THE LIVING TIBETAN SPIRITS SPEAK ABOUT THE GREAT PROBLEM OF TIBET :
THE GREAT PROBLEM OF TIBET IS THAT OF ITS ILLEGAL OCCUPATION.
I speak on behalf of ‘The Living Tibetan Spirits’ who had given their mortal lives in the hope of evicting the illegal occupier from the Land of Tibet. Occupation is not a natural condition and hence it would remain a problem. Apparently, China got transformed into a huge economic and military power and hence, the problem of Tibet is great. The greatness of the problem would not dampen my hopes and expectations about the future of Tibet. I am not seeking separation of Tibet from China. Tibet is not a part of China and separation is not the issue. I am supporting the view of ‘The Living Tibetan Spirits’. Freedom is a natural state or condition known to Tibetans over centuries of their existence as a Country with its own history and traditions. This historical experience of the people cannot be wiped out by decades of brutal, illegal, military occupation. By removing the military forces from the Land of Tibet, China could initiate a process of healing and restoration of normal conditions inside Tibet.
I am pleased to share this article published by Claude Arpi from Rediff.com
Dr. R. Rudra Narasimham, B.Sc., M.B.B.S.,
Kurnool Medical College, Kurnool, Andhra Pradesh, India,
M.B.B.S., Class of April, 1970.
A top US diplomat in China was apparently summoned to convey Beijing’s [ Images ] ‘strong indignation’ over President Barack Obama’s [ Images ] meeting with the Dalai Lama: it amounted to ‘gross interference’ which would damage bilateral ties, said Beijing.
Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Ma Zhaoxu objected ‘sternly’, saying, “The encounter had not only hurt the feelings of Chinese people,’ but he demanded that the US start to seriously consider China’s stance and ‘immediately adopt measures to wipe out the baneful impact and cease to connive and support anti-China separatist forces that seek ‘Tibet independence’.
The meeting between the Dalai Lama and Barack Obama was, however, not that crucial because the US is not in a position to influence China in any way, especially on its ‘internal’ policies.
A few days ago, Xinhua placidly analysed the possibility of the US going bankrupt, saying, “No one wants to see the US breach its debt obligations, but everyone has to be prepared in case it happens… any US ‘action to repudiate its debts will benefit [the US] at a cost to others.”
Beijing knows perfectly well that it can only be the loser.
“In the current situation, only by repudiating its debts can the US rapidly decrease its debt ratio and reduce its heavy debt burden, so as to have consumption recover,” said Xinhua.
It added, “The world’s countries will have nothing to say but acknowledge their bad luck if the US defaults on its debt. If the default causes the collapse of bond prices and the skyrocketing of commodity prices, those who suffer will be countries with foreign exchange reserves and industrial manufacturing countries.”
In other words, China!
This is also why even though Beijing can’t do much about the US debt (and about its own money in US coffers), the Communist leadership is certainly not ready to listen to Washington when it concerns its ‘internal’ affairs’.
The US, even if it manages to escape the debt trap, does not anymore have the clout (or the muscle) to impose anything on China.
But there is something else; during the last few months, the world media, and particularly the US press, highlighted the ‘democratic’ wind coming from Dharamsala and applauded the Dalai Lama’s self-retirement.
The logical next step for a nation promoting democracy in North Africa or the Middle East would have been to invite the ‘elected’ leader of the Tibetan diaspora along with the Dalai Lama.
But no, Washington prefers to receive the Dalai Lama and ignore Dr Lobsang Sangay, the new ‘elected’ Kalon Tripa. It is more convenient to receive a ‘religious’ leader.
Then, in case China sees red, Washington can always say that it was a non-political encounter.
More interesting is the trip of the Chinese Vice-PresidentXi Jinping to Tibet [ Images ]. It is the highest level visit to the restive region since 2001, when the then Vice-President (today President) Hu Jintao went to celebrate 50 years of the ‘liberation’ of Tibet. Tibet Information Network then reported, ‘Several thousand Tibetans were required to be present at the main anniversary ceremony on July 19, which was attended by Hu Jintao in the Potala Square, surrounded by armed security personnel.
‘Others, including children, students and monks, were required to form part of various delegations welcoming the official visitors to Lhasa,’ it said.
That was 10 years ago.
Strangely, on Tuesday, in a lead article, Xinhua merely said, ‘Central government delegation arrives for Tibet’s 60th anniversary of peaceful liberation,’ adding, ‘A delegation of China’s central government arrives in Lhasa, capital of southwest China’s Tibet Autonomous Region, on July 17, 2011.
‘The delegation came to attend the celebrations marking the 60th anniversary of Tibet’s peaceful liberation,’ it adds.
Is it not strange that Xi Jinping’s name is not even mentioned? Why?
Let’s not forget that in 15 months’ time, Xi Jinping will be China’s president, as well as the Communist Party of China’s general secretary and chairman of the all-powerful Central Military Commission.
While Xi’s name is mentioned in secondary articles, it is intriguing that his name did not figure in the lead article.
It probably has something to do with a not-so-smooth succession and the announced-and-later-denied death of his mentor, former President Jiang Zemin.
Chinese ways are sometimes difficult to grasp.
Apart from the old ‘Tibetan’ guard (Raidi, Pagpalha), Vice Premier Hui Liangyu and more, interesting for India [ Images ], General Chen Bingde, the People’s Liberation Army’s boss, travelled with Xi.
Xi’s visit to Tibet has obviously made many nervous. An article in Asia News affirms, ‘Beijing is afraid of more anti-China protests and has increased its control over its borders with Nepal ahead of the visit.’
Is it really the reason why on July 12, Beijing announced a closure of the Tibet-Nepal border, mainly targeting ‘foreigners, especially Americans, Indians and Europeans, who could sympathise with the Tibetan activists. According to local media, Beijing’s decision has resulted in a sharp drop in tourist reservations.’
Another interesting aspect of Xi’s visit to Tibet is that Xi Zhongxun, the vice-president’s father who was a vice-premier himself, played a relatively positive role in Tibet in the 1950s, till he was purged in September 1962 (he wrote that the Panchen Lama was right in his assessment of the situation in Tibet where lakhs of people died during the Great Leap Forward).
When the communists came to power in 1947, Xi Zhongxun was deputy political commissar of the North West Field Army commanded by Marshal Peng Dehuai.
Later Xi was elevated to the post of political commissar of the army which entered north-western Tibet in 1949.
While Xi Zhongxun had a military background, he was very close to the late Panchen Lama (and later to the Dalai Lama). When the former passed away in mysterious circumstances in 1989 in Shigatse, Xi wrote his obituary in The People’s Daily.
Strangely, very little has been written about Xi Jinping and the Tibet connection. Probably Xi Jinping does want to highlight this ‘connection’ a year before his elevation to the top of the party and some links to his past seem to have been removed.
In any case, the vice president’s visit to Tibet should not be seen as negative and there is no reason for the West to support large-scale protests.
On the contrary, Xi Jinping should be encouraged to see for himself the tense situation in the Himalayan region, at a time when the official propaganda continues to hammer on that the Tibetans are happy and liberated.
A white paper on The Liberation of Tibet recently released by the State Council’s Information Office affirms, ‘The 60 years following Tibet’s peaceful liberation have proved that Tibet, as an inseparable part of China, shares its destiny with the motherland, and its development is also impossible without that of China.’
Going through the paper, one discovers astonishing information: ‘After the founding of the People’s Republic of China in 1949, Tibet was peacefully liberated,’ it reads.
It goes on to say, ‘Under the leadership of and with special care from the Central People’s government, and through democratic reform, the founding of the autonomous region, socialist construction and the reform and opening-up, Tibet abolished serfdom and theocracy, become a modern, democratic socialist society, achieved rapid and comprehensive economic and social development, and embarked on the road to modernity.’
Nobody is fooled, either about the ‘democratic socialist society’ or the serfdom. The words just do not tally with ground reality.
Why should Tibet be closed to foreigners for such a ‘special celebration’ if life is so rosy and if Tibetans are so grateful to the ‘motherland’?
As the White Paper was released, the Tibetan Centre for Human Rights and Democracy announced that the Kardze County People’s Court in Eastern Tibet had sentenced 13 Tibetans out of those arrested after a demonstration.
The TCHRD further stated that on July 5, 2011, the Public Security Bureau arrested Pema Rinchen, a famous writer from his house in Drango County of Kardze Prefecture.
‘On July 6, 2011, the second day of his arrest, he had to be taken to the Drango county hospital for emergency treatment, because he was reportedly savagely beaten by the police after his arrest,’ a report read.
‘On hearing the news, his family members rushed to hospital. However, several policemen were standing guard outside his hospital room and refused to allow his family to see him,’ it said.
Recent examples of the violent demonstrations, particularly in Kirti monastery, confirm that Beijing has a big problem on its table.
What is flabbergasting is that Beijing continues to publish photos of ‘happy Tibetans’ enjoying life under their benevolent and compassionate ‘motherland’.
Let us hope that Xi Jinping will be able to grasp the situation and follow in the footsteps of his father, a moderate and open-minded leader.
Dr. Manmohan Singh, current Prime Minister of India. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)The Battle Plan of Operation Eagle 1971-Chittagong Hill Tracts must be disclosed.OPERATION EAGLE(1971)- MILITARY ACTION IN CHITTAGONG HILL TRACTS: PERMISSION FOR DISCLOSURE OF THE BATTLE PLAN. The battle plan had originated and was sanctioned by Prime Minister of India at the Secretariat Building, South Block, New Delhi.
SPECIAL FRONTIER FORCE – OPERATION EAGLE:
To: manmohan@sansad.nic.in Subject: The Battle Plan of Operation Eagle – Permission for disclosure Date: Thu, 21 Jul 2011
From, R.Pratap Narayan,
To:
Dr. Manmohan Singh Honourable Prime Minister of India, Prime Minister’s Office, New Delhi – 110 011.
Attn: Prime Minister’s Office – Shri. Amar Dass, Section Officer.
Respected Sir,
Subject:- The Battle Plan of Operation Eagle – Permission for Disclosure.
References:- 1. My representation dated 24/5/2011. 2. PMO ID No. 6/3/2011-PMP3/298009 dated 16/6/2011.
3. MoD ID No. 3533/2009/D( Cer ) dated 01 July 2011. 4. Integrated HQ MoD(Army), Military Secretary’s Branch ID No. A/45101/REP/MS( X ) dated 08 July 2011.
1. Military Secretary’s Branch, Integrated HQ MoD( Army ) in its letter ID No. A/45101/REP/MS( X ) dated 08 Jul 2011 had rejected my representation dated 24/5/2011 regarding my brother’s petition to receive a Gallantry Award that was duly recommended by Special Frontier Force which operated under the Command of Major General Sujan Singh Uban, Inspector General SFF, Directorate General of Security, R. K. Puram, New Delhi. As per the decision made by the Prime Minister of India, the Battle Plan of Operation Eagle had included the eligibility criteria for receiving Service Medals and Decorations. My brother is eligible to receive this Gallantry Award because he had participated in Operation Eagle as a Citizen of India. For example, foreign nationals like Bangla refugees who had also participated in Operation Eagle are not entitled to receive Service Medals and Decorations.
2. The Military Secretary, MoD( Army ) while rejecting my representation had also claimed that this battle action took place nearly 39 years ago. However, it must be noted that the Military Secretary has not mentioned the date or dates of this battle action. It appears that the MS Branch is not aware of this basic information or the MS Branch is deliberately concealing information with an intention to deny the grant of this Gallantry Award to an Indian National who had participated in military action on the basis of his Citizenship.
3. In the history of Republic of India, for the very first time, the Prime Minister of India had planned and had personally executed this kind of military operation( Op Eagle ) drawing assistance from nontraditional fighting elements from the Directorate General of Security.
4. Because of the historical importance of Operation Eagle, it would be in public interest to disclose the details of the Battle Plan. Since this Battle Action took place a long time ago, it is assumed that Government of India has no objection if the Battle Plan is disclosed to the People of India.
5. If you have any concerns in this matter, kindly inform me.
Thanking You,
Yours Faithfully,
R.Pratap Narayan. Hyderabad. 21 st July, 2011.
This letter from Ministry of Defence again fails to mention my Unit affiliation and does not reveal the name of the military act called Operation Eagle. Public have a Right to Information about the Battle Plan of Operation Eagle.
This letter from Ministry of Defence again fails to mention my Unit affiliation and does not reveal the name of the military act called Operation Eagle. Public have a Right to Information about the Battle Plan of Operation Eagle.This letter from Ministry of Defence again fails to mention my Unit affiliation and does not reveal the name of the military act called Operation Eagle. Public have a Right to Information about the Battle Plan of Operation Eagle.A Personal Tribute to Colonel B K Narayan, The Regiment of Artillery, Indian Army.
A Sermon in Kaptai, Bangladesh Ops 1971-72. A personal tribute to Colonel B K Narayan, Islamic Scholar who served in Olive Green Uniform. The Imam of Friday Prayer in Kaptai on December 17, 1971: Glorious Quran, Surah VIII, SPOILS OF WAR, Verse 01: “And if they incline to peace, incline thou also to it, and trust in Allah.Lo! He is the Hearer, the Knower.”
Life Under the Shadow of Secondhand Smoke. Muhammad Ali Jinnah, Quaid-e-Azam, the founder of Pakistan
WHAT IS SECONDHAND SMOKE?
When you breathe in smoke that comes from the end of a lit cigarette, cigar, or pipe ( often described as ‘sidestream smoke’ ), or when you breathe in smoke that is exhaled by a smoker(often described as ‘mainstream smoke’ ), you are exposed to the risk of secondhand smoke. You will be inhaling almost the same amount of chemicals as the smoker breathes in. Tobacco smoke contains more than 4,000 different chemical compounds, and more than 50 of them are known to cause Cancer. Some of these known carcinogens are Hydrogen Cyanide, Benzene, Formaldehyde, and Carbon monoxide. Involuntary or passive smoking can kill. There is no amount of exposure to secondhand smoke that is considered as a safe level of exposure. The more secondhand smoke that you breathe in, the more your health risk increases. Secondhand smoke exposure causes nearly 50,000 deaths per year in adult nonsmokers in the United States. 3,000 deaths are from Lung Cancer, and 46,000 deaths are from heart disease. Nonsmokers increase their risk of developing Lung Cancer by 20% to 30%, and heart disease by 25% to 30% when they are exposed to secondhand smoke. The risks of Breast Cancer and Cervical Cancer and other types of Cancer are also higher. Women who are exposed to secondhand smoke face a 69% higher risk of heart disease and a 56% higher risk of Stroke than those who are not exposed to smoke. Children are particularly vulnerable to the effects of secondhand smoke because of their bodies are still growing and they breathe at a faster rate than adults. The effects of smoking can be very significant especially for those who live or work with a smoker. In reality, most of the smoke from a burning cigarette doesn’t get sucked down into smoker’s lungs- it simply escapes into the air where it can be inhaled by anyone unfortunate enough to be nearby. Living under the shadow of a great person may give some benefits, protection, and a sense of security. But, life under the shadow of secondhand smoke is a prescription for death. There was such an unfortunate victim who had lived under the shadow of a great leader known as Mohammed Ali Jinnah.
MOHAMMED ALI JINNAH, QUAID- E-AZAM – THE GREAT LEADER OF PAKISTAN:
Life Under the Shadow of Secondhand Smoke. Mohammed Ali Jinnah, the Great Leader of Pakistan.
Jinnah, Indian Muslim politician was the founder and first Governor General of Pakistan (1947-1948). His parents arranged for an early marriage for him before he left for England at the age of 16. While in London, Jinnah suffered the loss of his wife and mother. In 1895, at the age of 19, he was called o the Bar on completion of his formal studies to become a barrister. He had supported the election of Dadabhai Naoroji, a Parsi leader, a leading Indian nationalist who ran for the English Parliament. Naoroji became the first Indian to sit in the British House of Commons. In 1896, Jinnah returned to Karachi and then moved to Bombay to start his legal practice. He met Ruttenbai, the daughter of Dinshaw Petit, a Bombay Parsi millionaire. Jinnah had married this young and beautiful lady over tremendous opposition from her parents and others. The great love and the marriage withered and proved to be an unhappy union. The stress imposed by exposure to secondhand smoke was not known and was not recognized those days. Jinnah’s addiction to Tobacco and the price paid by his wife describe the other side of Jinnah which many people in Pakistan and India tend to ignore.
The Other side of Mohammed Ali Jinnah:
Life Under the Shadow of Secondhand Smoke.The human costs of involuntary or passive smoking.Life Under the Shadow of Secondhand Smoke. The Life of Ms. Ruttenbai.She paid the price for living under the Shadow of a Great Leader.
I would like to share the very interesting and powerful story about the life of Ruttenbai who had lived under the shadow of Mohammed Ali Jinnah . Unfortunately, this story posted below my post fails to mention the nature of cancer that had killed this beautiful lady at such an young age. I am very sure about the nature of her illness. She died of Lung Cancer. She developed Cancer because of inhaling tobacco smoke and it is a very well recognized risk factor now. Secondhand Tobacco smoke kills people and even now the chances of survival are not good. I had personally witnessed a similar case and had narrated that story at my Home page of BhavanaJagat and the story is titled ‘Living Under the Shadow – A Prescription for Death’. A young, beautiful lady, the first wife of Chief of Army Staff (under Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi), General K S Sundarji ( who is well-known for Operation Blue Star ) died of Lung Cancer in Army Hospital, New Delhi during 1978. The connection between smoking and Lung Cancer was well understood but at that time the risk of Lung Cancer due to Secondhand Tobacco Smoke was not properly recognized.
Life Under the Shadow of Secondhand Smoke. The human costs of Tobacco Smoking. General K S Sundarji Commanded the First Armoured Division (1976-78).
Dr. R. Rudra Narasimham, B.Sc., M.B.B.S., Kurnool Medical College, Kurnool, Andhra Pradesh, India, M.B.B.S., Class of April 1970.
The Softer Side of Mr. Jinnah
More than 61 years have passed since the death of founder of Pakistan , Quaid-i-Azam Mohammad Ali Jinnah. But even today, nothing about Jinnah seems ordinary —not his legal career, politics, personal life, his legacy and even the property he left behind.
The great South Asian intellectual Eqbal Ahmed once described Jinnah as an enigma of modern history. His aristocratic English lifestyle, Victorian manners, and secular outlook rendered him a most unlikely leader of India ’s Muslims. Yet, he led them to separate statehood, creating history, and in Saad R. Khairi’s apt phrase, “altering geography”.
Much has been written about Jinnah’s legal career, politics, his role as a founder of Pakistan and his vision, but even today, very little is known about Jinnah’s personal life. This was probably because Jinnah never had time to write a diary or an autobiography and whatever little he wrote was formal and matter of fact. For most of his life, he remained reserved, taciturn and secretive. He wrote his will in May, 1939, but it was only after his death that Liaquat Ali Khan, his close associate and the first Prime Minister of Pakistan, came to know that he was its trustee and executor. His only child, Dina Wadia, has hardly ever spoken about her father in public. So furious was Jinnah with Dina that he disowned her after she married a Parsi man against his wishes, and yet he left two lacs for her in his will. Akbar Ahmed’s movie Jinnah had just ten to fifteen minutes on Jinnah’s personal life, which are nowhere near enough.
Life Under the Shadow of Secondhand Smoke.Life under the Shadow of Secondhand Smoke.Life Under the Shadow of Secondhand Smoke. Jinnah and Ruttenbai or Ruttie.
Jinnah’s first wife, fourteen year old Emibai from Paneli village, died just eight months after he left for London at age sixteen in 1892, to join Graham’s Shipping and Trading Company, which conducted business with his father in Karachi. It was a forced marriage, as Jinnah’s mother was afraid that if he went to England , he might end up marrying an English girl. He barely knew Emibai.
Jinnah’s second marriage with the most beautiful girl of Bombay – Ruttie: The Flower of Bombay – was like a fairy tale. It began in the summer of 1916 in Darjeeling or “Town of the Thunderbolt” (how appropriate considering what was to happen there).
Life Under the Shadow of Secondhand Smoke. Jinnah and Ruttenbai.
Jinnah had established himself as a lawyer and a politician by then and had become friends with Sir Dinshaw Maneckji Petit, the son of one of the richest and most devoutly orthodox Parsis of the 19th century. The Petit`s chateau overlooked Mount Everest and it was there Jinnah met his only daughter Ruttenbai Petit or Ruttie as she was popularly called. Merely sixteen at that time, Ruttie was a charming young girl. Stanley Wolpert writes in Jinnah of Pakistan :“Precociously bright, gifted in every art, beautiful in every way. As she matured, all of her talents, gifts and beauty were magnified in so delightful and unaffected a manner that she seemed a fairy princess”.
A dazzling beauty and full of life, Ruttie had exquisite taste and affable manners. Quick-witted, she was easily one of the best dressed and most popular women among the elitist circles of Bombay . She was intellectually far more mature than other girls of her age, with diverse interests ranging from poetry (Oscar Wilde being her favorite, whom she often recited) to politics. Her large collection of books, which remained in Jinnah’s possession after her death, reflected her deep interest in poetry, literature, history, occultism, mysticism and sorcery. She was an excellent horse-rider. She attended all public meetings and was inspired by Annie Besant’s Home Rule League.
A fierce supporter of India for Indians, Ruttie was once asked about rumors of Jinnah’s possible knighthood and whether she would like to be Lady Jinnah. She snapped that she would rather be separated from her husband than take on an English title. Jinnah on the other hand also had a special interest in acting and in Shakespeare’s dramas. While in London , he had acted in some Shakespearean plays and even considered seriously taking up acting as a profession. It was his dream to play Romeo at The Globe in London . Khwaja Razi Haider thinks it was probably Jinnah’s deep interest in Shakespeare that gave him insight into the intricacies of the human character, which he was to use for grasping the essentials of Indian politics. Jinnah was thirty-nine and Ruttie sixteen, but the age difference proved no obstacle in their love. Love has no logic.
He was enamored by her beauty and charm and she was awe- struck by “Jay”, as she called him. Jinnah asked Sir Dinshaw for Ruttie’s hand in marriage, who became furious and refused. Jinnah repeatedly pleaded his case but Dinshaw never gave in, as Jinnah had a different faith and he was more than twice Ruttie’s age. Their friendship ended and Dinshaw forbade Ruttie from meeting Jinnah while she lived in his house. He even got a court injunction restraining Jinnah from meeting her (a pity no biographer has yet traced the court papers).
The couple continued to meet secretly, and patiently waited for two years until February 1918 when Ruttie turned eighteen, and was free to marry. She walked out of her parental home to which she was never to return, and converted to Islam at Bombay ’s Jamia Mosque, under the Muslim Shiite doctrine, on April 18, 1918.
The very next day, Jinnah and Ruttie got married in a quiet ceremony at Jinnah’s Malabar Hill house in Bombay . Located in a most highly-priced area today, with Maharashtra’s Chief Minister as its next-door neighbor, Jinnah House remains a dispute between India , Pakistan and Dina Wadia. Jinnah owned another house at 10 Aurangzeb Road , Delhi , which he sold just before Partition for Rs 3 lacs. The Dutch Ambassador to India lives there now. The Raja Sahib of Mahmudabad, who signed as Jinnah’s witness, and a few other friends, attended the wedding. Maulana Muhammad Hasan Najafi was Ruttie’s witness. Jinnah presented the wedding ring to Ruttie, a gift from Raja Sahab, and paid Rs 125,000 as haq mehr . Nobody from Ruttie’s family attended the wedding. Interestingly, the Nikah Nama stated “Ruttenbai” as the bride’s name instead of Marium, her Islamic name. The honeymoon was first at Raja Sahab’s Nainital mansion, and then at the Maidens Hotel, a magnificent property just beyond the Red Fort.
Life Under the Shadow of Secondhand Smoke. Jinnah and Ruttenbai’ s Nikahnama.Life Under the Shadow of Secondhand Smoke. Jinnah’s house in Bombay.
Gandhi’s grandson Rajmohan Gandhi writes about the wedding in his book Understanding the Muslim Mind: “For the first time in his life, a girl had absorbed Jinnah’s emotions. Living for sometime now in a large but somber Malabar Hill house, bowing to ladies (on occasional parties) and praising their sarees but otherwise keeping a distance from them, (he) fell in love with Ruttenbai. Joy and laughter entered Jinnah’s life. The Malabar Hill house became brighter.’ She presented him with a daughter, Dina. But, ‘Alas the happiness was not destined to last; Sarojini’s veiled prediction of trouble came true”.
Sarojini Naidu was a huge admirer of Jinnah, wrote several poems and prose pieces on him, and many historians believe she was in love with him. She wrote this about the wedding in a letter to Sir Syed’s son, Syed Mahmud: “So Jinnah has at last plucked the Blue Flower of his desire. It was all very sudden and caused terrible agitation and anger among the Parsis; but I think the child has made far bigger sacrifices than she yet realises. Jinnah is worth it all – he loves her; the one really human and genuine emotion of his reserved and self-centred nature. And he will make her happy.”
The first few years of the marriage were a dream for Ruttie and Jinnah, the happiest time of their lives. They traveled across India , Europe and North America together. Ruttie watched with a great sense of pride the feverish political activity of her husband. She would be seen in the visitors’ gallery when Jinnah was due to speak, accompanied him to the High Court, and even attended the Nagpur session of the Congress in December 1920. According to Wolpert: “They were a head- turning couple; he in his elegant suits, stitched in London , she with her long, flowing hair decked in flowers. There was no limit to their joy and satisfaction at that time. Their only woe was Ruttie’s complete isolation and ostracism from her family.”
Kanji Dwarkadas, a veteran leader of Congress and a close friend of the couple, who looked after Ruttie during her last days, wrote in his book Ruttie Jinnah: The story of a great friendship: “For Jinnah, who was not generous in many matters, no expense was too great to satisfy the extravagant claims of the baronet’s spoilt child. During a visit to Kashmir , she spent Rs 50,000 in refurnishing the boathouse and Jinnah gladly paid all the bills. He treated her wonderfully well, and paid without a murmur all the bills necessitated by the luxurious life she led.Ruttie’s fabulous beauty, spontaneous wit, and immense charm have been praised to the neglect of her serious interests.”
Even though Ruttie was much younger than Jinnah, she made him a very happy man. They had no separate existence and Jinnah found her a great source of inspiration. He resigned from the Orient Club where he used to play chess and billiards. He was so deeply in love with Ruttie that he would return from the law courts on time each day and talk to her for hours on end. Unfortunately, their happiness was short- lived and the marriage started to crack after 1922-3. What caused the ruination of the Jinnah-Ruttie marriage? Was it Jinnah’s busy political life and his inability to give enough time to Ruttie, their age difference, or their incompatibility of temperaments? He was cold, introverted and domineering. She was young, extroverted, glamorous. There is no clear answer but the fact remains that Ruttie and Jinnah still loved each other despite the rift in their marriage. It is evident in every letter Ruttie wrote during that period, and every book written on their relationship. She moved to London with Dina in 1922 and from there too, her heart was still set on her life with Jinnah. She wrote in a letter to Kanji in India :“And just one thing more – go and see Jinnah and tell me how he is – he has a habit of overworking himself and now that I am not there to tease and bother him, he will be worse than ever.”
After her return, the couple tried one more time to save their failing marriage and took a five-month tour to Europe and North America together. But the rift grew and by January 1928 they were virtually separated, when Ruttie became seriously ill with cancer. Shortly before her death, she wrote a letter to Jinnah from Marseilles , France where she had gone for treatment. It turned out to be her last letter to him (larger view of original hand-written letter with typed text here
S. S. Rajputana,
Marseilles 5 Oct 1928 Darling – thank you for all you have done. If ever in my bearing your once tuned senses found any irritability or unkindness – be assured that in my heart there was place only for a great tenderness and a greater pain – a pain my love without hurt. When one has been as near to the reality of Life (which after all is Death) as I have been dearest, one only remembers the beautiful and tender moments and all the rest becomes a half veiled mist of unrealities. Try and remember me beloved as the flower you plucked and not the flower you tread upon.
I have suffered much sweetheart because I have loved much. The measure of my agony has been in accord to the measure of my love. Darling I love you – I love you – and had I loved you just a little less I might have remained with you – only after one has created a very beautiful blossom one does not drag it through the mire. The higher you set your ideal the lower it falls. I have loved you my darling as it is given to few men to be loved. I only beseech you that the tragedy which commenced in love should also end with it.
Darling Goodnight and Goodbye Ruttie
Life Under the Shadow of Secondhand Smoke.Life Under the Shadow of Secondhand Smoke. Ruttie’ s Letter to Jinnah.
It is a pity that none of the letters that Jinnah wrote to Ruttie have ever been made public. M.C. Chagla, a former Chief Justice of the Bombay High Court and a diplomat at the UN, has described the last days of Ruttie and Jinnah’s marriage in his book “Roses in December”. Chagla knew the couple very well, as he assisted Jinnah at his chambers during that time. He idealized Jinnah but severed all ties when he began working on the idea of an independent state for the Muslims of India. He writes:
By 1927, Ruttie and Jinnah had virtually separated. Ruttie’s health deteriorated rapidly in the years after they returned from their final trip together. Ruttie lived at the Taj Hotel in Bombay, almost a recluse as she became more and more bed-ridden. Kanji continued to be her constant companion. By February 18, 1929 she had become so weak that all she could manage to say to him was a request to look after her cats.Two days later, Ruttie Petit Jinnah died. It was her 29th birthday.
She was buried on February 22 in Bombay according to Muslim rites. Jinnah sat like a statue throughout the funeral but when asked to throw earth on the grave, he broke down and wept. That was the only time when I found Jinnah betraying some shadow of human weakness. It’s not a well publicised fact that as a young student in England it had been one of Jinnah’s dreams to play Romeo at The Globe. It is a strange twist of fate that a love story that started like a fairy tale ended as a haunting tragedy to rival any of Shakespeare’s dramas.”
The second time Jinnah ever broke down was in August 1947 when he visited Ruttie’s grave one last time before leaving for Pakistan . The architect of Pakistan paid a high price for Partition by leaving two of his most beloved possessions on ‘the other’ side of the border, the Jinnah House on Malabar Hill where he had the happiest moments of his life, and his beloved wife Ruttie who remains buried in Bombay. Jinnah left India in August 1947, never to return again, but he left behind a piece of his heart in a little grave in a cemetery in Bombay .
Life Under the Shadow of Secondhand Smoke. Ruttenbai’ s grave in Bombay.
SPECIAL FRONTIER FORCE – OPERATION EAGLE – LIBERATION OF BANGLADESH 1971:
OPERATION EAGLE 1971 – A LETTER TO THE LIVING TIBETAN SPIRITS
A LETTER TO THE LIVING TIBETAN SPIRITS :
I got exposed to the spirits of young Tibetan men who had given their lives in Chittagong Hill Tracts during 1971. They had no desires in their hearts. They had emptied their minds of all desires. They have experienced Joy in Emptiness. I had joined them to evict the illegal occupier from the Land of Tibet. We are not seeking Independence from People’s Republic of China. Freedom is a natural state or condition. Tibet has always existed in a serene and unperturbed state for several centuries until October 1950 when Communist China’s People’s Liberation Army invaded Tibetan soil. The Liberation of Tibet from its illegal occupation by a foreign military force is not about human desire or human passion. Tibetans need not desire for Independence. Freedom is the natural right, Freedom is the natural condition, and Freedom is the natural state of The Land of Tibet. The Land has always existed as a Free entity and foreign rulers have come and gone.
Government of India Ministry of Defence sent this letter by Registered Post and it is delivered to The Living Tibetan Spirits that inhabit my Consciousness. This letter refers to the military action in Chittagong Hill Tracts during Indo-Pak War of 1971. That War is over and The Spirit is not DEAD.
“THE PAST IS NEVER DEAD – IT’S NOT EVEN PAST” :
Using the famous words of Nobel Laureate William Faulkner, I will assert that the Past is never Past.
In the Indian tradition, I believe that the Past is never Past. The Past flows into the Present, and the Present flows into the Future, and the Future becomes the Past during the Cyclical Flow of Time. The illegal military occupation of The Land of Tibet would not exist as a Past event. The eviction of the illegal occupier would change the Past and in Future Tibet will exist in its FREE and NATURAL condition as it was in the Past.
THE BATTLE OF RIGHT AGAINST MIGHT :
The tyrant will always find a pretext for his tyranny and it is useless for the innocent to try by reasoning to get Justice, when the Oppressor intends to be unjust. The Communist China’s oppression and tyranny in the occupied Land of Tibet may not end by reasoning and by negotiations.
THE PROBLEM OF TIBET – EVICT THE OCCUPIER :
The Problem of Tibet is about its illegal military occupation. Freedom is the Reality and is the Truth that describes the natural condition of the Land of Tibet.
THE ESSENCE AND THE EXISTENCE OF TIBET :
What describes the essence of Tibet? How is this essence is reflected in the existence of Tibet? The existence of Tibet as an occupied territory of Communist China is not consistent with its essence; its people, its history, its culture and traditions, its religion, its language and its Identity as a Free Land.
WHO AM I? WHY AM I LIKE THIS? :
In the epic poem of Valmiki Ramayana, Book Six, Yuddha Kanda, the final Book called ‘WAR’, Chapter(Sarga)117, verse#11, Prince Rama had inquired, “Who am I?, and Why am I like this?”-This is a question His Holiness Dalai Lama and every Tibetan must ask oneself.
Every Tibetan, Tibetans living inside the occupied Land of Tibet, and Tibetans living in exile must ask oneself the same question that Prince Rama had asked in the epic poem of Valmiki Ramayana. Ask yourself; WHO AM I? and WHY AM I LIKE THIS? The answer will liberate you and will show you the path to your natural condition called Freedom. Military Occupation describes the Subjective Reality of Tibet’s Physical Existence. Freedom describes the Objective Reality of Tibet’s Natural Existence.
SET YOUR MIND FREE AND LET FREEDOM FLOW IN TIBET :
The romantic British poet Richard Lovelace described that no one can imprison or enslave the human mind. The Living Tibetan Spirits have set their minds free and would ask Tibetans to let Freedom flow in the Land of Tibet.
A romantic English poet and soldier Richard Lovelace(1618-1657) was confined within the walls of Gate House, a prison in Westminster, London. Those who had confined him could not stop him from exercising his ability to think and dream. He wrote from the prison, a famous poem known as “To Althea, from prison.” It reads as follows:
“Stone walls do not a prison make,
Nor Iron bars a cage;
Minds innocent and quiet take
That for a hermitage;
If I have freedom in my love
And in my soul am free,
Angels alone, that soar above,
Enjoy such liberty.”
A human being remains free to think and dream even though his body has limited mobility. A human being essentially seeks to exist in a free state and when imprisoned the man can set his mind free to think and dream. A mind that is free, expresses its freedom in speech, in writing, in songs, in paintings, and in dance and music. I would ask all Tibetans, Tibetans in the occupied Land, and Tibetans living in exile, to set their minds free and to let freedom flow in the Land of Tibet. Express your sense of Freedom in your prayers, in your meditation, in your thoughts, in your words, in your speech, in your writing, in your songs, in your paintings, and in your music and dance.
THE LAND OF RISING SUN – A REASON TO HOPE AND A REASON TO FACE THE CHALLENGE :
The National Flag of Tibet gives us a sense of Hope and tells us that we need to face the Challenge.
The rising Sun gives us a sense of Hope, and a Hope for a better future. At the same time, we recognize that to advance to a higher position, man faces a Challenge. It needs moral effort, physical struggle, and to overcome the obstacles. The first step to face this Challenge would be that of seeking Freedom in mind and thought. Tibetans must not embrace the Subjective Reality of Occupation and the Objective Reality of Freedom must rule their hearts and minds.
The Individual is Association of Cells that performs living functions because of a Connection, Association, Partnership, or Relationship called Spirituality. Sri Sathya Sai Baba is that Spiritual Individual.
This blog post is dedicated to Bhagavan Sri Satya Sai Baba who has defined the word “SAI” : The letter ‘S’ stands for Spirituality, the letter ‘A’ stands for Association, and the letter ‘I’ stands for Individual. Man is an Individual, an Association of trillions of Individual Cells which formulate the Identity of the Individual because of a Cellular function known as Consciousness which establishes God-Connection, or Spiritual Connection between the energy dependent Individual and the Cosmic Source of Energy/Power/Force which supports, sustains, and preserves the Living Functions of the Individual and all that is living on the planet Earth.
THE THREE FUNDAMENTAL DISTINCTIONS:
The Totality of Things have been divided by describing The Three Fundamental Distinctions; 1. the Distinction between the natural and the supernatural, 2. the Distinction between the material and spiritual, and 3. the Distinction between the lifeless and the living(inanimate/animate, non-living/living, inorganic/organic). How do we make these Distinctions? The Difference, is that of Kind or that of Degree? If physical matter is called natural material substance, Is there an immaterial, transcendental substance called supernatural? The material substance is governed by The Laws of Physics and interacts with other material substances as per The Laws of Chemistry. Who or what governs the nature of Spiritual substance? The Laws of Thermodynamics are applicable to both non-living, and living systems. What is the Difference? The Living matter or Living cell is a thermodynamically unstable system. This means that without a continuous input of energy, a Living cell will degrade spontaneously into a non-living collection of molecules. If Deoxyribonucleic Acid or DNA is viewed as a Living Organic Molecule, it lives as long as energy is supplied to manifest its living functions. If the supply of energy is withdrawn, this Organic Molecule degrades into its constituent inorganic elements, and molecules.
THE DISTINCTION BETWEEN LIFE AND DEATH:
Death is defined as the extinction or cessation of Life. Dr. Oliver Wendell Holmes, Professor of Anatomy and Physiology, Dean of the Harvard Medical School(1847-1882), defined Life: “To live is to function, and that is all there is in living.” Life is defined as function at the level of physiology, of molecular biology, biochemistry, and of genetic potential. If Life is defined by function, Who or What is the Subject who lives because of its Function? What is that Function that could establish all other living functions? If living functions are goal-oriented, purposeful, sequential and not random, who provides the guidance or what is the source of Knowledge to perform goal-oriented functions? Life is described as a state of an organism characterized by certain processes, abilities that include metabolism, growth, motion, reproduction, responsiveness to stimuli, and awareness of its own condition of existence in a given environment. Functions depend upon the use of information; the information that is stored at a particular site or location is transferred to a different site or location where its is transformed into action which describes the nature of the function performed. Life could be defined as “Knowledge in Action.” The living functions or actions depend upon the use of energy. If Life is a manifestation of a System that is energy dependent, it requires Knowledge to acquire energy from an external source of energy. Life could be defined as a State of Knowing the Connection between energy- seeker and energy-provider. If a cell or matter to exist as Life, it must exist in a State of Knowing, or Awareness, or Consciousness that gives it the ability to acquire energy from its environment. Man has the Capacity of Consciousness in the presence of the vital functions operated by structures in Brain Stem. Man is certified to be dead when Consciousness departs and the same is evidenced by the absence of his Brain Stem functions. Consciousness is a transcendental term. It establishes a connection between matter or substance and a source of energy that is extraterrestrial or of Cosmic origin.
THE ROLE OF DEATH – IDENTITY, INDIVIDUALITY, AND MULTICELLULARITY:
In a multicellular organism, cells have short lives as individuals. The Whole Organism has a life span of its own. However, the Identity of the Individual who is seen as a living person is defined by a process called Cellular Death. The Identity is formulated by what is known as Programmed Cell Death. To achieve proper numerical balance between functionally related cell groups, the death of many cells is necessary for others. This Programmed Cell Death plays an important role in embryological Growth and Development of human fetus. Waves of genetically driven Cell Deaths are critical to the proper modeling of organs and organ systems. Such Programmed Cell Death events are essential if the organism as a whole is to develop its normal, final form and acquire a recognizable morphological appearance. Lord Gautama Buddha had observed; “Whatever is born, produced, conditioned, contains within itself the nature of its own dissolution.” Life and Death are the two sides or the two faces of the same coin. Without death, the Identity can not be expressed, and death also takes away the Identity that it has established. Identity and Individuality are not the same. Identity is established by the Phenotype which undergoes changes under the influence of Time. The Individuality is supported by Consciousness which operates the Genotype. Man’s Essence( Who you are ) is defined and is preceded by the Physical Reality of Existence. There is no Essence without Existence. There is no Existence without Connection, Association, or Partnership between energy-seeker and energy-provider. There is no Connection, Association, or Partnership without Consciousness. Man begins his life journey as a single cell and during his entire life journey the individual cells that describe his physical body constantly experience Cell Death while the Conscious entity survives the dying process. Consciousness is not affected by the dying process that gives the human a shape, a size, a form, and an Identity. Identity is dependent upon Consciousness and Consciousness is independent of the changing Identity such as infancy, boyhood, adulthood, and old age.
THE INDIVIDUAL AND THE INDIVIDUALITY:
The Individual is a Physical being and is a mortal being. The Individuality survives unchanged during the physical life journey of the Individual who lives with changing identity all his life. What happens to the Individuality? Does it continue without change? It depends upon the Flow of Time. Things in Nature change with Time but certain things like Mass, Energy, Momentum remain constant, unchanged, and they can not be created or destroyed. If Time flows in a cyclical manner, the Past flows into the Present, the Present flows into Future, and the Future soon becomes a Past event. Man’s existence depends upon the cyclical flow of Time, and Man’s existence depends upon his inability to directly experience the events that cause this cyclical flow of Time. Man exists not because of things that change in nature, but because of the constancy or unchanging nature of the change he perceives. Day is followed by Night, and the Winter Season is followed by the Spring Season with unfailing constancy. Very often, the cynical people would ask for verification. If not Sri Sathya Sai Baba, Jesus has provided some experience to His disciples and had verified the fact of His Resurrection. The Book of John, Chapter 20, verse 29 quotes the conversation between Jesus and His disciple Thomas. Today, Sunday, April 24, the Christian community is celebrating the Holiday known as Easter. Man will have no direct experience about the unchanging, eternal nature of his Individuality as his perception abilities, his cognitive abilities operate under the powerful influence of Illusion. As long as man lives on this planet Earth without direct experience of Earth’s Angular Speed, and Linear Speed, he will not know what changes and what may not change under the influence of Time. Man has to be uplifted from his State of Conditioned Existence to know his true nature. In a changing world, that is characterized by changes in function such as Life and Death, man has to seek the Unchanging Reality, the Unchanging Constancy that supports all Life.
Dr. R. Rudra Narasimham, B.Sc., M.B.B.S., Kurnool Medical College, Kurnool, Andhra Pradesh, India, M.B.B.S., Class of April, 1970.
Bhagwan Sri Sathya Sai Baba passes away on Sunday, April 24, 2011 at 7:40 a.m. at Puttaparthi
The Hindu A child pays floral tribute to a portrait of Sri Sathya Sai Baba at the Satya Sai Nigamagamam in Hyderabad on Sunday after the spiritual leader passed away at Puttaparthi in Anantapur district of Andhra Pradesh . Photo: P.V. Sivakumar
“Bhagwan Sri Sathya Sai Baba is no more with us physically. He left his earthly body on April 24, 2011 at 7:40 a.m. due to cardio-respiratory failure,” Director of Sri Sathya Sai Institute of Higher Medical Sciences Dr. A.N. Safaya said in a bulletin »
The truth about Self: I am Consciousness. The Christ before the Roman Governor Pontius Pilate. What is truth?The Truth about Self, The Inquiry about Self, WHO AM I?
The term Truth suggests confirmity with facts, experience, or with Reality, either as an idealized abstraction or in actual application to statements, ideas, acts, etc., Truth signifies an established or verified fact, or principle. Truth is related to the validity of what we mean. Plato defined the nature of Truth as correspondence between thought and reality. Dr. William Jones in his book, ‘The Principles of Psychology’ states: “True ideas are those we can assimilate, validate, corroborate, and verify.”
The universe is vast and man’s role in it is insignificant. Man’s great need is not only to know the world around him but also know himself better. Man has to know the Truth about himself.
THE THREE DIMENSIONS OF TRUTH:
1. Truth is correspondence between a statement and the reality of external world.
2. Truth is correspondence between the observer and the reality of the observed fact. Here, we need to recognize the method used for the observation such as intuition, sense experience, or revelation.
3. Truth is correspondence between man and his true nature.
LORD JESUS CHRIST: TRUTH AS PROPHECY
The Truth of Jesus, The Book of John, Chapter 20, verse 29: Jesus said to him (Thomas), “Have you come to believe because you have seen me? Blessed are those who have not seen and have believed.” What is Truth? Is it a matter of sight or sense experience, or is it a matter of faith and belief?
The Truth about Lord Jesus Christ comes to a very critical scrutiny when he got arrested and stood before Pilate, the Roman Governor. The Book of John, Chapter 18, verses 37 and 38 record the conversation between Jesus and Pilate: So Pilate said to him, “Then you are a King?” Jesus answered, “You say I am a King. For this I was born, and for this I came into the world, to testify to the truth. Everyone who belongs to the truth listens to my voice.” “What is truth?” Pilate asked. Jesus did not answer the question as the truth must have correspondence with the reality in external world. The truth of Jesus is about the establishment of Kingdom of Heaven upon Earth. It is a prophetic truth and the truth would be evident if and only if the Prophecy comes true.
LORD GAUTAMA BUDDHA: TRUTH AS EXPERIENCE
LORD GAUTAMA BUDDHA OBSERVES THAT WHATEVER IS BORN, PRODUCED, OR CONDITIONED CONTAINS WITHIN ITSELF THE NATURE OF ITS OWN DISSOLUTION. LIFE IS CONDITIONED TO EXPERIENCE CHANGE UNDER THE INFLUENCE OF TIME AND LIVING THINGS ARE BORN TO EXPERIENCE DISSOLUTION AT THE END OF THEIR LIFETIME.
Lord Gautama Buddha known as Siddhartha (He who will accomplish), c. 563 B.C to c. 483 B.C., left the palace at the age of 29 leaving behind his young wife and infant son. After six years of ascetic life, while meditating under a Pipal tree (later called BODHI or Enlightenment Tree), he became Supreme Buddha (c. 528 B.C.) at the age of 35. He preached his first sermon at Sarnath. He outlined his Doctrine of Four Noble Truths and the First Noble Truth is that of suffering, the experience of pain and sorrow called DUKHA is implicit in the human existence. Buddha’s truth is related to the man’s experience of the nature of his existence in the world.
I maintain that man exists at any stage of his existence, at any given age, under any given circumstance, in either good health or ill health, in pain and suffering or that of joy and happiness due to the operation of a Fundamental Force/Power/Energy that delivers Mercy/Grace/Compassion. If suffering describes one face of the coin called human existence, Compassion describes the second face of the same coin. Compassion is implicit in formulating the reality of human existence and the existence of all living things.
LORD RAMA: TRUTH IN ACTION
“WHO AM I? WHY I AM LIKE THIS?” were the questions asked by Lord Rama and these are the questions that we need to ask ourselves to know the Truth about Self.
In the epic poem known as Ramayana, Indian poet Valmiki describes Lord Rama’s life journey. Rama spent 14 years in the forest to help fulfilment of the word or promise made by his father. In the final Chapter, Book Six, Yuddha Kanda, Chapter( Sarga ) 117, verse 11, He asks the following question:
so aHaM yasya yatashchaahaM bhagavaMstadbraviitu me.”
“I think of myself to be a human being, by name Rama, the son of Dasaratha. You, as a gracious Divintiy tell me who I am and why I am like this?”
In the story of Ramayana, the Creator Lord Brahma responds to the questions asked by Lord Rama. These are the questions that we need to ask ourselves. To know Truth about Self, the man must begin his inquiry with the question of WHO AM I?
THE INQUIRY ABOUT SELF: WHO AM I?
Socrates before taking poison that would end his life states: “The unexamined life is not worth living.” “Know thyself” is a virtue and to defend that virtue, Socrates made no attempt to save his life.
The tradition of knowing oneself is a longer tradition than any other Science. This is a study in which the Knower and the Known are one. The object of scientific inquiry is the nature of the scientist.
HOW TO DISCOVER THE TRUTH ABOUT SELF?
Austrian psychoanalyst Sigmund Freud: “No knowledge can be obtained from revelation, intuition, or inspiration.”
Religion, Philosophy, and Science may represent three distinct fields of learning about Truth and Reality. Each tries to answer fundamental questions about human life. All three differ from each other in the selection of method and subject matter. Auguste Comte, the 19th century French philosopher, the founder of Sociology describes Positive Science as the study of natural, mental, and social phenomena by empirical methods. In his view, Philosophy is mere speculation and Religion is superstition or irrational belief. Speculation represents a futile attempt to go behind the phenomena in order to discover ultimate causes or substances and such speculative methods may result in guess work or conjecture and not in knowledge. Philosophy may use Logic and system and yet its conclusions may lack the validity or objectivity of Science.The philosophical inquiry does not involve investigation by experiment. Science not only provides the knowledge that something is true, but also the reasons why it is true. The famous Austrian psychoanalyst Sigmund Freud categorically claims that no knowledge can be obtained from revelation, intuition, or inspiration. There is a tendency in modern times to reject the methods used by Religion and Philosophy. Philosophy may use intuitive generalization or induction from ordinary sense experience. The scientific method involves induction from an inference from experiments which involve testing and verifying a hypothesis. The observations of a scientist go beyond the experiences which ordinary men have in the course of daily life. The instruments that are invented and used by scientists have immense abilities to collect numerous kinds of empirical data with precision, accuracy, and consistency. However, it may not be easy to conclude that Science alone can arrive at correspondence with Truth and Reality. Could we extend scientific methodology of investigation to every field of Inquiry? Could we obtain clarity and certainty in all matters using scientific methods? Could Science be the only avenue to Truth? Could we find Truth and Reality as an external experience? Could a man use scientific information to experience Truth and Reality?
Sir Isaac Newton demonstrates the properties of Light rays using experiments. Science explains this optical illusion. Could Science remove the optical illusion to give the man a chance to experience the reality of this Pencil? The Reality of this Pencil would be known when the Pencil is removed from water and man has no ability to change the properties of Light rays.
When a object exists in a conditioned state, like this Pencil in water, Science may explain the optical illusion generated. Science and scientific information may not provide the direct experience of Truth and Reality. Man is the observer, and the reality or truth of Earth’s Angular Speed, or Linear Speed is not an observed fact obtained by direct human sense experience. Scientific information can not provide the experience that is generated by the truth and reality of Earth’s Motion.
THE PURPOSE OF SCIENCE: THE KNOWLEDGE ABOUT SELF
The purpose of Science is to describe and codify observation and experience and to provide accepted body of information and arrange it into a meaningful pattern to explain the truth and reality.
The purpose of Science is to describe and codify observation and experiences. Natural Sciences such as Physical Sciences, Biological Sciences, and Medical Sciences provide accepted body of information about the world and the human body. We need to arrange this information into a meaningful pattern and interpret it to describe the Reality or Truth about the man. We need to apply a reasoning process which involves analysis of basic concepts to determine their consistency. Something could be said to be true if, and only if it could be verified by logical or scientific procedures. We need to use a reasoning process, a philosophical analysis to clarify statements, to verify or refute a theoretical claim by demonstrating relation between the theoretical claim and the observational evidence.
THE SELF AND THE KNOWING-SELF
I divide the man into two categories; 1. The Self: it represents the man as a physical, mental, and social being. The Self represents the thinking person or the person having thoughts, and feelings. 2. The Knowing-Self: it represents the man as a moral, and spiritual being. The Knowing Self is aware or Conscious of the thoughts and feelings of The Self.
THINKING vs CONSCIOUSNESS
Dr Florian Mormann & Dr Christof Koch have defined Neural Correlates of Consciousness as the minimal neuronal mechanism jointly sufficient for any one specific Conscious percept. This definition basically makes no distinction between Thinking and Consciousness. The NCC definition is not based on correct understanding of the function known as Consciousness. It fails to speak about the role of Reticular Formation, and Brain Stem Nuclei that have the Capacity of Consciousness. The Capacity of Consciousness is an essential precondition of the Content of Consciousness. The Reticular Formation filters incoming stimuli to discriminate irrelevant background stimuli and composes the Content of Consciousness before relaying the information to the Cerebral hemispheres to cause Cortical awareness.
The Self may think about the nature of consciousness, but Thinking and Consciousness are two distinct functions. Thinking and Consciousness are not one and the same. Consciousness functions to provide Awareness and it is not involved in mental activities such as Thinking. The Reticular Formation supports functions such as AROUSAL and it maintains wakefulness, alertness, and sleep. In the absence of this Brain Stem function, the Individual is not capable of generating thoughts, and feelings and would not be aware of what goes on inside the Individual, and what goes on outside the Individual.
In Clinical Medicine, the medical practitioner evaluates the Level of Arousal or Alertness of his patient.
THE INDIVIDUAL – IDENTITY AND INDIVIDUALITY – THE TWO SIDES OF THE SAME COIN
The Self has two aspects- External Reality describes the Identity of the Individual; Internal Reality establishes the Individuality of the Individual.
If man is viewed as a living thing, the thing is made of Matter and Form. The Form establishes the morphological appearance in the external world. The Matter establishes the Individuality of the Individual. The external appearance or Phenotype of man undergoes constant change and is not the same at all times. The Individuality is related to the Genotype which remains constant while man goes through various stages of his existence from conception to old age. As per The Law of Individuality and Creation, man is a created being who would always exist as an Individual with Individuality and man has no choice other than that of existing as an Individual. The Truth about Self is not about the Identity of the Individual in terms of his anthropometric measurements, biometric information, name, gender, race, ethnicity, language, religion, nationality, education, social occupation, social status or social ranking, and affiliations. This external reality has a degree of correspondence in the external world as it is often confirmed and is recognized by others who can observe the Individual. But this knowledge is subject to change and the information it provides is not experienced in a constant, and objective manner. The Truth about Self is the Truth about the human organism which is multicellular. We need to know as to who or what is the Subject who lives because of the functions of the trillions of cells that comprise the human organism.
WHO AM I? “I AM CONSCIOUSNESS”
WHO AM I? This question must be answered by applying a reasoning process to Inferential Knowledge about Cell Structure (ANATOMY) and Cell Functions (PHYSIOLOGY). Life is defined as “Knowledge in Action.”
All living organisms use similar building units called cells. Basically, the cell has a membrane, a nucleus, and a living substance known as Protoplasm. The nucleus contains structures called chromosomes and genes (the genome) that have nucleic acids like DNA/RNA which have no independent existence of their own. The genome functions when it is associated with Protoplasm which has the exclusive ability to obtain energy (food) from its environment. Consciousness is a natural principle that describes the condition of an Individual; the condition of knowing, awareness, or recognizing the fact, the state, and the act of biological existence in a given environment. The term environment refers to all the conditions, circumstances, and influences surrounding, and affecting the existence of a given Individual, or a group of Individuals. Who is this Individual who has the ability to know and be aware of its external, and internal environment? The Individual is a living organism and the organism could be unicellular or multicellular. The most fundamental aspect of Consciousness as a living function that establishes biological existence is that of acquiring energy from environment. The living cell is a thermodynamically unstable system. This means that without continuous input of energy, a cell will degrade spontaneously into a non living collection of molecules.
“I AM CONSCIOUSNESS.” THE VERIFICATION OF THE PROPOSITION
The proposition that “I am Consciousness” could be subjected to a reasoning process in two manners: 1. The Coherence Theory of Truth, and 2. The Correspondence Theory of Truth.
1. “I am Consciousness.” The Coherence Theory of Truth: The standard of Truth is the logical consistency of a proposition with a large system of propositions. “I am Consciousness” is the proposition. The propositions to support my proposition are:
a. Consciousness is a mental experience.
b. Consciousness is a sense experience.
c. Consciousness is a physical or body experience.
d. Consciousness is a social experience.
e. Consciousness is a moral experience.
f. Consciousness is a spiritual experience.
g. Consciousness is a cellular experience.
The Subject “I am” of the proposition could be defined as a physical, mental, social, moral, and spiritual being based upon the contents of the ‘Total Consciousness’ experience of that Individual.
2. “I am Consciousness.” The Correspondence Theory of Truth: Truth is viewed as a relation between an idea or proposition and its object. “I am Consciousness” is the proposition. The Subject known as “I am” is related to an idea or object described as “Consciousness.” We need to verify the Truth or Reality of a relation between the Subject and its Object. The Subject is the whole or entire human organism comprising of trillions of individual cells which function as organs and tissues of the body. The Subject “I am” can not be defined merely as a single individual, specific organ like brain or mind. The body organ called brain has no independent existence of its own. Brain and its cells (neurons, axons, and connective tissue) need energy to sustain metabolic activities. The functional relationship between the Subject and the Object operates and involves the activity of the entire organism and is not limited to the activities of brain or mind. The purpose of Consciousness at cellular level is to foster functional unity of the multicellular organism and to establish the singularity that we recognize as an Individual. A living thing maintains it Individuality while being a member of a given social group. The process by which a living cell acquires energy to perform its living functions is called ‘NUTRITION’. Consciousness is the awareness of the energy dependent existence in a given environment and it is the characteristic of all living cells irrespective of their differentiation, functional subordination, and identification as the constituent parts of specific organs, tissues, and organ systems. The idea or Object called “Consciousness” is fundamentally related to the Subject called “I am” both at the level of the entire organism and at the level of individual cells.
HUMAN KNOWLEDGE AND SELF-KNOWLEDGE:
WHO AM I? Lord Krishna describes Himself in The Bhagavad Gita, Chapter X, The Opulence of the Absolute, verse 22:”Of the Vedas, I am the Sama Veda; of the demigods, I am Indra; of the senses, I am the Mind; and in Living Beings, I AM CONSCIOUSNESS.”
Human Knowledge is of two kinds; 1. Acquired Knowledge that is dependent upon sense experience, and reason, and 2. Innate or Intuitive Knowledge, the genetic information, the biological information that all living cells and organisms use to perform the living functions and to exhibit their behaviors and biological instincts. Knowledge about Self, or Self-Knowledge begins with the implantation of Consciousness in Matter and not as Sense experience, and not on account of rational thinking with application of reason.
Dr. R. Rudra Narasimham, B.Sc., M.B.B.S.,
Kurnool Medical College, Kurnool, Andhra Pradesh, India,
A historical occasion: The Separation of Church and State: The Separation of Spiritual and Temporal Powers of the Dalai Lama.
The institution of Dalai Lama or Gaden Phodrang dates back to 1642 when the Great 5th Dalai Lama assumed Tibet’s political leadership role. The 3rd Dalai Lama while on a visit to the Mongol Chief Altan Khan, received from that ruler the honorific title “TA-LE” which got anglicized as “DALAI”, the Mongolian equivalent of the Tibetan “RGYA-MTSHO” meaning “Ocean”. Tibet existed in a serene and unperturbed state for several centuries until October 1950 when Communist China’s People’s Liberation Army invaded Tibetan soil. Tenzin Gyatso, the present 14th Dalai Lama fled from Tibet following the failed Tibetan National Uprising in 1959.
52nd Anniversary of the Tibetan National Uprising – March 10, 2011 :
The 14th Dalai Lama has voluntarily relinquished his political powers. The Tibetan Parliament-in-Exile must derive its power from The Constitution of Tibet. The power of the people of Tibet must be now vested in the Constitution of Tibet. Amendments in Charter of Tibetans in Exile to pass political authority to an elected leadership would not suffice.
March 10, 2011 could be marked as a historical moment in the long history of Tibet. The 14th Dalai Lama had issued a statement to voluntarily relinquish his political leadership role. The Dalai Lama formally communicated his decision to the 15th Tibetan Parliament-in-Exile on March 14, 2011. He has recommended a democratic system of governance for the Tibetan polity. He has recommended Amendments in Charter of Tibetans in Exile to pass political authority to an elected leadership.
THE SEPARATION OF TEMPORAL AND SPIRITUAL POWERS :
The Dalai Lama will continue as the Spiritual Leader of the People of Tibet. Tibetans must now derive their political rights and authority to govern themselves from powers vested in the Constitution of Tibet.
I welcome this statement from 14th Dalai Lama seeking the separation of temporal and spiritual powers from the institution of Dalai Lama or Gaden Phodrang. The Dalai Lama institution will continue to exist and the Dalai Lama would continue as the Spiritual Leader of the people of Tibet. The Living Tibetan Spirits tell me that they would accept this decision made by the 14th Dalai Lama. Now, the people of Tibet need to derive their rights from a duly established Constitution of Tibet, a written document that would state the fundamental laws and the principles of governance for Tibetan people. The Tibetan Parliament-in-Exile must derive its authority and power from the Constitution of Tibet. Amendments in Charter of Tibetans in Exile will not help this transition of political power from the Dalai Lama to the people of Tibet. The Tibetan community in Exile must draft the Constitution of Tibet and get it ratified by all people of Tibetan origin and Tibetans inside Tibet should be given an opportunity to ratify this Constitution of Tibet at a later date when the foreign occupier of Tibet is evicted from the Land of Tibet. Tibetans are not seeking separation from China. Tibet is not a part of China and the Problem of Tibet is its military occupation. Special Frontier Force is a multinational defense plan that aims to establish freedom and democracy in the Land of Tibet.
Rudra N. Rebbapragada, Ann Arbor, Michigan, SERVICE INFORMATION: Service Number: MS-8466/MR-03277K; Rank: Lieutenant/Captain/Major; Branch: Army Medical Corps/Short Service Regular Commission/Direct Permanent Commission(1969-1984); Unit: Headquarters Establishment Number. 22, C/O 56 APO(1971-1974); Designation: Medical Officer; Organization: Special Frontier Force.
I dedicate this blog post to the nuclear engineers of the Tokyo Electric Power Company who are currently serving at the Fukushima Nuclear Plant. I sincerely applaud their spirit, dedication, and courage to confront the challenge of averting an imminent nuclear meltdown at this Nuclear Plant where Plutonium is being used as fuel at Reactor #3. I would remember the people of Japan in my prayers as I firmly understand that man is a created being who exists in the physical world depending upon the Power/Force/Energy which bestows Mercy, Compassion, and Grace upon all of us. The natural disaster, a combination of a powerful earthquake and a massive tsunami on March 11, 2011 resulted in loss of life and property and yet there is Hope. As per the Laws of Conservation of Mass and Energy, matter is indestructible. I pray for renewal, regeneration, and regrowth in Japan. Man has no choice, and has no alternative as the Subjective Reality of his physical existence is conditioned. Man exists in the physical world depending upon energy provided to him by his Creator and this acquisition of energy for biological existence is sustained by God-Connection. Man’s dependence upon Nuclear Energy and the consequences of Radiation exposure and injury should be fully understood.
A very powerful Earthquake and a devastating Tsunami initiated the Japanese Nuclear Disaster on March 11, 2011.
Nature's Fury- Tsunami hitting Natori, Japan. The Disaster that followed this tsunami is more frightening.
Man's dependence upon Nuclear Energy is the real issue to be faced by Japan, and the rest of the World.
Japan's Nuclear Disaster - Explosions and Fire at Fukushima Nuclear Power Plant.
The explosions at Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Plant has caused a breach in all the three containment structures and the risk of radiation escaping into the environment has become real and the consequences would be inescapable.
We need to earnestly ask ourselves: Is this Safe? Is this Cheap? Is this Green? In human history, the Japanese Nuclear Disaster on March 11, 2011 will be the most unforgettable Moment. Nuclear Power is more frightening than the Earthquake and the Tsunami that initiated this Nuclear Crisis. It also speaks about the effects of human activities on their environment and on the survival of other species.
The Safety of Nuclear Power is exposed by this image. The containment structures have failed and could not prevent the escape of radiation from the Reactor Core.
ECOLOGICAL AWARENESS OR CONSCIOUSNESS :
We understand the term Evacuation, Exclusion, or Danger Zone only in terms of its significance to human beings. We need to always think of the entire Ecological Community and man simply belongs to the greater Ecological Community.
The nuclear disaster in Japan will give us a reason to reflect upon the fragile nature of human existence. The Earthquake and the devastating Tsunami are understandable natural calamities and man has no control on geological events and Plate Tectonics. Man has no control over the tidal waves unleashed by the earthquake. However, man has to come to terms with his dependence upon Nuclear Power. This tragedy would also give us a chance to understand the interconnectedness, interrelatedness, and the interdependence of all forms of life. Consciousness is the awareness of something; the awareness of one’s own state of existence and the awareness of the existence of other conscious entities present in the environment. A living organism’s ability to detect the presence of other living organisms in its environment is the characteristic of the biological function known as consciousness. A living cell is conscious as it displays awareness of other living cells present in its environment. The relationship between the organism and all the factors including other organisms that make up its environment is described as Ecology. Consciousness establishes the interconnectedness, the interrelatedness, and the interdependence of a diverse population of living organisms that constitute a continuous ecological chain. This disaster speaks about the effects of human made radiation; the effects on the environment, the effects on other members of human community, and the effects on the Ecological Community in the areas affected by the disaster.
MAN AND NATURE – WHAT IS THE RELATIONSHIP ? :
The Science known as Ecology, Bioecology, Bionomics, and Environmental Biology study the relationships between organisms and all factors including other organisms, that make up their environment. I derive Knowledge from Spirituality Science to understand as to how the relationship between man, and other organisms gets established.
Ecology considers organisms at the levels of individuals, populations, and communities. It will be easy to visualize the human toll in terms of sickness, death, and forced displacement of a large population of human beings. The loss, the pain, and the suffering that is endured by each human individual reveals only a part of this disaster of epic proportions. While we humans try to escape from a disaster zone or area, we need to recognize that our evacuation plans during an emergency fail to include the plant, and animal life with which we share our living environment. We need to take into account the land and water that exist in the area affected by a disaster. The problem is not that of simple relocation of human beings. The human costs are further aggravated by the lack of gasoline, the damage done to the roads and the lack of transportation to move a large number of people quickly and efficiently. The lack of food, safe drinking water, the lack of housing is often understood as a problem just affecting the human victims of the disaster. We have to give attention to the impact upon the Ecological Community as a whole. We need to understand the costs of nuclear industry, the risks it poses to life, and environment, and the long-term consequences imposed by nuclear plant shutdowns. Nuclear accidents get very dramatic attention. There is a fundamental problem with Nuclear energy it is not clean, it is not cheap, and it is not safe. It is very frightening when we face the uncertainties this disaster has imposed on us.
THE BIOLOGICAL EFFECTS OF RADIATION :
The Biological effects of Radiation are well understood. The human risks from exposure to Ionizing Radiation are known. We need to realistically assess the safety levels for the entire Ecological Community.
The General Electric Company designed Boiling water reactors at Japan’s Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear plant had posed safety concerns when they went into operation during 1972. These reactors have about 1000 MW capacity per year and are similar to the Chernobyl 4 Reactor that exploded in 1986. However, in Japan, the reactors have better safety features. This type of Nuclear Crisis is an inherent risk that could happen at any time during the life of the reactor for a variety of reasons. The containment structures have faced a stress and sustained damage. The explosions on March 12 have demonstrated that the danger of radiation leak is not fully contained. These nuclear reactors built-in 1972 have an average lifespan of about 40 years and they are at the end of their operational life. We can never ignore the problem of aging that is an inseparable characteristic of the operation of nuclear plants. We have to recognize the risks imposed by the Suppression Pools that are designed to cool and trap the radioactive particles of Iodine, Cesium, and Strontium. It has been reported that levels of 400 millisieverts per hour had been recorded near the No.4 reactor at Fukushima. At that level of radiation exposure, the operators would be at a high risk of getting radiation sickness after two and half hours of continued stay. According to the World Nuclear Association, radiation exposure to over 100 millisieverts a year can lead to cancer. It has been stated that 1,000 millisieverts of radiation exposure causes immediate or Acute Radiation Sickness. The fatal dose of radiation exposure is about 5,000 millisieverts. The biological effects of radiation are determined by the amount of energy absorbed. Energy dissipation must be quantified to determine the exposure levels. The amount of exposure, the duration of exposure, and the area of the body surface that is exposed are the important factors that determine the nature of radiation injury or illness. The radiation enters the body either as waves or as particles that are electrically charged. Radiation enters body like minute bullets that cause localized injuries in the cells affected. Whether the cell dies immediately or shows molecular changes depends upon the number of sites in the cell that are bombarded and upon how critical these locations are. In the chromosomes, the molecular DNA structure could be damaged. High radiation doses cause rapid cell death. If the cell changes are more subtle, the damage to DNA would unable the cell to reproduce, or the new cells produced could be abnormal and not viable. The tissues most affected by radiation are those that undergo rapid replacement, such as bone marrow, intestinal tract, and skin. Some of the direct effects of radiation exposure include cell depletion, inability to produce new tissue, lowered resistance to infections, decreased number of Red Blood Cells, bleeding from disrupted blood vessels, effects of toxins released by tissue breakdown, and slower blood clotting time. The indirect effects of radiation exposure include tumor growths, a shortened life span, recurrent bacterial infections, anemia, and body ulcers. The explosions at Fukushima Nuclear Plant have exposed the highly radioactive material to environment and radiation levels have increased in the surroundings and in distant areas. It is not known as to how long the population would remain exposed to radiation risk as the population could not be fully evacuated. People in the Danger Zone have been warned to stay indoors. The longer-term exposure to radiation can raise the risk of Thyroid, and Bone cancers, and Leukemia. The incidence of birth defects and deformities would increase. People would become more vulnerable because of suppression of immunological functions. Children, pregnant women, women of child-bearing age would face the brunt of this nuclear disaster while the environment takes its time to recover. There can never be a happy ending to a very tragic story of this kind. There is no Winner and we are all Losers.
THE TWO FACES OF THE NUCLEAR INDUSTRY :
Nuclear Energy - Is there a Winner? Are we all not the Losers?
The civilian uses of Nuclear Power often conceals the use of Nukes as weapons of warfare. The radioactive waste from both civilian and military use remains toxic for thousands of years. The waste is disposed by concentration and storage in casks. This disaster would reveal more information about the fate of highly radioactive waste that is often stored at the nuclear plant on a permanent basis.
BLESSINGS TO PEOPLE OF JAPAN :
Indian tradition, in the epic story of Samudra Manthan or Churning of the Ocean, glorifies Lord Shiva who had protected humanity from utter destruction by holding a deadly poison in His throat. We need a Savior to protect humanity from deadly toxins like Plutonium.
I seek the Blessings of Lord Shiva to protect and defend the existence of the people of Japan and wish them a success in their efforts to contain the problem of radiation leaking into the environment.
A LESSON FOR INDIA AND ITS NUCLEAR LIABILITY :
Japan's Nuclear Disaster offers a valuable Lesson to India. India must carefully review its Bill for Civil Liability for Nuclear Damage.
Kindly review my blog post titled Civil Liability for Nuclear Damage Bill 2010 – A Himalayan Blunder.
On March 11, 2012, I am pleased to share the following photographs from Japan that display Time’s Divine Power of Healing. I continue to seek the well-being of people of Japan and the full recovery of its Land and all of its inhabitants.
“SARVESHAM SWASTIR BHAVATU” : This is a statement expressed in Sanskrit language and it seeks the well-being of all people, of all nations, of all religions, of all races and of all living entities in their environment and community.
Dr. R. Rudra Narasimham, B.Sc., M.B.B.S., Kurnool Medical College, Kurnool, Andhra Pradesh, India, M.B.B,S., Class of April, 1970.
After the triple blow of a massive earthquake, aftershocks, and a tsunami,
much of the infrastructure in northeast Japan is reeling, and the energy
sector is descending into a significant crisis.
Already, a casualty has emerged: The resurgence of nuclear power as an alternative energy source worldwide has taken a direct hit.
Japan has now introduced electricity rationing, as more and more nuclear-generated power comes off-line.
As of Sunday morning, four of the six nuclear power plants in the district suffered damage from the natural disasters, while technicians lost the ability to cool six nuclear reactors at two of those plants.
Three of those units are at the Tokyo Electric Power Co. (Tepco, TYO:9501) Fukishima Dai-ichi power complex, where a hydrogen explosion occurred Saturday at Unit 1 and a separate explosion was feared likely at Unit 3.
Such explosions are in the outer building – not in the one surrounding the reactor core itself. The Japanese facilities have two complete structures separating the core from the outside world, unlike the 1986 Chernobyl disaster (where the plant had only a single encasement). Nonetheless, the overriding concern in Japan is to prevent a meltdown at each facility.
If a full meltdown occurs, a huge, molten, radioactive mass would burn through both containments and all supporting structures, destroy the buildings, and release a mixture of highly radioactive particles to be spread by wind and rain.
How bad the aftermath would be depends on two things – how much radiation is released and the weather.
At least through Wednesday (March 16), the wind is blowing out to sea, rather than inland, toward population centers. That’s good.
However, reports yesterday about the detection of highly radioactive cesium-137 and iodine-131 outside the Dai-ichi complex means a small amount of dangerous radioactivity has escaped. Experts believe that the radiation problem is thus far localized and minor. Nonetheless, upwards of 200,000 people have been evacuated from the area surrounding the Dai-ichi complex.
To prevent the meltdowns – the worst scenario reminiscent of the cinematic treatment in “The China Syndrome” (1979) – operators have been pumping in seawater in a last-ditch effort to cool down the reactor core. Absent another significant tremor de-stabilizing the plants even further, most specialists believe this will be successful.
But there will be some major costs.
For one thing, seawater corrodes the reactors, making them unusable. There will be significant downtime for other reactors, as detailed technical examinations take place, to say nothing of the massive cleanup required at a number of plants. The largest damage, however, is to the credibility of nuclear power in general.
Nuclear Expansion Plans Are Likely to Be Delayed
This calamity is not about inadequate company oversight or technical deficiencies.
This is all about how Mother Nature can undermine even the best-laid plans of mere mortals.
As the larger Asian region begins to ascertain the damage done to the nuclear-as-remedy approach, major nuclear expansion plans in China, India, throughout East Asia, and in Australia are likely to be delayed. The same goes for the two new reactors under construction in Japan and the 12 more currently in the planning stage.
The real impact, however, is likely to be felt well beyond Asia.
According to London’s World Nuclear Association, there are at present 442 reactors worldwide providing around 15% of global electricity. Plans are already announced to build more than 155 additional reactors, most of them in Asia, with 65 reactors currently under construction.
Back at the epicenter of the present disaster, the impact upon Japanese electricity volume is already wreaking havoc on factories attempting to jumpstart production.
In trading today throughout Asia, shares were tumbling on concerns that major companies would be unable to return to any normal level of production anytime soon.
The Tokyo Stock Exchange also suspended any trading in Tepco. The company is facing an avalanche of sell orders that would greatly exceed the exchange’s 24% limit in the decline of share price.
Yet, despite the current sourcing problems, energy needs will certainly not abate.
LNG Is the Immediate Alternative
Prior to the earthquake, 54 nuclear reactors at 17 plants nationwide produced more than 30% of Japan’s power. Japan has already requested additional electricity from Russia, but the rolling blackouts introduced today will continue throughout the country.
The immediate alternative source of power will be an accelerated usage of liquefied natural gas (LNG). Japan had traditionally been one of the two primary users of LNG (the other being South Korea).
More recently, LNG has been increasing in transport volume throughout the world, even establishing a northern European spot market to challenge long-term conventional pipeline prices from Russia and prompting Canada to revise the terminal under construction at Kitimat on the British Columbia coast to move LNG to Asia.
Closer to Japan, the Gorgon and other northwestern Australian projects, along with those in Papua New Guinea and on Sakhalin Island off of the Pacific coast of Russia, are gearing up a rising volume of LNG for export.
Much of that increase is bound for China, where five receiving terminals are right now at various stages of completion, and three additional ones are in planning. Still, there is more volume that can be brought to market, and Japanese utilities have been actively locking in additional LNG consignments governed by multi-year contract agreements.
Japanese energy needs are tailor-made for a transition to LNG as a rising fuel source for power generation. The country had already embarked on a robust project to expand existing LNG terminals and build new ones well before the earthquake occurred.
These are not coming on-line in short order… But neither are the problems with the Japanese nuclear network going away anytime soon.
Reporting of Sanskrit as Second Language-Census of India 2011. Sanskrit is a cultural tool that we use everyday.Reporting of Sanskrit as Second Language. Sanskrit is a Cultural tool that most Indians use to express their ideas in their physical behavior, actions, and interactions.
I am happy to share a letter that I received from Arsha Vidya Gurukulam asking fellow Indians to mention Sanskrit as their Second Language while participating in Census of India 2011. Unfortunately, I may not take part in Census of India 2011, but nothing would prevent me from sending my Blessings and Best Wishes for the success of their humble proposal or initiative to give recognition to the Sanskrit Language and its role in shaping Indian Life and Existence.
I seek the Blessings of Goddess Sarasvati, the Goddess of Learning and Speech even when I express my ideas and thoughts in English.
SANSKRIT IS THE LANGUAGE OF OUR NATIONAL LIFE:
The Rig Vedic River Sarasvati is associated with the birth of Devanagari Script and Sanskrit Language. The ideas and thoughts that are expressed in Sanskrit Language flow through our National Life and the Language has become the Language of our actions, interactions, our Culture, our Customs, and our Traditions.Sanskrit is the tool that I use to discover the God-Connection.
WHAT IS CULTURE?
Five Letter Mantra for Learning. AUM NAMAH SHIVAYA. Namah is the most used Sanskrit word in all human interactions, worship, and the Learning Process.
The word ‘CULTURE’ is defined as ideas, customs, skills, arts, etc., of a people or group, that are transferred, communicated, or passed along, as in or to succeeding generations.
My human body can biologically exist without using any of the human languages. If the human person, the physical being is viewed as an Association of trillions of cells, none of these cells need the human languages to communicate with each other. However, for man to exist as a mental being, a social being, a moral being, and as a spiritual being, ideas are required to formulate the behavior, the attitudes, and the customs. The contents of such ideas are more important than the language in which they may be communicated. Sanskrit is the Cultural tool that I received while growing up in India and it is the tool that I use in my everyday life to exist as a mental, social, moral, and spiritual being. It does not require the use of Sanskrit as a language for my reading, writing, or speaking. I use Sanskrit to draw upon those ideas that are Culturally transmitted to me. Hence, Sanskrit should be recognized as the Mother of ideas, customs, and traditions that gives us our Indian Identity and Sanskrit is an unspoken tool that we use to lead our daily lives. If I use the word ‘NAMASKAR’ or ‘NAMASTE’ or any other equivalent word to greet you, or to acknowledge your presence, I have derived that ‘NAMAH’ thought from Sanskrit. The word ‘NAMAH’ is the most used word of expression in the Sanskrit language. If any of us use that word, by verbally speaking it and by physically joining hands, I would claim that we use Sanskrit language. I have seen deaf, mute, and blind people and they have greeted me with Namaskar or Namaste, or its equivalent, and they are able to do so as the Language is communicated by their physical actions and not by the simple use of words; the words that we use in writing, listening, and speaking.
SANSKRIT IS THE LANGUAGE FOR PHYSICAL ACTION:
Essence and Existence- Indians express their Essence in the manner they exist. Rani Padmini of Chittorgarh had expressed her essence as a moral, and spiritual being by ending her physical existence. Sanskrit is the Cultural tool that Indians use to define their Essence.
Our simple daily activities like greeting people, showing respect to others, entertaining guests, learning at Schools, our simple acts of River Worship, or touching feet to receive blessings from elders are all evidence of our use of the Sanskrit Language in action.
Dr. R. Rudra Narasimham,
Kurnool Medical College, Kurnool, Andhra Pradesh, India,
M.B.B.S., Class of April, 1970.
From: Arsha Vidya Newsletter <newsletter@arshavidya.in> Date: Wed, Feb 16, 2011 at 9:43 PM Subject: Request for mentioning Sanskrit as your second language in the census
Dear Devotee,
The Census of this country has started from 09.02.2011. In their questionnaire, they will ask our mother tongue and also 2nd language. As far as possible, in this census, please show Sanskrit as your mother tongue or 2nd language. We may say that Sanskrit is the base for all Indian languages. It is the unifying Language in which our Cultural and Spiritual Traditions are enshrined. Remove and eliminate this Language and you can destroy our Culture.Mentioning of Sanskrit by more people will enable the language get bigger slots in Doordarshan and other benefits from the Central Government. Otherwise we will lose out and hence our culture will lose out.Please also pass on this information to as many as possible.
The Book of Genesis, Chapter 1, verse 27: “So God created man in His own image; in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them.”
The First Book of Moses, The Old Testament Book of Genesis describes the story of Creation; in Chapter 2, verse 7, it narrates man’s creation: “And the LORD God formed man of the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and man became a living soul.”
MAN IS A CREATED BEING:
Man is a created being. Spirituality explores the connection between man and his Creator. The Trimurti at Elephanta Island Cave Temples near Mumbai, India represents God as the Creator(Brahma), the Preserver(Vishnu) and the Destroyer(Shiva).
MAN IS A SPIRITUAL BEING:
The status of man in nature describes man as a created object; a new object, one of its own kind, distinctive, and unique. The principle of Creation involves the use of inspiration and imagination as opposed to the view proposed by the Theory of Evolution. The fundamental issue is about understanding man’s status in nature. Did man come into existence by gradual changes caused by random and unguided events called genetic mutations? Or, does man actually exist in nature because of his relationship with other objects present in his living environment? What defines man’s existence? What establishes the reality of man’s physical existence? Should we focus on the changing form? Alternately, should we give attention to an unchanging relationship that is a prerequisite for the existence of all life forms? If an object cannot come into its state of existence, how could that object get a shape or form? In the context of a discussion about man’s existence in nature, I state that man is a created object, and hence manexists as a Spiritual being. The term Spirituality describes the nature of this connection between man and His Creator. Soul is the immortal part of man as distinguished from his body; it is the vital principle which moves and animates all Life. Soul may represent the essence of a human being, it could be the quality which confers individuality, humanity, and the moral nature of man. I divide man into two categories; the first category is called the ‘SELF’ which represents man as a physical, mental, and social being; and the second category is called the ‘KNOWING-SELF’ which represents man as a moral, and spiritual being. These two categories function together and the functional unity of the human person is an attribute of a neuro-biological function called Consciousness. Man’s physical being is represented by a changing external or morphological appearance and while the physical Identity is constantly changing, the unchanging Individuality is supported by man’s spirituality or the nature of his constant spiritual relationship.
THE ETERNAL REALITY OF SOUL’S IMMORTALITY:
Ajanta Caves near Aurangabad, Maharashtra State, India, Fresco-type wall painting- Man’s spiritual dimension describes man’s humanity, moral nature, individuality, and Consciousness.
Religious thinkers have further defined Soul as that part of the individual which partakes of divinity. People of all races, cultures and religions would like to investigate the nature of this God-Connection as they perceive the world and the universe in which they exist as a fact of Creation. I need to find evidence that would fundamentally deny the fact of Creation.
MAN IS A SOCIAL BEING:
French philosopher Auguste Comte(1798-1857) coined the term Sociology. He believed that the scientific study of social organization would make possible a reconstitution of the social order based on principles of moral progress.
Apart from being a created Physical being, man is recognized as a Social being as he displays social instincts and social behaviors in all of his activities. A rudimentary understanding of Sociology or Theories of Social Science would clarify this matter. Social instincts and Social Behaviors are seen in all animals including bacteria. At a cellular level, the social function is called ‘Association’. Man is an association of trillions of cells. Each human organ and organ system represents an association of cells that display functional subordination to perform selective tasks. Life is just impossible without social structure and organization.
MAN IS A MORAL BEING:
Man is a Spiritual being and is endowed with Moral nature. James Tissot in his painting captures the essence of man. The Book of Matthew, Chapter 27 verses 3-5 narrate the story of Apostle Judas Iscariot and his moral failing that caused the dissolution of his biological existence-“When Judas who had betrayed Him, saw that Jesus was condemned, he was seized with remorse and returned the thirty silver coins to the chief priests and the elders. “I have sinned,” he said,”for I have betrayed innocent blood.” So Judas threw the money into the temple and left. Then he went away and hanged himself.”
Man is an individual who exists in a social group. At the same time, man is a Moral being, as he displays moral behavior even when he is corrupt. Man displays the ability of Repentance for his thoughts, for his actions of commission and omission. Man has the ability to admit his sins, express remorse and may often punish himself for his sinful conduct. Man experiences grief for his actions that are sinful. Man actively searches for solutions for his sinful conduct. Man cannot sustain his biological existence if he had morally failed. A famous example would be that of Apostle Judas Iscariot, the betrayer of Jesus.
Matter, Energy, and Knowledge:
Greek philosopher Aristotle observes that corporeal substances are composite of two principles, form and matter. What is called matter is potentiality, what is called form is actuality. The totality of things have been divided in various ways. The three fundamental distinctions are 1. the distinction between the natural and the supernatural, 2. the distinction between the material and the spiritual, and 3. the distinction between the lifeless and the living. When we make the distinction animate/inanimate, living/non-living, and inorganic/organic, a question arises about the nature of that distinction. The difference, is that one of kind or degree? The Mechanistic View claims the continuity of nature in terms of the universality of purely mechanical principles. I have defined Life as ‘Knowledge in Action’. Please view the blog post at https://bhavanajagat.wordpress.com/2010/08/05/what-is-life-life-is-knowledge-in-action/
I define Life as organization of matter with implanted supernatural Knowledge. The establishment of supernatural Knowledge in matter decribes the operation of ‘God Principle’, Spirit, or Soul. Life comes into existence when matter and energy come together with the establishment of ‘God Connection’.
LIFE AND CONSCIOUSNESS
Amoeba proteus, unicellular, protozoan organism is conscious or aware of its own state of existence. It has the abilities of Motion, Nutrition, and Reproduction. All of its living functions are goal-oriented. It responds to its environment and survives adverse environmental conditions by a process called encystment.
The basic characteristic of a Living Cell or organism is the presence of consciousness. I recognize a cell as a Living Cell if it displays functions that characterize the presence of awareness or consciousness. The Living Cell or Living Object need not be aware or conscious of the Subject who may be investigating or observing the properties of that Object. The Living Object need to be aware of its own existence and its condition called Living. Atoms and molecules display their properties and interact according to the Laws of Physics and Chemistry. Living organic molecules show individualistic behaviors under experimental conditions that could be repeated and be verified. The Living Cell is very selective and it responds in a variable manner to physical and chemical stimuli. It can communicate or send signals to other Living Cells present in its environment. It responds according to its internal condition in relation to the environment in which it exists. The interactions of non-living physical matter are not goal-oriented. The interactions of Living matter are goal-oriented and they specifically achieve the purpose of sustaining, preserving, defending, and continuing the Living functions.
MAN IS A MORTAL, PHYSICAL BEING:
Man is a mortal being who must eventually die. When Lazarus died and was laid in a tomb for four days, Jesus performed a miracle and Lazarus came back to life from death. The Book of John, Chapter 11, narrates this event. In verses 41 and 42, Jesus said,”Father, I thank You that You have heard Me. And I know that You always hear Me, but I said this for the benefit of the people who are standing here, that they may believe that You sent Me.” The risen Lazarus had eventually died.
LIFE AND DEATH IS A CONTINUOUS PROCESS :
When does Life begins? When does Life ends? Life always comes into a state of existence from a previously existing Living Cell. Life and Death is a continuous process and is recognized by the presence of Consciousness and Individuality.
When does Life begins? When does Life ends? Every Living Cell is derived from a previously existing Living Cell. Life has not experienced the final event called DEATH. Life continues its act of Living through a function called Reproduction. A given species is considered to be totally extinct only if there is no surviving member to represent that particular species. Death is a programmed event and it gives meaning to the Identity of a Living Object. The dissolution of a single Living Object should not obscure the fact that Life is a continuous process. Life continues as Living Objects get new Identities. It is very reasonable to expect that Life would continue after the death of a given Living Object. People all over the world are a witness to that simple and direct observation. During the Life-Death continuum, the connection between the Creator and the created Living Object is manifested by the biological function called awareness or consciousness. The presence of Soul is evidenced by the presence of consciousness. As long as the Soul is functioning and is united with the physical being, the presence of consciousness could be detected and could be verified.
THE SOUL AND GOD CONNECTION:
All types of Living Cells with or without nucleus represent thermodynamically unstable systems. Without a continuous input of energy a Living Cell will degrade spontaneously into a nonliving collection of molecules. Biological existence is possible because of an association or connection, or partnership between energy seeker and energy provider.
There has been no clearly defined and universally accepted metaphysical conception of the term Soul. It is a term rarely used with precise definition in philosophy, religion, or common life. In this discussion we face the problem of using words to which no definitive meaning is attached. If I make an attempt to define the word ‘God’, you may even speculate that I may belong to a new religious order. We need to come to a consensus even if an entity called ‘God’ does not exist. We need to formulate a view, a hypothetical view about Soul and test that hypothesis by countering it with a skeptical hypothesis. The Science called Physics deals with the properties, changes, interactions, etc. of matter and energy in which energy is considered to be continuous. In the ultimate analysis, matter is a representation of its energy content. The Science called Biology deals with Life and Life processes. While Life is made up of physical matter, Life processes are not explained by simple mechanistic interactions. However, I am willing to use the principles, the methods, and the tools used by Physics. Molecular Biology explains biological events by studying the molecules within cells; the molecular basis of genetics – Nucleic Acids and its relationship to energy cycling and replication. If this universe is seen as matter and energy, I would define God as the Controller of Force/Power/Energy. All living things are essentially made up of the same kind of living matter and yet they appear to be different. Life could be attributed to ONE common principle which has the ability to be simultaneously different. Each living object comes into a state of existence as a new object, as an original object, one of its own kind, unique, and distinctive. This morphological variation is an attribute of the organic molecules that establish the phenotype or the physical identity of that living organism. Physics provides those powerful tools to see the molecules and to recognize their individualistic behavior. Life comes into existence using a creative principle, and creative mechanisms that need inspiration, and imagination apart from the use of simple mechanistic laws. If Life is governed by the Law of Individuality, I would define God as a Creative Force/Power/Energy.
Life is a condition that describes Synchronized Existence, the synchronization of activities, the connection between energy dependent life functions and its Source of Power.
A majority of these life forms that we know and have studied, have synchronized their state of existence with an event that produces alternating periods of light and darkness while that source of light is not being turned ‘on’ and ‘off’. Rather we are forced to experience the effects of an illusion. Sunrise and Sunset is the reality that governs a majority of Biological Rhythms that control the life processes. Illusion is the necessary condition for the biological existence of Life. If Earth’s rotational spin generates this illusion, God uses Force/Power/Energy to cause illusion. In the universe that exists today, to the extent we have verified; there are no two identical celestial objects that exhibit the same rotational spin. In this context, it may be said that the Force/Power/Energy called God has created Earth to provide a home to the life forms that He has created as Individuals. These life forms have the ability called reproduction and yet lack the ability of producing two identical new objects. Sexual or Asexual reproduction always results in the production of new Individuals which could be easily verified by using the Biometric Identification Technology. Even the clones, sharing identical genomes, in reality exist as individuals. This Individuality when investigated by the tools supplied by Physics, it is discovered that the organic molecules behave as Individuals and man is not able to modify that behavior. Under the same experimental conditions, the molecules behave as individuals. When we examine the nature of this biological existence, it indicates that life processes are supported by the provision of energy from an external source. The Living Cell is a thermodynamically unstable system. This means that without a continuous input of energy a Living Cell will degrade spontaneously into a nonliving collection of molecules. This lack of energy independence would direct us to define God as the Power/Force/Energy which delivers Compassion/Mercy/Grace which helps energy acquisition by energy dependent living organisms. Life forms on planet Earth exist depending upon an extraterrestrial source of energy or Cosmic Power/Force/Energy. Life exists because of its ability called ‘Association’. The act of associating, the state of being associated; the companionship, the fellowship, and the partnership is the defining feature of the State or Condition, or Act of Living. Association or patnership between energy seeker and energy provider could be described as God-Connection. Organisms that are single do not live as single cells but develop association with other single cells to form distinct Colonies. Organisms that are multicellular represent an organization of individual cells that are associated having common interests, purposes, sensations, etc., Since association has a purpose, in the context of biological existence, the association or connection, or partnership between the energy seeker, and the energy provider is a meaningful event and not a simple, mechanical, physical event governed by the Laws of Interactions between Matter and Energy. There are Four Fundamental Interactions and they do not regulate or define this Interaction between Living matter and the Cosmic Force/Power/Energy. Living matter uses and exploits energy in a creative manner to build organic molecules and to break down organic molecules. The life processes are very similar and yet the results are totally different. While using energy mostly following a similar metabolic pathway, each organism supports its identity and individuality.
WHO HAS ESTABLISHED THE CONNECTION BETWEEN AUTOTROPHS AND HETEROTROPHS? The creative mechanism to trap Solar Energy describes implanted Knowledge to formulate the connection between autotrophs and heterotrophs.In mitochondria, many substances(food) are oxidized and ATP, the energy-storing chemical of the Cell is produced. The most important equations for living things are mutually inverse. Respiration of humans, and Cellular Respiration represents the reverse of Photosynthesis.
SOUL AND DEATH:
The idea of ‘Soul’ always comes in the context of Death. If man is immortal, we will not be spending our time and energy discussing to verify the existence of an immortal principle. The human subject has a limited life span and it arouses a sense of curiosity about the existence of something that could defy Death. I am trying to define the word ‘Soul’ in a manner to promote an understanding that ‘Soul’ is immortal if we look at man as an Association of individual living cells. We need to establish the Identity of that Individual for whose purpose or interest this Association of Individual living cells exists. If we think of Death as a final event, it is not supported by factual evidence. In this Association, death is a daily event. We simply fail to acknowledge this daily event as there is an immortal principle that is escaping this death experience. The Individual thinks that he is alive and sustains his Individuality without getting overwhelmed by the dying process that is continuous. While the human organism is changing its external appearance and identity all the time, the Individuality survives if ‘Soul’ the vital, or operating immortal principle is functioning. The issue or question about ‘transmigration’ of Soul would not arise if every living organism exists strictly as an Individual with an Individuality. As stated before,man has no choice and he must always exist as an Individual even when we use Reproductive Genetic Engineering Technology to produce identical clones with the same genome. The dissolution of matter may not change the Law of Conservation of Energy. If Soul is defined as the God Connection that gives the ability of energy acquisition, the Soul when removed from a physical object to which it has given Individuality, would operate as per the commands of the Controller of Force/Power/Energy. It provides the possibility of carrying the impressions of a previous state of existence into a new state of existence with a new identity and Individuality. During the life span of a given Individual, an association of cells in which death is a daily event, Soul is a continuous principle as its purpose and interest is to maintain Individuality of that Individual.
SOUL AND THE LIVING CELL:
I define man as a physical, mental, social, moral, and spiritual being as I define the term ‘health’ as the physical, mental, social, moral, and spiritual well-being of the man in his environment and community and not merely as absence of disease. This definition of ‘health’ helps to provide comprehensive health care.
Jean Paul Sartre had stated that Nothingness(Non-thing or Neant) is a condition of not having Being and yet it is supported by Being. Nothingness comes into the world by the Being-for-itself. The Conscious Knowing-Self or the Essence of man is preceded by the Subjective Reality of physical Existence.
I attach my ideas to some ideas expressed by others. Sartre is a well-known person. He had won the Nobel Prize for literature but declined to accept it. I may not totally agree with him and his views about consciousness. He had stated his view in a manner that people can easily understand. He makes a distinction between objective things and human consciousness. He claims that consciousness is a ‘non-thing'(‘neant’ or nothingness ) and its reality consists in standing back from things and taking a point of view on them. Because consciousness is a non-thing, it does not have any of the causal involvements that things have with other things. If you stand before a mirror, the reflection exists only if it is supported by the presence of a physical being or thing. If the physical thing is taken away, the reflected image is gone but the reflective surface retains its ability to reflect the images of things.
THE BIOLOGICAL MEMBRANE AND CONSCIOUSNESS:
The Biological Membrane is not a simple physical barrier separating the Living Cell from its environment. The Protoplasm or Cytoplasm, the Living Matter uses its Biological Membrane with a sense of awareness or consciousness which recognizes the fact of its existence and the fact of something present in its environment.
In a Living Cell, consciousness reflects its external environment and its internal condition or internal environment. The Living Cell knows, it is aware of its state, fact, and act of its Living. The Living Cell makes contact with its environment by using a cell membrane, a biological membrane, or a bio-membrane. If you carefully look at some of the functions of this membrane, you would discern that the Living Cell has consciousness or awareness of these functions. The Biological Membrane behaves in a conscious manner and it is not a simple, physical barrier between the Protoplasm, the Living Substance and its environment. If the term ‘soul’ describes a vital principle, or a source of Knowledge, it provides the information with which these functions could be performed. Some molecules and ions can freely move across this Bio-membrane and some are actively pumped in or out of the Cell that involves expenditure of energy. The Living Cell has the ability to recognize the condition of its nucleus, if the DNA is damaged, the Cell can initiate a process and cause its own dissolution.
Red Blood Cells display functional subordination to serve the purpose of the Whole Organism. Functional differentiation, and Functional Unity are important to support the existence of the Subject or Individual who is in reality an association of trillions of cells.
In multicellular organism, the consciousness works both at the level of each individual cell and to establish the functioning of the organism as an individual unit. Without functional unity, the organism cannot maintain its biological existence. Cell differentiation is the process by which the individual cells use adaptation to perform specific tasks. Red Blood Cells perform specific tasks.
THE NEURO-BIOLOGICAL ASPECTS OF CONSCIOUSNESS:
Spirituality. Soul, Consciousness and the God Connection. The neurobiological aspects of consciousness.Reticular Formation of Brain Stem has connections with almost all other parts of the Central Nervous System and it helps to coordinate and integrate actions of different parts of the CNS. It is important for Behavioral Arousal, and the Capacity for Consciousness.
In the human Brain Stem, several neurons, and nuclei which are in an area called Reticular Formation are functionally adapted to compose the contents of human consciousness. The Reticular Formation gives the Capacity for Consciousness. The contents of this consciousness are read in the cortical areas of the cerebral hemispheres and described as Cortical awareness. Most philosophers, most of the psychologists, and several of the religious thinkers pay attention to this Cortical awareness and describe that as human consciousness. We tend to ignore the fact that there would be no Cortical awareness unless there is a Capacity for Consciousness.
Spirituality, Soul, Consciousness and the God-Connection.
Most recently, the surgeons had removed the complete left cerebral hemisphere from a child to stop convulsive seizures. The child is alive, fully conscious, and hopefully would continue to live in future with some neurological deficits. Just like the human heart which has four different muscular chambers and each has a function of its own; we need to understand consciousness by knowing its components. We need to use separate terms to distinguish these different components. There would be confusion if a term is used without attaching a specific meaning. Cortical awareness is important and is very interesting and yet man can exist and survive with minimal cortical awareness. We have seen children with severe degrees of mental retardation, and they can keep their biological existence if they retain the ability to Compose Consciousness.
Spirituality, Soul, Consciousness and the God Connection.
I want to designate the upper Brain Stem as the Seat of Consciousness and the word consciousness itself must describe the functions of the Brain Stem which are most important for man’s biological existence. A man is clinically dead in the absence of these Brain Stem functions involved in the Capacity of Consciousness. In Clinical Medicine, the term conscious is often used to measure the degree of Arousal or Cortical awareness and hence this subject matter would remain confusing for a long time. If a subject is unconscious, a ‘death certificate’ is not issued.
Spirituality, Soul, Consciousness, and God-Connection.
In Clinical Medicine, the term ‘Brain Death’ describes that the human person for all practical purposes is dead. I would suggest that we must use the term ‘Unconscious’ specifically to indicate the Brain Death which is diagnosed by testing the Brain Stem Reflexes. If the human person is viewed as a single physical thing or object, the integration of functions is achieved at the Brain Stem (Reticular Formation), and he maintains his individuality throughout his physical existence only when this part of the brain is functioning. If you like the term individual soul or Jeeva Atma, its existence is a reflection of this function. To see a reflection, we need two things; the physical object and a reflective surface. The quality of reflecting objects may depend upon presence of Knowledge. It is not known if this particular kind of knowledge exists as organic molecules; however, it is very well understood that most of the knowledge to perform a variety of biological functions is contained in organic molecules and the most well-known group of these organic molecules are known as DNA. There are Viruses which can function with RNA. Hence, there is still a possibility of finding organic molecules that could be associated with the functional ability called consciousness, awareness, cognition, recognition, responsiveness, perception, memory, intelligence, and association. The most important aspect of ‘association’ is ‘God Connection’ and without this function of ‘association’ man cannot keep his biological existence.
Consciousness is awareness of existence, the facts that relate to the state or condition of existence. Behavioral Arousal and Cortical awareness of thoughts, feelings, and sensations is an important component of total Biological Existence.
IDENTITY AND INDIVIDUALITY:
The Eternal Reality of Soul’s Immortality is described in The Bhagavad Gita, Chapter II, verse 12. Lord Krishna spoke to the Pandava Prince Arjuna :”Na tv evaham jatu nasam na tvam neme JanadhipaH;Na chaiva na bhavisyamaH, sarve vayam ataH param.” For each of us our Individuality existed in the past and our Individuality will continue in the future without interruption. Certainly, never at any time did I not exist, nor you, nor all these Kings and certainly never shall we cease to exist in the future.
The issue of spirituality, the nature of Soul and consciousness must be explored in the context of arriving at an understanding of man’s Identity and Individuality.
SPIRITUALITY SCIENCE – THE KNOWER – THE KNOWING-SELF: IN THIS IMAGE OF HUMAN BRAIN, THE GREEN PORTION OF BRAIN STEM IS CALLED RETICULAR FORMATION. I AM PROPOSING TO CALL IT AS THE KNOWING-SELF AND IT IS THE “KNOWER” OF THE HUMAN BODY WHICH CONSTANTLY CHANGES ITS MORPHOLOGICAL APPEARANCE UNDER THE INFLUENCE OF TIME CALLED THE AGING PROCESS.
If man is viewed as an association of trillions of cells, we need to know the Identity of that Subject who lives because of the functions of the trillions of cells. The purpose of consciousness at cellular level is to foster functional unity of the multicellular organism and to establish it as an Individual. In a multicellular organism, cells have short lives as individuals. The Subject or the whole organism has a life span of its own and it has effects on individual cells. Multicellularity is accompanied by adaptive subordination of all cells to the requirements of the organism as a whole. To achieve proper numerical balance between functionally related cell groups, the death of many cells is necessary for other cells to reach maturity. This programmed cell death plays an important role in embryological development. Such programmed cell death events are essential if the organism as a whole is to develop its normal final form. Waves of genetically driven cell deaths are critical to the proper modeling of organs and organ systems. We need to know and understand that death of cells is a must to establish the Identity and to sustain the Individuality of the human being. The dying process helps man to understand his Individuality. The Individuality is preserved while death is a daily event at the cellular level. The phenotype or the morphological appearance of the human Subject undergoes constant change during the Life journey and yet the Individuality remains unchanged. We recognize the death of this human Subject when his Soul departs from his body. Soul may be stated as an entity which is regarded as being immortal or spiritual part of the person. The Spirit of a dead person generally refers to a principle separate from the body and leading an existence of its own. If Soul is viewed as a Non-thing or Nothingness, it comes into the world of existence by entering the physical being at its conception which becomes conscious or aware of its existence. This consciousness has also existed in a previously existing Living Egg Cell which is the Mother of Life, Energy, and Knowledge. Consciousness by its very nature is immortal, it is eternal, and it has no birth or death. We recognize the arrival and departure of the new product during the Life-Death continuum where the Individuality is unaffected by the changes that are caused by the powerful influence of Time.
The Reticular Formation of Brain Stem functions to maintain the Individuality of Man and at this location the Human Organism establishes its Identity as a Living Organism in its relationship with the rest of the human body and the external environment. The Brain Stem is irreplaceable and plays a crucial role in the diagnosis of Brain Death.
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