Monthly Archives: May 2011

” One reason so few of us achieve what we truly want is that we never direct our focus; we never concentrate our power. Most people dabble their way through life, never deciding to master anything in particular.”
– Anthony Robbins

Kabir – The couplet
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?? ??? ??? ?? ???, ??? ????? ??? ||

transliterated:
Man ke bahut satrang hai, chun chun badale soye |
Ek rang mein jo rahe, aisa birla koi ||

Translation:
The mind flits like a butterfly through many colors, picking one after the other |
When the mind finds focus, it can then direct the soul to success ||

My thoughts:
Our rationality tends to sometimes lead us astray. We need to find reason, and this quest often leads as astray of our target. Sometimes, reason becomes evident only after attaining that which is sought.

This is why many generals insist on discipline and look for obedience rather than free thought. Everyone has a different perspective, and this colors our view of the object. The entire army needs to think as one – the decision is the burden of the general alone. In the absence of such discipline, many wars would have led to pure chaos.

Our entire being is in and of itself larger than any army. Each of senses perceives different from the rest. Each limb has different ways to get to where it needs to be, and each independent part of the body needs to do something different, but in complete coordination, for the body to be where it needs to be at any time. And this still needs coordination with the mind for the inner being to be in sync with the external world.

Focus and concentration – these are what will help us find the right way every time. But we still need direction from our goal, our ambition. So they are not the entire answer, but they are the right way to the answer.

“Life has meaning only if one barters it day by day for something other than itself. “
– Antoine de Saint-Exupery

Kabir – The couplet
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transliterated:
Bandhe ko bandhe mile, choota kaun upaay |
Jo mile nirbandhko, pal mein le chhoodai ||

Translation:
When a bound person meets another bound person, both are equally helpless |
But a bound person who meets a free man, can be free in no time at all ||

My thoughts:
As a general rule, humans tend to find comfort with others of their own kind of thinking and state. The other common truth about humans is that we are social beings, and use our circle of friends, acquaintances and family to find answers to anything that vexes us.

However, the truth is that if the other is struggling with the same problem, he cannot help me with the answer that he has yet to find. In this manner, as the days of a life progress, we dig ourselves into very deep holes lined with unanswered questions, and pretty soon, all daylight is invisible to us inside the tunnel we have forced ourselves into.

This is when it helps to seek out an unburdened soul – for this soul, in the absence of my binding vexations, finds simple, easy and often fun solutions to my issues along with other side benefits that my blinders had hidden from my sight.

A real teacher is a good guide, and a simple person – for the complex ones are too busy resolving their own complexities to truly understand my questions properly.

“..for though a righteous man falls seven times, he rises again, but the wicked are brought down by calamity.”
– The New Testament – Proverbs 24:16

Kabir – The couplet
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??? ???? ????? ???, ?????? ?? ?? ? ??? ||||

transliterated:
Jo koi ninde sadhu ko, sankat aave soye |
Narak jaaye janme mare, mukti kabahu na hoye ||

Translation:
He who curses the righteous, suffer much in life |
Lives in hell, he does, and finds not but a moment of peace||

My thoughts:
In our daily rush to get to the end of the day, we rarely pause to stop and see the effect our words, actions and thoughts have on those around us. But it is these very actions and words that define our ability to enjoy a peaceful night of sleep at the end of the day.

Every human, rich or poor, needs to feed, and needs to sleep. If I can find enough food to stave off my hunger, and I can sleep a full night without restless tossing, I am already better off than 80 percent of humanity. How much money can buy me that level of satisfaction?

“Not the maker of plans and promises, but rather the one who offers faithful service in small matters. This is the person who is most likely to achieve what is good and lasting.”
– Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

Kabir – The couplet
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?? ??? ???? ???, ????? ????? ??? ||

transliterated:
Bhookhe ko kuch dijiye, yatha shakti jo hoye |
Taa upar sheetal vachan, lakhon aatma soye ||

Translation:
Feed the poor, to the extent personal resources allow |
Blessed by a satisfied soul, we gain the strength to satisfy many more ||

My thoughts:
The quote and the couplet above already state the obvious. But there is an underlying truth that is often ignored. When we serve, especially when we serve without thought of gain or return, we get more than another soul’s blessing. We learn, we discover more of our real self, and we become more that we were when we started.

This is because service helps us reach in and find that inner core of strength to go beyond a material need to understand another person. This learning is more than an entire life can pay for – and the enrichment gained is otherwise unattainable.

Without civic morality communities perish; without personal morality their survival has no value.
– Bertrand Russell

Kabir – The couplet
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??? ??? ?????? ????, ??? ??? ?? ??? ||

transliterated:
Sheel, kshama jab upaje, alag dhristi tab hoye |
Bin sheel pahunche nahi, lakh kahe jo koi ||

Translation:
Morality and forgiveness, when realized, change our very perception of the world around |
Without morality, we end up at the door of nowhere, no matter how much we say ||

My understanding:
Morality is guided by ethics, and when combined with the virtue of forgiveness, allows us to overcome our darkest fears and most troubling moments.

For our fears, when truly understood, stem from our own lack of knowledge – not from any threat to our being.

Ethics tells us what is right, and morality guides our action. When this is coupled with the ability to forgive, we have finally learned to live. This is the stepping stone, nay the foundation block, on which we can simplify our lives and perceive the real truth, rather than the fog that our five physical senses impose on our perception.

The true mystery of the world is the visible, not the invisible.
– Oscar Wilde

Kabir – The couplet
????? ????? ????? ???, ??? ???? ? ?? ??? |
?? ??? ??????? ???, ?? ?? ???? ???? ||

transliterated:
Kabira gyan vichar bin, Hari dhoondan ko jaaye|
Tan mein Tirloki base, ab tak parkha naahi ||

Translation:
Without appropriate thought or knowledge, we look for God is all external spaces |
The truth is, God is inside us, but we perceive not the wonder inside! ||

My understanding:
We as humans have been gifted with the magic of rationality, reasoning and clear thought. However, we put all this aside the moment we are faced with any new question – and the quest for God is one of those timeless quests.

We search everywhere, when the simple reality is that he is the inner voice, the core of peace and understanding, the nub of clarity that exists in all of us. If only we still the noises of our crowding thoughts and external input for a sheer fleeting moment, we will find our personal God, and life will forever be changed with this realization.

Find that God inside, and find eternal peace and bliss.

True bliss is a right we were all born with – it is up to us to find and enjoy it!

“In history as in human life, regret does not bring back a lost moment and a thousand years will not recover something lost in a single hour.”
– Stefan Zweig

Kabir – The couplet
?? ?????? ? ??????, ???? ?? ??? ? ??? |
???? ??? ? ?????, ?? ???? ??? ||

transliterated:
Man unmana na toliye, shabd ke mol na tol|
Murakh log na jaanasi, aapa khoye bol ||

Translation:
When the mind is disturbed, pay no heed to the words that flow – they mean nothing |
The fool, ignorant of this simple truth, raves, rants and loses||

My thoughts:
In the previous post, I had talked about the need to listen to that, which is not being said. Even here, that statement holds true. Find inner silence, and then listen to that which is not being said. That allows us to hear past the anger and emotion, and arrive at the heart of the matter quickly. This allows us to offer appropriate help, or stay away till the others find their own inner peace.

Juxtaposing this couplet on the previous one, one is able to see the completion of the circle – speak only after understanding, express with love, and silence the self when overcome by emotion.

“I’ve learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.”
– Maya Angelou

Kabir – The couplet
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???? ??? ??? ??, ???? ?? ??? ? ??? ||

transliterated:
Pehele shabd pehchaaniye, peeche kije mol |
Parakhi parakh rattan ko, shabd ka mol na tol ||

Translation:
Recognize the words being said, then understand, leave the judgment for much later |
A goldsmith can tell us the value of the gold, but not the value of the gift ||

My thoughts:
Once again, this is a couplet that says more with what is not being said. The value of a jewel is not just its commercial value – which any reasonable appraiser can help determine. The true value is determined by the thought behind the gift, the effort to ensure it is shaped just the right way to say that which words cannot express.

So Kabir is asking us to dig deeper, go beyond that which is being said, to understand that which is being expressed. To really be able to do this, I have to silence my inner voice, find complete peace and silence, and then let the words fill me. Then I am able to hear without interference, and perceive the true meaning of the statement, the look, and the gesture.

This state of peace is the first step to true understanding, and thenceforth to real bliss!

“Whoever renders service to many puts himself in line for greatness – great wealth, great return, great satisfaction, great reputation, and great joy.”
– Jim Rohn

Kabir – The couplet
????? ???? ????? ???, ??? ????? ??????? |
???? ???? ?? ????, ?????? ??? ????? ||

transliterated:
Gyan samagan prem sukh, daya bhakti biswas |
Guru seva te paiye, satguru charan niwas ||

Translation:
Knowledge, good company, love, a peaceful composure, forgiveness, devotion, trust |
When all are added to service at a teacher’s feet, one finds heaven on earth ||

My thoughts:
C.S. Lewis was quoted as saying “What does not satisfy when we find it, was not the thing we were desiring.”

We only see with our eyes, hear with our ears, touch with our skin, taste with our tongue and smell with our nose. We then take this as the representation of what we are receiving. But true receipt happens only after we have completed the job of perception and understanding. Just as the sight of a bright exterior is not representative of the hidden interior, the five physical senses do not interpret and translate true meaning or desire.

This is where we, as rational thinking beings, need to use our innate rationality to weed out desire from requirement. What we need is what we must look for – not what we just sense as attractive or pleasing.

Receiving, however, is only the first part – we must take just as much as we need, and then offer service everywhere we can. Once we fold ourselves into the practice of service, we will uncover the fountain of infinite bliss. For real pleasure comes when we do something that puts a smile in the heart of another – not when we attempt to get others to do that for us.

“All, everything that I understand, I understand only because I love.”
– Leo Tolstoy

Kabir – The couplet
????? ?????? ????? ??, ???? ??? ???? |
??? ??? ??? ?? ???, ?? ??? ???? ??? ||

transliterated:
Kabira pyala prem ka, antar liye lagaay |
Rom rom mein ram rahe, aura amal kya khay ? |

Translation:
Says Kabir, I have drunk from the cup of love |
Every cell in me is full – what more wonderful could I have?

My thoughts:
If maya (illusion) is the creator of all chaos, love is the supreme cleanser. When we learn to love, we learn to forgive. Once all is forgiven, negativity has no space to exist. And when negative thoughts vanish, we fill up with love, which illuminates us from inside and brings out the real person hidden inside each of us.

Love is the potion that intoxicates beyond reason, while simultaneously allowing us to be crystal clear in our thought and action. When we come equipped with such powerful medicine naturally, what need for the chemical drugs our pharmacies produce?