Magazine for Mind, Body & Soul

Three Secrets of Happiness

2008-12-05T01:43:00.001-08:00

Three Secrets of Happiness

RIGHT SPEECH

There is a Chinese saying which carries the meaning that ‘A speech will either prosper or ruin a nation.’ Many relationships break off because of wrong speech. When a couple is too close with each other, we always forget mutual respect and courtesy. We may say anything without considering if it would hurt the other party.

A friend and her millionaire husband visited their construction site. A worker who wore a helmet saw her and shouted, ‘Hi, Emily! Remember me? We used to date in the secondary school.’ On the way home, her millionaire husband teased her, ‘Luckily you married me. Otherwise you will be the wife of a construction worker.’ She answered,’ You should appreciate that you married me. Other wise, he will be the millionaire and not you.’

Frequently exchanging these remarks plants the seed for a bad relationship. It’s like a broken egg - cannot be reversed.

PERSONAL PERCEPTION

Different people have different perception. One man’s meat could be another man’s poison. A couple bought a donkey from the market. On the way home, a boy commented, ‘Very stupid. Why neither of them rides on the donkey? ‘Upon hearing that, the husband let the wife ride on the donkey. He walked besides them. Later, an old man saw it and commented, ‘The husband is the head of family. How can the wife ride on the donkey while the husband is on foot?’ Hearing this, the wife quickly got down and let the husband ride on the donkey.

Further on the way home, they met an old Lady. She commented, ‘How can the man ride on the donkey but let the wife walk. He is no gentleman.’
The husband thus quickly asked the wife to join him on the donkey. Then, they met a young man. He commented, ‘Poor donkey, how can you hold up the weight of two persons. They are cruel to you.’ Hearing that, the husband and wife immediately climbed down from the donkey and carried it on their shoulders.

It seems to be the only choice left. Later, on a narrow bridge, the donkey was frightened and struggled. They lost their balance and fell into the river. You can never have everyone praise you, nor will everyone condemn you. Never in the past, not at present, and never will be in the future.

Thus, do not be too bothered by others words if our conscience is clear..

BE PATIENT

This is a true story which happened in the States. A man came out of his home to admire his new truck. To his puzzlement, his three-year-old son was happily hammering dents into the shiny paint of the truck. The man ran to his son, knocked him away, hammered the little boy’s hands into pulp as punishment. When the father calmed down, he rushed his son to the hospital.

Although the doctor tried desperately to save the crushed bones, he finally had to amputate the fingers from both the boy’s hands. When the boy woke up from the surgery & saw his bandaged stubs, he innocently said, ‘Daddy, I’m sorry about your truck.’ Then he asked, ‘but when are my fingers going to grow back?’ The father went home & committed suicide.

Think about this story the next time someone steps on your feet or u wish to take revenge. Think first before u lose your patience with someone u love. Trucks can be repaired.. Broken bones & hurt feelings often can’t. Too often we fail to recognize the difference between the person and the performance. We forget that forgiveness is greater than revenge.

By the way, you know what had actually happened to the truck? The young boy had written ‘DADDY!!! I LOVE YOU’ with a hard stick on the paint of the truck.
People make mistakes. We are allowed to make mistakes. But the actions we take while in a rage will haunt us forever.

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Voice of the Soul

2008-12-05T01:38:00.000-08:00

Voice of the Soul

Overwhelming responses from our readers have inspired us to introduce a new section called ‘READER’S RESPONSE..I SAY…’. We are happy to begin this section with a thoughtful article by one of the ardent readers.

I am the soul that wears the costume of his/her body on the stage called “LIFE” & plays the role assigned by the almighty. My existence is eternal and full of love, joy & abundance. I am the bubble of his bountiful ocean of love and compassion. I choose to be a part of this universe in order to learn my lessons which either I have forgotten or have not learned as yet. God chooses my destiny and my paths of learning; my parents, my family, my roles as different characters, my life’s each and every occasion.

Each and every moment is designed by dear lord and I flow with his will. When I grow in mother’s womb for those nine months, my journey of life begins then and there itself. I listen to everything my mother speaks & hears. I grow with whatever she eats, and I feel whatever she feels. When she’s sad, I feel sadder than her for I can’t help her before this world welcomes me. When she’s not well, I not only feel unhealthy but also feel that when I will become part of this world I may not be a very strong person. When my mother is loved and adored, I become a bundle of happiness. She carries me in her womb and I carry her in my heart. I share every experience that she experiences. Whether love or hatred, ignorance or attention, respect or disrespect, joy or sadness, I experience the same, but with more intensity than her because before I take birth I am more aware of my being with higher state of consciousness, and I understand how she feels. I understand her each and every action but can’t express my feelings.
At times when she’s angry, I get scared but I know that fear is something which causes insecurity and instability and my loving mother would not like me to be insecure and fearful child. When she smiles, my heart is filled with colours, and the whole universe gets filled with lights. When someone makes her laugh, not only I bless that person but also pray that our dear lord showers his blessings on that person. When my mother reads good books about life, spirituality, religion & ethics , I grow mentally & emotionally and thus feel blessed that she’s preparing me to face this world in a better way. I feel confident and enthusiastic when my mother talks to me and calls me by sweet nick names. Even her silence speaks to me. She’s not only a mother but a Goddess who takes all the pains willingly & joyfully so that I may be a part of this world. My mother may go through bad times and good times, but she always cares about me more than herself.

God chooses my destiny and my paths of learning; my parents, my family,
my roles as different characters, my life’s each and every occasion.
Each and every moment is designed by dear lord and I flow with his will.

We share the most deep rooted bond among all other relationships of this world. I am not only part of her body from now, but also a part of her soul and she’s my first soul mate whom I can always rely upon. God told me that he resides in all of us and everything that he has created and he has left this to us to find him in our heart & soul. I found my God in my mother. To whom this soul will always be thankful for nurturing me and giving me the opportunity to step into this world. It is the most beautiful & wonderful of communions among all other relationships in this universe. I, The Soul Feel Thankful To Thee (Lord) For Blessing Me With Wonderful, Loving And Caring Mother, To Whom My Soul Will Always Be A Slave. Because I Can Never Repay For What My Loving Mother Does For Me….Love You Lord…Love You Mother
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Know the GOD within

2008-10-04T01:22:00.000-07:00

The word ‘God’ does not denominate a ’super human being’. The word ‘God’ is the most highly misunderstood word. With the Hindu philosophy becoming the part and parcel of every Indian, who lives in this country, who is born in this country, we have grown up with Gods and their idols. And we have these stories coming from Puranas, narrated by all these religious speakers who go on portraying God as a human being but not the mortal one, rather an eternal, immortal one; where God is manifested to be someone who can be appeared by prayers, by offerings and by devotions; where God is portrayed as someone who can get angry also, and who protects the one who loves him and kill those who have any enemosity either to God or to the devotees of God.

Now, in this scenario it becomes but natural for a mind to perceive unconsciously or even very consciously that we are looking for those moments when we would be able to see God visibly.

When does God become visible to us? When we can see God with our eyes, when we can hear his voice, and when we can relate to God; when God can hug us, embrace us, give us those uplifting great moments and provide us all shakti and power to do whatever we want to do.

God is always seen as a protector, because we have images of Lord Vishnu, Lord Shiva with weapons in their hands. So, we think that God being with us means, God being with us with all his weapons and ammunitions to give us all the protection, and then we can fight with anyone. And as long as we know God is with us, no one can harm us. No harm can ever come near us.

Now, if this is the definition of God, then I would say, that person is still in the kindergarten class of spirituality. The kindergarten schools are meant for small children to play. They are not taught, they are not educated, they just play. They eat their lunch, they sing a song, they dance with the teacher, become familiar with few names of birds, fruits, and a little bit of colors. This is all that they learn in the play school. The real education begins when they are enrolled in a primary school and then in a secondary school and so on; and the level of their education keeps on grading upwards. In the school of spirituality, all those statements which I made about God, that the majority of people believe in, and the majority of religious speakers are endorsing it, is a term about God, which is so kiddish, so childish and one needs to upgrade.

I always say this, ‘every one has to evolve’. Everything evolves. One day, a seed evolves into a flower, similarly, the mind too has to evolve; it really needs to go into deep, to know, to understand, to experience who God is? Who that thing is or who that person is? This is very much true that we can have this opportunity; we can have this bridge with God where we get our guidance, where we get our clarity of mind, where we get our ability to make right decisions and put those decisions into actions also. But the source whom we are saying is God has to be understood very well. Now, this cannot be understood theoretically, because when theories are used to make point, there will always be other theories to counter those points, to oppose those points.

Theist and Atheist have always been fighting on the level of arguments. They have their own arguments and the truth is that non-believers always win. It is never the believers because the believers go on talking about words and theories. God is like a theory, God is like a belief. But when a non-believer speaks, he is speaking from all these adversities and unfortunate calamities happening in the world. So, they are the living witness to prove that there is no one called God. If there would had been, then what about all problems, injustice, catospheries, diseases and sick people, who find fun in killing billions of people. So, it is always the believers who finally get defeated.

So, I would say that we do not have to move into the words or theories, and neither do we need to prove the existence of God through argumentation. I am not going to do that.

To know ‘what God is’ you will have to move within, you will have to take out time for yourself. Before you start your office job or before you indulge in your worldly activities, schedule a time slot when you can be with yourself. Now, how can one be with oneself is again an another very important question. And the answer is that you need to meditate. Now, again how to meditate? What’s the right way to meditate? People around the globe are learning meditation with the help of my cds and tapes. You can do it at your home, or the best would to be participate in the meditation retreat that is conducted every year. Be participant to one of these meditation camps, where you learn to meditate, where you sit in meditation, and where you get answers to your questions pertinent to sessions or meditation techniques, which are taught and experienced.

Moreover, the most important answer for you now is that this meditativeness will give you the glimpse of God. Now, this glimpse will not be something, which I would be giving you or any projected idea created by your mind. You cannot view God. You cannot see God. You cannot make him an object of your appreciation. You can be one with God. The more meditative you become, the more you feel closer to God. And then this closeness one day will end into merging with God. Being one with God and not being a person who is just viewing God.

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Mystery Called Life - Soul curry magazine

2008-09-29T23:22:00.000-07:00

life is a cosmic masquerade in which the goal is to uncover what is concealed.

According to Ayurveda a spark of consciousness is present in every living cell. As the new baby begins to take physical form, sparks of consciousness in the individual cells unite - igniting self-awareness within the unborn child. In Ayurveda this flame of awareness is known as agni; it becomes brighter as the level of biological sophistication rises. Agni is fanned by the essential vital force known as prana; the essence of biological integrity or ojas organizes the developing cells into a cohesive unified system. At the spiritual level these three primordial forces - agni, prana and ojas (or fire, breath and earth) - are the essential building blocks of life. These elementary energies fuel one’s brilliance, vitality and love. The passion for life which is inherent in the soul of a baby begins to be expressed at the moment of conception, or perhaps even before.

Why does life happen? According to the sages universal intelligence gives rise to life for the simple reason that it may evolve into complex expressions capable of pondering and appreciating the mysteries of the universe. From this perspective life is a cosmic masquerade in which the goal is to uncover what is concealed. At the beginning of life the disguise is quite apparent to the conscious mother who recognizes the deep spiritual connection uniting her baby’s soul with her own. Her most important role from the moment of conception is to nurture her child so that it can rediscover its essential spiritual nature.

The rhythm and pitch of human voices are clearly perceptible in the womb. An adult listening to conversations recorded through a miniature microphone placed in a womb can understand over half of the words spoken by a man and over a third of the words spoken by a woman standing in front of the pregnant woman.

We can only marvel at the intelligence that guides the development of a complex human being from a cluster of apparently identical cells. Where are the laws that govern this dance of life? They are written in the millions of years of evolution. We can describe what happens; we can replicate the conditions as in in-vitro fertilization or cloning, but we cannot fully understand how each cell knows which genes to awaken and which ones to leave dormant. We cannot explain how the flawless mirror images of eyes, ears, arms, and legs are formed in perfect symmetry. We cannot explain how different parts of the nervous system ‘know’ how to communicate across vast cellular distances to transmit critical information. The orchestration of life occurs in a deeper domain of existence which is mysterious. As early as the fifth week after conception the basic components of the nervous system - a primitive brain, a spinal cord, and the sensory material for hearing, touching, seeing, tasting and smelling - are established. The anatomy required to perceive and interpret the world forms rapidly once a new life comes into being.
The auditory system that enables the baby to hear develops as the outer, middle and inner ear. The outer ear begins as little buds that gradually fuse to create the baby’s sound-collecting dish. The middle ear is formed by linking three tiny bones that transmit vibrations received by the outer ear to the inner ear. The inner ear is a remarkable apparatus that translates the pitch and intensity of sound waves into specific electrical impulses which are conveyed to the hearing region of the brain. The equipment for the unborn baby to eavesdrop on the world is well developed by the time the mother enters the second trimester of her pregnancy. Every living being has a truly magical beginning.
A number of modern studies have confirmed that by the eighteenth or twentieth week of fetal life, the unborn child hears and responds to sounds in his environment. Although you might expect the womb to be a quiet place, it is actually quite full of sounds and sensations. Tiny microphones placed in a pregnant uterus reveal that a multitude of audible vibrations enter the unborn baby’s sanctum. The mother’s heartbeat and digestive tract offer a steady background noise along with the pulsing rush of blood flowing through her veins.
The rhythm and pitch of human voices are clearly perceptible in the womb. An adult listening to conversations recorded through a miniature microphone placed in a womb can understand over half of the words spoken by a man and over a third of the words spoken by a woman standing in front of the pregnant woman. To the unborn baby it is the mother’s voice that is most easily recognized. Unlike outside sounds which are muffled to some degree, the voice of the mother is actually slightly amplified. If the mother is singing the sound in the womb can reach 80 decibels or more, which is as loud as a telephone ring or the whirr of a vacuum cleaner. The foetus perceives the mother’s voice as sound as well as vibrations that move directly through her organs, tissues, and bones. An unborn child becomes familiar with his mother’s voice long before it emerges from the safety of the womb.The emotional state of the mother is communicated to the foetus through the hormones she secretes.If the mother is engaged in a loving and nurturing conversation or listening to pleasing music, her brain triggers the release of chemicals that reflect her calm and comfortable condition. These chemical messengers travel from the mother to the foetus through the umbilical cord connecting the unborn child’s feelings with those of the mother. On the other hand if the mother is involved in a heated argument, her body is flush with stress chemicals that can trigger discomfort in the foetus. It is easy to imagine the distress caused to an unborn child who is regularly exposed to harsh and unpleasant sounds. The mother’s heart beats fast and her adrenal glands produce stress hormones. The unborn child activates its own fight-or-flight response but unfortunately can neither run from nor wrestle with the source of its discomfort. The seeds of anxiety, apprehension and hostility are sown in the womb. The baby-to-be learns to associate sounds with sensations.

A pregnant mother should avoid repeated exposure to distressing sounds asnoise pollution has a negative effect on both mother and child. Scientists report that mothers living along the flight path of a busy urban airport produce lower levels of growth promoting hormones and are more likely to have smaller babies than those living at the same distance from the airport but not directly in the flight path. Similar findings have been reported in women who work in factories where there is a constant high noise level. To the extent possible, a pregnant woman should make a conscious effort to limit her exposure and therefore of her unborn baby to vibrations that are distressing.
On the other hand it is not realistic to expect a woman to completely avoid unpleasant sounds throughout her pregnancy. I suggest that you do not worry about causing harm to your unborn baby every time you are upset, have a disagreement or listen to loud rock and roll music. Life does have such moments - but they should be avoided. I simply wish to say that you should be aware that the being inside you is eavesdropping on your life. Whenever possible, expose yourself to nourishing rather than distressing sounds as whatever you experience is also experienced by your unborn child.
Once I was in a pathology clinic that had the latest four-dimensional ultra sound machine. They had recorded images of foetuses at different ages. A foetus which was five months old was smiling; another was moving as though dancing in the womb. There was one clip where twins were sitting one behind the other as if waiting to come out. The most fantastic clip was of a baby who would raise its right hand and point its finger upwards. I said, “Doctor, this baby is saying ‘don’t you dare tell my sex to my parents’”!
A BBC documentary shows that the baby smiles when the mother listens to soft music. In one documentary a baby was reacting with anger when its mother was listening to hard rock. It has been proved that whatever the mother thinks and feels is passed onto the baby. A child prodigy is the best example of the fact that the growth of a baby’s mind begins right in the womb itself. A ten-year old child surprised music connoisseurs by playing difficult compositions from Mozart on the piano. His mother said that when pregnant she listened to classical music; she was an accomplished musician herself. Extensive scientific studies show that the period in the womb and the first three years after birth are the most important for learning. So it can be conclusively said that ‘geniuses aren’t born - geniuses are nurtured!’
In the Mahabharata, Arjun’s son Abhimanyu - while still in his mother’s womb - hears his father, explain the intricacies of the ‘chakravyuh’ - a trap laid for enemy warriors. He hears how a warrior can enter this trap and single handedly defeat many men. It is said that Abhimanyu heard only half the explanation as his mother dozed off mid-way. He knew how to design the chakravyuh, how to enter it and defeat the enemy, but had no knowledge of how to come out of it. Due to this incomplete knowledge he was killed. A child in the womb is listening to you. It hears all the sounds; even the parents discussing an abortion in the event of the baby being a girl. How can a mother kill her own baby, her own flesh and blood just because it is a girl?

Nobody needs daughters; parents hanker after sons. It is not only the uneducated who are doing this; many educated women too opt for an abortion. In Rajasthan a school teacher aborted six girls and eventually died in her seventh pregnancy delivering a boy! What did she gain? Millions of female fetuses are aborted every year. Under the Indian law the punishment for murder is a life-sentence or death. Shouldn’t those parents and grandparents who kill the girl child be penalized accordingly? Shouldn’t the family be taken into custody under Section 302? Gender discrimination is not healthy for society.

A girl is denied the right to live and to be educated. She is discriminated against when young, taken out of school to help the mother with household chores and sometimes even to be a nanny to her younger siblings. Girls are not welcomed at the time of birth. They are considered a responsibility and parents choose the easy way out - they kill the girl in the mother’s womb! For a few thousand rupees, a life is aborted.
Baby girls do not have a voice of their own; how can they protest? Who will listen to their silent screams? A girl is killed in the womb by a doctor; I call it murder and not abortion. What is her fault? Why is she denied the basic human right to life? A male child is never denied that right! Why? Today the ratio of girls to boys has dropped so much that in some parts of north India, girls are brought from other states and sold to men as brides. Sometimes a girl is shared by two brothers and in some cases even by father and son! It is shocking, deplorable, condemnable and inhuman.
We have to stop these inhuman atrocities being forced upon girls. In the Indian joint-family system, it is the elders or the husband who decide whether or not to have a girl child. Sometimes the daughter-in-law is threatened into having an abortion - she does not have a choice. The wife who is financially dependent on her husband has to oblige - what else can she do? This is why I say that women should be educated and must have economic independence. They should not be pressurized into doing something they do not want to. A woman is not weak - she has been conditioned to believe that she is weak. Girls are a wonderful creation of nature - kind, beautiful, energetic, a great power house of energy. A girl grows up to be a companion to man; a good friend; a doting mother; a loving wife; a wonderful girlfriend. She is a giver; she is tolerant; she is perseverant. Allow her to blossom to her full capacity. Girls are wonderful! - can a man think of making a life without a woman? She defines man’s life, fulfils and nurtures him.
A woman can play multiple roles with élan. Can’t men at least support her and respect her? Please think about how you can repay a mother’s debt - the debt of love. Every woman is Shakti - a divine being - love and respect her.
If a woman remains ignorant and blind can society progress fully? If in any society, the woman remains ignorant, illiterate and deprived of her rights, can that society or country flourish? Our country will not prosper as long as women are not given their rightful place. The day the women of this country awaken and empower themselves with knowledge, this country will touch the heights of prosperity.

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Naturopathy & Yoga for reducing belly Fat

2008-09-15T03:01:00.000-07:00

Naturopathy points its fingers to two habits as the cause of fat belly:

one is eating more than required
second is the lack of exercise

It is wrong to consider the lower metabolic rate and the deficiency of thyroid activity, the ultimate cause; these are just the symptoms resulting from a cause. Sedentary life style coupled with binge eating is the recipe for fat accumulation and overweight. The fat belly is not only unattractive, it can be downright dangerous for your health. Extra fat around abdomen increases the risk of high blood pressure and heart diseases. This may lead to a situation where one has to even face the isolation risk from the society, which further aggravates the serious condition.Reducing fat levels requires a natural approach that doesn’t come from popping diet pills or gulping down foul tasty drinks. One has to maintain healthy nutrition and control dietary habits. Here are some quick tips to stay healthy

Food should be consumed in smaller portions with more proteins and slightly less processed carbohydrates.
Drink maximum water as it aids in digestion, fullness and fat burning and flushes out toxins from the body.
Avoid sedentary life as much as you can.
Instead of taking a bus, walk.
Instead of using the remote to change the channel, get up and do it yourself.

These are just quick examples to get you started.

For keeping the body healthy and fat free, yoga plays a vital role. Yoga is considered as a three way approach for body, mind and soul. Where stress is one of the grounds for binge eating, yoga controls everything. Yoga can be performed in many ways- in the form of asanas, pranayamas and mudras. Nadishodhana, suryabhedna and anulom vilom are the best pranayamas to keep body fat free. Not all the pranayamas are advised for everyone until and unless you are totally healthy.At last but not the least, adopt positive approach towards life. Positive thinking and natural living are the ways to life a healthy and joyous life.

Dr. Manushi Sood.

Too Stressed Up? Just Relax!!!

2008-08-23T23:11:00.000-07:00

Too Stressed Up? Just Relax!!!

In today’s stressful style of living, relaxation is like a dream. It’s just like a mirage. Everyone wishes to relax. And everyone is too stressed up to relax. People try to find their relaxation in different manners. Someone goes out to watch a cinema or to watch a theatre. Another person goes to a music concert. And yet another person goes just for a walk. One who is looking for relaxation in the food will go out to try various cuisines and restaurants. And yet another person would like to quit to remote place and be in that vicinity where no person is moving. And someone will do exactly the opposite of this, he might go to a fate or maybe a trade fair where throngs of people are piling one on another. When the crowd walks, you get pushed to walk. When the crowd stops, you stop. And you find relaxation in this? Everyone is looking for relaxation but everyone has a different way and method to achieve that.
I have heard about Mullah Nasruddin. He had become very old and was inflicted with insomnia. He couldn’t sleep. Now everything was tried on him; hot baths, massages, pills, tranquilizers, hot milk. But nothing was of any help. Everything was of no avail because Mullah neither slept himself nor did he let anyone in the house sleep. So, nights became a nightmare for the whole family. They searched desperately for any method, any medicine that would help Mulla to sleep. The whole family was suffering with him.
Someone suggested, “Why don’t you give a try to a hypnotist.” So a hypnotist was brought. People said, “He is a miracle man. He creates sleep within minutes. He knows the very magic of it. So don’t be worried. Just pay him his fee and don’t keep any doubt. He will put Mullah to sleep.” Now the hypnotist was brought home. He showed a watch with a chain to Nasruddin and said, “You will have to keep a little faith in me and see what a miracle will happen. You have to trust me. And if you do so, you will fall asleep like a baby.”
Mulla said, “Yeah, even I wish I could sleep like a baby but nothing is working in my case.” Hypnotist said, “Don’t worry. I am here to solve the problem. Just watch this watch. Look at this watch.” And he started moving the watch left and right and Nasruddin looked at it and the hypnotist said, “Watch is moving left to right. See it. Now your eyes are becoming tired, tired, tired. Now you are falling asleep, asleep, asleep.”
Everyone was happy as Mullah’s eyes closed and his head leaned down. And it seemed he is going to sleep like a baby. The rhythmic breathing started happening in Mullah’s body. Hypnotist gave a very satisfying smile, pleased with his mastery and took his fee. He asked everyone to leave the room after him. As he was about to sneak out, Mullah Nasruddin opened one eye and said, “That nut, has he gone yet?”

Mullah was making an effort to relax. He had started acting. He was breathing rhythmically. He closed his eyes. But it was just an effort. And you cannot relax with an effort.
Relaxation can only occur in effortlessness. Mullah was making an effort to relax and to go to sleep. He was trying to help the hypnotist with all sincerity. But this very helping and this very effort created a bigger obstruction in his relaxation. Nothing could happen. Only if Mullah could passively hear what was being said, sleep would have happened. No effort on his part was required. It was absolutely unnecessary for him to do something.
You are unable to relax fully. If you stay passive, positively inactive, and be effortless in whichever situation you are, you will feel the relaxation. Awareness and agitated mind cannot be in the same wave length. As your awareness increases, you begin to take things as they are, not expecting and not acting on others expectations. When you live on the periphery (mind is periphery), you loose touch with your center, and then you cannot be relaxed. Don’t let mind rule you, you take the reins of life, live every moment listening to yourself.
Before going into tools and ways to delete your tensions, we have to understand that why are you tensed in first place or who is making you tensed. Hold your breath! It isn’t your outer situations which are making you tensed, it is your mind. You are so obsessed with tomorrow that you are always dreaming about it, frame after frame you play the scenes in your mind, what how will it feel when your desires will see day of reality. Your cravings agitate you, your ego frustrates you and not any one else. What others think about you bothers you more than what you want from life. In light of such mental state, how can ever you relax? You can’t ignore these issues, you have to deal with it and you have to do something about it. Once this is done there won’t be any reason for you to feel tensed.
Learn to appreciate life, and rejoice. Every passing moment is never going to come back again. How can you loose precious moments for little things which have no meaning at all? What others say or do shouldn’t matter to you. Everyone has the right to speak what they think. What you are, you know it. Why let a statement spoken by someone bother you? Live your life and let go the habit of desire to gain appreciation and applauds.
Mind has taken charge of your life and you have lost connection with your being. You have lost your center and it has to be rediscovered. It is right there but because of the opaque film which your mind has created you aren’t able to see it. As you will begin to nurture the practice of awareness, for the first time your center will be revealed. As you will begin to live with awareness, being in your center, only then you will taste what real relaxation is. Center of our being is ocean of stillness and joy. Be in the present, be in this Now. See the present moment which is happening around you: the blue sky, giggles of children, chirping of birds, floating clouds and if what you can hear is just noise then even noise will be rhythmic.
Effort is needed, if something externally has to be done. If you want to achieve anything, if you want to create anything, if you want to reach somewhere, effort is needed. But if you want to relax, then definitely no effort is required. Only one thing is required to relax: Your non-doing. Don’t do anything to relax. Just relax. Let go off all bondages; let go off all desires for the moment at least, then nothing can agitate you. Just keep it in mind that you have to leave every effort and you have to go on just leaving them. Now even leaving is an effort. But a moment comes when everything is gone, and you are there. Simply there, not doing anything. Just there! Just in your being. And in this very being ness, the real relaxation will pour upon you. And this relaxation will come free. No charge, no traveling. You don’t have to wait. You don’t have to reach somewhere. You don’t have to go somewhere to experience it. You don’t have to even lift your finger. Just simply be in passive alertness. Just be silent. Not doing anything. Not thinking. Just being in the moment. And that is enough.

So here is the key for relaxation. Just be passively aware and alert.

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YOGA NIDRA The Conscious Sleep

2008-08-21T23:05:00.000-07:00

YOGA NIDRA The Conscious Sleep

Yoga Nidra
releases
all types of tensions-
muscular, emotional
and mental tensions.

Every human being is endowed with great potentialities but one need to have awareness and training to explore this inner treasure. Yoga Nidra is the way to turn inwards and bring consciousness to the constant flow of life happening within and rise higher within and without. It is the scientific way to eliminate the root cause of all negativities like stress related disorders, ailments like hypertension, depression, asthma, digestive disorders, etc which drain our life energy.

Yoga Nidra is an ancient tantric method, which can open new capacities of the mind. Stress, frustrations, insomnia, and psychosomatic diseases which have become part of modern man’s life, are being caused by our unstable mind. Unknowingly, we hurt ourselves and hold people and situations responsible for our turmoil. Yoga Nidra gives us an opportunity to understand our mind and cuts through its blind conditionings.
Yoga Nidra means sleeping consciously. It is a kind of deep sleep in which you don’t loose consciousness. It is a more efficient and effective form of psychic and physiological rest and rejuvenation. Normally, when people sleep, they do not unburden totally. They carry their frustrations, conflict, pain, and turmoil with them, hence, sleep never goes deep. Because of this, there remains great tension in mind and body.
The practice of Yoga Nidra not only relaxes but restructures and reforms our whole personality from within. With every session, we burn old sansakaras, habits and tendencies in order to be born anew. Yoga Nidra means sleep with a trace of awareness. It is a state of mind in-between wakefulness and dream.
At this moment, your intellectual mind is operating but when you relax, the subconscious and unconscious levels of mind open up. If you practice Yoga Nidra, then the nature of your mind can be changed, diseases can be cured and your creative genius can be restored.
The sub-conscious mind and the unconscious mind are the most powerful forces in the human being. Sub-Conscious mind is a very obedient disciple and it immediately carries out the orders that you put to it.
In Yoga Nidra, the most effective means of training the mind is found in sankalpa - resolution, which you make for yourself during each practice. Anything in life can fail you but not your sankalpa. It is an important stage of Yoga Nidra and a powerful way of reshaping your personality and giving a new direction in life along positive lines. When conscious mind-body is in deep relaxation, at that time, whatever sankalpa- resolution you will make, it will get fulfilled. The resolution you make at the beginning of the practice is like sowing a seed and the resolution at the end is like irrigating it.
Yoga Nidra is a practice which brings the deeper layers of the psyche into conscious experience. This brings deeper relaxation on all levels; physical, psychological and mental. This induces direct affect on glandular functions which means a better health and higher levels of energy.
During practice of Yoga Nidra your consciousness travels through one layer to another. Sometimes, it goes very deep and then you have exploding fantastic experiences. And sometimes it won’t go too deep. Experiences such as levitation may occur while consciousness transverses through sub-conscious mind. Temporary dissociation takes place in-between mind and body, and this is the time when you will have wonderful experiences.
In Yoga Nidra, you do not have to concentrate, rather you move your consciousness from one part of the body to another; concentration will rather create obstruction. Just hear the instructions aware fully and a deep relocation will occur at physiological, psychological and emotional levels. Sometimes, you will be close to your senses and then you will glide away; when consciousness is suspended for a few moments, periodically, which means that it alternates between sub-conscious and unconscious states.
Yoga Nidra releases all types of tensions-muscular, emotional and mental tensions. When muscular tensions are released, it heals nervous system and endocrinal imbalances. When emotional tensions are released, we come out of all dualities: love-hate, pain-pleasure to name a few, which are more difficult to release. But when these emotions are repressed, we loose our sanity and stability. Mental tensions are a result of excessive mental activity. Yoga Nidra is a science of relaxation which enables us to dive deep into the realms of sub-conscious mind thereby releasing all tensions.
For all seekers and those who wish to experience higher states of consciousness, best of health and a powerful method to heal oneself, this ancient method of yoga, is available in the form of cd, So relax and just listen to it aware fully. When deep relaxation happens, our glands function becomes better and makes our body healthy.

Yoga is a way of life, an art of righteous living or an integrated system for the benefit of the body, mind and inner spirit. To experience and learn the real benefits of Yog Nidra, log on to www.yogawonders.com

Create ‘I’ Witty

2008-08-20T22:09:00.000-07:00

Create ‘I’ Witty

IGNITE THE CREATIVITY IN ‘ME’

The infinite spectrum of creativity has often been perceived as limited to the fields like art and literature. It is because when we think from limited mind, things look in a very small bracket, as our conscious mind is not bigger than a bubble. The scientists have proved that the capacity of human brain is immense but we are using only 3% of our brain; this means even Einstein used just close to 6% of his capacity.
With the limitations of the mind, we tend to believe that ‘creativity’ means art, literature, dance or music. But once we transcend the mind then we realize that right from the smallest speck of dust to the largest volumptuous sized planet in cosmos, each and every area is part of creativity; even a glade of grass is so immaculately designed and shaped, has been given a specific color, identity, and consciousness, but which is in sleep mode. When we say ‘creativity’ then whatever our senses can perceive and whatever is beyond the perception, whatever we can think about and whatever is beyond thinking comes in the region of creativity. So, we cannot use a marker and boldly say that this is a part of the creativity, and rest is not.
Nothing in this universe is mundane. The flawless beauty of trees and plants, the blossoming of flowers, the chirping of birds, all is happening because of creativity. Just have a look at your hands; they are so intricately, beautifully, and creatively aligned. Can this be compared with something lesser than an art? The way your eyes and ears are working; the way the dance of the blood is happening in your body; it’s more of a “dance” as it is going against the gravity, rushing all towards the head and it’s coming back down. So, we cannot limit creativity to art, literature, music or dance. Creativity is much bigger and we need to broaden up our vision to really understand this.
In Mythology, we say that the creator has created this creation, the world, which we are seeing, but if you go more into the depth, then there is no creator but creativity is happening. It’s a constant process; the nature is working constantly & persistently.
Creativity is a continuous process and you cannot put it in a bracket that these things alone fit into the label of creativity and rest does not. Creativity is something which is an ‘integral part’ of us. The only thing is that we have to open-up our eyes to see, admire and enjoy the creativity.

INNATE GREAT CREATIVE CAPACITIES

Every human being is born with great capacities: capacity to think, to create, to admire beauty, to write beautiful poetry, painting, dancing, cooking, mothering, fathering. There are scores of people who are painters but they don’t know that they have this capacity or ability in them.
Society at large is more concerned for pleasing the senses. So, there is a non-ending list of materials which people long and dream to possess, including the hunger to get recognition, name and fame. They go on praying to God for fulfillment of their wants and wishes. Now actually it’s not what they want, it is what they are seeing that people have it and now they too want to have what others have.
We can say that creativity exists in every person. Cooking is an expression of creativity; keeping your books neatly on the book-shelf is creativity. Beauty too is an expression of creativity. Move into the tribal areas where there is no reach of any cosmetic industries and neither do they have money to spend on products, but yet all these women have innovative ways to beautify their bodies. They might use the chalk or mix ash or use some dye made by crushing some plant leaves, and make a paste to then beautify her body. This too is creativity.
Now, creativity is being lost in these mundane activities. Right from the tribal woman, to that upscale New York cosmopolitan educated woman who has loads of money to spend and buy those expensive things from 52nd Avenue, both these women have their own versions of creativity but both of them are concerned with their body alone. Their expression of creativity is too much limited to the matter, their body, which is mortal. So we can say that it is not the optimum or real creativity. But everyone has it, in one proportion or degree.

LOVE BRINGS OUT ALL CREATIVITY

We need to relate and spend more time with our own self; Relating with one self means relating with breath, mind, brain and then consciousness. The more you bring this “pranic energy” in your body, higher will be the degree of your consciousness.

The higher the degree of consciousness, there will be more possibilities for the higher intuitions to happen to you.
And when you are in the range where mind has been uncluttered, body has been energized with “Prana Energy”, with the “Cosmic Energy”, you are more at an receiving end, where you’ll be able to imbibe the knowledge, the wisdom from your own higher regions.
This is the best thing which one can do and this means you need to learn “yoga”. You need to learn to meditate. You need to learn the value and the celebration of ’singing’, the ‘kirtan’. You need to learn to be in ‘love’. Love brings out all creativity. You need to be in love with your own true self, your own ‘higher self’ and those who will begin to move in this direction, their personalities get shaped up.
There is a long list of mystic masters viz Sant Kabir, Baba Sheikh Farid, and more, who never went to any school or university, but a mystical thing happened to them, and that’s their master happened to them. This one meeting with the master inspired divine love in their hearts, and this small light of divine love grew so big that their personalities were transformed. Then this love pushed them to such a state where poetry began to flow through; not any ordinary poetry, but the poetry in which the truth was being depicted. If the master wouldn’t have come in their life, they would have ended up being just a very ordinary person.

MEDITATION INSPIRES CREATIVITY

Meditation Creativity
Every meditator is definitely a creator because he or she is creating the higher levels of consciousness within, and with this higher level of consciousness, all beautiful things will happen.
There is a profound relationship between meditation and creativity. A non-meditative person cannot be really a creative person. Now sometimes people are allergic to the word “Meditation”. What they don’t understand is that
The real objective of meditation is to be in the right state of mind where concentration, contemplation and awareness manifest in the being.

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Defining Meditation

2008-08-19T22:14:00.000-07:00

Meditation is a way of life. It is to be lived. We have a vast reservoir of energy in us, lying unused, untapped. Once we get in touch with this energy, our life changes from just being an ordinary to a divine one.
What is meditation?

If your answer is to get relief from stress, to experience joy, to kill time, to know God -Wrong! Absolutely wrong! Utterly wrong! Don’t be surprised. Keep on reading, you will be truly surprised.
We can get relief from stress from thousand things. A good movie, match of soccer, cricket, tennis, by dancing in a discothèque, by pubbing, in sex, list will go on and on. Company of like minded people gives joy, all adventure sports give a great kick, an adrenaline rush of blood and Wow- what an experience. If you have been meditating for the sake of getting relief or looking for joy, then you are really confused and don’t know what really meditation is. Meditation is not getting relief from stress but it is much more than that.
Meditation is moving in the inner zone of emptiness, where stress can never touch you. It is exploring the inner space where you remain absolutely untouched from all ill effects of mind and samsara. This inner space is there and we need just the right method to move there, once you have understood and experienced nothing can bring you down from that timeless zone. Being in this zone means, being an ocean of joy. It is not just getting little glimpses of joy for some time and then back in rut. This had been a great dilemma of all meditators; as long as they are doing it, they feel good, elated, happy, enlightened, but moment they come out of the place where they meditate, one finds that one is back to square one. Things are exactly the same, people still bother you, you get offended often, jealousies and prejudices are very much intact there. Now individuals begin to plan when they can run away to their safe haven. So they are always on a run. Being an escapist seems very romantic. It seems to provide an easy short cut to all problems.

A Way of Life

buddhaMeditation is a way of life. It is to be lived. We have a vast reservoir of energy in us, lying unused, untapped. Once we get in touch with this energy, our life changes from just being an ordinary to a divine one. Meditation is being in tune with our inner energy source.
Life throws up many challenges and if we do not have the right tools to face them, then we’ll fail in our task. These are the tools of patience and tolerance. There are scores of people fighting mental problems - suicides are happening in large numbers. You cross the borderline and end up in a psychiatric ward. Remember that in this fast-paced life, we have to live with competitions which are nerve-wrecking. Then there is a bombardment of advertisements on TV, newspapers, magazines and internet which puts a lot of strain on our mind. This explosion creates false desires. This is the century of exhibitionism - people earn to show off, vanity is on constant display. All this leads to immense pressure on the mind, resulting in a sense of insecurity and lack of trust. Relationships and families start breaking apart.
Meditation is an antidote for the many ailments that our mind and body undergoes in this stressful life. The transformation that comes from the regular practice of meditation is gradual but sure. Interestingly, meditation is not about doing something; rather it is about doing nothing. Meditation is experiencing emptiness and enjoying it - though this enjoying is a mind-oriented experience. Both joy and sorrow are experienced by the mind - and anything that is experienced by the mind does not include meditation. Whatever we do, is done through and by our mind. And releasing ourselves from the clutches of our mind is called meditation.

Sharpen your Attention

To meditate, we need to understand two factors: evaluate the intricacies of the mind (how the mind works) and become familiar with awareness. Once we know how a thought is formulated, what triggers thoughts, what are the conditions in which mind is prone to generate thoughts, only then we can take a leap beyond the cobweb of thoughts and experience the ever-flowing bliss. To understand all this, we need to cultivate and nurture attentiveness, alertness, vigilance and have a sharp microscopic vision - as the Buddha said “Sharpen your vision like a bowman sharpens his arrow”.

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Awaken to Your Breath

2008-08-18T22:47:00.000-07:00

Awaken to Your Breath
Breathing is like a language:
the language of the soul.

In the beginning, we are told, “was the word”, but behind the word is an even greater power: the breath. Have you noticed that words are simply specific formations, shapes and movements of breath?
In the end days, it is said: all the secrets and mysteries will be revealed. Those end days must be approaching, because today the breath itself seems to be revealing those secrets to us. It seems that the secret of life has been right under our nose all the time!
But it should come as no surprise, since almost every spiritual teacher throughout time has pointed to the breath in some way, and every contemporary healer makes use of the breath at some point.
Almost all the ancient languages use the same word for air, wind or breath, as they do for life, vital energy, or spirit; or the animating principle of life. This principle, this spirit of life, is called chi, ki, prana, or energy.
The breath is often overlooked and underestimated in our search for the source and meaning of life, yet the author of Genesis tells us that “God took the dust of the earth and formed the body of man, and breathed into the nostrils of man the Breath of Life, and man became a living soul.”
So, is it any wonder that today, we can find our way back to God, we can meet the source of life by turning to the breath - or more specifically - to what is referred to in the Book of Genesis as ‘neshemet ruach chayim’ - “the spirit of life within the breath”.
The author of Genesis understood something that the yogis have been teaching since early times: that there is a difference between the air we breathe and the life giving principle contained within it. This inner breath, also called chi, ki, prana or energy runs through body, mind and soul.
The movement of spirit in the body is reflected in the movement of breath. As the Sufi Master Hazrat Inayat Khan writes: “The healing power of Christ, the miraculous power of Moses, the charm of Krishna, and the inspiration of the Buddha - all these were attained by breath.”
The Course in Miracles teaches us that: “A universal theology is impossible, but a universal experience is not only possible, it is necessary.” This universal experience is the breath, is breathing!
In the Nei Ching: Yellow Emperor’s Classic of Internal Chinese Medicine, we read: “In ancient times, there were the so-called spiritual men; they mastered the universe, and controlled yin and yang. They breathed the essence of life and were independent in preserving the spirit. Their muscles and flesh remained unchanged.
Spiritual Breathing is to psychosomatic illness what penicillin is to infection. Spiritual Breathing is the quickest way to clear your head, settle your stomach, calm your nerves, and open your heart. It will uplift you, center you, and ground you in your being. Spiritual Breathing opens your heart to love and fills your body with light and life.
In the Songs of Solomon, we read: “Breath restores me to my exact self”. Maybe that’s why one of the most powerful modern spiritual breathing methods is called “Rebirthing”. It offers us a spiritual technology of awakening to our essence.
Breathwork is a spiritual technology for purification and awakening. When you work with the breath, you automatically develop spiritual skills. To play with breath is to play with the subtlest form of matter. That’s why people who have mastered spiritual breathing can accomplish so much on the level of subtle energies.
Spiritual Breathing makes it clear that the original creative life force energy that built our bodies in the womb is still available to us, to maintain and even rebuild the body.
Yoga is the science of union (with god). And yoga holds as a central truth that breath is the connection, the bridge between mind and body, between the visible and the invisible. Breath connects us to each other, and it connects all of us to god, nature and existence.
Every breath can be a prayer, an invitation, a demonstration of our faith, our trust. It can be an expression of forgiveness, gratitude and surrender. Tremendous power is to be gained through combining meditation and breathing.
Each of us must walk his or her own unique path. And that is the empowering aspect of breathwork: no one can do it for you! Yet, we are all breathing the same breath. It is not just a philosophy. It is in fact a reality! The same atoms and molecules of air, the breath that Jesus breathed, Moses breathed, Buddha breathed, that same breath is flowing into you right now!
If you want to go into the deepest realities of life, and to reach the highest states of consciousness, then you will have to awaken to the breath. It is the path, or at least the doorway to your essence, your core, your soul, your heart of hearts.
Breath and breathing techniques are now being taught all over the world. Breath awareness leads to the healing of stress, emotional problems, substance abuse, subconscious blocks, fears and anxieties.
The Angel of Breath is at work on the planet! This Angel of Breath brings fire and light to everyone on the spiritual path. Evolutionary contractions in the form of natural disasters, social upheaval and wars, are doing the work of pushing spiritual seekers out of their comfort zone and into the dynamic working zone of spiritual awakening, purification and rebirth.
It seems to me that everyone is born a spiritual master. But we forget and lose touch with our essence, our purpose, our source. The sadness, anger, and the love of a child is total: it seems infinite. That is a reflection of the power and nature of their spirit. As children, we are forced to choose between following outer authority and listening to our inner divinity.
You can begin to re-incorporate the life of spirit in your body and being. Simply breathe in a conscious way. Practice breathing in a peaceful, accepting, trusting, loving, grateful, forgiving, inviting and surrendering way. Incorporating these attributes through spiritual breathing makes manifesting them in reality easy and effortless!
More than knowing, believing or doing it, when you are breathing it, you are “living” it. You are “being” it. Opening and relaxing the breath is like opening the doors to your soul. Allow every fiber of your being to be bathed in this life that flows from god. Spiritual breathing has been called a biological experience of divine energy.
It takes courage to live a unique and inspired life. It requires that you turn to your own inner truth. That inner truth can be reflected and expressed through every breath you take. Breathing is like a language: the language of the soul.
Spiritual Breathing can take you to the eye of the storm in your life. Spiritual breathing can help you balance yin and yang, peace and power, rhythm and harmony. Learn from the breath itself. Follow your own bliss!

Start by watching your breath. Do what the Buddha did at the moment of enlightenment: follow the breath as it comes and goes. Feel the sensations of breath, the movement of breath in you. Be a witness. Observe, notice, pay attention to what is happening inside you each moment, and be aware of the one being aware!
Add to that the willingness to let go, to surrender. And then begin to conspire with the life that surrounds and permeates everything in existence. Breathe consciously. Feel the expansion and contraction of life! Celebrate the flow of life and marvel at the mysteries that life reveals to you through the breath.
Seek out others who are committed to breath mastery. Share your experience. No one is free until we are all free. But if only one of us gets free, everyone will be liberated!

Breathe peace and love, freedom and safety, energy and aliveness, love and light. And watch the world within you and around you change forever.

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