World cup Vs Board Exams

Cricket World Cup has kicked off with great fanfare and show with millions glued to their T V sets irrespective of the age and gender!  The Board exams have also started compelling students to concentrate on their studies and not to get distracted with the ongoing Cricket festival.  There is a tug of war between the all- mighty Sports and Education that is required for a futuristic India?  The festival of world cup cricket has begun and the entertainment saga ends in May with IPL-20/20.  The game attracts everyone irrespective of the gender or the age.  The young children in the household are happy to watch the TV and Cricket alongside their parents until they are told to study?  The elders take off from their work to sit and watch the game that lasts for more than 8 hours!!  The real villain of the show is the food and short eats that find their way into the stomachs unknowingly leading to obesity and other health related problems that may arise later in life?

  The matches involving India are a total sell out and there is heavy push and pull for the tickets which are priced sky high and remains unreachable for many sports lovers.  Simultaneously, the Board exams have begun and young boys and girls find it extremely difficult to concentrate on their studies due to the ongoing cricket matches.  The Education Ministry, knowing pretty well about the World cup should have postponed the Board exams so that the students are not deprived of participation and declared the summer vacations during the current season.  Alternatively, the Ministry could have requested the Sports Ministry to intervene and postpone the Cricket matches to May/June during the summer vacations.  Strangely, BCCI is an independent body not associated with the Government and has its own say about its matters!  The cricket match tickets which used to be priced at Rs 300/- and Rs 500/- are now costing Rs 6000/- and above and still unavailable across the counters!  Whoever said India is a poor country??

  The cricketers who were paid a sum of Rs 25000/- for a match are being paid a whooping sum of RS 25 lacs for each match, as I hear from sources!  where are we heading for is the question which remains elusive and thought provoking?  India is divided by 2 factors, as Sitaram Yechury, CPM leader rightly said.  One is IPL which is Mackennas's Gold for the players and the entities around  and the other is BPL which symbolises the common man of India-Below the poverty line!  It is time something is done to bridge this gap lest we see many more uprising of the Naxals and the Maoists in the country that will ruin the Economy and progress of our nation..  It is the duty of the government to ensure that the quality and value of education is not eroded by any means and distractions  and  should be addressed properly in a manner that will not affect the future quality of generations that Education turns out?   Any delay in protecting the Educational sphere and encouraging the younger generations to take up studies and make a successful career  will find India displaced from the ambit of developing countries.   Education is the foremost yardstick  for any younger generation  to make a career and a good living  whereas  Sports is only an evolution that happens around development of country's economy! Education  leads to employment whereas Sports can not guarantee the same.   Will the education minister act fast to stop this erosion of values amongst the younger generations and  continue to  attract them more towards studies so that the growing economic power through Education remains?

Express Mall, Chennai

Express Mall is the best thing that has happened to Chennai in the recent past. The Mall is huge and quite spacious and has many of those branded shops and eateries besides a multiplex theatre which screens at least 6 different movies at the same time! There is a big revolution in the life style and one can spend the entire day doing things of one's choice and taste. The Mall owners come up with ideas to suit the current mood and occasion and erect symbols in the central hall. One such attraction was meant for the Valentine's day which was appreciated by many visitors. After a continuous and tiring walk in the Mall throughout the day, there are foot massage centres who can relax your foot and your mind by gentle massage by experts to rejuvenate you! There are food courts to cater to different tastes of Indian, western, Thai and Chinese food! The Mall is worth the visit even if you choose not to buy anything! The management of the Mall deserves all compliments for its neat look and appearance. The only one appeal to the management is to reduce the car park charges which is a whooping Rs 100/- to start with and can go up to Rs 250/- which makes the shopper feel ripped? The parking charges can be adjusted towards any purchases made in the Mall which will be in tune with the practice adopted by shopping Malls elsewhere in the country?

Music Programme at the Music academy, Chennai-an experience to remember!

20th february, 2011.
My heart and soul was feeling happy that I was going to attend a musical program at the Music academy. Being a Sunday, the roads were quite empty and the traffic was sombre.My early start from home ensured a car park within the premises of the academy! The evening program started with a Santoor vadhan by sh.Satish Vyas accompanied by Ram Mohan Mishra on the Tabla. Santoor is an instrument founded by the Indus valley civilisation dwellers and passed on to India. This Persian instrument when kindled produces such melodious notes of music that your heart starts jumping with joy like a Deer and dances within!  This was picked up well and nurtured by Pandit shiv Kumar sharma hailing from Kashmir and found its popularity and acceptance amongst the Indian classical music audience! The instrument is difficult to handle as it has  many strings to tune and play with utmost care and precision. Pandit Vyas payed Jhinjuti raga followed by Raga charukesi and both were captivating and provided absolute thrill to the lean audience who were scattered here and there! Following a short intermission of 10 minutes as announced by the organisers, the audience swelled a bit more to listen to Pandit Jasraj who started his musical fare with Raga Darvari which  is contained with melancholy and at certain points touches  the soul! The mastero presented raga Basant and brought a sense of color and enjoyment to the audience who were quite mesmerised with the cultured voice of the octogenarian performer! The audience got transported into trance when Pandit accompanied by Sh Ratan Mohan Sharma, his disciple sang a bhajan on Lord Krishna who was portrayed as a "Chor" meaning thief who stole Butter from the houses of gopikas around and went on to steal the heart of "Radhika"! Braje Vasantham, Navaneetha choram, Sri Krishna Shyamam, Krishna Krishna Shyamam, Manasa smarami..... The musical treat that flowed into the ears kept on ringing in the ears and minds for many hours!!
The Academy claims itself to be one of the oldest musical hall but lacks parking space. The Academy has not evolved to keep pace with time and has only about 30-40 parking lots which is totally cramped and people have to go to a neighbouring school to park their vehicles and walk back to the hall. The older generation who come in self driven cars find it difficult and sometimes are deprived of participation due to this constraint. The mosquito menace disturbs one and all during the concert due to which attention is diverted and one could  find many hands clapping without any relevance to the performance only to be realised that people were trying to kill the mosquito flying right in front of their eyes and nose!! It will be worthwhile for the Academy to seek the assistance of the super star Rajinikanth who vanquishes the entire clan of mosquitoes in his recent film "Robot" to give uninterrupted music to the lovers who gather at the academy!!!

Tirumala-Lord Venkateswara's abode

OM NAMO NARAYANAYA!  OM NAMO BHAGAVATHE VASUDEVAYA!!

Tirupathi is one place which is in the heart of all Hindus.  Every Hindu aspires to visit Tirupathi at least once in a life time to seek Lord Balaji's blessings.  I have been visiting Tirupathi regularly since 1981 sometimes with family and many times with friends and relatives who come to Chennai and express their desire to have the Darshan of the almighty Lord which takes me along with them.

Me and my wife decided to celebrate our wedding anniversary, every year at Tirupathi instead of spending time in the city and getting lured to "Partying" with acquaintances!  We have been lucky and blessed that we have been able to do so since the past several years.

we left our home for Tirupathi on the 11th February and reached Tirumala by evening.  We had made internet reservation for an accommodation and got a decent one with attached bath and toilet with flowing hot water facility.  Our Darshan was scheduled for the 12th early in the morning-"Suprabatha Darshanam".  We had to wake up at 1.30 am on the 12th(our marriage anniversary day) and proceed to Vaikuntam complex to join about 250 persons who had either purchased tickets or subscribed to some kind of donation scheme.  The security verification has been tightened and the officials scrutinise your identity before letting you proceed further.  The select crowd of about 250 persons are huddled into the sanctum-sanctorum and the gate locked for the Suprabatha seva to commence.  In the meantime, the temple authorities allow devotees to do Anga-Pradakshinam within the premises!  The devotes rearing to go roar in ecstasy and the whole ambiance is filled with loud chants in praise of the Lord!  Traditionally, the Lord is supposed to be awakened with the chants of Suprabhatham but in reality, the loud cries of devotees who perform Anga-Pradakshinam must be waking up the Lord much before!!  The tiny-tots who come with their parents or escorts get baffled with these loud cries which goes on unabated and cry out of fear adding to the confusion that the Lord may have?
I tried my level best to concentrate on the Suprabhatham chants but the commotion around made by devotees who adopt different methods to fulfill their vows and wishes by raising their vocal cords made things not only difficult but also scary fearing stampede that requires just a spark of fear from any quarter?  Well, these things have to end for the Lord has to look to other engagements too!  The devotees first the ladies and then the gentlemen  are queued up to go very near the Lord to have a glimpse of decorations that adorn the Lord!  The volunteers engaged by the temple show too much enthusiasm in pushing one and all without any conscience out of the sanctorum and some extend their palms secretly to fold the rupee notes offered by some devotees to allow them to stay at one spot for a little longer time to continue seeing the Lord!  I was amused to see a lady who had a small baby in arms transferred her to her husband who was in the queue so that the baby could  have one more darshan or glimpse of the Lord as she had just finished her chance seeing the Lord!  Finally, we emerge out of the temple with a satisfied heart and mind to have had the blessings of the Lord despite whatever has been said.


We return to our guest house named Balaji guest house tell the in-charge Mr Subramanian about our intention to vacate, he orders his man to go up and check the room (just to ensure that all the available facilities are intact).  Then he orders us with a stern face  to give a declaration that we have not left anything behind in the room which is over and above the printed instructions given by the Temple Board!  Once we finish these formalities, he orders to give Rs 100/- each to 3 of is staff who are around even at 5.30 am!  These men and women were never to be found when you checked in!! The supervisor or in-charge was clad in a rug from top to bottom and was half awake talking to us.  When I requested him to write it on the reservation slip about what he wanted us to do, he simply refused and gave back the reservation slip duly signed by him so that we could get the refund of deposit.

The Tirupathi Devasthanam could look into the following suggestions to make it a Devotee friendly place of pilgrimage:
1. The entire map of Tirumala with names of offices clearly marked can be displayed along with a road map so that devotees do not waste time locating the offices and places meant for various facilities.
2. Make Devotion a silent affair and allow other devotees to meditate and  concentrate on the Lord.
   (In Vaishno devi, the authorities have put requests to devotees not to shout chants but say it within themselves). warn devotees not to chant or shout loudly and instead maintain calm.
3. Put up prominent boards at all guest houses and choultries not to give any extra money to anyone and also give a specific phone number in case the pilgrims face any harassment by the staff.
4. Specify dress code for each darshan.  I was stopped by the security for wearing a pant and not a dhoti for Suprabhatham darshan which i have been doing since the past 9 years sometimes wearing pants too! At 2.15 am near the Vaikuntam complex, there was a man selling Dhotis for a premium and looking for you!!
5. Educate the staff to be courteous and polite and not to manhandle men and women specially when they have come with devotion to seek blessings of the Lord.
6. Sufficient toilets be built specially considering children and older persons in mind who stand in the queue for long hours and unable to control the nature's call.  Have seen many parents guiding their children to urinate and answer nature's call right in the middle of the halls where pilgrims wait for hours together making the entire place messed up and stinky.
7. It is unfortunate that such a mighty and rich organisation does not have an e mail address to register our complaints.  It is all there for booking sevas or making donations but nothing to accept complaints?

Hinduism is all about tolerance.  Tolerance comes along with discipline and  leads to peace. Peace is silence.  Praying in silence leads to peace!! Hindutva is peaceful co-existence??

Pt Jasraj's divine singing@Bangalore

I was divinely blessed to hear Pandit Jasraj at Bangalore's Chowdaiah Hall on the 30th january, 2011. Panditji who turned 84 a couple of days earlier enthralled the audience begining with recitals on Goddess Durga and Lord Shiva. The sanskrit slokas of Devi Stuthi and verses from Devi mahatmyam were rendered in such a manner that the entire audience got elevated to different sublime levels, immersed in Bhakti ras!! It was fun when Pandit Jasraj sang Happy Birthday in English to Gurumata Amma who celebrated her birth Day on that day! She refused to talk and chose to hear the mastero sing!! He was accompanied by accomplished artistes including Master Shashank on the flute. The entire programme was so captivating with Pandit's mastery over the Surs and Kalpana aalaap!! Raga Darvari brought tears arising out of Bhakthi Bhav. No doubt, Pandit Jasraj is no human but an incarnation of some divine, godly soul that could spread a feeling of happiness in all those who had gathered to hear the great human being! May god bless the great singer with many more years of reverberating performances that will fill the minds and hearts with absolute joy and happiness!!

Chowdaiah hall in Bangalore has maintained the ambiance and the sound system well since the past several years. The seating arrangements were meticulous and persons sitting in any of the rows could see the performing artiste and enjoy the evening of music.
The weather of Bangalore and the participating audience deserves compliments as it enhances the concept behind such programmes.

The final rendition of Pandit "Om Namo Bhagavathe Vasu devaya" is still ringing in the ears and the divinity touched heights when the audience joined him clapping to the beats and chanting the great sloka along with the artiste! It was a programme worth the life as it ushered in new rays of energy into one's inner soul.

Swamijis should rise above levels of humans and resist attraction towards wealth!

we are constantly getting lots of information about various swamijis and gurus starting their own Ashrams and cults and look for an opportunity to charge the gullible devotees and extract money out of them.  This system only leads to conversion of rich and affluent into poor and enrich the Swamijis and gurus who cleverly get all such inflows into their coffers and command wealth and in turn, power!  I have personally known some good families getting wrecked leading to separation of spouses and children thereby causing unpleasantness and unhappiness in one's life.  I am reminded of a friend of mine who was a civil engineer struggling to make a living in 70s.  Now, he is rolling in money and when I asked him the formula for his success, he said 30 years back, i had knowledge but no experience or money whereas the person for whom I worked had them.  Today, I have money and knowledge whereas the person for whom I worked has knowledge but no money!!!  This is the art of living in his terms and how true this could be?  The Swamijis and Gurus adopt the same methodology and techniques to strip the people of their wealth and accumulate them for themselves. People should understand that the preachings and teachings of Swamijis are all well known to each and every individual themselves and do not need any Swami to rekindle or refresh them.  It is sufficient if time is devoted to family and its members and try to find happiness in whatever they do.  Money should never be the criterion for any action.  Happiness should be the ultimate objective of your actions and objectives, ever.  This methodology is applicable to both the men folk and the women folk alike in every family.  There will be no necessity for any art of living classes or any satsangh if people understand this concept and be happy with whatever they have and not aspire for anything that is unreachable or not meant for them??  Finally, I would like to remind everyone that you start your day saying to yourself that you will be happy and today is the happiest day of my life!  with this positive note, you are bound to start everything positively!!