Leaving The Hair Open….

Hair style has an important role in the appearance of an individual. While dealing with many individuals suffering from constant tiredness, weakness and unexplained diseases, I have seen that the way we care for our hair and our hairstyle affects us at a spiritual level.

Hair and nails are relatively more Raja-Tama predominant than the rest of our body. As a result of this, ghosts (demons, negative energies) who are also Raja-Tama predominant find it easier to attack us through our hair. Negative energies attach themselves onto the hair creating subtle black energy centers, and from here, they affect a person.

This means that the way we manage and care for our hair can either aid in negative energies affecting us or it can minimize the risk of them attacking us from the spiritual dimension.

Nowadays it is common for women worldwide to leave their hair open and this is especially so when they step out for the evening wanting to look their best.

Why are women affected more?

Generally women are more Raja predominant than men from a spiritual level, and so they are more emotional by nature.

By leaving her hair open, the Raja component within her hair increases even further. An increase in the Raja subtle-component makes a person’s mind more fickle and also increases the tendency to be frivolous. This fickleness of the mind can be taken advantage of by negative energies to affect a woman and make her do and say things she normally wouldn’t.

When the hair is left open, women become more conscious of their five senses and their body. Very quickly the Raja component can be converted into the Tama component by negative energies. This leads to an increase in feelings such as depression, worry, and increased sexual thoughts leading to promiscuity.

Women with short hair are at a disadvantage as they generally keep their hair open. As a result, distressing energies from the environment are continuously attracted to the hair left open. Short hair on a woman is more likely to become charged with distressing vibrations.

When a woman sleeps with her hair open, the tips of the hair shaft are exposed. When sleeping we are more vulnerable to negative energy as they are more active at night due the increased Raja–Tama vibrations in the environment. This is especially so for women who do not do regular spiritual practice.

Why are men not affected by short hair?

At a spiritual level men generally have less of the Raja subtle-component than women; hence they are less emotional and are also less sensitive. They also have a higher ability to fight with negativity. As a result they are less prone to a subtle-attack because of their hair being cut. Men have a higher ability to imbibe the Sattva component with short and open hair.

In conclusion, as much as possible, women should not leave their hair down. It is better to put their hair up in a bun or tied in a plait or braid. Even while sleeping, it is better to tie one’s hair up.

Some interesting aspects:

Hair is an amazing gift of nature, and from a yogic perspective, it can actually help raise the Kundalini energy (creative life force), which increases vitality, intuition, and tranquility.

In olden days, people in many cultures didn’t cut their hair, because it was a part of who they were. Often, when people were conquered or enslaved, their hair was cut as a recognized sign of slavery. It was also understood that this would serve as punishment and decrease the power of those enslaved.

The bones in the forehead are porous and function to transmit light to the pineal gland, which affects brain activity, as well as thyroid and sexual hormones. Cutting bangs which cover the forehead impedes this process. When Genghis Khan conquered China, he considered the Chinese to be a very wise, intelligent people who would not allow themselves to be subjugated. He therefore required all women in the country to cut their hair and wear bangs, because he knew this would serve to keep them timid and more easily controlled.

As whole tribes or societies were conquered, cut hair became so prevalent that the importance of hair was lost after a few generations, and hairstyles and fashion grew to be the focus.

During the Vietnam War, undercover experts from the military searched American Indian Reserves for talented navigators, men with superior, if not supernatural, tracking abilities. After extensively documenting their skills for survival and tracking, they were enlisted. But once they were, whatever skills and talents they exhibited on the reserve seemed to vanish into thin air. Failures and fatalities led the government to conduct some expensive research on these recruits. When asked about their failure to perform well, the older recruits replied almost without exception, that when they received the mandatory military haircut, they could no longer ‘sense’ the enemy.

Hair is an extension of the nervous system, it can be correctly seen as exteriorized nerves, a type of highly evolved 'feelers' or 'antennae' that transmit vast amounts of important information to the brain stem, the limbic system, and the neocortex.

Cutting of hair is a contributing factor to unawareness of environmental distress in local ecosystems. It is also a contributing factor to insensitivity in relationships of all kinds. It contributes to sexual frustration.

Ref:

http://www.spiritualresearchfoundation.org/hair-down

https://www.quantumbalancing.com/spiritualhair.htm
https://dailyoccupation.com/2017/07/26/spiritual-truth-american-indians-long-hair-tale-untold/

The world without me

It was in 2008 that my mother passed away, leaving a vacuum in my life. She was a working woman, with strong  moral principles and of bit of an  aggressive nature. I was on the  peaceful side, like my father. This was a reason for many heated  discussions between me and her. But  this did not reduce my love and  respect for her.

After her demise we have visited my maternal home many times. But my recent visit, in  June 2015 was a different one.  Usually we (my husband and I) would be busy visiting relatives and friends,  doing the shopping rounds, cooking  etc.., Now there wasn't much of  cooking to be done, visits were not  happening due to several reasons and  we were alone in the house a  major amount of time.

I got a lot of alone time which led to  some introspection. If I could relive the earlier years, would I like to behave differently? I think I was  a dutiful daughter, discussing all the major events in my life with my mother and taking her advice. After my marriage, I never let anything touch her self respect and pride (yes, she was lucky to have two great  sons-in-law, who were more of sons to her). But towards her last years I could have shown more patience, been more expressive in  my love and concern.

 At home when I was alone, I could feel her presence so  strongly. It was like two scenes running simultaneously in mind, one - of those days when she was  all over the house - multitasking. And the other - the home remaining without her, it is still existing….

Then something clicked inside me- I was experiencing the world without me. Now  that I have come back to my own house -  when I am doing things, I experience
two worlds simultaneously. One in which I see myself in the house, and another where I no longer exist, but the house is still existing. Nobody is indispensable in this world. We all have a small role to play, and then have to leave the stage.

More than the materialistic things that we accumulate or positions that we achieve, it is what we mean to somebody else, how much time we can give for a loved one, that matters. This awareness of a world without me, is giving me a great spiritual experience. It seems that a part of the colored glass in front of eyes is gone, changing my perception a little. Let me keep working at it… and wait for the Grace to descend!

Deception- a compulsory subject

Earth is a school where we have come to graduate. There is no limitation of time; we can take our own sweet time to learn each lesson. Unless we learn it thoroughly, it will keep on repeating. We decide the lessons we have to complete in one life time before we take birth, and we may complete them. We can take multiple life times to complete too.

Just like our worldly studies, here also there are some compulsory subjects and optional subjects. Observing the lives of people around me, and analyzing the lives of hundreds of people who came to me for healing, I have reached the conclusion that deception is a compulsory subject in this earth university.

Some of us encounter deception in childhood itself; it may visit during adulthood, or at the fag end of life. Whatever the age we are in when it arrives, it really takes us to the abyss of depression. And it is not an easy task to come out of it. But we have to come out, or how will we be ready for the next lesson?

There are some things that can help us overcome this depression. The main aspect that prevents healing is the thought, “Why me?”

When we realize that this is an experience affecting every one, the mind calms down and we are open to the means of healing.

Many will lose the interest in living, which brings on a series of physical ailments and they may become bed ridden. My approach in this situation is, suicide is not a solution at all. Being a past life regression therapist, I know the pitiful condition of souls of people who have committed suicide. We don’t know how long we are going to live, let’s take a minimum of one year. That means 365 days. Is it ok to live those many days bed ridden?  If not, one has to shirk the veil of depression and start living for one self.

The moment we tag our happiness to another person’s behavior towards us, we are making ourselves vulnerable to sadness. We need to learn to be happy by ourselves. Happiness is just an internal decision. Every day morning, make a resolution, “Today I am determined to remain happy, regardless of what happens externally.”

Once you have experienced a deception, it is important to forgive the person who deceived you. Believe me, it is not an easy task, and it is going to take time. But forgive we have to, not for the other person, more for ourselves. To release us from the shackles that is holding back the happiness from us. And remember, happiness is our birthright!

In the name of Reiki….

Vasanta (name changed) had contacted me one year back to discuss about Reiki. Her busy schedule didn’t allow her to come to the Reiki Academy before May 2015. And when I met her, she was in real bad shape.

She had physical problems, social and financial problems. She told she had learned Reiki three years back with another teacher, up to IIIB. Basically she learned Reiki to help her mother improve her health, but she was still not well.

“How should I be using the symbols?” she asked me.

“You are a Reiki IIIB channel i.e., you are a Reiki teacher. So are you teaching Reiki?” I asked.

She was taken aback by that question, “I can teach Reiki? How?”

I took a detailed history of her journey with Reiki. Her teacher taught her Reiki I and told to do full body Reiki healing for 21 days. On 22^nd day she was attuned to Reiki II. Her teacher did not stress the importance of daily self healing. From then on, she used to give Reiki healing to her own photograph for a few seconds and Reiki to her mother’s photograph (she was staying with her mother in the same house) to improve her physical condition.

After a few months, she got Reiki IIIA and IIIB attunements. Karuna Reiki was taught, and also so many other symbols (she showed me her note book). She had not observed any change in her life after Reiki.

“I can’t feel the presence of Energy in my palms while doing Reiki.” She told me.

“Feeling energy is related to one’s sensitivity. It is actually a sixth sense and it varies from person to person. A Reiki teacher has no role to play in that. Some are sensitive to the energy flow right from the start. Some develop it slowly with continuous Reiki healing, and I know some people who are not sensitive at all. Whether one can feel the energy flow or not, Reiki will definitely show results with healing. You are not getting any results, and that means something is wrong,” was my response.

Then I checked her palms for the presence of energy by dowsing with pendulum. As I expected, there was no energy flow.

“Let me attune you to Reiki I today. Do self healing for three months and then we will think about further course”, my suggestion was acceptable to her.

I gave her Reiki I attunement, she could feel the energy and she had an ear to ear smile to testify that. A dowsing revealed the presence of energy flow in her palms. Then we did self healing together.

“Now I can feel the energy flow and I feel so much at peace and happy after the healing.”

‘You are lucky that you are sensitive to the energy flow. Do self healing every day and your life is going to turn around, there’s no doubt about that,” I told her.

“Yes, I believe you,” she replied. The sparkle in her eyes told me that it was coming straight from her heart.

Soar High, Oh Man!

As the standard of living goes up,

Man gets deluded,

And lets the standard of life go down.

(Standard of love too)

As the years pass by and finally,

When he realizes the futility of such a life,

It’s all over.

And there he sees a life that got wasted!

Oh fool! Hold on to your values,

Be stable and detached.

Strive to cross this river of Maya,

And get done with this drama.

Attachment to materialistic things,

And relationships too,

Weigh you down,

You are a free soul,

Destined to fly high!!

End of a search

We love traveling so much and at the drop of a hat we can plan a trip and get out. At the same time many trips are planned to the minutest detail too. During every trip within India, I was on the look out for a place where one could just relax and get in touch with the inner self, and where we could go again.

This continued for many years and at last this February (2015) I found a serene place where I could sit and meditate peacefully. I joked to my husband that we searched all over India, to finally find it in my home state!

During our recent road trip to Kerala, my husband searched for places of interest near Kasargod and he tumbled upon Nityananda Ashram.

Located on a hillock in Kanhangad is the holy ashram built by Swami Nityananda.. A place for relaxation, the place was part of a forest area and here Swami Nityananda constructed 43 guhas (holy caves) in a mountain slope. These caves are considered to be an engineering marvel even to this day and attract thousands of people from all over the world.

Nityananda’s work on the Kanhangad fort started around 1927. For more details, go to http://www.nityananda.us/stories5.htm  Nityananda attained Samadhi on August 8, 1961. His samadhi is located in Ganeshpuri at the Samadhi Mandir.

We reached there by about eleven in the morning and a person described to us about the ashram and Swami Nityananda. He told me to go and have a look at the meditation caves. I went inside, had a look and ran out to tell my husband, ‘I want to sit inside there and meditate for at least an hour.’

We were told that the noon puja will start at 12.30. We decided to have a look at the Guruvan, attend the puja, finish lunch and go in for meditation. Guruvan is the place was Swami Nithyananda did Tapas (meditation) inside a cave for several years. It is located around 5 km east of Kanhangad town in Kasaragod district, Kerala, India, It is said that Swami had once struck the rocky hills to form a holy stream and it has been flowing ever since and is called the holy stream Papanasini Ganga. There we also saw the round table where Swami Nityananda sat and spoke about future events to public that surprised everyone as it appeared in the next day's newspaper.

On coming back it was puja time and then we had the Prasad lunch. Then we entered the meditation cave and spent an hour in bliss. We were informed that if we preferred to spend the night there, room was available. We accepted the offer and went to have a look at the room. It was a big room with two double beds, clean sheets and pillows and bath attached. After having the Prasad dinner, we retired to the room, read the book about Swami Nityananda and slept peacefully. At last I found a place where we can visit again to spend time in meditation.

If only....

If only I could give back
All those years that I stole from you
If only I could hand over
All those missed opportunities
If only I could replace
The frustrations with happiness
Believe me, I would do it, with all my heart.
It hurts to watch that tenderness in the eyes,
It pains to sense those longing vibrations,
It breaks my heart to remember all those
Neglected angels...
Will the river of time flow again from the start?
If it does, I promise you,
I will not come in the way...
I will let you fly....free...
High up in the sky...
With all those soul mates....

Tranquil Malaysia

Is your personal filter working?

We are all part of the Universe and have access to the infinite knowledge. But majority remains in the illusion of ignorance. Their faith in their own ignorance is so deep that it is difficult to easily penetrate it. When they come in contact with others whom they think are more knowledgeable, they look up to them and believe blindly.

Even though the ultimate truth is One, the personal truths vary because of the circumstances of life, beliefs and conditionings. For example, vegetarianism is good from many aspects. If you are going to tell an Eskimo that he should follow vegetarianism, how is he going to survive in his place where vegetables are not available?

Even when one is knowledgeable, the truths that he/she speaks are veiled by his/her own beliefs and conditionings. So we have to pass it through our own personal filter, which Nature has endowed us with, before blindly believing or following it.

If your personal filter is not working, you can be in real problem if others’ directions are followed. Once I was told by a supposedly learned man that ladies cannot attain Moksha. When I passed it through my personal filter, I found it to be not true. Then I searched literature and found that he was wrong.

How can one keep the personal filter up to date? By doing meditation daily it is very much possible. Then we can do Reiki self healing or any other spiritual practice. For me, daily puja is also very helpful. There is a misconception that we do puja to appease God. God is Omnipresent, Omnipotent and Omniscient. It is the macrocosm, of which we are the microcosm. The macrocosm doesn’t need the puja from us. But by doing puja and some rituals, we are disciplining and purifying ourselves. Through this we can become aware of our strong connection to the macrocosm! 

PLRC4 - A step Ahead

Do you have a vacuum?

Recently I met this person who was constantly arguing, many times even contradicting his own statements. It is so very easy to get irritated with some one who is out to prove wrong every point you put forth. For some time, I was perturbed, and then it set me to deep thinking. When I looked beyond the words I could see the emptiness in the depth of his eyes, could sense the relationship problems he was going through (which was later confirmed).

Then we were having food with some friends for a few days. I was shocked to see the amount of food they could eat! The short girl half my age was already putting on so much weight. I could see the amount of fat getting deposited on her shoulders and back of the neck, which will surely  lead to joint problems soon. What you eat is making the future you, your body. So the callous attitude towards what and how much is going into your body can invite problems.

Whether it is talking too much or eating too much, they point to a vacuum existing in one’s life. Unconsciously the person is trying to fill that void by indulging in excess. But this attitude will not bring healing and peace in the long run. One needs to look within, and make firm resolutions and bring about some life style changes.

Do you identify any vacuum in your life?

Reiki spreading smiles

She came to learn Reiki because her brother- in- law told her it will make a difference to her life. She was depressed, for lack of love and attention from the husband. She was stressed, as her daughter was not studying in spite of being an intelligent child, and also due to the fact that in her joint family, nobody lent her a helping hand to manage the household chores.  

Though she was doing acupressure for many clients, nobody ever paid her and she was too meek to mention anything about the need of exchange of energy. After finishing the Reiki training, I asked her to teach me some acupressure points and I gave her a fee, ‘This is your first payment for acupressure’, and she beamed. I felt so nice to watch her smile.

After a week, she called me up. She was laughing all the way through the conversation. “You won’t believe it, Reiki is doing wonders for me. My daughter now studies herself, without me nagging her. I am full of energy to manage the house work. I don’t know how, but Reiki is working. And you know what? Clients who come for acupressure are now asking me how much to pay.”

Her words made my day, and my heart sang, ‘Thank you Reiki’ 

Acupressure can do wonders

A 36 year old lady came to learn Reiki from me. She is into acupressure therapy and has helped many people get rid of their physical problems. She heard about Reiki and thought it will complement her acupressure therapy.

It was an interesting story how she tumbled upon acupressure. At the age of 25 she was diagnosed with hyper thyroids and the doctor put her on allopathic medication. With time the dosage kept on increasing till it reached 150 mgs. She had three kids to look after, apart from all the house work. As a side effect of the medication, she started losing memory, she was tired all the time and she lost the grip of her fingers. While picking up vessels in the kitchen, the vessels used to slip from her fingers and fall down. She was going through hell.

Meanwhile she developed back pain and was advised surgery.

One day her parents came to see her and her mother was devastated. They went back and on another morning they took her forcibly to the Brahmakumari center where an acupressure therapist was visiting that day. She received a session on acupressure therapy, and to her relief and astonishment she was relieved of her problems to a great extent. She was called again in the same evening for a second session, to which she obviously went.

That kindled her interest in acupressure and she followed her heart’s calling. Now she is off the allopathic medicines, her memory is back to normal and she can perform her house hold duties well. And she didn’t have to undergo the surgery for back pain, which was also relieved through acupressure therapy.

'Oxford - 8 centuries of learning' - Alive , May 2001

Bumps and road rumblers of Karnataka

I have travelled quite a bit in India and can safely say that maximum bumps and road rumblers are found in Karnataka. They are provided at such short distances that I doubt some orthopedicians and dentists have close relations who make these. Many youngsters come with fractured teeth to the dentists for repair and old persons undergo fractures on fall due to bumps and rumblers.

Speed bumps and speed humps are among many types of “traffic calming” measures. Speed bumps are applications, usually asphalt, that are from two to six inches high and one to three feet from front to back. Speed humps are usually less than four inches high but 10 to 12 feet from front to back. They have to be marked with white paint so that it is visible from a distance and one can reduce the speed of the vehicle. I have reasons to suspect that the people of Karnataka are sadists because it is very very rare to see them demarcated or to find boards telling there is ‘Bump Ahead.’

Recently we had to drive from Belgaum to Raichur, and you can’t even imagine the number of bumps and rumblers on the State Highway. When we encountered one bump I started counting and by the time I reached ‘twenty’ there was the next bump on the road, many times. The rumblers, there were even six of them together at many places!

I was pitying the bus drivers who ply this route on everyday basis. No wonder many drivers suffer from bad back ache! When I saw the loaded trucks going over the rumblers, I was really praying to God! How much of fuel wastage and wear of the vehicles this must be causing?

Stinking ‘God’s own country’

I used to take pride in being a Keralite. We were known for our cleanliness. During our  travel from Lucknow to Kerala, when the train passed through my home state in the early morning, I used to show proudly to my husband the scene of ladies brooming the front yard of houses. It was the habit of many people to clean their houses, inside and outside, take bath and then enter the kitchen.

A normal scene in Kerala tody is uncollected garbage- pileup and stinking waste across both sides of national highways. Its rivers, tiny water canals and all other natural beauty, foundation of its growing tourism industry are getting affected as lack of waste management system in the State is causing havoc to normal public life.  

The common man brings the house hold waste and dumps it on road side. The corporation workers also dump waste on the road side and set fire to it. There are all sorts of things in the waste, including plastic, so the fumes are dangerous, affecting children more than the adults.

It is sad to see that there is a lack of proper Waste Management system in place in a state with 100% literacy. In several places locals are up in arm against prevalent practice of dumping and landfill Contractors who transport garbage to dump in the interior village dumping sites or near forests or water bodies often face severe resistance from locals and environmental activists.

Unofficial estimates indicate that Kerala generates 6000 ton of waste every day. However, local issues and sentiments have prevented even the collection of solid waste. The end result is that the stunning Kerala landscape has been converted into a stinking, garbage strewn one.

Ref:

http://www.universalecoservices.com/wastemanagement_in_kerala.cfm

Watch:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dxvZX2JHDos

Is dishonesty our National character?

The road we go through daily was so full of potholes. After months, one day we saw a road roller, and we thought that repair was imminent. But they were just patched up with small stones and sand. It is anybody’s guess how long it is going to last, with our rainy season just starting, which will last for four more months!

All the street lamps won’t be lit, and to the complaints, the answer is ‘No money”. When there are discussions on such matters, always the final fault comes to the politicians. Yesterday I heard on the TV news that ‘Situations will improve only when honest people come into politics’.

That set my mind into a thinking groove. It was searching for honest people around, from the lower class to the upper class. It is so difficult to get workers here, because they can have an ok life with the availability of Rs.1/kg rice. The families manage to have multiple ration cards (that brings in middle class citizens taking bribe to issue multiple ration cards). So they have enough rice to eat and also, sell it back at higher rate and earn some money.

There are middle aged class IV employees in private institutions, who manage to get old age pension from the government, by giving wrong age certificates (again, who issues the certificate? What’s in it for him?)

Many people don’t think twice before stealing flowers and curry leaves from other houses. More daring ones will come with gunny bags, jump inside the house compound when nobody is there in the house and fill these bags with mangoes plucked from the tree in the back yard, leaving nothing for the house holder, and they are  proud of their achievement!

The informer (to the robbers) for the theft in a house was a worker from a mutt ( religious organization)! And today I see a news item, “The woman who has made the allegations started to work as a cook there and is originally from Hubli. After lunch the Godman asked her to keep a plate in his room and when she entered he allegedly locked the room and molested her. Malamaruthi police have registered a cased under 376IPC.The godman is originally from Bagalkot.” (http://allaboutbelgaum.com/news/godman-arrested-alleged-rape-cook/)

The cream of society, the doctors who want their kids to become doctors (irrespective of their capability) would go to any length of dishonesty (which are unthinkable) to achieve their objective. And the widely prevalent dishonesty of many doctors in the approach to treating patients is an open secret.

Majority of these people who blame the politicians for dishonestly taking personal advantages, would do exactly the same thing (or even more?) if they are in the same position. So what is our future? I can’t think of any other way than to wait till the end of Kaliyuga when a God incarnate will come to eradicate the evil!

Disappearing skill of clinical diagnosis

We had the subject of general medicine and surgery in the third year of BDS. To train us to do the clinical diagnosis for the exam, we had some good teachers. When any of us fell sick, they would diagnose by clinical examination, give appropriate medicine and that was it! The health was restored.

In that period of time, one day my aunt who stayed next door, frantically called me home. Her daughter, about 4 years old, was having deep purplish color inside her oral cavity. My cousin who was doing MBBS, was already there, checking her with his stethoscope. I looked at the girl, she seemed to be completely normal, the breathing rate, pulse and all. I called her aside and asked,’ Tell me, where is the thing that you put in your mouth?’  She took me to the place where potassium permanganate was kept!

When I joined my job and started working, I developed a pain in the neck and shoulder region. The pain was a bit more and we went for consultation. He diagnosed some problem in the neck area and told to go to the physiotherapy department to get traction done daily for a number of days, apart from taking some tablets. Well, I am not a lover of tablets, but went for traction for a few days. Then I got the intuition that something was not right. I didn’t want to continue with the traction. I started thinking deeply what must have gone wrong.

While doing post graduation, my friends had talked me into buying a very high heeled chappal, and I was continuing to use it.  I thought of discontinuing its use and see the result. Well, that was it! Within a week, I was totally free from the pain.

I had a maid whose mother used to fall sick often. She would be admitted to the hospital for saline infusion, for at least two days. Now I have another maid, who absented one day and told that her mother was having abdominal pain. She took some pain killers herself, the pain got worsened. So they took her to the doctor.

I was experienced now, so asked her, ’They admitted her for saline infusion?’

‘Yes,’ she answered with a look of admiration.

I was surprised that her mother took pain killers. I asked her, ’Don’t you people have any home remedies (gharelu davai)?’

‘No’, she told with an expression, ’What are you talking about?’

‘The bill came to Rs. 7000. The doctor told that there may be problem with the heart also, it is very necessary to get a check up done (of course another fat bill).All of us are worried and are thinking about it.’

On further questioning her I came to know that her mother had a hernia operation last year. The day prior to getting pain she had carried big vessels of water to store in the house. Mostly the pain must have started due to the strain and then her self medication must have created acidity or something like that.

From our friend circle and others, we come to know that doctors who can make a correct clinical diagnosis are very rare now. They will write for investigations and even repeat investigations again and again! Doctors are proving to be ‘karmic police of the kaliyuga’ (my daughter’s words). The sins are increasing and doctors are here to mete out punishment by misdiagnosis, draining people of their money by repeated investigations, unnecessary hospitalization and surgeries.

To one of my colleagues’ mother, immediate heart surgery was advised, with a warning that she might not last even for 3 months without the surgery. The lady was very courageous and decided, ‘ I have spent a life time and had a good life. I am ready to die any time now.’ She didn't get the surgery done and was alive even three years afterwards. I lost contact with her after that.

I have reliable information from a hospital that there is standing instruction to the ICU unit that any patients that came with chest or abdominal pain have to be kept in the ICU for at least one week. The cost of doing an MBBS course is almost one crore now. If they do post graduation also, spending a fortune, they are in a hurry to make money after starting the practice. Then cuts from the drug companies and pathology labs are very lucrative. Even some dentists are routinely writing tonics for every patient for their cuts from the drug company. Is there any comparison to the earning if one does correct clinical diagnosis and cure the patients with minimum medicines? 

The changing lives of medical students

When I joined the dentistry course, there were so many things expected of a medical/dental student. Ladies had to wear saris, had to cut short their nails (this is the reason that my daughters decided in their childhood not to go into the medical field, because they liked to keep long nails), and make the hair neatly into a bun at the back. We had cupboards in the college where we were supposed to keep the doctor’s apron when leaving the college every day.

Look at the changed scenario now. Lady dentists may be thinking that they look older if they put up their hair. This is an age when ‘youth’ is the most coveted quality. Some are ‘gracious’ enough to put a clip at the back, but others believe in open hair policy. Sometimes the hair style is such that they come in front of their eyes (see the photo I got from the net).

 I am at a loss to understand how they get a clear vision of the area being operated on. Yes, many dental treatments are considered surgical procedures. Our counterparts, general surgeons keep the protocol of covering their hair in the surgery. Don’t dentists consider their work serious enough?

Many lady dentists also love to have long painted nails. Fashion statements are very important in today’s world. Earlier it was for the actors and ramp walkers that designer clothes were made. Now even for the healing profession members, designer clothes are necessary. Western influence has changed the general mind set, there are no qualms about exposing the body as much as one likes.

I see medical people with aprons (hopefully, only students, but I haven’t verified) in the hotels (not very close to the college or hospital they work), dust filled roads, and busy market places. Yes, they do shopping with doctor’s aprons!

One colleague was joking, ‘They have paid so much money as donation to get into the medical/dental college that they want to show the world what course they are doing.’

 It so happened that after I wrote this, I had to go for a communal lunch. Four medical students in aprons were standing close by and having lunch. Slowly I went near them and asked, ‘Are you medical or dental students?’  They were medical students. I asked, ‘Why do you wear the doctor’s aprons?’ They had the expression of ‘what a stupid question that is!’ I persisted, ‘What is purpose of wearing the apron?’ One girl thought for some time and told, ‘To see patients.’ Aha! So she has some idea. I told them that the apron is to be worn during working hours. ‘You should find out the reasons for wearing the apron, you are going to be doctors. It is a disgrace to our profession to roam around in doctor’s aprons in the market places and the like.’

Belgaum being a place with many dental/medical colleges, some of the local house owners keep students as tenants. Some parents also don’t like their kids to stay in the hostel. So they stay in houses, have bikes or cars. They throw the garbage in front of neighbors’ houses; have late night parties where both genders have a gala time. Since money is not a problem for these kids of rich parents, plenty of alcohol consumption goes on. One land lord of such medical students had a serious doubt once, which he disclosed to us, ‘I don’t see these people studying at all, but they keep passing exams. What kind of doctors will they make?’

Now coming to the examinations, once during a viva, the college chairman was also sitting nearby. The examiner kept asking the student questions after questions, but no answer was forthcoming. Getting frustrated, the examiner told,’ you must be knowing the answer, unless you speak out, how can I give marks?’

The student looked at the chairman and told,’ He had told me that even if I didn't answer any question, I would pass the exams’!!! Well, this may not be the case in all colleges, but even if it is happening in some places, isn't it serious?

Death around the smokey corner

The significance of human body

Will we use a huge knife to cut a cloth? Or a scissors to cut wood? Around us there are myriads of things for our daily use. We know exactly what should be used for what purpose so that our work is optimized.

When we know that ‘we’ are not the bodies and the bodies are just clothing the souls, it is necessary to think whether we are putting the body to proper use. How exactly are we supposed to be treating the bodies?

We may have so many aspirations and dreams. The body is the only machine with which we can accomplish anything in life. That means we have to take care of this machine, just like one who loves driving a lot, takes great care of his car.

Unlike the car, the human body is a self healing machine. It can take a lot of abuse. So when somebody falls really sick, he/she has taken matters to the extreme that the healing capacity of the body is not able to cope with.

When poisonous foods (fried, tinned, too much cooked etc) are routinely consumed, the body’s defense mechanism kicks in and to protect the blood vessels from this poison, it puts up a layer of fat (cholesterol) on their walls. Instead of correcting the basic cause (changing the food habit), people get angioplasties done. I know people who get it done multiple times. And humans are supposed to be ‘intelligent’ beings!

One of very basic things we can do to keep the body healthy is to get up before sunrise (or at least when the sun rises) because our body rhythm is related to the circadian rhythm. Are we doing that?

Ref: http://www.tunedbody.com/heart-surgeon-declares-really-causes-heart-illness/

- Core idea courtesy Dr. S Goel

Why do mosquitoes bite humans?

Mosquitoes are out there to drink blood to fill their stomachs. Then why don’t they bite all humans equally? We all know that in a room with many people, some of them will be troubled so much by a mosquito while some others are left alone.

We used to have yoga sessions in a hall with many others and mosquitoes used to frequent the hall. From the yoga postures, hands had to be freed to kill the mosquitoes. Then it so happened that only my husband and I were doing yoga in the same hall. After some days, we suddenly noticed that mosquitoes were not present in the hall. We came to the conclusion that if you are calm inside, mosquitoes leave you alone.

Then there is another view that mosquitoes come to remove the excess blood that some persons may have. They are thus bringing balance in nature.

There is also a view that mosquitoes bite on acupressure/acupuncture points to relieve problems of the person being bitten. So if you don’t have any problems that need to be treated, chances are that mosquitoes will leave you alone!

A research on this topic showed that one of the key ways mosquitoes locate their targets is by smelling the carbon dioxide emitted in their breath.—they use an organ called maxillary palp  to do this, and can detect carbon dioxide from as far as 164 feet away. As a result, people who simply exhale more of the gas over time—generally, larger people—have been shown to attract more mosquitoes than others. This is one of the reasons why children get bitten less often than adults, on the whole.

According to one study, people who drink just one bottle of beer, increase their detect-ability levels to the mosquito world. As per the opinion of an entomologist, mosquitoes attract people dressed in striking colors such as black, navy and red.

Life’s lesson from Life plant

I cut out a leaf from the Life plant (Miracle leaf, or ‘Ilamulachi’ in Malayalam) and hung it in the air. Within a week, roots started sprouting out of its serrations, and in a few days, cute, tiny leaves also appeared. The mother leaf hanging in the air with so many tiny little babies! No water was available to the leaf for this period.

I went out and looked at the plant from which I had plucked and brought the leaf. None of the other leaves had sprouted baby plants. 

The separated leaf was facing adverse situation, which led it to propagate itself.

Then the great lesson of life struck me. The Universe puts us through tough situations to bring out the best in us. Without realizing the significance of having to face difficulties, many parents approach me for counseling when their children have to take some tough decisions in life. They fail to understand that those experiences are necessary to make them balanced, mature individuals!

There are no short cuts in life

Observing the lives of self and others at close quarters for more than five decades, I am fortunate to grasp the basic truth of life; that there are no short cuts. I definitely got the divine grace to understand this, because every day I watch septuagenarians and octogenarians who are looking for short cuts, forget about the youngsters!

It is prevalent in every walk of life. As a dentist, I know that majority of dentists do short cut in doing root canal treatment. In infected cases, short cut approach will not remove the infection, so they give systemic antibiotics to compensate for the work that they have not done. Who is bothered about the grave problems that irrational antibiotic prescription will cause for the future generations?

As a Reiki master I encounter again and again Reiki channels asking whether they can do the self healing by short cut. I have seen many of them who do short cut healing not receiving the full benefit of Reiki, which can be beyond imagination when one does proper self healing every day.

The interesting aspect is that the short cut is solicited only in the efforts one has to put in. What about happiness, enjoyment, material aspects one wants in life? They have to be available in full measure, no short cuts here, please!

When you want a mango tree in your garden, it takes years after you plant the sapling, for getting a fruiting tree. To enjoy the full taste of mangoes, it has to ripen naturally. But we get tasteless mangoes in the market because they have been plucked prematurely and ripened by artificial means.

One becomes obese after years of over eating, but weight reduction is sought overnight. This gives opportunity for many to come up with ingenious ideas to earn so much money from these culpable individuals. I know some of them getting irreversible problems from usage of such weight reduction products.

We will stop looking for short cuts when we start liking what we are doing. And how can we start liking what we are doing? And that is another complicated question!

To start living in the present

How can we start living in the present? By totally accepting the present moment and also being grateful for all the blessings in life. This in no way means that one should become complacent and stop doing one’s duty in life. But to aspire something too badly and going madly after it, neglecting other aspects of life, will only bring misery to life.

When I was around 16 years of age, my parents took me to a Malayalam drama, which had a great impact on my life. It was named ‘Raktarakshas’, which means an entity that drinks blood. The story was of an ugly daughter of a great Ayurveda physician. He was a well acclaimed man, to whom people came from far and wide and got relief from their problems. The daughter used to pester him to make some potion for her to become beautiful. He just used to pacify her saying that the inner beauty was more important than the physical beauty and she was beautiful according to him.

When the father dies, she searches through his medical literature and to her surprise she saw that there was really a technique, though a difficult one, to turn ugliness into beauty. She religiously followed the technique for twelve full moon sessions and became a very beautiful lady. Some time later, while cutting vegetable, her finger got cut and some blood fell on the floor. Soon her body started transforming into a grotesque figure and she ran out of the house and killed the first man she encountered on the street to drink his blood. Then it was shown that in the medical book, the last line written was “If some body becomes beautiful by this technique, she has to take care that her blood never falls in the earth, or she will turn into a ‘Raktarakshas’.

If we aspire for something and work for it for a reasonable amount of time and do not succeed, we should understand that our path must be different and take a detour. We can adamantly keep following the same path and we may achieve it, but by them we will be so exhausted that we don’t derive as much enjoyment as we had expected.

This aspect became absolutely clear to me when I became a past life regression therapist. Now I know from experience that at the soul level we decide our path for this life time. On taking birth we forget our life path and start aspiring for different things. If we really look into this, we understand that this originates from comparison. ‘If he/she can have it, why can’t I?’ And comparison is sure way to invite frustration and depression.

We are all different, beautiful beings, here on this plane to accomplish different things. Live on a day to day basis, be happy at the end of each day for what you have done to the best of your ability, and be thankful for the higher guidance. Then the life starts blooming!

‘Kitanu’ (Bacteria) phobia

Majority of the advertisements one sees on television give vivid graphics of the dangers of living with bacteria. One has to remove all the bacteria from the mouth, from the plates used for eating food, even from the floor.

If you take a look at the Wikipedia, you see that “Populations of microbes (such as bacteria and yeasts) inhabit the skin and mucosa. Their role forms part of normal, healthy human physiology, however if microbe numbers grow beyond their typical ranges (often due to a compromised immune system) or if microbes populate atypical areas of the body (such as through poor hygiene or injury), disease can result.”

Many people consider  that human beings are separate from the other beings on the earth. It is not so. We are just a part of the whole Universe, and are supposed to have a commensal existence. Of course, some basic hygiene is necessary in life, but there is no point in taking things to the extreme.

Bacterial cells are much smaller than human cells, and there are at least ten times as many bacteria as human cells in the body.  The mass of microorganisms are estimated to account for 1-3% total body mass. Though members of the flora are found on all surfaces exposed to the environment (on the skin and eyes, in the mouth, nose, small intestine), the vast majority of bacteria live in the large intestine. So how are we going to sterilize our intestine?

The solution is not to make ourselves bacteria free, but to strengthen our immunity. But this approach will not help to rake in money for the advertising companies.

Trying to guard one away from bacteria has led to the situation that when he/she falls sick, it is difficult to recover. Because the lack of exposure to bacteria diminished the formation of antibodies in the body and it cannot cope up with the infection. In such situations, fecal matter from a healthy human was introduced into the gut of the diseased person, which led to the cure! “Fecal implant’ now looks to be a promising cure.. ha ha…

And, what’s more, fecal implant is now available in pill form (http://www.medpagetoday.com/MeetingCoverage/IDWeek/42044).

The choice is yours. Learn to live with the microbes, develop your immunity OR be ready to eat sh-t.

Of bullet trains and tears

Let us run the family together

Our teeth- An important asset

Sweden sweeps me off my feet

A Coorgi wedding

I was fortunate to get an opportunity to attend a Coorgi wedding. The first surprise that welcomed me on reaching the venue was the sight of natural pleasant faced ladies. These days it has become the norm for ladies, in whatever age group they are, to make a trip to the beauty parlor before any function. It is just sympathy that fills my heart when I see even septugenarians with painted faces that look so out of place. Somewhere along the line the fairer sex has forgotten the concept of graceful aging. Here I was lucky to feast my eyes on faces that reflected wisdom and compassion, without the overlying thick layers of foundation, compact powder and rouge.

It was heartening to see that the youngsters were giving due respect to the elders by greeting them and touching their feet. The older generation was really taken care of, and attended on.

Even though the families were very well off, there was no ugly display of wealth by providing two hundred items for the feast. This is another sad trend that is catching up. There will be a menu of innumerable items, but I have experienced on many occasions that the quality would be compromised. Here there were a few select items, but each one was a gastronomic delight!

I have to admit that the ladies had good esthetic sense in the selection of jewellery. They were very different from the ones I usually see in other parts of India.

And finally it was a great experience to participate in the traditional dance programme that followed the dinner.

The sampige saga

 We planted a sampige sapling outside our house 18 years back. Since then I have been dreaming of the tree laden with flowers. I am crazy for its heady fragrance. I watered the plant with love, talked to it and waited for the blooms to show up.

Weeks passed to months, months passed to years. Then I thought that sampige may be having male and female trees like some other plants, and it may not flower. But during a meeting with a friend who is a forest officer, he assured me that it will definitely flower one day.

My hope was rekindled and I started to talk to the tree again, standing on the terrace. On 19^th May 2013, I was sitting on the lawn and looked up at the tree. I could see some yellow color among the leaves. My heart stopped for a second. Was I seeing flowers? Yes, they were!

My happiness knew no bounds and I ran to the terrace to take a closer look. And I was surprised to see that all the flowers were on the branch that was closest to the terrace, where I used to stand and talk to the tree!

Flower thieves of Belgaum.

 The flower thieves of Belgaum are not qualified thieves, but ordinary house wives. They will take a walk around the houses that have flowering plants, just before the sunrise of soon after, plucking flowers from other’s gardens. They will lean against the walls, lower the branches and take the flowers. They will even open the gates, go inside the house and pluck flowers. If by chance the neighbors question, they are made to keep quiet by the retort, “Is it your house? What right do you have to object?’

It is really sad to see that they will not only pluck the flowers, but also the buds, that too, very tender ones! They can be so hard hearted that they may not leave any flowers for the lady of the house.

On the road divider in front of our clinic, we got some flowering plants maintained by a gardener. The watering is done from our clinic. We had a dream of looking at the flowers from the clinic windows. But the local flower thieves will not leave even buds on the plants. Many times, on our way to yoga class early morning, we will encounter these ladies plucking flowers and buds. When I try to stop them, they will say,’ It is for the Gods. We do puja with them”, as if they are doing a great service to the humanity!

When I reply, “God won’t accept flowers got by stealing. You have to grow plants in your house and offer them.” If I thought that those words would make a dent on their conscience, it was my mistake.

Next time I tried a different approach. I asked the lady, “Are you doing anything for these plants? Do you water them? We are maintaining these plants and watering them. Let every body have the joy of seeing these flowers.”

The lady was quick with her response, “But the plants are on the road, this is public property. So I will pluck them.”

Aha! Look at her defiance. I responded, “These street lights are also on the road. Take away the light bulbs to your house, they are public property.” She immediately left, to come back later when I was gone.

I have stayed in different parts of India, but this flower theft is most rampant in Belgaum. Established flower thieves will always have plastic bags with them to collect the flowers. Novices will keep the flowers in their sari pallu. Once in a while you can see some old men also doing the theft.

I have only one mode of action, fold my hands and pray to God, to instill some civic sense in my fellow country women.

The uniqueness of Rameshwaram

My solah somavar vrat was approaching the final lap when our relatives were planning a trip to Ramaeshwaram. ‘We would like your company,’ they told. We also like to be with them, since the head of the family reads Puranas every day for two hours for the past two decades and we get so much information during conversations with him.

Train tickets to Madurai were booked, but our numbers were way down in the waiting list. ‘If the tickets get confirmed, we will go’, we decided. The trip was supposed to be on 27^th March, just after my last ‘solah somavar’ Monday (25th March).

The waiting list numbers came to 2 and 3 by 24^th. But a 24 hour train journey cannot be undertaken without confirmation. Any way we did the packing and waited, and waited. On 26the evening at 5 pm, our tickets were confirmed!

So we set out on our journey, remembering to carry the Ganga jal that we had brought from up North years ago. One is supposed to do abhishek with Ganga jal on the idol at Rameshwaram. The visit to Rameshwaram was finishing our ‘Char Dham yatra’ too.

Reaching Madurai on 28^th early morning, we rushed to the hotel where our relatives were put up, had a quick shower and got ready to visit the Meenakshi temple. After having a nice darshan, finished our lunch and started for the car ride to Rameshwaram. By night fall, we reached the hotel that our friend had booked. He told us to be ready by 5 am next day morning to go for ‘Sphatik Shivling’ darshan, which is possible only from 5 to 6 am. This Shivling was gifted by the Raja of Nepal 900 years ago.

Before the darshan of the main idol, we had a dip in the sea, in the ‘Agni Teerth”. Then we went around the 22 teerths, which are wells established by different sages. When we stand near the well, the person responsible for that particular well will draw water and pour over our heads. It is supposed to wash off sins. Since our hotel was nearby, we went back and changed.

Taking our Ganga Jal with us, we went to the main sanctum Santorum. Our Ganga Jal was poured into a big bucket of water and the pujari poured the water over the idol of Shivling. It was such a bhakti filled moment, I got goose flesh. My eyes closed automatically and I got the feeling of weightlessness. It was an amazing experience!

What is unique about Rameshwaram? The Vaishnavites and Shaivites meet here. It is told that when Lord Rama was asked what is Rameshwaram, he replied, ‘Where Rama’s eshwar ( Lord Shiva) resides.’ On putting the same question to Lord Shiva, his response was ‘Where Rama is Eshwar (Lord Shiva worships Rama).

Antivirus system for you

When someone thinks that a physical problem can exist without a mental component, it just means that he/she does not have a deep understanding of life. The mind body connection is becoming more and more clear to scientists.

We all have heard some time or the other, ‘He got a liver damage. Very surprising, he never touched alcohol!’ As a spiritual healer, I know that anger can damage the liver more than chronic alcohol consumption. Holding onto anger for long periods of time or projecting a serene self when actually one is boiling inside, can totally throw the liver out of gear.

So how can we come out of the emotional imbalances? All of us know that anger, jealousy, hatred etc., are not good for us and we want to come out of them. But is it an easy task? Intellectually thinking that you want to get rid of these major enemies of our system, and trying to do so will bring almost no positive results.

It is here that learning Reiki comes to your rescue. It looks so simple, but can have profound effect on your quality of life. All you have to do, after getting attuned to Reiki by a Reiki teacher/master, is to do Reiki self healing every day. If you can give Reiki healing to others also, all the more better.

The electromagnetic vibration of Reiki, which has an intelligence of its own, brings balance in every aspect of your life.

It takes you gradually to the higher planes of life. Slowly, problems cease to look like problems, but challenges that you think you are capable of overcoming. Whatever armamentarium that you need to meet the every day challenges, is right there with you, because Reiki provides them.

Just like you work peacefully on your computer after you have installed a powerful antivirus programme, you can go through your life in a peaceful and calm manner. You develop the strong faith and experience it in daily life, that the Reiki energy running as the background programme, can have a powerful impact in the way you experience life!

Striking the Chord

Self realization happens when your chord is struck. What is the chord
and what is striking it? The chord extends from the brain to the heart.
and it is the Grace that should strike this chord for one to experience
the ultimate state. We know that we don't have any control on the
Grace. That will happen when the appropriate time comes. What is in our control is to prepare the chord so that it produces the correct sound when struck.
First of all the chord may not be taut. How can it be made taut? When the intellectual understanding matures to understanding from the heart, or experiential understanding, the  chord becomes taut. Then again, there may be coating on the chord that will not let the appropriate melody to emanate. And what is this coating? It is the desire in one's mind. As long as one is riddled with desires, it is impossible to realize the true self.
Thus it should be clear that though self realization can happen in the blink of an eye, the preparation time varies from person to person.it may take only ten years, or it may take several incarnations!