Since when did sitting idle doing absolutely nothing, go out of fashion?
One fine day some jerk shot a pistol and the race started…. no one has had the courage or the time to stop or get off from the speeding locomotive since.
We run like the rabbit in the fabulous wonderland of dear lil’ alice. “ I am late”… “I am late”... Late to work… late to get back… Late to live. As if there’s a carrot dangling in front of our nose… we run to get away from home then dance on a hot tin roof with bare feet… before running from work to get back home.
When was the last time u just sat on a couch and do nothing? Just spend few moments with your thoughts… but it never happens for just when you were thinking to collapse in that bean bag that you had been eyeing for three years now, along comes a busy body who wants to know if you don’t have anything better to do and hands u some errand… I have a strong conviction that its got something to do with envy…
Sitting and dreaming can be good for health. Its also called relaxing. Or at a glossier level... meditation. Be aware. Just be with your thoughts. Observe them as they make their appearance on the stage of your mind, put up a show and are thrown out by the “next bunch of actors”!!! Thoughts that leave you in splits... angry enough to kill a mouse…or sad and teary eyed… sigh..
Ghalib said… jee dhoondata hai phir wohi fursat ke raat din.. bhaithe rahen tassavoor e jaana kiya hue… the heart searches for moments of idleness just to sit and think about a loved one…
From the time you wake up at the bidding of the alarm in the middle of the most enchanting dream, you r rushing to get somewhere… funny, for at the end of the day you always find yourself in your bed. Its like we were running away from it to get back to it!
Imagine a space where you just sit alone and think…or dream or snooze…as may be the individual preference. There should be such a place in the house or at work where you are allowed to go and do nothing… without feeling guilty! And where no one is allowed to ask you anything…only “ mein aur meri tanhaayee”( me and my solitude)…just for a while for like all good things, it must come to an end. Just an oasis of blankness in the desert of schedules and deadlines. You can't forever remain in the oasis for you must trek the desert in search of your treasures… but a pit stop to refuel … just to switch off from the world and connect to your inner peace and solitude. Just to say hello to your self.
Ek lamha seher e zindagee ke beech
Jab tanhayee mein khud se poocho tum..
Kyon janaab? Sab khairiyat hai?
Aur phir ho jao duniya mein gum.
A moment in the midst of this desert like life
When we ask ourselves in a quiet moment
“My friend, how are you?”
And lose ourselves in the world again
Saturday, October 07, 2006
Thursday, October 05, 2006
Music and spirituality
Music has the ability to take you in to great depths within yourself. Music is a harmonious part of nature. There is a rhythm in everything and music has the ability to penetrate in to the various levels of your existence. While you can hear music through your ears, and through your intellect you can listen to it through your soul and there experience meditation through music… when you become one with music.
A person who loves music, who either listens to it or is a musician, cannot be too far from spirituality. No matter what kind of music he deals with. Music is the easiest way to experience spirituality.
And if you feel like running away from music, then that is because it has become noise. .. an irritant in an already cluttered world... A beautiful rose in a garden full of weeds. You need to pull out the weeds before enjoying the beauty of the rose.
Why does music effect you so much… because it affects your emotions… most genre of music leaves you feeling emotional. Have you noticed it? You may feel melancholic or ecstatic listening to few notes…We are drawn to a source of music. Either preferring to sit and listen or sway to its beats. It is impossible to remain unaffected by music. Listening to music is like meditation .. you have to start from a superficial level and slowly sink into the depths… until you lose yourself in it…
It is believed that the right brain is responsible for creativity and emotion and the left brain is responsible for logic, analysis and spatial reasoning. The left brain processes data in a linear, or sequential manner. The right brain processes data simultaneously, and because it is mute, does not connect plausible explanations immediately to each step in the process, but instead trusts the left brain to later link the reasoning behind beliefs or decisions. (from wikipedia)
What this means is that when we listen to music we tend to use both the hemispheres of our brains. So listening to music is good for you. It helps you strike the right balance. This is the reason why we have the tradition of satsang.. or singing devotional songs in a group. This is also why we have masses in a church. Positive thoughts and emotions from a group of people is a huge wave of positive energy which benefits everyone who experiences it. No one can deny that attending a satsang leaves one feeling better.. happy, full of some inexplicable joy… and a quiet wave of peace.
Have you been to a music concert? The Music composition filters in to your ears .. creating a wonderful tapestry with all the design elements.. there’s harmony, contrast, different textures.. and tying all these is a spirit that touches you deep inside… You as a listener are only sitting and listening but you get carried away in its waves… high and low… It is a blessing to be able to enjoy music. And it’s a bigger blessing to be able to sing or play music. Notice a face that is playing music… there is deep concentration … and a strange sense of peace and joy. That can only be experienced. Music is a service. The singer wants to impart joy to please a listener, to help him share the spirituality and to eventually become one. The music, the renderer and the listener…
We usually listen to music in the background… like an attachment to our activity. And our mind becomes a playground of musical notes and the thoughts related to the activity … each vying for attention… Next time you listen to music when you have spare time, sit in one place. The music should not be too loud as to superimpose your senses and not too soft as to get lost in the surroundings… close your eyes, and listen. To every note… every beat… every nuance. And thus you breathe in the present moment. You are living in the present. And that IS joy. Slowly sink in its embrace, listening through your ears... and then through the intellect.. next it touches your thoughts and emotions…leading to a great sense of relief and joy… finally climaxing into a state of thoughtlessness.
That is meditation.
Music has the ability to take you in to great depths within yourself. Music is a harmonious part of nature. There is a rhythm in everything and music has the ability to penetrate in to the various levels of your existence. While you can hear music through your ears, and through your intellect you can listen to it through your soul and there experience meditation through music… when you become one with music.
A person who loves music, who either listens to it or is a musician, cannot be too far from spirituality. No matter what kind of music he deals with. Music is the easiest way to experience spirituality.
And if you feel like running away from music, then that is because it has become noise. .. an irritant in an already cluttered world... A beautiful rose in a garden full of weeds. You need to pull out the weeds before enjoying the beauty of the rose.
Why does music effect you so much… because it affects your emotions… most genre of music leaves you feeling emotional. Have you noticed it? You may feel melancholic or ecstatic listening to few notes…We are drawn to a source of music. Either preferring to sit and listen or sway to its beats. It is impossible to remain unaffected by music. Listening to music is like meditation .. you have to start from a superficial level and slowly sink into the depths… until you lose yourself in it…
It is believed that the right brain is responsible for creativity and emotion and the left brain is responsible for logic, analysis and spatial reasoning. The left brain processes data in a linear, or sequential manner. The right brain processes data simultaneously, and because it is mute, does not connect plausible explanations immediately to each step in the process, but instead trusts the left brain to later link the reasoning behind beliefs or decisions. (from wikipedia)
What this means is that when we listen to music we tend to use both the hemispheres of our brains. So listening to music is good for you. It helps you strike the right balance. This is the reason why we have the tradition of satsang.. or singing devotional songs in a group. This is also why we have masses in a church. Positive thoughts and emotions from a group of people is a huge wave of positive energy which benefits everyone who experiences it. No one can deny that attending a satsang leaves one feeling better.. happy, full of some inexplicable joy… and a quiet wave of peace.
Have you been to a music concert? The Music composition filters in to your ears .. creating a wonderful tapestry with all the design elements.. there’s harmony, contrast, different textures.. and tying all these is a spirit that touches you deep inside… You as a listener are only sitting and listening but you get carried away in its waves… high and low… It is a blessing to be able to enjoy music. And it’s a bigger blessing to be able to sing or play music. Notice a face that is playing music… there is deep concentration … and a strange sense of peace and joy. That can only be experienced. Music is a service. The singer wants to impart joy to please a listener, to help him share the spirituality and to eventually become one. The music, the renderer and the listener…
We usually listen to music in the background… like an attachment to our activity. And our mind becomes a playground of musical notes and the thoughts related to the activity … each vying for attention… Next time you listen to music when you have spare time, sit in one place. The music should not be too loud as to superimpose your senses and not too soft as to get lost in the surroundings… close your eyes, and listen. To every note… every beat… every nuance. And thus you breathe in the present moment. You are living in the present. And that IS joy. Slowly sink in its embrace, listening through your ears... and then through the intellect.. next it touches your thoughts and emotions…leading to a great sense of relief and joy… finally climaxing into a state of thoughtlessness.
That is meditation.
Friday, August 18, 2006
A book review - The agony and the ecstasy by Irving Stone
(Biography of Michaelangelo, the Painter, sculptor and architect of Florence, 1475 - 1564)
Who hasen't heard about Michaelangelo?
The guy who did the fresco at the Sistine chapel.. where a semi naked "old man" created a beautiful (and naked) "Adam" with his touch... its beautiful. well when something gets as talked about as The fresco.. or the likes of The Monalisa the hype is just so much that u know it but u wonder what the fuss is all about.. there have been so many masterpieces... so whats so great about this one...
if u know a lil bit more about the man, then he is also famous for "David"... another nude male standing alone on a pedestal.....
then of course if u have touched architecture, u might also be aware of the fact that this guy designed the famous dome of St. Peters, the heart of the catholic world....
thats all i knew before i started reading " the agony and the ecstasy".. a brilliant narrative biography of the genius of a man we know as Michaelangelo.
You might as well specify his full name... Michaelangelo Buonarroti. Thats because in the painting world there is another famous namesake.. Michaelangelo Caravaggio (1573-1609). (http://www.christusrex.org/www2/art/caravaggio.htm)
He took the art world by a storm with every work of his becoming a beacon of light.. inspiring and showing the way to generations of artists who followed... the book traces the life of the maestro and also attempts to read the artist's mind as he set to create his wonderous masterpieces.. be it the sculptures that he breathed life into ... which was his self proclaimed passion second to no other art... or the splendid frescoes.
with the artistic midas touch, whattver medium he chose, he even penned down few sonnets, he quite simply excelled....
AS you read the book and sift through the description on various works, you might want to see the work of art in question to better understand the effect of all those thoughts and deliberations which probably went through the artists mind (recreated exceptionally well by Irving stone)
The link http://easyweb.easynet.co.uk/giorgio.vasari/michel/michel.htm will help you immensly to relate the words to the art itself.
You might also want to visit http://www.christusrex.org/www1/sistine/0-Ceiling.html
...just to have a jaw dropping experience!!!!
Do read the book to understand the thoughts and hard work behind the most beautiful art specimen... as an account of the history of Italy during the Rennaisance... or just to savour the human mind and its ability to create such breathtaking beauty...
(Biography of Michaelangelo, the Painter, sculptor and architect of Florence, 1475 - 1564)
Who hasen't heard about Michaelangelo?
The guy who did the fresco at the Sistine chapel.. where a semi naked "old man" created a beautiful (and naked) "Adam" with his touch... its beautiful. well when something gets as talked about as The fresco.. or the likes of The Monalisa the hype is just so much that u know it but u wonder what the fuss is all about.. there have been so many masterpieces... so whats so great about this one...
if u know a lil bit more about the man, then he is also famous for "David"... another nude male standing alone on a pedestal.....
then of course if u have touched architecture, u might also be aware of the fact that this guy designed the famous dome of St. Peters, the heart of the catholic world....
thats all i knew before i started reading " the agony and the ecstasy".. a brilliant narrative biography of the genius of a man we know as Michaelangelo.
You might as well specify his full name... Michaelangelo Buonarroti. Thats because in the painting world there is another famous namesake.. Michaelangelo Caravaggio (1573-1609). (http://www.christusrex.org/www2/art/caravaggio.htm)
He took the art world by a storm with every work of his becoming a beacon of light.. inspiring and showing the way to generations of artists who followed... the book traces the life of the maestro and also attempts to read the artist's mind as he set to create his wonderous masterpieces.. be it the sculptures that he breathed life into ... which was his self proclaimed passion second to no other art... or the splendid frescoes.
with the artistic midas touch, whattver medium he chose, he even penned down few sonnets, he quite simply excelled....
AS you read the book and sift through the description on various works, you might want to see the work of art in question to better understand the effect of all those thoughts and deliberations which probably went through the artists mind (recreated exceptionally well by Irving stone)
The link http://easyweb.easynet.co.uk/giorgio.vasari/michel/michel.htm will help you immensly to relate the words to the art itself.
You might also want to visit http://www.christusrex.org/www1/sistine/0-Ceiling.html
...just to have a jaw dropping experience!!!!
Do read the book to understand the thoughts and hard work behind the most beautiful art specimen... as an account of the history of Italy during the Rennaisance... or just to savour the human mind and its ability to create such breathtaking beauty...
Sunday, April 16, 2006
King for a day
The beat of the drums in unison,
The pipes blown rhythmically.
The throng of believers all around .
The gold that adorns me.
Yes, I’ll have it all.
For I am a king today.
I should be happy for the honor
But a heavy price I did pay.
The agony, etched in my memory
Still chills the bones.
I remember too,
The unheard cries and moans.
Silver chains cover my bruises.
Embellished imprisonment.
And the captors shall line up
To seek my blessings!
There will be ceremonies for me
And, deities to kneel before.
And few nibbles of food.
A token of appreciation and more.
But all I long for is to go back.
To my mother and friends.
Under the blue skies
Amidst the trees and vines.
All I want is to be myself.
Unbridled. Unhurt.
-Bkn
1999-2001
Wednesday, January 04, 2006
Is this the beginning of the end?
No evidence of tigers in Sariska: WWF-India
2005-02-15 NEW DELHI,
NEW DELHI, - A World Wildlife Fund (WWF)-India expert team has found ‘‘not a single sign of evidence—direct or indirect—to indicate the presence of tiger’’ in Rajasthan’s Sariska reserve.
[January 04, 2006]
Indian tigers could be wiped out in 10 years
(The Sunday Telegraph Via Thomson Dialog NewsEdge)A NEW SURVEY of India's tiger population has established that there are many fewer of the animals than previously believed, prompting fears that increased poaching could lead to their extinction within a decade...
..The Wildlife Trust of India has revealed that there are few or no tigers left in at least six of the country's main reserves. According to official statistics, Namdapha in the north-eastern state of Arunachal Pradesh had 61 tigers in 2002 but the trust assesses that there is only one animal now left. In Buxa in West Bengal, where 32 Indian tigers - also known as Royal Bengal tigers - were reported in 1997, none is thought to remain.
http://www.tmcnet.com/usubmit/2006/jan/1260248.htm
The year 2005 was particularly critical for the survival of tigers. An enquiry confirmed the worst fears that the entire tiger population of Sariska was annihilated inter alia by organised poaching. Investigations by Rajasthan police revealed the existence of a gang of poachers that killed 21 tigers in Ranthambhore during last two years. Seizure of skins and other body parts outside Panna, Periyar and the Sunderbans showed that the network extended to protected areas in different parts of the country.
http://www.hardnewsmedia.com/portal/2006/01/294
No evidence of tigers in Sariska: WWF-India
2005-02-15 NEW DELHI,
NEW DELHI, - A World Wildlife Fund (WWF)-India expert team has found ‘‘not a single sign of evidence—direct or indirect—to indicate the presence of tiger’’ in Rajasthan’s Sariska reserve.
[January 04, 2006]
Indian tigers could be wiped out in 10 years
(The Sunday Telegraph Via Thomson Dialog NewsEdge)A NEW SURVEY of India's tiger population has established that there are many fewer of the animals than previously believed, prompting fears that increased poaching could lead to their extinction within a decade...
..The Wildlife Trust of India has revealed that there are few or no tigers left in at least six of the country's main reserves. According to official statistics, Namdapha in the north-eastern state of Arunachal Pradesh had 61 tigers in 2002 but the trust assesses that there is only one animal now left. In Buxa in West Bengal, where 32 Indian tigers - also known as Royal Bengal tigers - were reported in 1997, none is thought to remain.
http://www.tmcnet.com/usubmit/2006/jan/1260248.htm
The year 2005 was particularly critical for the survival of tigers. An enquiry confirmed the worst fears that the entire tiger population of Sariska was annihilated inter alia by organised poaching. Investigations by Rajasthan police revealed the existence of a gang of poachers that killed 21 tigers in Ranthambhore during last two years. Seizure of skins and other body parts outside Panna, Periyar and the Sunderbans showed that the network extended to protected areas in different parts of the country.
http://www.hardnewsmedia.com/portal/2006/01/294
If I had only known
If I had only known it was our last walk in the rain
I'd keep you out for hours in the storm
I would hold your hand, like a lifeline to my heart
And underneath the thunder we'd be warm
If I had only known it was our last walk in the rain
If I had only known I'd never hear your voice again
I'd memorize each thing you ever said
And on these lonely nights, i could think of them once more
And keep your words alive inside my head
If I had only known I'd never hear your voice again
you were the treasure in my heart
You were the one who always stood beside me
So unaware, I foolishly believed that
you would always be there
But then there came a day when I closed my eyes
And you slipped away
If I had only known it was my last night by your side
I'd pray a mircle would stop the dawn
And when you smiled at me,I would look into your eyes
And make sure you know my love for you goes on and on
If I had only known, If I had only known
The love i would have shown
If Ihad only known
CRAIG MORRIS/JANA STANFIELD
If I had only known it was our last walk in the rain
I'd keep you out for hours in the storm
I would hold your hand, like a lifeline to my heart
And underneath the thunder we'd be warm
If I had only known it was our last walk in the rain
If I had only known I'd never hear your voice again
I'd memorize each thing you ever said
And on these lonely nights, i could think of them once more
And keep your words alive inside my head
If I had only known I'd never hear your voice again
you were the treasure in my heart
You were the one who always stood beside me
So unaware, I foolishly believed that
you would always be there
But then there came a day when I closed my eyes
And you slipped away
If I had only known it was my last night by your side
I'd pray a mircle would stop the dawn
And when you smiled at me,I would look into your eyes
And make sure you know my love for you goes on and on
If I had only known, If I had only known
The love i would have shown
If Ihad only known
CRAIG MORRIS/JANA STANFIELD
Even this will pass away
Once in Persia reigned a king,
Who upon a signet ring
Carved a maxim strange and wise,
When held before his eyes,
Gave him counsel at a glance,
Fit for every change and chance
Solemn words and these were they:
“Even this will pass away”…
Fighting on the furious field,
Once a javelin pierced his shield,
Soldiers with a loud lament
Bore him bleeding to his tortured side,
“Pain is hard to bear,” he cried,
“But with patience, day by day,
“Even this will pass away”…
Struck with palsy, sore and old,
Waiting at the gates of gold,
Said he with his dying breath
“Life is done, but what is death!”
Then an answer to the king
Fell a sunbeam on his ring;
Showing by a heavenly ray,
“Even this will pass way”
Theodore Tilton
Once in Persia reigned a king,
Who upon a signet ring
Carved a maxim strange and wise,
When held before his eyes,
Gave him counsel at a glance,
Fit for every change and chance
Solemn words and these were they:
“Even this will pass away”…
Fighting on the furious field,
Once a javelin pierced his shield,
Soldiers with a loud lament
Bore him bleeding to his tortured side,
“Pain is hard to bear,” he cried,
“But with patience, day by day,
“Even this will pass away”…
Struck with palsy, sore and old,
Waiting at the gates of gold,
Said he with his dying breath
“Life is done, but what is death!”
Then an answer to the king
Fell a sunbeam on his ring;
Showing by a heavenly ray,
“Even this will pass way”
Theodore Tilton
Have you ever watched kids on a merry go round
Or listened to rain stopping the ground
Ever followed a butterfly's erratic flight,
Or gazed at the sun fading in to the night?
You better slow down, Dont dance so fast
Time is short, the music wont last
Do you run through each day on the fly,
When you ask "how are you?" Do you hear the reply?
When the day is done, do you lie in your bed
With the next 100 chores running through your head?
You better slow down, Don't dance so fast
Time is short, the music won't last
Ever told your child, We'll do it tomorrow,
And in yout haste not see his sorrow?
Ever lost touch, let a good friendship die
Cause you never had time to call and say HI
You better slow down, Don't dance so fast
Time is short, the music won't last
When you run so fast to get somewhere
You miss half the fun of getting there
When you worry and hurry through your day
Its like an unopened gift thrown away
Life is not a race, so take it slower
Hear the music before the song is over.
Poet Anonymous
Or listened to rain stopping the ground
Ever followed a butterfly's erratic flight,
Or gazed at the sun fading in to the night?
You better slow down, Dont dance so fast
Time is short, the music wont last
Do you run through each day on the fly,
When you ask "how are you?" Do you hear the reply?
When the day is done, do you lie in your bed
With the next 100 chores running through your head?
You better slow down, Don't dance so fast
Time is short, the music won't last
Ever told your child, We'll do it tomorrow,
And in yout haste not see his sorrow?
Ever lost touch, let a good friendship die
Cause you never had time to call and say HI
You better slow down, Don't dance so fast
Time is short, the music won't last
When you run so fast to get somewhere
You miss half the fun of getting there
When you worry and hurry through your day
Its like an unopened gift thrown away
Life is not a race, so take it slower
Hear the music before the song is over.
Poet Anonymous
Happiness comes with contentment.
The only purpose in life is to find happiness. that IS why we are born..
As you have lived life there were different things that you swore would keep you happy...
You were happy when your daddy got you a new doll...
You were happy when you topped your class...
You were happy when she said yes!
You were happy when you moved into your new house.
You were happy when you drove a ferrari...
Aren't we just moving from one experience to another? running after cotton candy pleasures???
As we meander through these labyrinthine experiences, running after and finding "treasures" that bring us ephemeral happiness, we reach a stage where the happiness we eventually experience is for ever... we are no longer thirsty but quenched of desires and restlessness...
a state of permanence where you dont want anything more and nothing less.
Like every river, which is destined to become one with the ocean, thus are we meandering through life to meet the cosmic Oneness.
Till then we must wait and trudge on the path of life.. stumbling , falling... learning.
Most of us fleet through our lives without living. We engage ourselves in acts that we are not happy doing... stop and ponder on the things you are doing right now.. are you happy?
life is this moment. the present. not day after tomorrow...
We live like we are stuck in our present.. tied up to our past.. we live like we have no choices..
But i believe that life is what you make out of it...
I believe that destiny churns up what we really want.
And we have in our power to make choices.. and to choose differently.
You don't have to live with bad choices...
Remember... mistakes are the stepping stones to success.
" You are never given a wish without being given the power to fulfill it",
provided you know what you want in life...
We have the power to be happy.
We have the POWER TO CHOOSE.
The only purpose in life is to find happiness. that IS why we are born..
As you have lived life there were different things that you swore would keep you happy...
You were happy when your daddy got you a new doll...
You were happy when you topped your class...
You were happy when she said yes!
You were happy when you moved into your new house.
You were happy when you drove a ferrari...
Aren't we just moving from one experience to another? running after cotton candy pleasures???
As we meander through these labyrinthine experiences, running after and finding "treasures" that bring us ephemeral happiness, we reach a stage where the happiness we eventually experience is for ever... we are no longer thirsty but quenched of desires and restlessness...
a state of permanence where you dont want anything more and nothing less.
Like every river, which is destined to become one with the ocean, thus are we meandering through life to meet the cosmic Oneness.
Till then we must wait and trudge on the path of life.. stumbling , falling... learning.
Most of us fleet through our lives without living. We engage ourselves in acts that we are not happy doing... stop and ponder on the things you are doing right now.. are you happy?
life is this moment. the present. not day after tomorrow...
We live like we are stuck in our present.. tied up to our past.. we live like we have no choices..
But i believe that life is what you make out of it...
I believe that destiny churns up what we really want.
And we have in our power to make choices.. and to choose differently.
You don't have to live with bad choices...
Remember... mistakes are the stepping stones to success.
" You are never given a wish without being given the power to fulfill it",
provided you know what you want in life...
We have the power to be happy.
We have the POWER TO CHOOSE.
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