DEATH IS THE END OF MELODRAMA OF LIFE !!

 

The trauma of my aunt’s tragic death  is still hunting me.  It is beyond words to narrate how she fell into a valley while she was going on a horse to reach  the famous Kedarnath Temple in Uttarakhund, India. The manner of death really shocked me and threw me out of gear for some weeks.   The incident had taken me to a new level of wisdom about uncertainty of life.  

Deepak Chopra says that the Prince of Death is just behind you all the time and the only difference is method of execution and length of reprieve.

We see many people who are perturbed to amass wealth in the name of security. To grab the world of possessions they stop enjoying life of present moment and hanker for accumulating wealth.

One great person sagely advises  that " live the life everyday as if it is your last day". In such a living,  you reap the benefits of distilled wisdom of enlightened masters. You need not frighten much about death when it is an inescapable event of life.   Sky is the only limit for human endeavour.  All great personalities who lived on this planet have taught this great lesson.

Steve Jobs, the iconic CEO of Apple Computers who died due to pancreatic cancer is so pragmatic in his ideology. “In his famous 2005 Stanford University speech, he says that :

 

“ When I was 17, I read a quote that went something like: "If you live each day as if it was your last, someday you'll most certainly be right." It made an impression on me, and since then, for the past 33 years, I have looked in the mirror every morning and asked myself: "If today were the last day of my life, would I want to do what I am about to do today?" And whenever the answer has been "No" for too many days in a row, I know I need to change something.”

On death, jobs says that “ remembering that I'll be dead soon is the most important tool I've ever encountered to help me make the big choices in life. Because almost everything — all external expectations, all pride, all fear of embarrassment or failure - these things just fall away in the face of death, leaving only what is truly important. Remembering that you are going to die is the best way I know to avoid the trap of thinking you have something to lose. “

He further says that “no one wants to die. Even people who want to go to heaven don't want to die to get there. And yet death is the destination we all share. No one has ever escaped it. And that is as it should be, because Death is very likely the single best invention of Life. It is Life's change agent. It clears out the old to make way for the new. “

About life, Jobs says that “your time is limited, so don't waste it living someone else's life. Don't be trapped by dogma — which is living with the results of other people's thinking. Don't let the noise of others' opinions drown out your own inner voice. And most important, have the courage to follow your heart and intuition.”  

So don’t fear death which you can't escape and do to unleash your potential !

ZEN WISDOM

 

Let your neighbors discover you before you make yourself known to them.

                                                                           - Zen wisdom on modesty

Generally there is a tendency in all of us to show to the world that we are great and unique and there is nothing wrong with it. But the problem with majority of folks is they want frequent validation from outside world to gauge their self-worth. A person who wants to grow spiritually must not cling to this trait.

Zen wisdom offers more such insights on life. In fact, it is a school of Mahayana Buddhism that was developed in China during the 6th century. It emphasizes the value of meditation and intuition to grow spiritually. It recommends that we, instead of mere ritual worship or study of scriptures must transcend to a level where our life exuberates with joy at every moment.

The word Zen, in fact, originated from Sanskrit root word dhyana which means meditation.

Do we really care ourselves to grow in life in terms of abilities and talents the Creator has endowed ? Many complain that they are riddled with so many problems in life which if we see in correct perspective, are not problems but opportunities.

Experience defines our quality life. If the experience is sore, we naturally switch to an action which gives joy. The experience is the lens through which we discriminate people, choices and situations. That lens could turn into a third eye and guide you if you keep it clean with the path shown by Wisdom Masters.

Success and Spirituality go hand in hand. Those who are successful are more spiritual because they know the impermanence of success and they profoundly believe in a Higher Power that dictates their destiny.

What is success ? Anthony Robbins, America's prominent personality development guru says that "success is the result of the good judgement; good judgement is the result of experience; and experience is often the result of bad judgement"

How you perceive the bad experience is all that matters. Why Buddha is often talked about? Because, he is the person who worked on his own mind before he shared that wisdom with the world. His words: better to win over yourself than to win a thousand battles' illustrate the point of how difficult it is to control the mind.

Is there any connection between game and spirituality. The answer is obviously ''yes''. Experts say that if there is any game that inculcates spirituality, it is Golf. Amy Alcott, an American professional golfer and golf course designer who won five championships quotes that "Golf is a spiritual game. It is like Zen. You have to let your mind take over.

We have very prominent golfers amongst them is Deepak Chopra, the famous Indian-American doctor and rock star of spirituality. He wrote a book "Golf for Enlightenment: The Seven Lessons for the Game of Life.'' which is one of the best sellers.

Modesty is the key to Zen way of living. If you give too many swings to happier moments, then you are bound to let down in moments of sorrow. Striking a perfect balance to dualities is where the wisdom lies and Buddha is a state of mind, which is a possibility field open to everyone!

IDEAL DAY

Your routine of the day decides the quality of life you live. If it is not in consonance with nature's cycle, progress in any area of life can't be achieved. This is the pragmatic wisdom and the sooner you realize, the better it would be.

Deepak Chopra, the famous American Indian medical doctor and the champion of health cause on American soil is the right blend of science and philosophy. He suggests that the ideal day should have the following components:

- Sleep Time
- Play Time
- Exercise Time
- Focused Work Time
- Relationship Time
- Down Time - Out of action
- Meditation Time.

Deepak further suggests to draw a Soul Profile by self-questioning the following:

- Who am I?
- What do I want?
- What is my purpose in this life?
- What sort of contribution do I want to make?
- What are my unique skills?
- Who are my heroes?
- What is a meaningful relationship
- What do I expect from one, and what do I give?

These are the questions that take you to the higher level of wisdom in life!

YOU ARE THE CREATIVE EXPRESSION OF GOD

A dictionary defines 'God' as "the one Supreme Being, the creator and ruler of the universe." It says that the word 'God' was first used before the 12th century (source: Merriam-Webster online dictionary) But Indian Ancient Texts, Vedas proclaimed about God, Universe much earlier i.e. in 1500-1200 BCE (source : Britannica.com)

The Bing Bang theory says that the origin of this Universe is 13.8 billion years ago (source: Wikipedia). Joel Primack in his much-acclaimed work The View from the Centre of the Universe says that the visible universe is only 4 %. Dark matter is of 26% and dark energy 70% and their characteristics are that they would be detected only through gravitational effects. They don't emit electro-magnetic radiation. Why they are like that is not fully understood.

Deepak Chopra, the American - Indian doctor who spent a considerable amount of his life time studying the science and religious texts says that the essential stuff of the universe is non-stuff. He further says that matter is made up of molecules - atoms moving around in huge empty space with lightning speed.

The more you study the science, the deeper would be the mystery. Deepak says that the cosmic horizon is about 47 billion light years which is continuously expanding. He also says that there are roughly about 500 billion galaxies in the universe. To understand the arithmetic of the universe at this grand scale is very difficult.

We have so many intricacies in the present theories. Scientists when they started calculating time backwards, they faced utter difficulty to go beyond 10^-43 seconds which is known as Plank epoch. The reason is that their theories and calculations would stop working at that stage, because natural laws stop working beyond that point and the state of the universe before that point of time might be a thick quantum soup.

Not only that we are shrouded with so many mysteries within our own bodies.  In the midst of all these unknowns, if the man earnestly tries to make a self-search, he may find answers and this wisdom is not transferable and it must be earned only through ‘self-experience’.