In Search of a Better World

If someone would have asked me in my initial years, what I would you like to be, I would have said that I wanted to be a good human being first and then everything else ..in fact I didn’t have much of a “goal” as I was too busy in “survival”, and I liked this quote

"I would rather excel others in the knowledge of what is excellent than in the extent of my power and dominion." ---Alexander

I guess same might be the case with many but ..If I ask someone how would you recognize a human being …the answers I guess will be different..

For me the “ABCD” of life (and thus recognizing a human being) means..

A->Activity

B->Behavior

C->Common Sense

D->Discipline

But as everyone knows,

“What a man can be is born with him; what he becomes is a result of his environment.”

So why don’t we change that very environment for everyone’s benefit? I try to do it sometimes through spoken and written words thinking of a better world , a world free of many shortcomings that the golden eras didn’t have ..

After all, "Freedom is nothing else but a chance to be better."

So if we can keep purpose of life as :

“To make it a better world for living”…it makes more sense than anything else I believe

Looking for quotable quotes was one my likings and I’ll share some of those in this context I used to like this quote very much in my heart:

"Real integrity is doing the right thing, knowing that nobody's going to know whether you did it or not" - Oprah Winfrey

But in today’s world I guess “Life is lost in living, wisdom is lost in knowledge and knowledge is lost in information” …

And I guess the reason being too much of information creating chaos and peer pressure decreasing the Emotional Quotient (Which gives us empathy, motivation, compassion and an ability to respond skillfully to pleasure and pain) and Spiritual Quotient(That makes us “soul-conscious” as opposed to being” body/ego-conscious”) of human being …

As Swami Vivekananda has said “Education isn’t how much you committed to memory or how much you know , it is being able to differentiate between what you know and need, and what you don’t know and don’t need”…

As a result of this chaos and confusion I guess the entropy of our system and the surrounding environment increases and the spirituality (which can act as heat-sink) being absent, raises the enthalpy also …The environmentalists these days are saying that the lack of peace and harmony is also increasing the Global temperature and aiding to the cause of Global Warming ..

It’s actually because of the ATTITUDE and DISCIPLINE with which we lead our life that counts so much for a better world …Interestingly if we consider numerology and break up the word ATTITUDE and DISCIPLINE we will get a surprising result ..

A+T+T+I+T+U+D+E = 1+20+20+9+20+21+4+5 = 100

D+I+S+C+I+P+L+I+N+E = 4+9+19+3+9+16+12+9+14+5 = 100

I believe, there are very few words in the dictionary that can make a stronger impact in this world…

Also I would like to present in here some truths I found useful in this world:

Three things to admire: Intellect, Beauty and Music

Three things to cultivate: Cheerfulness, Sympathy & Contentment

Three things to value: Time, Money & Health

Three things to Govern: Tongue, Temper & Action

Three things to avoid: Idleness, Falsehood & Intolerance

Three things to love: Honesty, Purity & Truth

Lastly, I would like to remember the inspiring poem of Rabindranath Tagore with his vision of a better world .

“Where the mind is without fear and the head is held high

Where knowledge is free

Where the world has not been broken up into fragments

By narrow domestic walls

Where words come out from the depth of truth

Where tireless striving stretches its arms towards perfection

Where the clear stream of reason has not lost its way

Into the dreary desert sand of dead habit

Where the mind is led forward by thee

Into ever-widening thought and action

Into that heaven of freedom, my Father, let my country awake”..

Self-respectfully yours,

-Dev

“Ignorance” is no bliss

I guess everyone, who has turned a little inside ever in his life has always
asked questions like :

1.Who am I?
2.What am I in here for?
3.What’s the purpose of life?
4.What is GOD?
And so on and so forth …

Like so many people I also encountered these questions when I was just 14 years old …and then started my quest of looking for answers to these questions ..

Incidentally I got in touch with Ramkrishna Mission Institute of C and got to know about Vivekananda, my first Spiritual Guru ..As of now whatever I’ve learned from all my Spiritual Gurus (including Dr. Deepak Chopra)..I’ve tried to answer those questions myself …I don’t know whether they will ever correct my answer paper or not but I thought it’s worth a try and hence this effort ..

If I sound like an idiot please pardon me and look for the answers elsewhere ..
But if you find it to be beneficial in some ways please do pray for me as I believe in the “Power of Prayer” of Good Spirits ..

I believe, we the human beings are essentially some "peaceful" "happiness seeking" souls ...(“shantiswarup”, “anandaswarup” atma)..and the human body is nothing but a "bundle of conditioned reflexes"...

The way we "condition" ourselves we become like that ..and the conditioning comes from education, environment, upbringing, enlightenment and many others ..

Now in this process of “conditioning” our mind acts as “advocates” and our intelligence as “Judge” and some repetitive actions becomes our “resolves”….These “resolves” or “Sanskara”-s becomes like "conditioned reflexes"..The "soul" witnesses it and try to give right directions to those who are trying to listen to it ..

The "ego" attached to the human mind is nothing but an attachment to a wrong "belief" or "image" .that comes from "conditioning" of our "system" ..

The purpose of life is as par Vedanta is "Atmanang Bidhi"....i.e. "Know thyself .."It essentially means "self-realization" ..The soul essentially is a source of energy that can neither be created nor destroyed ..and the soul "recycles" as par "Karma"...Only the purest one's gets the mokhs or a peaceful heavenly abode ,the place from where all of us came from ..

Summarizing it, we are born and are in here to perform some duties , the best of which is "Niskam Karma" and at the end of which of us has to return to the place where we came from .. and we can make the "journey" of life enjoyable through certain practice or "Dharma"..

GOD
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To me GOD is nothing but the purest spirit ...the supreme form of energy that has created this universe...We see manifestation of GOD in pure spirits and in nature ...the invisible coordination, symmetry, creation of life all talks about HIS supreme existence ...

We get to know GOD and come close to him through self-knowledge ...("Atmanang Biddhi")...But only a few can reach close to him..

I say it in this way "Truth evolves in the container that deserves it".. The pure spirits will get the "truth" and will spread it to destroy all the evils of the world ...

As far as I've learned from the teachings of my spiritual gurus :

What are we in here for?
-I guess, for "Karma" or certain “duties”...

What kind of "Karma"?
-"Niskam Karma"---The kind of work where you perform your duty according to your
"Dharma" and don't expect anything in return ...You do your best and leave the rest...
"Ma faleshu kadachana"

What is “dharma”?
-That which keeps you true to your self is "Dharma"...

What is the objective?
-To "Know Thyself"...-You soul also carries a little "GOD"...who you can respect and love provided you nurture it properly ...

What will happen if I do that ..
-Everything will fall into place automatically and it will be a beautiful world to live in ...

What if I get criticized?
-The “Self-referral” i.e. being accountable and responsible to your conscience and soul is much more important than “object referral” i.e. the evaluation of any other person, no matter how big or important he/she is ..Have faith in your instincts and GOD …Have conviction in the power of goodness and help those and help all who are trying to be and do good.

Here’s one interesting link who always try to blame others for their shortcomings …I guess when they will be “enlightened” they will really be ashamed of themselves ..

Please see the link below:
http://www.esnips.com/doc/72b9a95a-4a81-415d-a720-e7b28ad7413b/The+Window

So as a virtue, one should really practice "Non-judgment" to bring in peace and harmony in this world..Because, as it's said, that when you are pointing your index finger at someone remember that four of your other fingers are pointing at you ...


My Swamiji
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"Swamaji" is an idol who taught the world the "Karmayoga"...the best path for common people to attain “moksh” ... He believed in the power of youthful energy for "Karma"..

There are other ways of "self-realization" too...

Sri Aurobinda followed -->Gnynayoga
Ramkrishna Paramhansa followed -->Bhaktiyoga
A few Others-->Rajayoga ..

But he is the only one perhaps, who not only knew the "art of living", but the "art of death" also ...the most difficult of everything ..He could reach that level of "consciousness" where even that was attainable with ease .. Pardon me if I say that,he should have been, according to me, the"The Father Of The Nation"..as "Karma" and "Spirituality" is the base on which this nation might have survived much better ..

He was an enlightened soul par excellence even from his childhood days and showed his brilliance in what he believed in ...He taught India the secrets from "Aryan Civilization" the Vedas, the Vedanta and the Upanishads in layman's terms ..

I salute him for all that he was and all that he wanted us to be ..

On Harmonious Co-existence of several religions
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As par Vivekanada,

"To do good and to be good"---is the religion

Another definition of it is
"Being true to one's self" is one's ultimate religion..
Here "self" means the conscience and soul ..

Every prophet basically teaches and preaches love, wisdom, mercy and peace as some basic truths that GOD stands for ...

So ideally no one should have clashed with anyone's belief of being good and doing good to mankind ,which is basically the ultimate of every religion ..

Actually as par Sanskrit also Religion most probably means "something that holds us together and binds us together"(In Bengali, we can say,Dhramo ki? - Jaha amader "dharan" koria thake tahai dhormo")…It’s a way of leading life …the kind of way which will bring in peace and harmony in this world..

But it's the blind practices and prejudices that causes all the problems regarding co-existence ..So it's not the prophets and their"advise of ways of leading life", but the "little learned" "priests" and their interpretations of "truth", and blind faith in that, which has brought in this world this amount of chaos and confusion and rivalry...

I believe in Ramakrishna also who said "Jato Mot tato path"(there are as many ways as there are true opinions ( in reaching GOD)).."Gnynayoga", "Karmayoga", "Rajayoga", "Bhatiyoga" are also different ways of attaining "mokhs" and "bliss" and they co-exist without any problem ..Basically, to be in the “blissful state” is what all of us aim for, through religion, or through spirituality…

But the main evils are "little learning", "misinterpretation" and "blind faith" ...If we can weed out the evils surely all of us can harmoniously co-exist ...


Spiritually yours,
-Dev

On Virtues And Vices

Dear friends,

I thought I would share this idea of mine on a much debated topic of what is good and what is not…Something that has created all the controversies of the world I believe.. So in here I thought I would share the belief system and value system that forms my idea about the “The Good , The Bad and the Ugly” :)

Regarding “The Good” , I have my belief system and value systems firmly based on the virtues practiced and preached by Vivekananda.. and those are…

Self-Respect, Self-Confidence, Clear thinking, Courage, Diligence, Sincerity, Initiative, Resourcefulness, Self-Control, Reliability, Spirit Of Service, Unselfishness, Common sense, Cleanliness, Sense Of Discipline, Poise, Self-reliance, Tolerance, Courtesy, Patience, Sympathy, Honesty, Determination and Truthfulness..

I also would like to point out to some thirteen virtues from Benjamin Fraklin.. that I can associate and relate with (ref : http://www.school-for-champions.com/)

Personal:
The seven personal virtues relate to your attitudes toward activities and their challenges. Good personal character traits will better your chances of success in achieving your goals.

Temperance: Eat not to dullness; drink not to elevation.
Order: Let all your things have their places; let each part of your business have its time.
Resolution: Resolve to perform what you ought; perform without fail what you resolve.
Frugality: Make no expense but to do good to others or yourself; i.e., waste nothing.
Moderation: Avoid extremes; forbear resenting injuries so much as you think they deserve.
Industry: Lose no time; be always employed in something useful; cut off all unnecessary actions.
Cleanliness: Tolerate no un-cleanliness in body, clothes, or habitation.
Tranquility: Be not disturbed at trifles, or at accidents common or unavoidable.

Social:
These six social virtues that Franklin stated concern your attitudes toward people with whom you have dealings. Good social character traits result in other people wanting to do business with you or to have relationships with you.

Silence: Speak not but what may benefit others or yourself; avoid trifling conversation.
Sincerity: Use no hurtful deceit; think innocently and justly, and, if you speak, speak accordingly.
Justice: Wrong none by doing injuries, or omitting the benefits that are your duty.
Chastity: Rarely use venery but for health or offspring, never to dullness, weakness, or the injury of your own or another's peace or reputation.
Humility: Imitate Jesus and Socrates.

My favorite quote in this regard is:
“Do unto others what you expect others to do unto you”.---Jesus Christ

I would also like to add this little one from Dr. Deepak Chopra…
“Humility is most underrated virtue and sex is the most overrated vice”

Regarding “The Bad”, we all know about the seven sins…
Lust, Anger, Greed, Envy, Pride, Sloth & Gluttony

But as my “indulgence-secretary” would like to say…
“I can resist everything but temptation” :)

And regarding “The Ugly” part of it..

I hate meanness, jealousy, “sick competitiveness that wants to "win" at any expense” and the "half-literate ego" that doesn’t mind hurting others for personal gains...

But please pardon me for my wildest dreams ( the cause and the effect of it, I mean,,…errrrgh..;))

But after a bit of reflection and pondering I thought I murmured that I've got a “swan-feather” mind that doesn't mind, a heart that doesn't hurt, a touch that doesn't pain but I can fly like a butterfly and sting like a bee..…Wow…where the hell did that came from………!!!! ;)

Reflexively yours,
-Dev