Kings vs Mudhugu Puncture

Kings
The catcher aims the ball below the knee to get the other players out.

Mudhugu Puncture
The catcher aims the ball above the waist and below the head, to get the other players out.

SA bowlers practised Mudhugu Puncture while Indians were busy playing Kings in the sub-continent.

Muttikku kizha Raja(flicks,drives...). Muttiku mela kooja (Pull.. hook...)
Dinesh Karthik is the only Indian to pass the South African litmus test. Although statistics don't share my story. To drop him for the tests will be the biggest of all blunders.

From YoYo to MoYo - When Gods came begging

I have always considered Mohammed Yousuf as a good batsman, rating him only a shy below Laxman in class, elegance and modesty. Ever since he converted to Islam, his game has raised to a new high, getting better by the day. Today, he is ready to give Ponting a run for the money, to be the top player in the circuit.

Every article about him mentions his faith and his recent conversion to Islam, just as I have. I wonder if his recent run has anything got to do with Allah. Or is it Jesus that is showering his blessings to win MoYo back to Christianity. I think the Gods are fighting for him and it is showing on Yousuf's performance. Nevertheless, I must admit that Yousuf possesses some great quality that you and I don't; that Gods are knocking on his willow every time he walks out.

Now I urge VVS. Laxman who has been brought back to the team as Vice Captain to do the following for India's sake.

1. Grow a beard -atleast a mouche
2. Convert to Islam
3. Get the name changed to VVS Latif
4. Touchbase with MoYo and find out what else he did to get the Gods on the negotiation table.
5. Finally do whatever it takes to save India's pride in South Africa.

If Laxman tastes any success then Tendulkar, Sehwag and Ganguly should be summoned to convert.

The Secret Language of Babies

How I learnt what Ishanvi is telling me! Thanks to Oprah.
Amazing Medical Breakthroughs: The Secret Language of Babies Video

Vasanth & Co

Mr. Vasanth insists on sticking his face on every advertisement. Maybe he thinks his ugly face brings trust to the grinders and mixies he sells. Or maybe he wants to take away the dhrishti from his enterprise. Whatever be his excuse, folks I was doing it unintentionally. These nice people who I read and comment regularly, have chosen to display profile images of visitors. All I intended was to display the image in my blog's profile. I hate to vouch everthing I say with my ugly visage. Hope Mr. Vasanth realizes this too. Also the music director S.A. Rajkumar. Good that he is obsolete now and the audio cassette market is down.

Nothing to cheer

Desis who have not yet given up their Desi passport can rest assured that India alienated Iran for a lost cause. The nuclear deal will not see Daylight. The costly moves of sacking Natwar Singh and the transfer of Mani Shankar Iyer by Madam Sonia, Dr. Singh and friends should be regarded futile. The jihadis of Iraq and Afghan will turn to the nearest secular nation to seek revenge when America decides to "cut and run". And those mujahideens will be overwhelmingly aided by the House Majority with little resistance. You think Democrats = Democaracy! You deserve it. By the way if you are the Desi who has already taken the oath of allegiance to Uncle Sam, you will not escape the tax hikes either. Well, it does n't matter to me either ways as I wanted to see Dr. Singh's nose on the ground like "Boys Bharath's".

PS:- Howard Dean and John Kerry should pursue "Stand Up Comedy". So should Bush after 2008. I live in Texas, I had to write this irrespective of my position.

Delhi Ganesh

Delhi Ganesh is the best actor in Tamil Cinema. Followed by Gemini Ganesan. The most over-rated Ganesan is Sivaji. While the other two Ganesans had a hero's profile, Delhi donned only support roles. His entry into the industry was late. His career has spanned over 25 years beginning with Pasi in 1979. He played Munian and made a mark for himself in that Shoba blockbuster. Who can forget his roles since then in movies like Sindhu Bairavi - Gurumurthy , Nayagan - Iyer, MMKR - Mani Iyer and Avvai Shanmugi - Sethurama Iyer. His roles have ranged from a poor rickshaw man to a Bhramin cook and everything in between. Even being cast as a Bhramin in many of his movies, Delhi has shown utmost variety in each outing. He has also taken to Chinna Thirai and is living each of his characters everyday on TV. Whether it is comedy or serious roles, he appears to play them with effortless ease. And that is probably one reason why he goes unnoticed inspite of awesome performances. He has also played villain roles. Although it didn't suit him very well. Today, I enjoyed watching Avvai Shanmugi yet again on Sun TV.

ISHANVI

She already has her own website. Isn't that cool.

Honeymoon is over

It has been more than a year since Rahul Dravid was elevated as Team India's new bride. The honeymoon seems to be over for the captain ever since the WI ODI series began. Atleast the predecessor was screwed only by the coach. Imagine getting screwed by the mighty West Indians, Aussies and your own teammates simultaneously. It's one thing being a wife, it is a whole new game to be a whore.

Don't get me wrong, Rahul's individual performance seems to have no effect with the additional responsibility. Just that the team could use a better captain. Anyone who can really think, please.

Dilip Vengsarkar is partly right in bringing back Anil Kumble and partly parochial in introducing Wasim Jaffer to the limited edition of the game, this late in his career. He would have done well to name a new captain even if he had shown parochialism and turned to Tendulkar. Obviously this hype is not working and there is hardly enough time before the big event.

Mahatma?

Gandhi became more popular than Gokhale and Ranade (Please read this article by a Pakistani). If only the Britishers had given freedom to India around the first world war period, we wouldn't have had to celebrate this day as a national holiday. In the land that witnessed great souls like Vivekananda and Ramana (contemporaries of Gandhi), it is a shame to give this nothing more than a stubborn patriot, the title of Mahatma. History is unfair and wrong. I resent this, but who cares? Anyways Happy Birthday, wherever you are, you lucky ****

Divided Nations

Team A -------------------------------- Team B
USA ------------------------------------------- Iran
UK ------------------------------------------- France
Australia ------------------------------------- Russia
Pakistan ------------------------------------- Pakistan
---------------------INDIA------------------------------
Israel ---------------------------------------- Venezuela
Italy ----------------------------------------- China
Spain ----------------------------------------- North Korea
Japan ----------------------------------------- Cuba
Canada ---------------------------------------- Syria

The nations of the world are divided. Each one has taken a side. Be it for religion or skin colour or short-term benefits. While India is clearly undecided, Pakistan is on both sides.

Seemantham 9/24/06

A snap from Vaishnavi's Seemantham on Sunday. Friends and relatives were present to shower their love and blessings on both of us and the to-be-born. Now, it's time to bootstrap for the biggest event of my life.

Nancy Disgrace?

Trial by media had its latest victim, when the mother of a missing child commited suicide. Nancy, allegedly, suspected the lady of some wrong-doing in her son's disappearance. The boy's dad has given Nancy, a clean chit. The child is still missing. It will be interesting to see how Fox News will make the public react to this story. Just watched it on the "NO SPIN ZONE".

Now Grace is being grilled by paparazzi. She refused interviews. Her response via email:

"We feel a responsibility to bring attention to this case in the hopes of helping find Trenton Duckett, who remains missing. Our goal in our continuing coverage of Trenton's disappearance is to enlist the public's help in finding him," Grace's statement read. "While Ms. Duckett's death is an extremely sad development, we remain hopeful that Trenton will be found safe, and we will continue to cover the case until it is solved."

Titled - Tamil Singham

Thr script is ready. The movie will be named "Tamil Singam". The movie has 5 songs and 12 fight sequences. The songs will be placed at equal intervals.

The first song will be a reluctant Captain being ragged by the "Pannaiyar's daughter" Sada.

The second song features Simran in a dream sequence where Captain is dressed in Kakkis (I mean our Tamilnadu police dress with medals and Cap with national emblem)in Canada. Much like the Sakalakala vallavaney song from Pammal K.


The third song - this is an emotional song that takes the story from the death of Kumaresan's family through his time in Jail. The song ends when Kumaresan reaches his village.

Fourt song is just an amazing koothu celebrating a successful operation while Captain is in the ranks of LLTE.

The fifth follows within a couple of scenes - This is a pathos more like the one in Nanda (" paniya illai mudhal mazhaiya. en ninaivil edho...") or the one starring madhavan in mani's movie.

The music director will be Vidyasagar. Rehman doesn't go well for Captain. Ilayaraj is reserved for his total village subjects. Harris Jayaraj wd be good but he is out of stock now. So we settled for Vidyasagar under one conditions. The condition that Vidyasagar would not score for the stunt sequences.

The stunts in this movie will be the USP to distributors and audience alike. There will be no re-recording. The sound produced from the impact of Vijayakanth's arms and legs on the enemies will be kept to its original. It is hard to reproduce, experts say. So Captain has demanded for original sound. However upon persuation he has agreed to include some effects like "buguvey buguvey buguvey" "akum akum akum" "hiye hiye".... as the enemies fall after coming in contact with Captain's blows. Special walls have been erected at the locations to withstand Captain's powerful legs. If you know him, Captain never kicks the enemies directly. He needs to have three steps before contact. This helps him generate the awesome power that we experience in the theater.

Public are encouraged to go to theaters and warned not to watch it at home on thiruttu DVD. The Television sets are likely to tremble during the fight scenes and the powerful dialogues towards the climax. The tremor will measure to a ritcher 5 earthquake. Beware!

Starring Captain

When so many Tamils are suffering in the south of the border, it is difficult to pretend that Kashmir problem is more important for us to resolve. India governed from up north does not want to entertain the seperationists in SL because it would hurt their standpoint in Kashmir and Assam. But didn't they help B'desh to break free from Pakistan. Hail! Vaiko.

As a first step, I want to see Vijayakanth make a movie around the Srilankan Tamil crisis. The storyline is ready.

Vijaykanth is a tailor in a remote village in Tamilnadu .A tailor who does not have his own shop, Captain goes from house to house to earn his living.

The scene shifts to Chennai. The DGP, IGs, DIGs, Home minister and other law and order personnel are summoned by the Chief Minister for an urgent meeting to discuss the murder of an Indian dignitary during his recent visit to Sri Lanka. Various strategies are brought to the table but nothing promising. That is when one low-ranked, honest police officer stands and mentions the name "Kumaresan". The entire room goes silent. Who is this Kumaresan, the CM asks innocently.

Scene shifts to a very busy marketplace where a few goondas are creating havoc. The sirens of the police van brings the area SI who gets beaten up badly. At the right moment enters Kumaresan (Vijayakanth) and the rest is ...

A few incidents like this during a direct confrontation with the villain Kumaresan falls into a trap and as a result his family members (Simran as wife , and two children get killed) and Vijayakanth gets blamed for bribery or something like that.
After serving a few months in jail, Vijayakanth returns to his native village and changes his name to Ravi and occupation to "Tailor". Thus ends the flash back.

The government goes back and forth trying to persuade Kumaresan to rejoin the forces. Kumaresan hesitates but eventually agrees to join the mission. But he wants it to be a "One man operation". However this one man operation includes Senthil (comedian) and the village pannaiyar's daughter who is madly in love with Tailor Ravi (even before the real story is revealed).

Vijayakanth leaves for Srilanka (in disguise) with his customary manja jolna pai and azhukku veshti. He wants to really mingle in the LLTE group to understand how they operate and to dismantle them from within. He reaches Mullai Thivu on a Kalla Thoni. From there he gets an acquaintance who helps him reach Jaffna, the headquarters of LLTE. He, somehow manages to enter the organization and quickly rise in the ranks. He is now the right hand for the head of LLTE Mr Sirupillai Kripakaran. He becomes third in command after Sirupillai and Ilamsingam.
Although he is here on a mission to thwart the LLTE from inside, Kumaresan soon realizes that the LLTE is an organization comprising of good people and the Tamil cause is just. His focus soon shifts on the SL govt. His investigations revela that the SL givt. is using its power to blame LLTE and show the organization in poor light. How Captain successfully brings out the truth and gets freedom for Tamils can be seen in the Silver Screens.

Alternative

If, all of a sudden, water were to loose its property of quenching thirst, everyone will consume it in gallons before they realize or come to terms with it. What is a good alternative? Tender coconut water?

Ego - Royally screwed

A husband and wife have their usual arguement and decide not to talk each other then after. Thus a few days pass by and yet their anger wouldn't subside. They now invent a new way of communicating without giving up their ego. They start writing stick-notes with crisp messages like "Please bring groceries" or "Pick up the kids from the school" and a few more days go by. This was working well for them for day to day communication. One evening, the husband is desperate to talk to his wife and ask her to wake him up at 6:00 am the next day as he has a very crucial meeting at work. However, he decides against breaking the ice and writes a note and sticks it by her bedside. The message reads "Please wake me up at 5:30 tomorrow morning". He waits to make sure that the wife reads it and then hits the sack. Next day he gets up on his own and finds out that the time was 7:00 am already. He pounces out of the bed and starts yelling at his wife "Why didn't you wake me up? I saw you reading the message." She points to a sticknote saying, "Oh! didn't you read my message". It read "It's 5:30,honey. Wake up!".

Bhaja Govindam - Spiritual ladder

Shree and Vishy have interesting questions in the comments section of my previous post.
Who is Guru?
Let us try to answer this question by defining who is not a Guru.
He is not a Guru, who pins the disciple to his beliefs inturn creating an attachment. A true Guru merely points the disciple to seek the path of non-attachment and allows the disciple reach that state on his own.
What is non-attachment?
It is obviously not attachment. But one should realize that it is not detachment either. Running away from the family due to domestic or financial issues does not mean that a person is non-attached. From where ever he is hiding, that person will be thinking more about his kith and kin resulting in more attachment and desperation. So forcing out of responsibilities and attachment will only rebound manifold. Therefore, both attachment and detatchment need an effort and neither qualifies as default. The default state is non-attached. So the effort is to return to default.

Non-attachment cannot be achieved by practise. It is the default state of every being. However, the mind has wavered from this central state to focus on various thoughts and desires. The mind, therefore needs to be trained to focus on the centre rather than on the circumference where the thoughts and desire live. That is what requires practise. The state of non-attachment brings about freedom. With that freedom, one will become fearless. His actions and judgements will be considered selfless and his decisons will be for the greater good.

To quote from Bhaja Govindam:

Satsangatvey Nissangatvam
Nissangatvey Nirmohatvam
Nirmohatvey Mischaltatvam
Nischaltatvey JivanmuktiH.

Sankara has clearly defined the path to jivanmukti.

1. Satsangatvey Nissangatvam

What is satsang?
Satsang means "good company". Good company is nothing but the union of minds to bring awareness to our self - awareness that the mind should focus on the centre and not on the desires sorrounding it. The awareness that "me" the centre is not affected by the "I" outside. Such a group that works towards this goal is alone satsang. In short, the starting point is the "satsang" which leads to "nissangatvam" (non-attachment). Temples and other punya kshetrams are the most common/obvious places to find such good satsang.


2. Nissangatvey Nirmohatvam
The state of non-attachment removes desires and automatically eliminates moha (delusion). This state helps us focus on the centre. Thus calmness and equanimity descends on one's self.

3. Nirmohatvey Nischaltatvam.
With the diminishing of delusion and the rise of clarity, one will be able to concentrate better on the centre. Sustained concentration alone can remove desires totally as the mind tends to waver back to its earlier thoughts.

4. Nischaltatvey jivanmuktih
Continuous awareness and complete concentration leads to mukthi (liberation) within the lifetime.

Adi Sankara, knowing that it is difficult for novices like us to reach the state of liberation, has provided us with this 4 step ladder to elevate ourselves.

Many of us get caught to one of the steps and choose to stay there forever. However in his Viveka Choodamani, Sankara has explained clearly that self-realization is the ultimate goal and one does not need to go to temple or take shower or be in a clean environment to reach it. All of these are mere facilitators and should be taken at face value.

Disclaimer: My interpretations are based on translated commentaries and my perception. Please use this post as a mere pointer to figure it out for yourself.

Tvameva Tat Tat Tvameva

Tat tvam asi - Thou art That

is the most important hidden message of the Hindu scriptures. In an attempt to understand GOD and realize the world we tend to look outward. Over millions of years, from the period when darkness wrapped darkness around, desire has slowly taken away life and buried it deep under the worldly pleasures. The world created thus, as viewed externally, is explained as an illusion and looking inward alone will lead to the root of all beings. The great saints like Sankara, Ramana maharishi, Ramanuja, Desika, Ramakrishna Paramahamsa and Vivekananda have travelled the million years' worth of depth inward to reach the TRUTH. They all ended with a common conclusion - That life is universal. That You are the Truth, and the Truth is You.

Usha, to answer your question from Narayana sooktam:

Sa bhrama, sa siva, sa hari, s'endra s'okshara, parama swarat.

From GanapathuaAtharvasiirshopanishad:

Tvam bhrama Tvam Vishnustvamrudrastvamindrastvamagnistvamvayustvamsuryastvam chandrama tvam bhrama: boorbuva: svarOM.

It really doesn't matter as long as you pick one and place the complete faith.
Krishna, arguably is the most charismatic of them all - "Karshati ithi Krishnaha".
He gave the Bhagavat Gita. He graced the Gopikas (gender no bar) and Yadhavas (caste no bar) who knew no rituals/agamas of worshipping but love and Bhakti. He is the most recent Vishnu Avataram. His leelas are bountless. He is the Supreme God, if you believe.
Sarvam Krishnarpanamastu.

Ramayana to go

ISKCON has done its share in spreading "Krishna Consciousness" in this part of the world. I have been quized by many colleagues about Hare Krishna. However it was strangely surprising when an American at work, asked me about Ramayana in the lift, today. "Do you know the story of 'Ramyana' "; he asked curiously. The elevator had already reached 5th floor and he had to get out there. Sure, I, not wanting to disappoint this person, gave him the gist of the story in the short time we had. "Rama killed Ravana", I quickly responded.
"Interesting", he said and got out.

Spammers welcome.Goodbye! to xyklmnju

When I enabled word-verification, I was trying to do away with those unwanted comments. Deepa's post has changed my mind. I come to agree that I need not be overly protective about one's comment in my blog that may/may not provoke another . Therefore, henceforth I shall not try to moderate comments or shoo visitors away by making them spell difficult words especially when they are in rage.

Real reason? Comments are drying out. Spam me.

PS:-
Therefore, henceforth is oddly nice to use, I feel.
It reminds me of "You cannot start a sentence with because, because because is a conjunction".

Joe, Ganguly and the jump from WTC

Not long before they were dumped, both these men were at the helm of affairs in their respective fields. Both won't give up and want to fight their way back, inspite of all odds. One finds a place among the 30 probables on the same day as the other severes his 40 year long relationship with the Dems to run as an independent. Whether one of them succeeds to break in to the mainstream again, is yet unknown. Nevertheless, it will be a great fightback for whoever does.
Ask Sourav or Leiberman, how it feels to be pushed from up there.

No content to write, nor content with life

I do not live in the war-torn region of Lebanon/Israel.
Nor I have any connections in Baghdad/Tehran.
I don't have to take the Subway to NY or the trains in Mumbai to get to work.
I do not subscribe to the "Religion of Peace" to feel the stress in the West.
I am lucky to be born; to the north of Palk Straits.
More so to have escaped the Grandfather's rule there.
I was not affected by Katrina or Rita.
I pay no state tax.
Yet I feel life can be better.

Greed or Motivation?
Be it either. It doesn't seem to have an end.

Want more and more.....
I mean buttermilk. Heading to my refridgerator...

What Roberto Baggio failed to bring to Italy comes home.

Italy wins the cup. I celebrated the win too.

Roberto Carlos - Arigato

Imaginations run galore @ Pepsi. But does Roberto Carlos really have to go this far against Japan?

Jose + 10

It took me a while to get over dissapointing Dirk's lack of big match gamesmanship , as Wade walked away with all the laurels. Switching to football, where the ball hits the net probably just once or twice in the entire game, was not an obvious alternative. Mexico and Netherlands losing to lesser opponents (yes I do mean Argentina) inspite of better display of talent and strategy brings out the irony, haunting me of the Maverics's loss to the Heat from 2-0 lead.

Now I am left with no choice but to root for Ghana which has been the only other team that I enjoyed watching. They are playing Brazil tomorrow.Who knows?

Watch these Commercials. These give me a respite.
Jose + 10
Continued here

And the funniest one sporting David Beckham as if he is not having enough trouble from the media.

ABLE WAS I ERE I SAW ELBA

Malayalam, Madam... were the simple words that I was using to test my little BASIC program to check whether a given string was a palindrome. My dad mentioned this to me for the first time and introduced me to the history of Palindromes and its use in historical events. I loved Palindromes thereafter and I still have the habit of reversing the letters while I read a new word.

"Able was I ere I saw Elba" was a palindrome used to mark the defeat and exile of Nepolean Bonaparte.

"A man, aplan, a canal, Panama" when Panama Canal was conceived.

"Madam, I am Adam" was the first reference to the first man of the world in the Bible.


In Tamil, a different kind of palindrome. Read horizontally and vertically.

Si va ji
va yi le
ji le bi

Fascinating, is'nt it?

The longest palindrome has 17259 words.

Preah Karuna Preah Bat Sâmdech Preah Bâromneath Norodom Sihamoni, Preahmâhaksat

Rajadhi Raja Raja Marthanda Raja Gambeera Raja Kula Thilaka Sri Vettaya Maharaajaa Paraar.

I have only heard such titles in movies. The King of Cambodia, Preahmâhaksat Norodom Sihamoni has the title which has a mixture of Sanskrit and Khmer words that is comparable to our own cinematic titles.
Hey!!! he is a bachelor and there is no direct successor to his throne.
Do I hear you girls say Paul Allen would be a better pick?

Captain spoils Amma's party

My assessment
Vijayakanth ate up her votes although neither won except for the one seat that they grabbed out of PMK at Virudhachalam.
Add to it, the Sankaracharya episode which antagonised many Bhramin voters.
Vaiko's defection from DPA at the last moment did not go well in the rural areas.
Amma's anti coversion policy made no significant change as Christians always voted for DMK. So did the muslims except for the votes to IUML that was an ADMK ally.

But Vijayakanth's voters in almost every constituency made the difference between victory and defeat for AMMA.

On the otherside, Karunanidhi won purely because of the coalition.
He tactfully sacrificed absolute majority to share seats with the other members of the DPA only to ensure he stays CM. He even let go the hold he had on the centre, where he always threatened to withdraw support unless his demands were met. Now it is a stalemate as his govt. depends largely on the relationship with INC, PMK and CPI-M. In a way it works out well for both the centre and state as there is a check and balance.

I am sure that everyone would agree that the centre and state relationship will become much better now than it was during J's reign. How long this will last needs to be seen.

After Karunanidhi
Inspite of Yoga and idlis, the fact remains that Karunanidhi is not getting any younger. There will be a race for leadership among the younger generation while the likes of Balu, Anbazhagan, Arcot Veerasamy and Duraimurugan are likely to stick behind Stalin who to his credit has worked for the party as much as anybody else. However the new kid around the block, riding high on his brother's media weight, Mr. Dayanidi Moron is likely to garner support from the lesser loyals. Whether family prevails over politics is yet to be seen.

The post-Kamaraj Congress is just beginning to see some faint light after four decades of indifference from the Tamil public. Vaiko and Vijayakanth will stand to gain too. If Amma can keep the other three mentioned above in bay, she can rule TN for the rest of her life. Amma's celebrations are merely postponed till next elections if she plays her cards well.

nAsadEya sUktam - The Song Of Creation

The Truth in Veda shines at its best when we read the Naasadeeya Sooktam. The acknowledgement of "the unexplicable" is very ardently brought out after giving thorough insights on the earliest perception of Creation.

But, after all, who knows, and who can say
Whence it all came, and how creation happened?
The gods themselves are later than creation,
so who knows truly whence it has arisen?

Whence all creation had its origin,
he, whether he fashioned it or whether he did not,
he, who surveys it all from highest heaven,
he knows - or maybe even he does not know.

-Excerpts from Naasadeeya Sooktam Rg Veda 10th Mandala, 129th Suukta. By A. L. Basham.

A Must Read commentary.

Arisiyal - Rice politics

The Tamil Nadu Arasiyal has par-boiled down to "Free Arisi". While the "Old Man with no eyes" has promised Arisi for Re 2/kg, Amma tops him by offering "Buy 10 kgs for Re.3.50 and get 10 kgs free".

I feel that Amma's offer is sensible because there is a minimum buy catch that many small families may not choose to avail. This is certainly beneficial for the larger families with low income. A win-win situation.

However, the FM, Mr. P.C conveniently overlooks the catch and plays Arisiyal or Ricetics with the issue. God alone can save our India from this man.

Btw, I have no clue as to how much rice, a regular four member family consumes per month. Does anybody here know?

Hu meets Bush - Ignarance is Bliss.

Bush: The Chinaman is coming in. I have to go and receive him. (Leaves White House in a hurry).

Condi and crew are waiting at the airport where Bush joins them to receive the Chinese Premier. As usual GWB doesn't know his name.

The flight arrives and the Chinese contigent is getting off.

George Bush: Every one looks alike. Who is the Premier.
Condi: Hu.
GB: I am asking you.
Condi: Hu
GB: Chinaman
Condi: Hu
GB: Ok there's no time for all this now. (As Hu arrives closer to shake hands with Bush)

GB: (Extending is hand he greets) George.
Chinese guy: Hu
GB: George Bush
Chinese guy: Hu
GB: George W. Bush, the president of America.
Hu: Hu , the president of China.
GB: No the America. Pretty perplexed at the lack of English knowledge in the part of his Chinese counterpart. I know these guys don't speak English. But I didn't think that they will find it difficult to get the common (proper) names.

More of Bush (or) More from Bush?

Can the English language survive after Bush?

The vast majority of our imports come from outside the country.

- George W. Bush

If we don't succeed, we run the risk of failure.

- George W. Bush

One word sums up probably the responsibility of any Governor, and that one word is ' to be prepared '.

- George W. Bush

I have made good judgments in the past. I have made good judgments in the future.

- George W. Bush

The future will be better tomorrow.

-George W. Bush

We're going to have the best educated American people in the world.

- George W. Bush

I stand by all the misstatements that I've made.

- George W. Bush

We have a firm commitment to NATO, we are a part of NATO. We have a firm commitment to Europe We are a part of Europe.

- George W. Bush

Public speaking is very easy.

- George W. Bush

A low voter turnout is an indication of fewer people going to the polls.

- George W. Bush

We are ready for any unforeseen event that may or may not occur.

- George W. Bush

For NASA, space is still a high priority.

- George W. Bush

Quite frankly, teachers are the only profession that teach our children.

- George W. Bush

It isn't pollution that's harming the environment. It's the impurities in our air and water that are doing it.

- George W. Bush

It's time for the human race to enter the solar system.

- George W. Bush


There is an entire site dedicated to Dubya and his magical words with supporting evidences.
Disclaimer: This particular one was cut/paste from a forwarded mail that I received. Don't know if he really spoke all these.

Googled

Try this one for sure.

Go to google and type "Failure"

I wonder why the company is being sued for Rankings.

Legends Of South India - V. Krishnaswamy Aiyer

"Let us work with brains enlarged and hearts expanded, with character ever more valuable than intellect and with trained capacity greater than knowledge."
- V. Krishnaswamy Aiyer

SINA and Ranade Library celebrated the centenary year in June 2005, The centenary year of Madras Sanskrit College was kicked off this year. Indian Bank will turn hundred, next year. All these institutions had a common beginning - its Founder,

Shri V. Krishnaswamy Aiyer. A young "vakil" rose to prominence, when he fought for the public in the Arbuthnot Bank Case.

You can find a brief summary of the life of a person, who did not even live 50 years, yet who managed to achieve great heights and ended as the Member of the Executive Council of Madras - a top ranking post offered to him by the admiring British- where he made a significant contribution to the Tenancy Legistlation.

He organised the Madras session of the Indian National Congress in 1908 which helped in bridging the gap between the moderates and extremists after the divide that happened in the 1907 Conference.

Here is a piece from The Hindu - A pioneer to remember.

Ps:- His great grand daughter, Mrs. Prabha Sridevan is a Madras High Court judge.

A lesson for Rahul Gandhi from Dag Hammarskjold

If your father was the Prime Minister of the nation, you might want to become the next Prime Minister. We have seen that desire, in a particular family for generations together. Who would not trade Allahabad for ruling India for four generations or more.? Hehehehe.


His father was a Prime Minister too, but Dag Hammarskjold went on to become the Second UN Secretary-General between 1953 and 1961 arguably the most difficult times in the world political arena. He was unanimously elected by the UN Security council and he held that office till, a plane crash brought about his death.

Dag Hammarskjold had a strong foundation of English, French and German languages from Uppsala University where he gratuated with a degree in Humanities in 1925. He specialized in linguistics, literature and history.

He held offices at various capacities within Sweden and as a foreign delegate on his way up the ladder before becoming the UNSG.

Excerpts from Shri V. Sundaram's article.

Dag Hammarskjold left behind the manuscript of a book in Swedish language to be published after his death. It was published under the title 'Markings' in 1964. He himself described the manuscript -as a sort of White Book concerning my negotiations with myself and with God.' As we read it, the outer image of Dag Hammarskjold as The Secretary General persists and heightens the sense of loneliness he conveys, the severity with which he marked his own spiritual conduct and measured the integrity of his soul. It also poetically brings out his conception of life as a summon, and his premonition of death.

Here are a few beautiful quotations from his 'Markings':

The longest journey is the journey inwards. Of him who has chosen his destiny, Who has started upon his quest for the source of his being.

For all that has been, thanks. For all that will be, yes.

The only kind of dignity which is genuine is that which is not diminished by the indifference of others.

Life only demands from you the strength you possess. Only one feat is possible - not to have run away.

The entries in the Markings in themselves are spiritual truths given in an artistic form. That Book contains many references to death, perhaps none more explicit or significant than this portion from the opening entries, written when he was a young man:

Tomorrow we shall meet,

Death and I

And he shall thrust his sword

Into one who is wide awake.

He travelled to 21 countries in Africa between 18 December 1959 and 31 January 1960 - a trip he described later as "a strictly professional trip for study, for information", in which he said he had gained a "kind of cross-section of every sort of politically responsible opinion in the Africa of today".


He was posthumously awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1961. Watch this short documentary.

Purusha Sooktham

(Uttaranarayanam truncated due to audioblog's 5 minute restriction).

Purusha Sooktham is a gem found in the Rig Veda. This explains the cosmic creation of the UNIVERSE. Please excuse my voice and mistake in accents (if any).
The meaning can be found here.

Here is a beautiful video presentation of "The Hymn of Creation". However, this one is not derived from Purusha sooktham.

(Faster version with mistakes at the very end due to lack of breathe control)

Insecurity

I have an obsession. I try to be humourous during conversations. Not every now and then, but at all times.In the lack of opportunity to be so, I make a fool of myself. I try to make up a joke involving myself. I male up a story to make others laugh. I may have never done that or someone might have narrated it to me. But I always re-tell it in the first person to amuse others. I have never cared for what impression that it would leave of me, on them.

I begin to realize that it is a wrong approach. I explore deep inside. I travel far inside and find the cause. INSECURITY.

But can I ever change?

This I write when I am high on alcohol.

Kannaampoochi @ Alice Boys @ Hide and Seek

Who can forget the counting till 100 before every other player finds a safe hideout for himself? This was one of the most commonly played games during my "growing up" years.

In my neighbourhood, we had so many kids that it was almost impossible for the catcher (seeker) to find everyone before someone claims "All safe" at his base. Therefore we had a rule, if the same person is the catcher for three consecutive games, then he gets the option of relieving himself from the duty. This, he can franchise by licking the wall (his base) three times (roughly 3 inches each lick). Cruel? Yeah but if you think of it, you will find that it was a worthy bargain and almost everyone availed it.

I was a pain for most catchers because I was not easily traceable. Sometimes, I had this habit of going home and forgetting about the game totally. The poor catcher would wait hours in search of me.

Tonight, my customer called me at around 10:00 pm and said that he has "a code promotion that needs to be completed before tomorrow". I believed him and am still waiting (2:00 AM CST now) for his call. Do I have to lick the wall to get out of this situation? Show me the wall.

Atleast I got this post in!!!

Naga's Chidambara Rahasiyam.

This wonderful serial has reached its climax. All this while, I was thining that it was GOD (Editor Kumaraguru) who was behind all the killings. Now it looks unlikely, the fact that he has accepted that he was involved but was not the main planner.

My wife suspects Bombay Gnanam who is playing Aakash's paati although there is no clue that would lead to her, thus far. Except that she does not want Aakash to get into Olai Chuvadi's and stuff.

Is it YG. Mahendran (or his wife)? But then why would he put his own daughter through all the torture.

Is it Somu's friend, the photographer?

Is it Thulasi?

It can't be Somu.
Please let me know if you suspect anyone else.
Who is Kaduvul??

List of Dead - how they died

Palani - Lorry Accident


Sankaran - Poison
Ponnambalam - Poison (Oxytoxin)
Natesa Sharma - Poison
Manoharan - Poison
Ismail - Poison
Perumal Reddy - Poison
Priest -Poison
Nandan - Poison
Isakki - Poison
Seethapathy - Poison
Little Somu - Poison

11 out of 12 were killed of poison. Was the first murder unmotivated.

Are there multiple killers, just to add to the mystery.

Iyer the Great

Cross posted from Annachivazhi.

The time is 2:00 AM, I am on the verge of a deep sleep when the phone rings ...

Me : Hello
Iyer: Hello Rajesh? Hey naan dhandaa Balaji.
Me: Mmm. solludaa (with thooka kalakkam)
Iyer: Ennada sogamaa irukka.
Me: Dei, rathiri rendu mani daa.
Iyer: Enna daa poi sollara. Inga 1:30 madhiyanam. Velila vezhil adikudhu.
Yenda poi sollara.
Me: Illa daa Balaji. America la rathiri rendu mani daa.
Iyer: Pesa ishtam illeynaa, phonea vechudu.
Adhukaaga ippadi appattamaa poi pulugaadha.
Me: Nejamadaa.
Iyer: Slams the phone hard.

The next day Iyer calls back and says "I verified from my friends and they said that in America it is night when it is morning in India. How is it possible?"

Me: Dei, Earth rotate agum bodhu..."
Iyer: Ennadhu Earth rotate agudha. Yennada gunda thooki podara.
Sun and Moon dhaaney, Boomiya suthi varum?
Me: Illada.
Iyer: Ennadaa enakku edhuvum theriyaadhunnu kadha vidarayaa.
Me: Dei, Sun is stationary daa.
Iyer: Slams the phone.

Iyer is yet to call me back after that incident. If any of you happen to see him or talk to him, just let him know that I was not telling a lie. Also buy him some third standard Geography book. I shall reimburse.

Operation - Blog Cleanup

A week before Bogi should be a good time to recycle the old stuff and re-organize.
So I decided to (re)move all the cricket posts. You can find them in Spectator Box

Legends of South India -VS Srinivasa Sastri

"An artist in words" was Lady Lytton's compliment to Sastri. A H Smith, Master of Balliol, Oxford, observed that he did not realize the beauty of the English language till he heard Sastri. Prof. Max Gluckman (a British social anthropologist of South African origin) remarked that, the best English he had ever heard spoken was by an Indian, Srinivasa Sastri. Lord Erskine, Governor of Madras Presidency, while delivering his address at the annual convocation of the Annamalai University in 1938 turned towards Sastri and said, "Sir, it is with some trepidation that I begin my speech in English, my mother tongue, because of the inescapable feeling that neither in English pronunciation nor in the mellifluousness of your intonation can I match the excellence of your attainment in both the spheres. I am humble enough to acknowledge my limitations in both, before this august gathering."

- Courtesy Sanmar Group Newsletter

Need I say more about this greatest Indian speaker of the English language. Born into a poor brahmin family in Valangaiman, a small village near Kumbakonam, VS Srinivasa Sastri fought his way up to the elites of India through his strong words of wisdom both on paper and in public meetings.

He began his career as a school teacher. He taught both English and Sanskrit in school. He was a scholar of both the languages and his faultless pronunciation of English won him great fame. He was instrumental in starting the Madras Teachers' Guild. His love for teaching saw him reach great heights in academia. He served as the Vice Chancellor of Annamalai University.

Sastri's political career began when he was admitted into the Servents of India Society which had been started by Gopalakrishna Gokhale. Sastri was a disciple of the Ghokale school of thought which adopted the moderate approach to gain Independence from the Imperials. Sastri had to move to Pune to serve in the Society but he never regretted his decision. He succeeded Gokhale to the President's post of the society which he held and cherished till his death.

As a trusted lieutenant of Justice V Krishnaswamy Iyer (who happens to be my ancestor), Sastry was responsible for organising the 1908 session of the Indian National Congress in Madras.

Sastri had to his credit, a string of achievements as a delegate to the Imperial Conference in London. He was persuaded to serve as the First Agent-General (ambasssador) to South Africa.He used his eloquence to present India's case for self-government in the European Councils. His speeches brought notice in the world to India's different approach to demand self-governance.

South Africa was Sastri’s greatest challenge. In 1919, Gen. J C Smuts, the Prime Minister of South Africa, declined to accord Sastri equality of status with Sir Benjamin Robertson, when the British Viceroy of India planned to send them both as a delegation to help Indians in South Africa. The same Gen. Smuts admitted in 1928, that Sastri, the First Agent of the Government of India in South Africa, was the most honoured man in South Africa.
Here is the testimony for his work in SA.

Sastri's skills as an orator was so powerful that the Britishers conferred on him the title "silver-tongued". Silver-tongued because silence is golden, I assume. My father has told me about his speech when the Britishers tried to intimidate him by asking him to talk about "Nothing". He started off "The power of the British is nothing in front of the power of the Indians....". I have never been able to validate that piece anywhere. But I trust it must have been a true story.

In the words of K R Srinivasa Iyengar

We see history unfolding itself in the sequence of his letters, we find them flavoured with philosophy. We find in them the material for other men’s biographies, and we recognise in them the charm, candour and clarity of the writing, the man himself, the whole man.

Excerpts from the In Defence of the Art of Speaking to honour Rt. Hon'Ble VS Srinivasa Sastri.

Our ancients laid great stress on correct pronunciation and perfect accent. Chanting of the Vedas is a perfect example where intensive training has been able to impart a mastery over the voice and correct pronunciation and accent.

Hanumān is a great character by Vālmīki in his renowned Rāmāyana. Although depicted as a monkey he is characterised as Vākya Kovida (an expert in speech making). In the whole fiction of devotional writing we will not perhaps find a character comparable to Hanumān. In the Rāmāyana story he first appears in Kis.kinda Kānda approaching Rama and
Lakshmana enquiring as to who they were and why they had come to Kis.kinda. On this occasion poet Vālmīki puts words in the mouth of Rama characterizing good speech which are worth remembering


Avistaram asandigdham avilambitam adrutam

Urastham kanthagam vākyam vartate madhyame sware

Samskarakrama sampannām, adrutām, avilambitām

Uc.cārayati kalyanīm vac.am hrīdaya hārinīm


“Not lengthy, not difficult to understand, neither rapid or halting and words uttered clearly in a sweet modulated voice

He has spoken grammatically as a cultivated man with perfect accent and captivating the heart of his listeners.”

What more qualifications do we need in a good speaker?
These are the ideals of good speech set before us by acknowledged practitioners and no effort should be spared in cultivating the art of good speech and effective communication.

Read THE HINDU article on him by Mr V. Sundaram. I feel his pain too.

Finally, this link is a good summary of his life.

Diet and Exercise

My cholesterol is high. The doctor wants me to follow a strict diet and adcised me to play some sport.

Diet - I am not sure I can control my tongue. But I sure have started playing some tennis. :-)