Sunday, November 30, 2008

Sri Sri Condemns Mumbai Terror Attack
November 27, 2008

Sri Sri Ravi Shankar has condemned the terrorist attacks in Mumbai and called for solidarity amongst the people. "The country is going through a terrible time and this terrorist attack has left Indians in the grip of fear and anxiety. In this situation, religious and political leaders need to show the country that we stand together against terrorism."

Sri Sri said fundamental change has to happen. He asked political leaders to not withhold any facts and information and be forthright with the people. Asking leaders to not merely blame other nations for the attacks, Sri Sri also called for attention to the problem of home-grown terrorism without which such acts are not possible.



Saturday, November 29

Rajita shares her experience

"Dearest Ones

Jai Gurudev

There are no words to describe what we are going through after our miraculous escape after 12 hours in captivity at the Taj.

There is still a sense of daze & shock, there is fear ( after the continous sounds last 60 hours of grenades and gun firing) even the sound of a spoon falling is alarming, anger & rage at the total breakdown of security and the system , but above all, there is a huge huge huge huge sense of gratitude.

Gratitude to Guruji for giving us another life. As more is being revealed, 4 terrorists were in the kitchen of the chambers , just about 10 feet from the room we were in.They killed the chefs there. There was nothing stopping them from just turning left and come our way. It was almost like some indescribable force was between them and us. Knowledge of living in the present moment and present moment is inevitable was never never before a living reality for us. When they evacuated us after 12 hours, there was blood ,broken glass pieces, grenade remnants all strewn across the corridor outside our room. That's how close they came.

When we did come out and escaped another round of fresh firing at us as we were walking outside the Taj, the 1st call just that moment we got was from Guruji confirming that we were out and safe. It was almost as though He had escorted us out ! I was so shaken , I could barely stand let alone speak and He said to me, "When I am with you, how can anything touch you.come on be brave . Kya darti hai, main hun na "

Throughout the night, Bhanudidi kept calling and smsing us , giving us courage and encouragement. Giving us the confidence that we would be out surely. It seemed surreal then, but she kept telling me to be bold and support others. It was like being scooped in a blanket of grace and love. In every Part 2 course, I have learnt to sleep with a blanket of grace. Believe me, I can tell you with certainity that it was ON us that night


Through the night all of you kept calling us ,smsing us and telling us how much you are praying for us . Our parents,brothers ,sisters,sisters in law, little nephews and nieces from UK.......your voices gave us life & kept us going.

We were giving healing to the bullet hit, teaching deep breathing to some young boys with us to calm them down, teachimg mudras to control bladders to the old, all the while literally hanging on to each other ,holding hands tight and continuously chanting jai gurudev. My tongue continues to move in that chant in a almost pavlovian way even now

Even after we came out, all of you kept calling and supporting us. Hearing the concern and love in your voice was deeply humbling and moving for us. Anna kept refocusing my attention by talking about designing the Mandir for our new home to asking what I cooked ! Each one of you has kept reassuring us . This love is our only true treasure

I have no idea what we have done to deserve all this outpour of your love, concern,good wishes. We are just so grateful to you. It is the strength of your sadhana and sankalpa that rescued 100 of us that fateful thursday morning. As you know only about 8 people have come out alive from the taj after that


Many many people we know, top lawyers,bankers ,leading business heads have not been as lucky as us. They were victims of indiscriminate firing. Dalus son Shaan and daughter Shivanis 4 friends have losts either both or one set of parents.3 of our friends were stuck in Trident and rescued only yesterday morning after 36 hours and are in deep trauma

Writing this is a cathartic experience for me.
Going through this, a jolting wake up call to appreciate the value of every living moment of life, the indispensiblity of spreading knowledge URGENTLY, and above all deeply appreciating the love that surrounds us

We remain in Gratitude to you all FOREVER . Lifetimes will not suffice us to repay this love

Apart from our anniversary, Ajay and I now share a birthday too.Nov 27th

Love from the deepest depths of our heart
Rajita & Ajay"

Wednesday, November 26, 2008

Upcoming Courses / Part 1 Course from 2 - 7 Dec

Come one , come all.......

To recover from stress, to experience the magic of breath, to regain confidence, to sharpen your memory, to discover your hidden talents and ofcourse to regain that bright smile on your glowing faces.

The Art of Living Foundation invites you for a unique experience of a lifetime - " The Part 1 Course (Basic Course) is commencing from 2 Dec - 7 Dec 2008, 6.00 - 9.00 am @ HITVARTAK MANDAL HALL, Shantilal Modi Road, Opp. Bata Showroom, Kandivli West."

For registrations, please contact : 93202-44556 / 98218-05917.

Tuesday, November 25, 2008

Guruji's Talk on BramhaNaad 2008 (Translation) / 21 Nov 2008

Both, Music and spirituality bring harmony in life. Meditation brings silence within and brings music from the soul. Whereas, good music brings calmness to the mind, and gives rest and strength to the body.

Whenever I said, that many Sitars will be played simultaneously, people always told me, that is impossible & it can never happen. I said, The power of "Yoga" makes possible what seems impossible.

When so many sitars play at the same time, it is not just Sound (Naad), it is Divinity - Brahmanaad. We are a nation of a billion people. We should be able to find 1000 sitar players from within Delhi . But this did not happen. We had to search for them from all over India and bring them together. This shows that we have ignored our music and culture. We are not giving as much importance and priority as it deserves.
Through this programme, we get this message - that we should encourage our children to learn Indian classical music. This way we can make our culture glow brighter. We have to keep our classical music alive. Today, we can see here, people of all age are present, from a 6 year old child to a 77 year old scholar. There is a saying - "kavya shastra vinodak alok gacchate dhimata". It is a sign of an intelligent person that he devotes his time to music, art, scriptures, poetry, wit and meditation. And, a foolish person wastes his time in addictions, quarrels, botheration and all kinds of frivolous conversation and gossip. They stay busy creating trouble for themselves and others.


It is a necessity in this country, that people become intelligent and start spending their time in art and culture.
So I would like youth here...more and more youth to learn the classical music. It´s a unique gift to the world. Our classical music is unique in itself, it uplifts the spirit... So, this brahmanaad is a call to all the people of India .

First, it is "annam brahma"- Food is god. Our ancestors said - Grow food. There is no need to go and search for God anywhere else..."anne brahme tejana" ...See God in food. Feed the hungry. In our scriptures, so much is said about this.
Next is "prana-brahma"- Life-energy is god. Worship life. Do sadhana, pranayam, meditation. Make your life glow from within by doing regular sadhana.
Then there is "naad-brahma"- the divine sound. Blend with the melody, get immersed with the rhythm. It is a kind of meditation. Through music, you will transcend to "samadhi" - a higher level of being.
Then, science is God, Knowledge is god. Then, there is a realization, Joy is god.

In this way, the idea of the progress of life, the goal of life, the evolution of life is conceptualized. Today we are at a moment in history, that if we save our culture and revive our ancient artistry, then this nation & the nationalites will flourish. So, I am grateful to all these musicians here. These days, lesser number of people prefer to listen to classical music. Still, these musicians are taking immense interest in music by learning it, and they are inspiring others to take interest in it. For sure, their effort will be fruitful. And, we always have our music maestros like Shiv Kumarji & their blessings will always be there for all the musicians.
So, if you want to save Indian culture, save our music; save our traditions, lifestyle and food habits. Through Music, Yoga, by practicing Pranayam and Meditation, we will put our culture on a even higher pedestal. We will soothe all the souls who are in need. People in Bihar are suffering. But they are serving as an example to the whole world. These days there is a big financial crisis. All around, people are depressed. Their enthusiasn has died out. They are scared. In these times, the people of Bihar have a message for all, look at us. We have lost everything in floods. But still, we are alive. We are in a worse situation than you all. But God is within us.
God will surely help these people. They are so many of them. They will surely come together and find a solution.
We believe that the whole world is one family "Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam"... This is the culture we are born in. Can we not help those in need? We can definitely help each other. That much humanity is still alive; we can all help each other.

Thursday, November 20, 2008

Guru Story - An Experience of Bhakti

Jai Gurudev !!!

The sunday morning had charged up with the bright sunshine and the Lion - our one & only Vishwas Bhaiyya roaring and inviting his fellowmates to join him for the interesting and challenging up-coming projects. The dialogue began with his confident voice, loud and clear; to each and everyone of us to intensify our Sadhana, Seva & Satsang activities for creating a lovely and satwick environment. All of us were engrossed listening to his vast knowledge and unqiue experiences and the way in which Guruji had blessed him & many others to make His Sankalpa come true.

The vibrations of these dialogues had clouded our mind, melting our hearts and making us visualize and feel Guruji's presence amongst us. A moment arrived, when Vishwas Bhaiyya was to continue with another Guru Story and his phone rang with vibration. The Lioness - Alka Didi ran to receive the phone. Receiving the phone-call, she moved towards Vishwas Bhaiyya saying "Guruji is on the phone".

That moment, our faces glowed with brightness and smile coming from within our souls followed by the feeling of devotion, serenity and contentment. This incidence makes us realise that our unconditional love, faith, devotion towards the Divine brings us liberation by connecting us with Guruji - the Divine, in a split of a second.

Monday, November 17, 2008

A Fresh Experience - DSN Malad, 13 - 16 Nov 2008




Jai Gurudev !!!
DSN - Divya Samaj ka Nirman; is a beautiful course designed to bring IPOD - Inner Peace & Outer Dynamism. From 13 - 16 Nov 2008, participants from Kandivli, Malad, Goregaon & Juhu gathered to feel the magic of DSN. Many people, as usual, have impressions about many things on their minds - it may be about life, about a personality, about success, abut seva, etc. However, DSN give you a unique experience to integrate seva and makes it a part of one's nature and behaviour. Here are some moments which were captured by us during this DSN Course......
And for all those who want to experience this magic may enroll themselves for the next DSN happening from 23 - 26 January 2009 @ Gurudwara, Hindustan Chowk, Near Dasmesh School, Mulund Colony, Mulund West, Mumbai - 80. Contacts:- Jyotsna Shah - 9820733771 / Hardik Shah - 9820284986.

Wednesday, November 12, 2008

Q & A

If Love is the nature of a Human, why there is so much hatred among people???
Guruji: Because love devoid of knowledge gives rise to imperfection. You love perfection and get angry at imperfection. If you love somebody, you become jealous and possessive.Love is the cause of all problems in the world. Through love, jealousy, anger and hatred all come out.
But we cannot live without love. Even a dog may not like to live without love. It would refuse to eat food, if it is not able to see its master. So love is the most wanted thing for everybody. Yet all these imperfections and all these problems arise out of love. So what is the answer ? We need such a love which is free from imperfection and that can be attained only through knowledge. "So love minus knowledge is problem and love with knowledge is bliss."

Joke of the Week

Seems an elderly gentleman had serious hearing problems for a number of years.

He went to the doctor and the doctor was able to have him fitted for a set of hearing aids that allowed the gentleman to hear 100%. The elderly gentleman went back in a month to the doctor and the doctor said, "Your hearing is perfect. Your family must be really pleased you can hear again."

To which the gentleman said, "Oh, I haven't told my family yet. I just sit around and listen to the conversations. I've changed my will five times!"

Tuesday, November 11, 2008

Daily Knowledge

"Yo Yogakshemam Tyajati" : Meaning - One who is free from acquiring and maintaining whatever has come in Life
There are 2 worries -
a. to get what one doesn't have .......and,
b. to maintain what one has
These 2 worries eat you up! And, one who does not worry about them, really crosses this ocean of misery, of MAYA.

Mere Zindagi Mein Aaye Ho

Jai Gurudev !!!
Guruji has blessed us all with something lovely and beautiful. No doubt that He has blessed us with the kriya & tremendous knowledge, which is bringing us on the path of wisdom. Besides this, He has gifted us some unique gifts which will remain with each one of us for a lifetime.....and, this song reminds me of all those precious gifts.....
" Meri zindagi mein aaye ho aur aise aaye ho tum
Jo ghul gayaa hai saanson mein vo geet laaye ho tum
Tum hi kaho, tum hi kaho
Dil jo aise gaaye, koi kyun na gungunaaye
Meri zindagi mein aaye ho aur aise aaye ho tum
Jo ghul gayaa hai saaNson mein vo geet laaye ho tum
Tumko paake, haaske gaake, nikhri hai sanvari hai zindagi
Ujli subahe, rangin shaamen, aa gayee ik nayee dilkashi
Maan bhi lo, maan bhi lo
Raat jo hai kahti, ye fizaan jo samjhaaye

Meri zindagi mein aaye ho aur aise aaye ho tum
Jo ghul gayaa hai saaNson mein vo geet laaye ho tum

Tumse pehle, dekhe kab the maine ye khvaabon ke kaarvaan
Tum jo aaye tum ho laaye, ankahi ansuni daastaan
Suno zaraa, suno zaraa
Meraa dil bhi haay, vo kahaani dohraaye
Meri zindagi mein aaye ho aur aise aaye ho tum
Jo ghul gayaa hai saaNson mein vo geet laaye ho tum
Tum hi kaho, tum hi kaho
Dil jo aise gaaye, koi kyun na gungunaaye
Meri zindagi mein aaye ho aur aise aaye ho tum
Jo ghul gayaa hai saanson mein vo geet laaye ho tum"