Wisdom Nuggets

(2 minute Read)

There is one debate among the cricket fans worldwide, which I find it very interesting to assess the opposing standpoints. The question is whether the game favors the batsmen more than the bowlers? Let us dwell on one of the aspects here. For example, in a T20 game, a bowler gets to bowl 4 overs, which means that he or she has 24 chances to prove his or her skills. But for a batsman in any form of the game, they have only one chance to prove themselves. The ball which is being bowled at him or her NOW is the only chance for the player to showcase his or her talent. Every ball which is being faced has the potential to make or break their professional career.

Many a time, our mind procrastinates by either dissecting the dead past or worrying about an unborn future. Just like a batsman, we have only one moment to strive towards our goals. It can neither be the previous moment nor the succeeding moment. The only chance we have is NOW and NOW alone. Our entire life is a series of NOW moments, strung together. Shall we start focusing on the NOW?

The power of NOW can be correlated with the experience of living with happiness given in Gyaan Nugget # 19 – Chapter 2 of FRIDAY GYAAN book.

(FRIDAY GYAAN is available in Amazon in both ebook and paperback versions – Visit Website http://www.authorshankar.com)

(2 minute Read)

In the 2016 Hindi movie ‘Wazir’, director Bejoy Nambiar has brilliantly portrayed the message of sacrificing the pawns so that the main chess pieces can unleash their power on the 64 square board. Amitabh Bachchan and Farhan Akhtar translate Bejoy’s thoughts into gripping action, nonchalantly as the main characters.

During a relaxed morning walk on Friday in Zabeel Park in Dubai, I spent some time recollecting the powerful messages in the movie. I kept wondering whether I could relate them to my paradigms. The rigid patterns of our thoughts, words and actions could be equated to the pawns in the chessboard. Many a time, I forget to question myself on the pattern of choices that I exercise daily. The flexible approaches to seek a higher meaning in every experience could then become the powerful chess pieces. The moment I start sacrificing my current ‘pawns’, I will be gaining wonderful chances to live my life to the fullest. Time for a Paradigm shift?

Refer to the concept of software upgrade mentioned in Chapter 5 of FRIDAY GYAAN book, which is complementary to this blog (Gyaan Nugget # 78).

(FRIDAY GYAAN is available in Amazon in both ebook and paperback versions)

(2 minute Read)

We are familiar with the well known phrase which states that ‘Charity begins at home’. The diligent practice of charitable acts will enable us to set a shining example for a meaningful life.

One can be innovative when it comes to implementation. I was thinking on how I can contribute as a responsible road user, while driving. I visualized the road users as one big family. The moment I start the engine, I commit myself to ‘donate’ 1 or 2 minutes of my journey time to other users. This could be used for yielding to other users who cut into my lane or giving way for tailgaters or allowing speeding vehicles to overtake by slowing down and so on. Although this is a small gesture towards road safety, it has a big benefit for me: Mental peace while driving.

The role of a Contributor forms one of the three vertices of a triangle, as explained in the Gyaan Nugget # 99, appearing in Chapter 6 of the FRIDAY GYAAN book.

(FRIDAY GYAAN is available in Amazon in both ebook and paperback versions)

(2 minute Read)

There is a story hidden behind the birth of each Gyaan Nugget. I have realized from my personal writing experience that there is a ‘soaking time’ required to get into a zone of creative writing. I would like to share such an immersive experience before words started flowing for Gyaan Nugget # 12 – Chapter 1 of the Friday Gyaan book.

On a cold wintry morning in November 2019, I woke up at 4.30 am. After getting refreshed with a cup of hot filter coffee, I drove 60 kilometres deep into a desert region known as Al Qudra on the outskirts of Dubai. I parked my car off the main road and witnessed the eastern horizon for almost 2 hours, before the magnificent sun came up over the golden hued desert sand. In those magical 120 minutes, I was able to witness the multitude of colors being splashed in the sky. It was like Mother Nature was artistically demonstrating a live painting session, just for me.

After getting soaked in such an experience, my only thought while I drove back home that day was : ‘Mother Nature is ever ready to inspire. But are we ready to get inspired by Her?‘

(FRIDAY GYAAN is available in Amazon in both ebook and paperback versions)

(2 minute Read)

The home sweet home becomes an empty nest, when the kids fly away for their higher studies and career. In my opinion, this is one moment in every parent’s life where one’s emotions cannot be expressed in words. One has to experience the Empty Nest syndrome to believe it.

I have been married since 1996. I would like to classify my married life into 2 distinct phases. Life was always busy with lot of activities centered around my sons, for the first phase of 22 years. Since 2018, myself and my wife had to face this syndrome. I gradually realized the selfless contributions made by my wife to keep the family ticking all along, noiselessly. The respect I have for her now in these last 3 years is much more than what I had in the first phase of 22 long years.

Reference: We can derive deeper insights from this blog if we can relate it to Gyaan Nugget # 53 given in Chapter 3 – FRIDAY GYAAN book.

(FRIDAY GYAAN is available in Amazon in both ebook and paperback versions)