I cursed the fact I had no shoes until I met a man who had no feet. – Persian Proverb

Most of us like to talk about things that are wrong in our lives and things we hate about ourselves and others. This habit only perpetuates the negative emotions we feel and the vicious circle of endless negativity keeps getting fueled. Today I want to take the time – beginning of the year is always a good moment for it – to be grateful for the things in my life which matter more than the things I might feel never existed.

I am grateful that:

1. I have clean water to drink.

2. I have a roof over my head.

3. I am educated and speak 4 languages fluently.

4. I know what is right for me and have the freedom to make that choice.

5. I can travel to any country I wish.

6. I have a job for financial independence.

7. I have a sense of hearing, seeing, talking, feeling, touching, smelling.

8. I live in a society where I can express myself openly.

9. My lungs let me breathe, my heart lets me feel, my legs let me walk, my hands let me write.

10. I am in a good health.

11. I met people in life who showed me the right path to follow and were right in doing so.

12. I made mistakes and felt heartbreaks, disappointments, fears and failure so that I could broaden my horizons and could make better choices and helping me become a mature person.

13. There are sun, moon, rain, snow which make my days beautiful and diverse.

14. I have access to modern technology in the form of internet, computer, transport, tv, laptop, mobile phone, etc. which make impossible possible for me.

15. I can read books which help me gain wisdom.

16. I had enemies who gave me the opportunity to work on my weaknesses.

17. I could love and feel loved to make me feel connected and alive.

18. I could listen to music which brightens up my days.

19. There are animals who bring out the child in me who wants to cuddle and play with them.

20. I can imagine and envision whatever I want to be and become in my life.

Forever 21 in Antwerp

After having read a lot of good stuff about the recently opened (Sep 2011) branch of the famous Forever 21 store in Antwerp, I was quite enthused to visit it as we don’t have a branch of it in the Netherlands as of now. Today was the day..

Travelling from Amsterdam to Antwerp by train isn’t an issue, nor is finding the address i.e. Meir 42 (approximately 15 minutes walking distance from Antwerp Central Station at most).  It is however an issue if you travel via Rosendaal as the Belgian trains (awful!) do not appear to accomodate enough passengers and you might be stranded there for a while. Therefore, taking a Thalys ( high-speed-train) can be a good option if you don’t want to change trains and are prepared to shell out some more bucks for your comfort.

Antwerp Central Station

Upon reaching the store, I started at the ground floor and was quite disappointed as the prices didn’t differ much from say the already available cheaper options like Bershka, H&M, C&A, Vero Moda etc. Second disppointment is obviously the quality which is not up to the mark considering the the fact that you can buy better quality at for say Esprit, Zara, Mango, WE etc. for the same price.

Store Forever 21 

The second floor was even a bigger disappointment as I was hoping to buy some funky jewelry but unfortunately either it was all sold out or I couldn’t lay my eyes on the rights ones but I am sure I didn’t miss any corner to soothe my disappointment in search for the big necklaces and stylish rings but, alas, without relief..

PS: I would not have written a post about something like this if it wasn’t so disappointing. It is just a waste of time and money and makes me wonder why so many bloggers give rave reviews about this store!?

YES+!, worth it?

After having taken part in the YES+! course of the Art of living foundation from India, I now and then receive an e-mail from them as an ex-disciple of sorts. Every time I open the e-mail (without any intention to go), I sense their  intent to enthuse and ignite interest in the course for the ones who haven’t done it before or the ones that have liked it so much that they are willing to participate once again. As far as I am concerned, these well-meant emotions aren’t transmitted to me as I feel that the course does not help at all.

The objective is good but the structure is missing. For a life-changing course – as it is claimed to be – the organizers should have a preparatory module with substantial focus on the theoretical and psychological aspect of the course. The course basically or rather only focuses on different breathing exercises to alleviate stress and tension. It completely misses out on the incitement of reasoning or any motivational-factor to fall back on when one doesn’t feel like putting into practice the learnt breathing techniques.

Most people, including Indians,  do not have any affinity with Bhajans (devotional singing, mainly within Hinduism) and it does not contribute in any way to the learning experience nor does the dancing or jumping with closed-eyes holding hands on contemporary music or exchanging gifts with others. The most these activities can do is make us feel aligned with other human beings and as a consequence, little happy about being able to share and experience a moment contentment. Here, what the course tries to do is, heal (in whatever way it might be possible) but due to the lack of any structural knowledge, it fails to meet the expectations.

In the end, what you get is half-baked results and unfulfilled expectations as many people would not want to continue with something they don’t feel entirely convinced about, even if it’s for the betterment of their life. Therefore, in my opinion, this course doesn’t live up to the hype.

Honour Killings

From the last 2-3 years, I have frequently come across news about honour killings in India. Clearly, some people in India are struggling to let go of their past practices and make way for a society which is open-minded and can think out of the box. It is not only the society which is grappled by such shameful practices but the government is also unable to implement the law to prevent and curb this menace. Read:

• Why Are Hindu Honor Killings Rising in India?
• Supreme Court issues notice to Centre on honour killings

Nothing can be done about issues like these (honour killing, dowry killings, rape, sexual assault etc.) until the Indian politics is dominated by the male chauvinists who aren’t able nor feel the need to look beyond their politics and vote bank. Hunger for power and abuse of power seems quite prevalent in countries like India; as consequence of this, it’s always the women who are victimized and subjugated in such societies.

Millions of Indians are rotting on streets and people can’t get over casteism and self-made clans. Culture is not fixed as any thinking human being might know; such bigotry should be/can be declared passé quite easily.

The end of Bhopal? (via International Law Observer)

The so called ‘developed’ countries have always been exploiting and disadvantaging the ‘third-world-countries’. Just look at the way how Shell International is operating in the Niger delta and polluting Nigerian water/environment just for the sake of profits*. Such multinationals don’t care about the local people, all they want is exploit, make profit and vanish.

Yesterday’s NY Times reports that eight former executives of Union Carbide India Limited (a subsidiary of the American chemical company Union Carbide) were convicted of negligence as a result of their failure to stop the explosion at the Union Carbide India factory which killed more than 2500 people in 1984. The NY Times reports that the executives were sentenced to “two years in prison and fined 100,000 rupees, or $2,100”. The Bhopal disaster is … Read More

via International Law Observer

*Nigeria / Amnesty International says pollution has created human rights tragedy in the Niger Delta

Guided tour in palais des nations (United Nations)

Guided tour in palais des nations (United Nations)

Originally uploaded by sfprophecy

Some pics from my study-trip to United Nations, Geneva. Click on the picture to see the rest.

5 Strategies to Handle Criticism – Robin S. Sharma

5 Strategies to Handle Criticism

What Is Happiness? by Deepak Chopra

Deepak Chopra tells us why it is crucial to be happy on our own. We shouldn’t expect that we will be happy if we have money, if our relationship with a particular person goes well or if we are doing well in our career. We should first become happy internally before expecting something or someone to make us happy as that is never going to work and we will end up being unhappy:

The three wise monkeys

photo by Crazy Photo Creator

Do you remember the three wise monkeys embodying the proverbial principle of “see no evil, hear no evil, speak no evil”? Many of us have seen them and never lived by them. I have done the same.
I have started learning that seeing what we see, saying what we say and hearing what we hear has a huge impact on the people we become. I hope this simple article by me would help you understand the principle of three wise monkeys.
Seeing: It is very important to take control of our lives by seeing things which would be the kind of things that would ‘nourish the garden of our mind’, as Robin S. Sharma of ‘The Monk who sold his Ferrari’ would say. Now, I have always loved watching horror/thriller movies which excite me and send shivers down my spine. It somehow used to thrill and relax me at the same time. Slowly I became conscious of the fact that these movies were making me an annoyed, secluded and an insensitive person. I also noticed the day I would watch a horror movie, I would get these horrible dreams during my sleep. I would get up feeling very tired and negative in the mornings. On the other hand, when I watched comedies or listened to light music before going to bed, I would get a peaceful sleep. So, pay attention to what you use your eyes for.

Hearing: Now, sometimes when we hear others fighting around us, we feel uneasy and surrounded by negativity. Also, hearing others abuse each other can impact us gravely to the extent that we start developing the same habit patterns which can ruin our lives and relationships with others (like children learn abusing from parents). The short-term way out would be to listen to music to avoid hearing any evil or just leave the place and come back when it is over. Never try to come between to mediate or stop the people thrashing each other as you will end up giving away your positive energy and consuming their negative energy which will leave you feel empty and depressed from within. In short, stay away from people who make you feel bad in whatever way it might be, ignoring is the best option.

Speaking: Last part is about speaking no evil. Now, when you know that hearing others curse, abuse or talk negatively makes you feel uneasy in their company, you should know that when you do the same, it affects others in the same way. As Ghandi would say, “Be the change you want to see in the world.” We should think twice before talking negatively about others and choose the right words every time we open our mouths. So for speaking, think and while thinking, realize that we become our thoughts, so be attentive of what you think and put into words!

In this short article, I haven’t included the techniques for releasing your thoughts, patterns and long-term habits of discomfort. If you are interested, please check out The (Be Set Free Fast) BSFF Book By Dr. Larry Nims, Ph.D. If you don’t have the financial resources to buy one, mail me for a free pdf copy of it.

IPL snub of Pakistani players

The new target of a row between India and Pakistan is the Indian Premier League (IPL). During the IPL auction for IPL-3 series, the franchisees haven’t bought a single Pakistani player sighting financial risks due to any unanticipated disruption or commotion (i.e. terror attacks) due to the first time presence of Pakistani players in India after 26/11 Mumbai attacks. On the other hand, the Pakistani players weren’t 100% available for all matches which would have cost the franchisees a lot of money. The politically correct Indian media picked up this news and concluded that it was a premeditated act of all teams to snub the Pakistanis. The Pakistanis on the other hand felt ‘humiliated’ (which insecure people do quite often) and started accusing Indian government for having influenced IPL’s decision while the Government of India has nothing to do with the respective League.

The reaction of the Pakistani government and their media can be called absolutely insensible and quite antagonistic. It is not astounding if one has followed the Pakistani media after 26/11 Mumbai attacks. Most Pakistanis are overflowing with hatred and inferiority complex regardless of being ordinary Pakistanis or the VIPs of that country.

Excerpt from: The IPL is becoming a big mafia: Miandad

“It is my message to all cricket boards around the world that the IPL is the biggest danger for their future;  if it is not controlled timely it will engulf all boards. India is trying to control the world of cricket through the IPL and wants to become a super power; India is trying it and India is doing it,” the Pakistan cricket icon told rediff.com in an exclusive interview, shortly after the players’ auction.

Pakistani media has yet again given a new dimension to the freedom of press (see the talk show below). The guests on this show express their resentment by using inadequate phrases i.e. Munh mein Ram Ram aur bagal mein churi or hinduon ke zehniyat hi aisi hai,dikha di ab kya kar sakte hai” (Hindus’ mentality is such, what can we do) etc. on their national TV. People in Pakistan should show some sensibility when they speak for their country (it shouldn’t require degradation of India or Indians) but even the presenters encourage their guests. Not only the political state of Pakistan but also the mental state of their civil society is deteriorating and becoming quite deplorable.

IPL and Pakistani Team Morning with Farah

For the much required laughter among normal human beings: Hitler Finds out about IPL snub to Pakistani players