The four people

We live in a crazy world with all kinds of crazy people. People driven by money, by power, by ego and some by good will, love and care.

When you look deep down you will see there are 4 kinds of people.


Darkness to Darkness:

These are people who are constantly agitated. Their mind is not stable. Every action they do is out of their agitated mind. They are always driven by vengeance and ego. These are people who believe that the root cause of their misery is someone else. 

These people live in darkness and will continue to further go in more darkness. 

Darkness to Light

These are people as described above. But they now realise that the root cause of their misery is not someone else but they themselves and their own mind. They work to purify their mind. They realise vengeance and anger have no place in their mind. 
They realise the positive effects immediately and become happy. They achieve greater heights in personal and professional life because they realise the fault is with them.

These people are fast escaping from darkness into light.

Light to Darkness

These people have achieved great success. They have money, position and power. The society respects them for what they have achieved. And this causes their downfall.
They build an ego and consider that no one is above them. They believe that their success and money is because they are smart and everyone else is inferior to them. They start living in their own ego and like people who further boost their ego. Soon they will fall into darkness.

These people are rapidly moving from light to darkness.

Light to Light

These people are as described above. They have everything that people wish for, money, fame and success. However they understand that nothing is permanent. They understand that this success was also built because of contributions from others. They have love and affection towards others and no ego or hatred towards others. They gain more success.

These people move from light to light.

With that I would want to end this post by a shloka from the Upanishad.

Om Asato Maa Sad-Gamaya |
Tamaso Maa Jyotir-Gamaya |
Mrtyor-Maa Amrtam Gamaya |
Om Shaantih Shaantih Shaantih ||

Meaning:
1: Om, Lead us from Unreality (of Transitory Existence) to the Reality (of the Eternal Self),
2: Lead us from the Darkness (of Ignorance) to the Light (of Spiritual Knowledge),
3: Lead us from the Fear of Death to the Knowledge of Immortality.
4: Om Peace, Peace, Peace.

The Red Neighbour

Over the last few weeks I have following the news of India's Mars mission with much interest. I have been reading articles in different news papers, following debates and have been intrigued by how much mankind has progressed.

While there is a section of a society that debates if India should invest such amounts of money in sending a rocket to Mars given that a large section of its population is still in poverty, I tend to disagree. For poverty should not hold back science and invention. There will always be poverty in the world and no amount of money or investment will get rid of it. Science triggers inventions and inventions trigger betterment of human race. Besides at a cost of just £45 million this is the cheapest inter planetary mission in the world. 
The budget for UK planned HS2 rail network itself is in the region of £60 billion. Call that efficiency or something else, but it also opens new avenues for 'space business' - low cost outsourcing of rocket launches, satellites, missions.

From childhood I have been very much fascinated by astronomy, outer space and our solar system. Being an astronaut would have been a dream come true. Alas I have to just manage with fervent passion for all things space.

The magnanimity and infinity and the emptiness of space makes us feel so insignificant. It changes the entire game and makes me question why do people fight on issues like religion, caste, race. Space makes us realise that eventually we all are just a structure of atoms.

I am all for space exploration, going beyond the unknown and if there are more like us.

Walking down the same path

So after a half a decade long hiatus I have decided to seriously get back to blogging again. Why, umm too many reasons but lets leave that for later.

Last blog I wrote was in 2008 - a long back, hopefully I can dedicate myself to get in the habit and write exactly what the blog says "Life As I See It".

Hopefully I will able to push it into blogosphere and gain more readers...only time will tell.

Celebration

Got this as a fwd in email and made me nostalgic

Celebrations

A winter evening.
Four friends.
One barsaat.
Four glasses of chai.

Hundred bucks of gas.
A rusty old bike.
And an open road.

Maggi noodles.
A hostel room.
4.25 a.m.

3 old friends.
3 separate cities.
3 coffee mugs.
1 internet messenger.

Rain on a hot tin roof.
Pakoras deep-frying.
Neighbours dropping in.
A party.

You and mom.
A summer night.
A bottle of coconut oil.
A head massage.
Gossiping about absent family members.

You can spend hundreds on birthdays, thousands on festivals, lakhs on weddings, but to celebrate all you have to do is spend your Time.

Seductress

Seductress...



The seductress comes alive in the night
The night being her perfect cover
The queen of black hearts as she is called
Her beauty puts you under a spell
You forget what your mother taught you about right and wrong
You forget your friends and your foes
All you see is her mesmerising youth
Her words flow like wine into your blood
She brands your heart with her name
Her touch burns your soul
But when you reach out to touch her
She vanishes in a mist of glitter
Leaving behind her ugly marks
Which wont let you live any longer
You ask for death but it doesnt come
And your life stinks of the smell of her skin.
An illusion is what she is all about-- the seductress triumphs over all of you

The wonder years, called the British uni life

1. One out of 4 words you hear in the streets is "fuck" or "fucking"
2. You have tried the symbol of British food, a breaded piece of fish with fries and they call it "fish & chips".
3. You see semi-naked girls in the streets and boys wearing t-shirts with temperatures below zero.
4. You are shocked to see that the Uni is closed, city is collapsed and people stranded if streets are covered with more that 5 cm of snow.
5. You have travelled to London just for 1 pound with
a fun fare, and you love it.
6. You wake up every morning knowing that it's quite unlikely that you're going to see the sun.
7. You drink pints every day and you love them
8. You see people having a pee while they get money
from a cash machine.
9. You realize that dinner time is 6pm
10. You see people drunk in the streets at 8pm.
11. You see old people getting pissed in Potters Wheel
12. You are kicked out of a pub at 11.30 pm
13. You have learned the difference between pasty and pastry and you've tried a Cornish Pasty.
14. You see people wearing flipflops and shorts even though it's raining.
15. You've said "cheers mate" more than twice
16. You've tried to buy a traditional coffee maker and you've failed.
17. You realize the most important religion is not Christianity but Rugby.
18. You wonder how people wash their intimate parts without a "bidé"
19. You wonder why the concept of "proper curtains" hasn't arrived to this country yet.
20. You hear and say "sorry" at least 10 times a day.
21. You've seen naked women on the second (and first, and third...) page of the daily newspapers.
22. After a failed conversation with someone in the street you wonder whether he/she was speaking in Scottish, Gaelic, Welsh, Cornish, Irish or English.
23. You see Tesco as an important social meeting point.
24. You have struggled trying to convert from Farenhait to Celcius, from Miles to Kilometers and from Pounds to Euros, but you know a pint is 0.56 litres.
25. You have been driving on the wrong side of the road
26. You have seen old people smiling at you in the street
27. You have been asked for "some spare change" by an unknown person.
28. You see 3 kebab shops and 2 indian restaurants in every street.
29. You've had a Full English Breakfast with bacon, eggs, sausages, beans, etc and you think it's amazing
30. You've had a burger, chips and beans on the same plate.
31. You've thought more than ten times that the car you have just seen was driven by nobody
32. You have tried to destroy the fire alarm at least a couple of times.
33. You have wondered about the wildlife present in your carpet.
34. You see a group of people wearing fancy dresses every time you go out at night.
35. You have been in a pub next to a really drunk lady, that you think could even be your grandma.
36. You think you're going to visit a palace, a castle or a chapel and you only see a few old stones.
37. You realize that taking a cab is almost free (according to a certain person from Norway).
38. You're outside and don't even notice it's raining anymore, because it is just simply normal to you by now.
39. You realise that any kind of food can be eaten with anything else, no matter how wierd the combination is.
40. You have six months of holidays in a year.
41. In case you need to get your hands clean, you realise that you only have two options: boil your hands in water near to 90º or see how they become two beauty ice-cubes.
42. You have a sink in your bedroom.
43. You can't buy shoes in any shop because they all smell like feet!!
44. You find machines in pubs in which you can buy condoms, vibrators, lubricant and even a Hair Straightener.
45. Your house and surroundings are full of rubbish bags because rubbish is collected just once per week.
46. You ask for a double whisky in a pub and the quantity you're given is just ridiculous!!
47. You see potatoes everywhere, in all different forms and shapes, i.e. boiled potatoes, jacked potatoes, smashed potatoes, chips, crisps, etc.
48. You realize that burping in the library is something normal.
49. You realize that no matter how weird the clothes you're wearing are, people just won't care.
50. You have hoovered your room at least once.
51. You shake the hand of someone of the opposite sex you've just met.
52. You drink as much tea with milk as you drink beer (at least 5 times a day).
53. You realize that being served alcohol in an academic seminar is completely normal.
54. You learn that 4 cups of tea per day is good for you.
55. You have stopped questioning why there are carpets even in the bathrooms
56. You know there is a fair chance your house is filled with mould.
57. Your floors and roofs are in serious decay after years of leakages and no maintenace.
58. You have a fire exit in your house.
59. You find yourself breaking into an english accent when trying to order a cuppa tea.
60. You have mushrooms in your toilets.
61. You see daffodils growing EVERYwhere, all year round.
62. You find yourself discussing what make of baked beans is the best...and it doesn't scare you
63. You see all four seasons in one day. first sun (oh blessed sun!), then rain, then snow, then hail. and sun, and rain, then...aaaah!
64. "hello/hey, how are you?" is replaced by "you alright?"
65. You find yourself going out partying wearing only a little top... and it's raining! And above all it's normal because everybody is dressed like that!!
66. You realize that burping in the middle of a lecture is something normal.
67. It's only five and every single shop is closed!
68. You've bought something at Argos!!
69. You think it's normal to sleep on a mattress which was considered old-fashioned crap in Europe 30 years ago.
70. You don't go out to go out but to get drunk.
71. You don't mind the food anymore...
72. Subway is the healthiest meal you can think of
73. You think that having a dildo is mandatory for every woman, and that ann summers rocks your sexual life!
74. You find normal that in clubs the ladies are full of screaming semi-naked drunk (British) girls trying to do their make up and hair again and again.
75. You feel like being a nun when you wear trousers or skirt longer than your knees and tops to go out
76. You go to the lectures just for sleeping..lying on the table, chair..it doesnt matter!!!
77. You discover that a simple ticket of the train can vary from a price of 8£ to 30£.. for the same train, time and journey
78. You realize that you have never seen an English Restaurant
79. You move into a house and realise that you can't open the windows!!
80. You're in the top back part of the bus, and a 9 years old chav asks you for a lighter
81. You realize that British people are queuing politely everywhere except at the bar counter
82. You discover there is a "potato" function on the microwave!!!
83. You phone a Hospital emergency service at night and you are speaking to a non-medical person on duty who will ask you a lot of questions and then decide if its an emergency. This person will even ask to speak to the almost unconcious patient and ask you to describe whether the person looks pale, the eyes are yellow, blue, red.Any bleeding...blah blah and then tell you that a doctor will only be available at 9.00 in the morning...(after an hour of questioning) and you are worried that the patient might die in the meantime but you have no other options :-(
84. Your umbrellas have got broken at least twice and you are still hoping not to break the new one even if it's May!
85. You see your housemate ordering chinese food or pizzas three times a week
86. You realize that you can get decent (dark, rye, healthy) bread in every European country except for the UK...and no, Toast is not considered a proper kind of bread.....
87. You are no longer suprised to see fans and radiators on at the same time (either in February or June!)
88. You are certainly annoyed by their stupid sockets
89. You realize that every product you buy "may contain trace of nuts"
90. Your sentences begin with.."to be honest"..

Its hilarious to find that every product has written "may contain trace of nuts" and yea I have seen british people queuing everywhere except in pub...I had a nice laugh when I read through these

Images that changed the world

There have been many images which we will always remember and which have changed the world. I have selected 10 such images which I feel have changed the world. They are not necessarily in any order. There must be many more images apart from these which deserve to be in top 10 which I might have missed. But these are my top 10.

1) Man landing on the moon





2) Atomic bomb on Hiroshima and Nagasaki


3) Partition of India and creation of Pakistan 1947.














4) 9/11 attack on WTC



5) Che Guavera



6) Berlin wall falls



7) Surrender of Pakistan to India, 1971 and creation of Bangladesh



8) China tank man



9) Hungry child in Sudan



10) Gulf war

Vistafied

Though I am yet not switching to Microsoft Vista(and it doesnt make sense rite now too) I found a very interesting feature in it.

You could actually use your USB pen drive as RAM.

When you connect the pendrive to the computer, it will give you an option to either open the folder on the drive, or to use it as ready boost. that ways it loads everyting to the USB memory on boot up. Surely seems to be innovative feature for people like me who are always low on RAM.

Heres the link to the article on microsoft site : ReadyBoost