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Tag: action

What is the proof?

What is the proof?

Published August 19, 2020

It has become a big deal to proclaim and trumpet the number of hours one spends on spiritual practises including attending satsangs, doing yoga asanas, meditating or reading scriptures. These activities quickly find their way into facebook, instagram and other social media. Nothing wrong in that.

One person spends her time attending seven Skype satsang sessions every day. Yet she herself admits to having all sorts of issues – desires, attachments, problems at home, problems at work – you name it.

Why this disconnect? Why do the hours in satsang or spirituality not translate into real life positive changes?

The answer is simple. Because there is no application. The change we seek must come from within. Reading a book or attending a discourse have little meaning if the learnings are not applied, consistently, day after day. To quote an oft-quoted example, we can all read 100s of books on the technique of swimming, but will never learn unless pushed into the water.

This does not mean we must reduce the hours one is spending on these good activities. But an hour spent less, instead of resulting in regret, should ideally culminate in real world implementation. Came across some lessons on anger management? Super, now see if you can control your tongue – no lashing out – especially in the company of your irritating but well-intentioned friend. Read something about the importance of being charitable? Great, now go out and see if you can donate 10% of your income this month to a charity of your choice.

In this case, the proof of the pudding, is in the doing.

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Overcoming indecisiveness

Overcoming indecisiveness

Published August 14, 2020

Should I choose this job or that? Should I work or study? Should I learn to play the violin or the guitar? Should I take 2 weeks off this quarter or next? Should I read this book or that? Should I buy a car or a bike, and if so which brand, make, color and model? Should I buy this dress for the wedding or that? Should I buy a house or rent one? Should I get married now or wait? Should I or shouldn’t I? Should I or shouldn’t I? Should I or shouldn’t I? and on and on and on it goes.

Indecisiveness is everywhere. And we waste enormous amounts of time being indecisive.

However, indecisiveness is not a problem. Indecisiveness is a luxury. This luxury stems from the fact that we even have a choice! Many downtrodden poverty stricken individuals have no choices whatsoever in life. Their next meal would depend on them continuing in their current job, not studying, not having the opportunity to holiday, no time to read, and definitely not buy any personal vehicles.

But luxury aside, we are also indecisive because we are wary of the results of our decisions. And not making a decision is definitely not an answer, because that too is a type of decision.

Each of our actions will have its own consequences. The best part is, that the actions themselves do not matter, much.

Whether I drank lemon tea for breakfast or chamomile is irrelevant. The relevant question to ask is, after gulping down my tea, what did I do the rest of my day? After making the choice of employer, car, college, violin, or marriage, what did I do thereafter? Did I step up and change the world? Did I improve my relationship with my spouse? Did I use my education and career to add value to the lives of those around me?

We are here to make a positive impact to those around us, and we must decide to keep that up. That is the only decision that matters.

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In all fairness

In all fairness

Published July 25, 2020

“I will give you 1$. In return, you give me 100,000$. It’s a fair deal.”

No doubt, you scoff and walk away. “How the heck is that fair?”

Later, you visit a temple. You pray, “Dear God, I’m heading for the most important job interview of my life. This is going to be a career defining moment. Please make sure that I get the job.” And then in the donation box, you put 1$ and leave.

Notice the disconnect?

We expect others to be fair to us, but when we ask for divine intervention, we are not ready to give up proportionately.

Life works on the principle of karma. Action = reaction. We need to give, if we expect to receive. And we are always expecting to receive something or the other isn’t it? This in addition to all that we have already received, since the day we were born.

This is not about putting 1$ or 100,000$ in a donation box. The money is only a substitute for the many resources we can give up or share, including energy, time, effort, likes, tears, intent, passion and compassion among other things. Let us be fair.

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Where does the karma go?

Where does the karma go?

Published May 30, 2020

Every action we perform, accrues karma. Logged and timestamped in an invisible journal in an unknown medium. What we sow, so we reap. Maybe in this life, maybe in another.

We may not get it back the exact same way. Just like we may never get back the very same 100$ bill that we once deposited, from an ATM machine. But we will surely get 100$.

Vedanta teaches us that a liberated soul accrues no karma.

So what then, happens to the karma from his actions, if it doesn’t go to him?

The wise say that the good karma goes to such a person’s followers and disciples. While the bad karma goes to his naysayers.

How do we use this information? Well, we know appearances can be deceptive. So we may never know who is at what stage of spiritual evolution.

It would hence be prudent (and practical) to avoid being judgemental, argumentative or resentful, of anybody.

We are barely surviving our own bad karma. Why take on additional burden?

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