Warrier's COLLAGE July 10, 2021

Welcome to Warrier's COLLAGE On Saturday July 10, 2021 Sharity not Charity : Mallence Williams https://www.huffpost.com/entry/sharity-not-charity-the-story-behind-the-boldest_b_58c84b9ce4b05675ee9c5b09 "Good afternoon, I am Mallence. I come from the richest country in the world, located in the richest continent in the world.”: 2015, Berlin (Link selection inspired by : T J Kurup Thiruvanantapuram) Good Morning The world is changing fast. The link at "Sharity not Charity" is just indicative. There's no pre-set pattern or format for Collage. Whatever sticks in my mind from what I listen, read or come across the previous day, is shared in Collage. Tomorrow : Book on my table : "Sanathanasudha" (Malayalam) By P V Viswanathan Nambudiri Nice Day M G Warrier Spirituality : Bhikshu Gita https://iskcondesiretree.com/profiles/blogs/what-a-saint-learned-from-a-prostitute-by-chaitanya-charan-das-1 "The Bhikshu-gita offers a conception of guru different from the standard conception of a wise instructing teacher. An instructing guru is essential for a seeker's spiritual growth and the Bhagavatam is filled with narratives of such gurus i nstructing seekers about the truths of life. But the Bhagavatam in the Bhikshu Gita shifts the onus of learning from the teacher to the seeker. When the onus for effective knowledge transfer is on the guru, seekers may become passive, thinking that transmitting scriptural knowledge in a way that they can internalize is the guru’s responsibility. To avoid such passivity among seekers, this Bhagavatam section conveys that they need to take the responsibility for internalizing scriptural knowledge. How? If seekers observe the world keenly, they can see the truths of life demonstrated through the happenings in the world. Those things in the world that demonstrate life's truths can also be considered to be gurus, for they reiterate and reinforce the guru's teachings. The Bhikshu-gita uses the word guru in this nuanced and expanded sense." A Response : V Babusenan Thiruvananthapuram The lines quoted from Wordsworth at the end of today's (July 8) Collage are thought provoking.The poet grieves that the glory of the flower has gone for ever, but he takes comfort in the other beautiful things that Nature has left for us to enjoy. This has brought to my mind the epoch-making poem on a fallen flower written by the great Malayalam poet Kumaran Asan in 1907. The poem is full of rich imagery. He concludes it with the following lines: Kanne madanguka Karinhumalinhumaasu Mannakumeemalaru Vismritamaakumippol Enneedukaarkum Ithuthaan gathi Saadhyamenthu kanneerinaal Avanivaazhvu Kinaavu kashtam! (Eyes,withdraw yourselves from this sad sight. Getting burnt and withered, this flower will soon merge with the soil and be forgotten. Kindly note, same is the end of all. There is no use lamenting. Alas! Life in this world is only a dream.) But the poet cannot simply leave the poor flower like that. He has a word of comfort for it. He says : "Don't worry. You will blossom as a flower on a branch of the Kalpaka Vriksha on the Sumeru mountain in the Heaven." What more the flower would want? That is the oriental mind! Asan was a nature lover of a different genre. He said once: " Lokaanuraagam iyalatthavare, narante Aakaaramaarnivide Vannu janichidaayvin" (If you can't love nature, please avoid taking birth as a human being.) B Gender Equality Profile : Elizabeth Candy Stanton https://www.britannica.com/biography/Elizabeth-Cady-Stanton "Elizabeth Cady received a superior education at home, at the Johnstown Academy, and at Emma Willard's Troy Female Seminary, from which she graduated in 1832. While studying law in the office of her father, Daniel Cady, a member of the U S House of Representatives and later a New York Supreme Court judge, she learned of the discriminatory laws under which women lived and determined to win equal rights for her sex. In 1840 she married Henry Brewster Stanton, a lawyer and abolitionist (she insisted that the word “obey” be dropped from the wedding ceremony). Later that year they attended the World’s Anti-Slavery Convention in London, and she was outraged at the denial of official recognition to several women delegates, notably Lucretia C Mott, because of their sex. She became a frequent speaker on the subject of women’s rights and circulated petitions that helped secure passage by the New York state legislature in 1848 of a bill granting married women's property rights." C Book Review : Selective Memory by Katherine Whitehorn https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/books/reviews/selective-memory-by-katharine-whitehorn-397205.html "The only problem I have with her autobiography, Selective Memory, is that her life seems so outrageously happy. She had loving parents – her grandfather turns out to be Herbert Grey, founder of the Marriage Guidance Council, now Relate. She did well at school, was one of the few women to go to Cambridge, got various publishing jobs, did a stint as a reporter on Picture Post, and became women's editor of The Observer. Briefly, she was fashion editor, but she always wanted the fashion pages to be for "real people" – which, of course, is not what fashion is all about. Though the readers loved it, the advertisers didn't – which was lucky because it freed her up for the column and, later, for a series of short books on survival. The first was Cooking in a Bedsitter, in print for 40 years, and absolutely essential for anyone who, in the Seventies, wanted to cook just for one. The book described things like braising, stock, browning, and how to make a white sauce. It was also important to explain what an avocado pear was, and yoghurt, and Whitehorn had to urge her readers to accept the now ubiquitous teabag. This book was followed a series of survival manuals, like How to Survive Children, and How to Survive Your Money Problems." D Life a) Our stay is only short : V T Panchapagesan Chennai Our stay is only short! An elderly woman got on a bus and sat down. At the next stop, a strong, grumpy young lady climbed up and sat down beside the old woman, hitting her with her numerous bags. When she saw that the elderly woman remained silent, the young woman asked her why she had not complained when she hit her with her bags? The elderly woman replied with a Smile : "There is no need to be rude or discuss something so insignificant, as our journey together is so short, because I am going to get off at the next stop." This answer deserves to be written in gold letters: "There is no need to discuss something so insignificant, because our journey together is too short." Each of us must understand that our time in this world is so short. That darkening it with useless arguments, jealousy, not forgiving others, discontentment and bad attitudes are a ridiculous waste of time and energy. Did someone break your heart? Stay calm. The trip is too short. Did someone betray, intimidate, cheat or humiliate you? Relax. Don't stress. The trip is too short. Did someone insult you without reason? Shake it off. Ignore it. The trip is too short. Did a neighbor make a comment that you didn't like? Take a deep breath. Ignore him/her. Forgive and forget it. The trip is too short. Whatever problem someone has brought us, remember that our journey together is too short. No one knows the length of our trip. Nobody knows when it will arrive at its stop. Our trip together is short. Let us appreciate friends and family. Let us be respectful, kind and forgiving. In return, we will be filled with gratitude and joy. After all, our trip together is very short. Share your smile with everyone. Our trip is very short. V T Panchapagesan b) How to be happy? Making another person happy* (*Received from R Jayakumar Mumbai via Group mail) Since I was not using it for a long time, my old Moped (Pleasure scooty) was becoming obsolete. I thought why not resell it online. So I put out an advertisement, quoting its price at Rs 30,000/- only. There were many offers ranging from Rs 15,000 to Rs 28,000. I thought if people are willing to pay Rs 28,000, someone might be ready to pay Rs 30,000 as well. One person offered Rs 29,000 but I didn’t confirm and kept him waiting too. One morning a person called and said, *"Hello Sir, I saw the advertisement for your moped and liked it too. I tried a lot to earn Rs 30,000 but have only been able to collect Rs 24,000 until now.* *My son is in his final year of engineering. He has worked very hard. Sometimes he walks to his college, or uses a bicycle, and sometimes travels by bus or takes a lift from someone. I thought at least in his final year he should have his own vehicle. I request you Sir, please reserve your scooty for me.* *A new one will cost more than twice as much. I would not be able to afford it at any cost. Please give me some time, I will arrange for the money. Selling my mobile phone will also get me some money. But I pray to you, please do not sell it to anyone else."* I just said a formal "Okay" and hung up. Then a few thoughts came to mind, and I called him back. I said, "Don't sell your mobile phone; just bring the Rs 24,000 tomorrow morning, and take the vehicle. I will sell it to you in Rs 24,000 itself." So I was going to sell my scooty to an unknown person for Rs 24,000, even though I had an offer for Rs 29,000. I thought of how much pleasure or joy this must have brought to that family. Tomorrow, they would have a ‘Pleasure' scooter at home, and it wasn't really causing much loss to me. God has been gracious and given me a lot; the biggest wealth probably is the ability to help someone in need. May God keep this family happy. The next morning he called at least 6-7 times. _Sir, what time should I come?_ _I hope it will not disturb your schedule_ _Are you sure I should come now?_ _Shall I bring my son along, or should I come alone?_ _But Sir, please don’t give the vehicle to anyone else_ He brought with him a collection of Rupee notes in various denominations – 2000, 500, 200, 100, and 50. His son had also joined him. It seemed he had collected the money from a lot of different sources – maybe withdrawn savings or borrowed from many. The son was looking at the moped with great eagerness and gratitude. I handed him both the keys, and the documents. The son was gently running his hand over the vehicle, and wiping it with his handkerchief. He asked me to count the money, and I said, "It's okay, you must have counted and brought it." As they started to leave, I took out Rs 500 and returned it to him saying, "Do take some sweets for your family." I was wondering whether they would have any money for fuel. And in any case, then they could get both fuel and sweets with this money. With tears of gratitude in his eyes, he bid farewell to us and took away his ‘Pleasure’ (moped). Bowing down politely, he kept thanking me again and again till he left. It was on that day, while selling my "Pleasure" that I really understood the meaning of pleasure or joy. We simply say‘it's my pleasure’ _At some occasions in life, one should not see profit or loss._ _We should also consider if we are bringing joy to someone through our actions and dealings._ (Remembered Manoj who helped me in driving my car during 1990's. In my life, I have purchased only one second hand Lambretta scooter and a second hand Maruti 800. Both I passed on to Manoj after my use. Manoj is from UP, had a vehicle workshop in Mumbai Fort area and was living with his family when I could contact him during last decade. Now I lost his number. After purchase, I had to get my Maruti 800 repaired which cost me a substantial amount. On the day the day repairs got completed Manoj brought back the car from workshop after settling the bills and came to see me in office with the balance amount which he kept on my table. He was perhaps 20 or 21 then. I enquired some personal details. When I asked, when he visited his village (in UP) last, he became emotional and said he couldn't afford the cost of travel, then. I forced him to take whatever amount he kept on the table and use it for visiting his village whenever he is able to go. That was the beginning of a long relationship-Warrier) E Quotes about choice of career https://www.workitdaily.com/inspirational-career-quotes/1-choose-a-job-you-love-and-you-will-never-have-to-work-a-day-in-your-life-confucius Like : “Find out what you like doing best and get someone to pay you for doing it." —Katherine Whitehorn (Katharine Elizabeth Whitehorn CBE was a British journalist, columnist, author and radio presenter. She was the first woman to have a column in The Observer, which ran from 1963 to 1996 and from 2011 to 2017. She was the first female rector of a university in Scotland. Her books include Cooking in a Bedsitter) F Leisure 60th High School Reunion* He was a widower and she a widow. They had known each other for a number of years being high school classmates and having attended class reunions in the past without fail. This 60th anniversary of their class, they had a wonderful evening, their spirits high.The widower throwing admiring glances across the table. The widow smiling coyly back at him. Finally, he picked up courage to ask her, "Will you marry me?" After about six seconds of careful consideration, she answered, "Yes,..... yes I will!" The evening ended on a happy note for the widower. But the next morning he was troubled. Did she say “Yes” or did she say “No?” He couldn't remember. Try as he would, he just could not recall. He went over the conversation of the previous evening, but his mind was blank. He remembered asking the question but for the life of him he could not recall her response. With fear and trepidation he picked up the phone and called her. First, he explained that he couldn't remember as well as he used to. Then he reviewed the past evening. As he gained a little more courage he then inquired of her. "When I asked if you would marry me, did you say “Yes” or did you say “No?” "Why you silly man, I said ‘Yes. Yes I will.’ And I meant it with all my heart." The widower was delighted. He felt his heart skip a beat. Then she continued. "And I am so glad you called because I couldn't remember who asked me!” *As received from S R Badrinarayanan via Group mail (Don't remember if this was included in Collage earlier. What is this about?-Warrier)