The journey of life is often an arduous undertaking in itself. While walking on the destined path of life, often it so happens that man starts to feel as if he is all alone; walking on a broken road that indeed leads him to nowhere. Every individual at one point or the other feels sad and dejected owing to the fact that he is all alone in this world; every individual on some level feels that there should be someone with whom he can share his life; with whom he can share his world; someone special with whom he can share his joy and his sorrow.
Loneliness often drives the best of individuals to commit the most heinous of crimes; why? For the simple reason that loneliness can indeed drive a person utterly paranoid. Man is a social animal and hence to thrive and grow in his life, he needs the company of fellow humans. Often so it happens that even in the company of friends and family, man feels the need for someone special; someone close to his heart; someone with whom he can share the most personal and intimate secrets that are known to no one else but him. In the absence of that very person, man often starts to feel that his life indeed has little meaning left to it; that even in the midst of a rollicking crowd; he is ultimately cold and lonely.
Why does this situation arise? What is it that drives a human being to search for peace and satisfaction outside the realm of his own consciousness? I stress vehemently on this question, for that dependency and the neediness in itself is highly injurious to a person’s overall growth. The fact that your happiness and your satisfaction depends on someone other than yourself is something that can prove to be highly detrimental for personal success.
I have thought long and hard on these matters and from what I derived through introspection was that every person essentially is complete within himself. If a person truly attains realization and enlightenment, he realizes that there is no one else who can be his soul mate but for his own self. Through the process of the spiritual evolution, man realizes that such attachments and illusory dependencies only end up making him vulnerable and weak. They hardly ever give him strength and resolve. As man evolves through the spiritual path, he realizes that there is indeed no such thing as loneliness. One realizes that everyone comes into this world on their own accord; and they leave it on their own. When you are born alone and when you die alone; don’t you think that god would have had the better sense to give you the capabilities to live alone?
I have often posed this question to myself in endless hours of introspection; and the answer that I received was this. Alone never means lonely; you can be alone without being lonely and you can be lonely without being all alone. Aloneness is a state of oneness; it is all-one; that is what makes up the word alone. The spiritual path in itself is a path that enriches and embellishes an individual with gifts and powers far beyond the scope of mortal men. As an individual progresses on the spiritual path; he indeed realizes that he is alone in this world, for he discovers his true nature. In that very discovery, he realizes his own soul and that realization takes him beyond all yearning and all incompleteness. That in itself symbolizes the true form of the spirit. When you are one with your soul; when your are one with yourself; being alone no longer means being lonely.
That is what true spirituality finally accomplishes. Granted that it’s a hard path in itself for it hardly provides any answers in the short haul. On the contrary it yields the seeker great pain and seeks of him great sacrifices. However one thing is for certain; the fires in which the seeker burns, only turn his spirit to gold; the trials and tribulations that a seeker faces on this path only embellish and enrich his spirit; for it is but a single step in the journey of spiritual evolution known as life…
I have often said that life is a series of events that happen to an individual. Life is a series of occurrences or happenings that are simply related to each other. How this occurrences are laid out in each of our lives is a mystery that none of us can indeed fathom. In reality, however this very mystery helps us to live life with a renewed sense of hope and vigor with every breath that pumps our heart. Imagine indeed if there was no mystery left in life; how boring and monotonous it would truly be. Even greatness would lose all its sheen for indeed there would be nothing-great left about it.
05-Aug-2005 14:14, Canon Canon EOS 20D, 3.5, 85.0mm, 0.001 sec, ISO 100
These various events that span out in an individual’s lifetime often induce some emotion in him; be it anger or happiness; be it ecstasy or depression; the varied moods of life never fail to influence the flow of our destinies. Through the many emotive phases that an individual goes through in his life, I have often noticed that there is one emotion that lasts the longest; that there is one emotion that stays forever with an individual; that is regret.
I have often said that the only lasting emotion in life is regret; that every individual at every point in his life feels regret in one form or another. Regret that he did something; or regret that he did not do something. The very nature of human life is such that an individual naturally regresses and goes into a state of mind where he feels completely lost and hopeless. This situation essentially arises owing to an individual’s unwillingness to accept the burden of his own choices.
Life is a journey in which we have to work with what has been ordained to us. We have to work with what fate we bring with us to these wretched lands. This essentially means that we have to work towards progression and no towards regression. What we have at the end of this life should be something that is far greater than what we had at end of the last one. That is the basic crux of human evolution. In the end we find that the only that stays with us through life and death is our spiritual wealth; it is only the spiritual wealth that we carry when we move on from our physical bodies; and this wealth is something that can be inculcated only through conscious acts of goodness.
Regret is an emotion that comes from deep within our hearts; it is when life disappoints us beyond count that we experience regret. So essentially what this means is that regret being a perpetual emotion, our entire lives end up being but a fallacy of endless disappointments. These arise primarily from our desires. So the basic reason as to why an individual experiences regret and repentance in his life is that he realizes that every single one of his desires ultimately lead to him losing his entire spiritual wealth. In every way, he starts to know that his desires have a heavy price indeed; that his desires are ultimately the cause for his spiritual downfall. The reason being that he hopes to derive lasting joy from the satiation of his desires; something that can never be accomplished; and hence regret forms an eternal part of his existence; simply owing to the fact that he desires happiness from desire itself. Desire in the end purges an individual of all his spiritual wealth.
So how can man truly live his life? Can he simply go about denying his desires? No that would indeed be horrific. But the simple realization and a situational awareness would indeed go a long way. When man realizes that his desires cannot indeed yield him lasting joy, he would cease to expect that from them; when man understands that desires are only meant to satiate shallow pleasures; he would take them for what they are work through them for a better future; for a more evolved future. But until the day dawns and man realizes that desires are not the source of all the goodness in this world, he would forever be plagued by the bane of this physical existence that we call regret.
In the last episode of the second season of The Mysteries of Life, we discuss about the spectacular journey of self-realization; the journey towards enlightenment. Meditation has always been an issue that is often discussed upon by seekers and enthusiasts alike. Through the varied forms of meditation practiced by seekers over the world, we try and get a concise overview of what meditation is all about. How can we lead the ideal spiritual life? Listen to the following audio snippet to know the answers.
Destiny is indeed a queer thing. At times we equate it with fate and still we know that it is something that is still a mystery. As a seeker moves further on in the spiritual journey of life, he starts to question his own destiny incessantly. Are the choices that he makes truly the factors that determine the scope of his life? Or is his life simply a charted streak of random occurrings that he can but experience and not alter? Whatever it may be, the true scope of his destiny always eludes a seeker. In today’s episode of the mysteries of life, we try to elucidate on what our destiny truly represents.
In the eleventh episode of the mysteries of life, we shed light on one of the most misunderstood concepts pertaining to the human existence. We shed light on fate. Many times we see a person cursing his stars; or effectively cursing his fate when he encounters failure in life. However both success and failure that a person receives in his life is the outcome of his own deeds; and so is fate. What is fate? How is it instrumental in shaping our destiny? How can we come to an understanding where we no longer blame someone else for our failures? Listen to the following audio snippet to find the answers.
Man as an entity has evolved through thousands of years. The journey from once being a single-celled organism, to now being perhaps the most evolved race on the face of this earth has indeed been an eventful one. As man has evolved through time, with him, his thoughts have evolved as well. His thoughts have matured and grown to encompass a broader sense of existence. As the times change, we observe paradigm shift in the way man thinks and acts in his life. If we but self-introspect, we realize that in the journey of his own evolution, man indeed lives through the duality of his own life; the duality that exists between his own thoughts and actions.
People often say that our actions are an expression of our thoughts, but from what I have seen and observed about most people (and from myself for that matter!) is that often our thoughts and our actions go in completely different directions. At times it so happens that a certain individual think in a very idealistic way. His thoughts are always centered around the principals of ethics and morality; yet we see that in acting he is not quite idealistic. It often happens that people love to bear idealistic thoughts in their minds; they love to think and discuss on wonderful intellectual topics; but at the end of the day when they get out of that zone and get down to being comfortable, they in the end keep on acting like they always have. Essentially, their thoughts have no discernable effects on their actions.
Thoughts are indeed a very powerful medium of expression. Your thoughts can change your life; indeed they can change someone else’s life as well. However thoughts on their own accord can indeed accomplish little in life. It takes a great deal of hard work to translate these thoughts into actions; prudent and deliberate actions that reflect the philosophy that has been willfully established by the thoughts can indeed go a long way in this world. I often say that a great philosophy can make someone else’s day; the realization that it brings in can put a momentary smile on somebody’s face; but great creativity can make someone else’s life. When you translate those powerful thoughts into action, you can indeed accomplish great things.
But to do that your thoughts and actions need to go hand in hand. Many times it so happens that I think good but I act bad. In such cases I try and offset the guilt of acting bad by thinking even more ‘good thoughts’. This in a way creates a delusion within myself, wherein I am content to only remain aware of my good thoughts. The memory of my bad deeds is always something that shames me and hence is kept away until it absolutely necessary to acknowledge it. Such is the way in which many people lead their lives. In thoughts they are pure and in acts they are vile; there can be no retribution for such individuals until they come to the point where they realize the mistake that they are committing in their own lives.
At times it also happens that our thoughts are vile and yet our acts are good. However in general these are rare cases; they usually are a sign of sudden change. Maybe a sinner of the past that takes the path to sainthood… 😉 Nonetheless, in order to make the journey ahead easier and more enjoyable it is always prudent to bear a semblance between our thoughts and actions. In that way there would be no conflict and no resulting despondency; as in no way would we be denying ourselves the satiation of our thirst.
Ultimately, no matter what choice we make, we have to bear it to the end, but in parting I would say naught but this, that in thoughts be passionate, in act be chaste, in fact be prudent and in tact be fast.
That’s all the ‘gyan’ for today. Lol see you around guys…
In the ninth episode of this season of The Mysteries of Life, we start the discussion where we had last left it off. People often think of karma as being either good or bad. But this perception of karma is often based upon our own ideas and upbringing. Thus what we may deem as either good or bad, may not necessarily be so. What is karma? Is there indeed anything such as good or bad karma? How can man willfully navigate his boat through the treacherous seas of life?
Listen to the following audio snippet to find the answers.
Today in the eighth episode of the second season of the mysteries of life, we touch base on what is perhaps the most important aspect related to true spirituality and the journey of life. Karma or action has always been a great mystery for humankind. Few people truly cognize the scope of their karmic actions. What is karma? Why is it so potent in shaping our destinies? How can we proactively ensure that we remain centered in life irrespective of our myriad karmic ties? In the coming weeks we would be discussing on all these questions; unraveling this spellbinding mystery of life…
In the seventh episode of The Mysteries of Life, we cap off the dissertation on love and relationships by taking a deep plunge into the seas of divine romance. We often see parallels drawn between love and God. Conversely we often see God being mentioned as a hurdle in the path of love. Today we resolve that debate once and for all as we equate the two in a single simplified epistle of enlightenment. Love God and he shall love thee back. Love God and you shall have no other cares.. love god and be free…forever…
I often say that Life is a journey that is both eventful and utterly pointless at the same time. Life is indeed a series of illusions; some that we create of our own accord and many others that we find littered along the road that leads to salvation. I have often said that no matter how false and dreamy the illusions in our life may be, man needs to actively be a part of their fallacy if he is to survive. But how can man truly strike a balance in this situation? How can man actively be a part of the illusion and yet be in touch with reality? The answer to that question is indeed what true spirituality is all about.
Living with illusions does not necessarily mean that an individual as to be completely ignorant of the reality of life. You may be surrounded by people who praise; people who endlessly rave about your achievements. Now enjoying this flattery and the shallow gratification of the ego that it yields is to be expected. But yet within himself, the seeker should always be aware of where he truly stands. Praise and dispraise are both relative. They are fickle; what people think of you is necessarily based on the perception that the people have about your life; and most importantly their intelligence as well.
Thus the first key to living with illusions is to always be aware of where YOU stand. This awareness or this knowledge is not something that is drawn from outside; it is something that comes from within. I am not saying that you don’t acknowledge the praise or enjoy the flattery. Do that to your heart’s content, for that in itself often motivates an individual; but be rest assured that people who praise you in this moment can very well stone you to death in the next. Hence their rebuttal or their disapproval should in no way be a demotivating factor for you. Thus it is always prudent to not let your own understanding of yourself be in any way influenced by the world
The aforementioned scenario is but an example. In our day to day life, we see countless such incidences where if we truly introspect, we realize that we were indeed living in delusion. There is no problem with illusions themselves, but for the fact that they cannot last forever. They are but shadows in the twilight and with time are bound to pass away. When we latch onto those illusions with all our heart and with all the passion that we have within ourselves, we indeed commit a grave mistake; for when the illusion passes on, with it so does our passion for life. That is indeed a deathly scenario in itself.
At the onset I said that life is a journey that is both eventful and pointless at the same time. That was necessarily owing to the fact that in life we experience many different things; we achieve and acquire all that we wish for in our worldly life; and yet someday, we all sit back and think. “Why am I doing this? For whom am I doing this? Where would this journey ultimately take me?” That is the grave realization that ultimately dawns upon us when we discover the illusory weave of the human existence.
So how can we live through this illusory dream? Well the answer to that question is one word. Creativity. Live your life as if you were writing a story or painting a fresco. Any artwork is but a series of lies that leads on to a greater truth. Thus should be your life. No matter may be it entrenched and engulfed in illusions, but through your creativity and through your acts of benevolence, you can indeed give this fallacy a master stroke at the end, so that your life ends up being a creation of beauty. A life lived as such would not only make you the happiest person in the world, but it can inspire others as well.
Work through the illusions; work with the illusions; work as an illusion. Point of the matter is, no matter how intricately distractive the dreams may be, just keep walking…
A Spiritual Revolution added to Articles. Embracing Reality added to Articles. Rebellion added to Articles. The State of Liberation added to Articles. Hypocrisy in Spirituality added to Articles. Pointless Spirituality added to Articles. Two Bytes of Life added to Articles. Change, Consistency & Success added to Articles.
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July 26, 2010 2:30 am | 
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