The Valkyries !

"Infatuation was a good thing. It gave spice to life, and added to its enjoyment.
But it was different from love. Love was worth everything, and couldn't be exchanged for anything"
-Paulo in The Valkyries
Paulo Coelho.


This is the second novel of Paulo Coelho that I have read, the first being The Alchemist. I had purchased The Alchemist off the road side in Belgaum where I was completing my undergraduate studies and its simplicity of thought and expression had simply amazed me. So when I got an opportunity to read this one, iI took the opportunity with both hands.

The Valkyries is not in the same class though. It is not so easy to understand as The Alchemist, and the expectations created by the former makes one feel that it is rambling, self-absorbed and way too full of itself. But once you get to understand it you realise that the story is beautiful, the message is beautiful, affecting, moving
The book is a mystical and spiritual journey of a man who heads into the Mojave desert with his wife in search of an answer - how does one talk to and see their gaurdian angel. I can't say that it has had any sort of lasting effect on me.

I will add this, the "The Valkyries" is a true story according to Paulo Coelho. He admits to adding two fictional details in his accounts, but overall it is a true story.

Read this book when you have nothing else to do!

Indian Cricket Fixation And Indian Cricket League

The news is that a panchayat in Haryana has decided to ban cricket not only due to our World Cup loss but also with the realisation that it has done more harm and that it is not our game.

An analysis may lead to the following conclusions. Indian fans get too emotional and launch personal attack on the cricketers’ families. This puts a lot of pressure on the players. Fear of fai ure overtakes the will to succeed.

The players are keen on building their brand image thanks to all the corporate and other sponsors. Overnight they become billionaires. Consequently, the players use cricket more for brand building than for winning matches. They tend to become too contented and shirk challenges.

The coaching has completely ignored the little processes that guarantee a win, such as sharp singles, running between the wickets, denying runs by outstanding inner ring fielding etc. We sent a Dad’s army and not even one soldier could be classified as a decent fielder!

On the HR front, someone forgot to tell our players that winning is not everything but it is the only thing! It is about time we attempt some radical solutions. Ban the active test players from giving any advertisements and making fortunes for the next five years.

Rewards should be earned only by performing on the field and nowhere else. Four to five tours in a calendar year, by our junior teams is essential for us to unearth talent. All test players must compulsorily be made to play in counties and other countries for four months in a year so that they fare better in overseas tours.

The BCCI should have only past test players of exceptional merit and the zonal representation should cease immediately. Selection should be based on current form and not on mega brand reputation.

The fans and the media should leave the players alone. They are entitled to their dignity.

There is no need to be sceptical about Zee TV chairman, Mr Subhash Chandra’s move to launch his own parallel cricket league at the domestic level in India. he Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) may feel surprised at the development, but it would be wrong to see it as an anti-BCCI platform. The fact is that organisationally the proposed cricket league cannot be a replacement for the BCCI. But yes, it would be a torch-bearer for the BCCI, lead the path and revolutionise the game in India.

Zee TV has a strong infrastructural base and obviously there is no harm if this is used for hunting newer and newer talents and uplifting the standards of cricket in the country. If the professional league of hockey could be organised to find new talents, the cricket league could do the same for cricket. It is encouraging that the group also has the plan of setting up cricket academies and had offered the BCCI to draw from the pool of talented players. The proposal to launch the Twenty20 format needs to be welcomed.

Instead of perceiving the efforts of Zee TV as a rival’s action, the BCCI must take it in a positive manner. No doubt the Zee TV and Mr Chandra have a long list of grievances against the BCCI, basically related to denying it of telecast rights, but to presume that this is a retaliatory step would certainly be doing the greatest disservice to the game of cricket. The League is trying to pick the thread from where the BCCI has left: Budding talent must be groomed at the grassroots level and given the experience to play on competitive pitches and not on placid tracks.


Tags: , , Indian Cricket League,

How to Be Happy - 10 Top Tips That Really Work!


  1. Know where you’re going


Happy people tend to have clear, well-defined goals. Work out where you want to be and what you need to do to get there. Ensure your goals are SMART (Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic and Timed).




  1. Know why you’re going there


Developing a sense of life purpose will also markedly increase your chances of experiencing true happiness. As well as working out where you want to get to, make sure you have a good reason for why you’re trying to go there.




  1. Go with your strengths


Work out what you’re good at and find ways to do it as much as possible. Happiness is not as much about fixing your faults and overcoming your weaknesses as it is about finding ways to focus your life on and around your talents and qualities.




  1. Don’t go alone


Enlist the support of family and friends. Those who have good intimate relationships and those who actively and consistently work to improve the quality of their relationships tend to be happier. So invite others to join you in your endeavours, share your experiences, and don’t forget to also support them as well.


 

  1. Go with a positive attitude


One of the most significant, contributing factors to happiness is optimistic thinking. Although you won’t always have a choice in determining what goes on around you, you will always have a choice in determining how you think about what goes on around you. This will largely determine the extent to which you are, or aren’t, happy.




  1. Ensure you have the energy to go all the way


Being happy depends at least in part on being healthy. Being healthy depends on keeping active and exercising regularly, eating an adequate and well-balanced diet, and ensuring you attain enough sleep and rest.




  1. Control which way you go


Happiness can be enhanced by maximising the control you have over your life. So learn and practice skills such as problem solving and time management, meditation and communication. At the same time, however, no one has complete control and so it is also important to be realistic and to accept that over which you have no control.




  1. Maintain discipline along the way


Happiness is nothing more than a few simple disciplines practiced every day while misery is a few bad habits or errors of judgement repeated every day. Although happiness might not be yours today, you can certainly start to implement the strategies you need today. Maintain focus and you’ll be happy before you know it!




  1. Be present every step of the way


Happy people tend to spend more time thinking about and “being in the present” as opposed to dwelling on the past or worrying about the future. Learn from your mistakes and plan to achieve, but practice living life in the moment and enjoy happiness now.




  1. Go, go and keep going all the way


We all face obstacles and problems at times. Happy people expect this and adapt when necessary. All of the components outlined above are skills that can be learned. Just like any other skills, you’ll get better at utilising these strategies with practice and perseverance. Stick at it and happiness will be yours.

SC raises valid points on OBC quota

The Supreme Court has done well to raise issues that fly in the face of the UPA Government?s claimed logic behind its illconceived move to reserve 27 per cent seats in institutions of higher education, including acclaimed centres of excellence, for students from the so-called ?Other Backward Classes?. That the Central Educational Institutions (Reservation in Admission) Act of 2007, whose passage in Parliament was greatly facilitated by the active collusion of the Opposition with the Treasury Benches, indicating that no party is immune to the lure of identity politics, is a deeply flawed law has been known ever since it was conceived by Human Resource Development Minister Arjun Singh. Yet, nobody in authority has had the courage to highlight the flaws lest it should displease the intended beneficiaries of such regressive quota politics.

Youth for Equality did put up a spirited fight, but it was doomed to fail in the absence of political support. However, it is to the credit of Youth for Equality that it has not entirely given up the fight against Singh?s dream of penalising meritorious students and degrading higher education; along with others, they have taken the issue to court. It is in this context that the Supreme Court, questioning the legality of the OBC quota in institutions of higher education, has asked the Government to explain how it has fixed the quantum at 27 percent and the criteria used for determining social and educational backwardness of castes and communities.

It has also questioned the Government?s decision not to remove the ?creamy layer? from the intended beneficiaries of its largesse. Those who dared oppose the OBC quota did raise these questions, only to be met with either devious obfuscation or arrogant silence. Recent surveys have indicated the OBC population is far less than what is claimed by those who wish to
subjugate higher education to caste politics. Curiously, although the dispute over the numerical
strength of each caste can be settled through a caste-based census, every Government has shied
away from ordering such an exercise.

That apart, there is the other issue of determining social and educational backwardness of communities:

Should the criteria be based on subjective interpretations or an objective assessment based on economic factors? Hopefully, the SC will succeed in forcing the Government to abandon its antediluvian quota policy. If that leaves our vote-bank dependent politicians smarting, so be it.


Tags: , Youth for equality,

Beyond The Thunder Of The River's Flow

The Cauvery Water Disputes Tribunal award has predictably evoked a strong reaction from all sections of the public in the state. It is strange that Tamil Nadu has been awarded 419 tmc. ft. of water against 270 tmc ft to Karnataka even though the length of the river flow in Karnataka is more than that of Tamil Nadu. The status of being a lower riparian state has earned Tamil Nadu an abnormally higher share of water meting out gross injustice to Karnataka.

Ever since the Cauvery dispute between Karnataka (then Mysore) and Tamil Nadu (then Madras) began about 125 years ago, Karnataka farmers have been the victims of the dispute. They were and are always at the receiving end, while Tamil Nadu farmers have been enjoying the major share of water, resulting in increased irrigation area in that state.

Though Karnataka contributes 56 per cent of the total flow of water against 34 per cent of Tamil Nadu’s contribution, it enjoys 66 per cent of irrigated land against 32 per cent in Karnataka. This was due to the imposition of some very unjustifiable agreements by the then rulers on Karnataka that prevented it from increasing the irrigated land. These agreements were in force till 1974.

After 16 years, the final award has been given and it shows Tamil Nadu’s strong hold on those that matter. The award has tolled the death knell on the farmers of Karnataka, as it has deprived the state of a reasonable share of the Cauvery water.

The tribunal has gone to the extent of giving even Kerala’s unutilised share of water to Tamil Nadu. As a result of this injustice, Karnataka is today witnessing strong protests and widespread discontent amongst the masses. The verdict of the Cauvery water dispute tribunal has sent shock waves down the spine of non-Kannada people –– specially among the Tamil-speaking residents of Bangalore. Such fear psychosis is kept alive by hoodlums who flourish in such environments.

I believe that the biggest error Pandit Nehru, in his otherwise visionary reign as PM, made was the division of the country on linguistic lines.

Nearly sixty years after independence, we Indians are finding it extremely difficult to think about ourselves as nothing more than Tamilians, Kannadigas, Telugus, Malayalees, etc. Perhaps it is time to undo the damage of the early fifties and plan the development of the country on geographical and practical considerations.

Tags: Cauvery, Water Wars
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