Why are we like this?

Yoga Chitta Vrithi Nirodha

Last couple of days I have seen few things which elevated my mind and some that made me realize, why cant we stay in that state all the time. there were fluctuation of feelings, emotions driven actions, advise others and get advised as well...

We too had a very blissful celebration of "Gowri and Ganesha Festival", and the fun part was my niece who had come home. She is almost 3 years old and can take all your wits down with her logical thinking.Oh... well let me not go in detail...

Point is, as a kid she is playful, always in joy, even if she cries its momentary. So were we, when we were ykids! But now, most of the time juggling between good times and bad times, pressure and relief, happiness and sorrows, lost and found! Ever given a thought why we are like this?

Answer is simple. We grow in growing world! From being a kid, who has no worries about future and no memories from past,  to elder who has all responsibilities of future life with a broken platform of past. this is because as we grow, our thinking capabilities gets broadened and also complicated. A proper nurture to our thoughts helps us to see less problems, or even No Problems at all!

I read this at one of my friends place.
Watch your thoughts, they become your words
Watch your words, they become your actions
Watch your actions, they become your habits
Watch your habits, they become your CHARACTER!

adding to that..

Watch your character, because it defines YOU...

So everything starts with what we think ha? Generally it is said that, a depression or an unhappy state of mind is due to too much thoughts that are related to either the Past or the Future and too less (=Zero... most of the time) about the Present tense!
"Oh S***! I shouldn't have done that, Now, what do i do? imagine if it never happened, how fantastic it would have been! Oh I'm so screwed"
this might be a common way of thinking about situations. That is normal, but if this thought pertains you like forever, you are just re-living a situation that should have gotten resolved long back if you had acted right!

A friend of mine who is complicated enough to become an example of.
Here what happened. He, unfortunately had a bad experience with his exams and studies and was a failure. So that is not a big thing, happens to many people. He thought, and thought too much about it and went into a cycle of depression. he chose the usual wrong path which he assumes is the right solution for his Problems(depression). Perhaps that over-thinking and wrong solution has made him so ignorant about his capabilities. Even now a simplest situation cannot be handled by him proving himself to be a loser again.
As friends we cannot discourage/hate/neglect/unfriend such a person just because he is problematic in matters like financial/relationships/work efficiency etc. as such thing demotivates and demoralizes the person. Instead we should try to make them realize about themselves. In his case that is what I'm doing and I realised it is not the "thoughts", it is its generator - the MIND, where the core problem is!

This often reminds me the epic situation faced by Arjuna during the battle of Kurukshetra, which i believe is the root cause for the birth of "BHAGAVADGEETHA", where Lord Krishna counsels him to upraise him to his feet and face that very situation, which could have had been what today's generation call "Mind F*****"! (sorry using it)
As i have said, thoughts are generated by our mind. A healthy mind generates constructive thoughts. But how do we keep our mind happy, how do we know whether it is happy or not? Mind's activity is uncontrollable, unpredictable and unnoticeable process of perception and reflection. << if you are thinking you cant help it, you just do not know the word "meditation". Of course there are a thousand methods of it, but important thing is to do it! In Bhagavadgeetha, Krishna advises Arjuna to practice YOGA in 3 forms, Karma (yoga of  performing services), Jnyana (yoga of gaining knowledge) and Bhakthi (yoga of spirituality).
By serving others, you feel proud, you are happy, your mind is happy. By gaining knowledge of interest, you feel satisfied, you are happy, your mind is happy. By practicing spirituality, you feel delighted, you are happy, your mind is happy.

The great Sage Patanjali says "Yoga chitta Vrithi Nirodaha" which means "Yoga is the cessation of fluctuation of the mind" the inner meaning of this phrase is not that it.
Read on to know more... http://www.omalpha.com/pat.html
Yoga not only helps us to control our conscious thoughts but also helps to cease unwanted subconscious ideas involving our existence in past and future, that grow up and impact on our conscious deeds.

The most incalculable advantage by meditation is concentration of mind or you can say "No distractions!"
You must know the scene from "Kung Fu Panda 1", where Master Oogway speaks to Master Shifu and says "Our Mind is like this water my friend, when it is agitated, it is difficult to see, but if you allow it to settle, answer becomes clear"
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lNBM5uwc50s < watch from 1:15 to 1:35!

That is what required by everybody today. Instead of over thinking about "what have i done?" or "what will I do??" if allow your mind to be at present and calm, answer becomes clear.

So what are you going to do now? :D

What is ahead?

"Asathoma Sadgamaya... Thamasoma Jyothirgamaya... Mrithyorma Amruthamgamaya Om Shanthi Shanthi Shanthi hi.."

Lead me from non reality to reality, from darkness to light, from death to life! let there be peace peace peace!

This could be very usual or mere translation of this very famous shloka from the ancient scripts "The Vedas", and very commonly used by institutions, organisations, and firms while lighting up the lamp as symbol of inaugurating functions/occasions/events/programs. It is sad to see only few people in that event will be performing with real meaning of it.

For many years, even I had no clue about why we do this? and why use this particular shloka? The reasons for not knowing can be many. but once you know, you tend to look at things differently. After knowing the meaning, how do we implement it? Read on to know

Lead me from Non-reality to Reality. 

"What is real, what is not? 
where am I, where to start?"

Let us consider what does not change, what is not volatile on due course of time, can be said as reality
Here the Shloka refers things, people, feelings, emotions, attachments etc which are constantly changing and susceptible for reformation, as the NON - REALITY and the ULTIMATE REALITY being the Supreme Power, the core cause of all creations.
So one has to leave behind materialistic world - loukika - which is not real, and proceed toward non-materialistic - Aloukika - the Ultimate Reality.

It so happens we lose our phone/keys, important files on systems, or sometimes accidentally or naturally we lose our loved ones too. We cry, we crib, we feel low become mentally disturbed and lose our mind. That is because we are so much attached, and the fact of detachment we are not ready to accept. We do hear people saying, 'it had to happen, these are never meant to be forever, this is not REAL'. why do they say like that? to clam down a person's uncontrolled reactions to his/her emotions. But of course Loss is a loss, and it does not mean by exhibiting extreme emotions, it is going to come back.
The solution for this complication is noting but "Asathoma Sadgamaya"

Lead me from Darkness to Light

"What is the way out? nothing is seen
throw some light, that is what I need"


What would you do, if you are left in a dark cave without any aid?
If you are smart you will look for a light ray, so that could lead to the cave's opening. Perhaps, in our lives, we do get stuck in situations where we do not know what to be done to get the hell out! We do not win the situation due to lack of knowledge. In the Shloka, Thamas means lack of light, referred to Human ignorance, lack of interest and enthusiasm!. Ignorance is a mental state where we are not at all bothered about certain knowledge which will save us at times of emergency! 
For example, you are having vomiting sensation, you would spend money on consulting doctors, medicines etc if you did not know couple of cardamom seeds would put you back to normal.

Ignorance can lead you to stupidity. Recently there were posts on Facebook saying "Jana Gana Mana, being the best National anthem" or "Kannada being the world's oldest living language" etc... and many people had shared it commented supporting it. I mean, how ignorant they are to investigate the real fact, before saying "I would die for this country, no matter what, India is the best", i mean how blind they are!!! and if you dare to say anything that is fact, in the above case saying its just a rumor and not at all true, you are considered no less than any anti social elements!

The ignorance to know the truth, causes stupidity, chaos, confusions, conflicts within and with others!

These problems could be resolved if everyone strives to know, know more, and discover the true knowledge, as bright as light which clears out the dark Ignorance! - "Thamasoma Jyothirgamaya"

Lead me from Death to Alive state

"Enough of dying, elevate my soul
make me alive to become one in the Supreme Whole!"


This very line is still out of my reach! However, there are many versions of looking at it. If you believe in re-births, This explanation would make sense to you.

There are 3 basic things constituting Human form. Brain, Mind, and Soul. Brain what controls our actions, movements, directly related to our thoughts and ideas etc. Mind is what controls our thoughts and emotions. Brain and Mind are individual and person specific. For example, The way you handle a situation need not be the same as i do. The way you show your anger need not be the same as mine. Or the thoughts that pop up in my mind cannot be like yours, and even growth, development and maturity of mind and brain differs from each other.  So the fact is, Brain and Mind are person specific and they grow from zero to a maximum extent from event of birth to till we die. Whereas, what remains constant right from the birth to death, and common in all living beings on earth is the SOUL. This soul or if I may term it as "Energy Compound" is constant and cycles around all living beings as they exist, multiply, die and live again. This energy compound is also not an Ultimate Reality as it cycles around the Changes. Therefore, the shloka says, take me out of this Soul cycle of dying, living and dying again, and unite me in the Supreme Power where Death has no meaning. -  "Mrithyorma Amruthamgamaya"

Let there be peace peace peace! 
If the above 3 journeys are achieved, there shall be Peace in deeds/action, Peace in words/speech and Peace in Thought/Mind."Kaaya -Vaacha - Manasaa"

If you want peace and happiness in life, start implementing this in your day-to-day activities



What is real, what is not? 
where am I, where to start?
What is the way out? nothing is seen
throw some light, that is what I need
Enough of dying, elevate my soul
make me alive to become one in the Supreme Whole!
Peace is the ultimate need, open the gate,
Let us march toward what is ahead..!