learnings

Let us Be Like Sea of Galilee…and Not Like Dead Sea !!!

Natarajan3 Comments

Sitting in the Geography class in school, I remember how fascinated I was when we were being taught all about the Dead Sea. As you probably recall, the Dead Sea is really a Lake, not a sea (and as my Geography teacher pointed out, if you understood that, it would guarantee 4 marks in the term paper!)
Its so high in salt content that the human body can float easily. You can almost lie down and read a book! The salt in the Dead Sea is as high as 35% – almost 10 times the normal ocean water. And all that saltiness has meant that there is no life at all in the Dead Sea. No fish. No vegetation. No sea animals. Nothing lives in the Dead sea.

And hence the name: Dead Sea.

While the Dead Sea has remained etched in my memory, I don’t seem to recall learning about the Sea of Galilee in my school Geography lesson. So when I heard about the Sea of Galilee and the Dead Sea and the tale of the two seas – I was intrigued. Turns out that the Sea of Galilee is just north of the Dead Sea. Both the Sea of Galilee and the Dead Sea receive their water from river Jordan. And yet, they are very, very different.

Unlike the Dead Sea, the Sea of Galilee is pretty, resplendent with rich, colourful marine life. There are lots of plants. And lots of fish too. In fact, the sea of Galilee is home to over twenty different types of fishes.

Same region, same source of water, and yet while one sea is full of life, the other is dead. How come?

Here apparently is why. The River Jordan flows into the Sea of Galilee and then flows out. The water simply passes through the Sea of Galilee in and then out – and that keeps the Sea healthy and vibrant, teeming with marine life.

But the Dead Sea is so far below the mean sea level, that it has no outlet. The water flows in from the river Jordan, but does not flow out. There are no outlet streams. It is estimated that over a million tons of water evaporate from the Dead Sea every day. Leaving it salty. Too full of minerals. And unfit for any marine life.

The Dead Sea takes water from the River Jordan, and holds it. It does not give. Result? No life at all.

Think about it.

Life is not just about getting. Its about giving. We all need to be a bit like the Sea of Galilee.

We are fortunate to get wealth, knowledge, love and respect. But if we don’t learn to give, we could all end up like the Dead Sea. The love and the respect, the wealth and the knowledge could all evaporate. Like the water in the Dead Sea.

If we get the Dead Sea mentality of merely taking in more water, more money, more everything the results can be disastrous. Good idea to make sure that in the sea of your own life, you have outlets. Many outlets. For love and wealth – and everything else that you get in your life. Make sure you don’t just get, you give too. Open the taps. And you’ll open the floodgates to happiness.

Make that a habit. To share. To give.

And experience life. Experience the magic!

source::::input from a friend of mine…
Natarajan

Divine Image For the Day….with a Story of Inspiration…..

NatarajanLeave a comment

 

This is a beautiful story – it might inspire you!
What Good Does The Bhagavad Gita Do?
An old farmer lived on a farm in the mountains with his young grandson. Each morning Grandpa was up early sitting at the kitchen table reading his Bhagavath Gita. His grandson wanted to be just like him and tried to imitate him in every way he could.
One day the grandson asked, “Grandpa! I try to read the Bhagavath Gita just like you but I don’t understand it, and what I do understand I forget as soon as I close the book. What good does reading the Bhagavath Gita do?”
The Grandfather quietly turned from putting coal in the stove and replied, “Take this coal basket down to the river and bring me back a basket of water.”
The boy did as he was told, but all the water leaked out before he got back to the house.
The grandfather laughed and said, “You’ll have to move a little faster next time,” and sent him back to the river with the basket to try again. This time the boy ran faster, but again the basket was empty before he returned home.
Out of breath, he told his grandfather that it was impossible to carry water in a basket, and he went to get a bucket instead.
The old man said, “I don’t want a bucket of water; I want a basket of water. You’re just not trying hard enough,” and he went out the door to watch the boy try again.
At this point, the boy knew it was impossible, but he wanted to show his grandfather that even if he ran as fast as he could, the water would leak out before he got back to the house. The boy again dipped the basket into river and ran hard, but when he reached his grandfather the basket was again empty.
Out of breath, he said, “See Grandpa, it’s useless!” “So you think it is useless?” The old man said, “Look at the basket.”
The boy looked at the basket and for the first time realized that the basket was different. It had been transformed from a dirty old coal basket and was now clean, inside and out.
“Son, that’s what happens when you read the Bhagavath Gita. You might not understand or remember everything, but when you read it, you will be changed, inside and out. That is the work of Krishna in our lives!”   
source:::::input from A Sai Devotee..,
Natarajan

Message For The Day….Have A Hunger For GOD ….

NatarajanLeave a comment

A child told its mother as it went to bed at night, “Mother, wake me up when I am hungry.” The mother answered, “There is no need, your hunger will itself wake you up.” So too, when the hunger for God arises, it will itself activate you to seek the fulfilment. God has endowed you with hunger and illness, and He provides the food and medicine. Your duty is to see that you get the right hunger and the right illness and use the appropriate food or drug! Man must be yoked to the world and broken; that is the training which will teach that the world is unreal. When you touch fire and get the sensation of burning, you withdraw your hand instantly. Unless you touch it, you will be aware only of its light. It is light and heat both; just as this world is both true and false, that is to say, unreal.

SWAMI SATYA SAI…In One Of HIS Discourses…

Natarajan

How to get an Aadhaar Card For You ?

NatarajanLeave a comment

The queue of people waiting to lay their hands on the card seems to be getting longer and longer. Here’s a ready reckoner on how to get the card:

With the government making Aadhaar Card (unique identification card) mandatory in procuring LPG connections, issuing passports, sale or purchase of houses, opening a PF account or withdrawing your provident fund, opening a bank account, etc, the queue of people waiting to lay their hands on the card seems to be getting longer and longer.

Here’s a ready reckoner on how to get the card:

# Aadhaar card enrollment is free and you need to enroll only once as an individual is entitled for only one card.

# You can go to any authorized Aadhaar enrollment center anywhere in India with your identity and address proof.

# UIDAI process accepts Proof of Identity and 33 Proof of Address documents. Common proofs of identity and address are election photo ID card, Ration card, passport and driving license.

# Photo ID cards like PAN card and government ID cards are permissible for identity proof. Address proof documents also include water – electricity – telephone bills from the last three months.

# In case you do not have above mentioned proofs, certificate of identify having photo issued by Gazetted Officer/Tehsildar on letterhead is also accepted as proof of identity.

# Certificate of address having photo issued by MP or MLA /Gazetted Officer/Tehsildar on letterhead or by Village Panchayat head or its equivalent authority (for rural areas) is accepted as valid proof of address.

# If someone in your family does not have individual valid documents, the resident can still enrol if his/her name exists in family entitlement document.

# Where there are no documents available, residents may also take the help of ‘Introducers’ at the enrolment centre. The Introducers are notified by the registrar.

# At the enrollment center, your photo, finger-prints and iris scan will also be taken as a part of the enrollment.

# You need to enrol only once. Enrolling again is a waste of your time as you will get only one Aadhaar number.

# Based on the information provided, your details will be verified and If the application is successful, an Aadhaar number will be generated and mailed to your address.

# The waiting time for Aadhaar may vary from 60-90 days after receipt of resident data packets.

# Click here for the list of documents that can be submitted as proof of identity and address.

# After enrolment, quality checks are done by the enrolment centre supervisors, followed by correction process (where required) and data packet consolidation.

# Subsequently, the Enrolment Agency sends the data to UIDAI data centre. The data undergoes various stages of screening and validations in CIDR. This ensures that the source of data is authenticated besides ensuring that no duplicate exists.

# Sample quality checks are done on demographic and biometric data collected from residents.

# Apart from that the operator/supervisor/introducer/enrolment agency and registrar, information in each packet is also validated. Only after passing the data quality checks and other validations, the packet goes for de-duplication and Aadhaar gets generated.

# In case of any errors, the packet goes on hold. For example, if the particulars of the operator who enrolled the resident are found to be inconsistent with database or there is a mismatch observed in photo and age/gender (e.g. a child’s photo with age mentioned as 50 years), then the packet is held for further enquiry.

# Corrective actions are taken on such packets, wherever possible, else a rejection letter guiding resident to re-enroll is dispatched to the resident.

# India Post is entrusted with the responsibility of printing and delivery of Aadhaar letters. Depending on backlog for generation, location of delivery etc.

# India Post may ordinarily take 3-5 weeks to print and deliver Aadhaar letters to the residents.

Benefits of an Aadhar card

# The unique identification or Aadhaar project would result in saving of about Rs 110,000 crore by 2020 (around 58 per cent of expenditure of major public welfare schemes), a Planning Commission study released said.

# By providing a clear proof of identity, Aadhaar will empower the underprivileged residents in accessing services such as the formal banking system and give them the opportunity to easily avail various other services provided by the government and the private sector. (With inputs from http://uidai.gov.in/aadhaar.html)

source:::::yahoo news net…..
Natarajan

Message For The Day….Be Like an Ant and Win HIS Grace !!!

Natarajan1 Comment

There are three types of devotion: The Vihanga method, where like a bird swooping down upon the ripe fruit on the tree, the devotee is too impatient and by the very impatience one exhibits, loses the fruit, which falls from one’s hold. The Markata method is akin to a monkey which grabs one fruit and then chooses another and tugs at that, giving way to unsteadiness as it is unable to decide which fruit it wants. So too, the devotee of this type hesitates and changes the goal much too often and thus loses all chances of success. The third and ideal type is the Pipeelika method, where like the ant, which slowly but steadily proceeds towards the sweetness, the devotee also moves directly, with undivided attention towards the Lord and wins His Grace.
–
Swami Satya Sai…in one of HIS Discourses..

Natarajan

Message For the Day….Leave Everything To God !!!

NatarajanLeave a comment

A brahmin was once crossing a river bed, and some men were washing clothes. Finding a nice new silk shawl on his shoulder, they fell upon him in a group, shouting that it belonged to the palace and had been given to them to be washed, but had been stolen and not been traced. The poor brahmin screamed “Narayana, Narayana” when they rained blows on him. Immediately Lord Narayana rose from His seat, walked forward, stopped and returned to His seat! His surprised consort asked Him the reason for His strange behaviour. Lord Narayana said, “I wanted to help that poor brahmin who has fallen into a den of scoundrels, but he has started beating them blow for blow – My help is no longer needed!” Leaving everything to His will is truly the highest form of devotion and the easiest way to win His Grace.

Swami Satya Sai…in One of HIS DIVINE DISCOURSES…

Natarajan

Message For The Day…..Divine Bliss is Not For Sale!!!!

NatarajanLeave a comment

You will all doubtlessly agree when I say that Divine Bliss is your greatest need. However, you cannot buy it from anywhere! It has to be earned the hard way, doing good deeds, moving in good company, desisting from evil and keeping the mind attached to the Glory of God. Good and bad cannot be kept together in the same place. The Sun once remarked that he had no enemies left and someone told him that there still was one – Darkness! Then, he sent his rays, the emissaries, to seek out the foe. But wherever they went, they only saw light and darkness was nowhere to be found. They returned and reported – there was no such thing as darkness upon the earth. So too, you must gain victory of good over bad within you by persisting vigorously in your spiritual practices.

SWAMI SATYA SAI….In one of HIS Divine Discourses…

Natarajan