MERRY CHRISTMAS

S.S.RAJULA

I had my first voyage on S.S.Rajula in 1962, when I was about five years old. We were going to India from Singapore for a vacation. I was very young then and cannot remember much about the voyage now. I do remember watching the other ships on the sea. They were steamships. I noticed the bigger ships had two or three funnels and as a child, I used to draw pictures of ships with funnels. S.S.Rajula had only one funnel. A man would go around ringing a bell to announce that it was meal time. We would then head for the dining room. We had western food. It was an eight day voyage from Singapore to Madras (now Chennai). On reaching Madras, I noticed some Tamil women on board, getting ready to disembark. They had big earrings that stretched their ears. Passengers were accommodated in different classes. The higher classes had cabins. We returned to Singapore after the vacation on the same ship. A man on board sold us a toy musical string instrument. He demonstrated its use by playing some music. After he left, when we tried it we could not produce any music. 

On March 14, 1972 we again traveled from Singapore to India on the S.S.Rajula. I was fifteen then and my parents had decided to settle in India, so this was my final voyage on this ship. As the ship pulled away from Singapore, I watched the receding skyline and felt sad. There was a TV in the lounge and I saw a cartoon “Felix the cat” for a short time, since the image was getting blurred as the ship moved away from land. When the ship reached Penang, many westerners came on board. They were mostly hippies. Singapore’s strict laws made it difficult for them, but Malaysia was more tolerant. They were headed to India for drugs and a cheap life. A man was holding a roll of toilet paper, one end of which he gave to a woman. The woman held the end of the toilet paper and the man holding the roll, unrolled it as he got down from the ship. He was staying back at Penang. As the ship started pulling away from Penang, the toilet paper tore into two pieces. Both of them rolled up the pieces they held unto. It was their idea of a farewell. There was a 20 year old Australian going to India to study yoga. He had met with an accident and was using the insurance money he got to pay his way. 

On some nights movies were screened. I saw a Hindi movie and “Cat Ballou” which had Lee Marvin and Jane Fonda.The captain visited each cabin and talked to the passengers. He asked us whether we were enjoying our voyage.When we reached Nagapattinam in the early morning we could see many small fishing boats in the sunrise. It was a beautiful sight. Soon we reached Madras and disembarked. S.S.Rajula was sold in 1973 and scrapped in 1974.

I received the following photos from Martin Cotsford  ex 3/O SS Rajula.

TALKING IN INDIAN

In China, people speak Chinese. In Japan, they speak Japanese. In France, it is French. Most countries have only one language.

In India, each state has a different language. Even within a state there are regional differences in the spoken language.

When I was in Africa, I used to go to a church where people of different nationalities gathered for prayer. After the service, there was a get together for Tea and snacks. One day there were a few people from Kerala and we started talking in Malayalam. An American lady looked at us for some time and said “All the Indians are talking in Indian.” I realized then, most people do not know, there are so many languages in India and that some even think Indians speak in a language called Indian.

FOREIGNERS AT THE TEMPLE

Twenty years ago, nobody knew that there was an enormous amount of wealth in the form of gold jewelry and gems hidden in the vaults of the Sree Padmanabhaswamy Temple. So there was almost no security system at the temple premises then.

At that time, I was working for a private firm in Trivandrum City. I had to visit ISRO often, since I was marketing products which they required. These products were mostly manufactured in USA or Europe.

Sometimes we had Engineers from abroad visiting Trivandrum to promote their products. On such occasions, we had to accompany them to ISRO and arrange their meetings with the ISRO Engineers.

In the evenings, when we were free, we used to take the foreigners around for sightseeing. One of the popular places was the Sree Padmanabhaswamy Temple.

One day we took a British Engineer to the Temple. He looked at the Temple and said “It’s Magnificent. Truly Magnificent” He took out his camera and began taking pictures of the Temple from various angles. He was very impressed by the Temple but a little disappointed by the notice saying foreigners are not allowed inside the Temple.

Some months later, we had a French Engineer visiting Trivandrum. We took him to the Temple. He had an expensive camera with him and we thought he would take some pictures of the Temple. He did not use his camera. He looked at the Temple for some time and said “It’s dirty; I think you should clean it.”

ASTHMA

I was above thirty when I first felt a difficulty in breathing. It would last a few minutes and then go away. I did not know why it was happening. I thought it may be due to a lack of exercise and I started to do some exercises, but to no avail. The wheezing occurred more during the night and I had to sometimes get up from sleep and stand bent to get some relief.

I had heard of asthma and began suspecting it. I started to read about asthma. Meanwhile a doctor recommended theophylline slow release tablets. It only made it worse, since it was nauseating.

Later, I happened to see a program on TV about asthma. A doctor was explaining that the first step in the treatment of asthma was the use of an inhaler. Only if it did not work should tablets be used. At that time, I was using salbutamol tablets which took about twenty minutes to provide some relief. The doctor on TV explained that an inhaler works faster because it delivers the medicine directly to the lungs whereas in the case of the tablet, the medicine will take much more time to reach the lungs. I started using a salbutamol inhaler and felt much better since I now got a quick relief.

One day, I got continuous asthmatic attacks at night and could not sleep the whole night. I consulted a doctor the next morning and he recommended a Seroflo (salmeterol xinafoate and fluticasone propionate) inhaler. I used it that night and could sleep soundly.Regular use made me feel uneasy and caused palpitations. Since I had the habit of carrying the salbutamol inhaler with me, now I started carrying the Seroflo inhaler. Whenever I had a difficulty in breathing, I would use it. I did not realize that it should not be used as often. One day, I felt my heart pounding and left my workplace in a hurry to take some rest in my room. After sometime my heartbeat became regular but I felt extreme thirst and had to drink a lot of water. I felt very weak for a few days after that. I could not understand the pounding heart and extreme thirst. I asked a doctor about it but he could not tell me the reason. I searched for information on the internet and found that these are the effects of salmeterol overdose.

AHMED

I was returning to Kerala after attending a program at Annamalai University in 1990. My friend was with me. We reached Chidambaram Railway Station in the evening to board the train. When we entered the compartment, we saw a young man already occupying one of the seats. He was going to travel with us. We talked to him. He told us that he was on his way to Trivandrum to catch a flight to the Maldives. His name was Ahmed and he was working at a hotel in the Maldives.

A few minutes later, two middle aged women appeared along with a man. They sat next to us and were talking among themselves. The man then left the compartment. The train was about to start. Suddenly, the two women realized that their ticket was with the man and they started to panic. Ahmed asked them about the man’s compartment number and volunteered to locate him. Since the train was about to start, he had to hurry. He left us and within a few minutes was back with the man. The man gave the women their tickets through the window.

The train started and it was beginning to get dark. The women started talking to us. They were both doctors and were jointly running a clinic. They told us that it was very difficult to run their own clinic. Patients would come to them at odd hours and ask to be treated. They said that they would not like to see their children becoming doctors.

Later, the women started talking about their locality. They said it was not a good place anymore since many muslims have begun to settle in that area. On hearing this, I noticed that Ahmed was feeling embarrassed. The women did not know the name of the man who had just helped them.

THE KING AND THE ASTROLOGER

Once there lived a famous astrologer who had the reputation of being able to predict the time of a person’s death. The king heard about him and asked him to predict the time and day of the king’s own death.

The astrologer did his calculations and announced the exact date and time. The king asked him if he was absolutely sure. The astrologer said he was.

Next, the king asked him to predict the day the astrologer will die. The astrologer did his calculations again and gave a date, many years away.

The king laughed and said, “I will prove you are wrong.” He then called the executioner and ordered the astrologer to be beheaded.

STREET CIRCUS

It was the late 1980’s. I was standing outside a movie theatre in Trivandrum, waiting for the ticket counter to open. The theatre was near the railway station. After a few minutes, there was a large crowd in front of the theatre. Some of the people began to form a queue in front of the ticket counter.

Then, I noticed a young man carrying a long pole. There was a child of about four years with him. The man was clapping and trying to attract the attention of the people. Soon after, he held the pole upright and the child climbed up the pole and lay on his back on the top edge of the pole. The man lifted the pole. The child cried out 'I am afraid' in Tamil. The man told him to ‘shut up’. He then raised the pole, placed it on his forehead and started balancing it with the child at the top end. Then he held the pole and with an upward jerk, dislodged the child. As the child fell towards the ground, he cast the pole aside and caught the falling child. All those watching heaved a sigh of relief.

The man and the child then went around the crowd hoping to collect some money for the show. Only one man gave them some money. I am sure the others may have felt that he deserved a thrashing for putting the child’s life in danger.

KERALA BACKWATERS

The boat started at 10:30 am from Kollam. It was an eight hour trip to Alappuzha through the Kerala Backwaters. Only a few people were on board. The Kerala Government runs this boat service and hence it was cheaper than the private operators.







Cruising through the backwaters, we see the beauty of nature. There seem to be no end to the coconut trees that line the shore. We come across small sailing boats used by local fishermen. A few larger fishing boats also pass by. Along the way, we see churches, temples and some houses on the shore. Children wave at us. Storks and ducks can be seen in the water.






At 1 pm we stop for lunch at the Green Channel Resort in Alumkadavu. It was a tasty vegetarian meal. There was another stop for tea and snacks at 4 pm.






Many houseboats can be seen on the backwaters. These are run by private operators and provide a luxurious service. We reached Alappuzha at 6:30 pm. It was the end of a pleasant trip.

OLD LADY ON THE TRAIN

It was the late 1980’s. I was on my daily journey to Trivandrum, where I was employed. As usual, after halting at a few stations on the way, the train started to get crowded. Most of the travelers were workers who made the daily trip. They were familiar faces.
When she got on the train it was crowded and she could not get a seat. She stood there crying. One of the passengers offered her his seat and asked her why she was crying. She said she was going to the Medical College Hospital to visit her son who had just come out of a coma, but still could not recognize anybody. He did not even know his own identity.
Her son was working in the Middle East and had recently got married. On his way back to India for his vacation, he was met at the airport by his brother who arrived in a car. His wife and her relatives also arrived at the airport in another car. He chose to travel home in his brother’s car. The other car followed them. On the highway, his car met with an accident. His wife and her relatives who were following saw the accident and thought they would not survive. They took the bag he brought from the Middle East, expecting it to contain some valuables, and placed it in their car. They then left the scene and never cared to help him. They have never enquired about him since then.
The old lady was on her way to visit her son. She was still hoping that he will recover completely one day.

REINCARNATION

Reincarnation is a cycle of death and rebirth. After death the soul leaves the body and reappears again with another body. So only the body dies. The soul keeps on living. This process is needed so that the soul can learn the necessary spiritual lessons. When all the necessary lessons are learnt, there will be no more reincarnation and the soul returns to God.

So the goal is to end the cycle of reincarnation by learning all the necessary lessons. Ignorance leads to a perpetual chain of reincarnation. After many reincarnations, a person becomes dissatisfied and will seek spiritual happiness instead of worldly desires, so that he can free himself from the cycle of birth and death.

If these spiritual lessons can be learnt in one lifetime, obviously there would be no need for reincarnation. So they must be really extensive and difficult lessons. Some people claim to have memories of their past lives. We do not know the motives of such people. Most people do not have such memories. The total population of the world is increasing, which means all the humans on the planet are not the ‘reborn variety’. Many of the humans we see must have been born for the first time.

Those who believe in reincarnation also claim that some humans are reborn as animals and vice versa. They claim it is the bad humans who are reborn as animals and if they behave well as animals they may get another chance to be reborn as a human. So a bad human reborn as a cockroach need not lose hope. As a cockroach, if you behave well and learn the necessary spiritual lessons you can again be reborn as a human. Of course, we can’t hope to be reborn as a dinosaur, since they are extinct.

The belief in reincarnation was used by the high caste in India to control the low caste. The low caste were led to believe that if they accept their low status without protest they may get a chance to be reborn as a high caste.

Some people find it difficult to accept that, maybe life ends with death. They really want to keep on living in one form or another. For such people reincarnation is an attractive option.

THE WHEELBARROW THIEF

One evening a factory owner saw one of the workmen leaving by the side gate pushing a wheelbarrow full of dirt. He didn't think much of this, but the next evening he saw the same worker coming out with a wheelbarrow full of dirt again.
There was something incredibly suspicious about this. And it didn't take him long to begin to suspect that the worker was waiting for the rest of the crew to leave so that he could steal from the work site, probably hiding his ill-gotten gains in the dirt.
The next evening, he waited for the worker. When the worker came out with the wheelbarrow, he confronted him and searched through the dirt. He found nothing and sent the worker on his way.
A few days later, he again confronted him and found nothing. This continued for more than a month. Each day the worker left a little later, probably to try and avoid his snooping employer, who waited outside to search him. But the employer never found anything, either in the dirt in the wheelbarrow or in the worker's pockets.
Finally he confronted the worker one evening and said "Look, I have been searching this wheelbarrow for seven weeks. I'm sure you're stealing something but for the life of me I can't figure out what it is. It's got me so worked up that I can't think straight and my work is suffering. I lie in bed every night trying to figure it out and I just can't. I admit it, you've got me beaten, but I have to know or I'll never get a decent night's sleep. So I promise you right now, if you'll just tell me what you've been stealing, you will not be punished in anyway.”
"Sir, I have been stealing wheelbarrows" the worker said with a smile.