Are we still slaves - the freedom of human being

Human Being from ages -may be from the time when he would have started "thinking" .or may be when he would have realized that "he is" and he would have started questioning things around himself.

There must be few human beings one who were in power,the power which came from their control of other human beings -through his mind he controlled/influenced other people's mind and controlled their actions through controlling their lives.Human beings are always limited with their mind (its always limited -even now)

With their limited intelligence the powerful human beings would have established "rules" and "procedures" for the sake of his own power & comfort living.From these rules & procedures must have come choices -

"either" "or" / "materialist" or "spiritualist" /  "moral" or "immoral" / "sinner" or "saint" / " hell" and "heaven" 

If you would have noticed all these choices are based on some kind of differentiation or division.Whenever you have a "choice" and you want to exercise a choice,then the "split" is already there.

"A part" of you wants to do this but another part of you want to do something else.But you do one thing while you are thinking something else All the wars/genocides in the history have been fought of because of these differences of ideology of minds.One human being (or a a image/part of him)  fighting with another human being(or a image/part of him) 

Don't you think this is just stupid ? Why this has not been stopped yet ?

What has happened in the process ? We have divided human being .We have created misery and hell for him. Now he can never be complete or one He will never be able to realize a "complete" "emotional,intellectual and physical health".

When one part of him is "enjoying" ,the other part of him feels "guilty"or is planning to take "revenge".The part which is feeling "guilty" or "suppressed" will find innovative ways to take "revenge" or will do something to counter that "emotional state"-the one which has been more imposed on you.A constant battle is always going on inside you.

Your mind which continuously plays tricks with you..has not been allowed to be "whole".I am not sure if you have ever realized the feeling of wholeness.The feeling where there are no choices .This does not mean that the two views or worlds will disappear.What it means is that the two will merge into one...

You must be thinking how that is possible.How one can be both materialistic and spiritualistic ?The division you see which exists in the world is nothing but the division of the mind.Once you or human beings "accept themselves" -  "as they are" ..the inner division which exists today will end .Once this ends in our mind,the world will change .It will become a different place 

God and Devils will dine together.My morality will understand my immorality.There will be no conflict as there will be no opposition .We call this stae as transcending duality.No friends and No enemies.

This has a possibility of creating a new world  a choice less world,The choices man has now are man made and not natural.These choices have been created with time,society,religion,politics,nationality,economic divide etc etc.When human beings are born they are born with no choice.We start downloading our past inside him.We started cutting him from whole to parts i.e "What to do" and "What not to do " .He looses his wholeness soon & what you see is a robot a manufactured robot from the society itself.

The moment a human being wants to become a whole- the society,his own family does not like this and does not want to accept this.They will make him feel guilty about this. Sooner or later poor human beings starts believing this as well.He himself feels guilt about what he is.He denies himself ,his natural self, his wholeness.I used to wonder in past Why I am not creative ?The reason which I have realized now is "the divide ".I was denying myself -What I am .which was not letting me to be creative.

Every human being is born creative before he starts following the orders or rules and procedures from society.It perhaps is a necessary evil for the society at the cost of the freedom of a human being.If you have the courage to destroy all bondage-you can come out of the slavery or the prison of your mind.

Human being cannot achieve it's true potential until unless he does not have the ability to think as a individual.This may mean he has to be rebellious against the same society which he is a part of .There are others who are waiting for you to be rebellious.Once you become rebellious ,they too join you.

If you look at history,you will find few rebellious people who in their times in their country realized this.They break away from their society and before they could have realized they formed a new religion or a new society or a new country.People who are regarded or worshiped today were the ridiculed by their own family or society.

Human Beings are wired to connect

The latest discovery in neuroscience has proved what spiritual sciences were saying for ages. The latest studies have proved that brain design is such that during interpersonal interactions our brain inter-connects with other brains and hence makes human species sociable.So you effect the brain of the other person through interactions .This sounds like a wireless or a blue-tooth technology.Brain-Mind- Body connection we all are aware.So what it means we all are connected and influencing each other every day of our lives.This sounds like a worldwide web.

So going further into this ,each day we have various interactions.Some interactions are desirable and some undesirable..Each interaction triggers a emotion.Now the magnitude of these emotions will depend on our bonding with the person.The stronger the bond,or we say the closer a person is -the stronger will be the emotional response because of the bond between the two human beings.The more close a person is,more time you spend with him/her and more strong is the emotional bonding and hence the response.

So our life experiences decide how we feel ,which impacts our emotions around those feelings.Different emotions result in different body responses and secretion of hormones.Have you ever noticed when you see someone you don't like or I will say hate...notice how your breathing pattern changes.You will start breathing fast or a shorter interval like you need more oxygen.

Do we realize now how important human relationships are ? A stressful relationship is like a slow poison and impacts you in a long run.but opposite is true as well.A loving relationship may give you a lot of strength and energy to counter life struggles.
  

Triple Filter Test....by Socrates

One day an acquaintance met the great philosopher Socrates and said, "Do you know what I just heard from one of your friends?"

"Hold on a minute," Socrates replied. "Before telling me anything I'd like you to pass a little test. It's called the Triple Filter Test. " "Triple Filter?" asked the man. "That's right," Socrates continued. "Before you talk to me about my friend, it might be a good idea to take a moment and filter what you're going to say. That's why I called it the triple filter test."The first filter is Truth. "Have you made absolutely sure that what you're about to tell me is true?" "No," the man said, "actually I just heard about it and wanted to tell it to you." "Alright," said Socrates, "so you don't really know if it's true or not."
Now let's try the second filter, the filter of Goodness. "Is what you are going to tell me about my friend something good?" "No, on the contrary , it is bad." "So," Socrates replied, " you want to tell me something bad about him, but you're not certain if it's true."
"You may still pass the test though, because there's one filter left, the filter of Usefulness." " Is what you are going to tell me about my friend going to be useful to me?" "No, not really." replied the man. "Well," concluded Socrates , " if what you are going to tell me is neither true, nor good, and nor even useful to me, why telling me at all."

When death comes, it does not ask your permission;
it comes and takes you; it destroys you on the spot.

Have you ever in your experience in an instant ever totally dropped HATE,ENVY, PRIDE of ANY KIND OF POSSESSION, ATTACHMENT to BELIEFS or OPINIONS or IDEAS or a Particular way of THINKING  

To drop opinion, belief, attachment, greed, or envy is to die—to die every day, every moment
If there is the coming to an end of all ambition from moment to moment, then you will know the extraordinary state of being nothing
& in this nothingness is LIVING ...

Die every day..& you will truly live...

Fight or Flight or Neither - Our Social Intelligence

While reading a book, especially a book on psychological or philosophical aspects most of us have a tendency to relate the incidents, characters, philosophy with our own or others (people known to you) experiences. We do this perhaps because it helps us to understand and relate. This happened to me while I was reading a book called Social Intelligence (by Daniel Goleman of Emotional Intelligence) where he cites an example of a mob fearing from a group of soldiers gets united against them. The mob had a preconceived negative notion that the soldiers have come to arrest their leader or may harm their place of worship. The commanding officer Lieutenant Colonel Christopher Hughes had to think fast. He took a loudspeaker –told his soldiers first to kneel on one knee, then second to point their rifles towards the ground and third to have a big smile on their faces. This had a dramatic effect on the situation there by breaking the cultural and language barriers. He was able to calm the whole crowd.

Daniel explains this further by calling this as brain’s social brilliance even in a tense and chaotic situation e.g. deciding instantly whether to run or engage when you encounter a stranger with the help of your mind neural circuits. 

I had an incident with a stranger on a Mehrauli Road between Gurgaon & Delhi last month where I behaved differently than my normal self .Honestly, I was surprised by my own behavior & felt that it was not me .The behavior did not came at least from my thinking mind. . It was afternoon time on a weekday with fair amount of traffic on the road. I was going for a client meeting when I heard a sound “hump” like something touched my car in the back. There was not much of traffic and I had plenty of time and was driving at a normal pace . I noticed a man on a bike driving next to me .I am known among my friends and family who drives safe. That day was not any different. I was pretty sure that there was no chance that I have done something wrong. I got a feeling that the man on the bike has actually deliberately come closer to my car and with his hand had slapped the car body which caused that sound. As I was confident and my intentions were clear, I stopped my car just to understand and find out what was the problem.

I still didn’t understand that this is the trap created by the man on the bike just to attract my attention and made me stopped. This is what he wanted .The moment I stopped my car just to find out what has happened, he aggressively took his helmet out. Now I can see his face and body built. He was more than 6 ft height and muscular built more like a wrestler. The commuters were not interested in what is happening on the road side. Everyone just passed by.

 When I asked him what had happened, out of a sudden he changed his tone. He was now sounding like someone who wants to extort money from you. He was very straight and said- You were driving wrong & you were about to hit me on my bike. Give me money and we will settle it here. I was astonished and now I could realise his intentions and why & how he created this trap. I got into his trap. 

I collected my little presence of mind still present there and just laughed as I am not scared from him and his threat .I told him that why he is doing this in broad day light ?I told him this and just sat in my car so that I can just get out of there. He understood that I am not going to shell out money so easily to him. May be he was looking for more. He now changed the tactics. He as well opened my car and sat in the front seat and asked me to give money or drive with him.

This was the moment that my sixth sense worked. I guess similar to what might have occurred to   Lieutenant Colonel Christopher Hughes as narrated by Daniel Goleman in Social Intelligence. I responded looking at the gravity of situation .I quickly took my phone and came out of my car. I had a feeling that he wanted to kidnap me. That guy came out of the car as well. I pretended to him that I know him and I as well stay nearby in the same area. He did not believe first .He asked me name & where I live. I told him whatever came to my mind just out of nowhere. Seeing that it has some impact but not that he can let me go. But I could see that he is now thinking about his next actions. I had to say something more which can deter him. A day before one of my friends had traveled from Mumbai with an ACP (Assistant Commissioner of Police) who was sitting next to him. When I was talking to him, he told me the name of that ACP. In the same breath I also told that guy- Do you know I am nephew of that ACP & I raised my tone Do you know what an ACP is? Seeing my reaction that guy again changed his tone and said since it was my fault, I should have said Sorry & matter would have been over. I told him if this is the case- I am sorry. The moment I said this like he was now trying to escape as well from the situation. He sat on has bike, kicked, started it & within seconds he had gone.

I was standing there, still not able to believe that I was able to avoid a difficult situation. There are many more incidents which I can collect now where I lied, behaved very differently or acted without thinking out of impulse to come out of a difficult situation or to give myself into a situation. I can now recall & relate to many such difficult situations in life and how our mind had behaved in those tricky situations. Funny isn't it? 

Indian Innovators

Man's search for meaning -You expect something from life or Life should expect something from you

Good thing about your true friends are that they can say those things on your faces without getting worried abut pros & cons. Your ego also does not get hurt with them saying this on your face. I was invited by one of my old friends for a dinner and was looking forward discussing anything which came to my mind without fear of being judged . Few single malt drinks with aroma of anticipated Chicken Biryani had set the mood for the evening . The evenings like this always remind me of my wife as this is the way life has to be lived with family,friends and an open discussion about few topics of common interest where every one listens,contributes,develops his understanding better about the topics which were part of the discussion..This was one of those evenings....

The intention was not to discuss Frankl but he came from somewhere & we started discussing about Freud's frustration in the sexual life & Frankl frustration in the "will-to-meaning." Frankl had came to a stage in his life when he suddenly realizes he has "nothing to lose except his so ridiculously naked life." Also he said to live is to suffer, to survive is to find meaning in the suffering. If there is a purpose in life at all, there must be a purpose in suffering and in dying. But no man can tell another what this purpose is. Each must find out for himself, and must accept the responsibility that his answer may prescribes. If he succeeds he will continue to grow in spite of all indignities.

Frankl is fond of quoting Nietzsche, "He who has a "why" to live can bear with almost any "how". In the adverse conditions which we all face sometime or the other are nothing as compare to what Frankl faced in a concentration camp where circumstance were forcing prisoners lose their hold on themselves Like he said that all the familiar goals which we all have in life are snatched away. What alone remains is "the last of human freedoms"— the ability to "choose one's attitude in a given set of circumstances." This ultimate freedom as we say..

Frankl aim become to awaken in prisoner (or patients for him ) the feeling that he is responsible to life for something, however grim his circumstances may be. One of the sentences which I heard him saying in one of his videos were - the more you aim success or happiness the more you are going to miss it in present .

We all face situations in our life where you are confused and hesitated with what you should be doing. It can be giving up now to fate or trying one more time.Should I do this because this is right thing to do or because I am being watched or I will get caught ? Should I pick up a job because I love doing it or because it gives me a good salary package? Should I go with what I enjoy or with what I feel I am responsible for ?

I have always listened to my conscience allowed me to do and went with it to the best of my knowledge & abilities. Then if you will live to see that in the long run— "in the long run" (How long :-)) —success will follow you because you had "forgotten" to think of it.

What I have found myself is that Success is the unintended side-effect of one's dedication to a cause greater than oneself.In the similar way , Happiness is the by-product of one's surrender to a person other than oneself. Happiness must happen, and the same holds for success: you have to let it happen by not caring about it. Watch the video below ....you will like it...rest of Frankl next time..

Why it is important for a man ( Woman) to search for Meaning