The Indian Jawan - Half Man/Half Boy

thanks to Rukma Naik.

1/2 boy 1/2 man The average age of the Indian Army JAWAN is around 17 years when he joins. He is a short haired, tight-muscled kid who, under normal circumstances is considered by society as half man, half boy. Not yet dry behind the ears, not old enough to buy a drink, but old enough to die for his country. He never really cared much for work and he would rather clean his own cycle than wash his father's, but he has never collected unemployment dole either. He's a recent class X /X11; he was probably an average student from one of the Kendriya Vidyalayas, pursued some form of sport activities. He listens to rock and roll or hip -hop or country or gazals or swing . He is 5 or 7 kilos lighter now than when he was at home because he is working or fighting the insurgents or standing guard on the icy Himalayas from before dawn to well after dusk or he is at Mumbai engaging the terrorists. He has trouble spelling, thus letter writing is a pain for him, but he can field strip a rifle in 30 seconds and reassemble it in less time in the dark. He can recite to you the nomenclature of a machine gun or grenade launcher and use either one effectively if he must. He digs foxholes and latrines and can apply first aid like a professional. He can march until he is told to stop, or stop until he is told to march. He obeys orders instantly and without hesitation, but he is not without spirit or individual dignity. His pride and self-respect, he does not lack. He is self-sufficient. He has two sets of combat dress: he washes one and wears the other. He keeps his water bottle full and his feet dry. He sometimes forgets to brush his teeth, but never to clean his rifle. He can cook his own meals, mend his own clothes, and fix his own hurts. If you're thirsty, he'll share his water with you; if you are hungry, his food. He'll even split his ammunition with you in the midst of battle when you run low. He has learned to use his hands like weapons and weapons like they were his hands. He can save your life - or take it, because that is his job. He will often do twice the work of a civilian, draw half the pay, and still find ironic humor in it all. He has seen more suffering and death than he should have in his short lifetime. He has wept in public and in private, for friends who have fallen in combat and is unashamed. He feels every note of the Jana Gana Mana vibrate through his body while at rigid attention, while tempering the burning desire to 'square-away' those around him who haven't bothered to stand, remove their hands from their pockets, or even stop talking. In an odd twist, day in and day out, far from home, he defends their right to be disrespectful. Just as did his Father, Grandfather, and Great-grandfather, he is paying the price for our freedom. Beardless or not, he is not a boy. He is your nation's Fighting Man that has kept this country free and defended your right to Freedom. He has experienced deprivation and adversity, and has seen his buddies falling to bullets and maimed and blown. But, he has asked nothing in return, except our acknowledgement of his existence and understanding of his human needs. Remember him, always, for he has earned our respect and admiration with his blood. And now we even have women over there in danger, doing their part in this tradition of going to war when our nation calls us to do so. As you go to bed tonight, remember this shot. . .. A short lull, a little shade and a picture of loved ones in their helmets. 'Lord, hold our Indian Army, Navy and Air Force in your loving hands. Protect them as they protect us. Bless them and their families for the selfless acts they perform for us in our time of need. When you receive this, please stop for a moment and say a prayer for our soldiers, sailors and airmen , in all frontiers There is nothing attached... This can be very powerful...Of all the gifts you could give a Soldier, Sailor or Airman, prayer is the very best one. I can't break this one, sorry. Pass it on to everyone and pray for the Indian Soldiers, Sailors and Airmen. And unlike your 'Babus' or 'Netas' HE will always do you proud! Jai Hind.

The Master

I got this one thanks to my friend Sil Menezes for which many thanks.

CD

internet source: http://thadhagadhan.blogspot.com/

When one Guru was dying, one of his deciple asked him "Guruji, who was your master?"

He said, "I had thousands of masters. If I just relate their names it will take months, years and it is too late. But three masters I will certainly tell you about. "

"One was a thief. Once I got lost in the desert, and when I reached a village it was very late, everything was closed. But at last I found one man who was trying to make a hole in the wall of a house. I asked him where I could stay and he said 'At this time of night it will be difficult, but you can stay with me - if you can stay with a thief'.

And the man was so beautiful. I stayed for one month! And each night he would say to me, 'Now I am going to my work. You rest, you pray.'

When he came back I would ask 'Could you get anything?'

He would say, 'Not tonight. But tomorrow I will try again, God willing.' He was never in a state of hopelessness, he was always happy. When I was meditating and meditating for years on end and nothing was happening, many times the moment came when I was so desperate, so hopeless,that I thought to stop all this nonsense. And suddenly I would remember the thief who would say every night, 'God willing, tomorrow it is going to happen."

"And my second master was a dog. I was going to the river, thirsty and a dog came. He was also thirsty. He looked into the river, he saw another dog there -- his own image -- and became afraid. He would bard and run away, but his thirst was so much that he would come back. Finally, despite his fear, he just jumped into the water, and the image disappeared. And I knew that a message had come to me from God: one has to jump in spite of all fears."

"And the third master was a small child. I entered a town and a child was carrying a lit candle. He was going to the temple to put the candle there.'

Just joking, I asked the boy, 'Have you lit the candle yourself?'

He said, 'Yes sir.'

And I asked, 'There was a moment when the candle was unlit, then there was a moment when the candle was lit. Can you show me the source from which the light came?'

And the boy laughed, blew out the candle, and said, 'Now you have seen the light going. Where has it gone? You will tell me!'

My ego was shattered, my whole knowledge was shattered. And that moment I felt my own stupidity. Since then I dropped all my knowledgeability."

"It is true that I had no master. That does not mean that I was not a disciple -- I accepted the whole existence as my master. My Disciplehood was a greater involvement than yours is. I trusted the clouds, the trees. I trusted existence as such. I had no master because I had millions of masters I learned from every possible source. To be a disciple is a must on the path. What does it mean to be a disciple? It means to be able to learn. to be available to learn to be vulnerable to existence. With a master you start learning to learn."

The master is a swimming pool where you can learn how to swim. Once you have learned, all the oceans are yours.

Personality Test

I have always been amused by personality tests because I have always found them inaccurate - at least in my case. I am talking of the Standard Personality Tests that have been tested for reliability and validity.
Lesser known personality tests are also available on the web and most of them have to answered and submitted online.
There is one test, however, which you can download and answer. The 'Accurate Personality Test' has no questions at all - only a series of colours from which one must make a choice. As usual I found it totally unture in my case but that may not be the case for everyone.
You can try it and judge for yourself. After you click on the link below, you will find the download for the test at the top of the screen.
Have a nice time.
CD

EFT for the first time in Goa

EFT (Emotional Freedom Techniques) is introduced for the first time in Goa. The Anthony deMello Institute will be conducting EFT courses of one hour duration. You may come on Thursday 16 September OR Friday 17^th September 2010 EITHER at 5 pm OR 6 pm.

EFT or Emotional Freedom Techniques is an emotional healing technique that has had dramatic results in curing trauma, Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, Grief, anger, anxiety etc. Further EFT also relieves many physical symptoms like pain, migraines, asthma and more. Please phone to register your name.

The course is FREE but registration is compulsory in order to book a place as seats are limited.

Contact Clifford DeSilva on 9822130055/2735839 or in person at ADMI, Opposite KTC, Margão.

EMOTIONAL FREEDOM TECHNIQUES

EFT

Ok so what is all the fuss about? Why this sudden promotion of EFT? And what IS EFT anyway?

Valid questions, valid feelings, valid irritation.

Let’s start from the beginning, i.e. where I began. I was at an NLP Seminar when EFT was introduced as a side show so to speak. After I had tried it out I began to see its effectiveness, simplicity and rationale.

And, naturally, I like to spread the idea. Here is something that is available freely on the internet, costs you no money and only a few minutes of your time to practise and you don’t have to be a specialist, have knowledge of psychology or counselling or be an expert in the field.

The results range from amazing to stunning. Further down I have given various sites where you can learn more about EFT. In addition ADMI will be conducting sessions on how to do EFT free of charge. So do look out in the 'Buzz' section of The Navhind Times and 'Heartbeats' section of Herald every day for details.

EFT stands for Emotional Freedom Techniques. EFT is a trademark of Gary Craig who was doing a lot of research. He was looking for a simple and inexpensive method to relieve people of their emotional suffering. Having studied a lot of techniques including Neuro-Linguistic Programming he finally met a Dr. Callaghan who had developed these techniques. Craig paid Dr. Callaghan US$1,00,000 to learn his techniques,. He simplified it and then offered it free-of-cost on the internet! The world owes a lot to this amazing person.

You can learn all you want about EFT by going to www.eftuniverse.com. When you go to the site make it a point to read the various testimonies and methods provided in the menu on the left hand side of the home page. There is a free subscription to a weekly newsletter and also a free manual that will be sent to you once you register your name on the site. (The free EFT manual gives all the basics and has been translated by volunteer practitioners into seventeen languages. It can be freely downloaded at /downloadeftmanual.asp).

EFT involves a simple procedure of tapping on various points of your body – the same points that are used in Chinese acupuncture. The procedure may seem a bit weird at first but you will forget about that once you see the results.

In my experience things which are simple do not really take off at first. People seem to want to do something complicated if they are to get rid of something they have suffered for years. Like Naaman the leper they seek something more complicated.

Below I give some excerpts from the site to whet your appetite. EFT can be used to take away any emotional ailment and is a great help in physical and psychological ailments as well. People have reported cure from phobias and addictions as well as weight loss/gain – all this without medicines, drugs or any kind of invasive or non-invasive surgery!

Happy tapping!

Clifford

Here are some interesting letters from the site. I have mentioned the title and the site:

(click on the site or copy/pate the url into your browser)

1. EFT helps morbidly obese woman to stop feeling hungry

http://www.eftuniverse.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=553&Itemid=468

2. Trauma & Abuse case histories menu

http://www.eftuniverse.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=973&Itemid=23

3. Back pain subsides and spine goes into alignment after 14 years of pain

http://www.eftuniverse.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=572&Itemid=529

4. Rapid relief for a torn rotator cuff

http://www.eftuniverse.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=2727:rapid-relief-for-a-smoking-addiction&catid=12:addictions&Itemid=3227

5. Addictions and a class on The Roots of Weight

http://www.eftuniverse.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=2725:addictions-and-a-class-on-the-roots-of-weight&catid=12:addictions&Itemid=3227

6. Back pain subsides and spine goes into alignment after 14 years of pain

http://www.eftuniverse.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=572&Itemid=529

7. EFT side effects – EFT turned Cathie into a marathon runner!

http://www.eftuniverse.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=56&Itemid=61

The Tao Of Forgiveness

With thanks to Rukma Naik.
see http://www.naikrukma.blogspot.com
http://www.wildinspiration.blogspot.com

The Tao Of Forgiveness

One day, the sage gave the disciple an empty sack and a basket of potatoes.. "Think of all the people who have done or said something against you in the recent past, especially those you cannot forgive.

For each of them, inscribe the name on a potato and put it in the sack."

The disciple came up quite a few names, and soon his sack was heavy with potatoes.

"Carry the sack with you wherever you go for a week," said the sage. "We'll talk after that."

At first, the disciple thought nothing of it. Carrying the sack was not particularly difficult. But after a while, it became more of a burden. It sometimes got in the way, and it seemed to require more effort to carry as time went on, even though its weight remained the same.

After a few days, the sack began to smell. The carved potatoes gave off a ripe odor. Not only were they increasingly inconvenient to carry around, they were also becoming rather unpleasant.

Finally, the week was over. The sage summoned the disciple. "Any thoughts about all this?"

"Yes, Master," the disciple replied. "When we are unable to forgive others, we carry negative feelings with us everywhere, much like these potatoes. That negativity becomes a burden to us and, after a while, it festers."

"Yes, that is exactly what happens when one holds a grudge. So, how can we lighten the load?"

"We must strive to forgive."

"Forgiving someone is the equivalent of removing the corresponding potato from the sack. How many of your transgressors are you able to forgive?"

"I've thought about it quite a bit, Master," the disciple said. "It required much effort, but I have decided to forgive all of them."

"Very well, we can remove all the potatoes. Were there any more people who transgressed against you this last week?"

The disciple thought for a while and admitted there were. Then he felt panic when he realized his empty sack was about to get filled up again.

"Master," he asked, "if we continue like this, wouldn't there always be potatoes in the sack week after week?"

"Yes, as long as people speak or act against you in some way, you will always have potatoes."

"But Master, we can never control what others do. So what good is the Tao in this case?"

"We're not at the realm of the Tao yet. Everything we have talked about so far is the conventional approach to forgiveness. It is the same thing that many philosophies and most religions preach - we must constantly strive to forgive, for it is an important virtue. This is not the Tao because there is no striving in the Tao."

"Then what is the Tao, Master?"

"You can figure it out. If the potatoes are negative feelings, then what is the sack?"

"The sack is... That which allows me to hold on to the negativity. It is something within us that makes us dwell on feeling offended.... Ah, it is my inflated sense of self-importance. "

"And what will happen if you let go of it?"

"Then... The things that people do or say against me no longer seem like such a major issue."

"In that case, you won't have any names to inscribe on potatoes. That means no more weight to carry around, and no more bad smells.

The Tao of forgiveness is the conscious decision to not just to remove some potatoes... But to relinquish the entire sack

MAY BE

I got this one from Sil Menezes to whom i am grateful

Maybe. . .we were supposed to meet the wrong people before meeting the right one so that, when we finally meet the right person, we will know how to be grateful for that gift. Maybe . . . when the door of happiness closes, another opens; but, often times, we look so long at the closed door that we don’t even see the new one which has been opened for us. Maybe . . . it is true that we don’t know what we have until we lose it, but it is also true that we don’t know what we have been missing until it arrives. Maybe . . . the happiest of people don’t necessarily have the best of everything; they just make the most of everything that comes along their way. Maybe . . . the brightest future will always be based on a forgotten past; after all, you can’t go on successfully in life until you let go of your past mistakes, failures and heartaches. Maybe . . . you should dream what you want to dream; go where you want to go, be what you want to be, because you have only one life and one chance to do all the things you dream of, and want to do. Maybe . . . there are moments in life when you miss someone — a parent, a spouse, a friend, a child — so much that you just want to pick them from your dreams and hug them for real, so that once they are around you appreciate them more. Maybe . . . the best kind of friend is the kind you can sit on a porch and swing with, never say a word, and then walk away feeling like it was the best conversation you’ve ever had. Maybe . . you should always try to put yourself in others’ shoes. If you feel that something could hurt you, it probably will hurt the other person, too. Maybe . . you should do something nice for someone every single day, even if it is simply to leave them alone. Maybe . . . giving someone all your love is never an assurance that they will love you back. Don’t expect love in return; just wait for it to grow in their heart; but, if it doesn’t, be content that it grew in yours. Maybe . . . happiness waits for all those who cry, all those who hurt, all those who have searched, and all those who have tried, for only they can appreciate the importance of all the people who have touched their lives. Maybe . . . you shouldn’t go for looks; they can deceive; don’t go for wealth; even that fades away. Go for someone who makes you smile, because it takes only a smile to make a dark day seem bright. Find the one that makes your heart smile. Maybe . . you should hope for enough happiness to make you sweet, enough trials to make you strong, enough sorrow to keep you human, and enough hope to make you happy Maybe . . . you should try to live your life to the fullest because when you were born, you were crying and everyone around you was smiling but when you die, you can be the one who is smiling and everyone around you crying. Maybe . . . you could share this message with people who mean something to you, with who have touched your life, with those who can and do make you smile when you really need it, with those who make you see the brighter side of things when you are really down, and with all those whom you want to know that you appreciate them and their friendship. © Author Unknown