Leap into the spirit
When you think of great leaders , inspiring figures like Gandhiji, Martin Luther King Jr and Nelson Mandela come to mind. What made these icons such powerful leaders? Everyone has the potential to become a great leader. You only have to awaken the leader in you. The most impactful leaders have been spiritual heads whose influence remains long after their death. When you tap into the Spirit, you overcome all barriers like physical limitations, emotional hang-ups, intellectual prejudices. You breathe an ethereal air.A leader has a vision and thinks beyond the narrow confines of 'I, me, mine'. You cannot achieve greatness with a small mind. Leaders work for a higher ideal, for lokasangraha , well-being of the world. They do not want just power or position for themselves. Their goal is to serve, add value to the community and help solve their problems. The Bhagwad Gita says, work in a spirit of yajna, service, sacrifice for a noble cause, and you will get success and happiness. You will grow to your potential.When you are uninspired, you experience boredom and drudgery. The same work driven by an emotional motivation becomes exciting. A father may be laid back and demotivated. But when inspired to work for his child, he becomes enthusiastic, energetic and creative. Enthused by an intellectual ideal, you smash through even emotional hang-ups and achieve the impossible. And when you take mighty leap into the Spirit, all barriers break down.
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Time of India
2 days ago
- Time of India
From Pollution To Prayer: Healing The Earth Through Inner Awakening
When the Earth is hurting, it is not just her soil, water, or sky that suffers — it is our own spirit that bleeds quietly. The smog in our cities, the poison in our rivers, the plastic in our oceans — they are not merely ecological disturbances. They are symptoms of a deeper ailment: our separation from the sacredness of nature. In ancient India, we bowed to rivers, whispered gratitude to trees, and offered prayers before lighting fire or touching the soil. We recognised the five great elements—Pancha Mahabhutas—not as inert substances but as divine manifestations: Prithvi, Earth; Apah, Water; Tejas, Fire; Vayu, Air, and Akasha, Space. Today, in the name of progress, we have forgotten this sacred contract. But healing is possible. It begins not in policies or pipelines, but in people—in the stillness of our hearts. Spiritual ecology invites us to see pollution not just as an external crisis, but as an inner imbalance. Our greed, endless consumption, restlessness—all spill into the world around us. This is where our ancient wisdom can become our guide. When Krishn told Arjun in the Bhagwad Gita: "Yajnat bhavati parjanyo, parjanyad anna-sambhavah' — he was not just speaking of sacrificial rituals but of sacred reciprocity. Rain comes from selfless action. Food comes from rain. Life flourishes when we live in harmony, not dominion. The river Ganga, venerated for millennia as Mother, is a poignant symbol of this sacred bond. On Ganga Dussehra , we celebrate her descent from the heavens—not just into geography, but into our collective soul. And yet today, her waters bear the burden of our negligence: sewage, plastics, industrial waste, and ritual remnants. To pollute Ganga is to wound Bharat's spirit. To cleanse her is not just a civic act—it is a spiritual tapasya. Can we turn our rituals into responsibility? Can our pujas be plastic-free? Can our offerings be sustainable? Can our devotion be action? The answer lies in reawakening values such as Ahimsa , non-harming; Aparigraha, non-possessiveness; Santosha, contentment—values that lie at the heart of every spiritual tradition. It is not just temples that need cleaning, but our inner chambers. It is not just the air outside that needs purification, but also the restless wind within. Let us take one step today: * Speak gently to a tree. * Offer water to a plant. * Walk barefoot on the grass. * Say a silent prayer before using electricity or water. * Reduce plastic not just out of guilt, but out of reverence. The Upanishads whispered, 'Sarvam khalvidam brahmn'— all this is Brahmn. To hurt any part is to hurt the Whole. To heal one part is to heal the Whole. May we live humbly, tread lightly, and act reverently. May our breath be clean, our rivers clear, and our hearts pure. May our children inherit not just an Earth that works, but an Earth that prays. Authored by: Shambo Samrat Samajdar and Shashank R Joshi Why Arjun Was Chosen: The Untold Secret of Bhagavad Gita Chapter 4, Verse 3
Time of India
03-06-2025
- Time of India
Removing inner blemishes to spotlight the self
By Jayant B Dave Removing three defects of mind, also called antahkaran quadruple, in the form of mal, impurities, vikshepa, distraction and avarna, veil, is beginning of a spiritual journey from gross to subtle, in the form of karm yog, culminating into the subtlest Atman through practice of Jnan Yog. Bhakti is common to both. Eight-limbed meditation, yog, starts from the gross physical body, food sheath, in the form of asan, and proceeds to the subtle pran (vital sheath) in the form of pranayam and subtler mind (mental sheath) in the form of concentration and meditation until mind merges with the subtlest abode. It is important to realise that we alone can view our progress from gross to subtle, hindrances on the way, and, at times, regression in the process. What others can perceive is only a shadow of this inner movement. That is why saints such as Swami Sivananda have emphasised self-analysis and introspection at every stage of our lives, nay, every day or every opportune moment. Swami Chidananda cautions us to introspect impartially because our ego does not permit us to accept our blemishes as undesirable traits and finds some justification for them. In realising the Absolute, removing mind's defects plays a more important part than conscious cultivation of virtues. This is because man is potentially divine, characterised by sat, chit, and anand – absolute existence, consciousness, and bliss, and their manifestation into relative forms such as empirical truth, objective knowledge, selfless love, and usual happiness should be a natural, spontaneous happening. Intriguingly, this transformation does not usually take place because the soul is covered by maya, beginningless imponderable power of Ishwar and its effects in the form of avidya, ignorance; asmita, ego; raag, attachment; dvesha, aversion; abhinivesh, clinging to worldly objects and fear of death experienced at lower levels of our human personality, bodymind-intellect apparatus. When these lower constituents of human personality are freed from impurities existing as subtle impressions, binding desires and tendencies and delusion, the Self shines spontaneously, radiating objectless consciousness and bliss. Eradication of vices and cultivation of virtues is a simultaneous process. The former happens by conscious effort, and the latter happens in a relatively natural way. At times, cultivation of virtues is also encouraged to counter strong, deep-seated evil influence, and this is known as pratipaksha bhavana . Defects of the inner self, however deep-seated, are extrinsic to our true Self, as the mind and intellect are our adjuncts, superimposed on the self and falsely attributed to our true Self. The highest reality has no attributes of space, time, causation, and it is self-revealing. The inner battle is referred to as dharmakshetra in the Bhagwad Gita and starts with impartial introspection by Sanjay. The third chapter of the Gita concludes by saying that binding desires (kaam) begotten of rajas reside in the senses, mind, intellect and cover the Self like smoke covering fire. Krishn's prescription is to control senses, mind and then overcome desires, products of mental blemishes that obstruct jnan, knowledge of nirgun Brahmn and vijnan, knowledge of Brahmn with attributes. Facebook Twitter Linkedin Email Disclaimer Views expressed above are the author's own.
Time of India
02-06-2025
- Time of India
Wittgenstein, Kipling and Gita's Stithprajna
Authored by Ashok Vohra The Sanskrit term ' stithprajna' combines 'stitha' – steady, firm, and 'prajna' – wise, learned. So, stithprajna means a person of steady wisdom. He is the 'one whose mind remains undisturbed amidst misery, for whom sukha-duhkha, happiness and sorrow; labha-alabhau, gain or loss; jaya-ajaya, conquest and defeat are the same. A person, according to Gita, 2.55, attains the status of stithprajna when he 'discards all selfish desires and cravings of the senses that torment the mind, and becomes satisfied in realisation of the Self, such a person is said to be transcendentally situated.' A stithprajna turns his mind away from the material allurements and renounces lure of the senses. He is free from raag, attachment; dvesh, jealousy; bhay, fear; krodh, anger. He is indifferent to the uncertainties of life, its vulnerability to reversals and its resilience. He is indifferent to the temporary nature of the results of his actions, nor is he disappointed if he cannot achieve his chosen goals, complete the deeds undertaken by him, or even if his deeds do not yield desired fruits. The performance of actions with all sincerity is the end that gives him satisfaction. Kathopanishad, 2.3.14, goes to the extent of saying that one who has renounced desires becomes like God: 'When one eliminates all selfish desires from the heart, then the materially fettered jivatma (soul) attains freedom from birth and death, and becomes Godlike in virtue.' In the Bhagwad Gita, 2.54, Arjun asks Krishn about the characteristics of a stithprajna. He asks, 'How does the man of steady wisdom speak? How does he sit? How does he move about?' Krishn answers that a stithprajna 'practises self-control' and 'discards all selfish desires and cravings of the senses that torment the mind'. His life is both authentic and autonomous. If interpreted in Ludwig Wittgenstein's terms, stithprajna is 'the man…fulfilling the purpose of existence who no longer needs to have a purpose except to live. That is to say, who is content.' For him, the solution to problems of life lies in 'disappearance of the problem'. This frees him from hope and fear, 'for life in the present there is no death.' He knows that the lived world is 'beyond the control of human will, and therefore he is content with how the world is.' He lives in the world and accepts it without trying to change it. He contemplates the world as a limited whole as an impartial observer. He realises that he 'cannot steer the world's happenings according to (his) will,' and that he is 'entirely powerless'. He also realises that he 'can only make (himself) independent of the world – and so in a certain sense, master it – by renouncing any influence on happenings.' Krishn's description of stithprajna also reflects in Rudyard Kipling's poem If , it reads: 'If you can dream – and not make dreams your master/If you can think – and not make thoughts your aim/If you can meet with Triumph and Disaster/And treat those two impostors just the same…/If neither foes nor loving friends can hurt you/If all men count with you, but none too much'. Facebook Twitter Linkedin Email Disclaimer Views expressed above are the author's own.
