your own life is more thrilling than movies and books...........

Life is utterly simple and complex at the same time.
Sometimes everything is so smooth. You are on the top of the world...everything seems to be going according to your wishes....you are full of joy !!!
However a monotony sets in if there is no change.....no challenge......life simply seems boring if we are not made to brave tough situations......

What do u feel?Am i right?......just look back at your own life.....glance through all the so called seemingly tough situations, ...all of them have provided you with deep insights about life and about yourself.....they hold such valuable lessons.......

Of course, i know we all have heard and read about these .....but what matters if we can feel and experience these....that's when we gain true knowledge....which books can't provide us with.....books should only serve to guide us and make us introspect......

Close the books for a change atleast for some time and become open to the book of your own life....you will find its more exciting and thrilling than any bestselling novel............

Then only we can realise our purpose for coming into this world.......

okay.........i'm bragging like a sophist..........so i'll just now give rest to my brain and hands......

Byeeeee
JAI GURUDEV............

lots of good wishes

apoorva

Real Seva

Sometimes I wonder are we all really into Seva?
What do we mean by seva?
What are our motives when we do Seva?
Is it unconditional love and devotion or something else?

hmm.....well nothing to worry....just some questions which came across my awareness and i put them into writing!!!!

However i feel at certain moments in our life we do need to answer these questions so that we know we are sincerely on the path......

My best wishes to all of you in all your SEVA activities........

jai gurudev,
apoorva

Feelings, emotions.....hmmmmm. So blissful and yet so terrible!!!
They can raise you up to the sky and the very next moment they can push you into abyss.Falling in love is that fall which all and sundry long to experience......it makes you feel on top of the world!!! You feel as if your life has found that perfection which it had been seeking since infinity. You don't desire anything else. You are free from all cravings and aversions. There comes such freshness, such joy which never seems to leave you. The intoxication surpasses all other known sources of happiness.
Only one thought encapsulates your whole being. You only think of your BELOVED. You wish to know everything about them : where they go, what they are doing right now and so on. No matter whatever you do for your beloved, it just seems insufficient!!. You yearn to do more and more for them...even a single moment without them seems just unbearable...and with them you transcend time...
Unfortunately, all this goody-goody stuff doesn't last long. Slowly demands start arising. Even a trivial gesture of negligence causes so much hurt...you become so vulnerable. Their not looking at you, not smiling ..makes you so much miserable...all distortions then come into the picture. And lo....if suppose your beloved breaks your heart.....then that is the most horrifying pain on earth....the person whom you loved the most, now you don't even want to see them and that makes you more worse...that earlier tenderness is now replaced by stiffness.
But, this heart break may become a pivotal point in your life.....from transient and conditional love it can move you to such ultimate form of love that is free of all negativities....free of dependence on outer gestures!!! and even the person!!!
I'll talk about that later. Till then goodbye....enjoy the variegated festival of HOLI!!

HAPPY HOLI....
JAI GURUDEV!!!
lots of love......
APOORVA

MASTER cares for the whole world!!!!

Sri Sri Ravi Shankar to play peacemaker in Pak, Lanka
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Spiritual leader and Art of Living founder Sri Sri Ravi Shankar has said that he might visit Pakistan and Sri Lanka soon as peacemaker.
"I have been playing a part in the peace process and I will continue doing my part. I may go to Pakistan shortly. I am talking with the authorities on both sides," he said during a visit in Kolkata.

On terrorism, he said "spiritual education brings a change of minds and hearts and this is how terrorism and all other forms of violence can be brought to an end."

Talking about his plans to meet Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapakse and LTTE leader V Prabhakaran to try and bring out a ceasefire, he said "I have appealed to both the governments (India and Sri Lanka) for a ceasefire. I will go there and meet Rajapakse and Prabhakaran separately to hold talks with them to bring about a ceasefire."

"There should be negotiation between LTTE and the Lankan government. I think they should sit down to talk. Military action is not an option for them. Violence needs to end."

He said he would make "all efforts" to get Sri Lankan Tamil refugees back to their country where they could lead dignified lives. He also wanted that their jobs, homes and land to be restored to them.

http://www.indianexpress.com/news/sri-sri-ravi-shankar-to-play-peacemaker-in-pa.../424138/

Meditate, meditate and meditate.......

Hello everyone......exam pressure is on its zenith today, having crossed two hurdles!!!!
You know i have been still able to maintain cool and peace........its so simple.....just close your eyes and sit for meditation....in just few minutes you will be again charged with renewed exuberance to surmount all obstacles that too with a smile....:)

I found this wonderful collection of questions and answers on meditation. My master is simply awesome....just go through them and if it catches your fancy, do let me know.

SRI SRI Speaks................

Q. : What is meditation?

Sri Sri : It’s very simple. When the mind becomes free from agitation, becomes calm and serene and is at peace, meditation happens. By doing meditation, you can turn your body into a power-house by generating an inner source of energy.


Q. : What are the benefits of meditation?

Sri Sri : You don’t get blood pressure and health problems. The mind becomes clear, intuition develops, obstacles and negative influences due to the planets will be removed and problems become smaller before coming to you. Mental peace, happiness and plenty of other benefits are there.


Q. : Why is meditation so boring?

Sri Sri : In the beginning it may be boring, but that will change. Stay on. Go step by step. Meditation is resting in yourself, becoming the seer from being the seen.



Q. : What is the distinction between sleep and meditation?

Sri Sri : One is vertical another is horizontal. For now, just think that much. But tomorrow when you sit for meditation don’t think about it. You’ll neither be able to meditate nor be able to sleep. Now is the time.


Q. :I always go to the sleep while meditating. Does it happen with everybody? What experience do they have? How to solve this?

Sri Sri :Don’t worry about the experiences of others. Be with your own experience and the experience varies from time to time. So don’t worry.


Q. : Is there any maximum limit as to how much we can meditate?

Sri Sri : Do only as much as necessary. There is no need to do too much. Meditation is like taking a bath. To wash the mind, you need meditation and once the mind is clean.


Q. : Why do I lose my concentration when I meditate?

Sri Sri : Concentration is not meditation. Meditation is de-concentration, letting go. Meditation calms the mind. It feels good.

Joy Gurudev....

best of luck ...

aapka apoorva

My Valentine........

I am the valentine of the whole world & I reside in every heart. If you are my valentine, you will see me everywhere." --------Sri Sri.

You too would be old one day..........

How to treat old people ? - Sri Sri
Posted by: "Priyada Mohanan" priyada_artofliving@yahoo.co.in priyada_artofliving
Thu Feb 12, 2009 10:03 am (PST)
Jai GuruDev..

Old people are no different from children! You should treat them like kids. Like children, they are adamant and repeat the same things! They talk about the same thing over and over again, without realising they have already said it several times! When a pattern sets in them, you accept them as they are. They are the best practical example for you to demonstrate that you have followed the first principle of the Art of Living – “Accept people as they are�. They come into your life and make you realise that. You cannot change old people overnight, or even in a period of time. You need to accept them. (Remember the previous one , Forgiveness is a balm to soothe the mind - Sri Sri )

See, there is some wisdom in what they are saying. Sometimes, you are unable to see wisdom in what an experienced, mature person says. They speak from their own experience, over the years. Understand that they have a different set of experiences than yours. So don’t get upset if they don’t change! If you accept them as they are, a miracle will happen. If you give them space, love and compassion, they slowly start changing. But you need to have a lot of patience. You will learn patience dealing with old people, with grannies, who have certain patterns!

Also, don’t take their moods too seriously! If they’re upset, don’t take it too seriously because then, you won’t be able to communicate with them. Don’t try to convince them. Sometimes, they just want to pour out their heart to you. If they are grumbling, they are just grumbling. They’re saying it, but they don’t really mean it! If they say, “I’m so upset� – they may say it, but they will still go and have their food, watch television and do all their things – but when they see you, they say, “Oh, I’m so upset, I never ate food, I didn’t do this, I didn’t do that!� If you take all their complaints seriously, you become miserable, and won’t be able to help them. You should realise it’s only their way of communicating. People who are very aged or sick just want to communicate with you, but what is it that they can share? When people don’t have enthusiasm, they will only share their grievances. That doesn’t mean
that they are purely miserable. There is a corner in them that is untouched by any amount of misery. Whether it is extreme joy, happiness or misery, there is a part in every human being that remains untouched.

It is the same with people who appear to be very miserable. In reality, they are not that miserable, but they talk, talk, talk and talk! Especially when you know that someone cares for you, you don’t always go to him (or her) with a smile and with joy. You go to him (or her) with all your problems and complaints! This is the normal course of things in the world. Isn’t that so?

Suppose you are at a big party, you will go find your very close friend and complain, “The party is good, but this should have been better and that should have been better. They should have put that thing there. This light is not good. That curtain is a little crooked and you know there is no salt in this food...did you taste the food?!� You will find your close friends and talk, but you won’t complain to the host. Out of good manners, you won’t go and complain to someone new! The same is true of elderly people!

There is a nice story. A man earned a lot of money and then gave all his property to his son. When his son got everything, he built a small out-house behind the main house for his parents and he told them, “Now you have to stay there.� So the old couple stayed there, while their son and his family started living in the big bungalow. One day, while playing, the grandchild came into his grandfather’s home, where everything was old and in a very poor, pathetic condition – old utensils, old chairs, all unwanted goods. Things that could break at any time were kept in that house. So the grandchild came and told his grandpa, “Grandpa, be careful with your plate and your chair. Don’t break them!� When he asked why, the child said, “Because tomorrow, my father needs all this.� The child’s father heard this and was shocked. That little boy saying, “Grandpa don’t break it because tomorrow, when I grow older, I’m also going to send my
father here. So better save this!�

One does not realise this fact. You are also going to be old one day, and are going to be like them. If you find that the elderly people in your home are complaining, and you don’t like it, you better not do it today, and if you see them as being so generous, so calm, so serene, so loving, you better start being that way right now. And I tell you, if you’re on the path, in the knowledge, and if you keep doing your meditation and the breathing exercises, your ageing reverses! That enthusiasm to learn will exist and your alertness, focus, attention – everything – increases in life. You will not become cynical and senile as you advance in age.