HotGrab>>>>>>.

Positional / Delivery Call>>>>
Buy TataSteel :: 610 Closing ;Accumulate on dips till 590
Add / Buy Double qty on close above 630;Target :: 690 / 725
Stop Loss :: 575 Closing basis
Time Frame :: 25-30 days

Diamonds are foreover...........

The recent surge in prices of polished diamonds and a similar rise in the rates for rough diamonds since July last year has hiked the cost of diamond jewellery, a senior official of a leading jewellery firm has said.

Though retailers are trying not to pass on the price increase to consumers by cutting their margins, according to industry experts, the price rise has also reinstated the investment value proposition of diamonds for investors, Karim Merchant, the CEO and MD of Pure Gold Jewellers, said.

“With the recent price hikes, consumers are now beginning to realise that diamonds are also a good investment vehicle.

If we look at the diamond price chart over the last 50 years for average one carat D Loupe Clean wholesale diamond prices, the prices have gone up from USD 2,700 in 1960 to USD 25,000 in 2010,” he said.

According to Merchant, with the beginning of the wedding season and festivals like Akshaya Tritiya, there will be greater demand for diamond jewellery and with diamonds’ emergence as one of the best ways to get a higher yield on savings, this is the best time to buy.

Global production of premium cut diamonds is less than 900 carats per year. This means, all together, there are only 750 stones between 1.00 carat to 1.39 carat D Loupe Clean available per year in the whole world.

To produce these 750 diamonds, mining companies have to dig more than 800,000,000 tonnes of Kimberlite, the rock in which rough diamonds are found. De Beers stated in November, 2008, that if diamonds are mined at the current rate, within 20 years, we could face a scarcity.

Merchant said that millions of new middle and high class consumers in emerging markets like China and India will create increased demand for diamonds in the future and this will gradually push up diamond prices, as diamonds are a thousand times more rare than gold.

Peter Meeus, the Chairman of the Dubai Diamond Exchange, said diamonds are a highly transportable store of wealth and the industry is driven by consumer demand and economic growth.

“With the economy improving and strong demand from emerging markets, investment value of diamonds is fortified.

Traditionally marketed as an ornament, the industry must do more to create awareness of the investment value of diamonds.

Consumers need to know their hard-earned money is safe when invested in a commodity that has always been in constant demand, and will even become more so in the future,” he said.

The high degree of rarity and the easiness to transport makes for its value. The best investment in diamond is to wear diamonds in diamond jewellery, as it is easy to trade.

Speaking about the outlook for diamond prices in the near future, Merchant said: “I feel polished diamond prices can easily increase another 20 to 25 per cent from here before the end of this year as typically during summer, American retailers start their buying for the Thanksgiving and Christmas season.”

The Power of Focus............

Let’s take a break and look at some trading psychology tips. Today our ideas are coming from one of my favorite books that’s not really trading-oriented. We’re going to be looking at a few highlights from a book called “The Power Of Focus”, by Jack Canfield, Mark Hansen, and Les Hewitt. While there’s no way to do the book justice in our limited space here, hopefully you’ll take away some of the more important pieces of the book. And best of all, you’ll be able to apply them immediately.

Your habits will determine your future. This is not news to any of us, but what I found interesting was something of an aside in the book. The book contends that the results of bad habits don’t show up until well after the habit has been learned. That’s unfortunate too, as we all know that it’s incredibly difficult to unlearn something. The implication is that that you’ll be engaging in a destructive behavior, but you may not know it until it’s far too late to actually do anything about it. In fact, up to 90% of your everyday behavior is based on habits. Have you made it a habit to spend an hour a day preparing and doing trade research? Have you committed to waking up an hour earlier to plan your trading or work day? Or do you hit the snooze button a few times, and miss out on reviewing the news and charts of your positions? Habits are the key to success.

Your goals must have a number. And this doesn’t just mean the total returns on your trades, as an overall goal is still too ambiguous to actually use in making daily plans. You need to know how many trades per day, week, or month it will take to achieve your goal. Of course, you’ll also need to know what type of return you need to average on each trade to reach that goal. As the book states so accurately, “a goal without a number is just a slogan.”

Take decisive action. They say 80% of success is showing up, and that’s probably a pretty good rule of thumb. So how does one “show up” to be a trader? By taking trading action! And if you’re not taking the action you know you should be taking, you absolutely must understand and admit that you’re procrastinating. Stings, doesn’t it? But recognizing the truth is the first step to attacking any problem. The book explains six reasons for procrastination; think about which ones apply to you.
1) You’re bored.
2) You’re overwhelmed.
3) Your confidence has slipped.
4) You have low self-esteem.
5) You don’t enjoy what you do.
6) You’re easily distracted.

So, the reasons for your procrastinations may be diverse. However, the resolution of all of them is the same. The first thing you need to is ask yourself a LOT of questions — mostly “why” questions, but also a lot of “how” questions. Why are you bored? Why has your confidence slipped? Why don’t you enjoy trading? Then move on to the other set of questions. How can you feel less overwhelmed? How can you prevent distraction? How can you feel good about trading again? And finally, the last portion of the book details how you can cement that change, once you’re happy with your new you.

Become an active decision-maker. There is a difference between being willing to make decisions, and being proactive about making decisions – being proactive puts you in control. To do this, there are four steps to follow:
1) Think – About what action will best accomplish your goals, and why.
2) Ask – The questions that must be answered to make an intelligent decision.
3) Decide – Establish if-then scenarios for each option, and choose the best “then.”
4) Act – Then repeat the whole process, again and again.

RELIANCE............

As per media reports, Reliance Industries (RIL) has intimated the DGH that KG-D6 production could fall further to 46–47mmscmd (versus its earlier guidance of 60mmscmd), given the reservoir complexity and current performance . In our view, RIL’s production problems are not atypical for a relatively new field in a largely unchartered deepwater area, where the formation is “wet” (i.e. contains a lot of water).

We believe RIL has been proactive in resolving this issue by bringing in BP Plc as a 30% partner in its NELP blocks in India. BP brings with it rich experience of deepwater exploration and is of the view that the field can achieve 80mmscmd of gas production. We feel that early regulatory approval for the RIL–BP deal will pave the way for enhanced exploration activity and production across RIL’s deepwater blocks. Maintain BUY.

Further drop in gas production anticipated:

RIL, operator of the KG-D6 block, has informed the DGH that natural gas production could drop further to 38mmscmd from the D1 and D3 fields (currently 44–45mmscmd) and 9mmscmd from the MA field—taking total production to 47mmscmd for FY12-FY13, down from the earlier guidance of 60mmsmcd. RIL, however, commented that the fall in production can be arrested if radical measures are taken and that long-term output would be dependent on the success of work-over jobs and on reservoir complexities.

New drills to contribute only in long term:

RIL plans to drill five additional wells in the KG-D6 block to increase production, as per the phase-I FDP. However, given the brief operational window of four months (Dec to Apr) and lead time involved in procurement of plant and equipment, the wells wouldn’t contribute to production before mid-2014. RIL has further planned to install a new FPSO (floating production and storage facility) near the field in order to improve operational efficiency. The company argues that given deepwater production conditions, it is imperative to have an FPSO nearer to production than farther.

Actual expense less than budgeted:

complexity of the block do not justify drilling of additional wells in the main channel and that current gas prices make drilling in surrounding pockets unviable.
Reports suggest that RIL has spent US$ 5.6bn as compared to the initial budgeted US$ 6.1bn on the KG-D6 block. As for falling short on its FDP drilling target, RIL commented that subsurface conditions and

Maintain BUY:

Even after considering the worst case scenario of 45mmsmcd of long-term gas production from the KG-D6 block, our target price of Rs 1,200/sh will reduce by only ~Rs 40/sh, while EPS for FY12 and FY13 will decline to Rs 64 and Rs 70 from Rs 66.7 and Rs 73.2 respectively. However, we believe it is too early to take this call and we will revisit our numbers once BP comes on board. We maintain our BUY rating on RIL with a target price of Rs 1,200/sh. At CMP the stock is trading at a P/E of 13x and EV/EBITDA of 8x on FY13E.

Safe Harbor Statement:

Some forward looking statements on projections, estimates, expectations & outlook are included to enable a better comprehension of the Company prospects. Actual results may, however, differ materially from those stated on account of factors such as changes in government regulations, tax regimes, economic developments within India and the countries within which the Company conducts its business, exchange rate and interest rate movements, impact of competing products and their pricing, product demand and supply constraints.

Nothing in this article is, or should be construed as, investment advice.

Trading Tit-Bits........

When you expect something, and it doesn’t deliver as expected, what occurs? Disappointment. By not having expectations of the market, you are not setting yourself up for this inner turmoil. Douglas states that the market doesn’t generate pain or pleasure inherently; the market only generates upticks and downticks. It is how we perceive and respond to these upticks and downticks that determine how we feel. This perception and feeling is a function of our beliefs. If you’re still feeling pain when taking a loss according to your plan, you are still experiencing a belief that your loss is somehow a negative reflection on you personally.

FDI inflows decline 30%...........

FDI fell 30 per cent year-on-year in February to $1.2 billion, making a strong case for the government to fine-tune foreign investment norms in its policy review this week.

Analysts said the government needed to come out with measures to boost foreign direct investment (FDI). A persistent decline in FDI will keep the balance of payment under pressure and can put downward pressures on the rupee, they said.

“The numbers are bad … the government needs to take the matter seriously and initiate steps to boost investors’ confidence,” officials said.

During the 11-month period from April 2010 to February 2011, FDI inflows declined 25 per cent to $18.3 billion.

In January, FDI plunged 48 per cent compared with the corresponding month of the previous year to $1.04 billion.

In February last year, India had attracted foreign direct investment of $1.7 billion. The country received FDI worth $24.6 billion during the April-February 2009-10 period.

“The country has to go a long way to fully unravel its FDI potential and the government will have to take significant measures aimed at further liberalisation of FDI, thus creating a clean image by tackling corruption, easing the procedural processes and building robust infrastructure to make India an emerging investment hub, going forward,” Arun Singh, senior economist, Dun & Bradstreet India, said.

See the unseen innocence..

I am able to share with my readers a little of the magnificent work of Mitsuo Aida (1924-91), a poet and calligrapher, whose poems remind us of the importance of innocence.

Because it has lived its life intensely

the parched grass still attracts the gaze of passers-by.

The flowers merely flower,

and they do this as well as they can.

The white lily, blooming unseen in the valley,

Does not need to explain itself to anyone;

It lives merely for beauty.

Men, however, cannot accept that 'merely'.

If tomatoes wanted to be melons,

they would look completely ridiculous.

I am always amazed

that so many people are concerned

with wanting to be what they are not;

what's the point of making yourself look ridiculous?

You don't always have to pretend to be strong,

there's no need to prove all the time that everything is going well,

you shouldn't be concerned about what other people are thinking,

cry if you need to,

it's good to cry out all your tears

(because only then will you be able to smile again).

Sometimes, on TV, I see tunnels and bridges being inagurated. Usually, a lot of celebreties and local politicians stand in a line, in the centre of which is the minister or local governor. Then a ribbon is cut, and when the people in charge of the project return to their desks, they find lots of letters expressing recognition and admiration.

The people who sweated and worked on the project, who wielded pickaxes and spades, who laboured all through the summer heat or endured the winter cold in order to finish the job, are never seen; those who did not work by the sweat of their brow always seem to come off best.

I want to be someone capable of seeing the unseen faces, of seeing those who do not seek fame or glory, who silently fulfil the role life has given them.

I want to be able to do this because most important things, those that shape our existences, are precisely the ones that never show their faces.

Courtesy: Paulo Coelho in Like the Flowing River.

The mad man>>>>>>> doing miracles.....

This is the story of Bodhidharma meeting with the Chinese emperor Wu- a very strange meeting, very fruitful. Emperor Wu perhaps was at that time the greatest emperor in the world; he ruled all over China, Mongolia, Korea, the whole of Asia except India. He became convinced of the truth of Gautam Buddha's teachings, but the people who had brought the message of Buddha were only scholars. None of them were mystics. And then the news came that Bodhidharma was coming, and there was a great anticipation all over the land. Emperor Wu had become influenced by Gautam Buddha, and that meant that his whole empire was influenced by the same teaching. Now a real mystic, a buddha, was coming. It was such a great joy!

Emperor Wu had never before gone to the boundaries where India and China meet to receive anyone. With great respect he welcomed Bodhidharma, and he said, "I have been asking all the monks and the scholars who have been coming, but nobody has been of any help - I have tried everything. How to get rid of this self? Because Buddha says that unless you become a no-self, your misery cannot end."

He was sincere. Bodhidharma looked into his eyes, and he said, "I will be staying by the side of the river in the temple near the mountain. Tomorrow, at 4 o'clock in the morning exactly, you come and I will finish this self forever. But remember, you are not to bring ant arms with you, don't bring any guards with you; you have to come alone."

Wu was a little worried - the man strange! "How can he just destroy my self so quickly? It has been said by the scholars that it takes lives and lives of meditation; only then the self disappears. This man is weird! And he wants to meet me in the darkness, early in the morning at 4 o' clock, alone, without even a sword, no guards, no other companion? This man seems to be strange - he could do anything. And what does he mean that he will finish the self forever? He can Kill me, but how will he kill the self?

The whole night Emeror Wu could not sleep. He changed his mind again and again - to go or not to go? But there was something in Bodhidharma's eyes, there was something in his voice, and there was some aura of authority when he said, "just come at 4 o'clock sharp, and I will finish this self forever! You need not be worried about it." What he had said sound absurd, but the way he said it and the way he looked were so authoritative: He knows what he is saying. Finally Wu had to decide to go. He decided to risk it - "At the most he can kill me - what else? And I have tried everything. I cannot attain this no-self, and without attaining this no-self there is no end to my misery."

He knocked on the temple door, and Bodhidharma said, "I knew you would come; I knew that the whole night you would be changing your mind. But that does not matter - you have come. Now sit down in the lotus posture, close your eyes, and I am going to sit in front of you. The moment you find your self inside, catch hold of it so I can kill it. Just catch hold of it tightly and tell me that you have caught it, and I will kill it and it will be finished. It is a question of minutes." Wu was a little afraid.

Wu was a little afraid. Bodhidharma looked like a madman - he has been depicted as a madman, although he was not like that. The paintings are symbolic. Thats the impression he must have left on people. It was not his real face, but that must be the face that people have remembered. He was sitting with his big staff in front of Wu, and he said to him, " don't wait even for a second. Just the moment you catch hold of it - search inside every nook and cranny- open your eyes and then tell me that you have caught it, and I will finish it."

Then there was silence. One hour passed, two hours passed. Finally the sun was rising, and Wu was a different man. In those two hours, he looked inside, in every nook and cranny. He had to look- that man was sitting there; he could have hit him on the head with his staff. You could expect anything, whatever, Bodhidharma was not a man of etiquette, manners; he was not part of Wu's court. So had to look intently, intensively. And as he looked, he became relaxed... because it was no where! And as he looked for it, all thoughts disappeared. The search was so intense that his whole energy was involved in it; there was nothing left to think and desire, and this and that.

As the sun was rising Bodhidharma saw Wu's face; he was not the same man - such silence, such depth. He had disappeared.

Bodhidharma shook him and told him, "Open your eyes - it is not there. I don't have to kill it. I am a non-violent man, I don't kill anything! But this self does not exist. Because you never look for it, it goes on existing. It exists only in your not looking for it, in your unawareness. Now it is gone."

Two hours had passed and Wu was immensely glad. He had never tasted such sweetness, such freshness, such newness, such beauty. And he was not. Bodhidharma had fulfilled his promise. Emperor Wu bowed down, touched his feet, and said, "please forgive me for thinking that you are mad, thinking that you don't know manners, thinking that you are weird, thinking that you can be dangerous. I have never seen a more compassionate man than you... I am totally fulfilled. Now there is no question in me."

Emperor Wu said that when he dies, on his grave, Bodhidharma's statement should be engraved in gold, so that people in centuries to come would know..." there was a man who looked mad, but who was capable of doing miracles. Without doing anything he helped me to be a no-self. And since then everything has changed. Every thing is the same but I am not the same and life has become just a pure song of silence."

Source: The happiness that comes from within - JOY by OSHO.

Trouble with acquired knowledge...be your true self....

Meditation is needed because you have become unnatural. If you live a natural life... and by ’natural’ I mean: live the moment as it is – don’t try to put any should on it, don’t try to transform it into anything else. Just accept the moment as it is. When angry, be angry and accept it; and don’t create an ideal of not being angry. And when the anger has passed, don’t repent. There is nothing to repent about – it was so! When in love, love, and don’t think how love should be. Don’t consult love manuals, just let love flow naturally.

I have heard about a great warrior in Japan, a samurai, a very famous swordsman: One night when he came tired after the whole day’s fight in the fields and he was just going to fall into bed, he saw a rat. And the rat was looking at him ferociously! The samurai tried to kill the rat with his sword. He was one of the best swordsmen known, but somehow he missed. He hit many times, he broke his sword, and he could not kill the rat. He became really afraid: ”The rat seems to be very mysterious. This is no ordinary rat!”

He started, perspiring – he had never perspired. He had been a fighter his whole life and now a rat had defeated him. He ran out, asked his wife what to do. The wife said, ”You are a fool! You need not kill a rat. Have you ever heard of anybody killing a rat by a sword? You just take our cat inside.” And the cat was brought inside. It was no ordinary cat, it was the great warrior’s cat. She was also trained in many things; she was one of the most famous rat-catchers.She came with all her art, with all her skill.

She tried, but the rat was really extraordinary. He jumped exactly into her eyes! And the cat escaped out. She had never seen such a rat – attacking the cat?! And she was also trembling like the warrior. The warrior said, ”This is too much!” Then the king’s cat was called. She was a master cat, very well-known all over the country; of

course, she was the king’s cat. The king’s cat came and she was also defeated by the rat. She went in, tried hard, used all her skill, but the rat was just too much.

Then the king’s cat suggested a cat she knew who was not famous at all. ”You have tried with famous cats, now you try with an ordinary one... just ordinary, plain ordinary.”

The warrior said, ”But what can a plain, ordinary cat do?”

The king’s cat said, ”You just try. I know this cat. She is so ordinary, she does not know a thing. The whole day she sleeps. But there is one thing about her: cats know, the whole country’s cats know that she is very mysterious. The mysterious thing is that she knows nothing about rats, rat-catching, the art, the technique, the methodology, the philosophy – she knows nothing; she has never been to any school or college or university. She is a plain, ordinary cat, but rats are so afraid of her!

Wherever she sleeps... no rat ever enters that house! Just her presence is enough. And she goes on sleeping, and nobody knows when she kills and how she kills.

”Once I went to that cat and I asked, ’What is your art?’ She simply looked at me, and she had no words to say, and she closed her eyes and went to sleep. And I woke her again and asked, ’What is your art?’

”She said, ’I don’t know. I am a cat, that’s enough. A cat is a cat and IS MEANT to catch a rat. What art? What nonsense are you talking about?”’

The cat was brought, and the samurai was not very hopeful because she was really very ordinary, just like any vagabond cat.

She came in, and without any skill she simply went in, caught hold of the rat and brought it out. All the cats gathered together and asked her, ”What is your art?” And she said, ”I don’t know any art. I am a cat! Is not that enough?”

That’s what I mean by being natural. Meditation will happen if you are natural – even before enlightenment. Meditation is your natural blooming; meditation is not something like an art, skill, performance. No, not at all. You need not go to any school to learn it. But you have been spoiled. Rats have been around you too much, and you have become afraid of the rats – not only afraid, you have started learning how to catch these rats. You have become very skillful, artificial; you know the know-how and that is your trouble. Your knowledge is your trouble.
Source: from book 'Zen: The Path of Paradox"

"Forgiveness -- is giving up my right to hate you for hurting me"

I was deeply hurt, not by the Rajeevs (thank you for reminding the readers about the ads here..incidentally it turns out to be 3$ per day) but by those who in the melee saw an opportunity to vent their frustrations in the guise of defending me. I wanted to pour out my anger...God knows how much it would have been but as always things happen at the right moment and my wife read me this following article from Mahatma Gandhi's son while i was about to go to sleep last night..I half heard it..and sang a song sung by MS.Subbulaksmi, penned by C.Rajagopalachari- Kurai ondrum illai..I have no regrets.. And I am happy.
= = = = = = = =
The article:
"I was 16 years old and living with my parents at the institute my grandfather had founded 18 miles outside of Durban , South Africa , in the middle of the sugar plantations. We were deep in the country and had no neighbors, so my two sis ters and I would always look forward to going to town to visit friends or go to the movies.

One day, my father asked me to drive him to town for an all-day conference, and I jumped at the chance.Since I was going to town, my mother gave me a list of groceries she needed and, since I had all day in town, my father ask me to take care of several pending chores, such as getting the car serviced. When I dropped my father off that morning, he said, ' I will meet you here at 5:00 p.m., and we will go home together.'

After hurriedly completing my chores, I went straight to the nearest movie theatre. I got so engrossed in a John Wayne double-feature that I forgot the time. It was 5:30 before I remembered. By the time I ran to the garage and got the car and hurried to where my father was waiting for me, it was almost 6:00.

He anxiously asked me, ' Why were you late? ' I was so ashamed of telling him I was watching a John Wayne western movie that I said, ' The car wasn't ready, so I had to wait, not realizing that he had already called the garage. When he caught me in the lie, he said: 'There' s something wrong in the way I brought you up that didn' t give you the confidence to tell me the truth. In order to figure out where I went wrong with you, I'm going to walk home 18 miles and think about it. '

So, dressed in his suit and dress shoes, he began to walk home in the dark on mostly unpaved, unlit roads. I couldn't leave him, so for five-and-a-half hours I drove behind him, watching my father go through this agony for a stupid lie that I uttered. I decided then and there that I was never going to lie again.

I often think about that episode and wonder, if he had punished me the way we punish our children, whether I would have learned a lesson at all. I don't think so. I would have suffered the punishment and gone on doing the same thing. But this single non-violent action was so powerful that it is still as if it happened yesterday. That is the power of non-violence."

"Forgiveness is giving up my right to hate you for hurting me"
= = = = = = = = = = = = =
I am grateful to my parents who could forgive me unconditionally forever for all my irresponsible ways while growing up....to make me a responsible human being. I am happy. And I am rich beyond a measure.
Thank you..

Great is the art and devotion, and not the individual....

King Akbar is well known for his love of arts and religion. One of the arts he loved was the art of music, and just like Birbal who was considered as one of the nine jewels of King Akbar's court, Tansen was one of the jewels greatly known and respected for his high level of singing capabilities. It is said and believed that there was none better than Tansen and none could compete him in the art of singing.

Once King Akbar, after listening to Tansen's music and singing, was much pleased with the great art as always, praises Tansen's art of singing and praises Tansen with respect.

He says to Tansen, 'You the best artist in the world, you are great, incomparable.'
Tansen with the gratitude replies, ' This is your opinion, there are artist in the world, who are better than I am.'

King Akbar denies his answer, he says, ' You are getting ashamed Tansen, You are best among all.'

King Akbar is seen on a walk with Birbal, Tansen and others in the gardens. He starts the conversation with Birbal and asks him the reason for his silence. Does he not agree what the king has just said?. Birbal responds that just as Tansen has said there are better artist and musicians in this world.

King Akbar says to Birbal that he likes challenges and this time his challenge was to find a better singing artist than Tansen, which according to Akbar was next to impossible. Not satisfied by giving this challenge Akbar throws his valuable ring in a dry well and asks Birbal to bring out the ring from the well, without getting down in the well and without any support.

It seems Akbar loved issuing mental or intellectual challenges to Birbal as much as Birbal loved getting them. The greatness of man is often increased while facing the challenges. All great man we know have loved challenges and not got scared away by challenges or getting themselves down with the challenges.

About finding the better artist than Tansen, he had an instant answer, he said. 'Tansen's Guru (music teacher) is one, who is better than Tansen. Tansen readily agrees and tell that his teacher or guru is on pilgrimage and will be returning after a month'.

Birbal asks the king to wait for the return of the Guru and during that time, he will find a way to get the ring out of the well. The king agrees to what Birbal has said and tells him that he had one month to complete both the challenges.

After one month, the king reminds Birbal about the two challenges. Birbal says that Guruji is back, but the king will have to visit the Guru's home to listen to his singing as the Guru sings only for God and not for anyone else.

Those who sings or are serving God in any other way do their services only for God. Deep devotion and love for God flows through them. They would not sing or do anything to please any one, not even the richest and the greatest of the kings. They sing only for the love for God and devotion for God. The claps of people does not mean much to them, what has meaning for them is the love and devotion.

King Akbar known for his greatness, does not insist on calling the Guru to his palace but agrees to ride to his Guru's home. Not only that he was too pulled towards it just by the idea of listening to better singing than that of the amazing and soul satisfying singing of Tansen.

Next morning the king, Birbal and Tansen ride deep into a green forests where the Guru lived. From a distant they even had to leave their horses to reach the hut of the Guru. The king is asked to wait outside the hut and let the Guru come outside the hut and sing for his Lord, as he would not sing for anyone else. The king respects that and agrees.

After some wait the Guru appears from his little hut and starts singing outside his hut in devotion to God. The king is totally enchanted, he had never heard anything like this before. After the magical, soul enhancing song was over, the king visits the Guru with Tansen and Birbal. He praises the Guru's art, to which, truly a mark of greatness and real humbleness, the guru says that great is art and devotion, and not the individual.

The king tries to present him with some wealth, which is also humbly and gracefully denied. The king also put forward his desire of inviting the Guru to his palace where all his needs would be satisfied and the king could also listen to his singing when wished. This too is denied by the Guru, as he would sing only for his God and that the little hut in the forest was all that he needed for his devotion, and not the palace and it's richness.

This story is continued from Akbar Birbal Tales. Tales of Akbar and Birbal are widely popular in Indian subcontinent, for the wisdom and cleverness of the Legend of Birbal and generosity and greatness of King Akbar.

What happened to the ring challenge to Birbal...?

Birbal thought for some time and said, " Jahanpanah , If all goes well, I should get the ring out by dusk. Till then, Shahenshah, my plan must remain a secret." "No dirty tricks, Birbal! said one of the courtiers who was jealous of Birbal's wit.

"I won't dare do that, Alampana! I love life, said Birbal with a smile. " Shahenshah , I suggest you post a sentry to keep a watch on what Birbal does," the courtier appealed to the emperor. The emperor agreed and ordered two guards to keep a watch over the well.


I shall start working right away, Shahenshah . By evening you'll have the ring, if all goes well! said Birbal. The emperor wished Birbal luck and walked off with the courtiers. Birbal watched till the group vanished from sight. Then, he swung into action. He noticed a small hut at some distance. He hurried to the hut and called out, Is anybody in?

An old woman came out. Politely, Birbal asked her if he could buy a little cow dung from the pile that was lying in the corner. The old woman refused to take any payment but asked Birbal to help himself to the dung. Birbal rolled the dung carefully. Then, he walked back to the well with the cake of dung and let it drop into the well right above the ring. The dung hit the mark. He then turned and looked all around. His eyes fell on a medium-sized stone. He tied a string to the stone and holding one end of the string, he aimed the stone at the ball of dung and dropped it. The stone landed on its target. Birbal's face lit up with a sense of fulfillment. He tied the end of the string in his hand to a bush next to the well. 'Stay here. I shall come back before dusk,' Birbal told the guards. He walked off, happy at the thought that the heat would help him execute his plan.

An hour before dusk, Birbal set out from his house to the well. He untied the string tied to the bush and held it firmly. Then he walked up to the wall of the well and pulled the string towards him. The stone to which the other end of the string was tied moved up. Sticking to it now was the dried ball of dung. He pulled slowly and gently till the dried ball of dung was safely in his hands. He quickly crushed the dried dung. Down fell the ring!

Birbal headed for the palace in triumph. The durbar was full. ' Shahenshah! ' Birbal bowed. 'Did you get the ring?' the Emperor asked. 'Here it is, Alampana ,' said Birbal, giving the ring to the pleased Emperor.

He narrated the details of his plan to the curious emperor who was so impressed with Birbal's intelligence that he gave him a hundred gold mohars (coins)! ' Shahenshah! In all this world, there's no ruler more kind and generous than you!' said Birbal humbly. The emperor smiled gently, 'And in all this world, there's no ruler who has a better courtier than you, Birbal!

You too can carry a lot more on your shoulders...........

" TRY IS A SMALL WORD THAT CAN MAKE A HUGE DIFFERENCE.... IF WE TRY.... WE ONLY RISK FAILURE... BUT IF WE DON'T TRY THEN WE ENSURE FAILURE.....!!!!!!

All of us tend to look up to big people for lessons on how to get better. We are keen to learn the secrets of their success. But we forget that sometimes the biggest lessons in life come from the smallest folks around us.
Take ants for instance. Would you believe those small creatures can teach us how to live a better life? Jim Rohn - the great motivational guru – developed what he called the ‘Ants Philosophy’.
He identified four key lessons from the behaviour of ants that can help us lead better lives. Jim Rohn is no more – but his messages continue to inspire. Here then, are the four lessons from Rohn’s ‘Ants Philosophy’.
1. Ants never quit. Have you noticed how ants always look for a way around an obstacle? Put your finger in an ant’s path and it will try and go around it, or over it. It will keep looking for a way out. It won’t just stand there and stare. It won’t give up and go back.
There will always be obstacles in our lives. The challenge is to keep trying, keep looking for alternative routes to get to our goals. Winston Churchill probably paraphrased the ant’s mindset when he offered this priceless advice: “Never give up. Never, never give up!”
2. Ants think winter all summer. Remember the old story of the ant and the grasshopper? In the middle of summer, the ant was busy gathering food for the winter ahead – while the grasshopper was out having a good time. Ants know that summer - the good times – won’t last forever. Winters will come. When the going is good, don’t be so arrogant as to believe that a crisis or a setback cannot happen to you. Be good to other people. Save for a rainy day. Look ahead. And remember, good times may not last, but good people do.
3. Ants think summer all winter. As they suffer through the unbearable cold of the winter, ants keep reminding themselves that it won’t last forever, and that summer will soon be here. And with the first rays of the summer sun, the ants come out – ready to work, ready to play. When we are down and seemingly out, when we go through what looks like a never-ending crisis, it’s good to remind ourselves that this too shall pass. Good times will come. It’s important to retain a positive attitude, an attitude that says things will get better. As the old saying goes, tough times don’t last. Tough people do.
4. Ants do all they possibly can. How much food does an ant gather in summer? All that it possibly can! Now that’s a great work ethic to have. Do all you can! One ant doesn’t worry about how much food another ant is collecting. It does not sit back and wonder why it should have to work so hard. Nor does it complain about the poor pay! Ants just do their bit. They gather all the food they can. Success and happiness are usually the result of giving 100% - doing all you possibly can. If you look around you, you’ll find that successful people are those who just do all they possibly can.
Follow the four simple steps of Jim Rohn’s ‘Ant Philosophy’ – and you’ll see the difference. Don’t quit. Look ahead. Stay positive. And do all you can.
And there’s just one more lesson to learn from ants. Did you know that an ant can carry objects up to 20 times their own weight? Maybe we are like that too. We can carry burdens on our shoulders and manage workloads that are far, far heavier than we’d imagine. Next time something’s bothering you and weighing you down, and you feel you just can’t carry on, don’t fret. Think of the little ant. And remember, you too can carry a lot more on your shoulders!

A must read.--A 2,600-Year-Old Manual for Living ....

Many investors believe a successful strategy starts with a hunch about the economy. Based on this, they make an educated guess about what lies ahead for the stock market. This, in turn, leads to a theory about which stocks to buy. But a theory that's based on a guess that's based on a hunch may not be the best foundation for your investment portfolio.

Investors hate uncertainty. And history shows that they will pay brokers, hedge fund managers and investment gurus a lot of money to eliminate it.

The problem is they can't. Count yourself a sophisticated investor the day you wake up and say, "Given that no one can tell me with any certainty what the economy or financial markets will do, how should I run my portfolio?" This is the beginning of investment wisdom.

As you learn more about this Eastern philosophy, you'll be struck by the similarities. Consider, for example, the following verses from China's ancient Tao Te Ching. They could be aimed squarely at economic forecasters, market timers, and metaphysical speculators:

The ancient Masters didn't try to educate the people, but kindly taught them to not-know.
When they think that they know the answers, people are difficult to guide.
When they know that they don't know, people can find their own way.

Or consider this verse:
Not knowing is true knowledge. Presuming to know is a disease.
First realize that you are sick; then you can move toward health.

Or even more simply:

Those who know don't talk.
Those who talk don't know.

The venerable Tao Te Ching is not an investment guide, of course. It's a 2,600-year-old collection of 81 brief poems that describe a vision of what our lives would be like if we lived in harmony with the way things are.

It's among the most translated books in the world, exceeded only by the Bible and the Bhagavad-Gita. The Tao itself represents a transcendent mystery, something we cannot name or even imagine. Interpreted literally, it is "the way" of the universe, an explanation of life.

It contains no moral code, however. In fact, the Tao Te Ching is rarely about taking action. More often, it's about the wisdom of inaction and accepting what you cannot change, be it the state of the economy, the death of a loved one, or the behavior of your adult children.

Tradition tells us the author is Lao Tzu, a keeper of the imperial archives in the ancient capital of Luoyang, who lived around 600 B.C. But more likely, he didn't exist at all. Like Homer, Lao Tzu is probably a combination of many ancient sages – and the Tao is a compilation of wisdom that came into being over a great period of time. (The wordslao tzu literally mean "old philosopher.")

Taoist philosophy challenges you to embrace paradoxical thinking. For example, you may believe an affront requires a forceful response. Lao Tzu encourages you to consider humility instead. A problem needs an effective solution? Consider the benefits of non-action first.

The ancient symbol of the Tao shows the two phases of the moon conjoined. This represents the yin and yang of the world: masculine and feminine, darkness and light, weakness and strength, action and inaction.

The West tend to think that opposites contradict. The Oriental view is that they compliment each other – and it is only when we change our ingrained ways of thinking that we begin to change our world.

Taoist philosophy requires an open mind and considerable reflection to be fully appreciated. It reminds us, for instance, that we may be so busy trying to get rich, change the world or improve ourselves that we miss life's essence. Verse 8 says:

Fill your bowl to the brim and it will spill.
Keep sharpening your knife and it will blunt.
Chase after money and security and your heart will never unclench.
Care about people's approval and you will be their prisoner.
Do your work, then step back. The only path to serenity.

Taoism offers an alternative view of abundance, one that values maintaining dignity over acquiring social position, and enjoying free time over acquiring possessions.

Culture, society and technology have changed a great deal over the last few thousand years. But the Taoist philosophy remains relevant. For example:

Knowing others is intelligence;
knowing yourself is true wisdom.
Mastering others is strength;
mastering yourself is true power.

Or consider this timeless nugget:

Wise men don't need to prove their point;
Men who need to prove their point aren't wise.

Lao Tzu said we should have a nature like water. Water can be forceful, yet it is always the first to yield, moving quickly around obstacles and relentlessly seeking the simplest path. With time and persistence, water will wear away the tallest mountains and transform the landscape.

People who are confrontational – who remain dogmatic – never learn this lesson. They're more interested in being right than moving forward. The Tao Te Ching says:

People are born gentle and weak; at their death they are hard and stiff. All things, including the grass and the trees, are soft and pliable in life; dry and brittle in death.
Stiffness is thus a companion of death; flexibility a companion of life. An army that cannot yield
will be defeated. A tree that cannot bend will crack in the wind. The hard and stiff will be broken; The soft and supple will prevail.

One of the classics of Oriental literature, the Tao Te Ching is both simple and profound. And it's easy to follow. The secret is not to complicate it.

The Tao encourages you to stop feeding your ego and enjoy the fruits of your labor. It teaches that the experience of inner peace is the true gauge of accomplishment.

The Tao Te Ching deals with many of the most basic human experiences: birth, death, loss, gain, dignity in the face of challenge, how to judge the character of a person, when to move forward, when to retreat, how to deal with good fortune or ill fate. There is even sage political advice: Governing a large country is like frying a small fish. You spoil it with too much poking.

Despite his wisdom, Lao Tzu expected skepticism. He seemed to know his message would not always be well received:

When a superior man hears of the Tao,
he immediately begins to embody it.
When an average man hears of the Tao,
he half believes it, half doubts it.
When a foolish man hears of the Tao,
he laughs out loud.
If he didn't laugh,
it wouldn't be the Tao.

Our lives are full of responsibilities and obligations. Technology and the pace of modern life add even more pressure and anxiety. Yet it's possible to gain understanding from the Tao Te Ching, a more than 2,000-year-old discourse on the nature of existence.

Taoism teaches that to be truly free we must be able to work with change rather than against it. We should be humble, flexible and detached from most worldly concerns. The art of abundance is often a matter of recognizing, appreciating and celebrating life as it is:

If you look to others for fulfillment,
you will never be truly fulfilled.
If your happiness depends on money,
you will never be happy with yourself.

Be content with what you have;
rejoice in the way things are.
When you realize there is nothing lacking,
the whole world belongs to you.

Carpe Diem,

Courtesy: Alexander Green

Every one says...........

Everyone in the world
says my Way is great,
but it seems incomparable.
It is just because it is great
that it seems incomparable:
when comparisons are long established
it becomes trivialized.

I have three treasures
that I keep and hold:
One is mercy,
the second is frugality,
the third is not presuming
to be at the head of the world.
By reason of mercy,
one can be brave.
By reason of frugality,
one can be broad,.
By not presuming
to be at the head of the world,
one can make your potential last.

Now if one were bold
but had no mercy,
if one were broad
but were not frugal,
if one went ahead
without deference,
one would die.

Use mercy in war,
and you win;
use it for defense,
and you are secure.
Those whom heaven is going to save
are those it guards with mercy.

Modern learning is superficial. Detachment from learning does not mean not learning anything at all, it means maintaining the natural essence of mind. If you give up the original natural essence of mind and seek the Way outside, there is something special called learning, which is all externally oriented. Only by detachment from this learning can you be worry free: this is attained spontaneously by following essential nature: it is not learned.

-The Essential TAO - Translated and presented by THOMAS CLEARY.

Never Revenge On The Market..........

Tgs: irect correlation, perspective, relationship, revenge

There is a direct correlation between your ability to let the market tell you what it is likely to do next and the degree to which you have released yourself from the negative effects of any beliefs about losing, being wrong, and revenge on the markets. Not being aware of this relationship, most traders will continue to observe the market from a contaminated perspective.

>>>>>>>>>

“One common adage on this subject that is completely wrongheaded is: you can’t go broke taking profits. That’s precisely how many traders do go broke. While amateurs go broke by taking large losses, professionals go broke by taking small profits.

The problem in a nutshell is that human nature does not operate to maximize gain but rather to maximize the chance of gain. The desire to maximize the number of winning trades (or minimize the number of losing trades) works against the trader. The success rate of trades is the least important performance statistic and may even be inversely related to performance.”

>>>>>>>>>

One thing we should have learned in the financial crisis was how interconnected the world is and despite the pain and strain of the last few years, there has been little, if any, progress in reducing systemic risk. When the regulators developed the Basel rules they used historical data which suggested that country defaults were rare and largely uncorrelated, and so the result was preferential capital rules.

But those factors also drove the preferential capital rules for mortgages, and we know how that turned out. What we are witnessing is a highly correlated deterioration in developed economies at a time when there is untenable debt and an incredibly tangled, and still largely unregulated, derivative machination tying the world together. Through this lens, Japan is Ireland is Greece is Portugal… and eventually, it will be the United States as well.

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

Three Common Emotional Pitfalls

Fear of missing out occurs when a trader is more afraid of missing an opportunity than they are of losing money. As a result, traders tend to overtrade in a desperate effort to ensure that they do not miss out on money making situations. This over trading can then potentially trigger an under trading response if the traders experiences a “trading injury” such as a big loss, along the way. They way to solve this is first to accept the reality that you are always going to miss out on something, somewhere. The second step is to establish game plans on paper and be held accountable to executing those plans.

Focusing on the money and not the trade limits performance because the trader quantifies their success based on their profit and loss data. As a result, when he or she is up or down a certain amount of money that they view as significant, then they alter their trading behaviors regardless of what the actual, real trading opportunity is that is presented to them. The way to solve this is to quantify your success based on HOW you traded not HOW much you made on the trade. Did you have edge? Was it your pitch? Did you make a high quality trade?

Losing objectivity in a trade occurs because traders develop emotional ties to their previous entry levels. The trader is no longer making trading decisions based on the trade but rather based on how much they are up or down in the trade. The key to overcoming this is for the trader to continually ask him/herself, “Why am I in this trade?” and “If I was not in this trade right now, would I enter this trade long, short or do nothing?”

Let The Bombing Commence: UN Set To Impose “No Fly….

The endgame in Libya begins. The UN has agreed on a draft resolution to implement a no fly zone over Libya, which means the bombing may commence as soon as the vote passes later today. As to what Gaddafi’s retaliation will be, and whether he will burn down the oil wells, which previously were in rebel hands, but have since fallen back into his control, we will surely find out in the next 24 hours.

From AFP:

UN Security Council members agreed on a draft resolution that will impose a no-fly zone over Libya, diplomats in New York said. The decision will be brought up for a vote later in the day.

Earlier, American ambassador to the UN Susan Rice told reporters that the UN may need to contemplate steps that go beyond the no-fly zone

Denmark is the first country to step up and promise the use of its F-16s.

Lene Espersen, the foreign minister, told parliament’s Foreign Affairs Committee on Tuesday that the Air Force is preparing four F-16 fighter jets to take part in an internationally-backed no-fly zone over Libya, should Nato high command decide to act.

The government is trying to build support in parliament and internationally for a United Nations-backed no-fly zone over Libya to block Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi from making further advances against rebel forces and attacking Libyan civilians.

“The Arab world has made it very clear that the UN Security Council must make the decision. That’s why we all need to work right now to ensure that the UN Security Council has the backing it needs to make that decision,” Espersen said

Trading Lessons From Nicolas Darvas..........

ags: anticipation, bad advice, decline, despair, ego, half of the time, industry group, laws of supply and demand, long periods of time, new leaders, overtrading, speculators, stock market, stock selection, supply and demand, wall street

• 
• There are no good or bad stocks. There are only stocks that rise in price and stocks that decline in price, and that price is based on the laws of supply and demand in the marketplace
• “You can never go broke taking a profit” is bad advice that will result in overtrading and cutting winners short. Selling winners and holding losers is to be avoided at all times
• There is a “follow-the-leader” style in the market. You will find success by selecting the most active and strongest industry group and trading its top leader
• The combination of price and increased volume is key to stock selection. Focus your time on new leaders emerging with a new market cycle
• It is the anticipation of growth rather than the growth itself that leads to great profits in growth stocks. “You have to find out what the public wants and go along with it. You can’t fight the tape, or the public.”
• One of the quickest ways to lose money in the market is to listen to others and all of their so-called expert opinions. To succeed, you must ignore all outside opinions and predictions. Follow your own strategy!
• Losses are tuition on Wall Street. Learn from them.
• You should expect to be wrong half of the time. Your goal is to lose as little as possible when you are. “I have no ego in the stock market. If I make a mistake I admit it immediately and get out fast. If you could play roulette with the assurance that whenever you bet $100 you could get out for $98 if you lost your bet, wouldn’t you call that good odds?”
• Most of your big failures will come from three things: 1) when you abandon your rules, 2) you become overconfident, and 3) trade in despair when unsuccessful
• The best speculators search only for the very best opportunities. To be truly successful, you must wait for the right opportunities to present themselves and this often means doing nothing for long periods of time
• The market behaves the way it does due to participants behaving the way they do. No one knows what they will do until they actually do it
• Long-term investors are the real gamblers in the market due to their eternal hope that losing stocks will come back in price
• It is difficult to be profitable on the short side of the market versus the long side – trading in rising or bull markets will give you the best chance for success
• Most, if not all stocks, will follow the general trend of the market
• To train your emotions, write down the reasons for making every trade. When you lose, write down what you thought contributed to the loss. Then study and set new rules to avoid making those same mistakes
• Concentrate your trades. At the peak of his success, Darvas would hold only 5 to 8 stocks at one time which was in contrast to his earlier days when he was overtrading and would hold up to 30 stocks at a time
• Avoid fallen leaders. Overhead resistance will keep upside potential limited due to supply from previous buyers who had not cut short their losses. According to Darvas, the only sound reason for a stock is one that is rising in price. If that is not happening, then there is “no other reason worth considering.”
• Darvas used his “box theory” to trade using boxes to time his entries (on breaking out to a new higher box) and exits (breaking below the current trading box).
• For new trades, Darvas used “pilot buys” which basically were starter positions in stocks he liked. Only if the stock continued to move higher would he then pyramid and increase his position. He learned never to buy more of a losing position
• He thought many unsuccessful investors made the mistake of looking at the same familiar names that might have worked well for them in the past instead of focusing on the next stock with the right elements for the new market cycle. “I am only in infant industries where earnings could double or triple. The biggest factor in stock prices is the lure of future earnings. The dream of the future is what excites people, not the reality.”
• Perfection has no role in successful trading. No one can buy at the absolute lowest price and sell at the highest price. No time or effort should be devoted to that goal. “I never bought a stock at the low or sold one at the high in my life. I am satisfied to be along for most of the ride.”
• Trade only when the environment is in your favor. Darvas’ strategy kept him out of poor and bear markets because he wouldn’t trade stocks that didn’t fit his requirements which were only found in raging bull markets
• Be aggressive when warranted. Darvas believed in making aggressive trades when his system pointed to a great trade. In fact, sometimes 50% of his capital was devoted to just one stock
• While his trading approach was very technical, after studying the market’s winners he understood the relevance of finding stocks also with good fundamentals. Namely, Darvas thought that earnings and the future estimate of increased earnings were very important
• Be a student of the market. Darvas learned by reading more than 200 books about speculators and the market and devoted studying the market for many hours a day. In fact, Gerald Loeb’s books & approach served as key inspiration
• No one can completely master the market. After millions of dollars and best selling books, Darvas was still learning and tweaking his system until he passed away