Wisdom on a Bench in Mussoorie – Stress Management Mantra

STRESS MANAGEMENT MADE SIMPLE

OUTER SILENCE – THE FIRST STEP TO INNER PEACE

WORDS ON A BENCH IN MUSSOORIE

Meditation

By

VIKRAM KARVE

I am feeling hassled. 

I close my eyes. 

I sit in silence.

I relax. 

And – I remember those insightful and profound words of wisdom engraved on a bench in Mussoorie.

I read those words written on a bench in Hindi long back – but those meaningful words have remained etched in my mind forever.

Agar Aap Shanti Chahte Ho To Pehele Shaant Rehena Seekho 

अगर आप शांति चाहते हो तो पहेले शांत रहेना सीखो 

Long back – in the early 1990’s – I visited Mussoorie.

During one of my long walks – probably on Camel’s Back Road – or maybe near Lal Tibba in Landour – I saw some words inscribed on a bench.

Those words were a truism that has had a profound impact on me ever since.

I will never forget those interesting words written in Hindi on a bench in Mussoorie: 

अगर आप शांति चाहते हो तो पहेले शांत रहेना सीखो 

(Agar Aap Shanti Chahte Ho To Pehle Shaant Rehna Seekho) 

Roughly translated into English this means:

IF YOU DESIRE PEACE THEN FIRST LEARN TO REMAIN SILENT 

Of course – the Hindi word  शांत  (shaant)  also means PEACEFUL 

Yes – SILENCE is the sine qua non for PEACEFULNESS.

Once your mind is calm and peaceful – you will experience a sense of inner peace.

If your inner peace is disturbed – you will be stressed out.

The root cause of stress is lack of inner peace.

The first step to stress management is to restore your inner peace – and you must not allow your inner peace to be disturbed.

But – why does your inner peace get disturbed...?

Your inner peace gets disturbed because there is too much “noise” in your life.

There is Physical Noise, Mental Noise, Information Overload Noise, Emotional Noise, Relationship Noise – all sorts of Noise.

There is internal noise – and – there is external noise.

There is noise around you – and – there is noise within you.

There is all sorts of noise and cacophony – noise bombards all your senses. 

Noise hassles you.

Noise disturbs your tranquility.

Noise is the biggest impediment to attaining peacefulness. 

The first step to inner peace is to get rid of all that noise around you and within you. 

Yes – if you want peace you have to shut out all the noise from your life.

Go to a quiet place where there is minimal external noise – switch off your noise-making gadgets like mobile cellphones etc – shut out the cacophony on TV – shut out the toxic people who create “noise” within you – yes – shut out all the emotional noise which hassles your peace of mind. 

Sit silently in solitude – close your eyes – and see how your inner silence dissolves the noise within you.

Soon – as you sit in silence – you will experience inner peace – and you will be in harmony with yourself.

That is what I try to do every morning – or – whenever I feel stressed out.

I sit in silence in the spacious airy balcony of my ninth floor flat in Wakad – or in any other silent calm place.

I absorb the tranquil scenic view of the placid waters of the Mula River quietly flowing below, the peaceful verdant hills in the distance, the still atmosphere, the pure fresh air – and I feel a halo of soothing serenity permeate within me. 

Then – I close my eyes – and I let my silence dissolve the internal noise in my mind and body.

It is only then that I experience inner peace – and I realize that I am in harmony with myself.

Yes – if you want to be in harmony with yourself – you must have inner peace.

And – outer silence is the first step to inner peace. 

अगर आप शांति चाहते हो तो पहेले शांत रहेना सीखो 

If you want peace then first learn to remain silent 

Remember this simple piece of wisdom.

Try it. 

Experience the power of silence in calming your mind.

It works. 

You can take my word for it.

Remember the Stress Management Mantra: 

Outer Silence is the First Step to Inner Peace

VIKRAM KARVE

Copyright © Vikram Karve 
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Disclaimer:

All stories in this blog are a work of fiction. Events, Places, Settings and Incidents narrated in the story are a figment of my imagination. The characters do not exist and are purely imaginary. Any resemblance to persons, living or dead, is purely coincidental.

Copyright Notice:

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Copyright © Vikram Karve (all rights reserved)

This Self Help Article Written by me in 1994 and First Posted by me Vikram Karve in this blog on 16 Sep 2011 at 9/16/2011 01:36:00 PM at url: http://karvediat.blogspot.in/2011/09/words-on-bench-in-mussoorie.html and revised and reposted online many times later at various urls including at urls:  https://karvediat.blogspot.in/2012/02/wisdom-from-mussoorie.html  and  http://karvediat.blogspot.in/2012/10/noise-silence-and-peace-of-mind.html  and  http://karvediat.blogspot.in/2015/08/stress-management-made-simple.html etc

CARPE DIEM - A MORNING PRAYER TO SEIZE THE DAY

CARPE DIEM
A MORNING PRAYER TO SEIZE THE DAY
By
VIKRAM KARVE

BEGIN YOUR DAY WITH A PRAYER OF GRATITUDE TO MOTHER EARTH

Karaagre Vasate Lakshmi Karamadhye Saraswati 

कराग्रे वसते लक्ष्मिः करमध्ये सरस्वति । 

Every morning, the moment I wake up at dawn, I open my eyes, put the two palms of my hand together, look at them and recite my Morning Shloka  - this prayer was taught to me by my late maternal grandmother when I was a small boy.

Then, after reciting my morning prayer, I close my eyes, place the palms of my hands on my eyes and continue to lie down in bed and think about what I am going to do during the day. 

After a few moments, I move my hands all over my body to warm up and pep up my circulation, energize myself, and then I  get up, say Carpe Diem – and, yes, I seize the day and make the most of it.

Here is the morning prayer:

Karaagre Vasate Lakshmi Karamadhye Saraswati

कराग्रे वसते लक्ष्मिः करमध्ये सरस्वति ।

Just click below and hear this meaningful and melodious prayer (it is very short - just 2 minutes). 

The Sanskrit prayer, the English Transliteration and the meaning in English are given below too. 

Dear Reader, first click the song below and hear this short prayer.

After hearing the prayer please read the meaning of the prayer and my views below:

कराग्रे वसते लक्ष्मिः करमध्ये सरस्वति ।

करमूले तु गोविन्दः प्रभाते करदर्शनम् ॥

समुद्र-वसने देवि, पर्वत-स्तन-मंडिते ।

विष्णु-पत्नि नमस्तुभ्यं, पाद-स्पर्शं क्षमस्व मे ॥

Karaagre Vasate Lakshmi Karamadhye Saraswati,

Karamuule Tu Govinda Prabhaate Karadarshanam,

Samudravasane Devi Parvatastanamandale,

Vishhnupatni Namastubhyam Paadasparsham Kshamasva Me

The front part of the hands (the finger tips) is credited to Goddess Lakshmi, the Goddess of Wealth. 

The middle part or palm is credited to Goddess Saraswati, the Goddess of Learning.

The Root of the hand (the part of hand near the wrist) to Govinda (the name of  Lord Krishna, an avatar of God Vishnu). 

So, every morning, one should have a reverent look at one's hand which represents sincere labour. 

I bow to Mother Earth, who has mountains and jungles on her body and whose clothing is made by the ocean. 

The wife of Lord Vishnu, please pardon me for touching you with my feet.

HOW TO GET UP IN THE MORNING

Never use an alarm clock which wakes you up in a disturbing manner.

Get up naturally and gradually open your eyes. 

And then as sleep goes away and you slowly come to your senses, just hold your palms above you, look at them and say this prayer. 

After this short prayer of paying obeisance to the Goddesses Laxmi and Saraswati and God Vishnu and expressing gratitude to Mother Earth, you must close your eyes, place the palms of your hands on your eyes and continue to lie down in bed for a few moments thinking about what you are going to do during the day. This palming is good for your eyes too and gives you a sense of inner peace. So just close your eyes, place your palms on your eyes, and contemplate about the day ahead. 

(Do not think about yesterday or about tomorrow, just focus on today). 

Then after a few moments, move your hands all over your body to pep up your circulation, energize yourself, and then get up, say to yourself Carpe Diem – and, yes, you will seize the day and make the most of it.

If your day begins well the rest of the day will be good. 

As they say: well begun is half done.

More importantly, this helps you live one day at a time.

I try my best to live one day at a time. 

For me every morning is a new day, a new life – so I try my best to make the most of it and then I hit the bed and go to sleep, forget about the day which is over and gone forever and wake up to another fresh new day. 

And when I wake up, I say my morning prayer, get into a positive mood, and Carpe Diem - I seize the new day.

Remember, the manner in which you get up in the morning decides the quality of your day. 

So, Dear Reader, wake up well and have a happy day ahead.

VIKRAM KARVE
Copyright © Vikram Karve 
Vikram Karve has asserted his right under the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 to be identified as the author of this work. 
© vikram karve., all rights reserved. 

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About Vikram Karve

A creative person with a zest for life, Vikram Karve is a retired Naval Officer turned full time writer and blogger. Educated at IIT Delhi, IIT (BHU) Varanasi, The Lawrence School Lovedale and Bishops School Pune, Vikram has published two books: COCKTAIL a collection of fiction short stories about relationships (2011) and APPETITE FOR A STROLL a book of Foodie Adventures (2008) and is currently working on his novel and a book of vignettes and an anthology of short fiction. An avid blogger, he has written a number of fiction short stories and creative non-fiction articles on a variety of topics including food, travel, philosophy, academics, technology, management, health, pet parenting, teaching stories and self help in magazines and published a large number of professional  and academic research papers in journals and edited in-house journals and magazines for many years, before the advent of blogging. Vikram has taught at a University as a Professor for 15 years and now teaches as a visiting faculty and devotes most of his time to creative writing and blogging. Vikram Karve lives in Pune India with his family and muse - his pet dog Sherry with whom he takes long walks thinking creative thoughts.

Vikram Karve Academic and Creative Writing Journal: http://karvediat.blogspot.com
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Email: vikramwamankarve@gmail.com

      

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