Think Tank

Someone asked me, “Which is more powerful: good or bad?” Here are my thoughts and the reply:  
There is a similar debate on which is stronger gender: males or females. I think many reached the conclusion that their strengths are “different” and hence not comparable. Both are powerful, in their own way. If we compare them [...]

Have you seen your parents cry?  
I guess you may not have seen it many times. But how would be the feeling? I guess that would take the world out of you…  
Does it happen the same way when parents see their children cry?  
Do they get a sinking feeling when they see their children cry? Do they [...]

While walking in the evening, suddenly my sight reached the moon. The moon lit the dark sky. Its shape was incomplete today. My mind wandered to visualise the reason. The sun would be on the other side of the earth, that part of earth would be seeing the day and the part where I walked [...]

Our flight was about to land in some time. Now land started to get visible from the window. I saw Mumbai. It seemed so tiny. As the plane got nearer to the land, now roads and buildings became visible. Nearer; and people could also be seen.
Our earth is only a small planet rotating around [...]

In one scene from the movie “The Boondock Saints II: All Saints Day”, the voiceover says, “Peace is the enemy of memory.” What a startling fact!  
It is so easy to forget some troubling incidents or some important reminders, if we only remain in peace for quite some time. I think it works both ways: it’s [...]

We often use the word ‘personal’, but at one time I wondered if there are things in our life which could be called ‘personal’ to us in real sense. I would start with the closest guess. Are our feelings really personal to us? There are people who can guess our feelings accurately by looking at [...]

Many times our friends and relatives ask us for suggestions. I hope we give suggestions without any hidden intentions or bias and our suggestions are made to only benefit our friend from our knowledge of the matter. It is up to the seeker whether to accept or discard the suggestion.  
But I have observed a new [...]

There are some universal laws which apply so perfectly to the human nature irrespective to the variations in culture or in background. One of them is that we value less what comes easily to us. To some extent we capture it in the Hindi anecdote “Ghar ki murgi daal barabar”. It can also be described [...]

When we were kids and we did something great – like doing well in exams or winning a prize – we would naturally like to show our achievements to all. We would love if people came to know how brilliant we were and if they patted us on the back. Not that we got many [...]

It is a fact that women have been discriminated against for centuries, in all parts of the world. The world history can be seen as a fight against this discrimination.�There was a time when women in India truly enjoyed the same rights as that of men. We had so many women philosophers. In fact we [...]

�The berth numbers have changed�, was the answer to my curious look at the person occupying my seat when I boarded the train. No birth-rights to the berths these days; as tickets are not certificates� It had happened that the railways had inserted one extra side-berth in the three-tier coaches at the last moment and [...]

ThoughtsWeak� When I was fiveI was very wilfulWhen they didn�t give me that toyI cried for daysAnd didn�t take foodBut I didn�t feel bad�  When I was twenty fiveThat girl said she didn�t like meAnd my heart bledFor daysAnd nightsand daysBut I anyhow survived�  I am eighty fiveAnd my son says one harsh wordAnd I get heart attack!And [...]

ThoughtsLove or Infatuation �Guys, even the last day of the year is not too late to learn a thing or two about life. Here is what I read in a Paulo Coelho book last night: �Each would always be fascinated by the other � so long as each remained exactly what the other imagined. �That [...]

ThoughtsIs my way the best way?  Several times, we think that our way is the best way, without giving reasonable consideration to the alternatives. Take for example the traffic system in India, which follows the left-hand rule. But the fact is that this system of driving is prevailing in mainly the commonwealth countries � the [...]

ThoughtsAcceptance One thought just came to my mind: it is what I think the biggest but toughest learning in our life: to accept people with their imperfections� I know that some of you commented this after some of my previous posts, but I never gave a serious thought to this. All the miseries of life and [...]

ThoughtsPainting He was painting for two hours now. It has been long since he started painting this one, and he wanted to finish it today. It was almost complete. Just some more final touches and the painting would be ready. He was standing on a lawn which was trimmed to perfection very recently. And there was [...]

Behind every successful woman, there is another womanNations like India to generate numerous success stories, because of the overlooked failures that the previous generations encountered and still secretly lament�On Sep 29, Mint came with an interview of Zia Mody (By Rana Rosen). At one place, Zia said: �My mother always thought she lost out on [...]

Celebrations?     A small news item in size, but big one in content:  The UP government on Sunday said it would not allow the group of Britons who plan to celebrate their forefathers� victory in the 1857 Sepoy Munity to hold any function. The BJP and Muslim organisations demanded an immediate ban on the entry of the [...]

Smile� is a curve that can make a lot of things straight�Kumar Rahul Tiwary�They were waiting for their turn in the doctor�s clinic. Atmosphere was gloomy, and no one was talking to anyone else. An old man came in, and sat down. He was looking very anxious and tense. Besides him, a lady was sitting [...]