Avoid being an ingrate
Every
day is a wonderful happening. In the society that we lead our livelihood we
naturally encounter many situations in which others help us directly or indirectly.
It is only just to convey our gratitude to them for whatever they have done.
Particularly it is a bare minimum expectation when we have explicitly asked for
the aid. But unfortunately nowadays, quite often we find ourselves in circumstances
where the beneficiary turns out to be an ingrate and does not even thank the deserved
ones.
Aesop
narrates one such story of a Wolf who is ungrateful. It so happens that the Wolf
would have killed a Deer and munching over its meat. While doing so a small
bone inside the meat gets stuck within the Wolf’s throat.
He tries hard to
swallow it but wouldn’t succeed. With his throat pain increasing, he begged everyone
for help. Many of the animals avoided him but a Crane agreed to remove the bone
from his throat and get rid of his pain.
“I’ll
get you a load of fish”, promised the Wolf. The Crane asked the Wolf to lie on
his back and keep his mouth wide open so that he could reach the end of his
throat.
The Crane put his long beak through the Wolf’s jaws and tried to hold
on to the bone. After struggling for a while, the Crane successfully took out
the bone much to the Wolf’s relief.
“Now,
when will you get me whatever you promised?” asked the Crane. The ungrateful Wolf
grinned arrogantly and said, “haha… if I wish I can kill and eat you now. I’m
leaving you free and consider that as your reward. Don’t be so foolish to
expect that I’d bring you a load of fish”.
And he walked away without even
thanking the Crane for his help.
Let
us avoid being an ingrate as the Wolf. If we cannot do justice to help the
others who have helped us in an equivalent manner, at least a heartfelt
gratitude would suffice.
Thou Heal Thyself
The current situation in the world is not something that we can be proud
of. Well, there are numerous creatures in existence on this planet and we
humans are one among the diverse earth life forms.
And the cause of worry is
that over 95 % of entire world’s population has one or the other health issues.
It is as though the whole of human race is plagued by diseases. As noted by Science Daily, in 2013 just one in 20 people reported that they had no diseases. This staggering number converts to approximately 4.3 % of
world’s population.
So it implies that the rest
95.7 % suffer from various diseases. And, here is a more astonishing fact –
cause of these diseases appear to remain the same in the past two decades.
The
analysis completed by Global Burden of Disease Study also indicates that few of
the major health disorders continually distressing human beings are mental
depression, low back pain, anaemia, neck pain and hearing impairment.
That
obviously explains the agitation about carrying out experiments to obtain a
cure to these illnesses and a failure to have reached any logical conclusion.
What are causing these problems? Why are we unable to find any reasonable
explanation and accordingly treat the patients with these ailments?
It seems
though that we are not getting anywhere about these questions. However, as
always happens in such situations, hope carries us forward. And in this case,
hope shows us the way in terms of alternative therapies.
The
field of medicine that looks beyond the conventional ways of treating a disease
is getting recognition and following gradually. It is not that surprising,
anyway for the reason that the basic premise in most of these alternative
healing techniques is that healing occurs naturally.
“You heal yourself”.
Thus
people who apply their rational mind towards obtaining a reasonable
justification wouldn’t get one. How can one remove a disease by himself just by
the help of nature? Is there a scientific evidence to it?
Well, allopathy has
evolved to such a state in which there is a justification in terms of chemical
reactions of drugs that will be consumed and resulting healing effects on our
brain and physical body.
In
this context of alternative medicine, an array of such practices claimed to be
derived from principles found in nature that is gaining popularity is
“Naturopathy”. As you can observe from the term, it is strongly associated with
nature. It involves a few techniques such as homeopathy, herbal medicine, water
therapy, dietary counselling, acupuncture and acupressure.
A
naturopath is someone who utilizes these natural therapies and administers them
to patients in order to heal them. One of the core principles that a naturopath
strongly believes is in the innate healing power of nature.
The known fact that
human beings are part of nature along with other life forms becomes an
important factor to be imbibed in one’s mind. It banks on the belief system
that our body has the ability to take care of itself. Of course it might
require help in the process and which is what is getting facilitated through
various techniques.
This process would be a combination of relief resulting
from outside the body and a cure that is an outcome from within the body.
The American Association of Naturopathic Physicians (AANP) defines
naturopathic medicine as:
"A distinct system of primary health care-an art, science, philosophy, and practice of diagnosis, treatment, and prevention of illness. Naturopathic medicine is distinguished by the principles upon which its practice is based. These principles are continually re-examined in the light of scientific advances. The techniques of naturopathic medicine include modern and traditional, scientific, and empirical methods".
Another important ideology of naturopathy is to find the underlying
cause of illness and treat it accordingly. It has always been alleged that
allopathy provides quick relief to the ailment thereby easing the pain or
reducing the symptoms however results in adverse side effects in most cases.
Naturopathic physicians think of symptoms as an external manifestation of a
disturbance in the harmony of energy flows into and out of the body. This
disturbance can be caused by either physical or mental imbalances or even a
combination of both.
So naturopathy tends to go into the depth to understand
the cause and believes that removal of cause will free the patient of disease
without creating any other side effects.
“Prevention is better than cure”, goes the old adage. This is of utmost
importance while practicing naturopathy. It involves looking at the whole
person and not just barely glancing at the disease symptoms.
The lifestyle of
patient is discussed, dietary counselling will be held as part of the therapy
which goes beyond solving the current problem. The person currently being
treated would become far more powerful within his or her environment and avoid
getting into the traps of illnesses lurking to drain the energy in
possession.
Considering
the underlying philosophy, naturopathy seems to have successfully treated
chronic conditions. Patients suffering from these diseases would have lost all
hopes of getting back on track with the conventional therapy.
As a last resort,
they would have come to seek help from naturopathy. And, yes, we hear many
testimonies of alternative therapies healing them completely or at least would
have brought them hope of living a fulfilled life.
Of
course it comes at a price. And here the price one has to pay is in terms of
time & patience. Yes, naturopathy does not administer a magic potion that
if one drinks would immediately be cured of all diseases.
It has its own way of
healing. It consumes lot of time, requires a healthy, open communication between
the patient and doctor. More importantly it demands lot of patience from both
the person being treated and the one who carries out the treatment.
Well,
even though naturopathy is still considered to employ pseudoscientific
practices to obtain a cure for a disease, prevent occurrences of ailments by
analysis of patient’s holistic environment, it is gradually getting attention.
There is also strong resistance from medical professionals that naturopathy is
not only ineffective but also dangerous and unethical. But remember, doing no
harm is one of the pillars on which naturopathy rests. It advocates techniques
that are gentle, non-invasive and announces that human body has the power to
heal itself.
Do
we really have that power? Has nature already bestowed us with this ability
that we have forgotten? Or is this just another fad which will not last long?
Only
time will reveal the truth.
What does it take to get inspired?
Got
bored of your dull daily routine? Fed up of doing the same thing again and
again each day? Lack motivation in attempting something new? Don’t worry. You
are not alone.
Each of us have been engulfed with some constraints that hold
back us in life. At times these situations go to such an extent that we won’t
be able to break away from these shackles. So what is the way out?
Experts
suggest that inspiration is the solution. So what is this magic of inspiration
and what does it take to get inspired?
Well, to put it plainly to get inspired
means to do something special. Remember, “special” is relative and not
absolute.
However when we have to extract meaning out of this abstract topic in life, we
will have to confine the boundaries to that of an individual.
And so for a
particular person, if something “special” results as a process of mind stimulation then that person can be thought to have been inspired.
Is
this just random? Does it happen spontaneously and cannot be exercised or triggered
at our own will? This is quite a contentious topic by itself.
Some believe that
it just happens and that we need to keep an eye and be vigilant to spot and
catch hold of it. Of course there are some others who tend to argue that
inspiration can be systematically brought into our lives.
Do
they work for everyone? Maybe. But you cannot say “yes” or “no” just by looking
at the list. You will have to work through at least a few of them before you
nod your head in agreement.
Well, there maybe something else of course that
works for you to get inspired which is not in that list.
Rather
than contemplating if it would work or not, why don’t you give it a shot? As
the adage goes, “Actions speak louder than words”, let us get into action.
Let
us get inspired. Share with the world what inspires you and how did you realize
that!
Goal of Life?
Life, as we know it, seems to be simple but at the same time exhibits
variety of complications. One may think he is living a satisfactory life filled
with all the riches in world and yet his inner conscience yearning for more.
There is always an internal desire in every human being that keeps driving a
person to achieve something in order to reach a stage of contentment. Every
individual feels he lacks “that” in life which, if existed, could lead him to
perpetual satisfaction. Have you experienced it?
Well, then at least for the moment achieving “that” would mean having
led a life of accomplishment. In layman’s vocabulary, “that” is called a goal.
It is the objective of one’s hard work and aspirations. Perhaps, yes, it is
true that successful people in world have emerged victorious in something that
they cherished in.
But can it be said without any doubt that they have attained
the “goal” in life?
Do you say it depends on the individual? Why not? As separate entities,
all of us are different. We have our own lifestyles, carry disparate dreams,
wish for various stuff in life. And when we obtain what we wish for as a result
of our immense efforts, tough situations that we have endured the satisfaction
that occurs is imminent.
It obviously brings pleasure, happiness and gratification. Does this qualify to be considered as reaching the goal of life?
Maybe yes, if we are to confine ourselves within the context of
individuals. But is life, in the context of universe, just a constitution of
individuals? Is there anything binding the individuals that cannot be
visualized? Is there something to be considered as a “common goal” of the
entire human race?
In this context, Swami Vivekananda says “Pleasure is
not the goal of man, but knowledge.” He opines that pleasure is not everlasting
and suggests that it is a mistake to suppose that pleasure is the goal.
He
extends it even further by attributing such thinking to the physical and mental
distress that world is witnessing. But he also indicates that sooner or later
man will realize the truth.
It is then, he advocates, the person who had been
misled that his attainment of pleasure had fulfilled his goal would become
aware that pleasure is only a milestone in the path but not a goal by itself.
In the same vein, philosopher
Adi Shankaracharya notes in his composition
Bhajagovindam as below:
He goes on to say that a
person may go to the Ganges (revered because of its powers to destroy one’s
sins and purify the person), observe rigorous fasts & ceremonies and donate
money towards charity but yet cannot attain liberation even after a hundred
births if the person does not possess knowledge.
So, it is quite evident that there
is a lot of emphasis on gaining “knowledge”. However the next obvious questions
need to be answered, which are “what is this knowledge that great ones are
talking about?” and “How do we gain this knowledge?”
Join
us in our journey to explore answers to these questions.
Oh My Consciousness!
Well, something
is not right. The familiar one is “Oh My God!” isn’t it? Is it deliberate?
These are the questions that immediately show up in front of us and yes, of
course, everything does not seem to be alright.
So let us embark our journey to
gain more insight on this topic and possibly get some directions for obtaining the
right answers.
The
plain definition of the word consciousness is “the state of being aware and
responsive to one’s surroundings”. And, in general, that is pretty well
understood you say? Hold on for a while.
Is it that simple? Are we really “conscious”
enough? Now that is a tricky question. To answer this, let us understand the
source that can be attributed to satisfy the definition. Which entity is
responsible for maintaining a state of awareness?
Is it the body, mind or
something else? Some amount of rational thinking will rule out that body is
responsible. Nobody has “seen” mind, even though we associate many of our feats to its power.
We talk of its capabilities but at present science has a
limitation in understanding it entirely. It is something that can only be
experienced.
Having talked about body and mind, the subsequent question any
sane person will ask is if there is something else that is not known to us yet
which might be the source of holy-grail – consciousness.
The
closest modern science can get in explaining mind is by exploring the
powerhouse of a human being – brain.
Neuroscientists enjoy their involvement in
performing experiments with respect to human brain, monitoring its actions,
measuring its performance in various situations and propose many theories that
would look weird at the outset.
Possibly
it would have been simple enough if the research had stopped there, but here
comes the interesting bit. The theory says that consciousness is not a
privilege of humans alone.
The researchers extend it to “any” object for which
their experiments are able to “detect” consciousness. You guessed it right – it
includes the entire world – animals, plants, cells, etc.
The possibilities are
endless. We may not be able to differentiate if consciousness is within us or
we are engulfed within consciousness!
Koch
has debated his thoughts with the Buddhist spiritual leader Dalai Lama and
concluded that in many ways his research agrees with that of Buddhist
philosophy.
And
that is what makes the researchers say, “consciousness as an intrinsic,
fundamental property of reality.”
Currently it is a theory. Pure
rationalists might just dismiss it as it is.
However, if we happen to get an
evidence in favor of the researchers, there might open new avenues to
understand the scheme of universe, ultimate truth, no assumptions – only pure
reality.
Self-realization – What does it truly mean?
Before
any attempt can be made to provide an explanation, it must be understood that
everything in this world can be thought of problems and solutions to those
problems. As many intellectuals have already noted, “to solve a problem, one
needs to have a clear & thorough understanding of the problem itself”.
So
what is the problem here? The quest for getting to know the truth would
obviously direct us to the problem – what is the real meaning of
self-realization? So let us start by analyzing the problem.
The term self-realization
seems to be self-explanatory and we get a rough idea that it has something to
do with becoming aware of one’s own self. Easy, isn’t it? Yes, but is the
definition complete? What does one’s own self mean?
Is it the body that moves,
eats, drinks & takes a nap? Is it the mind that thinks, prompts one to act,
and visualizes the different fantasies of the world? Is it both of these,
neither of these, or a combination of these with something else?
One of the simplest
definitions is “Self-realization means becoming aware of this universal, cosmic power, available at all times. ”
Ah! Now what is this all non-sense
stuff about cosmic power? It may sound absurd, however when one thinks about it
in depth, it has to be acknowledged. We are surrounded by it all the time.
Its
only sad and disappointing that we have lost our intelligent faculties to
identify it, be in harmony with it and grow along with it. Of course all the
different cultures on this earth have duly noted this.
Its only that they have
named it according to their convenience. You have surely heard of “Chi”, “Tao”,
“Prana” right? And the list continues. Ever wondered what do they mean? As
Confucius narrates the parable of a baby fish and its mother, we must realize that every one of us is engulfed with the same cosmic entity.
Ok,
hang on…It is not a surprise that by reading the above lines many of you may
have dismissed it outright. Yes, it does not bring any excitement and sounds
just as if someone is pointing to the clouds overhead and say “look at that,
there is water in there!”.
Of course everyone knows the principle, sea water
evaporates and form clouds. One would say that after science has proved this by
performing experiments and we have been trained by means of education to accept
things that are rational to us, that make sense to us.
Unfortunately,
the topic that we are dealing with is not something that can be perceived by
everyone in the same intensity of light. Some need more and others can manage
to grasp the truth with less.
And the interesting part lies in the control of
intensity - who controls this? It is the individual who has the control!
Yes, we do have the
ownership of controlling this intensity in order to bring ourselves into the
path of truth, to understand our own self.
Science has not yet been
able to provide a step-by-step approach to direct us towards the control. Maybe
it will happen soon.
Let us see what we can do in the meantime to help ourselves
to realize the truth.
Welcoming another new year
As we
step into another new year, there is a lot of stuff going on in the back of our
minds. Of these, some are conscious enough to get converted into resolutions
and some others quite abstract, thus remain hidden beneath the pile of
thoughts.
At a time when we look back at the happenings of an entire year gone
by and introspect, it is important for us to think of the year ahead.
During this exercise, we realize
that while one cycle has culminated, another one has begun its journey.
Inevitably, being part of these, there is an urge from within all of us to
break out from such a routine and be free forever.
Is it possible to gain this
freedom? The answer lies within ourselves.
It
depends on the intensity of desire to destroy the shackles of such bondage. The
more will one puts into this effort, the more success the person would taste.
The
accompanying pain one endures might eat away the current lifestyle but prepares
the same person for a better livelihood in due course of time.
This is the
reason why Benjamin Franklin aptly commented -
Be at war with your vices, at peace with your neighbors, and let every new year find you a better man.
Let us
strive to become better in the new year.
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