Monday, June 26, 2017

About Cassiobury Park, Watford, Hertfordshire, U.K. (Part--I)

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Elm Trees in the Park
Willow trees 

Gibbon's Carvings

Cassiobury Gates (demolished in 1974)






                             
                           






Cassiobury Staircase (seen now in Museum of Art, New York)


beautiful wood carvings on staircase

On my third trip to U.K. we saw one of the most beautiful parks in U.K.  London is very well-known for many royal gardens, parks, palaces, cathedrals and monuments. This park adds vast greenery to the locality and also affords the luxury of going for a walk through shady trees, bushes and canals enjoying the fresh breeze and listening to sweet sounds of birds and watching children at play. In brief it is a walkers’ paradise and a shady haven for the men and women of all ages.

Once this spacious area was given by King Offa to St.Albans Abbey in 793 A.D.  After dissolution of monasteries by King Henry VIII in 1539, this place was given to Sir Richard Morrison. He built Cassiobury  Mansion. His son Charles Morrison completed the Tudor manor house comprising nearly 56 rooms, a big gallery, stables and brewery. In 1623 the estate passed onto the Capel family through marriage. The members of Essex family stayed in this palatial mansion nearly for 250 years.  Arthur Capell, the first Earl of Essex, re-built the mansion with parks, gardens extending up to the adjoining Whippendel woods. He employed Hugh May, the wood carver, Grinling Gibbons, the painter Antonio Verrio and the gardiner Moses Cook to re-build and refurbish the manor house. During the time of William Capell, the fourth Earl of Essex, the Grand Union Canal was widened.  Between 1799 and 1805, the fifth Earl of Essex, commissioned James Wyatt to re-model the house in Gothic style and Humphrey Repton to beautify the park. A number of lodges and other buildings had been built by Wyatt’s nephew, Jeffrey Wyattville.

Of these constructions only the Cassiobury Lodge survives in Gade Avenue.During the time of George Capell, the seventh Earl of Essex, nearly 184 acres of land was sold to the Watford Bourough Council in 1909 to set up a public park.  After the death of the seventh Earl of Essex, this estate with all constructions spreading over 870 acres was sold away in 1922 by the eighth Earl of Essex .In 1930 more land was acquired by the council. The unsold Cassiobury mansion was demolished in 1927. Only the stable block converted to Cassiobury Court, an old people’s home, remains now near the Richmond Drive. The grand staircase was removed to the metropolitan for museum of Art in New York. Other materials were used for restoration of Monmouth House in Watford High Street. The remaining building materials such as 300 tons of old oak and 100 very fine oak beams and 10,000 Tudor period bricks were sold out. Another curious fact is that the re-building of Cassiobury in 1670’s was designed by Elizabeth Lady Wibraham, (1632-1785) the first woman architect in the world. She engaged Hugh May to supervise construction and Edward Pearce to execute the wood carving work. The famous seventeenth century diarist John Evelyn visited this park on 16th April, 1680 and described it in his diary.

 “The house is new, a plain fabric, built by my friend mr. Hugh May. There are diverse fair and good rooms and excellent carvings by Gibbons, especially the chimney-piece of the library. There is in the porch or entrance a painting by Verrio of Apollo and the Liberal Arts. Some of the chimney mantels are of Irish marble --- and not much inferior to Italian. The tympanum or gable at the front is a bass relief of Diana hunting cut in Portland stone, handsomely enough.. The library is large and very nobly furnished.”

This park extends over a stretch of 190 acres from Rickmansworth road in the east to the Grand Union Canal in the west. Just at the junction where the Shepherds Road meets with Rickmansworth Road, there used to be a beautiful archway with gates built in 1800 by Humphrey Repton and James Wyatt as part of expansion on the estate during the time of the Earl of Essex. But they were dismantled in 1974 as part of the widening of the Rickmansworth Road by the Watford Borough Council. Later this park was developed by the Borough Council in many ways. It was converted into a green hub for many activities and entertainment shows besides providing space for people to enjoy walking with kids and pet dogs. It is also a haven for many kinds of plants, birds, fish and animals. The local nature reserve is managed by Herts and Middlesex Wild Life Trust. At present it is decided to spend an amount of 6.6 million pounds for restoration and regeneration works to make this park more attractive with more eco-friendly facilities and comforts. If you happen to visit U.K. do surely take some time off to visit this beautiful idyllic place of natural beauty with lush greenery, lakes and interesting flora and fauna.


                                             +++++++++++++++++++++++++++

26th June, 2017                                                                    Somaseshu Gutala



                                    

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Tuesday, June 13, 2017

Five Gifts of God


Earth Pollution

                             
Air Pollution


Water Pollution
               







nuclear testing in South pacific ocean
          


Nuclear Explosion








                                    






       1)      From coldest snowy peaks and rocky terrain
                Flow Crystal streams through vales and verdant plain;
                A blessed gift of God’s mercy immense
                Nourishing fields with life sustaining essence;
                To cracked lips of dry earth a blessed sight
                A visual treat to peasants, a festive delight;
                Alas! We poison them with tons of chemical waste
                With filth and dirt, in worst polluted state.
                Our lakes and wells became a filthy garbage store
                No potable water seen anymore.

    2)        This earth of which we have been made
                Our dear mother who feeds and gives us shade
                Selfless saints, these fruit yielding sylvan trees
                Sacrificing their every bit with liberal ease;                            
                How can we kill them with rude thankless hearts?
                We dig our graves with dire destructive thoughts;
                These worldly charms God-giv'n in plenteous treasure
                Beyond the skills of Science and artistic measure;
                This fabulous gift, for greedy ends, we turned alas!
                To a lifeless maze of concrete mansions gross!
  
       3)     Our life-breath, this gentle caressing breeze
                Which fills our lungs with vital strength and ease
                And flows through nerves and veins to every cell
                And pulsates every part with dynamic spell;
                A rarest gift of God not seen elsewhere;
                Even this man’s perverted wit does not spare;
                Like gigantic monsters with roaring sound
                These factories splurge out fumes beyond bounds
                Even tearing the protective airy zone
                Endangering health to vile diseases prone.
                       
        4)    Our ancients worshipped the sacred fire
                As God of light and knowledge they did admire;
                We turned this force to destroy the world entire
                For selfish power and pelf, with weapons dire;
                With nuclear power in a frenzied rage;
                Who can restrain this self-destructive craze?
                We turn our God-giv'n gifts to malignant curse
                In devilish wars engaged for power and purse;
                We left not even far away ethereal space
                We claim our dominion there, a shameful disgrace!
    
       5)     The broad expanse of boundless space, a precious boon
                Wherein revolve all planets, stars, spheres, sun and moon;
                Bound by forces and pure layers of ether clear;
                We struggled for years to fly with speed and go near
                Those far-flung spheres with rapid scientific zeal
                The secrets of creation to explore and unveil
                Crowding the space with satellites and waste
                Leaving it in a disastrous congested state;
                Our greed perverts us from our goals to stray
                Our hasty deeds aggravate pollution’s sway.

       6)     How long does Nature bear our wicked deeds?
                Upsetting her poise with diabolic greed
                We pushed ourselves to disaster’s edge
                Our mental pollution who will purge?
                Showing no concern for other beings' welfare
                We make them suffer and their lives we do not care;
                Awaken soon and see the approaching signs
                Of total doom and try to curb and restrain;
                Our reckless exploiting of these precious boons
                Will strike our existence and devastate us soon.

                         ++++++++++++++++++++++


      Note :  Overuse and misuse of the five God-given gifts is the capital sin of 

mankind, especially of the modern era. Paradoxically man is made of these precious 

gifts and is an inseparable part of creation. Already the entire world is facing the 

consequences of his indiscriminate exploitation of these five gifts. Still man in his 

mad pursuit of power, wealth, false prestige and luxuries is involving all other living 

creatures in this head on downfall and impending catastrophe of total destruction. 

Our immediate need is to take stock of this grim state of affairs and avert this 

universal hazard by making earnest efforts and by overcoming their narrow 

prejudices with a broad outlook bearing in mind the wellbeing of all living creatures 

which are subject to intense suffering and gradual extinction for no fault of their own.

The perilous signs of environmental degradation are already seen in plastic pollution,

 melting of Arctic glaciers, global warming, depletion of Ozone Depletion (20%), 

irregular and abnormal behavior of monsoons, depletion of groundwater levels, 

spread of many viral diseases, death of many sea organisms and extinction of many 

flora and fauna.

                 Pollution is the most dangerous man-made blunder which is turn will 

boomerang on him and wipe out his existence from this world. It is as if the culprit 

himself is preparing his own grave. Most of the rivers, lakes and water bodies are 

polluted. In U.S.A. nearly 64% of lakes are highly polluted. In China 70% of rivers and

lakes are polluted and 78% of the water from China’s rivers is not fit for human 

consumption. It takes many years to clean the holy river, the ganges which is one of 

the most polluted rivers in India.

  The air we breathe is mixed with many poisonous gases and dust. Nearly seven 

million people die due to air pollution in the world. The testing and stockpiling of 

nuclear weapons is the most potential danger of the present day world. There are 

more than 15,000 most deadly nuclear weapons possessed by various countries in 

the world, a few of which are enough to destroy the entire creation and produce 

radiation that will impact the world for centuries. More than twenty nuclear accidents 

occurred killing many people and affecting the health of thousands of people and 

their families.

  Apart from this, conquering space and exploring other planets resulted in polluting 

the space with space junk and debris which poses another threat to survival of 

mankind. There are more than five lakh pieces of space debris and 1450 satellites 

around our earth creating congestion and risk of collision with these that may result 

in huge damage and destruction to our world.

  The prime cause for pollution is man’s lack of vision, narrow-mindedness, 

indifference and lack of concern the wellbeing of future generations, lack of sense of 

responsibility and unbridled avarice for power and affluence. Pollution is a global 

threat and all countries should deem it as their common and prime responsibility to 

reduce and resolve this threat of impending universal disaster. This man-made crisis 

of gigantic proportions envelops and devours us all irrespective of races, ideologies, 

and nations.

 Even from humanitarian and moral point of view, it is our bounden duty and 

obligation (Dharma) to show gratitude and make proper use of these five precious 

gifts and protect them for the sake of the future living beings. Let us not befoul and 

abuse these gifts for our selfish purposes. Simple life, use of natural things and 

organic products, cultivation of greenery, reducing emissions of greenhouse gases,

 maintaining water sources pure and clean, giving up use of powerful chemicals and 

fertilizers, reducing lavish consumption, caring for fellow-creatures and environment,

and recycling are some of the useful things we can do to protect our earth and other 

elements gifted by God. Let us live in harmony with Nature and other living creatures.

 Otherwise we are committing a most heinous crime for which many coming 

generations have to suffer for many decades or may be centuries.




                     

       ********************************************************************************************



    13th June, 2017                                                Somaseshu Gutala
                                   

                               








                   

                                      









Saturday, May 27, 2017

THANK YOU, LORD

















                                                         
                                                                              
            
                  1)      Thank You, Lord, for my humble state
                        Which curbs my pride and will not make me prate
                        Thank you, Lord, for spreading thorns on my way
                        I’ll strive to find good way and will not stray.

            2)        Thank You, Lord, for my hard-won bread
                        You made me feel the woes of poverty dread
                        Thank You, Lord, for making me stay
                        Under a simple roof with no splendor gay.

            3)        Thank You, Lord, for making me lose
                        Chances I thought too good for use
                        You made me know the simple life of content
                        And spend my means with care as if God-sent.

            4)        Thank You, Lord, for not making me great
                        If so, I make my rivals red with hate
                        Thank You Lord, for Thy daily grace
                        Each breath I have comes from Thy rays.

            5)        Thank You, Lord, for not granting my desires
                        That grow unchecked like forest fires
                        Thy kindness showed me another door
                        To suit my worth and not strive for more.

            6)        Thank You, Lord, for Love’s rejected state
                        I know Thy Love more precious than heavenly mate
                        Thank You, Lord, for many hurdles I got
                        It made me humble and Thee never forgot.

            7)        Thank You, Lord, for my state as a common man
                        I share with others whatever I can ;  
                        The simple pleasures of common lot 
                        With free and frank untroubled innocent hearts.                      
            8)        Thank You Lord, for not giving status prime     
                        These petty things do fade away with time
                        Thy Grace eternal, sustains the universe vast
                        Thy merciful looks enough, kindly cast.

           9)         Thank you, Lord, for severing earthly bonds of love
                        That drag men down with leaden grief from above
                        Which lead men astray like floating devilish flames
                        Beheld by men at night, a cheating game.

         10)         Thank You Lord, for making me realize
                        The trouble and pain from those that despise ;
                        You made me feel the painful darts
                        Of insults that pierce the inmost heart.

         11)         Thank You, Lord, for Thy precious gifts of life
                        Due gems of truth you teach through strife
                        This whole body, a corpse, without Thy light
                        The dawn of life comes from Thy visage bright.

        12)          Thank You, Lord, You know my ultimate end
                        Ever at my side to guide and my ways to mend ;
                        Countless chances from Thy boundless mercy
                        More numerous than galaxies we see.

                                 ***************************


   27th May, 2017                                  Somaseshu Gutala

                     
                                  
                         



                                        


Sunday, April 30, 2017

HOW CAN YOU ?




 






                                          (  I  )

                      I wish to see God, my soul proudly asks
                                As if it were an easy, simple task ;
                                The Lord, so many million-suns-bright
                         How can it bear, your feeble, human sight?
                                The Lord who is as vast as limitless sky
                                How can you enlarge your mind to identify?
                                The lord who is fathomless as the deepest seas
                                How can you delve deep within your soul to see?
                                The Lord who shines like million tongues of volcanic fire
                                How can you dare to entertain such a desire?
                                The Lord, Creator of vast dimensions of Time and Space
                                Beyond your mind’s limit, how can you ever trace?
                                The Lord who throbs in every smallest mite
                                How can you realize His supramental light?

                                                                     (   I  I  )  

                                  The Lord who spreads His blessings in gentle breeze
                                  Can you ever dare to feel with spiritual ease?
                                  You know not your own self in ignorance caught
                                  Bound by illusion and web of desires self-wrought;
                                  Most omnipotent power He doth yield
                                  His breath of life throbs ev’n in tiniest seed;
                                  In lifeless objects too and in every atom and cell
                                  His immanent shaping power ever dwells;
                                  He sports with joy in this universal maze
                                  His omnipresent form beyond your narrow gaze;
                                  His omniscient schemes beyond your narrow creeds;
                                  You can’t remember your own sinful thoughts and deeds;
                                  My bosom humbled, free from egoistic ways
                                  Found hope at last in His ever flowing Grace .

                             **********************************************************************

               1)      Supramental  =   above normal mental level
               2)     Immanent       =   Existing within
               3)     Omnisicent     =   know everything
               4)     Omnipotent   =    have unlimited power
               5)     Omnipresent  =    present everywhere
             

        Note : Ordinary human beings cannot directly see God. In Mahabharata Lord Krishna bestows spiritual vision to Arjuna so that he could witness His cosmic form encompassing all planets, elements and spiritual worlds. Only yogis who reached perfection can see his form at a subdued level. Even for that they have to get the grace of God. Sincere devotion and total surrender are the means by which ordinary mortals can realize to some extent about the greatness of God.  God is known by his supreme qualities like omnipotence, omnipresence and omniscience. He is the creator, preserver and destroyer of all worlds and beings. But  we can feel His presence wherever we see qualities like beauty, love, wisdom,sympathy, non-violence, forgiveness, patience, peace, selfless service, sacrifice and truth.  

"God dwells in His creation and He is everywhere indivisibly present in all His works. He is transcendent above all His works even while he is immanent in them." ---- A.W.Tozer 


May 1st, 2017                                                              Somaseshu Gutala