हद से ज़्यादा बढ़ जाये Had say zyaada badh jaaye

हद से ज़्यादा बढ़ जाये तआल्लुक़  तो ग़म मिलते हैं 
इसलिए आजकल हम लोगों से ज़रा कम मिलते हैं 

Had say zyaada badh jaaye taalluq to gham miltay hain
Isliye aaj-kal hum logon say zaraa  kam miltay hain 

ONENESS

All religions and Holy Scriptures - all saints and scholars claim and preach that “we are one".
But yet, we see so many divisions everywhere based on race, creed, skin-color, economical differences, profession, nationality, political views, upper and lower classes etc. 

Christianity preaches - We are all children of God. And God loves everyone equally.
In the Quran, Allah says: We have sent our messengers in every community in the world (to unite them)
Hindus believe: 
                     Mujh me Ram, tujh me Ram – sab main Ram samaya.
 “There is Ram (God) Within me and there is God within you – Ram (one Almighty God) prevails in everyone”.
According to Gurubani: 
                    सबै घट राम बोले रामा बोले - राम बिना को बोले रे”
                   “Sabai ghat Ram bolay, Raama bolay – Ram bina ko bolay re?”
Ram (God) speaks through every form (body) - who speaks other Than Ram (god)?

                  "Iko noor di upaj hai saari – ik da sagal pasaara hai” – Avtar Bani
                  “Everything is creation of the same Divine light (of God)
                   The one and only God prevails all around”
In fact, there are hundreds of such references available in almost all Holy books - these are just a few quotes for sample.
As we can see clearly from the above references – all religions claim oneness of whole humanity and yet we see more divisions on the grounds of Religions and faith itself. 
So, naturally a question arises in mind – 
“is it ever possible to attain Oneness? Oneness of whole humanity - and to see oneness in everything?”
Great scholars of the past and the psychologists have tried to find the ways of breaking the walls and uniting the divided humanity. One good solution was to preach the concept of Oneness of God. 
Logically, when God; the Father is one - then all children must also be one – which makes everyone a part of one big family. To create an emotional bonding; a feeling of belonging to each other, the earlier founders of the religions encouraged their followers to stay connected with like-minded people. 
Being part of a harmonious and loving community helps us to dissolve our barriers and limiting beliefs. Community, not only helps us to open up to new and different ideas – it supports and strengthen our new beliefs and helps us to grow and implement the feelings of Oneness. Not only it helps us on our own journey, it also allows us the opportunity to serve others - which keeps us stay connected with the sense of Oneness.
Therefore, all great saints and scholars - Prophets and messengers - and later, their prominent followers felt a need of starting their own communities – loving and harmonious - with a sense of belonging to each other. 
Jesus travelled with his twelve most devout followers and stayed with the people who believed in him and accepted his ideology – Buddha was followed everywhere by hundreds of his Bhikshus (disciples) in a group which later came to be known as ‘Sangha’. A similar concept was adopted by the others - such as Hindus, Jains, Sikhs and the newer sects in the form of Satsangs. Prophet Muhammad encouraged his followers to gather for collective namaaz - group prayers.
Because there was love, harmony and a sense of security by being with like-minded people around, more and more people got attracted towards such communities and joined them. Gradually, these groups became bigger – and eventually became new communities. They adopted new names and separated themselves from the other old communities. Though unintentionally, instead of breaking the dividing walls and uniting the divided humanity – new communities, new divisions and new walls were formed. 
Moreover – with the passage of time, such communities became much bigger and the differences started to creep in within each of these new-formed communities as well – which led to even further divisions.  
So, the very purpose of creating or founding these communities was lost. 

And the question still remains– “is it ever possible to attain Oneness?”
Vedanta says: Yes …. By direct, and individual experience. 
Only if we are able to go beyond the mind, intellect, and ego. 
As long as there is a sense of duality of ‘me and you’ or ‘we and they’ – 
As long as there is a feeling that we are separate or different, Oneness cannot be achieved. 
Because Oneness does not mean becoming one with the like-minded ones only – 
it means coming together of all opposites. 
                                              ‘Rajan Sachdeva’

Then Nothing Became Something

“Then nothing became something, and I was born 
And I wrought great havoc in the world in the time allotted to me, 
And I returned to nothingness” 
                                           "Bangambiki Habyarimana" - Pearls Of Eternity

GREATNESS

A dog is not considered great 
        just because he is a good barker 
A person can not be considered great 
       just because he or she is a good speaker 

आपके बच्चे वास्तव में आपके नहीं हैं - ख़लील जिब्रान

                         " बच्चे "   (ख़लील जिब्रान)

आपके बच्चे वास्तव में आपके बच्चे नहीं हैं
वह तो स्वयं जीवन की आकाँक्षा के ही बेटे बेटियाँ हैं

वह आपके द्वारा - आप के माध्यम से तो आते हैं - लेकिन आप से नहीं
और यद्यपि वे आपके साथ रहते हैं, लेकिन फिर भी वे आप के नहीं हैं

तुम उन्हें अपना प्यार दे सकते हो - लेकिन अपनी सोच नहीं -
क्योंकि उनकी सोच तो उनकी अपनी ही होती है

तुम उनके शरीरों को घर दे सकते हो, उनकी आत्माओं को नहीं
क्योंकि उनकी आत्माएँ तो आने वाले कल के घरों में रहती हैं
जहाँ तुम नहीं जा सकते - सपनों में भी नहीं

तुम उनके जैसा बनने की कोशिश तो कर सकते हो
पर उन्हें अपने जैसा नहीं बना सकते

क्योंकि ज़िंदगी कभी पीछे की तरफ नहीं जाती
न ही बीते हुए कल पर - भूतकाल में ठहर सकती है

तुम तो केवल वह कमान हो - जिससे तुम्हारे बच्चे
जीवित तीरों की तरह छूट कर निकलते हैं

तीर चलाने वाले (प्रभु ) का निशाना अनंत की राह पर होता है 
और वह अपनी शक्ति से, तुम्हें कमान की तरह झुका देता है 
ताकि उसमें से निकला हुआ तीर काफ़ी दूर तक पहुँच सके।  

स्वयं को खुशी से उस तीरन्दाज़ (ईश्वर ) की मर्ज़ी पर छोड़ दो 
क्योंकि जहां वह उड़ने वाले तीरों से प्यार करता है
वहीं झुकी हुई कमान से भी उतना ही प्यार करता है जो अपनी जगह पर ही स्थिर हैं 

(अर्थात प्रभु का प्रेम सबके लिए समान है - भविष्य में उड़ने वाले बच्चों से भी और भूतकाल में अटके हुए माँ-बाप से भी। 
इसलिए हम अपनी और अपने बच्चों की ख़ुशी के लिए उन्हें स्वतंत्रता से सोचने और आगे बढ़ने दें)
                                            ~  ख़लील जिब्रान ~ 

कवि ने इस कविता में जीवन की एक कटु लेकिन गहरी सच्चाई को कितनी खूबसूरती से व्यक्त किया है। 
पढ़ने, सुनने में तो ये दृष्टिकोण बहुत सुंदर और सहज लगता है - 
लेकिन इसे जीवन में प्रैक्टिकल तौर पर विकसित कर पाना शायद इतना आसान नहीं !

सभी माता-पिता अपने बच्चों से प्यार करते हैं - और सभी बच्चे भी अपने माता-पिता से प्यार करते हैं।
संघर्ष आमतौर पर तब होता है जब एक पक्ष दूसरे की तुलना में अधिक मांग करने लगता है।
ज्यादातर माता-पिता सोचते हैं कि उनके बच्चों को हमेशा उनकी आज्ञा का पालन करना चाहिए - 
वे चाहते हैं कि उनके एक मामूली से इशारे पर ही बच्चे जो कुछ भी कर रहे हों उसे छोड़ कर उनकी बात सुनें और उनकी सेवा करें । लेकिन, चाहे वो अपने माता-पिता से कितना ही प्यार क्यों न करते हों - और तहे-दिल से उनका सम्मान भी करते हों - 
बच्चे हर समय ऐसा करने में सक्षम नहीं हो सकते। 
दुर्भाग्य से, कई माता-पिता और बुजुर्ग  इसे अपने प्रति अवज्ञा और अपमान मान लेते हैं ।
आम तौर पर ऐसी भावना - पश्चिमी देशों की तुलना में, उन माता-पिता - खास तौर पर माताओं में ज़्यादा होती है जिनकी पृष्ठभूमि (back-ground) भारत और पाकिस्तान जैसे एशियाई देशों से जुड़ी होती है।  
वे लगातार अपने बच्चों को याद दिलाते रहते हैं कि उन्होंने बच्चों के लिए - उन्हें इस दुनिया में लाने - उन्हें पालने पोसने और बड़ा करने के लिए कितना भारी त्याग किया है लेकिन बदले में उन्हें कुछ नहीं मिला - बच्चे उनकी बात नहीं मानते और उनकी पर्याप्त 
इज़्ज़त और सेवा नहीं करते - इत्यादि इत्यादि । 
स्वाभाविक है कि हर वक़्त इस तरह की टिप्पणियां सुन सुन कर हर किसी के कान पक जाते हैं - मन उचट जाता है 
और धीरे धीरे ऐसी बातों का उल्टा प्रभाव होने लगता है - 
अक़्सर बच्चों के मन में नकारात्मिक और यहां तक कि एक किस्म की बग़ावत की भावना भी जन्म लेने लगती है। 
परिणाम  - परिवार में मनमुटाव और संघर्ष।

आज सुबह जब मैं बैठा हुआ एक किताब पढ़ रहा था, तो अचानक दूसरे कमरे से एक हिंदी गीत की कुछ पंक्तियाँ सुनाई दीं :
                "ये ना सोचें मिला क्या है हमको 
                हम ये सोचें किया क्या है अर्पण "
कितना अच्छा होगा अगर हर कोई इस तरह से सोचने लगे ?
अगर दोनों पक्ष - यानी माता-पिता और बच्चे ऐसा सोचने लगें तो अवश्य ही दोनों तरफ से मतभेद और संघर्ष समाप्त हो जाएंगे। 
हिंदी में एक प्रसिद्ध दोहा है:
              "क्षमा बड़न को चहिये - छोटन को उत्पात "
जैसा कि खलील जिब्रान ने भी अपनी उपरोक्त कविता में लिखा है - 
कि माता-पिता और बुज़ुर्गों के कंधों पर ये जिम्मेदारी ज़्यादा होती है। 
अगर माता-पिता हमेशा ये दिखाने की कोशिश करें कि वे अपने बच्चों की तरक़्क़ी और उनकी बुद्धिमता से - अक़्लमंदी से कितने खुश हैं - हमेशा डांट डपट करने और हर समय बच्चों पर अपना अहसान जताने की जगह प्रेम से उनके हर छोटे बड़े प्रयास की सराहना करें - कि बच्चे माता पिता के लिए जो भी और जितना भी करते हैं वो उसके लिए खुश और उन के आभारी हैं। 
और दूसरी तरफ - 
जब बच्चे माँ-बाप के अहसान की जगह उनके प्रेम को महसूस करने लगें - जब उन्हें महसूस हो कि उनके माँ बाप उनके जीवन में - और उन के आगे बढ़ने के रास्ते में कोई रुकावट नहीं, बल्कि प्रेरणादायक और सहायक हैं - तो उन्हें अपने माँ बाप कभी भी बोझ नहीं लगेंगे। जब उन्हें लगे कि उनके हर छोटे बड़े प्रयास की सराहना होती है तो अनिवार्य रूप से उनके मन में माता-पिता के लिए प्रेम, श्रद्धा और सेवा की भावना में वृद्धि होगी। 
                                            'राजन सचदेव '

She looked at me with Her eyes all knowing

She looked at me with Her eyes all knowing,
Like poetry, the divinity, just kept on flowing.
She X-rayed my soul and looked deep within,
Saw the goodness, buried deep under the sin.
That's who you are, that is why you were born,
Humans were the highest of creation to adorn
I said Lord, please tell me where I went wrong,
She said Son, you begun, by not being strong!
Had you kept faith and followed what I'd said,
You would not have been, messed up instead;
You chose your own path, own selfish desire,
You walked out of the Truth and became a liar.
You twisted and turned and churned to gain,
You took and you cheated, you did not abstain
You forgot I was watching, followed your mind
You forgot to be human, you forgot to be kind.
I had no excuses, I looked down at my feet...
My Lord said listen... I'm in your heartbeat.
See me in each moment, I exist in each space,
There is nowhere I'm not, see me in each face
I began looking and now with this new sight, 
Darkness was gone and there was only light.
O Lord, I am now floating, flying and free -
A shadow of my old former self, of my 'me'
It makes no difference now I watch all unfold,
It makes no difference if it's cotton or gold.
I'm accepting, regardless, in all situations,
Keep me true in my dealings, in all relations.
Make me your vessel, scrape out my thinking,
Make me pure, save me Lord, from sinking.
You know my journey, my future, my past...
My failings, mistakes, that'd leave one aghast.
Please bless me that, from this moment now; 
No one sees me, then You and questions how.
You've entered my being, O'Abundant, Divine,
No one a stranger, for now You Lord, are mine.

                      By: "Sid Kundi" UK

गिर जाएँ जो आँसू Gir Jaayen Jo Aansu

जुड़ते हुए देखा नहीं टूटे हुए दिल को 
गिर जाएँ जो आँसू वो उठाए नहीं जाते 
​                      " फैज़ अहमद फैज़ ​"

Judtay huye dekha nahin tootay huye dil ko
Gir jaayen jo aansu vo uthaaye nahin jatay
​                                     '​Faiz Ahmad 'Faiz' 

Letting Go....

Once a man was walking through the hills. It was a dark night and he lost his way. It was so dark that he could not even see his own body. Suddenly, he fell into an abyss. Luckily, while falling, he got hold of a branch of a tree. He was scared - frightened. He did not know what was down, or how deep was the abyss. 
He screamed for help, but there was no one who could hear him; only his own voice returned by the echo.
Frightened, he began to pray. He was desperate – it was question of life and death - his prayer was coming straight from the core of his heart.
Suddenly – he heard a voice – like an echo, but loud and clear.
And the voice said, “Let go of this branch and you will be saved.” 
“How can I let go of this branch? I will fall in the hole if I let it go.” The man said.
“Let go of this branch and you will be saved.” The voice echoed again and then faded out. 
“No. I can’t let go of this branch. This is the only support - only hope I have right now” - the man thought 
and tightened his grip on the branch. 
It was a very cold night. 
It was so cold that his hands were freezing by now. He knew that it was going to be very difficult to continue holding on to that branch for long– That sooner or later, he was going to lose his grip, and fall off the cliff. Death seemed so close – he could fall anytime and die. 
He was terrified - all night long, he kept screaming for help. But there was no one else there.
Slowly, his hands began to slip from the branch – and then came the last moment. His hands were so frozen and tired that he could not even feel them anymore. He could not hold on to that branch any longer and fell. Can we imagine how terrified he must be?
But then – he met with a great surprise. 
After he fell, he realized that there was hardly any gap under his feet. 
He was only few inches above the ground…. 
And he had been suffering and screaming all night. 

This might be the situation with many of us as well. 
We are clinging to certain things – certain beliefs and rituals. 
We are afraid that we will be lost if we let them go. 
We believe that those are our only supports and hope – and we will suffer if we do not hold on to them.  However, in reality, we are lost by clinging to certain beliefs and concepts that our mind is conditioned to. 
And the conditioning is on the surface of the mind – like the frosting on a cake. It may look great and tempting but it’s only on the surface. We know that underneath that frosting, there is something else. 
Similarly, all beliefs and concepts are on the surface of the mind – the reality is hidden deep inside. 
Because ‘deep’ is dark and unknown - all we see is the surface. 
As Satguru Kabeer ji says:
                * “Jin khoja tin paayeaa - geharay paani paith
                  Main bauri dhoondan gayi, rahi kinaaray baith”
"Those who go deep into the waters, find it
  I also went to search (for the Real self) but sat on the shore - did not go beyond the surface."

Until we let go of the surface, we cannot see what is deep inside.
                                     ‘Rajan Sachdeva’ 


    *जिन खोजा  तिन  पाया गहरे पानी पैठ 
    मैं बौरी ढूंडन गई - रही किनारे बैठ 

Parents and Children - Khalil Gibran

                   Khalil Gibran On Children

"Your children are not your children.
They are the sons and daughters of Life's longing for itself.

They come through you but not from you.
And though they are with you, yet they belong not to you.

You may give them your love but not your thoughts.
For they have their own thoughts.

You may house their bodies but not their souls 
For their souls dwell in the house of tomorrow -
Which you cannot visit, not even in your dreams.

You may strive to be like them - 
But seek not to make them like you.
For life goes not backward nor remains with yesterday.

You are the bows from which your children as living arrows are sent forth".
The archer sees the mark upon the path of the infinite,
and He bends you with His might that His arrows may go swift and far.
Let your bending in the archer's hand be for gladness;
For even as He loves the arrow that flies,
So He loves also the bow that is stable.
                          "Khalil Gibran"
                            ~  ~  ~  ~  ~  ~  ~  ~

How simply and beautifully expressed, 
But so difficult to cultivate that detached attitude!

All parents love their children - and all children also love their parents. 
The clash usually occurs when one side starts demanding more than the other is doing.
Most parents think that their children are supposed to constantly obey them - to drop everything they are doing at their slightest signal and take care of them. For whatever reason, no matter how much they love and respect their parents - children may not be able to do so all the time. Unfortunately, many parents and elders translate it as noncompliance, disobedience and disrespect towards them. Usually, the parents (especially mothers) who come from Asian and specifically Indian and Pakistani backgrounds, are more prone to this kind of attitude than the westerners. 
They love to constantly remind their children how much they have sacrificed for them – in bringing them to this world and raising them up. Quite naturally, anyone would get irritated listening to such remarks all the time – hence – Clash.
While I was reading a book early this morning, I heard a beautiful Hindi song in the background:              
               *“Ye na sochain milaa kya hai humko
                Hum ye sochain kiya kya hai Arpan”
(Don't think what we have received or what we have gained,
Think what have we done, and what more can we do for others)
Wouldn't it be nice if everyone thinks like this?
Most differences and clashes will disappear if the both sides 
– parents and the children start thinking like this.
There is a famous saying in Hindi:            
         **  "Kshmaa badan ko chahiye – chhotan ko utpaat”
(The elders should always be willing to forgive when youngsters make mistakes)
Perhaps, as Khalil Gibran advised in the above axiom – more responsibility falls on the shoulders of parents.  If the parents show that they are happy and grateful for what their children are doing – and when the children feel that all their efforts, big or small - are appreciated – they will inevitably feel like doing more for the parents.
                           ‘Rajan Sachdeva’

 * "ये न सोचें मिला क्या है हमको 
                 हम ये सोचें किया क्या है अर्पण "

 ** "क्षमा बड़न को चाहिए  - छोटन को उत्पात "

It's better to stay small and sweet

दरिया ने झरने से पूछा …
            "तुझे समन्दर नहीं बनना है क्या ?"

झरने ने बडी  नम्रता से कहा ...
      "बड़ा बनकर खारा हो जाने से तो अच्छा है  
                     कि मैं छोटा रह कर मीठा ही रहूँ" …

River asked the spring stream:
         "Don’t you want to become the ocean?"

The stream said politely ...
    "It's better to stay small and sweet ...
          than becoming bigger - but salty, bitter and undrinkable".

Dainhaar koi aur hai - Devat hai din rain

One of the greatest poets of the medieval era of India was poet Rahim Sen - whose ideology is still as influential as it was in his own time.
Rahim's full name was Abdul Rahim Khankhana. He was contemporary of Goswami Tulsidas and was one of Akbar's navratanas.
He was very generous and used to donate a substantial part of his personal income regularly. 
Every morning, when he sat outside his home - many needy people used to come to him for help, and according to their needs - he would fill their bag with money, clothes and food etc. 
However, he had a unique style of giving. 
It was well-known that Rahim always gave donations while keeping his eyes low - and never looked at the faces of people he was helping.
Goswami Tulsidas once wrote a letter to Rahim and asked him why does he lower his eyes while giving?
He wrote –
                       ऐसी देनी देन जू - कित सीखे हो सैन।
                         ज्यों-ज्यों कर ऊँचे करो, त्यों-त्यों नीचे नैन॥
  Aesi daini dain ju - kit seekhay ho Sain
 Jyon jyon kar oonchay karo, tyon tyon neechay nain 
                      
Meaning: 
O friend - why do you give donations in this way? Where did you learn to do this? 
As you raise your hands to give, (I have heard) that you lower your eyes towards the ground.

What Rahim wrote in the reply was full of humility and intelligence. 
                       देनहार कोई और है, देवत है दिन रैन।
                         लोग भरम हम पर करें, याते नीचे नैन॥
      Dainhaar koi aur hai - devat hai din rain
      Log Bharam hum par karen - yaatay neechay nain
Meaning; - 
"The giver is someone else (Almighty God) - who is giving day and night. 
People mistakenly think that I am the giver - 
therefore my eyes spontaneously bend down towards the ground with humiliation".

Some people believe that the first Doha with the question was written by Kavi Gang.
But regardless of who asked the question, the importance lies in the reply written by Rahim - 
That, while donating or helping others, there should be a sense of humility in our mind - not the pride.  
Just like Kabeer ji, Rahim also believed that:
   'Rahiman' gali hai saankari - doojo nahin thehraaye 
   Aapu ahe, to Hari nahin - Hari, to aapun naahin

                        ‘रहिमन’ गली है सांकरी - दूजो नहिं ठहराहिं।
                         आपु अहै, तो हरि नहीं - हरि, तो आपुन नाहिं॥

Where there is pride, there is no place for the Lord.

                                        'Rajan Sachdeva'

देनहार कोई और है, देवत है दिन रैन

मध्यकालीन युग के भारत के महान संत कवियों में से एक थे कवि रहीम सैन - जिनकी विचारधारा आज भी उतनी ही प्रभावशाली है जितनी उनके समय में थी।
कवि रहीम का पूरा नाम अब्दुल रहीम खानखाना था। वे गोस्वामी तुलसीदास के समकालीन थे और अकबर के नवरत्नों में से एक थे।
वे बड़े दानशील थे और अपनी व्यक्तिगत आय से बहुत कुछ नियमित रूप से दान कर दिया करते थे।
प्रतिदिन सुबह, जब वे अपने घर के बाहर बैठते - तो बहुत से ज़रूरतमंद लोग उनके पास आते और वे उनकी ज़रूरत के अनुसार उनकी झोली धन, वस्त्र या अन्न इत्यादि से भर देते थे । लेकिन उनका दान देने का अपना ही एक अनोखा अंदाज़ था। ये बात प्रसिद्ध थी कि रहीम जब भी किसी को दान देते - तो अपनी आँखें नीची रखते और कभी भी लोगों से आँखें नहीं मिलाते थे।

गोस्वामी तुलसीदास ने एक बार रहीम को पत्र लिखकर उन्हें पूछा कि वे दान करते समय अपनी आँखें नीची क्यों कर लेते हैं? 
उन्होंने लिखा –
                       ऐसी देनी देन जू - कित सीखे हो सैन।
                      ज्यों-ज्यों कर ऊँचे करो, त्यों-त्यों नीचे नैन॥

अर्थात हे मित्र - तुम ऐसे दान क्यों देते हो? ऐसा तुमने कहाँ से सीखा? (मैंने सुना है) कि जैसे जैसे तुम अपने हाथ दान करने के लिये उठाते हो, वैसे वैसे अपनी आँखें नीची कर लेते हो। 

रहीम ने उत्तर में जो लिखा वो नम्रता और बुद्धिमत्ता से परिपूर्ण था।

                    देनहार कोई और है, देवत है दिन रैन।
                    लोग भरम हम पर करें, याते नीचे नैन॥

अर्थात - देने वाला तो कोई और - यानी ईश्वर है - जो दिन रात दे रहे हैं। लेकिन लोग समझते हैं कि मैं दे रहा हूँ, इसलिये मेरी आँखें अनायास ही शर्म से झुक जाती हैं।

 कुछ लोग ऐसा मानते हैं कि पहला - यानि प्रश्न वाला दोहा गोस्वामी तुलसीदास का नहीं बल्कि कवि गंग का है।
लेकिन प्रश्न चाहे किसी ने भी किया हो - महत्वपूर्ण बात तो रहीम के उत्तर में निहित है - कि  दान देते समय या किसी की मदद करते समय हमारे मन में अभिमान नहीं - बल्कि नम्रता का भाव होना चाहिए।
रहीम का मानना था कि :
               ‘रहिमन’ गली है सांकरी - दूजो नहिं ठहराहिं।
                आपु अहै, तो हरि नहीं - हरि, तो आपुन नाहिं॥

जहां अभिमान है वहां प्रभु का निवास नहीं हो सकता। 

                                        'राजन सचदेव '

Reply to a comment on "Koi chaahay kuchh kahay - When the mind goes into silence"

This morning, I received the following message:
Anonymous has left a new comment on your post "Koi chaahay kuchh kahay - When the mind goes into ...": 

"Yes, it is very hard to stay silent when talked to in a condescending way. If I am sometimes able to restrain my mouth, but turbulence in mind takes a lifetime to pass. 

On the light side, when I try to be silent, people often ask, "Why are you quiet?". Can't one just be silent without having to explain why?! 
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

You are absolutely right. It is comparatively much easier to keep the mouth shut - to restrain the tongue, but silencing the mind is altogether a different game - and a very difficult one. 
And silencing the mind is what really counts. With meditation and practice, one can gradually learn how to silence the mind for short durations. However, only a turbulence free mind (if not silent) can enjoy the peace and bliss.

The second part of your comment reminded me of a famous quote that I so often heard from the elders during my childhood and youth. I don't know the authenticity of it but nonetheless, it was quite popular and was quoted quite often in those days.
The saying goes like this:
          Je bolaan tan aakhday bad bad kare bahatt
          Je chup rahaan tan aakhday is ghat naahin matt
         Je beh rahaan tan aakhday baitha satthar ghat
         Je uth chalaan tan aakhday chhaar gya sir ghat
         Je nivaan tan aakhday dardaa karay bhagat
         Kaai gallin na memani - mai kitthay kadhaan jhatt
         Ethay othay 'Nanakaa' Kartaa-ee- rakhay patt

Meaning:
If I speak - they say he talks too much (he is obnoxious)
If I keep quiet - they say he doesn't know anything (he is stupid)
If I stay; keep sitting - they say he is thinking of a tactic how to strike
If I leave - they say he is afraid and embarrassed of being  looser 
if I show humility - by being humble and polite - they say he is weak and scared
No matter what I do, they can’t be pleased - I don't know where to go - what to do
Here and there - Says Nanak - may the Lord help me keep my dignity.

           जे बोलां तां आखदे बड़ बड़ करे बहत्त 
           जे चुप रहां तां आखदे इस घट नाहीं मत्त 
           जे बह रहां तां आखदे बैठा सत्थर घत्त 
          जे उठ चलां तां आखदे छार गया सिर घत्त 
          जे निवां तां आखदे डरदा  करे भगत्त 
          काई गल्लीं ना मेमनी मैं कित्थे कढां झट्ट 
          एथे ओथे नानका कर्ता ई रखे पत्त 

Koi chaahay kuchh kahay - When the mind goes into silence

            Koi chaahay kuchh kahay - main khaamosh hi rahoon
           Jaane ye saleeka mujhay  kab aayega ?

When the mind goes deep into silence - calmness emerges. 
The noisy mind creates restlessness, disturbance and intolerance. 
The deeper we go into silence, the greater will be our power of tolerance. 
It is in deep, deep silence that the soul becomes elevated. 
It is in very deep - profound silence that soul feels the presence of God.
It is in extreme silence that the soul realizes its own true and blissful nature.
And thus, becomes one with the Almighty.
O'Lord ! No matter what someone says -
Please grant me the strength to stay silent and in meditation.
       Koi chaahay kuchh kahay - main khaamosh hi rahoon
       Jaane ye saleeka jeeany ka kab aayega mujhe ?

             कोई चाहे कुछ कहे - मैं खामोश ही रहूँ 
                  जाने ये सलीका  मुझे कब आएगा?

Pay Attention to the Path

When you travel towards your objective, 
Be sure to pay attention to the path. 

The path guides us the proper and best way 
to arrive at the destination,
and enriches us while we are traveling along it.
                            

If we say that Maya is Non-existent

If we say that the phenomenal world (Maya) is non-existent or unreal, 

we are wrong - 
because it is seen and felt. 

If we say the phenomenal world (Maya) is existent and real, 

we are wrong - 
because it does not exist from the standpoint of True Knowledge (Gyan). 

Such are perplexing questions regarding the phenomenal world (Maya). 

The Satguru - through certainties of right thinking -

clears away all the confusing doubts on the above theme. 

In order to know this mystery one must stay in the company of a Satguru.
                 "Bahina Bhai" (A 17th century Saint)

Swami Vivekanand - An Interesting Incident

After visiting the West, Swami Vivekanand reached Colombo, Ceylon (now Sri Lanka) on January 15, 1897. 
He reached Calcutta via Madras on 20th January 1897. Then Swami ji traveled extensively and visited many Indian states. On June 19, 1897 he reached Almora. The lectures delivered by him in this period were compiled into the book ‘Lectures from Colombo to Almora’.
The famines of 1896–97 and 1899–1900 in India – preceded by the droughts, due to the failure of monsoons affected almost the entire subcontinent, causing severe distress and mortality. These famines were officially described as the most disastrous famines of the 19th century due to their extent and severity - that killed millions of people - perhaps as many as 9 million in all.  
The famine of 1896–97 affected Bihar, Bengal, Bombay the Central Provinces, Punjab, and Burma - covering an area of 225,000 square miles and affected a population of 62 million - the estimated number of deaths was recorded as one million. 
The then British Viceroy of India, Lord George Curzon, was concerned with his budget and feared that aid to the starving would cost too much, so British aid was seriously inadequate. Despite the fact that Great Britain had been profiting greatly from its holdings in India for more than a century, the British stood aside and allowed millions of people in the British Raj to starve to death. 

Deeply affected by the widespread hunger, poverty and oppression of colonial rule, Swami Vivekananda founded the Ramakrishna Mission for social services on 1st May, 1897 in Calcutta. 

I don't remember where I read it - but there is an interesting incident that happened some time during his extensive travelling in northern India. 
Swami ji was invited to address a large number of youths – to speak about the Vedantic Advaita philosophy. During his lecture, Swami ji started talking about the then current situation of famine in western and central India - that how people were starving to death. He said it was their duty – especially of the youth to help their fellow human beings affected by the disaster - that terrible natural calamity. 
The organizers were surprised to see this switch from the original topic. 
They tried to signal him to stick to the topic but Swami ji continued with his topic of social- welfare work.
Suddenly, a priest of the temple – member of the host organization stood up in the middle of the lecture and said in a loud voice: “Swami ji – we have invited you here to talk about the Advaita philosophy – not about the famine. We want to hear about the soul – about the ultimate Truth - about the ‘Reality’. According to Advaita, the world is unreal – simply a perception of the mind. The body and the world are not our concerns since they are not ‘Real’. Remember - we are souls - not the bodies.” 

Swami ji – who was known for always staying calm and undisturbed by the interruptions - looked around and picked up the walking stick and started hitting the monk on his back.
The monk screamed in pain. 
“What is this? What are you doing?” The monk demanded.
Swami ji calmly said “What does it matter? You are not the body. The body is not real – it’s just a projection of your mind. You know you are the 'ever calm and blissful soul' which cannot be affected by my hitting your ‘unreal’ body. So, why does it matter to you?”

We don't need to know go into details of what happened next.
By doing this, Swami ji demonstrated that although the philosophical thoughts of the Vedanta and the Holy Scriptures are great to understand the underlying ‘Reality’ of the world and its perishable nature – and the nature of ‘Self’ within the body as soul - But at the same time, as long as we are living in this mortal body, we have to be practical as well. 
And this is exactly what we learn in science as well. At the atomic and sub-atomic level, the world and everything around us is not exactly the same as we see it. All physical objects that we see are simply sub-atomic particles circling around, and our mind perceives them together as an object or a physical body. 
But can we live our day to day life thinking that everything and everyone is really a bunch of atoms and sub-atomic particles moving, circling each other? 
Similarly, we cannot live by the philosophy alone. 
We have to feed the body and fulfill all its needs in order to survive.
So, there is a ‘Reality’ of Self - and there is a physical ‘Reality’ as well.
Although we know that the physical reality is fragile, temporary and perishable......
However, regardless of its perishable and ever-changing nature, for all practical purposes, it is a reality. 
                                              ‘Rajan Sachdeva’

Younger vs Older Generation

During a conference on the major differences between generations, a smug and arrogant student took the time to explain an older gentleman, why it is impossible for the older generation to understand his generation: 
"You grew up in a different world, actually almost primitive," he said in a loud arrogant voice - loud enough to be heard about. 
"Young people today grew up with television, internet, cell phones, jet planes, space travel. 
Our space probes have visited Mars. We have ships with nuclear power and electric and hydrogen cars. Computers with process speed of light and many much more. 
Did you have any of these when you were growing up?" 

The old man calmly responded by saying: 
"You're right, my son, we did not have any of those things when we were young ..... 
  So we invented all these things!" 
"Now tell me! you, arrogant son of a...., while enjoying all these things that we invented... 
 What are you doing for the next generation?"

                                    (By: Unknown writer)
                                                  Note:
I believe this example might be true in every field of life. Not only in terms of inventing new technologies and new gadgets for luxury, or appliances for convenience – it might be true for the teachers and leaders – for social, political and religious or spiritual organizations as well. We enjoy the theories and philosophies of life - that the older generations discovered after years of hard work of thinking, researching and developing their ideologies. They left their life long experiences in the form of literature and Scriptures for us - the newer generation. 
We talk about their achievements and faults as well. Some validate their concepts with reverence, and some question – not only their perceptions but their integrity as well - and some may even make fun of them.
But nevertheless – the older generation did what they could, and they left their work; their inventions and discoveries for us to enjoy and to improve further – for us to pick up from where they left.

Now – the question is what are we doing – for ourselves and to guide the next generation? 
                                                  'Rajan Sachdeva'

Croaking of a Million Frogs

A farmer came into town and asked the owner of a restaurant 
if he could use a million frog legs. The restaurant owner was 
shocked and asked the man where he could get so many frog legs! 
The farmer replied: 
"There is a pond near my house that is full of frogs--millions of them. 
They all croak during the night and drive me crazy!"
So, the restaurant owner and the farmer made an agreement that 
the farmer would deliver five hundred frogs to the restaurant
at a time - for the next several weeks. 
The first week, the farmer returned to the restaurant looking rather 
sheepish, with two scrawny little frogs. 
The restaurant owner said, "Well...where are all the other frogs?" 
The farmer said, "I was mistaken.
There were only these two frogs in the pond. 
But surely, they were making a lot of noise!"  

So, Next time you hear a lot of noise; criticism and complaints, 
then remember - it might be just a couple of noisy frogs.

Also--remember that problems always seem bigger in the dark. 
Have you ever lain in your bed at night – worrying about things 
which seem almost overwhelming - like a million frogs croaking?
Chances are pretty good that when the morning comes,
and you take a closer look, 
you'll wonder what all the fuss was about . . .