How to control mind

HOW TO CONTROL MIND:

Now forgetting the entire world let's focus our attention on the art, how to control minds? We all wish to succeed in life, that means we wish to feel good, we wish to be able to think well, we wish to be able to do good. Then we must know how to control the mind. How it works? This is the universal common need because life has been created by God. Hence life is sacred all of us has tiny parts of God, wish to be perfect like he is perfect. How to control the mind for that kind of success?Some people have a lot and yet they fail miserably, some people have very little and yet they lead rich and successful lives. I will give you one instance of either case so that we can draw conclusions from it first. The first kind of typical example I came across was of Elvis Presley.He was the icon of a generation, he was called the king of rock, and roll or more simply the king.He has blessed with exceptionally good looks a golden voice as a result of it. He became super celebrity, he had amazing wealth exceedingly popular and he had what was his life. Here's a description of an average day of Elvis Presley, during his last four years have performed on the stage. When he would return, he would tell his retinue of servants, give me the first hit. They would give him in a paper different coloured crystals of different barbecue rates, and they would give him a shot of drugs under his shoulder blade then a race would begin. How much he could eat and drink before he fell asleep? He would then fall off asleep, and the morning four o'clock he would wake up. Now with less enthusiasm, because he was drugged.He failed to control the mind. He would say give me the second hit, they would again jab an injection under his shoulder blade and give him some crystals to eat. That would keep him knocked off through the morning around 12:00 or so. Third time when he woke up whether he asked or not. They would give him the third hit in the early night. He would take some chemicals to bring himself, back into energy and go and give his performance on stage and then repeat this process his closest associates. When asked why does he do this? Said, he is so unhappy. He wishes to forget himself, that is why he does it here the example of someone who had so many blessings and yet his inner life was a miserable failure.Now contrast this with somebody who was his contemporary. This was a lady who most of you have heard of her name was Helen Keller. Helen Keller at the age of 18 months, she caught a virus as a result of it. She lost her sight and her hearing two of the five senses became dead. So from the age of one and a half years, till the age of six, little Helen Keller used to throw tantrums. She didn't have means to communicate when parents would touch her she would go into a tantrum. As a solution her mother took her to a school for the physically challenged and Sullivan was the principal of the school. She touched Helen Keller, and little Helen again threw a tantrum Hansole. Even told the mother leave her with me, tonight I will take care of her.So when the mother had gone and Sullivan placed little Helens left hand under the water faucet and with the right hand she drew indicated water for the first time in her life, little Helen understood that physical entities have designations or names a light went on inside her. She thrilled on this little bit of learning. She wanted to learn more that night, she learned the names of 30 objects.She has to control the mind.She continued to keep learning, she learned to Braille. She went on to become a graduate and started doing philanthropy around the world, as she became famous she desired to give lectures. So she wanted to learn how to speak, she did not know how to hear and yet she learned how to speak and she delivered lectures around the world. She lived till a ripe age and at the end, she said life has been so beautiful. I've enjoyed every single day see from one perspective, she had so much less than others and from another perspective. She had made her life success on these three parameters to feel good to think, good to do, good so to be successful internally and externally. God has bestowed all of us with many assets our body, our resources, our family, our social status, our set of skills and knowledge. Very often we sideline these, we underestimate these and we think I am NOT happy because of this-this-this. Do you know this guy doesn't behave properly? That's why I'm not happy, the situation is not exactly right for me. That is why I'm justified in having negative thoughts, God is not taking care of me so much. That is the problem, in other words, we do not know how to control the mind.We tend to rationalize for our negative thinking by blaming externals.If we do that we will never succeed in the art of mind management, we will never succeed in controlling the mind.Because the first step is to take responsibility for what I think, for what I feel, I am responsible I should not blame anybody else. I was once taking a walk in Delhi, I was crossing a bridge and I found a person in tattered clothes standing on the railing of the bridge.He seemed to be gathering his resolve to take a leap into the water, seeing what he is about to do. I screamed stop now, he hesitated and the moment was lost you. See people who are thinking of committing suicide, if they lose the moment, the thought process change as I jumped up he jumped down.

Happiness is in your mind

Happiness is in your mind:

Have you ever had the experience of getting into your car in the driver's seat, turning on the ignition switch and pressing the accelerator only to discover that, the car is not moving ahead, as expected and then you realize that, the handbrake has not been disengaged? Now with the handbrake engaged, if you had continued to press the accelerator it would have resulted in one of two consequences, either the brakes would overheat and have a meltdown or the engine would overload and have a breakdown. We need to check whether in life are emotional brakes are disengaged or not today on the first day of this Happiness challenge. I am going to discuss with you the first tool to manage our mind and thereby become a happier person, and what is that to disengage our emotions from the external situation. Very often the circumstances are not under our control. I'm reminded of a geologist, who went to survey the holy Ganga along with a map in his hand as he walked along in one place the map said the Ganga, should we're to the right but the Ganga was turning left would this man became frustrated. He threw the map and went from there saying, if the Ganga is not going to follow my map then it is useless. Now is that a proper expectation should the Ganga follow his map or should his map follow the Ganga in the same way. The world is as it is can, we not just shift our attitude a bit to make it happier two friends, having been in an accident together were admitted to the same ward of a hospital. Both were bedridden, but the first friend would be made to sick up for one hour every day to drain out the fluid from his lungs .During that time he would get to see outside the only window of that warrant, he would describe the wonderful garden outside with the migratory birds bathing in the fountain. That was at the center and the flowers blossoming on all sides and wonderful old ladies basking in the Sun hearing it. All the second friend's world would come alive, what a stark contrast to the dreary hospital environment .But then he began resenting, why does this guy get to have all the fun? why is God so unfair upon me? One night the first friend began coughing, it was a different kind of cough! As if he was choking the appropriate thing would have been to press the emergency Bell, but he could not think of it the second best thing would have been for his friend to press his emergency Bell and call the staff. But he was so full of hatred, he thought he is suffering good, he deserves it the first friend continued to cough for a little while and then all was quiet. In the morning the nurses discovered the dead body and removed it without much ado. The second person allowed a few days to go by to avoid any suspicion, then he made a request can my bed be moved close to the window? The nurses said that's fair enough, he was moved to the other side. He then requested, I am now reasonably well ! can I be made to sit for a little while ?They hoisted him up and he looked out of the window, and saw the stark wall of the nearby warehouse. He asked the hospital staff, what is this ? They said this is the warehouse next to our hospital. But he asked what was it ? That my friend was seeing they responded. That was the beauty of his own mind. The moral here is that, no circumstance can force us to be unhappy ! If we are gloomy, it is always a choice that we make and we can do to think differently let us exercise. The stool to make ourselves happier, when circumstances make us unhappy! Let us remember that, it is not the only option .We have we can as well choose to be joyous in other words nothing forces us to be miserable, it is only a choice that we make as the saying goes. Two men looked out from the prison bars, one saw the mud and the other saw the stars. We will continue this Happiness challenge and I wish to provide you to equip you ,with similarly powerful easily accessible internal resources without any need for external essence, to enhance your Happiness and the Happiness of people around you .There by making a happier world for all of us .

How to manage stress in life

HOW TO MANAGE STRESS IN LIFE:

We all experience that our duties get affected by the moods. When the mood is off, the mood is not optimal, you can't perform well. If our mind could always be in an elevated, inspired, uplifted mood, we will naturally performed well. While you work, you experience there is tension, anxiety, fear, hankering, aversion,greed. All these negative emotions are present in the mind. They are impacting us and together they are creating STRESS. What is the STRESS? Today we are in the 21st century. The world has speeded up with mobile phones and pagers and SMS and whatsapp and viber and tweets. The speed of the world has increased, and the consequence is STRESS. While we have rapidly conquered new frontiers in science, when it comes to conquering the mind, humankind is at a stand still. Problems of the mind are ever increasing. We have harnessed external nature. But when it comes to internal nature, we are at a failure. Albert Einstein said science has succeeded in denaturing the plutonium atom but it is unable to denature the evil in man's hearts. How to conquer the mind? Science doesn't have a solution and hence STRESS has become a universal phenomenon. So what is STRESS? To an engineer, STRESS is the force in a machine part, in a beam, in a structure that tends to shear it, twist it, turn it, break it, bend it. We also experience STRESS in our emotional personality when we encounter the external world. When we were little children, we were hungry and our mother was not around. We experienced STRESS and cried. And as grown-ups, as factory manager, you experienced when your boss says the production is not up to the mark. Your job is under danger. The causes of STRESS are infinite. So let us try and figure out how spirituality can help us MANAGE STRESS? First of all understand that stressful situations are always there in the world. But our stressful response is the one that causes problems. Difficult situations will always be there in the world. Don't expect a world free from difficulties Once in a while people say, "for what reason does God give me challenges ?" " Some people go beyond, "if God is sending hardships then I don't believe in God. He should give me an easy life." But just think it the student who is studying all the year long, if he says teacher I don't want any tests. I will only study, no tests. The teacher will say, then how will you go into the next class? The test is there to help promote you to the next class. Similarly God deliberately has created a world with difficulties. It's not that there is a defect in his design. You know he wanted to create a perfect world but by chance the world has got earthquakes and cyclones and hurricanes. Is there a defect in his design? No. The Chandogyopanishad says, why did God allow earthquakes etc to be a part of nature? He could have changed the physical properties a little, so there would be no earthquakes. The Chandogyopanishad answers, He deliberately creates challenges so that people don't become complacent in their situation. The difficulty forces them to manifest their latent physical abilities, mental, psychological, emotional, spiritual abilities to face the challenge. That is how they grow.Now if you say, just remove it, then growth will be retarded. when God gives us difficulties, it's his way for filling up our wings so that we can fly high. But we look for somebody who can cut our cocoon, who can remove our difficulties and give us an easy life without realizing it is those difficulties that help us, prepare us for the flight ahead. Do any of you have difficult circumstances in your life? Everyone has. This is the nature of God's design. He says I want you to keep progressing. I will keep sending difficulties not to pull you down, to help you grow further and further and further so that one day we can become perfect. The Bible says be perfect. Even as your father in heaven is perfect. God wants us to reach that perfection where we are like him and he has arranged for difficulties. But in those difficulties, we should not become internally STRESSED. So the point to understand here is, hard work never STRESSES us. You can work from morning to night, and still be unstressed. What STRESSES us is attachment to results. When we are attached to results that is what STRESSES us out. If instead of being attached to the results, if you could focus on your effort, you will do a far greater and better job. That is the art of work. You have the right to do your work. Do it nicely, properly, with full focus. But don't be attached to the results. The results come for so many reasons: your present efforts, your past Karmas. Some people they do a little work, and get great results. Some people do great work they get little results. There's past Karmas , The efforts of others. Now if there's a job interview and fifty people have applied, one of them has to be selected. So the efforts of others as well the general karma of the whole place. An earthquake happened to come. what to do? The will of God, sheer chance. "You happen to be in an unlucky spot." So the results are not in your hands. Don't be be attached to them. You have the effort in your hands.You put in the effort. It will solve all the problems.

What is happiness and how to be happy

What is Happiness? How to be happy in life

Happiness: The biggest belief that we will establish within ourselves is in regard to Happiness.where are we convinced we can get true Happiness? That one decision will determine the trajectory of our life. If somebody firmly believes that Happiness is in money, his entire energy, his entire effort is spent in the pursuit of earning money. If somebody believes that Happiness is in achieving prestige and fame, then that is where his entire energy goes. If somebody believes Happiness is in God, then he strives to know and love God. So, this puzzle regarding Happiness needs to be solved to put our lives in the proper course.

There was once a crow that became unhappy about his state. He thought, "I have this dark and ugly colour." "If I were a swan, I would be white-coloured and so happy!" The crow went to the swan, and said, " Mr Swan" "you must be the happiest bird!" In contrast to me, y yo have this milk-white colour.

The swan said, "Mr.crow" "I thought I should be happy until I saw the parrot." "And then I realized, I am a single coloured Bird." "He is a double-coloured bird." He is the one, who must be happy!

The crow then went on to meet the Parrot. And he said, " Mr Parrot" "you have this green colour given to you by God." "And you also have a tinge of red....in certain places." These 2 colour of yours in contrast to...my single dark colour. You must be feeling very Happiness! The parrot said, "I thought was happy... until I saw the peacock and the LUSCIOUS SPLATTER of colours on the peacocks tail!" That made me really HAPPINESS. The crow in his search for the secret of Happiness then continued and found a peacock. "Mr.peacock "" God has created you with great affictioaf." He has filled you tail plumes with such rich violets and indigos and greens and blues."You must be a feel really Happiness." The peacock said, " Mr.crow" "I thought I should be happy, but because of all those colours, I was put into the ZOO." If I didn't have such attractive colours, then I would have been a free bird! The crow then realized nobody seems to be fell Happiness. So what then is the secret of Happiness?

According to our VEDAS, SHASTRA, BIBLE- there is one kind of Happiness that degraddes you. If you run after it, it pulls you down. And there is another kind of Happiness that uplifts you.

The first kind of Happiness is called PREYA. And the second kind of Happiness is called SHREYA. The KATHOPANISHAD states if you run after SHREYA, your life will become auspicious and blessed. If you run after PREYA, it will be a pathway to hell.

What is PREYA? And what is SHREYA? PREYA is that Happiness, which seems to be extremely sweet right now. But later on, it turns bitter like poison. Like for example, if you choose to have a third helping of the ice cream to satiate the taste buds of the palate, it is sweet no doubt! But later on, after a few years, when your cholesterol has started increasing and the arteries have started getting clogged, you realize, "oh my God, this is the cause of untold suffering!" On the other hand, SHREYA is Happiness, which is bitter right now. But later on, it becomes very sweet. Like for example, if you have to get up in the morning, and spend 40 mins, doing your YOGASANS. It is not so pleasing to the mind. However, it bestows you good health and a comfortable long life. So SHREYA seems to be bitter in the present. And that is why the mind seeks to run swaa from it. This is the engima of life. Things that are beneficial are often difficult! And things that are enjoyable in the present are often harmful.

The student who runs after immediate Happiness will have to reject knowledge, and one who is a student the seeker of knowledge will have to reject immediate Happiness. Similarly, in life, good things always lie upstream. In other words, to reach them we need to embrace DISCIPLINE, AUSTERITY, HARDSHIP and the mind rebels against it. When we choose Happiness in the wrong place, that becomes the course of our miseries. Hence, with our intellect, we need to analyze and understand and where is real Happiness that will satisfy me.

The Happiness that you experienced was merely the satiation of the desire. The pain that the desire created was eliminated, and you are thinking," I am happy!"

The real Happiness is in GOD. The Taittiriya Upanishad states that he is Ocean Happiness. And upon reaching him, we will become truly happy. So how will we reach GOD? VERY SIMPLE!

When we clean our hearts. When we purify our mind. In other words, REAL HAPPINESS will only be experienced by growing from within- by becoming a better person from inside. If we can understand this one important point, then rather than running around for external enhancement, we will give a priority in our life for internal growth. Think about it!

Many of you may be in your 40s or 50s. You have been running for external progress for so many lifetimes. What priority have you accorded in our life for inner growth? And because that inner growth has not taken place, the external progress is not leading to fulfilment.

Now reverse the priority. Give more importance to the inner victories. Make its primary value in life to become a better person. And the better we become from the inside, the closer we will find we are to genuine Happiness that satisfied the soul.

So let us establish this firm conviction within ourselves that to be happy it's not that we need a TREMENDOUS AMOUNT OF MONEY, or fame, or titles, or houses etc. All we need is to become better people. When that is our conviction, when that is our faith and our belief, then the trajectory of our life will be AUSPICIOUS, WILL BE BENEFICIAL, WILL BE UPLIFTING, WILL BE SUBLIME.