BLOGGED OUT for a while...

Gratitude...my friend.

My Dear Students...

Today, as you stand at this juncture to test your skills and abilities, I wish you all the best of wishes and luck. The year fared well, with laughter, love, and learning experiences. I tried to be the best guide. And you were the best students.

The problems in the subject were received with open arms and we tried our best to solve them. I tried my best to be of maximum use to you.

Your exam is near and you are ready, I know. The fear of examination should be fought with wit and courage.

All the best and hoping to see you all in the next, upper, grade. May god aid in your success. My prayers will always be upon you all.

             N.B: The pictures are collectively known as 8 Lucky signs. The pictures are usually presented to wish someone with luck.

The story of the little Panda

The Proud little Possession

     This little Panda crossed oceans and seas,      

It flew over boundaries.

This little Panda scaled the highest mountains,

It traversed over valleys.

This little Panda trod vast plains,

It scorched itself through deserts.

This little Panda eats neither bamboo nor grass,

It is a small little toy.

How she loved it...

This little Panda hails from Sweden,

It was found in my brother’s hotel room.

This little Panda was brought to Bhutan,

It was received with much interest.

This little Panda was my daughter’s favorite toy,

It was so small and so cute.

This little Panda was so loved by my daughter,

It was always with her.

This little Panda was lost one day,

It was nowhere to be seen.

This little Panda was so little,

It couldn’t be found easily.

This little Panda made my daughter cry so much,

It was searched all over.

This little Panda was found, under the bed,

It was recovered –safe and intact.

This little Panda was difficult to care,

It is cute indeed

It was tied with a long string, on its neck.

This little Panda was easy to care now,

It was now easy to find as the string helped.

This little Panda but was lost again,

It was in no way to be seen.

This little Panda was lost from the car,

It was nowhere in the car.

This little Panda was (may be) thrown out,

It left us and my daughter.

This little Panda did live well,

It taught my daughter many things.

This little Panda taught her the feeling of Love,

My brother, Passang, found the Panda.

It added a word in her vocabulary- PANDA.

This little Panda is remembered,

It still makes us talk of it.

This little Panda was so small and so cute,
It is but a thing of great meaning in her life.

P.S: Passang was pursuing his Masters in Sweden when he found the little wonder.

BlogUpp! | the blog: Cross-Posting to Social Networks

BlogUpp! | the blog: Cross-Posting to Social Networks

Fulfilling an Unfulfilled Project- College Magazine PART X

Fulfilling an Unfulfilled Project- College Magazine PART IX

The Snow Leopard

Art:Karma Wangchuk

Higher! Higher still

Than the tricky towering peaks,

Challenging the prowess

Of this awe-inspiring denizen;

In the land of Yeti,

With its jagged rocks

And abyss of death.

Vast, virgin snow

Numbly awaiting gloom

In its unseen clutch.

But the spirit sneaks up undeterred,

Nonchalant stare, shunning vertigo,

Humbling every peak and pass.

Rejoice in this feline face!

Pass the tidings of its regal grace!

Always there and always aware,

Princess of snow,

Princess less known

To this dreary world of restless souls.

Karma Wangchuk (Lecturer)

Thank you, I am HAPPY!

I salute with all pure heart.

I thank your majesty,

for all the deeds you did,

for all the grace,

For all the sacrifice too.

I salute with an overflowing heart,

A heart filled with gratitude.

Today, your majesty  turns  56,

and it is 56 years of love and care,

that we enjoyed.

The best of all wishes,

the best of health,

the best of love

the best of everything,

and prayers too,

will always shower upon your majesty.

May you continue to bear the light!

Your charisma is always  felt,

In the hearts of every Bhutanese.

Your endeavors will continue

to live till eternity.

You are but our true hero.

We love you

and we are blessed to have lived

under your kind reign.

Thank you , I am HAPPY.

Fulfilling an Unfulfilled Project- College Magazine PART VIII

Most vicious of all

Hair not so long

Rounded forehead

Eye rose so high, whence

Neck found always straight to

Loose object that come along.

Little lower he measured from

Common people-but indeed

Is wholly of egocentric else;

Idiosyncrasy has its way upon him.

Neither is he eloquent nor can

He be a sway, but of a cramped

Elegance would he be perceived

By an audience around.

Renegade is he by birth and

Repentance has no sway upon him.

Is he a permafrost whence nothing

Can mend his behaviour.

Belie by nature, beguile does he,

Behest has no affect,

For he deludes colleges,

Is indeed incompatible else where.

Authority do I wish

To mend him upon,

Else with a poison of tiny,

Mass being spoiled.

Left no choice than to chant

“create not a man with a heart of beast”

Norbu Gyeltshen

Bio & HPE, III

SMILE

A Light of your life

If you are stressed, you will get pimples,

If you cry, you will get wrinkles, so…

Why don’t you smile and get dimples

BECAUSE……………..

A smile is only a way

To make life happy and gay.

It’s constant for everyone

It enriches you and others by day.

A smile holds the mysteries of life

It dwells in your heart with the least effort.

But a very good exercise of your face.

A smile is way of expressing love.

A way of relaxing with internal joy.

A smile is free gift of god or nature.

Above all it builds a charming personality.

A smile is within us.

It does not cost anything,

But buys a lot.

It’s free to the beggars and to the kings.

That swings us through hope.

Always believe that;

Today is better than yesterday and

Tomorrow will be much better than today.

So before light goes away from our life,

Why don’t we smile and make everyone

Find that smile in life, so worthwhile and so rich.

Namgay Dema(3IDzo.Pry)

Whispered Love!

Forget his name with so sweet face.

Forget his kiss with his warm embrace.

I was such a gullible thing to be lured so easily.

I thought he loved me, he told me he cared.

No one could ever trust him and give him a chance but innocent me, I let him take my hand.

He made my slow and calm pacing heart dance.

My heart pulsated with so much love and I didn’t know that all would go wrong.

My dreams were all shattered.

How could someone do this to me?

I didn’t know where I was, not knowing what to do. I thought I had found my salvation in you.

You were my way out, a place without pain but what did I gain?

Too much time between and your change of heart pushed me away and ripped us apart.

I tried to stop my tears from falling but the sadness was too strong and I couldn’t help it.

I know that no one will care, nor will they see my tears.

They will only walk over them, like people have done all my life.

You took me on a magic carpet, rode high above the universe and whispered words of love, so sweetly into my little ears as you hold me tight.

You promised me a world of happiness filled with passion and endless love, a place where I can find serenity, new found strength and inspiration.

You gave me the encouragement that I need to spread my wings and fly away.

I smiled and my heart overjoyed as I fell deeper in love with you.

Then in that same second I felt you pushing me away from you.

I slipped and fell off your icy sheet and found my heart broken beyond repair.

I went dumb watching all my dreams floating on clouds of sorrow and despair.

My tears fell hard against the ground as I closed my eyes and said a prayer hoping for an angel to rescue me.

I watched your evil smile disappear into the clouds leaving me lost as I crashed and burnt in the pages of your cruel heart and broken promises.

I no longer knew what I was.

I have disappeared without a trace.

All I know now is my name and my face and now I look back and wonder what happened to my life.

Sonam Lhamo

3 EH-09

Friendship that turned to love

You and I were friends.

We promised never to end our friendship.

Together we soared for our dreams, then conquered and won over our greatest fears. Through all these years, our friendship never broke the tie and never surrendered to all the uncertainties and difficulties.

A friendship that never stops journeying; one that covers more behind the curtains of life's challenge.

A friendship which does not call for a break.

A friendship that does not hide its shade.

A friendship that bear fruit of godliness.

One that accepts failures and learns to stand-to correct the mistakes and seeing more opportunities in the panorama of life.

A friendship that does not measure how far it travelled.

A friendship that cruises and conquers the ocean of obstacles as different ways of malaise and malediction.

A friendship that never sinks but always swims to reach its success.

You know when it happens; you know when it’s right.

Your breath stops in an instant and your heart takes flight.

There is no description, to tell how you feel.

The only thing that you can think of is the fact that is real.

It makes you feel like nothing else.

You no longer think of only yourself.

It’s the one thing in life you have been waiting for.

With the warmest touch, you yearn for more

It’s something so special! Something so grand.

Something that gives, without the demand.

You wish upon the stars at night.

For the feeling you have to reach great heights.

When you give and receive this special gift,

You will get down on your knees,

Thanking the heaven above, for you have discovered this thing called love.

Pema Dolma.

      1^st year Dzongkha primary.

        

Be my forever lady

Hey! You beautiful damsel

Do let your life gallop astray

Come and live with me

And be my forever lady

And we will prove the world

That the love we bestow

Upon each other is unique

And more precious that diamonds

In the woods we will walk

Holding each other’s hands

And listen to the birds sing

And trees whisper, streams gurgle

There will I show you

Blooming orchids and thrusting ferns

Creeping ivies and clustering cherries too

Raspberries and strawberries for you

For your freshness and delight

Each morning to promise the day

Will you sight dewdrops fresh

And hear the soft murmur of doves

Beneath the magnificent tree

By the river side

With sparkling waterfall in distant view

Will we sit and count our dreams

When birds retreat in their nest

And when stars do twinkle

Will we stand with silent delight

And watch full moon glow

In the cosy kitchen, near the fireplace

We will savour steaming suja

And spend the time, the precious time

Asking, answering and listening

Hey! You beautiful damsel

Do not let your life gallop astray

Come and live with me

And be my forever lady                                           

Damcho Thinley (EPB III YR) 

BEAUTY THAT NEVER FADES

Aback by the pristine nature

Nature of one’s inner sentiment

Base and strength of the sea

To dig out and seafarer sailor to be

Burning within self, dim glow in the courtyard

Ah! Strange, the unseen lass

Alone deep in camellias through she pass

The calyx opened to the unknown beauty

Why beauty with no meaning?

Will it fade unseen to its extremity?

Thou art beautiful in thy way

It’s eternal when in fraying attire

Did it give breath to beauty?

And season of late spring

To ascend in beauty the early winter

Winter isn’t beautiful with no whiteness

Whiteness on the peaks dazzling bright

Spring in the unopened buds

Summer seems when the heavens opened

Where is autumn with its beauty?

Beauty isn’t grabbed; beauty isn’t beauty with no charms

Was there for beauty by nature

Why gallop to the fullest, old grandfather clock

Before the world shown to unknown beauty

Inner beauty one and outer beauty two

I am troubled and present in thy beauty

Drowsed in several beauties and reasons

For all and great seasons

It’s time for me to bid adieu

But far away and always by you

To live life in this world of love

This world of hatred and mystery

Bards to scribble and die in illusion

The freed world, ‘come on’ write

Convince of immortality and fraternity

Could she dance with the dancing leaves?

Whisper her secrets to the whispering leaves?

And strand of her glossy hair to dance

With that rhythmic nightingale’s chant the hidden view in blur vision

She could cross the stream, not river

Hold the hands tight but not mine

Feel the warmth but not love

May have inspiration not the affection

Why these vary within humans?

What is beauty of beauty?

Snow comes, snow goes

But life lives

The late sum on  its red horizon

Whiteness on the peaks

The charms of the immortal beauty

Can I ever afford to forget?

Angelic smile across her blushing cheeks

Can I ever live to look and ignore?

Is this beauty by birth or birth in beauty?

A long way to go and lot to know

It’s all that beauty and one’s own duty

Happiness knows no bound though earth is small and round

It’s all that beauty of great heroic deeds

Beauty that never fades, that never fades

Gyen Bahadur Darjee

4 1 PCB

Sick Lily

O! Lily!

Thou art sick.

For those wily people,

Left thee unattended.

O! lovely lily!

I weep to see those,

Creepy crawly,

Along your green leaves.

Chomp! Chomp! Chomp!

Here they go.

Chomping all your leaves,

 And leaving you bare.

O! Lily!

Once you were,

A beautiful,

Lovely flower.

Thou had a smell,

As sweet as honey,

Yellow bees came, buzzing at you,

Giving you sweet nectar.

Thou were a healthy flower.

Beautiful butterflies,

Came and sang,

To thee.

Little lady bug,

Always sleeps,

On your leaves,

Peacefully.

She loved you.

O! Lily!

Thou art sick,

No creatures want thee,

When you are in such,

 Condition .

No buzzing yellow bees,

No singing butterflies,

No lady bug sleeping,

All have left you weeping.

Sangay Choden

EPA III

A Dirge of life

I have been 24 years on this earth.

Of misery there’s been no death

From childhood I have not been

As others were, I have not seen

What others saw, I could not bring

My passions from a common spring

From the same source I have taken

My sorrow, I could not awaken

My heart to joy at the same tone

All I do, I do alone. There is a down

From most stormy lines drawn,

From every depth of good and ill

The misery, which binds me still.

From the torrent or the fountain

From the perilous cliffs of mountain,

From the sun that round me rolled

In its autumn tint of gold.

From the lightning in the sky,

All more me to cry.

From the thunder and the storm ,

The cloud took the form,

It’s a hell in my view

As sorrow breeds success in few.

Karma Phuntsho (I EPB)

“Ode to My Teacher”

Oh! Teacher, you are my lord

For your wisdom and every word uttered

Crafted a refined character in me and in fellow humans

You are the architect of all human genius

Your wisdom transcends eternity, my teacher.

My teacher, it was you who taught

And showed me the real purpose of humanity

You’re the dispeller of ignorance

And truly the bearer of the immortal torch light

Like a hero, you taught and inspired us all.

My teacher, you warned the world of

Ordinariness, complacency and decadence

The three great evils embedded in human nature

Your words changed my downtrodden mindset

Into flames of spontaneous optimism

The divinities above praised

For blessing the earth with such a master.

My teacher, you epitomized the traits of selflessness

Its sheer disheartenment when some antagonist

Indoctrinate your noble ways of life

You’re the embodiment of the Lord of wisdom

A messiah, a bodhisattva and an agent of Lord.

Your lessons on subjects of literature

Drama, poetry, novel and more

Inspired the pupils to climb the ladder of accomplishment

You embody the perfect nature of mankind

It rimes when you are so novel and impeccable

Anthems and lyrical praises be there for you,

Dear teacher.

My teacher, you had entered the elite list of my life

You’re canonized, you surpass martyrdom

Even Julius Caesar will prostrate before you

For you’re a conqueror

Who won trillion battles against mediocrity

And against the three great evils.

Fate may drown me in Lethe

Or the great flood may sweep all the civilization

But my faith and devotion in you will remain unshaken

Adieu! To my teachers

With my heart filled with timeless gratitude.

Kinga (III EH)

What makes Paro valley so beautiful and tranquil

What makes Paro valley

So beautiful and tranquil

The cooing of peaceful doves

The distant view of

Snow- crowned mountains

The fragrance of fresh rhododendron

Opening its dew laden petals

So silencely, so beautifully

The great promise of a glorious day

Cascading water over inspiring rocks

Gurgle of brooks from mountains high

And meander of a river through the valley

Where farmers live lively life.

The twitter of birds, buzz of bees,

Flutter of butterflies, creeping ivies too!

In the breathtaking woods

Makes the day of Paro valley

So beautiful and tranquil

The whistle of aroma-filled breeze

The dance of trees and swaying flowers

The crimson sight of evening sunset

And the silent roll of silver clouds

Makes the evening of Paro valley

So beautiful and tranquil

The song of cricket in the shady rock

The glow of moon, the roll of clouds

The flight of bats and moths

The distant bark of a deer

Makes the night of Paro valley

So beautiful and tranquil

The chant of mantras and prayers.

Flap of prayer flags and turn of prayers wheels

Inspiring ‘chortens’ and imposing ‘Dzong’

Temples and secret monasteries too!

Red rice and  ‘emadatshi’ ‘ara’and ‘suja’ too!

Archery and khuru, zhungdra and boedra

Schools galore and hospital too

Ocean of paddy and apples too!

Makes the people in Paro valley

Live with beauty and tranquility

Hopeful sowing in heavenly spring

Hard tending of fruits in summer

Clustering fruits in optimistic autumn

By celebrating summer’s hard work

Without forgetting springs sowing

Makes the wheel of time in Paro valley

Turn with beauty and tranquility without an end.

Just like the wheel of life and death.

Now you tell me what makes

Paro valley beckon with beauty and tranquility

In the midst of change kissing our feed?

Kinga penjor

III EP B

Fulfilling an Unfulfilled Project- College Magazine PART VII

Beauty of life

Duly clad in a pleasant weather with neither heat nor frost,

The cock crow unfolded with bizarre mirth, attesting massively

Ever extra-usual sunrise. The immature dawn unfurled most

With soothing stance before the largest fire that furtively

Looted a look in between two peaks and gazed upon the road;

Positioned in mild and calm sate under the colors

Of birds, warbling and chirping nearby, cast-board

Their tuneful ditties, and paved the way with warm welcome,

For the people who bypassed the thoroughfare.

The road seemed clean and scintillating through the bed of roses;

Bloomed wide open around and bees, attracted by their aroma,

Landed on to suckle the nectar from them, the place was

In absolute serenity lacking even a presage of disharmony

And made up the heavenly spot to rejoice: outshone and surpassed

The Godly peace, and promised for its eternal tranquility.

Amidst a peculiar milieu, appeared an aristocratic lass

On her tip-toe heels, bearing an impeccable visage which shone

As bright as full moon during a clear winter night, with her dark,

Long hair sagging loosely in the air when budged by the soft

Dawned-breeze. I wondered, ‘What a beauty of Life.’ They befitted

The feminine, walking impetuously in beauty, and composed no flaw.

She sparkled off her red-striped Kishuthara designed with silky

Patterns, with pinkish Wonju inside the black Goechen Tego,

And a blue, fingerless muffler twirled twice around her neck,

And the knotted under the chin. Well suited her inborn pasty

Complexion and made her to shine more.

 

Her pointed black boot, that befitted her, lashed on the paved footpath making a

Hoofing resonance that reverberates far and wide, loud and charismatic

To the onlooker, and made rhythm for the hymns of the morning

Birds and the sound of a garrulous brook that captured the ears

Of living creatures around, and ushered the lady with utmost homage.

Now the sun hid behind the clouds, the rainbow disappeared

Among the mists, the flower began to fold and drop down,

Songs of birds, din of river, and buzzing racket of bees

Clogged at sudden. “Is this the beauty of life?” My second

Heart inquired me, but sarcastically. I could not wrangle

With him, but pitched my self in great perplexity.

                                         Thukten Tshering.

 (EH-III)

Life

This life isn’t the end but,

Beginning of the end.

Because I like to begin,

When one ends because an end is-

Just the beginning of yet another.

Ups and downs, tears and laughter,

My life is composed of all,

I love the way life is,

Jack of all, master of none,

Varieties, spice of life.

I cry, I laugh, I sing and I dance,

Life surely is good but also bad.

I fly high, I fall deep,

It is all a fall and rise game life,

And I felled and I rose.

Past failure-long time gone,

I won’t look back, no regret,

Future- still long way ahead,

I won’t pine for, no fantasy,

Here I am, dwelling in the moment.

Like the sun setting today,

Only to shine the next morning,

And with more warmth and,

Light, may the world be protected

From the cold and darkness.

Salt and oil, chillies and cheese,

With all make a dish palatable,

I like the taste and the way too,

Neither salts more, nor oils less,

Varieties, masala of the dish.

To care is to crack, to fall is to rise,

You fall seven times, stand ten times,

And everytime you rise with hope and,

The last fall be the last, because you know,

How and why you fell- you won’t fall again.

The past isn’t you, nor is the future,

Your past is dead; your future is unborn,

You are the moment, the present be it,

I’m the moment; I live in the moment,

If you think, I am a shit, you are a double shit.

Phub Dem

EPA III

\

Individual diversity

Some are borne high, others low,

Some are lucky and others wretched,

A few are polite, most are cruel.

Some are kind, others inhuman.

Changeable are some, while

Rest, ‘as constant as the northern star’.

Yet none to be cursed but selves;

Result is what we experience today,

Of the deeds we performed yesterday.

Others dance on lap of luxury,

Whilst some still are on breadline’

Some learn fast, others late,

One’s medicine is poison to others.

Some reap success and bliss,

Others go round in circles,

Without any joy but failure,

Still then grumble not, for is this

The effects of that we have cultivated.

Some are inclined in babbling,

Others reserved, some look elegant,

Others unsightly, some love socialization

While others are merely lonely wolves.

Some are slaves under others;

And some become commanders

While others servant to them.

But a cloth, whether be made

Of ‘goechhen’ or ‘khasha’, are to fade.

Some are playful, others a cold fish

Some succeed, others cast envious eyes,

Some think deep, others surface.

Some work with tongue, others with brain,

Courageous are some, others timid.

Sincere are a few, some act smart

In other’s clothes, some are great,

But others act great, yet curse not others;

Bear with whatever you possess now.

Wise are some, but hypocritically,

Others are while, what they are,

Some do things  rationally,

Others plunge themselves into regret.

Some are honest and truthful;

Others-clock that reads the wrong time,

Some -always busy as bees,

While others are as free as birds,

Yet destined are all to enter a death tunnel.

Nima Zangmo

EH, III

Days that are no more

Sometimes when I ‘m alone

And loneliness haunts my heart

I sit near the window—in total silence—

And think of the days, the days

Those are but only memories

I love to go back, way back to the land

Where everything is in harmony

Nature and its elements,

Where love of parents, smile of friends,

And kindness of neighbours in abundance

I love to go back, way back to the puddle

Where I played and had fun,

Where I could steal the glance

Of sparkling water fall in distant view

And cows grazing the fresh grasses,

Hear birds chirping, wind whistling

Bees hovering and butterflies fluttering

I love to go back, way back to the world of

Nursery-rhymes and story books

Where I have seen the beauty of words

And the wonder of story books

Where I discovered friends

And expanded my world beyond

I love to go back, way back to the college

Where I discovered my identity

Build the dreams of life

Where I roamed in best company of friends

These memories, so permanently

Printed in my memory are but

Great company in times of loneliness

In times of distress,

In times of happiness too!

Wish I could fly now

To my native land and

Fly back rejuvenated

Tshering Wangchuk III EP B

  Terror to my happiness

Life has solely graced me with unpleasant memories

When my soul forever longed for immortal happiness

“Fed up” the ultimate phrase I am left with

To soothe my vulnerable, heart breaking soul.

Little happiness did I ask God as my share

In price to my flawless enchanting prayers.

Eternal peace and tranquility I have been praying for;

Tears! The ugliest thing I was ever gifted with.

Alas!  My numbed heart aches;

The beat could be heard across the ocean.

O! The saviour of the universe, I beseech you, drag me not

Into the catastrophic stormy ocean of tears.

Like the thirsty cactus beneath the scorching sun in the Arabian desert

Yearning for erratic shower to descend from high,

I am amongst one with my wounded heart as dry as desert

Longing to cast eternal shower of happiness in my life.

It’s a nightmare for me to flash back over

My heavenly life ruined into particles of dust because

Misery had crept over my numbed body;

Opened its mouth to the optimum to gobble them up.

I did my best to beautify my illusionary life:

I gave my best to soothe myself from being demolished

I gave my best to reach the pinnacle of blissfulness

But vain if life is unenthusiastic to offer her happiness.

Exasperation and torment has crept over my life

Like the ivy creeping over the trees;

My dream in pursuit of happiness

Is being watered down. 

Now I give up in pursuit of happiness

Nor can I pretend to be happy anymore.

Perhaps, the unripe time has overshadowed my life

To reluctantly bid farewell to this filmy world.

People, I urge you to wake up;

Open your curtained eyes; look at yourself

We are a mere puppet dancing to the tune

Composed by this illusionary world.

                                                                            By Mila Wangchuk EH III

Memoir of my mother

She was the cornerstone of our family,

A paramount in our life,

An industrious woman,

For her painstaking children.

Buck us up in confronting chaos.

I could see her munching lettuce,

Doctor told her to devour it so.

She crunched as much as she could,

For she wanted to be heal,

From the terminal disease she had.

In lieu of being robust, she deteriorated day by day,

And plunged the time

Where she had to slouch on her bed,

Day and night.

My sister hovered near her,

Escorted her everywhere.

Alas! The haunting day came.

My mother went to deep slumber

Awfully very far from us.

Eyes welled up with tears,

My brother was scaffolding her.

We were anesthetized

And all I could hear was clamour of cries,

And prayers chanted by the monks.

Living us like birds without wings

In this catastrophic world,

We would be desperadoes.

Where we need her inspirations,

And avocation in each pace we leap.

“Take care of my children”,

Was her last word.

Time elapses by but still,

I savour her ephemeral presence in our life

I would be complacent,

If I am her child in the next generation.

Pempa Lhamo

English pry ‘B’ III yr

Fulfilling an Unfulfilled Project- College Magazine PART VII

Mind Your Mindfulness

Ngawang Chejay, III EP B

What is mindfulness? 

Mindfulness is about thinking things through and being in the present moment. So many of us are projecting into the future or thinking about the past that we have no time for the present.

How is mindfulness beneficial? 

According to Professor Jane Carpenter from the Naropa University, mindfulness is extremely beneficial in every aspect of our lives. It helps us tune into our inner selves and this in turn helps us relate to the people around us. The mindfulness that we put into something is the mindfulness that we get out of something.

Mindfulness benefits to pay attention, but is not the same as concentration. It is a quality, which human beings already have, but they have usually not been advised that they have it, that it is valuable, or that it can be cultivated. Mindfulness is the awareness that is not thinking (but that which is aware of thinking, as well as aware of each of the other ways we experience the sensory world, i.e., seeing, hearing, and tasting, smelling, feeling through the body). Mindfulness is non-judgmental and open-hearted (friendly and inviting of whatever arises in awareness). It is cultivated by paying attention on purpose, deeply, and without judgment to whatever arises in the present moment, either inside or outside of us. Mindfulness meditation practices seek to develop this quality of clear, present moment awareness in a systematic way so that the practitioner may enjoy these benefits. Being more aware in each moment of life has benefits both to a person doing specific spiritual practice, and also to the same person in everyday life.

The objective of the Mind and Mindfulness Meditation at the college of education in Paro is to contribute to the development of models of the mind that originate from the bridging of the scientific knowledge and research with the phenomenological and psychological knowledge derived from the contemplative traditions. The multi-faced aspects of insight meditation and its effects on the mind are studied through the integration of different disciplines. Mindfulness techniques such as meditation and body scanning helped to reduce depressive symptoms, improved social functioning, increased attention to the positive facts about life, and decreased the focus on harmful, depressive thoughts. The final aim is that of a scientifically validated model of the mind that is able to incorporate the full-spectrum of potentialities and defects present in humans.

Take a mindfulness test.  Pick a situation or circumstance and see if you can devote the entire time to being in the present moment. Once your thoughts move to the past or future, mindfully bring yourself back to the present. You will see how much discipline is needed to do this task. This is a test that everyone should take. This test has no boundaries, limitations, or educational requirements. Anyone can take this test.

Media: a curse or a blessing?

People all around the world would have been idle and dull if there aren’t any media facilities. As the standard of living in this world is rising, people find themselves investing in high speed internet connections, thus increasing their exposure to media as the World Wide Web. Media has both the good and adverse effect as it has a very big influence in our lives and functions as a tool for establishing and marinating prevailing believes. The media is a tool for communication and the one in charge of the media has control of what they want the audience to believe. Television, radio, magazines, advertisements, etc all persuade us to believe their version of reality. Thus, the main function of the media is to inform the people in every nook and corner of the world.

When it comes to media there are some people who believe that media should be given the full right to the information and still there are some who believe they should be restricted from the information. Bit of the too first statement is more appropriate as it is through media; people keep themselves informed about the world around them. For an instance if media is restricted from the information that is of dire importance to the people, it will be the loss on the poor soul, as they will be deprived of the news unless they visit the place of incidence.

Media has the power to influence the whole community. People now are much more expose to the world. Their living styles are standardized and their house managements are not a piece of mess anymore but a piece of hygienic paradise. What mist have influence it? It is through the media, although it can have negative influence as we can see our youth carried away by the western culture which is threat to the unique culture of ours. However the positive influences are a heap of gold over adverse influence because the thinking power of our youth and the creativity are advanced. The reasons they give are more sensible than people used to give then and it has all resulted from the media. So is media no a blessing?

Since the invention of media facilities people around the globe has been benefiting, as they need not have to travel the world to collect the news. Think back of the time when people has to go on foot to deliver the message where there is every chance that people might have been misinformed. But today with the advancement of the peop0le have all their luxury to sit back on their cozy cushion and they are informed of all the things under the sun. They are not confined within the tiny communities now as in the years then. Their ears go beyond the hearing of birds chirping to hear the chaos of the world; their eye is no more struck to greenery beauty of the environment but sees the red bloodshed of the world. As the result they are made to realize the peace. Had there been no media facilities people might not have even realized it.

Media not only imparts news but also creates awareness in the mind of the innocent. They make people aware of the natural hazards and how to prevent it. For an instance during the solar eclipse time on June 22^nd 2009 people were well informed about the dos and don’ts at the time of incidence and almost all people contemplated it. It is also through media that people are aware of so called ozone layer and how it is depreciating with the cruel human activities.

Life without media is unimaginable. It creates awareness and keeps us up to date with the things around us. It also enhances critical thinking as what we do and act is not only our own ideologies but also the knowledge we have gained from the media. So having media facilities means the sustenance of the knowledge.

Chador Wangmo

EPB III yr

The Negative Effect of Television

Firstly the television is an electronic communication medium that allows the transmission of real-time visual images, and often sounds. Television plays a great role in educating the child. They get exposed to different cultures and know the names of the trees, animals, plants and many other geographical features from the channels like national geography, history and discovery. People know and update the current situations through the live broadcast from the news channels.

Television has become a “member” of almost every important single family on our planet. And not just an ordinary member, but a very important one, because the time spent next to it exceeds the amount of time spent together with any other family member. We do not have to apply with our little son/brother after a hard working day. But for every coin there are two sides and every advantage has disadvantage. So TV has positive effects as well as negative effects on people.

We can simply turn the TV on and everything is done: kids are quite, our wife is not complaining and we feel absolutely happy. It is so simple that it has become an integral part of the culture of every family. It is the only time, when a person can forget about all the family troubles and the failure of the day. The sofa opposite the TV set has become the place of “reconciliation and spiritual unity” of the family. it is senseless to deny the all –embracing negative effect the existence of television has brought to our lives. But to make my point of view ultimately convincing I will introduce to your attention certain facts that people do not want to accept and often try to justify. The base of the tomorrow’s society – are children today. And on the way they develop depends on how the world is going to look like tomorrow.

As regards the negative effects of television, the negative effects of television are well known to every single parent, but are ignored by them in order to put the responsibility for bringing up kids and showing them examples through interaction on the shoulders of somebody else. Contemporary parents work a lot, but when they come back home they are not eager to spend time with their child, the consequences of this fact are the following: kids are given to themselves and watch everything they want or TV plays a role of a babysitter. Therefore children learn moral principles from the television, where

Statistics have proved that the growth of time spent next to the TV-set scales up the development of aggression. Many years before the examples come from hit-thrillers and violent films where the personage imitated are cruel, impartial and often purely negative personages.

Nowadays, as a result of this phenomenon, children instead of playing leap-and-frog on the open air pretend to be “terminators” and run around “killing” each other. The fact of a ild’s identification with a “negative” destructive image has a vital impact on the Development of his or her personality. Violence becomes an ordinary way of interaction, alongside with anger.

All the listed above may cause a trauma to a young consciousness and in combination, the violence may produce an unbalanced and unhealthy conduct. We do not have to go far away for examples when kids get guns and go to their schools shooting their teachers and school mates. This becomes a call to get somebody’s attention to them; the result of the TV violence and examples influences that overfills their minds. Television has also a great influence on the self image of people watching it. We see perfectly shaped bodies hundred of times per day. All the man shown on the TV screen have big muscles and are handsome, and all the women shown are very skinny and their faces and bodies look like a complete perfection. This has caused numerous eating disorders, especially in the teenage group. Such things as bulimia, anorexia and self-mutilation became a well-spread phenomenon.

A person, especially a child that spends a lot of time next to the TV-set has a very high probability of damaging the eye mechanics and the ability to focus and pay attention. Anther negative influence that is connected with the sight is the spoiling of the hearing due to the shortage of auditory stimulation. Another reaction of a child to the TV violence besides his aggression is fair. A child or a person may become so much scared of what they had observed in the television that it might cause depression and emotional misbalance.

Television prevents children from doing their homework and adults from completing their work. Influencing in a very bad manner the school grades and work productivity. It lowers the overage level of physical fitness of a person, breaking the coordination.

Children being attached to the TV-set loose the possibility to learn the world through real nature, games, sports, etc. They do feel the world with all its colors and peculiarities. They do not read and get acquainted with the unforgettable characters of the book they are given to read. They do not learn the message that a book carries inside.

All the negative effects listed above concern grown-ups as well, but through the special sensitivity of children towards the influence we need to show to the full the destructive power of television.  It has turned our live into an addiction that suppresses the beauty of our real life the violent substitution.

All in all, television has both positive and negative effects but I can say that it has more negative effects than positive. And without any doubt I can call it one of the worst intentions of modern times.     

Yeshey Norbu

3 III EPB

Achieving food security in times of crisis

The basic need for all of us, regardless of gender, color, religion, places we come from or the language we speak, has to be food the fuel that drives us to go on the path we choose to be on, every single day. Nature might not have provided us with the fountain of immortality but it surely did provide us with the fruits of sustenance. The meals we consume everyday sustains us as living beings on earth. Therefore, we all value food and we must.

Disasters that ravaged the lives of millions in Sichuan Province in China and Myanmar recently raised questions on nations’ preparedness in tackling crisis international help may be on the way but the question is, ‘how long can a country sustain the damages before timely intervention?’ we do not know what the future may hold for us but we know for sure that hard times will come our way, not a question of ‘if’ but the question of when. Bhutan is a small country lying in the earth quake prone zone and tremors are bound to occur any time as we experienced in Bhutan (eastern Bhutan) few days ago. Global warming, leading to global climate change will bring a tremendous impact on the production of food crops. The drying up and dying of rivers, lakes, and streams will reduce volume of water thereby making farming not only difficult but the life of farmers itself more contentious  and volatile. The unpredictable weather phenomena in Bhutan in the recent past has caused tremendous strains on the environment in the form of floods, storms, landslides, soil erosions and roadblocks which directly or indirectly influence the production and marketing of food items.

Over 69% of the Bhutanese population are engaged in agriculture as it is stated in MoA website. This indicates that we have enough people and area for producing crops to feed the country. With improved methods in farming and new variety of crops available for the farmers, we can produce enough to get us through troubled times. The introduction of hybrid seeds and high yielding varieties are eventually aimed at increasing food production and ensuring self sufficiency. The recent successful introduction of rice cultivation in Bumthang will no doubt add to the overall food security. Farmers are oriented into using the new resources and ideas. Improved and locally suitable practices like the “integrated farming methods” help maintain the farmers to not only increase  and diversify the produce but also ensure soil fertility.

Roads, the veins of successful civilization, are beginning to connect every rural settlements of Bhutan with the urban hubs (the consumers) and thus making accessible and transportability a dream come true. Mitigation of problems in times of food crisis both temporary and permanent can be more wisely resolved if a country has better and efficient infrastructure in place and Bhutan is certainly heading in this direction.

The first step towards achieving food security has to be awareness, for with words of calculation and concern would provide the wheels to move the country and its people towards the safer zone in times of threat from natural and unnatural crisis as nothing beats being prepared. The next step is the government’s will and intention to strictly implement the policies at the grass  root level and reach out to as many farmers as possible. One such bright idea Bhutan has initiated is the policy to retain the wetlands to boost the production of rice which is the staple food. Food Corporation of Bhutan (FCB) has done a good job in storing the surplus food grains till now which are mandated in the policy and has even started to purchase the surplus maize from the farmers as well. We need well stocked reserves (food granaries) of mushrooms, chilies, food grains and vegetables (reducing the cereal intake), contributing to food self sufficiency. These excess food articles have to be t\dried suitably and well stored, canned in the bottles and tins. The storage facilities, esp. in the warm areas need to be improved to avoid damage from micro organisms, insects and rats. The forest provides us with a wide variety of vegetables like ferns, mushrooms, and wild fruits which add to income of the farmers thereby enabling them to supplement their nutrition. Raising the cash crops like apples oranges and cardamom plays a vital role in improving the living conditions of the farmers.

The ‘alarm fencing’ in the south is another pertinent initiative taken by MoA for the protection of crops from the wild animals in rural areas. This is new and an improved way to keep wild boars and elephants at bay. The milk processing unit at Rukubji has started to operate with the supply of improved breeds of cattle, free improved pasture seed distribution and subsidized fodder tools to boost up dairy production, processing and marketing. Self sufficiency is important when going through hard times as prepared response can outdo any level of level of crisis a country would face, for what is the use of full rations in stores if the supplies there cannot be maintained and distributed carefully.

Living on this planet and facing extremity of the disasters occurring in it are just a part of the whole scheme of life. We can just be prepared for that time to come and have ample fuel to sustain the engine that runs the world, the people.

Pema Tendar

Bio& HPE, III

Eclecticism in Bhutanese education system

Conceiving education as an art of technocracy has made our past and current education and its system so mechanical that neither educationists nor learners in our country are able to outgrow. Today, at this juncture, considering the fact that education is weighed in terms of morality and money, the approach to impart education to our current and future generations has become a tremendous challenge for some responsible and realized educators.

Our education has been exposed to various experimentations; many foreigners brought many philosophies to actually better our education mechanism. But the question is, did it work in our Bhutanese education setting? Are these philosophies only the answer to our situation? What if we work out our own way through? Can’t eclecticism be the answer? Eclecticism is destined to be in our education system. It’s a boon to better our teachers and learners altogether; like the unique democratic form of government that we have today.

Eclecticism is the call, which we need to attend urgently. Then, what is this so called eclecticism? The Wikipedia defines it as a conceptual approach that does not hold rigidly to a single paradigm or set of assumptions, but instead draws upon multiple theories, styles, or ideas to gain complementary insights in to a subject, or applies different theories in particular cases. So, how can Bhutanese educationists imbibe the method? Will it work out? These are some of the questions that linger around.

Mind you, in order to apply an eclectic method, one has to be well versed in all other methods and philosophies of education and then only teachers can afford to be eclectic in teaching. This new phenomenon can be the answer to our Bhutanese education service. Let us make teaching spontaneous and lively with the adoption of eclecticism in teaching.

But owing to the skepticism of some of our policy makers and educationists, we still exhibit teaching that is so rigid, technical and boring; and it’s a pity to watch our teachers look like the trained robots. The flexibility in their lesson plan is a ‘taboo’. And if you peep through their lesson plans, it’s more of product oriented than processes. When the teacher plans his/her lesson, it is done in such away that the responses and behaviors of the students are predicted in advance, which is totally absurd. What if the responses are not as expected? Then what does a teacher do? Most often, the unpredictability of the immediate class situations too govern our teaching process, which means the teacher has to take into account of their current mood and then think of his/her approach to teaching with his learners. So, the eclectic approach is in the forefront. When students are eclectic in nature, so should the teaching method be.

Having an eclectic frame of curriculum do not guarantee that every teacher will adopt it. The most heart breaking part is that some actually use it without realizing. The term ‘eclectic’ is hardly heard in the teaching arena, which clearly implies that it is discarded. If that is the attitude of our educationists, then we fail to bring forth or local Socrates, Shakespeare, Albert Einstein and many more genius.

Today, as time progresses, so does the people and their needs. Bit of perennialism, bit of reconstructionism, bit of essentialism, and a bit of progressivism are what we have to integrate to get eclecticism. Likewise, all the teaching strategies and methods ought to be richly used so that all the sections of learners are catered in one sitting.

Let us give a new face to our education service; and that immediate initiative should come especially from the policy makers and the educationists. Let s make our teaching more spontaneous rather than making it more methodological

Sonam Gyeltshen

EH III, 2009

WRECKED

Thinley Wangmo, MPA III

There was a time when neither of us would hold breathe in our absence. There was a time when neither of us would spend the day without seeing each other. There was a time when neither of us could sail without association. And there was also a time when love blossomed in our hearts.

Now, gone are those days which were the best days of my life. Honey, you could have dragged me out when my eyes were drowning in the ocean of tears. You never cared. Out of frustrations and grievances, I cursed god for all the mishaps that crept over my serene life and made my gorgeous life a living hell.

At times, it pricked me with question as to why was life was extremely unfair to me. Honey, why did you abandon me? Why did you do that to me? Why? Was there something wrong in me? Am I not so adorable in your eyes?

Honey, I cherish you for having taught me how to live independently, having taught me for loving and appreciating little things in life, having taught me to enjoy the beauties of life, having taught me to dream enormous, and ultimately, having taught me to erase you entirely from my life. You know what, that’s so kind of you for having taught me the little aspects of life.

Now, I can’t dream of sailing with you anymore because the ship I was sailing got wrecked in the stormy ocean of tears.

                                                                             

                                                                                        

The Death  

Pema Tendar, III Biology / HPE

Death is often seen and heard, but its certainty is uncertain. Life is mortal and death is inevitable. I consider death as an unquestionable mystery of life. We can neither escape from it nor prevent it. But we do have choices to have a peaceful death. There is no place on earth where death cannot find us. Death will always be there waiting for us. We are all scared of death and we live in the terror of it. That is because of our instinctive desire to go on living. When we die we leave everything behind including our body that we have nurtured so much.

Death is not an end of a life but the beginning of the next life. Chuang Tzu, one of the greatest Buddhist Masters, said that the birth of the man is the birth of his sorrows, the longer he lives the more stupid he becomes. How very true!

We try to live as if there is no death. We desire to possess many worldly things. We desire enormous wealth, beautiful wives and handsome husbands and keep attaching to these surreal things. Actually, our lives are monotonous, petty, repetitive, and are wasted in pursuit of trivial desires for more comforts which gradually enslave us. Everybody is aware of ever changing things on earth and that’s how life is. The changes are no more real than dreams. This is not a theory but truth that we eventually come to realise.

The Buddha rightly said, “This existence of our life is as transient as autumn cloud.

To watch the birth and death of beings is like looking at the movement of the dance.

Life is like a flash of lightening in the sky, always rushing like a torrent down the steep mountain”. Therefore, when we have the opportunity, it is essential that we make best use of it in order to be better men and women in the next life.

 “What you are now is what you have been, what you will be is what you do now”, said Buddha. Guru Rinpoche also said that “if you want to know your past life look into your present conditions, if you want to know your future life look at your present actions”. Therefore, try to avoid all the negative and violent actions and try to practice some of the teachings of Buddha.

One must always bear in mind of the inevitable death and must start preparing for it so that when it comes, we can face it without any fear. Preparing for the death means to purify our negative actions.

Letter of Gratitude

Kinga Penjor, EPB III

Paro College of Education,

Paro

14^th June, 2009

Noble Teacher,

Today as I stand proudly as a college student in one of the country’s premier institutes of learning with independent thoughts to live by, perfect wings to flap, and capacity to aspire, dream, love and tank purest wisdom, I think of the days, the days of your hard work and sacrifices at the expense of laying concrete foundation of what I am today. Your selfless service in bringing out best person in me still rings in my ears, which in a way, reminds me to serve humanity with unwavering faith and dedication. My conscience, my third eye, keeps alerting me how poor I would be without your service delivered with tender love and affection when I was just a shoot thrusting from the earth.

Without the music of nursery rhymes, wonder of story books galore, fun of modelling clays, cutting out shapes with scissors, etc once upon a time, I would not be in a position to appreciate and rejoice the beauty of arts and literature, and marvels of science and mathematics. Things would have remained as it is been— plain and lifeless that I would not have journeyed beyond what is being literally presented to me. You expanded the horizon of my thoughts. Now whenever spring creeps in, my hope renews. I can celebrate the summer’s bloom and autumn’s harvest. Cascading waterfall, creamy snows almost draping the inspiring mountains and glistening dewdrops means more than that meets my sights. The chirping of birds is soothing and whisper of pines refreshing. These are none other than the manifestations of the beauty of your heart.

By the dint of concrete foundation you laid for me, I can withstand the change and challenges kissing my feet with indomitable confidence, perseverance and determination. With purest wisdom you sowed in me, I can defy the gravity of modern plague of human lust and selfishness. I can remain unmoved by the wind of change.

The influence you had in my life is immense and unfathomable. There is nothing more precious than the touch you had in my life, nor is there any earthly thing that can be weighted with it. It is worth all the riches and more precious than rubies and diamonds. It is the light in times of darkness, comfort in times of distress and direction in times of uncertainty. All in all, it is solution to all the problems.

Thus I owe you deeply, my teacher, the engineer of my dreams. I vow and thank you for being my guiding star and my most influential person. Till eternity you will be remembered as elixir of life and faith. I shall never forget you, my guru, not even a moment.

Lastly but immensely, once again, thank you. May you live long and continue to cascade the juice of ambrosial wisdom from your rich heart for humanity’s cause. May your soul, as always, dance to the tunes of spontaneous song of success and jubilation.

With love and gratitude too deep for articulation.

Your student