consciousness : -
Consciousness is a quality of the mind generally regarded to comprise qualities such as subjectivity, self-awareness, sentience, sapience, and the ability to perceive the relationship between oneself and one's environment.
- source Wiki
Was recently on a star gazing trip o Hampi inKarnataka, India. For those in Bangalore who have not been to Hampi, get there on the first chance that you get. It was a mind blowing experience ...the ruins... the history ... the feeling of pride.
The real intention of the trip , which was done with the Bangalore Astronomical Society, was to have a clear sky for a great night of sky observations. We had brilliantly clear skies from 8 pm to 12 am after which all observations were hampered the heavy cloud cover.
It was amazing to just lie on my back and look up at the clear sky. It used to be a real pleasurable activity for me when i was a kid; it was a form of pleasure that i had forgotten.
A few deep and profound thoughts struck me as i gazed deep into the cosmos ...
I am so insignificant from a physical point of view in the grand scheme of things ... I mean the sheer physical magnitude of the universe makes my physical being a very insignificant entity of existence.
However ... what is the magnitude of the universe? The whole notion of existence and the magnitude of the universe is directly linked to my consciousness. If my consciousness did not exist, the universe and everything else also would not...
And then suddenly it struck me ... one of the most important aspect of my existence is my consciousness ... perhaps it "is" the cornerstone of my existence. I exist and i am aware of my existence because of my consciousness. So the whole universe gets its meaning through an individuals consciousness ... Does that make the individual the central theme of creation from a personal perspective?
The "self" is an important thing. The whole universe has an existence in my consciousness ...
These were some deep and profound thoughts ... they have given me one or two sleepless nights ... i continue to think about them ... I think i have a lot more to learn about existence and my consciousness ...
For now i am conscious that i am sleepy :) .....
Thursday, November 30, 2006
Monday, October 09, 2006
Feeling very light headed and hearted today
I dunno why is it that i am feeling so light and happy right now ... maybe its the excellent fish i had for dinner ... maybe it was the company i had at dinner ... maybe its just the weather ... i dunno ... i dont care ... i love the feeling ...
I had not been feeling well over the past one week and in between the important event of presenting my first technical paper accepted at a pulic forum ... the only thing that i could afford to do was sleep and think ... think about life ... existence and the good effects of prayer.
Prayer ... the one word that brings religiosity to mind ... a man who prays is considered to be a complete religious "holy holy" guy ... i think not!
When i was struggling with a 103 temperature and i just couldn't get to sleep due to the myriad paths my hallucinating mind was taking, i decided to try out something interesting.... i closed my eyes and started a chant .... it was just a rendition of the holy rosary ... something we have been doing as a family since as far as i can remember ... it was more of a chant than a real prayer .... and it worked like a beauty ...
No my fever did not come down .... but i could feel my senses and thoughts collating and coming to focus ... the chant was helping my mind calm down so that i could get my much needed sleep ... in the proces i realized the much maligned truth about prayer ... its the best mental tool known to man since times immemorial ...
A prayer (not necessarily to god...) can be anything from a heartfelt outpouring to a senseless chant is a mental tool that people use for reassurance, refocussing and invogorating the inner soul ... if seen from the right perspective i think prayer is a life enhancing tool ...
Personally i prefer the chanting path of prayer ... the rosary has become so much of a habit that i chant it everyday rather than actually mean it when said in unison with the family ... During the course of the chant ... my mind wanders on multiple paths ... looking deep into my subconscious ... i find peace and tranquility , i find out what troubles me ... what makes me ecstatic ... my innermost plans for myself ... my dreams and aspirations ... my likes my dislikes ... my love and my hate ... i am actually self aware as if i were cast on stage with all the spotlights on me and the world watching on ...
Anyway ... this momentous feeling i felt helped me sleep well that night and tide over my first major sickness in three years ...
I dont feel any more religious or pious ... rather i feel at peace and content with myself ... and i think i understand why peple pray ... they may be doing out of peity, but the real reason is somwhere deep down inside it is aiding them to be more self aware of themselves ... and that is what is necessary to lead an enlightened life ....
And ofcourse its good to be back at work with wonderful plans for my future ... i hope i continue to remain as optimistic and upbeat as this all my life ... i owe it to me and the society in which i live...
I had not been feeling well over the past one week and in between the important event of presenting my first technical paper accepted at a pulic forum ... the only thing that i could afford to do was sleep and think ... think about life ... existence and the good effects of prayer.
Prayer ... the one word that brings religiosity to mind ... a man who prays is considered to be a complete religious "holy holy" guy ... i think not!
When i was struggling with a 103 temperature and i just couldn't get to sleep due to the myriad paths my hallucinating mind was taking, i decided to try out something interesting.... i closed my eyes and started a chant .... it was just a rendition of the holy rosary ... something we have been doing as a family since as far as i can remember ... it was more of a chant than a real prayer .... and it worked like a beauty ...
No my fever did not come down .... but i could feel my senses and thoughts collating and coming to focus ... the chant was helping my mind calm down so that i could get my much needed sleep ... in the proces i realized the much maligned truth about prayer ... its the best mental tool known to man since times immemorial ...
A prayer (not necessarily to god...) can be anything from a heartfelt outpouring to a senseless chant is a mental tool that people use for reassurance, refocussing and invogorating the inner soul ... if seen from the right perspective i think prayer is a life enhancing tool ...
Personally i prefer the chanting path of prayer ... the rosary has become so much of a habit that i chant it everyday rather than actually mean it when said in unison with the family ... During the course of the chant ... my mind wanders on multiple paths ... looking deep into my subconscious ... i find peace and tranquility , i find out what troubles me ... what makes me ecstatic ... my innermost plans for myself ... my dreams and aspirations ... my likes my dislikes ... my love and my hate ... i am actually self aware as if i were cast on stage with all the spotlights on me and the world watching on ...
Anyway ... this momentous feeling i felt helped me sleep well that night and tide over my first major sickness in three years ...
I dont feel any more religious or pious ... rather i feel at peace and content with myself ... and i think i understand why peple pray ... they may be doing out of peity, but the real reason is somwhere deep down inside it is aiding them to be more self aware of themselves ... and that is what is necessary to lead an enlightened life ....
And ofcourse its good to be back at work with wonderful plans for my future ... i hope i continue to remain as optimistic and upbeat as this all my life ... i owe it to me and the society in which i live...
Monday, September 18, 2006
Just had to put this up
Follow the link:
The homeless of SanFransisco
Every picture there tells a story of poverty in SanFransisco ...
I hope every visitor to my blog reads atleast some of the stories behind these pictures ....
THis link got me thinking ... if there is a story behind the poor homeless in a city like SF ... how many more should be found in the cities of Inida ????
Its one of those picture sets on the net that is going to give me a sleepless night ... as i ponder and contemplate on the relative affluence in which i live ...
Life is unfair ... I've got to learn to accept it ... it is unfair in my favour tonight ....
The homeless of SanFransisco
Every picture there tells a story of poverty in SanFransisco ...
I hope every visitor to my blog reads atleast some of the stories behind these pictures ....
THis link got me thinking ... if there is a story behind the poor homeless in a city like SF ... how many more should be found in the cities of Inida ????
Its one of those picture sets on the net that is going to give me a sleepless night ... as i ponder and contemplate on the relative affluence in which i live ...
Life is unfair ... I've got to learn to accept it ... it is unfair in my favour tonight ....
Saturday, August 19, 2006
The purpose of existence
Purpose-
n. The object toward which one strives
source : www.dictionary.com
The purpose of existence is something over which i have been mulling ever since I had been to the last installment of the matrix trilogy.
Is it so that everything that exists has to have some purpose, some functionality that it has to fulfil? Does there exist a purpose for the existence of lifeless entities ?
Come to think of it inanimate entities are given a purpose only in the context of human existence. That brings me to the conclusion that while trying to define the purpose of existence of anything, we have to take it in the context of human existence...
And that brings me to the point of human existence, what is the purpose of human existence?
Is my purpose of existence just the justification of the things around me. Can this question be answered without bringing in religion?
In christian philosophy, man is considered to be created by god in his own image ... thus defining the purpose of human existence as a manifestation of god, where a human being should strive to attain god like perfection. I see this extended in the philosophy of karma and moksha in hindusim.
My quest for an objective answer devoid of religion took me to google :) ... and the specific query "the purpose of human existence" ...
"As far as we can discern,
the sole purpose of human existence
is to kindle a light of meaning
in the darkness of mere being."
-- Carl Gustav Jung
Interesting point ... but what is "mere being" ...
I have seemingly opened a whole new avenue of philosophising ... There are so many theories out there; religious and non religious, and i have a lifetime to find out what is the purpose of my existence ...
There is more to come ...
n. The object toward which one strives
source : www.dictionary.com
The purpose of existence is something over which i have been mulling ever since I had been to the last installment of the matrix trilogy.
Is it so that everything that exists has to have some purpose, some functionality that it has to fulfil? Does there exist a purpose for the existence of lifeless entities ?
Come to think of it inanimate entities are given a purpose only in the context of human existence. That brings me to the conclusion that while trying to define the purpose of existence of anything, we have to take it in the context of human existence...
And that brings me to the point of human existence, what is the purpose of human existence?
Is my purpose of existence just the justification of the things around me. Can this question be answered without bringing in religion?
In christian philosophy, man is considered to be created by god in his own image ... thus defining the purpose of human existence as a manifestation of god, where a human being should strive to attain god like perfection. I see this extended in the philosophy of karma and moksha in hindusim.
My quest for an objective answer devoid of religion took me to google :) ... and the specific query "the purpose of human existence" ...
"As far as we can discern,
the sole purpose of human existence
is to kindle a light of meaning
in the darkness of mere being."
-- Carl Gustav Jung
Interesting point ... but what is "mere being" ...
I have seemingly opened a whole new avenue of philosophising ... There are so many theories out there; religious and non religious, and i have a lifetime to find out what is the purpose of my existence ...
There is more to come ...
Wednesday, July 05, 2006
Burn Out???
I have found a new potential enemy in my professional and personal life . This guy is at par with "complacence", though i have not yet had a full blown encounter with him ... He exhausts the fuel that drives you and is aptly named BURN OUT!
Up until a few months ago 'burnout' was a term i associated with sport prodigies. In my early schooling days i have had the privilege of studying with some of the best sporting talent in the country. True to their talent these guys, at that point of time, rose up to number 1 positions in their respective fields, only to be lost in oblivion today at this point of time. Did they peak too early burning out or is it so that they were never meant to be in it for the long run.
OVer the past week i have tried to define burn out in a broader sense after a very close friend of mine warned me that the amount of time i spend at work might lead to a burn out. I think my boss has gone through one phase of burn out ... over the past one month it has affected his efficiency at work, i am in no position to comment on his personal life, but going by my analysis a professional burnout has to have its repurcussions on the personal side of life too.
Of late i have been putting in long hours at work. Not out of pressure, but because work is interesting and challenging. However i have to remind myself that i am in life for the long run, and not to suffer minor unecessary burn outs that will hamper my progress.
Up until a few months ago 'burnout' was a term i associated with sport prodigies. In my early schooling days i have had the privilege of studying with some of the best sporting talent in the country. True to their talent these guys, at that point of time, rose up to number 1 positions in their respective fields, only to be lost in oblivion today at this point of time. Did they peak too early burning out or is it so that they were never meant to be in it for the long run.
OVer the past week i have tried to define burn out in a broader sense after a very close friend of mine warned me that the amount of time i spend at work might lead to a burn out. I think my boss has gone through one phase of burn out ... over the past one month it has affected his efficiency at work, i am in no position to comment on his personal life, but going by my analysis a professional burnout has to have its repurcussions on the personal side of life too.
Of late i have been putting in long hours at work. Not out of pressure, but because work is interesting and challenging. However i have to remind myself that i am in life for the long run, and not to suffer minor unecessary burn outs that will hamper my progress.
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