COMMON LEARNINGS AND UNCOMMON SITUATIONS

Many a time, for the most average person like me, the distinction between thinking and worrying is not very clear and is blurred. Attitude towards everything will determine the difference. We worry if we seek benefit, if we are attached and we do not get the bigger picture. We think, i think if we have the bigger perspective, the one outside us and not for ourselves. There are 3 experiences which inspired me and want to learn from them.

1)    Few days ago, in one of my walking time early in the morning, i started strolling at the pizza hut point on the Raj bhavan Road. What caught my attention is one sight with someone looking like the lord Krishna, the one we know in the movies, television and pictures. I knew i was hallucinating and i thought so what? I just stood still and looked carefully. It was the beggar or someone who didn’t have a home or the relatives, who was waking up from the sleep or going back to sleep on a cold winter morning keeping himself warm from whatever he had. From then, i started walking just thinking about the guy, what seemed like an arrogant state of mind where i am better off than him. Then i really focussed on the thought and questioned myself.. Am i really better off than him? If yes in what way? What was bothering me was that, how would his day start? What hope does it have for the day? What will he looked forward to? How can he be normal, happy etc?

Then it occurred to me that, there are all my stories about him and not necessarily what he might feel.. Then what about me? I felt after all that i am fortunate to have in life ... every time there is some issue, some problem, some tension which keeps on bothering and worrying me. Each time the newer situation, the new issue seems bigger, difficult to handle and the older one silly and avoidable. This means that i have created a compartment in me which has to be fed with issues, problems and worries.. What if that is broken by good thoughts? Yes the habit of worrying has to be broken and thoughts have to be replaced. I have to destroy the compartment which needs to fed with negatives. After this crossed my mind, i felt he was indeed lord Krishna who made me think and realize. God has his own way of making us realize and we just need to keep our senses open.

2)    The second incident touched me very deeply. Shiva, the office boy once, supposedly took some decent money from me and he kept calling me to return the money. I was ignoring for sheer lack of time to coordinate and did not know how much money also. In one of the calls, he quoted a quite a good sum and said he has to return the same day His determination made me say ok. He came and returned first 5 figure amount and i was just baffled with his integrity and what not. If he wanted he could have easily avoided returning especially since his needs were very dear and sensitive. I remember his hardship in working as a newspaper delivery boy, pizza hut delivery boy to study and support family. His attitude to money and life has taught me indescribable lessons. Hats off shiva and you are my teacher. Such people have to be honoured always.

3)    Just yesterday, i was getting to ready to go to office and as i was locking the door, one of the servant maids of the apartment did not wait for me and she just closed the life door and went down. For a moment i felt she is so impatient and her wait would have saved some energy of power. But i decided not to take the lift and as i was walking down the stairs, i felt we all expect so much from the poor and the vulnerable. Why should i expect her to be so socially conscious when she has so much suffering in life? Are we, the so called educated and decently privileged behave and act responsibly all the time? We can afford to talk about several things because we can simply afford several other things in life. We don’t realize how fortunate we are.. Ok i correct myself and remove the plural and tell myself very strongly that i need to learn a lot from all situations around.

Humility every second, gratitude to god every moment and openness all the time enables learning and makes us richer and happier. This is my experience and i will convert these thoughts to implementation and not leave it at worrying about it... God bless all who have read this. Happy are all those who smiled after this ..