" The Child is the Father of Man "

" The child is the Father of Man "

Govinda Sharma was known for his " gurukulam " style of teaching in Malgudi District and parents longed to get their wards admitted in his school.

At the end of lessons one day, Govinda Sharma was in a good mood and invited the students to ask questions freely. Ekalaivan was always daring to go even as a student and he stood up to ask " Guru Deva, can you please tell us about your Guru, his name, etc " Govina Sharma was pleased to answer that he had many Gurus but three, he considered , had changed his way of life.

The first one was a ' thief '. Govinda Sharma narrated that he encountered the thief when he had no place for living. The thief revealed his walk of life and added he had no objection to give a place for Govinda Sharma in his dwelling. The matter was settled and as days passed, Govinda Sharma started enquiring him what he brought each day. The thief replied 'nil' and and that was the reply he was giving most of the day. But what Govinda Sharma admired in the thief was his indomitable perseverance and 'never say die' attitude in the hope that he would catch a ' big fish ' one day or other. Govinda Sharma confessed to his disciples that he learnt from the thief the spirit of perseverance and from that day he started to concentrate more and more upon meditation and observed its power upon him.

Govinda Sharma paused for a while and continued that he considered a 'dog' as his second Guru. He was observing the dog to go up a slope and wanted to jump into the pool of water at the lower level. The dog became afraid to see its own image and came running behind. Govinda Sharma who was going to the pool to fetch water every day was watching how the dog got feared by its own reflection in the pool of water. The dog was gaining confidence day by day and one fine day, the dog jumped into the water. Govinda Sharma learnt a lesson from the dog that ' Confidence in one self ' was a requirement in dealing with new ventures.

Ekalaivan enquired about the other Guru and Govinda Sharma replied that it was a ' Child '. One day a couple was waiting to have his council when he was doing 'pooja'. The couple narrated that their daughter and son-in-law were living abroad after the wedding and that after about four years of marriage they had a baby boy. They, as grand parents, longed to see the child but were not able to make the trip.

Govinda Sharma pacified them saying ' That it is universally acknowledged truth that young couple, though live in foreign countries, long to have their parents with them especially at a time , when the baby is growing, just as the grand parents wish to enjoy the sweet cuddles of the new born". Govinda Sharma examined the horoscopes and explained the reasons for the delay in making the journey abroad. He also assured them that they would make the journey within two months. The couple thanked him for the advice and Govinda Sharma felt proud.

Very soon he learnt a lesson from a child itself. He came across one child who was lighting a candle. The child was so pleased to see the growing light and its brightness. Govinda Sharma asked the child from where the brightness came. The child was not able to answer in words but some thing in the child prompted it to blow out the candle. Govinda Sharma was wondering for the child's action, when the child answered him " See, now it is dark, the light came to the candle from this darkness". The child's remarks humbled Govinda Sharma and he told his students that " Pride goes before the fall ". He,then onwards, learnt to be humble.

He also understood the meaning of the popular saying " The Child is the father of man ". Govinda Sharma recited William Words Worth's poem :-

"MY HEART LEAPS UP WHEN I BEHOLD
A RAINBOW IN THE SKY
SO WAS IT WHEN MY LIFE BEGAN
SO IS IT NOW I AM A MAN
SO BE IT WHEN I SHALL GROW OLD
OR LET ME DIE !

THE CHILD IS THE FATHER OF MAN
AND I COULD WISH MY DAYS TO BE
BOUND EACH BY NATURAL PIETY !! "

" The Turning Point "

The Human Mind is the last unexplored continent on earth.It contains riches beyond our wildest dreams.The returns very much rely on what is invested in this golden Scrip.

There is no use in blaming the circumstances.The people who get on this world are the people who get up and look for the circumstances they want, and if they can't find it , they make them, according to the great George Bernard Shaw.

Conversely, if a person thinks about nothing........., he becomes nothing.

The mind can be compared to a fertile land. It is up to the farmer to choose the seeds. The land does not care what the farmer plants. But it is faithful to return what is planted. The mind also does not care like the land what is planted. The human mind is far more fertile, mysterious and incredible than the land. But it works in the same way as the land, as far as the returns are concerned.

Success, confusions, failures, mission or goals are different seeds, to name a few, available for sowing in the mind. The pattern of investment and the choice rests with a person.

For all of us, there are " TURNING POINTS " in our lives. Mind can incite the powerful message which will act as source for thwarting from inactiveness to an interactive and purposeful life.

World Cup .. The game is on ... you can play too -- " Q & A "

" THE GAME IS ON.....You Can play too "....!!!!!

Cricket fever is not in Carrebean only but has gripped the whole world. As the Game is on for the World cup, you have a chance to play too :-

1) Which was the first cricket test and who won it ? ( 3 marks )

2) Have all the four innings of a cricket match ever been played on the same day ?(6marks)

3) What is the highest Team total in Test Cricket ?/ what is the lowest test total by a team? - Give Details.(5marks)

4) What are the scores of first six test innings of Marvan Atapattu of Sri lanka ?(4 marks)

5) Which Cricketer has won four successive man of the match awards in one day cricket ? (5marks)

6) Which Indian bowler took 10 wickets in an innings? (4marks)

7) who is famous for the last ball sixer in sharjha? ( 5 marks )

8) (i)Name the batsman for most centuries in one day cricket. (ii) Name the greatedt leg spinner of all times? (iii) Name the best one day batsman of 1980s? (6marks)

9) Which is arguably the greatest One Day Match in the history of cricket ? (8marks)

10) Who became the first bowler to take a hat-trick in 1987 World Cup ? (4marks)





Answers;-

1) Australia vs England in 1877, Australia won the first ever official test by 45 runs in Melbourne. ( Grace marks are allowed if you have mentioned some data for this Question)

2) England vs West indies in 2000 - Lords Test - a part of all 4 innings were played on the 2nd day.

3)India vs SriLanka in 1996-97. india declared 537/8; Sri lanka scored a mmooth total of 952/6 Jayasurya(340),Mahanama(325) created a test record of 576 runs partnership.

The lowest test totalwas 26 when Newzealand were dismissed by England at auckland in1954-55.

4) Attapattu first six test innings scores were 0, 0, 1, 0, 0, 0. However he has forced his way in Sri lankan team and holds a record for 6 Test double Centuries.

5) SOURAV GANGULY

6)(Easy Question.) Anil Kumble in 1999 in Delhi Test against pakistan. jim Laker of England is only another bowler who holds this feat.

7)Javed miandad hit the unforgettable six oo the last ball to clinch victory against India in Sharjah in 1986 and won the Australasia cup. 4 balls were required and one ball to go was the crunch situation. 'Do or die' and Miandad did the right.

8)(i) sachin tendulkar - 41 centuries; 14783 runs

(ii) Shane Warne - 700 wickets in Tests. He had taken 708 at the end of his career. 293 wickets in 194 One Day Internationals.

(iii) Vivian richards - 8540 Test Runs in 121 Matches; 6721 runs in 187 ondays. Richards helped West indies to win the inaugural world Cup in 1975.

(note: 2 marks each of the correct answer)

9) South Africa vs Australia in 2006 @ melbourne. australia hit a record breaking 432 runs in 50 overs. for S.A. Gibbs hit a sparkling Ton. S.A. achieved the target with one ball to spare..

10) chetan sharma of india became the first bowler to get a hat-trick in a world cup match in 1987 against newzealand.

Have your score card ready for both of the Cricket Quiz. The first one was sent a day before. The marks for the two innings add up to 100. Here is the Umpire's decision :-

(A) IF YOU HAVE ATTEMPTED TO ANSWER BOTH THE TEST PAPERS, YOU SCORE 40 MARKS. (B) IF YOU HAVE SCORED FOUR QUESTIONS CORRECT OUT OF THE 20 QUESTIONS, YOU GET A GRADE OF " V.FAIR ';
(C) 10 OUT OF 20 CORRECT, YOU GET A GRADE "GOOD " ; (D) 15 CORRECT , GRADE ACHIEVED WOULD BE " VERY GOOD " (E) FOR 15 TO 20 CORRECT ANSWERS, THE GRADE IS " EXCEPTIONAL " AND THE WORLD CUP BELONGS TO YOU ONLY.

World Cup - Cricket -Qiz & Ans.

Now that the semifinal line up is getting clear and South Africa has an uphill task to climb. the other battle between Sri Lanka and New Zealand is equally poised, the latter having an edge over the Lankans.

As the game of Cricket is interesting, here are some tricky questions to answer. you can take your scrable book and write down the answers. The score card is indicated at the bottom but before scrolling down , first try to answer as much as you know ;- THE MARKS AGAINST EACH QUESTION IS GIVEN IN BRACKET.

Total : 50 Marks

1) Who is Mello ? ( 5 MARKS)

2) What was the first mascot of the cricket World cup ? ( 4)

3) who won the Player of the tournament award in 2003 World cup ? ( 4)

4) Which was the first " tie test ' for India ? ( 4)

5) which batsman scored 500 runs in an innings ? (4)

6) Which Cricketer faced the first ball to be bowled in one day cricket ? (3)

7) which Cricket team / Batsman scored the same runs in both the innings / Give details ?
( 4 marks )

8) What is called a " MANKAD " ? in cricket ( 7 marks )

9) In how many WAYS can a batsman get out in cricket ? ( 10 marks )

10) WHAT IS THE NOTORIOUS CHAPTER IN sUNIL GAVASKAR'S CRICKETING CAREER ? ( 5)

have you added the marks and brought your score card for verification / Relax and have a look at the Umpire's Decision !!!!!!!!!!!







Answers:-

1) Mellow is the event Mascot for the Cricket world Cup. The Mascot is a teenage character called Mello who stands cross legged and tosses a white ball in the air , while leaning on a cricket bat.

2) The first mascot of a cricket world Cup was " DAZZLER ", the zebra i 2003 world cup in south africa.

3) Sachin Tendulkar received the trophy from sobers as " The Player of the tournament ' in 2003 world cup.

4) India and Australia Match in 1986 in chennai. india needed 5 runs in the last over to win with only one wicket in hand. ravi sastri scored 4 rus and crossed over. the scores were tied. maninder singh was lbw in the next ball by greg mathews. alan border surprised every body by declaring his second innings giving a fair chance for an outcome. The out come was a TIE.

5) Brain lara scored 501 not out for warwickshire in 1994. he was dropped at 18 by scot, the Wicket Keeper.

6) Geof Boycot bowled by graham Mckenzie

7) India vs Pakistan in March 2005. India made 407 and 407 for 5 declared. this is the highest duplicate score by a Team in a Test match. Similarly Dilip Mendis of Sri lanka scored 105 in both the innings against India in 1982

8) The running out of a non-striking batsman who leaves his crease before the ball is bowled is called ' Mankad". It is named after Vinod mankad who used this controversial run out is common in Indoor cricket, not in ist class cricket.

9) a batsman can be declared out for :-

1) Bowled
2) caught
3) run out
4) stumped
5) lbw
6) handled the ball
7) timed out
8) hit wicket
9) hit the ball twice
10) obstucting the field
( you can add one mark only for each of the 10 methods correctly answered)

10) in a world cup match inin 1975 Sunil gavaskar batted through out 60 oversand scored only 36 runs, india lost to enland by a margin of 203 runs. a notorious chapter in the little master's career.



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" Money and Power "

Money is power. Money empowers to do anything. Having money is a good thing, having power over money is still better. The rich breeds richer, as money goes to money. Power corrupts people. Power mongers don't stop to acquire whatever they wish to, as we can see from the illustration below:-

Rangachary was a learned man and a poet. He was invited by many Kings to visit their countries for seeking his advice.

Once he heard many heads of States complaining to him about King Vikrama's growing greediness over power and occupying more and more territories by wilful and unlawful methods. They all requested Rangachary to put an end to Vikrama's hunger for power.

Rangachary thought of a plan and went to see King Vikrama who welcomed him with open arms. Rangachary recited a poem in praise of him. The King was pleased and narrated how he was growing big by bringing many States under his control.

Rangachary advised the king that man is attached to his five senses that he forgets his 6th sense. We can achieve a good sense of self and knowledge thru' the sixth sense. The sense of taste overtakes us to eat unhealthy food. All food once gulped down the throat ends up having no taste. The sense of touch is satisfied by sensual pleasures. So all these senses bind us to mortal realms, Rangachary advised the King.

King Vikraman vehemently argued with Rangachary that the poet should not compare his hunger for Power to eating unhealthy food. Rangachary let the King to speak and raise his voice. The King after a while became very thirsty and called for a mug of water. The king was visibly gasping for breath and was in need of water in a hurry. He was about to take the water when Rangachary intervened and posed a question to the king. " what price will you pay if something or someone prevents you to drink the water " ?. The King , without a thought , replied that he would part with half his kingdom in case if that was the price he had to sacrifice to drink the water. Rangachary allowed the King to take the mug of water in his hand. When the King raised the mug to his mouth, Rangachary posed the King another question " What the price the King would pay if something inside prevents the King in gulping the water below the level of his throat '. Vikrama, the King, was more in a hurry to answer so that Rangachary would allow him to swallow the water. the King replied Rangachary that he was prepared to surrender the other half of his Kingdom in case that condition would allow him to take the water without interruption.

Rangachary let the King to take the water. After a pause, Rangachary addressed the King a question. ' King Vikrama , do you now realise that the value of your Kingdom just amounts to a mug of water '. The King was ashamed to realise his mistake and begged pardon.

Rangachary advised the King to meditate with his sixth sense and realise that a King should spread a message of peace with his neighbours and live in harmony for mutual benefits.

King Vikrama realised his mistake and thanked Rangachary for his council.

" Incident , Accident or Coincident "

Incident, Accident, Coincident are words which not only rhyme well but also have a close call within themselves.

Incident is that which happens. It is liable to occur. Incident becomes an event when it happens. Incident is also a subordinate action as a 'naturally belonging to' like an income tax raid on suspects. An old friend ,sometimes, call on incidentally, while going for some work. Light falls on a plane which is referred as incident and the angle of incidence has some reference in Physics. Incidental Music is the music accompanying the action.

Incidentally, I presume you would have read my previous mail, informing about our forthcoming tour . We also thank for those who have responded " Bon- Voyage " !

Accident is also that happens but is related to chance mechanism. Should Rahul Dravid calls the toss correctly , has a close link with the probability of 0.50 - a chance mechanism. It will be an unexpected event. It will be also treated as not essential. There is no cause, one can attribute. However, when there is a chapter of accidents or series of accidents, the authorities should find ways and means to arrest such happenings within some limits. Accidents still can happen as it is unforeseen.

Coincidence is also an event but has more positive co-relations. The occurrence of events simultaneously or consecutively in a striking manner like Indian Wickets falling in the middle order in the World Cup. There is no casual connection between the events . That is why they are referred as coincidence. But if two trains coincide, it is called an accident and later History refer them as incidents. Sometimes we accidentally step into some friend's house where some incident like a birth day party would be taking place and the friends who greet each other exclaim " What a Coincidence " !

A short story comes to my mind at present, incidentally. Ramu was a proud person. He used to boast that he cooked himself, buys all needed himself, and said he had no need to depend on others. He was diabetic and his family Physician had advised him to take the supper before or atleast by 8 p.m. That day he happily sat for dinner sharp at 8p.m. As he was about to serve himself, he heard a knock at the door. He stood up from the sitting posture and went to open the door. He saw an old and respectable looking person who enquired some information about some ' Krishnamurthy Sastrigal ' and so on. Ten minutes passed and both came to realize that the old man had knocked the wrong door. Ramu sighed a relief and sat again for dinner at 8.10 p.m. As he was about to take hold of the rice vessel, the telephone rang. Ramu paused a while but the ring was making more striking sound. He decided to answer the call. The caller was very courteous but was beating the bush. They both invented that it was a ' wrong number ' call only after a passage of another 10 minutes. Ramu hit his head with his hand and with a sigh before sitting on the floor for his dinner. He was hungry and also remembered his Physician's advice. But this time when he was about to eat , he was stopped by no less a person than his wife Alamelu. " Don't start eating, without answering my query ", Alamelu sounded. Ramu looked at her pathetically. Alamelu had the choice this time to speak to her husband " You boast for every thing, you cooked yourself, you served the leaf yourself, Then Why couldn't you eat at 8 p.m. itself. ??. You need not have answered anybody. You had all the authority in the world, according to you, to mind eating atleast at 8p.m." She went on to question her husband,
" Was the delay caused due to an incident, accident or a coincident " ?

Ramu learnt a lesson for good, not to boast himself , and realized that there is a third or external Power which governs things.

" Funny or Strange "

There is a tendency in people to get ready to do things which are not so important, but they don't come to help when it matters and at such times the individuals, themselves, have to perform the job. Does it look funny or strange ?
One illustration that comes to my mind readily is a case happened in a public place, where there was a gathering of people. Some one swoons due to the heat and dehydration. What people, who are around , do at that time ? " Bring Water, Fetch water ", one man shouts. " Water, Water "- this is another man's cries. " Couldn't some one fetch a little water ' - this is how a third man laments. " Why is it that still water has not been brought ? " - the question is raised loud and clear. In the mean time, more people encircle the person who is found helpless in the ground after swooning. If at all some body who fetches water after all these false cries, it might be either " YOU or " I ".

I remember another funny incident when I went to attend my friend's son's marriage. The Prohith shouted ' Where is the walking stick?"

More calls I heard " What is the delay in getting the stick " The shouting echo rented the air for some time. The groom gave a sorry look to me. He even was afraid whether the stick was intended to beat him. The bride was unable to bear the helplessness of the groom. I saw her running to the corner of the wall and stretching some heap, she pulled out the walking stick and produced it before the prohith. The priest announced in high pitch, " the groom is now ready for " Kasi Yatra" !

The gravity of situations illustrated above is rather grim and why people don't come forward to help at such times? May be the tendency of the crowd is to watch the fun going on ! It is indeed very strange !

It may be of fun if someone falls in a well. It may also be of fun to watch when someone dives into the well to save the person from drowning. But is there any fun if we ourselves attempt to do it ? It is not the reason. The real reason is " inconvenience " of the individual !