Vanity for Dummies

Vampire Bat: Greetings, vampire apprentices. Today, we are going to have a special class on Vanity. It is the Devil’s favourite sin and the most hated thing in the New Vampire World. We don’t tolerate vanity and we don’t allow it inside our souls. But it still gets in at times, but that is not normal. I apologize for calling this special class, but as the special festivities have brought too many holidays this week, we had to take this step, and it is approved by Uncle Dracula and the Vampire Elders. So, lets show you some instances of true vanity with sample humans who will tell you what they want.

Sir Money who knows the value of rupee: I earn more than you and later my son earns more than your son. Then there is the daughter who is married to that rich family with trees were money grows, while your children are not earning enough. I go to different homes and tell them that my children earns so much; I usually ask how much their off-springs earn, and then start talking about my child. I have been doing this for a very long time and so I know how much these people might earn under different circumstances. So establishing superiority here is quite easy.

The Legendary Property Master who requires a lot more: I look at how much property people own, and it has been my idea of a smart person. People should always buy more and more property, because what is a man without land? I remind people that my children were married to families which own a lot of property. Do you have money to buy some property? Then lets buy some. I can introduce you to a few people who are related to my son’s wife or my daughter’s husband. They are so rich that I often wonder why we are so rich, influential and awesome.

Book-er of Job who knows what everyone needs: I know what everyone needs, and it is the job. If you don’t have a job, you got nothing. Learn from my son and daughter who have such a high job and are earning a lot. They are so awesome that people at their office appreciate them each and every hour saying “Well done my boy” and “Well done my girl” – it keeps occuring so much that people know them by the name Well Done. You don’t even have a job. What is the point then? Why do people who don’t have a job even try to live? It means that you are nothing.

Lord Education who has no wisdom at all: My children are so brilliant that they search for notes on Google. They don’t even use text books. They are so loved in the school that the teachers call me every day to talk about them. All teachers tell me that they are awesome, and even the headmistress says that she has seen no kids like them. At a point of time, they were even able to smuggle a mobile into the classroom even when there was heavy checking all around. How cool is that? They are so smart that movies like Loham can use them for some smart moves.

The Status Seeker who finds a lot more: I have always felt that it is always about status, and related to what we show to the others. So, lets show a bigger image to them than what we really are. Only those who pretend that he or she is better than the others can have the power. So, I am going to be better than me. After all, my children are married to such big families, and their achievements should reflect through me. I am going to make a big impression out of nowhere just like Premam movie did.

The Great Knight of Marriage who wants people married: The true destination of everyone is to get married, and then there is the need for kids, then to get them to school and to college, then to their marriage and so on. What is a person who is not married? See how my children have chosen their partners from big and perfect families. If you need guidance about the same, you can contact me. As all my children are married, I am looking to find some people to give marriage advice.

***The images used in this blog post are from the Official Facebook Page of the movie, Hotel Transylvania.

TeNy

Exploring the Elements

This writing is part of the Explore The Elements Photo Contest which was announced by Thomas Cook. Here I explore and represent the four elements of nature with the help of the photos which I have taken using my Sony Cybershot DSC W-310. You can check here for more details about the contest: http://www.thomascook.com/blog/holiday-competitions-deals/explore-the-elements/ #ExploreTheElements

1. Earth: As it is said and known, “for dust thou art, and to dust shalt thou return” is what the following scene reminds us about claiming our place back under the Earth and hope for a better time at the other world. There is stubbornness in this idea of truth, and the certainty of this return to the dust and dirt is as clear as the presence of these things on the surface of the Earth. The problem with humanity is its consistent loss of memory about this, and their pursuit of Carpe Diem. The photo was taken at a church cemetery around the city of Wakefield, West Yorkshire, England.

It is right into the insides of Earth that we have to return, for we are dust.

2. Water: You can see how well water could adapt and as much as it can become the life saver, it can be the destroyer. The unbelievable amount of suppleness can be attributed to this element which is a powerful force of nature which can make impact in its presence as well as the absence. The photo shows the brutal strength that the element of water came up with, during the monsoon rain of 2013 (there were worse situations during that period at the banks of the river Periyar) at the town of Aluva, near Cochin, Kerala, India.

Water as an element has its power to take over whenever it wishes to.

3. Fire: The element of fire always burns, either in the minds of the people or on the far away horizons, as the globe of fire reflects our motivation and desire, becoming the silent watcher of the human hatred for the other people of their kind. The energy of fire is something that we can take into our lives, without the negative sides, choosing not to burn the people around us with hatred based on religion, caste or race. There is the need for fire in our lives. The photo was taken at Kanyakumari, Tamil Nadu, India.

The beauty of fire on the sky can’t be ignored by the eyes or any camera.

4. Air: There is freedom associated with air, something which is not easy in this world. We, human beings are bound by strange things and weird laws being passed, some of them making just the religion more important than humanity, and a few other making a few animals more significant that human beings. We should have chosen to air in this life, so free and with all the wisdom that is gained by traveling over long distances. In the photo, you can see how the vegetation bows down in reverence to the strength and wisdom of the element of air – photo taken at Ilaveezhapoonjira, Kerala, India.

When the element of air travel around freely with wisdom, take a bow.

There is only the human nature which is as unpredictable as the elements of nature, with compassion on one side and the tendency to be devastating with a certain amount of inherent evil which comes up here and there. There is something about the use of the word “nature” at both places. I hope you found the four photos of the elements of nature interesting – they have all been cropped and adjusted to a standard size so that there wouldn’t be any confusion. They were all taken by me only on my camera, Sony Cybershot DSC-W310..

Here, I nominate five other bloggers to participate in this contest:
Anita (http://www.anitaexplorer.com)
Maniparna (http://maniparna5002.wordpress.com)
Namrata (http://namratakumari.blogspot.in)
Shibu (http://shibumathewn15.wordpress.com)
Tara (http://crimsonapril.wordpress.com)

TeNy

The Vision of a Lost Bat

Dracula was lead to that new world which was set on the newly baptized Planet Vampiris by the Vampire Bat. It was just recently discovered after the Vampire Bat teleported himself through a worm hole which had opened near Pluto during a superhuman vampiric abilities test conducted under the supervision of Doctor Frankenstein. It was considered a failed experiment until the Vampire Bat managed to contact Dracula through the intergalactic telepathy procedure which worked during its test experiment itself.

Dracula was lead through the first city of the newly civilized planet. The humanoids who selected the Vampire Bat as the leader were present everywhere. It was the “City of Righteous Spirituality” to be visited first. There were people worshipping different religions, and they were living in mutual respect and harmony. Those people who had nothing to believe in, and were fighting each other, had been transformed. There were non-believers among them who tried to make these believers of different deities fight each other, but that was solved by the ultimate realization that the God is indeed one, no matter by what name he is called.

There are always difficulties in creating new worlds, but nothing like the inherent evil

Then there was the “City of Eternal Wisdom” which took care of all needs of knowledge. There was the ultimate realization that only by knowledge and wisdom that the world can be changed for the better. Always acquiring knowledge and helping other cities with their needs, this city is the brain of the new world, like the former was the heart. The best people were trained here in various categories without inequality, as each and every subject as well as job was equal. Nobody was forced to be an engineer or doctor, and the profession in demand was that of a helper, a class which was present everywhere, selfless and caring.

As Dracula wished to have a drink, they started with a restaurant at the “City of Striving Legends”, which had people working hard to make things better for the other cities. It was the city of industries, and people earned according to how much they worked, and everyone who wanted a job was sure to get one here. There was no unemployment as this city was there to provide support. This restaurant itself was started for the industrial workers, and the basic food was always available free here, and they also made sure that there was no poverty by sending food to all the other cities.

There is no lack of grandeur within the cities, but the soul remains simple as it can be

They passed through one of the cities where they didn’t stop. It was the “City of Unlimited Compassion”, where the people with diseases were taken care of by healers. The medical care was free here, as half of the earnings of almost every person belonging to this civilization went here. Nobody needed to buy a Ferrari’s equivalent or a bloody supercomputer or mobile. Everybody wanted to help, and this was a place where Dracula only wanted to visit after he had come up with a certain amount for donation. There were no evil people in this world, but those who had chosen to be bad were sent here to help.

They stopped at the “City of Ultimate Courage” then. There were the best trained people of the whole civilization who always dared to rise above fear. The big wall on one side of the city was meant to be used for training and it was also the city which was close to a possible natural disaster which lurked on the other side of the wall. But the ones here were dauntless and were ready to stop any lesser disasters and save their people from any problem. They also acted as part-time law enforcers, as law was obeyed most of the time.

“What about the reservation?” asked Dracula. The Vampire Bat replied that there is none, as everyone is equal, and stealing education and jobs is not the style here. “We are not a society that is based on divisions and selfishness, but we live for the other” added the Vampire Bat. Dracula had a deep thought about it. As he wondered about this new world and its possibilities, there was that moment when I turned around and told Dracula: “I am the Vampire Bat, and here’s the world which I remade, away from the known universe!”

I am participating in the #TheWorldRemade activity at BlogAdda in association with India Today #Conclave15

***The images used in this blog post are from the Official Facebook Page of the video game, Mass Effect.

TeNy

Knowledge: Where it Stands

How often do we hear the phrase “knowledge is power”? It has been known to us for such a long time that it comes to mind for no reason, again and again. It was with us during our childhood and stays now too. Based on Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?, the Malayalam TV show Ningalkum Aakaam Kodeeshwaran also makes multiple references to the importance of knowing and learning through its anchor Suresh Gopi, who has been among my favourite actors.

The show has been a good knowledge booster, and becoming what is to Malayalam like Kaun Banega Crorepati was to Hindi speakers, this show has been something worth the watch due to the knowledge content as well as the way in which Suresh Gopi was presenting the whole thing. It was all about the value of gaining knowledge, and how important it was to read and learn things, something which was reiterated. It was a great relief at a time when depressing serials and stupid reality shows were ruling the channels.

But as much as the show has money associated with it, people would surely choose money instead of knowledge on any day. It has been the thing guiding people, and in the outside world, people would choose money if it was placed with knowledge on a table. Yes, there is the need for money, but this is a greedy world – just money might not be enough in this case. There is the need for more and more.

The more saddening thing is when teachers say so. Is this what they are taught with BEd? If it is so, what is the value of education. There have been people who wanted to live forever. But if someone wants to learn at least for some more years, it becomes a hideous crime. Yes, after finishing the necessary course, go and do some job because there is the need for so much money – it should keep coming in bigger quantities.

More tha anyone else, the teachers should know the value of knowledge, and if those from the school level can’t realize it, there is no point in education. Yes, we have a flawed system. Just getting the BEd degree doesn’t make one a good teacher. Just learning things by-heart and vomitting them at the UGC NET exams can’t make a good professor. We need better things – we need good men and women, and not those who memorize or can score marks.

A flawed system of selection is what has lead to the new generation having even less hope. Already the relatives try to stop students from learning more and force them to earn money against their wishes. Then there are the teachers who think the same. When there are relatives who are teachers, it is even more horror. Why would they stop someone who wants to learn more, when lots of people hates that process? Shouldn’t those who want to learn be allowed to do so?

We have got lots of quotes about learning and power of knowledge and some people keep saying them. But does anybody care about that? Why are they often used, but why not when a real life situation comes? Why is the same applicable to only some people and not the others? Society makes us do things, but does it really know that we can do better even without crossing the limits? Is there the right to learn and acquire knowledge? Am I supposed to be money making machine or the knowledge seeker? Truth can only get further bitter.

*The television show says that one question can change one’s life, but I am left with all questions and no real change 😀 **All images used in this blog post are from the Official Facebook Page of the television show, Ningalkum Aakaam Kodeeshwaran (https://www.facebook.com/Kodeeshwaran). For further reference, the Facebook page of the 1997 National Award winner, Suresh Gopi – https://www.facebook.com/ActorSureshGopi.

TeNy