Off Duty , On duty

A fresh day. Outside my home , its pretty good weather. Bangalore has recieved its little share of the summer monsoon over the last week and its green and clean near my house. I watch out of my balcony and see the small plants in the pots swaying to the gentle wind. Am sipping from my cup of lime juice as i start penning down this blog.

My thoughts wander .. I try to follow the thought chain ..

What makes man give his best to work ? Is that the expectation or the desire of a result at the end of the task ? Our Lord Krishna has advised to do our duty and not bother about the results. What is meant by duty ? If we are not bothered about the results , then why do them ?

Some thoughts , some questions , I say to myself - People on ST are sure to provide answers. That would be very encouraging and knowledge gaining. On second thoughts , what matters most to me is what I think of the answers. Surely , knowledge is welcome irrespective of the source , I grab at it. But the greatest source lies within. So, I close my eyes ( after finsihing off the lime juice ).
He appears. As usual , he is smiling. Not laughing , not roaring , but just smiling. At peace with himself. Put him anyplace and in any situation , he is always peaceful and smiling. Thats what I like about him. He answers me  :
"Duty is the fees you pay for occupying the space on this planet"
"In sanskrit ," he continues "Kartavya means duty.Kara also means "tax or duty". Lovely isnt it ? So , what is the duty one should pay ? It is simple - To server others in need of help is your duty"

Why shouldnt I focus on the results ?

"Go ahead and focus on the results. As they say , Begin with the end in mind. Visualise the results. But don''t be attached to them." he continues, leaving me wondering more.

"Some examples may help you. Suppose you are a farmer and you want to get a bumper crop. The result is that you should get a very good yield.  You start out with the necessary preparations for the same. But some factors like a good rainfall , etc are not in your hands. Suppose , you want to ascertain a good rainfall this season and then only till the land and sow the seeds, you will be failing in your action."

Similarly , if a student gets attached to the result of scoring First Rank , only then will he sit for the exam , he may never appear for the exam.
Suppose you are travelling from Bangalore to Mumbai by car. You make sure your car is in good condition , brakes are fine , tyre pressures are checked, etc before starting out. Maybe you will also get a map and still some may get a weather report checked.Right ?"

I nod along , seemed logical.

But if you wait till the weather is perfect all along the way , there are no traffic pileups anywhere , then you may not get started only. That is attaching to results and failing to do your duty.
Seems fine , except that - We work for a company and expect a salary from that. Do you mean to say that we shouldn't expect anything in result for our work ?
Its not like that. People are paid for their value added by doing the work. That value addition is the result of your work and as the owner gets a benefit due to the additional value , he performs his duty by paying for it. So , focus on what value you can add while at work or anything else.  Working just for getting money and paying your bills is fine , but you are not meant to just pay your bills. There is a bigger purpose. Seek it.

I open my eyes. It's time to go back to my work. I start checking my emails and there is one from my client in US. He wants me to get a software tape release done ahead of plan. I think - "How can i add value to ensure my client gets his request completed ? I make changes to the Release plan and .... (The rest of the story is just my duty )

Am I ?

Am I working or am I playing ?

When I enjoy work , it becomes play.

Am I happy or am I sad ?

Both are states of my mind , one follows another

Am I dark or am I fair ?

Colours are for my skin , the soul is colourless

Am I good or am i bad ?

What is bad for one , maybe good for another.

Why these questions today, I asked myself

I dont know the answer, but just want to live in the question for a while

- prashanth rajarao

Happy Ugadi ! Welcoming Nandana

Tomorrow is Ugadi - the Hindu New Year according to the Lunar Calendar.. It is believed that Lord Brahma started his creation on this day - Chaitra month shudda padyami - also celebrated as Ugadi. Ugadi means "Yugada Adi" - the start of the new year. At this time of the year, there is fragrance of fresh Jasmine and of Mangoes. All the trees are blossoming and are filled with fresh leaves as its the onset of spring. In my home garden , we have a bumper crop of Jasmine ( snaps of which i have shared on my facebook profile, for those interested )

Ugadi festival is celebrated in Karnataka ,Maharashtra and Andhra Pradesh. In Maharashtra it is known as "Gudipadva". On this day, people wake up early ( before dawn ) , take a head bath (oil bath ) after which they decorate the main door step of their houses with a string of fresh mango leaves called "torana". Ladies also draw colorful floral designs called "Rangoli" in front of their houses. This is very common in almost every house in Karnataka and AP,more prevelant in the rural areas.


People worship God invoking HIS blessings on the new year. They pray for health, wealth and prosperity and success in business too. Ugadi is also the most auspicious time to start anything new - a new project , a new home , a new family , etc.


This year , we are moving from Khara nama samvatsara to Nandana nama samvatsara. In Lunar calendar , unlike the English calendar , all the years have a name and not just denoted by numbers like 2012, etc. What a wonderful concept and such precision in astrology we have inhertied from our forefathers !


Below is a short poem I wrote and want to share here :

Looking ahead , a bright and new life
Leaving behind , memories and sweet moments.

Time spent with nature's peaks
Trying to understand what it speaks

Some more time with my dear ones
Trying to understand what I mean

All these are now only in the past
It was good and I have not lost

Am not complaining , am not remorse
As I am thankful I got at least so much

Now, on to the new year with gust and zeal
This is life , it is only to be Lived.

I wish all of you and your family a very happy and prosperous Ugadi !

What do you feed your mind ?

There is a saying that goes "You become what you eat". This means that what we eat basically determines our nature. Its further said by one Naturopathic "You become what you retain in your body and don't excrete". So, what remains after digestion determines what we become. If these are to be believed , we get an understanding that what goes into our body constitutes ( at least to a major extent ) on what we become. The more healthy food we give , the more healthy is our body. Similarly, a body feeding on only tamasic food, deteriorates.

Extending this to more subtler aspects, what is important to the development of a good mind ? It can be said that "You become what you think". What thoughts goes on in your mind ? What do you feed your mind ? As its important to feed good and nourishing food for the development of the body , its equally important to feed good and positive thoughts to our mind.

Now , let us look at how this works.

We can imagine our mind to have two extremely powerful "Thought Channels". One of these Channels is tuned to the frequency called "Negative Thoughts" ( Channel N ) and other Channel is tuned to "Positive Thoughts" ( Channel P). Just as we tune our radio sets to a particular frequency , our mind has a Searcher which tunes to either of these two thought channels. Our mind also has a transmitter which can transmit thoughts on many channels including these two channels - N and P. Now , its important to remember that more we tune to any of these channels , the more strong they become over time.

A mind which worries constantly has fallen into the worry habit, because it has strengthened the Channel-N. Initially , it might have started as a small problem and we spent some time worrying on that problem. In the process , we tuned to Channel-N and fed it lump some amount of worry as mind-food. It became strong , ultimately making "worrying" a habit - a natural way of life.

On the contrary , think of the time when you accomplished something or achieved something close to your heart. You certainly achieved that by thinking positive about it. It maybe you might not have noticed the positivity but it surely was there. A simple , single thought like "Yes. I can do it" will trigger Channel-P. Once Channel-P is active , it gets more positive thoughts and within a short span of time , you are all charged up.

Easier said than done , some of you might feel. How do we feed our mind , only positive and reinforcing thoughts ? While I agree that we cannot have full control on our thougts , it is also true that we can develop a positive thought process.

Firstly , It is important to start the day with the Channel-P. Once we start the day with P, then you can notice many positive things around. A traffic congestion on the way to office was usually spent N-Channel earlier. But with awareness of the Channel-P , it becomes easy to accept the situation as an inevitable part of the commute and Channel-P will start looking for ways to overcome or better utilizing this. You may take an alternate route , you may start listening to good audio-books on the travel or simply relax listening to music. So , we have moved away from cursing the traffic to something more positive each day. Doing this for a month , will make your P-Channel stronger and over time you will start laughing at these little problems which seem no longer relevant. Your day is much better thanks to the P-Channel.


How do we start our day with Channel-P ? Just try out these assertions daily morning -

1) Today is going to be a wonderful day.
2) Today is the first day of the rest of my life. I will make the best of today.
3) Today , I will give 100% of myself to my work/hobby/passion/etc
4) I have planned to spend the evening with my wife/husband. I will not let anything upset this plan
5) Whatever happens today , I will stay on a positive attitude and will not carry over my worries.

With that , my friends , I will leave you to tune to your respective Channel-P !! Wish you all the best !!

A better tomorrow ?

A better tomorrow ?

Yes, If tomorrow comes.
Why not make a better today

Instead of waiting for someday ?

 

There is no way to happiness.

For , you yourself are happiness.

Circumstances are at the periphery

They may influence , but its momentary

 

Laughs and smiles are what makes life.

Keep smiling and spread it for miles.

A child who questions before being born

This post is from Srimad Bhagavatham.


When Uttara was pregnant bearing Abhimanyus child, she was followed by the brahmashirsha astra which was provoked by Ashwattama. Ashwattam , the brahmin had pronounced that "Let all pandavas generation be killed and let no one be left". Cursing thus , Ashwattama had invoked the astra. When Uttara approached Lord Krishna , He was able to see the power of the astra. He consoled Uttara and promised that He would protect the child.

Krishna entered the womb of Uttara and was there when the astra entered her to destroy the unborn child. The child saw a glow from the astra.It enveloped him and he felt that we was being burnt. Then , the child saw another divine form. The new form was the size of a thumb and he was beautiful , dressed with yellow silk and a crown on His head. There was a blue sheen. He had four arms, decked with bracelets. He held a mace (gadha) in one hand and the mace was spitting fire like a torch. He was going round and round the child and was holding the astra at bay thus protecting the child. For months he stayed like this insided the womb of Uttara and finally the powers of the astra was subsided and quelled. As the the full grown child was looking , He then vanished.

The child was born, leading to great rejoicing in city of Hastina and the child was named Vishnurata as the Vishnu himself protected him. But Krishna called him Parikshit since the child , even when he was in his mothers womb used to look at the form of Lord Vishnu and ask himself "Who is this wonderful person dressed in yellow silk , wearing this lovely garland , with gadha in hand. He is protecting me all the time. Who is he ?" He had begun to question the form of the Lord even before he was born !

A lovely girl and her dog

A narrow path up a small hillock

Trees on both sides , tall and green.

A small riverlet flowing on one side

The water is cold and sparkling clean

On reaching the top , we come to a small house

With lovely plants in its garden

Bearing colourful flowers dancing to the wind

Is there anyone inside, we wonder.

We go further the pathway leading to the house

There is no door, whats the use of bell ?

We knock on the wall thinking it should bring the owner

And wait for some time , being well mannered

We are still waiting , while there is a cry from inside

A small girl , we think, she might have seen us

But still no one comes out, that makes us curious

Waiting no more , we venture inside

The house smells of an enchanting fragrance

Once inside , we feel we are in a Bliss

There is a small girl all curly and cute

A small dog by her side, stares at us mute

I ask her whats her name ?

She smiles and says "Dont know".

The dog looks at us, but doesn't bark

I then woke up - it was still dark.

-prashanth rajarao