Saying Yes to Life

How should I meditate? Which method is best for me? My mind doesn’t stay still when I meditate; how do I stop it from wandering off? When it comes to meditation, these are the three most common questions I get asked. Of course, the mind doesn’t stay still and that’s why we are meditating. I know what you mean though; the harder you try to meditate, the louder becomes the chatter. Patanjali calls it vritti, fluctuations of consciousness or thought-waves. And, meditation is the art of subduing the fluctuations to experience the supreme bliss known only to a quiet mind.

So, what is the best system of meditation since there seem to be many? This method, that method, this way, that way, this system, that system and so on and so forth. What’s noteworthy though is that most of these methods are actually good methods. They work but like any other system, they only work for those who persist. The problem is not with the method per se, it is with the practitioner. My advice? Go back to the basics. Sit down and concentrate or sit down and contemplate. Read more here.

Zen says, just let me be in the present moment, that even breathing is a blessing. If I can’t be happy with what I have now, I can never be happy with whatever I may have in the future.

An easy and beautiful way to experience Zen is to keep a flower at your desk at work, and perhaps one on your dining table and in your bedroom too. Don’t water it. Don’t replace it every day, either. Replace it only when it withers. Read more here.

Almost in all walks of life, if your inner strength, your focus, your efforts can outlive the adversities, you can succeed at pretty much anything you set your mind to. A compassionate heart leads to greater mental strength. It may sound paradoxical but compassion and tenacity are directly proportional to each other.

Today, I am sharing with you a powerful practice to gain inner strength, to purify yourself, to help you transform yourself emotionally and mentally, so you may be the person you have always wanted to be. Compassion is one of the shortest routes to divinity.

To learn how to demonstrate compassion – go here.

Let me reiterate: gratitude is one of the most profound emotions. If you are grateful, you become loving, blissful, peaceful, and calm automatically. Remaining calm or being at peace, to be able to love anyone and everyone are the natural outcomes of a grateful soul.

In a way, gratitude is not just about being thankful, it is about being gracefully thankful with tolerance, with acceptance and contentment.

Practice gratitude and I promise you will experience the dawning of a transformation within you, keep at it, and you will amaze yourself before long. Gratitude is not always about grand gestures, it may range from a sincere thank you to an act of extraordinary compassion. Let me spell out the practice for you – here.

An unexpected gift at an unexpected time given to an unexpected (or even unsuspecting) person with no expectations in return is a random act of kindness, a kind gesture for someone who is not expecting it from you.

When you regularly do random acts of kindness, one day, something amazing happens — Nature chooses you as the subject for its random act of kindness. Such kind acts are always happening in the Universe, at every moment, to millions out there. Read more here.

If you are interested in exploring kindness further, get a copy of The Book of Kindness – this book will help you understand, practice and master kindness, the key to inner bliss and fulfillment, and the only means to attain the happiness that you seek.

In my humble view, our first emotion towards anyone should be compassion. Let’s give them the benefit of doubt. Due to our upbringing and the way our brain functions, we can’t stop judging people. It comes to us naturally. We look at a man lying by the roadside and we believe he must be drunk, whereas he might have just suffered a heart attack. Based on race, appearance, clothes, speech and so on, we quickly label the other person. This unwholesome way of making sense of our surroundings and people around us is non-spiritual and unreasonable. Read more here.

Charity is a deeply spiritual act.

Charity is not just measured in monetary donations. Compassion too is charity as is empathy. When you help someone in any which way you can, you are exercising charity. It could be as simple as helping a lady stow her luggage in the overhead compartment on the plane, or giving that window seat to the child next to you. Giving a smile to the one who hurt you is charity too as is sharing your bread.

Interestingly, not surprisingly though, thesauri list the following synonyms for the word charity. Compassion, kindness, sympathy, kind-heartedness, graciousness, consideration, concern, tolerance, and leniency. When you practice or feel any of these, you are exercising charity.

Charity is not an expense or a gift. It is your contribution to society. Read more here.

The moment we start seeing life as something we flow with as opposed to something we have to make, our perspective changes naturally. The unnecessary struggle takes a back seat and you become increasingly aware of where you need to surrender versus when you ought to take charge.

Not all shades of life will appeal to us but they are there for a purpose. Sometimes, it helps to let Nature paint our canvas, to say to life ‘take me where you want’. to accept the wisdom of the universe. We don’t always have to burden ourselves to make things, to make them right or make them now. Sometimes, all we have to do is to be patient and let go. At times, we must allow life to manifest the way it wants to. Read more here.