MyLifeYoga

A Zen master planned to make a painting. He had his chief disciple sit by his side to tell him if his painting was Zen. This means the painting has to be done spontaneously and without hesitation. Unfortunately having a disciple watch over his shoulder was not a good idea as this put pressure on the master. Immediately things started going wrong.

In Japan or in China, the whole art of calligraphy is done on rice-paper. This is a very sensitive and fragile paper. If you hesitate a little, for centuries it can be known where the calligrapher hesitated, because more ink spreads into the rice-paper and makes it a mess. It is very difficult to deceive on rice-paper. You have to go on flowing without any hesitation in your strokes. Even for a single split moment if you hesitate, any one who has a keen eye will immediately say, “It is not a Zen painting at all”. This is because a Zen painting has to be a spontaneous painting that flows out in a creative act.

The master tried and tried and the more he tried the more difficult it became. Soon he started perspiring. And the disciple was sitting there and shaking his head thinking, ‘No, this is not perfect.’ As this continued more and more mistakes were being made by the master. Continue reading →

Imagine yourself in a small boat in the middle of the ocean and that a terrifying storm is underway. 40 Miles per hour winds gusts are blowing and your boat is getting pounded by 10 to 20 feet waves. Wouldn’t you find your situation precarious?

But here is this funny thing. In the same ocean a few thousand feet under your boat is a deep sea fish and it has no clue that a storm rages above. The waters are calm and undisturbed and the fish has no reason to believe that anything is amiss. Now here is a question: Would you rather be in the raging storm or in the deep calm ocean?

Most of us think that this analogy speaks to some abstract situation that does not apply to us. But this is not so. It applies to us more than what we think. To understand this we have to realize that many amongst us spend most of our time on the surface of the ocean of consciousness. Here on the surface we are constantly being rocked by “thought-waves”. But deep in the ocean of consciousness there is peace and bliss, so it is strange that we choose to spend most of our time on the stormy surface. Why is this? Continue reading →

Kris Carr was diagnosed with a rare incurable form of cancer in 2003 on Valentine’s day. When the cancer was detected it had already spread from her liver to lungs. She was considered to be in stage IV of Cancer’s progression. There is no Stage V. She was 31 years old and was quickly running out of options. With her back to the wall Kris stumbled on a book that suggested that a radical change in diet may help. Kris took this germ of an idea and ran with it, not afraid to research and experiment till she came up with a raw, alkaline, and vegan diet that relies a lot on juicing and no processed sugar. Against all odds Kris has survived and thrived and her book, Crazy Sexy Cancer, has been a New York Times bestseller. She got married in 2006 and now lives with her husband and dog in Woodstock, New York.

The Kris Carr story shows that a change in diet can help prevent or delay cancer. Her story has lessons for all, not just cancer patients. Her story also teaches that once diagnosed with cancer it is not a good idea to interfere with regular medical treatment (though you have to take charge) but to supplement it with a dramatic change in diet to slow down progression of the cancer. Here are some links that may help you begin your journey into understanding the message from the Kris Carr story:

Kris Carr Website
Kris Carr talk on You Tube
Crazy Sexy Cancer Tips
Kris talks about her journey into a new diet

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