The Executive who healed

There was an Executive of a very large Corporation, who lived by one of the busy streets in this very city of Mumbai. His apartment didn’t really have a good view but what made this apartment special was that it was within the walking distance to the sea. The constant roar of the traffic drowned out any sounds the sea water made. Of course if he wanted to, he could have walked out and taken a stroll down the beach. But he never did. He was so busy that he left home early morning and got back home late in the evening. Besides coming late from work, he used to also carry extra work. It kept him busy till late in the night. Exhausted, he would soon fall into a deep sleep the moment his head hit the pillow. Years passed by this way. The executive became increasingly busy and got engrossed in his work. Promotions came by very fast. His take home salary increased many fold. He soon became the CEO of that organization. He was proud of his achievements and felt that he had “arrived”. The constant thought of where he would go from there daunted him everyday. One day he had dream. In it he saw a wisdom filled spiritual guide, in the form of an old man his parents used to go to when he was a child. He told the executive that he possessed a great gift of healing which he had been wasting all his life. He never paid any attention to this gift since he was always busy with his work. The executive got extremely busy while at the same time got more stressed out due to his unearthly working hours. On one of his regular health check up he was told to slow down and take a vacation. He took the advice of the Doctor and took a vacation. This “slowing down” yielded fantastic results and that prompted him to take a longer vacation. He soon realized that although he had the fame and was accessible to all the privileges in the society, he was never ever satisfied. He further thought of a sabbatical from his job. Once he counselled one of his colleagues. The colleague was satisfied and he brought in another person and that opened the doors to this new found vocation of counselling and mentoring people. Besides it gave him utmost satisfaction. He quit his job and took this new found so called “career” very seriously. Besides counselling, he now started praying for these people and asked God to bless them. Very soon his fame spread and many people flocked to his house from all parts of the city and even the country. Surprisingly many who came with mental and even physical problems found solace and comfort in his words and his advice. The people would line up early morning to be prayed over and to be counselled. By the time the last person left it was late in the evening. By then it was time for his meditation which he did in a secluded room where he would not be distracted by the sound of traffic. After that he fell into a deep and restful sleep only to rise up the next morning fresh and revitalized to once again help the people who came to him for help and guidance. He had found his true happiness in helping and reaching out to others.

Doing good to others

I pondered over it again and again. Is it worth doing good to others.Does that other person deserve it? Well, I mulled over this and kept wondering, why on earth should you be intefering in others lives and offer all possible assistance and help that person discover that he/she is absolutely good human being.I mean after all this, what if that person treats and makes you feel like a " piece of furniture" at the end of it all. In short, You choose(actually out of no choice) somebody who needs you and then you systematically work on the pros and cons of making that person understand and discover that he/she is worthwhile. I remember reading an article about this bold young woman named Avantika Maker.She was only 5 years old when her parents were brutally murdered by a man named Ranjit Singh. He spent close to 17 years in prison. Avantika after so many years who had witnessed her parents murder and was filled with anger and remorse, later in life, not only forgave Ranjit but also worked for his release from prison. I wonder why did Avantika forgive Ranjit and even got him out of prison!Why did she do good to a person who was according to the society "worthless" human being. Yet another incident of a person whom I know very well, was treated to a volley of unpleasant words, even to an extent of "hating" for the very good that he had done to uplift that person and help discover the person's worth in the society. Why I ask,does one need to even take up this yeoman's service (so to say) of counselling or offering that advice to people around? It may sound absurd and wierd, why did Jesus had to forgive those who abused him and even crucified him? Jesus knew that at the end of it all, it was between Him and God and not between Him and the human beings.I am sure Avantika or the person whom we spoke about earlier,did have one thing in common: the quality of reaching out to people unconditionally and expecting nothing in return. After all we do it for the sake of God and in light of this, isn't it true what Mother Teresa said: It is always between you and God and not between You and others.

Creativity

We are Unique,precious and worthwhile. Our fear is not that we are inadequte but that we are powerful beyond measure.It is our light and not our darkness that frightens us most.We may ask ourselves, "Who am I to be brilliant,gorgeous,talented and fabulous?" Actually,what and who are you not to be? You are a child of God and all that you do is preciuos and worthwhile in His eyes. So go ahead and do Big things, you were made for it.You can achieve the mighty if you only focus on your goal. Be creative and then watch and see how the world will stand in awe of your achievements.

Give Me a Break

A devout religious man fell on hard times. So he took to praying in the following fashion: "Oh God, remember all the years I served you as best as i could,asking for nothing in return.Now that I am old and bankrupt I am going to ask you a favour for the first time in my life and I am sure you will not say NO. Please allow me to win the lottery. Days passed.Then weeks and months.But nothing happened.Finally,almost driven to despair,he cried out one night,"Why don't you give me a break,God?" He suddenly heard the voice of God replying,"Give me a break yourself! Why don't you buy a lottery ticket?" Well, what can I say,Do you want God to give you that "break" in your life too? Make sure that while you pray, you also take action.

Testimony of Kapil Dev

Like everyone else I, too, had heard of Mother Teresa but never met her till the very end of her life. I wonder why. Some things have no explanation. The Indian cricket team won the Prudential Cup in 1983. It was a great victory. I was married to Romi, a Pakistani, and leading a life of fulfillment. But the happiness of having a child eluded us. Even 14 years after marriage, we remained childless.We were written about in newspapers, and we appeared happy.But no one saw one aspect of our life that had created a vacuum. In 1995, we visited Kolkata for some work.It was then that a friend of mine took us to meet Mother Teresa.The friend introduced us to Mother. She appeared frail. Despite her health issues, the meeting made us very happy. Our friend informed Mother about the unhappiness in our life. She blessed us and then said, “Do not worry, God is kind.” I felt as if she would allow us to adopt a child from one of her orphanages. She spoke in such a peaceful manner and kept saying that God would look into the matter.I felt at peace. Months passed and I forgot about the visit.Suddenly, one day the same friend from Kolkata called.She said that Mother had inquired about Romi. I was happy because by then Romi was five months pregnant.We had not informed Mother about her pregnancy. I realised then that Mother must have inquired about Romi because she had knowledge of Romi’s pregnancy. A growing feeling inside told me that the pregnancy was occasioned by Mother’s blessings.It was a unique and spiritual experience.Our daughter was born a few months after that.I did not return to see Mother after her birth, but I always tell my friends that Mother knew all along of Romi’s pregnancy. Mother passed away a year later in 1997.I am thankful that I got an opportunity to meet Mother and be blessed by her.My daughter, Amiya, is a gift from Mother Teresa. (Kapil Dev was captain of the Indian cricket team that won the World Cup in 1983)

The Pressure of Service is on the Leader

Many people see the leader as the person on top - the one with the perks, the privileges and the praise. While that may be partly true, the fact remains that the leader is at the bottom of the pyramid. It's the leader who bears responsibility for the group not vice versa. It's the leader who must form the chain of productivity by using the very human links of associates and team members. The pressure of service is clearly on the leader. It's the leader who must make the hard decisions quickly and carefully who goes and who remains, he is the one making the painful decisions that plug the money flow.It's the leader who must ensure that the needs of the group are met and who is responsible for making the work or ministry environment either happy or horrible. He must go the extra mile if the Organization is going to go farther down the road. The Leader is a servant of all, not the greatest of all.

Staying Ahead

A sign posted on the pasture fence read; "Trespassers are welcome.Just be sure to cross the field in 9.9 seconds.The bull can make it in Ten!" In this fast moving age of information,it's easy to get left behind.Leaders try to stay ahead by staying alert and by staying informed.They read constantly.They learn how to pick the meat off an article or a news item and leave the bones.They also know the current news and they keep up on trade journals.People who are leaders are always on the move.They are always at the seminars and workshops and take every opportunity to learn and update on their knowledge.Finally they are thirsty for understanding and insight and know that knowledge is not a pond but a river! Wading through the current is the only solution to stay ahead.

Flattery uncovers the EGO

A woman was deeply hurt by the behaviour of her 15 year old son. Each time they went out together he would walk ahead of her. Was he ashamed of her? One day she asked him. "Oh, mom,no" was his embarrassed reply. " Its just that you look so young that I'm worried my friends will suspect I have a new girl friend." Her hurt vanished as if by magic. All it takes is a word of flattery or criticsm to uncover the EGO.If we think we are what our friends and enemies say we are, we obviously do not know ourselves.We are not called to be SOMEBODY OR NOBODY - for therein lies greed and ambition.Just be yourself.