Cloud 9.....my abode!

Clouds never fail to fascinate us! Right from childhood ,gazing at the clouds and trying to see figures based on their general looks and outline was something i always enjoyed.As the wind blows, the clouds would move and change shapes and it would seem like magic!The sunlight would give it hues and silver linings adding to its ethereal beauty...it would transform me to a world high up in the sky!

When I learnt at school how clouds are formed and how they turn into rain drops ,it made me think...hmmm...the scientific definition is only for the theoretical purpose...and it is not going to mar my perception of the clouds.Clouds are always going to be fluffy, cotton-like wonders making the sky spellbinding!

Then I was introduced to the word cloud 9 ! I was intrigued by the word and tried to find out what it was. Then I learnt that clouds are of different types-mainly 4 types- 1)Cumulus...the puffy cotton-like clouds 2)Stratus...flat sheet like coulds 3)Cirrus...high feathery clouds 4) Nimbus...the word added to clouds about to precipitate .Cloud 9 refers to the highest cumulonimbus type which can reach heights of 40,000 to 50,000 feet and appear as glorious white mountains in the sky!!That really rocketed me to those great heights and they were just exotic and exciting!(To help you imagine ,please watch the song..venmegam pennaga uruvanadho..from the movie yaradi nee mohini...in the middle of the song during an interlude would come a picture with clouds and castles...that is cloud 9).Then I decided this is my place...my abode!! When I flew for the first time in an aircraft,I saw what was in my mind's eye ,right before my eyes....and then I knew I had been right about choosing where I belong to!

Life in cloud 9 has always been enthralling!You get a bird's eye view of this world and everyone in it.This gives you a totally new perspective of life and living!All things that affect you a lot in the world,seem like trivia when seen from high above.You become as light as the cloud and you float about lazily,with no goals,no pressures...just enjoying the moments the way they are, drifting away...in bliss!
To explain the state of mind one has in cloud nine....I would like to quote a little Zen story which is my favourite and which best describes my point of life and living.The story goes like this---there once lived a sage under a banyan tree who always looked so beaming and blissful.Word spread about this sage and people came in and spoke with him and found his words help them out in one way or the other.The King of that region came to know of the sage and he wanted to meet him.He came and saw the sage and was impressed seeing him and so invited the sage to come and stay with him in the palace.The sage obliged and went to the palace.There he lived life to its fullest enjoying all luxuries..he ate varieties of food,wore expensive clothes,travelled in a ferrari ,sang and danced and what not! The King observed this day in and day out and was confused and angry to see the sage while away and make merry like this!He thought the sage had cheated him and gained entry into the palace and is enjoying his riches.When he couldn't take it anymore,he confronted the sage and asked him why he was behaving in such a way!The sage smiled and left the palace and went back to his old banyan tree and sat there.The king followed him and asked him why did he leave and what did he have in his mind.The sage asked the king if he can give away his kingdom and palace and sit under this tree and be happy.The king said that would be impossible.Then the sage said"This is the difference between you and me.I can be happy wherever Iam .If I have riches I can enjoy them and stay happy.If iam a paradesi under a tree with just nothing,still I can smile and stay in bliss." The King understood,bowed and left!
There is another small Zen story to add to this .Here a sage passes through a village every evening and all the villagers gather to throw abuses at the sage.The sage listens to it all patiently with a smile and then goes away.A young boy int the village was observing this and he asked the sage ,why he is acting so madly...coming everyday to get abused.The sage smiled and said...there are three reasons for it..".1)Iam like a river and their words are like fire arrows and hence once they reach me they are douced and have no effect on me! 2) When a gift is given by someone to another,only when the receiver accepts the gift then it is his.If he does not ,then it belongs to the person who offered it.Similarly,Iam not accepting anything they say and so it is all ...THEIRS! and 3) It gives them some let out/satisfaction when they come and pour out abuses at me.So,if I can be of some use to cleanse their minds and ease their burdens..so be it!"So,when we can live our life like a lotus,that is,having our life in the slush of all the unwanted elements but still staying above it all like the lotus,then life becomes beautiful!
, So,cloud 9 is wide open to all of you with such a state of mind.Like the 'Atlantis' of Ayn Rand in Atlas Shrugged....cloud 9 offers one LIFE! So,fly like Jonathan Livingston Seagull and come up to Cloud 9...we shall live life eating son papidi,elandhapazha vadai,chocolates and icecreams....reading and discussing some amazing books....listening to some wonderful music (it needs a separate blog to talk about how music can fill ones life!)....dancing hiphop to dappankuthu...sleeping and dreaming .....and above all being in love..in compassion...with one and all!

நிலவும் மலரும் பாடுது ....(புகைப்படங்கள் -நிலா)

அதிகாலை உதயமாகும் ஆதவனின் கரம்பட்டு

இதழ் விரிக்கும் வண்ணவண்ண மலர்மொட்டுகள் ......

மலர்களை வருடி தென்றல்பாடும் தாலாட்டு

காண்கையில் மனம்பாடும் ஓராயிரம் பாடல்கள் ......

காலையில் மலர்ந்து மாலையில் உதிரும் மலராகட்டும் ...

மாலையில் விரிந்து மணம்பரப்பிக் குவியும் மலராகட்டும் ....

உயிர்வாழ்தலின் இனிமையை ரசிக்கின்றன ஒவ்வோர் கணமும்!

ஆனால் பகுத்தறிந்து பல்லாண்டுவாழ்ந்திடும் மனிதஇனம்

மட்டும்...

வாழ்வை ரசித்திட தெரியாது தினம்தினம் வருந்திடும்......

இயற்கையோடு இணைந்து உவகை கொள்ள மறந்திடும்!

உறங்கிடும் உணர்வுகளதை உசுப்பி எழுப்பிட விழைந்து -இங்கு

நிலவும் மலரும் பாடுது.............

Dasavatharam and Indiana Jones!

Watched two movies last week end-Dasavatharam and Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull. Made me wonder how far behind Tamil movies are ...inspite of all the hype created ,of late!
I find people giving raving reviews about Dasavatharam and Kamal's efforts in the movie. But what is acting all about? Seems like people have forgotten the basics. In school we have amidst other things two competitions...one is called mono-acting where one person comes and acts a piece and where ones acting talent is given the utmost attention,while the other is called fancy dress show where people dress up like someone else and come and go saying maybe a few words and where ones dressing up talent is given utmost importance. There is one movie of yester years with Sivaji ganesan as the lead actor named "Navarathri". In that movie he comes in nine different roles and each role is differentiated by his mannerisms and body language and basic make-up changes to suit the role.In that movie, every role lived purely based on the acting talent of Sivaji Ganesan.But in Dasavatharam one had to search "Where is kamal?" behind all those different masks he wore..most of which reminded me of the pancaked face of Frankenstein.No emotions were visible in any of those roles(except the first one as a vaishnavite ,the scientist and Balram naidu) over all the layers of pancake(I would call it maida paste..hahaha)and glue mix!I read that kamal had to put make -up for some 8 hours every morning.So the person who oughtta be lauded in this movie must be the make-up team head then ..who moulded so many gruesome faces onto Kamal!To add to the agony of watching those creepy,eeky faces came those gross murders almost once in every five to ten minutes.Pity people of today ENJOY watching violence(I was closing my eyes whenever blood spurted out all so realistically).And Bush was disgraced totally ,being portrayed as someone who does not know what NaCl was(nownow...Iam sure not vouching for Bush's intelligence folks..hahahaha) and the graphics used were so so primitive! I wonder how people can call the tsunami scenes as realistic!! I could not help comparing the last scene of flooding in Indiana Jones (which just left you awestruck!)with this one.Even the graphics in so many Pc games are way advanced than what was shown in so many scenes in Dasavatharam!And for the ones who came to SEE (wink;wink;)Asin..what a blow!She came in just 3 different costumes and half the time running after"Perumal" with not even a duet to see her graceful dancing(hahaha!).The movie had a grand opening in the 12th century ,kindling ones interests,making one expect something extraordinary..which was followed up for the next 10 minutes with hightech biological discovery, building up ones interests...after which start the gory happenings ,starting with the grotesque portrayal of the dead monkey followed up by the murders all through!A person like Kamal with great acting talents should think of movies where his talent is put to use fully than counting on the number of roles he plays or rather the different fancy images he portrays!Again,what exactly did Kamal try to say linking the throwing of the Vishnu statue into the ocean in the 12th century and its coming back after tsunami?The ones who died in tsunami are Saivites and Vishnu has taken revenge for the injustice done to him and his bakhtha by a Saivite king way back and Vaishnavism is gonna prevail henceforth??
Watching Indiana Jones the next day ,after watching Dasavatharam was such a solace! Harrison Ford must be as old or older than Kamal..but look at his acting..and the awesome role he plays...a dad to a teenager who just blends into his role ,not standing out to call attention to himself at any point.Kamal's acting talents are much much more but somehow he is at a loss ,of late ,to choose some role which would suit him and his age!Kamal has to realise that he need not don so many made-up faces to show his potential..he can be himself and take up challenging roles than sit and waste time,efforts and money on covering himself behind masks!Again it had been proven time and again that a movie need not be violent and glamorous to become a success(mozhi,unnale unnale and many other hits of late stand proof).
Steven Spielberg and Harrison Ford combo helped me come out of my disappointment after seeing dasavataram!! And I still remember how wonderful the dasavatharam movie of yester years was when i watched the movie as a kid!
Many who came out of the theatre were screaming"Perumaalle..engallay kaapaathu" and I joined them! hahaha!

நிலா...ஓர் அறிமுகம் !

நிலாவை உங்கள் யாருக்கும் அறிமுகம் செய்து வைக்க தேவை இல்லைதான்!சிறு குழந்தையாக இருந்த காலம் தொட்டு நாம் ஒவ்வொருவரும் கண்டு களித்து ரசித்த ஓர் தோழிதான்..நிலா!ஆனால் அந்த(இந்த) நிலாவின் பார்வையில் இவ்வுலகும் ,அதில் உள்ளோரும் எவ்வாறு தெரிகின்றனர் என்பதை கூற விளையும் ஓர் முயற்சி ...இந்த தளம் !
பிறக்கும் போதே தலைகீழாக பிறந்தேன் என்று அம்மா சொன்னார்கள் (தலை கீழாக பிறப்பது நேர் எனில் கால் முதலாக பிறந்த நான் தலைகீழ்தானே!).எனவேதான் என் கண்ணோட்டம் பல விஷயங்களில் இவ்வுலக விதிகளுக்கு முரண் பட்டிருக்கின்றதோ?ஆனால் நிலா (வுடன்)வில் இருந்து உலகை ஒரு முறை ரசித்த எவருக்கும் அதை மறக்கவோ, வெறுக்கவோ முடியாதென்பது திண்ணம்!
எங்கிருந்தோ வந்து ,எங்கேயோ செல்லும் தொடர் பயணத்தில் ஒரு அத்தியாயமான இந்த வாழ்வில் தென்றலும்,பொய்கையும்,பூக்களும்,நீரோடையும்,பறவைகளின் ஓசையும் ,அலைகடலும் ,குறுமணலும் ,மழைத்துளியும் ,பனிபொழிவும்.....இன்னும் பல பிறவும் ...நிலவின் ஒளியில் ரசிக்கையில் ... இனிமையே!
இந்த சிறிய அறிமுகத்தோடு துவங்குகின்றன ...நிலவின் சுவடுகள்....!