The Whispers Of My Heart

भक्ति क्या है?  क्या मंदिरों, इबादतगाहों, कलीसों में जाना भक्ति है?  क्या व्रत या रोज़े रखना भक्ति है?  आज रामनवमी है यानि भगवान राम जी का प्रकट दिवस।  आइए जानते हैं कि इस मुद्दे पर भगवान राम जी की क्या कहते हैं।  श्री रामचरितमानस जी में लक्ष्मण जी ने राम जी से कई सवाल पूछे।  उन सभी सवालों के तस्सली-बख्श जवाब दिए गए।  उनमें से एक सवाल था "भक्ति क्या है?"  श्री राम चंद्र जी ने कहा, "कोई भी ऐसा कार्य जिस से मेरा दिल पिघल जाए, वही भक्ति है।"  रावण के चुंगल से माता सीता जी को बचाने के लिए जटायु ने निस्वार्थ भाव से मदद की और अपनी जान तक न्यौछावर कर दी।  जटायु का यह बलिदान राम जी के दिल को छू गया।  उन्होंने जटायु को दर्शन दिए और खुद जटायु का अंतिम संस्कार किया।  मंदिरों, इबादतगाहों या कलीसों में जाना, व्रत या रोज़े रखना, ये सब महज़ ज़रिए हैं मंज़िल नही!  अफ़सोस कि ज़्यादातर लोग पड़ाव को ही मंज़िल समझ बैठे है!  इन सब रस्मों का सिर्फ एक ही मक़्सद है - मन निर्मल हो।  हमारा ज़हन जब पाक होगा तब ही हम परमात्मा की मौजूदगी का ...

Life certainly is not a bed of roses.  Trials & tribulations galore.  Distress is ubiquitous, gloomy faces are in abundance.  Though some amount of stress is inevitable, undue tensions severely damage body and mind.  I have found that mainly there are two causes behind the unwarranted unhappiness in the contemporary times.  These are :  (a) mistaken belief that one is incomplete.  (b) not able to differentiate between needs and wants.  Nowadays one considers oneself "incomplete" unless one has things  considered consequential by the society.  One then strives hard, often becomes self-centered, to get hold of these things - high salaried job, wealth, SUV, big mansion.  In the process one may get recognition in the society but not real happiness.  You see, happiness doesn't lie outside, in acquisitions.  To attain happiness, one has to make an inward journey possible through meditation.  𝙏𝙤 𝙧𝙚𝙢𝙖𝙞𝙣 𝙝𝙖𝙥𝙥𝙮...

Nowadays I have started meditating in a magnificent garden where a group of senior citizens come every evening. They huddle together and reminisce about their youthful days.  Sometimes these grey-haired crack jokes, at other times they sing old songs in chorus - especially those sung by popular singers of bygone era like Kundan Lal Saigal, Mohammed Rafi - in their cracking yet booming voice.  After my meditation session I always greet these elderly, take their blessings.  Whenever I find time, I join them and listen to their experiences, perspectives about life.  Last week I saw a gentleman in his seventies sitting alone, somewhat sad.  I went to the septugenarian and asked, "Sir, I haven't seen you before in this garden. May I know where do you live?"  "I have recently moved to Chandigarh, with bag and baggage, from Nadaun (Himachal Pradesh) as my son has decided to settle in Chandigarh. He has bought that house." he said and pointed to a red coloured hous...

Yesterday I went for a haircut. Akhtar, my barber for the last twenty years, gave a short smile on seeing me.  "Aadab masterji (teacher). You have come after a while. Hope you're fine." said Akhtar, in his seventies.  "Aadab chacha (uncle). I'm good. I was just waiting for the weather to become pleasant." I said.  He then motioned me to sit on a wooden, cushioned chair underneath an old, majestic "Amaltas" tree.  While he was cutting my hair, I noticed something amiss about his behaviour.  Always a great talker, yesterday he was not chatting at all. I could even perceive sadness in his eyes.  "Chacha, are you fine?" I asked.  "Master ji, I have lost my son to an accident last month." he said and wiped his tears with his shriveled hands.  "Oh! It's really very saddening. How the accident took place?" I inquired.  "My son was walking on the pedestrian path. Suddenly a speeding motorcycle hit him from behind. The...