Warrier's COLLAGE June 20, 2021 : Managing Failure

Welcome to Warrier's COLLAGE Sunday Light June 20, 2021 1) Narayaneeyam Dasakam 8 https://youtu.be/9cwopgYI1kM 2) International YOGA Day, June 21, 2021(Tomorrow) https://www.ndtv.com/india-news/international-yoga-day-2021-know-all-about-yoga-day-and-indias-big-role-2466341?amp=1&akamai-rum=off "Yoga unites, yoga makes the mind and body happy and healthy. People from all walks of life can practice yoga and increasingly yoga is emerging as the most friendly and trusted way to keep fit. The UN General Assembly in 2014 overwhelmingly adopted a draft resolution, declaring June 21 as International YOGA Day" 3) YOGA for Seniors https://youtu.be/q_nsKip_VLw (Link Courtesy : Reshmy Warrier Mumbai) Good Morning Happy Birthday to all readers having Birthday during the week ending Saturday June 26, 2021. Nice Day M G Warrier A Satsangam with Panchapagesan G G P Who are they? Ignorance begets Fear. Knowledge begets Confidence. We need Guru. We perform an action . If it yields the desired result, we feel happy. Otherwise we go to some formless form calling as God for our guidance. Finally if it fails, we offer prayer in some form for self satisfaction. Then Prayer becomes a necessity for us all, as it invokes one’s potential, peace of mind, bringing single-pointedness, helping surrendering the Ego, etc, etc. Combining all these we also say : Gurur Brahma Gurur Vishnu Gurur Devo Maheswara Gurursakshath Param Brahma Tasmai Shree Guruve Namah... I bow down to that Guru, who is Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva and Who is The Supreme Lord Himself. We get confused who is The Real Guru doing these three things ... When we say Guru is The Supreme Lord, who are all others whom we worship? It has six layers going up step by step . Sareeram, Manas, Buddhi, Yasash, Tejash, and Ojas. We know / have seen that there are very many realized souls having these six qualities... In order to understand in depth these six layers , we have to learn or understand in order the following: 1..Adhyapak 2. Upadhya 3.Acharya 4. Pundit. 5. Dhrist 6. Guru... information, Knowledge, Maturity, Wisdom, Meditation, Realization..6 in all time If we add sugar to a cup of coffee and do not stir it , the coffee will not taste sweet. The sugar has no effect if it is lying at the bottom of the cup. Similarly when we learn something but do not reflect upon it, assimilate it and make an effort to blend in those edifying ideas or elevating tenets in our everyday life, then that knowledge or sadhana can only be mere information In the base level....dry and unavailing.. It cannot enrich our lives nor have a transforming influence..... 👌🙏🌹 V T Panchapagesan B Books 1) Books on Failures https://www.masteryquadrant.com/blog/top-10-books-on-dealing-with-uncertainty-failure/ The road to success is filled with obstacles, uncertainty and failure. These 10 books will help equip you to better deal with such barriers and continue onwards towards fulfilling your goals. (Must be by failed writers like me. Once I complete my current project, I will take up writing my own book on this subject. Title reserved : "Failure, My Twin-Sister" Inspired by :https://www.irishtimes.com/life-and-style/health-family/life-teaches-us-failure-is-the-twin-sister-of-success-1.3566956?mode=amp 🙏-Warrier) 2) The Funny Thing Is... https://www.simonandschuster.com/books/The-Funny-Thing-Is/Ellen-DeGeneres/9780743247634 Ellen DeGeneres published her first book of comic essays, the #1 bestselling My Point...And I Do Have One, way back in 1996. Not one to rest on her laurels, the witty star of stage and screen has since dedicated her life to writing a hilarious new book. That book is this book. After years of painstaking, round-the-clock research, surviving on a mere twenty minutes of sleep a night, and collaborating with lexicographers, plumbers, and mathematicians, DeGeneres has crafted a work that is both easy to use and very funny. Along with her trademark ramblings, The Funny Thing Is... contains hundreds of succinct insights into her psyche and offers innovative features including: -More than 50,000 simple, short words arranged in sentences that form paragraphs. -Thousands of observations on everyday life—from terrible fashion trends to how to handle seating arrangements for a Sunday brunch with Paula Abdul, Diane Sawyer, and Eminem. -All twenty-six letters of the alphabet. C Readers' Contribution 1) Kathakali : V Babusenan Thiruvananthapuram Among those who enriched Malayalam language and literature with their contributions, two persons stand out. One is Kerala Varma Valiya koil Thampuran and the other, his nephew A R Rajaraja Varma.Both were born in the royal palace at Changanassery and did their sterling work in the closing years of the19th century. More well-known is the painter Raja Ravi Varma,their contemporary ,whose fame as an artist was of an international nature. He belonged to the Kilimanoor Palace. These and so many other palaces were affiliated to the Travancore royal family. The above three names are cited as examples. Every palace was an abode of excellence in varying degrees,but in the mid-17th century, the palace in Kottarakkara (the land of palaces) was singularly unfortunate in this respect. The Prince of this palace was a playboy, having no interest in studies. He was a source of constant despair for his mother who was well-versed in Malayalam and Sanskrit. One day an embarrassing situation arose. The senior Prince of another royal family passed away and the boorish Prince of Kottarakkara was duty bound to attend the function connected with the demise. Custom demanded that, during the whole function, all participants should speak only in Sanskrit. The mother called the son aside and said: "Son, I am sad that you do not know a word of Sanskrit. Do one thing. On meeting the son of the dead man, simply ask 'Mayaa kim karthavyam?' which means "What am I to do?" I am sending the palace manager with you. He will secretly tell the meaning of the reply to you. Now you go." On meeting the dead man's son he asked: "Maya kim karthavyam?" Pat came the reply: " Deerghocchaaranam karthavyam" which meant that he was not to do anything except correcting his question by pronouncing the opening word as 'Mayaa'(by me). It was an insult and luckily he took it as so. From that moment on, he applied his mind diligently to learn both Malayalam and Sanskrit thoroughly and in due course, became well known as a scholar and justified his real name 'Veera Kerala Varma'. Besides, he took interest in various indigenous art and dance forms and unwittingly got insulted again. It was like this: The Zamorin of Kozhikode had developed a dance drama called 'Krishnanaattam,' based on Jayadeva's 'Geethagovindam', to be performed at the famous Guruvayoor temple. Having heard about it, our Thampuran requested the Zamorin to send the Krishnanaattam dancers to Kottarakkara in connection with a temple festival. The latter refused. Not only that he refused, he insulted the former saying that the appreciation level of the 'rasikas' in Kottarakkara is too low for Krishnanaattam. This infuriated Thampuran to develop 'Raamanaattam' with equal number of episodes, all selected from the epic Ramayana and the script in Malayalam. The interesting point here is that, while one insult caused the person to benefit, the other caused the whole land to benefit. Kathakali is the much reformed Ramanaattam and is Kerala's private pride. The Kalamandalam, near Shoranur, founded by the great poet Vallatthol, played a prominent role in making this peculiar art form internationally famous. The script of Kathakali is a string of songs in different Carnatic Ragas and is called Aattakkadha.Most of the Aattakkadhas are based on the Ramayana and the Mahabharata and are rich in poetic content. Although Kottarakkara Thampuran is credited with writing the first kathas, more well-known are Kottayam Thampuran (Pazhassi Raja) Unnayi Varier and Irayimman Thampi. 2) Handling Failure* A very nice forward.. To all parents...... There was a very brilliant boy, he always scored 100% in Science. Got Selected for IIT Madras and scored excellent in IIT. Went to the University of California for MBA. Got a high paying job in America and settled there. Married a Beautiful Tamil Girl. Bought a 5 room big house and luxury cars. He had everything that make him successful but a few years ago he committed suicide after shooting his wife and children. WHAT WENT WRONG? California Institute of Clinical Psychology Studied his case and found “what went wrong?” The researcher met the boy's friends and family and found that he lost his job due to America’s economic crisis and he had to sit without a job for a long time. After even reducing his previous salary amount, he didn't get any job. Then his house installment broke and he and his family lost the home. They survived a few months with less money and then he and his wife together decided to commit suicide. He first shot his wife and children and then shot himself. The case concluded that the man was Programmed for success but he was not trained for handling failures. Now let's come to the actual question. What are the habits of highly successful people? First of all, I want to tell you that if you have achieved everything, there is a chance to lose everything, nobody knows when the next economic crisis will hit the world. The best success habit is getting trained for handling failures. I want to request every parent, please do not only program your child to be successful but teach them how to handle failures and also teach them proper lessons about life. Learning high-level science and maths will help them to clear competitive exams but a knowledge about life will help them to face every problem. Teach them about how money works instead of teaching them to work for money. Help them in finding their passion because these degrees will not help them in the next economic crisis and we don’t know when the next crisis will hit the world. "Success is a lousy teacher. Failure teaches you more." *Received from Sudha Warrier Mumbai (My quick response : "Failure is my twin sister. So far we are in good relationship" 🙏-Warrier) D Yoga Day June 21, 2021 1) Vathsala Jayaraman Chennai I YOGA What are the health benefits of yoga? Research suggests that yoga: Help improve general well-being by relieving stress, supporting good health habits, and improving mental/emotional health, sleep and balance Relieve lower back pain and neck pain Relieve menopause symptoms Help people manage anxiety or depressive symptoms associated with difficult life situations (but yoga has not been shown to help manage anxiety disorders, clinical depression, or posttraumatic stress disorder [PTSD]) Help people quit smoking Help overweight or obese people lose weight Help people with chronic diseases manage their symptoms and improve their quality of life. (1) Yoga provides physical and mental benefits. Asanas, stretches and flexes are known as different muscle groups. Here are some reasons to do yoga: Makes you flexible: When your hip muscles tighten, this can strain the knee joint because the thigh and calf align improperly. Builds muscle strength: When your muscles are strong, they protect you from arthritis and back pain, among others. Improvement in posture: Improper posture can cause back, neck, and other muscle and joint problems. Prevents cartilage and joint breakdown: When you do yoga, the joints undergo a full range of motion. It helps prevent degenerative arthritis and reduces disability by using parts of cartilage that are not commonly used. Improve bone health: A lot of asanas in yoga require you to use your body weight. Boost Immunity: Yoga asanas shrink and stretch your muscles and move the limbs, causing increased lymphatic irritation. For the past few years ,yoga has started occupying a prime space in everybody's life and June 21 st is recognized as International Yoga Day globally and programmes run for a week on line through you tube and other media to create more awareness. Along with physical exercises ,being part of yoga sastra, meditation is an inseparable part of yoga. Vathsala Jayaraman II Meditation "Nothing will bring you peace; you must bring yourself to it." A space for those trying to incorporate meditation into their daily routine for developing emotional resilience and better mental health. Meditation here need not refer to any specific school of thought. Dhyana, Vipassana, Samatha, Nishkama Karma, Mindfulness (vipassana lite), Transcendental, sitting in prayer, reciting mantras, turning the rosary, breathing exercises (pranayama) or a walk in the woods are all valid practices -- any activity that turns the mind inwards counts as meditation. Meditation isn’t about becoming a different person, a new person, or even a better person. It’s about training in awareness and getting a healthy sense of perspective. You’re not trying to turn off your thoughts or feelings. You’re learning to observe them without judgment. And eventually, you may start to better understand them as well. I will admit I thought meditation is taking deep breaths, focusing on the inside of mind and body, turning off thoughts (a blissful idea). "Learn to observe them without judgment" - what a simple and beautiful, relieving concept. I examine them with a detachment and some checking for ulterior motives on my part. I look at them as concerns, that need to be mitigated (not resolved), and not worries that should take over my mind and the upcoming day. 'If while washing dishes, we think only of the cup of tea that awaits us, thus hurrying to get the dishes out of the way as if they were a nuisance, then we are not "washing the dishes to wash the dishes." What's more, we are not alive during the time we are washing the dishes. In fact we are completely incapable of realizing the miracle of life while standing at the sink. If we can't wash the dishes, the chances are we won't be able to drink our tea either. While drinking the cup of tea, we will only be thinking of other things, with the cup in our hands. Thus we are sucked away into the future -and we are incapable of actually living one minute of life' Since reading that, I have been making a conscious effort to turn the mundane task of dish washing into a mindfulness exercise. Feeling the textures of the dishes, watching the running water… the soap bubbles… Did you ever see a bubble that is not perfect? Gleaming, smiling, and swirling with colors… Perfect one moment and gone the next. Ethereal. They are the favorite part of my once dreaded task. “Between stimulus and response, there is a space. In that space is our power to choose our response. In our response lies our growth and our freedom.” -Viktor Frankl Mindfulness helps us find, then widen, the space between our thoughts and emotions. With sufficient practice the meditator learns not to react to every errant thought that crosses his/her mind. Instead of reacting instantaneously, he is able to dispassionately observe his emotions and craft an appropriate response. மனதை அடக்க நினைத்தால் அலையும் . மனதை அறிய நினைத்தால் அடங்கும் . If you try to control your mind, it will wander more. If you try to know your mind, then it will settle. Above are the beautiful words from Vedathri Maharishi. In earlier days women had lot of physical work at home, the schedules will be in Q waiting for their reaction and response.They didn't spend any time for meditation.They were able to manage the burden with much patience while taking care of 5 or 6 children and also attending to the needs of their married daughters. The patience, perseverance and no-hurry mentality with intermittent change of activities provided the much needed relaxation that is derived out of meditation. While talking of meditation we have to remember a thing. Too much importance to meditation techniques may do some harm to the individual.I wish to narrate a real incident. A friend of mine who was very much interested in yoga and meditation learnt the art from a Guru from a famous Yoga Institute in Madras. Within three months he became very calm and composed and developed a highly matured outlook in office matters.Initially it was highly welcome.Within 4 months he started losing weight fast.From 65 Kg ,it was reduced to nearly 50Kg.He started feeling that he had a halo around him. Suddenly he breathed his last at the age of 52. It was a blow to his family.As he begot his children late, his two sons were just 12 and 8. His wife, a teacher expressed her anguish and she blamed the process of meditation responsible for the death of her husband. The Yoga Institute didn't agree to what she lamented. Don't interpret this as negativity. It is better to proceed cautiously. Meditation may not anyway change the situations but definitely helps to have correct perception of things and face the crisis with more determination.The same angry husband, the same teen age problems from children don't affect us much. Whatever be the method, the attitude you cultivate and the self assessment on weekly basis, helps a lot ,it is said.From a highly sensitive and lamenting type ,my daughter has transformed into a refined, calm and matured woman of 50. Very many thanks to the meditation techniques. But all experiences are not the same. One of my friends has always had some experiences like seeing and feeling bright warm lights before sleeping or while meditating or praying and according to her, it is very comforting. These are not phosphenes and she has got her eyes checked and has sought doctors’ opinion. At times it is purple or blue tinged. She has had several past life recollections and luckily, we could authenticate as she was an achiever in her past life and internet has very specific pieces of information which she recollected, both visual and factual. Prior to this, she had never heard of that person. Immediately after having this experience she experienced intense golden yellow light encircling her and it stayed on with her for a while. She discontinued her meditation practice after hearing whispers (Clairaudience?) and she is scared to meditate now. All these happened very quickly within a month and a half or two! Whenever she has tried to discuss with some religious persons or the elderly, they either tell her not to discuss these with others but pursue meditation and some others have called these experiences as spiritual experiences and they are attributing it to her past-life good karmas. When I consulted a yoga guru about her case,he said that my friend is experiencing opening up of Ajna Chakra and/or Sahasrara Chakra. Some experience high voltage shock when someone touches him/her. High level of energy flows through the body during such experiences. They are mind-cleansing experiences. We common people don't know much about Chakras and our knowledge is limited to the various drawings and diagrammatic presentationswe see or what we learn from our Gurus. With multifold responsibilies in our real life and problems connected there of, our main purpose of meditation is to have tension free mind to enable us to attend to our household/official duties and the immediate aim is not oneness with the Supreme. That being the practical reality, our pursuing of meditation, I feel, must be limited to have some relaxation and care free mind.True, 60% of the people are able to achieve. Do we belong to 60% or the remaining 40%, we don't know. Out of the 40%, some( nearly half of them) never feel any change at all. Meditation seems to be a waste of time for them.May be due to non adherence of rules or disciplines.They simply come and go and leave after some time. The case of my friend relates to the 20% of the people adversely affected by meditation.This is the view expressed by psychologists who treat the patients so affected. Some people feel wonderful dramatic changes in their ownselves, a dissolving experience.They feel as though flying in air, or losing their own identity looking so weird in front of others.They feel lot of anxiety and tension and feel like crying aloud.A sort of panic takes over, body starts trembling requiring immediate medical intervention. Some feel a sense of bright light hovering over certain parts of the body, as explained by our friend.This may subsequently lead to convulsions and seizures.Any anti convulsion drugs results in numbness of limbs and associated problems.They are affected by 'Sleep disorders having a negative impact on nervous system such as pain, depression and disorientation and hellucination. We have to clearly understand that 'meditation is not for everybody.Some may not have a smooth sail at all with meditation.Trying meditation with them removes the very purpose of mediation.It is not a'ready made package', that fits all the categories.Our main aim is we should not get any 'upadrav' , though not 'upakaar' out of meditation. All persons may not be able to handle the 'opening of energy Chakras.,though it is considered to be a bliss. Inspite of all these things, meditation is a great technique to evolve oneself.But we should know our limitations and don't try to overdo things. We have to understand that there are ways other than the meditation more or less having the same benefits.They are listening to music, learning some arts, even if you are old and the sense of achievements relieves the mounting tension.We need not aim to become enlightened like Buddha, or Sankara. Let us fix our own limited targets. Meditation in real sense means 'dyana' or concentration. Any activity done with involvement and concentration will certainly yield the same or more benefits we derive out of meditation. People who are affected by anxiety and panic after meditation, may better leave it for good and engage themselves in activities of their liking without attaching monetary benefit . Hope our common sense and natural wisdom prevail to follow what is most suited to us. May be it is better to turn to normal life ignoring the experiences, as we really do not know whether it is self realization or mere hallucinations. For people who are unable to follow mediation techniques, a simple solution is suggested.They can follow the 'chant Mantra' route, which can yield same benefits. It increases will power and concentration,purifies the mind.mantras can be said out aloud, whispered or chanted silently.,the last one is declared to be the best. A mantra is nothing but thought and deliverance. A mantra, in reality is a formula composed of syllables.It embodies in sound the structure of the Universe. Aum chanting is stated to be very effective. . The objective isnt chanting the mantra which was given, instead the mantra is supposed to be a vehicle which is used to take the mind to a deeper state. The few seconds that the mantra fades and there is stillness, those are the real moments of bliss. Another activity considered equal to Dyana is making large kolams with hundred of dots and lines.It needs the much required concentration, will power and determination.We have seen women decorating the huge corridors of temples with around 1,70, 000 dots and curves arriving at a perfect geometrical shape. Vathsala Jayaraman E Irreverent Blogs : M G Warrier Mumbai https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/readersblog/warriersviews/purpose-of-life-27707/ "Let’s for a moment forget tenses, past, present and future and take life as one happening, suffering, celebration or a calamity, whatever you think of life as of now, discounting the C-thing which anyway is not your making and of course not in your hands. Then, what’s the purpose of this life? 1 Dharma: For whom, at what stage in life? 2 Artha: Accumulating assets? What for? 3 Kama: This cannot be “the purpose” 4 Moksha: If this is the purpose of life, why take birth and go through all the troubles? So, distinct from 1 to 4 there must be a purpose for our being here. Think, and share your thoughts." (Believe me, this was posted @WarriersViews Times of India Reader's Blog in November 2020 and so far no reader has responded/posted online comments 🙏-Warrier) F Leisure 1) A Malayalam poem by S Ramesan Nair https://youtu.be/RaTa1eQuMAM (Kiratham : Addressing Arjuna) 2) Smile* (You might have seen most of these. A very basic knowledge of Hindi would come handy.) Q: What did the lonely banana say? A: I'm a'kela'. Q: What did the green peas say? A: Nothing. They just 'mutter'ed. Q: What did the potato say when it answered the phone ? A: 'Aaloo?' Q: Where do cauliflowers hang out? A: In the Gobi desert. Q: What did the flower say to its girl-friend? A: Why do 'phools' fall in love? Q: What did the confused egg say? A: I don't 'unda'-stand. Q: What do shrimps sing on Christmas? A: 'Jhinga' Bells. Q: What did the half eaten naan say? A: I wish I was 'puri'. Q: What did the lonely potato sing? A: 'Aaloo lonesome tonight?' Q: What language do carrots speak? A: Gajar-ati. This is da funniest.. Q: What did the first pizza slice say to the other pizza slice so it would move? A: Pizza - 'HUT *Received from A P Ramadurai Cheñnai G Powerful Quotes on failure : Forbes https://www.forbes.com/sites/ekaterinawalter/2013/12/30/30-powerful-quotes-on-failure/amp/ Like : ". “When you take risks you learn that there will be times when you succeed and there will be times when you fail, and both are equally important.” - Ellen DeGeneres “It’s failure that gives you the proper perspective on success.” - Ellen DeGeneres (Ellen Lee DeGeneres is an American comedian, television host, actress, writer, and producer. She starred in the sitcom Ellen from 1994 to 1998 and has hosted her syndicated television talk show, The Ellen DeGeneres Show, since 2003.)