What I Missed While Walking Past the Kanchi Mutt

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A place I passed every day without really understanding it. As a kid growing up in Malleswaram, devotion wasn’t something we discussed — it was just in the air. The smell of agarbathi in the evenings. The noise of vendors lining up on 8th cross before a festival. The quiet expectation that you showed up, bowed your head, and moved on. Ganesh Chaturthi. Varalakshmi Vratam. Deepavali. Janmashtami. Ugadi. The calendar moved, but the pattern stayed. The Kanchi Kamakoti Peetham in Malleswaram was part of my daily route to school. Not something I questioned. Not something I deeply understood. Just… there. Every morning, on my way to school, I would slow down for a second in front of the Mutt. Just enough to bow my head toward Kanchi Kamakshi from outside the gate — and then hurry along before the school bell. It was a ritual for as long as I can remember. I don’t know if it came from devotion. I did it because my parents did it. The street...
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Twists and Turns

There are few games that can match the excitement of football. This world cup has certainly been fascinating and brilliant. The top teams qualified to the second stage, and the quarter-finals had some interesting contests and now the semi-finals awaits. It is also fun to make predictions at the start of the tournament and see how the saga unfolds. The quarter-finals lineup was lip smacking. Look at the play-offs

Germany v/s Argentina
England v/s Portugal
Italy v/s Ukraine
France v/s Brazil

The first and the last match had all the ingredients of being touted as the Final, but nevertheless each of them ended up much before the finals. It was interesting to predict who would win each of the battles. Atleast as far as I was concerned, I thought Germany, Portugal, Italy and Brazil would battle it out in the next stage. I was good for three matches, but Brazil gave me a disappointing result. Who would have expected Brazil to be so sloppy on the field? It was distressing and disturbing, with all the top guns being a pale shadow of their normal selves. Ronaldo and Ronaldinho were clearly marked by the French defense. France, to their credit played amazing attacking football. Zinedine Zidane proved why he is one of the best in the world, with his skillful dribbles and unimaginable passes to the forward. Even against Spain, he came up with perfect execution of flawless exhibition. Talking of the finals, I expected it to be a Brazil v/s Germany match, but with the ouster of the world champions, I would redefine my prediction to France v/s Germany. Who knows, next week may present with a totally different final, and what with Italy playing brilliantly and Portugal supported by a superb coach. Only time will tell about my yet another prediction. Till then let us drool over the dribbles!

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