mahabharata and the butterfly effect

As we all know the main reason why the great mahabharata war was fought coz duryodhana refused to give back the land of hastinapura which he had forcibly grabbed back from the pandavas through devious means (read shakuni mama and the game of dice).
Duryodhana understandably felt shortchanged that despite him bein the eldest son of the eldest son of his grandfather dharmaraja was considered ahead of him and was made the prince of the state. Reason for this as we all know was his dad was born blind and hence pandu was coronated as the king as he was born with no apparent disability to speak of. Ofcourse speaks highly of the fair practise followed back then.
Now comin to the butterfly effect bit, as we all know Vyasa the scriptwriter of the Mahabharata fathered both Dhritharashtra and Pandu(not to forget Vidhura too). He was asked to do this favour after the unfortunate death of vichitravirya which meant the kingdom of hastinapura had no male heir. Vyasa carefully laid down this condition to his mom that he will appear before her bahus one after the other in his ugra rupa and depending on their reaction on seeing him the child will be born accordingly! newtons 3rd law for u :D
On seeing the ugra rupa of Vyasa, ambika couldnt take it and immediately closed her eyes and hence dritharashtra was born blind. Ambalika being her younger sister, ambika must have informed the implications of closin the eye or givin any such reaction to her younger sibling. So ambalika gave a restrained but still stunned expression on looking at Vyasa. This meant Pandu was born relatively healthier with no apparent disability to speak of and hence was unanimously chosen as heir of hastinapura over pandu.
If suppose ambika had closed her ears instaed of eyes , "newtons 3rd law" would have still been valid and dritarashtra would have been born deaf instead of blind and Pandu would have still got an advantage over his elder bro as his mom might have again been informed of the implications by ambika!
So as planned by the scripwriter Vyasa, one thing led to another after this and the GREAT MAHABHARATA war was fought.
Now y is this Mahabharata war so important to us? Yeah it gave us the Bhagwad Gita.

Of KARMA, DESTINY , demo game vs real game

Silly as it might sound, being a software engineer I have always been intrigued by java random numbers !! what is a java random number? To put it in simple words, java random number is a random number generated whose value one is not aware of beforehand by using an input parameter called the “seed”. What’s interesting is that for a particular seed only one particular number gets generated!! That means even though I am not aware what number is gonna be generated I am always sure that for a particular input seed i give , i can get back only one particular randomly generated number!!

To put it in the form of an equation,

generated Random number 1= java.random(seed1)

generated Random number 2= java.random(seed2)

If seed1 is equal to seed 2 then,

Random number generated 1= Random number generated 2

The reason I am talking about random numbers here is not to show off my java skills ) but because life as I see it has heavy influence of java random numbers everywhere!!

What we call as destiny, is it something based on the random number funda? dont we feel many times that whatever that is happenin in our lives though random is consistent with certain choices we made or decisions we took or a direct result of our actions?

Modifying the java random number equation above,

destiny = “game”.random(karma)

to put it in a better way,

destiny = BRAHMA.Manzoor-e-khuda (karma)

Which means, the programmers of the code for the game (that we r playin here on this planet) written somewhere in say brahmand(assuming!) dont really care much about what the EXACT consequences for every individual's actions on this planet would be, all they have taken care in the code is that for a particular karma* of the individual there is always only one particular random but consistent consequence which he/she will have to face/experience!!

So if anybody thinks he/she can make his/her own destiny here then he/she might be correct after all!!!

However, i have come across few cynics who think our life no doubt might be a pre programmed game but its not a live/real one but a DEMO one where irrespective of how well u try to play it, whatever is supposed to happen only will happen eventually!! so whats the point in trying hard? This argument might be partly correct as the consequence for every karma is predecided(assumin the random number funda is correct!) which might give the impression that its actually a demo game but the most important point that is missed is that the choice/karma of the individual is not predecided, only the consequence is!! Suppose an individual decides to murder his wife n then later commits suicide it was not because it was all pre decided but because thats what he decided!!

I think this random number thingy works both at the micro level and macro level...(yeah believe me:))

At a micro level i cannot be takin the risk of crossin a busy highway blindfolded thinkin whatever has to happen will happen irrespective of whether i am blindfolded or not!



At a macro level I feel GOD must have initiated the big bang hoping that somewhere in some random location in this wide universe, conditions would be completely and perfectly favorable for life to sustain itself and thereby the "convicts" could be made to play THE GAME there! Afterall earth is just an ordinary sized planet revolving around an average sized star in the outskirts of an ordinary sized galaxy which is one amongst many billions!! So does that mean this entire universe was created for me n us n green colored aliens are mere figments of imagination of hollywood sci fi script writers?

why? when? what? how? where?

who am i?
why was i born?
why was i born here?
where will i go from here?
will i be taking something there? money i know i wont be taking...
why should i earn for my living?
why should i pay tax when i know very well 70 percent of the ppl around me are not paying?
why do all fashion designers look gay?
why did ganguly elect to field after winning the toss in 2003 cricket world cup final?
would ppl STILL have got their head tonsured at tirupathi if there was no guarantee that their
hair would grow back?
why do i stare at ppl?
why do ppl stare back at me?
if all are born unique why are all judged with the same yardstick?
why do i want to impress ppl?
why do i go out of my way sometimes to crack a stupid joke and hope desperately that ppl liked it?
why do i overeat?
why do i eat from other's plates?
what is an achievement?
where does it end?
when should i feel satisfied?
is it after crackin some competitive exam? or after gettin into a big company paying very fat salary? or is it after getting y promotion? or is it when my monthly earning is more than my close friend? or is it when i have more money?
how much is more money?
why shoud i speak to people?
why should i recieve calls?
why do i see dreams in my sleep?
why do some men grow moustache even though they were not born with it?
does going round n round the deity in a temple make any difference or is it just a good exercise?why does my cubicle mate switch on the fan even though the AC is on?
why shd'nt himesh reshamia wear a cap?
why do ppl cheat?
why do ppl kill each other?
why did sachin try to hit saqlain out of the stadium when 16 more runs were required in chennai test in 99?
how could the same head of zidane win his team the wc in 98 n cost them the same in 2006?
why am i writing this blog?
whom am i trying to impress?
why do i have high regard for myself?

Miracles DO happen, but HOW??

the other day my dad was describing to my bro-in-law's brother the legend of kanakana kindi atSri Krishna Temple, Udupi as to how the poet/saint kanakadasa who was a kuruba by birth(tribalcaste )was not allowed to have darshan of his most beloved diety. He was not even allowed toenter the shrine leave alone having a darshan.The legend has it that Kanakadasa then started singing praises of Shri Krishna for hours and was lost to outsideworld in a outside corner of the temple. Suddenly there was a breach in the wall and the idol oflord krishna turned towards him from eastern direction to west to give him a full darshan,A smallwindow was constructed at the breach and it stands as a tribute to this unique saint of Karnataka.As my dad was explaining this animatedly my mind began to wander(AS ALWAYS!)

Apparently kanakadasa was a pupil of Vyasaraya who was a haridasa guru.The famous poet/saint purandaradasa was also his pet pupil.

I began to wonder that this Vyasaraya must have been one progressive man far ahead of his times!! or else how can u explain a brahmin in that day n age to accept a person belonging to a lower birth as his favourite pupil. I also began to think,could it have been him who masterminded that supposed miracle during kanakadasa's visit to thetemple? The treatment meted out to his beloved pupil must have certainly hurt him. Was it at hisbehest that the idol got moved from its original position so as to enable kanakadasa to have a full view/darshan of his revereddeity. Come to think of it, the popularity of the temple sky rocketed after this particular incident didnt it? Till then the place only attracted brahmins that too mostly madhwas.It would not have been all that difficult a task for vyasaraya to get the idol turned in kanakadasa's direction so that he couldget a sneak peek at the idol!!

Ok, lets assume that there was no conspiracy involved and that it was a miracle by god almighty himself/herself , Atleast am not too impressed(haha who cares!!)!! What purpose did it really serve??!! If god REALLY wanted to make his/her presence felt one would have rather preferred a "krishna coming to rescue of draupadi during the famous draupadi vastraharana incident in mahabharata" kind of miracle. Isnt it??

The recent nithari killings where several small helpless and innocent children weremercilessly molested,raped, killed and eaten DID warrant a draupadi vastraharanaesque rescue act from god, didnt it??

but NO!! our god thought a mere 180 degrees rotation of his idol from its initial position was good enough!!!!

PS: I have got no evidence whatsoever to support my argument and its a mere speculation. Sorry for the offences caused. I sincerely hope for GOD's and more importantly for my mom's sake that whatever i have speculated is baseless and utter rubbish!!

PPS: me aint an athiest, got a split personality thats all!! :)))))

Being ONE with nature - A TRIP TO WAYANAD

Last week me had been to a trip to wayanad along with my close friends (office colleagues and college friends. )
This was my first ever visit to the God's own country.The best thing about this place (whose name
i had not even heard off 1 week before the trip) is that, this place is by and large STILL a
VIRGIN territory unlike most other tourist hill stations i have been to. This place has about 5-6 water
falls, one lake at the top of a mountain, caves with pre-historic rock carvings(edakallu caves : world heritage
center).But visits to all these places came at a premium.For instance, A photograph of mine
with the water fall(meenmutty falls: see pic) as backdrop required a 2 hour trek down hill, phew! The visit to the heart shaped lake on
top of a mountain(chempra peak) required a 3 hour trek up hill, phew!! The phrase "light at the end of the
tunnel" never made so much sense!!
.Now let me come to MY best moment of the trip. The visit to the meenmutty
falls required us trek 5 kms downhill in the dense forest. If that was not scary for a 1st
time trekker like me, i began to realize mid-way through the trek that my 2 yr old adidas shoes
was not up for the challenge at all!! The trek path was extremely slippery(coz of the constant rains this place
recieves) and my shoe sole resembled more of a brand new FLAT bangalore-mysore highway than a regular
bangalore road! I had no grip whatsoever on that slippery surface and i resembled more
of a skater more than a trekker! I had to soon take a call, go ahead and continue skating on that steep surface hoping
i come back alive(haha! a bit of exaggeration helps!!) or stop wherever i was(had completed abt 70 percent of the trek) and wait till my friends
returned back after their photo session at meen-mutty falls! I had no option but to opt for the latter and decided to
stay wherever i was in that dense jungle till my friends returned back. My friends soon left me behind and proceeded further for the photo session
not before coming out with all possible equivalent words for the word "chicken"[not meant for all audiences! :))]!!
Now i was left all alone with not a single soul around ONE WITH NATURE. Time had come to a standstill. Every minute passed like
an hour with only sounds from beetle and cricket giving me company. It was by far the most
undescribable and THE lenghthiest 40 minutes i have ever spent in my life. The entire experience was over-whelming. Looking at the imposing and intimidating surroundings around me I began to realize how insignificant and
meaningless I was !!! With the fear of some wild
reptile or some wild animal attackin me from behind at the back of my mind I did not move an inch and sat in the same position. .I also found to my horror that my favourite hutch puppy was scared of these wild creatures as well, THERE WAS NO hutch NETWORK!!!!!
There was NO WAY in this world could i have reached anybody if i needed help! To make matters worse i found to my discomfort that my urinary bladder was full!! THE NATURE WAS CALLING!!!!!!!!
Soon all my friends returned back from the photo session at the falls.I was RELIEVED :P!!The
next two days of the trip passed off smoothly, luckily the trekking path elsewhere were dry and kind to my slippery shoe sole. All is well that ends well!

To summarize my ENTIRE trip,

Cost of taking a day off from my office for the trip: 1 Earned Leave

Lodde's auto fare to my place from his : 400 INR!!!! (hahaha cheap shot!)

Entire Travel expenses to wayanad from bangalore : Abt 1000 INR

Entry ticket to edakal caves : 50 INR

Entry fee to trek on top of chembra peak(has a heart shaped lake on top of the mountain!) : 300 INR

BUT BEING ONE WITH NATURE FOR FORTY MINUTES AND MANAGING TO DO "ONE" WITH NATURE!! ;)) : PRICELESS!!!!!!!!!!!!

PS: I am not there in the uploaded pic for obvious reasons!

independence day

A great country(sadly , not a proud one though!).Has had one of the most ancient civilizations ever. Great and rich culture ,it is infact the only ancient culture to have still survived.Has a rich and colourful history dating back to MORE than 5000 years.The land of the vedas,puranas,RAMAYANA,MAHABHARATA, BHAGVAD GITA etc etc. phew!!

Whenever down, be it in the form of foreign invasion or religious conversion, it only came back harder and stronger.

Such an incredible country like ours was ruled by the english/british for a mere 150 years.
I personally feel we are giving these english b@#$#%ds just too much credit by celebrating 15 th August as Independence day every year.50 th anniversary celebrations was fine, 60th too which is coming up shortly,celebrate it.. fine. But for how long will we keep glorifying the fact that these english m#%^^^$^&&s made us their slaves for 150 years??

Call it INDIA day or say FREEDOM FIGHTER'S day(they should get the credit which they truly deserve), but i feel its high time we moved on as a nation and start using the money spent on the lavish celebrations and security arragements on something useful for the betterment of this country and its people.

A newly carved out nation like pakistan or a country like US of A celebrating independence day is fine, because they have no other history or PAST to speak of!! But you will agee with me that OUR COUNTRY IS MUCH BEYOND these trivial anniversaries and celebrations!

Naan- Veg Curry!!

According to me the ONLY difference between cannibalism and non-vegetarianism IS IN THEIR SPELLING.

I am not trying to justify or un-justify anything(who am i to do that!!) All i can say from a veggie's perspective is BOTH ARE ONE AND THE SAME. You Kill , You Eat!!!!