A history and a story

Maratha power first consolidated themselves in South India and later in Orissa. In Aug 1757, in response to the Afghan invasion, the Marathas send a large force to invade Delhi. Once conquered, the Marathas continued to gain control over Punjab and made incursions into Afghanistan. It was answered by Ahmad Shah Durrani amassing a large army to halt the marauding Marathas. They finally clashed on 14 Jan 1761 at Panipat which is the Third Battle of Panipat. 

Between 1761 and 1764, the Mughal Emperor, Shah Alam II tired to consolidate his hold over the central province areas. After striking a deal with the Bengal, Benaras and Awadh State, they went to war with the East India Company which is the Battle of Buxar in which the British were victorious. 

British placed a garrison of troops for the first time in 1765. The Treaty of Allahabad was signed on 16 Aug 1765. It gave the British access to provinces of Bengal, Bihar and Orissa. It also provided the East India Company an opportunity to directly influence the politics of Central India. From the word go the East India Company tried hard to gain control over the fort. Once the Nawab of Awadh was bankrupt, he finally handed over the fort to British on 1798. 

For the British, the Allahabad Fort was the ultimate prize because it gave access to Bihar, Bengal and Orissa. The fort could garrison large number of troops and stores due to the huge size of the fort. It was the largest fort that Akbar had built. 

Meanwhile the architect of the Alliance which went to war, the Mughal Emperor was almost in a house arrest inside the fort. He knew that a day will come when the British will have complete access. Shah Alam II finally got the opportunity to move out of Allahabad Fort and move to Delhi in 1772. 

The Mughal Emperor was brought in Delhi by Mahadaji Scindia. Together they started consolidating their power and position. First the took care of the Rohillas and drove them to the mountains out of Rohilkhand. This expedition enabled the Marathas to control Delhi, Haryana and the regions on UP upto Prayagraj. A permanent garrison of Maratha troops was stationed at Delhi. This scenario remained till 30 Dec 1803 when Daulat Scindia, the son of Mahadaji Scindia signed a treaty with the East India Company and handed over all the territories to the British.

But 1772 was not the first time the Marathas were in Delhi. Before that they send a large force which camped outside Delhi. The Afghans had kept the Rohillas in charge over a puppet Mughal Emperor. After two weeks of intense fighting, the Marathas drove out the Rohillas out of Delhi. The administration of Delhi was placed under Antaji Mankeshwar as a Governor of Delhi. This event happened in Aug 1757. 

So technically, we have the Marathas in control of Delhi from 1757 to 1803. While East India Company first placed a garison of troops in Allahabad Fort in 1765 and finally taking control of the fort in 1798. 

Central India was split into two power centres. One at Delhi controlling Haryana, Punjab and Western UP. Other at Prayagraj controlling  Eastern UP, Bengal, Bihar and Orissa. This situation continued for around 50 years. Allahabad Fort was the key for gaining control over the Eastern portion of Central India.

If you check out India 100 years ago, it was mostly divided into zones with large tracts of unoccupied or sparsely occupied lands and areas. The Ganga Yamuna region is the most fertile land and the cradle of civilisation. Cities and kingdoms have always been made next to rivers. So as per that definition, Prayagraj was a bottle neck. A place where someone could set up a fortification and exert control.

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Today the railways is on time, spick and span and is managed efficiently. The year is 2024 and it is very important to mention this because running Railways efficiently is an important part of the govt functioning and spending. The present govt has done exactly that by heavily investing in railways and infrastructure. Today rail travel is an enjoyable experience which builds up on history.

1.   The first passenger train in India ran between Bori Bunder and Thane on 16th April 1853 covering a distance of 34 kms. It carried around 400 passengers. The train was operated by Great Indian Peninsular Railway (GIPR). The train had 14 bogies and was pulled by three steam engines by the names, Sahib, Sindh and Sultan. This railway line was extended to Kalyan in the same year in the month of May. The railway line was a double line. 

2.   The Great Indian Peninsular was a company formed in the year 1845 for building and operating railway networks in India. Another company on similar lines was formed in the same year by the name East Indian Railway Corporation. Since India that time was ruled by the East India Company, these railway companies were operated by private entrepreneurs. 

3.   The first goods train hauled by a steam locomotive ran in England in 1808. Within four years, 1812 the first of the passenger train started running in England. By 1830, the commercial railways started running all over England. Within the next 20 years, this technology was brought to India. Primarily for faster movement of good within the country and also generate revenue through passenger ticket sales.

4.   Bori Bunder could be the first railway station in India. It was built before 1853. Bori in Marathi means sack and Bunder is like a warehouse or rather a port. Later the railway station of rebuilt into a massive terminus the house the trains as well as the railway offices. Construction finished in 1888. Since then it was known as Victoria Terminus or VT for the locals until 2017 when it was renamed to Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus or CST. 

5.   Swachh Rail, Swachh Bharat campaign launched in 2015 has bore fruit 10 years later. Overall improvement in cleanliness on the railway track and platforms plus a competition between stations to bag the honors of the top slot. 

6.   Srikakulam Railway Station has bagged the award for the cleanest railway station in India. Other railway stations which keep figuring on the list of top 10 are Jaipur, Jodhpur, Surat, Beas, Rajkot, Surat, Vijaywada, Visakhapatnam and Anand Vihar Terminus. 

7.   While the railway stations of UP are giving the state the reputation it deserves, the honors for the dirtiest railway station in India has been taken by the Perungalathur Railway Station in Kerala. The next station on this list is Sadar Bazar Railway Station in New Delhi which is simply overwhelmed by the footfall of people. The other notable railways stations are all in Uttar Pradesh like Shahganj, Jhansi, Khurja and at times Agra and Kanpur too. 

8.   With such a vast network there is bound to be some paranormal activity reported. There are two officially recorded haunted stations in India. The Begunkodor Railway Station in West Bengal was closed for nearly 42 years when passengers reported seeing a woman wearing a saree in the station premises. It also led to unexplained deaths of people who reported seeing the woman. The station was reopened in 2009. In contrast Naini Junction Railway station near Prayagraj is haunted by good spirits. Many passengers have felt the presence of these spirits. These spirits are of the freedom fighters who were hanged in Naini Jail during the British rule. 

9.   Howrah Railway Station is not only one of the oldest railway station in India, it is also the busiest. Right from 15 Aug 1854, the train services running from this station are phenomenal. 600 passenger trains pass through it’s 23 platform with 1 to 16 in the old complex and 17 to 23 in the newer Terminal 2. Once Platform No 1 is ready it will be 1296 meters long making it the third longest platform in India. Rough estimates put the number of passengers handled at almost 10 lakhs. At the international level, Shinjuku Station in Japan handles 35 lakh passengers in a day. Many website therefore put Shinjuku Station at the top of the list of busiest railways stations. 

10.   The title for the remotest railway station in India is shared between three stations. Dibrugarh is the last stop for the famous Delhi Dibrugarh Rajdhani which covers a distance of 2433 kms in 3 days. Then there is Lekhapani Railway station again in Tinsukia district of Assam which has been closed since 1993. And finally there is Ledo which currently holds the official title of the last railway station in the East. Ledo just has a population of 6,540 people and is again in Tinsukia district. There are some other interesting facts about Ledo.

The first coal mine was started in 1882 and since then Ledo is famous for the railways and high quality coal. Ledo also came into international notice when during the Second World War, the Japanese advance threatened to swallow China and the Imperial Seat of the British power in India. the Allies fully knew that if India falls into the hands of the Japanese, there is going to be a big dent in the war effort. So it was decided to build a road to China from the rail head in Assam to deliver war supplies to China to stop the advance of Japanese Army. The construction of road was completed in record time in 1943 and the army trucks started rolling. Out of 1,726 kms, 1033 kms is in Burma, 632 kms in China and just 61 kms in India. After the fall of Rangoon, the capital of Burma, this road use was stopped and supplies were airlifted over the Himalayas on a route called the Hump. After the war ended, this road went into disuse. 

The starting point of this road was Ledo railway station after which supplies were loaded onto trucks. From there the road went to Mong-Yu road where it joined the Burma Road which went till Wanting on the Chinese border and from there to Kunming. About 15000 US Army soldiers were involved in the construction of this road with 35,000 local workers. Over 1,100 American soldiers lost their life constructing this road of 1726 Kms which makes it one life lost over one and a half kms. No other road construction would have resulted in the loss of so many soldiers. The Japanese on the other hand lost an estimated 3000 soldiers trying to secure the Ledo road, such was its importance. 

11.   The Highest Railways Station in India is Ghum Railway Station in West Bengal along the Darjeeling Toy Train route at a height of 2258 meters. 

12.   The most famous still operational toy train is the Darjeeling Himalayan Railway running between New Jalpaiguri and Darjeeling. It climbs from 100m elevation at NJP to 2200m at Darjeeling. Who in India has not heard the song sung by Rajesh Khanna to Sharmila Tagore, “Mere Sapno Ki Rani” in the 1969 film Aradhana. The route which was entirely run by Steam engines is now a mix of steam and diesel. 

13.   The title of the longest platform in the world is now held by Hubali Railway Station at 1,505 meters which is a kilometer and half. Previously the record was held by Gorakhpur Railway Junction at 1,366 meters. 

14.   If there is a longest platform, then there has to be the shortest railway platform in India and that is Baspani Railway Station in Odisha which is 200 meters. Express trains which have a length of 500 meters cannot halt here. The Penumuru Railway Station in Andhra Pradesh has no platforms. Compare that to Howrah Junction which has 23 platforms!

This list cannot be complete without the mention of the longest train journey in India. 

15.   Logically we should be having a North to South train which happens to be the Himsagar Express between Jammu to Kanyakumari which covers a distance of 3800 kms in 73 hours. But that is not the longest train journey in India. That is the Vivek Express which connects Kanyakumari and Dibrugarh. It covers 4200 kms in 80 hours. You will get to spend four days in this train. 

16.   Ever imagined the most expensive train journey in India. The Maharaja Express which covers a tour of the North will cost around Rs 20 lakh for a couple for a 7 day package which the four day package will be approx 11 lakhs. While the cheapest ticket for a Second Class for 50 kms would be just Rs 30.

Next let us talk about beautiful, but remember, beauty comes at a certain risk. 

The most beautiful road journey which people have been enjoying for a long time is the Bombay Goa trip. But there was no railway on this route. Even the British did not bother with the effort. The challenges were almost impossible. So the best scenic routes were the toy train operational in various parts of Indian hill stations. It was George Fernandes who began the process of building a railway line between Mumbai to Goa. Land acquisition was a major challenge but was completed in a record time of one year because people came forward voluntarily to give up their land in face of development of the region. Next challenge was the terrain. This 760 kms route crosses 146 rivers and 2000 bridges. 

Fastest train in India is now the Vande Bharat which tops the speed at 180 km/h. 

The most beautiful train journey in India is between Dadar to Goa in the Vistadome train coach. It covers a distance of 600 kms in 8 hours with large windows providing un-obstructive view of the natural beauty of this railway route. Two trains are presently fitted with the Vistadome coaches on the Mumbai Goa route. 

This article is incomplete without the mention of the iconic Deccan Queen. It was the first true superfast train between Mumbai and Pune. It has a pantry car which is again a first and the first woman only coach. It was also the first vestibuled train which means that the two cars or coaches were connected to each other by a passage so you can actually walk from one end of the train to another while it is running. 

The Deccan Queen began running as a week end luxury train from 1st June 1930 to ferry rich patrons of the Pune Race Course from Mumbai. The coaches were painted in silver and royal blue. The original coaches were in use till they were replaced by modern stainless steel coaches in 1966. 

Every year on 1st June, the passengers celebrate the birthday of the train. They are regular pass holders who travel from Pune to Mumbai daily for work, railway fans and the railway officials. on 1st June 2030 this train will complete 100 years of its run. There is bound to be a big celebration both at Pune where the train departs at 7:15 am every morning and at Mumbai where it departs at 5:10 pm everyday. Be there or be square.  

The post Let’s talk Indian Railways appeared first on Start Blog Writing.

A doctor on a mission

In 1903, Alexander started his professional education and got his MBBS with distinction in 1906. He also got a BSc degree with gold medal in bacteriology. He then took up a job at the same college where he studies till 1914. After that he joined the Royal Army Medical Corps and worked as an Army Doctor all throughout the First World War. 

After the war he returned as a lecturer to the same hospital. 

A war zone is a place where hygiene is lacking, health care is more prioritized towards gun shot wounds and soldiers hardly get time to rest. Bacteria thrives in such an environment. This stint of Alexander Fleming in an active war zone must have made a permanent impact on his mind. 

Discovery of penicillin

The discovery of penicillin is exactly how Flemings describes it, “Finding something you are not looking for.”

In Sept 1928, Fleming had proceeded on a holiday with his family after leaving behind cultures of bacteria which he was studying in his lab. The bacteria was Staphylococcus aureus which is found in the respiratory tract and skin. It causes a variety of respiratory infections as well as food poisoning. He accidentally contaminated one of the cultures with fungus and that particular culture destroyed the bacterial culture while keeping the other cultures which were far away, intact. 

Now fungus or moulds have been known since ancient times as bacteria killers. Civilizations in China, Egypt, Australia and India have been using this method to heal infections. The only problem was such kind of treatment was not well documented but was rather passed from generation to generation. Also they could not conduct experiments in labs to isolate the active components. They always used the natural form directly. 

By September end that year, he had re-grown the mould and started testing it against various bacterial cultures. He concluded that there was an active ingredient which was killing the bacteria. The biggest challenge remained creating the mould in large numbers so that sufficient material could be extracted for testing.

Fleming spend the next 10 years publishing his work in various medical journals and making several presentations. All of those met with a lack of response and general disinterest. The final nail in the coffin was the report by British Medical Journal in 1941 which ended with the line, “…and does not appear to have been considered as possibly useful from any other point of view.”

In 1939, a team of scientists from Oxford University who later named themselves as the Oxford Team accidentally stumbled upon his work. They started with his research paper and the sample of mould which was preserved in the lab. They found a way to dry it into a powder leading to its purification. First they tested the powder on animals and they tied up with the US Department of Agriculture for mass production. The team started testing the medicine on human patients in 1941. For two years they kept testing on patients and on 27th March 1943, the Lancet reported successful treatment of 187 cases of sepsis. 

The next task was to take up the challenge of mass production at the govt level. In the year 1942 and 1943 whatever penicillin was produced was used up for treating the patients who were still test subjects. In order for penicillin to make a dent, some production method had to be discovered. The American Corn Industry came to the rescue. 

America traditionally produced the largest crop of corn in the world. A corn kernel consists of corn oil, protein, starch and fiber. Each of this component is separated and used as raw material for various products. This process is called corn wet-milling and there are a lot of processing facilities all across America. One of the by-product of the milling process is the corn steep liquor which was used by an American Micro-Biologist for production of penicillium. Another scientist used the deep-tank fermentation method for producing large quantities in quick time. This is how the War Production Board could produce 64000 crore doses by the end of the year. This enabled enough medicine for the invading forces of Normandy saving an estimated 15% soldiers. 

Did the scientific community ignore discovery of penicillin

Yes, for 10 years no one in the British Scientific and Medical community including the big pharma even bother to check what was discovered. It was the Americans who put effort to mass produce it.

Later he was awarded different medals by United States, France, Greece and Spain. His laboratory where he discovered penicillin is well preserved and now a museum. But in 1936 when Fleming talked about the important of penicillin in the Second International Congress of Microbiology held at London, no one believed him. These ten years however, he was constantly working on methods to produce and extract penicillin single-handed.

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Rangoli is all about geometric patterns and colours. In fact there is a possibility that the Mandala Art form could have been a variation of Rangoli. 

The raw materials used for drawing a rangoli is completely organic. It is made on the floor. Earlier during the era of mud houses, the particular square used to be painted white using limestone. Once dried the patterns are drawn with the powder using the forefinger and thumb. The base colour is white coarse tiny crystals. The other colours are powder based and again are organic. Some common substances are lime stone, red ochre, flower petals, coloured rocks, rice powder and so on. 

The basic form of rangoli was used as an insect repellent in the kitchens where the cooking fire was surrounded with designs in white. The cooked food was placed in utensils where also had similar patterns made on the floor. Rangolis were also used at the site of yagna or sacrificial fire were priests used to perform the religious rituals. Limestone and turmeric was used for such purpose.

Once upon a time, rangoli was a pure manual art form but now a few modern implements and aids like stencils have made their way in. 

Cultural programs organised during festive season are the main event where even rangoli competitions are organised. Other than that schools and universities play in a major role in promotion of this art since during the festive season the main entrance is always decorated by a massive rangoli design. Rangoli could also be drawn during important programs like school annual day. 

There is no need to promote this art form because it is too popular in India. 

A word about the origin of Rangoli

Thank God that there are no traces of this art form anywhere in the world. Because of this even the intellectuals agree that rangoli originated in India and continues to flourish here. Experts believe that it predates the vedic era. There is a mention of rangoli designs and geometry in the vedas.

The word Rangoli comes from the sanskrit word ranga which means colour. It is an adaptation of the word Rangavali.

There is a separate branch of rangoli designs made exclusively with petals and flowers. Another variation followed in North Indian states also paints on walls. Here is a list of various names in different parts of India,

Rangoli in Maharashtra & Karnataka
Chowkpurana in Punjab, UP, Haryana, Punjab, Himachal Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh
Mandana in Rajasthan
Alpana in Bengal
Sathiya in Gujarat

Rangoli is a way to welcome guests too. Guests bring joy to the house. 

The story of Agastya Rishi

Part of one of the Saptarishis, Agastya and his wife Lopamudra are authors of hymns from the Rigveda composed in 1950 BC to 1100 BC, 27 in number. Lopamudra was raised by the King of Vidarbha and after she grew up, Agastya asked for her hand in marriage. She left the palace to stay with the rishi in the forest. One day Lopamudra while helping her husband with the preparations for Yajna decided to decorate the place. She picked up five colours representing the five elements, blue, green, red, black and white. She could have drawn the first rangoli ever.

Many years later, Sita also drew a rangoli after she met Ram. She added some water to rice flour and mixed a few organic colours to create the first wet rangoli.

Years later once Ram returned back from vanvas, the residents of Ayodhya lit ghee lamps outside their house and drew rangolis to welcome his arrival. 

Remember the famous Laxman rekha drawn by Ram’s brother when he goes out to look for Ram. Sita was told not to cross the line and that the line would hold out all evil forces. Even Ravan was scared of crossing the Laxman Rekha and was repeatedly asking Sita to cross over. That is the power of a rangoli. 

After Krishna settled down in Dwarka, Rukmani made a unique rangoli pattern. This is called Sathiya because Rukmani was a sathiya of Krishna. 

A design of patterns

Rangoli designs consists of lines and patterns. There is always a central theme for any rangoli. Swastika, peacock, lotus, lamps or even Ganesha are the most common options. Goddess Laxmi sitting on a lotus flower represents prosperity and fertility. Other symbols have their own meaning. 

Designs are passed from mother to daughter and generation to generation. 

The nature of rangoli still remains mostly organic. While some colour manufacturers do use synthetic colours which come cheap, mostly Indians are environmentally aware and make the right choices. 

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A class with students is identified by a list of Roll Numbers and Names.

A hosting provider like HostGator or Hostinger provides you with a 3 in 1 account which provides a domain name, website and hosting space. Here is how you can understand how this concept works.

Hosting space is like a class room. Once you buy hosting space, you will get a blank class room. Your package can have just one student in a class room or there can be three students or there can be unlimited students in a class. But just like in a regular school, you cannot have unlimited students, similarly you cannot have unlimited websites in one package. There will be limitations and we shall come to that later.

Website is the physical student. The actual person who is going to put on the uniform and will be identified by a Roll Number and a Name.

The Name of the student is like the domain name of a website. It is linked with a Roll Number which is the IP address. Since you cannot remember a Roll Number, you remember the student by name. But numbers are easy to process, hence there is a Roll Number list too.

What to know as an owner of a website

Many times small brand owners will need a website and they will hire professionals to do the same. There will be some tech aspects to it. Here is how each thing is linked and processed.

Your hosting package is registered with an Email address. You need access to this email and no one else should have access. If someone wants to steal you hosting package, the email is the first barrier. Then comes the password. So if any person wants to steal it, the first thing on the agenda is to change the email address.

The hosting provider can give additional security to the account by enabling two factor authentication. That means every login will happen only after password and a code. While the password remains same, the login code will change every time and will be created at the time of login.

One hosting account just like a classroom can have multiple websites, like students. Each website if created in WordPress will have an admin username and password. There are different role enabled for a WordPress Website. So as per that there can be multiple accounts within a website. An admin account will have full control over the website. The account can be in the form of a username or email and a password.

Lastly the domain name also like a roll number is registered within your hosting account. It is registered against your name. If domain privacy is enable, this information is not available to view in public. If someone wants to steal your domain name, they will have to login in your hosting account first and then generate a transfer code from within. All this information will be send to your on the registered Email Address.

A periodic backup of the website is important so that if both the hosting package and the domain name gets stolen, you can still get the website up and running with another domain name. At least your data is safe.

If you are hosting websites on Blogger, it is a good idea to activate two factor authentication on your gmail account.

So here is the master list again

• Hosting package – Username and password
• Website – Admin account username and password

Both Hosting and Website admin details have to be under the control of the owner of the brand.

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The concept of Karma

Different religions and cultures have the concept of Karma deep rooted. Even the leftists who do not believe in religion have concepts like ‘What goes around comes around’. Karma is closely connected to the cycle of boon and curse. Other important part connected to this is the cycle of blessing and prayers.

Positive vibrations generated by a place of worship tend of affect the people visiting that place for prayers. The multitude of prayers being recited add on to the positive energy radiated by the place. Karma can be understood in a scientific manner using the concept of this energy.

The blessing of Gandhari, the mother of Duryodhana was so powerful that it gave immortality to his whole body except for the loins which he covered thinking that it is a shame for him to go naked in front of his mother. It was Lord Krishna who put that seed of doubt in his mind. Once Gandhari removed her blindfold, she was aghast that Duryodhana had covered some portion of his body. He said to his mother that she can put the blindfold back and he will appear once again in front of her without any body part covered. Gandhari replied that when she removed the blindfold, it was a lifetime of penance and sacrifice that came out in the form of a powerful blessing. It cannot happen again. The concept and power of a blessing can be understood by this mighty incident in Mahabharata.

A lifetime of good karma collected by Gandhari by her sacrifice and commitment was transformed into one blessing for her son. We see priests and senior leaders giving blessings and other receiving them. It is the concept of karma and positive energy at play here. Similarly we have heard, ancient rishis placing powerful curses from time to time. Durvasa Rishi had the famed short temper due to which he used to curse people very often. The whole universe was scared of his curse. Sadly due to his curse, Lord Ram had to banish his brother Laxman from Ayodhya. Once Laxman was gone, even Ram could not stay for long in Ayodhya. So attached he was to his brother, that he left his kingdom in the hands of his two sons and left for Guptar Ghat for Samadhi. Once Lord Ram was gone, Ayodhya fell into wilderness. A curse placed by anyone no matter how strong or weak will affect your harmony and will contribute to negative vibrations around you.

The role of a good deed

You might not have any control over the negative energies and vibrations reaching you. Curses, your own mistakes, sins of your past, people not happy with you, etc. All such reasons will cause the pile up of negative energy around you.

There are powerful pilgrim places where your accounts are opened. The balance sheet of good deeds against bad even of previous births is recorded for the day of the reckoning. Some believe that the day of reckoning comes on the day we die. I believe that the day of reckoning comes when you visit Kashi. The sheer amount of temples and vedic schools in that small area of 6 kms of Ganga river front means that not only this place is flooded with positive vibrations, it is also a place to account for your sins and bad deeds. People come to Kashi with also the fear that they have committed sins which need to be washed away. Donations come handy here. Some people even build temples to balance out there deeds.

Definition of a good deed

Imagine a tired street vendor about to close shop and head home after a long hard day in the blazing sun of Delhi. You have a short conversation with him which lifts up his spirits.

Some known acquittance calls you up and wants to share something. You give a patient hearing and in the end manage to convey to that person that whatever he or she is doing, is the right thing. Suddenly you have boosted the morale of that person.

A word of praise or encouragement or simply engaging in an activity with someone, are all good deeds. PM Narendra Modi once mentioned in an interview that if anyone comes to meet him, that visitor gets his undivided attention and he loves to get engrossed in the conversation. Considering he is one of the busiest person in the world, managing to hold a two way conversation and making the visitor feel special is a good deed.

So basically if small gestures from your side make the people in front of you happy, it is a good deed. We get enough opportunities to do a good deed. The only problem is that most people do not understand the definition of a good deed because they are too selfishly minding their own happiness.

Have you really made someone happy today?

A good deed is all about making someone happy. Maybe with money but not always. If nothing is going right in your life, the best way forward is to keep doing good deeds by helping others. Eventually the tide will turn.

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“But what happens to humans then?” As usual she was persistent. Dad replied, “If they don’t age gracefully, they too fade away in solitary.”

Growing old v/s ageing

While stress is the main contributor to ageing, it is also the reason for weight gain and overthinking. Stress affects health and the way we look. Urban life is stressful, for all. So how to people age gracefully versus start looking old and stressed out.

The secret lies in taking care of the stress. Individual stress factors have to be taken out of your life. Because stress is the main reason that will present you to live a life beyond 40.

Stress will not take care by itself, you have to take the bull by the horns to gain control.

Stress contributes to an early death.

You have no choice other than being happy

With age comes wisdom and the serene smile of Buddha whenever confronted with a situation. Growing old is the ability to see through a problem much better than the younger members of the family. The head of the family is always the eldest, not necessarily as a stereotype but because of the wisdom angle.

So what happens if an elderly person takes over the responsibilities without the abilities. That’s where you see large families fall apart.

There is only one body and that is the vessel

We Indians love to eat. Literally every social, cultural or religious event is centered around food. Then we also get surprised on how we add inches to our waist line. Food abuse is most common because there is no taboo attached to it. Doctors and medicine makers assure us that there is a pill for all our health problems. Eating brings in metabolic syndrome which leads to lifestyle diseases like high BP, high cholesterol, high sugar and weight gain.

But eating is not just the only problem. Medical experts advise daily physical exercise. Walking, running, gym, yoga, meditation, all of these have the potential to keep your body fit and drive the stress away. Any physical exercise works. A nature walk or hike once a week will help rejuvenate your body.

Epilogos

The word epilogue comes from Greek word epilogos which was used by Greek writers and poets as a final speech of a literature work.

“So do I need to take a lot of care of my body!” Her dad could sense the end of conversation coming near. “Not just that, you need to keep an eye on all changes happening as you grow.”

Growing old gracefully is all about determination and staying with a plan. That’s where the smile comes from.

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What is a love affair?

Here are some definitions…

As per Google

A romantic or sexual relationship between two people who are not married to each other.

Google also says on the first page.

‘intense enthusiasm or liking for something’

Merriam-Webster

Romantic attachment or episode between lovers.

A lively enthusiasm.

Cambridge Dictionary

Romantic and sexual relationship between two people who are not married to each other.

Strong liking for a particular activity or a place.

Collins Dictionary

Romantic and usually sexual relationship between two people who love each other but who are not married or living together.

To like something and be enthusiastic about it.

What does a love affair mean?

Online definitions are usually a reflection of what the society thinks and wants. This has been the norm even with the old offline dictionaries. The society stands on some foundations and institutions. Marriage is an important pillar in every society. Defiance to any such norm will be met with reprisals.

All definitions necessitate that both the people involved in an affair have to be married but not to each other. Is it then acceptable if one or both are unmarried?

The second definition is more interesting because it suggests that one person can be enthusiastic about the other.

Almost everyone insists that the relationship has to be romantic and sexual in nature for it to be deemed as a love affair.

Two things are pretty clear, first, society does not want the definition of love affair to be an interpretation. Second, as long as society exist, an affair will be looked down upon.

A love affair is a …

It is a form of protest against the rules set by the society. For the ones indulging in breaking rules, this one forms at the top of the list.

It is the statement by the people who believe that happiness is theirs for the taking. It is not for those who take what comes their way. Marriage is a form of compromise but it is still the best way to lead a happy life. The only problem with a marriage is that it is a gamble. Both love marriages as well as arrange marriages are a gamble.

It is a connection between two people. It need not be romantic or sexual in nature. But why has society branded it as such. Because there is this apprehension of the elders that any such connection between married people might lead to a love affair. But if two people are already in a relationship such as marriage, is it going to be threatened by another relationship.

It is a feeling of enthusiasm and excitement towards another person. We are now entering into the realm of a relationship totally non sexual in nature. This kind of relationship opens up large number of possibilities because this relationship never enters the boring territory.

It is a finite episode. Hard to believe, but if the definitions are right, then you have to consider the possibility that a love affair is limited time. Make the most of it.

Where love affairs tend to go wrong

Either one of the partner involved wants to keep it short term. In that case the other one is cheating or faking it. Even if there would be love involved, it finally ends up in a heartbreak.

People do not consider the consequences with families involved.

One of the person involved starts re-loving his or her spouse. Try to gauge the interest levels to decide how to respond. This is the most important possibility you need to consider.

If it were just an attraction or a fling, then a love affair will definitely result in disastrous consequences. There is one exception though, if the attraction is genuine and the spark was always there.

Conclusion

Society will cling onto things which help it not to fall apart. In case of attraction and liking, there is no match for an intimate connection. All great relationships begin with a great conversation. Love in that case happens to the saffron that sweetens the whole thing.

The post How much love is there in a love affair? appeared first on Start Blog Writing.

Vastu Shastra originated in India somewhere around 6th century CE. It is part of the larger Vastu Vidya which is a collection of ideas and design principles of architecture. The most visible form of Vastu Shastra is all those temples which have withstood the test of time.

Jyotisha is as old as the vedas. It talks about planets postions and creating a calendar for various rituals and predicting eclipses and moon phases. More recent times it is also known as Indian Astrology or Vedic Astrology.

A list of workable tips

How to improve the financial condition in your home?
Place an image of the God you believe in on the front wall which faces the door of the house as you enter. This will bring in financial prosperity for all family members.

How to improve the flow of positive energy in the house?
Make use of mirrors, sea salt, incense sticks and wind chimes. There should be no mirrors in the kitchen and the front wall facing the door.

I am facing a series of bad lucks. What do I do?
Remove any broken items lying around in the house like damaged clocks or broken mirrors. In addition remove broken pots, old shoes, cracked utensils and vessels from the house.

Is there a simple remedy to remove obstacles in your life?
Chanting “Om Gam Ganpataye Namaha” removes obstacles since Lord Ganesha is Vighnaharta who has the power to remove obstacles.

If there is one ornament which can be worn as a remedy for multiple problems, what can it be?
Wearing a Rudraksha mala has a positive effect on the mind, body and soul. Rudraksha represents the tears of Lord Shiva and is considered to tap the cosmic energy. Besides acting as a protective shield it also bring peace and harmony to the people around you.

Will paintings make any effect on the house?
Do not have any paintings of sorrow or grief in the house. Also dark coloured and themed photos should be avoided. Instead use picture of bright colours with scenes like sunrise or scenery. If using a portrait it can be with bright colour clothes and background.

What are the benefits of camphor crystals?
Camphor crystals remove negative energy from the house. They are also beneficial for breathing and lungs. Camphor induce positive vibrations all around the house.

Why do people place a horse shoe at the entrance?
A horseshoe with the open end facing upwards helps in showering positive energy on anyone entering the house.

Which is the best plant to keep in the house?
A tulsi plant is the best option to keep both inside as well as outside the house.

Is meditation any good?
Along with meditation you can chant Gayatri Mantra and Maha Mritunjay Mantra to build a successful career.

The post Workable and practical remedies for your home appeared first on Start Blog Writing.

Bad boys, whatcha want
Watcha want, whatcha gonna do?
When sheriff John Brown come for you
Tell me whatcha wanna do, whatcha gonna do?

While the good guys are taken for granted, it is the bad guys who get all the attention. Living upto expectations of others, good guys are expected to follow rules and take responsibilities. But the same yardstick does not apply to bad boys. Most of their mistakes are excused or even admired being on the wild side. Is there any reward factor for the good guys from the society?

Good guys always in a minority

Good guys are always in a minority everywhere. Reaching places in time, finishing assignments, getting things done, making less demands and so on. If everyone around is ignoring you, means you are THE good guy. Rest of the guys are allowed to get away with mistakes and remain the centre of attention. While the mommies gang is constantly fretting over such kids and seemingly enjoying it too, you will just get a pat on the back and will be expected to move on.

This sorry story continues through school, when you continue to work hard and slog it out for good grades while the other variety manage to get away with passing grades. The entire teaching fraternity go overdrive helping them to study harder and better their grades. But despite all the effort, nothing seem to work.

College time is supposed to be all about fun and companionship. But not for the good guys, because they will be preparing most of the time for their job and career. Time to get ready to take on more responsibilities.

No reward system for the good guys – both professionally as well as personally

There is a whole eco system out there having the sympathy factor for the bad guys. The strange but familiar system of bad guys always in the mode of wanting to get a fresh start. Society does not keep a count as to how many opportunities have been wasted on them. They are in the process of finding and providing new opportunities to the losers.

The good guy on the other hand will work quietly in the background, without any fanfare or limelight. Good guys somehow manage to keep the family together and provide for them despite all odds and any economy induced market conditions. That is because they are risk takers and do not keep much for themselves. They are the providers in the family and bread earners. This is the part where gender neutrality is widely seen. So many families where the woman in the house is the primary earning member.

At the workplace the good guys manage to keep things afloat. They put in the extra effort and bring in business while the bad boys either do not have any permanent job or career or seem to keep trying without reaching anywhere.

When good guys enter into a relationship, they get the first glimpse of this skewed reward system. Having a loser spouse or partner is the generally accepted norm in society. Otherwise how is it possible that everything else is checked in an arranged match except for the fact that will they keep each other happy. How much of the wealth is earned rather than inherited and so on.

Will the situation change?

Good guys are kind of “fill it, shut it & forget it” types.

Bad boys are always in need of money so the people around them are always in a state of providing for them.

Which comes to the main question. Will this change? No, my friend. This is the order of the world.

If you have spend your entire childhood and teenage period realising that the good guys never get rewarded, then that is probably going to continue for life.

The main reason for this is society fails to keep losers in check. Hard work and effort is not recognised and rewarded. They will be cosmetic events such as prize distributions and some words of praise in family. But at the end of the day, it will be the losers who will get more than their due. A loser’s effort will never be questioned. He or she will always get the support wanted. But as a good guys your intentions will always be questioned, no matter how noble they are or how well they have been planned. How often have you seen fraudsters duping people of money where the fraudster is always a stranger, but still manages to con people. If only it would have been easy to trust a winner.

The bad guys will keep getting help in terms of money and affection. They will be the first to get payments and gifts. In a property dispute or distribution they will get the lion share because they tried and failed. As a companion, the good guys will be tagged as boring. So if you are feeling a bias against good guys in society, it is the harsh truth.

The post Good guys finish last – the reward system for bad boys appeared first on Start Blog Writing.