who has to fa

Learnings from Mahabharath - 3 : Karna

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Jai Guru Deva, Today I am going to write about another great warrior of this spectacular epic:Karna. Being the eldest son of kunti he has every right to feel that he had been wronged but that is no reason for his hatred towards Arjuna. Because of this, hatred becomes the soul of Karna's character and probably because of that reason he always faces troubles and became synonymous with trouble. He identifies himself as the slave of Duryodhan and repeatedly argues that he is indebted to Duryodhan. However, he is not indebted to Duryodhan but to the throne of Hastinapur. Grandsire Bhishma and Guru Drona realized this but Karna could not realize this and in a false sense of indebted supported Duryodhan in all the conspiracies hatched against the pandavas. At the starting of the war when Krishna asks Karna to fight from Pandava's side as Grandsire Bhishma didnt approve him into his army, Karna blatantly rejects the proposal saying he cannot do anything against the intere

Learnings from Mahabharath - 2 : Arjuna

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Jai Guru Deva, Today I am writing about Arjuna, who is one of the greatest warriors of this country. Being the member of Kuru clan he had inherited a great legacy but he always referred himself as "Student of Drona". I for one, who is earning my livelihood only because of some great teachers who had blessed me with what I am today. I vividly remember some of the things my mentor VIMP sir told me and those conversations stand as guiding principles of my life. So it is only obvious that Arjuna's devotion towards Guru Drona appeals me more than any other feature of him.  His passion towards archery and his determination to be the best archer of this planet is something not visible in any other characters of the great saga. The only other person comes to my mind with so much of passion towards a particular profession/art is Sachin Tendulkar. Thats why even after thousands of years of after mahabharath people still use Arjuna as an epitome of unwavering concentration

Learnings from Mahabharath - 1 : Bhishma

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Jai Guru Deva, Mahabharath is one topic which I always wanted to write about. There are a lot of people who had deciphered the knowledge present in Mahabharath. Many conversation present in Mahabharath amazes me. In this series I am planning to write my learnings/obersavations from different characters and events in Mahabharath. This series does not contain anything from The Holy Bhagavat Gita. I am neither qualified nor competent to write about the Holy. I wish one day in my life I attain that maturity and calibre to write about it. All the things that I am writing are out of my understanding from Mahabharath telecasted in DD way back in early 90s. The script and dialogues for that series is given by Bhandarkar Institute of Oriental Research Mumbai, so I think thats an authenticated story and characterization. Grand-sire Bhishma: He is one character which inspires me day in and day out. There are multiple reasons for my adoration to this character but the main reason is

Genesis of Taboo Secularism!!!

Jai Guru Deva! Among several myths that were busted by Indian Elections of 2014, there is a tacit message to the politicians: "We ARE middle class; we PAY taxes for the common good of this country but not safeguarding secularism or any other ism that sound politically romantic; you better meet our expectations or GET LOST!" This message is clear and unequivocal. This blog post is a postmortem analysis of why and how secularism as a political argument failed to attract the masses and why today secularism is treated as unpatriotic, anti-national and synonymous to minority appeasement. As a close observer of Indian politics I am trying to chronicle ten instances which enhanced secularism as taboo. Years passed since some of these incidents yet I allude to them as they had successfully created a negative psyche about secularism among the Indian masses. 1. Manmohan singh's Minorities first comment: As the prime minister of world's largest democracy Manmohan Sin

oh God!

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Jai Guru Deva, I had come home today after meeting some of my juniors from college and was upbeat as i was sharing a lot of nostalgia. But as i switched on TV i found the news of a father killing his own children in hyderabad and I started shivering. None of the victims are any relatives of mine and I am hearing their names for the first time in my life. But still the news sent waves of fear across my spine. For some reason I cant comprehend, I am feeling very vulnerable to any act of violence. I distantly remember when some Israel soldiers killed a Palestine child by mistake (this was in 2002), I had no sympathy for the victim. I just convinced myself "Result of Islamic Terrorism". Though my political inclinations didnt change with time, I am feeling more vulnerable to any sort of violence. I cant pinpoint the reason for this but this is very annoying. One thing I always want is a smile on my face. As I mentioned many times earlier, my life is not a pursuit o

My blabbering about feminism, polygamy et al

Jai Guru Deva i had observed a couple of really good articles about polygamy in DAWN. These articles are written by Rafia Zakaria a pakistan based woman journalist. People say her opinions are feminist in nature. I personally dont endorse any ism, be it communism, feminism, my footism etc. But this two articles are an eye opener regarding a cruel practice that is a gross injustice to the woman folk. I am firm believer that the system of marriage is the first line of defence for a woman's rights and security. The moment this system collapses, I am afraid woman will become nothing more than sex dolls. http://www.dawn.com/news/1135346/the-problems-of-polygamy http://www.dawn.com/news/1136176/inside-polygamy-reader-response My aversion to feminists and feminism was driven by the reason that all self proclaimed feminists that I had seen had lacked basic ethics to call themselves feminists. Many of them remembered that they are woman only when they are in trouble. As

Quotes

Jai Guru Deva Worlds 8 superb sentences --------------<>------------- Shakespeare : Never play with the feelings of others because you may win the game but the risk is that you will surely lose the person for a life time. -------------------------------- Napoleon. The world suffers a lot. Not because of the violence of bad people, But because of the silence of good people! -------------------------------- Einstein : I am thankful to all those who said NO to me It's because of them I did it myself. -------------------------------- Abraham Lincoln : If friendship is your weakest point then you are the strongest person in the world. -------------------------------- Shakespeare : Laughing faces do not mean that there is absence of sorrow! But it means that they have the ability to deal with it. -------------------------------- William Arthur :  Opportunities are like sunrises, i

Home Alone 2 :))

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Jai Guru Deva I dont know when was the last time I had stayed alone in my home probably before 2010. Because after that there was always someone with me at my home, firstly my friends and then after marriage, my wife. Staying alone has its own set of advantages and setbacks. The biggest advantage i always found was the liberty, opportunity and possibility to read a book. Not everyday that one have all the above mentioned ingredients. Right now, I'm keenly waiting to read the book written by my co-blogger Bulusu Subrahmanyam garu. Being an ardent fan of him its always a pleasure reading his writings. Healthy humor is a rare find these days. Other things that I wanted to do are my silence courses. My body needs physical/mental/emotional rest and silence is the best thing to get all these. My fascination towards silence has only increased as I face more and more challenges in my everyday life. I had just shifted my house and yet to set up in the new place. Believe me,

My Orkut Testimonials!!

Jai Guru Deva, wanted to use this post to preserve the testimonials i got in orkut. Feeling nostalgic with the good old days! thanks everyone for your kind words.. I am blessed to ahve friends like you! Ashok Kumar Burra   -  Sep 28, 2006 One of the best individuals i ever met in my life. We can find in him, all the good characters which one can expect in anyone. An inspiration for me too, in some areas. Abhineet Mishra   -  Sep 3, 2006 Its has only been a year to know karthik, but this is more than enough for a gem to be esteemed* To put in one line "simply pure at heart" * Both intelligent & industrious at the same time* The way he moulded himself into hostel culture is terrific* Though he calls me H***** all the times, I know he never means it* Extremely helpful by nature* Very Down to earth, a rare quality found now a days* Wishing best of luck for his bright career* Anonymous -  Jun 22, 2006 Cant describe in few words..... All the good qua

Face of Indian Secularism!!

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Jai Ho Israel!

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Jai Guru Deva! I hereby extend my whole hearted support to Israel which is once again fighting a battle of its survival.

Hope for the best..

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Jai Guru Deva! I request everybody to pray for those 24 students who went missing at a river in Himachal.. What a tragedy! 24 engineering students getting washed away.. unthinkable pain to parents and family.. nothing on this planet can console the parents. very very painful! Not just this, yesterday evening seems to be very bad. This students missing in Himachal, Terrorist attack on Karachi Airport and I had just heard some other news on a personal front.. May God bless all! Sarvejana Sukhinobhavantu, -Karthik

Six years to Doom's day!!!

Jai Guru Deva! It has been six years since the most unthinkable of my life happened.  I call it doomsday because it's the only time of my life I thought of burying myself in the graveyard which was my neighbor then. Its perhaps the most painful moment of my life but I don't have any regrets as to the way I behaved. As I said before I would behave the same way as I did before. For me, my principles stand way higher than anything else in my life. Because thats the only thing I had received from my parents. the moment I move away from my principles I am more dead than alive. This episode of my life was the darkest period so far. But as a person I learnt enormous amount.  Now if I see people playing with others I don't feel disturbed because everyone has a right to live the way they please. If others gave an option for them to play with its their fault too. After all nobody promised a fair treatment on this good earth. Also what I learnt is to become emotionally indep

Vancouver Visit - Prelogue

Jai Guru Deva, Little more than a month ago that I came to know that someone thinks my contribution is needed for a high visibility and critical project. However, I am not sure how they know about me. Apparently somebody pictured me as an incarnation of Hercules. I had readily accepted the offer to work in that project because that would get me out of my comfort zone. This is not the domain that I ever worked and that means a lot of opportunity to get the hands dirty and learn business first hand. I seldom let such things unattended. With that I ended up in this high critical project and started attending the weekly working sessions. Soon I found that there is an opportunity to travel and my travel got approval before I prepared to travel. The place of visit is Vancouver in the state of Washington. As always I'm not very interested to travel, my experience tells me that these kind of short term trips doesnt give the ROI it should give. Because there are non work things like j

Weird World!!

Jai Guru Deva, Today for some unknown reason I'm remembering certain things which are so hard to believe. Perhaps it is for this reason people say reality is more dramatic than fiction. Below are some of the things: 1. Alexander the Great died because of mosquito bite. Great Alexander who killed several lakhs of humans died because of a tiny mosquito.. Hard to believe, may be God chose mosquito as other humans could not do anything to the tyrrant. 2. Great Chengiz Khan died by falling from a horse. Ironically, he is riding horses even when he was a kid. 3. Sanjay Gandhi's plane crash: One of the most controversial accidents in the history of Independent India. Sanjay Gandhi who was the PM in waiting at that time met an untimely death just after taking off from Delhi's Sarfdur Jung Airport. At the time of his death he is THE most Powerful man in the country and all the opposition was criticizing him as an unconstitutional force. 4. Don Bradman's last du

2013...

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Jai Guru Deva, If at all I have to sum up 2013 "Hectic" is the word that suits most.. deadlines in hours, meetings during the middle of the night and whats more some problem in the colony i live.. the starting of the year was quite sedate. However, my work load increased by 100% in the months of Feb-Mar. Some one within my partner's org was fired and I had to support all the work and the transition time was only 8 working days.. thats the starting point of the hectic work that i did. For the next 4-5months I did two people's work. And during this period, i worked more than10hrs almost everyday. I should confess that never in my professional life I worked so much. But this is not all, the worst part of this whole thing is I had to work even when I met an accident in May. In the mean time I visited Jeevani along some of the bloggers and as usual it was a real experience. We did spend two days there and were very happy to gather and spend some quality