QUOTES OF MOTHER TERESA

"Be faithful in small things because it is in them that your strength lies. "

"Being unwanted, unloved, uncared for, forgotten by everybody, I think that is a much greater hunger, a much greater poverty than the person who has nothing to eat. "

"Do not think that love, in order to be genuine, has to be extraordinary. What we need is to love without getting tired. "

"Do not wait for leaders; do it alone, person to person. "

"Each one of them is Jesus in disguise. "

"Even the rich are hungry for love, for being cared for, for being wanted, for having someone to call their own. "

"Everytime you smile at someone, it is an action of love, a gift to that person, a beautiful
thing. "

"God doesn't require us to succeed; he only requires that you try. "

"Good works are links that form a chain of love. "

"I am a little pencil in the hand of a writing God who is sending a love letter to the world. "

"I do not pray for success, I ask for faithfulness. "

"I have found the paradox, that if you love until it hurts, there can be no more hurt, only more love. "

"I know God will not give me anything I can't handle. I just wish that He didn't trust me so much. "

"I try to give to the poor people for love what the rich could get for money. No, I wouldn't touch a leper for a thousand pounds; yet I willingly cure him for the love of God. "

"I want you to be concerned about your next door neighbor. Do you know your next door neighbor? "

"If we have no peace, it is because we have forgotten that we belong to each other. "

"If we want a love message to be heard, it has got to be sent out. To keep a lamp burning, we have to keep putting oil in it. "

"If you can't feed a hundred people, then feed just one. "

"If you judge people, you have no time to love them. "

"In this life we cannot do great things. We can only do small things with great love. "

"Intense love does not measure, it just gives. "

"It is a kingly act to assist the fallen. "

"It is a poverty to decide that a child must die so that you may live as you wish. "

"It is impossible to walk rapidly and be unhappy. "

"It is not the magnitude of our actions but the amount of love that is put into them that matters." 

"Jesus said love one another. He didn't say love the whole world. "

"Joy is a net of love by which you can catch souls. "

"Kind words can be short and easy to speak, but their echoes are truly endless. "

"Let us always meet each other with smile, for the smile is the beginning of love. "

"Let us more and more insist on raising funds of love, of kindness, of understanding, of peace. Money will come if we seek first the Kingdom of God - the rest will be given. "

"Let us not be satisfied with just giving money. Money is not enough, money can be got, but they need your hearts to love them. So, spread your love everywhere you go. "

"Let us touch the dying, the poor, the lonely and the unwanted according to the graces we have received and let us not be ashamed or slow to do the humble work. "

"Loneliness and the feeling of being unwanted is the most terrible poverty. "

"Loneliness is the most terrible poverty. "

"Love begins at home, and it is not how much we do... but how much love we put in that action. "

"Love begins by taking care of the closest ones - the ones at home. "

"Love is a fruit in season at all times, and within reach of every hand. "

"Many people mistake our work for our vocation. Our vocation is the love of Jesus. "

"One of the greatest diseases is to be nobody to anybody. "

"Our life of poverty is as necessary as the work itself. Only in heaven will we see how much we owe to the poor for helping us to love God better because of them. "

"Peace begins with a smile. "

"Spread love everywhere you go. Let no one ever come to you without leaving happier. "

"Sweetest Lord, make me appreciative of the dignity of my high vocation, and its many responsibilities. Never permit me to disgrace it by giving way to coldness, unkindness, or impatience. "

"The biggest disease today is not leprosy or tuberculosis, but rather the feeling of being unwanted. "

"The greatest destroyer of peace is abortion because if a mother can kill her own child, what is left for me to kill you and you to kill me? There is nothing between. "

"The hunger for love is much more difficult to remove than the hunger for bread. "

"The miracle is not that we do this work, but that we are happy to do it. "

"The most terrible poverty is loneliness and the feeling of being unloved. "

"The success of love is in the loving - it is not in the result of loving. Of course it is natural in love to want the best for the other person, but whether it turns out that way or not does not determine the value of what we have done. "

"There are no great things, only small things with great love. Happy are those. "

"There is always the danger that we may just do the work for the sake of the work. This is where the respect and the love and the devotion come in - that we do it to God, to Christ, and that's why we try to do it as beautifully as possible. "

"There is more hunger in the world for love and appreciation in this world than for bread. "

"There must be a reason why some people can afford to live well. They must have worked for it. I only feel angry when I see waste. When I see people throwing away things that we could use. "

"We are all pencils in the hand of God. "

"We can do no great things, only small things with great love. "

"We need to find God, and he cannot be found in noise and restlessness. God is the friend of silence. See how nature - trees, flowers, grass- grows in silence; see the stars, the moon and the sun, how they move in silence... We need silence to be able to touch souls. "

"We ourselves feel that what we are doing is just a drop in the ocean. But the ocean would be less because of that missing drop. "

"We shall never know all the good that a simple smile can do. "

"We think sometimes that poverty is only being hungry, naked and homeless. The poverty of being unwanted, unloved and uncared for is the greatest poverty. We must start in our own homes to remedy this kind of poverty. "

"We, the unwilling,led by the unknowing,are doing the impossible for the ungrateful. We have done so much,for so long,with so little,we are now qualified to do anything with nothing. "

"Words which do not give the light of Christ increase the darkness. "

QUOTES BY CHANAKYA

Chanakya also known as Kautilya or Vishnu Gupta is one of the famous personality of Indian History born in 370BC and died in 283BC,he got his education at one of the ancient Universities of the world at Takshashila of Ancient India(Now in Pakistan) and later became a Acharya(Professor) in the same ancient university of economics and political science.

Chanakya played an important role in the establishment of Mauryan Empire in India and played important role in managing the mauryan empire and was Chief advisor to both Chandragupta and his son Bindusara.He also authored the famous ancient Indian political treatise called Arthaśāstra and Neetishastra (also known as Chanakya Niti).He is considered as the pioneer of the field of economics and political science in India,Here we will share some of the best chankya quotes.

1.Whoever imposes severe punishment becomes repulsive to the people; while he who awards mild punishment becomes contemptible. But whoever imposes punishment as deserved becomes respectable. For punishment when awarded with due consideration, makes the people devoted to righteousness and to works productive of wealth and enjoyment; while punishment, when ill-awarded under the influence of greed and anger or owing to ignorance, excites fury even among hermits and ascetics dwelling in forests, not to speak of householders.

2.If a king is energetic, his subjects will be equally energetic. If he is reckless, they will not only be reckless likewise, but also eat into his works. Besides, a reckless king will easily fall into the hands of his enemies. Hence the king shall ever be wakeful.

3.All urgent calls he shall hear at once, but never put off; for when postponed, they will prove too hard or impossible to accomplish.

4.Before you start some work, always ask yourself three questions – Why am I doing it, What the results might be and Will I be successful. Only when you think deeply and find satisfactory answers to these questions, go ahead.

5.God is not present in idols. Your feelings are your god. The soul is your temple.

6.There is some self-interest behind every friendship. There is no friendship without self-interests. This is a bitter truth.

7.It is better to die than to preserve this life by incurring disgrace. The loss of life causes but a moment’s grief, but disgrace brings grief every day of one’s life.

8.A human being should strive for four things in life — dharma (duty), artha (money), kama (pleasure) and moksha (salvation). A person who hasn’t striven for even one of these things has wasted life.

9.Whores don’t live in company of poor men, birds don’t build nests on a tree that doesn’t bear fruits and citizens never support a weak administration.

10.The fragrance of flowers spreads only in the direction of the wind. But the goodness of a person spreads in all directions.

11. He whose son is obedient to him, whose wife's conduct is in accordance with his wishes, and who is content with his riches has his heaven here on earth.

12. There is no disease so destructive as lust.

13. Avoid him who talks sweetly before you but tries to ruin you behind your back, for he is like a pitcher full of poison with milk on top.

14. It is better to have only one son endowed with good qualities than a hundred devoid of them. For the moon though one, dispels the darkness, which the stars, though numerous, do not.

15. Those base men who speak of the secret faults of others, destroy themselves like the serpents in ant-hills.

16. Men have hunger, sleep, fear and carnal intercourse in common with the lower animals. It is only knowledge that a man has more than they. Those men who have not it may be regarded as beasts.

17. Save your wealth against future calamity. Do not say, "what fear has a rich man of calamity?" Wealth sometimes vanishes away and large accumulations perish.

18. A thing may be dreaded as long as it has not overtaken you.

19.The man who is foolish at the termination of his life shall always remain a fool.

20.One destitute of wealth is not destitute, he is indeed rich, but the man devoid of learning is destitute in every way.

21.It is better to die than preserve life by incurring disgrace. The loss of life only pains a moment, but disgrace every day of one's life.

22. We return evil for evil, in which there is no sin, for it is necessary to pay a wicked man in his own coin.

23.Though men be endowed with beauty and youth, and be born in a noble family, yet without education, they are like a palas tree, which is void of any sweet smell.

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24.The man who is praised by others is regarded as worthy though he may be really void of all merit. But the man who sings his own praises becomes disgraced though he should be Indra, the possessor of all excellencies.

25.As water collected in a tank gets pure by filtration, so accumulated wealth is preserved by being employed in charity.

26.Truth upholds the earth; but truth the Sun shines; the winds blow by truth; and everything else subsists by truth.

27.If the king is pious, the subjects become so; but if the king is vicious, the subjects become the same. If he be indifferent to both (virtue and vice), then they too bear the same character. In short, as is the king so are his subjects.

28.As a single dried tree, if fired, sets a whole forest on fire, so does a bad son destroy a whole family.

29.He who has wealth has friends.

30.The life, action, wealth, learning and death of a person are determined by God when he is in the womb.

31.It is the mind of man alone that is the cause of his bondage or freedom.

32.Time perfects men as well as destroys them.

33.Learning is like a cow of desire. It, like her, yields in all seasons.

34.It is better to be without a king than [to have] a bad one.

35.It is better to have only one son endowed with good qualities than a hundred devoid of them. For the moon though one, dispels the darkness, which the stars, though numerous, do not.

36. A person should not be too honest. Straight trees are cut first and Honest people           are screwed first."

37. "Even if a snake is not poisonous,it should pretend to be venomous."
38. "The biggest guru-mantra is: Never share your secrets with anybody. If you cannot keep secret with you , do not expect that other will keep it. ! It will destroy you."

39. "There is some self-interest behind every friendship.  There is no Friendship without self-interests. This is a bitter truth."
40."Before you start some work, always ask yourself three questions - Why am I doing it, What the results might be and Will I be successful. Only when you think deeply and find satisfactory answers to these questions, go ahead."
41."As soon as the fear approaches near, attack and destroy it."
42."Once you start a working on something, don't be afraid of failure and don't abandon it. People who work sincerely are the happiest."

43. A man is great by deeds, not by birth."

44. "Treat your kid like a darling for the first five years. "For the next five years, scold them. By the time they turn sixteen, treat them like a friend. Your grown up children are your best friends." 

45. "Education is the best friend. An educated person is respected everywhere.Education beats the beauty and the youth." 

These were some of the best quotes by Chanakya,if you have some other best quotes by chanakya share with us and other readers using the comment section below.

  

A HEARTFUL APOLOGY WORKS WONDERS!

A HEARTFUL APOLOGY WORKS WONDERS!

(By Geetika Jain)

POSTING AS FORWARDED

The word ‘sorry’ is synonymous with apology. It is a common, familiar word but it is potent and magical in its efficacy. In our day-to-day life, it is symbolic of a polite apology for a wrong done intentionally or inadvertently and normally figures in the vocabulary of suave, courteous individuals. Small, insignificant wrongs like bumping accidentally into someone, or stepping on someone’s foot elicit a spontaneous, even nonchalant apology from the perpetrator. Such superficial apologies reflect a polite, well-groomed individual but they cannot precisely be categorized.

It is however in the larger, more profound issues of life that a heartfelt apology plays a vital role. When do we need to say we’re sorry? When our words or actions have hurt and harmed someone. It is a two-step process. Firstly, apologising with sincerity and remorse and secondly, atonement has to ensue. Both these steps are complementary to each other.

An apology should not simply be seen as a means to get out of a difficult situation. A mere articulation of the word, divest of sincerity, repentance and atonement is futile and nothing but a charade. To err is human, to admit one’s error is superhuman. Tremendous courage is entailed to face the victim of our wrong doing and apologise. It is generally seen that those who are in harmony with their life and consequently with themselves, find it easier to say ‘I’m sorry’. They are the positive, conscientious ones who are at peace only after making amends for their misdeeds.

Saying ‘sorry’ does not cost much yet achieves much. The mileage of an earnest apology is multi-faceted. The word ‘sorry’ in itself is imbued with so much potential and power. Within a fraction of a second, grave mistakes are diluted, tepid and estranged relations are brought alive, animosity and rancour are dissolved, misunderstandings resolved and tense situations ease out resulting in harmony and rapprochement. We not only appease the sufferer but ourselves as well. When we say ‘sorry’, we release a prisoner and discover that the prisoner was yours truly. We had been immured in our guilt and the resultant misery. Hence, cathartic relief is obtained. At times, the guilt is so deep-rooted that it leads to psychosomatic maladies and an aberrant psyche. Mustering enough courage to apologise can be a stepping-stone for our evolvement and personal expansion. We gain serenity. We get purged and empowered.

However, apologising in grave issues may not always be easy. There can be major deterrents like an untamed ego, age, social hierarchy, insensitivity and obduracy. As Swami Sivananda has rightly said,“Eradicate self-justification. Then alone can you annihilate your ego”. More often than not, we delude ourselves in precluding an apology by justifying our wrong. This is simply an indirect onslaught of ego.Age and social status can also thwart this sublime act. A teacher may be loath to say ‘sorry’ to his students, so will a parent to his children or the CEO of a company to his juniors. Moreover, an inherent  insensitivity and obstinacy may further sabotage an apology.

In this context, it is relevant to revisit the significance of prayer. A large chunk of our everyday prayers comprise of apology to God for our transgressions. All religious scriptures elucidate that when we say ‘sorry’ to God in all earnestness and repentance for our misdemeanours, they get washed away and we receive divine blessings. Such is the power of a sincere apology.

A stiff apology is a second insult. The injured party does not want to be compensated because he has been wronged; he wants to be healed because he has been hurt.
                                                                           (G. K. Chesterton)
It requires a great human to realize a mistake they made.
It needs a greater individual to accept it.
And a divine individual to correct it.

Very few of us over come their ego to humbly accept their mistakes.
I abhor arrogance and rudeness and love people who can admit they are wrong.

And my thought which I have posted here and else were on the net.
"That which rides the lip but not the heart, is no apology"  - V.P.ANAND

Courtesy: Speaking Tree

DEALING WITH THE LOSS OF A LOVE ONE!

(Over time, ponds may dry up, but they don't disappear. Healing takes time.)

Sometimes people share with me heartbreaking incidents of how they lost their loved one. There are those who lost their son or daughter, a sibling or a parent untimely or unexpectedly. Many a time, it is so gut-wrenching that even as an objective listener my eyes well up. The shock, the trauma, the pain is unbearable for them, almost like it would never heal. They ask me what can they do to get over the pain. Let me share with you how I see it.

Death is inevitable. Everyone we know will die one day. All of us are on a train and each one of us must get off eventually. Some disembark sooner and others later than us. We know it is only a matter of time yet it can catch one off-guard, like someone emerging in front of you out of nowhere. When one is mentally prepared, when one sits in expectation, in anticipation, it becomes relatively easy to prepare for even one's own death. This is rarely possible though. We may get the time to prepare ourselves if the loved one is terminally ill but it still doesn't mean we have come to terms with it. The one who is gone is gone, the ones left behind face the greatest challenge, greater than the death itself.

Various religions offer different perspectives. Some promise rebirth, others, heaven, some salvation and so on. All those are theories, their rewards of promises may inspire an individual to do the right thing while living, they may offer consolation to those left behind, such promises remain unproven claims though. Nothing beyond that. While on the topic of death and bereavement, I could quote you from Bhagavad Gita, from Bible, from Buddhist texts and the rest but I do not wish to offer you consolation, it is not my aim to introduce you to some philosophy. Instead, I just wish to share my own thoughts.

First and foremost, I want you to know that you will never be able to forget them. Any efforts you specifically direct at forgetting them will only make you miss them a great deal more. This is the harsh truth. And why should you forget them? Would you like to be forgotten when you are gone? When you begin to understand and accept the fact that the departed one has a permanent place in your heart, in your memory, in your life, a subtle healing begins. Do not force yourself to erase them from your memories, to exclude them, just let it be for a while, let Nature take its own course, let it settle. Bereavement heals one over time.

Grief has two key elements, namely, shock and denial. When you lose someone suddenly, to an accident for example, it takes much longer to get over the shock. Primarily because Nature did not grant you the time to get ready, to prepare yourself mentally. We slip into a state of denial and disbelief. That leads to an inner resistance. And such resistance leads to inner struggle, depression and melancholy.When you lose someone to a terminal illness or someone who battled for life for a long period before they passed away, the shock and denial is not any less, it is just of different type. Either way, it is traumatic. Imagine losing a limb, no matter how dexterous or perfect the artificial limb, it can never match the original. The void created by the death of someone can only ever be partially, imperfectly filled.

Acceptance is the key. I am not talking about accepting their death, I am referring to accepting the fact that it is painful for you, that it is hurting you, and that everything else is simply a theory. Allow natural healing to take place, allow your emotions to outpour, give yourself an outlet. You can't afford to have them bottled up, that will make you angry and eternally sad. If you allow Nature to help you absorb and accept the loss, you will find it easier to live without their physical presence. Just like happiness, like laughter and joy, sadness and sorrow are basic human emotions. These make us who we are. Do not curb them, be natural, be yourself.

What do you do when you are happy? You laugh. Is it not perfectly normal then to cry when you are sad, when you are missing their presence?

A realized Zen master was seen crying at the funeral of a man. Most were somewhat surprised, they thought the master had risen above the human emotions. It was an unusual sight to see a monk cry. A child went up to him, tugged at his robe and said, "Why are you crying?"

"He was my friend," the master said. "I'm crying because I'm sad."

If their thought makes you cry, just cry, let it out. Don't hold it back. Some may advise you to focus your attention elsewhere, to go out, to forget and move on etc. You can adopt any method, any philosophy, any theory that makes you feel stronger and better but the truth is, you can't fake your emotions, you can't lie to yourself. The greater the number of memories you have with the one you lost, the harder it is to forget them. No matter how intense the heat, puddles dry up quicker than ponds whereas oceans never. How long it will take you to move on depends on whether your store of memories is a small puddle or a gigantic ocean. You are going to miss them on their birthday, their death anniversary, on your own birthday, on other important events, on small incidents. This is natural. Let it be. You may as well make them and their memories a part of your life. After all, death is the other side of the life. You are standing at one end of the river and they on the other, you are on this side of the horizon, and they on the other.Horizons don't disappear nor the river of time ceases to flow.

Our emotions make us human, positively directed, they make us divine, misdirected, and they bring out the devil. Self-realization does not mean you lose all human emotions. To the contrary, you become so compassionate that you could cry at the slightest pain of others.

"O Ananda!" said Buddha, "parting from the loved ones is inevitable."

Courtesy: omswami.com/RAJASEKHAR IYER

"Just as boyhood, youth & old age are attributed to the soul & the embodied soul continuously passes through these cycles, similarly the embodied soul passes into another body at death. The wise man does not get deluded & bewildered with such a change."
(Srimad Bhagavad Gita)

I'LL TAKE TWO PLEASE

"If the only prayer you ever say in your entire life is thank you, it will be enough."
                                                                                (Meister Eckhart)

When I was in Bali several years ago, I had the good fortune of visiting several temples. Before entering each one, we were asked to tie a sash around our waist as a symbolic gesture of "containing our appetites" as we prayed. It seems that the Balinese believe in the power of prayer, and even more so, in the value of asking only for what is most needed, and not more.

I found this ritual and way of thinking quite striking, especially in contrast to the "abundance" mentality in our culture. For years, I've listened to public figures and motivational authors encourage me to think big, dream big, and imagine big. As the message often goes: "The sky is the limit, but only if you believe that you're deserving of such great things." In contrast, the Balinese encouragement to pray small felt surprisingly refreshing.

While there is something to be said for setting big goals and wishing for grand things, I'm also aware of the shadow side of such ways of thinking. When we sit with a large cup of wanting, it takes a lot to feel filled up. It can make it harder to experience gratitude for what we have when it's being measured as less than what we're hoping for.

As I tied my sash and entered their temples, I reflected on how entitled I've acted at times, with my big wishes and dreams -- how I possess my own inner-version of that girl from Willy Wonky who "wants the golden goose and wants it now." In recognizing this, I thought that maybe I should ask for a second sash, just to offset my cultural tendencies. Mostly, I wanted -- and still want -- that second sash to avoid the suffering that comes from wanting more than what life can really offer. It's safer to stick with wanting to want less, especially so that we can experience the relief and joy that come from allowing things to be as they are.

I trust that a healthy balance can exist between "dreaming big" and "wanting small." This is especially true if we're able to keep our desires and aspirations in proper proportion with our gratitude and good intentions. By balancing these things, we can set our sights to achieve extraordinary things, practice thankfulness for what we have, and stay grounded in the wisdom that we don't always know what our life might hold and what is in our best interests.

I felt this type of balance as I knelt in those Balinese temples with a sash tied around my waist, a sense of gratitude in my heart, and a metaphoric sparkle in my eye for all that I dreamed my life might hold.

I hope that you, too, can experience a sense of ease between your wishes for what might be and your gratitude for the beauty of what is.

Courtesy: DailyGood (Original Article in huffingtonpost.com)/RAJASEKHAR IYER

WHAT IS BEAUTIFUL?

(Beneath beauty lies a sense of connection. Whatever you can connect with, you will find it beautiful.) 

What is beautiful? Something that is attractive, pleasing to look at? Or is there more to it? When it comes to the first impression, no doubt, external appearance can make an immediate mark. If you look at a pretty woman or a handsome man, it is only natural to find them appealing. Regardless of your marital, social or religious status, you cannot artificially deny their external beauty. Pretty pathetic should you do that, if you ask me. That said, if external beauty was all that irresistible why would there be any breakups among the stars, luminaries and the well endowed? Allow me to help you reflect on the notion, definition and concept of beauty. I read a story once. I am quoting it verbatim. As follows:

An elderly woman and her little grandson, whose face was sprinkled with bright freckles, spent the day at the zoo. Many children were waiting in line to get their cheeks painted by a local artist who was decorating them with tiger paws.

"You've got so many freckles, there's no place to paint!" a girl in the line said to the little fella.

Embarrassed, perhaps hurt, the little boy dropped his head.

His grandmother knelt down next to him. "I love your freckles. When I was a little girl I always wanted freckles," she said while tracing her finger across the child's cheek. "Freckles are beautiful."

The boy looked up. "Really?"

"Of course," said the grandmother. "Why, just name me one thing that's prettier than freckles."

The young kid thought for a moment, peered intensely into his grandma's face and whispered: "Wrinkles."

Aww... that's so sweet, right? But will you marry or even look after the grandmother for her wrinkles?Probably not. Will you see the same beauty in her wrinkles as did the little boy? Only if you are that boy.However, it is not about that. Beauty cannot be chained by a string of words or some definition because what is beautiful is never about them, it is about you. It is not absolute, it is relative, relative to your state of mind, to your own perception. Whatever you connect with you will find it beautiful! With whoever you feel secure and complete, you will find that person beautiful. That is why, the wrinkles may truly be the most beautiful thing for the little boy because he shares a bond with his grandmother.

The youthful Mulla Nasrudin was determined to marry a beautiful young girl from a poor family. His father wanted him to marry someone rich. "What's wrong with you?" he said, "the beauty that's blinded you is only skin-deep."

"That's deep enough for me," Mulla replied. "I'm not a cannibal."

I find this joke amusing but it also makes a persuasive point: beauty is what matters to you. It is your own reflection. As you progress in life, intellectually and emotionally, your priorities change. What you find pretty at fifteen, you may not find it half as beautiful when you are thirty. As you understand yourself better, the importance of just external beauty declines in your eyes. It does not mean the visual appeal of something or someone beautiful diminishes in your eyes, it just means you place greater value on other traits. Mostly. In the words of Khalil Gibran: Beauty is eternity gazing at itself in a mirror.

Swami Vivekananda, the awesome and brilliant monk, clad in his saffron robe, was taking a stroll in Chicago. The year was 1893. The outfit seemed unusual. A couple, dressed in formals, were ranging the same sidewalk as him and the lady said to her man, "I don't think he's a gentleman."

Her statement reached Swami's ears. He went up to the couple and said, "Excuse me for I overheard your remark. In your country, the tailor makes a man gentleman but in my country, it is the character." I don't know what happened afterwards and it's immaterial in the current context. But was the woman right in her thinking? And was Swami right in his response? Actually, it does not matter. The lady expressed what she felt and she did so not directly to Vivekananda but to her partner. If you retain the right to carry yourself however you like, let others have the freedom to form their opinions. Media, society, advertising, religion, they all bombard you with stereotypes, sometimes subtly and many a time explicitly. The more you let others' opinions matter to you, the more you move away from your internal source of happiness. Besides, albeit on an extraneous note, I am doubtful if Vivekananda's statement holds much truth in the contemporary India where corruption, at all levels and in all sectors, is more an accepted way of life than a grave governance issue. Unfortunately, it almost seems that anyone who gets the opportunity is ready to plunder. Whether that's a businessperson trying to dodge the taxes, or the employee polishing his time sheet, or a government worker who doesn't mind openly asking for his cut or kickbacks. People who are honest, not because of fear and governance but out of morality and choice, are rare gems. There are many workers of honesty but a few volunteers. There may be an emotional denial to my statement but the facts are staring right into the truth — and it is not beautiful to the sane eyes. I enjoyed this little digression, let me get back to the matter at hand:

Why do you want a divorce?" the judge asked the young man.

"Your Honor," he said, "I can't stand her when I'm sober and she can't stand me when I'm drunk."

When someone does not find you beautiful, please know that it is mostly about them. (Hope you don't interpret this as a moral of the joke.) While you may change a little to work a common ground to see what the other person likes, but beyond that, there is not much you can do. If you want to win approvals of others, if that is what moves you, well then, you better dress, behave and be the way they want. If you vainly want to keep the world happy, you have to play a puppet in its inept and clumsy hands. You pay for the dress but the strings come attached at no charge. If for a moment though, you remove external affirmations from the equation, if you eliminate their acceptance from your perception about you, how will you behave, what will you do? In my opinion, that is how you ought to look at yourself. It is infinitely more important to find yourself beautiful when you look in the mirror than for others to find you pretty when they look at your picture. No one is looking at you with naked eyes; who you are and what they see is out of sync. Their sight is filtered by their lenses of beliefs, perceptions and desires. They see what they want to see — this is where beauty loses its independence. Learn not to bother. It's worth it. As long as you are honest with yourself and you are doing your best, you are just fine. A long post, this. Oh! even beauty can be a drag.

If you can complement yourself, you can complete yourself. When you feel complete, when your cup fills up, everything looks beautiful. Beautiful is what you connect with, what matters to you. You are beautiful.

Go on! Tell someone how spectacular they are and how they have made your life beautiful! Once done, repeat it in the mirror. Don't tell me you haven't yet fallen in love with yourself.

Article Courtesy: omswami.com/Raja sekhar

RAKSHA BANDHAN! 'RAKHI' - THE THREAD OF LOVE!

RAKSHA BANDHAN! 'RAKHI' - THE THREAD OF LOVE!

The chaste bond of love between a brother and a sister is one of the deepest and noblest of human emotions. 'Raksha Bandhan' or 'Rakhi' is a special occasion to celebrate this emotional bonding by tying a holy thread around the wrist. This thread, which pulsates with sisterly love and sublime sentiments, is rightly called the ‘Rakhi’. It means 'a bond of protection', and Raksha Bandhan  signifies that the strong must protect the weak from all that’s evil.

The ritual is observed on the full moon day of the Hindu month of Shravan, on which sisters tie the sacred Rakhi string on their brothers' right wrists, and pray for their long life. Rakhis are ideally made of silk with gold and silver threads, beautifully crafted embroidered sequins, and studded with semi precious stones.

The Social Binding

This ritual not only strengthens the bond of love between brothers and sisters, but also transcends the confines of the family. When a Rakhi is tied on the wrists of close friends and neighbors, it underscores the need for a harmonious social life, where every individual co-exist peacefully as brothers and sisters. All members of the community commit to protect each other and the society in such congregational Rakhi Utsavs, popularized by the Nobel laureate Bengali poet Rabindranath Tagore. 

The Friendly Knot

It won’t be wrong to say the fashionable friendship band in vogue today is an extension of the Rakhi custom. When a girl feels a friend of the opposite sex has developed a kind of love too strong for her to reciprocate, she sends the guy a Rakhi and turns the relationship into a sisterly one. This is one way of saying, "let’s just be friends", without hurting the other person's soft feelings for her.

The Auspicious Full Moon

In Northern India, Rakhi Purnima is also called Kajri Purnima or Kajri Navami, when wheat or barley is sown, and goddess Bhagwati is worshipped. In Western states, the festival is called Nariyal Purnima or the Coconut Full Moon. In Southern India, Shravan Purnima is an important religious occasion, especially for the Brahmins. Raksha Bandhan is known by various names: Vish Tarak - the destroyer of venom, Punya Pradayak - the bestower of boons, and Pap Nashak - the destroyer of sins.

Rakhi in History

The strong bond represented by Rakhi has resulted in innumerable political ties among kingdoms and princely states. The pages of Indian history testify that the Rajput and Maratha queens have sent Rakhis even to Mughal kings who, despite their differences, have assuaged their Rakhi-sisters by offering help and protection at critical moments and honoured the fraternal bond. Even matrimonial alliances have been established between kingdoms through the exchange of Rakhis. History has it that the great Hindu King Porus refrained from striking Alexander, the Great because the latter’s wife had approached this mighty adversary and tied a Rakhi on his hand, prior to the battle, urging him not to hurt her husband.

Rakhi Myths & Legends

According to one mythological allusion, Rakhi was intended to be the worship of the sea-god Varuna. Hence, offerings of coconut to Varuna, ceremonial bathing and fairs at waterfronts accompany this festival.

There are also myths that describe the ritual as observed by Indrani and Yamuna for their respective brothers Indra and Yama.

Once, Lord Indra stood almost vanquished in a long-drawn battle against the demons. Full of remorse, he sought the advice of Guru Brihaspati, who suggested for his sortie the auspicious day of Shravan Purnima (fullmoon day of the month of Shravan). On that day, Indra's wife and Brihaspati tied a sacred thread on the wrist of Indra, who then attacked the demon with renewed force and routed him.

Thus the Raksha Bhandhan symbolizes all aspects of protection of the good from evil forces. Even in the great epic Mahabharata, we find Krishna advising Yudhishtthir to tie the puissant Rakhi to guard himself against impending evils.

In the ancient Puranik scriptures, it is said that King Bali's stronghold had been the Raakhi. Hence while tying the rakhi this couplet is usually recited:

Yena baddho Balee raajaa daanavendro mahaabalah
tena twaam anubadhnaami rakshe maa chala maa chala

"I am tying a Rakhi on you, like the one on mighty demon king Bali. Be firm, O Rakhi, do not falter."

Why Rakhi?

Rituals like Rakhi, there is no doubt, help ease out various societal strains, induce fellow-feeling, open up channels of expression, give us an opportunity to rework on our role as human beings and, most importantly, bring joy in our mundane lives.

“May all be happy
May all be free from ills
May all behold only the good
May none be in distress.”

This has always been the idea of an ideal Hindu society.

Courtesy: About.com.hinduism/ Rajasekhar Iyer

HAPPY INDEPENDENCE DAY

Lets spread the cherish all Over That I LOVE INDIA.

I LOVE INDIA!!! Not only on 15th August and 26th January!!!

But each and every Breath of my Life says I LOVE INDIA!!!

What ever the language I speak, wherever i reside let me rise

my head in pride and declare Mera Bharat Mahaan..............

CELEBRATING INDEPENDENCE DAY 15 AUGUST 2013.

For some people this is just an ordinary day but for true Indians like me it is everything. It was August 15, 1947; the nation woke up breathing in the air of freedom to herald a new beginning.  The day when India woke up to freedom back in 1947 was a day of great celebration. A country got rid of her foreign yoke and became a sovereign nation; she celebrated her sovereignty on this day - the triumph of numerous martyred souls. It was a day of fulfillment; it was the day of a new beginning, a birth of a nation. On the stroke of midnight, a country came into life again as the British handed over the governance of India to the Indian leaders. The long and difficult struggle had borne fruit at last, though the happiness was marred by the fact that the country was divided into India and Pakistan and the violent communal riots had left the countries permanently scarred. It is the freedom that gave India a new Identity as a sovereign country after 300 years of colonial rule. Since then it has become a day of special significance – celebrated with the Tricolor, the parades, the patriotic speeches and songs, the remembrance of the soldier who fought for the freedom of our country India.

Today India is celebrating 67 Th Independence Day in the true sense we will have freedom and independence only when we stand for the development of our country with sincere efforts and whole heatedly  Think about the Best for our country still not yet reached. We live in hopes and enthusiasm but nothing is done pragmatically So Friends think about how best we can contribute ourselves to the Nation with out depending on this Government and Politics. I am sure that day you will be called as an identified Indian.”It is very important for youth of India to take an opportunity and become a part for growth of the country.

May the happiness and joy of this freedom, achieved through the

Struggle and sacrifice of thousands, who fought and gave up their lives,

Be with us through out our history and May we forever be indebted

and beholden to those sons of our soil, that made it possible for us to

Live and breathe in a free and independent world.

I wish you a Happy Independence day, Jay Hind, Jay bharat. 
I am proud to be an Indian.