Mind, Conscious & Memory (Part II)

The area we are analysing is very complicated and mostly understood only by experiential knowledge. So the need to slice it into smaller portions becomes essential for understanding. Let us see the ‘mind, consciousness and memory’ with the example of group meditation, to get a better picture. 

When we meditate as a group, and go deep into meditation, we first come in contact with our individual unconscious mind. Then some of us scream, cry and some others dance, whirl and sing. All these activities arise from our individual consciousness. And by the end of the first stsge of meditation, we cease to be individuals; we all become a collectivity, collective whole. This is the moment when we go deep in meditation and touch those levels of the mind which are part of the collective mind. Then we don’t feel that we are dancing- it feels that dance is happening and we are just part of it, the cosmic dance. Then we don’t feel that we are, it feels that only existence is and everything in existence is dancing; stars are dancing, mountains are dancing, birds are dancing and every particle under the sun are dancing. Then our dance becomes a small but integral part of universal dance. This experience is coming from our contact with the collective unconsciousness. 

Just below the collective unconsciousness lies the world of cosmic unconsciousness. We arrive there via the collective unconsciousness; and once we are connected with the cosmic unconsciousness our awareness undergoes a complete change. Then we cease to feel that we are part of the whole, rather we know that we and the whole are one- we are not part of the total, rather we know we are totality itself. And then we suddenly remember who we are; this remembrance shoots up like an arrow from the depths of cosmic unconsciousness and fills our conscious mind. Then we also know, and know simultaneously, that this awareness that we are the ‘Brahman’, the ultimate, the supreme is nothing new- it has always been with us, buried deep in our cosmic unconscious.

Dr Dwarakanath (MItran Foundation)

Power of Compassion

Many years back I read a book of Dalai Lama titled ‘Power of Compassion’. After reading the book for the first time, I realised the importance of the word ‘compassion’ and also how powerful it is when practiced in true sense. I also had a practical experience of this fact a few years later when I was posted as Housing Commissioner of Uttar Pradesh. As Housing Commissioner, I used to meet the public every afternoon in order to listen to their grievances. At times, the number of visitors used to be quite large but I always attended to all. 

One day during this meet, a daily wage employee of the organisation met me with a medical report of Sanjay Gandhi Post Graduate Institute of Medical Sciences (SGPGI). Most of the visitors used to meet me for their house-related problems, so it was something I was not exactly prepared for. The person appeared to be very sick and his report required an emergency operation, which was to cost about one lakh rupees. As a daily wager, he was not entitled to reimbursement from the organisation. He had come to see me to seek special dispensation, which was not within the rules. He also mentioned that without the operation he would surely die within a short period, while after the operation the chances of his survival were about fifty percent. This was a difficult situation for me, particularly when other visitors were also waiting in the queue. At that moment, the human consideration became more important for me than rules. I, therefore, immediately rang up the Director of SGPGI, who happened to be a good friend of mine, to go ahead with the operation and also assured him of the payment. However, I was not clear about its source and thought about it only after meeting all the visitors. At that time, an idea came to me that half the money should be contributed by the employees and half by the organisation. When I placed this proposal before the association of the employees along with a cheque of my contribution, they all agreed to it and the money was arranged accordingly. The sick employee was soon operated in SGPGI and the operation was successful. 

After about a month, during my visitor’s time, the same employee was again in the queue with a medical fitness report. In that state of fitness, it was not possible for me to recognise him on my own. It was only when he reminded me of the help extended to him that I pleasantly recalled the whole incident. Obviously it gave me great joy and satisfaction. At that moment, I also recalled the book of Dalai Lama and once again realised the ‘power of compassion’, which I consider to be beyond all rules and regulations.

Rakesh Mittal I A S

Abu Sufian In

 Mohammed thought that it would be fruitful to present Abbas as his delegate to Mecca. Riding on the wise horse of Mohammed, Abbas was about to leave to Mecca as his delegate when he heard the conversation between Abu Sufian and Budail. Abu Sufian remarked, “I did not see right end army  as I witnessed tonight before.” Budail replied that they were tribesmen of Qusaa. Abu Sufian said, “Qusaan tribe was a known tribe and they would not be able to gather such a big army.” Abbas asked Abu Faisal, “Did you not see the prophet of God and the army marching towards Mecca? The Prophet will enter Mecca tomorrow and the Qureshis will be surprised.” Abu Sufian asked Abbas what should they do in the matter. Abbas took Abu Sufian on his horse and sent his companion to Mecca. He took him to the prophet. As they moved towards Mohammed, Umer recognized Abu Sufian and wanted to punish Abu Sufian in view of his past conduct. Abbas declared that he has given protection to Abu Sufian. There was dome exchange of words between Abbas and Umer. Mohammed intervened and asked Abbas to take his guest to the tent and meet him next morning. 

Next morning, Abu Sufian appeared before Mohammed. Senior companions and Mohajids had gathered there. Mohammed turned to Abu Sufian and asked him whether he could not feel acknowledged that there is no other God except the One God. Abu Sufian replied “You are great and charitable. By God my belief was that there are partners to God and they would be useful to me, but that did not happen.” Again Mohammed asked whether he could not still acknowledge that Mohammed was the messenger of God. Abu Sufian again said, “You are great. But I am not free from my doubt.” 

Abbas advised Abu Sufian to embrace Islam. Finding that he has no other choice Abu Sufian declared that there is only one God and Mohammed is his messenger. Then Abbas came to Mohammed and said, “Abu Sufian would be the person to be sad for some special position and asked Mohammed whether he should give some special position to him. Mohammed then declared  “Whoever entered the house of Abu Sufian and whoever shut the doors of their houses and remain in their houses and those who entered must be safe and protected.” 

Justice P K Shamsuddin 

Papal Dynamics - 6

(Last segment of the exclusive article on Papacy)

As I was going to write that an autocratic, authoritarian papal electoral system can  beget only its kind as a pope, the news of the election of Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio of Argentina as pope came. The report of his simplicity and humility in contrast to Vatican splendor touched me deeply even in my skepticism related to papacy. The fact that he is the first Jesuit pope also warmed my heart as I was a Jesuit for 25 years, and as I think of Jesuits as eminent men as a whole. His selection of the name, Francis,  – evocative of two great saints: Francis of Assissi and Francis Xavier who surrendered themselves totally to God - as his name also bodes good. He is conservative, and is not without controversy related to murderous dictators between 1976 and 1983. We do not know his circumstances, and we want to wish him the very best to make the urgent changes he needs to make in the Catholic Church.

The history of papacy is horrible and scandal-ridden. Some of the popes such as Alexander VI and John XII have been very immoral. Pope Sixtus IV who built the world-famous Sistine chapel in Vatican named six of his nephews cardinals. Pope Innocent VI was denounced by St. Bridget of Sweden as a persecutor of Christ’s flock. Pope Urban VI was so unstable and abusive that an anti-pope was elected to replace him causing the great Western Schism with three claimants to the papacy. Boniface VI was elected after having been twice defrocked for immoral conduct. Pope John XI was the illegitimate son of Pope Sergius III and Marozia, the head of the powerful Theophylact family. The list goes on.

The distinction between religious and secular, lay and religious, profane and sacred, clergy and laity, and politics and religion is getting blurred. As humans participate in divine nature, every conscious act of human is profoundly spiritual as it is made with a view to sustain the spirit. Only the spirit/soul in human is eternal. A truly spiritual person is always guided by the Holy Spirit and purity of intention. The whole world is charged with the presence of the Spirit. Nobody has any special privilege or special access to the Spirit. It is not right that a pope selects the cardinals who elect his successor. The machinery for selecting a pope has to be set up by a truly representative Church Council. What is required is not secrecy and tactics  but the Gospel (good news) of Jesus Christ. That is what brought down the mighty Roman Empire. The Gospel is plain and simple; it does not need to be wrapped in attractive worldly wrappings. It is perennial and eternal. It stands by itself. It does not need Cardinals who are known as princes of the Church in outdated red costumes and other paraphernalia. All monarchical, pompous names should be abolished outright. They do not befit men who follow the man born in a manger in utter destitution. The Church elders such as pope, cardinals and bishops should be recognized by their love, mercy, compassion, truth, transparence, holiness, and humility. The Catholic Church needs to make a fundamental option for the poor. It needs to be guided by the spirit of sharing and communitarian living (Acts 2 and 4). The Church needs to be a fortress of holiness and transparence in its spiritual and material dealings.

Pope Francis, lacks legitimacy in that he was elected by a non-representative body of the Church (115 cardinals selected by conservative Popes John Paul II and Benedict XVI). However, I want to forgive that grave error, and ask other reform-minded persons to do the same. I want to give the Pope, who began extraordinarily well compared to previous popes, 5 to 7 years to put the Church in order. He may have a maximum term of 7 years to do his job and resign. First of all he needs to call a representative General Council that includes all the segments of the Church to set up a democratic process to elect a pope (his successor) in the future who really represents the entire Church. It is not anymore going to be a pope who is interpreting God’s will, and who appoints cardinals and bishops in descending hierarchical order to govern the Church. It is going to be all the members of the Church who discern God’s will and decide the future of the Church. The electoral process can be very simple for a General Council. Each diocese in the world can elect 3-5 clergy and lay representatives to elect the pope. For the election of the pope all do not have to go to Rome either. The General Council can set the agenda for the Church that the Pope and a few representatives (a cabinet – equivalent to the Curia) chosen by the Council can put into practice.  Much can be written about the shaping of a New Church administration according to the mind of Christ, that can even be a magnificent model for a new political World Government of all the nations. The New Church striving for Unity of Christianity characterized by love, compassion, truth, freedom, and tolerance, needs to be non-judgmental, and respects everyone’s conscience in a multi-cultural world. True love can work only in freedom; and only truth can set us free or help us achieve salvation. And Christ, above all, came to teach compassionate love and freeing truth. The New Church needs to set guidelines and policies according to the teachings of Christ in the Gospels. There need to be periodic General Councils every 10 or 15 years to discern and identify problems facing the Church, and formulate guidelines and policies to meet the challenges according to the signs of the times. Trained as a Jesuit, Pope Francis, I am sure, is well aware of the calling of (1) periodic General Congregations in the Society of Jesus to keep abreast with the changes in the world in order to minister to that world, and (2) discernment of spirits to make the right choices (elections) in spiritual life. Let Pope Francis use all his training and pastoral experience to reform and modernize the Catholic Church. Let him guard against all authoritarian and autocratic impulses. We are watching his every step. The world needs solid transforming deeds and not pious platitudes. Let the New Church be a fortress of spirituality, that goes beyond all religions, and that is for all God’s children paving the way for the urgently needed Unity of Humanity. 

Swami (Dr) Snehanand Jyoti

The Prodigal Son

The parable of the prodigal son is a touching story in the Bible, through which Jesus introduces an infinitely compassionate God. The same story is said to be there in Buddhist Sutras also, but with a different ending. According to the Indian story, the son is not received back at home. What I mean is not a debate over the matter whether Jesus lived in India or not but an analysis of the varying endings in these stories. In both the stories, a young man, earnestly paining for absolute freedom, snatches his physical shares and leaves ceremoniously with Himalayan hopes into the freedom of his vision but miserably fails. Is freedom dangerous? India said that absolute freedom unless well managed is damaging to the last drop. I think Jesus was not denying this aspect of freedom. Wasn’t he going beyond, exposing the nature of an ever loving Consciousness that can contain people of all nature? However, what I see in this parable is the absolute truth that freedom is dangerous, unless properly disciplined to be in.  

The word freedom might contain various subdivisions like political freedom, religious freedom, social freedom, economic freedom, intellectual freedom, academic freedom and it can even be software freedom. Freedom is generally spoken of as power or right to act, speak, or think as one wants. Freedom is all around. It is in freedom that love breaks out. The sad thing is that neither people dare to enjoy it nor society distributes it in full. People love to be like caged parrots which believe that it has the freedom to move its wings, open its beaks and streak all around the cage. We know that it is not freedom.

We are afraid to think on our own, we are afraid to act on our own, we are afraid to speak on our own….may be because we are in continuous fear of being alone. Masses continue in the same freedom cages of religions, politics or whatever, where everyone is stacked in boxes of rituals, traditions and belief patterns. Freedom is much sought for and it is for some sort of freedom that all struggles are for. If I had it in plenty, I would have gladly shared it all. I have heard of US bumper stickers on cars which say, ‘Do not follow me because I won’t lead you’. The quote may fit every king struggler of the times, who fight for something they have in their own premises. 

Joseph Mattappally

True education - a powerful weapon

“Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world”.     Nelson Mandela

Education is the knowledge of how to use the whole of oneself. An educated man knows how to make a tool of every faculty, how to  open it, how to keep it sharp, and how to  apply it for all practical purposes. Education is the harmonious development of all our faculties. It begins in the nursery and goes on at school but does not end there. It continues through life, whether we will or not. The essence of all education is self discovery and self control. A man is educated when he has accustomed himself to using his freedom well.

If you give a man a fish, he will eat one. If you teach a man to fish, he will eat for the rest of his life. If you are thinking a year ahead, sow seed. If you are thinking ten years ahead, plant a tree. If you are thinking one hundred years ahead, educate the people. By sowing the seed, you will harvest once. By planting a tree, you will harvest tenfold. By educating the people you will harvest hundredfold.

Thomas and Nancy Lincoln lived in a one-room log cabin in Kentucky’s wilderness. Mr. Lincoln was a hunter, but an extremely poor man. In the cabin an unpromising place grew up Abraham Lincoln, one of the greatest men of all times. His mother was one of the pioneers who could read and write. She read to Abraham from the one book in their home, the Bible, in the light of the fire as they could not afford candles. She taught her children to read and spell. There, Lincoln began the training of his mind and heart that made him the outstanding man that he became.

Today, all over the world, schools and educational institutions of higher learning dot Mother Earth. These institutions are considered as the parameters of learning and education. But without a doubt the best teacher is Mother and the best educational institution is the Home - when both the Mother and the Home are what they should be.

Sr (Dr) Lilly Thokkanattu SJL

Mind, Conscious & Memory

Devotion knows only one thing, remembrance. And we cannot remember a thing piece by piece; either we remember it whole or we don’t. One cannot remember himself so that he is part God and part man; if he remembers he remembers totally. The process of remembering is sudden and total. It cannot be piece meal and gradual. Remembrance is an explosion. Discipline has a sequence and devotion has none. For example, we need to remember a name that we have long forgotten. We are simultaneously aware that we know that name, yet we cannot recall it. We are in the state of perplexity and confusion. The very word forgetfulness means we forgot something we know. We are aware of it at some deeper level of our unconsciousness. Yet it fails to communicate with our conscious mind. So we have to build a bridge between these two parts of mind.  

We try different ways, we strain our mind, we scratch our head, we close our eyes, we twitch our brows and yet it goes on eluding us. The more we try the more tense we become. The tense mind goes into pieces; the quiet mind collects itself and becomes whole. It might be then that  some friend comes along and he engages us in some conversation which has nothing to do with the name we are trying to remember. In the mean time we forget the worry about remembering the name. And the wonder of wonder happens, the whole name suddenly pops up and we have it once again. The reason is simple. As soon as the tension caused by opposing forces of our mind disappeared and we entered into a state of relaxation; what we failed to remember with the effort came so effortlessly. And when it came it came whole.

I have said this as an illustration this is how our ordinary mind works. Memory is one of the functions of our mind which is divided into two parts. One is the conscious mind and the other is unconscious mind. Conscious mind is used in the work days almost always and the unconscious mind is used sparingly, as per the need. The fighting between these two stop; then that which was standing on door step of the unconscious mind emerges into conscious and we have it.  

Remembering the divine, or what we call self remembering goes even deeper than the unconscious mind, it is beyond it. The conscious is the superficial part of the mind which is lighted, and below that lays the unconscious buried in dark. Below the unconscious lays the collective unconscious, at the bottom lays cosmic unconscious - which is the mind of the entire universe. Remembrance of God or self- remembrance happens at the level of the cosmic mind, which is the ultimate in the consciousness. God or self is known when we become completely integrated – not only with our conscious, unconscious and collective minds but also with the consciousness.

Dr Dwarakanath (Mitran Foundation)

Magic of Pardon

Our administrative system is infamous for a large number of laws, rules, orders, etc. and they are always increasing in number. The aim of all of them is to make the governance good, efficient, transparent and judicious. Also, there are provisions of disciplinary action against the employees for their lapses. Occasionally, they are punished also, though it is difficult to say whether punishment is really changing the system for the better or not. I narrate here an interesting experience during my posting as Principal Secretary of Secretariat Administration Department (SAD) at Lucknow. 

SAD is also responsible for the upkeep of secretariat buildings. For this a Management Officer (MO) or an Assistant Management officer (AMO) is posted for each major building. At that time, a lady officer was posted as an AMO for an important building and she was considered to be quite efficient. I was in the habit of taking rounds of the secretariat and during one such round of that building I noticed certain shortcomings. As a result, I gave her some instructions and expected compliance by a certain date. I fixed up an inspection again on that day. She assured me that my instructions would be complied with by that time.

When I visited that place again on the appointed date and time, I found that neither the instructions were complied with nor was the officer present there. It was a great surprise to me. I also noticed that no one in her office was aware of my instructions. Naturally, it annoyed me and as soon as I came back to my office, I gave instructions for disciplinary action against the AMO. The office promptly put up the file and proposed suspension or adverse entry to the officer concerned. By the time the file came to me, my anger had cooled down and instead of approving the proposed suspension, I ordered for seeking her explanation first. A letter was accordingly issued to the officer.

The file came back to me again after about a week. By this time, an explanation from the officer had been received as well as processed. However, the office had drawn the same conclusion as it had done before, perhaps more to please me than on merit. But, when I read the explanation, it appeared quite satisfactory to me. The officer had prayed for unconditional apology and admitted that the lapse had been inadvertent. Somehow, my instruction to her had slipped her mind and she could not act on them. She had also mentioned that the question of disobeying could not even occur to her mind. Considering all this, I decided to pardon her and closed the matter there itself. 

The news of this decision spread throughout the secretariat in no time. Perhaps, the incident had come to the notice of many and they were curious to know the outcome. Some might have been planning to protest also in case I had taken a punitive action. But then, many rang me up or met me personally to convey their appreciation and told me that it had a salutary effect on others also. The concerned officer, who had not dared to meet me after the incident, also met me with tears in her eyes and conveyed her gratitude. I was, in fact, pleasantly surprised to see the magic of pardon. I also thought how nice it would be if rules also provided for a pardon clause, which is not the case as of now. As a result, my instructions had been effectively complied with the next day.

Rakesh Mittal I A S (Lucknow)

The Big March to Mecca

When he reached Mecca, Abu Sufian shared his experiences at Medina. The Meccans found fault with Abu Sufian for choosing to be a victim, when he told them about his declaration of peace and rejection of it by Mohammed. They started consultation on the future course of action. Mohammed decided that no opportunity should be given to Meccans for preparation of war. His plan was to attack Mecca without giving them any chance to defend and without shedding any blood. Mohammed asked his companions to get the army ready quickly. It was only after the completion of all the preparations that Mohammed revealed about his operation against Mecca. In the meanwhile, Hatib Ibin Abu Baltha send a secret message through a female slave about the proposed operation of war. Hatib was a prominent Muslim. Mohammed came to know about this. Mohammed sent some men to follow her and confiscate her secret letter. They met her and finding that there is no other option than surrendering the letter, she took it out and gave it to them. They took it back to Medina and gave it to Mohammed. Hatib was summoned and Mohammed asked him what prompted him to do this. He replied, “By God, I have not lost faith in God and his messenger of God. I am a person among Muslims who has no fondly relations in Medina. I did it in the hope that my children and family in Mecca will not be in danger.” Umer asked the permission of Mohammed to put an end to his life for his act of treason. Mohammed accepted the explanation of Hatib, who had taken part in the battle of Badr, and released him.

The Muslim army marched towards Mecca. It was the largest army which was formed in Medina. The tribes of Zulain, Musaina and Qutfan joined them. As they marched foreword, new tribes also joined them. They had full confidence of victory. The army reached Deharan four miles away from Mecca. The strength of the army was over ten thousand. The Meccans had no knowledge about this military operation. They were debating as to how to consent the Muslim army. Abbas Ibn Abu Abdul Mutalib the uncle of Mohammed along with his family left Mecca and started to meet Mohammed. They met Mohammed at Juhfa. At the same time two more prominent Meccans Abu Sufian and  Abdulla Ibn Umer Umayya also left Mecca to meet Mohammed. They saw Muslim army at Nivil Iqab and sought permission to meet Mohammed. Though Mohammed was reluctant to give permission in view of their past conduct. Abu Sufian pretended to give an end to his life. Ultimately permission was given and they surrendered before Mohammed. Abdul Mutalib was wonder struck over the strength  of the army. They had already accepted Islam but worried what would happen to Meccans if the army attacked Mecca. Mohammed was very pleased on the openness of Abbas who expressed his anguish. 

Justice P K Shamsuddin

Papal Dynamics 5

The papacy of Pope Benedict XVI now is history. I trust in his words that he tried to love Christ and his Church with deep and total love. I also want to say that those of us who disagreed with him also love Christ and the Church with deep and total love. In fact without that love I cannot write what I am writing. A pope’s obedience needs to be to the discerned decisions of the Universal Church in a Council.  He needs to be accountable to the will of Christ manifested in the Church through a Council. We need a balanced approach that is neither conservative nor liberal but progressive. The Church cannot be held hostage by any particular group or view point or the bureaucratic curia.  It needs to interpret the signs of the times. I am not enthusiastic about this conclave in Rome to elect the new pipe as all the 115 cardinals, appointed by Popes John Paul II and Benedict XVI, are from a conservative mold.  We need a pragmatic pope who listens to all, who discerns God’s will with all in a representative council, and who, above all, is a holy visionary, and inspires to live Christ’s teachings and not a particular ideology. We also need to demystify the conclave and the election of the pope in a process dating to medieval times. All the current procedures came in place due to particular exigencies of the times. The past procedures, if not useful, need to go.

A Hindu sanyasi (ascetic) friend, who follows the teachings of Christ, asked me if the conclave is marked by inspiration or perspiration. He wanted to know if the conclave is guided by politics and human factors or by spiritual concerns directed by the Holy Spirit.  I told him it is both.  We are humans; God works through us; God knows the possible shortcomings inherent in human nature. The whole system whereby a pope is elected needs to be totally overhauled. Before 1059 in the Christian Era, the Bishop of Rome also known as the pope was chosen by the consensus of the clergy and laity of the diocese of Rome.  There were popes who were also selected by powerful families or kings in Europe. Most popes were Italians. Before Pope John Paul II, Italians were popes continuously for 455 years.  Out of the current 115 electors, 28 are Italians. Europe that has only 24% of the Catholic population has 60 cardinals, that is, 69% of electors. Since 1059 the sole body of electors of the pope became the College of Cardinals. Theoretically any believing male Catholic can become a pope. And there were laymen who became popes. Pope John XIX, for instance, was the first and only pope to succeed his older brother, and that too through bribery.  He actually bought the election, and “his canonically illicit passage from lay status to papacy in a single day shocked and infuriated many of the Romans”.  Since 1970 only cardinals under the age of 80 could elect the Pope. Pope Celestine III was eighty-five years of age when elected, and managed to serve almost seven years.  A two-third majority of cardinals present is required for the election. Pope John Paul II changed the procedure, and required only a simple majority after the fourth ballot. Pope Benedict reverted to the previous procedure of two-third majority. This is a human-made system. Currently a pope appoints cardinals who in turn elect his successor at his death or resignation. This autocratic dictatorial system perpetuates itself. It cannot be justified by invoking divine approval.  This system cannot be considered to be God’s will. God permits this system as God permits evil. This system as it is needs to go. A divinized system that truly represents 1.2 billion Catholics need to replace the outdated monarchical, autocratic system.

Swami (Dr) Snehananda Jyoti

Wanted Models

Recently, I came across a brief note written by my beloved yoga teacher Vinay Vaidya from Mumbai, in which it was said that he was struck by a well dressed good looking guy, who was found distributing water for free at Mumbai railway stations. We know that people, especially those living in a metro city like Mumbai, won’t usually think about spending their money and time for free. What he saw should be something very special. In the same week, I came across another similar surprise illustration also. That was from one of my bosom friends, Mr Vijayan, a recently retired senior officer from Central Income Tax Enforcement Directorate. I know that Mr Vijayan has travelled extensively as part of his profession. However, he says that his recent flight from Goa to Delhi was unforgettable because there he could see something special which touched him at heart level.  

On board the aircraft in which Mr Vijayan flew, there was a middle aged man in the economy class, whose gentle behavior and respectable manners had already invited his attention. At the airport counter he was on queue like any common passenger. He had no flunkeys, no security, no attendant, and was carrying his own luggage. He wasn’t the last to enter that low cost aircraft, and the aircraft also was not held up for him to arrive. He walked into the Go Air aircraft like any average passenger, almost unnoticed. All seats in his row were occupied and absolutely no special privilege seemed to have either been demanded or offered. At Delhi, he was also not the first to embark.

While in the bus, Mr Vijayan saw a couple of co-passengers trying to elbow forward for a chat with him.  He also heard some others whisper, ‘Mr Parrikar, Chief Minister of Goa’.  Dressed in a simple but formal shirt and trousers and black sandals, he didn't look or sound like a typical Indian politician. Mr Vijayan concluded his note saying that this first IIT-ian to head a state government in India has his vote for the kind of person he is. Both Vinay Vaidya and Vijayan have their own expectations, observations and inferences; they appropriately represent many millions of Indians who earnestly look out for models everywhere. People searching for models have increased; but this enthusiasm does not make any country great until at least a searching few turn models. 

Joseph Mattappally

The need to work

Hard work is the yeast that raises the dough

The most wonderful medicine, the capsule which is least expensive, the solution for most of our illness is the commonplace thing we know - work. When our mind and body are involved in creative activity, they positively gift us with good health, mental strength, higher productivity and inner peace; they free us from tension, worry, anxiety, negativity and depression. Creation is the work of God. The spirituality of work has its basis in the creative work of God. All work, whether manual or intellectual is inevitably valuable and  equally  good in the sight of God. What is more important is not the kind of work we do, but the love and commitment with which we do the work. God gives us wheat, but we must bake the bread. He gives us cotton, but we must convert it into clothing. He gives us trees, but we must build our homes. He provides the raw materials and expects us to  make the finished products with them.

Labour ,even  the most humble and the most obscure, if is well done, tends to  beautify or embellish the world. St. Benedict  wanted  his monks to  apply themselves to  manual labour. He divided the day between prayer, study and labour and giving four hours to  labour. He wrote  in  his Rule: “They will be true monks if they live by the labour of their own hands”. If you tend to  be a clock-watcher who never works beyond quitting time no matter what, then you  need to  change your habits. Make your work a game. Nothing feeds tenacity like our natural competitive nature. Try  to  harness  that by making your work a game.

Once a cart man was going with a cart loaded with goods. On the way his cart wheel plunged in wet mud. He started beating the bullocks to  get them to  pull the cart out of the slush, but the bullocks could not budge as the cart was rather heavily loaded. So he knelt down and started praying to  God  for strength. On seeing this, God was angry. He appeared in front of the cart man and said, ”Hey, get up you lazy man:  It is not my job to  pull out a cart- wheel from slush. You just get up and push. It will come out. And you ask me for strength to do your work, don’t ever ask me to  do your work”.

Sr (Dr) Lilly Thokkanattu SJL

‘Aum’ continues …

The real ‘Aum’ is heard when all words disappear, all noises cease. When mind and intellect, thought and word all come to an end and silence begins, then an extraordinarily subtle vibration remains, which is ‘Aum’. When the immense emptiness comes into being, it has its own sound, its own music. It is called the anahat, the unstuck and the uncaused sound. As mentioned earlier, the English language has three words: omniscient, omnipresent and omnipotent- all of which are constituted with the word Aum. Philologists may not be aware or understand; but after meditations and listening to anahatha, I feel, omniscient means that one who has known the Aum, omnipresent means the one who is present in Aum and omnipotent means the one who has become powerful as Aum. 

The Aum has been found in many forms all over the world. It is available in both the ancient sources of religion- Hinduism and Judaism. If there is anything common between Hinduism Buddhism and Jainism, it is Aum. Aum is a universal word as Amin, which are not manmade but heard in the depth of meditation. It is the cosmic sound. Zen sages ask their disciples to go and find the sound of one hand clapping. The sound of one hand clapping is something unheard of! This is Zen’s own way of saying the same thing- the anahatha, the unstuck sound. The real Aum is an explosion; it emerges from the depths of your innermost being. And it happens. 

Centre for physics and meta-physics, Switzerland, world’s foremost organization of authority in Basic sciences have found that the sound rhythm of Aum creates a pattern. This design is similar to that of ‘Sri Chakra’, of the Indian monk Adi Shankara. The resonance of Aum is deeply penetrative into the sub conscious and unconscious mind. Aum is proved to bring out the maximum potential of human mind and helps in crossing the frontiers of possibilities and so called impossibilities. 

A, U, M, sounds of the Aum are the primordial sounds of Humanity. Dr. Deepak Chopra, world renowned Cancer specialist and modern day Guru and the Dr. Dean Ornish- pioneer in ‘Reversing heart disease program’ use the power of ‘Aum’ meditation in their therapy. So it is not a surprise to know that Krishna strongly advocates to the humanity about the importance of ‘Aum’ in this life and after. Let us understand Krishna to understand Gita!

Wishing you all health and Happiness,

Dr. Dwarakanath, Director, Mitran foundation- the stress management people

Half Dilemma Gone

Today, the society in general is facing a great dilemma about the values of life. The environment around us seems to be so vitiated that a wrong belief that ‘values don’t work’ has taken deep roots. This belief persists at all levels and the youth is no exception. But when youth becomes the victim of such a dilemma, it becomes a matter of serious concern. Their dilemma should be removed at the earliest and all those who are seriously concerned about the future of the society should make efforts in this direction. The fact is that if addressed correctly, it is not very difficult to do so. My personal experience and belief is that the youth responds better to any discussion on values than any other group. And in this fact lies the hope for the nation and perhaps the whole society.

I am narrating here one such experience I had a few years back. Once I was on a visit to an educational institution and it was the beginning of the session. The educational institution had courses in engineering, management and computer sciences. When I was in conversation with the Vice Chancellor in his room, he suddenly asked me whether I would like to meet the first year students of engineering, as it was the beginning of their session. Since I had some spare time with me, I accepted the offer and an interaction session was organised.

During the interaction, I chose to speak on the question of values only because I thought it was appropriate to the occasion. So after initial pleasantries, I straight away put a question to the group of young boys and girls whether they had a dilemma in regard to whether values work or not. To my surprise, all of them faced such a dilemma as was evident from the hands raised by them. Almost all of them raised their hands and there were many who raised both their hands, such was their dilemma. This was a great challenge to me as removing such a dilemma was not an easy task, more so with the little time available to me for the interaction. Still, I resolved to do my best.

With this background, I started interacting with them. It was a participative interaction, which made my task a bit easier. Having myself gone through such a dilemma, finding an answer in due course was my conviction and I was sure of passing this conviction to them, if not fully then at least partially. I found the young students very responsive and my reasoning or logic in favour of living a value-based life was received by most of them approvingly. Still, there were many genuine doubts, which I tried my best to remove. Our interaction went on for about an hour and I was quite satisfied with it.

Having finished, I again put up the initial question whether they were still in dilemma about values. Now the response was quite different in the sense that less than half the students raised their hand and those who had raised both the hands initially now raised only one hand. To me it was an indication of the fact that at least half of their dilemma had gone. I think it was quite a good success for a debut effort. More than personal joy, it was hope that I got from the youth. Surely, there is need for more effort in this direction. 

Rakesh Mittal I A S

Treaty Violated

The members of Khusaa tribe ran to Mecca and took refuge in the house of Budail Bin Warqua. They complained that the Meccans and the Banu Bekkar tribe violated the terms of the treaty with Mohammed. Amr Ibn  Salim went to Medina in haste to inform Mohammed about the violation of the treaty. When he came there, Mohammed was sitting in the Mosque along with his companions. Amr Ibn  Salim reported the matter to Mohammed and sought his help. Mohammed said that the Muslims would certainly come for their rescue. Following Amr Ibn  Salim, Budail Bin Warqua and some others also came to Medina. They informed Mohammed the story of the  attack and the support rendered by Banu Bekker for the attack. Mohammed was convinced about the violation of the treaty by Meccans. Mohammed thought that conquering Mecca is the only solution for the violation of the treaty by Meccans. Mohammed asked all the Muslims to get ready for conquering Mecca. 

Some elderly people among Meccans realized the danger of the steps taken by Aikrima and some youth. They have violated the treaty at Hubaidiya. They also realized that the strength and command of Mohammed was increasing day by day. They pondered over what would happen if Mohammed attacked Mecca in support of Khusaa. They sent Abu Sufian to Medina for meeting Mohammed and asking to renew and extend the terms of treaty for ten years more. He met with Budail Bin Warqua and his people at  Ishphaan on his way to Medina. Abu Sufian feared that Warqua would have informed Mohammed about the attack on them and that would make his mission more difficult. Budail denied his talk with Mohammed. But Abu Sufian was intelligent enough to learn from the members of his tribe that he was returning from Medina. Therefore, he thought that before meeting with Mohammed it would be better to meet his daughter Ummu Habedbaa who was the wife of Mohammed. Though Ummu Habedeba did not know about the decision taken by Mohammed about attacking Mecca, she knew the general feelings of Muslims and the feelings of Mohammed and his companions. Abu Sufian who reached the residence of Ummu Habedeba was about to sit on the sheet used by Mohammed, which was prevented by Ummu Habedeba. Abu Sufian enquired about this conduct. She replied that Abu Sufian was not qualified to sit on the sheet used by the messenger of God. Abu Sufian got angry and left the residence of Ummu Habedeba. He went straight to Mohammed and wanted to extend the term of the treaty. Mohammed did not seriously take him. 

Frustrated, Abu Sufian went to Abu Bekker and requested him to intervene and speak to Mohammed about his mission. Abu Bekker also was not ready to oblige to him. When he met Umer, Umer was also not prepared to help him in this matter. Finally, he approached Ali and  explained the situation. Ali also was not ready to help him. He also requested to Fathima the daughter of Mohammed and wife of Ali to support him in the matter of his peace mission. She also expressed her helplessness. He asked Ali what he should do in the matter. Ali replied that he did not find any suggestion. He further said that utilizing his status as the head of Khimana tribe he could contact the people and return to Mecca and he did not find any other solution for this problem. Abu Sufian declared before the people gathered in the mosque that he came with peace mission and thereafter he left for Mecca. He was very sad about the conduct of his daughter and his people who were giving him great respect before Hijra. 

Justice P K Shamsuddin

Papal Dynamics 4

The last blow to the papacy came from the butler of Pope Benedict who leaked secrets related to the very inner workings of running the Catholic Church. The problems facing the Catholic Church are enormous and currently, beyond the critical stage, and require very urgent and effective solutions. These solutions have to come from the teachings of Christ as revealed in the Gospels. Many anti-Catholic speculations and gossips related to the resignation of the pope, unfortunately, are floating. I trust in the reasons that the Pope who will be 86 in April 2013 gave: “…My strengths, due to an advanced age, are no longer suited to an adequate exercise of the Petrine ministry.” Reports insinuate that by his resignation he might be also intending the eventual removal of some of the papal Curia who were out of control. The unkindest cut of all after his resignation was the resignation of Cardinal Keith O’Brien amid claims of sexually inappropriate behavior with a seminarian and three priests. O’Brien who publicly acknowledged his sexual misconduct and apologized for the same was scheduled to attend and vote for the new pope as the only representative of the United Kingdom in the papal conclave due to meet in Rome in March 2013. As one of the 115 or 116 cardinals voting and being voted for, he himself could have been electable as a pope. Ironically, O’Brien has been an outspoken critic of gay and lesbian rights, denouncing plans for the legalization of same-sex union/marriage as “harmful to the physical, mental and spiritual wellbeing of those involved”. O’Brien’s resignation is all the more poignant in a Church rocked recently by sexual abuse scandal.

There is not a single cardinal who has not been appointed by the conservative popes, John Paul II and Benedict XVI. This is not the way to run a 1.2 billion strong Church that needs to be represented  by a cross-section of people. The Church in its governance needs representation from traditional, conservative, progressive, and liberal quarters. No pope is entitled to pontificate God’s will. The election of a pope is done in a conclave. A conservative conclave is likely to produce another conservative pope. A notable exception in recent history was Pope John XXIII who did not think of being elected as he had a return ticket to Milan. The conclave, a locked in setting coming from the phrase cum clave (with a key) in Latin where the electors,  cardinals below the age of 80, are secluded in the Sistine chapel of the Apostolic Palace, and are not permitted to leave the place before the pope was elected. In the last conclave they were able to leave the Sistine chapel for their living quarters nearby. They are forbidden to have any contact with the outside media. They are able to interact among themselves. Since 1970 only cardinals under the age of 80 could elect the Pope. Currently there are 115 such cardinals.  A two-third majority of cardinals present is required for the election. Pope John Paul II changed the procedure, and required only a simple majority after the fourth ballot. Pope Benedict reverted to the previous procedure of two-third majority. No cardinal is allowed to canvas for himself or any other cardinal. The conclave begins in the Sistine Chapel. The cardinals celebrate a Mass for electing the pope in the morning. That afternoon, they  begin the election process. They draw lots to select three members to collect ballots from the infirm, three to count the votes, and three others to review the results. After the ballots are duly marked they walk to the altar in order of seniority and make pledges to perform their duty with integrity, and drop the ballots into a chalice. The ballots are tallied, and the result is read to the cardinals. If a cardinal receives two-thirds plus one of the votes, he is the new pope. If there is no winner, a maximum of three more votes may be scheduled for that afternoon. Pope  John Paul II was elected at the eighth ballot. Pope Benedict XVI was elected after the fourth.  When a pope has not been elected, the ballots are burned with a chemical to produce a black smoke.  When a pope has been elected the ballots are burned alone to produce a white smoke. The white smoke emerging from the chimney of the Vatican Palace will announce the election of the pope for those assembled in St. Peter’s Square. (To be continued).

Swami (Dr) Snehananda Jyoti

Beware of Silence!

The story goes on saying that there once was a farmer who discovered that he had lost his watch in the barn. It had sentimental value for him. After searching high and low among the hay for a long while; he gave up and enlisted the help of a group of children playing outside the barn. He promised them that the person who found it would be rewarded. Hearing this, the children hurried inside the barn, went through and around the entire stack of hay but still could not find the watch. Just when the farmer was about to give up looking for his watch, a little boy went up to him and asked to be given another chance. The farmer looked at him and thought, "Why not? After all, this kid looks sincere enough. So the farmer sent the little boy back in the barn. 

After a while the little boy came out with the watch in his hand! The farmer was both happy and surprised and so he asked the boy how he succeeded where the rest had failed. The boy replied, "I did nothing but sit on the ground and listen. In the silence, I heard the ticking of the watch and just looked for it in that direction.” 

Silence is a much discussed possibility in life. The story of the farmer tells us how silence was effectively utilized in recovering a lost watch. Generally, the purpose of silence is limited to maintenance of some sort of inner peace. However, silence can be meaningless and at the same time meaningful; silence can also be positive or negative, inner or outer.  For me, silence is not simply a situation of no sounds or absence of any communication. I believe in the theory that silence begins where mind and intellect ceases. It is in silence that we establish our connection with the subtle elements of existence and I am talking about a world beyond rational assumptions, where silence is a state of total communication. Whenever I brood over the concept, it comes to my mind that silence is the most powerful force in the world. A big roar can be dealt with a loud boom. But, how shall we deal a person who consciously practices silence in life? Shall I say, beware of silence? Silence is so powerful, the more we eat it the more it will swallow us.

Joseph Mattappally

Learn To Listen

      

  “The ear of the leader must ring with the voices of the people.” Woodrow Wilson

The first step in teach ability is learning to listen. American writer and philosopher Henry David Thoreau wrote, “It takes two to speak the truth - one to speak and one to hear.” Being a good listener helps us to know people better, to learn what they have learned, and to show them that we value them as individuals. Listening shows respect, builds relationships, increases knowledge, generates new ideas and builds loyalty. Herb Cohen, often called the world’s best negotiator, says, “Effective listening requires more than hearing the words transmitted, it demands that you find meaning and understanding in what is being said. After all meanings are not in words, but in people”. To listen with your heart, your listening has to be active.

Abraham Lincoln was one of the most teachable presidents. He was always an avid listener, and asked nearly everyone he met to send him their ideas and opinions. As the old saying goes, “There’s a reason you have one mouth and two ears”. Listen to others, remain humble, and you will begin to learn things everyday that can help you to expand your talent.

The world-renowned Opera star, Madame Ernestine Schmann-Heink went through a very traumatic experience. Early in her career, her husband deserted her. She found herself almost penniless with four children to look after. She decided to kill herself and the children under a running train. Late one night she sat on the railway track with her children clutched tightly her arms, waiting for the Express Train to run them down. Suddenly her little daughter called out: “Mummy, I love you, please let us go home”. This tiny voice brought her to her senses. She abandoned her desperate plan and decided to give life another shot. It did not take her long to rise to fame and be acclaimed as one of the greatest singers of all time. Yes God’s voice reaches us in very different ways from those we may not imagine. If only we could spend time in silent reflection each day listening  to His voice speaking to us through peoples and events, what a difference it would make.

Sr (Dr) Lilly Thockanatt SJL

Aum- the cosmic sound and Krishna!

Krishna says, “If someone can remember me in my ‘Aum’ form and live in Aum at the time of death, he will attain to the ultimate, the eternal- Moksha”. The word Aum is an extraordinary, rare word. It is extraordinary just because it has no meaning whatsoever. Every word has some meaning, this Aum has none. For this reason, the word Aum cannot be translated into any other language of the world. Being meaningless, finding equivalent is impossible, beyond translation. People who discovered Aum were in search of something which could be a bridge between the word and silence. While any word has a meaning, the silence is neither meaningless nor meaningful; it is beyond both, it is the beyond. Aum is constituted with the three basic sound forms: a, u and m. A, u and m are the basic sounds of the science of phonetics. All other letters of the alphabet are their extensions and combinations. Although Aum was not written in the as a word; it remains a distinct and distinguished symbol.  Aum in its original form is available in Sanskrit, where it is in the pictorial form, it is neither a word nor a letter. Aum represents the space where the finite world of the words- sounds end and the infinite world of the silence begins.  It forms the frontier, the border line between the word and the wordless; there is no word beyond Aum. Therefore Krishna says if someone can think of him in his Aum form- which is beyond word and meaning – at the moment of death, he will attain to reality, the truth. Because Aum is at the boundary line of the world and beyond; one who can remember at the time of departure from the world is destined to be carried to the beyond. 

Aum is not even needed to be uttered and chanted; it has to be really heard and experienced. When we go into deep meditation, when all words disappear, the sound of Aum will begin to vibrate. This real Aum is heard when all words disappear, all noises cease. When mind and intellect, thought and word all come to an end and silence begins, then an extraordinary subtle vibration remains, which this country has interpreted as Aum. When the immense emptiness comes into being, it has its own sound, its own music. It is called the sound of the cosmic silence; it is called the anahatha, the unstruck- the uncaused sound. The clapping of hands or the sounds of drums are created. But meditation is a journey into silence; when all sounds disappear, when there is no duality, when you are utterly alone, then the causeless sound comes into being. India’s sages have called it Aum.

Similar sounds of importance are found in other lands, languages and religions. Christians use a word amen, Mohammedans say Amin. Every invocation of Upanishads begins with Aum. The English language has three words: omniscient, omnipresent and omnipotent- all of which can be constituted with the word Aum.

More about the cosmic sounds in our next meeting…

Wishing you all good health and happiness,

Dr.Dwarakanath, Director, Mitran foundation- the stress management people

Not Even a Nose Ring

Mr TSR Subramanian was an IAS officer of the UP cadre. Having risen to the post of Chief Secretary in the state government and Cabinet Secretary in the central government, he retired a few years back. After retirement also, he has been useful to the society and is serving it in many ways. Sometime after the retirement, he wrote a book under the title ‘Journeys Through Babudom and Netaland’. This book is a kind of autobiography as well as a good analysis of ground realities in our country, particularly in respect of administration and politics. The book was very well-received and created a good debate among those who find mention in it. I read it soon after its release and enjoyed reading it. My one-line comment on this book is that it is a good dig on the system. While it does not provide answers to the malady of the system, it certainly provokes the system to think about the answers. This way it serves a great purpose. Subsequently, the book was published in Hindi also. 

Leaving this aspect of the book here itself, I am going to mention an incident narrated in the book, which left a deep mark on me. It relates to the period when Mr Subramanian was posted at Geneva, on a UN assignment. In the same office, there was an elderly class-four employee named B Singh who hailed from eastern UP. He had been in Geneva for quite some time and was very popular among the Indian officers posted there. The reason was his helpful nature along with the wisdom he had acquired on account of this trait. His counsel to all officers, particularly those posted newly, was well received and everyone looked for his help at one time or the other. He used to live there with his family.

It so happened that during the period of Mr Subramanian’s posting there, the wife of this employee passed away and Mr Subramanian visited his residence to pay his condolence. It was early afternoon; his apartment was a bare one-room flat. A few other Indians were there to share his grief. Singh had just returned after the cremation of his wife. He was dry-eyed, drained of all emotions, and talking more to himself than to the visitors at his home. He said, “She died last night. The nurse asked me to come back early this morning. She was being bathed and the nurse asked me to remove her nose ring before the cremation. Saab, I have never seen her without the nose ring ever since I had known her and married her when she was a ten-year-old. She wore it all the time, in bed, while bathing; it was a part of her. I could not bear the thought of separating her from the diamond nose ring. I told the nurse that I don’t want it, let it go with her. The nurse said that the metallic item could not be taken into the cremation. Saab, I tried to remove the nose ring, but my hands were trembling and I could not unscrew it. Finally, the nurse removed it and gave it to me. You see Saab, she could not even take this small thing with her when she went. But you see people who madly collect houses and money and property they cannot take with them.”

Rakesh Mittal I A S