BHAGAVAD GITA..THE TRUTH & THE SHADOW..!

The wikipedia gives you a fine but peripheral explanation about the sacred text Bhagavad Gita. In the case of any religious texts,be it the Holy Bible,Holy Quran, or any other,the study of the written philosophy or the exact wordings, would give you just the outermost and direct meaning of the scriptures..Most often,this would prove absolutely insufficient to serve the real purpose of study..be it for your theology research or to quench your real spiritual thirst..:) That is the sole reason why the world is still divided when it comes to religious and philosophic boundaries..The recent devolopments in russia throws light on this issue..

Infact,what is the real issue in russia? Some claimed that the commentary of Bhagavad Gita written by A.C.Bhakthivedhantha Prabhupadha (the founder of ISKCON) is an extremist religious literature,and should be banned..the book is named as "BHAGAVAD GITA AS IT IS"..and the author claims to represent Gita in its most perfect sense..the author's history will tell you a lot about what influenced his writings..hailing from traditional vaishanava family,the man grew up to be a sanskrit scholar who mastered vedic literature..later he founded an international society to spread "Krishna conciousness" by which he proposed an exclusive way for liberation from earthly life..and he also proposed Lord Krishna to be the supreme personality of Godhead in his writings..by the time he died in 1977,ISKCON succeeded in promoting vaishnavism around the globe..by spreading the movement mainly in west and constructing temples..

A.C.Bhakthivedhantha Prabhupadha

The root of the problem lies in interpretting hinduism to be a religion..Then,what is hinduism,if it's not a religion? It is a way of life..a dharma..dharma does not mean religion. It is the law that governs all action. Thus, contrary to popular perception, Hinduism is not just a religion in the tradition sense of the term. Out of this misinterpretation, has come most of the misconceptions about Hinduism..In the real Bhagavad Gita, Krishna summarizes the methods to liberation or "Yogas" through eighteen chapters. Three yogas in particular have been emphasized:

Lord Krishna seen with Radha  in this painting

• Bhakti Yoga or Devotion

• Karma Yoga or Selfless Action

• Jnana Yoga or Self Transcending Knowledge

A man can adopt any of these methods to realise God..total freedom is given to the man,to choose what suits his nature..it is obvious that all men don't share the same way of thinking..and there is no compulsion too regarding the strict following of this "way of life"..after all,it's not for God,but for you! And Bhaktivedhantha chose Bhakthi yoga and promoted bhakthi yoga..but, with all due respect to the great master, i still believe that he often forgot the equal importance that the other branches of "yogas" deserved in hindu scriptures..and vaishnavism was just a path for those who wanted to choose it..not a universal one..no path in any religion can be called universal..that itself destoys the very meaning of the word religion.."the opinion"!

In a nutshell,the problems in russia were born out of wrong perceptions of the scripture..it's not easy to enlighten a group of confused individuals in a court room..but,a sincere and personal attempt to understand the allegory is the only solution that remains..how peaceful the world would have been,if everyone in this world chose to do that..:)



"Delusion arises from anger..by delusion,the mind is bewildered..by bewilderment of  mind, reasoning is destroyed...when reasoning is destroyed,one falls down..."
                              
                                                                                       -Bhagavad Gita
                  

IMPORTANCE OF FAILURE..

While browsing the web,i found a blog written by Mridu khullar,a freelance journalist..she shared a brilliant piece from real life to show you the importance of self esteem..this is why i love corporate training sessions..:) lot of motivation is in the air..you can hardly choose to stay demotivated!I share a part of that insightful blog to you..read on..

At a corporate training session, the trainer took out a $100 bill, waived it in the air, and asked, “Who wants this?” All hands immediately shot up, accompanied by huge grins. The trainer then proceeded to crush it, step on it, and throw it around. Short of tearing it up, he did everything possible to batter it. “Now who wants this bill?” he asked. All hands were still up.

“You’re like the bill,” explained the trainer to the somewhat confused group. “You may be battered, crushed, or stepped on, but you’ll always retain your value. If anything, you’re more valuable now, since you’ve gained from your failure and learned the true meaning of success.”

How great a parable was that! For all those who have failed in different stages of their life,this could be a great moment of realisation..:) It is important to know that life never keeps you a failure forever,if you don't choose to be! You have to know your worth..that is all that matters..nothing else..and you have no reason to believe that you can't bounce back..how many times have you heard about the these world famous 'failures' like Abraham lincoln,Thomas Edison and Albert Einstein..still you are not convinced?!!

Let me ask you a question..If you were a corporate manager,would you pick a man who never failed or,a man who failed,but still manged to bounced back ? :) Your answer is important! Because,modern corporates don't see failure as mere failure..but they see it as an added experience to your life..! Acccording to them,a man who failed is capable of handling crisis situations better than a man who never failed..they also feel that, his decision making skills are sharper under pressure than the others..aren't they right?!! So,the message is clear,it's not failure that's going to harm your profile..but your strength and character to bounce back.. that would be the point you will have to prove..may be the only point..:)

Celebrate your failure by feeling the power of failure..know the potential power that it has added to your character..when the right time comes to pass,you will see that strength manisfest out of nothing,to save your day! So,be grateful to Lord for giving you the opportunity to appreciate success more than anyone else..failure is a common thing..but once you bounce back,it's not to be called a 'failure' anymore..you are special..you are unique..you are you!

  “A failure teaches you that, something can’t be done that way! ”

                                                                           

                                                                                   - Thomas Edison

GOD IS SUED!

Today,i had no intention to blog about anything sensational..but i should say,i failed..:) I was,to a large extent,tempted by the media..so blame them if you hate this! yeah..it's about the international comedy that we all have heard in the news channels,read in the newspapers and tweeting in twitter..'GITA' ban in russia..

The movement against 'GITA' in russia is the latest chapter to the series of senseless things that ever happened in history.The two nations have so far been the best of friends and never failed to support eachother in crisis..and it's interesting to note,what a group of irrational fundamentalists could do to affect the harmony of two nations! I won't say they succeeded or they will ever succeed..but,are they not posing a potential threat to a society? Interpretting a time tested scripture with their ill intended mind and injecting ignorance..i dare to call it 'terrorism'!

This is a moment to reflect and introspect..a holy scripture taken to court of law and being tested for its integrity! The sunny side is that,it could have beeen much worse! And thankfully,it didn't happen..it's time that we promise to ourselves that we won't fall to such traps..because, i expect them to be everywhere(not just in russia) and these people are not to be called 'russians'..they are just a set of misleading individuals with no real cultural or national identity..and this is never an issue between two nations..but the humanity v/s individuals..

I found the picture of a beautiful painting in the web years ago and i just loved the philosophy..and it's a beautiful co-incidence that i post it in this blog after several years,and that too, with a purpose..dedicating this painting for those who never understood the 'oneness' of religions..please,kindly be satisfied with atleast the physical co-existance of the 'Gods'!  :)




                             "God made the truth with many doors."
                                                                                        
                                                                                              -KAHIL GIBRAN

    Spread peace..spread love..God bless!

TOMATO, Jr.BACHCHAN & THE BICYCLE!

Yesterday,while on twitter,suddenly a tweet from our one & only junior bachchan flashed on the screen. "to chat with me,follow the link,hope to see u there". If i were a die hard fan of this man,i would have called this moment a 'dream' :) but,i wasn't so obsessed with bollywood and the stars..so,i chose not to get 'excited' about that tweet!

But,the man wouldn't leave my mind so easily..everything associated with him started to flow..from the movies he acted,the dialogues he delivered, finally his famous ad motto also..& it struck my heart like never before.."an idea can change your life" That's it! I clicked that link,registered for chat,and finally ended up talking to the man himself!

So..what made me chase him? And what did i ask him? Being a nature lover by birth,i knew i had to do whatever i can to save this planet..and i had tried not to contribute to the chaos..primary concern was the pollution and climate change due to it. And i chose to ride a fuel efficient bike and to walk the walkable distance. But that wasn't enough to bring about a revolution..was it?  So,here comes an 'opportunity'  to make use of a celebrity to promote my vision..:) that's how i decided to give it a try and i should say that it really paid off..:)

I was asked to enter a nick name for the chat and i chose TOMATO RAM..and i said to him "i have just one simple request for you bro..please promote bicycles for a greener planet! " And he was laughing to see 'TOMATO' part on my nick name! Well..come on man,i am talking something about saving our planet & you are laughing at my nick name??!! Though he was distracted by that,he finally answered me "dear tomato..i will do that tomato..:) " Mission accomplished and i logged out..the rest is upto Mr.jr.bachchan..if he keeps his word,i wouldn't mind being his fan!


THE BICYCLE REVOLUTION!


Please think about it my brother's and sisters. There are lot of things that you can do to contribute to this world.This is your chance to make a change by being the change.A bicycle wouldn't cost you much & is known to be one of the best ways to keep you fit.No pollution,no traffic jams,no parking issues and no fuel! Isn't that a really cool idea to live with?!! It's quite hard for the youngsters to even think about a bicycle substituting their 220cc,350cc bikes..it's up to guys..we always have a choice (that's what spiderman teaches you in the final movie!)

If you want to know what a bicycle can do to this planet..first few minutes of this video by my friend paul will tell you..i am impressed..:)

And what is this TOMATO all about?!! That was my popular nickname in school..ya..i was chubby and cheeky but never looked like a 'fat ass'! So,they had to resort to a cute & refined vegetarian nick name :)
Good day everyone..God bless you..!


“Nobody can go back and start a new beginning, but anyone can start today and make a new ending.” -Maria Robinson

MAKE THAT CHANGE..

It is a great month for those who love the word 'change'. Thinking what is so special about december? Well..being the last month of an year,december is the month to recharge your batteries..especially,if you feel that you had a tough life this year..:) And would'nt you love to enjoy this christmas and make some new year resolutions?!! For all those who frown upon the word 'resolutions' and say "I have done it before,only to fail..", this is the moment to trust yourself and keep saying "I CAN DO IT THIS TIME.."!!! If you had failed earlier (several times) in achieving your new year resolutions,its not a bad thing..! May be you don't know how to do it right.That's all.

Heard about warm ups? yeah..i mean that! There is an order for everything in nature.The water boils only when it is heated upto 100 degree centigrade..what does that teach you? There is a minimum quantum of energy that is required to convert water into steam..and when that transformation happens,you see that steam can do things that water can't! It can pull trains which weigh tons..but water can't.. so,would it be wise to think that you can change over in a couple of days? We have to be patient and persevering at the same time..that's the only way you will see the light..make sure that you give yourself sufficient time to transform in to a new being..'Rome was not built in a day'..so is your habits,character and the life you experience now..the 'change' you dream about is possible..but,be a patient,hardworking man/woman fuelled by optimism..

So,before and after making resolutions,keep the following things in your mind:

• Be motivated: think about the day you will see yourself as the victor.
• Be a workaholic: get ready to put your shoulders on the wheel,you are going to create your destiny!
• Stay focussed: don't get distracted by the triflest of things.Set your priorities right.
• The victor's attitude: start thinking like a successful man.It gives you great maturity!

And next step is the usual bussiness..:) making resolutions. You can see a lot of stuff in the web to help you make a good set of resolutions..(caution:too many resolutions can fail you!) Read and choose what feels more suitable for you and just begin straight away!

Planning to watch some movies during christmas eve? If you choose wisely,even movies can change your lives! I would love to recommend two movies that can inspire the winner in you. THE SHAWSHANK REDEMPTION & THE PURSUIT OF HAPPYNESS..you must have seen these movies,but watch it once more and keep these words closer to your heart..:)

                                         "hope is a good thing..
                                          may be the best of things..
                                          and,no good thing ever dies..."
                                                             
                                                                 -ANDY DUFRESNE (character,The shawshank redemption)

   Sharing one of the best videos i have watched..watch it before you leave..:)



     Merry Christmas everyone! God bless you all..:)