Category Archives: Compass

RAJGOPAL NIDAMBOOR The good old philosophers Plato and Aristotle intoned their ethical standpoint, or metaphysical thought, within Greece, where they lived. Yet, the best part was their universal intellectual reach, or expanse. They moulded a vast, all-embracing philosophical epitome, never before personified — in ancient Greece, or elsewhere — although they may not have had […]

RAJGOPAL NIDAMBOOR It goes without saying that we are in the midst of what futurist Alvin Toffler called “the rattling and shaking.” And, with no let-up in sight, and no end to the cultural and economic upheaval, interspersed with the COVID-19 scourge, or ‘earthquake,’ we are witnessing a fundamental ‘shift’ in our lives at work […]

RAJGOPAL NIDAMBOOR When ‘His Airness,’ Michael ‘Magic’ Jordan, or just MJ, the King Arthur of Basketball, made his final bow from the game, his legion of fans was happy, elated, and, maybe, sad. Happy, because Jordan had given them a million moments to showcase memories of his true greatness; elated, because they’d now cherish recollections […]

RAJGOPAL NIDAMBOOR Notwithstanding our ‘clash’ with the times, also convention, there has been a huge transformation of position in our minds — from the old to the new. This has been engineered by our progress in science. Put simply, science’s success in explaining and predicting our natural world has now come to stay, be it […]

RAJGOPAL NIDAMBOOR Character is, indeed, the psychological muscle that moral conduct requires. Its bedrock? Self-discipline, as Aristotle observed, not to speak of self-control. A related keynote of character is being able to motivate and guide oneself, whatever your occupation, including the ability to defer gratification, and control and channel one’s urges to act. Les Ames’ […]

RAJGOPAL NIDAMBOOR Adapting to uncertainty, or ambiguity, is a fact of life, because evolution, or nature, does not design immortal beings — this is best represented with and through the surrealistic magic of movie-makers. Balance, or homeostasis, relates to physiological stability, or adaptability. It is also linked to mechanisms for maintaining internal viability and defence […]

RAJGOPAL NIDAMBOOR F Scott Fitzgerald was a remarkably gifted novelist, a writer par excellence with his own indelible stamp of dainty luminosity. Fitzgerald’s literary magic was not just rooted in his delectable prose, or his amazing range and versatility, but it also dwelled in his poetic imagination, dazzling vision and seemingly effortless — and, also […]

RAJGOPAL NIDAMBOOR Each of us is blessed with wholeness — to hold the divine essence in our being. This corresponds to a mirror with just one reflection — of our soul in the context of our vision, or eyesight. It quantifies the infinite expanse of our eyes — the sum of the parts, or part […]

RAJGOPAL NIDAMBOOR Sir Garfield St Auburn Sobers. What a name — and, description. A gallant knight and the game’s ultimate all-rounder. Sobers, who made his Test debut, against England, at Kingston, over 60 years ago [1953-54], was a total cricketing phenomenon. A three-, or four-in-one, marvel. He’s a Lara with the bat, an Alan Davidson […]