Tuesday, July 22, 2008

GuruPurnima celebrations


Sanjaynagar AOL simply ROCKED last Friday. The occasion: Guru Purnima. A day when we show our gratitude to our Guru.



There was some knowledge sharing, some singing and a lot of laughing! Here are a few pictures for you to soak in some of the vibrant moments of the occasion. On that day, all roads led to Sri Sastry Memorial Hall!

Thursday, July 17, 2008

A song from the heart


My home is getting a makeover, so I'm kinda working from home over the next few days. So I got to listening to my favorite songs from the stereo system, and that was a relief for my ears. (The earplugs from my IPod were beginning to seep through the ol' brain!)

The lyrics were loud and clear even though I had to bear the incessant sound of the drill coming from a nearby apartment.

I hummed along with the tune.

'I believe I can fly' (Cold Play) - wasn't really representing my current state! But sure, the philosophy does make sense, to me.

What can we achieve, unless we believe in ourselves? Isn't that really the secret of life? Often, there's this big ball of doubt that keeps lurking around in the dark vicissitudes of our mind. Comes up at the oddest of times.

Like when you have a major release.
Or when you have a major function to organize.
Or when you just aren't sure if an old friend who you broke up with will actually respond to your olive branch.

We hardly believe that we can soar. Or see the light beyond. Leave alone get even a lukewarm response from that old friend.

Coz 'we just don't spread our wings and see the world from an entirely different plane. The 'nothings' of our past haunt us so badly that we cannot see the 'everythings' of the future.

Perhaps we need to widen this tunnel vision that we are stuck with. A lil' guidance from up above won't do us any harm either! Who better than a Guru in our lives can hold our hand and lead us through that open door?

So let's say a lil' prayer to our teachers, our Gurus, that they may nudge us ever so gently to help us believe in ourselves....then the sky is the limit.

Jai Guru Dev!

Sunday, July 13, 2008

Ekadasi


I managed to reach Sunday class on the dot for my Long Kriya. As usual, the kriya was awesome, with Guruji doing most of the work of making my spirits soar in the sky.

Bliss.

The Ashtavakra Gita sessions just got over in my house yesterday. We celebrated with a high Brunch- home-made, simple. After Guruji's soothing teachings for soul, the good food soothed the stomach as well!

Today is Ekadasi, and whenever I get to know about it (when some good soul tells me about it), I fast (stay off grain, generally). I went to a nearby temple, to pay my respect to Lord Krishna on this auspicious day. The temple serves great Prasadam as well so I lined up for a serving. They gave some wonderful yellow rice (called Puliothare). Now why would they do that, I wondered. It was Ekadasi, at least they could have given some non-grain preparation! I took it home so that at least my husband can enjoy the wonderful fare.

The origin of Ekadasi is explained in the Padma Purana.

It's time for my mid-day meal- a fruit. And then I shall rest. :-)

Monday, July 7, 2008

Goodbye 'Uncle Sam'

Sam Manekshaw with his pet dog Caesar

Field Marshall Sam Manekshaw is no more. With his passing, it has somehow drawn the curtains on an era where brave men who fought for their country lived idyllic yet arduous, simple yet surreal lives.

I was browsing for photographs of Sam Manekshaw, when I came across one with his pet.

Strange, I thought. Brigadier MK Rao, an uncle of mine, had served the army at about the same time that Sam Manekshaw was around. He too had a dog named Caesar.

These men not only fought for their country, but they had a soft side as well, and were constantly of service to the people around them. My uncle started a school in his hometown, Secunderabad.

My uncle died almost unattended to in a hospital in America, where he had gone to visit his son.

Sam Bahadur simply died from complications of old age and had simple funeral. No political bigwig bothered to attend the last rites of this great man.

Fates of men with strong zeal and ideals can sometimes be intertwined in the strangest of ways. But I am sure that the World yonder will bestow upon such men all the laurels that they truly deserve.

After all, they lived with 'Jai Hind' as their motto.