Omnipotent , omnipresent , omniscient , supreme.

Omnipotent, Omnipresent, Omniscient and Supreme.

I am the reason and the cause of your existence and your identity. Slightly wanky or blurred and you are done. You live with me and may die without me. You will need the blessings of my favors in every sphere of your life in this world and beyond. Your own children will suffer if you ignore me.

Forget about your bank accounts, property, land holdings and what have you without me. I can make or mar your very existence. I have been reason for the settlement of disputes in the court of modern Chitraguptas. I will be the witness and also the judge when your children claim you.

And don't ask me why? You created me, you trusted me, you used me and you forgot me. I can not forgive you for your indifference. You cannot hide under the pretext of changing times that has revolutionized the very concept of me. I was relevant, am relevant and will remain relevant. You cannot ignore me and play with those new toys you have bought from the fairy land of satellites. You could have and should have kept company with me.

Now, now, don't you cry like a spoilt brat. If the gate keeper is not allowing you to enter your own chamber and open the locker wherein you have hidden all your wealth without me, he is right. It is his job to stop you without proper identity.

Remember those days when you were a kid ! Remember those days your parents had only their thumbs to prove their identity! Remember those days when only a fistful of your race knew to draw lines instead of blackening their thumbs to prove their existence! I sent my messengers to spread this art of drawing the lines as proof of existence and you were one of the chosen.

Okay, okay, now stop it. I cannot bear it any more. Your indifference can not be the reason for my denying protection to you and to all you love. I am not that unkind. I give you another chance. Practice those simple lines I taught to draw when you were young. I assure you with dedication, practice and trust you will find me and then you will,be in a position to enter any door you want to. No gatekeeper will stop you.

THE MATCH MAKER

THE MATCH MAKER

Jagari uncle used to smile mostly to himself. What that cute mysterious smile meant he only .knew. He was a man of few words. Jagari was no not his name, it was his profession by which he was known. Most people had forgotten his real name. Only a few of his contemporaries knew but they too never called him by that name.

Every village has a match maker who can be sought upon particularly in times of difficulty in finding no suitable match for a boy or a girls. He/ she will be handy and make a success story. Normally match making is a well oiled machinery in which the family Purohit or wife of the village barber called Nayin or friends, relatives and acquaintances play a very important role. Sometimes it is just between two families knowing each other for long. One such maker in the hills of Uttarakhand is the Jagariya.

Jagaria comes from the word Jagar which means awakening the gods and local deities from their dormant state to seeks favors and blessings. The jagaria on the beat of music and musical instruments like Hurka and Thali sings stories from Ramayana and Mahabharata. The Jagaria plays the Hurka and always has an assistant with him who plays on the Thali and joins him to sing in chores. They are called to perform Jagar by family in distress and help them come out of it through the Jagar singing that awakens the gods and local deities who bless the family and grants them the desired favors. Thus they keep visiting nearby villages and thus get acquainted with lot of families.

The Jagarias therefore established very personal bonds with such families. Since Jagar is the traditional form of worship, many family perform Jagar one time or the other. This furthers the influence of the Jagarias over such families. Since they travel to many village they have the information about the eligible boys and girls for marriages. This makes them the perfect match makers also.

Our jagaria uncle was one such match maker. Jagaria uncle was not the head Jagaria, he was the assistant of the head Jagaria who plays on the Thali. But in the village he was known as Jagaria. He had been instrumental in a few successful match making. He knew it well that people came to him only when they had exhausted all other options. There were and are boys and girls who for one reason or the other remain unmarried as if they were destined to have no partner in life. Such helpless individuals or families were his clients.

Jagaria uncle was a pillar of hope. He was a relentless seeker of suitable match and always kept his client updated on the progress. One such client was Tularam in our village. Tularam lost his parents early. He grew up under the shadow of his cousins and with the mercy of their parents. He was well built. This was probably the reason he was used as a coolie  for carrying heavy weights or as laborer for working in the fields. This justified his heavy food intake also. His good physique had deprived him of good brain. He had no thinking of his own and as such could be manipulated easily.

Well he was not a fool. What if he did not see the school door? As youth of 25, he was dreaming of having a wife and therefore children one day. He was sure his elder cousins would take care of that. He was not aware that it was and will never be in their agenda. Another five years passed and he was still bachelor. He meekly sounded his cousins many a times but they did nothing. It was not in their interest. Not only the share of Tularam's land was under their possession and cultivation but Tularam was an asset in many other ways. He would cultivate the land, do all hard work in return for food, shelter and discarded clothes. Not only this he worked as a security guard. He was their shield against any physical assault on them by any one in the village. Tularam was feared by all.

One day Tularam told his cousins that he wants to get settled in life, wants a wife and live separately for them. His cousins taunted him -"who will give their daughter to a fool like you?" . This was enough.

He secretly approached Jagari uncle. Jagari uncle saw a potential kill and had a long session with him on the dos and donts. He advised him to seek separation from his cousins and take possession of the land of his share as early as possible. Tularam embarked on the mission and told his cousins in no uncertain terms that he wanted division. The village Panchayat mediated and the land of his share was marked. The village Patwari - the government revenue officer, gave legal approval. Tularam now lived in a part of the house, had land in his name and was, in the eyes of uncle Jagari, a perfect eligible bridegroom.

Days passed into months and months into a decade. Tularam was still unmarried. Uncle Jagari had given him lot of hopes but for some unseen and unexplained reasons, the girls family retracted at the last  moment. Meantime uncle Jagari used him for all sundry field work in his farms in return for hopes and more hopes. Once or twice he took Tularam with him so that he could see the girl for himself. These were nights when Tularam's grew wings in his dreams.

He wanted to get angry with uncle Jagari but somehow controlled himself because uncle Jagari was his only hope. Finally, uncle Jagari was able to find a suitable match. The match a woman, girl, as he used to say was widow of 30 years. Tularam had no objection. Tularam brought that girl home one night. Within three days the woman left him. No one knows from where she came and to where she went.

Things were getting desperate for Tularam. He had put uncle Jagari on notice. Once again uncle Jagari found a match, a girl of 25, orphaned, blackish in complexion and not good looking, no guardians to name, living with a family as a domestic servant and most importantly willing to tie knot with anybody who could accept her as a wife. Tularam saw the girl and then and there itself the formality was completed in the presence of some villagers by the pandit.

Tularam was now married. They lived happily thereafter. He had one son and two daughters. He died after ten years of his marriage and his wife followed five years latter. His sons and daughters are happily settled in life.

Uncle Jagari is no more but his son has taken over his seat in the profession. Another match maker in the making.

The truth

Ye such ki wo such (is this the truth  or was that the truth )?

Yesterday a Bhajan Sandhya (an evening with spiritual songs) was organized by family for a gathering of some 100 people and a local group of Bhajan singers graced the occasion. There were spiritual discourse and heard a story, a parable if I may say, which would I like to share with you. A lot has been written and spoken to find out the answer to that eternal question "who am I?".

King Janaka is awakened by his security and told the kingdom has been attacked and the enemy is at the borders. He immediately orders to assemble the solders and goes out to drive away the enemy. A fierce battle starts in which the king is defeated. He is badly hit, bleeding all over and spent some days in the forest. Hungry and crestfallen he enters his kingdom but no body recognizes him. He tells them he is their king and begs for some food and water. Some recognize him and tell him that they have now another king who has ordered them not to serve you any food and help you. 

He moves around hopelessly for  days and finds a place where food is being doled out to hungry. He stands in the queue and gets some food in a platter. He moves to a corner and the moment he tries to take the first morsel a huge kite whirls around and snatches the platter from his hands spilling the food. 

He gets a big jolt and suddenly wakes up from his deep sleep. He realizes that it was only a dream and he is safe in his kingdom. But he is highly disturbed and invokes God to ask "ye such ki wo such " but gets no reply. From that day as if in a delirium, he keeps on saying "ye such ki wo such". His ministers are worried his subjects are worried but do not know what ails the King. The king's Vaidya is also clueless. 

One day a realized hermit visits the town and is told about the king's ailment. He desires to meet the king. He is taken to king's court.

The king asks him the same question "ye such ki wo such" and the hermit replies "na ye such, na wo such'  bas tu such"( neither this is the truth nor that was the truth  only you are the truth".

The king realizes the truth and finds answer for his question. The only truth is I. Brahmamasmi. I am Brahmam. I am the God. I am this and I only am that rest is all untrue.

My enjoyment and your predicament

My enjoyment can be your predicament.

What can be a source of enjoyment for me can be a great inconvenience for some one else. Mostly it is related to nature but there are some man made toys of pleasure and torture. 

When I posted some photos and video of season's first snowfall in Memphis, I was holding the local newspaper in my hands. It carried lot of stories of people inconvenienced due to this. While on one column it said about how kids were enjoying it in their front yards, it also reported the number of cases of fatal crashes when roads becomes too icy to negotiate, power cuts and jams on roads. When snow fall turns into snow and sleet pounding creating like a blizzard like situation, it is no more enjoyment. 

Those living in the hot climates go to hills to experience and enjoy cold and snow fall. They would never know the hardships faced by people living there when there life is totally disrupted by heavy snow, land slides and cloud bursts. Nepal and Kedarnath are fresh in our minds. 

Similarly people living away from oceans crave to go to beaches to enjoy. They would never know the hardships faced by the people living in coastal areas. Almost every year the high tides or angry oceans in the form of tsunami creat havoc in their life. Similar fate is reserved for people living on the river banks whose life is annually devastated by floods.

These are natural calamities and humans have to endure them.

What about man made situations where a late night party or a wedding procession or a political rally disrupts the life of people? Then there are road blocks caused by VIP movements inconveniencing the public at large. At least some order can be maintain here. 

But then as I said my enjoyment can be your predicament. 

When I failed my students

Xxx When I failed my students. 

Xxx My first assignment was as a teacher also called lecturer in an Intermediate College immediately after completing my M. Com.  In addition I was also a class teacher for the 12th class of commerce faculty. By all means it was a senior position allotted to a new recruit and therefore an object of envy too. It is another issue that I was only a temporary teacher about which I came to know a month latter.

I always wanted to be a teacher. I had a fanciful idea of this profession as a student who alternated as a tutor for making some extra pocket money. It gave me ample opportunity to revise the course material. It also gave me the feeling that I knew more than my pupils and they depended on me for their success. More importantly I thought I was making citizens of tomorrow. 

However this fantasy was shattered when I was to teach the senior classes of 11th and 12th grade who would be aspiring for graduating in commerce and then continuing their life in the vast world of business and commerce. It was no more a fantasy, it was now a responsibility. The would be chartered accountants and commercial professionals were looking at me as a friend, philosopher and guide. 

I should not fail them. I must answer each of their questions to their entire satisfaction or else they will loose faith in me. I did my home work before I faced them in the class. I re- read all what I had read some four years back. I consulted books other than those prescribed as text books by the school. 

I could say they had invested their faith in me and even the most inattentive of them took my class seriously. I was ready and preparing myself to give the best candidates to the world of commerce. 

And then after one month, one fine morning I came to know that my appointment was purely temporary and could be terminated at any time without notice. I asked the management what it meant and they said it was just normal and I need not worry. Some knowledgeable souls told me that some one connected will be appointed in my place after one year and I had no chance of getting confirmed. 

I was down but not done. Meantime, there came an offer from the leading industrial group through my alma-mater and after formal interview was offered a much lucrative job in their organization.  I submitted my resignation at the college which came as a surprise to the management and they did everything to keep me but I was firm. They had no choice but to relieve me. I won the battle with the unscrupulous management.

But I lost the war. I failed my students. I preferred a better paying job to the job my liking. I did not put enough fight to stay. My work and popularity with the students could have justified for the management to confirm my job after one year. Entire 12th class came to see me off at the railway station with garlands. Their gift of mother Saraswati's photo mounted on a glass frame still adores my Puja room.

Santa business module

SANTA BUSINESS MODEL

Christmas is round the corner and Santa is being eagerly awaited to deliver the goodies to children on December 24, as every year. With certain inputs from here and there and some little experience in marketing I thought of sharing the salient points of Santa's business model to show why is it so successful.

1. Santa started small. He chose his niche market carefully and concentrated on well behaved children. No point going all out with limited resources. 
2. Lean is not being mean when resources are limited so he started with just wooden blocks and then expanded.
3. Demand pattern is never static. So he changed to digital when digital devices became favorite with children.
4. He knew his date of delivery being December 24, controlling cash flow with the cheap line of credit and streamline material procurements, overtime payments and savings during the high income period was paramount. 
5. Living in North Pole with climate change taught him to use renewable energy sources, low or no waste and reduce shipping expenses. Going green was must.
6. He took help of his wife Claus, team of well trained elves and the eight reindeers to have a very efficient logistics. 
7. Last but not he least he never forgot his clients' interest. Service with humility have kept him in good stead for all these centuries.

Self obsession

Positive side Self obsession 

Self obsession has never been taken kindly. It is taken as the negative side of human behavior. Self obsessed people are selfish, intolerant, angry , egoistic and all that. But if we think little dispassionately we will find that self obsession is not all that bad. It has its own positive sides.

Self obsession is nothing more than self fulfillment and there is nothing wrong in that. A child is wants fulfillment of  his needs and is fully content when the needs are fulfilled. The happiness that surfaces on the face of a child after a feed or diaper change can match any true happiness. No one calls this child 'self obsessed. As the child grows up he realizes that no one will feed his needs and he alone will have to work for it. He does what he feels is right for fulfilling his needs. Is that wrong?

If I am obsessed with myself it means I value myself as no one else knows me better than I do. If I do not value myself no one will. If I do not feed or dress myself no one will.  So why not eat the best and dress  the latest? This way I have satisfied my needs and presented myself in my best to the whole world. It is up to the world to make sense. I have made sense to myself. This is the positive side.

If I do not beat my own drum no one will. So why not beat it lauder, loudest? If I have a camera and I do not take my own selfie and let the whole world know about it why am I carrying the load of that camera? This is the positive side.

You may say I consider myself the world that resolves around me. What difference does it make? If you want to revolve around the world so be it. I am not pulling the rug from under your feet. This is the positive side.

You may say I am selfish. When was the last time you donated your wealth and became a pauper?  I am not taking your share. I am just protecting mine. This is the positive side. 

You may say I prevail upon others and do not value others opinion. I never said if you are not with me you are against me. Similarly if I am not with you it does not mean I am against you. That is the positive side.

If I do not write this piece and show you how brilliant I am at this art of self expression/self modulation how would you know me? This is the positive side.

If you do not like the above and bracket it within "self obsession" it is your problem. 

Learning and practicing

Xxx LEARNING AND PUTTING IN PRACTICE

If learning was the guarantee of putting in practice what was learnt, we would have saints inhabiting this planet. That was the purpose was learning in the first place, isn't it?

The first thing we were made to sing in the school assembly was "he Prabhu Anand data gyan hamko deejiye.........(Oh God, the giver of happiness, bestow knowledge upon us....)The another one was "wah shakti hame do dayanidhe............" (Give us the strength oh! God of kindness...........). The prayers went on praying for truthfulness, good behavior, free from sins and all those virtues that all humans aspire. Similar prayers might have been sung in schools all over India. The prayers was a daily routine up to high school as far as I remember. More than 10 years of praying.

Since then most of us have read volumes of material of these virtues and every day we are flooded with still more on social media. If that was not enough we are surrounded by god men and god women, spiritual leaders, not forgetting our daily trips to the places of worship.

How come that learning has not been a part of our practicing? Why could we not practice what we learnt? 

Neither the prayer nor the subsequent learning could make us a good human being. This has no clear answer. May be we were not meant to be good human beings in the first place. May be those who composed that prayer and those who penned subsequent learning material did so after lot of introspection. If so they must have done so after crossing their prime and realized the mistakes they committed and wanted to tell the young generation and anybody who cared to pray, read or listen not to commit similar mistakes. Ultimately we had to go and pray. 

On hind side, may be I am writing this piece as me too have crossed the prime. 

Fact is we all are good people. Circumstances make us bad. And this a good excuse, an escape route. "What could I do?"- becomes the buzz word. 

Buyers and sellers

Xxx There are only two types of people in the world-sellers and buyers.

As a marketing man I see this world as a market place where someone is always looking for something and another one ready to provide it for a price which in business terms is called selling. When there is no one looking for anything this another one will creat someone for his merchandise which in business terms is called marketing. After some time there is little difference between the two.

Starting from commodities of basic needs like food, clothing and shelter to items required for final journey to the crematorium, there are buyers and sellers. 

In religion the smartest salesman was Jesus Christ followed by the followers of prophet Mohammad who spread the faith far and wide mainly my conversion. Even though they  had common origin the Abraham but both religions competed with each other in enrolling as many faithfully as possible. Today they have almost half of world population between themselves.

After religion it was forms of governments where smart selling was seen. While democracy and autocracy existed much before Karl Marx (1818-1883) their  position was challenged only after this great advocate of communalism presented an alternate view. It also changed the way humans conducted business under capitalism because communism provided a different view. The middle path was socialism. In each case there were expert marketeers. 

Today we have not only buyers and sellers for commodities but for everything our imagination will allow us to travel.

An emerging and developing society can not be judged by its religion or government or by its trade practices alone or by combination of all of these. Humans need more than bread, clothing and shelter and there comes the role of many other sellers. They are in the field of:-

Opinion makers- what is good for me.

Happiness- art of living and all that.

Love- straight, gay and all that.

Health- yoga and all that by Baba.

The best part is if I am a buyer here I am a seller at some other place. At odds it becomes difficult to establish if I am a buyer or a seller. It also becomes difficult to know who is more happy and satisfied the buyer or the seller. 

All sellers are peddling their wares and promising heavens. All buyers are wanting maximum for minimum. 

Sellers are creating artificial shortages. Buyers are buying more than what they need. 

Sellers thinking to change trade more profits. Buyers thinking to change trader for better deals. 

Sellers making products to last least for repeat sale. Buyers looking for products to last for a life at least. 

Sellers tempting kids to demand for their products. Buyers as parents either pampering or tempering their kids. 

It is amply proved that the world is inhabited by sellers and buyers. Rest of the classifications like happy or unhappy, honest or dishonest, loyal or disloyal , truthful or liars, capitalists or socialists, democrats or communists, haves and haves not, etc etc are just different names for the same group of people. Human basic character is selling an buying. 

Making an omelet

You can't make an omelet without breaking some eggs

Demonetization in India of 500 and 1000 rupee notes has inconvenienced many particularly the class of people who have no plastic cards or other banking facilities. Those who have them and many others like Mr. Sunil Alagh could very conveniently say  'why you need cash'? True, why on earth people need cash. He goes further to add that there will always be some inconvenience for a greater cause which is eradicating the menace of black money. He is in effect telling us that 'you can't makE an omelet without breaking some eggs' and he right. May he eats lots of them everyday for breakfast. 

Barter system was good and humans started trading with exchange of goods and services and do so even today in remote villages. During this 'moments of sacrifice' some people resorted to barter system. This is a good sign. Going back to roots is always welcome and who knows it better than party in Government who have been rooting for the return to roots in the field of education, culture, religion. Left to them they would even undo the history of last decade or more and make India a Ram Rajya  having started with Demolition of Bari Masjid. 

Yes, we all know some eggs do get broken for making an omelet but for whom? Those who can afford them or those who make do with salt and a piece of home made bread? And if they want to, they don't have money to buy nor flash a plastic card nor transfer money by electronic wallet. 

Yes, we know it will be over in few weeks, may be months but by then there may not be those hen laying eggs because they can not be fed for want of money. The doctor reaching after the death of the patient. 

Let us go to barter. You never know when the Government would say again that the notes you are holding are no more legal tender. You never know when the Government would ask you deposit your money in banks but not allow you to withdraw. 

Age is merely a number

AGE IS MERELY A NUMBER IN THE MIND

This proved utterly wrong and the realization came too late. 

Well I was suffering from cough and cold and a little fever which was nothing new and all these years I was treating it with OTC drugs with good effect. I never visited my physician for common cold. Rather would make a joke and say common cold goes in a week if you take medicines or otherwise within a seven days if you don't. 

This time however it refused to subside in even after two days Crocine, notwithstanding. On the third day morning, I felt dizzy and fell down early in the morning . Got up dusted myself and hummed ' bin piye Mai to gira , (fell down without having a drink) . Head was still heavy and as I was trying to sip my morning cuppa, I felt like throwing up and I did.

It was enough for my wife to take me to the doctor. The diagnosis revealed high fever 102, low BP 90/65. Was prescribed some medicines and if no improvement in a day hospitalization . Next day I was in the hospital under treatment for which in medical jargon is as under

"Acute febrile illness due to viral pyrexia with posstural hypotension with vertigo and Dyselectrolytemia "

I am back home after three days in the hospital fully recovered and 50000/- short of my bank balance not forgetting the physical discomfort. My daughter flew in from Mumbai and other kept on line from the USA. One stupid misadventure at this age troubled every body.

I am posting this to all oldies with a request not to be as stupid I proved to be. There is no truth in what I made a title of this post. Age is a merciless number when we grow as far as our body is concerned. It is both in our mind and body. Next time you feel like this sort of or any sort of discomfort visit your doctor. At this age our resistance power takes a beating and cannot hold longer as it used to. The doctor is the best judge.

Internet

Was internet there from the beginning?

May be. Sanjay could not have given live commentary on what was happening in Kurukhetra battle between Kauravas and Pandavas. It was like having an Internet connection called in those days Divya Dristi. Now we pay to the service providers in money terms then it was paid in total submission to the Lord who could only connect the devotee to the happening arena .

If that be so, surely Facebook's great great grand father was there too. 

I do not however find any evidence of Adam or Eve updated their status any time any where. 

But that is asking too much of our ancestors. 

Let us come to recent times. Even our great leaders like Gandhi, Nehru, Patel, Tilak, Mukherjee, Namboodaripad, Sarojini, Indira, do not seem to have used Facebook or any of its siblings. Neither political nor religious,  nor social, al nor scientific,  nor literary nor any one worth his/her salt seem to have used this media to reach the vast ocean of populace to convey their message. How come? Were they shy or introvert? 

Assuming Facebook existed and they were as chummy and available as our Modiji. We could  see Gandhi's status updates appear in his loin clothe in colorful prints and designs. He would have not stuck to plain whites only. We could enjoy Nehru's grand postures appear in his jackets and chooridars  sometimesy. Sometimes outside Parliament House , at times boarding or alighting an aircraft. We could see Indira in her colorful sarees shaking hands with American or Russian Presidents or Yasser Arafat. We could have seen most of them taking selfies with the greats of the world with whom they interacted. We could have seen Artists, scientists, writers and many others in different walks of life holding their latest creation and prizes with measured glee on their faces. 

Some one would argue that all such photographs are available as cameras were in use for filming and photographing every important event in history for the last 100 years or so. Before that painters did the honor. It is sad that color photography was invented much later and they had to contend with black and white only. 

But there is a difference. Then there was someone else commissioned to do all status updating. Now it is done by the person himself/ herself. There is no need for any commissioning as you can commission yourself as and when you wish. All you need a laptop or a notebook or a smart phone with Internet connection and of course a huge library of self portraits. Keep on alternating them one after the other till something new happens. Keep on digging into the past glory and refurbish it with latest available tools and update your status on Facebook or Instagram till you yourself are tired of this boring routine. You can now give your travel maps particularly when you are traveling by air. 

Thanks to Internet we are immortal now. We may not be there but our selfies will be. People not in the know of our final journey will keep on posting their birthday and anniversary wishes even after we are gone. Facebook will make sure you do not forget. By the turn of the century there will be many times more Facebook users that humans on earth. All living and kicking.

  

The world of Garfield

Xxx THE WORLD OF 'GARFIELD'

This morning I read this cartoon strip and it sent me thinking. 

(The world existed before you were born and it will exist after you are gone- to which Garfield replies 'why' ? )

A very valid question indeed. It does not really matter. What matters is the world exists when I am alive. We exist together  and we die together as far as I am concerned. Nothing else matters. Parents, siblings, spouse, children, friends and other relations are the world. The exist within my life' s time frame.

How do I know if the world existed before I was born or we born simultaneously ? I saw it when I was born and obviously it saw me when I was born. Before that we were not aware of each other. 

Then we travelled together to make our journey worthwhile. We met many of who were born before us, with us and after us.  Some left on the way. There were ups and downs like natural calamities and sickness, light and darkness like days and nights and so on but all were just an honest fight for survival. 

And then the time came for me to say good bye. It was painful because parting always is. None of us knew what will happen next but one thing was sure we will be strangers to each other once again. We thought to go in one go to make sure that since we came together should go together. But now it was not in our hands. Getting born together was, going back wasn't . 

Any other way would have made us selfish. Why would any of us live after one of us is gone? I am sure the world also left immediately thereafter. 

Garfield is right.

Sent from my iPhone

Playing with words

 PLAYING WITH WORDS

We always have reasons for doing and excuses for not doing something. In order to justify our actions we play with words. 

People play with words and the more they can the more intellectual they are. Some of them are called writers, poets, philosophers and so on. Those who can not play with words are called simpletons or straight forward or down to earth and so on.

Playing with or not playing with words does not make one good or bad or honest or dishonest or truthful or otherwise. But somehow people who play with words are smart if not cunning. They  can handle situations to their advantage and still pretend to be kind and helpful. Those who cannot play with words can land themselves into problems as their calling a spade a spade may not keep them in good steed. 

People in general do not like a straight talker. They like a person who can say a lot but mean nothing. Like if I do not like your dress I may say so straightway or may say you look good but white suits you the best or some words like that. In first case you will not like my straight talk in second case you will think of trying white next time. 

Playing with words can also be equated with political correctness. This helps in offending none but at the same time siding with neither. In a dispute like situation they will not take sides but will be seen on the side,of the right not indicating who is wrong. This is very helpful in seeking favors from both. 

Playing with words is helpful in keeping your spouse in good humor. It comes with experience but is worth the trouble. Many unpleasant situations can be avoided if one knows the right words to mouth at the right time. 

Some guys never learn this art or is it science? Never mind. 

Pamperers and pampered

Pamperers and pampered

Beggar, panhandler, homeless, destitute - call them by any which name but they need money for drugs, booze or food or in any other order. Some of them are not using the spare change for services, bed or food. At first sight they seem to be able bodied humans capable of use their limbs for some worthwhile productive job. 

Why is that society has failed to solve the issue?. Not that efforts have not been made. Homes for homeless and jobs for jobless have been provided by the governments but after a while they all run away to their age old vocation. Simple: society is divided into two groups of Pamperers and Pamered. The majority group craves to pamper and needs someone to be pampered. Other group aware of this weakness exploits it to the hilt. 

Imagine there were no Pamperers. There will be no pampered either because every one will have to work and earn for a living or parish. This will hurt the ego of the pamperer group. This will close their only way to salvation. 

Go anywhere on this globe and you will find them everywhere. I am not sure who is flourishing because of whom, the pamperers or the pampered. 

Pampered on the other hand lose nothing. They become or have been made immune to every form of humiliation. They are prepared to go down and down to satisfy their needs. They are not aiming salvation. 

What unites people

WHAT UNITES PEOPLE

"America is not a county united by any culture or ethnicity or ideology but by principles of opportunity, equality and Liberty enshrined in our founding documents". 

Obama. 

He is echoing his belief which is largely true except that color bias exists. However, America has achieved a lot in spite of this. They have long back come out of cultural and religious differences.

Can we say the same thing about our India? The answer sadly is 'no'. Modi also came to power on development plank. Because that is what a smart politician will do. It is another matter that country is divided on communal lines. India is a multicultural and multi religion country and that fact cannot be whisked away. If it is majority minority issue  in the whole country, it is Jallikuttu in Tamilnadu or animal sacrifice in the north. 

The only unifying factor is tolerance  with respect not with contempt. As long as it does not interfere in our personal life and belief, we should let people practice freely in what they believe. NGOs should also know that traditions matter.

Philanthropy at tax payers cost

Philanthropy at tax payers cost!!! 

Should government spend on relief measures? In the past decades we have seen governments spending public money to serve their own political agenda. In fact it is in all democracies. The very concept of party system encourages factional politics based on ' I will vote for you you take care of me'. Having made that deal they have no choice but to take from one pocket and put in the pockets of their favored ones. It may be loan wavers, guaranteed employment and similar relief measures. 

The second question is "Does that threaten voluntarism who can raise funds and spend on relief to victims like Red Cross and other NGOs do?" If all relief work is handled by government where corruption does not let even 10% reach the intended beneficiary, what is the point. NGOs do it better by voluntary contribution from the rich and giving almost 90% of it to the victims. 

There will always be a need to give relief to victims of social injustice and natural calamities and a sensitive government should do everything it can for public welfare. That is the taxes are collected for. They have however to choose the right path for maximum effect.

THE BAZAAROO OPINION MAKERS

THE  BAZAAROO OPINION MAKERS 

Journalists writers and intellectuals are less in numbers but large in influence because power resides in words and ideas and not in numbers. These are the opinion makers of all times. 

Political parties are aware of this truth. That is the reason they cultivate them. This sort of cultivation needs proper and timely care in terms of making proper grounds for their planting, watering and use of suitable fertilizers. In other words they have to taken care of in words and deeds. Their material requirement have to be met. Their ego has to be nurtured. 

In the beginning it happens without their knowledge but before they know it they have already become used to those comforts. Who would not need a flat in Asian Village or in journalists colony with modern facilities at no or minimum cost?Those foreign junkets of seminars, workshops, study and all that do come with a price. The price is unflinching support to the political outfit that is footing the bill. 

They are present every where. They know how to sell their wares. They however do not know that in doing so they have sold themselves.

CHILD SUPPORT IS NOT CONDITIONAL

Bearing and rearing a child. 

The birth of a child is no more an accident for humans. This is a choice at least for educated lots in our society. Gone are the days when birth of child was God's  gift which is so if He has deprived either or both partners of that gift. 

Having said that, it is incumbent on both parents to rear their child born out of wedlock or adopted, to the best of their ability and capacity. This is an obligation. They are not obliging the child but themselves. This obligation travels to the time the child turns into an adult and is able to take care of himself. If for some unfortunate reasons he is disabled, parents' obligation does not end at his getting adulthood. 

And it is a joint responsibility which does not end at your ending the relationship by divorce or separation.

It is not a deal. It's not open to bargain. It is not like signing an agreement with the child that he will support you in your old age. That is his choice. Child support is a moral obligation not depending on child's service to parents- illegitimate or adopted.

Do not grumble if he is neglecting you or not supporting now when you need it the most.