Influencial quotes from Buddha

Here are some interesting, inspiring quotes from Buddha. Buddha was of the greatest spiritual master that humanity has ever experienced and he led a life of principles, actions and practices. He experienced the divine enlightenment and channeled the human beings to follow his path to realize his experience. He is living within us and around us. He is one of my best teacher and companion. Every day i have a quick glance into some of his quotes, which gives me an opportunity to unite my consciousness and work collaboratively.

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We are what we think.

All that we are arises with our thoughts.

With our thoughts we make the world.

In this world

Hate never yet dispelled hate.

Only love dispels hate.

This is the law,

Ancient and inexhaustible.

Better than a thousand hollow words

Is one word that brings peace.

Better than a thousand hollow verses

Is one verse that brings peace.

There is no fire like passion

No crime like hatred,

No sorrow like separation,

No sickness like hunger,

And no joy like the joy of freedom.

It is better to conquer yourself

Than to win a thousand battles.

Then the victory is yours.

It cannot be taken from you,

Not by angels or by demons,

Heaven or hell.

You are the source

Of all purity and impurity.

No one purifies another.

It is better to do nothing

Than to do what is wrong.

For whatever you do, you do to yourself.

Master your words.

Master your thoughts.

Never allow your body to do harm.

Follow these three roads with purity

And you will find yourself upon the one way,

The way of wisdom.

You yourself, as much as anybody in the entire universe, deserve your love and affection.

Every human being is the author of his own health or disease.

Neither fire nor wind, birth nor death can erase our good deeds.

Peace comes from within. Do not seek it without.

The greatest prayer is patience.

With gentleness overcome anger.

With generosity overcome meanness.

With truth overcome deceit.

Never speak harsh words

For they will rebound upon you.

Angry words hurt

And the hurt rebounds.

Like a broken gong.

Health is the greatest gift, contentment the greatest wealth, faithfulness the best relationship.

The mind is everything; what you think you become.

Hatred does not cease by hatred, but only by love; this is the eternal rule.

Work out your own salvation. Do not depend on others.

The wise have mastered

Body, word and mind.

They are the true masters.

Let no one deceive another

or despise anyone anywhere,

or through anger or irritation

wish for another to suffer.

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The Story of India

Recently I got the privilege to watch the documentary about “The story of India” broadcasted by BBC for the second time. It is a unique journey, a mammoth task collating the 10,000 years history of the great nation in two DVD’s. The feature is a heavy gush of ideas, colors, cinematography covering the nooks of the Indian geography and the people of this mesmerizing mystic country. It is broadcasted in a series of five episodes closely packed and blended with diligent editing, incredible stories and vivid description. It covers a broad range of topics pulsating from the drifting of Indian sub-continent from Africa, rise and fall of civilizations, emperors, religions and languages to modern India. Furthermore, my admiration plucked on the British legendary historian and writer Michael Wood for his remarkable and enduring presentation.

The Story of India, a topic which has immense depth of humanity and traces through the civilizations like IVC (Indus Valley Civilizations), Harappa, Hindukush and gigantic dynasties, emperors like Chandra Gupta Maurya, Kanishka, Asoka, Akbar…etc. and emperor turned humanitarian and teacher, Gautama Buddha. Silk route, connecting India with the central Asia which opened new doors for trade, transport and cultural transformations. The tour gave a picture about the reality of Great War of Mahabharata by digging the remains from the supposed battle field, the great engineering works during the ancient periods which is yet to be deciphered, magnificent monuments, festivals and great sanctuaries. Excellence and brilliance of Sanskrit, the ancient Indian religious language was clearly explained and its connection with other ancient languages like Greek and Latin. The long train journeys gave composition and mixed feelings about the normal class people of India.

I strongly suggest who are in search of deep connections about this historic land should have a glance on this video series. India, known for its religious significances, a land with great leaders and masters has astronomical surprises. As we dwell deep, more astonishing surprises are revealed and we are thrown into a well of mysteries. Every Indian should see the series and be aware about their great history and share the knowledge through medium of peace, righteousness and simplicity.

Michael Wood and his crew clearly deserves a high applaud for this embarking endeavor capturing and deciphering the sacred, ancient history of India. His voice is magical, simple and entertaining.

The documentary is available in
http://topdocumentaryfilms.com/story-of-india/
Or, Download from isohunt or any torrents..
Or, Buy DVD from Amazon or any video shops…..

Noite Indiana (Indian Night)

Yet another ceaseless effort, I have only considerations to thank my family, friends and God for achieving and entertaining a handful of people from my city, Espirito Santo do Pinhal, in the country side of Sao Paulo state. “Indian night (Noite Indiana)”, a culinary delight intertwining the north and south Indian flavors in a delicate and calculated magnitude supporting the interests of the Brazilian tongues. The whole event was creative and proportional interests of a couple whom established a phantom chemistry of love and destiny, bridging the Indo-Brazil relationship. The event took place at “Clube Recreativo” on 16^th October in the city center. The Indian music and videos added flavor to the spicy night, which took a wild and geographical trip through the countries rich culture and diversity. This small city, geographically situated on a group of mountain chains has a rarity for having such a magical event, in fact a type of festival happening for the first time in whole of Brazil. The event employed a new revolutionary space to share and bridge a new relationship between the two economic giants.

It could have come as a surprise to skeptics, a polished and trained software engineer who spearheaded billion dollar transactions every single day for an MNC few months back, with pride and prejudice; in an ardent attempt, passion to portray his country and culture through true and pure devotion to his mastery of culinary skills, offcourse with the support of family. Food symbolizes the definition and culture of a country, especially a country having 10,000 years of solid history. Indian cuisines are known across the globe for its ravishing, spontaneous and resonating tongue twisting spices.

The menu included, Chapatti (the traditional and principle food made out of wheat flour), Tomato curry (mixture of sliced tomatoes and onions with relative composition of spices), Aloo curry (smashed potato and thinly sliced onions along with incredible combination of spices), Spicy Chicken tikka masala, Beef Toran ( a very typical meat dish from Kerala), Spiced rice, Sambar (vegetables with lentils, a typical south Indian dish, which in fact became a smash hit of the night), Payasam (vermicelli with milk and cashew nuts), Mango pickle and finally the Indian tea.

Day before the event we spoke on Radio about this event and inviting people to be part of this event. On the day of the event Mae and I started organizing and cooking in the morning, we were followed by bunch of relatives extending from uncles, aunts and cousins. We had arranged an altar for displaying the Indian spices, Gods, books and other artifacts from India. The club was remarkably decorated by displaying the walls with Mandalas (a product of many sleepless nights) and Indian clothes. We had also created an artificial pond with water, leaves, flowers and candles floating through the surface.

It was a mixed and boundless effort with no boundaries laid between Brazil and India. Rather it was a family reunion, were ideas shared, discussed and rejoiced, an explosion of laughter, cheering and learning. I shared with the group the delicacy, the divine combination and composition of various Indian spices, surprisingly new to the Brazilians.

The crowd started popping around 8:00 PM, the Indian music and videos entertained the groups. Friends and family gathered, formed groups and circled around the tables passing, inventing comments. Friends from other cities (Valinhos, Campinas, Rio Claro, Sao Paulo) arrived on time and occupied their reserved seats. Some of the dishes finished in the first hour and the demand for the dishes increased. Dani wore a beautiful and colorful saree and she was joined by couple of other guests who wore some Indian clothes as well. The fiesta continued until mid night and the crowd left happy and enlightened.

I received immense amount of responses and appreciations, and it represents the integrity of family effort. Dani was the brainchild of the whole event and I just followed her path. A special thanks to Rosi, (Owner of Grafica) for her unflinching support and providing us with the panelas (cooking utensils). Bruno did a good job in making the chapathi dough soft. Ricardo, Jose Carlos, Terezina, Alessandra, Marianna, Andre, Mi, Flavia, Victor and Mae (Marlene) has done an incredible job in helping me cooking the dishes. The newspaper published a half page article stating “the people of Pinhal became vegetarian for a night”. The guests have heavily recommended to continue doing our efforts and waiting for the next “Noite Indiana”. I have received responses from couple of other cities to organize such an event. Until the next “Noite Indiana” ………NAMASTHE …..OM SAI RAM

World cup 2010; Rise and fall: Reporting from Brazil

The FIFA World Cup 2010 needs no explanation to be volatile because I am in the land where the people speak the language of football. Football is a religion, a global entertainer, a festival and a versatile human manifestation of joy, passion, faith and unity. This is one amazing event which tries to nail down the racial discrimination and spread the message of humanity. This is my first time that I am part of a country when that country goes on to play. Evidently I don’t need to explain how much the people are fantasized by this global gathering.

In my city (E.S Pinhal) the streets was filled with variety of flamboyant placards, banners and flyers indicating support to the Brazilian football team. Not surprisingly everything freezes including banks, government offices, shops, educational institutions and supermarkets on the day when Brazil goes on to the field. Apparently the street goes completely empty (numb) like the war hit streets of Iraq. The crowd crouches in front of the big screens set on the parks, squares, pubs or attractive locations.

Brazil has won 5 world cup titles and has already targeted for the championship this year, repeating the histories of the past (1994, 2002…etc). Brazil has gifted many football legends like Pele, Socrates, Romario, Bebeto, Ronaldo, Ronaldinho…etc. The current favourites are Kaka, Robinho, Fabiano, Daniel Alves, Julio Caesar….Etc who are under the stringent mentoring of Dunga, the former Brazilian international and the Captain of the 1994 World cup title. Brazil was raging a gruesome battle in the group including Portugal, Ivory Coast and North Korea.

Brazil had a snail like start in the opening game against North Korea, who defended Brazilian strikers from netting the Jambolini inside their goal post. After many desperate attempts Maicon gave the breakthrough for the Brazilians in the second half, a strike which left the North Korean goal keeper helpless. Few minutes later Evano converted the mesmerizing pass from Robinho by a delicate touch which pierced the Korean goal post again. Voila, the crowd erupted again with whistling, howling and some sounds which I cannot define or express. Even though Brazil had a narrow victory, the Brazilians are never hesitant to celebrate this moment with absolute thump up.

After the Brazil games, irrespective of age, gender, a volcanic parade of devotees engulfs the street making howls, honks and drum beats. The blasphemous crowd are wearing blue, green, yellow coloured costumes and controls the street, another depiction of carnival festival. The ceremony includes performances by local bands and continues until midnight. It is an amazing event to be watched with naked eyes and leaves the guards/police helpless. I went to the square to watch this ceremony in real and left me completely lobotomized and smash buckled. I realized and recognized why this game has found a place in the hearts of each Brazilians. Football integrates people and in this gathering you meet old and new friends, relatives, ex’s (boyfriends, girlfriends..etc) and other fellow religious followers of the football. I was held in the traffic for a long while and the cars kept honking, while people slowly crossing the road like a snail, the police kept the arms crossed and gave a mystifying smile.

Even though Brazil had a consecutive success and has helplessly defeated their opponents, they had to end their campaign by an awful defeat against the European favourites, Netherlands. The fall of the giants was a catastrophe, a state of deep moaning and an ocean of tears. But before the wounds goes into oblivion Brazilians has already started promoting and commercialising the 2014 world cup. The 2014 WC will be a massive communion of ardent followers of football from all the continents.

The 2010 world cup has left me unforgettable experience and enlightening spirits of this beautiful game. Brazil and football is a mysterious chemistry, a cryptic equation, mutual coexisting bond which cannot be separated, it is part of life, part of the body. It is not just a game or entertainment; it is equilibrium of mind and body. Let’s cross our fingers and anxiously wait for the 2014 WC to arrive.

Document Attestation

Document Attestation is the process of getting the documents attested/validated by the issuing country; well it might be tedious because of its complications and lack of knowledge. I have gone through the herculean task of getting the documents attested from the Embassy of Brazil in New Delhi, India. The process of document attestation is same for all the countries, but policies of some countries varies. The first step in this mammoth engagement is check with the embassy regarding the attestation (visit the website or call directly)…do the proper homework. I will skim through some of the general/standards steps in which a document/certificate can be attested.

What is Hague Convention?
On October 5, 1961, many nations joined to create a simplified method of “legalizing” documents for universal recognition. This group of nations is known as the Hague Convention. They adopted a document referred to as an Apostille that is internationally recognized by all member nations.

What is document attestation/embassy Legalization?
It is when you get a document attested (signed/sealed with embassy stamp) from embassy/consulate. It basically means, the documents are valid and can be produced in the non-member of the Hague Convention. But, embassy will not accept any documents submitted by an individual/agent. It needs to be validated by ministry of external affairs before proceeding to the embassy.

Why do we need to get the documents attested?
Document attestation is basically validation and scanning of the document and will be eligible to be submitted to the respective country which we are applying for. The non-English speaking countries can accept the documents only if it is attested by the country of origin. These documents are needed while applying for a job, PR (permanent residency), marriage, study and many.

Which documents needs attestation?
 Birth/Death Certificate
 Degree certificates
 Adoption Certificate
 Affidavits
 Proof of ownership/power of attorney.
 Police Clearance certificate
 Proof of single/not married
 Work permit/ agreement of work/ PR application
 ….etc
http://www.apostillepros.com/

What is Apostille?
An Apostille is the legalization of a document for international use (only in the member countries of the Hague Convention). They adopted a document referred to as an Apostille that is internationally recognized by all member nations. In order for documents to be accepted and recognized abroad in another country, they will most likely need to be legalised for authenticity. When you present a legal document in a foreign country, it is often very difficult to determine whether the document is genuine and legal. In 1961, the process for legalising documents for use abroad was abolished and replaced by a simple certificate of authenticity, called an ‘Apostille’, under the Hague Convention. An ‘Apostille’ is a certificate that is attached to an official legal document to verify that the signatory on your document is genuine and person who signed your document is a recognised and authorised person of the organisation that issued the document. Each Apostille is dated, given a unique reference number and registered.

MEA (Ministry of External Affairs).
MEA attestation is required for all the documents before being submitted at Embassy. MEA will accept the documents only if it is notarized and is approved/attested by the state government which issued the certificate/document. MEA attestation can be done either in Mumbai or Delhi.
http://attestationmea.com/

HRD Attestation
The documents/certificates need to be attested by the state/local government which issued the certificate. Each state has respective officials for the same.
http://apostille4u.com/
http://www.hrdattestation.com/

How to get the documents attested?
Attestation involves step by step process of verification and validation of the documents.
 Identify and get the all the documents (Originals) and get enough photocopies of these documents. (Document attestation is done on photocopies )
 Notarize the document from a valid attorney (notary). It won’t necessarily cost much.
 HRD
 MEA
 Embassy attestation - Visit the embassy website for detailed information.
 Copies of Passport
 The desired documents
 Fees (Fees of the documents varies with countries)
 Processing time (minimum of 2 working days….)

The process in India will be delayed due to bureaucracy, unawareness about the methodology and unavailability of right resources. Before proceeding with this process skim through the procedures, read forums, FAQs and social networking communities like Facebook, orkut, twitter…etc. It is also an expensive engagement and needs to have good patience to face the realities. But, the right directions and right actions will not lead us to the
There are agencies in India which does these activities with a limited period of time. But, if we have an advanced plan (buffer of 40 – 60 days), we can accomplish this task.

For any information regarding document attestation, kindly contact me @
Vadakkedathraju.narayan.poojari@gmail.com | +55 19.93876227

http://www.urogulf.com/attestation_certificate%20attestation.html
http://www.attestation.in/Apostille.php
http://attestationmea.com/#
http://apostille4u.com/
http://apostille.us/Documents/embassy_legalization.shtml
http://ukinindia.fco.gov.uk/en/help-for-british-nationals/living-in-india/how-to-legalise
http://www.attestationhelp.com/

Poços de Caldas

Poços de Caldas, a city founded in 1872 situated on the south of Minas Gerais (a state in Brazil famous for minerals), is one of the hot spot for eco tourism, entertainment, charming cottages/hotels, crystals (unearthed deep down the quarries), beautiful landscapes and climatic experience. It has a mountain climate and the climate goes down to Zero degrees during winter. It is one among the ten best cities to live in the country and also the favorite honeymoon location. The city is also famous for cheese, wine and doce de leite (sweets made of milk). It sits on top of a dead volcano, which gives the distinct features of having natural hot streams which is advised for numerous medical treatments. I went with Dani for 3 days to escape the bullet hit mind and worries, and the experience was magical, profound and exciting.

It was around 80kms drive from my city (E.S Pinhal), the drive took me through the wilderness and bucolic serenity of Minas and we had a halt on the way at Pocinhos do Rio Verde (little ponds of green river). We reached the city around noon and checked into the hotel Varandas do Sol which is right opposite to Represa Bortolan (Bortolan Dam), a hydroelectric power station with beautiful river. After experiencing the Minas food for lunch we explored the downtown which was euphorically crowded.

On the second day our first destination was Cristo Redentor (Christ Redeemer), we went on car (there is an option to climb the top on a cable car as well), the high altitude and the aerial view of the city from the top was absolutely breath taking. On the top is the Christ standing tall with a charming and emanating brilliance. Besides this tall structure is the paragliding launch, cable car launch, an aquarium, food court and faunas. On the way back down we stopped at Pedra Balão (Balloon stone), a mystifying natural art work of stones. I climbed on top of the highest rock which sits on couple of oval shaped rocks and it was unique experience though dangerous and tricky. While going down we stopped at Recanto Japonês (Japanese Garden), a beautifully engineered Japanese garden with rich varieties of Japanese plants, flowers, streams, Japanese scripts on rocks, lamps and a typical Japanese house on the centre.
After having lunch we relaxed on Praça dos Macacos (Monkeys Square), a square with bath facility, water tap (hot water with sulphur content) for drinking and a beautiful garden. A group of ardent dancers of mixed ages entertained us with different genres of Brazilian music like Samba, Axe (Ashe – Afro Brazilian), Pagode (derived from Samba).
I went for a bath in the thermal resort which was reasonably cheap for a period of 20 minutes on a bath tub with warm water which had a smell of egg (sulphur content) and the experience was phenomenal. This bath is advised for skin related diseases, kidneys, stress, circulation…etc. The bath was so relaxing that I fell asleep for few minutes.

Next location was Fonte dos Amores (Fountain of lovers), famous for the waterfall and the sculpture (a marble sculpture of two lovers) on the bottom of the stream. There was a long queue to get snapped with the sculpture, especially lovers/couples. Later that evening we went on for a shopping spree and watched a movie “Knight and day” (my first visit to cinema in Brazil). The shopping mall (MinasSul) was massive, a paradise for shopaholics and myriad of options.

On the last day we visited Véu das Novias, a beautiful waterfall and its respective streams. We returned to the shopping to accomplish the final segment of shopping and glance of the city.
The trip has given me a brand new experience of Brazil’s history, food, heritage and climate. The city is expanding every year in terms of the visitors and the consumers. The experience was refreshing, rejuvenating and relaxing. There are 40 major destinations to be visited. I would recommend people to consider my words and get an opportunity to explore in this city.

Being an Indian

Indians (origin of India) have conquered all the continents, but compared with other continents the Indian community has less occupied the Latin America (LA). LA countries, especially Brazil, Argentina, chile etc has rich natural resources and culture. Spanish is the most common medium of communication in majority of the LA except Brazil which has Portuguese as the national language. LA attracts a huge volume of tourist throughout the year because of the serenity of the nature, spectacular beaches, vibrating music and lots. Brazil is a huge LA country with waste natural resources and splendid culture.

Being the first Indian to live in Espirito Santo do Pinhal, a small hill city in the interiors of Sao Paulo state which has less than 45K population. When I say “I am an Indian”, some people think that I am from the interiors of Amazon, the Red Indians. However I have a fare complexion similar to the Brazilian from the north of the country. But, I am distinctive because of my “vibhuti” or “sandalwood” smeared on my forehead which symbolizes my roots or paths.

I am desperately searching for a job in my area of specialization and the hunt has taken mottled twists and turns, received some positive alarms from some giants. Meantime, I am busy engaged in my alternative profession; teaching English, Yoga and learning Portuguese. I have a bunch of smart students getting trained on Yoga and English. I have also exploited my photography skills to some extent. I am surrounded by people speaking an alien language, Brazilian Portuguese which is slightly different from the Portugal Portuguese. I have given speeches in some schools and in the “1^st International Alternative Therapies Seminar” held at Paranapiacaba.

I am treated like a God, a master or a genius. Indian culture, especially the Indian marriage and caste system are very popular and widespread among the Brazilians and some greets me with “Namasthe”. For about a year, Brazilians were watching a soap opera about India culture, which remarkably covered the Indian marriage, caste, colors, family tradition, food and love. They are curious to know about “Dalits” and “Brahmans”. They think that I travel on top of the elephant and in all marriages the groom comes on horse. They are ardent about the artifacts from India like kurtas, Yoga accessories, designer clothes, incenses…..an unwinding list.

Being an Indian, I have been given rare privilege by the locals. Once, I was passing through the street and a policeman waved hands and called “Pooja” (He is an old family friend of Dani). I met the priest of the city, Father Augusto, who is a great admirer of Indian culture. He skimmed through some information’s about India (He said India has more than 37million Gods) and he is a professor on anthropology. Wherever I go people recognize me, give me a smile, a wave, a handshake, a hug and I return them with a smile of love. “Friends everywhere”, it is the most simple expression!!!!!

For Brazilians, Indian culture is the most sacred, respected, admired and spiritualized rich civilization. I am on deep trance and here with a huge mission of transforming the community and myself, essentially the gravity of my presence had a colossal impact on the masses. The love, respect, attention and care I am receiving from Dani’s family and the people around me are sublime and spiritualizing. Being an INDIAN………..

To be continued…….