We have seen a tremendous response to the peaceful protests triggered by Anna Hazare’s indefinite fast . People from all over the country, and even Indians living abroad, have shown their support for Anna Hazare and Jan Lokpal Bill by peacefully assembling and holding protest marches. He has united India across religions, caste, language or any other divisive factor. It is heartening to see India united for something other than cricket .

The number of people who have protested have been humungous by any standards. In Delhi and Mumbai each, more than a lakh people marched on 21 Aug 2011. Even in Bangalore, I have been hearing news of around 25000 or more people assembling daily. Similar stories are coming from other cities too, even smaller ones. While I don’t doubt that Anna has immensely resonated with the masses and given hope to millions of frustrated Indians, I also feel that going to a protest site is a very ‘easy and convenient‘ way of showing one’s support to Anna. A real test of commitment to Anna and his Gandhian methods of protest would be if we inculcate many of his preachings in our daily life.

Anna’s protest has been based on Gandhian principles of fasting and satyagraha. He has advocated the right of… Read the rest

“The best things in life are unexpected – because there were no expectations.” goes a popular quote by Eli Khamarov. How simple, yet how true. The best moments in our lives always tend to be those where something surprises us. And most of these times there are no expectations. We really cherish these moments in life for long. If we start having expectations from these situations too, even they will cease to be enjoyable.

Expectation is a big and hard word. Big because it means and cover so many aspects of life. Hard because it causes so much pain and disappointments in our everyday lives. Expectations are like some fairy tale stories, myths or assumptions which we might have based on our childhood, culture or past experiences. All these expectations only causes friction in our day to day lives, friction between people, friction with situations, and so on.

When a person’s behavior doesn’t match our expectations, or a situation doesn’t span out as we might have liked it to, we can either try to change the person or the situation, or we can let it go. We don’t have any power over how our days and our life will… Read the rest

Life can be wonderful,
Each second can make you smile!
But to see its true beauty,
It will need you to go the extra mile!!

Can you trust people?
On whom nobody will bet!
But if you can do it honestly,
It can become a big asset !!

Can you show goodness?
Even to those unfair to you!
It will reap you true friends,
Who can make miracles come true!!

Can you practice strong faith?
In times that will shake your patience!
You will reap all success possible,
Only if you can maintain your balance !!

You will definitely need courage,
To achieve anything worthwhile!
The only question you face is,
Are you ready to go the extra mile??

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Loving ourselves could be one of the most difficult task for many of us, yet it is very important and significant in our lives. All of us are unique in some talents and skills, and it is our duty to discover our talents and love ourselves for having them. Loving oneself is also related to self-esteem, self-confidence and self-respect sometimes. But it is not about loving oneself as an object, it is not about loving our body or anything physical. Loving oneself comes from within, so in that sense, self-love is more like an attitude and feeling.

The art of loving ourself begins with acceptance of what we are and what we are not. We then no longer seek happiness and fulfillment from people and objects in the outside world, but from within ourselves. It also does not mean being arrogant or over-confident or feeling better than anybody else. It means having a self-respect for ourself as a human being, a self-respect which is not dependent on external factors. Below are 5 simple ways to love oneself daily -

1. Acknowledge your efforts

When we do something good, very often we seek acknowledgement from others (normally higher authority) but… Read the rest

There are a few movies which you can watch any number of times. Groundhog Day and Peaceful Warrior makes the list, as does “It’s a Wonderful Life“, which I watched again yesterday. It is specially good to watch these movies when you are feeling a little low or demotivated. It is a movie about a man’s life, of his struggles with his responsibilities and his dreams. It is full of passion, despair and joy. The last half hour of the movie really touches and moves you and makes you feel grateful for your life. I am going to list out five lessons from it below -

1. Be a hero where you stand

Right from his childhood when he saves his brother, keeping Mr Gower from poisoning a child or helping the local citizens of the town, George Bailey shows how to be a hero in doing the little things. Giving your best to every person and making the best out of any situation is a common trait among all great achievers in history. Whether it is doing a sacrifice for the dreams of your parents, or taking a step back to allow your brother to pursue his dream, this movie shows these… Read the rest

When nothing around you is going your way,
When nobody is hearing what you have to say..
Times like these are the real test of your will,
For amid storms is the challenge to stand still..

When your life will take a sudden turn,
When you will reach a point of no return
Just keep moving ahead despite of every hurdle,
For there is always light at the end of the tunnel..

When all you get is blow after blow,
When every hope and promise seems hollow
You have to decide how high you want to rise,
For you know in every crisis there is a prize..

When nobody around you knows what to do,
When everybody is searching for a clue
That is the time for you to stand strong,
For every night ends no matter how long..

When everything looks like falling apart,
It is very important not to loose heart
For every step you take against the slope,
You are giving rise to a ripple of hope..

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Peaceful Warrior is one of the most simple movie with a lot of deep lessons in it. It is based on the book “The way of the Peaceful Warrior” (buy from Flipkart or Amazon ) by Dan Millman and recollects his story as an athlete. Nick Nolte gives one of his best performance ever in the movie. After watching this movie, you will get the feeling of wanting to enjoy every moment, something which we don’t feel very often. This movie will leave you thinking about how you run your lives, and if you are open to these lessons, you will get a lot more than just inspiration from this movie. Some of the most important lessons I learned from this movie are listed below -

No Ordinary Moments

There are no ordinary moments in life. Every moment is special, and it is your choice to make the best of it or let it go. The movie also has a quote that “There is never nothing going on“, which signifies the fact that there is always a lot going on around you, and in each moment actually lies our life. Moment after moment, that is how life passes by, and the… Read the rest

Found this story somewhere and I am putting it down followed by my views on it -

Once a professor began his class by holding up a glass with some water in it. He held it up for all to see and asked the students, ‘now, my question is: What would happen if I held it up like this for a few minutes?’

‘Nothing’ the students said.

“OK what would happen if I held it up like this for an hour?” the professor asked.

“Your arm would begin to ache” said one of the students.

“You’re right, now what would happen if I held it for a day?”

“Your arm could go numb; you might have severe muscle stress & paralysis; have to go to hospital for sure!” Ventured another student, all the students laughed.

“Very good. But during all this, did the weight of the glass change?” Asked the professor.

“No” was the reply of all the students.

“Then what caused the arm to ache; the muscle to stress?” After a pause the professor asked “Before my arm ache, what should I do?”

The students were puzzled.

“Put the glass down!” said one… Read the rest