Blog:Diary:Me

I don't remember which class I was in, when we had the activity of writing 'Diary'. If I remember it right, it was in my 5th Std. This concept of writing a page, a summarized version of the days happenings fascinated me. The exercise in the English class was to imagine oneself as the main character in the lesson, and to write as 'Him/Her'. Since that day, I used to write Diary. Though like other practices, this too weaned away gradually.

I noticed, when I write my diary too, I would write as if someone would be reading it eventually. So the whole page was tailored to suits the needs of many. Most of the events of the day, as and when it happens, I would go, "Hmmm this needs a mention in my diary!" Same has been the case with the blog.

Just so that my blog knows, she has been in my mind always! As close as a Diary is to its owner :)

Love

Me

Learning in doing...

Oh My God! The last post was posted months ago. This India visit gave me a glimpse of how many people knew my "Anuboothi"! I am not even getting into the reasons on why I was not blogging. There was a transfer to Chicago and decision to settle down in this 'Windy-city'. Then came the long time, no see 'India' visit for three months. Now I am back in Chicago, with feel-like temperature of -5 Degree Fahrenheit and hot ginger tea by my side, doing the most procrastinated work of mine.

In United States of America, it is very easy to purchase furniture and other such items, but the fitting and settings part has to be done by us. While I was away in India, R had purchased a Television Stand and a Television. Day before yesterday, we both sat to fit the whole set. I love doing such work but I have this irritating habit of not reading the whole manual and going ahead :-) R gets so bugged!

The activity which was a learning.

This time also things were not any different. To make matters more challenging I did not even see the photo of the said T.V Stand. But was looking into the instructions page-wise. But the moment I saw the whole book, I started doubting, if we will be able to do it on our own.We went ahead, a page at a time. And time passed and we had the construction completed in front of us.

I realized, this is what was happening in my life, when I would think of the future and worry myself, as to how I will be able to cope. This only tosses by present moment, which is nothing but my 'Happiness'. Thinking is like a maze which does not have an exit point. One enters it, and gets stuck in it, but one begins to feel comfortable in it and does not think of exiting it and by the time one wants to exit, there is no exit point.

Sri Sri Ravi Shankar, the Founder of The Art of Living Organisation has His reply to the given situation:

 Q: Guruji, they say the recipe for depression is to only think about oneself. But at the start of Mahabharata war, Arjuna was thinking about others, yet he was depressed. Please explain.

Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Well, the mantra for depression is - “What about me, what about me”. And Arjuna was thinking how he could do the work which he was supposed to do, and what people would think of him. It was again about himself only. It is not just thinking about oneself, but your other different attachments and lack of understanding can also lead to depression. But one sure technique to get depressed is- Just sitting, doing nothing and thinking, ‘what about me, what about me, what will happen to me?’ You are sure to get depressed this way!

Love

Me

Save the Soul!

I am still shocked and the goosebumps refuse to leave, as I heard the horrific story of a 9th std boy stabbed his own teacher, in the classroom, in Chennai.


'The 15-year-old boy reportedly brought a knife in his school bag. He allegedly entered the class around 11 am on Thursday, well before others where the Hindi teacher was waiting. He reportedly stabbed the teacher five times. She raised the alarm and the other students rushed in. The accused boy reportedly did not try to run away.'


I don't know what was running in his mind! But I want to. The amount of anger and vengeance the boy had is reflected in the action of, as he did not try to get away. He exactly knew the plan of action. But there is this something in me, making me feel helpless, about what are the things which led to this. I am sure just some comments in the diary might not have set it a flame. Kids by nature have this power to let-go. But the environment around polishes or cut through , when he is growing.

What comes into question is wasn't there any other way of throwing away the stress? A 9th year old boy and murder is the answer? Did he ever speak to his family or teachers? Was he happy? Was he stressed? Was he loved for? Was he cared?

He must have thought or just watched the whole murder-scene play in his mind. Again, the kids being present-moment thinkers, he must not even have thought of the consequences. Media here has a strong role to play. With its boon and bane nature, we zero on to the statement, 'If used properly, its a boon, or else a bane.'

Being with students all around, I have seen personally how they take when they get one mark less than their friend. Eyes begin to water, anger swells up in the cheeks and mouth remains shut. It was always a challenge for me, to deal with my kids at this time. But a hug, a small pep-talk would always work with them. But there are moments when they have reasoned and questioned and have been helpless. How do we deal with this at a very young age?

I was taught to give myself the permission to fail, so that I can grow. I am not blaming here, as blame game is a vicious circle. But the competition is not getting any healthier. Today, if a child fails in a small game, it becomes a prestige issue for the family. The most scary is the anger and inability to take it well. I pray from the bottom of my heart, lets make this world a better place to live in. Let us grow our children like plants, where in we give them the environment and let them grow with the necessary weeding, chipping here and there and take a step back to appreciate the fruits and flowers.

We...

Sharika and Me.. A letter sent to me, one day before Friendship's Day, boosted myself with this one ...:) Did not edit it much :)


To have a friend who is by your side, no matter what, in spite of all the misgivings and fights and judgments and cries, is a blessing. I do not know what have I done to have such a beautiful blessing in my life. It is not in my nature to be in touch with people and yet somehow we seemed to have been stuck with each other for 9 years now!! For all the times we shared here, for all those midnight sobbings, for all those encouraging messages and forwards, for all the mean fights, for all those silent prayers, for all the infuriating acts, for all those stomach-hurting laughter, for all those mindless chats and gossips, for all those unseen acts of kindness, for that space and stillness shared in silence and for all the patience.. I am truly blessed to have a friend like you...

I KNOW you are supposedly my twin and all.. but I would still like to celebrate friendship day and some wise-ass said" Pyaar ko bus, pyaar hi rehene do, Use koi naam na do". So friend or sister or mum or teacher and guide , or my better half ( which I have felt so very many times, and which is why I believe we can have more than one soul mates:) I don't know what to call you.. But I have to say this you are someone who has been through me in this beautiful journey of self-discovery and in many ways than one helped me to know me better, the Guru better.


So, happy friendship day in advance and tons and heaps of love
p.s. just in case you didn't figure out, I am missing you :)

Mantra and the Sadhana

'Mananaat traayate iti mantrah' is what the term 'Mantra' means.  That which helps the mind to transcend, and saves one from repetitiveness is a mantra. A repetitive thought is a worry. Mantras helps to free us from worries. I attended ' Mantra Sadhana Seminar' conducted by Prof V. Shastry, a Sanskrit Scholar, a Pries,t as well as a Professor of Engineering in Halifax,Canada. We were a bunch of assorted people; some who had background in Sanskrit, some who just heard about Mantras, some who knew the meanings, some who knew only the benefits, some who were chanting it for the first time. A place were all backgrounds and religions became one, with the intention of 'Learning'.

I belong to the category of people who knew some of the Mantras, and also chanting came easily for me. Sastryji says, "When chanting Mantra without knowing the meaning, the feeling does not come." I could not grasp the power of this sentence until the first day of the Course. The first day began with chants which I more or less knew. But when we began chanting them with the background of meaning, history of the Chant, and proper intonation, it blew me away. Each day made in-roads to a blissful component of oneself, and mind you, just by chanting. Meditations became effortless and also the daily life became a rhythmic activity.

The Course began at 6:30 PM. Most of them were professionals and by evening energy-battery is dipping  down. Indeed I too used to be so tired and wonder, how am I going to chant today. Lo Behold! with the first chant itself the energy would go so high. By 9:30 PM, there would be 30 energetic individuals talking and having fun, as well as connected to the Ancient Tradition, which has been passed on to us through many generations. 

Shastryji also mentioned, how many such knowledge and traditions are dying due to the absence of knowledge transmission. I see it in my family too. My grandparents passed on many of the daily Mantras, Sahasranams to my parents. My parents regularly chant, and I learnt them in the absence of the meanings. So I would be able to pass on only the Mantras without the meanings. But thanks to Mantra Sadhana Seminar, we know what we are chanting, when to chant, how to chant, what effect it has on our minds as well as the consciousness around us.

Another profound point I noticed and also Sastry ji spoke on, was about the presence of GURU-SHISYA bond.The 5 days were like in a Gurukul, with the Guru, who taught us mostly through repetition and SMRITI (Memorizing). I had learnt Laitha Sahasranamam through a book and listening to the CD. But when he taught us, the experience was just 'out of the world'.

I am glad that I have taken a step to be proud of my roots and culture which is millions of years young and applicable in today's world of ours.

Am I ?

Just like how a Dubai returned guy is entertained to a question he dreads, last month was my turn. It was just that, "When are you leaving ?" is replaced by, "What do you do at home ?" and "How do you pass time?" Ratheesh smiles when I get to answer such questions because I have always acted the conversation out to him. Yesterday it stuck me :)
During our courtship days I was very busy. 'Very' seems to be a small word here. Teaching and travelling distances was an every day affair :) So whenever Ratheesh called, it was always "Busy" phone. He told me, that I would be seriously bored and would hate it here. So be prepared. Same thing was repeated to me, by my cousins and friends who had gone through this phase. Hmmmmmmmm

Learning:
 I decided that once I land at Chicago, I am going to feel thoroughly bored. My whole aim and purpose here is to feel bored. Thats it!!! Till now not even a day has come, to the amazement of my Amma, Achan, Ratheesh when I actually told them, "I AM BORED." (Touch wood ***)


This I realised, boils down to the fact that, what you resist, PERSISTS. 


Stop for now :)


Love 
me

Blah... Blah... Bliss... Bliss

This is going to be one of my Favourite posts. All of mine are mine... yet this one is going to Be One :). Last week was tremendously loaded with emotional extremes. Do not want to go into the details as it is pure gossip :P Blah Blah... Was feeling blah all together and found out that was spreading Blahness around :) This is not fair nah.. So decided to willingly go through it, not before my mind conflicting on the Very Presence of Blahness... How can I feel Blah????
First and foremost reason being, am an Art of Living teacher. But then this awareness would not have dawned if I was not in Kriya World too. Second reason is ,I am getting, married, so am supposed to be all excited. Says who???!!!! Third, Its not the right time... Blah ness ... Blahness... OMG! It was so sandy..

Then yesterday night after really long started dancing :)

At a tender age itself I was trained in classical dance, and then within a span of 3 years laziness overtook and that stopped it. The first major decision I took in my life and the result is, REGRET! :) Coming back to the topic:  I began dancing at around 11 and could feel myself fuming with anger at the same time. Continued the 'process' for sometime. As the songs changed, so did the emotions, feelings and thoughts. The war inside began to calm. It was such a revelation.

Then I sat and meditated. It was ocean-calm. Blahness and Bliss are both within us, a matter of shift. Instrumental for this is awareness and a technique :)

...

Off late have been putting effort on becoming effortless :) I know it sounds funny, but never is, when you are at the end point. My countdown at The Yenepoya School has begun. Leaving the gems is going to be an effort. They are so sweet, cute, awesome, innocent, smart, fine, creative and above all they are CHILDREN.

I never had much trouble in leaving jobs, owe it to Bawa and Dinesh Da... But this is going to be challenging. In my previous jobs, they needed me, but here, I NEED THEM.... They are this unconditional beings who catch you off-guard, yet you don't complain and are happy... They let me be me... Even if you don't let them BE, they know how to BE :) They are this embodiment of THREE ENERGIES :) Brahma, Vishnu and the Shiva Energies... They are the InnoGuru (Innocent Guru)...

                                                 Althaf, Tahshir and Mazin

They are the world, they Make the World... They made me a better person :) Every kid is special..Whether it is Suzna's cuteness, Nihali's Nakras, Prerna's hug, Sasha's stories, Shubha's answers, Sim's talk or Muzna's silence. Going to miss them... Ashoor is this silent victory, Ayush is the Scientist of the class, Calvin is the Travel-guide, Farhaan is the Elvis Presly roled into Harry Potter, Krishaan is the Whiz Kid, Althaf is the MJ and chota nakrebaaz , Mazin's smiles floors us all, Tahshir's focus and innocence, Hasnain's silent smile and firing the dance floor, Marwan's Miss Miss!!! Can I ???; Rehan, the adjustable and 'Its fine' boy, Rishik whose life is football and untainted honesty,Shanshank! the Bunny Mediator, Ehsaan, the smart one and the prompt leader, Narasimha, the enthusiastic and never Give up Champ, and Aryan the Yo!Man with tons of 'I get It' :)

IV A! The class into which I was welcomed! The doors which they opened, the experiences they shared, the times they shed tears, the moments they feared.... The success they held high and failures they stepped, the first-times they smiled at, the confidence they hugged, the sharing they learnt, the criticism they accepted! It was fun! It was more... It was the place where we found each other :)


Love you all...


Ms Vini
Class Teacher, IV A
The Yenepoya School :)
Mangalore

Acceptance Realized!

Today was supposed to be like any other day. But it was not, as it triggered me to write a post after long hibernation. :) These events make it to my blog. Today took up follow-up and unique thing about this one being, it was for the Part-1 graduates. This is no different. But the events which lead to the main one are 'THE EVENTS' you see.
Murali Anna (Part-1 Faculty) calls me up and informs me about the follow-up to be taken at a place called Radhakrishna Mandir. But my head and memory voluntarily decides to work. Yeah! I hear it as Centre. Can you imagine Radhakrishna Mandir mistaken to be Centre. The two places are on two corners of the city. Rain gods too thought let her have a shower, so it starts pouring. As I walk to the bus-stand, I debate on taking an auto-rickshaw or board a bus. But then, I become responsible and decide to board a bus. Bus was over-crowded. The conductor himself was hanging out. Impatience can lead to meditation??!?! I have no clue! But I begin mediation with co-passengers and enter the bus completely after about three stops. Walk to the Centre as a proud teacher and responsible citizen and an awesome daughter. Saved  lot of energy! money! fuel! :)

I reach there to find just Ghate Mam (Center in-charge), happy to see a human-being in otherwise deserted place. We exchange pleasantries!!!!  no longer pleasant. Its already 5:55 PM and at 6 PM am supposed to be there ar Radhakrishna Mandir.I catch 3 ricks, as Mangalore Rickshaws (refer my post put in last year) are highly God-save-them kinds. Don't even mention them. Go away!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Reach at 6:10 PM for follow-up. People are shocked to see a young girl who refused to introduce herself or rather forgot. I begin the Pranayams and tape in which new batteries are installed, refuse to work :) I plug it instead and it begins. My Kannada was put to test, or rather people were put to test and the I meditated !

All this happened and Acceptance point was put into practicality today. As it is always, my smile was impressed on my face and I was also laughing. Accepting people, situation and oneself is difficult! I agree, that is why only brave people excel in it!!!!!

Happy Navrathras :):) Enjoy the Satwa and be that...

A must read :)

http://www.vikramhazra.com/2010/06/case-of-dyslexic-farmer.html

Random Realizations in a Random Manner :)

Last fews days beautifully added to the pages of my life. :) :) :)

TTC (Teachers Training Course) has actually changed and polished my life. Sharika is leaving for the same. It is going to be a beautiful milestone in this Journey of ours. Life is all about accommodating people into the realm of love. Unlike the Reality shows jargon, it is about 'Selection', rather than 'Elimination'.
Only a lighted candle can light other candles. And a candle does not limit its light to itself. Just like Mother-Nature it is there to give and serve. Since few months i realized, how by sharing and caring, we are in harmony with the nature and the nature goes to any extent to 'Take Care' of us. You all are light! Spread the light!

Possession Vs Love! Guruji says it beautifully. The moment we see something or sense something/someone really nice, we want to possess it. Instead of soaking in the beauty we plan and design ways to possess it! Not just possess it, but possess it FOREVER. The moment we decide to drop this feeling, we feel light from within. At least there is this better feeling than the feelings we have while we Thought we owned it.

Last week was a thunderous week! Intro-Talk training in Mangalore and YES!+ course in Manipal :)
Nature was so happy, that she saw to it that , it rained while I was there so that I feel even more good.
Lives transformed...

Love is in air

Mangalore and Manipal is buzzing with activities. Love is in the air! Yes! Both the places are watching Narad Bhakti Sutras- A commentary by His Truely on Aphorisms of Love. The magical part of His talks are, it will come packaged for us the way it has to, matching the day’s happenings. I must have watched and heard the talks before, but still it all looks like the first time :). Like the other day, after the whole bunch was done with the upgrade, we sat on to watch the CD. We had gone to Pabaas, to celebrate the Upgrade :) So we were cool. (P.S: Pabaas is an ice-cream parlour).


The talk begins and His examples are all on ice-creams. The volunteers were discussing one day about the laughter of a YES!+ girl. Fun and frolic. That day Sri Sri mentioned about laughter, transcending joy and spreading love through laughter :).

This is Him. Magical and a Mystery, just like our life. Up for the week is Vegilicious- Cooking Competition at Manipal and Movie Marathon in Mangalore.



Love

Me

Why do we shout when we are angry?

A Guru asked his devotees, 'Why do we shout in anger? Why do people shout at each other when they are upset?'
His devotees thought for a while, one of them said, 'Because we lose our calm, we shout for that.'
'But, why do you shout when the other person is just next to you?' asked the guru. 'Isn't it possible to speak to him or her with a soft voice? Why do you shout at a person when you're angry?'
The devotees gave some other answers but none satisfied the guru.

Finally he explained, 'When two people are angry at each other, their hearts distance a lot. To cover that distance they must shout to be able to hear each other.
The angrier they are, the stronger they will have to shout to hear each other through that great distance.'
Then the guru asked, 'What happens when two people fall in love? They don't shout at each other but talk softly, why? Because their hearts are very close.
The distance between them is very small...'
The guru continued, 'When they love each other even more, what happens? They do not speak, only whisper and they get even closer to each other in their love.
Finally they even need not whisper, they only look at each other and that's all. That is how close two people are when they love each other.

'MORAL' said the Guru:
'When you argue do not let your hearts get distant, do not say words that distance each other more, or else there will come a day when the distance is so great that you will not find the path to return!'

"Let's all be masters of our mouths, so that we won't become slaves to our words"

Credits: Message from E-Satsang group in Facebook.

Suicide: Messing up with Karmic Connection.

The amount of suicide rates just shooting up like crazy, the challenges in front is becoming more profound. It's crazy. have no words actually. So here is Bawa telling about it in a better way. 

Link to Sounds Interesting: http://bawandinesh.name/suicide/

 

Answer is not your death! Solution is in your fingertips.

WE Care For the World! We CARE FOR YOU! 

Love

Me

Shivratri: Wake up & Shake up!

Shivaratri is the day of Lord Shiva. Shiva is the lord of meditation and therefore the lord of awakening. Shiva Tatva means to be awakened. Shivaratri is thus an occasion to awaken one’s self from all sorts of slumber.

Shivaratri is not a night to be slept over. One should try and be up through the night. It signifies being aware of everything you have and being grateful about it. Be grateful for the happiness which leads to growth, and also for sadness which gives a depth to life. This is the right way of observing Shivaratri. For the pious, the following method of Shiva worship is advisable – sit down in lotus posture, do some Pranayam to stabilize your breath, then indulge in Dhyana, followed by chanting of “Om Namah Shivay”. It is the greatest mantra and the devout should drown himself in its Kirtan. Shivaratri worship leads to fulfillment of a devotee’s wishes. There are certain days and time frames in a year that enhance one’s mental and spiritual faculties. In such times, whatever one wishes, materializes. Shivaratri is one such day.

All this is very scientific. Going to temples on this day is OK but you should remember that Shiva is everywhere. The meaning of Kailasa (legendary abode of Shiva in Himalayas) is celebration. So where there is happiness and celebration, Shiva is present. Whether in Sanyasa or Sansara, you can’t escape Shiva. Feeling his presence all the time is the essence of Shivaratri. That is the real Sanyasa. No worship is complete without offering something to the deity. Shiva is a very simple lord, he is innocent – bholanath. One just needs to offer bel-patra to him. But in this simplicity is a deep message. Bel-patra offerings signify the surrender of all three aspects of one’s nature – Tamas, Rajas and Sattva. You have to surrender the positives and negatives of your life to Shiva and become carefree! The greatest offering is your self. To offer one’s self is the key to happiness in life. Afterall, why do you get sad? It is mainly because you are not able to achieve something in life. At such times you should surrender everything to the all knowing God. The greatest power is in surrender to the divine. It’s like a drop owning the ocean. If a drop remains separate, it will perish. But when it becomes the ocean, it is eternal!

(The above is an excerpt from an exclusive conversation that Guruji had with Zee News.)

Long time, No see.

Have been lagging behind and not kept my promise of updating the blog rather regularly. A mast batch of YES!+ graduated in Manipal and Mangalore. I met Bawa and Dinesh Da recently in Goa. Cool na. Roller coaster ride for sure. This time Tanushri, a dynamic teacher from Pune, Bangalore and Singapore came down. :) No no, there were no three teachers. She is from all these places.

Had a talk today in an esteemed college of Mangalore. I started a new trend in talks. Giving out health menu card.  Around 90% of the student crowd have back-related problems, head-heaviness, and acidity, stomach related problems, cold and cough attacks. Even I used to have this terrible back-pains and acidity. Thank you AOL and Sudarshan Kriya, it just remains a memory now. Yeah! Future of India you see. At 9:00 AM in morning they are yawning and burnt out. Stressed out at such a young age, as though the entire universe is on their shoulders. Confused! Stressed! Have become the watch words of their life. Teachers are there to take care of the knowledge banks, busy completing portions, setting up papers and correcting them. Phew... at the end they puke out the answers and become hollow and empty in non-spiritual terms for a second.

By the by, Pain is inevitable! But suffering is optional!

Heal the world. Have taken a step. It is your turn.

Love

Me

Right side or Left???

Our left side is cooling and right side produces more energy in the body. Means? If you are lying down to your left side, what has happened? Your stomach is like this, right? So, in sleep, you get good sleep because the food will all stay there. If you turn to the right side, the food comes up to the esophagus. So it is best to sleep on left side down. When you sleep left side, your right nostril functions, then the metabolic rate in your body is 50% more. When the right nostril functions, the metabolism in the body is 50% more than the normal. Supposing the metabolic is, if it is 100 unit, it will be 150 unit when the right is functioning. So, reverse will happen when you sleep on this side, right side. What will happen? The left nostril will function. At that time, the metabolism in your body is 50% less. When it is 50% less, there is more calmness, there is more serenity. More completion is there. So when you get up, stress release, all activities are all over, you feel very complete and settled and serene. That's why after meditation, after Kriya, we lie down on our right side so that when we get up, our left is functioning. It soothes the whole system. Left side soothes, right side invigorates the system. So, always we do that.
Sri Sri

.

                                                  

Making a difference....

This is a letter from Antoine, a YES!+ Teacher from Montreal. This is why I say Being an Art of Living Teacher/Volunteer gives me 100% job satisfaction....Read on...Antoine sends a letter of the experience...

Thank you for your amazing guidance on the phone yesterday. Everything you told me about creating a family, doing Puja, being their spiritual guide…it felt nice but I had no idea how to make it happen! It turns out I didn’t have to do anything, it just all happened effortlessly and spontaneously on its own.

Yesterday night when I returned home after Day 1 of the course, I sat with my 2 hosts Emma age 24 and Jessica age 22. Jessica is addicted to pot and Emma is an alcoholic. I told them I wanted them to become completely drug and alcohol free. Not just for the 6 days of the course but for life. I spoke to them about how drugs and alcohol was destroying their community and said: “It’s better to put liquor in the garbage than to put garbage in your body. Are you ready to throw it away?”

The analogy was too good; Jessica got up, opened the fridge, and gave me her last beer can. She said: “Here you go, I don’t want this anymore.”
I asked her to bring me whatever pot she was smoking as well. She went to her room, brought a plate that had a pipe, rolling paper, and little lump of weed on it.

I turned over to Emma, the 24 year old with the 8 year old daughter. I said: “Your cousin did a brave thing. Is there a bad habit you want to surrender as well?”
She went to the kitchen under the sink and brought me 4 bottles of hard liquor. She was hugging the bottles with such attachment. She couldn’t let go of them. Then she finally gave me 3 of the 4 bottles. The last one, a bottle of Kahlua, was her favourite. She said she wanted to keep that one for her birthday party. I looked at her and said: “In that case, keep them all, it’s no use.” Before I could hand her back her 3 bottles, she had kissed her Kahlua goodbye and surrendered it to me.

I turned back to Emma and felt she was still hiding something. “You must have a bigger stash of weed somewhere?”
“No this is it.” she replied.
I lovingly told her “You can’t hide secrets from me. I’m here to take care of you!”
She went back to her room and brought back a large Ziploc bag filled with weed. She looked a little embarrassed as she was revealing her addiction.

She held on to it saying: “This is worth 250$. I can’t throw it away, I already paid for it. I’ll finish smoking this stash and then I promise I won’t buy any more after that”.
I told her “I don’t care about a measly 250$, I’ll give you 250$ if that’s want you’re concerned with. What I care about is your health and your future.”

Jessica and Emma started consulting each other in Inuktitut, their native language. They had come to a consensus: “We promise we won’t smoke it but we can’t give it to you. We rather get our money back by selling it on the streets.”

“What good is that? If you improve your health by destroying the health of others?”
They had to agree, and she handed her bag of weed over to me. I put everything on the kitchen table and said I wouldn’t flush it because it had to come from them. They were both staring at their addictions with such attachment as though they were about to surrender their new born babies. Their breathing was heavy, they were trembling at the thought of having to give it up for good. Emma was holding back some tears. “It’s ok to cry, we are family here” I told her.

She got up, took the liquor and flushed it down the kitchen sink. Her attachment to the poison was so strong, she was sniffing above the sink to imbibe herself with the smell of Baileyes, Rhum and Kahlua one last time as it was going down the drain.

Jessica felt inspired by her cousin’s heroic move. She took her weed, we walked over to the toilet, and she emptied her stash and flushed it. The moment was so intense for them, they were trembling as I hugged them both.

I was proud of them. I told Emma it was the best thing she could have done for her and her daughter. She felt some truth in that, walked over to her room and brought a whole other crate of liquor she had ordered in by ship this summer. “This is all I have left” she said as she surrendered it. “There’s 500$ worth of alcohol in here.” she said. I was really proud of her.

“But what will I do on my birthday if I’m the only sober one?” she asked. I said “This year on your birthday you will not waste yourself. Your birthday should be an occasion to grow in wisdom. You will invite Art of Living people for your birthday and you will have a nice time.” I asked her cousin if she would support her and organize an Art of Living get together for her on her birthday. She agreed as Emma started pouring her alcohol down the drain more confidently this time, three bottles at a time. She felt so relieved.

Jessica noticed her cousin’s relief and walked back to her room to bring another bag, this time filled with magic mushrooms. This was her last stash. She flushed the mushrooms down the toilet saying: “Anyway this stuff is stupid, the only reason it makes you hallucinate is because it makes your brain bleed”. She was sure of herself this time.

Jessica said: “I feel so much lighter now. This house will be drug, cigarette and alcohol free from now on.“

I told them: “I am proud of both of you. Had you sold this stuff on the streets, what kind of role model would you have been? Today you took a stand and became a leader in your community. You are now role models and can inspire others to do the same.” Emma was so touched. It felt as though she had been called a loser by many people in the past. Today someone was calling her a leader.

I warned them that the days ahead would be really hard because the temptation would come back to haunt them and they had to be strong and inspire each other to stay clean. I reassured them I would be there for them.

They really wanted to come out of it for good, but it was apparent that they were not confident they would have the strength to do it. You could tell they were going through a lot of emotions and were both quietly praying for help and strength not knowing where to find it.

So I took out a picture of Guruji, lit a candle, put an asan on the couch, sat on it, and invited them to come closer and sit with me. I told them: “Now, we will sing the most ancient prayer in the world. It brings strength, blessings, and protection to those who hear it.” Just by seeing Guruji’s picture and hearing those few words they immediately felt confident that everything would be fine. I sang the Guru Puja as they sat at my feet holding hands with their eyes closed.
They had tears of gratitude. The moment was so serene; the whole atmosphere in the house had changed. Peace had dawned. They sat in silence for a long time afterwards as we meditated together.

I gave them each a blessing and sent them off to bed telling them to sleep with a blanket of grace.
When I arrived 2 days ago, the vibrations in the house were so intense; I was awake for most of the first night. But last night, everything had shifted; there was finally an atmosphere of calm and peace in the house.
Guruji had done his magic once again, changing people’s lives forever!

Today there are 2 more people who walk on the planet with Guruji in their hearts.
Jai Guru Dev.

ps You can directly write to Antoine, his email id is antoine.tinawi@artofliving.ca

Shamelessly cut copied n pasted from Bawa's blog....with his permission :)

YES to YES Consciousness

Rashmin Bhaiya(YES!+ Teacher) spoke of the importance of YES Consciousness in his blog(rashminp.blogspot.com). This is one of the most powerful technique to make a difference in one’s own life and have a positive impact on one’s soul. Recently Sharika was telling me that being in YES consciousness is the question. How to? People in this spiritual path, depending on their Sadhana and Karma, will atleast have the awareness that they are not in this consciousness. This itself is a big achievement.

Our Sadhana (Spiritual Practices), Seva (Unconditional Service), Satsang (Company of truth) and the Silence (within) will determine the extent and quality of this consciousness. We have all experienced the miracles of this Consciousness some or the other time.

Along with this, while giving it a thought, I realised it is a decision we take. For instance, today I decide I will be in this consciousness for next 24 hrs. Guruji always says when you want to make something good a habit, give short term goals. Hence clubbed with our Sadhana and our decision to remain in YES Consciousness, nothing can stop us from contentment and ultimately at any cause saving one’s own mind.

Navratri: SIGNIFICANCE -THE DIVINE NINE NIGHTS

“Nava” has two meanings. One is ‘nine’ and the other meaning is ‘new’. As a snake sheds off its outer skin, we too should cast away all our old things and make our consciousness new. “Ratri” means night, which gives rest. We suffer from three types of afflictions. One is that suffering, which arises from inside and another is that, which arises externally. The third one is subtle and in-between these two. Night relieves us from these three afflictions and brings rest to the mind, body and consciousness. What happens when you sleep? You are relieved of all your worries. During these nine nights or Navratri, your mind should be in the Divine consciousness. Like a baby is in the mother’s womb for nine months before it is born, similarly, during these nine days and nights, one should go inwards and remember the source. These nine days of celebration are meant to take one inward and upward. It’s an inward and an upward journey. During these auspicious days, make sure that small things do not distract you from your goal. Our mind so tricky that it pulls us away from our goal and gets us stuck in small things. Just someone sneezing next to us or snoring near us is enough to pull us off track. When we become aware of our mind, which is getting into the negative cycle, we become clever. It’s then that we can win over the small chattering mind. Therefore, these nine nights are meant for us to rest. Out of total nine days, three nights each correspond to the three gunas- tamas, rajas and sattva. Therefore, even if conflicts arise, keep them all aside and go back to your innocence. This whole body cosmos is made up of that one energy called Devi. This whole universe is made up of that vibrating and scintillating consciousness, and all our bodies are like the floating shells in the ocean of consciousness, which is unseen. You can’t see it, but you can feel it. So, during these nine days, you should feel the unknown. It’s a journey towards the unknown.

Navaratri Traditions in the Ashram:

For Art of Living family world-wide it’s a special time. Art of Living family is in one spirit and has one Sankalpa (the power that is born to resolve).  The first three days of the Navratri are committed to honoring Durga, the embodiment of valour and self-confidence.  The next three days are committed to Lakshmi, the embodiment of wealth.  The last three days are dedicated to Saraswathi, the embodiment of knowledge. Thus the significance of Navratri is linked to one’s spiritual growth. Knowledge and wisdom, skills and virtuous qualities, will be bestowed upon one, after one rids oneself of impurities. Fasting and following a disciplined routine during these days are common practices. One does not fast to please the Gods, but to purify one’s body and mind.