Frozen Thoughts

WOMAN'S MINDSET

2011-09-14T06:56:00.000-07:00

A boy went to his mother and asked her
" Mom! what you want me to be?"
Mother replied
"I want you to grow up and prosper in your life. I want you to be an engineer or a doctor."
The boy grew up and got married. One day he asked his wife the same question and requested her to be honest.
"I want you to adore me and be a slave for the rest of your life" she replied.
Life went on and he had a son. The son grew up and the man married him to beautiful girl. After sometime he asked the same question to his daughter-in-law. She thought for a while and replied
"A STRANGER FOR THE REST OF YOUR LIFE."

FUNNY TWIST

2011-04-17T09:49:00.000-07:00

One Madrasi, one Gujarati and one sardarji were friends and were working in the same office located in 25th floor of a multistoried building. During lunch, madrasi opened his tiffin box and found idli and saambar as usual. Fed up with the same menu he swore that he would jump through the window if he finds idli and saambaar the next day.
The Gujaraati opened his tiffin box and found doklaa and swore to jump off the window if he finds doklaa in the tiffin box next day.
Sardaarji opened his tiffin box and found roti and sabji and swore to jump off the window if he finds the same the next day.
Next day the Madrasi opened the tiffin box and found idli saambaar again. Promptly he jumped off the window and died.
The Gujarati opened his tiffin box and found doklaa and jumped off the window and died.
Similarly sardarji also found roti and jumped off the window and died.
What happened was funny. On hearing the complaint of her husband the madrasi wife requested her Gujarati neighbour to prepare lunch for her husband. The Gujarati wife took pain and prepared madrasi idli and saambaar and packed it for lunch. Punjabi wife made dokla and madrasi wife made roti.

MID SUMMER DAY MUSINGS

2010-11-27T07:52:00.000-08:00

K.SAMPATH KUMAR
Standing at the threshold, I gazed the street,
About thinking my friend, who will pay me a treat.
Not regular of course, the fact for a change,
And we both will do in a mutual exchange.

''Look at its coming'', he pointed me something,
Made me to turn right, to know what is moving.
My father commented the servant maid's coming,
And who just returning, after some purchasing.

''What the thing you bought?'', he asked the maid,
Moved her to show, her palm in it, it laid.
''Butter!'', he exclaimed, and got it with a pride,
And presented me a smile, like a newly wedded bride.

Telling himself, his experience with ghee,
While folding his dhothy, just above his knee.
No comments from anyone, and especially from me,
And even if it comes, never minds it he.

Turn back to kitchen with butter in his possession,
And asked my mother, to tell some suggestion.
She kept quiet and started her pumping,
And silencer fitted stove, stopped its humming.

Thinking my duty, I went back to my room,
Meanwhile I heard, a like ''Boom''
By which I concluded the matter was over,
And also I smelt the real ghee’s flavour.

While I was doing my evening ''Pooja'',
I heard my mothe calling me ''Raja''.
Responding her calling, I went back to her room,
And I saw my sister there, also with a ''Broom''

With unusual pose, she pointed me something,
And hence because, I asked what was the thing.
She told nervously, that was a ''Rat'',
And also I it now, a real size of a ''Cat''.

Plucking the Broomstick from dear sister's hand,
And started chasing it, like a sword holding giant.
With all my mighty power, I hit the Rat very fine,
And that brought the whole matter, on the head of mine.

I made the big Rat just like a doll,
Meanwhile I noticed the ghee vessel to fall,
Rest of the story I don't want to say,
And even if I say it, it won't be a ''Gay''.

MY BICYCLE AND MY FRIEND'S POEM

2010-11-10T06:09:00.000-08:00

We are three. We met each other in the college. We were all freshers. Destiny bound us together and after about five decades, we have become more a family than friends. I am the only one living outside our home town. Whenever in solititude I habituated to muse over the past and past is always golden. It was one such time that I remembered an incident.
I had purchased a second hand cycle as my job demanded one. As I was thin and to shed as much weight as possible I had selected a cycle without a carrier. As all the three of us always moved in a bunch, the cycle would remain in any one of our house. Usually one friend would come to my house and then we would ride in the cycle to the third person's house. I being the weaker of the three would always sit on the cross bar and my friend would sit in the seat of the cycle and pedal it. The abscence of a carrier forced us to keep the cycle in the house and we would roam the streets. My friends were pressing me to fit a carrier so that all the three could ride on the cycle which in turn would enhance the area of our influence, they indicated. I did not yield their point as additional load would certainly lead to more wear and tear of the tyres and other parts.
One fine early morning my friend whom I fondly call SAM ( Only in my mind ) came to my house and wanted borrow my cycle to go to our friend's house. Nothing was unusual in it. But when i offered to accompany him he declined and went away. That was certainly unusuall. I waited for a lon g time for them to come to my house to pick me. In fact I waited for them till three p.m. and as He replied. My first thought was the additional wear and tear due to the additional load it had to carry henceforth. However I was equally excited at the thought of a brand new stainless steel carrier fitted on my cycle without myself a single paise. The picture of my cycle with a gleaming carrier flashed in my mind many times and my face wore a big smile every time the picture flashed.
As we reached my friend's house the picture was completely changed. In fact they had purchased an old carrier from a vendor dealing in old iron parts. My friend was straightening the bends with a hammer and was trying to fit the same in my cycle. The bolt holes had become oval and the rivetted joints had become loose. I protested loudly tears welling in my eyes (well hidden from others of course). No need to say that I removed it at the earliest oppertunity.
Oh! You are wondering about the poem part. YES. Sam wrote a poem about my cycle and I happened to see the same after decades. I am giving below the same so that all can enjoy.
QUOTE
OVER THE HOLLOW OR ON THE SHALLOW
NEVER USED TO FAIL OR EVEN TO FOLLOW
PHILLIPS IS THE NAME SUITED BY ONE
PHIP-RIP IS THE ONE SELECTED BY MINE
NEVER SAW HIS FALL SUCH LIKE A GRIP
HE TOO GENTLE HE WOULD NOT GRIP (FIGHT)
THERE IS A BELL TOO ON ITS BAR
LOOK LIKE A HANDSOME UGLY SCAR
AS I AM TO TAKE MY SEAT
STOPPING HERE TO WRITE
ADVISING HIM TO PUT OIL A PINT.
UNQUOTE

Whenever I used to point out to hom that he had praised about the faithfulness and reliability of my cycle, he used to reply with a sheepish smile'
"Poets always lie to please a friend.

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WHOM TO CAST THE FIRST STONE

2010-06-14T06:32:00.000-07:00

A.K.RAMAN

God sent His messenger to earth again to teach human moral values and prevent them from sinning and to build good character. On reaching the earth the messenger was awe struck. Everybody was preaching moral values to others but did not practice their own preaching. When ever he tried to preach moral values no body was willing to listen. He noticed that whenever a person was caught sinning all others jumped on him to punish him. It took him little time to realize that people were experts in sinning without being noticed. Evading attention was the main motto. One would be presumed to be a noble man till he was caught sinning. God’s messenger was waiting for a chance to provoke the conscience of the people.
Once he saw a group of people pelting stones on a young woman. He intervened and asked why were they pelting stones on her? One among the group explained that she was caught eloping with another man when her husband was away. As per the prevailing rule in that village she had to be killed by pelting stones. The messenger felt that it was the right time to awake their conscience.
“OK. He that is without sin among you may cast the stone first” He suggested expecting the crowd to search their conscience and melt away sparing the woman. A person who had sinned most, without batting an eyelid pelted the stone first. Gleefully others followed and the poor woman was not spared.
Next day the messenger saw the sinner talking with another person who was his accomplish in most of his crimes and listened.
“Every body knows that you have sinned most and still you were the first person to pelt the stone yesterday. Why did you do it?” The sinner’s friend asked.
“Otherwise it would tantamount to accepting my guilt.” The sinner replied.

-----X-----X-----X-----

GODBOLE AT IT AGAIN

2010-06-04T07:16:00.000-07:00

A.K.RAMAN
“Long time no see, Dr.Godbole” I called out loudly to attract the attention of the person walking briskly in front of me” But the person continued his brisk walk as if my loud call did not reach his ear drum at all.
It was a hot summer day and very few ventured out to avoid sun stroke. The mercury was hovering around 47 degrees centigrade. The road was almost deserted. I had to attend a meeting in the morning which was scheduled to be conducted in an air-conditioned hall. A friend drove me to the hall in his air-conditioned car. Everything was fine till then. The meeting concluded earlier than expected and we were driving back home. Suddenly I remembered an errand which I had kept in abeyance for a long time. It could have waited for some more months. But as fate would have it, I decided to complete it and asked my friend to drop me at a convenient place. Within few minutes I realized my folly, but by then my friend had disappeared in his car and I found myself being scorched by this hot sun. To describe Dr.Godbole is very easy. You describe Professor Claculus of Tintin comics I would vouch that you have described Dr.Godbole. I found this man covering his head with a woolen muffler marching briskly. My first instinct was to ignore him. But the Goodman in me forced me and hence my loud call.
“Long time no see Dr.Godbole” I called out again slightly louder. But there was no response from him. I increased my speed, overtook him and made a u turn so as to block his way. He jerked to a halt and stared at me with his expressionless egg like eyes.
“Dr. Godbole don’t you recognize me” I asked in between my gasps for breath.
“Of course I recognize you. The trouble is that you remind me that I had to abandon the project I was working at that particular time.”
“But Sir! Please don’t blame me. It is news to me. You mean you have abandoned important projects like inventing time machine!” I exclaimed. “Please don’t tell me that you have abandoned the other project of reducing the size of humans to solve the problem of scarcity. In fact I stopped you just to know the latest developments in those projects.” I continued.
“No! No! Youngman. I have not abandoned any project so far. They are kept in abeyance to be continued as soon as I find time.”
“But I thought you are going somewhere in connection with one of those projects.” I said.
“My dear boy! You know about only a couple of projects on which I am working. In fact there are number of such projects. Usually I don’t discuss about them with any body.” He said with a twinkle in his eyes.
“So you are out in the sun in pursuit of another project about which I have no Knowledge” I pretended surprise.
“Yes” He said curtly.
“I thought you like me so much and I am the most privileged person in the world to know about your future discoveries.” I moaned.
“Of course you are. It does not mean that I have to waste my time explaining complex things which you could never understand.” He waved his hand as if to put me in place I deserve.
“Please give a hint. I will go to some library and make myself fit enough to understand whatever you say.” I wanted to prolong the conversation.
“No. No. No. Please don’t sit on my neck. I have got work to do.” He tried to dismiss me.
“But Sir! I have not yet told you the main purpose of interrupting you on the way.”
“You have already told me that you wanted to know the progress of the projects about which I discussed with you when we met last time. I will keep you informed as soon as I achieve something concrete. Now let me go.” He tried to brush me aside again.
“No Sir! In fact I was trying to get an appointment with you for sometime. But I could not get it. This is a God sent opportunity. Please let us go inside the park and spend sometime in the shadow. I want to suggest some projects on which you have to work in the interest of humanity.”
“I am not interested and I don’t take suggestions from persons of your caliber.”
“But this is very important and only a person of your caliber can work out a solution. Please don’t disappoint me.” I goaded him towards the park.
“Oh! What a pain you turn out to be! Better let it be really worth of my time. Otherwise I will never allow you to meet me again.” He warned.
“Let us sit on the bench under the big tree” I ignored his warning.
“Come on. Let us get over it. Shoot your suggestions.”
“In fact two things are worrying me for some months and I decided to bring those to your attention. I know only you can work out a solution.”
“Please don’t beat about the bush. I have no time to waste.” His impatience showed in his tone.
“It is about global warming and ….”
“And what? Come out fast.”
“Drying and disappearing of rivers” I hurried to add.
“You want me to work on these.” The sarcasm in his voice was obvious.
“Yes Sir. Only you can do it.” I replied.
“Silly. Silly. Silly. What is there to work on it? There is nothing to solve.” He said dejectedly.
“Nothing! Nothing to work on! The whole world is worried to find a solution. You are saying that there is nothing to work on.” I was really wonderstruck.
“Yes. A hundred times yes.” He was very emphatic.
“Yes? Do you mean that you have got a workable solution?” I asked.
“No solution is required. Population explosion is the main reason. Rivers can not disappear just like that.”
“Please elaborate.” I insisted.
Oh God! OK. There is no other way. Let me explain.” He sighed.
“I am all ears.” I prompted.
“Tell me what is worrying you?”
“Let us talk about global warming first.” I prompted.
“I thought you are intelligent. Tell me what you want to know about this global warming?” He queried.
“The rising temperatures” I replied.
“Let me come to your level first and make it as simple as possible.”
“That is the thing I like in you most.” I adored.
“Have you ever gone to your kitchen?” He asked.
“Yes. Many times.” I replied without knowing the connection between global warning and my kitchen.
“Then you might have observed that the kitchen is warmer than the other rooms whenever something was cooked.”
“Yes” I replied confusion still lingering.
“Why is it warmer?” He quizzed.
“It is warmer because of the heat produced by the stove.”
“Great! If the stove is put off the temperature falls to the normal again. Is it not?” He asked.
“Yes.”
“Then you know the solution.” He told in a concluding tone.
“You suggest that all of us stop cooking and the global warming is solved once and for all.” I wanted to know.
“Don’t be silly. Please think of the number of automobile engines running through out the world. Millions and millions engines are heating the air. Add to it the heating due to huge thermal, gas and atomic power generating stations, industrial boilers and other equipments. With all this heating it would be a wonder if global warming had not occurred.” He concluded.
“Is it as simple as that? People were telling that it is due to the carbon dioxide and things like that.” I wondered.
“Yes! It is as simple as that and it has got nothing to do with carbon emission.” He emphasized.
“OK. What about drying up of the rivers?”
“My dear fellow! If there is no water in the catchments area how can a river flow?” He asked.
“That was my question Sir.” I said
“Where has all the water gone?” He asked me again.
“That was my question Sir.” I repeated.
“Water just can not disappear. I think you remember the law of conservation of mass.”
“Yes. Yes. Mass can neither be created nor destroyed. It can be converted from one form to another.” I replied to show off my intelligence.
“If mankind has taken out all the water flowing in various rivers and stored them in their back yard how can you expect rivers to flow? Naturally they will dry up.” He went on.
“The solution is very simple. Pour out all the water from millions of water tanks in residential buildings, Railway stations, Industries, Townships etc. etc. All the disappeared rivers would appear again.”
“You mean that we have stored all the water in our back yard………….”
I discontinued as some movement behind the bushes caught my attention. Before anybody could realize, four men accompanied by Mrs.Godbole pounced on Mr.Godbole. A doctor pushed a syringe in Mr.Godbole’s body ignoring his protests. Within few minutes Mr.Godbole started his return journey to home, carried away by the four men. I went back home completely relieved that he is safe again.
-----X-----X-----X-----X-----X-----

FUN WITH NUMBERS 2

2010-05-18T05:50:00.000-07:00

THE POWER OF 2 AND 6
A.K.RAMAN

Let us consider the following numbers which have perfect real and whole cube roots. Having observed the existence of common difference which is 6 in the case numbers raised to the power of three, let us try to find the relation between the common difference and the cube roots.
CUBES 1 8 27 64 125 216 343 512 729
CUBE ROOTS 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9
CD3 6 6 6 6 6 6 6 6 6

Neglecting the first number 1, let us do the following exercise with other numbers in the first row of the above table.
Divide the number by the common difference 6. For example take the case of number 8. If you divide 8 by 6, the reminder comes to be 2 which is the cube root of 8.
Divide the number 27 by 6 and again the reminder (3) is its cube root.
Divide the next number 64 by 6 and the reminder 4 is the cube root of 64.
Same is the case for the number 125. 125 divided by 6 gives a reminder of 5 which is the cube root of 125.
The next number is slightly different. If you divide 216 by 6 the reminder is 0. Since this is the first number in the above table which gives a reminder of 6, let us add a subscript number 1 under it. Now let us make a formula as follows and try further.
CUBES 1 8 27 64 125 216
CD3 6 6 6 6 6 6
REMINDER 0 2 3 4 5 0
SUBSCRIPT 0 0 0 0 0 1
CUBE ROOT 1 2 3 4 5 6

Cube root = Common difference multiplied by subscript plus the reminder.
Let us apply the formula the number 216.
Cube root of 216= 6*1+0 (CD3*Subscript + Reminder)
= 6
In fact the cube root for 216 is 6.
Let us do the same exercise for the next number 343. If 343 is divided by 6 it yields a reminder of 1. Then as the above formula the cube root= 6*1+1
=7
The formula holds good for the remaining numbers also.
Let us consider some more numbers also.
CUBES 343 512 729 1000 1331 1728
CD3 6 6 6 6 6 6
REMINDER 1 2 3 4 5 0
SUBSCRIPT 1 1 1 1 1 2
CUBE ROOT 7 8 9 10 11 12

CUBES 2197 2744 3375 4096 4913 5832
CD3 6 6 6 6 6 6
REMINDER 1 2 3 4 5 0
SUBSCRIPT 2 2 2 2 2 3
CUBE ROOT 13 14 15 16 17 18

CUBES 6859 8000 9261 10648 121617 13824
CD3 6 6 6 6 6 6
REMINDER 1 2 3 4 5 0
SUBSCRIPT 3 3 3 3 3 4
CUBE ROOT 19 20 21 22 23 24

THE ABOVE FORMULA HOLDS GOOD ONLY IN CASE OF NUMBERS THAT HAVE REAL WHOLE NUMBERS AS THEIR CUBE ROOT. ONE CAN NOT WORK OUT CUBE ROOT OF ANY NUMBER WITH THE ABVOE FORMULA. THE SAME FORMULA HOLDS GOOD IN FINDING SQUARE ROOTS OF NUMBERS WHICH HAVE REAL WHOLE NUMBERS AS THEIR SQUARE ROOTS, BUT FOR SQUARE ROOT CD2 IS TO BE USED IN PLACE OF CD3.

Now let us try to find the fourth root of numbers which have real whole numbers as their fourth root.
X 1 2 3 4 5 6
X power 4 1 16 81 256 625 1296
CD4 24 24 24 24 24 24
Reminder 1 16 9 16 25 0
Subscript 0 0 0 0 0 1
If we divide the numbers in row 2 by CD4 and apply the above formula to find their fourth root (CD4* subscript + reminder) you can observe that the formula does not hold good.
But let us make a table considering CD2 (Because we are trying to find the fourth root we are considering CD2 since 4 is an even number)
X 1 2 3 4 5 6
X power 4 1 16 81 256 625 1296
CD2 2 2 2 2 2 2
Reminder 1 0 1 0 1 0
Subscript 0 1 1 2 2 3
Now let us work out the fourth root of 1296 using the formula
Fourth root of 1296= CD2 * subscript + Reminder
= 2*3+0
=6 which is correct.
One can do similar exercise for any number which has a real whole number as its fourth root and observe that the formula holds good. Knowledge of correct subscript is must for this exercise.
Now let us consider the following table.
X 1 2 3 4 5 6
X power 5 1 32 243 1024 3125 7776
CD3 6 6 6 6 6 6
Reminder 1 2 3 4 5 0
Subscript 0 0 0 0 0 1
Let us calculate the fifth root of 7776. Since we are calculating odd number (5) root, we have to use CD3 in the above formula.
Fifth root of 7776 = CD3 * Subscript + Reminder
= 6 * 1 + 0
= 6
For those numbers which has a real whole number as its fifth root, CD3 (6) is to be used in the above formula.
We can generalize by saying
ODD NUMBER ROOT OF A NUMBER FOR WHICH A REAL WHOLE NUMBER EXISTS AS ITS ROOT, THE SAME CAN BE FOUND OUT USING THE FORMULA
ROOT = CD3 * SUBSCRIPT PLUS REMINDER
EVEN NUMBER ROOT OF A NUMBER FOR WHICH A REAL WHOLE NUMBER EXISTS AS ITS ROOT, THE SAME CAN BE FOUND OUT USING THE FORMULA
ROOT = CD2*SUBSCRIPT PLUS REMINDER.
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SHOW ANOTHER CHEEK

2010-04-09T08:46:00.000-07:00

Joker Pande: See! I followed the advice of Jesus and the whole class went against me.
Santa: What happened?
Joker Pande: The class thug slapped me on my right cheek and I showed another cheek to him. He slapped that cheek also.
Santa : You did the right thing. Why your class mates went against you?
Joker Pande: That "another cheek" belonged to Ramu the weakest boy in the class and loved by all.
Santa: !!!!!!!!!!!!

GOD AND EGO

2010-02-19T05:33:00.000-08:00

A.K.RAMAN
I AM GIVING BELOW THE MEANING OF A SANSKRIT SLOGAM (POEM) WHICH I ENJOYED VERY MUCH.
I was searching GOD. I could not find him. When after putting lot of effort HE appeared, "I" was not there.
You have to shed self esteem and ego to qualify to be in HIS presence.

TOMORROW NEVER COMES

2010-02-19T05:23:00.000-08:00

Santa: We shall overcome
We shall overcome
We shall overcome ONE DAY
Deep in my heart
I do believe
We shall overcome ONE DAY.
JOKER PANDE: O! Whenever I hear this, I don't know why the following quote in front of a grocery shop comes to my mind
"Please deal in cash today. Tomorrow I will extend credit"

MASSIVE PROBLEM

2010-02-10T20:38:00.000-08:00

Santa: As far as the world is concerned my wife carries more weight than me.
Banta: You should improve and learn more things so that your word carries more weight.
Santa: That is not the matter. I am weighing 70 Kgm only while my wife is more than 80Kgm.
Banta: !!!!!!!???????

MULTIPLYING EFFICIENCY

2010-02-04T05:59:00.000-08:00

Santa was running a business single handed and earned popularity for his efficiency. His friend Banta observed santa busy always as the business thrived. Day by day Santa became so busy he could hardly get time for doing daily routine.
One day Banta came to him and said,
"Santaji! You need an assistant to help you in business. I strongly recommend Joker Pande. He is as efficient as you are and I assure that your popularity will continue to be high."
Santa: Thank you Bantaji. But please remember that unfortunately efficiency always multiplies.
Banta: I don't understand. Say fortunately efficiency multiplies.
Santa: Bantaji! I mean what I said. See! A person's efficiency quotient can never be more than one. In fact it is always below one. If I am said to be highly efficient his efficiency quotient will be around 0.9. As a one man firm, my firm's efficiency will also be 0.9. If I hire another man equally efficient then the firm's efficiency will be the product of our individual efficiency. PLEASE REMEMBER THAT IF YOU MULTIPLY ONE FRACTION WITH ANOTHER THE PRODUCT WILL ALWAYS BE LESS THAN INDIVIDUAL FRACTIONS. So please allow me to run my firm at higher level of efficiency.
Banta: OK! OK! You could have easily said no to my proposal. !!!!!!!!

GLOBALISATION

2010-01-07T02:48:00.000-08:00

A.K.RAMAN
A few years before there was lot of hue and cry about globalization. There was lot of confusion about the outcome of globalization. It turned out to be opening up of markets to other countries. As usual it was to the advantage of developed countries. Some developing countries like India and China managed to get some benefit out of it by way of some job opportunities and some export benefits. These benefits also benefited the developing countries more.
I dreamt a dream in midnight of last years last day. Strangely it is about my perception of globalization. Globalization, according to me is removal of all barriers including national boundaries; not just opening of markets. Just think of a world where there are no nations and no boundaries. It would be a passport free and visa free world. A man is free to move to any part of the world as per his wish and live wherever he wants to. That is real freedom. That is the real meaning of old Tamil saying;
“Yaathum oorE, yaavarum kElir.”
“All places are my native place and all humans are my relatives.”
Think of the advantages to the human race if such condition is realized. There would be no armies, but police force would be there to maintain law and order. Huge defense budget the world is spending today would be available for education, agriculture, research and other useful purpose. There would be no need for nuclear weapons and other weapons of mass destruction. There would be no U.N. Security Council, no customs department, no deporting. In the absence of borders’ there would be no border disputes. There would be only one currency and there would be free trade automatically. Smuggling would be pushed back to history.There would be no NATO, G8,G80, group of this and group of that.
Osama bin Laden and other and other terrorist organizations would have lost their relevance. There would be no struggle in the name of Tibet, Kashmir etc. There would be one Apex government and many central governments located in various convenient places. They would implement one constitution. Discoveries, inventions and innovations would be freely available to all and there would be no talks on technology transfer. There would be no economic isolation. Whatever God has given is available to one and all. One can add many more advantages the world would get.
World leaders should push for abolition of nationalism and national borders instead of spending time and money by discussing various less important matters. IN THESE DAYS OF GLOBALIZATION, PATRIOTISM IS SORT OF NARROW MINDEDNESS.

Fun with Numbers

2009-12-23T19:41:00.000-08:00

On a rainy day I happened to scribble some numbers on a piece of paper and was looking for some connection in those numbers. Suddenly I landed upon a strange connection, a strange occurrence which I want to share with all.

Step 1: Let us write numbers from zero to any number (for example from 0 to 20) under a column x1. Deduct the number in the first row (0) from the number in the second row (1) and write the difference under the second column CD1. Then deduct the number in the second row under column x1 (1) from the number in the third row (2) and write the difference under column CD1. Continue like this and write the difference from consecutive numbers under the column CD1. The numbers under the column CD1 will be 1,1,1,1 etc.

Step 2: Now square the numbers under column x1 and write the squares under column x2. The numbers will be 0,1,4,9 etc. Again deduct the first number under column x2 (0) from the number in the second row (1) and write the difference under column D2. Then deduct the number in the second row under column x2 from the number in the third row and so on and so forth. The numbers under the column D2 will be 1,3,5,7 etc. Now deduct the number in the first row under column D2 from the number in the second row and so on and so forth, and write the differences under column CD2. The numbers under the column CD2 will be 2,2,2,2 etc.

Step 3: Now find the cubes of numbers under the column x1 and write the cubes under column
x3. The numbers will be 0,1,8,27,64 etc. Again deduct the number in the first row under column x3 from the number in the second row and write the difference under column D31. The numbers will be 1, 7, 19, 37 etc. Now deduct the number in the first row under column D31 from the number in the second row and so on so forth and write the differences under column D32. The number will be 6, 12, 18, etc. If you do the same exercise with numbers under column D32 you will get a common difference of 6 which is to be written under column CD3. Please find attached herewith a tabulation in which similar exercise has been done for numbers x4, x5, x6 and x7.

If one observes the numbers under column CD1 (1), CD2 (2), CD3 (6), CD4 (24), CD5 (120), CD6 (720) and CD7 (5040), one can see the common differences following a pattern which can be described by the following equation.

CD_n = CD_(n-1) * n.

Where CD_n = common difference for numbers raised to the power of n

CD_(n-1) = common difference for numbers raised to the power of (n-1)

It can also be observed that when n=1, the common difference occurs in the first column to right of numbers under x¹. When n=2, the common difference occurs in the second column to the right of column x² and when n=3, the common difference occurs in the third column to the right of column x³ and so on. In general the common difference between numbers raised to the power of n occurs at the n^th column to the right of column xⁿ. Obviously all the common differences (2,6,24, 120,720 etc.) are even numbers except the first one (1).

POSITIVE THINKING/KALPATHARU

2009-12-19T23:28:00.000-08:00

A.K.RAMAN.

You must have come across many articles regarding positive thinking and its effect on our life. Whenever I think of positive thinking I remember the story I had read somewhere. That story indicates the effort put up by our fore-fathers to plant in our mind the habit of positive thinking. I want to share that story with you all so that you can also benefit from the same.
Once upon a time a man was wandering in a desert on a hot summer day. He was completely exhausted due to heat and wanted to rest somewhere and was searching for a suitable place. Luckily he saw a tree and rushed towards it and stood under it. The shadow of the tree gave him some comfort. His legs were paining but he could not sit on the sand fearing the heat.
“If I manage to get a cot I can sit on the same and massage my aching legs.” He thought within himself. Lo and behold! A cot appeared and he immediately sat on it.
“If this tree moves its branches and start a cool breeze it will rejuvenate my energy.” He longed within himself and a cool breeze started to relieve his exhaustion. This relief made him aware that he had not eaten anything from the morning and he was feeling very hungry.
“Oh! If only somebody serve me a seven course lunch now, it will quench my hunger.” He desired. A sumptuous lunch appeared in front of him and he ate it delightfully. The heavy lunch made him drowsy and he wanted to sleep. He wanted a soft bed on the cot so that he can sleep comfortably on it and found the same on the cot.
“It is a great day and I am getting all I wanted. If my wife come here now and massage my body with her beautiful hand, I will feel as if I am in heaven.” He longed again. Immediately he saw his wife coming towards him at a distance. Suddenly it dawned upon him that his wife could never make it to that place as his house was thousands of miles away. Since it could not be his wife, he surmised that it could only be a ghost. Fear gripped him suddenly. He focused his eyes towards the approaching figure and found a ghost coming towards him. He started to tremble and feared that the ghost would kill him and eat him and so it happened.
In fact, he was lucky enough to find the mythical tree “Kalpatharu” which grants every wish. Till his thoughts were positive he was blessed with desired comfort. His negative thoughts destroyed him. If only he continued to think positively, he would have lived comfortably for ever.

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FOOD FOR THOUGHT

2009-12-18T06:01:00.000-08:00

Tongue is one of the lightest parts of our body. Still very few people can hold it.

FOOD FOR THOUGHT

2009-12-17T05:45:00.000-08:00

"He who takes medicines and neglects diet wastes the skill of his Doctor."
A Chinese proverb.

SANTA JOKES

2009-12-02T04:58:00.000-08:00

John: Friends! The fellow by my side is Mr. Santa. He is having a cabbage on his head and garbage within it.
Santa: Friends! The fellow by my side is Mr. John.Unlike me his head is fully vacant.
On lookers: !!!!!!!!!!!!!

JOKER PANDE ON INDIAN TECHNOLOGY AND SKILL

2009-07-14T01:27:00.000-07:00

A.K.RAMAN

Once it so happened, that Joker Pande has to be sent to UN to participate in world Technology and Skill conference. You don’t know Joker Pande? He is the sole competitor for our famous Mr.Santa of popular Santa and Banta duo. Readers must have understood Joker Pande’s IQ level. Since all other capable persons to represent India were on leave, there was no other choice. However another person holding entry level post was asked to accompany Joker Pande to assist him and guide him whenever he goes astray.
Representatives from almost all the countries assembled in the conference hall and the conference was called to order. Representatives were seated in alphabetical order of their respective country. Representatives started their speech and were informing the world about technologies available in their country and other capabilities. Joker Pande started floating in his mind (Dozing off) and within minutes sunk deep in sleep. When his turn was about to come, his assistant awoke him and Joker Pande heard somebody speaking on nanotechnology. Presently his turn came. He cleared his throat and spoke thus.
“India is the pioneer in nanotechnology. Even advanced countries like USA, Japan, UK, etc were left behind……..”
On hearing these words all the participants gasped and sat up attentively to hear things unknown to the world.
“I was always suspecting that the Indians were up to something big. In spite of all the cooperation, they are not at all open.” murmured the American. Paying least attention to the reaction of the house, Joker Pande went on.
“When TATAs developed with indigenous technology and launched Nano in the market, it took the whole world by surprise. The technology of the world’s cheapest car is ours…..”
A loud peel of laughter suppressed Joker Pande’s words. The assistant pulled Joker Pande to his seat before the commotion could die down. Representatives of other countries delivered their speech and shortly the house broke for lunch.
After lunch the second round started. The American boasted of his country’s ability to manufacture the thinnest needle in the world. The Japanese roared that his country has the ability to drill a hole on that needle.
Joker Pande stood up. “India has the ability to print the words ‘MADE IN INDIA’ on the needle. A wave of laughter engulfed the house and the assistant pulled Joker Pande to his seat. He resisted his effort, remained standing, and thundered
“The world always took India lightly. Your laughter affirms that attitude. Those who are laughing should first say whether their country has the ability to print such words on nanometer thick needle with a hole in it without damaging it”
The silence that followed was so deep that ticking of the clock could be heard clearly by persons sitting at distant corners. The applause that followed was equally loud and persisted for a long time.
“Please remember that we have risen to great heights in spite of looting and suppression by foreign countries for about thousand years.” Joker Pande sat down, his face gleaming with pride. He was smiling from ear to ear. After all he had the last laugh.

HUMOUR IN REAL LIFE

2009-06-09T09:12:00.000-07:00

A.K.RAMAN

It happened about two decades ago. One fine morning, I found myself standing in front of Chennai central Railway station totally confused not knowing where to go. In fact my younger brother was getting married the next day and I had come all the way from Calcutta to attend the marriage at Chennai. The marriage being a three-day ceremony was starting that evening. My younger sister was living at Chennai and all the family were to assemble in her house and move to the marriage hall together. My younger brother was working in Railways and was part of the reservation staff at Egmore station at that time.
Then why confused? I was not in possession of the address of the marriage hall or that of my sister’s house. Being absent minded I could not even remember the place where her house was situated. The journey from Calcutta in Howra-Chennai mail was pleasant and I was excited to meet all my family members. I was planning jokes to share with and things to catch up with. I was so excited that I woke up at about 4.00 a.m. feeling restless as the train was nearing the station. Suddenly despair gripped me as I remembered that I had forgotten to bring the invitation card bearing the address and other relevant details and my diary carrying all my relatives’ addresses.
Thus I was standing in front of the station without a clue how to proceed. Ignoring the pestering taxi and auto drivers, I went to the coffee bar and ordered coffee. I decided to use the deductive in me. It was about 7.00 a.m. Going to my native place and coming back was not possible as it was about three hundred kilometers away south. Some how I have to recollect the address of at least one place. I was in a real fix. The sight of a mini-bus plying passengers from central station to Egmore station gave me an idea. Instead of wasting time at central, I decided to go to Egmore. All the trains from south terminate there and chances of meeting some relative were brighter there. I hopped in the bus and occupied a seat thinking again.
Egmore was sparsely crowded and musing deeply, I glanced at the huge clock in the plat form 1. It was showing 10.05 a.m. and I realized that time was running out fast. I had to be in the marriage hall by 2.00 p.m. and still I could not recollect anything. On an impulse I went inside the reservation office to venture for some known face. Lady luck smiled at me there. A cool voice greeted me and a lady was waving at me. Even though I could not fix her I responded cheerfully. I told her jokingly that I had come all the way from Calcutta to remind them about my younger brother’s marriage. Encouraged by her welcome smile, I fished for a clue.
“ Can you tell me where all my family members are assembling?” I queried.
“ At your Pammal sister’s house.” She replied.
Pammal-Pammal is the place. I was relieved. Thanking her repeatedly, I boarded a local train to Pammal. Once inside I realized that the relief was only partial. My sister had moved from Red Hills to Pammal two years back. I had visited her house only once. Without knowing the address or at least the name of the street, it would be mockery to hire a taxi or auto. The last trip was in an auto and hence I could only recollect some hoardings faintly. Some how I have to fend my way I told myself. Otherwise I decided to go to the police station. My brother-in-law was in police. Going there would be a lot easier though it would be very embarrassing to explain my predicament to others, if I could not find him. I would cut a sorry figure if he had left for the marriage already. I needed a lot of luck, I told myself.
Slowly I dragged myself through the road, searching for familiar corners, signs and hoardings. Luck smiled at me again. Turning an unfamiliar corner, I found myself in front of her house. Instinctively I looked at the door and was greatly relieved not to find a lock dangling outside. I pressed the doorbell as if my life was dependent on it. Instantly the door opened and my sister’s face appeared behind it. In fact she was waiting for her hubby who was late in getting permission. I thanked his authorities for not giving permission early within my mind. Otherwise I would have missed my dearest brother’s marriage and would have spent all the day wandering in the streets like a mad man.
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THE AGE OLD STORY

2009-06-01T09:18:00.000-07:00

Priya Raman

I again cursed myself for starting my journey without intimating my visit. In fact I planned to telephone my arrival from the station. But, when the telephone beeped long beeps repeatedly, I was in a tight corner. I have to reach my destination on my own. I slowly dragged myself to the bus stop with the suitcase weighing a ton.
When the bus came, I double-checked and boarded. Being new to the city, I started to nag the conductor to inform me at the right stop. The conductor tried to be polite and repeatedly assured me.
To avoid inviting the conductor’s wrath, I started to surf through the passengers. Presently she caught my attention. She was in her teens and nature had blessed her with all the charms in the world. Her large dark eyes surrounding long sharp nose are a treat to watch. The lips were natural red and needed no lipstick. She had a slim body neatly proportioned to match her height. Her aura was so powerful that everybody in the bus was influenced by her presence.
But it was not her charm, which attracted my attention. The way she waved her hand to assert herself, the way she nodded, the way she raised her eyebrows, something, something in her looked very familiar. I could not put my finger on it. It was getting dark and my anxiety returned to torment me. I once again reminded the conductor and he snapped at me to be patient. On hearing our conversation she looked up and told,
“Sir, don’t worry. I am also getting down at the same stop. I will remind you to get down. O.K!”
This unexpected answer relieved me of my anxiety. I planned to take her help to reach my destination.
“Sir! We have to get down when the bus stops.” She cooed.
I gripped my suitcase and got down. The streetlights were on. I tossed within my mind how to approach her. She threw a glance at me and proceeded on her way slowly. The fear of her refusal to accompany me made my mind dizzy. I mustered enough courage and asked her
“Will you please guide me to this address?”
She glanced through the piece of paper and looked at me happily.
“Oh! Grandpa! Can’t you recognize me? I recognized you the moment I saw you, but was feeling shy to ask you. Come on, the house is very near and Dad will be surprised to see you with me.” She told in an excited voice.
That did the trick. She was exactly like my son and obviously her movements looked familiar.
“Oh! What a relief?” I replied. “I was very worried as I had ventured on this journey without intimating your dad. I telephoned from the station, but your telephone seems to be faulty. I was in a fix. It is very difficult to locate a house in a new locality at this age.” I continued.
“Don’t worry Grandpa. I will take care of you. Come on let us go.” She caught hold of my hand and started guiding my way home.

WOOD CUTTER AND THE FAIRY

2009-05-15T12:05:00.000-07:00

THE MODERN WOOD CUTTER AND THE OLDAGE FAIRY
A.K.RAMAN

Once upon a time there lived a wood cutter in a village near a forest. He went inside the forest braving wild beasts and cut dead trees and sold the wood to the villagers. Obviously he was very poor. Due to constant usage for a long time his axe had worn out and needed replacement. But he could not save money to purchase a new axe.

One hot summer day, he wandered in the forest in search of dead tree and could not find one for a long time. After hours and hours of search he found one tree near an abandoned well. He started cutting the tree. The long search had made him very tired and hungry. But he had nothing to eat. After about half an hour of hard work he was very weak and suddenly the axe slipped from his hand and fell in the well.

The well was very deep and retrieving the axe from it was impossible. Realization dawned on him that his only bread winning tool had been lost. A fit of grief gripped him and he started to weep loudly. In between gasps he was praying God to show pity on him. A fairy was living inside the well and she heard the cry of the wood cutter. She appeared in front of the wood cutter. On hearing the sad story of the wood cutter, she dived inside the well and brought an axe made of gold. She offered the golden axe to the wood cutter. The wood cutter did not accept the axe made of gold and told the fairy that it was not his.
The fairy dived again and brought a silver axe. The wood cutter refused to accept saying it was also not his. The fairy dived for the third time and brought his worn out axe made of iron. Wood cutter was very happy and asked for the axe. Appreciating the wood cutter’s honesty the fairy gave him all the three.
The wood cutter went back to his house and with the money he got by selling part of his gold and silver, he became very rich. He started leading a happy and peaceful life. But his wife became suspicious. She wanted to know the source of his wealth. The wood cutter told her the truth but she was not ready to believe him. After hearing the same story of the fairy giving him the three axes repeatedly, she wanted to see the fairy. Initially he was very reluctant to take her inside the forest. Her persistent nagging forced him to accept her wish. One fine day, he took her to the abandoned well inside the forest.
His wife was very curious and went to the edge of the well and peeped inside the well to see the fairy. She slipped and fell inside. The wood cutter loved his wife very much. He became very sad again. It pained him very much to lose his beloved wife just few days after becoming rich. He wished for the fairy’s help. The fairy appeared again and asked for the cause of his grief. On hearing about his wife she dived inside the well and returned with a beautiful young girl and offered him.
The wood cutter thought for some time and accepted the beautiful girl as his wife.
“Oh! Oh! It is not fair. I know that she is not your wife.” The fairy said.
“You have become dishonest after becoming rich. I did not expect this from you.” She continued.
“No. No. You have misunderstood me. I have to accept your first offer. Otherwise you will dive again and bring another girl. If I deny her also, you will dive for the third time and bring my wife. The moment I accept her, you will be too pleased and would give me all the three girls. I can manage three axes but I can not manage three wives.” The wood cutter replied and went away with the beautiful girl.

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GODBOLE RISES AGAIN

2009-04-29T08:48:00.000-07:00

A.K.RAMAN

I was sitting, relaxed, enjoying every second of the leisure time, inhaling deeply the free oxygen rich air in the park. It was around five in the evening and I had one full hour more in my hand to pass as per my wish. I was watching the children and the old men and women walking round and round the path laid at the edge of the park.
Suddenly my eyes fell on a lean and thin man squatting under a tree gazing at something below on the ground. Something in him caught my attention. I had a nagging feeling that I had met him earlier. Was it the bald head, the curly hairs just above the ear lobes, the large and protruding egg like eyes or the French cut beard not suiting his face? I could not put my finger on it. It could be the eye brows tied in permanent knot or the way he dressed. He had put on his fading coat buttoned from top to bottom even in this 115 degrees summer evening like a mad……. I snapped my fingers. It is none other than Mr. Er er Dr.Godbole. I got up and rushed towards him.
“Oh! God! What is he doing in the open park on the hottest evening of the year?” I wondered.
“Dr.Godbole! Sir! Dr.Godbole!” I called out loudly. There was absolutely no reaction.
“Sir! I am Jokelekar. We have met in my house last summer.”
Again there was no reaction.
“Sir! How is the progress on the Time machine? Have you developed technology to move faster than light?” He looked up. As usual there was no expression in his eyes.
“Sir! What about the tuners, filters and amplifiers for selecting the desired light signal?” I reminded.
“Uh….Huh. Please don’t disturb” He spoke at last.
“But Sir! The suspense is killing me. Please say something about it.” I prompted.
“It is in design stage. I will show it to you as soon as the machine is built. No need to remind me. I remember my promise. More over you are the only person in the world who knows about the project. You are the only one person to understand and encourage me. But now please get last.” He waved his hand.
“By the by. What are you doing here? Are you working on any new project? Are you postulating a new concept planning to work on it?”
A look of surprise flashed on his face.
“Oh! We are in the same wave length. Your mind is tuned to mine. Tell me how you found out?” He said in a wonder struck voice.
“Found out what Sir?
“You are really dull.” He remarked disgustedly. I groped in the dark, not knowing how to react.
“Tell me who leaked the information?”
“What information Sir?”
“Information about my new theory which I had postulated just three months before.”
“What new theory Sir?”
“I was just conducting a study and was trying to establish contact with them. I was about to succeed. You came like a bolt from the blue and poked your nose in. See all have left.” There was lot of irritation in his voice. I looked around. All were there engrossed in their respective activity.
“Conducting a study?” I asked looking around to see some symptoms.
“Four hours of hard work has gone in the wind because of you. In another fifteen minutes I would have established contact with them and could have made some sort of working agreement with them. Then they would be at my disposal and would clarify all my doubts. It would be interesting to know how they did it.”
I was hearing a lecture in Greek and Latin.
“It was once in a life time opportunity and I failed to grab it because of you. See. All of them have left”
“Please tell me who has left? Please pardon me for my ignorance.”
“The ants of course, you…………..” Suddenly he looked up and let out a peel of laugher. In between that frightening sound he spoke.
“Oh! You are not aware of the project in full. Don’t worry. Failure is the first step to success. The ants will come tomorrow. Come on. Let us sit on the bench near that bush. I will tell a startling fact of nature and the right course the mankind should take to safe guard the earth and mankind itself.”
I followed him like a faithful scapegoat and sat in the bench.
“Have you heard of Darwin?”
“Yes Sir.”
“Then tell me his theory of evolution?” He asked me as a teacher asking his student.
“It has something to with evolution of man from monkey and something to do with survival of the fittest. Am I right?”
“Wrong. Absolutely wrong.” He replied loudly.
“Sir?”
“I am not telling you. I am talking about Darwin’s theory.”
“Now scientists like me are not ready to accept his theory.”
“Why Sir?”
“Simple. If one form of life evolved from another, then there will be only one form or two forms of life on earth or may be three or four. That is only few forms. Not more than that.”
“Why so Sir?” I asked totally confused.
“Don’t you see? If man has come out of monkey, then you can see only monkeys and human on earth till the process of evolution was going on. Then you will see only human. You can not see any monkey.”
“You are absolutely right Sir.” I remarked meekly and unconvinced.
“But you are seeing thousands and thousands of forms of life even now.
This proves that Darwin was wrong.” He went on enthusiastically.
“Yes Sir. You are absolutely right.” His reasoning skill was remarkable.
“But from where these thousands of forms of life came from?” I asked.
“There are thousands of stars in cosmos. Some stars have planets revolving around them. I am sure some planets sustain life. Life in one planet may be different from that on another planet.”
“It is possible Sir.”
“Comets come from far off places crossing stars and their planets on their way. These comets could have attracted small pieces of rock and dust from different planets. Some of the rocks could have carried life along with it. Some of the comets might have come very close to earth and could have been attracted by earth and fell on it.”
“I have heard about such occurrences” I prompted, stalling for time.
“That is how different forms of life from different parts of cosmos reached earth. This theory explains the similarity between some groups of life like cats, tigers, dogs and lion. You can take the case of Bears, monkeys and human. Birds form another group and fish form another group.”
“So you say there was no evolution at all.” I remarked to keep the conversation going.
“No. I did not say that. There was evolution, evolution in form and intelligence. The rate of increase in intelligence is different in different forms of life. That explains why different forms of life ruled the earth at different ages.”
“Yes Sir. The Dinosaurs ruled the earth once upon the time”
Yes! Yes! Of course. Your response proves that you could understand me well.”
“Then can you explain why they became extinct after obtaining the highest IQ level?”
The intelligence should be used for understanding nature and learn to live with nature. Otherwise it will lead you to destruction”
“Yes Sir. Development of nuclear weapons is one example” I volunteered.
“You are correct. Most of the life forms which ruled the earth did not understand and destroyed themselves. But some of them understood and learned to live with nature”
“You mean that some forms life attained highest level of intelligence and ruled the world and are still living in the earth.”
“Yes. You are right again.”
“I am not seeing any of them around here”
“You are seeing them daily. Only thing is you don’t understand them.”
“Please tell me which are they? How they did it?”
“Ants, Bees, white ants to name a few.”
“Interesting! Please proceed.”
“Have you noticed the similarity of their society to ours?”
“Like?”
“Like Kings, Queens, servants, soldiers……”
“Yes. Yes. I know…..”
“I know you know this much. What else you know?” He snapped irritated. Sensing his irritation I kept mum.
“Do you know that they fight wars like us?”
“………….”
“They come in different colors too. Red, Brown, Black, with and without wings”
“Yes” I mumbled without meaning anything.
“Do you know that they cultivate and harvest?”
“It is news to me Sir.” I submitted politely.
“Do you know that they keep cattle and milk their cow?”
I did not know at that time, but later on referring through books I understood all his statements were true.
“To do all these things with such a small sized body……..” I wondered slightly excited.
“That is the point. I wanted you to say that from your own mouth.”
“What is the point Sir?”
“It is the size of the body. They were not as small as they are now. They were bigger, almost to our size.”
“Then how come they became so small?”
“They opted for it.”
“But why?”
“They wanted live. They wanted to avoid extinction”
“I don’t understand Sir.”
“Let me explain. They were facing the same problem we are facing now, population explosion, shortage of food, water and other commodities.”
“How they solved the problems?”
“They handed over the problems to scientists like me. They agreed to abide and implement suggestions. They were ready to sacrifice their scientific advances, their easy way of life, their comforts and pleasures, in fact everything to keep this earth for themselves and others.”
“Did they achieve it?”
“Yes they did it. They shrunk their size by doing some genetic modification so that they would consume little food and occupy little space. They gave the pleasures of reproduction to selected few. Most of them agreed to do service to their society like servants. They decided to lead a nature friendly life without polluting the earth. The result is here for everybody to see. They are still with us, living everywhere and in all conditions.”
“So you propose to do the same thing for us.”
“Yes. As a first step I wanted to establish contact with them and develop communication methods with them. Once successful I can learn from them the problems faced by them after shrinking their size so that we can avoid those pit falls.”
“But how will you shrink our size?” I asked.
“Select the strongest breed, take their gene, do some modifications to shrink the size, do some more modification to switch off their past memory and retain the modifications in future generations. These are all technical matters. Leave them to experts like me……………”
I was not at all listening as some movement behind the bush caught my attention. Mrs.Godbole, the doctor with the syringe and four stout men were closing in on Mr.Godbloe. Within few minutes Mr.Godbole started his return journey fully unconscious. Realizing that it was too late I also started my return journey planning strategy to cope up with my better half’s queries.

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A MIDSUMMER DAY'S DREAM

2009-04-27T07:02:00.000-07:00

GODBOLE APPEARS IN THE SCENE

A.K.RAMAN
“Tap……Tap……Tap”
I knocked at the door and prepared myself for the customary wait in front of my house. I have to repeat the knocking at least two to three times before my wife opens the door. This wait is compulsory irrespective of the weather conditions outside. I have stood outside hot and perspiring, numb and shivering due to cold, wet like a sack in pouring rain and sometimes under pleasant conditions. She always took her own time.
So I was taken aback when the door opened immediately after the first knock. I was totally unprepared for this and things that followed.
“Oh! I thought you would never come” She spoke loudly as if in great relief.
I entered inside the house and was shocked again as my eyes focused on the lean and thin man sitting on the sofa, totally relaxed.
“Dear! This is Godbole’s husband. Do you understand! I hope you understand. Have you understood?” My wife winked at me and continued
“You please take care of him. I am coming in a few minutes.”

My wife moved like a tempest and disappeared outside closing the door behind her. This is another difficulty with her. Whenever she utters the surname of a person, she means the female. I had faced many award situations immediately after our marriage before understanding this. When she said that Hegde said such and such thing, I used to take it for Mr.Hegde while she meant Mrs.Hegde. I used to be completely confused when Mr.Hegde denied saying that thing. The lean person sitting on the sofa is Godbole’s husband, not simple Mr.Godbole?

Even after three decades of married life, I am still finding it difficult to understand even her oral communication. Without understanding my difficulty, she would resort to communication through body language like winks, gesticulations, waving of hands, excetra. During such occasions I would have found it easier to vend my way blind folded in total darkness. Today is one such day. As it is wise not to breed over spilt milk, I braced myself for the eventuality and started to take stock of the prevailing situation. The best way to describe the man sitting on the sofa is to describe Professor Calculus of Tintin comics.
“Hello! I am Jokelekar. Glad to meet you.”
I introduced myself expecting him to do the same in return. But he just looked up and stared at me. After a few minutes of annoying silence, I volunteered,
“What can I do for you?”
“Nothing.” The reply was sudden and coarse. I was expecting that he would say the purpose of his visit. But he preferred to be silent. I cursed my wife for not telling me “how to take care of him” clearly. Deafening silence continued and I pondered over the ways to break the ice. But before I could find a way, he broke the silence.
“Why don’t you sit down?” He ordered. I obeyed promptly. Silence descended again for few long minutes. I shifted my position uneasily and wetted my lips not knowing how to proceed. Then I decided to ask for more information about him, come what may. I mustered my courage and started,
“Mr.Godbole!.........”
“Dr.Godbole! Not Mr.Godbole! Do you understand?” He snapped.
“I am sorry. Mr…..er…Dr.Godbole! May I know your field of research?” I wanted to impress upon him that I know the difference between Mr. Godbole, the doctor and Dr.Godbole the scientist. But he completely ignored me.
“If I say, you can not understand it” He crossed me again.
“Please tell me in simple words. I can certainly understand” I begged.
“Do you believe in Time machines?” He asked.
“I have read about it in stories.”
“I want a direct answer. Do you believe or not?”
“Well ….er….er…..nobody has built it so far.”
“Yes or no?”
“Well! I am yet to come across…………..”
“Is it possible to go back on time and what happened yesterday?”
“Sir! I have not heard of anybody going back on time” I evaded again completely confused what to do with such a man.
“Is it possible or not? Yes or no?” His voice was harsher.
I decided to come out clean.
“Frankly Sir! I don’t know.”
“What do you think? Is it possible or not?” He stressed the word ‘you’
“I told you Sir! I don’t know.” I surrendered meekly.
As if pitying on my ignorance, he said in a matter of fact tone,
“It is possible, my dear friend. It is possible.”
“Is it so?” I was really surprised.
“Yes! I will explain to you in simple way.”
“Please go ahead. I am all ears.”
“See! Assume your friend ‘A’ started from here few minutes before. He is to go to the post office by walk. Now you take your scooter and go to the post office which is about two kilometers away. Please tell me who will reach there first?”
“I will reach there first Sir”
“Exactly. If you wait in the post office, you can meet your friend after sometime. Isn’t it?”
“Yes Sir! Of course I can.” I replied not knowing what the post office had to do with the Time machine.
“Do you know how do you see things?”
“I see with my eyes Sir!” I replied like a KG class student, slightly confused.
“That is not the point, you fool. I will tell you how you see me. My body reflects the light fallen on it. When the reflected light reaches your eyes you see me.”
Yes. Yes. I know it too Sir!” I replied duly enlightened.
“Suppose yesterday I killed a person. You could have seen me killing him when the light from the scene reaches your eyes”
“Yes Sir!”
“The light from the scene of killing travels in all directions at a speed of 186000 miles per second.”
“Yes Sir!”
“You can see the act of killing at a place 186000 miles away only after a lapse of one second. Isn’t it?”
“Yes Sir! You are absolutely correct. Only your eyes should be sharp enough to feel it.”
“You are really bright. Suppose you start from the scene of killing at twice the speed of light you will reach that place before the light from the scene of killing reaches there. Isn’t it?
“Exactly Sir! I will reach half a second before the light reaches that place”
“If you wait for half a second there you can see the act of killing one second after it happened. Isn’t it? Provided that your eyes are sensitive enough of course”
“Of course Sir!”
“Now tell me the distance traveled by light in two days.”
The question foxed me for sometime. Then I replied,
“It will travel 186000X60X60X48 miles”
“We call that distance as two light days” The tone was very kind.
“Yes Sir! Come to think of it. I also know that”
“You are very intelligent” He commented.
“Oh! Thank you Sir! But I am nothing in front of you” I replied in a modest tone.
“Suppose you travel at a speed of two light days per hour and wait there, you will be able to see the act of killing 47 hours after the occurrence the murder. Of course your eyes should be sensitive enough or you have gadgets which can make that light strong enough for normal eyes can see that.”
“But Sir!.........”
“What ‘but’?” His voice showed irritation.
“But Sir! Light from all over the place will reach there. How will you differentiate the light from the scene of killing from light other scenes?”
“You are brighter than I expected you to be. Tuners and filters can be designed. Leave that to experts like me”
Encouraged by his appreciation, I asked another question.
“For making it possible you have to travel faster than light.”
“Yes! Of course. I told you so”
“But as per Einstein’s theory of relativity, you can not exceed the speed of light.” I thought that I have cornered him this time. As if he had read my mind he snapped,
“You believe Einstein more that your own people, you fool”
I was completely shaken this time.
“Do you mean our(?) People have exceeded the speed of light?”
“Yes. Yes. Yes. A thousand times yes.”
“But Sir! I have not heard of such thing” I murmured meekly.
“I will clarify. Then you will agree”
“Please go ahead Sir.”
“Earlier I told you that light from me should reach your eyes for you to see me. Isn’t it?”
“Yes Sir!”
“Now I am standing in front of you and talking t you. You are seeing me because light from me reaches you”
“Yes Sir”
“If I move away from you faster than the speed of light, will it be possible for you to see me?”
“NO Sir!”
“That means I have suddenly disappeared. Isn’t it?”
“Yes Sir”
“After sometime, if I return back and stand in front of you, you will be able to see me again. Isn’t it?”
“Yes Sir! But again………”
“Don’t interrupt. Have you not heard of our ancient Rishis appear and disappear at will. Not only they were able to move faster than light but also they had clear knowledge of the whole universe. They were visiting planets inside and outside of our solar system.”
“Do you mean to say that you know how to travel faster than light?”
“No. But I am working on it. I am trying to develop tuners and filters of light so that I can get exactly light from a scene which happened long time before.”
“How far have you progressed? Can I be of any help? Please tell me. I would be glad to oblige.” I volunteered with lot of respect and humbleness.
“Thank you. But the main constraint is time. People just don’t allow me to work on them………” He continued to say something. But I was detracted by the sudden appearance of my wife. She along with four stout men and another person looking like a doctor burst opened the door and entered. On seeing them Dr.Godbole’s expression changed. Fear gripped him and he jumped up and tried to escape. But the stout men caught hold of him and held him tightly. The Doctor pushed a syringe in his body not yielding to his loud protest. Within minutes his eyes lost its focus and a mist formed in his eyes. He slowly dropped and went to sleep. Then they carried him away.
I stood like a statue awestruck. My wife closed the door and turned towards me.
“Why are you looking so sad, my dear? Godbole’s husband is slightly mad. He thinks himself to be a genius scientist and utters nonsense. Thank you very much for ‘taking care of him’ till I brought help. Poor Godbole! She had to put up with all the difficulties. She was very much worried that he might have run away from our house before the arrival of the doctor. But I assured her that I had hinted you sufficiently (!!!!!?????) and you have understood. Did he give you lot of trouble?” She went on talking rapidly.
“No darling. He was perfectly OK. In fact he was talking sense. His presentation was superb. Even a child can understand his theory the way he presented it. It is only the question of developing tuners, filters and amplifiers of light. He has to reinvent the technology used by our Rishis to travel faster than light. It is so simple…………”
“Oh dear! What happened? Are you alright? Oh God! Save us.” My wife looked really worried. Before she could call the doctor back, I took large strides towards her, put my hand around her waist, pulled her closer and whispered in her ears in a romantic voice,
“Darling! Nothing has happened. I was just telling in a nutshell what Dr…er…Mr.Godbole was telling me in your absence.”
“Oh! I was really sorry. I can understand how much you had to put up with.”
As usual, even though I was telling her the truth, she misunderstood me. Feeling happy that she had helped Godbole to catch her husband, she flowed inside the house like a butterfly. But please tell me your opinion. DID SHE HELP MRS.GODBOLE OR SUPPRESSED AND MIFFLED A GENIUS.

-----X-----X-----X-----X-----X-----

THE SANYASI AND THE DIAMOND NECKLACE

2009-04-19T00:35:00.000-07:00

Human tendency is to share things with others. Those who had left their native place for better opportunities sulk through out their life in spite them getting better standard of living. The reason for their sulking is very simple. They are unable to share their comfort with their dear ones. This lacuna is reduced to a great extent by developments in technology. At least they can share their feelings with their near and dear ones on day to day basis with improved communication facilities. I am no exception to this. That is the reason I am sharing the following story which I read in a weekly magazine approximately four decades ago. The urge to share the story with the whole world did not dampen with passage of time. Here is the story with special effects (words only) added by me to increase interest.

Once upon a time, there lived a Brahmin in an ancient Indian village. As an intelligent boy, he learnt his lessons pretty quickly. He married a beautiful girl from the same village and lived a happy and content life. As time passed, he was blessed with nice children. He groomed them well and made them responsible citizens. He married them off to good companions and life became happier with grand children around him. He told them stories every day and through those stories imbibed in them moral values and good habits. Everybody loved him and life was pleasant. Time passed and the Brahman started to accept life as it came to him. Desires deserted him one by one. The Brahman realized that he was passing through a stage of life called ‘vanaprastham’. He being a learned man knew that he had to renunce everything and become a sanyasi (saint) sooner or later. So he started to make people around him mentally prepared to live without him.

One fine day he called all the family members and informed them about his desire to leave the house to lead a life of a sanyasi. Initially there was loud protest. But he argued his way and convinced them. His wife was adamant not to leave him.
“I will also become a sanyasini like you and lead a life around you. During our marriage ceremony I promised to be with you and face all challenges along with you. I don’t want to fail in my duties. So please allow me to come along with you” She insisted.

The Brahman explained the difficulties of leading a life as sanyasi. “Initially you have to lead your life like an animal in the forest. You will be exposed to severe winter and hot summer. You have to roam around to get some food and eat whatever you get. Sometime you may not get anything and starve. Afterwards you have to live life like trees. You should not search for food. You have remain at one place eat whatever food comes your way. Somebody might chop your branches or pluck your leaves. You have to tolerate all the difficulties and wait for your turn to mingle with the nature (Almighty)

The conversation went on and on and the Brahman realized that his wife would not relent.
“OK! I have expressed my decision and I am going ahead. As a sanyasi I have no relatives. As such you are a third person. I am not concerned about you. You are free to take your own decision.” He concluded.
He left his house without taking anything with him. As he was walking away, he heard the rustling foot steps of his wife behind him. He was impressed by the resolve of his wife to renunce everything and was happy too. He decided to help her in her Endeavour in all possible ways. As he was walking a flash of brilliant light caught his eyes. He noticed a diamond necklace on the ground partially buried in the dust. The diamond was a rare variety and of high quality and the necklace design was very attractive. He remembered that his wife was fond of such necklaces and in fact wanted to have one for a long time. Being a poor fellow, he could not fulfill her desire.

The half buried diamond necklace reminded him of her desire. He was worried that the sight of the necklace would distract her from her resolve to renunce. He lifted the necklace with his left foot and threw it among the bush by the side of the road. A rare satisfaction filled his heart. Nobody in this world would throw a diamond necklace worth millions of rupees with his left foot. He felt that it was an indication of his mental strength.
“You threw something away with your left foot. What was that?” His wife asked.
He was in a fix. Being a sanyasi, he had to tell the truth. The truth would give her the knowledge of the necklace to her, which in turn would distract her resolve to be a sanyasini. Resigned to his fate, he informed her about the necklace.
“But why did you throw it?” She asked.
“You were fond of such necklace and I was afraid that it might distract your resolve” He replied.
“Stop! Oh Gentleman! Turn back and go home.” His wife said in a commanding voice.
Taken aback he asked her “Why should I return. My resolve is in tact. Just now I threw away a necklace worth millions didn’t I?” He questioned her.
“You are not matured enough. You want to be a sanyasi and still you are aware that your wife is following you. You are aware of your wife’s likes and dislikes. You could distinguish between stones on the road and diamonds. Now tell me are you matured enough to be a sanyasi? So go back” She replied and walked briskly past an awe struck man like a true sanyasini.

-----X-----X-----X----

THE OLD WOMAN AND THE ROTTEN BANANA

2009-04-09T05:20:00.000-07:00

Some stories we read or hear leave deep impression in our mind and impact our character and reactions in our day to day life.
I am giving below one such story which I heard from my mother in my childhood.
Once upon a time Lord Shiva and Goddess Parvathi were roaming in the sky taking note of the happenings below. When they were passing over hell, they were disturbed by the sight of persons suffering from the punishment given to them for their sins. Goddess Parvathi was particularly affected by the crying of an old lady who was undergoing punishment. Being the mother of all and kindness personified, she could not tolerate the sight and decided to help the old lady. She requested Lord Siva to help the lady.
Lord Siva was unmoved and replied that those who are in the hell deserve the punishment given to them and He could not show partiality to anybody. Undergoing punishment is their fate and even He is not empowered to interfere. But Goddess could not believe his comment and insisted him to help the lady.
“You are the creator of the whole universe including hell and heaven. So You can always find a way to help her”
“So You want to see for Yourself My limitations and assure Yourself that the old lady deserves the punishment.”
Goddess Parvathi nodded in agreement. Lord asked her to descend to hell and find out from the old lady at least one good act in her life time. Lord assured to help the lady if Goddess could find at least one good deed in her entire life. Accordingly Goddess met the old lady and asked to about good deeds done in her life time. The old lady thought for a long time and replied that she did not do a single good deed in her life time. The Goddess could not believe her ears. She asked the old lady to think again and again and inform at least one deed so that She could take the old lady to heaven.
After thinking for a long time the old lady replied,
“Oh Mother! I don’t know whether it was a good deed or bad. One day a beggar was begging in front of my house. Since he was not leaving my house in spite of denying alms many times, I remembered that one rotten Banana was in the house to be disposed off. Thinking that giving that as alms would save her the work of disposing it off; I gave it to the beggar.”
On hearing this Goddess became very happy and requested God to save the old lady since giving alms to a beggar is a good act. Lord Siva agreed to help. Immediately the rotten banana appeared just above the old lady. God asked the old lady to catch hold one end of the rotten banana. The old lady happily gripped one end of the banana. God caught hold of the other end and pulled the banana up. The banana along with the old lady started to move up. Others were witnessing all the events. Presently one person ran towards the lady and caught hold of the feet of the old lady. The lady howled at him to leave her feet. But he did not listen. Slowly he was also moving up. The old lady was furious. By the time another person saw them moving up and caught hold of them.
Seeing this more people came rushing towards them and clung to them. The old lady saw more and more people moving up and could not tolerate. She tried vigorously to shake tem off.
“Leave my leg, you sinners. The banana was mine and only I am eligible for heaven. If you don’t leave my leg I will cut your hands. Beware you sinners”
The old lady screamed.
“Keep your cool, old lady.” The Goddess tried to pacify her.
“Oh Mother! You don’t know these people. They are cheats. They are sinners and are to be punished in hell. They don’t deserve heaven. I gave the banana to the beggar and hence only I deserve heaven. They are trying to fool you. I won’t allow them to come along with me…..” The old lady screamed and screamed and shook her body vigorously to shake them off.
The rotten banana gave way and the whole bunch of people including the old lady fell in the hell again.
The Goddess shook her head in disbelief and joined Lord Siva to continue their journey.
“But Oh Mother! Goddess could not save the old lady after all. The act of giving alms to the beggar went in vain” I asked my mother slightly confused.
“You don’t understand my boy!” My mother replied “Giving a rotten banana as alms is a sin and deserve to be punished. You have to give things that you like best. The idea of giving occurred in the old lady’s mind. That was the only good thing. Goddess tried to use that act to save the lady. She gave the old lady a chance to help other sinners to reach heaven. If the old lady did not object other sinners to cling to her and carried them to heaven, that good act would have made her deserve heaven. But the old lady was so cruel she could not tolerate to see others happy. She was jealous even after death.
SO MY LITTLE CHILD, BE KIND AND HELP OTHERS. IF YOU MAKE OTHERS HAPPY YOU WILL BE HAPPY FOR EVER.” Even today I remember hearing those words of my mother as I was dozing off to sleep.

A.K.RAMAN

CAP SELLER AND THE MONKEYS

2009-04-07T03:16:00.000-07:00

A few years back I read modern version of the story “The cap seller and the monkeys”. I found it interesting then. Recently I told the story to my friends to kill time during journey and all of them liked the same. I am giving below the story for everybody to enjoy.

A cap seller was selling caps and was always on the move from one village to another to find new customers. On a hot summer day, he was on his way to a village. The heat was unbearable and he was sweating profusely. By noon he was drained of all energy and was very hungry and thirsty. He saw a big Banyan tree and decided to lunch under it and take some rest in the shadow. He took his lunch and drank plenty of water which he always carried wherever he went. A cool breeze refreshed him and lulled him to sleep.
After about two hours, he woke up and decided to proceed on his journey. He was astonished to find all the caps missing from his bag. He was completely confused. A thief would have taken the bag containing the caps and also would have robbed money and other valuables. In this case the bag was open and only the caps were missing. He raised his head in thought and found the culprits on the tree. Monkeys which were living in the tree saw merchant wearing a cap sleeping under the tree. They were curious. One by one the came down, took a cap from the bag and climbed up. They sat on the branches wearing the cap on their heads.
The cap seller was in real trouble. He tried his best to retrieve the caps from the monkeys. The monkeys jumped from one branch to another holding the cap. The more he tried, higher the monkeys went. His frantic effort amused them. Some of them started imitating him. The cap seller felt helpless and was out of ideas. He threw his cap on the ground out of frustration. Lo and behold all the monkeys imitated him and threw their cap on the ground. Armed with a stick on one hand the cap seller collected all the caps happily and went on his way.
Most of us might have studied the above story in our childhood. The real twist to the story comes only after this.
The cap seller earned sufficient money and married a woman. He was blessed with a son soon. As he grew old, he trained his son in the trade. After his son’s marriage he decided to retire and made his son in charge of his business. He spent his time with his grand son by telling lot of stories as well as his experience in life. Life was smooth and full of joy. One day he passed away peacefully.
The grandson grew up and took charge of the family business. On a hot summer day he was passing from one village to another carrying a heavy bag full of new caps in various colours. Seeing a big banyan tree, he decided to take lunch under it. A cool breeze was blowing and lulled him to sleep. After his nap he awoke and found all the caps from his bag missing. He looked up and saw some monkeys wearing the caps. He remembered his grand father’s experience and decided to use the same trick.
He threw his cap on the ground faking frustration and waited for the monkeys to imitate him.
Time passed and to his utter disbelief, none of the monkeys threw the cap. After some minutes, one stout monkey, the leader of the group removed his cap, safely kept it on the tree and came down. He went near the grandson, gave him a big slap and told
“You little fool, like you; I also had a grand father”

-----X-----X-----X

HUMAN AND THE RATS

2009-03-21T10:09:00.000-07:00

I happened to read a story told by Ramakrishna Paramahamsa to make his disciples to understand the vagaries of the human mind. I found it very interesting and decided to share with you. The story goes like this.

During one dry summer a group of rats found themselves starving. Due to lack of rain during the last season agriculture was very much affected and there was severe shortage of food. So they went in search of food to various places. One day they suddenly found a godown and found a room stocked with grain. To their pleasant surprise, they found a small hole at the bottom of the door through which they could enter inside the room. In fact the path was made by other groups of rats who frequented the godown whenever they were hungry.
One by one the rats entered the room and started eating the grain. Few of them smelt the sweet aroma of coconut dipped in masala. They followed the trail of the aroma and saw a small piece of coconut dangling in front of their eyes. One of them pounced on the coconut to beat others and bit it. A loud sound followed and the rat found itself trapped in a mouse trap. By the time it realized the trap, it was too late. It is not difficult to guess the fate of the rat.
The moral of the story is very simple. The rat could have quenched its hunger simply by eating the grain which was available in plenty. But it was greedy and wanted to eat tastier food and paid the price with its life. We also live like the greedy rat .Instead of leading a simple and peaceful life; we craze for a life full of luxury and lust and crave for more. By the time we realize the folly of our craze, it is always too late.
In the story, men had laid the trap to protect the grains from the rats, so that it can be used when needed. What I can not understand is, in our real life, why and who has laid the trap?

A.K.RAMAN
-----X-----X-----X-----

THE CASE OF THE MYSTERIOUS GHOST

2009-02-11T09:14:00.000-08:00

THE CASE OF THE MYSTERIOUS GHOST
A.K.Raman
Exploring the village

Anand and his classmates Hussein and Baabani were excited. The summer vacation was nearing and they had planned to visit Anand’s grand parents. They were living in a village called Chittur on the edge of a thick forest. Main aim of their visit is to get the feel of the forest. The three friends were in their late teens. All of them were well grown to defy their real age. They were intelligent, inquisitive and adventurous.
On a particular day, all of them met during the lunch break. Anand took out a newspaper clipping and showed it to his friends. The heading was
“Fear of ghost triggers an exodus”
The body of the news item described that a ghost was haunting Chittur village and most of the villagers had left the village. The village already appeared deserted. Few villagers presently living might leave the village at any time leaving the whole village at the mercy of the ghost.
Hussein and Baabani looked at Anand with a frown. The ghost was threatening their planned visit to the forest. But Anand assured that his grand parents would never leave the village, ghost or no ghost.
“What I wanted you to know is that with luck we may have a tête-à-tête with the ghost.” Anand said cheerfully.
The train journey was comfortable. But they had to travel the last fifteen kilometers by bus. The road was bumpy and the rickety bus shook their bones. The heat was telling upon them. They heaved a sigh of relief once they reached the house. They slept like a log of wood in big well-ventilated room. The single fan might have been there in the room for ages and wind from it was barely able to penetrate the mosquito nets. The air was hot and sultry. The rhythmic sound from the fan coupled with whining of mosquitoes would not allow any body to sleep in normal days. None of these affected the boys, as they were so tired.
The next day, after breakfast they went outside to explore the village. The trees in the village were green and dense. They felt that they were already inside the forest. The streets looked deserted. Most of the houses were locked. The people in the remaining houses were old who were either unable to undertake a long journey or determined not to leave their home, ghost or no ghost. Out of the few people they met, only two people made an impression on them. One was the temple priest.
“The temple has been locked for decades. See! Now I am around sixty-five. The last puja I conducted was at the age twenty-five. The temple was locked due to the feud between two leading families. I have warned them and other villagers about ill effect of keeping the temple locked. Nobody listened to my warnings. The village was thriving in agriculture few years ago. The villagers were well fed and led a simple and happy life. Now we have to purchase food from the neighboring villages. To make the matters worse, the ghost is waiting in the wings to enter the village. Bad days are coming.” The priest went on lamenting.
The other was tall, lean and thin with a large bushy mustache. There was something evil in his look. He was wearing clean clothes neatly ironed. Smell of country liquor was whooshing out from his mouth. All the three boys hated him instantly.
“Is it the right time for you to visit your grand parents? All the people are going out of the village for safety and you have selected this time to visit and see deserted village!”
“No Sir! We have come here to see the forest and other wild animals inside” Baabani blurted out.
“Oh! You are going inside the forest too. I warn you now itself. The forest is dangerous. Return back to your parents if you want to live long. I don’t want to see your dead bodies inside the forest. Understand. Get out of this village fast sooner the better.” He growled and went along his way.
“What a welcome party?” The boys mused within themselves and returned back home. But when Anand told his grand father about the conversation with the bad guy, he laughed loudly.
“Oh! Veeru? Don’t go by his looks. He is a nice fellow. He means no harm. In fact he would be the first person to help you in case of a danger. He knows the forest in and out. I will call him and ask him to escort you into the forest one day.”
These words encouraged them and their mood changed instantly. They took their dinner and went to bed making plans for the adventure.
* * *
The ghost appears

The next day, the morning sky was overcast with occasional lightning and thunder. By about ten ‘O’ clock, rain started pouring down. Though it brought instant relief from the heat, it prevented the boys from venturing inside the village to explore further. The boys decided to take out their Ham radio set and try their luck to make contact with some friend. Luck was with them as a voice came out of the loud speaker loud and clear. This indicated some other Ham member was nearby. Instantly they struck a lively conversation with him at the end of which they agreed to contact each other daily at that hour. The rain had not stopped yet and they decided to take early lunch.
After lunch they went upstairs to continue their conversation among themselves. It turned towards the ghost. Enquiries had revealed that nobody among the remaining villagers had seen the ghost. But rumor had it that the ghost appeared in the skies during midnight. It appeared randomly as per its wish at least once in a month. Most of the times it appeared new moon days or a few days on either side of new moon day. Sometimes it had appeared twice, few days before and again a few days after new moon day in the same month. This was bad news for the boys. New moon day was a week away and hence they decided to take steps to see the ghost with their own eyes. The plan was to persuade the grand parents to permit them to sleep on the terrace. The stairs to the terrace was on the outside. They would take turns and watch for the ghost till twilight. It was also agreed that once the ghost appeared on the sky, the person on duty would awake the other two. This would serve two purposes, safety and equal opportunity for all to see the ghost.
Accordingly they started their watch from the next day. But the ghost disappointed them for four consecutive days. Slowly the excitement was fading. On the fourth day Anand watched the sky till midnight yawning number of times, awoke Hussein, handed over charge of watching and fell into deep slumber instantly. His sleep was disturbed as he felt something heavy falling on his body. He awoke with a start to see Hussein on him. He was trembling and was mumbling some incoherent sound. He pushed Hussein out and sat up. Simultaneously, He saw Baabani getting up as Hussein had fell on both of them, his body falling on Anand and his legs on Baabani. Anand froze as he followed the gaze of Hussein. Utter fear gripped the three boys. They saw a big black face slowly rising from the woods towards the sky. The red eyes were looking down towards them. Two large canine teeth were jetting out of the mouth. The big face was swaying slowly and the ghost was watching the whole village from one side to the other. The three boys were staring at the ghost and the ghost was staring back at them from the sky. Suddenly Hussein ran towards the stairs and climbed down towards two steps at a time. Anand and Baabani followed him. They opened the door and rushed inside the house closing the door firmly. Once inside their bedroom, they caught hold of an iron bar as if their life depended upon the firmness of contact with iron. They had heard that ghosts fear iron and don’t harm anybody in contact with iron. They were muttering mantras and verses from their respective religion. First it was a whisper and then they started repeating the mantras each time the decibels increased. After some time they gained courage. Anand looked at the watch and time was 2.30 a.m. By 3.00 a.m. they felt a faint light outside. Anand recovered first and smiled faintly. It caught with others.
“So we have seen the ghost. What next? Let us start our return journey tomorrow.” Hussein murmured.
“That is today” Anand replied.
“Let us pack up then.” Baabani agreed.
“No. Let us grab some sleep if possible. At least take some rest. We are not in a condition to think anything now. It is already twilight now. There is no more danger now. It is four ‘O’ clock now. The village will awake at any time now.” Anand countered.
They went on talking nonsense for some time until exhaustion put them to sleep. By five ‘O’ clock all of them were drowned in deep slumber. They got up very late in the morning and finished their morning chores. They ate their break fast silently due to slight hangover of fear. Baabani broke the silence with a loud chuckle.
“The bravest gang of the school, my foot” he spoke to himself.
“However my friend! We are no match to a ghost” Hussein responded sarcastically.
“But we came flying from the terrace without wings. The ghost did not do anything at all. Ours was a knee jerk reaction. We did not even have good look at the ghost. This is utter cowardice” Baabani was adamant.
“Anand! Fix an appointment with the ghost for our superman. He wants to have good look at the ghost.” Hussein retorted.
“Yes! I would like to have a good look at the ghost. No matter whether you people come with me or not. I do not want to go back with partial knowledge.” Baabani replied red faced.
“I think Baabani is right. We should have spent some more time in the terrace.” Anand intervened.
“That is right.” Baabani smiled.
“There is no use crying over spilt milk. I suggest let us continue our watch as usual.” Anand went on.
“This time, let us be more prepared. Let us keep our digital camera and binocular with us.” Baabani said.
“Is it OK for all?” Anand wanted to know looking at the direction of Hussein.
“I am not a deserter. I wanted to be little bit more careful. Let us keep some Iron rods with us.” Hussein remarked.
“No hard feelings Hussein. My criticism was mainly aimed at me and slightly at our group.” Baabani said in a mild voice.
Excitement slowly crept in their mind and replaced fear within no time. But when they went to the terrace, they were very anxious. But days passed smoothly without the appearance of the ghost. In fact the boys started cutting jokes about it. The ghost did reappear after ten days of first appearance. Anand was keeping watch when it appeared suddenly in the sky. Fear gripped Anand. He shook others awake and showed them the ghost. Out of all the three, it was Hussein who kept his cool comparatively of course.
He took out the camera and started clicking furiously. Emboldened, Baabani took out the binocular and focused it on the ghost, his hand trembling slightly.
“I could not make out anything. It is too dark.” He whispered.
Anand’s mind was racing fast. After a few minutes he told,
“Let me go down in the open and watch it. Both of you please be here till I come.” He slowly got up and went down dragging his feet with an iron rod in his hand. Once in the open space in front the house he lifted his head to see the ghost. A tree near the house was hiding the ghost; he took few steps backwards till the face of the ghost was just visible. He drove the iron rod into the ground with the help of a heavy stone to mark the place where he was standing. Then he went up to meet his friends. Baabani put the binoculars on the floor and took a long torch, which hunters use, in the forest. He switched on the powerful torch held it towards the ghost. As if on cue, the red eyes of the ghost blinked shut and the ghost disappeared in thin air.
“The belief that the ghosts fear light appears to be correct” Hussein murmured. As they were thinking what to do next, a powerful lightning illuminated the sky followed by a deafening sound of thunder. Within few seconds, heavy summer rain poured from the sky. The boys took their belongings ran down the stairs and entered the safety of their room. They examined the photographs for some time. No additional knowledge could be gained from the images on the camera.
“The ghost appears to be harmless. It just stares down at us and disappears.” Baabani mused.
“What about the thunder and lightning. I think it is just watching us. We should not take any hasty step.” Hussein opined.
“We have already seen the ghost twice. Next let us venture into the forest and get the feel of it. Then we can go back happily with ‘mission accomplished’ feeling.” Anand concluded.
* * *
Visit to the forest
Next day the boys expressed their desire to venture into the forest to Anand’s grandfather.
“The forest is very dense. Even experienced people lose their way sometimes. So don’t go inside on your own. I will tell veeru to escort you. He is an expert of this forest and knows his way well. In the meantime you spend your time playing some games or explore the village again.” He suggested. The boys agreed. None of them told him about the ghost. Once back in their room, Anand took out a compass and went outside the house along with his friends. He put the compass on the iron rod driven inside the ground the previous day. Then he noted the direction towards the tree. He took out the binocular and looked in that direction. He could see up to a small hill inside the forest. The hill was completely covered with greeneries. It was decided to visit the hill the next day along with Viru.
The next day they started their journey early. Viru seemed to know the forest inside out. His expertise helped them and they vended their way towards the hill. The hill was about six kilometers inside the forest. Even though Viru discouraged them, the boys marked their way so that can find their way back home without any difficulty. The forest was very dense and thorny bush retarded their progress. In spite applying mosquito-repelling cream, the mosquitoes hummed in their ears and bit them continuously. A number of small insects including fly hovered around their head. At some places foul smell from carcass hunted by animals created vomiting sensation. In spite of all these things, the boys were excited whenever they saw some forest animals. It took them about three hours to reach the foot of the hill.
“There are some caves up there. It is believed that Pandavs lived in them for some time.” Viru told.
The boys wanted to go up to see the caves. Viru took them up. The caves were very dark inside. Viru did not allow the boys to go deep inside the caves saying wild animals take shelter inside them during daytime and might attack any intruder. All of them felt very hungry and decided to take lunch on a level ground covered with grass by the side of a mountain stream. They were very tired and decided to take some rest before starting their way back.
After a few minutes, Anand took out the binocular and started to scan the forest downside. He saw a small opening directly below them. It was strange that there was very less vegetation when the area surrounding the clearing was very dense. Anand put down the binocular and stood up. The others were enjoying the cool breeze and sweet sound created by the stream gently flowing down. He aimlessly walked towards the cave mouth.
He switched on the powerful torch and held the beam towards the cave. Few bats rushed outside flapping their wings with a loud noise. The cave appeared to be unused for ages and deserted. He switched off the torch and slowly moved away. He saw another cave mouth and switched the torch again. Finding nothing again he went on exploring other cave mouths in the vicinity. On the fifth cave mouth, he observed something strange. The cave was bigger than the others. There was no sign of living things, not even bats. Keeping the torch beam steady he ventured inside. He had a nagging feeling of something or somebody observing him. Fear gripped him slowly but steadily. He saw a piece of newspaper on the floor. He picked the paper. Suddenly he heard his friends calling him. His heart throbbing with fear, he rushed outside. He joined his friends outside the third cave. Their presence gave him a sense of safety. Viru was slightly annoyed.
“Don’t venture in the forest alone. There are wild animals in this forest. You people cannot sense their presence. Very few people have the ability to sense the presence of wild animals well in advance to escape their attack. So I again warn you no to leave my company till you reach home” Viru blurted.
“OK. Let us climb down and go back to our house.” Anand suggested.
Once at the foot of the hill, he cleverly maneuvered them towards the clearing.
“This might be the place. Watch for any clue for left by the ghost.” murmured Anand in the ears of his friends. The mention of the ghost jolted his friends to full attention. Silently they followed Viru, their ears and eyes catching every detail. The trek back home was more difficult. They reached home by about seven in the evening, fully tired. After a silent dinner, they went upstairs and started discussing their trip to the jungle simultaneously replacing the tools and tackles they carried to the forest. Anand thrust his hand inside his pockets to check whether something was left out inside. His fingers rubbed against something inside the pocket. He fished for it and took it out. It was the piece of newspaper found on the floor of the cave. He held it under the light and examined it closely. Suddenly he got excited and gestured to his friends to come near him. Seeing the excitement on Anand’s face, they rushed near him
“Examine the paper thoroughly. Do you find anything strange in it?” Anand quizzed.
All of them took a close look on the paper and stared back at Anand as if they wanted Anand to explain.
“Please look at the date line.” Anand prompted.
“This is released just a few days before.” Hussein replied slightly confused.
“I found it on the floor of the cave.” Anand went on.
“So what?” Baabani wanted to know.
“Don’t you see? Nobody is going into the forest for the fear of the ghost. Still the paper found its way to the cave. Is it not strange?” Anand asked.
“You mean that somebody is going inside the forest”
“For what?” Hussein prodded.
“For supplying newspaper.” Anand replied.
“You mean somebody is living in the cave”
“That could be possible. Isn’t it?” Anand remarked in a matter-of-fact tone.
“That means the ghost is not real.” Baabani was thinking fast.
“Why anybody prefers a life in a cave deep inside a forest” Hussein mused.
“He could be a criminal and could be hiding fearing arrest.” Baabani suggested.
“No criminal in hiding would attract the attention of the whole world by the ghost story.” Anand was emphatic.
“He could be an officer from the Law investigating the ghost.” Hussein opined.
“He could investigate from the village. Why should he live in a cave?” Anand disagreed.
“Somebody might have gone there to picnic.” Hussein told.
“Picnic in summer and that too to a cave deep inside a forest haunted by a ghost” Baabani exclaimed.
The conversation went on and on till tiredness took over and put them to sleep.
* * *
Looking for more clues
After about ten days of repeated brainstorming sessions they could arrive on only one unanimous conclusion. It was really strange for the piece of newspaper to be found in the cave. But they could not agree on any single reason for that happening. During one such brainstorming session, Hussein suggested an amicable solution. He quoted their mathematics teacher’s advice.
“If you could not find a way to solve a problem and if you are completely confused, it means that you are overlooking some clues. So read the problem again and again and look for new clues.”
It sounded reasonable to all of them and they decided to look for some more clues. So they decided to inspect the caves and the clearing below, again and again. Nobody was taken into confidence regarding the visits. After a few visits, they met in their room to review the situation.
“We achieved only one thing through these visits. We can find our way to these spots blind folded.” Baabani remarked to nobody in particular.
“Yes! We can go there even in darkness.” Anand agreed.
“We could not get any clue in the day. So I suggest let us visit the forest and look for more clues in the night.” Hussein was not in a mood to leave the problem unsolved.
“Great! Since we are useless and since we could not solve the problem and find new clues by visiting the forest during day time, let us go in the night and fall prey to some hungry wild animals.” Baabani was sarcastic.
“Even after so many visits, I have not seen any animal in that part of the jungle, not even a rabbit.” Hussein was equally sarcastic.
“That is true. There is no chance of us being hunted by wild animals.” Anand agreed.
“But there is a very good possibility of the ghost haunting us. We have certainly seen the ghost.” Baabani reminded.
“That is the main purpose of our visit to the forest. We are not going back without having a closer look at the ghost.” Anand was emphatic.
“So let me ask for an appointment with the ghost in the night.” Hussein joked. All of them laughed merrily and departed to their respective beds.

The next day was full moon day. The boys armed with axe, iron rods and powerful torchlight ventured into the forest in the night. Initially it was difficult to move, but after sometime it was comparatively easy. By about two a.m. they reached the edge of the clearing. They stood at the edge for sometime enjoying the moon lit forest. As if to spoil their mood, they heard the sound of breaking of small branches followed by a loud ‘thud’. The boys froze with fear. They heard the same type of sound again and again. They also heard the sound of something heavy being dragged on the ground. The sound came from the opposite edge of the clearing.
“Could be a herd of wild elephants.” Anand murmured.
They stood there for sometime looking at each other, fear paralyzing them. Suddenly Anand turned around and ran towards a big tree and climbed to the top. The other two followed him. On reaching the top, they settled at the junction from where two big branches branched.
“The trunk is too big for the elephants to break.” Baabani commented in between gasps for breath, assuring himself of safety from wild elephants.
The tree was very tall and the place where they rested was almost sixty feet from the ground.
“No elephant can catch us at this height. We are safe here.” Hussein said in reassuring voice. They heard a few more ‘thuds’ preceded by wild movements branches. After those sounds, silence fell again and the forest looked calm and quiet again. They sat in the tree up to three a.m. Feeling safe again; they descended the tree and made their way back home. They continued to watch the forest from the top of the tree during the following nights also. They heard the same sequence of sounds for next five nights. In fact they were anxiously waiting to have the glimpse of the elephants and hoped they would come out in the open space one night or the other. But the elephants did not oblige them. From the sixth night, even the sound stopped and they watched the forest in dead silence. The boys thought that the herd of elephants must have moved to some other place. They did not abandon their watch on the clearing and the hill and nothing happened till the tenth phase of the waning moon.
* * *
Light at the end of the tunnel
On the tenth phase of the waning moon, something strange did happen. The night was very dark and the boys were keeping the watch in the dim starlight. By about one a.m. three tall and dark figures came in the open space. The boys jerked to attention.
“Gorillas!” All the three boys murmured in chorus.
The gorillas reached the center of the open space dragging something with them. They left the bag like thing in the center and returned back. After few minutes they returned, this time dragging something that looked like a dead log of wood. They kept that log of wood near the bag like thing and squatted around those things. The boys were watching the happenings with utmost attention. Suddenly they heard a loud hissing sound. But they could not see what made that noise. Suddenly the dark face of the ghost appeared in the center and started moving up. When the dark face reached their level its red eyes blinked open. The boys almost fell from the tree and gripped each other as if their life depended on it. As if unaware of their presence the ghost went up and up. There was no body attached to the face of the ghost. After reaching about hundred feet, the ghost stopped its upward movement and stayed there as if watching the village. Hussein took out the iron rod and held it firmly in his hand ready to attack. Anand took out the axe and handed it over to Baabani. Anand was holding the torch on his left hand and another axe on his right hand. Their bodies were shaking wildly with fear. All of them were murmuring their respective prayers requesting God to save them from the ghost. Unaware of their predicament the ghost was watching the village.
“So far so good. Don’t be afraid. Ghost appears to be harmless. See below. The gorillas are not afraid of the ghost. They are watching the ghost lying on their back. So let us be calm. Let us not panic.” Anand said in a hushed voice barely audible. He was encouraging himself along with others. After about twenty minutes, the gorillas sat up. The ghost started descending and half way through its eyes blinked shut. The boys were staring at the bright red eyes and hence it took sometime for them to adjust to the starlight. A loud hissing sound heard from the ground again. Within minutes the gorillas went back to the forest dragging the log of wood and the bag. The boys sat in the tree silently for almost five minutes.
“What is next?” Anand asked.
“Let us take some rest and regain our strength. I am completely drained out.”
Baabani replied. In fact he was telling the condition of all the three. Almost half an hour passed. Before anybody could talk, two heavy beams of light fell on their tree. The boys froze again, their hearts beating loudly. The beams were becoming brighter and brighter and moved up and down simultaneously as if scanning the whole area. Suddenly Baabani snapped his fingers with a light chuckle.
“An automobile! An automobile is coming here.” He said in a lighter mood.
The sound of the automobile engine relieved their fear very much. As the automobile, a truck to be exact came near; about ten gorillas came out in the open.
“Oh! Oh! They are not real gorillas. They are men dressed like gorillas.” It was Anand’s turn to snap his fingers. As the truck halted, the gorillas started loading logs of wood on it. A sweet smell filled the air.
“Sandal wood! It is Sandal wood smuggling.” Hussein remarked in general.
“The ghost is helping people to smuggle sandal wood. Isn’t it crazy?” Anand mused. Silently they kept on watching.
“Where is the second truck? There are sufficient logs to load another truck. In fact we were told to load two trucks.” One gorilla asked the driver.
“The boss told not to engage additional people. It is dangerous. I will come back on the new moon day. Till then don’t cut more woods. It is paid holidays for all of you. But don’t leave the cave at any cost.” The driver smiled.
“Who wants paid holiday inside dark caves?” The gorilla responded.
The gorillas briskly loaded the truck and disappeared in the woods. The fully loaded truck whined its way back and disappeared behind the hill. The boys sat in the tree till twilight and reached home as the dawn broke. Relieved of all tensions and completely exhausted they slept till noon. After taking lunch they assembled in their room again for further planning.
“So we have cracked the case of the mysterious ghost.” Hussein said in general.
“We should not utter a single word to others till the last nail is driven on the lid.” Anand warned.
“What is the ghost made of?” Baabani asked.
“Helium balloon. Two red electric bulbs illuminating the eyes of the ghost.”
“That explains the hissing sound, filling and releasing the gas. Why do they need it?” Hussein asked.
“It is the signal to indicate that the logs are ready to be loaded. There is no other way of communicating with outside world. Sending a man out is time taking and risky. Mobile phone won’t work for want of signal inside the forest. They are not advanced enough to own and operate two way radio sets. These modern sets are susceptible to interception by suspecting police.”
On the new moon day, the police, on tip off from the boys caught the smuggling gang red handed. Within a few days the rest of the gang including some big and influential persons were arrested.
* * *
Back at the school

The newspapers were all praise of the three brave boys. Anand’s grandfather though proud, strongly disapproved their ventures inside the forest without any protection. Their parents were really worried and advised them not to take such risk in future.
They became overnight heroes in their school. But as the days passed, they were told to concentrate in their studies to do well in their examinations to be good roll models to their juniors.

--------X------X-------X--------

KIDNAP

2008-11-19T08:33:00.000-08:00

KIDNAP
A.K.Raman.
The maths teacher was teaching set theory and Priya was engrossed in the lecture and was trying to capture and understand each and every point the teacher was making. Presently the teacher stopped her lecture and went towards the entrance of the classroom. Priya’s gaze followed her teacher and saw the school peon standing at the entrance. Priya noticed him talking politely in a hushed voice. Presently the teacher looked up and called Priya. She got up and went near them wide eyed with confusion. The Head master had wanted to meet her immediately.

On the way to the Head master’s room, Priya’s mind was racing. She was studying class eight and was considered one of bright students of her class. She was well disciplined and was liked by her classmates and teachers. As such there was no reason for the Head master to call her to punish or warn. So what could be the reason for calling her? She was very anxious with a ting of fear as the Head master nodded her to come inside the room.

Priya saw one well-dressed man sitting opposite the Head master. The gentle look of the Head master assured her that she had done no mistake and the subject was something else. Slightly encouraged, but still in confusion, she looked up to listen the Head master. The Head master cleared his throat and said,
“ So you are Priya. Priya dear please come near me.”
As priya went near the Head master he put his arm gently around her and asked
“ Priya! Can you tell me where is your father now?”
“ Yes Sir. He has gone to Delhi to attend some important official meeting. In fact he left our house in the morning to the Airport to catch the 11 O clock flight to Delhi. He assured me that he would return in two days.” Priya replied.
“ Oh dear I know you are a brave girl. So be brave. Everything will be alright in a few days.”
The prelude made Priya to look at the Head master more confused.
“ Dear! Your father met with a mild accident on the way to the Airport. Fortunately some kind man had seen him and admitted him in the hospital near the Airport. He had found her home address and phone number from your father’s visiting card and had telephoned your mother about the accident. Your mother had already gone to the hospital. She had telephoned to your father’s office and had requested the gentleman sitting here to take you to the hospital. So he had come here to take you.”

Tears flooded Priya’s eyes and she started to weep heavily with occasional bursts of uncontrollable sorrow. She was allowed to weep uninterrupted. After few minutes of sobbing Priya wiped her tears and slowly looked up.
“ Please allow me to make a phone call to my house.” She requested with a choked voice.
“ Certainly my little girl. Give me the number so that I can make the call.” The Head master replied in reassuring voice.
The servant maid answered the call and confirmed the message of the accident and said that Priya’s mother had already gone to the hospital in a car sent by the hospital and also gave the number of the hospital.
“ May I talk to my mother please?” Priya pleaded sobbing in between.
“ Yes! Yes! Dear. I am dialing the hospital now. Don’t worry. I will get your mother.” The Head master was most sympathetic. A man’s voice identified the hospital and wanted to know what he could do for them. The head master explained the situation and wanted Priya’s mother on the phone. Within a minute Priya’s mother came on the phone and the Head master handed the phone to Priya. Wiping her tears Priya took the phone and asked in a choking voice,
“ Oh Mum! Tell me what happened?”
“ It is terrible my darling. Your father’s life is in danger”
“Mum! Is the accident severe?”
“Yes my little girl” Her mother was crying loudly.
“Father’s friend has come here to take me to the hospital. Should I Come there?” For a full minute her mother went on crying and then said in a whisper
“Yes”
“Mum! Tell me one thing. Is it the third time? Are you hearing me Mum. Is it the third time?”
“What? The third time? …m..mmm …mmmmm. Oh! My darling. Not the third time. Certainly not the third time. It is the first time. Oh! My pretty child! Certainly not the third time. It is the first time your father’s life is in danger.” Her mother replied in a voice full of emotion.

Priya started trembling and her eyes were wide with fear. She put the phone back on the cradle. She put her head on the table in between her hands and wept for minutes together her body trembling occasionally. Her father’s friend put his hand around her and cajoled her. He requested her to accompany him to the hospital. He also mumbled that he had to attend a meeting in the evening and have to rush back after leaving her in the hospital.

Priya got up and walked slowly and reluctantly with him through the long passage. They crossed the school ground and went to the gate. Suddenly Priya jerked to a stop and said
“ Uncle! I have forgotten to take my books and Tiffin box. Please wait for me here till I get them from my classroom.” Then she turned towards the security guard and pleaded,
“Security uncle! Please let this uncle stand here till I come back.” Priya turned back and ran fast towards the school building. As minutes flew, her father’s friend was getting impatient. The security guard was watching him curiously. Suddenly the phone in the gate rang and the guard took the phone listened attentively and silently for few minutes. Then he put the phone back and murmured to nobody in particular.
“The Administrative Officer is passing orders as if I have no other work in the world.” He took out a beedi and started smoking enjoying every puff. He hummed a nice tune and drowned himself in his routine manner.

It took full ten minutes for Priya to return to the gate with her school bag and Tiffin box. As she and her father’s friend started leaving through the gate the guard stood up asked Priya for the gate pass to leave the school early.
“But Uncle! It is the HM who asked me to go with this uncle. In fact my father met with an accident…………”
“ My little girl. I don’t care what happened to you or your father. If you want to leave the school you have to give me the gate pass. It seems that some boys of tenth standard had jumped the compound wall and left the school early yesterday. The Administrative Officer rang me a few minutes back and gave me a full dressing. He says that he had to face the music from the Head master yesterday. How a single man could watch the whole compound standing at the gate?””But uncle my father’s life is in danger and I want to be near him at the earliest’”
“In that case don’t stand here arguing and go and get the gate pass as soon as possible. That way nobody would hold me responsible.”

Priya’s father’s friend tried to convince the guard. But the guard stood his ground. He became impatient and the more he argued the more the guard became stubborn. As the argument was about to become violent Priya intervened,
“Uncle! There is no use arguing with him. After all he is doing his duty. We have got the permission from the HM. I will run back and get the gate pass in a minute.”
“Okay! Then run back and get the gate pass. I am waiting outside near the car. Remember I cannot wait endlessly. I have got little time and I have to leave early.”
Priya had left the place before he could finish his speech. It took more than five minutes for her to reappear with the gate pass. The guard took his own time examining the gate pass. Priy’s father’s friend lost his patience went angrily towards the guard gesticulating violently. The Guard kept the gate pass in his file and nodded priya to pass through the side gate. Her father’s friend returned back to the car, opened the gate and sat inside the car. The driver started the engine. Priya’s body was shivering as she crossed the side gate and dragged her feet towards the car. Once near the car, she turned back suddenly and ran towards the security guard with outstretched hands. Her father’s friend got down from the car and ran towards Priya as if to catch her. The guard stepped out and lifted her, ran inside his room and closed the door.

As if from nowhere a police jeep screeched to a halt near the car. A police Inspector jumped from the jeep and caught Priya’s father’s friend and pressed the nose of his revolver hard at his back. The Inspector whispered in his ear,
“One false move, my friend and I will pump all the six bullets through your spine”
By this time another constable had caught the driver of the car at lightning speed. Within minutes both the culprits were hand cuffed securely. The whole party including Priya and the security guard rushed to the Head master’s room. The Head master called his secretary to arrange coffee for all and close the door. He instructed her not to allow anybody inside and wait for further instructions.
Inside the room all of them sat silently, sipping coffee. After about fifteen minutes the telephone rang. Before anybody could move, the Inspector lifted the phone, listened and said
“Yes. Go ahead Inspector Ibrahim. Inspector Anand here.”
“You were absolutely correct. It was not a hospital at all. I checked the address from the telephone number you gave me. I went to the address along with one lady constable and ten constables all in civil dress. The constables surrounded the house and we went inside and arrested three criminals and rescued the lady. I have put the criminals in the lock up. I am coming there in ten minutes. Okay?” Inspector Ibrahim poured the words as if in hurry.
“Okay. We are waiting here. Come fast.” Inspector Anand responded. After a short time Priya’s mother came along with Inspector Ibrahim. She was looking exhausted but relieved. Once everybody settled in his or her seat the Head master started the conversation.
“ If you are feeling all right, madam, please tell us how you managed convey Priya that you have been kidnapped and warn her not to go with the man who pretended as your husband’s friend.
She started to cry and tears flooded her eyes. After sometime she sat up and said,
“The credit goes to Priya. When you contacted me over phone, a man was standing by my side with a sharp knife in his hand. I was to confirm the accident and advise Priya to come with this crook who called himself my husband’s friend. As all of you are aware my husband holds a big post. As he is very honest some people lost their easy way to earn quick money. It appears that one of them has decided to take revenge by kidnapping Priya and me.

You may remember that sometime back a number of kidnappings made news. One day we were discussing these cases while dining. The discussion slowly turned towards the ways of avoiding such incidents. One of the most common methods of kidnapping is to inform the family about an accident to a family member or a very close relative or a friend. When people go out in search of the victim to help him the criminals catch them and take them away. Another way is to send a telegram from out stations where a family member has gone informing that the family member had met with an accident. Lesser criminals would send a telegram in the name of the family member who had gone there saying that he had lost all the money and asking for money to be sent to him care of a criminal staying in a lodge.

When we were discussing all these things Priya asked her daddy how to differentiate between a true and a false message. Her father suggested to contact the person concerned somehow and to get confirmation. Priya felt that it would take a long time to contact the person and somebody else might fake a confirmation.
Then her father suggested that in case any of us would ask for help from the family, we should always include a code word in the message in absence of which nobody should bother and inform the police.
“We are three in the family. So let our code word be THIRD MAN” My husband suggested.
“I will fix the code. Nobody else can do it here” Priya protested and fixed the code as THIRD TIME.

“All of us laughed and agreed to her code.” Priya’s mother continued.
“I am a careless and foolish woman. Instead of contacting my husband’s office here to get the confirmation of the accident, I went out with the man who came with the accident message. I was very sad when they locked me inside the building. I was very surprised when they told me the name of a Hospital and asked me to confirm that my husband has been admitted in the hospital and ask Priya to come here. I understood the trap they were laying for my little daughter. Please imagine the pain of a mother compelled to confirm false news thereby helping the criminals to kidnap her only daughter. The daughter in this case was careful enough and clever enough to get a confirmation of the news before leaving the school. My joy knew no bounds when my clever daughter reminded me of the code and insisted to hear the same from me. So when she told me “Mum! Tell me one thing. Is it the third time? Are you hearing me Mum. Is it the third time?” I suppressed my happiness and replied in the negative. Knowing very well that my daughter has understood, I braced myself for the eventuality” Priya’s mother finished with an emotional voice.

The Head master cleared his throat and explained the remaining for the benefit of others.
“After intimating the news to Priya, the man left my room along with her, leaving me alone feeling for the poor child. I was taken aback when she returned forcing the door open and not even asking for permission to enter. I was annoyed at first and wanted to reprimand her, but when she explained everything I could not believe my ears. We both telephoned the police. We along with Inspector Anand planned to lay a trap and catch the criminals and rescue her mother without the criminals knowing that we knew their plan. Accordingly Priya returned to her classroom to pick up her school bag and Tiffin box. In the meantime I telephoned the security guard using the intercom and explained everything and asked him to take care of the child but give her freedom to act. She dodged and stalled for time. The security guard on his part picked up an argument insisting for the gate pass. Then she came back to me asking for the gate pass. Only after seeing the police jeep, the security guard allowed her to go out. She went near the car only to identify it to the Inspector and ran back to the security guard who in turn took her to the safety of the closed room. The door can withhold the criminals for a few minutes only and he needed only few minutes. By the time the police acted in lightning speed and it was all over for the criminals.

Inspector Anand explained his part. On receiving the report from the Head master, I alerted Inspected Ibrahim, In charge of Airport Police station and requested him to check the address and rescue the lady. Then I telephoned Delhi Police and arranged for the safety of Priya’s father. Only then I moved fast to the school. I know the anxiety going through the child’s mind. But I had to do it to arrest the culprits and rescue the lady without any damage.

The next day News Papers screamed the story of the brave child and the arrest of all involved including some big shots. Security to Priya’s father and his family has been tightened. The next day Priya got a telegram from his father, which said
“SELF REACHING BY EVENING FLIGHT STOP CONGRATULATIONS TO MY BRAVE CHILD STOP YOU HAVE BEEN SELECTED FOR THE BRAVERY AWARD BY PRESIDENT ON REPUBLIC DAY STOP IT IS THE THIRD TIME STOP
YOUR PROUD DADDY

-----X-----X-----X-----

FOOD FOR THOUGHT

2008-11-19T08:14:00.000-08:00

THE TONGUE IS VERY LIGHT IN WEIGHT. BUT VERY FEW PEOPLE CAN HOLD IT.
A.K.RAMAN

FOOD FOR THOUGHT

2008-11-19T08:02:00.000-08:00

HAPPINESS IS A STATE OF MIND.
ONE PERSON MAY BECOME HAPPY AFTER PURCHASING A BIG HOUSE. ANOTHER PERSON (CHILD) MAY BECOME HAPPY AFTER GETTING A SMALL PEN.
ANOTHER MAY BECOME HAPPY IF HE GETS FOOD TO QUENCH HIS HUNGER. THE TRIGGER MAY BE DIFFERENT, BUT THE EFFECT IS THE SAME. SO TRY TO BE HAPPY ALWAYS BY HAVING POSITIVE THOUGHTS. TRY YOUR BEST TO MAKE OTHERS HAPPY.
A.K.RAMAN

THE CASE OF THE MYSTERIOUS GHOST

2008-11-15T00:27:00.001-08:00

THE CASE OF THE MYSTERIOUS GHOST
A.K.Raman
Exploring the village

Anand and his classmates Hussein and Baabani were excited. The summer vacation was nearing and they had planned to visit Anand’s grand parents. They were living in a village called Chittur on the edge of a thick forest. Main aim of their visit is to get the feel of the forest. The three friends were in their late teens. All of them were well grown to defy their real age. They were intelligent, inquisitive and adventurous.
On a particular day, all of them met during the lunch break. Anand took out a newspaper clipping and showed it to his friends. The heading was
“Fear of ghost triggers an exodus”
The body of the news item described that a ghost was haunting Chittur village and most of the villagers had left the village. The village already appeared deserted. Few villagers presently living might leave the village at any time leaving the whole village at the mercy of the ghost.
Hussein and Baabani looked at Anand with a frown. The ghost was threatening their planned visit to the forest. But Anand assured that his grand parents would never leave the village, ghost or no ghost.
“What I wanted you to know is that with luck we may have a tête-à-tête with the ghost.” Anand said cheerfully.
The train journey was comfortable. But they had to travel the last fifteen kilometers by bus. The road was bumpy and the rickety bus shook their bones. The heat was telling upon them. They heaved a sigh of relief once they reached the house. They slept like a log of wood in big well-ventilated room. The single fan might have been there in the room for ages and wind from it was barely able to penetrate the mosquito nets. The air was hot and sultry. The rhythmic sound from the fan coupled with whining of mosquitoes would not allow any body to sleep in normal days. None of these affected the boys, as they were so tired.
The next day, after breakfast they went outside to explore the village. The trees in the village were green and dense. They felt that they were already inside the forest. The streets looked deserted. Most of the houses were locked. The people in the remaining houses were old who were either unable to undertake a long journey or determined not to leave their home, ghost or no ghost. Out of the few people they met, only two people made an impression on them. One was the temple priest.
“The temple has been locked for decades. See! Now I am around sixty-five. The last puja I conducted was at the age twenty-five. The temple was locked due to the feud between two leading families. I have warned them and other villagers about ill effect of keeping the temple locked. Nobody listened to my warnings. The village was thriving in agriculture few years ago. The villagers were well fed and led a simple and happy life. Now we have to purchase food from the neighboring villages. To make the matters worse, the ghost is waiting in the wings to enter the village. Bad days are coming.” The priest went on lamenting.
The other was tall, lean and thin with a large bushy mustache. There was something evil in his look. He was wearing clean clothes neatly ironed. Smell of country liquor was whooshing out from his mouth. All the three boys hated him instantly.
“Is it the right time for you to visit your grand parents? All the people are going out of the village for safety and you have selected this time to visit and see deserted village!”
“No Sir! We have come here to see the forest and other wild animals inside” Baabani blurted out.
“Oh! You are going inside the forest too. I warn you now itself. The forest is dangerous. Return back to your parents if you want to live long. I don’t want to see your dead bodies inside the forest. Understand. Get out of this village fast sooner the better.” He growled and went along his way.
“What a welcome party?” The boys mused within themselves and returned back home. But when Anand told his grand father about the conversation with the bad guy, he laughed loudly.
“Oh! Veeru? Don’t go by his looks. He is a nice fellow. He means no harm. In fact he would be the first person to help you in case of a danger. He knows the forest in and out. I will call him and ask him to escort you into the forest one day.”
These words encouraged them and their mood changed instantly. They took their dinner and went to bed making plans for the adventure.
* * *
The ghost appears

The next day, the morning sky was overcast with occasional lightning and thunder. By about ten ‘O’ clock, rain started pouring down. Though it brought instant relief from the heat, it prevented the boys from venturing inside the village to explore further. The boys decided to take out their Ham radio set and try their luck to make contact with some friend. Luck was with them as a voice came out of the loud speaker loud and clear. This indicated some other Ham member was nearby. Instantly they struck a lively conversation with him at the end of which they agreed to contact each other daily at that hour. The rain had not stopped yet and they decided to take early lunch.
After lunch they went upstairs to continue their conversation among themselves. It turned towards the ghost. Enquiries had revealed that nobody among the remaining villagers had seen the ghost. But rumor had it that the ghost appeared in the skies during midnight. It appeared randomly as per its wish at least once in a month. Most of the times it appeared new moon days or a few days on either side of new moon day. Sometimes it had appeared twice, few days before and again a few days after new moon day in the same month. This was bad news for the boys. New moon day was a week away and hence they decided to take steps to see the ghost with their own eyes. The plan was to persuade the grand parents to permit them to sleep on the terrace. The stairs to the terrace was on the outside. They would take turns and watch for the ghost till twilight. It was also agreed that once the ghost appeared on the sky, the person on duty would awake the other two. This would serve two purposes, safety and equal opportunity for all to see the ghost.
Accordingly they started their watch from the next day. But the ghost disappointed them for four consecutive days. Slowly the excitement was fading. On the fourth day Anand watched the sky till midnight yawning number of times, awoke Hussein, handed over charge of watching and fell into deep slumber instantly. His sleep was disturbed as he felt something heavy falling on his body. He awoke with a start to see Hussein on him. He was trembling and was mumbling some incoherent sound. He pushed Hussein out and sat up. Simultaneously, He saw Baabani getting up as Hussein had fell on both of them, his body falling on Anand and his legs on Baabani. Anand froze as he followed the gaze of Hussein. Utter fear gripped the three boys. They saw a big black face slowly rising from the woods towards the sky. The red eyes were looking down towards them. Two large canine teeth were jetting out of the mouth. The big face was swaying slowly and the ghost was watching the whole village from one side to the other. The three boys were staring at the ghost and the ghost was staring back at them from the sky. Suddenly Hussein ran towards the stairs and climbed down towards two steps at a time. Anand and Baabani followed him. They opened the door and rushed inside the house closing the door firmly. Once inside their bedroom, they caught hold of an iron bar as if their life depended upon the firmness of contact with iron. They had heard that ghosts fear iron and don’t harm anybody in contact with iron. They were muttering mantras and verses from their respective religion. First it was a whisper and then they started repeating the mantras each time the decibels increased. After some time they gained courage. Anand looked at the watch and time was 2.30 a.m. By 3.00 a.m. they felt a faint light outside. Anand recovered first and smiled faintly. It caught with others.
“So we have seen the ghost. What next? Let us start our return journey tomorrow.” Hussein murmured.
“That is today” Anand replied.
“Let us pack up then.” Baabani agreed.
“No. Let us grab some sleep if possible. At least take some rest. We are not in a condition to think anything now. It is already twilight now. There is no more danger now. It is four ‘O’ clock now. The village will awake at any time now.” Anand countered.
They went on talking nonsense for some time until exhaustion put them to sleep. By five ‘O’ clock all of them were drowned in deep slumber. They got up very late in the morning and finished their morning chores. They ate their break fast silently due to slight hangover of fear. Baabani broke the silence with a loud chuckle.
“The bravest gang of the school, my foot” he cursed.
“However my friend! We are no match to a ghost” Hussein responded sarcastically.
“But we came flying from the terrace without wings. The ghost did not do anything at all. Ours was a knee jerk reaction. We did not even have good look at the ghost. This is utter cowardice” Baabani was adamant.
“Anand! Fix an appointment with the ghost for our superman. He wants to have good look at the ghost.” Hussein retorted.
“Yes! I would like to have a good look at the ghost. No matter whether you people come with me or not. I do not want to go back with partial knowledge.” Baabani replied red faced.
“I think Baabani is right. We should have spent some more time in the terrace.” Anand intervened.
“That is right.” Baabani smiled.
“There is no use crying over spilt milk. I suggest let us continue our watch as usual.” Anand went on.
“This time, let us be more prepared. Let us keep our digital camera and binocular with us.” Baabani said.
“Is it OK for all” Anand wanted to know looking at the direction of Hussein.
“I am not a deserter. I wanted to be little bit more careful. Let us keep some Iron rods with us.” Hussein remarked.
“No hard feelings Hussein. My criticism was mainly aimed at me and slightly at our group.” Baabani said in a mild voice.
Excitement slowly crept in their mind and replaced fear within no time. But when they went to the terrace, they were very anxious. But days passed smoothly without the appearance of the ghost. In fact the boys started cutting jokes about it. The ghost did reappear after ten days of first appearance. Anand was keeping watch when it appeared suddenly in the sky. Fear gripped Anand. He shook others awake and showed them the ghost. Out of all the three, it was Hussein who kept his cool comparatively of course.
He took out the camera and started clicking furiously. Emboldened, Baabani took out the binocular and focused it on the ghost, his hand trembling slightly.
“I could not make out anything. It is too dark.” He whispered.
Anand’s mind was racing fast. After a few minutes he told,
“Let me go down in the open and watch it. Both of you please be here till I come.” He slowly got up and went down dragging his feet with an iron rod in his hand. Once in the open space in front the house he lifted his head to see the ghost. A tree near the house was hiding the ghost; he took few steps backwards till the face of the ghost was just visible. He drove the iron rod into the ground with the help of a heavy stone to mark the place where he was standing. Then he went up to meet his friends. Baabani put the binoculars on the floor and took a long torch, which hunters use, in the forest. He switched on the powerful torch held it towards the ghost. As if on cue, the red eyes of the ghost blinked shut and the ghost disappeared in thin air.
“The belief that the ghosts fear light appears to be correct” Hussein murmured. As they were thinking what to do next, a powerful lightning illuminated the sky followed by a deafening sound of thunder. Within few seconds, heavy summer rain poured from the sky. The boys took their belongings ran down the stairs and entered the safety of their room. They examined the photographs for some time. No additional knowledge could be gained from the images on the camera.
“The ghost appears to be harmless. It just stares down at us and disappears.” Baabani mused.
“What about the thunder and lightning. I think it is just watching us. We should not take any hasty step.” Hussein opined.
“We have already seen the ghost twice. Next let us venture into the forest and get the feel of it. Then we can go back happily with ‘mission accomplished’ feeling.” Anand concluded.
* * *
Visit to the forest
Next day the boys expressed their desire to venture into the forest to Anand’s grandfather.
“The forest is very dense. Even experienced people lose their way sometimes. So don’t go inside on your own. I will tell veeru to escort you. He is an expert of this forest and knows his way well. In the meantime you spend your time playing some games or explore the village again.” He suggested. The boys agreed. None of them told him about the ghost. Once back in their room, Anand took out a compass and went outside the house along with his friends. He put the compass on the iron rod driven inside the ground the previous day. Then he noted the direction towards the tree. He took out the binocular and looked in that direction. He could see up to a small hill inside the forest. The hill was completely covered with greenery. It was decided to visit the hill the next day along with Viru.
The next day they started their journey early. Viru seemed to know the forest inside out. His expertise helped them and they vended their way towards the hill. The hill was about six kilometers inside the forest. Even though Viru discouraged them, the boys marked their way so that they can find their way back home without any difficulty. The forest was very dense and thorny bush retarded their progress. In spite applying mosquito-repelling cream, the mosquitoes hummed in their ears and bit them continuously. A number of small insects including fly hovered around their head. At some places foul smell from carcass hunted by animals created vomiting sensation. In spite of all these things, the boys were excited whenever they saw some forest animals. It took them about three hours to reach the foot of the hill.
“There are some caves up there. It is believed that Pandavs lived in them for some time.” Viru told.
The boys wanted to go up to see the caves. Viru took them up. The caves were very dark inside. Viru did not allow the boys to go deep inside the caves saying wild animals take shelter inside them during daytime and might attack any intruder. All of them felt very hungry and decided to take lunch on a level ground covered with grass by the side of a mountain stream. They were very tired and decided to take some rest before starting their way back.
After a few minutes, Anand took out the binocular and started to scan the forest downside. He saw a small opening directly below them. It was strange that there was very less vegetation when the area surrounding the clearing was very dense. Anand put down the binocular and stood up. The others were enjoying the cool breeze and sweet sound created by the stream gently flowing down. He aimlessly walked towards the cave mouth.
He switched on the powerful torch and held the beam towards the cave. Few bats rushed outside flapping their wings with a loud noise. The cave appeared to be unused for ages and deserted. He switched off the torch and slowly moved away. He saw another cave mouth and switched the torch again. Finding nothing again he went on exploring other cave mouths in the vicinity. On the fifth cave mouth, he observed something strange. The cave was bigger than the others. There was no sign of living things, not even bats. Keeping the torch beam steady he ventured inside. He had a nagging feeling of something or somebody observing him. Fear gripped him slowly but steadily. He saw a piece of newspaper on the floor. He picked the paper involuntarily. Suddenly he heard his friends calling him. His heart throbbing with fear, he rushed outside. He joined his friends outside the third cave. Their presence gave him a sense of safety. Viru was slightly annoyed.
“Don’t venture in the forest alone. There are wild animals in this forest. You people cannot sense their presence. Very few people have the ability to sense the presence of wild animals well in advance to escape their attack. So I again warn you no to leave my company till you reach home” Viru blurted.
“OK. Let us climb down and go back to our house.” Anand suggested.
Once at the foot of the hill, he cleverly maneuvered them towards the clearing.
“This might be the place. Watch for any clue for left by the ghost.” murmured Anand in the ears of his friends. The mention of the ghost jolted his friends to full attention. Silently they followed Viru, their ears and eyes catching every detail. The trek back home was more difficult. They reached home by about seven in the evening, fully tired. After a silent dinner, they went upstairs and started discussing their trip to the jungle simultaneously replacing the tools and tackles they carried to the forest. Anand thrust his hand inside his pockets to check whether something was left out inside. His fingers rubbed against something inside the pocket. He fished for it and took it out. It was the piece of newspaper found on the floor of the cave. He held it under the light and examined it closely. Suddenly he got excited and gestured to his friends to come near him. Seeing the excitement on Anand’s face, they rushed near him
“Examine the paper thoroughly. Do you find anything strange in it?” Anand quizzed.
All of them took a close look on the paper and stared back at Anand as if they wanted Anand to explain.
“Please look at the date line.” Anand prompted.
“This is released just a few days before.” Hussein replied slightly confused.
“I found it on the floor of the cave.” Anand went on.
“So what?” Baabani wanted to know.
“Don’t you see? Nobody is going into the forest for the fear of the ghost. Still the paper found its way to the cave. Is it not strange?” Anand asked.
“You mean that somebody is going inside the forest”
“For what?” Hussein prodded.
“For supplying newspaper.” Anand replied.
“You mean somebody is living in the cave”
“That could be possible. Isn’t it?” Anand remarked in a matter-of-fact tone.
“That means the ghost is not real.” Baabani was thinking fast.
“Why anybody prefers a life in a cave deep inside a forest” Hussein mused.
“He could be a criminal and could be hiding fearing arrest.” Baabani suggested.
“No criminal in hiding would attract the attention of the whole world by the ghost story.” Anand was emphatic.
“He could be an officer from the Law investigating the ghost.” Hussein opined.
“He could investigate from the village. Why should he live in a cave?” Anand disagreed.
“Somebody might have gone there to picnic.” Hussein told.
“Picnic in summer and that too to a cave deep inside a forest haunted by a ghost” Baabani exclaimed.
The conversation went on and on till tiredness took over and put them to sleep.
* * *
Looking for more clues
After about ten days of repeated brainstorming sessions they could arrive on only one unanimous conclusion. It was really strange for the piece of newspaper to be found in the cave. But they could not agree on any single reason for that happening. During one such brainstorming session, Hussein suggested an amicable solution. He quoted their mathematics teacher’s advice.
“If you could not find a way to solve a problem and if you are completely confused, it means that you are overlooking some clues. So read the problem again and again and look for new clues.”
It sounded reasonable to all of them and they decided to look for some more clues. So they decided to inspect the caves and the clearing below, again and again. Nobody was taken into confidence regarding the visits. After a few visits, they met in their room to review the situation.
“We achieved only one thing through these visits. We can find our way to these spots blind folded.” Baabani remarked to nobody in particular.
“Yes! We can go there even in darkness.” Anand agreed.
“We could not get any clue in the day. So I suggest let us visit the forest and look for more clues in the night.” Hussein was not in a mood to leave the problem unsolved.
“Great! Since we are useless and since we could not solve the problem and find new clues by visiting the forest during day time, let us go in the night and fall prey to some hungry wild animals.” Baabani was sarcastic.
“Even after so many visits, I have not seen any animal in that part of the jungle, not even a rabbit.” Hussein was equally sarcastic.
“That is true. There is no chance of us being hunted by wild animals.” Anand agreed.
“But there is a very good possibility of the ghost haunting us. We have certainly seen the ghost.” Baabani reminded.
“That is the main purpose of our visit to the forest. We are not going back without having a closer look at the ghost.” Anand was emphatic.
“So let me ask for an appointment with the ghost in the night.” Hussein joked. All of them laughed merrily and departed to their respective beds.

The next day was full moon day. The boys armed with axe, iron rods and powerful torchlight ventured into the forest in the night. Initially it was difficult to move, but after sometime it was comparatively easy. By about two a.m. they reached the edge of the clearing. They stood at the edge for sometime enjoying the moon lit forest. As if to spoil their mood, they heard the sound of breaking of small branches followed by a loud ‘thud’. The boys froze with fear. They heard the same type of sound again and again. They also heard the sound of something heavy being dragged on the ground. The sound came from the opposite edge of the clearing.
“Could be a herd of wild elephants.” Anand murmured.
They stood there for sometime looking at each other, fear paralyzing them. Suddenly Anand turned around and ran towards a big tree and climbed to the top. The other two followed him. On reaching the top, they settled at the junction from where two big branches branched.
“The trunk is too big for the elephants to break.” Baabani commented in between gasps for breath, assuring himself of safety from wild elephants.
The tree was very tall and the place where they rested was almost sixty feet from the ground.
“No elephant can catch us at this height. We are safe here.” Hussein said in reassuring voice. They heard a few more ‘thuds’ preceded by wild movements branches. After those sounds, silence fell again and the forest looked calm and quiet again. They sat in the tree up to three a.m. Feeling safe again; they descended the tree and made their way back home. They continued to watch the forest from the top of the tree during the following nights also. They heard the same sequence of sounds for next five nights. In fact they were anxiously waiting to have the glimpse of the elephants and hoped they would come out in the open space one night or the other. But the elephants did not oblige them. From the sixth night, even the sound stopped and they watched the forest in dead silence. The boys thought that the herd of elephants must have moved to some other place. They did not abandon their watch on the clearing and the hill and nothing happened till the tenth phase of the waning moon.
* * *
Light at the end of the tunnel
On the tenth phase of the waning moon, something strange did happen. The night was very dark and the boys were keeping the watch in the dim starlight. By about one a.m. three tall and dark figures came in the open space. The boys jerked to attention.
“Gorillas!” All the three boys murmured in chorus.
The gorillas reached the center of the open space dragging something with them. They left the bag like thing in the center and returned back. After few minutes they returned, this time dragging something that looked like a dead log of wood. They kept that log of wood near the bag like thing and squatted around those things. The boys were watching the happenings with utmost attention. Suddenly they heard a loud hissing sound. But they could not see what made that noise. Suddenly the dark face of the ghost appeared in the center and started moving up. When the dark face reached their level its red eyes blinked open. The boys almost fell from the tree and gripped each other as if their life depended on it. As if unaware of their presence the ghost went up and up. There was no body attached to the face of the ghost. After reaching about hundred feet, the ghost stopped its upward movement and stayed there as if watching the village. Hussein took out the iron rod and held it firmly in his hand ready to attack. Anand took out the axe and handed it over to Baabani. Anand was holding the torch on his left hand and another axe on his right hand. Their bodies were shaking wildly with fear. All of them were murmuring their respective prayers requesting God to save them from the ghost. Unaware of their predicament the ghost was watching the village.
“So far so good. Don’t be afraid. Ghost appears to be harmless. See below. The gorillas are not afraid of the ghost. They are watching the ghost lying on their back. So let us be calm. Let us not panic.” Anand said in a hushed voice barely audible. He was encouraging himself along with others. After about twenty minutes, the gorillas sat up. The ghost started descending and half way through its eyes blinked shut. The boys were staring at the bright red eyes and hence it took sometime for them to adjust to the starlight. A loud hissing sound heard from the ground again. Within minutes the gorillas went back to the forest dragging the log of wood and the bag. The boys sat in the tree silently for almost five minutes.
“What is next?” Anand asked.
“Let us take some rest and regain our strength. I am completely drained out.”
Baabani replied. In fact he was telling the condition of all the three. Almost half an hour passed. Before anybody could talk, two heavy beams of light fell on their tree. The boys froze again, their hearts beating loudly. The beams were becoming brighter and brighter and moved up and down simultaneously as if scanning the whole area. Suddenly Baabani snapped his fingers with a light chuckle.
“An automobile! An automobile is coming here.” He said in a lighter mood.
The sound of the automobile engine relieved their fear very much. As the automobile, a truck to be exact came near; about ten gorillas came out in the open.
“Oh! Oh! They are not real gorillas. They are men dressed like gorillas.” It was Anand’s turn to snap his fingers. As the truck halted, the gorillas started loading logs of wood on it. A sweet smell filled the air.
“Sandal wood! It is Sandal wood smuggling.” Hussein remarked in general.
“The ghost is helping people to smuggle sandal wood. Isn’t it crazy?” Anand mused. Silently they kept on watching.
“Where is the second truck? There are sufficient logs to load another truck. In fact we were told to load two trucks.” One gorilla asked the driver.
“The boss told not to engage additional people. It is dangerous. I will come back on the new moon day. Till then don’t cut more woods. It is paid holidays for all of you. But don’t leave the cave at any cost.” The driver smiled.
“Who wants paid holiday inside dark caves?” The gorilla responded.
The gorillas briskly loaded the truck and disappeared in the woods. The fully loaded truck whined its way back and disappeared behind the hill. The boys sat in the tree till twilight and reached home as the dawn broke. Relieved of all tensions and completely exhausted they slept till noon. After taking lunch they assembled in their room again for further planning.
“So we have cracked the case of the mysterious ghost.” Hussein said in general.
“We should not utter a single word to others till the last nail is driven on the lid.” Anand warned.
“What is the ghost made of?” Baabani asked.
“Helium balloon. Two red electric bulbs illuminating the eyes of the ghost.”
“That explains the hissing sound, filling and releasing the gas. Why do they need it?” Hussein asked.
“It is the signal to indicate that the logs are ready to be loaded. There is no other way of communicating with outside world. Sending a man out is time taking and risky. Mobile phone won’t work for want of signal inside the forest. They are not advanced enough to own and operate two way radio sets. These modern sets are susceptible to interception by suspecting police.”
On the new moon day, the police, on tip off from the boys caught the smuggling gang red handed. Within a few days the rest of the gang including some big and influential persons were arrested.
* * *
Back at the school

The newspapers were all praise of the three brave boys. Anand’s grandfather though proud, strongly disapproved their ventures inside the forest without any protection. Their parents were really worried and advised them not to take such risk in future.
They became overnight heroes in their school. But as the days passed, they were told to concentrate in their studies to do well in their examinations to be good roll models to their juniors.

--------X------X-------X--------

BLACK AND WHITE

2008-10-31T07:05:00.001-07:00

I am giving below a poem I received through e-mail from my friend Sri.senthil Kumar. It reflects the effect of discrimination on tender hearts. This is thought provoking.

QUOTE

*This poem was nominated for best poem of 2005 written by an African child*:

*When i was born, i black *

*when i grow up, i black *

*when i go in sun, i black *

*when i scared, i black *

*when i sick, i black *

*& when i die, i still black*

*& you white fella.. *

*when you born, you pink *

*when you grow up, you white *

*when you go in sun, you red, *

*when you cold, you blue *

*when you scared, you yellow *

*when you sick, you green *

*& when you die, you gray

& you calling me colored??*

UNQUOTE

FACTS ABOUT PLASTIC PRODUCTS

2008-10-25T00:18:00.001-07:00

I am giving below information I received from my friend about plastic products. This information came to me via e-mail. Let us be more cautious about use and reuse of plastics.

Did you ever drink from a plastic bottle and see a triangle symbol on the bottom with a number inside? Do you know what the number stands for? Did you guess that it's just for recycling? Then you are WRONG !!!!!! THE NUMBER TELLS YOU THE CHEMICAL MAKE UP OF THE PLASTIC..... 1) Polyethylene terephalate (PET) 2) High density polyethylene (HDPE) 3) Unplasticised polyv in yl chloride (UPVC) or Plasticised polyv in yl chloride (PPVC) 4) Low density polyethylene LDPE 5) Polypropylene (PP) 6) Polystyrene (PS) or Expandable polystyrene (EPS) 7) Other, in clud in g nylon and acrylic What you aren't told is that many of the plastics used are toxic and the chemicals used to create a plastic can leach out of the plastic and in to the food / drink. Think about it, how many times have you or a friend said "I don't like this, it taste like the plastic bottle ..... " THAT'S BECAUSE YOU ARE TASTING THE PLASTIC The WORST ONES are Nos: 3, 6, and 7 !!! DO NOT USE THESE NUMBERS if stated at the bottom of the bottle) !!! Check out this chart that breaks down the plastic, its uses and chemical makeup (I f in d #7 a little scary) http://www.epd.gov.hk/epd/english/environmentinhk/waste/guide_ref/guide_plascod3.html Reusing plastic bottles by refilling them is NOT a good idea.WATCH THIS VIDEO: http://video.wnbc.com/player/?id=238518 Microwaving plastic containers affects the chemical make up of the plastic, allowing the chemical substances to destabilize and leach out more quickly in to the food you are reheating. You can check out this article that ran in the Wall Street Journal: http://www.mindfully.org/Plastic/Microwave-Health-Problems.htm EVEN one of my favorite "RUMOR DEBUNKING" websites,URBANLEGENDS. ABOUT.COM Lists the in formation as: overblown with a grain of TRUTH. READ the FULL 3 pages of the article! http://urbanlegends.about.com/library/bl-microwave-dioxin.htm AVOID reusin g plastic bottles RIGHT AWAY !!!
Regards,

A.K.RAMAN.

EXPIRY DATE FOR LPG CYLINDERS

2008-10-23T11:43:00.000-07:00

The following information is received by me through a forwaded e-mail from my friend. As this concerns public safety the information is given below. Readers are requested to pass this information to as many people as possible.

About LPG gas cyl in der's expiry date....!! I also didn't know how to f in d LPG cyl in der's expiry date? Expired Cyl in ders are not safe for use and may cause accidents. In this regard please be cautious at the time of accept in g any LPG cyl in der from the Vendor.Here is how we can check the expiry of LPG cyl in ders:On one of three side stems of the cyl in der, the expiry date is coded alpha numerically as follows A or B or C or D and some two digit number follow in g this e.g. D06.The alphabets stand for quarters -1. A for March (First Qtr),2. B for June (Second Qtr),3. C for Sept (Third Qtr), &4. D for December (Fourth Qtr). The digits stand for the year till it is valid. Hence D06 would mean December qtr of 2006. Please Return Back the Cyl in der that you get with a Expiry Date, they are prone to Leak and other Hazardous accidents... The second example with D13 allows the cyl in der to be in use until Dec 2013. K in dly pass this to every one, and create awareness among the public.
A.K.RAMAN

FOOD FOR THOUGHT-email FROM A FRIEND

2008-10-19T11:54:00.000-07:00

Not all e-mails I recive are funny.Some are very useful in saving life. The latest one I recived is thought provoking.I am giving it below for the kind attention of every INDIAN.
QUOTE
Must Read For Every Indian... Preaching of the GREAT Dr. Abdul kalam...
A Letter to Every Indian - APJ Published by uttishthata July 6th, 2007 in APJ Abdul Kalam The President of India DR. A. P. J. Abdul Kalam 's Speech in Hyderabad . Why is the media here so negative?Why are we in India so embarrassed to recognize our own strengths, our achievements?We are such a great nation. We have so many amazing success stories but we refuse to acknowledge them. Why?We are the first in milk production.We are number one in Remote sensing satellites.We are the second largest producer of wheat.We are the second largest producer of rice.Look at Dr. Sudarshan , he has transferred the tribal village into a self-sustaining, self-driving unit. There are millions of such achievements but our media is only obsessed in the bad news and failures and disasters.I was in Tel Aviv once and I was reading the Israeli newspaper. It was the day after a lot of attacks and bombardments and deaths had taken place. The Hamas had struck. But the front page of the newspaper had the picture of a Jewish gentleman who in five years had transformed his desert into an orchid and a granary. It was this inspiring picture that everyone woke up to. The gory details of killings, bombardments, deaths, were inside in the newspaper, buried among other news. In India we only read about death, sickness, terrorism, crime.. Why are we so NEGATIVE? Another question: Why are we, as a nation so obsessed with foreign things? We want foreign T.Vs, we want foreign shirts. We want foreign technology. Why this obsession with everything imported. Do we not realize that self-respect comes with self-reliance? I was in Hyderabad giving this lecture, when a 14 year old girl asked me for my autograph. I asked her what her goal in life is. She replied: I want to live in a developed India . For her, you and I will have to build this developed India . You must proclaim. India is not an under-developed nation; it is a highly developed nation.Do you have 10 minutes? Allow me to come back with a vengeance. Got 10 minutes for your country? If yes, then read; otherwise, choice is yours. YOU say that our government is inefficient.YOU say that our laws are too old.YOU say that the municipality does not pick up the garbage.YOU say that the phones don't work, the railways are a joke. The airline is the worst in the world, mails never reach their destination. YOU say that our country has been fed to the dogs and is the absolute pits. YOU say, say and say. What do YOU do about it? Take a person on his way to Singapore. Give him a name - 'YOURS'. Give him a face - 'YOURS'. YOU walk out of the airport and you are at your International best. In Singapore you don't throw cigarette butts on the roads or eat in the stores. YOU are as proud of their Underground links as they are. You pay $5 (approx. Rs. 60) to drive through Orchard Road (equivalent of Mahim Causeway or Pedder Road) between 5 PM and 8 PM. YOU come back to the parking lot to punch your parking ticket if you have over stayed in a restaurant or a shopping mall irrespective of your status identity... In Singapore you don't say anything, DO YOU? YOU wouldn't dare to eat in public during Ramadan, in Dubai . YOU would not dare to go out without your head covered in Jeddah.
YOU would not dare to buy an employee of the telephone exchange in London at 10 pounds (Rs.650) a month to, 'see to it that my STD and ISD calls are billed to someone else.'YOU would not dare to speed beyond 55 mph (88 km/h) in Washington and then tell the traffic cop, 'Jaanta hai main kaun hoon (Do you know who I am?). I am so and so's son. Take your two bucks and get lost.' YOU wouldn't chuck an empty coconut shell anywhere other than the garbage pail on the beaches in Australia and New Zealand . Why don't YOU spit Paan on the streets of Tokyo? Why don't YOU use examination jockeys or buy fake certificates in Boston??? We are still talking of the same YOU. YOU who can respect and conform to a foreign system in other countries but cannot in your own. You who will throw papers and cigarettes on the road the moment you touch Indian ground. If you can be an involved and appreciative citizen in an alien country, why cannot you be the same here in India? Once in an interview, the famous Ex-municipal commissioner of Bombay, Mr. Tinaikar, had a point to make. 'Rich people's dogs are walked on the streets to leave their affluent droppings all over the place,' he said. 'And then the same people turn around to criticize and blame the authorities for inefficiency and dirty pavements. What do they expect the officers to do? Go down with a broom every time their dog feels the pressure in his bowels?In America every dog owner has to clean up after his pet has done the job. Same in Japan.Will the Indian citizen do that here?' He's right. We go to the polls to choose a government and after that forfeit all responsibility.We sit back wanting to be pampered and expect the government to do everything for us whilst our contribution is totally negative. We expect the government to clean up but we are not going to stop chucking garbage all over the place nor are we going to stop to pick a up a stray piece of paper and throw it in the bin. We expect the railways to provide clean bathrooms but we are not going to learn the proper use of bathrooms.We want Indian Airlines and Air India to provide the best of food and toiletries but we are not going to stop pilfering at the least opportunity.This applies even to the staff who is known not to pass on the service to the public. When it comes to burning social issues like those related to women, dowry, girl child! and others, we make loud drawing room protestations and continue to do the reverse at home. Our excuse? 'It's the whole system which has to change, how will it matter if I alone forego my sons' rights to a dowry.' So who's going to change the system?What does a system consist of? Very conveniently for us it consists of our neighbours, other households, other cities, other communities and the government. But definitely not me and YOU. When it comes to us actually making a positive contribution to the system we lock ourselves along with our families into a safe cocoon and look into the distance at countries far away and wait for a Mr.Clean to come along & work miracles for us with a majestic sweep of his hand or we leave the country and run away.Like lazy cowards hounded by our fears we run to America to bask in their glory and praise their system. When New York becomes insecure we run to England . When England experiences unemployment, we take the next flight out to the Gulf. When the Gulf is war struck, we demand to be rescued and brought home by the Indian government. Everybody is out to abuse and rape the country. Nobody thinks of feeding the system. Our conscience is mortgaged to money. Dear Indians, The article is highly thought inductive, calls for a great deal of introspection and pricks one's conscience too.... I am echoing J. F. Kennedy's words to his fellow Americans to relate to Indians..... 'ASK WHAT WE CAN DO FOR INDIA AND DO WHAT HAS TO BE DONE TO MAKE INDIA WHAT AMERICA AND OTHER WESTERN COUNTRIES ARE TODAY' Lets do what India needs from us.
Forward this mail to each Indian for a change instead of sending Jokes or junk mails. Thank you, Dr. Abdul Kalam
UNQUOTE
Let us try our best and put in practice to make our country the most developed and civilised country in the world.
JAIHIND.
A.K.RAMAN

FOOD FOR THOUGHT

2008-10-19T11:06:00.000-07:00

Aging affects the body of living beings. ie. As the time passes, the body of living beings ages and become old. But the mind remains unaffected by passage of time.
But in case of nonliving things, even though temperature, wind, water etc affects them, passage of time does not affect them at all.
A.K.RAMAN

OLD BUT EVERGREEN STORY

2008-10-18T11:20:00.000-07:00

THE OLD BUT EVERGREEN STORY

akraman

I again cursed myself for starting my journey without intimating my visit. In fact I planned to telephone my arrival from the station. But, when the telephone beeped long beeps repeatedly, I was in a tight corner. Some how I have to reach my destination, on my own. I slowly dragged myself to the bus stop with the suitcase weighing a ton.
When the bus came, I double-checked and boarded. Being new to the city, I started to nag the conductor to inform me at the right stop. The conductor tried to be polite and repeatedly assured me.
To avoid inviting the conductor’s wrath, I started to surf through the passengers. Presently she caught my attention. She was in her teens and nature had blessed her with all the charms in the world. Her large dark eyes surrounding long sharp nose are a treat to watch. The lips were natural red and needed no lipstick. She had a slim body neatly proportioned to match her height. Her aura was so powerful that everybody in the bus was influenced by her presence.
But it was not her charm, which attracted my attention. The way she waved her hand to assert herself, the way she nodded, the way she raised her eyebrows, something, something in her looked very familiar. I could not put my finger on it. It was getting dark and my anxiety returned to torment me. I once again reminded the conductor and he snapped at me to be patient. On hearing our conversation she looked up and told,
“ Sir, don’t worry. I am also getting down at the same stop. I will remind you to get down. O.K!”
This unexpected answer relieved me of my anxiety. I planned to take her help to reach my destination.
“ Sir! We have to get down when the bus stops.” She cooed.
I gripped my suitcase and got down. The streetlights were on. I tossed within my mind how to approach her. She threw a glance at me and proceeded on her way slowly. The fear of her refusal to accompany me made my mind dizzy. I mustered enough courage and asked her
“ Will you please guide me to this address?”
She glanced through the piece of paper and looked at me happily.
“ Oh! Grandpa! Can’t you recognize me? I recognized you the moment I saw you, but was feeling shy to ask you. Come on, the house is very near and Dad will be surprised to see you with me.” She told in an excited voice.
That did the trick. She was exactly like my son and obviously her movements looked familiar.
“ Oh! What a relief?” I replied. “ I was very worried as I had ventured on this journey without intimating your dad. I telephoned from the station, but your telephone seems to be faulty. I was in a fix. It is very difficult to locate a house in a new locality at this age.” I continued.
“ Don’t worry Grandpa. I will take care of you. Come on let us go.” She caught hold of my hand and started guiding my way home.

IT WAS ONE OF THOSE DAYS- A SHORT STORY

2008-10-02T07:03:00.000-07:00

IT WAS ONE OF THOSE DAYS……..

A.K.RAMAN

“Why are you making those faces at me?”
It came like a bolt from the blue and hit me hard. I was sitting in front of my boss in his chamber and was listening attentively like a snake in front of a snake charmer. In fact we were discussing strategy before going out to meet a potential customer.
“Tell me why are you making those faces at me?”
“Who? Me? Sir”
“Is there anybody else in this room?”
“No sir.”
“Then I might have asked you only. Tell me why are making those faces at me?”
I bit my lip before uttering “Who me sir” and starting the conversation all over again. I decided to keep mum and allow things to take its own course. Within a few minutes the discussion was over and I found myself sitting by the side of my boss in his car. I am not such a fool to make faces at my boss putting my career at risk. Then why did he ask me such question.
The day started like any other day. In fact I was lucky in one sense. My friend had returned from Kerala after spending some days there. He brought coconuts from there. He gave me some of them because he knew I like them very much. While leaving for office I put a piece of it in my mouth enjoying the sweet juice whenever I chewed it. I was lucky in the bus also. A beautiful lady occupied the seat just in front of me. In a short while I started stealing glances at her. I suspect that the planets changed positions just after that time. Suddenly her face became red with anger.
She stood up and marched away and occupied some other seat behind me as if to avoid me. I do not mind her marching away and occupying some other seat. But certainly mind her stamping my feet so hard making sure to hurt my feet in spite of the protection of the toe of my shoe. Some thing told me that the stamping was intentional. To peak it all, my boss is accusing me of making faces at him.
My musing stopped as my boss drove round a building and parked his car at a vantage place. The next few hours saw us at our persuasive best. My boss talked with a silken voice throwing statistics to justify his points. Of course the points were prepared by me by burning the midnight oil. I occasionally stepped in and supplemented his effort nicely. Assured of a bulky order, we closed the meeting and returned to the car. I was in cloud nine when we were returning back. My boss was happy enough to drop me at my home. As I was getting down disaster struck again.
“Do you have the habit of chewing the cud?”
My boss asked as he reversed the car and drove away without waiting for my reply. Crest fallen I entered my house, sat on the sofa and hid myself inside the news paper. Reading news paper was my way of unwinding. My wife tried her best to understand the cause of my tension. But I managed to stonewall her probing and remained silent. After about half an hour, I went upstairs and entered my room. I stood in front of the mirror to asses what was wrong with me. A well dressed handsome executive said hello to me. Finding nothing wrong, I sat on the bed completely confused.

My wife entered the room after sometime with a cup of coffee and slowly started a conversation. The topic was to my liking and within few minutes I was taking part in a lively discussion. Suddenly my wife shouted
“What happened to your tongue? Please put out your tongue so that I can see”
I put my tongue out as far as possible.
“Oh God! It is almost bleeding. What did you do to hurt your tongue so much?” She asked in a worried voice. Lightning flashed in my mind. I jumped up and dashed to the mirror again. I stood there and did something. The handsome man in it made faces at me. I turned back and danced shouting
“Eureka! Eureka”
“Now what?” She asked with a worried look.
“My darling! Without knowing yourself you have solved a mystery which was haunting me through out the day”
“Is it so? I thought you have gone mad.”
Ignoring her comments I dashed to the mirror again. I did something and the Gentleman in the mirror made faces at me.
“Give me a safety pin” I asked.
A tinge of fear shadowed her face. Silently she handed over a pin. I opened the pin, held it in a peculiar angle, inserted it between two teeth and pulled it out. There it was…..the culprit….a piece of coconut. It has gone between the teeth while I was eating it in the morning. By instinct I was trying to pull it out with my tongue. If you still don’t understand, please stand in front of a mirror and try to pull out something stuck in between your teeth with your tongue.

------X-----X------X------X------

PHASE SHIFT IN COMMUNICATION DUE TO MINDSET

2008-09-29T04:18:00.000-07:00

COMMUNICATION-PHASE SHIFT DUE TO MIND
A.K.RAMAN
“INDIAN DEMAND RISE PRICES” Screamed the headline of a popular newspaper from Delhi. I was in a tense mood and was flying to Mumbai to attend a review meeting and hence hurrying through the headlines munching a sandwich in my mouth simultaneously. Being from a middle class background, I wondered how in the world anybody could demand increase in prices (though not clearly registering the words in my mind to understand the correct meaning). We always want a reduction in prices and increase in salary.
The passenger right to me commented that considering the weak dollar, exporters from India are justified in demanding an increase in price of their products to offset their loss in Rupee terms. How strange? I never thought in that angle. Later I found out that he is in export business and the headline meant increase in price due to falling dollar as far as he concerned.
“ The demand to increase prices is justified considering the price increase in all raw materials.” This was the reaction from the passenger to the left. He owned a small-scale industry and was feeling the pinch of price increase in raw materials.
Strangely all our reactions were not relevant to the news item, which followed the headline. It was about the view of the American President. He was concerned about the increase in prices in America that was due to the increase in demand for products and according to him; the increase in demand in turn was due to the increased affluence of the Indian middle class.
All of managers were taught to avoid oral communication, which often causes misunderstandings and result in actions unwarranted. We were told to be precise and communicate in writing with short and precise messages.
The point is that even written communications gets a phase shift or twist depending upon the frame of mind of the receiver. Hence one should be careful and ensure that the receiver correctly understands the communicated message.
A person at Delhi (let us call him as RAM) sent the following SMS to his friend at Nagpur (let us call him SHYAM)
“ Coming to Nagpur by tomorrow’s Rajdhani Express.”

Next day Shyam went to the railway station to receive his dear friend. Rajdhani Express came and went. But Ram did not turn up. Shyam got very angry. He did not sleep through out the night so as to reach the station at the right time. Ram did not bother to inform him about his inability to make the trip. He was in a bad mood through out the day cursing his friend a number of times. He forgot the incident in the evening and went to his bed in a relaxed mood. He overslept and woke up late in the morning and was hurrying through chores when he heard the calling bell. When he opened the door he was surprised to see Ram standing red faced. Ram was furious, as Shyam did not receive him at the station. It took Shyam sometime to explain and pacify his friend.
The catch here is the twist of meaning of “tomorrow’s Rajdhani.” Ram meant that he would be boarding Rajdhani the next day at Delhi. But to Shyam it meant that Ram would be reaching Nagpur by Rajdhani the next day. Both of them took it for granted that their understanding the message was correct and did not cross check.
So in spite of one’s feeling that he is communicating precisely, he must cross check and ensure that the receiver has understood the message correctly.

-------X--------X---------X----------

POET PAR EXCELLENCE

2008-09-29T04:10:00.000-07:00

Can you say the name of poet who wrote the national anthems of two countries?
A.K.RAMAN.

answer: Our own Rabindranath Tagore.

2008-09-26T00:54:00.000-07:00

Some e-mails I receive are funny. One such mail is reproduced below.
A.K.RAMAN.
Manmohan Singh to Bush - We are sending Indians to the moon next year.
Bush - Wow! How Many?
Manmohan Singh - 100
25 - OBC
25 - SC
20 - ST
5 - Handicapped
5 - Sports Persons
5 - Terrorist Affected
5 - Kashmiri Migrants
9 - Politicians
and if possible
1 - Astronnaut

2008-09-26T00:41:00.000-07:00

I received the following information via forwaded e-mail. Since the information is important and could save life, I am reproducing the same on public interest.

A.K.RAMAN.

You could save a life.
STROKE: Remember The 1st Three Letters... S.T.R .
My friend sent this to me and encouraged me to post it and spread the word. I agree. If everyone can remember something this simple, we could save some folks. STROKE IDENTIFICATION: During a party, a friend stumbled and took a little fall - she assured everyone that she was fine and just tripped over a brick because of her new shoes. (they offered to call ambulance) They got her cleaned up and got her a new plate of food - while she appeared a bit shaken up, Ingrid went about enjoying herself the rest of the evening. Ingrid's husband called later telling everyone that his wife had been taken to the hospital - (at 6:00pm , Ingrid passed away.) She had suffered a stroke at the party. Had they known how to identify the signs of a stroke, perhaps Ingrid would be with us today.
Some don't die. They end up in a helpless, hopeless condition instead. It only takes a minute to read this... STROKE IDENTIFICATION:
A neurologist says that if he can get to a stroke victim within 3 hours he can totally reverse the effects of a stroke...totally. He said the trick was getting a stroke recognized, diagnosed, and then getting the patient medically cared for within 3 hours, which is tough. RECOGNIZING A STROKE Remember the "3" steps, STR . Read and Learn! Sometimes symptoms of a stroke are difficult to identify. Unfortunately, the lack of awareness spells disaster. The stroke victim may suffer severe brain damage when people nearby fail to recognize the symptoms of a stroke. Now doctors say a bystander can recognize a stroke by asking three simple questions : S * Ask the individual to SMILE . T * = TALK. Ask the person to SPEAK A SIMPLE SENTENCE (Coherently) (eg "It is sunny out today").R * Ask him or her to RAISE BOTH ARMS . If he or she has trouble with ANY ONE of these tasks, call the ambulance and describe the symptoms to the dispatcher. NOTE : Another 'sign' of a stroke is 1. Ask the person to 'stick' out their tongue.
2. If the tongue is 'crooked', if it goes to one side or the other that is also an indication of a stroke.

A prominent cardiologist says if everyone who gets this e-mail sends it to 10 people; you can bet that at least one life will be saved.
….and it could be your own…..

PASS THIS ON….

FOOD FOR THOUGHT

2008-09-26T00:00:00.000-07:00

In these days of globalisation, can patriotism be called sort of narrow mindedness?
A.K.RAMAN

PASSTIME

2008-09-18T03:20:00.003-07:00

QUIZ
A.K.Raman
A person brought nine metal balls, identical in dimensions and weight. But one of them is slightly different in weight. Nobody knows whether the weight of the odd ball is more than the others or less. The problem is to identify and separate the odd ball. For doing this only a double pan beam balance is available. Weighing stones are not available. Even the double pan beam balance can be used thrice only. Is it possible to pick the odd one out? If the answer is yes, then please explain.
The problem may appear easy. Actually it is not so. Please don’t rush to see the answer. The key is to find out whether the oddball is lighter or heavier. Tease your brain. If you are successful, then alone you can enjoy the sweet feeling you experience after cracking a hard problem. Best of luck.

If you are successful, do post that you made it :) (don't post the answer for the benefit of others )or post your email address and I will email the answer.

FOOD FOR THOUGHT

2008-09-18T03:20:00.002-07:00

Food doesn't help us grow, it only helps to remain healthy.It appears that growth is controlled by your genes. That is why very poor people (like beggars) who eat rarely, that too unhygienic food grow up, some very tall, some very short, some lean, some broad.
A.K.RAMAN