The Undeniable Moments...

This post is dedicated to Tara, Jason and John. The author knows that this post is heavily incoherent in nature, with each sentence, being there, just because it needs to be there. Heavily deviant in nature from the original idea. Kindly excuse the so many loose ends.

Most of us, at some point in time or the other, excessively indulge or wallow in self-pity. The moments, often, undeniable and unavoidable, take us by surprise, and further ensue a lot of pain. While experiencing an undeniable moment, one is often tempted to define it as the darkest and the toughest moment in life. The past one's seem bearable when compared to the present one, and the future always holds forth joy and happiness. Who knows as to what the future beckons us with? Thus, we gradually, miss out on the present time of our lives.

Space and time, prove to be one of the most natural healers for such times. Getting immersed in one's passions does help one blissfully become unaware of reality. Often, it so happens, that the mind proves to be treacherous with its tendency of complicating simple things in life and likewise, simplifying the complicated things in life. It doesn't take a long time to make a small worry a big worry and vice-versa. If we finally are able to look at those undeniable moments with clarity and true lack of emotion, we can see, that their purpose is to provide us with some really important lessons for life; and move on in life. The experiences makes us richer in being, well-rounded in thought, and more empathetic in nature.

What is universal, is the fact, that each and every human being has to face these moments at some point in life. Every face has a story to tell. It is all right to indulge in self-pity. It is all right to crib about life. It is all right to be hurt with failures, be they related to academic, professional, financial or matters of the heart. But then, however, there is a limit to all of this. Suddenly, this thought struck me - chaos is all pervasive and is mostly illusory and in the mind. We just need to look deep within ourselves and see that we are blessed in so many different ways, something that we always fail to respect. These "undeniable" moments try to average out the blessings, but then, allowing this to happen, again depends on our own self.

Recently, in one chance conversation with the owner of an Indian restaurant, we got to know that he recently suffered from a stroke affecting the third nerve to his eye; sadly, a totally new case for the doctors. Further, I happened to meet a father, whose 3 year old son, has an acute form of leukemia, for the past 2 years. Today, I met an 8 year old survivor of some form of leukemia, preparing for his 8th marathon. Such a nice person totally exuding with a certain positive energy, despite being in a battle for life. These people are facing the true tough moments in life that are very much real.

With such tremendously huge real undeniable moments in life, does it really matter, if you stand defeated on almost every possible front in your life? Most defeats are usually within our circle of influence and control. But then, when it comes to the body, all other defeats pale in their illusory significance. Each day that we live is a blessing. As my teacher glibly put it, "Ranga, it is best to not compare yourself to anyone. No matter what, there would always be someone better than you, in every aspect in life." Lastly as another of my teacher puts it in one of his favorite songs,

Oh! my mind!

You think you understand so much!

When your own faults and shortcomings have no limits,

You go on looking for blemishes in others!

PS: A post on a similar theme can be found here; and a post on blessings in general.

Sanatana Dharma....

Disclaimer: The author is a Hindu, well, more of a pantheist. He respects all religions and belief systems. He is not in a position to draw parellels between the many religions. Nor is he an authority on the principles of any religion. The viewpoints presented out here are solely his. Some could be credited to certain conversations with his friends. If there be a pro-Hindu tinge, it would be more of a sub-conscious shade.

Hinduism, the Sanatana Dharma, is more a way of life, or so they say. One of the few philosophical systems with a neat response to the conundrum of the "Problem of Evil", it is veritably in great danger right in its own homeground - India. A gradual and slow erosion of Hinduism, by far, one of the most tolerant belief systems in the world, is clearly evident.

Most politicians, refrain from the Hinduism chime. While one section is jingoistic in its behavior towards Hindutva, the other section (majority) distances itself from Hinduism. While, Hindutva or the so-called "Hindutva jihadi's" have come to tarnish the pro-tolerant pantheist image of Hinduism, little is being done to restore this system to its original glory. Sadly and unfortunately, Hindutva has come to mean Hinduism. The pro-Hindutva group does as much damage as the pro-secular group.

Certain thought-provoking instances in the life of the author and around him are cited below:

• The Kuala Lumpur International Airport, Malaysia; boasts of a first-class facility. It further provides a separate prayer room for Muslims. With due respect to Muslims, and their prayer schedules, Malaysia is free to do what it wants to. Moreover, Islam is the majority religion in Malaysia. But then, why does anything related to a temple bound to create a great controversy in India?


• One of my good friends told me that he couldn't find a place to eat in Qatar, during his transit on his way to India from the US, during the Ramadan month. How can an international airport not service its visitors with the basic amenities of water and food? Not everyone in the world is a Muslim, right?


• In the United States, the author has met quite a few missionaries trying to convert the author. With all due respect to Christianity, why is it that people want others to convert to their religion? Is it a sign of insecurity? All religions are beautiful on their own, and no religion prescribes the victory of the evil over the good. If that were be so, then, why should one necessarily have to declare, "My way is the only way; and yours is a path to perdition".


• Few people understand Hinduism. Most of the people of the author's generation are disenchanted with the heavy ritualistic principles of the same with their apathy intensified due to the esoteric nature of its sacred texts. Sanskrit is known to only a few, and we ourselves define our own limits by not taking any step towards learning Sanskrit. Even otherwise, transliterations of most of the works are available. Then, what is stopping us?


• The increasing breed of a class that goes about professing atheism, agnosticism, religious humanism, etc. Of course, when it is a conscious decision towards embracing such a philosophical system, it is well within one's own fundamental rights and independence. But, when it is more like a rebellion against the established norms of the society or as an ostracization of the "rustic" religious/spiritual beliefs of the age-old systems; so as to be labelled hip amongst one's peers, it is a clear sign of immaturity.


• Most of India's political policies center around the appeasement of the minorities. One can get away with almost anything in the name of secularism. Poor maintenance and sheer neglect of the astonishingly beautiful temples of India is one such example. So many temples in the south are in decay and no politician ever talks of their renovation, because is is not a secular thing to do.


• Most of the Hindu Brahmins, related to the priestly class are poor. They depend on the religious functions for a living, and their remuneration is not high. Their salaries for being temple priests is not high. Their standard of living is mediocre and they often find it difficult to educate their children and get their daughters married. However, the Indian political system recognizes them as being amongst the Forward Community, despite their economic backwardness, and fails to encourage their children. This article reads " Are brahmins the dalits of today". An obviously better yardstick would be a classification on the basis of their economic status; and reservation, if necessary, based on that classification. An even better solution would be to focus on the paradigm of primary education for all.


• The sheer apathy to the actual living conditions of Hindus because of its anti-secularism viewpoint is making India blind to one of the most ancient spiritual systems of the planet. With most systems advocating the middle path, why is that the so-called proponents or followers fail to do so? Why does the word Islam, one of the most beautiful religions and the fastest growing religion of the world, raise fear in us? In a way, Islam is also in danger. The heavy influence of the state on the church is detrimental to Christianity too.

As an analogy, music exists in various forms with its foundation being on the essentials of rhythm, melody, harmony and bass. Each form of music generates its own unique appeal and aesthetic bliss. If that were to be so, then, how can anyone claim as to what he/she is passionate about is the only way and the only way to bliss? What about the so many other people for whom the form they like is their religion? Does that mean that the other forms are nothing but noise?

Lastly, the renaissance for this spiritual system would come from the West. The author is amazed to see so many people dedicating their entire lives towards the study of the Hindu texts, Hindu way of life, etc. out here in America. The chantings of Bhajans in the heavily accented tones and the respect for Yoga, Kriya, Satsang, meditation, etc. that people have out here is heavily inspiring to the author. Most people in America have their basic comforts taken care of. In the sense, one need not be worried about the acute water problem or frequent load-shedding of electricity. Like Swami Vivekananda once said, "Spirituality is for the rich".

Importantly, why cannot one live and let live others too?

August 15....

The Independence Day of India. Back in 1947, the partition of India lead to the birth of two new states - India and Pakistan. India has come a long way since then, with her own share of ups and downs. A few of her dreams have been realized and a few shattered to pieces. Yet, she goes on dreaming with the hope that people begin to realize and act.

The middle class youth and the educated would be disenchanted with the politics. Politics, my dear reader, is the same everywhere. Every country has its own share of turmoils and politically motivated masterplans. People, the very educated ones, once they settle down towards a decent living, begin to criticize at India. It is like dishonouring her. She is what we make her to be. This is more so among the Indians out here in the US (the NRI's or as Geeta from the movie Swades puts it - "The Non-returning Indians"). This is not to mean that all the Indians in India are proactive and working towards her development. This is not to mean that the Indians in India don't criticize.

There are a few organizations like AID, ASHA, etc. out here in the US which do significant work towards the development of India. It all depends on the attitude of the people. These organizations have a limited yet dedicated volunteer base. It doesn't really matter as to where one is.

It is time we did something rather than just sit laid back, talking and criticising. I urge everyone of you to be a lighthouse, spreading light in whatever significant/ insignificant manner. This is the only solution thanks to which the concept of "India Shining" would become more of a reality rather than remain a virtuality or an impossible dream.

Jai Hind.

PS: Coverage of July 04.

Service with a Smile..

The curtain raiser for today's event would be in the form of questions for which there are no universal answers. I would encourage you to think about them. Here, I would be presenting my views. I thank AID-TAMU for giving me this opportunity to express myself. There might be differing opinions and I would respect an individual's personal opinion and would expect the same from the other side.

***

Life - A journey; where man and woman are one and the same; to experience the same joys and sorrows; to learn lessons and more importantly to do something about the lessons. It is not to so uncommon for us to get entangled in the web of life. Nothing else would then seem to matter. So, this reminds me of the basic question - What, then, is the concept of social service? Why does it exist? Is it fashionable for a person to be branded a social activist? What is his/her purpose in life? With the constant increase in the NGOs, this question becomes all the more important for us. In the first place, should service be allowed? Is it right for us to help others. Who are we to help others? Would helping others lead to the growth of dependents or in the extreme case, parasites?

Well, it truly depends on the quality of service being rendered. It is better to give the means of making a loaf of bread than the loaf itself to the deserving. Productivity, then, is rightly the solution. Thus, we need to give them the ways to sustain themselves. By this approach, we would definitely not be nurturing dependents. It so happens that there is a skew in the very distribution of resources. At times, people are simply helpless but to give in to the dire poverty. At the other end of the spectrum, we do have rich people who have come up the hard way, the simple way, the honest way, the crooked way, well, have come up nevertheless.

It is more at the micro level, at the level of humanness within us, "Service" of others can be beneficial in more ways than one. In the wise words of Mahatma Gandhi, the father of the Indian Nation,

The best way to find yourself is to lose yourself in the service of others.

Often we are so blinded in our thoughts, and are too involved with our very own problems. It so happens that we make mountains out of mole-hills too. The satisfaction and contentment that one gets from doing service is inexplicable. Best when experienced. For most of us, grappling from one end to another, "Service" opens up new frontiers, improves our understanding of the world around us, makes us forget our problems, etc. So, when we look outside the box, look at others less fortunate than others, we do have the sense of being more fortunate. This is not truly and ethically correct. We look towards someone less fortunate for our own appeasement. Celebrating the strengths, success in everyone, multiplying the joys would be a better goal. Nevertheless, the realization of this utopian dream needs a start. Thus, "Service" should rightly be a way of life and importantly, a means of service to our very own self.

What then are the qualities of a social worker? Service with a Smile. We are into this scheme of things for our very own sake. Often, we tend to bring others into the picture. We at times crave for recognition, appreciation, support. When we encounter criticism, we are morally shattered. The mistake has been done right at the beginning. It is always our very own inner self on its alchemic quest towards the state of elysian bliss and ecstacy. No one else matters.

People who know not much about the purely voluntary efforts of the workers comment on their very ways of functioning. It is very easy to pass judgement on others. There are always two extreme sections of people - one, that is dangerously crazy of something; and the other that is equally dangerously against that same something. Every work that is carried on by the people has seemingly an increased number of critics than appreciators. With so much of attachment to negative qualities, it is often a wonder to us if someone is exceptionally pleasant to us. More often than not, if 9 people were to appreciate us, and 1 was to criticize, we would still be thinking about the "1".

So, where is all this leading to? This very concept of "Service" seems to be hazy, caught in its very own whirlpool of creation. With so many ideas floating around, it is but natural to be bewildered and do nothing about it. This is sadly, the worst thing that can happen, and is so in most cases. We need to learn to revere, love and appreciate the efforts put by people who have chosen "Service" as a vocation/ an avocation. These people invest the most valuable commodity - "Time". Nothing should bother them. We are lighthouses. Our duty is to bring light and shine into other's lives. Nothing else matters.

Thus, I would like to end this with the Chinese proverb-

It is better to light a candle than curse the darkness.

Let us all take that small but significant step towards making this world a better place to live in. There is no ocean without the small drops of water in the first place.

With this introduction, I take this opportunity to welcome you all to the 2005 General Body Meeting of Association for India's Development, Texas A&M University (AID-TAMU) Chapter.

Thank You.

Science and Discovery...

What leads to discovery? Are discoveries those moments of serendipity that sadly and vulgarly relegate those moments of frustration and helplessness to the background. With no intention of disrespect to the greats who have/had made their mark in their respective fields courtesy their discoveries, I write this article on a subject, that has proved to be one of the greatest unanswered questions of all times for me.

Does Science provide the fundamental basis for all the happenings in the universe. Science, that proves to be an invaluable tool for the scientists, researchers, engineers, etc. does seem to provide an answer to most questions. But then, does it truly answer all the questions? We might rationale most fundamental happenings with the help of science. What baffles me often is this: What happened to the rationale when these fundamental happenings were discovered? In other words, do the discoveries happen by those moments of truth and serendipity followed by a detailed analysis using the tools of math and science to explain those very moments or vice versa.

This looks like an extension of Godel's Incompleteness theorem (Well, I might be wrong here. I would appreciate feedback on this). Science can explain almost anything under the sun, but definitely not everything. There are certain things that are just beyond any possible explanations or rationale. For e.g. the very concepts of Miracles and Hope. From the previous post on Anahata, I was clearly of the opinion that music was discovered more on the basis of instinct, intuition, determination, and ceaseless efforts in bringing out the unstruck sounds. When these are explained with the very faculties of scientific reasoning, the reasoning sounds fallacious (it might be perfectly logical for that matter).

This is not to mean that I hate Science. I love science. I am fortunately/unfortunately in a field that is close to science. Technology would never have been a possibility without science. This however doesn't stop me from asking these questions for which I have no answers.

Lastly, I would end this article with these quotes

Science is the belief in the ignorance of experts. (Richard Feynman)

The greatest obstacle to discovery is not ignorance; it is the illusion of knowledge.(Daniel J Boorstin)

PS: The author was recently recommended by a good friend of his avaldes - "Structure of Scientific Revolutions" by Thomas Kuhn. It should provide certain answers.

New Age Spiritualism...

Disclaimer: This article would have references to Hindusim. The author respects other faiths too. On a comparative scale of the author's knowledge on religions, it would be around 100 ppm on Hinduism and about 0.001 ppm on others. There might be factual errors too. I would appreciate feedback on mistakes.

"Wherever I go, Whomever I see", the new age spirituality seems to be "infecting" the lives of almost everyone. I have interacted with atheists, agnostics, spiritual but not religious types, humanists, etc apart from those staunch devout believers of "the" faiths. More and more people, despite their religious preferences, seem to look towards the magical solution towards a better life - and here is where spiritualism holds the promise. Spiritualism seems to be transcending all religions; and seems to address what a person wants to hear. Man needs constant reasssurances from the world that he is on the right track, that his beliefs are correct, etc.

Art of Living, Sathya Sai Foundation, Vipasana, Ramakrishna Mission, Aurobindo and the Mother, ISKCON, etc. are some of the organizations primarily based in India, that immediately come to my mind when it comes to the new age era. Each mission has its own dedicated believer base. What do these organizations promise? Are they coming up with new theories or ways of better living? How different are their teachings from the one's given in the Holy Books. When it comes to Hinduism, the Gita (the infinite source of wisdom), the Vedas and the Upanishads, the two epics of Ramayana and Mahabharata; are the best sources of spirituality. Then, there are the compositions by Purandaradasa, Thyagaraja, etc. that have a profound meaning camouflaged in the sweet language. Why then, are these resources neglected by the common man? What is the appeal behind the new age spiritualism?

1. New Age Spiritualism - gives the flavour of the esoteric, enigmatic, way-beyond our understanding(?), profound philosophy embedded in the Holy books in a simpler language; more understandable by the common man. Yoga - the union of the soul and the body was emphasized as an important aspect of life, right from the ancient times. There is nothing new in the concept of Kriya, Pranayama, Yoga, etc. Its just that the "spiritual" organizations are making it more known to the common man.

2. A sound understanding of the Holy books demands proficiency in Sanskrit. Sadly, not many of us know Sanskrit. We are left at the mercy of the transliterations.

3. Purandaradasa's keerthanas are in Kannada. Well, they were written in simple Kannada, supposedly for the masses. How many Indians or the people in the world know Kannada? Hence, a wonderful source lost. Similar is the case with Thyagaraja's krithis in Telugu. Blessed be the souls that know these languages and importantly use their knowledge to truly appreciate the compositions.

4. It has become fashionable to look down upon Hinduism. Well, I was told that Hinduism is a way of life and not a religion. It doesn't demand a believer to believe in the concept of One; and no other. Sadly, Hinduism is being abused under the name of Hindutva. They are totally different. In "By River Piedra, I sat down and wept", Paulo talks of the feminine face of God. Hinduism believes in the feminine trinity - Saraswathi, Lakshmi and Parvathi.

Well, I might have digressed from the main topic. I guess I should better stop here. However, I would like to dedicate this blog to a real good friend of mine - AM; for bringing me back to "blogging" life.

Abortions..

I know this is a dangerous topic to tread on. Somehow, was discussing about this with my friend yesterday and felt like penning my views today.

Who has the right to take life, if not Him? This is what the purists feel on this issue. They are right in a way. While some "modern thinking" people include the woman's decision to abort the foetus as a progression in thinking, manifestation of free-will, I find it difficult to support them on this issue. If the copulation was by mutual consent, then they have no right to abort the baby.

But then, I do support abortion in some unfortunate cases. When a young girl is raped and gets pregnant, she has to bear the truama of the unfortunate incident and the stigma of the society. In such case, an abortion would be the best option provided the mother's health is not at risk. And there are also cases, where the baby is known to be deformed or not entirely healthy before its birth - its life would only be troublesome and difficult for it and its parents. So, a sanity check on the status of the baby is acceptable, but not sex-determination.

These are my views and I do apologise if I have offended anyone. This is as sensitive an issue as Euthanasia and opinions would obviously differ.

Religions...

Religion is a controversial topic to address. I have met people of all kinds. Those who are die-hard followers of a particular religion, to people who are religious humanists, to people who are spiritual but not religious, to people who are agnostics, atheists, etc. Though there might be an obvious conflict of views, I believe in tolerance. It is however interesting to ponder on the reasons behind such differing opinions on religions. What could have happened?

I guess the family circumstances, upbringing, friends' circle, influence of books at impressionable ages, and their personal journey in Life would have resulted in their religious preference. Approaching this topic with people is a sensitive issue. I do not discuss this with my good friends at all, whatsoever. Each person is entitled to his/her own opinion. As long as that person is able to justify his/her opinion, any opinion for that matter is acceptable.

Yet, despite this, I do keep coming across people - who are die-hard missionaries with their (most times, irritating) zeal of enlightening people on the only path to salvation or the only true God or whatever. And they are often shameless in their approach. This cynical mind is wary of a friendly stranger. Most times, it has so happened, that the friendliness is with an ulterior motive of something on these lines or business networking for some products.

Some people believe that there exists one and only one true religion and God/Prophet/Messiah. What do such people gain by making such declarations? Is it that their faith forces them to be so narrow-minded. Why cannot it be the presence of a unifying powerful omnipotent force with different manifestations? I am sure I am taking cudgels out here, some persons might take it to be blasphemous, but don't such declarations only increase the divide among all of us? From what I have inferred from most religions, the essential philosophy remains the same, The triumph of the good over the evil.

These are my personal views. It would be really interesting to make a comparative study on the various religions of the world. For that, I need to know properly about my religion first.

Education......

Well, the objective of most people, would be to get a decent education, get a decent paying job, and "settle" down. In an era, where people seem to associate the acceptability of an another person with money, money plays a key role in the matching game. They say love is blind, but how many examples would there be of a really rich girl eloping with an equally poor boy or vice-versa. Well, all that I can say, is that this is real filmi. :)

What decides a person's earning capabilities? His intelligence, his business acumen or luck. I believe that it all depends on education. People well-educated do end up on the higher end of the spectrum. There might be exceptions like Bill Gates, but then there are always exceptions to the general rule. What makes a person become a bus driver or a conductor? We never realise this, but those are real tough jobs. We always blame the bus corporations for poor service, but what are these souls to do for problems that are well outside their circle of influence or control? What distinguishes a man who works as a "server" in a restaurant from a person working as a cobbler or from a person working in an white-collar job?

The answer lies in education. In this era of competition, the performers are distinguished from the non-performers on the basis of marks. But what about the people, who do not know as to whether they can perform or not in the very first place? I am not talking of motivating non-performers out here, but of people who are DENIED education. What was their fault? Why does life seem to be so cruel for them? Education is the means and the sole means for the betterment of humanity. Well, some might be of the opinion as to how the knowledge of history or chemistry would help a person in his life, when only a few follow up on that subject for higher studies. This author believes that each and every subject in the curriculum, is necessary for the moulding of the young person. It is for that person to decide later as to what appeals to him.

And it should be education with a difference. Each student should be taught to respect an another person and importance given more to learning rather than roting subjects for marks. The student should be encouraged to follow his/her dream and importantly love oneself and be grateful for everything. If only, the whole world were at peace with each country working towards the betterment of the humanity in general, wouldn't the world would be a BETTER place to live in? Imagine diverting those huge huge expenditures on defence and warfare towards the education of the people!!

Global Citizen...

Recently, I was asked to consider by two different friends - the possibility of working in some remote place in Africa or in an another third world country (other than India) or working in the US itself for the betterment of humanity. One was of the opinion that more work gets done here than anywhere else. The other felt that my ardent love for my roots - India was kind of narrow-minded. One felt that I was running away from materialism, and the other felt that if indeed I were to work to make a difference in the lives of many, then why not a place compared to which India could be called "developed".

To say the least, both views stumped me. Am I running away from materialism? Is the concept of a global citizen a fallacy? Or is it that the view that more work gets done here an excuse for materialism?

Would this ever be a possbility? The whole world seen as one huge country with different states, people free to move around wherever they want to (without the problems of visa's and without being termed aliens), a unified currency (extension of Euro), and respect for work (each gets paid in the same currency for his productivity), and importantly respect for the individual (despite his race, creed, caste, sex, etc.). I personally feel that global citizenship would be a possibility only when the world is seen as one. Wishful thinking, right?

Marksist Hegemony....

Right from childhood, a lot, repeat a lot of emphasis is placed on marks. People seldom realise that the present education setup is tailored towards the Marksist Hegemony. Children are taught to respect marks. They pass judgements on the capabilities of their peers at such an early age based on marks. Parents also make their worries or nervousness about the child's performance known in an unpleasant manner.

The natural question.. Is it deplorable to be a marksist? Marks are, but a tangible outcome of our hardwork and effort. But, sometimes, marks do not do justice to the Principle of Knowledge. The outcome seems to depend on those hours. So, does obtaining high marks translate to being good at the subject? If you can honestly convince yourself that your knowledge is not at sale courtesy marks, then I suppose being a marksist is healthy.

Educational institutions depend on the insane, yet, logical yardstick of marks for their academic input. Why do most institutions seem to prefer oiling the "oiled" minds only? Sadly, the world recognizes only such institutions that produce excellent results by following the coward's approach.

Arts, an enriching creative pursuit, is often relegated to the background. Children who would love to pursue a career in arts or journalism are punished by being forced into other respectable pursuits. Talents remain hidden. And ironically, all are capable of doing wonderful things.

Who other than He/She is to decide as to a person's mind is "oiled" or "not-so-oiled"?

Survival of the Fittest : A Fallacy ?

Who is to decide if a person is capable of doing wonderful things or not? It so happens that with the excessive, (often) unhealthy, competition referred to as "Survival of the Fittest", a person might find himself engulfed in an overpowering wave of helplessness and hopelessness. Who decides if a person is capable of surviving or not? The world, yes, the selfish, ruthless world decides and often passes judgement on people about their capabilities.

The judgement of the world!

We can find that the root cause of this detestable phenomenon manifests from the desire of man to excel at the cost of another. What is wrong with the beautiful vision of the celebration of achievements in everyone? The connectivity comes from the respect of the individual. Why do people resort to unhealthy practices and often sell their souls for the so-called recognition and fame? This might seem to be completely antagonistic to the principle of "Selfishness as a virtue". Well, it is a virtue as long as it is not at the cost of an another soul. On the same thread, was Howard Roark seeking recognition? Parasites (Peter Keating), who have sold their souls, don't shirk in claiming recognition, for something that is not theirs. The Principle of Recognition doesn't always seem to work.

Furthermore, sadism seems to be the order of the day. People look towards people less-fortunate than them and think, "Well, I am better off". This often translates to a state of complacency and a dangerous feeling of security when in fact, they are way off from being "better off". Why do they not look towards people "better off " than them? Why do not people use their strengths to work towards the celebration of life - their own and that of others? Why do people focus on negativity and weaknesses?

Engineering.....

While seeing the movie, "Swades", this thought about the present state of Engineering struck me. Doctors seemingly do justice to their profession by specializing in Medicine after their bachelors. People pursuing Law do end up as Lawyers. In this regard, Sciences and Commerce could also be included with Medicine and Law. Engineers are about whom I am more worried about.

An engineer by profession, (atleast that's what the world says or thinks!), and specializing in the same field (fortunately), I cannot help but wonder as to how many people infact pursue their specific undergraduate field of study. Sadly nowadays, disciplines like Mechanical, Chemical, Civil, etc. are not preferred. Why is it that these disciplines are in such a sad state? Most parents would want their ward to pursue Computer Science or Electronics, and the irony is that neither the ward nor parent(in most cases!) know as to what these two disciplines actually involve at the time of admissions. With so much of peer pressure, and the neighbour's son doing Computer Science at IITK, and a colleague's daughter pursuing EEE at BITS, Pilani, the desire to make their ward famous among their circles, does seem to get on their nerves.

Again, I might be wrong in making such an indiscriminate generalization, but I feel that most of the so called Mechanical, Chemical, Civil, etc. engineers finally end up in the IT industry or switch over to Management/Services. Engineering has sadly become a platform for seeking higher and more lucrative pursuits for them. Agreed, that money plays an important role in our daily lives; But, should the primary field of study be sacrificed in such a shameless manner? Well, there are some people, including friends of mine, who were born to be managers. I do not want to raise a dabate now on whether managers are born or created out here. But, what about the others, who turn towards IT/Management/Services not because they are genuinely interested, but because of the money factor?

Well, I am not a saint. I might have been or was one like them. I am now in one of those saught-after disciplines. I do not want to point fingers at them. It is just that, the time has come for all of us to realise the glory of these neglected disciplines. I was wondering as to what these engineers were doing, when in fact they could be building dams and improving the infrastructure of the country, maybe not easy as it sounded in the movie "Swades", but nevertheless still DO something to bring a light into their lives.