Holy Cow.....Holy Cow....

My view is that relgion must never be spoken in public and it must be a one to one relationship with the supernatural power. But people don't feel that way. To become a sensation or to be branded a heretic they create some myths about religions. The recent Da Vinci Code, the best seller ever has brewed a lot of controversies and cast aspersions over Christ, Magadelene and their child.

The Vatican is really upset over the book, Da Vinci Code and there was protest all over the world when the movie hit the screens. I guess this is probably the first book to come up with some hypothesis and fiction in the Christianity religion.

If you thought other religions were not targeted you are wrong? Hinduism has beeen around from time immemorial and we've seen enough controversies about rituals and practices. The Myth of the Holy Cow by D.N.Jha published by Verso, London, 2002 is the most damaging book in its contents since the sole intention of the author has been to prove that all ancient Hindu scriptures particularly the Vedas and Shatpath Brahmana etc. uphold beef-eating and this has been the way of life of the Aryans who were our ancestors since the term Hindu came to be introduced much later. The author has cited references from the Vedas, Brahmanas, Upnishads etc. to prove his thesis which perhaps he chose to be the sole mission of his life even though he comes from a Brahamin family and he has dedicated his so called prestigious book to his kin in Rajrani (a symbol of motherhood).

It is interesting to read interpretations and misinterpretations of religious beleifs and practices. If you get a chance check this book out......

Myth of the Holy Cow by D.N.Jha published by Verso, London, 2002

Why are we here today?

Are you really proud of yourself? Are you feeling that we’ve conquered the World? Do you think you are better than the Western World today? I don’t know if you should feel proud about the way you are today or you must feel distraught.

Well read this passage below and then decide…..

It was February, 1835 , a time when the British were striving to take control of the whole of India. Lord Macaulay, a historian and a politician, made a historical speech in the British Parliament, commonly referred to as The Minutes, which struck a blow at the centuries old system of Indian education. His words were to this effect: I have travelled across the length and breadth of India and I have not seen one person who is a beggar, who is a thief. Such wealth I have seen in this country, such high moral values, people of such calibre, that I do not think we would ever conquer this country, unless we break the very backbone of this nation , which is her spiritual and cultural heritage, and , therefore, I propose that we replace her old and ancient education system, her culture, for if the Indians think that all that is foreign and English is good and greater than their own ,they will lose their self-esteem, their native self-culture and they will become what we want them, a truly dominated nation. (Source: The Awakening Ray,Vol.4 No.5, The Gnostic Centre) Reproduced in Niti issue of April,2002 at p.10- a periodic publication of Bharat Vikas Parishad, Delhi.

I was very much troubled reading this passage. I truly don’t know what I have personally gained in life and what I have missed in life. But as a country we have lost to our British and they knew the art of paralyzing the system and making us neurotic. With a heavy heart and questioning mind I am retiring for the day…..

Fanaa - My verdict!!

A sensible story line with typically a few cinematic moments that could have be avoided. But still an out of the box movie. Zooni, a blind girl falling in love with Rehaan and at times the story trespasses through known territories and towards the end turns into a Hollywood type action movie. Here is what I liked about the movie. I am not giving the plot away. First Kajol-Aamir combo.

Bouquets & Brick bats:

Bindas Kajol: The twig gets a meaty role in the movie. She has lost weight and she is a still a tough competition for the Ashs’, Mukherjees’ and Zintas’. I am sure she is getting ready for another big innings. Spring of youth still flowing and ravishing beauty of her heart reflects on her face. She steals the show, a movie made for her.

Aamir needs Botox: Age definitely shows on Aamirji’s face. He is fit, but lion is old today.

Chand Safaarish: A beautiful song that makes your soul tap dance irrespective of the age. It was shot in a beautiful back ground. Makes you wonder how many Chands' are out there? I'm confused.

Blind Love: Love is blind but the way a blind girl loves is portrayed very differently. Some more cues for people out there in the garden of love. Though SRK-Kajol chemistry is much better.

Beautiful Delhi: If you have never visited Delhi then you must see this movie. Every monument in Delhi is shown in a beautiful light.

Shaayari’s: Beautiful Shaayari’s flow from Aamir in the movie. Well if you don’t understand Urdu then it is Greek and Latin.

Treat for the eyes: Camera angles have captured the best of the place and the cast. The monuments, ice capped mountains of Poland literally teleports you. Watching this movie feels like a summer vacation in the ice covered slopes of Poland.

Glitter: Rishi Kapoor and Kirran Kher are like fireworks, they glitter and disappear.

Flat soda: Tabu and Lara Dutta fail to really impress both in their role and appearance.

Direction flaws: Logical guffaws!!
· Love is blind, but it is difficult to believe that the blind girl falls in love with Rehaan in just a few minutes. It is reel life and not real life, right? Do we still have such girls? Can I find one? Don’t search, this is only on the screens.
· Retina transplant was all too soon to happen.
· Kajol’s kid? where? how? when?
· First half of the movie was fast and very much happening. The second half could have been edited well. It felt like eating noodles, never seem to end.

Costume: A job well done when it comes to costumes. Kajol’s wardrobe had enough youthful colors. She was wearing shades of pink, cool blue and green in the first half of the movie conveying the fizzy moments and then turned red and dark in the second half showing the darker side of Aamir.

Music: Definitely worthy of mention. Tunes are soul stirring and very soothing. Chand Safaarish, Mere Hath Mein are really engaging for the mind. Chand Chamke was a tongue twister – a good one at the right moment to lift you off your seats.

No Wiggling: No obscenity and very less violence, a film that can be watched with family.

It is definitely a box office hit - right music, good story line and loveable cast. It is is worth every penny that you spend. I left the theatre feeling very happy and charged.

Fanaa is fantastic!!

Why Peep into Others lives?

This article in NY Times today caught my attention, “For Clintons, Delicate Dance of Married and Public Lives”. Clintons have a very active public life and each of them are living their dream and giving little time for their personal lives is the crux of the article.

The world has a lot to learn from the Ex-President and the First Lady. Their marriage was on rocks like any other when the President was caught with the intern, but still they decided to stick together and work it out. It is very difficult to put back trust and confidence in a relationship and it takes lot of hard work to put it back on track. While Bill is busy raising money for his foundations and trotting the globe for other activities, Hillary is busy as a Senator in Washington D.C. Some speculate that Mrs. Clinton has a very ambitious political career and she is using the brand image and good will of Mr. Clinton to get the office. Is it the means to the end or end to the means? Only time will have to answer. But she must be given credit for sticking together and helping the ex-president wash his linens in public.

Lenses of all kinds constantly watch the couple and their lives are always autopsied and press feed on their lives like a wandering scavengers with insatiable hunger. How many times do they dine together? How many times do they appear in public together? Their body language and gestures raise a lot of eyebrows. Is this the price they will have to pay for being popular? It is not just the Clintons who are preyed upon, but there are many folks in the film industry who get preyed upon unnecessarily. The same media that helped them to grow and reach heights has now turned into a vulture tearing their skins away and exhibiting their private lives. Why media doesn’t let us live our fair share? One could debate either in favor of the media or take a stand against the media for such boorish articles.

Let us not peer personal live and let us learn to live with dignity and let others live with dignity.

Abstinence made so simple? Has nature neutered them?

I remember reading about amoeba in my 6th grade biology class. There was no need for me to research about amoebas’ with a career in Marketing and Finance. But recently I stumbled upon an article that talked about the asexuality and that is when I realized that I had read about this terminology at some point in life. I googled to get a better understanding of this term and related to the context of usage in that article. Well the term was none other than “Asexuality”.

It is a common happening in the western world to kiss publicly, while the eastern world takes pride to do such things under the blanket or within the four walls. But in there netherworld there is another community who never seem to be interested in sex or any such acts that lead to the physical union of either sex. We live in the society where love, marriage and divorce are like scratch lotteries, very much instantaneous. For a person to have none of this in his life it would probably mean that they must be supernatural or from another planet. I probably thought these people belonged to the clergy or the Sanyasi class with no inclination towards physical pleasures in life. That rang a bell now, why don’t the religious factions like Vaticans and other clergy from all religions recruit people from this 1% biological anomaly. This would possible save our future generation from sex abuse by the clergy.

There is a stigma associated with Asexual people. They are not celebrities, but they are celibates. Is it by choice or is it by nature? They feel different, left out and sometimes very depressed being a glitch in the creation. But the facts revealed that 1% of human population is born this way without any inclination or physical attraction for either gender. These people lead a normal life like us have a good social circle and a life, but they have never explored their physical side and are not interested to explore. Reading online material on this I realized that this is a process similar to how people with other preferences come out to themselves, be it homosexuals, heterosexuals and the entire other pedigrees. The identity crisis seems to be the common denominator across all factions. Once they get through the denial phase the communities and groups seem to give them the support and encouragement to look beyond biology and preference.

I have heard my friend say that humans get sexually aroused and it can be measured on a scale of one to ten. Zero to five is the female zone and six to ten is the male zone. Depending on the individual factors there is attraction to either male or female. But I don’t understand what happens when it people don’t get attracted to either of the sex. These people don’t get grumpy because they haven’t got their share. People can be sexually dormant for some period of time due to trauma, loss or other stress related factors, but for someone to be sexually dead it must be something different. After researching online on this topic I found out that there is a scale again for asexual behavior. I guess it all depends on how asexuality is defined.

Well that throws a lot of question in my mind. Can people have sexless relationship? Does this hypo active sexual desire due to hormonal reasons? Can it be treated? Asexuals say they connect with people not at a physical level but at emotional level. But does the connectivity at the emotional level need a physical relationship? Do other species in the animal and plant kingdom exhibit such behavior? Is this asexual activity due to childhood abuses and trauma? I don’t know, I guess there is no cookie cutter type answer for this question.

Well all said and done, more is said than done. Same sex unions have gone through revolutions and now the Asexual world is parading around with a lot of support and recognition. Creating communities, having celebrity endorsements and coming with the marketing paraphernalia around human sexuality seem to quickest way to fame and money. Be it politicians or the movie world today people want to walk the thin line on cool and hyped concepts about human sexuality. They want to divide people and make fortune on human identity and preferences.

I read somewhere the other day that scientist say that male chromosomes are undergoing change and in another million years there will be no male species on this earth. It was a fountain of questions that arose in my mind. Will women turn to hermaphrodites? Will there ever be humans procreating in this world?

The Newscientist magazine has an article on Asexual behavior in humans and may be that can make your reading more interesting.

Tickle your brains at http://www.newscientist.com/article.ns?id=dn6533

Let me know your views.....

I am back.... I am back....

I apologize for being dormant for a while. Other things in life took precedence and now I am back with more vigor and valor.