The power of prayer

Yes there is so much power in prayers. I have experienced it myself many times. We do not have to do extraordinary poojas, follow shastras but true prayers will be answered somehow. I have experienced it myself when I got my job, or when I was blessed with my son. I do not think some of the aspects do do not work only if we have capability, the blessings are definitely required. Yesterday had been to do surya namaskara (bowing to sun) in the early morning in my hometown. It was so nice to see how morning looks with people cleaning their outdoors, taking milk, or even going to temples. I miss them so badly these days. I will be engulfed in my daily chores so much in the morning.

The surya namaskara was performed in a place called aralikatte (It’s a place in the town where a small temple is present and two big banyan trees and also neem trees will be present). It was such a nice place to do little meditation, small prayers and bow down to God. Here we were doing surya namaskaras. Sun is source of all the life on this earth. He is the source of energy and our ancestors used to pray him for good health by putting namaskaras. It seems for lord Surya putting namaskaras itself is good enough to please him.  Though I do not believe much in many shastras/rituals or sometimes blind beliefs, I definitely believe in the power of prayer, the power of listening to the chanting mantras (For Surya, it is "Aditya Hridaya").  They fill our soul with little relief and we get a little bliss from our mechanical life.

I would like to pass the same to my son and make him aware of our ancestral practices. We ourselves do not know much about many practices but whatever we know we can pass on. Many of the values and practices which our ancestors used to follow (I do not say all) had some true meanings and benefits which if we follow can be little more disciplined in our lives and can improve our health and mental peace.

With Best wishes It's TVR..

Women who made difference

Yesterday I was reading in Times about a woman (French-Manipuri, a yoga guru, dancer) who is 94 and still came to India for a ball room dance show. I felt any 16 year old girl will not match to the energy levels of her when I saw her photo. She had a hip bone surgery a few months ago and she is already in form and has come back to her dancing. Her doctor advised not do padmasana but she did not listen to him. Today her doctor calls her “miracle woman”. I could not stop staring at her photo again and again.

These list of women did not have any privileges by birth nor did they grow up in a very luxurious environment but made so much difference to their lives by determination, hard-work and focus. I could not stop admiring these women when I saw the list and the details about each one of them published in yahoo about women who were here with a purpose and achieved what they wanted against all odds in this male-dominated society.

Mother Teresa


Joan of Arc


Marilyn Monroe

Oprah Winfrey

Amelia Earhart

Billie Jean King

J. K. Rowling

Princess Diana

Rosa Parks

Kelly Holmes’

I would like to add a few more names to this list:

homai vyarawalla

P T Usha

Kalpana Chawla

Kiran Bedi

And many more whom I cannot recollect at this point of time. But there are many whom I admire very much.

Want to get inspired by them, become truly positive and achieve satisfaction at my personal level.

Much Love Appa!

As I type this I was wishing my father on his birthday over phone.  He turned 64 today.

You gave us so much love when we were brought up.

You took the responsibility of your family at an age of 28 to bring up your two brothers and two sisters. But you never complained nor nagged on the responsibilities you had. You are admired by your siblings, wife and by us for that!

You are an abode of patience at-least with your kids. You never screamed on us and always guided us in a very gentle manner.

Even though you had much tensions at home and office, you never made your wife feel lonely. You both never stopped enjoying the good aspects of your lives!

You took care of your mother with so much love, when people just keep talking about taking care of their parents. Not only her, you took good care of your mother-in-law also. I remember how you spent money and your time when Amma’s mother was in hospital. You always adored her too.

You never made us feel the troubles you faced. You insulated us from them and gave only protection.

You were always liberal in spending money and always gave Rs.100 if we asked for Rs.50 because you knew we do not spoil it and you were always very liberal in spending even though you had faced so much troubles financially too. This attitude we both kids of yours have imbibed. Cannot live as a stingy person anytime.

 You still have so much confidence on your kids and I know you are so much proud of us in every sense.

 You gave me the gift of art of reading. I love the hobby and I still continue to read and acknowledge the beauty and happiness of reading books!

Off late you have some health problems. You suffered from piles and sometimes still get leg pain due to uric acid issues and you have blood pressure. But do take care!

May you have many many more years of celebration!

Happy Birthday Appa!

With Best wishes It's TVR..

2011 - Hinnota (A view back)

  As we are at the end of this year, i was thinking what and all i did in this year and what were the major milestones of the year. To be frank there are no major milestones in my life this year personally and  we just enjoyed being with Eshaan and watching him grow in this year has been a true delight. It seems kids are needed not just like bringing up a plant and expecting fruits at the end. They are needed for just the sake of happiness that is in store for us and enjoy them during the course of their upbringing.  The statement is very TRUE.
  One thing i would definitely remember would be that one more bundle of happiness came to our lives. That is my sis gave birth to a baby boy and whenever i visit my hometown i just enjoy having him on my lap. Its such a divine experience feeling once again in a span of 2 years since Eshaan was born.

Apart from that the year just went by.

But I really like this last week of the year. Bangalore roads will be less crowded and everywhere holiday mood will be set.

Somehow i do not get thrilled by New year or celebrations. My joy would be all my old friends/friends and also my cousins send messages or wish us and i feel happy that they remember me and that brings smile on my face by receiving messages unexpectedly. We just remember everyone and also send wishes to them and that itself brings lot of happiness to begin a year.
2012 is starting on a sunday. Can be with my family for the whole day!

Anyway as we pass this year and the end of the year has come. Wish you all forget sour memories, leave the baggage for this year on 31st Dec back and step into new year by cherishing fond memories.

Have happy holidays! Have fun!

For Women

Today while having lunch an interesting topic came up while discussing some marriage related/girl child related expenses.

All in our lunch group are women. So most of the times our views match. But I would rather say that most of the women except some women (who do not know the value of womanhood or women’s values),  agree with our views whatever we discussed today.

Everyone was wondering why women’s side should bear the majority of the marriage expenses? Its not just that the society demands from the people who have money. It’s also from the people who are not doing so good financially. No exemption or support the society gives them too.

I am not finding any good reason why a girl’s father should spend money on the marriage so heavily or even pay dowry just because they have given birth to a girl child. This means that having a girl child is a big sin and one has to pay for that. The process is deep-rooted in our system  since ages.

A big rationale is that in earlier days women were married off in their early ages and the guys side have to take the complete responsibility of ‘looking after’ the girl throughout her life. But was she not supposed to do house hold work, bear children, bring them up which is equally challenging like men working outside? Anyway a couple in a marriage are like two wheels of a chariot. If it has to run then both have to work. Then where does the matter of ‘looking after’ the girl comes up? Then why a girl’s father had to pay the expenses or dowry that time too? It’s just to put down women – some irrational rules made by only men who lack wisdom.

The same legacy is carried over even in today’s society. Even though the girl earns in lakhs, her father has to bear the expenses, post-marriage the girl’s father will not get a penny of her earnings even-though he had equally educated her like how his son-in-law is educated bearing the same or sometimes more expenses.

Why this kind of  a mindless system exists, I really do not know. These days it has still increased instead of decreasing, The girls side have to take care of first baby’s expenses?! – hospital, first five months, then naming ceremony expenses etc,. Idealogically why they have have to bear someone’s else child’s expenses. They say a girl belongs to boy’s family once married. They want to get their names changed, their kids names as per their family names. But they are not ready to spend even a penny for that. What a great system!

Earlier days if anyone has boys then the boys at-least used to get financial assistance to make his property. That at-least would have compensated whatever girls have spent. But now how many are willing to get their kids settled like that?

To change such a deep-rooted system is not going to happen in just one or two generations. Generations of men, yes I mean MEN have to be taught explicity to not go for such things in their education. It’s the women in every house who should take such initiatives. Because often it’s the women who cultivate such secondary status of women in their kids. Both girls or boys have to be taught to be treated and treat girls respectively.

Women also have that state of mind inculcated in their minds since childhood that she has to adjust to husband by listening to him and all such. Agreed, in case-of marriage adjustments is the key thing. But it should not be like you always have a secondary status.

If all these are discussed or raised by a woman I know she will be tagged as non-adjusting or arrogant or not brought up properly or revolutionary kind. But I feel most of the women feel the same and many may not express or they do not have the forum to express such things.  Girls get frustrated and nag their men because of this, what else can they do?

Not just women, even many men feel the same but they are also helpless in a system like this. They cannot talk against family or society. But at-least some men have such changing thoughts which I really appreciate.

 Yes these are revolutionary thoughts because its about talking against the current system or trying to think of some change in the systems. Some revolutions has to happen definitely which will curb female infanticides/foeticides. Because these are the keys factors related to expenses which is driving such extreme measures towards new-born girl-children.

I would only call upon the next-Gen people to take up such aspects seriously so that generations will become good and get benefited.

With Best wishes It's TVR..

A word of appreciation

What would it take to appreciate others instead of appreciating themselves and their own people or rather their own things? I have tried many times to appreciate others, their people or their things (Believe me, it’s hard I know) and it takes a lot of letting things off of your own to do that unless the other person/thing is someone or something who/it is really great  or out of the world.

To satisfy some people, one needs to bring the whole world of his/hers and do ‘N’ number of things before they pat your back. Then finally you feel why should you do all these things? What happens if he/she does not appreciate you/your people instead keep appreciating themselves for small reasons!

Definitely nothing. I would not lose anything. But it’s the human nature to expect something from others. It’s not so easy as saying that one should not expect anything from anyone. Its very tough to practice it. If we practice it fully then we’ll become a Yogi in this world and will be out of the world and feel like as if we have lost everything or given off everything to someone else.

Am I not sounding correct here?

We appreciate nature, we appreciate some great people who have done much to country or society, we appreciate some colleagues, by default we will be appreciating our own people so much but we fail to appreciate people who would have done so much to us/doing so much to us or even spending so much money on us! Its required. Yes, definitely its required. If we do it we feel so happy about ourselves.

Always appreciating others take a lot of out of us. We just have to let go some of our egos and should not compare ourselves with others and think that we are great in every sense – in following cleanliness, doing right things, doing any work, in performances, doing selections, their family, anything for that matter.  Instead of putting down others which in-turn may not put down the people whom we want to put down, but it will put-down us, it’s better to be silent.

Appreciation is a key word in every person’s life. It boosts the energy of the appreciator as well as the one who gets appreciated and fills positivity in air and in-turn you may get the same.

But no one cares if you are miserable because of this. So better don’t care and be happy at the end of the day!

With Best wishes It's TVR..

Small but true happiness’s

·         My son comes running and hugs me after my daylong work… the happiness is unexplainable..

·         Sunil smiles at me with some admiration for a small task well done

·         Sunil smears my head with his hand when I am too tired, in depth I feel very happy

·         My son looks at me after a kiss of mine as if asking for one more!

·         Chatting (Absolutely no gossiping) with my father and sister for long hours

·         Eating akki rotti made by mom

·         Sleeping in our small room alone muddling a rug in our house at Tumkur and forgetting rest of the world

·         Some dish which turns out well and my in-laws admire it, feel  day’s work is fulfilling in feeding everyone

·         A drive on Bangalore road on a calm and non-rush day

·         Visiting my grandma’s place

·         Watching an old kannada movie without advertisements

·         Listening to my favourite kannada songs and hindi songs on FM

·         Doing small poojas at home (Like yesterday at home)

·         Reading some interesting books (I absolutely love this).. so much out-of the world experience it gives

·         Telling small bhajans in my free time

·         Eating ice-creams un-expectedly with friends

·         Smell of soil after first rain

·         Unexpected call from my old friends/relatives when I am sick or on my birthday

·         Seeing sunset on terrace..

·         And many more… will post whenever I recall..

All this come without money and how much ever money is given, it does not match this kind of happiness.

Until then may you all have your true happinesses

With Best wishes It's TVR..