हरी ओम !

आज मेरा बड़ा मन कर रहा है के में हिंदी में कुछ लिखुँ।   चलो कबीर के दोहों से सुरुवात किया जाये।

निंदक नियरे राखिए, ऑंगन कुटी छवाय,
बिन पानी, साबुन बिना, निर्मल करे सुभाय।

 जो हमारी निंदा करता है, उसे अपने अधिकाधिक पास ही रखना चाहिए। वह तो बिना साबुन और पानी के हमारी कमियां बता कर हमारे स्वभाव को साफ़ करता है.

भला इस बात को आज के ज़माने में कितने लोग समझते हैं। 

जाति न पूछो साधु की, पूछ लीजिये ज्ञान,
मोल करो तरवार का, पड़ा रहन दो म्यान।

सज्जन की जाति न पूछ कर उसके ज्ञान को समझना चाहिए. तलवार का मूल्य होता है न कि उसकी मयान का – उसे ढकने वाले खोल का.

कहने को बहुत कुछ है पर आज के लिए इतना ही काफी है.

Success comes easy, not respect

One of the funny things about life is: What we enjoy the most is not always what we respect. Popularity is not the same as admiration. They can’t be measured on the same scale. That’s why, to take a quick example, the most successful movies don’t get the best critic ratings. And the best rated films rarely do that well at the box office. Media has often tried to resolve this contradiction by hiring critics who love popular cinema. While their reviews may provide fresh insight, they are seldom convincing. The paradox runs too deep in our psyche.

Millions love to watch Shah Rukh Khan movies. His new release last friday collected Rs 45 crore on day one, setting a new box office record. The adulation he gets is unparalleled. But Indian cinema, however big it gets, however successful it may be, will never be defined not by a Shah Rukh or a Farah Khan. Or even a Raju Hirani. It will be defined by a Satyajit Ray. And a Pather Panchali. Try as hard as you want, you can’t change that. Not at the Oscars. Nor in the history books. No, this is not a conspiracy against popular stars, as Nargis once famously described it. It’s just that admiration and respect come from different places.

Millions of people buy Chetan Bhagat novels. Chetan is invited by the whole world to talk about what he writes and young people today hang on to his every word. Even TIME magazine lists him among the world’s top influencers. But if you ask someone to name a respected Indian novelist in English the answer will be Amitav Ghosh or Salman Rushdie. Or possibly RK Narayan. Chetan doesn’t make the cut. Why? The same reason. The most successful author is not the most respected. Matt Groening is unlikely to ever win the Nobel. But Mahasweta Devi might.

The most popular songs you can think of, the ones that bust the chart and hang in there for months on end, be they about Munni’s badnaami or Sheila’s jawaani, make instant stars out of those who sing them. Their producers become rich. The number of downloads break all records and wherever you go, to a wedding or a nightclub or even a puja mandap, you will hear them blast your ear drums. But do they get the kind of respect that’s reserved for a Mallikarjun Mansoor or a Kumar Gandharva? Will they get you a Bharat Ratna like Bismillah Khan got or Bhimsen Joshi? Naah.

A Subodh Gupta installation, if you have one, marks you as a dollar millionaire. So does a Husain horse. But if you are not into collecting art for just money, if you actually want to treasure the great masters you will hang a Gaitonde on your wall or keep a tiny Somnath Hore on your mantelpiece. It may not fetch you a fraction of the value nor win you oohs and aahs from your friends but you will have the pleasure of owning a work that will probably be remembered much longer.

That’s what differentiates the popular from the great. Real masters rarely get the recognition they deserve in their life time but they survive in our collective memory. Like Allauddin Khan and his Maihar band or Bade Ghulam Ali Khan. Like Vijay Tendulkar or Badal Sarkar. Or an alcohol sodden Ritwick Ghatak who was so all wrong that everyone wrote him off. Except history. Like Saadat Hasan Manto. Or Premchand. Or Jibanananda Das who died, dragged by a tramcar on a Calcutta street. Most of them were unsung in their life time but will survive in our hearts for the magic they brought to our lives. They competed with no one. They never drew crowds.

Stars fade away to make way for new stars. Great artists, on the other hand, remain for all time. Much as you may try, you can’t compare Shiamak Davar with Balasaraswati. Or a Yo Yo Honey Singh with MS Subbulakshmi. So when I hear everyone extol the great leadership qualities of Narendra Modi and how he will change India forever, I ponder. Isn’t it a bit too early to assess him? Leaders are not judged by their popularity or instant appeal. That is what wins them elections. But, in the long run, they they are judged by the respect they earn. Indira Gandhi won a war against Pakistan but went to jail because India felt she failed us when she imposed the Emergency. Jayaprakash Narayan was a much smaller leader compared to her. So was Lal Bahadur Shastri in comparison to the much loved Nehru whose big shoes he tried to fill. But the history, I suspect, will remember Shastri and Narayan much longer. Not for their popular appeal. But for the men they were.

In our great urgency for love and admiration we often forget the immense power of the understated. The understated lasts much longer in our hearts because we don’t just love them, we revere them. So keep searching for your heroes. Don’t just pick them up from the popular pantheon. Who knows? You may discover a Kailash Satyarthi. The Nobel Prize guys got lucky because they looked hard enough.

Turn Students into Life-Long Learners

Educators wear many hats, but their main job is to engage their students so that they become life-long learners. As a teacher, there is nothing worse than presenting a lesson only to find your entire class starring back at you with the “huh?” look in their eyes. Once students reach this point, it’s often hard to turn them on to the subject matter that they didn’t grasp the first time around. In order to effectively reach them, educators need to find innovative methods for teaching students. There are many ways to achieve this, as discussed below.


Increase Student Involvement
One of the most effective ways to increase student engagement is to get them involved in the lesson. Once students are able to interact and experiment with a subject matter, they are more likely to grasp it. Try one of the below activities to get your students involved with your lessons.

Introduce an eLearning System – It’s no surprise that students enjoy interacting with technology. Invite them to their enhance learning through the use of an eLearning system that helps you plan and deliver your lessons seamlessly. Interactive learning systems allow students to have real-time discussions with one another about the subject matter, as well as explore the Internet to learn more. Many teachers have seen students become increasingly engaged in class when using this technology because they can learn at their own pace. Students are also able to gear their study towards the type of learner they are.

Present Real World Problems – Often, students have difficulty understanding certain lessons because they aren’t able to apply them to real life situations. No matter what you’re teaching, you have to make the lesson come alive by finding a way to relate it to your students’ lives. Present the material in a way that will excite them. Once students are able to apply a concept to their lives, they are much more likely to connect with and value it.

Students as Teachers – Another great way to get your students involved in your lessons is to make them experts. Split your class up into groups and assign them a topic. Work with each group and give them the tools and resources that will help them become experts on that concept. Once students are comfortable with the subject matter, have them teach the class. Students will immediately be able to relate to one another and find this style interesting and fun.

By increasing student engagement in the classroom, teachers can create life-long learners. When students are excited about a subject, the sky’s the limit.

An oath for every Indian Lets think beyond racism, rich-poor, to make a better, responsible and just India. The development of our country starts from us. As Swami Vivekanada said Arise, Awake and Stop not till the goal is reached. We unitedly can make the India as dreams of Lord Krishna, Gandhiji, Vivekananda. The great values which we have can lead us to make a great country where justice and peace dwells. We might be in thousands, lakhs and millions but our goal and pulse is of India. Our identity might be different but in Heart we have India as our GOD. We need to fight for justice. The ultimate goal is betterment of people of India.

Sooner or later you will believe in GOD We think that God is like us only; he will be flattered by our praise and angered by our criticism. We constantly try to appraise him so that we can get what we want. Especially when we are feeling negative or sad then we always blame God like “Why did you do this to me? Why Me? ” We forget at times that this is not the barter. God will be there with you always. Even I use to do the same. In my childhood, I used to think about God only when my exams were approaching or when my result is expected like “Please God I want to score good marks in Mathematics. Please help me.” I used to pray when I need too. One day my grandmother died when I was in college. I have never seen anyone too close leaving me forever. I cried a lot and was confused how to react in that situation. Same night I heard one voice saying “Your Dadi (grandmother) is with us. Don’t worry she is happy.” When I woke up I was feeling relaxed. I don’t know what that was- God’s voice or my dream. Later, I made sure to take out 2 minutes for praying. One might think this is a fake story but this truly happened to me. I believe nothing stays forever in your life except GOD. Some people think he doesn’t exist but he is always there with us. Don’t forget every single human being has ones part of sufferings in life... this is how God Almighty ordained the journey of life to be!

CONNECTING THE DOTS.....

CONNECTING THE DOTS..... DOTS that we leave behind as footprints that signify meaningful events and happenings of our life. dots that make moving forward more exciting.

"Again, you can't connect the dots looking forward; you can only connect them looking backwards. So you have to trust that the dots will somehow connect in your future. You have to trust in something - your gut, destiny, life, karma, whatever. This approach has never let me down, and it has made all the difference in my life.

Steve Jobs    Co Founder Apple Inc.

A very curious thing about life is that dots can only be connected backwards. This means, you are standing here and now and you are able to understand why some events in your life unfolded the way they did. How every single experience was somehow connected with another one, until they lead you to the place from where you are reading this.

The wide range of experiences often include bad break ups, a glorious day at work, the day you finished your studies, the moment you decided that your life was going to be different, the day you enrolled for the dance class, the day you read that line in that book and something clicked in your heart like never before. Your first kiss, the nights you spent crying until you fell asleep, the worries about the future, the delightful planning of a holiday with your best friend.

They all seem to lack connection, but when you turn around and you see what you’ve gone through a sense of understanding lands on you and you are able to comprehend, for at least a second that it was all serving you, serving a higher purpose even when you don’t have the full picture yet.

Yet, there is a very important fact to have in consideration: you are not going to be able to connect the dots forward. Actually, by trying to do so you may get caught up in an avalanche of endless worry and anxiety on where is the next dot and how you are going to create the line between you and it.

What you can do is not stress about the next dot and rather see the universe of dots that could be ahead: that promotion you’ve been waiting for years, the dream you’ve always dreamed of. A partner that will warm up your heart. Good things happening. A great trip with your friends. Changing your career. Serving millions of people. Being paid to do what you love. Share your art. Be there for your loved ones. Your dream house.

You will also have moments where connecting the dots backwards and seeing the universe of possible dots ahead feels impossible. You don’t understand why things went this way or where you are headed. And this may feel terrifying, but I have great news for you: soon everything will make sense. Simply keep your intention in opening the door to that “ah ha! Moment”. Know that when we lose track of our dots, our mind tends to freak out, but that is also normal.  Know that if you can’t connect your dots right now, you are probably traveling from one dot to the other, you are on the stretch, but at any given moment you will land and then you will be surprised by the intensity of the revelation.

And then… SMILE, breathe deeply, feel the intense gratitude in your heart and realize how everything was intended, every experience was a lesson, every person was a teacher and you are where you always intended to be.