Religion, is about emotion, not knowledge.

As I sat there listening to Gurbani Kirtan, (hymns) being sung, I was transported to another inexplicable time and space. Overcome with emotion, tears rolled down my cheeks, I could not hold them back.  Tears have salt as do the oceans, that is why we shed tears when we connect with Creation.

The Guru's message carried on the waves of music, and melodious voice, piercing my entire being. A great calm engulfed me and simultaneously I felt awake and alive.

When the minstrels had finished, the priests took over and the emotions partly receded. When I emerged from the congregation and the chit chat of society was almost everywhere. Talk of business, society, family, politics and gossip brought me back to complete normality. 

The religious experience had lifted me an individual soul to a height, and society had dragged me back to the ground.

Why could I not achieve that high for a longer time, a high with out alcohol or drugs? Why not that freedom without wealth, position or power?
I could, but I had to do it alone. Society could not help me even if the government or the priests decreed. My family and friends could also not help, even though they loved and cherished me. My employees and associates cannot not no matter how much I cared and looked out for them. 

I alone, can birth tranquility within myself and that of my  being with the universe. Religion helps me, if I take its message to heart and not to the mind. 

Bhai Kuldeep Singh ji

Unfortunately we have become too literate and excessively intellectual.
We think we know a lot by reading, analysing and dissecting, but we know little unless we feel something. 
The mind which was to serve the being has become our master. Not only is the mind a master it is a terrible and fickle master.

Of course man cannot live by emotion alone, but it allows us to plumb and reach the deepest of ourselves and that is why religion is so essential. 
This is why the greater the religion the more it binds us humans to the universe through music, singing, poetry and dancing. Religion which touches our spirit makes us childlike, wondrous, loving, trusting, friendly and respectful.
This is the one and only true Religion as brought to us by countless Gurus and Masters called by thousands of names. This is the religion of the Divine and all are capable of experiencing.

When religion does not stir the soul it is not religion. 
When religion is of the mind it is an exertion, a duty, a utility, and a weapon. It makes us arrogant, suspicious, distant, hostile and destructive. None of these qualities can  create a better human nor a better humanity. This is the religion created by men which many know and practice.

Religion of the heart is spirituality, the religion of the mind is politics.

The choice is ours. To experience the wonder of creation or to know the cunning of man. 
Religion, know it less, experience it more

______________________

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________________________

You can listen to some of the hymns as sung by Bhai Kuldeep Singh ji (of Amritsar)
Tu Mero Pyaro
Gur Bahan Pakad, Prabh Seva laayen

A master’s farewell Letter

"If God, for a second, forgave what I have become, and granted me a little bit more of life, I would use it to the best of my ability.

I wouldn't, possibly, say everything that is in my mind, but I would be more thoughtful of all I say. I would give merit to things not for what they are worth, but for what they mean to express.

I would sleep little, I would dream more, because I know that for every minute that we close our eyes, we waste 60 seconds of light.

I would walk while others stop; I would awake while others sleep.

If God would give me a little bit more of life, I would dress in a simple manner, I would place myself in front of the sun, leaving not only my body, but my soul naked at its mercy.

To all men, I would say how mistaken they are when they think that they stop falling in love when they grow old, without knowing that they grow old when they stop falling in love.

I would give wings to children, but I would leave it to them to learn how to fly by themselves.

To old people I would say that death doesn't arrive when they grow old, but with forgetfulness.

I have learned so much with you all, I have learned that everybody wants to live on top of the mountain, without knowing that true happiness is obtained in the journey taken and the form used to reach the top of the hill.

I have learned that when a newborn baby holds, with its little hand, his father's finger, it has trapped him for the rest of his life.

I have learned that a man has the right and obligation to look down at another man, only when that man needs help to get up from the ground.

Say always what you feel, not what you think. If I knew that today is the last time that that I am going to see you asleep, I would hug you with all my strength and I would pray to the Lord to let me be the guardian angel of your soul.

If I knew that these are the last moments to see you, I would say 'I love you'.

There is always tomorrow, and life gives us another opportunity to do things right, but in case I am wrong, and today is all that is left to me, I would love to tell you how much I love you and that I will never forget you.

Tomorrow is never guaranteed to anyone, young or old.

Gabriel Garcia Marquez

Today could be the last time to see your loved ones, which is why you mustn't wait; do it today, in case tomorrow never arrives. I am sure you will be sorry you wasted the opportunity today to give a smile, a hug, a kiss, and that you were too busy to grant them their last wish.

Keep your loved ones near you; tell them in their ears and to their faces how much you need them and love them. Love them and treat them well; take your time to tell them 'I am sorry, please,  forgive me, and thank you', and all those loving words you know.

Nobody will know you for your secret thought. Ask the Divine for wisdom and strength to express them.

Show your friends and loved ones how important they are to you.

Say and do what you must today itself ...tomorrow will be like yesterday, and if you never do it, it doesn't matter either, the moment to do it is now.

For you,

With much love,

Your Friend,"

_________________________

Note: 

In 2000, the impending death of Gabriel Garcia Marquez, (famous Colombian writer, and Nobel Peace Prize) winner for literature) was incorrectly reported by Peruvian daily newspaper La República. The next day other newspapers republished his alleged farewell poem, but shortly afterwards García Márquez denied being the author of this beautiful poem.

_________________________

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Is marriage good for men?

Socrates the great philosopher had a difficult marriage. 

A student of Socrates, desired to get married but was not sure what to do. So he came to Socrates and asked' "Master I wish to get married, will it be good for me?"

Socrates replied, 

"If you find a good woman and she makes you happy, then I suppose that is good for you. 

However if she does not make you happy, then you will become a philosopher, and that is not a bad thing".

It is said that, 

"A man is incomplete until he is married, then he is finished".

Is marriage good for men?

Socrates the great philosopher had a difficult marriage. 

A student desired to get married but was not sure what to do, so he came to Socrates and asked' "Master I wish to get married, will it be good for me?"
Socrates replied, "If you find a good woman and she makes you happy, then I suppose that is good for you. However of you find a wife who makes you unhappy, you will become a philosopher and that also is not a bad thing".

It is said that "A man is incomplete until he is married, then he is finished."

Behind every successful man is ........

It is often said that, 'Behind every successful man is a woman'. It would be more appropriate to say that, 'Behind every successful man is a surprised woman'.

Normally the woman behind the man, is his wife. Without even being briefed, intuitively a woman knows a lot, if not almost everything about her man.

A man, needs a place to return to, rest and recuperate. Feeling secure within his own home, man tends to lower his guard and social pretences and usually reverts to being just himself. That is the issue, because the man that reverts to being his natural self at home, is a unique and often imperfect creature.



All men are imperfect, only types and levels of imperfection vary. Flaws include vanity, ego, greed, lust, and many other human traits. Obsessed with people and things man is full of eccentricities, fetishes, strange fears, etc. This is exactly what his woman sees.

What women rarely get to see or learn of, is that her man who pursues some form of work/career or professional responsibility, is typically pretty good at what he does, and often well appreciated and respected for it by colleagues and society at large.

Since this is normally not  visible to his woman, she can rarely appreciate his professional competence, and capabilities.


Man generally need props to define himself socially and professionally. Props could include vehicles, associates, designations, size of his workplace , his computer and work tools or perhaps a title or even a crown. 


This creature called man, at home and in his lair, with his guard down, often looks and behaves clumsy and incomplete.  This is the creature that the woman sees. Can she be blamed for being surprised if her man is successful?

Man it appears, is the master of the circus by day, and the clown by night.

Beware! The genie has been released.

Every child learns about the all powerful genie trapped inside a bottle or lamp. This genie needs a master to release it from the bottle. The master gets his or her one or three wishes and then what?

The genie does not want to return to the bottle and the master cannot force it to return. The genie MUST have purpose or else it becomes a nuisance to itself and to everyone.

We humans are not much different from the genie in the bottle. Most of us have some form of genius within us, but we have to discover it. All great achievements have been the result of the combined effort of unleashing the human intellect and spirit.

Historically this human spirit has been shackled by rulers, governments, family, teachers, priests, society at large. Exploitation mainly by employers has soared greatly since the start of the industrial era. The so called cure of violent trade unionism and misguided political legislation has only made the exploitation worse.  Even so called modern knowledge based work such as teaching and service sectors also generally witness a command and control exploitive approach, often leading to poor outcomes.

The danger with exploitive relationships is that they are not much fun, can be extremely stressful because they are one sided. A seasoned exploiter also develops powerful and often terrible means to perpetuate their exploitive rule. 

Nowadays there is intense competition for everything and resources are increasingly scarce. Centuries of exploitation has lulled people into a stupor and trapped them like the genie in the bottle. Frustrated leaders want people to change to adapt to the new paradigm and deliver more. They blame their people. Entire treasuries have been emptied to get people to perform and yet the results are dismal.

Just like a good harvest can take place only in favourable conditions, humans also need a positive approach to deliver the best of their intellect and spirit.

Most people come to believe that their exploitation is a fact of life and accept it as such, not realizing that each one of us has phenomenal potential once we are unshackled.

I am often asked to assist in motivating people in organisations, families and individuals. I am often successful and in that lies my failure. The people who sought my assistance often cannot manage the energy that is released and eventually everyone is frustrated, unhappy and often very very angry. I have learnt that the human spirit is like a passive volcano which looks harmless and even serene. 

Once motivated and awoken, the volcano begins to erupt, spewing out enormous amounts of lava like energy. If untapped the intense energy of the eruption can cause immense damage.  It requires leaders of skill, wisdom, and purpose to tap this energy towards a worthwhile purpose. 

I am extremely lucky to also work with genuine people. Those who have great and noble aims. These are the people who normally do not try to control the fantastic power of the human spirit but rather seek to channelize it. 

Sadly the problem in a majority of cases is that the master tries to control the genie in an exploitive manner. The genie is now free and very powerful and has to be treated with respect and intelligence. 

If you want change then you must be the first to change. If not then it is best to leave the genie be and continue with your little exploitive games because once released the genie will never return to the bottle.

The problem is that most masters while capable of change refuse to do so, and are often consumed by the spewing lava. Partner with the genie and tap the enormous volcano like energy and you can achieve whatever you sincerely desire. 

Farewell letter from a master

FAREWELL LETTER FROM A MASTER


The poem which is a remarkable farewell letter to friends incorrectly attributed to Gabriel Garcia Marquez makes fascinating food for thought.


"If God, for a second, forgot what I have become and granted me a little bit more of life, I would use it to the best of my ability.

I wouldn't, possibly, say everything that is in my mind, but I would be more thoughtful of all I say. I would give merit to things not for what they are worth, but for what they mean to express.

I would sleep little, I would dream more, because I know that for every minute that we close our eyes, we waste 60 seconds of light.

I would walk while others stop; I would awake while others sleep.

If God would give me a little bit more of life, I would dress in a simple manner, I would place myself in front of the sun, leaving not only my body, but my soul naked at its mercy.

To all men, I would say how mistaken they are when they think that they stop falling in love when they grow old, without knowing that they grow old when they stop falling in love.

I would give wings to children, but I would leave it to them to learn how to fly by themselves.

To old people I would say that death doesn't arrive when they grow old, but with forgetfulness.

I have learned so much with you all, I have learned that everybody wants to live on top of the mountain, without knowing that true happiness is obtained in the journey taken & the form used to reach the top of the hill.

I have learned that when a newborn baby holds, with its little hand, his father's finger, it has trapped him for the rest of his life.

I have learned that a man has the right and obligation to look down at another man, only when that man needs help to get up from the ground.

Say always what you feel, not what you think. If I knew that today is the last time that that I am going to see you asleep, I would hug you with all my strength and I would pray to the Lord to let me be the guardian angel of your soul.

If I knew that these are the last moments to see you, I would say 'I love you'.

There is always tomorrow, and life gives us another opportunity to do things right, but in case I am wrong, and today is all that is left to me, I would love to tell you how much I love you and that I will never forget you.

Tomorrow is never guaranteed to anyone, young or old.

Today could be the last time to see your loved ones, which is why you mustn't wait; do it today, in case tomorrow never arrives. I am sure you will be sorry you wasted the opportunity today to give a smile, a hug, a kiss, and that you were too busy to grant them their last wish.

Keep your loved ones near you; tell them in their ears and to their faces how much you need them and love them. Love them and treat them well; take your time to tell them 'I am sorry';' forgive me',' please' 'thank you', and all those loving words you know.

Nobody will know you for your secret thought. Ask the Lord for wisdom and strength to express them.

Show your friends and loved ones how important they are to you.

Say and do what you must today itself ...tomorrow will be like yesterday, and if you never do it, it doesn't matter either, the moment to do it is now.

For you,
With much love,
Your Friend,"



Note: In 2000, the impending death of Gabriel Garcia Marquez, (famous writer from Colombia, and Nobel Peace Prize winner for literature) was incorrectly reported by Peruvian daily newspaper La República. The next day other newspapers republished his alleged farewell poem, but shortly afterwards García Márquez denied being the author of the poem.