Santa's gift

Christmas is the season that honors the birth of Jesus of Nazareth. It is a fun filled & holy festival that's celebrated across the globe. The holiday season is characterized by church celebrations, late night masses, feasts, christmas trees, holly, mistletoes, gift giving and offcoursethe ever-so cuddly Santa Claus.

While the whole world is busy preparing for the holidays either by way of planning family trips ordeciding on the menu or carol singing, our dear Santa Claus is having a tough time. Since time immemorial,this plump, jolly, white-bearded man called Saint Nicholas has been assigned the daunting task of spreadinghappiness by satisfying everyone's materialistic demands by way of gifts. Only this time, things are a lil' different.

With the ongoing recession and climatic changes taking place all over, Santa is finding it reallyhard to cope up with things. Firstly, he's up north where the ice is melting uncontrollably and igloos arebecoming extinct. As a result, the sleigh manufacturers are shutting shop due to falling demand. Secondly,the dollar has shot up increasing prices of gifting supplies & also import costs. Lastly, with the exploding population, the North Pole Postal Agency which receives the letters for Santa from across theglobe are demanding higher compensation from Santa for having to work overtime. As a result, the demand/gift/materialistic list prepared by santa has run into so many pages that he has decided to outsourcesome other Santa's from different parts of the world to accomplish this seemingly impossible task.

Problems have compounded for poor Santa as the demands made by children and adults alike have been showing a'trend-upheaval'over the past years. While demand for simple toys, games and books have considerably gone down, the demand for snazzy gizmos like mobile phones, ps3's, iPods and robots have increased exponentially! This isweighing down heavily on Santa who has budget constraints. To add to his woes, this year Santa has received severalletters and requests which have left him dumbfounded. A boy from the U.S. of A wants to be part of the Obama administration so that atleast he and his family don't have the fear of being laid-off in the economic downturn. The boy urges Santa to fulfill his request by ending his letter with the words- 'YES YOU CAN' in true Obama style. A young girl from the middle east wants to marry the guy who threw his shoes on Bush while a kid from Afghanistan wants that very shoe! As though this was not enough, a Japanese couple has sent in a request demanding a miracle torevive their economy. To top it all, an Indian kid wants to lay his hands on Dawood Ibrahim! I really pity Santa...

But the good samaritan that Santa is, he somehow managed to arrange for the weird materialistic and self-centered demandsmade by mortals all over. On Christmas eve, Santa with all his elves has set up a 'happiness laden train' of his own sleighs (and some rented) to form something a little less longer than the Great wall of China. As he is about to set off for what might be his longest excursion, in comes one last request. Its from a young girl who lives in a distant land. She has just mentioned her address and wants to meet Santa once. Thats it! "NO gift?", exclaimed Santa with shock and surprise. Being unable to decline this mysterious but simple request, Santa decided to oblige and keep it for the end. He finally sets off.

First stop was obviously the U.S.A. which made utmost use of technology to contact Santa. He went from state to state in a flash dropping by the chimneys and filling the stockings with gifts. Some were sweet in leaving behind cakes and eastereggs but being overweight, Santa would carry them for his elves. He flew over New York where he heard a guy called EMINEM sing 'will the real santa please stand up, please stand up' in front of a huge crowd of santa wannabe's. Gosh, he didn't seem amused. The other outsourced Santa's also bumped into him over Europe and some gifts got exchanged by mistake addingto the delay. To the weird demands made by people wanting the 'shoe' or the 'obama' kid, Santa politely dropped in anexciting gadget to divert their attention from their dreamy wants.

It was all finally over when Santa took a break atop Mt. Everest. He could picturize the entire globe enjoying and derivinghappiness from materialism. He began thinking how people were finding happiness externally when true happiness was right within them. He was mulling over the varying definitions of happiness that people had coined but how he strongly believed thatall seasons are beautiful for the person who carries happiness within. All of a sudden, he remembered the girl. He quickly left.

Upon arrival at the address, all he saw was an open lawn with a solitary christmas tree and a lit candle on a box at the bottom. Beside it was a girl dressed in a dingy frock (in all probability, the girl who wrote the letter to meet Santa). Looking at Santa alight from his sleigh, the girl ran towards him and hugged him tight without saying a word. The girl was overjoyed at the sight of Santa who hugged her too as tears of happiness rolled down her eyes. "What happened child? Whyare you alone on this holy evening and why did you want to meet me? Why don't you want a gift?" The girl still not being able to contain her joy spoke in a tone that moved Santa. "I am from a simple family and my parents have to toil very hardeveryday to afford a good meal. Despite this, we are all happy as we never sleep hungry. My parents tell me that unlike others,we are extremely lucky people as we get a gift everyday from you in the form of good food and a roof to cover oursleves. Somedays ago, for the first time my daddy got me a box of chocolates. I was overjoyed. My mother told me its a christmas gift from Santa and said that I should be thankful to you. I see others get big & colorful presents for christmas everytime. Some are happy for the moment while some are not. But I am always happy as I get a gift everyday from you. I don't want any other gift that keeps me happy for only some time as I have all the precious gifts I need to live life happily forever. So I just wanted to meet you and thank you for everything that you have given us."

As she said this, she picked up what looked like a small box from the bottom of the christmas tree. "Thank you Santa!", the girl said handing the box to the teary-eyed Santa. He opened the box and broke into a smile as he saw the chocolates in there with a friendship band with the words 'santa's gift' written in an untidy script. She tied it around Santa's wrist. "This friendship band is for you to thank you for always keeping me happy. I want to share the chocolates with you so that you can be a part of my happiness." This was the first time Santa had received a gift from someone who had never asked for one. It was the first time that someone had expressed immense gratitude for the simple gifts of life for which even Santa wasn't responsible.

Santa was touched by this affable gesture. He knew that the girl would develop into being a wise human being for whomhappiness meant to love, to be loved and to be thankful for every minute of this precious gift of life. The only thing he could give the girl was his word that he would celebrate every christmas with her. The childs joy knew no bounds as both the emotional souls bid each other good-bye only to meet next christmas.

The girl had the best christmas ever and knew that she was not alone on this holy day. For Santa, it was the happiest day of his life as he had finally unravelled the true definition of happiness from a girl who had also given him his first- 'santa's gift'

"Happiness cannot be traveled to, owned, earned, worn or consumed. Happiness is the spiritual experience of living every minute with love, grace and gratitude.Happiness cannot come from without. It must come from within. It is not what we see and touch or that which others do for us which makes us happy; it is that which we think and feel and do, first for the other fellow and then for ourselves.When one door of happiness closes, another opens; but often we look so long at the closed door that we do not see the one which has been opened for us."

If you like this post, please feel free to comment below and write your thoughts on 'happYness' to share a happy moment with the world. You can also pass on this post to others you want to share the happiness with by clicking on the envelope icon below.

Merry Christmas Everyone! Be Happy.

25-12-08
-Varun Thakur

Howdy, Suckers. Take note…

First thing anyone reading the title would say ‘why sucker?' or ‘what can you note anyways?' Valid questions I must admit. And I shall try to throw some fresh perspective to this sucker.

You walk into a restaurant/pub/bar or whatever place you desire. You look at the menu and order for your drink. After some time, the waiter gets you that gleaming liquid which might help in making your wallet lighter, but that does not deter you. Your pricey drink comes with a humble straw whose primary job is ‘to suck.' Straws are of various shapes, sizes, colors, materials, etc but they have two ends. You have the liberty to choose the drink you want to suck through the straw. You move your straw from drink to drink (if there are others on the table) and try to see if there are other drinks better than yours. At times, you suck directly from another person's straw. Most times, you get drunk and get lost in the ecstasy. You have options when it comes to the choice of your drink and the pleasure you derive from it but no one would bother changing a straw!

So what's the big deal about the straw? And why talk about it?

Because the straw has a huge impact on the kind of individuals we are & the lives that we live. Simple.

Baffled! Confused!
So was I until I let the sucker inside me talk to the sucker in my drink.

The straw is analogous to our minds. We enter this world with one and we leave this world with the same one. Throughout the journey of life, we condition it in ways which are acceptable or comfortable to us. Just like the suckers (you and me) use the straw to suck in the drink of our choice, the intellect (the sucker) uses the mind to suck in circumstances, consequences and effects from the surroundings into our bodies.

If you like a drink, you drink more. If you don't like a drink, you might even spit it out. Similarly, pleasant situations/ events draw us more towards them. But when it comes to an undesirable event, we suck & repent as spitting it out isn't an option. We only have to learn from the mistake.
Sometimes we also use some other persons mind (straw) to base our judgements.A unique situation arises when you get so heavily drunk that you don't even realize what or how much you suck in. There are instances in life when your mind is so badly cluttered/ flustered/ befuddled & out of control that you behave like a straw with a suction pump on one end and go on slurping anything from anywhere and at anytime without realizing what's happening. This is a garbage dump situation. This is where we are lost and our intellect takes us for a ride. This is where we infuse negative circumstances into our lives without realizing the harmful effects of our uncontrolled sucking. Remember, spitting is really not an option then. That's when you puke.

We train our intellect to guide our minds in the right direction but circumstances are so tempting that we lose control. The suction pump within us attracts and sucks in all that we think about or talk about or crib about. Also we move from event to event in life and base our judgements on our intellects perceptions just like we move from drink to drink. We may think something is right while something is wrong. But the reality is that there's nothing right and there's nothing wrong when it comes to life. Everyone wants to change the world but no one wants to change their way of looking at the world.

The straw tells us to look before we leap and suck in only those events into our lives that are beneficial to us. For this, we need to be aware at all times and keep our conscience alert and alive.

The bottomline is that I suck! You suck! In fact, we all suck....BIG TIME! And the worst part is we suck without even realizing! So please realize and avoid getting drunk and losing it.

People say ‘mind your tongue, it's in a wet place and likely to slip.'I say ‘Mind your straw. It will take care of your tongue too!'

17-12-08

Prayers

Do you know of any prayer that has no reference to any deity and one that is different from the normal, sombre & usual tones of a usual prayer? Do you know why you pray? Do you know of any prayer that has no pleads & demands but one that has humor & gratitude contained in it?
......
.......
NO!
Well, why not?The answer to this is relatively simple. A prayer is usually an indictment of a culture's shallow and atheistic invocation of god for that religions own means and ends. Most of us get soo deeply engrossed in prayer and its verses that we ultimately defeat the whole meaning of a prayer!
So, what is a prayer?Some say it's a platform where you can ask for forgiveness, some believe it's a form of allegiance to their culture/ religion. Some think it as a sure shot path to heaven while some others don't even know why they pray!You see, there's so much ambiguity even when it comes to something as simple and pure as a prayer. This is again where our belief system intervenes and separates us!
Simply put, a prayer in its innate form is moment of solitude, a short period where you are in equanimity with your inner self. Period.It is a moment where you reflect upon all that has happened and all that is happening in and around you and your life. It is moment where you observe reality as it is and as it should be. It is the only time when you connect with the universe and its vast & infinite expanses and derive energy and power to unleash a force within you that supercedes anything and everything!
When you are in prayer, it is your inner self and your conscience that takes over. Now someone will surely argue that for any form of communication to be complete, there needs to be a sender and a receiver. That's what they mean by you and god (a deity). When you pray, its your inner self that is in conversation with the universal forces. There is no physical being in the heavens listening to you and waiting to grant you with what you want. Had it been that way, the problems in the world would have been magnified manifold!
So what happens when you pray?There is a karmic connection between you and the infinity above. The universe listens to everyone and responds in an unconventional manner. It gives you not what you want but gives you only what you need to have to get what you want. The answers are already there within us and they surface when we are in prayer. Life's seemingly impossible questions have unbelievably mundane answers...its just that we decode them in a wrong fashion.
What about the poor athiests? Do they pray? And to whom?Most athiests would say that they don't pray and they dont believe in such things. But the reality is that they do pray, its just that its done unconsciously in the ordinary scheme things. They do thank, they do ask for forgiveness and they do receive answers... but they term the incidence as 'luck' or 'finding answers to questions on their own accord' which again is a form of prayer!
So why not free prayers of selective references & particular codes of conduct?Because it is considered unwise & awry to do so. But my prayers are away from any particular references of god. In fact, I talk to my god like a friend in a humorous way and converse in a manner that seems natural to me. I delve deep into my inner self and get my answers right there. And I haven't been punished by any higher power for doing so...yet!
So PRAY! But pray with meaning & purpose and not because of seeking allegiance to someone or the fear of being abandoned by your religion. Pray because you yourself are responsible for your circumstances and because you already have the answers hidden within you. Pray to gift yourself a moment away from the world and reflect upon all things that matter in life.Pray not because you have to, but because you WANT to!

RELIGION: boon or bane?

Dictionary meaning of Religion: 1. A strong belief in a supernatural power or powers that control human destiny, 2. An institution to express belief in a divine power.

I might be termed a psycho for writing something so strident or blatant on a topic as 'sacred' as religion, but the current scheme of events (terror attacks on Mumbai) have really messed around with my head BIG TIME! My mind is puzzled: Why are these jerks (read terrorists) performing such inhumane acts against humanity, that too in the name of religion?

A recent article in the TOI spoke about the 'fidayeens' or 'young-smart-terrorists' who believe that by sacrificing others and themselves 'in the name of god' they will attain a 'BLISSFUL AFTERLIFE.' Ahem, ahem, did anyone say BLISSFUL AFTERLIFE? Now that’s a bloody new concept! Right from the time that 'time began' (the gods alone know when that was) afterlife is something whose existence no one knows about. We are just forced to believe in inane concepts such as these, all 'in the name of religion.'

Our battle with religion begins right from the time of birth. Depending on the circumstances we are born under, the 'divine power' our families believe in, etc, etc. Throughout life, we are forced to believe that we are different from others, we have different gods, we have separate customs and traditions, different practices and that we must obey the 'law' or else face dire consequences which will be inflicted upon us by our 'religion' or our 'community.' This battle finally ends upon the individual’s death (in fact it continues even till the last rites are performed!)

If I am made to believe that there is a physical entity called 'god' who is different for different religions would be absurd. I’m not saying that I am an atheist, its just that for me, God is an all-pervading abstract entity who is omnipresent in all our hearts and minds in the form of our 'conscience.' All religions ultimately speak the same truth in the form of deities of that religion. All the deities point to the same principles of loving everybody, caring for the world, peace, harmony, etc, BUT, all in their own way/tone/style which gives each one of them something to boast about. This is the problem, this is where we are differentiated/ separated.

The terrorists have tried to nurse a new religion of their own called 'terrorism' (note the 'ism' in the end just like other religions of the world) whose dictionary definition is: 'The calculated use of violence (or the threat of violence) against civilians in order to attain goals that are political or religious or ideological in nature; this is done through intimidation or coercion or instilling fear.' Terrorism speaks the language of 'destruction', 'disease' and above all 'DEATH.' These attention hungry mortals are performing such acts to publicize their religion & create a new belief which starts and ends in hatred, agony and death only.

I called this article 'RELIGION: boon or bane' not because my religion teaches me anything wrong or makes me a bad person in any way. But I don’t like it because till today it has kept me away from the universal religion that I (and we all) belong to- THE RELIGION OF 'LIFEism.'

LIFEism(Humanity) is not governed by any deity and does not have any set rules/ regulations/ social norms which separate its followers. In fact, it teaches the same principles that all other religions teach, just that its scream is not loud enough for all to hear and follow. Every act against humanity is a scream by LIFEism in disguise to come and follow the religion of oneness, kindness, love and unity. It is screaming loud and clear to forget religious boundaries and accept every individual as a HUMAN rather than a member of a community.

Like all other religions that have a god, LIFEism has 'CONSCIENCE' as its deity. We believe in all religions because we can see the god. Unfortunately 'CONSCIENCE' is invisible and hence forgotten!
Please listen to your conscience and spread the word of life!