How to remove ctrl-M character from unix files using Vi editor

^M is DOS line break charater which shows up in unix files when uploaded from a windows file system in ascii format.

To remove this, open your file in vi editor and type

:%s/(ctrl-v)(ctrl-m)//g

and press Enter key.

Hurricane Sandy

Sunday, Oct 28th early morning I received a call from a close friend of mine. He warned me about the destructive potential of hurricane Sandy and what it could mean for us. We don't live very far from water and I started thinking whether to act brave and stay at home or go to his home which is far away from water!

My wife was out of town attending a conference which added more pressure on me. After a few hours, I decided to go to the friend's home. Wind was blowing fast and it was not an easy drive, but we felt very safe and taken care after reaching their home. We felt blessed to have such friends who offered us help when we needed it. They lost power after some time, but they had a generator which made life much easier.

We could see the fury of the storm through the windows. Wind was blowing at a very high speed and chairs on the deck were trying to fly away even though they were tied by a rope.

The kids were playing inside and didn't seem to bother about what was going on outside.

Monday morning we drove back to our home in RI. We heard on the radio that Rhode Island was hit hard by hurricane Sandy. We were not sure what to expect when we reach home. Luckily, Sandy had spared our neighborhood! We heard Narragansett, South Kingstown and Westerly were hit hard by Sandy.
Our friends from South Kingstown came to our home in the evening to take a shower because they didn't have electricity.

Overall, people in RI were very lucky. When mother nature gets furious, there is nothing one can do.

We thanked God for keeping us safe and life goes on :)

'Chakkiar Koothu' - a Kerala art form

I still have memories of 'Chakkiar Koothu' performed by great artists every year in the temple next to our house in Trichur, Kerala. It is a great art form. If you are sitting in the front row among audience, it is almost certain that you will be made fun by 'Chakkiar'. Mani Madhava Chakkiar was a very famous Chakkiar koothu artist

The Koottu or more properly Chakyar koottu is a similar institution from immemorial times. The Chakkiars are a peculiar sect of people. They are said to be the off spring of Brahmin parents begotten as the result of illegal relationships. Hence they are a socially fallen caste. On important utsavam and atjer occasion in koottu is performed inside the buildings attaché to temple and specially set apart from the purpose. The actor dresses up in a quaint style with brummagem bracelets on the forearms and the feet. Around his waist he ties a peculiar cloth with a ridiculous profusion of folds all round and reaching barely up to the knee. He were a head dress also; and with ashes and sandal smeared all over the body comes in to perform his koottu. Chakkiar women are known as Nangiars, one of whom is always present by the side of the Chakkiar when engaged in his performance. A tom- tom is beaten by one called Nambiar in the interval between the recitation of the slokas and the explanation of their meanings. The Koottu consist in the recitation by the Chakkiar of certain Puranic slokas and his comments on them; which he does in very funny and pointed ways.

The Chakkiars are formidable critics of men and things. They always possess the requisite cleverness to apply the context of a recited sloka in an extremely amusing fashion to particular person amongst the assembled spectators and making the whole company of them enjoy a hearty laugh over it. The received etiquette is that no one is to take offence at jocks cracked by Chakkiars nor even laugh loudly at them; any infraction of the etiquette will sufficiently justify their suddenly stopping the performance. They are of course remunerated by the temple authorities.

Vishnu Sahasranamam

Sri Vishnu Sahasranama Stotram consists of 107 stanzas which contain one thousand names of Lord Vishnu.  Every one of the names is full of significance and refers to one particular guna (quality) of Paramatma (Universal Soul).  These names invoke a sense of bonding with the Lord and the meanings of the names give us an understanding of God as there is a deep connection between the name and the named.

The key element of the act of chanting as a means to attain the Lord's grace is the sincerity and purity of mind.Many scholars have established that the chanting of Sri Vishnu Sahasranamam create sound vibrations. The phonetic sound vibrations by chanting each name known as Nama and the chain of names known as Namavali produce good results. It is believed that by reciting the entire slokhas glorifying the Lord Vishnu, the chanter attains spiritual liberation.  Long recital of Naamas glorifying Lord Vishnu is very rare anywhere.

According to the legends, at the end of the Mahabharata war, Bhishma, grandsire of the Kuru dynasty was waiting for the sacred hour to depart from his physical body. Bhishma was the son of the Mother Ganga and a person sanctified by his unswerving devotion to Lord Krishna, and one who had controlled and conquered all his senses. Bhishma was acknowledged as one of the twelve knowledgeable people, others being Brahma, Siva, Subramanya, Narada, Kapila, Manu, Prahlada, Janaka, Bali, Suka and Yama.

Prince Yudhishtira, the eldest of the five Pandavas, was mentally depleted because of the war with the Kauravas and the misery of death and suffering that was created by the war in which he had been a major player. Yudhishtira was an embodiment of Dharma, and a practitioner of justice, righteousness, truth, honesty and integrity. Yudhishtira sought Bhishma's advice on the easiest and best means by which mankind can attain lasting happiness, peace of mind, and relief from all bondage and sorrows. He was anxiously looking for the answers relating to Dharma and Karma. Lord Krishna, understanding Yudhistira’s perturbed mind, guided him to Bhishma to learn the insight into this knowledge.

As directed by Lord Krishna, Prince Yudhishtira, presented following six questions to Bhishma. The questions were: Who is the greatest Lord in the world? Who is the one refuge of all? By glorifying whom, can man attain peace and prosperity?  By worshipping, whom can man reach auspiciousness? What is the greatest Dharma? By doing Japa what can ordinary mortals go beyond the cycle of birth and death? Yudhishtira, as a righteous man of spiritual inclination, asks these interesting set of questions which the seekers will always ask.

Bhishma responded to the queries of Yudhishtira by reciting the 1000 names of Lord Vishnu and reminded him that either by meditating on these names or by invoking the names through Archana (offering),the  mind can be elevated to higher consciousness. The thousand Naamas are the storehouses of spiritual content and their chanting helps to unite the nervous system and the Mind.

It is the bhaava (spirit) that matters while chanting the name of God with sincerity whether one knows the meaning or the pronunciation. Traditionally, Hindu prayers end with a phala sruti (benefits of reciting).  Firmness of mind, good memory, happiness of the self and freedom from anger, jealousy, and greed, are some of the benefits that accrue to one who recites the stotram with devotion and eagerness.

Just like cleansing the body regularly to maintain good health, cleansing of the mind is equally essential. Prayers are a means to mental cleansing when they are chanted with devotion. Veda Vyasa, who was responsible for stringing the Naamas together in a poetic form, points out that it is by the power and command of Lord Vishnu that the Sun, the Moon, the stars, the world and the oceans are controlled.  The universe is under the sway of the Lord and in Bhishma’s judgment, chanting the Lord’s name with devotion will ensure relief from sorrows.  The person who recites is not the only one who benefits, but also those who are hearing the chanting as well.

It is believed that chanting of Vishnu Sahasranama will lead to success in this life and hereafter. Although devotion is considered the most important thing while reciting any prayer or Mantra, use of the correct pronunciation is believed to enhance the satisfaction derived from the recital, in the case of both vocal and mental chants. Chanters of the Vishnu Sahasranama claim that it brings unwavering calm of mind, complete freedom from stress and eternal knowledge. It is customary to commence the Vishnu Sahasranama with a devotional prayer to Lord Vishnu.
 

Slavery and American music

Recently, I attended a lecture and concert by Mr.Ray Kamalay at Warwick,RI public library. The subject was about the connection between slavery and American music. The writing below are some excerpts from his lecture and what I read about it further. I thought of sharing it with you here.

The slave trade brought Africans to the Americas to work in the plantations. In some states in the U.S., early European settlers and slaves shared some of their musical traditions and influenced each other’s world.The banjo, now central in American folk music, is an instrument brought over to the Americas by African slaves. In other states, the music of African slaves was banned unless it accompanied an approved religious activity. Drums were banned because they were seen as especially dangerous since drum sounds were linked to language and gave slaves a way to communicate that could not be controlled or understood by slave owners.To compensate for a lack of instruments, people who were enslaved relied on other forms of musical expression. “Hambone,” a style of body percussion, was used as a substitute for drums, as it served a rhythmic function for music. To play hambone, a person uses his or her hands to hit the chest and thighs to create different slapping sounds. Playing household objects also became necessary. Just as instruments were made in Africa from natural materials that were available to people when they were free, enslaved Africans used the resources available to them in their environments. An example of this is the playing of spoons, another type of body percussion. Vocal traditions also flourished among African people under slavery. Songs were used to soothe the heart and send messages of possible escape routes. Current music forms such as the Blues, Soul and Gospel grew out of the strong vocal traditions of early African Americans.

Music expression in Africa varied from one cultural group to the other, but most traditions commonly shared certain characteristics. African songs were intended to accompany religious ceremonies and dancing, to inspire hunters, to coordinate work, and to celebrate events such as the birth of a child. Music was woven into the culture, forming part of ordinary living, almost as commonplace as speech. In the Americas, enslaved Africans used music and dance for:

Purpose:	Diffusion Resulted in:
a) Easing pain of work	Works songs, the Blues
b) Worship	Gospel traditions
c) Communication	Drums and songs used to pass secrets messages
d) Entertainment	Minstrels

Jazz

Jazz is one of the musical traditions that developed out of the interchange between Africa and European musical traditions in the Americas. Jazz is a musical genre created mainly by Africans living in the Americas who amalgamated elements drawn from African music and European-American music traditions. It developed in three stages:

1. First, the development in the 18th and 19th century of an indigenous black folk music from African and European –American elements.
2. Second, the rise of instrumental music in urban areas after the abolition of slavery from other African-American traditions, notably plantation and minstrel songs, ragtime, and blues. Black Americans were becoming well versed on instruments that were brought from Europe, such as the piano and horns, applying an African rhythmic sensibility, percussiveness, and need for improvisation to the playing of these instruments.
3. Third, the appearance of jazz itself, merging blues, ragtime and mainstream popular music.

The attraction to jazz lies in its particular combination of rhythm, melody, harmony, and instrumental sound. Jazz is often referred as the combination of Ragtime, marching brass bands, and blues, with structural space for improvisation. In the process of diffusion and the development of jazz, different styles emerged such as Swing, Bebop, Funk, Cool Jazz and Fusion. Jazz is a style of music that has traveled back to Africa along with the influence of American artists like Herbie Hancock, Don Cherry, and Louis Armstrong. African jazz and funk artists such as Manu Dibango, Fela Kuti, and Abdullah Ibrahim have all been influenced by American jazz.

Blues

Just after the civil war in the United States, a popular musical tradition known as The Blues developed out of field hollers and prison songs. Though African Americans were legally free at this time, the work that was available to them was hard, heavy work for which they were paid very little. Men labored in fields for farmers in exchange for a small plot to plant, or they helped with civic projects such as building levees to prevent rivers from flooding. It was common in those days for prisoners to be locked together with chains for labor projects such as pounding rocks into gravel. The rhythms of these types of labor served as backdrops for songs about suffering, poverty and women. The term “Blues” itself refers to a state of mind that suggests sadness, struggle and suffering. Many of the songs contain lamentations about life in the plantations and the suffering endured by the slaves. Blues instrumental styles show links with African music. Stringed instruments such as guitars and one-stringed bows are used with bottle necks to provide a singing-type sound on the instrument, and a Blues singer will utilize the Call and Response musical form to play a song with his instrument.

Gospel

Gospel is a body of religious song that is prevalent in North America and has captured the attention of both the young and old audiences throughout the world. Gospel reflects aspects of the personal religious experiences of Protestant Evangelical groups, both black and white. If you remember Rev. Andrea Chrouch and Jimmy Swaggart, they both represent two streams of gospel in North America.
Black gospel music exhibits the African connection of gospel music to the continent and its people. This music draws from both white and black sources. The black influence can be traced to spirituals, which where sung in service meetings attended by slaves. This genre represents an adaptation of African ways of singing to hymnody. This can be noted in the use of syncopation and re-accentuation, flexible inflections and blue notes, and Call and Response delivery. Black gospel is one genre that coincided with the beginnings of Ragtime, Blues and Jazz and the rise of the Pentecostal churches at the end of the 19th century.

Rock and Roll

Rock and Roll is another product of African musical traits brought here beginning with slavery which combined with European music brought here by the colonists. It is a musical genre that has been popularized by North America, Europe and Asia. It is often described as beginning with Bill Haley and His Comets and includes scant information about the blues and rhythm records that he, and others, used as a model. The most popular artist associated with this genre is Elvis Presley who had this hit song: "Good Rocking Tonight", originally Wyonnie Harris' 1947 song. African American Rock and Roller, Chuck Berry, was also very popular during Elvis’ time, but not as popular, many say because of his race. Elvis made Rock and Roll safer for white audiences, even though his dancing was controversial.
The African musical influences in Rock and Roll can be traced back to the plantation songs of Stephen Foster, the ragtime of Scott Joplin, the blues of Bessie Smith, the jazz of Count Basie, and the jump bands of Louis Jordan. The knowledge of the stream of American popular music allows one to understand that rock and roll was a natural result of the combined forces that affected the music.

Hip Hop

Hip-hop has come to represent a collective term for Black American urban art forms that emerged in the late 1970’s. The music of hip-hop culture is rap music, which combines poetry with instrumental rhythms and contains a certain level of competition among artists. It is characterized by semi-spoken rhymes declaimed over rhythmic musical backing, drawn from the sampling of pre existing recording and used of DJ mixing techniques (Grove’s Dictionary of Music and Musicians, p. 829). It is a vocal style that was developed in Jamaica when DJs would talk over the Reggae Dub music they played for their audiences. Jamaican immigrants to New York City in the late 1960s and early 1970s brought this musical practice with them, and young urban black Americans adapted it to their situation. Funk and soul tracks were used as the musical backdrops for this new American sound. Groups such as Run DMC and Afrika Bambaata are some of the early artists that popularized hip-hop in America. Recently we have seen that the influence of Hip-hop has reached back to Africa, with the emergence of similar styles such as Kwaito of South Africa (Arthur is a popular artist) and the new generation of Afrobeat in West Africa (like Fela Kuti’s son Femi Kuti).