Change is inevitable!

I have been receiving lots of comments from readers, old and new. Thanks a lot! Responding to those comments, there are few points that I want to make clear...

1. I am learning CSS and XML in the little free time available. So you will be seeing a new look of the blog soon. But not before Diwali. But surely before November end.
2. Yes, This blog is a Hodge-podge, or a heterogeneous mix. It is meant to be so! I am a very dynamic person, and my interests are more dynamic. So this blog will keep rolling out posts which really impresses me.
3. That's where comments come in. Your comments will give me an idea as to what posts (on which subject) I should roll out. You've asked for articles on finance, so be it...

Keep reading and commenting. Your efforts will be rewarded... Hehehe!! Jai Gurudeva -- O.A.K. Tree

Fastest Guitar Player...

This guy is simply amazing. He has set the record of being the fastest guitar player in the world! The fastest is at 320bmp! Watch this incredible video... -- O.A.K. Tree

ANCHORing the Mind

Today, I was sitting in the office and listening to some music on-line, cherishing my memories of my childhood. I recollected that day, when I had been to on a boat for the first time in my life. It was in alibaug. My dad was visiting his closest friend, Pansare Uncle, at his native place in alibaug. They have a beautiful farmhouse and verdant vegetation spread beyond their courtyard. I believe, it was just after ganapati festival. We were flying kites and had loads of fun. Then Pansare uncle took us to a the nearby wharf.

Water at the wharf was amazingly placid that day. The breeze was gentle. Seagulls floating in the air. Pansare uncle introduced me to one of his friends, who owned a motorboat. I wished for a boat ride and my wish was granted instantly. I jumped in the boat and we (my dad, unc pansare and me) took a lovely ride in the sea. Then the boat owner started educating me about the mechanics of the boat. He told me how important the anchor is to a boat!

But today, I realised its metaphorical meaning when I apply it to my life.The anchor is of no use during the journey over the water. But the moment you dock on, you need to anchor the boat. Else the precious boat will be carried away by the tidal waves. When you apply this principle to your life, you will observe, your mind is just like that boat. Till the time we have a guru in life, we continue our journey of life in conquest. The moment we have a guru, conquest ends and quest starts. A quest to know the purpose of our life and the eternally unanswered question "I wonder WHO I AM?" To get the answers for such esoteric questions we need to dock our minds safely in the harbor called self. If our mind is the symbolic of a boat then, the self is the dock where you anchor on! This anchoring keeps the boat(read mind) steady.

You might have observed that when there is a low tide, the boat touches the ground & when there is a high-tide, the boat bouyantly floats on the water surface. Our mind too faces high and low tides. They are just the passing phases of life. When we are feeling very low, we need to go deep within and repose in ourself. This can happen only when we have anchored our mind to the self. Else the ebbing tide will carry the boat away from the dock! Often when we feel exuberant or on the top of the world, we let the high energy carry us away. We often overlook and take-for-granted certain aspects in life when we a bouyant with high energy. We need to contain this energy and rise up with that steadiness. Here again the anchor helps our mind to be steady.

As Sri Sri says, the whole day you be attached 100% to what ever you do but when you medidate or when you are with your self, you be detached 100%. Anchor your mind is being detached from the effects of tide!

Once you anchor your mind then it does not matter if its high tide or low tide, wether its a bright sunny day or there are fierce storms. You are Anchored!

Jai Gurudeva!


--
O.A.K. Tree

Beijing Olympic Mascots

Like the Five Olympic Rings from which they draw their color and inspiration, Fuwa will serve as the Official Mascots of Beijing 2008 Olympic Games, carrying a message of friendship and peace -- and good wishes from China -- to children all over the world.

Designed to express the playful qualities of five little children who form an intimate circle of friends, Fuwa also embody the natural characteristics of four of China's most popular animals -- the Fish, the Panda, the Tibetan Antelope, the Swallow -- and the Olympic Flame.

Each of Fuwa has a rhyming two-syllable name -- a traditional way of expressing affection for children in China. Beibei is the Fish, Jingjing is the Panda, Huanhuan is the Olympic Flame, Yingying is the Tibetan Antelope and Nini is the Swallow.

Fuwa also embody both the landscape and the dreams and aspirations of people from every part of the vast country of China. In their origins and their headpieces, you can see the five elements of nature -- the sea, forest, fire, earth and sky -- all stylistically rendered in ways that represent the deep traditional influences of Chinese folk art and ornamentation.

In China's traditional culture and art, the fish and water designs are symbols of prosperity and harvest. And so Beibei carries the blessing of prosperity. A fish is also a symbol of surplus in Chinese culture, another measure of a good year and a good life.The ornamental lines of the water-wave designs are taken from well-known Chinese paintings of the past. Among Fuwa, Beibei is known to be gentle and pure. Strong in water sports, she reflects the blue Olympic ring.

Jingjing makes children smile -- and that's why he brings the blessing of happiness wherever he goes. You can see his joy in the charming naivety of his dancing pose and the lovely wave of his black and white fur. As a national treasure and a protected species, pandas are adored by people everywhere. The lotus designs in Jingjing's headdress, which are inspired by the porcelain paintings of the Song Dynasty (A.D.960-1234), symbolize the lush forest and the harmonious relationship between man and nature. Jingjing was chosen to represent our desire to protect nature's gifts -- and to preserve the beauty of nature for all generations. Jingjing is charmingly naïve and optimistic. He is an athlete noted for strength who represents the black Olympic ring.

In the intimate circle of Fuwa, Huanhuan is the big brother. He is a child of fire, symbolizing the Olympic Flame and the passion of sport -- and passion is the blessing he bestows. Huanhuan stands in the center of Fuwa as the core embodiment of the Olympic spirit. And while he inspires all with the passion to run faster, jump higher and be stronger, he is also open and inviting. Wherever the light of Huanhuan shines, the inviting warmth of Beijing 2008 -- and the wishful blessings of the Chinese people -- can be felt. The fiery designs of his head ornament are drawn from the famed Dunhuang murals -- with just a touch of China's traditional lucky designs. Huanhuan is outgoing and enthusiastic. He excels at all the ball games and represents the red Olympic ring.

Like all antelopes, Yingying is fast and agile and can swiftly cover great stretches of land as he races across the earth. A symbol of the vastness of China's landscape, the antelope carries the blessing of health, the strength of body that comes from harmony with nature. Yingying's flying pose captures the essence of a species unique to the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, one of the first animals put under protection in China. The selection of the Tibetan Antelope reflects Beijing commitment to a Green Olympics. His head ornament incorporates several decorative styles from the Qinghai-Tibet and Sinkiang cultures and the ethnic design traditions of Western China. Strong in track and field events, Yingying is a quick-witted and agile boy who represents the yellow Olympic ring.

Every spring and summer, the children of Beijing have flown beautiful kites on the currents of wind that blow through the capital. Among the kite designs, the golden-winged swallow is traditionally one of the most popular. Nini's figure is drawn from this grand tradition of flying designs. Her golden wings symbolize the infinite sky and spread good-luck as a blessing wherever she flies. Swallow is also pronounced "yan" in Chinese, and Yanjing is what Beijing was called as an ancient capital city. Among Fuwa, Nini is as innocent and joyful as a swallow. She is strong in gymnastics and represents the green Olympic ring.

When you put their names together -- Bei Jing Huan Ying Ni -- they say "Welcome to Beijing," offering a warm invitation that reflects the mission of Fuwa as young ambassadors for the Olympic Games.

Jai Gurudeva

--

O.A.K. Tree 

Source: A Chinese Newspaper

Swara-gyaan

How many combination can you get with just seven objects? If you hear the answer as 'zillions' then do not be surprised! That's what the seven swaras do. All the music that you hear is a combination of 7 swaras; सा (sā), रे (re), गा (ga), म (ma), प् (pa), ध (dha) and नि (ni). The word सरगम (sargam, in Europe its called "solfege") is derived from the first four swaras, sa re ga ma collectively called sargam! The notes of sargam are called शुद्ध (Shuddha or Naturals)Swaras. Between them are the कोमल (komal or flats)and the तीव्र (Tivra or sharps). They can be equaled to C, D, E, F, G, A, B of the western music. Just like E and B do not have Sharps and F & C do not have flats, Ga & Ni do not have tivra and Ma and Sa do not have komal swaras! What do these swaras mean? Each shuddha swara (i.e., Sa, Re, Ga, Ma, Pa, Dha and Ni) is traditionally held to have originated in the sound of a different animal, and some have additional meanings of their own. Also, each swara is associated with one of the seven chakras of the body. Just as the swaras ascend through the saptak (Octave), so they are mapped onto the chakras in the body in ascending order. Komal notes are associated with the left side of each chakra; the left channel, Ida Nadi, is the side of emotion and intuition. Shuddha and tivra notes are associated with the right side; the right channel, Pingala Nadi, is the side of logic. Ragas, therefore, have more or less of an effect on a given chakra depending on the notes they contain. Swara influences the bio energy structure of the human organism performed by means of art.Through music, vocal, or dance one can induce resonant states in certain chakra of the listeners or viewers, or in certain meridian. In particular, these structures can be developed simply by letting into them the vibrations coming from the artist. Sa is derived from Shadja which means Sagar (Ocean) and the chakra associated with it is Muladhara. Re is derived from Rishabh (bull) and the corresponding chakra is Swadhisthana . Ga is taken from Gandhar which means Gagan (Infinite Sky) and the associated chakra is Manipura. Ma is the Madhyama or the Middle (Chakra: Anāhata) Pa is the Panchama or the Fifth Note (Chakra: Vishuddha). Dha takes its form from the word Dhaivata meaning Dharti (Earth) (Chakra: Agya). Ni is taken from Nishād which means an outcast/hunter (Chakra: Shahastrar). Combination of the Swaras can have Positive effect on the body mind and the consciousness. Listening to right music at right time can ameliorate the Sativic Gunas in oneself. What time is suited for which ragaa, I will come up with it, shortly. Till then enjoy listening to good music! Jai Gurudeva. -- O.A.K. Tree

Enter the Virtual Economy!

Just imagine a guy, expert in economics, getting paid lavishly for playing an MMORPG games! Weird, you may say. But not with Eyjolfur Gudmundsson. He is the Chief Economist with the CCP Games, the creator of a virtual world, Eve Online, a science fiction computer game run out of Iceland. What does he do there? He does what Y.V. Reddy does for India; manages and balances the economy of EVE. The monster of inflation bugs not only the real world but even the Virtual world. How you may ask. Take example of Linden Labs, the creator of Second Life. It uses the currency called Lindex with which you can trade any merchandise with-in the virtual world. Linden Labs have even pegged their currency with the US Dollars. As on Aug 08, 08 the rate was: 267.46 L$ per 1US $ . The Second Life has got a market place where you get all the information of the ongoing economic conditions of the Second Life World. Games like World of Warcraft, "Everquest, Lineage and Final Fantasy XI all have some unit of currency that is of value in its own virtual world. Generally these games have a "Faucet" from where you churn out point/currencies. This leads to increase in money supply with-in the virtual world. Now when there is more money supply, then more money chases fewer goods. This lowers the value of the currency. So what you could buy with 1 dollar now you need to shell out 2 dollars. Now that's inflation. Now how can the effect be negated. The only way to immunize the virtual world from over-heating of economy is to set "drainage". Now these drainage suck out the excess money from the virtual economy. It can be like more charges on ammo or skill-upgrades after a particular level. This higher charge will deter the "avatars" from wasting money mindlessly. This keeps the economy balanced. They are synonymous to the taxes of the real world. More you earn the more tax you pay. That's not all... well there are NPCs (Non Player Characters) who sell or buy from the virtual world to keep up the economy intact. So, If you find a guy who even after getting M.A. (Hons) in economics is interested in playing MMORPG then you be sure that the guy is gonna be some "Governor of some Virtual World Economy". But how can a world be free of more problems. There are something called COPYbots which was initially meant as a debugging tool with which you can export objects within Second Life to an XML file, which can then later be imported for use in the game. But now it is being used to "copy" the objects and own it without having to pay for it! From the whole drama written above, I am sure that Wachowski Bros' Matrix-like life is not far away. Right?? -- O.A.K. Tree

The King of Fairies

When I heard the ORIGINAL composition of "The King of Fairies" I was bewitched by the enchanting music. This is an Irish folk music. And there is a mystical Folklore behind this. But first the music. Here is the 'rock type' version of the same. It's performed by the group called Amadeus.

The bullet that won the gold!

Trap Air Shooter Abhinav Bindra fired his way to victory in the 10-meter air rifle event on Monday, giving India her first gold medal in Beijing 2008 Olympics. Bindra, who qualified for the finals in third place, outscored 2004 Olympic champion, China's Zhu Qinan and Finland's Henri Hakkinen for the top spot.

Bindra's final score was 700.5 points, ahead of Zhu's 699.7 points and Hakkinen's 699.4 points. Zhu holds the Olympic record for the final score in the event, the 702.7 points, which he shot in Athens. Bindra's compatriot Gagan Narang did not perform well, coming ninth in the qualifier and failed to make the cut.
 
Bindra's triumph is no fluke. Born in 1983, he was the youngest Indian participant at the 2000 Olympic Games. Though he failed to win any medal then, he showed a lot of promise. In 2001, he won six gold medals at various international meets and in 2002, in the air rifle event at the Commonwealth Games, Manchester, he won the gold medal in the pairs event and silver in the individual event. At the 2004 Olympic Games in Athens, Bindra broke the Olympic record but failed to win any medal. Abhinav Bindra has also received the Arjuna award in 2001 and the Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna award for the year 2001-2002.

Bindra's victory gives India her first Olympic gold medal ever in an individual event and a gold medal in any Olympic event after 28 years. The last time India came close to winning an Olympic gold was in an indiviudal event was in 2004 when trap shooter Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore won silver. India's tennis ace, Leander Paes and weighlifter Karnam Malleswari won the bronze medals in 1996 and 2000 respectively. Until Bindra's triumph, India's only gold medals had come in the sport of field hockey, the last of them coming in 1980 in Moscow Olympics. Unfortunately, India failed to qualify for hockey in 2008 Olympics.

*** REWARDS ***

The Punjab government on Monday announced a cash reward of Rs.10 million (Rs.1 crore) for the shooter as per its sports policy after Bindra won India's first individual gold medal in Olympics history. Maharashtra chief minister Vilasrao Deshmukh announced a cash prize of Rs 10 lakh for Bindra. The Madhya Pradesh government also announced a cash prize of Rs.500,000 for the shooter. The Indian Cricket Board, the game's richest body in the world, announced a reward of Rs 25 lakh for Bindra, whom it ad adopted as part of its efforts to encourage other sports in a cricket-mad country. Railway Minister Lalu Prasad announced a free lifetime pass for travel by AC first class for the shooter. Whoaa! Now, that's what I say, "Jeeto... Chappar Faad Ke"

***

Jai Gurudev

--
O.A.K. Tree

Bawa teaches me Advt & Mkt. !!!

To start with, Bawa (Khurshed Batliwala) is Art of Living teacher who teaches meditation. He is also loves technology and makes the most use of it. I am really thankful that I have met a super-man like bawa! This post is dedicated to my beloved teacher; Bawa! Just two months back, I did not own a blog. Bawa just told me that I should have a blog and it should be managed regularly. I did not ask whether I would gain from it in anyway. I knew that if bawa has asked me to start a blog, then it has will make a big positive difference in my life. I started the blog with a welcome note. I told only my 5 best friends and no one else, that I have started a blog. Ironically, those 5 friends have not yet visited my blog. But now I get 5.11 visits/day from all over the world and as on Aug 10 I had 143 visits from the day I started to track my blog (July 14, 08). Also 74.82% of the visitors use the best internet browser: Firefox. 44.06% of the visitors are unique visitors (first-time visitors)... Phew! Last Fortnight the same stats were; 3.27 visits/day with a total of 49 visitors, 34.69% of them were the new visitors. Running a blog which is one of the million blogs and gaining popularity is not a joke! Bawa guided me how to advertise, without shelling out a single paisa. I learn't to market my blog too... I joined entre-card, got a RSS Feed for my blog, added star-rating for those who are lazy to write a comment, added a Google Custom search on my blog! Also I learn't more of CSS, XML, and other amazing languages used in the web-world. AND MOST importantly, it keeps me on my toes as I have to be well-read to write good & interesting posts. Woww! Thank you, Bawa. Now my blog really rocks... I really feel good about it. P.S. After attending the workshop on Financial Literacy by Bawa, I have decided to write fabulous posts on Economics and Finance (which I am really good at... hehehe!). This will be once a week mostly on Saturdays. Do read them and PLEASE write some comments. Jai Gurudeva! -- O.A.K. Tree Note: The above stats are taken from the Google Analytics which keeps tracks of the visits to your blog and generated mind-boggling reports!

Financial Articles

It seems that the plan to spread financial literacy ultimately have to be scrapped. I am not getting any response, good or bad, from any readers as to whether I should continue writing posts on Financial Literacy. You can take Omkar out of the Finance but not the Finance out of Omkar! So I will continue writing blogs related to finance and economics. They will be something that you might have not come across. In case you want to know more about Finance & Economics or want me to shed some light on such topics, then mail me. Love! -- O.A.K. Tree

Fuel the fire

If you want the fire to burn then you must pour fuel into the fire! If you want to read more posts on Financial Literacy then I must get some response. Some comments or Star-rating will do. Else how do I come to know if the posts are of any use to you?? I am not writing the blogs on finance for myself !!! Jai Gurudeva! -- O.A.K. Tree

Leap of Faith

This is a story of a mountain climber and his team who started on an expedition to scale the heights of a mountain in Himalayas. The mountain climber planned to break the previous record by climbing the mountain higher than the other mountaineers in the past. His team was fully prepared for the hostile climate of the Himalayas. After scaling a considerable height, only few feet were left to set the world record. The team decided to rest for the day and experience the remaining part of the adventure the next day. But the greed caught better of the mountain climber. Against the consensus of the team, the mountaineer decided to continue climbing. The technicians warned the mountaineer of the merciless storm approaching quickly. But the mountaineer was adamant. He started walking towards the peak. The storm gathered faster than expected. Soon, the surroundings drowned in pitch black darkness. The mountaineer used his torch to find the way but the storm was so fierce that the mountaineer could not see anything. His hope hinged on his luck and his intution. After an hour of arduous struggle the mountaineer knew he was only a few feet away from setting the world record. Suddenly, the rock on which he stood gave away and the mountaineer and the rock both rolled down the cliff. The mountaineer had a free fall before he got stuck in the branches of a tree jutting out of the vertical cliff. He prayed fervently to god. He could hear some faint voices. The voices grew louder. It was telling him to break the branches & jump. He thought that these were just hallucination due to fatigue... perhaps? Mountaineer could hear the voices again! IT simply asked him to break the branches and jump! Mountaineer refused to listen to the divine voices. The cold bitter storm grew stronger and the mountaineer just stayed stuck in the branches for the rest of the night. The next day, the mountaineer's team started with the rescue team to find the lost mountaineer. After searching for a couple of hours they found him lodged in the branches of a tree...DEAD...just two feet above the firm ground! *** We lead our lives like the mountaineer. We work hard in life to scale the heights of success. Sometimes we fall down. And when we are groped by the problems we just pray to god. But do we let our selves fall in the lap of divine. We want god to help us. But unless we TRUST god, how can HE help? In fact how can anyone help you? To let go in the lap of divine, to trust the "un-manifested" divinity, we need strength. Surrendering gives us that strength to trust divine. Know that divine knows what is the best for you! Jai gurudeva! -- O.A.K. Tree

Praise the Lord!

A preacher trained his horse to go when he said, "Praise the Lord," and to stop when he said, "Amen." The preacher mounted the horse, said, "Praise the Lord" and went for a ride. When he wanted to stop for lunch, he said, "Amen." He took off again, saying, "Praise the Lord." The horse started going toward the edge of a cliff. The preacher got excited and said, "Whoa!" Then he remembered and said, "Amen," and the horse stopped at the edge of the cliff. The preacher was so relieved and grateful that he looked up to heaven and said, "Praise the Lord!"

My first blog posted via email

Hey friends, As you all might know, I love technology and I like to make the most practical use of it. So I decided to post one blog on blogger's from email instead of logging-in the blogger. I use Mozilla Thunderbird as an email client to type the matter. Jai Gurudeva -- O.A.K. Tree

Hariharan...Hari...Hara

We have a new volunteer in our battalion with an outstanding qualification of a Chartered Accountant. Hariharan. Quite an ambitious lad. He surely has an enigmatic personality. Well read and well spoken!! I was wondering what the name, Hariharan, meant. Hari & Hara... alias names of Lord Krishna & Lord Shiva respectively. Well, thats when something beautiful struck me. That which is small, perishable and ephemeral needs protection and that which is big, vast and permanent does not. Like your body needs protection, your mind needs protection but your soul does not!! Also truth needs no protection. Protection means prolonging the time in that state, in other words, preventing transformation. When there is transformation, protection cannot happen and without protection you cannot achieve the desired transformation!! To illustrate, A seed needs protection to transform into a plant. But remember, protection can aid or hamper the transformation. Protector should be aware to what extent he should protect. Overprotecting the plant will hamper the growth of a plant into the tree. Protection should be seen in the aspect of time and the Transformation in the aspect of space. We are both, protected and transformed!! Hari is the protector and Hara is the transformer. जय गुरुदेव -- O.A.K. Tree