Music is my Breath

Hello! I am Kondaveeti Jyotirmayi. 

I have two great passions in my life. One is music other social service. Goddess Saraswati pervades through all my activities pertaining music. In music my inspirations are the legendary singers M S Subbalakshmi and Lata Mangeshkar. And my idols in social service are Mother Teressa, Nelson Mandela and Kofi Annan. Music is the breath of life and social service is the guiding principle of my life. I have a special place and penchant for Annamacharya’s hymns in my music. His devotion, his love for humanity, his reformist zeal, so beautifully expressed in his songs, enthrall me. I derive some sort of supreme happiness singing those hymns. They elevate me spiritually to higher realms of experience. 

                                                

How did you develop taste for music?
As my father was away in Saudi Arabia. I was brought up by my mother and grand mother – both devote and spent a lot of time singing hymns as part of worship. It was but natural for me to develop taste for music in that ambiance. I started learning classical music at my 10th year soon after I received a number of awards as a child artist. I was good in everything music, dance, drama, games and studies as well – the best all rounder.

Why are so very fond of Annamacharya?
It is the meaning, the spirit behind the hymns, his universal brotherhood, his zeal for reformation – they revealed to me that music could be used for reform and to elevate human soul.

Which of your activities gave you the greatest satisfaction?
It is the publication of books in Braille which gave me the greatest satisfaction. May be that effort was the first of its kind. We published the Bible, the Quran, the Ramayan, the Mahabharata, Bhagavatam, Biography of Mahatma Gandhi, Stories of Tenali Ramakrishna etc. both Gunnies Book of World records, and Limca Book of records mentioned my work in their volumes. I am particularly pleased and thrilled to say that the books I published were released by not less a person than President A P J Abdul Kalam, R Venkata Raman, K R Narayan and Prime Minister A B Vajpayee. We distributed the books and CDs to rural libraries free of cost. This work gave me at most happiness.

Tell us about your work in speading Annamayya’s hymns. In addition to the existing Guru Kondaveeti Jyothirmayi International Trust, we have established Annamayya Kala Peetam! Though I got a seat in a medical college, I forsook it, in order to pursue my twin passions music and social service.

Did you feel proud at any time?
Pride is a sensation, a feeling. Mother Teressa herself had inaugurated our family trust for social service. Nelson Mandela had personally appreciated our work. Don’t you think that they were proud moments? Don’t we feel proud and happy when we actually meet the persons whom we idolized? I was on the top of the World when they blessed me. They were truly historic moments in my life.

What do you do in your leisure time?
As far as I am concerned, I do not find any leisure. I spend the whole day singing, teaching Annamayya’s songs in person and through internet. I have got a number of disciples. Music and social service had penetrated into my life. They are the integral part of my life.

What are your future programmes?
I just want to continue to involve myself in the activities I have already started. Our organization also extends help and assistance to others who are involved in social work – help as many as you could is our motto.

What about your awards?
I received awards on all levels – school, college, state and national – best singer award from Indian Universities, International woman of the year. American award of recognition, Spirit of Service award from Kuwait Telugu Kala Samithi, Ambassador of peace and harmony – many such. I feel every award has increased my responsibility many a folds.

KALPANA CHAWLA

KALPANA CHAWLA (PH.D.)

                                              


NASA ASTRONAUT (DECEASED)

PERSONAL DATA: Born in Karnal, India. Died on February 1, 2003 over the southern United States when Space Shuttle Columbia and the crew perished during entry, 16 minutes prior to scheduled landing. She is survived by her husband. Kalpana Chawla enjoyed flying, hiking, back-packing, and reading. She held a Certificated Flight Instructor's license with airplane and glider ratings, Commercial Pilot's licenses for single- and multi-engine land and seaplanes, and Gliders, and instrument rating for airplanes. She enjoyed flying aerobatics and tail-wheel airplanes.

EDUCATION: Graduated from Tagore School, Karnal, India, in 1976. Bachelor of science degree in aeronautical engineering from Punjab Engineering College, India, 1982. Master of science degree in aerospace engineering from University of Texas, 1984. Doctorate of philosophy in aerospace engineering from University of Colorado, 1988.

AWARDS: Posthumously awarded the Congressional Space Medal of Honor, the NASA Space Flight Medal, and the NASA Distinguished Service Medal.


EXPERIENCE: In 1988, Kalpana Chawla started work at NASA Ames Research Center in the area of powered-lift computational fluid dynamics. Her research concentrated on simulation of complex air flows encountered around aircraft such as the Harrier in "ground-effect." Following completion of this project she supported research in mapping of flow solvers to parallel computers, and testing of these solvers by carrying out powered lift computations. In 1993 Kalpana Chawla joined Overset Methods Inc., Los Altos, California, as Vice President and Research Scientist to form a team with other researchers specializing in simulation of moving multiple body problems. She was responsible for development and implementation of efficient techniques to perform aerodynamic optimization. Results of various projects that Kalpana Chawla participated in are documented in technical conference papers and journals.

NASA EXPERIENCE: Selected by NASA in December 1994, Kalpana Chawla reported to the Johnson Space Center in March 1995 as an astronaut candidate in the 15th Group of Astronauts. After completing a year of training and evaluation, she was assigned as crew representative to work technical issues for the Astronaut Office EVA/Robotics and Computer Branches. Her assignments included work on development of Robotic Situational Awareness Displays and testing space shuttle control software in the Shuttle Avionics Integration Laboratory. In November, 1996, Kalpana Chawla was assigned as mission specialist and prime robotic arm operator on STS-87. In January 1998, she was assigned as crew representative for shuttle and station flight crew equipment, and subsequently served as lead for Astronaut Offices Crew Systems and Habitability section. She flew on STS-87 (1997) and STS-107 (2003), logging 30 days, 14 hours and 54 minutes in space.

SPACE FLIGHT EXPERIENCE: STS-87 Columbia (November 19 to December 5, 1997). STS-87 was the fourth U.S Microgravity Payload flight and focused on experiments designed to study how the weightless environment of space affects various physical processes, and on observations of the Sun's outer atmospheric layers. Two members of the crew performed an EVA (spacewalk) which featured the manual capture of a Spartan satellite, in addition to testing EVA tools and procedures for future Space Station assembly. STS-87 made 252 orbits of the Earth, traveling 6.5 million miles in in 376 hours and 34 minutes.

STS-107 Columbia (January 16 to February 1, 2003). The 16-day flight was a dedicated science and research mission. Working 24 hours a day, in two alternating shifts, the crew successfully conducted approximately 80 experiments. The STS-107 mission ended abruptly on February 1, 2003 when Space Shuttle Columbiaand the crew perished during entry, 16 minutes prior to scheduled landing.

MAY 2004.....

We have quite a good number of inspiration givers...Just look around for those who thought Life in different dimension than in which usually seen by all...that is what is all that made the difference in their Lives too....Life lost in living...is an old version....."In Celebration of Being Alive" and to work for the cause with out worrying or focusing on the result is the NEW AGE MANTRA.....

"WE ALL LOVE YOU WITH OUR HEART AND SOUL DEAREST KALPANA.....♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥"

Sandhya, Shalini, Soujanya, Anusha, Vasantha Lakshmi, Lalitha, Srinivas, Sainandan, Raja, Rajesh, Rajsekhar & Chari.

7 Ways to Show Yourself a Little Love This Valentine's Day

"You, yourself, as much as anyone else in the universe, deserve your love and respect." - Buddha

Valentine’s Day. A day to exchange sweet nothings with your loved ones, shower them with roses and chocolates and hope for another year of love. A day to make and remember important, wonderful traditions and memories. But did you ever stop and tell yourself that you loved you? Have you shown your body the respect it deserves today?

While we worry about the life we create and the people we share it with, sometimes our inner dialogue can be quite mean: “I hate my hips/butt/thighs/arms/you name it!” “I feel so guilty for eating that.” “I shouldn’t have eaten dessert last night.” This negative self-dialogue is self-defeating, and it brings down your self-esteem every time those thoughts cross your mind. And there’s nothing less attractive than negative self-hate.





7 ways to show yourself a little self love this Valentine’s Day --

• Appreciate your body for what it does, rather than how it looks. Instead of bemoaning your stomach as you get dressed, rejoice in the strength of your core, legs and arms. 
• Write a list of 5 things you love about yourself today. 
• Learn to say no to things that don't help or support you and your journey. 
• Take at least 5 minutes out of today to do something for yourself. Take a relaxing bath, go for a walk, get a massage. 
• Leave comparison at the door. Comparing yourself to others in a negative light won’t help them and can only hurt you. 
• Focus on health, strength, joy and energy rather than weight. Eat healthfully and engage in physical activity that makes you feel great, rather than tired and drained. 
• Stand tall and project confidence. Confidence is sexy. Embrace it! 

This Valentine's Day, as you give some love to your parents, siblings, friends and companion, share a little bit of love with yourself. Allow yourself to fall deeply in love with yourself. Give yourself the gift of accepting the person you are today and love all of you this Valentine’s Day and every day after.

Torkom Saradarian's Feel on His Mother...In Telugu