Know thyself

know thyself

Soap for the soul

!!~~ What soap is for the body, tears are for the    soul ~~!!

Bro, It was me… (fiction)

“Sherry, are you done, they are home.” I shouted as I saw their car across the street.

It’s the first time after my wedding last month, that Megha, my elder sister is coming for dinner with her architect husband. Days were so busy and we hardly got time to sit and chat leisurely. Mom and dad also wanted to see her son so I had invited them today. Sherry, my wife prepared the main course and sweets were my responsibility as always. Today’s special was Gulab Jamun.

They arrived in time and we sat for around an hour chatting about various stuff and finally moved to the dinner table. Yashvendra, Megha’s husband has been into the field of construction for quite some time now and have established himself quite well. After the dinner we all sat around the tea table for a sip of coffee. Suddenly my sister asked to show the wedding photos. I went into my room and she came along. I was pulling out the heavy wedding albums from my cupboard while she was just wandering around in the room when a photo frame caught her eye. It was four of us (mom, dad, me and sis) while on a holiday in Andaman and Nicobar.  She jumped out of joy after seeing that pic and chuckled over and said, “you remember this trip?”

“Oh Yes, how can I forget this one”, I said. But the very smile of joy was soon replaced by a streak of fear on my face. She looked at me and made a questioning gesture. And suddenly she said “Oh, is it about Ross Island?? You haven’t forgotten it yet? Suddenly a devilish smile swept over her face.

Ross Island is a deserted British colony on an island in the Andaman seas. We went there while on our trip to Andaman and Nicobar Islands during our summer holidays.

Aerial view of Ross Island

We boarded a ferry service from Port Blair docks for the 15 minutes ship ride to Ross island. All the time we were so mesmerized by the scenic beauty and the island terrain that we were experiencing for the first time. When we were half way towards the Ross island we could see the ruins of once the British administrative head quarters.

Once the administrative headquarters of the British empire, Ross Island is deserted today. The place is in pathetic ruins but is worth paying a visit . Important ruins include a church, cemetery, swimming pool, chief commissioner’s residence and several office buildings and barracks. Taken over by the forests and undergrowth, the place completely possesses a haunted look. At least haunted enough to scare a 12 yr old. That was my age when we visited Andaman and Nicobar.

The moment we stepped out from the ship on the Ross Island, I was filled with a pinch of fear by the desolated building structures. Although it was bright sunlight but the huge overgrown trees were not allowing the sunlight to reach the ground completely. The roots of this tropical vegetation have taken over the abandoned structures and the view was really frightening, at least for a kid of my age. My sister was continuously telling me things about the British colony and the people who used to live here. I was wondering how she knew so much about this particular place in our entire trip. She clarified that it was a part of her history curriculum. She told me that the most violent of the criminals used to be kept here in very small cells and were made to face harshest of the punishments. Mostly these were the prisoners who tried to escape from the cellular Jail in Port Blair. Here they were entirely at the mercy of the British officers and which means death was the easiest punishment they could think of. Some were made to work till they fell down of lack of energy while some were made to swim till they couldn’t swim anymore. Some were made to bath in boiling oil and some were ripped of their skin. The tales of brutality just starts here. My sister was giving a detailed description of all this as if she had seen all this.

Ruined church in ross island

My child mind was already petrified by this horrendous description but the moment we entered the hanging point, the imagination of someone being hanged just went thru my eyes and I could feel my inner wear wet with sweat. I stand still and was staring at the hanging ropes and suddenly there was a loud scream from behind the building. I was like stand still and couldn’t move at all. I was scared to death when I realized there was no body in the room. I could feel the flow of sweat down my spine and the pain of fear in my heart. My heart was beating many times faster than normal. I started running like anything towards the door. I was more scared to find it had grown dark and started crying. I was running towards the nearest group of people when I heard someone calling my name from behind.  It was my sister. She was running towards me. I ran and hugged her as if I had met her after years. She wiped my tears and started consoling me. I kept hugging her tightly till she gave me water and washed my face. Suddenly I saw mom n dad coming from far. My sister said, “don’t tell them otherwise they won’t let us roam alone. Wipe your tears and clean your face and be with me”. I moved my head in nod and said, “You are so sweet sis, thanks a lot. I was so scared.”

“I know, now don’t roam alone and be with me”. She said.

As I was remembering all this sitting beside Megha in my room, while holding that picture in hand, I could feel that same streak of fear running down my spine.  I hugged her and said,” you are really a life saver”. She didn’t know how to react and gave me a towel to wash the sweat on my face and whispered,” bro, it was me”.

“I know it was you who saved me otherwise I would have died of shock”, I said.

“No, that scream. That was me”, She whispered.

“Whaaaat ?”, I shouted. “Are you mad? I could have died of heart attack.”

“I am sorry brother. You didn’t share your ice-cream with me so I thought of taking revenge. I am sorry.” She said with a repenting face.

“Just for that Ice-cream?”

I felt like hitting her but things aren’t same anymore. She is the mother of one now.  “But how could you imagine me sharing my ice-cream when you never did that. Not even that chocolate.” I said.

“No ways”, she clarified with an angry face.

And the fight continued till my mom arrived and did the settlement as always.

Prayer

Jesus Allah Krisna or Ram
make me feel strong
make me feel tall.

Strength of your name
light of your belief
is the one
lying in me.

AnujShailGupt

What is a blog ? II

Here I am with the PART II of the post on blogs.

…As you can see that people talk about anything they feel like on their blog from their pets to recent news to what they did today. There is big number of writers on blogging sites to promote their works or getting in touch with their audience for feedback.
We’ll turn now to the various components of an average blog.
COMPONENTS

1. Advertising – Many blogs have advertising banners on them. Most often the money generated by advertising goes to the company providing the blog software, not the individual blogger.
2. Title – The blog’s title.
3. Date – The date of the most recent post. You will notice that previous posts have been pushed down on the page to fit below the most recent one.
4. Post Title – The title of the most recent post.
5. Text – The actual text of the most recent post.
6. Posting Information – Information telling who wrote that particular post and when it was posted to the blog.
7. Comments – An area for readers of the blog to add their comments. This is an option some bloggers use and others avoid.
8. Previous Posts – A list of the most recent posts.
9. Archives – A link to view the archive section which contains older posts.

Though there may be variety from one to another depending on the preferences of the individual blogger, most blogs have all or most of those components.

UNDERSTANDING THE OPTIONS
You need software that will allow you to write and publish your blog. The second thing you need is a place on the Internet to put your blog.

Your Options
Using those two dynamics there are four categories of blog:
• Free software with free hosting – This is the entirely free way of blogging. You do not pay for the software or for the hosting.
• Free software with paid hosting – In this option you will use free software but will have to pay for hosting.
• Paid software that includes the price of hosting – This option is subscription-based and combines software and hosting in one recurring fee.
• Paid software and paid hosting – In this option you pay for both hosting and software.

YOUR OPTIONS:
There are several companies that offer free software and free hosting. Among them are:
Blogger
Livelogcity
Livejournal
Squarespace
Of these services, we currently recommend Blogger as the best entirely free solution.

Now it’s your turn to reach out to the world and let the world know what you always wanted to share.
Happy Blogging!

Blog vs Website

I have been into this dilemma of having a website or continue with the blog and the decision is really difficult one. This has led me to the nittygritties of blogs and websites and ways of shaping them into a nice presentable form. Will share that very soon. Its too late (1:21 am) and i will say good nite.

What is a blog? I

Due tofrequent request of so many friends I have comeup with a basic intro of a blog. This two part series will make you acquaint with the concept of blogs.

Introduction
You surely have heard the term “blog” and want to know what blogs are all about. Well you’ve come to the right place. In this series of articles I will take you from what a blog is to having all the knowledge you need to start a blog of your own so you can share your thoughts with hundreds and thousands of readers.
What is a blog?
Let’s define the word – blog.
A blog is a frequently updated online personal journal or diary. It is a place to express yourself to the world. A place to share your thoughts and your passions. Really, it’s anything you want it to be.
For our purposes we’ll say that a blog is your own Web site that you are going to update on an ongoing basis. Blog is a short form for the word weblog and the two words are used interchangeably.

Terminology
Blog (noun) – a journal or diary that is on the Internet – Andrew Sullivan has the most popular blog on the Internet.
Blogger (noun) – a person who keeps a blog – Bloggers are revolutionizing the way news is shared.
Blog (verb) – to write a blog – I am going to blog after breakfast this morning.
Blogging (verb) – the action of writing a blog – Blogging is my way of sharing my passions and vision with the world.
Who blogs?
So who are these fearless people who would be willing to post about their lives in as public a forum as the Internet? They are people just like you. Every day millions of people, some of whom with no technical ability whatsoever write on their blogs.
Yea, it’s that easy.
Why do people blog?
We believe the answer lies in the fact that every human has a voice and wishes their voice to be heard. The Internet is a medium that is unparalleled in its reach. Never before have average people like you or me been able to reach a global audience with so little trouble. Bloggers have the opportunity of reaching hundreds or even thousands of people each and every day.

How does a blog look like?
It’s time to check out some blogs.
Andrew Sullivan is one of the Internet’s most popular bloggers and writes about whatever is in the news.
Quaterlifestyle is the most popular blog on word press recently.

In the next part we will discuss the various components and how to start your own blog.

Some one in the crowd

These are the words of someone who likes somebody so passionately that life and death is just a matter of choice for him. He hasn’t been able to utter a word as his body freezes to act and his senses die down for the external world when

she comes in front of him. She has got the ultimate charm of this world enough to make the deserts green again and to dry down the vast oceans. She is an unparalleled beauty with the tranquility of dew drops and the equanimity of green pastures. He is very passionate about her but at the same time very careful not to hurt her in any way possible. He is worried that expressing his deep desires might offend her and shoe her away which will be the ultimate death for him.

 

There is some one in the crowd

Just waiting for a sign.

The sign that you are here

for me.

 

The wait is getting longer

and longer as I wait,

you don’t seem to show,

any sign.

 

but my heart is not going to sigh,

even if you don’t rely,

on the promises that I make,

to u.

 

Just waiting for a chance

to open up this heart

and show you what’s beneath

this heart.

 

Its you and only you

it is full of love for you

and its not gonna die

forever.

You are the reason and meaning of my life

We are not the world

The far you can see, you reach,

The far you can hear, you sound,

the far you are heard, you spread,

the far you spread, you rejuvenate,

the far you rejuvenate, you evolve,

the far you evolve, you dissolve…

Open your eyes to the real world. The world meant for no one but for itself. It breathes for itself and speaks of itself. We spend our entire life thinking that we are working hard for ourselves but it’s the last moment of our lives that makes us feel that we don’t live  or work for ourselves and but for this ruthless world or rather it makes us work.

Contrary to our general belief, only the Non living things around us constitute the real world not us, as they have been here for ages and will be here for ever, irrespective of the time. These nonliving things have been the integral part of the world since the beginning, not the mortal us and thus they are the world. We are just the travelers on a journey through this world acting on a predecided itinerary.

Wish you have a safe journey.

A theist or Atheist ??

Problem:   Why does an apple fall on earth?

An Atheist:    Due to the Gravitational pull of the earth.

A Theist:    Because the God wants it to fall.

I was catching up with the latest happenings in the world and my favorite Sunday special edition of the news paper late last night when this picture happened to catch my complete attention.

source: http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2008/oct/21/religion-advertising

The article along with the picture said that this is part of a campaign run by atheists in UK in positive counter response to the famous “Jesus Said” ads campaign that run on buses in June 2008. I could make out the actual meaning of atheist but I wanted to know the word better so i referred to the Wikipedia.

Atheism can be either the rejection of theism,^[1] or the position that deitiesdo not exist.^[2] In the broadest sense, it is the absence of belief in the existence of deities.

The ad was initially planned to be run on 30 buses from the £5500 they targeted to collect through donations but the campaign run on 800 buses all over UK thanks to the overwhelming £135,000 in donations. The British Humanist association was administering the funds and professor Richard Dawkins was backing the campaign.

This is the first ever atheist ad campaign in Britain.

I understand that there are people who will always look things the other way round or rather they have their own side of the coin but the situation leaves us with a strong point to ponder upon that are there so many people who really doesn’t believe in God’s existence. The huge donations to support the campaign have shown this in flying colours.  Or is it the long suppressed anguish getting a passage out or the sudden blow of such repressed feelings ?

Isn’t it the new Jehad in the beginning. The more sophisticated westernized form of the Jehad against the dominating religious bodies who  always talk about supernatural powers justifying God’s existence. The beginning of their speech will always say ” In the beginning, God created man.” but the new atheist lobby has come up with the more logical and targeted counters. What if the atheist lobby comes up with their own version of Bible starting with

In the beginning,  Man Created God…