A Tribute to Indian Soldiers

I salute the Soldiers of Indian Defence Services -

The Army, Air force, and the Navy.

I was one of those civilians who looked at the armed forces as a glamorous profession; full of adventure, handsome officers, parties and postings all over India.

But my imagination went for a toss, once, the youngest of my two brothers, Ravi joined the Armed Forces Medical College, Pune to pursue Medicine.

The anecdotes he narrated about his hostel life, first shocked me and later stirred the process of eliminating my rose tinted glasses. I began to view our soldiers in a different light, with respect and dignity for the tough lives they led with discipline and endurance.

My brother graduated from AFMC, and we, his proud family attended the passing out parade at Pune in March 1999. He was commissioned into the Armed Forces and he became Lt. H Ravi Ramamurthy.

His first posting was at Ladakh, a region in the state of Jammu & Kashmir in Northern India which is surrounded by two of the world's mightiest mountain ranges, the Great Himalaya and the Karakoram. Ladakh lies at altitudes ranging from about 9,000 feet (2750m) at Kargil to 25,170 feet (7,672m) at Saser Kangri in the Karakoram. Ladakh is the only place possibly in the world where a man sitting in the sun with his feet in the shade suffer from sunstroke and frostbite at the same time! The largest town in Ladakh is Leh. Ladakh is prominent for its remote mountain beauty and Buddhist culture.

During Ravi's tenure at Ladakh, he was posted at Siachen, the world's largest non-polar glacier, sometimes referred to as the third pole. The Siachen Glacier has no significant strategic value. Since 1984, the "snow-warriors" of India and Pakistan have been locked in supremacy for the control of Siachen glacier. Its inhospitable terrain has taken heavy toll of men and resources on both sides. The world's highest battlefield, for over a decade India and Pakistan have fought at altitudes of over 22,000 feet in minus 60ºC temperatures. It is 78 km long and situated at an altitude of 5,400 meters above sea level. The Siachen glacier is the great Himalayan watershed that demarcates central Asia from the Indian sub-continent, and that separates Pakistan from China in this region.

Operation Meghdoot [named after the divine cloud messenger in a Sanskrit play] was launched on 13, April 1984 when the Indian Army and the Indian Air Force went into the Glacier. Pakistan quickly responded with troop deployments. The Pakistanis can resupply most of their posts by road and pack mule. Indians, at their forward positions, some as high as 21,000 feet, must rely on helicopters. Casualties on both sides have been mostly due to extreme weather conditions.

Ravi had many interesting anecdotes to narrate about his stay at Siachen. To briefly recount a few, Tomatoes as hard as cricket balls and Bottle Gourd (Lauki) as hard as cricket bat, and their game of cricket; A bottle of PEPSI heated to make it drinkable; Huge rats scrawling all over when asleep; heating up a bucket full of ice before going to the toilet, Enemy troops firing and many more. He also had a very difficult time acclimatizing when he visited home on his annual vacation. We were actually petrified seeing his plight.

Capt. H. Ravi Ramamurthy's next posting was at Bikaner, Rajasthan. Well, imagine moving from an extreme cold environment to an extreme hot one. But he had a good stay, especially serving the local populace as part of Indian Army's contribution to local civilians. He received an appreciation letter from the Government of Rajasthan, highly praising his contribution to its people. I felt very proud of my brother when I read it.

Ravi, now is Major. H. Ravi Ramamurthy, presently posted at the Army Command Hospital, Pune, where he is on the verge of completing his Post Graduate Studies in Paediatrics. I refer to him as an Officer, Paediatrician and a Gentleman.

Thank you Ravi for facilitating my focus on the realistic aspects of a soldier's life. A soldier has to be mentally and physically strong and disciplined to sustain any harsh conditions, maintain sanity despite being away from loved ones and protect our country from enemies. It certainly is a high pressure job which requires the highest level of motivation. A standing ovation to the defence services whose contribution to our motherland during war and peaceful times is unparalleled .

Jai Jawan !

Information on Siachen & Ladakh Courtesy: Wikipedia & other sources

Hyderabadi Spitters – Can you beat them?

I am a Hyderabadi and proud to be one!

I love Hyderabad, which is aptly called the city of Nizams…Pearls…Information Technology. I cannot dream of living anywhere else in the world, despite the heat and dust; water and electricity problems. It is one such city where the poorest of poor can survive and the richest of the rich can splurge their money on anything exotic; reminiscent of the name Bhagyanagar, the earlier name of Hyderabad.

It is a historical city, famous for Charminar, Golconda, Hussain Sagar Lake, and Salarjung Museum, Qutub Shahi Tombs, Falukhnuma Palace and many more historical splendors. The modern city of Hyderabad is famous for its Hi-tech city, which houses the major IT Companies; Birla mandir, Ramoji Film City, NTR Park, Snow World and countless shopping malls and IMAX Theaters.

The people of Hyderabad are famous for their hospitality and welcome strangers into their homes. Every acquaintance is a friend. But do not expect us to know our neighbour’s house address (i.e. because they are numbered in an erratic manner by the municipal authorities). We always maintain the “Hyderabadi Standard Time” whenever and wherever we go, which is always at least an hour late. So if you actually want your invitees to be on time, then make sure to prefix "Sharp”. And when your typical Hyderabadi friend or cousin says, he will be at your place in 10 minutes, and then it means, easily after 2 or 3 hours or sometimes will never arrive. But now, mobile phones are a boon, at least we can call and confirm 'KIDAR HAI RE' (where are you?).

To speak in the Hyderabadi Deccani dialect is a delight. If you find that the auto driver is trying to swindle you, just say“KY KU BHAI NAYE DHIKRE KYA” (Why brother, do I look new to this town?) or “HAWLE SAMAJHRE KYA” (You think I am crazy). He will know you were born and brought up here. I always find this particular anecdote very funny. We arrived from Bangalore early in the morning at the Kachiguda Railway Station, Hyderabad and were flocked by a few auto drivers. One of them demanded for RS. 250/- to drop us home, where as it generally costs RS.85/- only, and my husband promptly replied “HAME AUTO NAHE KHAREDNA BHAI” (We don’t want to buy your auto). I just couldn't control my laughter. That poor guy received an early morning jolt and walked away from us. If you are shopping at Sultan Bazaar, General Bazaar or Charminar, ask the street vendor "KYSA DERE" (For how much will you give?)Or "KITNE KO" (For how much?) and then bargain hard KAM KARO JI (Reduce the price) and if the vendor does not agree, then say "NOKKO" (Don't want) and walk away. There is every possibility, he or she will call you back and you get the best deal.
What embarrasses me as a Hyderabadi? It is the most common sight in Hyderabad; the open air peeing by our Hyderabadi men folk. It is a great relief that the MCH (Municipal Corporation of Hyderabad) took the initiative of setting up 700 public toilets in Hyderabad and Secunderabad, to commemorate the birth anniversary of our "Father of the Nation - Gandhiji" on October 2, 2006.



Second to none are our Hyderabadi Spitters. You will find PAAN (BETEL LEAF) stains (red coloured betel, tobacco & saliva chew) everywhere, on the walls, vehicles, roads, sometimes on our clothes too. You will find everybody and anybody spitting. The famous spitting zone is the corners near the stairs at any Government or private buildings. This, of course is not exclusive to Hyderabad, but is prevalent in other parts of India. But as a Hyderabadi, I speak for Hyderabad only.

To prevent or rather save the walls, people of Hyderabad are taking the help of Gods. The possible target areas are adorned with tiles of different Gods. So when you climb the stairs of some buildings in Hyderabad, you will find Lord Ganesha smiling at you, Lord Shiva in meditation, Sai Baba blessing, Lakshmi Devi showering gold coins, etc.

I am wondering, now that we have Gods on our side, can we beat the Hyderabadi Spitters?

All time favourite – COMICS

I get nostalgic when I see comics. My childhood memories come rushing and I find myself smiling. I remember how fervently my brothers and I would wait every month near the gate for the newspaper boy, who would deliver the comics at home. And it was practically a competition as to who would get their hands on it and be the first one to read it. I will be eternally grateful to my parents for inculcating the habit of reading and subscribing these exquisite and delightful story books, despite financial constrains. We subscribed for Indrajal comics (Phantom, Mandrake, Flash Gordon, Bahadur), Tinkle, Chandamama, Walt Disney Comics and Wisdom. The more expensive ones like Amar Chitra Katha, Tintin, Archie’s Digest and Richie Rich were a holiday bonanza or special gifts for getting good marks in school.

I still have a collection of those comics, my prized possession; after losing many of them during the borrowing and exchanging program with friends. The oldest of my possessions is probably the Indrajal Comic’s “Tulsida’s Ramacharit Manas” 1974 Edition which came in two parts.

As a kid, I always lived in the dream world of Phantom’s forest or Mandrake’s magic land or in space with Flash Gordon or fighting the dacoits of Chambal valley with Bahadur. I really miss those magical moments. Our games also revolved to a large extent around these wonderful characters – our heroes. I also loved Tinkle, especially the puzzles and General knowledge snippets. In fact, I had sent a few write-ups to Tinkle and received some “kind, sweet and encouraging” regret letters from Uncle Pai. So I never got disappointed.

But, now I wish our kids showed the same enthusiasm about books, than television with its countless cartoon channels, some funny and good and some really intimidating.

Did the “Comics” nostalgia catch up with you? I am sure it did…

Sri Raghavendra Thirtha - My Visit to Mantralaya

My visit to Mantralaya on Feb 17th & 18th 2007, after a gap of 26 long years was a divine calling and an emotional experience.

My husband, daughter and our friends (Chitra, Akhil, Raghu, Mr & Mrs. Reddy) travelled by the APTDC Bus,boarding it at 9.00 am on Feb 17th. The journey was tedious, but bearable as we were in the company of friends. We went via Alampur, Kurnool District which is famous for the SHRI JOGULAMBA DEVI Temple, one of the 18 Shakti Peethas in India which has been recently reconstructed after 615 years.

We reached Mantralaya located in Kurnool District, in western Andhra Pradesh at 7.15 pm. We were provided accommodation at the APTDC Punnami Guest house which was clean and had hot water facility. We had a quick bath, got dressed and rushed to the Mutt for darshan of our GURU, Shri Raghavendra Swami.

I was very excited, as I remembered my childhood visits to the Mutt, very frequently with my parents and brothers. We then lived in Hutti Gold Mines,Raichur District, Karnataka, which presently is the only Gold producing mine in India. My parents were ardent devotees of Sri Raghavendra Swami (Rayaru) and followers of his philosophy. After my father's ( Shri. H. Ramamurthy) untimely demise in 1984, I and my mother somehow could not visit Mantralaya. Even after my wedding, eight years ago, despite many plans and attempts by my husband and me; for reasons uncomprehending, the visit did not materialize.

I call this visit a divine calling because, my mother who is suffering from breast cancer has immense faith in Rayaru and his blessings. And when my friend Chitra suggested that we visit Mantralaya that weekend, being a holiday for our kids; Phani and I were quick to say yes and Mr & Mrs Reddy were more than happy to join us.

Shri Raghavendra Swami, lived in the 17th century (1601-1671) and was one of the greatest proponents of Madhva Philosophy(Dvaita Philosophy). He was considered to be the reincarnation (avatara) of Prahalada. He was an ardent devotee of Moola Rama and Anjaneya.


Shri Raghavendra Swami is said to have performed many miracles during his lifetime and his devotees like my mother, believe that he continues to bless them and miracles do happen even now. Shri Raghavendra Swami entered the Brindavan live, which is located at Mantralaya. Guru Raghavendra is not visible to us now but was visible to Sir Thomas Munroe, the collector of India about 150 years ago when British Ruled India. He is believed to be present in the Brindavan alive (in athma form) at Mantralaya to this 336 year of entry ( as on 15th August 2007) into his Brindavan .

It is a common phenomenon in Kannada Madhva households, such as ours, to teach children from a very young age to recite this Raghavendra Stotra in the morning, after bathing.

pUjyAya rAghavendrAya satyadharmaratAya chabhajatAM kalpavR^ixAya namatAM kAmadhenavedurvAdidhvAntaravaye vaishhNavIndIvarIndaveshrI rAghavendragurave namo.atyantadayALuve

(I worship as the Kalpa-vrksha, and salute as the kAmadhenu the esteemed RaghavEndra who is always engrossed in the true dharma;. He is a brilliant sun who destroys the false arguer, and a moon that casts a mellow light upon the ViShNu bhaktas; salutations to that Guru ShrI RAghavEndra; salutations to the one of extremely kind disposition.)

For our return journey on Feb 18th, after the morning Darshan, we boarded the bus at 9.30 am. The one thing that disappointed me was the sight of the nearly dry River Thungabhadra. On the way back we visited PILLALAMARRI, a huge banyan tree( India's National Tree) spread over an acre of land at Mahabubnagar. I learned that this is the second biggest and widest banyan tree in India, the first being in Howrah, Kolkata, India. Adithi and her friend Akhil had a good time climbing the tree and posed for a few snaps. We reached Hyderabad at 8.00 pm, tired but contented, with the pilgrimage.

"OM SHRI RAGHAVENDRA"

Inspiring Books

Giant Steps

WHAT GOOD IS INSPIRATION IF IT'S NOT BACKED UP BY ACTION?

Based on the finest tools, techniques, principles, and strategies offered in Awaken the Giant Within, best-selling author and peak performance consultant Anthony Robbins offers daily inspirations and small actions -- exercises -- that will compel you to take giant steps forward in the quality of your life.

From the simple power of decision-making to the more specific tools that can redefine the quality of your relationships, finances, health, and emotions, Robbins shows you how to get maximum results with a minimum investment of time.

Courtesy: Amazon.com

Roots

An historical narrative of slavery in the American South. Based upon actual researches conducted over a period of years, Haley reconstructs the events that led to the enslavement of Kunta Kinte, the "African" identified in Haley's family lore as their founding father, and his settlement on American shores. Kinte, in his own history, becomes an allegory of the history of the millions of Africans brought forcibly to America, and of the people they became in the intervening years.

Courtesy: ebay

Celestine Prophecy

First published in 1993, this tale has gained a loyal following, entertaining and inspiring thousands of readers with its far-reaching ideas. First-time author James Redfield carries the reader through a quest that begins when the main character decides to follow the exciting trail of a mysterious manuscript rumored to exist somewhere in the jungles of Peru. As his characters go through a series of intense adventures, involving travel through physically and politically dangerous turf, the author gradually introduces nine potentially universe-altering principles, or "insights," starting with the power of coincidence and its meaning to the modern world. Vivid characterizations and stunning experiences drive the ideas home and make the improbable seem likely to show up just around the next corner.

Courtesy: ebay

Like the Flowing River

A transversal cut in the anatomy of Paulo Coelho’s literary work, Be like a river flow compilation of tales, opinions and ideas constitutes a beautiful reflection of the wide creation of the Brazilian writer. Rescued from different periods and publications, the current collection draws the sensitive line followed by the eyes of the creator, stopping on those details of reality and contemplation which distill the subtle philosophy of one who observes existence with the same placidity of gazing at a river. Undoubtedly, with a clear intention of approaching and revealing the mystery and the ways in which a man walks through life. Telling the story of human beings, with their numerous edges, is what Paulo Coelho considers his mission. Telling what they are and how they are, without necessarily bonding to what they want or to what they pretend. Almost like instant pictures of life. Brief and intense pieces of writing that show us a tiny eternal moment of someone’s living. Just like a boy who writes on his notebook with more awareness of his pen than the content of his tale, simply because everything will depend on the way we look at things. These are delicate and pure reflections about literature, history, the art of love or the way to become an archer, when repetition turns into intuition, extolling the capacity of the senses. Or about books and libraries, where the ordinary act of choosing contents can project to life in all its most various shades.

Note: This is a general synopsis.

Courtesy: Paulo Coelho's Official Site

My Mom

My mom with her granddaughters - my daughter "Adithi" and my brother's (Nagaraj "Raju") daughter " Gauri" (Stays in Dubai). We visited my mother who lives in Pune with my younger brother Major H. Ravi Ramamurthy, an Army officer and a Paediatrician and his wife Ashwini. My mom was diagnosed with an advanced stage breast cancer in November 2006. I and my brothers were shattered and upset initially, but coped collectively. She is currently undergoing treatment at the Army Command Hospital, Pune.

My mom is a very spiritual, positive, active and brave lady, with tremendous grit and determination. We are praying that she responds to the treatment and recovers. HOPE and PRAYERS along with the right medical treatment can bring in MIRACLES. I presently go by this dictum.

I think CANCER is predominantly in the news with the number of cases increasing drastically over a period of time. Though the technology has improved and many new effective drugs are introduced, the need of the hour is awareness about the disease. It is not a taboo word. I was surprised to note that people are scared to utter the word "CANCER". Please help spread awareness.

My daughter Adithi

This was Adithi's first visit to a vineyard located about 50 kms from Hyderabad at Mulugu village enroute Shameerpet. Adithi was exited seeing bunches of luscious black and green grapes hanging from the vines. The farm is owned by Phani's (my husband) colleague, Sunita and her husband. It was a learning experience as we understood the whole process of growing grapes, packing and exporting them to England and Holland. And believe me it is not an easy task. I really came back in awe of Sunita's amazing grit and determination. Kudos to such Women!