Author: Karthik Dinakar

The mind wavers, swayed by that which is immaterial and inconsequential. It has to be trained. It has to be reigned in. It falters, drifting from one emphemeral bliss to another, unmindful of the goal that remains to be achieved and the purpose that clamors for action. Sometimes, it is as though procrastination has a stranglehold on it. As if there was nothing more lovely and enjoyable than mere idling away of time.

But it cannot be held hostage for too long. Inspirational figures crop up from the most unlikely of places, acting as powerful reminders of what must be done and why they must be done.…

It is not for nothing that I am so fond of his music and I cannot but stand in awe at the beauty of his compositions. I listen to his music and I lose myself in its brilliance.

No other album of his has been more endearing to me than his scores for The Holiday. Whether I like the movie because of his scores or like the scores because of the movie is unknown, but I do listen to it ever so often.

If you are dear to me, chances are that you have already been recommended to his music.…

To underestimate it would amount to a travesty. To avoid it completely would amount to nothing more than an unpardonable waste. And to fuss about it all the time would point towards a lack of direction. The more I think about it, the more impressed I am about its sheer power to alter and define our lives. It is, in all likelihood, one of the most powerful and magical gifts we have been given as human beings. It is our ability to work. Our innate ability to exert our mental and physical strengths to build and sustain all things around us, and by so doing play our individual parts in the world’s order of things.…

For all the desires and goals that one can harbour, there is a virtue that is often overlooked. It tempers surreal expectations, and soothes the harshest of blows. It is in my opinion, one of the most potent weapons in the armory of the strong and the stable-minded, and a secret virtue of those that befriend success and nobility. It’s quite common, I hear it being bandied all the time these days. It’s not a big deal. It’s called gumption – the ability to learn from your experiences.

Learning from one’s experiences is the key, be it episodes of stark mistakes or high feats.…