Blog site moved!
Hello all:
Thank you for your continued patronage and invaluable comments. Please keep them coming. I have now moved my blog to my personal site www.vjoseph.org/blog
I look forward to meeting you there and continuing our communication.
My Grandfather’s “Tapasya”
The year was 1929. My grandfather, a young 22 year old pious man sat there wondering what his meaning and purpose in life was. He had been thinking about these things for some time. But his thoughts led him no where. By 1929, he decided that the time had come for him to go after his dreams and pursue what he wanted the most, in his life: Being one with God and seeing God, in person! He could give up anything and everything for this one. My time has come, he thought to himself. Nothing can stop me now and I will not return till I see God!
He looked up and from his window, he could see a mountain which was in the outskirts of the city of Madras. His face lit up. Immediately he knew what he had to do. Without thinking twice, my grandpa walked out of his house towards the hillock to realize his dreams. One brave soul!
As he climbed the mountain, there were many thoughts on his mind. How do I see God? What should I do, to see God? All of a sudden, in a flash of brilliance, he was reminded of what he read as a kid. The yogis and the sanyasi’s of ancient India did Tapasya to achieve salvation and to see God. A smile flashed on his face and my grandpa knew at that minute what he had to do. His strides were more sure now and he raced to the top of the mountain. Nothing could stop him from being one with God and seeing God. Nothing in this world!
He found a small flat rock near a tree and decided that it was just the right place for him to start his tapasya. Beaming, for having found the way to see God, he sat there underneath the tree and closed his eyes. He did not know how to do tapasya. Neither did he know if he had to follow any particular way. His mind vaguely reminded him of someone saying that yogis recite the name of the God they love, continuously. So he closed his eyes and started chanting “Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus…”.
The progress was slow, but the enthusiasm was high. An hour passed. All that one could hear in that lonely place other than the roar of the wind was this gentle murmur “Jesus, Jesus…”. After some time, my grandpa slowly opened one of his eyes to see if Jesus was around. “Cant see anything!” Opened both his eyes. No sight of Jesus! “Oops. I think I need to pray harder.” The prayer continued. Two hours passed. Three hours passed…Half a day passed. Still no sign of Jesus!
“This is not good. What is Jesus doing? Where is he? Does he not like me or is this not the way to pray?” Many questions came in this young person’s mind. He was thirsty and hungry too. But he was determined. “I have come here to see Jesus and nothing in this world, ABSOLUTELY NOTHING, can stop me from seeing Jesus,” he thought to himself. More resolute than ever, he continued his prayers.
3PM in the afternoon. No sign of Jesus. 4PM…still no sign. The young man could feel his tummy making noises. The chanting grew feeble. In the middle of the chanting, he was reminded of the nice food that was there in the house. “Wow. It would be great if I have some home made…”. Stop! What am I thinking? Back to Jesus…”Jesus, Jesus…”. The chanting continued.
4:30. “Jesus, Jesus…BTW, I really like some lemonade. It would be nice to have that during this afternoon…Jesus, Jesus. But where do I get lemonade. I think water is good enough. But I am also hungry…Jesus, Jesus…I want something to eat….Jesus…I want something to eat, I want something to eat.”
Before my grandpa realized, Jesus slipped out of his mind and the unbearable hunger and thirst took over. He tried sitting continuing his tapasya. But he just could not. He stood up and darted down the mountain. Before anyone could know, he was at the foot hills of the mountain. One great sprint that was. I am sure he would have broken the 1929 world record in sprint and long distance running at that time! As he reached the bottom of the mountain, he saw a fruit vendor. My life savior he thought. He searched all his pockets. Luckily, he got one anna (yes, that was the currency in circulation at that time). He ran to the fruit vendor and gave him the money and without even seeing what the fruit was, he devoured all the fruits that the vendor gave. He also found a tap close by. As soon as he was done eating, he drank water from the tap. Phew….Now, this is nice, said the young man! He was able to breathe again. Full tummy. Wow. Life is good again, he thought and sat there for a few minutes, relaxing. As he stood up, he could see the mountain top on one side. On the other side, he could see his house. He looked at the mountain once more and towards the house once more. He knew which way he had to go!
Half baked research and news papers
Recently, a very good friend of mine sent me an article talking about the risks of having coffee. Here is the gist.
Beer, Coffee, Nuts, Wine may lower sperm count
The study conducted at the Medical Research Council, Cambridge has revealed that the common items such as Peanuts, Red wine; Coffee and Beer that men usually consume have certain chemicals in higher levels that may result in male infertility.
The results of the study can be found in the issue of the New Scientist Magazine. The study however was unable to determine the minimum quantity of eatables that could lead to infertility.
As I was reading this, I started to wonder about the validity of these kinds of researches. I say this because my Dad is a coffee addict and he has 4 kids born without any deformity or mental illness (ok, I think we are sane 
). We also know that drunkards have the highest number of kids in India and that is partly the reason for India’s very high population.
So, when we have overwhelming evidence right in front of our eyes, can we really trust these kinds of researches? I think most of these researches are half baked. These well intentioned scientists take a small thing, analyze the effects of that on the body and develop the partial story. Thats it. Then the crazy media goes ballistic! The headlines start reading something like “Drink coffee Lose fertility!”
I think that our body is a wonderful thing that balances almost everything. It is self correcting in many ways. No, I am not saying get drunk or do drugs.No! But that does not mean we should not eat/drink anything. Given these researches (and more so how the media projects it), we should not eat/drink “ANYTHING”
Wine lowers sperm count. Fibers cause cancer. Oil causes increased cholesterol and causes heart attack. Drinks cause dementia…the list goes on. If we listen to everything, then I think we will not eat anything and in all probability, die of starvation!
So, let me eat and live a bit longer and then die peacefully, albeit sterile, half lunatic guy with clogged artieries
My lost love!
She stood there by the shore
Smiling and waving
Being greeted by the crowd
That worshipped winners!
I waved my hand,
But my hand was just another hand in the crowd
I shouted her name
But my voice was lost in the noise
My love was no more my love
I was not hers anymore
I was not the one
That she would want to be with!
The realization was hard
I started sinking
Sinking slowly but steadily
while hoping against hope that my love would see me
As I went down in the quick sand,
I strectched my hand out
To my love, wishing she would hold me
and pull me out of my wretchedness
She smiled and waved,
not to me but to the crowd
and did not see me
For she was too busy!
Her image became blur in my moist eyes
and my heart heavy
No, Not because I was sinking
But because she didn’t want me!
I am me!
Yes, I cannot express myself the way Neruda does
I cannot speak the language he does
but that does not mean that my love is unreal, oh fair one!
Maybe my love cannot be expressed in words
Maybe my love cannot be expressed in beautiful poems
But that does not mean that my love is any less than those of others
Its a feeling that emanates from deep within
From the depths of my soul
So, hold your judgement my dear
I maynot be a Neruda, but I am me
Not one bit less, not one bit more
Devout Christian
How is this for a tag line?
Jesus said in the bible, “love thy enemy”. I took this to heart and so, I ended up marrying her!
No, I’m not married. But I can pass this on to people who are (un) happily married, maybe?
Oh! the places you’ll go
For our Capstone course in the final semester of our MBA program, our Professors would have a poem or a verse at the beginning of every assignment. Here is the poem they posted for the final assignment (We have to write our Personal Manifesto)
“You have brains in your head.
You have feet in your shoes.
You can steer yourself
any direction you choose.
You’re on your own.
And you know what you know.
And YOU are the guy
who’ll decide where to go.
You’ll get mixed up, of course,
as you already know.
You’ll get mixed up
with many strange birds as you go.
So be sure when you step.
Step with great care and tact
and remember that Life’s
a Great Balancing Act.
Just never forget to be dexterous and deft.
And never mix up your right foot with the
left.
And will you succeed?
Yes! You will, indeed!
(98 and ¾ percent guaranteed.)
KID, YOU’LL MOVE MOUNTAINS.
So …
be your name Buxbaum or Bixby or Bray
or Mordecai Ali Van Allen O’Shea,
you’re off to Great Places!
Today is your day!
Your mountain is waiting.
So … get on your way!”
– Dr. Seuss. Oh, the Places You’ll Go!
Judging others
I was talking to a friend of mine and during our conversation, I said something like “Preaching is a sign of judgement”. My logic was that you start preaching when you think (and judge) that something is right or wrong. When I said that, the person retorted: So, do you think Jesus was judging? This is what I think about it.
I dont think Jesus judged people. I am reminded of the story of the prostitute where Jesus says “Any of you that has never sinned, cast the first stone”. Slowly the crowd dispersed. Jesus then tells the lady. “I wont not punish you either. Sin no more”.
That is a classic example of Jesus not judging us.
Another thing that comes to my mind is this. God is the supreme being. He knows what is right, what is wrong. Jesus, son of God, also knows what is right and what is wrong. So, if and when they judge, they know it all. God is the alpha and the Omega. But we are no where close. We don’t even know our own selves. Then how and what do we know of what is right or what is wrong? When we don’t know what is right or wrong, how can we judge?
A judge is someone who knows what is right and what is wrong. It is not the point if we should judge or not. The point I am trying to make is, do we understand what we are doing? When we don’t know ourselves, or when we don’t know what is right or what is wrong, then how can we judge?
The common man, Jesus
What bothers me most when I think about our (my) perception of Jesus’ struggles on the day he was crucified is that most of us unknowingly think that Jesus did all that because he was “The son of Man”. I think that most of the times I fail to realize that Jesus endured so much not because of his Godly powers. He suffered all the ignominy that day as a very common human being like me. Absolutely No extra power. He had all his fears just like me. Just before he was crucified, he prayed for 3 hours. I think during that prayer, he was asking for strength because just like how I struggle during crisis, he was struggling too, “just like a common man”. This is what makes him great and this is what sets him apart.
During the time of crisis, if someone tells me that Jesus suffered for me on the cross, unknowingly I’d start thinking that Jesus did that because he was the “Son of God”. NO. Jesus did not do that “as the son of God”. He did that “as a common human being”. Dont get me wrong here. I am not trying to say that he is not the son of God. (As a matter of fact, we all are. But that’s not the point I am trying to make). Though Jesus was the son of God, he suffered everything that day as a human being. The fears, the uncertainty, the doubts, the pain…everything. On the cross, he cries out loud. “My God, My Lord, why have you forsaken me”. These words would come from a person suffering as a human being only (I think). Because Jesus did all this “as a human being”, he is great.
Where the Mind is without Fear
Where the mind is without fear and the head is held high;
Where knowledge is free;
Where the world has not been broken up
into fragments by narrow domestic walls;
Where words come out from the depth of truth;
Where tireless striving stretches its arms towards perfection;
Where the clear stream of reason
has not lost its way into the dreary desert sand of dead habit;
Where the mind is led forward by thee into ever-widening thought and action
Into that heaven of freedom, my Father, let my country awake.
—Rabindranath Tagore
