Hi Guys,

Halloween is coming and it is about time we get the most creative and morbid minds to come up with the scariest short story, poem, or blog entry.

Now, the winner has to get something, hmmm... All I can do is post a link THE SCARIEST HALLOWEEN STORY linking to the blog of the winner. I would also expect that those who compete would be cooperative enough to do the same.

Voting will commence 26th October until 29th October.

Write stories now until 25th October.

If anyone can polish this idea and make this more enticing, be my guest.

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We would always come across the idea that greed and discontent on the way things are is evil. It has always been that their stereotypical image leads to crime and unhappiness. But if we look at the human being, greed and contentment is necessary for progress and further evolution.

Human beings, like all mobile and thinking species, are programmed to perpetuate. Animals have their mating season, they have their defensive mechanisms, they also have their offensive mechanisms; all necessary to keep their species alive.

The human being is no different from this. But aside from the natural evolution, man is gifted to evolve using outside resources. Man has used his environment to make himself better. Through this, man can survive all the different weather, go faster, and communicate better. Man is assisted with memory and processing, but most importantly, through evolution, man can discover God better.

It is natural for us to want to become god, after all, we all are gods, we have a soul, and Soul is God. We want to become immortals, and immortality is also in conjunction to perpetuity. We have taken great strides in medicine to help us live longer and better lives. Technology has made it more conducive for us to do more with less. We have become much more efficient now than what we were even 50 years ago.

Through communication, man has been able to transmit and receive different ideas which he can add upon. From the Hindus and Greek’s foundation philosophy we have evolved and added more and more observations to it, helping us get closer to the truth each time.

Due to man wanting to become God, and God being perfect, man has to evolve. Man has to understand each and everything he can know, he has to discover and become better each day. Greed is natural for us because we want to become perfect, we want to become God because we are God, we are trying to be our natural selves, and this would go on whatever interests we would have. Some of these interests would be in the field of speed, and people want to go faster. Some of these vents would be in science, and other such fields. If we remain content, we would not get anywhere. Man can only appreciate God better if he knows that the world is too organized to be a coincidence. This is how we have gotten to where we are now. We asked and we pushed ourselves, and we go somewhere. Religion should embrace technology, the Hindus did, for the authors of some of the religious teachings were scientists themselves. It is natural for us to evolve the world towards one goal. While everyone seems to be working on one field, while the others are working on another, the bigger picture shows one giant organism maturing and developing, just as a child becomes an adult.

It would then be considered that it is contentment that is evil. Contentment means the person is happy with whatever there is, that the top of the hill is enough. Always climb the higher peak, and keep getting higher. After all, our greed will drive humanity to a new level, and the closer we get to the truth, the more we need to be prepared for it.

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An interesting note is that human beings are made to make good decisions, by this we would mean good for himself. End of the day, we have to be greedy, we are programmed to actually survive and live, this idea has made us do things, anything, just to survive. But at the same time we are always made to choose to do good over evil. We want to be heroes ourselves.

But why do people do bad? In a complicated system of decision making, several factors would have to be taken into consideration, in generality, we would be talking about priorities, with which we would actually choose what’s more important on what order, next would be the timeline and strategy, is it for the long-term or immediate cause? And the subjective factor of good, where culture, and way of life tells the person what is good and what isn’t.

Priorities would actually mean what we value most in different circumstances. People close to us can have different values to us at such point we think they’re more important to us. This attachment would mean different actions would be required in different situations which may have adverse effects on the other being of lower value.

Time frame or strategy brings in the medicine and sugar paradox. While some actions would be good now, the long-term effect may not be all so pleasing, on the other hand, others choose to do what is good later and suffer now.

Culture has brought around the laws that we all live in today. This has made things subjective through our own viewpoint in life. Religious laws and exemptions brought in legalization of what is otherwise illegal on some aspects. We have abortion legal in some areas, gambling, and other such elements. While we might find them immoral, other people do have enough reason to say they are moral.

An example on defense of a thief who killed a client in the bank would have his story looked at. His priorities is his life and has not put value on others, or are at the lower part of the list. He has found money to bring him the good that he perceives and through time-frame has seen the immediate good available. His way of living has justified such actions for himself and has brought in the conclusion that it is ok to kill as long as he can sustain himself and keep his lifestyle. God knows what would happen if he didn’t keep it.

Human reasoning should also rethink emotions and actions committed to others. This would bring in back-stabbing, betrayal, and such which movies show no justification. Taking the survival instinct into play, we would then realize that people see the need to be superior to survive on where they are, or realize that to attain something of high value to them they have to commit such actions.

Many of them are not fully conscious of this behavior. Gossipers do not realize the damage they are doing or the fact that they are gossiping. They see the need to gossip to stay in the society where they want to belong. Sharing of secrets and stories bonds and creates trust in the community.

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There was this interesting episode today (June 15, 2003) on Discovery with regards to the Mahabharata and the legendary city of Dwarka. Apparently through the research of an Archaeologist Dr. Rao, he was able to discover a temple in the modern Dwarka below a temple, below a temple and so on for an approximate 100 meters and 3 milleniums worth of date. On the very bottom of the temple, there were shells and conch shells signifying that the city was indeed under deep water in the past. Aside from this, there was also discoveries of potteries and other materials signifying the advanced lifestyle of the period, such similar to what has been discussed in the Mahabharata. On the sea further discoveries of pottery and port materials shows that Dwarka was indeed prosperous and a major, bustling, international port and high walls fighting off invaders and the sea from flooding the city. Sifting through the sea bottom, another proof, the Mudra, as described in the Mahabharata, holding the sign of a 3 headed animal, was also found to be dated on 1311 bc. The Mahabharata described that every person had to keep the Mudra as a sign of their citizenship to the city.

Aside from the artifacts gathered showing the date, there was also an astronomical discovery with regards to the complete solar eclipse that happened during the war. Apparently, during the war, this eclipse confused everyone into thinking that it was night, and suddenly it turned day. According to one of the astrophysicist, this actually occurred in 1,311 BC. The same period the artifacts were dated.

While more of the facts are still being gathered. It would be interesting to look into the Mahabharata and remember that like the Greeks, the Hindus also kept a very good review of their history and were in the idea of record keeping. Although there are some exaggeration, the whole concept has been kept true and there is actual basis of the existence of the city and a God during the period being described.

Never lose faith

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It would be hard to justify to anyone in other religions why would Lord Shiva be considered good when he is known as “God of Destruction”. I did find it difficult myself at fist to find a reason. In the state of knowledge that life is good and death is bad, or creation is good and destruction is bad, one has to reflect upon these statements and realize that these are absolutes, without exemptions, and are too broad and generalized, this thus didn’t make the statements true. Using the theories on economic efficiency and secrets to many business success, we could dwell into one aspect on the beauty of destruction and its essentialities.

It comes to a point that in the era of globalization countries will have their core competencies over certain products or services, they do understand that through the culture bestowed upon them, or through natural factor endowment, or distinctive physiological characteristics, they get to have a natural edge on certain fields that others wouldn’t have in the first place. This has caused Japan to come up with the smallest and quietest air conditioners (due to the fact that they have small apartments and neighbors would be considerably irritated over the noise) and other such examples. Now also with globalization, we have to accept the fact that there is no point doing everything and be good at nothing when others are better on doing those things. By focusing on what a country can do best, they tend to become more efficient in that aspect and can actually compete in it worldwide. On the other hand, to become efficient and developed, a few industries have to go. These industries are those that are no longer competitive in the global market, but at the very least this makes more room and focus for what a country is good at. The essential reason for destruction of certain industries.

Another point would be on business success. This is where the idea of “Creative Destruction” comes in. Quite a Darwinian approach actually, this idea states that a country has to kill off its products every so often or force it to become obsolete and present a new product in replacement. This makes the company always competitive and the consumers updated and can enjoy what technology and such has to offer. Industries in the field of digital and electronic products, automotive, and clothing industry know this value and practice it. If they don’t, they lose out.

Now, taking the purpose of Shiva’s essential purpose, destruction is needed to give way for new life. Forest fires are needed to burn out old trees and different plants that tend to overcrowd a forest. After the forest fire, the forest grows again, greener than what was burned up before. The destructive force of volcanoes on the sea creates islands with fertile soil (Coconut trees are usually seen in the shoreline because coconuts can float on water and tent to migrate to these new islands. Plants of many variety travel by sticking on to birds who visit the island). These essential destructions or destructive forces actually brought in new life, beautifying what was old and dying. The idea of “shooting the wounded” now being thought of in globalization is originally from nature’s stampeding instincts.

Just by reflecting on Lord Shiva’s purpose on nature above, we do understand why he is needed for such an unglamorous and often misunderstood job.

On the matter of demise on earth, there was once an idea I’ve read somewhere that people will never think of heaven, God, or good if they will never die. True to its point, people do understand this theory better as time passes, although the damage is brutal to those affected and around him, there is no exemption to this rule for it to be fair. Even when God visited earth in different incarnation did it have to also leave the world. They wanted to be fair and just and not get exemption over this. This actually showed that death is not to be feared, it is how we live that we should be cautious of.

Living on the theory of love do we have to realize that someone still has to give the bitter medicine to an ailing patient, even if he will be cursed and hated by the person taking the liquid. But because of love and tolerance, the person does this so. Lord Shiva’s task is indeed unglamorous and cursed at. The idea of destruction has sent people thinking of him as evil, when, he and Vishnu are same and unique at the same time. Lord Shiva’s extreme love for us is shown when he accepted such a task.

Upon this is a hope that there is now an idea or a basis on the way we look at life and accept it. Lord Shiva’s task is golden and wonderful. He exemplifies service to the world that is done because of love and not of what people think about it.

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Hey there,

was going through my old junk and found some really old essays you guys can read through (more than 4 years old man)... Expect more as I go through them...

Green Plate Ambassadors

In its definition, an ambassador plays the role of representing his country. In this pretext, it is necessary that he stands with high reputation, drinking champagne on cocktails and eating caviar, wearing a black tuxedo or the national costume, well-spoken and a charming representation of his origin. But lets face the facts. He can be the most urbane person in the crowd but the masses think of his countrymen otherwise. The person with the blue plate in the embassy is the communications bridge between the foreign country to his origin. Not his character.

The stereotypical image projected about us really comes from us, or at least the image comes from our most accessible fellowmen out there, or the most popular. We still have to admit that in the end, people still judge the book by its cover. Sad but true, those stares have their inner voices projecting what they think about us based on either their own or extemporaneous experiences. We all work on a utilitarian and based relationship. On the primary level of concern, our relationship with others is based on our interdependency and our mind’s impression on that person’s image, be it from rumors, experience and history. This is our way of taking into consideration how the other person will act in future relationship events.

Let’s take a step back and look at the logical perspective of our reputation. People base their impression from what they hear about us (extemporaneous experience) and what happened in their lives (personal experience). These impressions have to come from the person who they have met most frequently or at least once. It is the regular foreigners out there who actually come in contact with the world that brings this reputation out there. And if that is how we are generally perceived, there is some truth there (vox populi est vox dei). It is difficult to bring to them the fact that every country has many cultures that each have their own general characteristics, worse, it is harder for them to take into justice the idea that every person has a different characteristic from the other. For in all justice, we too think the same way.

Amidst this dilemma, how do we represent ourselves? By being our best. We should shine out our leadership characteristics, show our responsibility and they will change their way of looking at us. If we try to convince them by word, we just wasted calories and seconds over soundwaves that does nothing. Better chant, it has an effect instead.

Aside from our leadership dimension, we should shine out our spirituality, ethics, and other characteristics that make everyone else look up to us as models. It is best to be emulated as a role model. Just as how Gandhi is to the world. Even an individual who shines out can change something.

Just as good reputation can be made, so can the bad. We should not think of riding on to the others who do good. Each and every one of us has a responsibility over this concern. We want to be looked at as leaders, philosophers, scientists, and such who have the highest regard for God and the world.

This is also our way of explaining Hinduism, by ACTUALLY PRACTICING IT. Once we can realize the sayings in our actions, others can too.

We might not be exempted from color coding, or carry a diplomatic passport, but we do still represent our country. We should carry our flag in our hearts out there. We have a lot of flowers to give.

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Hi Guys,

I have joined the whole blogging thingie for one thing, to spread out what I have been writing (I've tried other blogs, I think the whole community idea is good)

I'd appreciate it if you can leave your comments after (I want to know what you think)

Ditto for artworks as well

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