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The monk who continues to inspire through the ages

9/15/2014

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Picture
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Teachings_and_philosophy_of_Swami_Vivekananda
PictureThe author playing the role of Vivekananda at the Delaware Hindu Temple
Swami Vivekananda the monk who addressed the Parliament of World Religions in Chicago in 1893 with a simple but amazing speech that earned him a standing ovation just after the opening words:
“Sisters and Brothers of America…”, continues to inspire millions across the globe, with his message about the oneness of existence, the divinity of the soul, and the harmony of religions.

 When I was a kid I admired his great oratory skills but it was much later that I realized the remarkable contribution he had made to the world by inspiring a band of missionaries, dedicating their lives to
serving the poor and downtrodden, helping eradicate illiteracy among women, giving the rich a life purpose of finding happiness by serving others. The latter was a pursuit of happiness that material pleasures could not provide. 

I was extremely fortunate to be asked to help out by playing the role of Vivekananda at short notice, in a skit at the Delaware Hindu temple, when a professional actor who was originally invited to
play the role, could not make it on the occasion of the 150th birth anniversary event.

Just after I had valiantly accepted to do the role – I realized that I had less than a week left before the event. All of a sudden I felt a sense of panic looking at the script that I had been given to
memorize. When was the last time I had memorized anything? Except maybe login
passwords, and I manage to forget even those. Not to mention the nervousness of
playing the role of such a strong historic personality that almost everyone
respects and has a strong preconceived image of. And the uncertainty
of the few virtual rehearsals with the other participants. And of course the
unwieldiness of the costume. Slowly it dawned on me that I had made a huge
mistake by accepting the role.
But as I slept over it, the idea felt less like a mistake and more like a nice and juicy challenge that I was going to enjoy cracking through. It was not so bad after all. I mean if I didn’t remember
my lines, I was going to “wing it” anyway. Many years of singing and dancing in
front of all kinds of audiences with boring PowerPoint slides, should at least
keep me standing on my feet till the end. I told myself if people didn’t like
it, it was their problem, not mine. Having convinced myself that this was
actually a good situation I was in, I started reading Romain Rolland’s book on
Vivekananda’s life and began rehearsing the script in the morning hours during
my otherwise boring workouts. 

As I read about the influence Vivekananda had especially in America and Europe, an impact great enough to inspire some of them to devote their lives to the upliftment of the poor and to enhancing
the lives of poor illiterate women, I realized that Vivekananda had diligently
followed his own teachings – he had devoted an infinite amount of energy,
enthusiasm, daring and patience, to accomplish the great deeds. 
 
It is truly amazing how he could inspire so many people towards a common cause. For example he met Ms Greenstidel in New York who was so inspired that later she became Sister Christine and joined the
Mission in India. He met Ms Margaret Nobel in London who later became a sincere and staunch disciple, assumed the name of Sister Nivedita and helped run schools for poor
women.
There were many others such as Mr & Mrs Sevier, Mr Sturdy, Mr Goodwin, Ms Henrietta Muller - all of them followed Vivekananda back to India and devoted their lives and their resources to the Mission. 
 
With the support of my family and the encouragement of my friends - the skit was a great success. All the lines were delivered smoothly. The synchronization with the  participants was perfect. The costume was a big hit. People walked up to congratulate us. 

As I changed back into regular clothes, I wondered to myself - All this happened more than a hundred years ago. Is Vivekananda’s message relevant today?

 Well, the world may have changed and will continue to change, but the teachings of Vivekananda (Vedanta) are relevant even today. His message is simple:
- Be strong and steadfast in your journey, be prepared to weather any passing storm
- Aim for the highest, and you shall reach the highest 
- Be a hero, always say ‘I have no  fear’ 
- The greatest religion is to be true to your own nature. Have faith in yourselves!

 As we witness a great deal of violence and unrest in the world, I think back
to the immediate relevance today of Vivekananda’s speech 120 years ago at the
Parliament of World Religions. Here is how he had ended his great
speech:

 “Sectarianism, bigotry, and its horrible descendant, fanaticism, have long possessed this
beautiful earth. They have filled the earth with violence, drenched it often and
often with human blood, destroyed civilization, and sent whole nations to
despair. Had it not been for these horrible demons, human society would be far
more advanced than it is now. But their time is come; and I fervently hope that
the bell that tolled this morning in honor of this convention may be the
death-knell of all fanaticism, of all persecutions with the sword or with the
pen, and of all uncharitable feelings between persons wending their way to the
same goal.”

Picture
http://advaitaashrama.org
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From Palace to Prison: The Bridge of Sighs

8/14/2014

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Picture
View from inside the Bridge of Sighs, Source: Chatterjee Albums
“Look that’s where we were standing yesterday!” I exclaimed
pointing through the stone grills of the windows while crossing inside the
covered Bridge of Sighs in Venice. It was a beautiful view of Venice through the
peep-holes between the stone bars of the little windows. One could see dozens of
tourists outside taking pictures of this famous white limestone bridge. Many
  were viewing it while standing on the Ponte della Paglia (another bridge) just
  like we had done the previous day. What a fine example of bridge architecture
  and what an amazing difference of perspective from inside and outside, I
  thought to myself.

 The Bridge of Sighs is a beautiful covered bridge arching high
above the canal, connecting the Doge’s Palace to the Prison. It was built around
the year 1600 to connect the interrogation rooms in the Palace to the new
prison that had been built across the river. The most senior elected officials
of Venice resided in the Palace. The Palace has preserved the various chambers
and the Doge’s apartments including the great works of art on the ceilings and
the walls. 

The old prison cells in the ground floor of the Palace were
found inadequate, so a new prison was built that had more light and was better
ventilated. The convicts who were sentenced would cross the bridge to the new
prison. It is believed that the bridge got its name as prisoners would “sigh” as
they got one last glimpse of beautiful Venice through the windows of the
bridge.
Picture
View of the Bridge of Sighs from outside, Source: Chatterjee albums
Venice is perhaps the most beautiful and the most romantic city
in Europe. A group of 118 islands separated by canals and linked by bridges, it
is built miraculously on a marshy lagoon. With a great history of Renaissance
art and world leading commerce, Venice has been sinking 4 inches every century.
It is listed as a World Heritage site. 

The British poet Lord Byron who lived in Italy for 7 years, once
wrote: "I stood in Venice on the Bridge of Sighs, a palace and prison on each
hand". As per legend - if a couple kisses under this bridge on a gondola at
sunset, as the bells of St Mark’s Campanile toll, they would be granted eternal
love! 

Is the bridge named after the sigh-ing of the prisoners or the
sigh-ing of the lovers?!

 It is hard to tell which version is the real reason for the
naming of the bridge. Perhaps both versions are accurate and it really depends
on your position with respect to the bridge. One could be inside the enclosed
bridge sighing while looking at beautiful Venice through the stone bars, or one
could be outside on the river floating under the bridge on a gondola sighing in
a romantic mood. 

Many movies have been shot in Venice over the years. In the 1979
romantic comedy “A Little Romance” starring Laurence Olivier, based on the novel
E=mc2 Mon Amour, a French boy and an American girl journey to Venice, where they
hope to seek eternal love under the Bridge of Sighs. Laurence Olivier, one of
the greatest English actors, was 72 at the time of the movie and he played the
kind but seasoned pick pocketeer who shares the legend of the Bridge of Sighs
with the unsuspecting young boy and girl. Incidentally, Laurence Olivier acted
in another Venice based movie when he played Shylock in the 1973 drama “The
Merchant of Venice” based on William Shakespeare’s famous
play.

 The super hit 1964 Bollywood movie “Sangam”, starring Raj Kapoor
and Vyjayanthimala, was shot in Venice. The duo are shown spending a perfect
honeymoon together, playing with the pigeons on St Mark’s square in one scene,
floating on the grand canal past the Doge’s palace on a gondola, in another
scene. It was Raj Kapoor’s first color film, and this movie started the
Bollywood trend of shooting song sequences in scenic foreign places. Raj Kapoor
attracted a world-wide audience. “Desperado Square”, a 1992 movie from Israel
pays tribute to Raj Kapoor’s movie “Sangam” as the characters reminisce “the
show man”.

 Coming back to the Bridge of Sighs, it is possible that the
prisoner, who sighed while crossing the bridge, saw through the windows his own
prior youthful self, basking in the bright freedom outside.  

It is quite possible that the prisoner worried about his future,
sighing at the view and envying the people outside who seemed to be enjoying the
world at that moment. The people outside, perhaps not knowing that they were
being watched, may have worried that the perfect fleeting moment was passing too
soon, sighing as they looked up and wondered at the timelessness of the bridge. 
 
It is hard to tell who is not a prisoner. 

But the bridge remains the same: beautiful, distant, mysterious.  

Picture
Bollywood actress Vyjayanthimala in 1964 movie Sangam, Source: www.bollywood501.com
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Rome-in' Pick Pockets

7/31/2014

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Picture
The Coliseum in Rome, Source: Chatterjee Albums
“Heyyy…where’s my wallet???!!!” I exclaimed in a high decibel 
voice as I suddenly felt my left front pocket to be much lighter than usual. I
realized that my wallet was missing. We had just entered the noisy and crowded
Metro train at the Rome Termini station. It was a hot and humid Friday evening
in the month of July, and the train was packed with peak hour commuting traffic.
In a wild movement filled with panic I spun around slapping my hands on my
pockets. But there was no wallet to be found. The wallet had cash, credit cards,
keys and ID. Oh Gawd. This couldn’t be happening to me. 
 
In my delirious state of mind, I did notice two people step off
the train as the automatic doors closed. Two innocent looking young people who
could not board the train due to the traffic. Or so it seemed. But most probably
they were two pickpockets working in tandem, who had just targeted a weird
looking tourist. Should I try to stop the train? Should I inform the  police?

 I had experienced a different kind of pick pocketing earlier
that week, when I received a very rude email from the Rome hotel reservation
while we were still in Florence. It said that our hotel reservation was
cancelled due to some credit card issues, and that I needed to rebook the rooms
at the current rates, which were 30% higher than the rate that I had originally
purchased them for. And if I did not rebook the rooms, they would still keep
the non-refundable deposit anyway. I had no option but to rebook the rooms at
the same hotel as it was very late to find another comparable hotel. Before I
could let myself analyze the situation any further – I said to myself in a
funny voice: Hello! They already have our non-refundable deposit! 
 
While giving my new credit card details on the phone, I had
shared a piece of my mind with the manager at the desk. Without mincing any
words I told her that I thought this whole thing was nothing but daylight
robbery. And that I was so upset that I was going to make sure this was known in
all possible internet chat forums and travel websites. This was even worse than
pick pocketing I had said. 

At least the pick pocketeers know they are stealing and they run
away from the scene. They do not stand there brazenly to tell you on your face
that you are a tourist and by the time you bring a case against them, you would
leave the country, and the case would be dismissed. 
 
Well guess what – when we checked into the hotel, there was a 3
page letter of apology and we were informed that the earlier rate was going to
be applied. Hah!

Picture
http://myths101.tumblr.com/hermes-was-the-greek-god-of-theives
In Greek mythology the Gods have many different roles. Hermes is
not only the Thief, but also the Merchant, the Shepherd and the Athlete to name
a few of his varied roles. Since Hermes stole the cattle belonging to his elder
brother Apollo, myth has it that he is the God of the thieves. However there is
a lot of debate as to whether Hermes was really adept in trickery and that the
stealing part was only a manifestation of his cunningness! In “Hermes the Thief”
Norman Brown argues that Hermes has mental prowess as opposed to physical
strength, he is a cunning trickster, and a “hero” of stealthy appropriation. 
 
Oh well – if stealthy appropriation is heroic then stealing
doesn’t seem to be that bad then, or is it? Can certain special circumstances
justify the act of stealing? Ah, this is so  confusing.

In the movie “Mission Impossible” Ethan Hunt (played by Tom
Cruise) is an agent working on a mission. When things go wrong, he has to
"steal" confidential material from the headquarters of the CIA. Remember the
catchy music when he is in the midst of stealing, while suspended from the roof
into a heavily guarded CIA fortress?! Well, that is acceptable one might say due
to the circumstances. 

I am reminded of the speech I heard from a glorified ex-thief at
a corporate event. It was given by Nick Leeson, the Rogue Trader who caused the
biggest financial scandal of the 20th century. He caused the collapse of Barings
Bank while trading in Singapore with an un-monitored slush fund that nobody in
the bank knew or cared about. Nick was sentenced to six and half years in a
Singapore jail. Nick’s story triggered a movie “Rogue Trader” written and
directed by James Dearden, starring Ewan McGregor and Anna Friel. It was
released one month prior to Nick's release from prison. 

Nick has not only survived this episode in his life, he has
thrived based on this experience. People need his advice more than ever. As the
recent Financial Crisis showed, and as Enron and WorldCom have shown, the
business world is full of loopholes that are the target of rogue traders. And an
ex-rogue trader could be the best advisor to try and help close these loopholes.

Nick now lives happily in Ireland with a second wife and three
children. His experience was so valuable that he was appointed CEO of a company.
He stepped down after 5 years and now he is a speaker at conferences advising
organizations on governance, risk-management and compliance!

Moral of the story – Rogues can redeem themselves, and can make
a ton of money while doing so.

What the pick pocketeers can physically steal is perhaps just a
rounding error compared to what white collar criminals steal through rogue
trading in financial markets. Compared to these white collar crimes, pick
pocketing is perhaps just the “icing on the take”! 
 
“Look...that is your wallet!” said someone next to me. The train
had just stopped at a station and many people had disembarked. With less people
around I now looked clearly at the floor of the train, and sure as ever, my
wallet was lying there on the side. It was lying half open with one of the
credit cards loosely falling out of it. 

I swooped down like an angry bird and recovered my prized wallet
from the floor, dusting it, caressing it, comforting it. All was intact – as I
looked inside the wallet to my utmost relief. Apparently the pick pocketeer had
panicked and thrown the wallet on the floor before stepping off the train,
especially when I had clapped my pockets wildly, and started creating a hue and
cry.

Picture
http://www.digitalspy.com
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The Joys of an Amish Lifestyle

6/15/2014

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Picturewww.femonite.com
“Who’s next?” exclaimed the man at the counter. I couldn’t help  but notice his stoic expression.

 I was standing in line for the chocolate mousse donuts at the bakery in the Amish Farmer’s Market at Mullica Hill. The Amish man at the  counter had a long beard but no mustache (perhaps because mustaches are  historically associated with the military and the Amish are against violence of  any kind); his hair was blunt cut and combed front in bangs. He wore a white  apron, had a humble bearing and a modest look. Although there were a dozen  people ahead of me, the line moved swiftly and I was at the counter in just a  few minutes.

 The Amish Farmer’s Market is an impressive display of good home  grown food, hard work, strong discipline and a great attitude of sharing
nature’s wealth. The Amish are some of the world’s best farmers and their food  is absolutely fantastic. They are tradition bound people who generally do not  use electricity or the automotive and they try to avoid all “progressive” new  technologies, for fear that this might make one less dependent on the
community.

Where did these Amish people come from? 
 
In the midst of religious upheaval in sixteenth century Europe,  there were many challengers to the Roman Church, one group preached the Bible in
the language of the peasants and spread the notion that faith is all you need to  receive the graces of God. This group was called the Anabaptists (meaning  “rebaptizers”) and after their leader Menno Simons, they were nicknamed  “Mennonites”. In 1693, a young Mennonite called Jacob Amman who felt the church was losing its purity formed a new Christian fellowship. His followers were nicknamed “Amish”. The Amish began migrating to North America around the 18th century as a consequence of religious wars, poverty and persecution.

For over 450 years the Amish have refused to go to war. They have sometimes gone to prison rather than kill a human being. The Amish strongly
believe in simple living and the satisfaction brought by hard work. They believe in the importance of community and deference to others. This is certainly the opposite of the mainstream American culture of individualism. In fact, the Amish church forbids posing for photos, as it might lead to personal vanity! 
 
I wonder what has held the Amish together for so long. How does a group of people stick to its beliefs and forego the convenient lifestyle ushered in by new technology?

The Amish strongly believe that God has chosen them to lead a serious life of faith, humility and service. Although many are affluent, they
see wealth as an allure for over-indulgence that can make them greedy, lazy and unfit to serve God. It is this core belief in hard work that has kept them close to their farming roots.


Picturewww.examiner.com


 There are of course challenges to the Amish way of living. It is not easy for an individual to stay inside the group and yet lead his own individual lifestyle. Following the religion forces one to conform to the
practices of the community. In this sense it could be stifling for the  nonconformist and the ambitious. But on the other hand it is imperative to take  advantage of the advancements in science, to eradicate disease and to protect the farms and the environment. However getting a higher education is not easy without embracing the modern mainstream society. Is there then an inherent
  conflict between Religion and Science? 

How does one let go of the deeply religious Amish life with the peace of mind driven from a strong sense of meaningfulness in life, and adopt the world around that seems to be getting lost in its own madness, spinning dangerously without faith and without family values?

 Einstein once said that he was a deeply religious man, although not in the naïve sense. According to him, Science and Religion do not have to be in conflict. Here is an excerpt from his address to the Princeton Theological Seminary in 1939:
 “..the scientific method can teach us nothing else beyond how facts are related to, and conditioned by, each other. The aspiration toward such
objective knowledge belongs to the highest of which man is capable…yet it is equally clear that knowledge of what “is” does not open the door directly to what “should be”. One can have the clearest and most complete knowledge of what
“is”, and yet not be able to deduct from that what should be the “goal” of our human aspirations…the ultimate goal itself and the longing to reach it must come from another source…”

 Einstein goes on to explain that the “ultimate goal” of our human aspirations does not come from Science; this comes from “powerful traditions” in a society. These traditions influence the conduct and judgment of the individuals in a society. They are just there; there is no need to justify their existence. He cautions that one must not attempt to justify these traditions, but rather sense their nature simply and clearly.

 What powerful traditions exist in our society that influences our conduct? In other words, what do we ultimately believe in?! I believe that hard work guided by strong family values leads to
fulfillment in life, irrespective of one’s religious beliefs. This is the real joy of an Amish lifestyle.

Picture
www.mediacamp.com
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The Art of Destroying a Guitar

2/23/2014

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Picturehttp://www.urbansplatter.com/space-needle-observation-tower-seattle-washington/
Standing in front of an exhibit containing the remains of the guitar that rock legend Jimi Hendrix destroyed at a music festival in 1967, I couldn’t help but wonder what urged one of the greatest guitarists of all time, to furiously smash and burn on stage, an instrument that he loved dearly. Scribbled on the guitar is a little poem: “May this be love or just confusion born out of frustration…my darling guitar…please rest in peace.”

Was this a mere stage gimmick or was there some kind of bottled up anger that led him to do that?

It was a cloudy day in Seattle and I was at the EMP Museum, which is right next to the Space Needle at the center of downtown Seattle. I looked up at the Space Needle and tried to take a full picture of the monument that rises 500 feet from the ground. One could get a 360 degree view of the city from the top, as well as panoramic views of the Waterfront.

I was intrigued by the Jimi Hendrix story. Born in Seattle in 1942, Jimi Hendrix allegedly committed suicide while in London at the age of 27; he suffered an overdose of drugs.

Jimi had a difficult childhood, his parents divorced when he was 9 years old, and his mother died when he was 16. Apparently his father refused to take him and his younger brother to their mother’s funeral. He gave them shots of whiskey instead and said this was how men were supposed to deal with loss.

At school, Jimi would carry a broom with him to emulate a guitar, this attracted a lot of attention, but his father would not buy him a guitar. Around the time when his mother died, Jimi acquired his first guitar. He would play that for hours every day. Later he formed several bands and played at various clubs, struggling to gain recognition.

His lucky break came when he was noticed by an influential lady who referred him to Chas Chandler, an English musician and record producer. Chas brought him to London in 1966.

Within a few months, Jimi had earned 3 of the top 10 hits in UK.

Despite his soaring popularity in Europe, Jimi was unknown in America until the summer of 1967. He didn’t have a single album in America before his first major public appearance at the Monterey Pop Festival, which attracted a crowd of up to 90,000 people. Jimi wore exotic clothes at the show setting a high bar for the entertainers of that time. He performed several compositions at this show as well as hits such as “Hey Joe”, “Purple Haze”, “Rock Me Baby” and “Like a Rolling Stone”. The audience was completely mesmerized.


Picturehttp://rockstarwallpapers10.net/category/jimi-hendrix/page/2

At the end of the performance, Jimi set fire to his guitar on stage. He called this act a loving sacrifice. Images of this scene became very famous and Jimi became an overnight star and a legend.

Later I read that there was a strong fad at that time to destroy one’s own art to make protests against the establishment. Auto-Destructive Art was a movement started by Gustav Metzger in the 60s, the followers of which would destroy their art to make a political statement. Pete Townshend a student of Gustav Metzger and the guitarist of English rock band “The Who” was perhaps the first famous artist to smash his guitar during a show. Keith Moon the drummer of the band exploded his drum loaded with explosives at the finale of a song, causing cuts in his arm with shrapnel. Their guests fainted, while the explosion set Pete Townshend’s hair on fire, and made him deaf!

Ironically, the destruction of the musical instruments is a "parallel" to the destruction of some of the artists themselves!

Just before its destruction Jimi's guitar was the most priceless asset of the show, creating the most memorable music ever. And then it was burnt and blown to bits. Silent forever. Similarly, Jimi the ephemeral young celebrity flew high, touched the sky and then got wasted. Burnt out. The "human  guitar" was dead and silent forever.

Jimi Hendrix died at the age of 27, starting what is known as an infamous and mythical “27 Club” consisting of famous musicians who all died at the age of 27.

The club includes Brian Jones, founder of the Rolling Stones who died in his swimming pool due to drug and alcohol abuse; Janis Joplin, lead singer of Big Brother also known as the Queen of Psychedelic Soul who died of drug overdose compounded by alcohol; Jim Morrison, lead singer of LA rock band The Doors who died of a drug overdose; Kurt Cobain, lead singer and guitarist of Nirvana who committed suicide while struggling with his addiction to drugs.

Most recently Amy Winehouse, the first British female to win 5 Grammys died 3 years ago, at the age of 27. She was abusing drugs and died of binge drinking.

What made all these artists turn to destroying themselves?

These were talented young people. They became rich and famous. But they did not know how to handle their success. They all died of drug and alcohol abuse. Perhaps they did not realize that humans, like stringed instruments need to be tuned back to their senses, every once in a while.

Picture
http://www.fanpop.com/clubs/amy-winehouse/images/25518185/title/amy-winehouse-fanart
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The Art of Moving

10/25/2013

6 Comments

 
Picturejustthetravel.com
“So where are you from?” I asked the smartly dressed cab driver.

I wanted to start a polite conversation as he headed out of the airport and accelerated on the Bayshore Freeway towards downtown San Francisco. From experience, this kind of small talk fills the journey, but always gives insights about local geography, weather, football and politics. Cab drivers are like wikis.  

“I’m from Eritrea”

“And where is that…?”

“Eritrea is a small country in East Africa”

“Aha…” I exclaimed with an appreciative tone.

“It is next to the Red Sea and surrounded by Sudan and Ethiopia on the other side. Ethiopia is actually 10 times bigger…but there was a war between the two countries.”

 “Hmm…you are very lucky to have seen both worlds” I remarked.

“Yes, if I tell you my story, you would not believe it!”

“Really!” I encouraged him, looking outside as we passed the Bayview-Hunters Point.

“Eritrea has natural resources. It was a colony of Italy more than 100 years ago. Then it became a province of Ethiopia, becoming independent only 20 years ago. A war began with Ethiopia, where many people died. After the war things got worse…”

I looked at my phone to check the time. We were just crossing the Fallen Bridge Park area. The cab driver continued with his story.

“There is no freedom of religion in Eritrea. I had to escape to stay alive! I went to Sudan, and from there to Dubai, where I got a job, but they did not allow me to stay. I left for Peru, then to Bolivia, Columbia, and finally to Mexico…from where I ultimately came here. In most countries they would either ask me to go back to my country or go to jail!”.

We were in downtown San Francisco passing by the Moscone Center, named after George Moscone the famous Italian-American Mayor. I peered at the eye capturing SFMOMA, designed by a Swiss architect, one of the first museums dedicated to 20th century art.

Meanwhile it was quite amazing listening to the cab driver’s story. “How long did it take after you left Eritrea to arrive here in California?”

“It took me over 6 months, and it cost a lot of money. It was very dangerous. I crossed 15 countries before arriving here. It took time but finally I was granted residency and later I got my citizenship. This is my country now and it is a great country.”

“I am glad it has all worked out for you” I said in a congratulatory tone, as he processed my credit card payment using his sleek new iPhone.

Picturewww.wynjade.com
What does it take to become a great country? I thought to myself as I headed to the 39th floor of the hotel to check out the breathtaking view of the penthouse restaurant called “The View”.

What role does the influx of fearless people play, in the development of a country?

I remembered reading somewhere that immigrants are twice as likely to start a new company. Apart from thousands of midsized companies that have created jobs, even some of the iconic companies in the US such as Google, eBay and AT&T have been founded by immigrants. It is reported that in the year 2006, the US accepted more immigrants as permanent residents than all other countries in the world combined.

Is “moving”, critical to evolution?

Later I read that the first anatomically modern humans probably expanded from the Eritrea region in Africa. According to a report in the Science magazine, the discovery of a 1.8 million year old skull has offered evidence that humanity’s early ancestors emerged from Africa, as a single adventurous species. Was there a risk of losing lives? Were they trying to escape from prowling saber-tooth tigers? Perhaps not much has changed even in modern times. There is still the “credible fear” of losing one’s life, but nowadays at the hands of human predators.

Pictureonline.wsj.com
Here is another perspective on “moving” from the world of art. Italian-American artist Francesco Vezzoli has bought a church in Montegiordano, Italy. The church is without a roof, and almost in ruins. Francesco plans to "uproot" the entire 1500 sq ft church and reconstruct it brick-by-brick in the courtyard of the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) PS1, in New York. The MoMA is dedicated to turning abandoned structures into contemporary art.

In his own words, Francesco is destroying a church by tearing it down, but also “saving it” at the same time. Would this church remain the same old church as before? Perhaps not. Would it ever become like a true church that was built for worship? Perhaps yes, if you consider art to be like religion with a following.

Where do we move next?

Rupert Murdoch said famously: “I’m a digital immigrant…my daughters on the other hand are digital natives. They’ll never know a world without ubiquitous broadband internet access…We may never become true digital natives, but we can and must begin to assimilate to their culture and way of thinking.” Amen.

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Bull of Life

9/28/2013

3 Comments

 
Picturegospain.about.com
What goes on inside your mind, when an angry bull looks at you from a short distance, ready to gore you to death, with its pointed horns?

Ten thousand people gasped as the matador fell to the ground hit by its fierce bovine opponent. The matador had come too close to the horns of the angry wounded bull. Now the bull stood motionless, ready to make its next move. The stadium had gone very quiet. The bull weighed 1200 pounds and it was ready to charge at break-neck speed - any moment.

Was this going to be another tragic case of Manolete - the famous matador who was gored to death at age 30…

It was a beautiful Sunday in the summer of 1997 in Madrid. I was out for a stroll and had by sheer chance turned into the Calle de Alcala street, where the famous Bull Fighting Museum of Las Ventas stands. I could not resist going inside for a peek. The exhibits ranged from colorful paintings of past historic events, to embroidered costumes of famous matadors, to the long horns of dead bulls that had been killed in bull fighting events.

While viewing the various artifacts and memorabilia I had felt a sense of awe and wonder. Encouraged by the history of the ancient sport of bullfighting, I wanted to see the real event. Notwithstanding language barriers I had navigated my way to the ticket office of the nearby stadium and quite spontaneously bought myself a ticket for the day’s show.

The stadium looked empty at 9:30am. But within the next half an hour I noticed the seats getting filled up to almost full capacity. Vendors were weaving their way through the audience, selling snacks and drinks. I was surprised to notice the popularity of San Miguel, a Filipino brand of beer. This must be the Spanish connection.

Some vendors were selling cushions to be used as seats and seat rests. The whole atmosphere was one of celebration and camaraderie. Finally the president of the show arrived with his entourage, and there was a ceremonious start to the day’s sport with the sound of trumpets and the playing of a band of instruments.

Matadors wearing spectacularly fashioned costumes were introduced as they entered, followed by men on horseback and assistants carrying flags. They paraded the stadium in a circle and left after saluting the president of the show and the guests of honor.

An assistant entered holding a black board with writings in chalk. When he came closer I read the writing and interpreted it to signify the age and weight of the bull and the territory it was from.

A gate on the side opened and a giant bull entered the ring.

It was a huge animal jet black in color, with thick wide horns that extended horizontally from the side of its head and then turned pointedly upwards. It ran from one end to the other chasing the assistants who would wave red flags and then disappeared behind the enclosures.

Bulls are color blind. So it must be the rapid fluttering of the flags that attracted the bull. Little did it know that it was being observed keenly from the side of the ring by the matador and picadors (lancers) on horseback. They were observing its head movements, its bias for any particular side of the arena, and the energy level of the animal.

Two picadors rode into the arena on sturdy horses that were blindfolded and wore protective padding. One of the picadors came near the bull and stabbed it on its neck leading to immediate loss of blood and weakening of its muscles. The bull retaliated by attacking the horse, but the padding saved the horse from being gored. The two picadors encouraged the bull from attacking several times, and it did so repeatedly, predictably tiring itself out.

Three banderilleros entered with colorful little pointed flags and planted them on the bull’s shoulders, weakening it further, causing significant loss of blood.

Next, a young matador entered the scene. He encouraged the bull to charge towards him. And

Picturewww.dailymail.co.uk
when the bull came charging, he moved his body away at the very last minute, to the rhythm of music, like an artist performing on stage. A close shave indeed. Each such “close shave” would receive standing ovations from the crowd!

Until the point where the young matador was accidentally hit by the bull’s horns and fell unceremoniously to the ground…

The matador was now back on his feet looking carefully at the bull, waving his cape, inviting the wounded bull for the next charge.

I thought to myself - was the young matador wounded? Was he bleeding inside his finely embroidered jacket? Did he really need to go on with this blood sport…

It was a long moment before the bull charged again. This was “the” moment for the young matador to prove his courage, his machismo, and his worth in the eyes of his audience. Meanwhile the bull had lost significant amounts of blood, but it came wildly charging, and this time the matador moved away gracefully in a classical dance move that earned him thunderous applause!

I was standing there with thousands of people cheering the matador, clapping my hands, and shouting myself hoarse…

Suddenly the scene changed.  It was as if someone had decided to pull the plug on this bloody game. The bull was worn out. Its suffering had to be ended. A fatal sword-thrust by another expert matador, through the aorta of the bull - killed it instantly!

A mule driven chariot arrived quickly, the bull’s corpse was hitched to it, and the chariot made one circle and speedily dragged the bull away from the ring in a matter of seconds.

Game over! I was stunned by the speed of the last action.

Picturewww.tertullian.org
The same sequence was followed for the next bull. But I was not enjoying this game anymore. I had stopped cheering. And I waited for an opportune time to get out of that place.

I was thinking aloud when I asked an elderly gentleman on my way out – why do they have to fight the bulls? He answered matter-of-factly: “Because they are there!”

I tried to reason with myself but struggled with the whole idea of killing the bulls for sport. Obviously there was big revenue involved. We fight bulls because we have this innate need to overcome challenges?

I like the part about surmounting danger and overcoming fear. But why kill animals for sport?

All said and done, this was a brutal blood sport! Not worthy of being applauded in a civilized world.

Later, I learnt that bull fighting had probably risen from the ancient ritual of sacrificing bulls.

“Mithraism”, a rival of early Christianity, was a mystery religion practiced in the Roman Empire in the 1st century AD that featured slaughtering a bull, as being part of a ritual.

Many archaeological sites have uncovered hundreds of instances of tauroctony, the scene of killing a bull. Does ritual justify killing bulls at the present age, for fun?

Long after the trip to Madrid, when I reflected on the experience, in my mind, the “bull” stood for arrogance and stupidity. The invisible mental block that keeps entire civilizations from seeing the light of day - for ages. Like justifying the bull fight itself, for whatever reason.

Stupid arrogance is indeed the Bull of Life - insanity hurtling uncontrollably in a certain fixed direction – power and speed without any control.

Now this kind of dangerous “bull”, definitely needs to be eliminated. And when you do manage to bring it down – it is a bull’s eye!

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Economics 101: Doggy Style

4/5/2013

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Pictureen.wikipedia.org
Dogs or Wolves?

According to genetic evidence cited in a science magazine, the present lineage of dogs was domesticated from gray wolves, around 15,000 years ago. Gray wolves have been quite well researched, studies show that the oldest gray wolves are from Africa and from the Indian subcontinent. The oldest of the Indian gray wolves is the Himalayan wolf that originated 800,000 years ago, when the Himalayan region was going through major geologic change.  As a species, wolves have clearly lived longer than dogs.

According to the epic Mahabharata, when Dharmaraj Yudhisthira, the eldest Pandava was ascending to Heaven with Draupadi and his four brothers, he was led by a dog. All except Yudhisthira fell before reaching the doors of Heaven, due to the burden of their sins. At the gates to Heaven, when Lord Indra asked Yudhisthira to abandon the dog, he refused to do so, citing the loyalty of the dog. It turned out that the dog was his father “Dharma”, the Lord of Judgment, whom Kunti had invoked while conceiving Yudhisthira. Dogs and humans have clearly been trusted companions for many years, and probably share some similar characteristics

Picturewww.123rf.com
The civilized dog of today may exhibit a behavior of extreme domestication and an uncanny ability to adapt to the human lifestyle but it goes without saying that it has also inherited the hunting habits of its wolf ancestors. Therefore a dog often needs to be put on a leash, lest its hunting habits take over its judgment. Similarly for humans, following one’s Dharma and exercising proper judgment at all times is probably the hardest thing to do. One’s judgment could get clouded by one’s predatorial tendencies. How can a human being be in control at all times…should humans also be on a leash?  

To Leash or Not to Leash?

Doggy Dick scratched his old dirt-filled collar with his giant left paw while his right paw held onto the toy bone, as he looked at his master and wondered “Why would you spend $100 on a fancy dog leash when a $30 one would do?”. These humans were beyond his comprehension. One day his master would happily treat him to a doggie spa reflecting on the high consumer sentiment, as a result of the improving housing prices, and at another time in the same year, he would give him rotten oatmeal for breakfast (as if he didn’t notice that it had crossed the expiry date), citing the $16 trillion that had been lost in the recession by the US economy. Doggy Dick wanted to retort by saying that bubbles of misplaced over-enthusiasm always burst. Meanwhile the economy had regained $13.5 trillion of the lost wealth, but this was too boring a subject and all too complicated for Doggy Dick. For all he cared, a good meal and a good scratch led to a great snore, the rest was poppycock and puppy talk.


Pictureimagesci.com
When Doggy Dick first saw Kitty Kat it was love at first sight. He barked with joy and broke free from his surprised master. The paws of nature blinded his judgment and his eager paws followed Kitty Kat wherever she went. Every day he felt more attracted to her. Every passing moment he thought about her. It was a dogged obsession. At last Kitty Kat responded to his advances, and they became a couple. They hugged and kissed and danced in the rain. They now lived in the wilderness, where there were no boundaries. No restraints. The skies met the earth in the distant horizon, as the days led to sunsets full of optimism and dreams fluid with universal bliss.

One fine morning Doggy Dick woke up to the scent of another animal. It was a bison in the distant jungle. Doggy Dick’s sense of smell was a million times more sensitive than a human’s. He stood alert, ears and nose pointing towards the target. He could hear sounds four times better than a human, he had an evolved visual system with large pupils that could clearly discriminate moving objects. Doggy Dick realized to his great surprise that there was nothing at that moment that excited him more than to hunt for prey. As he stalked his prey, he felt he was living every moment to the hilt. When the bison detected his presence, it began to flee. Immediately on impulse, Doggy Dick picked up speed chasing the bison, rapidly closing the gap. He was ready for his first kill. Doggy Dick had turned into a ferocious predator. He knew in his pounding heart that he always wanted to be a wolf, and this was his lucky day.

When Doggy Dick returned that night, bathed in bison blood, Kitty Kat could not recognize him. As Doggy Dick recounted with glee how he had hunted down a large prey, Kitty Kat realized this was not the same Doggy Dick she knew. His happy bark had transformed into a long howl. She could not bear his sight. She could not bear his smell. She decided she could not live with a wolf. They started drifting apart; their relationship had now clearly gone to the dogs. Doggy Dick was sad and depressed. The bubble had burst.

Would Doggy Dick have been better off if he had a bigger stronger leash? Was this a failure of the leash, or was this a false belief that a dog could not turn back into a wolf?

What caused the Great Depression?

The causes of the Great Depression in 1929 have long been debated. Scholars differ greatly in their opinions, whether the Great Depression was caused by the failure of governments to regulate interests and money supplies, or whether it was wrong in the first place to have so much trust in free markets.

Should we accept that we have some wolves amongst us in disguise, so we need stronger controls, more regulations, greater checks & balances by a bigger government to serve as a strong leash? Or are we better off with a minimal government, believing that all the lucky dogs who participate in a free market shall follow the same rules, and none of them would turn into howling inside traders at night?

We should let a bare knuckles dogfight settle this debate once and for all.


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Birthday Nonsensia

8/2/2012

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Picturetheinquisitiveloon.blogspot.com
Thanks all for your kind birthday wishes via handshake, phone, sms, email and facebook!

45 it is.

Age is only a number but it looks more elegant in Roman. One could write 45 as XLV or simply as VL. That depends on whether you like to go up from 40, or come down from 50. Whether you wish to go forward in life’s cycle or cycle backward like Brad Pitt in “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button”.

50 sounds old to me, but then - at that age Celeste Holm was blissfully cycling forward enjoying her fourth marriage. She married for the fifth time at the age of 87. You go girl.

Before I dive into trivia about Celeste Holm, indulge me for a bit of nonsensia:

Lost in the midst of a mysteriously timeless facebook universe, I cannot help but try and put things in perspective. What is the next big thing for social networking? Someone said Facebook is a colossal waste of time. One might extrapolate that everyone would be using Nose-book in another 10 years or less. Nose-book, what is that? Well after the failed IPO of Touch-book that enables touching your friends via telepresence, we shall be forced to upgrade to Nose-book. Some people always secretly want to inhale the same air as their distant friends. Primal instinct, you know. Good morning, your coffee smells good...or hey - what’s that perfume you are wearing today!

Ah well, I’m not so sure it makes that much sense to base all social networking around the five senses. There is a sixth sense you know. The intuition of knowing you have a friend out there. No matter what.

Besides, there is a lot of comfort in the privacy of offline emails. No one can see you, hear you, or smell you. You are not judged by your physical appearance at all. Conciousness meets consciousness. Now that’s true social networking.

As someone said - We are in similar lifecycles whether in life or in the stock market. We go through the same cycle of hyper enjoyment, then sudden loss of balance, followed by disappointment, rage, frustration, and then quiet

Picturewww.letstalkaboutbollywood.com
acceptance. A period of emptiness. A moment of reflection. Then comes Realization that Life is too short. We anxiously start the next cycle.

This reminds me of the famous song from an old Hindi movie “Teesri Kasam” starring Raj Kapoor and Waheeda Rehman: Chalat musafir moh liya re…



 Ok back to Celeste Holm trivia. Celeste became famous after winning the academy award for “Gentleman’s Agreement” in 1947 where she starred against Gregory Peck.

Pictureusatoday30.usatoday.com
Celeste married five times in her eventful life; her fifth marriage was when she was 87. She died last month at the age of 95. (In comparison, Liz Taylor married 8 times, in a lifespan of 79 years).

One wonders, what inspires these people to undertake such big commitments to such hard work at marriage. Are they even serious? What kind of delusional hope and optimism. What kind of devastating desolation. What prompted Celeste to contemplate marriage at the ripe old age of 87. What was she thinking!

I have a theory. I think she may not be thinking about her age at all. She was fearless, and she followed her heart when she met that opera singer, less than half her age. Like the drug that does away with forgetfulness, one could have a pill for each extra enzyme that does away with fear; that takes all the cares away; that dispels uncertainty; that assures never ending bliss in a timeless bubble.

Honey, I took the pill, I’m going to be fearless today. See you after I finish my scuba diving lesson.

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Zindagi ka Safar

8/4/2007

1 Comment

 
Picturewww.simplyeighties.com
Folks, I turned forty day-before yesterday.

It is hard not to get emotional on your 40th birthday. You listen to Kishore Kumar singing "Jindagi ke safar mein
gujar jate hain jo mukam, woh phir nahin atey..."(In life's journey, the moments that pass away, they never return). Then you start thinking about some memorable moments with friends and family, and that makes you happy again.

I have done the math and I believe the cost of the
candles exceeds that of the cake once you break into forty. At forty you break-even! And you want to break free. You sing "Oh how I want to be free baby" and you know that Queen still rocks.

Well it is good to see that they now make candles in the shape of numbers. So I was given just 2 candles for my birthday cake, one the shape of "four", another the shape of "zero"! Now that saves candle money and pushes the break-even point further away. 

The four reminds you of the four seasons of your life, the four runs that you scored for the first time when you played cricket, the four friends that
made night outs worthwhile, the fantastic four heroes of your childhood comics, and the fourth dimension i.e. time.

The zero reminds you of the balance between the
positive and the negative. It could also imply "a
total failure". You take pride that the zero  was
invented by some great Indian mathematician. Of course, the Babylonians and the Greeks might disagree. Swami Vivekananda once spoke for an hour on the spiritual significance of zero. I think that should settle the debate. Well, one is an optimist so you want to zero in on the positive. You want to live life to the fullest and you want to keep smiling. Until the zero hour.

At forty you also think about the infamous Jeetender ads about 40 plus "energy tablets". Now that was before Pfizer saved the world. But I think this has a lot to do with how old you feel in your

Picturehttp://www.hindisong.com
mind. It’s all in your mind, as Dr "Fraud" would have us believe. We men never think that way, do we? And if we do, it is merely a Freudian slip.

At forty, you listen to old songs and you think what a genius Kishore Kumar was when he sang for Rajesh Khanna: "Jindagi ek safar hai suhana, yahan kal kya ho kisne jana..." (Life is a pleasant journey, no one knows what shall happen here tomorrow).

Rajesh Khanna drives at a breakneck speed. Hema Malini is all giggles, while she holds tight and tries not to fall off the bike. Remember she had both legs on one side. Like in the golden era. When most heroines didn't spread their legs, around bikes. Of course now it’s going to be a different movie, the heroine would drive the bike, while the hero sits behind with legs on one side.

Picture
memsaabstory.com
In this song, Rajesh and Hema drive into the beautiful sunset. The song continues "Maut ani hai, Ayegi ek din, Jaan jani hai, Jayegi ek din...Eisi baton se kya Ghabrana, Yahan kal kya ho kisne jana" (The end is inevitable, it shall come one day, why get unsettled about such trivial things, no one knows what shall happen here tomorrow).

Go ahead, take a break and watch it for yourself: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gl3QGn8QkX0&mode=related&search=

While I blow the candles and come to terms with changing my party line from "I'm in my thirties" to "I know I don't look forty", I do make a wish that we all keep smiling.
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    Debashish Chatterjee lives in South Jersey. He is married and has two kids.

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