Soccer Game -- Misconception about Art of Living

Last week my lab group went for a game for soccer. The temperature was was around 50 Deg F (10 feg C). Initially many of us were cold but after running here and there on the filed we started feeling warm and the game picked up the pace. As usual, after the 1st 20 min I was totally into the game with full vigor and intensity.We played for about 2 hours, and it felt great. The whole idea of an outdoor sports excites me so much, I feel like a small child whenever I am on the field.Shouting, yelling, running and going nuts. And so happened this time too, when one of my tememates (who was suppose to be the goalkeeper) came to the midfield and during that time the other team scored a goal. I was RED, and shouted "What the HELL man, why are you freaking coming out into the midfield" etc etc. Then whenever I scored a goal or the team scored one I use to shout and go gaga. Eventually we won the game.

But to my surprise, someone made a very strange comment. Here is what was said " That dude Anurag, looks so calm and peaceful, but he is so intense in the filed shouting and yelling, what is all this......is this is what Art of Living is all about !!!!!

My answer was YES. Yes this is exactly what Art of Living is!!! Art of Living simply means whatever I am doing, I am totally into it. If I am angry - I am angry, if sad - sad, if happy - happy. Living life in an unfragmented manner is Art of Living, living life as intensely as intensely possible is Art of Living. I do not know why people have this wrong notion that spiritual people should not get angry or excited. Whats wrong?? Only difference between a spiritual person is - negative or positive emotion are gone once the moment is finished. The anger is there only during that moment, once the event goes then anger too is gone.



If you really want to learn the Art of Living you have to remain young, alive, available to crying, laughter, available to all dimensions, flowing all over, streaming. But remember, people will all the time misjudge you and you won't get any sympathy. People may cast aspersions at you, but that is worth it. People may think that you are a hypocrite, they may condemn you, they may call names to you, but don’t be worried about it. It doesn’t matter. The only thing that matters is your happiness.

Whenever you hold back some emotion, you feel uneasiness, unhappiness, because the energy is not flowing. The energy is not river-like; it is stuck, dead, frozen. And you would like to flow. Life is flow; death is frozenness. Of course, discipline is needed, not as control but as awareness. A controlled discipline is a deadening phenomenon. When you are alert, aware, a discipline comes easily out of that awareness – not that you force it, not that you plan it. No, moment to moment your awareness decides how to respond.

Guy on the right (Changyao) was the subject of my wrath (Must admit he was the best player in our team)

That’s all Art of Living is all about: remain happy, and don’t create any situation for anybody to be unhappy. If you can help, make others happy. If you cannot, then at least make yourself happy.

I love u all....

...Anu

We are Watching.......Part02

FYI: This is a continuation of the previous post. Read the one earlier and you will appreciate the important message.

.............But there was still a third group who said, ”We don’t know anything about meditation. How can we judge?”

Then, again, after a few months, the group of intellectuals came. Now there was nobody except the master - Jalaluddin. He was sitting and smiling. All the disciples had gone. So the intellectuals asked, " What is happening? The 1st time we came there was a mad crowd, and we thought this is useless. The next time we came it was very good. People were mediatting. But now all are gone. Where have they all gone?"

The Master said, ”The work has been done, the disciples have disappeared. And I am smiling happy because whatever was suppose to happen has happened to the disciples. And you are the fools, I know! I have also been watching – not only you. I know what discussions were going on, and what you were thinking the first time and the second time.”

Jalaludin said, ”The effort that you have taken to come here for three times would have been enough for you to become meditators. And the discussion that you have been in, that much energy was enough to make you silent. And in the same period, those disciples have disappeared, and you are standing at the same place and with the same mind and with the same useless words".

Moral of the story is INNER WORLD is a matter of SUBJECTIVE experience, you can't analyze it with the laws of science. As science or OUTER WORLD is a matter of OBJECTIVITY. Whatever is happening in meditation is a deep individual experience. How can you describe something so deep in words, mind you words can capture only gross things. The more gross an object/thing is words can describe it completely. The more subtle we go fewer are words. So how can you analyze such a deep experience, with words etc.

So if any of you people there want to explore what are the treasures hidden inside, don't wait besides the fence and waste your precious time in words and discussions...... Just take the plunge and experience bliss....

Love
...A

We are Watching.......Part01

Hi,

A lot of times when I discuss spirituality with my friends and tell them how Art of Living helped me in my inner growth. They all acknowledge the fact, that this path is great. But somehow when it comes down to them taking the program excuses are rife. Most common being I do not have time or I am watching or let me analyze 1st then I decide. They will attend the Satsang, will come to the Yoga and meditation session and when it comes to learning the home practice many of them go into reasoning mode, they want to observe and then decide on committing. They are very clever - clever fools -:) - because these things cannot be watched from the outside. What is happening is an inner phenomenon. Many times you cannot even see to whom it is happening. From the outsied there is no possibility to watch it. How can you watch from outside? Gestures you can see; people doing meditation you can see. But what is happening inside, that is meditation. What they are doing outside is just a situation.

It happened: there was a Sufi Master, Jalaludin. He had a small school of disciples. People passing sometimes would come to see what was happening in the school. Once a group of very intellectual people came. They are always very alert people, very clever, and they looked. In the Master’s house, just in the compound, a group of 100 people were sitting, and they were doing mad gestures – somebody laughing, somebody crying, somebody jumping.




The intellectuals watched. They said, ’What is going on? This man is leading them toward madness. And this is nonsense; we have never heard. People when they meditate, they sit silently.” And there was much discussion (as usual..-☺) between them. A group of them said, ”Because we don’t know what is happening, it is not good to take any judgment.” Then there was a third group among them who said, ”Whatsoever it is, it is worth enjoying. We would like to watch. Why can’t we enjoy it? Why be bothered what they are doing? But just to watch them is a beautiful thing.”



Then after a few months, again, the same group came to the school to watch. Now what was happening? Now everybody was silent. The 100 persons were there, the Master was there – they were sitting silently, so silently, as if there was no one, like statues. Again there was discussion. There was a group who said, ”Now they are useless. What to see? Nothing! The first time we had come it was beautiful. We had enjoyed it. But now they are just boring.” The other group said, ”But now we think they are meditating. The first time they were simply mad. This is the right thing to do; this is how meditation is done. It is written in the scriptures, described in this way.”
But there was still a third group who said, ”We don’t know anything about meditation. How can we judge?”

What happened after this.....wait for the concluding post...-:).

...Am

Success Breeds Success.......

There was a farmer who grew superior quality, award-winning corn in his farm. Each year, he entered his corn in the state fair where it won honors and prizes.

One year, a newspaper reporter interviewed him and learned something interesting about how he grew his corn. The reporter discovered that the farmer shared his seed corn with his neighbors.

How can you afford to share your best seed corn with your neighbours when they are entering corn in the competition with yours each year?? The reporter asked. Why bother? The farmer replied, Didn't you know? The wind picks up pollen grains from the ripening corn and swirls it from field to field. If my neighbors grow inferior, sub-standard and poor quality corn, cross-pollination will steadily degrade the quality of my corn. If I have to grow good corn, I must help my neighbors to grow good corn too.

The farmer gave a superb insight into the connectedness of life. His corn cannot improve unless his neighbors corn also improves. So it is in the other dimensions and areas of life! Those who choose to be in harmony must help their neighbours and colleagues to be at peace. Those who choose to live well must help others live well too. The value of a life is measured by the lives it touches.

Success does not happen in isolation; it is most often a participatory and collective process. So share the good practices, ideas and new knowledge with your family, friends, team members and neighbors and all.
As they say:
Success breeds Success!!!

Love
..Am

Contagious Kissing.....

An eminent businessman went to the doctor. ”Doctor,” he said, ”I wish to consult you about my son. I believe he has got measles.”

”There is a great deal of it about at the moment,” said the doctor. ”No family seems to be safe from it.”
”But doctor,” he went on, ”the boy said he got it from kissing the maid, and to tell the truth, I’m afraid I’m also in danger from the same disease. And what is worse, every night I kiss my wife, so she may be in danger.”

”Good heavens!” said the doctor. ”Excuse me, I must go and get my throat examined at once!”

Halloween 2009

31st October was Halloween, where many people dress in bizarre costumes and come on the streets for the Annual Halloween Parade. It is somewhat on the same line as the Fancy Dress we have in India. I also decided to dress up this time, as Jesus -:). And to my surprise it was a big hit, when I was walking in the parade with my friends I had so many people who wanted to take a picture with me. When I was walking down the street, small kids used to call and ask "Are you Jesus Christ"? I had a rose in my hand that I used to bless people, was just tapping on their head and saying God Bless.

My 2 friends (Shaan and Swarup) dressed up as Satan. And the message we wanted to convey was in life Opposites Exists because of each other i.e. Jesus exists because of Satan and Satan exists because of Jesus, or in other words good exists because of bad and bad exists because of good. In short opposites add value to each other.

Bye
..Am

Three Most Important Qualifications on Spitirtual Path...03 Concluding Part

The last most imp quality of a seeker is INTENSITY or in other words I can write, giving your 100% in whatever you do. Most of the time we live a very, very limited life and do not allow our energy a full play. Whatever you do, don't hold yourself, if you love someone love totally, flow into the other totally. If you are swimming swim totally, if you are eating, drinking, talking, crying etc, just do it totally let there be nothing to hold you back. I tell you it is the shortest way to be happy. Because anything incomplete is very difficult to drop. Complete things ripen and fall on their own accord. When a fruit is ripe it falls. Of course the tree feels for a few seconds something is missing, and then it forgets. So be it relationships or any other tasks if done 100% then there is no baggage that comes with it.

There is beautiful story in Zen which goes like this:
Somebody asked Chao-chou, a great Zen Master, "What did you used to do before you became enlightened?"
He said, "I used to chop wood and fetch water from the well."
The man asked, "Now that you have become enlightened, what do you do?"
He said, "The same. I chop wood and I fetch the water from the well."
The man was a little puzzled; he said, "But what is the difference then?"
Chao-Chou said, "The difference is much. Before, I used to do many more things side by side. Chopping wood, I would think of many things. Carrying water from the well, I would think of many things. But now I simply carry the water, I simply chop the wood. Even the chopper has disappeared. Just chopping. Just chopping, nobody's there."

So the bottom-line is live life as intensely as possible because anyway one day death has to come and seeing a dead body remember, death is coming and use this opportunity to be alive as intensely as possible. So you can embrace death and go in deep rest.
Ciao..
...Am