An is found Enclosure with no entrance or trap door....What lies underneath the National Library????

What lies underneath the National Library????

----- A vivid speculation by Mr. Saptarshi Dutt

Restorers working on the 18th century Belvedere House in Kolkata, home to the National Library of India, have found a large hidden room they had no idea was there. By found I mean they discovered that it existed, not that they’ve actually gone inside because there is no visible means of entrance or egress.

The house has suffered from neglect over the decades. Last year, all 2.2 million books were moved out of the old building into a new structure on the 30-acre estate so that the Belvedere House could be thoroughly restored.

The ministry of culture that owns the National Library decided to get the magnificent building restored by the Archaeological Survey of India since it is heavily damaged. Work has already started. It was while taking stock of the interior and exterior of the building that ASI [Archaeological Survey of India] conservation engineers stumbled upon a blind enclosure’ on the ground floor, about 1000 square feet in size.

A lot of effort has been made to locate an opening so that experts can find out exactly what it was built for or what it contains. But there is not a single crack to show.“We’ve searched every inch of the first floor area that forms the ceiling of this enclosure for a possible trap door. But found nothing. Restoration of the building will remain incomplete if we are not able to assess what lies inside this enclosure,” said deputy superintending archaeologist of ASI, Tapan Bhattacharya. “We’ve come across an arch on one side of the enclosure that had been walled up. Naturally speculations are rife,” said another archaeologist.

Among the speculations are the classics: skeletons and hoarded treasure. Apparently prisoners were known to have been walled up and left to die in death chambers during the Raj, and secret treasure rooms aren’t unheard of either. Since the ASI can’t just go knocking down walls in 250-year-old historic buildings, they have to find a way to peek inside without damaging the structure. They’ve applied to the ministry of culture for permission to drill a small hole in the walled up arch through which they can shine a searchlight.

Belvedere House was built by Mir Jafar, the eighth Nawab of Bengal, in the 1760s and shortly thereafter he gave it to Lord Warren Hastings, the first Governor-General of India. It passed through various hands, private and public. Then in 1953, 3 years after Independence, the Imperial Library was renamed the National Library and the collection moved to Belvedere House.

It has long been rumored to be haunted, with lights mysteriously turning on in the ballroom and ghostly carriages seen driving up to the entrance. Certainly it has seen its fair share of intrigue. Hastings had a duel on the grounds with supreme council of Bengal member Sir Philip Francis in 1780. (Hastings had called him “void of truth and honor” in his private dealings, most likely referring to a number of affairs with ladies possibly including one Baroness Inhoff, a guest of Hastings’ at Belvedere House.)

As of now, the entire world is waiting for the mystery to be unveiled. Suspicion, speculations, myth, and wonder are being raised from every corners of societies. What will be the eventual result?? What will be the ultimate fate? I am keeping my fingers' crossed.........you??

References:

From newspaper and other web site.

The Gross And Subtle Elements of Life

Life is complex; its nature is duality, complicated, unpredictable and multi-dimensional. But more than that, life is a chemistry of the subtle and the gross. The gross, though easy to comprehend, has its own set of conundrums and the subtle is therefore a bit difficult to understand and realize.

For instance, the body is gross, but the mind is subtle. Again, the mind is gross in comparison to the soul, or being. While moving from thoughts to words to actions, we are moving from subtle or gross. Actions and words are such that anyone can understand and control them, but thoughts are intricate to control or understand. Emotions, feelings, and intuitions belong to the subtle world, while doing is usually of the gross world. Even in emotions; anger, jealousy, greed, and worry are gross and easy to acquire, while love, patience, honesty, forgiveness, and altruism are subtle and difficult to harness.

The gross elements in life are useful, but without the subtle elements their utility gets constrained, or is usually accompanied by pain, lament ness, and sorrow. For example, any medicine that doctors use to cure an illness is a gross thing. While medicines do their job quickly and efficiently, but they also cause a lot of side effects, and proves fatal, at times.

The same effect or cure can be achieved by going deep into the mind, using positive thoughts, energies, emotions, and feelings to boost one’s own immunity and fight the disease. This subtle level treatment takes obvious time but is almost free from side effects, and is therefore not possible to preach for everyone. Only those who are highly meditative and can see inward can harness their subtle energies and bring them together in a strong manner, to achieve this. But one can at least combine both, to get better and improved results.

Once we are aware that life has these components, we can factually feel the days when the body is loaded with negative energy, and is feeling unmotivated, lethargic, frazzled, and futile. Such are the periods when you need to sit quietly and meditate with yourself, go deep into your inner recesses and find your innermost soul, or atma; which is the mitochondria of energy. If we don’t, then these frustrations will eventually act on our appetite; sleep our immunity, making us victims of disease, stress, acidity, hypertension, insomnia, diabetes, and cancer.

A rose is the gross element. Its fragrance is the subtle element. A flower is incomplete without the beauty of its fragrance. Similarly, human beings can exist as physical bodies for 70 or 80 years, but they can be fruitful only if they successfully able to uncover their fragrance. A human being is declared as being alive or dead only on the basis of the presence or absence of his subtle energy. Apart from this subtle energy that is always running through us, there is actually very little difference between someone who is alive or dead.

Hence, our aim should be to acknowledge and get in tune with this subtle force, what is often known as prana, soul, or atma. It is by connecting to this subtle element, that we get an inkling of the subtle elements, which can in turn harness boundless potential and energy, to live our lives with joy, peace, happiness, good health and security. Otherwise, we will go on living at the gross level, which is not really called for; and will make our life rather futile, meaningless, and frustrating.

Authored by:

Saptarshi Dutt
10/08/2010

FIRE

Quite is the fire, quite is the dreams,

quite is the passions, the laughter and the tears,

Quite is the fire that sooths the moment.

Quite is the fire it's like a snow bird in flight,

lie still, lie still and take in the moment.

For we shall remember how to dream, it's like watching a

quite fire.

For a quite fire is like timeless echos in the winds.

A quite fire can soothe a lonely soul in passing.

quite is the fire.

A quite fire can take you over in a moment, it's magic,

A quite fire can burn deep with in your soul for hope,

for peace and for love.

Quite is the fire to hear a silent whisper and think of love.

Quite is the fire.

Quite is the moment.

Quite is the time for laughter, Quite is the time for hope.

Quite is the time for passion.

A quite fire is like timeless echos in the winds.

Composed by:

Saptarshi Dutt

CALCULUS OF LIFE

CALCULUS OF LIFE

Authored by: Mr Saptarshi Dutt


In mathematical calculus, integration and differentiation are two of the most interesting concepts. Both of these concepts are primarily concerned with how things change over the passage of time. Simply put, differentiation is used to find the rate of change of things, while integration is used to add rates of change over specified intervals. But how many of us have ever wondered how apt these concepts are in the context of our lives?

If this very concept is applied to life, integration can be understood and best realized as something that brings everyone together. In other words, integration is a process of assimilating various substances under one single roof. Since every material object is perpetually in a state of change, to integrate is to bring together these changing entities. Popular axiom like “unity is strength”, “united we stand, divided we fall”; all go hand in hand to epitomize the process and strength of integration.

When we say we ought to “sink our differences”, we essentially mean we need to add the rate of change --- that is, integrate (to mix together). Integration is also professed as something that facilitates our journey to move towards the higher stratas of life. In other words, we call can it higher consciousness or aspiring to reach a higher “order” of life. In a way, it signifies winning over the mental state; of discrimination; to treat everyone equally without any indiscrimination and spiritual ethos.

Differentiation on the other hand, is a concept that has not received its due exaltation or adoration. Usually, we associate differentiation with discrimination and therefore we tend to look down upon it. If we look deep inside the matter; we will find that differentiation and discrimination is not the same. In fact there are loads of differences in between them. Adages like ‘divide and rule’ are scoffed at. But, as in mathematics, differentiation precedes integration.

Differentiation is the very quintessence of life. Life would be futile, if differences cease to exist. It is this differences that leads to positive growth, improvement, and betterment for all. However, we must be careful so that this differentiation must not lead to inequity, intolerance, prejudice, or bigotry. Harmony and positive relationship must be ensured.

Understanding differentiation is the essence to grasp the dogma of integration. In a way, differentiation and integration are almost intertwined if not identical in many respects. If one does not understand any one of the concept clearly inside out; it will become rather a difficult task to understand what the other concept is telling about.

On observation, it is pretty evident and natural too that no two objects can be completely identical. Be it in the context of human beings or in any other objects viz, material objects or boundary issues; there has to be some kinds of differences. In tracing the difference / differences, we usually use items like kind, variety, quantity, form, texture, or use other words to gauge the nature of such differences. There is an adage that differences creates discrepancies and unnecessary conflicts, which is why we do not like to differentiate because it has become our general philosophy that differences creates conflicts, variance, discrepancies, dissent, disagreement, and tension.

When two or more people meet, we could differentiate them on the basis of physical tenets, religion, language, color, caste, educational background, culture, upbringing, philosophy, wealth, occupation, social status, social dignity and many other factors. But when we have boundaries, it goes against the spiritual ethos of treating everybody equal. Therein lays the source of conflicts, which we often come about. And it is for this very reason the term differentiation has acquired such a negative brunt on the minds of people.

Does all this mean that we treat all things equal and as one and the same thing, that is, do we keep integrating with each and every object irrespective of its many variances and dissimilarities? Well, going by the concept of differentiation; that would mean that if an entity cannot be differentiated; the entity is constant. In fact, differentiation of constant entities would bring the equation to “zero” (0)

In sum, one needs to appreciate both the concepts (i.e. integration and differentiation) as positive reception of both of them will bring a master-piece out of them. For, it is only when something can be differentiated, it connotes that the very object is undergoing change and is truly alive. After all, life itself is a learning curvature and thereby it is always desirable to undergo certain changes or the other. Whenever, life stops at a certain given point; it becomes inactive, immobile, and exists merely on its physical capacity. Thus, the chemistry of integration coupled with differentiation truly enhances the picture of true beauty.

Blank Page

A Blank Page… …

A blank page
Nothing to be written, nothing to be given
Blank all over has occupied the space in length and breathe

Nothing to be created
Just a simple old page
A page with meticulous attraction
Yet with no expressions

A page with no words, no expressions
No signs, no gestures
No drawings, no art

Seems like a time in space
That you can’t erase
The time that you have spent
All my livelihood through
And the circumstances that I’ve faced
That made me grown
All appeared to be there
But with empty spaces

I tried to write so many things
Upon that page, but couldn’t
My hands trembled, my feet shuddered
And I again had to put the nib of my pen off… …

I just keep on growing older,
Bolder, matured, experienced
In terms of age, ambitions, adulations, success
From all facets of life

All my past experiences have not
Stopped me to write my poems
On the blank page,
although I have written none as yet

Flashback of 2009

Flashback of 2009

By: Mr. Saptarshi Dutt
As I pen down this article, the year, 2009, has just come to an end. This is the time to look back at what has happened during the last year; and also to peer forward to see what is in store for us in 2010.

At the end of 2008, every betting man would have wagered a rather large sum on 2009 turning out to be “annus horribillis.” [borrowing a term from Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II]. Indeed, the immediate future viewed from the perspective of December 2008 did look particularly gloomy and dark. The global financial crisis had engulfed much of Europe and North America, and had its almost inevitable effects on the real sectors of the world economy. Leading economies slowed down appreciably, while unemployment levels soared. Virtually every ‘expert’ agreed that were heading towards the worst global recession since the Great Depression of 1930s.

Catastrophes of this magnitude need villains. Not surprisingly, the media went town lampooning bankers and economists in equal measure. the bankers were criticized because their imprudent loans were largely responsible for the mortgage crisis in the United States of America, which was the precursor to the worldwide financial disaster. What was worse was that they singularly unwilling to wear sackcloth and ashes. Infact, they continued to award themselves huge bonuses. The economists were blamed because they failed to warn the world about the impending crisis. Questions were asked whether economic theory was barren after all, if it could not save the world from such a serious crisis. Never slow in seizing an opportunity to “look good”, the Left parties in India gave themselves more than a pat or two because of their attempts to insulate the Indian economy from the rest of the world.

The first half of 2009 seemed to follow the script written by the prophets of doom. the world economy continued to sink lower and further. finance ministers and governors of Central banks of major economies met frequently, attempting to coordinate strategies for reviving their economies --- the attempts to coordinate strategies being an important recognition of the fact that all major countries had to work together in a globalized world. Enormous, truly mind-boggingly large



stimulus packages were promised by both US and Chienese governments in attempts to boost aggregate demand. On both sides of the Atlantic, governments also departed from a basic tenet of capitalism by propping up large banks, which were on the brink of collapsing under the weight of vast sums of bad debt. The danger of systemic collapse was deemed more important than leaving the market to decide the fate of these banks.

The second half of the same year was distinctly better. The stimulus packages had their desired effect in almost every country, with the United Kingdom economy being a prominent exception in this respect. All the other major economies have recovered and have started recording modest rates of growth. For instance, the latest figures signify that the US economy recorded a growth of 2.2 % during the quarter, July-September. There is little doubt that the worst is behind us, and that the recession has not been as severe either in magnitude or in duration as the one in the 1930s.

Some economists assert that “Economic theory works after all”. Perhaps, this warm glow is a natural reaction, since economists have been at the receiving end for almost a year. However, some sense of balance is called for. While it is still too early to come to any firm conclusion about the reasons underlying the short duration of the global recession, economists cannot claim that they have discovered any new theories, which have taken us out of the crisis. After all, the rational underlying the stimulus packages is old-fashioned Keynesianism of 1936 vintage.

There are some important lessons to be learnt from the global meltdown. Perhaps the most pertinent one is that the time has come to set up some kind of international regulation for financial institutions. This will be anathema to many influential economists and so, the finer details of any such regulation have to be carefully worked out. Certainly, attempts to impose stringent rules are bound to be shot down. It is also tempting to suggest that banks should not be allowed to become too big. Governments are tempted to rescue large banks when they are on the verge of collapse because their sheer size implies that they would have large ripple effects on the rest of the financial sector. But, then, if large banks know that they will be tempted to undertake unduly risky projects since the downside risk is indeed very low.

Of course, no discussion of the events of 2009 can be comprehensive without mention of the Copenhagen summit or “fiasco”--- as it has come to be labeled. Practically everyone recognized that efforts to prevent global warming must be



amongst the most important priorities of the global community. Unfortunately, all countries need to make some cedetions --- [big or small] to ensure a meaningful solution. Since the developed and developing countries could not come to an agreement on the levels of sacrifices that the two sides would make, the final agreement is essentially a toothless document full of platitudes.

The last year has also underlined the important shift in the balance of power in the international arena. Everyone realized that the global recovery would be infinitely slower unless the Chinese economy managed to get back to the near miraculous levels of growth that it has achieved in the last 30 years. Indeed, eyes were also focused on the performance of the Indian economy. Although per capita incomes remain low in these nations, the sheer sizes of their economies contribute to their growing clout in world affairs.

What does the future hold for India? The finance minister believes that the Indian economy is poised to reach a growth rate of over 8%. This euphoria is not misplaced. Even in the worst of times, the economy was quite far away from any recession---we managed to grow at around 5%. There are also clear indications that the economy has grown healthier. The only sector that is still in the doldrums is the export sector. Since the global environment can only improve over time, even Indian exports will increase, and so our Hon’ble Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee’s forecast does seem to have a sound basis.

Authored by:
Saptarshi Dutt
January 22, 2009


Reference:

1. Newspaper: