Wednesday, November 24, 2010

The "Made In Heaven" Tag

Talking about marriage, here are my Views on "Are Marriages Made in Heaven", published in the "Central Chronicle" on June 14, 2008. all of you are most welcome to comment on..... my comment!!

“Are Marriages made in Heaven ?”
Manisha Gupta

Not any more!! Can’t blame everything on God! Marriages were once upon a time, till a couple of years ago, “made in Heaven” and were heavenly pure, pretty perfect & peaceful. Now they’re 110% ‘Made on Earth’ and the whole globe bears the brunt. Because for “Global peace”, I firmly believe there should first be peace in the most intimate & closest relationships, marriage being one such.

Love, commitment, fidelity, sacrifice, “everlasting”, “till-death-do-us-part”, “saaton janam” or “janam janamantar ka saath” etc., no more hold. In an era of husband murdering more than wife’s feelings & emotions or parents & brothers for money/property, or the wife herself for another woman, and the equally modern wife having no hassels in killing the husband for a lover, meaning of the institution called marriage has undergone a tremendous change.

So can’t misuse the ‘Made in Heaven’ brand because marriages nomore satisfy very trademark qualities associated with this tag!
Wednesday-Nov-24,2010

Anyone interested in poetry?? (including mine ?????)

Check out http://www.indianwriters.org/delhi/manisha_gupta.htm


Have put up some of my English poetry there.

Also, can read my magazine column “The Second Last Word”
Topics till now

1. “C”SR For Happiness” (July 2010).

(http://www.smeworld.org/story/features-108/csr-for-happiness-105.php)


2. “Leadership For SMEs” (August 2010).

(http://www.smeworld.org/story/special-reports-109/Leadership%20for%20SMEs-147.php)

3. “Skilling the Bottom of the SME Pyramid” (September 2010).

(http://www.smeworld.org/story/special-reports-109/skilling-the-bottom-of-the-sme-pyramid-163.php)


4. “Selling For Winning” (October 2010).

(http://www.smeworld.org/story/focus-100/selling-for-winning-205.php)

5. “Gendered For Injustice….??” (November 2010).

(http://www.smeworld.org/story/special-reports/gendered-for-injustice.php)

Tuesday, November 23, 2010

Think Before You Splurge.......!

Hi!
with the marriage season having just begun, here's a relevant comment of mine that was published in the "OPEN FORUM" column of the Daily Newspaper "CENTRAL CHRONICLE" on 10th May, 2008.

I even won the FIRST PRIZE for this comment. Only, that the "Central Chronicle" has never sent me that prize money till date, even after repeated emails, letters and reminders. and surely, they don't intend to send it now.

well, that's another story that i'll write about later. you know how it is with creators....the likes of writers, painters etc. people want to use their work but don't want to pay for it.

anyway, for now, happy reading!!!//best//mg


Open Forum: Central Chronicle

Should marriage dinner parties be simple ?


Yes, definitely! With India shining and Indians getting more affluent by the day, marriage celebrations are increasingly becoming more lavish and wasteful. They’re more an event to establish one’s prosperity and affordability rather than just a celebration of the marriage itself. Money spent on food alone is exorbitant. It’s not all that necessary to have an entire line-up of dishes just to match or exceed that of your competitors or peers as a lot of food goes waste.

With India, shining from one side and dark from the other, having people who’ve to fight for their daily bread and many a time sleep empty stomach, it would be worthwhile if the budget of the marriage dinner be slashed and the balance amount utilized in feeding mouths that really ‘need to eat to survive’ rather than overstuffing those already bulging figures whose health will be better off if they ate less!

Manisha Gupta

Monday, November 22, 2010

Live Life Rather Than Leave it !!!

Here's sharing with you my latest article published in the Nov. issue of The Focus Global Reporter.

Countering Negatives for Spiritual Bliss
Manisha Gupta

We always tend to feel depressed whenever a negative event happens in our life. Quite natural! Nobody ever can or will feel good about something bad happening to them. But the catch is in en-cashing these negative events in one’s life.

Just like friction is a negative or opposing force but a necessity that helps us do a number of things the most important being walking and running, so do other negative forces. You will agree that pleasant events make one happy and satisfied and therefore in a way give up on certain things. If I say the negative forces are as necessary in life as friction in walking, I wouldn’t be wrong. I feel from personal experience that the more the opposing forces or adverse circumstances, the more it propels one forward.

When all is well we seldom strive to reach out for difficult things. But in adverse circumstances, we unknowingly try much harder, put in much more effort and bring out all the hidden strength of the body, the mind and the inner self. This helps us achieve even the most unachievable of tasks and at the same time helps realize our hidden talent and potential to the maximum.

The wrongs that people do to us and the negative incidents that life throws in our face of course hurt a lot, cause insufferable pain and emotional upheaval. But all the same these very incidents push us forward and at times beyond boundaries that we ever dreamt of had those negative forces not worked against us. This is the hidden essence of the negative events. They open doors of opportunity that we never imagined existed. They also push our performance beyond our regular capabilities.
Therefore, to be an achiever, it is the negatives in life that are more important than the positives. Simply because when everything is right, we’re happy and contended and seldom strive to work at something but when things go wrong, we try to win against all odds. Winners are those who convert negatives into winning opportunities. So make the most of the negatives in life because it is these that will make you realize your true and hidden potential and help you achieve great heights!

Once you are able to overcome difficulties, counter negatives, face tough situations and come out of it all a winner, your sense of achievement will know no bounds. But more than achievement, it is the internal satisfaction of having fought with life’s trials and tribulations that gives you a rare kind of inner strength and mental peace. This state of calm and serene, both in the mind and the heart, is what one can truly term as spiritual bliss. It is all about the upliftment of the self to a higher plane. So, spirituality is not about renouncing the world and shunning all duties and responsibilities.

It is rather more about living life than leaving life!

Wednesday, November 10, 2010

Global Emotional Cooling

Nov-10-2010

Had the opportunity of attending a panel discussion on “Promoting Healthy Living: Role & Responsibilities of school” at DPS-RKP, New Delhi yesterday. And it was good to hear the concerns I wrote in “Always Connected” the other day, being discussed there too.

Such workshops and efforts should form a necessary part of school education these days. Other schools should take cue and emulate such good practices. Moreover, apart from the physical & mental health, Emotional health of the younger generation is one aspect which needs much more attention than it is being given already, as also discussed during this workshop.

Coming to emotional health, it is all about understanding the heart more than the head. And believe me, the former is a much much more tougher job. For, understanding someone’s mind requires brains, intellect and logic but to understand someone’s heart, you need a heart, which is hard to find these days.

People have become heartless….., if I may say so without raising a storm….
With global warming reaching such heights that it resulted in melting of the global economy as well, apart from the glaciers, but somehow people’s hearts have hardened and emotions cooled. Don’t know if this is a side effect of global warming, Nature trying to balance one warming with another cooling, but surely, what we all want is not melting of the glacial ice or economy but that of the heart.

For, if we start warming our hearts to others, again Nature will probably create a balance, and environmental temperatures may come within reasonable limits.
So all you young people out there (and iam sure most of you are), take more care of your heart, let it “feel”, let it “breathe”, let it “melt” and believe me, you’ll feel stronger & lighter at the same time and definitely happier. But surely, before taking any decisions, don’t forget to consult your mind.

It is all about striking a balance…….between the head and the heart. But for God’s sake…… do have a heart!

Here’s sharing something with you that I wrote for my son’s school notebook as a mother’s message

“follow your heart for it is seldom wrong! But act & react with your mind for you must live intelligently!”

//best//mg

Monday, November 8, 2010

Always Connected

Hi all!

Am back after the Diwali break! Hope you all had a great time.

The festival of lights sure brought me more thoughts & realizations along with all the festive goodies & sweets. Suddenly more insights dawned on me and the twinkling Diyas brought to light more facts of today’s lifestyles.

We’d just stepped out of the house to do some Diwali shopping when we received this sms from our offspring “Ma, going for my bath. Will take 15 mins”. Don’t laugh but this is how it is now. Everyone is connected to everyone ALL the time. Thanks to the great mobile revolution. As if computers, internet & email weren’t enough. The slow pace of communication of the olden days….from the “Kabootar Jaa Jaa Jaa….” age to the postman’s bicycle “ghanti” days to the email, chat, and now mobile & sms days…….to fast paced instant communication of today, we’ve come a long way. Only, now no way is long. No waiting, no anticipation, no “pyaar ka intezaar” or longing for the loved one. No excitement, no tension, no confusion. It’s all a matter of seconds. The deal or ordeal is over. And you move on.

Gen-now knows no waiting. Can’t wait to connect, to talk, to communicate. Every little thing. But amidst all this great speed of connectivity with anyone, anywhere around the globe, haven’t we forgotten to connect with ourselves?? Where are we running to all the time? And for what? Being always connected to others has left us little time to ourselves. To be ourselves, to think, to ponder, to look back. We literally have “no time to stand and stare”. Forget look at how and “where squirrels hide their nuts in grass” but we don’t even have time to delve into what thoughts lie hidden in our own minds or what emotions lie beneath our tender hearts.

Too much communication and too much open-ness actually kills the communication. I guess the essence of communication lies in not communicating somethings, sometimes. I feel at times it is those words unsaid that have more value than those said. Leave some words unsaid.

Stop, think, look …beyond the visible visibles and delve deeper into the depths of life to discover more of yourself and more about the life we seem to live!!!!
//best//mg