Warrier's COLLAGE May 25, 2021

Welcome to Warrier's COLLAGE On Tuesday MAY 25, 2021 Mythology : Krishna & Jarasandha https://youtu.be/P7q71k9QKe8 (Link Selection: M G Warrier) Good Morning E : Guest Column : C Narayana Pillai F2 : Service Story : S Nallasivan www.warriersblog.com now exclusively dedicated to Warrier's COLLAGE had 1334 pageviews on May 23, 2021. You made it possible. Thanks 🙏-Warrier Nice Day 🙏 M G Warrier M Satsangam with Panchapagesan Adhyatmajnana Nityatwam Constancy in Self- Knowledge.. Gita XIII, Verses 7 to 11, 20 qualities of a GNANI A GNANI constantly negates the worldly entanglements and pursues The real self within.. He never compromises with his pursuit... He does not perform any action, Feel any emotion or entertain any thought Unless it aids him in his quest for Truth.. He is aware that no progress is possible unless There is consistency in his attempt to realize The Self... The general idea is that we should try to remember Atman in and through all transactions in life.. Atman is the common denominator of our physical, mental, Intellectual activities.. Let our body, mind, and intellect carry on their activities.. But our Subtle intellect should remain ever rooted in Atman.. It must attune single pointedly to the thought of Supreme Self.. If we do so, we will gain spiritual and intellect and material success.. Gita Chapter 1X, verse 22 To those men who are attuned to ME , ( Atman ) with unswerving And constant attention, I grant them spiritual and material success. V. T. Panchapagesan A Interaction 1) S K Gupta Panchkula Cellular Jail light and sound show: I have seen this show during my visit to this place (Andamans). It was highly disturbing to imagine the plight of the freedom fighters who were put in various tiny/inhuman prison cells here. Needless to say, India's Freedom did not come so easily. Our tribute to real heros. 2) Vathsala Jayaraman Chennai There is so much to learn from 'in' and 'out'. We are sitting 'in' our inns and yet are 'out' to learn the 'ins' of so many 'out'siders. Fantastic, Venu Sir. Vathsala Jayaraman B A page from history : Personality: Sir C P Ramaswami Iyer V Babusenan "Bliss was it in that dawn to be alive And to be young was very heaven" This was what Wordsworth wrote about the French Revolution. The poet was 19 when it occurred. How much the present writer wished that, had he been born at the end of the first World War, he would have felt the same about another social revolution of a much smaller scale that happened in the princely state of Travancore in1936! The reference is to the Temple Entry Proclamation that took place hardly a month after CP assumed charge as the Dewan of Travancore. The Proclamation that permitted all Hindus, regardless of higher or lower castes, including the so-called 'untouchables,' entry in all the Hindu temples controlled by the state government was more of a strategic move to check the flow of 'Avarna' Hindus to Buddhism and Christianity to escape the tyranny of the upper class Hindus than of any genuine motive to challenge the unfair existing social set-up. Nevertheless, it was a very bold move incurring the wrath of the powerful upper-class orthodoxy and CP is said to have been very much behind it. Sir C P Ramaswami Iyer, a unique personality of modern India, is generally known by his initials CP - both reverentially and indignantly. He was the son of a successful Madras lawyer. When he was born, the prediction was that he would never pass an examination.The opposite proved to be the result. Another similar case was that of the famous Carnatic vocalist, the late M D Ramanathan. On seeing his father beating the boy for not singing well, the Manjapra (in Palakkad) astrologer told him : "Devesa, don't beat him. He is not destined to sing." Ramaswami took his degree from the Presidency College, Chennai, with a gold medal proving his excellence in English, Sanskrit and Mathematics and later in law and soon became a bright star in the legal firmament. He came to Travancore as the Maharaja's Adviser in1931, became Dewan in 1936 and continued in that capacity for a decade. During this period, he was revered for the vast improvements he brought about in the state with great foresight, especially in the industrial sector(FACT, Aluva was his brainchild). At the same time, he was equally, perhaps more, hated for the ruthless and vile ways with which he tried to suppress dissent. He loathed the State Congress and intensely hated the Communists. The American model of government, he mooted for the state, was opposed tooth and nail. The intensely brutal manner in which he quelled the uprisings in the Punnapra and Vayalar areas of the Alappuzha district, spearheaded by the communists, incurred severe public wrath. More than thousand persons were shot dead there and the monument erected for those who lost their lives is the Mecca of the communist parties. (It is here that Shri Pinarayi Vijayan and the communists in his team of ministers went recently to make floral offerings before taking oath in the capital). The nadir of the Dewan's notoriety was reached when a decision was taken not to join the Indian Union but to remain as an independent state. An attempt was made on his life which he narrowly escaped with injuries on his face and fingers as a result of which he left the state. It was a few days before the day on which India became free. Shorn of politics and power, C P Ramaswami Iyer was gem of a man, a man of great erudition, a silver tongued orator, and an administrator non-pareil. That kept him active on an international level. It is thrilling to recollect that he was at the same time the Vice-Chancellor of Benares Hindu University in the north and Annamalai University in the south. Like Bertrand Russell he was active till the end of his life. He died suddenly in1966 while talking to a newspaper correspondent in London. He was 86. Somerset Maugham, the famous English novelist ,had a thumbnail sketch of CP in his diary. "Everyone agreed that he was as clever as he was crooked. He was a thick-set, sturdy man, not taller than I, with alert but not very large eyes, a broad brow, a hooked nose, full lips and a small rounded chin. He had a thick crop of fuzzy hair. He was dressed in a white dhoti, a white tunic fitting close round the neck and a white scarf; his feet were bare and he wore sandals which he slipped on and off. He had the geniality of the politician who for years had gone out of his way to be cordial with everyone he meets. He talked very good English fluently." When the novelist asked him if educated and cultured Hindus believed in Karma and rebirth, the Dewan replied in the affirmative and added: "I absolutely believe in it myself. "His persuasive power was so great that he would have got the rebirth he wanted even if God had other plans. Where he is now and in what position, how can we, poor mortals, know? C Current Affairs 1) Healthcare funding https://m.businesstoday.in/story/rbis-direct-support-to-healthcare-sector-will-generate-total-output-demand-of-rs-80000-crore/1/438398.html Recent measures unveiled by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), including the announcement of a Rs 50,000 crore special liquidity window to address the needs of the healthcare sector, will go a long way in supporting it, according to SBI's Research report. The report said the macro impact of the scheme can be gauged from the fact that "Rs 50,000 crore is roughly 9% of India's total health expenditure of Rs 6 lakh crore under private final consumption expenditure in 2019-20." It further added that a direct support to the sector will generate "total output demand of roughly Rs 80,000 crore." Tail Piece: https://amp.scroll.in/latest/995680/coronavirus-use-surplus-from-rbi-to-provide-free-vaccines-kerala-hc-tells-centre (This is an interesting twist. A High Court helping Central Government in funds management 🙏-Warrier) 2) Controversy Withdrawing comments on allopathic medicines, regret controversy, says Ramdev: https://thg.page.link/DzZjNbvVAsqxcZEw9 3) A second chance https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/readersblog/graffiti-in-words/longing-for-a-second-chance-32399/ Posted online comments: "you have excellently given voice to the thoughts and anxieties of many. i could perceive the representative character of your thoughts from the endorsements in the online comments posted so far. true, many have added more years to their age by appearance, without having enjoyed the 18 months that slipped away, unused. this march (2021), i wrote in a blog here that after one full year, i watched march 2020 in the wall calendar still staring at me. sure, so far i have believed in the \"this will also pass\" philosophy and used every minute purposefully. \"normalcy\" may not return so fast. but, we need to become normal sooner, without waiting for miracles.'" 4) Book Review: The Guardian (2010) Role Models by John Waters https://amp.theguardian.com/books/2010/dec/19/role-models-john-waters-review Excerpts: "Print interviews are routinely pieced together after the event, using snippets of transcribed dialogue to support a more or less fictitious narrative. Waters's interview with Mathis is extreme, though, in the way it keeps its supposed subject dangling. Waters follows Mathis's bland revelation that he has learned to "be the audience", so that the same old song list always feels new, with the sentence: "What perfect advice, agrees the other top role model from my deep dark past, Patty McCormack," transporting us to another time and place. This leads to eight pages of irrelevant material, not just scraps of an interview with McCormack (an actress mainly known for one childhood role) but a digression about Bobby ("Monster Mash") Pickett. The impression given by this perverse piece of construction is of Mathis waiting politely for his visitor to emerge from narcissistic reverie." D Hard facts about Soft Silk: Vathsala Jayaraman Chennai Very interesting forward from Shri Kelkar, written by Sudha Murthy. However the rahasya of making silk came to light.Tamil nadu is famous for silk sarees woven at Kancheepuram.On many days I used to contemplate on the production of silk. Silk is a natural fibre produced by silk worms and the history of silk is dated back to 27th Century BC. As in the case of many worms, the silk worms too have 4 stages of life-egg, caterpiller, cocoon and the moth, the total life time extending upto 2 months only. The caterpiller feeds on mulberry leaves for a month and it is at this stage it secretes a viscous liquid containing fibrocin(silk) and sericin(gum) and winds itself into the cocoon. Each cocoon will yield around 2000 ft of silk. Under normal process, these cocoons are immersed into boiling water along with the caterpillers or steamed and bleached to get a microscopic thin thread, which is stun into yarn, dyed and then woven into sarees or other fabrics. It is learnt that they need nearly 10,000 cocoons to weave a 6 yards silk saree weighing about 1.5Kg. A saree we are wearing is made out of the sacrifice of 10,000 caterpillers. We can very well imagine how many creatures are killed in the whole industry as such. There are thousands and thousands of weavers who earn their daily bread only through this industry. If all the people shun the silk totally having a sympathy for the innocent silk worms, the survival of silk weavers, who have no other alternate source of employment will be a question mark! 'Ahimsa pattu' introduced about 30 years ago, involves waiting for a week more for the moth to come out automatically out of the cocoon. Here the moth survives, no need to feel guilty. But as the cocoon is damaged, the thread is not continuous and the quantity of silk is reduced to nearly 50%. It takes a longer time for spinning too. As a result the Ahimsa silk is doubly costly and has few takers. The weavers argue "We have no other source of income. We can't survive out of the slow, costly industry of Ahimsa Pattu. The moth which comes out of the cocoon will survive only for one week and it will not be of any use to any one. It is no big deal to kill the caterpiller, considering the interest of thousands of weavers in mind." The supporters of Ahimsa Pattu however argue : "All creatures are God made and they have got full right to live their full life. Human beings, out of greed and monetary consideration don't have value for life. One week is around 12.5% of the silk worm's life. If any human being is destined to live for 80 years, shall we ask him to die at 70 just because he has completed around 90% of his life or he is not of any practical importance to anybody? They also complain that animal activists who ban leather products, do not take a serious view of the silk worms & the awareness regarding the inhuman method of spinning silk has not been created among the public." It is actually a question of 'workers' interest Vs worms' interest. People cannot be considered very noble or sympathetic just because they avoid silk. There are many persons who advocate Ahimsa silk and leave their old parents at the old age homes! Recently I read from a Psychology Journal that wearing silk and the soft touch gives a remedy for women suffering from mental depression. But the husbands may become too depressed on seeing the heavy price tag. When we went to Shringeri Mutt to fulfill our prarthana, they insisted on our gifting a pure Kancheepuram silk saree, since Goddess Kamakshi does not wear sarees other than Kancheepuram silk. Is she also very much depressed? Vathsala Jayaraman. E Guest Column* : C Narayana Pillai PLAYING HIDE AND SEEK WITH THE VIRUS May 2021 It is more than a year since the elusive virus has come to our shores. During this period, everyday life has changed in many ways. For an octogenarian like me changes are less unnerving than for younger people, but nonetheless real. Movement was restricted even in the pre-virus days, due to age-related infirmities. Even so, I enjoyed short morning and evening walks, making minor purchases of vegetables and provisions for the family, during the morning walks and meeting and greeting friends on the way. I am privileged in that my house is near the beach, far from the more crowded and dusty interior places in the city. A walk to the beach in the evening and sitting there in the company of like-minded friends, relaxing for an hour or so, enjoying the sea , the sky, the sand and the breeze, engaging, if so inclined, in non-taxing conversation; these were my idea of social life. All these outdoor activities have been ruled out now. Time is spent at home, reading newspapers and books, watching television and browsing the internet and the social media, which are all enjoyable activities for me. But some major joys are missing. Walking is restricted to short stints close to the house. Fortunately, my family members and myself are not suffering from any major illness. On second thoughts, let me correct that statement. We are indeed suffering from our usual serious illnesses, co-morbidities as they are called. Also the usual bouts of ‘minor illnesses’ like colds, fevers, aches and pains, acidity and other gastric disturbances, dizzy spells and many other small things, which were always there, still happen. The difference is that now, even small illnesses cause alarm. A visit to a doctor’s clinic or a hospital is avoided, unless absolutely necessary. Consolation is found in the belief that the body will correct itself. Traditional remedies and minor self-medication are resorted to. Indeed, in most case the body does correct itself. A lesson worth remembering. Risk and fear about catching the Covid virus and other diseases of the body are not the only worries. The socio-economic fabric of the nation is taking a beating. All around us we see the underprivileged and the economically weaker sections of the population falling into greater and greater depths of suffering. Frontline workers such as medical personnel, supporting staff, service providers and all the others who toil had to keep the system going, are bearing the brunt of the pandemic. Good sense tells me that I should forget my minor grouses and give cheers to the unnamed soldiers who are fighting this war on behalf of the whole mankind. This is not the end. This is not Armageddon. The world has survived worse disasters. We shall overcome. *Received from C Narayana Pillai via personal email F Leisure From Here and There 1) KPS Menon and VKK Menon Responses*. Thanks to all. Who said that India got freedom entirely through the 3-decade long non-violent Movement led by Gandhiji? Gandhiji would have said that it was due to the active and passive effort of every Indian and the support of well-wishers all over the world especially the powerful support of FD Roosevelt, the early work of Extremists like Lokmanya Tiiak and Moderates like Gokhale, Srinivasa Sastry, the sacrifices of young patriots like Bhagat Singh and Subhash Bose and his brave INA soldiers, WWII which weakened Britain, force of circumstances and above all God's Will. Undoubtedly Krishna Menon, great lobbyist and matchless debater made a splendid contribution through India League where he was ably assisted by his secretary Brigitte Tannard. Even British Conservatives like Cripps, A V Alexander and Pethick Lawrence became Gandhiji's admirers. As someone said, perhaps India got independence at least a few weeks earlier because of V P Menon who starting as a clerk rose to an influential position in the British government at Delhi. And there was the Naval Mutiny. We admire Gandhiji not merely because he led the Freedom Movement but because of the amazing way he led it involving everyone in it directly and indirectly teaching us the meaning of life and death and love, ridding us of selfishness, hate and fear, inspiring leaders like Mandela, Martin Luther King and others to adopt his wonderful methods and making revolutionaries like Ho Chi Minh and Che Guevera claim to be his students. K V Subrahmonyan I am not in agreement with Mr Babusenan’s assessment of VKK. Although he was quite ahead of me on this earth - I feel I have done less damage than him. Strangely we are seeing of late surreptitious attempts to cleanse the dark history of VKK and his protectors. Jairam Ramesh brought out a huge volume - which thankfully bombed. But that’s understandable- since lot of Congressmen are now gainfully unemployed. NV Chandramouli (If everyone agrees with all the views expressed, the tranquility will be unbearably nauseating. Incidentally, even without reading the book*, I am not in agreement with many of the observations made by Jairam Ramesh 🙏-Warrier) *Read reviews 🙏-Warrier When Dr Radhakrishnan became our President, Bertrand Russell said that Plato's concept of philosopher-king had come true. People had great respect for the former for his scholarship and other qualities. But no President was equally loved and respected by all segments of people like Dr.Abdul Kalam. We have known great scientists who led a simple life, but we have yet to know another like Dr Kalam in whom was in abundance what Shakespeare called 'the milk of human kindness'. One must feel thankful to Shri Nallasivan for throwing light on a rarely known aspect of that great man's life. Incidentally, I am using this chance to say that I ate idlies and vadai sitting on the same bench in the modest vegetarian hotel where Dr Kalam used to take breakfasts during his Thiruvananthapuram days (Of course, after some years of his leaving the place) V Babusenan *Shared by V R Chittanandam Cheñnai 2) Service Story : S Nallasivan Hyderabad I am indeed grateful to Shri E Madhavan for his response and glad that he still remembers me. Many might wonder how I made the claim that Malayalee friends remain as friend, philosopher and guide . When I wrote I had in fact S/Shri E Madhavan and C R G Nair, and of course G Mohandas (Trivandrum) in mind, among a few more who made me to understand when working as in-charge of a service-oriented Department, especially our own colleagues and friends, like Establishment Section it was not adequate that your decisions were righteous but they needed a helping hand more kindness and compassion. It was rare and unique that I had the opportunity to work under five DGMs as my immediate Boss. S/Shri Ans, ( a no nonsense and tough Officer, difficult to work with, but had special affection towards me and to the surprise of many shared his Tray Tea, often) James Pothen, K R Iyer, E.Madhavan and C R G Nair. Shri Madhavan, initially I knew as the Faculty at BTC and still it rings in my years how he handled a difficult Session on Bond Valuation and carried the knack of driving home to a man with poor understanding of numbers and complicated mathematical formula like me, the lessons, like a mother guiding her children. Who would have thought then that he would arrive at Trivandrum as the DGM, Banking, my immediate boss. My lost boss, Late Shri C R G Nair taught the basics in kindness and lessons to be guided by the spirit behind any Rule that mattered the most and always remain a benevolent Officer even though at times had to go easy on such rigid rules. It was a case, a simple PF withdrawal application made by a Peon, the father, for his son's marriage. But the applicant attempted to pull wool over the eyes of the sanctioning authority. The case unfolded something like this. The son was already married to a lady Mazdoor and in fact were staying in the Bank's Quarters. The attempt carried serious import and I recorded a note bringing out the facts with a recommendation not only to deny the withdrawal from PF but suggested initiation of serious disciplinary proceedings . Possibly had it been approved by the DGM, C R G Nair, all the three members of the family could have invited serious disciplinary action and an exemplary punishment. The DGM called me and he agreed with the recommendation; but tried to convince me that after all the money belonged to the applicant. But the way in which he tried to lay his hand was mischievous and dubious too. He suggested to me to withdraw the original note and put up another note toning down the irregularities with a recommendation for denial of the withdrawal. He was so generous that he saw the tragedy beyond, the disciplinary action and tried to save the skin of the wayward and erring employee too. I understood the reasoning behind and went accordingly. It was a valuable lesson, were one to choose from the two options always to go for the harmless and benevolent one. This and similar other educative interactions made me to pronounce that I had many Malayalee friends who remained as friend, philosopher and guide. I wanted to record about how Office friendship blossomed into a real family relationship. I had narrated about Shri K P Nadakumar when I had reported at Jaipur Office. Who would know that it would turn into a real intimate relationship, as a part of the family, yes the whole family . I had been fortunate to be invited to his ancestral family home at Erumapetty a rare and unique opportunity to the most hospitable address in the village in the midst of a Rubber plantation. Then an unusual treat and stay for two days, was made as a part of his family pilgrimage to Sabarimala, along with his brothers, cousins and nephew. It was not confined to a one time formal affair of extreme hospitality. But I had the privilege of repeating it again and again, at least three years in a row. I had the pleasure of visiting his father-in-law and mother-in-law living in a different village as visiting family members are taken to call on other close relatives. The hot idlis served by the Octogenarian mother-in-law on the dark rainy night possibly still remain in a corner of my palate. He made it a point to invite me to his daughter's marriage after I had returned to Melagaram, though event was after a couple of years. My wife was bemused that she was treated as a part of the bride's entourage, possibly many relatives gossiping in hushed tone who could be the Tamil speaking lady found in the close and intimate circle. Though memories flood from the corners of my mind to relate more such interesting events in my association still alive with me roots still buried to the Bakery Junction, I reserve the right to post them when opportunities came calling. S.Nallasivan G Quotes about Books and Reading https://celadonbooks.com/inspiring-quotes-about-books-and-reading/ Like: "It wasn’t until I started reading and found books they wouldn’t let us read in school that I discovered you could be insane and happy and have a good life without being like everybody else.” – John Waters (John Augustine Waters (born 28 May 1955) is an Irish columnist and author. He started his career with music-and politics magazine, Hot Press, and also wrote for the Sunday Tribune newspaper. He later edited the social magazine In Dublin, and the investigative and current affairs magazine Magill.)