A different lesson

Learning never stops, isn't it? And when a group decides to learn on its own, the lessons can come from all directions. This Wednesday was one such day where Spandan saw participation from very small number of people. It is probably because of the rains and other high priority things that people have. Just a handful of us were together mulling over what should we do with this small audience. We decided to take on a unique topic this time, away from our day to day technological topics. And we asked Sameena to give us insights into Islam and Quran.

Sameena, being a muslim and a very learned one, educated us on the details of the religion and its origin. She told us about Paigambar Mohammad and how he got blessings from 40 farishtays (good spirits) on god's directives of leading a life. How these lessons were scripted as Quran . She told us about the history of Mecca and Medina and how each Muslim is expected to complete his responsibilities before getting an approval for the Haj travel. We now know why goat, bird and fish are allowed as food for Muslims. Why did Burqas come into use and what is their primary intent ? Why are men allowed to marry 4 times and how can a lady ask for separation. We felt elated learning about another religion and the way these beliefs have impacted such a large group of people.

A good storyteller that she is, Sameena intertwined the mythological stories with the ways lessons are twisted in the present world to taint the images of Muslims. Little do we realize that we know so less about the people around us and roots of their values and principles. All in all it was an extremely insightful session for all of us.
Thank you Sameena! God bless you….

India and the Nuclear Deal

Got this article from Nitin. Posting it as is.
~alok

With the all important vote of confidence behind us and the government winning it with a respectable margin, India is all set to go ahead with the nuclear deal with the US of A. While we have seen and heard many voices speaking eloquently, both for and against the deal, I would still like to add my humble inputs for the deal.
How the deal will help India cut down on its carbon emissions by reducing its dependency on coal and gas has been analyzed in detail by a number of experts. Instead, I want to take a different approach, a slightly longer term one. In my view, the deal is not just about immediate energy fulfillment and pollution. It is also about India choosing sides and doing so publicly in the rapidly changing political and military environment of the world. On one end of this balancing beam is the as yet lone super power of the world, the United States and on the other, the rapidly growing economy, China. China, already the most populous nation of the world will soon overtake the US in GDP. It already has great political clout on the world stage and is always looking for ways to enhance it. While the US has been antagonizing the Arabs by invading Iraq and its headstrong attitude towards Iran, China has been wooing them for oil and building strategic partnerships with the Muslim world. It is also aggressively modernizing its armed forces, being only the third country in the world to shoot down a satellite in space. This means that the US too is looking to recruit countries in its camp. India being one of the few countries on Earth, having the capability to stand up to China, both economically and militarily seems a very attractive choice. India also has a lot of other commonalities with the US. Both are democracies and staunch advocators of democracy. Indians like the openness of the American lifestyle and Americans are attracted to the Indian culture. Both countries have oodles of soft power. On the other hand, relations between India and China have always been strained. India, like China, has been growing rapidly. Both the economies have an exponentially increasing energy demand which cannot be met by the dwindling natural resources of the planet, be it coal, gas, petrol or even nuclear fuel. Hence the cat and mouse game of outmaneuvering the other party for gains in oilfields and nuclear supplies has already started with China many steps ahead in this game. This has also lead to China seeing India more as a rival than as a partner. China refuses to accept Indian sovereignty over Sikkim and Arunachal while India has a disjointed foreign policy over Tibet. China also carries a grudge against India for giving asylum to the Dalai Lama and his followers. China realizes that India partnered with the US can pose as a deterrent to the Chinese interests and is therefore trying to contain India by trying to encircle it with its own spheres of influence. It has always been a silent but strong advocator of Pakistan, supplying it with missile and nuclear technology. It has close ties with the military junta in Myanmar with Chinese bases on Burmese islands close to the Andaman and Nicobar. Recently it offered to help the Sri Lankan government fight the war against Tamil rebels by providing it with weapons with offensive capabilities against India’s policy of supplying weapons that are primarily defensive in nature. It is also seeking ways to increase its influence in Bhutan, Nepal and Bangladesh. Recent news of Chinese nuclear submarine bases is an example of continued Chinese interest in the India Ocean. On the other hand, India has recently risen up to the energy crunch facing the world and the growing Chinese influence in the oil rich areas of the planet. With these inputs in mind, the old Indian policy of non-alignment is no longer valid. With the advance of the information age and international trade, nations are becoming more and more dependent on each other. A market meltdown in US can have reverberations around the world. As Thomas Freidman put it in his book, the world is becoming flatter by the day. Hence, even if India and China do not have a direct confrontation, there are indirect ways of weakening each other and India is beginning to realize this. India is already a regional power with ambitions of becoming a world power and as such needs to be more engaging. Any country harboring such ambitions cannot afford to let major decisions be taken without its interests not being represented while those decisions are being taken. It is imperative that India take a stand and it has done just that by going ahead with the nuclear deal.
It is too early to say how things will turn out. However, it is clear that with the planet’s resources going down, the competition to have access to them will increase. With both India and China trying to come on-stage as great powers and with the USA not wanting to go out quietly and add to that the erstwhile super power contender Russia and the usual gamut of European nations and all I can say is that it will be interesting times ahead.

Yogesh Dewangan - My first blog

From Yogesh

Although the ‘Times of India’ of 16th July suggested a drought like situation and warned for water/electricity woes in the city, Sameena could feel her soul drenched. How I wish that thirsty land of Maharashtra could feel the raindrops as well. Hang on!! We are not here to discuss the drought situation (not at least on the kick-off day of Spandan!!).
I was of the opinion that I was perhaps the one who had his apprehensions regarding the event. But reading Sameena’s article learnt that I was not alone. And I am sure there would have been others as well with their pocketfuls of apprehensions. So here we are – a group of like-minded people J

I would really like to congratulate all who could make it on the first day of this event. Alok in particular for taking a lead and being present bang on time(leading from front, as they say!!!!! J).
It was really good to see people pour their ideas/feelings during this meeting and later on at ‘Peeli Mirchiyan’. I am hopeful we will continue with the same zeal and fervor.
Hey all Spandanians, it is a commitment to our own selves. Let us make this a successful venture. Hoping for more rains (spiritual as well as actual!!!)

Birth of an Idea

I realized that I had some time and a lot of energy to do something additional to my daily work. I wrote a note to some of my colleagues and this was the start of a new idea.

Please allow me to propose a group in Redknee with like minded people interested in doing something unique with their lives. Please come and join the group.

Some basic rules for the group:
1. Membership is optional but contributing to the group is mandatory.
2. The group can survive only on the basis of your interest level.
3. There is no external help available and there is no defined objective of this group.
4. If the group needs financial help, it will look towards its members. If any of the activities have any financial implications, it will have to be borne by the members.


These are some of the activities I was thinking we could do in this group.

1. We can share our experiences of life. This will help everyone to learn from each other’s experiences.
2. We could share info of a good book read or a new movie.
3. We can look at doing some social work. Let us help someone who needs it.
4. Let us look at planting some trees under which we are never going to sit.
5. Let us help each other improve on every aspect of work and life. We can have candid feedback sessions.

Lets add to this list. The objective is to meet at least twice a month for 2 hours and do this activity. We can take time out of our personal time. It could be before the office starts (8 am to 10 am) or we can work out evening time that is acceptable to everyone.

We planned to meet on Wednesday 16-July early morning to have our first meeting.