Mediatisation

Completed morning program. Due to heat, did not dare go out. It must be around 44 degree Celsius during the day.It being a Saturday, spent the day at home, packing for journey tomorrow to Guwahati for 3 days/3 nights.
A PTI report from Washington says that " Line Nybrow Petersen of the University of Copenhagen's film and media's department has found that teens seem to use media-often, American media-to explore questions of good and evil, life after death and destiny . According to Petersen, vampires may seem an odd icon in which to find spiritual experiences,but Twilight, True Blood and other supernatural series are part of a process of film and media turning old ideas into new stories, a process which media researchers call "mediatisation". For example, religious symbols such as the cross and holy water show up frequently in the TV show Buffy the Vampire Slayer, but they are largely stripped of their Christian symbolism. Instead they are simply weapons against vampires with little mention of theology. Vampires undergo a similar transformation in Twilight. Instead of evaporating when step into the sun, for example, they sparkle-a more effective convention for a romantic hero, compared with turning into a pile of dust."(HT, dated 25th May). 
The news struck me. 'Turning old ideas into new stories' is a good effort to teach greatness of Dhamma.to children with new symbolism. Talked to Ruchi about it when she rang up today..She is aware of the development. She is planning to do a meditation course.I suggested her to do a Vipassana course. Let children also join it. Vipassana has a couple of centers in UK. I had given their details to her earlier. These are available on the net. She is learning to swim these days.
Retired to sleep at 10.45 pm..

25th May

Went for an hour walk in the evening. It is quite hot today. Could not adhere to the morning program. Had to reach the Dental Center at 9 am. Have to come to the Center again on 2nd June. Venita went to Gurgaon. She bought some gift to be given to Mishti on the occasion of her marriage in August. She and her three daughters-in-law have decided to give a combined gift of about Rs. 20,000/-  .As she took the car, the Supreme Court is closed for summer holidays and had no important work to do, did not visit the chamber.
Retired to sleep at 11 pm..

24th May

Completed morning program. Visited  CGHS. In chamber from 12 to 4 pm. Sent the 'Award 'in connection with the Arbitration in the matter of a dispute between two parties which i conducted during last 3 months, to GM, SCOPE.
Retired to sleep at 10.45 pm

23rd May

Completed morning program. Visited Dental surgeon in Safdarjang hospital. In CGHS, met Madan Bezbaruah who came out from his house in Gurgaon for the first time.He has been convalescing there after removal of a tumor from the kidney. He looked fine. In chamber from 1 to 4pm.
Retired to sleep at 10.30 pm.

22nd May

Could go for a brisk walk for 45 minutes. It is quite hot today. Had to reach the dental surgeon clinic by 9.30 am.Visited Dental clinic. I have to visit it again. In chamber from 12 to 2.30 pm. Held arbitration proceedings from 3 to 4 pm.
Retired to sleep at 10.30 pm.

21rst May

Could not adhere to morning program. Went for 50 minute walk in the evening. Had to visit RML Hospital for consultation with Dr.Deepak Kothari who is advising Venita on control of diabetes. In chamber from12 to pm to 4 pm .
Retired to sleep at 10.30 pm.

20th May

Could not adhere to  morning program. Went for about one hour's brisk walk in the evening. Had to leave at 8.30 am to attend the funeral of  Maloy, my batchmate.  at Lodi Road electric crematorium. He had been suffering from high blood pressure and diabetes for a very long time. On the eve of his demise his kidneys had become dysfunctional. A number of ex-IB officers, IPS and others attended. Late Maloy's wife had died long time back. He has 2 sons. Elder son has come from Singapore. He did the last funeral rites.The younger son could not come. He is in Canada. Maloy was admitted in the National Heart Institute New Delhi in the last week of April. He was brought back home yesterday in  the evening. He died at about 4 pm. He has been suffering from acute blood pressure and diabetes for a long time. He has written a number of books on inter- community- relations. Whenever we met, we would ask him when his next book would come out. He was a prolific writer..He was a great fighter and had strong views on various issues.We pray for his liberation from the cycle of birth and death. We convey our condolences to the bereaved family. 
Venita went to Gurgaon. Bina requested to help her in  selecting jewelry for the marriage of her daughter, scheduled to take place in Auugust.  Neha also wanted to sell some old items of her jewelry and buy new ones in replacement. She visited Silku's place also for a while to look up Alaynah and Khyati..On the insistence of Bina's brother, she went to his place for a while.
Received the information about the demise of Dr. BP Saraf by massive heart attack on 15th May 
2012 while he was holidaying in Africa with wife, younger son and his family.He had   been suffering from high blood pressure and diabetes for a long time.  He was cremated at Guwahati on 17th where he was born, brought up, educated and practiced law .He was appointed Judge of  the High Court and later transferred to Mumbai High Court. He retired as the Chief Justice of J & K High Court. After retirement he was doing chamber practice in the Mumbai High Court. He engaged himself in a number of  arbitration cases in India and abroad. Last i met him in the marriage of his granddaughter in New Delhi a couple of years back. Earlier he stayed with me for few days in Shillong when i was posted there as the then DG of Police, Meghalaya. He had come from Mumbai where he was posted as a Judge of Mumbai High Court. He attended lunch along with his wife, hosted by Saxenas after the engagement ceremony of Babloo and Neha in the Defense officers Mess at Dhowlakuan.  He leaves behind his wife, two sons and a daughter. The children are well settled. He was quite close to me .He was three day senior to me in age.We, my sons in particular,  have very many fond memories of him. I hope to attend his Shradh ceremony in Guwahati on 28th instant.We pray for his liberation from the cycle of birth and death. We convey our condolences to the bereaved family.
Retired to sleep at 11 pm.

19th May

Could not undertake morning program. Had to leave for the Maulana Azad Dental College of Medical Sciences at 7 am. Showed maxilla xrays to Professor Verma., Head of the College  He advised against implants. I will meet him again in July after his return from holidays. We will also take his advice in regard to Khyati's and Venita's teeth . I have talked to Silku about showing Khyati's teeth to Professor  Verma.. Venita has agreed  to show her teeth to him. In chamber from 10.45 to12 am.
 I had a chance meeting with the grand daughter, Aman, of my batch mate Sahota who died long time back. Earlier I had met her elder sister, Simran. After meeting Aman, i felt as if i had met  late Sahota today. God may bless his family and two lovely grand daughters who are studying law and came to the chamber as interns. I  met the family long time back .I don't remember the place where i met them last. It could be in the Central Police Training College, Mount Abu or Bhopal or some Police Meet . Sahotas were a simple and amiable couple
.Silku is in Goa. He is there in connection with a conference in a Beach Resort in south Goa. It is pleasant  in the morning and evening but hot during the day. It is not humid as i had thought.
Retired to sleep at 11 pm.

18th May

Went for a brisk walk for 45 minutes at about 7am.Had to reach the chamber early In chamber from 11.30 am to 4 pm. 
It is reported that the muggers and snatchers have replaced pickpockets in USA. It is going the same way in India too.
Retired to sleep at 10.45 pm.

17th May

Went for a brisk walk for 45 minutes at about 8 am. It was quite a warm day. Visited CGHS. In chamber from 12.30 to 4 pm.
A columnist has written in a newspaper few days back that the biggest political problem in our country is the economy which is sliding deeper into debt and despair. Proactive action is necessary to deal with it effectively.
Retired to sleep at 10.45 pm.

16th May

Completed morning program. Visited Dental wing of CGHS  in Safdarjung hospital..In chamber from 12.30 to 4 pm.
The Delhi High Court delivered a path-breaking  judgement in Parveen Begam'case on 15th May 2012. It gives a helping hand to a needy person who may not have a kidney donor in the family. He can have it now from outside the family. 
Pratap Bhanu Mehta writes in I.E. of date in the center  page in the context of a cartoon in a NCERT book and din over it in the parliament : "Parliament is now a body of fragile selves. They won't draw a sword for liberty..... We have a public culture in which the definition of what counts as offensive rapidly expands, more fetters are put on thought and more excuses found to exercise control.  It reflects the ultimate triumph of sullenness over humor, cowardice over liberty, conformism over individuality." 
We  should seriously debate this and take corrective action, if necessary.
Retired to sleep at 10.30 pm.

15th May

Went for brisk walk. Had to go to Dental surgeon at 9 am for the fourth time to complete the RCT procedure in respect of two teeth. Neha and Akshat came. Spent the day with them. Akshat is being taught Asans in his school. He can do Padmasan. Khyati could also do it at his age. She is 10 now. I don't know if she is still practicing  it .She is learning tennis these days. Could not go to the chamber today.
Retired to sleep at 10.30 pm.

14th May

Completed morning program. Visited SBI. In chamber  from 1.15  to 3.30 pm. The S. C .is closed  for summer  holidays. The H. C.is open. As we have dropped visit to London, we are planing a visit to some nearby place for a week in June.  We are discussing various options.
Retired to sleep at 10.30 pm.

13th May

Completed morning program. It being a Sunday, spent the day reading newspapers and magazines.Retirred to sleep at 11 pm.

12th May

Completed morning program.. It being a Saturday, spent the day reading newspapers and magazines.
We called off our visit to UK. Pilku is coming to Delhi in August with his family.
Retired to sleep at 11 pm.

11th May

Completed  morning program. Visited SBI. In chamber from 2 to 4 pm.

Dr.Ashwell of Oxford Brooks University carried out a study on obesity..She says " Keeping your waist circumference to less than half your height can increase life expectancy for every person. (TOI page10,of date)." 

Retired to sleep at 11 pm.

10th May

Completed morning program. Could not go to the court/chamber. Had two engagements in the evening : 1)Release of Kau's book, 'An Outsider Everywhere',  in IIC at 7 pm 2) Dinner & reception in connection with the  marriage of Advocate Kuber of the chamber at 8 pm in IHC. .Attended both along with Venita.
Maurice Sendak, an author of children's books, knew the mind of a child. 'Our age overworks itself with scissors and sanitizers on fairy tales and books for children until they are impossibly sweet. But Sendak showed  the futility of it all. His message was profound : there are no children's books, only that children could like.' IE of date in page 10. No wonder they like Harry Potter.
Retired to sleep at 11.15 pm .

9th May

Completed morning program.Visited CGHS. In chamber from12.30 to 3.30 pm. SS Sharma in/charge LPO invited me for tea with him quite a few times. Could not go due to preoccupation. Had a cup of tea .with him today.
 Gillo reached Mumbai. After a good deal of effort we could get Rail reservation from Kanpur yesterday.
Talked to Pulok Gogoi, the Assam painter.He could not remember the painting we bought from him in 1977..He requested to send a photograph of it .I told Pilku to send. It is with him.He wants to know the meaning behind it. According to Venita, the painting depicts a lady observing her reflections in a mirror early morning. She says that this is how Pulok Gogoi explained his painting to her in 1977.
Retired to sleep at 10.15 pm.

Relationships

Completed morning program. Visited CGHS. Went to Vodafone Store to deposit security of Rs. 3000/- each for my phone and Venita's phone.for activating the facility of  inward calls to London and outward calls from London   when we reach there on 26th..The facility will also be available in any other country we may visit during our stay overseas.
A write-up in page 16 of  TOI of date on relationships is interesting. It refers to the finding of a study by researchers at the University of Wisconsin-Eauclaire  that sexual attraction will always get in the way of inter-sex friendships. Another finding points out that men acknowledge their attraction towards women friends much more than the other way round. The research confirms these commonsense observations. Ganesh Solanki writes "How, then, do we bridge this contradiction between social roles and human sentiments ? By resorting to the myth of friendship, pretending that the relationship formed between many men and women is purely platonic one, with no romantic or sexual elements at play"   Times View in the write-up is deeper and more appealing. According to it, in the contemporaneous context,... "all kinds of relationships are possible... Male-female bonding solely based on emotional sympathy or shared interests is no longer an alien concept.... The modern city life has created greater opportunities for male-female interactions of purely platonic nature".
Retired to sleep at 11 pm.

7th May

 Completed morning program. Visited CGHS. In chamber from 1 to 3.30 pm.
A write-up, "The Arithmetic of Injustice" by Santosh Desai, published in The Times of India of date in page 6, is a realistic assessment of the Maoist problem in India.It has now taken the form of a struggle for political power. It is an insurgency against the Indian state.The Maoists are not interested in development.They have developed a vested interest in violence, according to Desai. We have to make concerted efforts to bring them back to national mainstream. It will have to  be a multi-pronged effort. Police action alone will not be enough.
Retired to sleep at 10.45 pm.

6TH May

Completed morning program. Today being Sunday, spent the day reading newspapers and magazines.Venita went to Gurgaon to  meet Neha's.parents who will be leaving for Jaipur on 9th. She returned at about 9 pm after meeting them. She also met Bezbaruahs. Madan Bezbaruah is a batch mate. He had an operation some days back and is convalescing in his villa at Gurgaon.. She saw Anita,. her elder sister too, who is going back to Hyderabad on 16th. She and Pramod are living there with their  elder son.
.In a write-up,  Swapan Dasgupta in the Indian Express of date at page 10 says 'Political India is preoccupied with the presidential election, Baba Ramdev's abusive references to MPS, the never ending drift in the BJP and whispers of a cabinet rejig. The concerns of the productive India are markedly different : the steep decline of the rupee, the fiscal deficit,a balance of payment crunch, the retrospective tax, the newly introduced GAAR and the steady decline in the GDP growth ' 
It is a lucid description of the political and economic situation in India.
Retired to sleep at 11 pm.

5th May

Went for a brisk walk only. Venita left for a dip in the Ganges early morning on the occasion of Baisakhi Purnima. Purnima commenced  today at 11.42 am It will end at 9.17 am tomorrow. She was not aware of these timings. She knew this much that it was today as well as tomorrow. She took bath before the onset of Purnima..When i told her this, she said that it did not matter. A dip in the Ganges in the month of Baisakh is all that mattered. She returned at about 3 pm.
Women bagged  top 2 civil services slots this year.They are Shena Agarwal and Rukmini Riar respectively from Haryana and Punjab. While Shena is a MBBS  degree holder from AIMS and already an IRS officer under training at Nagpur, Riar ,a MA from Tata Institute of Social Sciences, is selected after her first effort. Last year too two women, one each from Chennai and Hyderabad, secured top 2 positions.
Retired to sleep at 10.30 pm.

4th May

Had to go for dental procedure at 9 am. Could not go for morning program. Venita also came. Visited Dental surgeon in Safdarjung hospital. In chamber from 1 to 3 pm..
' The Scream', a famed  1895 pastel of the painting by Edward Munch was sold at $119.9 million. A London dealer said ' The Scream is more than a painting, it's symbol of psychology as it anticipates the 20th-century traumas of mankind '.
Retired to sleep at 11 pm.

3rd May

Completed morning program. For a long time Pravesh desired to discuss.an Excise case of his co.Due to preoccupation i could not. Discussed the case.Some Excise officers are harassing him. The matter required to be reported to the authorities.According to him, they are not taking action.He proposed to take it up with the CBI.
In chamber from 1.45 to 4 pm .Picked up Venita from Baba Kharag Singh market
Retired to sleep at 11.15 pm.

2nd May

Had to go for RCT and filling to a dentist early. Could not adhere to morning program.Venita could not go for dental procedure as she had to take antibiotics before that. Now she will go on 4th. I had one sitting for RCT and filling. I will have to  have at least 4 to 5 sittings before completion of the  procedure, said the dentist. Next date for my procedure too is fixed on 4th. The dentist said that all procedures would be completed well before 26,  the date of our journey to London.  In High Court from 11 am  to 12.45 pm. In chamber from 1 to 4 pm.   Visited SBI.
Retired to sleep at 11.15 pm 

1rst May

Completed morning program. Visited SBI. In view of our ensuing visit to children in UK, applied for SBI International Gold ATM-cum-Debit Visa card.
In chamber from 1.30 to 4 pm.
Advocate Digvijay Singh rang up from Ujjain. Pravesh informed that Sh. US Mishra, ex-Director CBI was at Bhubneshwar. His mother-in-law died..He would come later.We were to  meet at New Delhi for some work. On way back visited Hanuman temple in Chanakyapuri.
Retired to sleep at11.15 pm.