CSK wins final

Nice contest, cleanly fought until Sachin refused to walk after edging one to Dhoni. There was a bit of luck for Raina but the way he rocketed to 50 after getting to 13 off as many deliveries, really set it up for the Super Kings. In the end, Dhoni's masterstroke in Pollard's dismissal and Tendulkar's mistake in keeping Pollard in the dugout till 18th over was the real difference. I was a little disappointed to see Raina missing out on the Golden Player award. He deserved it better than Tendulkar for his allround performance with the bat, ball and in the field. (or for that matter Kallis!)

I feel bad for Lalit Modi who read out his own eulogy at the presentation podium with quotes from "The Bhagavat Gita". The man may be corrupt but he sure can put together a great show. The way he moved the tournament to South Africa last year or the Bangalore game to Mumbai before the semifinals speaks volumes of his abilities. It also demonstrates how efficient an oligarchy can be if the oligarch is efficient. I personally think Lalit Modi should outgrow cricket and consider taking up Homeland Security job in India. I am convinced that he is best suited for running that office as evident from IPL provided his loyalty still rests with India.

As for cricket, see you guys in Champions Trophy. Oh wait! there is the T20 WC before that.

Nityanandam!

A powerful master with a great message: "I am not here to say that I am God. I am here to show that you are God", is obviously likely to sway the hearts and minds of seeking individuals. My heart goes out to those individuals who today feel like a lost child looking for his mother in a carnival (Translated : thiruvizhala tholanja kuzhandai madhiri). This shock is huge for them that walked away from their careers and families to get a glimpse of what the Swami talked about in every discourse. The grief must be only multifold for those young women that chose to spend time in the many ashrams worldwide in service.

To them I say;

If you are ashamed of the Swami's actions but are compelled to follow through with defending the Swami rather than admitting your own mistake of throwing away everything for a false master, please do not feel guilty. Today you may want to return to your normal life. That is absolutely fine. First of all, there is nothing to be ashamed of. If you liked the message, it still holds good. For the message does not get tarnished because of the Swami's actions. All the messages existed long before his prominence and will continue to hold good in the future long after we all depart. If you have lost respect for the Swami, consider him as merely a person who delivered them eloquently with illustrations just like your high school physics teacher who tried to convince you about Albert Einstein's Theory of Relativity as if he had arrived at the same conclusion in the school labs. There is a sure difference between experience and understanding but it may not be evident for us ordinary people.

It is not to say that your master was not self-realized, as I found a lot of consistency in the spiritual message which is very difficult to maintain in volumes of discourses unless there is complete understanding or real first hand experience. I leave that debate for you and the Swami's skeptics to fight. I have not been in the vicinity of his physical realm to participate in that discussion.

That aside , many of you have been able to throw away the material life altogether for spirituality. All you have to do now is continue in the path wth another master or by yourselves under the guidance of the scriptures. Chin up! It is still better than folks like me who are afraid to take the initial plunge.

To finish up, a few lines from Vettaikaran song to bring back strength to all affected souls:

asatoma sat gamaya;
tamasoma jyotir gamaya;
mrityorma amritam gamaya;
om santhi santhi santhih.

Sachin 200

well deserved 200 by the master.

IPL 3

can't wait.... I mean watching Shiv Sena and Telangana