extraordinarilyordinary..seedsofenlightenment

Awakening and God Realization

2011-05-04T21:19:00.000+05:30

"God Realization and Awakening are very different. When you are awakened it can be described in a crude way as you were on drugs or drunk, you are in an altered state of consciousness but there are no hangover, no side effect. You have a different perspective on life.

"In God Realization you and the Divine are One. Everything happens to you, you see only God in that. You see It in Everyone and all situations. No matter what happens to you, you are seeing God in that. You can ask for anything in this state, it is given.

"So I suggest you go for God Realization, then it is very easy for your God to give Awakening to you. Awakening is much harder to get, go for God Realization. In Oneness we give both, we are aiming to give you both." ~ Sri Bhagavan

witness consciousness

2011-05-04T06:01:00.000+05:30

"When you come out of prison you will see your mind is there intact. All your knowledge is intact, but you’re out of it. It’ll be working automatically and it will beautifully run your life. The problem is when you get involved. When you merely become a witness consciousness the mind is automatically functioning."- Sri Bhagavan

paradoxes r superficial

2011-05-02T04:50:00.000+05:30

The fusion of high gyaana with intense bhakti is an oft observed spiritual phenomena. Ramana's passionate bhajans are legendary. A thriving bhakti movement across the world exists with Nisargadatta. Paradoxes rest at comfortable peace with each other at higher levels of consciousness.Conflict dissolves and what is remains.

prayer

2011-05-02T04:46:00.001+05:30

Asato ma Satgamaya
Tamasoma Jyotirgamaya
Mrityorma Amritamgamaya...

from untruth, lead me to truth,
Form darkness to light
and from death to immortality.......

- ancient Indian prayer

discomfort

2011-05-02T04:37:00.002+05:30

when we encounter discomfort on our spiritual journeys, each discomfort is a wake-up call, an attention caller to an evolutionary opportunity...if we skirt the discomfort , we also move away from the opportunity of receiving a great gift it represents.

mind @ work

2011-05-01T15:34:00.002+05:30

d mind is in the past or in d future; never in d present.in awareness, one is in d present in d presence.

perception makes all the difference....

2009-11-08T13:53:00.001+05:30

Everything happens FOR YOU, not TO YOU.

- Tony Robbins

Bhagavan in our lives...

2009-10-19T17:04:00.001+05:30

The loftiness of the Oneness processes and teachings and the dynamic presence of Grace in our lives re-inforces itself time and again through the events we come across.I was privileged to witness such an event in the lives of our oneness family members yesterday.The Kulkarnis - Ravindra and Swati and their children , Gauri and Pooja are staunch volunteers of the Oneness Mission and stay at Thane, a sister city of Bombay.They have done their advanced processes and follow up on the teachings and the processes with deep commitment.Yesterday, their 14th floor apartment was ravaged by a huge fire which has left them without any personal belongings.They have suffered losses worth INR12-15 lakh and 6 firemen died in the accident.All the major news channels in India continuously carried this story yesterday.But the event was a spiritual miracle, a living example of putting Bhagavan's wondrous teachings into real time play in our lives.I was there with them since 4.00 a.m. yesterday morning and it was a day of experiencing pain as it is and transcending it into realms of love, compassion and joy.And prayers that none of the neighbors or anyone else should get injured or hurt. Unfortunately, 6 firemen lost their lives and we have offered our prayers last evening for their onward journeys.Bhagavan has taught us that the nature of all experience is bliss; it does not depend on the content of experience.You only have to see this family to see this principle at work.A true miracle in the midst of a great challenge.While we know that Sri Amma Bhagavan was there every moment guiding and saving the family, we believe that BHagavan in His inimitable style visited the home and physically gave His blessings to the family. After the fire was doused, I accompanied the family members to the 14th floor.We had to climb up cautiously as the water from the fire tenders was flowing down the stairs. Needless to add, we could not take the elevator.As we were inspecting the debris, an extremely old man ( one wonders how he climbed the 14 flight of stairs) came and blessed Swatiji. He took a srimurti from his pocket and offered it to Swatiji. Swatiji was left speechless and showed her own personal pocket srimurti which she always carries on her person.The man disappeared as suddenly as he arrived.For all of us, It was Bhagavan who had personally visited there.We had gratitude prayers and deekshas at night at my place and to quote the younger daughter Pooja, "We are having to pretend we are in pain in front of our relatives as they will feel it is abnormal for us to be so much at peace with ourselves."They have a life to rebuild, but with such presence of Grace, it is going to be a cakewalk.Glory be to this awesome presence in our lives..Glory be to the Grace that architectures our lives.In deep gratitude to the process of all of us becoming spiritual phenomena, moving spaceships of Grace....

into the mouth of the dragon...

2009-10-17T15:49:00.001+05:30

Growth is often difficult. It's because we have to face our current fears and perceptions and look them square in the face. More than that...sometimes we have to really go deeply into them to "see" our mental entanglements. That's what some traditions call "going into the mouth of the dragon."

Let your upsets guide you to the dragon's lair. Your upsets are caused by your perceptions. If you're upset...even if you're upset about being upset...you are at the dragon's gate. Go farther inside to see all of your mind's judgments and conclusions and fears. Ask yourself...

What am I afraid of
What do I believe about this
Who or what am I blaming

Remember, you don't need to change your thoughts and perceptions...simply look at them. See them. This in itself will cause them to dissolve.

Then...keep going in. Often, we have perceptions built on top of perceptions and they weave a complex knot of mental activity. We can't always see the entire "knot" at once. Keep looking. Keep following your charges and upsets. Each time you see more of it, another part will dissolve and you will be liberated from it.

And the dragon will become your friend and ally.

- Living in Oneness Network

HAPPY DIWALI

2009-10-16T19:39:00.002+05:30

WISH U ALL A JOYOUS AND LOVE FILLED DIWALI...

SHUBHAM KAROTI KALYANAM

AROGYAM DHANASAMPADA

SHATRUBUDHI VINASHAAYA

DEEPA JYOTI NAMOSTUTE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

personalities

2009-10-11T17:16:00.001+05:30

There is no person, there are only personalities at play - Sri Bhagavan.

Personalities are an emergence from the controlling self , a tool for its' expression and indulgence. These personalities control our existence moment to moment.

When the witnessing grows and we are able to see the personalities with their associated mental formations at play, we get de-clutched from the grip of their control.Our dead robotic behavior gives way to a dynamic, alive state.We are no longer zombies at work, we are creative spiritual beings at play. Life becomes a celebration, nay a burden.

Reaction vs Response

2009-10-06T18:03:00.000+05:30

In a recent audience with process participants, Bhagavan said, You are under the illusion that you take decisions.Actually, it is the controlling self which does.We normally react in an auto - reply fashion to events /words/people that meet us in life. It is a reaction of memory to external stimulus.We give so much credence to thought and thinking when Bhagavan keeps on reminding us that Thought is the problem. Thinking cannot solve problems as it is coming from the recesses of memory and conditioned mental formations.When we are aware every moment that it is this conditioning that architectures our lives, reaction gives way to response.Response emerges in supreme intelligence.When we are de-clutched from the mind process, natural intelligence flowing through us is a happening.it is our perceptional filters which disallow our access to natural intelligence.Knowledge emerges in conditioning, intelligence emerges in realms beyond conditioning.

2009-09-27T11:32:00.002+05:30

Prayers and wishes for learning in life to all of you.

Happy Saraswati Pooja! Happy Dassera!!!!

This is a picture of teh traditional Devi installed at home.It is made on coconut and plastered with turmeric and sandal paste.Thanks to my friend, Manoj Chellapan who made this .

everything is connected

2009-09-18T13:49:00.001+05:30

Sri Bhagavan says that everything and everyone is connected.What we are doing at this moment has its' impact on the whole of human consciousness.A drop of milk added to a glass of water spreads through the water.If a part of the body is hurt, the entire body suffers.The violence in us contributes to the violence in the world.Our healing contributes to the healing of the world.Each of us blessed to be a part of this cosmic process at this moment also have to be very responsible through our integrity.Liberation is a movement in consciousness of all of humanity.Every breath we take, every move we make forms part of this movement.An awareness of this makes every moment of our life filled with sacredness and reverence.Small steps, giant leaps in the microcosm affect the macrocosm.

pain is ONE

2009-09-13T09:43:00.000+05:30

Suppose we are in a situation where we are cut off from being able to perceive the external.There is pain within us; can we really fathom what has really caused it?Is there a difference in the pain we feel from financial crisis, a broken relationship, a health issue or any other.If we were to be able to see just the pain, can we really infer the event behind it?The answer is no.We feel events cause us pain while in reality it is the other way around. The pain within us causes the events in our external world.Sri Bhagavan says that the pain in our life is a constant, an aggregate of the physical, psychological and spiritual. When we apparently release ourselves, we merely move from one aspect of pain to the other. Fundamantally, the pain in our system remains constant.If we are grappling with a psychological issue, say , in a relationship; it converts into a headache or any other physical discomfort for we are unable to cope with the psychological pain.A physical pain can often be managed by popping a pill.It does not imply a release from the pain, it merely implies a convenient management.Which is what Bhagavan keeps reminding us - we have graduated in the art of sorrow management. Management is just that - far away from a release.Bhagavan's benediction is for our pain to release, not to be merely managed.We keep swapping events in quest of a release from meaninglessness, boredom, frustration , fear and any other reality within us.By moving across events, we are essentially escaping the reality of our selves, the pain that is intrinsic to the self.We anaesthezise ourselves through indulgence in activities of various kinds and keep changing activities to keep ourselves amused.When we encounter darkness and it stimulates fear to surface, we move away from the darkness. Bhagavan tells us to stay in the darkness while watching the fear.Where and what we watch makes all the difference!!!!!!!!!The fundamental pain remains across activities and events.I have found awakening to this reality of the ONENESS of all pain to be a significant breakthrough. And pain , when experienced totally, leads us to bliss, satchidananda.Therein lies release, not mere management.It is our indulgence in the event, the actors therein or the apparent causes which move us away from our capacity to experience.Being in touch with the pain is the bridge to the discovery of love and joy in our lives.It is independent of events - awareness is freedom.And the Oneness Blessing is like a lighted candle entering a dark room.....as light enters, darkness moves away.It need not be removed.

meeting conflict...

2009-09-13T09:41:00.000+05:30

When we encounter conflict, the tendency is to focus on the content of the conflict and try to arrive at a solution through a choice.In the context of inner world paradigms, whatever solution we arrive at seems incomplete - there is residual discontent, a lack of fulfillment.

Sri Bhagavan extols us to focus on the process of conflict which is intrinsic to operations emerging in the mind.The presence of conflict is an indicator that the mind is in operation.
Watching this awakens the witness consciousness.The first level of watching is inclusive of judgmental perspectives.Watching the judgement and the mind commentary leads us to the second level of watching - a state of awareness.

Awareness, in Bhagavan's words , is freedom.

Action emerges here. Activity is created in noise, in disturbance which is an attribute of conflict, which in turn is an attribute of the mind.An unawakened life is architectured by this noise , this disturbance while an awakened life is architectured by divine intelligence.

In an unawakened state, a sense of urgency forces us towards a decision to escape the total experiencing of the conflict.And such a decision is always a compromise, a management.And it seeks support and justification through a structure created out of untruth and lies.

On the other hand, watching the process of conflict leads to its' dissolution.The resultant absence of noise enables a decision naturally, a river in flow.

Every conflict demands our attention - to the process rather than the content, a pause to watch.And then the miracle unfolds.....

from my inbox

2009-08-27T19:08:00.000+05:30

A man planted a rose and watered it faithfully and before it blossomed, he examined it.

He saw the bud that would soon blossom, but noticed thorns upon the stem and he thought, "How can any beautiful flower come from a plant burdened with so many sharp thorns? Saddened by this thought, he neglected to water the rose, and just before it was ready to bloom... it died.

So it is with many people. Within every soul there is a rose. The God-like qualities planted in us at birth, grow amid the thorns of our faults. Many of us look at ourselves and see only the thorns, the defects.

We despair, thinking that nothing good can possibly come from us. We neglect to water the good within us, and eventually it dies. We never realize our potential.

Some people do not see the rose within themselves; someone else must show it to them. One of the greatest gifts a person can possess is to be able to reach past the thorns of another, and find the rose within them.

This is one of the characteristic of love... to look at a person, know their true faults and accepting that person into your life... all the while recognizing the nobility in their soul. Help others to realize they can overcome their faults. If we show them the "rose" within themselves, they will conquer their thorns. Only then will they blossom many times over.

The Art Of Suffering

2009-08-15T12:15:00.000+05:30

Bhagavan has always said that what we call suffering is actually running away from suffering.
Generally , when an event happens , our focus is on the content or the person.We blame someone, we justify the event etc.We go to teh past this way. Alternately, we project a solution - move into the future.
Healing is a happening in the "present".And the reality of the moment is "pain and helplessness". If we are able to stay in that reality, the miracle happens.We experience the pain totally which leads us to the realization that " The nature of all expereince is bliss ; it is independent of content of experience."

A few months back, I was involved in a serious road accident where my three wheeler was hit by a speeding car at the base of a fly-over.I was dragged nearly 200 metres with the three wheeler on top of me.With Bhagavan's Grace, I was filled with the presence and I was just watching the momentary fear which consumed me.

I can vouch for the bliss I felt.I did not escape by blaming the driver of the hit-and-run vehicle nor did I feel any haterd for him.I did not move into the future by projecting what was going to happen to me.Needless to add, it was Grace which made me live in the present and experience the moment totally.

Externally too, such a major accident left me a few surface bruises and no damage to my belongings which included my laptop.This accident occured on an expressway which meant that any speeding vehicle from behind could also have knocked me out.

Infact , we had a bhajan recording project the next day with Rohit Dasaji which went as per schedule.

Glory be to the presence of Sri Amma Bhagavan and the Oneness Blessing in our lives.

Janamashtami

2009-08-13T21:03:00.000+05:30

Happy Janmashtami!!!!!!!!!!!!!

freedom - repost

2009-08-13T17:19:00.000+05:30

When we re-orient our perceptions or choose an alternate concept, are we not merely rearranging ourselves cosmetically. Genuine freedom is an inner state of being independent of circumstances.It is not a repositioning or a changing of circumstances which at most gives temporal relief; it is rather a "happening" within. In true freedom, there is no choice....we just are in flow....the way we are...

In search of freedom and happiness

Man invents excitements and escapes.

Are freedom and happiness

Cultivated attitudes of mind ?

Or are they the outcome of internal being

Unrelated to mind?

- Dada Gawand

Love - a state

2009-08-09T06:44:00.000+05:30

Love, in its highest purest form is not just unconditional... it is universal. Sometimes, we catch a glimpse of the love that keeps our planet spinning on its axis. We sense the deep, divine love that keeps breath pumping in and out of our bodies, regardless of who we are or what we may deserve. That love is true love. The love we seek in romance is just a poor, pale reflection of that far greater force. How ironic that we see it as the be-all and end-all.

- Jonathan Cainer

procrastination

2009-08-06T08:15:00.001+05:30

'Why do you hasten to remove anything which hurts your eye, while if anything affects your soul, you postpone the cure till next year".

- Horace

Postponement is yet another trick of the mind for its' continued survival.

-Sri Bhagavan

Oneness

2009-08-05T22:04:00.001+05:30

"Simply stated, Oneness is the dissolution of the sense of a fixed, separate self. Once we realize that our concept of self is an illusion, we become capable of experiencing ourselfs as a flow of consciousness that is no longer subject to the limits and conditioning of the mind."

-Sri Bhagavan

freedom

2009-08-05T18:18:00.000+05:30

True freedom is living in the present moment where the gratitude for what is exceeds the desire for what might be. Goals, purpose and mission in this time-frame take on an entirely new dimension. What happens here is not from our desires or our wishes, but is based upon the rewards to our character and our caliber. The frequency of our desires and wishes synchronize with this higher caliber . . . you are ready for whatever comes. This becomes a lifestyle that is so refreshing -- it is as if you are standing amongst the blossoms of your liberation

- Guru Singh

mind tyranny

2009-08-05T18:17:00.000+05:30

The mind engages in a continual inner dialogue that clouds our consciousness and prevents our senses from experiencing anything fully. It's as though everything our eyes see or our ears hear is clouded by the noise of thought and inner struggle.

- Oneness North America

word magic

2009-08-02T21:05:00.002+05:30

response + ability = responsibility

- Guru Singh

2009-07-25T17:52:00.002+05:30

You are under the illusion that you take decisions. Actually, it is the controlling self which does. You are programmed creatures working automatically. There is no free will in your life.

You have to awaken to this reality.

- Sri Bhagavan

my terrace garden in the rains..joy to behold....

2009-07-11T20:43:00.000+05:30

freedom is internal

2009-07-10T17:54:00.000+05:30

Freedom is a human requirement; it allows you to live your life as a mission — not an omission — not requiring permission. This freedom is essential to the fulfillment of your life's purpose. Freedom will either manifest your greatest dreams; or your worst nightmares . . . whichever you place the most free energy into. The energy of thought is directed by the amount of trust you place in yourself, your world, your universe, and the path of destiny you are walking on. When your thoughts are bound by fear you make nightmares your reality . . . you become a slave to the world of fear. Even then, freedom is essential to your evolution. The gift of freewill must be free; for even when you have manifested these nightmares, you must have the right and the opportunity to learn from this . . . then create your dreams.All other creatures perish from these mistakes — humans learn from them. When there is freedom in your arena it does not matter if the wind is blowing with you, or against you. You are free to make as many choices . . . free to make as many mistakes . . . free to take as much time as it will take to get it right. Even when the wind is blowing hard against you; you still have the capacity to guide your life on a path that will eventually arrive at your destination. This freedom is an extremely sacred trust and must be trusted; for freedom creates the liberated view that even harsh opposition is workable.Become an advocate of this freedom by putting it to great use in your world. Become an advocate of freedom by allowing others to make up their own choices even when they are quite contrary to yours. Become an advocate of this freedom and create a world that works for all of us.

- Guru Singhji

growth

2009-07-04T07:04:00.005+05:30

... growth is not measured by the amount of joy or love you experience everyday

or how many times you have experienced god

or how long you experienced thoughtlessness.

if at all, it is measured by how comfortable you are with yourself;with your fear;with your nervousness;with your frustration.... that is growth ...

~ sri anandagiriji

Oshospeak

2009-07-03T09:35:00.001+05:30

“Love has nothing to do with somebody else, it is your state of being. Love is not a relationship. A relationship is possible but love is not confined to it, it is beyond it, it is more than that ~ man becomes mature the moment he starts loving rather than needing. He starts overflowing, he starts sharing, he starts giving. And when two mature persons are in love, one of the greatest paradoxes of life happens, one of the most beautiful phenomena… they are together, and yet tremendously alone; they are almost one. But their oneness does not destroy their individuality.”

- OSHO

gratitude

2009-07-03T06:55:00.002+05:30

July 7 is Guru Pournima. Each time I remember my Master and how much I have got from Him, I feel overwhelmed.Every cell, every pore of my body is touched by His grace.
Thank You for being there , AB.
Thank You for enbling my journey thus far.

Happiness...

2009-06-30T07:05:00.000+05:30

Pleasure is found in who we know - what we do - where we are . . . happiness exists inside whoever, whenever, and wherever we are. Happiness is wired into human DNA . . . pleasure gets us all wired up in the chase to locate it on the outside. Happiness is our birthright . . . pleasure is found in the hierarchies of birthing.

The most important conclusion to draw — as early in life as possible — is the one that allows you to set your own course. This is also where your greatest challenges dwell. You must face your worst fears in this process . . . they will try and force you to give up and run back. It is your job to dive deep into the core of your being and move forward.

If you choose to move forward, you will bump into the seeds of happiness along the way. Plant them in the soil of your dreams and nourish them with each and every day.

- Guru Singh

bliss..

2009-06-29T16:19:00.002+05:30

The nature of experience is bliss...it is independent of content of experience
- Sri Bhagavan
Whenever I experience the above, I am always fascinated.
Currently, I am going through an experience which can conventionally be termed unpleasant.A few years back I would have been anxiety driven and reactive.
Today, I am just experiencing the event and am responsive.
Thank You Bhagavan for this invaluable gift of grace......

pain and suffering....

2009-06-28T09:14:00.003+05:30

suffering is the story created to escape raw, naked pain....

suffering is illusionary, pain is real.....miracles can happen if we are in touch with raw pain...instead we focus on content or people and escape the experience of pain which can liberate us.

living on the edge...

2009-06-24T12:38:00.001+05:30

Within the unknown adventures of expanding your awareness on the path of your destiny, any comfort zone will soon become exceedingly uncomfortable. At such a point in your evolution, a safety/comfort zone becomes the most dangerous place to be.

All your exalted efforts fail when safety tries to mix with destiny.

The path of destiny requires tremendous trust and faith, courage and character, consciousness and caliber.

The path of destiny has no side rails; no net; no back door with an escape hatch . . . it is the ride of your life and is exclusively - perfectly - effectively attuned to your life.

Tune in to this . . . turn life on to this . . . prepare for the ride of your life.

- Guru Singh

unlimited potential

2009-06-20T06:10:00.000+05:30

In a "perfect" world - who are you? In a world where the playing field is level, what are your possibilities . . . what are your inclinations? What are your dreams and what are the probabilities of achieving such dreams when the playing field is devoid of limiting preconditions?Life came to you without real limits — make it very clear in your consciousness — the limits are not necessarily yours. The limitations you've been given are not laws — they are very often merely generational - or genealogical - or socially structured "suggestions." They have been in place for a very long time and the suggestions are nearly carved in stone, but when you test them you will learn that they are not absolute. Learn to ignore them — it will test your courage to the very core — but it will also help you to live with more honesty and a greater love for adventure. It will create your relationships with more passion and trust and commit you to your highest destiny.Learn to think in this way on a daily basis . . . learn to write and rewrite all the governing rules of - who you are — and — who you can become. Learn to disassemble your opinions of what is possible and give yourself the entitlement that the most entitled are able to live by. Learn to create level playing fields on a daily basis . . . then the game of life is fair . . . then the game of life becomes real . . . then the game of life has integrity.

- Guru Singhji

a thin line...

2009-06-19T20:16:00.001+05:30

"Men are disturbed, not by the things that happen, but by their opinion of the things that happen."
- Epictetus

Suffering arises in perception, never in fact.....

evolution

2009-06-19T06:46:00.001+05:30

Never mind what state the world is in. Ignore, too, whatever seems possible or impossible in your own world. If you have got a dream, you can pursue it. If you have a hope, you can nurture it. And if you do your best to make the right thing happen, you can somehow make real progress.

- Jonathan Cainer

quotes

2009-06-19T06:41:00.001+05:30

For everything in me that I do not change, my list of reasons include other people......conveniently.....

- R. Ganesh, Mentor , Oracle Financial Technologies

relationships...

2009-06-18T01:55:00.000+05:30

taking charge....

2009-06-17T15:34:00.006+05:30

For an awakening to happen, we have to take charge. Enough of blaming others, events, situations and the like. We have to become responsible and keep watching controlling mind aspects of our lives. If fear is guiding our lives, it is important we be aware because the consequences can be disastrous for us and for those around.

Every attempt at looking outside takes us away from the real solution.

Every moment is a potential moment of awakening...Some of our most unpleasant encounters ( in our perception) can be the greatest of blessings, if we only are able to recognize them.Every challenge is but an opportunity to grow and evolve.And to live demands a certain risk appetite.Ships are safer in the harbour but not meant to be there.

Sadly, most of us trade in growth and creativity for security. Security becomes the only need we address. Consequently, other needs are left out.

Life is a choice between existing and living.....

mindbreak

2009-06-17T14:06:00.000+05:30

There is a crack in everything. That's how the light gets in.
- Leonard Cohen

oneness

2009-06-16T21:30:00.001+05:30

we get what we give....

2009-06-16T20:57:00.001+05:30

Friendship isn't a big thing―it's a million little things.~Author Unknown
It wasn't that I was embarrassed my husband was out of work. The situation was what it was. It's just that we are private people and don't share our problems easily with others. So when he lost his job, we just acted like nothing had changed and no one seemed to notice.
It didn't take too long, maybe two weeks, and my kids' friends noticed that Kyle's dad was home a lot more. When asked about it, I told my good friend and neighbor, Tammy, we were out of work and looking. She then told me that her husband had been applying for graveyard shifts all over town because his company was going under. I was shocked! We were constantly doing things together and I hadn't a clue they were struggling.
I didn't feel like we were the only ones going through this anymore. I always knew that others were struggling with the economy in a downturn, but now I had a comrade to share my woes with.
Knowing what they were going through, I wanted to help them, even though we didn't have much ourselves. So, I became the reconnaissance shopper. I scour the coupons and ads, and match things up to pay half-price for many items. I call Tammy when I get done with my planning session and offer to pick up things for her at the discounted price. It seems like our money goes even farther because we are willing to share.
It goes the other way too. Tammy and her husband have given us enough wood to heat our home this winter. They have the tools to cut firewood and they did extra for us. It has been a huge help to reduce our gas bill to almost nothing.
There are other examples of helping each other. I taught Tammy how to make bread and rolls; she watches my kids when I go to job interviews; I make dessert for Tammy's family party; she drives my kid to the bus stop in a snow storm… and the list goes on.
I don't have much to give but I can give of myself. I can have charity, love, and hope in my heart, and the more I give those away, the more I get them back.

- chicken soup for the soul series

the presence...

2009-06-16T20:45:00.002+05:30

a couple of days back, somebody, to defend their positionality told me that their inner dweller, the antaryamin was guiding them. How I pray and wish that this happens to one and all.

It is , however, a challenge to be able to distinguish between Higher Consciosuness guidances and mind level games of manipulation. This is not a recognition driver event.We do not need to prove to someone that we are being guided. It suffices for us to know the same and celebrate Grace in our lives. Gratitude flows abundantly and spontaneously and every moment of our life is filled in awe of the presence. Living in an awakened presence is naturally joyous and blissful, full of love for one and all, it revels in itself. Events outside do not touch us. We just flow through them and move on. The anchored joy and love sustains across the most devastating mind cyclones.

Pain and suffering

2009-06-15T06:45:00.002+05:30

Pain is real and ceases with the event. Suffering is psychological and carries forward in thought.Suffering is sourced not in reality but rather in our divisive perception of reality. When our perceptions change, the experience of life changes dramatically.

- Sri Krishna

Growth

2009-06-14T22:10:00.001+05:30

Happiness is the index of growth.
- Sri Bhagavan

awe and wonder

2009-06-13T21:32:00.000+05:30

Check out this great link
http://www.katinkahesselink.net/other/mello.html

Openness

2009-06-13T21:26:00.000+05:30

May the angels keep you till morning.

May they guide you through the night.

May they comfort all your sorrows.

May they help you win the fight.
May they keep watch on your soul.

May they show you better ways.

May they guard you while you're sleeping.

May they see you through your days.
May they show you new hopes.

May they still your every doubt.

May they calm your every fear.

May they hear you when you shout.
May the angels keep you till morning.

More than this I cannot pray.

And if the angels ever fail you.

Then may God be there that day.
-Author Unknown

gems from the Master

2009-06-13T20:52:00.000+05:30

Experiencing is knowing.

- Sri Bhagavan

spiritual anchors

2009-06-13T20:42:00.004+05:30

We are spiritual beings going through a human experience, nay the other way around.

It necessitates us to be explorers in life, experiencing events as they arise in life. We normally run away from the blessings accompanying experiences , the real grace of our lives. One of the greatest benedictions I have received in my life from my master is the ability to discern perception from fact and pain from suffering.

Suffering is hallucination emerging in psychological fear . There is no fact to it. And we let this control our lives more often than not. Only to be rudely awakened when reality confronts us. No man has a choice on this process. Mankind as a whole has to wake up to their reality as it is.

-inspirations from Sri Bhagavan

spiritual anchoring

2009-06-13T18:24:00.003+05:30

We are spiritual beings going towards a human experience, not the other way around.

Life is designed to be exploratory , to get into experiences . The mind has a need for certainty but it also has a need for variety. They are conflicting intrinsically.

The mind more often than not takes us towards security but then security can be suffocating , inhibiting. We become dead, inert.

Each of usd seeks to come alive in what we do, in the way we relate to everyone and everything in life.

To operate as a spiritual being is achoice we make to live rather than exist.And it comes with it's challenges.We invest in it because we chose life over dead habit and monotony - meaningless and boring.....

work quotes

2009-06-11T09:13:00.001+05:30

You work so that you keep pace with the earth and the soul of the earth.

Work is love made visible.

- Kahlil Gibran

shadows

2009-06-11T08:56:00.003+05:30

when you turn your face towards the sun, the shadows fall behind. - old maori saying.
we manage suffering, escape it all the time. We focus on the content and do not face the pain squarely. Again, pain is real while suffering is hallucinatory.
Watching and being in touch with suffering is the key to inner joy and freedom.

Learning and tuning....

2009-06-10T07:42:00.003+05:30

Learning is all about tuning in to the most fundamental and critical of our needs. If we have a cancer, we have to address it, no point in addressing the headache arising from it in isolation.

Our understanding of Grace emerges from here. Grace is forever focussed on the cancer in our lives, nay the passing headache.

Surfacing of inner world mind chatter is a blessing, managing the events arising out of it , an escape.Transcending the inner chatter through watching it and through a rise in our awareness levels enables an implementaion of the spiritual blessing as well as either a solution or a resolution of the problem as a "happening" when we come in touch with factual pain.

Awareness is the learning facilitator here....

oneness of suffering

2009-06-09T17:08:00.002+05:30

We tend to think that events cause suffering. In a landmark statement, Sri Bhagavan declares that it is suffering which causes events.
At any given moment in our lives, physical + psychological + spiritual suffering is a constant. In colloquial life, what we call healing is a mere management. We may encounter suffering through the platform of business and manage it desperately.All our lives, we only mange sorrow. We never face sorrow and transcend it.
Managing suffering arising in our business space would lead for the pain to manifest itself in some other area of our life - maybe relationships, maybe our health or the health of our dear ones.
This is a principle of the universe.The pain within has to come out. There is no choice.
And man focusses on changing events.How erroneous can he get?
So man continues fire-fighting , only the events change....and he seeks liberation, little knowing that he has to die the way he is and be reborn in a new light.
He takes solace in the fact that the whole world is like him, but that is an illusion which will soon collapse for one and all.
It is a time of the world for a movement of one and all from perception to fact.Coulkd be a rude awakening for some but then it is compassion at work.
The universe knows best and we have to bow down to it.

Success Mindset - repeat post

2009-06-07T21:26:00.001+05:30

When we think of failure,

Failure would be ours.

If we remain undecided,

Nothing will ever change.

All we need to do

Is want to achieve something great,

And then simply do it.

Never think of failure.

For, what we think will come about.

- Maharishi Mahesh Yogi.
Taking this further, thought is really not ours.We do not create it. So if a thought of failure emerges from the recesses of the unconscious, all we have to do is watch it. Watching enables a response as different from an automated reaction.

hallucinations...

2009-06-07T20:49:00.002+05:30

Sri Bhagavan says that our outer world is a reflection of our inner world.

Every moment of our life is a choice of breakthru approaches over breakdown perspectives. It is our direction of thought which solely matters.Seeing the cup as half empty or half full makes all the difference.

The tendency of the mind is to focus on the negative in most cases. We have to re-orient ourselves away from this tendency .The technique is to merely watch the tendency for negative orientation which is more often than not, merely hallucinatory.Most of our suffering emerges in imaginary realms of what could happen - erroneous perceptions , not based on fact.

And Bhagavan reminds us, "Suffering is never in the fact, it emerges only in perception."

People often say that this is removed from everyday reality. I wonder where else it should find application if not in everyday life. Can we really live without it in our daily lives? Guess people will continue doing so until they are woken up by the universe. I hope it is not too late for some....

power of thought and forgiveness

2009-06-07T15:27:00.003+05:30

The Buddha was walking along with his disciples when someone suddenly came and spat at him. The Buddha was calm and unruffled.He just wiped it off and washed it.
His disciples wanted to act on the miscreant but the Buddha stopped them.
He smilingly said, "When someone offers you a gift , you can accept it or reject it. When you reject it, it stays back with the person who made the offer.And it builds up a thousand fold within him."
Nothing can ever happen to the sun. Anybody who spits on it is the loser. The sun , by itself is unaffected.
We sometimes get consumed by fear, anger, lust or any other and controlled by this, we vent out words on another. If the other chooses to accept within and continues sending his blessings, the words boomerang a thousand times and in myriad ways to the person from whom it has emerged.
Ignorance is not considered here.The principle of cause and its' manifold effect works here and in the process , man is hurtling towards self-destruction.

light

2009-06-06T15:32:00.002+05:30

recent events in my life as a spiritual reflector indicate that we have got so accustomed to darkness that we fear light.
and then we want masters to help us in easy ways.
we have to unlearn our mistrust for light.

no half measures in enlightenment....

2009-06-05T17:21:00.000+05:30

"Gamble everything for love,if you're a true human being.If not, leave this gathering. Half-heartedness doesn't reach into majesty.Don't wait any longer. Dive in the ocean, and let the sea be you."
~Rumi

the self - an idea...

2009-06-03T00:49:00.001+05:30

Most of us are more attached to our self-identities than we realize. Our personal histories, psychological personalities, social roles, and purpose in life are all derived from the idea of a fixed self. Indeed, our very search for meaning in the universe is based on the sense of a personal identity. What would we be left with when this begins to dissolve? Who would we be when we are no longer recognizable as a fixed and separate self?
- dark night of the soul

The Bhagavad Gita

2009-06-01T06:47:00.004+05:30

In the Bhagavad Gita, Master Teacher , Krishna came as a charioteer in Arjuna's life when he came in touch with his suffering. A teacher and solutions are a happening when one comes in touch with his raw , throbbing suffering. Normally, our everyday life is an escape, a move away from this very fact. We avoid coming in touch with our suffering.

In India, we often come across people quoting the Gita to validate their actions.

makes me wonder sometimes...

The way I see it, the most critical aspect of the Gita is Arjuna coming in touch with his suffering. He was unique in that aspect in the entire battleground of Kurukshetra. And when he was in touch with his suffering, Krishna happened to him.

Similarly, a crucial lesson in the Mahabharata comes from the choice made by the leaders of the two warring factions.Duryodhana is given the first choice and he selects Krishna's army over Krishna - very symbolic. We need favours from God but not God himself. God comes as a package - it is not about what we like or don't; it is absolute integrity of life processes.....the Dharma of life.

problems are learning triggers

2009-05-31T07:02:00.004+05:30

In family situations, more often than not we face situations where our opinions differ, especially in matter of finance and business. It is an opportunity for us to remember that relationships are beyond these various concepts of functionality.

But sadly, our relationships in colloquial existence are determined by functional needs and their solutions through various people. Our relationships today are based on the commercial model of give and take, centered around our need for security. One of life's greatest objectives is for relationships to transcend into the unconditional. And these events when they occur serve as spiritual teachers for us to evolve. Every moment, every event in life is custom designed for our spiritual evolution. We just need to anchor ourselves as spiritual beings and view human expereinces as opportunities for evolution. And be grateful to each of the teachers - people and events who manifest in our lives.

The whole of life acquires a magical hue then.

life principle...

2009-05-30T05:51:00.001+05:30

"Try hurting somebody when you are totally happy ... Try making somebody happy when you are not ... Life is interesting ... You can only give what you have !!!
-Srinivas

and you get what you give!!!!!!!!!!!!!

beautiful forgiveness intent

2009-05-22T20:24:00.000+05:30

"I forgive everything, everyone, every experience, every memory of the past or present that needs forgiveness. I forgive positively everyone. I also forgive myself of past mistakes. The Source is love, and I am forgiven and governed by Universal love alone. This love is now adjusting my life. Realizing this, I abide in peace."
- source unknown

The Invitation

2009-05-11T21:45:00.000+05:30

It doesn’t interest me what you do for a living
I want to know what you ache for
And if you dare to dream of meeting your heart’s longing.
It doesn’t interest me how old you are
I want to know if you will risk looking like a fool for love,
for your dreams, for the adventure of being alive.
It doesn’t interest me what planets are squaring your moon
I want to know if you have touched the center of your own sorrow
If you have been opened by life’s betrayals or have been shriveled and closed
From fear of further pain
I want to know if you can sit with pain, mine or your own,
without moving to hide it or fade it or fix it.
I want to know if you can be with joy, mine or your own,
If you can dance with wildness and let the ecstasy fill you to the tips of your fingers and toes
without cautioning us to be careful, to be realistic, to remember the limitations of being human.
It does not interest me if the story you are telling me is true
I want to know if you can disappoint another to be true to yourself,
If you can bear the accusation of betrayal and not betray your own soul,
if you can be faithless and therefore trustworthy.
I want to know if you can see beauty even when it is not pretty, every day,
and if you can source your own life from its presence.
I want to know if you can live with failure, yours and mine,
And still stand on the edge of the lake and shout to the silver of the full moon ‘Yes!’.
It doesn’t interest me to know where you live or how much money you have,
I want to know if you can get up, after a night of grief and despair, weary and bruised to the bone
And do what needs to be done to feed the children.
It doesn’t interest me who you know or how you came to be here
I want to know if you stand in the center of the fire with me and not shrink back
It doesn’t interest me where or what or with whom you have studied
I want to know what sustains you, from the inside when all else falls away
I want to know if you can be alone with yourself
And if you truly like the company you keep in the empty moments.
- Oriah Mountain Dreamer

one moment at a time....

2009-05-11T21:06:00.002+05:30

life is but a string of moments woven together...each moment taken one at a time and lived in awareness makes for a good life. carry overs of past events burden current moments and disables existence.

beckon a new world....

2009-03-19T09:04:00.003+05:30

In a world where mankind feels threatened by social upheavals, over population, wars,
terrifying violence, callousness, each human being is more than ever concerned with his own
survival.
Survival has implied living sanely, happily without great pressure or strain. Each one of
us translates survival according to his own particular concept. The idealist projects a way of life which is not the actual; the theoreticians, whether Marxist, religious, or of any other particular persuasion have laid down patterns for survival; the nationalists consider survival possible only in a particular group or community. These ideologic differences, ideals and faiths are the roots of a division that is preventing human survival.
Men want to survive in a particular way, according to their narrow responses, according
to their immediate pleasures, according to some faith. All these can in no way bring security, for in themselves they are divisive, exclusive, limited. To live in the hope of survival according to tradition, however ancient or modern, has no meaning. Partial solutions of any kind – scientific, religious, political, economic– can no longer assure mankind, its survival. Man has been concerned with his own individual survival, with his family, with his group, his nation and because all this is divisive it threatens his actual survival.
The modern divisions of nationalities, of color, of culture, of religion are the causes of
man’s uncertainty of survival. In the turmoil of today’s world, uncertainty has made man turn to authority – to the political, religious or economic expert. The specialist is inevitably a danger because his response must always be partial, limited. Man is no longer individual, separate. What affects the few, affects all mankind. There is no escape or avoidance of the problem. You can no longer withdraw from the totality of the human predicament.
We cannot possibly survive if we are concerned with our own survival. All human beings
the world over are interrelated today. What happens in one country affects the others. Man
considers himself an individual, separate from others but psychologically a human being is
inseparable from the whole of mankind.
There is no such thing as psychological survival. When there is this desire to survive or to
fulfill you are psychologically creating a situation which not only separates but which is totally unreal. Psychologically you cannot be separate from another and this desire to be separate psychologically is the very source of danger and destruction. Each person asserting himself threatens his own existence.
This assertion of separateness destroys our capacity to work together; to work together
with nature, the living things of the earth and also with other human beings. As social beings we exist for ourselves. Our laws, our governments, our religions all emphasize the separateness of man – which during the centuries has developed into man against man. It is becoming more and more important, if we are to survive, that there be a spirit of cooperation with the universe, with all the things of the sea and earth.
One can see in all social structures the destructive effect of fragmentation taking place –
nation against nation, one group against another group, one family against another family, one individual against another, religiously, socially, and economically. Each one is striving for
himself, for his class or his particular interest in the community. This division of beliefs, ideals,
conclusions and prejudices is preventing the spirit of cooperation from flowering. We are human beings, not tribal identities, exclusive, separate. We are human beings caught in conclusions, theories, faiths. We are living creatures, not labels. It is our human circumstance that makes us search for food, clothes and shelter at the expense of others. Our very thinking is seperative, and all actions springing from this limited self, must prevent cooperation. The economic and social structure, as it is now, including organized religions, intensifies exclusiveness, and separateness.
This lack of cooperation ultimately brings about wars and the destruction of man. It is only during crises or disasters, that we seem to come together and when they are over we are back to our old condition. We seem to be incapable of living and working together harmoniously.
Is it because our brain, which is the centre of our thought, our feeling, has from ancient
days become through necessity so conditioned to seek its own personal survival, that this
isolating, aggressive process has come about? Is it because this isolating process identifies itself with the family, with the tribe, and becomes glorified nationalism? Is not all isolation linked to a need for identification and fulfillment? Has not the importance of the self been cultivated through evolution by the opposition of the ‘me’ and ‘you’, the ‘we’ and ‘they’? Have not all religions emphasized personal salvation, personal enlightenment, personal achievement, both religiously and in the world? Has cooperation become impossible because we have given such importance to this sense of separateness? Is it because human cooperation has centered on some kind of authority of Government or religion around some ideology or conclusion, which then inevitably brings about its own destructive opposite?
What does it mean to cooperate – not the word but the spirit of it? You cannot possibly
cooperate with another, with the earth and its waters, unless you in yourself are harmonious, not broken up, non contradictory; you cannot cooperate if you yourself are under strain, pressure, conflict. How can you cooperate with the universe if you are concerned with yourself, your problems and your ambitions? There can be no cooperation if all your activities are self centered and you are occupied with your own selfishness, with your own secret desires and pleasures. As long as the intellect with its thoughts dominates all your actions, obviously there can be no cooperation, for self-centered thought is partial, narrow and everlastingly divisive. Cooperation demands great honesty. Honesty has no motive. Honesty is not some ideal, some faith. Honesty is clarity – the clear perception of things as they are. Perception is attention. That very attention throws light with all its energy on that which is being observed. This light of perception brings about a transformation of the thing observed. There is no system through which you learn to cooperate. It is not to be structured and classified. Its very nature demands that there be love and that love is not measurable, for when you compare – which is the essence of measurement – self has entered. Where self is, love is not.
When the truth of all this is seen and understood man’s responsibility undergoes a radical
change not only towards his immediate environment but also towards all living things. This total responsibility is love. This love acts through intelligence. This intelligence is not partial,
individual separate. Love is never partial. Love is the sacredness of all living things.
We have stated the problem, the cause and now we must find the solution. Through no
effort of his, could man possibly make it. All this is possible only when your heart is filled with
the Presence. The Presence flows into you through Oneness Blessing.
Oneness Blessing would thus help create a new generation of human beings, with a
new outlook, with a new sense of being citizens of the world, concerned with all the living things of the earth. It is your grave responsibility to help bring about this Oneness.

- Sri Bhagavan

images relate, not people.....

2009-03-19T08:41:00.001+05:30

there are no people; only thoughts interacting with each other!!!!!!!!!!!!

solutions

2009-03-13T06:29:00.003+05:30

understanding a problem is the key to solving it.

however, more often than not we bark up the wrong tree and cry foul.

Events do not cause suffering, they enable the suffering within to surface. Thus, suffering triggers events.

We keep on changing events and managing our sorrows, but the sorrow surfaces across events.

How do we miss something so obvious?

mind - the tyrant

2009-03-11T16:18:00.002+05:30

man seems to have abdicated his life to the whims of the mind. Mental formations and conditionings architecture his life and make misery a given.

To de-clutch and live in awareness seems the only way to go if one expereinces the suffering of the masquerade.

stake

2009-03-01T09:32:00.002+05:30

if we choose to live rather than merely exist, we need to take charge and responsibility.We have to become aware of factors controlling our lives and de-clutch ourselves. What emerges is then action, a flow in inner freedom, not automated controlled reactions.

success mindset

2009-02-14T17:10:00.005+05:30

When we think of failure,
Failure would be ours.

If we remain undecided,
Nothing will ever change.

All we need to do
Is want to achieve something great,
And then simply do it.

Never think of failure.
For, what we think will come about.

- Maharishi Mahesh Yogi.

Taking this further, thought is really not ours.We do not create it. So if a thought of failure emerges from the recesses of the unconscious, all we have to do is watch it. Watching enables a response as different from an automated reaction.

spirituality

2009-01-27T08:28:00.002+05:30

spirituality emerges in our movement from perception to fact.Our erroneous perceptions make us miserable and vulnerable to hallucinations. The moment we are able to see things as they are, it just is. We get de- clutched and a new reality emerges.We experience the freedom that emerges from seeing.

awareness...

2009-01-14T08:17:00.002+05:30

When a lighted candle is brought into a dark room, darkness goes away.It does not have to be removed. So it is with awareness.We may have layers and layers of misery clouding our lives and manifesting as unpleasant events at different times; when awareness floods our being, it just drives away all misery, an umbrella effect not an event specific approach. Thus, it is a universal medicine working across live and frozen wounds.

security

2009-01-07T15:10:00.002+05:30

The Satyam saga has shocked people who cannot accept such behavior in the corpororate world. We anchor ourselves in various concepts and belief systems.It gives us an illusion of security. Concepts are just that - concepts.When they break, we feel shaken.The world we have built around that concept comes crashing. And we feel miserable.

Anchoring ourselves in the changeable and superficial makes us vulnerable.

We should move deeper within and anchor ourselves in the unchangeable - the very cores of our being, which is fact domain, not perception or concept domain.

It is here that we can really find security.

never give up....

2008-12-28T19:08:00.003+05:30

Albert Einstein did not speak until he was 4-years-old and did not read until he was 7. His parents thought he was "sub-normal," and one of his teachers described him as "mentally slow, unsociable, and adrift forever in foolish dreams." He was expelled from school and was refused admittance to the Zurich Polytechnic School.He did eventually learn to speak and read. Even to do a little math.

Winston Churchill failed sixth grade. He was subsequently defeated in every election for public office until he became Prime Minister at the age of 62. He later wrote, "Never give in, never give in, never, never, never, never -in nothing, great or small, large or petty - never give in except to convictions of honor and good sense. Never, Never, Never, Never give up.''

As a young man, Abraham Lincoln went to war a captain and returned a private. Afterwards, he was a failure as a businessman. As a lawyer in Springfield, he was too impractical and temperamental to be a success. He turned to politics and was defeated in his first try for the legislature, again defeated in his first attempt to be nominated for congress, defeated in his application to be commissioner of the General Land Office, defeated in the senatorial election of 1854, defeated in his efforts for the vice-presidency in 1856, and defeated in the senatorial election of 1858. He later became the 16th President of the United States of America.

Walt Disney was fired by a newspaper editor because "he lacked imagination and had no good ideas." He went bankrupt several times before he built Disneyland. In fact, the proposed park was rejected by the city of Anaheim on the grounds that it would only attract riffraff.

Henry Ford could not read nor write, failed and went broke five times in business before he succeeded.

As an inventor, Thomas Edison made 1,000 unsuccessful attempts at inventing the light bulb. When a reporter asked, "How did it feel to fail 1,000 times?" Edison replied, "I didn't fail a thousand times. The light bulb was an invention with 1,000 steps." Thomas Edison's teachers said he was "too stupid to learn anything." He was fired from his first two jobs for being "non-productive."

R. H. Macy failed seven times before his store in New York City caught on.

Louis Pasteur was only a mediocre pupil in undergraduate studies and ranked 15th out of 22 students in chemistry.

Van Gogh sold only one painting during his life. And this, to the sister of one of his friends, for 400 francs (approximately $50). This didn't stop him from completing over 800 paintings.

F. W. Woolworth was not allowed to wait on customers when he worked in a dry goods store because, his boss said, "he didn't have enough sense.

"When Bell telephone was struggling to get started, its owners offered all their rights to Western Union for $100,000. The offer was disdainfully rejected with the pronouncement, "What use could this company make of an electrical toy." And how many people have a telephone today?

Sigmund Freud was booed from the podium when he first presented his ideas to the scientific community of Europe. He returned to his office and kept on writing.

Rocket scientist Robert Goddard found his ideas bitterly rejected by his scientific peers on the grounds that rocket propulsion would not work in the rarefied atmosphere of outer space.

An expert said of Vince Lombardi: "He possesses minimal football knowledge and lacks motivation." Lombardi would later write, "It's not whether you get knocked down; it's whether you get back up."

After Carl Lewis won the gold medal for the long jump in the 1996 Olympic games, he was asked to what he attributed his longevity, having competed for almost 20 years. He said, "Remembering that you have both wins and losses along the way. I don't take either one too seriously."

Babe Ruth is famous for his past home run record, but for decades he also held the record for strikeouts. He hit 714 home runs and struck out 1,330 times in his career (about which he said, "Every strike out brings me closer to the next home run.").

Hank Aaron went 0 for 5 his first time at bat with the Milwaukee Braves.

Stan Smith was rejected as a ball boy for a Davis Cup tennis match because he was "too awkward and clumsy." He went on to clumsily win Wimbledon and the US Open...and eight Davis Cups.

Tom Landry, Chuck Noll, Bill Walsh, and Jimmy Johnson accounted for 11 of the 19 Super Bowl victories from 1974 to 1993. They also share the distinction of having the worst records of first-season head coaches in NFL history - they didn't win a single game.

Johnny Unitas's first pass in the NFL was intercepted and returned for a touchdown. Joe Montana's first pass was also intercepted. And while we're on quarterbacks, during his first season Troy Aikman threw twice as many interceptions (18) as touchdowns (9) . . . oh, and he didn't win a single game. You think there's a lesson here?

Charles Schultz had every cartoon he submitted rejected by his high school yearbook staff. Oh, and Walt Disney wouldn't hire him.

After Fred Astaire's first screen test, the memo from the testing director of MGM, dated 1933, read, "Can't act. Can't sing. Slightly bald. Can dance a little." He kept that memo over the fire place in his Beverly Hills home.Astaire once observed that "when you're experimenting, you have to try so many things before you choose what you want, that you may go days getting nothing but exhaustion." And here is the reward for perseverance: "The higher up you go, the more mistakes you are allowed. Right at the top, if you make enough of them, it's considered to be your style."

After his first audition, Sidney Poitier was told by the casting director, "Why don't you stop wasting people's time and go out and become a dishwasher or something?" It was at that moment, recalls Poitier, that he decided to devote his life to acting.

When Lucille Ball began studying to be actress in 1927, she was told by the head instructor of the John Murray Anderson Drama School, "Try any other profession.

"The first time Jerry Seinfeld walked on-stage at a comedy club as a professional comic, he looked out at the audience, froze, and forgot the English language. He stumbled through "a minute-and a half" of material and was jeered offstage. He returned the following night and closed his set to wild applause.

After Harrison Ford's first performance as a hotel bellhop in the film Dead Heat on a Merry-Go-Round, the studio vice-president called him in to his office. "Sit down kid," the studio head said, "I want to tell you a story. The first time Tony Curtis was ever in a movie he delivered a bag of groceries. We took one look at him and knew he was a movie star." Ford replied, "I thought you were spossed to think that he was a grocery delivery boy." The vice president dismissed Ford with "You ain't got it kid , you ain't got it ... now get out of here."

Woody Allen: "I don't want to achieve immortality through my work. I want to achieve it through not dying. Eighty percent of success is showing up."

Michael Caine's headmaster told him, "You will be a laborer all your life.Charlie Chaplin was initially rejected by Hollywood studio chiefs because his pantomime was considered "nonsense."

Decca Records turned down a recording contract with The Beatles with the evaluation, "We don't like their sound. Groups of guitars are on their way out." After Decca rejected the Beatles, Columbia records followed suit.

In 1954, Jimmy Denny, manager of the Grand Ole Opry, fired Elvis Presley after one performance. He told Presley, "You ain't goin' nowhere, son. You ought to go back to drivin' a truck.

"Beethoven handled the violin awkwardly and preferred playing his own compositions instead of improving his technique. His teacher called him "hopeless as a composer." And, of course, you know that he wrote five of his greatest symphonies while completely deaf.

Leo Tolstoy flunked out of college. He was described as both "unable and unwilling to learn." No doubt a slow developer.

Louisa May Alcott, author of Little Women, was encouraged to find work as a servant by her family.

Emily Dickinson had only seven poems published in her lifetime.

18 publishers turned down Richard Bach's story about a "soaring eagle." Macmillan finally published Jonathan Livingston Seagull in 1970. By 1975 it had sold more than 7 million copies in the U.S. alone.

Jack London received six hundred rejection slips before he sold his first story.

21 publishers rejected Richard Hooker's humorous war novel, M*A*S*H. He had worked on it for seven years.

27 publishers rejected Dr. Seuss's first book, "To Think That I Saw It on Mulberry Street."

reality check

2008-12-28T13:07:00.003+05:30

Ramesh is all sweet and caring when he talks to his wife, but it is only on the surface. If he looks inside , there is deep resentment and hatred for her nagging ways.

What really manifests in their shared space.....it is only his resentment and hatred. So it is with all our life...our inner dialogues at various moments are in stark contrast to what we project outside with various people.

In our various intearctions outside, we are in PERFORMANCE mode.We are not ourselves.We wear masks and become the people we would like to project ourselves as in the perception of our audiences.We show different sides to different people.

Can you see this burden we carry day in and day out?

It is in the gap between what we are and what we project ourselves to be that misery arises.

And our worlds become dull, lethargic expressions.

awakening 2 suffering

2008-12-26T11:00:00.005+05:30

There are so many things we try to DO....we create activity and use knowledge systems to achieve our objectives.Technical knowledges and skills are important but they are not the only thing.Merely being technically competent cannot achieve success.

State is more important than skill for success.

And to achieve a manifesting state of success, we have to awaken to our fundamental suffering...This awakening leads to a series of processes finally culminating in awakening of action, distinctly different from activity.At such a moment , we are in flow....and life is full of joy, love and YES, success.....

We bypass this fundamental and struggle to achieve in the outside world.

and life remains an eternal struggle....joy, happiness and success eluding us everytime inspite of our constant endeavours.

if we are looking for something we acknowledge we have yet to experience, it calls for extraordinary responses from us..not mere knowledge and memory reactions from accumulated reservoirs of conditioning.

experiencing versus understanding

2008-12-20T16:49:00.003+05:30

Understanding is an intellectual exercise.It does not help to alleviate pain from its roots.It merely manages the pain through an understanding of it. By doing it we escape experiencing the pain just as it is, without any defence, alibis, excuses, justifications, projections and so on.

Pain just IS.

And we have to JUST experience it, not explain it.It is just there all the time across a host of events and people.

And when we experience, teh miracle happens for "the nature of experience is bliss". It is independent of the content of experience.

healing

2008-12-07T08:35:00.003+05:30

when you hurt one person, you hurt all of humanity, when you heal one person, you heal all of humanity.

- Shahrukh Khan, quoting from the Quran

All of us like to look at a huge problem and are more often than not overwhelmed.

It starts and ends within each of us , influencing our behaviour to each other.What emerges in the collective is a mere reflection of what is within us...are we oriented towards healing ourselves and others or correcting others and strengthening our positionalities.Our hurts and fears make us unconsciosuly violent.

If the soil around a tree is poisoned, no amount of polishing the fruit can rid it of its toxicity.Cosmetic changes are passe, let us address the need for changes deep within us.

words from the Master

2008-12-05T13:57:00.001+05:30

Q) "What can we do as individuals in the face of inhuman violence, terrorism?

"We wake up to another day’s revenge, retribution and rancor. The violence and brutality that surrounds us is the result of the destructive effect of fragmentation – one individual against another, one group against another, religiously, socially, culturally and economically. We are brothers and sisters, children of the same mother, inheritors of the same collective destiny.

What we do to another, we do to ourselves.

Why then do we behave as though we are inhuman warring tribal factions? How can we hunt or kill another? Is not the experience of pain same for all? Do not all living beings dread fear? How then can we perpetrate violence and pain on another? Will we today take the time to teach our children that division in any name whether sacred or secular is a crime? Will we tell them that we are human beings and not labels that divide us? Will we in this moment of crisis mould their young minds to be citizens of the world and not narrow bigots?

Ideological differences are at the root of the violence that is robbing sanity and endangering survival. When we become concerned with our own individual survival, with the survival of our group, our belief, we are being divisive and threaten the actual survival of the whole.Let us have a deeper insight into truth. The violence and conflict we are witnessing is a dramatization of the unspeakable inner violence of humanity. We are not individuals, separate. What happens to us happens to all of humanity, all of life. Physically we might live isolated in our secluded homes, screening our domestic violence from the eyes of the world but psychologically we are inseparable from the whole of mankind. The poisonous fumes of our inner turbulence seep through the collective consciousness of humanity. The violence within us, between parents and children, husbands and wives, brothers and sisters and at work is the very source of danger and destruction.

Let each one of us respond with a sense of immediacy.

Let all of us, the atheist and the God fearing, the peasant at the plough and the mother beside the cradle, the office goer and the laborer, let us all own responsibility for what is happening around us. What ‘can’ we do as individuals now? What ‘must’ we as individuals do now?How can each of us be content to see some heroes and professionals sacrificing their lives to protect the safety of others while we remain passive onlookers watching the drama of terror unfold right in front of our eyes?

The specialists, whether from the armed forces or the political systems can alleviate the pain of the moment. They can remove the symptom but the cause of the violence lies simmering within our consciousness. It lurks as conflict, suppressed anger, divisiveness and spite within every one of us. Until this issue is addressed, violence would continue to unfold in the world’s nations in one name or the other. The real solution therefore is to turn our attention inward, can we recognize the violence within and give way to peace. Even if 10 million among us who belong to a nation of 1 billion will get into peace, violence will subside. If 10 millions will move into a higher state of consciousness, a state of total inner non-violence, peace and wellbeing would be possible. Though the causes of violence would continue to exist, they will not translate into acts of violence. We are the triggers of violence or peace. We cannot return to business as usual without steering away from our own inner strife.The destiny of every human being known and unknown is tied up with us. In the crucible of terror that surrounds us, let us recast ourselves into a new generation of human beings. Let us move from the dark night of division towards the dawn of co-operation and Oneness. There is light at the end of the tunnel.

- Sri Bhagavan

(from www.breakthru.co.in)

out of the box...

2008-12-02T14:55:00.007+05:30

I think it was Phyllis Mitchell who urged us to contemplate "What is our age if we did not know our age".......

A great eye and life process opener...

We try to fit in our lives into concepts we already know.Predictable and condfitioned reactions are the order of the day.

We hold on to known tenets because of the illusion of security it offers us.

It is the domain of the unknown that is beckoning us now.

Maybe it has a lot more on offer.

Knowledge is a product of conditioned processes.

Intelligence is our ability to tune in to universal processes, our sense of connectedness with the universe around and within us.

Being knowledgeable does not imply being intelligent.Infact knowledge can be an impediment to intelligence more often than not. The tribals exhibit much greater natural intelligence than knowledgeable people.

Let not knowledge limit us..let us break free into domains of intelligence...Life demands a response in intelligence, not in knowledge.

decision making

2008-12-02T14:55:00.003+05:30

We normally take decisions when they are forced on us. Our disturbances influence our decisions - they are reactive in nature. It has been traditionally advised to let the disturbamce subside which would enable a solution to emerge in calm and tranquil conditions.

There will always be things which demand immediate attention in life.

However, if we closely observe, our whole life is architectured by the pain within us. The edifice of our achievements is anchored in our traumas. When we become aware of this, the edifices start crumbling , this is a transient phase leading on to a celebration of creation in joy and love. The transient phase could be frightening - as illusionary concepts come crashing down.Long held security paradigms get shaken - this is an opportunity for the shift of security into more certain domains - the core aspects of existence, rather than in shifting ideals and concepts.

The next few years present this opportunity to man as fundamental existential paradigms undergo a sea change in their manifests.the rate of change will be very high and demands the highest integrity from each of us.

While bandaging the symptoms, please go deeper - into roots of issues; it is a back to basics time for all humanity as far as inner world aspects go.

correcting vs healing

2008-12-02T10:34:00.004+05:30

at a time when sparks are flying and blame games rampant, it is a time to see whether we are looking to merely correct or looking to heal.Correcting emerges from a positionality of the mind and is violent in its expression, the key objective being to prove. "I am right and you are wrong" more often than not.

Healing on the other hand is like a balm, it rectifies but in compassion.The underlying sense of connectedness is not lost...and there is a personal sense of stake in holistic improvisation of situations.

Correcting more often than not adds fuel to the fire, provoking it into inflammation - healing is assertive yet compassionate.

dangers...

2008-12-01T10:52:00.004+05:30

If we look deep within, we are currently nothing but hurts, fears, anger and such other which surface at the drop of the hat.The triggers maybe different but our underlying dissatisfaction, discontent and sense of melancholy are residually intrinsic. With this content within us, we are a source of individual and collective danger for those around us.

We share with the world what we have, we cannot share anything else. As unhappy people, we share unhappiness. each of us is harbouring a reservoir of pain within ' we call its' manifests through different names. It is our trauma and pain which architecturing our lives and creating our universes.

This pain has been elaborately managed over ages. It is slowly but surely acquiring unmanageable proportions in what I perceive to be an aspect of grace. It is when something becomes unmanageable that we are forced to look within.

Management is stress, it is not a free life....Relief from various stresses is teh need of the hour , not mere management of it. Management is bandaging, handling...

It is cosmetic and palliative...

The pain within us has to express itself - the platforms of expression may differ; if today it is the terror attack, tomorrow it maybe a epidemic outbreak...

Each of us has to address the pain within...and resolve it, not merely manage it..

this is the way forward for humanity.....

thought is the creator

2008-12-01T10:46:00.001+05:30

terrorism is riding on the back of misguided religious and spiritual interpretation and wreaking havoc..Please let us also not fall into the trap..

The Gita defines ACTIOn as against mind created conditioned activity..we cannot selectively use it indiscriminately..we need action and not activity and action emerges in visions beyond realms of the mind..instead of us using the mind, the conditioned mind is today using us wherever we may be..

To me, this is the root of all terror...it begins in the mind..we should guard ourselves against the vicious trap we can fall into..becoming the very entities we so much resent..the laws of karma stipulate that we become what we hate or what we fear unconsciously.

Yes , we need to ACT, but action is very different from activity in spiritual realms.

Terrorism is a product of deep rooted positionality processes of the mind..if we carefully observe history, the contents of the mind have never changed..the mahabharat, the ramayan,the bible , the Quran and many other have episodes of brothers fighting each other, terrorizing situations for the masses, abuse of humanity and other aspects time and again...The universe is a multi-media classroom and is repeatedly trying to show us our erroneous ways..we always tackle symptoms and never go to the roots..without intending to create fear, I feel people have an opportunity to rise to the challenges within themselves which are manifesting outside.The universe is a tough, yet compassionate teacher and we can expect the lessons to continue until we learn and grow as humans...

needless to add, my shares are not in a argumentative or confontationalist mode but my life experiences in disaster management and human crises at individual and collective levels have thought me unforgettable lessons..

God bless each of you..take care...

redefining terror

2008-12-01T08:01:00.006+05:30

I believe each of us in india and maybe elsewhere today has a challenge - to rise above reactive pettiness or to transcend into relams of real healing and peace creation.

India is a concept , an idea that represents amongst the highest ideals of co-existence and acceptance. I am proud of being born into this idea as conceived by the visionaries of yore. The greater the vision , the greater the challenges in achieving it.But then, challenges should not deter us, weaken us. States of dis-ease require medication, treatment, surgeries and healing. Hurts within humans and teh pain within are the cause of strife outside. Each of us who are able to transcend that hurt within are helping win the war on humanity's collective suffering.

I do not believe for a moment that India has ever been weak.Acceptance demands understanding beyond superficial symptoms asnd India as a collective has demonstrated this.

There are dips and pauses as in any process but the trend in wholly consonant with the highest spiritual ideals as espoused in various wisdom of the world.

I identify with this heritage and see myself as a global citizen. If you take the history of India, we have never been an aggressor. We have embraced even our attackers and inetgerated them into our culture.We have lost battles but won wars.

This can be either of two things - we are too weak or we are mature in our understanding. I feel aligned with the latter.I beleive India and Indians have a destiny to fulfil and the sacrifices we are called on to make in the realization of this destiny would naturally be greater. I see India playing a global role today, something which would evolve into a leadership position it has to take on.The birth pangs are natural.

I connect to my higher vision and see myself as a critical player in its actualization.

While battles are going on, I am relating to the fundamental war within every human - the war on inner strife and conflict..It is easy to behave as every one else and compromise our standards. Genius and Excellence have always come at a price and lessons learnt the hard way.

I know the war will be won.....The terror seeds within each of us would be destroyed and the seeds of genuine peace, not managed peace created..silencing anyone does not transform them - if at all it strengthens them; a rubber ball bounces higher each time it is hit on the ground.Symptomatic repressions are not the need of the hour , sustainable solutions are at the very root.....

The content of the mind has never changed . The Mahabharat and the Bible and the Quran all indicate strife and terror and rift.Its a cosmic opportunity today in realms of grace to declutch ourselves from the tyranny of the mind; management processes are rendered impotent.

This is the only solution for humanity..........and it starts and ends within each of us...We are either weapons of breakthrough or breakdown...we are at cosmic crossroads....

platitudes and performance...

2008-11-30T09:30:00.005+05:30

I have been following various debates on television as also the thread of thoughts on various blogs.I have had the occasion to serve as the civilian area commander representing the NGO space during the communal riots as also during the blasts. I was mainly working in the Dharavi Behrampada area.I have also been on the spot during various natural disasters at various locations across india.

i beg to differ from the tirade against politicians; i believe we as citizens cannot escape from our apathy and indifference to events beyond our individual peripheries.If we do not help douse the fire at our neighbours, our house will soon catch fire.For me, politicians are not a black box, they are an intrinsic part of a corrupt and non-integral society. We are getting the politicians and leaders we deserve, they are mere reflections and emergences from ourselves.

I have seen corporate leaders and so called intelligentsia from really close quarters and they are no different.While in the thick of operations at Dharavi, I have been pulled out for a cocktail launch of an NGO formed by some prominent citizens which thankfully does not exist today.I have seen the political establishment used by businessmen for narrow objectives of protecting their own establishments. Their presence at various citizen's chapters was just to expand their networks for fulfilment of personal agendas.Like our politicians these people never exposed themselves to line of fire - they came in hordes for photo-ops later.More efforts of the volunteers on the field went towards provision of safe water for our distinguished visitors.

Who are we fooling? is this rhetoric any different from those of our politicians? I hold no brief for the politicians but would like to re-iterate that they are mere scape goats for an epidemic situation in society.Individually and collectively, we have become immune and indifferent.For me, we are really no different from the militant we are fighting.Under a different set of circumstances he may have been an efficient general manager of the very hotel he chose to destroy.

Please spare us the "holier than thou" platitudes.Even today, we are incapable of feeling for those who perished - it is hogwash; we are only reacting from the fear that has surfaced through events in our doorsteps.For me, we are no different- each time i see a prominent adworld chief being touted as a citizen's representative, I feel like puking for i have had the occasion to see him at extremely close quarters. for me, he is a terrorist in mind- he would not carry a gun in his hands but he spouts venom with his every action and the elaborate masks he wears.Rather than derive our energies from our blame games, let us awaken to the death within each of us where we are indifferent to the needs of our immediate neighbour while we cry hoarse about remote events.

We live in a world of plastic smiles and hollow gestures. We have become incapable of feeling, living in a projection of who we would like to be, far removed from who we are deep down.And the further tragedy is, we are unconscious of it.

We can wake up people who are asleep but what do we do with people who are pretending to be asleep and doing a damn good good job of their performance, cloaking it in platitudes. We are escaping our responsibility and responsibility is not about merely casting a ballot.We have taken so much from this city and this country - how many of us pay heed to feeling gratitude for the same and returning something to it.We abuse its facilities for our own benefit in the same way we use our parents and peers.

Let us look beyond ourselves and strive to be just human.

In the words of a President of a country where a lot of our peers are chosing to spend their lives after acquiring their basic skills here, "Ask not what your country can do for you, ask what you can do for your country...." Whether we be politicians, business men, media personnel or any other, we can never really give back to our country what it has provided and given us. We are no different from those we blame..They are mirror images of us...let us collectively rise to the challenge..

are we alive?

2008-11-29T21:22:00.005+05:30

The recent events in mumbai are media events. And "media" and "performance" are so deeply linked.

Where is all our naturalness gone? Our "unconscious" controls us making us reactive and mechanized beings. We are zombies, robots in action, with our behaviours following predictable patterns. We are in essence no different from the militants. The violence and the hurts within us , if we can only be aware of it, is the venom that is manifesting in the world outside. Different people relate to different concepts and acquire their positionalities. And each believes they are right. For God's sake, let us separate facts from concepts.

It is an unfair and unequal world. Privileges are so varied. Consequently, events such as what has happened have to occur according to various laws of karma and principles of existence.Each one of us is a part creator to it through our lack of integrity and our basic sense of disconnect with our identities just as humans.We are constant "performers" , projecting ourselves far removed from what we actually are and our masks are the burdens we carry day in and day out.

If humans can just "BE" , our outer worlds can be the paradise we wish for deep down.

Yes, it is time for us to awaken within, reach out to the natural fountainheads of healing within and start to live, not merely exist.

The choice to create our universes is with each of us, not in symptomatic external changes.

The crisis of today is an opportunity for us to revisit ourselves and trigger the life force within.

Come let us move from conditioned , suffocative death to a vibrant life....

heaven of freedom....

2008-11-28T21:20:00.001+05:30

Please check out this link....

http://in.youtube.com/watch?v=M5OVMrad5iQ

fear of death

2008-11-19T13:57:00.003+05:30

We cannot really fear death because we do not know what death is. What we are afraid of is losing the known. When we see a white strand on our head or a wrinkle on our face, deep down we are afraid of losing our power of attraction over others.

similarly in every situation.we are afraid of letting go of teh known, concepts we are comfortable with..however, concepts are just that - concepts...

Our ability to deal with and flow through changing circumestances, anshoring ourselves in the unchangeable is what elimates vulnerability in our lives.Life is a process of constant change.

-inspirations from Sri Bhagavan

The Golden Age

2008-11-14T06:23:00.003+05:30

The dawn of this new civilization, which we may call the Golden Age, is the single most explosive fact of our life times. We have a destiny to create - A state of consciousness that is oneness with all that is.

- Sri Bhagavan

We celebrate today as Gratitude Day for all the learning and blessing that has crossed our lives.When I look back, the breakthroughs in the movement from perception to fact has been awesome.

Thank You Amma Bhagavan, thank you ,all of creation for this journey in exploration and discovery in realms of consciousness....

one move is all it takes!!!!!!!

2008-11-08T16:04:00.001+05:30

A 10-year-old boy decided to study judo despite the fact that he had lost his left arm in a devastating car accident. The boy began lessons with an old Japanese judo master.

The boy was doing well, so he couldn't understand why, after three months of training, the master had taught him only one move.

"Sensei," (teacher in Japanese) the boy finally said, "Shouldn't I be learning more moves?"

"This is the only move you know, but this is the only move you'll ever need to know," the sensei replied. Not quite understanding, but believing in his teacher, the boy kept training. Several months later, the sensei took the boy to his first tournament.Surprising himself, the boy easily won his first two matches. The third match proved to be more difficult, but after some time, his opponent became impatient and charged; the boy deftly used his one move to win the match. Still amazed by his success, the boy was now in the finals. This time, his opponent was bigger, stronger, and more experienced. For a while, the boy appeared to be overmatched. Concerned that the boy might get hurt, the referee called a time-out.He was about to stop the match when the sensei intervened. "No," the sensei insisted, "Let him continue." Soon after the match resumed, his opponent made a critical mistake: he dropped his guard. Instantly, the boy used his move to pin him. The boy had won the match and the tournament. He was the champion.On the way home, the boy and sensei reviewed every move in each and every match.

Then the boy summoned the courage to ask what was really on his mind. "Sensei, how did I win the tournament with only one move?"

"You won for two reasons," the sensei answered. "First, you've almost mastered one of the most difficult throws in all of judo. And second, the only known defense for that move is for your opponent to grab your left arm."

The boy's biggest weakness had become his biggest strength.Sometimes we feel that we have certain weaknesses and we blame God, the circumstances or ourselves for it but we never know that our weaknesses can become our strengths one day. Each of us is special and important, so never think you have any weakness, never think of pride or pain, just live your life to its fullest and extract the best out of it!

self - an illusion

2008-11-07T22:51:00.003+05:30

Deep down, everyone knows he is no one and nothing - he is only pretending to be someone and something.

-Sri Bhagavan

The wave in the ocean thinks of itself as separate - it is only an illusion.

oneness

2008-11-06T23:15:00.003+05:30

when we experience the oneness of all suffering across events, we are on the way to experience oneness with the world around us. All suffering is ONE within us - we see it as different across events; one day it is relationships, the other day it is money, yet another day it is physical pain - it is the same underlying pain..we move cosmetically across it, but the basic pain is a constant.

It is this basic pain we have to get liberated from....not from its symptomatic manifests...

XChange

2008-10-17T21:45:00.002+05:30

In a recent talk, Sammadarshini, the Director of The Oneness University said, "We have become adept at exchanging people".

What a hitting statement; when things don't suit us, we move away from situations and people only to find the same patterns repeating elsewhere. It is like changing television sets because we cannot handle a movie. While the television sets are being changed, the DVD player is the same.

Our outer worlds are created by our inner states. Rather than addressing the issue there, we keep changing our outer situations - we change projects, spouses, jobs etc while the underlying pattern continues with the same manifests.

Cosmetic changes - the great illuion of Xchange.

performance/validation

2008-10-16T17:11:00.003+05:30

The "self" needs validation for its sustenance. Consequently, all our relationships , be it professional or personal operate from the "need to feel needed" platform. It energizes us and secures our existence.
If the boss says he cannot live without you @ work, you are thrilled for his dependency creates a sense of security for you. Similarly, in personal relationships, we enhance the other's need for us through our actions for our own security. We want to be brighter, smarter, sexier,richer etc so that the other depends on us more and more. Every moment, our striving is to increase the dependency quotient of the other on us. And this is miserable, for never is such a moment achieved. It is an eternal struggle between the what is and the what should be, a product of our imagination.
Relationship is an "as is where is" and an "as is how is" phenomenon.It is experiencing and accepting the other just as s/he is, not as we would like to see them.It emerges in our acceptance of ourselves the way we are, unique and validated creations.
We do not need to validate our existence, to re-inforce our "selves". We are not on a stage where our performance is being watched, though we put ourselves in such a situation.The rose is fragrant, it does not try to be.
Caterpillars transform into butterflies in such moments of awarenes and acceptance. Great human artforms are the result.