Vive La France review

I do love to stray outside Hollywood and watch productions from other studio clusters very so often. Traditionally, Bollywood has provided a constant stream of alternative cinema which usually tells a much more empathetic story than Hollywood productions do. But lately my peak into French cinema is providing a new dose of film appreciation I feel I should share with you guys.

Vive La France is a movie I decided to watch simply because the box art reminded me so much of Borat (Sacha Baron Cohen)  otherwise known popularly among the 233 circles as  “Aladeen” from The Dictator.

Directed by Michaël Youn, Vive La Frnace stars José Garcia , Michael Youn (Aladeen’s look-a-like) and Isabelle Funaro. Just like you, I had no idea who these guys were but based on the box art I decided to give this movie a shot and mehn was I in for a good laugh. Despite this movie being in French, the comedical play on language still comes through beautifully.

The Dictator of Taboulistan, bent on having the world recognize his country as the inventors of taboule, sends out two of the nations best to go blow up the Eiffel Tower and get the worlds attention. Feruz (Michaël Youn) and Muzafar (José Gracia) are the two top notch Taboulistan “spies” sent out to execute the order. Unfortunately Feruz and Muzafar have to start the trip outside France after their plane is directed to land in a neighboring countries airport. Our “Spies” end up in the hands of terrorist but luckily escape and find their way to France. We follow their trip across the French countryside as they run into angry protesters, bone-picking Marseille soccer fans, and a very weird Prison guard who likes to play smack that butt in costumes. They run into Marianne (Isabelle Furano), a young pretty journalist who has so much free time on her hands that she decides to help the “Spies”. You have to sit through the movie to find out how this triangle plays out.

Vive La France is a comedy that draws on the script of a lot comedy movies before it. It however manages to add a Frenchness to the whole  genre that the others lacked.

If its a laugh you after, Vive La France has a lot in stock for you. Take the time off and give this movie a shot.

Life motivational thoughts

11)It's not the size of the dog in the fight, but the size of the fight in the dog − Archie Griffen.

2) Nothing lasts forever. Not even your troubles − Arnold H Glasgow

3) There are only two ways to live your life. One is as though nothing is a miracle. The other is as though everything is a miracle − Albert Einstein

4) Take chances, make mistakes. That's how you grow. Pain nourishes your courage. You have to fail in order to practice being brave – Mary Tyler Moore

5) Being strong means rejoicing in who you are, complete with imperfections − Margaret Woodhouse

6) If you don’t go after what you want, you’ll never have it. If you don’t ask, the answer is always no. If you don’t step forward, you’re always in the same place − Nora Roberts

7) I've missed more than 9,000 shots in my career. I've lost almost 300 games. Twenty-six times I've been trusted to take the game-winning shot and missed. I've failed over and over and over again in my life. And that is why I succeed − Michael Jordan.

8) The only place you find success before work is in the dictionary − May V. Smith

9) Where hope grows, miracles blossom − Elna Rae

10) A life spent making mistakes is not only more honorable but more useful than a life spent doing nothing − George Bernard Shaw

11) Nobody can make you feel inferior without your consent − Eleanor Roosevelt

12) It took me a long time not to judge myself through someone else's eyes − Sally Field

13) I quit being afraid when my first venture failed and the sky didn't fall down − Allen H. Neuharth

14) Hope never abandons you, you abandon it − George Weinberg

15) Make the most of yourself, for that is all there is of you − Ralph Waldo Emerson

16) Awards become corroded, friends gather no dust − Jesse Owens

17) People are like stained-glass windows. They sparkle and shine when the sun is out, but when the darkness sets in their true beauty is revealed only if there is light from within − Elisabeth Kübler-Ross

18) Nothing splendid has ever been achieved except by those who dared believe that something inside of them was superior to circumstance − Bruce Barton

19) Life is 10% of what happens to me and 90% of how I react to it − John Maxwell

20) Aerodynamically the bumblebee shouldn't be able to fly, but the bumblebee doesn't know that so it goes on flying anyway − Mary Kay Ash)It's not the size of the dog in the fight, but the size of the fight in the dog − Archie Griffen.

2) Nothing lasts forever. Not even your troubles − Arnold H Glasgow

3) There are only two ways to live your life. One is as though nothing is a miracle. The other is as though everything is a miracle − Albert Einstein

4) Take chances, make mistakes. That's how you grow. Pain nourishes your courage. You have to fail in order to practice being brave – Mary Tyler Moore

5) Being strong means rejoicing in who you are, complete with imperfections − Margaret Woodhouse

6) If you don’t go after what you want, you’ll never have it. If you don’t ask, the answer is always no. If you don’t step forward, you’re always in the same place − Nora Roberts

7) I've missed more than 9,000 shots in my career. I've lost almost 300 games. Twenty-six times I've been trusted to take the game-winning shot and missed. I've failed over and over and over again in my life. And that is why I succeed − Michael Jordan.

8) The only place you find success before work is in the dictionary − May V. Smith

9) Where hope grows, miracles blossom − Elna Rae

10) A life spent making mistakes is not only more honorable but more useful than a life spent doing nothing − George Bernard Shaw

11) Nobody can make you feel inferior without your consent − Eleanor Roosevelt

12) It took me a long time not to judge myself through someone else's eyes − Sally Field

13) I quit being afraid when my first venture failed and the sky didn't fall down − Allen H. Neuharth

14) Hope never abandons you, you abandon it − George Weinberg

15) Make the most of yourself, for that is all there is of you − Ralph Waldo Emerson

16) Awards become corroded, friends gather no dust − Jesse Owens

17) People are like stained-glass windows. They sparkle and shine when the sun is out, but when the darkness sets in their true beauty is revealed only if there is light from within − Elisabeth Kübler-Ross

18) Nothing splendid has ever been achieved except by those who dared believe that something inside of them was superior to circumstance − Bruce Barton

19) Life is 10% of what happens to me and 90% of how I react to it − John Maxwell
20) Aerodynamically the bumblebee shouldn't be able to fly, but the bumblebee doesn't know that so it goes on flying anyway − Mary Kay Ash1)It's not the size of the dog in the fight, but the size of the fight in the dog − Archie Griffen.

2) Nothing lasts forever. Not even your troubles − Arnold H Glasgow

3) There are only two ways to live your life. One is as though nothing is a miracle. The other is as though everything is a miracle − Albert Einstein

4) Take chances, make mistakes. That's how you grow. Pain nourishes your courage. You have to fail in order to practice being brave – Mary Tyler Moore

5) Being strong means rejoicing in who you are, complete with imperfections − Margaret Woodhouse

6) If you don’t go after what you want, you’ll never have it. If you don’t ask, the answer is always no. If you don’t step forward, you’re always in the same place − Nora Roberts

7) I've missed more than 9,000 shots in my career. I've lost almost 300 games. Twenty-six times I've been trusted to take the game-winning shot and missed. I've failed over and over and over again in my life. And that is why I succeed − Michael Jordan.

8) The only place you find success before work is in the dictionary − May V. Smith

9) Where hope grows, miracles blossom − Elna Rae

10) A life spent making mistakes is not only more honorable but more useful than a life spent doing nothing − George Bernard Shaw

11) Nobody can make you feel inferior without your consent − Eleanor Roosevelt

12) It took me a long time not to judge myself through someone else's eyes − Sally Field

13) I quit being afraid when my first venture failed and the sky didn't fall down − Allen H. Neuharth

14) Hope never abandons you, you abandon it − George Weinberg

15) Make the most of yourself, for that is all there is of you − Ralph Waldo Emerson

16) Awards become corroded, friends gather no dust − Jesse Owens

17) People are like stained-glass windows. They sparkle and shine when the sun is out, but when the darkness sets in their true beauty is revealed only if there is light from within − Elisabeth Kübler-Ross

18) Nothing splendid has ever been achieved except by those who dared believe that something inside of them was superior to circumstance − Bruce Barton

19) Life is 10% of what happens to me and 90% of how I react to it − John Maxwell

20) Aerodynamically the bumblebee shouldn't be able to fly, but the bumblebee doesn't know that so it goes on flying anyway − Mary Kay Ash

Legit way to make money online... Great Ideas

 

A cash cow for the enterprising, the Internet is littered with opportunities to make a fast buck. While it rarely qualifies as a solitary source of income, the Net can easily help you supplement it. However, the amount you earn depends on the time and effort invested. Go through these 20 options and find out which ones work for you.

Blogging
If you're a passionate closet writer who wants to be published but can't find a way to do so, make each keystroke your way to wealth by penning your own blog. Starting a blog doesn't require extensive technical skills but it's important that you have expertise in the field you are writing on. This will attract visitors to your site. Building a large following will enable you to earn profit by luring advertisers, writing paid reviews or getting commissions for promoting other people's products.

Paid Writing
If maintaining a blog is difficult for you but you still want to indulge your passion for writing, you can jot down articles for other blogs or sites such as Weblogs, Helium or PayPerPost. Writing an e-book can also be a good option. E-books are investment free, with no cost for printing and shipping. If you have a strong command over languages, you can become a copy editor, where Webmasters will pay you to read articles and correct grammatical errors, sentence fragments, etc.

e-tuitions/Webinars
The demand for tutors is high and growing. So, if you like helping others learn, e-teaching could be the earning ticket for you. All you need to become an online tutor is expertise in your subject and a few spare hours per week. TutorVista, e-tutor, SmartThinking and Tutor.com are some of the sites you can enroll with. If you gain a good reputation as a coach, you could even conduct Webinars-lectures or seminars transmitted over the Net. College and university students are willing to pay to gain entry to a well-respected Webinar.

Affilliate/Reseller
For those who have the knack of selling, one of the best ways to make money online is to become an affiliate/reseller. An affiliate is a person who gets a commission for selling every product that he promotes, whether on his Website or through any other avenue such as eBay. You don't have to own the product. You only need to sign up for an affiliate program with a company and start selling its products under your referral link. Firms such as Commission Junction or Click Bank have a large pool of products.

Buying/Selling domains
Buying and selling domain names is another way to make money from home and requires very little investment or time. You can buy domains at their registration prices or even cheaper and trade them at a profit. However, always research on sites such as sedo.co.uk, afternic.com, ebay.com or other domain auction sites to get an estimate of the hottest selling names. The best way to find good ones is to use terminated domain lists, which contain several expired names that are back in the pool.

Freelancing for Professionals
Freelancing is a great option for professionals who are experts in their respective trades and know how to ensure customer satisfaction. Various freelancing and project-oriented sites allow companies that need help to describe their projects. Freelancers and small businesses offer bids, ideas or proposals, from which the buyers can choose what they find most suitable. Websites such as Elance cover everything from programming and writing to data entry and design, while RentACoder focuses on software programming.

Advertising
You can sell space on your Website or blog for advertisements and you earn when these ads are clicked by visitors to your site. The sorting and placing of ads is free. The profitability of pay-per-click advertising depends on the traffic level of the Website and, most importantly, on the clickthrough rate and cost per click. Google AdSense is the most popular option, while others are BidVertiser, Text Link Ads and Blogads. Direct banner and RSS feed are some other forms of online advertising.

GPT Programme
GPT or Get-paid-to sites are becoming increasingly popular among teens. You get paid for signing up for free Websites, newsletters, playing games and filling out online surveys. These are suitable for people who don't have a skill set but want to earn extra money. Taking online surveys is simple- register with a few legitimate, paid survey sites and answer questions. The topics range from shopping to politics. This might not help you make a living, but you can earn good pocket money. Contests2win is one of the trusted GPT Websites.

Online Marketing
Once a Website is created and optimised for search engine (SEO), the SEM or Search Engine Marketing begins. A treasure trove lies hidden here. An SEO/SEM expert, who is responsible for marketing a Website, can promote it in various ways. These include article marketing, writing press releases, forum posting, blog posting, submitting your site to directories and search engines, social bookmarking, etc. Most companies don't do this in-house and pay you to conduct the SEM for them.

Making themes
As more and more people seek an online presence, the demand for Website templates and WordPress (Blog) themes will keep increasing. If you are good at Web designing and coding, you can earn a lot from designing Web themes. In this segment, there are mainstream Websites, such as TemplateMonster and ThemeForest, which act as a marketplace where you can sell your themes. Templates are sold and priced depending on the rights and features that are bundled with them.

Selling photos
If you enjoy photography and are good with a camera, you could be sitting on a huge reserve of revenue. There are people who will be interested in your collection of images. Nowadays, it's easy to take your photos to the public, providing a convenient way to build a secondary income stream. Many stock photo agencies, such as Fotolia, Dreamstime and Shutterstock, offer incentives for people to earn from their photos.

Support & service
Providing coding or fixing other Webmasters' issues is another great way to earn extra bucks. There are simple jobs ranging from adding a script to setting up sites, but knowledge of Web coding is essential. One can offer support for Web CMS (content management systems) like Drupal or Joomla. After you are comfortable with your own installation, you can help other people to set these up and configure them.

Stock/forex trading
Joining the stock/forex market may seem a bit risky. However, you can start small and continue researching till you gain experience in this area. Once you do, it will be easy to earn from exchanging foreign currencies and/or stocks. Their rates fluctuate depending on supply and demand, and economic and political influences in the world. The aim of any trader is to spot which currency/stock is likely to rise or fall in value against another. The more time you put in, the more you will earn.

Selling your own brand
If you have a flair for designing cool images, don't bother about creating your own inventory. As long as your design can be printed on a product, you can pocket some money. You can upload designs on various Websites such as CafePress, and if somebody orders these designs, the company will print them and distribute the products. It could be designs for T-shirts, hats, bags, books, posters, calendars, greeting cards, etc. You will receive a commission for each sale. Other such sites include Lulu and Zazzle.

Virtual Assistant
Small businesses always need help in running their processes, but may not be willing to hire a full-time employee. As a virtual assistant, you are expected to perform practically any administrative task that a traditional secretary or assistant would, such as make travel reservations, handle expense reimbursements or pay bills. You can do it from the comfort of your home, interacting with clients either online or by phone. Your expertise will decide how much moolah you rake in.

Inbound call centre
Many companies, who are facing space constraints, especially those in metro cities, prefer to hire workers outside their offices or outsource certain processes. You can set up an inbound call centre at home to handle such jobs. Research different companies that are outsourcing their work as they may have opportunities for inbound call centre agents. You can work for more than one company. This can be either a part-time or fulltime engagement, depending on your need.

You Tube
If there's a dramatic performer hidden inside you who craves applause and adulation, upload yourself on YouTube. You can be a filmmaker, musician or comedian who wants a wider audience. Your earnings will come from ads displayed on your video page. This process is similar to the pay-per-click advertising program common to other Websites and blogs. Sites such as Flixya and Mediaflix can be helpful in this regard.

Researching for others
Don't be morose if you can't write, design or code. Lack of talent cannot stop you from making money online. If you're willing to work hard for a few hours a week, you can take up simple research jobs for other people who don't have the time to do it themselves. You could search for opportunities in organisations that provide funding for research and offer to assist them through online investigation.

Building Applications
With smartphones gaining popularity, the demand for their applications, or apps as they are popularly known, has also shot up. There are over 3 million apps for the iPhone and over a million apps in Google's Android market. Most of these are selling like hot cakes. Developing and selling your own smartphone app is becoming a lucrative way to make money on the Internet. Apps cost virtually nothing to develop and entail no storage or shipping costs. So they enjoy the best profit margins.

Transcription
Medical transcription involves making written copies of oral material dictated by doctors or other medical experts. These may include history and physical reports, clinical notes, consultation notes, reports, letters, psychiatric evaluation and so on. The dictated material needs to be transcribed swiftly and accurately, which is the most challenging aspect of the job. To become a medical transcriptionist, you need to have a good knowledge of medical terminology and a high typing speed along with accuracy. 

Source http://businesstoday.intoday.in/story/20-ideas-to-make-money-online/1/12603.html

Life and Death Quotas...

“Everything Dies. That is the law of life-the bitter unchangeable law”
― David Clement-Davies, Fell 

“It's matters not how a man dies, but how he lives.”
― Mello Death Note 

“If your life was complete, you'd be dead.”
― Joshua Wisenbaker 


“There is no cure for birth and death save to enjoy the interval.”
― George Santayana

Polavakkalipalayam- My Village

The birth place memories come till death.  
I don't say it is beautiful village, but there i lived peacefully. 
Past 8 years i am in Coimbatore. 
After Marriage, i decided to settle in Coimbatore. 
But my thoughts and emotions are the same. 
In my childhood, my entertainment was playing cricket and going to the library.  
Cricket is my soul, and reading books was one of the part of my life... 
anyone give any books to read, i am ready to forgot the food also...
once... yes that's and all once, not now... 
i had 3 membership card,  i read more than 15 books in a week. 
I am not interested in school books, Even though i am decided to stop my study after 10th Std...
Higher education i done only private...
After few years again, i continue and finished degree in Amman arts college...
But i read all the books in the library.
No specific books... crime novels, poems, cinema, social, sports, weekly magazines, news papers... everything... 
At that time a remembered, just want to read any of the readable format books... 
Friendship, Celebrations, Temple functions, Cricket, Chess, Accidents, Suicides, Death, Love, disappointing, encourage, discourage. Victory, failures... Oh.....  
i had a big story to tell you.... 
This grow, family culture,planning, running life,maintaining relationship, love, piece...  everything i learn from my village and that books.
Some bad incidents is common for everyone, i had some bad memories also...
But....
 Overall i am really thanks to my village...

I proudly says that i am coming from Polavakkalipalayam.


Just a location note
Polavakkalipalayam is my Birth Village in Gopichettipalaiyam Taluk in Erode District of Tamil Nadu State, India. 
It is located 35 KM towards west from District head quarters Erode. 
5 KM from Gopichettipalaiyam. 
409 KM from State capital Chennai
The famous around my village is 




Place of Interest

Places of Interest

Kodiveri Dam

Kodiveri Dam/Anicut

Kodiveri Dam is situated in Gobichettipalayam Taluk, about 13 km. west of Gobichettipalayam in the village of Periya Kodiveri. It was constructed by the Maharaja of Mysore in the 17th century. Two channels arise from the dam, One is on the northern side of Bhavani River and the other on the southern side viz “Arakkan Kottai Channel” and “Thadapalli Channel” respectively.^[13][14] Lands north of Gobichettipalayam City are fertile due to the flow of the Thadapalli channel. Cultivation of sugarcane and paddy are predominant in this area. Kodiveri Dam is a popular tourist spot welcoming a large number of people from all over the state.

Bhavani Sagar Dam

Another important dam that has been constructed over the Bhavani River is the Bhavanisagar Dam. It is located about 35 km from the town. The dam was completed in 1953. There is a large park with various attractions drawing huge crowds towards this place.

Reserve Forests

An Indian elephant near Gobichettipalayam

The Sathyamangalam Wildlife Sanctuary and the reserve forests of Anthiyur are about 25 km away from Gobichettipalayam. The T.N.Palayam forest range comes within the Gobichettipalayam Taluk. Abundant flora and fauna thrive in these forests which form a part of the rich biosphere of the Western Ghats. The wildlife includes Indian Elephant, Bengal Tiger, Indian Leopard, Black Buck, Spotted deer, Peacock, Porcupine and Gaur. The area has the largest elephant population in the country. The area has been proposed to be converted into a Tiger Reserve as per notifications from the Government of India.

Temples

There are many notable temples in and around Gobichettipalayam. The details of the various temples is given below:

Pariyur

Pariyur Kondathu Kaliamman Temple is situated in Pariyur, about 3 km from Gobichettipalayam, where a 'Fire Walking Ceremony' (Kundam) is held during January every year. The annual Temple Car festival is celebrated here with grandeur, and the temple attracts a large gathering from the surrounding places all the time. Around 1500 years old, the inner sanctum of the temple is made of black marble. The protector God of this temple is Maha Muniappan, who blesses couples with children and chases fear away from the minds of the people. There are many shrines dedicated to Ganesha, and shrines of Saptha Kannigai, Ponkaliamman, Brahma and other Hindu Gods. The temple has a marriage hall and a golden chariot dedicated to the goddess.
Amarapaneeswarar Temple is a temple dedicated to Lord Shiva and his consort Soundaranayaki Amman located in Pariyur. The temple itself is built completely of white marble and there are separate shrines dedicated to warlord Karthikeya with his wives Deivayanai and Valli, Ganesha known as Anukkai Vinayakar, Nandhi, the vehicle of Lord Shiva. There are also shrines dedicated to Navagraha, Bhairava, Nayanmars and other Hindu Gods. Maha Shivaratri and Pradhosam is celebrated with much grandeur apart from other festivals of Shiva and Murugan.
Adinarayana Swamy Temple is a temple dedicated to Lord Vishnu located at Pariyur and the chief deity the temple is Adhi Narayana Perumal.^[19] He is seen along with his companions Sri Devi and Bhu Devi. The specialty of the temple is that, there is a separate shrine dedicated to Lord Hanuman. The statues of Sanjeevi Anjaneyar, Veera Anjaneyar and Alwars are seen inside the main temple complex. Garuda Alwar is seen in front of the main sanctum. The main Gopuram of the temple depicts the scene of narration of Bhagavad Gita, the holy book of Hindus. Vaikunta Ekadashi and other festivals of Vishnu are celebrated here.

Hill Temples

Balamurugan Temple, Pachaimalai is one of the two old hill temples dedicated to Lord Murugan while the other being Muthukumaraswamy Temple, Pavalamalai.  Both the temples are located withing a few miles from the heart of the town. All Saivite, Koumaram and other Hindu festivals are celebrated at the temples, especially Thai Poosam, Panguni Uthiram and Skanda Sashti. At Pachaimalai, there is a huge statue of Lord Senthilandavar, which can been seen miles away from the temple. Apart from his normal gold peacock mount, the temple also has a Golden Chariot. It is believed that sage Dhurvasa initially installed the deities at both Pachaimalai and Pavalamalai.

Bannari

Bannari Mariamman Temple is located at Bannari about 35 km northwest of Gobichettipalayam. The temple is dedicated to the Goddess Mariamman and attracts huge crowds round the year. The temple also has a marriage hall associated with it.

Around Schools and College list

Institutes of engineering and technology

• Shree Venkateshwara Hi-Tech Engineering College, SH 15, Dasampalayam
• JKKM College of Technology, T.N.Palayam
• The Institute Of Road and Transport Technology (IRTT), Chithode
• Bannari Amman Institute of Technology (BITs), Sathyamangalam 

Arts and science colleges

• Gobi Arts and Science College, Karatadipalayam
• P.K.R. Arts College for Women Murugan Pudur
• Sardha Arts and Science College, Alukuli
• Bharadhidasan College of Arts and Science, Ellispettai, Kavindapadi
• Kamadhenu Arts and Science College, Sathyamangalam
• Amman Arts and Science College, Chithode

Business schools

• P.K.R. School of Management for Women, Muruganpudur
• GEM Business Academy, SH 81
• Bharathithasan School of Business, Ellispettai

Polytechnic and Catering

• Senthur Polytechnic College, Nambiyur
• Andavar Polytechnic college and ITI, Alukuli
• Annai JKK Sampoorni Ammal Polytechnic college and ITI, TN Palayam
• Anbu Catering College
• Vivekanandha ITI, Vaikkal Road
• Shree Venkateshwara Hi-Tech Polytechnic College, Dasampalayam
• Maruthi Educational Institutions, Bus Stand Backside, Gobichettipalayam

Schools

• Diamond Jubilee Higher Secondary School, Cutchery Street
• Shree Vidyalaya Matricultion Higher Secondary School, Vaikkal Road
• Diamond Jubilee Matriculation School, Cutchery Street
• Palaniammal Girls Higher Secondary School, Cutchery Street
• CKK Matriculation Higher Secondary School, Cutchery Street
• Saratha Matricuation Higher Secondary School, Modachur
• Shree Gurukulam Matriculation Higher Secondary School, Moolavaikkal
• Kamban Kalvi Nilayam Higher Secondary School, Pudupalayam
• Sri Venkateshwara Matriculation Higher Secondary School, Dasampalayam
• Amala Matriculation Higher Secondary School,Sathy Main Road
• St.Pauls Matriculation Higher Secondary School, Karattur
• Bharathi Vidhyalaya Matriculation and Higher Secondary School, Erode Main Road
• DS Saradha Vidyalaya, Agraharam
• Municipal Boys Higher Secondary School, Kabilar Street
• Municipal Girls Higher Secondary School, Pariyur Road
• Ideal Matriculation School, Pariyur Road
• Municipal Middle School, Market Road

Play schools

• Euro Kids Play School, Kalamegam Street
• Apple Kids Play School, Car Street
• Shree Kids Play School, Vaikkal Road
• Venkateshwara Play School, Cutchery Street
• T.I.M.E. Kids Play School, Vaikkal Road
• YUVA Early school,pathivelas road gobi.

 Thanks,
Prakash

 

Enlightenment by Rani

Every seeker wants Enlightenment. Most people perceive that to be a state of ongoing bliss and oneness and believe that after that, life is easy and simple forever after, because of the eternal expansion into the beyond.
While it is true that there is something called “the enlightenment experience” which has all of these characteristics, the true enlightened life is something quite different. The bliss is not the emotional experience we can know through the ego. It is beyond that.
This truth is revealed overtime, bit-by-bit as we grow into who we are and loose our ego identity. Some parts of the learning are guaranteed, we have to first recognize who we are beyond our mind and body to the point that a shift of perspective, of context occurs, but then we have to crash and come down from the enlightenment high. We need the courage to admit that every experience wears off, even after a few years, that clarity can be lost again and that identification with the mind can come back. That nothing is permanent and that to reach higher peaks we need to pass through different valleys.
Failing is an essential part of the path. When we have spiritual success our ego grows side by side, when we fail, it is diminished and is ground down.
The Enlightenment experience is the end of the search but surely the beginning of the path. (Or as I often say, the search moves from the horizontal to the vertical dimension) Often it takes the loss of that experience, for us to be truly committed to the discipline of the spiritual life. We have seen paradise. We have tasted the natural state and now it is gone
What is left is that we are constantly confronted with our failing, our fears, clinging and despair.
We must open, and open deeper into the pain and fear, letting it cook us, break us and pulverize us, so we can truly disappear as a separate self.

When we do not have the proper understanding, the proper context, the valleys are very difficult to move through. What follows is my own experience of this process. May it be of help to other travelers on the path.
By the mid nineties my life looked like I had made it. At least on the outside. I lived in India in a very beautiful area outside of town. I was a respected member of the ashram that I was a part of. I loved the work I did as a therapist, the relationship I was in was wonderful, rewarding and fun. At least that was what I was telling myself. The house we had built up was splendid; we had several servants, cats, dogs, fishponds etc. 

We lived the successful life of the neo sannyasin. Daily meditation was comfortable; I had come to settle in the comfort of knowing how to leave the mind behind and experience bliss. I had found a good refuge from pain. What more could I ask for?
I told myself I was fulfilled, denying the fact that I was always feeling inferior to my lover because I brought in a lot less money, denying that I felt deeply insecure about my capacities as a therapist and denying so many other little facts.
In fact denial had become my way of life and I can see in retrospect that I vaguely knew it always, but it was too threatening to admit it to myself. Compensation was an art that I had mastered since early childhood.
Then one day my lover left. The hole I fell in was profound; it was as if every time I fell into that hole it became deeper. Determined to finish with it once and for all (ego always thinks in terms of permanent elimination) I dove into it for about a year and did some intense therapy, until I rediscovered the Awareness intensive group. In this group you ask yourself the koan: “Who am I” from very early morning till late at night. The “results” were amazing.
For the next year I participated in each and every one of these 3 or 7-day groups. Usually it would take me 24 hours of struggling before I would pop into another dimension; the realm of oneness, clarity and peace. I got addicted to the highs, as they would lift me straight out of all my unresolved pain. I learned how to “do” it. Popping koans became my specialty.
For a while I would come down as soon as the group was over but then it started to happen that the highs would not go down anymore. The clarity would not leave me anymore and peace was more or less permanently present. In other words I had accumulated a lot of energy (shakti).
Now greater breakthroughs and greater revelations came. I was finally free from all my suffering!! I had found a way out!! I even remember now some thoughts that were immediately dismissed like: “Now I never have to worry about money anymore, I have what everyone wants”. “Now I never have to bother about sex and relating anymore cause I am beyond them”.
The ego was always lurking just by the side and in a way I knew it but I was too ignorant about the true mechanics of the mind to fully realize what that meant. I told myself that I was staying clear of ego because I was aware of it.
I looked in Osho’s words for a context to understand my precise situation but did not find much. May be I did not know how to formulate the question because I thought that I was already enlightened but I found nothing much that was truly helpful.
I felt very alone and thought that this is what he meant when he said that in the end you are alone and I decided to trust my experience. For a while I met with a woman who had declared herself enlightened and she helped me clear away some doubt. On top of it she gave me all the conformation I was looking for! (This is exactly what the mind wants: confirmation, and so unconsciously we look for someone who will give it to us)
However the most dominant experience was one of joy and peace. The shift was dramatic and profound. I wanted to share it immediately with whoever wanted to hear it. There was a very genuine and naive sense of wanting to help others out of their suffering. The intention was clean and innocent as far as I could see. Not knowing that as long as there is ego our intention is never 100% pure.
Someone later described people who declare their enlightenment prematurely as little girls who dress up in their mother’s clothes and wear high heels pretending they are adults. It was a bit like that, now that I look back. I felt like a kid with a bag of candy that I wanted to share.
And even though friends avoided me like the plague eventually people showed up who wanted to hear what I had to say. Many seekers today (Like I had been myself) want only one thing and that is to be lifted out of their pain with a shortcut, and shortcuts I had!
Of course they were in awe. I was generating a lot of cosmic energy; everyone in the room could feel it and whomever I talked to or looked at, shifted for some time into a state beyond the mind. I was blown away by it as well. I was loved and revered. I finally felt worthy of that love as well.
Pride started to slip in. After all this person that had been humiliated so often (me) had made it and was someone. I saw the pride but told myself that because I was seeing it, it did not matter. Everything was anyway all happening in the ONE and therefore temporary.
My fame grew fast, more and more people attended the satsangs and had great awakening experiences. They were the proof of my “rightness”. My ego swelled up again a little more.
From time to time the old insecurity knocked on my door but I would not open. I did not want to acknowledge that it was there. You have to understand the very delicate situation one is in.
You feel like you have transcended suffering, which had been the motive for the search all along. And then to realize that this is not true is not an easy feast. The ego will fight it. The soul has an imprint of ego protections that is centuries old. It does not give way that easily.
For many years on the path, all we want from the search is freedom from suffering. Only much later is our intention pure and clean enough for us to only want what is, howsoever painful or uncomfortable it may be.
So I felt very expanded because the awakening was strong and I could channel huge amounts of energy and did not really know that they were all passing through and were therefore colored by the ego. All the while my ego was expanding beyond its wildest fantasies, without me being very aware of it. It became more and more transparent and smart and spiritual, it told itself it is nobody and it is not there!!! And it succeeded very well at fooling even itself.
This ego is very smart. Because I kept sharing every pitfall I saw with my students, I thought that I was free of it. Not seeing that sharing was not enough for the ego to lay low. That it needs absolute dedication and willingness to stay vigilant at all times. That it needs the scalpel of the surgeon all the time!! The thing is through the sharing I believed that I was doing WAS being honest and vigilant. And to some extend of course that was also true.
The enlightenment experience is always a mixture of clear and honest intention and a power hungry ego. If we do not have an alive teacher at the time of awakening, we are in great trouble. We simply cannot travel alone at this point; precisely because we can hardly see the ego by ourselves.
My fame kept growing and tirelessly I traveled the planet, thinking I was doing something very good for humanity. Now I see that it was the old primal story all over again: I needed to help everyone who was in pain otherwise I had no right of existing.
Burn out came after two years. I had to stop. The body collapsed and I was shocked to find the first thing that arose when the doctor said I needed to rest was: “Who will love me now?”
In a way that was the beginning of the fall. Of course honest as I was, I shared all this with the students in satsang, showing how much ego is still accompanying this awakening experience. I shared my pain and errors and found to my amazement that not many wanted to hear the truth if it did not sound blissful.
Over the four years that I was teaching, I found that rarely someone wanted to hear the truth. Many people come to this type of satsang because they want to be told that there are shortcuts and often they want to adore someone. Not many want to hear about the painstaking work of purifying our minds and healing our pains.
In fact, in the neo satsangs as I have come to call them, the jokes about working on yourself are plenty full. The beauty as well as the difficulty of our time is that spiritual knowledge and secrets are available at the click of a mouse. All the scriptures are public. In the past this was not the case, information was given only in relation to the students/disciples advancing in practice and experience.
Now we do not have to practice meditation or doing any hard work in order to receive the teaching and so the danger is that we only absorb the teaching in a mental way. In the meantime I had moved into a relationship (after much initial protest from my side) and this provided another reality check. I was not as beyond as I thought I was. Learning to love and be loved provided and still provides endless lessons.
I took a year off and met with a lot of old childhood pain and present loneliness. First only my old friends had despised me but I had been welcomed with open arms into the neo satsang community, but now also the satsang community threw me out.
I was not supposed to feel pain and be honest about it. Finally though, I was being able to welcome it and feel it without further manipulation. I took some months in silence and started to feel again the need to meditate. (Of course in the years of being nobody there had been no one to meditate)Still all the while I still enjoyed mostly the bliss and peace of being at one.
Then the real hit came. My best friend and working partner was diagnosed with cancer. For some months we kept it up, saying that it was okay. That we felt no fear or pain, that dying was as good as living and that everything that comes must also go again. But then we cracked, both of us. I spent the last weeks at her side, nursing her at home until she died in my arms.
That split me right in two. There was simply so much pain. I was overwhelmed by it, consumed by it, helpless with it and bewildered by the fact that I was feeling all this again. My sharing became again more honest, I no longer pretended anything anymore or offered miracles and shortcuts. Of course people came less and less. Slowly I saw that what was left was a handful of sincere seekers whom I actually had not much more to offer than my friendship and limited wisdom and experience.
I realized that I was longing for guidance. I was looking left and right in old and new teachings until I found what I was looking for in my new teacher Aziz. His Zen hits were painful and not always welcomed but over time I understood more and received for the first time a map of reality that resonated with me.
My own master had been too wide, too rich for me to see a clear and practical path. He spoke about so many practices and left it to me what to choose. This had brought me were I was. I felt and feel a deep respect and gratitude for him but I needed more.
I needed personal guidance from an alive teacher. Now I found this very precise teaching that resonated in my soul as a reflection of reality. He guided me in my practice and taught me a complete new way of meditation. He also told me to stop teaching but I was afraid to stop. It was my only source of income
I believed that I needed the money, I needed the recognition and I needed somehow the position (more for myself than for others). But above all I needed to not let myself know that it was over. That I had had an amazing opening and enlightening experience. One that lasted for years even and that bit-by-bit it had slipped away.
Slowly I have come to understand that corruption lives in all of us and that it is not entirely possible to not be corrupt. After all we do most everything we do for ourselves. By keeping the meetings going I could still tell myself that it was not over. I could continue to dream a bit more and tell myself that it would pick up again. Or worse I would blame it on the low quality motivation of the seekers that it was not happening anymore.
But life is generous when the intention is honest. I prayed daily for truth and sincere prayers are always heard. I moved to the west, to the country I was born in, and found it extremely difficult to adjust to that culture after 16 years in India. There came a time where there was no more money. Friends and family needed to keep us afloat. Now I truly crashed. The entire shadow side of the personality appeared.
The ego had grown stronger, (it keeps growing side by side with our realizations. The more powerful we become the more powerful the ego also becomes.) The super ego came back with a vengeance. The self-torture and self-blame returned with the force of a tornado. The Shadow was here, presenting itself loud and clear. I thought that I had met my shadow a long time ago but never to this depth. Shadow exist in relation to light, the more light, the bigger the shadow I found out.
All of a sudden I was identified again with almost each and every single thought. I was emotional from morning till night, apart from the hours that I meditated. And meditate I did, and pray, and move my body to ward off the depression till it could not be warded off anymore. I was in hell and realized that the healing had to happen right here in hell.
The money was finished, I started to take a cleaning job and was ready to take any job still dreaming to some extend that after this all was over a new miracle would happen and I would be magically lifted out of here again. And life would be forever good. But truth does not live in the presence of hope.
Giving up our hopes is one of the many prices we have to pay for the priceless pearl. The ego screamed and screamed. It simply did not want to part with the glorious times. My entire life with all its undigested and denied pains came for another round. Thoughts of suicide were my companions.
Without the support of my partner and some dear friends, family and a good healer, it would all have been a lot more difficult. The love that I received was so supportive and healing. Nevertheless I was really lost and only partly grasped what was going on. I needed help.
One thing was clear, that there was no way out but only a way through, my only interest became to stay present in the pain and whatever emotion presented itself. I felt lower than I had ever been, and it started to glimpse that: to go down is to go up.
I was grateful that Aziz came to the west for another silent retreat!!. However, at the end of that one-week he announced that he was going to live in seclusion and would no longer be available as a guide and teacher! Once again on my own and not fully realizing what was happening I prayed for help.
My great luck was that a book fell into my lap called Half way up the mountain by Mariana Caplan. It brought all the missing pieces in the understanding. This book was about me. It was my story in detail. Here I read about each and every pitfall I had fallen into. It gave me a positive context and sufficient information about the process I was going through.
Reading that book was like being in retreat. It reminded me again and again that there was a healing power in this crisis. That is was what I wanted. My dignity was restored again when I started to understand that this is a mechanical response in the mind and not a personal failure or trip. My suffering became more dignified.
I learned that disillusionment is not only necessary on the path but a true gift of the Grace of God. It is like you are being weaned off the breast of God and allowed to walk. Of course you fall left and right like any toddler does but eventually you will find balance and walk. The fall from paradise seems in truth an integral part of the enlightenment process. In fact some teachers say that you have to earn it to deserve it.
When we realize that the path we are on is not at all what we thought it would be, and that reality is something completely different than all our illusions about it, we are shocked. This is not an easy transition to make. It is extremely painful and it feels like being skinned alive. And yet this pain magically opens us deeper to what and who we are.
Enlightenment comes to life when we embrace our endarkenment in the very same way. We realize deeply that our human reality will always be here, that pain will always be here, that suffering is an integral part of human life. Either we suffer unconsciously or we do it consciously. We realize that the freedom we thought we had found in the bliss and joy of the Enlightenment high is not the real freedom at all. It is much deeper. It is truly accepting what IS.
By the time I had finished reading the book the let go was complete. I closed down all teaching activities, cancelled my ticket to India and am ready for a new chapter in this adventure called life. This time it can happen right here where I am. And I truly do not know anything about where this is going.
No hope and no plan.


Rani

1.2-Litre TSI vs 1.0-Litre EcoBoost – Turbocharged Battle!

Price OTR Mumbai: Rs. 9.33 lakhs (Polo GT TSI), Rs. 9.35 lakhs (Ford EcoSport EcoBoost Titanium)

Both these petrol cars bring turbocharged power to the masses.

Almost every diesel car sold in India uses a turbocharger. But a turbocharged diesel engine and a turbocharged petrol motor are quite different. Naturally if you are a petrol head, a turbocharged petrol engine under your car’s hood is going to excite you. The first affordable turbocharged petrol car in India was the Skoda Octavia vRS which was launched early last decade (1.8-litre engine produced 150 BHP of power). Now in 2013, we have two more affordable turbocharged petrol cars to choose from – the Ford EcoSport EcoBoost and the Volkswagen Polo 1.2 GT TSI. Both these cars are very different, after all one is a compact SUV while the other is a hatchback. However both are priced very similarly, which tempted us to put them head-to-head in a turbocharged battle. 

 Ford cars are known to be very fun to drive while Volkswagen is not far behind either. The EcoSport is definitely fun although the steering is not as crisp and handling could have been better, with a stiffer suspension. Naturally the taller stance and heavier weight show in the way the EcoSport doesn’t outrun the Polo GT in corners but remember, we are only comparing engines and not dynamics. The Polo GT also comes with ESP which makes cornering even more surefooted and the EcoSport lacks this feature on the EcoBoost version (the 1.5-litre Automatic gets ESP). 

Even engine wise, the only thing common between the Volkswagen Polo GT TSI and Ford EcoSport EcoBoost is that a turbocharger is used by both of them. The Polo GT TSI displaces 1197cc from its 4-cylinder engine, producing 105 PS of power at 5000 RPM and 175 Nm of torque between 1500-4000 RPM. The 1.0-litre EcoBoost engine in the Ford EcoSport uses a 999cc, 3-cylinder engine to develop 125 PS of power at 4200 RPM and 170 Nm of torque between 1400-4500 RPM. On paper the EcoSport looks like a stronger candidate as far as performance goes but weaker if you consider NVH levels. 

However on the road, the EcoSport surprises you by offering fantabulous NVH levels. Vibrations are very low although at certain points of the power band (top-end mostly), the 3-pot architecture does make its presence felt. Ford engineers have created a master piece with the 1.0-litre EcoBoost motor and that is the reason this engine has won the international engine of the year award twice in a row. Even with lesser displacement, the EcoBoost engine belts out 20 PS more power which gives it a 0-100 km/hr time of 10.8 seconds. The Polo GT TSI on the other hand is absolutely vibe free and reaches 100 km/hr from standstill in 9.7 seconds. The EcoSport weighs 119 kgs more which results in it being slower. Both cars have a top speed of 190 km/hr. Even with more power, the EcoSport deliveries higher mileage (18.9 km/l for the EcoSport 1.0 vs 17.2 km/l for the Polo TSI as per ARAI). 

The EcoSport has some turbolag and starts to pull strongly post 2000 RPM. The Polo feels more eager at low end of the rev range and feels more drivable in the city. However the Polo simply can’t match the high revving character of the EcoBoost engine. It’s around 5000 RPM power starts to sharply trail off in the Polo (redline at just 6000 RPM) but the EcoSport continues to solider on till its 6800 RPM redline. To the Polo GT TSI’s credit is a 7-speed DSG unit which shifts cogs quicker than you can manually do using the 5-speed box on the EcoSport. However the real fun of driving is changing gears yourself and that is where the EcoSport brings more smiles. The clutch is light and the gearshift is slick. In the Polo, things are a bit artificial with not much driver involvement. Had there been paddle shifts, we would have had a different stance. The Polo does get a Sport mode along with tip-tronic function. 

So which is the better engine of the two. Both engines are fantastic but the EcoBoost has out vote. It’s more fun to drive, is slightly more vocal, redlines at a higher RPM and feels fast and engaging too. The Polo might be the faster car here but it simply doesn’t excite you as much as the EcoBoost powered EcoSport does. Now only if Ford plonks in the award winning A4 sized EcoBoost power plant into ligher cars like the Figo, then it will be game, set, match and go!