Food For Thought

Thursday, January 18, 2018

‘Thiruvachahangal’ ( ‘Good Sayings’)  
    --- P.Natarajan
The facts below are intended to promote health or well-being of mind or spirit. These are morals, sound in body and mind. Let us take a determined outlook and bring them under our fold, as a New Year resolution:-

  1. What we wish to do is one thing. What is right ‘in doing’ is yet another.
  2. Egoistic, self centered, hot tempered, casting suspicion without base - these traits spoil happy moments, true friendship and bondages valued over life.
  3. Efforts taken to perform a job are by no means easy. But be certain that everything is achievable
  4. Believe in everybody. Disbelieve the situations. It is because people who have been transformed are by deceit and circumstances only and not on their own in majority of cases.
  5. Man can live 45 days without food, 3 days without water, 3 minutes without air. But  he can not survive even 3 seconds without hope.
  6. What has been hurting the mind in secrecy like past shameful acts may serve as tonic to achieve success and rewards tomorrow.
  7. Have the vision to achieve the mission. vision without action is day dreaming. Action without vision is a nightmare.
    8. Common weakness for all men is the tendency to keep quiet when not warranted and shout when it is required to keep quiet.
    9. Time is a great healer to cool and get relief from irretrievable situations.
  10. Don’t brood over the past in the present. Work diligently today, with an eye for tomorrow. Never put off for tomorrow what you can do today.
  11. Contentment is our inherent wealth. Search for luxury would onl lead to misery.
  12. Never lose hope lest you should render yourself heartless.
  13. Speak for pleasure. But speak with measure. Have the will to be of service to others.

  14. All's well that ends well. If it does not end well, be sure that the end has not arrived.

  15. We live worrying what the other man thinks about us. But be aware that nobody thinks about us
 16. Being good may be due to circumstances. Living good is due to your own efforts  
17.Remember situations keep changing always and no state
 .     remains static.        .
 
 18. Quick decisions lead to success. Successful leaders don’t
       change the decisions once taken.. It is foolish to delay or postpone the decisions and also to keep on changing them
    
 19. Try, try and try again till you succeed.

 20. Don’t be diffident to do when you know what you intend to do is right. - pn

Route vs Direction

Route vis-a-vis Direction
  • P.Natarajan

Route refers to the roads or paths that are used for going from one place to the other. We can take alternate routes wherever available for our convenience. A specific itinerary in general may explain the order in which the job need to be completed for ensuring success. A route need to be spelt for sending something somewhere using a particular way or direction.

A route is a subject always linked with direction. The way would ultimately take us to the place or destination. A place is well described by the space it occupies. The coordinates of a place are distance in miles, north, south, east or west directions from the place of origin. The place cannot exist without the involvement of direction.

Likewise to lead a life, there are ways followed by means. Wise people would look for the right ways. The wrong ways would lead to troubles. People take counselling when in troubles or faced with difficulties. They raise a question viz “ what are the ways to overcome the difficulties”?

In management ‘ problem solving ‘ and critical path analysis are widely discussed for evolving more than one solution by forming a matrix and applying maximization or minimization techniques and the likes.

Today is the beginning of ‘Makara Month’ or Thai Masam {in Tamil}. “Thai Piranthal Vazhi Pirakkum’ is a popular maxim in Tamil. The maxim brings out the significance of exploring ‘ways and means’ and its importance when we conjure life as a wholesome entity.


The Bhooloka, the creation of the Almighty, is known as ‘Karma Bhoomi’. The guidelines prescribed by Vedas and Shastras are the thumb rules to be followed and practised as the ‘Karma’. There is no denial for performing the karma(s) for righteous living. By doing so, we reap the wholesome benefits not only in this life but also in future. The entwined phenomenon outlines the meaning of ‘Karma Bhoomi’.

Bhagavad Gita describes :-
क्षिप्रं हि मानुषे लोके
सिद्धिर्भवति कर्मजा  !!

The rites that are being performed in this bhooloka fetch positive results’ that too in quick phase than in any other place or loka. The karmas have been in existence from age old times based on the lines prescribed by Vedas and ‘ Sastras’. The vaidika karmas followed by traditions need to be adhered to by all the three divisions, ‘ brahma, kshatriya and vaishya ‘ groups. The people and the country reap the benefits by doing so. The karma theory further expounds the three types of karmas viz (1) Nitya Karma (2) Naimittika Karma ‘ and (3) Kamya Karma.  

Nitya karmas if not performed is like commiting a sin. Nitya karmas are duty bound. Naimittika karma are performed in a particular time like. Grahana tharpanam’ or when the month begins or rituals undertaken for atonement. Kamya karmas are taken up for obtaining  particular benefits like begetting a son, rains for harvest, to ward off fear and so on.

The catch words like ‘on-going’, ‘getting along’ which indicate present continuous states are also bound by ways or directions. Similarly the continuing thoughts from one theme to the other are bound or governed by some plans or ways, The life is continuous and does not remain static. People are occupied by varying thoughts. The pattern of changes constitute the good and bad time and the time rolls on. The faith in life is the key factor and saviour too. We should not err and take the strides in a wrong path lest it should take us to  wrong destination.

The Route vis-a-vis Direction of life can be bound by the following well known sayings:-
The good life is one inspired by love and guided by knowledge.
Skill is the best of all laudable things,
Knowledge is the best of all possessions
Health is the best of all the gains.
Contentment is the best of all Happiness.
LIVING IS A WONDERFUL EXPERIENCE
ENRICHED BY THE JOY OF PRAYERS.

Wishing A Happy New Year 2018 to All !

pn