Dan Brown in India !

Dan Brown is in India. 
Rajdeep Sardesai Interviewed him. As a true Maculay's child he asked Dan any plan to write about other Religion especially Hinduism ? Ignorance has no excuse. Hinduism has no single book and is not history-centric. With around 2000 basic books, more than 10,000 study texts, more than a Hundred thousand sub-texts and yet with so much destroyed Granthaas and unknown Original texts, and with an amazing mosaic of culture, I am sure Dan will be sitting on some rock on the shores of Ganges in Hrishkesh doing meditation. 
On the other hand on expected lines, to make some more quick bucks, to please some quarters, he can write on Rat and snake worship or like Arundhathi he can dwell into casteism or perhaps better like Wendy Donigar can crawl in Kamasuthra and say that it is all about sex!.

TWELVE YEARS BACK HOW PEOPLE THOUGHT ABOUT FUTURE INDIA ! 

Leaving all the debates on “Chaiwala, Zeher ki kheti, gutter snipes and impotency” I went for reading some stuff. After dusting the shelf an old magazine caught my attention. It was “Bhavan’s journal”, 49th annual Number dated 15th August 2002. Our Ex-president Shri R.Venkataraman was the President of Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan then. Perhaps that’s the reason why they brought up a nice pocket edition worth keeping for years. This book contained a special feature namely “My vision of Free India” and about 100 people famous and not so famous had penned their visions in it. 

Vajpayee was PM then and K.R.Narayanan the President. Apart from the usual pleasantries from Pres., Vice Pres., PM etc. it contained a Vision by APJ and it was the best. It contained vision of non-descript people including an VIII std student namely Gayathry Latheef. I was quite happy to see the vision of late Shri V.K.Eradi. He was a mentor and friend to me. 

I was startled to see a vision which has almost realized. That outstanding vision was of one Prof. Mary Thomas. She writes “My vision of India is one wherein Civil Society Organizations would act as a check on elected representatives, promote environmental health, initiate electoral and judicial reforms secure share in decision making to the common man at grass root level.” Yes, it is happening through AAP, IAC & other Organisations etc.

But then I was stuck at a vision or Non-vision page! That was of Opposition leader in Rajya Sabha then Dr. Man Mohan Singh!. It was the worst vision I read in the book. Even A.K.Antony’s vision was much better. Dr. Singh had written what India he would not like to see. Not much to say he filled half the page with Tagore’s poem “Where the mind is without fear..” Yes full poem!. A Clearly visionless person later became our Prime Minister and he was in the seat for 10 long years! I regret for forwarding his bio-data to so many people when he became PM. No other country head had that much Qualification and experience. But he greatly disappointed me and my countrymen.
Cry my beloved country!

Is Face Book reason for not blogging ?

Its amazing !
I did not blog for more than a year now. I was indeed quite busy. But that is partially true. I would be lying if I say that was the only reason. The charm of FB had overcome me. I thought FB is a good idea - a nice thing as all my friends gets instantly notified of my posts. And I collected many friends through FB too. I joined one or two groups was involved in many a discussions there.

But over the years I feel FB's charm is fading. Getting notified of uninteresting things is annoying. At times one becomes  a "Response robot". You are supposed to "like" somebody's stupid post. Some times when all other friends have liked your friend's child's photo with that funny Santa attire then you are also supposed to like it. Is n't it? Just to flatter some one people put comment "very very cute"! Some times for a kid who has no good looks at all gets so many "So cute" comments -  you are taken aghast. You have a feeling that you will be left out if you did not like some one's post or did not say happy b'day to a friend.  What if you do not like a photo? You have creeping feeling ... What your friend will think? Some times when I post a beautiful scenery or place I visited did n't I check who all liked it? So people must be looking whether I liked it or not. Close friends or relatives are ok. But what about some one has become a friend through FB?. Are you supposed to like his/her stuffs? I seldom share others photos but didn't I feel happy when people shared my photos? May be there are a lot of articles written about these things. I have n't read any.

At times when you are in a group you see posts which you really do not like. Then you are forced to write something disapprovingly. You then desperately look for an 'Unlike" button which is missing in FB.  There is no way to unlike in FB. "Unlike" is a word that FB does n't "like" ! Too many unlikes for somebody's post means that person will never be back on FB for sure. Then who would like to loose clients?. FB claims more than Billion now. No doubt FB rules the Social media scene. But when in FB you pretend too much.You avoid people by excluding them, You hide your posts, You post only in some groups. You secretly visit other's posts and photos. You peep into a person's profile who is not yet your friend. You create wrong profile and posts some nonsense in some groups or some other people's wallpaper. You unfollow some and follow some without their knowledge. You spent hours if you have one or two profile or if you are an Admin of a group. If you are member of 2 to 3 groups then FB eats up your time. I have seen girls and boys of my family who are not even 10 say they are 23 or 24 - so FB allows people to lie.  

The true facts for my getting involved in FB is 1. I was very much interested in IAC and ANNA Movement which was very prolific in FB. 2. As an environmentalist I had opened a group and I am the Admin of it. Busy with Environment activities year round I did not find enough time to write something creative which is requirement for a good blog. So Blog makes you creative. It does n't matter who sees it. I am on my own when I blog. I don't see a crowd. I don't see a group hostile to me who will immediately jump to attack me or defend their stand vehemently. I am a free man in Blog- Blogspot ! I am going to come back and write my stories.. What if I have no followers.. What if no one comments.. What if no one has ever seen it ..I don't care  I wrote whats in my mind ... forgetting everything the grammar the spellings ..I need not care whether I have hurt anyone or not.. I write from my heart with full freedom .. thats enough ! Thank GOD my blog is still active and I can write in it after a year or two.Thank you blogspot ! Thank you google!.  

But meanwhile wait a minute ...   Let me just see who has commented on my critical post in that "Nairs" group !

:)

Train Timings Calicut (Kozhikkode)

Train Timings in India are often a pain on your......! . Why do they change the timings often? I do not know.
Most trains are demanded and introduced by MPs and Ministers. It seems they never check people's requirement. That is true for Number of Railway lines as well. It seems it is all done on the Whims and fancies of some politicians. There are railway networks to least traveled places and least used. I am not saying that we need not build railway to remote places. But the usability- profitability etc. need to be checked.

If you check Railway map of Bihar or Bengal you will see number of Railway network. This is because most Railway Ministers were from that area. Those areas are notorious for ticket-less travelling still more number of tracks and trains are put there. On the contrary take south. Most people buy tickets and travel - even platform tickets are religiously bought. This is very true for us - for Keralites.

Southern Karnataka, Malabar area is most neglected by Railways. There are many districts like Coorg, Wayanad where train travel is unheard of and they think it is impossible to build a rail line there.  If we can build railway line in Konkan coast then it is very much possible. A railway line through Wayanad and Coorg is a much needed thing. Speculation on environmental damage because of Railway line is exaggerated. More damage is done because of Road connection. More and More roads are built through the forests. In fact a Railway line through forest has less impact than Road.

Malabar Should be connected to Mysore. That is long cherished dream of people. Already there is a rail line upto Nanjangud. This should be extended upto Nilambur. Nilambur in Malabar is near by. A connection through forest, although difficult because of terrain, is feasible and it can reduce the distance between Kochi and Bangalore. The benefits are immense. Tourism potential is enormous. Many times feasibility studies are done and left out. Many people think that this is because of pressure from Bus lobby. Kerala Politician's nexus with Private bus owners is suspected. The private bus owners are unscrupulous and at times they charge hefty rates - especially during Xmas / Onam vacations. There is absolutely no regulation to check the bus Tariff from Various places in Malabar to Bangalore / Mysore.    

We need new Railway tracks. The demand for Nanjugud - Nilambur line or Mysore - Tellichery line is sought since Independence but no action is taken so far. Large number of students study in Mysore / Bangalore also there are number of  IT and other professionals from Malabar working in Bangalore. They find it very difficult to travel because they have to depend on a single train  - Kannur - Yashwantpur express. Tickets have to be booked 3 months in advance for this train that much rush is there. But still there were attempts to make this train weekly once !! It is amazing how people in Railway Ministry in Delhi thinks! - Southern MPs are not capable enough to raise their points or are least concerned about the plight of people.
Concerted effort is needed demanding new trains from Malabar to Bangalore.       

Simple Kerala Weddings !

I have been observing many Kerala Hindu marriages and found that some confusion always prevails.

Except Brahmin marriages I have not seen any vast difference in the rituals among various caste marriages and one thing is common “confusion”. Because it is simple people do not care for details or the sequence. In many cases some elderly person comes forward voluntarily and takes control. Then what he orders is considered to be the custom. Often the sequence is at his whims. So when another elder watches it ( who has not cared to come forward and lead ) interferes then the confusion starts. One Mr. S.R. Nair in his blog has put it as Karayogam rivalry. But I do not think so. Because in Malabar the NSS Karayogam or SNDP has no big role in people's lives. But the confusion still prevails.

I think the reason for this confusion is sheer ignorance and attitude. We do not learn from the past mistakes. People forget the event so soon and do not care until another marriage comes across. They overlook the lack of perfection and clarity in what they do.

The most important thing is that until the real marriage ceremony nothing is explained to anyone because it is always considered to be the most simple. Its so simple so what to learn? That’s the attitude. The Parents of the couple and the couple themselves have no clue of what’s going to happen or what’s going on.

Ever since my niece’s marriage in Nov.2009 I have been pondering on this problem. For my niece’s marriage I had prepared a Managalpatrika ( a poem to be read on the occasion ) Even that recital got buried in the confusion that preceded. So even when all other things were meticulously planned when the real moment came everything got fuzzy.

Recently I had a conversation with writer P.R.Nathan about this. According to him during the marriage FIVE things are done in the ritual and these have direct connection to Panchabhootas ( Five elements) .

Agni : ( FIRE ) The marriage performed in front of an agni kund ( fire pit) or Lamp

Jal : ( WATER ) The exchange of Ring ( anguleeyam or Ring has a relation with water )

Vayu : (AIR) Mangalasutra or Tali represents the Vayu

Akaash : (SPACE) Mala or garland represents akash – Pushpam ( flower ) has a relation with sky ( akaash)

Prithvi : (BHOOMI) Vastram – Pudava in Kerala

These are all present or exchanged as per various traditions. This denotes that we all belong to the panchbhootas. The body and the Kriyas et all.

Now I am not sure of each tradition. Having done some research on the matter (J) I wish to list out the procedure of a simple Kerala marriage as follows ( E & OE – pls. comment):

- The bridegroom dressed up in traditional Kerala attire arrives with near and dear ones and is welcomed by girl’s relatives.

- The bridegroom’s feet is washed by girl’s brother before entering the hall. ( Be prepared with a Kindi & Thorth- Traditional water vessel & towel.)

- The bridegroom is now showered with flowers and rosewater ( with Pananeerveeshi) and welcomed by young charming girls with Taalam. The mother of girl has a bigger taalam with ‘Ashtamangalyam’ in it ( enquire with a pooja stores for more details) – a Thookku vilakku holding person an elderly lady should walk in front followed by Ashatamangalyam holding person, and then the girls. With the nadaswaram accompanied the boy enters the hall and go around the Manatap once. Then comes towards the centre of the stage and bows to the audience and gets seated in the Mantap.

- Next the procession goes to bring the bride. The bride in traditional attire and bedecked with flowers is brought into the hall accompanied by Talam & Nadaswaram. She goes around the Manatap once, bows to the audience and gets seated on the left side of the bridegroom.

- The Poojari performs Tali pooja gives Prsadam to the couple.The groom & bride apply it, on self and on each other. ( If the poojari is not on Manatap the Tali pooja can be done in a Temple prior to arriving at the Hall.). The rest of the rituals can be done on their own or instructed by an elderly person, parent or a relative.

- Next the Poojari gives the Tali to the groom. He ties it. He is being helped by the girl’s relatives.

- Next the Ring is exchanged if it is not already exchanged. Some people exchange the Ring at engagement time and then for marriage it is avoided.

- Now the couple stands up and the Dakshina is given to poojari and the poojari blesses the couple.

- Next Pudava is given by the groom to the bride. The bride hands over the Pudava to her relatives.

- Next the garlands and the bouquet are exchanged.

- At this time the relative of both parties shower the couples with flowers and blesses them.

- Next the Kanyadanam is performed. The bride's father gives her hand and places it on the groom's hand symbolically transferring her responsibility to the bridegroom. ( in the Vedic times the boy has to recite Mameya mastu poshya: - She will be looked after by me alone. )

- Holding the hands the groom & bride rounds the the Mantap three times.

- Now the couple are blessed by relatives by sprinkling rice & flower on their head.

- The marriage ceremony with this is over.

- Now the relatives can give ‘Paalum Pazhavum’ ( Milk & fruit ) to couple.

- Photo session follows and the crowd moves for dinner.

I have just narrated the sequence as I have traced it and after some discussions. Please suggest/Comment if you know any better way.

Election and Politics !

I thought of writing politics .. but then so much to write .. I do not find time to write ..
Every day there is something to write about ... things change so fast
Politics too changes it's colors so fast that even calling politician a chameleon has become an old fashion nowadays.

sometimes I think Indian democracy is a farse. When in some states just 45% people votes and some one win geting a total of 10% votes in what way the person represents the people. Once the election is over nobody discuss this anomaly. You can't force people. You can't make it compuslory as Advani suggested either. But then what is the way out? I think making it more fun or making it an attractive festival people will come and vote. That way the animosity between political parties can be reduced and the whole thing can be an enjoyable affair.

The war cries and the violence must stop. Lets be friends and enjoy the fun!.
I think my readers will agree with me.

Satyam and after effect.

It is a sad story. That such a prominent IT company has been hit with fraud case. My mind is with Satyam employees and I wonder what passes through their mind !

My thoughts go on the opposite side of the events. I only admonish Raju for his overdoing the accepted norms of the system. His percentage increase was a bit too much (1433 %) to consume that’s all. I do not support his wrong doings. The law should take its on course and he should be punished. But… I do not believe in making him an embodiment of all the sins.

We who cry foul - all are hypocrites. Every company in the corporate world jacks up their figures in the balance sheet. If Price Water House can be ‘duped’ (? Or connived?) What about the hundred thousands other spurious auditors?. If you look at the balance sheets of many famous Indian companies you will definitely raise your eyebrows. If I have seen it with my very limited knowledge – it is unlikely that SEBI has not seen it. The thing is that Percentage is less. So SEBI, IT dept and all other honchos overlook it.

I am sure if somebody says ‘throw stones if you have not sinned' no stone will ever hit Raju.
What about our very federal government? How did it win the vote of confidence?
How many Crores ? Have you forgotten Harshad Mehta? Telgi case? Bofors ? how many thousand crores?

We all report wrong figures..to cheat the government. That is the norm in this country.
The very people police / CBI who want to catch him – how do they fill their LTC bills? Rent receipts ? How do YOU fill your Rent receipt ?
When I was in Trivandrum I must have jacked it up 185% and produced a Rent Receipt. Every body in the IT industry or for that matter any Industry or government dept. jack it up by at least 200 – 300 % . All fill the LTA form with fictious figures –wrongly acquired bills to support. Produce spurious Medicine bills. I hold government responsible for it. People will voluntarily pay the tax - if it is affordable - that they can pay. If it is exorbitant they will try all false methods to circumvent. This happens in every country.

When you know that the whole system is standing on untruth how can we get shocked?

So this episode raises a very fundamental question that when are we going to honestly start saying SATYAM? : )

A change should start from Micro –level. From our day to day life. This is a good opportunity. Come join that micro-revolution. – SATYA MEVA JAPATE , SATYA MEVA JAYATE!

Let's fill our lives with Love!

It was on a cold December day that she came in to our midst. It was the year 1995 and I was in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. I left office a little late. When I reached my car, which was parked under a tree, I heard a subtle sound - a small silent cry. I looked around and found a young bird lying on top of my car. It was shivering with fear and of cold. I looked around and found a cat underneath. It was getting dark. If I leave the poor fledgling bird, which has no feathers, surely it will become a meal for the guy who is waiting underneath. So I thought for a while and wrapped it in my handkerchief and carried it home.

I had no idea how to raise a bird. What to feed and when to feed etc. I just wanted to save it. That's all. As expected when I reached home my wife was a little angry for bringing it home. So many questions… Where we will keep? What if it has some disease? How do you know? What we will give to eat? Will it eat? I just neglected those questions and took 2 plastic trays which we used to put clothes for washing. Put one tray upside down, tied it on both sides and made a cage and put the bird inside.

Next day morning I understood the poor bird could not sit on the floor-plastic base- like that. It needed to catch on to something so I inserted a stick in the middle to act as a bridge and kept the bird there. Now it was comfortable for it. The journey started from there. That morning I realized that the bird was a dove's chick. I had seen a pigeon chick before but never a dove chick. Pigeons will come near us. But doves are afraid. They stay far away. I gave it some milk. It drank a little bit. I was satisfied. I started giving some rice bits of corn flakes, bread crumbs it did not eat. Next day I searched for Dove food in the largest supermarket there. And Lo I found lots of them. I was surprised as to who was rearing doves over here? May be someone does. Otherwise there was no need to import that many packets from Canada. I bought a large packet of mixed seeds with meat balls. The packet was priced handsomely and the home minister did not forget to check the price label. It was highly incompatible with a Non-Resident-Indian’s pay packet. When she scrutinized, I bit my nails and hid behind a chair!

Well, now we started giving the rich imported Canadian food to the poor thing. The little chick grew by hours! Within a couple of days things started appearing on it - a strong beak, legs, feathers-and wings ! And it spread its wings - first flight – like the Jonathan Livingston seagull! I helped. Next, I said go man! I am not your mother. A crash land and after 3 trial runs - a perfect landing! My son and I enjoyed every bit of it.

Now my wife started liking it. She called it Chinchu. I called it Chakki and my son called something else. All - Kerala pet names. I described the features and emphasized that it is a female. But she forcefully said it is a male. The love for opposite sex was evident. My son had not grown up then so he did not mind - even if it was neutral he would have accepted. So it became the darling of our house. It flew from the shelf to the cupboard. From the Cupboard to the curtain rods. From the curtain rods to the carpet in a flowing ballet. When we called it, it just came and landed on the head or if we show fingers it landed on it. It wanted my index finger the other fingers he was not sure. So I sometimes folded my index finger when it reached me and cheated it. But surprisingly it used to recover well enough to fly up and sit on my head instead!

Weeks Passed. One more Canadian packet. Now the luxury had become a necessity and this time she did not check the price label. The only negative point was that when our friends came they had to close their nose. There was bird droppings hidden from us. Behind the cupboard, curtains and shelves. But we did not feel it as we lived with it. Now since more people started saying it I started thinking. A bell rang in my head!
The entertainment went on. Like they say, whatever happen the show must go on. It now showed it is maturing, it started walking in a different way when we looked at it - minded it, it also showed some affinity! A sort of a peacock dance followed. I was thrilled to watch it. I never thought a dove will ever do it. Perhaps a mating call? That was a second bell.

Soon June/July our vacation time will come and what we will do with it? I thought. That a third bell.
In order to avoid the smell I tried to put it outside - in the balcony. One night a big cat came, bit and tore the plastic cage and the noise woke us all and the poor thing was luckily saved. That was the fourth and final bell that rang in my brain.

So now I made up my mind. It is time to bid farewell. One fine morning I kept it on the cloth liner in the balcony and waited. At the same time another dove came and sat on the neighbors TV antenna. Our Chakki saw it, looked curiously turning its head to both sides.

And then, a sudden flight upwards, above the wall, above the tree, and towards that building and to the antenna. Now I could see two birds on the antenna. A job well accomplished and with a heavy heart - like the father who has sent away his daughter in marriage - I returned to the visiting room. That night was filled with only the sounds of plates and spoons. Without sharing a word we went to sleep.
One thing I learned. A pet generates love in your heart. Love is like fragrance. It spreads. Have pets! Fill your life with LOVE.

[Photograph of Shyam with Chakki.]

Sep 5, Teacher's Day - a retrospective !

September 5. Teacher’s day in India. I was driving down home from ITPL, Whitefield with Balu, a friend and colleague beside me. I tuned the FM Radio. An ad sounded. A child’s voice. It said “East or West my teacher is the West” We laughed. I asked Balu “Has any teacher influenced you in your life?” He thought for a while and said emphatically: “NO” “Not at all. On the contrary I have had some bad experiences.” That jolted me. As a practice, on this sacred day, September 5th, we think, read and say good things only about our teachers. Now is it appropriate to discuss bad things about our Gurus? We have a saying ‘Mata, Pita, Guru Daivam” ( Mother, Father and Teacher – all are Gods) .

But I was bemused with Balu’s answer and asked “Like what?” .
He narrated a story. For Pre-degree he was in a Parallel ( that’s the name in Kerala for Private unaided college) college and while leaving the college he asked for a conduct certificate from the Principal, a Lady teacher. The teacher stared at him and said “You are not going to get a job; Never! so why do you need such a certificate?”. As I know Balu, he is a very quite person and in student days he must have been a well-behaved student. Otherwise he would not have asked for such a certificate. “Then what?”. I asked. “Immediately after that I wrote the Air force test and got a job” he said. There was silence for sometime.

I was just imagining how as a young man he would have received the teacher’s words. It would have been very painful for him. That’s the reason he still remembers it. Words have far reaching impact. We may tend to forget the physical abuses. But words -especially cruel and bad words - will create wounds that never heal. Teachers should abstain from using it.

I have always found urban school teachers more cordial than rural teachers. School teachers in small towns and villages ill treat their students. Fault could be on both sides. But children are innocent and it is the responsibility of teachers to understand that and behave properly.

Unequal punishments, a big punishment for a small offence, will also create a wound that lingers on in a child’s mind for long time. I thought of such an incident in my life. In Malayalam we write July as Joolaay. After the La there is an extra deergham ( a character to indicate a prolonged pronunciation !) So in a composition work I wrote the date with month name in English as Julaay. It was a direct translation of Malayalam Pronunciation of the month. But the Lady teacher got so annoyed she pinched me so ferociously on the tender inner portion of my arm – Near the arm-pit. It was so painful I still feel the pain there when I think of the incident. What an offence and what a punishment!

I thought of the question I asked Balu. Did any teacher influence me? I remember the face of one or two teachers who talked to me some kind words otherwise none. But I have no ill feeling towards anyone. We can’t blame them. Those were the times when people did things differently. Even our schools were different. There were no CBSE schools. Neither Shoe-tie-belt English medium schools. We walked all the way to school.

I remember my 8th Standard English teacher. He insisted that we put the shirt’s collar button. In the summer days without a fan we struggled. But to our utter surprise he often opened two or three shirt buttons. Since he did not wear a brief (baniyan) we often saw his nipples. He was quite a funny guy. He asked us to make sentences with ‘can pass through’, ‘received with pleasure’ etc. etc. When the girls start making sentences he will enjoy every bit of it. I remember an elderly girl saying ‘A snake can pass through a hole.” Then he would ask her to repeat it. Look, this sort of nonsense by teachers is remembered for a lifetime. Is any teacher listening?
Having said that, let me add, September 5th or 6th I respect my teachers.

My Hard Disk Crashed!

Rain and cloud carried the limping, tearful August. I could not post much. The reason: my Laptop hard disk crashed! Now I have a new HD and the software is being installed slowly. I have started penning again. Many of my friends have stopped browsing my blog because they did not see anything new. I promise I will keep it going.
I had written two long articles. I did not post it immediately. I was proof reading. Now it is lost. Along with gone are numerous files, Applications, Works, Photos, videos, worksheets and what not? I am sad. There were things I do not recall now. People say recovery will cost too much.

Have you ever been pick-pocketed?. If you have stayed in Mumbai for sometime you might have had a chance to ‘enjoy’ that feeling. I did. Once I was pick-pocketed. I had a terrible feeling. As if somebody pulled out my spinal chord. The same feeling was there when my hard disk crashed. I did not have a backup except for some important personal files. After 3 decades of serving the IT industry I still have not learned that basic thing. Backup. Although I have been backing up various employers data perfectly - on time through out my life, I never thought my own data as important as that. So I should suffer.

Hard Disks are like granaries. We keralites are familiar with Pathaayams(big storage boxes) It is something like that. We put everything in it. Music,video,docs. And always waste time in searching. What happens when one day the Pathaayam itself is missing?

Barbers do not cut their hair properly. Dhobis do not wash their clothes properly. Cobblers do not wear good slippers. Doctors won’t take medicine properly. I have seen several examples like that. So a programmer who does not take backup of his own file is not anything new. That is the Lokagathi ( the way the world goes).

What is the use of worrying about something that is lost? We are bound to loose everything one day. That day is not too far for me either. So let me laugh at the loss of some silly items I collected en-route to Khayamat – the day of the judgment! God will not punish me on that day because I have gotten rid of some silly pictures I was hiding in my hard disk. The crash saved me from the sins. I am no more a sinner, man! Hey Padre, catch me if you can. .

Let me now look at the blank slate and try to become cheerful. I keep telling myself : If you do not have anything you have everything. If you have something then you have that thing. Just that thing!.This philosophy has saved me many times. Extreme negative will surely touch the extreme positive. So I have now everything. I have a full empty slate to write many many things. I feel happy again. Where is the chalk?

Decreasing number of Crows in Kerala.

കൂരിരുട്ടിന്റെ കിടാത്തി നിനക്കെന്തു പറ്റി ?


I am deeply worried about this. Whats happening to our crows?
Last time I visited my native place in Kerala I looked for crows. There were none.
Couple of years back I had enquired with my Aunt and she had told me that the number is depleting alarmingly. No one seems to notice it.

Number of houses have increased. This is causing tremendous pressure on land. The big trees are cut. Other than coconut trees there are very few trees now.
They are smaller in nature and can not be used to build nest. Our poor village crows are not used to build nest on buildings yet.

Where did they go? We urgently need research on this.

I remember some poems recited in childhood :

Kooriruttinte Kidaathiyennaal
Sooryaprakashathinutta thozhi
Cheethakal Kothivalikkukilu-
mettavum vrithi vedippezhunnol

(Daughter of pitchy darkness
but a friend of sunny brightness
She pecks on garbage smelly,
Yet she is spick, span and shiny! )
(own traslation :))

Another one from Sippi Pallippuram ( who wrote several poems for children):

Karutha kottum Kaalurayum
Kakke neeyoru vakkeelo
Pakshi kkotathi vakkeelo ?

(Long black gown
and long black coat
Are you a lawyer
in the winged folks court ? )

Good humor. Laughter. Rest. Happiness.

Why are we so gullible?

You might be considering yourself very smart. You might say, no, I am not gullible. But hold on. Have you taken any loan recently? Have you opened a Bank account? Have you entered in any lease or Rental agreement? Have you signed an employment contract? Have you ever applied for an electricity connection or Water connection? Or any other service provided by the government? Are you paying excess tax? Have you read the tax clauses properly? Have you done any investment recently? Have you purchased a car or any heavy equipment that needs maintenance? Do you know the clauses in there? In all these things there are clauses and conditions that may have gone unnoticed.You might say how can we remember all that? We do everything in good faith – until we are cornered. That’s the catch. We allow ourselves to be cheated – we are gullible.

If ever you find a good lawyer and sit with him with all the documents you have you probably will be amazed that on every opportunity you have been taken for a ride. People, establishments, government were someway cheating on you. The agreements you signed were either not clearly understood or not read. When we sign a contract we sign it in good faith. We believe in the person contacted. The bank manager, the friend who came to our house, our neighboring Insurance agent, our close relative who suggested this thing or that thing – we trust all of them.

Never sign a contract without reading the terms and conditions and understanding it.

Never sign anything in a hurry (The loan agents of financial companies & Banks often bring the original agreement at the last moment. These forms will have conditions other than what is mentioned in the proposal document that is given to you for reading prior to the deal.)


Never take it for granted that the terms and conditions are ‘as usual’ or ‘normal’. There is nothing called ‘as usual’. Any condition is amendable as per your demand. People believe in the printed forms and think that they are statutes that can not be changed.

Insist on the signed contract copy. Preserve it.

One thing we should know is that with the advent of consumer courts and consumer protection rights, the manufacturers, the dealers, Banks, establishments, government organizations have become cleverer. They take extra precaution. They overreact and go to some extremes. I recently got a document to sign from a reputed financial institution. It said that it is a SEBI requirement and upon checking I found that it is not.

By the way did you check your recent bank statements thoroughly? It says that if you do not inform them within 15 days, what ever is there in it would be treated as correct!

If you are living in Kerala look at the terms and conditions they print behind an electricity bill.

Why farmers commit suicide ?

Recently a prominent web site conducted a POLL . It was related to farmer’s suicides.

They asked five questions.

Why are farmers committing suicide?:

Psychological imbalance

Climatic changes

GM(Genetically Modified) Seeds

Are they committing suicides?

Government Policies

VOTE

This is surprising . It looks the questions have come from urban comfort. These kind of ‘intelligent ‘ journalists are ruling the ruse. I remember having seen a debate program in NDTV while I was in Delhi. There were about 100 people in the audience. The debate was about issues to be discussed in parliament. The anchor asked “how many of you support farmer’s cause?” To my utter surprise there was literally no one to raise the hands!. The anchor also got surprised he then said “ What is this ? are you guys not eating anything ? “

They all laughed it out and continued with another topic. This is how urban India thinks of agriculture.

Look how easily they decided upon five points. Are there no other points? Where is the economic hardship? Rise in price of products in general and sky rocketing labour charges? Is there a comparable increase in price of agriculture products?

What about change in life styles? I think in my home state that is the main reason. Climate change and consequent untimely rain is a recent incident. Since that has happened to many people government has plan to compensate the losses. Indebtedness is another major cause. Government is addressing this issue in an awkward way. The writing off of loans will only encourage farmers to take more loans. There will be more collective and continued demands to write off future loans and it may be politically inspired also. What are we going to do?. Tax payer’s hard earned money will be wasted like this. A whopping 60,000 crores! And the politicians take pride on this. They do not care how it is distributed. As long as they can project this amount in election meetings that is enough! It is clear that the government do not have enough machinery to verify the loan and check the distribution. Honest people who paid up their loan suffering much hardship will be neglected and unscrupulous guys who did not pay up will be rewarded.

Coming back to Changing life styles. In Kerala, mainly farmers from Wayanad are committing suicide. I would say besides all other things Change in life style is a major cause here. Earlier these farmers lived in remote areas inaccessible by road. They lived with minimum things. They had very limited needs. Now there are roads to every nook and corner and there is electricity too. Along with electricity all gadgets came. Television is the most important thing. It spoiled the mindset. The demand for things hither to unheard and unused increased dramatically. More shops and shopping complexes was the result. More avenues to spend money drained the purse. But there was no income to cope with this. The prices of agri products reduced because of globalization. Import of pepper, copra, cardamom and other spices from Sri Lanka, Africa etc. caused less demand in local markets. The labour charges increased considerably because of leftist interference and unionism.. Since the family’s life style changed the farmer had to meet the demands. He wanted more money to live. On the other side his income decreased. The banks and local moneylenders came forward merrily. Loan melas of Wayand were famous. Every bank had conducted loan melas. Couple of years … and the Japthi notices starts arriving. It reaches point of eviction from houses. What the poor weak minded farmer will do? Other than deciding to leave the place quietly? Sometimes en-masse with family.

Things have not been corrected or amended. No new ideas are discussed to thwart the problem. People are still living in same conditions. This 60,000 crores write off will not do anything. UPA and allies are thinking that will fetch more votes. We have to wait and see. The money is going to go to different hands. Come next budget this 60,000 crores will have to be doubled!

In order to sustain economically many farmers are turning to cash crops. This has resulted in food problem. Swami Nathan is at the helms now and green revolution is failing.

What’s the way out ?

I think large scale co-operative farming or inviting big multinational corporations by opening up Agriculture sector to foreign investments is the only way. There will be many people opposing this suggestion. They would suggest public sector undertakings or Indian companies for the job. They would also argue that we will be slaves of MNCs.

But I think ultimately that is what is going to happen. We have no know-how or technology to mass produce agriculture products. Neither do we have storage capacity or storage technology. There is no visible invention or progress in these sectors. India is a fertile land. It can produce the rice needed for the world. Sure these small time farmers will become employees of MNCs. But their living standard will increase. Small farmers with small land holdings should cultivate vegetables,fruits, spices & medicinal plants not food grains. That should be left to big corporations. Government has to help the marginal farmers in this way and not by writing off the loans. I think this everyone will benefit. India government will become richer. We will control the food market. Americans helped the Gulf states to drill for oil. Both benefited but now the Gulf states control the oil price.

Wrong perceptions about our rights and freedom should vanish. Leftists will oppose it in a big way because of their inherent decease called ‘USmania.’ But time will tell they were wrong at every turn.

We are now waiting for crop failures, farmer’s suicides, and the food problem.

We need calamities to learn.

We need hundred of thousands of deaths and destruction to act.

Until that time let’s sleep.

Sports - Olympics - China - Tibet - India

My dear compatriot, reader, let me ask you, what is the rate of your self respect? How do you rate your patriotism? If you are keen on India’s foreign policy, proud of India as a citizen, then you should be following the recent incidents. You must know how China humiliated India recently. First, the incursions on border second the salvo on Arunachal Pradesh Third warning on Dalai Lama. Fourth is height of humiliation calling our Lady Ambassador at 2:00 A.M. and give warning for the Tibetan Protests in New Delhi. What is our response? We oblige unlike in 1962 when our ambassador was called at 2:00 A.M. we also called their Ambassador at 3:00 A.M. Then for a long time China did not disturb us. But now things have changed. Money speaks now. Business interest is above human right violation. Or is it sheer spinelessness? Fear of a bully? Regional superpower? If you follow the news carefully, you will know that on every occasion China has humiliated us. But each occasion our politicians in Delhi have been compromising, obliging, adjusting - slipper licking! And what not!

I am sure our Ambassador Nirupama Rao, the strong Keralite lady, should have decided to answer appropriately by saying that we can meet during office hours. But alas When she checked with South block the answer was Go Immediately!. Even after prostrating before them they accuse us of encouraging Tibetan Protests. We should in fact unleash large scale support for Tibetan cause. Tibet’s culture is more assimilative in nature with ours than Chinas. Tibetans have been looking for India’s help for years! They have been living peacefully in India for long time now. All right-thinking people should support Tibetan cause. We can not have refugees staying in our country for more than 50 years!. Tibet must be free. And Tibetans should go to their homeland. After all Dalai Lama says he is not seeking Independence he is seeking just true Autonomy. China should listen.

There are people actors, sports persons who say that politics and sports should not be mixed.They did not like Baichung Butia’s decision not to hold the Torch. People like Aamir Khan, Saif Ali khan ( what do they have to do with sports I don’t know – In India celluloid heroes catch the Olympic Torch – perhaps our sports minister thinks they run faster than PT Usha ) are eager to hold the Torch. Almost all sports persons in India from P.T.,Usha to Leander Paes say politics should not be mixed with sports. So is Kiran Bedi. I am amazed at their statements. Where were they when India did not play in Pakistan for more than decade? Why did we boycott South Africa for a long time?

I think it is a good opportunity to humble china. India should boycott Olympics. Any way we are not going to loose anything expect a free vacation trip for some funny guys in Delhi. You should check how many guys went for last Olympics and how many medal we won. You surely will agree with my statement. There are some big fat guys permanently sitting ( I mean - sleeping ) in Indian Olympic committee. They damn care how many medals we bring. If we call off their pockets will be lean by couple of crores. The saved money can be utilized for coaching the athletes for the Commonwealth games and build infrastructure for it.

Otherwise nothing happens by boycotting the Bejing Olympics.

See an artist’s impression how the Chinese developed the Olympics emblem:

Should we boycott Olympics ?

My dear compatriot, reader, let me ask you, what is the rate of your self respect? How do you rate your patriotism? If you are keen on India’s foreign policy, proud of India as a citizen, then you should be following the recent incidents. You must know how China humiliated India recently. First, the incursions on border second the salvo on Arunachal Pradesh Third warning on Dalai Lama. Fourth is height of humiliation. They called our Lady Ambassador at 2:00 A.M. and gave warning for the Tibetan Protests in New Delhi. What is our response? We oblige. We kneel down. In 1962 when our ambassador was called at 2:00 A.M. we also called their Ambassador at 3:00 A.M and gave warning. Then for a long time China did not disturb us. But now things have changed. Money speaks now. Business interest is above human right violation. Or is it sheer spinelessness? Fear of a bully? Regional superpower? If you follow the news carefully, you will know that on every occasion China has humiliated us. But each occasion our politicians in Delhi have been compromising, obliging, adjusting - slipper licking! And what not!

I am sure our Ambassador Nirupama Rao, the strong Keralite lady, should have decided to answer appropriately by saying that we can meet during office hours. But alas I now hear that when she checked with South block the answer was - Go Immediately!. Even after prostrating before them they accuse us of encouraging Tibetan Protests. We should in fact unleash large scale support for Tibetan cause. Tibet’s culture is more assimilative in nature with ours than Chinas. Tibetans have been looking for India’s help for years! They have been living peacefully in India for long time now. All right-thinking people should support Tibetan cause. We can not have refugees staying in our country for more than 50 years!. Tibet must be free. And Tibetans should go to their homeland. After all Dalai Lama has been saying that he is not seeking Independence they are seeking just and true Autonomy. China should listen. They should start dialogue with Dalai Lama.

There are people actors, sports persons in India who say that politics and sports should not be mixed.They did not like Baichung Butia’s decision not to hold the Torch. People like Aamir Khan, Saif Ali khan are eager to hold the Torch. ( what do they have to do with sports I don’t know – In India celluloid heroes are asked to hold Olympic Torch – perhaps our sports minister thinks they run faster than PT Usha ) Almost all sports persons in India from P.T.Usha to Leander Paes say politics should not be mixed with sports. So is Kiran Bedi. I am amazed at their statements. Where were they when India did not play in Pakistan for more than decade? Why did we boycott South Africa for a long time?

I think India should boycott Olympics. We are not going to loose anything expect a free vacation trip for some funny guys in Delhi. You should check how many guys went for last Olympics and how many medal we won. You surely will agree with me. There are some big fat guys permanently sitting in Indian Olympic committee. They damn care about how many medals we bring. If we call off, we save some money. The money saved can be utilized for coaching the athletes for the Commonwealth games and build better infrastructure for it.

Otherwise nothing happens. See an artist’s impression how the Chinese developed their Olympics emblem:

Lets be Good!

Let's be Good !

It is easier said than done.

Not only Holy men, priests and spiritualists of all hues, everyone even man on the street is saying this. Be good! Even worst politicians say this especially after they get elected. When I hear this advice I think I am really bad. I sometimes feel that all the God men, Priests & spiritualists, Saints and Scholars are trying to reform me. They yell at me, pointing their fingers. Oh sinner!.. Even if you do some good deed that is not enough. And then I feel depressed. I am down the earth in a pit, a dirty pit. Do we really need to degrade a person to reform him? After all did n’t Krishna say in Bhagavad Geeta “Yatho Ichhati Tatho Karu” ( Do as you like ) – of course He did it after what ever he has to say!. I must confess that I am not a sinner. I certify that you, my reader, are also not a sinner. It is all perceptions. What ever we do we all are good. I think by nature we all are good. We only need to retain the natural goodness. So Let’s be good.

What is the criterion to be good? How do we measure goodness? Our Karmas ? Our actions? There are some actions you do in secrecy without hurting anyone that is considered as taboo even to mention? Do some sinful actions make you not good? Not good to whom? to yourself ? to God ? God may like it. How do you know? Good behavior, morality, ethics, decency, good conduct - Just imagine who issues the conduct certificate!. The Bible world discusses the qualities of good person extensively. The Hindu dharma describes the subject in myriads of its ancient texts. Islam covers it in great length as a way of life itself. I am no great pundit to add anything new to it.

I think just ‘be good’ is enough. Whatever meaning is inbuilt in there is sufficient. So Let’s be good.

It is true some of our actions are sinful. ;)

When I look back some of my actions were really bad & stupid. Just 5 minutes ago I killed that black disturban ( black smelly insect with a turban – a white band on his antenna- I don’t know what is his real name, nick name, pet name – zoological – I don’t care if it is Amerigos Vespuchi – it was any way a poochi! ) which flew into my room with a horrible ‘vroom’ sound and made my life hell. I rolled the news paper and went after him. It took some time for him to rest. Then a hard & swift hit! A life ended. I looked at the fellow closely. He was quite healthy. A member of a well-bred clan. I looked out of the window..in case any of his relatives saw me killing their near and dear one. These days we can not trust any one. Did a slight fear creep into my mind?

May be the poor fellow had a family to support, Kids etc.. But then I tried to justify my action. He crossed into my territory. What if I had crossed the limits and entered into his abode. Surely he must have hit me. Trespassing is not allowed. Simple. No body has a right to intrude. Even if he has to intrude let him go to an unclean Yellow painted Government building. There, the clerks will not hit him. I have seen many government clerks working just under a spider net. They pretend to work under the spider net peacefully. They will not clear the spider net because it is somebody else’s job. And that somebody is always hard to find. Spider-net or not they always pretend to work.

Some body said a Government job is hard to get but when you get it then life is pretty easy and peaceful because there is no job!. Look at the holidays they enjoy and the amount of work they do in a week. There is neither performance review nor any appraisal issues. All government employees are good people. The senior managers who damn care about their job and who do not check their subordinate’s job are also good. The employee unions who oversee and protect these non-doers are also good. The people who elect the rulers who decide these things are also good. So we all are good set of people. Who said I am bad?

To become good and remain so is difficult. Swami Chinmayanandji said don’t just be good, be aggressively good! I wonder in this good world how I should do it. Where ever possible I have always been good. I worked in Saudi Arabia for more than decade. I worked with different nationalities including Pakistanis. I have been good to all of them. They all have been good to me as well. Rrrr except for one. He is a Pakistani gentleman who later became a friend.

Initially he hated me for some reason. He hated all Indians so it was not a surprise to me. He was tall & bulky gentleman from Pakistani Poonjab. Whenever he met any Indian in the office corridors he sang a song. It was like this: “Na samjhoge Na sudharoge tum Hindustanovalo… Mith javoge par na samjhoge tum..” ( roghly translated “You Indians you will never understand, you will never improve.. you will be no more still you will not understand… etc.etc.) I found it rather funny. But I never asked him about the song. Neither any of the Indians there. Most Indians were South Indians and their knowledge of Hindi/Urdu was limited. Every time I met him he said something wacky about India and Indians. He always misspelled the names of Indians – perhaps purposefully. I do not know.

For him Tendulkar is Tindaalkar. Kambli is kavumpulli. He always tested my patience but I kept quiet. But when one day he misspelled Mahatma Gandhi’s name as Mohatarma .. (Means lady in Urdu) my patience crossed the LOC (line of control). I controlled myself like what India did in Kargil war. I told myself Let me be good. I stood up and firmly, intensely, deeply stared into his eyes for some time. He just closed the door and left.

Later he did not sing his famous song. He also did not discuss much cricket with me. One thing I learned from it. Not retaliating in certain situation makes you good. Make others good too. He became a buddy later. He is now settled in U.S. near Niagara waterfalls. I wonder what song he will be singing nowadays – especially after 9/11.

That brings a thought to my mind. Why Osama bin Laden is not good to Americans? He always swears by God. Why American government is not good to host of other nations and people? They also proclaim loudly “In God we trust”. Why cant’ China be good to Tibetans? Why can’t Sri Lanka be good to Tamils?... and vice versa ?

Should I list all strife torn areas ?

Why most of the time Religion comes into picture?. Is this all a mischief game played by God? Then…hey guys, Lets defeat God’s devious plans. Let’s be Good.. !

Let’s understand the difference and appreciate it.

I am trying now. Trying to understand the difference. Difference between a jack fruit and a mango. Traditionally I am habituated to eat both in the summer. Not only because it is mostly, easily and prettily available in Kerala in summer but also because my parents, grand parents and all the uncles and aunts ate it. Just Imagine a big jack fruit with all its thorns and that white sticky substance called “Mulanju” in Malayalam, what is the English word for it ? I don’t know. In England there is no Jack fruit tree so forget it. Any way compare the jack fruit with a cute smooth skinned mango. A jack fruit has hundreds of seeds in it but a mango just one. Jack fruit is difficult to cut . Mango is easy-peesy for all Indians. ( I have heard about Europeans struggling with mango) Jack fruit is sticky and more smelly. Mango is not. It has moderate tolerable smell. It is juicy. We use all the seeds in the jack fruit but we throw out the just one and the only one seed in the mango. What a difference ! But which one is better ? I can not say. I can not keep a mango beside a jack fruit and belittle it. Some of my clan members say jack fruit is better. They say it has more vitamins and minerals in it and more use. Ok. May be. I am no scientist to argue. But I can not belittle a mango or hundreds of varieties of mango for that matter.

I agree jack fruit may be very good but can I ask the world to use it five times daily or at least every Sunday morning because it is good?. Can I send two evangelists to Alaska to preach about the qualities of jack fruit to Eskimos ? What will the Eskimos think ? Say.. if I say that every Eskimo should eat at least one jack fruit a month! Ha ..ha..ha..

Eskimos live in Igloo. Igloo is house made of Ice. Once two Eskimos were brought to New York when the temperature was below 10 deg. C. Pretty cold for us Indians. Eskimos could not tolerate that temperature. They became sick soon after landing. They had diarrhea and they vomited. They were immediately taken back to their place by plane. Now the Americans learned the difference. The difference is much greater than Boeing and Airbus (The billion dollar contract which India is contemplating). Now I too understood the difference.

Europeans like stiff mangoes. Not the juicy ones. They need special cutter to cut the mangoes. Like our Supari cutter. They cut it in the middle and make two halves. Then they remove the seed from it and fill it with plain cream or Ice cream. Place it in a bowl or hold it in hand and use a spoon to eat. You see now a spoon is a ‘requirement’ to eat a mango. Now I understand the difference and appreciate it.

I was in Chuk-chuk train ( small mountain train - earlier it was fitted with steam engines I like to call them that way because they look like toy trains ) coming down from Shimla. I met two South Indians in the train and felt happy myself being a southerner in the remote north. Engaged them in conversation. They were on an All-India-tour. Talking about many things conversation ended-up with temples in North India. “Oh! full of marbles..” they said “the Idol and the floor alike.. People touching the Idol.. ”. They seemed pretty upset and unhappy about it. Why ? I asked. “No bhakthi.. you see” they said in a chorus. What marble has to do with bhakthi or devotion ? I pondered. I sort of became googly until I discussed the matter with a North Indian friend. She said When her parents visited some South Indian temples they said the same. “What ?” I asked anxiously “ No bhakthi there “.. before I could ask why, she explained “Water and oil everywhere.. in the floor & on the walls, darkness every where, you can not even see the Idol properly forget about touching the Lord’s feet! ..She continued ”my Parents could not stay more than 3 minutes in any Temple in South India”. I had held some of the great temples of south in high esteem. So I became silent for sometime. To be frank I allowed some time for my ego to burn down. I said “I now understood the difference and I appreciate it”.

Now that is it. Differences exist. Difference persists and you can not change it. We can not humanize the jarawas of Andamans. When we do that they become either Hindus, Muslims or Christians. Then no more Jarawas. Let’s have them as Jarawas and live with the difference. A salad bowl with several vegetables is better than a bowl with a single vegetable.

Now whenever I see the difference whether it is north-south, Hindu-Muslim, black & white, bad roads & good roads , development & underdevelopment, good governments & bad governments, happiness & unhappiness, Truth & Lie I have no quarrel with any because I UNDERSTOOD THE DIFFERENCE AND I APPRECIATE IT.

MF Husain and a Kerala Award

MF Husain is a great artist. I have no doubt about that. I have seen him in person when he came to TIFR in Mumbai where I worked for sometime. The whole wall of TIFR lobby was decorated by his paintings in those days. I found Mr. Husain very humble. A thing which surprised me was that he walked with out shoe or slippers.

I had seen some of his paintings at Jehangir art gallery. That was about 20-25 years back. Before he became famous. In spite of my adoration for him as a painter my mind has been saddened by his recent act. He should have abstained from it at the sunset of his life.

He may have now joined the millionaire club but my respect for him has gone down and touched the -----stone.

What happened? Read this news item from Telegraph:

After receiving the IB report that said paintings such as Bharat Mata and other nude images of Hindu deities can cause communal trouble, the ministry, under Shivraj Patil, is considering prosecuting the 91-year-old painter under a section of the Indian Penal Code.

The IB report suggested that the government should take damage control steps.

Sources said the law ministry, whose opinion had been sought, has said Husain can be prosecuted under Section 295A, which deals with outraging religious feelings of a community.

The home ministry section dealing with human rights had sent photographs of seven-eight paintings by Husain to the law ministry.

These paintings are Hanuman opposite Sita sitting on the thigh of a naked Ravana, nude Sita on the long tail of Hanuman, bull copulating with Parvati and Shankar watching, Durga in sexual union with a tiger, nude Laxmi on the head of Ganesh, nude Saraswati playing the Veena and Bharat Mata in the nude.

I have no interest in knowing what the government is going to do or who takes political mileage out of this and who does n’t.

Some people would ask are there not nude paintings on temple walls?. Are there not erotic sculptures scattered around India like in Khajuraho. So what ? These are simple ignorant questions. Husain is welcome to draw a Shiva-parvathi sangamam or Radha-Krishna sangamam or Kamadeva-Rati nude painting. No one will utter a word.

Here he has deliberately chosen some mythological characters that stand for chastity. So his intention here is clear. This is not just one painting – a series of them and all of highly revered deities. Some time back when he drew a picture of Holocaust he drew Hitler as naked. When asked why he did that his answer was he hates Hitler. So the parallel here is obvious. The old man hates ‘it’ like anything. One thing we should understand and appreciate ‘open rebuke is better than secret hatred’. He is not hiding his hatred like many others.

Hinduism as a non-Semitic non-religious ‘religion’ has highest tolerance level. So we should forgive and forget it. Looking at the number of pictures he has drawn on this ‘blasphemous topic’ one can say that he was at this business for a long time. Only eccentric people can think of a painting like Sita sitting naked on Hanuman’s tail. We should laugh it off loudly. That way Sanatana dharma becomes greater. By protesting violently the non-religion becomes a ‘Religion’ like any other. Hinduism is an open book with loose and unnumbered pages. That is the greatness and beauty of it. Some people want to bind it and make it a monotonous Semitic religion. I am not with them.

Well, I put the title as MF & Kerala award. Let me explain why. Some grey haired Marxist ideologues in Kerala see the world differently. They write articles like ‘next month whole people of US will become communists and Fidel Castro will become US president’ etc. etc.. There are people to believe them. Did I not believe them in 1976 when they said in a couple of months red flag will fly on top of Parliament building? This chicken still remembers the promise of hen-breast.

What is intriguing is the Kerala government’s stupid decision to award MF Husain now. This at this time is really a mischievous award. I think Husain will never come and accept it. He has said he has no knowledge of it. Marxists can not understand people’s mind. Marxism gives importance to matter over mind. If you think they are supporting Freedom of Expression ( that too communists with a long history ? ) then let me ask why did they kick out Tasleema Nasreen from Calcutta ?

Tailpiece : Did they announce award because Husain used more red paint in his paintings ? Lal Salaam Comrade Husain !

Husain's Bharat Mata ( look at the 3d-effect rather than the nudity):