Once upon a time, there was a matador in Spain. He was the strongest and the greatest matador ever. Once, he had to face a bull. It was huge with red eyes and panting ready to tear men apart if they stand in its way. The matador gets into the arena. He waves the red cloth and the bull charges towards him.
The matador holds the bull by its horns. It throws him away. Undaunted, he again went and caught its horns and this time, took a sword and passed it through the bull's head killing it instantly. The crowd in the arena cheered.
Time went on and the matador went to africa for a vacation. There was this lion. he was huge with red eyes and was growling ready to tear mean apart if they stand in its way. The matador waves his red cloth by habit, the lion charges towards him and kills him instantly with his paw.
Moral of the Story : You can catch a bull by its horn, But a lion does not have a horn.
Thursday, February 25, 2010
Tuesday, February 16, 2010
Random Musings - A Random World
On this day, I was thinking about the random musings. Seems, I am not the only one who has random thoughts here. There are lots of things that are too random to describe. The world as it exists now, for one example.
I mean, who would have thought that the dinosaurs would be killed before the man was created. It was so random. Why would the large piece of land be splintered into 5 continents and left floating in a giant ball of water. And, the giant ball of water happens to be full of salt and is not fit to drink or do anything as a matter of fact. And again, there are over 9 planets in the solar system, why would only one of them be populated and that too with various kinds of people, different races, cultures, understandings. Everything seems so random to judge.
Is it ever possible for us to understand this kind of random behavior that is happening around us. Its so mind boggling. We may try to break everything down to a simple scientific term. But, it is not always possible. It is exactly this, that has driven man into fear of changing things. But again, the question arises, is all the changes good. This is more of a moral question or dilemma rather than a question.
For one thing, IMO, there is nothing called a good change or a bad change. There is change, its consequences. It is the way we interpret things makes it a good or bad one. And again, there is another moral dilemma in the things we describe as good or bad. How do you describe good things and bad things? The fact remains that these good things or bad things are actually subjected to a great scrutiny.
The freedom struggle for India was a good thing for Indian people or that is what the public perception was. But, it was bad from the British point of view. Whose opinion should we take? Ultimately, again it is the winner's side that won. if the british had won the battle and India still under British rule, we would be bashing Gandhi and Co for trying to disrupt the integrity of the empire and undermining the power of the queen.
Random!!! Random!!! Random!!!
p.s. I think this is a nice piece about why my title is Random Musings :)
I mean, who would have thought that the dinosaurs would be killed before the man was created. It was so random. Why would the large piece of land be splintered into 5 continents and left floating in a giant ball of water. And, the giant ball of water happens to be full of salt and is not fit to drink or do anything as a matter of fact. And again, there are over 9 planets in the solar system, why would only one of them be populated and that too with various kinds of people, different races, cultures, understandings. Everything seems so random to judge.
Is it ever possible for us to understand this kind of random behavior that is happening around us. Its so mind boggling. We may try to break everything down to a simple scientific term. But, it is not always possible. It is exactly this, that has driven man into fear of changing things. But again, the question arises, is all the changes good. This is more of a moral question or dilemma rather than a question.
For one thing, IMO, there is nothing called a good change or a bad change. There is change, its consequences. It is the way we interpret things makes it a good or bad one. And again, there is another moral dilemma in the things we describe as good or bad. How do you describe good things and bad things? The fact remains that these good things or bad things are actually subjected to a great scrutiny.
The freedom struggle for India was a good thing for Indian people or that is what the public perception was. But, it was bad from the British point of view. Whose opinion should we take? Ultimately, again it is the winner's side that won. if the british had won the battle and India still under British rule, we would be bashing Gandhi and Co for trying to disrupt the integrity of the empire and undermining the power of the queen.
Random!!! Random!!! Random!!!
p.s. I think this is a nice piece about why my title is Random Musings :)
Monday, February 15, 2010
Random Musings - Religion
Seems day my random musings gets very random. Today I was wondering about the world that was shaped by the religions that we seem today. Even if we accept it or not, It remains a fact that all the terrorist bombings these days are carried out in the name of the almighty. It wants to rethink about the definition of god. Not that I am an atheist, which I am definitely not. I just want to define god from a neutral perspective. But first of all, it is necessary to look at all the gods around and the situation on which the gods were created or atleast some hypothesis about the situtations.
Lets look at the Hinduism first. This is what I belong to or atleast I think so. But Hinduism is not just a religion. It is a celebration of life and the victors in life. This is the basic principle of Hinduism. Celebrate life and live it fully If anyone does it, regardless of caste, creed or religion, he is an true Hindu. Many of us may think that I am just randomly talking something and that Hinduism is more than life and it is larger than life. Well, its their wish. This is Hinduism according to me and this is what I follow.
But, it is not without any basis. Just look at the Hindu festivals. Sankaranti is celebrated to thank the sun for his rays without which production of rice or wheat would not have been possible. It worships cows, which give protein rich milk and the infinite number of by products which come out of the milk. Look at each of the festival and you will be able to see the religion celebrates the natural causes that simulated the event to occur. This is the basic essence of Hinduism.
Lets look at Islam. It is not an easy thing to live in the harsh desert. Think about a life in a hot place with endless sand dunes. This is the background that Islam was created. The harsh desert life needed for harsh discipline for anyone to survive and that's exactly what Islam did. It laid out conditions for its followers to live disciplined. It said, follow these rules, not only you survive, you help others too. I mean, which other religion calls for a month of fasting to understand the needs of poor. But one of my personal opinion about Islam is, the conditions since the religion was created has changed a lot and there can be some few major changes to keep up with the modern times we are living in.
Christianity, the religion of masses during the roman period. The similarities between Christianity and Islam are mind boggling, but we should not forget the fact that the Romans had strong trade ties with Arabs and this could have influenced the religion largely due to these ties. But according to my view point, both are brotherhood religions which fight over each other for supremacy, even though both of them advocate the same thing. "There is only one god". And the blood and gory of the crusades and the medieval period of the Europe makes it mind boggling. but being the youngest religion, it should be applauded for holding out and making it through troubled times and still kicking.
There are numerous minor religions all over the world. The funny thing is that many of these religions have changed track and now have left their meaning altogether, they are not the way it was. And that changes this world into a mess which it is not. Maybe a minor side effect of global warming. Anyway, when a knife is in the hand's of a chef, it produces the most amazing cuisine in the world, but the same knife in the hand's of a murderer makes the world a mess. Religion is exactly that.
p.s. These are entirely my opinions and just random musings. No offense intended for any person of any faith, race , caste or creed.
Lets look at the Hinduism first. This is what I belong to or atleast I think so. But Hinduism is not just a religion. It is a celebration of life and the victors in life. This is the basic principle of Hinduism. Celebrate life and live it fully If anyone does it, regardless of caste, creed or religion, he is an true Hindu. Many of us may think that I am just randomly talking something and that Hinduism is more than life and it is larger than life. Well, its their wish. This is Hinduism according to me and this is what I follow.
But, it is not without any basis. Just look at the Hindu festivals. Sankaranti is celebrated to thank the sun for his rays without which production of rice or wheat would not have been possible. It worships cows, which give protein rich milk and the infinite number of by products which come out of the milk. Look at each of the festival and you will be able to see the religion celebrates the natural causes that simulated the event to occur. This is the basic essence of Hinduism.
Lets look at Islam. It is not an easy thing to live in the harsh desert. Think about a life in a hot place with endless sand dunes. This is the background that Islam was created. The harsh desert life needed for harsh discipline for anyone to survive and that's exactly what Islam did. It laid out conditions for its followers to live disciplined. It said, follow these rules, not only you survive, you help others too. I mean, which other religion calls for a month of fasting to understand the needs of poor. But one of my personal opinion about Islam is, the conditions since the religion was created has changed a lot and there can be some few major changes to keep up with the modern times we are living in.
Christianity, the religion of masses during the roman period. The similarities between Christianity and Islam are mind boggling, but we should not forget the fact that the Romans had strong trade ties with Arabs and this could have influenced the religion largely due to these ties. But according to my view point, both are brotherhood religions which fight over each other for supremacy, even though both of them advocate the same thing. "There is only one god". And the blood and gory of the crusades and the medieval period of the Europe makes it mind boggling. but being the youngest religion, it should be applauded for holding out and making it through troubled times and still kicking.
There are numerous minor religions all over the world. The funny thing is that many of these religions have changed track and now have left their meaning altogether, they are not the way it was. And that changes this world into a mess which it is not. Maybe a minor side effect of global warming. Anyway, when a knife is in the hand's of a chef, it produces the most amazing cuisine in the world, but the same knife in the hand's of a murderer makes the world a mess. Religion is exactly that.
p.s. These are entirely my opinions and just random musings. No offense intended for any person of any faith, race , caste or creed.
Sunday, February 14, 2010
Random Musings - Equality among people
I believe that, I can change the world from what it is to a more secular, lovable society and I realize that to achieve this, there is a lots of things to be done. But, change should come within and not from outside as many of use expect it to come from. We have to change ourselves for the better of things to become a better society. This post is just about me and my random thinking about equality, change and a better future.
Last century saw the rise and fall of a very powerful theology. The theology itself was very wrongly understood and was condemned by the whole of the world. Perhaps, its not the world that should be blamed but the rulers of the countries that followed these theology that should be blamed. The theology is called Communism. Communism as a theory holds that all the men are equal. They are not different by race or culture or language or religion. In fact, that was why religion was banned in communism. Because, they bring in differences between people. But, somewhere in the late 1980's the world started to accept communism as a whole.
Its hard to believe, but all the anti discriminatory laws, the propaganda for treatment of all human beings as the same is what communism wanted and it has been achieved to a certain extent by the western countries. Though, it is still not accepted in the east, particularly the Asian countries. We have lots of arguments against equality among humans. The very basic being, men and women are not the same. Now, I am not a feminist nor a radical. But, i am a very basic human being, who finds it hard to see another human being as a different one, even though, there is a change in the sexuality here.
I mean come on, they have proved their mettle everywhere. Right from the battlefields of Israel to the International Space Station. They have left a foot print everywhere but still we can find lot of discrimination against women. Again more so in the east than in the west. Now, everyone has to change for a better beginning. But here is where I find a lots of road blocks. I see people who are against it. They say, that women are too dumb to do some duties and they should stay at home. They have to change.
But we also have to consider the different types of people also. To force something down some people is the sure way for some purpose to be defeated. We cannot force anyone or anything for that matter. But, will the change come. Yes, It will. When will it come, maybe another 150 or 200 years. Or maybe at a much accelerated pace, 50 to 100 years. But, yes it will come. But we have to wait for it.
Until then, You have to change yourself. Treat your opposite sex with the utmost respect. That is the very first thing you should do. Then make it your own way. As for me, I have changed a lot from where I was in the past three years. It may not be a lot. But it is better than nothing. I hope to be a completely transformed man, when I graduate. Will it happen, Only time will tell it. Until then, I will change.
Last century saw the rise and fall of a very powerful theology. The theology itself was very wrongly understood and was condemned by the whole of the world. Perhaps, its not the world that should be blamed but the rulers of the countries that followed these theology that should be blamed. The theology is called Communism. Communism as a theory holds that all the men are equal. They are not different by race or culture or language or religion. In fact, that was why religion was banned in communism. Because, they bring in differences between people. But, somewhere in the late 1980's the world started to accept communism as a whole.
Its hard to believe, but all the anti discriminatory laws, the propaganda for treatment of all human beings as the same is what communism wanted and it has been achieved to a certain extent by the western countries. Though, it is still not accepted in the east, particularly the Asian countries. We have lots of arguments against equality among humans. The very basic being, men and women are not the same. Now, I am not a feminist nor a radical. But, i am a very basic human being, who finds it hard to see another human being as a different one, even though, there is a change in the sexuality here.
I mean come on, they have proved their mettle everywhere. Right from the battlefields of Israel to the International Space Station. They have left a foot print everywhere but still we can find lot of discrimination against women. Again more so in the east than in the west. Now, everyone has to change for a better beginning. But here is where I find a lots of road blocks. I see people who are against it. They say, that women are too dumb to do some duties and they should stay at home. They have to change.
But we also have to consider the different types of people also. To force something down some people is the sure way for some purpose to be defeated. We cannot force anyone or anything for that matter. But, will the change come. Yes, It will. When will it come, maybe another 150 or 200 years. Or maybe at a much accelerated pace, 50 to 100 years. But, yes it will come. But we have to wait for it.
Until then, You have to change yourself. Treat your opposite sex with the utmost respect. That is the very first thing you should do. Then make it your own way. As for me, I have changed a lot from where I was in the past three years. It may not be a lot. But it is better than nothing. I hope to be a completely transformed man, when I graduate. Will it happen, Only time will tell it. Until then, I will change.
Tuesday, February 9, 2010
My time in US of A - part 2 : Culture Shocked
The second part of any migration process is the culture shock. If you are not familiar with culture shock, I recommend you go over, Geert Hoefsted in his book , Cultures and Organizations : Software of the mind. To put it in short, you get shocked by the changes around you like someone not peeing in the corner street and not littering the roads. Sarcasm apart, this part was a big shock to me. One thing, I didn't experience any such sensation ( If you count out the spine tingling, the moment the plane landed on the US soil, but it is more of a mental sensation rather than a culture shock). This could be due to the fact that, there were more Indians in the airport lounge than there were americans and because, the people who picked me up from the college were also Indians. You could tell that Culture Shock decided to shock me with a non cultural shock instead.
Really, you don't feel that you are in foreign land here in UHCL. There are a lots of Indians around anytime. Infact, the classes have utmost 10 americans and rest of all, from India and Vietnam. There is an inside joke in the university that they are going to change the university name to University of Hyderabad instead. Jokes apart. Life was not tough to start with. The guys I stay with are all from around Tamilnadu and surprisingly, most of them are from the same university. And my stay begins in Houston, with no culture shock, which is itself a shock to me.
Life in the US is not exactly as you could imagine back in India. If you are a L1 or a H1 visa holder, you have got a SSN which makes your life a lot easier than the F1 guys. Man, life is one tough son of a bitch for us. You dont havea SSN, hence, you are cut off from all the facilities US has to offer. There is also another thing called credit history, which is a very important thing for all the financial transactions in the states. And the amount of time, the guys have for their business and private life is also amazing. They are generally very well organized than most in India.
One another thing about US of America is the no culture perception. But, one should realize that US has not just one culture but a confluence of cultures brought to it by its immigrants. US is actually culturally rich. The next time you go on and say about how US has no culture, think again. You are welcome to practice any culture you see befit unless it causes widespread destruction. But generally, the immigrant groups follow their own within themselves.
For Indian people coming to the US. You have lots of other Indian people here. Atleast in Texas. Particularly Houston hosts the 3rd biggest Indian population in the United States. So there are lots of Indian restaurants here. You can get everything you get in India here. All I can tell you is that you won't be getting homesick anytime in a while. The only thing you will miss is your family, if you are away from it. But, that's ok with the technology available today, even that is eliminated by video conferencing and blah blah blah.
So, that brings me to the end of this, hopefully, I will be writing about my college experiences soon.
One another thing about US of America is the no culture perception. But, one should realize that US has not just one culture but a confluence of cultures brought to it by its immigrants. US is actually culturally rich. The next time you go on and say about how US has no culture, think again. You are welcome to practice any culture you see befit unless it causes widespread destruction. But generally, the immigrant groups follow their own within themselves.
For Indian people coming to the US. You have lots of other Indian people here. Atleast in Texas. Particularly Houston hosts the 3rd biggest Indian population in the United States. So there are lots of Indian restaurants here. You can get everything you get in India here. All I can tell you is that you won't be getting homesick anytime in a while. The only thing you will miss is your family, if you are away from it. But, that's ok with the technology available today, even that is eliminated by video conferencing and blah blah blah.
So, that brings me to the end of this, hopefully, I will be writing about my college experiences soon.
Friday, January 29, 2010
My time in the US of A - part 1
I felt that I should document everything that is going to happen in US. Why? Because, I feel like that I am in a learning curve and I have to document it. You do not know how you will be, or what l going to do in the future. But, if I document these days, I will be able to look back at this part of my life and would be able to look at where I am standing. Besides I always wanted to write a book. So, I want everything documented. I know I am now in the US for 3 weeks, But I can still remember the last 3 weeks.
One tip for everyone is that, Do not go to Saravana Bhavan on the day you have the flight, Even if you do, please eat lightly. I didn't and it showed during the flight to Houston. The night when I left to the Houston from Chennai is deeply etched inside me. My mom was really brave to have held her nerve until I left, and I am sure how much she would have felt so much after I left her for immigration.
I was inside, first time as a passenger instead of someone who just came to give sendoffs. And it felt good. My family along with two of my friends, Dinaesh and Dhanasundar were there. There was a little part of me that was really afraid. I went to the check in counter, but was sent back to get my bags scanned. And there was this really long line and by the time I got my bags, wrapped it with polythene(yes, you heard me right!! For 200 Rs. you get baggage insurance as well.) and went to the check in queue, there was this long queue outside. And as I completed my check-in, the immigration check for my flight was called. So after waving everyone goodbye, I moved in to the immigration.
The funny thing was I was wearing my jacket which weighed almost 5 Kgs. And I was sweating like a pig in Chennai airport. The immigration official even joked about it(to be frank, I was sweating as she had the authority to hold me back in India, I didn't tell her that, I blamed it on the leather jacket). And the security near the gates were also very strict, given the recent terrorist activities. I sat near the gate exhausted and emotionally feeling low. But it was ok. I was going to US on a purpose and being away from the family was no big deal either.
The flight to Dubai from Chennai was my first flight of over an hour(my previous flights were to and from Hyderabad, both just 45 minutes). The ICE was good in Emirates, but the breakfast served(Yes, at 3 o clock in the morning. My tip, don't eat just because it is free unless you really want it.). We were given a menu but later were provided only the vegetarian option because everything else was over. Bad flight management, if you ask me. But anyway, I tried watching some movies, but I couldn't focus. So after juggling a few movies, I settled with G.I.Joe for the trip. And nothing much happened until Dubai.
Dubai Airport. Man, it was really kick ass. Compared to Dubai Airport, Chennai airport is really a dwarf. It was so big and there was a big duty free market in Dubai, where you get everything from Cigarettes to Cars. And it took me an hour to reach my departure gate, even though I walked really fast without stopping(OK, i am exaggerating, but it took me more than 20 minutes and you have to cross a security check similar to one that was in India). And after another 16 hours of flight which was in an elliptical path. I reached Houston!!!!!
One tip for everyone is that, Do not go to Saravana Bhavan on the day you have the flight, Even if you do, please eat lightly. I didn't and it showed during the flight to Houston. The night when I left to the Houston from Chennai is deeply etched inside me. My mom was really brave to have held her nerve until I left, and I am sure how much she would have felt so much after I left her for immigration.
I was inside, first time as a passenger instead of someone who just came to give sendoffs. And it felt good. My family along with two of my friends, Dinaesh and Dhanasundar were there. There was a little part of me that was really afraid. I went to the check in counter, but was sent back to get my bags scanned. And there was this really long line and by the time I got my bags, wrapped it with polythene(yes, you heard me right!! For 200 Rs. you get baggage insurance as well.) and went to the check in queue, there was this long queue outside. And as I completed my check-in, the immigration check for my flight was called. So after waving everyone goodbye, I moved in to the immigration.
The funny thing was I was wearing my jacket which weighed almost 5 Kgs. And I was sweating like a pig in Chennai airport. The immigration official even joked about it(to be frank, I was sweating as she had the authority to hold me back in India, I didn't tell her that, I blamed it on the leather jacket). And the security near the gates were also very strict, given the recent terrorist activities. I sat near the gate exhausted and emotionally feeling low. But it was ok. I was going to US on a purpose and being away from the family was no big deal either.
The flight to Dubai from Chennai was my first flight of over an hour(my previous flights were to and from Hyderabad, both just 45 minutes). The ICE was good in Emirates, but the breakfast served(Yes, at 3 o clock in the morning. My tip, don't eat just because it is free unless you really want it.). We were given a menu but later were provided only the vegetarian option because everything else was over. Bad flight management, if you ask me. But anyway, I tried watching some movies, but I couldn't focus. So after juggling a few movies, I settled with G.I.Joe for the trip. And nothing much happened until Dubai.
Dubai Airport. Man, it was really kick ass. Compared to Dubai Airport, Chennai airport is really a dwarf. It was so big and there was a big duty free market in Dubai, where you get everything from Cigarettes to Cars. And it took me an hour to reach my departure gate, even though I walked really fast without stopping(OK, i am exaggerating, but it took me more than 20 minutes and you have to cross a security check similar to one that was in India). And after another 16 hours of flight which was in an elliptical path. I reached Houston!!!!!
Sunday, January 3, 2010
Today is not today but yesterday
I found this strange phenomenon when i was viewing the last two posts. I posted them on 3rd Jan IST but strangely they were displayed as posted on Jan 2nd. Wierd!!!
I have been entangled with Medieval 2 for second straight day now. Been playing Catholic christian factions and in the course of the events, you get to realize medieval kings were never really enjoying life, as many of us assume these days. It is so challenging doing so much tasks and it is no wonder kings often failed to make a mark. You had to be great even to be a king, from there you had to be really really magnificient to become a good king and even more magnificient to be a great king and god like if you have to make a mark.
The gameplay mechanics in medieval 2 is amazing. Playing as a catholic faction, you piss off the Pope and you get your ass kicked by all the other Catholic Christian factions. Check this out, i was playing as the faction Venice and the current Pope was from Hungary, whom I did not support in the papal elections(I had 3 Cardinal votes in the College of Cardinals as the previous pope was from my faction). Now I invade an Hungarian settlement which the Hungarians captured from my ally The Byzantine Empire and Whoosh!!, The Pope sends me an stern warning that if i attack Hungary one more time I would be excommunicated and the Hungarian Army shows up with a huge army at my gates but they do not lay siege and just stand there choking up the trade. Talk about Church Politics. Sure enough, I was excommunicated and I had to wait another 15 turns(30 years) before I could reconcile into the Christian world. There is a lots of twists and turns in the story and the game is extremely addictive.
Well, having said that, there goes another day with nothing to do and just staring at my computer. I will say, Just another day at the office then.
I have been entangled with Medieval 2 for second straight day now. Been playing Catholic christian factions and in the course of the events, you get to realize medieval kings were never really enjoying life, as many of us assume these days. It is so challenging doing so much tasks and it is no wonder kings often failed to make a mark. You had to be great even to be a king, from there you had to be really really magnificient to become a good king and even more magnificient to be a great king and god like if you have to make a mark.
The gameplay mechanics in medieval 2 is amazing. Playing as a catholic faction, you piss off the Pope and you get your ass kicked by all the other Catholic Christian factions. Check this out, i was playing as the faction Venice and the current Pope was from Hungary, whom I did not support in the papal elections(I had 3 Cardinal votes in the College of Cardinals as the previous pope was from my faction). Now I invade an Hungarian settlement which the Hungarians captured from my ally The Byzantine Empire and Whoosh!!, The Pope sends me an stern warning that if i attack Hungary one more time I would be excommunicated and the Hungarian Army shows up with a huge army at my gates but they do not lay siege and just stand there choking up the trade. Talk about Church Politics. Sure enough, I was excommunicated and I had to wait another 15 turns(30 years) before I could reconcile into the Christian world. There is a lots of twists and turns in the story and the game is extremely addictive.
Well, having said that, there goes another day with nothing to do and just staring at my computer. I will say, Just another day at the office then.
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