The Beach — A lesson in persistence
The beach - the ground zero of an eternal war, the war between land and sea.
The land looks on from behind its barricade of mighty rocks at the ocean’s struggle with arrogance, not realising that with each wave the ocean is wearing down that barricade bit by bit.
...'AMPlify' employee motivation
What motivates an employee to come in to work day after day and deliver high quality work? This must have been one of the most researched topics in management.
The best answer was given by Daniel Pink in his bestseller “Drive: The Surprising Truth About What Motivates Us” as AMP...
Who is the one person we must impress?
Looking at a small child trying to impress all the adults around by showing off each new skill they acquire is an important indication that we seek approval of people around us right from birth. And it is a logical conclusion of the observation that “human being is a social...
The Art of Failing
Failure is more likely to accompany us than success through the journey of life. Success is like spring, the best time of the year, but with us only for 3 months. We have to live through another winter, fall and summer to meet it again.
If we define success...
Who Writes A Tragedy, And Who Likes It ?
I have always wondered “Why would anyone read a tragedy?”. Apparently tragedies made for some of the most popular literature.
Also, why would anybody write a tragedy? Is it just to present the real tragedies they see around to their readers.
This is fairly comprehensible now. When a person has...
SHE - 21st Century's Common Pronoun
Common pronoun - what does it even mean? Well, it is the pronoun used commonly when describing humanity at large. For example, when I say that every employee must think of his company’s benefit, I am not saying that the employee has to be male. I used ‘his’ as a...
Aham Brahmasmi - Super Ego or Self Realization ?
One of the Mahavakyas from Vedas is “Aham Brahmasmi” from Yajur Veda. This is supposed to be the highest form of meditation. This also resonates with the Advaita Vedanta preached by the great spiritual leader Adi Sankara
This means “I am Brahman”, which loosely means “I am God”. It requires...
History Vs Mythology
I have always wondered why the mythology of civilizations of a period all seem similar in their characters and the lives of those characters.
Greek god Zeus reminds me of Hindu god Indra, both had heroic human sons, Perseus and Arjuna respectively who at one point fought with their fathers...
Let Us All Dream Of A Great Nation - One World
A country and its culture is a manifestation of the dreams and aspirations of the people that inhabit its boundaries. So understanding a national culture is essentially understanding a national idea.
Unfortunately a national idea is alive and kicking before a country is born. Once the country is formed and...
Enjoy What We Do OR Do What We Enjoy ?
I have heard the statement, “The secret of happiness is enjoying what we have to do” many times. I wonder if this is possible at all. But this question essentially contains in it a more important question - can we be happy at all?
Some people have it easy -...
Living On Purpose - Why We Have Rituals !
What is the purpose of life - probably the most important, investigated and introspected question of life. It should be. For none of our actions have a meaning without knowing the answer to this question.
But it is also the most elusive question, the answer to which escapes all. The...
Tragic Ending Vs. Tragic Living
We classify some movies as tragedies. Typically these are movies with a tragic ending where a lead character is killed. Obviously, the hero or heroine and not the villain.
I sometimes wonder if this is the right classification. Well, there are movies where the characters go through one misery after...
Hunger For Power
What does a human being strive for? Simple - food, clothing and shelter.
What if these are fulfilled? Is the person contented? No way - there is a second list - bike, car and more luxuries meaning more wealth. So does being wealthy beyond limits make one contented?
Not a...
Heroes Without Villiains
Every movie we watch, particularly action movies, are about the good guy(s) trumping the bad guy(s). Sometimes the good guy ends up dead after finishing off the baddies … which is even more dramatic.
Can there be a movie with only the hero and no villain? Obviously not, as how...
Words Can Be Funny !
For the first time I realized that the way words sound can be classified as beautiful and ugly. To put it more mildly we can say that some words are sweet (this is a common descriptor) and some are bitter.
One such word I heard today was “Understandability”. Maybe it...
To Dream Or Not To Dream
The vision of a distant dream overpowers the mind preventing it from recognizing the current realities of life – this is the curse of the Dreamer.
This is also the boon of the Dreamer - preventing him from being seized by the sense of pragmatism that kills vision.
Pragmatism is...
Placebo Effect - Proof Of Alternative Medicine ?
A placebo is a simulated or otherwise medically ineffectual treatment for a disease or other medical condition intended to deceive the recipient. Sometimes patients given a placebo treatment will have a perceived or actual improvement in a medical condition, a phenomenon commonly called the placebo effect.
In simpler terms, to...
Train Of Thought
Sheldon: I’ve been thinking about Dr. Green’s efforts to make science palatable for the masses.
Leonard: What about it?
Sheldon: Nothing. I’ve just been thinking about it. Now I’m thinking about fractal equations. Now I’m thinking about the origins of the phrase ‘train of thought’. Now I’m thinking about trains.
Nonviolence - Weakness Of The Heart OR Strength Of The Mind ?
Every time I watch National Geographic channel showing a wild animal in the process of a hunt, there are two emotions that fill my mind - one during the hunt and another during the kill. While watching the hunting sequence where a lion or a cheetah runs behind a herd...
Hundred guilty Vs. Single innocent
Let a hundred guilty escape but let not one innocent be punished. This is the philosophy behind the multiple checks and balances in the legal system of many countries.
However, this has enabled many clever and resourceful criminals escape the punishment for their crimes. People criticize this as a weak...
Secrets of Success !
There was a time when I used to read the so-called “Secrets of Success”. I used to be enamored of the so-called successful people.
Then came a time when I was faced with failures I thought that the “successful” ones achieved success because they were lucky and then tried to...
Who Is 'Idiot' In Idiotbox ?
This question has always tugged at my brain. Why do people refer to a TV as an idiotbox? Is the TV filled with images of idiots? Or, is the person watching the TV an idiot?
Who, first, is an idiot? I like the way Wikipedia defines the term -...
What Do I Need ?
“The earth has enough for everyone’s NEED, not for everyone’s GREED.” - Gandhi
This statement appears even more true today than ever. The simple reason is that everybody today is thinking of ways to accumulate more wealth. The result - rich gets richer, poor gets poorer.
Let us take...
Who Stole My Dough ?
I heard people narrating stories about how they lost money invested in the stock markets and used to think that they were just a bunch of idiots who invested their money unwisely and blame the entire system for their stupidity. After all (as mentioned in several books) buying stock...
Who Causes A War ?
Every time there is a war we hear people on both sides arguing why the other side is wrong. We also hear third-party comments on who is to blame. So it is important to analyze who caused the war to prevent further wars.
This is all good. But I...