Unlock your mental Powers

Your brain is an extraordinary organ. It has a magical power,in the sense it can guide you by thinking in proper direction and also it can mislead you inducing negative thoughts.When you are calm,you are relaxed, your neocortex,your thinking brain is fully energised ,active and available to you. But when you become anxious or angry,your neocortex shuts down,like all the lights in a building being turned off.When you become emotional and sentimental about a problem,you are just guided by your thinking power derived from paleocortex which is limbic or emotional brain.From my study of self-help books supported by research, paleocortex is responsible for your impulsive decisions.That means you take  write decision at the wrong time or wrong decision at the right time.

Your emotional brain has two states: fight or flight.When you become fearful or you encapsulated with severe anxieties or simply anxious  about a problem in either state,you can quite easily slip into a state of denial,anger or blame.You may feel like lashing out or attacking or you may want to ignore the problem and hope that it will be subsidised automatically.

Through this short essay,I strongly recommend that one has to unlock his mental power to become successful in all his endeavours in life.For instance,if you use the word opportunity , it will create a magical sensation in your neocortex  and  so instead of saying "We have a problem', you must think and say "We have an unexpected opportunity" and  you have to practice  this concept repeatedly which will automatically unlock your mental power.

Feeling for Nation

I was lazing on a wide road across a small lake near Zurich main station with one of my social female friends befriended in Mumbai airport.It was mid-march of the year 2005 The day was not so chilled,but I was feeling the punch even after wrapping with very warm clothes.The occasional cold breeze was blowing across the lake giving me little bit of uncomfortable feeling.We were chewing the nuts and exchaning our views particularly for the two countries,India and Switzerland. After finishing the snacks,I very casually tried to throw the empty packet in the lake.She snatched the packet abrupttly from me and put into the dustbin moving some five meters ahead.In first attempt,I could not identify the dustbin because it was so nicely placed and so nicely maintained.

"My dear sir,please don't do this here at Zurich,you will be penalized heavily for polluting the public property.Moreover,it is not India that you can grease the authority."

I expressed my regret,but at the same time was startled to hear her comment about India.
Upon scrutiny,I came to know that she was a cloth merchant from Zurich and used to visit India for her business purpose and is completely aware about our casual attitude for our public property. When she saw, I was bit embrassed, she said not to worry because in Zurich, they love to maintain public properties as much as they like their private properties. I am sharing this incidence that can we embrace upon this social thinking in our linear progression of thought process?

Masquerade of Culture conditioning

The reading of morning newspaper gives me a wide range of pleasure because I am able to gather information and knowledge,but at the same time it captures a gloom and desolation to peruse heinous activities performed by notorious people which sometimes include elite section also.I can understand the murder,theft,rape and all these anti-social activities done by lower class people of the society,but when it belongs to high middle class strata,I really start pondering and close the newspaper.How is it possible? How these people who are mostly the scion of the big and royal familis and somtimes even holding the prestigious position, do these types of nefarious crimes.This is of course,unpardonable.While studying one of the essays of Aldous Huxley one of the most prolific writers of the twentieth century,I ponder what type of culture conditioning is imbibed in their socio-religious system.Let us take a debate that in their childhood and adolescence,they have been taught to embrace uopn all the relevant good things of their culture ignoring the base and nefarious one,then why this scenario occurs which gets flashed in the leading newspaper's headlines.I believe,thers is no problem in the teachings except when the paternal affection bestowed upon on then is more than what is required,they become excessive arrogant,restless,proudy,jealous of others.Ultimately,they start thinking,they are the monarch of all those what they see.It creates the develpoment process of the thoughts of these elite sections that they can perform any crime taking the shelter of their powerful kindred.Here the culture conditioning concept of Huxley is to be studied in depth for the purpose of implementation.Mostly we are moving with the masquarade of culture conditioning and if somthing suits us, the same is to be inculcated in our system and if it does not suit then to ignore.This is aweful and detrimental for the society at large and this is the reason all types of crimes have a upswinging curve in modern days across the world.I feel,we have to come out from this masquerade and take the culture conditioning without any prejudices and biasness.

The Arrest and After

Aryan, staring at the policemen, wondering why the policemen have decided to push him around and scream at him. He has not committed any crime. He has not violated any laws still why the policemen are thrashing. The policemen hit Aryan in the chest and send him against the wall with a bang. His body is trembling. One of the policemen kicks him in the mouth causing profusely bleeding. Aryan has lost some teeth. He is afflicted with tremendous torment but not able to understand this heinous act. Because of bodily pain, Aryan is almost in a drowsy state of appearance.

After a while, the policemen reappear and drag Aryan into a dungeon full of people. There is hardly any place. People are huddling with each other. However seeing the deplorable condition of Aryan, everyone moves aside a little to make room for him. Aryan lies there with eyes closed.

A woman’s voice, “All of us have had our share of it.”

Aryan opens his eyes reluctantly and looks at the face that is staring to him. Pale and very thin is the face.

“I am Judith,” She says.
“And, that is my father, Menaclem.” An old man grovels and enquires to know why the policemen have beaten him so mercilessly.

Aryan is not able to respond only to look.

Again Judith says, “That is Deborah, my mother.”

“Where am I? There must be some mistake. There is some mistake,” Aryan repeats.

“There is no mistake, my dear friend; you are here definitely for a reason. In fact, we are all here for a reason,” Judith replies with complete assertion.

Aryan looks around and finds the room is packed with faces that he has never seen before. There is a bare chested black curly haired woman sitting crossed legged. There is a gypsy singing softly to her. She is standing up and then sitting and continuing the posture again and again. Aryan stares and tries to ascertain the reason of this melancholy. Wherever she is standing, there is some swaying. Her flowing skirt is ripping up to the waist revealing bony thighs. “That is Isarina,” Judith says to Aryan.

“She has the voice of an angle. They think she is a witch.”


Isarina is not bothered and now starts swaying her body with full rhythm and singing loudly to everybody’s surprise.

“There is some mistake. Aryan repeats, why am I here?”
“It is not a delusion, there must be some reason,” Judith smiles.
“But I have done nothing wrong, no crime and I am not a lucifer also.”
“You don’t fit in. In fact, none of us fits in. that is why, we are here.”
“But, which country is this?”
“This is the country of the dead,” She replies and the room is flooded with fragrance of grief stricken people with sullen faces, scanty clothes, unmindful countenance, but gypsy woman still sings louder and swings her hip.

Aryan searches for a known face.

Judith reads his mind. “No one knows you here,” She says.
Suddenly, a loud voice stars bellowing, “Lots, lots, time for lots.”
Everyone rushes towards the door. The policemen push them back.

“Sit down you filthy swine, sit or else we will break your teeth.”

Then a basket is passed around and each of them draws a piece of folded paper. Judith and Aryan get the paper with “X” mark. They are set free.

In the night, they stumble down the silent streets. Stopping near a lamp post, she says “Oh God! My parents.”

“Do you want to go back?”

“Let’s go on,” She mutters to herself and starts crying.

She sees her toes are bleeding.

Aryan and Judith turn the bend on to a familiar street.

“I can’t stretch myself any more to walk,” She says.

They decide to settle down beside a huge pile of cardboard boxes. They somehow manage to huddle into a corner. There is a cold breeze which increases their unpleasant because they don’t have any worm clothes to offset the cold. She starts sobbing like a child and touches Aryan.


“I wonder where my children are,” She speaks with a soft sigh that vanishes no sooner Aryan stares and all that remains is the sigh only, wearing into the wind flowing by.

She puts her head on his shoulder first, then on his lap.

Aryan runs his fingers through her grass like hair.

He thinks what to do. He hears an inner voice saying, “Don’t play in the tall grass, there may be snakes.”

But he does not bother and continues to feel the grassy and dirty hair and take the warmth of the deeper into the thicket.

A cloudless dome arches overhead, reflecting waves of the tall grass. When the green is up to the waist of Aryan, he lies down, breathing in the fragrance of the earth. Above him, the grass half sheets out of the view of the dome. He is inside a womb of grass. He lies and feels earthworms under him, toiling away in the soil, ants trouping by in stream; a spider floats overhead – from one blade of grass to another, swinging on one sticky silken thread. “Where are you son? Where are you?” Aryan gets alert to hear the voice calling. He gets reach out, holding a handful of grass, pull the soft blades down to the face of Judith and breathe in the aroma of typical fragrance.

Aryan further bend down and bury his face in Judith’s hair, breathing in the smell of perspiration, dried blood from small wounds on the scull. There is nothing synthetic in her hair. It is all natural. It is dried and matte. It is her hair. Judith turns back to see him. Hey eyes are telling something, searching something and same is luminous. Aryan is drawn towards them like a lifeless body towards the water eye of a well.

” I wonder where my children are,” She murmurs.

“Does it make any sense anymore?”

“Yes, it matters. You guy will never know. I can’t forget them. They are my own creative thoughts. They have left their footprints on the walls of womb.”

Aryan continues to stare at her eyes.

“Do you have children?” She enquires.

“Yes, but I am not aware about their present whereabouts.”

“Do you think about them?”


“I do. They have left their little fingerprints on the surface of soul.”

“Don’t you want to go back to them?”

“I don’t know where they are. If I try to search them and then not able to find, I have no other choice except to commit suicide. So, I don’t want to do any reminiscences. Please do not excite me to exert pressure on my thought process whereby I get engangle in the cobweb of miseries and grief only.”

“What type of father you are! Don’t you want to look for them, embrace them and hug them?”

By the time, I find them, they will have children and their children will have children. They will not remember me. They will not recognize me.”

“Children, don’t forget ever. You are completely mistaken. You are dreaded coward. You don’t like to face the truth. You want to flee from the life. You accept this fact.”

Aryan doesn’t retaliate except to kiss her on her cold forehead.

While talking they reach the main road of the town. They walk seeing the beauties of big coconut trees, palm trees, and some big and old buildings and ultimately land near the sea.

“Let us go to the beach and observe the dance of wave and tide. I like this,” Aryan proposes and Judith immediately agrees.

They sit, almost huddle together showing love for each other.

“I am still not clear why they have arrested me and put in the jail. I was a good student rather rank holder. But I used to attack the rampant corruption prevailing in education systems of that time. People did not like my attitude. I could not tolerate the inefficiency and corruption and so one day I was involved in a bitter argument with the Principal of the college who ultimately rusticated me. The ultimate result was a tremendous bickering, quarrel with me and the goons of the political bosses instigated by the Principal thrash me. I was hospitalized for three months.”

“Why did they arrest you?”

“Because, I raised protest against the influential people of the society. I used to expose them. I became a thistle in their wrongful and evil growth. So, after spending nearly one decade in hail, I do not want to remember my family. I just want to live the balance life with some of past thoughts.”


“What do you remember about your children?” She asks.

“My daughter would sleep on my chest when she was hardly a month old. Like a tiny frog, I felt her heart against mine, beating. She smelt faintly of incense.”

“My feet hurt,” Judith says, with tears in eyes.

“Do you think we can lead our lives again?”

“Does it matter?”

Aryan leans back again the wall. When he looks down at his lap again, Judith’s head is not there anymore. Neither is she sitting near him. She has gone. Gently, calmly, somewhere in the wind that cries along the empty street, he can hear her tired footsteps.

A Jackal will be a Jackal

A strong wind was blowing on. Its intensity disrupted the otherwise not so busy life of this Malavadi town. The rain came, wave after wave carried by the southwest lies. This town was a coastal one. Up along the coast, trailing silver sheets were spread from Kerala of South India onward to Konkan. Nearly the Arabian sea was heaving and rocking in the wind.

The rain was so heavy that roads started clogged at some places, the rail lines were almost full with water canceling the train services bringing disastrous to regular traders and office goers. The rain was turning inward from the coast, colliding with the Western Ghats, then climbing up and over. The natural calamity was hovering around the city for hours together. Thereafter, everything was stand still and as usual there was quietness. Ultimately, it was instrumental to green the dry hill slopes grass, weeds, reeds, bushes, trees moss everywhere it was only green and green only.

It was also time for hunter gathers to harvest edible wild roots and shots from the shrinking jungles. It was also time for promises of survival.

I was sitting in the makeshift tea stall near Malavadi railway station which was closed to Lonavala, a famous hilly spot of Maharashtra. This small town was tucked into the foot hills of the Western Ghats. Again rain started but with slow drops only, as per the customary practice of the rainy season. I was continuously battered with the thump of rain fists beating on the very old rusty tin roof above me.

The tea stall owner placed a glass of streaming tea on the wooden table which was almost fighting against death because two of its legs were supported on bricks. I was in total panicky situation but to satiate my thrust, I preferred a cup of tea.

The tea vendor enquired, “Do you want Vada Pau?

I nodded.

I had taken the first bite of Vada Pau and followed it with a hot masala tea, very popular in this belt. I was enjoying the streaming tea when a swarm of flies descended from the ceiling. The half dead table top was totally under their control as if they want to share the Vada Pau. The flies were moving around me like a aeroplane before landing. Some batches of flies would take off, hover, harass, get swatted at, swerve and giving another lot the opportunity to go in for the attack.

The amazing display of aerial combat enlivened me while I munched on my well guarded morning snack.

“Do you require another cup of tea?” Shouted the tea vendor.

I inkled positive.
 

When he placed the cup in front of me, he said, “Take adequate care not to put any food near to you. There is a hole in gunny bag just behind and it shall get picked up.”

“What shall get picked up?” I enquired with a bit amusement.

“The food saheb,” he said.

“How?”

“A dog or a cat or a rat or even a beggar will take it, zook and it is gone. It is the practice they follow, if any of my customer unmindfully put some food. Other day, one of my customers was very hungry and ordered a plate of four vada paus. He just put the plate on the bench instead of table because of its poor condition. Then, he started talking with me and after sometime, when he was about to taste the snack, he did not find anything. He stared here and there and found a beggar in half naked condition was eating one vada pau standing opposite side of the small road. So, we went out and caught him. He handed back the half eaten piece. This is what they keep on doing. They never come in here and order tea or buy vada pau.” The tea vendor’s voice shrilled.

“Why are you so perturbed? They don’t have money to buy tea and snacks and so they steal. These people are poor. How they can spend money,” muttered another customer, an old monk of this small town, running the palm of his right hand over the ground of silver hair on his head.

“They don’t have money, but how they manage to buy country liquor and revel in the night,” said some other customer.

“In that case, they should live in the jungle and not to roam in the midst of civilians and behave like rowdy Junglees. If they don’t stop these heinous activities of stealing and looking, one day all the traders of this town will lynch them,” said the angry tea vendor.

Just then a ragged group of men and women walked past the tea shop. Pieces of jute sacking, plastics in the form of sheets and torn cloth draped around them. “There they go,” said the tea vendor looking at me. Those people were immediately staring at me and then the tea vendor.

Again the tea vendor shouted, “What are you looking bastards, if the owner of the area see you people roaming here, he will shout you all. Go to the jungle and hide immediately.”
 
“Who is the owner?” I enquired.

“Nasir Mia is the owner and he is a very strict fellow. He has also done many benevolent works for these lazarus junglee beggars. But, instead of doing work in the forest like cutting trees, collecting leaves and foliages and to stack the same, make the road clean, these lubbers will only pass away the time, drink and steal money and food. When someone is caught, Nasir Sir gives them a nice beating. But these are shameless people.”

When he was narrating this to me, ragged people started taunting him “hoi hoi.”

The tea vendor got very upset. “See, what is their standard?”

“A Jackal will be a Jackal,” said the one with a silver lawn on his head, “You cannot expect it to be a tiger.”

I paid the bill and walked ignoring the rain and then passed for a moment. I crossed the road to follow the ragged group just out of curiosity. One of them stopped and looked over his shoulder, saw me waving, then nudged the others to stop. When I was almost at a touching distance stood abruptly wondering what to say except to smile. The boy who was in front also smiled leaving the others only to simper at equal interval.

Suddenly they all started laughing loudly. One of them made the sound of a goat “bae bae bae.” The others followed him. As a gesture of goodwill, I supported with a “bae” sound. We all again crossed the road and when passed the teashop, the vendor called out, “Hoi, rascals, do you know who he is? He is a journalist and wants to cover our town with many news. He will put your life story in the paper and you junglees will be known to everyone.”

“Are you a journalist?” One of the ragged enquired.

“No, I write books,” I replied with a lovable face.

“And what do you do with the books you write? Probably you stack them as we do the foliages in the forest,” he persisted.

“Please read them, if possible.”

“So, if you write about us, people will read our story,” he went on.

I nodded.

“Hut Saala,” he said with joy to himself.
 

Then he enquired, “Do you give these books free or people have to pay to buy and read them?”

“People pay money for them,” I replied.

“Hut Saala,” everyone said in unison.

Then the questioning boy went on, “Imagine, people pay to read our story. Everyone does business with our lives and we survive on their mercy, hut Saala.” And they all laughed loudly.

We all walked in silence for a while. The railway tracks had already been crossed and we ambled down along a slushy road, crossed a newly constructed state highway and headed on. The tea shop was far behind. The intensity of the rain was lessened except the drizzling which was kissing like a honeybee taste the honey and flee away. Not far away, on the other side of the state highway, the land climbed slowly up into a craggy hill, densely wooded in some patches and velvety green with grass and weeds and shrubs in others. The clouds were hovering our head, colliding with the rock faces, stopping, merging, dissolving and growing again. Huge black smokes emitting from unseen huts pushed their way up among the trees, lazily floating along till they were embraced by the gauzy clouds above.

“And where is your house?”

“It is there in that field.”

“How can you stay in the field? There must be some hut.”

There was some thatched huts seen from the road on one side of the field.

“Is that your land?” I enquired.

The boy who was questioning much was Gunjan who laughed and slapped me on the back. Then laughed again. I joined him slapping him on the back.

“My land? Hah Haa! My land, my land, my land, that is my land,” They repeated over and over again.
 
Gunjan’s appearance was little different from others and his dresses were not so ragged though dull and sombre. He could talk in English. Then, I noticed that he was staring at me for a while which I could not understand except to exchange a laugh and looked sideway. Suddenly, I got a blow and fisticuff in my stomach which was painful.

“Saala, for the past ten minutes, I hear your prattle. Bugger, you publish our indigent lives, increase the sale of your newspapers, earn fabulously and enjoy lavishly. Are we so much blockheads? Give us all your belongings and money immediately otherwise we will finish you with this trowel and knife,” Gunjan literally threatened me.

By the time, I was relieved of the pain from the blow and with mild tone I said, “ Please, don’t behave unruly. We are friends and I will try my best to recommend a decent style of living for all of you.”

“Hat Saala, now give everything without much talks.”

He took the knife almost to my face and I was bit scared and suddenly developed my courage and started running, but Kishan his accomplice, threw the trowel which hit me on my left leg to bleed. I stopped and handed over my wallet, gold chain and watched him. In the meantime, tea vendor came; perhaps he got the inkling. Upon scrutiny, I found that the trowel cuts my flesh and bleeding was continued. The tea vendor slapped Gunjan two-three times and he fled away with his groups. He then took me to a local doctor for the treatment.

“Sir, even if you do some charitable and yeomen services for these ruffians, they will not change. Their breed is of lower class. These jackals will be jackals only.”

“It is not like that, we only brand them. This is the norm of our society. Once you are branded, you will be treated in the same fashion only difference lies it may be good or evil,” I said with painful countenance.

How to use stories, poems to engage and create social awareness

Story telling has always been a captivating and favourite mode of leisure activity and at the same time, it accentuates reader to engage with the distinct features of the same. The hidden meanings and interpretations that lie buried under the suggestions are for the reader to explore. It is like a flash in a running brook. As pieces of writing, they do not merely narrate; they penetrate in the core of the minds of the characters where they enter into an understanding of how individuals think through their feelings.

Background:


In a short story, some of the formative elements include plot, theme, point of view, character, and setting. Birkerts rightly points out that explication of stories are an important part through which the readers get a massage. Chekov suggests that subtly blending together of characters and circumstances deliver a range of pleasures.

Ingredients:


Plot is a sequence of events why certain events happened the way they did in the story. Structure of the plot narrates the development process of the thoughts of the writer, its structuring of the elements. The structure can be varied according to the requirements of the story. For example, a writer will withhold the exposition until quite later in the story. In this way, he sensitizes the readers to know the end before completion of the reading. A classic example is William Faulkner’s “Rose for Emily.”


The plot development is further defined by exposition, the information needed to understand a story. Flashback is used to intensify the present actions encapsulated in the past version. Foreshadowing is the technique, the writer uses to plant the seeds for action that will follow. The story becomes mind boggling when it provides hints to what will happen later.

• Rising action is when the action / conflict / events intensify.
• Complication is the catalyst that starts the major conflict.
• Conflict refers to the forces opposed to one another in the story.
• Crisis is the turning point when the action reaches its peak. This is known as climax. It occurs when character tries to resolve the complication and finally the resolution which is the set of events that bring the story to a close.
• Epiphany a moment of startling, sudden insight gained by the main character as a result of the unfolding of events in the story.

The theme of a story is its moral. The theme of a story is its teaching. The theme of a piece of story is its view about life and how people behave. In a story, the theme is not explicit. It has to be grasped from the characters, action, setting and language.

In a story, the decision as to who is the storyteller and how the story is to be unfolded or narrated are of crucial importance. That gives the story the tone and the feel of the story. The teller is the crucial link between the action in the story and the reader. The point of view can be different types.




• Objective point of view: As the name suggests, the narrator is equidistant from all the characters in the story.
• Third person point of view: Here the storyteller does not participate in the action of the story as one of the characters, but the readers are free enough to judge how the characters feel.
• First person point of view: Here the narrator actually participates in the action of the story. The readers participate in the story with the teller.
• Omniscient point of view: This view is when the narrator knows everything about all the characters.

Character and setting are two other important ingredients of a well acclaimed story.

Character: It can be main character which is called the protagonist. There are some forces that act against the main character; known as the antagonist. The character can also be a minor character. Further, the character can be static or dynamic. In static, the character remains the same; he is inherently consistent while as a dynamic character, he undergoes a radical change in himself in the course of the story.

Setting: The descriptive setting provides a telescopic view to the values, ideas and attitudes of that place in different times. It adds an important dimension reflecting character and embodying theme.



Awareness:

Let us take some examples from literary works of various legends of the past centuries which attract readers to study their stories minutely.

1. Katherine Mansfield’s stories are delicate balances of perception, intuition, detail and nuance. If we go through her stories like “Bank Holiday”, “The Daughters of Late Colonel”, and “The Garden Party”, we find that these stories deal with an issue of change and the society is able to recognize the same.

2. Elizabeth Bowen’s evocative wartime story “The Demon Lover” shows the disturbed mind of the protagonist Mrs. Drover after her receipt of a letter from her presumably deceased boyfriend, prompting her to visualize the masterful dramatization of acute, psychological delusion of the culmination of paranoia in a time of war during the Second World War.

3. Virginia Woolf’s “A Room of One’s Own” gives a strong signal of feminist movement and she has utilized her writing power to uplift the distressed women writers in the era which was completely dominated by male bastion.

4. The gothic stories of mysteries are found in Edgar Ellen Poe’s writings. Poe unfurls a world of dark horror, cobwebbed allays, ghosts and mystery. The readers are mesmerized and sometimes frightened by perusing his stories namely “The cask of Amontillado”



5. Old age is very pathetic and nihilism pervades. One can easily prey to the narrow cultural and social conditioning of the old age which is disastrous not only to the individual concerned but also to the society at large. Sometimes, this “nada” is beyond delineation. But, Ernest Hemingway’s “A clean Well Lighted Place” has done so. He abandoned the florid prose and replaced it with a lean, clear style. His metaphor of iceberg theory has influenced generation of readers worldwide.

6. A well knitted story can explore to pent up creativity. For example, Steinbeck’s own creativity is reflected through his story “The Chrysanthemums”.

Like stories, poems can also inculcate strong message to the society at large.

1) Tagore’s poems not only entice us but also send sensational ripples of enchantment across our sense perception. His poem like a fairy tale guides us to sway with its rhythm.
2) “Crossing Brooklyn Ferry” is a poem which underscores a sense of continuity with humanity across time and space. Walt Whiteman explores the possibility of humanity to be connected with one another through the thread of common experiences of life.
3) Emily Dickinson’s “Because I could not stop for Death” attempts to poetically envision the entire experience of dying which mostly people do not enjoy.
4) John Donne’s “Holy Sonnet” made a scathing attack on death and dares to touch him.



With the above thoughts foremost in my mind, I emphatically conclude that story as well as poem vivify its readers to get across various types of messages.

Negotiation technique

Most of us assert that negotiation is an art. As per my expertise in negotiating voluminous contracts with various national and international authorities,I opine it is a science because it involves logical power and intuition. There are two types of negotiation predominantly in vogue,one is soft another is hard. In hard negotiation, people and substance both become important whereas in soft negotiation, people matter more. Here both the parties are watchful not to spoill relationship and then negotiate to arrve at the conclusion. In hard negotiation, matter is simply opposite.To overcome this situation,I strongly suggest to
accept the method of "Principled Negotiation". In today's world of fierce competition, this method is the correct approach to offset the competition to the extent possible so as to clinch the deal.I profusely apply this technique ,but then what is yours?

In Search of Peace Chapter 1

CHAPTER - 1

Mind suddenly awoke at mid night. He got thirsty and sipped some water. He found that his wife along with two sons was sleeping blissfully in the next room. He saw a very horrible dream. The city of Pride, where he was staying, was being destroyed engulfed in a savage fire. He recalled – when he came to this city twenty years ago, it was less populated and prospered with lush greeneries. Everyone was enjoying good acquaintance with his neighbour and there were cordial relationships among the inhabitants. Though a small city, it was vivacious. They used to share every moment of happiness and grief willingly among themselves. But the things have changed now. Strange people have started staying in the city, and the city has become glamorous with the wealthy folks getting into it and exhibiting their prosperity and luxuries. Cordiality started perishing and a type of bickering has taken place among the inhabitants.

Mind was a scholarly person who had a lot of knowledge about religious matters. He gained this knowledge by profuse studies of various religious books. But he was miserably lacking in his life monetarily. However, he was not at all bothered about his lazarous condition. Despite his wife’s everyday’s nagging persecution, he never left honesty in life. He continued with the same ideology and even tried to percolate the same to his wife and two adolescent sons. But they always turned deaf ears to his words. Mind, by nature, was a docile, amiable and loving person who always liked to solve others’ problems though he himself lacks in life. His knowledge made him lead a life of righteousness.

He was so disturbed with the dream that he started weeping and woke his wife up at midnight. He narrated the dream to her. His wife showed congeniality in the beginning, but when Mind kept describing the same story repeatedly, she became enraged and pushed him back and slept. Mind could not close his eyes but stared at the sky through window. A torrential rain in the night made the atmosphere quite pleasant. But Mind was not having piece in within. He again wished to wake his wife up to ask her to accompany him to leave the city of Pride. But seeing his wife in a deep sleep, he did not dare to do so, but sat with a sullen face. He was trying to find means to appease the Almighty to save the city.

Mind was not able to sleep throughout the night. It was dawn the next day. He woke his wife up and again started narrating his inauspicious dream. His wife tolerated for a while, but after sometime suspected about the authenticity of his dream. She asked her sons to pacify their father. Both the sons explained to him that the dream is a fallacy. Nothing would happen to the city. They asked their father to complete his morning rituals and proceed for Puja, which was his profession. Without any further arguments, he freshened himself and left for Vainglory’s place where he was supposed to perform an inaugural ceremony puja of his bungalow.

Vainglory recently purchased it which was furnished with Italian marbles, Belgium glasses, Egyptian carpets and other fixtures from France. When Mind reached there, Vainglory was busy to show these things to everyone. He claimed that he was the richest person in the locality. Pride, who was hitherto the richest person in the locality, could not tolerate Vainglory’s circumlocution and engaged in wrangling with him at the inaugural ceremony where he was also invited with many others from the locality. Mind was performing Puja with complete devotion but the tremendous hue and cry distracted his attention. However, he completed the Puja. When the quarrel between Vainglory and Pride intensified, Mind just interfered and tried to console both of them. Vainglory suddenly got frustrated with unwanted meddling of Mind and shouted at him.

“What do you think? Just by studying some religious books, you think would teach me your so called edification?”

Mind was completely off guarded and started mumbling, “No sir, I am just pleading both of you to stop quarrels at the place of Puja in front of God. Don’t mistake me. What is my authority to adjudicate you? You are such a wealthy person; you know what is good and what is bad very well.”

“Ok, Ok, don’t try to be too smart before the persons of rich inheritance.” Vainglory shouted at Mind.

Mind felt so insulted in front of a big gathering that he could not control his tears and left the place abruptly. His friend, Godlover, another Brahmin from his locality, went after him. He was the only person who used to adore Mind’s magnanimity and thoughts for others’ wellness.

Mind walked so hurriedly that Godlover had to run to catch him. He panted and forced Mind to express his feelings.

“Have you not seen how they insulted me? I am a poor Brahmin and lack monetary power. Despite this, a lot of people respect me; it is because they find some good virtues in me. Look at this gentleman, Mr. Vainglory. The way he prides, I feel his character is influenced by satanic demeanour,” Mind expressed his situation.
“Leave the matter brother; these are the breeds of haughty wealthy people. They exercise power of their money everywhere. They lead their lives under the influence of materialistic values. Their inner self is pervaded by their outer self which is totally controlled by the power of their wealth. What is their wisdom to evaluate your erudition? Don’t take their words seriously,” Godlover pacified him.

“In fact, friend, I am no more interested in staying in this city. When I took my small abode here, there was a scenic beauty of this city. The whole area was covered with greeneries. There were no hustles and bustles. People were very helpful and always eager to serve others. The environment was very peaceful and cordial. You are also aware about this. But, today there inhibit grouchy people in the big palatial buildings; noises of swanky cars passing one after another make life miserable; everyone seems to be acting to overpower the other. I don’t like this demeanour in social behavior and so I have decided to leave this city,” Mind expressed his wish to his closest friend.

“If people like you leave this place, its charm will flee away and the city of Pride would become a abode of devils. Don’t take hasty decision just because of today’s stray incident,” Godlover further pleaded.

“No, No, it is not because of today’s incident. In fact, I saw a terrible dream yesterday night and I was about to tell you the same. I saw that God’s wrath, in the form of thundershower, lighting and fire, was poured on this city and the city was being destroyed. No one survived. But amidst my surprise, I saw that God was calling me to His place at Celestial City. Now, I have to obey His call, because I don’t want to invite His wrath by disobeying his will. I have narrated this dream to my family members also. But, they suspected that I have gone lunatic,” Mind said.

“But, you have a charming wife and grown up children. How will they sustain without your able support?”

“Everything is God’s creation. I request them to accompany me; if they don’t, they have to face the consequences. But, it looks neither I am able to turn their minds nor be able to disobey God’s will,” Mind poured his heart before Godlover.

“Then, I will also join your this great endevour,” Godlover expressed his wish.

“I have no objection. But remember that the way to reach Celestial city is full of thorns, I believe. If you are able to endure the pain blissfully, you are most welcome. It will be my privilege to take my bosom friend as my entourage,” Mind accepts Godlover’s wish to join him to the journey of Celestial City.

Mind hesitantly entered his room with a dejection of today’s incidents. He expressed his reluctance to stay in this city any more to his spouse and children. His wife and two sons concluded that either he became bedlamite or he was too tired and wretched. But, mind ignored their mockery and invective comments. He simply took the book which he always kept with him as the only companion of him for the ensuing journey. His wife and sons requested him not to leave, but he turned a deaf ear to their requests. Godlover was waiting for him. Mind’s another friend, Easygoing, also showed his will to join him. Mind enlightened him about the pain-staking route of the journey. When he was persistent to join, Mind nodded and started the journey.

“In which direction we have to go, have you any idea?” Godlover enquired. Mind said no.

However, they started off for the journey. After a long travel, they were almost tired and decided to take some rest. All of them lied down on green pasture and slept there. But, a huge rumbling and grumbling of lightening and rainfall made them awake. When the intensity of the rain was severe they took shelter under a bough. Very soon, they observed that the pastures were getting water-clogged, and the level of water was rising drastically due to heavy rain which came to the neck-height. They were about to drown. Mind prayed to God with the book in one hand raised high above the water level. It seemed that Mind’s prayer was heard and rain gradually stopped. The water clogged in the pasture flowed away by the dawn. They were so tired that stepping a bit ahead became difficult for them. It was a nightmare for Easygoing because he was not accustomed to such a discomfort. In fact, he believed in achieving everything very easily. When he found that the beginning of the journey was so catastrophic, how would be the way ahead. He was pondering about the correctness of his decision to join Mind.

After eating fresh grapes and vine, which had been plenty around the pasture, they contemplated to proceed further. When it was almost dark, they came near a high mountain which was emitting fire at periodic intervals on the peak. The mountain was so straight that it was next to impossible for anyone to climb and cross it. Mind thought that Celestial City must be on the other side of the mountain. They did not find anyone in that no-man’s-land there. Mind took a little diversion and his friends followed him. After an hour of walking, they came near a sloppy area. It was completely dark. They misunderstood the slope which was nothing but a marshy land full of mire and rotten ingredients. In an effort to go ahead, all of them fell in it and were bedaubed with dirt and mire. The dirt was so sticky that they were almost wallowing to come out from the marsh. After a great difficulty, they were able to extricate themselves from the slough of the ditch. Easygoing, seeing the obnoxious situation, immediately decided to abandon the journey and return home.

“If the journey in the beginning is full of so much so thistles, how terrific it would be ahead! Getting to Celestial City after so many sufferings absolutely seems illogical to me. And I have my own doubt whether any place by that name really exists there. It is foolishness to undertake such a painstaking venture on a fallacy and imagination,” Easygoing told Mind with a sarcastic smile and a little frustration.

“To reach God’s place is not so easy. As per Calvinist, God only helps them who are willing to shoulder strain and stress. I informed you in the beginning itself that it is not so easy to start out for this mission. To reach God’s place, you need perseverance, courage and enough conviction,” Mind retorted with a very friendly tone.

Godlover also appealed Easygoing to stay with them. He told that nothing can be achieved by a person who does not bear the brunt of troubles. Easygoing, by the time, took a turn towards his house and Mind advised Godlover not to pursue him anymore.

Mind said that he knew Easygoing from the very beginning. He belongs to the category of people who want to achieve more by fewer efforts. It is very difficult to satisfy the needs of such people. Mind did not get perturbed because he was quite aware about Easygoing’s ideology. He asked Godlover to follow him to search a pond or a brook. They were lucky to find natural waterfalls there amidst a hilly area. Both of them washed their clothes which were thickly miry and took a bath. They waited for a while to get their clothes dry. Then, they ate some fruits left with them and quenched their thirst with fresh water from the falls. Mind was looking here and there. All the area was covered with greeneries and big boughs. He there found a flock of shepherds busy in grazing their cattle without bothering about the presence of Mind and Godlover.

Mind enquired about celestial city with one of the shepherds. He did not reply except saying that the pastures where they are grazing belong to a king by name Kindness. At the end of the pastures, there was a hut which was made by the King for the pilgrims to take rest. But, the shepherd was not aware of existence of any Celestial City.

After sometime, because of excessive fatigue, both Mind and Godlover decided to proceed to the hut and to take rest. After reaching there, they found that the hut was barricaded, and there were plenty of roses at one side of the hut and the other side was full of fruits like grapes, mangoes, strawberries and raspberries. Mind and Godlover plucked variety of fruits and ate them. They lied down on the grass in the shadow of a tree and soon started snoring. When they woke up, it was completely dark and so decided to stay there for the night. In the morning, some shepherds visited them and offered dry fruits and grapes to them. Then the shepherds took them to one end of the pasture to show a ditch downward. They also informed that while crossing this pasture many pilgrims fell in the ditch under influence of evil powers. In fact, the shepherds showed them some skeletons lying deep in the ditch. Mind and Godlover decided to leave the place immediately without much discourse with them. After walking a long distance, they reached a triangle and got into a dilemma about which route to follow ahead for a further journey. Mind was little bit nervous. Then he found a middle-aged person there passing by them who was attired completely in a white robe. He smiled and greeted both Mind and Godlover.

“Why do you look depressed and worried on this fine morning, my children?” the middle-aged person inquired with due concern.

Mind abruptly started giving their introduction, informing about the dream he saw and about the journey they have undertaken to the middle-aged man.

“Sir, we belong to the city of Pride and are pilgrims to Celestial City. One day, I saw in my dream that the city of Pride is engulfed in lightening and fire due to wrath of God. I saw that God was so furious with the residents of the city of Pride for their mirth, gaiety and rebellious conduct that He decided to destroy the city completely. And further, I saw that God called me to Celestial City.”

The middle-aged person heard this tale with attention and kept mum for a while and then said, “OK, that’s fine. But, tell me what this book you are carrying is?”

“This book, I believe gives me courage and conviction to combat evils.”

The middle-aged man, giving his introduction, said, “Anyway, my name is Margdarshak. I guide people to the right direction to help them lead a righteous life.”

“Sir, would you be kind enough to show us the way to Celestial City?” Mind expectedly asked Margdarshak.

Margdarshak said, “You are in the wrong direction, my children. Take a turn to the left and then cross a small knee-deep brook, and you will find a mountainous path ahead. You have to pass a narrow way on the mountain, and after a short distance, you will arrive at a big iron gate. Just knock the gate and you will come to know rest of the things.”

Mind followed his instructions verbatim, but he could not found the gate. Godlover was wandering whether they had taken a right way. A tall man with peculiar countenance appeared there. Seeing him, Mind was bit elated and enquired about the celestial gate with him.

“Why are you in this path?” he enquired.

“We are guided by Margdarshak,” replied Mind.

“No, you have to take just an opposite route from here,” the tall man guided.

Both, Mind and Godlover again were caught into a puzzle. By the time they were discussing among themselves, the black coloured tall person, disappeared. Anyway, as per guidance given by the tall man, Mind and Godlover took an opposite route. But, this time, they arrived at the same mountain which was emitting fire. After close examination, they found that it was next to impossible to cross the said mountain.
To be contd.............

In Search of Peace Chapter 2

CHAPTER - 2.

Mind was so morose that he started weeping. He repented because despite of Margdarshak’s prolific guidance, he was misguided by the the the black gentleman. Godlover tried to pacify him and suddenly found that Margdarshak was stepping down from the steep mountainous path. Both were surprised to see the monstrous scene because no ordinary person, whosoever religious he is, can manage to climb up and step down such a steep mountain. Margdarshak stared at them and then overlooked. Mind ran to meet him.

Margdarshak recognized him and said, “Are you not the gentleman whom I guided to a route to Celestial City? Then, why are you here? He objurgated him. People, who do not bother to adhere to good advices, should not think of purification of their body and soul. People must have courage and determination to reach Celestial City. I don’t think you deserve purification of soul, if you deviate from the path guided to you in the very beginning of a journey.

Then, he saw that Mind is crying and bows down to his feet with repentance. He embraced him, kissed him and asked him the reason of his deviation.

Mind replied, “Sir, I apologize for what I did. In fact, I was misguided by the the the black gentleman for the route of an opposite direction.”

“How does he look?” Margdarshak inquires.

Mind described all the details about the The the black gentleman including his dressing, countenance, his disposition and a shrewd smile he gave lastly when he departed.

“You should have well judged the indication of his crooked smile. He is nothing but an evil spirit. His name is Evildeed. He roams in that area; robs the pilgrims of their belongings and leave them penniless to starve and die on the way. You are just lucky that he only misguided you and not harm you.” Margdarshak described the Evildeed’s characteristics.

“Sir, I promise; I won’t repeat this mistake anymore.”

“God has created this great world. Out of all creatures, man is precious as he has been created in Almighty’s own image. He has given five senses to man to distinguish the good and bad correctly. It is upto a particular individual as to how he makes the use of the senses and follows the right path. But, you are deceived and allured. I can’t help you now. You have to face the consequences for disobeying God’s advices eventually. However, I accept your apology and again advise you to follow the path I have shown you earlier.” Margdarshak then quickly disappeared.

Mind and Godlover folded their hands and bowed down their heads in a gesture of respect to Margdarshak.

After three days of journey, they reached a wicked gate made of iron. They knocked it but received no response. They again knocked. The gate was opened ajar. A gentleman with white beard appeared and enquired, “What do you want?”

Mind replied, “We are pilgrims coming from city of Pride. We met Margdarshak who advised us to get into this gate to reach Celestial City.”

“Margdarshak was right.” The bearded person spoke and opened the gate for them to enter.

Immediately upon their entry into the gate, they were attacked by a person with a sword who was wearing a tremendously glittering golden robe. This sudden attack made both Mind and Godlover startled. Mind was bit surprised and back turned. The bearded gentleman pacified them saying that, “there is no need of getting frightened by the robed person. This is a gesture of welcome to invite the guests to fort. Mind and Godlover are relaxed. When they further get into the fort, they found a man chained in a cage. On enquiring, they found that his imprisonment is the consequences of God’s wrath. This particular man was a great professor and was always vaunting about his pedantry. All the time, he used to insult his students, friends and family members. Gradually he lost everybody’s support and goods wishes. Even his family members left him alone. He got lunatic and was lying near the iron gate duly chained in a cage.

“I chained him and put him in this cage because he was completely out of mind and hitting himself and others. Since then he is here murmuring anything all the time.” The bearded chap informed Mind.

“Can we talk to him?” Mind asked.

You can. But be careful. He sometimes attacks.” Bearded man cautioned Mind.

“What is your name? Why these people have chained you? You can also live a normal life like others.” Mind tried to initiate the talks.

“You fool, don’t you that God does not grant a blessing of peaceful life to those who vaunt and show their haughtiness? One or other day, he gets into the wrath of God. This is what exactly happened to me and this is why they have chained me. Bloody rascal, how can you relieve a person who is punished by God himself? Go away; do not show any sympathy to me. I am just facing the consequences of my past life.” The lunatic professor laughed loudly and sarcastically at Mind and went away.

Mind was then mesmerized to see photographs of various Gods, pilgrimages, religious places, greeneries, mountains and hills in the next room. He whispered to Godlover that the place resembles a religious place. The white bearded man whose name is Vidhata understood Mind’s inkling. He then said, “My child, this place is a purification center. The gentleman, by whose grace you are here, is none other than the great monk who preaches and shows right path to mankind. You were lucky to meet him just in the beginning of your journey.

Now, I have to explain everything by which you can purify your inner consciousness. Unless your thoughts are clean, you are not prejudiced by any “ism”, you do not believe in conflicts, you develop the feeling to help others without bothering of your comforts, without this, it is very difficult for you to reach Celestial City. You can live a religious life, but since you want to attain divine life at Celestial City, I would suggest that you gain wisdom.”

Vidhata took them in to a medium size room which was depicted with two big size portraits opposite to each other on the walls. One photo portrayed people standing in a queue and a monster like person throwing them one by one into a cauldron filled with hot oil.

“These people enjoyed their lives very well on the earth. They had money, wealth, friends, fame, palatial residences, servants and valets to take care of their comforts. They were all the times busy in gathering wealth, showing their status-co in the society and earning big name and fame for them. They used to go to temples, mosques and churches but just for namesake and without any devotion to God. Now after their earthly lives, they have come here to be judged and have eternal punishment by God so that in their next life, they become religious in true sense and think for others not only for themselves and their family,” Mind started pondering.

They were shown another picture in which there was a congregation of people there. Some of them were seen singing the songs, some dancing on the rhythm of the songs and others just listening to the songs attentively. Mind was trying to comprehend the hidden message of the picture. He asked Godlover his opinion about the picture. Vidhata, being a divine character, could make out what was going on in the minds of Mind and Godlover.

“This photo depicts joyous mood of people. They seem to have enjoyed their lives completely on the earth, and even here at this here also, they look gleeful. Why? You must be surprised to know that how people, after living prosperously comfortable lives on the earth, can be so happy at the judgment hour. Let me inform you that these are the people who have not plunged their minds in the wealth but devotedly served God with the belief that all the prosperities are the blessings of God. They used to remember God, seek His blessings in their big or trivial endeavours and thank Him for all they receive in their lives. This is the reason why they seem to be happy even at the judgment hour while others cry seeing the death approaching,” Vidhata narrated the edification of the life after death to Mind and Godlover.

“Do you mean that one gets rewards for his earthly deeds in the next incarnation? But who cares for the life after death?” Mind politely explained.

“No, not exactly.” Vidhata pacified.

“You can even get fruits in your existing life. Take the case of your own. Certainly, you have devoted your life to all good deeds, led a religious life upto your this age and so when you have come here, you are getting religious sermons. If it is other way round you would here suffered a lot of hardship after coming here.”

“It means people who do good, only can come here and what I understand that one has to pass through the gate to reach Celestial City.”

“To certain extent, it is correct. But many times good people by heart but influenced and mostly burdened with bad deeds also reach here. Their inner desire to reach Celestial City, of course, bad deeds done by them are only recognized when they come in contact with me. Otherwise they feel that their all works done by them in their respective places are as per the norms of the law of the society and they have not done any wrong.”

Mind was listening to Vidhata’s words very attentively and enjoying his narration. Mind also understood that there are many hurdles to reach Celestial City for a divine life. Vidhata now led Mind and Godlover to the meditation room and explained to them the need of meditation for prospering the soul.

He said, “The more you enrich from within, the less will be the attraction for outer self. When inner self of a person completely overcomes the urge of his outer self, he gets detached from all comforts. You have reached the stage of your life to control all your five senses and so Margdarshak has accepted your desire to show you the path of Celestial City. Otherwise, it is extremely difficult even to search this route.”

Mind enquired, “Why is it so?” If a person wants to embrace a religious life what is wrong in doing that?”
“There is nothing wrong, but I mean to say that the transformation is not a deliberate process. It comes suddenly when the inner self is induced by religious thoughts. At some point of life, it happens. Some are able to realize whereas some other take the same as a passing of time. You take my case. The whole world now worships me to receive my blessings and are always keen to hear my preaching, whenever I visit, people flock together to touch my feet.

Before twenty years, I was an ordinary person, of course, possessing abundant wealth, but had no perception of religion life. I was a top-notch criminal lawyer. If I used to plead for any client, he was damn sure that the verdict would go in his favour only, no matter whatever might be the nature of the crime. I owned a palatial bungalow in Florida of USA, an outhouse at Miami Beach, dozens of swanky cars and a private jet to crisscross the whole USA and European countries for legal matters. One day in a jam-packed court room, I was pleading for one of my clients who revengefully murdered his employer. During the process of interrogation and cross-interrogation, I had severe chest pain. It was so painful that I collapsed on the floor. An ambulance was called and I was shifted to a nursing home. I was operated thrice within a span of seventy two hours. Because of a sedentary lifestyle and high cholesterol foods and wine, doctors had to perform the operations to set right my condition. It was a life and death situation at least during the period of those seven days. Though I was saved, I had to bear the blow of hefty medical expenses. Moreover, my family members could not bear the bad news of my being caught into paralysis. My right hand went numb which I came to know when I was shifted to home

“But today you look very hale and hearly.” Mind replied

“Listen, my child, “I had to forego a huge amount of money behind my medical treatment. I was totally confined to bed rest, and doctors, suspecting a fatal damage to some of the brain cells, left hopes of my being alright anytime. For nearly two years, I lied in the bed without any income. I almost became bankrupt. My sons decided to leave me to lead their lives. My wife became mentally stressed. We used to lead a lavish life because of my huge income earlier. She started selling almost all the assets. We were forced to shift in a small flat. My wife could not tolerate this shock and ultimately collapsed. In front of me, I saw her leaving her last breath due to renal failure. I came to know that she stopped her medication of diabetes just to make me all right and not to curtain medical expenses for my treatment. What a great lady she was!”

“What is her name? Tell something about her,” Mind interrupted.

Vidhata’s eyes were slightly tearful. But, within a fraction of a second he was again cheerful.

“Even I start saying about her, your mission to reach Celestial City will be late. She was once a beauty queen and also a lawyer. She was big hearted and always used to place herself jovially whatever may be the situation. I never saw her tempered in our two decades of conjugal life.” Vidhata narrated his story.

“Everybody left you and you were alone in bed,” Mind further asked.

“Yes, I was alone and counting my days. I do not know how many days it was like that. One day, I suddenly saw a dream that someone is calling me to serve the world as a preacher but not as a lawyer. I also saw in the dream that I have to lead a life like a lazarus person. You won’t believe after this dream, I tried to get up from the bed so that I would be on my own. Initially, it was not possible. But, with my courage and under the influence of the dream, I could manage to stand. Fortunately, my outhouse at the Miami Beach was not sold. I sold it off and with that money; I started visiting all the religious places of India and China and then got settled in the Himalaya. I came into contact with great personalities, monks and heard their discourses. I strictly followed a very disciplinary life with diets of fruits, yoga exercise and meditation. I met one monk whose name was Bramhanand in the Himalaya. He taught me how to lead a life which only intensifies the knowledge and wisdom and induces the inner self,” Vidhata said.

“You are advocating too much for the inducement of inner self. Actually, how it is possible to do so,” Mind again interrupted.

Vidhata laughed and closed his eyes for meditation and sat there in the said posture for quite a long time.

Vidhata opened his eyes.

“Your mind is full of inquisitiveness. I find it altogether is a good sign. You are anxious to learn. Now, this learning can bring benefits to you only but if you want, you can bring a transformation to your sorroundings which may include living beings and non living beings through this acquired knowledge convert to wisdom,” he preached to Mind.

“How,” Mind asked.

“It is very simple. We always harp for more money, wealth and comforts. If we face any simple painstaking situation, oh God! What is this happening to me? I am so ill-feted. We always remember God in our distress except our routine five to ten minutes pray. Of course, in old age the sequential pattern of religious activities go up, but still wish of comforts will be always in the back of mind. Tell me, Mind, how many of us wish that God should make us more religious, increase our mind power to serve others and help others in their distress. When you lead life with all disciplinary measures, read thought provoking books, listen to religious gospels, mingle with priests and monks to understand the inner meaning of life and that too for a long period, automatically your urge for materialistic and inner self becomes strong and energized. You will not be able to know this transition because it is a phase-wise creation,” Vidhata explained the nitty-gritty of inner self.”

Mind touched his feet. Godover also did the same gesture. He being Mind’s follower preferred mostly to observe the things silently. Vidhata gave his blessings and presented a parchment to Mind saying that the same would help them in all dangers which they are going to encounter in the next place of journey.

Light is Sight

There are two angles; good and bad in the course of life of everyone. The good angles encourage to hear the voice of inner conscious so as to get the enjoyment of heaven and heavenly things and the bad angles discourage us from listening to our inner voice so that we are dragged in the track of the evil world to fulfill our materialistic ambitions and harp for power and wealth. Light and sight fall in the category of good angles and are supplementary to each other. Light is worthless without sight and so as sight without light. Sighted benefit is nothing in absence of light, and similarly, light makes no difference to sightless. Light and darkness both are same for blind. A blind standing under the shinning sun or amidst the great darkness finds nothing changing around him. Rising or setting sun is insignificant to him.

But, the most pitiable thing seen on the face of earth is, sighted are living like blind due to lack of light. There may be many who have got beautiful eyes and enough light, but due to lack of sight in their eyes, they are unable to see anything. For them, light is there, but sight is lost. How misfortunate they are!

It is the narration about physical blindness and sightedness. But, the situation of people’s inner lives is more pathetic. Inspite of having eyes they can’t see anything because they lack sight in their eyes and light in their lives. They suffer from spiritual blindness which is kind of a state of lack of conscience. They are unable to differentiate good and bad because their senses are not effective. We can describe this, as a situation where person’s inner soul is weak and therefore fails to gather courage to fight back against the impurities arising in him; in other words he fails to fight against himself. Outer blindness, to some extent, is tolerable, but the inner blindness is truly pitiful because there prevails an abundant darkness inside. Jesus says, “The eye is the lamp of the body. So, if your eye is sound, your whole body will be full of light.” Inner blindness is dangerous because it causes inner darkness. Outer eyes see what the inner eyes direct them to see, and when there is darkness inside, what the outer eyes would see – darkness, darkness and darkness.

Amidst all these, Jesus claims in the Bible that “I am the light of the world: he that follows me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life.” If we concurrently read Genesis 1:3 in the Bible, the first word that was uttered by the Almighty during creation of heaven and earth was “Let there be light: and there was light.” The Lord created light before creating anything else because he knew the importance of light in human life. Now, while comparing the statement of Jesus who is the light of the world with these verses, it indicates that Jesus already existed before anything else came into existence, and through the Lord’s word, He revealed himself to the world in the form of light. Going further Genesis 1:4-5 reads “God divided the light from the darkness. And God called the light Day, and the darkness he called Night.” It interprets that other name of Day is Jesus. All things were made through him, and without him was not anything made that was made. In him was life, and the life was the light of men. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.

Jesus, while on the earth, healed hundreds of people from their spiritual and physical blindness and made them walk in the true light of life. Amen.