Be Happy - Be More Focused And Rational

God has gifted us this beautiful life with a lot of resources to enjoy and brain to make the enjoyment feasible. Every one of us has been given a limited span of life and after expiry of that time, we find ourselves dead. The people say that Mr.John has expired, or he is no more. His body is there yet to be cremated but he is declared to have expired, it means his period of life as designed by God has expired and he was not allowed a single second more whatever the status he might have gained during his life period. To achieve more and more during our life span, we need to be more focused and rational in our programs so that we are able to use our time, our resources more optimally. We should not try to grab other’s things – we must do something with our own resources and this action will bring to us peace of mind.

There is a reference in the Bible that once the Pharisees, with a motive of entangling Jesus in their machination, sent unto him their disciples with the Herodians. Reigned by their hypocrisy, they deliberately enquired of Jesus: Is it lawful to give tribute unto Caesar, or not? The question was put with a motive that if he said, “No”, then they would inform the Emperor, “Jesus Christ is a traitor and is misguiding and provoking people against you”. And if he responded affirmatively, then they would prove his statement, “I am the son of God”, to be false. However, Christ said: Show me the tribute money… Accordingly, a penny was brought. He then inquired, “Whose stamp is there on this penny?” “It is that of the Roman emperor, Caesar”, said the people. Hearing their response, Christ said: …Render therefore unto Caesar the things which are Ceasar’s and unto God the things that are God’s.

The import is that whichever entity was marked with the stamp of Caesar could be offered to him, and whichever was stamped with God had to be presented to Him. Similarly our body, mind and intellect have been granted to deal with the world, but our attention is meant to be directed towards God and His service.

The power of concentration, attention or remembrance is a divine treasure entrusted to us by God, and we are the trustees of this spiritual treasure whose real owner is the king of kings, God. Our redemption lies in offering the treasure back to its owner, God.

We must serve the world, deal with it, and enjoy it but with total it, and enjoy it but with total vigilance and caution. What is required is focus and here, a good memory is useful. An ability to ignore unnecessary information is the only way to remember vital detains. Until now, it was believed that those with good memories are able to process and store more information than others. But it is now proven that it is the ability to filter what we need and leave out the clutter. Vogel’s team noticed how well a group of students could memorize geometric patterns. Volunteers were shown images containing a selection of rectangles and asked to memorize their position and orientation. After a few seconds, they were shown a second pattern and asked to the first. In some cases, all the rectangles were red, while in others, half were red and half blue, and the students were asked to memorize only the red one.

The researchers, then, using a technique for measuring brain-waves, tracked how many shapes they were committing to memory. Thus, they found that those having the poorest recall were also the worst at keeping the extra or the blue shapes out of their minds.

A second experiment showed that the effect was not related to colors. In it, the students were asked to memories just one section of the pattern and ignore the rest. Again, those who fared worst were the ones who found it most difficult to filter out the irrelevant parts of the pattern.

Therefore, forgetting the frivolous events or thoughts yields good memory and hence success. However, this art does not require switching off brain circuits, but by deviating its current-flow towards the source of eternal peace i.e. God. So, what we need to do is not to give up our worldly duties, but be more focused and rational in our approach. Once we do it, there is no ground which may fail us in achieving our targets.

Be Happy - Be More Focused And Rational

Be Happy – Your Patience will not go waste

Patience is the state of endurance under difficult circumstances, which can mean persevering in the face of delay or provocation without acting on annoyance/anger in a negative way; or exhibiting forbearance when under strain, especially when faced with longer-term difficulties. Learn the art of patience. Apply discipline to your thoughts when they become anxious over the outcome of a goal. Impatience breeds anxiety, fear, discouragement and failure. Patience creates confidence, decisiveness, and a rational outlook, which eventually leads to success like Solomon did.

Solomon was, according to the Bible, a King of Israel. The biblical accounts identify Solomon as the son of David. He is also called Jedidiah and is described as the third king of the United Monarchy, and the final king before the northern Kingdom of Israel and the southern Kingdom of Judah split; following the split his patrilineal descendants ruled over Judah alone. During his life time, the king exercised wisdom and patience to win the hearts of his people.

King Solomon was known for his wisdom. One day, two women came to the king with a child. Each claiming the child was hers and not the other’s. Calmly, the king asked for a sword and said “Cut the living child in two, and give half to one. “Half to the other.” The woman who was the mother of the child pleaded: “I beg you, give her the live child; on no account kill him!” But the other said, “He shall belong to neither of us. Cut him in half!” The king gave his decision: “Give the live child to the first woman,” he said. “She is his mother”.

This wisdom Solomon received from Yahweh, God. For Solomon loved Yahweh and followed the precepts of his father David. Yahweh appeared to Solomon in a dream. God said, “Ask what you would like me to give you.”

Solomon replied, “You showed most faithful love to your servant David, my father, when he lived his life before you in faithfulness and uprightness and integrity of heart; you have continued loving him by allowing a son of his on this throne today. You have made your servant as king in succession to David my father. But I am young, unskilled in leadership. And here is your servant, surrounded with your people whom you have chosen, people so numerous that they cannot be counted or reckoned. So give your servant a heart to understand how to govern your people, how to discern between good and evil, for how could one otherwise govern such a great people as yours?”

It pleased Yahweh that Solomon should have asked for this. “Since you have asked for this,” God said, “and not for long life or riches for yourself or the lives of your enemies but have asked for a discerning judgment for yourself, here and now I give you a heart wise and shrewd as no one had and no one will have after you. What you have not asked I shall give you too; such riches and glory as no other king can match. And I shall give you a long life, if you follow my ways, keeping my laws and commandments, as your father David followed them.”

Though he was king, Solomon was humble and admitted his inadequacies. In all humility, he requested for an understanding heart, not to show his prowess and supremacy over his people but to be able to lead and guide those placed in his care.

We, too, in our humble circumstances have people in our care. We may be parents, teachers, mentors, leading people in attaining goals. In the process, we may have to exercise controls, are forced to make choices in the face of uncertainties.

The Lord says, “Any of you who lacks wisdom must ask God, who gives to all generously and without scolding; it will be given. But the prayer must be made with faith and no trace of doubt.”
Love of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, to love God with one’s heart and soul and also to love one another. To attain wisdom, we have to aspire to serve the Lord.

To seek counsel on our knees, through sincerity of heart and steadfastness and not being alarmed when disaster comes, but clinging to Him so that we may be honored with His Grace.
Whatever happens, accept it and in the uncertainties of our humble state, be patient since gold is tested in fire and the chosen in the furnace of humiliation. Trust Him and He will uphold you. Patience is the greatest of all virtues. A handful of patience is worth more than a bushel of brains. Our patience will achieve more than our force. Isaac Newton says, “If I have ever made any valuable discoveries, it has been owing more to patient attention, than to any other talent.”

Be Happy – Your Patience will not go waste

Be Happy - Meditation Has Simpler Forms

Meditation means the practice of thinking deeply in silence, especially for religious reasons or in order to make your mind calm. Meditation is the natural process of withdrawing attention from environmental, physical and mental processes and consciously directing it inward to a chosen focus. But not many people know how to practise meditation for personal benefit and spiritual growth.

It needs neither focus nor concentration to a number of points together. There are different schools of meditation, different methods and systems. There are systems which say: “Watch the movement of your big toe, watch it, watch it, watch it”. There are others which advocate sitting in a certain posture, breathing regularly or practicing awareness. All this is utterly mechanical.

Another method gives you a certain word and tells you will have some extraordinary transcendental experience. It is a form of self-hypnosis. By repeating ‘Amen’, ‘Om’ or some other religious word indefinitely, you will obviously have a certain experience because by repetition, the mind becomes quiet. It is a well-known phenomenon which has been practiced for thousands of years under mantra yoga.

Practically, meditation is not following any system; it is not constant, repetition and imitation. Meditation is not concentration. It is one of the favourite gambits of some teachers of meditation to insist on their pupils learning concentration – that is, fixing the mind on one thought and driving out all other thoughts, which any schoolboy can do because he is forced to. It means that all the time you are having a battle between the insistence that you must concentrate on the one hand and your mind on the other which wanders away to all sorts of other things; whereas you should be attentive to every movement of the mind wherever it wanders. When your mind wanders off, it means you are interested in something else.

Meditation demands an astonishingly alert mind; it is the understanding of the totality of life in which every form of fragmentation has ceased. Meditation is not control of thought, for when thought is controlled, it breeds conflict in the mind; but when you understand the structure and origination of thought, and then thought will not interfere. That very understanding of the structure of thinking is its own discipline, which is meditation. Cultivation of inner contentment prevents us from getting swept away by circumstances. Engaging in self-examination and self-discipline is important in order to clear away any of the psychological conflicts that might pose a problem. Study of ‘lower’ or secular knowledge helps us function effectively in the world. Many get educated so that they can live more effectively. But also important is the acquisition of higher knowledge or metaphysics to inquire about God, cosmic mind, manifestation of universe, our relationship with God: Why are we here, and for what purpose?

Then the formal practice of meditation begins. First, decide to practise meditation for at least 30 minutes a day. Sit upright in a comfortable chair or assume a cross-legged posture on the floor. Hold your head erect, with attention flowing into the area situated in the front region of the brain which is related to creativity, will power and discernment. Next, inhale and exhale deeply once or twice to elicit physical relaxation. Remain still for a few minutes until you feel calmly poised. If you have a devotional temperament, invoke the presence and blessings of God or your favorite deity or object of worship. If you have a guru, reverentially acknowledge him.

Make a conscious effort to be aware of your natural breathing rhythm. When inhalation occurs, mentally recite a chosen word or mantra such as God, peace, joy, or any other pleasant word that is agreeable to you. When you exhale, feel happy and peaceful. Feel the sound of the mantra spontaneously emerging into your mind and awareness. Continue this procedure without any anxiety about the results of practice. When a state of mental calmness is experienced, disregard your breathing, listening only to the mantra. Eventually, allow even the mantra to fade away and rest in a state of mental peace and clarity of awareness for a while, until you feel inclined to conclude the session.

For optimum results, meditate once or twice a day do this for at least 30 days before trying to evaluate the results. When you are proficient in the practice of meditation, you could extend the session by calmly contemplating the essence of your being – your true Self – and your relationship with the Infinite. Or you may just sit longer in that calm state until you feel fulfilled.
When engaged in daily activities and relationships, endeavor to maintain a state of mental calmness and Self-awareness. Cultivate cheerfulness and optimism. Maintain your emotional balance. Adhere to wholesome routines of activity and rest. Maintain a healthy lifestyle: choose a nutritious diet and exercise regularly.

Meditation is to be aware of every thought and of every feeling, never to say it is right or wrong, but just to watch it and move with it. In that watching you begin to understand the whole movement of thought and feeling. And out of this awareness comes silence. Silence put together by thought is stagnation, is dead, but the silence that comes when thought has understood its own beginning the nature of itself, understood how all thought is never free but always old – this silence is meditation.

Meditation is a state of mind which looks at everything with complete attention, totally, not just parts of it. And no one can teach you how to be attentive. If any system teaches you how to be attentive, then you are attentive to the system and that is not attention. Meditation is one of the greatest arts in life – perhaps the greatest arts in life – and one cannot possibly learn it from anybody. That is the beauty of it. It has no technique and therefore, no authority. When you learn about yourself, watch yourself, watch the way you walk, how you eat, what you say, the gossip, the hate, the jealousy – if you are aware of all that in yourself, without any choice, that is part of meditation. That will give you an opportunity to improve further if you find something wrong. So, meditation can take place when you are sitting in a bus, or walking in the woods full of light and shadows, or listening to the singing of birds, or looking at the face of your spouse or child. It does not wish to bind you within some schedule or posture to attain. It gives you liberty to explore yourself more and more but with some regularity.

The beneficial effects of regular meditation include stress reduction, strengthening of the immune system, more orderly thinking, improvement in powers of concentration, and a slowing of the aging process. Meditation practice is recommended by doctors as a harmless way for patient-clients to be more responsible for their own total well-being. The primary purpose of meditation practice, however, is to bring forth clear states of awareness that will make authentic spiritual growth easier to experience.

Let all of your thoughts, feelings and actions be wholesome and constructive. You will, then, be empowered to live enjoyably, effectively and successfully.

Be Happy - Meditation Has Simpler Forms.

Be Happy – Choose Your Words Very Carefully

Once, a King asked his Queen to arrange some delicious dish for him. The Queen went to kitchen and got the dish prepared under her close supervision. The dish was really delicious and the King had all the praise for her work. Second day, he had some different mood and asked his Queen to arrange meals for him. But this time, he asked her to get some dish which he had never tasted earlier and that must be so much worst that he should not again ask to repeat. The Queen undertook the job and within minutes, arranged the dish prepared under her instructions. This time, after taking the meals, the King wished to know the ingredients of both the dishes – delicious and the worst. The Queen told him that the pieces of the tongue of a camel were used in both the dishes but the process of preparation was different for both the dishes.

God has gifted us a beautiful speaking power and necessary organs for use but it depends upon us how we use them. Words spoken from the heart and filled with a powerful wish for someone's happiness can deeply touch that person's life and revive his or her spirit, becoming a source of lifelong inspiration. The words spoken with revulsion can turn your friends into your enemies. Superficial words do not touch other people's lives. It is necessary to pour one's entire being into our words in order to wholeheartedly encourage others. In order to overcome our prejudices, we must constantly strive to develop the habit of looking at ourselves from the point of view of others. Realizing that all people have both good points and bad, in the end the important thing is to strive to combat our own inner obstinacy and narrow-mindedness.

Sometime, friendly greetings serve as an opening to heart-to-heart exchange from which we can set out onto the great ocean of friendship. When you are sincere in your consideration for others, in even the most trifling matters, you can bring about a complete change in the world around you and this can happen if you use your words very carefully.

One who treats others with contempt and delivers cruel words every time out of his arrogance, over confidence or due to any reason, will eventually find himself shunned and disliked by those around him. Anyone who becomes ensnared in selfishness will discover that in the end he is the one who suffers. On the other hand, a person who shows respect for others will not only come to be respected himself, but will also help spread an attitude of respect for others throughout society.

No matter how strong the hostility another person may feel toward you, if you approach them in an attitude of sincerity and truth, they will invariably abandon their ill will and respond with friendliness. A sense of sincerity is the one thing that somehow, in a very subtle way, gets across to others. Human beings perhaps possess some deep inner power that allows them to sense sincerity instinctively. Whatever the case, the degree to which they can do so is almost frightening.

This is the law of cause and effect that to the extent that we love others, we will be loved. To the extent that we work for others' happiness, we will enjoy protection and support. You must demonstrate through your words and acts that whatever you speak, you mean them.

To encourage another is an intense task of inspiration, of rekindling their life energy and calling forth their indomitable spirit. Underlying this must be an earnest wish for their happiness. The bamboo groves of autumn are beautiful. Each bamboo tree stands independently, growing straight and tall toward the sky. Yet in the ground, out of sight, their roots are interconnected. In the same way, true friendship is an enduring bond that connects self-reliant individuals. And your connections are always cemented stronger by your sweet words only.

I believe friendship is the most genuinely humane relationship of which we are capable. To be understood and appreciated for oneself is a vital experience in life. It is this time and this place that matter--not some other time or place. What matters is here and now-the people here and now and your words with each of them.

It is important to keep the promises made to friends. This is the true meaning of friendship. To become people who can do so, however, we must first learn to keep the promises we have made to ourselves.

If you remain sincere in your interactions with others, you will naturally come to find yourself surrounded by good friends. Friendship is the most beautiful, most powerful and most valuable treasure in life. It is your true wealth. No matter how much status people may gain or how rich they may become, a life without friends leads to an unbalanced, self-centered existence. You can be friend to anyone – your wife, your father, mother, son, daughter or any other relative/non-relative too. Your friendship must be communicated through sincere words and acts only.

There is no true joy in a life lived closed up in the little shell of the self. When you take one step to reach out to people, when you meet with others and share their thoughts and sufferings, infinite compassion and wisdom well up within your heart. Your life is transformed. Believe me, the misfortune of others is our misfortune. Our happiness is the happiness of others. To see ourselves in others and feel an inner sense of unity with them represents a fundamental revolution in the way we view and live our lives. Therefore, discriminating against another person is the same as discriminating against ourselves. When we hurt another, we are hurting ourselves. And when we respect others, we respect and elevate our own lives as well.

People whose hearts are full of gratitude and appreciation are truly beautiful. A humble heart is the wellspring of great growth and development. Everything begins with the resolve to take the first step. From that action, wisdom arises and change begins. Without action, nothing changes. When you proceed on to speak something on some subject, you may please think over the matter again and again and speak only those words which are relevant to the subject. It may increase your reputation amongst those who are your target. Don’t forget that your carelessness, overconfidence and arrogance are your greatest enemies.

None of us can exist in isolation. Our lives and existence are supported by others in seen and unseen ways, be it by parents, mentors or society at large. To be aware of these connections, to feel appreciation for them, and to strive to give something back to society in a spirit of gratitude is the proper way for human beings to live.

Are you getting more of what you don't want? You may try different things, decide that you're going to make changes but in the end you keep attracting more junk or more of what you don't want. You keep trying and you swear, this time things are going to change... you're going to succeed.

But instead you end up with setbacks, distractions, interruptions... all kinds of things just come
up that push you off track and in the end you end up with more of what you don't want. That only happens because you're sending the wrong messages to your subconscious mind. So how do you change this? How do you turn things around? Simple... send the right messages to your subconscious mind. The catch... you actually have to apply certain techniques and exercises so that you get your mind focused on what you want, eliminate the distractions and interruptions and enjoy the success and happiness that you want.

To do this, you need to choose your words carefully... they can shape your life...especially if your subconscious mind picks up on these words (which it likely will)... they'll become your reality quicker than you realize. Most people don't really pay attention to what they say when they're
just making passing comments or off the cuff remarks. But they can have a significant impact on your life.

These are usually simple responses to what often seem like routine questions... like - "how are you" or "how are things going?" or "how's life treating you today?"... "how's work going?"... We get asked these questions everyday... and over time we form routine responses.

In many cases those routine responses will have no impact on how your life is shaped... but sometimes, those responses or other comments that seem to have been made in passing or in jest can have a significant impact on how your life turns out. If you're one who complains a lot - you're likely to get more of what you complain about.

Look for solutions and you'll find them. Focus on the problem and you'll get more of the same. Pretty simple. But how do you go from complaining or focusing on problems to attracting what you want and improving or changing your life so that you achieve your goals? Just be selective in your words and you may find wonders are working for you.

Be Happy – Choose Your Words Very Carefully

Be Happy – You Can Stipulate Your Own Dreams to Succeed.

Everyone of us wishes to be successful in the life. A professional person seeks success in the assignments as any failure can put him/her in doubtful position for the next assignment. A businessman needs success to avoid depreciation not only in the capital being invested in the business but also the goodwill and efforts to go wasted. An employee requires success for the stability of the job and further promotion. An investor is always desirous of getting success in his investment to ensure that the investments remain secured and yield handsome returns.

What do you mean with success? It is the fact that you have achieved something that you want and have been trying to do or get; the fact of becoming rich or famous or of getting a high social position: What’s the secret of your success? I can say that I didn’t have much success in finding a job. Confidence is the key to success. As commercial / economic / electoral success, their plan will probably meet with little success. She was surprised by the book’s success (= that it had sold a lot of copies). Or, you can say that they didn’t have much success in life. The party was a big success. • He’s proud of his daughter’s successes. • She wasn’t a success as a teacher. • He was determined to make a success of the business.

Success does not come suddenly. Usually, it seeks a lot of planning, organizing the resources but truly efforts are undertaken to accomplish some dream and a dream is simply something that you want. And where do dreams come from? You make them up. Some are based on needs such as putting healthy food on the table or sending your kids to a good school.

Some of them are based on desires such as writing a book, buying a home, or traveling to an exotic location. But by far, the most profound dreams are those that are the expression of your life's purpose.

* You have to have a dream to have a dream come true.
* Trust your intuition and follow your heart.
* Every resource you need is available to you.
* Believing in your dream is an essential component.
* There are signs showing you which way to go. Learn to read and act on them.
* There is often lag time between imagining your dream and making it happen.
* You have the ability to make your dreams happen but it will require your willingness to do whatever it takes.
* On the other side of fear are great lessons. Stay more committed to your dream than to your doubt.
* As you complete one dream, it's time for another. Don't ever be afraid to cross the finish line. There are always more dreams available.

In the process of dreaming, you visualize something to happen. What is visualization? We may undertake a visualization exercise. Suppose there is a sliding glass door when you enter into an office first time. Imagine that you're standing with your nose pressed against a glass door, so close to it that your breath is steaming up the glass. You want to see what is on the other side. As you wipe away the steam, you see an ideal place on the other side of the glass. You see your dream. Feel your feet standing on the floor on your side of the glass door, the other side of your dream.

You're standing in the "Where I Am Now," where you live with everything that's happening in your life, including your attitudes and beliefs. Looking through the glass door, you see the beauty on the other side. Is this where you want to be?

Grasp the handle and slide the door open. A gentle, warm breeze comes wafting in, and there's a delicious smell in the air. As you gaze around, you see every¬thing on the other side that you want, everything that's in your dream, and everything you're committed to having.

Your family is there, too, your friends, your dream home, your dream life. All the elements of your dream are there, right on the other side of the threshold.

Notice where you are versus where you want to be. All you need to do to get to the other side is make the commitment and step across. Ask yourself, "Is this what I want? Will I commit to this?" If the answer is "Yes," lift your foot and step through.

Here's a positive affirmation you can write down and repeat to yourself when you need a quick burst of inspiration...

"I believe in my ability to make my dreams a reality. Though the path may wind at times, and I may not always feel as though I am making as fast a progress as I would like. I know without a doubt that I will achieve my hearts desire.
Challenges are but opportunities to teach me what is necessary to get to where I want to be. As I overcome whatever adversity is in front of me I become better, stronger, and more prepared to meet with the eventual success which will be mine."

If you give a serious thought to the above, you may be able to stipulate your own dreams to succeed. Here, it is a warning for you – you must have your own dreams. Don’t copy others’. It is possible that the other one might be living in different set of the circumstances and your assumptions, your circumstances and your resources may not match well with those the other one may have around him/her.

Be Happy – You Can Stipulate Your Own Dreams to Succeed.

Be Happy – We are not alone.

God has created us very meticulously. He never wished us to be alone. In fact, if we study deeply our surroundings when we were in womb or when we were brought into this beautiful world, we won’t find ourselves alone. When we were conceived to take birth, our respected parents were there to care for and nurture us. In childhood, they looked after us so carefully that today, we can stand on our feet. When we grow up, we get companions to lead our lives. When time of our stay expires on this earth, we get out of our body to get another. The true Self is boundary-less; it is all-pervasive. In terms of existence there isn’t any boundary, but during our life time, we divide the existence at mind, body and speech levels into me, you and them.

You have got a relationship with body, senses, mind, intellect; these are so close, yet so far from the real-self, intertwined with one another and still separate. You cannot draw a line as to where the body ends and where the mind begins or mind ends and the Self begins. Whenever you say that it is your body, where are you? It means that you are separate from your body. The mind is a subtle form of matter and the body is the gross form of mind. Mind and matter are not different from one another. A quantum physicist would say that matter and energy are not two different entities. The source of matter is energy alone and matter keeps moving between matter and energy.

The mind is invisible but the body is visible. Our mind speaks that we are here. Our body does not do anything unless our mind commands. But usually, our identification and association with the body is so deep what we tend to see ourselves as body alone. What is reality? Reality is that Self isn’t just the sum total of body, mind, feelings, thoughts and consciousness. The ‘I’ we are associated with, is the illusionary ‘I’, the ‘I’ we know, has more to do with mind or body but our real ‘I’ remains obscure. What an irony that the ‘I’ doesn’t know the ‘I’!

Knowing oneself is the first step towards making good rapport not only with one’s own mind and body but also with the other. This other can be husband, wife, mother, father, brother or anyone. Once we have understood how our mind functions, and as we witness the rise and fall of emotions in mind, we are better equipped not to get carried away with these waves of mind.
To start with, you have to acknowledge your fallacies and begin to work with wisdom and study on them. There is no much of turmoil, confrontations in family and society because of the excess emotional baggage we carry. You have to learn to let go of it.

This you know very well that life gives us situations, not solutions. Solutions are always created by our wisdom. In most of the relationships we see around, the basic problem remains the same. “I am a pauper; the other is a pauper”. When I say pauper then I mean a person who is devoid of the sense of true Self. But we wish to be rich by joining hands with other paupers. Be sure that zero plus zero will remain zero.

You have to know this truth; Nothing; neither people nor things can make you rich, nobody can give hankering for appreciation, sympathy or love from others. Explore your inner core, your untapped energy source and rejoice in it. Love and respect your Self and everything will become an echo of the same vibes. Thank this body, this breath and life. Give thanks for every little joy which life brings to you and smile. And smile like you have never smiled before and delve deep within.

Soak your Self in goodness of this moment and let every day begin with it and end with it. Soon you will love this new way of living. When you are strong, vibrant and energetic, you will begin to function as a magnet and you will attract all good people towards you. People enjoy the company of those who enjoy their own company. When you are rich with true “knowing”, you become the real monarch.

You must realize that if you are alive, you will say that it is you who accomplished this and that. But after your soul departs from your present body, nobody will care for you as much as your near relatives may do but that too, to the extent of your funeral ceremony. You must remain alert. Why? The modern generation does not have sufficient time to follow your rules – they frame up for themselves. Let them do as the changed circumstances and globalization dictates something else which you might have not foreseen during your youth.

If you wish to enjoy your life, you must permit your dependents to do hard work and prosper at their end. You can say your children to seek any help if they require at any point of time – they may not ask but they would like to feel safe. You can motivate other persons who have got retirement from your active life. You may guide your juniors and seek advise from your seniors from time to time as their experience of life may teach you very valuable.

Be Happy – We are not alone.

Be Happy – Be Leader Of Your Team

Leadership means acquiring the position or office of a leader, Capacity or ability to lead or giving guidance; direction to a group. It is a process of social influence in which one person can enlist the aid and support of others in the accomplishment of a common task. It is your capacity to listen and observe, to use the expertise as a starting point to encourage dialogue between all levels of decision-making, to establish processes and transparency in decision-making, to articulate your own values and visions clearly but not impose them, it is your leadership which is about setting and not just reacting to agendas, identifying problems, and initiating change that makes for substantial improvement rather than managing change. It is not necessary to acquire some designation or office officially to become a leader of a group. It works out with your performance being judged by those who wish you to become their leader.

In cultivating this quality, there are eight different theories that you use.

Leadership Inheritance Theory

Under this theory assumes that a person’s capacity for leadership is inherent. You cannot be trained to be a great leader because great leaders are not born. In order to be a great leader you have to be born a great leader, the term man is only used in describing this theory because it used to be assumed that only men could be great leaders. When describing this theory you hear about great leaders that have had to rise to the occasion, stand up when leadership is needed rather than be appointed to it. It is now obsolete idea when we talk of democratic system, based on performance in the society, to elect our leader.

Trait Theories

While this theory is somewhat similar to the Leadership Inheritance Theory because it assumes that people are born natural leaders, people inherit certain traits and qualities that make them better leaders than others are. The difference with trait theories is that they identify particular personality and behavioral traits that are shared by leaders, which are traits that are key traits of leaders. It tries to describe the characteristics associated with effective leadership.

Contingency Theories

This type of theory focuses on particular variables that are related to the environment a person is in to determine which particular style of leadership is best suited for the situation. This theory relies on the fact that not all leadership styles will work out the best for all situations. Whether or not it is successful in certain situations relies on various factors, such as leadership style, qualities of the followers, and aspects of the situation.

Situational Theories

This theory of leadership suggests that the best course of action for any situation is going to depend on situational variables. Like the contingency theories, this theory relies on the fact that not all types of leadership styles are going to work in every situation. Using the situational theories, different styles of leadership might be more appropriate for specific types of decision-making situations. Our history is more than the result of intervention of great men. The times produce the person and not the other way around. This theory assumes that different situations call for different characteristics; according to this group of theories, no single optimal psycho-graphic profile of a leader exists. According to the theory, "what an individual actually does when acting as a leader is in large part dependent upon characteristics of the situation in which he functions."

Behavioral Theories

These theories are based on the belief that great leaders are made rather than born. The reason for this is that this theory is rooted in behaviorism and focuses on the actions of the leaders rather than on their mental qualities or their internal frame of mind. The basis of this theory is that people can learn how to be a leader by observing other leaders, but they can also be taught how to be a leader.

Participative Theories

This theory implies that the best leadership style is one that takes the input of others into account. This style of leadership encourages group members to participate and contribute in what is going on, this helps the various group members to feel more committed to the decision-making process, but it also makes the group members feel more relevant. Even though the input of others is wanted in this theory that doesn’t mean that they are always allowed, the leaders of the group have a say as to if there is some dissent.

Management Theories

This theory is also called transactional theories and it focuses on the role of supervision, organization, and group performance. This theory bases leadership on a system of reward and punishment, and are most often found in businesses. For example, when employees are successful, they are rewarded, but when they fail, they are reprimanded or punished.

Relationship Theories

This theory is also referred to as transformational theories and focuses on the connections that are formed between leaders and followers. How this theory works is that the leaders motivate the followers by helping the followers see the importance and higher good of the task at hand. These leaders are focused on the performance of the group members because they want each member to fulfill his or her potential.

Be Happy – Be a leader of your team.

Be Happy – Be Friend to Yourself

Relationship is the way in which two people, groups or countries behave towards each other or deal with each other, a loving and/or sexual friendship between two people, the way in which two or more things are connected, or the way in which a person is related to some body else in a family relationships are how we relate others. We have a relationship with everyone that we know and who is close to us. Every interaction we have with another is the act of relating.

We have to see to ourselves if our relationships are supportive and if they are not, we may ask ourselves why they are not. Everyone wants the perfect romance or marriage, but not everyone looks at the mechanics of how to have one. If we fail to have supportive relationships in our life, how can we have the ‘perfect love relationship’?

Let’s look at what is a supportive relationship. The word support is very important. It means that our interaction supports another. This means more than supporting another in their decisions or actions, rather though the act of supporting, we honour and validate who the other person is. In turn, this validates who we are. Both are supported, no one loses, no ego’s involved, and in so doing, we honor the relationship. This is what it means to have a supportive relationship. This is the desired goal. Now, how do we accomplish it?

There are several reasons why we may have problems relating to others. One primary reason is our behavioral patterns. These patterns are developed over a course of our lives. It starts when we are children, through to our adolescence, and by the time we are an adult, we have established our behavioral patterns for our relationships. These behavioral patterns either work or they don’t. it is how we interact or respond in our relationships that determine whether these patterns work. In addition, we can have both positive and negative behavioral patterns. Which is reflected in our life? The positive or the negative?

What causes negative behavioral patterns? If we look at a person’s life, we can readily see which is negative or positive behavior. But we may not easily see the cause of the negative. The cause usually resides in the past in which a trauma or an even occurred that effects how we behave in the future. If that event occurs again, or if something happens currently to cause us to experience that trauma again, that is when we respond to it. Situations can act as triggers, which may cause us to react to the person that is involved in the situation. This causes a negative behavioral pattern. Until we can identify the problem, we are powerless to do anything about it.

Whatever the situation was to trigger was to trigger a reactionary response, the cause must be discovered in order to heal the mental shock. The mental shocks occur for a variety of reasons and may or may not relate to this current lifetime. Traumas have occurred in past lifetimes that may or may not have been addressed. The Soul holds the body of these life experiences. Further-more, the life process itself can be very painful for some. Past experiences that have dishonored, or invalidated who we are, cause us to close ourself off even more. These experiences build up over a matter of time and unless a clearing occurs, emotional or physical problems may develop. We can go through life accruing more and more garbage. And we can bring this into our relationships. These are just a few reasons why we can have problems in our relationships. Using this context, we can see the long road to having supportive and loving relationships.

So, after we have identified the cause, moved through the experience, experienced the emotions associated with it, received closure or completion, then we let it go. We must let it go in order for the experience to clear. When we let it go, we release it. This does not mean to forgive or forget, that is not what it is to release. The act of releasing is our readiness to heal. Only after the experience has cleared can healing occur. The healing process is a time when we must be very loving to ourself. If we beat up ourself about the experience that had caused us harm or our past reaction to it, then we can not heal. In being loving to ourself, we validate what we had experienced at that time and our emotions for it. Our emotions are always valid. So its important for us to do this self validation in order to heal.

Love is the energy that helps us to heal, whether we give this love to ourselves, or we receive it from another. When we look at having supportive, loving relationships in our life why not start with ourself? Because that is where love comes from. It’s not about what we can receive from love but what we can contribute or give to love. This is what transforms our relationships and our lives. We must love ourself first. We must be friend to ourself. Have you ever thought what you really require and what you are doing for that? You are afraid of the fact that if you expose your actual requirement, the other person being affected with your requirement may term you as a selfish person, and you ignore your requirement if that is not basic one. No, you must accord priority to your dreams too. If you do not accomplish your dreams how would you be peaceful? Once we respect ourself and try to forget the unpleasant events, we can prosper further.

Be Happy – Be Friend to Yourself.

Be Happy – Be Energetic

You must jump into the storm, do not stand on the sidelines, Are you too scared to do anything about the ugliness around you? You are not a brave person. If you are not brave to fight, you will be crushed one day without any prior notice to you. Majority of us like to play it safe. They go to their safe jobs, come home timely to safeguard their relationships, they drive cars safely, they invest money in safe deposits, they think safe thoughts, and they want nothing more than to feel safe and secured. Survival of the fittest dictates that these people live another day and therefore get to breed and would make up the majority of the population. We could say that they play it smart.

But there is another kind, too. This other group lives for thrills. They don’t just occasionally think outside their conventional box, they actually prefer to live outside the box. This is a group who thrives on adventure, change, and newness. They love innovative new ideas, they like to explore new things, and push the envelope beyond its capabilities. They are the visionaries who perceive something beyond where we stand today.

This group often does not feel understood nor supported by the mainstream population. They are not rebels, although they are often accused of being rebellious because they do not embrace the status quo. This group is not anti-anything. They do not define themselves by not being a member of someone else’s group. They do not require group consensus to be who they are. Young adults often think that by dressing badly or by misbehaving that they are somehow brave and different from whatever it is that they are opposing, but that is not revolutionary and different, that is just anger turned inside out. Most of the time they are not making a point, they are not changing the world they are simply behaving in a manner that causes people to shun them. That is not the group I am talking about today. This group is made up of people like Albert Einstein, Mahatma Gandhi, Nelson Mandela, and countless others who do not strive to be different not to go against the mainstream beliefs. They simply are different, they think different, they live different, and they make passionate choices to contribute something meaningful to humanity despite the fact that others oppose them. All of these people stand tall despite the chaos and anger of those surrounding them. “Why can’t you just leave well enough alone? Why do you always have to push people too far? Why can’t you just get along?”

Those who would keep things safe and comfortable become frightened and angry at these innovative new thinkers. They torment them, threaten them, mistreat them, ostracize them, and create a storm of ugliness to try and stop these people from simply sharing the gifts of their hearts that they were born to share with humanity. Years later, often after they have long been dead, future generations can look back in hindsight and see their bravery as admirable. But in the moment, these people are historically treated terribly. These people are typically men and women of peace who do not go out with an angry rebellious need to stir up trouble. They fight for higher ideals because in their heart of hearts they truly believer that things could be better of mankind. They hold a vision of better things to come and they follow that vision wherever it takes them. Today there are millions of people who would change the world with their beautiful open-minded hearts and their incredibly brilliant minds, especially the upcoming teenagers and young adults in their early twenties. They feel that there is no point in even trying because the current political and cultural environment is so against them. I would be lying if I claimed that what you see as extreme hostility towards change was not at a peak right now. You are right. They do not want to change again, but you are right, it is time for another change and you are the ones to help bring it. Do not be afraid of the backlash. Stand tall and do what you know in your heart is right and just for all, not just what benefits a chosen few. You know that ignorance can no longer rule the people. You know that blind obedience is no longer a viable option.

To you I say, meet me in the eye of the storm and together we will steer this mess in another direction. Jump into the storm. Do not stand on the sidelines too lazy and scared to do anything about all of the ugliness going on around you. Jump into the storm. Swim and fight your way to the centre of the vortex. There, we will sit together in the quiet and find the solutions. Until we embrace the eye of the storm and really see what is at the root of humanity’s hatred of each other, we will never find a long-term solution that created real peace and equality for everyone. We need to heal our planet, our bodies, and the spiritual hearts of our species. Since we are not going to be here much longer, should we as well fry it on our way out. How come carry you off to heaven, therefore you do not have to care for the people and planet that are going to be left in the wake of your final choices. Who is to say that is not the ultimate test of who stays and who gets to ascend to a better place? If you had to pick an choose who were truly worthy of burning in hell or going to heaven, would you pick the folks who were killing and raging war in the name of God or would you pick the people who were crying out for love, equality, and to save the planet?

I stand here in the eye of the storm, turmoil and war all around me, my heart quiet and strong. The vision is very clear here. I will do my part to save the planet for the sake of those left behind. It is not for me to say who should or should not prevail. Someone will be left standing here on this planet, with this atmosphere, with this water with this soil. For them, I say let’s create a plan so that they have the best possible chance of rebuilding a new world. For love of this place with its beaches, mountains, and forests that I love so much, I will hold the love of Mother Nature in my heart. You know, if the savoir comes to haul all the good guys off to a better place, I think I will volunteer to stay behind to help make this bettered planet a place of beauty once more. When you are done with your religious wars and your ascensions into heaven, give the planet back to those of us who care for her and please do not come back. Embrace the eye of the storm, for the vision is very clear here.

One thing I may like to make clear that I believe most of the religions do not teach us to hate the followers of other religions. Religions must be termed as code of living. God has built up this beautiful Universe for equal enjoyment to all the species – He has not provided any superior blood, brain and flesh to any particular group of people. If someone thinks so, he is thinking in a wrong way. Therefore, instead of getting indulged in worthless fights, we must be energetic to enjoy the life fully without any hate, jealousy to any other one.

Be Happy – Be Energetic.

Be Happy – Satisfaction Is More Important

We are more disappointed when we feel that we are not satisfied with something happening, not according to our wishes. It means that we would never be happy if we do not find anything as per our wishes. For happiness, the least happiness, we must have some outlines within which we need to locate our satisfaction. If we do not do, our needs may exceed our capabilities and we can not be happy. We need to draw a line or a limit where we can be satisfied, where we can be happy. A little compromise is essential to achieve our happiness. We often forget to celebrate the things that are most important because they are so much with us.

If you are really serious about your happiness, you may have many more reasons to be satisfied than you might think. You need to locate out your points for satisfaction, happiness and peace of your mind. For example, you are alive, which is probably pretty basic, but all too often we don’t realize that it is the most basic things that bring us the greatest happiness.

We often forget to celebrate the things that are most important because they are so much with us. One of the few really wise people I have ever met once asked with great puzzlement, “Why isn’t everyone dancing with the sheer joy of being alive?” Everything we do celebrate is a celebration of life, whether it is a birth, a wedding, or an anniversary. We all celebrate religious festivals as touching to some aspect of life as represented by the attributes of the deity, or the passage of some event of our lives. What we need to do is remind ourselves to consecrate every day, take time out at least once a day to quietly experience being alive. And the simplest way to that is to just pay attention to our breathing, which is another wonderful reason to be happy.

Breathing is the key to life and almost every spiritual discipline starts and ends with this, as does life itself. Every moment we are meditating. With every breath we are partaking of all the mysteries of the universe. Just, pay a few minutes attention to a gentle indrawn breath. Within that action is the key to sustaining our life. How does that happen? Whenever I think I need a miracle just to keep going, I stop and pay attention to one or two breaths. Each breath feeds the fire of the heart. Some of us may not be able to eat gourmet food three times a day, but some other are blessed with sufficient food. We must be happy that we do have some food to survive.

Think about those who do not have. We are blessed with all the memories of discovering new wonderful tastes every time we eat them again, and the love that we imbibe with food made by those who care enough about life to prepare good food, a spouse or a friend. I believe that food made by people who love to feed people has special nutritional properties.

If you think that nobody cares enough about you to prepare delicious food, let me invite you to go and get a banana, and pay attention to it. What a marvel of packaging, flavor and nutrition. I am not implying that particular banana was grown just for you as an act of love, or may be I am. It grew, it made its way to you and it will sustain you. Now I can hear you arguing that it was provided by a chain of commerce. What if that chain was forged to that banana to you with out any of the links being aware of the chain’s purpose? Might be, and even if it isn’t, the banana is still pretty amazing in its color, utility, taste and ability to keep us alive. I once knew a man who only ate bananas, all different kinds and he was very healthy. And think about bread. I know that it is not much more than grain and salt and water but think about what that means. Bread, naan, chapatti, tortilla, pain, hobz, brot, or whatever you call it provides us with the elements of the earth. The process of growing, threshing and milling the grain transforms the earth into a form that we can use.

Almost every spiritual tradition uses the fruit of the earth to impart spiritual nourishment along with the calories, whether as communion, Prasad at some temple, dates at Iftar or Karah Prasad at some Gurudwara. I would invite you everyday to take a few minutes to pay attention to the joy that is food. Find something simple to eat, maybe a piece of fruit and take time to eat it with focus, eat it slowly, pay attention to the color and texture than the smell, and the smell, and the taste. If you do not do anything like watching television, listening music or reading something when you are taking meals, you would be happy to experience the transformation of one form of life to another. It may give you internal satisfaction of taking foods in to meet your basic requirements. You would surely be happy to think that you are getting meals peacefully.

All of us have enough to drink and hope that everybody enjoys at least one drink a day as much as I enjoy the first cup of tea. Throughout the day we en joy a wide variety of things to choose from: tea, coffee, juice and a whole lot more. But how often do we appreciate the miracle that is the liquid we drink? We are 70% water. Without a steady supply of water we would only live a few days. Having access to water is really reason to be happy, throughout the day. You may sit in a comfortable chair with a large glass of water and take a small sip of water. Notice something about the water as you swallow. Feel it with you, feel the water’s presence. Take more small sips, noticing different about the water each time until you drink one third of the water. Now take more small sips, this time noticing something about yourself each time. Keep sipping and noticing until two thirds of the water is gone. Now spend time with the remaining third of the water, notice its relationship with the glass, its relationship to you and your relationship to other things in the room.

So, there are a number of really elemental reasons to be happy. Celebrate them everyday. Is this simple? Yes, but that doesn’t mean easy. We are all too often caught up in the drama of the day, our pain, and the effort of work, the demands of family and friends to be full of joy. Yet, we each have a few minutes to celebrate the fire, earth and water and remind our selves to dance.

But there are more than elemental reasons to be happy. You’re reading these lines, which means you know English and most likely at least one other language if your mother tongue is different. Every language is the key to wisdom that only that key can open. Whole worlds are yours to explore, and you also have the keys to the Marx brothers and humor in Language like Mandarin Chinese, Hindi/Urdu, Spanish, Arabic, Russian, Portuguese, German, Bengali, French, Japanese, French or whatever language you might know. Laughing can cure more things than you think. Norman Cousins recounts in Anatomy of an illness how be cured himself by laughing after doctors gave up on him. So, everyday find something that you can laugh about or look for the local chapter of Laughter Club International. You can laugh only when you are satisfied with your life. You can be happy if you know the points of your satisfaction. If you define it sooner, you would be better.

Be Happy – Satisfaction is more important for your life and for your happiness.

Be Happy – Work for Success Only

What do you feel after your success achieved? Quite happy! How do you measure your success? It can be done externally and internally. Externally it is the measure of a job well done and recognition. Internally, it is a feeling of achievement and wholeness derived from the completion of a task or the fulfillment of a desire. Is a true measure of success the outer accolades or the inner joy and peace that is experienced when we know we have performed well?

Our goals are based on our desires and aspirations. When we fulfil a desire or achieve a goal we feel incomplete and begin to strive again. Occasionally, when we reach a goal, we feel a void in our lives and do not know that to do next.

Success can also be measured by the feeling of comfort we have with ourselves. This happens when we live according to our intrinsic nature. If we attain what we want and still find something lacking then we know that either our desire was not desirable or the means adopted were not in accordance with Nature.

Modern management philosophy says that if a person is satisfied there is lack of motivation and this works against the interest of the corporation. This is a negative approach. When people are positively satisfied, they want to share their feelings with others… Their motivational levels get higher. They want to work more and also efficiently.

True success is that which gives happiness to self and others. Success should include and embrace all aspects of life. Someone may be great at work but utter failures in the family arena. Other one may be good in the family but are of no use to society. We must be whole individuals, just as God intended us to be. Take the case of a mango seed that grows to be a tree giving the world its sweet fruit. The seed does precisely nothing, but by remaining true to its nature finds fulfillment and completeness.

After returning from Lanka Rama was asked how he won the battle. Rather than taking the entire credit he acknowledged the contribution of all those who had helped him. Another example of giving credit to the great and true leader is when Hanuman returned from Lanka after locating Sita, he did not go directly to Rama to give him the news. He collected all the other monkeys and included them in the successful completion of their mission.

Why do people want success? It is associated with perfection wholeness and joy. It is an expression of our Higher Self which is Supreme and perfect. We have this thirst for success because we are that Supreme alone. We want to be great because we are intrinsically great! It is a natural desire fulfilling its natural goal. If we understand this in all its connotations then our success will not be dependent on anyone’s failure, nor will it be gained by pulling others down. Our joy will emanate from a deep sense of contentment and completeness. We must work for success only. If we have a little doubt about our competence, we must first sharpen our caliber before taking up the work. Once we are able to gain our confidence fully, we can work for success only.

Be Happy – Work for Success Only.

Be Happy – Small Breaks in Routine Working Can rejuvenate You

Once a Saint mentioned that he was taking retirement. The followers were surprised to hear about his wishes and asked why he was willing to do so as they knew that a Saint does not have any retirement age like an employee. A cricketer announces his retirement as a CEO of a corporation. But a saint? He was packing his belongings at the cottage, as he was “retiring”, as he put it. “Does a saint ever retire?,” his followers asked. Laughing, he said, “A saint never retires but he must get out of the way of young, energetic saints! For the body is no longer agile – but he continues to be of help to society, maybe even more sincerely.”

An older saint has a lifetime of experience and faith, has witnessed many sorrows and miracles. Can a saint be a burden to society due to his age or sickness? His prayers, goodwill and the spiritual wealth acquired are for everyone, for the entire world. A senior saint is not exhausted by age or by work as other worldly people are; rather he is a treasure trove of spiritual insight.

“We leave our home, our family, only to acquire a bigger family. You have a small home to perform your duties while we owe to the entire world. All women, of any age, are like mothers and sisters for us. You shed tears when you see the pain of your loved ones who are few in number but we feel and care for all. No one is excluded. You celebrate mother’s Day or Father’s Day once a year but for us all days are mother’s Day and all days are Father’s Day” said the Saint.

To be a saint does not mean to be insensitive to the world. he explains: “We , too, are emotional when it comes to relationships. I will have to leave my possessions when I shift permanently somewhere else. The very thought is wrenching my heart because the earthly possessions have no intellect to detach . But what about human beings who are attached to their loved ones?

This attachment could prove detrimental. In this very birth learn to love all and not get attached to a few. We feel so much love for humanity that we can feel your pain as deeply as you do. We don’t have any grudges towards or expectations from anyone.

“After a lifetime on the spiritual path I can say that the path to living is: Never expect but accept. Accept whatever comes your way. You have come here to win, no to lose. Why do you lose. Why do you lose your health, your peace of mind over trivial issues?

Win as many friends as possible, overcome life’s hurdles with your will power, win peoples’ hearts with kindness. The more peaceful and calm one is, the more you will be drawn to a life of spiritualism. There is no need to convert people to your ideas of God, to your ideas of faith.

God is not about shaking faiths; rather God is about reaffirming faith. To reach God one must love Him, love all Creation and then there will be no question of insisting which path one should follow. Let each follow the path that He likes. Utilise each moment in loving God and His devotees.

“You need neither starving nor overeating, neither sleeping too much nor too little, neither too much mirth nor seriousness. You need to preserve this body, the vehicle that will take you near God. With meditation, you acquire tranquility. The calm mind tends to focus one-pointedly when it follows the path Discharge you duties lovingly. During your routine life, you must make some breaks – it will help you to rejuvenate your capability for new assignments.

Be Happy - Small Breaks in Routine Working Can rejuvenate You

Be Happy – Give Up Your Selfishness

Like most of other people, I am interested in my progress, my job, my family, the little house in which I live, in getting a better position for myself, more prestige, more power and domination over others, and so on. What is your fundamental, lasting interest in life? Yourself? That is what most of you would think to say if you do it truthfully.

Ethically, some of us would say that it is wrong to be primarily interested in ourselves. But what is wrong about it except that we seldom decently, honestly, admit it? If we do, we are rather ashamed of it. So there it is – one is fundamentally interested in oneself, and for various ideological or traditional reasons one thinks it is wrong.

You may say that it is more satisfactory to help another than to think about yourself. What is the difference? It is still self-concern. If it gives you greater satisfaction to help others, you are concerned with what will give you greater satisfaction. Why bring any ideological concept into it? Why this double thinking? Why not say? ‘What I really want is satisfaction, whether in enjoyment, or in helping others, or in becoming a great saint, scientist, or politician?’

It is the same process, isn’t it? Satisfaction, in all sorts of ways, subtle and obvious, is what we want. When we say we want freedom, we want it because we think it may be wonderfully satisfying, and the ultimate satisfaction, of course, is this peculiar idea of self-realization. What we are really seeking is a satisfaction in which there is no dissatisfaction at all.

Most of us crave the satisfaction of having a position in society because we are afraid of being nobody. Society is so constructed that a citizen who has a position of respect is treated with great courtesy, whereas a man who has no position is kicked around… This craving for position, for prestige, for power, to be recognised by society as being outstanding in some way, is a wish to dominate others, and this wish to dominate is a form of aggression. The saint who seeks a position in regard to his saintliness is as aggressive as the chicken pecking in the farmyard. And what is the cause of this aggressiveness? It is fear, isn’t it? Fear is one of the greatest problems in life. A mind that is caught in fear lives in confusion, in conflict, and therefore can be violent, distorted, and aggressive.

Living in such a corrupt, stupid society as we do, with the competitive education we receive, which engenders fear, we all are burdened with fears of some kind, and fear is a dreadful thing that warps, twists, and dulls our days…We are all afraid of something; there is no fear in abstraction, it is always in relation to something. Do you know your own fears – fear of losing your job, of not having enough food or money, or what your neighbors or the public think about you, or of not being a success, of losing your position in society of being despised or ridiculed…? And what do you usually do about them? You run away from them. Don’t you, or invent ideas and images to cover them? But to run away from fear is only to increase it.

One of the major causes of fear is that we do not want to face ourselves as we are. So, as well as the fears themselves, we have to examine the network of escapes we have developed to rid ourselves of them. If the mind, in which is included the brain, tries to overcome fear, to suppress it, discipline it, control it, translate it into terms of something else, there is friction, there is conflict, and that conflict is a waste of energy. We must therefore give up our selfishness to get rid of our fear of losing our domination etc.

Be Happy – Give Up Your Selfishness.

Be Happy - Exercise restraint

We know that necessity is the mother of all the inventions. As the human being grew up from the early stages of his evolution, he started to invent new and newer things to sail through his life more smoothly. Amongst those early inventions, the invention of wheel was path-breaking one. In early life, wheel was used for mobility. Even today, wheel is playing the same job. But this might not have been as useful but for the invention of brakes and gears that help us control movement. The wheel made locomotion credible but brakes regulated this motion.

The defining quality of any system is probably based on the degree of control one can exercise on it. In karate, up to the black belt stage, the discipline and conduct is for strengthening the body and speeding up reflexes. Thereafter, all subsequent degrees are attained by perfecting self-control and restraint.

In evolution, life forms have been empowered incrementally as they progress through stages. Human beings have the power of control, of temperance and restraint, and the ability to think beyond the self. Physiologically, higher centers in the brain have been given the responsibility of inhibition to maintain restrictive control on lower centers of the brain and spine. In spinal injuries, when the lower motor neutrons are disconnected from the higher centers and they fire without control, it leads to reflex movements of the limbs, spasm of the muscles and so on. Though movement occurs, it is involuntary, uncontrolled and purposeless.

The ability to rise above reflex behavior seems to be the summit of the evolutionary pyramid. Olympian Carl Lewis once explained the reason for his spectacular achievement: “I have mastered the art of self-denial”. Behavior that rises above the primitive reflexes forms the essence of culture and sophistication. All religions have a set of behavioral restrictions like fasting, celibacy and observing silence. These restrictions help the individual increase his will power, temperance, self-control and discipline.

Some religions talk about renunciation. But renunciation eliminates choice. So it is probably indulgence in abstinence. The swing of the pendulum in the opposite direction charged with the potential energy to swing back to indulgence. It may also reflect a subconscious fear of lack of self-control. Like the instance of the guru, who was invited for a meal by his disciple? Whilst the other devotees were served on plantain leaves, the guru was served on silverware as a mark of reverence. The guru however was offended and walked off as he was already in process of renunciation. He may as well have eaten in the silverware. If he was no longer in any mundane bondage, there ought to have been no distinction between silver and leaves.

In reproductive behavior, too, human beings have the freedom to choose. Any control is self-imposed. This self-control is the evolutionary upgrade. It is as if the remote control which operates all other animals has been substituted by a sharp discriminatory ability which bestows free will. In other words, we can use our intellect of discrimination. Free will reflects the ability to restrain rather than indulge. If indulgence was the purpose, all actions would have been reflexive, with scarce regard to volition.

Exercising restraint requires a higher form of intelligence. Indulgence required neither skill nor intellect. And renunciation relied more on extremism.

Obesity, alcoholism, hypertension and diabetes, when they are lifestyle-related, point to the diminishing self-regulatory process. Affluence has given man the opportunity to indulge like never before. Austerity is facing extinction. Patience and contentment are no longer virtues but are relegated to mere words. All catastrophes like global warming, nuclear threat and poverty are merely a reflection of our ever-increasing inclination for indulgence.

Be Happy – We must exercise self restraint to eliminate the demerits of our society as soon as possible.

Be Happy – Adventure in Your Life Can Make You Happy

If we keep some water stored somewhere for sometime, the stagnancy in its movement can reduce its utility. Why do we designate the water of flowing river superior to the water stored in a pond? The continuous flow makes the water fresh. Similarly, we need to have some changes from time to time. In wake of such changes, we sort out which change gives us more security. We need to balance both security and insecurity. I have seen people who always look for risk. They believe higher risk brings back higher gains. They are found usually uncomfortable with secured business. For better results, you may agree that the spirit of adventure should be included in your life. Truth has to be searched for. In a search nothing is guaranteed. The only thing that is guaranteed is a beautiful adventure that helps you learn the art of both accepting and rejecting. Then, you would be able to filter many things in life.

However, over-indulgence in adventures is not recommended. If you are getting burnt out, then something in you asks you to slow down. You must concentrate to know what you are and what you are meant for. While performing your duties you have undertaken, you must filter what is not essential and what is required essentially.

There is a god in us who speaks, but our mind is noisy and we cannot hear the divine speaking. When you are inwardly silent and addictive thoughts are absent, the silence and the meditative energies that emerge will heal you. Meditation does not mean that you are sitting idle and trying to concentrate through any medium. Your simple walking can be your meditation, sitting is meditation, and drinking tea is meditation if at that time, no other irrelevant thoughts are attracting you.

Most often, the burnt-out feeling is from your thoughts, which signal that you are burnt out. Bring a meditative quality in your thoughts. Watch out not to use words which are self-defeating. Bring in the quality of joy in whatever you do. Allow your actions to flow from the ‘higher self.’ The ‘higher self’ guides you when to slow down.

Learn the art of relaxation. After a long run, sit under a tree, feel the miracle of your body, the dance of your body, the dance of your breath, the music of your heart beat, the gentle kiss of the breeze… the quintessence is in being relaxed, being at ease with oneself. Whatever you do, let your center be calm, silent and relaxed. Act from this energy field. Let action emerge from silence. The nature of your ‘higher self’ is silence, peace… while that of the ‘lower self’ is restlessness and ambition.

Flower gives fragrance unconditionally, so let us also operate from unconditional love. All great masters inspire us to live in abundance but not in scarcity. Be total and not fragmented. Live to the maximum and not the minimum. Let your ‘presence’ reach others and shower them with fullness.

Real growth happens when you trust and operate from the ‘higher self’. This ‘higher self’ is a flow, a learning being that enjoys the given moment in totality. Unfortunately, we trust our ‘lower self’ that is authoritative, rigid, and non-supportive. It is a victim of likes and dislikes. Growth happens when you negate the ‘lower self’ and are centered in the ‘higher self’. Your ‘higher self’ is an evolving being through which you come in touch which you come in touch with a mystic flower in you.

A courageous person explores the unknown with or without fear or in spite of fear, whereas a non-courageous person is stopped by fear. Respect what you know and have courage to explore the unknown. The courage of a spiritual seeker is different from the courage of a soldier. The spiritual seeker drops his mind and explores the heart… it is a flight from the head to the heart… has courage to accept even death as he knows the art of living involves the art of dying. By accepting death, he has accepted life in totality.

To accept both life and death gracefully requires courage. Failure is a shadow of the ego. With this understanding, life becomes magical. The hidden secrets of life flow in us. One cannot succeed against the whole. One’s success is the success of the whole. In fact, one becomes the whole. Such feelings can be brought about in your life once you forget about your own interests and think about the humanity as a whole so that you work more for the welfare of the society than for yourself. It is the adventure in true sense.

Be Happy – Adventure in Your Life Can Make You Happy

Be Happy – Identify The Energies Within You

Are you aware? You have got peace, violence, delusion, misunderstanding and compassion deeply seated within your heart and these elements may grow in their dimensions depending how you touch them in your life everyday. If you seriously identify the causes of their growth, you can neutralize and transform violence and anger to love. Choose the right environment and water positive thoughts everyday. Once you recognize the right energies you will find easy how to take care of them.

In your routine life, you may meet some people who plead that their thoughts are correct. Even they may like to prevail upon you. It may be possible that you can become fanatical and create a lot of suffering, if you follow them without considering whether their statements are correct or not. If you exercise your own wisdom in right perspective, you may be able to choose what is wrong or right for you.

Looking at the nature of things, you can come closer to the truth. To climb to the sixth step, naturally you have to abandon the fifth and this can be done with non-attachment. If I say you to feel the presence of the Moon up above in the sky, I am just use the finger pointing to the Moon. If you think my finger is the Moon, you are misled. A scientist needs to be non-attached as well because only if he is not attached to one truth, he can’t find another. Truth is not contained in concepts and ideologies; truth can only be found in life. Holy scriptures are only the residues… When you strike a match and the flame is created, the flame consumes the match. The raft is not the shore; it is only an instrument to reach the shore. Your own exploration is the raft.

Don’t we have to stay attached to the dictated values?

Detach yourself from others’ views; don’t get carried away by them. Compassion is not a view. It makes you feel good; it helps you connect with other people peacefully. You have to be understanding and care deeply. Understanding is a value. Values are always there.

How to live in harmony with nature?

When we live mindfully, we are aware of what is going on in and around us. With thoughtful breathing, you can bring your mind to the here and now. You are made of elements found in nature. You are made of five elements available in everything in the universe and that is in you.

With mindfulness, you can see the cloud nearby you. No cloud, no rain. No rain, no trees, no existence! So, too, when I touch myself I touch energy or you can say it is sunshine for no trees can grow without sunshine. When you know that you have the cosmos in you, you may like to ensure better utilization thereof and you will be in harmony with nature.

How to deal with despair?

We people are deeply concerned with Global warming. Today it is a big challenge. Many of us feel despair… so that even before the tragedy manifests, we are dead! Everything is impermanent. Keep hope alive. Don’t lose courage. Our civilization may come to an end – whether sooner or later depends on us as to how we are harnessing the resources of the nature. The earth will go on, as it has recovered from meteorite hits and other sufferings in the past. New civilizations might evolve after millions of years. Similarly, our desperation may go away if we take it that it is created by us and we are responsible for their existence. We must try to eliminate it from the root itself.

Sometimes why do you turn violent?

Even in company with a Saint, you need good teaching and practice. A saint can act like others if he has not enough compassion in him. If you are a real practitioner, you know that violence. Many terrorists are born in good families; they have a good education. They might be victims of wrong perceptions created by lack of communication. Terrorism is rooted in misconceptions; through dialogue, deep listening and understanding, we can remove hate, anger and misconceptions.

Wrong conception about Ahimsa!

Human beings are supposed to live and let others live. Ahimsa or non-violence does not mean non-slaughtering of animals or blood-shedding. It means that by adopting Ahimsa or non-violence, you are not going to hurt any one in any terms. If you hurt anyone emotionally without any reason, you are exercising violence with him/her. Why so? Just imagine if you were there being victimized for no fault at your end, in place of the person you are scolding or hurting – what will you be thinking? You must immediately give up your violent action. May be your politeness be misunderstood for the time being but no, you will at least be sure that you are not committing any mistake by giving up undue violence. If someone deserves your violent treatment, you must think if your forgiveness can solve your purpose. Please think again.

Just you need to identify the right energies within you and crush all the evils, you will find the heaven nearby you at all the times.

Be Happy - Identify The Energies Within You

Be Happy – Your Grand Mother’s Stories are Your Wealth

Do you remember, in your childhood, you had been requesting your grand mother to narrate some stories when you were going to bed? Her stories were full of the experience and some time, had many good things to follow. For generation, this tradition is being followed except in those cases where our circumstances have compelled us to lead nuclear family system. Somewhere, the work of story telling has been taken up by the professional story writers to fill up the vacuum created by the lapse of joint family system. Though active in smaller towns and villages, and brought to city-dwellers as part of ‘cultural’ or ‘art’ events, this tradition finds it difficult to remain significant; it’s hard if not impossible for young people to continue the tradition and choose it as a viable means of livelihood, so necessary for survival.

Through such stories, the wisdom of the world’s cultures have been preserved and conveyed, helping explain our world and our place in it – enabling us to develop as individuals, create community, solve problems, discover meaning, and teach, nurture and inspire younger generations. In ancient Ireland, a master-poet, sat next to the king and was privileged, as none but the queen was, to wear six different colors in his clothes. He also held the respected position of judge and seer, and tutored the king in morality. In Turkey and Azerbajjan, the singing storytellers or troubadours were called ashiks, a word from the Arabic meaning ‘lover’, which describes someone who is a musician, poet and storyteller.

While some storytelling traditions have died out, others continue. However, with the role and position of the tellers, and their basic means of livelihood eroded, their numbers have drastically dwindled. The loss is ours. In the Mali, Guinea and the Gambia, the jalis or griots were and are the community’s historians, with skills to draw a village or people closer – one known way is by “giving them courage” through the short stories orally delivered.

Of recent the world over, people are recognizing the power of storytelling and story-sharing in different arenas of life, and actively working to revive it. And some of the indicators of this revival take surprising forms. In Peshawar’s Qissa Khwani, the Storyteller’s Bazaar, professional storytellers recited ballads and tales of war and love to traders and soldiers crowding its many tea-shops each evening. Today, the place is known by the same name, but is full of traffic, shops and noise, with no tellers in sight. Still, in this busy market, storytelling recordings in the form of tapes and compact discs sell briskly, helping listeners to remember the past and tellers to find new audiences.

In the Jemaa el-Fna Square in Marrakesh, you can still find a teller or a halaka who recounts ancient stories handed down from generation to generation. A friend tells me, “Our young Moroccans would rather get their stories from TV soaps than listen to storyteller – much less become one themselves.”

Only six years ago there used to be around 20 or more halakis in the square, and now he finds barely half a dozen – and they are all very old. UNESCO has worked to try to save the stories as part of world’s oral heritage, even recording some of them on the internet, so modern technology may yet come to the rescue of these wondrous tales.

There is a good difference between a story teller and our Grand Mother. Story teller is always a professional whereas the stories by Grand Mother always intend for the betterment of their grand children.

Be Happy - Your Grand Mother's Stories are Your Wealth.