Manihara - Movie

Saw this movie over the weekend. It was nice.

I had some reservations about redoing a classic - a classic short spooky story by Tagore. A story which was also the second film, Satyajit Ray's Teen Kanya.

Some changes had made been made to make the story modern. An industrialist's wife is missing when he comes home from a tour. The film has a detective (retd. CBI officer) investigating this. The investigating officer meets a person in a village where his car breaks down. In the conversation between the passenger and the investigating officer, the movie unfolds.

For people who know what happened in Manihara, there is not much of a suspense. Its a good thriller.

Some loose ends are there and too many characters. Biswanath is wasted, the comic relief was not really needed.

Overall a nice watch on a Saturday.

Busy Days

Having a busy time at work.

Have to ensure all appriasals are finished by tomorrow. Have to finish the write up for four of them and ensure a discussion happens today.

Have presentations to prepare.

Have client visits (from US) next week.

Have a freshers drive on 30th January.

Once January is over, some breathing time - maybe.

One of those days

Today I have a BIG load of work to do and I actually just do not feel like doing anything. Lets see if I can convince myself to get some work done.

Birth Anniversary of Swami Vivekananda

Today is the Birth Anniversary of Swami Vivekananda. Was very pleased to see so many messages posted by Bengalis on Facebook, about Swamiji. 

Feeling Sad about my Ginger

I had a nice crop of Ginger growing in a pot. Someone yesterday came and broke the pot.

I was at work and Dad has no clue who did it and when.

Feeling bad about it. Six months of Ginger gone. And the people who broke the pot also ran away with the ginger roots. So I am wondering if this was planned or an accident. I am left with broken pot , scattered soil and memories.

The Biryani worked

Yes, finally it did work.
I moistened the Biryani with a mixture of water and yogurt and let it sit for an hour. Then I steamed it for 10 minutes.

It came out nice and moist.

Rakshasas, Asuras etc

These are terms that one comes across in the Hindu scriptures.

Rakshasa- unruly, very healthy, tall and bulky humans/demi-humans with hedonistic tendencies- mostly residing in jungles- often having congenital deformations or quaint features. Physically quite strong and often with some extra natural power. Any person with this type of personality and tendencies was termed a Rakshasas.

Pisaach- a type of after death life-  usually unsatisfied souls of dead persons.

Daitya- Children of Diti and Kashyap basically rulers of the nether world

Asuras- also children of sage Kashyap- was a distinct race of humans. very different from Daityas-

Devas and Asuras are born out of the same father sage Kashyapa.

Devas and Asuras can be equally bad and good. Similarly Yaksha,  Kinnara, Kimpurusha, Nagas etc all these beings can also be both good  and bad.

Prahalad, Mahabali, Vibhishana are good asuras.

Asuras live on dark hellish planets, regularly lose their leaders due to warfare (but not their guru Šukracharya), are only allowed to abuse and exploit human sinners, rely on desperate painful austerities and mechanical contraptions; they are generally descendants of Diti and Danu and envy God.

Raksahsas are a race, generally of demoniac character, but not always. Bhima's son, Ghatotkacha had divine disposition.

Experimenting ... Lets see

Yesterday made some chicken biryani. I used the microwave for the final steaming and some how the meat and the rice have dried up.

Today I need to do something to freshen it up. Otherwise it tastes good.

A picture from the friends meet - Wednesday

So here is a picture of the meet that I had my my friends in the city, on Wednesday.

This was a selfie.

Nice Evening Spent yesterday

Yesterday met two school friends in Bangalore. We were in touch over phone and email. Yesterday one of the friends, who happens to be in Canada came over to Bangalore, so it was nice to meet up and catch up after years.

Went to MG Road and sat there and talked away, about friends and teachers.

Great to catch up

Forms of Marriage

Reading about Shakuntala, brought me to the topic on Hindu marriages. Dushyanta tells Shakuntala about eight different marriage systems, of which Gandharva form of marriage is a recognized form.

Thanks to the Wiki page  (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hindu_wedding#Eight_types_of_marriage) , I was able to find the details.

Brahma marriage - considered the religiously most appropriate marriage, where the father finds an educated man, proposes the marriage of his daughter to him. The groom, bride and families willingly concur with the proposal. The two families and relatives meet, the girl is ceremoniously decorated, the father gifts away his daughter in betrothal, and a vedic marriage ceremony is conducted. This type of wedding is now most prevalent among Hindus in modern India.

Daiva marriage - in this type of marriage, the father gives away his daughter along with ornaments to a priest as a sacrificial fee. This form of marriage occurred in ancient times when yajna sacrifices were prevalent.

Arsha marriage - in this type of marriage, the groom gives a cow and a bull to the father of the bride and the father exchanges his daughter in marriage. The groom took a vow to fulfill his obligations to the bride and family life (Grihasthashram).

Prajapatya marriage - in this type of marriage, a couple agree to get married by exchanging some Sanskrit mantras (vows to each other). This form of marriage was akin to a civil ceremony.


Gandharva marriage - in this type of marriage, the couple simply live together out of love, by mutual consent, consensually consummating their relationship. This marriage is entered into without religious ceremonies, and was akin to the Western concept of Common-law marriage. Kama Sutra, as well as Rishi Kanva - the foster-father of Shakuntala - in the Mahabharata, claimed this kind of marriage to be an ideal one.

Asura marriage - in this type of marriage, the groom offered a dowry to the father of the bride and the bride, both accepted the dowry out of free will, and he received the bride in exchange. This was akin to marrying off a daughter for money. This marriage was considered inappropriate by Hindu Smriti-writers because greed, not what is best for the girl, can corrupt the selection process.

Gandharva and Asura marriages were not only inappropriate, but religiously forbidden (the children, if any, from these forbidden types of consummation were considered legitimate, nevertheless).

Rakshasa marriage - where the groom forcibly abducted the girl against her and her family's will.

Paishacha marriage - where the man forces himself on a woman when she is insentient, that is drugged or drunken or unconscious.

Rakshasa and Paishacha forms were forbidden yet recognized in ancient Hindu societies, not to encourage these acts, but to provide the woman and any children with legal protection in the society.

Poet's creativity

I was reading the story of Shakuntala in Mahabharata. It is a simple story.
A king comes and see a girl in the forest. He is driven by passion and makes love to her, promising to send for her. The king goes back and forgets her.
Shakuntala gives birth to a boy and takes him to his father. The king refuses to acknowledge them and a voice from the heavens says this is your son, and the king accepts them.

When Kalidasa read this, he made this into a very romantic tale.
The king sees some girls being chased by bees. The king rescues them and is attracted to one of them, who is Shakuntala.
They marry and the king gives her a ring, saying whenever she produces the ring, he will recognize her.
The king goes away and after a few months Shakuntala realizes she is pregnant. She goes to the king, and in the way looses the ring.
Without the ring the king does not know who she is.
The ring had been lost in a pond and a fish had swallowed that.
One day a fisherman catches that fish, cuts it open and finds the king's ring. He shows it to the king, who remembers Shakuntala.

He goes out in search of her, and meets a brave boy who is counting the teeth of lions. He meets the boy's mother and recognizes her to be his Shakuntala. He is united with his wife and son.

A beautiful piece of poetry by a great poet, Abhijñānaśākuntalam

Frequency of Ramayana and Mahabharata posting

Starting this week, work will be on full swing.
I will try and post there as and when I can, but in case I am not able to, will keep that for the weekends.

Home Woes

So problems with domestic help carries on at home. The maid has vanished. Literally. Stopped calling on her cellphone.
Looking for a maid is tough. Tough for me.
I mean, if I ask around, I will get maids coming in, looking for work.
The issue is, the talking and interviewing will have to be done by Dad. And he is not up to it, He says he does not know what to ask and wants me to be there.

I did speak to a maid here that I know. She has had a death in her family and said she will join back in the middle of the month. So, maybe will have to wait till then.

Weekend I just used the broom to sweep the house. May have to manage like that till I get someone to clean up.

Happy Kalpataru Diwas

Today, 01st January has an importance in Dakshineshwar and Shri Ramakrishna Paramahamsa's life.

The event commemorates the day on January 1, 1886 when Ramakrishna Paramahamsa is said to have revealed himself to be an Avatar on earth. It is held each January 1. The most significant celebration takes place at Cossipore Garden House or Udyanbati where Ramakrishna spent last days of his life. It is classified as one of the "Lord's special festivals" by followers of Ramakrishna.

Ramakrishna was suffering from throat cancer at that time, and his health was declining. He and his closest followers had moved to a garden house in the northern Calcutta neighbourhood of Cossipore. January 1 was a relatively good day for him, and he took a walk in the garden. There, he asked one of his followers, Girish, a question he had often asked before, "Who do you say that I am?" Girish responded that he believed that Ramakrishna was "God incarnate, come to Earth out of mercy for humankind".Ramakrishna replied, "What more shall I say? May you be awakened." Ramakrishna then entered an "ecstatic state" and began touching all of his followers. Those he touched reported experiencing a variety of new states of consciousness, including vivid visions. For one, Vaikuntha, the visions persisted and interfered with daily life, so that he feared that he might be going insane.

One disciple, Ramachandra Dutta, explained that Ramakrishna had, in effect become Kalpataru (also called Kalpavriksha), the "wish-fulfilling tree" of Sanskrit literature and Hindu mythology. Dutta named the commemoration of this mystical event "Kalpataru Day" as a result. This event "carried meanings and memories of cosmic import for the disciples" and also prepared them for Ramakrishna's death", which occurred only a few months later, on August 16, 1886.

It is interesting to note that none of Ramakrishna's monastic disciples were present during this event.


https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kalpataru_Day

Happy New Year 2016

New Year. Somewhere in the 16th century, in the Christian world, this celebration started, of 01  January as New Years Day.
This is a celebration, which is part of the Gregorian Calendar; Pope Gregory XIII, introduced it in 1582.

31 December was traditionally a religious feast, but since the 1900s has also become an occasion to celebrate the night of December 31, called New Year's Eve.


Whatever you do or dream you can do — begin it. Boldness has genius and power and magic in it

Happy New Year to all