An eventful week.

The past week was full of events.First of all my apologies for not being able to post as frequently as I wished, a part of the blame goes to my internet connection which was not functional for some 5 days till it got fine just now.

First things first: Happy Birthday to Dinesh Bhiaya.There is no one whom I admire more.And it makes me dance with joy because his birthday falls just  1 day after mine.So happy birthday to us both.

I have a lot of things to write about.
First we had a grand Satsang/Concert here in North Bangalore where I performed along with Harshal Bhaiya and team.The Satsang was a big hit and it left everyone begging for more.
Second event of note was our very late night escapade at the 24 hrs open cafe-coffeeday at 3 am on 29 sep.(It was my birhtday).The bill was somewhere around Rs 400 and we didn't pay a dime.I am sure you will want to know how?Courtesy:Devang Bhaiya.

Third: We had gone to pick up Bawa from the airport.So it was a loooong journey from the Airport to Ashram.We were talking about many things and Bawa said that it was the only time he was awake the whole time while coming back from the Airport.We also had a special Bawa session in the Ashram with all the yes+ participants from the city.

Each of these needs a separate post and I am sure it would make an interesting read.So watch out for more details...

Go, learn the Art of Living!

Just now I came across this article.



WHAT would be the fate of an employee who is seriously detrimental in the interest of an organisation? He would probably face the axe for his mistake.

Shiv Sai Infosys Pvt Ltd, a city-based BPO, caught three of its young employees in an act that jeopardised the interest of the organisation. But, instead of sacking them the company sent the boys for a week to undertake Art of Living course at Sri Sri Ravishankar's ashram in Bangalore all this at the company's expense.

And the two are thankful that they did the course which changed their perspective.
Taking this as an example and a lesson, all organisations must come forward and give this golden opportunity to their employees to experience something as beautiful as the Sudarshan kriya.

Read the full article.

Problogging 1: Superb Blog designs.

So here's the very first in the series Problogging.

There are blogs which when visited makes us(bloggers) go green with envy.I am talking about the design of the blog.The way things are put up in a blog is very important for a lasting impression on the readers.Now, the exact design of your blog will depend upon a lot of things.The most basic of all it reflects your own personality in real life.Other factors are the content of the blog, the reason the blog was created(casual writing,some serious articles,money making blog or simply because all of your friends had one).

There are also a few blogs which are so cluttered up that you do  not know what goes where, where to find what?? The template is based on a dark theme and the post says 'How to find inner peace and lasting happiness'.
The moment you visit these blogs you just want to get out.It's as if you got into a messy room and want to get out asap.Be sure you don't want to setup things like that.

And still there are others where everything is in place neatly setup but the everything includes 'ads,ads,ads,ads and more ads'.All over the place you can find 125x125 banners for small ads,the leaderboard at the top, ads inbetween the post,at the footer and ads chipped in every concievable nook and corner of the screen.The reader becomes so overwhelmed with ads that sometimes it's really hard to find the content!!

And there are the soul savers where you immediately feel at home, some nice reading stuff and enough functionality(search,recent posts,stats,friendly comment forms,easy subscription links etc.) for the reader to feel comfortable.

Here I will feature some of the blogs which I find very attractive,friendly and worth featuring.

1.Sounds Interesting...
In the category of personal webpage design,this blog seriously contends for the top spot.
As soon as you view the webpage,you get a feeling of expansion,light colours,enough green to keep you feeling fresh during your reading time.The photo at the header of the Blog(of Bawa and Dinesh) lets you know who you are dealing with here.This is very important as the reader knows who has written the stuff,it makes it personal.

Another special feature is the addition of the buttons at the end of each post(Stumbleupon,digg...etc.).This gives a very easy platform for anyone who wants to promote the article.
The frame for entrecard is superb as well.The tabs at the top has been neatly arranged in a sticker fashion which gives it a homely feel.A very impressive design.

2.JohnChow.com

This guy is a super problogger. you can make that out just by viewing the readers count(33385).For one ad of 125x125 size he charges $500 per month.And there are not a few.Well the no. of ads in this blog I feel is justified because this is a Make Money Online blog so what better way than to lead by example.
Now the design, every inch of space is utilised so efficiently so as to pack up the maximum . One very interesting feature is the sliding window at the first sight ,which exposes the reader to many things in a very short duration.The peelaway ad at the top right is also very effective.



3.Scribbit




I just like the way the header blends with the body of the blog.Very neat posting area and a lot of goodies on the left.

Well I know that I have missed a lot of superb blog designs.It's humanly not possible to feature all of the great designs out of the 150 million blogs existing today.

If you have in your mind any design which you feel should be featured, feel free to comment.

Related posts:

1.A couple of Beautiful Blogger themes
2.Get a customised template

A series of posts.

I have been thinking about this for some time now.To spice things up and to provide some useful information to the readers I am going to start a series of posts related to one particular field/niche/topic.
In each of these series, the regularity of posts to be expected is once a week though don't be surprised if two are posted in some week.It will depend on my mood actually.
I had a definite reason for selecting these specific topics and the same is given as and when the topic comes.

SERIES 1:  PROBLOGGING     

This is the field which interests me much and ever since I got an internet connection I have been a sincere student of the various aspects related to  Blogging. The specific topics to be discussed may include Blog Optimization,Templates,Blog Widgets,Performance,Blog Reviews,Featured Blogs,Blogging Tips,SEO,Make Money With your Blog etc. I frankly submit that what you read will not be from a Problogger definitely, but we can all use a fair discussion.

SERIES 2: TECH JARGON


All of us have been baffled by some technical words specially in the internet.So do not expect the articles to be a detailed description of the topic but just an introduction and it will obviously be discussed in a light hearted manner. I chose this series as I am a student(literally here) of technical matters related to programming,computers,software and the like so the articles will definitely help me learn more if not anything else.

SERIES 3: SPECIAL FEATURE


Even I don't know what will come here.So keep guessing till it comes

Happy birthday Bau!

I woke up today morning and while reading the paper came across this cartoon,which immediately reminded me that today is bau's birthday.
Happy b'day bau.

Hiccups.

I know that quality content is the base of a successful blog, but frankly I created this blog to write things which I like however unimportant they may seem. But somehow when you know that the world is going to read your stuff we knowingly or unknowingly try to put up a mask potraying ourself as something else and writing about only the good suff.
I break this routine right now.!

I am having hiccups. It's been about 4 hrs.Ever since I ate that hot stuff at S.P Road it's been occuring at a frequency of about .1Hz.
It continues unabated even while I write this post.
So what are you thinking? "Idiot, go and drink lots of water!!"
well, I tried that.  
"Eat something sweet"
Tried it.
"Meditate"
Done.
I never had this hiccups for so long so I don't know what else is there to eat or drink.
Do you know of something? Might help if it is still continuing when you comment.
It's still on.....  If it was cough or sneeze I could have attempted to put it into alphabets but HICCUPS!! how do you letterize the sound???

Navaratri Schedule October 2008

UPDATE2: The detailed schedule can be found at Bawa's Blog.
http://bawandinesh.name/?p=391
UPDATE:There has been some change in the schedule.The Maha Ganapati Homa will be held on 6th october,so all dates have to be shifted 2 days after.


Just now I got the schedule for the Navaratri Celebrations in Ashram.Wow its going to be another rocking thingie... as every year.This time I am not going to miss any pujas and homas...So start planning guys for its an appointment with the divine.

"Navaratri" - The word itself enriches the energy of our soul.
Though every year we see more and more devotees coming to the pooja
but one thing we always would love to see is our MASTER. Especially
when he is in silence it is the sight which one cannot afford to
miss.

The schedule

3-Oct
09:30AM -- SRI MAHA GANESH POOJA, ANUGYA POOJA
11:30AM -- SRI MAHA GANAPATHI HOMAM
--:-- -- SRI MAHA LAKSHMI HOMAM

4-Oct
05:00PM -- VASTHU SHANTI

5-Oct
08:30AM -- SRI SUBRAMANYA HOMAM
--:-- -- SRI NAVAGRAHA HOMAM
12:30PM -- POORNAHUTI, MANGALARTHI
06:30PM -- RAKSHABANDHANAM
--:-- -- SRI CHANDI DEVI KALASA STHAPANAM
--:-- -- SRI DURGA SAPTHASHATHI PARAYANAM
--:-- -- CHANDI HOMAN PRARAMBHAM

6-Oct
07:00AM -- SRI MAHA RUDRA HOMAM
10:00AM -- SRI CHANDI HOMAM
12:30PM -- POORNAHUTI, MANGALARTHI
05:00PM -- SRI MAHA SUDARSHANA HOMAM
--:-- -- SRI VISHNU SAHASRANAMA PARAYANAM
--:-- -- SRI DURGA SAPTHASHATHI PARAYANAM
--:-- -- SRI CHANDI HOMAM
--:-- -- POORNAHUTI, MANGALARTHI

7-Oct
07:00AM -- SRI SHATHA CHANDI HOMAM
--:-- -- SRI DWARA POOJA
--:-- -- SRI CHANDI NAVAVARANA POOJA
--:-- -- SRI DURGA SAPTHASHATHI ADHYAYA HOMAM
--:-- -- KANYAKA POOJA, SUVASHINI POOJA
--:-- -- MAHA POORNAHUTI, MANGALARTHI
--:-- -- KALASHA ABHISHEKHAM, PRASADA VINIYOGAM

8-Oct
08:30AM -- SRI GURU DEVATHA POOJA
--:-- -- SRI RISHI HOMAM
--:-- -- POORNAHUTI, MANGALARTHI

9-Oct
--:-- -- VIJAYA DASHAMI

Blllloooooooodddddd remix!

Well, after the blood funny video.someone went a step further and did a remix on that.... Make sure you watch the full video.
If you dont know what I am talking about, read the post below...
then come back here..

Do you think this is funny??

See how serious he is about the 'Blood' Business and do notice the guy laughing(his dad) in the background.
Do you think this is funny??? Blooooooooooooddddddd






Soooooo cute!! and honest!




Caution: Not for sissies!

What did you just say?????






This one is toooooo much!!!

00000000hhhhhh #@%&!!

Naiharwa - A poem by Kabir

Though I was born and brought up in the lap of Himalayas where drinking and non vegetarian is justified not only by the local customs but also by the climate and the terrain.
Fortunately, my great-great-grandfathers had decided to follow Sant Kabir and that became my religion sparing me to have to eat meat by default, and I would be ever thankful to the grace of the guru for that.

Naiharwa.... written by Sadguru Sant Kabir is such a beautiful poem.And Kailash Kher has put it alive magnanimously.
The song goes like:

नैहरवा हम का न भावे...(3)
साई कि नगरी ...परम अति सुन्दर,
जहाँ कोई जाए ना आवे
चाँद सुरज जहाँ, पवन न पानी,
कौ संदेस पहुँचावै
दरद यह... साई को सुनावै
आगे चालौ पंथ नहीं सूझे,
पीछे दोष लगावै
केहि बिधि ससुरे जाऊँ मोरी सजनी,
बिरहा जोर जरावे
विषै रस नाच नचावे
बिन सतगुरु आपनों नहिं कोई,
जो यह राह बतावे
कहत कबीर सुनो भाई साधो,
सपने में प्रीतम आवे
तपन यह जिया की बुझावे
नैहरवा...


Translation

I Don’t Find any Interest in My Parent’s House

My Beloved’s Town is Most Beautiful

However, Nobody Goes or Comes from There

There is no Moon, Sun, Wind or Water There

Then Who Will Take My Message There?

Then Who Will Tell My Pain to My Beloved?

There is No Visible Path to Move Forward

And You Blame the Past for It

How Should the Bride go to the House of the Beloved?

Powerful Pangs of Separation are Burning from Inside

Dual Reality is Fashioning a Dance to Its Tune

There is None Other Than the Guru Who is Mine Who Can Tell the Way

Says Kabir Listen oh Aspirant

Your Beloved Will Come in a Dream-like State

That Alone Will Quench the Thirst of your Heart

Explanation
In this song Kabir portrays himself like a bride who has gone to her parents house. But having gone there her soul burns from the pangs of separation from her beloved. The bride’s trouble is further complicated because there are no messengers (such as the Sun, Moon, Wind or Water) who can reach and convey her message to the beloved. She has no path or way to solve this problem. Meanwhile the separation is killing her from inside.

Kabir, in his mystical way, is comparing the separation of the individual from the universal self like that of a bride from her beloved. He explains that this insatiable thirst comes from the feeling of separation whose root lies in duality.

He then explains that the only person who can help out of this problem is the Guru. In his final parting signature note, Kabir reveals that the way to reach the beloved is not outside but Inside (similar to a dream-like state) which alone will satisfy the seemingly unending burning thirst.




Here Rishi Nityapragya sings it.Just close your eyes and get lost in the melody....








If you have not listened this song, just go ahead and listen it here.

The end of the world!

My mom called a few hours back. With considerable apprehension in her voice she said " Where are you?"
I said: " I am out to get some air"
She said:" You must have surely heard about that"
I said: "What THAT??"
She said:" The world is going to end tomorrow. You don't know that"
Actually she used the word "Pralay".
I said:" NO"
She said:" How come you don't know about it? T.V is full of the same news?Nobody there knows or what?"


Well, with considerable exitement , now, I came back to google it " the end of the world september 10"
There was considerable amount of material.

It was as I had guessed , My mom had mentioned France so it immediately brought to my mind the giant particle collider fro Dan Brown's " Angels and Demons".And it was exactly that.The 27 mile particle collider, CERN etc. etc..

The actual thing is there is some sort of experiment to be conducted on 10 september.

Dubbed by some as the Doomsday test, it will be carried out next week in the Large Hadron Collider (LHC), located 300ft underground near the French-Swiss border.

When its switch is pulled on September 10, this atom-smasher will become a virtual time machine, revealing what happened when the universe came into existence 14 billion years ago.
Critics call it the experiment that could cause the end of the world. It is mankind's most ambitious experiment, which seeks to create the moments after the Big Bang, and the birth of the Universe.


The Large Hadron Collider (LHC) buried deep underground along the border of Geneva and France is expected to reveal the secrets of Universe. The collider fires particles into accelerator until they almost acquire the speed of light. They gain enormous amount of energy as 2 beams of light travel in opposite directions, circling the structure 11,000 times per second.

Prof Otto Rossler, a German chemist, is one of a group of scientists worried about the creation of black holes. He believes it is possible that the black holes will grow uncontrollably and "eat the planet from the inside".

Other scientists reject his claim. They point to the fact that cosmic rays daily form minor black holes, but they never swallow the Earth.

Well, I don't know whats going to happen.We will all come to know. If the result is otherwise as apprehended be sure to check the update here. Otherwise, thank you for reading my last post>!

The Abominable Snowman.

The Himalayas have been a source of great mystical and legendary tales which are told the world over.One such legend is that of the Yeti or the Abominable snowman.The abominable snowman, also known as "Yeti" by local residents, is said to be similar to the reported Bigfoot in the United States and Shennongjia of central China's Hubei Province.



Well, long before I had ever read or seen(on TV) anything about this mysterious creature, I have in my memory as a small child stories which my grandmom used to tell us about a mysterious creature said to exist in deep forests in the Himalayas.She used to call it 'Sokpa'. But the descriptions were exactly the same as that of Yeti( For the record, the first reported sighting or footprints of the Yeti was in Sikkim.)
For small five-eight year kids we were thrilled with the stories and always begged for more.She would give firsthand accounts of people she knew who had seen the Yeti.From the narrative, it was not at all potraying a picture that the creature was dangerous or 'bad'. The Yeti only wanted not to be disturbed and never harmed a human unless provocated(as if anyone had enough guts to stand before a 9 foot tall creature and provocate it!).

My great grandfather had seen the creature and so had some of the uncles of my grandma and we all used to look at the scattered lights of homes across the huge hills during icy cold nights and try to potray in our minds that a Yeti might at this time be walking the dense jungles.

Many expeditions have attempted to prove the Yeti’s existence, but no scientific evidence has definitively confirmed it. NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC’s October 1962 article “Wintering on the Roof of the World,” reports on Sir Edmund Hillary’s search for the Yeti. The famed Everest pioneer’s expedition (which had other scientific goals) did document a phenomenon that appears to account for “Yeti tracks.” In shaded snow Hillary’s team found impressions resembling fox tracks. The tracks led to a sunny area where melting had elongated the tracks into large human-like footprints. Likewise, the melting of tracks of a snow leopard, bear, or wolf could create huge “footprints.” Over time, human footprints in the area have been seen to grow to nearly 21 inches (53 centimeters).


Here is a photo of a footprint attributed to the Yeti. Judging by the depth of the footprint impressions, the average yeti most way upwards of 800 pounds. Many Westerners have also observed this creature while on expeditions in the mountains. The most recent sighting was in 1986 when the creature was observed by the famous climber Reinhold Messner. In 1992, an expedition discovered the Yeti's footprints in and around their camp when they awoke in the morning.

The areas in this region are not well traversed, so it is believable that an unknown primate lives here and remains yet undiscovered by science. What do you like to believe??

Simpu Singh has gone veg ! Have u?

Simpu Singh - Pure Veg

The Dance of Shiva

When I hear the word Shiva, the first image which comes to my mind is of Shivaratri in Ahmedabad when Guruji went into 'bhav', the most awesome and sacred sight I have witnessed.

So many deities have been named yet the essence of shiva is never diluted or forgotten. I recently came across a very deep and beautiful poem on Shiva by Swami Vivekananda.

It is said that when Swami Vivekanada went to visit Badrinath-Kedarnath, when he saw the lingam he went into silence for some days. The jolly swami now had such aloofness as if he had become Shiva himself.....Here is the poem ....

A HYMN TO SHIVA
शिवस्तोत्रम्।
ॐ नमः शिवाय।

निखिलभुवनजन्मस्थेममङ्गप्ररोहाः
अकलितमहिमानः कल्पिता यत्र तस्मिन्।
सुविमलगगनाभे ईशसंस्थेऽप्यनीशे
मम भवतु भवेऽस्मिन् भासुरो भावबन्धः॥

Salutation to Shiva! whose glory
Is immeasurable, who resembles sky
In clearness, to whom are attributed
The phenomena of all creation,
The preservation and dissolution
Of the universe! May the devotion,
The burning devotion of this my life
Attach itself to Him, to Shiva, who,
While being Lord of all, transcends Himself.

निहतनिखिलमोहेऽधीशता यत्र रूढा
प्रकटितपरप्रेम्णा यो महादेवसंज्ञः।
अशिथिलपरिरंभः प्रेमरूपस्य यस्य
प्रणयति हृदि विश्वं व्याजमात्रं विभुत्वम्॥

In whom Lordship is ever established,
Who causes annihilation of delusion,
Whose most surpassing love, made manifest,
Has crowned Him with a name above all names,
The name of "Mahâdeva", the Great God!
Whose warm embrace, of Love personified,
Displays, within man's heart, that all power
Is but a semblance and a passing show,

वहति विपुलवातः पूर्वसंस्काररूपः
प्रमथति बलवृन्दं धूर्णितेवोर्मिमाला।
प्रचलति खलु युग्मं युष्मदस्मत्प्रतीतं
अतिविकलितरूपं नौमि चित्तं शिवस्थम्॥

In which the tempest of the whole past blows,
Past Samskâras,^[1] stirring the energies
With violence, like water lashed to waves;
In which the dual consciousness of "I" and "Thou"
Plays on: I salute that mind unstable,
Centred in Shiva, the abode of calm!

जनकजनितभावो वृत्तयः संस्कृताश्च
अगणनबहुरूपो यत्र एको यथार्थः।
शामितविकृतिवाते यत्र नान्तर्बहिश्च
तमहह हरमीडे चेत्तवृत्तेर्निरोधम्॥

Where the ideas of parent and produced,
Purified thoughts and endless varied forms,
Merge in the Real one; where the existence ends
Of such conceptions as "within", "without"—
The wind of modification being stilled—
That Hara I worship, the suppression
Of movements of the mind. Shiva I hail!

गलिततिमिरमालः शुभ्रतेजःप्रकाशः
धवलकमलशोभः ज्ञानपुञ्जाट्टहासः।
यमिजनहृदिगम्यः निष्कलं ध्यायमानः
प्रणतमवतु मां स मानसो राजहंसः॥

From whom all gloom and darkness have dispersed;
That radiant Light, white, beautiful
As bloom of lotus white is beautiful;
Whose laughter loud sheds knowledge luminous;
Who, by undivided meditation,
Is realised in the self-controlled heart:
May that Lordly Swan of the limpid lake
Of my mind, guard me, prostrate before Him!

दुरितदलनदक्षं दक्षजादत्तदोषं
कलितकलिकलङ्कं कम्रकह्लारकान्तं।
परहितकरणाय प्राणविच्छेदसूत्कं
नतनयननियुक्तं नीलकण्ठं नमामः॥

Him, the Master-remover of evil,
Who wipes the dark stain of this Iron Age;
Whom Daksha's Daughter gave Her coveted hand;
Who, like the charming water-lily white,
Is beautiful; who is ready ever
To part with life for others' good, whose gaze
Is on the humble fixed; whose neck is blue^[2]
With the poison^[3] swallowed:

Him, we salute!

Did you try Google Chrome?

Well, the buzz all over the internet is about Google releasing its first ever web browser. Though it is still in beta stage, i feel it has already entered the league of popular browsers like IE 6,7,8, Mozilla Firefox,Opera, Netscape etc.
So have I tried it? Yes
And my first reaction would be NEAT...
Very sleek, fast and just to the point.
And some of its features are just too good not to be included in a browser.For instance, the thing where you can slide the tabs and pull a tab into a new window.
Also the incognito window thing is cool( for certain apps...he he).

To check some of the exciting features, have a view.

So whatever the world is saying about the many bugs existing and not
supporting add-ons, I feel google chrome will be a big part of the way
we browse in the future. Together with firefox, i think this was the
last nail to Microsoft's coffin.
And personally , I already like Google Chrome.Hope to see the full fledged version in about 6 months...