Blog@GraceJunction

Imagine you were forced to parachute yourself on to the Alps with a bottle of water in your hand. As you touch ground, it starts snowing heavily and so you take cover inside a cave. Keeping down the bottle in your hand, you clean the snow off your attire and then go out to gather rest of your gear. When you return in a few minutes, you observe that the bottle of water has frozen. What was water in liquid form is now ice. You panic and frantically try to search for someone who did this act, but there’s nothing in the cave. Eureka ! you cry out, nothing can convert water in to ice, and you write a book on the theory of everything  and try to explain that God is now fully kicked out from the equation.

This is exactly what Stephen Hawking’s new book “The Grand Design” is trying to explain mankind, about how everything that is, has come in to being. Stephen’s book although has not ignited physics, as the theory proposed by him is just an old idea in a new garb. It is a simplistic approach, yet in our secular age it is one that seems to have resonance with a skeptical public. The reason the book has sparked lot of discussion is the philosophical conclusions that he is drawing from his proposed theory. (more…)

This blog would be best understood if you can read it once you’ve read my last blog – “What drove him to the grave?”.
I was in Australia with one of my best friends, discussing with him and his daughter who was shattered by the suicidal death of one of her friends. She wanted to share a few questions with me, for which she was seeking answers very desperately. One of her main concern was, whether she would be able to meet her friend or talk to him any more? What exists beyond death? Would she ever have a chance to meet her friend? (more…)

 
I was visiting Australia and was at the home of one of my good friends, who since the time I meet him at the metro station, would keep telling me about his daughter and the pain she’s going thru. As the strong man drove his huge 4 x 4 truck, I could feel that he was vulnerable, all the strength and grit that I admire him for had somehow been weakened. (more…)

The much awaited monsoon had finally descended on our city with a few continuous and long spells. I ve always looked forward towards this time thru the year, a time to be drenched by the rains. It a great time of relief as the cold drops touch you face and drip in to your soul to soothe. This time I was with my son, who equally enjoys the rains. It was fun splashing and jumping in the poodles created in the courtyard of our house. Suddenly my son stopped playing and asked me a question – Dada where does this water come from, Is there a shower tap in the skies? Does God operate them ?. Why are there bubbles in the water? Why is water flowing away, I want to play, why cant we stop it. Later he would cry when the rains would stop or when it would just drizzle and I would tell him, ask God to open the shower. However these questions lingered in my mind and put me on to do some research on this simple thing called water. And I found there is much more beyond this simple thing called water. (more…)

In my wee-wonder days of childhood, the classic debate was “Will robots replace human beings?” The person who stood “for it”, always won the debate by justifying the fact about the improved quality of life, faster production & development, maximum utilization of natural resources etc. Hearing the debate I always wondered what type of a dumb and wobbly feeling would have measured-up in the heart of the person who stood against it! 

But today it would be foolish to, not admire and be thankful for the great achievements of modern technology over the last century: advance medicines, advance energy, advance weapons, high speed communication and navigation systems. (more…)

A couple of months back, I was sitting on the porch with my son. A heavy spell of rain had just come to an end. There was water all over in the parkway and both of us sat down to enjoy the freshness that the rain had ushered in.

Suddenly my son spotted some movements in the water, that had collected in the parkway. He immediately questioned me,  Dada what’s that in the water ? I realized that there were ripples and bubbles’ springing up in the water as rain was still drizzling. I replied to him, Son its rain. He immediately sprang back and replied, but Dada, there’s no rain. He was true in one sense as we really couldn’t see the rain drops. (more…)

The Ahmedabad Mirror (TOI) reported today news on the Delhi High court’s stand on a matter regarding the Center’s move on banning gay sex. Chief Justice A P Shah incidentally has asked the Centre, Quote: “show us some scientific report which says that gay sex should be criminalized”. Unquote Now that’s the Chief Justice demanding science, to prove that Gay sex is wrong and is an evil that is detrimental to the society. Apparently the Centre quoted some religious text condemning the act and had requested criminal provision against homosexual acts stating it is required to curb the spread of HIV infection. It further said that homosexual behavior is a reflection of a perverse mind and it could not be allowed in the society, things which are quite easily & intuitively perceivable, without a PhD in Science. (more…)