NARA'S NOTEPAD
VOLUME 15
FEBRUARY 2019
NUMBER 2
SUPPORTED BY READERS LIKE YOU
Thursday, January 31, 2019
HUMAN SOCIETY
Societies are formed by human beings when they started
organizing to lead an orderly life. Such societies were formed based on
religion, caste, creed, color and various other criteria such as professions
etc. People live in these societies with families and friends. In order to make
the societies strong, every family or individuals is made as member. Societies
built churches, temples, mosques, gurudwaras
and many other places of worship in order to meet their relatives and friends
often in those places.
Societies are
formed for survival and security. Group of individuals can fight for a cause.
They can also safeguard their fellow citizens. As a society, fighting for the
human rights and justice is easier. Governments or any organization will hear
the voice and take appropriate action for their demands. Individual voices are
weaker than the collective voice. Societies celebrate marriages, child birth,
religious festivals and even they take care of the demise of people. Societies
are service oriented and they are supposed to keep the members in good humour.
However, equality in societies is rare, because of economic inequality.
Broadly, every
society is divided into three major categories. The lower strata (class),
middle strata (class) and upper strata (class) people. In general, the lower
strata consist of poor and not well educated people who do manual and menial
works. Most of them are homeless, jobless, landless and underprivileged. They
do not and cannot follow certain kinds of rules laid out by the society. They
live their life carelessly and they are prepared to undertake any kind of
risks. We all know their life style which is far below that of the middle
strata people. In fact, the people from the middle strata grew up from the
lower strata by educating themselves. They worked hard to progress in life, got
better jobs and wished to lead a better, comfortable and happy life. This
stratum can be subdivided into lower middle class, min-middle class and upper
middle class people .the lower middle class people are not economically strong
as the middle and upper class people. However there will be a growth towards
the middle and upper class.
Numerically in a society the middle class people are
higher than the lower and upper class strata. In some society the lower strata
is higher in size than the middle strata. Most of the work done in any society
is by these important strata. They still have a scope to move up to reach the
upper strata. Everyone’s goal is to move somehow towards the upper strata so
that they can be more rich, comfortable and socially respected. Such ambitions
are very high with the upper middle class people.
The upper strata are above the middle strata having
very rich people who are wealthy and socially recognized. Politicians,
businessmen, cine artists, certain professionals, landlords and such category
of people come under the upper class. Sometimes certain castes are also
considered as the upper class. But nowadays anyone who is wealthy and powerful
can be in this category. They look upon the middle and lower strata people as inferior
to them although they grew up from those strata. There are people who inherit
huge properties and wealth from their parents and grandparents. Their behaviour
and attitudes are generally different and unique from the common people.
Our world is mostly
run by such upper class people even in a democracy. So the middle class and
lower class people have to obey them and follow their ideas and ideologies.
Even within a particular society we do find these three categories. So wherever
we go, we see the differences among human beings based on these categories.
This phenomenon is continuing from time immemorial and all human beings are
adapted to that. The aim is to reach the top of the pyramid with hard work and
effort. It continues and will continue forever. - NARA
COPE WITH FEELINGS OF LONELINESS
1. Understand that loneliness is a
feeling, and not necessarily a fact. Sometimes we feel lonely, unwanted or
rejected based on wrong beliefs about ourselves and others. Often people and
events acts as triggers for our feelings … and then we start to act as if they
represent the truth.
2. Fight the urge to withdraw or to
isolate yourself. You’ll actually feel better if you some spend time with
others (but spend time with people who love you, just for “you”.)
3. Check for making assumptions, or
jumping to conclusions, or skewed ways of thinking which make things seem much
worse. Then, look for exceptions to balance up the picture. Don’t waste your
time and energy on biased, untrue stuff.
4. Related to this, make sure you’re not
attacking or putting yourself down. Try and focus on your good points, and
things that you do right.
5. Work on being warm and friendly – as
often other people are hiding their own feelings of insecurity. Hence, they’ll
often be responsive when we are warm and friendly – and then reciprocate by
being interested in us.
6. Try and find other people who share
some of your interests – as that’s a natural way to form connections, or build
bridges.
THE TRUTH ABOUT LIFE
1. Things never, ever go according to
your plan
2. You’ll always meet with unexpected
snags and obstacles
3. Not everyone will like you, or want
to be your friend
4. We all lose motivation and want to
ditch our dreams
5. Success is transitory – the
happiness will pass
6. We all get disappointed and let down
by our friends
7. But attitude is everything – we
choose how to react
8. There’s always something good, if we
will only look for it
9. There are those who “play it
forward”, and who’re helpful, warm and kind
10. And life is full of chances, new beginnings
and fresh starts.
ASK QUESTIONS
To better understand a
colleague’s point of view, ask questions.
The benefits are it’s a good
way to gather information; it’ll help you avoid launching into an accidental
monologue,
and it will make you more likable.
People prefer conversational partners
who ask questions.
JUST TO LAUGH...
A nun was
approached by a small boy who told her proudly,
“I know what the Bible means!”
The nun smiled and replied,
“What do you mean you ‘know’ what the Bible means?”
“Okay” said the nun, “what does the Bible mean?”
“That’s easy sister. “the
young boy replied excitedly;
“It stands for Basic Information Before Leaving
Earth.”
TO QUOTE
Every perception is to some degree an act of creation,
and every act of memory is to some degree an act of imagination. –
Gerald Edelman
IMPORTANT DAYS IN FEBRUARY
4 February 2019
WORLD CANCER DAY
11 February 2019
DAY FOR WOMEN AND GIRLS IN SCIENCE
13 February 2019
WORLD RADIO DAY
20 February 2019
WORLD DAY OF SOCIAL JUSTICE
21 February 2019
INTERNATIONAL MOTHER LANGUAGE DAY
LINES I LIKED
Ø
Beginning is simply
the first step towards winning.
Ø
Believe in yourself
and know you are never alone because we are all connected.
Ø
Being the noble art
of getting things done, there is a nobler art of leaving things undone.
Ø
Best lesson of life
is listening to everyone and learn from everyone, because nobody knows everything
and everyone knows something.
Monday, December 31, 2018
OH MY GOD!
OMG – Oh My GOD...very often we hear
from the mouths of people of all countries of the world. GOD yes GOD, the three
letter word has been the controversial word over centuries ever since human
beings started using it. In fact, they created innumerable GODs everywhere all
around the world and divided the people into groups/religions. In the name of
GOD and religion millions of humans were butchered, assassinated and murdered
mercilessly. Still there is no evidence to show that GOD has punished those
cruel people.
GOD is defined differently by
different people. For some Christ is the GOD, for some others Allah or Buddha
or Rama or Shiva or Vishnu or numerous others are GODs. At the same time for
some there is no GOD at all. They are the Atheists. Even in Hinduism itself
there are millions of GODs. Every year, month and day people celebrate
festivals in the name of GODs. Festivals like Christmas, Easter, Muharram, Eid
al-Fitr, Diwali, Durga Puja, Vinayagar Chaturti are celebrated every year with
gay and gaiety spending lots of money to buy new clothes and food. Processions
are held around for few days. Fireworks go up in the air creating noise and
environmental pollutions. People offer flowers and foods, gold and money to
their GODs. Such believes in GOD are growing day by day as we progress
technologically.
Because of such blind believes
billions of people have, a section of people commercialize GOD and make money
and enjoy. GOD-men are plenty in every country, not to say in India. They are
everywhere in India. In general, they are versatile speakers and preach Vedas,
Bible or Quran to common man. These men and women live comfortably in posh
bunglows with thousands of followers who are indeed their devoted fans. They do
travel widely to preach their ideas to convince the ignorant and poor people by
providing some basic things they badly need. Thus they make more and more
followers and become a popular figure in the world. We have enough proof some
of them who preach spirituality are bogus and immoral. They are jailed for
molestation and rape of women devotees and murdering them. I do not know how
people believe such spiritual beings who are virtual criminals.
By the name of GOD heaven and hell
are created in the minds of people in order to make them disciplined. It is
said that people who do good will go to heaven and those who do bad things will
go to hell. This concept is injected deep into the minds of people around. Even
educated class of the society believe it as truth. But they fail to understand
the nature of heaven and hell. Numerous stories have been popularized all
around the world generation after generation.
Even today no one could, I think in
future even, prove that GOD is one who controls the Universe and the planet
Earth where we live. Is GOD human or alien or a force or energy? We do not
know. Some claim they know! I believe GOD is unknown to all of us, although
most of us believe otherwise. Some of the fake news spread in the weak minds of
mankind has established the concept of GOD. I think it’s the fear we all have
is the root cause to accept this concept.
Fear in life is a universal
phenomenon. If someone is ill or die or not attaining what he or she wants lead
to believe in GOD. By passing on all the sins we have committed, to GOD we
believe that we will be excused and allowed to enter the heaven!
One of the famous scientists of our
time – Stephen Hawking said – “We
are each free to believe what we want and it’s my view that the simplest
explanation is that there is no GOD. No one created the Universe and no one
directs our fate. There is probably no heaven and after life either. I think
belief in after life is just wishful thinking.”
Some say that Google is the modern
day GOD, omniscient, omnipotent and trustworthy. In other words Google is the
global GOD. - NARA
RELATIONSHIP KILLERS
1. Breaking trust
2. Lack of respect
3. Jealousy
4. Angry outburst/ high volatility
5. Making assumptions
6. Unreasonable expectations
7. Bitterness
8. Unforgiveness
9. Being cold and uncaring
10. Failing to prioritize your partner.
HOW TO WORK SMART?
1.
Make the most of those little slots of time – a free fifteen minutes here and
there. You can accomplish a lot in those extra lost minutes.
2.
Make your work place comfortable and inviting. For example, have an inspiring
bookshelf, light a scented candle, put up a few crazy, fun photographs.
3.
Make every effort to enjoy the journey – and remind yourself of the arrival
fallacy (arriving at your goal is usually a letdown, and doesn’t bring the joy
we thought it would bring.)
4.
Don’t be afraid of criticism as it can help you to learn and grow. Dreading it
too much creates anxiety which them prevents you from producing your best.
5.
Recognize that we rarely feel happy when we’re working as we’re bound to
struggle with incompetence, failure, frustration and feeling that we don’t know
what to do. However, they are only a part of the total picture, and completing
a project leads to pride and confidence.
PROCRASTINATION
1. If
you’re procrastinating because you’re feeling stuck (eg, if you don’t really understand
a school assignment, or you don’t know what’s expected, or you don’t know where
to start) then pluck up the courage to ask for some help. When you know what
you’re doing, it’s easier to work.
2.
Remind yourself that most decisions aren’t major. If you get it wrong, you can
start over again … or change your direction … or have another try.
3. If
the task seems overwhelming, just take a baby step. That, at least, will get
you moving – so the next step’s easier.
4.
Tell yourself that you can suffer for up to twenty minutes – and then you’ll
return to doing things you want to do. You’ll be surprised to discover that
“suffering’s” not that bad.
5.
Decide to do the task as soon as you get up – as the more you put it off, the
worse it’s going to seem!
6.
Don’t pretend that other work counts just as much as what you’re leaving.
Simply acting like you’re busy won’t make it go away. Be honest with yourself …
and do what’s most important first.
JUST TO LAUGH
A big burly man knocked on the door of the pastor’s house one day
and asked to see the minister’s wife, a woman known for her charity work and
her love for the poor and helpless.
The woman opened the door and saw the man had tears streaming down
his face.
“Oh, whatever is the matter?” she cried out.
“I came to you today, dear madam for the purpose of doing charity
and good work.” said the man in a hopeless voice.
“Come in, come in!” the woman admitted him inside and they sat in
her living room.
“Madam,” said the man in a broken voice. “I wish to draw your
attention to the terrible plight of a poor family in the district. The father
is dead, the mother is too ill to work and the nine children are starving. They
are about to be turned into the cold empty streets unless someone pays their
rent which amounts to Rs.2000/-
“How terrible!” exclaimed the preacher’s wife. “May I ask who you
are?”
The sympathetic visitor applied his handkerchief to his eyes, “I
am the landlord,” he sobbed.
HOW TO COPE WITH JEALOUS FEELINGS?
1. Understand what jealousy is. It’s a mixture of fear and anger –
usually the fear of losing someone who’s important to you, and anger at the
person who is “taking over”. Recognise that it’s a destructive and negative
emotion - and often nothing good comes out of it.
2. Try and figure out why
you’re feeling jealous. Is it related to some past failure that is undermining
your ability to trust? Are you feeling anxious and insecure? Do you suffer from
low self-esteem, or fear of abandonment?
3. Be honest with yourself about how
your jealousy affects other people. Do friends or partners always have to
justify their actions and thoughts, or always report on where they were, or who
they were with? That kind of pressure is destructive in the end, and puts a
strain on relationships.
4. Find the courage to tackle your feelings. Decide to
question your jealousy every time it surfaces. That will enable you to take
positive steps to manage your feelings in a healthier and more constructive
way. Some possible questions to ask yourself include: “Why am I jealous about
this?”; “What exactly is making me feel jealous?”; “What or who am I afraid of
losing?”; “Why do I feel so threatened?”
5. Work on changing any false beliefs
that might be fueling your jealousy. Start this process by identifying the
underlying belief, for example “If X leaves me, then I won’t have any friends”;
“If Y doesn’t love me then no-one will ever want or love me”. Understand, that
beliefs are often false – and that they can be changed through choice. If you
change your belief, you change the way you feel.
6. Learn from your jealousy.
Jealousy can help understand ourselves better – and teach us important lessons.
For example, it’s natural to feel frightened when a relationship is new, and
you don’t yet feel secure. This is normal and commonplace! Also, some people DO
have a roving eye, and they may lack commitment in the longer term. Better you
know that now, than later on.
7. Work on accepting and trusting yourself. That
makes it easier to trust others, too, and lessens our tendency to feel jealous
of others.
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