Madurai and Melbourne

Madurai, the temple town or city, was where I was born, and spent few years there.  Melbourne was the first place that I roamed around outside of India (forget the airports). So I was obviously, though unconsciously trying to find similarities between these two places. 

 

Though it’s like comparing apple to oranges, I want to share my perspective primarily with respect to the structure of the cities. So, here goes the list of similarities.

• River: Both (Madurai and Melbourne) have a river flowing through in the City. Madurai has Vaigai (though most part of it is without water, and poorly maintained) and its length is 258 KMs, Melbourne has Yarra river flowing through with a length of 242 KMs. (Yarra is beautiful and well maintained river supporting lot of recreational activities. ) 

• Street Layout: Both Madurai (old Madurai) and Melbourne (Old Melbourne) have streets designed in a rectangular/squarish way, and from an inner rectangle, you move to an outer rectangle and so on. In case of Madurai, the Meenakshi Amman temple is considered as the central point, surrounded by the 4 Tower streets (North, South, East and West), and as you move outer and outer you will reach the 4 Veli streets (North, South, East and West). In case of Melbourne it has Flinders Street, Collins Street all parallel to each other in the rectangular pattern.

• University: Madurai and Melbourne have a University starting with their name. – Madurai Kamaraj University and Melbourne University (Though Kamaraj refers to a person, atleast they are starting with the name of the place). 

• Market: Though it is quite common for every city to have it, the structure of markets were quite similar – noise, smell :), dedicated day of the week for markets, etc… 

 

P.S: Do not get misled by the above, if you had never visited these places. Both of them are great and unique places in this world, that I would recommend you to see for yourself. Madurai has a very long history (several thousands of years), and one of the oldest continually inhabited city in the World (along with Varanasi, India). Melbourne, founded in 1835 (though occupied by local hunter-gatherers for thousands of years) is rated as one of the best places to live.

The Human Evolution Story so far

After writing about Religion, and Passion & Success, and nearing the end of the year, I decided to return back to my older interests on evolution, especially the Human evolution.

Many of us would have heard about Neanderthals, our (Homo sapiens sapiens) closest relatives. Neanderthals (Homo sapiens neanderthalensis) have become extinct from this earth, 28,000 years ago. They were said to be ruling this earth  for more than 200,000 years, especially in regions of today’s Europe and Western Asia. They lived in regions around today’s Israel, Mongolia, Italy, Gibraltar, and Britain, but gradually moved from place to place. 

Research shows that modern humans (Homo sapiens sapiens) invaded Europe, starting a little more than 40,000 years ago which means that Neanderthals and our current species would have lived together in the same region or territory for a period of 12,000 – 15,000 years. This makes it interesting. The Neanderthals and modern humans probably lived most of their lives without seeing each other; or rather kept away from each other from the landscape. 

The last batch of Neanderthals are believed to have lived in the now British territory of Gibraltar, some 28,000 years ago. The prime reasons being cited for extinction of Neanderthals are Climate Change and subtle differences in their behavior and biology. It is known that Neanderthals were bigger in size than Homo sapiens sapiens, and therefore would have required 4034 Calories per day, while a modern human being required only 2200 calories per day, which might have caused the Neanderthals to hunt for bigger animals only (like horses, deer, bison and Wild cattle etc..),  though they ate vegetables and other plant food, they served only as supplementary food items for them. 

Humans on the other hand might have hunted for smaller animals, survived with plants and vegetables (latter activities were primarily carried out by women), during the extreme climatic conditions that were changing rapidly within a span of few decades. Therefore humans survived with diversified diet. Another theory is that, Neanderthals had different cognitive capabilities than modern humans; as they reproduced 4 years earlier than in modern humans and therefore matured earlier.

Now the developing story of our history is about the discovery of a new Denisovans – another sub-species of Homo sapiens, who seem to have coexisted in Asia with Neanderthals and early modern humans. To begin with, the common ancestor of modern humans, Neanderthals and Denisovans would be Homo heidelbergensis, (though some scientists consider it an European species ancestral to neanderthals alone) who existed 700,000 years ago and began to diverge into these two groups and so far. But now a discovery in the Caves of Siberia, called the Denisova Cave, a new human species – Denisovans seem to have existed 190,000 years ago. The surprising and interesting thing is that, this cave seems to have been home for both Neanderthals and Denisovans.

Denisovans are closer to Neanderthals in their DNA and reveals that both might have interbreed with each other. However it is highly likely that Denisovans might have interbreed with another species (yet-to-be identified) which would have created them.  The DNA analysis also tells that traces of Neanderthal DNA (approx 2.5%) in found all non-Africans today and of Denisovan DNA (5%) found in today’s Melanesians – the aboriginal Australasians.  This means that humans (Homo sapiens sapiens) interbreed with both Neanderthals and Denisovans and also provide strength to the argument that Neanderthals were with the West, and Denisovans with the East. 

Prior to this, the discovery of the remains of Homo sapiens idaltu, another extinct sub-species of us, was found in Ethiopia in 2003. This species is argued as the ancestors for us – Homo sapiens sapiens.   The discovery of yet another species – Homo floresiensis – known as Hobbit (as they were known to be very short) through the remains found in Indonesia  in 2004 tells about another human species that is considered to be from Homo erectus, another of our sibling that would have lived with the modern humans for a long time.   

Well, the story does not end here, and hopefully,  even more mysteries of our species will be unraveled in future. 

Sources of Info: 

• National Geographic , October, 2008
• Scientific American, August 2009 
• Scientific American, August 2012
• National Geographic, July 2013
• New Scientist, November 2013

Amar Bose and his Bose Stereo: Passion for Excellence

Amar Gopal Bose, an American with Indian origins (born to an Indian father, who was a freedom fighter) was a professor at MIT, and CEO of the (World renowned) Bose Corporation passed away recently (June 12, 2012 at the age of 83). This short post recounts his quest and pursuit of excellence in creating world-class systems.

Bose Stereo Speakers are world-class and there is no need to shout it over the top, as its systems are installed in Sistine Chapel in Vatican City and also in the grand mosque, Masjid al-Haram in Mecca – cutting across different religions but unifying through its quality product.

Amar Bose’s venture into creating the world’s best audio system starts like this: Bose bought a high-end stereo system in 1956 with technically impressive specifications, thinking it will be able to reproduce the quality of sound as in a live performance in an auditorium, but failed miserably. Bose, then a professor at Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), researched on acoustics and produced a stereo loudspeaker that would reproduce music as you would listen in an auditorium, and without any sub-woofers.  

Bose then founded his own company Bose Corporation in 1964 with funding from angel investors and from his mentor and professor Dr. Lee. Bose said he never wanted to do business to make money, but to try out his creative ideas and research. A point to note is that though the first speakers were a flop, subsequent product releases delivered through extensive research garnered huge appreciation and gave them required reputation. 

Bose had varied interests and developed technologies for regulating electric power on Jets, noise-canceling head phones, suspension system in cars (a very innovative technology developed after 24 years of research!)

Though a founder of a firm, he continued as a professor at MIT, till 2001; and he also donated a major chunk of shares in his company to MIT – as a gratitude to the institution. 

As I write about this genius, two thoughts occupy my mind. One is the link between passion and excellence – his passion for excellence coupled with his curiosity and persistence (what can explain several years of research without results for many years) lead to greatness; and the other is about when will the Indian academic system will create such an conducive environment for such passionate researchers to thrive?

Few Notable Quotes by Bose: 

•  I wanted to teach thought, not formulas; – as a professor to his students at MIT

•  Learn how to work through the problems you’ll experience in life, in any subject – to his students

•  Better Products through Research – his company tagline

•  I went into business so that I could do interesting things that hadn’t been done before

BodhiDharma and Bogar

Lately, I have been conducting my Internet surfing research, about a great saint. Well, I got initiated into this due to the interest generated by the movie 7 aum arivu.

I watched the Chinese movie “Master of Zen” (Made in 1994) which depicts the complete history of Bodhi Dharma. Bodhi Dharma (before becoming) was a prince in the Pallava Dynasty, that was ruling Tamil Nadu, with Kanchipuram as their capital, during 5th-6th CE. Most of the literature available on the Web, concur that he was born in Kanchipuram, and after adopting Buddhism, and then becoming a Buddhist monk, he moves to China, as per the wishes of his Guru Prajnatara (Buddhist monk).

Bodhi Dharma first goes to Southern China (Obvious, if you are from India), and then after spending some time there moves to Northern China, and was known to use unorthodox methods of teaching. Primarily he wanted to convey that one needs to perform a self-realization to understand himself, nature and God. He also have taught about physical exercises or self defence (probably a form of varma) to Shaolin monks, to protect themselves. Some more information about Bodhi Dharma, especially the cave where he lived for 9 years, and his burial place could be found here and here.

It is said that Bodhi Dharma during his last days, wanted to travel back to India, but died in China, and buried in the Shaolin temple. But later after his death, some one cites him, and when asked where he was going, he supposed to have told, he was moving towards West (towards India).

Bogar or Bhogar: Bhogar was a Siddha, meaning a holy saint, who practiced meditation, and other techniques (Mantra, Tantra, Yantra) to attain liberation.They were primarily Saivaites who worshiped Shiva.  Bhogar was known to be a great alchemist. He installed the idol of Lord Muruga in Palani temple (known as Karthikeya, and brother of Lord Ganesha, and son of Lord Shiva) which is made of nine special herbs, and known to have medicinal effects, and stronger than Granite.  He also helped or advised in the construction of the Brihadeeswara temple in Tanjore, around 1000 CE.

Now the interesting part. Some accounts say that Bhogar travelled to China, as per the instructions of his Guru, and then to Srilanka, and lived for several centuries. He also have said to taught tantric techniques in China, and  was known as Lao-Tzu (known to be founder or influence of Taoism) (The theory Yang-Yin is correlated with the Shiva-Shakti). Then in the same accounts it is mentioned that he returns back to India. Incidentally his Guru was Kalanginathar, who was originally from China. The period of Bhogar also seems to be from 8th CE.  Bhogar did have a Chinese disciple Pulippani (renamed in Tamil), who was also a Siddha. Bhogar completes his life’s journey in the Palani Murugan temple.

Another interesting thing is about the dates. Bodhi Dharma, said to be from Pallava Dynasty, belongs to 5th -6th CE, and  said to have lived for 300+ years. The Pallava dynasty come to an end during 8th Century CE, and Cholas emerge as the stronger dynasty, starting from this period. Bhogar’s time period starts from 8th, and said to have lived several centuries. Both of them had some connections with China, and both were saints with extraordinary capabilities. Hope this is a enough material for a researcher to carry on further.

Update – October 2013:  As can be read from the comments section, though there have been references to texts that states Bhogar’s time period as starting from 3000 BC, there is a significant convergence in many of those accounts from 6th CE onwards and during that period Bhogar is said to have travelled to China (for the second time) with few of his Tamil disciples and supposed to have returned back few centuries later. So, that raises another question – If BodhiDharma and Bhogar were different people, then “Was BodhiDharma one of the disciples of Bhogar, who went to China along with the latter’s visit?”

Are Great Achievers born?

Well, I am not sure of the answer.

However, when we look around the most famed people in the modern history of the world, we find that most of them had nursed their talents from their childhood days and followed it up with great passion and commitment. Here are a few legends, who have created history in their own right

• Thomas Alva Edison (Came up with his first invention at the age of 16)
• Bill Gates (Started programming at 13, – at a time, when no one did)
• Warren Buffet (Bought his first shares at the age of 11)
• A R Rahman (Started to play instruments before the age of 11)
• Michael Jackson (Debuted with his brother, at the age of 6 )
• Viswanathan Anand (Started playing Chess at the age of 6)
• Sachin Tendulkar (Started playing cricket as a Toddler)

So, do you need to start things very early, and continue for very long (or if possible through out your life) to become a legend or a great achiever? The answer appears to be affirmative, but not everyone who started early was a great achiever later, as another list of people, who had a promising start, but could not live up to the expectations or failed miserably could easily be put up.

So, what separated the great achievers from people who also started early, but could not attain the fame that great achievers attained? The answer is Passion, Focus, and Commitment. These legends were passionate about one particular aspect, and they worked on it with sincere commitment and focus, and as time passed, they automatically excelled, in what they did, and that lead to the list of great achievers.

Most importantly, these great legends, though would have faced great disturbances, or influences or diversions, than others, in their lifetime, it was their passion and commitment, that should have helped them to cross or ignore the diversions easily.

I also believe that most of the great achievers, including the above legends were never behind money, and their prime intention was on achieving some thing else, and money followed them as an end-result of their achievements.

So, to conclude, if something is started from a very early age, and religiously practiced with passion and commitment for years, then great success is bound to happen.

Zheng He – A great Voyager

I got to knew about Zheng He through one of the recent issue of National Geographic. Though we had a lot of mention about Vasco da gama and Columbus in the history subject during our school days, I don’t even vaguely remember Zheng He, before this enlightening and vividy written article. Here’s the life of a great icon in short.

Zheng He – known as Ma He – a central asian muslim – born to a rural official in a Mongolian Province – taken captive and ritually castrated by a Chinese army that overthrew the Mongols in 1382 (Zheng He was related to Genghis Khan, the founder of the Mongol Empire. The Mughals of India also claim their descendance from Genghis Khan and are considered as turkic-mongol – is another different story)- Assigned to work for Zhu Di – he rose to a key strategist – that made Zhu Di the emperor in 1402 – Chosen to lead one of the powerful naval forces ever ensembled – he went to Thailand, Malacca Straits, Indonesia, Srilanka, Malabar Coast in India, and to Swahilli Coast in Africa and then to few countries in Africa and then to Arabic countries – tried to develop the ocean trade with these countries – mutual visit of ambassadors – thus mixing business exploration and diplomacy – and therefore established China as the leader during the 15th Century.

The major land battle was fought in Srilanka – that was witnessing the fight between Tamils and two mutually hostile Sinhalese Buddhist rulers – Zheng He fought a battle and brought a settlement – which was then ruled by Sinhalese king Parakramabahu VI for 55 years after it – But after which the violence erupts again, and ironically still today the fighting continues (Well, to be precise, the wars were happening, since 2nd Century BC (250 BCE), as per the history available – probably starting with Chola King – Elara – also known as Manuneedhi Cholan).

Zheng He spent a good amount of time in the Malabar coast around cochin in kerala in India. He had initiated a lot of trade particulary the spices with India, and his jottings in 15th century describing the spice trade remains very much unchanged even today. Zheng He is said to have died during his way back to China from the visit to Mecca and arabic countries during his 7th Voyage. During these years of his voyage China too has moved its capital from Nanjing to Beijing. Zheng He is said to be a good natured and generous man. Zheng he (as he was castrated) adopted his brother’s son.