I haven't had the least bit of passion for cricket, and possibly never will, but surely understand the electrifying thrill that a game generates, enthusing millions alike - quite the something that I derive from watching football!
But, it is certainly disconcerting to see Indian cricket embroiled in controversy and a legal mess, that could well have been avoided! As if Lalit Modi hadn't done enough, recent developments concerning the Kochi IPL team have added an all together new level of reality to the scene.
With growing concerns over issues surrounding ownership, equity, bids, loans and ventures, I'm wondering what it is that really makes these 'enterprises' ambassadors of sports, than just being front-ends of shady deals smartly orchestrated as being sport! So much for the game!
Friday, October 29, 2010
Monday, October 25, 2010
Beginning and end - The philosophy
What we all call the beginning, is often the end!
Life has many ways of brining learning to those in the quest! It simply depends upon one's frame of mind and receptiveness to accept it! With each passing moment, curiosity is addressed with plentiful instances of the purpose and therefore to remain shut off from happenstances takes a great deal of effort no matter however foolish that may seem to be!
This one time, I was blessed to have someone shape my perspective of what it is that we want and how it is that we set to achieve it. And the underlying theme of simplicity was not lost in the process, one bit! Every once a while, we are faced with a circumstance that tests our character to the very end and the winner often is the one who has emerged learned in the process and systematically internalizes the needful.
So then, when I came face to face with the beginning, a wise visitor lost no time in taking me to the end and making me question my mind as to what really it was that I wanted. Having produced a clear affirmation, I was asked to work backwards into the process of how that something would have to be constructed. The exercise made me summarily list a number of aspects that I viewed as being absolutely necessary to achieve the end and also elucidate the means of achieving each one of them. When the conversation was complete, I was left overwhelmed at the simplicity of thought that had been behind this guiding principle!
Truly, now I am convinced that it is the end that defines the beginning while also justifying the means to achieve that envisaged state. Come to think of it, birth and death are really one and the same, in terms of the purpose for which we are all created, because despite the beginning it is always the end that is in the quest, don't you think?
Life has many ways of brining learning to those in the quest! It simply depends upon one's frame of mind and receptiveness to accept it! With each passing moment, curiosity is addressed with plentiful instances of the purpose and therefore to remain shut off from happenstances takes a great deal of effort no matter however foolish that may seem to be!
This one time, I was blessed to have someone shape my perspective of what it is that we want and how it is that we set to achieve it. And the underlying theme of simplicity was not lost in the process, one bit! Every once a while, we are faced with a circumstance that tests our character to the very end and the winner often is the one who has emerged learned in the process and systematically internalizes the needful.
So then, when I came face to face with the beginning, a wise visitor lost no time in taking me to the end and making me question my mind as to what really it was that I wanted. Having produced a clear affirmation, I was asked to work backwards into the process of how that something would have to be constructed. The exercise made me summarily list a number of aspects that I viewed as being absolutely necessary to achieve the end and also elucidate the means of achieving each one of them. When the conversation was complete, I was left overwhelmed at the simplicity of thought that had been behind this guiding principle!
Truly, now I am convinced that it is the end that defines the beginning while also justifying the means to achieve that envisaged state. Come to think of it, birth and death are really one and the same, in terms of the purpose for which we are all created, because despite the beginning it is always the end that is in the quest, don't you think?
Friday, October 22, 2010
Surprises galore
Hold on to your thoughts! Do not let your imagination get the better of you! And most importantly, do not let the title of this post mislead you! Surprises are not always meant to be nice and they have a way of arriving unannounced, thereafter, creating a complete shakeup in the manner in which one's thought process is structured, questioning the very assumptions made to help understand life and its ongoings in a better manner.
In a world where the principles of excellence and efficiency are nothing short of driving forces, one naturally expects entities to be wiser with experience, if not always by education or an innate sense, but it seems clearly that such an expectation is utopian and far-fetched, for you'd be rudely jolted at the fact that there is nothing short of a whole populace that can at best be described as miserably foolish and intellectually challenged, surely beyond the possibility of repair! And, as if that wasn't already worse enough, these elements are comfortably ensconced, or rather embedded, at the very helm of affairs!
I'm wondering if it is a fundamental problem associated with the Indian mindset that sets it to emphatically, and at most times arrogantly, rest in the belief that competence and excellence are apart from what is normal! Perhaps one could attribute it to faulty genetic inheritance, en masse? But there remains no doubt for me to be assertive and complete in my belief that within the realm of space and time, here, now and forever, there will continue to be us and them - co-existing in agony! That should set a lot of them thinking more than just once if ignorance really is a state of bliss, while I sincerely hope that my sarcasm is seen as illustratively educative.
Come to think of it, life never really ceases to surprise me!
In a world where the principles of excellence and efficiency are nothing short of driving forces, one naturally expects entities to be wiser with experience, if not always by education or an innate sense, but it seems clearly that such an expectation is utopian and far-fetched, for you'd be rudely jolted at the fact that there is nothing short of a whole populace that can at best be described as miserably foolish and intellectually challenged, surely beyond the possibility of repair! And, as if that wasn't already worse enough, these elements are comfortably ensconced, or rather embedded, at the very helm of affairs!
I'm wondering if it is a fundamental problem associated with the Indian mindset that sets it to emphatically, and at most times arrogantly, rest in the belief that competence and excellence are apart from what is normal! Perhaps one could attribute it to faulty genetic inheritance, en masse? But there remains no doubt for me to be assertive and complete in my belief that within the realm of space and time, here, now and forever, there will continue to be us and them - co-existing in agony! That should set a lot of them thinking more than just once if ignorance really is a state of bliss, while I sincerely hope that my sarcasm is seen as illustratively educative.
Come to think of it, life never really ceases to surprise me!
Monday, October 18, 2010
From the wishlist
It is difficult not to be charmed by the expansive wonders of the Masai Mara or the Serengeti. And the more I watch them being showcased on television, the more the urge, or rather the calling, to visit these absolute wonderlands. Truly, there perhaps is nothing more appealing to the inside than the nature. It makes me wonder, at length, how intricately perfect the system is, for being so thorough, sustaining to itself and its occupants, and yet being so absolutely flawless, all of which is governed by rules so innate, yet so simple!
To be able to traverse the wild country, swathed by the evergreen grasslands, home to a host of beings so rare and majestic, and to experience at first hand the beauty of a setting that is so much in contrast to any other on Earth, must be a certain something to reckon with!
But more importantly, such a place, I'm reasonably sure, will do a great deal to shape one's perspective of life altogether, and be able to understand life better, even though displayed at length and in characteristic of a very raw and sometimes gruesome nature, which makes me recount the mystical words of Abe Gubegna, to whom it was recited that "Every day in Africa a gazelle wakes up. It knows it must run faster than the fastest lion or it will be killed. Every morning a lion wakes up. It knows that it must outrun the slowest gazelle or it will starve to death. It doesn’t matter whether you are a lion or a gazelle. When the sun comes up, you better be running."
To be able to traverse the wild country, swathed by the evergreen grasslands, home to a host of beings so rare and majestic, and to experience at first hand the beauty of a setting that is so much in contrast to any other on Earth, must be a certain something to reckon with!
But more importantly, such a place, I'm reasonably sure, will do a great deal to shape one's perspective of life altogether, and be able to understand life better, even though displayed at length and in characteristic of a very raw and sometimes gruesome nature, which makes me recount the mystical words of Abe Gubegna, to whom it was recited that "Every day in Africa a gazelle wakes up. It knows it must run faster than the fastest lion or it will be killed. Every morning a lion wakes up. It knows that it must outrun the slowest gazelle or it will starve to death. It doesn’t matter whether you are a lion or a gazelle. When the sun comes up, you better be running."
Friday, October 15, 2010
Viva Shera
Truly, alls well that ends well!
New Delhi can heave a huge sigh of relief after a near picture-perfect completion of the XIX Commonwealth Games, which began amidst controversy and blood baying, largely clouded by questions of India's capability to host an event of such magnitude and splendour!
While some sections within the media have dubbed the event as a treat for the senses, and yet some others continuing to harp about how the Scottish bagpipers wove an inimitable spell during the finale, the fact remains that the nation can toast to its successful conduct of the games and retire on a very memorable note.
Having said that one needs to also really look beyond just people, culture, heritage, customs, pomp and all, in an effort to build and strengthen capability!
Could the Olympics be far ahead then?
New Delhi can heave a huge sigh of relief after a near picture-perfect completion of the XIX Commonwealth Games, which began amidst controversy and blood baying, largely clouded by questions of India's capability to host an event of such magnitude and splendour!
While some sections within the media have dubbed the event as a treat for the senses, and yet some others continuing to harp about how the Scottish bagpipers wove an inimitable spell during the finale, the fact remains that the nation can toast to its successful conduct of the games and retire on a very memorable note.
Having said that one needs to also really look beyond just people, culture, heritage, customs, pomp and all, in an effort to build and strengthen capability!
Could the Olympics be far ahead then?
Monday, October 11, 2010
Destiny calling
I find myself traversing uncharted waters, into realms that I've not been into before. Naturally excited, I pace with enthusiasm and yet find myself cautiously optimistic of the journey and the path that I am to embark upon. A mix of emotions overwhelm me and I restrain the heart from overpowering the instincts of the head, in an effort to be rational. But, the more I try to be methodical, I find myself fraught with instances that I have not witnessed before. Such perhaps is the way of life, often nudging the traveller to undertake a course that will enrich learning in ways that cannot be fathomed!
With all the seemingly picture-perfect planning and meticulous detail that we drown ourselves into, it is very important to always provide a substantial margin of space for the unforeseen change, thereby creating a very strong buffer, purely for the purpose of being able to adapt to situations as and when they unravel.
Despite all of that we do or choose not to, there are some things that happen or do not. One may call that plain chance or an incident of destiny! That decision, with all of its decisiveness, lies purely at the behest of the experienced!
With all the seemingly picture-perfect planning and meticulous detail that we drown ourselves into, it is very important to always provide a substantial margin of space for the unforeseen change, thereby creating a very strong buffer, purely for the purpose of being able to adapt to situations as and when they unravel.
Despite all of that we do or choose not to, there are some things that happen or do not. One may call that plain chance or an incident of destiny! That decision, with all of its decisiveness, lies purely at the behest of the experienced!
Thursday, October 07, 2010
Eight below
It'd have been much easier for me to talk about Paul Walker and his furry buddies in the 2006 American adventure film, if you go by the title of this post, that is!
But that is hardly the case when it comes to talking about one's life and the varied influences that govern it's every pace, however insignificant it may appear to be. And this is about one such influence that has plagued me for what I could easily term as a millennium! Curiously, it is not a force, nor a person or for that matter neither a factor that can be easily noticed. It is merely a number!
The number 8 has played roles in my life, almost always, in ways and means I cannot really describe in words, and it still puzzles me of how seemingly random incidents, occurrences or references could bear the ominous influence of this now hairy-tentacled, omnipresent monster that I have come to view with a great deal of emotion that could largely border on a sense of being overwhelmed!
For starters, I was born on an 8th! All of the places I took in school, inclusive of my roll numbers, positions, patterns, scoring and a whole lot more bore the hallmarks of 8. I would automatically be assigned an 8 number whereever I presented myself! As if all of that wasn't already enough, my secondary school leaving examination identity had 8 written all over it! And just when I thought I had this eerie demonic influence outside of my life for good, I came to grapple with the fact that it was only the prelude that played so far and the beginning was really yet to begin! Thereafter, every number associated with me had extensive elements of 8 white-washed all over, ranging from employee IDs, access codes, plastic currency cards and seating patterns, just to name a minimal few!
Years later, now, upon looking back, I find 8 ruled instances in my life, larger in number than the stars in the sky and the grains of all of Earth's sandy shores put together! Just what determines this unsettling coincidence is still a matter of sheer intrigue!
But theres so much more to life, I understand! And live well I will, even if means to be under the shadows and spheres of the 8.
But that is hardly the case when it comes to talking about one's life and the varied influences that govern it's every pace, however insignificant it may appear to be. And this is about one such influence that has plagued me for what I could easily term as a millennium! Curiously, it is not a force, nor a person or for that matter neither a factor that can be easily noticed. It is merely a number!
The number 8 has played roles in my life, almost always, in ways and means I cannot really describe in words, and it still puzzles me of how seemingly random incidents, occurrences or references could bear the ominous influence of this now hairy-tentacled, omnipresent monster that I have come to view with a great deal of emotion that could largely border on a sense of being overwhelmed!
For starters, I was born on an 8th! All of the places I took in school, inclusive of my roll numbers, positions, patterns, scoring and a whole lot more bore the hallmarks of 8. I would automatically be assigned an 8 number whereever I presented myself! As if all of that wasn't already enough, my secondary school leaving examination identity had 8 written all over it! And just when I thought I had this eerie demonic influence outside of my life for good, I came to grapple with the fact that it was only the prelude that played so far and the beginning was really yet to begin! Thereafter, every number associated with me had extensive elements of 8 white-washed all over, ranging from employee IDs, access codes, plastic currency cards and seating patterns, just to name a minimal few!
Years later, now, upon looking back, I find 8 ruled instances in my life, larger in number than the stars in the sky and the grains of all of Earth's sandy shores put together! Just what determines this unsettling coincidence is still a matter of sheer intrigue!
But theres so much more to life, I understand! And live well I will, even if means to be under the shadows and spheres of the 8.
Saturday, October 02, 2010
Remembering the Mahatma
Each one has to find his peace from within. And peace to be real, must be unaffected by outside circumstances. -- Mahatama Gandhi
Footnotes:
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