400. How Far will Situational Lie Help me??????????

http://www.speakingtree.in/public/spiritual-blogs/seekers/self-improvement/how-far-will-situational-lie-help-me

A messy or a clumsy circumstance tempts one to escape from it by uttering a situational lie. As age progress a few have made it an advantage to use this as an aid to encounter an unwanted event and eventually have developed an applaudable imagination and creativity in the art of lying and are proud of it. This art will have been so ingrained in them that in the middle of the night in deep sleep if someone wakes them up they are able to produce a convincing lie. They know that lying is sin but the experience of feeling it handy in the time of crisis has made them depend on it more and has erased the thought in them that it is a sin.

Agreed that everybody on this earth plane have told a lie and some have bifurcated it as small and big.  Amazingly lying is not a big deal at all in every individuals mind but when he is grouped in a society it is a threat for him and hence he needs inventors to spend their time, energy, and money to invent a perfect lie detector machines to monitor pupil dilation, catch up the eye movements, search for voice pitch change and find variations in blood pressure among other things to know if a person is telling a lie. But is it viable to hook a lie detector machines around the neck every time when we wish to converse with anyone to see if they are telling truth???

If a person finds lying is easier and convenient for him than telling truth then do we have to be blame him for lying??? Is it not the unacceptability of the truth that is the cause for the convincing lie to sprout from a seed to grow as a big tree???

It will be very witty for me to blame others for the situational lie that I produce and also my smartness to implicate them, but deep inside me I have a feel of guilt which I have to encounter with. Guilt is a feeling that can surface at very usual and unlikely situation. This guilt feel affects my nervous system which is in connection with the immune systems. My body responds to the way I think, when I am nurturing happy thoughts my body is producing hormones called endorphins which make me feel good. The guilt of lying put me under stress and release different kinds of hormones such as cortisol, and norepinephrine. While cortisol varies the blood sugar level and suppresses the immune system in me and the stress hormone norepinephrine is the catalyst for the “eye for an eye” attitude in me resulting in increased heart beat rate and blood pressure. Many in this modern society advice the younger generation not to avoid having the guilt feel, but then the guilt is the product of the conscience not mind. Even if I avoid it, in the near future it is going to surface back and hunt me. Guilt should never be my painful companion at the time of my death. Whatever I call them deception, white lies, exaggerations, or an effort to saving my skin if it not truth it is a LIE.


I might not realize immediately that a very small and simple sentence I choose to talk could make me ill, but its reality. Situational Lie may make me habitual liar and eventually eat my soul; while truth nourishes my mind and helps in protecting the vehicle of my soul called body.


So should I be a slave to lie or set myself free by uttering truth????? I am convinced that even though there is hardship which I may have to face in telling truth I will stick to it as I want the vehicle of my soul to be immaculate until it is locked up in the garage forever. 

399. Life is not an Obligatory Living.........!

http://www.speakingtree.in/public/spiritual-blogs/seekers/self-improvement/life-is-not-an-obligatory-living

“I help my neighbour to parking his car but that fellow has not got the courtesy to help me while I am parking mine.” This thought is from obligatory living, this feel has sprouted because I have forgotten the idea of unconditional love. It is just like saying if you scratch my back I will scratch yours. If i call myself to be a part of the society some of my deeds have to be unconditional, without expecting anything from the other side. If there are any expectations it is purely a business transaction without monetary aspect.
 
If such kind of thoughts are encouraged it will step into the next inner circle, the family. That is just like saying I am on pretty good terms with most of my family members. I respect my parents and appreciate their efforts to give me and my siblings a good life. My brother doesn't speak to me and so I am not in talking terms with him, and I don't like my sister as a person. If they need any help I am ready to provide them. Many of the families are in such intrinsic family bond, with such a thought it gets them to think that if others have to be good to them they need to be good to other. From here they conclude that until they accept the family’s point of view and approve their action and don't have any obstruction, the family will not “love” them. This is just an obligatory living nothing else. If so what are the obligatory service charges that could be levied to mother’s milk and father’s sweat. Getting into such an obligatory behavior will not only cause harm to one's own family members, it also affects their neighbors, community, and on the large scale it will end up in countries fighting each other.
 
Of course the social circles of a person vary drastically from person to person. For some, their friends are more than their family, while for some family supersedes everything. It all depends on the relationships with them. All these relationships are not eternal and the only relationship that finds a long lasting validity is that which I have with "HIM". Where shall I find Him to have a long lasting relationship? If I shun that obligatory behaviour and start extending my unconditional love, I can reach Him in everyone heart. If I can reach Him at somebody’s heart I can reach Him in the heart of my neighbour. If I can reach Him in the heart of my neighbour I can very well reach Him in the heart of my siblings and parents also.  

This relationship with Him is not a business transaction. It’s not like an arranged marriage with an exchange of compliance for a dowry of riches. It only works if you’re in love. All relationships are enjoyable when you’re in love with the inner dweller. If the inner dweller becomes more important for your relationship then the obligatory behavioral character of a person which appears on the surface will become insignificant. It’s time to stop trying to please the person with obligatory response and simply love the person who has Him as the inner dweller. This stage gets you to stop doing things out of obligation, and encourages you to do things that enhance your relationship with Him by doing things that please you because they delight Him.
 
Sri Krishna says to Arjuna, “Always think of Me, become My devotee, worship Me and offer your homage unto Me. Thus you will come to Me without fail. I promise you this because you are My very dear friend.”-Bhagavad-Gita (18-65). For years I understood the verse this way: “If you worship me, you will follow me and prove how much you love me.” But what Sri Krishna really saying is that when I start adoring Him who is in every being, my obedience to Him will flow out of that relationship and avoid my thought to go obligatory living way........ am I right to think so?????

398. The Cozy Relationship between myself and Self.........!

http://www.speakingtree.in/public/spiritual-blogs/seekers/science-of-spirituality/the-cozy-relationship-between-myself-and-self

Sage Yagnavalkya tells his wife Mitreyi, “Nobody loves anything for its own sake.” This statement has a deep meaning it says when you are incomplete in yourself you feel unhappy and do not loving anything, at the same time if you realize the completeness in you, you are happy to love all. At some some stage or the other one understands that life no longer depends on the approval of somebody. It will need the approval of one and only Inner Self. This is called true relationship while all others seem to depend on values that are mutually workable. Relationship with Inner Self is based only on Truth, about the substrata Me and all other beings which share this earth plane with me. This relationship generates the vibration that makes me and every being around me to resonate. Hence what I give bounce back to me as the resonating sound.

Just experiment this when you need to enter a government office flash a smile at the grumpy official with whom you need the work done, amazingly the response will be better. But to flash a smile you need to be happy, happiness happens when you are complete and in love with your Self. If we observe we have this tendency to be soft, gentle and caring with strangers than it is with some people we know. Why is it so??? It is purely because of the take-it-for-granted attitude in us or because we do not have a love-hate relationship with the strangers and we do not know their drawbacks. Hence without the judgmental attitude I can maintain a great relationship with anyone.

I need to consciously make an effort to be gentle and this gentleness will appear automatically if I have a cozy relationship with my Self. To be in relationship with the Self all that I need is to acknowledge the fact that this relationship has to be unconditional. If I feel that my relationship with Self is based on Truth then this Truth cannot be a condition. My relationship with my Self is the secret of my happiness. And when I am True to my Self then alone I am happy. This may not make other around me happy directly but the repercussions are going to place the other around me also in the happy zone. This is how marriages and other relationships like friendship, sibling relationship also work.

If I directly want to have a great relationship with others around me I need to make a lot of efforts in the name of compromise and adjustment. My relationship with Self needs no such efforts yet it is absolutely blissful. I need not dominate over others or feel like a leader having them under my control. If I am aware of this Truth I will not need enormous bank balance or amassed wealth to be happy, a smile from a tiny toddler can make me more than happy.

This is the reason for Sri Krishna to have told Arjuna in Bhagavad-Gita when the later asked Him the characteristics of a steadfast person.

Prajahati yada kaman sarvan Partha mano gatan
Atmani ewa atmana tushtah Sthitaprajnah tada uchyate ---Chapter 2 Verse 55

“When a man completely casts off, O Partha, all the desires of the mind, and is satisfied in the Self by the Self, then is he said to be Steadfast person.”

397. From Boom Boom State to Steady State..............!

http://www.speakingtree.in/public/spiritual-blogs/seekers/self-improvement/from-boom-boom-state-to-steady-state

Achalatvam (Steady State) is considered a negative word in the economic world. Hence Goddess of Wealth is termed Chanchale (Mercurial). The booming economy is always appreciated when compared to steady state economy. In this material world it is assumed that steady state is absence of growth while in the spiritual world steady state is the most essential aspect of growth. It is stated that with a steady mind a seeker can go deep inside and get aligned with Self.

A steady mind is that which does not react either positively or negatively to any emotions brought out by self or others. It is a way of accepting every thought and action with complete equanimity. This steady mind is achieved if one understands that the world is nothing but an illusion and is ephemeral. To get to this state a seeker has to look back and make a study of all the events that had happened in the past and realize the truth behind it. Steady mind flourishes depending on the stage of stability that a person is at. Every individual is right no matter what the conclusion since that particular matter of discussion is always subjective.

Economy with steady state is relatively stable and it happens when investment equals depreciation, hence it reaches equilibrium. Benefits of such an economy can be felt on Lifestyle, Environment and Morality. Lifestyle is enchanting as there is no gluttony, black market, slump, and unfair trade. Every person has sufficient time to focus on issues like community, society, relationships and other important life matters. Environment is in balance with nature and the life-giving resources not being exploited, the biophysical needs does not exceed and disrupt the natural ecosystem. Morally there will be no deceiving among brethren and it is not like a big fish gulping the small fish in the name of survival.

Booming economy occurs when real Gross Domestic Product (GDP) grows faster than the trend growth rate. This may induce businesses to borrow high debts from banks which will results into market break down or may also become a reason for high inflation because of the changes in growth. Booming economy creates and survives on the hype. There is abundance in it but it lacks the real substance. Economic boom creates market hype and market hype yield to booming economy, both are hindrance to the economic growth of a country on a long run.

A restless mind has lots of ideas and thoughts but it lacks peace of mind. This restless mind generates an unstable body and unstable body yield to restless mind; both are hindrance to the spiritual growth of an individual. Sense organs tempt the mind and the mind begins to identify with the sensual pleasures and is veiled by this false identity. This false identity leads to egocentric thoughts which grips the mind and make it further restless.

The ability to accept every thought and action with complete equanimity and the capacity to distinguish the real from the ephemeral is completely lost. However mind should not be underestimated to have lost the potential to understand the difference, but it just refuses to understand because it is immersed in the fantasy of the illusory world, just as a greedy investor is intoxicated in the booming economic growth.

If one concentrates on the work rather than the consequences and stop being self centered the steady state economy can be achieved. With such an exercise the world would be the best place to live...... and one can have a calm mind as well .......do you agree???

396. Stock Market, Shares and Ethics…………….

http://www.speakingtree.in/public/spiritual-blogs/seekers/wellness/stock-market-shares-and-ethics

It is very funny to know how the Stock Market operates; the only way one can make profit is from the other person’s loss. An investor is considered successful in the stock market if the shares of the company which he had bought cheap could be sold to an easy target at a much higher price. It is an art of making others a fool and reaping riches out of it. If we look at the shares of a company, actually some person would have started a company and worked hard to sustain it and then decided to go public in a view to expand it. Hence he sells the shares of the company in the market.

A smart investor make money by investing money without starting a company nor helping the company physically nor assisted the company to sell the product or sometimes even never know about product of the company. The investor essentially does nothing but only waits make profit at someone else’s loss. Stock market and Shares have been reduced to a game of gamble. Most of the investors lose while some gain. Many say that as long as investor go into the market willingly abiding the rules of the game, it’s fair that one person wins what another loses, but still, is that kind of profit worth to be proud of is the million dollar question????????

Earlier it was not so Shares and Stock Market was only for the retired and pensioners who would go through the prospectus of the company and gauge the quarterly balance sheet and then invested their Provident fund and Gratuity in the stock or buy shares to make some money from them and also see that the money is guarded safely. But now Stock Market is never safe for them as it is become an den of Gamblers.     

A small story on how this stock market and share business works was sent to me by my friend, I would like to share it.

Once upon a time in a village, a man from another village announced to that he would buy monkeys for Rs 10 each. He explained to them that he is going to export them to Indonesia where they would be trained to pluck tender coconuts from trees. The villagers who were convinced and seeing that there were many monkeys in the village started catching
them...
 
The man bought thousands at Rs 10 and as supply started
to diminish, the villagers stopped their effort. The man further announced that he would now buy at Rs 20. This renewed the efforts of the villagers and they started catching monkeys again this time they went to the nearby villages also to catch. Soon the supply diminished even further and people started going back to their farms.
 
The man again increased the offer rate to Rs 25 and the monkeys became so little that it was an effort to even see a monkey, let alone catch it! The man now announced that he would buy monkeys at Rs 50! And the villages tried hard to catch a monkey which fell to their sight.
 
One day the man announced that he was to go to Indonesia to finalize the contract of supplying monkeys to them and his assistant would now buy on behalf of him. In the absence of the man, the assistant told the villagers. Look at all these monkeys in the big cage that the man has collected. I will sell them to you at Rs 35 and when the man returns from the city, you can sell it to him for Rs 50.
 
The villagers very excited and eager to make fast money squeezed up with all their savings and bought all the monkeys. Then they never saw the man nor his assistant, only monkeys everywhere!
 
This is how “Stock Market” works (Monkey Business you see)!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

395. Can I Train my Mind to produce only Constructive Thoughts???

http://www.speakingtree.in/public/spiritual-blogs/seekers/self-improvement/can-i-train-my-mind-to-produce-only-constructive-thoughts

Every thought that my mind crop up, even from prenatal existence and right through my life is stored in my subconscious mind until death and also thereafter. Thoughts that enter my mind are never lost, it may not appear to the surface at the required time but it is never lost; this is what is called failing memory. So it is important for me to be selective on gathering the thoughts. All that I see, hear, smell, or taste does not go into my subconscious mind without the help of my mind itself. Suppose I am engrossed in some thought and my friend happens to pass by, even though my eyes are wide open I might fail to register his presence just because my mind could be preoccupied with some other thought.
 
So now I understand that for anything to get into my subconscious mind it has to go through my conscious mind first. If I determine to have my thoughts to be constructive I have to indeed build an environment so that only such thoughts enter my subconscious mind. By carefully reflecting on this I find that to have consistently constructive thoughts I have to annihilate completely the unwanted thoughts that may encompass my mind. Jealousy, Hate and Fear are some of those destructive thoughts which devour my mind.
 
Jealousy:  Why is it that I am not happy with what I have??? Why is it that always whatever someone else has is what I want???? This universe is full of abundance overflowing and nonstop. Absolute has provided enough for the need of everyone, if I learn to go the right way about it. So being Jealous is mere foolishness and small-mindedness. By broadening my mind and feeling happy for the other who have what I do not will raise my ideals and automatically other person’s possessions will cease to trouble me mentally. It is better to live a full and healthy mental life enjoying what is supplied to me and be happy and contented.
 
Hate: Hate has no value at all. Hate neither makes me happy not the person whom I hate. Nothing is gained from hating any person it is just waste of my precious energy. Hate does not get me anything expect pampering my ego. I am human and hence a dependent being, so hating will not look logical unless I decide not to depend on the person whom I hate. But is it possible for me to live a life like that. I have come across many who hate certain person, but unavoidably as destiny could have it, might receive the blood from him for a crucial operation.
 
Fear: To be afraid is the mental state of insecure feel. It is the state where the mind is pushed to believe that it is reducing its power to resist the situation. Fear is the most unwanted and stupid emotion which makes my mind wobble and unstable. What have I got to fear when nothing belongs to me????? The insecure feel will apply for those who are in the illusion that they possess something which has to be secured. For a Yogi what is there to lose and hence why should he fear.    
 
So it is important to keep these hurdles away and question the thoughts thus, Is my thought on this subject constructive or destructive? If it is constructive give it the fullest and go forward knowing positively that Absolute is with the thought. If it is destructive immediately search for the negativity in the thoughts and if you find one change those thoughts. It will be difficult at first and you will be indecisive at it, but eventually if the constructive thought are groomed it will become your second nature

394. When Love is Unconditional …….. Then the feel is BLISS!!!!

http://www.speakingtree.in/public/spiritual-blogs/seekers/science-of-spirituality/when-love-is-unconditional-then-the-feel-is-bliss

This terrain has seen many mystics, poets and singers who have searched endlessly for the experience of Love. Great nations have cropped up in the guise of love for their people. Many new religions have flourished claiming the true path of love, but what we have missed is to relish the simplicity in Unconditional Love. Unconditional Love is the most powerful expression known to mankind through ages. Radha's love to Sri Krishna at Vrindavan was that of unconditional.
 
Love for the sake of anything is attachment and is dependent on outside extraneous factors. If these conditions suit us and are to our liking it makes us happy. But love not based on any conditions, relationships, dependencies, likes, dislikes, power-play, cravings & emotional leanings could probably be termed as unconditional; where the clear, objective welfare & well-being of others is the only concern. 

If every being on this earth plane believe in unconditional love and practice it with heart and mind, this place will become a paradise to live on. Unconditional love is an outer expression of “self” that is not conditioned to be love but simply flows innately as the warmth from the Sun in the wavy waters that tend all, alike. There is no need to project love by means of presents and gifts it is self evident if it is unconditional, hence it is the only thing for which the Cosmos responds. There is so much beauty in this term that it is impossible even to express the true perception in words.

Unconditional love is an unlimited way to elevate the mortals to Immortal. Life would be a wonderful expedition when unconditional love lights up the path.  It is an energy which propels us through the tough times. It brings the sense of universalism and annihilates the attitude of fascism. Loving is not just looking at each other, it's looking in the same direction. It is the condition in which the happiness of another person is more essential than our own. Mothers love towards her kids is unconditional love.

Unconditional love is a feeling like that of a father of a would be bride, who knows that one day his daughter will find a great man, fly the nest and get married. Every father wishes his daughter gets the perfect man, who keeps her happy beyond all that he has done to her. And when the time comes when this happens, all that the father can do is observe and expect nothing else. This is unconditional love and the feeling he is experiencing is BLISS.

393. NOTHING IS ILLEGAL UNTIL YOU GET CAUGHT ………………..

http://www.speakingtree.in/public/spiritual-blogs/seekers/self-improvement/nothing-is-illegal-until-you-get-caught

The T-shirt slogan on a college student who was caught cheating in exam read “NOTHING IS ILLEGAL UNTIL YOU GET CAUGHT.” I wondered if the student had not been caught cheating in the examination hall, and had secured distinction marks was it legal as his T-shirt slogan proclaimed.

I do not understand why our youngsters do not realise that there is Conscience in everyone which is always aware of what they are doing. Whether got caught or not an illegal act is still illegal. Knowing this is like having a clear conscience. Even though being aware of conscience does not prevent an individual from committing an unacceptable blunders out of impulse, conscience will reprimand the act and may prevent him from doing it again. Instead of looking at an illegal act through the eye of conscience, the society today is inclined towards the thought that criminals are only those who get caught doing illegal act. If so then there are many people in the world with criminal tendencies, but they don't get caught and so they are not criminals?

The illegal activity in a person would have sprouted with petty acts like there are some who might have started by stealing some things from some person under some circumstances while it would have encouraged him to steal anything from anybody if they start to feel they can get away with it. In contrast if they give heed to the thought flashing in them that what they have done is wrong then they would not do it again.

I do read a lot of books on Mind and its activities and am personally interested in knowing about the element of guilt that an individual feel when he is aware that he has done something wrong. There are many questions that surface in me like; do conscience produce guilt feel? Is the conscience inbuilt in all humans? Does guilt feel provide some type of accountability, or does it simply tell about the consequences that unfolds? If it does provide accountability, to whom is it submitting it? If guilt feel is objective is it answering to the subjective Conscience? I know these are a lot of questions but then I am interested in getting to know the answers because in the core it is the debate between atheists and theists on the part of human conscience which ultimately leads to morality. I know that both sides seem to make good points, but with all due respect to either side, most theists look at it from philosophical view while other find it as a psychological occurring. I wish to take the philosophical angle to get the answers to my questions because I feel that conscience is a cultured set of rules and ideals that are laid for every individual to follow. It is taught to a child by rewarding it for doing a good act and warning it when doing an unwanted act. I guess when the rules are broken then the unpleasant though of guilt creeps in because everyone over the time has associated themselves to punishment when breaking the rule. Conscience and guilt feel surely is not present in every individual but mostly who are taught to differentiate between good and bad do have. Amazingly a psycho-criminal may not possess this because if we conclude conscience is learned process then it can be unlearned too. But most of the individuals who would want their life to be harmonious with the fellow beings seldom forget the lessons of conscience that they are taught and hence rarely they lose it.

At the end all I can say is that I know that there is Conscience in me even though I have not put it to test. Many would agree with me I suppose……………????

391. If Mind is Ocean, Thoughts are Waves and Emotions the Wind……

http://www.speakingtree.in/public/spiritual-blogs/seekers/self-improvement/if-mind-is-ocean-thoughts-are-waves-and-emotions-the-wind

A Master and his disciple were walking on a beach besides an ocean. It was a cold full moon day and the wind was blowing strongly over the ocean, raising very high waves.

After walking for some distance, the master stopped, looked at his disciple, and asked: “What does this jerky ocean remind you, my son?”

“It reminds me of my mind. Its waves are as restless and as unpredictable as my Thoughts,” answered the disciple.

“Yes, of course mind is as stormy as this ocean and the waves are the thoughts, but mind is neutral like the water. It is neither good, nor bad. It is the wind that is the cause for the waves, exactly as desires and insecurity produce our thoughts,” said the master.

“I pray I never want to be on a boat in the middle of the ocean with such a storm,” Exclaimed the disciple.

“You are always there in such a situation.” Responded the master and continued, “Every human being is on a boat without a rudder in the middle of a stormy ocean but are not aware of it. Most of the people have their mind as restless as this ocean. Thoughts both good and bad come and go constantly agitating the mind like this stormy ocean's waves.”

“Very true,” disciple interrupted, “I know that the thoughts and mind disturb me hence I am with you. I want to calm down the waves of my mind.”

Master looked at his disciple for a while, smiled, and said:
“It does not make much sense to calm the ocean by holding the water still and not letting it move. It is also not wise to stop the wind. The wind is like emotions that are made of the thoughts, desires, and insecure feel. Do not let them rule your life. If you learn to control them by controlling your attention towards them, and then the ocean of your mind becomes calm. In the middle of the ocean the waves are smooth because the water ignores the wind, but when it is near the shore the water is passionate towards the land and hence allows the wind to drift it towards the shore in a hurry. If you learn not to let the emotions rule over you than you have won.”

“How do I do that Master?” asked the disciple.

“The wind causes waves on the surface of the ocean by transferring some of its energy to the water by creating friction between air and water molecules. Stronger the wind huge is the wave. Suppose if the ocean is to ignore the wind, what would happen then?” asked the master.

“There would be no waves. However, it is impossible to stop the wind, which are the emotions.” said the disciple.

Master looked at him with a mysterious smile and said: “Why not? The wind, the ocean, and thoughts are all within the realm of the mind. If you can control the mind, you can control everything within it. But it is important to control your mind first, which means you have to control your attention.”

“Yes Master,” said the disciple, “I am trying to do the same. You say whoever controls his mind can also control the wind also. Can I do that too?”

“First learn to calm down the ocean of your mind, and then find out if you can calm down the ocean. It is better to learn to control the mind by controlling the attention towards your emotions, the more you give prominence to your emotions good or bad, and then you are either enjoying or suffering from the tricks that the mind plays. When you calm your mind, you can calm down everything else.” said the master as he walked.

”How can I be inattentive to my emotions, Master” asked the disciple.

“By simply being a Nirvikari, a person who has no modifications in the mind due to emotions.” told the master. A person who is a Nirvikari has no interest in his thoughts this leads him to become Nirvishayi, disinterested in sense pleasures. This does not mean he is going to shun all the pleasure which come his way. He is very solicitous and experiences the pleasures as the gift from Absolute but will never go after it. He is so because he has understood the Upanishad verses “Dhyanam Nirvishyam Manaha” Meditation is the state of mind where there are no sensuous thoughts. With Vishyaaskti (dissoluteness), a seeker can never obtain the will to calm his Mind, just as the wind causes the waves to occur in the ocean. 

389. Where do you want to reside today in HEAVEN or HELL?????

http://www.speakingtree.in/public/spiritual-blogs/seekers/self-improvement/where-do-you-want-to-reside-today-in-heaven-or-hell

Almost all of us have heard of stories referring to heaven and hell in our childhood days. We were told that if we do good to others we are taken to heaven after death and in contrast if we do anything wrong we are pushed into hell. Such notions were good and revered until recent times. With all the materialistic knowledge that we have acquired now, we conclude the concept of hell and heaven as unrealistic cock and bull stories that are best as a bedtime story. Yet one good thing about the mentioning of hell and heaven in that tender age was to restrict the young mind from getting negative thoughts. The fear of hell or the fantasy of heaven created a new world in the thoughts of the young and helped in taking them on the righteous path.

But instead what happened when the younger generation started to heed to rational thoughts, the fear of doing wrong and moral fear has completely vanished. The concept of hell and heaven is no longer appealing. Alternative to calling the concept of hell and heaven as baseless, if we carefully observed we would understand that indeed we get to experience heaven and hell in this present life itself.

Goodness in me makes my surrounding happy and in turn I am happy and that is heaven. Since goodness does not allow anger or hatred to reside in my mind every experience I endure is heaven like. Unlike if I am immoral I make a mess of my surrounding and those around me experience hell and in the process I also will be experiencing hell. If there is anger, hatred, greed, jealousy, voracity and audacity there is no place for the goodness to reside in me. With no goodness there is guilt feel in whatever I do this irritates me and affects my actions, with all these facilities I am in hell.

Once there was a Sage meditating peacefully in a forest. Suddenly his meditation was interrupted by the sound of approaching horse's hooves. The Sage gently opened his eyes to find the King of the region on the horse. The King had come on hunting, as he had heard of the yogic powers the Sage possessed and wished to check his greatness. Without ascending from the horse the King asked the Sage, “I have heard a lot about you and your yogic powers. Using your power can you show me heaven and hell while I am alive?”

“O King, you have a crazy desire of have a look at heaven while you are still alive” asked the Sage. “I do not think you are kind enough for me to take you to heaven. Even if I take you there you will be pushed out of the gates, let go allowing you inside.”

Hearing those words from the Sage, the King drew his sword and raised it high above his head. With eyes red in anger, his face fuming, veins on his neck standing out prominent and sweat dripping from his nape the King was about to sever the head of the Sage. “That is hell, now you are exactly in hell” said the Sage gently, pointing towards the King.

King did understand what the Sage was referring to as hell. In about a fraction of a second, the King was overcome with admiration, compassion and love for this gentle being who had dared to risk his life to give him such a lovely and lively teaching. His heart was filled with joy, his face went gentle and his eyes were damp. He lowered the risen sword and stood with his eyes filled with tears of gratefulness. “And this, O King” said the Sage, “is the heaven. Heaven and hell aren’t those places we get to experienced after death but it is our own creations. We create heaven and also hell every day in our life.”

The King got down from the horse and bowed to the Sage….....

Where do you want to reside today in HEAVEN or HELL?????

388. The Visible God Sun and our gratitude to Him………..

http://www.speakingtree.in/public/spiritual-blogs/seekers/god-and-i/the-visible-god-sun-and-our-gratitude-to-him

Sun the huge mass of fire is approximately 149,600,000 kilometers from earth and its light takes 8.3 minutes to reach the earth. The inhabitants of this earth plane depend on the Sun’s energy by tapping it in numerous ways. The plants use its energy for photosynthesis, to prepare food. We humans get the invaluable doze of Vitamin D, generate power, bask in the sun to get rid of skin related problems as rays from the Sun has antiseptic properties, Sun rays are used as disinfect our cloths and water. Nature also uses its rays to convert fossil into fuels. Without Sun entire life forms would be affected. We humans lose the life-sustaining vitality and there will be lack of nourishing substances which may eventually lead to the end of creation. This is the reason that Sun has been considered relevant in the cosmos and is revered for its life supporting features.

Since ages the inhabitants of this earth plane have regarded Sun as God. He is called Surya by Indians, Helios by Greeks, Apollo by Romans, Ra by Egyptians, Utu by Mesopotamians, Mithras by Persians. Call Him whatever; He is the symbol of Power, Glory, Brightness, Life Force, and Vitality to the entire living entity. He is the universally accepted and visible God, but the respect and reverence offered to Him is different in different region and religion.


As far as the Indians are concern we believe that on the seventh day of the Magha masa the chariot of Surya is near to the earth and hence we celebrate it as Ratha Saptami (today is Ratha Saptami). We recite Surya Gayatri Mantra which is as follows:


OM ASHVA DHWAJAYA VIDMAHE,

PASHA HASTAYA DHIMAHI,


TANNO SURYA PRACHODAYAT.


This Surya Gayatri mantra consists of three parts. In the first line there is the description of the flag on the chariot which has a horse in it and the second line is about the mention of His attribute namely the noose. And in the third is the request by us to Him to bestow us with all the vital energies for our survival.


Tradition says that one has to take bath by keeping leaves of Arka plant (Calotropis Procera) that has many medicinal benefits on the shoulders and head. These leaves can cure skin diseases, strengthens the root of hair and cools the scalp. This plant is symbolical representation as Sun as healer, since it has all the healing qualities as that of Sun rays in it.

Let Sun, the abundance of energy give us all health and vigor..................

387. Self-Realisation happens only if Mind is in Equipoise.......

http://www.speakingtree.in/public/spiritual-blogs/seekers/self-improvement/selfrealisation-happens-only-if-mind-is-in-equipoise

How much ever we get to know by inquiry it does not satisfy us until our senses has experience of it. But the most amazing thing is that the information collected from ear or eye has to go to our mind and then it is our intellect which will analyse and make a discrimination of it. The mind that is getting the information from our sense is very busy and always either happy or sad depending on the information, but this is the outside feed that the mind is receiving. There is yet another side for the mind to experience from, it is the very quite and enchanting Self.    

The mind has to turn a bit to “THIS” other side to experience deep sense of contentment. After experiencing this, the experience got from the outside world seems to be insipid. This is direct experience of the Self that is an ultimate finishing line for the craze of experiences we yearn to get. After this there is no surprise if the seeker has stopped to crave for anything from the outer world. This does not mean he is going to shun the worldly pleasures but the worldly pleasures to him will be a necessity not a luxury anymore.

The experience got from the senses from outer world may bring sorrow but majority of the time it is happiness only, but the direct experience of the Self will never get us sorrow or happiness but it will place us in Blissful state. This direct experience of Self is achieved only when the mind is not distracted by the senses. The experiences got from outside disperse our thought pattern and hence always the thoughts multiply and yield more and more thoughts with many more flips and flops. In contrast the direct experience of Self makes the thought process as steady as a silent valley stream flowing down without hurdles or interruptions.

Once this situation is reached then the outer world experiences are just events happening and will not have any impact either inspirational or remorseful. As they seem to be just things happening nothing else more. 

The word of the Lord in Bhagavad-Gita, “Whatever happened in the past, has happened for the good; whatever is happening, is happening for the good; whatever shall happen in the future, shall happen for the good only. Do not weep for the past; do not worry for the future, concentrate on your present” seem to take relevance at this stage. The confluence of the enthusiastic outer life and the silence of the inner self create abundance and totality in life and this totality is the purpose of being born as a human.

To achieve the ability to make the mind turn inward to experience Self one has to develop a mental equipoise which does not get disturbed either by adversity or prosperity. This state can be achieved only by completely surrendering ourselves to Absolute. And for the mind to surrender to Absolute one need to relieve it from the bondage of material world. If the mind is always madly running behind the worldly pleasures all efforts to make it turn inward will be like pouring sweet water into a pot with a hole. To make the task of turning mind inward it is essential to work on the five external looking senses that provide information to the mind. If they are made to understand that the objects outside are momentary and will last only for the limited period of time, then the mind can be relieved from their temptations.

Who has to do this Job?????

It is the job of the Buddhi (Intellect) to guide the Senses through the Mind. The process of Mind listening to Senses should have to be reversed; Mind should take the place of the master with the help of the grand master Buddhi to educate the Sense.  

386. Well Decided NO is better than an Undecided Yes!!!!!!

http://www.speakingtree.in/public/spiritual-blogs/seekers/self-improvement/well-decided-no-is-better-than-an-undecided-yes

There are many decisions which I often take in my life, every decision I make need to respond to the priorities that are to be given due preference at that stage. There are chances that in some occasions I need to say “No” to what might look like opportunities on the surface level, but instead I say yes and regret later. Like, if a person gets an overseas job with attractive offer and ironically if there is a need for him to be with the family for some unavoidable condition he has to say “No” to the offer. But lured by the offer he does take up the offer leaving behind his family, later after several years he will know if he had said “No” it would have been better. Owing to improve their career graph many messes ups their relationship bond.


The priorities play a vital role in everyone’s life. We need to educate our youngsters about priorities so that they can decide what they need and when. Lack of this discriminative sense has made few of our teenagers to fall prey to dating while pursuing education. The priority at that age is to gain knowledge and to mould their future. Some say it is natural at that age. Yes, that is an age to get attracted to something other than themselves. If one is in dating their priorities no girl or boy will allow others to replace them. School and college days are the golden days, if one individual girl or boy becomes the priority then there are chances that the priority of experiencing the golden days is missed to some extent. It is important to introduce the teenagers to theatre, dance, painting and music which take the place of priorities so that their mind will not go on hunting for wild fantasies. Parents and teachers have to make them understand and choose their priorities rather than thinking of including sex education into the syllabus.  


Control on our priorities is to give first preference to consider the sustenance of the life. There are talks about spirituality and solitude life even that comes after considering some important priorities as a husband/wife, father/mother and children. One cannot choose the higher level of existence when the call is to take care of the family which is the priority at that moment.  


When I say priorities have to be considered it does not mean that passion has to be suppressed. Some are very tactful to allocate their time and energy in such a way that they take care of the priorities as well as their passion at the same time. For those who cannot walk the tightrope they need to give the first preference to their priorities as it will be the duty which needs their attention at that moment of time. Many a times my work load in my factory is too much for me to spare time to post my regular blog and I never mind if I cannot post one. For the priority for me is my work at my factory, if there is a thought that I need to compose as a blog I do it early in the morning the next day. I have never pushed my factory work to the second place when compared to my passion. And similarly my family needs are never pushed to second place when compared to factory work. Since I have such a thought in my mind, the Lord above is always guiding me to make sure that my priorities and my passions are looked after in an impartial way without breaking the flow of blogs affecting my business….What say????  

385. What I Feel now is what I am going to Attract…..

http://www.speakingtree.in/public/spiritual-blogs/seekers/mysticism/what-i-feel-now-is-what-i-am-going-to-attract

This universe is filled with things that have their own very explicit energy levels at which they vibrate. Both animated as well as inanimate objects reflect and respond to some kind of energy. Our thoughts also carry energies which reflect and respond. It has been proven scientifically that when a person is asked to think of certain thing his brain waves changes according to the subject of his thought. For example if a person asked to think of a certain thing there is a certain wave pattern and if he is asked to think about something different the wave pattern changes. But when he is asked to think of the first thing again the wave pattern comes back to what the first pattern was. This pattern change can be analyised by an instrument called Kirlian Camera invented by a Russian scientist Semyon Kirlian in 1939.


Now we know about the energy wave pattern, what happens to the energy is that eventually it gets dissipated when the person goes on to think about other things. The question is where will that energy go? Essentially the energy thus released gets distributed out into the universe and eventually becomes so spread out that it is not detectable as a distinct energy wave of its own. Nevertheless the energy never gets destroyed it only changes how it presents itself. This energy wave attracts and connects to other like energy wave, and that continues to live on in the world around us. If energy wave of a thought could be traceable we could observe that a certain similar thought would attract similar thoughts. Aren’t we usually attracted to people who think like us and hence the word “like-minded people”?


It was a routine for a King and his able minister to take a stroll in the market on a day ever week. Amazingly every time the King would stop at a certain shop and tell the minister, “I suspect the owner of this shop of some wrong doing, I feel like ordering him to be hanged him on the gallows.” 


The minister was taken aback as the King had not even seen the owner of the shop. The next week the minister did not accompany the King in the stroll. Then the week after he joined the King and as usual they walk pass the shop and the King was silent this time. The minister asked the King, “O, King do you feel the same way about the owner of that shop now.”


The King was astonished because there was no such feeling in him this time. The King asked the minister about it. The minister revealed the secret. He said, “Your Highness, do you remember that last week I had told you I was not well and did not join you for the stroll in the market, the reality is that when you were here last week I was in the shop disguised as a customer. The shopkeeper sells sandalwood for living. As you went pass the shop last week I found the shopkeeper engrossed in some thought I asked him what he was thinking. He said he was just think if the King died the palace would need at least a cart load of sandalwood to confine the body to the flames. He was contemplating your death. The next day I ordered a cart load of sandalwood and asked the carpenters in the palace to make a new doors and windows for the palace temple. Hence today he has no thoughts of your death. Though his thoughts were pertaining to his sales it had a tinge of negativity which reflected and your thoughts and you responded to it as ordering to put him to death. O, King every thought has energy that can be sensed and felt by those around. If those thoughts are negative in nature the energy wave tend to attract similar energy waves from the others in question who are close in proximity. Now the shop owner has sold his commodity to the palace he is no more contemplating on your death.”  

384. Self is Realized if Mind is Vanquished………..

http://www.speakingtree.in/public/spiritual-blogs/seekers/meditation/self-is-realized-if-mind-is-vanquished

Awareness in general is to know or be aware of and every human mind is aware of something or the other. For that matter we all are aware, even if I say I lack awareness the thought I know that I lack awareness is also awareness. Isn't it???? 

This awareness of things around me will help me live a better life in this material world. Awareness of the product a sales executive is supposed to market has its influence on the sales and helps him to progress in the marketing field. Imagine if just the awareness of a product that one has to sell has the influence, what about awareness of my own Self, the inner companion?
      
The word awareness of the Self is Self-Awareness and this Self-Awareness is not just being aware of my body or the mind. As my mind and body are dependent of others for its existence. Awareness of Self is going deep inside to the core of my existence which is independent. 

My mind is responsible for knowledge of the inert world, but my mind as it is, is inert hence it is not aware of Self. My mind is aware of objects around as it has gets power to do so from Consciousness. Now the Self observes the inert mind as Self is itself Consciousness. To become aware is to convert the unknown to known literally. So in general my mind uses the Consciousness and makes the unknown object known. Here my mind as the subject brightening up the object. But understandably my mind cannot become aware of the Self because the Self is what “I am”... evident, aware. 

My mind need not try to make a Herculean task of making the Self aware of Self, simply because the Self is self revealed. "I am" is always experienced my me in every incident of mine like while I walk or run or dream or sleep. Self awareness does not require mind, or let me say my mind has no part in enlightening the Self. There are efforts made to know about Self through the mind but it is futile effort. Mind always borrows Consciousness from Self, the relationship between the Self and my mind is like that of Sun and Moon. Both have the capacity to illuminate but one is light by itself while the other merely reflects light got.

There is no point in trying to be aware of the Self by using my Mind. The self is realized only if the mind is seen indifferently. 

Mind has two ways of looking at the world around; one is through the Objective Mind, here the my mind perceives external objects by the information that come from my five senses and process that information through reasoning and, depending on my likes and dislikes, interprets the observations in terms of attraction and repulsion. The second type is through the Subjective Mind, the information received from the objective mind filtered through my emotions and stored in my memory and when required it is used to create the projections on that stored information with the help of emotions and the memory of likes and dislikes that it got from objective way of viewing the world. This subjective mind has the doer-ship in it and hence is an enjoyer also. The objective mind is not at all the problem, it is this subjective mind that is the hindrance to know the Self.  If this subjective mind is vanquished then the Self is realized. 

Now the most important question "How to vanquish the Subjective mind?" ...... It is not an Herculean task at all..... just surrender to the Absolute and try not to compete with Him with Ego to create. Even the creative thought in us is bestowed by Him as the projections in our mind are surely creations. Total Surrender is the only way to avoid becoming the Doer. Also it is the most easiest way to accept others creativity also without getting insecure. I hope I am right ... the lack of will to surrender is to be blamed..... Right????

383. Farmer tills soil to sow seed & Spiritual Seeker tills Mind to sow Good Thoughts.

http://www.speakingtree.in/public/spiritual-blogs/seekers/self-improvement/farmer-tills-soil-to-sow-seed-spiritual-seeker-tills-mind-to-sow-good-thoughts

The process of having a good thought in my mind which I can supposedly transform it into a good deed is similar to the process of cultivating a good high yield crop. 

This is a small attempt to highlight the similarities in Agriculture and Spiritual Practice. 

To cultivate a good crop I need to have a land that contain fertile soil. Every individual is already bestowed with a mind that is suitable to sprout divine thoughts.

As every fertile land is filled with some rocks and gravel that veil the fertility of the soil so do the attitudes and ego causing selfishness and self-centeredness make my mind unworthy for a good thought develop. I have to identify those rocks and gravel and clear them from the field. After that the field has to be softened and leveled so that it is suitable for sowing.

How can this field be made more suitable for sowing? What is the instrument that can perform this important task? It is again my mind that will bring out this transformation in my mind by working as a plough, but only a stable mind can till the land. Hard surface of the land can be softened by tilling it. With the help of two oxen called Knowledge (Jnana) and Dispassion (Vairagya) and the plough call Devotion (Bhakti) I have to till the mind to soften it.

Now the land is soft and level it is time to add organic manure to make it fructiferous. The mind also has to be prolific and to make it so the dose of Scriptural Treatise (Adhyatma Bodha) help. 

Now as the land is fit for sowing seeds the mind is fit for the positive thoughts. As the seeds begin to sprout in the soil so do weeds also, there are negative thoughts as well that sprout in the mind. I need to pull them out so that there is more space for the positive thoughts only.

For the saplings in the soil there must be continuous supply of water daily to the field to grow. The positive thoughts in my mind thrive with good company (Sat Sangha).  

Control over my Senses (Indriya Nigraha) acts as scarecrow to keep the birds called Desires (Kama) which try to pick away the crop. I need to put a fence of Faith (Shraddha) and Patience (Saburi) to keep the stray cattle and trespassers called Anger (Krodha), Greed (Lobha), Attachment (Moha), Pride (Mada), Arrogance (Darpa), Hypocrisy (Dambha), Prejudice (Asuya), Intolerance (Irshya), Jealousy (Matsarya) away.

With all such precautions I need to wait for the rain in the form of Divine Intervention (Dhi Shakti) to shower on the land. 

Agricultural experts give a lot of advice on their experience on improving the quality of the crop and I have Masters and Gurus who pour out their experience to show me the path.

For a better pollination the crops of the neighboring fields also plays an important role. Likewise I need share my insight with my surrounding and also try to gather information to have a significant outcome on the journey of my life.    

If I sincerely work in my field I am sure to reap rich (Liberation) …… do you agree with me????

382. The One that is Present in its own Absence………..

http://www.speakingtree.in/public/spiritual-blogs/seekers/mysticism/the-one-that-is-present-in-its-own-absence

Vedas describe Maya (Illusion) as “ya ma sa maya”. Ya means that, Ma is not, Sa is so; Illusion is that which is not. 

It exists but not in reality, it is present in its own absence. There are many illustrations given to depict the word Maya like, forth in the milk, waves in the ocean, fizz in the aerated drink, mirage in the desert, snake in the rope, ghost in the post. Maya sometimes becomes the support to find solace for those who defend their failure and tribute it to Maya. While some fear all luring things to be Maya and want to stay away from it. The thought that everything that lure is Maya pushes them to conclude that this material world is also Maya. Such thought could lead them to either to be insensitive about others or careless about themselves.
 

Maya is here to stay and we can never do away with it hence it is better to know its strength and help ourselves to live a better life. Getting out of the clutches of Maya is one great effort but even greater endeavor is to accept our immediate neighbors who are self pitying themselves in the name of Maya. This is again a Maya. Therefore it is considered an art to remain uninfluenced by Maya and also know how to respond with those who are influenced by it.  
 

Maya is that divine feminine force which we can neither complain about it nor condemn it. It has the magic wand of "Avarana" and "Vikshepa" the veiling and projecting power respectively to superimpose the quality of eternity on the ephemeral. Hence the Upanishads advice us to be indifferent to it with complete awareness about it. In the rope and snake analogy, when a person sees a snake in the dark he is afraid till the point of his awareness come to his help and tells him that it is not a snake but a mere rope. In the same way as the person who due to ignorance saw an imaginary snake in the rope, we tend to project our individual ideas and beliefs on this material world. Although the imaginary snake induced only fear in us, the projections that we make on this material world will not only induce fear but it charms us, puts us on the top at the same time pulls us down, gives us credit as well as tosses blame at us. Makes us fall into bondage as well as provoke the zeal in us to yearn for Liberation. With Maya it is up and down roller coaster ride all the way.  

Hence it is important to be in this world without getting attached to it. In Bhagavad-Gita Lord Krishna gives an excellent example of “Padma Patra” the Lotus leaf, even though immersed in water the leaf is not wet due to the wax layer on the surface of the leaf.  

Is it possible to be so??????

Yes, only if we learn to see the Truth without likes and dislikes in it. Be a Nirliptha, unstained.

What does it mean????

It is to see the hidden reality beneath all the projections of our mind on this material world without prejudice and to acknowledge the veil of Maya and learn to see the truth without our own misconceptions.
 

As is the wax layer on the lotus leaf so is Spirituality to a seeker to keep the effects of Samsara (Bondage) from getting anointed.

What say??????

380. Our Inability to Use the Resources in a Proper Way……..

http://www.speakingtree.in/public/spiritual-blogs/seekers/self-improvement/our-inability-to-use-the-resources-in-a-proper-way

We humans have been bestowed with Buddhi, the intellect which unfurls the activity of Viveka, the faculty of discrimination. Buddhi and Viveka have its accomplishment when the Mind goes to the extent of using them to take pleasure in the available resources. We fail in using those resources and curse our karma, fate, and sometime Absolute also. The Buddhi (Intellect) is insentient (Jada Vastu) but gets illuminated by the Consciousness which is ever charged with “Dhi Shakti.” The charging of “Dhi Shakti” to every individual irrespective of caste, creed, religion, whether atheist or theist happens every now and then.

Once there was a king who wished all his citizens to live happily and prosperously. One day he sets out to view the law and order situation in his kingdom. He happens to see a charcoal merchant who was in a pathetic state. King called the fellow to his court and enquired about his poverty. The poor fellow had a big family to take care and above that he was the only breadwinner in the family. The King understood the position and ordered his ministers to send 1000 cart loads of Sandalwood chunks to the merchants place.

After some months the King went again to view the law and order situation in his kingdom. He was shocked to see the merchant again in the same pathetic situation. He called him and enquired the reason for him being poor even after getting the loads of Sandalwood chunks.

Dear Fellow Seekers, I hope you all guessed what the charcoal merchant would have done. After getting the Sandalwood chunks he set them on fire and made charcoal pieces with it. He had sold the entire lot but got little profit from it, the king thought he would have made nice money but this stupid charcoal merchant had reduced the loads of Sandalwood to charcoal and sold them.

It is the same with many of us. We are incapable of using the resource called the Viveka that has come from the “Dhi Shakti.” We use it to be over smart or find faults or try outsmart other. We have never used the potential for our benefit at all. There are many insights found in the words of a philosopher or a mythological story but it is unfortunate we use our imaginative aspect to find the loop holes in those and try to be over smart just like the charcoal merchant.