Sunday, September 30, 2018

#CSCCAN1 - Halifax Oceanfront & Joy of Sharing at IBM Halifax Downtown Office

What makes us a celebration always is the joy of giving and sharing.   Arriving from 7 different countries  and mentors from Canada and operations managers from USA,  we the team of CSCCAN1 arrived in Halifax from India, Argentina, Brazil, Denmark, Philippines, Romania & Australia.  

Sharing the spirit of each of our countries and meeting our friends and colleagues from all over the world is spirit of CSC and we have one thing that bonds us further and it is IBM..  The passion for community service, the warmth of working together and being a home away from home recharges us for the month ahead working on social-impactful project that make the different to the Nova Scotia community











#CSCCAN1 - First Weekend - Visit to McNab Islands Nova Scotia

Visit to Halifax's Best Kept Secret!   McNab Islands

McNabs Island is the largest island at the entrance of Halifax Harbour in Nova Scotia. Part of the McNabs and Lawlor Islands Provincial Park, McNabs Island is only a short boat ride from Halifax or Eastern Passage, but feels like a world away with its colorful past and unspoiled natural beauty.

Promoting and preserving McNabs Island’s many historical and natural features is the Friends of McNabs Island Society, a volunteer, non-profit charity.

Beyond hosting events such as picnics, nature and historical tours, the Society produces informative newsletters, a guide book, maps and brochures. It also works with Nova Scotia Department of Natural Resources and Parks Canada to upkeep and develop park infrastructure on the island.
















 Pic Courtesy:  CSCCAN1

#CSCCAN1 - The Journey begins in Halifax 30 Sep 2018

After 3 months of pre-work along with our full time jobs, 15 of us boarded our planes from different cities around the world, across several time zones, different flight carriers, extremely unpredictable weather conditions, after amazing visa and immigration stories to the 4 amazing weeks of our lives. 

On other side of the Planet, an absolutely incredible woman Liesl Mulholland, Program Manager from DOT for CSC Canada program was at the peak of work to make our journey successful. That did not stop her from being at the airport to receive each one of us, all through the day and night making us feel warm, welcoming and to a very comforting start of the CSC journey onsite. Thank you Liesl and DOT team for this most wonderful welcome.

Despite the time zones different and possible jet lag, all of us were at the hotel conference room at 9.30 a.m except for 3 of us who were redirected to Toronto due to fog weather conditions in Halifax as we landed. They later joined us in the afternoon to continue with rest of our program.
9.30 am- 12.00 : Place Homewood Suites Hilton-Halifax Downtown.

As we assembled after a refreshing coffee and breakfast, our mentors Andrew, Mark & Rick joined us and we were so excited to see them face to face after being guided & mentored for 3 months. 

Probably that’s the strength of CSC -Alumni who turn out to be absolutely phenomenal mentors for the future teams. Our DOT team Andres, Liesl and Alessandra were happy to meet and greet us and take us through the most interactive Orientation session. We had the briefing on the upcoming 4 weeks agenda, host organizations & planned projects, details of the formal kick off and closing ceremonies, and how we will be engaged during our personal time.

12:30 pm : DOT team arranged for a great Asian-themed lunch, post which our 3 colleagues who flew from Toronto joined us.

12.45 pm : We started to McNab’s Island — a historical island that once helped Halifax be the torch bearer to support protecting the Province during two world wars.

1:15 PM: All of us reached Bishops Landing- Halifax Waterfront Marina and boarded our first boat ride to McNabs Island with an incredible team of enthusiastic ‘Friends of McNabs Island’ volunteers. (These amazing environment conservationists do a yearly beach cleanup protecting the ocean front and have a great interest in sharing the historical significance of the islands and also taking us through a guided tour of the place), DOT team, our mentors and all of the CAN1 team. (There were plenty of occasions that we kept remembering our friend who couldn’t join us due to her visa not coming on time yet and just wished for a miracle and hopeful she joins us ASAP)

1: 30-2:00 PM Looking at the Halifax’s amazing natural beauty of the Ocean, the skyline and lighthouses, the harbour, the Cruise Ships, Yachts, Rowing boats and wonderful people, made us fall in love with the place very naturally

2:00-5 P.M The historical tour to McNab Islands visiting the places of significance and the fort and the great cannons that stand as a testimony to the place that once which was at the peak of active participation in border security of the land






7.30 PM-10 PM DOT team hosted a ‘Welcome Dinner’ at the local ‘The Local’ and we had great time bonding with the team, eating some good local food and good music from a Nova Scotian fiddler.The Local was just few meters away from the hotel and gave us a fair idea of the neighbourhood to our home in Halifax for the next 4 weeks.

Amazing start to the most incredible journey of the #CSCCAN1 team.
#CSCCAN1 #IBMCSC #Daringinnovators #DOTCanada #DigitalOpportunityTrust #Halifax


















Wednesday, September 19, 2018

Post 3- CSC One final week to go….CSCCAN1…Halifax…

How this whole assignment happens to be a different experience from the regular Volunteering?

This assignment actually transforms you from what you are to what the Organizations need….. 
planned, trained, performing Leaders! 

The whole journey starts from being your application selection (which is around 10–15% from the overall applications ) and then giving you adequate time to get trained, motivated, network and integrate with the objectives of CSC. This is a team experience. Teams made of complimentary skills set, high leadership values, great history of work performances, leveraging on the talents and perspectives of all team members. 



The pre-work for more than 2 months give you ample space to understand the diversity of cultures of the people forming as a team with sole objective of achieving success in CSC projects for clients. By the end of 11–12 weeks of team meetings, buddy presentations, knowing your team mates, understanding the significance of unity in diversity, makes the team one family. Here, every team member gets to learn so much from others. Hence the high performing teams emerge at the end of this journey

Grouping into sub-teams and having a overall skill-set to achieve the common purpose, having a high level commitment, and entire focus on the goals, with absolute accountability makes CSC stand par excellence.

Well-structured learning modules, train you to equip yourselves to have the ability to perform on the client’s needs. This is a Win-Win situation for all involved.

Rishi and Aishwarya took on the responsibility to create the Team’s Code of Conduct — establishing guidelines for a set of mutually agreed upon behaviours for which team members hold each other accountable, setting expectations on working together, setting up a common work approach, facilitating progression that can be reviewed periodically.

The learning is immense and of high value. As part of the Personal Effectiveness, the learning of Six Thinking Hats presented by Edward De Bono gives you enough space to start wearing you different thinking hats. Giving knowledge on the structured and creative thinking techniques. That helps in Workshops, Problem- Solving and meetings.

Different perspectives lead to different things, based on fundamental understanding of how the brain handles information and reacts. Very structured and logical approach to dealing with problems are to view problems from a new and unusual perspective. This encourages you to think outside the comfort zone and go beyond the obvious to discover effective alternate solutions. Improved communication and decision making helps you to say things without risk. Once we start focusing on the thinking, plans will be more sounder and resilient.
Now that we have learnt most of this, in a very structured pre-work with help of our valuable mentors who are CSC Alumini Andrew McDonald, Rick and Mark helped us to start rediscovering ourselves. We are waiting for the regular Thursday call, tomorrow, which will be our last call as part of Pre-Work and also ‘Before you go’ call and then to start packing our bags to the most awaited journey….

Monday, September 17, 2018

Visit to Sarnath, 10 kms from Varanasi - important Buddhist pilgrimage destinations in India


Sarnath, located just 12 km from the Hindu holy city of Varanasi, is the site of the deer park where Gautama Buddha first taught the Dharma after his enlightenment. Sarnath is one of four holy Buddhist sites sanctioned by the Buddha himself for pilgrimage. The other three sites are: Lumbini (birth); Bodh Gaya (enlightenment); and Kushinagar (death).




Buddha came to Sarnath to preach his message of the middle way to nirvana after he achieved enlightenment at Bodhgaya, and gave his famous first sermon here. In the 3rd century BC, Emperor Ashoka had magnificent stupas and monasteries erected here, as well as an engraved pillar. When Chinese traveller Xuan Zang dropped by in AD 640, Sarnath boasted a 100m-high stupa and 1500 monks living in large monasteries. However, soon after, Buddhism went into decline and, when Muslim invaders sacked the city in the late 12th century, Sarnath disappeared altogether. It was ‘rediscovered’
Buddhism flourished in Sarnath in part because of the support of kings and wealthy merchants based in nearby Varanasi. By the 3rd century Sarnath had become an important center for the arts, which reached its zenith during the Gupta period (4th-6th century AD). When Hsuan Tsang visited from China in the 7th century, he found 30 monasteries and 3000 monks living at Sarnath.











 
At the end of the 12th century, Sarnath was sacked by Turkish Muslims. The site was subsequently plundered for building materials and has remained in ruins until the present day. The site was entirely deserted until 1836, when the British began excavations and restoration.

What to See at Sarnath
All of the ancient buildings and structures at Sarnath were damaged or destroyed by the Turks. However, amongst the ruins the Dharmekh Stupa is impressive at 128 feet high, and 93 in diameter. This dates from around 200 BC and is the spot where the Buddha is said to have preached his first sermon.

Only the foundations remain of the Dharmarajika Stupa, but it is notable as a rare pre-Ashokan stupa.

The decaying ruins of the Mulagandhakuti Vihara mark the place where the Buddha spent his first rainy season in meditation. In the 7th century, a writer described it as 200 feet high and containing 100 niches containing a Buddha carving along each wall. A life-sized statue shows the Buddha turning the wheel of the law.

To the east is the modern Mulagandhakuti Vihara with its beautiful wall paintings; behind it is the Deer Park, which is maintained as an open animal park and still attracts deer.

The Ashoka Pillar at Sarnath survived the Turkish invasion but was broken during excavations. The base still stands in its original spot and has some interesting carvings.
The splendid lion capital that topped the pillar, which thankfully survived its 45 foot drop to the ground is on display at the Sarnath Archeological Museum. The museum also houses some of the greatest treasures of Indian Buddhist art, including almost 300 images.

There is also a Bodhi tree planted by Anagarika Dharmapala which was grown from a cutting of the Bodhi tree at Bodh Gaya. It is located next to a Sri Lankan monastery.

Six national temples have been built by various Asian communities at Sarnath since the site's restoration, including a Tibetan temple and Sri Lankan temple.

Don’t Miss

Sarnath Museum is the oldest site museum of Archaeological Survey of India. It houses the findings and excavations at the archaeological site of Sarnath, by the Archaeological Survey of India. Sarnath is located near Varanasi, in the state of Uttar Pradesh. The museum has 6,832 sculptures and artifacts

The museum contains five galleries and two verandahs to display the antiquities ranging from the 3rd century BCE to 12th century AD that have been found at Sarnath.
Sarnath has yielded a rich collection of sculptures, artefacts and edifices comprising numerous Buddha and Bodhisattva images and other ancient remains. Finest specimens of Buddhist art and other important remains have been housed at the museum. 

While the single most famous exhibit of this museum is the Lion Capital of Ashoka, the Sarnath museum also houses a collection of other Buddhist artefacts. Among the things to see is a sculpture of the Buddha from the 5th century. The Buddha sits cross-legged, with eyes downcast in deep meditation, and a halo around his head. Also worth exploring are the several figures of the bodhisattvas. 

Of other Buddhist remains, there is a life-size standing Bodhisattva and a delicate image of the Bodhisattva with a lotus and yet another bronze sculpture showing the Bodhisattva with multiple arms. The museum at Sarnath also houses a collection of figures and sculptures from the Mauryan, the Kushana and the Gupta periods. Prominent among them is the earliest Buddha image found at Sarnath and many images of Hindu Gods dating from the 9th to 12th centuries. 

Ashoka's Lion capital

This is the famous original sandstone sculpted Lion Capital of Ashoka preserved at Sarnath Museum, which was originally erected around 250 BCE atop an Ashoka Pillar at Sarnath. The angle from which this picture has been taken, minus the inverted bell-shaped lotus flower, has been adopted as the National Emblem of India showing the Horse on the left and the Bull on the right of the Ashoka Chakra in the circular base on which the four Indian lions are standing back to back. On the far side there is an Elephant and a Lion instead. The wheel "Ashoka Chakra" from its base has been placed onto the centre of the National Flag of India.

Wat Thai Temple, Sarnath

Popularly known as the Thai Temple, the Hinayana Buddha temple was built by Thai dignitaries in 1933. It also has Thai designs and is prettily located amid lush green gardens. There is a statue of a laughing Buddha just before the main Thai temple and on the right side is an enactment of Buddha delivering a sermon to his disciples. There are three other statues of Buddha in various mudras beneath a tree and colourful flowers grow around it.

The Thais call it the Wat Thai Temple. There are many devotees in orange robes moving around the temple compound and paying their regards.

A huge standing Buddha statue is on the left side of the temple and towers over 80 m, the construction of which is said to have taken more than a decade.  Calm prevails in the Thai Temple which makes it feel like a very divine experience. There and no charges for entry and timings are from sunrise to sunset.

The Buddha Statue is said to be made out of 365 stones representing 365 days in a year and also has 4 important stages of Buddha’s life depicted on the 4 sides of the statue