The Battle inside Us

One evening an old Cherokee told his grandson about a battle that goes on inside people. He said, “My son, the battle is between two ‘wolves’ inside us all.

One is Evil. It is anger, envy, jealousy, sorrow, regret, greed, arrogance, self-pity, guilt, resentment, inferiority, lies, false pride, superiority, and ego.

The other is Good. It is joy, peace, love, hope, serenity, humility, kindness, benevolence, empathy, generosity, truth, compassion and faith.”

The grandson thought about it for a minute and then asked his grandfather: “Which wolf wins?”

The old Cherokee simply replied, “The one you feed.”

photo by the author of the blog

Why not make wonders everyday reality?

Two weeks ago, I got two letters from different people with different content. But the topic of both of them was the same: faith can move mountains.

Faith into what? Christians, Muslims, Jews have faith but not all of them manage to do something that goes beyond the standard limits of existence (for example, recovery from cancer). However, there those among them who have cured themselves and others, who changed life circumstances when it seemed that it was impossible. So, what is the trick?

Freedom

…And an orator said, “Speak to us of Freedom.”

And he answered:

“At the city gate and by your fireside I have seen you prostrate yourself and worship your own freedom,

Even as slaves humble themselves before a tyrant and praise him though he slays them.

Ay, in the grove of the temple and in the shadow of the citadel I have seen the freest among you wear their freedom as a yoke and a handcuff.

And my heart bled within me; for you can only be free when

How to make the desire come true?

 

Polina

Why is it so that when we really want something it never comes? But it does come when we have reconciled ourselves to its never coming true. Why? It has happened to me so many times already. I really wanted something for years and when I thought that “OK, it’s not for me then”, my desire became reality at the most unexpected moment. And it was such joy (especially because it was a surprise).

This weekend we could see the trick of the whole thing very clearly. Our friends, two adults and two children, came to our village house on a visit. The kids’ desires fulfilled one after another. According to their father, in the morning, when they were going to our village by bus, the children expressed the desire to have the first spring swim in some river or pond. The father assured them that there would be no place to bathe. The kids expressed their desire and then forgot about it.

And when in the middle of the day we all came to the river (without any idea that there could be a chance to bathe there), they were allowed to swim and they took it as something self-evident. But then they wanted a fire (they even collected some small sticks). Andrew wanted to make a fire so much but he was given neither matches nor a lighter. Soon he forgot about it. And the fire started by itself in some time (it turned out that some wood lying on the place of the former fire gave its heat to the sticks). In such a way all their desires came true during the whole day.

And the trick was that they just wished something from their heart not thinking about the result and the benefits they could get. And what is more important – they did not carry their wishes in their own mind. And as soon as one “lets the wish go”, the Divine/the Supreme Power/God gets an opportunity to work with that desire and to arrange circumstances for its fulfillment. And when the children’s desires were fulfilled, they did not get attached to the thing they had got. When I brought ice-cream to everyone (from a shop) which the children, as well as the others, had wanted very much, I was surprised at the easiness Polina put that ice-cream on the beach and went swimming and Andrew gave his portion to his father quite coolly, at his own free will.

Thought for the day: There may be three reasons for our desires not to come true: 1) our desire is not pure (i.e. it does not lead to our development or/and happiness, from God’s point of view); 2) we are so attached to the desire that we are even afraid to “let it go” thinking that only we are the ones who can make it true (forgetting that we are only the instruments of the Creator) and unless it leaves our mind no Supreme power can take care of it; 3) and sometimes it also happens that we desire what we are not prepared for so far and if we got it, we wouldn’t be able to feel its real value (just patience!).

photoby the author

Inborn Power – the way to understand the world around

 

Do you believe that some ancient native Americans could manage the weather? Do you believe that some ancient native Australians could feel and see the soul of nature? Do you believe that some ancient Hindus could find “common language” with wild animals? Do you believe that there are people who can do it in the modern world? Do you believe that you could be among them? 

It’s not magic. It is one of the qualities the man has not developed in full yet. Want to know how it works?

How to Speed up Spiritual Growth?

An Egyptian Family.

During the two weeks while we were in Saint Petersburg and Moscow we stayed at our friends’ places. Spiritual growth is known to go really quickly when you are living with other people. I do not mean living with your wife/husband and kids. I mean friends, acquaintances or even people you did not know before.

Sometimes it seems that such society really makes our already hard life harder. But if we look deeper, we will realize that when being put in the circumstances when you have to face each other several hours every day, “sharp corners” of the whole company are gradually getting round. And one day you notice that being in the collective really brings you joy.

The issue I am speaking about is topical for the West, I am sure not for the Eastern countries like India. I remember living in Bristol in a collective house/ashram for two weeks. We were five there: an English lady and an English man, a Hindu and we (two Russians). We had no problems living together as we are all Sahaja yogis and thus understand very clearly that the disadvantages we see in somebody else for sure exist in us as well (otherwise we would not notice them and react). This experience also gave us a chance to look at the conditionings of each other (I mean the conditionings we got due to the countries we live in) and, what is more important, discuss them. What means trouble for a Hindu (for example, a forced marriage) is never a trouble for a Russian. We also learnt that in India it is quite natural to have big families, I mean from grannies to grandchildren. In Russia it is considered a torture in most cases.

It was the case with us as well as we have been living with my father and grandfather for 3,5 years already.

What did Buddha mean? To keep step with Creator

According to Buddha, all the sufferings come from desires. What did He mean? Should not we have any desires at all?

I felt very clearly what He meant during our trip to Saint-Petersburg and Moscow. When we left from our native city, I managed to leave all the problems and worries at home and completely surrender to Life. It was such a calming feeling when you don’t need to hurry anywhere, when everything brings joy to you, even waiting. Complete peace as you are absolutely sure that everything is taken care of. Even when I tried to hurry to the place which I really wanted to visit and we were obviously late, my husband mentioned that my hurrying would not change anything as we would come at the time we should come. We were late but we really had not missed anything. Yeh, I know, it is easy to think and do so when you do not need to look for work, when you do not need to hurry to work, when you do not have to make money and buy things for kids, etc. But if it worked out once, even though when on holiday, could not it work out constantly? I still need to check it and I will… 🙂

Anyway, being in this state of balance 24 hours a day I suddenly felt what it means to keep step with Life.

To Be Free – the way not to get tired

 

We were going from Saint Petersburg (Russia) to Moscow by train yesterday. It took us 7 hours and it was a surprise for me that I was absolutely fresh and full of energy when we finally arrived. The trick was that while in the train I was looking through the window and enjoying the fields with fresh green spring grass, fluffy clouds forming different figures, tall slender birches with small leaves and the sun shining so brightly into the window. I had a very strong feeling that my Spirit was absolutely free and at the same time it was a part of the loving and caring nature.

And I also remembered the words of my old uncle suddenly uttered by him one day before his death, “The Paradise is here, on the Earth!”

Why are we so joyful when someone else does a good thing?

Today my friend and I remembered about an event which happened to the father of one of our acquaintances in winter. Neither my friend nor I know that man personally but we have read in our acquaintance’s blog what a good deed he made.

Her father works as a road sweeper. And he is proud of his profession as he realizes that he helps people (especially in winter) – that is already one good thing about him. One day in winter while working he suddenly saw an owl in one of the snowdrifts of our big cosmopolitan city (the population of which is 2-million people).

Through Art to Purity and Love

If the desire to create goes from your heart and not just mind, the process of creating may purify you and reveal all the best in you. Especially when you are working with natural materials. I am sure you have noticed that hand-made things have something about them because of which it is so pleasant to take them in hands, to have them at home. And it is not only a piece of soul and love of the person who has created them but also the love of the All-pervading power, the vibrations of Paramchaitanya. As when our heart is open, we allow the Creator to use us as his “paintbrush”. It is He who is the real Creator working through us.

And we really felt what I have just described when we crossed the threshold of an ordinary (from outside) building of Saint-Petersburg Children’s Art House. As soon as we had entered it we found ourselves in a real Palace. There was such love and joy, purity and beauty around! It is a world of morality and history, a place to rest from the daily routine of the working days in a big modern city.

Kids are taught so many things here (for free!): making laces, weaving, embroidery, making things of birchen bark, painting, history of the city, ceramics, origami, making soft toys, painting on wood, video shooting, karate and other sports, design, singing, dancing, etc…

And the motto of the Children’s Art House says: If there is no Sun in the sky, find it within yourself!

In fact, we came to the studio of ceramics where our friend, Sasha, teaches.