September 11, 2012

I am my Mind


 

I see so many objects around me.  No object is doing anything to me.  I use my eyes to catch a picture of that object and the mind inside my body identifies the object, analyses it, gives it a name.  The object doesnot enter my body yet my mind can comprehend its size and shape.  Eyes see ocean, my mind realises its huge magnitude and expanse.  Sky doesnot enter my body yet my mind expands and knows its unlimitedness.  So what is unlimited ocean or sky.  These two are objects.  Unlimited is my mind that expands to know their magnificence.  Mind is me.  I am unlimited.  Now when  I look at the sky and ocean, I try to experience my vastness, my expanse and my magnitude.

 I am the observer who is watching the show of this world as well as all the objects in it.  When I am present, the world is present.  When I am wakeful and aware all objects are projected in my mind and I know them.  But when I am sleeping or sick, the mind is at rest so these objects do not make any sense to me.  It all depends on the state of my mind.  All is where it is.  My State of mind decides what to make of everything around me.
 Someone insults me publicly.  Mind is peaceful and I think that the person concerned has gone out of mind and doesnot know me well enough to talk like that.  If mind is not stable, it gets clouded by all negative feelings and emotions like anger, embarrassment, hurt and wants to take revenge.  It is in my own hands, my choice whether I am going to feel bad about it or ignore it and move on in life.
I need to understand and appreciate the potential  power of my mind and how I can use harness it to remain in state of peace all the time.
 Vandana Ritik
Noida






April 21, 2012

Prayer to Shirdi Saibaba helps

Prayers to the Supreme Divine have all the strength in the world. Prayers can even avert a warlike situation. Prayers are healing. Prayers are rewarding. Prayers are source of peace, joy and happiness. Situation could be the same yet prayers have the power to help us remain unruffled amidst troubled times. 

Prayers help us look at same situation with different perspective. Prayers can get us anything we desire earnestly and if we add emotions to this prayer, the desired result will definitely manifest in our lives. Therefore, we should be very careful what we are praying for and what would be the consequences of such manifestation in our lives. Yes, there are consequences because this world is functioning as per certain Laws, with which most of us are not familiar with. 

Each manifestation in our life has a reason behind it. If we pray for money with all the intensity and add emotions to this prayer, the money would manifest but it could be in form of a health insurance policy due to our own illness. This is result of thoughtless prayer. Thus, wise have advised us to leave the result in the hands of God while keeping our faith and patience active.



Our intelligence is limited but God knows all. Even when we are praying for others, we should request God to help them in their own highest and best interest. We do not know what is good for us or for others. It helps if we pray and then leave the results in the hands of God believing that whatever happens would be in highest and best interest of all concerned. We do our best possible karma and let the Supreme Power decide what is best for us. With this attitude, the Divine grace starts flowing. Sometimes God delays because HE wants us to learn to face the problem and become stronger. At times we do not get some object of desire because its presence would be harmful to us. We need to trust God. We could deserve something better if God did not bless us with what we were so madly after. I did not get my much deserved promotion at job, it hurt me and I left my job. My faith in God has helped me move forward. I believe, HE has some better work for me. Today I have no job but God has ensured sufficient flow of finances, peace of mind and no hectic schedules. I work at my own pace and whatever I do gives me happiness because at the back of my mind I know God is working on me. I am no longer struggling because I trust Him and let Him take me whichever path he wants to take me. I am HIS instrument. I pray to God to help & guide me in my highest and best interest.

What is Prayer - Prayers are very powerful. Any thought, word, action directed towards the Supreme Power, for whatever reason, is said to be the prayer. Prayer is conversing with God - mental, verbal, religious rituals or even pilgrimage to sacred place is understood as prayer to God. Naam Jaap, Mantra Jaap are all various kinds of prayers. Written expressions of Divine name, His work, His stories, His praises & glory is considered as prayer to God. Surrender of Self to God & doing any selfless service dedicated to Him is also prayer. The omnipresent supreme divine energy is said to be present all around us and therefore HE receives all our prayers, whether we believe it or not. All prayers are heard and it is said that mental prayers are very effective. Distant healing techniques are all about mental visions and prayers carried out for the benefit of others.


Why do we pray - In Indian families, a child learns to say his prayers from infancy state itself. We often hear parents say 'jai karo', Jai Jai etc. A Hindu child is taught to say prayers in form of gayatri mantra, aartis and reading from The Ramayana etc. Lighting lamps and burning incense sticks, dhoop etc are rituals accompanied with this form of prayer. Thus a child learns to remember and address God, the Supreme divine this way. Child learns to pray to God for things of his choice like candies, toys. After some time prayer changes to getting good marks in exams and then for getting admission in good university, then a good job, a decent life partner etc. Thus, for a normal human, prayers change according to the needs of the person. As we grow up, we realise that life is not only about self preservation & procreation but also about self inquiry & subsequent self realisation.

Thus, people pray to God for different reasons. Most of the time, we pray to seek help from God to sort out our worldly difficulties. We are constantly seeking blessings from God through our prayers. Mostly focus is on making things easy for us when faced with tough situations. Some pray as a matter-of-fact - because it is a habit with them. They pray because they have grown up doing that. They do it because it is to be done without fail. Everyday, after shower, they have a routine for prayer before leaving for work. In most of such cases it is more like a formal drill. If going is tough, prayers seem to go intense too. We pray in love. We pray in fear. We pray when we feel threatened. We pray to seek forgiveness. We pray on behalf of our loved ones also. We also pray in awe. Of course, it is the inner intention, reason behind the prayer, which is most important and the Supreme Lord knows it.

Most of the time, people turn towards God when going gets tough, they are under stress and cannot do things their own way. When intelligence of the man fails him, he starts to feel helpless, in that moment of despair, the man turns towards God and says 'Help me God'.

In very few cases, a prayer is said to know the God or to seek the God. It is said that if there were 10 steps between God and the Man, the God walks down nine steps provided the man takes that first step of firm faith and belief towards the God.

In the present scientific and technological society, man has so much pride in his intelligence that he has started seeking proof of God's existence. However, God is not to be seen but to be felt and experienced. This is the very basis of Hinduism. We search for God in visible phenomenon whereas He resides in our own existence. God is eternal and imperishable. The only Truth of this world that EXISTS, rest is illusion (maya) – play of God.

Highest Prayer - At the beginning of the war at Kurukshetra, the great warrior Arjuna is lost and is in grief. He informs about his mental state and prays to Lord Krishna, his charioteer, to take him away and free him from misery because he cannot fight and kill his own family and respected elders. Lord comforts him and tells him why he is confused and reveals the ultimate truth of his own existence and the intricacies of the Cosmic laws. After true understanding, Arjuna sees himself and world around him in new light and fights for righteousness and wins.

Now, Krishna was always with Arjuna. Moreover, Arjuna had faced many tough situations earlier too but how come he did not get this knowledge earlier. The reason is that earlier Arjuna never felt lost. He had pride and he never thought he needed any higher help. He thought himself as capable of doing & facing anything in life. Afterall, he was the greatest warrior and a man of righteousness. His mind and intelligence had failed him. Now he lost faith in himself too and prayed to Krishna that he neither wants his kingdom if he wins and nor wants boon of heaven if he gets killed while fighting. He wants something more - the way out of this miserable situation. Thus, he wanted neither pain nor pleasures but freedom from this kind of situation - permanent happiness, the state beyond pleasure and pain. He was not seeking this knowledge out of curiosity but admitted that he was lost and needed divine help. This situation became a trigger point and the great man's haughtiness crumbled. Now was the right time for Lord Krishna to reveal himself. Arjuna's intense and desperate prayer to save him paved way for Lord to reveal the Supreme knowledge to him because Arjuna needed to be informed what his personality lacked in terms of fulfilment of human life and not as a warfield hero. Arjuna did not know the REAL thing. God revealed to him the narrowness of his human mind and imparted the sublime expanse of highest knowledge. With the strength of his earnest prayer he got elevated to highest level of spirituality. Thus, tough situations, when handled properly may turn as elevation points in our lives too provided we seek divine interference and leave aside our cleverness.

Shirdi SaiBaba said that barring our name and body what is left is that feeling of being alive, consciousness, this is Self, the God on whom we should meditate. Ultimately Self meditates on Self and reveals its true nature by lifting veils of dark ignorance and finally the light of knowledge of Self shines brightly. Suddenly all becomes crystal clear. At this stage nothing stands wanted. However, very rarely, someone wants such kind of knowledge. Most of the time, we are seeking favour in respect of worldly objects and position which bring us happiness for a limited time only and this happiness itself is not real but imaginary.

In our moments of silence when we sit down and surrender our thoughts to the Self within us, we connect to the Divine Supreme, within our own depths. This connection provides us energy and shows us the right path. The Self reveals the Self, such is the strength of prayer. God's Grace comes to us in his own way and in his own time. The Supreme is Almighty because he knows each and every one of us inside out. He knows what is best for us. We should be thankful that we Know the One who Knows All. He does not give us what we want but gives us what we need. This is why we need to have Faith in God. We must have the patience to wait for the right time. Because He has heard our prayer even if we said it once and even if we did not say it. He has noted it. Even few moments of sitting in silence in front of the highest Source brings peace, comfort and solace to our hearts.

Prayers for spiritual upliftment bring about great results and have a long lasting effect on our mind, body and soul. Therefore, let us make use of human birth. Let us become the Arjuna(seeker of REAL knowledge & peace) and Pray to Lord to make us happy permanently. Open our hearts to listen to Lord Krishna(our inner consciousness, the Self, the Sai). When we have Lord as our Charioteer, the ultimate bliss is ours for sure.




Vandana Ritik
Noida

February 11, 2012

Who am I


Shirdi Sai Baba has explained that Barring our body and our name, what is left.  The feeling of being alive.  This is 'I.  This is 'Self'.  The Pure Energy.  The Pure consciousness.  I am 'separate' from body.  I am unlimited consciousness.

This 'separate-ness' is invisible to us.  Its like a 'gold chain' that we have been wearing around our neck  and we forget about its existence. 

How do we realise that Consciousness is separate from body.   That I am separate from body.  I realise this by Knowledge, by Experience.

Separate Subject (Consciousness/Energy/ Brahman) from Object(Body/Physical World/Role in drama)

Body has changed its shape from being fetus to old age but 'I' is still the same - changeless.


Subject perceives and sees the light.   Light falls on 'objects' of the world and 'I' recognises the objects.  On their own the objects are nothing.

Now with this knowledge, separate the consciousness of 'I' from body and the world around it.  Let the mind rest on consciousness for some time in silence.....the mind will lose its fickleness

And this way further light of knowledge will shine through the mind and reveal its true nature.  Practice this regularly and stay connected with the 'I' always.


Vandana Ritik Mulchandani

January 12, 2012

Covid19 and loss of a Loved one

What a painful time for all those who are losing their innocent family members and loved ones to Covid19 all over the world.  



Losing a loved one is a very painful experience and this single word cannot describe how devastating such a loss is.  Your whole world collapses.  The life as we knew, changes permanently.  There are no doctors to help you handle such a blow.  Its individual journey of enduring, accepting and overcoming.


None can replace our loss. People ask one to move on but that never happens.  One gets stuck up, in life before them and after them.

The pain doesn't go away and it takes unspecified time to be able to hide the pain without showing it. The pain and hurt can be felt anytime. Anything can trigger it.There is no time limit for grief.  We manage to handle it with passage of time depending on our own individual capacity.


Nothing can bring them back who have shed their body garment and their divine soul has left for the real HOME.  So all we do is learn to cope with the grief in best possible way.

Faced with such a huge loss and emptiness, we start searching for answers like 'why me' etc. We find lots of books etc available. Knowledge of the way things work in nature is very helpful. Learning about unseen world beyond what we see tells us that your loved one is not dead after all. They are alive but now in some other dimension. 


We realise, we can meet them one day so we learn to accept our loss peacefully. Moreover,  in between they send us signs of their 'aliveness' by sending ADCs, signals, subtle hints etc. Life becomes liveable to know that all is not lost.

Faith in Supreme is the key here. Love for self is another key. Know and believe that you are special child of God. God knows and is sad to see u in pain. God loves you. You have not been punished at all. This is result of soul agreement u had with them before birth. You made that agreement for special reason which you do not understand right now. And you are feeling lost and hurt. But when that reason would be revealed to you one day, you would be surprised.   One day you would be hugging them soul to soul and rejoicing that you fulfilled such a big mission successfully.  You will be blessed by God for your great courage.

Sacred books of all religions that I have read so far, say the same thing but in different style, actual meaning is the same. This loss you suffered has a reason behind it. No death is an accident. The time of birth and death are fixed even before birth.

Take care of yourself. Spend time with mother nature. Feel your connection to nature. Write a diary note to your loved one every night before sleeping. All your thoughts will be received by them.  In their world, there are no speeches.  The soul understands all human feelings, thoughts and emotions and communicates through thoughts only.  Try to understand their subtle messages.

If you  feel or sense some response from him, trust your instincts and believe it to be from them only. In your vulnerable state you unawares open yourself to subtle universal signals from mother nature.

Avoid company of people who do not understand you or leave you hurt in any emotional way. We lose lot of 'fake' friends' after such big loss. Pass through this pain. Let it flow through u. This is part of your big learning. One won't make such tough soul agreements without special reason. Trust yourself.

Read NDEs, Brian Weiss books, books on afterlife to get a new perspective  etc. Love lives on, it never dies.   Knowledge of afterlife can make you see things in clear perspective and you don't feel the sting.  You survive through it and come out as winner.

Discuss your loved one often.  Don't shun and be open to discussing the life and time of your loved one you lost.  Its healing to discuss them often otherwise you are suppressing and adding on to depression.

Vandana Ritik

September 11, 2011

What is Faith



NOT KNOWING
IS FAITH

Sometimes we need not know

Why? What? When? Where? How? etc.

WE KNOW

WHO KNOWS

I may not know what to do

but GOD knows what to do
We should be happy n content.

What has started is going to end for sure.

Vandana Ritik
Noida

August 18, 2011

How does Karmic law works?

Whatever is happening to us in this lifetime is 'effect' - outcome of 'causes' set by us through our inner intentions in our previous lifetime(s). 

All our outer actions, which are visible, our sufferings, traumas, enjoyments, riches or poverty, career, status, fame and fortune and even the food that we eat all are result of our inner intentions (causes) set in motion by us, consciously or unconsciously in previous lifetimes.  Negative thoughts bring negative results while positive thoughts bring out positive results.

Now while enjoying or suffering these effects, what we are feeling and thinking, is creating our new set of causes which will bring out their effect in next lifetime.  Anything unexplanable happening in your life is result of a past karma which you do not remember now.  Good or bad events, all are outcome of our own karmic accounts which are now being settled.

Wise men have, therefore, advised us to face good or bad times in life, in a detached manner.  We should not feel elated or feel pride if we succeed in our endeavors.  Likewise we should not feel depressed or sad if we are faced with calamity in life.  Face all with equanimity - in a state of calmness and self control. 

Know in your heart why this is happening.   Since it is not in your control right now, face it, pass through it.    However, be careful of what you are thinking now because it is charging a new karma.  It is here that we have a free will, to decide how we are going to face the situation and ultimately make our destiny.

Remembering God all the time, while passing through ups and downs of life,  is a perfect way of creating a positive and good karma.  You get what you focus on eventually.

Vandana Ritik
Noida



August 10, 2011

Natural Judgement is impartial

Nature is always Just. Not even for a moment has it been unjust. Justice that prevails in Law Courts may be unjust at times, but there is nothing unjust in this world. We may notice rich people stealing, rulers following corrupt practices and being ignored or let off. However, they will get result of this behaviour because Nature is Just always and not even for a moment it has been unjust.

The show of this world is being run by this Nature and none has power to interfere in it because all is functioning on the basis of Natural Laws which are universal. Man made laws may be local, social, and biased but Laws of Nature are same for each and all that is manifest in this world and also which is unmanifest. Natural laws do keep track of the unmanifest part of us too. Our inner intents and inner conversations with Self are not hidden by the 'regulator' of the Universe. Everything is being accounted for.

An ignorant person may not want to believe it but it is fact that nothing is in our hands. Our life can be compared to a journey in a train and this train is running on its own. Nothing is going to halt it. What we can do is to simply observe it and whatever happens: let it be. Dada Bhagwan has given a term Scientific Circumstantial Evidence to the natural sequence of events. Whatever happens, one has to let it go. Whether it is right or wrong; none has power to alter it? People do not have energy to run anything at all. when one says one can make a change than he is doing wrong egoism and this will ultimately lead to disputes and mess. If someone does any wrong to you, make him understand and if he doesnot understand, remain silent. Know in your heart that this is nature working.

It is imperative to understand that all disputes and chaos in mind and relationships is caused by 4 evils - anger, pride, deceit and greed - residing within us. The moment one of these evils becomes active in us, it creates difficulties for us. Effort should be made to become aware when any of these raises its head and then take corrective action immediately because they tend to misinterpret the situation for us and take us towards suffering. These 4 evils tell us that this is unhappiness and they misrepresent and mislead us. Otherwise outside, none is at fault in this world. This is why it is said that we are responsible for ourselves. None has power to trouble me. I can create trouble as well as peace for me depending upon my choice.

When someone does anything good/bad to you, watch it silently, know it in your heart that Nature is making these things happen and the people involved are mere 'instruments' being used by the Nature to give back to us what we have given out earlier through our good/bad intents. The 'instruments' have this wrong habit of saying 'I did' or 'you did' actually its working of Scientific Circumstantial Evidences which makes things happen at proper place and time. Even the big natural disasters like Tsunami, earthquakes are an outcome of the precise working of nature. The one meant to survive is saved or sent away a moments before the accident and the one who has to pay back old karmic debts is called at the zero point at the exact time. Sometimes these precise arrangements takes many many years and hence something done lifetimes ago bears fruits lifetimes later.

Human logical mind cannot understand why something unexplained happened unexpectedly. How can a person understand. Because he doesnot remember. We do not remember what we did two years ago, how can we remember what we did consciously or unconsciously, knowingly or unknowingly lifetimes ago. Money taken on loan in previous life which could not be returned, will have to be returned in this lifetime, whether or not you want. Natural laws are precise and perfectly just for it treats all at par, all are equal and there is no partiality. Even saints say that they cannot interfere in the working of natural laws.

Once we understand the working of nature, it becomes easy to understand that this world is faultless. None is at fault. . Messengers of God have given us the message of non-judgement. If we judge and see fault in someone, it is our own mistake reflecting back at us. The moment we accept others just the way they are and let them be, they will not have power to trouble us again.

The best way to cope with natural laws is to understand them and to obey them.

Vandana Ritik
Noida