Nokia and Me

30 to 40 years down the line, when I think back about my relationship with Nokia, I would definitely remember that Nokia opened me out to the world. Not just interms of being in a Multi National giant, but also in absolute terms. I started to explore the world around me. I think I made the maximum usage of the ‘5 day a week’ working in Nokia. It had been 4 years of 6 day working since I started to earn my own bread. I just thought I should put out a list of all my explorations so that I myself can appreciate them.

Of course, the two overseas explorations are the icing on the cake, that too without spending a penny from the pocket. But I think, the other ones too deserve the same respect.

The below are the places that I visited, if not explored - not necessarily in the chronological order.

Suzhou
Beijing
Great Wall at Badaling
Dubai

Trivandrum – Anandhapadmanabha swamy kovil
Guruvayoor – Krishnan kovil
Athirampalli Falls
Vazhachal Falls
Kaladi – world’s holiest place – Adi Shankaracharya birth place – Shankara Mutt
Chotanikara – Bagawathi Amman kovil
Etumanur – Shivan kovil

Goa
Om Beach
Gokarn – Shivan kovil
Jog Falls
Murudeshwar – Shivan Kovil

Thiruvalloor – Azhagiya Singhar Perumal Kovil

Srivilliputur – Andal birth place – Vadapatra saayi perumal
Thiruvannamalai, near srivilliputur – Perumal kovil
Thiruparankunram – Murugan Kovil
Madurai – Meenakshi Sundareswarar Kovil

Thirukadalmalai (Mahabalipuram) – Sthala Sayana perumal Kovil
Thiruvidanthai – Nithya kalyana perumal Kovil

Hyderabad
Secundarabad
Golkonda Fort

Palani – a couple of trips

Swamimalai – Murugan kovil
Thanjavur – Periya Kovil
Srirangam – Ranganathar Kovil
Viralimalai – Murugan Kovil
Gunaseelam – Perumal Kovil
Vayaloor – Murugan Kovil

Neyveli
Villudayanpattu – Murugan Kovil
Thiruvathigai – Sivan Kovil
Thirumaanikuzhi – Sivan Kovil
Vilangalpattu – Murugan Kovil

Chidambaram – Sivan Kovil
Vaitheeswaran Kovil – Sivan Kovil
Thirukkadayoor – Abiramhi Sannadi
Tharangambadi Fort
Poombuhar
Sikkal – Murugan Kovil
Thirukannankudi – Perumal Kovil
Mayiladuthurai

Perambalur

Thiruneermalai – Perumal Kovil

Sriperumbudur – Perumal Kovil
Thirumazhisai – Perumal Kovil
Kunrathoor – Murugan Kovil
Thiruporur – Murugan Kovil

Narasinghapuram, near Perambakkam – 55 kms from Chennai, 30 kms before Arakonam – Narasimhar Kovil

Thiruvottriyur – North Chennai – Thyagaraja Swamy, Aathipureeswarar, Vottriyur Sivan, Vadivudai amman

I feel that there are lots and lots of places to be visited and the list above is like a grain of sand in a desert. On my ‘To Visit’ list are Kanchi, Thiruvarur, Thiruperundurai (Aavudayar Kovil), Batu Caves in Malaysia… the wish list goes on and on. Richard Bach says “You are never granted a wish without being given the power to achieve it” and I know I am given the power… but still waiting for the time to come.

History is written by Winners !!!

Does it not seem to be a common sense statement? How can a loser write history? How can a guy who lost the war expect people to read his memoir? Seems pretty straight forward. But, I am worried about something else. What do winners write? Are they distorting the real ‘History’ and write their own novels? Are they becoming authors who create fictional characters out of ‘Real’ lives? Are they making fun of the real ‘Heros’ who unfortunately ‘Lost’ due to other circumstances? Are today’s youth not learning the real history? Any amount of RTI will not help. Some introspection by the reader will.

Let’s start the introspection. Heard of William L Shirer? He was a winner!!! His ‘Rise and Fall of Third Reich’ has written history, sadly in his own way. In his own perspective. The Western perspective. Sadly, the whole world believes William L Shirer’s was the only authentic and definitive source for the history of Nazi Germany. First of all, can we take his findings in the face value? Who was WL Shirer? He was a journalist in CBS, Columbia Broadcasting System in the US, the winner of the WW2. And what do you expect CBS to broadcast in the US during the war? Hitler, an able administrator? Hitler, the saviour of the world? BullShit. Might be Americans can feel proud of the work of WL Shirer. But, why should we take it in the face value? Does this one point, of being in CBS, not speak volumes about the one sided coverage of the story? Can I conclude that the present day Nazi History is not the absolute one? Let’s atleast try to see the other side of the coin. Let’s not get americanised in thoughts, blood and flesh. What does Mein Kampf talk about? The title gets translated to ‘My Struggle’. The western media who are the authors of today’s History have succeeded in brainwashing people and making them believe that the Nazi Party was a group of Barbarians. Talk about Hitler and the first word is Holocaust. With due respect to Jews, I just have a reason that the Holocaust is not a ‘cause’ but an ‘effect’ to something in the history which the western world has successfully buried. Mein Kampf brings into picture and clarifies that the ‘Rise of Third Reich’ was due to the bloody things that happened in Germany after it lost the First World War. Sadly, there were no books written on the subject of Germany aftermath WW1.

Now, consider this. What if ‘The Allies’ had lost WW2? What if Germany had walked over Europe and Russia? What if the CBS was itself a history during the war? Would not have WL Shirer been another Tom or Dick or Harry, in the country side? Would not the world war’s only testimony be Mein Kampf? Would not the US and the Britain be taught to the youth of 20th century as wicked? Yes. And this proves a point. Even though there has been a lot of criticism on WL Shirer’s work, the US is again successful in silencing critics by sheer power. And we all know, what happened in Guantnamo and Abu Ghraib.

Atlast, My two paise – History is not what actually happened in the past. It’s what winners wrote!!! And wrote wrong.