Navaratri times!

 Navaratri celebrations in Delhi.. Surprisingly, I never had any tamil friend who would invite me for Navaratri golu! But my mother had her bunch who would not only invite her but also send a chauffeur driven car to pick her up and drop her back home.My mom was such a charismatic lady..she was everybody's guru..even mine.So I would wear a nice saree for the occasion and hop in with my mother in the car as her escort(!) and visit all these homes with her.Each lady would decorate her puja room beautifully, sometimes with golu, sometimes without it. They would all sing shlokas from different religious texts.My mother being their teacher would lead the chanting.I was her assistant, to lend her support when she took a break in between. In the end, the ladies would exchange haldi kumkum and announce the venue for the next day. I would invariably sing a song which most of them would hear every Navaratri from me! This was mandatory being 'mami's' daughter! All in all, I got a taste of our culture even though I lived so far away from the South of India.Our( I mean, my mother's)turn to call the ladies home used to be on Saraswati Puja day( the Navami) This was also the day when I would call all my students,old and new, to my place for collective prayer and reunion. My students would leave their books and notebooks a day before for me to place them for worship.On that day, I would be more aware and dedicated in my prayers because I was being responsible for so many of these little hearts who had trust in MY prayers!! I was blessed for being able to do that and if I still feel blessed  it  is because of KARMA.What you give,you get! My celebrations with my students were definitely not religious. They were more on uniting us all together.. understanding and respecting each other's individuality and presence in the Collective.I had my trusted senior students who would show up on that day to join in the celebrations and help me with it too! I love you all so much, dear children! My own children would keep their books along with my students for the puja.So there used to be a huge pile of books and notebooks, not less than 50 sets atleast!! We would do the puja as a family first and then my appa and amma would join us for aarti. All this before my students would start arriving. It used to be really a hectic day! In the evening I would be with my mother to assist her with her puja celebrations and attend to her friends.Later in the day, we would all sit together and discuss how it all went and how we enjoyed the whole process eating "chundal" as prasadam!! Added to this would be my visit to the local durga bari with my daughter and karthayani temple with my mother during the last three days of Navaratri. This happened every year for almost 20 years! Precious days indeed!!There was this one time when my mother and  my mother in law were together at my place.I was writing my books those days and was really really busy!!! They both made all the arrangements for the ladies pooja and haldi kumkum.What a camaraderie they showed with each other!! Love them both!! I am not going to say I miss those days because I enjoyed them to the core and am immensely satisfied..Today is a new day..a new beginning.Happy Navaratri everybody!

Opt,tick,view🤓

 My thoughts today! ❤️

 Introspection is actually "in-tour inspection".

To "realise" this, you need 'real' eyes! 

Also you must, eliminate to illuminate.

Accomodate far and near vision. Avoid "We shun" angle.

Be a pupil and let this light in.

Focus,interpret and transform your image.

Value your eyes,not your I's.

Shift the blinds from within and see. No one is really blind in this world.

Tears are water that flow and cleanse the heart.Don't hold them in your eyes and make your heart ice "cold". 

Happy birthday Shruti!!

 Meet Shruti Sharma. Today is her birthday..I should be writing her a happy birthday message right?But my fingers move to type a gratitude message for her. 

Here goes our story.

We first met at my cousin's place in NOIDA way back in 1988. She was this cool,smart neighbour of my cousin who literally was family for her. My cousin casually brought her to my place on her next visit where we got talking about the changes required in the education system and how the techniques of teaching were monotonous and boring.( I was working in a school as a teacher that time.)You start this topic with me anytime and you are gone!! My friends who know me well know this trait of mine!! But we both seemed to enjoy this conversation!! Cut.

 My cousin leaves Delhi and Shruti is forgotten. 10 years later,I casually send my resume to an anonymous Publishing House for providing my professional services as a "content reviewer" for their Science textbooks. I was getting bored with my routine job and wanted to bring in some colour to my professional life. And,it happened to reach the hands of Shruti who was their Editor/Manager! Coincidence right?I kept myself anonymous because I was working in a school that time. Soon I got a call from her and she connected my resume with me and asked, "Are you the same Supriya ?" I was not sure to feel happy that I knew her for it was kind of awkward.For some people familiarity helps but I am the kind who works better with strangers! You may laugh,but that is my truth.The next few days were just about work. We spoke over the phone.We both avoided talking about our old acquaintance and talked like absolute professionals! She gave me confidence and told me that I just had to spend an additional 30 minutes per day for a week to go through the textual content that had already been written by an author.Simple addition/deletion of content to suit the needs of the age group it was meant for. Soon I started writing content for a cd that was to be issued with their science books.My 'Intel teach to the future' knowledge of using the computer for teaching came in handy.I wrote stories and tried hyperlinking every story to small concepts in science. The end result was that my CDs had more content than the actual textbook!! This was when Shruti came home for the first time and we met in person!! I still remember the lesson was on the Solar System.From then started her visits to my home and her meeting my family.My mother loved her politeness and affectionate nature. Shruti shared a special bond with my mother. Before coming to my place she would enquire,"Is aunty around?" As if meeting me was just incidental! I always had to be careful about being personal with her as I carried in my head that we had a professional relationship to maintain. Soon I was writing textbooks for their Publishing Company. Every business meeting we had was at my home.We were professional 'friends'. We discussed work,family,life and VALUES,exactly in that order. I realised she had a very soft core that she covered with a hard exterior. 

The Company was soon becoming an extended family for me. I remember addressing their Sales Team before the books were released.The owner, who sat on the dias with me talked about the importance of human values and liked something I spoke about Gandhi and Buddha. I dont recollect much now of what I spoke but I remember Shruti's face very well!! She was coordinating this meeting.The anxiety of making it work..she was,still is the face of the Publication House.She was coordinating with the author,the sales team and the people who had put their money in it!! She had to belong to all and yet give her point of view when required.I saw her vulnerability and strength at the same time!! 

Our meetings became more frequent. and we were definitely family from within yet professional colleagues from the outside. Her son Suryansh tied rakhi to my daughter Smita, and gifted her the book "Little Women"which still holds an important place in our book shelf.My mother loved cooking for her. And Shruti knew that she would get her sambar or avial with my amma around.With me,it was the other way! She liked South Indian khana and she would appreciate whatever was served.There were times when I would cook only after she came home and we would discuss work while I prepared "her" sambar!! So much "concealed" love! Soon she knew everything that was going in my life as much as I did in hers. 

 It was my son's marriage. I had to finish off writing a set of 5 (or was it 8 ??) books before the wedding so that they could be available for the next academic session. So much pressure amidst pleasure! But I did it..with her constant push along with her friendly support. Genuinely laudable HR personality traits!

Thanks to Mr. Gaurav ,her associate, another gem of a person, I worked with these guys for 15 years before I stopped writing. But my association with Shruti continues..unedited,undefined, uninhibited. She was one among the few I called before leaving Delhi.In a world where there are people who connect with others just for their benefits there are also genuine,honest friendships that go beyond work  with no expectations from the other. We still talk..but never about work! Thanks to that moment when I decided to apply for the reviewer's job! This small job got me a rich harvest of a true friend! HAPPY BIRTHDAY SHRUTI! And Thank You for being who you are! Wishing you Good Heath,Happiness and A Heart that receives only Love!

Now, JUST your true friend,

 Supriya

TURNING  OVER A NEW LEAF!!

All by itself, yet for all

I know, I know..it's now becoming a bit of an overdose! So, that leaves you with a choice to leave without noticing these leaves and leaf through another page or just look at these green leaves to get inspired to live a life like them.

 So, what do the leaves teach us about life?
 They have perfectly designed  lamina to take in optimum sunlight,  stomata to allow need-based exchange of gases, intricate system of veins and veinlets for the transport of water along their length and breadth, the plastids with chlorophyll to perform photosynthesis, an absolutely verified mechanism for preparing food for their own existence,their fellow parts (of the plant to which they belong) AND the sustenance of the entire ecosystem around them!
 So much to learn! Design your life to derive maximum happiness from your surroundings. Retain only that information which is good for your development.Create your self worth by working hard.Spread cheer to all beings around you. And finally, live a life of co-existence.
And leave a legacy of values ( humus and compost) for the future generations!
Isn't that awesome?!

How I Reached The Lotus Sutra!

Made on Notes (I pad)

Religion to me is the way of living our life. I am born into a Hindu family ( not very traditional but one where prayer was a routine).We worshipped all forms of Gods that exist in our religion.My mother taught me numerous shlokas depending on the situation/ problem I was facing at different times.Reciting these made me feel better and believe that there is "some" super power which is listening to what I am reciting and I am being blessed every time. I now understand that by repeating these mantras I was strengthening my will power and ability to deal with the situation.
As I grew older, the problems seemed to increase with more responsibilities which meant more surrender to the Supreme whom I had never met or seen. But my Science taught me that even electricity cannot be seen or touched.You only experience it,isn't it? So I continued to believe my experiences.Gradually by repetition, it moved to internalising this Energy inside. Whenever the need arose,I could consult this Power sitting inside me that would guide me and I would follow without questioning. You may call this intuition or the sixth sense.But I believe that I developed it because I allowed it to settle inside me. This, I later understood was called Self awareness. Ramana's "who  am I" question..
I began reading books on Self awareness  and watched TV programs on them. Echart Tolle, Sadguru Jaggi Vasudev, Jaya Row.. to name a few. While teaching in school, my day used to start at 5.30 AM as I had to catch the School bus at 6.45AM. which meant that I had to finish off with the minimum essential work before I left. My day would end by 11PM at night ( teaching job in India involves a major task of checking notebooks everyday!! Almost 4 sets of 40 notebooks everyday, particularly if you are a Maths teacher!!) Just before retiring for the day, I got hooked to watching Jaya Row who spoke in English on Bhagwad Geeta every day...Astha channel ..just 15 minutes in all. My first virtual guru! She sounded contemporary and with a good sense of humor and gave many analogies that I could connect with. Her program was followed by Sukhobodhananda who was also good but a little heavy on my tired brain. This gave me energy to sustain my existence in the family life balancing it with my professional work. This went on, followed by Brahmakumaris sister Shivani and many more who spoke in Hindi and English. My prayer time got restricted and I went deeper into understanding life per se. Situations came, all this knowledge ( or wisdom?) taught me to deal with every obstacle that I faced. I had that "power" inside now.
Soon,I was teaching students at my own institute.It was easier now to convey my thoughts to my students.Relating Science with Spirituality became normal for me.It had become my way of life.
My own children were in their teens.They questioned, we discussed,we argued and finally chose to go by what suited us best. I don't want to know if they believe in what I believe or not. We can all make our guesses about God..isn't it.To each, his own.
Then, one day, I happened to meet my father's old friend/ colleague's daughter, who introduced me to Nichiren Buddhism. I attended a few discussions at her place where I found that it was easily adaptable. I didnot get involved with the activities of the Group though I enjoyed just being there. There were a lot of people going for it too.
I believe in devotion. It can come in any form...simply by even "talking" to God?

So how is all this related to the picture that I have drawn? My mother used to often tell me that my father is like a lotus in a pond. And the explanation she gave was that wherever he was,in any situation, or in any company, he would know to attach himself   physically yet be detached emotionally. That I thought was the highest level of self awareness!
The reaching of Buddhahood. A lotus lives in muddy waters,yet stands apart pure and untouched by its surroundings. Rising and blooming above the murk is enlightenment. That is what the lotus teaches us says Buddhism.
We have the innate ability to overcome any problem or difficulty that we may encounter in life. The Lotus Sutra
works as a guideline to conduct one's life with boundless compassion, wisdom and courage inherent in us.The idea is not to escape from your problems but to deal with them,develop your inner state and make youself fearless and peaceful at all times. This done, you rise up like the Lotus, enlightened and pure though surrounded by the dirty waters of the world. This state of being is called Buddhahood.

Nam myoho renge kyo!

 AND THE ART THERAPY CONTINUES....

When you don't have paints and brushes at home and Amazon refuses to send it to your location, you believe in your instincts and this is what happens. Use 'doodle' on Notes and try painting! Surprisingly, this also is really satisfying! The main point is that my own expectations about the outcome of what I make is not great. So,anything that emerges finally seems better than what I had imagined! I have to manage with this till my acrylic  paints actually reach home. So my finger was my  brush  till I got a stylus to explore the limited colors that  are available on the color pad! It  is almost a minimalist experience!

 

 

 

 
 

,

 Tamaso ma Jyotir gamaya!

I have spent most of my life teaching Science to school children.I have this queer habit of relating anything that I teach to the daily experiences of my students.Besides discussing the practical applications of science in our life I have always enjoyed discussing how to conduct ourselves "scientifically" in life too. I simply  find an analogy in life to different concepts of Science. I feel this works as a 'Hot stove rule' as it reaches the young minds immediately and quickly. Call these  'Personal values' or 'Life skills', which ever way you perceive them. 

Today is Guru Purnima Day.I have been thinking and stretching my mind around the ramifications and meanings  brought forward by the Laws of Motion proposed by Newton and how it can be applied to our life.  
I just thought of writing something connecting the Guru,who gives us the LAWS OF LIFE with  NEWTON'S  LAWS OF MOTION.

THE FIRST LAW (THE LAW OF INERTIA)  

An object at rest remains at rest, or if in motion, remains in motion at a constant velocity unless acted on by a net external force. This tendency of the body to resist a change in its state of rest or of motion is called inertia.

I like to call this state of Inertia as the ‘Tamasic’ state.(the state of inactivity according to Indian philosophy). A person in tamasic state is lazy and does not like to do any positive action or may continue to do wrong actions in life due to either inertia of motion (not willing to move away from/ stop this behavior) or due to inertia of direction (nobody to guide). And, the amount of inertia is directly proportional to the mass (amount of ignorance) of the body.

A tamasic mind can be moulded to a sattvic one( Sattva is the quality of goodness, positivity, truth, peacefulness, and virtuousness that is drawn towards wisdom and good existence) by the grace of a great teacher or Guru.(the external force)

The ability to initiate the change and to stop being how we already are is always difficult because we have to overcome the existing forces within us (comfort level,inhibitions,lethargy) that may be greater than the external force (extrinsically motivating factor) that is being applied on us. So, the external force has to be greater than the forces currently acting on us in order to move us from this state of inertia.

The Guru,therefore, has to be more knowledgeable and commanding to be able to counter all the resistances that the student offers before he willingly follows Her/Him and takes to  the new path of Learning.

Here I leave you with an open ended question. Do you really need to seek an external Guru? Can’t you be your own Guru and bring in this change? Can't we internalize our Guru and be guided by that Force? 

Paulo Coelho in his book, “The Alchemist” says, “When you really want something to happen, the whole world conspires to help you achieve it”. So if you could develop that unbalanced force to break your inertia of negative  notions within yourself, you could perhaps move ahead from all the difficulties in life.

THE SECOND LAW

The rate of change of momentum produced in a body is directly proportional to force acting on it .For a constant mass, force is equal to the product of mass and acceleration. This is written in mathematical form as F = ma

Scientifically, if you double the force, you double the acceleration, but if you double the mass, you cut the acceleration in half. Applying this to life is easy.

 When the magnitude of the force (The power of the Guru/ your willingness to change/transform) is very high , the process of learning also gets accelerated. And if you increase the mass (the load of ignorance,destruction and vices), the attainment of the goals gets proportionately decelerated.

So when you set your achievement goals, you must also work conscientiously( increase the force) towards achieving them if you want to see speedy (accelerated) results. This holds true even with simple habits like starting your day with a daily workout routine or reading a chapter in a book !

THE THIRD LAW  For every action there is an equal and opposite reaction.

As you sow, so shall you reap. Or ,as the Law of karma suggests, one has to face the consequences of one’s actions in the form of reactions in their lifetime. 

Ofcourse,this law of Cause and Effect may not be as spontaneous as in the physical plane where for every action we can see an immediate reaction. At the metaphysical level, the reaction reaches us in a cumulative form and appears to fall heavily on us!

By this logic,when our actions are filled with love, we receive love as a reaction . What you give, you get. The law of Attraction also follows this which is based on the idea that “Like always attracts like.” Positivity in actions result in positive consequences. The same holds true for negative thoughts,actions and behaviour . 

So, what is the role of Guru in this? Your inner conscience is your Guru. This Guru,(power) guides you towards the path of Dharma,to decide what is right and what is wrong, to understand the duality in nature and to sift information. Guru is like that policeman inside you who directs you to stop ,wait and go even in the absence of a real one on the road!

So,today on Guru Purnima Day, I dedicate this blog to all my Gurus who have shaped me to become the person that I am today. 
 Tamaso ma Jyotir gamaya!