GET HOLD OF THE MIND

GET HOLD OF THE MIND. THE MIND IS LIKE A LAKE,AND EVERY STONE THAT DROPS IN  IT RAISES WAVES.

(SOURCE-Words of Inspiration,Ramakrishna Mission Institute of Culture)

What came first- The chicken or the Egg? I still have to find a convincing answer to this question. But this question though not very relevant to the self, pushes me to think this- Does the Mind shape decisions or Decisions shape the Mind? This is a very relevant question because it pushes the frontiers of the Self. The Self that is in constant search on answers and reasons.

When we were kids, our minds, as flexible as they can be were oblivious to everything around us. No sense of hotness or coldness of an object, stupid enough to believe the pranks of the elderly which they found cute and had a laugh over, no sense of time -infact, an afternoon nap would make you believe that you woke up the next day, always in search of a hand to hold and a lap to cuddle. Its the most rudimentary form of living matter you can imagine.But with each passing moment, each passing day, there was one thing that was changing and changing fast. The Mind. It was struck in the most gentle manner yet the most convincing one and started the process of  formation of the Self. The Self which would in years to come to live a life on its own principles , form opinions based on it and take decisions according to it. However, this forms a very small and temporary phase of the Self. Since, you have to let go off the hand and the lap that was once your home. You start taking control of things on your own and you yourself strike the mind  with the blows you consider worthy. They may or may not be is another aspect. But that again  is a lesson. It is imperative to realise that the mind with its immense might is inherently latent. Each an every happening impacts it, but in a temporary manner. It is only after sustained efforts or impacts the mind starts behaving to our liking. It is in this respect its the Lake. The lake of universalism. The lake that is all encompassing. The lake that is receptive to everything. You may keep piling up loads and loads of polythene bags into a lake but its only after a time that you see it degrade. The harm is beyond our sight, yet it happens. It is in this regard that we start choosing what stone we throw in it. What we feed to the lake, manifests itself ultimately. The time duration is just a test of our Patience which is altogether a different aspect.

It is noteworthy to observe that since every thought , every incident does form a ripple in the mind; its the Mind again which can depending on its past and the environment it has been nurtured decide upon the amplitude of the ripples. In other words, we are the masters of our own reactions. Its upto the Mind to decide which ripple would be the strongest. And its within this nature of ripples that the personality of a person is decided. The most powerful ripples are those of Ideas and the junk of them are reacting about what others keep doing which has no relevance in the broader scheme of things. Its a very interesting case here- we do not choose the stone that is thrown, nor are we the ones always throwing the stones but  WE ARE THE ONES WHO CHOOSE THE RIPPLES.

Its the strength of the Mind that amplifies these ripples to WAVES. And the waves are both constructive and destructive- modern science has seen both the facets of it.

FEAR NOT

THOU ART OMNIPOTENT-GO,GO TO THE MOUTH OF THE CANNON,FEAR NOT (IV. 110) 
Source: Words of Inspiration,Ramakrishna Mission Institute of Culture

FEAR- this 4 letter word has so many different meanings just like the other 4 letter word-LOVE for every different person. But what is the reason for this fear and its multi faceted nature? What is it in fear that drives people in different ways with different reactions? And is fear good or bad? These are some questions which are omnipresent in each and every soul. When should we stop fearing and if we should, who should we fear?

Fear is a natural reflex of the mind, the heart to a situation that is out of the mundane slot of our lives, that is, what I have come to infer. Just the other day my brother was afraid of missing his early morning flight and ended up not sleeping entire night. This fear is so irrelevant from the more relevant fears of people like not being able to feed their family, or the fear of insolvency; but its fear after all. Isn't it? The fearful behave in the same manner. That is what is common. At least their broad nature of  behaviour is the same , the constant feeling of suffocation, the constant urge to break free, the never ending desire to run away , the non stop bickering "Why am I facing this?" ,the  sunken feeling of low self esteem and the feeling of not being worth a dime; all of this is the fruit of fear. A rather sour fruit with a pungent smell. The smell here is the the blanket of pessimism that such a person carries wherever he/she goes. And then people desert him. The person sinks deeper. Fear engulfs . Fear deepens.Fear wins.
What is it we fear? We all have got a fixed duration to achieve , to love, to make, to break and to live.Yet, we fear; we fear something as inevitable as death to fear missing deadlines. Constant fear undermines the pessimism driven nature so deeply etched in our brains. What harm would it do to be in a state of optimism? Howsoever stupid it might seem.Howsoever , without a reason it might be.My personal experience tells me we run a risk of procrastinating, but its a far more manageable task than dealing with the cancer of fear. Fear leads to diseases of the mind. It destroys the belief , the hope and the rope we all cling onto. The feeling that the road ahead is ending into a dead end. The fear that the road has no branches. The fear that we were not worthy of doing what we were meant to. And its so funny, that its all a sham. A lie. Maybe the biggest scam , the biggest trick that even the mightiest of thugs outside can't pull off.I had already mentioned  in this article that something that makes you doubt yourself, your abilities makes you sick. It makes you weak and that cannot be true. The belief that you are potent at multiple levels, that there is hardly a task you cannot do, hardly a goal you cannot achieve and that if there exists a hurdle, its not a sign to exit but a sign that there are many more mazes hiding and you need to make your way through them. They are checks that let you ride smoothly, let you feel the roller coaster in your life. They are checks that make your body pump adrenaline, to make you, to test you. And on a roller coaster ride you don't jump off, you remain seated, you cling on hard, YOU DON'T LET GO.
The day , the time one realises the multitude of tasks one can perform, the goals one can achieve using the resources at his/her disposal, that day is the day to rejoice . And the day to let go off the FEAR that you have clung onto for so long.
Quoting John Lubbock "A day of worry is more exhausting than a week of work".
BELIEVE. AND FEAR NOT

The Test of Truth

And here is the Test of Truth-anything that makes you weak physically,intellectually,reject as Poison;there is no Life in it ,it cannot be true(III. 224-25) courtesy-Ramakrishna Mission Institute of Culture

 The Human embodies itself in a body that is materialistic . But the Human I know is the soul that is the definition I see-both semantically as well as the meaning that should be realised. And though, we may overlook the lifespan as something concerning only the materialistic being; It is the Soul that continues to live on. Both as a Legacy in this mortal world or as the Pure one enlightening future souls if someone believes in the AfterLife. Truth, though relative on the Earth has a clear cut distinction when we come to the Soul. Anything that makes it weak, that makes it believe that something is impossible, something is unreachable and that someone holds the remote of our lives is the Fallacy.This realisation makes it all the importance in understanding that the human body though mortal needs a life called the Soul to make things happen on this mortal world. It is important to change the outlook from the narrow alleys of the Body to the wider limitless domain of the Soul.What good is a ship without a Captain, what good is a smartphone without a battery and what good is a body without a strong soul; a lively heart. All of this may come naturally to some but it requires effort , even though unseen to all, to understand how an enriched soul helps to bring out the best of a human body.So here is the test of truth-What is it that holds you back.What is that setback that left a scar on you and your heart screaming every time that this isn't for you; when you always knew this is what is meant to be!! Its a very simple test-The mind makes a goal for you not being completely detached from your heart but subconsciously aligning itself with the heart and soul to accomplish all that you longed for. However, this isn't so easy to get past- and hence its imperative and natural to get setbacks.Setbacks don't get you weak-its what follows that makes you feel helpless.And what follows is entirely a shadow that is created in the backdrop of an illumination.That illuminated background is what you are after and setbacks are proof that light exists at the other side of the tunnel.So rather than rebuking fate and going over books of palmistry, try to understand that what you set out for was a journey your Soul took and its your intuition which would help you see success.The mind may clog itself trying to decipher what is right and what is wrong-what is the truth and what is untrue.But here come the power of Faith-Believing what you set out for is the key to unlocking success and achieving the results you desired for.The Body ought to get tired pretty quickly but the Soul is the never resting being that rest not until the Goal is achieved. This is true for both materialistic pleasures as well the the peace and happiness all of us are running after.Its best to leave decisions about truth to the subconscious- and your intuition is the tool that connects to the Subconscious. So here we take the easy way out-all those things that make your intent and decision making weak is NOT THE TRUTH!!!

Img Credit: jesusyouthchennai.com

Keep Believing, Have Faith !!!

Happiness or Greatness

ACHIEVE HAPPINESS OR ACHIEVE GREATNESS (VIII. 391)-courtesy Ramakrishna Mission Institute of Culture

  Image credit: dreamstime.com

      In the treacherous ruffle of thought and the unsettling visions that dwell within the mind, the foundation of all displeasure lies in the basic crave for staying happy. And amidst the frantic search for peace and happiness, we often skip the most important part that is solely enough to provide us what we long for. Happiness and Me are synonymous. unfortunately we look past ourselves, or to be more precise when we seek it, we don't count ourselves in. Be it seeking peace from material possessions to relying on the emotions of someone dear or even the sight of a loved one or a loved dream; we Do skip the Me from all of the search. To my bewilderment and to everyone's when they do come to realise it, the happiness dwells in the individual, the Me more than the search for the Who Else. A mongrel searching for his morsel spends the hours of the day beaten  by the heat or all curled up i the cold seeking an end to his hunger. But unfortunately, it is the very person who moves and finds the food but for a meagre quantity. If only,He Seeks a higher dream. But it is natural for a struggling soul to get bogged down by his own expectations. Seeking happiness in others and hoping someone else finds it for Us or building the pillars of emotions which is the fruit of sweat of not Me may collapse easily around us with us being either silent Victims or the more heroic ones coming out bruised. Some recover from their bruises only to lose their senses of the intricacies of Happiness forever or some are crippled.The crippled ones go back to building one after another do away structures of pseudo Happiness. And the Heroic ones quell their mind and heart into not believing the most basic fabric of life-Happiness. Happiness is not  commodity.Happiness is more than the search.its the Realisation.Happiness is not about achieving.Its about Believing.And Happiness is like Love.More than getting its about Giving Back. The Quest for Happiness is a meaningless search in the deep forests only to find yourself moving in circles. It is that worthwhile seeker who searches for thy hand when it is happily a part of His own.

       Image Credit : yinkabrand.com

       But not all lie in peace. Not all rest when they all cuddle in their comfort zones. Comfort is the price of a rested mind. And a calm Heart. But isn't that what We all desire. Not everytime. And rightly so ! Because the wheel of progress both material and spiritual stops ! We Seek. Either Happiness at our current levels or at another. And we need to move to seek at a higher level. So , there are beings who strive for success and more hard work which results in more success.Success is not entirely materialistic. It brings forth new avenues and exposes doors to the human race that never opened. And then we have followers of success seeking their own goals at a higher level. This is bound to bring in the path of the leader, countless thorns and obstacles and maybe He may have to get rid of them alone or with some help from a Higher power. His success as is synonymous with lots of other ones is epitome to the fact that the Success is also a result of that Higher power and certified. Greatness is just a term used by the masses. This quest for "" Greatness "" is not a all calm but a journey through the stormy seas. And hence, The Mind and Soul is at War. A War that is sometimes necessary in real world too to weed out parasites and the sick agents. This Seeker is thus called a Great Soul. And He seldom rests. And Rightly so.

So , as I have always believed.The Juice should always be Worth the Squeeze. And You are here to Achieve Happiness or Achieve Greatness