Someone is reading all this?

Finally, someone is reading my blogs! Rohit 'The Putthar' Mahajan, called up to say he likes what I write! 

But then, good writing does not equate to good communication. If it were so, the youth wing would have moved from static to dynamic to dynamite a long time ago. If communication does not lead to action, it remains a diarrhoea of words. Like this post.

Little Epiphanic moments

Just realized that, in service: It is not in what you do, rather, in what you see in what you do. The mind rules over matter. Milton was the one who said that, they also serve who stand and wait.

Science vs. Spirituality

The timeless (and pointless) fight between science and Spirituality continues in my bathroom.

I have, since January 01, 2009, braved the elements and the forewarnings of Science to bathe in cold water. So, technically, it's Yogananda vs. Science here. He used to emphasize on cold water baths aiding immunity, whilst Science tells you that a cold water bath will get you cold. 

Last month's winner has been Spirituality.

It's never too late to regret

When your future arrives, it will be too late to regret. But if regret begets renewed effort, it's never too late.

Emotional vs. Rational

Poohpooh got a new laptop for herself yesterday, 18th Feb. In other words, I got her a laptop that would suit my specifications! Did a good amount of research and spent two hours. She commented that she would have spent as much time buying a pair of shoes. Buying shoes of your choice is an emotional decision. 

Buying a laptop should be a rational decision. Same effort, different objectives. 

Timeless strain

As it's Valentine's Day, thought I'd add a verse penned years back. 

Speedier than your momentous birth,

Does death glee in fiendish mirth;

Time, the desirous knave

With his gilt edged scythe will engrave

Upon thy tender cheeks, lustrous eyes,

Crooked arcs and jagged lines.

But your heart will call in singular strain,

Beyond the walls of time’s domain;

And your soul will seek and your soul will find,

Your soul is mine, sheaths behind.

For Baby Akshitha, aka 'Shilty The Dilty'

Sleep well my love, 

Thy tender cheek on my shoulder,

Tiny paw across my neck,

I hold you like the blessing of a thousand lives,

My cherub of Heaven,

I sing to you a lullaby for God,

With a voice that fails before and after,

I protect you with the strength of the universe,

Sleep well my love.

This night is aeons long,-

To gasp at the lustrous wonder of your eyes

Caress your exquisite perfection

Revel in your mellifluous notes,

Swoon at your every step,

Sleep well my love,-

I pine for tomorrow.

Defeating our demons

Defeating the demons within and without is a lofty goal, but then, all goals worth aiming at were never at spiritual sea level.

Valentine's Life

Today is Valentine's Day. A day to demonstrate to your spouse that you love her. In today's world, the demonstration warrants the concomitant element of reckless expenditure, probably the most important element! In other words, the flowers, the words and the card constitute the confirmation of 'I do (what?!)'. 

Probably yet another foible that is intricately woven into the general psyche of mankind. There is a specific day for love, a specific day for gratitude, a specific for this, and a very specific day for that. 

Even breathing is a blessing, and we breath throughout the day. Yet, we remember to show gratitude once a week. When will Valentine's Day become a Valentine's Life?

Super Excited - BEMCO Vessel and Praveen's Ark

Pretty exciting day today. 

Spiritually: Five people are joining the Youth Ark today. Fallout of the Parthi pilgrimage no doubt. Sad part is that only one is a man,-Rajesh. Just confirms my suspicion that spirituality is for women, and religion is for men. Hope the first meeting of this year and my last year with the youth proves to be a guidepost for the future. Sai Ram!

Professionally: The second BEMCO vessel reached Aweer around 6.00 AM, sans transit insurance! When your organization is small, and your efficient people multi-task, everybody ends up doing everything, and somebody ends up forgetting something. Small things that slip-up. And it had to be the transit insurance this time round. However, our RH and LH, JK and Aji were there to ensure it reached the site. A job very well done.

Wise words from Bro. Nagraj

You cannot plan for everything, but you can pray for everything. 

Explanation versus Experience

I was once asked how I could refer to God as Absolute Reality, without suggesting what I meant by Absolute Reality. My answer is that God is an experience, not an explanation. The Atma, probably what Schopenhauer referred to as Infinity, is not only unknown, but also unknowable. 

28-01-2009 Destiny Redefined for Muthey

Muthey has her life made. The Avatar talked to her today for the first time since has seen the form. This is The moment of non-relative Truth. Sometimes, it's just the matter of Sambhashan, irrespective of the matter of Sambhashan.

In fact, the entire group was Blessed. We got special seating for the Mandir. The Avatar entered when a Krishna bhajan was being sung. No one seems to know why we are being pampered so much. It is eerie!

27-01-2009 Day Two of Destiny continues

After sheer Heaven, Heaven gets even more Heavenly. Bro. Suresh offers me front row for afternoon Darshan. Youth have also been Blessed to coordinate Blood donation, video, museum and Omkar sessions. 

The interlude between morning and afternoon Darshan was consumed with an incredible guilt-trip courtesy the video at the Museum. I doubt anyone who watched the video left tear-glands and guilt-cords intact. An ex-student relayed a discourse with the Avatar that there are many sages in the Himalayas who have been meditating for over a 1000 years, in spite of which He blesses them with very short Darshans, sometimes not more than two minutes. Here, the students are fed with infinite Amrit, and not one of them deserves one millionth of it. Worse still, not one of them is making use of it. If Sai students don't deserve so little, imagine us little folk. This ghastly feeling of absolute worthlessness is so overwhelming!

 Sai Ram!

27-01-2009 Day Two of Destiny - Epiphanic Moment

The Avatar came up to him and spoke to him. Also gave him Padanamaskar. His life is made.

Epiphanic moment in the life of Praji. The Avatar came upto him and made the standard opening gambit of "Where do you all come from?" To which was his natural answer, "From the Middle East". He could have also added, "...and from spiritual Timbaktu". However, it didn't strike him as much to be so frank with God. 

The Avatar's next question was, "Where do you come from?" His answer, which should slowly become his experience, was "From you, Swami." And so begins Prajeen's life. 

26-01-2009 Day One of Destiny

Finally reached the Abode today. We had reached Bangalore during the early chilly hours of the morning. After the initial chaos at the airport, we hopped into three buses and woke up right at the Gate of the Infinite. Sometimes, words castrate communication. Explicating this experience is just one of those times. 

Anyway, we got ushered inside in a short while, and to our individual rooms in even shorter. In fact, we got to utilize the Blessing of the Donor accomodation for the first time this time. Can we ever thank the Avatar and His Apostles enough? In fact, it might be an year to this date when Uncle first offered the Donor accomodation to us. 

First Darshan took, like forever. He came at His time, and at His pleasure. We were so worried that there might not be this First Darshan. In fact, He did not come in the car itself. The afternoon Darshan was as much. 

Had a detailed discussion with Ramakant in the evening. He has proved himself to be very purposeful. He even mentioned that I am jealous of Sai students. Well, more like sympathy than jealousy. A Sai student is a student of Sai, and one of the outstanding students of Sai that I have met is not even a student of any Sai institution.

But the shock of the day was when he mentioned that he was aware only after months of attending bhajans that there were five wings to the Organization! This was a big slap in the face of my fallacy that Sai students should enter the real world running. Even they need to be fertilized and fended. His admission that Sai students see the real world only after leaving the institute puts so much in perspective now. I guess I need to show a lot more patience. How much more, I don't know. Sai Ram!

Duty and liberty

God has never taken a holiday from His duty. The sun always follows His dharma. So should we. We can always check-out, but we can never leave.

Opinions and Opinations

Come to think of it, having opinions is easy. Having valid reasons for the opinions is not very.

Leadership

Leadership is not about popularity, leadership is about probity. It is about principles. Our actions should be viewed in the light of their correctness, not in the light of our own popularity.

30-10-2008 - On insulting the Avatar

I have heard singers say that if I get only one bhajan, I won't sing. Or active workers say that I was offended, so I will stop coming. We have the Sai Niketan orphanage of Trichur just two rows behind our house. When I was there this time, I saw two orphans left. And during our visit, one of the children was being taken away to his adopted parents. The only one left was a girl with cerebral palsy. And she was asking me to lift her (she cannot walk) and show her the butterflies. I paused to ponder how extraordinarily foolish we are, and how much we insult Krishna who has given us legs to walk, hands to fold in prayer, families to belong to, and parents to pray to.

One need not be weatlthy to be charitable, but definitely intellectually impoverished to consider it beneath him.

Some of us regularly insult the Avatar by calling ourselves Sai devotees. Imbued with the imbecility of status and inebriated with the impertinence of our positions, we fail to see a world beyond, a world that is suffering.

One day, the prana will leave this body, and it will start rotting. The coroner will never mention that he drove a BMW and studied in the US. But he will pray that this soul be elevated by the benedictions of the hands that he helped.

I was in Guruvayoor last week, specifically on Diwali day. I saw one sweeper engaged in his craft, as intense as Leonardo da Vinci would have been when doing the Mona Lisa. I thought to myself, not one Sai youth has ever given his name to clean the Mandir. Yet, many are less than 10 kms away. When we don’t help others, we hurt ourselves. We hurt ourselves by the many opportunities of redemption that we forefeit. Every day is a microcosm of our life, ever hour of ever year. 

12-02-2009 - Adoring the Object, but not the Objective

Some thoughts that crossed my mind during bhajans today. Believing in Krishna also implies Believing Krishna. The Avatar is the Messenger as well as the Message. How often do we tend to adore the object, and overlook the objective.

When Krishna says, “Brighter than a 1000 suns, I am the Creator and Destroyer of the World”, we tend to believe because it sounds so God-ish, and cool. When Krishna says, “My work is my Blessing”, it doesn’t sound as magnificent. Redemption is not only our birthright, but also our responsibility,- and we have to execute our responsibilities as much as we enjoy the privilege.

The spiritual apple never falls by itself. We have to make it happen. Awareness is an endeavour, not a happenstance.

30-01-2009 Defining moment for the future of the group

A defininig moment for the future of the United Arab Emirates. The Avatar relayed through messenger Rohit that He would grant us prasad in the afternoon. In fact, He repeated it thrice, meaning something would happen. All were in absolute thrill that Rohit had been blessed with a conversation. 

However, it became evident that something momentous in our current lives was to take place when the seva dals split the entire group into single rows flanked by devotees on either side. And it happened. The Avatar moved through all the aisles and offered vibhuthi to each and every devotee. He even spoke to some of us. Just about every devotee took Padnamaskar as well! No one could believe what had taken place. In fact, everyone else in Kulwant Hall was stunned to note the attention and Blessings showered on Region 94. We, could, but naturally, experience the pinnacle of Bliss and the depth of unworthiness.

I was pretty sure that this could have been the result of the incredible seva and intense sadhana undertaken... in previous lives!

It is payback time now and, it is upto us to demonstrate gratitude (co-incidentally the theme of this Chinese New Year celebration at Parthi) by service to man. Jai Sai Ram!