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Saturday, June 29, 2024

Squirrel message to Parrots !

Good Morning – today  a significant day for ME !! 

The Master comes !  when students are ready !!  - as the chaotic Parrots turned silent, their master, a wise Squirrel settled down to offer some insights.

 


The enlightened  way is called “the single-minded way,” or “railway track thousands of miles long.”  The railway track is always the same. If it were to become wider or narrower, it would be disastrous. Wherever you go, the railway track is always the same.  

We have in mind the  track, but actually there is no such thing. Single minded devotion  is the  track. The sights we see from the train will change, but we are always running on the same track. There is no beginning or end to the track: beginningless and endless track. There is no starting point nor goal, nothing to attain. Just to run on the track is our way.  When we get curious about the curves and turns on track, there is danger of becoming dizzy.  Just appreciate the things that you get to see – some Professional will take care of the track.    

Good morning thought from ‘Aasami Sirippu sinthanaiyaan’
 
With regards – S Sampathkumar
29.6.2024

  

Friday, June 28, 2024

India conquers England at Guyana - storm into finals

Cricket is a team game – the success is in picking right combinations ! ~ reminisced Manchester June 22, 1983 !! 

Expectations were very high ! – Guyana is not exactly the wicket a high-profile Semis is to be played, further threatened by rain and the stops ! – yet the match was a fabulous with a much desired result.

 


The scorecard perhaps may not reflect the right pressure that was lived.  India 171 for 7 (Rohit 57, Suryakumar 47, Jordan 3-37) beat England 103 (Brook 25, Kuldeep 3-19, Axar 3-23) by 68 runs  -  now Team India is just a win away from satiating the quest for World title which they had 11 years ago when MS Dhoni led them – now the team that choked so many times but is a powerful line-up South Africa separates them from glory.    

After seeing close to 300 and 280s getting breached easily in IPL, people mindset is all slambang but T20 cricket or for that matter Cricket is not always a batters game and it is not all about hitting sixers and some fours !

The sluggish Guyana pitch and wet outfield made runs scarce and India played a good waiting game laced with some superlative hits.  On such pitches when the bowling unit is disciplined enough to hit a good length and keep the stumps in play, the batter just cannot force the pace. England planned to shut out half of the outfield to India but they weren't always successful: 69 runs, including eight fours and three sixes, still came from where they shouldn't have, at a strike rate of 192.  After hitman Rohit Sharma blitz and a beautiful innings by Suryakumar Yadav – batters  Hardik Pandya, Jadeja, Axar shone,  as they struck three sixes and two fours in the last two overs bowled by Jordan and Archer. 

Rohit played with the freedom that once characterised England's batters, emboldened to attack without fear of failure. He took risks in the Powerplay and they paid off, his 39-ball 57 the outstanding innings on either side  Suryakumar was really cool and innovative.  Pant too played his part – King Kohli and Shivam Dube failed.  Perhaps Kohli should still bat in the finals, while Dube should make way for Yashaswi Jaiswal.  

From the heights of South Australia to the depths of South America. If England were dominant in their T20 World Cup semi-final win over India in Adelaide 19 months ago, they were outthought, outplayed and outclassed by the same opponents in Guyana on Thursday. This was not just a defeat, but a thrashing.  They tried choking India with the ball but India played smartly and ended with a above par score.    With the bat, their only hope was for Buttler to score half the runs himself: when he reverse-swept the 19th ball of the chase behind, the game was as good as over.

 


Cricket is a team game – you don’t Ravi Shastri looking Axar Patel to be a game changer yet he contributed with the bat, had shone abilities with his catching and his bowling was immaculate.  He was brought on  after Jos Buttler had whacked Arshdeep Singh for three fours in an over and with his very first ball took out the biggest threat. England's captain went down to reverse-sweep the left-arm spinner but offered a toe-end to Pant. Each of Axar's first three overs had a wicket off the first ball. Jonny Bairstow once again choosing to stay leg side and getting bowled, and Moeen Ali's England career potentially ending with him unsure of where the ball had gone only to realise it was right there in Pant's hand as he broke the stumps.  He left England shattered at 46 for 4 with a stifling 3 for 23, which earned him the Player-of-the-Match award. England were 49 for 4 when Kuldeep got into the act, bamboozling Sam Curran, and then outsmarting Harry Brook. 

A brilliant win as India stormed into finals undefeated and a simlar performance should ensure their lifting the ICC T20 WC Cup 2024. 

Remember that June 22, 1983 when at Manchester, Old Trafford the grand semis of Prudential World Cup  was played  with the unlikely entrant India and arrogant favourites England.  Arrogant as all British press dismissed India and wrote about England playing finals at Lords against West Indies even before the toss !!    

Bob Willis won the toss, their openers put on 69 at more than 4 an over — a fantastic platform those days. The wicket was slow, and not at all ideal for stroke-play. Indian bowlers and particularly the duo of Mohinder Amarnath and Kirti Azad choked the scoring.  England batsman struggled after a very good start from Greame Fowler and Chris Tavare.    Indian batting was much organized and they could romp home with 32 balls to spare.  Gavaskar 25; Krish Srikkanth 19; Mohinder46; Yashpal 61 – Sandeep Patil 51* and Kapil 1* saw them through. After Srikkanth and Gavaskar exited, Amarnath and Yashpal steadied the innings. Runs came at a slow, steady rate. The two picked the gaps and ran hard. It was this 92-run partnership that washed away all hope and when after 2/3rds – they opened up.  Mohinder hitting Marks for a 6 and Yashpal hitting Allot straight for a 6 and then audaciously moved inside and dispatching England’s fastest bowler Bob Willis over square for another.   A brilliant piece of fielding and throw by Allott ended the partnership and then Yashpal skied towards the end.    Sandeep Patil thrashed Willis again.  With scores level,   Willis called all his men over to the off-side to ensure their reaching the pavilion faster.  Sandeep Patil ended with an unbeaten half century.  Mohinder was the man of the match.
 
Hoping to see Rohit Sharma lifting the ICC T20 WC 2024
 
With regards – S Sampathkumar
28.6.2024

  

Thursday, June 27, 2024

Paavai Vilakku !

I was bowled by her beauty !  so attractive  she is !! 

 


A complex love story !!  -  Thanikachalam and Gowri are a married couple,  they have a daughter named Kalyani. Sengamalam is a dancer to whom Thanikachalam is attracted, but they do not marry since he already has a wife. Devaki, a widow, is also attracted to him, but later starts to treat him as a brother. Uma, a friend of Gowri, stays with the couple and raises their child as her own. She too falls in love with Thanikachalam, but is not able to marry him.  

எட்டி எட்டி வட்ட நிலா உன்னைப் பார்க்குதே

உன் நெற்றில் பட்ட காற்றை அது கணக்கு கேட்குதே

 

நீ சிரிக்க நான் சிரிப்பேன் சிங்கார கண்ணே

நீ அழுதால் நான் அழுவேன் மங்காத பொண்ணே!!

 

என சூலமங்கலம் ராஜலட்சுமி பாடியதை கேட்டு இருக்க அதிகம் வாய்ப்பில்லை. படம் பாவை விளக்கு.  

The storyline at the start is about – ‘Paavai Vilakku’,  a novel written by Akilan and serialised in the Tamil magazine Kalki.  The film version of this novel was directed by K. Somu, written by A. P. Nagarajan, and produced by editor T. Vijayarangam and cinematographer V. K. Gopanna under the Sri Vijayagopal Pictures.  Sivaji Ganesan's home, Annai Illam, also featured in the film. The soundtrack was composed by K. V. Mahadevan, and the lyrics were written by A. Maruthakasi.  

பெண்ணின் கைகளில் விளக்கு ஏந்தியதைப் போல அமைந்து இருக்கும் 'பாவை விளக்கு' பார்த்து இருப்பீர்கள்.   பாவை விளக்குகள்  மிகவும் நேர்த்தியானவை. . புடவை அணிந்து, ஒய்யார கொண்டை, சிறப்பான காதணிகள், தோளில் மயில், கால்களில் சலங்கைகள்,   மூக்குத்தி  என்று தலை முதல் பாதம் வரை மங்கல ஆபரணங்கள் சூடி, கையில் விளக்குடன் புன்னகை பூத்த முகத்துடன் நின்றிருக்கும் இந்த பாவை விளக்கு   படம்  திரு MA நரசிம்மன் வீட்டில் நான் எடுத்தது   

 
With regards – S Sampathkumar
27.6.2024
Thanks to MA Narasimhan for the pic. 

Tuesday, June 25, 2024

Semi-finals line-up of ICC T20 WC 2024 - remembering 25th June !!!

It is World Cup – ICC T20 Mens World Cup – and it has been very entertaining – unlike, this has not exactly been high scoring, but with lot of unexpected results.  In the  eight editions played thus far, a total of 21 teams have competed.  West Indies and England have won the tournament twice;  India under MS Dhoni won the inaugural WC in 2007.

 


Yesterday, at  St Lucia, Rohit Sharma was sublime, scoring  76 of his 92 runs in boundaries and left Australia with nowhere to hide. A total of 205 built on a series of broken records proved much for the Aussies.  In fact the team total was mere 52 when   Rohit reached his half-century.  In one over off Mitchell Starc  Rohit scored 28 runs with 4 sixers.   

Team India flourished to 205/5 -  the joint-highest by any team against Australia at the men's T20 World Cup. West Indies made 205 for 4 against Australia in the semi-final of the 2012 edition.   Rohit peppered 8 - Sixes   during his 92-run knock, the most by an India batter in an innings at the men's T20 World Cup. He broke the record held by Yuvraj Singh, who hit seven sixes against England in 2007, including six in one over off Stuart Broad. Though India went 21 deliveries without a boundary between the 15th and 18th overs, they still managed a finishing kick as Hardik Pandya nailed three sixes in the final two overs.  

David Warner fell cheaply in the chase but Travis Head was giving deep trouble.  A stunner by Axar Patel started the swinging of pendulum – he was    few yards off the fence at deep square leg,  the slog hit of Marsh was hit well  - Axar  leapt,  went for it with both hands, and got it with just his right.  It was a great win for India ensuring a place in Semis.  

Today, the two playing teams alongside Australia had theoretical chance !  In a rain affected thriller,  Bangladesh had to chase their original target of 116 down in 12.1 overs to pip both Australia and Afghanistan to the semi-final. Their chase was delayed by half an hour, due to a 20-minute downpour. A stop-start game, owing to multiple rain interventions, Afghanistan - led by four-fors from Naveen and Rashid - edged out Bangladesh by a mere eight runs, and in the process, also knocked Australia out of the T20 World Cup 2024.  For the best part of the last hour, a cat-and-mouse game ensued. There were moments when Bangladesh edged Afghanistan out on the DLS par score, only for the latter to come back to snatch back the advantage by picking up wickets. 

The finish was tense and dramatic.  After 17 overs Bangladesh needed 12 from 12 balls with 2 wickets in hand.   They were leading in DL – 17.3 Naveen-ul-Haq dropped Litton Das off his own bowling and a single was taken.    Next ball Taskin chopped a good delivery to his stumps and with his departure Afghans were better in DLS – then came the rains  !! again as the players had to  move out.  They returned sooner and then Mustagiur was trapped plumb – reviewed only to see the Umpire finger going up again.    Afghanistan are through to the semis – wild rampage on the ground and back home at Kandahar. 

On 27th June 2024 early morning at 6 am  - Afghanistan would play South Africa and at 8 pm  India will play England. .. .. and today is 25th June  -  41 years ago,  we remember the iconic image of Kapil Dev standing at Lord’s balcony holding aloft Prudential World Cup.    

 


On 25.6.1983, Indians were underdogs – least fancied,  they had never been in Finals.  Their opponents were mighty West Indies who had rock solid batting and fearsome quartet of pace bowlers.  India had a worst start – Gavaskar struggling and getting out.  Krishnamachari Srikkanth entertained us – hooking, going down on his knees for a square cut but the team ended up at just 183.  That day Doordarshan provided live coverage with a couple of ‘breakdowns’ – towards the end, commentary went-off and they quickly added radio commentary to the visuals. 

It was Sri Azhagiya Singar Aani Brahmothsavam Yanai vahanam ~ those were the days, when people would at street corners stand in group listening to radio commentary.  Gordon Greenidge left  a big banana inswinger of Balwinder Sandhu and saw it coming in and clipping his stumps. Viv Richards strode in and took on the bowlers – Madanlal was the workhorse and every Indian supporter would remember that frozen moment.  Richards getting into the line and flicking Madanlal over midwicket – Kapil Dev kept running back and took the catch with effortless ease – an exemplary effort – great anticipation, finest athleticism and classy fielding. It was really a combined effort as India defended the low target to emerge victorious. 

 


Reliving that glorious day 25.6.1983, that changed the way of Cricket in India, more so, the way the World started regarding Indian Cricket Team

 
With regards – S Sampathkumar
25.6.2o24 

Monday, June 24, 2024

Sunday, June 23, 2024

Rolling tea-tumbler !!

 

Rotating  vibes !  - remember Vadivelu chinna Bagavathi tea-tumbler effect !

Monkey family – Happy family !!

Monkey family – Happy family !!

Thursday, June 20, 2024

Stylish hair-do !!!

Undercut, Pompadour, Quiff, Textured, Slicked back, Pomades – wonder what !! – in our school days ‘step-cut’ was cult fashion and one a Teacher thrashed a student sporting step-cut calling him unruly !!    

Virat Kohli is an icon – not only his batting, fitness prowess, his hair-do too. From the early days of his career to the present, Kohli has seamlessly transitioned from one hairstyle to another, setting trends and inspiring fans.  His hairstyles, like his cricketing skills, have become a symbol of his dynamic personality and style evolution.

 


Here is a special one taken by me at Triplicane this morning ! 

former Indian pacer David Johnson passes away !!

 

Not many would remember that One off test at Delhi in Oct 1996 – Sachin Tendulkar was the Captain.  Australia were bowled out in 73 overs on the opening day, eight of their wickets falling to spin.  India opened with Vikram Rathore and make-shift Nayan Mongia who made a memorable 152.  An ebullient man, given to incessant appealing when keeping wicket, at the crease Mongia was calm, disciplined and accomplished. That was his maiden Test century, in his 13th match, playing out for  eight hours and 17 minutes to ensure a handsome lead of 179.  The pitch appeared under-prepared, Kumble took many wickets and India won by 7 wickets !! 

Brad Hogg and little known pacer from Karnataka made their debuts.  The Indian attack was all Karnataka combination of Venkatesh Prasad, debutant David Johonson, Sunil Joshi, Anil Kumble and TN Ashish Kapoor.  Johnson went on to play just another test. 

Today comes the sad news that former India pacer David Johnson passed away at the age of 52 after falling from a balcony in Bengaluru this morning.  The right-arm fast bowler from Karnataka was born on October 16, 1971, in the Arasikere region. He represented India in international cricket in the mid-1990s. He made his Test debut for India against Australia in October 1996 and featured in a total of two Test matches. The highlight of Johnson's career was clocking at 157.8 kmph during the Test match against Australia.

 


He recorded his best match figures of 10 for 152 against Kerala in the 1995-96 Ranji Trophy season. That performance brought him into national reckoning.  At Kotla, India were without Srinath, having sustained an injury, and Johnson was drafted into the squad. He bowled in tandem with his Karnataka team-mate Venkatesh Prasad and picked up the wicket of Michael Slater in the second innings.   

The incident reportedly  occurred at SLV Paradise in Kanakashri Layout, under the jurisdiction of Kottanur police station. It took place today morning  at 11:15 am. He allegedly jumped while family members were at home. The Kottanur police visited the spot and sent the body to the hospital for post-mortem. According to some press reports, it is suspected to be suicide, allegedly due to depression, could be an accident too. He leaves behind his wife and two children. Johnson,  was running a cricket academy, and  had not been in good health recently.
 
Sad end to a Cricketer
 
With regards – S Sampathkumar
20.6.2024

Wednesday, June 19, 2024

Fountainhead of Knowledge - Nalandha University is reborn !!!

 

Imp PS (pre-script) 1 :  For sure, we read in School History of Khalji dynasty (thought it was Kiljis!) – that  dynasty ruled  Bengal. The dynasty, which hailed from the Garmsir region of present-day Afghanistan, was founded in 1204 by Muhammad Bakhtiyar Khalji, a Muslim Turko-Afghan  general of the Ghurid Empire. The Khaljis initially pledged allegiance to Sultan Muhammad of Ghor until his death in 1206, though their rule in Bengal was mostly independent.   

2.  Bakhtiyarpur Junction, station code BKP, is a railway station in the Danapur railway division of East Central Railway. Bakhtiyarpur is connected by the Delhi–Kolkata main line via Pt. Deen Dayal Upadhyaya Junction-Patna route. It is about  46 km away from Patna in the Indian state of Bihar. Due to its location on the Howrah–Patna–Pt. Deen Dayal Upadhyaya Junction main line many trains from Patna and Barauni bound express trains coming from Howrah, Sealdah stop here.  The incumbent Chief Minister of Bihar, Nitish Kumar belongs to Bakhtiyarpur.

 

We were taught in Schools that British came and educated India – under colonial rule education flourished but factually, more than 500 years before Oxford University was founded, India's Nalanda University was home to nine million books and attracted 10,000 students from around the world.  There were many other famous Universities too including one at Kanchipuram. Founded in 427 CE, Nalanda is considered the world's first residential university, a sort of medieval Ivy League institution home to nine million books that attracted 10,000 students from across Eastern and Central Asia. They gathered here to learn medicine, logic, mathematics and – above all – Buddhist principles from some of the era's most revered scholars.

 


As the Dalai Lama once stated: "The source of all the [Buddhist] knowledge we have, has come from Nalanda." But sadly at the end of  12th Century invader Bakhityar Khilji demolished The Monastery, killed hundreds of monks and burnt the most valuable library in display of crude hatred. 

Nalanda is about 16 kilometres (10 mi) north of the city of Rajgir and about 90 kilometres (56 mi) southeast of Patna, connected via NH 31, 20 and 120 to India's highway network.  It is about 80 kilometres (50 mi) northeast of Bodh Gaya – another important Buddhist site in Bihar. The Nalanda archaeological site is spread over a large area to the northwest of Bargaon (Nalanda) village, and is between the historical manmade lakes Gidhi, Panashokar and Indrapuskarani. On the south bank of the Indrapushkarani lake is the Nava Nalanda Mahavihara – a university founded in its memory. Similarly on the south west bank of the Indrapushkarani lake is Nalanda Open University, the state university named after the ancient Nalanda University. 

Nalanda was a renowned Buddhist mahavihara (great monastery) in ancient and medieval Magadha (modern-day Bihar), eastern India.  Nalanda is considered to be among the greatest centers of learning in the ancient world.  Nalanda played a vital role in promoting the patronage of arts and academics during the 5th and 6th century CE, a period that has since been described as the "Golden Age of India" by scholars.  Nalanda was established during the Gupta Empire era (c. 3rd–6th century CE), and was supported by numerous Indian and Javanese patrons – both Buddhists and non-Buddhists. Nalandha thrived through centuries through various rulers till it was totally destroyed by a mad invader. 

Over some 750 years, Nalanda's faculty included some of the most revered scholars of Mahayana Buddhism. The curriculum of Nalanda included major Buddhist philosophies like Madhyamaka, Yogachara and Sarvastivada, as well as other subjects like the Vedas, grammar, medicine, logic, mathematics, astronomy and alchemy.  The mahavihara had a renowned library that was a key source for the Sanskrit texts that were transmitted to East Asia by pilgrims like Xuanzang and Yijing.  Many texts composed at Nalanda played an important role in the development of Mahayana and Vajrayana. They include the works of Dharmakirti, the Bodhisattvacaryāvatāra of Shantideva, and the Mahavairocana Tantra   

The current site of Nalanda is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.  In 2010, the Government of India passed a resolution to revive the famous university, and a contemporary institute, Nalanda University, was established at Rajgir. It has been listed as an "Institute of National Importance" by the Government of India.

 



In the more-than seven centuries that Nalanda flourished, there was nothing else like it in the world. The monastic university predates the University of Oxford and Europe's oldest university, Bologna, by more than 500 years. What's more, Nalanda's enlightened approach to philosophy and religion would help shape the culture of Asia long after the university ceased to exist.  Interestingly, the monarchs of the Gupta Empire that founded the Buddhist monastic university were devout Hindus, but sympathetic and accepting towards Buddhism and the growing Buddhist intellectual fervour and philosophical writings of the time. The liberal cultural and religious traditions that evolved under their reign would form the core of Nalanda's multidisciplinary academic curriculum, which blended intellectual Buddhism with a higher knowledge in different fields. The ancient Indian medical system of Ayurveda, which is rooted in nature-based healing methods, was widely taught at Nalanda and then migrated to other parts of India via alumni. Other Buddhist institutions drew inspiration from the campus' design of open courtyards enclosed by prayer halls and lecture rooms. And the stucco produced here influenced ecclesiastical art in Thailand, and metal art migrated from here to Tibet and the Malayan peninsula. 

Perhaps, Nalanda's most profound and lingering legacy is its achievements in mathematics and astronomy. Aryabhata, considered the father of Indian mathematics, is speculated to have headed the university in the 6th Century CE. "We believe that Aryabhata was the first to assign zero as a digit, a revolutionary concept, which simplified mathematical computations and helped evolve more complex avenues such as algebra and calculus," said Anuradha Mitra, a Kolkata-based professor of mathematics. "Without zero, we wouldn't have computers," she added. "He also did pioneering works in extracting square and cubic roots, and applications of trigonometrical functions to spherical geometry. He was also the first to attribute radiance of the moon to reflected sunlight." This work would profoundly influence the development of mathematics and astronomy in southern India and across the Arabian Peninsula. The university regularly sent some of its best scholars and professors to places like China, Korea, Japan, Indonesia and Sri Lanka to propagate Buddhist teachings and philosophy. This ancient cultural exchange programme helped spread and shape Buddhism across Asia. 

The library's nine million handwritten, palm-leaf manuscripts was the richest repository of Buddhist wisdom in the world, and one of its three library buildings was described by Tibetan Buddhist scholar Taranatha as a nine-storey building "soaring into the clouds". Only a handful of those palm-leaf volumes and painted wooden folios survived the fire created by invader Khalji   some could be retrieved and carried away by fleeing monks. They can now can be found at Los Angeles County Museum of Art in the US and Yarlung Museum in Tibet.

 


Today saw in X an AI rendition of Nalanda University (artist unknown). While it is a good rendition of what the artist may have imagined of Nalanda’s appearance, in reality Nalanda was much grander, with colourful buildings and beautiful gardens and lakes within the university complex. As Hiuen Tsang tells us in his travel diaries: there were six large monasteries (residences of the monks) built within the complex. The university was enclosed by a lofty wall that as per Hiuen Tsang, had only one gate. The gate opened into the great college from which 8 other halls branched out. The buildings were multistoried ones, lofty, and were adorned with towers, turrets, and observatories. The upper floor rooms, as Hiuen Tsang described them, towered above the clouds, while the high eaves glowed in splendid sunset colours and sparkled in moonlit glories. An 8th century stone inscription of Yasovarman also gives a similar description of the beauty of the viharavalis (rows of monasteries) of the university. The university grounds were equally beautiful with a series of deep translucent ponds that held blue lotus mixed with the deep red of the kanaka flowers. At intervals between the lakes stood the Amra groves that cast their contrasting shades of deep green. The external beauty of these massive awe-inspiring buildings however contrasted with their delicate artistically decorated insides.   

The great news,  is today our Honble Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modiji has inaugurated the new campus of Nalanda University in Bihar's Rajgir. External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar and ambassadors of 17 nations attended this important function.  “It’s a very special day for our education sector.   Nalanda has a strong connect with our glorious part. This university will surely go a long way in catering to the educational needs of the youth,” PM Modi wrote on X platform. 

 



The renowned Nalandha University flourished for more than 800 years before invader Khilji hatefully destroyed it and burnt all the books in 12th century. After more than 1000 years, in 2014, the contemporary University commenced operations at a provisional site with an initial cohort of 14 students.  Besides India, a total of 17 countries have signed MoUs to support the Nalanda University. These nations include Brunei Darussalam, Cambodia, New Zealand, Portugal, Australia, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Singapore, South Korea, Indonesia, Laos, Mauritius, Sri Lanka, Thailand, China, Myanmar, and Vietnam. The University now offers 137 scholarships to international students. It comprises six schools: the School of Buddhist Studies, Philosophy & Comparative Religions, Historical Studies, Ecology and Environmental Studies, and Sustainable Development and Management.  The University is envisioned as a partnership between India and the East Asia Summit (EAS) countries. It holds significant historical importance, as the original Nalanda University, founded approximately 1600 years ago, is regarded as one of the world's first residential universities. 

Ikhtiyār al-Dīn Muammad Bakhtiyār Khaljī, also known as Bakhtiyar Khalji, was a military general of the Ghurid ruler Muhammad of Ghor.  The  Khalji dynasty   ruled Bengal for a short period, from 1203 to 1227 CE. Khalji's invasions of the Indian subcontinent between A.D. 1197 and 1206 led to mass flight and massacres of Buddhist monks, and caused damage to the traditional Buddhist institutions of higher learning in Northern India.  In Bengal, Khalji's reign was responsible for the displacement of Buddhism. Bakhtiyar launched an ill-fated Tibet campaign in 1206 and was assassinated upon returning to Bengal by Ali Mardan and Mirza Haider Goni Fahad.  Yet the failed assassin was glorified a Railway station still stands in his name !

 

With regards – S Sampathkumar

19.6.2024 

Biblio:  various web sources including BBC

https://www.bbc.com/travel/article/20230222-nalanda-the-university-that-changed-the-world

Tuesday, June 18, 2024

Crow spreading wings ! - காக்கைச் சிறகினிலே நந்தலாலா

A crow is a bird of the genus Corvus, or more broadly a synonym for all of Corvus.   

எம்பெருமான்,  ஸ்ரீகிருஷ்ணர் அவதாரத்தில் வசுதேவர் தேவகி தம்பதிகளுக்கு மதுரா சிறைச்சாலையில் பிறந்தவர்.  எட்டாவது பிள்ளையான கண்ணனை மாமன் கம்சனிடம் இருந்து காப்பாற்ற  இரவோடு இரவாக வசுதேவர் யமுனை வெள்ளத்தை தாண்டி கோகுலத்தில் தலைவனான நந்தன் யசோதை தம்பதிகளிடம் பத்திரமாக  வளர விட்டு விடுகிறார். அதனால் கண்ணனுக்கு நந்தகுமாரன் என்ற பெயர் உண்டு. வடமொழியில் குழந்தைகளை செல்லமாக லல்லா அல்லது லாலா என்று அழைப்பார்கள். நந்நனுடைய செல்லப்பிள்ளையான கண்ணனை நந்தலாலா என்றழைத்தனர். 

பாட்டி சுட்ட வடையும் - அதை சுட்ட (திருடிய) காகமும் கதை, தமிழில்  மிகப்பரவலாக வழங்கிவரும் செவிவழி நீதிக்கதை.  தலைமுறை தலைமுறையாக சிறுவர்களுக்கு இக்கதை சொல்லப்பட்டு வருகிறது.  இக்கதையின் பாத்திரங்கள் - ஒரு  பாட்டி, குழந்தைகள், சில விலங்குகள், பறவை காக்கா - பல்வேறு சிறு சிறு திரிபுகளுடன் இக்கதை எல்லா இடங்களிலும் பொதுவானதாகக் காணப்படுகிறது. 


 

காக்கைச்  சிறகினிலே நந்தலாலா-நின்றன் கரியநிறந் தோன்றுதையே நந்தலாலா;

தீக்குள் விரலைவைத்தால் நந்தலாலா-நின்னைத் தீண்டுமின்பம்ந் தோன்றுதடா நந்தலாலா.

 

அற்புதமான இந்த பாரதியாரின் கவிதையை பல இசையமைப்பாளர்களும்,  மெட்டு போட்டு அதை பாடல் ஆக்கினார்கள்.   1981ஆம் ஆண்டு, ரகுவரன் நடிப்பில் வெளிவந்த ” ஏழாவது மனிதன்” என்ற திரைப்படத்தில்  - திரு எல். வைத்தியநாதன் இசையில், கேஜே  யேசுதாஸ் குரலில் வந்த பாடல் சிறப்பாக இருந்தது.
 
 
 
With regards – S. Sampathkumar
18.6.2024  

Monday, June 17, 2024

Cat & Dog ! - friendly banter, or fight !!

 

English is a funny language –  there are Cats and there are dogs !  - they tend to fight each other most times – there is a metaphor ‘they fight like cats and dogs’.  Yet the adverb ‘it rains Cats & dogs’ – refers to neither Cats nor dogs ! but means – in great quantities, very hard !!  

The Brody family's pet Bloodhound Buddy chases a cat and is captured by other cats in an ambush. Cats and dogs are revealed to be highly intelligent, tech-savvy enemies capable of speech, waging war with covert operatives while concealing their true nature from humans. After an Anatolian Shepherd dog named Butch reports Buddy's capture to his superiors, the best canine agents are dispatched to complete Buddy's mission: to prevent the cats from making all humans allergic to dogs  !  - what, sounds strange ! 

Cats and dogs are the most popular pets in the world. Cats are more independent and are generally cheaper and less demanding pets. Dogs are loyal and obedient but require more attention and exercise, including regular walks.

 


Cats and dogs perhaps have mutual animosity – they dislike each other, and quarrel.  Cats and dogs have a range of interactions. The natural instincts of each species lead towards antagonistic interactions, though individual animals can have non-aggressive relationships with each other, particularly under conditions where humans have socialized non-aggressive behaviors. The generally aggressive interactions between the species have been noted in cultural expressions. In domestic homes where dogs and cats are reared and trained properly, they tend to relate well with each other, especially when their owner is taking  care of them.

 


For centuries, people tend to quarrel more on   whether dogs or cats are smarter — scientific research has provided fuel for the debate. Some studies suggest biological differences in intelligence between cats and dogs. Research reveals that the cerebral cortex, the layer of the brain that controls functions such as problem-solving and decision-making, tends to have many more neurons in dogs than in cats. While dogs possess on average about 530 million neurons in the cortex, cats have only about 250 million— nearly half the amount found in dogs. Though this data might seem to suggest that dogs are twice as intelligent as cats, a direct correlation between larger brain size and increased intelligence has not been conclusively proven. Regardless, dogs’ higher neuron count is often viewed as a gauge of their superior intelligence. 

Dogs tend to demonstrate strong social intelligence, drawing comparisons to the mental capabilities of human toddlers. Studies indicate that dogs display self-awareness and succeed at cooperative communication tasks. 

They need not be fighting all the time ! Dogs and cats can form fast friendships. It is life experiences with members of the other species, and not an inborn animosity, that determines how cats and dogs feel about each other. The initial meeting sets the stage for future considerations in the dog/cat relationship.  The majority of cats can happily coexist with a dog if they are given time to comfortably get to know each other. If a puppy and kitten are raised together, they generally will learn right away to tolerate each other, and some cats and dogs grow to be real friends, even playing and napping together. However, if a dog is already an established member of the household and a new cat or kitten is going to join the family, certain precautions need to be taken.

 


The  description at para 2 is storyline of ‘Cats & Dogs’ movie,  directed by Lawrence Guterman and written by John Requa and Glenn Ficarra, released in 2001.  The story centered on the relationships between cats and dogs, depicting the relationship as an intense rivalry in which both sides use organizations and tactics that mirror those used in human espionage. It was released by Warner Bros., received mixed reviews and earned $200.7 million on a $60 million budget.

 
Interesting !
 
With regards – S Sampathkumar
17.6.2024 

Sunday, June 16, 2024

White stork bringing children ! - நாராய் நாராய் செங்கால் நாராய்

சத்திமுத்தப் புலவர் சங்க காலப் புலவர்களில் ஒருவர்,  இவர் வறுமையால் தளர்வுற்று தம் ஊர்விட்டு அயலூர் சென்று ஒரு குட்டிச் சுவரின் அருகில் குளிருக்கு ஒதுங்கியிருக்கும் போது நாரை ஒன்று மேலே பறக்கக் கண்டு, வறுமையிலும் தன் பிரிவாலும் வருந்திக் கொண்டிருக்கும் தன் மனைவிக்கு அதைத் தூதாக அனுப்புவது போல் பாடிய பாடல் :

நாராய் நாராய் செங்கால் நாராய்

பழம்படு பனையின் கிழங்கு பிளந்தன்ன

பவளக் கூர்வாய் செங்கால் நாராய்  .. .... ..

செங்கால் நாரை (Ciconia ciconia - White Stork)  நாரை (சிகோனிடே) குடும்பத்தைச் சேர்ந்த ஓர் நீர் இறங்கு பறவை ஆகும். இது வெண்ணிற சிறகுத் தொகுதியையும் கருநிற இறகினையும் உடையது; நீண்ட செந்நிற கால்களும் செந்நிற அலகும் இப்பறவையை எளிதில் இனங்காண உதவும்.

 

Long legs, long necks, and long bills – mostly we call them Cranes (kokku)  but confuse them with Herons, Storks and other names that we know  Herons, Storks, and Cranes must all be a part of the same family? As much as they may appear to be relatives, the short answer is that they actually come from three separate families.

 


The white stork (Ciconia ciconia) is a large bird in the stork family, Ciconiidae. Its plumage is mainly white, with black on the bird's wings. Adults have long red legs and long pointed red beaks, and measure on average 100–115 cm (39–45 in) from beak tip to end of tail, with a 155–215 cm (61–85 in) wingspan. 

Heinrich Luitpold Himmler (1900 –   1945) was a German politician who was the 4th Reichsführer of the Schutzstaffel (Protection Squadron; SS), a leading member of the Nazi Party of Germany, and one of the most powerful men in Nazi Germany, primarily known for being a main architect of the Holocaust. 

In 1942 Heinrich Himmler sought to use storks to carry Nazi propaganda leaflets so as to win support from the Boers in South Africa. The idea for this "Storchbein-Propaganda" plan was a secret that was transmitted by Walter Schellenberg to be examined by the German ornithologist Ernst Schüz at the Rossiten bird observatory, who pointed out that the probability of finding marked storks in Africa was less than one percent, requiring a 1000 birds to transmit 10 leaflets successfully. The plan was then dropped. !! 

According to European folklore, the stork is responsible for bringing babies to new parents. The legend is very ancient, but was popularised by a 19th-century Hans Christian Andersen story called "The Storks". German folklore held that storks found babies in caves or marshes and brought them to households in a basket on their backs or held in their beaks. These caves contained adebarsteine or "stork stones". The babies would then be given to the mother or dropped down the chimney. Households would notify when they wanted children by placing sweets for the stork on the window sill. From there the folklore has spread around the world to the Philippines and countries in South America. Birthmarks on the back of the head of newborn baby, nevus flammeus nuchae, are sometimes referred to as stork-bite. 

In Slavic mythology and pagan religion, storks were thought to carry unborn souls from Vyraj to Earth in spring and summer.  This belief still persists in the modern folk culture of many Slavic countries, in the simplified child story that "storks bring children into the world". Storks were seen by Early Slavs as bringing luck, and killing one would bring misfortune. Likewise, in Norse mythology, the god Hœnir, responsible for giving reason to the first humans, Ask and Embla, has been connected with the stork through his epithets long-legs and mud-king.

 
Interesting !
 
With regards – S Sampathkumar
16.6.2024