Are you getting CONNED? - Random thoughts#6

Most of us have a tendency to buy expensive stuff. There is a myth which makes us believe, "that if its more expensive its got to be better." Sadly, it may not be true in many cases. 

You can say the same for most branded** stuff. While the branded goods do maintain a good quality level - but is it worth paying for it through your nose? In engineering and manufacturing we have – what we call an acceptable level of quality control. The manufacturers do not wish to achieve perfection in quality – but they manufacture to an acceptable level that strikes a balance between the cost of production and quality. This is specially applicable for mass produced goods. If this was not done - all products of a middle class household would be out of reach  for them. A good example - a good quality brand of ceiling fan today that costs around Rs 1400-1700, could cost about 10 times if the quality level was made such that it could last and perform for a life time.

(** branded - the implication here is of the upmarket, luxury and expensive brands. For example Citizen, Seiko, Titan etc. are quality brands for watches, and they maintain a good level of quality - but they would not fit the label whereas Omega, Raymond Weil, Chopard, Rado and Patek Philippe etc. would called the branded ones for this purpose)..

The prices of branded products have absolutely no rational relation to the cost of production, but have managed to psyche the buyer and have created an image of aristocracy and give the message that he/she "has arrived", if he is seen sporting such products. All those who believe in the rat race will naturally scoff at what I have to say - but you must remember that it is your own hard-earned money, and you should have the right to decide how to utilize it; do not give that right to a 'brand'.

Let me come back to the main subject of getting conned...

Here is a part of an actual web page of the Amazon.com. Read the customer reviews below and you will be able to appreciate the gullibility of the individual, no further comments are required.

HDMI CABLE 2M (6 FEET)

FROM DVI GEAR

List Price:

$39.99

Price:

$2.20

Usually ships in 1-2 business days

Ships from and sold by UnitedIntegral

86 new or used available from $0.01

Average customer review: 

Product Description

Hdmi cable Provides the most reliable signal transfer the purest picture.Unlike most HDMI cables, Inspire Audio video cables use individual, shielded twisted pair wires for unsurpassed video signal.

Product Details

Color: black

Model: POTHHDMIH2M1

Dimensions: 1.08" h x 1.08" w x 72.00" l, .24 pounds

Native resolution: 1080p

Features

HDMI audio / video cables are ATC certifie

Provides the most reliable signal transfer for the purest picture.

Unlike most HDMI cables, Inspire Audio video cables use individual, shielded twisted pair wires for unsurpassed video signal.

CUSTOMER REVIEWS

Why pay out the wazoo when you can get this cable?!?!

"OK - here's the story. I was going to buy a Toshiba HDTV. I had picked it out already and was ready to purchase it and that was when I found a promotion at a local retailer that if I bought a Toshiba HDTV then I can get $200 off of any of the Toshiba HD DVD players. The HDA2 was normally $399 but was on sale for $299 and with the $200 off I got it for $99!! You can't beat that!

Well, I got that on Tuesday and it was an unexpected purchase. I asked the person at the store how much the HDMI cable would be so that I can hook it up as soon as I get home. He said, it's a Monster Cable and it costs $124.99! Whoa! I went up to the shelf and saw the sticker that said $124.99 on it and on the sticker it said "Financing Available"! What?! I'm not going to pay more for the cable than I did for the DVD player! These guys are crazy!

I told the guy "You are nuts if you think I'm going to pay that amount" and I logged onto Amazon and purchased this HDMI cable I'm doing the review for. I paid, with shipping, less than $9 for it. I was a little worried about it though - I'm sure that there must be a difference between the $124.99 cable and the $9 cable. So, I took the test. I went and purchased the $124.99 cable (mostly because I was too anxious to try out the new HD DVD player and couldn't wait for it to arrive). I plugged it in and of course the HD DVD I played looked absolutely amazing! The very next day I got the $9 cable (pretty fast shipping by these guys by the way) and I hooked it up. I was worried what I would find but when I started watching the same HD DVD that I watched the night before on the $124.99 cable I could notice NO DIFFERNCE WHATSOEVER between the two cables' results. So I returned the $124.99 cable.

You will not be sorry if you purchase this cable over the other ones in the major retailers. Don't let them tell you "it's a better quality cable" or anything like that. This cable is built very well - you can just tell when you hold it in your hand that it was made well. You don't get the fancy plastic packaging that you have to tear into with a knife and cut your fingers on though (oh what a bummer!). Get this cable. It's great!

The only thing you will want to research is that I have seen in some literature that there are two different kinds of cables. I think there is a special one for 1080p DVD players (dont' quote me on this). So do your research before purchasing just to make sure that this is the correct "type". As far as build quality - picture quality, for use with an upconverting DVD player as well as the Toshiba HDA2 HD DVD player, it's an absolute steal.

Price performer! 

"HDMI is a digital signal. That means it's all or nothing--not like analog where you may have degradation due to signal loss, crosstalk, radio frequency interference, etc. As long as you have a decent HDMI cable to transmit the digital bitstream from point A to point B, you're set. I just purchased the new Sony Bravia S-series 32 inch LCD TV. To go with it, I trashed my old Apex with the missing remote and got a deal on a Sony DVP-NS70H upconverting DVD player that can synthesize "extra" lines of resolution. The player can send 720p or 1080i signal to the TV. (Current DVDs are 480p; that standard will change eventually with Blu-Ray and HD-DVD.) I knew that the upconversion feature only works through a digital connection, so I'd need to get an HDMI cable. Started checking prices and, no surprise, they were all over the place. Some were in the $100 range. Despite mild skepticism, I decided to try the cheapest one. This little beauty arrived in 3 days in a plain brown wrapper and a clear plastic bag. The cable is surprisingly robust, with nice build quality, supple insulation, and good connectors. I started to feel vindicated. So I plugged it in, put Harry Potter in the DVD player and WOW!! The DVD player and TV did their magic. Spellbindingly great picture and sound. I haven't tried a component analog connection--those cables are REALLY expensive and quality matters more there--so I can't compare component versus HDMI. Bottom line: this is an unbeatable price performer for around $10 incuding shipping. And no, this is not an April Fools joke."

These two customer reviews need no elaboration.

Buying and shopping on the internet is also not free from con-men. There is an interesting read of the UK police website, how this can happen and why you need to be alert in order to avoid falling into the trap. 

There is a second category of people who are vulnerable to the con-man. The people who are greedy and fall for 'get rich quick schemes'.

Remember the emails in which you won a lottery (without buying a ticket); the mails that required you to be able to help a Nigerian or some other individual who has inherited millions of dollars or gold and she needs your help to get the money out of the country; a rich widow who liked your profile; the girls from Russia or Ukraine seeking husbands outside their country, because the men in their own country are like sloth bears; donations for charity - maybe small amounts multiplied by millions of recipients; websites conning fans in 2010 World Cup ticket fraud; bogus websites are conning hundreds out of their holidays; telemarketing sales; identity theft; fake job offers; phishing mails and web sites. A good suggested read is http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Advance-fee_fraud, and the various links from there. The internet and mass mailing software has made this very easy and you have to be doubly vigilant. Of course, you must not forget the god men who are still conning the entire gullible mankind in the name of a non-existing god and religion that is meant to exploit by trying to book a seat for them in the imaginary heaven or afterlife.

(The various built link links in this article can be useful if you wish to explore and know more)

It is the greed and the desire of the individuals for the get rich schemes that generally makes a person susceptible to the con-men.

Remember, there are no free lunches.

There is a Poet in You - Random Thoughts # 5

Pondering over the process of growing up – every person seems to have gone through a phase when he (or she) has dabbled in writing poetry. Almost like music - its in everyone's blood; some sing, others hum, some just love to listen or just tap to its rhythm OR some even sing in the bathroom. I have yet to meet a person who never hummed or whistled a song or indulged in some form of music.

Most folks do it, ie., dabble in poetry, early in life; sometimes in the form of riddles or puzzles or even limericks, the more desi ones in sher'o shayari (Urdu couplets) or Hindi poetry. There is no language bar - every language under the sun has its share of poets and poetry.

I remember in my early school days in South Point, Calcutta; after I became a little proficient in the English language (as a shift from my Hindi background), I started writing simple riddles with rhyme e.g.:

"My first is in cover but not in page

My second is in sulk but not in rage

My third is in colour and also in yellow

My fourth is in sick but not in mellow
My last is in seek but not in see,

My whole keeps you as busy as a bee."
(Its obviously a 5 letter word. What am I?)

Then the growing up years introduced me to “Limericks”, they are those short and sweet 5 line poems where the 1st, 2nd and 5th lines rhyme; the 3rd and 4th lines rhyme. There are more rules regarding limericks pertaining to the lengths of the lines, syllables etc.; I shall not be delving into them here – the vast internet and google search shall provide the answers if you really want to know. A common example of a limerick:

Come on everyone let's play holi,
It's great fun if you are in a toli,
Colours and sweets and lots of fun,
Running around is great if in the sun,
Then to conclude have some bhaang ki goli.

(Author Varsha U Nagpal from the webpage "LIMERICKS & TRIVIA (Humour) Unlimited", this limerick has a few Hindi words thrown in holi - Indian Festival of colour, toli - group, bhang ki goli - a tablet of an intoxicant and a psychotropic substances) 

The third phase in the adolescent/teenage stage – when the person becomes a romantic. He may not write poetry – but he lives poetry. His prose also becomes poetic. This is more pronounced if the person falls in love. And that is inevitable. By 'love' I do not mean girl/boy love, it just means falling in love with anybody or anything – maybe a puppy, your garden, the river nearby, the hills or just rain... He could land up writing sonnets, they are those 14 line love poems. If you really want to know more about sonnets, the Wikipedia gives a lot of interesting information.

I have noticed the youngsters who end up writing sonnets or poems at this stage of life – often retain the interest of writing poetry for the rest of their lives.

What is so fascinating in poetry that prose does not have? There is a beautiful quotation by a Chinese philosopher:

"When you write in prose, you cook the rice. When you write poetry, you turn rice into rice wine. Cooked rice doesn't change its shape, but rice wine changes both in quality and shape. Cooked rice makes one full so one can live out one's life span . . . wine, on the other hand, makes one drunk, makes the sad happy, and the happy sad. Its effect is sublimely beyond explanation." - Wu Qiao.

Poetry is fascinating to the mind as well as to the ear, it is said that reading poems can exercise your brain in the same way that playing sport exercises your body.

Currently poetry has widened its horizons to such an extent that a beautiful artistic movie is referred to as “poetry on celluloid”.

Even if you have never written poetry but are fascinated by it – here is a simple guide (courtesy BBC.co.uk), give it a shot – you have nothing to lose; its a win-win situation:

Use your imagination. Add to what you know by making things up. How do you think Roald Dahl could write about living inside a peach, or William Gibson write about being in 'cyberspace', or Tolkien describe a hobbit or an orc? That's the power of a writer's imagination!

Write poem after poem. Often people feel their words have to flow and sound right as soon as they hit the page. If all writers did this nothing would ever get published.

Don't wait for the words and the lines to shape themselves perfectly in your head before you start writing. You can shape your ideas once they are on the paper. The important thing is to get started and keep going.

Think of yourself as a sculptor. You need a vision but you also need something to sculpt with. If you don't get something down on paper then you haven't got any raw materials to work with.

Use a dictionary and thesaurus. They help you make sure your writing is accurate and clear. They can also help spark your imagination - discovering a new word could be the beginning of a new stanza or poem.

Don't let your ideas get away. The best ideas can sneak up on you in the strangest places and at the most awkward times - on the toilet, in the bath, in dreams. Always carry something you can use to record your ideas - a notebook, a dictaphone, an envelope to hold scraps of paper.

Get feedback. Ask people to read your work and learn from their comments. Ask yourself: What can I do to improve my work?


Remember all the English grammar rules can also be ALMOST thrown to the winds in poetry and you will not only be forgiven, but also appreciated - as long as you can make it beautiful. Computers have made this so much simpler.

And most important, remember that a poem does not necessarily mean that you have to look for rhyming words – “free verse” is the current trend and today very beautiful poems are in free verse. Here is one in free verse, for the record:

You are you

And I am I,

The fond 'we'

Fashioned of you and me;

Has gone away,

And with it is gone

The mystic bond

Between you and me.

Now you are you

And I am I.

(Author - KP Varma; Book – Thirty Leaves)

Now is that not a beautiful short and meaningful poetry?

Just pick up your pen, open a notepad and start writing....

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god is not Great - Random Thoughts # 4

Happy Independence Day - today its the 63rd anniversary of the independence of the country. Felt this thought provoking article is suitable for this day...


god is not Great

This is also the title of the book by Christopher Hitchens that I have read recently. I would like to say that the book has influenced me – not to really change my thinking but making my thoughts clearer with the logic, arguments and historical evidence. There is definitely a possibility that some of the thoughts expressed in this writing have been influenced by the great book.

I have been an atheist and my religious views have been well known to my family and near ones ever since I can remember.

I belong to a deeply religious Hindu family and both my parents were firm believers. I was the youngest in my family. I had five sisters – now three – and all of them are still very religious.

It was probably on my sixth birthday that an incident happened that has forever been etched in my memory. For the first ten years of my life, on every birthday of mine – my parents would organise a havan. A havan is a religious ceremony performed in temples and in homes that involves worship through the use of a sacred fire. The use of fire as a means of worship is the most ancient of all rites, going back to the earliest Vedic times. It was meant to dispel evil spirits and protect me, or something similar. We had a family pundit cum astrologer who would be summoned for the occasion. 

Havan

I was made to sit near the fire. The pundit painted my left hand thumbnail with a black coloured polish or paint. I was then asked to peer into the nail and confirm that I can see some specific forms or images in it eg., a female sweeper, or a trident, or some other image. If I respondeded in the negative – the pundit would jab me with something sharp (maybe his fingernail) on the back of my neck. He would continue to increase the pressure until I replied that I could see whatever he was commanding me to see. Being a child of six, I understood that the earlier I accepted what he was saying, earlier I could get over from the painful jabbing. [As an after thought – maybe he was trying to hypnotise me and not succeeding]. This is my first memory of exposure to 'god-men'; and certainly not a pleasant one.

In our house we always had a puja room or a small corner of a room or even the shelf of a cupboard reserved for puja. There was a daily aarti and bhajan in our house till I was about 10 years age, when we moved from Delhi to Calcutta. The daily prayer got restricted to personal morning prayer by mataji and pitaji – my parents. We, children, were left to decide for ourselves if anyone wanted to partake in the puja.

Christian Church

I had formed my opinion about the non-existence of god, by the time I reached school final. I did not know of any other atheist at the time. It was my own rationality that made me believe that god was only created by man for his own selfish interests. Maybe in some ancient times when literacy was very low, its creation was essential to maintain some sort of order/law in society. I had done scanty reading on religion. The only religions that were read (in abridged versions) were Christianity, Islam and Hinduism; also read about the lives of certain philosophers like Vivekanand, Buddha, Kabir, Nanak, Jainism, Sikhism, and reading about our epics of Mahabharata and Ramayana – from my school text books or pictorial children's books. The more I read, the more I was convinced of my belief regarding the non-existence of god.

Islamic Mosque

In our family there was a tradition of offering prasad in a nearby temple on every Tuesday, it was done without fail. If a Tuesday was missed, the prasad had to be doubled on the next one. I did accompany my sister(s) or parents at times – more so because I had a sweet tooth and all people emerging from the temple would offer the prasad sweets to all those standing near the gate. You guessed it – I stood outside on the pretext of avoiding the crowded interior.

During my days at the engineering college in Mesra (Ranchi) – all my friends went to the temples in the neighbouring Vikas Vidyalaya or some pubic temple in Ranchi – to pray and bribe the gods with prasad, before the examinations. Our college did not have a temple. I did accompany them most of the times – more for company's sake or merely for an outing but I never prayed, never folded my hands and stood in front of the idols. I did fairly well in all my exams in spite of not bribing the gods.

Hindu Temple

My belief in atheism is not the end of the story. I firmly believe that all religions have only been created to amass power and wealth from the gullible masses for personal and selfish reasons. All the so called god-men and religious leaders have preyed upon the ignorance of the masses. They have always shown the path to god in a threatening manner as their own power is at stake OR with promises of worldly riches and comforts. If you follow the path specified by them, you will reap the benefits, else you will perish. It is often promised in the heaven or in the after life. In doing so they have always amassed wealth and power for themselves. It is obvious that these so called spiritual and religious leaders are actually non-believers who know that the existence of god is only due to their creation and nothing more. They are a dangerous breed of people who are doing more harm to the society than the simpletons (the atheists) who openly say that 'god does not exist' or 'god has been created by man' – just by logic and reasoning. They are a cancer for the whole society – gnawing away at its vitals for their personal gains.

Religious wars have killed more humans over the ages than any natural calamities. The powerful have always “punished” those who opposed them or dared to think differently or provide any sort of enlightenment to the masses. Philosophers and scientists have paid with their lives. People have been burned alive in public on stakes. There have been innumerable crusades in the name of religion or god where persons of other faiths have been killed mercilessly, their women raped or carried away. The religions sanction all this – as the spoils of victory. Be it Christianity, Islam or any other religion. The Bible, the Koran have sanctioned these plunders and massacres. No religion – till date – has done good for the society in general. It only fortifies and protects only its own fold (to maintain the mass following) and fills the coffers of those in power. I only talk of the Bible and the Koran here – as these two have been predominant and responsible for most killings and barbaric actions the world over. It does not exonerate the other religions – they have had similar histories but on a smaller scale as compared to these two mammoths.

Have you ever pondered and thought about the basis of how the beliefs were created; how were the masses convinced about the leaders of their faiths being true? At the time of creation or birth of any new religion, miracles have happened to build credibility for the same. All along in history you would come across miracles being created by god-men to influence the masses.

What exactly is a “miracle”? Its nothing but a phenomenon or an event that cannot be easily explained by the masses with their limited knowledge as to how it could have happened. In ancient times – the miracles were often created to hype divine intervention; the types which required a little or basic scientific knowledge of say science, astronomy, chemistry and the like.

In casual usage, "miracle" may also refer to any statistically unlikely but beneficial event, (such as surviving a natural disaster), or simply a "wonderful" occurrence, such as a birth. Other miracles might be: survival of a terminal illness, escaping a life threatening situation or 'beating the odds.' Some coincidences can also be perceived as miracles.

Sikh Gurudwara

At the time of the dawn of civilization, the level of literacy was low. The knowledge of tides, eclipses, chemical reactions producing flames, colour change in liquids or producing smoke or explosions, protecting feet while treading on hot embers, producing 'ash' or other material objects by the sleigh of the hand, claiming to cure illnesses which were either not there or were cured by medical science, the burning bush behind Moses, changing water into wine, statues shedding tears etc. All these were often perceived as miracles and to divine intervention. It is very rarely you have actual unexplained phenomenon documented by the person who has witnessed it. It is mostly passed down – often through generations by the word of mouth. There have been instances in history where a miracle has said to have taken place – complete with all details and description and has actually turned out to be a hoax created by those interested in exploitation of the people.

As a matter of fact most of the miracles of the present day god-men have been easily duplicated in the laboratory or can be performed by the two bit magicians. Sai Baba – a miracle man of India, was openly challenged by scientists and magicians that all his feats could be explained and performed. He refused to accept the challenge. God-men like Sai Baba are just selfish individuals who are only amassing wealth and power. They are not religions at all – just conmen and cults. They do not massacre people – but they do a lot of harm by fleecing people and indoctrinating or brain washing them into believing whatever the leader professes. Bhagwan Rajneesh (also known as Osho) was another big fraud – who worked for personal gains and comforts. He had a very wide following specially of Westerners, for many years. He had managed to acquire a fleet of Rolls Royce cars in his ashram. His Pune and Oregon ashrams did take a lot of people for a ride for a fairly long time, ultimately his time was up. How he violated and exploited people – especially women and children is well known now.

These cults could also turn into equally ugly movements involving violence if they remain unchecked. There have been innumerable cases in history where such cult leaders have been responsible for mass murder of it own members (in the garb of suicides at times) or of others. A small tip of the iceberg is visible by clicking here, you can find tonnes of material on the internet regarding various cults, if it interests you.

Mostly these cults and religions have preyed upon young children. They are more pliable and easier to mould. In fact children who have been abused, violated or exposed to cruelty are always more cruel with mankind in general and specially towards women and children. They make excellent candidates for suicide squads and terrorism. All this in the name of religion and god.

Buddhist Temple

Apart from violence – religion moulds the nature of the population. Coming back to India – which is predominantly a Hindu nation – we can observe many undesirable traits and characters due the religious philosophy. The history of the country has shown that we always had traitors within. Our deities are Ram, Krishna, Hanuman, Shiva. Our epics Ramayana, Mahabharat. Our teachings come from Bhagvad Gita. Krishna is considered a god, he is shown having a very opportunist character and resorts to deceit for advantage. Ram is shown as a spineless person who does not stand by his wife when it was most needed. Hanuman is just an immense power house with no brains of his own but a devout follower of Ram and will heed to any command from his lord. Our epics have treated our women like chattel. Gita tells us to work without expecting any fruits for your labour. Foul means have been justified. All the characters of our leaders as well as our citizenry are evolved from the religion. Rampant corruption, fatalistic attitude, indifference and lack of concern for fellow beings - are all a result of our religious philosophies.

Hinduism and Buddhism have also shown their violent and inhuman streak in history – in Sri Lanka – in comparatively recent times.

Our Hindi scriptures (Vedas) have openly supported the caste system and believe that women and untouchables are not equal to the superior castes. One can compare this to the directives of the church sanctioning and permitting slavery, declaring the colour of the skin as the criterion for being a higher human being.

I would like all my readers to think with an open mind and not subscribe to blind faith, superstition and irrational thinking. We are a fairly well educated society now – but what use is the education if we still maintain a sheep mentality and feel afraid to be different from the flock.

(Suggested reading - god is not Great by Christopher Hitchens)

Rivers - Random Thoughts # 3

History says that all civilisations developed and grew on river banks. All the prominent cities in the world are still the ones that have a river flowing through it.

If you have ever spent a few hours on the bank of a river, you would know the soothing and healing effects of a river, with its soft music and cool breeze. Rivers have sweet water and thus they support a variety of marine life. The rivers provide a means of transportation, of humans as well as goods, they also provide recreation in the form of row boats, sailing and other water sports are also becoming more popular by the day, they also provide hydro electric power. The beauty of water falls when they traverse the hilly terrain is always a thing to cherish. The Niagara falls are world famous, there are other innumerable other falls all over the world which are very also very beautiful.

I was born in Delhi and I lived the first ten years of my life in Kashmiri Gate in Delhi. We were very close to the present Nigambodh Ghat. The river Yamuna used to flow where we have the Ring Road today. In the monsoon or during a flood, the river used to literally reach our door step. Our government bungalow was on a slightly elevated area so we never had the flooding problem, but I did manage to see the river and see its various hues and moods from close quarters. I was always fascinated by the river and seeing the boats I would wonder and imagine as to what lay on the other bank of the river. At that age I could never have imagined that this river would reach Agra and the merge into the famous Ganga (Ganges) at Allahabad, and end its journey in Bengal to merge into the sea..

After that we had moved to Calcutta (now Kolkata) and there we had the Hooghly snaking through the city. Hooghly is the longest distributary of the Ganga – the most sacred river in India for the Hindus. I had a few occasions for a boat ride in the river. We had the old fashioned covered boats – lantern and all that – in the vicinity of the Howrah Bridge. These were mainly used for fishing and crossing the river as the township of Howrah was on the other side. These boats could also be used or hired for pleasure. The type you see in the historic Amar Prem (Rajesh Khanna & Sharmila Tagore). The famous temples of Dakshineshwar & the Belur Math on either side of the river are not only historic landmarks and have also become important tourist destinations.

We moved back to Delhi when I was 14, but we stayed fairly far from the river, we were living in Reading Road (now known as Mandir Marg) near the famous Birla temple. At that time there were a few row boats (could seat maximum five) available for hire near the India Gate, that was not too far from Reading Road and boating became quite a passion with me.

After passing my school I went for Engineering in the well known Birla Institute of Technology, Ranchi. The college was situated on the bank of the river Subarnrekha and one its tributaries called Jhumar having their confluence just near the campus. These two surrounded our campus on 3 sides. You can see the photos of the campus and the confluence of the rivers by a click here. Such was the attraction of the river – that a classmate of mine, one Siddharth Shah, and I would at times just go and sit on the bank of the river and listen to its soft gurgling as it flowed along lazily.

II joined the Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd in Bangalore. There was no river in Bangalore, though there was a huge natural lake, a lake where one could hire a row boat – the Ulsoor Lake. The call and the lure of the water and boats led me to it. Once we experienced a storm while Varsha and I were in a boat in Ulsoor. The boat did not capsize but it etched a permanent fear of water in my wife's mind.

We moved to Lucknow and on to the banks or Gomti river. There was an area near the Imambada, where the fishermen would give us a joy ride in a boat. Our son Anurag was about 2 years old and still remembers his boat ride as ek batti and do pachach (meaning a lantern and two spoons – chamach) which meant the oars.

Apart from supplying a city or civilization with drinking water, marine life and fertile areas rivers were also used as a dumping ground for the waste of the city. The rivers have been historically a necessity for the cremation grounds for the Hindus. After the death and cremation, the ashes of the dead were disposed off in the rivers. The rivers, thus, also assumed a religious tint and were worshipped as goddesses. The Ganga being a sure passage to heaven. Thus on the banks of the rivers emerged all the religious and pilgrimage places. For those of northern India situated on the bank of the holiest river Ganga – Haridwar (meaning 'gateway to the lord' ) was the most holy place and traditionally the families would immerse the ashes of their dead in the Ganga at this place. Thus in Haridwar, developed a tradition or families of pandas – Hindu priests – who would record your dead and also the births. All you need to tell them is the original town and your surname and they have evolved a manual system of maintaining your Family Tree. Mine was traceable for about 250 years quite easily.

The rivers have also been romanticised by poets in all the ages. In fact a beautiful romantic poem of Rabindranath Tagore comes to my mind, I just cannot help but to reproduce one verse of the same:

“We both live in the same village and that is our one piece of joy.

The yellow bird sings in their tree and makes my heart dance with gladness.

Her pair of pet lambs come to graze near the shade of our garden.

If they stray into our barley field I take them up in my arms.         

The name of our village is Khanjuna, and Anjana they call our river;

My name is known to all the village and her name is Ranjana.”

(Read the full poem here)

London has the the famous Thames. The river is the life line of the city and since London is not too far from the ocean, the river is a major highway to the port of London for international trade. On date it is a major source of tourism, water sports, a large variety of wild life. It is also used for Hydro-electric power. It is being used for boat cruises, fishing and even the HMS Belfast is permanently stationed in the river and has been converted into the Imperial War Museum.

Paris has its Seine and its famous bridges. There are 37 bridges spanning the river in Paris itself and about a dozen more elsewhere on the river. The river is also used for trade and ships come into the river up to about 100 km from the English Channel till port at Rouen. AND can you forget the beautiful song of Dean Martin “Under the Bridges of Paris”? Click the link if you wish to listen, and watch the scenes of Paris at the same time.

The Rhine river is the most important in Europe. It starts in Switzerland, goes along the border of Austria and becomes the most important river in Germany. Ultimately flowing through Holland – it enters the sea. Being on a cruise in Germany at Boppart is a real treat. We went upstream for about a couple of hours – with villages and castles dotting the banks on either side. A very scenic journey. There is really no end, one can fill a complete blog with just one river.

The Amazon, the Mississippi, the Nile, the Danube, Congo, Yantze, Brahmaputra, Lena, Tiber etc. etc., the list is never ending. Each has its history, civilizations and special features.

One just needs to think of a town/city/civilization and you will find it on the bank of a river. However, it is saddening to note that most of the rivers are gradually turning into sewers or drying up. The toxic wastes of the so called civilised world is destroying its own life giving source. Let us ponder and think a while as to what we can contribute to reverse this change and not destroy ourselves.

World's Easiest Quiz - Forwards # 3

(Thanks to Jairaj Mehta)

WORLD'S EASIEST QUIZ!


(Passing requires only 3 correct answers out of 10!)
1) How long did the Hundred Years' War last?
2) Which country makes Panama hats?

3) From which animal do we get cat gut?
4) In which month do Russians celebrate the October Revolution?
5) What is a camel's hair brush made of?
6) The Canary Islands in the Pacific are named after what animal?

7) What was King George VI's first name?
8) What color is a purple finch?
9) Where are Chinese gooseberries from?
10) What is the color of the black box in a commercial airplane?
Remember, you need 3 correct answers to pass.

Check your answers below.







ANSWERS


1) How long did the Hundred Years War last? 116 years
2) Which country makes Panama hats? Ecuador
3) From which animal do we get cat gut? Sheep and Horses
4) In which month do Russians celebrate the October Revolution?November
5) What is a camel's hair brush made of? Squirrel fur
6) The Canary Islands in the Pacific are named after what animal? Dogs
7) What was King George VI's first name? Albert
8) What color is a purple finch? Crimson
9) Where are Chinese gooseberries from? New Zealand
10) What is the color of the black box in a commercial airplane? Orange
(of course!)

What do you mean, you failed?!!

Me, too...!!!