Om

Om (pronounced Aum), is sacred and important in various religions such as Hinduism, Buddhism, Sikhism and Jainism. Same phonetic is produced in saying ‘Amen’ (in Christianity) and ‘Aameen’ (in Islam).

It is made up of the letters A, U and M. The sound emerging from the vocal chords starts from the base of the throat as "A". With the coming together of the lips, "U" is formed and when the lips are closed, all sounds end in "M". The Om chant should have the resounding sound of a bell (aaooommm). The "om syllable" in Sanskrit is referred to as ‘praṇava’, literally meaning "that which is sounded out loudly by making a humming sound" or ‘that which runs through our prana or breath’.

The three letters symbolize the three states (waking, dream and deep sleep), the three deities Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva (the creator, preserver and destroyer). The entire essence of the Vedas is enshrined in the word Om. It is said that the Lord started creating the world after chanting Om. Hence its sound is considered to create an auspicious beginning for any task that we undertake. Most mantras and Vedic prayers start and end with Om. It is also repeated as a mantra to meditate upon. Its form is worshipped upon and used as an auspicious sign. Om is the universal name of the Lord.

Om is one of the most chanted sound symbols in India. When we chant Om, we create within ourselves a vibration that attunes with the cosmic vibration which has profound effect on the body and mind of the one who chants and also on the surroundings. Such is the immeasurable power of Om.

By Pushpa Ramesh

Age is on your side

We often complain about ageing… in our forties, but surprisingly very few elders complain. Some of us complain… that they are un-healthy due to their AGE. We have grand mothers who are healthy at eighty plus, with no type II diabetes, hyper-tension and with a healthy heart, while other family members at much younger age suffer from ill health. So I feel it’s our lifestyle that makes us unhealthy. A little attention and focus on our lifestyle can lead us towards an energetic and healthy life. For good health these days exercise is a must because we lead a quiescent life compared to our previous generation.

Public perception towards “age”, especially in India is quiet negative. Thirty plus are treated as ‘somebody who has passed the prime of their age’. This negative feedback gets engraved in our brains and we tend to ignore our dress sense, attitude and body language, which in turn make us look, dull, unenthusiastic and hence old.

Secondly most of us after getting into a profession, neglect their hobbies. Hobbies not only relieve us from stress, but some hobbies keep us physically active and hence, healthy. As far as health & hobbies are concerned all that is needed is a little determination. Hesitation before starting can be resolved with determination and then one just has to pursue it, with interest. After all hobbies are stimulating and a great way to pep us!

I feel a positive attitude & a healthy life are important for feeling young. Would love to hear your feedback, so please do leave your comments…

By Pushpa Ramesh

हमसफ़र

उन्हें ढून्ढने निकला था, जवानी के नशे में,

कभी इस शहर, कभी उस,

भटखता हुआ मंजिल के तलाश में, मिला न कोई हमसफ़र,

परेशां हुआ बार बार, थक गया, मुश्किलों से झून्ज्थे,

मधुशाला के आघोष में, पता न चला, कब बरसात, कब पतझड़,

मध्होशी के आलम में, कभी इस शहर, कभी उस,

नींद से जागा, पता चला, इस रात की सुबह नहीं,

हमसफ़र की तलाश में कभी इस शहर, कभी उस,

सोच सोच कर मन घबराया, सोच सोच में उम्र बीता,

होश आया तो अकेला पाया, पर जिद्द थी निरंथर खोज की,

ऊत्हेजना मन में, ढूँढने निकला ता, उस सौम्या की,


पता न चला, कब ग्रीष्म ऋतू, बरसात, शिशिर, और बसंत गुज़र गया,

अचानक यह हुआ, हमसाया से मोहब्बत हो गया,

चेहरे में मुस्कान ताने, हमसाया को अपनाया,

विवाद में निकला विवाहित जीवन, मिठास की चादर ओदे,

साल गुज़रे, यादें बनी, बहस हुई, आसू बहे, मन विचलित हुआ, फैसले हुए,

चला हु अब एक नए सफ़र में, मन की शांति ढूँढने,

कभी इस शहर, कभी उस !

Written and contributed by

Ramesh Narayanan

Movie review : Bhag Milkha Bhag

The movie ‘Bhag Milkha Bhag’ is inspired by Milkha Singh’s autobiography “The Race of My Life”.

Movie truly inspires ‘with determination and hard work it is possible to achieve your dreams’. There is a fair amount of emotion, humor and romance added to it to keep it entertaining. During the various races the movie takes the viewer, to an edge. In-fact on number of occasion the hall erupted into cheer, giving the feeling that the games were taking place in the present moment ‘live’ in front of our eyes.

The movie also focuses on Mlkha Shigh’s early life and the emotional reasons which lead to making him a great athlete. It does miss out on his later life.

Farhan Akthar’s acting is marvelous. There are very few actors who do on screen justice to living legends & Farhan was able to do that. His tough physical training for this movie is clearly visible from his physique.

The trio Shankar-Ehsaan- Loy’s music is apt for the movie. Although few songs and dance sequences have been added to the movie for Bollywood style entertainment, but the music does not distract the viewer from the theme.

It’s a “must see” movie.

By Pushpa Ramesh

Reading

Reading to me, is a personal experience. It's a secret bond between the reader & the writer. A reader's personal circumstances & exposure strongly  influence the interpretation, that is why when you read the same piece at a different stage in life it gives a different perspective. The ability to relate to it at a different level  and derive a different inference further strengthens the bonding between the reader & the writer. 

An  exceptional piece of writing is that which is able to stand the test of time and is able to offer the reader a different dimension with the passage of time. While poetry by nature is mystic and open to interpretation, to get the same effect out of prose calls for a certain amount of skill. Moreover the subject discussed should lend itself and offer such scope. It is possible only for a knowledgeable and creative writer to bring about such text and a discerning reader to unravel it. Here again each reader unravels it within the limits of his/her intellect, which again keeps evolving with new experience and exposure. So not only does each reader get his own perspective, every reader gets a different perspective every time he/she reads it. This is the magic of the written word and the basis for the secret love affair between the reader & the writer.


Written and Contributed by : 
Rajshree Anand 
Dubai, U.A.E.
Banker by profession.

When sms kills language

Do you understand

‘SUP’

‘C-P’

Have you ever read your teenagers sms? Don’t bother, even if you read you won’t be able to understand a word. “Short messaging service” has shortened the words to an extreme. Now these short words have entered even our daily life and the beauty of English language is getting lost.

My teenager greets me with “sup”, which is a short word for “what’s up” and these days what’s up doesn’t mean what is above you or above something – it means “how do you do”. The younger generation has shortened the words to such an extreme that even their talk and formal write-up’s are in short form, which not only kills the beauty of the language but is also against the netiquettes of formal writing.

When we were growing up, our elders used to stress on the need to read, in order to improve vocabulary and language skills. The present generation reads a lot because they have access to more books and reading material, available online & on Kindle which is comfortable and easy to buy. Then why are the younger generation losing touch with their language etiquette and skills? Because they use sms to an extent where it has become ingrained in memory and the brain doesn't acknowledge the difference when they are using language in any other form. So it is important to encourage the Gen-Y to use proper language skills.

By Pushpa Ramesh

Conversation....

Everything changes… So does the meaning & substance of the word “conversation”. A decade or two back, it would have meant meeting a friend - sitting & chatting. Coffee or no coffee, the pleasure of being with a friend was great. Those were the good old days when we had the luxury of time.

Now that our lives have become fast & electronically connected, what needs to be seen is… are we still personally connected???? On my regular walks I see most people fiddling with their Ipods, cell phones etc…. and rarely do few, enjoy “nature”. Didn’t we have better memory when we had less electronics on hand – we could easily remember a dozen phone numbers offhand. Now most of us don’t even remember our close family member’s phone numbers. The electronic world has it’s boon. Many have found staying in touch with friends & family members far away, easier. The loved ones birthdays are on social media, which sends us reminders to wish them (because we can’t be expected to remember everything!!!) Some of us do take the liberty to send an e-greeting, which we view once or rarely twice, before trashing it. Previously we would display the greeting cards we receive on the mantel piece for months and on a regular basis those cards would fill us with beautiful memories. Now to even, make or break a relationship, there is sms or social media on hand. Just “unfriend” them, to let them know - they have been “dumped”.

On my recent trip to Singapore, I was surprised to see that majority of the MRT users (metro users) were engrossed in their electronic devices, that they don’t even acknowledge the person standing next to them. Once while I was travelling on MRT, I noticed a family of four travelling traveling along. The two year old and the five year old, playing on their individual Ipad’s and parents browsing on their own smart phones. There was no interaction among the family members, leave alone anything around them. To add to it a friend told me that her daughter’s sms bills ran into thousand bucks on a particular month, while she didn’t even use her free calls. The reason she was told – “who calls these days….” (as if it was something against the social etiquette).

I value smart phones and latest electronic gadgets. But dear friends, let’s give real human value to people, instead of just pressing the electronic “likes”.

By Pushpa Ramesh

Welcome

Dear friends,

'A cup of coffee.... few friends.....flowing conversation....' This is the intention behind this blog, we are launching. A blog which not only puts our thoughts and view point, but yours too... Sometimes we have a great point of view on a subject, or an experience which we would like to share, or maybe unleash a creative streak.... This blog is is a collaborative space for such view points and an opportunity to the writer lurking in all of us and a place to share our views on everything under the sun.

Contributions can be in the form of post which we will be happy to publish on the blog or in the form of comments on a post (in the comments section). You can write about anything which will make a good coffee table conversation - mundane things or experiences, your vacation trip, movie /music /book reviews, your poetry, list is endless...

If you have any idea /thought worth sharing, please come forward and send us an email or a Facebook message. It'll be our pleasure to post your ideas (while giving full credit to you).

Please pick up your Coffee and join us at  http://coffeetableconversation.blogspot.in/ - our eCoffee parlour......