AIDS Vaccine is still not available. Virus mutates rapidly and can hide within the body’s immune cells, making the discovery very difficult.
Light. In science, culture, art, education, development. Enlightenment.
Buddha, Siddhartha Gautama, Shakyamuni, Tathagata. Buddha, Dharma, Sangha.
Buddha outlines: Sangha prospers as long as it holds regular and frequent assemblies; meets in harmony; does not change the rules of training; honour their seniors; do not fall prey to worldly desires; remain devoted to hermitage; preserve personal mindfulness. Buddha did not name a successor. He said: we should live as islands unto ourselves, being our own refuge, seeking no other refuge; with the Dhamma as an island, with the Dhamma as our refuge, seeking no other refuge… Those monks who in my time or afterwards live thus, seeking an island and a refuge in themselves and in the Dhamma and nowhere else, these zealous ones are truly my monks and will overcome the darkness.
Core principles include: Eightfold Path; Four Noble Truths; concept of moksha. All thoughts, words, and deeds derive their moral value, positive or negative, from the intention behind them. The six sense bases – sight, sound, odour, taste, touch, thought – together create the input from which we create our world or reality through physical and mental processes – rupa (form), vedana (sensations), samjna, (perceptions), sankhara (mental activity or formations), vijnana (consciousness). Everything that exists or occurs is dependent on conditioning factors. It being thus, this comes about. The middle way, between sensual indulgence on one hand and mortification of the body on the other, is a path of training to attain vimukti, liberation. Giving, discipline and meditation take us there.
Four Truths: Suffering, Dukkha – All of life involves experiences of sorrow, pain, and unsatisfactoriness; Cause of suffering, Samudaya – Suffering stems from craving, attachment, and ignorance of the true nature of reality; Cessation of suffering, Nirodha – There is an end to suffering by overcoming these cravings and attachments; Path to the end of suffering, Marga – The practical method to end suffering is the Noble Eightfold Path.
Eightfold Path: Wisdom, Prajna – Right view, Right thought; Conduct, Seela – Right Speech, Right Action, Right Livelihood; Discipline, Samadhi – Right Effort, Right Mindfulness, Right Concentration.
Three Universal Truths: impermanence, anitya – Everything in the universe is constantly changing and in a state of flux; non-self, anaatma – There is no permanent, unchanging soul or ‘self’, everything is interconnected; suffering, dukkha – Clinging to impermanent things inevitably leads to dissatisfaction.
Karma – Every intentional action—whether of body, speech, or mind—has consequences; Compassion, karuna, and kindness – enlightenment develops deep, unconditional love and compassion for all living beings.
Meditation, dhyaana, reflection on na-eti, neti. This is not, this is also not. Beyond words, senses, and thoughts. Not the body, senses, mind, intellect, ego. Maybe pure consciousness, formless, and unchangeable. From darkness to light, from untruth to truth, and from death to immortality.
Hypertension. Let us manage ourselves – lifestyle adjustments and adherence to medications. No sodium; exercise; lose weight; Limit alcohol; no smoking; 7+ hours sleep; meditate, deep breath. Adhere to medications, do not skip.
Family, extended family, siblings, cousins, spouses, children. Natural, fundamental group by birth, or affinity. Family provides a framework for production and reproduction biologically and socially. Can we achieve a semblance of work-family balance? Reasonable privacy? Can we care for our families? And can the families care for us?
Homosexuality, a sexual orientation, is not a mental disorder. A natural variation of human sexuality. Sexual orientation is shaped by a complex interplay of genetic, hormonal, and biological factors rather than conscious choice.
Metrology. Scientific study of measurement. Scientific, Industrial or Legal. Unit, Measurement, Comparison.
Museum. A non-profit, permanent institution that collects, preserves, researches, and exhibits tangible and intangible heritage for education, study, and enjoyment. Historical, cultural, scientific, or artistic importance.
Information Society. Information. Knowledge. Intelligence. Connectivity. Structured, processed, or organized data; resolves uncertainty; communicates facts; adds meaning; allows us to understand concepts, make predictions, and make informed decisions. Application and understanding of this information. Explicit vs tacit; written, visual, oral; public vs confidential.
Living together in peace. Tolerance, inclusion, understanding, and solidarity among global communities.
Smiling Buddha, first nuclear test in 1974. At Pokhran Test Range in Thar. By Raja Ramanna and teams from BARC. The test established India as the world’s sixth nuclear-capable nation. Second Test, Operation Sakthi in 1998.
Bees – pollinators. Foundational architects of global ecosystems, driving biodiversity and agricultural productivity through plant pollination. Pollination is the transfer of pollen from the anther (the male part of the flower) to the stigma (the female part of the flower). Some plants can pollinate themselves – self-pollination. Other plants need cross-pollination. 80% flowering plants are depending more or less on insect pollination; and half of the pollinators of tropical plants are bees. Pollen is the protein food for bees. If no pollen is available to the colony, egg laying by the queen would stop. Usually a honeybee can visit between 50-1000 flowers in one trip, which takes between 30 minutes to four hours. If a honeybee starts collecting in an Acacia tree, she would fly from Acacia flower to Acacia flower – honeybees show forage constancy. If bees go extinct …….
Can we write by hand, as much as possible? Writing by hand is a sequence of thousands of tiny micro-movements coordinated with our eyes in real time, where each letter is a different shape that requires the brain to solve a slightly different spatial problem. We have ‘hand memory’. Our fingers, wrist, vision, and parts of our brain that track position in space are all working together to produce one letter, then the next, then the next. Can we do it?
Can we slow down to be in nature, to be with nature? To be with life, to watch life micro, macro. To watch, experience five elements, in their various nuances, forms, manifestations?
Yes, we can. If we coexist, flowing. Deliberate efforts. In N? swahastalekhayoga for 7L.