Worshipping False Godmen

By Sunil Kumar

Religion is the opium of the masses.
– Karl Marx

There is probably no other country in the world as obsessed with religion as India. From the Buddha to Christ, and the Hindu pantheon, we have the Almighty as a 24×7 support system.

The most interesting aspect, however, is the rather earthly scandals that seem to engulf our Godmen. Although rational education has inculcated a degree of scepticism and derision for organized faith, yet the sheer commercial savvy and global reach of our religious purveyors has to be admired.

All of us are intrinsically self-obsessed. For many, it is a struggle for money, prestige or sheer survival. Feeding on insecurity is a marketing gimmick our gurus learnt early. Faith is a personal ideology, something we discover after internal trials, negotiating with God and internal struggle.

The obsession with organized religion stems from our inadequacy to think. Liberal agnosticism can only be inculcated in people whose creative faculties are not impeded by mumbo-jumbo: candles, incense or the muezzin’s call to prayer.

Also, an unshakeable faith in the superiority of one’s own religion is a sure-shot call to conflict. Most ideas are man-made and diligently adopted by the masses. If God truly made us in his own image, then surely he could have given us the ability to constructively sift through ideas.

Money,cellphones, glamour and a need for instant fame drives today’s superficial generation. When inane talk shows, feuding soap operas, and incessant scandals occupy our mindspace, quiet reflection and the ability to connect with a higher power is sorely missing.

Turek vs. Hitchens Debate: Does God Exist? from Andrew Ketchum on Vimeo.

All the religious babas feed into the very material anxieties afflicting our tortured psyches. Philosophers often attribute maya(the feminine principle) as the reason for the soul existing in material reality. Most of the followers of spiritual superstars are naive and gullible women(and men).

If the Parish, the Temple, the Mosque, or the Agiary did not give you the right solution, then all our godmen certainly can’t. Religious rituals, round-the-clock adherence to some established community norms cannot salvage our mental peace, only real-time practical thought can.

Although atheism has become fashionable, and some even consider mocking established religion as good, there has to be a healthy balance between organized thought, faith and our own ideas. In the mad rush to be fashionable and cool, most of us do not seriously think about spirituality and the soul.

An old adage said: man is known by the company he keeps. When an incessant rush to ape sportsmen, filmstars, and the neighbors becomes an intrinsic part of our psyche, our true religious heart takes a backseat.

Most of us hanker for the quiet, sylvan surroundings that help us connect with our inner selves.

The Foreign Minister’s Visit

By Sunil Kumar

Blood is thicker than water. All of us agree that the India-Pakistan relationship is drenched in red, albeit of a different hue. Whenever our distinguished foreign ministers meet, there is a lot of talk and practically no substance. Promises are made, only to be broken at the next moment.

Our opinionated intelligentsia, millions of media personnel and distinguished analysts indulge in systematically undermining the Indian nation-state. As cry-babies, we constantly bicker on our inept bureaucracy, inefficient police and archaic laws. But, practically little actually changes. When Hina Rabbani Khar, Pakistan’s first woman minister of foreign affairs landed on our shores, the media was agog with stories of a feminine touch: Roberto Cavalli shades, Birkin bags and pearls. We also had the vision of a peaceful detente between two old foes: India and Pakistan.

When blood is spilt on the streets of Mumbai, there is absolute apathy from the state and the government. How can a woman’s accessories be more important than the thousands of people who lost their lives, crores of property destroyed, and the sheer negligence of our lawmakers?

Our diplomatic entourage, with our distinguished foreign minister, erudite foreign secretary are busy planning their next plum assignments. When the Indian nation-state is bleeding from a thousand cuts, why don’t they arm our police with more weapons, fence our borders and create a more robust security infrastructure?

As honest tax payers, the least we can expect from the government is concern for a hassled population. In some time, Mumbai is set to be the most populated metropolis in the world. The strain of living in an urban jungle is already evident in the collapse of many civic institutions, pressure on land, resources, lakes etc.

When we talk of building world-class cities, and bringing our country at par with the rest of the world, the least we can expect from the media is attention on serious issues and not frivolity. My empathy is for the millions of traumatized citizen who have been brutalized by the senseless violence emanating from across the border.

Admittedly, an eye for an eye makes the world blind. But when you are already bleeding, somebody has to take guard and sock it back. When a journalist with the courage to take on the oil mafia is gunned down in broad daylight at an avenue that is supposed to be one of Mumbai’s safest, what precedent does it set for everybody else? We have to assume the reign of terror will continue, and those in authority will accept our neighbor’s sweets.(Bombs come with the package)

Moral posturing, and preachy news bytes have not gotten us anywhere. When will India wake up and smell the coffee? Maybe, in our next birth, when our sins are washed away at Haridwar. (Ahem, beg your pardon, even the ghats at Varanasi had to face militant ire).

India earnestly waits for a savior. Not the supermen of Bollywood, or the religion inspired concept that has led to more misery, and blood than anything else. But the next practical realist who can actually save our souls. Till then, waiting for a new beginning.

Let’s Blog About Sex, Baby

Sex is comon knowledge. So Steve Martin is equated with humor and Hindi movies are “banal”. Well, not always, but there’s repressed carnality, now, overt and vulgar, both, Hollywood and Bollywood.

LET ME NOW ATTEMPT TO DEFINE WHAT SEX IS:

Merriam-Webster defines sex as “the sum of the structural, functional and behavioural characteristics of organisms that are involved in reproduction marked by the union of gametes that distinguish males and females.”

Google Zeitgeist (actually, Google Zeitgeist blushes in admitting it) and many articles often refer to “sex” as the most googled term. So why is sex so popular?

The most obvious answer is “the basic instinct”. Since men were cavemen, and women were well, “cavewomen”, sex has (ahem) been the most basic urge.

Apart from say, certain alternative science fiction scenarios, or the Governor of California getting pregnant in a movie, there have been no unfortunate instances wherein men had breasts and women acquired testicles.

So what drives an increasing online population to find sex? Why is the world driven by sex magic? (Case in point: Searching for porn brought you here).

The Masters and Johnson sex studies were dry and clinical, but sold a lot of copies around the world, because of the subject matter. Now click on the Time link, click it, click it please, I know you want to do it!

If most people didn’t know by common sense that sex sells, and advertising did not constantly sell sexual stimuli, Mark Levit, managing partner of Partners & Levit Advertising says, yes, but only when used in “good taste”. According to him, as marketeers we must think not only in getting customer’s attention, but also in building a good reputation that will yield long-term results.

But why then is pornography(largely smut) one of the most googled terms and Internet Pornography Statistics state that the porn industry has revenues larger than the top ten technology companies combined!

Well people may go to church, mosques and temples, but it seems that most of them are closet perverts. Well the answer, if God permits, I don’t know if there is a God(blasphemous statements again), is probably in our genitalia. Salvation Jane or Horny Joshi, all the world seems to revel in the fuzzy undersides.

I’ll end this blog by putting up a list& links of the ten most beautiful women in my opinion, so guys enjoy,
And one of my favourite songs, “Mambo Italiano”. Actually I’ll put three up, including Peter Gabriel’s “Steam”.

Yah, and for my fellow Indians, all the people who were obsessed with “you-know-what”, and the white (Sorry, Black, White, Cuban & Asian) people reading my blog, here’s an American’s view on where to find the sexiest girls in the world outside the U.S.

Warning: This is not an encouragement to pornography[I love grammatically correct sentences)- if you thought so, this is just an exhaustive list.

Here’s an askmen.com survey, No: 46 Britney Spears, follow that link, keep clicking for more.

Finally, to end, and as an ode to rabid feminists, Voila!, I present Gisele Bundchen. Ciao for now!

THE MOOR’S LAST SIGH

By Sunil Kumar

“The past and the future is where we spend most of our lives. In fact what you are going through in this small microcosm of ours is the disorienting feeling of having stepped for a few hours into the present”… Salman Rushdie, The Moor’s Last Sigh.

Salman Rushdie once said, “I hate admitting my enemies have a point.” Growing up in a newly independent India in the 50s and the 60s, Rushdie is very much like the midnight’s children he won the Booker prize for.

Mixing Indian metaphors with global abstraction comes easy to Rushdie. Not easily accessible at first, Rushdie is a writer who captivates the reader with the broad sweep of his imagination and the sheer audacity of challenging the fundamentalist establishment. Another interesting facet is the eclectic mix of ideas that he draws from and projects in his fiction. Shades of Don Quixote, magic realism and caricatures of a living breathing reality.

The fatwa made him famous. Rajiv Gandhi’s India banned him instantly and the Ayatollah Khomeini made him a pariah in the Islamic world. How did Rushdie live through those traumatic times?

Sir Salman Rushdie said in a Telegraph interview that he plunged into despair when the fatwa was declared and says that it “erased” his personality.

He adds, “The thing about hitting the bottom is then you know where the bottom is…And after that, it cleared things up in my head… One of the things it cleared up was an urge in my mind, which is that everybody should like me.”

STOP BEING A PRISONER

“That was the moment at which I stopped being the prisoner of that thing, because I thought, OK, there are people who are not going to like me and do you know what, I don’t like them.”

Rushdie always reminisces about Bombay post-independence when he thought the city was going through a kind of golden age, an Indian Camelot, where he was the knight in shining armour.

The city and its multiple identities inspire Rushdie – a miasma of illusions, the mecca of Indian dreams, sleaze lightnin’!!!

For specific feedback on this post or the blog feel free to send in comments at: ideasmyblog

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My Left Foot- Today’s Film Review

By Sunil Kumar

THE BAADER-MEINHOF COMPLEX: FLESH, LIES AND VIDEOTAPE

1970s German angst is brought to the screen in an endless orgy of sex and violence.

From start to finish, the Baader-Meinhof Complex is an intriguing ride through ten years of post WWII West German history. Based on the German terrorist group, the Red Army Faction (RAF) that planned bombings, hijacks and kidnappings in the 60s and the 70s, the movie takes a long, hard look at life on the ‘dark side’ of the political divide.

The movie is a dramatic exposé of the life of Ulrike Meinhof, who worked originally as a left-wing journalist and was co-founder of the Red Army Faction(RAF). Although the movie is riveting in parts, it sometimes loses focus and becomes a sleaze fest. Balancing informative storytelling with commercial considerations is a tough ask for any art, but writer and producer Bernd Eichenger, somehow falls short.

A snapshot of the 60s and 70s, the ‘Baader-Meinhof’ complex makes an earnest attempt to capture the spirit of the era. Students in 1967 Berlin get their first lesson in police brutality when protesting against the Shah of Iran. The police are nonchalant and firing after a baton-charge by armed forces leaves a protester dead. This catalyses journalist Meinhof(Martina Gedeck) into action as she inches closer to firebrand leader Andreas Baader, played by Moritz Bleibtreu.

The movie plods on with nude beaches, hippy-chicks sunbathing in the desert and socialist arguments inspired by Mao Tse-Tung. Endless gore and violence tend to put off a discerning viewer. We don’t need a documentary, but more dramatic sequences like the Stammheim court trial in which Meinhof, Gudrun Ensslin, Andreas Baader were tried would have added more zing to an endless montage of risqué visuals.

For specific feedback on this post or the blog feel free to send in comments at: ideasmyblog

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Quora Sanskrit Post

मम नाम सुनील कुमार , देववाणी मम अत्यन्त रोचते । भाषा मध्ये दिव्य स्पन्दन अस्ति । आधुनिक युगे आङ्ग्ल भाषा अपितु बहु भौतिक ज्ञानस्य वर्णन करोति किन्तु आत्मा गहन अध्यात्म च नास्ति।भारतस्य पुरातना, मधुरा भाषा अस्माकं राष्ट्रीय धरोहर । हिन्दु, जैन, अन्य धर्मस्य साहित्य , वैज्ञानिक ज्ञानस्य अथाह सरोवर अस्ती एषा । वैश्विक स्तरे ‘guinness book’ पुसतकस्य ‘longest word in any language’ इति शब्दः संस्कृतस्य समास एव । विजयनगर साम्राज्यस्य कवि तिरुमलंब रचितवान नृपः अच्युत देव रायस्य विवाह सन्दर्भे,

‘निरन्तरान्धकारित-दिगन्तर-कन्दलदमन्द-सुधारस-बिन्दु-सान्द्रतर-घनाघन-वृन्द-सन्देहकर-स्यन्दमान-मकरन्द-बिन्दु-बन्धुरतर-माकन्द-तरु-कुल-तल्प-कल्प-मृदुल-सिकता-जाल-जटिल-मूल-तल-मरुवक-मिलदलघु-लघु-लय-कलित-रमणीय-पानीय-शालिका-बालिका-करार-विन्द-गलन्तिका-गलदेला-लवङ्ग-पाटल-घनसार-कस्तूरिकातिसौरभ-मेदुर-लघुतर-मधुर-शीतलतर-सलिलधारा-निराकरिष्णु-तदीय-विमल-विलोचन-मयूख-रेखापसारित-पिपासायास-पथिक-लोकान्’

भाषा मध्ये अहम प्रारंभिक स्तरे अस्मि, अधुना पर्यन्तम संस्कृतस्य अध्ययनम न कृत्वान । भाष्यते इति भाषा, विद्वत मत । प्रतिदिनम अहं प्रयत्नम करोमि स्म, सामर्थ्यम वर्धयते इति । त्रुटि अस्ती तर्ही क्षम्यताम । धन्यवाद:

Which person do you sympathise the most from Greek mythology?

By Sunil Kumar(From My Quora answers)

Interesting question. I don’t sympathize with anyone as such. Even though Indic philosophy urges us towards universal brotherhood, there’s this Herculean gap in my mind while considering another culture.

But, having read their mythology since childhood, the most intriguing and self sacrificing character that kind of evoked my sympathy was Prometheus. As a Titan, he made the ultimate sacrifice for humanity by giving the secret of fire free from the control of the zealous and self-centred Zeus.

Also the subject of a huge poem by Shelley, and passingly mentioned in the more readable ‘Circe’ by Madeline Miller who kind of makes the whole Greek universe enchanting in her prose.

Surreal City Excerpts

Hi Folks,

Here’s something to entertain you. Excerpts from “Surreal City”. Only the racy sensual parts. If you would care to read the description; my novel is a paranormal thriller. In short, the supernatural. No AXN, just a rollercoaster ride around the world. Apparently, Sunny Leone is the most searched star in India; and Kate Middleton somewhere in the Wild, Wild World. (West; but that’s the rest; the globe with my friends from China, the Americas, Africa, the North and South Poles).

(A
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So something;( To make it absolutely clear: Excerpts from My Novel: Surreal City” © Sunil Kumar, 2012)

Also Everybody Kindly read this stuff in bold:
WORK OF FICTION: NO RESEMBLANCE TO ANY LIVING CHARACTER, RESPECT EVERY FAITH, IDEOLOGY AND CREATIVE FREEDOM)

#1: (A Scene somewhere(Old Delhi): Khurbaz’s friend Shadab meets the dusky Begum Afroza late at night. Never during the bright incoherent light of day. The strict rules their families follow mean that devising an ingenious method is necessary. They meet at their cousin Aaliyah’s place, mostly empty, always available.

They meet secretly at night, laughing and jumping in a melodramatic garam-masala way. The house is very dark, and the dogs are barking relentlessly. The light switches off and on, a set for a horror movie. Sex has to be partially lighted, a touchy-feely extravaganza.

Realizing they are completely alone, Afroza tempts him, unabashedly. Shadab carries her straight to the next room; ignoring the stained and kababed walls. They change positions partially undressed in a ridiculously small space.

As Afroza takes off her embroidered salwar, Shadab grabs her big round breasts. He squeezes one of them, hard. At that moment, he feels nothing else matters. Just the intense, hot touching, the tiny champagne-bubbles of ecstasy, everywhere.

She rubs her nipples suggestively, then grabs the bed sheet and rolls over completely. Her body is extremely curvy and tight. A wrapped, busty Amazon. She is now completely naked, moaning and wriggling.

As she moves her hips, Shadab is even more aroused. He looks at her hair and bosom, the abode of unrestrained love. Afroza stares at him, and then starts licking his mouth’s corners. They look at the ceiling; the sex goes on till dawn.

Scene # 2( The Coast of Ipanema: I mean somewhere in Brazil):

Antonio’s naked, almost. Removing his underwear, he goes into the old bathroom. The shower is running. Flavia will come in the evening, quickly, after work. A little reflection reminds him of all the past women, the ghost of Christmas past, the busty Italian women or the small, delicate fingers of the short Far Eastern masseuse. His latest flame can be a roller-coaster in bed, a blow hot, blow cold love machine.

Flavia sneaks in, closing the room softly. There is a fire running in the main room, as hot as the one within them. The shower is running, and Flavia strips down to her knickers. “Do you smoke?,” she asks. “Sometimes,” Antonio replies quickly.

“Well I do that,most of the time!,” Flavia says. She removes her flimsy lacy top. Her pink nipples are gleaming in the soft light, a stunning gleaming costume. Antonio grins and lies down. Flavia runs her fingers over his torso, making him even more aroused. An empty wine glass is lying quietly on the side.

Flavia’s breasts bounce and jiggle in front of him. Her body sways, as Antonio’s hands reach for her thighs. They kiss wildly, moaning softly into each other with short, panting breaths. He starts off slowly, and then gets faster as she becomes more excited.

“Bite me,” she says. Her whole body convulses as she scratches his back and screams. He grabs her hair, and they make love till the morning.

Samsung to Announce S4

LOCKED in a fierce battle in the smartphone market, South Korean giant Samsung tomorrow will unveil its latest device aimed at challenging Apple.

The Galaxy S4 is set to be unveiled at New York’s Radio City Music Hall at about 11am Friday AEST and has been generating buzz worthy of the iPhone, as the two firms fight for leadership in smartphones in the US and global markets.

Samsung has released no details about the device, but it is widely expected to be an upgraded, slightly larger version of its Galaxy S3, with some new bells and whistles.

According to media reports, the S4 will be able to respond to eye movements with an enhanced interface, and will offer an improved display.

Samsung has released a series of videos on the internet and has hired dancers to promote the event with street performances in Times Square, complete with a sign that reads, “Be Ready 4 The Next Galaxy”.
Samsung has become the top smartphone maker worldwide with a 29 per cent market share, according to IDC, while in the US market Apple remains the king and sells more than one of every three mobile phones.

The Galaxy S3 has sold more than 40 million worldwide since its launch last May and has some analysts debating which of the two firms is ahead in innovation.

Happy Birthday, Mr. President!

By Sunil Kumar

I have completed “” years on the planet. Happy Birthday to me! Coincidence; me shares a birthday with the founder of Apple, Nike, one of the Beatles; the CM of an Indian state, film-makers and writers. Whoever thought of the concept of celebrating another year of existence on the planet was a crank; or a genius.

What predicates existence(specifically mine!) The story of the world around me; the legions of people in the world (including myself) now in an avatar of profligate extension of their own selves. Many of them in verbose flow; despising and earnestly loving the pomp and the show. Paper, music, social networks; endless blabber. Television shows; defenders of the faith, ideas in stasis; the slang states of India and beyond. (English sure is a funny language, malleable, adaptive; a million dialects).

Dripping blood; vineyards of the soul. Poetry; philosophy, prose. No interconnected thoughts in a linear collage. BBFN! I will meet myself again!

Nobel Laureate Amartya Sen speaks on Gender Equality at IIT Powai

By Sunil Kumar

Gyanam Paramam Dhyeyam (Knowledge Is the Supreme Goal). This was the driving force for the three days of India‘s largest science and technology college festival at the IIT, Bombay. On a chilly Saturday evening in this old Powai landmark, Nobel laureate Amartya Sen spoke at length on a need to revamp policy and emphasize critically on human development indicators as criteria for effective growth.

He was delivering the GL Mehta Memorial Lecture at the Indian Institute of Technology Bombay (IIT-B) on ‘India: A Defense and a Critique’. His lecture had some revealing insights about macroeconomic indicators in the country. He pointed out flaws in the much-vaunted Gujarat model of growth; repeatedly emphasizing on a holistic correlation between factors such as education; gender equality, infant mortality, public health and economic growth. In nearly every comparison, the state ranked below Himachal Pradesh, Tamil Nadu and Kerala. According to Sen; he was not advocating a “Kerala” model per se; but stressed on imbibing the best from every part of the country.

He reminisced about his long academic life; numerous publications and constant travel across the globe. According to Sen; the country was suffering from abysmal power planning both at the central and the state level. On the much-publicized India-China comparison; Sen believed that investment in infrastructure and public health had paid rich dividends for the Middle Kingdom. Sen also talk about India’s performance vis-a-vis other states in the region, emphasizing that even unlikely candidates like Bangladesh had superseded the country in human development landmarks such as life expectancy and gender equality.

Some people would be eager to know the name of his next publication; a phrase from ‘Two Gentlemen of Verona’, “An Uncertain Glory: India and its Contradictions”, co-authored by him and Jean Dreze. In his long presentation; Sen vociferously advocated the importance of public health in the country and a need for more state intervention in the sector. According to Amartya Sen; a true market economy would be one that consistently improved life for its citizens; keeping in line with Adam Smith’s “Wealth of Nations.”

Other Indian winners of the Nobel Prize include Hargobind Khorana, Rabindranath Tagore and V.S Naipaul. Powai was blessed to have such an interesting personality amongst us.

Individualism And Perseverance Key Success Indicators

By Sunil Kumar

Striving for recognition is intrinsic in any human endeavor. Nobel Prize Winners exemplify achievements in diverse fields such as sciences, humanities and the arts. In an exclusive chat with Aglaia.co.in(Visit link in sidebar); Ei-ichi Negishi; the 2010 Nobel Prize winner in chemistry outlined individualism, perseverance, optimism and dreaming big as some criteria for success.

Born in Hsingking, Manchukuo; now in China; Mr. Ei-ichi Negishi was educated at the University of Tokyo and Pennsylvania. Best known for the Negishi coupling; Ei-ichi Negishi’s lecture was an informative description of his many decades of work on organic synthesis. He summed up his presentation briefly mentioning d-block transition elements as core drivers in continual global economic growth.

“India and its leaders suffer from chronic anxiety,” noted Negishi. According to him; dedication, focus and aiming to be the best in any field could be key takeaways for the nation’s youth. He praised the country’s intellectual prowess; but repeatedly emphasized on mentoring, tenacity, serendipity and a need to discover something new as the hallmarks of an ardent researcher.

The Techfest; India’s largest science fest saw a footfall of around 92,000 this year. With around 50 exhibits from 20 different countries; the event also showcased innovative products such as MIT Media Lab’s Netra, Advertron; India’s newest advertising and marketing robot and the SOINN based HIRO robot from Hasegawa Labs, Tokyo that adapts to situations based on Artifical Intelligence.

Tibet

By Sunil Kumar

The roof of the world; a plateau region in Asia, north-east of the Himalayas. In today’s world; Tibet is synonymous with quiet reflection; synonymous with a mythical Shangri-la. A closer look at the country’s history reveals a more violent past; tempered by its association with Buddhism, an Indian cultural import.

Today’s cartographic boundaries are not like the past; the relatively fluid, mystical kingdoms that existed in close proximity. We have relatively rigid dividers, and more insularity. Admittedly, democratization in one thing; the internet gives us access to instant communication. But, merely two centuries back; the world must have seemed infinitely more mysterious, lost worlds waiting to be discovered.

It may come as a shock to some that what seems like a placid, docile people were in-fact intensely warlike at one time. In the eighth century, Tibet had even conquered some parts of modern-day China, including Xi’an. But, the most interesting part of the country was its esoteric doctrines; stories of transportation, levitation, shape-shifting that can beat any science fiction story for sheer fantastical quotient. The land of the lamas had always been construed as an obscure philosophical conundrum; a sort of Eastern Egypt.

China’s atheist Cultural Revolution destroyed a lot of the ancient monastic system; so the world may never know what was transmitted by Tibetan and Indian philosophers such as Nagarjuna and Padmasambhava. But, even with what remains of its past; most people can make an educated guess as to the mental labyrinth of the Indian- influenced Tibetan intellectual maze. Fans of the country’s military history may be intrigued by the fact that even as early as 1834; the Sikhs had invaded Tibet under Zorawar Singh.

Religion in Tibet; its Bon, shamanistic and Tantric Buddhist practices including the ‘Book of the Dead’ are again some of the other-worldly parts of the country’s cultural identity.

For detailed books on the subject, Tibet and various other topics, visit our site:

bookbazaar.co.in

Freedom

Freedom

By Sunil Kumar

The London Olympics ended this week. A dazzling spectacle; brilliantly choreographed and executed. Our sixty-sixth independence day, but do we really know the price of freedom? Souls lost so that we can have a shallow symbolic event; I feel happy for a national festival and everybody goes to sleep. How can we define the idea? What are we really free from? Want, anger, sacrifice, desire. Greed: never, industry, politics and the vast majority of people are building temples to Mammon.

I will not generalize and try to put everybody in the same bracket; that is foolhardy and limiting. As Jiddu Krishnamurti said, labels are defeating. Hate is a waste. How then can I or anybody rise from the confines of our daily lives and truly live the selfless life. If freedom means the independence to think; then I am truly free.

Never mind the constant charade of the world; its relentless din; the desire to create an impact. Aug 15 comes every year; the ritual of flag-hoisting is thrust upon us as a jingoistic call to arms; an opportunity for people to make speeches, mouth hollow promises and revel in their own self-importance. A place in the sun; for a few minutes; disperse and deliberate.

We were slaves; history informs, of the British. No longer; now in a free state; marketing, slimy sycophancy and economic imperialism have taken its place. Reality can be factually bleak. Yet, big institutions have been built; our economy has been growing at more than some percent per quarter; facetiously called the Indian rate of growth, so the West can give us aid with caveats.

Television shows fashionably quote the outside world. We speak the language of the colonizer, adopting it as our own. So, is freedom more than that; a way to end deprivation, corruption, create an ideal world. Food to eat; my humble self tells me that is good; but does everybody have enough? Coffee table discussions trying to find a meaning and a solution; hypocrisy where everybody quotes the poor to feed the rich. Plans drawn up to benefit the world’s less fortunate are self-defeating; where does everything end up; in the pocket of the industrialist or the politician.

This independence day, I take a pledge; to be free of confining thought; limiting abstractions and a self-imposed patriotic din.

What Dreams May Come

By Sunil Kumar

Waking consciousness is maya, the real world is an illusion. For most of you, this may seem like philosophy, and for everybody of us in the real world including me engrossed in the action of the real world, this seems to be a fallacy.

But according to quantum physics, and the indecipherable laws of the universe, nobody knows whether the real world is actually there or an illusion. I know it is there when I don’t get food to eat, or I get injured. There is a whole host of other things. But, on a more profound, sub-atomic level, everything is actually uncertain, an illusion.

Maybe then the laws of the Indian shastras, other esoteric traditions, and belief in the paranormal is true. Now, to the main subject of this post, a dream.

Dreaming is defined as “a sequence of sensations, images, emotions, and thoughts passing through a sleeping person’s mind”. According to another source, dreams embody a synthesis of our being that is manifested at both the physiological and the psychological levels.

Many books talk about the astral plane, something beyond our daily consciousness, which we communicate with at more profound times. Similar ideas have been described in many spiritual traditions, including India, Egypt, the Catholic monks, or the Sufis. A lot of people have had revelations.

ESP, clairvoyance, the bending of the spoon et al. We have to credit the modern world today as it has discovered ways to make money out of such phenomena.Paranormal regression, karmic cleansing, movies, investigations and other thoughts. So, do as you dare. Catch all ya Readers later.