Sacred architecture in India

Religious architecture is also known as saved architecture. Religious architecture is with the design and construction of religious or spiritual or worship places like church, temple, mosque. Religious architecture expresses religious beliefs, aesthetic choices, and economic and technological capacity of those who create or adapt it and thus places of worship show a great variety depending on time and place. In Hinduism, the temple is called as Mandir. Each mandir is dedicated to a specific Hindu God or goodness. Today, the temples in India have reminded us of our past and the architectural brilliance of craftsmen in those days. Brahadeshwara temple, Tanjore, TamilNadu. Kailasnath temple, Ellora. Chennakeshava temple, Karnataka was the temple named for its architecture.

Christianity is the third largest religion in India after Hinduism and Islam. Christian architecture refers to the buildings of churches. Christian architecture styles are not Gothic or Corinthian or Roman with a colonnade as is the case with many churches capturing the present trend to Indianise the church, in line with the Vatican II, it’s every part is native. Islamic architecture is the architecture of the Indian subcontinent produced by and for the Islamic patrons and purposes. An immense mausoleum of white marble, built in Agra between 1631 and 1648 by the order of the Mughal Emperor Shah Jahan in memory of his wife. The Taj Mahal is the jewel of Muslim art in India and one of the universally admired masterpieces of the world’s heritage. TheTaj Mahal was never a mosque, in fact, it wasn’t built by a Muslim but a Hinduin 17th century.

STRANGEST INDIAN LAWS

There are some  of the weirdest laws, we ’ve never come across. There are some laws and legislation, which are completely ridiculous and would make you doubt our Indian Constitution thought process . Let’ s have a look at some of them, and laugh our heart’s out.

According to the Indian Aircraft Act, if any person at the time of flying aircrafts, by any means hurt anyone or cause danger to their property then a fine of upto Rs.10 lac could be charged from them. Aircraft here would include flying machines, balloons, gliders and even kites. Never thought   in our childhood, that flying of kites could also land us to such situations .Next time, any one of you who wants to fly a kite specially around August 15 should be careful.

The next one, should be awarded for being the best biased adultery law. As per Section 497, adultery is  prohibited. This law punishes only men. For those men  engaging in sexual activity with women who’re married, without getting consent from their husband is entitled to be charged with fine ,or put behind the bars for five years. This  law doesn’t hold anything against the women, and taking full advantage of the law , they do whatever they want.

The law permits  anyone to use the restroom and  even drink water at any hotel, whether they’re staying there or not. This came into existence under the Indian Sarais Act,1867  some 150 years ago. “Sarais” actually means building  which are used for accommodation and shelter of traveller hotels. This law however, works in the public interest and the next time we’re travelling we  should definitely keep this in our minds.

Discrimination against LGBTs- Section 377 states that homosexual intercourse  as illegal , though there’ve been endless debates on this topic. The Indian constitution  seem to be snatching away the basic right of someone to choose their own partner.

According to the East Punjab Agricultural Pests, diseases and Noxious Weeds Act, 1948, people in and around Delhi are expected to beat drums ,in order to drive them away. This seemed to be taken seriously  this lockdown, when locusts in huge number attacked the farms. As a result, the farmers were instructed to produce high pitch noise , using  utensils and drums to scare them away from India, in an attempt to prevent our crops.

According to Section 309 of the Indian Penal Code(IPC), since one cannot arrest a dead person it’ s considered to be no crime. On the other hand, failing on attempting to commit suicide is considered to be illegal  and punishable .It’ s been specified that the act should be voluntary and intentional attempt towards self destruction. Cases where a person would die because of overdose of medicine, or mistakenly falling from a cliff , doesn’t  come inside under the IPC.

According to the Indian Motor Vehicles Act,1914 in order for anyone to qualify for being a motor vehicle inspector in Andhra Pradesh, need to get sparkly, white clean teeth. Maybe they’re under the impression, that in absence of electricity power there white ,sparkly teeth could be of great help  , as it would light their path ahead.

River and Lakes are always interesting and commercially important for those who live near them.


River and lakes are almost as old as civilization itself. The roads and rails are, admittedly a much later phase. Even in the prehistoric days, the waters formed the prime routes. Naturally, commerce, art and culture and even raids or invasions were largely dependent on it.
Venice is a city of lakes even today. In Europe, the rivers Peo, Rhine, Seine and the Adriatic Sea; and in Egypt, the River Nile was the chief sources of that imported and exchanged the various centuries. They contributed largely to the Mediterranean culture. In India the Gangetic and the Indus Valley are riparian.
The cargo boats in the Ganges ply trade materials like the bamboos and logs of woods. In Myanmar(Burma), and Yangon(Rangoon) the timber trade is a regular feature of the commercial use of the rivers. When road traffic gluts in big cities the authorities take recourse to the rivers. To cite, in Kolkata the Gange now lends large scale relief to the town administrators, and boat ferry has made the movements of commuters and others much easier as well as healthier. Again the rivers provide and have provided a never-ending source of enjoyment, fun and games. The Dhakuria lake in Kolkata becomes seasonally a site for delectable rowing by the member of the KolkataRowing club. The river Thames that skirts many towns and cities in England becomes alive often with rowing boats. Needless to mention that this event is centuries old in England.
These days there are adventurous feats for ambitious youths in which the river plays a significant role. Rafting for instance. Many young boys and girls jump into the fray regardless of the hazards of the game. It involves a pluck and courage to dare the turbulent current of the reader. It usually takes place in the upper reaches of the Ganges. Sometimes although very rarely, one is lost in a vortex. But the joy is in the adventure itself, a fit enterprise for the youth.
Thus the rivers are the natural outlets of the stored energy of young men, whereas the lakes are artificial ones. Such amusements and exercises are avowedly healthy ones and the phenomenon is steadily gaining ground.
There are some places in North Bihar and Bangladesh or Assam which have intricate river network. Although today we have improved modes of river communications, in more primitive days the men there had to depend more on showed greater pluck and courage in negotiating watery tracts. It is interesting to read the stories of their lives. They lived to plunge into the river day in and day out and very seldom suffered from cough and cold. In the rainy season, they shifted to safer and higher regions loading their belongings which they could savage on wooden cots that served as boats. What struck terror in the hearts of town dwellers, was those lads interesting and play like.

Are we living lives dominated by technology? Does it rob us of our people skills?

It was a week of truly longish, unplanned blackouts. The pillar box was hit by a truck, and power went off in a block of buildings. Our world plunged into non-connectivity during the day and total darkness at night.

Ever notice how when there is a blackout, everyone goes outside? We flatmates met and introduced ourselves, though we’ve lived a few feet away from one another for months. In that break from our frenetic schedules involving mobiles, Internet, video games and TV, we connected with people. We had no idea when we’d see “light”, so we talked about “coping” and soon realised we all sounded happy.

We talked of a time when grandma didn’t depend so much on electricity, dad remained supremely efficient without a cellphone, our aunts brought all the local gossip from temple visits and weddings, and not from websites. We talked of buildings without ugly power grids or cellphone towers, of fewer road accidents, riding bicycles, of clean ponds and parks.
A teacher from a digitally modern school told us this story. “A computer techie messed up our server system,” she said. “It was near-disaster! Our computerised attendance register was gone, and so were LAN, mark sheets, teachers’ notes, question papers, classroom material, presentations and a lot of the students’ work.” But that lasted only for a day, she said. The teachers woke up to the challenge and roped in kids to do the “paper work”. Together they prepared the teaching aids, kept the attendance record straight and wrote lesson plans for the coming week. “The kids said they were very happy to do the work,” she said. “I felt I got closer to a lot of them.”

What neurologists say

Neurologists already talk of how our brains are shaping to respond to a “gadgetised” life. A micro-chip induced life could blur our view of the line between living and non-living machines, they warn. We already see an example of this when we try to give directions on the phone. Somehow even simple directions have become rocket science, the caller half following what’s said and calling a dozen times till he reaches the door. Is it because constantly interrupted by digital intrusions, we’ve lost the capacity to analyse, plan, remember and execute work? Does gadget dependence take away our confidence in our abilities?

“Electronic devices, like pharmaceutical drugs, have an impact on the micro-cellular structure and complex biochemistry of our brains. And that, in turn, affects our personality, our behaviour and our characteristics,” says Professor Susan Greenfield in her book. “It’s pretty clear that the screen-based, two-dimensional world that so many teenagers — and a growing number of adults — choose to inhabit is producing changes in behaviour. Attention spans are shorter, personal communication skills are reduced and there’s a marked reduction in the ability to think abstractly.” The games-driven generation interprets the world through screen-shaped eyes, she insists. It’s almost as if something hasn’t really happened until it’s been posted on Facebook or YouTube.

Psychologists tell us that we could be raising kids who live only for the thrill of the computer-generated moment. They are in danger of detaching themselves from what the rest of us would consider the real world, they say. As for us, we live in a world so technologically dependent that even a computer crash gives us many anxious moments. . Question is: Should pleasure be defined by the endless hours spent in front of a computer console? Should it be defined by our giggles at online comics?

Connecting with people

In a business-centred existence, there is probably no going back to a pre-computer age. That age will demand that we do more of our work ourselves; information won’t travel so quickly, and medical science may get frozen. But consider this theory: If all modern technology shut down and we were forced to live without e-appliances and gadgets, we’d adapt. It might signal more face-to-face time with people instead of emails and texting, might mean more walking and knowing what goes on in our neighbourhood. We might come out of the “lonesome boundary of life” that teleworking creates, and stop to smile at our neighbour, rather than at a shadow appearing on a pixellated screen. Some of us might even start a campaign for the rights of pedestrians.

Maybe it’s time we cut down the computer/cellphone/television-coloured hours and step out to look at the moon. Or go to one of those lovely resorts in the Mudumalai forest which are not “connected”, and spend time fishing, swimming, taking pictures of animals or simply gazing at spotted deer.

Sleep: A Different Journey

Zzz. Feeling sleepy? Every day you sleep during the night or maybe due to some work restrictions or perhaps day-night shift, you may also doze in the morning. Why do we do so? Isn’t it natural? But not everyone does sleep peacefully; some suffer insomnia, take sleeping pills, or maybe stay awake for some urgent work. Everyone does have a problem, and every issue has a solution.

A sleeping baby. You must have slept like this in your childhood. Isn’t this picture so cute?

You may know that bear hibernate around five to seven months, depending on the surrounding conditions. Do they sleep? Sleep and hibernation are different. During the stage in which a bear goes through is usually where it almost halts the body by reducing breathing, the heart rate goes done to conserve energy, and the noticeable difference you saw is that it is for a more extended period. How much should we sleep? According to research, a baby’s optimal sleep time is around 14 to 17 hours, whereas adults must nap for at least 7 to 9 hours for a good day start. A toddler or teenager may sleep an hour or extra for better results in proper body functioning.

The human body needs to relax, repair the damages, and also generate new hormones. The pineal gland of your body is responsible for the generation of the sleep hormone, generally known as melatonin, or called as the sleep hormones. These hormones are also responsible for skin color. Sleeping correctly in the right position is also a point to be considered as other body function takes place such as digestion unless you sleepwalk. This problem usually happens due to sleep deprivation, or else too much stress is taken. Sleeping helps to reduce stress, body pain relieves, and you can get smarter; also, yes, that’s true because the brain is actively working, and even your hearing is functional as you wake up in the morning after you hear the alarm clock if it is set. You may listen to your snore too. Snoring is usually due to several reasons like a blocked nose or due to alcohol consumption, etc.

Is that your friend? We usually mock saying that our friend sleeps like a monkey.

A new app is on the way created by the Finnish students named the app as AppneaTracker. The app is so smart that it uses the sensors present in the device to track your sleeping positions as well as record your voice to trace back how long you took snores. The beta development version of the app is in the Google Play Store to try out. Although, it won’t be accurate compared to actual devices as the sensors are well-calibrated for that specific purpose.

Sleeping has many proven scientific benefits like reduction in depression, and irregular sleep cycles may indirectly affect emotion as well as the state of mind. Hence, it is advisable by our elders when they say to us that a wise man accurately follows a schedule, goes early to sleep for a better day start. Hence, people can improve productivity too. This message is a call to everyone, one minor change, and you can neglect hundreds of problems in your life.

Everyone needs sleep, so do you. Sleep on time and make your body feel better.

World Zoonoses Day – July 6

A zoonosis is any disease or infection that is naturally transmissible from vertebrate animals to humans. Animals thus play an essential role in maintaining zoonotic infections in nature. Zoonoses may be bacterial, viral, or parasitic, or may involve unconventional agents. As well as being a public health problem, many of the major zoonotic diseases prevent the efficient production of food of animal origin and create obstacles to international trade in animal products.

Monday 6th July 2020 marks World Zoonoses Day 2020. This year, the 150 partners in the One Health Poultry Hub will observe a two-minute silence of private reflection on those who are known, and those who remain unknown, who are suffering from endemic and emergent zoonotic diseases. These diseases, such as Covid-19 and Ebola, affect millions of communities around the world every year. The two-minute silence will take place at noon local time.This year’s World Zoonoses Day comes amidst the defining global health crisis of our time. In the context of the global pandemic, the world’s attention has been focused around one infectious zoonotic diseases. While major recent zoonotic modern disease outbreak, such as Covid-19 or Ebola, and cause major world disruption, much of the work the One World Poultry Hub and other One Health research projects explore concerns diseases that go under the news radar but are still devastating, those such as salmonella and other foodborne diseases. The reasons these diseases remain little talked about are complex – not least that how they are transmitted and approaches to managing them are often hard to fit into traditional media narratives- Institute of Development studies

Zoonoses are disease which can be transmitted from aniamls to humans. In fact, 2 out of every 3 infectious disease in people originated within animals.

This is why protecting animal health is so vital. Preventing and managing disease in animals ultimately safeguards the health of people!

City noise.


In modern ecology, sound pollution has come for serious discussion. Formerly men did not mind persistent loud noises. It disturbed the peace of poets and thinkers, but it was not considered to be a factor that could tell upon one’s health. But today it is so.
City noises or noisy cities are both alike. The main factor that contributes to their unwelcome noise is the loudspeaker. It is said that Rabindranath Tagore had forbidden the use of loudspeaker in the draft Constitution of the Santiniketan. It is strictly observed during marriages or other social functions. Its use during cultural functionoise pollution.ns remains confined within the halls.
The big cities are most subject to such noise pollutions. Publicity vans, cinema songs, functions or marriages deafen us with their decibel sounds. The horns in cars honk in extraordinary loud sounds. As a result, some hospitals are marked no horn zone. Now the doctors often come across deaf cases caused by high sounds in factories.
Not very long ago people had a notion that louder kirtan prayers carry higher rewards.Consequently the temples,the mosques and the gurudwaras set mikes on all sides of their building.These prayer sometimes continue for days on end .One canot protest because it is a secular country.The serious student affairs,the patient soreds restless nights..This preactice has been in vogue since long.But now the Kolkata High Court has passed a judgement restricting the decibel limit of such sounds.Students often face problems when loud music is played during examinations.Critical heart patients staying at home becomes ill and feels terrible.
Infact high noises affect not only our hearing ,it has slow poisoning effect on brains as well..The human brain is a highly sensetive organ..The repellent noice caused a kind of tendion in the brain: and its continued effect may cause any kind of damage to the human sensibility..Itvis a well known fact that hardened criminals are often treated with this device.They are subjected for hours to continuous monotonous deafening noice so that their psychological resistance is broken.It often yields tge desired result.
Like other kinds of pollution ,the remedy to this dangerous curse lies with men themselves.The government or the High Court may contain the nuisance by enforcing strict measures.But men at large ,must pay regard fo the feelings of others..Loud noise is never a sign of culture.Nehru remarked ” Culture is never loud ,culture is quiet” A cultured man is noted for his quite and restrained manners.Only the uncultured think that he gains by creating abnormal noise.
Pollutions caused by unhealthy sound are less obvious than those caused by light and smell..In the latter case the senses immediately react.The eyes automatically shrink against unusual glares.Similarly the hands coverthe noise against foul smoke.Where a long dinning noises do not stem to affect us outwardly but they sink into our senses like an undeen evil.Sometimes a man becomes dangerously conditioned to this.I have read a railway enployee complain that he can not sleep in a restful surrounding.The shnnting noise of the engines bring him sound sleep.What a tragedy!!!

“Guru purnima”

Wanted to write about Mother since the long time but was just waiting for the right time… What can be more appropriate day than today ‘Guru purnima.’

A brief note for Guru purnima as how it all started. Guru purnima is celebrated to express our gratitude and respect towards our Gurujan(Guardian). A guru/ guardian can be in any form and in any field, they will always have your back till the end. Guru’s are worshiped and are tributed with ‘Guru dakshina’ on this day. The word guru has been derived from Sanskrit, ‘gu’ means the darkness,negativity and ‘ru’ means light, removal of darkness and positivity. Our guru enlighten us with the light of positivity. Guru’s are those who make our aura fill with the positivity and opportunities.

Your first Guardian is your mother no doubt. As she has been there since the day you took birth. The day you are born your mother becomes your Guru your Guardian angel. The basic etiquette are taught by our mother. She has the true essence of guru. Guru’s are known for their professionalism. But its not that they should be literate enough to teach us the lessons as life lessons are more important than the bookish knowledge which we are receiving now.

The word Mother has such a elegant beauty in itself that it feels pure bliss. The one who is closest to your heart and have been in the hard times with you standing erect as a wall for you. Your hard times are directly proportional to her hard times. Also she may scold you but its her right, she scolds because she doesn’t want you to fall into any cliche. She has such pure heart that small gesture from you will makes her immense happy. She doesn’t want you to purchase any luxurious things for her but to spend some quality time with her and talk to her about her favourites, likes and dislikes. On her birthday and on Mother’s day posting on social media for the show off purpose will bring you nothing..is she viewing your story on Instagram, facebook, or any other uploads by you!? Your time and your compliment is all what she needs! This is what makes her happy and not those posts and stories which only your friends would be viewing which ultimately means to show off. There have been many books written on the glory, love, affection of a mother towards her child. When its about her child then economic or financial crisis doesn’t seem to break her away, She does every possible thing irrespective of the status of their living. Even her biggest problem turns out to be nothing when her child come up with ‘their problems.’ No matter wherever you are she will call you and always ask you about your well beings and will ask if you had your meal. Sometimes you might forget to ask her about her wellness but that’s not in her case. Try to spend some quality time with her before it turns out to be your biggest regression. Show her that you love her. Your post will only show your love to your friends and followers not to your mother so instead show her that you genuinely do care and love her.

PS:- Me and my mother shares a strong bonding. We are like tom and jerry(Don’t take it in wrong conception, talking about the bonding they share) we do fight with each other like them; ) & give back to back answers to each other and laugh at it. She is extremely savage in giving answers with sarcasm..no not the meme’s one but the real life sarcasm. She is a true role model for me.

BEST ISOLATED INDIAN BEACHES TO VISIT POST LOCKDOWN

It’s been 3 months, since we’re  locked inside our homes, eagerly waiting  to leave for a vacation. As the restrictions would be released , soon we’ll be able to travel. But , initially we should try and avoid crowded places , and look for isolated places , exploring our very own India to it’s best. Exhausted by cooking , and fights, this places should be on your bucket list, post-coronavirus trip. For many of us, summer holidays means relaxing on the beaches, if you’re one of them  ,then this list is for you.

Guitar Island, Andaman- This is one  of the rarest beaches ,visited in Andaman. It’s uniqueness of the guitar shape, could only be admired from an aerial view. The moderate tropical climate with a a average temperature of 22 degree Celsius, makes it fit for tourists of all age to visit all the year  long. It is a clean beach, which comes with a jaw-dropping beauty. The island is perfect for one day escape , as they have no infrastructure or restaurant there. For any adventure seeking traveller, the sight of the beach is breathtaking. Travellers can go for snorkelling , and enjoy sea walks in the amazing aquatic life. This island is even safe for solo women travellers. This island is protected as a natural reserve because of it’s mangroves and coral life.

Butterfly Beach, Goa– Every year, tourists in huge numbers visit Goa and it’s difficult to find a quiet place, away from all the hustle .If you are someone, who is needs  to get away from the crowd for sometime, then this is the perfect location. With no vehicles there, the  only way to go to the semi-circular beach is through boat  , or two-hour trek from the Palolem Beach. The undisturbed place along with white sands  and blue waters, is the perfect for a blissful sunset .Lodging and food is available in the closest beach ,the Palolem beach. But , if someone enjoys the sight of host of marine species and enormous butterflies , then this is the place.

Marari Beach, Kerala –It’s perfect for the ones who would want to relax, exploring the backwaters of Kerala. Marari beach is not an island expected to have water sports and other activities, rather it is for one’ s who wants to spent their vacation lying around. It is an ideal place for an long beach walk, away from the main city. The best time to visit this place is between the months of December and March, the other time of the year is mainly hot and humid.

Ranpar Beach ,Maharashtra- This is the one of the most isolated places found in India, away from any kind of civilisation and disturbance. It’s best suited for ones who want to take a break from their normal routine, and go for meditation ,or some alone time. The odds fisherman are the only one’ spotted there ,trying to get a earning from it .Ratnagiri, the closest town  has a lot of beaches, but none of  the beaches can be compared to the serenity level provided by  this beach.

Importance Of A Woman In Life

In our society, women play an important role from birth to death. Despite showing proficiency in all their roles, in today’s modern era, the woman stands behind the man. In a male dominated society, the ability of a woman is seen less than that of a man. Despite the government running several programs to spread awareness, the life of a woman has become quite complicated compared to the life of a man. The woman has to take care of her life, as well as the whole family. She faithfully pursues relationships such as daughter, sister, wife, mother, mother-in-law, and grandmother all her life. Even after fulfilling all these relationships, she works with full power to make the future of herself, family and country bright.
Women play an important role in the development and progress of society. Without them, a developed and prosperous society cannot be imagined. There is a famous saying by Brigham Young that ‘If you are educating a man, then you are educating only one man but if you are educating a woman, you are educating the entire generation.
It is very important for the development of the society that girls should not get any kind of lack of education because they have to give a new direction to the society with boys in the coming times. If the truth of Brigham Young is considered true, according to that, if a man is educated, then he will only be able to develop himself, but if a woman gets the right education, then she has the power to change the whole society along with her.
Human life cannot be imagined without women. It would be called insanity that his talent should be ignored only on the basis that he is less powerful and less quality than a man. About half of India’s population is represented by women. If their capacity is not taken care of, then it clearly means that half of the population of the country will remain uneducated and if women are not educated, then that country will never be able to progress. We have to understand that if a woman despite being illiterate manages the house so well, then how well a educated woman will handle the society and the country.

Women build families, families build homes, houses make societies and society itself creates countries. It simply means that the contribution of women is everywhere. It is futile to imagine a society ignoring the woman’s potential. Without education and women’s empowerment, family, society and country cannot flourish. The woman knows when and how to deal with her troubles. The need is just to give freedom to his dreams.
Earlier, the condition of women was worse than that of slaves. If a woman gave birth to a girl, she was either killed or beaten by members of the household. It was considered a sin to give birth to a girl. They were only expected to give birth to a boy. But the situation changed with the changing times. Now people are more aware than before and have started coming forward to help women. There is still much to be done in this direction