Mainstream.. I love it.. i hate it.. i love it.. i hate it..

Mainstream places are safe. But boring too..
Places that aren't polluted by humans are risky.. But rife with adventure..

Mainstream has consumed me.. Everywhere in life.. In what to think.. how to think.. what topics to discuss with friends.. the political jokes.. the movies.. the tv shows..

There is little room for me to think new thoughts.. 

thoughts and epiphanies that come to me.. while in a surreal moment while watching a movie.. at some peak moments of meditation.. while meeting a stranger and talking to him.. while i see a facebook update from a friend who is doing something very non-mainstream.. 

All those epiphanies and legendary thoughts die .. the moment i get back to my life.. my life filled with mainstream.. thorugh TV, friends, family, and every thing that is constant in life.. that i meet everyday... 

I don't complain though..

Mainstream gives me a sense of comfort.. 

To create really solid habits.. 

To create really solid character..
which.. 

is my guidance when I delve into the unknown..

into the wild..

into the non-mainstream..
While i take the road less traveled by..
While i fight back in places when nobody around me..

So as much as i hate mainstream.. for when i stick to it.. i am only mediocre at best..

It allows me to be okay with mediocrity in certain areas of life.. 

and i go ahead and strive for excellence in other areas...

 

The lightman's Affirmations Vs the Darkman's Excuses

We all have heard the saying.. we are our own worst enemy. There are 2 parts of us. One is the person who thinks possibility ~ the dreamer ~ the angel ~ the optimist ~ the light (wo)man

The other is the one who come up with excuses ~ the pessimist ~ the wuss ~ the lazy ~ the demon ~ the procrastinator ~ the reality-check-giver ~ the dark (wo)man

The more we align with the light, the more we are motivated towards taking action. Even if we fail, we pick ourselves up and move towards taking action. we see the light in any situation. 

The more we align with the dark, we tend to give up, we lose sight of our goal, we stop dreaming, we loathe our selves, we get into addictions to run away from selves, we don't have the courage to face the facts and align with the truth.

Every time we want to have something, we get stopped because of those excuses made my the darkman. 

Replace the dark man's excuses with light man's affirmations. It is pretty fun actually when you try this in uncomfortable situations. start small and then move on to the big things. Experiment and let me know how it works out for you.

For Excuses	Affirmations
It will be difficult	I have the ability to accomplish any task that i set my mind to do.. with ease and comfort
Its going to be risky	Being myself involves no risk. It is my ultimate truth and i live fearlessly.
It will take a long time	I have infinite patience when it comes to fulfilling my own destiny
There will be family drama	I would rather be loathed for who i am than loved for who i am not
I dont deserve it	I am a divine creation. A piece of god. How could i be undeserving?
Its not my nature	My essential nature is perfect and faultless. It is to this nature that i return to
I cant afford it	I am connected to an unlimited source of abundance
No one will help me	The right circumstances and right people are already here and will show up on time
It has never happened before	I am open and willing to attract all that i desire beginning here and now
I am not strong enough	i have access to unlimited assistance. My strength comes from my connection to my source
I am not smart enough	I'm a creation of the divine mind, all is perfect and I am a genius on my own right.
I am too old/ I am not old enough	I am an infinite being. the age of my body has no bearing on what i do or who I am.
The rules wont let me	I live my life according to divine rules
Its too big	I think only about what i can do now. By thinking small i accomplish great things.
I don't have the energy	I feel passionately about my life. And this passion fills me with excitement and energy
Its my family history	I live in the present moment by being grateful for all my life experiences as a child
I'm too busy	As i unclutter my life, i free myself to answer the calling of my soul
I'm too scared	I can accomplish anything I put my mind to because i know I'm never alone.

Thanks to Dr. Wayne Dyer for this!

What the hell is spirituality anyways?

I was thinking.. what the hell is spirituality anyways.. As i got lost into the question, these words started coming out of me..

Don't just read this. Some of them are "deep and profound" and some of them are just stupid.
Rather, vibrate with this. Then you will know.. It is not philosophy.. It is the truth that you also know from deep within.

Spirituality is..

The pursuit of truth. Truth is very difficult to express in words alone. It is a knowing. A sense of clarity. A 360 degree understanding.

A total knowing. A sense of completion.

Pursuing the ultimate truth is spirituality. The ultimate truth of reality ~Of the being ~Of the self ~ of The identities ~Of the patterns ~Of the dharmas ~Of the karmas.

Spirituality is

The alignment with reality
The journey to reach the ultimate self
To learn your deep BELIEFS and mercilessly squash them
To laugh at yourself
The technology to access your dormant brain powers
The technology to be loving despite of the receiver's state
Ability to access the invisible spirit within
To be extremely adventurous and explore the inner and outer world
To acknowledge that you are afraid when you are afraid.
To demand from GOD as he is yours
To serve GOD as he is yours
To acknowledge there is no GOD, its all you
To acknowledge there is no you, its all GOD
To be completely ok with the label "Crazy"
To powerfully integrate the right and left brain
To find courage to express yourself
To have the ambition to know SHIVA.. in truest self.. to make him your personal servant.. to make him your personal master
To acknowledge that miracle exists and start performing them
To smile, not for the external.. but because of the internal joy
To dance without alcohol, again.. because you cant help it
To live.. not just physically
To cry without the fear of being judged
To write
To Play guitar
To talk your mind
To explore the limits of your body, mind without fear
To be perfectly fine when you are afraid
To breathe
To attempt meditation practices
To allow meditation to happen
To stand against incompetence, with love
To be able to sit still at will just because you decided to do so
To fail
To attempt again even if it is failure for 25000 times
To have super depth in your commitments
To study astro physics
To be Free even when you are tired

To compete, not against another, but with your self

To have unlimited curiosity

To realize (every time) suffering is self created, and enjoy freeing from it

To just sit, to intimately be with the moment

To explore the potential of the self (the brain, the body, etc)

To atleast start the journey of it.

 

I can go on..

:).

Happiness Survey. (Awareness Drive)

"My life is my message" - Mahatma Gandhi

We all want to do our bit to contribute to the society. When we see some inspirational movies or hear some quotes, we want to do something. But the problem is, by the time we step out of the house or make couple of calls to do something about it, we have lost that inspiration and motivation... Then we just forget that intention in our regular life.

I was also like this. But after doing this for years together, and then when i looked back, i hated that part of myself that said "I want to do something for the country, but i just don't know how". So i allowed the universe to give me a chance to contribute to the society without messing up my precious life... And i got one.

If you are also like me, and want to do some thing for india, then use this link (https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1n94JJ935vDe6Z-gGiSnicQDdUzg1MkMaYXgem1yNZos/viewform) and fill up the survey and get as many people to fill it up as you can.

What is the survey about?

If you check the link and see those questions, its very self explanatory that this is about getting people more aware to vote rather than to just sit and complain and not do any thing. It is a simple tool for taking action.

Why this survey?

The moment you get aware our happiness is our responsibility, we start taking responsibility in shaping up the society around us to suit us.. and hence we start getting involved, (even in a very small way) to shape the country. If not today, this initiative (i feel) will shape the country in the next 5 or 10 years for sure.

How to get involved more?

It is an art of living (AOL) initiative. There is a whole lot of action going on in making everybody (also the educated youth who has more power and take less responsibility) in india to take responsibility in shaping up our nation. So you can contact me (with your area) or any AOL person and ask for I Volunteer for Better India (IVBI) and get involved.

Please leave a comment if you have filled it or not..

How to "be" in a yoga class to get more benefits than what you wanted

The purpose of this article

Doesnt matter if you are learning yoga with me or with somebody else. There are so many things i want to communicate to you to contribute to your growth in yoga. I am just sharing what i have learnt from the past few years of my teaching and also from my commitment to master this lifestyle called YOGA.

Looking outwards in, it seems simple enough. Just go to yoga class and follow the instructions given by the mentor. But it is not that easy to just follow the instructions. There are many levels of involvement. Be patient. Be with me. Read through completely. I have invested my energies and time in it :). It will definitely contribute to you.

Yoga for Weightloss? Yes! possible.. but dont limit to that.

Even though "Super toned body", "Size zero", "Cute yoga butt", "hot sizzling body", "mind blowing sex life" is all possible through yoga, those ancient indian yogis did not discover yoga for these purposes. The possibilities are much more deeper, so dont stop when you get these results ;). Things like these are possible:

• Mastering Stress and enjoying it
• Mastering your habits
• Being your best self in discomfort
• Making your body as a powerful tool for your life purpose
• Radiance and glow on the inside and outside
• Beauty Inside and outside
• Incredible focus
• Magnetic body language

Be Physically present

"I know i have to be physically present and that why i joined yoga.. dont give me some stupid advice, Duh!.."  Is that what you're thinking?

Its easy to come to class when you have the time and when there is no pain. You will have the tendency to miss yoga sessions when you have the body pain, other priorities come up, going on date, or hung-over-from-last-night's-party and other really REALLY genuine (sounding) reasons. Doesn't matter what those reasons are, you get yourself to class. If there is too much pain, then inform the instructor and take it easy. But show up. 

If other things call for your time, say "Sorry this is my yoga time. I cant be effective if i don't take care of my spiritual, emotional and physical body. So, i ll finish yoga and then take care of this". Chances are, if you come to class, your physical pain vanishes and you go home happier. Isnt it?

Time: why should you be before time?

We all know the importance of being on time. Some of us really REALLY try to get to class on time. Some of us have even given up the effort. Some of us make it on time.

Can you construct a building without a proper basement? The first 5 to 10 minutes of the class is like that. It is the basement on which we will be doing miraculous things with your body. 

During the first 5 to 10 minutes:

• Either warm up is done. (Look up the importance of warm up if you dont know.).
• Or the mood for the entire class is set 
• Or a POWERFUL, SAFE AND JOYFUL space is created during that time.

You will be messing with the entire flow of the class when you walk in between the class. I or other instructors can handle that disruption. You might have seen me handle it. But we (as mentors/ instructors) definitely do not like that. Instead of focusing our energies on maintaining that space, lets focus on you doing better postures, breathe right.

In extreme rare cases, its okay. If the choice is between missing the class or coming late, then chose later. Only as a very very rare case.

Be mentally present

keep your phones away. keep your worries away. keep your anger away. Keep your analytic talent away. Keep YOUR logic away. Just be and do what you have been told. You can bring it all up after the class or during other times. 

When you are fully present, you might get lot more benefits than what you came in for.

Giving 100%

Giving a 100% could be different for you from the person in the next to you. Ideally, be with the mentor completely throughout the duration of the class. Rest completely when breaks are given. Be in the posture till the very last second when told. 

SUMMON YOUR WILL, ENERGIES, TALENT, LOVE, ANGER, ANALYTICAL BRAIN, SPIRIT AND ANYTHING IN YOUR ARSENAL FOR HOLDING THAT POSTURE FOR GIVEN TIME. LET DOING THAT POSTURE BE THE PURPOSE OF YOUR LIFE FOR THOSE FEW SECONDS. 

You have taken out time to learn from somebody who is better than you. Honour that commitment and listen. keep your judgements and evaluations aside and bring it up later and get them addressed. If you have been told to 'take it easy' or 'rest when needed' then listen to it. Take rest when your body asks you, even if the class is moving forward. There is no point in pushing if your body is going to break down.

Like my man sadhguru has told, "Stay within control and lose control". I'm paraphrasing here.

Compare yourself only with your self, not with others.

know that your journey is yours alone. Dont compare it others. 

Just ask yourself, 

• Am i doing better than last class?
• Am i more involved than last class?
• Am i more flexible, stronger than last class?
• Has my ability to handle discomfort improved?

Forget about the person next to you. They have these questions to handle for themselves.

Finding comfort in discomfort

You know that growth can happen only beyond your comfort zone. Your muscles will tone up, your body will shed fat and your lungs will get more efficient only when you push them beyond their current limits. So, if a class is too easy, you can be assured that there is no (or very less) growth  happening. It is not just physical pain but also boredom is another physical discomfort that you gotta push through. There are many things in the class that you have to go through which might not make sense according to "your logic" but it still will contribute to your overall growth. So, trust your mentor and push through. One of the best things you can do to find comfort in that discomfort is to repeat to yourself your commitment while in pain or keep your awareness on your breath or keep the awareness on the counts.

Catch your boredom when it comes. Boredom is mind's way of resisting what is going on (resisting reality than accepting it). Just say to your mind "i understand you are bored, but we are going to do this anyway. Either get on board or not. Either ways i am going to go forward with the instructions and not let you deter my journey towards my goal".

The same goes for yawning. Don't resist it or encourage it. Be more involved in class. Yawning will go away.

Pain management

Most of the time we resist yoga class for this reason. What to do when there is pain?

Joint pain? Stop immediately. Its a part of Knowing when to stop. If you have been in communication with me/ your instructor/ mentor, i would have told you some general guidelines on when to stop and take a break even if the class is moving forward.

Pain is inevitable. You cant avoid it. Sometimes, your joints are not in the optimal level and they start showing up while doing yoga. It does not mean that yoga has caused the pain. It means that yoga helped you disclose the weakness in your body through pain. So when there is pain in any of your joints like your knees, wrists, or even back pain, etc then stop take some rest and when the pain subsides, continue with the class. Ofcourse, if your problem is more complicated, talk to your instructor..

Soreness/ Muscle pain is okay. Some pain like this will go away when you keep continuing with your practice. Talk to me/ instructor after the class or during breaks.

Enjoy! without getting distracted

Happiness does not lie only with glenfiddich or chivas regal or kingfisher or fosters. It is also in yoga class ~ in meditation ~ in an asana ~ in a sitting. Its all chemistry anyways. We are just doing some 'breaking bad' stuff with your body ;). So.. Lets get happy the healthy way.

Happiness helps in getting you to the goal faster. Plus you will infect others and the whole space is transformed and you help others in their transformation. Your flexibility and strength is improved when your emotions are conducive (read positive ~ Happy).

Connect with the mentor

Sometimes, knowing who you are will help the mentor to guide you through the class; to motivate you when you are about to give up; to kick your butt when your laziness is takes you over. And if the mentor seems busy, instead of just giving up, find a way to let him/ her know about your progress, concerns. Don't just keep it with yourself. Most of the times, we want to know everything about you, but sometimes its just logistically difficult.

So, when the time is right, the instructor can use it to help you grow faster and reach your potential and goals.

Listen to the instructor

It is good to ask question to have the doubts cleared. Most of the times i will address it, sometimes i wont letting your practice answer for you. Chances are your question will be answered and your concerns will be addressed in the process of doing the posture.

Just be with the instructor. Just be with me. In the end, I will leave you completely addressed and taken care of.

Ok?

Talking in class

Some of you can stay quiet for 1 full hour. Some of you cant stay quiet for even 1 minute. Those clever and funny remarks keep coming and you have to share it. Its good as it keeps the class light. But in another dimension it becomes a hindrance and obstructs the energy and flow of the class.

Talk, create laughs, ask questions.. not as a child would do for its own pleasure... but as a mature person who is responsible for the space and people around you.

Make yoga as "priority 1" in your life.

Organize your life around yoga. Yoga is the higher truth. Align yourself with it. It is a right brained thing. I will not satisfy your left brain by explaining it. You will get it when you get it. :).

If you are smiling while reading this, you got it. 

If you are angry while reading it, please, be patient. Just be. just be with me :).

If you still aren't smiling.. be little MORE patient. :)

Know your purpose of doing yoga

Reflect on these questions:

• Why am i am doing yoga? 
• Is this instructor/ mentor really helping me to grow towards my goals?
• Am i progressing?
• Is system addressing my question?

Share it with me/ instructor when its relevant.

Don't argue on payments. Give from your heart by being giving

No yoga teacher is doing it for the money. Please get this very clearly. Nobody. Not even a single teacher. May be he/she is the most greediest person on the planet. But that one hour, when they are with you, instructing you, they are not doing that for money. It is not an easy job. You dont make it easy for the teacher. 

So why do i do it? Why do i teach? One word. Contribution.

To contribute. May be to help you grow, may be to make you happy. That giving makes me happy. I just do it for me and you get benefit. When i am happy, i contribute the best. Help me (or your instructor) to contribute more.  So don't make us teachers go through the problem of asking you for the payment or deal with negotiations about payment amount and date. So, you do your best to keep the instructor away from those concerns.

I promise you i wont cheat you. I make sure that you get more out of the deal than i get. If you feel otherwise, don't do yoga with me (or that instructor) until your feelings have changed. You do your fees as a part of your contribution. Not as a business transaction (not that anything is wrong with the business).

Flirt. But dont let that come in the way of your or anybody's growth

Take a chance. play. If you cant be playful in life, what the hell are you doing in life anyways?. But accept the consequences too. Remember, when you walk into the yoga class, you take responsibility for you and also for that space and people in it. So include everybody and help them get to their goals or at least don't be a hindrance.

Conclusion

Show up every single day (with an adventurous attitude).

Follow instructions (to the subtlest detail possible).

Learn something new.

Unlearn something that isnt helping you.

Share some laughs.

Be patient.

Allow your demons to show up and use them for your growth and goals.

Go back as a meditative person.

Go make somebody else happy for no bloody reason.

4 Reasons why i recently turned vegetarian

 

Recently, 3 weeks back, i made a change in my life and became a vegetarian. Many asked me why. 

So i decided to answer it here.

Since childhood, I was a vegetarian by habit as my parents were vegetarians and i wasn't socially influenced to try meat. That happened when i was in college, at 16, i started eating meat.. (i had tried out eating eggs when i was 12 and i didn't hate them). Then again i decided to go vegetarian 6 years later which i followed for i for 2 years and gave it up and became a meat eater again like a wuss. 

Now, consciously i have chosen to be vegetarian, to start with. Eventually i intend to move towards vegan, raw, organic, wholesome and natural food (VROWN Diet). This is based on knowledge and wisdom from authorities that i adore, respect and try to live up to.

I have been working on changing many aspects of my life which aren't working for me and bring it in alignment with truth, love and power. As a part of that, this step of going away from meat eating was an inevitable living.

 

Turns out, other than taste, there is nothing really great about eating meat. Also, liking to a "taste" can be rewired in our brains

4 Reasons why i recently turned vegetarian.

1. The knowledge that human body isn't designed to digest those complex proteins coming from meat. Apparently, we are at our physical best when eating VROWN Diet
2. It is a myth that we don't get enough proteins from a vegan diet. Some of the leading body builders and athletes are aparently vegan. I think quoting Frank Medrano;)
3. Global Warming. Meat producing industry is the leading contributor for global warming. I would be a stupid if i said i dont care about the environment. Non knowing is one thing but choosing to be ignorant is totally immature and its disrespectful. 
4. Spiritual growth. For me spirituality is realizing my potential ~ physically, mentally, emotionally and any other dimensions possible. Looks like VROWN diet is the best bet towards that.

Art of Living's "Yes! +" Program Review

Why?

I am generally passionate about personal development. Anything or anybody that can challenge me to become a better person/man/ human being interests me. When i say personal development i mean ~ more congruent living and actions aligned with beliefs, less insecure, more detached-to-result action taking, honest, no BS communication skill, ability to sell without shame on what i believe in, to become better leader, etc.

So after doing Landmark education programs and assisting programs, Isha Yoga programs, and working at artistic yoga for years.. which all definitely made me a better person. I was particulary interested in Art of Living program because of khurshed Batliwala's (bawa) video ( http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CcQd3GjFNLQ). If a system can make such a balanced and centered, active mind, i want to know, understand that system and to let that system influence me. So i said when amrita told me about the course.

I will try and give you best possible review without spoiling it in case if you are considering doing.

YES!+ The course Design

It designed to help youth (18 to 30 years) to have a powerful, yet stress free life. It was a 6 day program with 3 hours each day. It is pretty simple design but can challenge you enough to get you thinking and take a look at your life. How to lead a happy, stress free and yet achieve results.

Sri Sri Ravishankar

See, i am biased towards these "enlightened" gurus, ~ the likes of Osho, Sadhguru Jaggi Vasudev. I have listened to their audios, seen their videos, read their books, heard people vouching for them. But that alone is difficult to understand somebody 100% to pass judgments. Either they are really who they say they are or insane or brilliant con-men.

From what i gather, i really think these people can guide us to live a superior life, help us reach our potential, become better human being to start with. So, in these line, i am trusting Sri Sri Ravishankar as a human being and as a spiritual being. He is a powerful leader, compassionate human being, can think beyond his own well being, has made millions of people's live better. However, i am not going to do anything that i dont agree with.

There is always people with good and bad opinions about any thing. I dont know much about Sri Sri Ravishankar, but i have no doubt he is doing things for human well being and happiness. Plus, lots of intelligent people flock to do his courses, so i am sure there must something of value that i can get. That was how i went to the course. Well, after watching some of the videos of the works done by Sri Sri and Art of living, i was inspired for sure. (as i am with the works of Steve Pavlina, Landmark Education, Isha Yoga).

Supportive Social Structure

This is one of the best aspects of doing the course, you get a family of non judgmental people, help you become a better human being.

Whether it is bringing positive energy or reminding you of your commitments, these volunteers help you out, they care!.

It is always a relief and fun to be around those who do things for their passion rather than doing something and expect something in return. 

Also, it is always fun and interesting meeting different kind of people!

But, they are also human beings, so sometimes they screw up too, if you can look past that, they are assets for your personal growth.

Sudharshan kriya

This, ofcourse is the highlight of the course. Simple, powerful breathing technique. Gets me meditative. I still have thoughts (read distractions) during various stages of the process. But still gives me a natural HIGH everytime. Very helpful meditative tool.

The content

It is not as intense as Isha Yoga's Bhava spandana program or Landmark eduction's programs. It is very engaging and there are diverse range of concepts that are covered that will help us in our everyday life. Things like living in the moment, getting rid of the past, giving 100%, and much more are basic self-help life lessons but we dont have it wired into our brain that we live oour life like that. This course is designed t address that. Also, it will definitely kick you out of your comfort zone. It is design to improve you overall as a person ~ in becoming more courageous, more efficient, more confident, less insecure, more outgoing, more risk taking.

The teachers

No doubt the teachers are well trained. They are very professional, very patient, down to earth Teachers who are there for you 100 %. It is obvious that they are doing it for the passion of teaching and sharing than for the money (I am not even sure if they get paid for it.)

Actually the knowledge that the teachers were younger than me made me respect them even more.

No Selling

There is wide range of products, CDs, programs, charity events, etc. But, in my experience they (AOL representatives) definitely do not try to sell anything. I dont have problem in people ruthlessly marketing/ selling in what they believe!

The not-so-good things

The content pretty basic and not super intense. For a person like me, who has done many other personal development programs, the content was refreshing, pushing me to grow for sure.. but not to greatest extent. Low intense, but those 6 days was definitely powerful and i was looking forward to go back again and again. 

As much as i cant point out a complaint at the teachers, in retrospect i wonder it would have been better if i had more experienced teachers.

My personal Benefits

We all have this issue.. We know we want to do something everyday (create a habit).. it could be exercising, hitting the gym, practice guitar, read/ write everyday. Sometimes it works and we do well, but i am talking about those which fails terribly within first week, rarely a genuine reason than just old habit pulling us back.And i am no exception to that.
For me, amongst other things it was sitting down for meditation no matter what. Yeah i know.. i am a yoga teacher and it should be very easy for me, right? but trust me.. its not..

I guess, i get bored very soon expecting for something to happen.. recently i seem to have lost that patience. Just when i sit down to meditate, i remember the phone calls to be returned, meetings to be scheduled, To-Dos..

Something shifted for me in this program. Its been 3 weeks since i was initiated into the practice and i haven't missed a day since and i look forward to do it everyday. 

[ Side Note: I have done other meditation programs and i have been regular at it and later failed to be regular. I have attempted many ways to keep myself motivated and keep the practices going. Amonst those trials, i learnt a lot of lessons. So, i attribute my current success in this area to all those unlearnings that i picked up from Sadhguru~isha, Landmark Education, Some wise people from BTAY]

PUNCHLINE:

A big THUMBS UP!

Personally, i think, even if you got only a spark of interest in doing this program~ Either for sri sri, meditation technique, sudharshan kriya, the social support structure or the social works done~ whatever may it be, then you should do it. It may yield you totally different benefits. 

If not this, then you should participate in and allow yourself to be influenced by any program that actually lifts you out of your own logic and gives you a new view of reality!