OVER-CONSUMPTION IS THE MOTHER OF GLOBAL WARMING

There are numerous reasons of Global Warming; all emanate from the use of energy, however. Why is energy used? It is for producing something. Why is something produced? Because, it is consumed by someone. So, consumption is the fundamental cause of all carbon emissions, and ultimately, Global Warming. When the earth was less populated, it never mattered how much we consumed. But with population going ballistic, and the very nature of modern lifestyle being high energy consuming, it is time we reviewed our consumption pattern.
Have we noticed how much we consume? Some examples:
• Some people pack their cupboards with so many clothes that a garment shop can be opened; accessories are no less; most of these are not used more than once a year
• When we travel, we consume 100% more packed food than what we actually need, mainly as a habit; it is neither healthy nor eco-friendly
• We would not walk even 100 meters to buy our vegetable (rather we would start a vehicle)
• Is it really necessary to go down the stairs in a lift all the time?
• We would buy invariably a lot more than what we need at a time, giving space to the producer to store his produce in our houses
The list can go on.
If we can observe how we consume, and how we waste, we can really bring down the carbon emission considerably.
Don’t wait for others. Start from you, set an example and others will follow, for sure.

Understanding the context

At present I am reading a book- "If Cricket is a religion, Sachin is God" by Vijay Santhanam and Shyam Balasubramanian. This is a wonderful book for me, not only because I am a great admirer of Sachin, but also because the book has taught me a lesson in life.

The book does not provide one a great literature experience per se; it is more of a defence of a great Champion against unworthy critics. The book is not laden with emotional arguments, rather it presents a scientific analysis with appropriate doses of philosophy. The book presents a case for Sachin by appealing the readers to understand the context and the whole thing rather than a part of it.

I have grown up appreciating the Genius and have been mesmerized and thrilled by his performances over the years. He has given me the kind of joy no one else has. Over the years my idols in different field have changed... from Shah Rukh to Aamir, from Kishore to Rafi (and many other). But three of them have stood the test of time - Gandhi, Amitabh and Sachin. But like any mere mortal I had also started questioning the maestro's genius because of several criticisms by myopic critics.

As I am nearing the end of the book, I realize how important it is to understand Sachin in the context of Indian cricket rather than in isolation. It is vital not to judge him (or anyone else) on the basis of the few failures during a particular small period.

The lesson for life is the same too. We often get frustrated that we are not fortunate based upon things happened in the recent past, forgetting the innumerable ways in which we are blessed. We often fail to understand the context in which something happened and ruin our best of relationships.

This is perhaps the reason why the judges in the courts of law are given the power to punish culprits differently for the same crime committed.

This book has taught me a great lesson in life and restored confidence in my Hero and a few near and dear ones. I owe a deep sense of gratitude towards the authors.

Why I love Gandhi

Yesterday was the 140th birth anniversary of Gandhi, the man of the twentieth century. In course of time, he has become an institution..... he has inspired whole generations and modern nation states altogether.

My love of Gandhi statrted some time when I was in college and I read his autobiography- "The Story of My Experiments with Truth". Over the years on many an occasion, his words have helped me take good decisions and make my life better. It's not that I do not disagree with his ideas ever; on many points I have different opinions, especially regarding his views on Economics. But I am sure even those are based on strong propositions.

Indeed, it's impossible to capture him in an article (or even in a book), but when I think of him, five distinct points come to my mind:

1. He was the symbol of freedom and fight against injustice
2. His compassion and love for the humanity
3. His strength of conviction and how he followed it up with devotion
4. He pioneered the use of 'non-violence' and 'truth' as political weapons
5. His belief of primacy of 'means' over 'ends'

Gandhi represented humanity and not only India/Indians. He led a very simple life, but always stood by what he said or believed.

Albert Einstein was right when he said: "Generations to come, it may be, will scarce believe that such a one as this ever in flesh and blood walked upon this earth."

Religion stops the growth of knowledge

It is difficult to define 'Religion' universally; so, I go by the oxford dictionary.
The oxford dictionary defines 'Religion' in the following words:

1) the belief in and worship of a superhuman controlling power, especially a personal God or gods 2) a particular system of faith and worship 3) a pursuit or interest followed with devotion.

The first two definitions are particularly true for all kinds of organized / institutionalized religions. The characteristics of such religions are more or less similar in some aspects: i)they have well defined boundaries, ii) they prescribe rigid practices, iii) they will not allow one to question and any deviation from the norm is considered unacceptable.

It can be seen in the evolution of different religions that new religions had been established when some one questioned the established belief of one religion. So, if one follows a particular religion, he/she has no freedom to think for himself and question the prevailing practices/beliefs. This implies that there is very little scope for new knowledge or growth of knowledge in an organized religion.

When one messiah starts a religion (actually the messiah doesn't necessarily start, but the followers start by following him/her), he/she brings in a new set of knowledge. However, as soon as he/she passess away, his/her followers again stop the growth or evolution of knowledge just because they also start following him/her and define the limits and boundaries. One dare not think in another direction, lest he/she be ousted from the religion/society.

This is why it is always good not to encourage people to follow one particular belief/system/faith........ rather people should be encouraged to pursue knowledge as put forth by different individuals from time to time, understand and develop their one faith systems, and take rational decisions. Because knowledge is a flow and not a stock; it has to keep flowing like a river and not stock (and be polluted) like a pond.

In history, we can see one set of knowledge is based on some other in the past; every original/new thinking/knowledge of a time is relative in nature. If a set of knowledge started with Copernicus, it travelled through Galileo, Newton, Einstein and others and is still travelling. This is how knowledge flows/travels through time. It must be allowed to flow this way. This is what makes human race better and better by the time.