suffering

Maybe suffering isn't good...it gives you hurt, it gives you pain but makes you look within...it leaves you to cry and yet watches you through it...it throws you in the dark and yet shows a light within...maybe it isn't a good thing but it does befriend you to move you on to where you ultimately wish to reach...know it or not!

Suffering is what makes one realize the presence of someone / something that is not in their control. It makes one think, retrospect, question...everything from their beliefs to their acts...because it places you where you need to give yourself some answers...they are not for anyone else to make you understand, it is not for anyone to help you with...it's about understanding yourself.

One might tend to blame others, analyse and give logics, throw a lot of questions and want a lot of answers, one might think they didn't deserve it and yet they are being punished, they might think it's unfair, some may cry yet some may hold back their tears...but it's important to understand that suffering is what shows you the way to enlightenment. Someone who has not failed, cannot understand the meaning of success and someone who has not suffered cannot understand the meaning of happiness.

One important thing to understand about suffering is that no other person can make you suffer...it's only you. If you don't want to suffer, you wont. Circumstances can remain unchanged but all that matters in the context. Suffering is a time of introspection, of looking within, feeling oneself from the inside...to understand oneself...to hear the soul's voice...to understand and appreciate the still left beauty and power of today...to love and accept whatever there is...without asking for more but being thankful for what is.

love as understood and explained by vivekananda

A Nice Article about "Love" by Swami Vivekananda


I once had a friend who grew to be very close to me..
Once when we were
sitting at the edge of a swimming pool,
she filled the palm of her hand with
some water and held it before me, and said this:
"You see this water carefully contained on my hand? It symbolizes Love."
This was how I saw it: As long as you keep your hand caringly open and
allow it to remain there, it will always be there.
However, if you attempt to close your fingers round it and try to
posses it, it will spill through the first cracks it finds.
This is the greatest mistake that people do when they meet love...they
try to posses it,they demand,
they expect...and just like the water spilling
out of your hand, love will retrieve from you .
For love is meant to be free,you cannot change its nature.
If there are people you love,
allow them to be free beings.
Give and don't expect.
Advise, but don't order.
Ask, but never demand.
It might sound simple, but it is a lesson that may take a lifetime to
truly practice.
It is the secret to true love.
To truly practice it, you must
sincerely feel no expectations from those who you love,
and yet an unconditional caring."


Passing thought.... Life is not measured by the number of breaths we
take; but by the moments that take our breath away.....


It might sound simple, but it is a lesson that may take a lifetime


SWAMI VIVEKANANDA

law of attraction

The law of attraction is a new age theory which states that if you truly desire something and believe in it, it will come to you but yet, if you don't desire something and yet think too much about it or fear it...that will also come to you. The idea being the power of thought. When I first heard of this line somewhere that "if you truly desire something from your soul, the universe conspires to help you get it", i thought it was very sweet and touching though i didn't believe it could be anything more than the notion of the author.

In Wiki, this is what is said about the law of attraction

According to proponents of this law, thoughts have an energy which attracts whatever it is the person is thinking of. In order to control this energy to one's advantage, proponents state that people must practice four things: 

1. Know exactly what you want.

2. Ask the universe for it.

3. Feel, behave and know as if the object of your desire is already yours (visualize).

4. Be open to receive it and let go of (the attachment to) the outcome.

Thinking of what one does not have, they say, manifests itself in not having, while if one abides by these principles, and avoids "negative" thoughts, the universe will manifest a person's desires.

Well, I have been thinking about this one and it somehow seems to be true. I have realized that things in life only seem to go your way till you have no doubts in them but the day you start doubting them, or having negative thoughts about them, the chances are that your worst fears will manifest themselves. 

I wouldn't say its always true that if you want something badly, you will get it but at the same time I would think whenever it happens, if we sort of look at our belief in that happening, there is usually an air of doubt there...else usually its just a matter of time.

One very relevant example of this came up in my hypnotherapy class where the teacher mentioned that somehow if she has had a very busy day and she has a client / student appointment next morning, it happens quite often that she wishes the appointment wasn't there the next day so that she could have some free time and to her surprise, they cancel. 

I would think its all the more important now to watch your thoughts and see what you are attracting !

my hypnotherapy expedition

I finally did my Hypnotherapy course at the Past Life Regression Academy, Singapore and I feel absolutely great about it. It's not that I was the best or I didn't keep wondering after looking at the all so accomplished and wonderful people I met there that somehow I could have better utilized the 32 years of my life on this planet, yet it was the most enjoyable and enlightening experience in a long time.

I admit I was a little skeptical when I went in for the course. I didn't know what to expect and Hypnotherapy sounded like some boring science that I was advised to study just so that I can do my past life regression studies...sort of felt like drink your milk otherwise no breakfast today...but...I was pleasantly surprised.

As each day passed, my curiosity for what comes next and my excitement at what was going on kept getting higher. We were 10 people which included 2 people who flew from Australia...Steve and Yanka where Steve has been into healing and body works for over 2 decades now and talking to him for 5 mins or merely being next to him can make one feel the aura, the stream of positive energy flowing through the body. Yanka is one of the most beautiful and warm persons I have met...she is an absolutely amazing woman and Steve and her share this connection that is so evident...her happiness seems to be a reward for the lessons well learnt. Alison and Shirley were two very very sweet Singaporean friends I made, both working as Recruitment Consultants and being young lovely mothers, they showered the cosy, nice feeling to everyone around them. Sandra is an absolute darling. She seemed like the one who has seen life and yet with all that she has seen, her positivity and belief in the goodness of life only seemed to increase. Sudha is the softest, politest and nicest person I have met who somehow manages to say all the right things at the right time. Max...oh how could I forget him...Max is the simplest, no fuss person I have seen...his simplicity in taking decisions and just going with the flow sort of made me wonder so many times that I have a knack for making my life tough. Max and Sudha specially came over from Malaysia to attend the course. Reena...oh she was the youngest and the bubbly one in our gang...sweet and smart at the same time...the best t-shirts with amazing stuff written on them. Louise...she is one inspiring woman. Initially, I didn't think I would get along wit her since she looked as though she didn't like much mingling but yesterday when she and I had a session together...I realized she is kind and brave...from what her life tells me and I admire those qualities in her. It was such an amazing group of people that every single one had an air about them which made them unique and yet we all got so connected instantly that yesterday when we hugged each other to say goodbye...it sort of seemed very sad.



"You do what you do best and the universe will take care of the rest" is something that really moved and inspired me from one of Reena's t-shirts. It makes a lot of sense I thought.

Now silly of me that I wrote so much about all the students but missed the most amazing teacher. I am sure you must be wondering who was the one who lead us through this journey. Well Toni as we call her...an awesome woman I must say. One doesn't come to know her potential all at once but slowly and slowly when she revealed herself and her true abilities...I sort of kept thinking...how can she know so much and be so wise all the time :). As Steve rightly mentioned, its great to have a teacher who can hold your hand and take you through the journey of self discovery...because if she would only lead, we could still get lost. I am so looking fwd to our Past Life Regression training since I can only imagine of Toni is so good, Andy (Andy Tomlinson - Author of "Exploring the Eternal Soul" and "Healing the Eternal Soul") would be ever better.

Now coming to what I learnt. I learnt all about how to make people loose weight(specially if they have a strong want yet can't get to do it somehow...even the lazy ones :), to stop smoking, to make one stress free, confidence building / ego boost as they would call it and a lot of other amazing areas where hypnotherapy has a huge success rate. So, yes...I am officially capable of helping people in all of the above and it feels great!

I am so looking fwd to my first hypnotherapy session today :)

love: responding to minal

"LOVE" one of the most difficult word to describe and the most difficult feeling to recognise and one of the most difficult emotional state to interpret. What exactly is called love? People use this word in various context meaning various things from stong affection to pleasure to interpersonal relations..... the list is endless. Reflecting on what love is, it is difficult to relate it with one particular feeling. it encompass a whole range of feelings and emotions and its manifestation does the same.

However, I would relate to Love as a State of being. The completeness of being. The end of search. It is a point wherein a person knows there is nothing amiss in his or her life, there are no boundaries, no walls, total freedom to be whatever in total peace and contentment.

Do we need another person to experience this State of Being? My friend, philosopher and guide tells me its all within. The peace and contentment is all within which is also the by-product of Love and that if peace and contentment is within so is love.


i quite agree with it and dont see any anomaly with it. the easiest mistake we all make is when we start having an emotional dependancy on another and describe it as love. When we start relying on another to make us happy, not realising that love is not about bondage of being together in body, of longings and loneliness which are negative emotions but its all about being in a peaceful or restful state of mind in the knowledge of having found that someone who helped you realize that state of being.


The problem arises when a person fails to recognise that beauty, peace is all internal and part of you and you need not hold on to another to see it. Also it is indeed difficult to find that one person who is going to be the one for you and make you realise your inner self in this increasing crowd. however, hold on and dont despair, life is all about learning (remember the big school?), thats what gives you the drive to move on and look forward. read somewhere "you will smile at it one day" and i promise you will by living your life to the fullest and living it youself with your own decisions, your own choices.

what is HELL?

I just read a very interesting blog post about the various ways religions interpret HELL. Some say its an actual physical place, while some say its just a notion. The existence of HELL has been debated upon for many centuries now where it is beleived by many that as a punishment for their bad deeds, they will certainly go to this place where they will be tortured and abused till they compensate for all they have done, which is "HELL".

I maybe wrong but I would think to punish someone for one deed which hurts someone, the best way would be for them to go through the same deed, which would become their HELL. According to many who beleive in afterlife, there is no heaven or hell. Earth is a big school where all souls are sent to learn their lessons and grow on their spiritual path. They are allowed to choose their ways and make their mistakes. Souls are nothing but masses of energy and since energy cannot be distroyed, souls cannot be destroyed, but they can be transformed by making them learn what they must.

Since our souls are wiser than our conscious mind, the deeds that we perform in any life, are reviwed by ourselves after it ends, along with far more experienced souls who are guides, teachers to help us and we ourselves see and understand the mistakes that we made. Our souls then make the decision to punish our own selves by taking what it gave and hence compensate, back on the same playground, the same school, the same karma shetra, which is earth.

According to me, there is no heaven or Hell. It's all here. It's all in our minds and in ourselves. When we undergo situations that are unfavourable to us and cause us emotional or physical pain or torture, that is our hell while when everything is favouarble and blissful, it is heaven. This is our "karma bhoomi" or "place where we perform our karmas" and it shows us heaven and hell at many points of time. It's all upto us to perceive it the way we wish to and finally, feelings are all about the context or perception. Whether HELL exists or not, the final objective is not to punish us, but to make us learn what we must and move on the path of universal love.

spirituality - is there a catch?

Spirituality - The word is so often used in front of us these days that its hard to understand if its actually a phenomenon or experience worth all the hype or if its overrated. One of Suman's posts about "fear" below has probed me to think that is it possible that all our enthusiasm about learning meditation, spirituality, past life regression etc is only a way to escape our innermost fears...of facing life's realities, of distracting from what is in front of us. Tushar left a comment regarding this on the blog and that also seemed to pull this question right on my face that could this be true that it is all about escape, about being able to convince yourself for everything that goes wrong in one's life, being able to find solace in god and spirituality.

I have really been thinking hard here. Do people who are absolutely happy and contented with their life get into spirituality and god? Is it a tool used by those who have issues addressing their lives and its realities? Isn't it true that if one has everything going perfectly great in their life and all areas are working, they tend not to give a damn to spirituality unless some beliefs have been inculcated into them through inheritance or sufferings? Is it that our mind tricks us to give itself some peace in times to suffering by saying if we are happy within ourselves, the rest of the world wouldn't matter?

Well, I think all of the above doubts can be faced by anyone who is new to this path of spirituality or whenever your mind puts you into an argument to prove its worth. After much of thinking and understanding things, I have realised that yes, for people who have some sort of suffering or when circumstances are unfavorable, its easier to get pulled towards spirituality, search for the inner self & meditation. It is also true that initially, one might use it as an escape to get out of the rut and get detached from relationships, life or situations so that the affect is the least felt but once you start discovering this way of life, it pulls you towards it and ultimately one does realise that it was god's way of getting you here that he gave you the respective circumstances in the first place.

Meditation or spirituality in no way teach us to run from our life and not face the realities of life, but in turn they alleviate our conscience and make us understand that we are all a part of divinity and its important for us to be whole and complete within ourselves for us to be able to do justice to the people and relationships around us. It gives us the little amount of detachment which is required to be able to look at our own self and thoughts from the outside, in order to do what is right or what will be universally acceptable. It gives us the connection with our inner self, with our guardian angels which help us to stay focused on the path planned by our own souls for each lifetime.

It's not an escape though many times, it could be triggered by the need to be at peace.

love

Almost all of us have sometime or the other pondered about "what is love". Well, I have been thinking of an appropriate definition for love but havn't arrived at a conclusion yet. Is it the feeling where you want to be with someone all the time, when the person isn't there, you miss him/her but even when the person is around, they occupy the maximum space in your heart and mind OR is it a settled feeling of having someone in your life who will always care for you, always be there for you, no matter what.

Well, the definition I have realised isn't so simple and neither can it be generalised. I have been wondering if there were various types of love...like there is one love that is all exciting, all encompassing, where you can't seem to to see or think anything beyond your lover....its the love that is blind as they say and it brings excitement & hormonal changes to your body and life. Then, there is one which is settled. It is there and it will always be and with every passing day, without us knowing it...it increases a tiny bit in proportion...it becomes more mature and profound...it becomes a part of us without us knowing how much we value the relationship or love...sometimes we know it and acknowledge it as well, while sometimes we take it for granted. Then there is another type of love, which is one from the soul...which happens in the most unlikely circumstances and yet tends to complete one's soul...it is the kind of love which has the capability to transform those involved...usually sets or changes course of one's life. There could be many more kinds of love which I may not be aware of but all of them are true and they exist. Sometimes, the same relationship with one person to change its type from one to another with passing time.

Yes its true that we all are looking for love, for eternal love...but the question is...is it really very important to get or have someone to complete you...do we seek love to complete ourselves because we think we are incomplete in ourselves or is it for our need for constant support, moral and emotional? Sometimes I have seen, in the quest of love or completeness, people get so lost that they almost make it a purpose of their life.

It's important for each of us to realise that everyone is alone...we have come to this life to fulfill the purpose of our souls which we shall need to do alone. Once we understand and be at peace with what we are and accept our own strengths and weaknesses, and start loving ourselves...that is the point after which whoever we find love with, it will be a fulfilling relationship because it will not be based on incompletness of any kind but unconditional, no expectations love.

Don't know if that made any sense but just felt like writing this one today and this is entirely my opinion.

fear

we all live in fear. for some it is the fear of unknown, the unknown future, the fear of being a nobody, the fear of being alone,the fear of death, emptyness.....this list is endless.

to overcome or to avoid confronting this fear we resort to overwork and quest for something, eg creating wealth, having power, having a family etc etc. these ultimately act as opiate to our minds by not letting us confront the fears that we all have. since we never confront them, we are seldom able to overcome them. in the end we just keep running and running fron these fears till our final moment of realisation.

at times it does feel that the meditation is also an opiate or self hypnosis technique we have created to adapt to a world which does not revolve around us according to our needs and fancies. the whole concept of past life, reincarnation, soul and karmic relationsthen appear to be concepts made to make the life bearable for those disillusioned by it.

does the "peace" achieved by meditation not a compromise between the strive to fight for what i want and need that is "true happiness" even if just for a while? is it the passive acceptance of the present i dont want to change and thus escapism from this reality?

yes, these are the contradictions i have also faced and i believe lot of us have. there are no easy answers except that the ultimate goal is to be at peace. at peace with what we are, the true person within all of us. the one which is the seeker for all the answers.

no one can give an answers to our internal turmoil and fears, we all have to confront our selves and find our own answers our own way. be it the EFT, work,relations ...whateverin our own way. this is the actual quest of life.