Synonyms Questions and Answers

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Freedom is one of the most important factors in life. Man has fought politically all over the world for freedom. Religions have promised freedom, not in this world but in another. In the capitalist countries, individual freedom exists to some degree, and in the communist world it has been denied. From ancient times, freedom has meant a great deal to man, and there have been its opponents, not only political but religious through Inquisition, by excommunication, tortures and banishments, and the total denial of man's search for freedom. There have been wars and counter-wars fought for freedom. This has been the pattern of man's endeavours for freedom throughout history.

Freedom of self-expression and freedom of speech and thought exist in some parts of the world, but in others it does not. Those who have been conditioned, revolt against their backgrounds. This reaction which takes different forms is called 'freedom'. The reaction to politics is often to shun the field of politics.

One economic reaction is to form small communities based on some ideology or under the leadership of one person, but these soon disintegrate. The religious reaction against established organisations of belief is to revolt, either by joining other religious organisations or by following some guru or leader or by joining some cult. Or one denies the whole religious endeavour.

One thinks of freedom only as freedom of movement, either physical or movements of thought. It appears that one always seeks freedom on the surface. Surely, this is rather a limited freedom, involving a great deal of conflict, wars and violence.

Inner freedom is something entirely different. It has its roots not in the idea of freedom but in the reality of freedom. It covers all the endeavours of man. Without inner freedom life will always be an activity within the limited circle of time and conflict.

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1. Kangri Karchok, the Kailash Purana of the Tibetans describes the sacred elephant-mouthed river or Langchen Khambab as a long and extensive river that rises from the 'lake unconquerable', the Tso Maphan or Manasarovar that flows from the mountainous regions of Tibet. According to this holy book, this cold river with its sands of gold, circles the holy Manasarovar seven times before taking its course to the west.

2. The Langchen Khambab flows down from the red coloured mountains of the Kanglung Kangri Glacier in the Trans-Himalayan region of Tibet, channelling its way through the earth forests of Tholing and Tsparang of the Gugi Kingdom. These earth forests are full of pillars formed by rocks that collectively appear like a forest from afar - an 'out of the world' landscape that was formed by geological movements of the earth and erosion by wind and water. The Khyunglung ruins also lies on the northern bank of the Sutlej river in this valley which was once known as the 'Garuda Valley".

3. This mighty river then flows north-west for about 260 km before entering Himachal Pradesh through Shipki La cutting across the formidable Himalayan ranges of Zanskar, the Greater Himalaya and the Dhauladhar. Subsequently, the waters meander through the gigantic Kinnaur Kailash-Jorkanden Range at Reckong Peo creating the terrifying Sutlej gorge. Then it streams into Shimla, Kullu, Mandi and Bilaspur and is responsible for the rich cultivation of grapes, apples and apricots all along its banks. After its confluence with the River Spiti at Khab it is known as Sutlej.

4. It is 1,448 km in length, making it the longest among the five rivers of Punjab. Extensively used for irrigation, it is topographically divided into the Upper Sutlej Basin and Lower Sutlej Basin. It leaves the Himachal boundary to enter the plains of the Punjab at the Bhakra Dam, the second highest gravity dam and a major point of water supply and electricity generation for the North of India.

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The strength of Indian democracy lies in its tradition, in the fusion of the ideas of democracy and national independence which was characteristic of the Indian national movement long before independence. Although the British retained supreme authority over India until 1947, the provincial elections of 1937 provided real exercise in democratic practice before national independence. During the Pacific War, India was not overrun or seriously invaded by the Japanese and after the War was over, the transfer of power to a government of the Indian Congress Party was a peaceful one as far as Britain was concerned. By 1947, 'Indianization' had already gone far in the Indian Civil Service and army, so that the new government could start with effective instruments of central control.

After independence, however, India was faced with two vast problems, the first, that of ethnic diversity and the aspirations of sub-nationalities. The Congress leadership was more aware of the former problem than of the second; as a new political elite which had rebelled not only against the British Raj, but also against India's social order; they were conscious of the need to initiate economic development and undertake social reforms, but as nationalists who had led a struggle against alien rule on behalf of all parts of India, they took the cohesion of the Indian nation too much for granted and underestimated the centrifugal forces of ethnic division, which were bound to be accentuated rather than diminished as the popular masses were more and more drawn into politics. The Congress Party was originally opposed to the idea of recognizing any division of India on a linguistic basis and preferred to retain the old provinces of British India which often cut across linguistic boundaries; it was only in response to strong pressures from below that the principle of linguistic States was conceded as the basis of a federal 'Indian Union'. The rights granted to the States created new problems for the Central Government. The idea of making Hindi the national language of a united India was thwarted by the recalcitrance of the speakers of other important Indian languages, and the autonomy of the States rendered central economic planning extremely difficult.

Land reforms remained under the control of the States and many large-scale economic projects required a degree of cooperation between the Central Government and one or more of the States which it was found impossible to achieve. Coordination of policies was difficult even when the Congress Party was in power both in the States and at the Centre; when a Congress government in Delhi was confronted with non-Congress parties in office in the States, it became much harder.

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Born out of the forces of globalization, India's IT sector is undertaking some globalization of its own. In search of new sources of rapid growth, the country's outsourcing giants are aggressively expanding beyond their usual stomping grounds into the developing world; setting up programming centres, chasing new clients and hiring local talent. Through geographic diversification, Indian companies hope to regain some momentum after the recession. This shift is being driven by a global economy in which the US is no longer the undisputed engine of growth. India's IT powers rose to prominence largely on the decisions made by American executives, who were quick to capitalize on the cost savings to be gained by outsourcing noncore operations, such as systems programming and call centres, to specialists overseas.

Revenues in India's IT sector surged from $4 billion in 1998 to $59 billion last fiscal, but with the recession NASSCOM forecasts that the growth rate of India's exports of IT and other business services to the US and Europe will drop to at most 7% in the current fiscal year, down from 16% last year and 29% in 2007-08.

Factors other than the crisis are driving India's IT firms into the emerging world. Although the US still accounts for 60% of the export revenue of India's IT sector, emerging markets are growing faster. Tapping these more dynamic economies won't be easy, however. The goal of Indian IT firms for the past 30 years has been to woo clients outside India and transfer as much of the actual work as possible back home, where lower wages for highly skilled programmers allowed them to offer significant cost savings. With costs in other emerging economies equally low, Indian firms can't compete on price alone.

To adapt, Indian companies which are relatively unknown in these emerging nations are establishing major local operations around the world, in the process hiring thousands of locals. Cultural conflicts arise at times while training new recruits. In addition, IT firms also have to work extra hard to woo business from emerging-market companies still unaccustomed to the concept of outsourcing. If successful, the future of India's outsourcing sector could prove as bright as its past.

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Man who is believed to have evolved from apes, is a curious mixture of varied motives. He is not only the subject of needs but is also their creator. He not only seeks to satisfy his needs but also caters to his desire for beauty and grace. He is eager to satisfy his passion for more and more knowledge. Although in a general way, the maxim 'necessity is the mother of invention' is true, it is by no means the whole truth. Man is something much greater than an intelligent being using his intellect to make newer inventions from time to time. He has within him a spirit which is ever exhorting him to cut down his needs and learn to be happy with what he has. The real purpose underlying this maxim lies in its utility in the worldly sense. It tells us to be up and doing, not to be passive in our attitude to life. It asks us not to remain slaves of old habits and ways of life. We must face the new situations with a creative mind. Every new difficulty, every new problem, which confronts us in life, can be tackled successfully with the spirit of inventiveness.

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When it comes to structures that are both majestic and well-fortified, the classic European castle is the pinnacle of design. Across the ages castles changed, developed, and eventually fell out of use, but they still command the fascination of our culture.

Castles were originally built in England by Norman invaders in 1066. As William the Conqueror advanced through England, he fortified key positions to secure the land he had taken. Castles also served as bases of operation for offensive attacks. Troops were summoned to, organized around, and deployed from castles. In this way castles served both offensive and defensive roles in military operations.

Not limited to military purposes, castles also served as offices from which the lord would administer control over his fiefdom. They would address disputes, handle business, feast, and enjoy festivities. In this way castles served as important social centres in medieval England. Castles also served as symbols of power.

The first castles constructed in England were made from earth and timber. Those who constructed them took advantage of natural features, such as hills and rivers, to increase defenses. Since these castles were constructed from wood, they were highly susceptible to attacks by fire. Wooden castles were gradually replaced by stone, which greatly increased the strength of these fortifications; however, being made from stone did not make these castles entirely fireproof. Attackers could hurl flaming objects into the castle through the windows or ignite the wooden doors.

The demise of castles can ultimately be attributed to gunpowder. During the 15th century, artillery became powerful enough to break through stone walls. This greatly undermined the military role of castles. Castles were then replaced by artillery forts that had no role in civil administration, and country houses that were indefensible. Though castles no longer serve their original purposes, remaining castles receive millions of visitors each year from those who wish to experience these majestic vestiges of a time long passed.

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Fitness is zero percent investment with infinite returns. There is a surge in diabetes and hypertension cases and other lifestyle diseases. Fitness is the only thing that can help. But with technology, physical activity has reduced. It has become fashionable to talk about fitness rather than act on it.

Several factors are cited to explain why fitness levels in school children are constantly declining. Children now walk far less than they used to. Instead of walking to or back from their school, they use a school bus, or get dropped and picked in a car. Once back home, they sit glued to the idiot box for several hours or keep playing computer games.

Excessive screen time can negatively impact a child's physical and mental health from increasing the risk of obesity to disturbing sleep patterns. There is neither place nor inclination to play outdoor games. Children's diet consists mainly of fast foods, fried foods, chocolates, crispies, sweets and fizzy drinks. These foods may be delicious and, therefore, tempting, but they are highly deficient in vital nutrients. Parents are often aware of this, but out of misplaced love for children, they hardly ever discipline their eating habits. Girls, usually keen to remain slim, keep dieting unnecessarily and deprive their bodies of vital nourishment.

It is important that children spend plenty of time playing in fresh air and exercise even more than the grown-ups in order that their muscles develop and their bones grow properly. If they can go for a regular swim and walk down to the swimming pool, it would combine the benefits of both walking and swimming. In addition, they should be encouraged to take healthy and wholesome food rich in nutrients to avoid what may be described as convenience foods.

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There was a king, Shibi Rana, who enjoyed immense power. Even gods in heaven were jealous of him. They feared that Shibi might one day take away their kingdoms. They devised a plan to test his sense of justice. So they decided to reach Shibi's kingdom in disguise. One day, Shibi Rana was sitting on his throne. His courtroom was surrounded by majestic gardens. There came a scared dove flying to him and it was followed by a fierce looking eagle. The king gave shelter to the dove and saved her. The eagle argued that the king has taken away his food-the dove. It would starve. The king assured the eagle that he would give equal quantity of any other food. The eagle asked for king Shibi's flesh. The magnanimous king agreed with a smile. A balance was brought in the court. It was soon found that with each addition of the king's flesh the dove grew heavier. The equal balance was not arrived at. But the king remained calm and unperturbed.

The gods in the guise of the dove and the eagle were assured of Shibi's righteousness. The forms of the eagle and the dove soon disappeared. In their place stood Indra, the king of the gods and Agni, the god of fire smiling and blessing the king for his benevolence and greatness.

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1. Do children really need such long summer breaks, was a question posed by some experts recently. Apparently, such a long break disrupts their development and comes in the way of their learning process. "Let's get them back to their books", is perhaps the expert view. One would have thought the children are doing too much during their vacations and not too little, given the plethora of classes, camps and workshops involving swimming, art, personality development, music, computers and the like. Even the trips taken in the name of holidays seem laden with exotic destinations and customised experience packed into a short period of time. We can go Europe in 10 days and Australia in a week and come back armed with digital memories and overflowing suitcases. Holidays are, in some ways, no longer a break but an intensified search for experience not normally encountered in everyday life.

2. It is a far cry from summer holidays as we know them. For us, holidays every year meant one thing and one thing alone-you went back to your native place, logging in with the emotional headquarters of your extended family and spent two months with a gaggle of uncles, aunts and first and second cousins. The happiest memories of the childhood of a whole generation seemed to be centred around this annual ritual of homecoming.

3. Summer was not really a break, but a joint. It was the bridge used to reaffirm one's connectedness with one's larger community. One did not travel, one returned. It was not an attempt to experience the new and the extraordinary but one that emphatically underlined the power of the old and the ordinary. With the change of time, what we seek from our summer breaks too has changed in a fundamental way.

4. Today, we are attached much more to our work and summer helps us temporarily detach from this new source of identity. We refuel our individual selves now; and do so with much more material than we did in the past. But for those who grew up in different times, summer was the best time of their lives.

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1. It was Somi's idea that we meet at the pool in ten years time. "When we are men, we must come back to this place, ten years from today," he said. "Rusty, at midday on 5 April 1964, we must return to the pool, no matter where we are, or what we are doing. Promise?" It was a school boy's pledge, and made in deadly earnest. As boys, we usually mean the things we say . . And so we shook hands on it and dived back into the water.

2. The pool had been discovered by me a few months earlier. I remember that it was going to rain... I could see the rain moving across the foothills, and I could smell it on the breeze. But instead of turning homewards, I pushed my way through the leaves and brambles that grew across the forest path. I had heard the murmur of water and I wanted to see and touch it. Sliding down the rockface into a small ravine, I found a stream running over a bed of shingle. Water trickled down from the hillside, from amongst ferns and grasses and wild primroses. The rocks beside the stream were smooth, and some of them were grey and some yellow. A small waterfall came down the rocks and formed a deep pool of apple-green water.

3. When I saw the pool, I ran back to town to tell the others. Anil and Somi were my closest friends. Anil lived in a crowded lane of the Dilaram Bazaar. He was wild and a little dangerous, subject to moods and impulses. Somi was sensitive and gentle in his ways, but common with Anil he had a sense of fun and an instinct for adventure. The pool was my own discovery, and I was proud of it. "We'll call it Rusty pool", said Somi.