Tips to come out of "Big city" Spiritual drought

As I landed in the big city I saw nothing but "Spiritual drought" and wondered the so called devotees of big cities I was connected to, never showed any interest in advancing spiritually. Damaged taste for hearing and reading is the gift you get here. 

Lets check out the reasons too. 

Spiritual Emptiness

The big cities isolates already weak devotees from spiritually elevated devotees, distances you from param viraktas. Need to specify: Viraktas detached from comforts of life, food, clothing and AC shelter etc. and the big city devotees mix with people who lack any value system, principle and morale. The maya keeps senses overloaded with temptations & day to day stress destroys their deep thinking. 

Where are the spiritually deep communities? connection with nature? and the sacred things and reflective souls to elevate the fallen souls in the big cities? non-commercial organisations in the cities are taken over by commercial ones. Forget about the standards one cannot be even average devotee in the environment that lacks the spiritual growth.

 Proper Environment for Growth

The satva guna required for advanced spiritual life thrives and dances in Indian villages filled with sacred rivers and temples. Self realised soul remain unshaken in any place. He is same in all circumstances and places. But Big cities do not offer you quiet moments needed for inner peace.

Growing emptiness, fast routines replaces real friendship with selfish ones. Disconnected groups and disconnected friendships, dry people justifies the spiritual draught? And what lack of bhakti does? Replaces love for godhead with love for money. Yes sir, branded clothes, gadgets big cars – the focus shifted from spiritual life to Material things.  Big salaries are invested in shares and what not. The cities where cost of living is high, people are judged by mere possessions and job titles.

 Online life

Right from the food, groceries, and vegetables everything is done online, what does that mean? Too much time is spent indoors how that is going make any one advance spiritually? The first and foremost mantra to advance spiritually is “Associate with elevated devotees? Pratham bhakti santan kar sanga? Kanisthas breed kanisthas and Uttam adhikaris won’t prefer settling in big cities? The place where inner growth is ignored for outer material gain, how can there be great taste for reading and hearing Krishna katha. “Dusari rati mama katha prasanga”!!

 There is No Good Tension in Your Life!

Kunti Maharani asked for more troubles, because she remembered krsna in those troubled times. She saw spiritual growth and an opportunity to associate with krsna in that. However, Modernization has pushed us towards comforts and luxuries. And Hats off to the pure devotees who preferred voluntary suffering for delivering conditioned souls.  Srila Prabhupad travelled across cities and the world. Just to free conditioned souls from material infection. He said" materially affected souls are more or less averse to topics of the Supreme Lord. 

 Comfortable life calls for spiritual laziness

  Scorecard 

 There is a score card to check material prosperity here but there is no enthusiasm or an effort to check spiritual advancement. What would god like to see me doing in this month? How would I know if I am getting advanced? How can I find someone who will keep me on right path and wake up when I am sleeping?

 The solutions

• Replace cement concrete jungle  with the spiritual tours: Detox 
• Cut the distance between you and nature  
• Do away with screens, noise and seek silence
• Build real bonds with spiritually advance people.
• Invite and travel with families who have spirituality as their value system.

Why you need quality association?

"Attitude is greatly shaped by influence and association"

For the people who have big aim in life; identifying negative association around and cutting such association is very important. Impurity comes flying into your life when you associate with people who have built no value system in their life. And that impure mind will always be disturbed mind. So why to maintain association that has no interest in your purpose and value system?

Who are the people around you? are they energy sucker or energy giver? are they charging you for the higher aim you have? There are three types of people around you "Kanisth-low level, Madhyam- medium but advanced and Uttam adhikaris- The achievers , award winners and the self realized. If you associate with kanisthas, you end up being kanisth. Whoever is giving you advise or counselling about your life decisions, scan through his level first. You don't hire local club level coach for a national team?

Whenever your own spiritual foundation is weak, you are bound to be irresolute about your aim and doubt your own actions. So, developing strong spiritual immunity will protect you from bad influences. Just like virus infects weak immune bodies-Bad association will infect your mind.

                                           

 A monk will fight for maintaining his strong sadhana to control the urges of belly and genitals.  and a sportsman will look into his diet, fitness, timings, discipline, and finally the mindset.  In the absence of like minded association it is difficult to maintain your basic principles. 

#Mindcontrol

 

Arjuna says in Bhagavad Gita 6.34:  “The mind is restless, turbulent, obstinate and very strong, O Kṛṣṇa, and to subdue it, I think, is more difficult than controlling the wind”.

 

The growing tendency amongst humans is to keep the body fit and increase bodily comfort. But the bigger question is, has that been able to bring permanent peace and happiness in life?  There is still hankering for doing more and more for the body, and when those needs are not getting fulfilled the mind is getting terribly frustrated and disturbed.  There is too much talk of Gut health, having best of nutrition food but what is being done to keep the mind in control? The more luxurious cars and facilities we are having the more restless the mind is?

 

Krsna says in Bhagwat Gita: Uncontrolled mind is our worst enemy

 

Symptoms of uncontrolled mind

• Intense lust  when unfulfilled takes the form of uncontrolled anger
• Negative emotions getting triggered
• Relationship issues, at times serious fights
• Aimless life-total bewilderment –no clue of where we are heading in life
• Loss of focus and concentration
• Usual headaches, trouble sleeping ,constant anxiety and fear 

 

Change your consciousness!!

Cultivate the practice of directing thoughts through meditation and prayers. Mind goes after interesting things not after important things.  If mind is like child we have to be like mother, mother puts son back to studies. Basically, we are doing absolutely nothing to sharpen our intelligence by studying about being mindfulness. To turn off your mind from something, you have to turn on something else: Sound has a power to change your mood. When we hear nice music, our mood is lifted and Mantra has a mood alter effect on us which ultimately reduces our anxiety. 

 

We need to be matured enough to reject mind's immoral proposals

Tips to control mind

• Associate with quality people, as they say” Never develop a friendship with a man who is not better than yourself”
• Practice Mantra meditation- Mantras clean your aura , uplift your mood and gives you peace
• Control your food habits: Avoid street food and eating spicy stuff outside, regulate your sleep
• Control your screen time- Detach mind from social media/ TV, Worldly ineffective/useless news
• Practice mind controlling yoga positions mainly: Pranayam
• Read scriptures like Bhagavad Gita, Sri Ram charit manas and Srimad Bhagwatam, because they reveal the truth of life and you can derive the meaning of life from such a wisdom books

 

Benefits of controlled mind

• Increased focus and concentration
• Total control over emotions
• Our mind becomes filled with transcendental knowledge which brings peace to the heart
• We understand the purpose of our existence and find solutions of a lot queries
• We get rid of negative emotions such as hate, hankering, and lamentation
• We are more calm in adverse situations and able to tolerate insults, distress coming our way
• We commit fewer mistakes and try to respect others equally and create no enemies
• A strong mind will be satisfied in every situations and fall less victim to forces of lust, anger, pride and greed.

 Too much shopping for the body but what about shopping for knowledge and wisdom?  Strengthen your mind as well.

Internalizing the Naam

 

Remember the hit film song, you would hear ten times and then it will play on your mind for a long long time, until the better song released.  Internalizing the hari nam is same phenomenon. The continuous chanting/singing habit of chanting the mantra is Internalizing the mantra process. 

Spiritual seekers are told to chant certain amount of rounds in the "beginning"but many get stuck to the routine and don't internalize-digest and make integral part of life. Internalizing chanting requires you to chant for hours (definitely not one or two hours japa) and then it is digested and imprinted on your soul. Just like a song you hear and then you singing it without even the proper music. 

The cave japa:   The new sadhaka is often told to read about the charitra of past great devotees but intially it is like "yes old saints chanted for long hours" and then it is forgotten. People think devotees of yesteryear did extra chanting that doesn't mean it is applicable to us. Hang on !! Goloka is not a cake walk. The sadhaka having all the comforts of life- chanting in AC room , with a milton water bottle alongside and smart watch, Paneer sabzi and the sadhaka tolerating heat and cold in the jungle cave, without any proper facilities- Huge difference!!  the tapasvi sadhu chanting in cave-no comparison. 

One of my favorite nam nistha saint went to jungle,full of fierce animals and snakes, without the arrangement of proper food chanted for years to internalize the naam. Are you understanding the huge difference of japa along with struggle of existence, problems of life and death and AC room Japa?? Can you imagine the intensity of japa? a serious call to god in a jungle cave and daily AC room japa? we cannot even expect "anubhuti-reciprocation" from god with that? 

The unknown reasons of tasteless japa:   The sadhakas are often seen struggling with no taste to chant, no intention of increasing rounds, not feeling cheerful even after chanting for decades, those sadhakas then seek pleasure in lower modes of material nature. The story goes like this, the Mahant of one ashram after chanting for fourty years didnt get any spiritual results. He then started crying and decided to meet an Acharya, the Acharya told him, there is lot of unaccounted funds coming to your ashram , that is not helping you, leave this ashram and work in fields somewhere and keep chanting while working and then he got the results. 

The elevated Gaudiya I met told me remarkable incidence in Vrindavan, he said" I chanted 2 lakh nam jap of hare krsna mantra daily and still was not getting results, then I prayed to Giriraj the Goverdhan while doing parikrama and then the sacred mountain Govardhan gave me the intelligence"There is still a material tendency to enjoy sense gratification inside". It meant restricting the diet. Soon after that I reduced my diet"-The gaudiya saint said". So right from food, association of pure devotees who have got taste for chanting such kind of  intelligence is required to be self realized? 

The domain of Siddhas: Anarth nivritti is domain of siddhas. Though, in the elevant canto of Srimat Bhagwatam , for controlling the maya one is told to take shelter, training and superior guidance from the Guru. But the access to siddhas is one big issue for sadhaka.  Then remains the ultimate option of continuously meeting naam nistha saints and inquiring to them about "how to internalise the naam". Book reading, hearing lectures is one slow way but direct sanga , face to face inquiry flows mercy from the heart of siddhas to the sadhaka. The most important thing is the dust of lotus feet of such an exalted vaishnava will change life.

Siddhas know the deep secretes to elevate on the path of devotion, they can tell you something what you cant even imagine.  Serving the projects of your spiritual master and following their mission "seriously" will attract mercy as well.

The place matters: I heard these stories of how few shaivites felt after chanting near the divine mountain Kailash, the vibrations, the mercy, the pleasure , the waves Kailasha was sending is an out of the world experience !!  For vaishnavas, the glorious association of Govardhan, the banks of Yamuna and Ganga and all most all places of pilgrimages in India are divine but for those who are in villages the Goshala remains the top option, remember !! Backtogodhead demands a serious endeavor.

Best tips for depression

 

 Problem Definition

Series of Negative events pulls us into depression. It might come through financial crisis, betrayals, break ups, career issues and health issues of ours and near dear ones. So far these are top reasons,apparently. In my counselling career, I met people who had depression since childhood. Credit for childhood depression goes to parents for not properly raising kids or training them. Training them for what? to be mentally strong. No, you cannot turn introverts into extroverts vice versa, this is due to past conditioning or Karma the soul carries from previous births.

Now, what is Karma? A child born to rich parents, diseased child or healthy and successful child, why so much disparity? people work hard to be rich, all do not get that success? This is Karma. One accidents, mishaps can change things upside down, that is karma, today you are good tomorrow? someone is deciding it- Karma??

Solution:

Many find it difficult to find right therapist, counselor or psychiatrist. I had to call my physician friends and ask, who is the best man in town, but medicines didn't help me as much as the other things did. How can the void of love & care be filled with medicines? Following tried and tested things I would suggest :

Being social-

1. Meeting people, online chats, morning walks, joining a club, attending concerts, plays and watching dramas helps.

2. Working on your creative side- be it playing instruments, gardening, painting, trekking, learning new skills does help

Controlling thought process:

Negative thought process can be replaced by positive thoughts and that either comes from hearing wise, well informed people or from motivating books. Personally, I found Sadhguru and Radhanath swami very inspiring and talking sense when it comes to depression. Reading autobiographies and spiritual books helped me lot to be mindful. 

Exercises:

Yoga, morning walks, breathing exercises and the best I found is travelling, well travelling to holy places, riverside, near mountains gave me immense peace.

The Food:

So when I was depressed I found out, I have to increase serotonin the chemical inside my brain to feel good or happy. Bananas, spinach, dry fruits, apricot, soya milk, you can google as well :)

Mantra Meditation:

Is a practice that helps to uplift the mind, open your heart and bring inner peace. The powerful, divine sound of mantras resonate with our inner chakras and remove the negative energies as well as Karma. Hearing mantras and singing it along spreads more positive energy around us. All you have to do is hear mantra of your choice, find which one suits you, I have suggested hare krsna mantra to many and it has helped them so far. Cuts you bad Karma.

Why Yoga is important for devotees

Till 2017 May, I was one of those who thought walking is good enough exercise and it keeps your body fit.  Whenever I would have health related issues to get the problem aside I would quickly see a doctor, very much a normal practice, isn’t it? Many times I would buy medicines I can say “over- the -counter drugs” to cure small health issues.  Thanks to my life style and policy of just walk is enough I became overweight. I would get tired quickly after walking for some time.  Just by offering dandvat in temple I would start breathing heavily for some time. Still, I didn’t think I need any exercise I would think I am singing Kirtans that means I am doing some kind of breathing exercise. When you have a typical life style and work of sitting on a computer, you are bound to have stomach related issues such as indigestion and at times diseases such as piles.

My Mechanism to these issues was just ask a friend or parents any ayurveda medicine or quickly fix an appointment with my homeopathy doctor. This was going from years.  One day I woke up early morning,  was not well still continued my morning chanting. During Chanting all I was doing was thinking about how I can cure my health issues. Then I thought I am thinking of my illness while chanting and not hearing the mantra properly, this should be stopped, and this was going on every time I had health issues.  I spoke with my friend Rathi ji , He said I go every morning for jogging you can join me.  I joined him and I came to know I can hardly run.  My subtle mind was focused on fitness and was searching for permanent solution and thanks to krsna another friend introduced me to a young yoga teacher.  

If this had to be bollywood film story I would have written “Interval” after above written paragraph. Though that was a “Kahani me twist” moment for me. If I had been a film director I would have shown how then I started doing yoga, I would have taken shots of me doing different postures and then shots of sad face before yoga and a happy face after Yoga. But that’s not my aim, here I am a neophyte devotee trying to be self realized soul, who reads in Bhagwat Geeta about controlling mind and about detachment met a person who without being Krsna conscious was a detached and a controlled yogi. How difficult it is even for devotees to be safe from the onslaughts of lust, greed and anger and then you meet a person who doesn’t know bhagwat geeta talks of detachment.  

By practicing yoga from many years the man of late 20’s my yoga teacher told me, “I love being alone, and I don’t feel like getting married”. I am observing him from past six months; he is a thorough gentleman, always helping others, not into smartphones and internet things. Not active on a social media. And this he tells this is an effect of practicing yoga. Being a krsna conscious man I did give him bhagwat gita and bead bag to chant. But I did also tell him “I have seen many bramhcharis who practice devotional service for years break their vows and get married. His ashram is not my issue but what amazed me is his “Avastha” -state of mind by practicing yoga.

Now when I started reading books about yoga I came to know, walking is not an exercise, running and brisk walk is. Pranayam is recommended for those who are in bramchari ashram. It not only controls mind but also helps in continuing bramhcharya. For neophytes who cannot control senses pranayam is recommended in scriptures. In the 4^th canto of Bhagwatam Narad ji recommends pranayam to Dhruva.  

Narad uvach: After sitting on your seat, practice the three kinds of breathing exercises, and thus gradually control the life air, the mind and the senses. Completely free yourself from all material contamination, and with great patience begin to meditate on the Supreme Personality of Godhead.

Now just have a look at what the Supreme personality of a Godhead Lord Kapil dev says in 3^rd canto of Srimad Bhagvatam:

One must observe silence, acquire steadiness by practicing different yogic postures, control the breathing of the vital air, withdraw the senses from sense objects and thus concentrate the mind on the heart.

After controlling one’s mind and sitting postures, one should spread a seat in a secluded and sanctified place sit there in an easy posture, keeping the body erect, and practice breath control.

The yogī should clear the passage of vital air by breathing in the following manner: first he should inhale very deeply, then hold the breath in, and finally exhale. Or, reversing the process, the yogi can first exhale, then hold the breath outside, and finally inhale. This is done so that the mind may become steady and free from external disturbances.

The yogīs who practice such breathing exercises are very soon freed from all mental disturbances, just as gold, when put into fire and fanned with air, becomes free from all impurities.

By practicing the process of prāṇāyāma, one can eradicate the contamination of his physiological condition, and by concentrating the mind one can become free from all sinful activities.

By restraining the senses one can free himself from material association, and by meditating on the Supreme Personality of Godhead one can become free from the three modes of material attachment.

When the mind is perfectly purified by this practice of yoga, one should concentrate on the tip of the nose with half-closed eyes and see the form of the Supreme Personality of Godhead.

…….. Such is an importance of breathing exercise that a non krsna conscious person becomes free from vices what if a Krsna conscious person does it?

Why should a devotee do it?

Devotee is eating food and buying products which are not 100% pure. Pesticides are heavily poured on vegetables to raise their production which means all are likely to fall ill or go hospital? Already there are increasing immune disorders in kaliyuga, thousands of death occurred recently due to proliferation of Swine flue. People are likely to have blood pressure, Sugar and heart related problems once they cross their prime thanks to Kaliyugi life style.  Yoga is preventive therapy; it helps you in preventing diseases. 

Daily practice of pranayam boosts immune system. All are allergic to something in kaliyuga, different types of pranayam help in battling allergies. When you live in a damp weather, you are bound to have bone diseases, rheumatoid arthritis, and rheumatism. Especially those who travel often to western countries should practice asanas/postures which improve blood circulation and immune system.

What to talk of curing diseases and being fit, I was shocked to know how yoga helps in having beautiful voice. As a singer of Hare Krsna mantra I see the difference.

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Spiritual coaching

A solider fights organized and a known battle. Many times, solider knows the strength, size and the plan of his country’s enemy. Be it the war of land, air or marine, the military establishment trains a soldier in his field of expertise. Can you send an untrained solider on a battle field? Rigorous training is required to achieve the desire victory?

Sports stars have their gym trainer and a team of coaches who prepare them for earning medals. Film stars who have earned name, fame and money? They have their personal fitness trainer, dietician and the directors who prepare them for a role, what it brings to them? A short lived name, fame and money you can say which brings about temporary happiness!! Everything becomes invalid as the time progresses.

A sport star and a film star in order to get success in life put so much effort but why we don’t see those who are religious are less inclined towards training and coaching? A devotional pleasure is much more sublime and higher as compared to anything else.

A soldier’s example was given to prove one point. A soldier knows his enemy but some of those who are new on the path of devotion don’t. That which disturbs the progress of a devotee is the anarthas he carries within. Lust, greed, anger, hatred, envy and false ego these are hidden enemies of a human being since his existence. Everybody knows it? Then why we in news papers invariably see crimes happening due to influence of these hidden enemies? If a solider is given training to fight a war, devotees also require massive training to win a war against Maya. Lust, greed, anger these are the main tendencies of Kaliyuga and fierce weapon of maya which is literally harassing every individual who is not Krsna conscious. The mode of passion and ignorance makes us do sins after sins and we have no control over it. Only one way is prescribed to fight this degradation of a soul - Spiritual Coaching.

When?

1. If there is intense desire in you to improve your behaviour
2. If you have decided that you are not going to be the devotee of your senses
3. If you have decided that you want to achieve transcendental qualities such as humility
4. If you have decided that you want to cross the stage of anartha nivrutti
5. If you have decided you want to improve your sadhana
6. Then it is time for you to search for a spiritual coach

Who?

• Somebody who is totally attached to Krsna and fully krsna conscious- self-realized soul

How we know if a coach is fully Krsna conscious? Well, he will not waste time when you meet him and immediately he will glorify the devotional service and bring on the topics of Krsna and his devotees. Yes, pure devotees whenever they get opportunity to speak,they start speaking about Krsna, Gita, Bhagwatam, Ramayan, Krsna’s qualities and about krsna’s beloved Vrindavan.

1. Somebody who is well-qualified and expert in all shashtras
2. Somebody who is man of his word- follows what he says and not a “Mithya-chari” (fake)
3. Somebody who loves chanting the name of lord
4. Somebody who is lovable -just not a dry philosopher & full of love & enthusiasm
5. Somebody who is from the proper disciplic succession or a sampraday

Result of spiritual coaching? : The association of self realized soul makes your life less difficult and more peaceful. In the fifth chapter of Bhagwat Geeta Krsna says” A self realized soul receives unlimited happiness, he enjoys the pleasure within”. For those who want to have ecstatic, calm and a peaceful happy life, Spiritual coaching is the best way. Remember- A devotional pleasure is much more sublime and higher as compared to anything else.