Life is long and full of challenges. Most of those challenges are internal, and depend on how WE choose to accept and interpret them. Our lives can take very different paths, depending on what we do and how we look at what happens to us along the way. Here are 10 points of advice that if followed, will guarantee a better life – one that brings with it true peace of mind.
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Srikanth Bolla (pictured below) is standing tall living by his conviction that if the “world looks at me and says, ‘Srikanth, you can do nothing,’ I look back at the world and say ‘I can do anything’.”
When he was born, neighbours in the village suggested that his parents smother him.
It was better than the pain they would have to go through their lifetime, some said.
He is a “useless” baby without eyes… being born blind is a sin, others added.
Twenty-three years later, Srikanth Bolla is standing tall living by his conviction that if the “world looks at me and says, ‘Srikanth, you can do nothing,’ I look back at the world and say ‘I can do anything’.”
Srikanth is the CEO of Hyderabad-based Bollant Industries, an organisation that employs uneducated disabled employees to manufacture eco-friendly, disposable consumer packaging solutions, which is worth Rs 50 crores.
He considers himself the luckiest man alive, not because he is now a millionaire, but because his uneducated parents, who earned Rs 20,000 a year, did not heed any of the ‘advice’ they received and raised him with love and affection.
“They are the richest people I know,” says Srikanth.
Underdog success story
What is it about stories like Srikanth’s that so inspire and fill one with hope?
Could it be the multiple zeroes after a dollar sign or the belief that you and I can achieve similar success if we set our minds and hearts to it?
Underdog success stories touch a raw nerve. After all, everyone faces adversity, they dream, and they work hard.
It is another matter that only a few cross the threshold of limits set by society.
In Srikanth’s case, it is his sheer tenacity that shines through the dark clouds of his misfortune.
Being born blind was just one part of the story. He was also born poor. And you know what that means in a society like ours.
In school, he was pushed to the back bench and not allowed to play.
The little village school had no way of knowing what inclusion meant.
When he wanted to take up science after his class X, he was denied the option because of his disability.
All of 18, Srikanth not only fought the system but went on to become the first international blind student to be admitted to the prestigious Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in the US.
As author Paulo Coelho says, “We warriors of light must be prepared to have patience in difficult times and to know the Universe is conspiring in our favour, even though we may not understand how.”
Today, Srikanth has four production plants, one each in Hubli (Karnataka) and Nizamabad (Telangana), and two in Hyderabad (Telangana). Another plant, which will be one hundred percent solar
operated, is coming up in Sri City, an integrated business city in Andhra Pradesh, 55 kms from Chennai.
Angel investor Ravi Mantha, who met Srikanth about two years ago, was so impressed with his business acumen and vision for his company that he not only decided to mentor him but also invested in Srikanth’s company.
It was a small, tin-roof shack in an industrial area near Hyderabad. There were eight employees and three machines under the shed. I expected him to talk about how he wanted to make a social impact, but was surprised by the business clarity and technical knowhow in someone so young,” Ravi says.
They are raising $2-million (around Rs 13 crores) in funding and have already raised Rs 9 crores.
According to Ravi, his personal goal is to “take the company to IPO.”
A vision to build a sustainable company with a workforce comprising 70 percent people with disability is no mean task.
“Srikanth’s vision is inbuilt in the company. It is not just a lip service to CSR,” adds Ravi.
Isolation a big curse
“The isolation of differently-abled people starts at birth,” Srikanth said in his first public speech on the INKTalks stage in Mumbai last month. According to him, “Compassion is a way of showing someone to live; to give someone an opportunity to thrive and make them rich. Richness does not come from money, it comes from happiness.”
When Srikanth was growing up, his father, a farmer, would take him to the fields but the little boy couldn’t be of any help.
His father then decided that he might as well study.
“In my parent’s entrepreneurship model, I was a failure. In entrepreneurship, we have a lean business model where we evaluate an enterprise and say how quickly it fails.”
Since the nearest school in his village was five kilometres away, he had to make his way there mostly on foot. He did this for two years.
“No one acknowledged my presence. I was put in the last bench. I could not participate in the PT class.
That was the time in my life I thought I was the poorest child in the world. It was not because of lack of money but because of loneliness.”
When his father realised that the child was not learning anything, he admitted Srikanth to a special needs school in Hyderabad.
The boy thrived in the compassion he was shown there. He not only learnt to play chess and cricket but excelled in them. He topped his class, even embracing an opportunity to work with late President Dr APJ Abdul Kalam in the Lead India project.
But none of this mattered much because Srikanth was denied admission to the science stream in class XI.
He cleared the Andhra Pradesh class X state board exams with over 90 percent marks, but the board said he could only take Arts subjects after that.
“Was it because I was born blind? No. I was made blind by the perceptions of the people.”
Having been denied the opportunity, Srikanth decided to fight for it.
“I sued the government and fought for six months. In the end, I got a government order that said I could take the science subjects but at my ‘own risk’. ”
Thus not ‘risking’ anything to chance, Srikanth did whatever he could to prove them wrong.
He got all the textbooks converted to audio books, worked day and night to complete the course and managed to secure 98 percent in the XII board exams.
Fortune favours the brave
Sometimes, life mimics a steeplechase. Especially when it comes to those it has big plans for.
It did not give Srikanth enough time to bask in his victory when it threw another spanner in the works. He applied for IIT, BITSPilani, and other top engineering colleges, but did not get a hall ticket.
Instead, “I got a letter saying ‘you are blind, hence you are not allowed to apply for competitive exams.’ If IIT did not want me, I did not want IIT either. How long can you fight?”
He chose his battles carefully and did his homework searching the Internet to find the best engineering programme for someone like himself. He applied to schools in the US and got into the top four — MIT, Stanford, Berkeley, and Carnegie Mellon.
He went to MIT (with a scholarship) as the first international blind student in the school’s history.
It wasn’t easy adjusting to life there, but by and by he started to do well.
Towards the end of his bachelor’s course when the ‘what next’ question came up, it brought him back to where he had started.
“Many questions bothered me. Why should a disabled child be pushed to the back row in the class? Why should the 10 percent of the disabled population of India be left out of the Indian economy?
Why can’t they make a living like everyone else with dignity?”
He decided to give up the ‘golden’ opportunity in corporate America and came back to India in search of answers to his questions. He set up a support service platform to rehabilitate, nurture and integrate differently-abled people in society.
“We helped about 3000 students in acquiring an education and vocational rehabilitation. But then I thought what about their employment? So I built this company and now employ 150 differently-abled people.”
Good always rebounds
Entrepreneur bravehearts like the warriors of Paulo Coelho always find one unflinching support, an anchor to keep them afloat. In Srikanth’s case, it is his co-founder Swarnalatha.
“She was his special needs teacher in school. She has been his mentor and guide through all these years. She trains all the employees with disabilities at Bollant thereby creating a strong community where they feel valued,” says Ravi, adding, “Srikanth is a true source of my inspiration. He is not only my young friend and protégé but is also my mentor who teaches me daily that anything is possible if you set your mind to it.”
The boy who was born blind is today showing many the path to real happiness.
He says his three most important life lessons are: “Show compassion and make people rich. Include people in your life and remove loneliness, and lastly, do something good; it will come back to you.”
Lead image: Kind courtesy INKTalks
source….Dipti Nair in http://www.rediff.com
Natarajan”
Embodiments of Divine Love! Wherever you may be, never give room for any differences. Everyone must get rid of all selfishness, self-interest and self-centeredness. Mutual regard (Mamatha), equipoise (Samatha) and forbearance (kshamatha) are basic qualities necessary for every human being. Hence develop love, forbearance and compassion. Realise that love is present in everyone. Get rid of all differences and adhere to your faith and traditions. Learn to live in love and harmony with all the members of your society. When differences of all kinds are given up, love will grow in you and you can have a direct vision of God. Without love, verbal prayers are of no avail. Divine love is the only unifier, motivator and harbinger of joy to everyone. God is love and God can be realised only through love. All saints and religions have emphasized the greatness of love, truth, sacrifice and unity. Therefore cultivate love.
She could not walk alone herself once. She now helps others walk. Meet Tiffany, the woman with visual disability who has a vision beyond the ordinary.
“What does it mean when people say I cannot walk by myself, I cannot travel by myself? I have a mouth to talk, I have a brain to think, I can walk, and I have a cane to find my way around. Then why can I not travel by myself? I was like a bird in a cage, not allowed to come out without an escort. But now my life has been transformed,” these words and thoughts just tumble out of an excited Tiffany Brar.
The “whys” and “why nots” that once plagued her are now helping her change the lives of other blind people. She is on a journey from complete dependency and is well on the road of independence.
Tiffany is a 26-year-old teacher, entrepreneur, motivational speaker, and she is blind. Being blind is the last piece of information you need about her because she has created many more powerful identities for herself.
Earlier, she was not trusted with the ability to take care of herself and her personal needs. She never travelled by herself. She did not even know that the ‘white cane’ existed. Tiffany’s life, until she was 18, was like that of a typical, totally dependent blind person in India. But it had to change.
As far back as Tiffany can remember, she has been blind. Born into an army family, Tiffany was schooled across India — Darjeeling, Delhi, Thiruvananthapuram, and Wellington — accommodating her father’s postings. While her father, General Brar, was busy at his demanding job, it was her mother, Leslie, who was Tiffany’s backbone. She was a gentle, caring woman who strongly influenced the little girl’s early life. Leslie always felt for the poor and went out of her way to help the needy. And this gentleness is what she left with Tiffany before succumbing to a fatal illness.
Tiffany was all of 12 years when her mother passed away. Those were tough times and Tiffany had to gather her courage and learn to live life by herself. Her father was posted in Delhi but Tiffany found herself completely out of place in the big city. She loved a simple life and the high society buzz in Delhi did not settle well with her. Tiffany went back to Thiruvananthapuram, a place very close to her heart and where she lives today, to continue her schooling until 11th standard. The final year of her schooling was in Wellington, a place that gave her the strongest support in her life, Vinita Akka.
Neither the regular schools, nor the blind schools that Tiffany went to, had bothered to teach her how to handle these basic needs. She recalls that sometimes she and other blind children even wore their clothes inside out. They cared little about their physical appearance. When Vinita Akka began to take an interest in Tiffany, the seeds for change were sown. Tiffany started dressing well and began to learn to manage her day-to-day activities on her own. She persistently trained herself to change her mannerisms as well. Yet, there were many more miles to cross on the road to independence.
Tiffany could not go anywhere alone. She was always escorted by someone. The words “impossible” and “you can’t do it” continually echoed from the people around her. But Tiffany was determined that this would not continue. By the time she got a chance to break free and discover herself, she had spent 18 years of her life like this.
After completing her schooling at Wellington, Tiffany moved to Thiruvananthapuram to pursue her Bachelors in English, along with Vinita Akka who was by now like a mother to her. It was here that her life changed. Her father once took her to the Kanthari Center in Thiruvananthapuram, an organization that provides leadership training for individuals who are inclined to bring about social change. Tiffany held her father’s hand and started walking towards the Kanthari office that was under construction. That’s when Sabriye Tenberken, the co-founder of Kanthari, handed a white cane to Tiffany and urged her to walk on her own.
Her father immediately shouted, “No, you cannot walk alone here. There’s rubble and debris all around. You will fall.”
Something inside Tiffany made her push aside her father’s hand, raise her own hands and grab the white cane, unheeding of the anxious voice of her father.
Tiffany joined Kanthari as a receptionist and went on to do an entrepreneurship course at the organization. By now she was travelling all by herself. She found her way on the public roads and transport, which she otherwise wouldn’t ever have traversed without constant help. She took buses to go around the city and uninhibitedly asked people for help to cross the roads. By now, she had many friends who she would meet on her daily commute, who looked up to her with pride.
Once Tiffany felt that she was living like any other person, she wanted many like her to experience this joy. She found the inspiration to serve in Sabriye Tenberken and her husband Paul Kronenberg, the co-founders of Kanthari. Sabriye was herself blind but had made an extraordinary effort to come out of her own limitations to help other blind people.
Braille without Borders
Tiffany recognized that, like them, she too could bring about a change in the lives of the blind.
To equip herself better, she decided to pursue a B.Ed. in Special Education from Sri Ramakrishna Mission Vidyalaya in Coimbatore. Given her own experience, she knew how other blind people were afraid to come out of their protected zones. They lacked mobility, confidence and the necessary life skills to accomplish this on their own. According to the 2001 census survey, there were 400,000 blind people in the state of Kerala.
“Where were all these blind people? Why didn’t we see them walking on our roads? I decided I must be the one to make a difference,” says Tiffany, who was, in 2012, well equipped with her education to start her project ‘Jyothirgamaya.’
The idea was the brainchild of N. Krishnaswamy, a retired police officer from Tamil Nadu, and the first of its kind in the state of Kerala.
Through Jyothirgamaya, Tiffany and her team visit the homes of many blind people in Thiruvananthapuram. They teach them Braille, computers, personal grooming, and other life skills. They are taught to use the white cane and become mobile. Jyothirgamaya organizes camps across Kerala to mobilize the blind. It also organises outdoor activities, city tours and introduces new and unfamiliar activities.
Tiffany is just 26 and has a lifetime of service ahead that she’s prepared for.
“I envision a society without any physical or psychological barriers towards the blind – a barrier free environment where the blind can walk freely, can travel, can work, think for themselves, and live proud and dignified lives like other citizens. Society thinks that we can only sing sweet songs, only become teachers and telephone operators in the bank. But we can do more. We can dance, we can fire juggle, we can do martial arts, we can become managers and directors of companies. But society is constantly interpreting what we can do and what we can’t. This has to change very soon,” says a spirited Tiffany.
She is a woman with a vision beyond the ordinary.
About the author: Ranjini Sivaswamy is a freelance writer and one of the first team members of The Better India. She comes from a mass communication background and is currently a consultant with IIM Bangalore.
Source…..Ranjini Sivaswany in http://www.the betterindia.com
Natarajan
Dr Ganesh Rakh has delivered 436 baby girls free of charge. The son of a coolie and housemaid, he wanted to be a wrestler as a child, but his mother encouraged him to study hard and get a proper job.
The doctor wants to change the mindset of a ‘boy-obsessed’ society. A Ganesh Nadar/Rediff.com spoke to the doctor with a heart.
When I was a child I wanted to become a wrestler. My father was a coolie and my mother used to work as a housemaid washing people’s vessels in their home.
My mother said that if I became a wrestler I would eat up all the food in the house and there would be no food left for others. She also said that I would end up as a coolie like my father. Instead I should study and get a proper job.
I studied and became a doctor.
I have been a doctor for the past 15 years. In the early days I used to treat patients in their homes in the day and work in a private hospital in the night. Even when I was in college, I used to work the night shift in hospitals.
In 2007, I started the Medicare hospital. For the last four years we have not charged a fee when a girl child is born in this hospital. We have delivered 436 girl children through this scheme.
When a new-born girl child needs intensive care, we provide that too without charge.
Parents are obsessed with boys. They come to me and say they want a boy. I tell them ‘God decides.’ They don’t realise that doctors cannot do anything about the sex of the baby. They go to babas (godmen).
Pregnant mothers are so tense because relatives say give us a baby boy. In the delivery room if it is a boy they forget all the pain. If it’s a girl they start crying about the pain. Relatives celebrate when it is a boy; they ignore the mother if it is a girl.
When its time to pay the hospital bill, they will happily pay if it is a boy but grumble if it’s a girl. So I decided to celebrate the girl child and not charge for the delivery.
When a girl child is born we distribute cakes and sweets to all the patients in the hospital.
What is surprising is even when it is the first child, they want a boy. Even literate and rich people want a boy first. They feel that if they have a boy first they don’t have to worry about later children.
A few patients who deliver girls insist on paying. We tell them to give that money to other girl children born in our hospital who need the money.
A few twins have been born in our hospital. When both are girls we don’t charge anything. If one baby is a boy, we charge 50%.
We charges are Rs 10,000 for a normal delivery and Rs 25,000 for a Caesarean section.
When a girl child is born, we make the mother cut a cake. We distribute the cake and sweets to all the patients and relatives in the hospital. We also give bouquets to the mother and close relatives. We spend about Rs 2,000 per child on this.
This is a 50 bed hospital. There are 35 people working here, which includes doctors and support staff. I personally work very hard. We don’t have too much money to pay the extra staff. For the last six months, I have been doing night duty here.
I don’t know whether it is because of the free for girl child scheme or otherwise, but lots of deliveries are happening in our hospital. Sometimes 5 children are born here in one day.
When a patient asks us what baby she will deliver, we always say it will be a girl.
I know the national sex ratio is 914 females to 1,000 males. Only if everyone starts working like me can we make a difference to this. I cannot alone make a difference.
Everyone should celebrate a girl child. Celebrate your own girl child and automatically you will respect all girls. Crime against girls will decline. Crime starts in the mind.
Several panchayat leaders call me to speak in their villages. I go there as part of our campaign to ‘Save the girl child.’
I have met many doctors and told them not to charge for the delivery of a girl child, at least one a month. I encourage them and so far 6,000 doctors have supported me.
If every doctor in the country delivers one girl child free, lakhs of baby girls will be benefited.
A UN report in 2012 says that a girl child up to 5 years is 75% more likely to die than a boy in India. I have experienced this first hand. We have a neo-natal intensive care unit for babies.
For boys the parents will tell us to save the child till the last minute. When it is a girl they prefer to take the child home after sometime. They don’t try their best.
I have never contacted the government, any institution or individual for donations. For government funds you have to prepare lots of documents, so I have never applied.
I am not an accountant, I am a doctor. I am not an expert in collecting funds. If it comes good, if not we will continue with the work we are doing now. We will be able to do more work if funds come, if not we will do what we are doing now.
I work for almost 17 hours a day. I see 50 to 100 patients in the out patients department every day. I have to earn enough to support my girl child campaign. All my staff work very hard. I also work the night shift so that I don’t have to pay another doctor salary.
I live with my parents, my two brothers and their wives. I have a nine year old girl.
When I want to relax I play with my daughter. I teach her wrestling too. Spending time with my family is the only way I like to relax. I take my family with me when I go out for the ‘Save the girl child’ campaign.
I don’t take a weekly holiday. The last time I took a vacation was four years ago. I went to Kerala for a week with my family.
I have seen that educated people are the same when it comes to wanting a male child. Literacy makes no difference. I have observed that in tribal areas the sex ratio is better. The mindset has to change.
For things to change, society must learn to celebrate the girl child. They must realise that a girl child is as good as a boy child. They must not differentiate.
The government is running many campaigns to save the girl child, but its focus is on government hospitals. Female foeticide happens in private hospitals. Private hospitals must be encouraged to join the save the girl child campaign.
Only 5% pregnant mothers go to government hospitals. 95% go to private hospitals. The focus should be on private hospitals and private doctors.
6,000 doctors have promised me that they will deliver one baby girl free. Some have promised to deliver 5 baby girls free. Whether they are going to do it once a month or once a year, I don’t know. But every little bit helps. What is important is that these doctors will never support female foeticide.
A Ganesh Nadar / Rediff.com
Source……www.rediff.com
Natarajan
What does it mean when you say God descends as an Avatar?God out of His love, affection and compassion, comes down to the level of a human being and arouses the Divine Consciousness in humankind. When God finds that many people are desperately searching outside of themselves for God, He makes you aware of God within yourself. God is in fact the core in everyone. This chance, to realize God within, has been granted to you as a reward for merit acquired by you in many previous lives, so as to reach the highest goal of merging with the absolute. Every bird needs two wings to fly; a cart needs two wheels to be pulled along. To journey towards the highest goal, you need both faith and steadfastness – spiritual learning (vidya) and penance(tapas). Bhagavad Gita states, Knowledge of the Self (Atma Vidya) is the holiest. Knowledge (Vidya) shows the way, and the penance (tapas) makes you reach the goal. Both are necessary to attain the Ultimate.
Being in an airport during the busy holiday travel season can be stressful, but some of the biggest and best airports around the world embrace transform themselves to bring joy to your journeys.
With twinkling lights, pine-scented air, and the sound of sleigh bells, these terminals stand out with their impressive holiday cheer.
From London to Singapore, these airports outdo themselves every year with awe-inspiring displays.
No matter where you’re going this season, a trip through one of these airports is certain to put you in the holiday mood.
5 terminals that stand out with their impressive holiday cheer.
Where: Chicago, Illinois
Expect dazzling lights and terminals filled with boughs of holly at O’Hare International Airport this season, as the airport continues its annual tradition of celebrating the holidays in style. The nation’s third-busiest airport transforms into a winter wonderland, first visible on the road leading to the terminals, where bright, LED-wrapped trees and giant stars and spheres dot the perimeter of the grounds, forming a wintry landscape. Bright wreaths are adorned on many of the overhead signs throughout the airport roads, while oversize ornaments and lights are placed throughout the arrival and departure terminals. Be sure not to miss Terminal 3, where O’Hare’s signature globe is brought to life with the help of hundreds of LED lights, garland accents, and bright doves that float overhead. Aside from the decorations, O’Hare will host school choirs, jazz and blues bands, barbershop quartets and strolling carolers on select days throughout December.
Where: Singapore
In addition to its normal holiday decorations, the force is strong at Changi Airport this holiday season thanks to a partnership with Disney in anticipation of Star Wars: The Force Awakens. Testing the limits of intergalactic travel, Terminal 3 welcomes a life-size X-wing Fighter, offering visitors the chance to don costumes and hop inside the iconic aircraft for a photo opportunity in the cockpit. Plan your trip accordingly: Imperial Stormtroopers and X-wing Fighter pilots make appearance at the jet Saturdays at 4 pm throughout December. Look for dozens of other fun surprises throughout the terminals, including Star Wars’ humanoid protocol droid C-3PO which teaches Star Wars phrases in ten languages, a life-sized TIE fighter, and an obstacle course for the BB-8 droid.
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Where: London, England
With an extensive roster of musicians and festive décor, Heathrow Airport welcomes visitors this holiday season with daily events that are guaranteed to spread joy. Carolers, a string quartet, and a brass band are just some of the rotating acts set to entertain travelers this season throughout the airport’s four terminals. Heathrow offers travelers the great benefit of free gift wrapping, available in all terminals. And most helpful of all, Heathrow’s friendly “gift helpers” are on hand in all terminals, expert in finding the perfect gifts for your friends and loved ones.
Where: Zürich, Switzerland
A Swiss holiday haven, Zürich Airport glistens with the glow of 510,860 LED lights and 31 Christmas trees throughout the airport this season. During the holiday season, guests are treated to a deluxe offering of events and activities in the airport which include scheduled tours of the enormous double-decker Airbus A380 operated by Singapore Airlines, an elaborate and exclusive Christmas dinner, and cookie-baking classes for kids. Pop-up stores throughout the terminals include a festive Nespresso coffee spot and fine chocolates and sweets at the Läderach pop-up.
Where: Munich, Germany
Celebrating the season with the warmth and livelihood of a traditional German holiday market, the 17th Annual Winter Market returns to Munich Airport this year. Plan to spend the better part of an afternoon exploring the market’s 46 stands under the roof of the Munich Airport Center, where the sweet smell of mulled wine and roasted almonds fills the air. Arrive hungry and enjoy artisanal wurst and plenty of German beer on tap. With 450 real Christmas trees set amidst the market, the Winter Market is an ideal place to spend the most wonderful time of the year.
Source….www.businessinsider.com
Natarajan
NASA’s Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) recently captured a unique view of Earth from the spacecraft’s vantage point in orbit around the moon.
“The image is simply stunning,” said Noah Petro, Deputy Project Scientist for LRO at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland. “The image of the Earth evokes the famous ‘Blue Marble’ image taken by Astronaut Harrison Schmitt during Apollo 17, 43 years ago, which also showed Africa prominently in the picture.”
In this composite image we see Earth appear to rise over the lunar horizon from the viewpoint of the spacecraft, with the center of the Earth just off the coast of Liberia (at 4.04 degrees North, 12.44 degrees West). The large tan area in the upper right is the Sahara Desert, and just beyond is Saudi Arabia. The Atlantic and Pacific coasts of South America are visible to the left. On the moon, we get a glimpse of the crater Compton, which is located just beyond the eastern limb of the moon, on the lunar farside.
LRO was launched on June 18, 2009, and has collected a treasure trove of data with its seven powerful instruments, making an invaluable contribution to our knowledge about the moon. LRO experiences 12 earthrises every day; however the spacecraft is almost always busy imaging the lunar surface so only rarely does an opportunity arise such that its camera instrument can capture a view of Earth. Occasionally LRO points off into space to acquire observations of the extremely thin lunar atmosphere and perform instrument calibration measurements. During these movements sometimes Earth (and other planets) pass through the camera’s field of view and dramatic images such as the one shown here are acquired.
This image was composed from a series of images taken Oct. 12, when LRO was about 83 miles (134 kilometers) above the moon’s farside crater Compton. Capturing an image of the Earth and moon with LRO’s Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter Camera (LROC) instrument is a complicated task. First the spacecraft must be rolled to the side (in this case 67 degrees), then the spacecraft slews with the direction of travel to maximize the width of the lunar horizon in LROC’s Narrow Angle Camera image. All this takes place while LRO is traveling faster than 3,580 miles per hour (over 1,600 meters per second) relative to the lunar surface below the spacecraft!
The high-resolution Narrow Angle Camera (NAC) on LRO takes black-and-white images, while the lower resolution Wide Angle Camera (WAC) takes color images, so you might wonder how we got a high-resolution picture of the Earth in color. Since the spacecraft, Earth, and moon are all in motion, we had to do some special processing to create an image that represents the view of the Earth and moon at one particular time. The final Earth image contains both WAC and NAC information. WAC provides the color, and the NAC provides high-resolution detail.
“From the Earth, the daily moonrise and moonset are always inspiring moments,” said Mark Robinson of Arizona State University in Tempe, principal investigator for LROC. “However, lunar astronauts will see something very different: viewed from the lunar surface, the Earth never rises or sets. Since the moon is tidally locked, Earth is always in the same spot above the horizon, varying only a small amount with the slight wobble of the moon. The Earth may not move across the ‘sky’, but the view is not static. Future astronauts will see the continents rotate in and out of view and the ever-changing pattern of clouds will always catch one’s eye, at least on the nearside. The Earth is never visible from the farside; imagine a sky with no Earth or moon – what will farside explorers think with no Earth overhead?”
NASA’s first Earthrise image was taken with the Lunar Orbiter 1 spacecraft in 1966. Perhaps NASA’s most iconic Earthrise photo was taken by the crew of the Apollo 8 mission as the spacecraft entered lunar orbit on Christmas Eve Dec. 24, 1968. That evening, the astronauts — Commander Frank Borman, Command Module Pilot Jim Lovell, and Lunar Module Pilot William Anders — held a live broadcast from lunar orbit, in which they showed pictures of the Earth and moon as seen from their spacecraft. Said Lovell, “The vast loneliness is awe-inspiring and it makes you realize just what you have back there on Earth.”
Source…….www.nasa.gov
Natarajan
Follow at least one of the nine modes of devotion (Sravanam, kirtanam, etc.). It doesn’t matter how wealthy or learned you are; God is concerned only with the sincerity and purity of your mind and heart and the wholeheartedness and genuine nature of your love. Valmiki was a hunter. Nandanar was of a low caste. Kuchela was a poor man. Dhruva and Prahlada were five-year-old lads. Sabari was a tribal woman, illiterate and uncivilized. But all of them won God’s Grace in abundance, because of their wholehearted devotion, love and surrender. Follow Sabari’s example, who always thought of Sri Rama and His happiness, and dedicated all her thoughts, words, and deeds to Him alone, such that her every action was transformed and sublimated into the highest penance (tapas).Meditation does not mean sitting idle in a particular posture, like posing for a photograph. Like Sabari’s life, your life must become a continuous meditation wherever you are, and whatever you do.
Take off with Natarajan 