Destination Infinity's Blog, page 52

#madeofgreat

For my #madeofgreat story I choose a couple who are my distant relatives. I don’t want to name them because I didn’t take their permission to write this post. I have not seen them often and don’t know much about them – last time I saw them was in a marriage four years ago. But I keep hearing about them from common relatives. 

The first time I met the couple was during my primary years – they called us for their housewarming ceremony as we were nearby. When I went, I noticed their son moving around the house with ease, but he kept touching walls and other items while walking.

His mother was proudly telling us how he recognized every item on the shelf and would start questioning her if something was not in its usual place. He could easily move around the house without anyone’s help.

I came to know he was blind by birth.

Then we were not in touch with the family for a long time. Around the time I had started working, I came to know that the boy had won an award for Yoga, which he had been practicing from a young age. His mother had appointed a private tutor to train him.

That award was an All India-level award for proficiency in Yoga and he received the medal from none other than Dr. A. P. J. Abdul Kalam.

More recently, about 3 years back, when I went to my grandmother’s house, I noticed a CD. On that CD, the boy’s photo was printed. When I asked about it to my grandmother, she told me that the CD contained devotional songs sung by the boy.

I came to know how multiple talents were nurtured in the boy by their parents, in spite of his situation. That confidence & positive attitude made me awe and respect them at the same time.

Imagine, how many of us lose all our hope and give up on life for (what we think are) difficult situations.

Not this #madeofgreat couple.

This blog post has been written for a contest hosted by indiBlogger and Tata Motors. Tata Motors have roped in Leonel Messi, the great football player, for this #madeofgreat brand building exercise. If you wish, you can comment on what you think about Tata Motors association with Leonel Messi.

Destination Infinity

An Innovative Book Launch!

I recently went to Mr. Rajamani Balakrishnan’s son’s wedding @ Chennai. He is a member of our WRIMO India Facebook group and released his first novel, The King is in Check, during the marriage reception ceremony. Don’t you think giving away print books for free is a sweet gesture, especially when most authors hesitate to give even their eBooks for free? Here’s the pic:

Destination Infinity

Raj and his Jewellery Woes (Short story)

Raj and Amisha were in love for a couple of years before getting married. Their married life was the opposite of their love life. Back then, Raj was still working and had a lot of disposable income. If there was a fight between them, he would later easily console her by gifting gold rings or jhumkas as a gift.

But, after marriage, Raj lost his job due to downsizing in his company, and was unsuccessfully looking for another job for over a year. His savings were dwindling and his fights with Amisha were increasing. He couldn’t say if there was a correlation between the two, but here he was, unable to buy gold jewelry to pacify her, and unable to continue the fights.

His life had become a big mess, he thought. But he was a resolute man with a never-say-die attitude. He was determined to find a solution to his problem.

He bought and read an eBook: ‘How to find a job in 7 days’. But even after 7 weeks, he was still jobless. He emailed his former friends and colleagues requesting their help to find a job, but didn’t get any favorable response. He even got his resume professionally rewritten, but there were no calls for interviews.

Dejected, he went to see a popular guru. The guru listened to all his grievances and said – “Don’t worry son, all your problems will be solved soon. You just need to think differently.” And for that he took 500 rupees as dakshina!

Raj was even more dejected. He thought he was fleeced by the guru, but, he gave a minute and thought about the advise. After a couple of moments, it struck him — the guru was indeed right.

His problem was not the lack of a job. They had enough money for basic necessities. But his immediate problem was, he didn’t have sufficient disposable income to buy gold jewellery to console his wife. He then cooked up a strategy and attacked his problem from an entirely different angle.

“Hi Amisha, I know you are upset with me. Here’s a small gift for you,” he said and handed over a pair of jhumkas to her.

Picture credit: Royal Tassel Jhumkas, Stylori.com

“Wow, not bad. But . . .” she hesitated.

“It’s made of gold, emeralds and pearls. Don’t you think this expensive jhumka will look nice on you?” he said and smiled.

“Is this really gold?” she asked.

“100% pure 22 carat gold, pure emerald and pure pearls, dear,” he said confidently.

“OK, let me try them,” She said, smiled, and walked to the mirror to try it.

Raj thanked God, his guru, and online e-commerce site Stylori from where he had bought this beautiful imitation jewellery, made of silver, for Rs. 1,400

My Experiments with Truth – M K Gandhi (Book Review)

‘The Story of My Experiments with Truth’ is a partial autobiography of M K Gandhi. He explains how various events molded his character, how he developed his philosophies, and how he followed them stringently even through periods of extreme trial. This book contains the important events of the his life from the time of Mahatma Gandhi’s birth (Oct. 02, 1869) to 1921, when the book was published.

We know Mahatma Gandhi. But how did M K Gandhi become Mahatma Gandhi? How was one person able to live truthfully, able to convince millions of people to follow him – given his unconventional method of fighting, able to gain enough strength to bring a powerful empire to its knees, all by following non-violent methods of protest? 

Practically, he suffered, and asked people to suffer along with him. To understand how he was able to do it, we nee a glimpse of his early life. That’s exactly what the great man himself offers us in his own words.

If you are looking for history and details on his political activities, this book may not satisfy you, although some history is included. This book is more of a spiritual exploration where M K Gandhi tells us how he developed his life’s principles and how he kept up with them (successfully) in spite of huge obstacles.

Some interesting nuggets of info I found in this book:

M K Gandhi studied law in England and ate only vegetarian food even there. He eventually gave up cow’s milk when he came to know how cows were mistreated on large farms, and drank only goat’s milk which also he tried to avoid. Practically, he was a vegan!
He went to South Africa to practice law but found himself drawn towards public work (initially legal) after looking at the hardships faced by Indians in South Africa. He fought for their rights, while there.
M K Gandhi supported the British Govt. during the Boer War in South Africa and during the First World war while in India by becoming a volunteer (nurse) and by recruiting volunteers for them.
In South Africa when he came to know that a few Indians were affected with Plague, he (along with a few friends) personally attended to them in spite of a grave risk of getting affected themselves.
In South Africa, he tried to set up a farm and live a simple life outside the city, but was not able to continue as friends kept calling him into the city to address their grievances.
In India, he traveled around with a third class railway ticket, although the conditions of third class compartments were very bad in those days.
One of his initial Satyagraha campaigns in India was the Champaran movement where he fought the law against farmers that forced them to cultivate indigo on a significant portion of their lands. His fight took two years but he was successful.
There upon he led the protest for the Kheda farmers who were forced to pay a huge tax in spite of a famine. Although the lands were confiscated and people were arrested, the large majority did not flinch and the Govt. agreed to withdraw taxes for two years while returning the property.

I should agree that before studying this book, my knowledge about this great man was limited. Now I know something more. I love the way in which he brings his internal debates and confusions — no wonder he is the champion of truth!

This book (and others) are available to download for free from here.

Must read.

Destination Infinity

Boomers!: The Final Solution (Book Review)

Boomers!: The Final Solution is a Thriller novel written by Daniel Horne.

Gist: A newspaper reporter investigates a false shooting case at a party to find there is more going on behind the scenes and this murder might be just a cover up. A smuggler finds his usual route in Arizona desert bordering Mexico, Southern US, being monitored by Drone air crafts. He also finds his latest shipment and men missing. Who could be behind it?

The head of a large Chinese multinational company is about to buy large tracts of lands in Arizona desert. They are aided by corrupt politicians and police in the state. They already possess the region around North Mexico where they build a large factory. The Arizona land is the final piece of the puzzle and they plan to build a huge pipeline between the US and Mexico to transport . . . something they believe will make deserts become grasslands and will end the food shortage problem of the earth!

A professor, who accidentally witnesses the murder in the party by the police, has no other option to save his life but to work with others who are trying to decode and stop the Chinese takeover of US soil. A powerful newspaper owner, along with others mentioned here, team up to fight the large Chinese company. How will they do it . . . is the story.

The book starts good, progresses slowly in the middle, and ends well. The story line is excellent but the author repeats certain events in the middle of the book which elongates the story. I think that is the only glitch. Otherwise, the author makes us root for the characters and the story is believable.

The core concept on which the story is based on, is the best part of this book. Someone can even imagine such a solution to end hunger in the world is beyond me. The Chairman of the Chinese MNC genuinely believes he has a solution, but he doesn’t bother about the cost at which it comes. The author has created a powerful antagonist, and that makes the story interesting.

Initially, I thought the protagonists were too week to handle such big villains. But as the author brings everyone together, they become stronger, and the story is believable and even riveting at places.

Nice book for a weekend read, especially if you like to read in this genre.

Destination Infinity

What Inspired People to Join Armies and Kill?

Human beings, throughout known history, have been fighting and killing each other. Our epics were centered around wars. History is full of battles and conquests. Until a few decades ago, Kingdoms and Countries were routinely warring and killing people en-masse.

I wonder what inspired people to join armies wanting to kill other people?

Was it propaganda? Was it the pride in defending one’s country? Was it the money and the loot? Was it forced employment by the virtue of birth (Kshatriya)? Was it the lack of any other employment — the only way to survive?

What was it?

I don’t think there is any other species that has killed its own kind en-masse like us humans. A few cannibalistic species might have been existent, but I am sure the motive for killing was food.

Only human beings kill for reasons other than food.

Imagine: A HR consultant comes and tells you that your job is to go to the field, kill people, and — on a bad day — probably get killed. Would you be inspired to take up such a job?

But, throughout history, Kingdoms and Countries have been able to raise huge armies quickly!

I am not talking about the armies nowadays, most of whom might retire without participating in a single battle. That’s not to demean them — I think it’s a good thing. Armies now are symbolic and exist for defense — just in case (with the exception of a few countries).

I am speaking in a historical context when it was normal to send a few able-bodied men from almost every family to war. Knowing well that they are not going to return.

Don’t you think the very fact this was happening, almost throughout our (dis)illustrious history, exposes who we are? The greed and lust for fame, power, and prosperity is more than enough to make us kill.

We need strict laws and jails to stop people from killing. We need nuclear catastrophe to stop combat.

Heck, we did not even spare our Gods from warring.

I have an alternate theory — maybe wars were a way to check indiscriminate rise of population. And now we achieve the same thing through higher cost of living, birth control, etc.

?

Destination Infinity

PS: This is why I don’t write opinion posts frequently

My Autobiography: My Bad Luck in Sports Continues in Xth too…

I have written earlier about how my dream of wearing a purple jersey and representing my school for inter-school sports event was tarnished during my 6th Std. Now, I will write how another dream of mine — someone hanging a medal around my neck for winning a sports event was tarnished during my 10th Std.

I have received medals, as early as 3rd Std. But those were for cultural activities. Inspired by Olympic prize distribution ceremony, I wanted a medal for sports. Actually, I had won the 2nd prize for long jump during 6th Std. but the school officials decided to give cups, not medals!

When I shifted to my new school, I did not fail to notice they were giving medals as prizes. Enthused, I decided to practice long jump in which I thought I had the best chance. During my 7th, 8th and 9th Std. I tried hard, but the top three positions eluded me. During my 10th Std. also, I gave my best shot at long jump, but failed once again.

I had almost given up hope, but an interesting situation manifested.

Frankly, I was never a champion runner, although I was a decent one. So, during my 10th Std. sports meet, when they announced the 100m DASH preliminaries I went to participate more for fun than with any hopes of winning. As expected, I was selected for the finals.

To my surprise, I found two main runners, who could easily overtake me any day, were not among the competitors.  Since they were not confident of getting the first prize, I learned, they opted out of this event in order to have a better chance at winning the individual championship.

That left me with two other competitors — my best friend, who was the 100m DASH specialist champion, whom I couldn’t even dream of overtaking. And another competitor from the next class who had won the first place in the just concluded 200m DASH.

I didn’t take part in 200m DASH because I was a short distance runner. So while I was fresh from my class, he was looking exhausted. What a Luck, I thought

The whistle was blown and we started running. At half distance, I found myself in the second position. My best friend was miles away in the front, but the 200m guy was trailing closely behind me. Somehow I kept up my lead, and to everyone’s surprise, finished second

Ponniyin Selvan #1: English Translation of Tamil Classic Novel ~ Wow!

Ponniyin Selvan #1: Fresh Floods is the English translation of the first part of the popular and bestselling historical fiction classic novel in Tamil. The book, set in 11th Century Tamil Nadu, was written by Kalki in the 40s/50s, has been translated into English by Pavithra Srinivasan, and is published by Westland Ltd.

Book review in one word: Wow!  

Here’s a short snippet of the story: The protagonist, Vandiyathavan, has been sent on an important mission by the Crown Prince of Chola Empire from Kanchi in the North to Thanjai in the South. He has to deliver an important message (written on a palm leaf) from the crown prince to both the Emperor and his daughter, the Princess.

On first glance, this looks like a courier delivery job, especially considering that the message to be delivered is within an empire. But the author introduces Pazhuvatharas — a powerful vassal King, part of the empire. These men control the ailing King (and hence the Kingdom, indirectly) at the Chola Headquarters in Thanjai.

The traitors will not allow communication between father and son because they plan to take over the empire through cunning and deceit. So this message is a crucial one and the book details the trouble undergone by the protagonist to deliver it. We also get to know about the spies he meets on the way, the cunning plans of vassal Kings, the Princesses who impress him (and their secret agenda), the actions of another powerful dynasty — Pandiya empire — to regain their territories from Chola Kings, friends, enemies, etc.

Except for excessive descriptions at a few places, I feel this is a brilliant book. The characters, the situations, the motivations, the treachery, the loyalty, individual and group agendas — everything is believable, exciting, and draws us right into the story and the period.

This book is a page turner. I, the slowest of readers, finished it within a week! Even through the book doesn’t end (there are six other parts), I am still happy with the experience/journey so far. Can’t wait for the second book to be translated and made available. The translation is very good, BTW.

I listened to the eBook (Google Play Store) via Text to Speech. In spite of the narration by a Robotic UK Voice (Amy – IVONA TTS), I could easily follow the story in English with a few Tamil words and phrases sprinkled here and there. So this book should be easy to read, even for people who don’t know Tamil.

If you want to read historical fiction set in India, this is an excellent option

Destination Infinity

Facebook Friends Adding us to Groups Automatically: Why Allow this?

Facebook has a strange policy of allowing our Facebook friends to add us to groups automatically, without even taking our approval. Don’t you think it’s high time Facebook stops allowing this automatic process and makes user approval mandatory before being made to join a group?

Recently, one of my friends kept adding me to a group, in spite of me leaving the group. So I went into the settings and saw what options I had to stop this. I didn’t want anyone to add me to FB groups automatically, but unfortunately FB doesn’t give a setting to make this possible. People are allowed to add any of their friends to any groups they want.

I found one solution: If I leave the group from the group’s page, there are no further options. But when I leave the group from the list of groups (that can be accessed by clicking on ‘Groups’ on the left sidebar), there is an option to leave the group and block anyone from adding us to that group in the future. I was glad that there is a way to stop people from adding me to a particular group, repeatedly.

There is another setting that allows us to block a user from sending app, event and page invites [Settings > Block], but there is no option from stopping them from sending us group invites. I think Facebook should add this feature.

Facebook should also give us the option to approve or reject joining any group that we are added automatically, before we become a part of the group. Many people seem to want this feature all over Facebook’s support forum, but the company — for some strange reason — is not enabling it.

Facebook, high time you look into this. Please.

Destination Infinity

Oct. 31, ’15: Bangalore Business Literature Fest

The inaugural edition of Bangalore Business Literature Fest is all set to be held from 9:30 A.M. to 6 P.M. on October 31, 2015 at Century Club, Seshadri Road, Bengaluru. According to the organizers, this expo is to ‘Celebrate and Foster the Culture of Reading, Writing and Publishing of Business Literature’ in India.

This expo offers a networking platform for readers, prospective authors, publishers and established authors to get together and discuss about business book, biography & article publishing. According to their website, 30 authors are expected to attend this fest and share their experiences. And of course, there are book launches & introductions as well. So this is an opportunity for non fiction book readers to discover new and interesting books.

The organizers are conducting a few workshops, and three of them are free to attend:

Business Book Writing
Business Article Writing
How Can I Publish my book

There is also a paid workshop on screenwriting.

The expo, which I gather is free to attend, features stalls and discussions on topics like,

‘Books every entrepreneur and professional must read’ by Vinita Bali
‘A Critique on Indian Business Writing’ by Dr. Madhukar Angur
‘A Practitioners experience of writing on Business and Technology’ by Kumud Srinivasan
‘Writing on Scams and Corruption in Indian Business’ by Robin Banerjee, etc.

Being a business blogger by profession and an aspiring author, I am definitely going. Looking forward to the travel from Chennai to Bangalore once again I will summarize important and interesting info gathered from there on my blog, once I return. Look out!

Further Information: Bangalore Business Literature Festival website.

Destination Infinity