Sharing this immensely fulfilling read of stories which came my way today!
Once, All villagers decided to pray for rain, on the day of prayer all the People gathered but only one boy came with an umbrella.
That’s
*FAITH*
When You throw a baby in the air, he laughs because he knows you will catch him.
That’s
*TRUST*
Every Night we go to bed, without any assurance of being alive the next
Morning but still we set the alarms to wake up.
That’s
*HOPE*
We Plan big things for tomorrow in spite of zero knowledge of the future.
That’s
*CONFIDENCE*
We See the world suffering.
But still, we get Married.
That’s
*LOVE*
On an Old Man’s shirt was written a cute sentence
‘I Am Not 60 Years Old.., I Am Sweet 16 with 44 years Experience.’
That’s
*ATTITUDE*
Faith is a certainity & trust is a true measure in hope that comes with a knowing confidence of the unknown which is what brings forth the bonds in a boundless love that warms the heart and soul when a life is lived with a never say die attitude !
Mom..?
Dad..?
Husband /wife…?
Best friend..?
Son..?
Daughter…??
Or someone else… ????
Your real life partner
is Your *Body*
You and your body
stay together from
the beginning of your
life till your last
breath.
You enjoy each
relationship in this
world that you feel
is good for you..
But you also play an
important role with
your body.
What you do to your
body is your
responsibility and
that will come back
to You.
The more you care
for your body, the
more your body will
care for You.
What you eat,
What you do for being fit,
How u deal with
stress (physical/mental/emotional),
How much rest you
give to it..
Will decide how your body gonna respond
in your day to day
life.
Remember your
body is the only
permanent address
where You live.
What your body
wants is…,
Love
Care
Respect
Politeness
Honesty
Your body is your
responsibility.
Because…
You are Your real
life partner.
Sharing this above message as they certainly are words to remember!
The Body has always been at the receiving end.
Then there are always issues with the body we have , too thin too fat too muscular too lean too angular too buffed to wiry … sad for we are what we feed ourselves .
Instead of gratitude for the gift of life that gives us our body we focus on actual nonissues, without being able to be content and add to our stress levels ourselves.
Nurture your body.Value the residing space of our living spirit.
Respect the body
Our body is not a machine it needs more than regular fuel in the form of food .
Because we are a web of interconnected cells we thrive in the integration and interdependence of the body mind and spirit .
We need to think well to feel well
We need to eat well to be well
We need to choose well to live well
We need to behave well to thrive in wellness
This is the strength of the interdependence that keeps us going.
Feed the body with love:
Take care to eat right and respect its state of being
Be polite and honest in your ways. Every body can be listening . You are responsible for you can be influencing the apace around you. You are emitting your intentions and thoughts outwards subconsciously
You must remember to rest and care for your body whenever needed.
For whatever way and however you can, it is certainly like turning back the clock into a more productive you!
Between being an asset and liability the ego drives our being.
Unmindful and ungrateful often times as such is its way!
It can interfere just as much as it can be indifferent to the being
It can alter goodwill and stall humility from expressing itself
It can change the words we were meaning to speak
It can halt a chance to commune with others
It can steer a dialogue to a monologue
It can become a bone of contention
It can rob us of cooperation and collaboration
And yet all this while a sense of ego can be a source of self-esteem
It can help a person from crumbling in a crisis
It can create a curiosity to know and acquire
It can be a strength of support in times of dire need
It can propel us to do more & achieve more
Your Ego can be your trusted aide
For it knows you more than you ever can.
It is born with you from your first breath
And plays on its course till your very last.
So the question is not about banishing but of balancing.
In striking a chord of balance between the states of being.
Mindful words from a heart full of grace,
Can be a precursor of changing ways.
A respect and regard for another’s perspective
Appreciation and value for others much as one’s own!
A few reflections on striking a balance
Accept that your ego is like your shadow
It follows where ever you go
It creates hurdles in your deeds
It can doubt and induce fear
Simply trust with your loving self
For it’s your internal guide
That leads from the heart
To let you see and know
Who you truly are!
Let your love meet your fears
It will understand the power of love
Choose to be loving and considerate
Change your track to being compassionate
Choose to avoid loose talk
Choose the virtue of generosity
Choose to be inclusive and expansive
Choose to admit your mistakes
Choose to see the world beyond the self
Choose to take your self lightly
Choose the freedom of laughter
It unshackles the chains of self-restraint
Let the self, express and entertain itself!
So allow the ego to a little space but make sure it knows its space.
Allow it to be a part of you but don’t allow it take the whole of you.
Transcending the Ego is the aspiration,
For every religion speaks of this very transcendence…
From trivial and baseline pursuits to higher consciousness.
Ego can be a tool for survival but it can be a weapon of mass destruction!
Transform it into self-improvement manoeuvre it to reconstruction.
In every deed of Giving the ego cannot be far behind for, to give itself seems so full of itself. The Giving means there is something to give an upper hand a stake a superiority if nothing else a contentment of a fulfilment. So to give seems a little egotistical in all its glorious ways.
Yet there is a transformation in every act of giving, that finds its path in the journey towards transcendence .
My reflections after a chance visit to Swadhaa A Waldorf School in Pune.
In my spare time as a hobby, I enjoy visiting offbeat places and interacting with people from all walks of life to broaden my perspectives. To envision the world through the eyes of another is always an insightful experience.
When I visited Auroville in Pondicherry last year amongst the many inspirational insights I came across a bit about how Waldorf Schools started by Rudolf Steiner who was inspired by Sir Aurobindo, stands for holistic education that speaks to the soul and strives for human goodwill and integrity and instilling a sense of creativity and wonder through its unconventional schooling methods.
Besides that, I also had come across words of praise for her schooling and education received from the well-known actress Jennifer Anniston an alumnus of a Waldorf School herself.
“I was always fascinated by acting, but my experience at Rudolf Steiner [school] encouraged me to pursue it as a career.” “Steiner was a free-spirited school that encouraged creativity and individualism.”
As a dance educator myself I have always felt schooling at conventional schools can be rather stifling for it focuses more on procedure and protocol than allowing freedom to explore. The root of our individuality and personal expression is often stubbed in the process of conforming to the norms and practices unless it is balanced out when there is a gateway to open communication and positive support on the homefront.
Recently having shifted my residence in Pune City and in my foray into understanding what my area had on offer as a creative educator myself, I came across. SWADHA Learning Centre. My interest was piqued that it was based on the principles of a Waldorf school.
I decided to experience the place on my own. Luckily for me the day I visited the school it turned out to be their Annual Day and there were elaborate festivities planned out for the entire day by the school for one and all.
There were workshops galore… I attended a few out of curiosity and came away heartened by the immense enthusiasm and support from the parents and children alike for this schools annual activity. I took my time to interact with some of the parents.
What I was immediately drawn to was the amount of openness that was there reflected in so many ways from children who were learning life skills experientially to how parents were so beautifully integrated into the educational activities of the children.
The pictures speak for themselves I must say!
In an era of grades and marks that decides destinies of children as future adults,
the learning concepts observed here come as a breath of fresh air. Like the lack of grading systems and adding only an individual assessment by the educator annually to ensure that each child is addressed and understood for their unique potential. And the breakdown of hierarchy which makes everyone an involved collaborator working towards positive transformations. And I believe they also help and guide a child gradually, who wants to integrate into conventional schooling system if they wish or need to for whatever reasons. The question is would we want to?
Perhaps the varied schools under the Waldorf umbrella are as unique as the people collectively managing them, but the fact remains that there is a happier learning space we can co-create for our future children if we have the willingness to come together and contribute our time and resources.
” A space that’s open yet bounded with a focus can be conducive to learning as when the process of exploration begins it is helped by a structured approach. But while boundaries may be reminding of a journey having a destination, it is the openness that reflects the never-ending source of creative possibilities.”
Savvy
An excerpt from my reflections on Learning spaces…. (read more )
Sharing a beautiful story that will make us sense and acknowledge our inner feelings and help channelize its expression in a more evolved way with deeper understanding.
*The Empty Boat -A Story of Anger.*
A monk decides to meditate alone, away from his monastery. He takes his boat out to the middle of the lake, moors it there, closes his eyes and begins his meditation. After a few hours of undisturbed silence, he suddenly feels the bump of another boat colliding with his own. With his eyes still closed, he senses his anger rising, and by the time he opens his eyes, he is ready to scream at the boatman who dared disturb his meditation. But when he opens his eyes, he sees it is an empty boat that had probably got untethered and floated to the middle of the lake. At that moment, the monk achieves self-realization, and understands that the anger is within him; it merely needs the bump of an external object to provoke it out of him.
From then on, whenever he came across someone who irritated him or provoked him to anger, he reminded himself: ”The other person is merely an empty boat. The anger is within me……” In reality, we all have the anger within us, all the time, All it needs is someone, like the empty boat, to provoke it.
This story makes us think on many levels especially so on anger management.
Is our anger innate?How deep does it delve?
How much is our responsibility in acknowledging our true selves.
Acknowledgement is a step towards a response than reaction .
Acceptance leads to greater self-awareness.
Savvy
The question is not only why feel provoked with anger but how to manage it. How can it be circumvented? Is there a way to do so?
Every time we recognize where the anger resides we will learn to accept the source is the self than others. And then make an effort to not suppress or repress but channelize it in more productive ways.
In our wheel of human behaviour and emotions, Anger sits in the opposite spectrum of joyousness. It is a negative emotion that propels further negative thoughts. There arises the backlash of discontent and disorientation in various degrees depending on the level of anger that manifests.
Anger truly serves no purpose than destruction
For true peace, it can be a bone of contention
So let go of all anger and false pretensions
And value the calm that you actually are.
Savvy
On a lighter note here are a few reflections towards channelling arising negative emotions in awareness
and some amazing quotes from the great souls to go with it !:))
Think Humorously:’ If red is the colour of anger it is the colour of love too!’
Think Happy: ‘For every minute of anger you are losing 60 seconds of happiness ..’.Ralph Waldo Emerson
Think Creatively:’The Greatest remedy for anger is delay!’
Think Practically: ‘He who angers you conquers you’.
Think Logically: ‘You will not be punished for your anger but by your anger…’ Buddha
Think Peacefully: ‘Anger is the ultimate destroyer of your own peace of mind’. Dalai Lama
Think Kindly: ‘Bless those who curse you and pray for those who mistreat you…’ Bible
Think of changing the wavelengths:’ Anger makes you smaller while forgiveness forces you to grow
beyond what you are!’
Paying attention to your breath: Breath in the now…to release resentment
In the inhale and exhale.: Pause to respond and delay a reaction
Express Positivism: Let your past make you better, not bitter
Express Humility: ‘Angry people are not always wise…’ Jane Austen
Express Gratitude: ‘ Anger won’t make your problems easier but gratitude will make you stronger.’
To bring back a sense of compatibility between the factions is to resolve to find mutual ground. Tip 4: Resolve to Reconcile
The idea of any kind of truce to see eye to eye is not easy, but then war is never the answer. In management, Conflict Resolution is an important skill in the arena towards issue settlements by finding the middle ground.
From the suggestion of mutual benefits to warring parties in a dispute by a shared positive interest of a goal and clarification of needs in the situation at hand and if need be coercing an influence goes a long way in securing a reconciliation and resolution of conflicts.
Creativity stems from the acceptance of your authentic self. It is a never-ending journey of endless possibilities that is much beyond the pursuit of a hobby or craft and can be a habit of a lifetime. So besides being a Dance Educator as a Wellness coach, I offer a variety of Personal Effectiveness Programs for Self-development.
Being a Writer and a Designer creating art gives me immense satisfaction with the infinite ways of expressing myself as I believe in enjoying the journey as much as the destination.
Nurturing is a life affirming process ….rooted in bettering care and creating hope for a better life. There are many experiments conducted to support how even an exposure to nature like being amidst trees and tranquil places, hearing birdsongs and watching the sky , the sea and the sand can be extremely nurturing for ones health and wellbeing. The healing element associated with nature, is in the nurture it provides to replenish the soul.
The very nature of nurturing is both very inclusive and expansive in the same breath.The scope of positive outcomes of good nurturing is deeply significant to humanity at large . For that is what is truly important to sustain our planet . Every being’s effort in nurturing the world in and around him to thrive.
At the root of Creativity is a nurtured thought process. To nurture is to nourish the being with appropriate care.
Speaking of care giving, it is often a part of nurturing which can be rather challenging to say the least. In case of elders there can be a lot of unexplained resentment the care giver has to deal with for many seniors may take a while to come to terms with the many aspects of growing old.
Patience can have its limits too and with growing intolerance in a world which is more about the sense of self importance, the need to achieve much can stifle any thoughts of pursuing time consuming and almost never ending aspects of nurturing .
It is true the world is getting a little too self centered . However the realization of the impacts of an uncaring and indifferent citizens of the world is also hitting home and that too right from the modern changes of family systems in place.
The concern for global warming and carbon imprints is touching an all time high for the world now is slowly realizing how much it needs to nurture its own living spaces to ensure it has a world left to live at all. And thus thankfully hope is here to stay!
Sharing this beautiful story that touched a chord in me.
Mother is flying a kite.
Her son is watching her carefully.
After some time son says “mom.
Because of the string the kite is not able to go any further higher.
“Hearing this, the mother smiles and breaks the string.
The kite goes higher and then shortly after that, it comes and falls on the ground. The child is very dejected and sad.
The mother sits next to him and calmly explains:
“Son, in life we reach a certain level and then we feel that there are certain things that are not letting us grow any further like Home, Family, Friends, Culture etc.
We feel we want to be free from those strings which we believe are stopping us from going higher.
But, remember son.”That our home , family, friends and culture are the things that will help us stay stable at the high heights .
If we try to break away from those strings our condition will be similar to the kite.”we’ll fall down soon..
*Moral:*
*”Never try to cut away from Home Culture, Family, Friends and Relationships as they help keep us stable while we are flying high…”*
*Life is Beautiful*
*Stay connected*
So much truth in these lines
The bonds of love are there for a reason
To be nurtured and cherished by its sheer presence .
As to be lovingly supported is a blessing of grace!
Savvy Raj 
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