Remember Who You Are

Who are you?

Such a simple question at first.

Our normal tendency to answer this question is by saying our name, followed by where we come from and then what we do. That is who you are for the world. The society. The people.

But, who really are you?

This is less of a question and more of a message. An indication.

With so much development around us, and so much distraction, we often lose sight of our inner selves and begin to define ourselves as per the world around us. We are labelled. We want to get ahead in life. We look to learn new skills. To study more. Read more books. Switch roles. Change careers. Climb the professional ladder. Earn money. Get married. Own a house. Travel the world. Live in luxury. While these things may be essential and may differ from person to person, the problem occurs when we keep wanting more and more, and more than we get at each stage. Yet, seldom be satisfied. We are stuck. Why? Because irrespective of what we do or achieve, we still don’t know what we actually want.

The universe often presents an opportunity to realize our true-selves each time we encounter a choice and need to take a decision. How many times do we actually sit back and look at our choices as a means of self-discovery?

In order to really be happy, and to live every bit of our lives instead of simply moving on with it, we must be conscious of our existence. Of the choices before us. Of the decisions we take. Of our past.

Where is the time? We are strange beings. We want the best of everything. We want to project a certain image of ourselves. We want to be liked, loved and admired. And for that, sometimes even without realizing, we put on a mask, pretending to be someone we are not!

Do we know ourselves well enough before expecting approval from the outside world? If the answer is no, then we are certainly leading a life projected by our ego and self-interest. In which case, we will realize that things don’t come that easy to us. We are trapped and keep going in circles. On the other hand, when we are conscious and aware of our existence and when we put in the effort to understand ourselves – we no longer feel the need to be pretentious. The mask falls off. We are accepted for who we are. It becomes easier to lead our lives, understand people and take decisions. Result? Progression. Growth in each part of our life – personal and professional.

When I talk about living with awareness and being conscious, do I mean adopting the saintly lifestyle? Do I mean there won’t be troubles at all? Absolutely not! By conscious living, i.e. when we feel connected with ourselves, we gain the strength to face every obstacle that comes our way. We may fail, be overwhelmed, angry and stressed. But we learn to accept reality. We learn to face the truth. And by staring reality in the face, we see exactly what needs to change in order to move on and grow.

Ofcourse, it’s easier said than done. But would it be worth it if it were easy?

“Can you remember who you were before the world told you who you should be?” – Charles Bukowski

If we spare even a few minutes everyday to listen to the voice of our soul, perceive barriers and choices as a means of self-discovery, and reflect upon our past, we will eventually find our true authentic selves.

Of course, looking at the past maybe a painful exercise. But, we can either run from the past or learn from it. If we accept it and learn from it, we are empowered to make the necessary changes in our lives. When we don’t resist it and stop fearing it, we are no longer stagnant. We take a step towards being our most authentic self.

I recently read an article on the secrets of a long and healthy life, and discovered that the happiest countries like Japan, Hawaii and Norway have one thing in common – the people try to adopt conscious living in their daily activities. They make sure to spend some time with themselves by eliminating distractions. They accept their reality. And, they are not afraid to talk about their roots. They ponder upon their actions, which eventually leads to the development of a deeper sense of being.

My point being: Knowing who you are is the key to not just being good at personal relationships, but also the key to professional advancements, good health, and, longer lives – all the while helping us become the best version of ourselves.

“You’ll never know who you are unless you shed who you pretend to be.” –  Vironika Tugaleva

So, let us stop being afraid of what we will find within ourselves and learn to accept every bit of our existence. Only then can we change something. Let’s break free. Let’s make our lives easier.

Remember who you are.

Pondering #1

Is there some sort of perversion in what we’re taught, some error that’s vicious and very important?

I believe this is a vital question that must be answered.

A community that thinks together, grows together!

Mediocre vs. Successful

I’ll begin this post with a story –

A certain farmer had become old and ready to pass his farm down to one of his two sons. When he brought his sons together to speak about it, he told them: The farm will go to the younger son.

The older son was furious! “What are you talking about?!” he fumed.

The father sat patiently, thinking.

“Okay,” the father said, “I need you to do something for me. We need more stocks. Will you go to Bhuv’s farm and see if he has any cows for sale?”

The older son shortly returned and reported, “Father, Bhuv has 6 cows for sale.”

The father graciously thanked the older son for his work. He then turned to the younger son and said, “I need you to do something for me. We need more stocks. Will you go to Bhuv’s farm and see if he has any cows for sale?”

The younger son did as he was asked. A short while later, he returned and reported, “Father, Bhuv has 6 cows for sale. Each cow will cost 2,000 rupees. If we are thinking about buying more than 6 cows, Bhuv said he would be willing to reduce the price 100 rupees. Bhuv also said they are getting special jersey cows next week if we aren’t in a hurry, it may be good to wait. However, if we need the cows urgently, Bhuv said he could deliver the cows tomorrow.”

The father graciously thanked the younger son for his work. He then turned to the older son and said, “That’s why your younger brother is getting the farm.” 

Most people only do what they are asked, doing only the minimum requirement. They need specific instructions on most things they do.

Conversely, those who become successful and stand apart from the crowd are anxiously engaged in a good cause. They don’t need to be managed in all things. They don’t just do the job, they do it right and complete. They also influence the direction for how certain ideas and projects go.

Most importantly, those who become successful initiate. They reach out to people, ask questions, make recommendations, offer to help, and pitch their ideas.

Being successful requires being proactive and not waiting for life to come to you. It means you’re on offense, not defense. You’re active, not passive.

In every organization or institution, there are a select few people who would be difficult to replace. For the most part, most people are like the older son in the story. Most people could be easily replaced. Most people are passive and reactive. They require specific instructions. They need to be governed and managed in all things.

Initiation always involves some degree of risk. You’re putting yourself out there and there is a chance you could fail.

Alternatively, doing only what you’re told entails no risk and carries no responsibility. It’s playing safe.

But what’s worth it?

Are you an initiator? You absolutely can be.

But if not, one thing is for certain: Life isn’t going to wait for you. 

Now Is The Time To Move Out Of Your Comfort Zone.

Magnification Of The Self

“Every man who knows how to read has it in his power to magnify himself, to multiply the ways in which he exists, to make his life full, significant and interesting,” says Aldous Huxley.

This is true, practical wisdom. A person, especially a youngster, struggling to find a place in the world, often overlooks the sagacity of such words. He chases imaginary rainbows and comes to deep disappointments. According to me, a magnificent person is –

One whose object of pursuit is not tainted by anger, pleasure, arrogance, abashment, ego and over-estimation of one-self, is known as a wise person.

One whose actions, condulations and innermost thoughts are not known to anybody until the work is done.

One whose work is not stopped by the impediments like the heat and cold, fear and courage, poverty and wealth.

A person who wishes and does only such good action according to one’s might without underestimating anything, such discriminating soul.

One who hears about a subject attentively and calmly, having a quick grasping power, knowingly performs his duty for the attainment of object of pursuit, one who never interferes in other’s affairs unless invited to do so.

One who craves not for unattainable worldly things, one who weeps not for lost things, one who is not afraid during the difficulties.

A person who decides first and then acts, once begun stops not in the middle, one who wastes not the precious time, and hold the mind under control.

One whose knowledge follows the intellect and one whose intelligence follows wisdom.

One who is not egoistic even though is endowed with wealth, wisdom and prosperity.

If we manage to imbibe even half of these, we’ll indeed be on a greater path of self-discovery and of becoming better human beings, thus discovering life with all the good that it possesses and facing the hardships head-on as they come! 🙂

Love and Peace to all ❤

What do YOU want?

Hope you’re all doing great! 🙂

Today, I decided to write about something that has been bothering me for quite some time now – the psychological mindset of people to go by the so called ‘norms of the society’; to be so concerned about what everyone else is going to think about their acts, their behavior, their appearance, their choices and so many other things that they begin to lose their own individuality in the process! Also, all of us want to do what we want to but we still stop those who do the same. Why can’t we grow together?

Nothing hinders an individual’s growth process as much as this mindset. It’s sad. We want to do something but we don’t because we don’t know what the ‘others’ are going to think about us. We are afraid of facing criticism. We fear judgement. We don’t know whether doing something ‘different’ is right. We want to be ‘accepted’.
Well, criticism and judgement are going to happen either way. They always do. A person who does something good will be criticized by those that can’t do the same and a bad deed is criticized anyway. Judgement is an attribute of mediocre minds, are we seriously so afraid of that mediocrity?  You do anything, they’ll judge you anyway; then, why not instead do what you want and be judged?

“I think everybody is weird. We should all celebrate our individuality and not be embarrased or ashamed of it.” – Johnny Depp

Similarly, doing something different and taking a step away from the crowd should certainly have nothing to do with the others.

“People may hate you for being different and not living by society’s standards, but deep down, they wish they had the courage to do the same.”

Wait, but we don’t want to be hated! We must realize, no matter how great an individual, haters will always exist. Always! There will always be people who don’t like you; the way you look, the way you talk, the things you say, the way you dress, the things you believe in, the music you listen to. Nut the truth is: it is up to you if you let them ruin your day, or if you learn to stand up for yourself and accept yourself just the way you are. You are not here to please anyone. Just try to be as good as you can and do what you want.

What I fail to understand is, who are those ‘others’?! Are they going to live our lives for us? Are they going to eat and excrete for us? Are they going to face the troubles and joys of our lives for us? Are they going to breathe for us?!

We are here in this beautiful existence as a unique individual creation of mother nature. We posses divine souls, each here for a different purpose. No two possessions were meant to be the same. Otherwise why would there be diversity at all? Then why is it that we fail to understand the very basic essence of our being and take away its peace?! Why do we get so overcome with those norms and opinions that we begin to do it at the cost of our own happiness? We want to be accepted, but how can we expect others’ to accept us and our ways when our own internal belief system doesn’t accept it? Karma will work either way. We need to accept ourselves and enrich our own selves before expecting it from outside. And that is possible only when we are courageous enough to do what we feel is right. What makes US happy. No, I’m not being suggestive of being selfish here. I’m only suggesting self-love. If we love ourselves enough to do what makes us happy, we will certainly make those around us happy too. We have to learn to say no. And we have to learn to change something instead of whining about how we want to do something but we don’t solely because of “others”. People come, people go. We lead our own lives and so we should lead it in our way.

“When writing the story of your life, don’t let some one else hold the pen.” 

You decide what makes you happy.
You already know what you truly want to do.
Nothing is too small or too big to be done if it makes YOU joyful.
You possess infinite strength to do anything you want.
Don’t let the noise of the world stop you from bringing out the best in you.
Be who YOU want to be, not what others want to see.
Just do it!
It’ll not only save you from the regrets of not having done something, but will also allow you to live peacefully.
Ignore the rest!
Everything will fall into place once you follow your heart.
It always does! 🙂

“You will never be able to escape from your heart. So, it’s better to listen to what it has to say.”  – Paulo Coelho, Alchemist

At the same time, we must make sure we’re not practicing hypocrisy and hindering some one who is willing to take a different step from doing it. Encouraging them instead would be the right thing to do. 🙂

Love and peace to all ❤

                                                       

“As I Began To Love Myself”

Sharing this beautiful poem by one of the most admired persons, Charlie Chaplin.

As I began to love myself I found that anguish and emotional suffering
are only warning signs that I was living against my own truth.
Today, I know, this is “AUTHENTICITY”.

As I began to love myself I understood how much it can offend somebody
As I try to force my desires on this person, even though I knew the time
was not right and the person was not ready for it, and even though this
person was me. Today I call it “RESPECT”.

As I began to love myself I stopped craving for a different life,
and I could see that everything that surrounded me was inviting me to grow.
Today I call it “MATURITY”.

As I began to love myself I understood that at any circumstance,
I am in the right place at the right time, and everything happens
at the exactly right moment. So I could be calm.
Today I call it “SELF-CONFIDENCE”.

As I began to love myself I quit steeling my own time,
and I stopped designing huge projects for the future.
Today, I only do what brings me joy and happiness, things I love to do
and that make my heart cheer, and I do them in my own way and in
my own rhythm. Today I call it “SIMPLICITY”.

As I began to love myself I freed myself of anything that is no good for
my health – food, people, things, situations, and everything that drew
me down and away from myself. At first I called this attitude
a healthy egoism. Today I know it is “LOVE OF ONESELF”.

As I began to love myself I quit trying to always be right, and ever since
I was wrong less of the time. Today I discovered that is “MODESTY”.

As I began to love myself I refused to go on living in the past and worry
about the future. Now, I only live for the moment, where EVERYTHING
is happening. Today I live each day, day by day, and I call it “FULFILLMENT”.

As I began to love myself I recognized that my mind can disturb me
and it can make me sick. But As I connected it to my heart, my
mind became a valuable ally. Today I call this
connection “WISDOM OF THE HEART”.

We no longer need to fear arguments, confrontations or any kind of problems
with ourselves or others. Even stars collide, and out of their crashing
new worlds are born.Today I know THAT IS “LIFE”!

Hope you’re all doing well.
Love and Peace ❤

Aloha!

Aloha to all the amazing people there! 😀
I really do hope in all good faith that life has been treating you well and you’ve been doing the same for it!
Well, it’s been over 5 months of inactivity here on WordPress and I finally decided to get back after this long break! I thought I’ll just have to take the blog down, but it would be unfair. Unfair to all those who’ve constantly been here with their ever-encouraging responses, to those who wrote to me asking when I would post next, to those who affected my life in so many different ways through their wonderful pieces of writing, and, unfair to the blog because of which I came across so many different people, made new friends, some of which are now a very integral part of my life and because of who my life has changed forever – for the better 🙂
This post is solely to thank each one of you for your support. For writing to me when I was away and keeping in touch. For motivating me to get back. I came across this picture which said, ‘Always find time for things or people that make you feel happy to be alive’…well, this is it. This blog and my amazing fellow bloggers are the best example of it and here I am! If not as often as I used to, I’m definitely going to write or share atleast once a month and will certainly be catching up with each one of you very soon.

Till then…Aloha dear people. Love and Peace to each one of you ❤

‘Jobs’

“We’re here to put a dent in the universe. Otherwise why else even be here?” – Steve Jobs

Two days back I finally watched the movie ‘Jobs’ where Ashton Kutcher is playing the role of inventor, entrepreneur, and former CEO of Apple – Steve Jobs. What a great man he was! I can’t help but also admire Kutcher for his marvelous acting in portraying Jobs!
While it is often said that Jobs wasn’t the nicest of guys, he played a significant role in some giant steps for technology, and he was a wise visionary I must say. I have been reading about him since then and my admiration for this man has only increased. I thought I’ll share with you some (actually quite many 😛 ) amazing lines from movie which are either his direct quotes or compilations of his quotes.

Remembering that you are going to die is the best way I know to avoid the trap of thinking you have something to lose. You are already naked. There is no reason not to follow your heart.

Your work is going to fill a large part of your life, and the only way to be truly satisfied is to do what you believe is great work. And the only way to do great work is to love what you do. If you haven’t found it yet, keep looking. Don’t settle. As with all matters of the heart, you’ll know when you find it. And like any great relationship, it just gets better and better as the years roll on.

I think if you do something and it turns out pretty good, then you should go do something else wonderful, not dwell on it for too long. Just figure out what’s next.

You can’t connect the dots looking forward; you can only connect them looking backwards. So you have to trust that the dots will somehow connect in your future. You have to trust in something – your gut, destiny, life, karma, whatever. This approach has never let me down, and it has made all the difference in my life.

Things don’t have to change the world to be important.

Details matter, it’s worth waiting to get it right.

That’s been one of my mantras — focus and simplicity. Simple can be harder than complex. You have to work hard to get your thinking clean to make it simple. But it’s worth it in the end because once you get there, you can move mountains.

Sometimes life is going to hit you in the head with a brick. Don’t lose faith.

Your time is limited, so don’t waste it living someone else’s life. Don’t be trapped by dogma — which is living with the results of other people’s thinking. Don’t let the noise of others’ opinions drown out your own inner voice. And most important, have the courage to follow your heart and intuition. They somehow already know what you truly want to become. Everything else is secondary.

Deciding what not to do is as important as deciding what to do.

Creativity is just connecting things. When you ask creative people how they did something, they feel a little guilty because they didn’t really do it, they just saw something. It seemed obvious to them after a while.

Here’s to the crazy ones — the misfits, the rebels, the troublemakers, the round pegs in the square holes. The ones who see things differently — they’re not fond of rules. You can quote them, disagree with them, glorify or vilify them, but the only thing you can’t do is ignore them because they change things. They push the human race forward, and while some may see them as the crazy ones, we see genius, because the ones who are crazy enough to think that they can change the world, are the ones who do.

We don’t get a chance to do that many things, and every one should be really excellent. Because this is our life. Life is brief, and then you die, you know? And we’ve all chosen to do this with our lives. So it better be damn good. It better be worth it.

The greatest artists like Dylan, Picasso and Newton risked failure. And if we want to be great, we’ve got to risk it too. You’ve got to be willing to crash and burn. If you’re afraid of failing, you won’t get very far.

If you want to live your life in a creative way, as an artist, you have to not look back too much. You have to be willing to take whatever you’ve done and whoever you were and throw them away.

How does somebody know what they want if they haven’t even seen it?

When you grow up you tend to get told that the world is the way it is and your life is just to live your life and try not to bash into the walls too much…that’s a very limited life. Life can be much broader once you discover one simple fact—everything around you that you call life was made up by people that were no smarter than you…shake off this erroneous notion that life is there and you’re just going to live in it versus make your mark upon it. Once you learn that, you will never be the same again. Don’t just live a life; build one. 

We’ve got to make the small things unforgettable.

It [what you choose to do] has got to be something that you’re passionate about because otherwise you won’t have the perseverance to see it through.

Let’s go invent tomorrow instead of worrying about what happened yesterday.

In your life you only get to do so many things and right now we’ve chosen to do this, so let’s make it great.

🙂

The 3 Magical Words

So, it’s Valentine’s Day soon- a gentle reminder of what is important in life – Love! Thanks to the 5th century Saint Valentinus for this. 😉

The first thing I’m gonna do when I wake up tomorrow (and I suggest you do the same) will be to stand in front of the mirror, look at myself and say “I Love You” aloud and realize what it truly means. It means that I accept you for the person that you are, and that I do not wish to change you into someone else. It means that I will love you and stand by you even through the worst of times. It means loving you when you’re in a bad mood, or too tired to do the things that I want to do. It means loving you when you’re down, not just when you’re fun to be with. I love you means that I know your deepest secrets and do not judge you for them. It means that I care enough to fight for what we have and I love you enough not to let go. It means that your presence is very important for me we’ll happily live this life together.

Take a moment to appreciate how awesome you are. Yeah, YOU! 🙂

Wondering why do this? Well, once you accept yourself for who you are, completely and wholly love your being, you begin to attract the same someone who will actually mean these 3 magical words for you and you’ll begin to experience the real magic together!

I wanted to share some quotes from these amazing people :

“Love is composed of a single soul inhabiting two bodies.”- Aristotle

“Being deeply loved by someone gives you strength, while loving someone deeply gives you courage.”- Lao Tzu

“My bounty is as boundless as the sea, My love as deep; the more I give to thee, The more I have, for both are infinite.”- William Shakespeare, Romeo and Juliet

“How do I love thee? Let me count the ways.”- Elizabeth Barrett Browning

“Age does not protect you from love. But love, to some extent, protects you from age.”- Anais Nin

“Love does not dominate; it cultivates.” – Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

“Love makes your soul crawl out from its hiding place.” – Zora Neale Hurston

“I have learned not to worry about love; but to honor its coming with all my heart.” – Alice Walker

“Love is the expansion of two natures in such a way that each includes the other, each enriches the other.”

Come on now what are you waiting for? Go ahead and let your wife/husband/girlfriend/boyfriend or ‘anyone you secretly are in love with’ know what they mean to you. Celebrate this day of love with love ❤

And all those people of my league (you know what I mean), the law of attraction will work at the right time, till then be in love with yourself! 😉 😀

 

Our Thoughts Create Us

Please do spare some time to watch this amazing video that I just came across on YouTube. I’m sure it’ll amaze you as much as it astounded me and get you to ‘think’ differently! 🙂

Love, Peace and Positivity to all ❤