MY SELF CONCEPT....

I am writing a paper on how our self concept is derived from society, and the roles that we play. I am a very friendly preson....loves to make friends..but at times I am very choosy...especialy food vice...because of this my mum n me always quarrel..I love Western foods and Chinese foods..and things are not that spicy.....I am very secretive person because I dont like to share sarrow part of my life to others plus I dont want them to be sad..even happy moments I dont share too..I like to keep things within myself....I am a good listener..but I seldomly give feedback because I feel sometimes people will accept it sometimes dont....so I keep to myself....I love to dance indian classical dance..I get angry very fast can say short tempered....I like to think things out of the box...not the same old procedure....try something new...Not hurting people by talking rude is something I am...I am very sensitive person take things seriously sometimes and get hurt easily....thats all my self concept i guess so...

SHARON..SHARON..SHARON...

Sharon was a wonderful young girl...It is must unfortunate for all of us to lose such an amazing person...Myself and many others will never forget her...her laughs...the way she used to called the lecturers "teacher"...I cannot begin to imagine how this tragic turn must meke us feel....but please allow me to express my most sincere sympathy...Sharon will always have a special place in the hearts of many....Words can offer no true meaning in the face of such sadness...I heard the teardrop hit my pillow before I even knew I was crying......I am thinking that Sharon have a big hug again in Heaven where we will go later.....

Love is missing someone whenever you're apart, but somehow feeling warm inside because you're close in heart. Sharon thinking of you....hope your resting comfortably........She will truly be missed...

SALANGAI......

What is salangai? Salangai is something like anklet but in a bigger version where it is wear by the people who is dancing indian classical dance (bharatanatyam). There is 2 types of salangai,cloth and leather made. The salangai was worn by Lord Shiva during his recarnation to the earth. Where he dance the Rudra Thandavem in Sithirabam,India.

But thosedays people will wear this salangai for reduce tiredness because they use to walk very far.Which means thosedays there is no vehicle and transport so they normally walk all the way to reach their destiny.Therefore by using salangai,there is a rythm and sound when you move your legs so this makes them not to feel the tiredness so much hearing to the bytes. Even nowdays their use salangai for thaipusam where people who take up kavadi thir will wear salangai so they dont feel that much tired.

Salangai pooja is usually done when one has learnt Bharatanatyam for a few years and attained a good handle on talam. One is not allowed to wear their Salangai and perform until after the salangai pooja. On a Vijaya Dasami day, the family and friends get together at a temple, where pooja is done for the new salangai and the guru offers the same to the students.Then, the students wear their salangai for the first time and present a mini recital.

For reference, the nadais in dance are counted like so:
Chathushram (4)Thakadhimi Thakajhanu
Thishram (3)Thakita Thakita
Mishram (4+3)Thakadhimi Thakita
Khandam (5)Thaka Thakita
Sankeernam (4+5)Thakadhimi Thaka Thakita

THAIPUSAM IN PENANG 2009

Hindu devotees in Malaysia celebrated Thaipusam to mark the birth of Lord Murugan by going to several temples in the country, one of it is Penang Thanimalai Temple which I went there to celebrate this years Thaipusam.This event took 3 days which wll be on the 7,8 and FEB 2008.

7 FEB 2009

On the 7th that is called CHETTIPUSAM which means the CHETTIAR caste will celebrate on these day. But those days only the chetty will celebrate but now this have change everyone can celebrate. This night also the chairot from Thainimalai Murugan temple will bring Lord Murugan down the hill to the town. This is because Lord Murugan will come to the town to visit all the devotees and to grant their wishes. The devotees also will take up Kavadi on this night.

What is Kavadi? "Kavadi" appears to be a word of Tamil origin - a combination of the words 'kavi' and 'adi'. 'Kavi' means 'saffron' implying asceticism and 'adi' means 'foot' signifying pilgrimage. Taken together the significance of the word is very clear. The devotee takes a vow to live the life of an ascetic for a particular period and then, as the culmination, travels to the temple of Muruga by foot, bearing that symbol of purity - the "Kavadi."There are different kinds of "Kavadi" of which the most prevalent are " Annakkavadi", and "Palkavadi". "Annakkavadi" entails the devotee going barefoot from house to house, begging for food, not with the motive of satisfying his own hunger, but as offering to the Lord and his devotees. This custom helps in inculcating humility in the devotee who has to beg for food, whatever his social standing may be. In "Palkavadi" the devotee begs for milk, which is ultimately offered to the Lord and His devotees. There are several variations in the idea, but the basic objective is to destroy the devotees's ego, so that he comes nearer to Divinity.

On this night devotees is less compare to the day of thaipusam. Along the road to the temple we can see thaneerpanthal which means devotees put up tents and gives away free food and drinks for the crowd.The people who set up the thaneer panthal also start work well before Thaipusam. The design, the structure and the decorations are all drawn well before hand and the panthals are in many cases superb engineering feats.A statue of a deity takes centrestage in all thaneer panthal. The colourful lights make for brilliant panthals at night and add to the gaiety, not to mention the huge loudspeakers and the deafening music.

8 FEB 2009

This on the day of Thaipusam. Where the population people on this day is higher compare to the previous day. More kavadis and devotees with piercing around their bodies.

A man with pircings and skewers through his face enters a trance during the Thaipusam festival.According to another legend Lord Shiva and Parvati were involved in a cosmic dance on the Thaipusam day. It is said that all the gods assembled to watch this cosmic dance.

Along the roads also we can see people selling all types of things such as Gods pictures, songs and sweets etc.All the devotees normally who is taking kavadi or palgodam will wear yellow colour dress or dhothi.

9 FEB 2009

Which the day where the chairots will go out again to the town. This when people will break coconuts along the roads. As many as they want to. Then Lord Muruga will be back to Chetti temple where he is belongs from,which means the Lord Muruga statue belongs to the Chetti people.

Johari's window & I

The Johari Window, named after the first names of its inventors, Joseph Luft and Harry Ingham, is one of the most useful models describing the process of human interaction.

It is a way of showing how much information you know about yourself & how much others know about you.

Open Pane-Things that is known to yourself and to others.
I love reading.
Hidden pane-Things that is known to myself but not others.
When I read,i am oblivous to other stuff that is goind on around me.(Most of the time,when I get 'sucked' into the book.) Reading is like an escape (I get to sort of 'tune-out')for me. Here is a little secret,sometimes I hide my books cause I am not really allowed to read when I am supposed to do my work.So if you were to come into my room and open my closet expecting to see clothes,a book might fall out.
Blind pane-Things that is known to others but not to myself.
A friend once told me,when I read,I am so into my book,that I do not pay attention when people talk to me.So sometimes, I do come across as being rude.
Unknown pane-Things that is not known to me or others.
Haha.This is the time when I can predict what will happen in near future.
I would love to see myself travelling around the world,and with a walk-in wardrobe,so huge the size that it looks like my personal heaven of clothes.(I might as well wish that I owned queenbay or gurney) and I would also go to Africa and third world countries for mission trips.Who knows?O yea!And not forgetting a whole collection of books to last me a life time.
Here is the intearactive Johari Window which you guys can do.http://kevan.org/johari.Have fun!

Lesson 6, Feb 12 2009

The self is the individual person, from his or her own perspective. To you, self is you. To someone else, self is that person.(Taken from Wikipedia,The Free Encyclopedia)
In my interpretation,the above means I am myself(I am starting to be afraid that this is going to turn into one episode of soul searching).
The Essence of oneself are body,brain(mind/intelligence),character,experience,gender,human,human condition,identity,person,personality,skill,virtue,and wisdom.(Taken from wikipedia,The Free Encyclopedia)
I feel comforted knowing that even if i had a look-alike going about her daily business now somewhere at the opposite end of the world,based on the above description I know that I am myself based on my own thoughts,personality,my own life experiences,character and the way I carry myself and interact with the people around me.
Self-Constructs(just a few)
Self-Concept/self-identity-It is the knowledge about one self,such as beliefs regarding personality traits,physical characterictics,abilities,values,goals and roles.
According to self-costruct I would define myself as a female(duh!) with curly hair,reasonably big eyes hidden behind a pair of glasses(the glasses are a sham to make me look intelligent,occasionally,I do wear contacts,when I am not lazy),I do wish I had a sharp pointed nose instead of a round,not so sharp one(but come to think about it,I would look like Michael Jackson if I had a pointed nose,no pun intended here).I am quite a happy person but I do have quite a formidable temper which I regularly try to quash,sometimes to no avail. One of my goals in life is to go as far as I can,especially in my education. I am a fairly open-minded person but I do draw lines when my morality is at stake. I live my life based on these commandments:Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strenght and Lord your neighbor as yourself.
Self-awareness-one exists as an individual, separate from other people, with private thoughts. It is a self-conscious state in which attention focuses on oneself. It makes people more sensitive to their own attitudes and dispositions.
I am an individual with different needs and my response may vary when compared to others.For example,I am aware of my blatant phobia towards messes,dirt or a room being in disarray while my brother seems to find joy in living in something that closely resembles a war zone.
Self-esteem-a person's overall evaluation or appraisal of his or her own worth.
This is a constant struggle in my life,I am gradually learning to love myself.I am not only learning to take pride in what I do well but also to see myself as a wholesome being,as God's creation.

Benice's perspective

Hello,we are all suppose to blog about culture. But,the catch is....we have to personalise it.(eg.talk about your own culture).So i shall now endeavour to talk about my own culture.

I know i brought gold/green bangles to class on Friday.But then,come to think about,not all of my family wears bangles(*visualises my dad with colourful bangles on his wrist and *shudders*).So instead of blogging about bangles,i shall talk about PRESENTS!

As we all know during Christmas time,most people would give or received presents. As much as Christmas is my favourite season of the whole year,i still dread the 'stress' and frenzy of buying gifts for people.Please do not get me wrong,i am not scrooge.I just do not look forward to the search of finding the "right" gift for my friends and family. I also have myself to be blame,as i always leave my 'gifts searching'(more like hunting) to the very last minute.After that,i will experience a very traumatizing(okay,I am exaggerating) shopping spree(actually,that is not the word for it),scurry,is the more accurate word to be used in this context.
Despite all these,I still love the spirit of christmas. It is so much more about giving,sharing and most importanly,loving. wI am sure that most of you have heard of the saying,"It is the thoght that counts".Admidtedly,I do have my favourite presents.But then,Christmas is a time when i remind myself of what really counts in life. The thought that someone when through so much hassle and bustle to make sure i received something I like just warms my heart and that someone actually took time to wrap my presents(I do not usually wrap presents,I do not see the point since they are going to open it anyway,might as well save them the hassle).I am reminded of the basics in life that is to cherish and value the people you love.
Anyway,that is why i love presents,it encompasses so much.Anyway,who doesn't love presents?