Is our traditions forgotten or lost?

India is known for its traditions and its cultures. Many different kinds of people live in this great land following their own traditions, well molding themselves in one accord with their fellow neighboring states respecting and also participating in their cultures as well. We have our own set of identities which keep us unique from the rest of the world. As we all know that we are being highly influenced by the western world, our own traditions are slowly fading away. So what effective measures can we take to save this culture of ours?

The IPL cricket sensation which is happening in our country could be used as a platform to not only show the world our cricketing talents but also as a stage to show case our own talents and exhibit our cultural traditions. Instead, we have hired models from foreign lands and showing them as a tool of generating business and as a mere crowd puller. Will not there be a crowd to watch the folk dancers perform in that same stage or a Bharatanatyam dancer perform.?

Music, the language of the heart and soul

The expression of the heart, the symbol of love, which is the ultimate ambassador for all the emotions a person feels is called music. Each tune has its own sweet meaning. It elevates a person to a different level, a special atmosphere, a desirable state of mind, speaking the language of the heart, healing its wounds and nursing the bruises caused by the very breath of a person.

Words cannot express music and its works, but it can only praise that art which is also not possible under most circumstances. It’s a source of life to the dead soul. It can also revive a person from his grave. It possesses a person with its own kind of spirit. Man’s imagination is weak; it needs support and prompting. So to revive their memories of the past, present and also to give an imagination of what his next move would be, music is necessary.

Music serves to prompt and revive memories of beauty, happiness, joy, pleasure, gladness, love and even sorrow in the minds of those people who are acquainted with it by experience and love to recall it. The relation to an equivalent aspect and phenomena of reality is the same as the relation of an engraving to the picture from which it was copied. This relationship is brought forth by the power of music. It recollects the past and takes you to reality itself and positions you in the period of that incidence.

A beautiful object in reality is not always accessible to everyone, but music makes it possible. It transforms you into that object to feel its value. The fragrance of a flower is sweet, but that same fragrance felt in an unconscious state brings in an innovative meaning to it, which is possible only through this life reviving art. Even the color or the sea may change, the sun may look different and earth may stand still, but music will safe guard you through these times of death though death is unavoidable but will for sure lead you through fine green pastures and show you the end of life in a lighter and a better way. It is a useful thing has all the right for respect and so is “Music a beginning of life”; that is precisely why the more perfectly transformable art is an imitation resembling the original. 

This is a universal language as it lets you understand what the song is about and feel its emotions even if you don’t understand the lyrics.

Media and Global Warming

Is global warming a sign of destruction? Well scientists and other scholars predict that this could well be the end of mankind from the face of this earth. Some say that this would destroy a major part of the earth, which could erase a part of human’s extinction. We would soon be an untraceable element in this planet. They say that global warming is the term used to describe a gradual increase in the average temperature of the Earth's atmosphere and its oceans, a change that is believed to be permanently changing the Earth’s climate forever. This is why we experience sever climatic conditions like never before. It has never been so hot in the month of March itself. We are heading towards terrible days ahead of us. Given the current scenario, I think that the heat waves have not yet started though we feel the heat creeping up our head.

Scientists from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate carrying out global warming research have recently predicted that average global temperatures could increase between 1.4 and 5.8 °C by the year 2100. Changes resulting from global warming may include rising sea levels due to the melting of the polar ice caps, as well as an increase in occurrence and severity of storms and other severe weather events. These series of climatic changes would lead to several issues concerning climate, food, destruction and economic breakdown.

Media’s role in global warming:

Media is the only tool through which people can learn more about this serious problem and could take necessary steps to control these changes and prolong man’s life on this planet. Much of what people learn about global warming comes from news sources like television, the Internet, newspapers, magazines, films and radio. In today’s age, most people get their view of the world from mainstream media. It is, therefore, important that mainstream media be objective and present accurate and diverse representations of what goes on around the world.

Accurate media representation of world issues is crucial. Media has to show the fact as what it is. Whenever media reports are censored or biased, the people’s basic rights are systematically undermined. In these situations, violations and unaccountability often go unnoticed and suppressed viewpoints become commonplace. Everyone has the right to freedom of opinion and expression; this right includes freedom to hold opinions without interference and to seek, receive and impart information and ideas through any media and regardless of frontiers.

I entrust my unknown future on a known God

With all the possible things we do in our daily life, the degrees we learn, the work we do, and the things we aspire for, finally we end up in no man’s land. This is a fact in the sense that, all these things make up something in the society and help us achieve what we want in life but yet get us nowhere at the end of this life. Then what are we living for? It is just for the Lord Jesus Christ.

Though we don’t achieve anything in this life or though we don’t make a mark in this society, there is one hop for us if we only obey the will of Jesus and walk according to His word. We get to live for eternity. Even the richest person on this earth cannot achieve this great hope of living through eternity. Even his works in the earth is limited only to this lifetime. But we a have hope and a purpose to live for. This gives us a way to live forever. I have a ray of hope that others don’t have.

No person can predict his future. No one can be sure of what his future would be. There will be a doubt in everybody’s mind about his or her future. There is only uncertainty prevailing everywhere. This world may get destroyed anytime. That’s what the scientists predict as well. Global warming crisis is creeping into everyone’s minds these days. Incurable diseases are found on the rise everywhere. We never know when it would affect us. We might have got many degrees behind our name and work as even the general manager of the biggest company in this world, but still there is only uncertainty before him. But I “entrust my unknown future on a known God”. I have submitted my unknown future in the hands of my God, the Lord Jesus Christ. I am now certain about my destiny. I know what I will do and where I will go.

Controlling anger

The main resistance for the central nervous system is that you have to be in a peaceful state of mind especially in time of crises. This is a very important thing that I learnt very recently. Temperament works well if you treat it the right way. Controlling a temperament is in our hands. There are a hundred ways suggested by a numerous people to control temperament, but yet I thought I can suggest some suggestions that could be useful.

Try going off to sleep whether you may be standing, sitting, walking, running or eating. This controls your anger and puts you in a very calm state of mind. It may sound very funny as many ask me how to sleep when they are in meeting or even running for that matter? But still it’s not difficult to do so as it’s not the eyes that should close when your sleeping but it’s the brains that should shut down its operations. By doing so it puts you in a very clam state of mind and stabilizes your mental position.

“Sleep” is a gift which has to come naturally as I personally believe that a person who can sleep without much strain is a blessed person. Sleep reduces pain and tension and cuts you off from the rest of this world and the things happening around you. So if you are a natural “sleeper” you are at a lesser risk of getting stressful by the tensions of your daily work pressure. This activity can be dealt with effectively if used wisely only when needed. For example: When you are pinned down by your boss in the office, try sleeping with your eyes open, Within a second you will go into a another world of yours where you may hear what he speaks but not even a single word would enter your hear. This reduces the damage that it causes to your central nervous system. Thought it may sound silly for some people, its still is a healthy option available to many.

Now having said this, sleep should not become an unnecessary habit. Over dose of this pill will cause you to become lazy. Again this has its own adverse effect on an individual. Laziness can even make you a zero in this society if you sleep too much. So beware before you take up this most effective “stress release action”.

Time is too much

Working at nights has not always been desirable but circumstances have made me to take up this job. It was when I joined my M.phil course at the Madras University, I found that life could not be less interesting than this. It was this that led me to take up this job because I thought I could at least keep myself occupied at night as I was practically wasting the entire day at college. Fortunately everything turned out to be well at work and I am enjoying my stay there.

Though life has become busy as never before working in the nights and attending classes during day time, I find time for myself, my family and friends. I still hang around with my friends and manage to stay close with my parents more than I used to be before. Apart from this, I still continue with my music playing and also take music classes. People call me to play in different churches and other Christian meetings for which I give my first preferences.

I feel that I still get a lot of time left and sometimes even wonder how to kill it. Because of this I developed a new interest towards watching Japanese animation movies and also got a bit addicted to online games as well. This new diversion has helped me to kill some time and I make use of the rest by blogging and off course spending more time at my Lord’s presence. When I having such a busy schedule could manage to do so many things and still manage to get some time to waste, I guess how people could say that they don’t get any time at all?

My daily routine as of now (From December 2009 till may be I complete my M.phil)

I wake up at 8.30 in the morning, finish my morning duties and straight head to college. I should reach there by 10 to get my attendance for that day. So I make sure I leave early to reach there in time. It’s as usual there, none of me lectures would have come at that time and if at all they were there, they would be doing some work. Then I sit down to have a chit chat with my friends talking about politics, life, love, girls and whatever comes up at that time and suddenly we realize that it’s 1 o’clock and time to have our lunch. I then wait till others have their food because I don’t fell hungry at that time and so I keep listening to songs trying a get a small nap till they all finish their lunch, but still I fail most of the time because of the noisy environment over there. The talk continues after their lunch session is over and we continue to talk on things we left off. Time waits for none and suddenly I feel my stomach pinching me from inside and that’s the time I open my lunch box and its 2 or even 2.30 sometimes.

Again we have a small lunch session, the guys alone, because I don’t eat my food fully and then we head to the tea shop after a while which is near our department itself. But the strong tea never helps me to stay awake and my head starts to spin which nobody understands or even realizes that this is happening to me. I then start back home at about 3 or 3.30 sometimes even later. As soon as I reach home I hit my bed and sneak off into dreamland.

At the stroke of 6 my mom comes back home and wakes me up and by 6.30 I finish my dinner and head off to work. Well, after that I have to stay there till 4 and sometimes it extends till 5. Then I come back home sleep at once I enter the house and wake up again at 8 that same day in the morning. It’s the pure grace of my Lord that keeps me going despite this hectic schedule of mine. He leads me in a miraculous way. His unseen hand guards me and shows me the way in which I have to go. Let all praise and honor be to my Lord Jesus Christ alone.

Aesthetization of Politics in Tamil Nadu

Aestheticization is used to depict as being pleasing or to symbolize to be in an idealized or refined manner in Tamil Nadu from the time the very concept of politics was recognized by the people of our state. From the very beginning people used some kind of reaching motion of medium to correspond or to entrust their ideas on others. Whenever Periyar voiced his ideas he used to be different from the sayings of others which made people think the other way. This was a tool used by him to spread his views. His ideas are strongly recommended by many (Even I am a strong follower of Periyar) because of his fight against injustice. This thought being different from the authoritarian rule of that time.

The “King Maker” Mr. Kamaraj started his early political life by joining the congress party at an very early age of 16 by participating in the march to Vedaranyam led by C. Rajagopalachari as part of the Salt Satyagraha in March 1930. This was his first step to get into active politics by being different from the authoritarian rule of that time.

Early politicians used aestheticization to propaganda a noble cause which will benefit the people. But as years went by, modernization started playing an important role in politics. People started using the visual medium as a strong tool to spread their fame. The late Conjeevaram Natarajan Annadurai, the then chief minister of Tamil Nadu shot to fame not only because of his well known oratorical skills and his writing abilities, he used theater as an effective medium to gain popularity. He had scripted and acted in several plays. Some of his plays were later made as movies. He was the first politician from the Dravidian parties to extensively use Tamil cinema for political propaganda.

After him following in his footsteps was the great M. G. Ramachandran who later became the most popular Chief Minister of this state. He made his film debut in 1935, in the film Sati Leelavati. M. G. R. dominated Tamil cinema during the Fifties and Sixties with multiple blockbusters. He rose to super-stardom in 1954 after Malai Kallan. Later, this film was used as a template for other films by playing roles that portrayed him as the savior of the poor and the oppressed. His movies were the medium of communication for the Dravidian movement. He had the maximum number of all-time blockbusters to his credit at that time. This stardom status helped him to make a mark in the political arena in this state. The party which is founded by him the A.I.A.D.M.K swept the polls whenever it consisted for elections under his leadership. Such was his stardom effectively used in politics. His co-star in most of his movies actor J. Jayalalithaa took up his post in that party after his demise.

Our current Chief Minister MR. M. Karunanidhi began his career as a scriptwriter in the Tamil film industry. He is known for his wit and oratorical skills, qualities which helped his rapid rise as a popular politician. He was famous for writing historical and social (reformist) stories which propagated the socialist and rationalist ideals of the Dravidian movement to which he belonged. His stardom saw him get elected at the highest office in this state five times. His greatest political rival J. Jayalalithaa started acting when she was 15. She acted in a number of films in which most of them were with M. G. Ramachandran through which she entered politics as well.

Political parties have started owning television channels which serve as a strong tool to furnish their goals and to make a strong mark among the common man. The sun tv network and the Ktv network owned by the DMK family is the largest viewed regional channel in Asia. This medium helps them give a fast reach. Similarly the Jaya tv network is owned by the AIADMK chief.

Nowadays every other actor in Tamil cinema wants to become a politician. They enter active politics once they get a little bit established in the film field. The recent actors changed politician is Vijayakanth who is the founder of the Desiya Murpokku Dravida Kazhagam. Looking at him followed Mr. Sarathkumar who started his career in Tamil cinema playing negative roles, and later played minor roles in other movies. He then later started a new political party claiming to carry out the ideals of K. Kamaraj Nadar.