AUTUMNAL EQUINOX REVEALS THE MAGIC OF CREATION

MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 23, 2019.REFLECTIONS ON AUTUMNAL EQUINOX

Monday, September 23, 2019. Reflections on Autumnal Equinox. The Autumnal Equinox officially arrives at 3:50 a.m. Eastern Standard Time. Fall will end Saturday, Dec. 21 at 11:19 a.m. EST, making way for winter and shorter days. SPIRITUALITY SCIENCE – PHOTOPERIODISM – SEPTEMBER EQUINOX:

Monday, September 23, 2019. Reflections on Autumnal Equinox. SPIRITUALITY SCIENCE – PHOTOPERIODISM – SEPTEMBER EQUINOX. VERNAL EQUINOX AND AUTUMNAL EQUINOX ARE TWO POINTS ON THE CELESTIAL SPHERE WHERE THE PATH OF SUN’S APPARENT MOTION IN SKY OR ECLIPTIC AND THE CELESTIAL EQUATOR INTERSECT. BUT THE SEASONAL CHANGE IS NOT INFLUENCED BY SUN’S REAL MOTION AROUND MILKY WAY GALACTIC CENTER. Photoperiodism is described as the behavioral or physiological reaction of an organism to changes of duration in daily, seasonal, or yearly periods of light and darkness. The changes in activities occur on daily basis as well as with a consistent pattern when the seasons change. For example, the Autumn or Fall season in the Northern Hemisphere includes the months of September, October, and November. Fall is the season of the year in which many trees change in their appearance; the color of their leaves changes and then trees lose their leaves. Autumn is the season that comes between Summer and Winter seasons. In the astronomical year, the Fall season is the period between the Autumnal Equinox and the Winter Solstice. The characteristic of Fall is the beginning of a decline in activities of several living organisms to prepare for subsequent changes expected to come in future. Daily periods of light and darkness determine to a great extent when seasonal activities occur. An important prerequisite to the response to light that occurs in Winter and Spring is exposure to short days or long nights in Autumn. This phase of the annual cycle is called the Preparatory Phase. This preparation is important for the subsequent response. Under experimental conditions, it is shown that the failure to complete the Preparatory Phase will undermine the organism’s subsequent response to changes in the next phase. Hence, Autumn is a season of preparation for the arrival of Winter and Spring seasons. This preparation has the characteristics of planning and designing the responses of organisms to forthcoming events in the future. This ability to connect the activities of past and present with activities that occur in the future requires the operation of an unchanging principle that is not influenced by changes of time. The colorful changes that we witness during the Autumn season would relate us to works of a Whole Designer, a Whole Architect, a Whole Planner, and a Whole Artist.

Monday, September 23, 2019. Reflections on Autumnal Equinox. Spirituality Science – Photoperiodism – September Equinox. Autumn Season is a Preparatory Phase. This preparation is important for the subsequent response. Autumn is a Season of Preparation for the arrival of Winter and Spring Seasons. It displays all the characteristics of Planning and Designing the responses of organisms to forthcoming events in the near future. SEPTEMBER EQUINOX – AUTUMNAL EQUINOX: Equinox(aequus=Equal + nox=night) is the time when the Sun crosses the equator, making night and day of equal length in all parts of Earth.

Monday, September 23, 2019. Reflections on Autumnal Equinox. Spirituality Science – Photoperiodism – September Equinox. Autumnal Equinox. In the Northern Hemisphere it occurs on September 22/23, the point at which the Sun appears to cross the celestial equator from north to south. This crossing marks the beginning of Autumn and on that date, night and day are of equal length.

Monday, September 23, 2019. Reflections on Autumnal Equinox. Spirituality Science – Photoperiodism – September Equinox. Vernal Equinox and Autumnal Equinox are two points on the celestial sphere where the ecliptic( the path of Sun’s apparent motion in the sky) and the celestial equator intersect. Daily periods of light and darkness determine to a great extent when seasonal activities among living organisms occur. Man exists on the surface of planet Earth experiencing the daily alternating periods of light and darkness and marks his calendar as seasons bring changes with marked regularity. Photoperiodism was first reported in 1920 when the flowering of certain plants was demonstrated to be controlled by the daily duration of light. The photoperiodic response of plants may actually depend on the duration of the darkness. Some of the conspicuous activities of animals closely correlated with certain seasons of the year or with changes in day length are bird migration, reproduction, and changes in coat and plumage. In most birds, mammals, and other vertebrates, breeding is seasonal. For species such as brook trout, deer, sheep, and goats breeding begins in Autumn. The light stimulates the release of special hormones from the brain which in turn stimulate the pituitary gland which secretes the hormones that function to control the growth of the reproductive organs. The length of the dark period and the ratio of light to darkness are important factors in determining the reproductive response. Practical applications of knowledge of photoperiodism are common in poultry management, for the length of daylight affects laying, sperm production, and the bodyweight of the fowl.

Monday, September 23, 2019. Reflections on Autumnal Equinox. Spirituality Science – Photoperiodism – September Equinox. Practical applications of knowledge of photoperiodism are common in Poultry Management, for the length of daylight affects laying, sperm production, and the bodyweight of the fowl. The most conspicuous seasonal change in coat and plumage occurs in those mammals and birds that are white in Autumn and Winter and brown in Spring and Summer.

Monday, September 23, 2019. Reflections on Autumnal Equinox. Spirituality Science – Photoperiodism – September Equinox. The seasonal change in the coat is conspicuous in this hare which is brown during Spring and Summer, and changes to white during Autumn, and Winter.

Monday, September 23, 2019. Reflections on Autumnal Equinox. PHOTOPERIODISM – BIOLOGICAL RHYTHMS AND BIOLOGICAL CLOCK: Organisms have synchronized their living functions to their rhythmic environments and have become periodic in diverse aspects of their physiology and behavior. Periodic biological phenomena fall into two distinct, different categories: 1. Those correlated with periodic changes of the planet or geophysical correlates, and 2. Those correlated to an internal timing mechanism often called the ‘Biological Clock’. The living things to some extent behave like ‘Living Clocks’; 1. A timing capacity geared to the rhythmic variations of the natural environment, the alternating periods of light and darkness called day and night, and 2. A timing capacity that operates in response to the flow of time as the planet Earth spins and moves without providing sensory stimuli of its motions. Timing information continuously flows in from the environment and no organism can exist under constant conditions of life. All life exists on planet Earth which exists in a constant state of motion as a member of the Solar System which also exists in a constant state of motion. The biological rhythm results in part as a direct response to the environment and in part as an indirect response via the complex clock-timed organization.

Monday, September 23, 2019. Reflections on Autumnal Equinox. Spirituality Science – Photoperiodism – September Equinox. There are two kinds of biological responses or rhythms. 1. The activities like Sleep and Wakefulness are related to the fluctuations of the physical environment such as darkness, and light, or night and day variation, and 2. The rhythms such as heartbeat and respiratory rate occur without external geophysical correlates as a consequence of the movements of the Earth.

Monday, September 23, 2019. Reflections on Autumnal Equinox.[/caption] Spirituality Science – Photoperiodism – September Equinox. Man’s biological functions are influenced by Earth’s Rotational Spin. A man has the sensory awareness of an environmental change called Day/Night. Otherwise, man is blissfully unaware of Earth’s Motion that happens all the time. Man is always influenced by the flow of time and his existence is measured as if there is a precise internal clock. SPIRITUALITY SCIENCE – EARTH’S ROTATIONAL SPIN – REALITY vs ILLUSION:

Earth’s Rotational Spin is a unique mechanism that is indissociable from Life itself. While the Sun shines with all its brightness 24-hours all the time, Earth’s Spin allows the man to experience alternating periods of light(Day), and darkness(Night) to plan his physiological functions and activities in the external environment. There is this equally important aspect of Earth’s Spin; man’s existence on the surface of planet Earth depends upon lack of direct sensory awareness of speed/velocity of Earth’s Spin. Biological Clocks time the Solar Day, the period of Earth’s spin or rotation relative to the Sun. While Earth spins or rotates, man experiences the illusion of Sun’s apparent motion across the path called Ecliptic and exists on the surface of Earth in a state of blissful ignorance of Earth’s Angular Speed, or Linear Velocity. The daily rhythm of about 24 hours’ duration makes it appear as though the organism is keeping track of each day and behaves as if it is a Living Clock. Light appears to be the dominant Phase Setter or Synchronizer of activity pattern during the 24-hour cycles. The 24-hour rhythms are called Solar Day, Circadian, Diel, Daily, Diurnal(day-active), and Night-Active rhythms. Plants show their daily rhythm in sleep movements such as the daytime raising and nighttime lowering of their leaves, and the timing of flowering activity. In man, the daily alternation of sleep and wakefulness is accompanied by many chemical and physiological changes that include the activities of the nervous, endocrine systems, and the liver and kidneys. Daily variations occur in body temperature, in heart and respiratory rates, and in blood pressure and composition of blood. There are daily variations in chemical syntheses and in cell divisions. Living systems display a timing capacity and behave as if they contain a highly dependable clock. The specialized properties of this clock suggest that it involves some unique biological mechanism indissociable from life itself. I suggest that all natural phenomena require the operation of an unchanging condition that gives the opportunity to experience the change that is manifested. The change called Day and Night, and the changes called Autumn, Winter, Spring, and Summer Seasons are manifested because of an unchanging condition; the fact of Sun shining with its full brightness 24-hours, and at all times. The rhythmically recurring phenomena called biological rhythms are manifested for living functions operate under the influence of an unchanging, vital, animating principle called Soul, or Spirit. The 'immutability' of Soul or Spirit can be observed as its operations are not influenced by time or external geophysical correlates. Rudra Narasimham Rebbapragada BHAVANAJAGAT.ORG

Monday, September 23, 2019. Autumnal Equinox brings longer nights starting from today.

SEPTEMBER 22. MY JOURNEY FROM FREEDOM STRUGGLE TO ANTISLAVERY CAMPAIGN

SEPTEMBER 22–THIS DAY IN HISTORY–THE DREAM FOR FREEDOM TRANSFORMS INTO AN ORDEAL OF SLAVERY

September 22. This Day in History. My Dream for Freedom transforms into an ordeal of Slavery. My Journey to Chakrata and Beyond. On September 22, 1971, I was Taken on Strength (TOS) of Establishment No. 22, Special Frontier Force, a military organization created in response to ‘The Cold War in Asia.’ On September 22, 2019, I live in Ann Arbor, Michigan to welcome the first day of Fall Season. Today, I claim that my Dream for Freedom in Occupied Tibet transformed into an ordeal of Slavery in a nation which abolished Slavery with a presidential proclamation on September 22. On September 22, 1971, I had the freedom to reject my posting to Establishment No. 22. I was given the choice to choose or decline rendering military service in support of Freedom in Occupied Tibet. The choice to serve in Establishment No. 22 comes with risks for its military mission differs from the military mission of the Indian Army which I joined to defend India from attacks by foreign aggressors. It may appear that I am making my own choices in accepting calculated risks to my life. On September 22, 2019, I am still struggling to reconcile with the choices I made in the past. Now, I must reconcile with the reality of my Slavery while living in a country which sponsored my quest for Freedom in Occupied Tibet. On September 22, 2019, I have no hope that I may arrive at the final destination of my life. Chakrata in Uttarakhand, India represents the struggle ahead, a struggle waiting for me before I can arrive at the final destination of my life. Rudra Narasimham Rebbapragada SPECIAL FRONTIER FORCE SPECIAL FRONTIER FORCE – ESTABLISHMENT NUMBER 22 – THE CENTRAL INTELLIGENCE AGENCY

September 22. This Day in History. My Quest for Freedom Traps me in Slavery. My Journey to Chakrata and Beyond. SEPTEMBER 22, THIS DAY IN HISTORY – WHAT HAPPENED TODAY Clipped from: http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history On this day in 1862, President Abraham Lincoln issues a preliminary Emancipation Proclamation, which sets a date for the freedom of more than 3 million black slaves in the United States and recasts the Civil War as a fight against slavery. When the Civil War broke out in 1861, shortly after Lincoln’s inauguration as America’s 16th president, he maintained that the war was about restoring the Union and not about slavery. He avoided issuing an anti-slavery proclamation immediately, despite the urgings of abolitionists and radical Republicans, as well as his personal belief that slavery was morally repugnant. Instead, Lincoln chose to move cautiously until he could gain wide support from the public for such a measure. In July 1862, Lincoln informed his cabinet that he would issue an emancipation proclamation but that it would exempt the so-called border states, which had slaveholders but remained loyal to the Union. His cabinet persuaded him not to make the announcement until after a Union victory. Lincoln’s opportunity came following the Union win at the Battle of Antietam in September 1862. On September 22, the president announced that slaves in areas still in rebellion within 100 days would be free. On January 1, 1863, Lincoln issued the final Emancipation Proclamation, which declared “that all persons held as slaves” within the rebel states “are, and henceforward shall be free.” The proclamation also called for the recruitment and establishment of black military units among the Union forces. An estimated 180,000 African-Americans went on to serve in the army, while another 18,000 served in the navy. After the Emancipation Proclamation, backing the Confederacy was seen as favoring slavery. It became impossible for anti-slavery nations such as Great Britain and France, who had been friendly to the Confederacy, to get involved on behalf of the South. The proclamation also unified and strengthened Lincoln’s party, the Republicans, helping them stay in power for the next two decades. The proclamation was a presidential order and not a law passed by Congress, so Lincoln then pushed for an antislavery amendment to the U.S. Constitution to ensure its permanence. With the passage of the 13th Amendment in 1865, slavery was eliminated throughout America (although blacks would face another century of struggle before they truly began to gain equal rights). Lincoln’s handwritten draft of the final Emancipation Proclamation was destroyed in the Chicago Fire of 1871. Today, the original official version of the document is housed in the National Archives in Washington, D.C. 1862 Preliminary Emancipation Proclamation is announced Motivated by his growing concern for the inhumanity of slavery as well as practical political concerns, President Abraham Lincoln changes the course of the war and American history by issuing the preliminary Emancipation Proclamation. Announced a week after the nominal Union victory at the Battle of Antietam, near Sharpsburg, Maryland. SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 22, 2019. MY PASSION FOR FREEDOM IN TIBET WHICH BEGAN AT CHAKRATA DOES NOT RECONCILE WITH MY SLAVERY OF TODAY. THE SCENIC BEAUTY OF CHAKRATA PLAYED NO ROLE IN THE CHOICE I MADE ON SEPTEMBER 22, 1971.

Chakrata is not the final destination of my life. It is just the beginning of a struggle that remains ahead, both in terms of time and location.

THE US DEFENDS THE RIGHT TO REINCARNATION OF THE SUPREME RULER OF TIBET

THE US DEFENDS THE RIGHT TO REINCARNATION OF THE SUPREME RULER OF TIBET

The US draws a red line for China to handpick next Dalai Lama AFP Published Sep 19, 2019 The US is hoping to make clear that Beijing would face international opprobrium if it tries to take over the reincarnation process. A bill recently introduced in the US Congress would call for sanctions on any Chinese official who interferes with Tibetan Buddhist succession practices. (Photo: File | Representational) Washington: As Tibetans start grappling with the once-unthinkable prospect of the octogenarian Dalai Lama's passing, the United States is looking to lay down a red line against China handpicking his successor. Through a warning from a senior official and legislation under consideration in Congress, the United States is hoping to make clear in advance that Beijing would face international opprobrium if it tries to take over the reincarnation process. At 84, the 14th Dalai Lama has slowed his once incessant travel down a notch and earlier this year was hospitalized for a chest infection, although there is no indication he faces serious health issues. Nonetheless, both Tibetan activists and Beijing are keenly aware that his death will mark a major setback in his push for more autonomy for the Himalayan region, depriving the cause of a Nobel Prize winner whose moral teachings and idiosyncratic humor have made him one of the world's most popular religious leaders. Dalai Lama "Enlightened" His Holiness, the 14th Dalai Lama, is the spiritual leader of Tibetʼs people, and exiled government. He established the Tibetan government in northern India in 1959 but has been a voice for peace all over the world, not just within his own land. China has not held talks with the Dalai Lama's representatives for nine years and has increasingly hinted it may identify his successor — who, Beijing would presume, would back its iron-fisted rule of Tibet. A bill recently introduced in the US Congress would call for sanctions on any Chinese official who interferes with Tibetan Buddhist succession practices. Testifying Wednesday before Congress, David Stilwell, the top State Department official for East Asia, vowed that the United States would keep pressing for "meaningful autonomy" for Tibetans. "Disturbingly — and ironically — the party continues to assert its role in the Dalai Lama's reincarnation process, even as President Xi has urged party members to remain 'unyielding Marxist atheists,'" he said. "We believe that Tibetans, like all faith communities, must be able to practice their faith freely and select their leaders without interference," he said. Questioning tradition Tibetan monks traditionally choose the Dalai Lama through a ritualistic search that can take years, with a wandering party seeking telltale signs that a young boy is the reincarnation of the last spiritual leader. The 14th Dalai Lama, who has lived in exile in India since fleeing an aborted uprising in 1959, has mused of a non-traditional succession that would throw off China. He has said he could choose a successor while he is still alive — possibly a girl — or even decide that he was the final Dalai Lama. Matteo Mecacci, president of the International Campaign for Tibet, a Washington-based pressure group close to the Dalai Lama, said that the legislation introduced in the US Congress would send a clear message both to China and Tibetans. "We hope that the Dalai Lama will live much longer, but having early legislation, I think, will have an impact on Chinese thinking," he said. "I'm not saying this is going to change the decision of the Chinese government, but they will probably have to reconsider some of the fallout and its implications," he said. The bill, introduced in the House by Democrat Jim McGovern, would also prevent China from opening new consulates in the United States until Washington can open a mission in Tibet's capital Lhasa. A rising China Mecacci, a former member of parliament in Italy, said the US law would have an impact on decision-makers in Europe and Asia and warned of international effects if China installs a compliant Dalai Lama. "If you have a religious leader who is the arm of a foreign government and who has Buddhist centers around the world, this is part of a much more ambitious plan to control Buddhism," he said. Lobsang Sangay, who was elected Tibetan prime minister-in-exile after the Dalai Lama ceded his political role, said Beijing's goal was to "make Tibet into Chinese territory and make Tibetans into Chinese." China has faced international criticism for the treatment of its mostly Muslim Uighur minority, with the detention of up to one million people in re-education camps in the western region of Xinjiang. China says it is providing vocational training and that it has brought development to both Xinjiang and Tibet. Some observers expect a repeat of 1995 when China selected its own Panchen Lama and detained a six-year-old identified for the influential Buddhist position — who was dubbed the world's youngest political prisoner. But Sangay, on a recent visit to Washington, doubted that any Dalai Lama tapped by China would enjoy legitimacy. "Let's say Fidel Castro recognized a pope and tells all the Catholics, 'Hey, this is my pope, will you follow him,'" he said. "How many Catholics will follow that pope?"

THE KEY TO SIKH IDENTITY: INDIVIDUAL vs GROUP IDENTITY

SPIRITUALITY SCIENCE-THE KEY TO HUMAN NATURE-INDIVIDUAL vs GROUP IDENTITY: MY PERCEPTIONS OF THE SIKH IDENTITY I ask my readers to give their attention to the problem of Individual Identity vs Group Identity. I identify the action called 'Compassion' with the Individual Identity and I associate the action called 'Aggression' with the Group Identity. The Sikhs like all other human beings have to know the dimensions of Individual and Group Identities. I concede that the Group Identity named 'Tat Khalsa' may give some political advantages to channelize acts of aggression towards other human groupings such as the Hindus. The Tat Khalsa Community gets energized by collectively expressing their hatred and animosity towards individuals that they perceive as their Enemy. I am not surprised to find Christians and Muslims supporting the aggressive stance of the Tat Khalsa for their own political gains. If the political factor is removed, the Sikh Doctrine cannot be energized by the Christain or Muslim Doctrine. The Tat Khalsa may win its battle against the Hindu but will succumb to the collective energy of either Christian or Muslim Group who desire to benefit by encouraging the Group Rivalry between the Sikhs and the Hindus. SPIRITUALITY SCIENCE-THE KEY TO HUMAN NATURE-INDIVIDUAL vs GROUP IDENTITY: "SARVESHAM SWASTIR BHAVATU"

The Vitruvian Man c. 1492. The painting by Leonardo da Vinci displays the Spirit of Scientific Inquiry about Human Nature. What is Man? The motivation for asking this question comes from a statement expressed in the Sanskrit language, "Sarvesham Swastir Bhavatu" which seeks the well-being of all humans of all races, of all cultures, of all religions, and of all nations. Our efforts to support the well-being of man would be affected by our understanding the 'real', or 'true' nature of man. All human traditions including several philosophical and scientific traditions make assumptions about human nature. The basic assumption about human nature is that of finding it displayed in feelings, thoughts, moods, action, and behavior. I try to know human nature from the functional characteristics that are observable in biotic interactions of cells, tissues, and organs that constitute the human organism. If a man is viewed as a multicellular organism, I need to discover the human nature of this subject who lives because of the functions of the cells, tissues, and organs that provide the structural basis of the human organism. THE KEY TO HUMAN NATURE - EVOLUTION vs CREATION :

Charles Darwin's great contributions to Biology: "The Origin of Species by means of Natural Selection: Or the Preservation of Favoured Races in the Struggle of Life"(1859), The Descent of Man(1871), The Expression of the Emotions in Man and Animals(1872).[/caption] Man's evolution from ape-like ancestors is thought to be the key to our true human nature. Ethology or the scientific study of animal behavior is based on the Theory of Evolution. In order to explain the human condition, ethological theories of human nature appeal to the evolutionary past of man.

Konrad Zacharias Lorenz( November 1903 to February 1989 ), Austrian zoologist, founder of modern Ethology which involves the scientific study of animal behavior by means of comparative zoological methods. He won the Nobel Prize for Physiology along with two other animal behaviorist.[/caption] Lorenz sees man as an animal who has evolved from other animals. He thinks that human behavior is subject to the same causal laws of nature as all animal behavior. Many patterns of animal behavior show "hereditary coordination" or "instinctive movements" that are innate rather than learned. The 'instinctual' behavior is fixed and may not be eliminated or altered by the environment. Instinct is inherited and it is essentially unlearned behavior. Some of the most important aspects of animal behavior are innate. Lorenz studied the nature of instinctive behavioral acts. The instinctual behavior is caused by a 'drive' which causes the behavior to appear spontaneously. The "four big-drives" are feeding, reproduction, flight, and aggression. Very often, the behavior is activated by two or more basic drives. To account for an instinctive behavior pattern in a species, reference is made to its survival value it has for the genes for that behavior. To explain the existence of any particular organ or behavior pattern, Lorenz looks for its survival value for the species. In his book, "On Aggression" ( 1963 ), he explains the natural history of man's aggressive behavior. He considers that man has an innate drive to aggressive behavior towards his own species like many other animals. Fighting and warlike behavior in man have an inborn basis. He seeks an evolutionary explanation for human innate aggressiveness or 'Intra-Specific' aggression which is concerned with fighting and threats between members of the same species. The most destructive aspect of human aggression is its communal nature and the fighting is not between individuals but between groups. Humans fight as groups and human beings are the only animals to indulge in the mass slaughter of their own species. He explains that this innate aggressive behavior has evolved from the communal defense response of our pre-human ancestors. However, Lorenz made no scientific study of behavior displayed by apes. Among the members of Homo genus, man is the only surviving representative of the Homo sapiens species and hence it will not be easy to validate his conclusions about the evolutionary origin of innate human aggressive behavior. If aggression is viewed as a hereditary behavior which is based upon its survival value for the genes for that behavior, it must be noted that all human ancestors had perished and have gone extinct and the behavior of aggression could not be of value in defending their survival as a species. COMPASSION WITHIN THE INDIVIDUAL AND BETWEEN INDIVIDUALS : Compassion or sympathy( sym=together + pati=suffer ) describes the emotional feelings of sorrow for the sufferings or troubles of another person or others accompanied by an urge to help. Compassion describes an understanding arising from the sameness of emotional feeling. When man recognizes pain or sorrow in the lives of others, it spontaneously arouses the emotional feelings of compassion. This understanding and the emotional response to the pain and suffering in the lives of others appears to be instinctive. Apart from the "four big-drives", compassion is operated by an innate drive or it is a motivated behavior. Compassion and altruism( any behavior that appears to favor another individual's chances of survival ) is a response generated by human nature. Compassion acts like a physical force, power, or energy. It has the power to uplift the man from physical pain and mental, or emotional pain or sorrow. The instinct of compassion comes into play and acts as a force, power, or energy when the man experiences sorrow and reacts to the suffering or troubles of another man. I am also suggesting that the emotionally motivated behavior of compassion is found within individuals apart from between individuals. If my experience of pain or suffering does not elicit the emotional response of compassion from others, fortunately, I can derive the benefit of the uplifting power of compassion by simply knowing the source of compassion that exists within myself. When a person is enjoying a state of good health, we find that the cells, tissues, and organs of that human person are interacting with each other in a harmonious manner and these intraspecific biotic interactions display characteristics such as mutual assistance, mutual cooperation, mutual tolerance, and mutual functional subservience to provide a benefit to the human individual who lives because of the functions of these cells, tissues, and organs. The constituent parts of the human body interact with each other with a sense of devotion, sympathy, compassion, and understanding. We often try to find compassion in the actions performed by others in response to the pain and suffering that we may experience. We describe compassion from the thoughts, emotional feelings, understanding, and sympathetic response that we witness in the behavior and action of others. I recognize compassion in the nature of the interactions between the cells, tissues, and organs of my body and consider that such compassion always operates to keep me the human person in good and positive health. I understand the reality of human existence and suggest that the existence is made possible because compassion is innate to human nature guiding the normal living functions both in health and sickness. I observe the operation of compassion in the wound healing mechanism that is described as 'Inflammation and Repair'. The emotional feelings of compassion are important for the survival of the man who exists to find emotional satisfaction from his living experience. The instinctive behavior of compassion supports the survival of man as it provides an emotional sense of satisfaction and contentment which contributes to the experience of joy and happiness in life. COMPASSION IS THE KEY TO HUMAN NATURE:

The Key to Human Nature could be discovered by knowing the Cell Structure and Functions. If hereditary behavior is operated by the information present in genes, it must be noted that the genes have no independent existence of their own. The nucleus and the genes perform their cellular functions deriving energy from the cytoplasm or protoplasm of the cell. The biological properties, characteristics, and the biological nature of the living substance or protoplasm could account for the instinctive behavior pattern of compassion. The biological properties, characteristics, and the biological nature of the living substance or protoplasm could account for an instinctive behavior pattern like compassion. Biological functions and characteristics such as nutrition, recognition, awareness, responsiveness, and communication with other living cells have not evolved because of their survival value for the species. At a fundamental level, certain living characteristics or nature is innate or implanted in the matter at the beginning of life. The nature called compassion is implanted or innate to the living substance or matter that is known as protoplasm. I make the distinction between Individual Identity and Group Identity. The first operates to display behavior or actions called Compassion. The second operates to display behavior or actions called Aggression. Human Aggressive Behavior is of particular concern as humans when acting as a Group cause more harm and destruction as compared to their actions when acting strictly as Individuals. Rudra Narasimham Rebbapragada Ann Arbor, MI 48104-4162 USA SPECIAL FRONTIER FORCE

THE CITIZENSHIP OF THE KINGDOM OF HEAVEN ON EARTH

The Citizenship of the Kingdom of Heaven on Earth. The celebration of Constitution Day and Citizenship Day. On September 17, 2019, I celebrate Constitution Day and Citizenship Day reflecting upon the words shared by Apostle Paul in his Second Letter to the Ephesians.

The Citizenship of the Kingdom of Heaven on Earth. The celebration of Constitution Day and Citizenship Day.

The Citizenship of the Kingdom of Heaven on Earth. The celebration of Constitution Day and Citizenship Day.

The Citizenship of the Kingdom of Heaven on Earth. The celebration of Constitution Day and Citizenship Day. On Tuesday, September 17, 2019, as the nation celebrates Constitution Day and Citizenship Day, I have no reason to feel unloved, unimportant, or insecure for I remember to whom and to which Kingdom I belong. Rudra Narasimham Rebbapragada SPECIAL FRONTIER FORCE September 17, 2019 Constitution Day and Citizenship Day

The Citizenship of the Kingdom of Heaven on Earth. The celebration of Constitution Day and Citizenship Day. Constitution Day and Citizenship Day is a single celebration that commemorates the formation and signing of the US Constitution while also recognizing both naturalized citizens and those born in the US. It’s a day to learn about these subjects, as well as a day many people become naturalized citizens in group ceremonies. (On average, about 700,000 people become US citizens every year.) To celebrate, we’re looking at an unusual close-up of the Statue of Liberty, a welcoming sight to immigrants and a symbol of freedom since 1886. The statue’s tablet has the date of the signing of the Declaration of Independence (July 4, 1776) inscribed in Roman numerals: JULY IV MDCCLXXVI. So why is today both Constitution Day and Citizenship Day? The reason is rooted in the World War II era. In 1940, Congress created I Am an American Day, a demonstration of US patriotism. Twelve years later, President Harry Truman signed into law Citizenship Day, which replaced I Am an American Day and moved the observance to September 17, the day the Constitution was signed in 1787. Eventually, in 2004 the day was designated as the mash-up of observances we have today—the jointly celebrated Constitution Day and Citizenship Day.

The Citizenship of the Kingdom of Heaven on Earth. The celebration of Constitution Day and Citizenship Day.

THE BALANCE OF POWER IN ASIA. TIBET EQUILIBRIUM

TIBET IS THE KEY FOR BALANCE OF POWER IN ASIA. #TIBETEQUILIBRIUM

Tibet is the Key for Balance of Power in Asia. It is not Geometry. It is Geography that Matters. #TibetEquilibrium In my analysis, it is not “Geometry” but it is “Geography” that Matters to secure the Balance of Power in Asia. I coined the phrase “Tibet Equilibrium,” #TibetEquilibrium to signify the importance of the landmass to achieve Power Equilibrium in Asia. Rudra Narasimham Rebbapragada SPECIAL FRONTIER FORCE Pentagon steps up efforts to counter China’s rising power afp.com

Maritime operations, missile tests, landing exercises: the Pentagon has been sharply stepping up its efforts to counter China’s growing military power, seen increasingly as a threat. a large ship in the water: The US military has been using guided-missile destroyers like this one, the USS John McCain, seen here in a US Navy photo, as it seeks to enforce an international 'freedom of operation' near islands claimed by Beijing in the South China Sea Tibet Equilibrium. Geography Matters. Tibet is the Key for Power Equilibrium in Asia. © James VAZQUEZ The US military has been using guided-missile destroyers like this one, the USS John McCain, seen here in a US Navy photo, as it seeks to enforce an international ‘freedom of operation’ near islands claimed by Beijing in the South China Sea On Friday an American warship approached the Paracel Islands, an island chain claimed by Beijing in the South China Sea, to affirm international “freedom of navigation” in the region. The USS Wayne E. Meyer, a guided-missile destroyer, passed near the islands to contest Beijing’s sweeping claims to the seas around the archipelago, which is also claimed by Taiwan and Vietnam. The Chinese claim would block “innocent passage” by other countries’ ships and is “not permitted by international law,” a US Seventh Fleet spokeswoman, Commander Reann Mommsen, said. Friday’s was the sixth “freedom of navigation operation” — or FONOPS in naval jargon — this year, a clear acceleration in pace. There were a total of eight in 2017 and 2018 and only six during the entire Obama presidency. On Wednesday, the US Marine Corps announced it had conducted exercises on the Japanese islet of Tori Shima, hundreds of miles south of Tokyo, to practice landings on “hostile” shores and the seizure of landing strips.

a man wearing a suit and tie: Ryan McCarthy is seen on September 12, 2019, at his Senate confirmation hearing to become US secretary of the army, the position formerly held by Defense Secretary Mark Esper Tibet Equilibrium. Geography Matters. Tibet is the Key for Power Equilibrium in Asia. © MARK WILSON Ryan McCarthy is seen on September 12, 2019, at his Senate confirmation hearing to become US secretary of the army, the position formerly held by Defense Secretary Mark EsperThe exercises were clearly designed to highlight the ability of the American military to invade a disputed island and establish a supply base for aerial operations. “This type of raid gives the commanders in the Indo-Pacific region the ability to project power and conduct expeditionary operations in a potentially contested littoral environment,” one of the officers in charge, Commander Anthony Cesaro, said in a statement. Such a forthright description, coming from a Pentagon hardly known for unguarded talk, reflects the fresh impetus Defense Secretary Mark Esper has given to the US policy of “strategic rivalry” with China and Russia. Esper, who chose Asia for his first overseas trip only weeks after being sworn in as Pentagon chief, has made clear that the US wants to rapidly deploy new missiles in Asia — possibly within months — to counter China’s rising military power. – To ‘change the geometry’ – On Thursday, acting US army secretary Ryan McCarthy, speaking in a Senate confirmation hearing, defended the development of such new missiles. He said the new medium-range conventional missiles Washington wants to develop — now that the US is no longer constrained by the Intermediate Nuclear Forces (INF) treaty, which the Trump administration abandoned last year — would “change the geometry within Southeast Asia.” “If we can get the appropriate partnerships, expeditionary basing rights with partners within the region,” McCarthy said, “we can change the geometry and basically reverse anti-access, area-denial capabilities that have been invested by near-peer competitors” — jargon for pushing back against sovereignty claims by China and Russia.

a large ship in the background: Sailors stand on the deck of the new Chinese guided-missile destroyer Nanchang as Beijing showed off its growing fleet on April 23, 2019, in the sea off eastern China's Shandong province Tibet is the Key for Balance of Power in Asia. It is not Geometry. It is Geography that Matters. #TibetEquilibrium © Mark Schiefelbein Sailors stand on the deck of the new Chinese guided-missile destroyer Nanchang as Beijing showed off its growing fleet on April 23, 2019 in the sea off eastern China’s Shandong province last month the Pentagon chose the Pacific Ocean for its first test of a conventional medium-range missile since the end of the Cold War — effectively driving a nail into the coffin of the INF treaty, which banned the use of land-based missiles with ranges of 500 to 5,500 kilometers (310 to 3,400 miles). And in late August, Washington formally established its Space Command, or Spacecom, a new unified command charged with ensuring US domination in space, where China has been increasingly active. Beijing rattled US military officials in 2007 when it launched a missile that located and then destroyed a Chinese satellite, in a dramatic demonstration of China’s growing ability to militarize space.

Tibet is the Key for Balance of Power in Asia. It is not Geometry. It is Geography that Matters. #TibetEquilibrium

WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 11, 2019. MY REFLECTIONS ON HUMAN NATURE

WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 11, 2019 – REMEMBERING THE CONSONANCE AND THE DISSONANCE IN HUMAN NATURE

Wednesday, September 11, 2019. Remembering the consonance and the dissonance in human nature. Tower of Voices, Flight 93 National Memorial Site, Pennsylvania.

On Wednesday, September 11, 2019, the 17^th Anniversary of 911 attacks on the United States, I reflect upon the consonance and dissonance in human nature. The serenity and nobility of the site in Pennsylvania depict the dimension of consonance and the crash of Flight 93 depicts the dimension of dissonance when the world and man are viewed as the works of God.

I define the United States using its national motto which proclaims, "In God We Trust." For we trust in God, it is rational to claim that man is constituted as a Spiritual Being in God's own image. 

I have a great problem in accounting for man's evil thoughts and actions that cause pain and suffering. The wickedness of man got exposed on Tuesday, September 11, 2001. For God's creation is perfect, there can never be two opposing or self-contradicting dimensions of human nature. Man's spiritual nature reveals the consonance, the resonance of God's nature in His work. How does the dissonance intrude into the world? How can the man be estranged, separated, or alienated from his own true or original nature?

Wednesday, September 11, 2019. Remembering the consonance and the dissonance in human nature. Reflections at Flight 93 National Memorial Site, Pennsylvania.
In my analysis, the prophecy of Isaiah has come true. Man is cursed to suffer. There can be no healing without conversion by the Spirit.

 Wednesday, September 11, 2019. Remembering the consonance and the dissonance in human nature. Reflections at Flight 93 National Memorial Site.

Rudra Narasimham Rebbapragada
SPECIAL FRONTIER FORCE

https://bhavanajagat.com/2016/09/11/remembering-september-11-2001-can-terror-define-man/
TOWER OF VOICES – FLIGHT 93 NATIONAL MEMORIAL
Clipped from: https://www.nps.gov/flni/getinvolved/tower-of-voices.htm

[cWednesday, September 11, 2019. Remembering the consonance and the dissonance in human nature. Reflections at Flight 93 National Memorial Site in Pennsylvania.

The Tower of Voices is conceived as a monumental, ninety-three feet tall musical instrument holding forty wind chimes, representing the forty passengers and crew members. The intent is to create a set of forty tones (voices) that can connote through consonance the serenity and nobility of the site while also through dissonance recalling the event that consecrated the site.
Artwork courtesy of bioLinia and Paul Murdoch Architects.

Wednesday, September 11, 2019. Remembering the consonance and the dissonance in human nature. Reflections at Flight 93 National Memorial Site in Pennsylvania.

The wind chimes inside the Tower of Voices. The chimes will be constructed of polished aluminum tubes ranging 8-16 inches in diameter and approximately five to ten feet in length. The size of each chime is dependent on the musical note and associated frequency that it is intended to produce.
Artwork courtesy of bioLinia and Paul Murdoch Architects.

Overview

The Tower of Voices serves as both a visual and audible reminder of the heroism of the forty passengers and crew of United Flight 93. On September 09, 2018 Flight 93 National Memorial will host a dedication event to complete the final phase of construction and complete the permanent memorial.

The tower is conceived as a monumental, ninety-three feet tall musical instrument holding forty wind chimes, representing the forty passengers and crew members. It is intended to be a landmark feature near the memorial entrance, visible from US Route 30/Lincoln Highway. The Tower of Voices will provide a living memorial in sound to remember the forty through their ongoing voices.
The tower project will be constructed from 2017 to 2018 with a dedication of the project on September 9, 2018. Funding for the design and construction of the project is provided through private donations to the National Park Foundation and the Friends of Flight 93 National Memorial.

Uniqueness of Design

There are no other chime structures like this in the world. The shape and orientation of the tower are designed to optimize airflow through the tower walls to reach the interior chime chamber. The chime system is designed using music theory to identify a mathematically developed range of frequencies needed to produce a distinct musical note associated with each chime. The applied music theory allows the sound produced by individual chimes to be musically compatible with the sound produced by the other chimes in the tower. The intent is to create a set of forty tones (voices) that can connote through consonance the serenity and nobility of the site while also through dissonance recalling the event that consecrated the site.

Design Features

The tower is approximately ninety-three feet tall from the base to the top with some height variations. The Tower cross-section is a "C" shape with a fifteen-foot outside diameter and eleven foot inside diameter. The "C" shape allows sound to reflect outwardly from the open side in a fan-shaped pattern. The chimes will be suspended a minimum of twenty feet above the main plaza and will be suspended from the interior walls of the tower up to the top.

The tower walls will be constructed of precast concrete segments linked by connectors. The chimes will be constructed of polished aluminum tubes ranging eight to sixteen inches in diameter and approximately five to ten feet in length. The size of each chime is dependent on the musical note and associated frequency that it is intended to produce. Chimes of this size and magnitude do not currently exist in the world. The chimes are wind activated and will have internal strikers attached to sails projecting from the bottom of each chime.

Surrounding Landscape

The tower is located on an oval concrete plaza that is built on top of an earth mound to create an area more prominent on the landscape. The plaza includes two curved concrete benches facing the opening of the tower.

The tower is surrounded by concentric rings of white pines and deciduous plantings. The concentric plantings may be interpreted as resonating "sound waves" from the Tower, alluding to the auditory qualities of the chimes housed within. A direct paved path leads to the tower from the parking lot. A longer, meandering crushed stone path winds through the trees and allows visitors an alternative approach to the tower. All other landscaped areas of the project will be planted with a native wildflower seed mix similar to other landscaped areas of the park.

 Wednesday, September 11, 2019. Remembering the consonance and the dissonance in human nature. Reflections at Flight 93 National Memorial Site in Pennsylvania.

SUICIDE PREVENTION AND GOD-CONNECTION

SPIRITUALITY SCIENCE-WORLD SUICIDE PREVENTION DAY

SPIRITUALITY SCIENCE – SEPTEMBER IS SUICIDE AWARENESS MONTH: SEVEN DIMENSIONS OF HUMAN BEING. THESE ARE, 1.MAN IS A CREATED BEING, AND MAN IS CONSTITUTED AS 2. PHYSICAL, MORTAL BEING, 3. MENTAL BEING, 4. SOCIAL BEING, 5. MORAL BEING, 6. SPIRITUAL BEING AND 7. RATIONAL BEING.

September 10 is observed as World ‘Suicide Prevention Day’ and September is ‘Suicide Awareness Month’. To promote Suicide Awareness, I would like to promote awareness of the Seven Dimensions of Human Being. These dimensions are 1. Man is a Created Being, and man is constituted as 2. Physical, Mortal Being, 3. Mental Being, 4. Social Being, 5. Moral Being, 6. Spiritual Being, and 7. Rational Being.


SPIRITUALITY SCIENCE – SEPTEMBER IS SUICIDE AWARENESS MONTH. SPIRITUALITY IS ABOUT FORMULATING INTERPERSONAL, AND INTRAPERSONAL RELATIONSHIPS BASED UPON SHARED FEELINGS OF TRUST, RESPECT, AND COMMITMENT. SPIRIT OR SOUL IS THE VITAL, ANIMATING PRINCIPLE THAT OPERATES ALL LIVING SYSTEMS.

Spirit or Soul is the vital, animating principle that operates all living systems. Spirituality is about formulating interpersonal, and intrapersonal relationships based upon shared feelings of trust, respect, and commitment.

MAN’S PHYSICAL EXISTENCE:


Spirituality Science–September is Suicide Awareness Month. The subjective reality of man’s physical existence is conditioned by his physical, mental, social, moral, spiritual, and rational well-being.
If a man is viewed as a multicellular organism, we may have to ask ourselves the following question. Who or What is the Subject that lives because of the living functions of trillions of individual, independent cells? Man has to explore the biological basis for his existence in nature. The subjective and objective reality of man’s physical existence is conditioned by his physical, mental, social, moral, spiritual, and rational well-being.
MENTAL HEALTH – THE MIND-BODY CONNECTION:

SPIRITUALITY SCIENCE – SEPTEMBER IS SUICIDE AWARENESS MONTH. MENTAL HEALTH IS ABOUT FORMULATING HARMONIOUS SOCIAL RELATIONSHIPS. SPIRIT OR SOUL IS THE OPERATING PRINCIPLE THAT DEVELOPS FUNCTIONAL HARMONY BETWEEN VARIOUS CELLS, TISSUES, ORGANS, AND ORGAN SYSTEMS OF HUMAN ORGANISM.

Mental health is an important component of total positive health when health is defined as not the mere absence of disease, but as a state of man’s physical, mental, social, moral, spiritual, and rational well-being. Physical conditions and ailments affect mental well-being.
Mental health and well-being could have important consequences affecting the physical, and social well-being of the man and may even threaten his ability to maintain the biological integrity to survive as a human organism. Mental health is defined as the capacity in an individual to form harmonious relations with others and to participate in or contribute constructively to changes in the social environment.

A living organism has a tendency to maintain normal internal stability by coordinated responses that automatically compensate for environmental changes. Claude Bernard had explained this concept of ‘milieu Interieur’ as that of “all the vital mechanisms, varied as they are, have only one object; that of preserving constant the conditions of life.” This concept of homeostasis, maintenance of stability and equilibrium is applicable to man’s existence within a social group. A living thing maintains its individuality while being a member of a social group.
Mental equilibrium and mental tranquility are needed to maintain internal stability and for developing harmonious relationships with others present in the social environment. The different constituent parts of one’s personality should work in harmony so that an individual faces life situations rationally, successfully, and happily. The aim of the positive mental health care is to strengthen and develop well-integrated personality by influencing the behavioral pattern of the individual so that psychological situations are controlled by the individual in a logical, and rational manner. The individual while facing challenging life situations must arrive at solutions without disrupting the physical, mental, or social well-being.

Mental health comprises the well-being of the intellectual and the emotional components of the mind. The intellectual breakdown of the individual deprives him of logical and rational thinking. The decisions taken will be faulty if the individual is not capable of logical and rational thinking. Such faulty decisions tend to affect an individual’s well-being. The intellectual breakdown is always accompanied by an emotional breakdown. Emotional imbalance affects an individual’s reactions. The individual may show an inability to cope with life situations. The inability to withstand the strain and stress of life situations could affect the physical well-being of the individual. The aim of this presentation is to understand the nature of man’s essence and existence in the physical world and to use that information to prevent the problem of suicide.

STRESS AND STRESS RESISTANCE:


Spirituality Science–September is Suicide Awareness Month. A person with a well-integrated personality acquires high resistance against stress and will be able to react healthily while confronting unwholesome life situations.

Resistance against mental and emotional breakdown is built up by the autonomic process of integration of personality. It is the normal process of the growth of personality within the group environs. An individual with a well-integrated personality acquires high resistance against difficult situations. The individual will be able to react healthily while confronting unwholesome life situations.

A healthy mind and ability to be molded in an integrated personality depends upon several factors including the physical, social, and psychological environment in which the individual is growing. It also depends upon the cultural patterns and attitudes handed down from one generation to the next. From a very young age, integration of the personality proceeds along with intellectual development and emotional molding. Children must be given a better chance to develop integrated personalities with resistance against stress.

Stress stimuli generate a chain of psycho-physical reactions strong enough to cause manifest effects. Personalities can be divided into 5 types according to their ability to resist strain and stress to master a given difficult life situation without a physical or mental breakdown. The same psychogenic stimulus may not cause a similar reaction in all individuals. Each person reacts in a different manner according to the level of preformed stress resistance.

GROUP I: Highly stress-resistant. These persons have a high level of preformed resistance. They also have the ability to develop resistance within a short time when exposed to stress stimuli. This group comprises of people with well-integrated personalities with dominant will power and power of endurance. They carry out the task even while under great stress without experiencing any negative consequences. They successfully master a stressful and difficult situation. These individuals live in good positive health and may not have a preexisting disease condition or a predisposition to such disease conditions that may undermine the physical and mental aspects of their health and well-being.

GROUP II: These persons have an average amount of preformed stress resistance. They overcome the stressful situation partially. In the attempt to master the stressful situation and to achieve success the person may suffer from precipitation of internal conditions such as hypertension, coronary artery disease and so on when other predisposing factors are also existing. However, the individual completes the task while facing a stressful stimulus. These persons perform better if they maintain good positive health.

GROUP III: These are persons with very low preformed stress resistance. They still have the ability to develop resistance on exposure to a prolonged stressful situation. While performing the task in a stressful situation, they may display psycho-somatic symptoms of overt stress syndrome.

GROUP IV: These are persons with no preformed stress resistance. They have a very low ability to create resistance upon exposure to a stressful stimulus. These individuals are more likely to abandon the task which may have exposed them to a stressful experience. They would try to escape from stress rather than attempting to create resistance to stress stimuli. If they cannot escape, the lack of stress resistance is manifested in a variety of bizarre symptoms.

GROUP V: These are persons who are non-resistant to stress. They have no preformed stress resistance. They are not capable of favorably reacting to situations producing stress. Their biological existence could be threatened if they are exposed to a stressful situation. They may manifest an overt psychiatric illness apart from the inability to perform a task that could generate the stress reaction. Such individuals must be recognized in their childhood and they must be provided the proper environment and psychological counseling.
The part played by stress varies in different individuals according to their basic personalities. The factors that impact the role of stress include environmental influences, community with its varied backgrounds of culture patterns and life habits. Pre-existent resistance against stress reduces the requirement of immediate psycho-physical response. If the problem of suicide is viewed as a stress reaction, the prevention of suicide would require promoting the idea of stress resistance.
THE PROBLEM OF SUICIDE:

A man’s right to life is a well-recognized principle. Very often, the law would defend a man’s right to life and would condone the act of killing if it is purely intended for purposes of self-defense. Does a man have the right to kill himself or renounce his life? Suicide is condemned by various societies. Major religions like Judaism, Christianity, and Islam oppose the practice of suicide. Attempts to commit suicide are punishable by law in several countries. In the East, some cultural traditions have glorified acts of self-immolation or of renouncing life to resist the enemy or to defend personal dignity, honor, or as an extreme measure of self-preservation.


Spirituality Science–September is Suicide Awareness Month. To defend her true nature, to preserve her essence, to resist the violation of her personal dignity and honor, Rani Padmini of Chittorgarh, India had courageously responded to a difficult and challenging life situation by an act of self-immolation. Her physical being was destroyed by fire which she had willingly embraced and yet her spirit has survived. She declared victory over Death and she lives as an immortal person in the hearts of Indians and gives them a sense of Pride and Identity.
In the West, attitudes have been slowly changing. The law may permit euthanasia or physician-assisted suicide under very special circumstances that affect the quality of life of an individual.

THE PROBLEM OF SUICIDE IN THE ARMED FORCES:


Spirituality Science–September is Suicide Awareness Month. While serving as Medical Officer of the Indian Army Medical Corps, I provided Comprehensive Health Care to troops and their families. The concept of Fitness to Fight includes both Physical Fitness and Mental Fitness. The goal is to keep troops Fighting Fit at all times and under all conditions that may impose physical, psychological, social, or biological Stress. Indian Tradition has always paid attention to the well-being of all aspects of health and it includes Moral well-being and spiritual well-being of man. During years I had served, the incidence of Suicidal Death in Indian Armed Forces was minimal.
To members of the Armed Forces, the problem of suicide is of special significance. The Armed Forces as a military establishment have a very challenging and difficult duty to perform. It has to conserve man-power, keep up the morale of its troops, and retain its fighting abilities and capacities at all times, both during peace and during the war. In ethical, and moral terms, Armed Forces believe in the act of killing and accepts the inevitability of causing deaths during the conduct of military operations. Armed Forces also actively prepares its members to overcome the fear of death and willingly exposes its members to the risks of getting killed both for the purposes of training and during actual combat situations.

A soldier is not expected to kill himself to escape from the stress of his military duty and at the same time, he must retain a very high level of motivation to kill the enemy and be willing to get killed in the performance of his task.

Armed Forces selects its members with due care and chooses people with preformed stress resistance and further uses training as a tool to build up the stress resistance level of its members. The qualities of valor, duty, and honor define the essence and the Spirit of Service. Armed Forces members must exist to display their essence.
I participated in the military operations that were conducted in the Chittagong Hill Tracts during the India-Pakistan War of 1971. I encouraged men to overcome stress and promoted the value of stress resistance. Kindly refer to my blog post titled ‘The Victory over Death – The Psychology of Warfare.

THE PREVALENCE OF SUICIDE:

Suicide has become much more common and it ranks as the second or third most common cause of death during adolescence. Suicide is also most pronounced in the older age. The rate of suicide is greatest between the ages of 35 and 75 years with a peak at about the age of 55 years. According to the National Institute of Mental Health, in the year 2007, suicide was the third leading cause of death for young people ages 15 to 24. Among ages 65 and older, of every 100,000 people, 14.3 died by suicide in the year 2007. This figure is higher than the national average of 11.3 suicides per 100,000 people in the general population.

THE WARNING SIGNS OF SUICIDE:

Suicide constitutes the greatest risk in manic-depressive psychosis. During depression, or mania, the psychotic individual shows no insight into the abnormal nature of his mood. Depression is a major symptom of neurosis. Attacks of depression are characterized by signs that the person has deep feelings of melancholia( sadness ). The sufferer typically looks unhappy, he feels hopeless and worthless, considers his life a torment. The depressed individual may experience a desire to punish himself by self-destruction and may directly or indirectly express such feelings or thoughts.

The American Society for Suicide Prevention posted these warning signs of suicide, and signs of depression :- Unrelenting low mood, pessimism, hopelessness, desperation, anxiety, psychic pain, inner tension, withdrawal, sleep problems, increased alcohol or other drug use, recent impulsiveness & taking unnecessary risks, threatening suicide or expression of a strong desire or wish to die, making a plan, giving away prized possessions, sudden or impulsive purchase of a firearm, obtaining other means of killing oneself such as poisons or medications, unexpected rage or anger. Changes in attitude, personal behavior could be always discovered and the individual who is at the risk of taking his life could be helped by simple observation.

THE CAUSES OF SUICIDE:

Current research and thinking on suicide tend to view biological, psychological, social-structural, and social-situational factors as interacting with each other. Sociological theories of suicide usually emphasize importance of either the social structure or the social situations, and the cultural pressures that individuals face. Psychological theories emphasize personality and cognitive factors.

THE SOCIOLOGICAL THEORY OF SUICIDE:

Spirituality Science – September is Suicide Awareness Month. EMILE DURKHEIM (April 1858 to November 1917 ) is considered to be the founder of the French School of Sociology.
Emile Durkheim in his paper ‘Le Suicide’ published in 1897, had tried to explain the apparent and purely individual decision to renounce life as a product of social forces or ‘social functionalism’. He had introduced the term ‘anomie’ or anomy. Suicide results from the breakdown of social standards that people need to regulate their behavior. A failed society produces in its members a sense of futility, lack of purpose, emotional emptiness, and despair. Anomie is a condition of relative normlessness of a society or social group. It may also mean a state of mind of a person who has no standards or sense of continuity or obligation to maintain his social bonds.

THE PERSONALITY THEORY OF SUICIDE:

The desire to escape depression is the most frequently cited motivation to explain suicide. A personality factor could be involved in persons who believe that suicide constitutes a solution to the problems that they may be facing. The suicide victim’s ideas, beliefs, and ways of thinking have a causal relationship with an underlying personality. The way people view their problems can produce a greater or lesser tendency to depression and suicide.

THE QUEST FOR AUTHENTIC EXISTENCE:


Spirituality Science – September is Suicide Awareness Month. Philosopher, Nobel Laureate Jean-Paul Sartre recommended the quest for authentic existence. He claimed that Suicide is absurd; it is absurd to get rid of what man is (etre-en-soi) as the true subjectivity of man (etre-pour-soi)disappears at the same time.

The Existentialists suggest that a person must find a situation in which he finds his true significance. In his Existentialist book, ‘Being and Nothingness’, philosopher and Nobel laureate Jean-Paul Sartre divides the being( the existing reality ) into two categories. One category is called being-in-itself (etre-en-soi ) and it may describe the essence of the man, the sum of the intrinsic properties without which a thing would cease to be what it is. The second category is being-for-itself ( etre-pour-soi ) which comprises the being that has thoughts, feelings, and consciousness. The being-for-itself exists only when it is supported by the being-in-itself. Existentialists view man in terms of his existing thoughts and actions rather than in terms of his essence. According to Sartre, man’s own existence is always attempting to overcome a radical estrangement between man as the object of scientific study or man himself(etre-en-soi ) and the subjectivity man knows in his thoughts and consciousness(etre-pour-soi ). A man’s life in the world and his social transactions often conceal his true subjectivity. A sense of authentic existence is given to each person when he realizes his true subjectivity as a being that is conscious. Sartre claimed that suicide is a final act of absurdity. Suicide is absurd; for in getting rid of what man is(etre-en-soi ), the true subjectivity of man(etre-pour-soi) also disappears at the same time.

THE PREVENTION OF SUICIDE:

There is no single approach that could be expected to succeed in substantially reducing the incidence of suicide. However, it will not be incorrect to claim that suicide is 100 percent preventable. The act of killing oneself or the action called suicide is totally preventable even when suicidal thoughts may not be preventable. If an individual’s mind is engaged in suicidal thoughts, it may not be possible to prevent those thoughts as the thoughts have already originated. I may succeed in preventing the individual from acting upon his suicidal thoughts. As long as a man knows his thoughts, and would not let his thoughts overwhelm him, man can lead a normal life even when the mind engages in ideas or thoughts about suicide.

STAY INFORMED AND STAY CONNECTED:


Spirituality Science–September is Suicide Awareness Month. Suicide is totally preventable if a man seeks information about his ‘essence'(true or real Self) and the connection, bonding, partnership, relationship, association, or ‘yoking’ with an external agency that supports his existence.

To help prevent suicide, I would like to keep the man informed by sharing the following information, and the man must reflect upon the nature of ‘connection’ that sustains man’s existence in the physical world.

EXISTENCE PRECEDES ESSENCE :

Existence is the state of being in the world of actuality. The essence is the most significant part of a thing’s nature, the sum of the intrinsic properties without which a thing would cease to be what it is.

What is the fundamental nature or quality that is important or essential to define the true substance of the man? To understand human essence, a human being must be defined as a physical, mental, social, moral, spiritual, and rational being. The subjective reality of man’s existence precedes and defines man’s essence. Existence is the first priority and must be preserved if a man wants to define his nature or essence. To defend human existence, the physical, the mental, the social, the moral, the spiritual, and the rational well-being of man must be defended.

As I have mentioned before, Indian tradition honors the man who may define his moral, or spiritual essence by putting an end to his physical existence. That is the only exception to the rule.

The rule is; human existence does not depend upon the contents of man’s thoughts, feelings, desires, emotions, self-pride or ego. Man must always strive to rationally understand and evaluate his thoughts, feelings, desires, moods, emotions, and self-pride and should not act upon them to compromise his existence which is truly independent of such factors that impact human life. If I think that I must live for two hundred years, the thoughts about a long life span would not change the basis for my biological existence. Similarly, if I think that I must kill myself, the suicidal thought does not alter the basis for my biological existence. Suicidal thoughts do not describe human essence. A stress-resistant individual would have the ability to investigate and reflect upon his suicidal thoughts and trace the reason for such thoughts. Stress is a problem that is associated with identity and individuality. The human person is a multicellular organism and man must know as to how the human organism establishes its identity and its individuality. While man seeks to define his essence in terms of his identity, the organism seeks to identify the Individual for whose existence the cells perform functions to support.

IDENTITY AND INDIVIDUALITY – TWO SIDES OF THE SAME COIN:


Spirituality Science – September is Suicide Awareness Month. If Essence describes one facet of the coin, Existence describes the second face of the same coin.

Spirituality Science – September is Suicide Awareness Month. If Identity is described by one side of the coin, Individuality is described by the second side of the same coin.
Mental health is related to the understanding of identity and individuality. We need to understand as to how identity and individuality are established in the multicellular human organism.

My mind may define my identity in one manner and my human organism may establish my identity in a different manner. My mind may seek my identity from my thoughts, intellectual information & knowledge, emotions, and false ego. These four aspects of mental activities or functions are named in the Indian tradition as Manas, Buddhi, Chitta, and Ahamkara. These four mental activities are together named as Mano Chatushtayam or AntaHkaranam. Indian tradition asks people to recognize that the true identity of the individual does not pertain to these four aspects of human brain activities.

The attempts by man to establish his identity on the basis of his morphological appearance, anthropometric data, biometric information, race, ethnicity, gender, religion, language or nation/ place of origin have no biological relevance in terms of supporting the existence of that human individual.

Man exists as long as he has the ability to defend his individuality and maintains the integrity of the various physiological/metabolic activities that support the vital functions that impart the quality or condition called Life and keeps the organism living. In the human organism, this functional unity is maintained by an anatomical structure called Brain Stem. Man lives as an individual while the functions of the Brain Stem are intact and the man dies if the functional activity is not found in the Brain Stem. Man can seek any kind of identity if he could maintain the individuality that the Brain Stem supports.

Man is free to change his morphological appearance, can change his sexual identity, can change occupation, speak a different language, change his place of residence, practice a different religion or no religion, and can change the nature of his personal relationships with others while he maintains his individuality as a living organism. A man must be always conscious of his individuality which demands that he exists as a distinct entity from his mind and its mental activities.

A man could be aware of the presence of suicidal thoughts engaged by his mind and yet maintain his separation from those thoughts. A man who seeks to exist as an individual will have no problem in resisting his thoughts, feelings, emotions, and mood changes. Such mental activities would not overwhelm or overpower the person.

The problem of stress does not go away. However, man can become stress-resistant. Such stress resistance from psychogenic stimuli is the key for prevention of suicide. The man who is facing challenging life situations represents just one side of the coin, and on the second side is represented the man who maintains his individuality as a human organism. This separation of identity from individuality gives us the scope to make people stress-resistant and to avoid the psychological compulsions of suicidal thoughts. When this separation is established, a man would not act in ways that could harm him in body or mind. To promote mental health, to prevent the consequences of mental disease, we need to give the tools to people to understand and define individuality and identity as two separate aspects of the same coin.

THE ‘SELF’ AND THE ‘KNOWING-SELF’:

SPIRITUALITY SCIENCE–THE ART OF SELF-DISCIPLINE AND SUICIDE PREVENTION. THE CONCEPT OF SELF AND THE KNOWING-SELF WILL HELP TO PRACTICE SELF-RESTRAINT, SELF-CONTROL, AND SELF-DISCIPLINE.

The living human being could be divided into two categories. One category could be called ‘SELF’ that may be compared to Sartre’s being-in-itself or etre-en-soi. The ‘SELF’ represents man’s state of existence as the physical, mental, and social being. Both Rene Descartes and Jean-Paul Sartre divide man into two categories; 1. a physical or inert substance that has no thoughts, feelings, or consciousness, and 2. the mind that has thoughts, feelings, and is a conscious entity. Sartre further named the second as the Being-for-itself or etre-pour-soi which is capable of making decisions and giving man the freedom to act according to his free will. I do not subscribe to the views held by Descartes or Sartre and I would not seek separation of mind and body into two distinct categories. Man is a multicellular organism; the body cannot exist without a mind/brain and the mind/brain cannot exist without a body which has vital organs like lungs, heart, liver, and kidneys. The body and the mind/brain have to function together. I have also stated my view about consciousness. 
Please visit the page titled, “I AM CONSCIOUSNESS, THEREFORE I AM”
I AM CONSCIOUSNESS THEREFORE I AM

Consciousness is not an exclusive psychological function. Consciousness is a biological function that is shared by all living cells which display the attributes such as recognition, sensitiveness, coordination, cooperation, functional awareness, and awareness of the external and internal environment and condition.

The category that I call ‘SELF’ represents the physical self with various organs and tissues and the mental self which represents mental activities associated with thinking, intellect/knowledge, emotions, feelings, moods, and ego or self-pride. The ‘SELF’ may describe the essence or nature, or identity of the man in terms of the man’s own mental awareness and other people in his environment. The second category that I describe could be called the ‘KNOWING-SELF’. The ‘Knowing-Self’ is aware or conscious of its state and fact of biological existence. It may not always be aware of its external environment. A man who is in a state of sound sleep, a man who is under the influence of drugs, chemicals, or pharmacological agents like anesthetics, or a person with a head injury loses some components of the function called consciousness. However, a man at all times of his living condition is conscious of his internal condition/environment, maintains the state of equilibrium or homeostasis, and supports the vital functions that define his individuality as an organism. The category called the ‘Knowing-Self’ is related to the individuality and in the multicellular human organism this function is served by the Reticular Formation of the Brain Stem which gives the person the ‘Capacity for Consciousness’. Man needs the ‘Capacity for Consciousness’ to compose the ‘Contents of Consciousness’. In the absence of the ‘Capacity for Consciousness’, man has no ‘Contents of Consciousness’ and could be declared dead if the function called ‘Capacity for Consciousness’ could not be sustained.

The ‘Capacity for Consciousness’ is essential for man’s biological existence. The ‘Capacity for Consciousness’ is required for a man to exist as a moral, spiritual, and rational being. Man exists with an intrinsic ability to discern right from wrong and exists because of his spiritual nature which gives him the ability to acquire and manipulate energy for his various metabolic, living functions. The category called ‘Self’ may experience all the difficult, and challenging situations posed by life, and the category called the ‘Knowing-Self’ is not subject to these sensory or mental experiences that impact the ‘Self’.

THE GOD CONNECTION:

Man must recognize that his biological existence depends upon energy acquisition. Man lives energy-dependent existence and must acquire energy from external sources right from the beginning of his life journey from the moment of conception. Man does not acquire this energy because of his intellectual effort, or acquired knowledge. The ‘egg cell’ that is fertilized is conscious of its energy dependence and it implants itself into the tissues of the mother who may not be mentally aware of this process called implantation by which the human embryo starts deriving its energy from its mother. This embryo grows and develops into a complex, multicellular organism and continues to derive energy from external sources. This ‘CONNECTION’ between the energy-seeker and the energy-provider could be called ‘GOD CONNECTION’.

Man has no ability to establish this kind of energy acquisition for his survival. If Sun is viewed as the source of extraterrestrial or Cosmic Power, the Solar Energy is trapped by chloroplasts found in the cells of all green plants. This energy is further made available to man by presence of intracellular organelles called mitochondria which are described as the powerhouses of the cells. Man has no direct control on the nature of this ‘Connection’ and its operation. The man simply exists as there is a Provider for his energy requirements.
In good health or ill-health, under all circumstances and conditions, and during all the stages of his mortal existence, man needs this grace, mercy, and compassion to keep himself alive. This is a supernatural mechanism or a ‘God Connection’ that supports man while he leads his energy-dependent existence. Man who experiences this compassion, mercy, and grace that is sustaining his life would derive a sense of joy and experiences the condition called true happiness. A man who has discovered true happiness cannot experience a mood called depression.
It is really hard to kill oneself while the man is connected to a source of Happiness. Man must experience this sense of Joy and Happiness and realize its uplifting power to alter any depressed feeling or mood. If pain is an inevitable aspect of human life, compassion is also an inescapable aspect of human existence. If pain is true, compassion is also equally true. I invite people to find Compassion, Mercy, and the Grace of the Divine Providence in their lives. It would be irrational or absurd to break the God Connection by the act called Suicide.

Rudranarasimham, Rebbapragada
BHAVANAJAGAT.ORG