Vitality of Laughter

 Laughter is a natural and universal phenomenon witnessed in every society through all times. In some cultures it comes easy and increasingly in some societies it has been greatly repressed particularly in public.

A society that cannot laugh is unnatural and one can judge how liberated a civilisation is, by how easily and openly the people laugh. 

Government officials, bosses of all kinds, rich and powerful people, priests and clergy, Masters and teachers, and in short, people who wield any position of authority, generally consider their presence in society as very important, even vital. With seemingly  heavy weight on their shoulders they generally find it difficult to smile, leave alone laugh.

The great philosopher Osho made a vital observation. When we laugh, our mind stops  analysing, thoughtless and free from anxiety, greed, regret, etc. This is exactly the same state we attain in meditation, to be free of the mind.

When we genuinely laugh, for those precious few moments  we get disconnected from our material, mental, and emotional worlds. abandoning by reflex our artificial selves and revert to our most natural childlike, innocent state of being.  The very same goal sought by all great masters.

It is at that moment we [encounter the sacred](https://www.guruwonder.in/post/happiness-is-our-encounter-with-the-sacred). 

We will laugh, and laugh frequently when we look at the absurdity of reality and of human existence and our ways. If we can only get over the ridiculous notion that laughter is a sign of the  socially, financially, politically, intellectually and religiously lowly, we could easily progress in nourishing and setting free our spirit.

I crack jokes all the time, and don't mind it when my family and friends point out my idiosyncrasies and strangeness, after all I am human and unique just like everyone else. Laughing at oneself is spiritually therapeutic, for it tends to demolish our arrogance and release us from our ego (ego being an artificial construct we use to identify and define ourselves). This is a precondition for spiritual liberation.

This is why every royal court had a jester, a person who reveals the heavy truth in a light manner to let the monarch and the court know that they are but mortal and thus keep the monarch and his subjects sane and balanced.

The possibility of laughter is universally available to everyone, and probably the easiest way to meditate. Laughing frequently will lightly and in small steps could lead us to spiritual liberation.

Have you laughed recently?

Dreaming of Immortality

The lockdown, due to the Coronavirus pandemic has incinerated us in our own homes.

No matter how bleak, every situation presents opportunities. We now have time to ponder over many things, family, friends, work, love, relationships, viruses, etc. Our thoughts are dominated by questions about life and death, the meaning of our existence, or the lack of it. 

Modern medicine, diet and rule of law have increased the life span of most humans.Though the quality of life has degraded for many, we remain obsessed with longevity. The main purpose of our lives, has become to try and outrun death, either due to fear of death, or are we trying to be immortal.

Can we be immortal? 
Are we immortal?

The answer starts with another question, 'Am I a body with a soul, or a soul with a body?'
Most of us do not really know, and Man cannot live without knowing.

We can either, discover the answer for ourselves or we can ask others. Most of us, do not even question, we simply adopt a belief system.
In a belief system, some individuals or institution whom we consider as 'higher authorities', will give us readymade answers on everything. This we simply embrace because it makes life easy and uncomplicated.

There is a difference between the two. While all realisation is divine, all beliefs are human in origin.

Knowledge acquired by realisation is called wisdom and that wisdom is unique, it belongs to the one who has awoken to the one who has realised.

In belief, there is neither knowledge, nor wisdom, unawakened we just gather a lot of information, follow many rituals and rules. In belief, information is acquired merely by following or copying, hence it is not genuine and we use it as per our convenience.

Handed down to humanity through generations, beliefs are constantly being created and modified as is convenient to rulers and priests. After all, it is they, who draw their wealth and power from people who follow these belief systems.
 Since beliefs are created by humans they tend to be greatly flawed and completely misleading.

When we think of ourselves as intelligent beings, why do we blindly accept beliefs? 
Because by nature we humans tend to be spiritually lazy and mentally too clever.

So, what then is the answer?

All that is created will one day perish. This is the golden rule of existence.
When we die, what dies, is the body.  Since the body and the mind are created, they will one day surely perish.


Science, now proves what the Gurus and great Spiritual Masters have always said, 'Everything is mere energy'.  Pervading all existence and all things this life energy is called 'Prana'.

Our life emerges from 'Prana' and this our soul which is a minuscule manifested energy is  part of that universal energy which will never die. This is because energy can't be created nor destroyed, it can only change its form.

Though nowadays erroneously associated only with Hinduism, the mother of all Indian thought is Sanatana Dharma. (The eternal order). It is the philosophy espoused by seekers of the truth. Whatever was realised, has been formulated by sages and transmitted to humanity. Sanatana Dharma's beauty is it is open to all and welcomes being questioned and modified. It has been constantly challenged but always found unassailable, though it is often reinterpreted. 

This philosophy does not restrict the human to a body and a mind, therefore each one of us has infinite potential. This approach helps explain the remarkable achievements of ancient India in almost every field of art, culture, literature, philosophy, mathematics, science, technology, etc. I shall cover more about Sanatana Dharma in more detail in another article. 

In the Sanatana tradition of India, death is called 'Dehe Anth' meaning 'end of body'. We are immortal because our soul is manifest energy, housed within a mortal body. 
When we realise that, perishing of the body is not death, Fear of death disappears. 

Thus when my body perishes, my soul will soar away, only to return afresh in another body in another dimension at a different time, for I am immortal.

As the Guru said, "Nothing is mine. All I have is this breath, this moment." 
When we live each moment with awareness, we realise the limitations of the body and the mind and the immortality of the soul. 

It is all fine and rosy to speak or write in this manner, but how will we know that this realisation has taken place?

When we awaken we will see a transformation in our approach and manner. We will be open, fearless, friendly, compassionate, forgiving, respectful and possess forbearance. This is the natural outcome when we are at peace with ourselves and with all of Creation.

We do not have to adopt any 'ism, for they are mere mortal masks on the immortal soul.

As we survive each worldly crisis, realisation will dawn on us 'I am not the body nor the mind, I am an immortal soul. I am the Universe and the Universe is me'. 

Diligent about Nothing

On the whole, we have been living in the most materially prosperous time in human history. As a result we are freed from much back breaking labour and most physical labour. 

Now we have a lot of free time to do pretty much nothing, so, we should be happy, right? 
Wrong, because, we have so much freedom and do not know what to do with it.

At this time in history, we are at the lowest point in happiness, peace of mind and at the nadir of our mental and spiritual health. Worse, we do not know what to do.

Here we sit, leading lonely, bored and confused lives. But the normal human mind refuses to remain idle. 
Therefore, we indulge ourselves in various forms of masturbation and abuse. Most frequently sexual, social, intellectual, religious financial, political, anything and everything that amuses us and inflates the self. 

We are becoming increasingly narcissistic that is the is the pursuit of gratification from vanity or egotistic admiration of one's idealised self image and attributes.

At heart, we always have a higher opinion of ourselves than do our family, friends, peers and society have of us. In the hope that the world will recognise us if not today but sometime in the future, we record every thought and action that crosses our lonely, self occupied mind and body. 

It is tragic that so much human potential, joy, passion and achievement is wasted by a generation that so diligently records themselves accomplishing so little.

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