Devil Of The Mind

                Navratri and Dussehra –         Victory of true self over our ego The beginning of Navratri leads to the festive cheer and mood. It marks the beginning of auspicious nine days of worship to Maa. She is worshipped  with lots of enthusiasm  and fervour in different forms by the devotees. As a kid we were told the stories of Goddess slaying demons like Shumbh, Nishubh and Mahisasura. But rarely were we told its significance to our own lives. Navratri means ‘nine nights', when we worship the three forms of Goddess, Durga, Lakshmi and Saraswati. Symbolically, Maa Durga destroys the Mahisasura in us, the tame guna .Tamo means buffalo, the representation of laziness, darkness and inertia. Worshipping this form of goddess dispels us from darkness and leads us to our true potential. Maa Lakshmi, is symbolic of wealth, the rich spiritual wealth. Maa Saraswati symbolises Knowledge, the knowledge of true se...

'राम नाम मनिदीप धरु जीह देहरीं द्वार। तुलसी भीतर बाहेरहुँ जौं चाहसि उजिआर॥' Says Goswami Tulsidas He says the very name of Ram is like a lustrous stone which can dispel darkness both inside and outside. In today's time when we all are busy running after maya( illusions), there is hardly any time to read holy scriptures. That is why it is suggested that in the modern times only his name would help us sail through the worldly ocean.  Ram naam ki loot hai loot sake to loot.  But who is this Ram we are talking about? We know of one Ram, the son of King Dushrath, who was born in Ayodhya in ancient times. He was heroic and one of the incarnations of Lord Vishnu. The one on the auspicious occasion of Dusshera defeated and killed Ravana, the demon king. Is it for this very reason Dusshera is celebrated every year;  let good prevail over evil. Well if this is so then there are many heroic characters in the history. Shall we worship all of them? T...

न मृत्युर् न शंका न मे जातिभेद:  पिता नैव मे नैव माता न जन्म न बन्धुर् न मित्रं गुरुर्नैव शिष्य:  चिदानन्द रूप: शिवोऽहम् शिवोऽहम् || I have no fear of death, no caste or creed, I have no father, no mother, for I was never born, I am not a relative, nor a friend, nor a teacher nor a student, I am the form of consciousness and bliss, I am the eternal Shiva... SHIVA the destroyer appears in two opposite forms- Shiva  TheAscetic ( Omniscient Yogi) and Shiva The Shankara ( the householder). How can a God associated with destruction appear as two extreme ends of existence? For this it is important for us to realise that the three  God theory where Brahma the creator ; Vishnu the preserver and Shiva the destroyer together forms Brahman makes Hinduism a monotheistic religion. Out of the three only Shiva is the one who is a mystic and mysterious .He is seen as an Ascetic who resides in Kailasha with ash smeared on his body; Ganga flowing through his jata ; Vasuki ...

" Piping down the valleys wild,  Piping songs of pleasant glee,  On a cloud I saw a child,   And he laughing said to me"    William Blake wrote this in his poem SONGS OF INNOCENCE  Childhood is supposed to be the gleeful and innocent phase  of life which is free from any bondage.But this poem was  written couple of centuries back. Those times when  children had a carefree childhood. When children  were not bombarded with processed knowledge.  When there was no access to information on  internet. When rational thinking and inquisitiveness  were satiated by self exploration and discovery.   Children used to be more in commune with the  natural environment.  In today's time children have lost touch with  themselves.They are alwaysdependent on external  sources of information to  com...

" Khusro baaji prem ki jo mei kheli pi ke sang Jeet gayi to piya more jo mei haari pi ke sang"!! This couplet by famous urdu poet Aamir Khusro says it all.Love is beyond any sense of loss or gain. It is a win win situation in every respect. The moment we start comparing with our beloved the very essence of love is lost. Love is complete surrender, a total immersion in the self.  This beautiful feeling called love itself is the source. There is no pretentiousness, no mask, no superficiality in Love "Apni chavi banayke jo mei pi ke paas gayi, Jab chavi dekhi pihu ki apni bhul gayi"!! Indeed there cannot be two self in Love. It is the complete submission of one into another. This submission and surrender has a subliminal quality in love that brings us closer to the truth. Love is the ultimate freedom yet a universal bond that keeps the cosmos in balance.                             ...

" Rahiman itna dijiye jame kutumb samaye,    Mei bhi bhuka na rahu, sadhu na bhuka jaye" A famous couplet which many of us know by heart. This couplet talks of contentment,sufficing ones needs and talking about service to the society. No greed, no materialism and no lust. Oh it sounds outdated.We human beings as a race have come a long way. It surprises me that even though the couplet is outdated the basic needs remain the same. Although we have come a long way there are still people dying of hunger, homelessness and above all lack of means to fulfill their needs. On the other hand ever since this was written we have seen a newfound surge in materialism.The human greed has increased manifold and it's nowhere to stop. Money rules the roost!! Money has become new God.We measure everything in money even happiness. Human race is mad about possessions and materialistic hunger is at its peak. Even the door to achieve enlightenment is made of glitz and gold.  Wh...

"A man can be himself only so long as he is alone, and if he does not love solitude, he will not love freedom, for it is only when he is alone that he is really free."said a famous writer. Solitude or the state of being alone is a luxury in this fast-paced life.In today's hustle and bustle of life we are always bounded by our duties and responsibilities.        Right from the dawn till dusk we lead a monotonous robotic life as if somebody has put the switch on and off we go. We are busy trying to connect with everyone,making friends and leading an active social life. The more we are connected with others the more empowered we feel. The entire life goes in pleasing others and becoming a slave of the society. This social butterfly syndrome is contagious and engulfs the whole society. In order to connect to others we are disconnected to our core and to our own self.  That is why many a great souls have stressed upon the importance of solitude as it empowers m...