International Space station Fly over Australia…

From the International Space Station, NASA astronaut Scott Kelly (stationcdrkelly on Instagram) took this photograph and posted it to social media on April 6, 2015. Kelly wrote, “Australia. You are very beautiful. Thank you for being there to brighten our day. #YearInSpace”

Kelly and Russian Federal Space Agency (Roscosmos) cosmonaut Mikhail Kornienko began their one-year mission aboard the space station on March 27. Most expeditions to the space station last four to six months. By doubling the length of this mission, researchers hope to better understand how the human body reacts and adapts to long-duration spaceflight.

Image Credit: NASA 

source……. http://www.nasa.gov

Natarajan

” இந்த தூணுக்கு அடிப்பாகம் எது ….நுனி எது …” ?

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பத்ராசலத்தில் ஸ்ரீராமர் கோயில் திருப்பணி

நடந்து முடிந்தது. கோயில் திருப்பணியில்

கை தேர்ந்த கணபதி ஸ்தபதி அந்த பொறுப்பை

ஏற்றிருந்தார்.

பத்ராசலத்துக்கு யாத்திரையாக வந்திருந்த

மகாபெரியவர்களிடம் “தாங்கள் அவசியம் வந்து

பார்வையிட வேண்டும்.தங்கள் கடாக்ஷம் வேண்டும்”

என அழைத்தார் ஸ்தபதி.பெரியவர்கள் கோதாவரியில்

ஸ்நானத்துக்குச் செல்லும் வழியில் அங்கே

நுழைந்தார்கள்.

கல்தூண் ஒன்றில் சிற்பம் செதுக்கும் வேலை

நடந்து வந்தது.

“இந்தத் தூணுக்கு அடிப்பாகம் எது,நுனிப்பாகம் எது”

என்று கேட்டார்கள் பெரியவர்கள். ஸ்தபதிக்கு ஒரே

திகைப்பு! ‘இதைப் பார்த்தாலே தெரிகிறதே! இப்படி

ஏதோ குழந்தைத்தனமாகக் கேள்வி கேட்கிறார்களே!’

என்று எண்ணியபடி அந்தப் பாகங்களைச் சுட்டிக்

காண்பித்தார்.

“இந்த அடிப்பாகத்தை நுனியாகவும்,நுனியை

அடிப்பாகமாகவும் மாற்றலாமா?”என்று கேட்டார்கள்.

ஸ்தபதிக்கு ஒரே குழப்பமாக இருந்தது.

“செதுக்குவதற்கு முன்னால் ஒவ்வொரு தூணுக்கும்

இதுதான் அடிப்பாகம்,இதுதான் நுனி என்று எப்படித்

தீர்மானம் செய்வாய்” என்று கேட்டார்கள் சுவாமிகள்.

ஸ்தபதி பதில் சொல்லத் தெரியாமல் நின்றார்.

“சுத்தி எடுத்துவா, இதைக் கீழேயிருந்து மேல் வரை

கத்தியால் தட்டு.ஏதாவது தெரிகிறதா பார்”என்றார்கள்.

தட்டியபிறகு ஸ்தபதிக்கு ஏதோ ஒரு சந்தேகம்.

ஆனால் சொல்லத் தெரியவில்லை.

“மீண்டும் ஒருமுறை தட்டு.அதிலிருந்து வரும்

சத்தத்தைக் கவனி” என்றார்கள்.

“கீழே சத்தம் ‘கணீர்’ என்று வருகிறது. மேலே செல்லச்

செல்ல சத்தம் குறைகிறது” என்றார்,ஸ்தபதி.

“மரத்திலே வைரம் பாய்ந்த கட்டை என்பார்கள்.

அது சிகப்பாகக் கெட்டியாக இருக்கும். சுலபமாகப்

பிளக்க முடியாது.அதிலிருந்துதான் மரப்பாச்சி-

மரப்பொம்மை செய்வார்கள்.நீ அதைப்பற்றி

கேட்டிருப்பாய். அதுபோலதான் கல்லிலும்

வைரம் பாய்ந்த பாகம் கெட்டியாய் இருக்கும்.

அதிலிருந்து வெண்கலம் போல ‘கணீர்’ என்று

சத்தம் வரும். அதுவும் கெட்டியாக (அடர்த்தி

நிறைந்ததாக) இருக்கும். அந்தப் பகுதியைத்தான்

அடிப்பாகமாகக் கொள்வார்கள்.

“சத்தம் அதிகம் வரும் பாகம் அடி; குறைவாக

உள்ளது நுனி. நீ சரியாகத்தான் வைத்திருக்கிறாய்.

உனக்கு எல்லாம் தெரிந்திருக்கிறது. சொல்லத்தான்

தெரியவில்லை” என்றார்கள் பெரியவர்கள்.

ஸ்தபதி உடனே சாஷ்டாங்கமாகப் பெரியவர்களின்

காலில் விழுந்து நமஸ்கரித்து, “தங்கள் அருளால்தான்

எல்லாம் நன்றாக அமைய வேண்டும்” என்று

பிரர்த்தித்தார். அப்படியே அமைய ஆசீர்வதித்தார்கள்

பெரியவர்கள்.

எல்லாக் கலைஞர்களுமே இப்படித்தான் முதலில்

சாமான்யமாக மதித்து,கடைசியில்,’இவர்களிடம்

நாம் கற்கவேண்டியது நிறைய இருக்கு’ என்ற

முடிவுக்கு வருவார்கள்.

தெய்வத்துக்கு தெரியாத கலை ஏதும் உண்டா?

Read more: http://periva.proboards.com/thread/8986/#ixzz3WbYK3Z4e

source……. http://www.periva.proboards.com

Natarajan

7 Tips for a Healthier , Happier You …!!!

Small daily changes can go a long way! 

Why do these changes work? It’s because you are weaving them into your daily life without much effort. They can create dramatic effects. Try them and you will start noticing a difference in two weeks!

1. Eat a nutritious breakfast

This will perk you up with energy to kick start your day. A bowl of cereal, fruits, wholegrain bread, egg white or a fruit smoothie are a few good, wholesome choices.

2. Walk

Make short distance walking a habit. Anything within 15 minutes of walking distance must be walked to!

Walk for your errands. Instead of catching up for lunch, meet your friend over a walk!

The more you move the fitter you get.

3. Climb

Ditch the lift and use the stairway, for at least three floors. This will burn fat and tone up your lower body.

4. Have your tea/coffee without sugar

This cuts down the sugar intake drastically. Switch to green tea to up your metabolism.

5. Think before you eat

Make healthy choices and put into your stomach only things that are good for the body. In time this will make you rework your meals to really healthy ones.

6. Snack on nuts, raw veggies and fruits

This will increase your metabolism and keep your energy levels high.

7. Do one form of exercise every day except Sunday

Squeezing in even 20 minutes of exercise six-days-a-week has significant benefits.

Start today!

source………….www.rediff.com

Natarajan

Message For the Day…” Man is an Image of God …”

Difficulties, troubles and worries come in the natural course as a consequence of past actions. Human birth is the result of Karma(past actions); there can be no escape from its consequences. As is your action, so is the reaction. When you stand before a mirror and offer salutation, your salutation gets reflected to you. If you address harsh words to the mirror, the harshness again comes back in the same manner. It is evident that the fruits of our actions are determined by the nature of our actions. Man is an image of God. ‘God appears in human form (Daivam maanusha rupena)’declares the scriptures. God does not come down as Avatar to relieve specific individuals of their troubles and sorrow, and to confer joy and happiness on them. God takes a human form from time to time to show humanity how human lives can be divinised.

Sathya Sai Baba

” Know Your English ….”

Modern English is an interesting language and is always changing and evolving. Words are altered and definitions are updated accordingly. We can’t all be linguists, but we should know how to correctly use the words we choose.

Compelled

What they think it means: To do something voluntarily by choice.

What it actually means: To be forced or obligated to doing something.

To be compelled is to be forced to do something, regardless of whether you actually want to do it or not.

Bemused

What they think it means: Amused.

What it actually means: Confused.

While it sounds similar to Amused, its meaning is completely different. It originally comes from the middle-English words Be, which is an intensifier, and Muse, which is to contemplate.

 

Irony

What they think it means: Something that is funny.

What it actually means: Contrary to what you are expecting.

From the Greek word “eirōneia” – meaning “to simulate ignorance”. There are different kinds of irony but they generally are the expression of one’s meaning by using language that normally signifies the opposite.

 

Redundant

What they think it means: Repetitive.

What it actually means:Unnecessarily excessive.

Not all repetition is redundant. Only when there’s too much of something – it becomes redundant

 

Effect

What you may think it means: To cause something to change.

What it actually means: An event that causes a change.

If an individual wants to change another’s opinion, the individual will need toaffect it somehow. The action taken was the effect that caused the change of opinion.

 

i.e.

What they think it means: For example.

What it actually means: In other words.

From the Latin “Id Est” (meaning: in that), i.e. is used when you want repeat something in a different manner – i.e. to say something again in another way.

 

Plethora

What they think it means: A lot of something.

What it actually means: More than is needed.

From the Greek “plēthōrē”, meaning “Be full”. 10,000 people in a stadium are not a plethora of people, but put them in a small house and they suddenly become a plethora.

 

Disinterested

What they think it means: Bored.

What it actually means: Neutral.

If you are bored – you are uninterested (it doesn’t interest you). But if you aredisinterested – you simply don’t care either way.

 

Obsolete

What they think it means: Old, out of date.

What it actually means: Not produced, used, or needed.

You might think that your old cellphone is obsolete, but cellphones are still produced, used and needed. A good example of something that is obsolete will be a steam engine – they’re so inefficient compared to today’s combustion & electric engines, that no one produces it, uses it or needs it.

 

Chronic

What they think it means: Severe.

What it actually means: Over the course of a long time.

A person with chronic pain is not necessarily in severe pain, but have been experiencing the pain for a long time.

 

Can

What they think it means: What is permissible.

What it actually means: What is possible.

If you were to ask me: “Can I have a drink?” – You’re not asking me if you are allowed to have a drink, but rather, if you are actually capable of drinking.

 

Total

Total means exactly what people think it means but it is used unnecessarily on a frequent basis. When there is a total of 50 people, the total is 50 whether or not you use the word “total”. You might hear someone say that they were totally surprised. Surprise is not a conditional emotion – You were either surprised or not. The use of total didn’t add anything of value to the sentence.

Source……www.ba-bamail.com

Natarajan

 

 

Message For the Day….” Human Beings are Gifted with this Birth…”

Because Nature is a reflection of the Divine, its laws cannot be transgressed by anyone. Human beings are gifted this birth to realise their own true nature. Instead of seeking to understand the truth about the cosmos, people lose it in the pursuit of material possessions. They do not realise that the human body made up of five basic elements, is bound to perish. This temporary and perishable body should be regarded only as a means for realising the eternal Reality. The body should be considered as an iron safe, in which the precious jewels of good qualities and good actions are kept. It is these qualities that should be cherished. If today, the state of the world appears deplorable, it is because people’s actions and conduct are not good. People should return to the ways of righteousness and lead a good and godly life.

Sathya Sai Baba

Unique Kailas Temple @ Ellora Caves Complex….!!!

This is the world famous Kailasa temple at Ellora and let’s look objectively into who could have built this amazing structure. By the end of this video, I hope you will agree with me that our history is completely wrong, and that this temple was built by a very advanced civilization.

What is so special about this temple? This temple was not constructed by adding stone blocks, but an entire mountain was carved to create this temple. This is the only example in the whole world where a mountain was cut out from the top, to create a structure. In all the other temples and caves, even in Ellora and the rest of the world, the rock was cut from the front and carved as they went along. The whole world has followed a rock cutting technique called “cut-in monolith” while Kailasa temple is the only one that has used the exact opposite technique called “cut-out monolith”.

To see why this rock cutting technique is so different, let’s take a look at this pillar that is over 100 feet tall. See how small human beings look when compared to this pillar. Normally, to create such a huge pillar, it would take years of work, carving accurately on the huge rock. But this pillar was carved by scooping out all the pieces of mountain around it. You can imagine the amount of rock, which has been removed to create this pillar.

Historians and archaeologists are confused because of the sheer amount of rock that was removed in this temple. Archaeologists confirm that over 400,000 tons of rock had to be scooped out, which would have taken not years, but centuries of human labor. Historians have no record of such a monstrous task and they think that it was built in less than 18 years.

Let us do a simple math and see if historians could be right. I am going to assume that people worked every day for 18 years and for 12 hours straight with no breaks at all. I am going to ignore rainy days, festivals, war time and assume that people worked like robots ceaselessly. I am also going to ignore the time taken to create intricate carvings and complex engineering design and planning and just focus on the removal of rock.

If 400,000 tons of rock were removed in 18 years, 22,222 tons of rock had to be removed every year. This means that 60 tons of rock was removed every day, which gives us 5 tons of rock removed every hour. I think we can all agree, that is not even possible today to remove 5 tons of rock from a mountain, every hour. Not even with all the so called advanced machines that we have. So, if it is not humanly possible, was it done by humans at all? Was this created with the help of extraterrestrial intelligence?

Now, forget about creating such an extraordinary structure. Can human beings at least destroy this temple? In fact, Aurangzeb a Muslim king employed a thousand workers to completely demolish this temple. In 1682, he ordered that that the temple be destroyed, so that there would be no trace of it. Records show that a 1000 people worked for 3 years, and they could only do a very minimal damage. They could break and disfigure a few statues here and there, but they realized it is just not possible to completely destroy this temple. Aurangzeb finally gave up on this impossible task.

Note that this attempted destruction is very similar to another mysterious structure called The Menkaure’s pyramid in Egypt. Another Muslim ruler wanted all the pyramids to be destroyed, and started his work from the Menkaure’s pyramid. After years of trying, he was only able to make a small dent on the pyramid. He gave up too. Were all these indestructible structures around the world created by extraterrestrials? Is that why human beings are not even able to destroy them?

In fact, archaeologists agree that Kailasa temple was created before any other temple in the Ellora cave complex. Could this have been built centuries before human beings started carving other temples nearby? Is this why the architecture, the design, and the size is so much better and bigger than other temples? If it was built by humans, it is logical to expect that the rock cutting techniques and design would become better over time. People would gain more experience and knowledge and make better structures in the future. However, the Kailasa temple is the oldest and the biggest temple carved with engineering perfection.

Unlike other temples, the Kailasa is the only temple that is visible from the air. Out of 34 temples, all carved side by side, Kailasa stands out and you can see it while flying over it. Is this just a coincidence? Or was it designed for people to see it from the air, like Nazca lines of Peru? Even on Google earth, the aerial view of Kailasa temple clearly shows an X mark. This is how it looks from the top; you can see a circular design that is studded with 4 lions that create this huge X mark. Was this created as a signal for extraterrestrials, who can spot the location while flying?

Source……..www.you tube.com

Natarajan

Harvard, IIT Graduates are Tea Sellers too….!!!

An increasing number of b-school graduates are exploring tea-based services and products for businesses and some of them have tasted success too.

Harvard, IIT graduates are tea sellers tooAmuleek Singh Bijral had some of the best offers from the corporate world after graduating from Harvard Business School. But those offers weren’t his cup of tea; so, Bijral did something that surprised even his closest friends — he set up Chai Point, an online tea selling business in Bengaluru and Noida five years ago.

Bijral obviously read the tea leaves well quite early in his career.

Chai Point, which received Rs 12 crore from Saama Capital, is now looking to raise its next round of funding worth Rs 80-100 crore to finance plans to expand to Mumbai, Hyderabad, Pune and Chennai.

Chai Point has 50 stores and claims to have sold 10 million cups of tea.

Bijral says there is no single organised player in India’s Rs 33,000-crore chai market and Chai Point targets white-collar workers across the country who are fast on technology and love the new experience of sipping tea.

The idea is catching on — Chai Point’s latest app has seen about 12,000 downloads in the last three months.

In the backdrop of rising real estate prices, Chai Point is keen to do a hub-spoke model in each city it plans to enter.

Bijral isn’t alone. Nitin Saluja, founder of Chaayos, ventured into the business after he started missing home-made ginger tea during his days in the US.

In 2012, the IIT Mumbai graduate opened Chaayos in the National Capital Region along with IIT Delhi’s Raghav Verma.

Both are in discussions to take the next leap in scalability and are in talks with venture capital investors to raise Rs 30-40 crore.

Investors seem to be getting interested in putting in more money, with good reason.

Ankur Bisen, senior vice-president, at retail consulting firm Technopak, says, “Tea-based cafes have seen interest because Chaayos and Chai Point have demonstrated to investors that they can grow beyond local catchment areas to different cities,” Bisen adds.

Replicating the success of Starbucks and Cafe Coffee Day through the chai business is an idea that has inspired many graduates from India’s premier institutes.

A year ago, Pankaj Judge, an IIT Kharagpur graduate, opened his first outlet of Chai Thela in Noida with a plan to enter Delhi and Gurgaon.

From aam aadmi chai to adrak chai, to tulsi chai, Chai Thela offers 30-plus varieties of tea through seven outlets in Noida.

“We want to do with chai what Starbucks and Cafe Coffee Day did with coffee,” Judge says, explaining why the potential is huge.

On average, each of his outlets sells 400-500 cups of tea per day.

Chai Thela, which focuses on IT parks, hospitals and college campuses, is in discussions with angel investors to raise Rs 1 crore now and another Rs 12 crore after six months.

Recently, another firm TeaBox, an online retailer of premium tea, raised Rs 36 crore in fresh funds led by venture capital firm JAFCO Asia and existing investor Accel Partners.

TeaBox, which eyes international markets, plans to expand its footprint to the US, China, Japan, etc.

“The high disposable income as well as influence of western culture have changed the lifestyle of Indians who like to consume high-end tea in the same way as they enjoy a good wine,” Kaushal Dugar, founder, TeaBox, says.

Bisen says when a concept in the food services space reaches a decent size and show results, it starts attracting the fancy of investors.

Agrees Prashanth Prakash of Accel India. “Most tea retailers continue to rely on a

legacy value chain consisting of multiple middlemen,” he says.

“But the renewed interest in category is bringing in a new set of retailers like Chaayos, who essentially would continue to be a part of the same set-up,” he adds.

Lead image used for representational purposes only

Photograph: Damir Sagolj/Reuters

Source……….. http://www.rediff.com

Natarajan

Message For the Day…” Nature is Your Best Teacher …”

Every object in Nature and every individual around you is constantly teaching you lessons of various sorts, every moment of your life. Recognise this truth. Marvellous, sacred and beautiful is Nature. Human beings, in deep involvement with mundane concerns, and in their insane conceit, regard themselves as the Master of Nature. Nature is your best teacher. It is Nature that presides over every aspect of your life and provides you with all nourishment. It can bless or punish you, its sway is extensive. God considers all things in creation as equal and He is immanent in all of them. Hence, do not regard God and Nature as distinct entities. They are inseparably interrelated like the object and its image. Ancient Indian scriptures regarded and worshipped every object in Nature as a divine manifestation. From a stone to a diamond, from an ant to an elephant, from a simple person to a sage, everything and every being was considered worthy of worship.

Sathya Sai Baba

” Namaste to a Pain Free Life …” !!!

 

We don’t need to live with pain. Pain is a sign of imbalance and non-alignment, of neglect and disconnection. Being pain-free means tuning into our life, our lifestyle, our emotions and our daily choices, with keener attention to the details. Every action, and the lack of it, determines the quality of our overall health. So fine-tuning our well-being is something that we can actively take charge of by investing in small actions that release pain and boost overall health.

A simple example to illustrate my point would be the stiff necks, painful shoulders, rounded backs and carpal tunnel syndrome that most people who sit at computers for hours suffer from. A simple posture done regularly through the day can reverse and prevent the crippling pain that they experience.

The following is a modified version of a posture that can be done multiple times at any point of the day to relieve stiffness in your shoulders and wrists. The shoulder girdle is built for mobility rather than strength and, therefore, the joints need to put through their full range of motion, so that they remain supple and fit for life.

The posture drains lymph and boosts circulation to the wrists and fingers. The chest and upper back muscles also get a break from the constant contraction and pressure that they are under.

Simplified Parsvotasana (The Rotating Posture)

Stand with your feet four to five inches apart.

Turn your feet parallel to the sides of the mat, with your toes turned slightly inward and your heels turned slightly outward.

Tuck your tailbone in, contract your gluteus muscles, tighten your thighs and pull your knees upwards.

Get used to the steadiness of your lower body.

Relax your shoulder joints by rotating them up to your ears and backwards five times.

First rotate your wrists and then your head and neck, clockwise and anti-clockwise five times.

Bring your palms together behind your back in a namaste position. The fingers should be pointed up.

You will find it tough in the beginning if your shoulders and arm joints are stiff, you might even have muscle cramps, but keep trying.

If you are able to bring your palms together, breathe deeply and hold this position for at least 15 counts. Release gently.

Keywords: Yoga on the movefitness

Source ……..DIVYA SRINIVASAN in http://www.the hindu.com

Natarajan