The Mahabharata-Separating A Few Myths From Reality

The Mahabharata (for the uninitiated) is a Hindu epic. I was initiated into reading this by one of my Aunts(Those Indian ones you know of :P).She coaxed me to buy the 849 page book by Kamala Subramaniam.


(And no.. you can't look inside.. haha)

Since buying the book, I've read it more than 20 times and every read has led to more learnings. As I'm getting older and wiser(hopefully!), I'm finding myself consciously trying to separate the myth from what could have been reality. Here are a few observations -

-> There is a lot of talk of 'boons'. Boons were given by Gods(great men), Kings (also great men) - all men and women of power basically. What I've realized is that for a large parts, these boons were simply promises which involved enormous amount of integrity for the person giving the boon.

For example, one boon involved a hero on the antagonist side promising not to kill 4 others on the other side in combat. This boon could have made the difference between winning and losing but that's where the integrity i.e. walking the talk comes in.

-> Great men were characterized to a large extent by just one thing - their ability to make and keep promises. The greatest were those who never swerved from righteousness..

-> The greatest archer in the world, Arjuna, was, in reality, not the greatest archer in the world. There were others who were superior in the art and many others who were far more talented. But, he became great thanks to relentless practice, meditation and honing of the skill. He was also the ideal student, with extreme devotion to his teacher and incredibly focussed.

Great lesson.. and a nice application of Gladwell's 10,000 hour rule to becoming an expert. :)

-> There is a lot, lot about the choice between right and easy. At every point, the protagonists make the right choice and one such choice involved them spending 13 years as forest dwellers despite the fact that being kings were their birthright.

-> Divinity was characterized by valor and righteousness - this is understandable.

-> The role of women in determining the play of events can never be underestimated enough. Even during those days of seeming difference in social stature (given the lack of women's rights movements etc. ;)), the reason the events played were thanks to the influence of important women at every stage..

-> 'Any man can withstand adversity. If you want to test a person, give him power'
It was power that drove the massive war that was fought..

-> The fact that intrigued me was the losing side was actually much stronger than the winning side. However, it was a combination of the mightiest of heroes who were fighting on the side thanks to circumstances, lack of adherence to a moral code and a combination of circumstances that led to their defeat.

Interesting.. :)

Confessions Of A Serial Blogger

It takes a certain period of time before I feel part of a community, I think. It's taken in excess of a 1000 posts for me to feel part of this one..

What does happen to me is I'm generally fiercely proud of any community I am a part of, whether it be my university, my schools etc.. what is life without passion after all? :D

2 incidents took place that got me to write these thoughts -

-> I was excitedly telling a friend about the 'Success breeds success' story and he remarked 'Seems like your blog keeps you going!'.. and it's true, this blog does add a lot to life.. :)
-> Kian Leong, a classmate, just created his new blog 'Lessons learnt, experiences gained' and as I was excitedly welcoming him to 'blogosphere', I realized I'd become 'it'.. 'it' being a serial blogger, a part of the community..



Here are a few 'confessions' per se -

-> Firstly, my views are obviously biased and will definitely not be the points of view of the community as a whole. However, I'd hazard a guess that a few of these sentiments would be shared by many others as well..

-> Your comments are ALWAYS appreciated. There's a reason we create blogs. Take this blog for example, while its primary purpose is to make sure I am seeing the glass constantly half full by extracting learnings out of every situation, the other big purpose is to add value to your life.


-> Yes, Google Analytics does give me the truth and tell me that there are 100 or even 1000 people reading the blog every day, but your comments are the surest sign that you are reading these posts and they help keep the morale up, greatly! Atleast, in the early days.. :)

-> Both positive feedback and points of improvement work well. We all have to get better and its good to know if some posts are too strong or too biased. Spite doesn't help, though. We can do better than that, no?

-> I read this lovely take on a 'Photographer'. This one's taken off Satya Saya's Notes, who in had shared a note from his friend, Gerald Tay. It's called Unsung


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I am a collector of memories.

Reading light, the ability to perceive, perfect timing - These are my traits as a lensman. I have honed my craft over the years, but alas, the memories I've collected are not mine.

Though I put a part of my soul into creating each image, the intricate link that binds viewer and photographer has been cast aside. The viewer, the purveyor of images, has neglected the role of the photographer.

I may not have made a Nobel Prize discovery, nor performed heroics that generations will sing praise of, but I am proud to be part of a group of unsung heroes; Men who labour relentessly to collect memories, all so that others may reminiscence the times of old.

Dear friend, the next time you see an image that takes your breath away, pause, and take a moment to remember the photographer. The man who made it possible, the solitary collector of memories.
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I think it's very apt to bloggers as well. We are all(in my view atleast) giving you something to relate to in some small way.

Some of us write poetry - and enthrall those who love it..
Some of us write our own short stories - entertaining you and inspiring you to reconnect with your your own creative side..
Some others share our lives experiences - hoping we would find more friends who relate, who understand..
Yet some others share learnings and try in small ways to make the world a better place by jotting down little learnings and thoughts that inspire us..

At the end of the day, it's a way of expression..
to remind us that there are many who share similar, thoughts, feelings..
to remind us that we all share many things in common..
to inspire, motivate and give us something to smile about..
lest we forget.. that life is a gift..
A gift not measured by the number of breaths we take, but the moments that take our breath away..

Taking inspiration from Satya and Gerald, I'll take the liberty (rather shamelessly) to quote them, with a few edits of course..

Dear friend, the next time you see a a blog post that fills you with joy, gives you some much needed inspiration or just makes you smile, pause, and take a moment to remember the blogger. The person who made it possible, a collector of musings.

With due thanks to Satya(for sharing), and Gerald for writing this piece of genius! :)

Thank you!

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As always, your comments are much appreciated! :)

Signing off..
A blogger, and proud of it! :D

Meeting My Math Coach!

Met my math coach 2 days ago..

Had a flurry of questions for him..

He cleared them all in barely 5 minutes..

with a nonchalant ease, and an expression of 'Come on, I expect you to be struggling with tougher questions'..

After those 5 mins, we settled down to having a chat..

Catching up, updates about other friends he had coached, school, life etc..

I left meeting him with a warm fuzzy feeling inside..

I realize now that it was because I felt welcome..

Felt welcome in his school like one of his own 5 years after having learnt under him..

I doubt if even the school where I spent my final 2 years studying would welcome me the same way..

All these years, he's been there and welcomed me just the same way..

Don't we all love that.. the feeling of familiarity when some things don't change?

My math coach.. I owe him a lot.. and I'm proud to be associated with him..
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My Math coach taught a group of friends and me the subject for the last few years. He's a wonderful person, a head teacher at a different school and a person with a wonderful reputation. He's always lived up to that reputation with utmost integrity.. Always been humbled by his humility..

It's always wonderful meeting him!

The Story Of Cool...

I am a footballer..

When I just began learning football, I tried learning to whack the ball really really hard.. as I thought was cool..

and then I grew up..

When I was a few years into learning the game, I learnt every sort of stepover and trick that would bamboozle defenders and make fools out of them.. as I thought that was cool..

and then..

Years later, I realized all I needed to work on was learning to put the ball in the back of the net, every time I got the chance - learn it well enough to be able to do it when my concentration was slipping, when my spirits, morale and confidence were down, when my team was losing my hope..

If I could just score.. forget the fancy tricks, the fancy stepovers, the urge to whack the ball in, the urge to show off..

If I could just put the ball in the back of the net and get the job done, every time..

now, that would be cool..

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Reminds me of Nike - Just do it!

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I wrote this after some thought after a discussion with a friend on the whole 'being cool' concept.. Football seemed to be the easiest analogy. Apology to not-so-football-inclined readers..

I Will Remember-The Walk

This is something that I have been wanting to do for a while now - take a walk around IIT and relive some of the memories. Doing it with 4 others was a lot of fun! This was by no means extensive as it was a good 3 hour long walk and hence, was pretty tiring as it was after a long day.. :)

But, an attempt nevertheless.. :D



The place where the day generally begins :)




The dreaded school steps!! :D



The school lounge ,where all the important football games of the last 2 seasons were watched with the entire gang :)




The way from class to the school lounge :)



Class finally :D the place I went not so frequently :P




The Indian deli outside school..Most slacking moment lol



School Corridor..The place where I got caught all the time this year :P




School Terrace..Where we saw(partly) the asteroid showers :D



The University hall..Remember the first days when I used to collect my scholarship here :)



And finally(phew!!) The football court..Where I spent the majority of this year in the name of practice and matches :P



Cannot forget the exam hall where Bipasa(in pic) got her first A+ lol :)



No more exams (after the finals ofcourse :P) so notice fail :P



Auditions for the various cultural programs which were awesome fun lol



Sleeping in campus one last time this year :P



Thanks for the McBreakfasts all over this year :P

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It was a walk to remember :)
Kindled all memories of the previous year!! Thanks for being there with me guys..That walk was one memorable one :)
I'll miss the classroom!!

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14 hours and 1 final post to go :)

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I Will Remember-The Trips

These were the 2 trips we took in school the last 2 years. And these would rank among my sweetest memories of the joys of my last 2 years of school.

Langkawi: Our 1st trip experience last semester. For this one, we had Mom with us. This helped all other parents wave out first time jitters and we were all set to go. It'd be tough to list out all the wonderful things that happened.. 3 things I do remember are -

The Place: My god! Langkawi ranks among the more beautiful places I've seen just for the simple fact that it is a killer combination of hills and sea. The sea is as you would imagine - golden sands, bright blue water and the Hills are awesome as well.



I vividly remember taking the cable car up to the hill with a popular bridge(where the climax of a then-recently released Hindi movie called Don had been shot) and gasping at the sight of the beautiful sea just below.

The Hurry: This is something we set right in our 2nd trip. This one, though was jam packed and I remember us constantly rushing from one thing to another. We were at Langkawi for 2 and half days and 3 nights and there's really a lot to do in the place! We had a day off for scuba diving, another for various water sports, other for some sight seeing and all in all, we were ALWAYS rushing from one thing to another.

It's a funny memory - it's probably because it was the first time we were getting out and our desire to do 'everything' possible in that place.

Late night drives: I love driving so it is only natural driving features in my top 3. For a small island, Langkawi has a beautiful road system with clear maps. And it was a small and safe place.. Remember going out for nice long drives - all jam packed(We had 10 people in an 8 seater car) with our shadow man entertaining us with his language skills.

There was also a drive in the afternoon just as it was about to rain that I'm sure to remember for a long time. We were climbing a hill and it felt like a journey in heaven with fog, clear roads and lots of greenery..

One that almost made the list: Great diving experience swimming 25 feet under water with nemo fish etc

It was a great trip. Learnt a lot on how to organize a trip once we went on this one. Following this, we practically took 2 years to go on our next one. Most of us went into a money crunch/got busy. By the time, we were in our 3rd year, friends had already left on exchange etc.. In our 7th semester, time was ripe for another one. After a bit of research, we decided to go with Cameron Highlands- which seemed like a scenic mountainous place and thought it would be a nice change.

Cameron: Tough to name 3 things again.. But here goes -

Getting there and Settling In: I clearly remember the excitement of waiting at the KL terminus for our beautiful black Toyoto Innova and the sheer joy at seeing the car and test driving it. We were all set for a lovely 3 hour drive down the highway. This was followed by an awesome climb! We had managed to rent out what seemed like a great apartment for the entire group - 9 of us living in the same house - imagine the chaos! Once we got there, I remember being dead tired and fell asleep.



Within a couple of hours, we were all set to do some minor trekking. So, we decided to go on the trail to a waterfall. And after a deliicious meal of waffles, strawberry and ice cream, we went on this 'trek'. It turned out to be just a walk for 15 mins till we reached a small waterfall. Well, so much for trekking we thought..

And we came back, packed dinner and watched what will go down as one of the most eventful football games of the season - Manchester United vs Manchester City. United clinched a 4-3 victory with a goal in the 95th minute (i.e 30 seconds before the whistle blew).. Cannot forget! We were all set to go trekking the next day..

THE Brinchang Trek: We had all (well, almost all..) come fully prepared for an adventure trip. We knew there was going to be a fair amount of trekking etc. So, we went down and had a chat with a local travel person who recommended we all wear shorts instead of track pants as it would easier to spot leeches if they do manage to get on.. He also told us that the trek we'd be taking would be a good 4 hour trek and could get tiring. We were all set..



We reached the spot and the 1st 15 mins was a nice walk with a nice tarred road and we were again laughing at the 'trek'. This road, however, came to an abrupt end and we didn't know where to go. We soon spotted a small(miniscule would be the word) clearing with a stream and a way right into a hilly jungle. It had begun..

The trek did take a good part of 4 and a half hours. We managed to take a few photos in the nicer 1st part of the journey after which, it practically became impossible to stop at a place together. I was actually very surprised the locals are chilled out about people going because it is not one for anyone who is not in touch with regular physical activity. We had to use our hands, legs, lots of help from friends to make it through. And if it wasn't for the fact that we had a formation to make sure we were able to help the person in front and behind, I doubt if we would have made it through..



There were still heart stopping moments like at a sudden point when a friend slipped and said she'd twisted her leg. I didn't see any way of us going down the wilderness (would've been physically impossible) and the last hour of the climb was vertical. Luckily, the twist didn't happen and she was good to go. The last hour was an almost vertical climb. And soon we were on top! The other side of Mt Brinchang was a beautiful 3 hour walk down tea estates and that was a relief after the long trek..

It was a very tough trek and that's what makes it so memorable - the fact that we did it without any guide. Out in the wilderness for 4-5 hours is a memory that is going to stay for a very long time. And one thing for sure, we felt great finishing it!

Rafting and Caving: There was more adventure in store. The next morning, we headed for caving.

Caving involved us walking, crawling, climbing and slides in caves that were few storeys high (with thousands of bats right on top) and then suddenly just low and thin enough for 1 person. It was quite an adventure as we had a guide who was in charge of 12 people, could barely speak English and hence, communicated with the gestures. I remember a couple of instances when I was sure I'd just be falling off a cliff.. And just managed to slide out in time… The craziest memory during caving was when we had to float for a few metres along a stream(yes, there was water running all through) through a passage narrow enough only for 1 person and with no place to raise our heads even(thanks to stalactites). Tough for anyone who is claustrophobic. This was followed by lot more climbing, pulling each other up and sliding.. And ended with a wonderful natural jacuzzi..

Rafting was an experience to remember as well. The most freaky part was the briefing where they just let us glide down a stream, gesture for a rope, catch it and swim to shore. Once we started, our guides were in complete control. They were strong enough to comfortably lift any of us with 1 hand onto the boat. And they made sure we capsized a couple of times to add to the fun. Oh, and let me not forget, the water was FREEZING cold. And we also received a certificate for having rafted through a grade III river..

There's a video of the rafting here.(of the rafting company that is..)

The big difference with the Cameron trip was that we were never really rushed. We did things at our own pace, had lots of food, a night of lots of music, dance etc - but all at our own pace.. And that made it great.

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These 2 trips are memories that I'll take forward for a very long time. If you started your last 2 years in school ,Its high time you gather a tour with guys cause its gonna last a remembrance for a long long time. Haha


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2 days to go.. (As of yesterday)

Humans-Handle With Care

Recently,a friend of mine sent me a message .."Don't say that I 'm destined to read you,just say its my fate"...hurried to add "just kidding".He is well known to me ..so I felt that the latter part was unwarranted.

Well,communication is a double-edged sword.Most of us are looking for an excuse to get offended,,,sensitive to be precise.You all will agree with me that we cannot operate in vacuum.We need people ..thus need to master the art of managing relationships,to tackle the fragile,at times brittle fellow beings.

Few tips here which I follow,,,not exhaustive,add your own...I would love to learn more.

When you react:

* Trust : If the opponents intentions are good,let him say anything,in any terminology,just consume.
* Take it easy : Easier said than done..if you cannot be "cool",act as if....you let the opponent win if he infuriates you,so don't.
* Pull your own legs : Particularly when someone mocks at you;A class mate of mine named himself IAS (Invisible After Sunset) Those who teased him for his extra dark complexion had to give up.
* Get pally : This week,in a pensive mood,when I told one of my friends to 'go to hell' he blissfully countered 'join me,it might turn into heaven'.
* Humour : No need to elaborate,incorporate everywhere,its the best weapon.

When you act :

* Try not to step on toes : No one deserves it,leave alone accepting it.
* Add tact to honesty : Even if you intend good,make it obvious that you don't mean to hurt.Remember,he is also a delicate darling like you.
* Emoticons : This while communicating through writing(thanks to Scott Fahlman who brought smile to the internet in 1982)whether you tweet,scrap or write on someones wall, it comes handy.Suffix liberally a smiley face :) , :( , :D , :P , :X ,or any such ,,you have a plenty of choice.A simple "just kidding"(recall the opening paragraph) or lol!!!! serves the purpose.

I recommend the last one..the emoticons...it clears up confusion about writers' intentions... it also gives me an advantage to say any damn thing I actually intend to,yet pretend I never meant it..its so simple,for eg.,
The one who reads this post yet doesn't comment is an illiterate :P
Anyone who comments,shares it either on his FB or Twitter page is my best friend :D :D
Is my message conveyed? lol!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Note: There are a few with whom you don't need to think of what & how to speak,they get you anyway..such are rare,unique and divine. I guess neither you nor me come under that category,,,,,and this I am not kidding.