This is my portrayal of one of my favourite birds............. The Osprey. On this painting i really had to work very hard, especially on the feathers
30 November 2008
18 November 2008
New Delhi Aikido
This article appeared in a national newspaper about my Aikido class
“Because of Aikido I was able to defend myself from an attack,” says Yulia Pal. Aikido helped in saving her when violently attacked while taking a walk in the city’s Jahapanah park. Paritos Kar, fourth Dan of Aikido Aikikai Foundation of India, who has learnt this art from Japan, has been teaching this non-combative art form for four years in Delhi.
Aikido is different from other marital arts because it is not competitive. With Aikido meaning “harmony” it is little surprise that this form is more about a philosophy than competition. But make no mistake, it’s not a soft spot at all as it provides a complete workout and can disarm attackers. Kar says, “Aikido helps in self defence, fitness, confidence and discipline.”
There are only four members in today’s dojo with the festive season keeping most of the others away. But there’s an unusual dignity and serenity about this class located near Lady Shri Ram College. Everyone speaks in hushed tones and addresses each other with a gentle bow. The members are dressed in the traditional white pants and angrakha-like shirts called keikogi. The seniors and Kar himself wear a hakama, a black drape that is tied waist down.
The class begins with a brief meditation. We sit on our knees, with legs folded back and feet touching each other. This is to clear the mind and help in concentration. While Aikido originated more than 100 years ago in Japan, it has no religious leanings. And the meditation is more about clearing one’s mind than about praying to any force.
Next come the gentle warm up exercises. They include punching the air with one’s fist and drawing back. Then there are body rotations. This is followed by stretches. The stretches are performed standing upright and some other lying on the floor. While standing, the knees are bent gently and rotated. In the floor exercises, one holds the back of ones knees and rolls back and forth like a baby. Then the feet are gently pounded with the hands, followed by a quick and efficient rubbing of the ears and neck. These series of exercises lasts for only about 10 minutes and helps to get the joints lubricated and make the body supple.
With Aikido being mainly about throws, students first pay attention to rolling and falling. Because of the throws, it is practised indoors and with partners. Rolling requires technique and is not about just barrelling down the floor.
I stare open mouthed as students adroitly roll down the 30 feet of padded mat. First they do so silently, and then with a sonorous thud. This is for the experts, and I decide it’s time to roll out of the class.
(For more information: http://www.aikikaiindia.org/, call: 9899822
In an Aikido class Nandini Nair finds that martial arts can be about harmony
Photos: Shanker Chakravarty.
Photos: Shanker Chakravarty.
“Because of Aikido I was able to defend myself from an attack,” says Yulia Pal. Aikido helped in saving her when violently attacked while taking a walk in the city’s Jahapanah park. Paritos Kar, fourth Dan of Aikido Aikikai Foundation of India, who has learnt this art from Japan, has been teaching this non-combative art form for four years in Delhi.
Aikido is different from other marital arts because it is not competitive. With Aikido meaning “harmony” it is little surprise that this form is more about a philosophy than competition. But make no mistake, it’s not a soft spot at all as it provides a complete workout and can disarm attackers. Kar says, “Aikido helps in self defence, fitness, confidence and discipline.”
There are only four members in today’s dojo with the festive season keeping most of the others away. But there’s an unusual dignity and serenity about this class located near Lady Shri Ram College. Everyone speaks in hushed tones and addresses each other with a gentle bow. The members are dressed in the traditional white pants and angrakha-like shirts called keikogi. The seniors and Kar himself wear a hakama, a black drape that is tied waist down.
The class begins with a brief meditation. We sit on our knees, with legs folded back and feet touching each other. This is to clear the mind and help in concentration. While Aikido originated more than 100 years ago in Japan, it has no religious leanings. And the meditation is more about clearing one’s mind than about praying to any force.
Next come the gentle warm up exercises. They include punching the air with one’s fist and drawing back. Then there are body rotations. This is followed by stretches. The stretches are performed standing upright and some other lying on the floor. While standing, the knees are bent gently and rotated. In the floor exercises, one holds the back of ones knees and rolls back and forth like a baby. Then the feet are gently pounded with the hands, followed by a quick and efficient rubbing of the ears and neck. These series of exercises lasts for only about 10 minutes and helps to get the joints lubricated and make the body supple.
With Aikido being mainly about throws, students first pay attention to rolling and falling. Because of the throws, it is practised indoors and with partners. Rolling requires technique and is not about just barrelling down the floor.
I stare open mouthed as students adroitly roll down the 30 feet of padded mat. First they do so silently, and then with a sonorous thud. This is for the experts, and I decide it’s time to roll out of the class.
(For more information: http://www.aikikaiindia.org/, call: 9899822
17 November 2008
Mirambika campus is more diverse than Yamuna Biodiversity Park
....................But the only thing missing in our campus is a waterbody, but there are more variety of trees in our campus, than YBP.
We started doing a project on trees & i am kind of smitten by it. We are using Trees of Delhi, A field Guide by Pradip Kishen to do our work. Today morning my father was telling me your school bag is getting heavy. Apart from the Trees of Delhi book, it had Asterisk & a couple of novels, apart from the usual note books. We do not have any textbooks in Mirambika.
Using this field guide we are making a list of trees in the Mirambika campus, which by the look of things is much more diverse than the Yamuna biodiversity park which we visited recently as part of our project work.
At the Yamuna biodiversity Park i learned to identify some butterflies like Brown Awl, Grass Yellow, Forget me Not, Striped Tiger, Plain Tiger, Blue Pansy, Yellow Pansy & Peacock Pansy.
We started doing a project on trees & i am kind of smitten by it. We are using Trees of Delhi, A field Guide by Pradip Kishen to do our work. Today morning my father was telling me your school bag is getting heavy. Apart from the Trees of Delhi book, it had Asterisk & a couple of novels, apart from the usual note books. We do not have any textbooks in Mirambika.
Using this field guide we are making a list of trees in the Mirambika campus, which by the look of things is much more diverse than the Yamuna biodiversity park which we visited recently as part of our project work.
At the Yamuna biodiversity Park i learned to identify some butterflies like Brown Awl, Grass Yellow, Forget me Not, Striped Tiger, Plain Tiger, Blue Pansy, Yellow Pansy & Peacock Pansy.11 November 2008
Maan Singh, Bharatpur, Birding guide par excellence
The first time i went to Bharatpur was 3 years back. I was new to birds & birding. Infact we were doing a project in school on birds. Priyanka didi & Manish bhaiyya got me really interested in birds, they got me hooked, it was one of the best projects i had done in school. Then my parents got for me the "Birds of the Indian Subcontinent by Richard Grimmett" which is like a bible for birds & id's etc. I used to read it for hours, sleep with it, wake up with, walk with it etc.
My school (mirambika) also has a lovely campus, i started to identify birds. Then there is a park in front of my house, there also i started to identify birds. Once we went for a walk with Priyankadidi & Manishbhaiyya, then he thought us how to identify the birds by their call. While we were doing the project i got a chance to visit Bharatpur (Keoladeo Ghana National Park)
We were quite tentative about how to go about birding in the park since it was our first time. We asked for a guide et al, then we needed to hire a cycle rickshaw to go inside the park since it is a long walk. Then this person with a cycle rickshaw walked up to us & told us he will take us in. That was my first meeting with Maan Singh.
Within 5 minutes we realised that he was much better guide than the actual birding guide that we had hired. That day evening while walking back from the park Maan Singh actually spotted an Osprey, it was unbelievable for me to be able to see an Osprey & we realised the guide had not even spotted it.
So the next day morning when we were going back to the park we decided we do not need a guide, Maan Singh himself is a super birding guide. So that is how i came to know Maan Singh. Since then whenever we go to Bharatpur we go into the park with only Maan Singh. He obviously is a much respected person, his skills in identifying birds are just fantastic, his eyes are so sharp, he knows their calls, he knows the behaviour of the birds very well, he has a feel for them, plus he is also very relaxed as a person & great company to be cycling with, when he regales us with stories about birding, about the state of the park, how it is been run etc.
Maan Singh, age 47, Rickshaw No. 5, has been in Bharatpur since 1981. In 1981, Keoladeo Ghana bird sanctuary was given the status of National Park. He was trained by Dr Salim Ali when he used to come to Bharatpur, he also has attended many seminars & workshops with Dr Salim Ali
Maan Singh earns about Rs 5,000/- a month on an average. He is also very environmentally conscious & gets appalled with visitors who come into the park & litter, he also has a lot to say about the kind of vegetation which was there in the park, which is more mono culture than bio diverse, he is happy with the changes which are taking place to replace the awful "ganda babul" trees.
My school (mirambika) also has a lovely campus, i started to identify birds. Then there is a park in front of my house, there also i started to identify birds. Once we went for a walk with Priyankadidi & Manishbhaiyya, then he thought us how to identify the birds by their call. While we were doing the project i got a chance to visit Bharatpur (Keoladeo Ghana National Park)
We were quite tentative about how to go about birding in the park since it was our first time. We asked for a guide et al, then we needed to hire a cycle rickshaw to go inside the park since it is a long walk. Then this person with a cycle rickshaw walked up to us & told us he will take us in. That was my first meeting with Maan Singh.
Within 5 minutes we realised that he was much better guide than the actual birding guide that we had hired. That day evening while walking back from the park Maan Singh actually spotted an Osprey, it was unbelievable for me to be able to see an Osprey & we realised the guide had not even spotted it.
So the next day morning when we were going back to the park we decided we do not need a guide, Maan Singh himself is a super birding guide. So that is how i came to know Maan Singh. Since then whenever we go to Bharatpur we go into the park with only Maan Singh. He obviously is a much respected person, his skills in identifying birds are just fantastic, his eyes are so sharp, he knows their calls, he knows the behaviour of the birds very well, he has a feel for them, plus he is also very relaxed as a person & great company to be cycling with, when he regales us with stories about birding, about the state of the park, how it is been run etc.
Maan Singh, age 47, Rickshaw No. 5, has been in Bharatpur since 1981. In 1981, Keoladeo Ghana bird sanctuary was given the status of National Park. He was trained by Dr Salim Ali when he used to come to Bharatpur, he also has attended many seminars & workshops with Dr Salim Ali
Maan Singh earns about Rs 5,000/- a month on an average. He is also very environmentally conscious & gets appalled with visitors who come into the park & litter, he also has a lot to say about the kind of vegetation which was there in the park, which is more mono culture than bio diverse, he is happy with the changes which are taking place to replace the awful "ganda babul" trees. Water in the park is critical, he throws his hands up in despair when he explains the politics behind the water distribution. His life is also dependent on it, if there is no water in the park, then there will be no birds, if there are no birds, then there will be be no visitors, if there are no visitors to the park, then he will have no work & no earnings.
Maan Singh
14, Madhav Galli,
Near Ganga Mandir
Bharatpur. 321 001
3 November 2008
Bharatpur Rocks ! Oct 2008......... & The Dusky Eagle Owl
Expectations were running high in me when I heard from my parents that we are going to Bharatpur during the Diwali break. We reached Bharatpur in around 4 hours, checked in to the hotel, had lunch…………. It all seemed to take too long & I was getting restless. I just wanted to head into the Keoladeo Ghana National Park !!
But there was one problem; we could not find Maan Singh. We had called his contact telephone number & requested them to pass on the message to Maan Singh. But obviously he had not got the message. Maan Singh has always been an integral part of my trips to Bharatpur. Birding is so enjoyable with him, he has so much insight into birds, plus he knows the park inside out, plus he knows my favourite birds, plus he knows the likely places where they might be !!
The next day we spent about 4hrs in the park in the morning, The high point was the Saurus Cranes, one of them was sitting on a nest, the Pheasant Tailed Jacanas & the Bronze Winged Jacanas, we looked hard to see the floating nests, but couldn’t see any.
But there was one problem; we could not find Maan Singh. We had called his contact telephone number & requested them to pass on the message to Maan Singh. But obviously he had not got the message. Maan Singh has always been an integral part of my trips to Bharatpur. Birding is so enjoyable with him, he has so much insight into birds, plus he knows the park inside out, plus he knows my favourite birds, plus he knows the likely places where they might be !!
We looked out for him trying in vain to locate his whereabouts. With disappointment writ large on our faces we boarded another cycle rickshaw, but I was hoping to bump into Maan Singh somewhere in the park. But luck was with us & lo behold, we saw him very soon & I was happy to hop into his rickshaw though I did feel sorry for the other rickshaw driver. However, my father compensated him for his time so at least he did not lose any earnings.
The high for the first day was to see the Dusky Eagle Owl, the call of it was just awesome. Imagine listening to the call on a dark moon less night alone!!! That surely will give me the goose bums !!
We did a quick round of the park. Scopps Owl was simply a treat to watch.........
The next day we spent about 4hrs in the park in the morning, The high point was the Saurus Cranes, one of them was sitting on a nest, the Pheasant Tailed Jacanas & the Bronze Winged Jacanas, we looked hard to see the floating nests, but couldn’t see any.
We went again to the park after a quick lunch. Had great views of a couple of Eurasian Hobby’s. A first time view of a Lagger Falcon. Then we had a close look at the Heronary. It was amazing to see the Painted Storks, the Cormorants, the Spoon Bills & the Darters share the same nesting spaces. Maan Singh showed us how the adults of Painted Storks would protect the chicks of the other species. Also how the adults protect the chicks from the sun by spreading out the wings etc. We also saw chicks which were just a week old.
The concentration which is writ large on the face of the Purple Heron, or the Night Heron, or the little Green Heron, or the Grey heron, just sitting quietly in wait for prolonged periods of time, without moving even a bit, alert & agile, & when they spot a prey, in one amazing striking elongation of the neck they catch the fish. And if it is a big fish then it flips it in the air & takes it in head first. I was privileged to see a Purple Heron do just that.
It was almost sunset when we were coming out of the park. We heard a jackal call, suddenly Maan singh jumped out from the rickshaw & said It is a Hyena !! Our eyes closed in on the Hyena. It was huge. Bigger than a German Sheperd dog, it crossed the path right behind us. I could not believe my eyes, I could not believe what I saw………. a Hyena. It was a truly awesome moment. By the time my mother got out of the rickshaw & adjusted the camera the Hyena was gone. But the picture will always remain in my mind………. A Hyena been barked at & chased by Jackals, & it crossing the path just 15 ft away from me. Truly a rocker moment !!
The next day we were in the park by sunrise. This time Maan singh took us through a different path. I was dying/ hoping to see an Osprey, I did see something which I thought was an Osprey, but it was too far away to even identify. Then we were cycling along quietly, then we saw a Greater Spotted Eagle. Actually it was only a dress rehearsal of things to come.
Just a few metres ahead, my eyes popped out in wonder when I saw a Steppe Eagle…………… (Correction, by Ramit: It is a Bonneli's Eagle)
It was so close, it was unbelievable, to see this beautiful bird sitting just a few metres away. I enjoyed the couple of minutes in its company, before it flew away. We cycled ahead, not believing my luck , I was still in daze thinking of the Steppe Eagle. (Sorry, actually Bonneli's Eagle)
Suddenly Maan Singh again stopped & pointed to my right, there again on my right hand side was one of my all time favourite birds : The Crested Serpent Eagle.
It was sitting in the sun, obviously 'had a dive in the water, so was sitting with the feathers spread out. I have never seen an Eagle so, so relaxed & did look at us many times, but was not bothered about our presence, he continued to sit where he was . We eyed him for about 20 minutes, till we decided to say good bye.
So that was it !!
After two & a half days of intensive birding, it was finally time to leave. Bharatpur rocks, it just rocks. I used to wonder the last two years when I used to hear that there is no water in the park, i used to worry & feel helpless. But i felt so humble to see nature rejuvenate itself to offer a nesting & a breeding place for all these species who come in sometimes all the way from Europe & Mongolia.
I hope to go back in December or January (hopefully with some of my friends) when all the birds arrive & when Bharatpur is at its best.
As of now here is the list of birds i saw :
- Magpie Robin
- Bank Mynah
- Common Myna
- Brahminy Myna
- Pied Myna
- Drongo
- Laughing Dove
- Green Pigeon
- Jungle Babbler
- Peacocks/hens
- Hoopoe
- Chestnut Shouldered Petronia
- Rose Ringed Parakeets
- Yellow Vented Bulbul
- Coucal
- Large Green Barbet
- Coppersmith
- Green Bee-eater
- Indian Roller Bird
- Golden Oriole
- Pygmy Woodpecker
- Flame Back
- Red Wattled Lapwing
- White Breasted King Fisher
- Small Blue King Fisher
- Rufous Tree pie
- Pied Bush Chat
- Clamorous Reed Warbler
- Brain fever Bird/ Common Hawk Cuckoo
- Koel
- Pied Crested Cuckoo
- Grey Partridge/ Francolin
- Red Throated Fly Catcher
- Grey Headed Canary Fly Catcher
- Grey Night Jar
- Painted Storks
- Great Egret
- Little Egret
- Pond Heron/ Paddy Bird
- Little Heron
- Night Heron
- Purple Heron
- Darter/ Snake Bird
- Great Cormorant
- Little Cormorant
- Indian Shag
- White Ibis
- Glossy Ibis
- Spoon Bill
- Saurus Crane
- Common Moorhen
- Purple Moorhen
- Bronzed Winged Jacana
- Pheasant Tailed Jacana
- Black Red Start
- Lesser White Throat
- Long Tailed Shrike
- Scopps Owl
- Spotted Owlets
- Dusky Eagle Owl
- Spot billed Duck
- Lesser Whistling Ducks
- Coots
- Comb Duck
- Common Teal/ Pygmy Goose
- Crested Serpent Eagle
- Marsh Harrier
- Black Shouldered Kite
- Shikra
- Lagger Falcon
- Eurasian Hobby
- Greater Spotted Eagle
- Oriental Honey Buzzard
- Bonneli's Eagle
Finally as i leave; i hope to , i just hope to...........
see the Siberian Cranes coming back sometime !!
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