Shodasi : Secrets of The Ramayana

 Here is a book with ground-breaking research. The title of the book is Shodasi. And it was written by non other than Gunturu Seshendra Sharma, an erudite scholar and prolific author in Telugu. In fact, he has a unique place in the field of Telugu literature and his outstanding scholarship both in Eastern and western philosophy and poetry is legendary. Shodasi is a name associated with Mantra Sastra. And it is another name for Sri Bala Tripura Sundari. How would it be connected with Ramayana, authored by Valmiki ? Everyone could frown over the very idea of conceiving the plot. Valmiki's poetic diction is not that easy to comprehend and it has many secret layers. The magnum opus is a repository of critical discourses and it is replete with inconceivable and unfathomable issues.

Seshendra Sharma's capacity for meticulous observation of 24 thousand slokas disclosed new avenues and this book is literally an experiment in nutshell. According to author the exposition of the story of Ramayana by Valmiki is not a narration in excellent poetic style. Underlying this is an attempt to infuse in it the directives of the esoteric theories of Kundalini Yoga. Seshendra has also done extensive research into the Maha Bharatha and proves conclusively that Vyasa has, in his epic Maha Bharatha, closely followed Valmiki in many aspects. Analogies in the Ramayana appear in a new light , once you have gone through it. How Kalidasa got inspired from Valmiki in terms of depicting changes in the nature has been proved with extensive range of examples.

Trijata Dream, Sundara Kanda and all other important cantos were examined in the unprecedented way. Valmiki took all his similies, words and thoughts from Vedic literature. Author gave many examples to support his proposition. One of the novel points in this is interesting. He says one who was Indra in Vedas appeared like Vishnu in Puranas. That means the attributes of Vishnu in Puranas will be seen in Indra of Vedas. The book is thought-provoking and well written. English translation rendered by Dr. Gurajada Suryanarayana Murthy, a retired scientist in Baba Atomic Research Centre.

( Pages : 245,    Price : Rs. 400,  available on Amazon)

--- Murthy Kvvs

The Secret behind Chinese goods at cheap rates

  The Secret behind Chinese Goods at Cheap rates

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How many times have you read Made in China? Have you ever thought about how many types of cheap goods are imported from that country to our country? Chinese products are welcomed not only in our country but also in almost all countries. 

That is why the country is called the factory of the world. No one doubts how the country can provide its products so cheaply. 

There are many workers in China work for low wages. Another reason is the country's economy. With production trends such as low taxes, import tariffs, and the devaluation of the yuan by as much as 30 percent, they control the markets by using large amounts of human resources to sell goods at a lower rate than the rest.

After deciding which industry to set up in which area, the supplier network, distributors, and the producer job group all work together.  

 The government is doing everything it can for them. There are no environmental issues, industrial clearances, or wage issues. No unnecessary expenditure is incurred. It is very inexpensive. The price of any commodity is less as compared to other markets. 

Another interesting aspect is that they artificially reduce the value of their currency. Most of the workers are from the middle and lower middle class. 

There is no concern for child labor. The minimum wage is paid in two ways: per hour or month. There are 31 provinces in China. The hourly minimum wage in Shanghai is higher than in most other regions.     

China is the world's second-biggest economy. It manages 20,985 projects in 165 countries and provides loans and grants to them, impacting their financial systems.

 It invests in Asia, Africa and Europe. It has invested $1.34 trillion and has business partnerships with the US, Hong Kong, Japan, Korea, and Vietnam.

China is also investing heavily in India. China is the world's largest producer of consumer electronics, electricals, textiles, automobiles, chemicals, computers, plastics and medical equipment. This country is making its mark in the world.

--- Murthy KVVS (Mob: 78935 41003) 

(Published in Orissa today news daily,  3-9-2024)

Be Cautious of WhatsApp Usage

 Be Cautious of WhatsApp Usage

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 Checking WhatsApp every day has almost become an unavoidable ritual for everyone. Not once or twice, sometimes quite multiple times with anxiety, for updates that contain pics or messages. 

We will be looked down on if we say that WhatsApp is unknown. It has penetrated our lives so much today. At the same time, most people are trying to reduce their watching time due to various reasons. Eye pain, forgetfulness, insomnia, etc. are some of the ailments we suffer from in case the habit turns into addiction.

There are currently 535.8 million WhatsApp users in our country. And this number is increasing day in and day out. Say, 16.6 percent every year. Be it any place, we can witness lots of people engrossed in such a holy ritual as if it were an inevitable thing for them.

 A whole other world seemed to be absent in their mind. In this info evolving global situation, receiving communication through WhatsApp is a great idea but it should not eat up our other works and habits. Moreover, health-wise, one should be very careful.

I know many serious book readers remain passive towards the habit and are addicted to WhatsApp for hours and hours. 

We have resultantly, ended up with eye pain and insomnia. So one should abide by particular times and stick to it strictly if watching WhatsApp is necessary. Otherwise, avoid the app. 

One more idea is that we shouldn't bring a smartphone when we go out so that we can reduce watching time and at the same time making and receiving calls are also possible with ordinary devices.

Being in some groups is mandatory if we are socially active in any diverse engagements. Then, adopting habits like not opening unnecessary videos gives us ample time for us to do other things.

 Don't argue in groups. It consumes most of our time for nothing. WhatsApp is a sword with two edges. It should be an added asset but not cause to procrastination in our other important work including health hazards. The time-tested adage goes like this, too much of everything is good for nothing.

----- KVVS Murthy (Mobile: 78935 41003)

(Printed in Orissa Today News English Daily on 29/7/24

I was interviewed by a news paper

 

 

Andhra jyothi Daily , the third largest  circulated Telugu news paper placed my interview in today's issue. I can't translate entire text. They precisely wrote about my books and inspiration and many other things which described what I am now. I don't generally like publicity but sometimes we have to oblige social norms for the sake of our well wishers. 

A Media baron and a king maker : Ramoji Rao

An era closed today for Telugu people with the demise of media baron Cherukuri Ramoji Rao. He died in an hospital in Hyderabad. 

He influenced entire Telugu diaspora  a lot in terms of many things like vernacular news paper Eenadu, chit-fund business, pickles, movies, magazines of different generes and well-known Ramoji film city.

 Ramoji Rao was an innovative spirit who always tried to stand forefront whatever work he has taken up. His brainchild Eenadu daily is one of the largest ones with the circulation of 13,51,956 as per the statistics of 2022.

Rao came into cinema field and produced two dozens of movies and his Ramoji film city is world's largest film and amusement park. 

His business empire has not been created overnight , yet, it took some decades to become a legend with his shrewd business acumen. 

Spread into many fields and his political strategies  caused raising TDP party unto power and legendary NTR became chief minister because of his support. 

Not only that, everyone knows that he was a king maker in both Telugu states.

He is a God like figure for his supporters and a monster for his rivals. His ETV network almost made its presence in every state with local language based programs. 

His rivals would say Rao uplifted his caste people through all his capacities and triggered caste based politics in the Telugu states. For recent grand verdict favoring Chandrabau Naidu, Rao's contribution was immense through his media channels and publications. 

However Ramoji Rao is a name of every household for what he has done in different fields of making money and power.               

#ramojirao #media #baron #business #empire

Yaarada konda (A Telugu novel based on Visakhapatnam city)

 Yaarada konda, it's a title of recent Telugu novel and the writer is Unudurti Sudhakar. Have bought it  online after many of my friends told me for its uniqueness.

 In brief, this book tells us how the present city of Visakhapatnam evolved from the era of British ruling through different kinds of odds. 

The title Yarada konda suggests the iconic hill which stood in the sea waters nearby the city. One can awe at  its spectacular presence and which is turned another sign for Visakhapatnam, of course, Vizag and Waltair are also other names in addition.

History of the city is entwined with plethora of many interesting anecdotes, happenings and social conditions.

 How present politics of the state have influenced is another aspect in the novel. Characters were taken carefully from different view points. 

So the past and present socio political issues got surfaced as the story was moving on. And they unraveled many questions like how , once, a fishing community dominated city turned out a battle ground for other people.

An interesting read. Further the book bagged an award in a competition conducted by NRI based organization.

A Church built by Jabaraj Ji

 Some places always beckon us . Be it of nostalgic or whatever it's called by. With a journo friend James Edwin ji visited a small village Dummugudem in the last month on the mission of procuring details about some British era constructions. Apart from it, we get intrigued to stop at a tiny church. It was named as Garden Church. Full of colorful flowers, plants and trees were found there. An eye feasting scene. Furthermore lullaby like breezing all over. With no pre-plan, we have stopped and entered it and many memories lingered in me.

It was almost more than thirty years back, I happened to meet the founder of this church. His name was Jabaraj ji of Tamil origin. He was a lone crusader in gathering a small group of people and was always seen  toiling his way to dig for laying foundation stones and planting different kinds of saplings. He had no workers and no helpers in the mission. Always indulged in the physical work with shovel, spade and other tools. His body was filled with soil and sweat. At last ,after some years, there was a little shelter appeared in the name of Church along with a beautiful garden.

As he was a lonely person with no family or relatives , he was going to surrounding villages in the remaining time to do prayers and in course of time people started to come here and in the process, he had his own set of enemies to make hurdles. Surprisingly he had gained supporters as well. However, decades passed by. Jabaraj ji died some years back and his people are running it successfully. Present pastor is Vinny with whom I talked for some time about Jabaraj ji. They felt happy being remembered that noble soul. I have never seen such a persistent and hard working man in my life.