What is OLX QR Code fraud and how I saved myself from it?

Everyday we read this news. In newspapers and on online news portals. About people always being cheated on OLX while trying to sell their goods. I have a first hand experience of their modus operandi and I would like to share it here so that it will give people an idea of the way the things happen and take due care. Please be aware and please share this with your friends and family and save them from those thieves.

This happened about a year ago when I wanted to sell my dining table. Earlier, a few years ago when OLX was new, I had made some transactions and so I thought of going there again.

No sooner did I post my ad, the phone calls started pouring in. Thick and fast. Seriously. It must have been hardly a few minutes since I posted the ad and my phone did not stop ringing.

Initially though I felt happy, I started to feel that there is something fishy. 

Agreed that there will be no shortage of sellers and buyers for anything, anywhere and at anytime. But there will be a reasonable time and number of enquiries you expect. Here within minutes calls poured in. I will explain you the reason of this urgency on their part later. Please read on...

The calls I received were mostly from Hindi speaking persons. And they were willing to pay me the price I had asked. Without even asking any further details. After just seeing one or two photos I had posted.

A few did bargain but not very much. One person said he would come and collect the table immediately and would first like to make the payment. Then and there. Without even checking my table.

Since I was busy with some work at home, I told him that I would call him back and hung up. This became the scene with another two three persons.

And then I got a call from this person. He was in such a hurry that even when I told him that I was busy, he would not listen. He continued to call. Exasperated, I told him I won't reduce my price even by a rupee. He agreed!

He then told me that since he was outside, he would make the payment and his wife would come and collect the table. It was already 4 PM. When I asked him where his wife is, he told the address of a place which is very far off from the place where I stay.

I started wondering. I asked him how would she be able to come so far with a vehicle at such time. His answer was a bit evasive.Then he told me that he would like to pay me online. That he would send me the money immediately.

At first I demanded cash. To which he requested that since he was far off, his wife won't be able to pay the cash.

I said I would think about it but he kept calling.This strengthened my suspicion that there was something amiss.He insisted that he would test transfer some money and asked me to verify if it's received.

I said ok and asked him to send ten rupees through Paytm. He sent one rupee. I confirmed that I had received the money and asked him to transfer the full amount. He sent me a photo of a QR code.

Though I keep myself updated with the technology, I was not aware of that feature of Paytm which had been just then released.To get money transferred to your account by sharing your QR code.

For me the logic was simple. While shopping, I had to pay to the shop keeper so he shares his QR code and I scan it and pay. Here if anyone needs to scan the code it has to be the other person and not me.

When he called immediately and asked me to scan it, I refused. I put across the same logic and refused to scan it. In all innocence I asked him as to why I should scan it since I am the one who is supposed to receive the money. I suggested him to transfer it by using my mobile number.

As this argument was going on, as the time was passing he started to get agitated and I refused to budge. Then he put forth a new excuse. That he is working in army and that he is not supposed to transfer the money to anyone using their phone number! I knew he was losing his plot and I had actually started enjoying it and decided to play it along!!!

He started shouting at me to scan the code immediately. But I kept on asking why should I scan when he is the one who has to send me the money.

Finally quite irritated he started abusing me. He even asked me " Arrey auntie, kya aap itna bhi pade likhe nahi ho kya? Itne batane ke baad bhi wohi bol rahe ho?  ( " Are you such an illiterate that you are not able to understand what I am saying? " )

Now totally convinced that he is upto some mischief I firmly told him that I would accept his money and sell him the table only if he pays to me through my mobile number. Uttering some expletives he hung up!!!

Later when I told my daughter about all this exchange of words, she was so happy and relieved because just on the previous day, a colleague of hers and her husband had lost their money to such fraudsters  exactly in such a similar transaction.

Their modus operandi is similar. They would send the Q R code and the moment you scan it, they will draw the money from your account. When you call them back to tell that you haven't received the money, they would send the code once again, would ask you to scan it once again and would steal your money once again.

The cause of their hurry is because of two reasons. First,  it's kind of first come first serve or rather first catch and first steal policy! Out there, there are hundreds of such fraudsters who would be waiting for someone to post an ad. They will rush to you immediately and whoever is able to catch hold of you and convince you first will be able to loot you first.

Another reason is after about half an hour of your posting the ad, you will start getting alert messages from OLX to be aware of such elements and asking you this exercise your caution while making the transactions. 

May be because of thousands of such regular complaints, OLX has resorted to sharing such alert messages and the fraudsters are also aware of this and hence the hurry. 

I wish the OLX would make amends to give such alert messages the moment you post your ad. However, since I had the number of the fraudster who was calling me, I immediately registered a complaint with OLX and got a confirmatory mail from that they have blocked him.

But alas these thugs will definitely have many more numbers and many more ways to cheat people.

The best way would be to exercise caution and alert people and make them more aware.

I have written this detailed post to caution you and would request you to share this widely with your friends and your family. Help people to save their hard earned money.

Welcome to Facebook

Welcome to Facebook......

My rendezvous with Facebook team....

" .....Would you like to host a team from Facebook who are touring India at your home for a few hours in connection with their research work? It would be an interactive session of about five hours and you would be rewarded a few hundred dollars for your time." This was how the mail I received on 9th January last year read.

I always fill the plate of my life with every possible ingredient. I am a seeker of knowledge. There is a constant hunger to learn and to experiment.

So I generally am very active online, exploring and participating in many activities, surveys, Q&As - reading, writing and learning. Not only does it open a window to the world and to the people across the globe, I get to pocket a few hundred bucks along the way. Albeit it's not very sought after but having some money coming your way never hurts, does it?

So I was pleasantly surprised when I received the mail and I thought why not. I instantly intimated them about my willingness. Then I was informed that there were many across the country who are eager to participate in this activity and that there would be a screening of telephonic interview.

Ok. Fine.

I was given an international number from which I was expected to receive the call. And that was the time for the butterflies to start dancing in my stomach. No. I was not worried about the questions. I was worried about the accent!!!

I would deviate a little here. I have graduated in English literature, it was my favorite subject in school after maths. I loved reading English books in my teens, used to write in English and when TV came along, it was the English serials to which I was hooked. Infact I would sit with my children enjoying all the English cartoon shows and they caught up the language quite early and thank me for enhancing their vocabulary through those shows. In fact I have no hesitation in admitting that whenever I am upset and sad, in my mind I start talking and arguing and pleading only in English!!!

But the problem was entirely different. Having studied in ಪಕ್ಕಾ ಹಳ್ಳಿ ಕನ್ನಡ ಸಾಲಿ in North Karnataka, I had difficulty in quickly catching on the foreigners' accent. Watching on TV is different from having to follow them and answer to them over phone.

Fortunately for me when the call came, it was from an NRI and other than one or two " would you repeat please " ( psss... That had been taught to me by my daughter...) I sailed smoothly through the interview. 

Soon I received confirmation that I have been selected and this time they wanted me to send a few photos of inside of my home. The set up, where I would be seating and hosting my guests, the light and the space in the house. Well.... I stay in a small but beautiful house and with a trepidation I sent the photos. 

And finally I received the mail intimating the time and the names of my guests. All this while, my family thought that I was just having my routine time pass and nobody actually believed that I would be actually hosting a Facebook team from California. They were indulgent about both my enthusiasm and apprehensions and kept reassuring me not to worry because some local representatives would be visiting me. Even when I told that my guest list included the names of three foreign nationals and one Indian, they just smiled at me and thought that they would let that pass. 

And then the D Day arrived. I am a stickler of timings. And I expected my guests also to be the same. What with the famous Bangalore traffic, I think they were over cautious and in fact arrived a good eight minutes ahead of the schedule.

I had decided to be me, wearing a saree and welcomed them with a Namaste. To my pleasant surprise they had done their homework too and wished me the same way.

I hesitantly started conversing with them and soon we were chatting like long lost friends. Yes, though one Indian accompanied them, the interaction was only with the other three. They were extremely friendly and jovial. They were as fascinated by our home, our culture, our systems and our family as I was marvelled at having them at my home. In fact it turned out to be such an easy and friendly interaction that I confided to them about my apprehension about their accent and luckily for me it turned out to be not an issue at all!!

What followed was a marathon five hours interactive session, the details of which, unfortunately I can't share with anyone. And a little secret here. Conord, who did most of the interaction with me confided that he also felt as nervous about the whole experience as I was, having got up twice in the night, looking at the clock!!!

With all the cameras being set up and lights, camera, action started, my daughter, son-in-law and daughter-in-law who were in their offices were thrilled as the exchange of photos, videos and messages started flowing thick and fast.

It was a great experience indeed, having the team from Facebook around my home, enquiring about everything, appreciating my terrace garden, soaking in all the experiences, and listening, recording and shooting every word I uttered with great attention. 

My son had offered to stay back at home along with my husband to give me moral support and taking photos and videos and mostly reassuring me that I was doing fine.

Finally after five hours of pleasant interaction and having some snacks and juice, they bid us adieu with a promise to share with me the photos they had taken.

Before they left, I asked them curiously as to what led to my fortunate selection in this activity. I would proudly share with you that across the entire country twenty people had been selected based on their own criteria of identifying users who are passionate about their activities and from whom they felt would get good inputs.

The best compliment I received was when my son was all praises about my entire experience, about the way I handled the interview and took me out for a big treat in the evening ❤️

Nature.... My Teacher.

chitrannaa.blogspot.in

This universe, the nature, is filled with beautiful messages, only we need to have an open and receptive mind and heart to learn or enjoy. May be because of my very rural background I am extremely attached to nature and very passionate about the five elements. They cheer me up and lift my spirits. As a result the tiniest of rustic and earthly things give me a world of pleasure whereas the big worldly materials hardly entice me.

Move on

chitrannaa.blogspot.com

Pogo, my little pug has become the father of six cute little puppies.Well, on second thoughts, he is not a little pug anymore, but all of four years old and a father.His mate? Well, a smart dynamic young little twinkle.
Was it a love at first sight? Or a long courtship? Well, on the contrary, the lady played hard to get and Pogo, my handsome hunk was not the one to give up easily!
When I first saw the six tiny babies cuddled up with each other, I could not take my eyes off them. They were so cute, tiny and had not even opened their eyes.
And the mother, as to be expected, was very possessive.She would be extremely worried when we lifted the babies, anxiously following us till we gave the babies back.

chitrannaa.blogspot.com

Let Go ..........

chitrannaa.blogspot.in

Recently within a span of a month, there were two extreme events happening in the family, a birth and a death. Events, that bond and unite the family members.
My husband's nephew became father to a little angel while my sister-in-law lost her husband. While the family rejoiced looking at the pink baby and gushed over it, there was a sober melancholic feeling at the death.

Death, as I have seen, brings people together, at least temporarily. They forget their hostility, not only with the ones who have died, but also with those living around them. May be it is “smashana vairagya.” But as I perceive it, it is a realization, at least temporarily, that you are not the boss of your life, rather death. One becomes subdued, as the realization is drawn that each one of us is equally vulnerable. It hits really hard, when the death is unexpected and sudden. One gets philosophical, even spiritual after visiting a dead.

But does it last long? Alas, no.Forgetfulness is a beautiful gift of God. Otherwise life would become unbearable if one doesn't forget and moves on with the life. If we keep remembering every hurt, every pain and every ill feeling, there won't be any future. At the same time, forgetting the hard learned and hard hitting lessons is also a tragedy, a loss – as the lessons learnt would soon be forgotten.

Does the Universe, the nature plays with the living? Yes. It plays with the memory as well as with the forgetfulness of the human beings. In psychology, memory is the process in which information is encoded, stored and retrieved. It is here that we can win or try to win over the nature. OK, by nature, the moment we look at a thing, hear a word or get to smell something, it is stored in our memory.  And we can recall it only when we locate and retrieve it so that it returns to consciousness. How blissful would it be, if we are able to permanently erase the unpleasant and retain only the happy memories!

Do children have better memory than adults? It appears so but the fact is adults have better memory, the ability to remember more information, more accurately and for a longer period of time. This gives old dogs, who have more experiences, a leg up on younger ones. But how beautiful it would be, like children, if we are able to forget and forgive more easily and be able to recall only the pleasant and the positive?

This virtue is all the more evident in toddlers, who are so easy to please, always willing and coming forth to help and remain blissfully unaware of the darker side of the world, of human nature. I would like to close this article by recalling one beautiful incident that happened recently.
 I, along with children, recently attended a birthday bash at Woodrose club at

chitrannaa.blogspot.in

Brigade Millennium. After dinner, I went in search of a wash room. It was a big open air complex, and in the darkness, I was at a loss. As I was wandering around,I heard a sweet voice “Haaaiii” and I looked down at the bright eyes of my husband's nephew's little kids. It brought a warm smile on my face, lifted my spirits and I inquired what were they doing in that darkness.

Pointing a finger down the alley in the club, they asked me whether they can go down to play. Alarmed, I forbade them and asked them to return. Then cheekily they asked me why I was there. Just conversationally I mentioned that I am searching a wash room and walked ahead. Down the stairs, at a distance, I spotted the room. Leaving them on the stairs, I went down, walked and went inside.

After sometime when I opened the door, I was shocked to see two pairs of eyes looking at me waiting expectantly! I looked around just to check whether they have accompanied some body else, but gosh no, they have come down as my bodyguards!!! Seeing me, again as a  warm smile lit their faces and they started their reverse path escorting me. As they sprinted ahead of me I swallowed hard at the lump in my throat.


What a beautiful innocence, and what a selfless natural sweet gesture!!!

God, please let them and all the kids in the world retain this sweet innocent nature, and let us elders let go of our bitterness, erase our negative memories and try to follow their path and learn to live and let live.

 “............. The truth is, unless you let go, unless you forgive yourself, unless you forgive the situation, unless you realize that the situation is over, you cannot move forward...”
Steve Maraboli

D Day ...............

D Day....                                                    

chitrannaa.blogspot.in

Trivia....

I gave the name D Day to this write-up. Then as is my habit, I started wondering what exactly the D-Day referred to. Honestly I thought it to be an abbreviation for designated day. But curiosity took me to Google, and this is what I found. This is for those curious souls like me, willing to dig a little deeper till they find the treasure of truth  :-)

“ Historically, D-Day was a coded name for June 6 th 1944, the day Allies' troops landed on the Normandy beach, France, during World War II. Later on the term became a war  metaphor used for any day that is deemed important.”

Then I thought, whether the name I have given is appropriate? This article is all about love, engagement and marriage. But then as Shakespeare has put it, “ What is in a name? No other name given to rose will take away its sweetness.”

So D Day it is.....

Mehendi hai rachnewali............

Nikhil and Sumana's Engagement Eve..Mehndi Night 

chitrannaa.blogspot.in

chitrannaa.blogspot.in

chitrannaa.blogspot.in

chitrannaa.blogspot.in

chitrannaa.blogspot.in

chitrannaa.blogspot.in

chitrannaa.blogspot.in

Baby Doll...... All decked up with chocolates..... Eager to meet the bride.

chitrannaa.blogspot.in

chitrannaa.blogspot.in

A boy so full of life and a girl so prudent have been brought together by destiny on a path so exclusively made for both of them. We all pray to God to adorn their path with blossoms all over, spreading the aroma of love and togetherness.With loads of love,Best wishes for a very Happy life ahead.

How I met her .......

www.chitrannaa.blogspot.in

 

My marriage was sort of a whirlwind trip. I was working at Gulbarga, our native place and my father had come to Bangalore dairy on deputation from revenue department. And I came to visit him.This was way back in 1987.

And let me deviate a bit here to tell what Bangalore meant to us, for people born and brought up in small towns of North Karnataka. Nowadays with MOM and mobiles, Facebook and Whatsapp, the world has got truncated into a small place and you have access and connectivity to anybody from any place in the world. Living in any place in the globe is no big deal now. But back then for us Bangalore meant BANGALORE! A big dream all of us had was that at least once in life we should visit Bangalore! 

Sulagna Savadhana...

            Prologue

www.chitrannaa.blogspot.in

It is Sankramana Kaala, that period of time in my life where children have grown up,capable of taking care of their future and shaping their lives. My son Nikhil is getting engaged on February 1st and the marriage is scheduled on 16th of August 2015.

And it is a golden opportunity to record the events, preserve them for posterity and share with friends and families across the globe. I wish and also know for sure that I will have my friends and family in attendance to share the celebrities on the day D Day. When you are the host, you miss so many things during the event and only by watching the videos later you will be able to reconstruct the event.

But this can be compensated and I have other reasons to smile. Because I feel, more than the event and celebrations, the anticipation and the excitement and the build up to the event and the preparations have their own charisma. The thrills, frills, shopping, makeup, dressing, mehendi... the list is endless. There will be funny, mirthful and interesting incidents that bring smile, a tear, a guffaw and at times even nostalgic memories. I am going to share all these and much more with you all through my blog. Stay connected. I know you don't want to miss on anything...

Here we go !!!   

Boy Meets the Girl ............................

www.chitrannaa.blogspot.in

www.chitrannaa.blogspot.in

www.chitrannaa.blogspot.in

www.chitrannaa.blogspot.in

Families and  Pogo......     ................. meet the girl.........

Wish Anna and Amma.... You were here .........

www.chitrannaa.blogspot.in

Chats party at home..............

www.chitrannaa.blogspot.in

Outing to Sangama................

www.chitrannaa.blogspot.in

Engagement Venue ...Hotel Jayamahal Palace........

www.chitrannaa.blogspot.in

Shopping begins at Chickpet ...... 

www.chitrannaa.blogspot.in

With selfies ...............

www.chitrannaa.blogspot.in

                              Want to meet the Bride .........?????

www.chitrannaa.blogspot.in

Keep watching this space ................. 

Happy Birthday COLONY AMMA ......

Have you ever met a person who has                                        

chitrannaa.blogspot.com

• Never got angry
• Never shouted at anyone
• Never let anything perturb her
• Never felt depressed
• Never worried
• Never was and never looked or acted greedy
• Never felt jealous of anyone
• Never cried
• Never was over-sensitive or
• Never was overtly emotional......

chitrannaa.blogspot.com

I can see the sceptic look on my readers' face.Don't think there can exist such a person? If you think so then you have not met this person. जानोगे तो मानोगे ना !  I am sure everybody except from my family would reply in negative. I am fortunate to have a Mother-in-Law who is all above and much more.

Amma.....

www.chitrannaa.blogspot.in

When I got married to the son of a family with a dozen siblings, I was always asked, “ How could you agree to get married into such a big family?” Strangely, it  never has been or is an issue. Because I had my own conditions to my father before I agreed to an alliance – that the boy should be an Engineer ( But of course :-D ), that he should be tall and good looking and he should not be from North Karnataka, he should not be remotely connected to North Karnataka, in fact he should not have even drank the water from North Karnataka ( With due apologies to “ಉತ್ತರ ಕರ್ನಾಟಕದ ಮಂದಿ ” )

Hello! Hold on before you call me racist. I am proud to be from North Karnataka, a region rich in culture and humanity, a region where people matter more than money, where people are strong, may be with rough lingo but with a soft inner nature belying their sort of ruffian demeanour. But ask any – ahem – beautiful girl born and brought up in North Karnataka region what she hates about her place and pat comes the reply – EVE TEASING.

It is so wild and rampant that those ruffians don't think twice before misbehaving with you even when you are with your parents, brother or even with your spouse. Even today I shudder thinking about their rowdyism and lecherous grin. So it was obvious that I make the above statement and on my wedding day my father complimented me with a wide grin “ ನೋಡಮ್ಮ ಉತ್ತರ ಕರ್ನಾಟಕದ ನೀರು ಕೂಡ ಕುಡಿಯದಿರೋ ಹುಡುಗನ ಜೊತೆ ಮದುವೆ ಮಾಡಿದೀನಿ ..."

And when I first met my would be mother-in-law, I was sort of bemused because she looked like yesteryear actress Leelavathi,  wearing silk saree, draping a shawl around her shoulder and strings and strings of gold adorning her neck. She always carries herself with dignity and grace and believe me, even now when she is about to celebrate her hundredth birthday, she is so conscious of her looks,presentation when she has visitors. It would be altogether an interesting and captivating account of my association with her for the past quarter century, which I hope to record here one day.

www.chitrannaa.blogspot.in

But for the present, my MIL is turning a centurion and its going to be a grand memorable event. Her family spread across the globe comprises of about 80 people of first circle – here I have not added her parents' or in-laws' family but only her children, grandchildren, great grandchildren, great great grandchildren – yes her grand daughter has a grandson now – and their spouses! Late N Ananthachar, my father-in-law has been respected and revered everywhere for being the founder of APS Educational Institutions, but there is no denying of this lady being behind that very successful man.  She is as much, if not more, as Sri. N. Ananthachar , responsible for building these huge philanthropic educational Institutions.

www.chitrannaa.blogspot.in

And we are having a whale of a time making preparations for the grand occasion. Who can deny the pleasure one has while going on shopping with one's husband's money to buy silk sarees? And accessories? And have tete-e-tete with food ordered from every possible eatery? OK OK we spent some of their money on buying them identical Ramaraj shirts as per their dress code – of course as decided by us :-D – And the grandchildren are not far behind. They too have their group – cousins – and are checking out different malls and eateries – making plans of their attires and the grand evening party at 1947 :-D

All the family members – all the 80 of them are hosts -to around 100 of the relatives of Late Sri N Ananthachar and Smt.Narmada Bai, to a traditional Homa and luncheon in the afternoon and a grand party in the evening.

What is the immediate upcoming event? A potluck party of youngsters at Anils' on Sunday, followed by a chats party – courtesy Amruthu – and a Mehendi on Friday, before the BIG DAY on March 9 th!

Keep watching this space for latest updates!!!

Parenting Tips

Economy :                             

Recently I came across an answer given by a boy in an interactive site wherein the boy had answered to a question regarding " How do people react to moving from low to a high standard of living. "

The boy was very articulate and firm and very forthcoming with explicit answers, quoting examples from his own family, about himself, his father and his grandfather. He had clearly analysed the socio economic background of the three - how from have nots, to middle class from the past two generations, he had moved up the ladder and has reached the top spectrum of the society. 

He narrated how his grandfather - from partition days - with great difficulty survived and moved to India to make a living for himself. This economic evolution had an effect on his social upbringing too and taking a lesson from Maslow's Hierarchy, he had beautifully explained the problems of generation gaps. Unfortunately the boy had written as Anonymous, so I cannot name him, but I would love to quote his words of final analysis "  "My   Grandad's greatest worry is to see all that he built breakup. My   Dad's  greatest worry is not having enough savings for his family. My   greatest worry is being  stuck in a routine lifestyle, with the same  old  people in the same old job." "

Art of Living :

As long as I was reading the article I was feeling as if he was taking words from my mouth. He reminded me of myself in my younger days, my reactions, my way of thinking and expressing and my style of living, i.e.being upright and straight-forward - sometimes even being labelled as a rebel and confrontationalist.

And suddenly it dawned ! Not only was his line of thinking and speaking similar to mine, it was exactly the way my son would speak. While reading the article I also had felt as if I was listening to my son, putting across his points, as effectively - with supporting facts and figures which broods no further argument. I could not help sharing this opinion with my son and he too acknowledged the fact with a smile. 

Generation Gap :

We would be seriously wrong if we claim that the previous generation was less intelligent than the present one. On the contrary  we can claim that the present generation is more smart than their predecessors :-) If we say the gen-next boys to do or not to do something, they demand a reason or logic for it. Why were our predecessors not like that? Or were they?

For example, when I tell my children to go to temple and pray, they will ask why go there as we can as well pray at home. My grandfather would not have questioned his father like that. Or did he? What would have been that father's explanation?

God and Religion :

Recently I came across a mail that was doing circulation on the net, from an unknown source, scientifically explaining the need go pray in temples which I have quoted below. 

The scientific explanation for visiting Temples regularly :

Generally, vedic temples are located in a place where earth’s magnetic waves pass through.

In simple terms, these temples are located strategically at a place where the positive energy is abundantly available from the magnetic wave distribution of north/ south pole thrusts.

The Main Idol is placed in the center,where high magnetic values are available.A copper plate with some Vedic scripts is buried,beneath the Main Idol. This place is known as “Garbhagriha” or Moolasthana.

The copper plate absorbs the earth's magnetic waves and radiates them to the surroundings. Thus a person making clockwise pradakshina of the Main Idol’s placement, automatically receives the beamed magnetic waves.

Regular visits make him absorb more positive energy.The Sanctum Sanctorum is completely enclosed on three sides.The effect of all energies is very high in here.The lamp that is lit radiates the heat and light energy.The ringing of the bells and the chanting of prayers gives sound energy.The fragrance from the flowers, the burning of camphor give out chemical energy. The effect of all these energies comes out of the idol.

This is in addition to the north/south pole magnetic energy that is absorbed by the copper plate and utensils that are kept in the Moolasthanam.

The water used for the Pooja is mixed with Cardamom, Benzoin, Holy Basil (Tulsi), Clove, etc is the “Theertham”.This water becomes more energized because it receives all these combined energies.

The water that is sprinkled onto the people passes on the energy to all. That is the reason why, men should not wear shirts to the temple and ladies should wear more ornaments because it is through these jewels (metal) that positive energy is absorbed by ladies.

It is proved that Theertham is a very good blood purifier, as it is highly energized. In addition, temples offer holy water (about three spoons).This water is mainly a source of magneto therapy as they place the copper water vessel at the Garbhagriha.

It also contains cardamom, clove, saffron, etc to add taste and Tulsi (holy Basil) leaves are put into the water to increase its medicinal value!

The clove essence protects one from tooth decay, the saffron & Tulsi leave essence protects one from common cold and cough, cardamom and benzoine
known as Pachha Karpuram,acts as a mouth refreshing agents.

Last, but not least….when you walk around in the PRAHARAMS…both inner and outer… your walking exercise is done in a serene atmosphere!!!!

This way, one’s health too is protected, by regularly visiting Temples ! "

Physics and Philosophy : 

I don't have the source or the author of this information, but it sounds quite right to me. But for my son, this would sound like physics and chemistry. My father, may be would have learnt about it, but would have thought, " Let me tell if and when asked", and my grandfather would have silently followed his father without questioning and his father might have been too scared to ask, his father would not have dared to even think of asking, and his father .......

This can go on and on and on. The only complaint I have against my predecessors is that either they didn't records the scientific reason for everything they did, or questioned when being asked to do. Or may be they wrote it down in a language which was not universal - Sanskrit - which is not as widely used in today's world like English.

Records :

So at least now is the time to keep a record of scientific analysis and findings and preserve them. Let us record what we know, let us try to find out what we don't know, or keep a track of what has not been recorded properly so that the next generation will have a strong scientific basis and foundation and don't under estimate our knowledge :-)

Tell Me :

Do you agree with me or differ? I would love to hear from you and receive your feedbacks. Please feel free to give your opinions in the comment box below.