Fear feeds on your difficulties, it highlights what could go wrong, it magnifies your troubles and creates worst case scenarios in your mind.
On the contrary Faith is believing that difficulties are part of life, life has ups and downs, if today is difficult tomorrow will be ease, difficulties are there to Teach, to help you grow.
Faith Vs fear seems a battle between heaven and hell. When life hits you hard, the real test of Faith begins, to believe in God’s process when you aren’t seeing the next turn. You are directed and redirected to face demons of doubt and Fear. Allow Hope and Faith to take place in every cell of your body.
Surrender your Fears and doubts to Hope and Faith! Surrender to Universe and be open for what Life is offering you to transform you into a better version of yourself.
Life is a journey, purify your intentions, have patience, be hopeful, notice tiny miracles that keep happening in life and we don’t notice them, have gratitude for blessings you have today, trust the process and Have Faith. Love and be the Love!
Life is inherently imperfect, some are born in wealthy families but in many ways they lack emotional bonding, some are born with high intellect but they lack financial resources, some are gifted with physical beauty yet they lack intellect and wealth. Some get married early and have kids but they don’t excel in their career, some excel in their career but they lack cherished personal lives. Some cherish an amazing bond with their parents, only to grieve their death while they are still too young. Some start their life with their desired partner only to get divorced after a while.
We as humans try to manage this imperfection and flawed nature of life in different ways. Sometimes by clinging to material things to fill this void. Sometimes by building psychological walls around us to avoid pain, sometimes by making false identities to numb ourselves to life’s pain. But we cannot selectively numb ourselves to life’s pain and unpleasant emotions and it’s inherent void, when we try to do so, we rob ourselves of all the inherent good in life, all the pleasant emotions, to all the love we can cherish, to all the connections we can make, to all the beauty we can experience in this journey. Life is a mixture of pleasent and unpleasant, excruciating pain and overwhelming joy. We cannot selectively choose one of them.
So there are few who sense this imperfection of life and embrace it, accept the uncertainty and take risks, make mistakes and rectify them, experience and discover, embrace their vulnerability and have the courage to stand for their perspective when no one else is seeing it worthy of, they say no when most people say yes and they say yes when most people say no, they take initiative, they take the first step, they have the courage to say I love you first and bear the pain of rejection, they surrender when it is needed, they fight against all odds for their dreams, they are the people of Heart who listen to their inner voice and have Faith in Unseen.
Being Human From the womb to the lap of mother (or the caregiver) to crawling on four limbs to standing on two feet holding a finger to going to school (or passing this phase of life without formal schooling) to fall into adolescent stage to becoming and individual adult, a human being start making sense of the world he or she is born into, make certain maps to survive, discard some, remake them only to discard again. Life remains a constant search especially when the maps offered by the world are too many and are flawed and incomplete not providing a sense of comfort, contentment and Peace to the inner core of our beings. Broadly maps that make some sense of human existence can be divided into two kinds, one that is more popular and prevalent offers life’s existance on a material plane. Every thing that is tangible, we are supposed to pursuit in life, to fill ourselves with materials and goods (including psychological solidifications, mental Idols, titles, degrees, emotional attachments) to give us a solid sense of identity and a mean of survival only to discover at some point that there exist none of them in a solid and static state. Everything is fluid, unpredictable and dynamic in life. The other map is provided by religious school of thought that this material life is temporary and there is another one beyond this. But this Map is not a fancy one. It is less attractive and thus appeals us less. As well it points towards more intangible and immeasurable dimension that offers a way of life which seems to lack luster and predictability making us loose a sense of control over ourselves as well as on this journey called life. It requires us to surrender and have Faith in unseen, intangible and immeasurable dimension and essence of existence (and what lies beyond it) which seems dubious and unreasonable to follow. But if followed leads to inner Peace, contentment and a sense of joy that can only be felt but couldn’t be measured.
If you are a sensitive soul along with topping of intelligence over it and feel and perceive things around in a way similar to a volume turned to its maximum, now things are hitting you with intensity and you are intelligent enough as well to comprehend them as well in addition to just feeling them, now you are in a position that is very difficult, you have to manage your sensitivity by sorting things out, which ones to take in, which ones to ignore, which ones to consider for no more than few seconds or minutes and which ones to ponder on seriously to make a change, to improve, to rectify. It’s a day to day business and your burnout rate would be more than many others because you are dealing with alot of influx of energy, with simultaneously tuning of it to make an outflux of energy with a positive outcome. In the process you will fail many times and you will be apologizing to your self for your mistakes but you need to collect all your strength and courage to forgive yourself and keep working to make things work for better in the guidance of Hope and Faith which will keep your boat sailing in the flow, fighting against your demons of doubts and fears….
Legacy doesn’t mean the huge crowd clapping for you, your posters being published in newspapers and magazines, people getting autographs signatured by you, neither it’s the medals on your sleeves, nor the booket of Flowers and words spoken to you in your praise and thanksgiving. Legacy is the lives you touched by your presence, your words, your gestures, souls you given hope to, a moment of Empathy you held when someone spoke to you about their story of pain, it’s giving a hand of help to someone in need, legacy is the courage you showed when it was most needed, the action you took when it was due to be taken, apologies you made for your faults, mistakes you rectified or Atleast tried to rectify, it’s a pat you gave up on someone’s shoulder when tears rolled down their cheeks and all they could have said has been silence. It’s the hope and kindness you give to your own very self. Legacy is all the visible and invisible, huge or tiny acts of goodness you made that were either big enough to be praised by masses or the subtle ones’ which no one around you noticed but that has left a mark of hope and goodness in someone’s heart including your own, that is your Legacy my dear!
Everything will change in the blink of an eye. What you are experiencing today, what you are going through now, in this moment, would not last. It will flow into deep sea of constant change given the dynamic and fluid nature of life and universe. Let yourself flow with the life and universe. Don’t cling, attach, resist to the constant change because change is the only constant. Your clinging to mind made resistance of change will only cause you suffering. Flowing with life does not free you from Pain but it will definitely free you from suffering. Pain is integral part of life. You cannot avoid it but you can allow yourself to free from suffering created by your mind made (ego) resistance to life’s flow. Cry when you want to, as a result of change, get that grief a place in your heart, let it settle in it, celebrate the it, feel whatever emotion you are going through as a result of change, as result of death of a beautiful moment but once cried, greived, felt that feeling than give place, allow birth of new moment to take place, to allow change to happen as it already has happened understanding deeply with your heart the nature of universe and life is a constant change, a flow, a fluid, Dynamic.Go with the flow and enjoy the precious gift of this moment you are experiencing NOW…..
Slowly and gradually she changed. She changed the way she perceived world around, the way she responded to life’s circumstances, the standards for approval changed. For most of them she changed for better. But few rythms changed In a way that it was hard to recognize that it was her. She changed so much that Sometimes she sounded stranger not only to people familiar with her but also to herself. Her easygoing attitude and spontaneity become less than before. Her impatience, risk taking attitude and straightforwardness changed into a relatively restrained one. Her impulsive decisions minor or major ones both changed into well thought ones if not for all than atleast for most. Her warmth, welcoming and embracing attitude changed a bit. Pain changed her. Made her more wise. Wisdom earned at the cost of innocence. Every thing in life is paid. Every thing has a price. But one thing that remains unchanged has been her Pure Heart that has still been glistening, shining and beating with rythm full of life!
Mountains are majestic creation; they are piece of landform that is raised above the surrounding land usually in the form of a peak. Majority of geologists classify a mountain as a landform that rises at least 1,000 feet (300 meters) or more above its surrounding area. Mountains form when pieces of Earth’s crust—called plates—smash against each other in a process called plate tectonics that result in bulging of a piece of land. Mountains erode slowly through the action of rivers, weather conditions, and glaciers. Some mountains are isolated summits, but most of them occur in huge mountain ranges. The highest mountain on Earth is Mount Everest in the Himalayas of Asia, whose summit is 8,850 m (29,035 ft) above mean sea level. The highest known mountain on any planet in the Solar System is Olympus Mons on Mars at 21,171 m (69,459 ft). Mountains seem to have a mystical presence, attracting those who are into the mysteries of life and death. The highest known permanently tolerable altitude is at 5,950 meters (19,520 ft). At very high altitudes, the decreasing atmospheric pressure means that less oxygen is available for breathing, and there is less protection against solar radiation. Above 8,000 meters (26,000 ft) elevation, there is not enough oxygen to support human life. This is known as the death zone. The summits of Mount Everest and K2 are in the death zone. Mountains play a significant role in religions and philosophical beliefs. There are number of sacred mountains within Greece such as Mount Olympus which was held to be the home of the gods. In Japanese culture, the 3,776.24 m (12,389 ft) volcano of Mount Fuji is also held to be sacred with tens of thousands of Japanese ascending it each year. Mount Kailash, in the Tibet Autonomous Region of China, is considered to be sacred in four religions: Hinduism, Bon, Buddhism, and Jainism. In Ireland, pilgrimages are made up the 952 metres (3,123 ft) Mount Brandon by Irish Catholics. The Himalayan peak of Nanda Devi is associated with the Hindu goddesses Nanda and Sunanda; it has been off-limits to climbers since 1983. Mount Ararat is a sacred mountain, as it is believed to be the landing place of Noah’s Ark. Jabal an-Nour (Mountain of the Light’ or ‘Hill of the Illumination’) is a mountain near Mecca in the Hejazi region of Saudi Arabia. The mountain houses ‘the cave of Hira’ which holds tremendous significance for Muslims throughout the world,as the (Prophet) Muhammad is said to have spent time in this cave meditating, and it is widely believed that it was here that he received his first revelation, which consisted of the first five ayats of Surah Al-Alaq from the angel Jibra’il. One cannot help but wonder why the prophets had a special inclination towards climbing mountains in search of wisdom and spiritual enlightenment. Surely, there is some message in it for those who contemplate. Mountains are depiction of glimpse of Grandiosity of Creator. They give message of firmness, stability and immense unshakeable strength. Mountain climbing is the sport, hobby or profession of hiking, skiing, and climbing mountains. Mountain climbing and life have a lot in common. While mountaineering, one has to toil hard in order to reach the summit. It teaches the value of struggle, persistence and presence of Faith to reach at the peak (destiny) of your goal, your dream, and your vision. It also instructs that there are no shortcuts to attain your goals and dreams. You need to take the right path irrespective of how hard it is. And when you do take the right path despite of challenges and struggles, the view at the top is Magnificent; the effort is duly rewarded with the clear perception of things, the far-sightedness, and the vastness of the horizon. This also holds true for life. At the base one is full of enthusiasm and has one’s eyes set on the summit. The terrain is flat and easy; the onlookers cheer one up. It is when one begins to reach the summit that the real test of determination takes its toll. Sometimes it is the ‘decision’ to reach the top that keeps one going or the mystery of ‘what’s-on-the-other-side’ that keeps one on one’s toes. Most people abandon the journey for various reasons, but it has to be a conscious effort that would make all the difference in the end.
Lens you wear determines your situation When Life gives you lemons make a Lamonade, it’s a famous proverb. The way you are going to perceive your life situation will be the way you feel and act accordingly. The lens you wear to see life situations affect your quality and productivity of life. Being optimistic and keeping the positive mindset is not easy when you are in the middle of chaos. The purpose of doing so is to make the situation bearable, to adapt to the given stress. Stress is anything that brings change and uncertainty in your life and threatens your survival physically or psychologically. In response to stress we all React in different ways. Two leading styles of coping described in literature includes emotion focused coping and problem focused coping. Both are valuable in the process of adaptation to stress but use of either as the sole approach hinder healthy coping. Though literature supports problem focused coping more beneficial overall. Maladaptive coping includes harmful ways of dealing with the situation like substance use, acting out on anger, making impulsive decisions, avoidance, or simply playing the blame game and cursing the circumstances. Maladaptive coping is a beautiful way of inflicting pain onto oneself and making the situation worse than it actually is. Healthy coping is a conscious choice in which you have to take the courageous step to closely look at the problem and face the pain associated with it without perpetuating it. It includes looking at the very problem as an opportunity to grow and take it as a chance to learn something new. To become more resilient, more wiser in the process. Few approaches include positive reappraisal of the situation, help seeking from trusted and authentic source, distraction form the problem for some time to help you manage and cool down your emotions so you can better look at the situation and take wise decisions to adapt and grow through it. You cannot avoid pain but you can choose to overcome it. There are times when you do feel in the middle of constant chaos, one problem after another but remember there is another saying “it never rains, it pours”. It could be the mysterious way of universe to test you and lead you to new horizons of growth, success and finding a new beginning, a new place which could be awe-inspiringly beautiful.
“I am still learning” Michelangelo at age 87 Learning is not equivalent to craming or memorising stuff neither it is limited to premises of schools, colleges or universities. rather it is a life long never ending process, untied to specific people, places, gender, educational status, race, family background or religion. It is one of the basic needs of individual to learn in order to thrive and grow right from his or her first cry till last breath. The concept that learning is tethered to degree acquisition, limited to specified age, profession and sometimes to gender need to be discarded. Interestingly enough most of the learning is not via conscious effort (Gopnik 2016) but rather it’s a secondary product of experiences of life. Children learn by watching and imitating others which is called observational learning. In addition learning via listening to others concepts and explainations of how world works is regarded as testimonial learning Alen Rogers further introduced concept of acquisition learning which is task and situation oriented learning an individual acquire involuntarily via engagement in life’s experiences including daily activities. Second type of learning explained by Alen Rogers has been viewed as formalised learning Which is described as consciously assisted learning, the concept which is generally considered in our culture as learning disregarding other forms and ways. The concept that needs to prevail is that learning is an attitude which is a result of growth mindset. Growth mindset emerges when people see their talents, habits and personalities as dynamic and ever growing by challenges, failures and experiences of life rather than fixed ones of static personalities, habits and talents.
In search of life 