Amazing Grace

An Eggless Chocolate cake which is completely vegan,  gluten free, and has the goodness of Ragi(finger millet) and jaggery. It is dairy free. You read it right!. No Maida,  No Eggs,  No Milk, and No Butter. I've been wanting to write about this since a long time. I modified an age old chocolate cake recipe,  since I was baking it for my toddler's birthday. The cake turned out delicious!. You gotta try this once!. I'm sure you'll love it. Ingredients required 1. 5 cups - Ragi flour (Finger millet flour) 1/2 cup - Cocoa powder 1 cup - Organic jaggery powder 1 cup -  Lukewarm Water 1/2 cup - Sunflower oil 3/4 tsp -  Baking soda 1/2 tsp - Salt 1tbsp - Vanilla extract 2 tsp - White Vinegar Procedure 1. Mix cocoa powder with lukewarm water and set it aside. Ensure that the temperature of water is just right and not too hot. It enhances the flavor and taste of cocoa in the cake. 2. Sift the flour, baking soda and salt to a container. Make ...

A plum once said, "Just because a banana lover came by, I converted myself into a banana. Unfortunately, his taste changed after a few months and so I became an orange. When he said I was bitter I became an apple, but he went in search of grapes. Yielding to the opinions of so many people, I have changed so many times that I no more know who I am. How I wish I had remained a plum and waited for a plum lover." Just because a group of people do not accept you as you are, there is no necessity for you to strip yourself of your originality. You need to think good of yourself, for the world takes you at your own estimate. Never stoop down in order to gain recognition. Never let go of your true self to win a relationship. In the long run, you will regret that you traded your greatest glory - your uniqueness, for momentary validation. Even Gandhi was not accepted by many people. The group that does not accept you as you is not your world. There is a world for each one...

Five Types of Seva There are five types of seva. The first type of seva is when you do not even know that you are doing seva. You do not recognize it as seva because it is your very nature - you cannot but do it! The second type of seva is what you do because it is needed in that situation. You do the third type of seva because it gives you joy. The fourth type is done out of your desire for merit - you do seva expecting some benefit in the future. And the fifth type is when you do seva just to show off, to improve your image and to gain social or political recognition. Such seva is simply exhausting, while the first type does not bring any tiredness at all! To improve the quality of your seva, regardless of where you start, you must move up to higher levels of seva. -Sri Sri Jai Gurudev!! Shruthi

Wonderful composition! Amazing lyrics!... Sau raginiyon se sajaa Bharat anokha raag hai Sau raginiyon se sajaa Bharat anokha raag hai Ye pyaar ka sangeet hai Ye shaanti ka geet hai Ye ekta ka raag hai Bharat anokha raag hai Sau raginiyon se sajaa Bharat anokha raag hai Anokha raag hai Bharat ke is ek taare pe Goonje hai jo jo ragini Sab mil gayin ek dhun bani Iss dhun pe naara ek hai Iska taraana ek hai Ye raag sabka raag hai Bharat anokha raag hai Jai hind jai hind Jai jai jai hind, jai hind Jai hind jai hind Jai hind jai hind Iss des ki reet ek hai Hain dhadkane ek taal mein Sur anginat geet ek hai Ye des sabka des hai Kya bol hain kya raag hai Sab gayen aisa raag hai Sau raginiyon se saja, Bharat anokha raag hai Bharat anokha raag hai, Bahuroop me anuraag hai Sau raginiyon se saja, Bharat anokha raag hai Jai hind, jai hind, jai jai hind...  Watch it! Jai Gurudev! Love, Shruthi

We spent the weekend in the most relaxing n refreshing way. Had been on a one-day trip to Ranganathittu Bird Sanctuary and Mysore. We set off early in the morning...It was quite foggy, but pleasant. It was such a great feeling to watch the sunrise! - a perfect break from the monotonous life. After satiating our tummies with a sumptuous breakfast on the way, we set off towards Ranganathittu Bird Sanctuary.After an hour n a half's drive, we reached the sanctuary. It's a small island on the banks of river Kaveri and is rich in flora and fauna. A place where all bird lovers would love to be. The sanctuary is a nesting and breeding center for all kinds of birds. The sanctuary owes its existence to the world famous ornithologist Dr. Salim Ali who convinced the Maharaja of Mysore in 1940 to declare it as a protected area. We began walking alongside the huge n tall trees, bamboo groves and chirping sounds of brids, wishing that we could treat our eyes, watching ...

Shivaratri is the day of Lord Shiva. Shiva is the lord of meditation and therefore the lord of awakening. Shiva Tatva means to be awakened. Shivratri is thus an occasion to awaken one’s self from all sorts of slumber. Shivaratri is not a night to be slept over. One should try and be up through the night. It signifies being aware of everything you have and being grateful about it. Be grateful for the happiness which leads to growth, and also for sadness which gives a depth to life. This is the right way of observing Shivaratri. For the pious, the following method of Shiva worship is advisable – sit down in lotus posture, do some Pranayam to stabilize your breath, then indulge in Dhyana, followed by chanting of ‘Om Namah Shivaya’. It is the greatest mantra and the devout should drown himself in its Kirtan. Shivaratri worship leads to fulfillment of a devotee’s wishes. There are certain days and time frames in a year that enhance one’s mental and spiritual faculties. In such tim...

Mumbai and Poona have seen a sudden increase in teen suicides. As the two cities struggle with the tragedies, Art of Living has swung into action by launching a helpline in association with Just Dial. Only, we called it the HopeLine. It’s for anyone who needs to talk, but doesn’t have any one they can talk to about anything they wish to. Please spread the word and let many people know about this. You may just save a life!! Jai Gurudev! -Shruthi

FORGIVING OR PUNISHING . . . . Forgiving or punishing the terrorists is left to God. But, fixing their appointment with God is our responsibility - Indian Army Updated statement for this in S/w industry... . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Forgiving or punishing the Developer is left to Manager. But, fixing their appointment with Manager is our responsibility -Tester We all knew that..... but this one is damn good.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Forgiving or punishing the Manager is left to Client. But, fixing their appointment with Client is our responsibility - Developer

Hi all, I was in a cooking mood today. My parents were not at home and I had all the time to experiment. I thought it would be a surprise for them as well, particularly my mother (who thinks I can never cook!) Just tried out her recipe of making dal. It's the easiest and healthiest food I can think of. You just need some yellow dal, coriander/curry leaves, tomatoes, chilli(optional). Pressure cook the dal with some turmeric powder. While that's cooking, cut the tomatoes into small pieces and heat two spoons of oil in a kadai Temper it with few mustard seeds and some asafoetida. Add in green Chillies and chopped tomato too. Now, add in the cooked dal. Add salt as per taste. Mix it thoroughly. Cook for about 3-4 minutes and turn off the heat. You can serve the hot, steaming dal with rice and lil ghee. Total cooking time : 30 minutes Vanishes within 10 minutes!...trust me~~ Jai Gurudev! Love, Shruthi

Love, Jai Gurudev! -Shruthi

'Foggy', cutely called 'Fogs' is my cousin's lovable dog. He's a Labrador..as naughty as possible. He's the darling of the family..pampered by all. A few months ago, Fogs went out for his usual morning walk and never returned home. May be he had plans of going on an adventure!!! Everyone in the family missed him a lot and wished that he came back.. Nobody could forget him. It had been months since he had disappeared...everyone had lost hope of seeing him again ...and then a miracle happened One of our cousin's friends found him wandering along one of the streets.. Little did he know that his 'adventure' had come to end!.. To everyone's joy Fogs was brought back home... Like all fairy-tale endings....all lived happily Here's Foggy's pic.. To end with..here's a joke for you.. Two women are arguing whose dog is smarter: First woman : My dog is so smart. Every morning he waits for a paper boy to come around ...

Q: I was delighted as a young man when Einstein said that we were only using 10 percentage of our potential and there was a possibility that we could develop our full potential. So of course the search was on. Having him say that, it was kind of like intellectual greatness was that potential and I looked around and realized that there were a lot of other qualities that are great: compassion, courage, happiness and responsibilities. It made me realize that, at least made me think that our full potential wasn't just intellectual greatness, it was other greatness that is part of our full potential. I was wondering if you could describe the qualities of a person who is really living their full potential. Sri Sri: You know, the energy in an atom is something you can not measure. Similar to the human potential, you can not see how much is full potential. The ancient saying goes that nature of a human being is very similar to that of an atom. In an atom, the central part of the atom is po...

Every person on this planet is aware about Global warming. We are obviously concerned, but are we actually doing anything about it?!.. This is a question all of us need to keep asking ourselves and ponder over..and not just that..think about what we can do to fight it.. There is ample amount of information about it available on the internet. Firstly, find out your Ecological footprint .. Easy way to counter Global Warming : Go Veg! Folks, this is the first step we can take and the least we can do to save the planet!... Eating non veg food is connected to global warming in many ways. By just changing your diet, you can save the planet. If you disagree with me, these facts are for you.. Source: http://www.flex.com/~jai/articles/101.html PEOPLE Every year in the UK we feed our livestock enough food to feed 250,000,000 people while in the world 30,000,000 people die of starvation 20 vegetarians can live off the land required by one meat eater Every 3 seconds a ch...

It's been long since I posted anything... Wish to post more often.. Meanwhile, to keep the blog alive, here are some really funny and creative advertisements...:-) Jai Gurudev! Love, -Shruthi

You must be wondering what it's all about. Well, I'm talking about stereo-grams. Stereo-grams are 3D images hidden within another picture. I've always been fascinated by them. I found them so entrancing, ever since I managed to see one. I'm eager to learn about how to create one. I haven't posted any stereo-grams here as they are copyrighted. You can find loads n loads of them on the web. Check it out and you'll be captivated for quite some time. Initially it might take a lil bit of patience to view them, but it's simpler and fun, once you get the knack of it!. Jai Gurudev Love, Shruthi

Seven days of Masti, Knowledge, Singing, Dancing, Sharing and Smiling! :-) That's a glimpse of the YES!+ workshop for you. 25 youth participated in the YES!+ Workshop, held recently. It was one of the most fabulous experiences!. YES!+ is a dynamic workshop, specially designed for the students and working professionals. It brings in profound changes in every individual!. The workshop led by our brilliant teachers, Shailendra bhaiya and Anant anna was exhilarating, with power-driven Yoga sessions, interesting Q n A sessions, lots of fun with group activities, engrossing session with our Dear Bawa n Dinesh bhaiya..:-) It's so pleasing to see a few blessed souls just blossom ;-) ;-) ;-) "Welcome to a New World, just a Few Breaths away!". Join us on this beautiful journey :-) The next YES!+ Workshop is from Aug 24th-30th! :-) Check out http://yesplus.org .... Jai Gurudev Love, Shruthi

I'm back in Bangalore from the Advanced course with our Dearest Chayanna, in Kamalashile. Feeling totally refreshed and euphoric. While traveling back to Bangalore, I was just struc k by this idea about starting a blog. "Why not pen down something that sounds interesting?"...and lo here's my first post. . The past one week spent there has been a totally blissful experience. Kamalashile is located at a distance of 35 km from Kundapura in Udupi district. The place has its own charm, covered with lush greenery, flowing Kubja river, waterfalls...in the midst of all this is the Divine mother's temple. A cave where the Devi incarnated is an added attrac tion. We reached there for the Gurupoornima celebrations. Every soul present there would surely agree with me that it was a heavenly experience, in Guruji's grace and blessings, and Chayanna's presence. Bliss! Bliss! Bliss and nothing else. It was like seeing Lord Shiva himself while Chayanna was performing the H...