To Enjoy A Carefree Life...

To enjoy a carefree life, renounce the consciousness of I and mine. The more we surrender our ego, the lighter and easier our life becomes. The consciousness of I and mine either makes us arrogant or weak. It creates a lot of conflicts in relationships and finishes the beauty of life. When we consider everything we have as God's property then our responsibilities become His responsibilities. He fills us with extra specialities and powers to carry out His task no matter however daunting it may seem. When we surrender our will to Him everything happens for the best.

Protecting Our Sense...

Protecting our sense of optimism is the best way to remain cheerful. We can do this by starting the day with meditation to pour light and love into the scenes we are likely to find ahead of us that day. And then if we keep touching base with God’s mind and His benevolent way of seeing things, the inner happiness we experience will help us pass through any situation without feeling weary.

Your Attitude...

Your attitude creates an atmosphere around you. Your attitude is the result of the way you feel and think. You communicate your attitude to all around you. Create a positive attitude, filled with good feelings and even just your presence will do wonders in situations.

Assertiveness...

Assertiveness means that you think, express your ideas, opinions and talents. By this you make a difference in the world in your own special way. You are confident about telling the truth about what is just. I practice assertiveness when I tactfully tell people what I really think with a view to bring about good, when I choose not to allow others to lead me into trouble.

Unity...

Unity is a way of seeing the universe as one. It brings about a sense of harmony. It is build from the shared vision for the common good. I practice unity when I refuse to join in when others express prejudice, when I solve conflicts through listening, when I treat all people as members of global family. I appreciate differences and care for the earth and all living things.

Generosity...

Generosity is giving and sharing. It is giving not with an idea of receiving anything in return. It is seeing an opportunity to share what you have and then giving just for the joy of giving. I practice generosity when I give fully without holding back, when I am willing to make sacrifices for others, when I use wisdom about sharing treasured belongings.

Humility...

Humility is not to consider yourself more important than other people. It is to think of others needs are also important. It is to admit mistakes and learn from them. I practice humility when I respect what each person contributes, when I am doing my best just to do it, not to impress anyone, when I am thankful instead of being boastful.

Enthusiasm

Enthusiasm is being cheerful and happy. It is doing something wholeheartedly with zeal and eagerness – giving 100% to what you do, holding nothing back. It is being excited about something and looking forward to it. I practice Enthusiasm when I think of imaginative ways to get things done. I am open to the wonders in store for me everyday.

To Control the Mind

To control the mind means to be the master of the mind. Controlling thoughts is usually understood as clearing out the mind of all negative and waste thoughts when they do arise. So whenever we have negative thoughts we try hard to transform them into the positive ones. Control of the mind is actually to have mastery over my thoughts, so that I am able to direct them as I wish to. So even in the most negative situations I need to maintain my positivity instead of trying hard to convert negative into positive.

Practice Patience...

Patience is enduring a delay or trouble some situation without complaining. It is being calm and tolerant when difficult things happen. It is seeing the end in the beginning. I practice Patience when I set goals and stick with them until they are complete, when I do something now that will help me in future, when I accept things I cannot control with humour and grace. I am gentle with others and myself when we make mistakes.

Importance of Self Discipline

Self-discipline means realizing what is important and getting your self to do it, rather than being a leaf in the wind of your thoughts or feelings. You don’t lose control of yourself when you feel hurt or angry. I practice self-discipline when I get things done in an orderly and efficient way, when I use detachment so that my emotions wont control me, when I create routines for myself.

A Word About Confidence...

Confidence is having faith in someone or something. It means you trust that you have what it takes to handle whatever happens. It brings the strength to try new things. I practice confidence when I learn my own strengths and weaknesses, when I practice until I master something, when I am willing to try new things, when I am free from worries.

Be A Positive Friend Always...

Love is Beautiful...

Because its a feeling controlled by the Heart.

But Friendship is very very Beautiful...

Because its a feeling that controls the Heart itself.

Loving Valentines Day

Smile increases value of Face,

Anger spoils Beauty of Soul,

Faith is force of Life,

Confidence is companion of Success,

So Keep SMILING.

Loving Valentines Day!!!

Daily Happy Loving Messages

Rich People Travel In Cars,
Poor People Travel In Carts,

But

People Like You...
Travel In Hearts!!!

Wising You A Very Happy and Lovely Valentine Day

Please come out of Room!
So that Sun can Rise,
Flowers can Blossom,
Birds can Sing,
because all are waiting
to see your Beautiful SMILE.
Wising You A Very Happy and Lovely Valentine Day.

Have A Fantastic Valentines Day.

DREAMS visit us when we sleep, but commitment wakes us up each day and give us every chance to make our DREAMS come True! Have A Fantastic Valentines Day.

Have A Blessed Valentine Day!

Hear is the weather forecast for today, there shall be showers of blessing all over you and a heavy downpour of God's favor all around you. Have A Blessed Valentine Day!

Happy Valentine Day...!!!

No Sweet Thoughts to forward,
No cute graphics to send,
Just A...CARING HEART saying...
Take Care Always.

Happy Valentine Day!


Do You Love Me Because I Am Beautiful,
or
Am I Beautiful Because You Love Me?

--- Oscar Hammerstein II, Cinderalla.


Will You Be My Valentine :-) ?

Will You Be My Valentine?
I Know That I Am Yours.
You Are Like A Tossing Aea
And I Am Like Your Shores.

You Are Like An Endless Wave
And I Am Your Waiting Sand.
And I Will Wait Forever As
You Come And Smooth My Hand.

I Will Wait Forever, Yet
You Are A Part Of Me.
I Hold You In My Arms, While You
Come To Me Endlessly.

Will You Be My Valentine...?
I Know That I Am Yours.
I Love You With A Love That Yearns
To Be Your Golden Shores...!!!

--- Author Unknown


THROUGH LOVE All That Is Bitter Will Sweet.
THROUGH LOVE All That Is Copper Will Be Gold.
THROUGH LOVE All Dregs Will Turn To Purest Wine
THROUGH LOVE All Pain Will Turn To Medicine.
THROUGH LOVE The Dead Will All Become Alive.
THROUGH LOVE All The King Will Turn Into A Slave ;-)

--- Author Unknown

Perfect Love Is Rare Indeed...
For To Be A Lover Will Require
That You Continually Have
The Subtlety Of The Very Wise,
The Flexibility Of The Child,
The Sensitivity Of The Artist,
The Understanding Of The Philosopher,
The Acceptance Of The Saint,
The Tolerance Of The Scholar And
The Fortitude Of The Certain...!!!

--- Leo Buscaglia


Life is a flower of which love is the honey - Victor Hugo.

For more Happy Valentine Day Messages and Special Love Quotes click here...!!!

Have a Lovely Valentines Day

The Best Cosmetic for the lips is Truth, For the Voice is Prayer, for the Eyes is Pity, for the Hands is Charity and for the Heart is a Friend like you. Have a Lovely Valentines Day.

Valentine Gift Messages - Give As a Love.

Excellence is giving the best that you can give, no matter what you are doing. It is an effort guide by a noble purpose. The perfection of the seed is the fruit that grows from it. I practice excellence when I set noble and realistic goals, when I don’t try everything and when I give myself to whatever I do.

Positive Sayings for Valentine Day.

Peace is an inner sense of calmness that can come in moments of silent gratitude. It is a way of stilling the mind whereby you can understand the deeper meaning of things. I practice Peace when I appreciate the differences, when I avoid harming anyone, not only by actions, but by words also, when I find my inner peace through silent meditation and let it carry me gently along day.

Happy Valentines Sayings

Creativity is discovering new ideas, new thoughts that may never have been discovered as a part of me before. It is seeing something in a new way, finding a different way to get something done or to solve a problem. I practice Creativity when I use knowledge and training to develop my gifts, when I have the discipline to practice, when I think of new ways to make things work better. We must always remember each of us has special gifts and should be willing to discover them. We should be happy with ourselves.

Valuable Messages - Give As a Valentine Gift.

Responsibility is being willing to be accountable for what you do and also what you don't do yourself. It means accepting credit when things go well and also correction if things go wrong. It is the ability to respond ably. I practice Responsibility when I take my agreements seriously, focus on what is required by me and not on someone else’s part, when I am ready and willing to clear up misunderstandings. I give my best to all that I do and keep my promises. I welcome praise and correction for my actions.

Happy Positive Valentine Day Messages

Respect is an attitude of honoring oneself and others and caring about their rights. Being respectful is reflected in the courtesy with which we speak, act and treat others. I practice respect when I am receptive to the wisdom of elders, honour people’s needs for time and space for themselves, Treat people not only the way they deserve to be treated, but also how I would like to be treated myself.

Valentines Special Love Wishes

Flexibility is being open to the need for change. It means getting rid of bad habits and learning good ones. It means not always having your own way, but being open to the opinions and feelings of others. I practice flexibility when I don’t insist on having my own way always, when I can adjust when something unexpected happens, when I try imaginative new ways to do things.

Positive Thinking Quotes

Detachment is choosing how you will act in a situation rather than just reacting. It is experiencing your feelings without allowing them to control you. I practice detachment when I take time out before doing something I would be sorry for later, when I am thinking and feeling together. I choose to be my best self no matter what happens.

Happy Positive Thinking Quotes

Mercy is giving people more than they deserve whereas Justice is giving people what they deserve. It is a quality of the heart. It is the willingness to forgive when you are hurt. I practice Mercy when I overlook hurtful things people do, give people another chance when they make mistakes, put myself in other people’s shoes. I know what people deserve, however I give them more than they have earned.

Happy Valentine Day Messages

Forgiveness means to stop punishing yourself or feeling hopeless because of something you did. It also means overlooking the mistakes others make and loving them just as much as before. I practice forgiveness when I take care of my feelings without taking revenge, take responsibility for my mistakes and remember that everyone makes mistakes. I have the power to keep changing for the better.

Reliability is doing something that you have agreed to do in a predictable way, without forgetting or having to be reminded. You really have to care about doing what you said you would do. I can practice Reliability when I treat my agreements and responsibilities seriously, when I find another way to fulfill my agreements if obstacles occur, when I make promises I can keep. Nothing can stop me from giving my best.

Trust is relying and believing in someone or something. It is having the confidence that the right thing will come about without trying to control it or make it happen. I can practice Trust when I look for a lesson in my painful experiences. I know that I need not to control others. I feel at peace knowing that I am never alone and that in everything that happens there is something good.

Obedience is obeying the law even when no one is watching. It is following what is right and playing by the rules. It means listening to others in authority and to yourself. I practice Obedience when I keep my agreements without having to be reminded, follow the rules even if I feel like ignoring them, question authority respectfully.

Courage is personal bravery in the face of fear. It is going ahead even when you feel like quitting. It is needed in trying new things, in facing the truth and in picking yourself up after a mistake, ready to try again.

When the energy of our consciousness is out of our control - the mind is agitated. We are being emotional. The solution is to detach from the inner storms, stand back and observe the hurricane pass. Detached observation withdraws the energy which your emotions require to sustain themselves. When you watch your own anger, it dies. If you don't detach from it, and observe it ...it will be your master. Today is the day to practice positive, detached observation, and each emotion-filled moment is the opportunity. This is 'real' work. The work of one who is a master of their own consciousness. Are you a master or a slave?

"Knowing the self and knowing God brings light into the darkness, and brings love back into our lives whereby we can reach out to others. The world will change when we are able to share this Godly light and this endless love. When I know myself I can really meet others. My vision will not be disturbed by our differences but I will recognise the same essence in others."

It's true that we don't know what we've got until we lose it, but it's also true that we don't know what we've been missing until it arrives. Giving someone all your love is never an assurance that they'll love you back! Don't expect love in return; just wait for it to grow in their heart but if it doesn't, be content it grew in yours. It takes only a minute to get a crush on someone, an hour to like someone, and a day to love someone, but it takes a lifetime to forget someone.

It is so important to experience God's mercy and forge a strong relationship with God as our Mother. Knowing that a heart that has been hurt becomes hard, we understand God is the only One who can heal our hearts. Each one should ask him or herself : "What can I do to make my heart softer?" There is such a need of mercy. We have to make our hearts softer and stronger, because a strong heart doesn't experience pain and we know that if we experience sorrow, we cannot serve God.

Self esteem is possible only if I value myself, and that I'm only able to respect someone I value. How is my own value created? - I value myself when I appreciate my own fortune. And for that, my vision has to go inside and not outside. The first step is to think: "Where am I looking? In or out?" Where do I base my own value? - On my fortune, on my experience of God's love, on the way I use my time and energy. I must be aware that if I do not value my time, no one else will. I must do things with excellence so that I'm able to hold my head up right in dignity.

It is said that the mind can be your best friend or your worst enemy. At every moment we have the opportunity to choose our company: thoughts which bring oxygen to the spirit or those who bring pain. If I am loyal to myself, I will continually strive to go back to my inner core of positivity. Again and again. I will be patient and loving, and increasingly my mind will reside in this positive inner truth. When I am able to be loving and loyal to myself, I can then help others in this same unconditional manner.

The method to clear the mind of negativity is to fill it with positivity. Whenever we come across waste or negativity in the self because of the situations that we are faced with, we first put in effort to remove it. We do work very hard to do that but most of the times we are not able to do so. We then put in more effort or after a period of time give up trying altogether. The only way to remove negativity is to fill the mind with positivity. Just as fresh water added continuously to dirty water cleanses the water, so also positive thoughts clear the mind of waste and negative thoughts. For this I need to give my mind positive food everyday.

Constant awareness of a positive thought enables me to maintain my own inner positivity. The way to remain stable is to apply a full-stop. When difficult situations come my way, it is very natural to have questions and exclamations in the mind. It becomes very difficult to apply a full-stop and finish the situation in my mind. Because of such waste thoughts I am not able to experience stability in difficult situations. I need to bring out in my mind one or the other positive point about the situation. When I understand the meaning behind the situation, I am able to accept it. This acceptance enables me to be free from waste questions and negative thoughts and I am easily able to apply a full-stop. This is what brings inner stability. (No question- mark.... why me, when, how, who...?)

To make thoughts as pure as the actions is to be truly elevated. There is usually attention on the self not to perform any negative acts. There is also considerable attention not to speak any words that are harmful or negative. But very rarely is there that attention on the thoughts. Because of this a lot of negative thoughts tend to remain in the intellect causing trouble for me. I need to understand the fact that my thoughts form the basis for my words and actions. The more I pay attention to make my thoughts positive, the more it will have a positive impact on my words and actions too.

To be a master is to create positive thoughts under all circumstances. The one who is the master of himself creates the right kind of thoughts according to the circumstance. He is not dependent on situations or people for the right kind of response. Since there is mastery over thoughts, there is also mastery over all words spoken and everything done. When I am able to be a master of myself, I am able to constantly create positive thoughts. I am in touch with the inner resources and I am able to make use of these resources in a timely way. I never get confused or pressurized with outside situations, but am able to be in control in all situations.

To check and change thoughts and feelings constantly is to ensure positive change. The one who has a constant check on his own thoughts is able to bring about a change in them. So thoughts when changed to positive bring about change in words and behaviour too. There is no negative waste, or even ordinary behaviour. There is speciality revealed in every act. When I am constantly aware of the quality of thoughts I am creating at each moment, I can keep a check on them. My thoughts are not just positive, but powerful too. These powerful thoughts create a positive impact and I experience constant success.

To be pure is to become an instrument to spread positivity. The one who is pure and clean inside is the one who reflects his purity through his words and actions. Such a person's thoughts are powerful having a positive impact on the thoughts of others too. There is such clarity inside that others are able to take inspiration from him to do what is right. When I am honest with myself, I become more and more pure and clear inside. This purity reveals the power of truth and I get all the more powerful. I don't allow anything negative to influence me and take away my inner purity. This purity becomes a source of powerful inspiration for everyone around.

As we think so is our world. Inspite of our best efforts if things don't turn out the way we expect them to, there is a tendency to get disheartened and we begin to have negative thoughts. These negative thoughts further create negative situations and we find that things get no better. Instead of beginning to change things and situations that are going wrong, I need to work at the seed, i.e my thoughts. I need to keep my thoughts positive under all circumstances, which will make my actions positive too and I slowly find things changing for the better.

The most important part of you is your mind (not your brain - the brain is the hardware and the mind creates the software). Care for your mind, make friends with it, always feed it healthy food, engage it in positiveactivity, exercise it with knowledge and wisdom. Like a garden returnsfragrance and beauty according to the care invested, so your mind will repay you with thoughts, ideas and visions of great beauty when tended and invested with care. Your mind is not made of matter but it does matter what you give it and what you create with it. Where your mind goes, you go. What your mind creates becomes your destiny.

Mindfulness means developing the habit of stepping back and observing your thoughts, consciously directing your mind inward. Just pay attention and take note. Isolate any destructive words and phrases. It’s especially beneficial when your mind and body are relaxed, then you can simply watch the thoughts floating in and out of your head and quietly replace any that are not contributing to your welfare.

“We are what we think, all that we are arises with our thoughts,” said the Buddha, “with our thoughts, we make the world.” In other words, you are constantly creating your circumstances by the way you think. It’s as if you had a guided missile in your unconscious that relentlessly directs you towards its target, and the target is whatever your thoughts dwell on. Think doom and gloom, and that’s what you’ll get. Focus on happiness and optimism, and they’re already yours. The reason why negative thought energies are so detrimental to our well-being is that they frustrate the universal forces that can create a happy, healthy and successful life. They keep our true potential trapped in a mental prison of our own making.

The word transformation is made of three words – trans means transcend, form means shape, and ation means action. It is the action of transcending in which we change our form. At the deepest level we shape our conscious self according to our sense of identity and self image. We have all been taught to identify with our physical form, and we have learned to see ourselves in negative ways. This is what lies at the root of all personal unhappiness and interpersonal conflict. To see and understand exactly why this is so requires time in meditation and self reflection. But more importantly, the correcting, or transformation of our self identity/image, requires the rediscovery of our true form, our spiritual form, to experience the self as it truly is, as ‘I (truly) Am'!

It hasn't been a good ending for humanity this year.
Lets join and oray for those who have lost everything.
It feels painful to wish New Year When so many are in distress,

but life has to go on.
May God give you all the happiness you need.

With the practice of meditation comes the growing ability to know and do the right thing. Wisdom is the awareness and application of what is true, in the right way, at the right time, tempered and made appropriate by experience. For e.g, while it may be right to speak honestly about our feelings to someone, if we know from experience others sensitivities to our emotions, we may decide to delay our sharing to a moment that feels more appropriate. On the other hand we may sense that for another it is good to confront their actions using questions in order to help them to see and break a pattern which is obviously leading to an unwanted outcome.The inner act of drawing together our experience with the our perception of the others state, with our own awareness of what is right, while seeing the future effects of our actions requires a calm mind, a clear and clean intellect and the confidence to act with conviction. Meditation calms, sharpens and facilitates our ability to integrate these various factors prior to action, not just sitting in quiet corner in some lotus position but eventually, with practice, in a split second, in real life real time situations.

Just as appearances in life are deceiving, so what we see in within ourselves during our meditation can also be deceiving. While we have two eyes to observe the world around us, we have a third eye through which we can see our inner world of beliefs, experiences, memories, traits and tendencies. This is the eye of the intellect which is designed to give us insight (sight inwards). It is a vital aspect of our consciousness which we need in order to understand ourselves and others. This insight alone reminds us we are responsible for everything we think, feel and do, and that we have the power to choose how we experience and respond to life around us. To someone with a victim mindset this one insight represents liberation. As meditation sharpens the focus of our inner eye, a thousand other insights are possible and enlightenment is never far.

The modern myth that if you get your body well then your mind will follow, is fast fading. While the general health and well being of our body will ‘influence' our mental state, it is the quality of our thoughts and feelings which primarily effect our physical well being. This means real relaxation begins within our consciousness. It is helpful to remember that watching the match or the movie is not relaxation but stimulation. They are mental escape activities which will eventually result in the atrophy of our mental strength and an increase in our emotional instablility. A quiet mind, a slow mind, a mind that has positive thoughts created by the self is a relaxed mind. And a relaxed mind leads to a relaxed body. Meditation is not about stopping thoughts, it is more about seeing our own patterns of thinking, correcting our thought process and consciously practicing the creation of right quality of thoughts as we learn to become the masters of our own consciousness.

The simplest definition of meditation is the ‘cultivation of self awareness'. In a media driven age, where information is largely the currency of exchange, most of us spend our lives being aware of everything except ourselves. Even the idea of self awareness can sound pretentious and unnecessary, if not strange. Yet without self awareness we cannot see what we are doing wrong at the levels of our own thoughts and feelings. In fact we cannot even see that it is ourselves and not someone else who creates our thoughts and feelings! When we fall under the illusion that others are responsible for what we feel we condemn ourselves to stressful life as we become dependent on external sources of stimulation and perform our very own award winning performance of The Victim!

Our spiritual well being can be measured by the quality of our inner peace, our ability to create stillness at will and our capacity to radiate love from our heart into the world. Unfortunately it seems we have decamped from our hearts and moved to take up residence in our minds. We have become unendingly busy, creating thoughts filled with worry, anxiety, frequent frustrations and rising levels of anger. Like the layers of an onion these mental and emotional states gradually accumulate and suppress our spiritual heart. Negative mind sets to starve our physical heart and our everyday relationships of the oxygen of love. Busy minds also lead to busy and tired bodies. Perhaps this is why we now see meditation enjoying a rising tide of interest and practice. Meditation is the oldest and most effective way to quieten the mind, release past hurts, be fully present to know the joy of the moment, transform the quality of our thinking and begin the healing of our heart from inside out.

• Happy, happy Christmas, that can win us back to the delusions of our childish days; that can recall to the old man the pleasures of his youth; that can transport the sailor and the traveller, thousands of miles away, back to his own fire-side and his quiet home! - Charles Dickens, The Pickwick Papers, 1836.
  
  
• Our hearts grow tender with childhood memories and love of kindred, and we are better throughout the year for having, in spirit, become a child again at Christmas-time. - Laura Ingalls Wilder
  
  
• For the spirit of Christmas fulfils the greatest hunger of mankind. - Loring A. Schuler

In the Chinese language the word for ‘busy' is composed of two characters – ‘heart' and ‘killer'. Only one hundred years ago the breakdown of the strongest pump in the world, the human heart, was still regarded as a medical curiosity. Fast forward to the 21 st Century where ‘busy' is the byword for modern living, and it is no surprise that hundreds of thousands of hearts now fail every year. Yet the true heart of each one of us is not within our body, but within our consciousness. For the spiritually minded it is the soul, because soul is what we are.

"Knowing the self and knowing God brings light into the darkness,and brings love back into our lives whereby we can reach out to others.The world will change when we are able to share this Godly light and this endless love. When I know myself I can really meet others. My vision will not be disturbed by our differences but I will recognise the same essence in others."

There are many reasons why people oppose each other; misunderstanding, resistance to change, competitiveness. If someone decides to hold on to their negativity, no amount of analyzing or reasoning can ease the situation. At such times, only patience and more patience will help a closed mind gently unfurl itself.

The power of Truth is such that you need never be concerned about proving it for this only reveals your own stubbornness. Just be concerned with being it, and living it. Truth reveals itself at the right moment and right place.

The immense power of humility is useful in your protection as well as protection of others. It allows you to learn from and see the benefit in everything, even in the insults of others. You don’t feel the need to get upset. Your self-respect works to keep you steady. Even if the problem is theirs, not yours and there is nothing to change in yourself, humility removes the need for you to say so.

If a problem arises with someone and the problem is not yours, humility removes the need for you to comment.

Happy Deepavali to All of You...!

Deepavali is an Indian Festival...Also known as "Festival of Lights".

Read More About Our Great "Deepavali Festival"

Let us be "Light"

Celebration of Perfection....

No other festival unites Indians around the world, as does Deepavali. A single diya holds infinite beauty and hope. While we celebrate these auspicious days with the same grandeur seen in the past, the pure beliefs held by our ancestors were more enlightening. Deepavali or Diwali is a celebration of victory over evil and the coming of a New Year. But if we probe further, what is this darkness we want to remove? In reality, evil or darkness does not have an astitva or identity of their own - they exist due to a lack of goodness or light. Knowledge, power and all that is pure, are very real characteristics since they are part of us, perhaps dormant yet existing. The Festival of Lights, incidentally seen in every culture, is the fight against evil forces and creation of peace and happiness. Diwali conjures up a number of things in the mind's eye - sweets, new clothes, account books, Goddess Lakshmi, fireworks etc. and in Maharashtra (A state of India), a special 5-day ceremony ensures a perfect celebration. While the physical rituals are necessary, a deeper understanding of the spiritual meaning guarantees that we continue to respect and 'live' our eternal teachings.

We begin with Dhanamyodashi, where families worship Dhanvantari, a special ayurvedic herb said to cure a person of all illnesses. As science too proves, about 98% of all diseases are psychosomatic, meaning the problem lies in the mind. With time and circumstances, human beings have lost a great degree of their inner power, thus making them vulnerable to attacks from the vices (lust, anger, greed, attachment, ego). The weak mind has affected the body too and when we take the medicine of spiritual knowledge, prescribed by the Ultimate Doctor God, we can cure both mind and body.

Our second day is celebrated as Narkchaturdashi. Spiritual Knowledge about Self-realisation, God-realisation etc. can only be taught by the Supreme. Diwali, the tradition of lighting diyas, actually describes how the Supreme Light comes to re-ignite our awareness of being points of energy or souls. This knowledge is used to overcome the foreign elements of vices. In memorial of these efforts, we have the story of Narkasur or destroying of evil.

The third day is spent in invoking Goddess Lakshmi. Today, we have unfortunately lowered the status of Lakshmi Devi to that of a banker. In reality, her name stems from the word, 'Laksh' meaning ' the goal', implying that she stands for the ultimate goal of perfection that human beings can reach. The 'wealth' that she has to offer is of knowledge and virtues; a divine character alone can attain prosperity (material and otherwise) and peace. Homes are cleaned thoroughly in her honour, but we forget that a clean mind and intellect are the easiest ways to attract her.

Moving to the fourth day of Balipratipada, we see success at every step or padh / kadam when we maintain connection with the Supreme Soul. In spirituality, this is symbolic for yoga or union. When I visualise myself to be a point of light, and then direct my intellect and thoughts to the Supreme Parent, I experience God's Shakti and love. This power helps me fight weaknesses and inculcate virtues.

The beautiful process of gaining knowledge, overcoming vices, cleaning the intellect and remembering the Supreme, leads us to appreciate the fifth day, Bhaiyadooj or Bhaibeej. The knowledge of the 'soul' frees us from stereotypes and prejudices based on religion, caste, colour, gender and age. We then see every individual as being a child of God and so part of my spiritual family - the ultimate truth.

Sweets (maintaining loving relationships), new clothes (discarding everything old), new account books (settling karmic accounts), fireworks (burning evil off) and other, interesting rituals prepare us spiritually for the New Year or Age. The darkness of ignorance cannot remain; our deep desire to create a world of happiness will become a reality. The key lies in lighting a single 'diya' - my own spiritual awareness - and then.... "JYOT SE JYOT LAGAATE CHALO..."

People spend a lot of time and energy developing their bodies and making it attractive to other people, but is there ever a thought of developing the soul and making it attractive to God. The body is a physical matter, which will change, age and die. If you have a beautiful body today there is no guarantee that it will remain as such in the future. The soul is an eternal, immortal point of spiritual light. Within the soul there are impressions that form my personality. If I take steps to develop and feed it with spiritual knowledge, my character, my personality will become rich and beautiful. Developing the soul allows us to have full control of the power of thought. The quality of our thoughts determine our own personal degree of happiness.

I should feel love when people don’t love me because love heals and brings happiness. When I feel love towards others, there is benefit all around. To be loving is a natural way to live. If I make effort to become more loving, my own happiness increases immediately and soon the attitudes of others will soften. Many people are burdened with negativity as a result of a shortage of love. It shows up in cycles of critical thoughts and negative feelings, sometimes directed against the self, and sometimes blaming others. Such thoughts and feelings run down energy and deplete everybody’s well being. If I recognize this and become more determined to stay positive, I can end the negative cycles and reveal the power of love in action.

It is true that there is much suffering in the world. But do we need to worry about it? If we focus on the negative, that drains us of the strength to help. Goodness and truth are also at work in our world, as well as darker forces. When I switch on my awareness of positive qualities common to humanity, it is like bringing light into the darkness. The past stops haunting me and I stop worrying about the future. I see more clearly what I need to do now, for lasting happiness and health.

In the normal course of the day, do we know where are thoughts are going? Do we have the strength to focus and direct them where we want them to go? We are normally unaware of the amount of energy that is contained in each and every thought. If we were aware we would pay attention to conserve and utilize it in a beneficial manner. At a time when the world's resources is the lowest we are throwing away enormous quantities of thought by having negative and waste thoughts. Just like the body gets tired when we use up the physical energy, the mind gets fatigued giving rise to frustration, boredom and tension. We need to examine the self and see how our energy is getting lost.

To be honest means to be true. It also means being faithful andtrustworthy. The more you experience this quality, the more your senseof its value will increase.

It is true that there is much suffering in the world. But do we need to worry about it? If we focus on the negative, that drains us of the strength to help. Goodness and truth are also at work in our world, as well as darker forces. When I switch on my awareness of positive qualities common to humanity, it is like bringing light into the darkness. The past stops haunting me and I stop worrying about the future. I see more clearly what I need to do now, for lasting happiness and health.

Often, we get into a 'tit for tat' situation in which I feel bad about someone else, so they have ill-feeling towards me, which confirms my opinion about them, and so on. Everyone loses out. I need to see very clearly the damage this is doing. Illness often comes when I feel ill-treated or deceived. With strength of mind, I can recover my peace and have positive feelings even towards those who don't feel good about me.

When I awaken to the power of the mind I can begin to step back from whatever illness is happening in the body. The more I become the observer, watching what is happening instead of being caught up in it, the more free the mind can become. Even when my body is ill, I can create thoughts and feelings of happiness and peace. These positive feelings then help the body, so that I have the strength to face the illness and quite often pain and sickness decrease or may even goaway.

Love is intrinsic to human nature. But when we lose sight of the fact that we are love, inside, we chase after it outside of ourselves instead. When we let go of selfish desires, we become free of worry and ill-feeling and our lives become loving through and through. This is very healing.

When I observe the inner world of my thoughts and feelings, I can develop new ways of responding to situations and events which help me to keep a positive frame of mind. For example, I may constantly become fearful and upset about ill-health which only makes it worse, but a period of illness could offer me a space to get off life's roller coaster for a while, to rest and look at how I have been living. I may see ways of improving my attitudes and actions. That realization itself brings fresh hope and happiness. As long as I keep looking inside I do have a choice. Why choose worry, which will harm me, when I can opt for positive approach which will uplift me.

I can retain my positivity by working to remove worry and sorrow from my heart and mind. It helps to recognize that negative feelings are triggered by dependency on one or another physical aspect of existence; the body, relationships, wealth, or circumstances in the world around me. If any one of these is in a state of upheaval, I am liable to become troubled. But it is my dependency on these things, not the upheaval in itself, which causes deep distress. If I become free inside, worry and sorrow will finish.

Positivity is a subtle, spiritual attribute or energy, natural to all of us, that can accumulate in the mind just as electrical energy accumulates in a battery. A positive frame of mind promotes healing in oneself, and this energy naturally flows out to others.

Affluent societies have put huge effort into improving physical facilities, but our minds have suffered neglect. Increased levels of negative states such as anxiety, addiction, irritability and depression have accompanied burgeoning desires. As well as undermining the health of individuals, these negative attitudes and emotions harmsociety and the environment by causing a loss of fundamental values in our actions. When we feel sad and empty inside, we become part of the problem. We comfort ourselves by blaming others and circumstances. Instead we have to learn how to make our mind strong. That means fillit with positivity.

Complications seem to be an inevitable by-product of modern living.Simplicity gives birth to inspirations. Keeping our mind calm and clear is the easiest method to sort out messy situations. Maintaining a balance of living simply yet comfortably, and only using what wereally need of the earth's resources, we will always have abundance in our lives.

Pay special attention to keeping your thoughts elevated, pure and happy. With this attention to thoughts, you will be able to recognize the subtle attack of vices and weaknesses. You will then be able to transform them, finish them and become victorious.

The most natural way to bring about change is to change one's attitude, starting at the seat of consciousness or the thoughts. It is better to become an actor instead of a reactor to change. Think your way into a new way of acting. Change the thoughts and automatically the behavior will follow. Purify the thoughts and automatically your actions will become pure. It becomes impossible for anyone to become angry if the thoughts are peaceful. With purity of thought, a clear vision of reality can be seen. It is impossible to accurately view reality through the warped lenses of ego, greed and negative tendencies.

Allowing yourself to be controlled, either by others or by your own anger, represses your original qualities of tolerance and love, and thus creates a very deep kind of sorrow in the soul. To overpower this weakness, we need to be always aware that we are not only children of GOD but also heirs to His Divine qualities.

Cheerfulness comes from a sense of well being and contentment. It is a high quality, but it does not always stay with us. Thoughts of envy, worry, anger and hatred enter the mind, and cheerfulness vanishes. To maintain a "smiling face" we need to focus our attention only on the good qualities around us. When we see bad qualities we retain the defects of others and it poisons our intellect. When we see good qualities then our thoughts will be pure, our action elevated bringing with them a sense of contentment and joy free from a poisonous atmosphere.

If there is love for God, then automatically the soul becomesco-operative with all because God is the seed. By giving water to theseed, every leaf automatically receives water and then there is noneed to water each leaf individually. To be linked in love with thespiritual Father means to have love for all.

Let the power of tolerance be your armor. Without this armor, youbecome delicate to the storm of obstacles and you lose your happinessand enthusiasm and become disheartened. This armor will be yourprotection.

Unity is harmony within and amongst people. It is built with a sharedvision for the good of all and a common goal. Unity is appreciatingthe value of each person and their unique contribution. When there iswillingness to accommodate others, unity blossoms.

Meditation assists to develop the habit of thinking positive that enhances ones clarity of thought at all times and hence the ability to make continuously, instantaneous and authentic decisions. Having good judgmental powers through clarity of thought, we become more aware of our roles and responsibilities and become more focused on our aims and objectives. This is mainly because meditation teaches one to imbibe and inculcate good values and to keep away from being influenced by undesirable company. They are able to neutralize and diffuse potentially volatile situations into laughable ones instead of getting paranoid.

It is said that the mind can be your best friend or your worst enemy. Atevery moment we have the opportunity to choose our company: thoughtswhich bring oxygen to the spirit or those who bring pain. If I amloyal to myself, I will continually strive to go back to my inner coreof positivity. Again and again. I will be patient and loving, andincreasingly my mind will reside in this positive inner truth. When Iam able to be loving and loyal to myself, I can then help others in this same unconditional manner.

Forget The "What" - Focus On The "How"

Do not judge another until you have walked a mile in their shoes.

"DO not cry if the SUN sets at the end of the DAY, because the TEARS will not let you ENJOY the beauty of the STARS"

As the sun is golden at the time of rising as well as setting,
the behaviour of the noblemen is the same during pleasure and disaster.

The ability to enjoy one's own company is one of the greatest gifts life has to offer. Learning to turn our thoughts away from all our responsibilities at the day's end and take our mind into a state of peace and benevolence enables us to carry greater and greater loads without feeling burdened. When our inner landscape is full of beautiful thoughts, everything we do is a pleasure. Gently, we calm down chaotic situations and offer solace to troubled minds.

The benefit attained from meditation is that you have clarity of thought and have the ability to make the right decisions at the right time in every situation. When you make the right decisions consistently, then you achieve all your spiritual goals, desires and objectives with minimum energy. This means that you experience the greatest splendor with minimum expenditure. There is very little or minimum wastage of time, efforts and resources. Clarity of thought therefore is the ability to do the right things the very first time and never have to repeat things. To repeat things is very costly in time, money, resources and loss of opportunities. When you achieve the things that are under your control with minimum energy, then you are contented and where there is contentment there is happiness.

Meditation simply means the management of your thoughts. It is to have the ability to think of what you want and when you want, without interference from other thoughts. Meditation is to develop the ability to concentrate on a particular subject without being attracted and influenced by the five senses, the five vices and the five elements. Yoga, which is associated with meditation, simply means to have union or make connection with some object, subject, person or God. However, yoga is usually associated with spirituality. Yoga is to have connection and to have dialogue or sweet conversation with the divine source of inspiration, whom many call God. Meditation, therefore is a prerequisite or condition that assists spiritual seekers to have unbroken, undisturbed and continuous access with divinity and this experience is called yoga, another form of prayer.

The generic meaning of meditation is the "healing of the mind or to take control of the mind". This is because the mind, a faculty of the soul, is very inquisitive, curious and travels with great speed. Inreality, the mind is where all the thoughts are created or generated. It is similar to an antenna where all signals are received. On theaverage while one is awake, some 25-40 thoughts per minute enter themind of which less than 10 percent are positive. The rest are idle,waste or negative.

Never be afraid to sit awhile and think. ~Lorraine Hansberry, A Raisin in the Sun

"We may not be born happy, but we are born with the ability to create happiness." --Source Unknown

Knowledge of what is possible is the beginning of happiness. - George Santayana

A budget is just a method of worrying before you spend money, as well as afterward.

Many people will walk in and out of your life, but only true friends will leave footprints in your heart.

Firm faith and self-confidence in your goals determine your destiny. Be surenot to forget your goals; do not allow doubts to come. Instead of seeingproblems, see only opportunities.