Christmas in a manger in London

In December 1903, after many attempts, the Wright brothers were successful in getting their 'flying machine' off the ground. Thrilled, they telegraphed this message to their sister Katherine: "We have actually flown 120ft. Will be home for Christmas." Katherine hurried to the editor of the local news paper and showed him the message. He glanced it and said, 'How nice. The boys will be home for Christmas.' He totally missed the big news-Man had flown!

It is always a thrilled and awesome experience to walk down the London's most busiest street, Oxford Street. This street illumines with colourful lights with exotic textures. One might wonder why all this pompous looking street. I liked to stroll along this street but when I plenty of time at hand because walking in a straight line is almost impossible for this street is filled with people to the brim. Sometimes I tend to get mad at someone who liked to draw their camera under my nose to capture this scintillating effects of light. One of my favourite time on this street is window shopping, partly to keep myself warm from biting cold outside and the shops are warm with heating on. I know I cannot afford to pay for pair of shoes £150, this would mean that I am simply poor in these shops. Prices are ridiculously high albeit shops bewitch you with colourful tags of 'sale'. Don't be wondering who buys in these stores? I am speaking from an average income country in Asia, but there are many people who are ridiculously rich who don't really know what to do with their money then to doll out in buying these expensive gifts. 

Christmas shopping is a common phenomenon in London. Everyone who I meet asks me whether I did Christmas shopping. I bought a netted jumper to keep myself warm. Now is this a Christmas shopping. In theory yes, but in practice no, because it keeps me warm. I liked to listen to LBC (London's biggest conversation) radio which has some of the interesting presenters like James Wales, James Payne who provoke the callers with mind boggling questions that affect the country as a whole and in particular some of the issues that affect some particular people. Recently there was a discussion on, charities helping homeless people in London to get a decent home, decent food, and decent clothes to keep one warm over the Christmas. Statistics show that one in many charities help nearly 3500 homeless people for about a week in London. London has most sophisticated system for the homeless which is supposed to provide shelter to the homeless and so called refugees. I do admire the noble help rendered by the government. But how come we have thousands of homeless sleeping in the streets and subways even though there is a system that caters to the homeless. I am trying to get my head around it. 

Christmas is the time when many of us exchange gifts, eat exotic food, go on holidays to a warmer country, and look for ways to squander money. This is all needed and its nice but have we forgotten the child Jesus whose birth we are celebrating or its just a reason to get all above mentioned. Are we like the local new paper editor who forgot that man ultimately had flown. Are we too busy building our own ghettos with Christmas trees, turkeys in the over, buying expensive gifts and so on? Are we just showing a blind eye to a person sleeping on the subway when we pass by him with colourful gifts in our bags? Many times we don't have to look for the homeless, we have just open our eyes and hears to look at their pathetic shivering with cold situation and hear their cry for help. It makes sad to see a homeless or needy person in this so called riches city in the world. Let us hear small little voice in our hearts saying something to us when we see the needy during this Christmas. 

Who is greatest in the Kingdom of humans

What makes you great to the world, so much so that you become the ‘greatest’ of your times? Is greatness the title for those who become successful in their respective fields? Or is it that everyone who appears on TV has the chance of attaining greatness? Steve Jobs, who died fighting pancreatic cancer, being showered with so much love and respect raises this question.

While any celebrity has a right to an obituary, posthumous encomiums by way of comparison with other greats should not happen just because of the bankruptcy of a particular age in producing truly great individuals.

What defines Steve Jobs? The fact that he could make people go crazy about his company’s products?

If marketing is what makes you great, then our Indian politicians are the greatest, because they market themselves so well that even after their failures in one term after another, we keep voting them back to power. If making a new product is what makes you great, then there are many new products being invented everywhere in the world. Yes, the claim to launching the first personal computer goes to Jobs, but he was not behind its invention; he was the chief of the company that invented it. Any man heading the company that has a product to sell can do what he did.

To those who think he revolutionised cell phones, the fact is he just re-packaged his products by mixing up what was already out there in the form of already available gadgets/software like Blackberry, Palm, Windows, etc. A man becomes truly great for humankind and his passing away deserves mass mourning only if he has done something to better the lives of his fellow beings, overcoming personal greed and lust for power.

While all of us take our newborn kids to have ‘Do boond zindagi ki’, to save our kids from the life-crippling polio virus, very few would know why those life drops come for free. There are many other diseases, medication for which does not come even at a reasonable cost, forget having it free.

The man who invented the polio vaccine, Jonas Edward Salk, decided not to patent his invention. After seven years of rigorous research, when he had the chance to become a billionaire, much like Jobs did, he refused to do so. When someone asked him ‘Who owns the patent of the vaccine, he replied, ‘Can anyone patent the sun?’ In civilisation’s history of one individual bettering the lives of fellow humans, can Jobs stand anywhere close to Salk?

Jobs did not even eradicate poverty with the immense wealth he accumulated by selling his so-called great products, invented by scientists who worked in his company. Instead, he rather stopped all philanthropist activity by Apple in 1997, saying philanthropy can ‘wait until we are profitable.’ Today, Apple is one of the world’s most valued companies (sitting on $40 billion cash) and ironically, it is perhaps the only one in its category that has no philanthropic contribution worth talking about.

I don’t own any Apple product, and most Apple aficionados would accuse me of commenting on something that I don’t use. I am not commenting on the products he sold; I am commenting on the tears that are being unjustifiably shed on the death of a rich man. I am not taking anything away from Jobs as an entrepreneur, and the fact is that he was an inspiration for his company. But I find it difficult to accept the belittling of the very notion of greatness by bestowing it on those who worked for themselves and promoted the noxious idea that ‘profit motivates humans’, a theory that would have never given us the polio vaccine.

Written by Mr. Neeraj Thakur for Daily News and Analysis http://www.dnaindia.com/analysis/column_comment-steve-jobs-wasnt-great-he-wasnt-even-close_1596888

Why do WOMEN cry?

A little boy asked his mother, "Why are you crying?" "Because I'm a woman," she told him.

"I don't understand," he said. His Mom just hugged him and said, "And you never will."

Later the little boy asked his father, "Why does mother seem to cry for no reason?"

"All women cry for no reason," was all his dad could say.

The little boy grew up and became a man, still wondering why women cry.

Finally he put in a call to God. When God got on the phone, he asked, "God, why do women cry so easily?"

God said, "When I made the woman she had to be special.

I made her shoulders strong enough to carry the weight of the world,

yet gentle enough to give comfort.

I gave her an inner strength to endure childbirth and the rejection that many times comes from her children.

I gave her a hardness that allows her to keep going when everyone else gives up, and take care of her family through sickness and fatigue without complaining.

I gave her the sensitivity to love her children under any and all circumstances, even when her child has hurt her very badly.

I gave her strength to carry her husband through his faults and fashioned her from his rib to protect his heart.

I gave her wisdom to know that a good husband never hurts his wife, but sometimes tests her strengths and her resolve to stand beside him unfalteringly.

And finally, I gave her a tear to shed. This is hers exclusively to use whenever it is needed."

"You see my son," said God, "the beauty of a woman is not in the clothes she wears, the figure that she carries, or the way she combs her hair.

The beauty of a woman must be seen in her eyes, because that is the doorway to her heart - the place where love resides."
Source: Facebook.

Sizzling Streets of London

"Do you have an extra cigarette", "Lets go for a drink", "How about a weekend", "Are you shy" are some of the expression that might fall into your ears when you try to dodge crowded streets of London. Not very often you hear them but you do hear them. They can really scare you when you hear them from some strangers. Why am I brooding over this without giving my readers a context? What do they signify? Who expresses them? 

One summer evening I was strolling along a busy street in Wimbledon. Street full of people pass through me with various intentions in mind. Illuminating yellow mercury lights and a touch of romance with wonderful smell of fragrance made my life bubbling. People rush to reach their purpose made me aware that this city does not have time to stand and stare at each other. This makes me rush even though I don't have to. When I was pretending to be rushing two beautifully dressed blondes adorned with fragrance and artificial jewellery whispered into my ever sharp ears, "do have a cigarette" which took completely with a scary surprise. First of all I don't smoke and hate when people smoke around me, making me passive smoker, secondly they were absolute strangers. I replied to them with a my intimidating pleasant smile, "I don't smoke." This was an icing on the cake for the girls because they felt I was a good man. As I walked pass them, they decided to follow me and whisper some more pleasant surprising things into my ears, like "are you shy" "where do you live" "you are so handsome" etc. By now I was absolutely sure that they were looking for more than a cigarette but ignorent me never new the language of this world in which I live. They were looking for a night with them. I just ignored them further and walked my way thinking about my own ignorance and lack of knowledge about the young people who go about doing what they like. I assumed that they were either young prostitutes who are desperate for money or some teenagers who just like to experience something from an adult or they could be anything, let me not run my imagination wild. 

London keeps me on my toes every minute, either studies or some extravaganza which is every day business for Londoners. But London streets really scare me because there can be anyone on the street who are like prowler looking to devour you. It seems like London is ever green with several activities that are going on in and around us but we have keep our eyes wide open and do the needful. Most often I think that London is a wonderful city for studies and it is right but it can be quite depressing too if you don't have money, like these two girls who approached me. One of the students I met said that she went for stripping not because she wanted to, but simply because she could not suppost her studies and her ailing mum. I presume that there are more students like this who go for the thing which they don't usually like to do but situation has lead them to do against their own interest and will. 

I think this is not only case of London but most cities around the world where young people try to meet their needs. Rise in college fees and rise in food materials has changed the situation of the young people in the world. Many drop out of college, some decide to take the path where they can get easy money like selling their skin and so on. How are we to respond to this perpetual problem of the youth? Does the government have any answer for this or its just doing what  pleases the politicians? I have not an answer to them but I do agree that there is a problem which will remain a problem until one day youth decide to take to the streets as it happened in August on London roads and as it is happening on Wall Street in America. 

Magnificat

My being glows in your love oh, Lord

Because this love knit me into a being in my mum's womb

abounding and nourishing whole of my yesteryears

Oh, Lord I am unworthy of this love

Yet unworthiness is not an issue for you Oh Lord.

Oh, My feeble heart a piece of opaque diamond with moss around it

Enemy prowled around me to devour my soul

My being coveted for material things

Things that gave my being a timely pleasure

Oh, My fragile heart fell prey for the snare of the fowler.

Oh, Lord my being gratitudes you, you love of my being

Your felt absence not an absence indeed

Your gentle and subtle touch stirred and shook whole fibre of my being

You bountiful graces hovered over me ceaselessly Oh, Lord.

A faint voice whispered into me, 'Can you hear me?'

Gentle yet a sure knock at my heart's door like morning dew touching the tender ground

This knock made all the difference in my being

Difference to move mountains Oh Lord my God.

Oh Lord Your compassionate  look surrounded my being like odour of jasmine in the garden

Thou look set my soul and body aglow 

Oh, how marvellous to cling on to your look Oh, Lord

like tender child clings to her mother's bosom

Yet thou saith, "Don't cling to me, for thou hath mission to accomplish."

Jerri Melwin Dias SJ.
Photo: A valley at Araranzazu, Spain.

Good or Bad

Human beings have tried to solve the mystery of good and bad for many centuries. Human mind is a mystery in itself. This mind sees everything around him as a mystery. Solving a mystery is not possible because it is a mystery. If it is solvable then it is not a mystery. Good and bad cannot be justified really because as I mentioned earlier in my article, what is good for one may be bad for another and vice versa. Hence I would place good and bad in the category of mystery. We all have try and find out ways and means to be prudent and wish good of oneself and the society. 

In a certain Zen temple there were two Zen students, who were going to meditate in the hall. Along the way to the hall, they saw trees and argued with each other about the trees. One remarked, "Why is that tree so green?" The other remarked, "But why is this tree dry?" And then an argument arose between them. It was about which of the trees was better, the greener one or the dry one. They could not agree with each other, so when they entered the hall, they approached the Master and asked him which of the trees was better. The Master asked them back, "Which one do you both think is good, then?" They started arguing with each other again. One said, "The green tree is better" and the other said, "The dry tree is better."

By coincidence, a novice entered into the hall. The Master asked the novice the same question. The novice replied, "We should not be bothered about such issues. Just leave it." The Master said, "That is right answer. We should not be bothering ourselves with this. Everything has cause and effect. Whatever, we see, hear and think, has its cause and effect. We must learn from the cause and effect of all things." He went on and added, "You both should not divide things into two: good or bad, satisfactory or better. Instead you should learn from all things, you should learn to integrate everything. Separation will stop your progress in learning and practice." The two monks realised that what was being expressed was right and said sorry to the Master and thanked the novice for giving them the light of wisdom.

Integration of good and bad should be our priority. We have accept there good as well as bad but we should not while away our time in arguing what is good or bad but rather see it in the light of good of oneself and the society. This does not mean we have cast a blind eye on the bad that is happening around us. It is very challenging to open our eyes to the bad that is contaminating the world order. Can we really justify necessary violence? Can we consider violence as good if it benefits the society? Can necessary torture be justified? I think in any circumstances these above questions cannot be justified as it inflicts pain and suffering and essentially it violated the human rights. If we browse the news of the world, our ears are bombarded with violence and its effects. Can we consider violence as bad? If yes, what about the Libyan rebels who are fighting against the ferocious leader? These are the sensitive issues that we have deal, first of all in our own minds and hearts and then transform the hearts of the people who destroy the wellbeing of this world. 

Pic: Late early morning landscape in the countryside in Britain. 

My lover speaks of rape

Flaming green of a morning that awaits rain
And my lover speaks of rape through silences,
Swallowed words and the shadowed tones
Of voice. Quivering, I fill in his blanks.
Green turns to unsightly teal of hospital beds
And he is softer than feathers, but I fly away
To shield myself from the retch of the burns
Ward, the shrill sounds of dying declarations,
The floral pink-white sad skins of dowry deaths.

Open eyes, open hands, his open all-clear soul . . .

Colorless noon filters in through bluish glass
And coffee keeps him company. She chatters
Away telling her own, every woman's story;
He listens, like for the first time. Tragedy in
Bridal red remains a fresh, flushing bruise across
Brown-yellow skinscapes, vibrant but made
Muted through years of silent, waiting skin.
I am absent. They talk of everyday assault that
Turns blue, violet and black in high-color symphony.

Open eyes, open hands, his open all-clear soul . . .

Blues blend to an unforgiving metropolitan black
And loneliness seems safer than a gentle night
In his arms. I return from the self-defence lessons:
Mistrust is the black-belted, loose white mechanism
Of survival against this groping world and I am
A convert too. Yet, in the way of all life, he could try
And take root, as I resist, and yield later, like the earth.

Open eyes, open hands, his open all-clear soul . . .
Has he learnt to live my life? Has he learnt never to harm?

Meena Kandasamy won first prize for this poem in Pan-Indian poetry contests.

Apartheid of India: Dalit

Once you're used to it

You never afterwards

feel anything;

your blood nevermore

congeals

nor flows

for wet mud has been slapped

over all your bone.

Once you're used to it

even the sorrow

that visits you

sometimes, in dreams,

melts away, embarrassed.

Habit isn't used to breaking out

in feelings.

F.M. Shinde, 'Habit', in Arujun Dangle (ed), No Entry for the New Sun: Translations from Modern Marathi Dalit Poetry.

ONE INDIA Dream: Unification of India through Cricket

Unity in Diversity is an ever consoling fact for me. This has proved right in several ways. India is rich in its cultural heritage, its multifaceted and diverse people of different culture, language and temperaments. India is a cradle of religions which is a bizarre statement to make. India has the largest number and oldest religion of the world. For many centuries Indian have struggled to keep all the religions in the same cradle. Religious division is the key to non-unification which lead to the division of Pakistan and India. Each religions created their own cradle instead of remaining in one. India has seen some of the worst religious commotions in the world. Religious unrest most often is instigated by the political parties which are unusually motivated by the ethos of evil. Political parties work based on religious disparities and create a political and religious imbroglio. At this juncture a daunting question came to me; Can India ever be united? I looked for the answer for the past 29 years. Did I get an answer? Yes, I did get an answer. India can be united. But how? No religion, no political party, no technologies can bring us together. 

Cricket is the answer. Cricket can make us united and bring us together. This was my feeling when I was watching the World Cup 2011 on 2nd of April. 1.3 Billion people with only one wish, that is to win the world cup and be the Champions. Isn't it lovely to see whole India with one vision and wish. This made me to think India needs to find ways and devices to unite Indians. For me winning the world cup was least in my mind but primarily I was glad to see every Indian, home and abroad cheering in unison. Can this continue in India? India need a genuine reunification in this era. Cricket is the only best solution I  have come across so far. Some people in India consider Cricket as a religion which is perfectly alright if that makes all Indian brothers and sisters, if that makes one to love their neighbours and enemies. Any religion must unite and not divide us because every religion preaches the same message, that we are brothers and sister as Vivekananda opened his address in the world religious convention in Chicago in 1893.  

Now that India has won the world cup after 28 years, all Indian are proud to say that they are Champions of the world. I would also add by saying we are not only champions of the world in Cricket but Champion of unity. We can be united despite our wide differences. Time has come to forget our ghettoes and embrace each other with love and care. This will make us more proud just cricket made us proud Indians. Let each India embrace their so called enemies as we did on the cricket world cup finals. Time has come for Indians to shine forth as ONE INDIA. This was my dream of ONE INDIA and this dream is coming true as the dream of cricketers came true on the 2nd of April.

Betrayal

If Judas had lived longer,

(and not simply hanged himself or

become an forlorn exile)

or if he had abandoned

his conscience forever, selling it with

those thirty shining pieces of silver—

he would have become, in all probability

a very successful politician.

He would have sold scores

of saviours, grew rich and

a millionaire. And contended, lived his life

enslaving men, abhorring slaves—

and Mr. Judas Iscariot, would have

become a kind of star celebrity,

forever remembered. A History.

And to this day,

treachery flourishes—

The fate of Jesus befalls

every other messiah.                            

  By: Meena Kandasamy

In this world,

there is a single critical risk:

even the kisses betray.

He is such a little fellow

Lincoln's Letter to his Son's Teacher
He will have to learn, I know,
that all men are not just, all men are not true.
But teach him also that for every scoundrel there is a hero;
that for every selfish Politician, there is a dedicated leader
Teach him for every enemy there is a friend,
Steer him away from envy, if you can, teach him the secret of quiet laughter.
Let him learn early that the bullies are the easiest to lick
Teach him, if you can, the wonder of books
But also give him quiet time to ponder the eternal mystery of birds in the sky, bees in the sun, and the flowers on a green hillside.
In the school teach him
it is far honourable to fail than to cheat
Teach him to have faith in his own ideas, even if everyone tells him
they are wrongTeach him to be gentle with gentle people, and tough with the tough.

Try to give my son the strength not to follow the crowd when everyone is getting on the band wagon
Teach him to listen to all men but teach him also to filter all he hears on a screen of truth, and take only the good that comes through.
Teach him if you can, how to laugh when he is sad
Teach him there is no shame in tears,
Teach him to scoff at cynics and to beware of too much sweetness Teach him to sell his brawn and brain to the highest bidders but never to put a price-tag on his heart and soul.

Teach him to close his ears to a howling mob and to stand and fight
if he thinks he's right. Treat him gently, but do not cuddle him, because only the test
of fire makes fine steel.
Let him have the courage to be impatient
let him have the patience to be brave. Teach him always to have sublime faith in himself, because then he will have sublime faith in mankind.

This is a big order, but see what you can do He is such a fine little fellow, my son!
~ Abraham Lincoln

Order in Chaos: An Indian perspective

A unique experience of wonder made me realize that Indians can be very pro-active. I was travelling on Air India accompanied by almost 300 happy passengers, 7 bulky air hostesses, and may be two pilots who we never saw. Whole aircraft was filled with Indians with an exception of few Europeans and one European happened to sit next to me. As we took off we shared about ourselves a good strangers trying to know each other. Most Indians on board were absolutely quiet not uttering even a word. The British woman next to me wondered as to why this silence which is against the nature of Indians. As our journey proceeded we were served beverages and drinks before the supper by the plane crew. As the drink made its way there was some murmurs in the plane and after couple of minutes the plane was filled with enormous noise people talking, singing, and moving about. Now the reaction of British woman next to me was of awe and wonder. I intervened at pleasant awe and wonder by making a witty comment, 'We the Indian need some spirit  to boost our low spirits'. It was true that we the Indian are known for our boisterous way of living our lives. It is quite opposite to our nature to remain silent as we always do in London underground. 

India has seen its golden era in the field of technology, and this was evident in people using the cell phones and mobile internet. India has gone a long ahead of many other countries in the world to see its development in most fields. Despite the chaos that is very prevalent in every nuke and corner of our country, it has risen to the hight of order in utter chaos. As I was driven by my brother from the Airport to my home, there was utter chaos on the street, every one was driving everywhere. I told my brother to be more careful in his driving but he said we are not in London any more my dear brother. I had to close my eyes because I was absolutely scared of our roads and the vehicles criss crossing. I realised that every one of the drivers knew what exactly he was doing, therefore there was a sense of order which looked an utter chaos into my eyes. It was an experience of fear but ultimately turned this experience into joy since I am proud to be an Indian. 

An old lady was trying to climb the escalators in the biggest shopping complex in Mangalore. This complex is the first biggest complex of that kind in my little coastal city. This lady was amused and perplexed at the stairs that never needed to climb but she had to get into it in order to experience her amusement and perplexity. I held her hand helped her to climb the escalators, and there overflowed the joy and wonder on her scared face. I could imagine her feelings on climbing on those escalators, she was flying in the air, she was feeling that she was climbing the sky. But after few minutes of her climbing I had to help her out of these escalators. This is not matter of wonder for a person who lives in a developed country where climbing on an escalators is a necessity but for the people who haven't seen it in their lives makes an enormous difference. 

As I was strolling down the developments that India has seen is incredible. India despite being over populated and issue of distribution of wealth is a major problem still most people in India manage to go to bed without starving. This is my own observation, can be wrong or debatable too. I shall write more about Indian developments in my next few articles.