OXYGEN

We all have grown up with certain beliefs, thought processes, and mindsets. These have been influenced by our upbringing, family, and friends, the other people whom we interact with, our circumstances and situations in life. We grow up seeing our parents and relatives and imbibe a lot of those values, lifestyle choices, and beliefs.

I have grown up in a fairly liberal nuclear family. My life so far has been regular, where I have stayed at and worked at different places. All this time, I have met many people, very different in their backgrounds, mentality, lifestyle, and choices. I have learned a lot from them and all experiences have molded my personality and perspective in life.

Until about 4 years back, I had been living the life of any other student and working professional. My routine was pretty, much defined. And activities were always limited to working/studying, depending on the particular phase of life at that point in time and routine activities are done by the majority of young working professionals today. Life was a routine, with waking up in the morning, getting ready for work, slogging in office the whole day, coming back in the evening, rushing through household chores, so that I could spend adequate time watching TV and ‘enjoying’ dinner. At that time, I was addicted to television. Didn’t realize why! Probably the glamour of the small and big screens was so alluring because my own life was a set routine, like a mathematician’s theorem or an architect’s drawing. And I have never liked routines. I love adventures, changes, and flexibility. And it never occurred to me that I was not really ‘enjoying’ dinner. Instead, I was just mindlessly gulping down calories when my mind was fixed on the idiot box, trying to find adventure in the lives of the protagonists of the numerous serials and films, which feature a day in and day out. Or probably I was lonely, living alone in a big city and found solace by watching the ‘lives’ of those fictional characters. This was my way of ‘relaxing’! And yes, this included a few trips to my hometown and weekly trips for local sightseeing and grocery shopping. That was the extent of it! The same is true for many people. They know the names of the serials, lead characters, movies, plots, and their most animated discussions are about the twists and turns of daily soaps! And their weekend getaways are either movies or some local markets or malls.

At that time I did not know the difference between ‘relaxing’ and ‘numbing’. The very wise and divine spiritual Master, Acharya Ishan Shivanand, explained the difference in one of the shivirs. He revealed that numbing is just switching off mentally, in an attempt to silence the mind and in the misconception that it will fight out fatigue. Slopping on the couch in front of the television and be there like a vegetable, exposing your body, mind, and soul to the harmful rays emitted from it plus the gibberish which is shown on TV nowadays (well, most of it) or sinking into various gadgets such as smartphones, iPads, etc. are ways of numbing. In fact, these are methods used by many, to ‘numb’ themselves from the outside world and are mistaken for relaxing. Some people, especially those who live alone, away from their families watch television till they are almost sleepy. After that, they immediately go to sleep. Like it’s sleep-inducing drug!

This lifestyle is very harmful. It ‘calcifies the pineal gland’, which is the source of all creativity and human faculties in the brain. We are moving away from nature, towards an artificial electronic and concrete world. In the process, we are subjecting ourselves to everything unnatural. And we don’t know how devastating that is, what are the consequences in later life and most importantly, we don’t know what else to do!

Well, life is not just about earning money and spending what little time we have, on electronic gadgets, friends, and family (in that order!). The very wise Father of Indian Healing, Avdhoota Baba Shivanand Ji says, “Live your life 200% – 100% worldly and 100% spiritual life.”

People cringe at the mere mention of the word ‘spirituality’. They confuse it with religion and orthodox practices. And it is human nature to negate and reject any and everything that we do not understand or are already fixedly opinionated on. But how will we ever understand, if we don’t make an effort to? If we want radical changes in our lives, then we have to make considerable changes in our current situations and ways of living. And the change starts from within. It starts with the self. It is about being open to new ideas, working hard (spirituality is very hard work), a different way of life, and most importantly, the belief that life can be filled with happiness, love, laughter, success, and the best of everything.

There is a reason for our taking birth in this life, in this form, in this family, at this time. The people, who we are associated with, are our soul groups. We have been together for ages and still have some unresolved issues to entangle. That is why we have collectively taken birth together. As for time, why are we born at this particular time and age, was beautifully explained by the effervescent and intelligent youth icon, Acharya Ishan Shivanand Ji recently. He said that our parents’ generation was born at that particular time as they were destined to give birth to our generation. They learned a lot of things, struggled and sacrificed a lot, and paved the way for us to experience a better life and enjoy a better lifestyle. Our generation, while reaping the benefits of the efforts of our elders, has the seeds sown in us. Now, it is our job to nurture them. The path has been paved. We have to maintain it, expand it, and nourish it so that our future generations can enjoy them. So, our job is to ‘land and expand’, so that our children have an abundance. While this may be disheartening from many youngsters in my generation today, that they may not be around to enjoy the benefits of their efforts, the Acharya followed it up with a heartwarming story. He said that when Lord Krishna was to take birth as a human on this earth, many saints in heaven feared that the rich wisdom and knowledge will be imparted by Krishna to the people on the earth and they themselves will be left out. So, many sages incarnated on earth as ‘Gopis’ of Krishna, to be near him and receive the wealth of spiritual wisdom which is the ultimate path. Folklore validates this by having numerous tales of how various saints reincarnated as ‘Gopis’ and joined Krishna during His earthly journey. Similarly, many Shivyogis have taken birth at this time, to access the proximity of a living Guru, to learn the treasures of spiritual wisdom, directly from the Master. This very vivid and deep explanation left us all with a deep sense of peace, belonging, serenity, comfort, and identity.

If I compare my life before and during Shivyog, I realize that although I had everything earlier (or so I thought, in the worldly language), something was amiss. Even after having a beautiful family, good career, friends, recognition, material comforts, and everything else that a young professional can ask for, there was some inexplicable void. As if I was missing a beat. All of a sudden, things would somehow go wrong. Whether it was a financial crunch or an illness in the family, somehow the dark side of life would show up. It was at that time, that a family friend recommended my family to listen to some Shivyog discourses. And miracles started to happen. Spirituality was like the oxygen that I needed to live but did not have access to or acknowledgment of, earlier. It was like I was living in a high altitude area, gasping for breath. And slowly, after attending various shivirs (spiritual workshops), listening to Shivyog wisdom, reading about peoples’ divine experiences, did I understand the true meaning of life and the worth of human existence. It is that soulful satisfaction, which cannot be described, only experienced.

The spiritual journey has been accessible after so much craving and is so fulfilling, that there are times when you just want to settle into it. You don’t want to go back after a shivir. You don’t feel like coming back after intense meditation. After being so energy sensitive with the Guru’s grace and meditations, you don’t want to go to office amidst so many electronic gadgets and non-believers. So, my Guru says that spirituality is not about running away from worldly responsibilities. The aim of taking human birth is to experience the goodness of life. The aim of taking human birth is to connect to divinity – ‘Nar se Narayan tak ki yatra’ (the journey from human to God) is possible only with human birth and experiences. There are some unsettled issues, which have resulted in another birth before uniting with our Source. It is about these issues to be resolved, lessons to be learned and karmas to be either endured or burnt. So, balance is very important. Spirituality is not leaving everything to fate. Instead, it is about working very hard, choosing your present life and destiny, setting goals, working towards them, and balancing your worldly and spiritual lives.

Spirituality is also about creativity. Creativity is oxygen for the soul. There are so many activities in the world, which are not yet explored by us. Music, dance, singing, sports, gardening, writing, designing, poetry are just a few creative opportunities to create something new. Dive into your creative side and dig up the huge potential of your existence. What is worth living is worth living well. Live to your fullest potential. Leave your gadgets alone for some time. They will be fine! They were designed to assist you, not enslave you. Spend more time with family, walk on wet grass, spend time with nature, go trekking or practice some outdoor sport, plant trees, serve the needy, learn something new every day, and explore the divinity inside you with the grace of your Guru (spiritual master).

Divinity is that oxygen which is actually inside us, really required by us and which cleanses, purifies, nourishes, and sustains us. Everything else is paraphernalia, part of a packaged deal. Divinity comes in with its extended family of love, peace, the power to choose, freedom, happiness, laughter, and contentment – all these are oxygen for the soul. Feed your soul with more oxygen, so that it can blossom and raise your consciousness. Make time for what is truly important TODAY. Take each day as it comes and live it to the fullest.