Laugh there is no Vice or Virtue.

Since mind as such pure from the beginning and with no root to hold to something other than itself-Has nothing to do with an agent or something to be done, one’s mind may well be happy. Since intrinsic awareness with no objective reference whatsoever, has no intention as to this or that, one may well be full of love toward all. Since vision and attention to the visitor are neither disrupted nor falling into contraries, having nothing to do with acceptance or fear, high or low, one may well be joyous. Since enactment and goal, having nothing to do with acceptance and rejection, expectation and anxiety, are not seen as something to be obtained or missed, one may well feel inner warmth.

AFTERTHOUGHT.

As Bill Cosby the American comedy actor stated “ A word to the wise isn’t necessary - it’s the stupid ones that need the advice.” It is a natural tendency to depend upon someone else, whom we consider superior. When we are young we have our parents, uncles, and teachers and as we grow up we embrace religion, Gods, Guru’s who we feel have greater knowledge, competence and power. We rely on them in times of crisis or failure to boost our morale. Too much reliance, leads to loss of confidence and insecurity, our minds will be dwarfed in its capacity to think and act in a creative manner. We develop a fatalistic attitude to life and growth will be stunted. It raises questions of the duality of this relationship and explores the roles of the creator and the created, master and slave, father and son/daughter and so forth. We should never the conditioned by the values and belief systems of our superiors. We should train our mind and spirit to seek for itself in the adventure of life and find opportunities to grow. Then only can we emerge from the cocoon with a wider vision of the world and test the limits of our own soul. Vinay

Kung Fu: Fanda.

Once upon a time – around 6th century AD- there was an Indian Buddhist monk called Bodhidharma, who was given to a peripatetic life. And then one fine day he landed in a Chinese temple by the name of Shaolin. There he found the monks rather weak and unfit. So he devised a regimen of exercise which became the basis of what later came to be called Kung fu. It is actually a generic term for Chinese martial arts and there are various schools and styles. Among the major techniques are the ones based on animals: dragon, tiger, leopard, snake and crane. Kung Fu movements are circular in nature, with one movement flowing into the other. This gives it a rather graceful air, and some of the moves are reminiscent of the ancient martial arts called” Kalaripayettu practiced in Malaba r. Karate: Some time in the early ‘80s, small- town kids were yelling “kiyaah” and throwing their limbs at weird angles. Not only that. Dojos were springing up at every corner, tailors were busy stitching gis and pimply adolescents were tightening their obis. All thanks to a film called Enter the Dragon. Karate originated in the Japanese island of Okinawa sometime during the 14th century. Its origins lie in the mixing of the indigenous fighting system known as “te” with Chinese martial arts brought to the island by immigrants from Fujian province. Karate movements are more linear and crisp with clear stop and go movements. There is bias toward striking, punching and kicking. While the weapons are similar, a Karateka dresses (gi) is different: a kimono- like top and loose pants and a belt (obi). Karetekas do not wear shoes while practicing.What Bruce lee showcased in his films was neither Kung Fu nor Karate but Jeet Kune do. According to Lee it is a “style without a style”. “The art of fighting without fighting”. -Yusuf Begg.

For Old Times Sake!

Retronaunt - The past is a foreign country, so we will go hunting for vintage products that are absolute. It happens to humans as well, we all have our expiry dates stamped on our skins. Gone are the flashbulbs and cameras, last year’s camera has already been replaced by a new model. The TV set evolved glacially in its early life. It has moved slowly from B&W to Colour, but then accelerated LCD to LED to 3D and Smart TV in just three years. Remember the old gramophone that went round for years and Grundig spool tape recorders. Now one needs to change the digital dock every time the digital music device changes. One strain of history holds that our desires as mankind are rooted in the changing features of products. We had the Peugeot /Ford and Chevrolet cars for 10 years and it took almost 5to 7 years for platform change in automobile, now it happens in 24 months. New designs are seen on luggage racks in less than a year, fast fashion makes garments move from the catwalk to the store in two weeks flat. It took decades for plain old rotary telephones to evolve into a push button. No more oohs, aahs and wow for the old Blackberry, now it is like a Jurassic Park item. Smart phones get obsolete in six months. I phone 5 is the coolest gadget with all the hot dudes flaunting this hardware. Mebbe in few years no one will miss me as the demands of multitasking daily life, outstrips my capabilities. When our time comes a fancy new dude will take over with oodles of charm, and only glimpses of life from my era will be revealed. We have forgotten what the real qualities of life are ---- we are wrapped up with all this new shining dollar gizmos. Watching a video and sharing our lives in virtual reality. -Vinay-

Manic Monday - Meditate.

According to Peter Bregman meditation brings many benefits and helps us to cope in a world overloaded with information.-it improves performance and productivity. Meditation is not sitting cross legged on a cushion on the floor with eyes wide shut and breathing heavily. Meditation is one of the hardest things to learn. Or ability to resist impulses determines our success in changing old habits and acquiring new behavior. You have to ignore the hard and sharp vicissitudes of the real world outside - and concentrate to see the world in your inner self, dwelling on the verge of abstract. Our mind always feels like a crowded city where thoughts constantly nudge each other for space – meditation is an internal journey which we seldom undertake. If we can then the thought curves intensifying with each other will coalesce, reminding us of the continuous nature of everyday life and it will refresh us. Life then becomes an apparition where co-incidences never exist and the subtle nuances of our emotional expression are portrayed in their relevant perspectives.- Vinay-

There is gravity; the world sucks you into the Web.

Wall Street operators, toxic debt, religious intolerance, rampant unemployment, depression, recession, untenable lives full of hardship. Today everyone works aimlessly in software – but are mentally unemployed since the Internet, Social network, TV and videos have invaded our homes. The legacy business is narrowing like all brick and mortar traditional industries. The marvels of human engineering give way to Face book, to find connections in our deep and vast cosmos. It’s no longer enough to dress in pin stripes suits, look the part and cultivate an attitude. The days of boozy lunches and careful chatter in 5 star restaurants are over. Now we need to stare at our laptops and cell phones with a haute nerd intensity – in the flat and spectral non hour time zones of the globe. Things have changed so abruptly from the pre-globalised small shops to a world wide website. Futures like our grandparents have insufficient “now” to stand on. The old system has collapsed people had time in those days and everyone had work, badly paid but one could eat. People valued friendships talked endlessly ate and drank. A life of the spirit sniffing at one another’s caste and creed. Face book has taken a bite of the forbidden Apple, yesterdays products all toppled by Steve’s icon. Google has arrived to serve our voyeuristic desires in the virtual world. Our present is too volatile – we have to rely on risk and disaster management software. Sign of the Times or a pattern recognition.

Food For Thought.

One man’s food is another man’s poison is the old adage. In India where the fast food culture is in its infancy the variety of dishes is a gastronomic delight to our senses. Here it is important to appreciate that like the tea ceremony of Japan having a proper meal is a mental state – “Vairagya” forgetting the problems of the world as you partake of the pleasure of delicious food. Lunch, Dinner or Breakfast is a serious affair the tingle of cutlery is a re assuring sound – that whatever the uncertainties of the world outride, food is not one of them. Food lies in the details, culture and civilization and it begins with a salad, a yellow lentil, curry, a small dish of curd and the quintessential rice, pickle and pappad. The completeness of the meal is what distinguishes an Indian meal with its nutritional value from the junk food containing high levels of calories, sugar and fat. It is not for those who are in a tearing hurry, who jump out of bed, shower run a comb, gulp coffee; grab the coat and dash to the metro. The modern idea of a quick business lunch is anathema – a festive sandwich – slapping some meat or cheese between slices of bread or a slice of pizza accompanied by Power Point presentation is taboo in Indian culture. The centrality of a proper meal is a squatter’s act of fat denial of the idea that work must inundate us with its pressing impatience. The western idea of a quick working lunch –sandwiched food between layers of office hours, compressing hunger into a task on the job list is frowned upon. Indians also prefer home – cooked food, it is what rescues culture from biology. The Tiffin from home is a complete meal and gives a sense that we have not left home to another world of five days a week and gives you an inner fulfillment.