AA & H

AA:It is like this when you are at the beach - you may totally enjoy - The sun the water the breeze everything is given by God and it is for you to enjoy and you have to enjoy yourself and feel happy - then you will radiate and that brings peace and attracts everybody towards you


H: :-) I don't know about the second part - but the first part is something I experienced.
about attracting, and radiating i don't know...

AA: The person who told you about this particular beach or the one who drove you there is not important.
There are may beaches but none of them can be any good to you if you do not have the ability to enjoy


H: yeah!! agree to the same - can't deny it

AA : do not get attached to the person who told you about the beach - If you keep expecting that he will be taking you to a new beach everytime, you may get disappointed.


H: yeah!! very valid point..very valid

AA: He may do it once or twice - so that you know what a beach looks like - once he knows that you know about beaches, he will just move on and expect you to take care of your self

The Guru

The Guru

I think the best thing for oneself is to be Self-Reliant. The external Guru is nothing but a manifestation of our internal self. Why not dive deep within and discover that. Do not place too much importance to the external Guru's form. It is bound to disappear one day and if not, the so called 'ex-devotees' will try their best to defame it.

We have to find our real Self and abide in it. That is the only freedom worth striving for.

by AK

Have you ever danced?

An old prospector shuffled into the town of El Indio , Texas leading an old tired mule. The old man headed straight for the only saloon in town, to clear his parched throat.
He walked up to the saloon and tied his old mule to the hitch rail. As he stood there,
brushing some of the dust from his face and clothes, a young gunslinger stepped out of the saloon
with a gun in one hand and a bottle of whiskey in the other. The young gunslinger looked at
the old man and laughed, saying, "Hey old man, have you ever danced?" The old man looked up
at the gunslinger and said, "No, I never did dance... never really wanted to."

A crowd had gathered as the gunslinger grinned and said, "Well, you old fool, you're gonna' dance now,"
and started shooting at the old man's feet. The old prospector, not wanting to get a toe blown off, started
hopping around like a flea on a hot skillet. Everybody was laughing, fit to be tied.
When his last bullet had been fired, the young gunslinger, still laughing, holstered his gun and
turned around to go back into the saloon. The old man turned to his pack mule, pulled out a double-barreled shotgun,
and cocked both hammers. The loud clicks carried clearly through the desert air. The crowd stopped
laughing immediately. The young gunslinger heard the sounds too, and he turned around very slowly.
The silence was almost deafening. The crowd watched as the young gunman stared at the old timer
and the large gaping holes of those twin barrels. The barrels of the shotgun never wavered in
the old man's hands, as he quietly said, "Son, have you ever kissed a mule's ass?"
The gunslinger swallowed hard and said, "No sir..... but... I've always wanted to."

PS:There are a few lessons for us all here:

• Never be arrogant.


• Don't waste ammunition.


• Whiskey makes you think you're smarter than you are.


• Always, always make sure you know who has the power.


• Don't mess with old men, they didn't get old by being stupid.

I just love a story with a happy ending, don't you?.........

Objects don't need me....

Gurudev's words -
Objects need me but I don’t need objects. After the first two becomes strong, then three. The car needs me but I don’t need it. This world needs me but I don’t need the world. You don’t have to reject externally but know in your mind. Even your body is an object. This is subtle. But when this knowledge dawns, there can never be poverty or lack. We keep thinking, ‘We need this and that’. But when we have the dharana that ‘the Divine cares for me and I don’t need anything’, then your needs are taken care of anyway.

What has to Die? - a conversation with John De Reuters

What needs to die?

Self-importance, the 'somebody'. What has to die is the importance of the mind within that individual to that individual's heart. The death of the authority of the mind. If the mind has any authority within that heart, then it does not matter how awakened that individual is – he or she has not died. It is not the heart that has to die, it is the authority of the mind within that heart that has to die because the mind is not an authority – we give it authority.

On Sale..

degrees are on sale, but not knowledge
medicines are on sale, but not health
fancy cusines on sale, but not appetite
comfort beds are on sale, but not sleep
partners are on sale, but not relationships
yoga techniques are on sale, but not Realization
material goods are on sale, but not spiritual bliss organs are on sale, but not the soul
gadgets are on sale, but not the spirit
music is on sale, but not the art
Books are on sale, but not the know-how
bodies are on sale, but not love

-AK & H

Packing Parachutes

INSIGHTS INTO EXCELLENCE
Packing Parachutes - Excerpt from Chapter 16
By Charlie Plumb
(http://www.charlieplumb.com/book-insights. htm)

Recently, I was sitting in a restaurant in Kansas City. A man about two tables away kept looking at me. I didn't recognize him. A few minutes into our meal he stood up and walked over to my table, looked down at me, pointed his finger in my face and said, "You're Captain Plumb."

I looked up and I said, "Yes sir, I'm Captain Plumb."

He said, "You flew jet fighters in Vietnam. You were on the aircraft carrier Kitty Hawk. You were shot down. You parachuted into enemy hands and spent six years as a prisoner of war."

I said, "How in the world did you know all that?"

He replied, "Because, I packed your parachute."

I was speechless. I staggered to my feet and held out a very grateful hand of thanks. This guy came up with just the proper words. He grabbed my hand, he pumped my arm and said, "I guess it worked."

"Yes sir, indeed it did", I said, "and I must tell you I've said a lot of prayers of thanks for your nimble fingers, but I never thought I'd have the opportunity to express my gratitude in person."

He said, "Were all the panels there?"

"Well sir, I must shoot straight with you," I said, "of the eighteen panels that were supposed to be in that parachute, I had fifteen good ones. Three were torn, but it wasn't your fault, it was mine. I jumped out of that jet fighter at a high rate of speed, close to the ground. That's what tore the panels in the chute. It wasn't the way you packed it."

"Let me ask you a question," I said, "do you keep track of all the parachutes you pack?"

"No" he responded, "it's enough gratification for me just to know that I've served."

I didn't get much sleep that night. I kept thinking about that man. I kept wondering what he might have looked like in a Navy uniform - a Dixie cup hat, a bib in the back and bell bottom trousers. I wondered how many times I might have passed him on board the Kitty Hawk. I wondered how many times I might have seen him and not even said "good morning", "how are you", or anything because, you see, I was a fighter pilot and he was just a sailor. How many hours did he spend on that long wooden table in the bowels of that ship weaving the shrouds and folding the silks of those chutes? I could have cared less...until one day my parachute came along and he packed it for me.

So the philosophical question here is this: How's your parachute packing coming along? Who looks to you for strength in times of need? And perhaps, more importantly, who are the special people in your life who provide you the encouragement you need when the chips are down? Perhaps it's time right now to give those people a call and thank them for packing your chute.