Below is an extract from The Arabian Nights. It gives some excellent advice that will help all who have to deal with peers, superiors and inferiors; that is to say everybody. EXTRACT BEGINS HERE ‘What advice do you give yourself?’ asked Mu’awiya. ‘I plant my feet on the ground, move them slowly and keep my […]
Category Archives: Self Help
Find a Worthwhile Reason to Suffer
What do I mean when I say, “Find a worthwhile reason to suffer.” What I have to say is a summary of chapter 7 of the book, Everything is F*cked by Mark Manson. The chapter starts with some academic studies that prove that no matter what the circumstances of our lives we will never be […]
On Marriage – Some Comments
I have the reputation of being a controversial and notorious person. Much of it is to do with my open attitude to sex and marriage although I did behave in eccentric ways otherwise when I was young. So you would expect me to write about why I am still single earlier than today. But it […]
How to Read Serious Books
This article on how to read serious books is based on a book that I have mentioned earlier in my blog: How to read a Book by Mortimer Adler and Charles Van Doren. Link to my earlier article is below; The essence of the book is that you need to be a demanding and active […]
How to Read Philosophy
I start with a short description of how I used to read philosophy book. I made a fundamental error in my reading described below: I read philosophy books the same way I read bestsellers and novels. That is, I just skimmed through the pages without forethought or afterthought. This resulted in my not understanding almost […]
Throw the Lumber Over
It was my birthday recently and I received a gift voucher from my family to buy what I want from Amazon. I have a choice of buying some books – that I may not afterwards read – and a pair of jeans that I need badly. I have more than 500 books already and I […]
I just learned that I don’t know how to read
I have in my library in Mumbai and Pune more than 500 books. I am known to be a person who reads a lot and I did, when I was young, spend a lot of time with books. I am well qualified and have a blog (this one) and more than a thousand answers in […]
In Praise of Idleness
The above headline is the title of a famous and celebrated essay by Bertrand Russell. Link to browse the book at Amazon is below (not an affiliate link): But I have come across another much deeper and more succinct expression of the virtues of laziness in the following Hindi poem that I learnt in school. […]
Tips for a Successful Career
I will be – in this article – giving my views about what you need to know for a successful career. These are not exactly my views but I have tested the usefulness of these concepts and it cuts through confusion like a knife through butter and enables you to move forward. The person I […]
The Slings and Arrows of Outrageous Fortune
I am reading The Arabian Nights as translated by Malcolm Lyons. It is a 3 volume set. Link to browse the first volume is below: I saw some parallels between my life and the stories in the book. I think that you will find that the same lessons apply to your life as well. Below […]