It is not easy for the human mind, immersed in worldly concerns to turn to God. It is only when the mind is transformed and brought under the control of the Soul (Atma) that the body experiences Divine Bliss (Ananda). The means by which the mind is transformed is devotion (Bhakthi – intense love for God). Progressively, turn your mind towards God until it merges in God. Meditation, repetition of the names of the Lord, group singing of devotional songs (bhajans), reading of scriptures and other such activities are designed only to purify the mind so that it can concentrate on God. As a field has to be properly ploughed and prepared for sowing so as to reap a good harvest, the field of our heart has to be rendered pure and sacred through good and holy actions and spiritual discipline(sadhana) if it is to yield the fruit of Divine Wisdom.
Each night before I sleep, I repeat these affirmations to myself, to help ease and relax my soul. They remind me that I am safe, and they prepare me for a new day and all the gifts that it will bring. After repeating these to myself, I feel a deep sense of peace, enabling me to fall asleep effortlessly.
I hope that after reading through these affirmations, you too will sleep soundly, leaving all the troubles of the day behind.
Born in 1469 A.D., Guru Nanak, the first Sikh guru, started the practice of community singing (bhajans). This gathered momentum over the years and the great Saint-composer Tyagaraja (in 1700s) invested Bhajans with raga and tala(musical form and rhythm). Since then bhajans have acquired national vogue in all parts of India. All major religions also emphasize the importance of community prayers for the wellbeing of the individual and the world. Bhajans are intended to harmonise the feelings, the singing, and the rhythmic beats of the participants so that they experience in unison the oneness of the Divine. Devotion(Bhakti) should be given the first and foremost place in Bhajans. Such bhajans are spiritually efficacious. Hence, let your songs be surcharged with love and let the intense love for the Lord and pure devotion flow through every song that is sung.
It’s 5:00 pm on a Saturday evening and work is just getting started for a group of 12 to 15 young people in the BTM area of Bangalore. Standing on a pavement, dressed in white t-shirts, they look more like friends hanging out and unwinding on a weekend. There is laughter, there are interesting discussions, and there is music. But walk closer and you will see the main reason this sidewalk is bustling with energy – it’s tea!
Welcome to the ‘I Support Foundation’ tea stall, one of the most pleasantly offbeat chai shops in Bangalore.
All set and ready to roll!
There is a small table set up neatly with two thermos flasks, some peanuts, a few earthen pots, and a banner saying ‘I Support Foundation.’ The stall owners welcome you with smiling faces and gratefully take your order – masala or plain tea, earthen cups or paper cups, some peanut masala to go – the choice is yours.
And while you sip, cheerful music from a guitar overcomes the loud honking of cars on the road as one of the team members, Utkarsh, strums along.
Tea plus music
But this small arrangement is a lot more than just a fun tea stall and a bunch of youngsters whiling away time. Every weekend, volunteers of the ISF organization gather on the sidewalk. Their aim? To spread awareness about autism among as many people as they can with the help of this tea stall.
In a congenial environment created with tea and music, they talk to their customers about autism, its meaning, its presence in India, and more if the curious want to know.
A perfect environment for conversation and awareness
Ask ISF’s co-founder Juhi Ramani about her motivation behind starting something like this, and she says, “My brother, 19-year-old Shivam Ramani, lives with autism. I was eight when we found out about his condition. I come from the small city of Raebareli in UP, and at that time, there wasn’t much awareness about autism. It took us five years just to be informed that he is autistic. Then, finding a good school for him was a very big challenge. There were schools, but autistic children need special care, so we had to be very careful in finding the best place where he could study. Growing up, my elder sister and I witnessed these struggles. Hence we decided to do something for such children.”
Thus began ‘I Support Foundation’, a joint venture between 25-year-old Juhi and her sister Bobby Ramani, with the purpose of working for the education and overall development of children living with autism, as well as for underprivileged children.
In January 2014, they started a school in Lucknow where children with autism and underprivileged children could get a chance to study together. Today, the school has 45 children, and a group of special educators and caretakers. Students receive assistance in the form of free education, computer training, career counselling, and sports training, along with basic necessities like clothes and hygiene kits. The caretakers include Juhi’s mother and sister as well. All expenses of the school are taken care of by Bobby, from her own pocket.
While her sister continues to work in UP, Juhi, an IT professional, started a chapter of the Foundation in Bangalore in November 2014.
With a team of about 40 volunteers who came on board with the help of her friends, colleagues and social media, Juhi has successfully set up an organised base in the city. –
Juhi Ramani with her students These are the different activities the Foundation conducts: –
Sessions about child sexual abuse for underprivileged children and parents of children with autism. Juhi and her team of volunteers go from school to school, talking to as many children, parents and teachers as they can, to make them aware about CSA and how to fight it.
“For underprivileged kids, we take sessions with interactive videos and explanations, and then provide them with a feedback form where they can write about any issues they might be facing and are hesitant to talk about to anyone. After this, we also have one on one sessions with those children and their guardians,” explains Juhi.
• Career counselling sessions. These are also conducted in the form of sessions at different schools where children get to learn about the various career options they will have after school or college and how they can prepare for them.
“We are doing this because many children remain uninformed about the kind of options they have, and hence miss out on opportunities. For such sessions, we visit orphanages too.”
• Football training for children with autism, and computer classes for all children at different low income schools, organised by the volunteers with their own laptops.
However, in order to fund these sessions and activities, the Foundation requires money.
The volunteers come for the stall every weekend
Juhi and the volunteers initially pitched in from their own pockets, but in March this year, Juhi came up with a unique idea for raising funds. ISF started the sidewalk tea stalls with two purposes in mind – raising funds and creating a platform to make people aware about autism.
“Every weekend, about 10-12 of us gather at any one person’s place and prepare tea together. After that, we reach the venue, set up the stall, and get started. Plain tea is sold for Rs. 10 and masala tea for Rs. 15. And sometimes, people who come to the stall as customers, end up getting associated with us as volunteers,” says a proud Juhi.
They often set up the stall on different sidewalks in BTM itself, but sometimes shift to regions like Koramangala too to increase their reach.
“I came across Juhi through a common friend, and before being associated with ISF, I did not know much about autism. Working here is a very different experience. It is not like a task but more of a passion. I get to do what I love and, as a by-product, my work also makes a difference in society,” says Karthik, a volunteer who comes from a sales background and looks at the financial and business aspects of the Foundation.
“Whenever I have a commitment on Saturdays and Sundays, it is mostly a commitment for ISF,” says Ajitesh, another volunteer.
“Here I have realised that it’s not just monetary help that needs to be given to society, you can also give time and that makes a lot of difference.”
A lot more than money
According to Juhi, ISF earns profits between Rs. 1,100 and 1,600 daily from the tea stall. The team conducts activities and sessions during the mornings, and sets up the stalls in the evenings. To date, ISF has visited 15 schools and interacted with about 5,000 children. “The best part is that the volunteers enjoy this a lot and are excited about being here every weekend,” says Juhi.
“It is very important to spread awareness about autism. People don’t know much about it, and it is very difficult for parents and siblings like me when people look at our loved ones differently. We have to bridge the gap,” concludes Juhi.
The might come naturally, but there are some sentences you should never say to your kids. Picture: iStock
THERE is no rule book when it comes to parenting.
We say things to our kids that come naturally. And often we say things that our own parents said to us. But unfortunately research has indicated that some of these simple sayings can have negative long-term effects.
Innocent sayings like “naughty boy” or “don’t be stupid” can be bad for a child’s self esteem because it teaches them to label themselves, explains Gregg Chapman, Psychologist and Clinical Manager at Strategic Psychology. He further adds that this may lead to a child developing poor self-concept.
Now you might be thinking, ‘But my parents said this to me and I turned out fine.” But as Dympna Kennedy, founder of Creating Balance, a parenting organisation that encourages parents to connect more closely with their children, points out: research and knowledge has come a long way in recent decades.
“It’s not about looking back and thinking my parents did the wrong thing by me,” says Dympna. “It’s about looking back and saying, ‘OK, they did the best they could with what knowledge they had at that time. But I now have the advantage of research and knowledge that they didn’t have.’”
And that research and knowledge says we should stop saying these things to our children.
1. “You naughty boy/girl!”
Instead address the situation. Gregg Chapman suggests a better statement might be: “Was what you did helping or hurting? If it was hurting let’s see how we could turn that around”
2. “How many times have I told you?”
Clearly your current approach isn’t very effective. Plus, do you really expect your child to answer this question? Gregg suggests saying something like: “I’m upset that I’m not getting my message across to you. How do you think that you could make better choices that don’t hurt you and/or others?”
3. “How could you do this to me? After all I do for you!”
Gregg explains that the child is not doing things out of a sense of obligation to the parent. They are acting to meet their needs and get what they want. He suggests not focusing on oneself as parent but instead helping the child understand the impact of their actions on others.
4. “You wait until you get home!”
As a parent you want to build a close relationship with your child but, according to Gregg, threats generate fear and insecurity and certainly don’t strengthen the parent-child relationship. Gregg says a better statement might be: “We will need to discuss this at home. I’d like you to think what you could do to put this right”
5. “Don’t be Stupid.”
Once again, children will label themselves as they have been taught. And negative labels such as ‘stupid’ do not foster a happy, healthy relationship with themselves.
6. “You make mummy very happy when you eat all your dinner.”
Dympna Kennedy says it is important not to teach children to do things for external praise. This teaches them to be people pleasers, which may lead to them doing things they may not want to do during their school years just to be accepted. Dympna suggests just saying “thank you” when a child does something you want them to do, or encourage internal self praise and say “you should be proud of yourself for eating all your dinner.”
But it goes without saying, sometimes in the heat of the moment a situation might get the better of you and what you say isn’t the best choice of words. And that’s OK because it is impossible to be a perfect parent all of the time.
“It is not about being the perfect parent because children don’t learn from a parent who is perfect,” explains Dympna.
“They learn from a parent who makes mistakes because that shows your child it’s not about being perfect but it’s about reflecting and learning and trying again the next.”
So the next time you go to say one of these sayings to your child, stop, reflect and try to speak to them in a way that will encourage them to become resilient, compassionate and confident.
From cremating unclaimed cadavers found floating in the Ganges to helping activate dysfunctional sewage treatment plants along its course, Vikas Chandra a.k.a. Guddu Baba has dedicated himself to to cleaning up the holy river. This is his awe-inspiring story.
“Millions of people revere her as Ganga Maa (Mother Ganga), we need to make her sacred again,” he stressed.
Chandra’s mission began in 1998. “A middle-aged man was bathing in the sewage-filled waters of river Ganga in Patna, when Chandra, an environmental activist, chanced upon him. “He told me that he was there to perform his wife’s last rites. But he did not have the money for a boat ride to the main stream of the river, which was cleaner,” Chandra recalled.
The incident shocked Chandra and built up his resolve to fight for a cleaner Ganga.
“I lost my mother when I was just four. Since then, I have considered the earth as my mother and I have been a dutiful son of Ganga Maa too. I could not bear to see the river in such a filthy and unholy state and hence decided to dedicate my life to cleaning up the holy river, ” said Chandra.
His crusade for a cleaner Ganga started with the Ganga Bachao Andolan in 2000. The aim was to draw the attention of the authorities towards the appalling condition of the holy river — the sewage, the filth, the floating dead bodies on the river banks.
Vikas Chandra started his mission to save Ganga in 1998.
Photo: Facebook
He went on a 48-hour fast in Patna. Later, he organised various campaigns and rallies in order to drum up public support for his cause. His efforts were not in vain and he went on to file his first Public Interest Litigation (PIL) in the Patna High Court in July 2000, holding the State and the Centre (and other departments) responsible for the horrifying condition of the river.
His efforts took a more aggressive turn when he found hundreds of dead bodies lying on the banks of the river near the Patna Medical College and Hospital (PMCH).
“The sight was disgusting. The bodies emitted a foul smell, some had even been ravaged by dogs and other scavengers. I wrote to the state government to arrange for the respectful cremation of those dead bodies as I believe everybody deserves that much,” he said.
Vikas is also requesting the government to not leave sewage drains in the river.
PMCH denied dumping the bodies in the river and and claimed that the dead bodies were flowing from Danapur (a place that lay upstream) “However, the dead bodies showed clear marks of post mortem having been performed on them. So we continued our fight for a proper cremation for those unclaimed dead bodies,” recalls Chandra.
He clicked pictures of three bodies and organised a human chain of about 100 people who in turn, carried those photographs across the streets of Patna asking the government to cremate the dead respectfully.
His efforts paid off when the High Court finally took notice of the issue after a long fight and passed an order in March 2001 that the unclaimed bodies were the responsibility of the state government. PMCH decided to pay Rs. 300 for the cremation ceremony of each dead body and increased the amount to Rs. 1,000 in 2007.
Later, Rogi Kalyan Samiti, a state-administered organisation, also decided to provide money for the cremation of unclaimed bodies.
So far, Chandra has filed over 38 PILs in the High Court and other courts in connection with this issue. Today, he claims that there are no dead bodies found in the holy river in Patna. –
Chandra organizes rallies and awareness campaigns to save the holy river.
He also focused attention on the dumping of medical waste into the river. Now, an incinerator has been installed for the treatment of waste near PMCH.
That is not all. Chandra has also played a pivotal role in reviving three dysfunctional sewage treatment plants set up in 1986 under the Late Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi’s Ganga Action plan. Today, the STPs at Beur, Saidpur and Pahari are functional again, thanks to Chandra.
“These three plants treat 105 mld sewage water every day. Since these plants are very old, their capacity has decreased over time, but it is still better than having them lying dysfunctional,” pointed out Chandra.
Today, he is not alone in his cause. There is an army of equally dedicated volunteers who work with him on a regular basis to keep the holy river clean.
He has a dedicated team of volunteers who support his cause whole-heartedly.
Photo: Facebook
Together, they ensure that people do not defecate near the river. These volunteers also pick up plastic and other waste from the river banks and support Chandra in all his endeavours.
The activist admits his journey has often, been a challenging one. “I have received several threats and been pressured to stop, but I am determined to make a difference and nothing can stop me from doing that,” he stressed. Chandra, in fact, has been so committed to his cause that he only got married this year in July, at the age of 52. But he continues to give his all to this mission.
He once received a prize money of Rs. 5 lakhs from a renowned media group in 2009. The entire prize amount was used to scale up his project.
Vikas performs last rites of the unclaimed dead bodies found in the river.
Photo: YouTube
Chandra, who hails from Allahabad, is a double post graduate in public administration and political science. He has also worked as a priest. “I haven’t received any other help, monetary or otherwise. I put in whatever I earn as a teacher and priest. Lack of funds has never come as an impediment to my work. I am strictly against the NGO culture and do not believe in charity. This is purely voluntary work and I don’t ask for donations,” he said.
His supporters help him pay for the court fees and other basic costs attached to his mission.
Today, the Ganga is slowly but surely regaining the status of a clean river. But Chandra is not willing to rest. He still has miles to go with his mission, he added.
Did you know that practicing Surya Namaskar daily can make you look younger?
Fitness is not only about refining the body, but also reviving the soul.
A healthy body and mind is the best fashion statement… and to achieve this, you should indulge in Sun salutation, popularly known as ‘Surya Namaskar’ every morning.
It is a versatile Yoga posture that has, in recent times, gained popularity among fitness enthusiasts.
Surya Namaskar is considered as a highly beneficial exercise for the body and the mind and most celebrities swear by it.
We take a look at 10 awesome benefits of practicing this popular exercise every morning.
1. Shed those extra kilos
First and foremost Surya Namaskar helps you keep your weight in check.
It sheds the extra kilos to keep your body toned and fit.
With just one round of Surya Namaskar, you lose close to 13.9 calories!
2. Improves digestion
Due to stretching and compressing, your digestive system is strengthened and you can bid goodbye to indigestion and dyspepsia forever.
Think of that!
3. Cleanses your breathing organs
One of the biggest benefits is that, due to the rhythmic breathing the exercise involves, it cleanses your breathing tract and lungs.
It also detoxifies your body, helping you to get rid of harmful gases that might have entered your system.
4. Strengthens your back
Recurring backache is often caused by lack of movement of the muscles and joints.
By making you stretch and bend, Surya Namaskar keeps your joints and spine in good condition.
It also strengthens the overall skeletal system.
5. Makes you look younger
As cliched as that sounds Surya Namaskar actually does this… how?
By increasing and maintaining healthy blood flow in the body.
It brings glow to your skin and also helps prevent wrinkles for a long time.
6. Childbirth goes easy on you
Girls, irrespective of the faith you belong to, this exercise will help you strengthen your immune system and regularize periods.
It also has a positive effect on childbirth and keeps complications at bay.
7. Gives you a ‘Goodnight’
Surya Namaskar helps you get your proper quota of sleep everyday and keeps anxiety at a distance.
When your body stays strong, you tend to keep away from bodily and mental dysfunctions.
8. Tones your look
Surya Namaskar broadens your chest and makes your waist flexible on the whole, making you an easy mover and also helps you look fit!
9. Easy to remember stuff
You can also improve your neural system by practising Surya Namaskar… and it also helps in improving your memory.
That means you will not forget that easily and retrieval of memories will also be bettered.
10. Suits your pace
Now-a-days, it’s difficult for most working people to follow an exhaustive exercise routine.
Surya Namaskar fits the demand and helps you fit the regime within the restricted time frame by choosing the number of namaskars you want to or can do.
It’s a slick routine that is fast, yet effective.
Lead image used for representational purposes only. Image: Mikaku/Creative Commons
சூரபத்மன் தவமிருந்து, சிவனின் ஆற்றலைத் தவிர வேறு யாராலும் தன்னைக் கொல்ல முடியாது என்று வரம் பெற்றான். வரத்தின் பலத்தால், தேவர்களைத்துன்புறுத்தினான். தேவர்கள் தங்களைக் காப்பாற்றும்படி சிவனைச் சரணடைந்தனர். சிவன் தன் நெற்றிக்கண்ணில் இருந்து ஆறு தீப்பொறிகளை உண்டாக்க, அவை சரவணப் பொய்கையில் விழுந்து குழந்தைகளாக மாறின. அந்தக் குழந்தைகளை கார்த்திகைப் பெண்கள் வளர்த்தனர். பார்வதி ஆறு குழந்தைகளையும் சேர்த்து அணைக்க, ஆறுமுகமும், பன்னிரு கைகளுமாக ஒரே உருவமாக மாற்றினாள். “கந்தன்’ என பெயர் பெற்ற அந்தக்குழந்தைக்கு, தன் சக்தியை ஒன்று திரட்டி வேலாக கொடுத்தாள்.சக்தி வேலுடன் புறப்பட்ட கந்தன், சூரபத்மனை சம்ஹாரம் செய்து தேவர்களைக் காப்பாற்றினார். இதன் அடிப்படையில், ஐப்பசி மாதம் அமாவாசைக்கு மறுநாளான வளர்பிறை பிரதமை முதல் சஷ்டி வரை ஆறுநாள் கந்தசஷ்டி விரதம் இருப்பர். ஆறாவது நாளான சஷ்டியன்று, முருகன் கோவில்களில் சூரசம்ஹாரம் நடத்தப்படும்.
விரத முறை:
* அதிகாலை 4.30-6 மணிக்குள் நீராட வேண்டும். நாள்முழுவதும் விரதம் இருக்க முடிந்தவர்கள், பால்,பழம் மட்டும் சாப்பிடலாம். ஓரளவு தாக்கு பிடிப்பவர்கள் ஒருவேளை உணவும், மற்ற நேரங்களில் பால், பழமும் சாப்பிடலாம். உடல்நிலை காரணமாக சாப்பிட வேண்டிய
கட்டாயத்தில் இருப்பவர்கள் எளிய உணவு எடுத்துக் கொள்ளலாம். ஒரு காலத்தில் வெறும் தண்ணீருடன் விரதம் இருந்தவர்கள் உண்டு.
* முருகனுக்குரிய மந்திரங்களான “ஓம் சரவணபவ’ “ஓம் சரவணபவாயநம’ “ஓம் முருகா’ ஆகிய மந்திரங்களில் ஏதாவது ஒன்றை நாள் முழுதும் ஜெபித்து வர வேண்டும்.
* திருப்புகழ், கந்தசஷ்டிகவசம், ஸ்கந்தகுருகவசம், சண்முககவசம் பாடல்களில் ஏதேனும் ஒன்றை காலையிலும், மாலையிலும் பாராயணம் செய்ய வேண்டும்.
வழித்துணையாய் வா முருகா!
*முழுநிலவு போல குளிர்ச்சியான முகத்துடன் விளங்கும் முருகப்பெருமானே! வெற்றி தரும் வேலாயுதத்தை தாங்கியவனே! உன்
அன்பைப் பெற என் மனம் ஏங்கித் தவிக்கிறது. என்னை உன் அடிமையாக ஆட்கொள்ள வந்தருள வேண்டும்.
*முருகா! என் கண்கள் காண்பதாக இருந்தால் உன் திருவடித் தாமரைகளையே காணட்டும். என் உதடுகள் உந்தன் திருப்புகழை மட்டுமே பேசட்டும். இரவும் பகலும் என் மனம், உன் பெருமையை மட்டும் சிந்தித்திருக்கட்டும். இந்த அரிய வரத்தை நீ தந்தருள வேண்டும்.
*மாமரமாய் நின்ற சூரனை இருகூறாகப் பிளந்த வெற்றி வீரனே! கற்றவர்கள் புகழ்ந்து போற்றும் ஞானபண்டிதனே! செவ்வானம் போல சிவந்த மேனியனே! கடம்பம், முல்லை மலர்களை விரும்பி அணிபவனே! அறிவுக்கண்களைத் திறந்து ஞானத்தைத் கொடுத்தருள்வாயாக.
முத்துப்போல பிரகாசிக்கும் புன்னகையுடன் காட்சி தருபவனே! உமையம்மையை மகிழ்விக்க வந்த சிவ பாலனே! அழகெல்லாம் ஒன்று திரண்டு வந்தது போல, கோடி சூரிய பிரகாசத்துடன் விளங்குபவனே! அருட்கண்களால் என்னைக் காத்தருள்வாயாக.
*எங்கள் எண்ணம், சொல், செயலுக்கு எட்டாத பரம்பொருளே! ஆறுமுகப்பெருமானே! எனக்கு வேண்டிய வரங்களை வாரி வழங்க
பன்னிரு கரங்களுடன் வந்தருள்வாயாக.
*கருணைக்கடலே! கந்தப்பெருமானே! நமசிவாயத்தின் நெற்றிக்கண்ணில் உதித்த அருட்சுடரே! வண்ண மயில் மீது வலம் வரும் சுப்பிரமணியனே! வள்ளி மணாளனே! இதயமாகிய குகையில் வீற்றிருக்கும் குகப்பெருமானே! உனது திருவடிகளை சிந்திக்கும் பாக்கியத்தைத் தந்தருள்வாயாக.
* ஆனைமுகப் பெருமானின் தம்பியே! ஆதிபராசக்தியின் புதல்வனே! வள்ளிக்கு வாய்த்தவனே! குன்றெல்லாம் குடிகொண்டிருக்கும் குமரப்பெருமானே! சஷ்டி நாதனே! சூரபத்மனுக்கும் பெருவாழ்வளித்த புண்ணியமூர்த்தியே! எங்கள் தவறையும் மன்னித்து அருள்வாயாக.
*திருமாலின் மருமகனே! தெய்வானையை மணந்த வடிவேலனே! மலர்ந்த தாமரை போல எப்போதும் மகிழ்ச்சியுடன் இருப்பவனே! சேவல் கொடியோனே! மலைமகள் பார்வதி பெற்ற பாலகனே! மயில் வாகனனே! கிரகதோஷம் எதுவும் என்னைத் தாக்காமல் காத்தருள வேண்டும்.
Utilize your authority over this body to foster the welfare of the world. This body is but an instrument, an implement given by God. Let it serve its intended purpose. Until the realisation of the purpose for which the implement is given, it is your duty to watch over it vigilantly and protect it from injury and disablement. During winter, woollen clothes are worn to withstand the rigour of the cold gales, but when the cold subsides, they are discarded. So too when the cold gales of material life don’t affect us in the least, the material body will no longer become essential. “Thou-art-That” – this is the highest and holiest spiritual maxim! You are the indestructible Atmic principle (Divine Soul). It is to realise and experience this Atmic principle, you have this body! In the process to realise the Supreme Lord here and now, you must take good care of yourself.
The ad for plastic surgery featured Heidi Yeh with three children whose images were altered
A Taiwanese model who featured in an advert for plastic surgery is threatening to sue the clinic and advertising agency, after the ad became a popular internet meme. She told the BBC’s Cindy Sui in Taipei how she believes losing control of her own image ruined her life.
“I’ve broken down many times crying and I haven’t been able to sleep,” says Heidi Yeh, as she struggles to fight back tears.
“The biggest loss for me is I don’t want to be a model anymore.
“Just because I’m a model, people can hurt me like this and I can’t fight back. I just want to hide.”
‘You can’t hide it forever’
Her “nightmare” began in 2012 with a photo shoot for an advertisement aimed at convincing people to get plastic surgery at a Taiwanese cosmetic clinic. The photo showed very attractive “parents” with sought-after big eyes and long, well-defined noses, and their three “children”, their images altered to make their eyes look exceptionally small and their noses flat.
The caption read: “The only thing you’ll ever have to worry about is how to explain it to the kids.”
Ms Yeh says her contract, signed by her agency and the Taipei office of US-based international advertising agency J Walter Thompson (JWT), stated the ad would be used in newspapers and magazines, by that clinic only.
But JWT later allowed another plastic surgery clinic, Simple Beauty, to use it on its website; it also put the image on JWT’s Facebook page.
Before long, the photo made its way across the internet, with a new caption: “Plastic surgery – you can’t hide it forever.”
‘People thought it was real’
Then in 2012, a Chinese tabloid attached it to a fake story – which first emerged in 2004 – about a husband from Heilongjiang who sued his wife when he found out she had plastic surgery before they met, because their children grew up to look nothing like her.
“When I first heard about this from a friend, I thought it was just a one-off rumour,” said Ms Yeh.
“Then I realised the whole world was spreading it and in different languages. People actually thought it was real. Even my then-boyfriend’s friends would ask about it.”
The picture and accompanying stories came up on Google in several languages, including Arabic, English and Japanese, and have become a global meme.
Ms Yeh, who has shot TV commercials and ads for major companies such as fast-food chain KFC, computer maker Vaio and a Japanese facial products brand, began to get less work.
“People refused to believe that I had never had plastic surgery. Clients would ask me if I was the woman in the picture. After this, I only got small roles in advertisements.”
It also, she says, affected her personal life. She suspects her then-boyfriend broke up with her partly because he was embarrassed by the rumours. She says relatives and her current fiance’s family have also asked about them. Strangers would spot her in public and gossip about her, she adds.
‘No-one controls the internet’
Ms Yeh estimates she has lost $4m new Taiwan dollars (£80,000; $123,000) in potential earnings. She is threatening to sue JWT and the cosmetic clinic for NT$5m. She says her goal is not the money, but to clarify that none of the stories are true, and to get the companies to own up to their role in how her image was used.
Ms Yeh said she had tried many times, through her modelling agency or on her own, to get the clinic and advertising agency to remove the image from their online sites, but they didn’t until shortly before she, with the help of a Taipei city councillor, held a press conference this month where she made her threat to sue.
In a statement to the BBC, JWT said its campaign “was created to promote plastic surgery services in a humorous manner”, adding that it owns the copyright to the photo, and so has rights to edit, modify and use it.
But Ms Yeh’s lawyer, Chang Yu-chi, disagrees: “We gave you the copyright and the right to edit it, but we didn’t give you the right to let another company use it, and to use it online.”
Asked whether JWT tries to ensure its advertisements are not misused, the agency says: “As we all know, no-one controls the internet… We can’t anticipate what degree of an impact it will have, how people will view it, and what they will do with it.”
The clinic says it followed proper procedures to obtain the rights to use the image.
Both companies are threatening to sue Ms Yeh in turn for damaging their images and have demanded she hold another press conference to apologise. Some people, meanwhile, have suggested online that she’s seeking fame to re-launch her career.
But Ms Yeh says she is a victim of cyber-bullying, and that she decided to speak out to give herself courage.
As for the children, Ms Yeh and the little girl’s mother both said their images were edited to make them look less attractive. The mother told reporters her daughter was disappointed with how she looked in the photo.
Ms Yeh says she hopes the image stops appearing. “I can’t bear to look at it… The children may not use social media now, but it will hurt them when they grow up.”
Take off with Natarajan 