मेरी ताकत

मेरी ताकत 

जापान  के  एक  छोटे  से  कसबे में  रहने  वाले  दस  वर्षीय  ओकायो  को  जूडो  सीखने  का  बहुत  शौक  था . पर  बचपन  में  हुई  एक  दुर्घटना  में  बायाँ  हाथ  कट  जाने  के  कारण  उसके  माता -पिता  उसे  जूडो सीखने  की  आज्ञा  नहीं  देते  थे . पर  अब  वो  बड़ा  हो  रहा  था  और  उसकी  जिद्द  भी  बढती  जा  रही  थी .

 अंततः  माता -पिता  को  झुकना  ही  पड़ा  और  वो  ओकायो  को  नजदीकी  शहर  के  एक  मशहूर मार्शल आर्ट्स   गुरु  के  यहाँ  दाखिला  दिलाने ले  गए .

 गुरु  ने  जब  ओकायो  को  देखा  तो  उन्हें  अचरज  हुआ   कि ,  बिना  बाएँ  हाथ  का  यह  लड़का  भला   जूडो   क्यों  सीखना  चाहता   है ?

उन्होंने  पूछा , “ तुम्हारा  तो  बायाँ   हाथ  ही  नहीं  है  तो  भला  तुम  और  लड़कों  का  मुकाबला  कैसे  करोगे .”

“ ये  बताना  तो  आपका  काम  है” ,ओकायो  ने  कहा . मैं  तो  बस  इतना  जानता  हूँ  कि  मुझे  सभी  को  हराना  है  और  एक  दिन  खुद  “सेंसेई” (मास्टर) बनना  है ”

गुरु  उसकी  सीखने  की  दृढ  इच्छा  शक्ति  से  काफी  प्रभावित  हुए  और  बोले , “ ठीक  है  मैं  तुम्हे  सीखाऊंगा  लेकिन  एक  शर्त  है , तुम  मेरे  हर  एक  निर्देश  का  पालन  करोगे  और  उसमे  दृढ  विश्वास  रखोगे .”

ओकायो  ने  सहमती  में  गुरु  के  समक्ष  अपना  सर  झुका  दिया .

गुरु  ने एक  साथ लगभग  पचास छात्रों  को  जूडो  सीखना  शुरू  किया . ओकायो  भी  अन्य  लड़कों  की  तरह  सीख  रहा  था . पर  कुछ  दिनों  बाद  उसने  ध्यान  दिया  कि  गुरु  जी  अन्य  लड़कों  को  अलग -अलग  दांव -पेंच  सीखा  रहे  हैं  लेकिन  वह  अभी  भी  उसी  एक  किक  का  अभ्यास  कर  रहा  है  जो  उसने  शुरू  में  सीखी  थी . उससे  रहा  नहीं  गया  और  उसने  गुरु  से  पूछा , “ गुरु  जी  आप  अन्य  लड़कों  को  नयी -नयी  चीजें  सीखा  रहे  हैं , पर  मैं  अभी  भी  बस  वही  एक  किक  मारने  का  अभ्यास  कर  रहा  हूँ . क्या  मुझे  और  चीजें  नहीं  सीखनी  चाहियें  ?”

गुरु  जी  बोले , “ तुम्हे  बस  इसी  एक  किक  पर  महारथ  हांसिल  करने  की  आवश्यकता  है ”   और वो आगे बढ़ गए.

ओकायो  को  विस्मय हुआ  पर  उसे  अपने  गुरु  में  पूर्ण  विश्वास  था  और  वह  फिर  अभ्यास  में  जुट  गया .

समय  बीतता  गया  और  देखते -देखते  दो  साल  गुजर  गए , पर  ओकायो  उसी  एक  किक  का  अभ्यास  कर  रहा  था . एक  बार  फिर  ओकायो को चिंता होने लगी और उसने  गुरु  से  कहा  , “ क्या  अभी  भी  मैं  बस  यही  करता  रहूँगा  और बाकी सभी  नयी तकनीकों  में  पारंगत  होते  रहेंगे ”

गुरु  जी  बोले , “ तुम्हे  मुझमे  यकीन  है  तो  अभ्यास  जारी  रखो ”

ओकायो ने गुरु कि आज्ञा का पालन करते हुए  बिना कोई प्रश्न  पूछे अगले  6 साल  तक  उसी  एक  किक  का  अभ्यास  जारी  रखा .

सभी को जूडो  सीखते आठ साल हो चुके थे कि तभी एक  दिन  गुरु जी ने सभी शिष्यों को बुलाया और बोले ” मुझे आपको जो ज्ञान देना था वो मैं दे चुका हूँ और अब गुरुकुल  की परंपरा  के  अनुसार सबसे  अच्छे  शिष्य  का  चुनाव  एक प्रतिस्पर्धा के  माध्यम  से किया जायेगा  और जो इसमें विजयी होने वाले शिष्य को  “सेंसेई” की उपाधि से सम्मानित किया जाएगा.”

प्रतिस्पर्धा आरम्भ हुई.

गुरु जी ओकायो  को  उसके  पहले  मैच में हिस्सा लेने के लिए आवाज़ दी .

ओकायो ने लड़ना शुर किया और खुद  को  आश्चर्यचकित  करते  हुए  उसने  अपने  पहले  दो  मैच  बड़ी  आसानी  से  जीत  लिए . तीसरा मैच  थोडा कठिन  था , लेकिन  कुछ  संघर्ष  के  बाद  विरोधी  ने  कुछ  क्षणों  के  लिए  अपना  ध्यान उस पर से हटा दिया , ओकायो  को  तो  मानो  इसी  मौके  का  इंतज़ार  था  , उसने  अपनी  अचूक  किक  विरोधी  के  ऊपर  जमा  दी  और  मैच  अपने  नाम  कर  लिया . अभी  भी  अपनी  सफलता  से  आश्चर्य  में  पड़े  ओकयो  ने  फाइनल  में  अपनी  जगह  बना  ली .

इस  बार  विरोधी  कहीं अधिक  ताकतवर, अनुभवी  और विशाल   था . देखकर  ऐसा  लगता  था  कि  ओकायो उसके  सामने एक मिनट भी  टिक नहीं  पायेगा .

मैच  शुरू  हुआ  , विरोधी  ओकायो  पर  भारी  पड़ रहा  था , रेफरी  ने  मैच  रोक  कर  विरोधी  को  विजेता  घोषित  करने  का  प्रस्ताव  रखा , लेकिन  तभी  गुरु  जी  ने  उसे रोकते हुए कहा , “ नहीं , मैच  पूरा  चलेगा ”

मैच  फिर  से  शुरू  हुआ .

विरोधी  अतिआत्मविश्वास  से  भरा  हुआ   था  और  अब  ओकायो  को कम आंक रहा था . और इसी  दंभ  में  उसने  एक  भारी  गलती  कर  दी , उसने  अपना  गार्ड  छोड़  दिया !! ओकयो  ने इसका फायदा उठाते हुए आठ  साल  तक  जिस  किक  की प्रैक्टिस  की  थी  उसे  पूरी  ताकत  और सटीकता  के  साथ  विरोधी  के  ऊपर  जड़  दी  और  उसे  ज़मीन पर  धराशाई  कर  दिया . उस  किक  में  इतनी शक्ति  थी  की  विरोधी  वहीँ  मुर्छित  हो  गया  और  ओकायो  को  विजेता  घोषित  कर  दिया  गया .

मैच  जीतने  के  बाद  ओकायो  ने  गुरु  से  पूछा  ,” सेंसेई , भला  मैंने  यह प्रतियोगिता  सिर्फ  एक  मूव  सीख  कर  कैसे  जीत  ली ?”

“ तुम  दो  वजहों  से  जीते ,”  गुरु जी  ने  उत्तर  दिया . “ पहला , तुम  ने जूडो  की  एक  सबसे  कठिन  किक  पर  अपनी इतनी  मास्टरी  कर  ली कि  शायद  ही  इस  दुनिया  में  कोई  और  यह  किक  इतनी  दक्षता   से  मार  पाए , और  दूसरा  कि  इस  किक  से  बचने  का  एक  ही  उपाय  है  , और  वह  है  वोरोधी   के  बाएँ  हाथ  को  पकड़कर  उसे  ज़मीन  पर  गिराना .”

ओकायो  समझ चुका था कि आज उसकी  सबसे  बड़ी  कमजोरी  ही  उसकी  सबसे  बड़ी  ताकत बन  चुकी  थी .

मित्रों human being होने का मतलब ही है imperfect होना. Imperfection अपने आप में बुरी नहीं होती, बुरा होता है हमारा उससे deal करने का तरीका. अगर ओकायो चाहता तो अपने बाएँ हाथ के ना होने का रोना रोकर एक अपाहिज की तरह जीवन बिता सकता था, लेकिन उसने इस वजह से कभी खुद को हीन नहीं महसूस होने दिया. उसमे  अपने सपने को साकार करने की दृढ इच्छा थी और यकीन जानिये जिसके अन्दर यह इच्छा होती है भगवान उसकी मदद के लिए कोई ना कोई गुरु भेज देता है, ऐसा गुरु जो उसकी सबसे बड़ी कमजोरी को ही उसकी सबसे बड़ी ताकत बना उसके सपने साकार कर सकता है.

तितली का संघर्ष

तितली का संघर्ष 

एक बार एक आदमी को अपने garden में टहलते हुए किसी टहनी से लटकता हुआ एक तितली का कोकून दिखाई पड़ा. अब हर रोज़ वो आदमी उसे देखने लगा , और एक दिन उसने notice किया कि उस कोकून में एक छोटा सा छेद बन गया है. उस दिन वो वहीँ बैठ गया और घंटो उसे देखता रहा. उसने देखा की तितली उस खोल से बाहर निकलने की बहुत कोशिश कर रही है , पर बहुत देर तक प्रयास करने के बाद भी वो उस छेद से नहीं निकल पायी , और फिर वो बिलकुल शांत हो गयी मानो उसने हार मान ली हो.

इसलिए उस आदमी ने निश्चय किया कि वो उस तितली की मदद करेगा. उसने एक कैंची उठायी और कोकून की opening को इतना बड़ा कर दिया की वो तितली आसानी से बाहर निकल सके. और यही हुआ, तितली बिना किसी और संघर्ष के आसानी से बाहर निकल आई, पर उसका शरीर सूजा हुआ था,और पंख सूखे हुए थे.

वो आदमी तितली को ये सोच कर देखता रहा कि वो किसी भी वक़्त अपने पंख फैला कर उड़ने लगेगी, पर ऐसा कुछ भी नहीं हुआ. इसके उलट बेचारी तितली कभी उड़ ही नहीं पाई और उसे अपनी बाकी की ज़िन्दगी इधर-उधर घिसटते हुए बीतानी पड़ी.

वो आदमी अपनी दया और जल्दबाजी में ये नहीं समझ पाया की दरअसल कोकून से निकलने की प्रक्रिया को प्रकृति ने इतना कठिन इसलिए बनाया है ताकि ऐसा करने से तितली के शरीर में मौजूद तरल उसके पंखों में पहुच सके और  वो छेद से बाहर निकलते ही उड़ सके.

वास्तव में कभी-कभी हमारे जीवन में संघर्ष ही वो चीज होती जिसकी हमें सचमुच आवश्यकता होती है. यदि हम बिना किसी struggle के सब कुछ पाने लगे तो हम भी एक अपंग के सामान हो जायेंगे. बिना परिश्रम और संघर्ष के हम कभी उतने मजबूत नहीं बन सकते जितना हमारी क्षमता है. इसलिए जीवन में आने वाले कठिन पलों को सकारात्मक दृष्टिकोण से देखिये वो आपको कुछ ऐसा सीखा जायंगे जो आपकी ज़िन्दगी की उड़ान को possible बना पायेंगे.

The Princess without a Palace

Once upon a time there was a kingdom with an ancient prophecy that spoke of a Princess without a palace. The prophecy said that as soon as that Princess found her palace, she would be the wisest and fairest Queen there had ever been. That kingdom had a royal family who had lived in a beautiful... palace for generations. But there was a great earthquake which destroyed the palace and killed the King and Queen.



Their two daughters, Princess Nora and Princess Sabina, managed to survive.

After this tragedy, Nora understood that she, being the elder sister, might be the Princess mentioned in the prophecy. Accompanied by her sister, Nora devoted herself to finding her new palace. During their travels they met a wise old man who gave them an old key that would open the palace doors.

“I have no idea where the palace will be”, said the old man, “All I know is that you should try this key wherever you seek it”.

And Nora went with her sister, trying the key on all the palace doors they found. When there were no more palaces to try, they thought maybe the palace would just be some large important house, but neither did the key fit any of those. Fed up, the sisters lost hope of ever finding their palace. They had spent so much time away, travelling and searching, that no one now missed them. Neither did they have any money or jewels left, and when they arrived at a poor village they had to work in the fields alongside all the poor people who, not knowing that the sisters were royalty, took them in as though they were two homeless orphans.

The sisters lived there for some years. They worked hard, and knew what hunger was, and how life could be so difficult, but people loved them so much that they came to be very happy, and they gradually forgot their royal past. One night, while tidying Nora's things, Sabina found the old key. Amused, she took it to her sister, and they reminisced about their search for their own magnificent palace.

"There still must be some palace, hidden in some little forest, just waiting for us to find it," said Nora, with a glimmer of hope.

"Well, you know what I think," answered her younger sister, "that I don't need anything else to be happy. We spent months travelling from castle to castle to live the life of Queens, but I have never been so happy as I am now, even though we don't have much. If I had to choose a palace," she continued, joyfully dancing about by the door, "it would be this little cabin." she ended, laughing, and then with a solemn gesture placing the key in the cabin door.

Just then, the room filled with lights and music, and from that old door arose a wonderful palace filled with life and colour. The place became totally transformed; there were fountains, gardens, and animals. The village people marvelled at all of this.

The only thing which remained as it had been was the cabin door, reminding everyone of how Sabina the Wonderful - which was what they called their wise Queen - had found that in a simple, humble life lay the doorway to happiness, not only for herself, but for all the inhabitants of that land.

Moral of the story

Happiness is not to be found in the showy and sophisticated things in life, but rather in the right way to approach life and live it.

 

Healthy Lifestyles Help Maintain Healthy Minds!

They say motivation doesn't last...

They say motivation doesn't last...well neither does bathing that's why it's recommended everyday. Explore wonderful quotes and sayings on our page with pictures, Helping us All to grow. We post the most powerful and uplifting quotes that will motivate you to move forward The ONLY direction!. PLZ like our page and share with all your friends because even the wisest mind has yet something to learn! and inspiration is like food for the brain. You cannot get enough in one sitting it needs continual and regular top up's.

Pretty Lady and Monk

Pretty Lady and Monk

by Inspirational and motivational stories on Wednesday, March 2, 2011 at 4:58am ·

Once upon a time a big monk and a little monk were traveling together. They came to the bank of a river and found the bridge was damaged. They had to wade across the river. There was a pretty lady who was stuck at the damaged bridge and couldn't cross the river.
 The big monk offered to carry her across the river on his back. The l...ady accepted. The little monk was shocked by the move of the big monk. 'How can big brother carry a lady when we are supposed to avoid all intimacy with females?' thought the little monk. But he kept quiet... The big monk carried the lady across the river and the small monk followed unhappily. When they crossed the river, the big monk let the lady down and they parted ways with her. All along the way for several miles, the little monk was very unhappy with the act of the big monk. He was making up all kinds of accusations about big monk in his head. This got him madder and madder. But he still kept quiet. And the big monk had no inclination to explain his situation. Finally, at a rest point many hours later, the little monk could not stand it any further, he burst out angrily at the big monk. 'How can you claim yourself a devout monk, when you seize the first opportunity to touch a female, especially when she is very pretty? All your teachings to me make you a big hypocrite

The big monk looked surprised and said, 'I had put down the pretty lady at the river bank many hours ago, how come you are still carrying her along?'

What Do You Do, When God Speaks to You?

Does God still speak to people?



A young man had been to Wednesday night Bible Study. The Pastor had shared about listening to God and obeying the Lord's voice. The young man couldn't help but wonder, "Does God still speak to people?"

After service he went out with some friends for coffee and pie and they discussed the message. Several different ones talked about how God had led them in different ways. It was about ten o'clock when the young man started driving home. Sitting in his car, he just began to pray, "God.. If you still speak to people speak to me. I will listen. I will do my best to obey."

As he drove down the main street of his town, he had the strangest thought, stop and buy a gallon of milk. He shook his head and said out loud, "God is that you?" He didn't get a reply and started on toward home. But again, the thought, buy a gallon of milk. The young man thought about Samuel and how he didn't recognize the voice of God, and how little Samuel ran to Eli. "Okay, God, in case that is you, I will buy the milk." It didn't seem like too hard a test of obedience. He could always use the milk.

He stopped and purchased the gallon of milk and started off toward home. As he passed Seventh street, he again felt the urge, "Turn down that street." This is crazy he thought and drove on past the intersection.

Again, he felt that he should turn down Seventh Street. At the next intersection, he turned back and headed down Seventh. Half jokingly, he said out loud, "Okay, God, I will". He drove several blocks, when suddenly, he felt like he should stop.

He pulled over to the curb and looked around. He was in a semi- commercial area of town. It wasn't the best but it wasn't the worst of neighborhoods either. The businesses were closed and most of the houses looked dark like the people were already in bed.

Again, he sensed something, "Go and give the milk to the people in the house across the street." The young man looked at the house. It was dark and it looked like the people were either gone or they were already asleep.

He started to open the door and then sat back in the car seat. "Lord, this is insane. Those people are asleep and if I wake them up, they are going to be mad and I will look stupid."

Again, he felt like he should go and give the milk. Finally, he opened the door, "Okay God, if this is you, I will go to the door and I will give them the milk. If you want me to look like a crazy person, okay. I want to be obedient. I guess that will count for something but if they don't answer right away, I am out of here."

He walked across the street and rang the bell. He could hear some noise inside. A man's voice yelled out, "Who is it? What do you want?" Then the door opened before the young man could get away.

The man was standing there in his jeans and t-shirt. He looked like he just got out of bed. He had a strange look on his face and he didn't seem too happy to have some stranger standing on his doorstep. "What is it?" The young man thrust out the gallon of milk, "Here, I brought this to you."

The man took the milk and rushed down a hallway speaking loudly in Spanish. Then from down the hall came a woman carrying the milk toward the kitchen. The man was following her holding a baby. The baby was crying. The man had tears streaming down his face. The man began speaking and half crying, "We Were just praying. We had some big bills this month and we ran out of money. We didn't have any milk for our baby. I was just praying and asking God to show me how to get some milk."

His wife in the kitchen yelled out, "I ask him to send an Angel with some. Are you an Angel?" The young man reached into his wallet and pulled out all the money he had on him and put in the man's hand.

He turned and walked back toward his car and the tears were streaming down his face. He knew that God still answers prayers.

Author Unknown

Fate Is In Our Own Hands

Fate Is In Our Own Hands

by Inspirational and motivational stories on Friday, February 3, 2012 at 5:14am ·

Once upon a time, there was a general who was leading his army into battle against an enemy ten times the size of his own.

Along the way to the battle field, the troops stopped by a small temple to pray for victory.

The general held up a coin and told his troops, “I am going to implore the gods to help us crush our enemy. If this coin lands with the heads on top, we’ll win. If it’s tails, we’ll lose. Our fate is in the hands of the gods. Let’s pray wholeheartedly.”

After a short prayer, the general tossed the coin. It landed with the heads on top. The troops were overjoyed and went into the battle with high siprit.

Just as predicted, the smaller army won the battle.

The soldiers were exalted, “It’s good to have the gods on our side! No one can change what they have determined.”

“Really?” The general show them the coin—both sides of it were heads.

How Failure Succeeded

How Failure Succeeded

by Inspirational and motivational stories on Sunday, December 11, 2011 at 2:31pm ·

Before this, I was a very negative person with all sorts of excuses I used in my life. But things have changed after I'd watched a movie about a person who is defected that has neither legs nor hands.

He has always liked those challenging career. Till one day, he made the decision to join a wrestling game and made it as his real career. Well, it sounds weird for a defected person to fight with a normal person, right? However, his strong spirit has helped him to overcome all the negativity in his surroundings.

Finally, after 36 times of falling, bleeding and humiliating, he succeeded by winning the semi-final game. It was a quite, no, a very huge achievement for himself.

So, for us as a normal person with complete body, do we really want to quit after one or two failure? Just ask yourself and think about it.

Remember, never give up until you've lost 36 times!!

Making your mark on the world...

Making your mark on the world is hard. If it were easy, everybody would do it. But it's not. It takes patience, it takes commitment, and it comes with plenty of failure along the way. The real test is not whether you avoid this failure, because you won't. it's whether you let it harden or shame you into inaction, or whether you learn from it; whether you choose to persevere.

Benefits Of Being Grateful: From Gratitude Comes Great Well-Being

Most of us, at one time or another, have faced some sort of overwhelming challenge. Whether it be in business, relationships, or health – some challenges can take us for a loop, places where we don’t want to go… if we allow. We’re human – even the most seemingly, perfectly grounded person – struggles at times.

If you’ve been severely challenged or are presently worrying and stressing over a difficult situation – try showing a bit of thanks – gratitude – for all that IS working right in your life. And, build from there. Gratitude is powerful.

Attitude of Gratitude

Did you know that next to immunodepressants, gratitude heals organ transplant patients fastest? The Mississippi University for Women found out in a study that patients who kept a gratitude journal scored better in mental health tests than those who didn’t, even when they started off at the same level of mental health. They generally healed faster, had more vitality and were happier.

It doesn’t stop there – those who are unwell are not the only people who benefit from an attitude of gratitude. The debate continues as to whether material well-being and happiness makes a person grateful or whether it is the other way around.

Tests were done where participants were all of the same income level, their lives were more or less the same in terms of satisfaction and happiness and their mental health was at par.

Some were asked to keep a gratitude journal and others were asked to go on living as usual. After 2 months, the people who kept gratitude journals showed significant leaps in happiness and well-being. They said they were much more energetic and felt that they got what they wanted. They felt that they traveled towards their goals faster.

What Is The Connection Between Gratitude And Well Being?

There’s really no single explanation, but there’s agreement on one thing: the more grateful you are, the more positive you feel about life and about yourself, and the more you achieve.

Gratitude helps you see all things in their perspective. In the past, when you’ve felt grateful for something or someone – did you see how suddenly that thing’s or person’s value swelled and became even more meaningful to you?

If you wake up and immediately give thanks for a great, blue sky, you’ll notice that the day seems much richer. If you give thanks for your spouse, your brain has a way of picking it up and making you see even better things about them and this makes you feel happier. Happiness leads to well-being.

Gratitude also makes you focus on the things that you’re grateful for and you therefore attract more. It’s the old law of attraction, which holds that what you think about grows.

If you’re grateful for strong, fulfilling relationships, they tend to grow and therefore you’ll be happier. If you’re grateful for a strong business, it will grow and you’ll feel more fulfilled.

Does It Really Matter Why Gratitude Leads To Well-Being?

You now know that it does, so why not start to practice it. How would you gain from being able to put your challenges in perspective, faster? I was able to start making positive moves to create the outcome that I preferred.

Yes, it required a time commitment. In fact, as a busy woman, fitting “gratitude time” into my day was very difficult at first. But, I found the time because it was that important.

I discovered that if I wanted to do it, I had to set aside a time for nothing else but “gratitude time” and my journal had to be in a place where I couldn’t ignore it. After awhile it became my habit – the first thing I do before I get out of bed.

I think about and write down what I am grateful for. The more grateful I am, the more I have to be grateful for – the better I feel and the more productive I am throughout my day. What a powerful way to start your day!!

I encourage you to make a gratitude journal. Plan it in such a way that it’s in your path everyday and you can’t ignore it. You’ll find that after days, even just hours of your first journaling, your perspective will be different and you will have given yourself more time to go forward and focus on what matters most.


Spiritual & Emotional Healing Resources:

Working With and Healing Your Inner Child & Inner Adolescent – The happier your childhood, the less of a problem you’ll now have with your inner child. Because he or she will be happy and content to stay in their own world. Conversely, the more pain you went through then, the more problems you’re likely to have now. These two complete visualization meditations can be the first step in going back and healing that childhood, and that adolescence. The first one guides you to meet and interact with your inner child. The second guides you to similarly work with your inner adolescent.

Healing Your Ego  – You need a strong, healthy, positive ego to function in life. To do that, first you need to take back the power you’ve given it. And then follow specific technique to heal it. Heal your wounded ego with these three audio files on healing your ego and returning it to its rightful place – as a servant who delivers information to you.

The Magic Of Forgiveness – Forgiveness is the only key that opens the door to a life free from emotional and mental pain. Release the burdens of your past and present that haunt you, end the emotional pain you feel in your heart, ‘take a shower on the inside’ – cleaning out all the gunk that’s stuck within you.

EDUCATION DOES NOT MEAN GOOD JUDGEMENT

There is a story about a man who sold hot dogs by the roadside. He was illiterate, so he never read newspapers . He was hard of hearing, so he never listened to the radio. His eyes were weak, so he never watched television. But enthusiastically, he sold lots of hot dogs. His sales and profit went up. He ordered more meat and got himself a bigger and a better stove. As his business was growing, the son, who had recently graduated from college, joined his father.

Then something strange happened. The son asked, "Dad, aren't you aware of the great recession that is coming our way?" The father replied, "No, but tell me about it."

The son said, "The international situation is terrible. The domestic is even worse. We should be prepared for the coming bad time." The man thought that since his son had been to college, read the papers, and listened to the radio, he ought to know and his advice should not be taken lightly. So the next day, the father cut down his order for the meat and buns, took down the sign and was no longer enthusiastic. Very soon, fewer and fewer people bothered to stop at his hot dog stand.

And his sales started coming down rapidly. The father said to his son, "Son, you were right. We are in the middle of a
recession. I am glad you warned me ahead of time."

Negative motivation brings the desire to take the easier way which ends up being the tougher way.

Internal motivation comes from within, such as pride, a sense of achievement, responsibility and belief.

A beautiful story - The Blind Passenger

The passengers on the bus watched sympathetically as the attractive young woman with the white cane made her way carefully up the steps. She paid the driver, using her hands to feel the location of the seats, walked down the aisle and found the seat he'd told her was empty. Then she settled in, placed her briefcase on her lap and rested her cane against her leg.

It had been a year since Susan, thirty-four, became blind. Due to a medical misdiagnosis, she had been rendered sightless, and she was suddenly thrown into a world of darkness, anger, frustration and self-pity. Once a fiercely independent woman, Susan now felt condemned by this terrible twist of fate to become a powerless and helpless burden on everyone around her.

"How could this have happened to me?" she would plead, her heart knotted with anger, but no matter how much she cried, protested, ranted or prayed, she knew the painful truth that her sight was never going to return. A cloud of depression hung over Susan's once optimistic spirit. Just getting through each day was an exercise in frustration and exhaustion. And all she had to cling to was her husband Mark.

Mark was an Air Forces officer and he loved Susan with all of his heart. When she first lost her sight, he watched her sink into despair and was determined to help his wife gain the strength and confidence she needed to become independent again.

Mark's military background had trained him well to deal with such sensitive situations, and yet he knew this was the most difficult battle he would ever face.
Finally, Susan felt ready to return to her job, but how would she get there? She used to take the bus, but was now too frightened to get around the city by herself. Mark volunteered to drive her to and from work each day, even though they worked at opposite ends of the city.

At first, this comforted Susan and fulfilled Mark's need to protect his sightless wife who was so insecure about performing the slightest task. Soon, however, Mark realized that this arrangement wasn't working, it was hectic and costly.

'Susan is going to have to start taking the bus again' he admitted to himself, but just the thought of mentioning it to her made him cringe, she was still so fragile and so angry. 'How would she react?' he admitted to himself again.
Just as Mark predicted, Susan was horrified at the idea of taking the bus again. "I'm blind!" she responded bitterly "How am I supposed to know where I'm going? I feel like you're abandoning me".

Mark's heart broke to hear these words, but he knew what had to be done. He promised Susan that each morning and evening he would ride the bus with her, for as long as it took, until she got the hang of it. And that is exactly what happened.

For two solid weeks, Mark, military uniform and all, accompanied Susan to and from work each day. He taught her how to rely on her other senses specifically her hearing, how to determine where she was and how to adapt to her new environment.

He helped her befriend the bus drivers who could watch out for her, and save her a seat. He made her laugh, even on those not-so-good days when she would trip exiting the bus, or drop her briefcase. Each morning they made the journey together, and Mark would take a cab back to his office.

Although this routine was even more costly and exhausting than the previous one, Mark knew it was only a matter of time before Susan would be able to ride the bus on her own. He believed in her, he used to know before she'd lost her sight, who wasn't afraid of any challenge and who would never, ever quit.

Finally, Susan decided that she was ready to try the trip on her own. Monday morning arrived, and before she left, she threw her arms around Mark, her temporary bus riding companion, her husband and her best friend. Her eyes filled with tears of gratitude for his loyalty, his sincerity, his patience and his love. She said good-bye, and for the first time, they went their separate ways. Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, each day on her own went perfectly, and Susan had never felt better. She was doing it and she was going to work all by herself.


On Friday morning, Susan took the bus to work as usual. As she was paying for her fare to exit the bus, the driver said "Boy, I sure envy you" Susan wasn't sure if the driver was speaking to her or not. After all, who on earth would ever envy a blind woman who had struggled just to find the courage to live for the past year?.

Curiously, she asked him "Why do you say that you envy me?" The driver responded "It must feel so good to be taken care of and protected like you are". Susan had no idea what the driver was talking about, she asked him again "What do you mean?" .

The driver answered, "You know, every morning for the past week, a fine looking gentleman in a military uniform has been standing across the corner watching you when you get off the bus. He makes sure you cross the street safely and he watches you until you enter your office building. Then he blows you a kiss, gives you a little salute and walks away. You are one lucky lady" .

Tears of happiness poured down Susan's cheeks. For although she couldn't physically see him, she had always felt Mark's presence. She was fortunate, so fortunate, for he had given her a gift more powerful than sight, a gift she didn't need to see to believe, the gift of love that can bring light where there had been darkness. You don't love a woman because she is beautiful, but she is beautiful because you love her.
God watches over us in just the same way. We may not know His presence, and we may not be able to see His blessed face, but He is there nonetheless!.

GIVE AND IT WILL BE GIVEN TO YOU...

Spiritualize the LIFE

Today's life is so, that everyone feels to be very busy in this hectic day to day life. We all are very busy at our work place & in our home life also. In this busy life, we face lot of tensions & our mind is full of stress all the time. We forget about the true happiness in life & how it can be attained. For us earning lot's of money in life & enjoying it, is the mantra that can give us happiness in life. In our life we either run after money or we try to make our near & dear one's happy in life. Money & material things may give us joy at present but when these material things are not in our life, due to one reason or the other, much pain comes in our life. Same is the case with human relations. Till the time these relations are with you, they may give you joy for the time being. But in the absence of these relations our mind feels pain & sorrow.

We all know that we have come to this world alone & shall leave this world alone only. Whatever things we acquire or whatever relations we make on this world stage is only in between your birth & death. Some day, these things or relations shall leave you within this lifetime or ultimately you have to leave all these in the end. Any infatuation to material things or relations is going to give you pain only, whenever, separation shall occur from these one day. All material things & human relations are imperfect & any imperfect thing cannot give PERFECT love or joy to you. Unless you find a perfect & permanent thing in life, you shall not be able to find perfect love in life.

So, What is the real truth of life? It is to evolve and manifest the Spiritual principles within ourselves. We need to search the truth, the truth about ourself, our soul, which is a part of that Super Soul called God. We need to seek God who is the Divinity concealed behind different forms of life. We need to see the external world as God. We need to see & worship the sacred, Divine Presence that sanctifies all places and all objects in this world. It is the Divine Spirit that pervades all places around us, we need to feel it's presence around us. We need to see the Lord of the Universe, the hidden God, who pervades His own creation, all around us. This is that we need to Spiritualize our life.

To Spiritualize our life, we need to fill our thoughts & sentiments, every single word and deed of ours with an attitude of intense reverence, devotion, and worshipfulness to that Divine Spirit called God who pervades all the space & is all around us. Let all of our life be pervaded by that Spiritual emotion. Let's live in the awareness of that Divinity all around us. Behold light of God shining all around us & everywhere. Divine Being looks at you through all eyes. Let's feel this truth that all life is spiritual. So Let's endeavour to spiritualize our life. This is the key to devotion & blessedness.

As per Bhagwat Gita:

"ye tu dharmamritam idam
yathoktam paryupasate
sraddadhana mat-parama
bhaktas te ’tiva me priyah" (Bhagwat Gita: Chapter Twelve verse 20)

"Sri Krishna said to Arjuna: O Arjuna, Those who follow this imperishable path of spiritual & devotional service and who completely engage themselves with faith, making Me the supreme goal, are very, very dear to Me."

Bhagwat Gita also teaches us that "we should know ourself to be that immortal soul". Once you are able to do that then we shall feel our SELF to be part & parcel of that Universal Self (GOD) who is infinite love & is pervading all around us. We are a spark of that Universal Soul, who is the source of infinite love. Once we are able to know that, our life too shall be full of love & blessedness.

The King WIth Four Wives

"A Story Of Four Wives" Once upon a time...there was a rich King who had four wives. He loved the fourth wife the most and adorned her with rich robes and treated her to the finest of delicacies. He gave her nothing but the best. He also loved the third wife very much, and he was always showing her off to neighboring kingdoms. However, he feared that one day she would leave him for another. He also loved his second wife. She was his confidante and was always kind, considerate, and patient with him.


     Whenever the King faced a problem, he could confide in her to help him get through the difficult times. The King's first wife was a very loyal partner and had made greatcontributions in maintaining his wealth and kingdom. However, he did not love the first wife and although she loved him deeply, he hardly took notice of her. One day, the King fell ill, and he knew his time was short.He thought of his luxurious life and pondered, "I now have four wives with me, but when I die, I'll be all alone. Thus, he asked the fourth wife, "I have loved you the most, endowed you with the finest clothing, and showered great care over you.
  Now that I'm dying, will you follow me and keep me company?" "Absolutely not!" replied the fourth wife, and she walked away without another word. Her answer cut like a sharp knife right into his heart. The sad King then asked the third wife, "I have loved you all my life. Now that I'm dying, will you follow me and keep me company?" "No," replied the third wife. "Life is too good! When you die, I'm going to remarry!" His heart sank and turned cold.
 
He then asked the second wife, "I have always turned to you for help, and you've always been there for me. When I die, will you follow me and keep me company?" "I'm sorry, I can't help you out this time," replied the second wife. "At the very most, I can only send you to your grave." Her answer came like a bolt of thunder, and the King was devastated. Then a voice called out. "I'll leave with you and follow you no matter where you go."
   The King looked up, and there was his first wife. She was so sad and thin, she looked half-starved. Greatly grieved, the King said, "I should have taken much better care of you when I had the chance!" In truth, we all have four wives in our lives: Our fourth wife is our body. No matter how much time and effort we lavish in making it look good, it'll leave us when we die.
    Our third wife is our possessions, status, and wealth. When we die, it will all go to others. Our second wife is our family and friends. No matter how much they have been there for us, the furthest they can stay by us is up to the grave. And our first wife is our soul, often neglected in pursuit of wealth, power, and pleasures of the ego. However, our soul is the only thing that will follow us wherever we go. So cultivate, strengthen, and cherish it now! It IS your greatest gift to offer the world.

The Safe

Once upon a time, a greedy, rich man hired a great mathematician. The rich man wanted the mathematician to find the best way for him to make the greatest profit in everything he did. The rich man was building a huge safe, and his greatest dream was to fill it with gold and jewels.

The mathematician was shut away for months in his study, before finally believing he had found the solution. But he soon found there were some errors in his calculations, and he started all over again.

One night he appeared at the rich man's house, with a big smile on his face: "I found it!" he said, "My calculations are perfect." The rich man was going on a long journey the next day, and didn't have time to listen. He promised the mathematician he would pay him double his wages if he would take charge of the business while he was away, and put the new formulas into practice. Excited by his new discovery, the mathematician was delighted to accept.

When the rich man returned, months later, he found that all of his possessions had gone. Furious, he went to ask for an explanation from the mathematician. The mathematician calmly told him what he had done. He had given everything away to people. The rich man couldn't believe it, but the mathematician explained it further.

"For months I analyzed how a rich man could gain the maximum benefit, but what I could do was always limited. There's a limit to how much one man can do by himself. Then I understood the key was that many people could help us to achieve the aim. So the conclusion was that helping others was the best way to get more and more people to benefit us."

Disappointed and furious, the greedy man stormed off, desperate at having lost everything to the hare-brained schemes of a madman. However, while he was walking away disconsolately, several neighbors ran over, worried about him. All of them had been helped when the mathematician shared out the rich man's fortune. They felt so grateful to him that they offered him the hospitality of their houses, and anything such a special man might need. The neighbors even argued over who would get to help him.

Over the next few days, he saw the full results of what the mathematician had calculated. Wherever he went he was received with great honor, and everyone was willing to help him in whatever way they could. He realized that his not having anything had given him much, much more.

In this way, he managed to quickly set up flourishing businesses, but this time he followed the brilliant mathematician's advice. No longer did he keep his riches in a safe, or anything like it. Instead, he shared out his fortune among a hundred friends, whose hearts he had converted into the safest, most grateful and fruitful of safes.

Moral of the story

Everything we give to others will, sooner or later, return to us, whether or not it be in a form we expected

The Bricks Of Life

About ten years ago, a young and very successful executive named Josh was traveling down a Chicago neighborhood street.

He was going a bit too fast in his sleek, black, 12-cylinder Jaguar XKE, which was only two months old. He was watching for kids darting out from between parked cars and slowed down when he thought he saw something. As his car passed, no child darted out, but a brick sailed out and -- WHUMP! -- it smashed into the Jag's shiny black side door! SCREECH...!!!! Brakes slammed! Gears ground into reverse, and tires madly spun the Jaguar back to the spot from where the brick had been thrown.

Josh jumped out of the car, grabbed the kid and pushed him up against a parked car. He shouted at the kid, "What was that all about and who are you Just what the heck are you doing!" Building up a head of steam, he went on. "That's my new Jag, that brick you threw is gonna cost you a lot of money. Why did you throw it."

"Please, mister, please... I'm sorry! I didn't know what else to do! pleaded the youngster. I threw the brick because no one else would stop!"

Tears were dripping down the boy's chin as he pointed around the parked car. "It's my brother, Mister", he said. "He rolled off the curb and fell out of his wheelchair and I can't lift him up." Sobbing, the boy asked the executive, "Would you please help me get him back into his wheelchair? He's hurt and he's too heavy for me."

Moved beyond words, the young executive tried desperately to swallow the rapidly swelling lump in his throat.

Straining, he lifted the young man back into the wheelchair and took out his handkerchief and wiped the scrapes and cuts, checking to see that everything was going to be OK. He then watched the younger brother push him down the sidewalk toward their home. It was a long walk back to the sleek, black, shining, 12-cylinder Jaguar XKE - a long and slow walk.

Josh never did fix the side door of his Jaguar. He kept the dent to remind him not to go through life so fast that someone has to throw a brick at him to get his attention.

What a great story!

At times in our lives, we tend to become so wrapped up in other things. We become focused on ourselves or our job we do not realize there are others around us that need our help.

We can react in a negative way to a situation without fully realizing or taking the time to look at the other persons situation, or to take the time to find out the reason the other person has taken the action that they did.

Hidden Treasure Amongst Us

I remember reading a story once about a man who was exploring some caves by the seashore. In one of the caves he found a canvas bag with a bunch of hardened clay balls. It was like someone had rolled up some clay and left them out in the sun to bake. They didn't look like much, but they intrigued the man so he took the bag out of the cave with him.

As he strolled along the beach, to pass the time, he would throw the clay balls one at a time out into the ocean as far as he could throw.

He thought little about it until he dropped one of the balls and it cracked open on a rock. Inside was a beautiful, precious stone. Excited, the man started breaking open the remaining clay balls. Each contained a similar treasure. He found thousands of dollars worth of jewels in the 20 or so clay balls he had left, then it struck him.

He had been on the beach a long time. He had thrown maybe 50 or 60 of the clay balls with their hidden treasure into the ocean waves. Instead of thousands of dollars in treasure, he could have had tens of thousands, but he just threw it all away.

You know sometimes, it's like that with people. We look at someone, maybe even ourselves, and we see the external clay vessel. It doesn't look like much from the outside. It isn't always beautiful or sparkling, so we discount it; we see that person as less important than someone more beautiful or stylish or well known or wealthy.



But we have not taken the time to find the treasure hidden inside that person.

There is a treasure in each and every one of us. If we take the time to get to know that person, and if we ask God to show us that person the way He sees them, then the clay begins to peel away and the brilliant gem begins to shine forth.

May we not come to the end of our lives and find out that we have thrown away a fortune in friendships because the gems were hidden in bits of clay. May we see the people in our world as God sees them.

You Are Special to those who love You

A well known speaker started off his seminar by holding up a $20 bill. In the room of 2000 he asked. Who would like this $20 bill.Hands started going up. He said, I am going to give this $20 to one of you - but first, let me do this.He proceeded to crumple the 20 dollar note up. He then asked. Who still wants it? Still the hands were up in the air.

Well, he replied, what if I do this. He dropped it on the ground and started to grind it into the floor with his shoe. He picked it up, now crumpled and dirty. Now, who still wants it? Still the hands went into the air.

My friends, you have all learned a very valuable lesson. No matter what I did to the money, you still wanted it because it did not decrease in value. It was still worth $20.

Many times in our lives, we are dropped, crumpled, and ground into the dirt by the decisions we make and the circumstances that come our way. We feel as though we are worthless; but no matter what happened or what will happen, you will never lose your value.

Dirty or clean, crumpled or finely creased, you are still priceless to those who love you. The worth of our lives comes, not in what we do or who we know, but by ...WHO WE ARE.



You are SPECIAL - don't ever forget it.

Why are Goals Important?

On the best sunny day, the most powerful magnifying glass will not light paper if you keep moving the glass. But if you focus and hold it, the paper will light up. That is the power of concentration.



A man was traveling and stopped at an intersection. He asked an elderly man, "Where does this road take me?" The elderly person asked, "Where do you want to go?" The man replied, "I don't know." The elderly person said, "Then take any road. What difference does it make?"
How true. When we don't know where we are going, any road will take us there.

Suppose you have all the football eleven players, enthusiastically ready to play the game, all charged up, and then someone took the goal post away. What would happen to the game? There is nothing left. How do you keep score? How do you know you have arrived?

Enthusiasm without direction is like wildfire and leads to frustration. Goals give a sense of direction. Would you sit in a train or a plane without knowing where it was going? The obvious answer is no. Then why do people go through life without having any goals?