Internet BBC Radio tuner

If you like to listen to the BBC World Service, or other BBC Radio stations (and I do), then you may well be interested in this Google Desktop "gadget". I am a happy user of this gadget.

"Ahaṃkāra" (अहंकार) or "Ahamkara"

I have just updated the Wikipedia content on this subject, as it was a bit thin and as I believe it to be a fundamentally important concept for us to learn, to work towards the realisation of the Self.
"Ahaṃkāra" (अहंकार) is a Sanskrit term that is related to the ego and egoism - that is, the identification or attachment of one's ego. The term "Ahamkara" comes from an approximately 3,000 year-old Vedic philosophy (according to documents and teachings of the School of Philosophy, Aro Street, Wellington, New Zealand), where:

• "Aham" refers to the concept of the Self, and
• "kara" refers to the concept of "any created thing".

The Vedic philosophy apparently taught that when one's Mind was in a state of Ahamkara, one was in a state of subjective illusion, where the Mind had bound up the concept of one's Self with a created thing. The created thing is usually a phenomena which can be thought of as external to the Self. It could be a tangible, concrete (material) thing - e.g., a motor car - or an intangible thing - e.g., such as a concept or idea (as in, for example, the concept of the fight for peace). The ego is involved in constructing the illusion.

Thus, an otherwise sensible young man might feel that his new sports car was a reflection of his true self and this would encourage him to race his car recklessly against another person's car. Similarly, someone who believed in the fight for peace, and who ordinarily might behave in a non-violent manner, might come to blows with someone who threatened or challenged his notions of peace.

In both cases, the Mind has created a state of illusion, but it seems real to the person in that state, and objectivity and reality is obscured. This illusory state is what can often cause people to do the strangest, oddest things, sometimes evil, and often quite out of character. All humans could - and usually do at some time or other in their lives - suffer from this. Consider how an otherwise apparently nice, normal family man in the military - Rudolf Höss, could also happily undertake the role as Commandant of the Auschwitz death camp in Nazi Germany. He apparently never could see that he was doing anything other than just doing his job to the best of his ability.

Even though it is not discussed in great detail in the Bhagavad Gita, Lord Krishna says to Arjun that Ahamkara must be removed. The reason for this is that the Self is not (cannot be) present when one is in a state of Ahamkara.

A very good example in English literature of an individual in a state of Ahamkara would be Shakespeare's Othello. An Indian rendition of Othello apparently gives the name "Omkara" (Aumkara) to the Othello-like main character.

Introducing ClustrMaps from clustrmaps.com

I have just installed a nifty free graphics tool on this site called "ClustrMaps" from clustrmaps.com. It shows a small map of the world and indicates - by means of clusters of red dots - where "hits" on the blog site are emanating from around the world.

I came across it being used on another blog and was so impressed that I put it into all the blogs that I maintain.

Introducing Snap Shots from Snap.com

I have just installed an incredibly useful and free little tool on this site called "Snap Shots" from snap.com. It makes for a more informative blog, and it makes reading the blog more efficient for the reader. I came across it being used on another blog and was very impressed. I initially tried it out on this blog, and have since put it into the other blogs that I maintain. What it does is this:

• When you hover your mouse over a link in the blog (see the little icon to the right of the link?), it gives you more information about the link - maybe even a miniature display of it. i.e., it enhances some links by providing visual previews.
• The further information allows the reader to choose whether they want to follow that particular link to find out more. This would seem to be a better alternative to following the link and only then finding that actually it is not very interesting/useful to you.

Sometimes Snap Shots bring you the information you need, without your having to leave the site, while at other times it lets you "look ahead," before deciding if you want to follow a link or not.

Should you decide this is not for you, just click the Options icon in the upper right corner of the Snap Shot and opt-out.

There's a good discussion about Snap Shots on the blog here. It's all about "drilling" links.