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The Last Poem of Hoshin

The Zen master Hoshin lived in China many years. Then he returned to the northeastern part of Japan, where he taught his disciples. When he was getting very old, he told them a story he had heard in China. This is the story:

One year on the twenty-fifth of December, Tokufu, who was very old, said to his disciples: "I am not going to be alive next year so you fellows should treat me well this year."

The pupils thought he was joking, but since he was a great-hearted teacher each of them in turn treated him to a feast on succeeding days of the departing year.

On the eve of the new year, Tokufu concluded: "You have been good to me. I shall leave you tomorrow afternoon when the snow has stopped."

The disciples laughed, thinking he was aging and talking nonsense since the night was clear and without snow. But at midnight snow began to fall, and the next day they did not find their teacher about. They went to the meditation hall. There he had passed on.

Hoshin, who related this story, told his disciples: "It is not necessary for a Zen master to predict his passing, but if he really wishes to do so, he can."

"Can you?" someone asked.

"Yes," answered Hoshin. "I will show you what I can do seven days from now."

None of the disciples believed him, and most of them had even forgotten the conversation when Hoshin next called them together.

"Seven days ago," he remarked, "I said I was going to leave you. It is customary to write a farewell poem, but I am neither poet nor calligrapher. Let one of you inscribe my last words."

His followers thought he was joking, but one of them started to write.

"Are you ready?" Hoshin asked.

"Yes, sir," replied the writer.

Then Hoshin dictated:

I came from brilliancy.
And return to brilliancy.
What is this?

The poem was one line short of the customary four, so the disciple said: "Master, we are one line short."

Hoshin, with the roar of a conquoring lion, shouted "Kaa!" and was gone.

For more such stories , log on to

http://www.101zenstories.com/index.php?story=10

The logic behind Logic

LOGIC

Logic has been defined as the study of the rules of correct thinking. It concentrates on the principles that guide rational thought and discussion. The most fundamental concept in logic is that of an argument. An argument must be distinguished from "arguing", which is a debate or disagreement between different people. The logical concept of an argument is: a set of statements, one of which is the conclusion , the others are premises, and the premises support the conclusion. In other words, it is a statement along with the evidence that supports it.

Logic plays a key role in philosophy. If there is going to be any rational discussion of different philosophical positions, the discussion must use the rules of logic. While logic will not specify what the content of the statements are, it will tell you how to arrange the statements in a logical fashion.

 

DEDUCTIVE ARGUMENTS

A deductive argument is one in which the conclusion is certain based on the premises. In a deductive argument the conclusion is contained in the premises.

INDUCTIVE ARGUMENTS

An inductive argument is one in which the conclusion is probable based on the premises. In an inductive argument the conclusion goes beyond the premises.

CATEGORICAL SYLLOGISMS

One of the earliest and most common forms of deductive logic was developed by the Greek philosopher Aristotle (384-322 B.C.). A categorical syllogism is a deductive argument containing three statements: two premises and one conclusion. Each of the three statements is a categorical statement. These statements can be of the form: All S are P, No S are P, Some S are P, or Some S are not P. An example of a valid categorical syllogism is:

	All humans are mortal.
	Socrates is a human.
	Therefore, Socrates is mortal.

 

ARGUMENT BY ANALOGY

A common form of inductive argument is the argument by analogy. This is an argument in which a conclusion is drawn about a situation based on similarities of this situation (analogies) to previous situations. For example, if we predict that a since it is snowing today a certain employee will be late because in the past when it was snowing the employee was late, we are making a probabilistic argument based on an analogy, the occurrence of snow.

 

MODUS PONENS

Here is a common form of deductive reasoning using the concept of a conditional or hypothetical statement. The name "modus ponens" comes from the Latin word "modus" meaning method, and the Latin word "ponens" meaning affirming.

	If it rains, then the sidewalks will be wet.
	It is raining.
	Therefore, the sidewalks will be wet.

FALLACIES

Logic also discusses the incorrect ways of reasoning. A set of statements that appears to be an argument but is not is a fallacy. There are formal fallacies, which break specific rules of logic, and there are informal fallacies which usually are phrased to appear as an argument but the statements purporting to be premises to do not support the conclusion. One example of this is called a "circular argument", in which the conclusion is used as the premise.

Why is counterfeiting illegal? I'll tell you why. It is because it is against the law!

Since "illegal" and "against the law" are the same concept, the speaker in the above fallacy is using the fact that counterfeiting is against the law to prove that it is illegal. In effect the speaker is just repeating the same statement two times. Nothing has been proven.

For more philosophical lectures...log on to

http://www.philosophyclass.com/index.htm

B-O-L-L-Y WOOD …….ahem ! ahem !

Okay! So it has been proved again. MALLIKA SHERAWAT CANNOT ACT and Bollywoodwallahs need to pull up their socks. I know they used to work hard once. At least they used to research for good

Hollywood

stuff, would try new genres and attempt avant garde auteurs in the wake of creativity a.k.a plagiarism. Gone are the days. Now,

Hollywood

’s even getting farther. All you need to do for a hit movie is analysis. Take a few HIT Bollywood movies; narrow down on the scenes that rocked theatres with applause like Airport scene from Chalte-Chalte, then Irrfan Khan’s horse-scene from Metro and the regular contemporary college friendship-turned-romance and you get a blockbuster. No goodies for guessing. You got that I’m talking about Jaane Tu Ya Jaane Na…I still did not mind sparing a few hours for this one , at least I did not waste my hard-earned money on it. (I watched it on YouTube) but then Ugly Aur Pagli could not save me from the unnecessary splurge and did not vasool any paisa for me. I always knew and believed that Mallika Sherawat is a bad actress and even the prescient critic inside me warned me but I didn’t pay any heed to it and end up watching the two-hour crap. Frankly speaking, it was never Mallika Sherawat I went for, it was definitely Ranveer Shorey’s droll humor that took me to theatre. Sorry Mr.Shorey, still a long way to go. You cannot take it on your shoulders and I really feel bad for you, for 99 slaps since you act well and gave us a few laughs. All kudos for Hard Kaur for making us groove. Anyhow some Mr. Khot has directed the movie and he clearly should not attempt another one. Our Office Ugly AUr PAgli are even funnier then this nonentity!

"Autopsychography" - 13+ Ways of looking at a poem

We know ourselves the best. May be or may be not. Deep down inside we know our fears, our desires and our true selves. Really? I have often surprised myself. Everyone does. But this man surprised his age with his personalities. It is often said four greatest Portuguese poets  of  modern time s are  Fernando  Pessoa ...he lived with three different  men inside him...Alberto Caeiro, Ricardo Reis and Álvaro de Campos...Ah! Human Psyche....it always surprises. Here, a translation of his poem that attempts self-analysis...there are various translations available of this poem...i found Keith Bosley's the best ..you can check the other translations on Pessoa's trunk
...http://www.disquiet.com/thirteen.html

The poet is a fake.
His faking seems so real
That he will fake the ache
Which he can really feel.

And those who read his cries
Feel in the paper tears
Not two aches that are his
But one that is not theirs.

And so in its ring
Giving the mind a game
Goes this train on a string
And the heart is its name.

—Keith Bosley

Okay …so that’s pheromones’ play!

Oh! So you too! You might have  often exclaimed at the biological wonder that gives us (I mean girls…) those uterine pangs at one time. Living in an all-girls dorm more than often teaches you a lot. While most of the time, it is the sob stories or idiosyncrasies of the opposite sex that eats up our time, there are other synchronies as well that we often wonder at. Here, awed by one such synchronism I discovered about McClintock effect. Okay…that’s basically female pheromones responsible for making us cringe simultaneously. Here are the details …..http://www.sciam.com/article.cfm?id=do-women-who-live-together-menstruate-together

 

Although, the clouds of doubt still hover…we can’t deny the effect; having experienced it!

 

Fountain Of Youth...

Reaching Mars, scouring history, unraveling all that is intriguing, still finding God – the juggernaut won’t stop. Carpe Diem! Who agrees? And now caught up with a new fantasy… After arresting the tissue growth (Botox) , the scientists want to hold the nature’s clock. Yes! Cosmetology have been successful(to some extent) in doing away with wrinkles and ageing lines but at the expense of physical well-being and one has to bear the brunt of it. While catching with the latest going-ons, I chanced upon two news items that speak of their fancy. Co-incidentally, the fact low-calorie diet is the secret behind the fountain of youth remains common. So going by your own good judgement, you could rely on either …here are the links: 

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/07/080703113652.htm

http://www.sciencenews.org/view/generic/id/33832/title/Fountain_of_Youth%2C_with_caveats

 

Peeping Toms

I wasn’t reading anything new. But then this was something that once again led me to the same state of indecisiveness; I often reach in my endeavor to understand human psyche. As I pranced upon this piece of news, I had something else going in the darkest corners of my mind. I, for certain, know that voyeurism is an unacceptable behavior but then how do you explain nudity in art. Won’t an artist who admires nudity or paints a nude portrait be a voyeur? I have no relation, whatsoever, with those miscreants who tried photographing women while they undressed. While strolling with a friend, the thought just passed my mind and we tried walking the thin line that often demarcates the kinds of gratification. My erudite ally gave quite a convincing justification for an artist not being a voyeur and rather an admirer. She asked me, “How would you admire the beauty of a flower?” I said, “I might try to capture its beauty in my shutterbug or try to picture it in my mind every time the word beauty comes.” “Exactly that’s what an artist does; he admires the human body or more specifically the female form by putting it on to the canvas. Okay! That might be true of an artist but then why are these people called voyeurs as they could very well be then referred to as admirers of womanly form. “Here, the will comes into play. The voyeur revels in pleasure surreptitiously without taking the consent of the person while an artist indulges with consent.” It wasn’t an implicit explanation but then as I said earlier the line is actually very thin so as to get blurred.

 

Another aspect of the psychosexual disorder is that it is inherent in human nature. Otherwise how do you explain the sexual gratification that men derive by ogling at the women’s assets in men’s magazine? In fact voyeurism has become a way of life for some people. I remember Karan Thapar once confessed being the victim of frailty of human nature in his Sunday Sentiments. Sticking to his signature candor, he was actually trying to take the sting out of sting operations in light of a different perspective. He, in a way, was trying to clear minister’s stance but nonetheless unveiled some known but rarely accepted facts since prudishness too is innate. There are no specific reasons for voyeuristic behavior so far. Although you may call it as a means of pleasure for some, it seems to be perhaps a reason of gratification for those who take pleasure in other people’s misery. Schadenfreude precisely!

 

As we discussed the idiosyncrasies of human psyche and the disorder, our discussion lingered on to another way of human life. Nudism or naturism. According to Freudian principles, they may be referred to as exhibitionists. Strange is human nature and stranger are the individual means of happiness. No wonder the labyrinthine matter inside the skull has many such dark recesses that have often amazed us all time and again.

 

Coming back to the original newspeg, I think the biggest peeping tom of the times has been media. The so-called paparazzi involved in the yellow journalism is purely voyeuristic and Schadenfreudistic for that matter. Accept it or not, voyeurism is a part of human nature that often peeps through different facets of human lives.

Sex and the City

Ever Mine

Ever Thine

Ever Ours

Just in time. Just when I had begun to believe that the four-lettered word is shallow and meaningless, it rebounded into my life with Sex and the City. Strictly for girls, this one will make your heart pound. While I spent half of the time drooling over the labels( Louis Vuitton, Vivienne Westwood and few others I am not acquainted with) I didn’t expect

Hollywood

going the Bollywood way. Love concurs all and that’s what it does in the movie. Carrie Bradshaw(Sarah Jessica Parker) is the 40-something lovelorn journalist who when decides to get hitched, the seventy mm space becomes all about the big brands and the materialism. However, to my surprise, it ends on something I have always believed in Money can’t buy love. Coming back to the movie, its all girlie-stuff and the bonding brought on the screen. With funny one-liners (Samantha(Kim Cattrall)  has got the best ones) and the girl talk , this one is worth- a -watch. And yeah! Colouring has a new connotation now courtesy Sex and the city ; find it for yourself ;)

I love you …

No, I am not going to confess my love for my soulmate on the official blog, neither am I trying to enumerate any tips or stupid rules like SRK (6 din or ladki in) of proposing.

I love you is perhaps the most beautiful expression! It is often said, love does not need a language and there are numerous ways of expressing it without words. Here’s the utterance in different languages of the world:

 

Arabic:  أنا أحبك

Bulgarian : Обичам те

Croation : Volim te

Czech : Miluji tě

Danish : I Love you

Dutch : Ik hou van jou

French :  Je t'aime

Greek : Σε αγαπώ

Norwegian : Jeg elsker deg

Polish : KOCHAM CIĘ

Romanian : Te iubesc

Russian : Я тебя люблю

Spanish : Te quiero