Om Namah Shivaya

Om Namah Shivaya

I'll be grateful if you...

Jan 27, 2011

MUSIC: Andrew Bird's One Man Orchestra


Musical innovator Andrew Bird winds together his trademark violin technique with xylophone, vocals and sophisticated electronic looping. Add in his uncanny ability to whistle anything, and he becomes a riveting one-man orchestra.

Why you should listen to him:
Andrew Bird began to play the violin at age 4, learning to play Bach and Mozart by ear as if they were folk tunes. Though raised on classical repertoire, he still has little use for the written note and spins melody and words out of his cumulative experience, mixing elements of many genres without confining itself to any one in particular. While his early work with his band Bowl of Fire was influenced by pre-war jazz and showcased his violin skills, his sound began to evolve in an indie-folk direction after he went solo. But indie-folk -- or any single genre -- is just a backbone for a swirl of loops, samples and gorgeously rich instrumentation underpinning lyrics of mysterious import.

In 2002, Bird flew his Chicago coop for rural Illinois to live the rural life (yes, he had chickens) and set up his studio in a converted barn. This new environment inspired his 2003 solo album, Weather Systems, which has a surreal quality and poetic, thought-provoking lyrics. His sound progressed further with his 2005 album, The Mysterious Production of Eggs, which used multitrack recorders and loop pedals to layer samples, and featured more guitar, whistling and glockenspiel. Bird released his fifth solo album, Noble Beast, in early 2009 to acclaim; he's now working on a film score and an art installation.

"The violin is just the easiest way I have to express what's in my head. I'll just fully, unconsciously do whatever it takes to make that sound happen."
Andrew Bird

Now sit back and enjoy his unique style of music and his talk Click here

Text and Image Source: TedTalk
To know more about him, visit Wikipedia
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ॐ नमः शिवाय
Om Namah Shivaya


Jan 26, 2011

Happy 62nd Republic Day...


At Bay of Bengal, Chennai
On the 62nd republic day of my country India, today 26th January, 2011, I reproduce lyrics of ‘Vande Mataram’ as well as the beautiful Vande Mataram song sung by A R Rahman, Oscar winner ( Nominated again in this year’s Oscar).



The Song Vande Matram is well known as the National Song of our country. In this song, the two words ‘Vande Mataram’ many freedom fighters remembered to chant while being sentenced to rigorous punishments in Court or being hanged to death. This national Mahamantra Bankimchandra wrote the song ‘Vande Mataram’ on 7th November, 1875.
Although Vande Mataram is a long verse, but nowadays only part of the same is sung more frequently.

Vande Mataram
(Translation by Sri Aurobindo)
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Republic day celebrations at our locality today
Vande Mataram
Mother, I bow to thee!
Rich with thy hurrying streams,
bright with orchard gleams,
Cool with thy winds of delight,
Dark fields waving Mother of might,
Mother free.

Glory of moonlight dreams,
Over thy branches and lordly streams,
Clad in thy blossoming trees,
Mother, giver of ease
Laughing low and sweet!
Mother I kiss thy feet,
Speaker sweet and low!
Mother, to thee I bow.
Vande Mataram
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To hear a beautiful rendition of the Song by Oscar Winner A R Rahman, Click here



Text Curtsey: HinduJagruti.Org Click here to read more…

ॐ नमः शिवाय
Om Namah Shivaya



WHISPERS: Flowers and Traffic Lights...


Here is some selection of Free Form HAIKU, written in past week..


Flowers of love
Carry the scent of ocean within
And colors of passion; rise and fall
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Her heart so serene
My hands; rough and coarse
Could only hurt
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In her silence
My lips find a whisper
Burning on her lips
__

Her finger nails
Tattoo name
Sighed softly
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Traffic Lights
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Slowly, the chaos of mind
Returned, like the traffic
On defunct red light
As winter night, slowly engulfed
The long winding wet road
In its cold embrace

Darkness, falling in continuous stream
Of grey snowflakes
Shimmering in red hues of life
Just like time
Piling up coldness,
In blood reflecting red rains
Of memories

Slowly shadows of mind
Came to a stand still

No desires, no needs, no feelings
Just a silent past, revving up deep inside
Waiting
Waiting to pass through
The present stillness, headlong into future
Storm

Yet!
Just before
The pedal could hit the floor
And shoot through
The chaos of my passion;
I broke free

From
Shackles of life lived
That coiled me up, in serpent like senses
Ready to strike
At any movement
At any stillness, that comes out alive
From the shadows of mind

A life, wasted in living,
Starts to change
Red, orange, green
And I walked across the road
Looking back, one last time
A car still buried deep
In the traffic of the living
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ॐ नमः शिवाय
Om Namah Shivaya

 Submitted to One Shot Wednesday, WK 30
To add yours and read some great poets, click here

Jan 25, 2011

WHISPERS: Deep Forest, Sun rise and senses...


I love to write Haiku and enjoy them very much. As per the rules, it has to be confined to 5/7/5 syllables and within three lines, though I usually don’t adhere to these rules much. But as the topic for this week’s Potluck was Rules, I have limited my self to this particular rule and posted Haiku below that conform to this rule. To know more about Haiku form, have a look at the write up I have done as a guest writer at one of online community of poets, Click here…
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Hope you will all enjoy this little effort.

 Seed, in giving birth
Didn't die; Just changed into
'Being' the tree, it was
__

Depth of forest is
Not known by the trees, its breeze
That walks the long path
__

Bodhi tree wants to
Live in Buddha moment; Plants
Time, in depths of 'now"
__

Dawn tiptoes softly
Into her dreams; kiss her soft lips
With golden sun rays
__

In the fire of lust
My senses stoke their desires
Refueling passion
__

My desires; her needs
Makes daydreams of her soft lips
Touching mine; so real
__

Pour passion through lips
Into my heart; let your love fill
My soul; complete me
__

You wanted me to
Be empty, empty of you
Love; I broke my heart
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ॐ नमः शिवाय
Om Namah Shivaya

 Submitted to POETRY POTLUCK - Rules, Regulations and Laws...

Jan 24, 2011

THE READER: Old Path White Cloud - Thich Nhat Hanh


“Old Path White Clouds: Walking in the Footsteps of the Buddha” is one of the best books on Buddhism where Thich Nhat Hanh a Vietnamese Buddhist monk, has sourced from 24 Pali, Sanskrit, and Chinese to tell the story of Buddha. In very simple style, Hanh has walked the footsteps of Buddha from his childhood to his Nirvana. If you have to read only one, book on Buddhism, this one should be sufficient to completely satisfy all your curiosity. Its one of the amazing books, I have had read many times in last decades after one of my good friend gifted it to me.

Thích Nht Hnh (born October 11, 1926) is a Buddhist monk, teacher, author, poet and peace activist now based in France. Nhat Hanh has become an important influence in the development of Western Buddhism. His teachings and practices aim to appeal to people from various religious, spiritual, and political backgrounds, intending to offer mindfulness practices for more Western sensibilities. He was awarded the Courage of Conscience award in 1991.

To read more about Hanh, please click here
Author Images: Wikipedia
Book Image Curtsey: monasticdialog.com

Below are some of the book’s quotes, some times the words of Buddha and some times the philosophy of Buddha, that has touched me deeply for your to read.
_____________________
From the Book:

Everything in the universe is created by our own mind. Our mind is the source of all phenomena, Form, sound, smell, taste and tactile perception such as hot and cold, hard and soft – these are creations of our mind.

Our consciousness is like an artist, painting every phenomenon into being.

The realm of no materiality is the state in which we see that no phenomenon exists outside of out own mind.

You can not make fire with soft, wet wood. The body is the same. If physical desires are not mastered, it’s difficult for the heart to attain enlightenment. I will practice self mortification in order to attain liberation.

He (Siddhartha) realised that body and mind formed one reality which could not be separated. The peace and comfort of body were directly related to the peace and comfort of the mind.

In reality, all things were without a separate self. Non-self or anatman was the nature of all existence.

One included all and all were contained in one.

Seeing the interdependent nature of all phenomena, Siddhartha saw the empty nature of all phenomena – that all things are empty of a separate, isolated self. He realised that the key to liberation lay in these two principles of interdependence and non-self.

He saw that the birth and deaths were but outward appearances and not true reality, just as millions of waves rise and fall incessantly on the surface of the sea, which the sea itself is beyond birth and death.

Understanding and love are one. Without understanding there can not be love. In order to attain clear understating , it is necessary to live mindfully, making direct contact with life in the present moment, seeing what is taking place with and outside of oneself. Practicing mindfulness strengthens the ability to look deeply and when we look deeply in the heart of anything, it will reveal itself. This is the secret of mindfulness – it leads to the realization of liberation and enlightenment.

Life is illuminated by
- Right understanding
- Right thought
- Right speech
- Right action
- Right livelihood
- Right effort
- Right mindfulness
- Right Concentration
Siddhartha called the Noble path: Aryamarga

There are two extremes that a person on the path should avoid. One is to plunge oneself into sensual pleasures, and the other is to practice austerities which deprive the body if its needs.

There are four truths: the existence of suffering, the cause of suffering, the cessation of suffering and the path which leads to the cessation of suffering. I call these Four Noble Truths

The five aggregates – Body, feelings, perceptions, mental formations and consciousness, should be looked as five constantly flowing rivers which contained nothing that could be called separate or permanent. By meditating on the five aggregates within themselves, they can see the intimate and wondrous connection between themselves and all in the universe.

If you live simply and wholesomely, not ruled by desires, it is possible to experience the many wonders of life

… But suffering is not the true nature of the universe. Suffering is the result of the way we live and of our erroneous understanding of life.

Life can be found only in the present moment, but our minds rarely well in the present moment. Instead we chase after the past or long for the future. We think we are being ourselves, but in fact we almost never are in real contact with ourselves. Our minds are doo busy chasing after yesterday’s memories or tomorrow’s dreams. The only way to be in touch with life is to return to the present moment. Once you know how to return to the present moment, you will become awakened, and that that moment, you find your true self.
.
You can not reach lofty heights in art if you do not first discover the unsurpassable beauty in your own heart. If you would like to play the flute truly well, you must find your true self on the path of Awakening.

For a long time, humans have been trapped by the concept of atman, the concept of a separate and eternal self. We have believed that when our body dies, the self continues to exist and seeks union with its source, which is Brahma. But friend Kassapa, that is a fundamental misunderstanding which has caused countless generations to go astray.

You should know, Friend Kassapa, that all things exist because of interdep3ndence and all things cease to be because of interdependence. This is because that is. This is not because that is not. This is born because that is born. This dies because that dies. This is the wonderful law of dependent co-arising which I have discovered in my meditation.

There is no self, whether a higher or a lower self. Kassapa, have you ever meditated on your body, feelings, perceptions, mental formations and consciousness? A [person is made up of these five aggregates. They are continuously changing rivers I which one can not find even on permanent element.

If there is no self, no atman, why should one practice a spiritual path in order to attain liberation? Who will be liberated?

Once a person is caught by belief in a doctrine, he loses all his freedom.

Attachment to views is the greatest impediment to the spiritual path.

My teaching is not a philosophy. It’s the result of direct experience. The things I say come from my own experience. You can confirm them all by your own experience.

My goal is not explain the universe, but to help guide others to have a direct experience of reality. Words can not describe reality. Only direct experience enables us to see the true face of reality.

I must state clearly that my teaching is a method to experience reality and not reality itself, just as a finger pointing to the moon is not the moon itself.

My teaching is a means of practice, not something to hold on or worship

Almost all painful feelings have their source in an incorrect way of looking at reality. When you uproot erroneous views, suffering ceases. Erroneous views cause people to consider the impermanent to be permanent. Ignorance is source of all suffering.

On must look deeply into things in order to penetrate their true nature. One can not overcome ignorance through prayers and offering.

Beauty arises and passes away like al other phenomena. Fame and fortune are no different. Only the peace, joy and freedom that are the fruits of meditation bring true happiness.

The true nature of all dharma’s transcends beauty and ugliness. Beauty and ugliness are only concepts created by our minds. They are inseparably entwined with the structure of the five aggregates.

When a liberated person looks at beauty, he can see that it is composed of many non-beautiful elements. Such a person understands the impermanent ad empty nature of all things, including beauty and ugliness. Thus he is neither mesmerized by beauty nor repulsed by ugliness

Compassion is the ability to love unconditionally, demanding nothing in return. A liberated heart is unbound by conditions. A compassionate and liberated heart is true beauty.

Father, begging is a spiritual practice which helps a Bhikshu develop humility and see that all persons are equal.

Begging does not demean my own dignity. It recognizes the inherent dignity of all persons.

Because we imprison ourselves in our suffering, we loose the ability to experience the wonders of life.

In love there is suffering.

Life has a great need of the presence of love, but not the sort of love that is based on lust, passion, attachment, discrimination and prejudice. Majesty there is another kind of love, sorely needed, which consist of loving kindness and compassion, or maître and karuna.

Love that is based on discrimination, breeds prejudice

In maître and karuna, there is no discrimination, no ‘mine’ or ‘not mine’. And because there is no discrimination, there is no attachment

We should look at the nature of our love. Our love should bring peace and happiness to the ones we love. If our love is based on a selfish desire to possess others, we will not be able to bring them peace and happiness. On the contrary our love will make them feel trapped. Such a love is no more than a prison. If the persons we love are unable to be happy because of our love, they will find a way to free themselves. They will not accept the prison of or love. Gradually the love between us will turn to anger and hatred.

Majesty! According to the way of Enlightenment, love cannot exist without understanding. Love is Understanding. If you can not understand, you can not love.

If you only want your loved ones to follow your own ideas and you remain ignorant of their needs, it’s not truly love. It is only a desire to possess another and attempt to fulfill your own needs, which can not be fulfilled in that way.

Love based on compassion can provide the energy needed to respond to the sufferings of others. Loves based on attachment and desire only creates anxiety and more suffering.

Happiness that libration brings is true, unconditional happiness. It can never be destroyed. Aspire to that happiness.

Practice observing the breath and mediate on th body, feelings. Mind and objects of mind. Practicing like that, each day you will experience a deepening of humility, ease, detachment, peace and joy.

Without faith, understanding and love, life would be nothing but suffering.

Loving kindness has the capacity to bring happiness to others without demanding anything in return.

Non attachment is the way of looking at all things openly and equally. This is because that is. That is because this is. Myself and other are not separate. Do not reject one thing to chase after another.

Rahula, loving kindness, compassion, sympathetic joy and non attachment (Four Immeasurable) are beautiful and profound states of mind.

With one breath you can attain awakening. That awakening is the Buddha nature that exists in all beings.

With concentration, you will be able to look deeply7 into the nature f your body, feelings, mind and the objects of mind which are called Sarva Dharma.

Friends’, being lost in thoughts is one of the things that prevents us from making true contact with life. If you are ruled by worry, frustration, anxiety, Anger or jealousy, you will lose the chance to make real contact with all the wonders of life.

A heart burdened by confusion and weariness can be purified by the waters of enlightenment.

Breathing with awareness enables us to return to ourselves and to life.

Enduring sufferings in love and awareness can erase the bitter hatred of thousand life-times

A finger pointing to the moon is not the moon. The finger is needed to know where to look for the moon, but if you mistake the finger for the moon itself, you will never know the real moon.

If you catch a breeze and trap it in prison of love, the breeze will soon die and no one will benefit from its coolness, including yourself. Love Ananda as you would a refreshing breeze. Prakriti, if you could love like that, you could become a cool and refreshing breeze yourself. You would relieve your own pain and burden and those of many others as well.

The immediately-preceding-moment as cause is an uninterrupted process and serves as an underlying cause. Without this continual process, the rice plant’s growth would be interrupted before reaching fruition

The Lord has said that things do not need a creator that they arise from one another.

People are easily caught by the four traps. The first is attachment to sensual desires. The second is attachment to narrow views. The third is doubt and suspicion. The fourth is false view of self. The Way of Enlightenment helps people overcome these four great traps.

We must not become discouraged every time we meet with difficulty. Solutions should be sought in the very midst of hardship.

Bhikshu’s, ignorance is the second and third arrow to strike at the same spot of suffering and pain. It intensifies the pain.

Birth and death are only concepts created out of ignorance. To transcend the thoughts of birth and death and beginning-and-end is to transcend the endless round.

World is the collective whole of all things which posses the nature of change and dissolution.

We can not say that emptiness is something which exists independently. Fullness is also the same. Full is always full of something, such as full of market, buffaloes, villages or Bhikshu. Fullness is not something which exists independently.

The emptiness and fullness depends on the presence of the bowl, Ananda.

Bhikshu’s look deeply at this bowl and you can se the entire universe. This bowl contains the entire universe. This is only one thing this bowl is empty of and that is separate individual self.

Emptiness means empty of self.

Ananda, being and nonbeing are concepts which do not accord with reality. Reality transcends the boundaries of such concepts. An enlightened person is one who has transcended the concepts of being and non-being.

To die means to pass from existence to non-existence. Is there any dharma in all the universe, which can pass from existence to non-existence. A leaf,  a mote of dust, a trail of incense smoke – none of which can pass from existence to non-existence.

Waves rise and fall but the water remains. Without the water there can be no waves.

The three Dharma Seals / Three gates of emancipation:
First gate is Emptiness:
Emptiness does not mean non-existence. It means that nothing exists independently. Emptiness means empty of separate self.

Second is sign-less-ness:
Signlessness means to transcend the confines of perception and mental discrimination

Third is Aimlessness:
Aimlessness means not chasing after anything

Nothing in the universe exists independently of your own consciousness, not even nirvana or liberation.

Happiness is not the result of gratifying sense desires. Sense pleasures give the illusion of happiness, but in fact they are source of suffering.

Sense pleasures are like a pit of fire. They bring happiness only to those who are ill. A healthy person shuns the flames of sense desires.

The source of true happiness is living in ease and freedom, fully experiencing the wonders of life. Happiness is being aware of what is going on in the present moment, free from both clinging and aversion.
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ॐ नमः शिवाय
Om Namah Shivaya

STILL LIFE: From Himalaya to Ganga Sagar - A journey with Holy Ganges...

From the beginning in Himalayas

On the way to meet Mandakini

A sun filled path giving life to every thing on the way

At Devprayaag, from where the Holy River is knows as Ganges

Softly flowing through Rishikesh

At Haridwar

At Varanasi

In the plains of North India

At Kolkata, flowing next to Dakshineshwar Temple

At Gangasagar, before meeting the Ocean

The Kapil Muni Ashram at Ganga Sagar

Aarti, at Varanasi

Some wash their sins, at Kashi

Some wash their sins of their kids

Some are trying to wash their own

At Meditation Stone at Rishikesh, in the middle of the river

Jan 20, 2011

The 14th Edition of "Shadow Dancing with Mind"

Welcome to 14th Edition of “Shadow Dancing With Mind” – the first of the year 2011. To begin with let me wish every one a great, healthy and prosperous year ahead. This year end, I have spent in a most spiritual place in Himalaya’s – Rishikesh at the Sivananda Ashram (Divine Life Society ) and have had the profound experience of calm and bliss, when the first time I spent 3 hours in silent meditation on the new year eve. Here is to all, some spiritual energy from the place.

This Edition has the following topics.

TALKING POINT: This is a transcription of the conversation between world’s two great minds, Albert Einstein and Rabindranath Tagore, both Noble laureates working on two different fields of human aspects, come together on 14th July, 1930 and discussed some common question facing mankind since the beginning of thoughts, philosophy and science….

THE READER: Man's Search For Meaning - Dr. Viktor Frankl
I have had come across a great book "Man's Search For Meaning" written by Dr. Viktor Frankl, a survivor of Auschwitz.  He developed his ideas on Human Psyche now generally known as the Third School of Viennese Psychiatry - The school of Logotherapy.

STILL LIFE: This time, this section is special as I was travelling to an Ashram, so have divided into two sections.

Haridwar
Since 27th December, 2010 I was on a trip to Sivananda Ashram at Rishikesh, on the foothills of Himalayas for a week of mediation. Rishikesh is Yoga Capital of the world according to some and for me its one of the powerful centers of positivity.

Gateway Buddha Cafe - A Spiritual journey
Start of an interesting year in an interesting way. I took a week’s off from work to take on a spiritual journey towards Himalaya’s. Rishikesh has always been my favorite place to download all the negative energy that gets accumulated in me, while living in the concrete jungle of various metro’s and the cities over the year…

WHISPERS: This time whispers have two sections of poetry, with each section having some selected free form Haiku, my favorite style of poetry. The first verse is about living life as a wandering soul, still searching for meaning and the other is about pain and longing from a night…

The Wanderer...
Submitted to One Shot Wednesday WK 29

Reflections From A Dark Night...
Submitted to One Shot Wednesday WK 28

Hope that you would like this edition and wish you again a great year ahead.
Please join in to follow the path with me, in search of meaning through various thoughts and writings and discussions here…

ॐ नमः शिवाय
Om Namah Shivaya



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