The 3rd monk

                          I stood at the corner of a very narrow road. As far as I could see, I only saw desert. Uninhabited area. It was only one road, sundering desert in two parts. I didn't know where I was. I expressed gratitude to the almighty, because I wasn't thirsty. I was a little perplexed. I hadn't seen this desert before. I started looking all around. Suddenly I saw a man coming towards me. He seemed to be a monk. Finally he approached me.

"Hi." I said.

"I am logic." The monk introduced himself.

"Who?" I couldn't get it. I mean he said he was logic!?

"Yes, Your perception says I can not be logic. right?" Logic said.

"Of course."I replied.

"I hardly match with perception. In most of the cases, perception has nothing to do with me." The monk said.

"Are you here to tell me all that?" I asked him.

"I am here to tell you that you should wait here. Any time a car can pass by. you can ask for lift." Logic said.

"But I....." He disappeared before I could tell him anything.

I stayed there, but another person showed up. He was too coming towards me. He was a monk too.

"Hello!" I welcomed.

"I am perception." He said.

"What? where am I? Why weird monks are approaching me?" I got a bit furious as well as confused.

"You are in a desert." He answered.

"That I can see." I told him.

"I am here to tell you that start looking for a water source in this desert, otherwise you won't survive." The perception said.

"Ok, but...." Before I could say anything he disappeared.

Now, I was about to leave road and start searching for water source, but another monk turned up. This time, I had made my mind to ask him all the questions. I wanted to know where I was!

"Hey, monk. Where am I?" I directly asked as he approached me.

" Let me introduce...."

"No, first answer my question. I know you are also going to disappear." I said.

"It's almost impossible. I can't disappear. I am here to stay with you forever." The monk explained.

"Who are you ,then?"I asked curiously.


                                                                 

"I am conscience. But I am often termed as 'heart'. You know all those 'follow your heart' kind of quotes? But, I tell you heart is only a pumping machine. When you talk about someone's heart, all you talk about is me." The monk said.

"Why are you here?"I asked.

"To tell you that follow this road. This road leads to a city." The conscience stated with a smile.

"But two monks, who approached me before you, suggested me different solutions. Logic said stay here. Perception suggested me to find a water source. I am confused." I clarified my confusion.

"Son , this happens with everyone. What do you see all around?" He asked me.

"Desert." I reverted.

"This is not desert. This is one of the unfavorable phases of your life. You are in trouble. If you stay here for a long time, you will get thirsty. Right?" The saint analyzed my reaction.

"Yes."

"To get out of this situation, you have three options- Listen to logic, perception and conscience. Logic suggested to stay here, but it is an uncertain solution. Car may not come. See how narrow this road is! Perception suggested you to find a water source, but it is a temporary solution. You may find a water source, but what about food? You can't survive, only with water. I told you to follow this road. There is a city at the end of this road. Road is not too lengthy. You would reach the city within an hour. I am with you during this journey."The monk explained his point.

"But, how can I trust you?" I queried.

  "Son, this too happens to every common person. When it comes to follow your conscience, every one doesn't have faith in it. You know, Charles Darwin didn't know what to do with his life. His perception suggested him to become a priest, but he still didn't listen to his conscience. His logic told him to study divinity at Cambridge in order to become a priest. But still conscience wasn't in picture. Finally when he listened to me, he went to Galapagos islands and traveled to various places to observe living beings. He has become immortal by introducing 'On the origin of species.'" The 3rd monk explained.
                         Did you get what the 3rd monk wanted to suggest? Always follow your conscience. Logic and perception may mislead, but conscience would never. All the great people follow their conscience. They don't believe in temporary solutions. We often question our own conscience, when conscience tells us to follow it. When great people say 'heart', it is actually conscience. Conscience knows who you exactly are, and what you can become in your life. And yes, conscience stays with us till death!

The philisophy of Hinduism

                             Sometimes, I think how ignorant this entire world is about Hinduism. Hinduism which is one of the oldest religion, is also one of the most tolerant religion. We believe in 'Sarva dharma sambhav" which means equal respect to all religions. We believe in 'Vasudhaiv kutumbakam" which means whole world is a family. We also believe in 'Truth is one, paths are many." So if you are a Christian & going to a church, that's your path of worshiping the truth. Jesus is the truth. His message to the world is the truth. If you are a Muslim & going to a Mosque, that's your path of worshiping the truth. Allah is the truth. Hinduism is not a religion, it is a way of life. There are no restrictions. We are actually not Hindus, initially our culture was called 'Sanatana dharma'. Sanatana means immortal. Dharma means ethics not religion. Any one, who thinks Hinduism is all about worshiping idols, must change his opinion. Let me share the core-philosophy of Hinduism from some of the holy scriptures of Hinduism.

                            "Life and death, joy and sorrow, gain and loss; These dualities cannot be avoided. Learn to accept what you cannot change."

-the Ramayana   

                             The aforementioned quote is form 'Ramayana'. It teaches us to experience the dualities of life. No man only lives with happiness. Humans have to deal with joy & sorrow. If you cannot change something, learn to accept it.

                             “Yogah, Chitta Vrithi Nirodhah”- Yoga is the control of thought waves in the mind.            

          -Patanjali
                             Now, we invented yoga. Yoga is the method to stay healthy & if you ask me to explain yoga in depth, I must say- Yoga is the method to conquer your senses. It has been illuminated in Hindu scriptures that before you conquer others, conquer your own senses. Once you conquer them, you will win over others by wining their hearts.

                             “If you want to see the brave, look at those who can forgive"                         - Bhagwad Geeta

                         
                      It is apparent that only a brave person can forgive. The person who is weak, can only beg for the forgiveness. So forgiveness is an ornament of the courageous person.
                         If I am a hindu, I am a muslim, christian, jew, budhdhist at the same time. I do not need to convert myself. I am the follower of all the religions on this planet. As I mentioned, Hinduism is not a religion. It is the way of life. The way you live your life. Whether you believe in god or not. Whether you believe in idols  or not. Whether you are a Hindu or not, It never matters. It is a relentless search of truth. The ultimate truth as I often wonder is- What is the purpose behind creation of this Universe? There must be a purpose.... Let's find it out!      
                         

People who influenced my thinking(series)- Osho

                           Osho has greatly altered my thinking. My father believes in the philosophy of Osho. My dad used to listen songs, dance on it, he became more open-minded, we started discussing issues like I discuss with my friends. So naturally, I desired to know what is that in this man(Osho) which makes my father so charming? I generally avoid to listen to or read anything about people who look like sadhus, babas.. so I avoided books based on his speeches. One day, I had nothing for time pass, so thought let's read it. Osho had not written a single book, all the books are based on this great man's speeches. He used to dress like Dumbledore(Harry Potter). He was a free thinker. He said think beyond religions. Religions are there to bound your thinking. Every question will eventually come to an answer- 'God'. Think scientifically. I recommend you to read his books or just listen to him. He opposed 'Ladies first'. Why? Because if you are standing in a queue & waiting for your turn. You suddenly see a woman behind you & you say,"Ladies first' & leave your position.... this conveys wrong message to society. This conveys that women are not strong enough to occupy their own position. So stop saying 'Ladies first'. it's actually contrary to the women empowerment.. He is no more among us.. sad. He was given poison by American government. He built a small town 'Rajanishpuram' in America. Rajanish is the real name of Osho. Rajanishpuram(google it) was the first of its kind. Let me share some quotes-                                     



“Experience life in all possible ways --
good-bad, bitter-sweet, dark-light,
summer-winter. Experience all the dualities.
Don't be afraid of experience, because
the more experience you have, the more
mature you become.”
― Osho



“Listen to your being. It is continuously giving you hints; it is a still, small voice. It does not shout at you, that is true. And if you are a little silent you will start feeling your way. Be the person you are. Never try to be another, and you will become mature. Maturity is accepting the responsibility of being oneself, whatsoever the cost. Risking all to be oneself, that's what maturity is all about.”
― Osho



“If you love a flower, don’t pick it up.
Because if you pick it up it dies and it ceases to be what you love.
So if you love a flower, let it be.
Love is not about possession.
Love is about appreciation.”
― Osho



“Creativity is the greatest rebellion in existence.”
― Osho



"The real question is not whether life exists after death. The real question is whether you are alive before death."

-Osho

Indians! Reread the history.... part-1

                               Sometimes I feel I should have ripped off the history books that I was told to learn by heart in earlier grades in school. The past glory of India was not taught to us. We lack information about how great we were. But why it is important to know past glory? The logic is if we were that great then greatness is in our DNA. We can be great again! After getting into a college, I thought now it is the time to wake Indians up. Because now people would take my point of view more seriously! I have been looking for some historical documents for last two months to prove that we were not poor, dirty & ignorant before English took over India. So here is a small article on how great you were! Darshil reporting,

                              We developed world's first script- Brahmi script! We taught entire world how to write! Isn't that important to teach to our students? You have been taught that India was full of fools who believed in idols & prayed in front of it, but India was far more greater than you think. The best ever algorithm in computer science has been accomplished in Sanskrit language! Did you know that? No other culture has delivered mythology such as 'Ramayana' & 'Mahabharata', comprehending lakhs of shloks. I don't conceive Ram & Krishna as super natural being, but consider the imagination of writers! Aryabhatta first introduced zero, you know that.

                             Women! Women were incredibly respected in Indian society. In ancient times, Women were appointed as Acharya(Headmistress) of Vidhyapiths. How liberal our society was! This discrimination against women, had come in India through 'Macaulay education system'(I will expose it in next post.). We have been taught how reluctant our forefathers were to women independence. But actually America, England, Finland & many western countries had not allowed women to vote prior to 1950s. Western philosophy says women do not have soul, they are things as a table, a chair, a pencil! You can use them & throw! This is western philosophy. Over the time, we have studied that Indians were backward & we believed in 'Sati' tradition.

                           

We found Algebra, then we taught it to Arabs & Arabs conveyed it to Europe. We had geniuses like Aryabhatta, Sushrut, Charak, Bhaskaracharya, Panini, Vatsyayan, Chankya, Bagbhatt, Valmiki, Vedvyas, Swami Vivekananda & most important thing is they didn't have degrees! This entire system of evaluating other people is a bullshit! Every single person is incomplete & when you are incomplete, you have no right to evaluate other people. This is what our ancient philosophy says. Several parts would be there in this series to educate Indians the real history that they(90% people) do not know.......

Love- I am utterly confused

Dear love,
     
           I am utterly confused about your behaviour. What is your tendency? Even geniuses fail when it comes to love! Today I am writing this letter just to inform you that time has come to clarify your stand. There are some unwritten rules & people have been following it conventionally. One of them is only boys propose the girls! Who formulated that rule? Whoever formed that must have avoided a part of people who are shy! Who can love but can't express their feelings. There should be reservation for such people. Same as we see in education system. There should be an unwritten rule that girls should propose such boys.
       Love, don't you think frauds are common now a days. People use your name, make relationship & when it comes to responsibility ,they decamp. To me, love means care- you take care of your partner, responsibility- you consider some responsibilities like meeting, calling frequently, etc. , equality- no one in love is superior or inferior... both are equal!, promise- you might think it's a part of responsibility, but it's a different thing. In love, promise is not an agreement or a warranty, but it's a group of words that you would like to keep without any unwillingness, understanding- without it world can't exist! Understanding doesn't mean after break up you choose another girl & I will choose another boy, but it does mean you understand something before loved one say it, respect- you must give respect to your partner, it never means you should add "Ma'am"  before her name or "sir" before his name, it says you respect the choice of your partner, keeping in mind that one of them is you!
         Recently my friend faced break up. I don't know whether it can be called a break up or not! Because he never knew that the girl with whom he used to chat & dream of making relations, liked him or not. That girl is in China(She is indian) & my friend is in India. We used to tease them in school days... it affected their minds, my friend started thinking of her as his lover & he took it seriously. He got happy when he recieved positive response from that girl! They would talk about their relations, the obstacles & happy life! He was very happy. He happily showed me his message history one day on whatsapp.. he cracked jokes & she laughed... it happens in all the relationships... one day he said- How do you feel when a girl, after almost 3 months of good chatting life, dump you? I got shocked! I got to know that chatting with my friend didn't mean more than a 'Time Pass' to her! At the same time she was committed with other guy.... love, can you tell me why it happens? This is just a small & less sensitive case, there are cases which end up in suicide or murder. Fruad cases are against both of the genders.... male & female!
      My mom said love involves risk, as a boy you have to take risk one day. I said-"Mom, I can't. I am afraid that she might not talk with me any more." The reply of my mom is worth noting- "Son, either you take risk, propse a girl & become happy or you regret throughout your life!" Those words are still in my mind! It's easy for many people, but tough for me & the people like me.
        I think you will get my point & I am eagerly looking forward to your reply.
                         
Truly your believer,
Darshil Shah.

Youth has taken charge!Where are you?

                            Recently I was reading Times Of India. I read a news- " India among world's most violent places: study." . I was startled. It was not what I wanted to read. But truth remains truth, whether you want to know it or not. I thought what I can do to change the situation? I can't expect anything from politicians. They even don't make statements on such issues, because it is not under their party agenda. Their agenda is just - how to humiliate other parties & get to the power! They just want to get power by hook or by crook. But as a citizen of India, I can't just sit & watch whatever is going on! Have to do something. How can I make world realize that India is not just a country where dirty people live, it is not a country where only corrupt people breaths, It is not a country where rapists live! I have to do something.
                            I thought what about involving youth? Youth have enormous power to change the ugly face of Indian politics! As India is one of the youngest country & soon going to be youngest country in the world. I should involve youth in politics. At least I should encourage them to participate in debates & discussion. I should motivate them to discuss the complications, crisis & dilemmas, concerning our nation. I was looking for a medium. I thought youth can be easily approached through facebook & that's why I have chosen facebook as my weapon. Don't underestimate the potential of facebook to bring change in any country. I've witnessed the Jasmin spring in Arabian countries. Why we can't begin Indian spring? "We" means Indian youth. enough is enough. A while back, an anonymous organization declared India as unsafe country for women travelers. Time demands change. I appeal to Indian youth to join a facebook page... Even I appeal to the foreigners, who want to visit India, but because of such news , they are afraid.... you can also help us bring change! I am not telling you to just like it, it is not at all our duty, Our duty is to think & derive solution. soon I am going to create a page for g+ users too... this facebook page is a new born baby,  has not reached to a vast audience. Youth has taken initiative! where are you? Join today.......
The Young Government of India Thank you.

Read this before you die!

                                   Yes, I want all the people out there to read this before they die! No matter if you are doctor, engineer, philosopher, manager, marketer, CA or whoever you are. I think you all should read this. I have not authorized what you are going to read in a few moments. It is a small portion of best selling book "THE LEADER WHO HAD NO TITLE" by Robin Sharma. If you have already read the book, however, I would suggest you to stay on this page until the end of this post. You will find something inspiring indeed.

In keeping with the book, I referred above, "10 HUMAN REGRETS" are as follow-
1)You reach your last day with the brilliant song that your life was meant to sing still silent within you.

2)You reach your last day without ever having experienced the natural power that inhabits you to do great work and achieve great things.

3)You reach your last day realizing that you never inspired anyone else by the example you set.

4)You reach your last day full of pain at the realization that you never took any bold risks so you never received any bold rewards.

5)You reach your last day understanding that you missed the opportunity to catch a glimpse of mastery because you bought into the lie that you had to be resigned to mediocrity.

6)You reach your last day and feel heartbroken that you never learned the skill of transforming adversity into victory and lead into gold.

7)You reach your last day regretting that you forgot that work is about being radically helpful to others rather than being helpful only to yourself.

8)You reach your last day with the awareness that you ended up living the life that society trained you to want versus leading the life that you truly wanted to have.

9)You reach your last day and awaken to the fact that you never realized your absolute best nor touched the special genius that you were built to become.

10)You reach your last day and discover you could have been a leader and left this world so much better than you found it. But you refused to accept that mission because you were just too scared. And so you failed. And wasted a life.
               These are not mere sentences. Feel the words written in each point & you will feel how disappointing it is to reach mortality without doing something exciting! Without taking bold risks, no matter how much money you earn you will regret when last moment would come!

Now according to same book, "10 HUMAN VICTORIES" are as follow-

1)You reach your end full of happiness and fulfillment on realizing that you are all used up—having spent the fullness of your talents, the biggest of your resources, and the best of your potential doing great work and leading a rare-air life.

2)You reach your end knowing that you played at a standard of concentrated excellence and held yourself to the most impeccable standards in each thing that you did.

3)You reach your end in noisy celebration for having the boldness of spirit to have regularly confronted your largest fears and realized your highest visions.

4)You reach your end and recognize that you became a person who built people up versus one who tore people down.

5)You reach your end with the understanding that while your journey may have not always been a smooth one, whenever you got knocked down you instantly got back up– and at all times, never suffered from any loss of optimism.

6)You reach your end and bask in the staggering glory of your phenomenal achievements along the rich value you have contributed to the lives of the people you were lucky to serve.

7)You reach your end and adore the strong, ethical, inspirational and empathetic person you grew into.

8)You reach your end and you realize that you were a genuine innovator who blazed new trails instead of following old roads.

9)You reach your end surrounded with teammates who call you a rock-star, friends who say you’re a hero, and loved ones that call you a legend.

10)You reach your end as a true Leader Without a Title, knowing that the great deeds you did will endure long after your death
                     Again feel the words. You will experience inspiration as you go through these points. Your journey might not be always smooth but still you will have satisfaction that you lived the life that set an example or what you might have loved to live like!
                     You know what great people do? They simply avoid the conventions. They like to choose new paths which are untraveled! They don't like challenges. But you know, they love their destiny more than the obstacles or challenges on their way to achieve success! That's why some of them say I love challenges, because whatever comes in their way to their beloved destiny, they love all that things! Start doing something out of box, something creative, something unconventional from the moment this post ends! Thank you.