To achieve individual peace

One can be truly happy and content, only when we are at peace with ourselves. That peace which comes from a freedom discovered in solitude.

~ Gurvinder Singh

                               

One may ask, 'How can one be in solitude when so much has to be done and achieved?'

Sure food and shelter has to be arranged, security ensured, Families particularly children and the elderly need to be cared for.  Development and learning have to be pursued, and a thousand other things need to done. bills have to be paid, So what?

We do what we must , but what if we are not there tomorrow? Surely, they will still get done, but by others. We hold ourselves in far greater importance than does the universe. 

                 

Imagine our individual lives as being drawn into a cyclone. 

Lives and things, problems and opportunities, work and responsibilities etc. A multitude of factors are constantly swirling around us, in this cyclone where peace eludes us.

We can choose to be in the swirl where everything is a noisy blur . Those living in the swirl seem to live exciting and extremely active lives, dodging, running from fears and towards wants. However being active merely for its own sake, achieves little, while nourishing the ego. We land up living mostly feelingless, flowerless and hence fruitless lives. 

We cannot escape this cyclone called life, so where can we find individual peace?

There is a place. We can choose to be at the centre of the cyclone where everything is peaceful and silent. Everything is clear and we do what we must, when we must without being attached to anyone or anything. Active only as and when needed. 

This may appear selfish but its not so, for  we act with awareness and meaning. In India we have a word for it called 'Sw-arth' coming from two Sanskrit words 'Swayam' for 'the self', and 'Arth' for  'meaning'. Translated it is 'meaning of one's existence'. 

Religion, politics, family, society, and rulers/government and now employers ordain the meaning of ourselves to us. Treating us all as identical. That is not desirable even if it were possible, but these forces have almost total domination over our existence. That is why individuals always rebel against these forces sometimes openly but usually clandestinely. The individual rarely discovers the meaning of his or her own life. 

When we learn to silence these forces by travelling within ourselves where each one of us is absolute master of his her life, we learn who and what we are, we discover our 'Swa-Arth'. Once we discover that meaning of oneself, freedom is natural.

This is why all great masters have always advocated silence, contemplation and finally meditation. Life goes on we live a meaningful existence, not in the uncontrollable swirling mess but in control and in total awareness right in the peaceful eye of the storm.

To live peacefully with the world its necessary for us to be at peace with ourselves.

My God versus your God

What Jesus said about killing to eat?

'Thou shalt not kill, for life is given to all by God, and that which God has given, let not man take away. For I tell you truly, from one Mother proceeds all that lives upon the earth. 

Therefore, he who kills, kills his brother. And from him will the Earthly Mother turn away, and will pluck from him her quickening breasts. 

And he will be shunned by her angels, and Satan will have his dwelling in his body. And the flesh of slain beasts in his body will become his own tomb. 

For I tell you truly, he who kills, kills himself, and whoso eats the flesh of slain beasts, eats of the body of death."

~ Jesus

Excerpt from, The Essene Gospel of Peace

Forgive me, for I have sinned

A river is a source of life, nurturing people, vegetation, and animals living on the lands through which it flows.  The river is only doing its duty, following it's nature or what people in the East call as 'Dharma'.


Similarly humans are true to their nature. Our lives are akin to a river, alive and full of character. All humans possess their natural qualities of lust, anger, greed, ego and attachments to people and things. We need these qualities to survive. As long as they remain within reasonable limits, these qualities will help us to live healthy and happy lives.

Lust is essential for us to procreate, that is to produce children and live healthy lives. Ego permits us to give confidence to others so that they cooperate and support our endeavours. Anger is necessary to prevent being run over by one and all. Reasonable greed compels us to go out and acquire food, shelter, security and comfort for ourselves and our dependants. Attachment is necessary for us to preserve what we have acquired with so much effort.

Nature is all about balance. As long as there is balance there is tranquility. Sometimes we develop insatiable lust or greed, unlimited anger, undue attachment or get blinded by our ego our lives get imbalanced. The imbalance always causes disharmony, inconvenience and sometimes even agony to ourselves and others. Life becomes a living hell.

Life as can be seen in every facet of nature, is about balance. As long as there is balance there is tranquility. Sometimes we develop insatiable lust or greed, unlimited anger, undue attachment or get blinded by our ego our lives get imbalanced. The imbalance causes agony and inconvenience to ourselves and others.

Awakening and wisdom lies in each individual understanding of who and what they are and what is reasonable and necessary for themselves. People who flow with nature are at peace with themselves, are compassionate, peaceful, happy and useful to themselves and others.




Over the ages and from time to time, Gurus, masters, prophets, messiahs and teachers have come, awoken and guided humanity.  They made people realise that they were all spiritual beings.

Soon after the masters and Gurus left this earth, many clever but not necessarily good people have interpreted the teachings to suit their own convenience. They use organised religion not to liberate or make people spiritual but  to manipulate and control them. for their own purposes





Priests and custodians of all organised religions, in league with political leaders and rulers, have discovered a powerful approach to manipulate and exploit the masses. Messing up minds they inflict on them a terrible sense of guilt, and the masses will do whatever the priests want. Guilt is mostly manufactured. They make people feel guilty not only of having these natural human qualities but even for thinking about them.

This is the reason why in the name of religion, more blood has been shed and more misery caused than all other reasons combined.




'Guilty', people feel they have sinned, and sinners need to be unburdened of their guilt. The priests can demand whatever they like of the guilty and the sinner will gladly pay the price just to feel liberated.






People will repeatedly behave true to their human nature. This will always be considered as a 'sin' by the priests. There are two choices behave unnaturally or to 'sin'. The dilemma is that both choices are bad.

This sets people up to be continuously exploited by the priests. This in turn results in a perpetual  and ever increasing empowerment and enrichment of the priests and the religious bodies. Little  wonder that all organised religious bodies and their caretakers are immensely wealthy and powerful and that there is a constant struggle to control religious bodies.

Many 'religious' people themselves are full of the same human qualities and 'sins' for which they ask us to atone.

Next time ask yourself if you really are a sinner before you ask for forgiveness.

Do we need more of 'successful' people?

The planet does not need more ‘successful people.’ The planet desperately needs more peacemakers, healers, restorers, storytellers and lovers of all kinds. It needs people to live well in their places. It needs people with moral courage willing to join the struggle to make the world habitable and humane and these qualities have little to do with success as our culture has defined it.

— Tenzin Gyatso, His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama