Everyday grace

Long back, while visiting a holy temple in Delhi, I bought a simple Rudraksha bracelet. Rudraksha is known to increase good health and spiritual qualities of the users and these trees grow only in the foot hills of Himalaya mountains.That bangle was inexpensive and the seeds were strung through an elastic thread.. One morning I was delighted to get a call from my friend who was visiting the holy city of Haridwar, and invited me to join her for a day, at her Guru’s Ashram. I loved the idea, and next morning, I got dressed and wore my Rudraksha bracelet. Her uncle and aunt picked me up, and we proceeded towards Haridwar early in the morning. We reached the holy city by noon, when my friend was waiting for us at her Guru’s Ashram, but first, decided to have a dip in the holy river Ganga. It is a popular belief that, mother Ganga flows down from Shiva’s jata (uncombed twisted knot of Shiva’s hair), and flows down through the holy city of Haridwar. So people from different countries come there to have a holy dip. We found the river was full and had a strong current. So the bathing ghats were cordoned off by iron chains, which devotees could hold to take a holy dip. Before getting into the river, I handed over my belongings to someone in the group who decided not to take a bath. But I forgot to remove the Rudraksha bracelet from my wrist. And just as I took my first dip, I realised that my precious Rudraksha bracelet slipped from my wrist, and floated away to some unknown destination of the river bed. I stayed cool, and continued to take my seven more holy dips in the river. When I finished taking my last holy dip, I felt some thing under my feet. I took it out, and to my surprise I found , it was my Rudraksha bangle. It came back to me , after being blessed by Ma Ganga , and became my most precious possession. I realised that, like that ordinary Rudraksha wrist band, any object can be transformed to become of value, if we so attribute it. And if we are to be attached to them, may it be for non-material reasons. There is grace in all things if only we can see it. Paramhansa Yogananda said, “ change your consciousness from that of a mortal to a divine being….In every atom of space, you will see the twinkle of God’s light and laughter. Behind every thought, you will feel the ocean of His wisdom,” (journey to self- realization). So following his advice,by remoulding our consciousness , we all can be new person in this New Year.

The short and sweet life of Laddoo

This is a story of our darling little kitten, “Laddoo" who came in our life for a short time to spread love, fun and joy, but was snatched away from life by a sudden attack of pneumonia. Her appearance and disappearance in our lives was quite dramatic. Few months back, one morning, when I opened the door, I found a mother cat was lying on our drive way, and was feeding her four little kittens, and the scene touched my heart. So I asked my maid to bring a big bowl full of milk to them, which they finished in no time. This routine continued several times every day, and they were happy and we were happy too. When Kittens became healthy and started playing in the garden, one day the mother cat disappeared, leaving her kittens in our hands. Respecting her trust, we took good care of them. When they became little bigger and stronger, one day, parents came and took them away to some unknown destination. I accepted their choice and not interfere in their independence and prayed for them to enjoy a happy independent life. More than a month passed by, one evening, one little kitten , hungry and famished, came back to us. We named her Laddoo. Soon she adopted our garden as her own home, started jumping around. Climbing trees and chasing hidden flies in the bushes. These were her favourite games. She respected our elderly three legged dog, Gujia, and he in turn, kept a peaceful distance. Whenever Gujia was out, she moved away and hid in a bush. Gujia was also lovingly tolerant to her naughtiness. It was fun to watch their mutual understanding. Laddoo loved to join me every day on my morning walk. Whenever I came out with my walker, she came running and walked zigzagging under my walker as I did my daily walk up and down the driveway. Though my son bought a fancy climbing platform for her to rest but she preferred to climb up on my lap, and take a quick nap. But all good things come to an end, sometimes suddenly with a harsh turn of life. With a sudden attack of pneumonia, Laddoo left us too early, leaving her sweet memories all around, she breathed her last, lying on my lap. With prayers, flowers and blessings we buried her in our garden , where our earlier dear pets are lying and protecting us still now. Like waves on the ocean, every life comes from and goes back to the universal energy, just to come back again in a new form in due time. Life energy is indestructible. This is what I believe and it brings me solace. It reminds me a few beautiful lines of Tagore. He said, “ what depart and what remain, if only I surrender them all to you , they do not erode, but in your magnetic glory lie alert. In you are countless moons and suns, not a fragment goes astray. Will not my tiny treasure then also reside at your feet “.

Compassion: a path to get a lot from a little

Long back I got an opportunity to work at a school for disabled children. It was one of the most rewarding things I've done - with so little effort to uplift their spirits, I was much rewarded by their good will, all through my life. I learnt to be more patient, undemanding, loving and caring for others in life. Unnoticed by the mainstream of life, those children blossomed like a bunch of wild flowers. They were happy with so little loving kindness from others. They laughed, danced and exchanged emotions through their sign language. Hearing impaired children had great concentration that they used beautifully for creative activities. In today’s world, when everyone is so focused on getting ahead for fame or fortune, those children stood apart. Their attitude of gratitude brought sunshine in every interaction. Later when I volunteered with orphan children, I saw the same graceful, undemanding nature among them. Away from home, they made the orphanage a loving nest for each other. Life flows like a river. At every turn, it creates new experiences, new thoughts and attitudes. Now I have reached my ripe old age and am blessed to be surrounded with a few loving souls. One of them is Gujia, a three legged elderly stray dog. Long back, one leg was crushed by a careless driver, and luckily rescued and treated by an organisation, he finally he came to me to becomee my silent soulful companion. The second, is a lovely little kitten, we call her Ladoo. After losing her parents and siblings, she chose our garden as her new home. My animal lover son has flooded her with attractive toys, tasty foods and comfortable beds. She is the darling of the house. She loves to accompany me on my morning walks and sits under my chair when I solve sudoku or read the newspaper. Gujia and Ladoo respect each other and keeping a safe distance, never to step into each other’s domain. My two maids (one with a young boy) are excellent in taking care of me. They are also brave souls, facing life’s challenges with courage and dignity. I see the same light of courage in their faces. I thank them all to make my golden years really golden. As the Dalai Lama said, “ If you want others to be happy, practice compassion. If YOU want to be happy, practice compassion “.

On Silence and Violence

Sometimes when I sit alone, often a beautiful line floats into my mind which says, “where the heart is full , silence is the best expression". In today’s noisy world, this statement seems to be so absurd, but when we look at the nature, we realise how true it is. The sun rises and sets, stars twinkle, a flower unfolds its petals - all in silence. Silence is the language of the nature. Even the beaming smile of a child, or a dog’s wagging tail, expresses joy without the need for sound. Verbal communication started by humans out of necessity. With the power of words, inspiring literature was created through the ages. Between individuals and nations, the right usage of words are essential factors. But in today’s world, we often find words become routine expressions lacking the spirit of a heartfelt exchanges. A purely functional expression of "hi" without a friendly smile loses the human connection and often the exchange lacks connection. “Thank you" and “Sorry" without true gratitude or remorse are hollow expressions of politeness. Moreover, the constant use of social media full of exchanges that are purely based on words, gadgets like computers and smartphones have separated people from the ability to express emotions directly through humans encounters. With the advancement of modern technology, we have brought an imbalance between our head and heart to such an extend that we are creating weapons to safeguard our interests but on the other hand are distancing ourselves from each other resulting in a society basedon greed, self-centredness and fear. Ultimately this breaks up our loving bond in families and nations too. This sad situation is seen all over the world today and the time has come to think about it little more deeply. If we want to make our temporary stay on this earth a little meaningful, we must try to broaden our outlook, come out from a fearful, self-centred existence, and embrace this beautiful but uncertain life as a gift. Our gratitude may be expressed through our acts of loving kindness towards all life. As we all are temporary visitors in this planet, it will be better, if we perform all our assigned worldly duties as a service to our creator. We all can make our every moment a wonderful moment - as Tagore wrote in his poem - "Oh drown all my arrogance in my tears. Let me not project myself in my work. Let Your will be done in my life."

Finding Balance in Purpose

In my childhood days, I always looked forward for our annual sports day. The event I liked most was a balance race. Balancing a boiled egg on a spoon held between the teeth, we had to run. Of course if you used your hands to adjust it, you’d be disqualified. It was good fun but required perfect balance, alertness and focused mind, steady steps and confidence. Later in life, I realized those qualities which were required to succeed at the balance race were also required to bring success in life. A focused mind with steady steps and confidence are required to reach any goal. The Indian Gurukul system of education imparted knowledge in much the same way. Children grew up in close proximity to the teachers, learnt to love and care for nature, developed ethical values to respect elders, extended helping hands towards families and others in need, learnt to bring peace and harmony all around. Great Gurukul institutions, like Nalanda, Taxila gave world famous scholars. The aim of education was to bring harmony, peace and well-being to all, and never aimed to attain personal fame or fortune. Pleasant or unpleasant things which came in life were accepted as blessings of God, and to clear karmic accounts. Today information is universal, and easily available through technology. Information alone does not teach us to be a better human being. Though we can send our thoughts to any part of the world in a second, we have forgotten the art of establishing loving communication even with our near and dear ones. Tender minds are receptive - if seeds of good values are planted in young minds through right education, then they can bring heaven on earth – otherwise, as an intellectual giant C.S.Lewis said, “ education without values can make a man a clever devil.” The truth of his predictions are coming true and are seen all around us in the world today. The time has come to bring a change in our approach to education – perhaps a better balance between gaining information and learning through play. Life is well lived if we learn to walk our path as if we were balancing an egg on a spoon clenched between our teeth. Balance and purpose.

The Power of Simplicity

Last September, when my son Prodeep visited me for a few days, Delhi was hot and sultry. So without wasting any time, he made a quick plan for us all, and that was to visit Ramgarh, a hilly area in Uttarakhand. He booked an Innova taxi, and we left Delhi early next morning. Driving through forests, hills, and crossing the small rivers was a thrilling experience for us all. When we reached Ramgarh, it was past noon, the sun was ready to set on the western horizon, and our rest house that stood on the edge of a mountain glowed in the rays of the setting sun like a temple of gold. We rested peacefully at night, but my adventurous son quietly slipped out early morning to the jungle to have a feel of the forest. He returned safe, and was lucky to hear a tiger’s roar from a nearby hill amidst the chirping of scared birds. We did not have any fixed plan for the day, so when our young tourists guide suggested we visit Kainchi dham, a temple of saint Neem Karoli baba, we all got ready. Soon we started our journey through a jungle road and reached there much before noon. After having Darshana and Prasad, I settled down in a quiet corner to hear the whole story of that great saint from a local guide. Neem Karoli baba was not much known, and once, when he was travelling by a local train without a ticket (being a renunciate), the ticket collector came and asked for the ticket, which he could not show. So he was forced to get down at the next station named Neem Karoli. After that a strange thing happened. The train could not start, and with all the efforts of mechanics and engineers, they couldn’t fathom what the issue was. Finally, it dawned on one of the railway authorities that something wasn’t quite right. He went and apologised to the (then) unknown saint, and brought him back to the train, upon which, the train promptly started. Later that place became famous, because that saint made his Ashram there and he became famous as NeemKaroli Baba (named after the train station). Famous people from all over the world visited that place, met him and had his blessings. Steve Jobs, many writers and musicians were much influenced by his teachings. In 1970, when the hippie movement was strong and westerners were much confused with materialistic culture, they came to him, got guidance, and many of them went on to do great things. Ram Dass is one of his students who is famous in spiritual circles in the west. Many have been influenced by his teachings – Mark Zuckerberg, Julia Roberts, Larry Page (Google), Jeffrey Skoll (eBay) among them. Neem Karoli baba’s message was simple and profound. He said “ Love every one, feed every one and remember God always.” This message is the gist of Karma Yoga and Bhakti Yoga. Here “feeding“ has a bigger meaning. It may mean to take care of elderly, or to write a book, or make a movie with a spiritual message, which can feed people with positive thoughts. In whatever way if we can help a needy soul, that can be our true prayer to God. This simple and sacred message was conveyed to us all through the ages by all great saints. As Swami Vivekananda said “He who serves the poor, serves God”

“Trees are poems that the earth writes upon the sky"

Yesterday I received an unusual message from my Chinese friend Lee, which inspired me to write this article. It said, “ Be like a tree, stay grounded, connect with your roots, turn over a new leaf, keep growing.” This message is simple and profound, and instantly it brought many thoughts of past, present and future. I grew up in a small place in Bengal, named Santiniketan, which was established by the Nobel prize winning poet Rabindra Nath Tagore. It was a centre of learning where children grew up in the lap of nature, learnt to take care of nature and cherish it. Tagore introduced annual tree plantation ceremonies during the rainy season where five children dressed as the five elements of the nature (earth, air, water, fire and space) and planted five saplings, while appropriate songs were sung and poems were recited in praise of the nature. It was a beautiful ceremony and is still now vivid in my memory. In ancient India, knowledge was imparted to students by teachers sitting under the trees. In the scriptures trees play a central role =- from a place where saints are born as as a place of meditations and enlightenment, to references to mythical trees where all our wishes come true. Trees have long been considered the wisest and most tolerant of all beings, being the oldest. To learn to live well one must learn from the oldest among us. Modern education systems doesn’t incorporate the wisdom of nature. Information oriented education has made children more tech savvy, but could not knowledgeable about what life is and what it means to develop a loving bond between humans and nature, from where we arrive and unto where we dissolve. As a result of this disconnection, people are now more self-centred, and are forgetting the art to establish a loving communication with nature, animals, trees and even with fellow beings. We live in an imaginary bubble called modernity that is nothing but systemically enforced ignorance. Realising the obvious degradation of nature, these days many organisations and even spiritual masters are coming forward and trying their best to bring awareness and develop a sense of responsibility of human beings towards nature. Long back, a great scientist Jagdish Chandra Bose proved at the World Science Congress that plants have feelings and emotions, and silently they respond to the act of love or hatred of people towards them. Now the time has come to change our insensitive attitude towards nature. We must be ready to come out from the concrete jungle and return our awareness to learn from and connect with nature, from which we have been and always will be inalienable. To try to be a silent giver, humble, and caring for other lives on earth - and not just the humans we call our own. Trees give shelter to all, and by bowing down with it’s fruit laden branches, they teach us to be humble and wise. The life giving oxygen that is provided by trees is for all. And all while the insensitive modern mind caged in concrete does not hesitate to chop it off for his selfish motives. We must try to be more flexible, and intelligent, to change our attitude and make this world a better place for future generations to live in. After all, as Kahlil Gibran says, “Trees are poems that the earth writes upon the sky" .