MyLifeYoga

“Our deepest fear, is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness that most frightens us. We ask ourselves, Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, fabulous? Actually, who are you not to be? You are a child of God. Your playing small does not serve the world. … As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others.” – Marianne Williamson. (Usually misattributed to Nelson Mandela)

So how do we rise above our fears? How can we go from being trapped in our shortcomings to rise up and meet our destiny? The answer can be found in this quote by Joseph Cambell:

“When we quit thinking primarily about ourselves and our own self-preservation, we undergo a truly heroic transformation of consciousness.”

Our heroic transformation happens when we are able to set aside our ego and allow our consciousness to flow unhindered. This transformative process is also known as Yoga. It happens when:

1. We quiet the mind so that we are completely in charge of our thoughts. (Raja Yoga or the Yoga of meditation).
2. Or it happens due to our utter devotion and surrender to something bigger than ourselves. (Bhakti Yoga or the Yoga of devoted love).
3. Another way it happens is when we are able to work selflessly towards our goals without any expectation, or concern for recognition, or fear of failure. (Karma Yoga or Yoga of selfless action).
4. Yet another way our transformation happens is when we commit ourselves to continuous learning and self-improvement. We are so committed to the process of discovery that we are willing to go where this leads us by letting go of all our preconceived notions and false ideas. (Jnana Yoga or Yoga of knowledge).

The journey of Yoga is a journey out of fear. It is a journey of transformation where darkness gives way to light, and constant worry gives way to effortless joy. It happens when one or more processes mentioned here melts away blocks to the flow of consciousness. As consciousness unravels itself we are able to go beyond ourselves. Unconstrained and unfettered be the smallness of our ego, we truly become fearless children of God.

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Credits:This has been written by Raj Shah and edited by Ketna Shah.

The world has a garbage problem. Just in Europe alone 150 Million tons of waste ends up in landfill every year. This also worsens global warming as methane from landfill is a greenhouse gas. Sweden shows us the way. While we must reduce our garbage output we must also learn how to deal with what garbage we produce. In Sweden less than 1% of waste ends up in landfill. Half of the rest is recycled and the rest in incinerated. While incinerating waste is controversial for its emission of toxins, Sweden shows that it can be done safely. Thus Sweden has turned the waste problem into a profitable business, generating energy from the waste. Energy that would have otherwise come from burning fossil fuel.

Related: Global Warming: Five Questions To Ask

In a jungle, there lived a jackal by the name of Chandarava. One day he was very hungry, so he risked going into the city to find food.

There he found himself surrounded by barking dogs.

They set upon him and chased him.

To save his skin, he ran into a nearby house.

A big vat of indigo dye was lying there.

He jumped in to hide but discovered that his whole body was dyed Indigo as a result and he no longer looked like a jackal. Terrified he rushed out of the vat and out of the house where the dogs were waiting for him. But when he came out, the dogs were unable to recognize him and ran off terrified.

The jackal went back to the jungle. The indigo dye would not come off. Back in the jungle, when the animals, the lions, tigers, elephants, wolves and the rest of them, saw the indigo-colored jackal, they ran away in terror and said to one another, ‘Let’s run away for we don’t know the strength of this animal or what to expect of him.’
When the jackal saw the frightened animal he had an idea. He called them back and said, ‘Oh! Animals! Why are you running off? Don’t be afraid
the Lord of Creation has made me himself with his hands. He has told me, “the animals have no king, so I have crowned you as a king. Go to the earth and protect them well.”’



‘That’s why,’ he continued ‘ I’ve come here. From now on you all shall live in my kingdom, under my protection.’ When the animals heard this, they surrounded him and said, ‘Master, we await your command.’ 

The jackal immediately assigned specific duties to all animals, but he said he would have nothing to do with jackals as he was afraid that they would recognize him. The jackals were all chased away. The lion and the tiger used to go out hunting and bring food before the jackal. He would have his fill and then distribute the remaining to other animals he chose. 



He was quite happy and in this way, quite some time passed. One day, the jackal heard in the distance the howl of pack of jackals. 

He was spellbound, his eyes filled with tears of joy, he stood up and began to howl. When the lion and the other animals heard the howl, they realized who he really was. They said angrily to each other, ‘the despicable jackal has fooled us! We will kill him!’

When the jackal heard this he tried to escape but was chased and killed by the angry mob of animals.

The moral is that you cannot change who you really are by changing your outer appearance. If you have to change, then start changing from the inside out. Change your habits and the way you think rather than changing your appearance or the way you look. If you make only outer changes you may fool others temporarily. But sooner or later your true self will show up and your game shall be up.

Credit: This is based on a Panchantantra story.

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