The Identity

                                           The Identity

           A river was flowing near the outskirts of a village. Once the ocean, the king of the rivers, asked the river, ‘ Why don’t you come and join me as others do?’ The river replied, ‘Oh king, these villagers depend on me for water. They know the value. So they dip their pots or vessels in my water and carry the water home for drinking, cooking, washing, bathing and other purposes. Since I am their only source of water, they take care not to pollute me. So I also feel that I should serve them and satisfy them more and more. I try to break the big stones hindering for depth and free  flow, so that when the rains come I could store more and more and pure water for their use. If I merge into you, my water will become saline and unfit for any use. Furthermore, I find pleasure at seeing the little birds coming and sitting on the banks to dip their beaks for a few sips of water. The travellers coming this side rest under the shade of the big trees on my bank enjoy the cool breeze and my pure and cool water. I will miss these small pleasures of life if I join you. So I would like to have my own small Identity, and enjoy my life serving the villagers here only.’

What a true statement ! The urge to serve others is found in every created thing in the world. Somewhere it is obvious, somewhere it is latent. A tree is so useful. It gives out oxygen, gives fruits, shade, wood for furniture and firewood. Cats and dogs as pets are of immense value.
 Nothing whatsoever in the universe can ever give you joy and contentment. You have to bring it to yourself. That is the spirit of service only. Service is always one of the cherished principles of all religions. The spirit of service is the expression of love only. When you do something for the world, the world will definitely take care of you. It is mutual. This is the law of Nature. In serving others, there is happiness to oneself and to others. In giving happiness, one understand the eternal , joyful nature of life. Living becomes meaningful and joyful.
Everyone wants to be useful in the world in his own capacity. Everything has a unique value and everything has a specific role to serve in this world.

When even a small thing finds itself useful to others and others recognize it, the living becomes joyful. When that value is recognized, the tendency to render more and more service to others develops. When a mother knows that her child likes a certain dish, her spirit of service motivates her to explore more and more to make the dish in different ways and delicious and make the child happy. This is the case with everything. Being of service to others is what brings true happiness.
All other pleasures and possessions pale into nothingness before service which is rendered in a spirit of joy. As Mahatma Gandhi says,

“ That service is the noblest which is rendered for its own sake.”

Life is a sacred gift. Everyone has a purpose in life and a unique talent to give and share with others. And wnen we blend this unique talent with service to others, we experience the ecstasy  and exultation  of our own being, which is the real and ultimate goal of our life.

The magic of a book - An amazing journey from a raw wood to a book

                                    The magic of a book - An amazing journey from a raw wood to a book


      Here  Carl Edward Sagan, the famous American astronomer, cosmologist, astrophysicist, astrobiologist, great author all rolled into one, puts the theme in an interesting, inspiring and beautiful words with such a profoundity, that it surpasses everything. To quote his words,

“ What an astonishing thing a book is ! It’s a flat object made from a tree with flexible parts on which are imprinted lots of funny dark squiggles. But one glance at it and you’re inside the mind of anotherperson, may be somebody dead for thousands of years. Across the millennia,an author is speaking clearly and silently inside your head, directly to you. Writing is perhaps the greatest of human inventions, binding together people who never knew each other, citizens of different epochs. Books break the shackles of time. A book is proof that humans are capable of working magic.“

What a splendid journey of a blessed raw wood of the tree resulting in the highest culmination, namely the magical creation of a book ! 

The miraculous power of contentment

                                 The miraculous power of contentment


     Once a king invited a saint to his palace. After offering him fruits with due respects, he started conversing with the saint. The king was over-awed by the glow shining on the face of the saint and said, ‘ Respected saint ! I am jealous of you . You don’t  possess anything, no responsibility to bother you, your contentment, happiness and purity reflects on your face ! What is the secret ? Whereas ,I have a huge kingdom with no enemies ,to rule over and servants to serve me with anything and everything I want.

The saint replied with a smile, ‘ I pity you , oh king !  You have such a small kingdom to rule over. You live in such a small place called ‘ palace ‘. The songs of the entire vast sky belong to me. I am the owner of the fruits of the trees in Nature. The fresh , cool water of the rivers is my drink. In my open hut, the moon and the stars are ever with me. I am more richer than you .’

This statement is not only apt from the self- reazied soul like saint, but is equally applicable for an ordinary man also.
Ordinary man feels happy when material growth is there and unhappy when it is not there. This is due to his uncontrolled, unsteady mind.

God has created man as well as Nature. Both are inter-dependent. We should develope a sense of our belonging to Nature, not a sense of mastering over and exploiting Nature.  If you take care of   Nature,  Nature will take care of you. You don’t need anything else.That magic power the Nature has. One has to experience to realize this. It is said,
“ God loved the birds and created trees ,
   Man loved the birds and invented cages.”
Out of ignorance and haughtiness, it is the human society that sustains itself by transforming Nature into garbage. Whereas the value of Nature is priceless. Nature is not only a provider of boundless bounties, but is also a great companion , and never betrays a heart that loves her. Nature is a great healer too. People go for  Nature-walk to get physical and mental vigour.   Nature is always  inspiring and rejuvenating.The vast sky with stars and planets, the ocean with its rich aquatic creatures, the trees, birds and animals are the richest wealth bestowed by Nature on man. Nature has given us so much, if we have eyes to see, ears to hear and a mind to enjoy, they become the doorway to happiness and enjoyment. Finding joy in ordinary things of life is the key to being truly fulfilled life. When you take time to appreciate and enjoy Nature in its varied forms, such as a flower, a fruit hanging from the tree, a carpet of green grass, cool breeze blowing, the mind will become grateful, joyful, contented , calm and serene.

An ordinary man is not to renounce the world like a saint. To be contented does not mean that you should not strive to achieve anything. In this mad world, man has to work and compete with others. This contentment will have profound impact on the individual. He can achieve a lot of things. A contented, grateful mind awakenes the inner abilities and talents. It will not only identify your problems, but also give you power and energy to solutions. Even when we experience a set back also, the mind when contented is serene and takes somekind of positive meaning in that and go ahead with the task undertaken. With peace in mind, staying motivated becomes natural.

If the spirit of contentment is not there, apart from the physical exhaustion, the man will be mentally dissipated. Once mentally dissipated, man’s efficiency gets ruined. Mental condition is more important. When contentment is there, the mind becomes calm and serene, and there is an inner dynamic fullness which makes man to act courageously in the world. Achieving a harmonious combination of inner excellence and outer efficiency is the true development in life.

Material prosperity and spiritual reality are inter-dependent. Without material reality, spiritual reality cannot be discovered, and without spiritual reality, material reality has no purpose. Spiritual growth is the ability to overpower the emotions so that one has the wisdom to appreciate and enjoy all things material without getting needy or clingy.

Religion and harmony

                                      Religion and harmony


            A pigeon and her baby pigeon were on the top of a temple. They were quite happy and were leading a peaceful life. The annual renovations of the temple started. So the pigeon and her baby shifted to a church top. After sometime when the white washing and cleaning of the church started, they shifted their residence to a mosque and enjoying the serene atmosphere there. Suddenly after sometime , the cleaning and whitewashing of the mosque was to begin on the eve of Ramzan, the birds came back to the temple which was ready for occupation after the renovations. One day, they were enjoying delicious food given by the priests, all of a sudden, they were drawn to a loud noise and cries outside on the road. They saw people carrying sticks and guns and striking and shooting at one another. The baby pigeon was perplexed and asked his mother the cause of the turmoil on the road. The mother replied, ‘ My dear child, they are striking and killing each other in the name of religion.’ The child innocently said, ‘ we live in temples, churches and mosques. For us all the places are good and peaceful. They are the same. Then why these human beings , so called the best among the creation, fight over this, for nothing ? I don’t  understand , mom .’
The mother replied, ‘ yes , my dear child ! I too don’t understand this. We may not be considered superior to them. But we don’t quarrel , fight ,and kill others over petty things. That is why God has assigned our residence higher than them.
People constantly write and quarrel with one another in the name of religion. Christians, Muslims, Hindus, do not understand that the Truth is one, only it is called by different names and all are seeking the same truth.
The ignorance clouds them and is the cause of the friction among them, their misunderstanding and quarrels. The hatred and violence are the base instincts in the human beings that instigate fights and destruction for supremacy over others. The pseudo religious leaders, selfish politicians and social platforms add fuel to this. Furthermore, addiction to electronic devices have made the people insecure, sick and feel inner disharmony. Irritation, anger, hatred and violence are the results of this only. People have become intolerant. This intolerance towards those who hold different opinions from ourselves,is witnessed in different spheres of life like religion, race, culture, language, gender, region, nationality, class and caste.
Birds live in their own territory. They build nests on the trees, eat the fruits, and spread the seeds to other places furthering the growth of the trees that sheltered them ,and leave a landscape as it was before or even richer than the earlier one. It is only the ungrateful man who in the name of religion kills people and destroy  the countries without cherishing the country where he lives or where his brothers live,and without caring for the bounties of Nature. Not only that , in destroying others , he does not gain anything. Infact, in destroying others, he destroys himself and his family, and his family carries the stigma for generations for no fault of theirs.
Wild animals never kill for sport. Man is the only animal to whom the torture and death of his fellow beings is amusing in itself.
Though the musical instruments like Violin, Veena, Guitar, Sitar,Harmonium, Piano etc. appear so different externally, when they join in an orchestra, they all follow a basic rhythm and tune producing one delightful music. Similarly, we can also see the harmony among various religions, when we go to the basic spiritual values that lie behind them. So all religions which have different external forms of sacred texts, rituals, special days of worship, places of worship etc. appear different from one another but their core spiritual values like love, compassion, sacrifice, service, spiritual knowledge are the same. The customs, rituals and their applications arose according to different surroundings and other circumstances of different nations. But the end result is perfection of men and women who feel that they are divine in nature.
Since all religions have produced men and women of greatest purity, holiness, compassion and service, we have to admit that all religions are basically one in being good and true. Furthermore, when we read the stories and about them and their teachings, they are equally inspiring, their teachings are universal and ever-green, going beyond all the barriers of race, religion or nationality.

Actually, religion is not something external. Infact, as Ramakrishna Paramahamsa says, “ Religion at the individual level is an inner ‘ thirst’ for God. When this feeling expands, it transfoorms and uplifts man from selfishness to unselfishness, from intolerance to brotherly love. But this transformative power cannot come from mere dry religious scriptures and dogmas, but can manifest only in a heart that opens or awakens to the presence of the Lord within. And conversing with the inner divine being is the simplest way for achieving this awakening. A heart that sincerely loves the Lord, can never hate fello beings who are His creation, not different from Him.
We should have understanding of others’s outlook. It does not mean we have to lose our individuality. As Swami  Vivekananda says, “ My religion cannot be yours, or yours mine. Although the goal and aim are the same, yet each one has to take a different road, according to the tendencies of his mind. The Christian is not to become a Muslim or a Hindu or a Buddhist, or a Muslim to become a Christian or Hindu or a Buddhist. But each must assimilate the spirit of others and yet preserve his individuality and grow according to his own law of growth.”

God has given us this precious gift of life. It is up to us to give ourselves the gift of living well in harmony , making ourselves blessed , and also the great mother the 'Earth ' blessed.