Sometimes twitter throws interesting thoughts at us. We just glance over them. Recently I started to bookmark them, just to go back and inspire myself. For example, See the following tweet. Well, that is not the first time that question was asked and answered, or more precisely speaking attempted to answer. The same question is answered in different ways, How are we being sure life is a dream, or whether we live in a someone Eles's dream? Are we going to wake up when there is death? Is there absolute truth in the world? Or is everything is a relative truth? Do we live in a world which is present on its own or, are we live in a world created by the mind when we were born? Why Descartes is wrong. Significant contributions to the above question come from French Philosopher and mathematician, Rene Descartes. In his book "Meditations on First Philosophy.” Descartes questioned the reliability of the senses in providing us with information about the external world and pondered whether we can ever truly know what is real. He introduced the method of systematic doubt, where he doubted everything that could possibly be doubted, until he reached something that he could not doubt. This led to his famous conclusion, “Cogito, ergo sum” or “I think, therefore I am,” which asserts that the very act of doubting one’s own existence serves as proof of the reality of one’s own mind. So, did he answer the question we are truly living? It seems that he only came to the conclusion that there is something called thinking. Even if we live in a someone else's dream, this thinking happens and that is a real phenomenon. Yet, we cannot come to conclusion that There is me, just because there is something called thinking. If we forget about everything else, and just get the facts, Thinking is a verb, an action, a process, and on the other hand Me, essentially is a noun. Simply even if we think in terms of language there is a fundamental difference between a verb and a noun. They cannot be the same! And that is a simple proof Descartes is wrong. "I think, therefore I think", is the only conclusion we can come from this. It doesn't provide a link between I and thinking. Coherence as means of reality. Moving on, In the movie inception, and matrix, they give the idea of how to live in a dream and to wake up one day to know that it is a dream. But when living in such a deep dream the characters identify that they are dreaming by identifying lack of coherence. Which means that when we live day to day, we know how we came by of some place. We know which are causes and effects, we see temporal relationships of things. But when we dream these are lacking, at one time you may be dining with your family to suddenly fall into a battlefield with enemy. Such things do not happen in our relatively true world. Why did I used the relatively true world? It is because, there are still unanswered questions in our relative world. Such as, How we came by this world in the first place. It is definitely not by my choice. I am not sure about you but definitely this is not my choice to be born to this world. Everyone knows if you are given a choice, we would choose best out of best for ourselves. So Questions about death and afterlife similarly still remains unanswered. So really speaking, so called coherence happens only when we are wake up and only from our birth and till our death. There are no observations for us about our relative world beyond these limits. It is impossible and if everyone claims as such, for now, we can label them as liars. Being a flag in the wind. Thinking about these great ideas of great minds, sitting on a step looking at the gloomy sky which is about to cry. I noticed hundreds of flags locals have hoisted on the premises. They slowly sway in the wind. Not going anywhere. Maybe the flags hold the answer to life. They are just there, and they do not own anything. They are alive just like me, so they move with the wind, so do I. They will be there until one day they worn out, So would I. They do not carry the burden I do. So why do I? I will be a flag. To sway in the wind This way and that way. Am I not a flag When I sway This way and that way In the blowing wind. Conclusion. As I was looking for a conclusion, for the Descartes great saying, Ironically, I found it back from the twitter itself. And it was suggested by my great friend @wFozStories. And I would like to make a little modification as well to make it more meaningful, by saying, "There is thinking, therefore everything is, including I"

Correction, it should be weaknesses of dictators. But I used the word weak dictators to contrast what we already assume when we hear the term dictators. That is dictators are strong. So, that could be our starting point for the discussion. Why do we assume dictators are strong? I think part of the problem lies, when we do not understand the human life. Or as we call it the 'Living'. When we remember someone only part of the person comes to our mind. Imagine I start to tell you about the story of the great Dictator of the last century Hitler. You would immediately remember his ferocious face with dark eyes, and commanding nature of the speech. The aura he has when he walks among his troops and followers. Imagine if you were in the part of the crowd, when he did his speech after the elections were won. I bet you would have no choice but to be a follower, as that was the norm of the German people during those days. And you would certainly feel united, at that point of the time, and feel you are on the right course of action towards a greater nation. If you really want to learn about the world war, I think you should watch the movie series world at War. Were, first-hand experience of those who were directly involved were given, who are no longer here to tell the story of greatest dictator. Copilot summary of dictators of the 20th century. In the 20th century, a diverse array of dictators held power. While their methods varied, most shared certain features. These included repressing opposition, controlling communication channels, punishing critics, imposing ideologies, attacking pluralist democracy, and restricting cross-border flows of people and information. Some infamous 20th-century dictators include Atatürk, Mussolini, Hitler, Stalin, Franco, Mao, Perón, Tito, Nasser, Sukarno, Nkrumah, and de Gaulle. Their actions left a lasting impact on history, often through manipulation, exploitation, and atrocities. If you’d like more details about any specific dictator, feel free to ask! So, if you would ask who are the weak dictators of history. I will tell all of them. And will explain, how they would become weak dictators. A day of life of Hitler - weak dictators of history Now imagine, you are invisible, and you could observe the great dictator day after day. In close range. You could observe him like you would observe your husband, or your wife. Unseen and without fear of facing his wrath. What would you see? Let me help with your imagination. You would see a man, waking up in the morning, washing his face, grooming himself, sitting in the toilet, mandatory fifteen minutes, and as many times as necessary during the course of the day. And he would be hungry, and at the mercy of the cook, who is another human being, for his breakfast. Even he could not spend a day without any food. Who would like certain food, and dislike the taste of the other, and who will try to taste only the best wine! After the breakfast, he would start the day, with plans, to conquer the world. And where does he get the ideas from? From his mind, which is shaped by the information he received during his growth as a human. And when his mind told him to conquer the earth and make the Great Aris nation, he could not stop taking action. He was a slave to his own thoughts. And now the great Hitler, comes out, to his routine, out of his palace, he inspects his troops, gives a great speech to followers, watch a Charlie Chaplin movie. And he takes lunch. Yes, he takes lunch, takes his dog for a walk, could he not do that? No, he couldn't, how could he, he is a human. As humans we have to do all what our minds tells us to do. Next, secrete meeting with his war generals, to plot to kill some of the political enemies, and have a bath. Could he not have a bath? No, he could not, otherwise he would be stinking at the end of the day. Supper and Sleep. Maybe some romance if he feels that he needs. Could he not have sleep? No, he could not, he could spend sleepless night one day, may be two days, but after that he would even fall sleep even in front of his enemies, Like a sleepy cat! Discussion generalization and insights Of course, I wouldn't write that if Hitler was alive today! I am not stupid to go against human norms. Yet did you see? Did you see weaknesses of a dictator? Co-pilot did not see the weakness of our dictators, He is excused as he is an AI, an evolving one. Yet it will start to see one day, and I would be glad, if he could include weaknesses of dictators into his own narrative without me asking to do that. And I think you would agree with me, when we look at Hitler, as a human, watching him all day, we do not see a strong man. But a weak person who follows every like and dislike and succumb to the weaknesses of every one of us face, as we possess human bodies and human minds. Of course, I can go on talking about each and every dictator in the history. Do you think it would be different or similar? Now it's time to generalize. Imagine you are in Met Gala, taking photographs of celebrities on the red carpet. The atmosphere is glamorous, and you see glistening, giggles and girls is glorious gowns taking the walk with Handsom boys. I bet you would forget the big picture. You would see them as 'celebrities' not humans. I invite you to imagine otherwise. Without focusing on the walk, see what is unseen. See what the paparazzi did not capture in your mind's eye. Just for the sake of it. You can imagine Bill Gates, Elon Musk or Mark Zuckerberg. You can imagine Mother Teresa, or Mahatma Gandhi of India. You can imagine Football stars, a Marine, a Pilot or a Serial Killer like Zodiac. You can imagine a monk, or yourself when you were partially in control of your life. When you do imagine, imagine everything they had to go through to live a day. I would be surprised if it doesn't give enough insight to seriously think about life. If you want to read more about the fragile nature of our body read dumb ways to die. Conclusion In conclusion, I would say, dictators are one of weak kinds of human beings, who are slaves to our mind and bodies, just like every one of human beings. If we forget about the deeds there is no fundamental difference between a dictator and a savior, as long as they are both human. More we educate ourselves with these facts, better we would be as a society in forgiveness and quality thoughts, which could eventually elevate us from our human form into Platonic.

This post is not about how to develop a positive attitude towards life. This is about what I have learned from the positive thinking so far. And it includes personal experience and real-life examples. And this is to connect the dots in life and to fit the positive thinking into its own place. I was a huge believer in positive thinking. I can remember I read the book "The power of positive thinking" (its translated version) as a kid. It fascinated me. I was maybe twelve years old. And I kept the book as a bible, to re-read, the stories. It inspired me to work towards my life goals. Those days as internet was not so popular I did not have any other way to touch information on positive thinking. Rarely there were TV programs, about positive thinking, and I believed in them, why shouldn't I? They were adults, who have experienced life, and from their experience they gave those instructions, on positive thinking. More than other kids, I saw the benefit of positive thinking, helping me to excel through those early years. Specially with my studies. I even believed, that If I wanted to get a gold medal in Olympics, there is a way to get it. Just that I have to find out how! Trust me positive thinking works! It works at any age, if you want to achieve something positive thinking is the way. There will be failures but if you keep on trying ultimately there will be turnaround of events. I used to say, "If there is luck, which I have, I have to do some groundwork to make it happen, how can luck occur if I stayed doing nothing on a Couch?" And as the life expanded its horizon and my information sphere grew, I came to notice that there are some other forces playing in the field. And some aspects cannot entirely be explained by positive thinking. Let's take a thought walk. Imagine there is a group of 100 interns. They all are competing for a position in the co-operation at the end of their training. Let's assume there is only one position offered by the company. And all those interns are positive thinkers! Yes, all 100 of them. What do you think will happen? If it is only the positive thinking, all of them should qualify. But the question itself doesn't provide such opportunity. Clearly something else is at play. Does the most positive thinking guy will win? Will the most hard-working guy will win? Will the most intelligent person will win? Will the most intelligent hard-working person will win? Will the most intelligent, hardworking, honest guy win? Or will the most intelligent, hardworking, cunning fellow will win? Do you see the problem? When there are lot of variables at play (Usually infinite of them) relative importance of positive thinking decreases. Of course that is a significant factor, in short term achievements. But I find that, I cannot clearly point out to the facts which lead me to the situations, I am in right now. You may be rich, you may be poor, you may be happy, or you may be sad. Clearly that is not a doing, of positive or negative thinking. Or what "you" have done in the past. Maybe it's weather! LOL Some may consider that I am a destroyer of happiness. Superficially it may seem so. Yet, you can see, I have created a blog, which is growing day by day. Why do you think I do this? In my early years, the positive thinking self would say, because I want to say a story, to earn money and be rich. To be famous. But now I know, those are not the only reasons. There are thousands and thousands of reasons for me to develop this blog and continue. Discussion about reasons beyond responds is a different topic for another day. But for now, we can say we know a few reasons, and we sometimes leave a blind eye, to the others. Power of positive thinking. Think about the problem of life. That simple fact the life starts with birth and ends with death. Do you think positive thinking could give answers to life, why it happens so. Why I cannot be immortal, thinking positively? You may call it stupid to ask such a question. But should we believe that positive thinking only works in certain situations? Is it a weak force? Not powerful enough. Are there any other stronger forces in action? So, in conclusion, I would say, Positive thinking works, certainly helps in life. You cannot get solutions to every problem with positive thinking. In the first place, why do problems arise? is a great problem to investigate.

It is not the first time I have written a vegetable story. Previously I wrote about how to be a good vegetable. Here, as inspired by all the vegetable vendors by the road I am writing again about vegetables. This time about their shelf life. On shelf life Vegetables have a shelf life. Shorter than the other items in the supermarket. So, if they are not sold, they will straight go into the dust bin. That is a life of a vegetable. Yet other items also have their own shelf life. Even sugar, even soap, even petroleum has a shelf life of six months to one year. Can you think of anything which doesn't rot, given enough time? What does it mean something has a shelf life? Given enough time everything changes, slow enough process most of the time it is not dramatic like vegetables. Of course, vegetables go from fresh to dry and inedible within days. A thought experiment on shelf life. Let's look at shelf life of different 'things' we encounter in our daily lives. You might get surprising answers. What is the shelf life of water? What is the shelf life of a piece of a rock? What is the shelf life of plastic? What is the shelf life of a language? What is the shelf life of a civilization? What is the shelf life of a successful company? What is the shelf life of a child? What is the shelf life of a human? What is the shelf life of earth? What is the shelf life of a thought? We can try to answer each and everything. Then I understand that everything has a one. Even me, even thoughts. Last year's thoughts are no longer there. I can't even remember them; I did not have the blog to write them down those days. As they were not written down, no copy of them is available. Expired like vegetables. When you look at people do you see their shelf life? Of course not. It would be amazing if we could. And we would be a better society, without looking at the skies we would more and more looking at ourselves. At least I have seen a couple of movies where people can see their remaining days and seconds, would it change anything? Would we still be running away to get the best shot of Alcohol, or best views in the luxurious vacation? Other similarities with rotten vegetables. Have you seen farmers and vendors, how much trouble they come across to keep the vegetable fresh. Hand picking them up, packaging carefully, keeping them refrigerated, enough moisture throughout, if anything rotten removed to lessen it spread. Yet some of them go bad before they end up in our kitchen. If they are not sold in time, definitely all of them would go rotten. It's inevitable. And I see vegetables, playing, running in their running shoes to keep their good shape. To burn the calories and make the heart pump efficiently. I see some vegetables, only consume healthy vegetables, paying extra cash to buy only organic items. I see some vegetables do not care, they just enjoy life, saying others that we should "Enjoy while we can". I see no difference. Them vegetables on shelves and us vegetables on running shoes. Like farmers, and vendors; doctors and teachers, and well-wishers try to help us keep fresh, yes, I do pity their effort. Yet being a vegetable, it is inevitable that it is going to be rotten one day. Maybe in a couple of decades. So, what would you do? Would you seek answers to the question of life? Or just be a rotten vegetable or be consumed by the society.

I was worried about tomorrow today I was worried it would come. I did not want to meet tomorrow, as I was not prepared. Like a child fear the exam, I was afraid of the questions it would hold. I wasn't prepared with answers as I didn't do my homework. Then I remembered yesterday, where I was worried. I was worried yesterday like a driver of a train, without breaks. Thinking I would crash into the platform and kill thousands of innocence. And I am living that day now train still running on rails. Did you ever worry about the future? Like me sometimes. If so, this is my little advice. Hope it would help. Tomorrow, it never comes. That is the amazing thing about tomorrow. It is just a name for something but an illusion in our minds. Let's find out where is tomorrow. Think about yesterday. Nothing happened up to now since yesterday is not at all accessible. When I think about this it amazes me. It is gone. Whatever you thought yesterday, your sorrow your happiness, your excitement, your anger. Everything is not there. Even things happened are not there anymore. Everything moved across the frame of time to the current state of affairs. Yet my mind is capable of making a replica of what happened in present moment. Only because this replica exists that I can understand that I existed through time. (this is the phenomena of coherence, some evidence that we are not living in someone Elses dream) The question of tomorrow still exists. If we follow the same arguments, tomorrow is just our own reflection of mind. From whatever the information available today at our disposal we make a tomorrow in our mind. Let's look at the characteristics of this tomorrow. Tomorrow definitely not yet arrived. There is no place at this moment for tomorrow to exist. if it does it should be a parallel world Hence tomorrow is not something physical. Imagine you are on the north pole, where all the time zones converge. Or you are in the outer space, where you are not aware of the rotation of the earth, and you forgot to bring the clock with you. Even in these scenario's tomorrow would not exist. So, what is it? It looks like tomorrow is a convention we have made, for ourselves to describe natural phenomena which happens with earth's rotation. But the truth is it is not something real. It is just a feeling that we all have because of earth's rotation. Because we have seen day and night happen over and over again, ever since we recognized dark and light, we are used to think that there will be a tomorrow. Tomorrow is just a prediction, from what we observed in the past. It is a prediction which will be often true to most of us but relatively. But for some of us I can assure you there will be not tomorrow. For some of us today will be the last day that they would see the light and the dark. And as a fact for all of us that day will come. So, if tomorrow is a prediction, it is a good prediction for most of us, with a small risk of being failure. The fact that there is no tomorrow means, today is the last day of the life of every one of us Tomorrow is an illusion of mind. Our minds are capable of creating things out of nothing. Tomorrow is one such illusion of the mind. As mind doesn't like to face uncertainty it will create a predictable projection from what happened in the past. And this mechanism is pretty good. However, as I illustrated the fact of complexity from my previous article of Rubik's cube, the complexity of this world is too much for any mind to predict a proper outcome. And it will be true for tomorrow. So, although our predictions are roughly correct, they will never be exactly correct. So, what is the advantage of knowing this fact? Imagine, you are going to the supermarket to buy some items. You find all the items but one is missing. It is raining and you will have to go to another shop to just to buy this item. And you are annoyed. Why? It is because you expected a smooth shopping. Your prediction about buying every item from the same shop, did not work as planned. You did not predict there will be rain. And your reality deviated from your expectation, and you are annoyed now. Whose fault is this? Can you see, that is exactly nobody's doing. That is just the nature and it happened only because you thought everything will happen smoothly tomorrow. Illusion you created yourself for tomorrow is wrong. And nobody can be prepared for what is going to happen next moment. Knowing this puts me at an ease. As half of my problems were in the predictions of tomorrow. Do you know where other half of my problems lie? Read about this on where is my past? And when I think about this I come to know that, I never existed out of this fraction of time. I have been only present in this moment. So, I should have been born and dead at the same time if I ever should travel in time as I do now. Only if this mind is capable of capturing this I will ever experience this fraction. And I await hoping to understand this fraction, Until then I will live on.

From the morning till night, we are bombarded with information. It is news, from newspapers, from radio, from television. Information from the boss, files on your desk, information in your email inbox, and on your phone. Our lives depend on information. What are the patterns of these vital information? Building an information sphere Let's imagine that you are in a classroom. And you are taught biology. On structure of cells, cell walls their composition. Internal structure and function of these individual parts. Function of a cell as a whole. And the information travels to our brain as sounds. Visuals which make a structure or a concept of a cell. Ever since you gained this knowledge from time to time you will hear about cells. Different versions of it. Plant cells, cancer cells, single and multiple cellular organisms. The information will keep on adding. And they will help you to model the world with this new knowledge. In every field this is the same pattern which happens. Pieces of information get together to build a large structure of knowledge. A model of the world. And this model of the world is inside us all the time. Whenever we see and understand new concept, we Assoicate it with our existing model. Imagine you started studying molecular biology and, whatever you have learned in your introductory class about the cell will have influence on how you proceed. After some time we will forget that these are models of the world. We would keep on adding new information to our existing model hoping somehow it will make sense. But I have never seen anyone who had been successful in doing so. Information spheres of the world. Mathematicians see the world in functions, changes, and numbers. They solve infinitely many equations to answer infinitely many possible questions. And the discover more and more beyond the boundaries of current mathematical model. And even win the Nobel prize when they find a new dark hole. Engineers use mathematics to solve real world problems. Already solved ones and new ones as they arise. They expand current understandings in electricity magnetism forces and beyond. Chemists and biologists get together to understand life, new chemical reactions, discover new material and add to their chemical world. There are hundreds and thousands of these models of the world. Collectively and individually in each one of us there is a model of the world. The meaning of life So, if we ever want to figure out what the meaning of life. We will have to look beyond the model of the world. How can we do that as, the tools we use to Analyse the unknown is the same as the ones which we used to build these models. Meaning all sensory inputs we get from our sensory organs. This information ball is our prison. When I discussed in the article prisoners of mind, I introduced the same concept. We all are imprisoned inside us, inside our bodies and inside our information world. Sometimes I imagine breaking out free, Break out free like a bird into the sky. From the prison of my own information sphere. If it would mean to give up this body, I wouldn't mind If it would mean to give up my money, I wouldn't mind If it would mean to give up a carer or anything I have built I wouldn't mind Imagine what would it mean to give up all that information world There would be no one to judge, nothing to argue, nothing to gain and none to loose. Would time exist in such a world? The craving to expand the information world will be lost. I invite you to imagine of such a place where there is no you but you.

There is a saying that if you see a girl's face with the candlelight that you will never be able to forget and you will fall in love with that girl. I have never tried that, so which is not sure true. But I have plenty of experience with lanterns and candles, which I think is still the case with most of the rural households. We had electricity ever since I can remember. But those days, electricity was not very stable. Often there were power failures. When it starts raining, power was bound to fail, and my father used to say that it is due to a tree, touching on powerlines. Which I think may not have been the case most of the times. Generally, we had to revert back to candles and lanterns until power was restored often, would take at least a day. This meant whole afternoons were spent under lanterns. Have you ever been under a lantern? It was not by choice but by default. There was nothing much can be done with the light. Mostly we had to finish our homework before dark. One lantern and a few candles would provide few hours into the night. The wavy flame often creates dancing shadows on the walls. Like tiny bugs who are attracted to the lantern we also gathered around it. Candles were often spared as they would burn quickly. Mainly used if you want to go around the house. I can remember looking at the flame of a candle or the lantern. What was I thinking? I am not sure. But I can remember the smell of the kerosine and the burning thread which can be moved up to bring more light to the room. I remember the flame with dark blue color at the bottom with orange top. Tiny insects dart across the room attracted to the light and they land on the glass cover. Often, they would burn themselves not fully, but unable to fly again, they would fall on their backs and struggle to move with half burnt wings and legs. I was scared of the dark and would not leave the room when it is dark. And these hours of silence lasted until we took our dinner and, would end. Candles were different, I could touch the melting wax. Even molding half melted wax into little balls was fun. Making silhouettes on the walls, we could enjoy a little story. The era of candles and lanterns are long gone. I have seen the London nights with thousands of starry decorations in December. Nights which were almost bright as the day. And I compared it with my mind to the Candlelight nights. That is what minds does. They compare and try to make sense. Try to weight one over the other. For a moment I observed this. And came into conclusion, it doesn't matter nothing is better. It really doesn't matter and how I came about this I would explain. A mindful night When you read about Candlelight nights, maybe you have done the same. Maybe you have either imagined candlelight nights with similar experiences which you had in the past. And you may have valued these, either with likes or dislikes. And compared with nights of your own, candles, lanterns, bulbs. Which is better. What does it matter. If I think Candlelight nights are better, I would be living in the past and I would not be able to see the value of modern lighting. If I would think tonight is better, still that would be a label and would be unhappy when the bulbs burn. So, I would observe mind and refuse to accept its judgment. And see what will happen If I do not value at all. What would you do? Would you rather value a Candlelight night or a well-lit room with a Chandelier?

I saw a hanged man once. Once by a busy road. With a broken neck in his office suit. Freshly hanged in the morning. Some walked by unseen Some could not look Some did not bother Some hanged around To investigate But I felt, I felt him a good half an hour What he felt before he hanged And I cried his tears Because I could not be there To cry with him I could not share his guilt He wasn't there anymore So, I hanged with him, a stranger. True account of a hanged man. It is not a common scene, once you see it you would not be unsee it. It is something to see a hanged man from a movie scene, but it is entirely different to see it in real. I saw a hanged man once and it had carved an image in my memory. Like in Anna Karenina, obsessed with the image of an oncoming train, it had created an image in me. I saw the hanged man about fifteen years ago, in one morning when I was walking to the university. Just adjacent to the faculty wall there was a tree, and he has hanged himself. He was in an office suite. Lifeless body hanged on a rope, arms by the side, and I did not see his face. The neck clearly broken, just hanging. What a life? I am 100% sure, everyone walked by who was curious have long forgotten the hanged man. I can assume the coroners forgot that there was a hanged man. I am so sure that all the men and women who walked by the road had forgotten him. I am sure not every day his loved ones did think about him. Maybe he did not have loved ones at all. Maybe he was all alone and bankrupt. Maybe he could not face the guild of facing the society about a crime that he had done. Maybe it was love, maybe it was depression. I am sure he could not bear the pain anymore. How often do we forget our real problems and decorate our pretty faces at work with a fake smile. Just like a fake plant. Just like a fake plant I gifted. You could water it, you could not water it, you could ignore it you could hug it. But the fake plant will not feel anything. That is the reality of some of us. Maybe the hanged man was a fake plant, and he could not feel anything anymore. Just like everyone else, I forgot him. I've got on with my life like everyone else. We cannot live others' lives; we cannot help others. I have even played "Hang a man" with my friends years after that. I have learnt "hangman's fracture" and knew how to identify a suicide from a murder. I have seen broken neck bones and never thought of the hanged man by the road. Yet, after all these years, I have to write about the stranger who hanged himself by the road. Insignificant it may seem; we own a world inside our heads. So, only us know how heavy it is. In a previous article I wrote about the worst kind of mental pain and how to overcome it, With an analogy of carrying a heavy ball in the hand and diving into see. So, if you ever feel like a fake plant. Please feel free to share your thoughts.

Chinese is cheap right? It surely used to be. Still, it is, yet Chinese becoming more and more expensive nowadays. Have you experienced this lately? I had a Chinese phone once. I had a Chinese phone once. In around 2010. When the world moved towards smartphones, I couldn't afford a super brand phone. So, I bought a Chinese phone. It was fun. I was living far away from home in university at that time. So, I needed a phone. We never had phones until we left our homes on our own. That was the norm, not by rules those days. This Chinese one was maybe my second one. I can remember going to the market to buy a phone. The shop owner showed us different phones. Budget was minimal, expectations were high. I wanted a big, screened phone, so chose a cheap chines one big screen. The phone was not a real android smartphone. It didn't have many apps installed. It had an antenna, and I could watch TV on it. Just with TV signal. And when he showed me the phone it made me smile with happiness. With glistening eyes, I grabbed it. I know I am cheap; I would be labelled as cheap when I take it out in public. I did not care. Who cares, often I spend my time alone. If it doesn't matter to me, it won't matter to anyone. I can remember those days. Having a smartphone was like showing off. It's not so much today. But that was the time where transition occurred. Everything is smart today. We lived in a world where everything was analogue. Sometimes I wonder what happened. Surely, I was lonely and surely, I was less informed in analogue world. We had to wait for the television programs to be broadcasted. We could not skip those TV advertisements. If you miss the program, you will miss it. There is no way to rewind. But still, I cannot say we did not enjoy. We did enjoy a lot. And the experience still remains viable for today. I can remember as small kids we used to pretend that we had small TV in our hands. And watch imaginary cartoons in those imaginary TVs. And that may be the reason for me to have a TV phone. Few of my friends at the university also had TV phones. But they broke. Often within months. But mine did not. It worked for three years! I know I had no excuse to buy a new phone. I was dependent of my parents until I passed out and got my first salary. So the legendary TV phone carried three years with me. I can remember we used to watch cricket matches in it in our dormitory with few of my friends. I think that Chinese phone did work for me like a slave for three years giving value to every penny I played for that. Chinese is not cheap anymore. Recently I went to buy some gifts for kids, at the Hemley's. Guess what, lot of toys were made in China. Surely, they must be cheap, but not so much. Of course there are cheap ones out there. But everything looks great had a nice big price tag in them. So, I thought what happened to Chinese after all. Maybe Chinese went from being cheap to being quality now markets are flooded with their items and as others products are over powered do they have a monopoly in the market? Well, I am not an economist. I am just a customer with few hundred dollars in my pocket. Although it seems that increase in wages, oil prices and material costs all have affected the price tag. Even the covid had a global effect in economy in recent years. Going back to my Chinese phone, I can see that I was both proud and ashamed at the same time? Can it even occur? These feelings have opposite effects. How can they occur together? I was proud I didn't spend too much on a phone from my parents hard earned money. I was happy when it helps me have my childhood dream come true. I was ashamed of my kid like attachment to a cheap Chinese phone, sometimes I did not want to bring it out in public. Yet now two decades later when I think about it alone at the Gatwick Airport, typing in my modern smartphone. I can feel I miss my old Chinese phone more than any friend I had in the university (introvert problems). More than anyone I have met along the way. Maybe I will have a Chinese friend one day. Time is the greatest teacher, only if you take your time to study the book of time. How often you have seen the antiques shops, sell seemingly valueless items with big price tags on them. Even a painting gets more valuable when it gets older. Of course, I am not saying everything will be valuable when it ages. But the idea of value is not in the car, not in the toys at Hemley's or not in the phone. it is in our minds. Price tag is in our minds, and it changes with time. Maybe my cheap Chinese phone was not cheap in my mind. Maybe it had a price tag of a modern iPhone at that time in my mind. Who is anyone to judge. IN summary my cheap Chinese phone: Life is too short to give attention to haters and hooters. Something cheap today is not going to last forever cheap, with the time it will become vintage. Values are in mind, not in material

Have you seen a garden inside a bottle ever? If you haven't Let's see what it looks like. We will look into the smallest garden to the biggest garden ever and look at our life from space. Terrariums and closed ecosystems A terrarium is essentially a miniature garden enclosed in a glass container, creating a small-scale ecosystem. The name derives from the Latin words ‘terra’ (meaning earth) and ‘arium’ (a place or receptacle). These charming displays are mostly and sometimes totally self-sustaining, as the plants inside perform transpiration and condensation, effectively watering themselves. The sealed environment of a terrarium captures moisture and heat, which helps maintain a consistent climate conducive to plant growth. While some terrariums are open, allowing for more direct interaction and maintenance, closed terrariums can operate with minimal human intervention, recycling water and nutrients within their own little biosphere. David Latimer's echo bottle and biosphere 2 David Latimer’s closed eco bottle is a fascinating example of a self-sustaining ecosystem, first of as such. In 1960, Latimer planted a spiderwort (tradescantia) in a 10-gallon glass carboy and sealed it after adding some water. Remarkably, the bottle was last opened in 1972 to add water, and since then, it has remained closed. The ecosystem inside the bottle has thrived for over half a century without any external intervention. This closed environment demonstrates the principles of photosynthesis and the water cycle in a self-contained system. Many such followed from his example. Similarly in previous article The Silent Shrimp I wrote about self-sustaining aquarium. There are plenty of online resources for someone interested to make a biosphere at home. Biosphere 2 is a remarkable scientific endeavor originally designed to be a self-sustaining ecological laboratory, which was larger and more in massive scale than Latimer's little home experiment. Enclosed within a glass and steel structure, it spans three acres in the Arizona desert and includes various biomes such as an ocean with a coral reef, marsh, rainforest, savannah, desert, and agricultural areas, along with a human habitat. The project’s initial function was to study global ecology and support eight people living inside for two years, from 1991 to 1993, providing invaluable data for future space colonization efforts. It set records in human life support and environmental impact monitoring, producing about 80% of its food internally. Today, Biosphere 2 continues to serve as a unique facility for research on Earth’s ecosystems and the development of strategies to combat climate change. And surely Space X, have their own laboratories with self-sustaining biospheres to colonize Mars once the Starship is underway to Mars. The Man who stepped on the Moon. Now Let us look at the big picture from the Eyes of the man who stepped on the moon. Let's look at the earth from the Eyes of Neil Amstrong. From space when he looked at the earth, he could see this little sphere of life floating on otherwise vast un-inhabitable universe. for millions and billions of kilometers of empty space. Earth is self-sustainable. And although massive from our eyes essentially it is a billion-year-old biosphere. What are the characters such a biosphere? and now we know these. Let's apply this new intuition. Except light hardly anything goes out and come into the earth. (of course, meteorites and space crafts are exceptions) And whatever changes occur, whatever the life on earth is start from earth, live on earth and die on earth. Earth is an almost closed echo system. A gigantic one. More than one occasion, I have been asked, or advised to be like earth. Although there is a big, functioning biosphere out there, essentially, we all share the same atoms, same elements over and over again. If we just forget that souls exist outside the earth, we are just part of a gigantic reaction which is called earth. So, when someone says to "Be like earth" there are several meanings to it. What is the meaning to be Like earth: It may represent to be silent like earth. Earth hardly moves on a visible scale relative to us. It seems stable and although life sprout and die, earth remains same. It may represent, to be self-sustainable like a Terrarium. To be independent inside ourselves, to generate power and recycle thoughts to sustain till it eventually changes its form. It may represent, to think of us as a part of nature. Although life we think is belong to us. Maybe we are just elements which are in delusion to think that we own something. Which is wrong. We are just earth, due to forces of nature, raised above the ground, detached from ground and move for some time before getting mixed with earth back again. We are bounded by gravity and other forces to the earth in an inseparable way. Only when you look at from outer space with the analogy of a terrarium in mind that we will be able to appreciate this fact. What is it being like earth feels to you? You may also like to read: Into the wild Blue yonder or why do birds fly?

Once upon a time up on top of a tree there lived a coconut family. Two coconut daughters lived with their coconut father and mother. One day little daughter coconut asked her father a question. Father, Father I need some water. I am hungry. My stomach is empty. And father said, my little daughter, you just wait. The tree is going to provide us with some water. Daughter coconut asked. "How come we get water? the well is far down below. Can't you see? How are we going to get there?" Father Coconut said. "No no, we are not going to go down. The tree will absorb water from its roots, and through the trunk it will deliver water up to the branches and us. When you get bigger, I'm sure you will be filled with water inside of your tummy." So, did the coconut family waited and waited and waited on the top of the tree enjoying beautiful sunsets day after day. One day, the coconut father fell off, then the mother. But the little coconut got bigger and bigger and ended up with full of water inside. And she said to herself, "My father was correct. I am full of coconut water now." And she spent the rest of her life until she too fell off. Little coconut story written inspired by a little coconut.

This is a story about prioritization. It is important right? How important? I think it is important enough to write a story about. Maybe you have heard the story, it is old enough to be there thousands of years. Story is as followed. The monk who did not prioritize Once there was an old monk. He had very few students with him. He taught them about life, meaning of life, about liberation from suffering, peace and silence. Everything you would become a monk for. Everything that you would try to find out being away from the formalities of a society. There was another monk, who was younger. He also was a chief monk in a nearby village. He was surrounded by full of energetic enthusiastic young monks. He was optimistic, about growth and development of the practice and equally Dearing to listen. He had mastered the art of meditation so much that he can reduce his weight and levitate. He could even move in air. And it took years of practice his meditation to get to this level and he occasionally did it in front of a crowd even. And people love to see such magic, and he had shown results of meditation unlike the monk who had nothing to show off. So, obviously followers are more, and he was famous. One day both of the monks came to a river. The young monk saw the old monk with his followers, on the other side of the river. And he levitated over the river. With astonishments and whispers started on the opposite camp. One brave follower asked the old monk " Dear teacher, why do you let them to humiliate us? You must be knowing more tricks than that proud young monk. Why don't you do something. Maybe you can walk under the water." With a kind smile old monk got on the ferry and crossed the river. And on the other side, he tossed a coin to the ferry owner and turned his disciples. "See, would you spend years of time meditating to gain something you can buy for half a penny?" He asked. His disciples had no answers to his words of wisdom. Prioritization for mindfulness- words of wisdom. So, the moral of the story is you can end up in a wrong place if you did not prioritize your tasks. It is a key ingredient if you want to be somewhere at right time. True for many things we do in our lives, and it is true for mindfulness as well. In mindfulness prioritization is called wisdom. In previous article, do not start with mindfulness, do start with wisdom, I emphasized the fact that wisdom is key ingredient in mindfulness practice. Like the Yong monk, years of your practice would not make you end up being in the correct place. So, we practice mindfulness/ living for correct reasons, which are, To observe silence, to observe the nature, to observe the mind in wisdom on the process of living. To observe our greed and defilements, and to observe these when they arise, like defeating the angry monster. Wrong reasons, to practice are, To stop defilements or try to defeat them, try to levitate at the end of the day. To gain, wisdom, silence, psychic powers (observe is the correct word, not gain) To get away from anything we dislike, stress, work, or problems in life. It is so Suttle, that every word: gain, get away, stop, fight - has a doer in it who tries to gain something, while all there is to life is observation. Do not worry if you would not understand this at this time. It takes years of solidarity for wisdom to generate. I know you are disagreeing with a lot of things. If you have, please post it. I will answer to best of my knowledge. What is your story of prioritization?