MARRIAGE AND LOVE - PART 1

Marriage is a tradition followed to announce openly to the society that the couple is going to live together. All the people who attend the marriage bless the couple to live together happily as long as they live. But are all the couples who marry in this way, really happy?

Pre-Independence and Upto 1970's:

Very few women had jobs and the majority took care of the households, cooking, cleaning, washing, etc. In such a scenario, one does not get to know about the girl one is about to get married to. Women had many restrictions. They never spoke to strangers, especially men. One never gets to know about the other until they get married. Selection of the bride/bride groom used to be through horoscopes. How does one know that a particular girl would match to a particular boy without even knowing them or even looking at them? Where was the chance to know about them? It was a dreadful thought to have contacts with the opposite sex before the marriage. There was no way to know about the attitude of the person. Hence people believed and trusted the horoscopes.

The influence of the planetary motion on the human mind is still a mystery to a lot of people. How does the plantes determine the human psychology? The 9 planets and the 12 zodiacs form a total of 108 elements that are divided into 27 stars with 4 elements each. Why all this crap at all for marriages? Every planet is associated with certain amount of gravitational pull associated with it. The time and place of birth of any person determines the latitude and the longitude of that place and hence the 'real' time in the stellar. Astronomy and Astrology go on par with each other. The positions of the planets and stars during the time of birth of a person determine his attitude and fate. Do you believe this? Anyways, this was the belief in those days.

So for a perfect, the so called 'ideal' match, people used to travel from one place to the other in search of bride. Caste and sect were also key criteria for the search. Caste and sect determine the practices that one follows in ones house. The rituals, the beliefs, the customs and the traditions are different for various sects, hence the sect becomes a bar for the search. Finally after executing the heuristic algorithm with these criteria, they find a match, which actually they assume matched, and let the marriage happen. Then starts the time for the couple to know about each other. What if they dont like them? Stupid question. After having seen the horoscopes, they ought to like each other. But even then, what if they dont like? Damn it!! Once committed, there is no roll back.

Since a majority of the families were joint, after the marriage, the girl had to work for the entire family. The expectations for her are set. What to talk, what not to talk, how to behave are taught. In other words, they are dictated. Who likes to be dictated? Does not one has the freedom to think in ones own way? But unfortunately, this was the scenario of our ancestors.

1970's till 2000:

Times have changed. Technology has improved. Families became nuclear. Hence more houses. Cost of living was increased. Women have started becoming educated. More schools and colleges. More jobs. Women started working. They started supporting their families financially as well. Since women just began to interact with men, and since one had their own restrictions and limitations, marriages in this period also followed the age old tradition of looking at the horoscopes. But this time the search operation was perfomed within the known families, friends and relatives of the same caste. Sect was a bar still, but sub-sect no more a bar. The percentage of working women and men was in the ratio 1:9. Women could be said as liberated, since they started expressing their views, started exploring things on their own and started living on their own, but on a lower scale.

21st Century:

Youth in this century are totally different. They have got the technology available at their convenience. Computers, Internet, Cell phones, bikes, what not? Born to the people of earlier generation as described above, children in this generation, especially girls were raised as equally as a boy was. There is no difference in any aspect. They compete in every field. Girls have finally obtained their freedom. They behave the way they want, they dress up the way they want, they live the way they want. Today every girl has a job. The ratio of working men and women is 1:1. House hold work is also shared by both. Girls and boys interact a lot. They have the technology with them to share things privately. There are absolutely no restrictions.

Marriages in this scenario are quite different. Since boys and girls grow together and get to know one another very well right from the school days till their jobs, there are more chances of selecting their spouse by themselves. Parents in this century have seen their ancestors and are also seeing the youth of today. They are unable to decide which life is better. They just cant ignore the traditions and customs that have been followed since ages. At the same time they cant dictate terms to the younger generation. There still are arranged marriages, though the percentage of love marriages (a term given to the type of marriage when the couple chooses their spouse on their own) is increasing.

Marriage, performed in any generation, any type, is ultimately meant for the couple to be happy. They are expected to love each other and raise their children in a harmonious environment. But we find flaws and failures in both the arranged and love marriages. Undoubtedly, the divorce rates are increasing. So the main purpose of the marriage element is lost. Why? Are there any basic qualities which the couples are missing to possess? What do they need to do to restore their happy married life?

Read on...

GOD - WHO IS IT? PART - 2

Weber's theory of magnetism considers the molecular alignment of the material. This theory assumes that all magnetic substances are composed of tiny molecular magnets. Any normal bar of iron would be non-polar. All the molecules would be randomly placed. There is very less energy associated with the bar. Now try to polarize the magnet by applying a magnet in a particular direction. What happens? After some time, all the molecules align to a particular
direction and hence the normal iron bar becomes a bar magnet. This bar magnet will now have more energy. It would now behave differently. But why all this crap now?

Our human body is also composed of many materials. Any normal human being is non-polar. Once he/she gets polarized, they gain more energy and reach higher energy levels. And hence they become powerful. They become God. Height of stupidity, rite?? What happens when one has the highest enery level? The end of the spectrum; Gamma rays? Beyond that? May be equal to the heat energy at the core of the Sun. So one reaches that state. Many reactions keep taking place there. At such high temparatures, the inert gases begin to liquify. Beyond that? Our technology has taken us only till moon and mars. Sun and beyond, yet to be discovered. Salvation, as popoularly said to be the ideal state of any being, where there is no life after reaching that state, is thus the highest level of energy that can be imagined. But why do we need energy?

We need energy to work. Newton's laws were formulated to establish the relation between work and energy. How much energy one needs to work? We get energy from the food, water, air and sun light, just as any other animal or plant gets. Then all of us(living creatures) are in the same energy level, rite!! Then why higher energy levels? There is immense potential in each living creature, which we unfortunately do not realise. Once we get high energy, we will have power to do what ever we want. Energy is power (both have the same units..joule, watt, newton, etc.) If one feels that God can do miracles using his power, then even we can. When we reach God or become God, or in my words, reach the supreme energy level, we will have unlimited power. Whatever you have read that God could do, can be done by us.

The so called re-incarnation of God, as what people believe was not first in the human form. There were many other forms before this. First was an aquarian (totally inside the water - fish), then as an amphibian (water and land - turtle), then an animal (pig), animal - human (lions face - human body), a dwarf human, and finally as a human being. And after that It always took the human form. In every form, it was proved that He could do anything and everything. Hence all creatures are capable of becoming the God.

Now that we have seen why to increase the energy, lets see how to increase the energy levels? (This is what people call realisation of the God).As said previously, one needs to be polarised to have higher energies. How to get polarised? This is not with any bar (like a soap) to apply on our body. This is through certain practices. Here comes the term 'Discipline'.
Discipline may denote any training intended to produce a specific character or pattern of behaviour, especially training that produces moral, physical, or mental development in a particular direction. A set of practices, when practised regularly, makes you polarise. What sort of practices one needs to practice?

Instead of writing an essay on what are to be practised as for a 16 marks question, I shall write in brief 5-steps.

1. Irrespective of any religion, there are certain moral values that are to be maintained to have a fair-harmonious-non-judicial environment in the world. Truth, non-violence, treating others equally as one self, etc. are some of them. This is the first step.

2. There are certain principles with which one should develop ones attitude, which paves the way to reach higher energies. Cleanliness, modesty, the feeling of being content with what we have are some of them.

3. A healthy mind in a healthy body. Until the body is fit and healthy, our mind does not function the way it is supposed to. One needs to be physically healthy and strong.

4. Breathing is life. It is one of our most vital functions. Our life span is inversely proportional to the number of breaths we take per minute. Sounds funny?? A dog takes 80-100 breaths a minute. It lives for a max. of 15-20 years. A tortoise on the other hand, breathes once in 30 minutes or so and hence lives for more than 200 years. Proper breathing is to bring more oxygen to the blood and to the brain, and to control the vital life energy. This comes through practice.

5. Meditation. To meditate is to make the mind observe null. I have very easily written this statement, but in practice it needs lot of practise to achieve that state of calmness. Our energy levels are spread across the spinal cord right from the spine to the head. The least energy level is at the spine and the highest is at the centre of the head. To make the energy levels rise in us, we need to meditate constantly. When one has the energy level rose to the level of his head, he/she is the supremo. They are said to have realised the God. Many saints have realised this through years of practice. One thus needs to be disciplined to reach that state.

Then why do we worship somebody? Faith and belief. If we have some ailment to be cured, we go to a doctor and believe in what ever medicine he prescribes. With the only faith that his medicine would work and ofcourse the effect of the medicine, our ailment gets cured. Trust, Hope, Faith and Belief are thus the essential elements any normal human being has. We get what we deserve and not what we desire. Do you ask for grades in the school? The lecturers evaluate your performace based on your marks, assignments, behaviour and various other parameters. If you feel that you have not done well in the exam, do you really want higher grades? Do well in the exam. you need not ask for anything. Similarly, everyone of us is evaluated by certain parameters by the nature (ones own conscience apart). If the deeds we perfom are good, the fruits of it, we enjoy. If not, we suffer.

At the grass root level, I would like to conclude saying that God is something that every individual perceives. One can choose to take ones own path to realise the truth. But do not blindly follow somebody. Have faith in what you believe.

You are THE ONE.

GOD - WHO IS IT? PART 1

Disclaimer: This is a controversial topic.

Subjective to my thoughts, please do not treat this as something against any race/creed/religion. This is purely irreligious. Any idea which contradicts yours, is purely fictious.

The following are my views towards God.

At the very tender age of 2 or 3 years when the child begins to utter some sounds, the elders teach him/her how to pray. They make them repeat what they say. Oh God!! Please take care of us; Please GIVE US happiness, health, wealth and what not. Please give me the ability to judge what is good and what is bad. Make the world a better place to live. Spread peace.. Every child would grow in such an environment where the so called "God" is framed in a shelf in a corner of the house, or these days in a separate 20X20X20 cft room in a house where we see all the idols of Gods with many other items used in performing rituals.
What are the elders trying to do? Why are we taught Who, How, What God is? Are they trying to make us realise the truth? People say that God exists in every human, in every living being and in children. Then why teach them how to salute, how to chant, etc. From the stage of being featus inside the womb of the mother till death, is it not ones own responsibility and ones own instinct to know what God is? The meaning of God or the mysterious truths cannot be taught by long speeches or religious books. It can only be realised by one self. We all know that God is some entity that is independent of any religion. Then why religion? Why various practices are enforced to be followed? Why rituals?

There are so many books written about these things. Various people have tried to express their own feelings, thoughts towards God. Many deliver speeches which we can hear in the popular television channels daily morning. What are all these people trying to do? Are they trying to make people realise something? or teach something? If so, every person who is speaking or who authored a book must have realised something or known something that they are trying to tell the world.

There are many mythologies, histories in every religion in the world which tell something about how to realise God. That means that there are many ways to realise Him. The word 'Him' will imply that God is in a male human form. We could also have used other pronouns like 'It', but since people saw Him in human form, we are continuing this. My basic question is why are we following/practising the rituals or practices that have been followed for ages together? We also know that many are being customised. So if these things can be customised, then what is that we are supposed to do? Why are there customs when the concept of God is independent of cusotms and practices? Or rather why should we follow them?

Who/What/where/Why/How is God?

I shall use the word 'It' rather than 'Him' only to express my thought that God is formless, hence no nouns or pronouns. What we know is that many years before, people realised God in many forms. Those who have personified God must have seen It in the dreams or through naked eyes and hence we have the anthropomorphic forms of It. Lot of people are making their lives by selling those photos/frames/idols, etc. Added to this, we have the famous painters like Raja Ravi Varma and many other who in the courts of great kings have painted the human forms of God both in masculine(God) and feminine (Goddess) forms. Has God something to do with gender? Anyways, we also believe that many epics like Mahabharatha, Ramayan, The Crusade, have really happened since we have historic dates for the events. Our ancestors have successfully described the heroes of the epics in many books and stories and have realised that those heroes were God's. When asked whether there are multiple Gods, the answer we receive is God in many forms.

All this might look wierd, but I wanted to express my thoughts and feelings about God.

God according to me, in one word is energy.

Sun - undoubtedly is the source of energy for all life in the solar system. Plants, animals (human beings), and various other forms of life (Biology categorizes into Protozoa, Polifera, homosapiens, chordata, etc. I am not good at biology though) http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scientific_classification

Air, Water, Earth, Fire and the Sky are the five elements of the universe. There is no denial of this fact. They also take energy from the Sun. Solar energy is the one single source of energy that we have in our solar systems. Does any body know that there exist many other solar systems?

So The Sun is the supremo. All the planets orbit around the Sun, since 'It' has its own gravity and energy. According to the law of conservation of energy, energy can not be created or destroyed—it can only be changed from one form to another.Every single unit of living creature on this planet Earth has some energy with which it grows. But the energy levels vary. Right from the time of conception till death, every creature has some amount of energy associated with it. While growing, the energy levels increase/decrease according to the electromagnetic spectrum. If our energy is in the visible spectrum range, then it would appear as a visible color. Almost all the living beings are far below the visible spectrum, hence we dont see the halo around us.
When we die, the energy in us is converted into some other form, not necessarily a human form again. It could be a non-living creature also. Yes, they do have certain energy levels in them. Right from the Atomic theory of Dalton till the Bohr's model, energy is associated with every atom. Some people, popularly called the insinful, reach a moksha stage. An electron which has the highest energy level will be just near the nucleus and the one with the least is the farthest. Similarly, if a creature or a human being has high energy at the time of death, that energy would search for its conversion at higher enery levels in the atmosphere. The more the energy, the closer to the Sun. Our energy levels right now are very less compared to the Sun. Until an electron has a minimum threshold energy, it cannot reach a higher energy state.

Since God is energy, the more energy one has, the more God he is. In other words, one can realise God at higher energy levels.The Gods we see in the photos have a halo around them. That indicates that they are at higher energy states. Realisation of God means to feel the higher energy flowing in and out of one self. How much is that energy? Do we have that in us?At what state are we currently?

Wierd thoughts, rite!! Want to have more stupidity?? Go ahead!!

LIFE IN THE US - PART 1

United States of America - Currency - Dollar; 1 Dollar = 42 Rupees; Land of freedom; Land to earn money; Land to spend money;

I learnt that Indian people take some or the other paths to come to this land. Thousands of students come here to pursue their masters. Most of the students are from engineering back ground. They write GRE/TOEFL and get admission into some or the other universities, apply for an F1 visa, keep a vow to God to make 108 pradakshanams to get the visa stamped and finally come here with home made pickles, powders, and lots of wishes from friends and relatives in the airport.Due to inadequate or almost no funding, most of them (almost 95% of them) work to earn for their living apart from paying the fees for the college. They work in malls, marts, coffee shops, hotels, gas stations, etc.to get 10 - 20$ hourly. Since they also have to attend the college, they end up working for 40-50hrs per week on an average. This meagre amount would be just sufficient to sustain theirliving and make phone calls to India back home. Car, here is a necessity. So they take rental cars or purchase second hand cars, payment for which they make through credit cards issued by manybanks here. Each person would have atleast 2 credit cards from different banks. 2 years of graduation studies happen this way. By the end of the graduation, each student who has not receivedfinancial aid in any form in any of the semesters, would have a min. of 15K$ credit. 2 years of nostalgia would make them visit back home once. They go to India with lots of gifts for friends andrelatives just to see them happy although they are in debts. They have to return to the US atleast to clear the debts and to earn a little.
This is one path that students choose to come to the US and make a living.

The other path is to complete some graduation (preferably in IT) in India, apply for a H1 through an Indian consultant here, make a vow to God to make 108 pradakshinams to get the visa stamped and come here. Students who complete their MS here also join the same consultancy. The consultant places them into some projects for some clients in some state in some technology, which he trains them on. There might be a single consulant or a chain of consultants between the client and the consultant who pays them. After a series of deductions by the chain of consultants, the candidate, famously called as Contractor, gets the payment. Some consultants deduct the amount for H1 and training on a monthly basis. In this way, the so called graduate contractors work for various clients on varioustechnologies in various states in a span of 2-4 years with or without visiting back home. Finally after clearing all the debts (which is an ideal case and hence never happens), they plan to earn some moneyfor savings or constructing a house back home. Due to the inflation rate IT has brought in India, a mediocre 800sft 2 bed room apartment in any city would cost not less than 15-20 lakhs. Based on the interests, tastes andfeasibility, people stay here to earn some amount while spending some of it to see the places here in the US like Niagara Falls, Los Angles, Pittsburgh, Smokies, Disney, etc.So the so called savings would take a lot of time to get accumulated. In the meanwhile, since their age would be incresing in terms of numbers (say 27-35), the people back home would be pressurizingto get them married. After a series of matrimonial hits, they decide to get married to an IT graduate and bring along with them to the US.

Marriage in India..Lots of sweets, varieties of food, desi band, desi dresses, dance, all the friends and relatives at a single place and time...really fun.They come back again to the US with spouse and shift the apartment from shared accomodation to a 1 or 2 BHK flat. Instead of going to Sub Ways, Mc Dondalds or Burger King as they previously used to do,now they go more to the Indian Stores and Desi hotels. If the spouse gets bored at home and/or has a gradution in IT done, they would join them into some consultancy and get a job in some place, preferably the same place.In case if luck turns bad, she has to move to a different place. On road if it takes 5-8 hrs, weekly once they meet. If the distance is more than that, they take a flight once in 2 weeks to meet each other.Both of them earn for their commmon savings, common interests and expenditure. Both miss each other and always plan to get a job in the same place. After a couple of years or more, since the parents back home pressurise them tohave a child, they meticulosuly plan their future to have a child delivered in the US. His/Her parent(s) would come for about 3-6 months during the time of labor to take care of the child and the family.If the couple feel that both have to continue working and hence it would be difficult to raise their child, and if their parents are willing to take care of their grand child, they send the child to India so thatthe prospective US Citizen would get trained in Indian heritage and culture from his/her grand parents, which he would miss otherwise.If parents are too old, there are many child cretches here who take care of children.

Time moves on and one day they have to hear the news about the bedridden state of either of their parents. The couple has still not yet accumulated money to purchase a flat in India and more over they are still in debts.To and From charges to India through the cheapest deal would cost around 1200$ which apperas to be very costly compared to the 1500$ spent for Las Vegas trip or the Orlando trip. More over they would not get leaves approved formore than a week for which they have to forgo the money apart from the additional expenditure for India visit. Any how since they have to see their parents at the last stages, one of them goes to India to see the parents and wish that they coulddie instead of the suffering so that they need not come again to India for this purpose. Fortunately, if the old die, these people perform the ritauls and come back again. If they have siblings back home to take care of the still-alive other parent,these people need not worry. But if that is not the case, they either plan to bring the parent here so that he/she could take care of their only child in the US or go back to India, which they cannot because the main purpose of survival here would be lost.

Life moves on in this way until their child grows up and lives on his own independently. If the couple really pine to come back to India, they might do so. But after having stayed here for so many years, it becomes difficult to leave this land and go back to their native land.

DONT STOP WITH THIS...READ PART - 2

LIFE IN THE US - PART 2

The exodus of people from India to the US could also be for various other reasons apart from the above mentioned case.

There are no doubt many positive facets of life here in the US. As mentioned earlier, US of A is a land of freedom. One could be the way they wanted to be. It could be the way they dress, the way they work, the way they spend their time and money, or the way they maintain relationships with the others, which most of them might not be enjoying back home. As an example, lets consider the work culture here. Almost every employee/contractor here is paid on an hourly basis. They work for 8 hrs a day and 5 days a week. For any amount of extra work/hours they spend, they would be paid. This is not the case in India. Regardless of any amount of hours/work one does there, they get the same amount paid monthly. Coming to the work culture, there is no bossism here. Ofcourse, these days many of the companies in India also have no bossism (officially said). But we can find people gossipping/complaining/dominating.

Coming to the human relationships among friends and relatives, Indians are more interested in knowing about the others. Most of the people undoubtedly are not the same as they appear. Every individual needs to be given some private space and freedom. But most of us are either dictated/forced/convinced by others ideas and opinions. The level of lenience that people take or give is more. Some people would not like others to grab lenience from them. The Americans
behave quite differently in this matter. Every individual has some space and they do not indulge in others matters. They devote their time in enjoying life the way they want. Certain things are both positive/negative in the India and the US. The government of the US takes care of the primary education for all the US children. It also takes care of the old and the destitutes. Hence there is no obligation for the children or the old to stay with their familes. Since every individual irrespective of age, sex, race, creed, earn for their living, one is out of the bondage that we usually have in our families. But it is a good sign to see the old working with enthusiasm and leading their lives independently, rather than depending upon their children for the living.

Children in India are taken care of by their parents until they get a job for their living, average age of which is 20 years. The parents earn and spend the money for their children's education, food and other utilities. As it is a give and take policy every where, the children would look after their parents in their old age. This depends on the amount of affection one has on ones parents. Normally, people work in India until they reach the age of 60 and stop working after that enjoying their retiral benefits. That is not the case here. As long as the body and mind function, these people work and earn for their living and spend life the way they want.

IIMs, IITs, REC (NIT)s, AIIMS and many other educational institutions in India undoubtedly produce thousands of intelligent, creative master minds who take part in improving the world. They are helping the mankind and making the human life easier and better. After struggling through 7-10 years of highly competitive environment in India to study the courses from various prestigious institutions, they get admissions into the universities where they get an
opportunity to utilise their skill and genious to discover new paths of life to the world. US and many other rich countries have well established laboratories, universities and technology available with them. India has got independence only 60 years back. It takes many more years to see such things established in India. Hence institutions all over the world recognise Indian students as the potential to make proper usage of their technology in making research, business, and hence involve in the global development of the human race.

10 years back in India, mobile phone and laptop were considered to be the gadgets for a rich man. Today they are the necessary tools for a common man. ATM machines, automated systems and various other features that we have in every industry today, were beyond imagination some 20 years back. Who made it possible to bring such revolutions? The technologists and the business people. Today, computer is a very common word that is known to every living person on the earth. Was this the scenario 15 years back? In such a short span (15 years), the technology rose to a very high level, which the technologists also might not have dreamt.
Digital camera, which needs no development of the film into a negative, was a sensation. With a handy cam, any person could shoot the motion pictures. Mobile technology is a revolution. Telephone and telegraph industry started with tring tring trunk call to be connected just 50 years back. From then we saw the telegram which used telegraphic codes, land line telephone (used by people who were well-off and normal people used to use their neighbours phone as PP),
pager, organiser, black and white mobile phone, CDMA, blue tooth, mobile with integrated camera, wireless, and now the most awaited iPhone, which has incorporated all the features of iPod, phone and internet browser within a single equipment, which can be operated completely by touch. There is no keypad in it. The cost of Computers and memory devices were so huge that only companies which needed them invested in them. Today how much does a laptop cost? Less than Rs.25000. Memory sticks of 2 GB are given as birthday gifts. Who made possible all these things in such a short span of time? The various students turned technologists have struggled years of their lives in laboratories to discover and make such innovations. Businessmen made such technology available to the common man. These are the changes that took place in the world in recent years. Many Indians were part of these changes.

US welcomed Indian people and gave us an opportunity to bring about the change and we have proved ourselves in various fields like Medicine, IT, Electronics, Communication, Transportation, Banking, Agriculture, Chemicals, Pharmacy, Management and many other industries. In this process, many Indians have made their life in the US. Many have sacrificed their mother land, their parents, friends and relatives, happiness, just to serve the world. Given an opportunity who would not like to go back to their schools and make fun of their teachers again? Who would not like to play with their friends? Who would not like to eat their mother made home food? In the 100 crore population in India, today we have lots of youngsters with immense potential. World has become smaller. Today it is a global village that we call the world as. It takes lesser time to travel from India to UK than to travel from Chennai to Delhi by train. There are many self-sufficient countries in the world who are inviting people to exhibit their skill. And the youth in India has to encash the opportunities. This was not the scenario 15 years back. The unemployment rate was high. The number of industries were less. Today we have many industries in India which are globally noticed. We have made our entry into the global business. We have created employment for ourselves by marketing ourselves. We have shown the world that we can prove our talent from any corner of the world.

Hence the exodus. Hence the migration of people to the other countries. We have generated wealth for ourselves, our country and the world. So today, we need not worry for being far from our motherland. We have to be couteous enough to thank our motherland for having given such wonderful youth, when we enjoyed, played in the mud, studied, danced and learnt what life is. The very instinct of the Indian heritage and culture would imbibe in us when we took birth on the land of India.There were thousands of familes in India whose standards of living rose due to their children working here in the US. Every father would be proud to send off his child to the US hoping that his child would be recognised by the entire world. The dreams which our elder generation dreamt are being realised in this generation and they are very happy about it. Standard of living in India on the whole has improved. Ofcourse technology has both boon and bane. It is up to the individual to take in the respective sense.

After having read Sudha Murthy's 'Dollar Bahu' and after having interacted with many Indians living in the US and the people of the US, I realised that one cannot judge about life in India or the life in the US. Where ever you are, be happy. Brain and Muscle - you use them or lose them. Use your mind and body to serve the society either directly or indirectly. Exemplify the next generation. Spread peace and love in the environment around you and make the world a better place to live.

Anand - manchi coffee laanti article

STATUTORY CAUTION: COFFEE IS INJURIOUS TO HEALTH

In India, my motherland, esp. in the Southern part of it, the day begins with the smell of Coffee.. On the one hand I would be so lazy that I never feel like pulling out the covers to smell the coffee but on the other I enjoy the fumes through the perforations of my quilt. Mom would have already prepared the decoction of the 60-40 chicori mixed powder crushed from coffee grains of Velmurugan coffee stores, a shop near my place where one would smell coffee and nothing else.

A strong syrup of the decoction filtering out from the small holes of the upper part of the bronze or steel filter mixed with 3-4 tea spoons of sugar and boiled milk would make my day begin pleasantly. If not at home, this is the same experience of many people in South India. Coffee business is 24X7. I come out of the house and find my friends having coffee in a saucer, poured out of a 3/4th filled small glass at stalls on the road side. Coffee is the one element in the society that both high class society as well as the low sector people have. Only the vessel, rather the cup is what that differs.

If you had read 'My American dateless Diary' of R.K.Narayanan, you would know how passionate one could be about coffee. My grand parents and people of their generation would consume coffee atleast thrice a day, each quantum being atleast 300ml. Ofcourse though I am not a coffee freak, I do enjoy it once a while.

As a child, I knew Brook Bond Green Label coffee. Then came the Sunrise (manchi ruchi tho udayam kotha Sunrise), followed by Bru (ye Bru hai maa),

Nescafe(http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hMoDW_cMMgg),

Leo (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V9qmJ79YuCs),

(http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qJLAl2UDW_I), and so on..

As I grew, the flavours, companies and products also have increased. Today I see Cafe Coffee days, Barrista, Coffee pubs, Coorg coffee, Coffee in pizza huts, etc. in different blends and flavours. I first heard the names Cappuchino, Espresso, Frappe just 4-5 years back. The very thought of having cold coffee was dreadful to me because I never have hot coffee if it becomes cold (rather luke warm). But to my surprise I liked the taste of Cold Coffee with frappe (ice cream). Love at first sight..oops..taste!!

Coffee is a global choice. Through out the world, people enjoy coffee in various blends. I dint realise this until I saw with my own eyes, sori tasted with my own tongue.

Ask a person in US about coffee. The first sound that is emitted is "Star Bucks". I never thought or imagined that there would be atleast 100 varieties of coffee. In reality there are many hundreds of flavours and blends. When ever I feel like having coffee at my work place, the toughest challenge I face is to select one flavour from among 15-20 varieties. French Roast, French Vanilla, Almondo, Milky way, and many more (names I dont remember, but tastes I do).

Poor old generation never knew how fast decoction could be made since they never were acqainted with percolator. The process of preparing decoction itself used to take atleast 30 minutes and 20 more minutes to prepare their customised filter coffee to fit to their taste. But it had its own taste, which we miss daily in the machinary coffee. It included many steps.

1. Mix chicory grains and coffee seeds in the proportionate ratio and crush them to powder

2. Boil water in a beaker

3. Based on the quantity required, add coffee powder in the filter (made of bronze or steel)

4. Pour the boiling water in it

5. Wait till the decoction filters through the perforation of the upper portion of the filter or a cloth and settles down.

6. Boil milk

7. Add hot decoction to hot milk in the required quantity

8. Add sugar

9. Mix thoroughly to and fro from a tumbler to a steel beaker (famously called davara) until you get required frappe

Today we see coffee machines installed in every IT company because efficient software cannot be developed without coffee. Coffee preparation became very easy these days. In fact, its just a three step process.
1. Select the flavour you want
2. Add creamer
3. Add sugar and stir with a couple of straws.

Whatever the mode of preparation might be, people all over the world cannot live without it till they/it become(s) exinct.