Head Vs Heart

A recent conversation with my cousin sparked my thought process about my personal views of what to follow when there is a conflict between the heart and the head. These are my personal opinions, not in anyway absolute truth, that came about because of my life experiences. Before I go further I need to define what I commonly refer to, as the Head and the Heart.

The Head or the mind is a great tool, that lets us analyze and decode a problem, find solutions and is an information processor, whether you're interested in watching the grass grow or listening to a Nobel laureate's dissertation, depending on your level of training. The mind operates in the finite realm, which is why, trying to comprehend the enormity of the Universe or the beginning of time or the concept of God, mostly eludes us, if we used the mind alone.

Contrary to its most common association, emotions are not your heart. Emotions are felt there, but thats just one of the uses of the metaphorical heart. Heart is the part of you, that feels. Its like a magnetic compass, that tells you if you are going north or south.

Making a decision when angry or agitated is not acting from the heart. Infact its far from it. Finding oneself in a state of extreme anger or sadness is often the case when one is not connected with one's heart. (The cause may be justified, but the fact remains - you are not connected with your heart).

Feelings are great, because they cannot be controlled. Their expressions can be controlled, but not the feeling itself. For example, a success in something feels good inside, loss of a personal item/person feels not so good, however much you attempt to mask your feelings about the ups and downs of life. Feeling emotions is natural and what we are born with.

Some spiritual teachers abhor the use of the mind and many extremely logical thinkers deny the use of the heart, but I believe these are two tools that help us lead a better life and neither one in isolation would help make our lives more meaningful.

So what do you do when your mind tells you to do something and that doesn't feel right...or metaphorically, your heart says the opposite? In my personal experience, the heart has been right. Because the heart is intuitive and tends to know a little more than the mind - it can sense the unknown. This is not mystical or psychic - just a tool that all of us humans have. Not all of us have been taught to pay attention to how we feel. But that might just be the key to unlocking our future, or what we refer to as 'luck'.
When I feel anxious without reason, I know that I should be careful where I tread, and try to check inside and feel if taking a different course makes me feel better. When I feel good without any particular reason, I know that I'm on the right track.

Like I said in the beginning of the blog, this is personal, but I can see how the exact argument can be made in favor of the mind and all I would say is, "Do what you've learned from YOUR experience", because words don't teach, only life experience does. :)

First Harvest

As we get older, the number of times you say, "thats the first time I've done that!", drastically reduces, so I'm going to cherish the ones I get to experience for the first time. I've found a new love - gardening. I sprinked a few coriander seeds into a pot with some soil and watered it for a few days..Lo and behold, nature blesses me with some cilantro (coriander) or "kothamoyi" as my toddler son likes to refer to it. A few days later, the plant started bearing flowers and then decides to give me hundreds of coriander seeds.

While this is the universal law of procreation, regeneration and an example of the divine design keeping life on planet earth, being a first hand witness to one seed producing more like it, without huge monumental effort, absolutely overwhelmed me. My first harvest of any kind and a moment to cherish. I decided to get brave after this new found success and tried to plant tomato seeds, okra and egg plant. I also have a mint plant. The plants are thriving so far. While I dont claim to have a green thumb, I hope I'm able to provide the plants a little more than water and food - lots of love!!

Triumph of spirit

What is it about the human spirit that never gives up? I've been so fascinated by stories of utter impending doom where the resilient find a thin strand of hope to hang on to, refuse to give up and emerge unscathed to share their hope with the rest of us.

Yesterday, I finished reading the book 'Escape', by Carolyn Jessop, a woman who fled her polygamous abusive husband with 8 children (one of them with cancer, another a toddler) to start life afresh. Her insatiable appetite to learn, never say-die attitude and willingness to hope for something better, deeply moved me.

I watched an interview by Donna Eden, practitioner of energy medicine, who in her early years was so weak and depleted that western medicine practicing doctors told her there was nothing they could do, and she stumbled upon the healing energies of the body and is now not just living, but thriving, teaching and writing. (Her laughter and uplifting energy is highly infectious).

When I read 'Anne Frank's diary, a few years ago, a little jewish girl hiding from the nazis and exposed to human tortures that we can only shudder to hear about, believing, "Basically, people are good at heart", I thought that it was a testament to what good lies within each of us.

Then, there are everyday unsung heroes that we never hear about, who continue to defy odds to do what we as humans do best - Bear evidence to the triumph of our spirit.

Interestingly, inspite of injustices, poverty, bodily conditions, ever increasing diseases, depletion of our resources, (or atleast thats what we hear from our news media) we only keep growing in numbers as a human race. I believe its the indomitable human spirit, that can keep you alive and well and filled with love and hope - inspite of un-co-operating external circumstances. If there's one catch, its simple enough to get around. All you need to do is, want to want something and badly enough...And, its impossible not to find a way.

Feeling Spiritually Alive

Its fascinating for me trace my spirituality from my beginnings in Hinduism to what I currently believe in. As a child I remember following the ritualistic Hinduism. But that didnt last very long. During my early teens, I started being interested in vedanta when I read teachings by Swami Vivekananda. (I still love what Vivekananda has done to Vedanta). The proximity of Ramakrishna Mutt from my house, and the incredible energy of that place endeared me and I spent many evenings at the Mutt in peace and quiet (Thats something I miss a lot here). I understood what it was to smile from the inside when I saw Ramakrishna in meditation.

In my early 20s, I was introduced to reiki and I pondered on the energy aspect of healing and the relationship of the universal energy to one's personal energy. Yoga and reiki seemed complement each other and seemed to have a wonderfully calming effect on me.

One day at a Barnes and Noble store, Eckhart Tolle came into my life. Eckhart is a wonderful teacher, one I cannot write enough about. I also started being drawn to A.Parthasarathy's literature on vedanta and Bhagvad Gita. I read a few interpretations of the Gita and I believe that its one timeless epic. I was surprised to find that the Bhagvad Gita didnt really tell you what to do, just offered a lot of suggestions and said you could choose whatever fitted you best. I love that aspect of that book.

I found myself looking for that one truth of which everything I'd studied before were derivatives. I read a lot of new agey and eastern philosophical works by J.Krishnamoorthy, Deepak Chopra, Louise Hay, Wayne Dyer. Watched the Secret. They were all nice. But there were too many paths to follow, too many details to remember. My mind needed something uncluttered and organized. I stumbled upon Abraham. I think after I met Abraham, I stopped looking. The teachings of Abraham sort of put things in perspective for me. I dont feel guilty about not following the religion of my ancestors because in the multi-facted, multi-threaded, constantly evolving religion of hinduism, the abrahamic teachings are already present.

Here are the reasons I like Abraham
1.To me, spirituality is not as much about finding as it is about remembering. I think the Abraham's teachings help me remember and validate what I already know. So its not like someone is pushing their ideas on me.

2.Its simple. My belief system had to simple. Because, as humans, we have a basic right of conduit to the divine. Lack of mental interpretive skills should not stand in the way of perceiving God. I dont think God would have designed a path to reach Him, that only a select few have access to.

3.I have many opportunities to validate the teachings in practice as part of everyday life. I'm also able to validate it against some timeless epics like Vedanta and the Gita, which proves that the truth always stands the test of time.

4.Practical. I do not wish to renounce this life to be a saint (atleast not right now). I wanted something comfortable that can be practiced anywhere and something that integrates right into my life.

I think its exciting for me to not just ponder spirituality, but look back and see how every single teacher I've crossed paths with, has molded my belief system today. I do not think my beliefs will be right for everyone, but hey, there is no right or wrong in this. Just what works for you.

I dont feel the need for organized religion. But I still like to go to a temple because I like how it makes me feel. Maybe a few years from now, I will have evolved from Abraham and on to someone/something that helps me remember more about myself....maybe just a tad more. Isnt that (Personal Evolution) what spirituality is about?

Residing on the Writer's Block

(I'd like to use the term 'writer' very loosely to refer to myself here.)

Every writer from Pulitzer Prize winners and Nobel Literary Laureates to the likes of amateur bloggers like me have experienced the infamous 'writer's block'. Your mind just goes blank when you've finally some time, and find yourself in front of your laptop or typewriter. I've felt like I was a permanent resident on the writer's block at times, but then, one thought always bails me out. I start thinking about what I want to write and not what I have to write - and then the words start flowing (I want to say, flowing like the Niagara Falls, but I won't take it that far).

I'm fortunate enough not to depend on writing as my sole source of income and I want to use that incentive to feel free to write whatever makes my soul dance. Having any audience is a nice bonus. Afterall, doing-this-because-I-love-it the only reason I even want to do it...

Eat, Pray, Love

I'm a big fan of my local library's online digital service, because it gives me the chance to "read" audio versions of my favorite books, without leaving my home, without giving me a chance to miss due dates. As much as I absolutely enjoy holding a real book, smelling the paper, flipping the pages, re-reading favorite sections, audio books have become a necessity of my lifestyle. I especially love the experience if the book is narrated by the author, because I think it captures the original emotions, intonations and expressions that the author intended to convey.

So, as I was aimlessly browsing my library's catalog, the book "Eat, Pray, Love", started calling out to me and said 'Read me'. Boy, am I glad I listened. Its a very fresh, honest, humorous, original written work the likes of which I havent had a chance to read in a long time. Its about a woman's journey through Italy, India and Indonesia to enjoy her food (Italy), experience spirituality (India) and balance (Indonesia). Since my copy is an audio book, and the book is auto biographical in nature, I'm having an even richer experience to hear the author talk to me. Its like having a conversation with someone you've known all your life. Only, you dont want to interrupt, because, she keeps you captivated with the answer to the unasked question, 'ok, whats next?', in every page. Its also uncannily relatable.
This book has been out there for a while. Since I'm usually the last to get on the bandwagon of anything popular, I didnt feel the urge to read this before, even though I'd lent some cursory glances to reviews a while ago. I havent completed the book, but the book has got me - hook, line and sinker. I can't do anything (except blogging, of course), before I can finish this bad boy.

Good Work! Elizabeth Gilbert.

Breathe!

I listened to Dr.Andrew Weil today talk about the importance of breathing. His tone, delivery of narration and most importantly the content of his audio book 'Breathing:The Master Key to Self-Healing', makes me want to hold on to every word, because, here's a trained medical professional who teaches and practices Integrative Medicine, who keeps away from the toxic effects of pharmacological treatment, who is not for suppressing the body's symptoms, instead focuses on treatment of the cause of the disease. He's penned several books and I have to admit that I'm spellbound by this one.

He says that breathing is the only bodily function that is done both voluntarily and/or involuntarily. We can focus on breathing and do it deeply, or if we forget to do it, the internal mechanism of the body takes care of it. Its literally the way life force moves in the body. It clears blocks, keeps circulation, digestion, and neurological systems in balance. Sanskrit terms the breath as prana and there are two meanings for prana - breath and life force. I believe that the essence of the two meanings is the same.

Dr.Weil claims that most diseases of today can be cured completely by following his breathing exercises. I tend to agree and to the more extreme skeptic, Dr.Weil has scores of patients that have followed his process and seen results. The most basic meditation also focuses of breathing consciously and holding that as the point of attention. Breathing correctly is integral to the practice of yoga. Practicing pranayama in addition to yoga, is, in my opinion, all thats needed in terms of taking care of your mind, body and soul.