when they say "be a man" they usually mean "be expendable, better yet, expend yourself for us"

theravada is simple but difficult - meditate ,nothing else

 mahayana is complex but easy - a technique expanded into a religion/lifestyle, like a behaviour-town you can live in, so you do it all day without even trying

zen - technique expanded into lifestyle/religion but in typical japanese way, made very difficult

 book recos

1. opening the door of your heart (the title is an important message in itself, get this version)

2. zen and the art of motorcycle maintenance

3. the only dance there is

4. raph koster - grammar of fun

5. nagel pricing

6. christopher alexander -a pattern language

other

1. herbert simon, weiner, neuman-morganstern

2. shinzen young

3. mcluhan, deleuze

We're back, the house is but piles of unpacking, clutter amidst more clutter. The precious documents are put away, the airline luggage tag and boarding passes pigeonholed as mementos. The office call got over, and we're okay for now.  We've gone through the traffic, picked up Mother, but not courage for the day, or an idea, for tomorrow. Grass-cutters drone on, quaint also disturbing, and school office traffic is up ahead, and we are already there, grinding, but the soul still lingers behind, loitering, lurking, sitting in the cafe with a large iced coffee,   sitting in the sands, walking the tree lined avenue, watching  scooterettes with the riders go by, the large Mitsubishis glide by, eating at the ubiquitous Banh Mi stall with the cans of Bia, Ca phe den, and strange meat thinggies,  buying the markets at hanoi ... ... living up  the Sun, the sellers the beachfront ...  

one day we will meet again ... 

 Xin Cam On !! 

As they stared blankly, in dumb misery deepening as they slowly realised all they had seen and all they had lost, a capricious little breeze, dancing up from the surface of the water, tossed the aspens, shook the dewy roses, and blew lightly and caressingly in their faces; and with its soft touch came instant oblivion. For this is the last best gift that the kindly demigod is careful to bestow on those to whom he has revealed himself in their helping: the gift of forgetfulness. Lest the awful remembrance should remain and grow, and overshadow mirth and pleasure, and the great haunting memory should spoil all the after-lives of little animals helped out of difficulties, in order that they should be happy and lighthearted as before.

... from Wind in the Willows,  by Kenneth Grahame,    Rat and Mole are paddling back after picking up the baby otter .

 Put on your plate, the little ones , the sides, only one or two, then the rice, else would you know what are you eating ...?

 The edge is a seemingly paradoxical place where the your benefit and the universe's align , and you are free to max, immediate universe be damned

 if space is the fundamental unit of the universe, a moebius strip lays the foundation for the hofstadter strange loop to be the ... well. .... foundation of hierarchical systems 

like, all matter gets swept into a whirlpool of ever increasing _hierarchy_ not just ~complexity~ - and boom, we leave the water, drop  off the trees, and now end up paying an obscene prime number amount of rupees for an airport samosa...

a moebius strip would also explain a half spin on a quark, i mean, like if it was going over a moebius strip of a path

A piece of space folded like this would also be the perfect demonstration of an infinite consciousness twisting so as to get a look at the back of its head

i'm particularly proud of myself 

in the next part, we welcome tiny additions to our family - the quarks

eddies don't show up until chapter 3 i'm afraid

stay tuned for a bonus short story on the collapse of the world economy caused by prime-number pricing of airport sandwiches 

 Dear Sankya-ist

Kindly tell me what is the boundary between one Purusha and the next. Kapila postulated many Purushas in the universe.

 The universe is continuous,in that it is vast space with sub microscopic quarks scattered around like tea dust in a large milky tea. 

The space between the electrons and nucleus are vast compared to the space between the planets. We are in  essence large spaces patrolled by tiny electrical dust. That accounts for the material world. 

From the point-of-view of the universe, all things ,including animals, humans, rivers,planets... are bit tiny eddie currents which have formed a loop and managed to exist for a while.

  Are the tiny eddies in the ocean of Milky Tea , each one,  home to one purusha and one prakriti ? Are they nested , like the heart playing out its drum solo while the eyes do the capture, in the compound eddie that we call man ? Or are they simultaneous, like , <example here>

Saw on 9gag

Trolley problem but there's only one track with people tied on it, and throwing the lever only changes the color of the trolley from red to blue or  blue to red. 

In the original trolley problem, what of the people on the people tied up on the tracks could vote ?

Then the work of the trolley driver is to convey to the squished that (over the times this has changed), 

- this is God's will (our God's,not your god's)

 

- the people voted for this, this is for the better larger good

- you voted for this 

- this is your fault 

 Every brain ,unless trained , works in two parts, first part tells you it's all going to hell any way, and the second works out scenarios in which it might.

Training replaces the first with faith- a cutting off of bad scenarios and focussing on the task at hand, and the second with calculating how to eke out a better albeit limited  reality out of the efforts

 Children are the future

Coz the young are hungry and foolish

And civilization can get work out of them

But once one knows the world to any degree of competence, one realizes the vast ocean of bad deals foisted on the young, and concludes that beaches and alcohol are the way

Marshall McLuhan was influenced by Harold Innis .

 Harold Innis talked about monopolies of knowledge , and that the holders of these tend to be conservative. As Marx talked about seizing the means of production, I'm not sure about his views of knowledge.

It follows from centres of knowledge, naturally, the theories of centres and margins. And this brigns some clarity, and perspective on  McLuhan's chapter on roads and paper routes and centre-margin dynamics  chapter.

I looked for forests

But found only trees

I Stopped looking for forests

And forests were all I could see

 If I were to eat a burger to satiate my hunger on a certain day at a certain time of the day, I dont need to know that all burgers of the universe are contained in it, and neither do I need to know all foodstuffs ever made and to be made are part of it in spirit as well as materially, nor do I want to accrue benefits of all food, whether nachos, or fried rice, or watermelon slices, in that burger, nor do I need the benefit to continue accruing for every meal that am to partake after that.

Now ask yourself, which deity, which mantra  do I choose, and why

> An engineer with 8 1-hour blocks is near useless. 

> An engineer with 1 8-hour block is an ultra-productive force of nature. 

> Coding is a momentum based activity. Similar to athletes, developers can get in the zone, but they need focus.

source : Alex Chiou on linkedIn

 

Tom DeMarco wrote this up literally millions of years ago in his book 'Peopleware',  and yet it is still unheard. The conclusion follows that the industry is not about people. 

 The foundation, of a skyscraper touching the heavens, 

is not concrete 

but the millions forced into poverty, enough to be motivated 

 to build and support those who benefit from it

 and the socio economic political system which creates disparity

which creates the potential difference to make this possible

therefore all forms of government and rule,

their stock in trade, is a steady supply of

scarcity, despair, and fear, brutishness, indifference, loss

and a barely-sufficient restraint

not too strong to inspire or let the masses heave a sigh

but strong enough that they dare not drop their chores

and idle

run rabbit run,  it's always time to dig another one

--- chatgpt rewrite ----

The foundation of a skyscraper scraping the heavens
is not concrete—
but millions ground into poverty,
driven just enough to build it,
and to uphold those who feast atop.

It is the system—social, economic, political—
that engineers disparity:
a potential difference strong enough
to move men like current,
yet never enough to lift them.

All governance,
by king or congress, party or prince,
deals in the currency of
scarcity, despair, fear—
a drip-feed of brutishness,
indifference, and barely-sufficient restraint.

Never enough to spark rebellion,
but enough to exhaust hope.

So run, rabbit, run—
there’s always another hole to dig.

When I come to you

 for help

And start with what's wrong

You only see an attack

And hit ..back

And leave me in shreds

to turn to you 

when most in need

Is when the most

I bleed

It is now years since

The soul a shadow

Without growth

Faint dreams of destiny

Of purpose taunt

But sting no more

Rage bubbles up now and then

But I have made 

A friend

Of betrayals

Of opportunity flowing by

Untouched

Of withered meanings

Slenderest strands I am made

And hang

And wait

For the end to come

May others be happy

 

    

 is it a fish ?

is it a nut ?

it is ....

almon  !!!!