455. Destination is ONE but PATH & ways to REACH are different..!

http://www.speakingtree.in/spiritual-blogs/seekers/science-of-spirituality/destination-is-one-but-path-ways-to-reach-are-different

Some say work is worship and some insist that a seeker need to perform ritualistic worship to a deity in the form of an idol to merge with Truth, while others plead that the ritualistic worship is not needed to attain Absolute. There are chances that when a young seeker who listens to the three statements get confused and at times these talks intimidate him to some extent. But for one who has understood Vedas well there is not even an iota of doubt and he simply tread forward choosing that path which he is capable with. 

Let me try to explain: There is mention of Karmakanda (Path of Rituals), Upasanakanda (Path of Worship) and Jnanakanda (Path of Knowledge) in Vedas to attain the Truth.

 

 

Karmakanda is for those under the sway of their mind feeling happy and sad as the situation prevails, who have likes and dislikes and hence are attached to delusions and illusions. Such seekers need some kind of a support to comprehend Truth. That support is their mind. With the mind there is a need to retain "I" ness and practice discipline, attend discourses and cleanse the mind regularly and polish it always. This way of attainment is called “Pipilika Marga” the way of the Ant. One can observe that an ant slowly climbs up to the trunk of the tree and marches forward to the branch and finally reach the fruit and enjoys the taste of the fruit.

 

 

Upasanakanda is where the seeker deals with “why” aspect of rituals in addition to “how” and stage by stage moves forward towards comprehending Truth. This path includes concentration and meditation on deities, mental worship. This is an intermediate state for a seeker; if Karmakanda cleanses the mind of impurities, Upasanakanda helps the mind to gain single pointedness, to concentrate. This way of attainment is called “Markata Marga” the way of the Monkey. A monkey jumps from one tree to another lands on the branch which has fruits and grabs the fruit and tastes it.

 

 

Jnanakanda is the ultimate state. A seeker here in this state realizes that there is higher authority that is controlling the natural forces such as Volcano (Fire), Tornado (Wind), Torrential Rain (Water), Tremors (Earth) and Avalanche (Space). The seeker is convinced that just doing good deeds is not the ultimate goal of human life. The only way to end sufferings of human life is to get liberated and end the cycles of Birth and Death once and for all. This liberation yields the final merger with Brahman, the Supreme Being. This way of attainment is called “Shuka Marga” the way of the Parrot. The parrot fly down from the sky lands on the branch of the tree with fruits and pecks at a fruit with its beak and starts relishing the fruit.

 

 

In the Karmakanda the support of mind is always there just as the branch is there for the ant to climb the tree to get the fruit. In Upasanakanda the support of the mind is occasionally needed just as the monkeys need the branch of the tree to jump and grasp the fruit. In Jnanakanda the support of mind is needed very little, just as the parrot seldom needs the help of the branch except for landing on it and relishing the fruit.

 

 

But one has to notice that the fruit is attainable in all the three ways, it depends on the faith and endurance in the path a seeker has. Ant may not be as quick as monkey or monkey may not be as quick as parrot in getting the fruit but importantly all the three finally get the fruit. If the ant try to imitate the money and try to jump or if monkey looks at parrot and try to fly and if the parrot ties to climb the tree like the ant it will delay its approach in reaching the fruit.

 

 

Every seeker attains the ultimate if he treads the path in whichever way he is comfortable……… Do you agree???

453. Everything in Nature is for me to Use but nothing is Mine…!

http://www.speakingtree.in/public/spiritual-blogs/seekers/self-improvement/everything-in-nature-is-for-me-to-use-but-nothing-is-mine

The major problem that is threatening the survivors on this planet is over consumption. Over consumption is a state where anything available is used up more than resource limit. Why would we need more than required is the million dollar question which has to be found answer to by every individual. Nature will provide everything according to the season and reason. While all the creature abide to the laws of nature and consume that provided by the nature to the limit, it is the human race which is hell bent on consuming more than required. Are we gluttonous??? No, we are not we have this bad habit of hoarding. In gluttony we can assume that the person will consume but in hoarding one cannot guarantee the person will be consuming.

Hoarding is the tendency to accumulate more than required. This was not the culture of the land some two decades back but now everyone wants to lay their hands on everything they see. Let us take the simple example of buying groceries. Earlier it was like listing what was required to the family needs for the month and buying them, but now it is just walking to a shopping mall and buy all those things which has freebies or discount tag with it. The mall culture has increase the rate of impulse buying. This impulse buying is another face of hoarding. Even though we are sure we would not need it for next few months we buy them. This is impulse buying they are often set traps in the malls with the wonderful display. Impulse buying is normally provoked by emotional thought which injects is a perception that a purchase will bring a pleasant change in mood. Then the trap set has worked.

No, I am not attempting to show disrespect to the marketing skills of the business entrepreneurs. Marketing gurus are well versed tapping the irrational nature of consumers and take advantage of their emotions at every opportunity. Off late this world called infomercial has exploited our tendency to make poor decisions on the spur of the moment. They have a great skill in explaining their product to us and make us believe that without them our life would be a waste. Infomercials have reached out millions of customers but only a few thousands have really benefited out of them rest are all impulse buyers.

Why did this blog which started on the note to talk about hoarding ended up explaining about impulse buying?? There is a connection between both of them, what is made as impulse purchase is mostly not used at all it is hoarded or hardly ever used. If that thing which was not in my list of purchase, not purchased by me it would have served the purpose of someone who would have needed it most. The thought that everything should be mine or I should own everything is the mental disease and psychological disorder which when not checked needs a clinical intervention.

452. Young Girls have to be Emotionally Empowered....!

http://www.speakingtree.in/public/spiritual-blogs/seekers/self-improvement/young-girls-have-to-be-emotionally-empowered

“How can you send your daughter to the shop at this late hours?” said a man, the time was 7.30 P.M. The father of the girl replied, “My daughter is strong emotionally if any Roadside Romeo acts too smart she knows how to behave.”

The father of the girl had empowered his daughter with courage and had encouraged her to feel powerful from within. This is what every parent has to induce in their young daughters. There is a lot of emphasis on empowering women economically and socially which is good but before that in the family level a young girl has to be emotionally empowered. We have often observed that the family tends to condition a girl child differently as compared to a boy. While the boy is given a free hand to choose the young girl is not allowed, it will be her mother who will be acting on her behalf. Not that it is not right, but even the young girl has to have her say also. In some families she is not entertained to take part in the family discussion fearing that she may become too argumentative or vociferous. If this was true even the boys in the house would be so.

Emotionally empowered young girls are in control of themselves and do not fall prey to emotional traps. They know how to uphold their self-esteem and have an ear to the inner voice. When emotionally empowered no one can deceive a young girl with rosy words or fancy goods. She will know who she is, what she feels, most importantly, she will understand from where she is experiencing the feelings. Is it from her head or heart? There are many who take advantages when they know a girl has emotional flow only from her heart.   

If a young girl is emotionally empowered she will never shy away from conflict and become silent instead she will raise her voice without looking for others to support her or show sympathy to her. This is a quality that is and should be a must for every girl to say she is equal in all respects to a man. She will never regard some the past unfortunate experiences and become timid alternatively she will try to see that the unfortunate incidence will never happen to her or her tribe again. There will be no misuse or abuse by her male counterparts.     

This does not stop there an emotionally empowered young girl goes on to become a strong mother who can take up the responsibility of the kid and the family. She will not deter from her duty as mother and will be the guide to her children. Now it is not the financial status which is haunting women any more it is the social panic which is confronting her as a devil. To fight this evil menace she has to be emotionally empowered. And more importantly if she is emotionally empowered she will not let herself in such situations.

There are issues like pointing out the disadvantages of women empowerment in the social as well as economical arena. If as a young girl she is emotionally empowered by the parents she is moulded right to fitting into any of the empowerment without misusing and making a mess of herself.        

I want my daughter to be Emotionally Empowered ……Do you????

 

451. Farmer the Backbone of my Country……

http://www.speakingtree.in/public/spiritual-blogs/seekers/philosophy/farmer-the-backbone-of-my-country

My country India is the land of Rishi (Seers) and Krishi (Sowers). A Rishi (telling yogi) sows the seed of thought while a Krishika (tilling yogi) sows the seed of nourishment. The seed of thought enriches the mind and the seed of nourishment enhances the body and then we have a healthy mind in a healthy body.

To have a healthy body to accommodate a healthy mind I need to consume healthy food which is provided by the farmers. They are the one who till their land continuously every season to fill my belly pot. They plough the land to make it soft and break up the dirt that had become callous from the previous yield. They pull out the dried up roots and remove rocks and gravel. Re-install the fertility by adding organic manure which provides vigor to the germinating seed.

I am certain there was a lot of sweat, sore muscles and prayers for rain as the precious seeds of the vegetations were sown into the soil with great care and keenness. And then there was a phase of waiting, waiting for the seeds to germinate and peep through the soil which every farmer would love to see. The soil which was red or black is painted green with the emerging sprouts it’s a lovely sight. From the sprouts spring the two leaves which symbolize the revival of the vegetation. Thus the plant starts to yield grains which not only satiate the hunger of humans but also of the rodent and a few avian families.

Our elders would pray to the farming tribe at the end of every meal by saying “Annadata Sukhi Bhava” (Let the provider of this meal be happy). Now in this era unfortunately the “Annadata” (provider of the food) is supposedly the one who give us money to procure food, the boss in the office, the employer in the factory and the head of the organization.

The first person responsible for providing us food is the farmer. Traders come next followed by the women in the house who cook for us. Without a farmer the other two does not exist. Traders have to ensure that those grown by the farmers reach us fresh and unadulterated so that the women of the house, our mothers and wives cook and serve it to us. One has to be grateful to all these three parties and wish them to remain happy. Even if the farmers has produce a good crop if the commission agents do not give them the appropriate price or the traders do not distribute correctly then the efforts of the farmer is down the drain.

Off late a few companies have lured the farmers in buying their seeds for a better yield of the crop by introducing Genetically Modified seeds to them. Farmers should not fall to this trap and poison the land and water with chemicals. There is abundance which comes with time and it is the quality not the quantity that matters.  

450. Lamp of Knowledge Brighten the Surrounding......!!!!!

www.speakingtree.in/public/spiritual-blogs/seekers/science-of-spirituality/lamp-of-knowledge-brighten-the-surrounding

The Sanskrit word Upanishad consists of three words—“Upa” means “near,” “ni” means “down” and “shad” means “be seated.” So Upanishad means to sit down near the Guru (Master) to receive Knowledge. The Guru is the personification of wisdom and the Shishya (Student) represents a spiritual seeker eager to come closer to wisdom. The Upanishads are knowledge in the form of dialogues between the Guru and Shishya from ages ago which denotes the Parampara (Lineage). This Guru-Shishya Parampara gives the picture of the finite getting close to the infinite as well as the known reaching out to the unknown.

Knowledge has to flow from one to another just like a river, if not it gets vanished or will be stagnant and is of no use. Knowledge dispels ignorance. Ignorance and darkness has not got any permanent place. There is no person whom we can brand as one who is and will always remain ignorant and there is no place in the whole of universe which we can call a dark place. One spark of knowledge and beam of light respectively can change them. Hence knowledge is likened to a lamp (Deepam).

To light a lamp, we need a container filled with oil and a wick placed in it. A flame source is needed to light the wick. Only when we have all four accessories namely lamp cup, oil, wick and flame we can light the lamp. Once the wick is lit by the flame the external darkness is dispelled. Similarly, to dispel the darkness of ignorance, we need to have Vairagya, the dispassion as the Diya, the lamp cup; Daya, compassion acts as oil; Dharana the one pointed concentration becomes the wick; and Jnana, spiritual wisdom being the flame source.

It is customary to light a lamp ahead of an auspicious event and once it so happened that in such event, an ultra modern young person who was seated in the gathering asked the distinguished guest who was to light the lamp, “Hello Sir, why are you using the same old out dated way of starting the function by lighting a lamp using this messy oil lamps? Why not change according to the time? Why not switch “ON” a LED light or a C.F.L Lamp by just tapping on the switch? Will it not dispel darkness as your lamp does????.”

The distinguished guest replied, “Son, you are right the time as changed a lot and every thing has advanced by advent of science and technology, but the way in which knowledge is transferred from an individual to another has remained the same, just like the flame is brought near the wick of the lamp that has to be lit. I don’t think it possible for a LED or C.F.L lamp which is glowing to light up another LED or C.F.L by just bringing it near? This lighting of lamp is to commemorate sharing of knowledge which unfortunately cannot be done by tapping a switch.....Do you agree??.”  The young man had no reply just had to nod his head.


My lamp of knowledge is lit by many light sources here ...... I’m fortunate to spend a lot of my good time in this Classic Satsang....!!!!!!

449. Songs of Lamentation an effective way to put out the Grief!!!!

http://www.speakingtree.in/public/spiritual-blogs/seekers/science-of-spirituality/songs-of-lamentation-an-effective-way-to-put-out-the-grief-331643

A noted Malayalam writer writes, “When my mother died, I was small, did not know what was happening and I didn’t cry as I didn’t then know what death was. When my father died, I was an elderly person, even then I didn’t cry but this time I knew what death was.”

Most part of the second chapter in Bhagavad-Gita says body goes into modification process and there is no death for the Soul. Body gets recycled while the soul just changes its location hence there is no need to grieve to either of them. This soul-stirring word on death by the Lord when correctly understood cannot bind one to emotions. If the noted writer had not understood this when his father passed away he would have grieved. Grief is just a state experienced when the reality is known. The world that “should be have been” is different from the world “that in fact is” and accepting that reality is inevitable.

Grief is a natural response to death especially of a person very dear and near. It is vital to shed tears and release the binding emotions and set the mind at rest. It could be the best way to come out of the grief of the loss of a person on the emotional level. When we have an emotional or a psychological reaction in response to a death, it's known as grief. A person who is grieving might sometime feel strong emotions, such as sorrow and also anger.

Suppressing that kind of grief is self-destructive it may result in psycho-emotional and physical disturbances that causes headaches, gastro-intestinal disorders, or heart tremble. So grieving becomes an active process of coping with loss and hence is not something done, but rather happens naturally. With time, endeavor, endurance and perseverance there can be sight of healing that happens gradually. For some healing happens as time passes but for some it is like “Sine Wave” that appear and disappear depending on whenever the loss of person is remembered.

Just like how lullaby song puts a child to sleep there is “Oppari” Songs of Lamentation in rural Tamil Nadu where women folk sing songs to bring out the suppressed emotion. A group of women who sing such songs are invited to the house of dead. They sit in a circle, holding each other and swaying as they wail in a sing-song way, praising the dead person’s good acts. These patho songs bring out the grief in the form of tears and there is an emotional outburst. Though the rural women who sing lamenting songs know that the human body recycles and Soul is indestructible, they sing for those who do not know this and help them put out their emotions.

Oppari is not required if those who release that:

For the born, death is unavoidable; 
And for the dead, birth is sure to take place.
Therefore in a situation that is inevitable, 
There is no justification for you to grieve. – Bhagavad-Gita Chapter 2 Verse 27

Realization of this does not happen with respect to age or condition, it happen at being aware of the answer to the most important question “Who am I?”  For those who are yet to comprehend the answer to this question there is Oppari to put out their emotions at the right time and not to carry them as burden.

448. My choice and the Consequence that Unfurl from that Choice…

http://www.speakingtree.in/public/spiritual-blogs/seekers/mysticism/my-choice-and-the-consequence-that-unfurl-from-that-choice

When I was seventeen I lost my mother in a road accident and for a few days I began wondering if we humans had free-will or does things unfolded as predestined. On that fateful day I had just returned from my karate class and found the keys of my friend’s room in my pocket which he had given for safekeeping. My mother had come out to get milk packets as usual from the shop across the road. I could have gone to fetch them but instead I preferred to give back the keys to my friend and I took my bicycle. By the time I returned back I saw my mother lying on the road hit by a car. Had I not gone to give the keys and picked the milk packets could the accident be averted, I wondered. My granny provided me the solace she told “everything is predestined and we were like puppets in the hands of the Absolute who pulls the strings”. As years passed I tried to understand the part of free-will in my life.   

Every individual is free to make his choice and that choice comes from free-will. Though we are free to make our choices we are not free to escape from the consequence of that choice. How is it that some make the best of the free-will while others make a mess out of it? All of us have complete free-will within ourselves because the same essence of choice exists universally in every being. The only difference is in the degree by which each of us accesses this realm of free-will. Intelligence is a very big factor because those who contemplate more are the one who make more choices; hence free-will depends on the level of awareness. Fate is the result of the past they say but free-will is the result of the present. When I look backwards I recieve the blow of the fate when I look forward I realize that the free-will when used intelligently will energies my future.

Once there lived a spiritual person in a village. Many people would gather around him every evening to listen to his words of wisdom. He would welcome question and he answered every questions after his talk. One day, after one such talk on Fate and Free-will, one seeker asked him a question,

“Sadhu Maharaj, after listening to your talk on fate and free-will I am a bit confused. You say free-will does exist and at the same time you say everything is predestined?”

The Sadhu looked at the seeker, smiled and called him to come near. The seeker went up to him and stood near the Sadhu who said, “Can you please raise your right leg?”

The seeker lifted his right leg and stood on the left. 

Now, the Sadhu asked, “Can you raise your left leg too?”

The seeker replied, “No, Maharaj I cannot. I will fall if I try to attempt it.”

The Sadhu said with a smile, “This is the answer of your question.”

The seeker did not understand it. Seeing the confused face Sadhu Maharaj explained, “It was very easy to lift you right leg as your left leg was on the ground supporting your body. With your right leg raised you could not lift your left leg. Similarly we humans are provided with free-will. We are neither completely free, nor completely bonded. Every individual has to follow the laws of nature while exercising the free will. It was your intellect which did not let you lift your left leg when you right leg was in air. Likewise you have a free-will to talk to anyone about anything and anywhere. You can either make someone happy or hurt by your words. But although you are free to choose among these two options, you are bound within these two options only. Also, whatever you would speak, you will have to reap the fruits of your words afterwards. This is the law of nature, and your supposedly free-will can not let you escape of the consequences.”

447. Maya should not Trap my Mind, I seek His grace for that..!!!

http://www.speakingtree.in/public/spiritual-blogs/seekers/self-improvement/maya-should-not-trap-my-mind-i-seek-his-grace-for-that

I had been to the outskirts of Bangalore on some work. In an open place there was a lot of garbage plied up. I saw a bull attacking a plastic cover among the garbage pile. It was stamping the plastic cover with its front legs and I do not know why it was acting in a peculiar way. I observed it for sometime first I thought there was something for it to eat in the cover, and then I realized that the cover was indeed empty. For about few minutes it showed its wrath on that plastic cover and then it started goring the plastic cover. After about four or five attempts of goring the plastic cover got stuck to the horns. When the bull did not find the plastic cover on the ground it walked to munch on the garbage.

As I was watch all this I was amazed at the behaviour of the bull. The plastic cover which had disturbed it a few minutes back now was over its head, but the bull never knew of it. Once the plastic cover was out of sight the bull calmed down. I wondered if we humans also treat Maya (Illusion) in the same way. We all do not want to get disturbed by Maya and hence we make an attempt to take it head-on. And in the process we end up pulling it on self without having an iota of doubt on how its influence on us. For example: we desire to own a car thinking we can drive it but unfortunately after the car is brought most of the time it is the car which drives us. Without it we cannot even go to the shop next street.

Maya can be dealt if it is ignore, the same would have been a better thing to do for the bull also, ignore the plastic cover. But then Maya is a mirage it seems to be there but is not. How to deal with Maya then? Maya can be evaded only if its master is taken into confidence. Who is the master of Maya? Maya of master is none other than its better side.

A small incident might give a clear picture. It so happened that a person was posted to a remote village as the school master. He set out from his home town. His friend advised him that the village was filled with shepherds who gaze their sheep in the outskirts of the village and to guard those sheep from the hungry wolf from the nearby forest they rare hunter dogs. The friend warned the school master to be aware of the hunter dogs as they were very furious and would attack any intruder. The school master reached the outskirt of the village and called out for the shepherd with his raised voice before the hunter dogs could smell his arrival.

The shepherd came to him and took him into the village safely. The school master knew that the shepherd is the master of the hunter dogs and it will remain in his control. The school master did not think of dealing the hunter dog himself so he used the safe route of calling out to the shepherd. Likewise if we call out for the Absolute to bestow His grace Maya by itself will be subdued.       

There is no safer way to tackle the trap of Maya than surrendering to Absolute......What say??????

446. Silence is a Perfect Tool that assists Spiritual Growth …..!

http://www.speakingtree.in/spiritual-blogs/seekers/science-of-spirituality/silence-is-a-perfect-tool-that-assists-spiritual-growth

The best gift Absolute has provided to me is Silence. Many like Ramana Maharshi have noticed the beauty in it and are relishing it. It is in silence that are many questions are answered. The answer is in the form of a monologue, it takes the individual to the realm of awareness. Generally the vocal voice subdues the inner voice, but if I start muting the vocal voice, the inner voice in me will gain volume and is heard better. Silence is the tool to develop the inner personality and from a developed inner personality I am able to perceive the world better and respond to it in a much more mature manner. 

The question is how can I use this tool called Silence????

Communicating with others is the best way to express myself. In communication I get to know things which I need and which I do not need as well. Most of the time conversations which I get involved will be of unwanted topics which are gossips. In the first place I need to stop getting addicted to such talk. Simply I have to get rid of the urge to talk to someone without adequate reason and learn to remain silent and in solitude. Solitude does not mean to remain alone locked in a room. Solitude is a state of being alone without being lonely.   

Initially I can get to be silent by reading or by going alone for long walks without carrying a mobile phone. This is the start for me who wish to tread the path of spirituality. When interaction with others is obviously reduced my mind is relatively calm, with a calm mind I can become an object of our own experiences. This helps me in understanding myself more and strengthens me to face various situations in life. It can also be a healthy procedure for healthy ageing.

Ancients have prescribed “Maun Vrata” (Vow of Silence) to get inner maturity and advised to take up this discipline once in a while. On those days at least I can be good listeners. Listening to others is an art. It needs lots and lots of patience and is very difficult to practice but not impossible. In the whole of chapter one in Bhagavad-Gita Sri Krishna listened to Arjuna allowing him to express his grief without interrupting him. It is only in the second chapter after Arjuna completely surrenders Sri Krishna starts His sermon. 

There is this popular story of a farmer who lost his watch near a heap of stacked hay. When he could not find it he asked a group of children playing outside to help find out. Those children happily went through the entire stack of hay only to fail in finding the watch. When the farmer concludes he had lost the watch, a little boy asked him for another chance. The farmer readily agreed. After a while the little boy came out with the watch. The happy farmer asked the boy how he could find the watch while others including him had failed. The boy replied, “I did nothing but just sat on the ground and listened to the tick-tock sound from the watch. In the silence, I heard it and searched for it in that direction.”


It is silence that can provide my mind a greater understanding, ability to look from a different perspective and calmness. A calm mind possibly can think well than a worked up mind. Minds natural state is silence. Hence if I want to transcend mind I have to remain silent and sit in the seat of silence. It does not matter if the environment around me is suitable or not, I have to detach myself from the outward world and go inside where there is silence. It is in silence that I can take long strides in spirituality, since it is at that stage “I”ness gets dissolved. And there is only one…….Do you agree with me?????

445. When the word of the Christ is misinterpreted the Truth is Lost….

http://www.speakingtree.in/public/spiritual-blogs/seekers/god-and-i/when-the-word-of-the-christ-is-misinterpreted-the-truth-is-lost

There is this episode from the Gospel of John. The passage describes a group of Scribes and Pharisees want to punish a woman by stoning her to death as prescribed by the Laws provided by Moses, she is suspected to have committed adultery. When every person present there was eager to cast the first stone on the woman, Jesus shames the crowd to disperse when he says “Let him who is without sin, cast the first stone.” As the crowd thins, Jesus walks to the woman and says, “Go your way, and from now on do not sin again.” 

This sequence in the life of Christ is misunderstood and used to suit to our words and conduct. Here one has to realize that Christ is not optimistic about all of us committing sin, instead He wants us to point our finger only if we are correct. If I am correct I have the right to complain and protest about the incorrect things about others. Jesus did not say we are all sinners at some point of time in our life so there is not much to worry about so let us carry on. The word of Christ as I comprehend is that He wants me to excel and stop gauging the excellence of others. In simple words this episode warns me of my hypocritical behavior, it opens my eyes and slaps me on my face when I point my finger at others fault. This episode wants me to be perfect in the first place before checking how perfect other around me are.    

At this juncture I remember the story of a woman who brought her son to Sri Ramakrishna Paramahamsa. The boy was fond of sweets and the mother was obviously worried about his health and she believed that her son would heed the words of Ramakrishna. But in reality Ramakrishna also was fond of sweets and relished it as the boy did. So he asked the lady to bring her son a week later and then the next week he advised the boy to check his intake of sweets. The mother of the boy was amazed why Ramakrishna took a week to say this simple words, she questioned him why he could not advice him a week back when she had brought him then? Ramakrishna told her before advising the boy he had to cut down on consuming lots of sweets. If Ramakrishna had misinterpreted the word of Christ he would have told the mother not to worry about her son consuming sweets as he also had the weakness for sweets and it is alright to eat lots of sweets.

These words from the great personalities can be comprehended when the seeker tries to grasp them from the mind of the great personality who has made the statement; if one tries to get them from their own mind they tend to tilt the statement to their advantage and hid the Truth……what say????    

  

444. Will my Responsibility towards my Country cease at Voting?????

http://www.speakingtree.in/public/spiritual-blogs/seekers/wellness/will-my-responsibility-towards-my-country-cease-at-voting

Every adult who has the eligibility to franchise his vote has to cast it in a democratic system. We are not electing a leader instead we are electing our representative who will serve us. The one I intend to elect as my representative has to attend to my call 24X7 without fail. In democracy it is not the vote that counts but the count of the votes. So there might be elected representatives whom I might not have given my thumbs up too.   

A decade or two ago the voters were afraid to talk about the candidates in open, but today they don't hesitate to use online social media like face book, twitter, email, blogs, etc to support or demote a candidate. Now the question is will my responsibility end after casting my vote????

In this sovereign secular socialist democratic republic country we the people elect our representatives according to the Constitution of India. Democracy stands on the tripod with the legs namely Karyanga (Bureaucracy), Nyayanga (Judiciary) and Shasakanga (Legislature). If either of the one fails democratic values get fractured.

Every election gives us a chance to look for a person who can serve us better or in some cases we need to reelect the same person giving him a second term if he is serving us better. 

We know that we have beleaguered our nation since independence, we have brought the nation to a level where common man cannot get his work done in government offices without greasing the palm. Will electing a leader alone solve the problems? What is our personal responsibility in shaping the country? Though we have a sincere and able person who can look into our needs and serve us it is the responsibility of every citizen to join hands to gather and follow the law and order that is implemented by the one whom we have elected to represent us. Before calling someone corrupt we need to stop adopting fraudulent means for our personal gains.

In 1960-70 we had a very few corrupt politicians now we happen to see that even voters have become corrupt. People sell their vote right to those who throw currency at them and in some places electorates demand money to cast their vote. So our responsibility does not end at casting the votes it goes beyond that point. That responsibility is to be uncorruptable whatever may be the situation….. Suppose I have failed to carry my driving license and the traffic police personal have stopped me to check I need to accept my fault and pay the penalty not thrust a bribe….. I need to understand that I do not gained by paying bribe of Rs. 50 instead of Rs. 100 penalty because I have let a weed grow in the fertile crop of democracy by saving Rs. 50 for myself.

Unless every citizen loves this country and follow the rules no leader can bring a change……. A mere thought to change the leadership alone does not help our country become the super power let us transform individually to make it happen……..What say?????                

443. Happiness via Righteousness…….

http://www.speakingtree.in/public/spiritual-blogs/seekers/self-improvement/happiness-via-righteousness

As a young man approaching middle age, I often ask myself what it is that as a human being I truly seek. Material possession with which I could rediscover comfort appear on the surface to shape up my thoughts and dictate the actions I perform, but diving a little deeper I find that there is a common goal for mankind including me which is to know happiness is always present in me through self-realization.

All along these years I contemplated to gain insight to discover if there are any other modes of notion that may lead more effectively to happiness. The more I explored the different versions, the more I was asking myself, “Could it be that the way I perceive the abundance displayed by the merchants of this earth plane keep me away from obtaining my deepest longing, that is, HAPPINESS?”

I do not agree that the material possessions are in and of themselves bad or evil, for it is only their use that determines their relative worth. Having said that, I have observed a few people worship at the altar of material possessions, to keep themselves happy. My study is that happiness to them is fleeting it is there for a moment when a goal is achieved or some thing they need is obtained and gone shortly thereafter and a new goal is set. It is like a sine wave. Is happiness a sine wave I always wonder? Happiness is never a sine wave in the graph of time, it is a straight line. If I let is as it is, it will remain a straight line all through my life span instead if I try to manipulate it, it becomes a sine-wave. The sine wave represents happiness and suffering.

Bhagwan Buddha found out the reason behind suffering and put it as the second point on the four noble truths. He figured out that desire is the cause of suffering. About 200 years later Chankaya even more clearly figures out that happiness is the natural by-product of Righteous Living. Righteous living is to uphold the integrity, honor and respect of the self. Righteousness does not mean living a religious life style, in fact, a life lived righteously is a life of natural abundance and strength. Righteousness is revealed through my decisions and deeds, not on how others perceive my action, for righteousness is rarely the popular choice nowadays.

We are living in a world where assumption of personal responsibility is at an all time low and where the expectation of being cared for is at an all-time high. May be I cannot gauge if this trend is due to complacency born of the decades of growth and prosperity that we have enjoyed or if it is evidence of a larger phase working out in the evolution of humanity. I do know that the wisest constitution and the most elegantly constructed laws will prove impotent in their ability to secure the happiness of a people whose lives do not square to an underlying pattern of righteousness. This is the greatest challenge before us is that we are unable to inspire righteousness in a world that has grown cynical to the very concept. It is incumbent upon our political class, business class, teaching class, and our parents to better the standard of righteousness once again by leading by example. Lord Krishna says that the qualities of a leader are mimicked by his followers. Though sometimes the action involved in righteous living may be unpopular for a while, so be it. The happiness of generations to follow depend on the basic principle of our righteous living……isn't it????