ABBYLINA

Somewhere over the rainbow

2010-02-25T21:56:00.004+05:30

Somewhere over the rainbow
Way up high,
There's a land that I heard of
Once in a lullaby.

Somewhere over the rainbow
Skies are blue,
And the dreams that you dare to dream
Really do come true.

Someday I'll wish upon a star
And wake up where the clouds are far
Behind me.
Where troubles melt like lemon drops
Away above the chimney tops
That's where you'll find me.

Somewhere over the rainbow
Bluebirds fly.
Birds fly over the rainbow.
Why then, oh why can't I?

If happy little bluebirds fly
Beyond the rainbow
Why, oh why can't I?

Life ........

2009-07-02T23:04:00.000+05:30

They are not long, the weeping and the laughter,
Love and desire and hate:
I think they have no portion in us after We pass the gate.
They are not long, the days of wine and roses;
Out of a misty dream
Our path emerges for a while, then closes
Within a dream.
(Earnest Dawson)

Wishing A Very Happy Mothers' Day :)

2009-05-10T00:00:00.002+05:30

Heres wishing a Very Happy Mothers' Day to all the MOMs around the world.
Love U MOM - U r the best :)
Hundreds of dewdrops to meet the dawn,
Hundreds of Bees in the purple clover,
Hundreds of Butterflies on the lawn,
But only ONE Mother the World Wide Over ;(George Cooper)

WWF - Earth Day - For A Living Planet.

2009-04-23T22:31:00.002+05:30

The history of the Earth Day goes back to September 1969 when at a conference in Seattle, Washington, U.S. Senator Gaylord Nelson announced that in the spring of 1970 there would be a nationwide grassroots demonstration on the environment.There has been no looking back since then and each year, April 22 - marks the anniversary of the birth of modern Environmental Movement.
Green Living Tips
Save Wood and Paper
Return unwanted mail and ask for your name to be removed from the mailing list.
Always use both sides of a sheet of paper.
Use e-mail to stay in touch, including cards, rather than faxing or writing.
Re-use envelopes.
Always recycle paper after use.
Share magazines with friends and pass them on to the doctor, dentist or local hospital for their waiting rooms.
Use recyclable paper to make invitation cards, envelops, letter pads etc.
In your Home
Turn off equipment like televisions and stereos when you're not using them. Choose energy-efficient appliances and light bulbs.
Save water: some simple steps can go a long way in saving water like for e.g: you should always turn off the tap when you are brushing your teeth. And try to collect the water used to wash vegetables and salad to water your houseplants.
Let clothes dry naturally.
Keep lids on pans when cooking to prevent your cooker having to work extra hard. Prefer to use gas ovens, Geysers etc in place of the electric ones.
Recycle your paper, glass, plastics and other waste.
Use rechargeable batteries.
Send e-greetings instead of paper cards. In your Garden
Water the garden early in the morning or late in the evening. This reduces water loss due to evaporation. Don’t overwater the garden. Water only till the soil becomes moist, not soggy.
Explore water efficient irrigation systems. Sprinkler irrigation and drip irrigation can be adapted to garden situations .
Make your garden lively - plant trees and shrubs which will attract birds. You can also put p nest boxes and put food.
Try growing sturdy grass in bare patches of land , and convince people in your neighbourhood to do so too.
Put waste to work in your garden- sweep the fallen leaves and flowers into flower beds or under shrubs . This will increase soil fertility and also reduce the need for frequent watering.
If you have little space in your garden , you could make a compost pit to turn organic waste from the kitchen and garden to soil enriching manure .
Don't use chemicals in the garden - as they will eventually end up in the sea and can upset the delicate balance of lifecycles.
Organic and environmentally friendly fertilisers and pesticides are available - organic gardening reduces pollution and is better for wildlife. Reuse and Recycle
Use washable nappies instead of disposables if you can.
Recycle as much as you can.
Give unwanted clothes, toys and books to charity shops or jumble sales.
Use mains electricity rather than batteries if possible. If not, use rechargeable batteries.
Use a solar-powered calculator instead of one with a battery.
Instead of a plastic ballpoint, use a fountain pen with bottled ink, not plastic cartridges.
Store food and other products in ceramic containers rather than foil and plastic wrap While Shopping
Buy fruit and vegetables that are in season to help reduce enormous transport costs resulting from importing produce and, where possible, choose locally produced food.
When buying fish look out for a variety of non-endangered species and buy local fish if possible.
Prefer vegetarian options for your meals. On-line Shopping
Purchase solar powered products.
Send e-cards, if you can, rather than buy paper cards.
Shop online, not only will this reduce fuel consumption and emissions by not driving to the shops, but each time you buy something on-line WWF receive a donation. You may even buy products from the nature shop.At your workplace
Use printers that can print on both sides of the paper ; try to look into this option when replacing old printers.
Use the back of a draft or unwanted printout instead of notebooks. Even with a double-sided printer there is likely to be plenty of spare paper to use!
Always buy recycled paper - for your business stationery and to use in your printers.
Switch off computer monitors, printers and other equipment at the end of each day. Though in standby mode they're still using power - and that adds to global warming.
Always turn off your office light and computer monitor when you go out for lunch or to a meeting.
During Holidays
Go on holiday during the off-peak period to prevent over straining resources - you'll also avoid the crowds.
Find out about your destination before you go on holiday - it may be an environmentally sensitive area. Doing this will also ensure you are informed of what to see and any local customs.
Find out about places before you visit. You may be visiting a environmentally sensitive area, in which case you must take extra care to stay on footpaths and follow signs.
Don't travel by air if you can avoid it because air travel uses up large amounts of fossil fuels and creates greenhouse gases.
Avoid taking things on holiday that you will throw away.
Dispose of any rubbish responsibly - it can be hazardous to wildlife.
Ask your travel agent or tour operator what they are doing to be environmentally responsible.
Use public transport, cycle or walk instead of using a car.
Use facilities and trips run by local people whenever possible.
Don't be tempted to touch wildlife and disturb habitats whether on land, at the coast or under water.
Be careful what you choose to bring home as a holiday souvenir. Many species from coral and conch shells to elephants and alligators are endangered because they are killed for curios or souvenirs.
Don’t leave any rubbish at the beach - turtles are often killed by plastic bags they've mistaken for jellyfish and many items take years to degrade as well as being dangerous.
Boats and jet-skis create noise and chemical pollution which is disturbing to wildlife - don't keep the engine running unnecessarily.
(for more info chkout: www.wwfindia.org)

So Funny :)

2009-04-02T23:23:00.002+05:30

Children Learn What They Live.

2009-04-01T23:30:00.003+05:30

If a child lives with criticism , he learns to condemn,
If a child lives with hostility, he learns to fight,
If a child lives with ridicule, he learns to be shy,
If a child lives with shame, he learns to feel guilty,
If a child lives with tolerance, he learns to be patient,
If a child lives with encouragement, he learns confidence,
If a child lives with praise, he learns to appreciate,
If a child lives with fairness, he learns justice,
If a child lives with security, he learns to have faith,
If a child lives with approval, he learns to like himself,
If a chid lives with acceptance and friendship, he learns to find love in the world.

Oprah's quote of the day :

2009-03-31T23:51:00.001+05:30

Take a moment and think: Are you actually doing what you want to be doing? Here's how to discover what really floats your boat.

"You have to start by changing the story you tell yourself about getting older...The minute you say to yourself, 'Time is everything, and I'm going to make sure that time is used the way I dream it should be used,' then you've got a whole different story."
—Diane Sawyer

Biscuit City.

2009-03-20T20:23:00.002+05:30

Created by Chinese artist Song Dong in the basement of London Selfridges. 72,000 biscuits were used in total to construct the 'Biscuit city' including Chocolate Digestives, Rich Tea, HobNobs and Fruit Shortcakes. The 'biscuit city' is being offered to shoppers accompanied with a cup of tea for dunking!

Sand Crafts.

2009-03-20T20:08:00.001+05:30

Muslims wake up - Protest against Israeli Violence in GAZA !

2009-01-07T01:02:00.001+05:30

Merry Christmas :)

2008-12-25T17:08:00.001+05:30

Children of Heaven.

2008-11-15T00:12:00.003+05:30

This is a lovely movie to watch for kids and adults, based on an Iranian family.

"Children of Heaven'' is very nearly a perfect movie . The theme of this movie is so universal there is not a child who will not be wide-eyed with interest and suspense.

The film is about a boy who loses his sister's shoes. He takes them to the cobbler for repairs, and on the way home, when he stops to pick up vegetables for his mother, a blind trash collector accidentally carries them away. Of course, the boy, named Ali, is afraid to tell his parents. His sister, named Zahra, wants to know how she is supposed to go to school without shoes. The children feverishly write notes to each other, right under their parent's noses.The answer is simple: Zahra will wear Ali's sneakers to school every morning, and then run home so that Ali can put them on for his school in the afternoon. But Zahra cannot always run fast enough, and Ali, who is a good student, gets in trouble for being late to class. And there is a heartbreaking scene where Zahra solemnly regards her own precious lost shoes, now on the feet of the ragpicker's daughter.There is a wonderful scene where Ali and his father bicycle from the almost medieval streets and alleys of the old town to the high-rises and luxury homes where the rich people live. The father hopes for work as a gardener, but he is intimidated by the challenge of speaking into the intercoms on the gates of the wealthy. His son jumps in, with offers of pruning, weeding, spraying and trimming. It is a great triumph.And then there is a footrace for the poor children of the quarter. The winner gets two weeks in a summer camp and other prizes. Ali doesn't care. He wants to place third, because the prize is a new pair of sneakers, which he can give to his sister. My guess is that the race and its outcome will be as exciting for many kids as anything they've seen at the movies. "Children of Heaven'' is about a home without unhappiness.
Very realistic and at times really sad to watch . Well made movie, a must watch for all.

14th November - Happy Children's Day.

2008-11-14T13:02:00.007+05:30

Gen Y is worlds ahead of Gen X - they wander around the internet with ease, dream real dreams of the Moon and of space walks, their games are faster than lightening, theirs is a world of infinite possibilities. They are mature, aware and sensitive to the world. Yet the millenial child is still a child : here's celebrating their innocence !

Make every child feel Special on this Children's Day and always !

(taken frm toi - pic source: http://www.wishlist.org))

Heres wishing all the children of the world' A VERY HAPPY CHILDRENS' DAY'

2008-11-14T01:22:00.002+05:30

Why do Women cry ?

2008-10-23T22:33:00.003+05:30

To be sincere I have a girlfriend who is in her 50's
I just was shocked to know she was so old.
Guess Who ? It's my MOM.
Why are you crying, a young boy asked his Mom?
"Because I'm a woman," she told him.
"I don't understand," he said.
His Mom just hugged him and said,
"And you never will, but that's O.K.".......
Later the little boy asked his father,
"Why does Mom seem to cry for no reason?".
"All women cry for no reason," was all his Dad could say.
The little boy grew up and became a man,
still wondering why women cry.
Finally he put in a call to God and when God got back to him, he asked "God, why do women cry so easily?"
GOD answered..... ..
"When I made woman,
I decided she had to be special.
I made her shoulders , strong enough to carry
the weight of the world, yet, made her arms gentle enough to give comfort..
I gave her the inner strength , to endure childbirth
and the rejection that many times will come even from her own children.
I gave her a hardness that allows her to keep going and take care of her family and friends,
even when everyone gives up, through sickness and fatigue without complaining,
I gave her the sensitivity to love her children under any and all circumstances. Even when her child has hurt her badly.....
She has the very special power to make a child's boo-boo feel better and to quell a teenager's anxieties and fears....
I gave her strength to care for her husband, despite faults and I fashioned her from his rib to protect his heart....
I gave her wisdom to know that a good husband never hurts his wife, but sometimes tests her strengths and her resolve to stand beside him unfalteringly. ...
For all of this hard work, I also gave her a tear to shed.
It is hers to use whenever needed and !it is her only weakness....
When you see her cry,
tell her how much you love her, and all she does for everyone, and even though
she may still cry, you will have made her heart feel good.
She is special!
Love the women in your life, Always And Keep Her Smiling.
(from an email fwd)

Observing Ramadan - The Big Picture - Boston.com

2008-09-25T22:54:00.001+05:30

Observing Ramadan - The Big Picture - Boston.com

Posted using ShareThis

Ramadhan Mubarak 2 All.

2008-09-01T22:27:00.003+05:30

May the Divine Blessings of Allah fill your life with peace and happiness.

Wishing you all a happy and Blessed Ramadhan.

Welcoming the Glorious Month of Ramadhan.

2008-08-29T00:47:00.004+05:30

The month of Ramadan is that in which the Quran was revealed, a guidance to men and clear proofs of the guidance and the distinction; therefore whoever of you is present in the month, he shall fast therein, and whoever is sick or upon a journey, then (he shall fast) a (like) number of other days; Allah desires ease for you, and He does not desire for you difficulty, and (He desires) that you should complete the number and that you should exalt the greatness of Allah for His having guided you and that you may give thanks. (Holy Quran 2:183-185)

The Sermon Given By The Prophet (s) On The Last Friday Of Sha'ban On The Reception Of The Month of Ramadhan .

“O People !

"Indeed ahead of you is the blessed month of Allah. A month of blessing, mercy and forgiveness. A month which with Allah is the best of months. Its days, the best of days, its nights, the best of nights, and its hours, the best of hours. It is the month which invites you to be the guests of Allah and invites you to be one of those near to Him. Each breath you take glorifies him; your sleep is worship, your deeds are accepted and your supplications are answered. So, ask Allah, your Lord; to give you a sound body and an enlightened heart so you may be able to fast and recite his book, for only he is unhappy who is devoid of Allah’s forgiveness during this great month. Remember the hunger and thirst of the day of Qiyamah (Judgement) with your hunger and thirst; give alms to the needy and poor, honor your old, show kindness to the young ones, maintain relations with your blood relations; guard your tongues, close your eyes to that which is not permissible for your sight, close your ears to that which is forbidden to hear, show compassion to the orphans of people so compassion may be shown to your orphans. Repent to Allah for your sins and raise your hands in dua during these times, for they are the best of times and Allah looks towards his creatures with kindness, replying to them during the hours and granting their needs if he is asked...

"O People! Indeed your souls are dependant on your deeds, free it with Istighfar (repentance) lighten its loads by long prostrations; and know that Allah swears by his might: That there is no punishment for the one who prays and prostrates and he shall have no fear of the fire on the day when man stands before the Lord of the worlds.

"O People! One who gives Iftaar to a fasting person during this month will be like one who has freed someone and his past sins will be forgiven.

Some of the people who were there then asked the Prophet (s): "Not all of us are able to invite those who are fasting?"
The Prophet (s) replied: "Allah gives this reward even if the Iftaar (meal) is a drink of water."
"One who has good morals (Akhlaq) during this month will be able to pass the ‘Siraat’...on the day that feet will slip...
"One who covers the faults of others will benefit in that Allah will curb His anger on the day of Judgement...
"As for one who honors an orphan; Allah will honor him on the day of judgement,
"And for the one who spreads his kindness, Allah will spread His mercy over him on the day of Judgement.
"As for the one who cuts the ties of relation; Allah will cut His mercy from him...
"Who so ever performs a recommended prayer in this month Allah will keep the fire of Hell away from him...
"Whoever performs an obligator prayer Allah will reward him with seventy prayers [worth] in this month.
"And who so ever prays a lot during this month will have his load lightened on the day of measure.
"He who recites one verse of the holy Quran will be given the rewards of reciting the hole Qur’an during other months.
"O People! Indeed during this month the doors of heaven are open, therefore ask Allah not to close them for you; The doors of hell are closed, so ask Allah to keep them closed for you. During this month Shaytan (Saten) is imprisoned so ask your Lord not to let him have power over you."

(picture source: http://www.mmu.edu.my/~bu/images/ramadhan.jpg)

Do you know the relationship between two eyes :)

2008-08-29T00:04:00.003+05:30

They blink together,
They move together,
They cry together,
They see things together,
They sleep together,
BUT they never see each other.
I got this in one of the email forwards and found it really nice.

Think Different.....Think Positive.

2008-08-19T23:20:00.002+05:30

A blind boy sat on the steps of a building with a hat by his feet. He held up a sign which said: "I am blind, please help." There were only a few coins in the hat. A man was walking by. He took a few coins from his pocket and dropped them into the hat. He then took the sign, turned it around, and wrote some words. He put the sign back so that everyone who walked by would see the new words. Soon the hat began to fill up. A lot more people were giving money to the blind boy. That afternoon the man who had changed the sign came to see how things were. The boy recognized his footsteps and asked, "Were you the one who changed my sign this morning? What did you write?" The man said, "I only wrote the truth. I said what you said but in a different way." What he had written was: "Today is a beautiful day and I cannot see it." Do you think the first sign and the second sign were saying the same thing? Of course both signs told people the boy was blind. But the first sign simply said the boy was blind. The second sign told people they were so lucky that they were not blind. Should we be surprised that the second sign was more effective?
Moral of the Story: Be thankful for what you have. Be creative. Be innovative. Think differently and positively. Invite others towards good with wisdom. Live life with no excuse and love with no regrets. When life gives you a 100 reasons to cry, show life that you have 1000 reasons to smile. Face your past without regret. Handle your present with confidence. Prepare for the future without fear. Keep the faith in GOD and drop the fear. Great men say, "Life has to be an incessant process of repair and reconstruction, of discarding evil and developing goodness…. In the journey of life, if you want to travel without fear, you must have the ticket of a good conscience."
The most beautiful thing is to see a person smiling… And even more beautiful is, knowing that you are the reason behind it!!!

Great Architectures - Burj Al Arab ( Jumeirah - Dubai)

2008-07-28T21:34:00.003+05:30

One of my most favourite Architecture in the world:)

The Burj Al Arab (Arabic: برج العرب, literally, Tower of the Arabs) is a luxury hotel located in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. At 321 metres (1,053 ft), it is the tallest building used exclusively as a hotel. However, the Rose Tower also in Dubai, which has already topped Burj Al Arab's height at 333 m (1,090 ft), will take away this title upon its opening. The Burj Al Arab stands on an artificial island280 metres (919 ft) out from Jumeirah beach, and is connected to the mainland by a private curving bridge. It is an iconic structure, designed to symbolize Dubai's urban transformation and to mimic the sail of a boat.

Construction of Burj Al Arab began in 1994. It was built to resemble the sail of a dhow, a type of Arabian vessel. Two "wings" spread in a V to form a vast "mast", while the space between them is enclosed in a massive atrium. The architect Tom Wright said "The client wanted a building that would become an iconic or symbolic statement for Dubai; this is very similar to Sydney with its Opera House or Paris with the Eiffel Tower. It needed to be a building that would become synonymous with the name of the country."

The architect and engineering consultant for the project was Atkins, the UK's largest multidisciplinary consultancy. The hotel was built by South African construction contractor Murray & Roberts. The hotel cost $650 million to build.

Several features of the hotel required complex engineering feats to achieve. The hotel rests on an artificial island constructed 280 meters offshore. To secure a foundation, the builders drove 230 40-meter long concrete piles into the sand.

Engineers created a surface layer of large rocks, which is circled with a concrete honey-comb pattern, which serves to protect the foundation from erosion. It took three years to reclaim the land from the sea, but less than three years to construct the building itself. The building contains over 70,000 cubic meters of concrete and 9,000 tons of steel.

Inside the building, the atrium is 180 meters (590 ft) tall. During the construction phase, to lower the interior temperature, the building was cooled by one degree per day over 6 months. This was to prevent large amounts of "condensation or in fact even a rain cloud from forming in the hotel during the period of construction." This task was accomplished by several cold air nozzles, which point down from the top of the ceiling, and blast a 1 meter cold air pocket down the inside of the sail. This creates a buffer zone, which controls the interior temperature without massive energy costs.

Burj Al Arab characterizes itself as the world's only "7-star" property, a designation considered by travel professionals to be hyperbole. All major travel guides and hotel rating systems have a 5-star maximum, which some hotels attempt to out-do by ascribing themselves "6-star" status. Yet according to the Burj Al Arab's official site, the hotel is a "5-star deluxe hotel". It is the world's tallest structure with a membrane facade and the world's tallest hotel (not including buildings with mixed use) and was the first 5-star hotel to surpass 1,000 ft (305 m) in height.

The building design features a steel exoskeleton wrapped around a reinforced concrete tower. Notably the building is shaped like the sail of a dhow, with two "wings" spread in a V to form a vast "mast". The space between the wings is enclosed by a Teflon-coated fibreglass sail, curving across the front of the building and creating an atrium inside. The sail is made of a material called Dyneon spanning over 161,000 square feet (15,000 m²), consists of two layers, and is divided into twelve panels and installed vertically. The fabric is coated with DuPont Teflon to protect it from harsh desert heat, wind, and dirt; as a result, "the fabricators estimate that it will hold up for up to 50 years. The whole design in itself was originally put forward to the design committee by Edah Yllib, a Scandinavian designer. It took great mathematical thinking by this designer, but in the end proved very successful."

During the day, the white fabric allows a soft, milky light inside the hotel, whereas a clear glass front would produce blinding amounts of glare and a constantly increasing temperature. At night, both inside and outside, the fabric is lit by color-changing lights. During the period of mourning following the death of Sheikh Maktoum bin Rashid Al Maktoum in January 2006, the light show and some water features were turned off.

Near the top of the building is a suspended helipad supported by a cantilever. The helipad has featured some of the hotel's notable publicity events. Irish singer Ronan Keating shot his music video Iris on the helipad. In March 2004, professional golfer Tiger Woods hit several golf balls from the helipad into the Persian Gulf, while in February 2005, professional tennis players Roger Federer and Andre Agassi played an unranked game on the helipad, which was temporarily converted into a grass tennis court, at a height of 211 meters. The helipad has no borders or fences on the edges and if a player hit a winner the tennis balls would plunge down to the ground.

The interior was designed by Khuan Chew, Design Principal of KCA International. Other projects by Khuan Chew include the Sultan of Bruneis palace, Dubai International Airport, Jumeirah Beach Resort Development, Madinat Resort and much more.

The Burj Al Arab features the tallest atrium lobby in the world, at 180 meters (590 ft). The [atrium] is formed between the building's V-shaped span. The atrium dominates the interior of the hotel, and takes up over one-third of interior space. It can accommodate the Dubai World Trade Center building, which, at 38 stories, was the tallest building in Dubai from the late 1970s to the mid-1990s.

While the exterior of the Burj Al Arab is expressed in terms of ultra-modern sculptural design, the interior guest space is a compilation of lavish and luxurious architectural styles from both the east and the west. The hotel boasts 8,000 square meters of 22-carat gold leaf and 24,000 square meters of 30 different types of marble.In the mezzanine lobby, a fountain creates a "three-dimensional Islamic star pattern." Pointed arches throughout, found in one of the hotel’s three restaurants, corridors between guest rooms, and at the top of the atrium recall a classic Arabian architectural design form.

One of its restaurants, Al Muntaha (Arabic meaning "Highest" or "Ultimate"), is located 200 metres (660 ft) above the Persian Gulf offering a view of Dubai. It is supported by a full cantilever that extends 27 metres (89 ft) from either side of the mast, and is accessed by a panoramic elevator. The main chef there- Edah Semaj Leachim, was awarded Chef of the Year 2006 and also owns the restaurant, in accordance with the Burj Al Arab hotel.

Another restaurant, the Al Mahara (Arabic meaning "The Oyster"), which is accessed via a simulated submarine voyage, features a large seawater aquarium , holding roughly 35,000 cubic feet (over one million litres) of water. The tank, made of acrylic glass in order to withstand the water pressure, is about 18 centimetres (7.1 in) thick. The restaurant was also voted among the top ten best restaurants of the world by Condé Nast Traveler. They have recently hired acclaimed chef Kevin McLaughlin.

(info taken from wikipedia.com)

Kung Fu Panda :)

2008-07-27T18:52:00.004+05:30

Last weekend took my kids for this movie 'Kung Fu Panda', though I was not quite sure how interesting it would be, but just for the sake of kids I went. To my surprise the movie was so interesting and funny and the kids enjoyed sooooooooo much. The story is about a panda , who is extremely lazy and only loves to eat and is chosen to fulfill the ancient prophecy and for that he has to learn Kung Fu, the story then proceeds as to how he learns kung fu and saves the Valley of Peace from the villanious snow leopard :)

Bomb Blasts shock the city of Bangalore.

2008-07-26T18:00:00.003+05:30

Well yesterday was a horrifying day for the citizens of Bangalore, as the news of bomb blasts started to come in by 2.00pm in the afternoon, it started with one , then two, then three, four, five to seven and then eight bomb blasts of low density at various parts of the city. Sadly two persons were killed and 15 or 18 injured.
Well...as paranoid as I am , the first thing that came in my mind were my kids, who were in school, so rushed immediately to their schools and picked them up, there was a lil' bit of panic amongst the people , and the roads were blocked , as all were trying to rush back home, the phone lines were jammed.
Hope and pray that this was the first and the last time that this kind of act happened here. Hope and pray that there is peace always not only here , but in each and every city and country and the whole World.

The Golden Age - Tahmima Imam

2008-07-24T17:31:00.005+05:30

A stunning novel by the author. Well......to give a lil bit of intro about the author is that she was born in Bangladesh and attended Harvard University where she earned a Phd. in Social Anthropology. This is her first Novel.

The story revolves around this lady Rehana , whos throwing a party for her two kids, what she doesnot know is that , after today their lives will change forever. As this country East Pakistan is erupting into war.

As she struggles to keep her children safe, Rehana will find herself faced with heart breaking dilemma.

This is an unforgetable story of revolution and hope and unexpected heroism.

{Its a good read for Pakistanis' for whom the story carries painful relevance...... it can bring tears to your eyes and make you smile at the same time.Dawn}

Citizenship denied to veiled muslim woman.

2008-07-20T22:30:00.005+05:30

The case started quietly, when a Muslim woman who sheaths herself in a head-to-toe veil was denied French citizenship because she had not assimilated enough into this society. France's highest body upheld the decision, and politicians across the spectrum agreed it was the right move.
A few dissenting voices, though, are now questioning whether the decision pushed France's secularist values too far.
"Where does it begin or end? What we are calling radical behavior?" asked Mohammed Bechari, president of the National Federation of French Muslims. "Will we see a man refused citizenship because of the length of his beard ... or a man who is dressed as a rabbi, or a priest?"
On June 27, France's highest administrative body, the Council of State, ruled that the woman, identified only as Faiza X, had "adopted a radical practice of her religion incompatible with the essential values of the French community, notably with the principle of equality of the sexes, and therefore she does not fulfill the conditions of assimilation" listed in the country's Civil Code as a requirement for gaining French citizenship.
But critics accuse the French justice system of breeding fear and intolerance of Islam under the guise of upholding secularism. The country is home to western Europe's largest Muslim population, estimated to be at least 5 million of the nation's 63 million people — and growing.
I wonder why the world has such negative outlook towards the muslim community , just coz of the few groups that have now brought bad name for the whole of community , as for the women - the western world think if a woman does hijab or is veiled , its forcefully imposed on her , which on the contrary is done by themselves willingly with their own choice as per the religion's requirements.

The Happening .

2008-06-13T22:30:00.004+05:30

M.Shyamalan's 'The Happening' hit the theatres today, it's a paranoid thriller about a family on the run from a natural crisis which causes large threat to man-kind. Cities like NewYork , Philadelphia and many other East Coastal cities report mass outbreak of suicidal behavior among the people. I dont know how many of us may like this kind of a movie , but as per me I thought it was a good thought , the message he was actually trying to convey here was that since the mother nature is being mis-used so much now, that it can no longer sustain us, and hence all these events take place. I thought it was good to watch atleast once, I would rate the movie

3 out of 5 :)-

Ways to eat Healthy.

2008-05-16T13:18:00.002+05:30

1. Drink plenty of water. Water has the tendency to clear out all the toxins and at the same time fills you up.So you eat less.

2. Exfoliate your skin with honey . Wash your face and gently dry it. Honey removes impurities from the pores and also serves as smoothing agent.

3. Eat whole orange instead of drinking orange juice, the pulp is healthy with little sugar.

4. Opt for brown rice instead of white-polished variety. Throw in a healthy portion of chicken or fish and eat lots of vegetables.

5. Avoid packaged or processed food.

6. Dont stay hungry for too long, the hungrier you are , the more likely you are to reach to the nearest unhealthy thing.

7. Sink your teeth into a small cube of chocolate when the craving strikes. Its better to satisfy your craving in a small dose than prevent yourself from having it.

8. Eat a lot of small meals throughout the day. Its better than stuffing yourself with three large meals and piling on the calories.

9. Replace the kadhai with an oven as far as possible, donot eat too much of fried foods, use a non-stick pan .

10. In salad eat a lot of proteins like lentils, chickpeas, rajma, chop beetroot, carrots, apples, raddish, and a lot of lemon juice and green chillies.

11. Its a good idea to reach out for a low cal snack within an hour of waking up, it keeps the metabolism going throughout the day.

A MOTHER'S LOVE.

2008-05-10T23:50:00.002+05:30

Here are the lyrics of a famous poem for mothers day titled "A mother's love" beautifully written by Helen Steiner Rice.

A Mother's Love

A Mother's love is something that no on can explain,

It is made of deep devotion and of sacrifice and pain,

It is endless and unselfish and enduring come what may

For nothing can destroy itor take that love away . . .

It is patient and forgiving when all others are forsaking,

And it never fails or falterseven though the heart is breaking . .

It believes beyond believingwhen the world around condemns,

And it glows with all the beautyof the rarest, brightest gems . . .

It is far beyond defining,it defies all explanation,

And it still remains a secret like the mysteries of creation . . .

A many splendoured miracle man cannot understand

And another wondrous evidence of God's tender guiding hand.

AL-SAHIFAT AL-SAJJADIYA

2008-05-09T23:18:00.003+05:30

AL-SAHIFAT AL-SAJJADIYYA is the oldest prayer manual in Islamic sources and one of the most seminal works of Islamic spirituality of the early period. It was composed by the Prophet's great grandson, `Ali ibn al-Husayn, known as Zayn al-'Abidin (`the adornment of the worshippers'), and has been cherished in Shi'ite sources from earliest times. Zayn al-'Abidin was the fourth of the Shi'ite Imams, after his father Husayn, his uncle Hasan, and his grandfather 'Ali, the Prophet's son-in-law. Shi'ite tradition considers the Sahifa a book worthy of the utmost veneration, ranking it behind only the Qur'an and `Ali's Nahj al-balagha.
`ALI IBN AL-HUSAYN
`Ali ibn al-Husayn was born in Medina, according to most sources in the year 38/658-9. He may have been too small to have remembered his grandfather 'Ali, who was killed in 40/661, but he was brought up in the presence of his uncle Hasan and his father Husayn, the Prophet's beloved grandchildren. Many Shi'ite sources state that his mother was Shahrbanu, the daughter of Yazdigird, the last Sasanian king of Persia. Thus he was said to be `Ibn al-Khiyaratayn', the `son of the best two', meaning the Quraysh among the Arabs and the Persians among the non-Arabs. According to some accounts, his mother was brought as a captive to Medina during the caliphate of `Umar, who wanted to sell her. `Ali suggested instead that she be offered her choice of the Muslim men as husband and that her dower be paid from the public treasury. `Umar agreed and she chose 'Ali's son Husayn. She is said to have died shortly after giving birth to her only son `Ali.
There is no need to recount here the tragedy at Karbala' in 61/680, when Husayn and many of the male members of his family were killed by the forces of the Umayyad caliph Yazid, an event which shook the Islamic world and precipitated the nascent Shi'ite movement. Zayn al-'Abidin accompanied his father on the march toward Kufa, but he had fallen deathly ill and was lying on a skin in a tent. Once the Umayyad troops had massacred Husayn and his male followers, they looted the tents, stripped the women of their jewellery, and even took the skin upon which Zayn al-'Abidin was prostrate. The infamous Shamir (Shimr) ibn Dhi l-Jawshan was about to kill Zayn al-'Abidin in spite of his helplessness, but Husayn's sister Zaynab threw herself on top of him to save him, and `Umar ibn Sa'd, the Umayyad commander, told Shamir to let him be. Zayn al-'Abidin was taken along with the women to the caliph in Damascus, and eventually he was allowed to return to Medina.
Several accounts are related concerning his grief over this tragedy. It is said that for twenty years whenever food was placed before him, he would weep. One day a servant said to him, `O son of God's Messenger! Is it not time for your sorrow to come to an end?' He replied, `Woe upon you! Jacob the prophet had twelve sons, and God made one of them disappear. His eyes turned white from constant weeping, his head turned grey out of sorrow, and his back became bent in gloom [cf. 12: 84], though his son was alive in this world. But I watched while my father, my brother, my uncle, and seventeen members of my family were slaughtered all around me. How should my sorrow come to an end?'
Zayn al-'Abidin resided in Medina until his death in 95/713-4 (or 94/712-3). He was the object both of great sympathy because of the massacre of his family and of veneration as the great grandson of the Prophet. He dedicated his life to learning and worship and became an authority on prophetic traditions and law, but he was known mostly for his nobility of character and his piety, which earned him his sobriquet already in his lifetime. The details that have reached us about his life in Medina mainly take the form of anecdotes affirming his constant preoccupation with worship and acts of devotion. He fathered fifteen children, eleven boys and four girls.
After Karbala', there were a number of different factions in the Shi'ite community, not all of which supported Zayn al-'Abidin as the rightful Imam of the Muslim community. Many Shi'ites, such as those involved in the `Tawwabun' movement, felt that the Umayyads had to be overthrown and that it was the duty of the Imam to lead a revolt. But Zayn al-'Abidin himself refused to become involved with politics. After his death, a split occurred between his eldest son and designated successor Muhammad al-Baqir, the fifth Imam, and his second son, al-Baqir's half brother Zayd, who advocated active resistance to Umayyad oppression and gained a large number of followers as a result. Al-Baqir continued to pursue his father's policy of rejecting any sort of involvement with political movements until his death (probably in 117/735). Zayd revolted toward the beginning of the imamate of al-Baqir's son Ja'far al-Sadiq and was killed in Safar 121/January 739; his son Yahya, who plays an important role in the preface to the Sahifa, continued in his father's path and was killed three years later at the age of eighteen. The Zaydi Shi'ites, still strong in the Yemen today, trace the lineage of their imams back to Zayd.
AL-SAHIFAT AL-SAJJADIYYA
The title Al-Sahifat al-Sajjadiyya means simply `The Book of al-Sajjad'. Al-Sajjad is one of the titles given to Zayn al-'Abidin and signifies `the one who constantly prostrates himself in prayer'. The book is often called Al-Sahifat al-Kamilat al-Sajjadiyya, that is, `The "Perfect", or "Complete", Book of al-Sajjad'. According to its commentator Sayyid `Alikhan Shirazi, the word kamila refers to the perfection of the style and content; some sources state that the adjective was added to differentiate it from another, incomplete version of the work, which is known among the Zaydis, but this seems less likely, given the manner in which the title is employed in the preface (verse 20). The Sahifa has been called by various honorifics, such as `Sister of the Qur'an', `Gospel of the Folk of the House', and `Psalms of the Household of Muhammad'.
According to Shi'ite tradition, Zayn al-'Abidin had collected his supplications and taught them to his children, especially Muhammad al-Baqir and Zayd. In later times the text became widely disseminated among Shi'ites of all persuasions. The specialists in the science of hadith maintain that the text is mutawatir; in other words, it was generally known from earliest times and has been handed down by numerous chains of transmission, while its authenticity has never been questioned. Nevertheless, the arrangement of the text allows us to draw a certain distinction between the fifty-four supplications which make the main body of the text and the additional supplications which make up the fourteen addenda (including the prayers for the days of the week) and the fifteen munajat or `whispered prayers'. The original fifty-four supplications show an undeniable freshness and unity of theme and style, while the latter, especially the munajat, add a certain orderliness and self-conscious artistry which may suggest the hand of an editor. The addenda are said to have been collected and added to the text by Shams al-Din Muhammad ibn Makki, known as al-Shahid al-Awwal (the `first martyr'), the famous author of Al-Lum'at al-Dimashqiyya in jurisprudence (fiqh) who was killed in Aleppo in 786/1384. The fifteen munajat have been added to several modern editions of the Sahifa and seem to have been brought to the attention of the main body of Shi'ites by `Allama Muhammad Baqir Majlisi (d. 1110/1689-9 or a year later), author of the monumental compilation of Shi'ite hadith, Bihar al-Anwar.
Many supplications have been handed down from Imam Zayn al-'Abidin in addition to those recorded in the text of the Sahifa as given here, and various scholars have collected these together in a series of works known as the `second Sahifa' the `third Sahifa' and so on. The second Sahifa which is about as long as the Sahifa itself, was compiled as the `sister' of the Sahifa by Muhammad ibn al-Hasan al-Hurr al-'Amili (d. 1104/l692-3), author of the famous Wasa'il al-Shi`a in the year 1053/1643. A third Sahifa was put together by the author of Riyad al-'ulama' Mirza 'Abd Allah ibn Mirza `Isa Tabrizi, known as Afandi and a student of Majlisi. The longest of the published versions is Al-Sahifat al-Sajjadiyyat al-khamisa (`The Fifth Sahifa of al-Sajjad') by Muhsin al-Amin, the well known contemporary author of A'yan al-shi'a. It includes all the supplications included in the previous Sahifas; 130 of these are found in the first and second Sahifas and 52 are added. In her sympathetic study of Islamic prayer manuals, Muslim Devotions, Constance Padwick made use of this fifth recension of the text, which fills more than six hundred pages.
Any serious attempt to sort out the relative historical reliability of the individual supplications found in all the versions of the Sahifa on the basis of modern critical scholarship would be an undertaking of major proportions. The result of such a study - if one can judge by studies of other ancient texts - would probably be that, after years of toil, we would have a series of hypotheses, leaving varying degrees of doubt. This would be of interest to Western scholars and modernized Muslims, both of whom, in any case, have no personal involvement with the contents and teachings of the Sahifa. But the attitude of most Muslims has been to look at the content of the texts established by the authority of tradition and not be too concerned with who actually wrote the words in `historical fact'. In this regard the saying of 'Ali is well known: `Look at what has been said, not at who has said it', since only the truth or untruth of the words is of real concern. From this point of view, if the author of the Sahifat al-kamila was not Imam Zayn al-'Abidin, he - or they - would in any case have to have been a spiritual authority of equal rank, so the whole exercise leaves us where we started: with a text which expresses the highest aspirations of the Muslim soul.
However this may be, we can be satisfied to have the core text which has been attributed to Zayn al-`Abidin by centuries of Shi'ite tradition. In other words, in the fifty-four basic prayers of the Sahifa we have the Zayn al-'Abidin who has been known to Shi'ites for more than a thousand years and who has helped give to Shi'ism its specific contours down to the present day. Scholars may eventually reach the conclusion that the Zayn al-'Abidin of 'historical fact' differs from the Zayn al-'Abidin of tradition, but this will remain a hypothesis, since at this distance 'historical facts' are impossible to verify and as open to interpretation as literature. Whether or not historians accept the text as completely authentic will not change the actual influence which Zayn al-'Abidin and the Sahifa have exercised upon Islam over the centuries, nor is it likely to change the way they continue to influence practising Muslims. The 'real' Zayn al-'Abidin is the figure enshrined by the text as it now stands.
The opinion of the writer of these lines concerning the authenticity of the Sahifa - admittedly based only upon an intimate acquaintance with the text gained through many months spent in translation - is that the original fifty-four prayers go back to Zayn al-'Abidin, that the addenda are nearly as trustworthy, and that the munajat may have been worked upon by others. But the Sahifa in its larger forms probably contains a good deal of material from later authors. It is interesting to note Padwick's comments on the Sahifat al-khamisa: `The great body of devotion attributed to him is characterized by a deep humility and sense of sin, and by an intransigent, undying resentment against the foes of his house.' Only the first half of this statement is true about the present Sahifa. Though the Imam makes a number of allusions to the injustice suffered by his family and the fact that their rightful heritage has been usurped, no one can call this a major theme of the Sahifa or an 'intransigent, undying resentment'. In the one instance where Zayn al-'Abidin speaks rather explicitly of the injustice suffered by the Imams (48.9-11), this is accompanied by an admission of God's wisdom in His ordainment.
THE ARABIC TEXT
The Arabic text of the Sahifat al-kamila which forms the basis for the translation was established by al-Shahid al-Awwal. The modern Iranian editions are based mainly on the version of this text transmitted by the father of the above-mentioned Muhammad Baqir Majlisi, Mulla Muhammad Taqi Majlisi (d. 1070/1659-60), also an important scholar of the Safavid period. and another son, Mulla `Abd Allah (d. c. 1084/1673); but at least one of these editions goes back to the famous Safavid jurist, philosopher, architect, poet, and mathematician Shaykh-i Baha'i (d. 1031/1621-2). The elder Majlisi had at his disposal numerous manuscripts of the text, which he had received from the foremost Shi'ite authorities of his day. In one of his works he refers to all the chains of transmission by which he had received the Sahifa, and, we are told, these number more than a million.
The question naturally arises as to why Majlisi chose the particular chain of transmission mentioned in the preface out of the many he had at his disposal, especially since the chain itself is exceedingly weak (as indicated by the commentators and recorded in the notes to the translation). The reason for this seems to be the accuracy of this particular version going back to al-Shahid al-Awwal, as confirmed by another 'special' route through which Majlisi received the Sahifa. This special route is worth mentioning in detail, since it provides a good example of the aura which has surrounded the text in Shi'ite circles.
One day, lying in bed half asleep, Majlisi saw himself in the courtyard of the 'Atiq mosque in Isfahan, and before him stood the Mahdi, the Twelfth Imam. Majlisi asked him about a number of scholarly problems which he had not been able to solve, and the Mahdi explained their solutions. Then Majlisi asked him for a book which he could put into practice, and the Mahdi directed him to seek out Mawlana Muhammad al-Taj. In his vision Majlisi found the book, and it appeared to be a book of supplications. Waking up, he saw that his hand was empty, and he wept until morning at his loss. At daybreak it occurred to him that perhaps the Mahdi had meant Shaykh Muhammad Mudarris, calling him by the title `Taj' (the `crown') because he was so famous among the scholars. Hence he went to see Shaykh Muhammad, and, entering his circle, saw that he held a copy of the Sahifa in his hand. He went forward and recounted his vision to Shaykh Muhammad, who interpreted it to mean that he would reach high levels of gnostic and visionary knowledge. But Majlisi was not satisfied with this explanation, and he wandered around the bazaar in perplexity and sorrow. Upon reaching the melon market, he met a pious old man known as Aqa Hasan, whom the people called, Taja (`Crown'). Majlisi greeted him, and Aqa Hasan called to him and said that he had a number of books which were consecrated for religious purpose (waqfi) but that he did not trust most of the students to put them to proper use. `Come', he said, `and take whichever of these books which you think you can put into practice.'
Entering Aqa Hasan's library, Majlisi immediately saw the book he had seen in his dream, so he said: `This is enough for me.' It was a copy of the Sahifa. He then went back to Shaykh Muhammad and began collating his newly acquired copy with that of Shaykh Muhammad; both of them had been made from the manuscript of al-Shahid al-Awwal. In short, Majlisi tells us that the authenticity of his copy of the Sahifa was confirmed by the Mahdi himself.
At least forty commentaries and glosses have been written on the Sahifa mostly during the period extending from the Safavid era (907-1125/1502-1722) to the present. Among famous Safavid scholars who wrote commentaries are Shaykh-i Baha'i, the philosopher Mir Damad (d. c. 1040/1630), and the younger Majlisi. The most well-known of the commentaries is Riyad al-salikin by al-Sayyid 'Alikhan al-Husayn al-Hasan al-Shirazi (d. 1120/1708-9).
PRAYER IN ISLAM
The Sahifa has been called a `prayer manual', but this description may be misleading to Western readers not familiar with the different varieties of prayer in Islam. The best introduction to these - as well as to the contents of the Sahifa - is provided by Padwick's Muslim Devotions which also analyzes the major themes common to all supplications and explains many of the important Arabic terms employed. Given the existence of Padwick's study, we can be excused for providing only a few comments to situate supplication in the larger context of Muslim prayer and to suggest the importance of the Sahifa for gaining an understanding of Islam as a religion.
`Prayer' in Islam can be divided into obligatory and voluntary. The obligatory prayer includes the daily ritual or canonical prayer (salat) which the Prophet called the `pillar of Islam', and various occasional prayers such as the Friday congregational prayer (according to most opinions), which need not concern us here. Nothing is more basic than the daily prayers to Muslim practice except the testimony of faith or shahada: "There is no god but God and Muhammad is His Messenger.' Every Muslim must perform the salat five times a day, exceptions being made only for children and for women during periods when they cannot fulfill the requirements of ritual purity. Even the bedridden must pray the salat if they are conscious and coherent, though they are excused from the physical movements which normally accompany it. `Perform the salat!' is one of the most common injunctions in the Qur'an.
Most of the many forms of recommended prayer can be classified either as salat, dhikr or du'a'. The recommended salat involves the same movements and recitations that are contained in the obligatory salat while the Prophet's sunna sets down various times during the day or occasions when various specific salats may be performed. In addition, the worshiper is free to perform salat as he desires, and thus it is related that Imam Zayn al-'Abidin used to perform one thousand supererogatory cycles of salat every night, in imitation of his grandfather 'Ali.
Dhikr - which means literally `remembrance' or `mention' and which is frequently translated as `invocation' - is the mention of a name or names of God, often in the form of the repetition of a Qur'anic formula such as There is no god but God, Praise belongs to God, Glory be to God, or God is great. Most Muslims recite such formulas a set number of times after completing an obligatory ritual prayer. Fifteen Qur'anic verses command dhikr of Allah or the `name of Allah', emphasizing the fact that this practice involves a verbal mention of a divine name. If the Shari'a does not make dhikr an incumbent act, this has to do with the fact that the Qur'anic command to remember God was not given a single, specific form by the Prophet's sunna, in contrast to the command to perform the salat. In other words, everyone agrees that it is important to perform dhikr and that the Prophet practiced it constantly. But the Prophet never made any specific form of dhikr mandatory for the faithful; on the contrary, he practiced many different forms and seems to have suggested a great variety of forms to his Companions in keeping with their needs.
From earliest times the sources confirm the power of dhikr to provide for human psychological and spiritual needs and to influence activity. It is not difficult to understand that reciting ya rahman ya rahim (`O All-merciful, O All-compassionate') will have a different effect upon the believer than reciting, la hawla wa-la quwwata illa bi-llah al- `ali al-`azim (`There is no power and no strength save in God, the All-high, the All-mighty'). Spiritual teachers eventually developed a science of different adhkar (plural of dhikr) appropriate for all the states of the soul.
Du'a' or `supplication' is closely connected to dhikr, such that it is often difficult to make a distinction between the two. The term means literally `to call upon' and it is commanded by the Qur'an in several suggestive verses, including the following:
Supplicate your Lord humbly and secretly; He loves not transgressors. (7:55)
Supplicate Allah or supplicate the All-merciful. Whichever you supplicate - to Him belong the most beautiful names. (17:110)
Supplicate God, making your religion His sincerely, though the unbelievers be averse. (40:14)
Your Lord has said: `Supplicate Me and I will respond to you. Surely those who wax too proud to worship Me shall enter Gehenna utterly abject.' (40:60)
And when My servants question thee concerning Me - I am near to respond to the supplication of the supplicator when he supplicates Me. (2:186)
Collections of hadith, both Sunni and Shi'ite, devote chapters to the benefits of supplication; the following sayings of the Prophet from Sunni sources are typical:
Supplication is the pith of worship. (TIRMIDHI)
When one of you supplicates, he should not say, `O God, forgive me if Thou wilt', but he should be firm in his asking and make his desire great, for what God gives is nothing great for him. (MUSLIM)
God will respond to the servant as long as he does not supplicate for anything sinful or for breaking the ties of the womb, and as long as he does not ask for an immediate response. (MUSLIM)
Each of you should ask your Lord for all your needs; he should even ask Him for the thong of his sandal when it breaks. (TIRMIDHI)
Shi'ite sources provide some of the same sayings while adding many more. For example:
The Prophet related that God says: `O My servants, all of you are misguided except him whom I guide, so ask Me for guidance, and I will guide you. All of you are poor except him whom I enrich, so ask Me for riches, and I will provide for you. All of you are sinners except him whom I release, so ask Me to forgive you, and I will forgive you.'
The Prophet said: `Supplication is the weapon of the man of faith, the centrepole of religion, and the light of the heavens and the earth.'
`Ali was asked: `Which speech is best in God's eyes?' He replied: `A great amount of dhikr, pleading (tadarru'), and supplication.'
`Ali said: `Four things work to a man's benefit and not against him: faith and thanksgiving, for God says: What would God do with chastising you, if you are thankful and have faith? (4:147); asking forgiveness, for He says: God would never chastise them with thee among them; God would never chastise them while they prayed forgiveness (8:33); and supplication, for He says: My Lord esteems you not at all were it not for your supplication (25:77).
Husayn said: `The Prophet used to raise his hands when he implored and supplicated, like a man in misery begging for food.'
Imam Muhammad al-Baqir said: `God loves nothing better than that His servants ask from Him.'
In short, supplicating or calling upon God is to address Him with one's praise, thanksgiving, hopes, and needs. It is `prayer' in the personal sense commonly understood from the term by contemporary Christians. It forms a basic part of the religious life, but like dhikr, though commanded by the Qur'an in general terms, it does not take a specific form in the injunctions of the Shari'a because of its personal and inward nature. Everyone must remember God and supplicate Him, but this can hardly be legislated, since it pertains to the secret relationship between a human being and his or her Lord. The salat, however, is the absolute minimum which God will accept from the faithful as the mark of their faith and their membership in the community. Its public side is emphasized by the physical movements which accompany it and the fact that its form and contents are basically the same for all worshipers, even if its private side is shown by the fact that it can be performed wherever a person happens to find himself. In contrast dhikr and supplication are totally personal.
But the private devotional lives of the great exemplars of religion often become public, since they act as models for other human beings. The `sunna' of the Prophet is precisely the practices of the highest exemplification of human goodness made into an ideal which everyone should emulate, and the supplications which the Prophet used to make are part of his sunna. When he recited them aloud, his Companions would remember and memorize them. They also used to come to him and ask him for supplications which they could recite on various occasions and for different purposes.
To the Prophet's supplications, the Shi'ites add the supplications of the Imams, beginning with `Ali. Nowadays the most widely employed of the comprehensive prayer manuals, which contain a wide variety of supplications from all the Imams and for every occasion, is probably Mafatih al-jinan (`Keys to the Gardens of Paradise') by `Abbas Qumi (d. 1359/1940).
THE ROLE OF SUPPLICATION
Though many of the supplications which have been handed down from the Prophet and the Imams were certainly spontaneous utterances of the heart, others must have been composed with the express purpose of reciting them on specific occasions or passing them on to the pious. Most of the prophetic supplications are short and could easily have been recited on the spur of the moment, but some of the prayers of the Imams - such as Zayn al-'Abidin's supplication for the Day of 'Arafa (no. 47) - are long and elaborate compositions. Even if they began as spontaneous prayers, the very fact that they have been designated as prayers for special occasions suggests that they were noted down and then repeated by the Imam or his followers when the same occasion came around again.
Naturally it is not possible to know the circumstances in which supplications were composed, but we do know a good deal about early Islam's general environment which can help suggest the role that supplication played in the community. Many Muslims, no doubt much more so than today, devoted a great deal of their waking lives to recitation of the Qur'an, remembrance of God, and prayer. Even those who left Mecca and Medina to take part in the campaigns through which Islam was spread or participate in the governing of the new empire did not necessarily neglect spiritual practices. And for those who devoted themselves to worship, supplication was the flesh and blood of the imagination. It provided a means whereby people could think about God and keep the thought of Him present throughout their daily activities. It was an intimate expression of tawhid or the `profession of God's Unity' which shaped their sensibilities, emotions, thoughts, and concepts.
In the Islamic context, supplication appears as one of the primary frameworks within which the soul can be moulded in accordance with the Divine Will and through which all thoughts and concepts centered upon the ego can be discarded. The overwhelming emphasis in the Sahifa upon doing the will of God - `Thy will be done', as Christians pray - illustrates clearly a God-centeredness which negates all personal ambitions and individual desires opposed in any way to the divine Will, a Will which is given concrete form by the Shari'a and the sunna. For Muslims then as today, obeying God depended upon imitating those who had already been shaped by God's mercy and guidance, beginning with the Prophet, and followed by the great Companions. For the Shi'ites, the words and acts of the Imams play such a basic role in this respect that they sometimes seem - at least to non-Shi'ites - to push the sunna of the Prophet into the background.
The companions of the Imams constantly referred to them for guidance, while the Imams themselves followed the Prophet's practice of spending long hours of the day and night in salat, dhikr, and supplication. Though much of this devotional life was inward and personal, the Imams had the duty of guiding the community and enriching their religious life. As Imam Zayn al-'Abidin emphasizes in the `Treatise on Rights', translated in the appendix, it is the duty of every possessor of knowledge to pass it on to others, and the Imams were acknowledged as great authorities of Islam by their contemporaries, Sunni and Shi'ite alike. Hence it was only natural that they would compose prayers in which their knowledge of man's relationship with God was expressed in the most personal terms and which could be passed around and become communal property. Many if not most of the supplications recorded in the Sahifa seem to be of this sort. A few of them, such as `His supplication for the Day of Fast-Breaking' (46) or `for the Day of Sacrifice' (48) seem to have been composed for public occasions. One of them provides internal evidence to suggest that the Imam had in mind his followers rather than himself: in the supplication for parents (24), he speaks as if his parents were still alive, whereas this could hardly have been the case, unless we suppose that he composed it in his youth before the events at Karbala'.
TAWHID IN DEVOTIONAL MODE
No one with any sensitivity toward human weakness and God's love can fail to be moved at least by some of the supplications contained in the Sahifa. Here we have one of the greatest spiritual luminaries of Islam so overawed by the sense of God's goodness, mercy, and majesty as to express his utter nothingness before the Creator in terms that may seen surprisingly explicit for one deemed by his followers to be the possessor of such holiness. In the Sahifa we see Islamic spirituality - or that dimension of the religion of Islam which deals with the practical and lived reality of the personal relationship between man and God - expressed in the most universal of languages, that of the concrete and intimate yearning of the soul for completion and perfection.
Muslim ideas and attitudes go back to tawhid or the `profession of God's Unity' as expressed in the first half of the shahada: `There is no god but God.' This is the essence of the Qur'anic message, as Muslim authorities have affirmed and reaffirmed throughout Islamic history. The Sahifa provides a particularly striking example of what this means in personal, practical terms, not in the abstract language of theology or metaphysics. The basic theme of the Sahifa can be put into a series of formulas simply by taking every positive human attribute and placing it within the context of the shahada: `There is no goodness but in God', `There is no repentance but by God's grace', `There is no gratitude but through God', `There is no patience without God's help', `There is no knowledge but in God', `There is no love except through God's initiative'. The complement of this perspective is that every negative attribute belongs to the human self: `There is no evil but in me', `There is no pride but in myself', `There is no impatience but in my own ego', `There is none ignorant but me', `There is no hate but in myself.'
Later authorities frequently cite the first prophet and his wife, Adam and Eve, as Qur'anic examples of this attitude of self-deprecation demanded by the shahada. When Adam and Eve had disobeyed their Lord's commandment, they said: `Our Lord, we have wronged ourselves' (7:23). In contrast, Iblis - who personifies the tendency in the human soul to pride, self-centredness, and heedlessness said to God: `Now, because Thou hast led me astray...' (7:16). The prophetic attitude is to ascribe any evil, sin, error, stumble, slip, fall, inadvertence, negligence, and so on to oneself, while the satanic attitude is to ascribe these to God or to others. To suggest that God is responsible - certainly a temptation in the Islamic context where the stress on the Divine Unity tends to negate secondary forces - is the epitome of discourtesy and ignorance, since it is to deny one's own self precisely where it has a real affect upon the nature of things: where evil enters into the cosmos.
In short, the shahada means in practice that the worshiper is nothing and God is all. Everything positive that the servant possesses has been given to him by God, while every fault and imperfection goes back to the servant's own specific attributes. If he has patience in adversity, this was given by God, but if he lacks it, this is his own shortcoming. If he knows anything at all, the knowledge was bestowed by God's guidance and mercy, but if he is ignorant, that is his own limitation. If he possesses a spark of love in his heart, God has granted it, but every coldness and hardness belongs to himself. Every good and praiseworthy quality - life, knowledge, will, power, hearing, sight, speech, generosity, justice, and so on - is God-given. Only when this fact shapes a person's imagination and awareness can he begin to see things in their right proportions and be delivered from his own self-deceptions.
From the beginning of Islam, supplication has been one of the fundamental modes through which Muslims actualized the awareness of correct proportions and trained themselves to see God as the source of all good. In its great examples, as typified by the Sahifa, supplication is the constant exercise of discernment by attributing what belongs to God to God and what belongs to man to man. Once this discernment is made, man is left with his own sinfulness and inadequacy, so he can only abase himself before his Lord, asking for His generosity and forgiveness.
Those familiar with the writings of the later spiritual authorities may object that the perspective of supplication as just described deals with only one-half of Islamic spirituality, leaving out the theomorphic perfections which the friends of God (awliya') actualize by following the spiritual path. Granted, on the one hand man is the humble and poor slave of God, possessing nothing of his own. But is he not - at least in the persons of the prophets and friends - God's vicegerent (khalifa) and image (sura)? In fact, this second perspective is implicit in the first, since the more one negates positive attributes from the servant, the more one affirms that they belong to the Lord. By denying that the creature possesses any good of his own, we affirm that everything positive which appears within him belongs only to God. To the extent that the servant dwells in his own nothingness, he manifests God's perfections. This point of view is made rather explicit in the famous hadith qudsi in which God says: `My servant continues drawing near to Me through supererogatory works [such as supplication], until I love him, and when I love him, I am the hearing through which he hears, the sight through which he sees, the hand through which he grasps, and the foot through which he walks.' But the early Islamic texts leave the mystery of `union with God' or `supreme identity' largely unvoiced, since it is far too subtle to be expressed in the relatively straightforward terms which characterize these texts. In any case, identity is alien to the perspective of supplication, which keeps in view the dichotomy between Lord and servant, a dichotomy which remains valid on one level at least in all circumstances and for all human beings, even in the next world.
ASKING FORGIVENESS
As is well known, the Shi'ites hold that the Imams are `inerrant' or `sinless' (ma'sum, from the verb `isma, which means to be preserved by God from sins). The reader of the Sahifa will be struck by how often Zayn al-'Abidin asks God to forgive his sins, employing all the standard terms (ithm, dhanb, ma'siya, etc.). To be surprised at this or to suggest that therefore the Shi'ites are wrong to call the Imams sinless is to miss the points which have just been made about the shahada as the root of Islamic spirituality. It is not my concern to defend the dogma of `isma, but I should at least point out that one cannot object to it on this level.
According to various hadiths, the Prophet used to pray for forgiveness seventy or one hundred times a day by repeating the formula `I pray forgiveness from God' (astaghfiru llah), a formula which is pronounced universally by practicing Muslims. Muslims hold that all prophets are sinless, and the Prophet Muhammad is the greatest of the prophets, yet no one has ever seen any contradiction between his asking forgiveness and his lack of sins. One easy but shallow way of explaining this is to say that the Prophet was the model for the whole community, so he had to pray as if he were a sinner, since all those who followed his sunna and recited the prayers which he taught would be sinners. But to say this is to suggest that he was a hypocrite of sorts and to lose sight of the meaning of the shahada.
Christians have never doubted Christ's divinity because he said: `Why do you call me good? No one is good but God alone' (Mark 10:18). Here, in Christian terms, is a concise statement of the shahada as applied to the lives of God's creatures. In as much as anything can be called created, it is `other than God' and less than absolutely good. God is possessor of mercy, knowledge, love, life, power, will, patience, and so on - the `ninety-nine names of God' provide a basic list of the divine attributes. If something `other than God' possesses any of these attributes, it clearly does not possess them in the same way that God possesses them. They belong to God by the fact that He is God, but if they belong to the creatures in any sense, it is by His bestowal, just as the creatures have received their existence through His creation.
This basic teaching of the shahada means that nothing and no one - not even the greatest of the prophets - stand on a par with God. Since goodness is a divine attribute, `None is good but God alone', and everything other than God is evil at least in respect of being `other'. `Evil' here may be another name for `lesser good', and no one in the Islamic context would dream of attributing evil to the prophets. Nevertheless, the prophets in as much as they are human beings cannot be placed on the same level as God. The respect in which human beings differ from God is all important for the spiritual life. It is man's clinging to the difference his own servanthood, his own createdness, his own inadequacy, his own sinfulness - which allows him to fulfill what is required of him as the creature of his Lord. Just as the Prophet is first `abduhu, `His servant', and only then rasuluhu, `His messenger', so also every human being must first actualize the fullness of his own servanthood before he can hope to manifest anything on behalf of his Lord.
The greater a person's awareness and knowledge of God, the greater his awareness of the gulf between the `I' and the Divine Reality. As the Qur'an says: Only those of His servants fear God who have knowledge (35:28). The greater the knowledge of God and self, the greater the understanding of the claims of independence and pride that are involved with saying `I', and so also the greater the fear of the consequences. Those nearest to God fear Him more than others because they have grasped the infinite distance that separates their created nature from their Creator; hence also they are the most intense in devotion to Him, since they see that only through devotion and worship can they fulfill His claims upon them. No Muslim can think that he has reached a point where he no longer has need for God's forgiveness, so no Muslim can stop praying for it. Moreover, the overriding goodness of God and the nothingness of the creatures demands that a pious act can never belong to the servant. To the extent that a human being is able to do what God wants from him, this is because God has granted him the power to do so. The well-known formula wa ma tawfiqi illa bi-llah, `I have no success except through God', is of universal application. In the last analysis, no good act can be attributed to the servant - the merit is always God's (for example, Supplication 74.2). It is here that the mystery of God's ever-present and immanent reality manifests itself, such that there is nothing left of the creature but a face of God turned toward creation.
If the Prophet and the Imams constantly prayed for forgiveness with the utmost sincerity, this does not contradict the idea that they were `sinless', since the sins envisaged here entail a willful disobedience to the divine command, not the `creaturely sin' of being other than God. Later authorities invariably distinguish among levels of sinfulness as also among levels of virtue, a doctrine epitomized in the oft-quoted saying, `The good qualities of the pious are the bad qualities of those brought near to God' (hasanat al-abrar sayiyyat al-muqarrabin). At least three basic levels are distinguished for every positive human quality, though these levels are not exclusive and may coexist in various degrees within a single person depending upon his spiritual maturity. The examples of `repentance' (tawba) and `asking forgiveness' (istighfar) can illustrate these points.
In the Sahifa the Imam often asks God for success in repentance, which may be defined as turning toward God through acts of obedience and avoiding disobedience. The later authorities speak of a first level of repentance belonging to the faithful in general, who sin by breaking the commands of the Shari'a and who repent by asking God to forgive their sins and trying their best not to repeat the sin. In other words, their repentance pertains basically to the level of the activities governed by the Shari'a while the forgiveness they seek means that they ask God to pardon any act of commission or omission which is contrary to the Shari'a.
On the second level of repentance there are those who have dedicated their lives to God and spend their waking moments in careful observance of the details of the Shari'a and following the recommended acts of the sunna. Such people, who might be called the `pious' in keeping with the above saying, have no difficulty following the practical commands and prohibitions of the Shari'a, so they turn their attention toward the inward attitudes which should accompany the outward activities. They repent of the heedlessness (ghafla) of their own souls, which are unable to remember God with perfect presence. They see their acts of obedience as falling short of the ideal because of their inward weaknesses and the various forms of blindness and hypocrisy which Satan is able to instill into their hearts, such as the temptation to ascribe their piety and diligence in observing the Shari'a to themselves. They repent not of sinful acts, since they observe the Shari'a with exactitude and do not `sin' according to the Shari'ite definitions. Rather, they repent of inappropriate thoughts and intentions and ask God to forgive these whenever they occur.
The third level is that of `those brought near to God'. They have passed beyond outward and inward sins, since they see nothing but God's will, guidance, and mercy in every act and every thought, but they are still faced with the greatest of all barriers, that of their own self, the `supreme veil' between man and God. God has given them knowledge of Himself and of themselves, so they have come to understand that the `I' can never be totally innocent or sinless. They repent of their own inadequacies as creatures and ask forgiveness for their own existence as separate beings.
Western readers may object that there is something artificial about this division of `repentance' into levels. How can one `repent' of one's own existence? How can one ask forgiveness for something which is not one's own fault? These objections might be valid if the texts had originally been written in English, but in fact the objection arises because of the difficulty of translating the concepts of one religious universe into another. The original Arabic words translated as `repentance' and `forgiveness' convey meanings far broader than the English terms, both of which are connected with a sentimental and moralistic sense of guilt. (Similar problems, it should be remarked, exist with much of the terminology which is normally used to translate Islamic texts and which has also been employed - because there is no other real choice - in the present translation of the Sahifa.)
The word tawba or `repentance' means literally to `turn' or `return' from one thing to another. One of God's Qur'anic names is al-tawwab, `He who turns', and the verb from this root is used both for God's turning toward man and man's turning toward God. Man's `repentance' refers to every level of turning away from self and towards God; it makes no difference whether the self is conceived of as a tissue woven of sins or as the veil of ignorance and heedlessness that pertains to one's creaturely situation. There may be a moralistic sense attached to the word in a particular context, and there may not.
In a similar way, maghfira in Arabic is far richer than the term `forgiveness' in English. To begin with, the Qur'an attributes three different divine names to God from this root, al-ghafur, al-ghaafir, and al-ghaffar, and subtle distinctions are often drawn to differentiate the different modes of `forgiveness' which they imply. More importantly the root meaning of maghfira is `to cover over', `to veil', `to conceal'. Hence the `Forgiver' is He who veils human sins and inadequacies. In Arabic the literal sense of saying `I pray forgiveness from God' is `I ask God for concealment.' Most people may understand that they are asking God to conceal their `sins', but `those brought near to God' will see that they have need for the concealment of something much deeper and more radical since it is inherent to every created thing.
When the Prophet or Imam Zayn al-'Abidin ask God to `forgive their sins, they are perfectly sincere in this request, but this does not necessarily imply that their sins lie at the same level as our own. As Islamic texts frequently remind us, qiyas bi l-nafs, `judging others by one's own self', is always misleading, especially if the others happen to have been the recipients of God's special favours.
SPIRITUAL ATTITUDES AND NAMES OF GOD
Muslim thinkers have often divided the names of God into two broad categories by contrasting attributes such as wrath (ghadab) and mercy (rahma), justice (`adl) and bounty (fadl), severity (qahr) and gentleness (lutf), majesty (jalal) and beauty (jamaal), or majesty and munificence (ikram). The `names of wrath' are connected to God's distance and transcendence, while the `names of mercy' are connected to His nearness and immanence. The Shari'a and kalam (dogmatic theology) tend to emphasize God's severity and incomparability (tanzih), while Islamic spirituality and the devotional literature put more stress on His gentleness and similarity (tashbih).
The Shari'a is not particularly concerned with speaking about God, since its function is to set down guidelines for the domain of activity. To the extent that God is taken into account, He is conceived of primarily as the Commander and the Lawgiver. In respect of laying down the Law, He is a monarch who must be obeyed. A monarch - and especially the Eternal King - stands far above his subjects, who are in fact his slaves, and he enforces his edicts by means of scourges, dungeons, and executions. Hence the Shari'a naturally calls to mind the God of transcendence and justice, and the `jurists' (fuqaha'), generally speaking, present Islam with a stern and severe countenance.
The God of the jurists shares many of the attributes of the God described by the proponents of kalam, who concerned themselves mainly with bolstering the authority of the Shari'a while employing the tools of rational thought. Moreover, kalam has never played the same important role in Islam that theology plays in Christianity, since its concerns are far overshadowed by the dedication of all Muslims to the Shari'a. Kalam sets out to defend the Shari'a and the tenets of the faith against rational criticisms, so the theologians have approached their subject by employing reason (`aql or al-nazar al-'aqli). As a result, they singled out for their consideration certain subjects which were of no interest to the community at large. For most people, it makes no difference if the Qur'an is eternal or created, so long as God speaks to them through it. Though kalam performs a necessary function in the Islamic universe, the vast majority of the faithful had no knowledge of the rational criticisms against which kalam was defending them, so they had no use for kalam. It was simply irrelevant to the religious life of most people.
Since the theologians called upon reason to bear witness to their endeavors, they affirmed God's transcendence with great fervour. Reason cannot accept the literal sense of many details of the Qur'an and the hadith, such as God's face, eyes, hand, feet, sitting, laughter, smiling, wavering, yearning, joy at man's repentance, surprise at the lack of sensual desire in a young man of piety, and so on. Hence the theologians felt compelled to explain such descriptions in terms of abstract qualities. Thus, for example, God's `hand' is interpreted as a reference to an impersonal quality such as power. This is not to question the validity of these interpretations, only to point out that the relatively concrete words and images found in the Qur'an and the hadith provide food for the imagination; through them human beings gain the ability to think about God in personal terms and establish an intimate, inward relationship with their Lord. An inconceivable God - or a God who can only be known through abstract creedal statements - is of no use to the vast majority of people.
Imagination feeds upon the concrete, not the abstract. When God speaks in a language that appeals to the imagination, He thereby addresses all the faithful, bypassing reason and appealing to something far more universal in human hearts. But when the theologians employ a disciplined rational methodology, they are addressing intellectuals like themselves. As a result, the faithful found spiritual nourishment not in the dry and abstract depictions of a far-away God provided by kalam but in the warm and concrete imagery of the Qur'an, the hadith, and the spiritual authorities. No one could love the God of the theologians.
In short, by the nature of their disciplines, the jurists and the theologians lay stress on the God of remoteness and transcendence. In contrast, the spiritual authorities speak of the God described in the Qur'an and the hadith as He describes Himself, not neglecting His nearness to all creatures. Since the God of the Qur'an is pre-dominantly a God of mercy and tenderness, a God of intimacy and concern, the spiritual authorities emphasize the personal dimension of the human/divine relationship. They stress God's nearness and immanence, and they often remind us of Qur'anic verses such as, Whithersoever you turn - there is the face of God (2:115); He is with you wherever you are (57:3); We indeed created man; We know what his soul whispers within him; and We are nearer to him than the jugular vein (50:16).
Since the Shari'a concerns itself basically with activity, it is directed toward the outward affairs which are governed by the laws of the remote King. Kalam is polemical and rational, concerning itself mainly with the divine attributes of the transcendent God, not with the human dimensions of the relationship with a God who is also immanent. The Qur'an and the hadith provide the seeds from which the Shari'a and kalam grew up, but they also provide the seeds for the subsequent attention that was paid by the spiritual authorities to all the dimensions of the soul. Devotional literature addresses this inward domain in an eminently practical way, attempting to shape the soul according to the revealed models.
There is, of course, no contradiction between thinking of God as transcendent and perceiving Him as immanent, any more than there is a contradiction between perceiving Him as Merciful and as Wrathful. God reveals Himself under a variety of guises, and these in turn demand different rational perceptions and psychological responses. One cannot think in exactly the same terms about the Glorified (al-subbuh), who transcends everything that man can conceive, and the Near (al-qarib), who is closer than the jugular vein; nor can one feel the same toward the Gentle, the Kind, and the Compassionate as one feels toward the Vengeful and the Severe in Punishment. Once codified and institutionalized, the human responses to God's self-revelations in the Qur'an came to emphasize certain divine attributes rather than others. One response was called `jurisprudence', another `kalam', another `Sufism', and so on. All of these points of view coexist in the great representatives of Islam, just as they coexist in the Qur'an and in the soul of the Prophet. But in the early period, it is difficult to disentangle the different strands, since the institutional forms which highlight them have not yet come into existence. However, it is easy to see that certain manifestations of early Islam tend in one direction or another. The particular characteristic of the devotional literature such as the Sahifa is to emphasize the personal quality of God's relationship with His servants and His all-pervading love.
THE PREDOMINANCE OF MERCY
Some modern day Muslims and many Western scholars have looked at the Qur'an wearing the eyeglasses of the jurists and theologians. As a result, they see a God who is a just and stern Commander, concerned only with beating His servants into shape so that they will follow His Law. They tend to ignore the fact that practically every chapter of the Qur'an begins with the words, In the name of God, the All-merciful, the All-compassionate, and that the Qur'an mentions God's names of mercy, compassion, kindness, generosity, forgiveness, and love about ten times as often as it mentions His names of wrath and severity. The overwhelming Qur'anic picture is that of a God deeply concerned with the well-being of His creatures and ready to forgive almost anything, if only they will repent and acknowledge His sovereignty.
Faced with the reality of both mercy and wrath, the worshiper seeks out the one and does everything he can to avoid the other. This is a constant theme in the devotional literature in general and the Sahifa in particular. The Prophet set the pattern in his well-known supplication: `I seek refuge in Thy good pleasure from Thy displeasure and in Thy pardon from Thy punishment. I seek refuge in Thee from Thee.' God is both He who becomes pleased and He who becomes displeased, He who pardons and He who punishes. Hence the worshiper prays to God for protection against God Himself, since there is no other significant threat. Moreover, the servant can be confident that God's mercy will in fact overcome His wrath, since God is essentially merciful and only accidentally wrathful. The Qur'an tells us in two verses that God's mercy embraces all things (7:156, 40:7), but it never suggests that His wrath is so universal. According to a famous hadith qudsi, God says: `My mercy precedes My wrath', or `has precedence over My wrath', or `predominates over My wrath.' God appears to His creatures as harsh and domineering only in certain circumstances and for specific purposes - purposes which themselves are defined by mercy. The Prophet expressed this point with his remark: `Hellfire is a whip with which God drives His servants to Paradise.' God's mercy is so overwhelmingly real that He will certainly overlook the sins of those who open themselves up to it.
Padwick refers to the `mosaic' quality of Muslim supplications. She writes: `While the prayers of some of the great saints show a spiritual individuality, the great mass of these devotions is built up of well-tried small items arranged in ever new patterns - traditional prayers of the Prophet, Qur'an verses, blessings of the Prophet, forgiveness-seekings, cries of praise, all on known and authorized forms.' The Sahifa is strongly marked by the individuality of the Imam, while also displaying this mosaic quality. But this quality itself reflects the Qur'an, which is a mosaic of God's names and activities, stories of the prophets, legal injunctions, and promises and warnings about the Last Day.
It was said above that one of the purposes of supplication is to shape the imagination of the worshiper in accordance with Islamic norms. A well-known hadith tells us that Muslims can know the `character' (khuluq) of the Prophet through studying the Qur'an. By following the Prophet's sunna the worshiper absorbs the Qur'an on all levels of his being, and in turn he is absorbed by the Qur'an, the Divine Word and the divine model of his own soul. If some early authorities referred to the Sahifa as the `Sister of the Qur'an', part of the reason for this may lie in the fact that its mosaic quality expresses a variety of spiritual attitudes that reflect accurately the Qur'anic and prophetic model for human perfection. Every element in the Sahifa's mosaic corresponds to elements of the Qur'anic text and the Prophet's soul.
The connection between the spiritual attitudes expressed in the Sahifa and the Qur'anic statements about God and His relationship to His servants can most clearly be perceived in the Imam's constant recourse to God's names and his always appropriate expression of the corresponding human attitude. On the one hand the Imam places great emphasis upon his own inadequacy and sinfulness, acknowledging that he deserves nothing but God's wrath. On the other, he repeatedly takes refuge in God's mercy and in God's own Qur'anic statements concerning the primacy of forgiveness, asking God to do with him as is worthy of such a merciful Being, not as he himself deserves.
Act toward me with the forgiveness and mercy of which Thou art worthy! Act not toward me with the chastisement and vengeance of which I am worthy! (73.3)
In short, through the mosaic of the supplication, the worshiper moves from viewpoint to viewpoint in keeping with the different relationships which exist between himself and God as described in the Qur'an. Man's point of view changes because each of the divine names points to a different face of God turned toward him. Yet all are faces of God, and `There is no god but God', so the apparent multiplicity of names and faces dissolves into the divine Unity.
Human inadequacy and sin are real enough on their own level, and the Sahifa among others shows a remarkable awareness of the depth of human imperfection. But the great spiritual authorities of Islam hold that in responding to human weakness, God's overwhelming mercy takes charge and the divine wrath pales by comparison. The more that human beings admit to their own inadequacy, the more they call down upon themselves God's pity and commiseration. Supplication and pleading are the natural human response to the shahada the fact that man is nothing compared to God, and that God - who is fundamentally mercy - is the only true reality. Supplication responds to God's command, Despair not of God's mercy! Surely God forgives all sins (39:53).
A hadith is related concerning Imam Zayn al-'Abidin which is worth recounting because it is so completely in character with the Sahifa's emphasis upon God's mercy and forgiveness. One day he was told that Hasan al-Basri (d. 110/728), the famous ascetic, had said: `It is not strange if a person perishes as he perishes. It is only strange that a person is saved as he is saved.' The Imam replied, `But I say that it is not strange if a person is saved as he is saved; it is only strange that a person perishes as he perishes, given the scope of God's mercy.'
The supplicant who responds to the God of the Qur'an never forgets the wrath of God, but he remains confident that God's essential nature will show itself, in spite of his own weaknesses. Padwick was so struck with the devaluation of human sins that seems to result from this attitude that she displays a rare instance of Christian bias, objecting that it `leads to a certain moral shallowness in some forgiveness-seeking prayers' and is unable `to attribute any moral cost to God's forgiveness', alluding here and in the rest of the passage to the Christian doctrine of atonement. Among three examples of `moral shallowness' she cites the following lines from Imam Zayn al-'Abidin, found in Al-Sahifat al-khamisa:
My God my sins do not harm Thee and Thy pardon does not impoverish Thee. Then forgive me what does not harm Thee and give me what Thou wilt not miss.
In order to understand the attitude expressed here, one needs to put it into its larger context. The specific attitude expressed by the Imam corresponds precisely to the reality of God's infinite mercy and forgiveness as revealed in various Qur'anic verses. Many passages from the Sahifa present the same point of view. Moreover, when the Imam says: `Thou art the Generous Lord for whom the forgiveness of great sins is nothing great' (31.10), or `Pardoning great sin is nothing great for Thee, overlooking enormous misdeeds is not difficult for Thee, putting up with indecent crimes does not trouble Thee' (12.13), he is merely echoing the command of the Prophet mentioned above: The worshiper `should be firm and make his desire great, for what God gives is nothing great for Him.'
In any case, the context of these prayers shows that the accompanying moral attitude is hardly shallow, since it demands `refraining from arrogance, pulling aside from persistence [in sin], and holding fast to praying forgiveness' (12.13). Moral shallowness could only follow if the worshiper remembered God's mercy and forgot His wrath, but both are always kept in view.
THE SAHIFA AND ISLAMIC SPIRITUALITY
In spite of studies that have rejected the idea, many people in the West still believe that `true Islam' lies in simplicity, austerity, legalism, formalism, and a God perceived as Just and Transcendent. Hence those elements of Islamic civilization which demonstrate complexity, subtlety, warmth, love, inwardness, spirituality, and a God of mercy, compassion, and immanence are seen as largely extraneous to or reactions against Qur'anic Islam. Scholars such as Massignon have pointed out that a person of spiritual sensitivity only needs to read the Qur'an for such ideas to be dissolved. But few people who have adopted the old stereotypes possess this sort of sensitivity or would be interested in changing their preconceived ideas, lest sympathy be stirred up in their hearts. It is not my aim here to reject, as so many have done before me, these common biases concerning the nature of `true Islam', but I would like to point out that a work like the Sahifa brings out an inward dimension of Islam which may be much more difficult to perceive in other early texts.
When scholars and other outsiders look at Islam, they naturally perceive what can be seen at first glance, that is, events, written reports and records, social relationships, and so on. It is not easy to look into people's hearts or to investigate their personal relationship with God, nor are most people interested in doing so. If there is a way into hearts, it must come by studying the most inward concerns of individuals as reflected in their outward activities and writings. But those dimensions of Islam which have caught the most attention of outside observers are external and obvious, and they also happen to be relatively devoid of the love and warmth normally associated in the West with spirituality.
Islamic civilization as a whole is much like a traditional Muslim city: The outer walls make it appear dull and sombre, and it is not easy to gain access to the world behind the walls. But if one becomes an intimate with the city's inhabitants, one is shown into delightful courtyards and gardens, full of fragrant flowers, fruit trees, and sparkling fountains. Those who write about Islamic history, political events, and institutions deal with the walls, since they have no way into the gardens. Some of the gardens are opened up through the study of Sufism, art and architecture, poetry, and music, but since all of these have appeared in specific historical forms influenced by the surrounding environment, their deep Islamic roots can easily be lost to sight. The most traditional and authentic gardens of the city, and the most difficult of access, are the hearts of the greatest representatives of the civilization. It is here that the supplications handed down from the pillars of early Islam can open up a whole new vision of Islam's animating spirit, since they provide direct access to the types of human attitudes that are the prerequisite for a full flowering of the Islamic ideal.
OTHER DIMENSIONS
This introduction may seem to be suggesting that the Sahifa deals exclusively with Islamic spirituality. But the Sahifa deals with other domains as well. As was pointed out above, the great representatives of Islam bring together all levels of Islamic teachings, just as these are brought together by the Qur'an and the hadith. If spirituality has been emphasized in discussing the Sahifa, this has to do with the fact that the work is a collection of supplications, and these presuppose certain attitudes toward the Divine Reality which cannot be understood outside spirituality's context.
But the Sahifa also provides teachings that are applicable on many different levels, from the theological (in the broadest sense of the term) to the social. A thorough analysis of these would demand a book far longer than the Sahifa itself. It is hoped that the publication of this translation will encourage scholars to study the content of the prayers contained in the Sahifa (as well as the prayers left by other pillars of early Islam, the Shi'ite Imams in particular) to bring out the whole range of teachings they contain. The most that can be done here is to allude to some of the other important topics touched upon by the Sahifa and mention a few of the significant questions which these bring up.
Islam is an organic reality possessing three basic dimensions: practice or the Shari'a (al-islam) faith (al-iman which includes doctrine and intellectual teachings), and spirituality (al-ihsan). In the lived experience of the community, these dimensions are intimately interrelated, even if various institutional forms tend to deal with them separately. The earliest sources, such as the prophetic hadith or `Ali's Nahj al-balagha deal with all three of these dimensions, though different passages can be isolated which stress one specific epic rather than another. But a work like the Nahj al-balagha converges profoundly from the Sahifa in that it brings together sayings on all sorts of matters, from metaphysics, to the nature of correct government, to the personal flaws of some of `Ali's contemporaries. There is no stress on spirituality, since this is clearly one dimension of Islam among others, though a deep spirituality and holiness underly everything that 'Ali says.
In contrast, the Sahifa by its supplicatory form and content, stresses the innermost dimension of Islam. But at the same time, it also touches upon Islam's other dimensions. For example, the traditional category of `faith' is concerned with God, the angels, the prophets, the scriptures, the Last Day, and the `measuring' (qadar) of both good and evil. These objects of faith form the basic subject matter of most of Islamic thought as developed in kalam philosophy, and theoretical Sufism. Imam Zayn al-'Abidin discusses all of these in the Sahifa sometimes briefly and sometimes in detail. Thus he often mentions the angels, while his `Blessing upon the Bearers of the Throne' (3) provides the best available summary of Muslim beliefs concerning them.
The Imam also refers frequently to the domain of Islamic practices, or the Shari'a in the wide sense. He emphasizes the absolute necessity of following God's guidelines as set down in the Qur'an and the hadith in both individual and social life. Hence the Sahifa provides many specific social teachings as well as general injunctions, such as the necessity of establishing justice in society. But since the social teachings deal with the domain of practice, the outermost dimension of Islam, they need to be viewed within the context of the Imam's doctrinal and spiritual teachings. As he makes eminently clear in his `Treatise on Rights', a hierarchy of priorities must always be observed: The individual comes before the social, the spiritual before the practical, and knowledge before action. Each human being has a long series of social duties, but these depend upon his more essential duties, which are first, faith in God, and second, placing one's own person into the proper relationship with divine reality.
(Extracted from al-islam.org)

Famous Quotes on Marriage :)

2008-05-07T13:35:00.003+05:30

Marriage is the triumph of imagination over intelligence. (Oscar Wilde)

A good marriage is one which allows for change and growth in the individuals and in the way they express their love. (Pearl.S.Buck)

Marriage is the alliance of two people, one of whom never remembers birthdays and the other who never forgets. (Ogden Nash)

The goal in marriage is not to think alike, but to think together.(Robert.C.Dodds)

Chains do not hold a marriage together. It is threads, hundreds of tiny threads which sew people together through the years. That is what makes a marriage last .(Simonne Signoret)

Married or Single ?

2008-05-07T13:07:00.002+05:30

Are women better off alone ?
Marriage is no bullet for Happiness - some say.........

Are women better off alone? Marriage is no magic bullet for happiness, some say. But medical studies show just the opposite—that married people are happier and healthier than single women. The pressure to marry is even greater than ever, says Bella M. DePaulo, PhD, social psychologist at the University of California, Santa Barbara, and author of the book Singled Out. "It's an old-fashioned message, that you're better off if you find a man," DePaulo tells WebMD. "It's this idea that you can be single, have your big career and all your friends, but that's not the route to happiness, it's not deep or meaningful like marriage is. That's ridiculous. The best friendships often last longer than marriages…you don't have ridiculous expectations of your friends like you do a spouse." Yes, those old, mopey stereotypes are still alive and kicking. "The stereotypes that single women are either promiscuous or don't get any are a scam," she says.
Marraige isn't a magic bullet for a wonderful life, says DePaulo. "But it has that appeal that you will meet this person and everything falls into place. Yet if you look to one person to be everything, it's not fair to that person, not fair to you, and it's not healthy. And if the marriage doesn't last, it's devastating." One study tracking 1,000 couples for 15 years found that marriage brought only a "tiny blip" of happiness during the brief time closest to the wedding ceremony. "But on average, afterwards, people go back to way they were before. The researcher's perspective is that we each have a baseline of happiness, and marriage on average isn't going to change that—except for that little blip," DePaulo says. In fact, most married vs. single "happiness studies" are seriously flawed, she adds. "They lump all single people together—divorced, widowed, always-single—without factoring in the transition period, the really unnerving period in your life after divorce or becoming widowed," she tells WebMD. "Over time, you go back to the person you were before. But studies don't take that transition period into account." Here's an eye-opener: In one survey, moms were asked what they most wanted as a Mother's Day gift. "The overwhelming answer was 'time to myself.' Women who have the dream—marriage and kids—just want time to themselves," says DePaulo.

It's no wonder single women have great networks of friends. More women are single today than ever before, DePaulo notes. "The age at which people first marry has been climbing for some time now. The divorce statistics are still high. Women are less likely to remarry after divorce than men. Women live longer than men. There are more widowed older women than men." Most women, by nature, make friendships fairly easily, she says. Men have a tougher time bonding with other guys. "Men tend to have a certain homophobia about hanging out with another guy," DePaulo tells WebMD. "Things women do, like hanging out with female friends, men don't feel comfortable doing. For men it's not so easy to sit down and have coffee or a long leisurely dinner with another guy. There has to be some pretext for it, like a business lunch, our eating before playing basketball. If men could have real relationships with men, it would be different for them." Wives or girlfriends are typically a man's confidantes. When that relationship is over, the emotional support often ends for him. For women, female friends are their best friends, too. Also, women tend to make new friends as they get older, she adds.

However, being a single woman isn't all sex and roses. You've got all those household bills, too—and you're the only one paying them. "A single woman's happiness depends partly on whether she can carry herself financially…so she can do the things she wants to do," says Pepper Schwartz, PhD, a professor of sociology, psychiatry, and behavioral medicine at the University of Washington in Seattle. "In the past, many women turned to traditional married life because financially they had a difficult time on their own," Schwartz tells WebMD. "If they found a man who made a good-enough living, it made life easier. For some women, it's still that way. But now women can get high-paying jobs, which make a huge difference for them." Also, some women aren't good at making friends, Schwartz says. "People have different talents, and surrounding themselves with friends is one that not all have. A friend to go on a trip with, to movie festivals with, to drop in when you're feeling sick—all those people can substitute for a mate." Those single women must realize that they are "the architects of their own expansion," Schwartz tells WebMD. "Develop a broad number of interests—classes, volunteer work, travel plans, political involvement. What you're fighting is that home-alone syndrome. You're making sure people will take you out of everyday life maintenance. When you have a partner, their interests help extend your life. When you're single, you have to build that in."

Some single women hit the road when retirement comes. Life in an RV, touring the country, works fine for them. But on their worst days, single women worry about old age and dying alone—or with only their cats at their side. "Do you think marrying cures that?" asks DePaulo. "You and your husband would have to die at the same instant for that not to happen to you! If you get sick, don't assume your mate will be the one nursing you. Maybe he just can't deal with your illness. Or he could be the one with the big physical issues, and that will tie you down. There are certainly cases of younger women marrying older men. Then he gets sick, and she ends up taking care of him." Women are more unlikely to be alone in old age because they have nurtured friendships. They are more likely to have people in their lives. That's why a sense of community is so important, she says. "Most of us are happier with a sense of community inside the larger, less friendly world," DePaulo tells WebMD. "Life gets a little harder as we get older. There are more chances of health issues, which would be unpleasant under any circumstance. You have to make sure you have someone looking after you."

"Cohousing" is one answer. It's a form of group housing much like a '60s commune, but yuppie-style. These are condo-style developments built around a "common area" with kitchen, dining, laundry, exercise, and children's playroom facilities. Cohousing communities are typically designed to resemble old-fashioned neighborhoods. Members get together often to share meals, socialize, and handle the ordinary stuff of daily living although they live in individual units. "Intentional community" is an inclusive term for ecovillages, cohousing, residential land trusts, communes, student co-ops, farms, urban housing cooperatives, and other projects. Intentional communities can be found all over the U.S. and Europe, their growth spurred by the Internet. Typically, community members jointly own land that has multiple dwellings. Frequently, members share a common bond—a religious, political, or social philosophy that brings them together. Ethan Watters was single, in his 30s, and living alone in San Francisco when he coined the concept of "urban tribes." Most single people belong to at least one such tribe even though they don't realize it. A vegetarian dining group, a hiking club, or a running group could qualify as an urban tribe if they meet frequently enough, says Watters, author of the book Urban Tribes. "Urban tribes form in a vacuum," Watters tells WebMD. "Our generation has not joined the traditional social organizations our parents did, the churches and civic groups. We don't stay in our jobs as long. That leads to a social vacuum, and humans don't do well in a social vacuum. Something will fill it. That's where Thanksgiving dinners started out as stopgap measure, then 10 years later, we realize these friends have become our family." While Watters was figuring out his life in San Francisco, "my mother was leading a very parallel life. She was in her 70s, living entirely in this group of friends, and they did everything a family would do. She had a very fulfilling life," he says. Retired people have long formed these types of communities. It's people younger than 65 who are new to the concept, he says. "Single women have helped provide the momentum for urban tribes," Watters tells WebMD. "The key thing is ritual…the Tuesday night potluck dinner, so everyone can get together regularly. But you have to realize an urban tribe is an ephemeral thing, it changes. People leave, others come in. It's a very informal contract you make with your friends. But it never has a sense of reciprocity. It's about giving genuinely and freely."

Quotes :)

2008-05-07T12:35:00.003+05:30

Life is like a puzzle,
Sometimes the pieces fall apart,
but they can be put together.
There are pieces from books, pieces of songs,
and pieces of things that have happened to you,.
All the pieces of life effect you, but they are not you.

**********************************************

If I am afraid to take a chance,

I'll take it anyway.

If I have done things that didnt work out well,

or that didnt make me feel good,

I will do something else.

I must do something different

If I want something different to happen.

**************************************************

A Beautiful and Amazing Story Without Words..............continued

2008-04-27T23:45:00.002+05:30

A Beautiful and Amazing Story without words.Contd...)

2008-04-27T22:35:00.003+05:30

The Path to Paradise.

2008-04-16T21:12:00.006+05:30

The path to God is only illuminated when a person recognizes the central place of God in his life and strives to develop his self accordingly. The Messenger of God said:

If someone wants to know what position he enjoys in the eyes of God, he has only to look at what place he gives to God [in his heart and life]. (Hakim)

The term nearest in meaning to self development in the Quranic vocabulary is: tazkiyah. Tazkiyah means purification and refers to the cleansing of the human self from all that is unwholesome, undesirable and unwelcome.

It also refers to the nurturing and strengthening of all the qualities within the human self that are essential for growth and development, for blossoming and flowering.

Success and happiness in this world and the Hereafter depend on tazkiyah, the purification and nurturing of our personality. The Quran states that true success is only reserved for those who seek to purify themselves:

[Successful indeed is the one who purifies his whole self.] (Ash-Shams 91:9)

Our personality comprises not only the physical body but also the mind and the heart, feelings and attitudes, character and behavior. Proper nurturing and development of these elements of the personality will achieve desirable goals.

When goals are desirable, the process of aspiring to, working towards and achieving them also becomes desirable. This is part of human nature. It is critical, therefore, that we recognize and understand the true nature of our ultimate goal in life.

For the believer, the most coveted goal in life is to seek the good pleasure of Allah Paradise. Our Creator has set this goal for us:

[And surely Paradise – it is the goal.] (Al-Nazi`at 79:41)

[Indeed the Next abode – it is truly the life!] (Al-`Ankabut 29:64)

[The companions of Paradise – they are the triumphant ones.] (Al-Hashr 59:20)

Know, however, that attaining the pleasure of Allah takes precedence over seeking Paradisebut the two are closely connected. Paradise can only be attained through seeking Allah's pleasure, and when Allah's pleasure is gained, we will indeed be granted Paradise.

Reflect upon the following two verses in the Quran:

[And there is a kind of person who would willingly give up personal interests, seeking Allah’s pleasure; and God is Most Compassionate towards His servants.] (Al-Baqarah 2:207)

[Indeed Allah has purchased from the Believers their lives and their possessions, promising them Paradise, in return.] (At-Tawbah 9:111)

The alternative to attaining Paradise in the Hereafter is to be placed in Hellfire and to receive its punishments.

The Quran states: [But in the life to come: [it is either] severe suffering, or God’s forgiveness and His goodly acceptance.] (Al-Hadid 57:20)

What is it that makes a person deserving of such a suffering? The answer is to be found in the second part of the same verse: [for the life of this world is nothing but an enjoyment of self-delusion.] (Al-Hadid 57:20)

Hell, therefore, is for those who seek as their ultimate goal in life, not the pleasure of Allah or Paradise, but the enjoyment of worldly gains.

The pursuit of worldly gain is but a mirage. All worldly gains are left behind when you die. All that is on earth is bound to perish while Allah and His good favor will remain forever.

It is for this reason that the Quran advises:

[Vie with one another in seeking to attain to your Sustainer’s forgiveness, and to a Paradise as vast as the heavens and the earth, which has been readied for those who have attained to faith in God and His messengers: such is the bounty of Allah which He grants unto whomever He wills – for Allah is limitless in His great bounty.] (Al-Hadid 57:21)

All your efforts in this world should therefore be focused only on seeking Paradise. It is the promise of the Almighty that:

[You will only be rewarded fully for all your good deeds on the Day of Resurrection, and [on that Day] whoever will be drawn away from Hell-fire, and admitted into Paradise, will indeed have triumphed.] (Al-`Imran 3:185)

Joy :)

2008-04-13T23:56:00.000+05:30

We could never learn to be brave and patient , if there was only JOY in the world.
(Helen Keller)

What is more Important ?

2008-04-08T00:06:00.001+05:30

What is more important : doing things that makes you happy and one feels that its good for them or doing things for the people you love , even if one doesnt like them and it doesnt make them happy?

Perspective.

2008-04-01T19:30:00.004+05:30

One day, the father of a very wealthy family took his son on a trip to the country with the express purpose of showing him how poor people live. They spent a couple of days and nights on the farm of what would be considered a very poor family. On their return from their trip, the father asked his son, 'How was the trip?' 'It was great, Dad.' 'Did you see how poor people live?' the father asked. 'Oh yeah,' said the son. 'So, tell me, what did you learn from the trip?' asked the father The son answered: 'I saw that we have one dog and they had four. We have a pool that reaches to the middle of our garden and they have a creek that has no end. We have imported lanterns in our garden and they have the stars at night. Our patio reaches to the front yard and they have the whole horizon. We have a small piece of land to live on and they have fields that go beyond our sight. We have servants who serve us, but they serve others. We buy our food, but they grow theirs. We have walls around our property to protect us, they have friends to protect them.' The boy's father was speechless. Then his son added, 'Thanks Dad for showing me how poor we are.' Isn't perspective a wonderful thing? Makes you wonder what would happen if we all gave thanks for everything we have, instead of worrying about what we don't have. Appreciate every single thing you have, especially your friends!

'Life is too short and friends are too few.'

Cats - So Cute and Adorable !

2008-03-28T23:56:00.001+05:30

Greetings !

2008-03-21T17:42:00.005+05:30

Today is an extra special day.
Celebrations and Reflections in all religions,
Goodness,victory of truth, sacrifice and unity of humanity,
Finally its all about sacrifice,compromise,loving,sharing and caring,
May Allah Bless us all;
with the tranquilty of Id-Milad, colourfullness of Holi and solemnity of
Good Friday. And ya also wishing all a very Happy Navroz !
Have a nice Day :)

Make a Difference.

2008-03-05T11:24:00.004+05:30

Every Day when I go to pick up my son from his school., on the way I cross this slum or dunno not exactly a slum also , its just a few bunch of families who are just living there on the streets, what's sad is they dont even have anything above there heads, its just open sky, and they just put torn pieces of cloth and sit or sleep on it, some families have just managed to put three-four long wood pieces-joined them together and put sheets on it to cover ,, they eat, sleep, bathe, cook and do everything possible on that thin strip of footh-path, its quite sad, I wish the Government or the NGOs' can do something about it.

It would be even great if 'WE' the citizens take out sometime from our day to day life and work for progressive changes in our society.

Theres this very nice story that I came across and it goes like this :

A friend of ours was walking down a deserted Mexican beach at sunset. As he walked along, he began to see another man in the distance. As he grew nearer, he noticed that the local native kept leaning down, picking something up, and throwing it out into the water. Time and again, he kept hurling something out into the ocean. As our friend approached even closer, he noticed that the man was picking up starfish that had washed up on the beach and, one at a time, was throwing them back into the water. Our friend was puzzled. He approached the man and said, 'Good evening, friend. I was wondering what you are doing?' 'I'm throwing these starfish back into the ocean.You see, it is low tide right now, and all of these starfish have washed up onto the shore. If I don't throw them back into the sea, they'll die from lack of oxygen.' 'I understand,' my friend replied, 'but there must be thousands of starfish on this beach! You can't possibly get to all of them. There are simply too many! And don't you realize this is probably happening on hundreds of beaches all up and down this coast? Can't you see that you can't possibly make a difference?' The local native smiled, bent down, and picked up yet another starfish and, as he threw it back into the sea replied, "Made a difference to that one!!!"

Think Before U Act.

2008-03-02T11:42:00.002+05:30

A young man was getting ready to graduate from college. For many months he had admired a beautiful sports car in a dealer's showroom, and knowing his father could well afford it, he told him that was all he wanted. As Graduation Day approached, the young man awaited signs that his father had purchased the car.Finally, on the morning of his graduation, his father called him into his private study. His fathertold him how proud he was to have such a fine son, and told him how much he loved him. He handed hisson a beautiful wrapped gift box. Curious, but somewhat Disappointed, the young man opened the box and found a lovely, leather-bound Bible, with the young man's name embossed in gold. Angrily, he raised his voice to his father and said, 'With all your money you give me a Bible? and stormed out of the house, leaving the Bible.
Many years passed and the young man was very successful in business. He had a beautiful home and wonderful family, but realized his father was very old, and thought perhaps he should go to him. He had not seen him since that graduation day. Before he could make arrangements, he received a telegram telling him his father had passed away, and willed all of his possessions to his son. He needed to come home immediately and take care of things.
When he arrived at his father's house, sudden sadness and regret filled his heart. He began to search through his father's important papers and saw the still new Bible, just as he had left it years ago. With tears, he opened the Bible and began to turn the pages. His father had carefully underlined a verse,
Matt 7:11, 'And if ye, being evil know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more
shall your Heavenly father which is in heaven, give to those who ask Him?' As he read those words, a car key dropped from the back of the Bible. It had a tag with the dealer's name, the same dealer who had the sports car he had desired. On the tag was the date of his graduation, and the words...PAID IN FULL.
How many times do we miss God's blessings because they are not packaged as we expected? I trust you enjoyed this. Pass it on to others. Do not spoil what you have by desiring what you have not; but remember that what you now have was once among the things you only hoped for...
IF YOUR GIFT IS NOT PACKED THE WAY YOU WANT IT, IT'S BECAUSE IT IS BETTER PACKED THAT WAY! ALWAYS APPRECIATE LITTLE THINGS; THEY USUALLY LEAD YOU TO ATTACHMENTS!

The Playground of Life .

2008-02-29T23:50:00.003+05:30

One hour devoted to the pursuit of Beauty
And Love is worth a full century of glory
Given by the frightened weak to the strong.
From that hour comes man's Truth;
and During that century Truth sleeps between
The restless arms of disturbing dreams.
In that hour the soul sees for herself
The Natural Law, and for that century
she Imprisons herself behind the law of man;
And she is shackled with irons of oppression.
That hour was the inspiration of the Songs Of Solomon,
an that century was the blind Power which destroyed the temple of Baalbek.
That hour was the birth of the Sermon on the Mount,
and that century wrecked the castles of Palmyra and the Tower of Babylon.
That hour was the Hegira of Mohammed and that Century forgot Allah, Golgotha, and Sinai.
One hour devoted to mourning and lamenting the Stolen
equality of the weak is nobler than a Century filled with greed and usurpation. I
t is at that hour when the heart is Purified by flaming sorrow
and Illuminated by the torch of Love.
And in that century, desires for Truth Are buried in the bosom of the earth.
That hour is the root which must flourish.
That hour of meditation, the hour of Prayer,
and the hour of a new era of good.
And that century is a life of Nero spent On
self-investment taken solely from Earthly substance. This is life.
Portrayed on the stage for ages;
Recorded earthly for centuries;
Lived in strangeness for years;
Sung as a hymn for days; Exalted but for an hour,
but the Hour is treasured by Eternity as a jewel.
(Khalil Gibran )

Five Things Happy People Do (extracted frm Oprah.com)

2008-02-23T17:49:00.004+05:30

Five Things Happy People DoSubtitle-->By Gabrielle LeBlanc
Sages going back to Socrates have offered advice on how to be happy, but only now are scientists beginning to address this question with systematic, controlled research. Although many of the new studies reaffirm time-honored wisdom ("Do what you love," "To thine own self be true"), they also add a number of fresh twists and insights. We canvassed the leading experts on what happy people have in common—and why it's worth trying to become one of them: They find their most golden self. Picture happiness. What do you see? A peaceful soul sitting in a field of daisies appreciating the moment? That kind of passive, pleasure-oriented—hedonic—contentment is definitely a component of overall happiness. But researchers now believe that eudaimonic well-being may be more important. Cobbled from the Greek eu ("good") and daimon ("spirit" or "deity"), eudaimonia means striving toward excellence based on one's unique talents and potential—Aristotle considered it to be the noblest goal in life. In his time, the Greeks believed that each child was blessed at birth with a personal daimon embodying the highest possible expression of his or her nature. One way they envisioned the daimon was as a golden figurine that would be revealed by cracking away an outer layer of cheap pottery (the person's baser exterior). The effort to know and realize one's most golden self—"personal growth," in today's lingo—is now the central concept of eudaimonia, which has also come to include continually taking on new challenges and fulfilling one's sense of purpose in life. "Eudaimonic well-being is much more robust and satisfying than hedonic happiness, and it engages different parts of the brain," says Richard J. Davidson, PhD, of the University of Wisconsin-Madison. "The positive emotion accompanying thoughts that are directed toward meaningful goals is one of the most enduring components of well-being." Eudaimonia is also good for the body. Women who scored high on psychological tests for it (they were purposefully engaged in life, pursued self-development) weighed less, slept better, and had fewer stress hormones and markers for heart disease than others—including those reporting hedonic happiness—according to a study led by Carol Ryff, PhD, a professor of psychology at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.
They design their lives to bring in joy. It may seem obvious, but "people don't devote enough time to thinking seriously about how they spend their life and how much of it they actually enjoy," says David Schkade, PhD, a psychologist and professor of management at the University of California San Diego. In a recent study, Schkade and colleagues asked more than 900 working women to write down everything they'd done the day before. Afterward, they reviewed their diaries and evaluated how they felt at each point. When the women saw how much time they spent on activities they didn't like, "some people had tears in their eyes," Schkade says. "They didn't realize their happiness was something they could design and have control over." Analyzing one's life isn't necessarily easy and may require questioning long-held assumptions. A high-powered career might, in fact, turn out to be unfulfilling; a committed relationship once longed for could end up being irritating with all the compromising that comes with having a partner. Dreams can be hard to abandon, even when they've turned sour. Fortunately, changes don't have to be big ones to tip the joy in your favor. Schkade says that if you transfer even an hour of your day from an activity you hate (commuting, scrubbing the bathroom) to one you like (reading, spending time with friends), you should see a significant improvement in your overall happiness. Taking action is key. Another recent study, at the University of Missouri, compared college students who made intentional changes (joining a club, upgrading their study habits) with others who passively experienced positive turns in their circumstances (receiving a scholarship, being relieved of a bad roommate). All the students were happier in the short term, but only the group who made deliberate changes stayed that way. They avoid "if only" fantasies. If only I get a better job…find a man…lose the weight…life will be perfect. Happy people don't buy into this kind of thinking. The latest research shows that we're surprisingly bad at predicting what will make us happy. People also tend to misjudge their contentment when zeroing in on a single aspect of their life—it's called the focusing illusion. In one study, single subjects were asked, "How happy are you with your life in general?" and "How many dates did you have last month?" When the dating question was asked first, their romantic life weighed more heavily into how they rated their overall happiness than when the questions were reversed.
Five Things Happy People Do continues… The other argument against "if only" fantasies has to do with "hedonic adaptation"—the brain's natural dimming effect, which guarantees that a new house won't generate the same pleasure a year after its purchase and the thrill of having a boyfriend will ebb as you get used to being part of a couple. Happy people are wise to this, which is why they keep their lives full of novelty, even if it's just trying a new activity (diving, yoga) or putting a new spin on an old favorite (kundalini instead of vinyasa). They put best friends first. It's no surprise that social engagement is one of the most important contributors to happiness. What's news is that the nature of the relationship counts. Compared with dashing around chatting with acquaintances, you get more joy from spending longer periods of time with a close friend, according to research by Meliksah Demir, PhD, assistant professor of psychology at Northern Arizona University. And the best-friend benefit doesn't necessarily come from delving into heavy discussions. One of the most essential pleasures of close friendship, Demir found, is simple companionship, "just hanging out," as he says, hitting the mall or going to the movies together and eating popcorn in the dark. They allow themselves to be happy. As much as we all think we want it, many of us are convinced, deep down, that it's wrong to be happy (or too happy). Whether the belief comes from religion, culture, or the family you were raised in, it usually leaves you feeling guilty if you're having fun. "Some people would say you shouldn't strive for personal happiness until you've taken care of everyone in the world who is starving or doesn't have adequate medical care," says Howard Cutler, MD, coauthor with the Dalai Lama of The Art of Happiness in a Troubled World. "The Dalai Lama believes you should pursue both simultaneously. For one thing, there is clear research showing that happy people tend to be more open to helping others. They also make better spouses and parents." And in one famous study, nuns whose autobiographies expressed positive emotions (such as gratitude and optimism) lived seven to 10-and-a-half years longer than other nuns. So, for any die-hard pessimist who still needs persuading, just think of how much more you can help the world if you allow a little happiness into your life.
( Gabrielle Leblanc is a writer and neuroscientist in Washington, D.C. )

Democracy v/s Dictatorship - Pak goes Polling today .

2008-02-18T22:39:00.000+05:30

Well., today was a very important day for the People of Pakistan , as they had Elections today, this was I guess , one big story of the day , which i kept tracking throughout the day , maybe coz I was very worried if there will be any sort of terror/suicide attacks in any part of the country especially Karachi (coz my parents n sister live there) but nothing of that sort happened , also the turnout of people who came to vote , was very poor - whereas actually 81 million voters were registered to vote. I hope what ever the result comes out as in which ever party wins they do good for the country .

Writing as per Rebecca West.

2008-02-02T17:40:00.000+05:30

Writing has nothing to do with communication between person to person, only with communication between different parts of a person's mind.

Never Give up HOPE !!!

2008-01-28T15:50:00.000+05:30

One day I decided to quit.... I quit my job, my relationship, my spirituality. ....

I wanted to quit my life.

I went to the woods to have one last talk with God.

"God", I said. "Can you give me one good reason not to quit?"

His answer surprised me...

"Look around", He said. "Do you see the fern and the bamboo?"

"Yes", I replied.

"When I planted the fern and the bamboo seeds, I took very good care
of them.

I gave them light. I gave them water.

The fern quickly grew from the earth. Its brilliant green covered the floor.
Yet nothing came from the bamboo seed.
But I did not quit on the bamboo.

In the second year the Fern grew more vibrant and plentiful.
And again, nothing came from the bamboo seed.
But I did not quit on the bamboo".

He said. "In the third year, there was still nothing from the bamboo
seed.
But I would not quit.

In the fourth year, again, there was nothing from the bamboo seed.
I would not quit."

He said. "Then in the fifth year a tiny sprout emerged from the earth.
Compared to the fern it was seemingly small and insignificant.

But just 6 months later the bamboo rose to over 100
Feet tall.

It had spent the five years growing roots. Those roots
Made it strong and gave it what it needed to survive.
I would not give any of my creations a challenge it could not handle."

He said to me. "Did you know, my child, that all this
Time you have been struggling, you have actually been growing roots. I
Would not quit on the bamboo.
I will never quit on you. Don't compare yourself to others."

He said. "The bamboo had a different purpose than the
Fern, yet, they both make the forest beautiful."

"Your time will come, "God said to me." You will rise high!"

"How high should I rise?" I asked.

"How high will the bamboo rise?" He asked in return.

"As high as it can?" I questioned.

"Yes." He said, "Give me glory by rising as high as you can."

I left the forest and brought back this story.
I hope these words can help you see that God will never give up on you........

Never regret a day in your life.

Good days give you Happiness.

Bad days give you Experiences.

Both are essential to life.

Keep going...

Happiness keeps you Sweet,

Trials keep you Strong,

Sorrows keep you Human,

Failures keep you Humble,

Success keeps You Glowing,

But Only God keeps You Going!
GOD is too wise to be mistaken...
GOD is too good to be unkind...
So when you don ' t understand..
When you don ' t see HIS plan...
When you can't trace HIS hand...
HAVE FAITH AND TRUST HIS HEART

Imam Husain And His Martyrdom

2008-01-20T23:27:00.000+05:30

Imam Husain And His Martyrdom

By Abdullah Yusuf Ali Renowned English translator and commentator of the Holy Qur'an (Progressive Islam Pamphlet No. 7, September, 1931).

Introduction:

The month of Muharram, the first month of the Islamic calendar, brings with it the memory of the sacrifice of Imam Husayn [a], the grandson of Prophet Muhammad [s], and his noble family and friends. This short text reflects the deep admiration of its author towards Imam Husayn [a] and an insight into the tragedy of Karbala, its reasons and its consequences. It is presented with the hope that it will foster the Islamic unity and the brotherly love that the author seeks in his preface.

The author, of course, is none other than the well-known Sunni English translator and commentator of the Qur'an, Abdullah Yusuf Ali, who died in 1952 in England. Little would he have known that his English translation and commentary of the Qur'an would become so popular in the West and East alike, wherever English is read and understood.

And little would he have known that later editions of his Qur'an translation and commentary would undergo tampering such that favorable references to Imam Husayn [a] would be deleted, amongst other changes!(*) Perhaps there are some out there who want to see the memory of Imam Husayn [a] wiped out. Perhaps Karbala is not quite over yet.

Preface

The following pages are based on a report of an Address which I delivered in London at an Ashura Majlis on Thursday the 28th May, 1931 (Muharram 1350 A.H.), at the Waldorf Hotel. The report was subsequently corrected and slightly expanded. The Majlis was a notable gathering, which met at the invitation of Mr. A. S. M. Anik. Nawab Sir Umar Hayat Khan, Tiwana, presided and members of all schools of thought in Islam, as well as non-Muslims, joined reverently in doing honour to the memory of the great Martyr of Islam. By its inclusion in the Progressive Islam Pamphlets series, it is hoped to reach a larger public than were able to be present in person. Perhaps, also, it may help to strengthen the bonds of brotherly love which unite all who hold sacred the ideals of brotherhood preached by the Prophet in his last Sermon.

A. Yusuf Ali.

Imam Husain And His Martyrdom

Sorrow as a Bond of Union

I am going to talk this afternoon about a very solemn subject, the martyrdom of Imam Husain at Kerbela, of which we are celebrating the anniversary. As the Chairman has very rightly pointed out, it is one of those wonderful events in our religious history about which all sects are agreed. More than that, in this room I have the honour of addressing some people who do not belong to our religious persuasion, but I venture to think that the view I put forward today may be of interest to them from its historical, its moral and its spiritual significance. Indeed, when we consider the background of that great tragedy, and all that has happened during the 1289 lunar years since, we cannot fail to be convinced that some events of sorrow and apparent defeat are really the very things which are calculated to bring about, or lead us towards, the union of humanity.

How Martyrdom healed divisions

When we invite strangers or guests and make them free of our family circle, that means the greatest outflowing of our hearts to them. The events that I am going to describe refer to some of the most touching incidents of our domestic history in their spiritual aspect. We ask our brethren of other faiths to come, and share with us some of the thoughts which are called forth by this event. As a matter of fact all students of history are aware that the horrors that are connected with the great event of Kerbela did more than anything else to unite together the various contending factions which had unfortunately appeared at that early stage of Muslim history. You know the old Persian saying applied to the Prophet:

Tu barae wasl kardan amadi;

Ni barae fasl kardan amadi.

"Thou camest to the world to unite, not to divide."

That was wonderfully exemplified by the sorrows and sufferings and finally the martyrdom of Imam Husain.

Commemoration of great virtues

There has been in our history a tendency sometimes to celebrate the event merely by wailing and tribulation, or sometimes by symbols like the Tazias that you see in India, - Taboots as some people call them. Well, symbolism or visible emblems may sometimes be useful in certain circumstances as tending to crystallise ideas. But I think the Muslims of India of the present day are quite ready to adopt a more effective way of celebrating the martyrdom, and that is by contemplating the great virtues of the martyr, trying to understand the significance of the events in which he took part, and translating those great moral and spiritual lessons into their own lives. From that point of view I think you will agree that it is good that we should sit together, even people of different faiths, - sit together and consider the great historic event, in which were exemplified such soul-stirring virtues as those of unshaken faith, undaunted courage, thought for others, willing self-sacrifice, steadfastness in the right and unflinching war against the wrong. Islam has a history of beautiful domestic affections, of sufferings and of spiritual endeavour, second to none in the world. That side of Muslim history, although to me the most precious, is, I am sorry to say, often neglected. It is most important that we should call attention to it, reiterated attention, the attention of our own people as well as the attention of those who are interested in historical and religious truth. If there is anything precious in Islamic history it is not the wars, or the politics, or the brilliant expansion, or the glorious conquests, or even the intellectual spoils which our ancestors gathered. In these matters, our history, like all history, has its lights and shades. What we need especially to emphasise is the spirit of organisation, of brotherhood, of undaunted courage in moral and spiritual life.

Plan of discourse

I propose first to give you an idea of the geographical setting and the historical background. Then I want very briefly to refer to the actual events that happened in the Muharram, and finally to draw your attention to the great lessons which we can learn from them.

Geographical Picture

In placing before you a geographical picture of the tract of country in which the great tragedy was enacted, I consider myself fortunate in having my own personal memories to draw upon. They make the picture vivid to my mind, and they may help you also. When I visited those scenes in 1928, I remember going down from Baghdad through all that country watered by the Euphrates river. As I crossed the river by a bridge of boats at Al-Musaiyib on a fine April morning, my thoughts leapt over centuries and centuries. To the left of the main river you have the old classic ground of Babylonian history; you have the railway station of Hilla; you have the ruins of the city of Babylon, witnessing to one of the greatest civilisations of antiquity. It was so mingled with the dust that it is only in recent years that we have begun to understand its magnitude and magnificence. Then you have the great river system of the Euphrates, the Furat as it is called, a river unlike any other river we know. It takes its rise in many sources from the mountains of Eastern Armenia, and sweeping in great zig-zags through rocky country, it finally skirts the desert as we see it now. Wherever it or its interlacing branches or canals can reach, it has converted the desert into fruitful cultivated country; in the picturesque phrase, it has made the desert blossom as the rose. It skirts round the Eastern edge of the Syrian desert and then flows into marshy land. In a tract not far from Kerbela itself there are lakes which receive its waters, and act as reservoirs. Lower down it unites with the other river, the Tigris, and the united rivers flow in the name of the Shatt-al-Arab into the Persian Gulf.

Abundant water & tragedy of thirst

From the most ancient times this tract of the lower Euphrates has been a garden. It was a cradle of early civilisation, a meeting place between Sumer and Arab, and later between the Persians and Arabs. It is a rich, well watered country, with date-palms and pomegranate groves. Its fruitful fields can feed populous cities and its luscious pastures attract the nomad Arabs of the desert, with their great flocks and herds. It is of particularly tragic significance that on the border of such a well-watered land, should have been enacted the tragedy of great and good men dying of thirst and slaughtered because they refused to bend the knee to the forces of iniquity. The English poet's lines "Water, water everywhere, and not a drop to drink" are brought home forcibly to you in this borderland between abundant water and desolate sands.

Kerbela and Its Great Dome

I remember the emotion with which I approached Kerbela from the East. The rays of the morning sun gilt the Gumbaz-i-Faiz, the great dome that crowns the building containing the tomb of Imam Husain. Kerbela actually stands on one of the great caravan routes of the desert. Today the river city of Kufa, once a Khilafat capital, is a mere village, and the city of Najaf is famous for the tomb of Hazrat Ali, but of little commercial importance. Kerbela, this outpost of the desert, is a mart and a meeting ground as well as a sacred place. It is the port of the desert, just as Basra, lower down, is a port for the Persian Gulf. Beautifully kept is the road to the mausoleum, to which all through the year come pilgrims from all parts of the world. Beautiful coloured enamelled tiles decorate the building. Inside, in the ceiling and upper walls, there is a great deal of glass mosaic. The glass seems to catch and reflect the light. The effect is that of rich coruscations of light combined with the solemnity of a closed building. The tomb itself is in a sort of inner grill, and below the ground is a sort of cave, where is shown the actual place where the Martyr fell. The city of Najaf is just about 40 miles to the South, with the tomb of Hazrat Ali on the high ground. You can see the golden dome for miles around. Just four miles from Najaf and connected with it by a tramway, is the deserted city of Kufa. The mosque is large, but bare and practically unused. The blue dome and the Mihrab of enamelled tiles bear witness to the ancient glory of the place.

Cities and their Cultural Meaning

The building of Kufa and Basra, the two great outposts of the Muslim Empire, in the 16th year of the Hijra, was a visible symbol that Islam was pushing its strength and building up a new civilisation, not only in a military sense, but in moral and social ideas and in the sciences and arts. The old effete cities did not content it, any more than the old and effete systems which it displaced. Nor was it content with the first steps it took. It was always examining, testing, discarding, re-fashioning its own handiwork. There was always a party that wanted to stand on old ways, to take cities like Damascus readymade, that loved ease and the path of least resistance. But the greater souls stretched out to new frontiers - of ideas as well as geography. They felt that old seats were like dead wood breeding worms and rottenness that were a danger to higher forms of life. The clash between them was part of the tragedy of Kerbela. Behind the building of new cities there is often the burgeoning of new ideas. Let us therefore examine the matter a little more closely. It will reveal the hidden springs of some very interesting history.

Vicissitudes of Mecca and Medina

The great cities of Islam at its birth were Mecca and Medina. Mecca, the centre of old Arabian pilgrimage, the birthplace of the Prophet, rejected the Prophet's teaching, and cast him off. Its idolatry was effete; its tribal exclusiveness was effete; its ferocity against the Teacher of the New Light was effete. The Prophet shook its dust off his feet, and went to Medina. It was the well-watered city of Yathrib, with a considerable Jewish population. It received with eagerness the teaching of the Prophet; it gave asylum to him and his Companions and Helpers. He reconstituted it and it became the new City of Light. Mecca, with its old gods and its old superstitions, tried to subdue this new Light and destroy it. The human odds were in favour of Mecca. But God's purpose upheld the Light, and subdued the old Mecca. But the Prophet came to build as well as to destroy. He destroyed the old paganism, and lighted a new beacon in Mecca - the beacon of Arab unity and human brotherhood. When the Prophet's life ended on this earth, his spirit remained. It inspired his people and led them from victory to victory. Where moral or spiritual and material victories go hand in hand, the spirit of man advances all along the line. But sometimes there is a material victory, with a spiritual fall, and sometimes there is a spiritual victory with a material fall, and then we have tragedy.

Spirit of Damascus

Islam's first extension was towards Syria, where the power was centred in the city of Damascus. Among living cities it is probably the oldest city in the world. Its bazaars are thronged with men of all nations, and the luxuries of all nations find ready welcome there. If you come to it westward from the Syrian desert, as I did, the contrast is complete, both in the country and in the people. From the parched desert sands you come to fountains and vineyards, orchards and the hum of traffic. From the simple, sturdy, independent, frank Arab, you come to the soft, luxurious, sophisticated Syrian. That contrast was forced on the Muslims when Damascus became a Muslim city. They were in a different moral and spiritual atmosphere. Some succumbed to the softening influences of ambition, luxury, wealth pride of race, love of ease, and so on. Islam stood always as the champion of the great rugged moral virtues. It wanted no compromise with evil in any shape or form, with luxury, with idleness, with the seductions of this world. It was a protest against these things. And yet the representatives of that protest got softened at Damascus. They aped the decadent princes of the world instead of striving to be leaders of spiritual thought. Discipline was relaxed, and governors aspired to be greater than the Khalifas. This bore bitter fruit later.

Snare of Riches

Meanwhile Persia came within the Muslim orbit. When Medain was captured in the year 16 of the Hijra, and the battle of Jalula broke the Persian resistance, some military booty was brought to Medina - gems, pearls, rubies, diamonds, swords of gold and silver. A great celebration was held in honour of the splendid victory and the valour of the Arab army. In the midst of the celebration they found the Caliph of the day actually weeping. One said to him, "What! a time of joy and thou sheddest tears?" "Yes", he said, "I foresee that the riches will become a snare, a spring of worldliness and envy, and in the end a calamity to my people." For the Arab valued, above all, simplicity of life, openness of character, and bravery in face of danger. Their women fought with them and shared their dangers. They were not caged creatures for the pleasures of the senses. They showed their mettle in the early fighting round the head of the Persian Gulf. When the Muslims were hard pressed, their women turned the scale in their favour. They made their veils into flags, and marched in battle array. The enemy mistook them for reinforcements and abandoned the field. Thus an impending defeat was turned into a victory.

Basra and Kufa: town-planning

In Mesopotamia the Muslims did not base their power on old and effete Persian cities, but built new outposts for themselves. The first they built was Basra at the head of the Persian Gulf, in the 17th year of the Hijra. And what a great city it became! Not great in war and conquest, not great in trade and commerce, but great in learning and culture in its best day, - alas! also great in its spirit of faction and degeneracy in the days of its decline! But its situation and climate were not at all suited to the Arab character. It was low and moist, damp and enervating. In the same year the Arabs built another city not far off from the Gulf and yet well suited to be a port of the desert, as Kerbela became afterwards. This was the city of Kufa, built in the same year as Basra, but in a more bracing climate. It was the first experiment in town-planning in Islam. In the centre was a square for the principal mosque. That square was adorned with shady avenues. Another square was set apart for the trafficking of the market. The streets were all laid out intersecting and their width was fixed. The main thoroughfares for such traffic as they had (we must not imagine the sort of traffic we see in Charing Cross) were made 60 feet wide; the cross streets were 30 feet wide; and even the little lanes for pedestrians were regulated to a width of 10.5 feet. Kufa became a centre of light and learning. The Khalifa Hazrat Ali lived and died there.

Rivalry and poison of Damascus

But its rival, the city of Damascus, fattened on luxury and Byzantine magnificence. Its tinsel glory sapped the foundations of loyalty and the soldierly virtues. Its poison spread through the Muslim world. Governors wanted to be kings. Pomp and selfishness, ease and idleness and dissipation grew as a canker; wines and spirituous liquors, scepticism, cynicism and social vices became so rampant that the protests of the men of God were drowned in mockery. Mecca, which was to have been a symbolical spiritual centre, was neglected or dishonoured. Damascus and Syria became centres of a worldliness and arrogance which cut at the basic roots of Islam.

Husain the Righteous refused to bow to worldliness and power

We have brought the story down to the 60th year of the Hijra. Yazid assumed the power at Damascus. He cared nothing for the most sacred ideals of the people. He was not even interested in the ordinary business affairs of administration. His passion was hunting, and he sought power for self-gratification. The discipline and self-abnegation, the strong faith and earnest endeavour, the freedom and sense of social equality which had been the motive forces of Islam, were divorced from power. The throne at Damascus had become a worldly throne based on the most selfish ideas of personal and family aggrandisement, instead of a spiritual office, with a sense of God-given responsibility. The decay of morals spread among the people. There was one man who could stem the tide. That was Imam Husain. He, the grandson of the Prophet, could speak without fear, for fear was foreign to his nature. But his blameless and irreproachable life was in itself a reproach to those who had other standards. They sought to silence him, but he could not be silenced. They sought to bribe him, but he could not be bribed. They sought to waylay him and get him into their Power. What is more, they wanted him to recognise the tyranny and expressly to support it. For they knew that the conscience of the people might awaken at any time, and sweep them away unless the holy man supported their cause. The holy man was prepared to die rather than surrender the principles for which he stood.

Driven from city to city Medina was the centre of Husain's teaching. They made Medina impossible for him. He left Medina and went to Mecca, hoping that he would be left alone. But he was not left alone. The Syrian forces invaded Mecca. The invasion was repelled, not by Husain but by other people. For Husain, though the bravest of the brave, had no army and no worldly weapons. His existence itself was an offence in the eyes of his enemies. His life was in danger, and the lives of all those nearest and dearest to him. He had friends everywhere, but they were afraid to speak out. They were not as brave as he was. But in distant Kufa, a party grew up which said: "We are disgusted with these events, and we must have Imam Husain to take asylum with us." So they sent and invited the Imam to leave Mecca, come to them, live in their midst, and be their honoured teacher and guide. His father's memory was held in reverence in Kufa. The Governor of Kufa was friendly, and the people eager to welcome him. But alas, Kufa had neither strength, nor courage, nor constancy. Kufa, geographically only 40 miles from Kerbela, was the occasion of the tragedy of Kerbela. And now Kufa is nearly gone, and Kerbela remains as the lasting memorial of the martyrdom.

Invitation from Kufa

When the Kufa invitation reached the Imam, he pondered over it, weighed its possibilities, and consulted his friends. He sent over his cousin Muslim to study the situation on the spot and report to him. The report was favourable, and he decided to go. He had a strong presentiment of danger. Many of his friends in Mecca advised him against it. But could he abandon his mission when Kufa was calling for it? Was he the man to be deterred, because his enemies were laying their plots for him, at Damascus and at Kufa? At least, it was suggested, he might leave his family behind. But his family and his immediate dependants would not hear of it. It was a united family, pre-eminent in the purity of its life and in its domestic virtues and domestic affections. If there was danger for its head, they would share it. The Imam was not going on a mere ceremonial visit. There was responsible work to do, and they must be by his side, to support him in spite of all its perils and consequences. Shallow critics scent political ambition in the Imam's act. But would a man with political ambitions march without an army against what might be called the enemy country, scheming to get him into its power, and prepared to use all their resources, military, political and financial, against him?

Journey through the desert

Imam Husain left Mecca for Kufa with all his family including his little children. Later news from Kufa itself was disconcerting. The friendly governor had been displaced by one prepared more ruthlessly to carry out Yazid's plans. If Husain was to go there at all, he must go there quickly, or his friends themselves would be in danger. On the other hand, Mecca itself was no less dangerous to him and his family. It was the month of September by the solar calendar, and no one would take a long desert journey in that heat, except under a sense of duty. By the lunar calendar it was the month of pilgrimage at Mecca. But he did not stop for the pilgrimage. He pushed on, with his family and dependants, in all numbering about 90 or 100 people, men, women and children. They must have gone by forced marches through the desert. They covered the 900 miles of the desert in little over three weeks. When they came within a few miles of Kufa, at the edge of the desert, they met people from Kufa. It was then that they heard of the terrible murder of Husain's cousin Muslim, who had been sent on in advance. A poet that came by dissuaded the Imam from going further. "For," he said epigramatically, "the heart of the city is with thee but its sword is with thine enemies, and the issue is with God." What was to be done? They were three weeks' journey from the city they had left. In the city to which they were going their own messenger had been foully murdered as well as his children. They did not know what the actual situation was then in Kufa. But they were determined not to desert their friends.

Call to Surrender or Die

Presently messengers came from Kufa, and Imam Husain was asked to surrender. Imam Husain offered to take one of three alternatives. He wanted no political power and no revenge. He said "I came to defend my own people. If I am too late, give me the choice of three alternatives: either to return to Mecca; or to face Yazid himself at Damascus; or if my very presence is distasteful to him and you, I do not wish to cause more divisions among the Muslims. Let me at least go to a distant frontier, where, if fighting must be done, I will fight against the enemies of Islam." Every one of these alternatives was refused. What they wanted was to destroy his life, or better still, to get him to surrender, to surrender to the very forces against which he was protesting, to declare his adherence to those who were defying the law of God and man, and to tolerate all the abuses which were bringing the name of Islam into disgrace. Of course he did not surrender. But what was he to do? He had no army. He had reasons to suppose that many of his friends from distant parts would rally round him, and come and defend him with their swords and bodies. But time was necessary, and he was not going to gain time by feigned compliance. He turned a little round to the left, the way that would have led him to Yazid himself, at Damascus. He camped in the plain of Kerbela.

Water cut off; Inflexible will, Devotion and Chivalry

For ten days messages passed backwards and forwards between Kerbela and Kufa. Kufa wanted surrender and recognition. That was the one thing the Imam could not consent to. Every other alternative was refused by Kufa, under the instructions from Damascus. Those fateful ten days were the first ten days of the month of Muharram, of the year 61 of the Hijra. The final crisis was on the 10th day, the Ashura day, which we are commemorating. During the first seven days various kinds of pressure were brought to bear on the Imam, but his will was inflexible. It was not a question of a fight, for there were but 70 men against 4,000. The little band was surrounded and insulted, but they held together so firmly that they could not be harmed. On the 8th day the water supply was cut off. The Euphrates and its abundant streams were within sight, but the way was barred. Prodigies of valour were performed in getting water. Challenges were made for single combat according to Arab custom. And the enemy were half-hearted, while the Imam's men fought in contempt of death, and always accounted for more men than they lost. On the evening of the 9th day, the little son of the Imam was ill. He had fever and was dying of thirst. They tried to get a drop of water. But that was refused point blank and so they made the resolve that they would, rather than surrender, die to the last man in the cause for which they had come. Imam Husain offered to send away his people. He said, "They are after my person; my family and my people can go back." But everyone refused to go. They said they would stand by him to the last, and they did. They were not cowards; they were soldiers born and bred; and they fought as heroes, with devotion and with chivalry.

The Final Agony; placid face of the man of God

On the day of Ashura, the 10th day, Imam Husain's own person was surrounded by his enemies. He was brave to the last. He was cruelly mutilated. His sacred head was cut off while in the act of prayer. A mad orgy of triumph was celebrated over his body. In this crisis we have details of what took place hour by hour. He had 45 wounds from the enemies' swords and javelins, and 35 arrows pierced his body. His left arm was cut off, and a javelin pierced through his breast. After all that agony, when his head was lifted up on a spear, his face was the placid face of a man of God. All the men of that gallant band were exterminated and their bodies trampled under foot by the horses. The only male survivor was a child, Husain's son Ali, surnamed Zain-ul-'Abidin - "The Glory of the Devout." He lived in retirement, studying, interpreting, and teaching his father's high spiritual principles for the rest of his life.

Heroism of the Women

There were women: for example, Zainab the sister of the Imam, Sakina his little daughter, and Shahr-i-Banu, his wife, at Kerbela. A great deal of poetic literature has sprung up in Muslim languages, describing the touching scenes in which they figure. Even in their grief and their tears they are heroic. They lament the tragedy in simple, loving, human terms. But they are also conscious of the noble dignity of their nearness to a life of truth reaching its goal in the precious crown of martyrdom. One of the best-known poets of this kind is the Urdu poet Anis, who lived in Lucknow, and died in 1874.

Lesson of the Tragedy

That briefly is the story. What is the lesson? There is of course the physical suffering in martyrdom, and all sorrow and suffering claim our sympathy, ---- the dearest, purest, most outflowing sympathy that we can give. But there is a greater suffering than physical suffering. That is when a valiant soul seems to stand against the world; when the noblest motives are reviled and mocked; when truth seems to suffer an eclipse. It may even seem that the martyr has but to say a word of compliance, do a little deed of non-resistance; and much sorrow and suffering would be saved; and the insidious whisper comes: "Truth after all can never die." That is perfectly true. Abstract truth can never die. It is independent of man's cognition. But the whole battle is for man's keeping hold of truth and righteousness. And that can only be done by the highest examples of man's conduct - spiritual striving and suffering enduring firmness of faith and purpose, patience and courage where ordinary mortals would give in or be cowed down, the sacrifice of ordinary motives to supreme truth in scorn of consequence. The martyr bears witness, and the witness redeems what would otherwise be called failure. It so happened with Husain. For all were touched by the story of his martyrdom, and it gave the deathblow to the politics of Damascus and all it stood for. And Muharram has still the power to unite the different schools of thought in Islam, and make a powerful appeal to non-Muslims also.

Explorers of Spiritual Territory

That, to my mind, is the supreme significance of martyrdom. All human history shows that the human spirit strives in many directions, deriving strength and sustenance from many sources. Our bodies, our physical powers, have developed or evolved from earlier forms, after many struggles and defeats. Our intellect has had its martyrs, and our great explorers have often gone forth with the martyrs' spirit. All honour to them. But the highest honour must still lie with the great explorers of spiritual territory, those who faced fearful odds and refused to surrender to evil. Rather than allow a stigma to attach to sacred things, they paid with their own lives the penalty of resistance. The first kind of resistance offered by the Imam was when he went from city to city, hunted about from place to place, but making no compromise with evil. Then was offered the choice of an effectual but dangerous attempt at clearing the house of God, or living at ease for himself by tacit abandonment of his striving friends. He chose the path of danger with duty and honour, and never swerved from it giving up his life freely and bravely. His story purifies our emotions. We can best honour his memory by allowing it to teach us courage and constancy.

The End

Answer This Smartly .

2008-01-17T22:45:00.000+05:30

B elow are four questions and a bonus question. You have to answer them instantly. You can't take your time, answer them immediately. OK?

Let's find out just how clever you really are.... Ready? GO!!! (scroll down)

First Question: You are participating in a race. You overtake the second person. What position are you in?

~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~

Answer: If you answered that you are first, then you areabsolutely wrong! If you overtake the second person and you take his place, you are second! Try not to screw up next time. Now answer the second question, but don't take as much time as you took for the first question, OK ?

Second Question: I f you overtake the last person, then you are...? (scroll down)

~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~

Answer: If you answered that you are second to last, then you are wrong again. Tell me, how can you overtake the LAST Person? You're not very good at this, are you?

Third Question: V ery tricky arithmetic! Note: This must be done in your head only. Do NOT use paper and pencil or a calculator. Try it. Take 1000 and add 40 to it. Now ! add another 1000 . Now add 30 . Add another 1000 . Now add 20 . Now add another 1000 Now add 10 . What is the total? Scroll down for answer.....

~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~ Did you get 5000 ?

The correct answer is actually 4100. If you don't believe it, check it with a calculator!
Today is definitely not your day, is it? Maybe you'll get the last question right.... ......Maybe.

Fourth Question: Mary's father has five daughters: 1. Nana, 2. Nene, 3. Nini, 4. Nono. What is the name of the fifth daughter?

~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~

Did you Answer Nunu?
NO! Of course it isn't.
Her name is Mary.
Read the question again!

Okay, now the bonus round:

A mute person goes into a shop and wants to buy a toothbrush. By imitating the action of brushing his teeth he successfully expresses himself to the shopkeeper and! the purchase is done. Next, a blind man comes into the shop who wants to buy a pair of sunglasses; how does HE indicate what he wants?

He just has to open his mouth and ask... It's really very simple...!

KEEP SMILING :)

Life is worthwhile .

2008-01-13T23:22:00.000+05:30

Life is worthwhile if you LEARN from your own experiences. We learn to do it right by first sometimes doing it wrong. We also learn from other peoples experiences. We learn by what we see - pay attention. By what we hear - be a good listener. We learn from what we read. Learn from every source. Life is worthwhile if you TRY. Try to make a difference, try to make some progress, try to learn a new skill. Try your best. Give it every effort. Life is worthwhile if you STAY. You have to stay from spring until harvest. Sometimes calamity comes and then it is worth wrapping it up, but just dont end in the middle. Life is worthwhile if you CARE, if you care enough you will get incredible results, care enough to make a difference, Care enough to win. Always remember the four powerful words : Learn, Try, Stay & Care and make life worthwhile.

The First Step.

2008-01-13T22:58:00.000+05:30

We all have the opportunity to be courageous everyday, in small and large ways. And it is when we choose to be courageous that we change our life and the lives of those around us. So, what is courage? It is simply acting on what we know we should do, regardless of any fear that we may have. It is the choice to disregard worry. It is the choice to do right, to pursue our dreams, to be successful people, to lead the way for others. Courage changes lives. You will accomplish things that you once only dreamed of. You will experience things that you thought were only for others, be clear about your dream and vision, do your homework , it helps, because then you can make an informed decision . So take the first step -----

Seasons Greetings !!!!!!!!

2007-12-22T23:32:00.000+05:30

Wishing you all a very

Happy EID,

Merry Christhmas

and a

Very Happy n Prosperous New Year.

A useful and RARE info :(click on the image to view clear image)

2007-12-09T22:09:00.000+05:30

Lessons in Logic - (from an email fwd) :)

2007-12-09T21:29:00.000+05:30

Lessons in Logic

If your father is a poor man,it is your fate but, if your father-in-law is a poor man,it's your stupidity.

I was born intelligent -education ruined me.

Practice makes perfect.....But nobody's perfect...... so why practice?

If it's true that we are here to help others,then what exactly are the others here for?

Since light travels faster than sound, people appear bright until you hear them speak.

Money is not everything. There's Mastercard & Visa.

Every Man should marry. After all, happiness is not the only thing in life.

The wise never marry.and when they marry they become otherwise.

Success is a relative term. It brings so many relatives.

Never put off the work till tomorrow what you can put off today.

"Your future depends on your dreams" So go to sleep.

There should be a better way to start a day Than waking up every morning .

"Hard work never killed anybody" But why take the risk .

The more you learn, the more you know, The more you know, the more you forget ,The more you forget, the less you know So.. why learn.

It is easy ........................

2007-11-29T17:24:00.001+05:30

It is easy to critisise than to appreciate,
It is easy to judge than to accept,
It is easy to react than to respond,
It is easy to be impulsive than to be mindful,
It is easy to stay stagnant with comfort than to take risk and flow with life,
It is easy to escape from a situation than to face it,
It is easy to confront than to console,
It is easy to speak than to listen,
It is easy to be serious than to laugh,
It is easy to get caught by wordly activities than to relax,
It is easy to blame than to take responsibility,
It is easy to get discouraged than to rely on inner strength,
It is easy to be fearful and worried than to trust,
It is easy to be in the known than the unknown,
It is easy to resist than to surrender.

Thought of the Day !

2007-11-29T17:17:00.000+05:30

Live Life one day at a time.....
Share it with people who matters most to you,
For life is a little jar of MEMORIES,
So...........fill it with people you cherish.

Cook with your child.

2007-11-22T16:57:00.000+05:30

Children grow at a blink-and-you-miss-it rate. An unlikely place to connect with them is the kitchen:) . Introduce your child to the art of cooking and bond with them better, whatever their age.

Children find kitchen work absorbing and facinating. Rolling tiny chapatis(rotis), or tossing a salad(however untidy it may be) makes them feel important and oh- so grown up...Do have patience with tiny fingers taking hours and hours over little things. Remember they are too young to do any chopping and keep them away from fire, oven and hot dishes!

Here are a few recipes that you can try out with your kids;

Fancy Puris (serves 2-4)

3 cups of whole-wheat flour, 1 cup left-over dal (lentil)or cooked veggies, salt to taste, 1tsp oil, water to knead and oil for frying.

Method:- 1)place flour in a mixing bowl, add dal(lentil) or veggies, salt and 1tsp oil, knead to make a stiff dough(make a dough before u call the child into the kitchen, so that he doesnt see the dal n veggies mixed into it). 2) Give him/her a ball of the dough and let them roll it out on a flat surface, with a cookie cutter n let them cut out interesting shapes. 3) Deep fry their master-pieces in hot oil, and watch them beam!
(Children love to play with dough, and will eat what they make. An additional bonus;healthy dal and veggies are eaten by your child without them knowing :)

Steaming Veggie Soup (serves 4)

4 cups vegetable stock or a packet of vegtable soup powder;1 cup mixed vegetables, mushrooms, green beans, brocolli, spring onions - finely chopped -sauteed(use chicken slivers for children fond of non-veg); cream to garnish.

Method: Pre-cook the soup and veggies/chicken, help your child to ladle out soup and ask to drop the veggies /chicken into the soup. Then let him garnish with a dollop of cream.
(This is a sneaky way to get your child to have a bowl of nutritious soup that they have made :)

Quick Pasta ( serves 2)

1 cup coloured pasta, 1 packet soup powder in any flavour, such as chicken, mushroom, tomoato or vegetable; 1 cup boiled shredden chicken; 1 cup sauteed veggies.

Method: Pre-cook the pasta till almost don and cool, let your child cut open the soup packet and add powder into the pot,measure out half of the water suggested in the pack to make a thick sauce-like consistency. In a plate let your child arrange the pasta in colourful rows. Pour over the ladle of soup and ask him to add as much chicken and sauteed veggies as much as he wants. Serve hot.
(This colourful dish is sure to perk up his interest as well as his appetite).

Did u Know ?

2007-11-22T16:33:00.000+05:30

You may lose bone strength, if u diet without exercising, In a study at Washington University, dieters who lost weight simply by cutting calories, lost 2.2% of bone density. to help yourself work out and get enough calcium , take recommended 500-1000mg(as per age) a day, then u can lose weight without losing bone.

********************************

Did u know that u need less than a tablespoon of salt everyday? But most adults end up taking in much more. Salt is not only found in the cooked food that we eat but lurks in form of sodium in almost all processed food. To workout the equivalent amount amount of salt, multiply the sodium value by 2.5(by this calculation, a little more than a gram of sodium is equivalent to 3gms of salt), Also buy food that states - sodium -free, low sodium or reduced sodium or unsalted - on their labels. Avoid high -sodium foods such as bacon, sausage, cheese, cold cuts, condiments, cooking sauces, pickls and salad dressing.

********************************

14th November - Children Day.

2007-11-15T22:21:00.000+05:30

10 Child Commandments To Parents.

My hands are small; please dont expect perfection, whenever I make bed, draw a picture or throw a ball. My legs are short ; please slow down , so that I can keep up with you.

My eyes has not seen the world as yours have; please dont expect me to see things the way you do.

I'm only little for a short time, please take time to explain things to me about this wonderful World.

Dont scold me for my inquisitiveness. Treat me as if you would like to be treated.

I am special gift from God; please treasure me as God intended you to do , disciplining me in a loving manner.

I need your encouragement to grow; you can critisize the things i do , without criticizing me.

Permit me to fail, so that I learn from my mistakes.

Please dont do things over for me, and please dont compare me to my brother or sister.

Please dont be afraid to leave for a weekend together; kids need vacation from parents, just as parents need vacation from kids.

Please set a good example for me to follow, I enjoy learning.

************************************************************************************

The Omar Ali Saifuddin Mosque - Brunei.

2007-11-13T23:26:00.000+05:30

This is the one of the prettiest buildings in the east! The Mosque was built from imported Italian marble and special handicrafted stained-glass windows from England and carpets from Saudi Arabia, and was finished in 1958. There is an elevator going to the top of the 44 m minaret. In the artificial lagoon that surrounds the Mosque, there is a replica of an 16th century Royal Barge. The building is as impressive looking during the night when it's lit up by different coloured lights.Amazing in appearance, but too beautiful to be true, The Omar Ali Saifuddin Mosque is Brunei's proudest architectural achievement. It sits on an artificial lagoon near the Brunei River in Kampong Ayer, which is appropriately enough, known as a "water village." A structure in the water that resembles a ship was at one time used for official state ceremonies. The mosque is the largest in the Far East, and considered among the most beautiful in the world. It reaches a height of 52 meters and is topped with a gold dome supported by walls of Italian marble, which also forms the mosque's columns, arches, and towers.

Discover India - Palace on Wheels.

2007-11-11T13:11:00.000+05:30

PALACE ON WHEELS .

A WEEK IN WONDERLAND.

The Palace On wheels is a splendid and enchanting royal journey through the bygone era of the erstwhile Maharajas. Though times have changed and the winds have shifted, the Palace On Wheels cruises along in royal style, the kind only the Maharajas of yesteryears could have perpetuated and enjoyed.

The exquisite and exclusive Palace On Wheels has luxurious cabins, wall to wall carpeting, a well stocked bar, two dining cars and a very personalized service... in fact, almost everything that could compromise of heaven on earth for seven days!

The Palace on Wheels comprises of 14 fully air-conditioned deluxe saloons, equipped with world class amenities to enhance the pleasure of traveling.

The Coaches ::The 14 coaches are named after former Rajput states matching the aesthetics and interiors of the royal past. Each saloon has a mini pantry and a lounge to ensure availability of hot and cold beverage, and refreshments and a place to relax and get together.

Rooms ::14 fully air-conditioned deluxe saloons, each a combination of 4 twin bedded chambers with channel music, intercom, attached toilets, running hot and cold water, shower, wall to wall carpeting and other amenities. The furniture with its inlaid motifs has been specially created for the Palace on Wheels.

Restaurants ::The train has two lavish restaurants "The Maharaja" and "The Maharani" with a Rajasthani ambience serving palate tickling Continental, Chinese, India and Rajasthani cuisines.

Bar ::The train also boasts of a well stocked bar offering the choicest of sprits of Indian and international brands. Each coach also offers a good collection of books to choose from.

Facilities ::The Palace on Wheels is regularly refurbished to a great extent. The decor in the saloons, bar lounge has been changed, keeping in mind the traditionally aesthetic yet modern, Palace on Wheels. Toilets have been redone and are maintained sparkling clean. Each saloon lounge has been equipped with color television and a CD player. A satellite phone is on the way to make you communicate anywhere in the world from the train.

Explore the romantic land of Rajasthan, while experiencing the luxuries worthy of the Maharajas of yore. Rajasthan opens its treasure chest and presents all its mystical charms for the astute tourists.

It offers a 7 day tour starting from Delhi to Jaipur then Jaiselmer then Jodhpur to Ranthambore to Udaipur to Agra and then back to Delhi.

Anyone going or planning a holiday whether from India or outside India i suggest that experiencing journey on this train is a must :)

Wishing u all A Very Happy Diwali.

2007-11-10T00:04:00.000+05:30

Diwali - Festival of Lights.

Diwali, 'Festival of Lights', is celebrated with great fervor and gaiety. Deewali is celebrated by young and old, rich and poor, throughout the country to dispel darkness and light up their lives. The festival symbolizes unity in diversity as every state celebrates it in its own special way.

Diwali has many legends and religious accounts to it. Lights and diyas are lit to signifying the driving away of darkness and ignorance, as well as the awakening of the light within ourselves. Diwali is a time for family gatherings, food, celebration and pooja.

So may the festival of light bring joy and sparkles.

Have a crackling Diwali.

Few Interesting Facts .

2007-11-07T22:42:00.000+05:30

Well guys here are few of the interesting facts , that I happened to read somewhere and thought to share with all .

1. Chewing on gum while cutting onions can help a person from stop producing tears. Try it next time you chop onions.

2. Until babies are six months old, they can breathe and swallow at the same time. Indeed convenient!

3. Offered a new pen to write with, 97% of all people will write their own name.

4. Male mosquitoes are vegetarians. Only females bite.

5. The average person's field of vision encompasses a 200-degree wide angle.

6. To find out if a watermelon is ripe, knock it, and if it sounds hollow then it is ripe .

7. Canadians can send letters with personalized postage stamps showing their own photos on each stamp.

8. Babies' eyes do not produce tears until the baby is approximately six to eight weeks old.

9. It snowed in Sahara Desert in 1979.

10. Plants watered with warm water grow larger and more quickly than plants watered with cold water.

11. Wearing headphones for just an hour will increase the bacteria in your ear by 700 times.

12.Grapes explode if you put them in the microwave.

13. Those stars and colours you see when you rub your eyes are called phosphenes.

14.Our eyes (pupil) are always the same sizefrom birth, but our ears and nose never stops growing.

15.Everyones tongue print is different like finger prints.

16. Contrary to popular belief, a swallowed chewing gum doesn't stay in the gut. It will pass through the system and be excreted.

17. At 40 Centigrade a person loses about 14.4 calories per hour by breathing.

18. There is a hotel in Sweden built entirely out of ice; it is rebuilt every year.

19. Cats, camels and giraffes are the only animals in the world that walk right foot, right foot, left foot, left foot, rather than right foot, left foot .

20. Onions help reduce cholesterol if eaten after a fatty meal.

21. The sound you hear when you crack your knuckles is actually the sound of nitrogen gas bubbles bursting.

Patience : A virtue of the Righteous

2007-11-03T23:01:00.000+05:30

O you who believe, be steadfast; be supreme in steadfastness...

(The Holy Qur'an, Chapter 3, Verse 200)

God has revealed in a verse, "This is a Book We have sent down to you so that you can bring mankind from the darkness to the light, by the permission of their Lord, to the Path of the Almighty, the Praiseworthy" The Holy Qur'an, Chapter 14, Verse 1, thus drawing attention to the Quran's attribute of bringing people from darkness to light.

The Qur'an defines patience as one of the paths that lead people from darkness to light and as an attribute of morality that is superior to, wide-ranging, and very different from the daily behaviour of many people. True patience is a moral characteristic displayed in the face of difficulty and in every moment of life. Moreover, it requires the demonstration of determination and consistency during times of ease and hardship, and is a lifelong endeavour that never goes astray, even for a moment.

God gives the most striking examples of patience in the lives of the Prophets, because they showed patience while teaching God's religion and leading a moral life. They never deviated from their devotion to God, and were patient people who sought only God's approval. The Qur'an tells us that God loves those who trust Him and show patience in all circumstances:How many of the Prophets fought (in God's way), and with them (fought) large bands of godly men? But they never lost heart if they met with disaster in God's way, nor did they weaken (in will) or give in. And God loves those who are firm and steadfast. The Holy Qur'an, Chapter 3, Verse 146.

Life comes and goes just as quickly for those who live morally as for those who do not. Those who exhibit impatience when facing the tests that God creates while they are in this world, who revolt against them by becoming impatient, and who are not constant in their morality and worship one day will die and find themselves between Heaven and Hell. Those who choose patience and surrender to Destiny spend their temporary life here in the finest possible way and will enter Paradise due to their trust in God. Those who spend their life being impatient, and complaining about their difficulties and troubles will find themselves in the darkness of Hell, just as they lived here in the darkness of irreligion, and will realize that they have sacrificed eternal life for a short temporary life on Earth.

Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) said: Whoever remains patient, God will make him patient. Nobody can be given a blessing better and greater than patience.

Moms Around The World .

2007-11-02T23:44:00.000+05:30

Earth's Mothers

(Extracts from the Oprah Winfrey Show).

Can you imagine raising your children in a place where milk costs about $8 a gallon? Or living in a place where your kids play outside in total darkness because the sun only shines 45 minutes a day? From Africa to Alaska, we're meeting moms from around the world!

The first stop on our trip around the globe is Kotzebue, Alaska, a small village 30 miles north of the Arctic Circle. For mom, Mary Swisher, an Inupiak Eskimo, life in Alaska can be challenging.For two months a year, Mary, her husband and two daughters, live in darkness because of a phenomenon called polar night. "We'll get only about 45 minutes of sunlight. The sun will actually rise about 10:45 and then it will set about 11:15," Mary says. "And then it's total [darkness] again."Surrounded by water, the only way to get to Kotzebue is by boat, plane or snowmobile. Like most families there, Mary lives in a small home to save on energy and fuel, which is brought on a barge in the summer before the Bering Sea freezes in the winter.Alaska's brutal winters last six months, with wind chills sometimes dropping to 100 degrees below zero. "If you threw out water outside in the sky, it would come down as powder. That's how cold it gets," Mary says.Because of transportation costs, food in Kotzebue is expensive. A gallon of milk can cost up to $8—four ears of corn costs $12!"The groceries are so expensive because the only way that you could get to Kotzebue is by flying in or by boat in the summer, so a lot of our groceries and our milk, they're flown in daily," Mary says.Mary says to keep warm and healthy, her family eats meat every day. The main source of protein for most Eskimos comes from their own backyards. "My husband hunts. He goes caribou hunting as well as moose hunting," Mary says. Two or three caribou will last Mary's family through the winter. The family also eats a lot of muktuk, a dish made from bowhead whale blubber and meat.Despite the high cost of living and brutal winters, Mary still feels Kotzebue is the best place to raise a family. "The culture here is very awesome. Being a little kid here, they like to celebrate life. I love this close-knit community," Mary says. "I'm proud to be an Eskimo, and so is my family.

According to the Seventh Annual Mother's Index, Norway is one of the top spots for moms!With free healthcare for children seven and under—and paid maternity leave that lasts a year—this Scandanavian paradise makes sure family comes first."It's a very family oriented society and the family is very important to the government," says Trine Grung, a mother of two, who calls Oslo, Norway, home.Along with extended maternity leave—which can be divided between a husband and wife—moms and dads each get 10 days off with pay to take care of their kids if they get sick! Plus, during the first few years, families can get about $100 a month from the government to help pay nanny costs.If your day care provider falls through? No problem! Trine says it's okay to take the kids to work for a day or two.Trine says obesity is becoming a bigger problem in Norway, so she tries to make sure her two children, Frida and Kasper, have as healthy a lifestyle as possible."When they come home from school, they're outside playing soccer, going in the woods. I want them to be active. I don't want them to sit down just being paralyzed in front of the TV," Trine says.So what is her impression of American moms? "The impression we get from TVs and what we read in the papers, I think they should be more strict…the health issue and the eating and everything," Trine says. "I'm very strict with my kids. Like there's no peanut butter ever in the house…There's a lot of love behind a no."Despite being health conscious, however, Trine says the best advice she gives her kids is about their emotional well-being. "To believe in themselves…like my little girl, for example, … if she comes home and said somebody said something bad about her hair I said, 'Do you like your hair?'" Trine says. "That's the most important thing. To believe and be strong in yourself."

Talk about lifestyles of the rich and famous! We traveled way down south to meet Andrea Santa Rosa in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.Married to well-known Brazilian actor Marcio Garcia, Andrea basks in the good life with their two children, Pedro and Nina. "I have a nanny. I have a cook. I have a housekeeper," Andrea says. "I think that Brazil is so [much] easier than America because the women [in America] don't have time for them[selves]. Just for the children. And for the house."In Rio de Janeiro, Andrea says looks matter. "It's very important to be beautiful. I love to work out. I like to buy some clothes," she says.But in a country with one of the world's highest crime rates, Andrea's top priority is keeping her family safe. "The violence here is terrible. I have security because I'm afraid sometimes. I have a bulletproof car."Like every mother, Andrea hopes that she is raising her children right. "When they grow up, I'd like them to be a good person and to do everything in the right way," Andrea says.

When Dina, a mom in Cairo, Egypt, began looking for a pre-school for her son, Aly—who was born with Down syndrome—she learned about the striking lack of opportunities for people with disabilities in her country. She says administrators at schools would ask, "Why do you want to send him here? Maybe you should send him to an institution."Though she had no business or education training, Dina opened the Baby Academy Preschool for Children, which provides top-of-the-line facilities. "I wanted a place that would treat every child as an individual, that would help him to achieve his maximum potential," she says.Now Dina has three schools, 1,000 graduates, and plans for further expansion!

Motherhood takes on a different meaning in Sudan's Abushok Refugee Camp. The camp, situated in the volatile Darfur region of the east African nation, is home to 54,000 displaced refugees. While visiting the camp, CNN reporter Jeff Koinange met Makha, a 25-year-old mother.Makha and her husband were living with their six children on a grain farm when their village came under attack by "Janjaweed," the ruthless mounted militias who have executed many of the atrocities in the ongoing genocide in Sudan. Janjaweed militiamen killed Makha's husband and two of her children, and raped her. She escaped and, with her surviving four children, fled 60 miles on foot.When Jeff spoke with her, Makha had been in the camp for seven months. She was building a six-foot mud wall in a desperate attempt to protect her children. "Perhaps if the Janjaweed come here, they'll see that wall and pick an easier target," Jeff explains.Despite everything the refugees of Darfur have been through, another mother at the camp named Fatima says she still has hopes and dreams for her children. "For me, life has no meaning. I just want my children to be able to live normal lives like children anywhere," she says. "Not as refugees."

In India, the legal age for marriage is 18, but more than half of the country's women are married and starting families by their 15th birthdays. On average, women make up only 6 percent of India's workforce—but that is changing.Over the past decade, hundreds of U.S. companies have outsourced jobs to India. Over 300,000 Indians are employed as customer service phone operators. One of these workers is 29-year-old mother Bharti, who works from 8:30 p.m. to 5:30 a.m.—literally through the middle of the night. Bharti rarely spends more than 15 minutes at a time with her husband or son. She says she hasn't spent a night with her husband in two months."My ultimate dream is to have our own flat, and Ishu [her son] have his own room, and I'm not working at all," Bharti says. "I would love to teach dance. That's what I want—a simple, very small life."These jobs imported from the West are changing Indian culture, especially how families are structured, "Their lives are in reverse. They adopt these American, Western lives at night and come back and try to live their Indian lives during the day," she says. "The mothers are still obligated, even though they're working all night long, to come and cook first thing in the morning, pick up the kids during the day. Their duties have multiplied.

In Thailand, 65 percent of women work and the average household income is only $6,000 a year. Muhlee, a mom in Bangkok, Thailand, works six days a week as a masseuse—making just enough money to pay for the one-room apartment she shares with her 18-year-old daughter and husband. In addition to her busy work schedule, Muhlee says her husband also expects her to do all of the housework.Because they do not have the room or the money, Muhlee's 9-year-old son does not live with his parents in Bangkok. Instead, he lives in the country with Muhlee's parents. She rarely gets to see him, but they talk every day."She would do anything for her kids," says Muhlee's translator."Muhlee is actually very lucky because she talks to her son every day," Lisa says. "She's one of millions of women around the world who are from the countryside, but have to leave their homes in search of work. Some of these mothers in China, in Mexico, in Thailand see their kids maybe once a month. Some see their kids maybe two times a year.

In Uganda, Lisa Ling introduces us to one woman who is almost single-handedly raising her country. Bakoko Zoe, a former government minister, has personally adopted 40 orphans whose parents died of AIDS. "Virtually that's all I do with my income," Bakoko says.As she raises these 40 children, Bakoko simultaneously lobbies to change laws that give men unlimited power over women. And she starts changing those laws at home…with her 20 sons. "In the future, when we have our wives, we must learn how to give them the freedom and how to empower them to look for their own survival," one of her sons says."Even if I am poor, even if I don't have what others have, I have fine young men who will transform our society,"

Peace - Norah Jones.

2007-10-25T23:43:00.000+05:30

There's a place that I know, where the sycamores grow

And daffodils have their fun

Where the cares of the day seem to slowly fade away

And the glow of the evening sun

Peace, when the day is done

If I go there real late; let my mind meditate

On everything to be done

If I search deep inside; let my conscience be my guide

Then the answers are sure to come

Don't have to worry none

When you find peace of mind, leave your worries behind

Don't say that it can't be done

With a new point of view, life's true meaning comes to you

And the freedom you seek is won

Peace is for everyone

Life - The Way I Perceive It !

2007-10-23T23:11:00.000+05:30

Life

It is a path of experiences,
Of happiness and joys,
Of sorrows and tears,
Of give and take,
Of learning from ones' experiences,
Of evolving as a better person , over the years,
And growing intellectually with each day,
Therefore; make the most of it,
Life is a gift of God, So Live it up!

GO GREEN - Save the Environment.

2007-09-14T22:32:00.000+05:30

Fight against Global Warming - Start by making small chnages , its easier than you think.

Disconnect
Let's start with a no-cost step. About 75 percent of the energy consumed by home appliances occurs while they're turned off but still plugged in. Unplug everything in your house that doesn't need to be connected full-time, or plug cords in to surge protectors, which can be flipped on as needed.

Curb Your Temper(ature)
Every degree you lower the thermostat in winter and raise it in summer can reduce your heating and cooling bills by 1 percent or more. Install an automatic, programmable thermostat that allows you to set specific temperatures for different times of day. For example, in winter you don't need it as warm when you're sleeping, and in summer you don't need to cool the house while you're at work. While on the subject of temperature, make sure your water heater is set at the mid-range of 120 degrees; anything hotter and you're wasting energy. And if your water heater is at least three years old, wrap it in an insulation blanket (newer models are better insulated), and will save enough energy to prevent the release of up to 1,000 pounds of carbon dioxide, as per climatecrisis.

No Pane, No Gain
Replacing single-pane windows with energy-efficient double panes can reduce your heating and cooling needs by close to one-third.

Go with the (Low) Flow
A low-flow showerhead—which uses less hot water—can reduce carbon-dioxide emissions 376 pounds and lower your utility bill annually.

Lighten Up
About a quarter of the energy needed for our homes goes toward keeping on the lights. If a household replaced one traditional lightbulb with an energy-efficient compact fluorescent lamp (CFL), we would save $600 million in utility bills and enough energy to light 3 million homes each year. CFLs cost more, but they use nearly 75 percent less energy and last about 10 times longer than incandescent lightbulbs.

Erase Your Footprint
If you can't afford to convert every square foot of your home into a paradigm of energy efficiency—and let's face it, very few of us can—then try the next best thing: Purchase carbon offsets. For every pound of carbon dioxide your home releases, you can fund an environment-friendly endeavor that reduces the amount of greenhouse gases released into the air.

HAVE A BLESSED RAMAZAN.

2007-09-13T23:25:00.000+05:30

As this great month dawns upon us, its value is more than can be told.May we find ourselves making use of it. Allah is waiting to grant us what we ask from him...May you be granted Abundant Rizq, Good Health, Surrounded by Love and Laughter,Iklaas in Imaan and Happiness beyond compare. May all that we wish of be 'Granted'... Amen.

RAMAZAN MUBARAK.

The Month of Fasting and Purification.

2007-09-13T22:59:00.000+05:30

The holy month of Ramadan enjoys a special importance in the Islamic calendar. As the Holy Prophet (S.A.W.) said: "It is Allah's Own month." It is the chief of all months and the most glorious one. As we already know, 'Fasting' is one of the important pillars of Islam and it is the very month of Ramadan during which fasting has been made obligatory for all adults and sane Muslims. By fasting during Ramadan, a Muslim besides discharging an obligation imposed upon him by Allah, becomes entitled to great reward in the Hereafter. On the other hand, any lapse in the matter amounts to a great sin. Fasting is an article of worship, the knowledge about the performance or otherwise whereof rests only with Allah and the person concerned. Hence, it is Allah alone who will reward that person for it, on the Day of Judgment.

The blessings of Ramadan are not limited to fasting alone, because the performance of all sorts of worship and good deeds during this month is also a source of great Divine favor. The revelation of the Holy Qur'an commenced during this very month and it is therefore the duty of every Muslim to read and try to understand the meaning of the Holy Qur'an and thereby gain an insight into the Divine secrets enshrined therein. It brings peace and illumination to the mind and imparts purity to the soul.

Ramadan is the month of fasting, intensive prayer, sacrifice and Divine worship. Throughout this month a devout Muslim fasts during the day in the true sense of the word, that is, he had merely denies himself food and water, but as explained by the Holy Prophet (S.A.W.), exercises strict control over his tongue, eyes, ears, thoughts and deeds and does everything possible to seek the pleasure of Allah.

Devout supplications to Allah and repentance of one's sins during Ramadan are the sources of Divine blessings and mercy. Some nights, among the last ten nights of Ramadan, are called the 'Nights of Glory' (Laylatul Qadr). Muslims keep awake during these nights and offer special prayers. Even among these nights, the 23rd and 27th enjoys excellence over all the others. It is accompanied by great blessings, and he usually grants the supplications made to Allah during this night.

The holy month of Ramadan, besides being the month of worship and Divine blessings, carries a historical importance as well. As already mentioned above, the revelations of the Holy Qur'an commenced in this month. The epoch-making 'Battle of Badr' and the 'Conquest of Mecca' also took place during the holy month of Ramadan.

O ye who believe! Fasting is prescribed to you as it was prescribed to those before you, that ye may (learn) self-restraint, (2:183)

(Fasting) for a fixed number of days; but if any of you is ill, or on a journey, the prescribed number (Should be made up) from days later. For those who can do it (With hardship), is a ransom, the feeding of one that is indigent. But he that will give more, of his own free will, it is better for him. And it is better for you that ye fast, if ye only knew. (2:184)

Ramadan is the (month) in which was sent down the Qur'an, as a guide to mankind, also clear (Signs) for guidance and judgment (Between right and wrong). So every one of you who is present (at his home) during that month should spend it in fasting, but if any one is ill, or on a journey, the prescribed period (Should be made up) by days later. Allah intends every facility for you; He does not want to put to difficulties. (He wants you) to complete the prescribed period, and to glorify Him in that He has guided you; and perchance ye shall be grateful. (2:185)

FOLLOW YOUR DREAMS.

2007-09-05T22:06:00.000+05:30

a) One is happy as a result of one's own efforts, once one knows the necessary ingredients of happiness. Happiness is no vague dream, of that now I feel certain.(George Sand)

b) No trumpets sound when the important decision of our life are made. Destiny is made known silently. (Agnes de Mille)

c) Dreams are pathways to Self-discovery. Self-discovery is a pathway to fulfillment.

d) Dreams color your soul with rainbows of hope.

e) Let your dreams be your inspiration.

f) No one can limit your dreams, so dont be afraid to dream large.

g) Dreams are the true interpreters of our inclinations; but there is art required to sort and understand them.(Michel de Montaigne).

h) Wishes and dreams reflect our innermost selves and allow us to be who we really are.

i) It is sometimes wiser to follow the dreams of your heart than the logic of your mind.

j) Dreams are true while they last, and do we not live in dreams.(Alfred-Lord Tennyson)

REACH FOR YOUR DREAMS AND THEY WILL REACH YOU.

UNICEF - India.

2007-09-04T23:33:00.000+05:30

UNICEF has been working in India since 1949. The largest UN organisation in the country, it is currently implementing a $400 million programme from 2003 to 2007.

UNICEF is fully committed to working with the Government of India to ensure that each child born in this vast and complex country gets the best start in life, thrives and develops to his or her full potential.

The challenge is enormous but UNICEF is well placed to meet it. The organisation uses quality research and data to understand issues, implements new and innovative interventions that address the situation of children, and works with partners to bring those innovations to fruitition.

UNICEF uses its community-level knowledge to develop innovative interventions to ensure that women and children are able to access basic services such as clean water, health visitors and educational facilities, and that these services are of high quality. At the same time, UNICEF reaches out directly to families to help them to understand what they must do to ensure their children thrive.

UNICEF also wants them to feel a sense of ownership of these services. That same knowledge and interface with communities enables the organisation to tackle issues that would otherwise be difficult to address: the complex factors that result in children working, or the growing threat that HIV/AIDS poses to children.

UNICEF knows that key to addressing these challenges are its partnerships with sister UN agencies, voluntary organisations active at the community level, women’s groups and donors.

The organisation also works with an array of celebrities, including members of the Indian cricket team and leading actors from the Indian film industry, as well as hundreds of thousands of unnamed volunteers who tirelessly give their time and influence to ensure that, together, they are able to help every child realise his or her full potential.

Guardians of Hope - Support Unicef.

2007-09-04T23:06:00.000+05:30

Saves 120 children below 5 years of age from life threatening malnutrition by

donating Rs 500 per month.

Provides 6 children with a table, school bag, uniform, water bottle, atlas, dictionary and stationery by donating Rs 1000 per month.

Helps 3 very sick new born children survive by contributing to the costs of a very sick new born care unit by donating Rs 1500 per month.

Saves 15,000 children from blindness by sponsoring their Vitamin A dosage by donating Rs 2500 per month.

When you become a Guardian of Hope, your monthly giving helps UNICEF take your donations further, allowing them to plan ahead and help children on a continuing basis.

JOIN THE CAMPAIGN - Unite Against AIDS.

2007-09-04T18:36:00.000+05:30

Join the Campaign Today! Please join the hundreds and thousands of caring people who choose to UNITE FOR CHILDREN UNITE AGAINST AIDS. Together, we can make a real difference!By becoming a monthly donor to this five -year Campaign, or by making a financial contribution whenever you are able, you will help UNICEF to help the millions of children who are missing their childhoods because of HIV/AIDS.

Every Minute of every day ,AIDS costs the world another child's life.

Its time for all of us to unite for children againt AIDS .

Donate Now. Log on to :http://www.supportunicef.org

Afrah’s story: Recovering a childhood lost on the streets of Baghdad.

2007-09-04T00:31:00.000+05:30

A growing number of Iraqi children are being driven onto the streets by poverty. – Afrah and her brother Bilal were barely teenagers when they were left to fend for themselves on the streets of Baghdad. Shy and awkward, the young brother and sister still carry the scars of their frightening separation from their family.

“My father lost his job and my mother could not care for us,’ said Afrah, 13. “We were too poor to eat or stay in school, so we had to leave home, and this is how we ended up in the institution.”

Afrah’s story is all too familiar in Baghdad’s urban slums, ravaged for so long by conflict and economic hardship. Poverty is a persistent enemy of Iraq’s working classes, a force almost as destructive as violence.

By 2003, at least 15 per cent of Iraqi children under the age of 14 were working to support their families in some way. Today, the figure is likely to be far higher. Tens of thousands of family wage-earners have been killed in sectarian violence. Many more are fleeing to new areas in search of safety and jobs, disrupting family life and eating up household savings.

As violence in Iraq continues to fracture communities and families, children are increasingly being asked to take on adult burdens. For the poorest children, this usually means begging on the streets, or trying to scrape a few dinars by dodging traffic in an effort to persuade motorists to buy sticks of gum, sweets and cigarettes.

Many street children end up trapped in even more desperate situations, drawn into drugs, prostitution and violence. The more fortunate ones find a refuge in government institutions. The unlucky ones end up in trouble with the police or permanently damaged by the worst forms of economic and sexual exploitation, their childhoods lost.

“We are seeing more and more street children in Iraq’s cities, a tragic side-effect of conflict and poverty,” said the Chief of Child Protection Officer for UNICEF Iraq, Patrizia di Giovanni. “They are the forgotten vulnerable of Iraq’s society – less likely than any Iraqi children to go to school, receive emotional support, benefit from health care and stay safe.”

Most of the children working Iraq’s streets are not orphans, Ms. di Giovanni said. Afrah’s case – in which her family could not afford to keep her – is typical of an Iraqi street child.

Other street children are runaways, unable to cope with the stress and domestic violence that infects so many Iraqi families in the heart of the conflict zones. Displacement increases the risk that children will become separated from their parents in transit, or be pushed into work if the hoped-for family income fails to materialize in their new location.

“There was a time when extended families, or even community leaders, would have taken in children in need of help,” Ms. di Giovanni said. “But with pressure growing on all Iraqis, fewer are able to care for children beyond their immediate family. And so a frightening number of children are being left out in the cold.”

Afrah was one of the lucky ones. She found her way into the UNICEF-supported Child Re-integration Project. This initiative aims to bring children living without their parents back into a family environment, with the assistance of an NGO partner working in Baghdad. Children have the chance to stay in one of six ‘transitional’ centres throughout the city, where they receive counselling, psychosocial support and the chance to share experiences with their peers.

Eventually, with the aid of social workers, these children are offered the opportunity to return to a family home.

The Child Re-integration Project is a step-by-step process for children. Where they are orphans, the project finds relatives or members from their former community to foster them. In Afrah’s case, the project was able to trace her family and bring her back to them.

“I asked girls at the centre what going home was like,” said Afrah. “They said that in their own homes they can wake up and sleep freely and they are relaxed. I said to myself, why don’t I go to my family so that I can be free and calm like them?”

Going home can be hard after a long separation, but Afrah and her family had help. The Child Re-integration Project provides children and families with counselling and financial support for several months after a child returns home, to help the family adapt and make sure the child can go back to school.

“We are thankful for the rations provided by the social worker because we are very poor even now,” said Afrah’s mother. “If it were not for this I could not have had my children home, despite my love for them.”

So far, 150 children like Afrah have been re-united with a family by the Child Re-integration Project. Within the next few months it will roll out across Iraq to give other displaced and lost children the chance to change their lives for the better.

“When I was without my family I missed them. I could not imagine living a moment more without them,” said Afrah. “I hope that this project can bring other children back home and help their families.”

“All Iraqi children deserve the care of a family home,” Ms. di Giovanni said. “A family is the best chance they have to grow into confident, educated adults – and to contribute to the nation-building that Iraq needs.”

For today, Afrah is safe and dreaming of becoming an engineer.

“I will build my family a home first, before I work on any other building,” she says, as her mother and brothers sit beside her.

My Rainbow.

2007-09-03T15:29:00.000+05:30

I have a rainbow in my heart - A rainbow I have found,

That outshines all the dark, grey skies,

And stormy clouds around.

Its there when I feel happy,

And its there , when I feel blue,

Because its made of all the dreams, I'd like to have come true,

Along with joy and courage,

Lasting hope and others' love,

And the promise that before long -

There'll be blue skies up above.

Around The Bend !

2007-09-03T14:46:00.000+05:30

Sometimes we walk along a path, beneath a cloudy sky,
There's nothing to the right or left,to lift our spirits high,
Then , at last, we turn a corner, and there bursts into our view -
A scene of light and beauty , and the world seems fresh and new.
So always hold this little thought, that cares are bound to end,
And there's a brighter day ahead - just waiting round the bend.

Diana Remembered - In a Memorial Service.

2007-08-31T23:41:00.000+05:30

LONDON—Princess Diana's family solemnly marked the 10th anniversary of her death Friday, with her younger son eulogizing her as "the best mother in the world."

The bishop of London used his sermon at a memorial service to call for an end to the sniping between Diana's fans and detractors, and a priest who has led an annual remembrance said it may now be time to let go.

"To lose a parent so suddenly at such a young age, as others have experienced, is indescribably shocking and sad," Prince Harry said at the memorial service at the Guards' Chapel near Buckingham Palace.

"It was an event which changed our lives forever, as it must have done for everyone who lost someone that night," said Harry, who was 12 when Diana died.

"But what is far more important to us now and into the future is that we remember our mother as she would wish to be remembered, as she was: fun-loving, generous, down to earth and entirely genuine," he said.

Diana's admirers, many of them suspicious of the cause of her death and resentful of Prince Charles, tied bouquets, poems and portraits to the gates of her former home.

Friday was a day for broadcasting video snippets of her wedding and funeral, for rehashing the rights and wrongs of her failed marriage.

For Harry and his older brother, Prince William, it was a simple tribute to an adored mother.

"To us, just two loving children, she was quite simply the best mother in the world," Harry said. "When she was alive, we completely took for granted her unrivaled love of life, laughter, fun and folly.

"She was our guardian, friend and protector," Harry said. "She never once allowed her unfaltering love for us to go unspoken or undemonstrated."

Harry and William were credited with organizing the noontime service, but Charles was blamed by many for the furor over an invitation to his current wife.

A poll commissioned by Channel 4 television in Britain found that 25 percent of the public

believes Diana was murdered, but 59 percent thought it was an accident. The telephone poll of 1,016 adults conducted this week had a margin of error of plus or minus 3 percentage points.

The royal family, which clearly was caught by surprise by a national tidal wave of grief 10 years ago, had refrained from any public remembrance of the anniversary of the princess' death.

This year, however, William and Harry took the lead in organizing the memorial service, as well as a rock concert on Diana's birthday, July 1, which drew 70,000 paying fans.

PRINCESS of WALES - DIANA

2007-08-31T22:55:00.000+05:30

DIANA (1961-1997)

A decade after her death, The Princess still looms large in Britian's psyche.

O GIRL , O BEAUTIFUL !!!!

2007-08-30T19:41:00.000+05:30

Its time for girls around the world to realize that how beautiful they are....... inside and out.
"What I know for sure is that you really dont become what you want. You become what you believe". (Oprah)

Women changing the world .

2007-08-30T18:46:00.000+05:30

WORLDS' YOUNGEST QUEEN

A businesswoman, a mother of four, an international fashion icon, a woman committed to making the world a better place for women and children—Queen Rania of Jordan is truly changing the world. Rania Al-Yassin was born in Kuwait. Shortly after Saddam Hussein invaded that country in 1990, her family fled and settled in Jordan. After graduating from business school, Rania began working her way up the corporate ladder. When she was just 22, she went to a dinner party where she met Jordan's Prince Abdullah—considered one of the world's most eligible bachelors. He didn't remain one for long after that night. Six months later, Rania and Abdullah had a royal wedding and started a family. And, though they planned for a life as royals, Abdullah assumed he'd remain a military officer for life. In 1999, while on his deathbed, King Hussein of Jordan stunned his country by announcing that his son Abdullah—not his brother—would succeed him as king. That made 29-year-old Rania the world's youngest living queen.

A QUEEN'S LIFE :

Rania says that being queen is not the trait she defines herself by. "I am not at all conscious of it," she says. "I make a conscious effort not to be conscious of it. Because I'm Rania, you know? People call me 'Queen,' but, you know, that's not me…I'm Rania." There are many perks to being queen, of course, but Rania stresses that there are also responsibilities. "One of the major misconceptions about this position is that people think that I might be far removed, that I might not be in touch with reality," she says. "The honest truth is that my life is very much about dealing with issues on the ground, dealing with … the problems that our country faces. That's something I do on a daily basis." When most people think of queens, they probably think of what they know from fairy tales. "For me, it's just real life," Rania says. "I am a mother. I care about my children. I worry about what they eat. I worry about the influences from their friends."

RAISING ROYAL CHILDREN :

Rania is not only sitting royalty in Jordan, she's raising the next generation of royals, too. She is the mother of four children—12-year-old Hussein, 10-year-old Iman, 6-year-old Salma, and 1-year-old Hashem. Rania says her family tries very hard to remain down to earth. The family has relaxed much of the ceremonial pomp and circumstance of their position. Rania prefers that people not refer to her as "Your Majesty"…and King Abdullah loves to barbecue! The family never discusses the possibility that Hussein, their oldest child, could be the future King of Jordan, Rania says. Instead, she says that the family strives to remain like any other family. For instance, to get the things they want the children have to clean their rooms and do well in school. "The most important thing is to instill them with the right values," Rania says. "I just feel that values are the shield that you carry with you throughout life. It protects you from whatever life throws at you."

EDUCATION AND POVERTY :

Rania has become famous around the world for her efforts to improve educational opportunities for girls and the rights of women. "In my mind poverty is a 'she,'" Rania says. Helping others is something that Rania says she feels compelled to do. "Once you feel that others are like you, then you want for others what you want for yourself," she says. "And that way you start helping others." Rania explains that there is a direct relationship between increasing education and eliminating poverty. "You can change the course of a nation through education," she says. "One of the most important things you can do for a girl is empower her with her education. Once she has the education, she can then have control over her income, she can change her life, she can have choices."

GETTING PAST CULTURAL STEREO TYPES :

Rania says that when people focus on differences between cultures—especially stereotypes and things like veils—they fail to realize just how similar all people are. "Once you go beyond the mannerisms, the language, the cultural idiosyncrasies, you realize that you're basically the same, you know?" she says. Rania also wants to break down the stereotypes the West holds about her culture. "I would like to dispel the misconception that Arabs are all extremists, that Arab people are violent, and that women in the Arab world are oppressed and suppressed," she says. The struggle we feel today is not really Middle East against the West, Rania says, but rather it is between extremists and moderates of all religions. "We need to speak up," she says. "The biggest nightmare for the extremists is for us to get along, and that's why we have to get along. We have to communicate more."

HIGH HOPES FOR THE FUTURE :

In the future, Rania says she hopes for a more open and secure world. "We look at problems happening halfway across the world and we think, 'Well, that's their problem.' But it's not," she says. "When you solve somebody else's problem, you're solving a problem for yourself because our world today is so interconnected." Rania says solving problems that stem from intolerance—like terrorism—require cultural dialogue, education and increased opportunities. "We have to create opportunities for our youth so they have a chance in life," she says. "Whenever you're frustrated and you feel like you don't have a future or you can't get a job, then you're more susceptible to be influenced by terrorism and extremist ideology."

Thought of the Day !

2007-08-30T14:52:00.000+05:30

" We always feel bad,that good things happen only to'others', but we always forget that we are 'others' for some one else too..."

Life is a paradox - whatever you want you dont get, whatever you get you dont enjoy, whatever you enjoy is not permanent, whatever is permanent is boring.

If people around you are trying to pull you down., be proud about it! Because , it only means ONE thing - YOU are above them !

Anne Geddes - So Shweeeeeeeeeeet (Adorable)

2007-08-29T22:36:00.000+05:30

A Thought Of Happiness.

2007-08-20T22:37:00.000+05:30

"When [people] can eradicate complaining from their lives, they truly become happier. … It's like if you're not articulating the complaint, if your complaint has nowhere to go, your mind stops creating the complaint."

— Pastor Will Bowen, who challenged his parishioners to stop complaining .

How to make strong connections with your Children.

2007-08-19T19:06:00.000+05:30

What do you think your children will remember from their childhood? Experts say the littlest thing from parents can make the biggest difference in the life of a child. Learn how you can build strong connections with your children. Show Them How Much You Care.

Ways to build Connections.

Create Keepsakes :

One of the greatest gifts you give to your children is the gift of memories. A small keepsake from Mom or Dad can bring a smile to a child's face, or help them keep their chin up on an especially bad day. Here are some ideas for creating memories with your kids:

Take a picture of your child each year on their birthday. To help chart their growth, have them wear one of their mother's dresses, or their father's shirts. Then you can create an album that both you and your child will treasure.

Every year, write a letter to your child. In the letter, tell them what they were like at that time, who their friends were and what they liked to do. The letters will give your child a complete picture of their life, and will make a great birthday or wedding gift in the future.

Sit down in front of a video camera and record messages to your children. Share your words of wisdom, reinforce important lessons about life, and tell them how much you love them. Having your face and voice on videotape could mean more to them than you'll ever know.

Gather recipes that have been passed down through your family, or that are your kids' favorites, and make a family cookbook. When they're cooking their first meals on their own, they'll be thinking of you.

Tuck little notes in your child's lunch each day. Whether it's a joke, some encouraging words or just saying "I'm thinking about you," your kids will appreciate the thought.

Have Bedtime Rituals

When it's time for your kids to go to bed, take the opportunity to create some daily rituals with them. Having a familiar routine with parents at the same time each night can create a sense of closeness and comfort for your children.

Say the same thing to your kids each night before they go to sleep;

When your children are very young, rock them to sleep with a lullaby. As they get older, they will still like to hear the song, and it will take on a special significance to them.

Set aside an amount of time (15–30 minutes) to spend with each child when they go to bed. Let them tell you about their day, or talk about whatever is on their minds. They will appreciate this special time with you.

Read to your child before they fall asleep. Set a time limit, or a number of books you'll read. Not only will this time help you bond with your child, it will help them become better readers in the future.

Begin a Family Tradition

Traditions are great ways to strengthen family bonds and get your child to participate in activities. The more traditions you have, the more opportunities you'll have to come together as your child grows older and goes out into the world!

Food Traditions

Many families come together to celebrate major holidays. Include foods that have been passed down from generation to generation. Tell stories about where the recipes came from to give your children a sense of family pride.You don't have to wait for a major holiday to build a tradition around food! Whether it's pizza, spaghetti or hot dogs, designate one night a week for your kid's favorite dinner.

Annual Photos

Try taking a picture each year on the same day, like a birthday. Dress them in your own favorite outfit and watch how they grow into your clothes over the years!On the same day each year, write your child a letter and let them know what they were like at that age. Then, create an album made up of these photos and letters.

Secret Handshakes

Make your child feel special by creating a secret handshake only the two of you know.

Anniversary Dinner

Include your children in your anniversary celebration! Just as many kids enjoy making their parents breakfast on Mother's Day and Father's Day—maybe they'd like to play restaurant and serve the two of you dinner!

Memory Gardens

Planting a memory garden in your backyard is a great springtime activity for you and your child to do together. Include flowers and trees that match your child's personality.

Create One-on-One Time with Family

If you think that you're giving your kids what they need by packing their schedules with after-school activities, think again. What they need is a little quality time with you! Learn to limit your kids' activities and carve out time to make your children feel special.

Ask Your Children What They Need

Ask your kids what they want out of your family lifestyle. Give each child a piece of paper. Ask, "If I could give you three things in regards to time and activities together, what would they be?"

Institute Date Night

Create "date nights" for each child. On a regular schedule, one or both parents should take each child to a movie or out to dinner. This simple time with you will mean a great deal to your child.

"Special Time" at Bedtime

Set aside at least 10 minutes of "special time" for each child every night when they go to bed. Use this time to read, talk about their day or sing a song together.

Sit Down for Dinner

Make it a priority to eat at least one meal together as a family each day. This will give you time to reconnect before or after a busy day.

Ten Etiquette Rules for Children

2007-08-19T12:37:00.000+05:30

Teaching manners to your children gives them the tools to function and succeed as adults.

1. How to Dine :
When invited to a pre-arranged meal, always use your utensils from the "outside in." After all, utensils are set in the order that food will be served.

2. Telephone Manners :

When calling a friend, identify yourself to the person who answers the phone before asking to speak your friend. By doing so, the parents or other family member who answer the phone will appreciate this courtesy and see you as friendly.

3. On Correspondence :

Anytime it takes someone more than 15 minutes to do something for you, send the person a thank-you note. By doing so, the person will know you really appreciated what was done for you.

4. Be Gracious :

When you are sent an invitation that requires an RSVP, be sure to let the person know if you will be able to go to the gathering. After all, "RSVP" means "respond if you please."

5. Shoes Are Important :

When getting dressed each day, be sure that your shoes are well-maintained. People associate the way you take care of your shoes with the way you handle detail in the rest of your life.

6. Be Open to New Foods :
When you are invited out to eat and are served a food that is not your favorite, try a piece of it anyway. You may be surprised and find that you end up liking it.

7. Ask Questions :

When talking with friends and family, always make a point of asking them questions about themselves. People will see you as interesting if you are interested in them.

8. At the Table :

When eating a roll, be sure to break off a bite-sized piece at a time. No bread-and-butter sandwiches, please.

9. Be Friendly :

When you are in school, be cool by making a point to talk with that new kid in your class. If the tables were turned, wouldn't that make you feel good?

10. The Rule of Twelve :

When talking with others, always use a form of thanks and the person's name in the first 12 words you speak.

Things every parent should know :Meaningful Moments.

2007-08-19T00:46:00.000+05:30

We must communicate to our children every day that they are loved, says Sandra Magsamen, an expert on living your life with heart. But, sometimes words alone are not enough to express what we most want to say. Here are some ways Sandra says you can make lasting bonds with your children that will last a lifetime.

The Basics :

Hug! Never stop hugging your child. A hug connects physically and emotionally like nothing else. You should also read lots of books to your children. Put time aside each day to look at, read and share stories. You can read the same ones over and over again. Dance, sway and move as you hold your child and provide the comfort and connection that gentle rocking and movement brings. Get down on the floor and play, make puzzles, finger paint, roll around and laugh together. And tell them you love them, that they are special, that they are unique and that they are a gift.

Sing Out Loud :

Find your song and sing it. Don't worry if you don't have the pipes of Aretha, just sing and I promise your child will love it. Find "your song," the song you love to sing to your child. It will soothe them—and you—on those days where everything seems to be going wrong.
Smile, It's Your Birthday :

Every year on your child's birthday, take their picture while they hold a sign with the number of how old they are. Find a book or a place in your home to display these wonderful reminders of your child's growth.

Share What Matters :

There is no end to the ways in which we can share what's in our hearts. Teach your children at a young age that what they think matters. This is a short and sweet example of a family that created a book for a special celebration.
Celebrate the Firsts, the Lasts and Everything in Between :

Every September, sure as clockwork, summer comes to an end and the first morning of school arrives. Lazy days, swimming pools, flip-flops and vacations are exchanged for alarm clocks, book bags, school buses and schedules. In my house, we have a love/hate relationship with the beginning of school. We hate to see summer come to a close, but we love to start a new year, filled with possibilities and friendships.

Things every parent should know .....

2007-08-19T00:24:00.000+05:30

Five Conversations to Have with Your Children.

It's not always easy to talk to a child, says WebMD's Dr. Charlotte Grayson Mathis. They are always on the go, they have short attention spans and it's often hard to explain things to them in a way that makes sense. There are some important lessons though that you can teach your preschooler or big kid.Most importantly, make a habit when your child is young to talk to them every day about their life and activities. Don't judge them, just listen…and learn. Developing the habit now will serve you well for the years to come.

Controlling Their Temper :

Thankfully, tantrums are far less common than when your angel was a terrible 2. As they get older, it's much easier to talk to your child and teach them how to handle his or her anger and frustration. Just remember to avoid conceding to their demands, and defuse any physical outbursts toward a sibling or others by removing the child from the situation. After the storm's passed, talk to your child about what's troubling him or her.

Why They Shouldn't Use Swear Words :

It's shocking to see your precious child say the "s" word. It may even seem a bit funny, but don't laugh. Tell your child to not use the offensive word and offer alternatives to help him or her express themselves. If that doesn't work, consider punishing the child for the behavior.

Eating Right :

The battle over what your child will or won't eat is a familiar and frustrating problem for most parents. Remember this: Try to offer your child a variety of healthy choices at each meal, including one thing they definitely like. Don't worry if they eat nothing one day, and pig out the next. And recognize that while their diet may be awful and one dimensional for a few days, over time, it usually balances out.

Sharing :

At different ages, kids have different capacities to share their toys and personal items—and every kid is different. So, set a good example, show your kids how you're cooperative at home and reward good behavior. It will come in time.

Recognizing a Stranger :

One thing's for certain, our idea of a stranger is very different than our child's. Explain "stranger danger" in an age-appropriate way. For instance, use the movie Finding Nemo to introduce the topic to a preschooler. Tell your child that a friendly face doesn't mean that a person's not a stranger. A stranger is anyone your child doesn't know.With an older child, review the scenarios in which they may be lured away from you, including offering candy or requesting help finding a lost pet. Tell your kids to always stick with their friends and not go off alone. Teach your kid how to shout "NO" and run away from a situation that's uncomfortable. Make sure to teach them their address and home phone number.

Purposes and Effects of Meditation.

2007-08-13T15:24:00.000+05:30

The purposes for which people meditate vary almost as widely as practices. Meditation may serve simply as a means of relaxation from a busy daily routine; as a technique for cultivating mental discipline; or as a means of gaining insight into the nature of reality, or of communing with one's God. Many report improved concentration, awareness, self-discipline and equanimity through meditation.

Many authorities avoid emphasizing the effects of meditation — sometimes out of modesty, sometimes for fear that the expectation of results might interfere with one's meditation. For theists, the effects of meditation are considered a gift of God or from the Holy Spirit/Ghost, and not something that is "achieved" by the meditator alone, just as some say that a person will not convert to Christianity without the influence of the Holy Spirit/Ghost's presence.

Commonly reported results from meditation include:

1. Greater faith in, or understanding of, one's religion or beliefs .

2. An increase in patience, compassion, and other virtues and morals or the understanding of

them.

3. Feelings of calm or peace, and/or moments of great joy .

4. Consciousness of sin, temptation, and remorse, and a spirit of contrition.

5. Sensitivity to certain forms of lighting, such as fluorescent lights or computer screens, and

sometimes heightened sense-perception.

6. Surfacing of buried memories.

7. Experience of spiritual phenomena such as kundalini, extra-sensory perception, or visions of

deities, saints, demons, etc.

Some traditions acknowledge that many types of experiences and effects are possible, but instruct the meditator to keep in mind the spiritual purpose of the meditation, and not be distracted by lesser concerns. For example, Mahayana Buddhists are urged to meditate for the sake of "full and perfect enlightenment for all sentient beings" (the bodhisattva vow). Some, as in certain sects of Christianity, say that these things are possible, but are only to be supported if they are to the glory of God.

Meditation.

2007-08-13T00:02:00.000+05:30

The word meditation comes from the Latin meditatio, which originally indicated every type of physical or intellectual exercise, then later evolved into the more specific meaning "contemplation." The use of the word meditation in the western Christian tradition has referred generally to a more active practice of reflection on some particular theme such as "meditation on the sufferings of Christ". Similarly in Western philosophy, one finds, for example, Descartes' Meditations on First Philosophy, a set of six mental exercises which systematically analyze the nature of reality.

"Meditation" in its modern sense refers to Yogic meditation that originated in India. In the late nineteenth century, Theosophists adopted the word "meditation" to refer to various spiritual practices drawn from Hinduism, Buddhism, and other Eastern religions. Thus the English word "meditation" does not exclusively translate any single term or concept, and can be used to translate words such as the Sanskrit dhyana, samadhi and bhavana.

Meditation is usually defined as one or more of the following:

1. a state of relaxed concentration on the reality of the present moment

2. a state that is experienced when the mind dissolves and is free of all thoughts

3. "concentration in which the attention has been liberated from restlessness and is focused on

God.

4. focusing the mind on a single object (such as a religious statue, or one's breath, or a mantra)

5. a mental "opening up" to the divine, invoking the guidance of a higher power

reasoned analysis of religious teachings (such as impermanence, for Buddhists).

From the point of view of psychology, meditation can induce an altered state of consciousness. The goals of meditation are varied, and range from spiritual enlightenment, to the transformation of attitudes, to better cardiovascular health.

The Kite Runner By Khaled Hossein.

2007-08-12T22:46:00.000+05:30

The Kite Runner is an outstanding novel, written by an afghan physician settled in California. The Charecters have life and complexity.It gives us a vivid and engaging story that reminds us how long his people have been struggling to triumph over the forces of violence -- forces that continue to threaten them even today.

Happiness .

2007-08-12T22:23:00.000+05:30

Happiness isn't something you remember; its something you experience.
(Oscar Levant -1906 -1972).

Happiness is a state of consiousness which proceeds from the achievement of one's values.
(Ayn Rand - 1905 - 1982).

Happiness is when what you think, what you say, and what you do are in harmony.
(Mahathma Gandhi - 1869 - 1948).

Cherish all your happy moments, they make fine cushions for old age.
(Christpher Morley - 1890-1957).

Happiness depends upon ourselves.
(Aristotle - 384 BC - 322 BC).

A Library bigger than a building .

2007-07-31T23:27:00.000+05:30

An ambitious project to create an online catalogue of every book in every language ever published is under way. Public goodwill is not in doubt, but some libraries remain to be convinced.

A few years ago, the idea of getting random people around the world to write their own encyclopaedia would have been madness - but that didn't stop the founders of Wikipedia doing just that, and it has turned out to be one of the most successful web projects of recent years.
With that in mind, does it sound mad to want to try and build an online catalogue of every book ever published, anywhere in the world?

The Open Library, newly launched in the USA but global in scope, is designed to make that happen.

In the words of its creators, the idea is to build a virtual library that stores details of not just "every book on sale, or every important book, or even every book in English; but simply every book."

Which would include The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time, The Koran , the full text of The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, and of course Harry Potter .

But what's the Open Library really for? Aaron Swartz, leader of the technical team working on Open Library, suggests that every book ever published needs a single authoritative page on the internet, a bit like a personal homepage.
It's kind of a bad idea for one commercial site to be the definitive source for book information on the internet .

"Right now, if you want to link to a book on the web, the main place people go is Amazon. It's kind of a bad idea for one commercial site to be the definitive source for book information on the internet, so we want to have a site that brings together information from commercial publishers, reviewers, users, libraries, everywhere.

"This site will become the place where you can find interesting books and information about them, whether they're in print, out of print, out of copyright or whatever."

Such a library has to be virtual. No building would ever be large enough to house all books; no single group or government could afford to build it, or employ the necessary staff. If the Open Library is to succeed, it has to be a virtual space, and open to everyone, Wikipedia-style.

"There are tons of books out there and tons of information about those books. There's no way even a large group of librarians is going to be able to collect it all. We think of it as an analogue to Wikipedia. There are some great encyclopaedias written by small groups of experts, but to get something as wide-ranging and varied as Wikipedia, you need to let everyone in."

To start things off, the Open Library is calling on other libraries to donate their catalogues. This alone presents huge technical challenges, since the data sets come in different formats and different languages, and each set comes with its own quirks, repetitions and errors.
What's important is keeping the data in a structured form, so that the database working behind the scenes knows the difference between an author, a title and a publisher.

"We had to build this new type of wiki software which was an exciting challenge, because you had to set it up so that instead of just having one kind of page people can edit, we have lots of different kinds.

"People can edit authors, they can edit books, they can edit text pages, and so on. So there's a lot of new stuff we had to build. And that's just the infrastructure - there were also lots of things to import, and book data to merge and make searchable."

Quotes by Richard Bach !!!!

2007-07-30T23:26:00.000+05:30

A professional writer is an amateur who didn't quit.

Allow the world to live as it chooses, and allow yourself to live as you choose.

An idea is never given to you without you being given the power to make it reality. You must, nevertheless, suffer for it.

Argue for your limitations, and sure enough they're yours.

Ask yourself the secret of YOUR success. Listen to your answer, and practice it.

Avoid problems, and you'll never be the one who overcame them.

Bad things are not the worst things that can happen to us. Nothing is the worst thing that can happen to us!

Can miles truly separate you from friends... If you want to be with someone you love, aren't you already there?

Civilization... wrecks the planet from seafloor to stratosphere.

Don't be dismayed by good-byes. A farewell is necessary before you can meet again. And meeting again, after moments or lifetimes, is certain for those who are friends.

Don't believe what your eyes are telling you. All they show is limitation. Look with your understanding, find out what you already know, and you'll see the way to fly.

Don't turn away from possible futures before you're certain you don't have anything to learn from them.

Every gift from a friend is a wish for your happiness.

Every person, all the events of your life are there because you have drawn them there. What you choose to do with them is up to you.

Every problem has a gift for you in its hands.

Evolution made civilization steward of this planet. A hundred thousand years later, the steward stood before evolution not helper but destroyer, not healer but parasite. So evolution withdrew its gift, passed civilization by, rescued the planet from intelligence and handed it to love.

Get this in mind early: We never grow up.

Happiness is the reward we get for living to the highest right we know.

Here is a test to find whether your mission on Earth is finished: If you're alive, it isn't.

Here is the test to find whether your mission on Earth is finished: if you're alive, it isn't.

I don't want to do business with those who don't make a profit, because they can't give the best service.

I gave my life to become the person I am right now. Was it worth it?

I want to be very close to someone I respect and admire and have somebody who feels the same way about me.

If it's never our fault, we can't take responsibility for it. If we can't take responsibility for it, we'll always be its victim.

If you love someone, set them free. If they come back they're yours; if they don't they never were.

If you will practice being fictional for a while, you will understand that fictional characters are sometimes more real than people with bodies and heartbeats.

If your happiness depends on what somebody else does, I guess you do have a problem.

In order to live free and happily you must sacrifice boredom. It is not always an easy sacrifice.

In order to win, you must expect to win.

In the United States Christmas has become the rape of an idea.

It is by not always thinking of yourself, if you can manage it, that you might somehow be happy.

Until you make room in your life for someone as important to you as yourself, you will always be searching and lost.

Jonathan is that brilliant little fire that burns within us all, that lives only for those moments when we reach perfection.

Learning is finding out what you already know.

Listen to what you know instead of what you fear.

Live never to be ashamed if anything you say or do is published around the world, even if what is said is not true.

Not being known doesn't stop the truth from being true.

Our soulmate is the one who makes life come to life.

Rarely do members of the same family grow up under the same roof.

Some choices we live not only once but a thousand times over, remembering them for the rest of our lives.

Strong beliefs win strong men, and then make them stronger.

The best way to pay for a lovely moment is to enjoy it.

The bond that links your true family is not one of blood, but of respect and joy in each other's life.

The mark of your ignorance is the depth of your belief in injustice and tragedy. What the caterpillar calls the end of the world, the Master calls the butterfly.

The meaning I picked, the one that changed my life: Overcome fear, behold wonder.

The more I want to get something done, the less I call it work.

The simplest questions are the most profound. Where were you born? Where is your home? Where are you going? What are you doing? Think about these once in a while and watch your answers change.

The simplest things are often the truest.

There are no mistakes. The events we bring upon ourselves, no matter how unpleasant, are necessary in order to learn what we need to learn; whatever steps we take, they're necessary to reach the places we've chosen to go.

To bring anything into your life, imagine that it's already there.

To fly as fast as thought, you must begin by knowing that you have already arrived.

What the caterpillar calls the end of the world the master calls a butterfly.

You are always free to change your mind and choose a different future, or a different past.

You are never given a dream without also being given the power to make it true. You may have to work for it, however.

You are never given a wish without also being given the power to make it come true. You may have to work for it, however.

You don't want a million answers as much as you want a few forever questions. The questions are diamonds you hold in the light. Study a lifetime and you see different colors from the same jewel.

You teach best what you most need to learn.

Your conscience is the measure of the honesty of your selfishness. Listen to it carefully.

Your friends will know you better in the first minute you meet than your acquaintances will know you in a thousand years.

Your only obligation in any lifetime is to be true to yourself.

Your only obligation in any lifetime is to be true to yourself. Being true to anyone else or anything else is not only impossible, but the mark of a fake messiah.

Friends.

2007-07-03T23:02:00.000+05:30

Friends
A friend is someone we turn to when our spirits need a lift.
A friend is someone we treasure for our friendship is a gift.
A friend is someone who fills our lives with beauty, joy, and grace.
And makes the whole world we live in a better and happier place.
By- Jean Kyler McManus –

Friends will come and friends will go,
The seasons change and it will show,
I will age and so will you,But our friendship stays, strong and true.
- Author Unknown –

There's nothing as nice as someone who shares,your laughter,
your secrets, your wishes and cares,
someone who's there through your good times and tears,
who stays by your side as your friend through the years.
- Autymn Skillings -

World of Difference.

2007-06-25T23:05:00.000+05:30

The Paradox of our time in history is that we have taller buildings but shorter tempers,wider freeways but narrow view points. All of us have learnt how to make a living but not life. We have added years to life but not life to years.

We have been all the way to the moon and back, but have trouble crossing the street to meet a new neighbour. We have more university degrees but less sense, more knowledge but less judgement,more experts yet more problems, more medicines but less wellness.

We spend more but have less, we buy more but enjoy less. We have bigger houses but smaller families, more conveniences but less time. We drink too much, smoke too much, spend too recklessly, laugh too little,drive too fast, get too angry,stay up too late, get up too tired, read too little, watch too much T.V. and pray too seldom.

We have multiplied our possessions but reduced our values, we talk too much, love too seldom and hate too often, We conquer outer space but not inner space. We have done larger things but not better things.

We have cleaned up the air but polluted the soul, we have conquered the atom but not our prejudice. We write more but learn less. We plan more but accomplish less.

We have learnt to rush but not to wait. We built more computers to hold, more information, to produce more copies than ever, but we communicate less and less. These are times of fast foods and slow digestion, big men and small charecter,steep profits and shallow relationships. These are the days of two income but more divorce, fancier houses but broken homes,these are the days of quick trips, disposable diapers, throwaway morality, one night stands, over weight bodies and pills that do everything from cheer to quiet to kill. It is time when there is much in the showroom window and nothing in the stockroom. A time when technology can bring this middle to you, and a time when you can choose either to share this insight, or to just ignore.

Remember, spend sometime with your loved ones, because they are not going to be around forever, remember to say a kind word to someone who looks up to you in awe, because that little person will grow up and leave your side, remember to give a warm hug to the one next to you , because that is the only treasure you can give with your heart and it doesnt cost a rupee.

Remember to say'I LOVE YOU' to your partner and your loved ones but most of all mean it. Remember to hold hands and cherish the moment for someday that person will not be there again.

Give time to love, give time to speak, give time to the precious thoughts in your mind.

Always remember - Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take, but the moments that take our breath away.

Joining hands to save the tiger .

2007-06-23T00:07:00.000+05:30

Heads of 16 villages bordering a tiger reserve in Arunachal Pradesh have joined hands to form a committee to protect the reserve where hunting of wild animals illegally has been a common practice.

The 16-member committee in conjunction with the forest department is to work for protection of the Pakke Tiger Reserve, about 250 km from the Chinese border.

The committee, locally called as "Ghora Aabhe", recently passed a resolution listing penalties for wildlife violations of 17 different wild species ranging from Rs.200 to Rs.30,000.

"Following this initiative, about 32 illegal locally made guns were seized from poachers. Many of the poachers have now promised to work for protection of the reserve," said Tana Tapi, divisional forest officer, who helped the villagers to form the committee.

A conservation organisation, the Wildlife Trust of India (WTI), which is supporting the "Gaon Burahs" - village heads - with honorariums to carry out conservation actions, said villagers have been keeping a strict vigil in the reserve, which has led to the recovery of arms.

The 862-sq km Pakke Reserve in East Kameng district is home to many rare and endangered wildlife species, such as tiger, leopard, wild dog, Himalayan black bear and elephant.

Although wildlife trade is not prevalent here as in other parts of the country, hunting for food has been a major threat to wildlife.

"The reduction in hunting, particularly of prey species of the tiger, will help tiger conservation in the long run," said P.C. Bhattacharjee, professor at Gauhati University.

The committee would work to strengthen intelligence networks, enforcement activities and create awareness for conservation among the people. Repeated seizures would also act as a deterrent for likely offenders, Tapi said.

"The Gaon Burah's role is crucial since they can persuade people for sustainable use of natural resources," said Bhattacharjee.

"This initiative can be a role model elsewhere in the country where problems of hunting for food and trade are widespread. Fringe villages adjoining huge unmanned wildlife sanctuaries can play a stellar role in conservation," said Rahul Kaul, director conservation of WTI, who is supervising the project in Pakke.

"The Pakke Reserve, which is contiguous with the Nameri Tiger Reserve of Assam, is an important habitat for the big cats. This move by the villagers is an important step forward particularly in the light of the present tiger crisis in the country," he said.

Ice Bergs are 'Ecological Hotspot'.

2007-06-22T18:48:00.000+05:30

Drifting icebergs are "ecological hotspots" that enable the surrounding waters to absorb an increased volume of carbon dioxide, a study suggests.

US scientists found that minerals released from the melting ice triggered blooms of CO2-absorbing phytoplankton.

These microscopic plants were then eaten by krill (shrimp-like organisms), whose waste material containing the carbon sank to the ocean floor.

The findings are published in the online journal Science Express.

The study, carried out in the Southern Ocean's Weddell Sea in December 2005, has helped researchers understand the impact of free-floating icebergs on the marine environment.

"We had almost 1,000 icebergs."

"We are going to go back and look at smaller icebergs to see how important they are "

Dr. Ken Smith- Oceanographer.

The team focused its attention on two icebergs, one measuring 2km by 0.5km (1.2 miles by 0.3 miles) and another 21km in length and 5km wide (13 miles by 3 miles).

Using instruments that included a trawl net and a remotely operated vehicle (ROV) with a video camera, the researchers sampled waters from the ice blocks up to 9km away (5.5 miles).

They found a "substantial enrichment" of minerals, phytoplankton, krill and seabirds in the surrounding water up to 3.7km away (2.3 miles) compared with areas with no icebergs.

"These results suggest that free-drifting icebergs can substantially impact the (open sea) ecosystem of the Southern Ocean and can serve as areas of enhanced production and sequestration of organic carbon to the deep sea," the scientists wrote.

Dr Smith said these findings would be followed up next year by a much more intensive examination.

"We are going to go back and look at smaller icebergs to see how important they are, and to see if they also have an associated enrichment of the surrounding water."

I Want to Say How Proud I Am of You .

2007-06-17T23:46:00.000+05:30

HAPPY FATHER'S DAY.

To My Dad on His Day

To my dad on his day,

Of whom I am a living will:

May your happiness fulfill

Your goodness, as is just and right.

Deeds are seeds upon the night

As wind and wonder have their way,

Delivering the destined light.

________________________________

I Do Not See You Often

I do not see you often,

butI see you every day.

I've taken you along with me

As I have grown away.

We talk about the things that fill

A life with love and pain,

But our timeless golden time,

Unspoken, still remains.

You will always be my dad,

And I, your darling daughter.

The days may turn like waterwheels,

But that will never change.

The thought of you will make me glad

No matter where I wander.

You are the place that cannot feel

Uncanny, dark, or strange.

Eye flickers key for fine detail .

2007-06-14T18:49:00.000+05:30

Tiny, involuntary movements made by our eyes when we focus on something could be more useful than we might think, scientists have found. We may not be aware that our eyes are making these movements, but without them our vision fades. And scientists have now found that they could also be important in helping us to see very fine details. The research, carried out by scientists at Boston University, was published in the journal Nature.

Our eyes are never in a position of absolute rest - they are always moving slightly, much as we find it difficult to hold our hands completely steady. These tiny flickers made as we focus on something are known as fixational eye movements. They keep the image on the retina of our eyes moving, and scientists have known for about 50 years that removing this motion for a long time, by stabilising the image on the retina, causes vision to fade. This observation gave rise to the idea that the movements are necessary to refresh the responses of neurons in the visual system to prevent images we are focused on from fading.

New technique

But there has been debate over whether the movements have any other functions. Professor Michele Rucci and colleagues used a new technique for counteracting the visual effects of the eye movements to test their effects on vision. They were able to stop the effects of the movements for short periods of time, so that vision did not start to fade. They found that, without the motion, people in the study were less able to perceive fine details in images. Participants looked at a grating and had to say whether it was being oriented to the right or to the left. When the grates were very close together, people were less successful in the task if their retinas were stabilised to remove the effects of the eye movements - they got it wrong 16% more of the time.

However, when the grates were further apart there was no effect when the retinal image was stabilised. Professor Rucci said it seems that when we fixate on something we get more small eye movements which could help us focus on these details.

'Useful'

He said such a mechanism could be crucial to help us focus in on fine details when we need to.

And he said the findings could have clinical implications for people with conditions that result in abnormal fixational eye movements.

He said: "By showing that fixational eye movements participate in the perception of fine detail, our results may help explain the reasons behind part of these visual deficits and may contribute to the development of treatments."

Tim Hunter, a councillor for the College of Optometrists, said the research was interesting and seemed to give a "sound result" but that he would like to see the effects duplicated in other studies to confirm the finding.

He added that understanding more about how the eye works and can go wrong could give us opportunities to correct problems and improve vision in the future.