Rahul Shrivastava's Blog, page 3

Most unexplained events that have ever happened

Three events/mysteries come to mind:The Taos Hum - Taos is a small town in New Mexico, USA. Since the 1990s, the residents have reported hearing a continuous low frequency sound. It’s a rumbling sound comparable to the sound of a distant diesel engine. Although the naked ear can hear it, sound detection devices have not been able to pick it up. No one has been able to give an explanation about the origin of the sound. By the way, Taos is also the hometown of actor Julia Roberts.The ‘Wow’ signal - In 1977, Jerry Ehman, who was a volunteer for SETI, the Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence, recorded a ‘Wow’ signal, which lasted for 72 seconds. It is believed to have originated within the Sagittarius constellation near a star called Tau Sagittarii, 120 light years away. The signal was not noise and is the strongest proof of extraterrestrial life ever found. However, all attempts to locate the signal again have failed.The Pollock sisters - In 1957, two young sisters, Joanna Pollock and Jacqueline Pollock, aged 11 and 6 respectively were killed in a car accident in Hexham, England. Their mother gave birth to twins, Gillian and Jennifer a year later. When the twins began to talk, they started asking for toys that Joanna and Jacqueline had played with. They could identify places Joanna and Jacqueline had been to. And they were scared of cars. More mysteriously, Gillian and Jennifer had birthmarks on their bodies exactly where Joanna and Jacqueline had them.

What really matters at the end of life?

When we are young, our mind is our biggest friend. There is no limit to our imagination. We dream and more importantly we believe that we can achieve those dreams. We want to do what we love. We have activities and goals in mind that we want to accomplish some time. We look forward to those days.As we grow older, our eyes and ears become our friends. We see and hear the world around us and tell ourselves that what we had dreamt is impossible to achieve. We are scared to do what we love. We don’t have time to do what we had wanted to do as a young person.And before long, we realise that we are old and have led a life, which was not what we had dreamt or imagined. We regret that we did not change the course of life when we wanted to. We did not take risks. We did not do what we value or love. Our priorities were misplaced.So what really matters in the end is this. Have you lived a life where your satisfaction in having accomplished your dreams, love and passion outweighs your regrets on what have you have missed?

10 good thing that I did or happened to me

I learnt typing. This happened accidentally. Just before my first year under-grad exams, I fell ill and had to return home from my hostel. While recovering, I joined a typing institute nearby. I don’t remember what I studied in under-grad or post-grad but typing comes handy every day.I learnt to cook. I always loved cooking but never had the opportunity to do so. In my first posting in Moscow, I did a lot of cooking. Knowing to cook is always helpful.I found Bob Ross on YouTube. Bob Ross was a famous American oil landscape painter. Landscape oil painting on canvass is my favorite. Videos of Bob Ross helped me a lot in improving my skills.I chose Russian as my Compulsory Foreign Language in the Indian Foreign Service (IFS). I was sent to Moscow. I had a wonderful time in my first posting abroad.I bought a home gym. I always found it difficult to go to a gym. After some hesitation, I bought one. It is still with me. Without it, I would have exercised much less in the last fifteen years.I put a smart TV in front of my treadmill. Staring at the blank wall or listening to music while running on the treadmill was boring. Time flies when watching a programme I love while running on the treadmill. The treadmill would be gathering rust without the smart TV.I planted two mango trees and one avocado tree in my present residence in Caracas. I couldn’t imagine a residence of the Ambassador of India in Caracas without a mango tree.I finally made it to the Salto Angel falls (the world’s highest waterfall) in Venezuela last year. I had been planning the trip ever since my arrival in Venezuela nearly three years ago. It was not an easy trip but worth it.I discovered the magic of acupressure. It keeps my sinusitis at bay.I found Quora by chance in end-2016 . And through it, over 130k friends.

What has life taught me so far?

Life is fair. You get what you deserve. If you still haven’t got what you deserve, keep going. And you’ll see that day one day.It’s not your fault if you were born or brought up in adverse circumstances. But, if this continues when you are an independent adult, no one else is responsible.Money is paper. The experience that you can buy using it is real.Happiness is standalone element. It’s not connected to anything. Least of all to power, wealth, fame or material objects.Take care of your health. That’s one thing you can’t buy.Take care of your family. It’s very unlikely that anyone else cares about you.Worrying about what others think about you is a huge wastage of time. People only think about themselves.Don’t pity yourself or your condition. There would be thousands ready to swap places with you.There is no luckiest and no unluckiest person in the world.The one who has to walk the journey of life is you. No one else can do it for you.

Biggest turning point in world history

In the year 1473, Joao Vaz Corte-Real, a Portuguese sailor reached Newfoundland. This perhaps led to the establishment of the first colony of the New World.Two decades later, during his second voyage, Columbus founded Isabela, the first permanent Spanish settlement on Hispaniola (modern day Dominican Republic and Haiti). This for sure was one of the earliest colonies, if not the earliest.For the next five centuries, colonialism shaped the world socially, politically, economically, culturally and demographically. The effects are permanent. Little did Corte-Real or Columbus know that their modest arrival on a distant foreign land would have such far-reaching consequences.History got divided into two parts in the 15th century - world before colonialism and the world thereafter.

Problems technology should have solved already

Vaccination was first used more than two centuries ago.Penicillin was discovered nearly a century ago. We have made breakthroughs in cancer and HIV treatment.Lost productivity due to common cold costs the world over USD 100 billion every year.Yet, there is no cure for common cold. You can’t just take a pill and report to work the next day.(Picture source: Daily Mail)

A valuable lesson learnt in professional life

Once a while, early in their career, Indian Foreign Service officers (Indian diplomats) have to do the job of Head of Chancery in the Embassy. This is not a mainline diplomatic job but helps the diplomat hone her/his administrative skills and understand the nuts and bolts of the system, which comes handy as one rises in career. I had my opportunity when I was posted in the High Commission of India in London. Managing 300 people in the High Commission or handling over 500 delegations in a year was not an easy job. I saw more events and incidents in my four years in London than in my whole career. However, it took me a long time to recover from the shock of three incidents in London, which happened in quick succession:One day, Mr. Abid Hussain, former Ambassador of India to USA came to my office. He was in the UK on some work. He talked warmly to me about various things. He mentioned that he needed a vehicle to go to some meeting the next day. I said that he need not have bothered to come all the way to my office. He could have called me on phone or sent word and I would have arranged the vehicle. He said that he wanted to meet me and, therefore, had come over. As Mr. Hussain was leaving my room, I could not help thinking how alert and articulate he was for his age (he was 85). He also was very fit. The next morning, I got a call from the driver at 11. I asked him if he had still not reached the hotel to pick up Mr. Hussain. He said that he had arrived at 9 and after waiting for nearly 2 hours, he thought of checking with the hotel management. There was no response from Mr. Hussain when the management knocked at his door. When the door was opened, he was found slumped head down on his bed. Apparently, he had gone to the washroom at night and while returning had a heart-attack even before he could lie down or reach the telephone.We had a security officer, who lived with his family in the High Commission. His wife was seriously ill. They had two sons, the younger one was about 10. I think the elder one was in India. One day, the security officer said that the condition of his wife had deteriorated. After two days, I got a call early morning. The wife had died in her sleep. When I reached his home, some people had already gathered outside. The security officer was crying but his younger son was quiet. Local coroners, police and others came to do the required procedures. I told the security officer that I could take the son to my office downstairs so that he could deal with the officials. The boy sat in my room while I tried to do some work. I was disturbed and was not able to concentrate properly. I felt sorry for the boy but I was amazed at how calm he was. I would sometimes talk to him or ask questions. The boy sat for about two hours or so before his father got free. He then left. I was very saddened for him thinking that this was the beginning of a long life ahead without his mother.A young official got posted to the High Commission so that he could continue with his cancer treatment in London. The doctors tried chemotherapy for some time but the cancer was too aggressive and he did not respond well. In this period, he would come to office to do his work sincerely whenever he was off treatment. One day he walked into my office and I remember two things. He asked how my family and children were. I thought that this man is hanging between life and death and yet, he is kind enough to check if everything is okay with me. Secondly, while he was talking to me, the office of the Deputy High Commissioner (DHC) called. The DHC wanted to meet him. He got up from his seat hurriedly and rushed to the DHC’s office. I could not help admire his sincerity. When the chemotherapy failed, the doctors said that they would do a test to see if surgery was an option. I visited him in the hospital on that day. He said that everything was in god’s hand and if his time had come, he had to go. I prayed that the prognosis was good. However, the next day the doctors said that the tumour could not be operated upon. He was shifted to a hospice since the family was told that the death could be gruesome. A week later, I got a call early morning from my Attache. Even before I had picked up the phone, I knew what the call was about. At the funeral, I saw the wife and her two daughters huddled up in one corner. I found it difficult to speak at the funeral. Before the body was sent to the pyre, we bid our goodbyes. As we went around, the younger daughter stopped and ran her fingers on her father’s face. Perhaps she was not able to comprehend that her father would never return. The picture is still etched in my memory and whenever I think of it, my heart feels heavy.Several other incidents, from not-so-grave to very serious and from minor to very big, have taken place at various points in my career. And the single most valuable lesson that I have learnt, especially from the three mentioned above, is that no matter who you are and what you do, your professional life can never be segregated from your personal life. I have learnt that it is wrong to say that when you come home, you can shut your mind to what happened at work. It is not possible to do so. Nor is it advisable to do so. The day we become emotionless about our work is the day we stop loving our work.

Surviving in cold countries when you are from a warm country

Those shifting from warm countries to cold countries do not usually follow the local practices of dealing with the cold. This may make life difficult. But, if you learn to do what the locals do, adapting oneself to a colder climate is easier.Here are some tips from my time spent in some cold and very cold countries:Cross-ventilate your house for at least 10–15 minutes even if it gets very cold.No matter how cold it gets, dress well and go for a walk outside. Even children in prams should get fresh air every day.Dress according to the weather. When it gets below -20 degrees C, you cannot just manage with this:You have to have one of these:If you are a vegetarian, figure out how to get the essential nutrients. Consult a physician and take supplements if necessary.Use all opportunities to get sunshine in winters. Regularly check your vitamin D levels.Go on a vacation during winters to a place with plenty of sunshine.Make your body sweat once a while. Go to the sauna or exercise or learn a winter sport.Observe and follow what locals do to survive in the winters. Ask when in doubt. Do not take things for granted.

Most interesting facts about India's struggle for freedom

Bhagat Singh was a polyglot. He knew French, Swedish and Arabic besides English, Hindi, Urdu and Punjabi. He was an avid reader, too.(Photo of Bhagat Singh)The Indian national flag was first designed by Pingali Venkayya at Bezwada in 1921. He used two colours - red and green. Mahatma Gandhi suggested the addition of a white band and the spinning wheel. Later, saffron colour replaced red.(Flag designed by Pingali Venkayya)15 August was chosen as the day for India’s independence by the last Viceroy of India, Lord Mountbatten as it was on this day in 1945 that Japan surrendered to the Allied Forces.When India became independent on 15 August 1947, she did not have a National Anthem. Even though the Bengali version of Jana Gana Mana was written in 1911, it became the National Anthem three years after independence.Khudiram Bose was one of the youngest martyrs. He was hanged when he was 18 years old.(Khudiram Bose is in the centre of the photo)Lord Mountbatten had to attend the Independence Day of both India and Pakistan, which is why Pakistan’s Independence Day was set for 14 August, a day before India’s Independence Day.After the partition, Pakistan got one-third of the Indian Army, two out of the six largest cities and forty percent of erstwhile Indian Railways.

Mythological connections between India and Russia

Here are three:Svarog is the Russian god of fire. The name is derived from the Sanskrit word ‘Swarg’ meaning ‘heaven’. Other names of Svarog are ‘Dievs’ and ‘Praboh’, which are from the Sanskrit words ‘Dev’ and ‘Prabhu’ meaning ‘god’. Svarog established his capital in Nogorod, a city that still exists in Russia. ‘Gorod’ means ‘town’ in Russian and ‘Nov’ is from the Sanskrit word ‘Nav’ meaning ‘new’. Svarog is also the Russian god of blacksmithery. Therefore, the Russian word for ‘welding’ is ‘svarit’.(Photo credit: Wikia.com)Russian children grow up listening to the stories of ‘Baba Yaga’. Baba Yaga is a witch-like character with chicken-legs, whose mode of transport is the broom. It is believed that Baba Yaga was not always the personification of evil as portrayed in children’s folklore. Till about the 7th Century AD, she was considered as a mini-goddess. If you ask a Russian, she/he can easily tell you the meaning of ‘Baba’ (‘old lady’ or ‘grandma’) but not of ‘Yaga’ since there is no Russian word similar to ‘Yaga’. According to Alexander Afanasyev, the great Russian fairytale writer of the 19th century, the origin of the word ‘Yaga’ is the Sanskrit word ‘ahi’ meaning ‘snake’.(Photo credit: Slavorum.org)Volkh Vseslavyevich is a Russian legendary hero who defended Russia from foreign attacks. One of the famous stories about Volkh is about a confrontation with an Indian king. The Indian king plans to conquer Russia. Volkh leads his army of 7000 friends to defeat the Indian king. He transforms himself and his men into ants so that they could get inside the Indian fort. The Indian king is defeated. But the 7000 men marry Indian girls and bring them home as their brides.(Photo credit: Wikivisually.com)