SRINIZINE

We know what individual enterprise has brought into the world and we also know what State exploitation can do. Both are equally ruthless and brutal; the latter perhaps more so, because there is no appeal and the State is run by the few. They also seek power and position. They also exploit man. Perhaps they may organize collective food, clothing and shelter for everybody. But they will exploit something which is much more important, your mind, your being, which means what you are thinking. Surely that is also exploitation, to control what you say and think.

— J. Krishnamurti (source)

Isn’t this exactly what is happening in a country like China? It may be that the country has become economically strong, it may be that everybody in the country is assured of food, shelter and clothing. But people in such countries are deprived of certain things that are more significant, their right to know, right to think, and their right to express. Over the past few years, the whole world has come together thanks to the internet. We people from different parts of the world increasingly interact with each other, we have come to understand each other better. We now better understand the problems of the world. But people in countries like China are not being allowed to participate in this interaction at this crucial period in the history of mankind. That’s 1.3 billion people who are being denied their right to know and their right to express, we are losing out on one fifth of the world’s population. That’s not how it should be.

Once you have made your choice, forget that you’ve had a choice.

When you sit down to meditate, tell yourself that at this time “I want nothing”. The second is to tell yourself “I do nothing”. The third sutra (principle) is “I am nothing”. Do not think that you have to meditate, just sit and be hollow and empty. You do not have to make any kind of attempt. These three sutras are very important.

— Sri Sri Ravi Shankar (source)

Looking back, let me pick my favourite entries from this blog so far….

• Crime and punishment
• Let’s get the corruption out of India
• How can just 50 years of human activities affect world climate?
• What is ego?
• Be happy, here and now

Few other posts are very popular and get a lot of traffic, but the above posts are my personal favourites from my blog so far.

Māsilāmanīswarar temple is a temple dedicated to Lord Shiva in Thirumullaivoyal, a small town near Chennai. Read the rest of this entry »

Last week, I bought a new toy for myself, a Canon A1100 IS ‘point and shoot’ camera. I wanted to try out the camera, so I took it with me when I went to Mylapore last Sunday. I ended up shooting various places of worship — the Ramakrishna Math, Kapaleeshwara temple, a Jain Temple, a mosque, a church, and the Swami Vivekananada memorial — all within a distance of 3.5 km. Read the rest of this entry »