It’s your choice

“Every person, all the events of your life
are there because you have drawn them here.
What you choose to do with them Is up to you.”
Richard Bach

Life’s greatest gift is free will to choose from the myriad of possibilities presented to us. Believe it or not, but it’s always been you who made all the choices. Whether you do it consciously or unconsciously is also your choice.
What stops you from accepting this overt, irrefutable fact?
FEAR of taking RESPONSIBILTY of your life. You give all kinds of justifications, “My parents are so dominating that I don’t have any choice except to follow their decisions. My boss won’t listen. Society doesn’t allow this or that.” Some go to the extent of putting the entire onus on GOD saying, “That’s my destiny.” Stop giving lame excuses for the apathy towards yourself. Get out of this stupor; hold the reins of your life by consciously and blithely making choices.
Stop sleepwalking through your lives! Believe it, it’s always been you who made all the choices. You chose not to be responsible for your own life. You chose to let others make decision for your life. Nobody in this universe can dictate you to make choices. You were born with free will. Accept the fact that you are responsible for all your circumstances.
“Nobody in this universe has the power to stop
you from getting what you truly deserve”
Swami Vivekananda
You deserve the best!
Then why do we give excuses?
Not again! Let me put it this way. The reason is DOUBT. You doubt your capabilities and DOUBT always concludes in FEAR. Fear of failure. Fear of making mistakes. Fear of being ridiculed. Therefore, stop doubting .How can you fail when you have been programmed only to succeed. Truly speaking, there is nothing like failure or success. These words have been created by your MIND for the sake of ‘I’. Nothing that is comparative exists in reality. All comparative terms have been coined by your mind for the sake of ‘Ego’.
That means there is nothing like Good or Bad, Right or Wrong.
YES, you are learning fast.
You make a CHOICE and you get a RESULT. What name you give to the RESULT is your choice. You are free to make a CHOICE. You can call it failure or success, good or bad, right or wrong.
On one hand, you say there is nothing like good or bad, right or wrong, success or failure and then you say that we are programmed to succeed.
I said it’s your choice; you can name the result or the choice as good, right and, successful or wrong, bad and failure.
I choose to call each and every choice as ‘right’ and every result as ‘success’.
This reminds me of a story about a minister who made a choice that ‘Everything happens for Good’
The story is about a king in India who had a wise minister. The minister had a habit of looking at every situation in life positively and remarking “Everything happens for the good!”
One day the king and his minister were getting ready to go for hunting. Before leaving for the forest, the king fired the gun to make sure it was properly working. There was something wrong with the gun and his thumb was blown off. The minister remarked as usual, “Everything happens for the good!” The king was furious and ordered to send the minister to jail. The minister again said, “Everything happens for the good!”
After few months, when the king went for hunting, he was captured by wild people who believed in human sacrifice. When they were getting him ready for the sacrifice, they noticed that one of the king’s thumbs was missing. Being superstitious, they never sacrificed anyone who was less than whole. Therefore, they let the king go.
When the king returned home, he was reminded of the event when he lost his thumb and felt remorse for sending his minister to jail. He immediately went to the jail and told his minister. "You were right; because I lost my thumb that day my life was saved. But how could it be good that I sent you to jail?" The minister replied,” If I had not been in jail, I would have been with you. Those people would have definitely killed me.”
Life is all about perception, how you perceive the various events and circumstances of your life. If you choose to believe in the perfection of life, you are sure that everything happens for a reason and the reason is to provide you an opportunity to learn and progress towards the truth.
The truth is that it is your choice how you live your life. You can choose to be contended with what you have got. However, if you are dissatisfied with your circumstances that’s also your choice. You have free will (choice) to edit, modify your circumstances according to your aspirations. It’s your journey. You are free to choose your destination and the path. You can choose to follow the easier path, followed by most but then you miss the excitement of learning new things. You miss out on the opportunities to recognize your strengths. You don’t give yourself a chance to realize your true potential. On the other hand, you can choose to follow the path that your heart desires to pursue. It may appear difficult and lonely in the beginning but it would be full of excitement and adventure and soon you will realize there would be many following you. It is always easier to go downhill than to travel uphill but remember that the later also takes you to the top. Only from the top, you can see the whole view. It is your choice whether you want to ascend or descend.
Two roads diverged in a wood, and
I took the one less traveled by,
And that has made all the difference.
Robert Frost
Always remember that no one but you are privileged to make choices for your life. Therefore, acknowledge the responsibility for your present circumstances only then you will have the power to change them.
What do you exactly mean by free will?
Free will means nobody else has the power to adjudicate and dictate you to make choices. Your choices are not to be guided or influenced by any other factor or person except your true self. Your choices are not be made under the influence of any other emotion except love for the choice itself. Choices made under the influence of fear, greed, anger, pleasure, will result in dissatisfaction. All such choices are made by ‘I’ not the real you. It’s as simple as choosing what you love to do, what your heart desires.
You make it sound as if it’s a cakewalk. How can one be free of all these emotions?
Who asked you to be free of these emotions? I said choose not to let them influence you while making choices.
How can you do that?
Realize the truth. Have faith in all because there is none in the universe except you/me/us/god. These words may have different meanings in English language but they are synonyms of the real self. The difference between GOD and you is that he is always aware of the fact that there are no two but only one. You get glimpses of this fact now and then.
If you know that there is only one, you don’t have to be scared of anything or anyone. Whom will you envy? Whom are you scared of? Who can harm you? Who can stop your progress? People who try to scare you or harm you are themselves scared. People who envy you are unable to love themselves. People who judge you are judging themselves. There is nobody else but you. This universe is for you, by you and of you. Get rid of your small ‘I’, tell it to move over. You are fearless having indomitable courage, indefatigable energy and a source of inexhaustible love and happiness. Develop unwavering faith in your real self and you will be free of all futile thoughts and emotions.
Treat Others the Way YOU Want to Be Treated Back? Do you know how it works?
When you treat others with hate, disrespect, anger, fear, ridicule you are doing that to yourself, so you have already got it back. It means you are angry with yourself .You don’t respect yourself. You hate yourself. Sounds awful! That’s the truth.
If you love yourself unconditionally and respect yourself, it would be impossible for you to hate others or be angry with them.
Be happy when so called others (by your ‘I’) are happy, feel their pain, empathize with them. In short, feel connected to everyone around you. When you love others, their energies join your energy and you become more powerful.
HE (GOD) is the summation of all the living beings and non-living things on this universe. He is GOD because he knows there is nothing in this universe but only and only HIM. He knows you are in HIM and HE is in you. If you acknowledge and remember this truth, you have free will. You can do whatever you want.
In the previous chapter, you said that the real self knows the past and the future that means our future is predetermined. If something is predestined then how can you say that we are free to make choices?
I agree that I said that our real self knows our future but I never said that there is only one future. It’s again because of the limitations of the physical self that we cannot visualize the possibility of many futures existing simultaneously at this very moment.
How does one know that he/she has made the right choice?
When will you learn there is nothing wrong or right, good or bad? It all depends on what you want the most.
Choose that which make you incredibly jubilant and triumphant. That is the best choice.
Just remember when you experience joy and love you are closer to your real self.
Actually, it is of no consequence what choice you make. You are programmed to attain your ultimate goal i.e. to realize your real self. Nothing can stop you from achieving it. It’s only a matter of time.

FAITH

I thought I remembered HIM,
Every time I mumbled his name.
I thought I reached him,
Whenever I prayed.
I thought HE rewarded me
When my whishes were fulfilled.
I thought HE punished me
For the wrongs I did.
I thought HE is busy
When my adjurations were not answered.
I thought I understood HIM
Whenever I was on cloud nine.
I thought HE is not there
When I saw a child dying.
How ignorant was I,
If only I knew
HE was always waiting for me
To wise up to his call
He never ever left my side.
Ready to pick me up after every fall
He never judged me.
It was I judging him all the while.

Happiness

Don’t be in Pursuit of Happiness
"Happiness is the absence of the striving for happiness."
Chuang Tzu

Everyone wants to be incessantly happy. However, most of us mistake pleasure for happiness. Pleasure is an emotion that you feel when things and events gratify your senses and feed your ‘Ego’. Happiness is a feeling of contentment and tranquility. Whatever boosts your ego gives you pleasure. It could be a small thing like a praise or compliment or getting a new car or a job or staying close to a person. Your ego’s existence is dependent upon constant pampering. After a short time, it gets bored with old things and needs new thing. It makes you run after new ways and things to please it. As long as you pursue things in search of happiness, you get pleasure for a short while followed by sadness. You have to understand that searching or pursuing happiness somewhere or in something makes it elusive. You are bound to experience happiness occasionally if you think happiness is the result of pursuing and accomplishing something.

Learn to be happy with what you have
While you pursue all that, you want.
Happiness is not something you postpone for the future;
It is something you design for the present
Jim Rohn

Happiness is not outside, it is inside you, and it is your nature.
It reminds me of a story about a cat who discovered that happiness was in her tail. She repeatedly tried to get it, but all she could do was run around in circles. Exhausted and frustrated with this endless pursuit, she eventually stopped. Then, she realized that if she'd just go on about her life then it would follow her wherever she went.
Power, fame and money can give you happiness only when you are sure that you are worthy of them. Remember JOY Belong to the family of FAITH. If you don’t have faith in yourself, you may have all the power, money but the insecurity won’t let you enjoy them. You happiness does not depend upon what you are or what you have, it depends on how you perceive yourself and life. As long as you are seeking to find happiness somewhere else, you are overlooking the essential truth that happiness is your true nature.
One day Mullah Nasruddin went out in the street and started searching frantically for something. A man who was observing this came up to him and asked him what was he searching.
Nasruddin replied, “I’ve lost my key”.
He also joined him in searching the key.
Few more onlookers joined them to help Nasruddin find the key. After some time someone asked Mullah where exactly, the key was lost.
“I lost the key in the house,” replied Nasruddin.
The man was taken aback. He asked him “Then why are you searching for it in the street?”
“Because there is more light here.” Replied the Mulla
Everybody is looking for the key to happiness. Most of us are searching for the key outside. The key is sought in power, in success, in relationships, in wealth, in others. You should desire all these, pursue them but at the same time remember that they are not capable of giving you happiness. The key of happiness lies within. If the key was lost within, it has to be searched within.
Why it is futile to pursue happiness?
If your happiness depends on fulfillment of a ‘desire ' then till the
time you get it you will go through a period of unhappiness. Your ego makes a fool of you by desiring one thing after another. It wants to be better than everyone else is. It is responsible for involving you in never ending rat race. It makes you run after things and people making you believe that once you get them you will be happy. What you don’t realize is that it always manages to find someone who is better than you are at something. Therefore, you are forever in the wanting stage, pursuing happiness but never getting it
What stops you from being happy?
Your response to situations and people makes you happy or unhappy. Misfortune in life, criticism, delay, failure cannot make you unhappy if you realize that all such things are transitory and none of them has the power to change your value. You are unhappy only when you decide you are incapable, unworthy or misfit. When you know you deserve the best and give your best to the life nothing can make you unhappy.
You are not happy when you pretend to be somebody else. When you are fake. Therefore, just be yourself. Follow your heart. It will never let you down.
What makes us happy?
You think that the smile on your child’s face makes you happy. If smile is the reason of your joy then you should experience the same happiness when others smile. Actually, it is the love for your child that makes you happy.
You think the beauty of flowers makes you happy. No, it is your ability to appreciate the beauty which makes you happy.
When somebody thanks you for the help you extended, you feel happy. It is not their gratitude but the compassion in you that makes you happy.
You think you are happy when you receive what you desire. It is not what you receive but the feeling of gratitude you experience that makes you happy.
When somebody praises you, it is not the words that make you happy but the knowledge that you deserve it makes you happy.
Always remember that whenever you get a brand new car, or you buy a house, find a soul mate, or get your dream job, it is not the car, house, job or your soul mate that makes you happy it is your love for them. Your happiness is in your hands. Nobody has the power to give or take it from you. If you love whatever you have, you will be always happy.
Happiness is your nature.
It is not wrong to desire it.
What is wrong is seeking it outside
When it is inside.
Sri Ramana Maharshi

he is within you and everywhere

HE is within you and everywhere
The heart assures
Never saw HIM
Swore the eyes
Never heard HIS voice
Averred the ears
It is all a myth
Alleged the mind
But the heart cajoled
Look into thyself
With the eyes of faith
You will hear Him
In my every beat
And I repeat
Stop searching HIM here and there
Because
HE is within you and everywhere.

Silence

When in crowd, I feel I am alone
When alone, I am in someone’s company
In every face, I see thyself
Don’t need a mirror to see myself
Silence is unfolding all the stories
It won’t allow the noise of worries
The difference between ‘others’ and ‘I’ is gone
Let me rejoice, I am finally back home.

WHAT LIFE MEANS TO YOU

Hi! How’s life!
“Great! Quite hectic but still having fun…..”
“Good, but…..”
“Its OK however, things can be better…”
“Just like everybody else, life goes on …”
“Not so good. Nothing seems to be working in my favor…..”
“Full of troubles! Don’t know what to do…”
All of us have repeatedly answered this question put to us by friends, colleagues, relatives and even strangers. Sometimes we respond truthfully but most of the times we just say something to get over with the formality. Have you ever genuinely asked this question to yourself? Isn’t it strange that we have been reiterating this query to so many people but never checked with ourselves to know what life means to us? However, we all definitely want a good life, in fact the best possible life.
What is the best possible life?
Each one of us has a different mindset for life and therefore different benchmark for the levels of success, contentment and satisfaction. However, deep down in our hearts all of us have similar expectations from life. We all want a life full of excitement, confidence, joy and peace. We all desire to be luxuriously successful and incessantly happy, to lead an extraordinary life.
“Yes, that’s true, but it’s easier said than done.” Is this what you are thinking?
Although, you urgently want to believe that it is possible to turn your dreams into reality, your mind doubts and appends Ifs and Buts. Yet your heart avers, “You can do it. Don’t give up.”
Listen to your heart it is always right. Believe it or not, we all are programmed to lead extraordinary lives. Actually, life is all about believing, having faith in you. Therefore, you better believe that you are here to fulfill a purpose, to realize your dreams, to experience your true potential, to know you are special and unique. .Life’s purpose has to be an end in itself not a means to another end As Aristotle put it, life’s purpose is ‘eudaimonia’, a contented state of happiness and fulfillment. Whatever you may wish to have power, wealth, love, fame, or everything put together, it is always to make you feel complete and happy. Happiness is an end in itself therefore the ultimate goal of life.
Can you honestly say that you are doing what you want to do and are doing your best? If your answer is ‘Yes’ then you know what life is all about. However, if your answer is ‘No’ then you need to find meaning of life and your life won’t have any meaning unless you decide to give it one. If you truly desire to have a prodigious life then pay heed to your heart’s advice more often. If I am right than you are relying too much on your brain. Although you have your brain placed above the heart however, it would be useless if heart stops functioning.
Haven’t you heard the story of the centipede who, when asked how he managed to walk with so many legs, got his legs tangled hopelessly in the attempt to intellectually figure it out and ended up on his back.
Don’t behave like a centipede. Stop analyzing life unnecessarily. Trust your instincts and have faith that winning and to be eternally happy is your true nature. Doubts and ignorance about your true worth make your life swing back and forth like a pendulum from happiness to grief, success to failure.
It is almost blasphemous to exist and pretend to be living without realizing the essential nature of who you actually are. Do you ever acquire any equipment without enquiring about its specifications, merits and strengths? Then how can you continue living you life without knowing your actual capabilities and potential? Unless and until you know your true worth how can you ever expect to lead a fulfilling and happy life? Life is not about trying, struggling, winning, or loosing. It is about knowing; realizing who you are.
Reading articles, books and listening to motivational talks regarding how to lead a full-filling life is like reading the directions to prepare a delicacy. If you actually want to enjoy it then you have got to prepare and taste it. Similarly, until and unless you experience and live your life through your real self, you cannot savor the extraordinary life replete with genuine happiness and over the top yet credible success. Your real self works through your heart. Follow your heart.
What’s the harm in giving it a try? You want to know how to go about it. Then what are you waiting for? Grab the opportunity with both hands. You can do it with one hand also; I don’t think the book is too heavy! Take it home and discover your real self. Life is all about perfect timing. It could be the perfect time for you to recognize your true potential and convert your dreams into reality.
I am sure you see dreams with open eyes. You are not one of those who are sleepwalking through their lives. However, you have a Lilliputian doubt regarding your capabilities. Crush it by developing immense faith in your real self.
Your heart clamors for unfaltering faith in yourself; it repeatedly reminds you of the truth that, you have what it takes to create miracles. You are lucky that your heart has not given up. You are here for a purpose. Discover that .Life is not about surviving and limitations, it is about creating and going beyond boundaries. Have faith in your real self, it is waiting for you to realize that you are here to attain the pinnacle of wealth, fame and peace and happiness. Let your real self express itself.
This book is about you, the real you, about reclaiming your real self and lead an extraordinary life.
Whatever may be our cultural, social, economic, educational background, our hearts experience the same emotions; have the same expectations from us, to be the best. Our only duty in this world is to fulfill the dream/passion we were born with.
We all want to be forever happy and victorious, but very few of us actually are. We all want to follow our passion but very few dare to. Why?
What are you mumbling? I can’t hear you. Please speak a little louder.
Oh, I forgot to tell you. This book is not only about just reading. Actually, to break the monotony of reading we will chat in between.
So what were you enouncing?
“May be they are extremely fortunate. Maybe they are blessed
with extraordinary talent. May be they are highly educated. May be they have exceedingly supportive family. Maybe they have plentitude of money. May be they are super genius. “
Why may be? You are not sure about your answer. These are nothing but excuses for your self-limiting idiosyncrasies.
Ask your heart. It will tell you the truth. You know that they are happy and successful because,
They all believed in their dreams.
They never doubted their dreams.
They were never daunted by their have or have- not.
They knew the fact that nobody is more privileged or
underprivileged than them.
They didn’t let anybody else decide about what they can do and
what they can’t do.
They knew there’s always a way.
They knew it’s never late.
They knew things would turn around.
They believed in HIS (God) perfect timing.
They loved what they did.
Instead of saying ‘WHY’ they said ‘WHY NOT’
Instead of saying ‘CAN’T they said ‘CAN ‘
Instead of saying ‘LATER” they said ‘NOW’
Instead of saying ‘WHAT IF’, they said ‘SO WHAT’
“Whether you think you can, or that you can’t, you are actually right.”
Ford

You and me Were, are and will be forever

I was entangled in the intricacies of
What happened yesterday?
And what’s going to happen tomorrow.
And then, a tiny moment appeared,
Held my hand and said,
There was neither yesterday,
Nor there is going to be tomorrow
What you call yesterday was I
And what’s going to come is me
You never had a past
And you will never have a future too.
You and me
Were, are and will be forever
Know that,
It’s in me you will have everything
That is why I am holding your hand
Come,
Let’s say good-bye to what happened
And welcome what’s going to happen
Realize that,
We will be always here
Because,
We never arrived from somewhere
And we don’t have to go anywhere