Stochastic Probability Theory - Pregnant Deer Scenario
Consider this scenario: In a remote forest, a pregnant deer is about to give birth to a baby. It finds a remote grass field near by a river and slowly goes there thinking it would be safe. As she moves slowly, she gets labor pain…. at the same moment, dark clouds gather around that area and lightning starts a forest fire. Turning left she sees a hunter who is aiming an arrow from a distance. As she tries to move towards right, she spots a hungry lion approaching towards her.

Stochastic Probability Theory - Pregnant Deer Scenario
What can the pregnant deer do ….as she is already under labor pain ?
…
…
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What do you think will happen ?
Will the deer survive ?
Will it give birth to a fawn ?
Will the fawn survive ? or
Will everything be burnt by the forest fire ?
…
…
…
…

That particular moment ?
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…
…

Can the deer go left ? – Hunter’s arrow is pointing

Can she go right ? – Hungry male lion approaching

Can she move up ? – Forest fire

Can she move down ? – Fierce river


Answer: She does nothing. She just focuses on giving birth to a new LIFE.
The sequence of events that happens at that fraction of a second (moment) are as follows:
In a spur of MOMENT …a lightning strikes (already it is cloudy ) and blinds the eyes of the Hunter. At that MOMENT, he releases the arrow missing and zipping past the deer. At that MOMENT the arrow hits and injures the lion badly. At that MOMENT, it starts to rain heavily and puts out the forest fire. At that next MOMENT, the deer gives birth to a healthy fawn.
In our life, it’s our MOMENT of CHOICE and we all have to deal with such negative thoughts from all sides always. Some thoughts are so powerful they overpower us and makes us clueless. Let us not decide anything in a hurry. Let’s think of ourselves as the pregnant deer with the ultimate happy ending. Anything can happen in a MOMENT in this life. If you are religious, superstitious, atheist, agnostic… or whatever… you can attribute this MOMENT as divine intervention, faith, sudden luck, chance (serendipity), coincidence… or a simple ‘don’t know’. We all feel the same. But, whatever one may call it, I would see the priority of the deer in that given moment was to giving birth to a baby…. because LIFE IS PRECIOUS.
Hence, whether you are deer or a human, keep that faith and hope within you always.

Believe Nothing, no matter where you read it, or whoever has said it, even if I have said it,.... until and unless it agrees with your own reason and your own common sense...... Gautam Buddha

pearls of wisdom...shri Ramana Maharshi

A person begins with dissatisfaction. Not content with the world he seeks satisfaction of desires by prayers to God; his mind is purified; he longs to know God more than to satisfy his carnal desires. Then God’s Grace begins to manifest. God takes the form of a Guru and appears to the devotee; teaches him the Truth; purifies the mind by his teachings and contact; the mind gains strength, is able to turn inward; with meditation it is purified yet further, and eventually remains still without the least ripple. That stillness is the Self. The Guru is both exterior and interior. From the exterior he gives a push to the mind to turn inward; from the interior he pulls the mind towards the Self and helps the mind to achieve quietness. That is Grace.
Hence there is no difference between God, Guru and Self.



D.: What is reality?
M.: Reality must be always real. It is not with forms and names. That which underlies these is the Reality. It underlies limitations, being itself limitless. It is not bound. It underlies unrealities, itself being real. Reality is that which is. It is as it is. It transcends speech, beyond the expressions


Until there is the `I-thought', there will be no other
thought. Until other thoughts arise, asking `To whom?' will
call forth the reply `To me'.
He who pursues this closely, questioning
`What is the origin of the I?'

and diving inwards reaches the seat of the mind in the Heart, becomes there the sovereign Lord of the Universe.
Oh boundless ocean of
grace and effulgence called Arunachala,
dancing motionless within the court of the Heart!
There is no longer any dream there of such dualities
as in and out, right and wrong, birth
and death, pleasure and pain, or light and darkness.

 



http://sphotos-h.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc7/430791_10151284644434631_778798216_n.png

Question.: If the Realised and the unrealised alike perceive the world, where is the difference between them?

Bhagavan.: When the Realised Man sees the world, he sees the Self that is the substratum of all that is seen. Whether the unrealised man sees the world or not, he is ignorant of his true being, the Self.

Take the example of a film on a cinema screen. What is there in front of you before the film begins? Only the screen. On that screen you see the entire show, and to all appearances the pictures are real. But go and try to take hold of them and what do you take hold of? The screen on which the pictures appear so real. After the play, when the pictures disappear, what remains? The screen again. So it is with the Self. That alone exists; the pictures come and go. If you hold on to the Self, you will not be deceived by the appearance of the pictures. Nor does it matter at all whether the pictures appear or disappear.

 

Question: Is samadhi an experience of calmness or peace?
Bhagavan: The tranquil clarity, which is devoid of mental turmoil, alone is the samadhi which is the firm base for liberation. By earnestly trying to destroy the deceptive mental turmoil, experience that samadhi as the peaceful consciousness which is inner clarity.
Question: What is the difference between internal and external samadhi?
Bhagavan: External samadhi is holding on to the reality while witnessing the world, without reacting to it from within. There is the stillness of a waveless ocean. The internal samadhi involves loss of body-consciousness.
Question: The mind does not sink into that state even for a second.
Bhagavan: A strong conviction is necessary that `I am the Self, transcending the mind and the phenomena.'
Question: Nevertheless, the mind proves to be an unyielding obstacle which thwarts any attempts to sink into the Self.
Bhagavan: What does it matter if the mind is active? It is so only on the substratum of the Self. Hold the Self even during mental activities.

Happiness is the very nature of the Self; happiness and the Self are not different. There is no happiness in any object of the world. We imagine through our ignorance that we derive happiness from objects. When the mind goes out, it experiences misery. In truth, when its desires are fulfilled, it returns to its own place and enjoys the happiness that is the Self. Similarly, in the states of sleep samadhi and fainting, and when the object desired is obtained or the object disliked is removed, the mind becomes inward-turned, and enjoys pure Self-Happiness. Thus the mind moves without rest alternately going out of the Self and returning to it.

Under the tree the shade is pleasant; out in the open the heat is scorching. A person who has been going about in the sun feels cool when he reaches the shade. Someone who keeps on going from the shade into the sun and then back into the shade is a fool. A wise man stays permanently in the shade. Similarly, the mind of the one who knows the truth does not leave Brahman. The mind of the ignorant, on the contrary, revolves in the world, feeling miserable, and for a little time returns to Brahman to experience happiness. In fact, what is called the world is only thought. When the world disappears, i.e. when there is no thought, the mind experiences happiness; and when the world appears, it goes through misery.

 
A mature mind that has managed to establish itself firmly in the extremely subtle state or pure being will not get enmeshed in the tangle of the world.
The delusion-filled mind has caused samsara to merge with you. It will
cease when that mind is completely destroyed.
Upon destruction of the mind, the appearance of the world that adheres to you in the state of harmful delusion will stand illustrious as pure consciousness.

Even the gods in the heavens cannot stir those deeply peaceful ones who shine, having killed their minds.


Those who do not keenly attend to and know the existence-consciousness which shines ever-unsetting in the heart, fall into Maya through the objective attention caused by the ego, which rises and attacks with dense delusion. (Guru Vachaka Kovai, 644)

The following conversation comes from the diary of a devotee called Sri Yalamanchili who met Bhagavan in 1928 and had a discussion with him on self-enquiry. It was published in Arunachala Ramana in February 1982:

Question: How to realize the Atman?
Bhagavan: Whose Atman?
Question: Mine.
Bhagavan: Then you yourself have to do it.
Question: I am unable to do and know it.
Bhagavan: To whom is it not known?
Question: To myself.
Bhagavan: Try to know who is that ‘myself’.
Question: That is what you have to tell.
Bhagavan: [Smiling] It seems you have come here to test me. Will it really benefit you if I tell you what you are? Will you be satisfied if I just tell you? Ask yourself ‘Who am I?’ After questioning you will get the answer within yourself, and that will satisfy you.
Question: I have been doing sadhana for a long time but in vain.
Bhagavan: You will have to search for ‘I’ [aham]. Then, the apparent ‘I’ will vanish.
Question: Please give me the details of the process.
Bhagavan: Mind is, in reality, a bundle of thoughts. And every thought springs from the ‘I’. So, it is the first thought. Instead of dwelling on the secondary thoughts, the seeker has to concentrate on the primary thought, which is this ‘I’.
Question: What is the difference between a thought and the ‘I’?
Bhagavan: Thoughts are not independent. They have a standing only when they are associated with the ‘I’. But the ‘I’ can stand by itself. Actually, this ‘I’ is also not independent. In its turn it is supported by the Atman.
Again and again it rises from the Self and sinks there. It subsides in deep sleep and it comes out again in waking. We have to find out the place of its birth with an introverted vision.
Question: I have been questioning in this way but getting no answer.
Bhagavan: If you ask this question with zeal and proceed inward, the false ‘I’ disappears and the real ‘I’ emerges.
Question: What is the real ‘I’?
Bhagavan: This is what we call ‘soul’ or ‘God’.
Question: When I start the enquiry numerous thoughts come in the way and obstruct me. When I eliminate one, another appears in its place. It seems there is no end.
Bhagavan: I am not telling you to grapple with the thoughts. There will be no end if you do it that way. Here lies the secret: there is the ‘I’, the source of all thoughts, and we have to catch it and see from where it arises. This is absolutely necessary. As a dog traces his master by following the track of his smell, you have to follow the inner development of the ‘I’ to reach its source, which is the [true] soul.
Question: From this I understand that one can reach the source by one’s own effort.
Bhagavan: It is by the grace of God that you come to desire to know yourself. This desire to know yourself is itself a clear sign of the Atman’s grace. So, there is grace already working as the source of your effort. Grace is not an external quality of the Self but its very nature. It abides in your Heart, pulling you inward into itself. The only task you must do is turn your attention inward and search the source of ‘I’. This is the only personal effort we have to put in. That is why [one can say that] where there is no grace, there is no desire at all for the quest for the Self.
Question: Is there no need for a Guru then?
Bhagavan: When it is necessary the Self itself will take the form of an external Guru and initiate you into the process. He will push you in and hand you over to the inner Guru who is already there. Finally, the Atman, which abides in the Heart, embraces you there.
Question: Now, may I know sir, what is the distinguishing feature of this method?
Bhagavan: The sense of ‘I’ is always present in us. So, it is relatively easy to find the Self through this ‘I’, which is an emanation of the Self. Further, if, before the ‘I’ ramifies into many forms, we put our attention via this method on the parent-form of the ‘I’, this makes for the direct dissolution of the ‘I’ in its source.
Otherwise, if you begin the enquiry when the ‘I’ has already taken many forms, you will be swept away by its illusive power and never reach its source.
Question: The Self is nameless and formless. How then can we find it by the questioning of this ‘I’ that has a name and a form?
Bhagavan: The false ‘I’ or ego stands between the soul and the body, and connects them. Now, soul is conscious while the body is inert. The false ‘I’ binds them together. So, it is also called the knot between matter and spirit [chit-jada-granthi].
From this we see that it has its feet in the Self and its head in the body. Therefore, by enquiring into the origin of the ego, we can easily proceed and reach the formless Self.
- from David Godman's blog

EGO, MIND and AWARENESS

The essence of mind is only awareness or consciousness. However, when the ego dominates it, it
functions as the reasoning, thinking or sensing faculty.
The cosmic mind not limited by the ego, has nothing
separate from itself and is therefore only aware. This is what the Bible means by “I am that I AM”.
The ego-ridden mind has its strength sapped and is too weak to resist torturing thoughts. The egoless
mind is happy in deep, dreamless sleep.
Clearly, therefore, bliss and misery are only modes of mind; but the weak mode is not easily interchangeable with the strong mode. Activity is weakness and, consequently,
miserable; passivity is strength and, therefore, blissful. One’s dormant strength is not apparent and, therefore, not availed of.
The cosmic mind, manifesting in some rare beings, is able to effect the linkage in others of the individual (weak) mind with the universal (strong) mind of the inner recess. Such a rare being is called the GURU or God in manifestation.

– Talks With Sri Ramana Maharshi, No. 188

• 
  
  
  The ordainer controls the fate of souls in accordance with their prarabdha karma. Whatever is destined not to happen will not happen, try as you may. Whatever is destined to happen will happen, do what you want to prevent it. This is certain. The best course therefore is to remain silent'.
  
  ~Ramana Maharshi
  
  ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
  
  Ramana Maharshi’s message is such good news for parents. Our children are precious souls appearing from the unknown into our hands. In the play of consciousness they come to fulfill their destiny according to the law of the whole. In that light we can truly say 'children of the Universe', children of the One song, One verse. Hence we cannot 'have' them, nor 'own' them, nor do we know what part of the play they appear to be here for.
  
  'The best course therefore is to remain silent', this really is beautiful and it relieves us directly from the duty of having to 'make' something out of our children! The quality of remaining silent is 'non touching'. All is perfect as it is and it cannot be anything else.
  
  This makes us the host of our children, we are here to guide them, support them and love them, unconditionally love them. Simple? Yes it is. What does it take? It takes all! Nothing more, nothing less.
  
  http://www.jivanjili.org/paranthood.html
  
• 

when fun seeks no age and is found at all ages..then why does man curtail the path of spirituality to a later age.... why can't both the paths be carried on in parallel

Realities that exist without any judgement

we look for happiness that is hiding within us.... a core of purity covered and surrounded by the cocoon of desire.... a want, all more prioritized as a need.....a pseudo-satisfaction... nurtured and pampered under the shelter of ego.... the ego that knows nothing better than protection of the very core that man has within self but is hunting for, in this world. In fact, the ego is a mere weapon of the desire to protect the happiness which is again pseudo. When man learns that,  happiness he believes to keep him alive is pseudo, he understands that he is alive to emote a feeling like a smile but he is not ruled by the emotions... then comes the stage of neutrality where everything has only existence. Man probably has to first look at the world through the comparative window of opposites...like the right and wrong, happiness and sorrow, misery and comfort, moral and immoral and so forth.... before he actually comes to terms of a real understanding..... when he actually learns to experience the realities of life... situations demand different judgements of what is right or wrong... and for different people looking at those situations. Ultimately when man looks at his own judgements of life as the first person and again as an onlooker... the game of right and wrong becomes all messed up.... in search of what is right...or rather real... his understanding opens doors to the facts... realities that have only existence.... and only existence without any judgement.

pearls of wisdom..... shri Ramana maharshi

"Without consciousness, time and space do not exist; they appear within Consciousness but have no reality of their own.It is like a screen on which all this is cast as pictures and move as in a cinema show.
The Absolute Consciousness alone is our real nature."

"The jnani has attained Liberation even while alive, here and now. It is immaterial to him as to how, where and when he leaves the body. Some jnanis may appear to suffer, others may be in samadhi; still others may disappear from sight before death. But that makes no difference to their jnana. Such suffering is apparent, seems real to the onlooker, but is not felt by the jnani, for he has already transcended the mistaken identity of the Self with the body. The jnani does not think he is the body. He does not even see the body. He sees only the Self in the body. If the body is not there, but only the Self, the question of its disappearing in any form does not arise."

"I have not said that a Guru is not necessary. But a Guru need not always be in human form. First a person thinks that he is an inferior and that there is a superior, all-knowing, all powerful God who controls his own and the world's destiny and worships him or does Bhakti. When he reaches a certain stage and becomes fit for enlightenment, the same God whom he was worshipping comes as Guru and leads him on. That Guru comes only to tell him that ‘God is within yourself. Dive within and realize.’ God, Guru and the Self are the same."


D.: How to realise the Self?
M.: It is already realised. One should know this simple fact. That is all.
D.: But I do not know it. How shall I know it?
M.: Do you deny your existence?
D.: No: how can that be done?
M.: Then the truth is admitted.

Question: When a man realises the Self, what will he see?
Bhagavan Ramana Maharshi : There is no seeing, seeing is only being. The state of Self-Realisation, as we call it, is not attaining something new or reaching some goal far away, but simply being that, which you always are and which you always have been. All that is needed is that you give up your realisation of the not-true as true. …Then we shall realise the Self as the Self - in other words BE the Self. At one stage one would laugh at oneself that one tried to discover the Self which so self-evident. So, what can we say to this question? (Day by Day with Bhagavan)

"Do not get spoiled by thinking about the non-Self with your mind. Hold tightly to yourself and attain peace."
"The deeper one subsides within the Heart, the greater will be the rising of the flood of supreme bliss"
- Bhagavan in Padamalai
.


We are so engrossed with the objects or appearances revealed by the light that we pay no attention to the light. The thing to do is to concentrate on the seer and not on the seen, not on the objects, but on the Light which reveals them.

"As children our attitude to Bhagavan was perhaps slightly different from that of the adults. We of course knew that He was God and a wonderful person to be near - truly a magical feeling, but we accepted this quite naturally and without a feeling of awe. However sometimes even children can be awed:
One of these memories i have is rather strange because to this day i recall my amazement and yet nothing actually happened at all. A lady came to Tiruvannamalai from North India; in those days all 'foreigners' whether they were North Indians or Norwegians were sent to our home. I was about ten years old at the time and not an especially sensitive child but even i could not bear to stay in the room with her as she was so tense, nervous and unhappy that it made me most uneasy. Her story was that she had married a man she loved very much although her parents had not approved as he was of a different caste - however they had overcome all the opposition a
nd they went to the seaside somewhere for their honeymoon. They had a week of great happiness until one day he was killed by a shark right in front of her eyes. All this had happened about 2 years earlier and the distraught widow was traveling through India, going to various ashrams and seeing various holy men. She had a list of questions which she asked at each place - all more or less a demand why such a thing should happen if there was a God of Justice and so on. She was an unhappy and aggressively angry lady and my heart sank when my mother asked me to show her the way to the hall where Bhagavan sat.. I led in silence and she followed me, i showed her the hall and went off to play. A while later i realised it was lunch time and i went to collect her and bring her home - most reluctantly.
I will never, never forget the change that had come over her in just an hour or so. She was calm and relaxed and peaceful and happy! I was so awed and intrigued that i hung around anxiously waiting for my mother to ask her what Bhagavan had said to her. Whatever it was it must have been words of the greatest wisdom and power to have such an effect. Eventually my mother did ask and the lady answered that she had gone into the hall and sat down and Bhagavan had just looked at her - just looked -with such infinite compassion that she felt that her questions were of no importance any more. She sat there and felt the peace and no word was spoken ...." Katya Osborne

(from 'Moments Remembered, by V. Ganesan)

Q.: I am aware of the 'I'. Yet my troubles are not ended.
Bhagavan: This 'I'-thought is not pure. It is contaminated with the association of the body and the senses. See to whom this trouble is.It is to the 'I'-thought. Hold it. Then the other thoughts vanish.
Q.: Yes, how to do it? That is the whole trouble.
Bhagavan: Think 'I', 'I', and hold to that one thought to the exclusion of all others.

Effort is necessary up to the state of realisation. Even then the Self should spontaneously become evident. Otherwise happiness will not be complete. Up to that state of spontaneity there must be effort in some form or another.The ever-present Self needs no efforts to be realised, Realisation is already there. Illusion alone is to be removed. Some say the word from the mouth of the Master removes it instantaneously. Others say that meditation, etc., are necessary for realisation. Both are right; only the standpoints differ.
D.: What if one meditates incessantly without Karma?
M.: Try and see. The vasanas will not let you do it. Dhyana comes only step by step with the gradual weakening of the vasanas by the Grace of the Master.
- Talks 78 and 80

Tyaktvā vishayam bāhyam ruddha
prānēna ruddha manasāntastvām
dhyāyanpaśyati yōgī dīdhitim
arunāchala tvayi mahīyam te

Abandoning the outer world,
with mind through breath controlled,
to meditate on Thee within,
the yogi sees Thy light,
oh Arunachala!
He is exalted in Thee ...

Maurice Frydman (1900-76), a Polish Jew, was working as a research engineer in France when the then Diwan of Mysore, struck by his originality and drive, brought him to Mysore. He effected improvements in the charkha1 and earned the name ‘Bharatananda’ from Mahatma Gandhi in recognition of his intense love for India. He first met Sri Ramana around 1935. He edited 'Maharshi's Gospel' with the same
skill in which he later brought out 'I AM THAT' after meeting Nisargadatta.------Just six months after I came to India, I was left alone and had no friends. The person whom I loved died and I had nothing to attract me in life. Quite accidentally, just for fun, I dropped in at Tiruvannamalai. I went direct to the Swami and remained there for two hours. Then I understood that I had met someone, the like of whom I had never met before. I did not then know what was meant by words like the Maharshi and Bhagavan. I had no preconceived ideas and yet I felt that there was something extraordinary in that man. I was told about his teachings but they were far too high for me. I did not understand what they meant but I felt a strong affection for him, just as a dog would have towards his master.
Afterwards, whenever I felt worried, I used to go to the Ashram, and sit in his presence. In the early days I would be asking questions, but later when I began to visit him more and more, discussions with him grew less and less. Then I began to visit him almost every month. I knew no sadhana or dhyana. I would simply sit in his presence. To my questions, the Maharshi would say, “Find out who you are.” I could not make out anything, but all the same I felt happy. Slowly, some change came in me.
Just as the egg grows and hatches only with the aid of the warmth of the mother, I was getting into shape slowly and steadily in his presence. My mind became quieter than before. Previously it was unhappy and dissatisfied, now a kind of security and peace began to be felt spontaneously. I felt that the Maharshi was coming nearer and nearer as time passed. Afterwards I used to think of him whenever I felt unhappy. His affection was always there and as fire melts ice so his affection made my worries melt and my struggle for life got transformed into a blissful life.
It was the immense privilege of the writer to meet a few gigantic spiritual men, but nobody ever produced on him a deeper impression than Ramana Maharshi. In him the sublime majesty of the divine life stood and moved in all simplicity. The ultimate had revealed itself as the immediate, and the undreamt had become the actual.
The burning regret, which many probably share with me, is that full advantage was not taken of those happy and precious days when he was with us physically also – eating, talking, laughing, welcoming all, open to all. The reality was there – in abundance for taking, but we enclosed ourselves in timidity, in false humility, in self-deception and false excuses. We took a cupful when the ocean was at our feet.
- from: Face to Face with Sri Ramana Maharshi 

Conversation with Annamalai Swami

Q.: What is the easiest way to be free of the 'little self'?

Annamalai Swami: Stop identifying with it. If you can convince yourself, 'This little self is not really me,' it will disappear.

Q.: But how to do that?

AS.: The little self is something that only appears to be real. If you understand that it has no real existence it will disappear, leaving behind it the experience of the real and only Self. Understand that it has no real existence and it will stop troubling you.
Consciousness is universal. There is no limitation or 'little self' in it. It is only when we identify with and limit ourselves to the body and the mind that this false sense of self is born. If, through enquiry, you go to the source of the 'little self', you find that it dissolves into nothingness.

Q.: But I am very accustomed to feel 'I am this 'little self' '. I cannot break this habit merely by thinking 'I am not this 'little self''.

AS.: This 'little self' will only give way to the real Self if you meditate constantly. You cannot wish it away with a few stray thoughts. Try to remember the analogy of the rope which looks like a snake in twilight. If you see the rope as snake the real nature of the rope is hidden from you. If you only see the rope the snake is not there. Not only that - you know that there never was a snake there. (Then) the question of how to kill the snake disappears... If you can understand that this 'little self' never at any time had any existence outside your imagination, you will not be concerned about ways and means of getting rid of it.

Q.: It is all very clear but I feel I need some help. I am not sure that i can generate this conviction by myself.

AS.: The desire for assistance is part of your problem. Don't make the mistake of imagining that there is a goal to be reached or attained. If you think like this you will start looking for methods to practice and people to help you. This just perpetuates the problem you are trying to end. Instead, cultivate the strong awareness, 'I am the Self. I am That. I am Brahman. I am everything.'.. The best way to (stop believing the wrong ideas about yourself) is to replace them with ideas which more accurately reflect the real state of affairs. ...
The Self is always attained, it is always realized; it is not something that you have to seek, reach or discover. Your vasanas and all the wrong ideas you have about yourself are blocking and hiding the experience of the real Self. If you don't identify with these wrong ideas, your Self-nature will not be hidden from you.

- from: 'Living By The Words Of Bhagavan' by David Godman

Tvayyarpitamanasā tvām paśyan
sarvam tavākrititayā satatam
bhajatē (a)nanya prītyā
sa jayatyarunāchala
tvayi sukhē magnah


He who dedicates his mind to Thee,
will always, with pure love,
behold the universe as Thy figure.
He is without rival, being one with Thee,
oh Arunachala,
and is drowned in Thy bliss!


If the mind is happy, not only the body but the whole world will be happy. So one must find out the way of becoming happy oneself. One cannot do this except by finding out about oneself by Self-enquiry. To think of reforming the world without doing that is like thinking of covering the whole world with leather to avoid the pain caused by walking on stones and thorns when the much simpler method of wearing leather shoes is available. When by holding an umbrella over your head you can avoid the sun, will it be possible to cover the face of the whole earth by tying a cloth over it to avoid the sun? If a person realises his position and stays in his own self, things that are to happen will happen. Things that are not to happen will not happen. The shakti that is in the world, is only one. All these troubles arise if we think that we are separate from that shakti.


Q: People who follow other paths sometimes experience samadhi states.
Will they also have the experience of sphurana? (a light-experience which can come before the samadhi experience)
Annamalai Swami: If one unceasingly follows the paths of japa or yoga, the mind will merge eventually in the sphurana. At the time of merging the experience will come.
This sphurana is the light or the radiance of the ‘I am’. When you are close to merging with the real ‘I’ you feel its emanations. This real ‘I’ is the real name and form of God. The first and most accurate name of God is ‘I’. The awareness ‘I am’ is the original and primordial mantra.

Q: So the ‘I’-mantra is even prior to pranava, the sound of OM?

AS: Yes, that is what Bhagavan said on several occasions.
This consciousness, the ‘I am’, is existing and shining always, but your awareness of it is obstructed by the ego in just the same way that the shadow of the earth hides the moon during an eclipse. The shadow over the moon is only visible because of the moonlight behind it. Without this light the shadow of the eclipse could not be seen. Like this we are conscious of the body, the mind and the world even when they obstruct our clear vision only because of the light of the Self. By the light of the Self all this is seen.

Q: How did this single, unbroken ‘I’ become the many different things and people that we see in the world?

AS: It didn’t. It always remains single and unbroken. Your defective vision and your misperceptions give you the impression that the one became the many. The Self has never undergone any change or transformation except in your imagination.
When we identify ourselves with the body the mind, the one appears to become many. When one’s energy is diverted from the mind and the outside world towards the Self, the illusion of multiplicity fades away.

Go deeply into this feeling of ‘I’. Be aware of it so strongly and so intensely that no other thoughts have the energy to arise and distract you. If you hold this feeling of ‘I’ long enough and strongly enough, the false ‘I’ will vanish leaving only the unbroken awareness of the real, immanent ‘I’, consciousness itself.

- Living by the Words of Bhagavan, p 298 , 299

8th January, 1946

(22) MOKSHA

A few days ago, a lady, a recent arrival, came into the hall at about 3 p.m. and sat down. All the time she was there, she was trying to get up and ask something of Sri Bhagavan. As Bhagavan appeared not to have noticed her, and was reading a book, she waited for a while. As soon as Bhagavan put the book aside, she got up, approached the sofa and said without any fear or hesitation, “Swami, I have only one desire. May I tell you what it is?” “Yes,” said Bhagavan, “What do you want?” “I want moksha,” she said. “Oh, is that so?” remarked Bhagavan. “Yes, Swamiji, I do not want anything else. Is it enough if you give me moksha,” said she. Suppressing a smile that had almost escaped his lips, Bhagavan said, “Yes, yes, that is all right; that is good.” “It will not do if you say that you will give it sometime later. You must give it to me here and now,” she said. “It is all right,” said Bhagavan. “Will you give it now?
I must be going,” said she. Bhagavan nodded.
As soon as she left the hall, Bhagavan burst out laughing and said, turning towards us, “She says that it is enough if only moksha is given to her. She does not want anything else.” Subbalakshmamma, who was seated by my side, took up the thread of the conversation and quietly said, “We have come and are staying here for the same purpose. We do not want anything more. It is enough if you give us moksha.” “If you renounce, and give up everything, what remains is only moksha. What is there for others to give you? It is there always.
THAT IS,” said Bhagavan. “We do not know all that. Bhagavan himself must give us moksha.” So saying she left the hall. Looking at the attendants who were by his side, Bhagavan remarked, “I should give them moksha, they say. It is enough if moksha alone is given to them. Is not that itself a desire? If you give up all the desires that you have, what remains is only moksha. And you require sadhana to get rid of all those desires.”
The same bhava (idea) is found in Maharatnamala:
‘It is said that the complete destruction of vasanas is Brahmam and
moksha.’
- Letters from Sri Ramanasramam

You need power only when you want to do something harmful, otherwise love is enough to get everything done...Sir Charlie Chaplin

The Survival Race

Man has probably won in the race of survival and existence but lost in the race of humanity for his own kind...... its a pity today I carry my child under the shelter watching another child of his near age drenched in rain... a pity the mother is not bothered,...a pity someone's hue and cry about this, is laughed upon saying..y do you really care...a pity the help offered is seen as a humiliation to the parent... a pity the mother says that the child  (who cannot even speak) cannot understand her...... a pity the parent calls herself and her child poor and so the child must live that way..... on this teachers day... its been a real pity to witness the most sacred teacher abandon her child.

My youngest mentor

what do I say about my most recent teacher... my youngest mentor. He astonishes me with his every act, impressing me to wonder when did he really master it..in just a few months. Who says only a mother teaches a child, I experience learning more as a mother............... I have grown much more. My child has paved my way..given me a direction... his innocent smiles have taught me how pleasant life is... his mischief has taught me how much fun life is..... his constant persistence to accomplish something has taught me endurance....... his unfailing trials has taught me that there are no failures in life ........ His presence has made me more responsible...His twinkling eyes give me a new insight.... His hugs have taught me how to love unconditionally. He refines me, he burnishes me for, he is my youngest and finest mentor that, I have had so far in my life.

It is often seen and heard that every country has its critics, and most often, they are its very own people whether IN-HOUSE or OUT-HOUSE...... if the critic talks and preaches about responsibility by depicting comparisons with the world....he must go beyond the mere talk and implement actions to bring about the desired change.

Just a perception

when I  look outside my window... I see many cadres of life; some doing better and some bad or if I say worse than my position... if I start comparing I will forget what I really have.... for the one called below my status line might envy me the very same way I would envy the one above my so called status line and who really knows what the high status really has and really wants and really envies what they have not....life may be unfair in its distribution of things to mankind but very fair in giving an individual the balance of his thought and life..just a matter of perception...Today cannot be tomorrow and will never be yesterday but today is ever changing

The Fighter... I salute

In the calm and pleasant morn,
As the sun's first ray touches the horizon,
the leaves are silent, the breeze still;
the dove in the nest is sleeping still,
Suddenly breaks the silence- A shot in the air amid;
The calm atmosphere has turned horrid!
Slowly from within the fog appears a face
That has not had food for days
His eyes are tired, yet intense and alert
His actions are swift though limbs are hurt
His hands are bruised, yet firm on the weapon
Any time, any moment ready to leap on....
He breathes for his country men- many to him unknown
He fights in the war front, yet all alone
With a motto-To protect and never to quit,
he proceeds on and does never retreat.
Life to him, like for others is dear
Still death to him does not arise any fear
A poem on such a theme is easy to write
Yet his life depends on the one move that he makes is right
 

Thank you

Thank you to all my readers, I am happy to see the immediate increase in the view count of my posts... and from different parts of the world. Thanks for keeping the blog alive and running.

My Pain may be the reason for Somebody's Laugh, but my Laugh must never be a Reason for Somebody's Pain..................... By Charlie Chaplin (Sir Charles Spencer Chaplin)

Knowing others is   

Intelligence; 

Knowing self is
True Wisdom.

Mastering others is
Strength;
Mastering self is
True Power.
 ........................An old Chinese Proverb written by Lao Tzu (old Master) in Lao Te Ching

The "Perfect Prefect"

when someone calls me perfect, I do smile at myself, not for the greatness of self but, for the fact that I was in their footprints only sometime ago. I just walked past their path with a more firmer grip on my life. Life is a repetitive drama with the characters changed. When someone calls me imperfect, its just that, they have walked past my footprints. Yes, it does definitely hurt when called less of perfection.... those taunts and lessons appear just humiliating to the ego, but deep within, the conscious is very much conscious about the truth...It takes its time to accept the maturity of a subject.
Indeed Perfection is in the thought of how perfect something can be, a quality that gets perfected at every attempt. Well, if something can be made better, why not try!. Its not the age that makes someone perfect. The learning from an experience to make something better plus the attempt to implement the change makes one a 'Perfect Prefect'  ... The master who knows there is much more to learn and perfect.

A simple proportionality of perfection..

Perfection = experience + attempt to implement
                      judgement

In the attitude of silence the soul finds the path in a clearer light, and what is elusive and deceptive resolves itself into crystal clearness..... by Mahatma Gandhi

Friendship is not just in the name .... it needs to be maintained, the next time we proudly call it so... every relationship is a friendship :) ...don't stagnate these values to feel sorry tomorrow.... be proud of all those who maintain this friendship and !!! never forget to reciprocate ..or else you may lose those pearls of life :)

It is easy to let go when things seem hard..its a presumption to move away for better options.... but reality is we have to face the life that is in front of us... by making it a better choice and not by going for another glossy choice and definitely not feeling compromised or sympathized. There are no failures..be it in our academics, relationships or Career... every book is made from paper..but judging or presuming it to be better before opening it and later repenting is mere foolishness. Looking for the best in what we have is a healthy life because, nothing including self is perfect. Perfection must be in our vision that filters out what is not required. Avoiding a situation is mere escaping... it only builds up guilt and more avoidance. Life is perfect and joyful when we look at it through the most perfect window that is our maturity..that comes Not with age nor with experiences of life BUT by understanding the experiences of life

A small word can provoke a thought, a discussion. Here is a small conversation between two individuals that I enjoyed and felt like posting it in my blog. The two happen to be Husband and wife and started a small chat on the messenger.   Husband (H): Hi there  The wife was busy on another browser window and had already logged out of the account and opened another but happen to see her husbands msg seconds before logout. She replied after a few minutes from another account. Wife (W):  Yep I'm here

H: how can u be everywhere... btw did u finish ur work

 W: hmm..i can be everywhere if you think so..btw I did

The husband tried to get a little ticklish  H : Omnipresent is god......so u r my god Then the wife tried to  be more wiser

  W: I am not god

  man is a thought..

thanks for giving me a new insighttoday

H: switch on the cooler and then close kanna's door so that he wont get disturbed with sudden noise

 W: okay

  back to the worldkanna ... their 19 month old son was sleeping at home in his bed room and his mother was in another room.

 H: okay good that man can at least be a thought :) The husband continued the light talk and was probably anticipating to get something out from his wife

 W: idi oka sodhi..... (This is something nonsense, what do you mean at least)

or if there is an in depth meaning, I did not understand  There was no reply from H so the W messaged in bold

   W: UNNAVA (you there!!!)

 H: unna (yes here)

 naa mohaniki indepth meaning kuda (Never thought of the in depth meaning) The wife immediately replied

  W: there is

 H: what is that?

 W: as long as the thought exists man does..so at least he is a thought,

  thanks to the thought

if you do not call a man as a Man..even an animal can be named as man

  man is just a name given to a breathing creature with 4 limbs two eyes,... walking etc

 H: great I can be sometimes a drop of water to quench poetic thirst ....ha ha ha

 W: every thought, feeling and word can be deciphered in depth.... but

 Ultimately nothing is mortal... finally what exists is a black hole

  and a black hole too,....... because man cannot imagine beyond

the thought cannot travel beyond a black hole

 H: then lets all keep quite and do nothing because of black hole

 W: silence is what has, is and will exist without a defined end

it will once again break open to expel the thought of what we probably imagine as life

 H: BTW...this reminds me of BAGVAD GITA's stance .....but I dont know how to put it forward

 W: tell me in your own way

  may be we can frame it together

H: if it is black hole then why this creation...more or less Arjuna asks this question ( may not be same words but it means same)

W: black is when energy is all absorbed...may be

  my understanding from my basic sciences

  when there is leak of energy it gives light....the life may be

 this is where probably great scientists too have succumbed to the dilemma of god????

H: if energy is all absorbed the universe has no energy..then no life

  no life nothing to talk about

 me: yes

 this just a mithya (delusion)

  brahma kalpamu (dream)

  one dream of brahma  According to Hindu mythology Brahma is the creator of the universe and life, and the events of life are assumed to a one night sleep and dream of the creator Brahma. The world is assumed to end when Brahma wakes up. 

 H: a circle with beginning and end is a black hole W: :)

  btw my Universe has woken up and is highly radiant with energy to expend

 H: okay enjoy ur radiant universe

 W: our radiant universe

 H: sure ours  The radiant Universe was their son. The lady called him the universe because her daily activities were centered around , for  and with him only.

 W: bye

 H: bye

Life is a barter system, when we lose something, we get something even more precious... its just a test for the eye to see... so the next time we crib for any loss or we feel that we have done something selflessly, we must not forget that it was a choice made by us :)

As much as a helping hand is revered and never forgotten, so is a deserted hand forgiven but can never be forgotten, for its roots are deep to fade slowly...its simply human

When the storm is gone, the trees grow back their normal leaves, but the uprooted bark speaks of the time that left with its impressions behind.

Surf not with the waves of the ocean, sink deeper to understand its realms

A Beautiful quote .... someone asked Gautama Buddha... what is poison. He gently replied that
"Anything excess in life is poison."

A mother

A mother can be selfish to call her child as her own because she has the right to do so...

A mother can be selfish to give that extra care to her child because she and only she can and will do it...

A mother can be selfish in taking the pride of being the mother because she has raised her child with unconditional love and affection....

A mother can be selfish in protecting her tender child in times of fear because no one else can be of such a support....

A mother can selfishly call herself as her child's best teacher/guide because she is the first one who teaches the child about living

BUT..

A mother MUST NEVER BE SELFISH in protecting her child from the harsh reality, truth or mistakes in life because in doing so she will be falsely manipulating the child's understanding about life and also prevent him from facing the challenges of life.

Colours are the emotions that we live each day, we feel every moment, and breathe every second.... a beat of the eyelash holds the most beautiful colour that absorbs all others and treasures them forever

Achievement is just the beginning towards a goal..... Maintenance, Sustenance and Tolerance and refinement of what has been achieved make for the Ultimate accomplishment of the goal

The Best of the Opportunities always come our way with their own share of Consequences.... it is up to us to take the Chance and Live those consequences or take the chance and Leave those consequences when they get too thorny..
Indeed a Bed of Roses comes with a bunch of hidden Thorns

Love

Love is not defined by the pleasantries we get from those whom we consider special...
Love is defined by the roles and duties and care one gets from those who consider themselves special to the receiver.... We are at both ends :)
We never had a choice to chose our parents or siblings...... yet we love them because they have a special place in our lives for the special care they gave us. 

Memoirs of Life

Memories fade but can never be erased. A thousand steps begin their journey to cross a thousand miles unaware of what all they will be aware of. They begin their trod with a squeak, a petty pretty cry spreading smiles around, cuddled warmly, wrapped around secure in the enclosure of strong arms. The world too bright for the tiny eyes to open, yet, it seems colorful to create a desire. Soon the eyes do will to open. How colorful yet strange it seems, the very instant the unawareness leans to know the secrets of this bizarre image. The innocence of the tiny yawn, muses all these images in front, they make a noise of what they call happiness, a delight rejoicing for what they call a new arrival! what do they mean? they point towards me. who is me? Thoughts and doubts pondering, confused! So fast indeed, the tiny mind can form thoughts! The brightness slowly dimmed to brighten again, the world too amusing for the little eyes not to sleep, but to explore. Life probably, as it is said had started.

A noise always beside, could always feel something, may be later to realize it a touch, yes, but assuring that there was something or someone and the same one beside every time. I learned a new emotion of being secured, yet not knowing why It felt so. Anyway developed an acquaintance, later an attachment towards this someone whom I could never be without, my mother. I later learned, that is what ,this someone is to be called. I made one more friend, another big someone, my father, a very huge someone, I thought so. Never-the-less learned that he did things for me like ...care. Yes, indeed he cared a lot for me. Too many activities, too many noises later became familiar as I started to recognize all. In a span of a few days, months, many new emotions knocked the mind. They puzzled, questioned the mind, but slowly the will to enjoy them hushed all the doubts. What was the “will”?  Was it a developing desire?.

I could always see everything around except myself, how did I look to others I never knew until my eyes saw the image of my mother holding a tiny someone?... my mother pointed out to me and said in a recognizable noise that, that other figure was mine …hmmm that was me!!….well… I was lost, looking back and forth, sooner growing up to understand better what the mirror showed. This once unknown image now discovered, day after day appeared more loveable.

Soon I too started making the recognizable noise and was able to understand it clear. Aahh, I learned so much… at such a tiny age. So many friends, all to care for me, I felt happy, no something else some other feeling…just left it , the innocence probably not intriguing enough to find out.

Learning was never enough, everyday a new event mastered, was elated…again felt something, did not understand…. Left it again. …. As life got used to the pleasantries of the world, there developed a desire to ask for them. Yes, I learned to ask…. I never knew why I wanted things …I just wanted them as they made me happy. Everything was mine…. All that I wanted…. Yes, it was mine. Never realized when desires were shadowing the purest emotion of the heart.

Ringa Ringa Roses, Pocket full of poses, husha busha … and we all fall down. Life was indeed a garden full of roses, never knew what a fall could be. Life revolved around the people I knew, was not so vast. Blissful is the age of innocence. It sees no difference. It only knows to smile, play, and love and share things with all those who reciprocate.

Now, old enough to go to a school, excitement was full bound…well, not quite so as, the day one experience was a bit lonely and frightening. Slowly made new friends, of course these were of my size. School became the most enjoyable place. I would not miss. A place where the innocence learned different ways of life. Living was sharing, playing, wondering and laughing. There were failures and victory in games and among friends, however the realm of enjoyment was above all.

As I grew I was upgraded to bigger classes…. unlike the earlier ones these demanded more concentration, more books, more effort, less play. Always wondered why all this was needed but was told that they would prepare me for life. Life, what was so wrong that I had to prepare???... Too deep a thought for an age that had no responsibilities.

Time with friends was long gone, the era was different. With complete control over self and full independence, confidence evolved. The confidence of being able to do anything, accomplish everything. There was a healthy spirit of competition. The innocence got knowledgeable, and smart.

Things moved at their pace, time too sway its winds. Each new year was an excitement; all that was new to the eyes was astonishment. A will to try, attempt all possible… well, it did not limit to that, but more to succeed, never to fail. The trials of never to fail gave rise to the greed for victory. Where had all innocence and laughter gone, now the heart and mind are filled with envy? Envying all those who were successful. The need for existence had become a race for self-recognition and more to be successful.

The feeling that the immature mind once felt, took full control. All that was once an identity now became the pride. The ego and pride for being the best. Was I really the best? Was I the only best…? These questions were far beyond the space. Ambition blinded wisdom and the ability to judge. The only existing was the “I”.

After reaching the summit of success, having no more room to fly, life got suffocated. Tired of running...!!! Suddenly felt that others in the race had gone past me. Truly the world is colorful yet bizarre. A fear of losing, a fear of failure clawed the mind. What then, if some one else would become the best? It was the same insecurity of the child. Bang Bang the Roses …… my pockets seemed empty… I fell down and there were people looking at me; I could never recognize them till now, The ignorance was so high!!...Felt low, depressed. These were the people whom I once thought to be lower.

It is so amazing, not only individual experiences different emotions, but several individuals react with various emotions for a single instant. A humor for someone was a humiliation for another.

Really, the human brain is such a fine and sophisticated machine easy to get complicated. Understanding was not very easy but easier was misunderstanding. The line in-between is so faint not easily seen. Confused about self, depressed, ashamed, defeated! It hurt but nothing changed. Everything and everyone was at the same place. The situations were the same, only roles interchanged. Just a matter of perception changed all. Life was never a race with others, but with own self. Was I not best in myself, improving each day, getting better every moment. I was lost and now found, realized success came through learning, and failure was the lesson. What did I learn!---------- Patience! It reviewed the entire book of my life, giving a new meaning to understand and share joy. Triumph was always mine if I accepted it as it is. I was always aware of this simple truth as a child..... that was the reason I was always happy and merry then. The age of innocence proved to be wiser than the fully grown Ignorance that gave birth to arrogance. Age does not give maturity but wisdom does.

Life never taught how to smile. It never decided our victory, nor did it ever decide our fall. Had it taught how to cry it would have changed them all. An open book left out to be read, life never asked us to read it, nor to leave it. It only showed choices of emotions we had to act, and we do as according to our wish.

Yes indeed, I have come many steps past, uncountable with so many emotions emerging, roaring each with a different taste, all making the potion of life. Incomplete without either, reminding that life is beautiful, every moment is pleasant. It is in the way we want to taste. The choice is ours.

True Talent

True talent does not crave for the ambitious world.... but it does have an ambition to compete itself by refining and improvising itself...step by step.... to satisfy itself with its own progress. True talent has a comparison only with its own progress.

Happy New Year 2012

Let us welcome the New year with the cheers and hopes for New Beginnings...yet let us smile back at the old one for its lessons of wisdom, for the journey is yet to go on. Each morning will become a past, each past will be yet forgotten, but what we never forget are the feelings we go through... these feelings turn into treasures of Happiness or Lessons of wisdom. With these gifts from the past let us move on to make ourselves better to fit into a better tomorrow.

Happy New Year.......:)