Simla

 

San Diego

 Short one month stay enjoyed my time there little Raghav and halo for good company. 

Austria

 Yes — this photograph  is Melk Abbey (Stift Melk) in Austria, specifically the Prelate’s Courtyard (Prälatenhof).

The distinctive yellow-and-white Baroque façade and the elaborate central fountain match Melk Abbey very closely. The fountain in the Prelate’s Courtyard is documented as having come from the former Waldhausen Abbey.

Melk Abbey, Austria — in the Prelate’s Courtyard, beside the Baroque fountain.

It is a lovely travel photograph, and it would fit very well into the European travel section are building. The official Melk Abbey describes the complex as one of Europe's outstanding Baroque ensembles and a UNESCO World Heritage Site. 

8 violinist gave a live performance and it was so good I slept towards the end of the performance 😩 

Soul touching I think. May be jet lag too.

Austria looks so small from the flight. Unlike other countries.  But truly an amazing must visit place. You can buy show tickets by the road last minute and at reasonable rates. Must see shows and plays. 

Stockholm sweden

 Yes — this photograph is from Stockholm, Sweden, and I can now identify the unusual sculpture more confidently.

The colourful cow is part of CowParade Stockholm 2004, an international public-art exhibition in which life-sized fibreglass cows were painted by different artists and displayed around the city. Stockholm hosted the event in 2004, with dozens of decorated cows placed in public locations. 

The particular cow in the

photograph appears to be “Flower Lover Cow,” by Swedish artist Jeanette Karsten. It is a very colourful design with flowers and figures covering the body, and the official CowParade catalogue confirms that Flower Lover Cow was created for Stockholm 2004. 

So this is another lovely memory from the Sweden trip. The cobbled street, historic buildings and the enormous painted cow make the photograph particularly characteristic of old Stockholm.

Dancing and Singing in the Rain — World Music Day in Sweden 

World Music Day, celebrated every year on 21 June, began in France in 1982 as the Fête de la Musique—the Festival of Music. What started as a French celebration soon spread across the world. On this day, music leaves the concert halls and comes out into the streets. Professional musicians, amateurs, singers, bands and ordinary people all become part of the celebration.

One such day, we happened to be in Sweden.

My friend Roopa and I suddenly found ourselves becoming part of the celebrations. We did not know anyone there, and certainly nobody knew us. But music has a wonderful way of making strangers feel like friends. We joined the crowd, cheering, singing and enjoying ourselves as though we had been part of the celebration all along.

And then came the rain!

We were carrying two huge umbrellas bearing the name of the company where our husbands had been undergoing training. We had been given these umbrellas just before leaving the factory. Little did we know that they would make us the most noticeable people in the gathering.

We danced and sang in the rain, completely forgetting about shopping or sightseeing. We were simply enjoying the moment.

Our rather unusual umbrellas caught the attention of two Americans, who came up to us and began talking to us. For a while, the four of us shared the same infectious spirit of the celebration.

Looking back, it is one of those travel memories that has remained fresh in our minds—not because we visited a famous monument or bought something special, ( here I must add that I did buy a woolen cap for my husband, the shops were all in a posh area so we did not get anything useful and fitting our budget)but because, for a few wonderful hours, we became part of Sweden's celebration of music.

Instead of shopping, we were dancing and singing in the rain.

What fun times they were!

Ice hotel in Sweden. We were both walking along with 15 others from our group and one young very handsome boy approaches us and asks are you from India. We say yes. Do you know sharuk Khan will you introduce me to him. We tell him you are yourself more handsome than sharukkhan young man go enjoy your life. 

At the hotel we are treated to a drink red and yellow separated by white in ice glases. What an experience it was. 

Roopa in the back ground Narsim and me.

Helsenki

 At Heureka, the Finnish Science Centre, near Helsinki. It is especially memorable because of its interactive exhibits—you don't merely look at displays; many exhibits make you part of the experiment.

But the eye-tracking exhibit 

Helsinki — where science becomes an experience

What makes Helsinki's museums interesting is that several of them go beyond the traditional “look at an object and read its label” approach.

Heureka is a wonderful example. Science is presented through experiments, movement, perception and interaction. Visitors can test phenomena themselves and discover that things we take for granted—vision, balance, motion, the human body and the laws of physics—can behave in surprising ways.

The eye-tracking display is particularly fascinating. Eye-tracking technology can record exactly where a person's gaze moves, including the sequence and duration of attention. That turns the visitor's own eyes into an experimental instrument.

Helsinki — A City of Design, Curiosity and Surprises 

Finland had many surprises for us, and Helsinki was one of them.

Helsinki is a city that seems to combine modernity with a quiet respect for history, design and nature. Among the places we visited was a museum that I found particularly interesting. Like many European museums, it did not merely display objects—it seemed to invite you to look, observe and think.

Our Finnish experience began not in Helsinki, but in Stockholm.

We took a cruise ship from Stockholm to Finland, crossing the Baltic Sea. The journey itself became part of the holiday. There is something very special about travelling by sea through the Nordic landscape, watching the islands and stretches of water pass quietly by.

But we also had quite a different experience on the water—a thrilling fast-boat ride. The boat skimmed across the surface so swiftly that the water seemed to break into ripples around us. It was exhilarating and completely different from the leisurely pace of the cruise ship.

From the calm grandeur of the cruise to the excitement of the fast boat, the journey itself gave us two contrasting ways of experiencing the Baltic.

Then came Finland and Helsinki, with its museums, its distinctive architecture and its fascinating blend of modern life and nature.

Our Nordic journey also included Stockholm, where we visited the impressive hall associated with the Nobel Prize ceremonies. Standing in such a distinguished place was memorable. The Nobel tradition represents something much larger than the ceremony itself—the recognition of human curiosity, discovery and achievement.

The Helsinki science museum —three remarkable exhibits

Gaze Scan Path — the machine followed your eyes and showed the route your gaze took across an image.

The Bicycle on the Thin Rope — demonstrating balance and equilibrium, with the wonderful warning not to bend down to retrieve anything that fell from your pocket! Assuring us if we rode the cycle we would not fall but if something from our pocket fell they would retrieve it for us.

The Giant Table — when you sat in the designated position, you appeared tiny while the cups, saucers and kettle looked enormous. Reminded of Alice in wonderlands mad tea party.

One of the most memorable experiences of our Finnish visit, however, was not  only

inside a museum at all.

We went up to one of the highest points from where people begin their skiing runs. Of course, we did not climb up ourselves—we took the lift! Looking down from that height, with the landscape spread out below us, gave us a completely different feeling for the northern countryside. For those who ski, the descent must be exhilarating. For us, the lift itself was quite an experience.

The Nordic countries have a special relationship with winter. Snow is not merely something to be endured; it becomes part of life, recreation and even identity. Watching people prepare for skiing made that very clear.

Another memory from our Nordic journey was visiting the impressive hall associated with the Nobel Prize ceremonies. The grandeur and dignity of the place left a strong impression on me. There was something deeply moving about standing in a space connected with the recognition of people whose discoveries, ideas and work have influenced the world.

What I remember most about these visits is not simply the buildings or exhibits. It is the feeling of entering places where human curiosity, creativity and achievement are celebrated.

That, perhaps, is what made our Nordic journey so memorable. Nature provided the vast landscape; museums preserved human creativity; and places like the Nobel hall reminded us of what the human mind can achieve.

Finland gave us more than beautiful scenery. It gave us moments of wonder.

Aaradhana

 शून्य से एक शतक बनते, अंक की मन भावना ।

भारती की जय-विजय हो, ले हृदय में प्रेरणा ।।

कर रहे हम साधना, मातृभू आराधना ।

दैव ने भी राम प्रभु हित, लक्ष्य था ऐसा विचारा ,

कंटको के मार्ग चलकर, राम ने रावण संहारा,

ताकि निष्कंटक रहे, हर देव ऋषि की साधना ।।१।।

कर रहे हम साधना, मातृभू आराधना ।

ध्येय हित ही एक ऋषि ने, देह को दीपक बनाया, 

और तिल तिल जल स्वयं ने, कोटी दीपों को जलाया, 

ध्येय पथ पर चल पड़े, ले उर विजय की कामना ।।२।।

कर रहे हम साधना, मातृभू आराधना ।

विजीगीषा का भाव लेकर, देश में स्वतंत्र्य आया,

बने समरस राष्ट्र भारत, बोध यह दायित्व लाया,

छल कपट और भेद से था, राष्ट्र जन को तारना ।३।

कर रहे हम साधना, मातृभू आराधना ।

धर्म संस्कृति है सनातन, रखे जल-वायु सुहावन,

पंक्ति में पीछे खड़े का, उन्नयन हो नित्य भावन,

राष्ट्र का उत्थान साधन, विश्व मंगल कामना ।।४।।

कर रहे हम साधना, मातृभू आराधना ।

शून्य से एक शतक बनते, अंक की मन भावना ।

भारती की जय-विजय हो, ले हृदय में प्रेरणा ।।

कर रहे हम साधना, मातृभू आराधना ।

The Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) centenary celebrations, marking 100 years of the organisation in 2025–26. It is circulating under the refrain “कर रहे हम साधना, मातृभू आराधना”. 

Meaning of the song

The central idea is beautifully expressed in the refrain:

“कर रहे हम साधना, मातृभू आराधना”

We are engaged in disciplined effort and in worship/service of our Motherland.

The opening couplet says:

“शून्य से एक शतक बनते…”

From zero to a century—the organisation has completed 100 years. The number 100 is not merely a number; it represents a century of sustained effort.

“भारती की जय-विजय हो, ले हृदय में प्रेरणा”

May Mother Bharati (India) triumph; let this aspiration inspire our hearts.

Verse 1 — Rama's struggle

The song then takes Sri Rama as the first example.

God's purpose was that Rama should act for the welfare of the world. Rama had to walk a thorn-filled path before defeating Ravana.

The important message is:

Great purposes are rarely achieved by an easy path. Difficulties must be accepted as part of the journey.

The ultimate purpose of Rama's struggle was that sages and others could once again pursue their spiritual practices without fear or obstruction.

Verse 2 — The Rishi who became a lamp

This is perhaps the most beautiful stanza.

“देह को दीपक बनाया, और तिल-तिल जल स्वयं ने, कोटी दीपों को जलाया”

A great rishi made his own body into a lamp. By burning himself little by little, he was able to light millions of other lamps.

The metaphor is powerful:

One person's sacrifice can awaken countless others.

The individual does not live merely for himself; he becomes a source of light for society.

Verse 3 — Independence and responsibility

The song moves from the past to modern India.

The spirit of vijigīṣā—the determination to achieve victory and overcome obstacles—helped bring independence.

But independence brought another responsibility:

India must become a harmonious nation.

The country has to be freed from:

deceit and hypocrisy,

divisions,

internal differences,

forces that keep society fragmented.

So freedom is not the end of the journey; nation-building begins with freedom.

Verse 4 — The larger ideal

The final stanza expands the vision beyond nationalism.

“धर्म संस्कृति है सनातन”

Our dharma and culture are eternal.

But this is immediately connected with practical responsibilities:

“रखे जल-वायु सुहावन”

Keep the water and air clean and pleasant.

And this line is especially significant:

“पंक्ति में पीछे खड़े का, उन्नयन हो नित्य भावन”

The person standing at the back of the queue should also be lifted up.

In other words, national progress cannot mean that only the fortunate advance. The last person must also rise.

And the final aspiration is:

“राष्ट्र का उत्थान साधन, विश्व मंगल कामना”

The uplift of the nation is the means, but the ultimate prayer is the welfare of the whole world.

In one sentence

The song says:

A hundred years of national service is not a celebration of an achievement alone; it is a renewal of the commitment to sacrifice, harmony, cultural continuity, service to the less privileged, national progress and ultimately the welfare of the entire world.

the central idea is that a life becomes meaningful when it becomes a lamp for others.

School series 60

 Part 4 — An Ancient Collection in a Modern City

Le Corbusier's Chandigarh Museum

There is a beautiful irony at the heart of Chandigarh's museum.

Inside a building representing India's modern future are treasures carrying thousands of years of its past.

Chandigarh itself was conceived after Independence as a symbol of a new India. The city was planned by the Swiss-French architect Le Corbusier, with a radically modern vision of architecture, roads, neighbourhoods and public spaces.

The Government Museum and Art Gallery became part of this new cultural landscape.

The building was designed by Le Corbusier and opened in 1968.

But its contents could hardly be more different from the architecture surrounding them.

Inside are:

Ancient Gandharan sculptures

Indian stone sculpture

Pahari and Rajasthani miniature paintings

Metal sculpture

Decorative arts and other treasures

Many of these objects had already travelled a remarkable distance before arriving here.

They had belonged to collections in Lahore, survived Partition, crossed into India and moved through several temporary locations before finally reaching Chandigarh.

And now they were given a permanent home in a city that itself was barely two decades old.

Two Indias meet

This is what makes the museum so fascinating.

Outside: reinforced concrete, geometric forms, modern urban planning and Le Corbusier's vision of the future.

Inside: Buddhas carved centuries ago, miniature paintings, traditional sculpture and objects made by craftsmen following ancient traditions.

It is almost as though the building is saying:

A modern India does not have to abandon its ancient India.

It can carry both.

The museum therefore became more than a place to preserve objects. It became a bridge between heritage and modernity.

And perhaps that is the perfect ending to our Chandigarh story.

A collection displaced by Partition eventually found its home in a city created after Partition.

History had divided the collection.

A new India gave it a home.

And today, a visitor walking through those galleries can quietly travel through two thousand years of Indian art without leaving Chandigarh.

Chandigarh in our museum journey

From the Salar Jung Museum's extraordinary private collection, to Mysore's Raja Ravi Varma, to Pune's railway heritage, and now Chandigarh's collection born from Partition, each museum has revealed a completely different face of India.

That is what makes museums so wonderful: they do not merely preserve the past—they allow the past to speak.