Behind the smile is the hidden strength
Behind the gentleness is steel in spirit.
The spirit is strengthened in the living.
In depth of love comes the strength
In loving deeply is the courage to dare
Against all odds.
Such is the might of the warrior within…
Inner faith can move mountains.
Savvy
As you walk through
The sands of time
You will come across
Stories of truth and dare
Of pain and pleasure
Of life and living
That makes you wonder…
Why do some lives go through
Soul stirring moments of awakenings
And some soul numbing pain?
Why do some lives, dominate the weak
And some are broken and shattered in despair beyond repair.
Why do some lives live to experience
luxurious lifestyles.
And some are born to slavery or traded
Why do some lives matter more?
Why lives lived are discriminated for its diversity of nature and differently treated?
Why day and night stops making sense for some.
We truly have no answers
But what we do now is the truth of this moment changes in the next!
That is solace enough to weather the storms.
For life is transitory and everything changes
For nothing stays the same.
This too shall pass.
Savvy
Value the life you have in this now
You are powerful in your uniqueness
You are your best friend
Make friends with yourself.
Trust yourself to know the way.
You will find your truth
Most importantly
There is no one else like you
Like who you are
Choose to be you
As you are
It’s simpler.
Be you.
Savvy
Here is a beautiful story from India…
During one of his travels, Kalidasa (the Great Poet) felt very thirsty and looked around for water. He saw a woman drawing water from a well.
He went up to her and asked her for water. She agreed to give him water, but asked him, “Who are you? Introduce yourself.”
Now Kalidasa thought that an ordinary village woman was not worthy of knowing who Kalidasa was. So he said, “I am a traveller.”
But his lady replied, “In this world there are only 2 travellers – the Sun and the Moon. Both Rise and Set every day and keep travelling perpetually.”
Then Kalidasa said, “Alright then, I am a guest.” The lady promptly replied, “In this world there are only 2 guests – Youth and Wealth … both are temporary and hence can only be called as guests.”
Intrigued Kalidasa said, “I am a Tolerant person (sahansheel vyakti).” Now the lady replied, “In this world only 2 truly know the meaning of Tolerance – Bhoomi (Earth) and Tree. How much ever you stamp the earth or throw stones at the tree (for the fruits), both continue to nurture us.”
Now Kalidasa was completely perplexed. He said, “Fine. I am a stubborn person (hatavaadi).” The lady smiled and said, “There are only 2 truly stubborn personalities – our nails and our hair. We keep cutting them non-stop, but they continue to grow.”
Kalidasa had been patient so far, but now in anger he said, “I am a fool”. Now the lady gave a wide smile and said, “There are only 2 kinds of fools in this world – a King who rules without having any capability or knowledge & a Minister who is a sycophant to such a King and lavishes praises on such a useless king.”
Kalidasa realised that he had been outsmarted. He fell at the feet of the lady and when he touched her feet and then got up, whom did he see?
Mother Saraswati – the Goddess of Learning and Wisdom. She said, “Kalidasa, you are wise. But only if you know yourself do you become a Manushya (human being). A person without any awareness of self has not reached the pinnacle of being a Human.
Note:
The Guru who recounted this story in His Teachings said, “Children should become a Manushya & know themselves. More than teaching them how to earn more money and become rich, parents should teach them to become aware of themselves and become better Human beings.
Wouldn’t you agree?
What do you think of this ancient story and its relevance to our education today?
How far have we really come with the so called knowledge?
What legacy will we really be leaving behind for our children tomorrow?
When can we bridge this growing gap between learning for knowledge and learning for understanding?
How can we transform our methods of education where we educate not just the mind but also the human heart?
For the truth is that…
Humanity needs us all to be humane more than ever before to survive!
Savvy
I think these Seven Pieces of Advice from Rumi, always applies as a gentle reminder…as a way of being.
In generosity and helping others be like the river.
In compassion and grace be like the sun.
In concealing others’ faults be like the night.
In anger and fury be like the dead.
In modesty and humility be like the soil.
In tolerance be like the ocean.
Either you appear as you are or be as you appear.
Heal the world
The stories of the bygone are contained in the stone
For within, it holds the secrets of the past.
The fragile flower owns its freshness to this now
The Blossoming of the bloom is the present truth of time.
How delicate is life and yet so very powerful in potential
One life has the power to transform lives…
But our life carry us on, not backwards
But further into the future.
The good we can do today will impact the life we have in future.
Touch a life positively & make an impact.
Intend with the goodness of your soul.
Treat yourself and others well
For you are creating goodwill in every action
Speak well and share kindness.
Enthuse yourself and create cheer.
Smile through the moments
Live love laugh.
Help heal a life and you have helped heal the world .
Savvy
A Motivational message
To the Young Ones
In your 20s
Life is about to bloom for you
Youth is on your side today
If your goal is to make a difference
Know your road is a long one.
Just a word of caution in care
With thoughts from down the road
Every moment has potential
With possibilities unlimited.
Life is both beautiful and uncertain
It can summon the very best in you
It can challenge your deepest reserve
To stay on course, needs your sensibility.
Be brave for the strongest can tremble
Be stable for the steadiest can tumble
Be humble for pride never wins
Be mindful of the now and tread with care.
Many a person will sing your praises
There will many paths open to explore
There will be many discoveries awaiting
Succumb not to temptation of aiming small.
Choose to think expansive and yet focus
Every thing is on a fine thread of balance.
As you make your choices
You shift and alter your paths ahead.
Sharing a beautiful song by Cliff Richard The Young Ones
So many…
Mountains to climb and achieve
Oceans to cross and discover
Pathways to create your imprints
All this and so much more….
Intentions to manifest and more
Journey to make and understand
Life is just starting for you
Miles to go before you Settle!
Life is what you make of it
Success is in how you see it
Love is how you feel within
Laugh a lot! Live Life Lovingly!
Yes dreams do come alive
Stars will twinkle & sparkle on
Trust your path is in the making
All it needs is you!
God bless you.
Savvy
Today’s post is a compilation in collaboration, My reader and good friend for many years now Ashok Subbarao and I share our views in a collaborative way. He suggested if we could do a post together. And sent me his article. And I added my contemplations. So his prose and my poetry interweave in these words ahead.
Are we the cause of all the suffering
We are not only the cause
We are the reason
For the ‘State of Earth’ today.
We have breached all laws of nature
We have plundered and massacred
Not only our own
But innocent voiceless sentient beings.
Our crimes are heinous
Our ways unethical
Morality or humanity
It is completely missing.
The Plundering Humans
The continuous growth of consumerism and the insatiable hunger for more and more utilities and luxuries to fulfill the simple necessities of life have made countries plunder nature’s precious resources. So much so that humans have grown so selfish to uproot green cover of forests and waste life-giving water that nature started showing signs of decay in the form of various natural calamities. This was not an act of revenge but as an intrinsic part, nature to balance and sustain itself.
Yes, life can be lived with simple food, basic needs, and uncluttered living as the rest was provided by nature itself and that too, totally free.
However, man’s greed knows no bounds. With focussed developments in the era of industrialization and in the present age, the technological advancements to boot, man’s demands kept increasing, and these
are what a human being thinks are his basic needs.
Across the world today.
Our acts are turning violent
Our actions correlate
To the price, we all must pay!
We speak without kindness
We act without empathy
We are ruthless and hopeless.
Without integrity and trust.
Tilting natures precious balance
By our callous and self-serving ways.
Our earth has taken a toll
Bearing patiently in witness mode.
The rising temperatures across the world is a result of felling forests for newer colonies, roads, factories, offices, multiplex and what have you; thereby increasing the need for air conditioners which provide relief inside a house, but the amount of energy and power that is sucked out and throwing of heat in the atmosphere is creating more heat.
I would not be surprised when the day is not far when there would be so much heat that the AC compressors too would burst. What will we do then? But humans are so naive and adamant without care.
Man has broken every law of nature
Now nature needs to self-repair
Humankind must change their ways
Seek ways to maintain and sustain the earth.
Centuries of abuse and neglect
Nature has no time to be silent
It’s truly now or never.
Nature must begin to equalize.
Just being human is not enough
We must practice our humanity
Else the wrath of nature
Can no longer be contained
Our ways had got out of hand
Life was getting unbearable
And so beyond control
And way beyond hope.
The only solution is for countries worldwide to totally ban the destruction of forests in the name of development, introduce more public transport so that people stop buying more and more cars which emit gases in the air and encourage people to plant more trees and reverse materialism. This could be a small beginning in restoring balance, for nature will remedy itself.
Today the earth is revolting in its own sweet way and proving to humankind that if they do not amend their ways to sustain, the planet will render us humans as not just powerless, and perhaps the entire existence of humans can be erased. Nature along with is splendor accompanied by other sentient beings will reclaim their space. It is a simple way of nature saying “Hello Mankind I am alive too!.”
In the madness of being modern
The malady of our times
Values and ethics were trashed
Respect and regard were binned.
Stress and tension
Anxiety and panicking
Sleeplessness and fatigue
Plaguing the world over.
Materialism and indulgence
Hitting an all-time high
In greed apathy and indifference.
We took our world for granted.
And vis-à-vis the present pandemic called Covid-19, I cannot but remember the three monkeys as depicted in the picture. See No Evil, Hear No Evil and Speak No Evil a message given by Mahatma Gandhi the apostle of peace.
And it is so ironic that today, we have to cover all the three with a mask. Can we shed the artificial mask that we have been wearing for so long and promise mother earth to behave more sensibly and wisely? Probably we might be pardoned and some semblance of sanity may return to our lives.
Now nature has put humans in cages
Animals and birds roam free
Roads are empty, rivers are cleaner
Pollution has given way to purer air.
While mankind is locked down
Nature is restoring to sustain herself
Truth is its the only way left to survive!
There is perhaps no other way!
Verses by Savvy Raj & Prose by Ashok Subbarao
