सद् शिष्य कसा असावा ?

सद् शिष्य कसा असावा ?

सद्गुरु ची लक्षणे सांगून झाल्यावर समर्थ सद् शिष्याची लक्षणे सांगतात .परमार्थात सद्गुरु व सद् शिष्य यांची सांगड होणे महत्वाचे असते कारण -

सद्गुरुविण सद् शिष्य । ते वाया जाय निशेष । का सद् शिष्येविण विशेष । सद्गुरु शिणे। । ५ -३ -२ । ।

सद् शिष्याला सद्गुरु भेटला नाही तर तो पूर्ण वाया जातो .तसेच सद्गुरुला सद् शिष्य भेटला नाही तर सद्गुरुला श्रम होतात .ही गोष्ष्ट स्पष्ट करण्यासाठी ते भूमीचा दृष्टांत देतात .भूमी उत्तम आहे ,पण बी किडके आहे तर पीक येत नाही ,किंवा बी उत्तम आहे पण जमीन खडकाळ आहे तरी पीक येत नाही .सद् शिष्य ही उत्तम भूमी ,तर सद्गुरु उत्तम बी सारखा .शिष्य अनाधिकारी ,अपात्र असेल तर सद्गुरुला फुकट श्रम होतात .जेव्हा सद्गुरु व सद् शिष्य एकत्र येतात तेव्हा सद्गुरूंना वाटत की हाच तो ज्याची मी वाट पाहातहोतो .रामकृष्ण परमहंसांना विवेकानंदांना पाहून असच वाटल,श्री समर्थांना कल्याण स्वामींना पाहून असेच वाटले सद्गुरु ,सद् शिष्य आहेत पण अध्यात्म निरूपण नसेल उपयोग होत नाही ,जसे पीक तयार होउन आले तरी त्याची निगा राखावी लागते .त्याप्रमाणे आत्मज्ञान झाले तरी साधन चालू ठेवावे लागते .कारण साधन नसेल तर अविद्येचा अंमल होतो .
म्हणौन साधन अभ्यास आणि सद्गुरु । सद् शिष्य आणि सद्शास्त्र विचारू ।
सत्कर्म सद्वासना पारू । पाववी भवाचा । । समर्थ म्हणतात ,'साधन ,अभ्यास ,सद्गुरु ,सद् शिष्य ,सद्शास्त्र विचार सत्कर्म सद्वासना या सर्व गोष्टी एकत्र असतील तरच भवसागर पार करून जाता येइल .
आता समर्थ सद् शिष्याचे लक्षण सांगत आहेत ,

मुख्य सद् शिष्याचे लक्षण । सद्गुरुवचनी विश्वास पूर्ण । अनन्य भावे शरण । या नाव सद् शिष्य । । ५ -३ -१९ । ।
सद्गुरु वचनावर पूर्ण विश्वास ,व सद्गुरुला अनन्य भावे शरण जाणे ही सद् शिष्याची लक्षणे आहेत .कल्याण स्वामी सारखे शिष्य सद्गुरुंच्या केवळ 'कल्याणा छाटी उडाली 'या शब्दाखातर उंच कड्यावरून छाटी पकडण्यासाठी उडी घेतो तेव्हा तो जीवाचा विचार करत नाही ,सद्गुरूंनी सांगितले ते करायचे एव्हडेच त्याला माहीत !

सद् शिष्य कसा असावा ?

शिष्य निर्मल अंत :करणाचा ,आचारशील-आचाराने शुद्ध ,शुद्ध चारित्र्याचा ,विरक्त-हवे नको पण संपलेला , अनुतापी-झालेल्या चुकांबद्दल पश्चाताप वाटून त्या चुका पुन्हा न करणारा ,निष्ठावंत-सद्गुरु वचनावर पूर्ण विश्वास ठेवणारा ,सुचिश्मंत -ज्याची मती म्हणजे बुध्दी अतिशय शुद्ध आहे असा ,नेमस्त -नित्य नेम पाळणारा,साक्षपी -प्रयत्न करणारा ,परम दक्ष-अतिशय सावध ,अलक्षी लक्षी -अतींद्रिय वस्तूवर लक्ष केंद्रित करण्याचे मनोबल असणारा ,परोपकारी-दुस-याला मदत करणारा ,निर्मत्सरी-कोणाचाही मत्सर ,द्वेष न करणारा ,अर्थांतरी प्रवेशकर्ता -ग्रंथाचा अभ्यास करताना शब्दार्थाच्या अंतरंगात शिरणारा ,नीतिवंत -चांगल्या वाईटाचा विचार करणारा ,युक्तिमंत -हिकमती ,बुध्दीमंत -बुध्दीमान् ,सद्विद्येचा -उत्तम लक्षणांचा ,निर्लोभी ,निराभिमानी ,अनासक्त अशा गुणानी युक्त असावा .
सद् शिष्य कसा नसावा ?अविवेकी नसावा ,गर्भश्रीमंत नसावा ,अविश्वासी नसावा .कारण -

अविश्वासे कास सोडिली । ऐसी बहुतेक भवी बुडाली । नाना जळचरे तोडिली । मध्येच सुख दु:खे । । ५ -३ -३७ । ।

या कारणे दृढ़ विश्वास । तोचि जाणावा सद् शिष्य ।मोक्षाधिकारी विशेष । आग्रगण्यु। । ५ -३ -३८ । ।

 

आत्यंतिक गुरु-श्रद्धा कशी असावी ?

काल प. पू. बाबा बेलसरे ह्यांचे ज्ञानेश्वरी वरील प्रवचने ऐकत होते. नेहमीप्रमाणे बाबांना श्री महाराजांविषयी असलेले आत्यंतिक प्रेम ह्यातूनही व्यक्त होते जागोजागी. त्यात एके ठिकाणाची एक आठवण नमूद करून ठेवावी अशी आहे. भाऊसाहेब केतकरांना बेलसरे बाबा खूप मानीत. त्यांच्यासारखा प्रपंचात राहून परमार्थ साधणारा विरळा असा त्यांचा उल्लेख आपण महाराजांच्या चरित्रात वाचतो. त्यांच्या गुरु-भक्ती अतिशय हृदयपूर्ण आठवण बेलसरे ह्या व्हिडीओ मध्ये सांगतात.

गुरु-प्रेम आणि गुरु-निष्ठा कशी असावी?

भाऊसाहेबांना महाराजांना रामनामाची दीक्षा द्यायची होती. त्यांनी विचारले त्यांना- तुम्ही आधी कुणाकडून दीक्षा घेतली आहे का? मागे एकदा कुण्या एका गुरु कडून ते त्यांच्या घरी आले असताना भाऊ साहेबांनी मंत्र घेतला होता. ते त्यांनी महाराजांना सांगितले. महाराज त्यांना म्हणाले, काही हरकत नाही. तुम्ही त्यांच्याकडे पुन्हा जा आणि त्यांना आपला मंत्र परत घ्यायला सांगा. इतर कुणी असते तर त्यांनी शंभरदा विचार केला असता, काय करावे आता; असे कसे जावे आणि तुमचा मंत्र परत घ्या म्हणून सांगावे. परंतु भाऊ साहेबांची महाराजांवरची निष्ठा अशी दांडगी, त्यांनी काहीच विचार केला नाही. तडक गेले आणि त्या गुरूंचा यथोचित आदर करून त्यांना सांगितले कि तुमचा मंत्र परत घ्या; मला महाराजांकडून मंत्र घ्यायचा आहे. त्या गुरूंनीही काहीच न बोलता आपला मंत्र मागे घेतला आणि भाऊ साहेबांना मोकळे केले. काय विलक्षण नाते होते भाऊ साहेबांचे आणि महाराजांचे! महाराजांनी सांगितले म्हटल्यावर संपले. ते कधीच पुन्हा असे का म्हणून विचारात नसत.

त्यांचे वैराग्य इतके प्रबळ होते, की प्रत्येक  छोटी छोटी गोष्ट ते महाराजांच्या कानावर घालीत आणि मोकळे होत. म्हणत असत- आता माझा संबंध संपला त्या गोष्टीशी. घेतील महाराज बघून.

आपण नुसते राम-करता-करविता म्हणतो, पण त्या प्रमाणे वागत नाही. त्यामुळे आपण कायम डोक्यावर ओझे वाहतो. जो पर्यंत भाऊ साहेबांसारखी आपली भावना शुद्ध होत नाही तोवर आपण परमार्थ काहीच साधला नाही म्हणावे लागेल. गुरु-आज्ञा प्रमाण हे जोवर हृदयात खोलवर मुरत नाही तोवर खूप तळमळ वाटली पाहिजे. परंतु गुरूंच्या इच्छेने एक मात्र होते ते म्हणजे आपण नामाला लागतो. आणि जसे महाराज म्हणतात- तुम्ही फक्त नाम घ्या; ते विवेक आणि वैराग्य मी बघून घेतो, ते हळू हळू पटायला लागते.

अजून काय सांगायचे गुरूंनी? 

Sadasadvivek - saar-asaar---

श्री राम

||श्री राम||

तुम्ही मानले मला आपुले शिष्य |

दिलात जणू पुनर्जन्म ||

कधीच न फिटे आपुले ऋण |

तारेल मला सदैव आपुले नाम ||१||

श्री महाराज श्री महाराज हाकारे मन माझे |

मानसपूजेमध्ये सदा लीन व्हावे वाटे ||

अखंड रामनाम दिलेत तुम्ही ताराया |

करू दे भक्ती तुमची हा वर द्यावा कृपया ||२||

असंख्यात भक्तजन जपती रामनाम |

मज पामराचा तिथे काय भला पाड ||

तरीही कृपा मजवरी झाली अपरंपार |

या कृपेला करुणानिधे करी मज सत्पात्र ||३||

निडारले नयन श्रींची करुणमूर्ती न्याहाळता |

गुरुचरणी अखंड असो नमिलेला माझा माथा ||

सद्गुरू-शिष्य नाते हे जन्म-जन्मांतरीचे |

भक्तीत बुडून जावे, नामसागरात फैलावे वाटे ||४||

विवेक आणि वैराग्य दोनही सहज घडती |

सद्गुरूंचे रामनाम सदा देतसे प्रचीती ||

प्रपंची राहोन परमार्थ करावा वचन असे नेमस्त |

महाराजांची दास मी केली प्रतिज्ञा हृदयस्थ ||५||

|| श्री राम जय राम जय जय राम ||

Sant Tukaram

Had decided it last work-week that I will watch Sant Tukaram, the Prabhat Film this Sunday and thankfully I could do so. Long back I had watched it and still remembered a few shots. However, with the new-found path, wanted to watch it again in that glory.

Must say it was the fabulous-most experience! The kind of devotion Sant Tukaram preaches is that of pure bhakti, which many of the successors have preached but he seems to be one of the first few, who started it in its real glory. No doubt Prabhat movie is a must watch. Vishnupant Pagnis is truly the Tukaram-personified! Always I had this face as the face of Tukaram since childhood and watching him chant the name of Pandurang was as if in trance. He takes you through this journey along with him and literally at one point, you can feel the unification!!!! And that's the highlight of the movie or I should say of the tattwa that Sant Tukaram preached all his life!

Loved the scene in which Sant Tukaram clarifies why Bhakti is the easiest and purest way to reach God.

नामसंकीर्तन, साधन पै सोपे
जळतील पापे जन्मांतरीची
न लागे सायास, जावे वनांतरा
सुखे येतो घरा, नारायण

Ahaaaaa .............

Self Enquiry- by Raman Maharshi

Wonderfully stated by Raman Maharshi--

Disciple asks- How is breath control the means for mind control? 

Master answers-  

: There is no doubt that breath control is the means for mind control, because the mind, like breath, is a part of air, because the nature of mobility is common to both, because the place of origin is the same for both, and because when one of them is controlled the other gets controlled. 

Does Meditation Change the Brain?

The link for this article by Ramesam Vemuri-
http://advaita-academy.org/blogs/ramesam/Does-Meditation-Change-The-Brain.ashx

I liked this--

Sankara gives paramount importance to meditation in Vivekachudamani. He says, “As gold purified in the furnace, rids itself of dross and reaches the quality of its own self, so the mind ridding itself of the dross of substance and darkness, through meditation, enters into reality.” 

Serenity Personified!

Dictionary meaning of the word serenity is "the state of being calm"! And wise people say that serenity is not absence of storm but peace within it. The best part of it is that we are assured of having this blissful feeling amid humdrum of day to day life. For me the tool is adhyatma or spirituality. It is not just the pursuit of spiritual path but the finer nuances that cleanse our soul along the way. "Presence of God in everything" gives us this serenity. Feeling of "Lack of Bodily Attitude" defines it and despite all this, keeps you focused in your day to day activity.

Patanjali has given us the ways of pursuing yoga. Truthfulness, not desiring others' money, apt diet and related habits, exercise that takes us closer to our "true self", and dhyana are some of the pre-requisites of staying on this path. Initially I often used to find myself querying whether this is possible in today's world. But along the way due to blessings of my Guru, I started realizing the real-necessity of doing it honestly. Rather we tend to find along the way that this is the only pursuit that gives you immense satisfaction (or perhaps I don't know the word but it gives us something beyond the worldly matters, which is the purest form of joy).

Everything "good" for which we say, it's not possible in today's world, we should think hundred times- who created this so called "today's world"? Without acknowledging the almighty's gifts showered upon us, we only started taking things for granted- like- complete truthfulness is not possible in today's world! Why it's not? If you believe in goodness, if you follow righteousness, then a few people's ignorance about it shouldn't influence you adversely, isn't it?

The final-most outcome we desire from this life is HAPPINESS. All our works are the tools to achieve this. And it's high time we realize that without this "serenity in storm" attitude, we cannot achieve it, leave aside enjoying it. 

Some Excerpts While Reading

Name of the Book- महागुहेत प्रवेश- विनोबा भावे

* आपण मनापासून नेहमीच वेगळे आहोत ही गोष्ट चित्तात स्थिर करावी.

* चित्त प्रसन्न होते तेव्हा सहज शांतीची प्राप्ती होते. गीतेत म्हटले आहे- "प्रसन्नचेतसो ह्याशु बूद्धिः पर्यवतिष्ठते", म्हणजे चित्त निर्मळ असेल तर ते सहजच स्थिर राहते.

* दृढ संकल्पशक्तीने चित्तशुद्धीशिवाय ध्यान साधेल; पण तसे साधण्यात लाभ नाही, उलट नुकसान आहे.

* व्यक्तिगत फायद्यासाठी, वासानातृप्तीसाठी किंवा बाह्य गोष्टींसाठी व्यवहार करावयाचा नाही. एकाग्रतेसाठी अशी जीवनशुद्धी हवी.

* नियंत्रणाचा अर्थ आहे, हात पाय मन कान वाणी डोळे या सर्वांवर नियंत्रण ठेवणे, त्यांना वाईटाकडे जाण्यापासून आवरणे आणि चांगल्या गोष्टीत लावणे. याचेच नाव वैराग्य आणि विवेक. गीतेच्या भाषेत सांगायचे तर अभ्यास आणि वैराग्य. ही मनोजयाची साधने आहेत.

* समदृष्टी होणे महत्त्वाचे. समदृष्टी म्हणजे शुभ-दृष्टी. ही सर्व सृष्टी मंगल भासली पाहिजे. सारे शुभ व पवित्र आहे. "विश्वं तद् भद्रं यदवन्ति देवाः" (ऋग्वेदसार २.४.७) - हे विश्व मंगल आहे, कारण परमेश्वर ते सांभाळीत आहे.

* माझा रक्षक काय तो मी एकता, बाकी सारे माझे भक्षक, ही कल्पना नाहीशी झाल्याशिवाय एकाग्रता होणार नाही. सर्वत्र मांगल्य पहा, म्हणजे चित्त आपोआप शांत होईल.

* मी अध्यात्मिक शक्तीची अशी व्याख्या केली आहे - अध्यात्मिक शक्ती ती जिचा दुरुपयोग होऊच शकत नाही.

* ध्यान परमात्म्याशी जोडले गेले तर ते अध्यात्मिक होईल, भौतिक वस्तूंशी जोडले गेले तर मानसिक होईल.

* आपल्याला वृत्ती नको स्थिती हवी.

* विज्ञानाचा अनुभव वैज्ञानिकांना येतो. निष्काम सेवेचा अनुभव नितीनिष्ठ सेवकांना येतो. हे दोन्ही अनुभव एका तिसऱ्या अनुभवाशिवाय अपूर्ण आहेत. तो तिसरा अनुभव भक्तीतून येतो !

* मानवसेवेने व आत्मनिष्ठेने  मनुष्य शुद्ध होईल, विज्ञाननिष्ठेने बुद्ध होईल, मात्र सिद्ध तेव्हाच होईल, जेव्हा त्याला आपल्या चेतनेत परमात्म-चेतनेच्या अविर्भावाचा अनुभव येईल. 

How About Having a Day Away from So-Called Civilization?

It’s a beautiful morning! Power off since morning and heard many cry for the same. I too have lot of work on my laptop but can’t perform as it lies “charge-less”. But still I feel good because of my strangely positive mindset! :O

Many times I feel how good it would be if we could go back to an era where we did not have all these facilities! Life was more serene and tranquility prevailed. We were concerned just about what to eat for the next meal and didn’t have to save for ourselves and our children. Things were lot simpler, more akin to nature, closer to God, and away from the stress and strain. If one felt angry, he would express it immediately and forget the next moment. No grudges, no comparisons, no manipulations and no money!

Yes, money seems to be the culprit! Money makes us do so many things all day, good or bad. So many people cannot indulge in their favorite hobbies thinking about earning and saving. In our ancient civilization, there were days when money did not exist and still man lived with exchange of things for getting the required goods! Sounds impossible, isn’t it? Should we hope for such era to return?

There were days when people used to walk miles and not complain of reaching late anywhere or missing trains and buses. Perhaps nobody was jealous of the others because nobody owned “cars”! Positive health was a bonus for them.

A day of power shut-down and we shout at our electricity boards for hampering our work. But if we just think of spending such off day the way we want, we would enjoy such shut downs too. Of course some emergency services will be hampered but they are called ‘emergency’ because we have made them so.

Why can’t we just relax and ponder upon the positive side of the life? Because, we have trained ourselves or have been trained in a manner that teaches us vague perfection in everything!

It is really time to think about our own perceptions and beliefs. It does not mean we should not go with the flow and make ourselves “Pro” but in doing so, we should try not to harden our senses and benumb our original tranquility.

Humans originally are tranquil existences that remained conscious of their inner-selves. It’s time to remind ourselves of this essence and live in maximum proximity to ourselves and nature.

What strength will STRESS then have to weaken us?

MAY TRUE EMPOWERMENT PREVAIL !!!

Understanding Our Mistakes is Vital to Save Relationships!

As we all know, saving a relationship through the thick and thin of life is not easy. It may be the relationship between husband and wife, friends, parents or in laws. You have to be on your toes always if you want to develop healthy relationship. Yes true that the relationships should come natural to us, we being social animals. But it doesn't happen so. When we come across the difference of opinions, it is hard to control our ego and let go of the temporary situation that creates stress.

How to Help it?

Well if we see closely at any dispute that emerges between any two people, the most important culprit behind the dispute is to showcase the wrong doings of the person standing opposite to us. But that is the time when we miss the point that when we point the finger to someone else, three fingers are pointed towards us. We tend to mask our mistakes under the flap of righteousness, which rarely stands the point. More we start understanding own mistakes, we tend to see the opposite party with consideration that they can commit mistakes too, just like us. But the point is that we should cultivate this tendency of such comprehension at every situation that sparks trigger of disharmony between relationships.

Know that it is Temporary-

The relationships get dismantled because most of us give a kind of permanent shade to this disharmony. We often tend to think during the dispute that now this cannot be corrected and the gap will remain always. But factually this is the most absurd thinking in a relationship. The studies state that more than 90% of disputes are temporary that are the result of some buoyant attitude and impulsive reactions to a certain situation. It is also known that if a person waits for just a few hours before commenting or reacting to the other person's opinion, both of them can come up with more mutual understanding to that situation after a certain period of time.

Especially it is important to know that when we live in a society comprising of people with different levels of understanding, it is going to create different opinions that we all may not agree with. Same is true at home! Thus more balanced you are to handle the situations, more you listen carefully than reacting immediately, more you comprehend the subtlety of bonds that brought you closer, more you can safely handle your relationships! 

The Day Starts from the Morning!

Good morning! :)

That's what we all say when we greet each other in the morning. But do we all live up to it? Do we really have a good morning? Many of us grumble at the thought of getting up from slumber and feel "not-so-fresh" in the mornings. After we get up, instead of remembering God for this new days, we remember yesterday's grudges that we held against people at home and outside. That is when we ourselves are responsible for not-so-good morning!

Our learned philosophers say, we should leave the last day when we retired to bed. We should not hold any happiness or sadness bother us when we enter the next day. Yes, happiness is equally harmful at times, as if we don't get that kind of happiness today, we again feel sad. Enter the new day with a clean slate and see what it holds for you.

Being detached from our environment means the same. Of course it is not easy but if we try and have complete faith in God, we can do it with practice. We all are going through the humdrum of day to day life. We all have our shares of joy and sorrow. But we notice that some people take these things as mere passing experiences and others sit in those absurdities for time immemorial. Then we will be able to comprehend how foolish we acted when we gave undue importance to all these things in life, which shall pass!

With this attitude, let's begin a great morning and have a wonderful and fruitful day ahead! 

श्री ब्रह्मचैतन्य गोंदवलेकर महाराज म्हणतात-

१. नामापासून काही मिळावयाचे आहे ही कल्पनाच नसावी. नाम मुखी येते हाच नामाचा अनुभव. विस्तवाजवळ तूप ठेवले कि ते वितळते, तसे नामाची शेगडी ठेवली की अभिमान वितळलाच पाहिजे. अखंड नामस्मरणाला सोवळ्या-ओवळ्याचे बंधन नाही. अखंड स्मरणाच सोवळे आहे. 

२. मी मागतसे एक दान, ते द्यावे तुम्ही सर्वांनी II नामापरते नका माणू सुख, रामापायी करून घ्यावे आपणास अर्पण II

    याहून नको मज काही, एवढी भीक घालावी सर्वांनी II

३. नामातच शेवटचा श्वास गेला पाहिजे 

४. देहाची स्थिती कायम न राहे निश्चित II

    ते सांभाळणे आहे जरूर, न विसरता रघुवीर II

५. जगण्याकरता श्वास घेणे जसे मनुष्यास जरुरीचे आहे, तसेच भगवंताच्या भेटीसाठी प्रत्येक श्वासाबरोबर नाम घेणे अगत्याचे आहे. 

Swami Vivekananda Says--

• Each wave in the chitta that says, "I and mine" immediately puts a chain round us and makes us slaves; the more we say "I and mine", the more slavery grows, the more misery increases.

• Non-attachment is the basis of all Yoga! 

• Work incessantly but give up all attachment to work!

• To acquire freedom, we have to get beyond the limitations of this universe; it cannot be found here. The real religion begins where this little universe ends!

• Fools alone say that the work and philosophy are different; not the learned!

• When you have trained your mind and your nerves this idea of the world's non-dependence on you or on anybody, there will be no reaction in the form of pain resulting from work.

• According to Karma-yoga, the action one has done cannot be destroyed until it has borne its fruit; no power in nature can stop it from yielding its results!

Spirituality is Irrespective of Age!

Many people have this thought close to their heart that once we reach the retirement age; we will start our spiritual pursuit. Spirituality is many times misinterpreted as some work that is to be done in order to attain the mukti. Well, but most saints advice us that it is not the work to be done but an inner attitude that needs to be cultivated if you want to have a life devoid of egoistic pursuits.

Spirituality is one’s nature, many times in born or sometimes cultivated in the right direction with the advice of some eminent gurus. It is the selfless yet self-improving way of life that will take you to your destination- that is- Absolute Contentment!

Many times we find people who pursue spiritual or adhyatmik things frown about people who pursue prapanchik (day to day) chores and run behind so many different pursuits to feel the happiness. But what they fail to understand is that we all are behind achieving happiness and only those who are really interested in spirituality and Godly pursuits, can hope to understand one day that what we were after was this ultimate wisdom! Even the people who try to run in different directions are behind this ultimate aim, however they lack the proper direction. Every one of us in some or the other birth must come close to this truth that the spiritual purpose is the highest purpose and only that can lead us on the path of ultimate happiness.

And as the subject matter of this post, it is irrespective of age. Rather, earlier you being, sooner you reach your destination or at least walk towards it. Young age is the right age also as regards the heath aspect. Healthier you are, more dedicated your adhyatmik pursuits can be. Unhealthy mind and body can rarely cope up with the spiritual goals. Rather it can be said that spirituality or adhyatma is not the journey. It is the final destination we all need to reach. It is our “being”. So, if you start developing interest in such pursuits at young age, in the old age, you obviously attain to much tolerance towards your bodily woes too. Spirituality is one of the best tools to keep your body and mind under control while surrendering completely to your God! It is the best way to find the inner peace that all are after.

Even those who deny the presence of God will agree to the fact that they are searching for real happiness or real tranquility. Our saints tell us that unless we travel the path of adhyatma and spirituality, it is impossible to attain the tranquility or happiness that will never vanish! 

Combining Professional Ambitions with Spirituality

Just happened to read one of the basic spiritual scriptures of mankind- Shreemad Bhagawat. I always like to read such scriptures time and again to feel the zeal of relaxation that nothing else can provide. Importantly enough, I feel reading such texts makes you realize futility of striving hard for unattainable things. rather, striving for anything while thinking continuously about the fruit of labor is the prime reason behind any suffering.

Karma-yoga deals with working without thinking of the fruit. That does not mean though that there shouldn't be any target. We should keep our aim at the target and work with adequate planning but the downfalls of the process shouldn't bother us. We should free ourselves of the negative influences and comments that keep bothering us throughout the process of our work.

Combining spirituality with apt work is the crux of a happy life. One has to be happy or contented in his or her outlook towards life. I often feel that the undue stress while excelling in a certain field almost always leads to unnecessary delays in our work as well as spiritual development. It is one of the hardest things to attain this balance. But if we have it deep in our hearts to make it happen, we automatically start progressing towards this goal in life. Rather I would like to say that the almighty (who is One!) makes us progress towards the spiritual goal while attaining our Prapanchik (day to day) goals.

Many times I feel the dilemma why cannot I devote more time for my Adhyatmik pursuit. I am in awe of our adhyatmik scriptures and feel completely myself and immersed in the glory of almighty when I read them. Day before yesterday when I was again struck by this dilemma, I was guided by a note on facebook of Shri Gondavalekar Maharaj (https://www.facebook.com/pages/Shri-Gondavalekar-Maharaj/309538732408872) It is in marathi; so don't know if many people can benefit from it. But it says, Many people do a side-business. It is the business done along with the main business. And we should see our vocation as a side business along with our spiritual pursuit as the  main business. Smartly enough, we should understand that pursuing main business takes up not more than 4 to 6 hours of the day. The remaining time should be devoted to our spiritual pursuit if you truly desire. Well, I am happy with this answer given to me by almighty. True that we devote much more time (perhaps) to our daily duties but at least we can cut short of the wastage of time that we do daily on vague pursuits. That time can be constructively used to build our firm foundation spiritually and feel the bliss that is hard to explain.

Only one can feel the bliss in the spiritual pursuit (It may vary from person to person). But it is this pursuit that keeps me out of stress despite being engulfed by stressful situations at times. Most wonderfully, this pursuit never takes you off the track as far as your professional ambitions are concerned. You rather become more focused, more disciplined, and more enthusiastic of your work ethic! 

Live in Joint Family to be Healthy!

Hi,

Well I can understand that the concept of joint family is prevalent only in countries like India and many from Western part of the world don't know what this really is. Just recently, one of my friends (doctor colleagues) from Europe asked me, "How can you people live with your elders? Doesn't it give you an oppressed feeling all the while?" My answer was simple- "How can you people live all alone in a nuclear family?"

This is not to boast of my abilities to go along well with my elders at home. We do have differences of opinion at times. Rather, when any 2 or more people live together, there are going to be differences, but the fact is that we rejoice in those differences. What fun the life is if you don't have someone to voice your opinion to? Just that we should make this voicing of opinion an art to gain experience than to just fight for no cause.

When we dwell deeply on the concept of joint family (that was kind of natural in early days of man), we realize the benefits. The foremost benefit according to me is- You never feel alone in your life! You always have someone to look up to in odd times. I certainly understand that for a good clap, you need two hands. Similarly, for a joint family to run smoothly, as much as youngster's contribution is needed, more is needed from the elder counterpart as well. Perhaps, elders are the people (in our country at least) who have seen lots of ups and downs. Days were not as good as now then, perhaps on various fronts including finances. But they have also seen some of the very close familial bonds that today's generations miss out on.

Second point according to me is from our children's point of view. Not only we look up to elders for mere their help in our children's case but they give children a strong foundation as to how a household runs. Their close bond with their grand-children is one of the most attractive benefits of a joint family. You can completely rely upon them when it comes to your child's safety and good upbringing. This is when the elders' contribution counts beyond imagination as it gives our children a secure family net.

And the thing that I am passionate about thrives in joint family, if you have a healthy bond- "Health!" Yes, when you don't feel lonely, when you have people to solve your problems, when you share your household work-load with someone, and when there is 'no time' for the stress to crop up in life, you tend to live quite healthily than when you live alone or in a nuclear family.

When I often talk about my joint family, some of the acquaintances call me lucky because my in laws are supportive and despite being under the same roof all the while, I don't complain. Well, I totally agree being lucky in this regard. Perhaps I often say that if I wouldn't be living in the joint family, I would never be able to start and propagate my website www.drshreya.com to such great extent. As I felt secure at home, I could do it. But I would also like to say that we, the daughters in law, should kind of stop being too contemplative of our elders' activities. If we respect our parents and if we like to see our parents in a joint family with their sons and daughters in law, we should respect our in laws as well, not only for their supportive job but for their differences as well. If we don't like our parents living a lonely life in their twilight years, we should never allow the people who have welcomed us in their family do the same.

I know it's not easy. But once you make up your mind to accept some defeats and honor the wins on the way, you can do it. Always weigh the positive aspects to the negative aspects and I am sure the positive aspects will far outweigh the negatives.

I would certainly wish that throughout our country or perhaps the world, the old tradition of joint family should again find its most deserved place! Human being is born to live socially and our society starts with our kith and kin! 

It's Important to Comprehend Efforts Behind Every Successful Person!

Watching Indian Filmfare awards on Sony. Just a thought hovered. Most of us envy these film stars who are so lucky to enjoy the stardom, exquisite fan following, enormous money, and what not! I always love watching these stars in the most suave way. Always we wonder how lucky they are but do we realize the efforts put by them to entertain us? Behind every movie that we watch, these people have put hoards of efforts and money in order to make it different and entertaining.

Well, I know many of us like the Hollywood flicks than our Indian ones, but I have always been the fan of our Indian movies too. Many of our stars inspire me to do good job in the field I am attuned to. There is no good job without the hard work. there might be many controversies in their lives. But ultimately what they do is a great work of entertaining masses. Have you ever felt uplifted after a busy or hectic day due to watching a movie you love? I do. Though I am not a movie or especially television buff, I like to watch some movies and like to engulf in the glory of these larger than life pictures at times.

They take away the dullness, lethargy, and fill me up with the zest to live life again. The latest in the series has been Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara. I am absolutely in love with this movie. I am sure many of you love it too.

I wish we (many of us) make good efforts in our field of expertise just like our favorite film stars and pave our way to the best possible position and propagate our field of interest further! 

Make Criticism Work for You!

Hi!

When we work for our goal, we are often bombarded by the negative comments of people who seek delight in this job. I often like this quote "If people are trying to bring you down, it only means that you are above them". Well, not to boost our ego but to  enhance the confidence in the right work that we are up to. If you are working for some cause, you will never be failed in the long run. Nobody can deter you from your path, unless you let them do it.

Rather, in my case, I have often found that if someone tells me that I cannot do certain thing, it increases my faith in God and myself about doing it somehow. Not that I want to let that person down but "Why not" is the question that raises in mind immediately.

Respect! It tells your character!

Had a kind of mediocre day in work sphere. One of my colleagues failed to show up on time and that disturbed my schedule a lot. It was a professional online meeting and delay by almost an hour made things go frenzy for the rest of the day. People might say it is quite all right for such things to happen but for me, such recurrent delays do not work. Perhaps this determines my work ethic. If I respect other people's time and further arrangements, I expect that they should do the same.

Many things happen in professional sphere when a woman leads the league. Well certainly things are far better now than perhaps a few years earlier. But still when the women are on front, people many times think "not so well" about them. Have seen many lack the basic quality of "Respecting Women" while dealing with them professionally. Either they try to get too personal or they try to behave irresponsibly intentionally. Having a female chief is not always welcome. But today this is quite common and females lead the organization in many places.

This is not to generalize and there are many respected exceptions. But it is high time people see at gender differentiation as the thing of remote past and move ahead together in a respectful environment.

Still in a country like India, respecting women is not very common. RESPECT is the thing that tells the person's character very strongly. The way you behave with the women (in today's networking arena), you show her how well-mannered you are.

In country like India in where our former Kings used to behave well and kindly with the ardent enemy's wives too, shouldn't we expect our younger generation to seek some wisdom from them? And sadly more and more youngsters are calling this disrespectful attitude as "cool".......

In our schools, Moral Education is a kind of joke. It is just an additional subject that is never taught and just made a passing remark about.

Perhaps all these thoughts happened to occur because of the mild spat that I had today with one of the colleagues. But I think good material for a day's blog post.

Respect is Mutual!!

Selected Writings of Mahatma Gandhi

Read today some parts of Selected Writings of Mahatma Gandhi, by Ronald Duncan. Many times, when I read such books, I don’t feel like reading them continually or get bored at some point, when I feel it’s not possible to focus anymore. But this was exception. As if I was reading a story, I could comprehend at every point and felt that Ronald Duncan was extremely lucky to have spent some quality time with this great man.

One of the great comprehensions that I could sense in Gandhi’s entailing of facts - Ronald Duncan says, I began to understand what he meant by the relation of religion to politics. ‘Every act’ he would repeat almost daily to me, ‘has its spiritual, economic and social implications. The spirit is not separate. It cannot be.’

He details a great experience with Gandhi about how he handled the filth in the village around Wardha where he was staying that time. The villagers didn’t have the slightest idea of cleanliness and used to even scatter their excreta around the village. Gandhi didn’t say them a word. He did not preach. Instead he started lifting the excreta himself and burying it. After some time villagers joined him and the area was cleaned. It just shows his ability to act without pretense and his true devotion to the underprivileged people. His actions spoke thousand words.

Even Gandhi’s positive thinking about his prison days is enthralling. Ronald says, “His dignity lay in the acceptance of every humiliation.”

When I had read “My Experiment with Truth” I was alarmed by Gandhi’s frankness and his nobility to accept his faults. Through the books I have read, I haven’t found till date such frankness and ability to condemn oneself so assuredly for some unknowingly done wrong things. Felt only if we have this single quality of acknowledging our faults, we would be far better human beings to live in the positively disposed society.

He says, “I am not a God,’ he used to complain to me, ‘if the truth were known I am tempted more than most men – but perhaps less than those who are sinners.’

That says it all!

Belief in Gandhian Philosophy

Hi,

As a citizen of free India, we all bow before this great man- Mahatma Gandhi. But still there are many people who do not seem to agree to his decisions during the freedom struggle and consequences pertaining to that. However, when I read his books, his genuineness and his honest opinions seem too difficult to ignore. Rather, once you let yourself sink into his vast galore of passionate philosophy of life, you just cannot overcome the guilt that in this country he was killed.

The passion lies in his explicitly simple philosophy. While reading his "Discourses on Gita" I am overwhelmed to the hilt at his awe-inspiring depth of wisdom and ability to grasp and explain the "right" things "rightly". Well and this opinion remains so despite reading this text repeatedly! 

Purpose of This Blog

Hello!

You must be wondering why this separate blog when already our Dr Shreya's Health and Homeopathic Blog is doing great in all spheres. But the writer inside me (just the liking to write, not some extra-ordinary skills here) was bubbling to pen down the things that seem important for me.

Moreover, apart from health I have a passion for reading and writing. So, thought that whatever I will read, I will put down some thoughts regarding it here in this blog. Must say, they will all be my personal opinions and so should be seen in that light only.

I hope that quite frequently I will be able to put at least a few words which seem righteous to me or appeal me in some manner here in my updates.

I wish readers from all walks of life should come to this page and comment on what seems to be of liking to them. I certainly hope for some healthy discussion here. Anyone who wishes to put their own thoughts can also send me their thoughts in the form of a small blog post at shreya.doctor@gmail.com and if they are genuine, I will add them to this blog with due credit to them.

So, wish me good-luck for this new endeavor to discover myself!