H-O-L-I-D-A-Y

After my friends come back from a vacation, they very often complain about being more tired than before & wanting a holiday after finishing a holiday. Holidays are not only for rest on the physical level. We overuse our 5 senses in our day-to-day life. A vacation is a good time for physical relaxation & also a mental switch-off.
With most of us planning our holidays for this year, I wanted to share my definition of a perfect H-O-L-I-D-A-Y.

1. Have fun: 

My idea of fun is to meet & talk to new people, see new places, swing in a hammock listen to music and read a book. What’s your idea of fun?

There’s nothing ever right or wrong about what you want to do. Holidays are meant for doing things we normally don’t have time for! Plan, keeping in mind that the activity does not become too physically tiring or mentally exhaustive.

2. Opportunity for adventure / complaint: 

There’s a story where a man checked into a very expensive hotel room & spent the entire night making a comfortable bed for him self. When he was ready to sleep, it was morning already and it was time for him to leave.

There are always a variety of unplanned situations we encounter on a holiday.

I remind myself that I am not on duty, this is not office, so things don’t have to be perfect; It’s a holiday, at least on a holiday let me not complain or get upset about unprecedented situations, instead it helps to simply laugh off the situation and take every moment like a new adventure.

3. Lose your identity & loosen up: 

We play several roles in our everyday life: that of a mother, friend, advisor, manager etc. Holidays are a good time to take a break from the role we play in our everyday lives.

When I am on a holiday, I make it point not to discuss my regular subject, I keep my meditation practices but not necessarily at 5 AM in the morning. I give myself a break, allow myself to loosen up and this is what ensures I work even better after I come back.
4. Innovate:

Its good to go to well known places and follow standard known methods of holiday. It’s even better to innovate & find unbeaten paths; this keeps my excitement levels high,  helps avoid over crowded places and gives me my own space, freedom & time to do what I want to do. 
Also gives me many more stories to talk about with my friends, after I come back.

5. Drink, dine, dress & dance:

Being a vegetarian, its very important for me to find ‘my kind of’ food. Normally in groups, it’s ideal if we have a vast variety of cuisine available. Comfortable dress (which means less number of bags) plus good food & I am ready to dance my way into and out of my holiday!

6. Ask:

If you don’t know what to do or where to go next, then ask! Talking to locals, sharing information with friends and grape vine are excellent avenues for ensuring a good retreat.

7. You…are the most important person on this planet. Don’t forget to spend time with yourself.

Holidays are the only opportunity to simply sit quite, do nothing, watch a flowing river & spend quality time with the best and most important person in this world: YOU!!!!

Message for the week:
I am constantly traveling for teaching Art of Living programs. On a holiday I make it a point to withdraw myself, act without doer-ship, enjoy without worry about what will be, give rest to my 5 senses and I come back totally rejuvenated.

Two trips a year: Once a pleasure trip & once every year, a 4 day Advance Meditation program at the International Art of Living centre, Bangalore, India is my idea of a ‘Perfect Holiday’. See you all at the next one coming up soon.

Happy Holidays,. Happy Summer Vacations.

11 Things I Love about Mumbai

Born and raised in a metropolitan city like Bombay (now Mumbai), I look back over the years and recount the many things I love about my city.

With all its drawbacks and even after indescribable disappointments and broken hearts, there is most certainly something special about the ‘Spirit of Mumbai’. Spending hours in the fast trains of Mumbai, thousands live with a dream in their eyes, and hope in their hearts that someday the ‘Spirit of Mumbai’ will transform their petty world into Heaven on Earth.

The Gate Way of India,
Mumbai

I have listed Top 11 things I love about my city:

1.     I love how Mumbaikars can be very quiet about all the Political scams, but fight it out with an auto-rickshaw driver for charging an extra Rs.5, until we have blown an artery.

St.Michael's Church            Haji Ali Dargaah

2.     I love the hundreds of people from all religions who pray with me at the Haji Ali dargaah(Mosque) and also offer Novena at Mahim(St.Michael’s) church.
Whoever said God is restricted to one religion can fix up a personal appointment for attaining liberation on Mumbai streets.

3.     I love that Shiv Sagar (Udipi south Indian restaurant) offers Pizzas and Pizza Hut offers Tandoori Paneer.
How much more choice can any cuisine have?

4.     I also love that I can go to a 5 star hotel and eat my Pizza with my hand  and come back home and eat my dal(lentil) and rice with a spoon and fork without anyone even batting an eyelid.

Welcome for Indian Cricket Team
after T20 World Cup Win

5.     I love that on the day of India-Pakistan Cricket World Cup final, I dance on the streets, blow a whistle and wave Indian flags and cheer for my country like my existence depends on the result of the match.
Please remember, it’s a 1-day long love affair with my country, remaining 364 days, my country can look after itself!

6.     I love that I never break traffic lights and always get out of my car to help clear traffic jams, and then go park my car in the no-parking zone.

Liberation from Mumbai traffic is more meaningful than liberation from this material world.

7.     I love that roadside locally manufactured handbags are Gucci, Guess and Prada look a-likes.

Only giving the Chinese market some competition, that’s all.

8.     I love that I wait in the queue for hours along with richer than the richest and poorer than the poorest to get one glimpse of Ganesha, Lalbaugcha Raja.

Lalbaugcha Raja Visarjan

I am sure this festival makes all Communists in the world rejoice.

9.     I love that when floods hit Mumbai and thousands were stranded through out the night on the streets without any mode of communication, I along with many others went out of cozy homes with buckets of tea and food.

Neither heavy floods nor storm could stop the ‘spirit of Mumbai’ from going out to help strangers in need.

Vada Pao

10. I love that no matter how many states in India try to get the Vada-Pav right, it simply needs the Mumbai-effect to come out tasty.

Would someone please ask Non-Mumbaiittes to please keep jeera, onion, masala coconut powder far away my Vada-Pav.

11. I love that at the airport there is only a small 40 sq. feet cubicle with the sign ‘Smoking zone’. All the rest is presumably then ‘NON-Smoking zone’.

When we have strong doses of ‘spiritual high’ easily available, who needs cigarettes?

Message for the Week:

Upbringing in Mumbai brings flexibility and acceptance for different cultures & ways of thinking. I am constantly on the move, but always feel at home, no matter where I am, within India or abroad.

I carry my home in my heart.

No matter where you are, create a Home away from Home. Leave out the differences, find the commonalities & make them grow. Your easy adaptation to changing environments is a true reflection of the values given by your city.

May the Angels of happiness, love and joy reside with you forever.

Leap of Faith

In my last post, I mentioned that, the choice to go ahead with a critical operation for my father was a very big leap of faith for my family, which, with God’s grace, proved to be a good decision.
When I shared the story about the above incident in 2007, my narration, sent in a simple email to a group of teachers went viral & found its place on several blogs & websites. Today 6yrs later, I would like to narrate the same incident mentioned above, albeit, a version of my learnings from the same!

10 days before the end of my first trip to Israel, for teaching Art of Living programs for Jewish & Arab women suffering from breast cancer, I had received news of my father’s critical health condition & probable operation.

Leap of Faith

I had a choice to make, a leap of faith was demanded for: to stay back & teach the last 2 courses at Augusta Victoria hospital or to cancel the courses & go back to India & be by my father’s side. This was a moment of tremendous fear, where personal preferences easily over-ride the thoughts about betterment of others. A wrong decision would have meant I would possibly never see my father alive again. Going back to India meant leaving behind a group of 40 women who looked to the breathing technique 'sudarshan kriya' as a saviour for their psychological well-being during their fight against cancer.

After a communication with my family & my Guru, Poojya Sri Sri Ravi Shankarji, I chose to stay back & teach the courses, while my family made the critical choice of going ahead with the operation.

When I look back I wonder how I found the strength to decide my course of action. I would like to share here few factors that helped me make the decision:

1.    A Strong Fallback:

You are not alone

Inviting your Experiences

On this path called 'Life', each one of us has had our own testing moments. 

On the physical level, a 'Leap of Faith' is what the trapeze artist does! On the emotional & spiritual level, it denotes a moment of choice, a decision, where the result was completely unknown, a moment demanding a 'Leap of Faith'.