3 Pieces of Advice vs 20 Years of Salary

"The biggest enemy of success is the fear of failure. So when fear knocks,send Faith to open the door. Let success be yours forever" 3 Pieces of Advice vs 20 Years of Salary" A very poor newly wedded, young couple lived in a small farm. One day the husband made the following proposal to his wife: - Honey, I will leave the house: I will travel faraway, get a job and work hard in order to come back and give you the comfortable life that you deserve. I do not know how long I will stay away, I only ask one thing, please wait for me, and while I am away, you should be faithful to me, because I will be faithful to you. So the young man left. He walked many days until he found a farmer who was in need of someone to help him. The young man offered his services. He was accepted. Therefore he discussed the terms with his boss: - Let me work for as long as I want and when I think I should go home, please relieve me of my duties. I do not want to receive my salary. I ask you to save it for me, until the day I leave. The day I decide to go, please give me the money and I will go my way. They agreed on that. So, the young man worked for twenty years without holiday and without rest. After twenty years, he came to his boss and said: - Boss, I want my money, because I am returning to my home. The boss replied: - All right, after all, I made a deal with you and I will stick to it. However, before you go I want to offer you something new: I will give you all your money and send you away; or I will give you 3 pieces of advice and send you away. If I give you the money, I do not give you the 3 pieces of advice. And if I give you the 3 pieces of advice, I will not give you the money. Now, go to your room and think about your answer. He thought for two days. Then he went to the boss and told him: - I want the 3 pieces of advice. The boss stressed again: - If I give you the 3 pieces of advice, I will not give you the money. And the man replied: - I want the 3 pieces of advice. The boss then told him: - No. 1: Never take shortcuts in your life, shorter and unknown paths can cost your life. - No. 2: Never be too curious, for curiosity towards evil can be deadly. - No. 3: Never make decisions in moments of anger or pain, because when you repent, it could be too late. After giving these 3 pieces of advice, the boss said to him: - Here, you have 3 loaves of bread, 2 are for you to eat during the journey and the last is for you to eat with your wife when you get home. So, the man went his way, after twenty years away from home and from his wife, whom he loved so much. After the first day of travel, he found a man who greeted him and asked: - Where are you going?He replied: - To a distant place which is about 20 days away if I continue walking. The man said to him: - Ol' boy, this path is too long! I know a shortcut that is very safe and you will arrive in 5 days only. The man began to follow the path suggested until he remembered the first piece of advice. Then, he returned and followed the long path. Days later he learned that the shortcut led to an ambush. After a few more days of travel, he found an inn by the roadside, where he could rest. He paid for a room and after taking a bath he lay down to sleep. During the night he woke up as he heard a terrifying scream. He rose to his feet and went to the door to check what happened. As he was opening the door, he remembered the second piece of advice. Therefore he returned, lay down again and slept. At dawn, after breakfast, the owner of the lodging asked him if he had not heard the scream at night. He affirmed that he heard. Then, the host said: - Were you not curious to see what happened?And he replied: - No, I was not. Then the host said: - You are the first guest to leave this inn alive. My neighbour is completely crazy. He usually shouts at night to call someone’s attention. When some of the guests come out, he kills them and buries their bodies in the backyard. The man continued his long journey, eager to arrive soon. After many days and nights walking, he was very tired, but he finally saw his house far away. It was night. He saw some light coming out of the window of his house and was able to see the silhouette of his wife. But he also saw that she was not alone. He came closer and saw there was a man with her. She softly caressed his hair. When he saw that scene, his heart was filled with hatred and bitterness. He decided to rush at and kill them both mercilessly. However, he took a deep breath and he remembered the third piece of advice. Then he stopped, reflected and decided to sleep outside that night. He slept in the midst of the bushes, determined to make a decision the next day. At dawn, he was calmer and thought: - I will not kill my wife and her lover. I am going back to my boss to ask him to take me back. But before I go, I want to tell my wife that I have always been faithful to her. He went to the front door and knocked. When his wife opened the door and recognized him, she cried and embraced him warmly. He tried to push her away, but he was not able. Then, with tears in his eyes he told her: - I was faithful to you but you betrayed me. She was shocked, so she replied: - How did I betray you? I have never betrayed you. I waited patiently for you for twenty good years. Then he asked: - How about the man that you were caressing yesterday?And she said: - That man is your son. When you left, I discovered I was pregnant. Today he is twenty years old. Hearing that, the man asked her forgiveness. He met and hugged his son. Then he told them all the things he had experienced while away. Meanwhile, his wife prepared some coffee for them to eat together, the last bread given by his boss. After a prayer of thanksgiving, he broke the bread. When he looked at it, he found a gold biscuit hidden in the bread. In fact, there was even more than the right payment for his twenty years of dedication and hard work. Friends, our God is like this boss. When he asks us to make a sacrifice, he wants to give us more than what we give Him. He wants us to have His unique wisdom as well as the material blessings.

The concept of God

Peace is not a passive attitude; it is an active state. It requires having constant attention in order to live and to respond as a peaceful being to any upset in life. Something interesting regarding those who believe and those who don't believe in God ! Very interesting. It stimulates our lateral thinking : This lovely parable is from "Your Sacred Self" by Dr. Wayne Dyer. In a mother’s womb were two babies. One asked the other: “Do you believe in life after delivery?”The other replied, “Why, of course. There has to be something after delivery. Maybe we are here to prepare ourselves for what we will be later.” “Nonsense” said the first. “There is no life after delivery. What kind of life would that be?” The second said, “I don’t know, but there will be more light than here. Maybe we will walk with our legs and eat from our mouths. Maybe we will have other senses that we can’t understand now.” The first replied, “That is absurd. Walking is impossible. And eating with our mouths? Ridiculous! The umbilical cord supplies nutrition and everything we need. But the umbilical cord is so short. Life after delivery is to be logically excluded.” The second insisted, “Well I think there is something and maybe it’s different than it is here. Maybe we won’t need this physical cord anymore.” The first replied, “Nonsense. And moreover if there is life, then why has no one ever come back from there? Delivery is the end of life, and in the after-delivery there is nothing but darkness and silence and oblivion. It takes us nowhere.” “Well, I don’t know,” said the second, “but certainly we will meet Mother and she will take care of us.” The first replied “Mother? You actually believe in Mother? That’s laughable. If Mother exists then where is She now?” The second said, “She is all around us. We are surrounded by her. We are of Her. It is in Her that we live. Without Her this world would not and could not exist.” Said the first: “Well I don’t see Her, so it is only logical that She doesn’t exist.” To which the second replied, “Sometimes, when you’re in silence and you focus and  listen, you can perceive Her presence, and you can hear Her loving voice, calling down from above.” May be this was one of the best explanations to the  concept of 'GOD'.

God's answer

Always pray to have eyes that see the best, a heart that forgives the worst, a mind that forgets the bad, and a soul that never loses faith.   Dr. Mark, a well-known cancer specialist, was once on his way to an important conference in another city where he was going to be granted an award in the field of medical research. He had worked long and hard on his research and felt his efforts deserved the award. However, two hours after the plane took off, the plane made an emergency landing due to some technical snag. Dr. Mark immediately went to the reception and found that the next flight was after 10 hours. The receptionist suggested him, to rent a car and drive himself down to the conference city which was only 4 hours away. Dr. Mark rented a car and started his journey. However, the weather suddenly changed and a heavy storm began. The pouring rain made it very difficult for him to see and he missed a turn he was supposed to take. After two hours of driving, he was convinced he was lost. Driving in the heavy rain on a deserted road, feeling hungry and tired, he frantically began to look for any sign of civilization. After some time, he finally came across a small tattered house. Desperate, he got out of the car and knocked on the door. A lady opened the door. He asked her if he could use her telephone.  However, the lady told him that she doesn't have a phone but told the doctor to come inside and wait till the weather improved. Hungry, wet and exhausted, the doctor accepted her kind offer and walked in. The lady gave him hot tea and something to eat. The lady told him that he can join her for prayer. But, Dr. Mark smiled and said that he believed in hard work only and told her to continue with her prayers. Sitting on the table and sipping the tea, the doctor watched the woman in the dim light of candles as she prayed next to what appeared to be a small baby crib. The doctor asked her what exactly she wanted from God and enquired if she thought God will ever listen to her prayers. He further asked about the small child in the crib for whom she was apparently praying. The lady gave a sad smile and said that the child in the crib is her son who is suffering from a rare type of cancer and there is only one doctor Mark who can cure him but she doesn't have money to afford his fee and moreover Dr Mark lives in another far off town. She said that God has not answered her prayer so far but said that God will create some way out one day and added that she will not allow her fears to overcome her faith. Stunned and speechless Dr Mark was in tears which were rolling down his cheeks. He whispered, God is great and recollected the sequence of events. ....there was malfunction in the plane, a thunderstorm hit, and he lost his way; and all of this happened because God did not just answer her prayer but also gave him a chance to come out of materialistic world and give some time to the poor hapless people who have nothing but rich prayers. Always be prepared to do ....... What God has prepared you for " There are No Accidents in Life"

Thanks giving

“In life many people help you when it suits them, but very few people help when it suits you, make the few and be the few to others.” Airline Lunches - autobiography of a famous business man I put my carry-on in the luggage compartment and sat down in my assigned seat.  It was going to be a  long flight to Delhi. 'I'm glad I have a good book to read Perhaps I will get a short sleep,' I thought. Just before take-off, a line of soldiers came down the aisle and filled all the vacant seats, totally surrounding me. I decided to start a conversation. 'Where are you guys headed?' I asked the Young man seated nearest to me. "Agra. We'll be there for two weeks for special training, and then we're being deployed for operations." After flying for about an hour, an announcement was made that lunches were available on payment. It would be several hours before we reached Delhi , and I quickly decided a lunch would help pass the time.. As I reached for my wallet, I overheard a soldier ask his buddy if he planned to buy lunch. 'No, that cost a lot of money, probably wouldn't be worth it. I'll wait till we get to Delhi ...." His buddy agreed. I looked around at the other soldiers. None were buying lunch. I walked to the back of the plane and handed the flight attendant enough money to cover for 10 lunches and told her 'Take a lunch to all those soldiers..' She grabbed my arms and squeezed tightly. Her eyes wet with tears, she thanked me. 'My young brother was a soldier in Kargil , it's almost like you are doing it for him..' Picking up ten lunchboxes, she headed up the aisle to where the boys were seated. She stopped at my seat and asked, 'Which do you like best - Veg or chicken?' 'Chicken,' I replied, wondering why she asked.. She turned and went to the front of plane, returning a minute later with a dinner plate from first class. "This is your thanks". After we finished eating, I went again to the back of the plane, heading for the rest room. An old man stopped me. 'I saw what you did. I want to be part of it. Here, take this.' He handed me a Rs 500/- note. Soon after I returned to my seat, I saw the Captain coming down the aisle, looking at the aisle numbers as he walked, I hoped he wasn't looking for me, but noticed he was looking at the numbers only on my side of the plane. When he got to my row he stopped, smiled, held out his hand, and said, 'I want to shake your hand.' Quickly unfastening my seat-belt I stood and took the Captain's hand. With a booming voice he said, 'I was an Air Force pilot a long time back. Once someone bought me lunch. It was an act of kindness I never forgot.' I was embarrassed when applause was heard from all of the passengers. Later I walked to the front of the plane so I could stretch my legs. A kid who looked about 18 was sitting about six rows in front of me reached out his hand, wanting to shake mine. I felt him stick a currency note in my palm. When we landed I gathered my belongings and started to depart. Waiting just inside the aeroplane door was a man who stopped me, put something in my shirt pocket, turned, and walked away without saying a word. Another currency note ! Upon entering the terminal, I saw the soldiers gathering for their Trip up to their training area.. I walked over to them and handed them all the currency notes that was given to me on the flight and said. 'It will take you some time to reach your training area. It will be about time for a sandwich. May God Bless You.' and thank you for doing whatever you do. Ten young men of honour left that flight feeling the love and respect of their fellow countrymen. As I walked briskly to my car, I whispered a prayer for their safe return. These soldiers were giving their all for our country. I could only give them a couple of meals. It seemed so little... A Serviceman is someone who, at one point in his life, wrote a blank cheque made payable to ' India ' for an amount of 'up to and including my life.' That is Honour, and there are way too many people in this country who don't understand it.............

Judging others

A doctor entered the hospital in hurry after being called in for an urgent
surgery. He answered the call asap, changed his clothes and went directly
to the surgery block. He found the boy's father pacing in the hall waiting
for the doctor. On seeing him, the father yelled, "Why did you take all
this time to come? Don't you know that my son's life is in danger? Don't
you have any sense of responsibility?"

The doctor smiled and said, "I am sorry, I wasn't in the hospital and I
came as fast as I could after receiving the call and now, I wish you'd calm
down so that I can do my work."

"Calm down?! What if your son was in this room right now, would you calm
down? If your own son dies while waiting for doctor than what will you
do?", said the father angrily. The doctor smiled again and replied, "We
will do our best by
God's grace and you should also pray for your son’s healthy life."

"Giving advice when we're not concerned is so easy", murmured the father.
The surgery took some hours after which the doctor went out happy, "Thank
goodness! your son is saved!" And without waiting for the father's reply he
carried on his way running by saying, "If you have any questions, ask the
nurse."

"Why is he so arrogant? He couldn't wait some minutes so that I ask about
my son's state?" asked the father when seeing the nurse minutes after the
doctor left. The nurse answered, tears coming down her face, "His son died
yesterday in a road accident, he was at the burial when we called him for
your son's surgery. And now that he saved your son's life, he left running
to finish his son's burial."

*Moral:* *Never judge anyone because you never know how their life is and
what they are going through.*

Ph.D

Finally, Received my Ph.D award on 30th May 2015, the first doctorate in my family. Exciting!

All Glories to God.

Why does my child study Sanskrit?

Irish Daily
Why does my child study Sanskrit?
by Rutger Kortenhorst

Rutger Kortenhorst, a Sanskrit teacher in John Scottus School in Dublin, Ireland, speaks to parents of his school children on the value of teaching Sanskrit to children, based on his own experience with the language.
Good evening Ladies and Gentlemen, we are going to spend an hour together looking at the topic ‘Why does my child study Sanskrit in John Scottus?’ My bet is that at the end of the hour you will all have come to the conclusion that your children are indeed fortunate that this extraordinary language is part of their curriculum.

Firstly, let us look at Why Sanskrit for my child? We are the only school in Ireland doing this language, so this will need some explaining.

There are 7 JSS-type schools in UK and also around the world in total that have made the same decision to include Sanskrit in their curriculum (they are all off-shoots from the School of Philosophy).
They are:
1. Saint James’s Schools London       age 5-18
2. John Scottus Schools in Dublin    age 5-12
3. Saint James School Johannesburg  age 5-12
4. Erasmus School Melbourne            age 5-12
5. John Colet School in Sydney          age 5-12
6. Renaissance School in Trinidad     age 5-12
7. Ficino School in Wellington            age 5-12

Secondly, how is Sanskrit taught? You may have noticed your son or daughter singing Sanskrit grammar songs in the back of the car just for the fun of it on the way home from school. I’ll spend some time telling you HOW we approach teaching Sanskrit now since my learning from India.But Why Sanskrit?

To answer that we need to look at the qualities of Sanskrit. Sanskrit stands out above all other languages for its beauty of sound, precision in pronunciation and reliability as well as thoroughness in every aspect of its structure. This is why it has never fundamentally changed unlike all other languages. It has had no need to change being the most perfect language of Mankind ever.
If we consider Shakespeare’s English, we realize how different and therefore difficult for us his English language was although it is just English from less than 500 years ago. We struggle with the meaning of Shakespeare’s English or that of the King James Bible. Go back a bit further and we don’t have a clue about the English from the time of Chaucer’s ‘Pilgrim’s Progress’ from around 700 AD. We cannot even call this English anymore and now rightly call it Anglo-Saxon. So English hadn’t even been born! All languages keep changing beyond recognition. They change because they are defective. The changes are in fact corruptions. They are born and die after seven or eight hundred years –about the lifetime of a Giant Redwood Tree- because after so much corruption they have no life left in them.

Surprisingly there is one language in the world that does not have this short lifespan. Sanskrit is the only exception. It is a never-dying constant. The reason for the constancy in Sanskrit is that it is completely structured and thought out. There is not a word that has been left out in its grammar or etymology, which means every word can be traced back to where it came from originally. This does not mean there is no room for new words either. Just as in English we use older concepts from Greek and Latin to express modern inventions like a television: ‘tele [far] – vision [seeing]’ or ‘compute –er’. Sanskrit in fact specializes in making up compound words from smaller words and parts. The word ‘Sams – krita’ itself means ‘completely – made’.

So what advantages are there to a fundamentally unchanging language? What is advantageous about an unchanging friend, say? Are they reliable? What happens if you look at a text in Sanskrit from thousands of years ago?

The exceptional features of Sanskrit have been recognised for a few centuries all over the world, so you will find universities from many countries having a Sanskrit faculty. Whether you go to Hawai, Cambridge or Harvard and even Trinity College Dublin has a seat for Sanskrit –although it is vacant at present. May be one of your children will in time fill this position again?

Although India has been its custodian, Sanskrit has had universal appeal for centuries. The wisdom carried by this language appeals to the West as we can see from Yoga and Ayurvedic Medicine as well as meditation techniques, and practical philosophies like Hinduism, Buddhism and most of what we  use in the School of Philosophy. It supports, expands and enlightens rather than conflicts with local traditions and religions.
The precision of Sanskrit stems from the unparalleled detail on how the actual sounds of the alphabet are structured and defined. The sounds have a particular place in the mouth, nose and throat that can be defined and will never change.

This is why in Sanskrit the letters are called the ‘Indestructibles’ [aksharáni]. Sanskrit is the only language that has consciously laid out its sounds from first principles. So the five mouth-positions for all Indestructibles [letters] are defined and with a few clearly described mental and physical efforts all are systematically planned: [point out chart]
After this description, what structure can we find in a, b, c, d, e, f , g…? There isn’t any, except perhaps that it starts with ‘a’, and goes downhill from there.

Then there is the sheer beauty of the Sanskrit script as we learn it today. [Some examples on the board]

You may well say: ‘Fine, but so why should my son or daughter have yet another subject and another script to learn in their already busy school-day?’ In what way will he or she benefit from the study of Sanskrit in 2012 in the Western world?The qualities of Sanskrit will become the qualities of your child- that is the mind and heart of your child will become beautiful, precise and reliable.

Sanskrit automatically teaches your child and anybody else studying it to pay FINE attention due to its uncanny precision. When the precision is there the experience is, that it feels uplifting. It makes you happy. It is not difficult even for a beginner to experience this. All you have to do is fine-tune your attention and like music you are drawn in and uplifted. This precision of attention serves all subjects, areas and activities of life both while in school and for the rest of life. This will give your child a competitive advantage over any other children. They will be able to attend more fully, easily and naturally. Thus in terms of relationships, work, sport– in fact all aspects of life, they will perform better and gain more satisfaction. Whatever you attend to fully, you excel in and you enjoy more.

By studying Sanskrit, other languages can be learnt more easily; this being the language all others borrow from fractionally. The Sanskrit grammar is reflected in part in Irish or Greek, Latin or English. They all have a part of the complete Sanskrit grammar. Some being more developed than others, but always only a part of the Sanskrit grammar, which is complete in itself.
What Sanskrit teaches us that there is a language that is ordered, following laws unfailingly and as they are applied your child gets uplifted, not only when they grow up, but as they are saying it! This means they get an unusual but precise, definite and clear insight into language while they are enjoying themselves.

They learn to speak well, starting from Sanskrit, the mother language of all languages. Those who speak well run the world. Barack Obama makes a difference because he can speak well. Mahatma Gandhi could move huge crowds with well-balanced words. Mother Theresa could express herself with simple words which uplift us even now.

The language of the great Master Teachers of mankind from times past is all we have got after centuries and millennia, but they make all the difference. We can enter the remarkable mind of Plato through his words. If your daughter or son can express themselves well through conscious language they will be the leaders of the next generation.Sanskrit has the most comprehensive writings in the world expressed through the Vedas and the Gítá. The Upanishads –translated by William Butler Yeats have given people from all over the world an insight into universal religious feelings for more than one century now.
To know these well expressed simple words of wisdom in the original is better than dealing with copies or translations as copies are always inferior to originals. We really need clear knowledge on universal religion in an age faced with remarkable levels of religious bigotry and terrorism arising from poorly understood and half-baked religious ideas.Culture

Vivekananda, a great spiritual leader from India revered by all in the World Religious Conference of 1880 in Chicago said:

You can put a mass of knowledge into the world, but that will not do it much good. There must come some culture into the blood. We all know in modern times of nations which have masses of knowledge, but what of them? They are like tigers; they are like savages, because culture is not there.
Knowledge is only skin-deep, as civilization is, and a little scratch brings out the old savage. Such things happen; this is the danger. Teach the masses in the vernaculars, give them ideas; they will get information, but something more is necessary; give them culture.
Sanskrit can help your child to express universal, harmonious and simple truths better. As a result you will really have done your duty as a parent and the world will reap the benefits in a more humane, harmonious and united society. Sanskrit can do this as it is the only language that is based in knowledge all the way. Nothing is left to chance.

Just think for the moment how confusing it is for a child to learn to say ‘rough’, but ‘dough’. And why does the ‘o’ in ‘woman’ sound like an ‘e’ in ‘women’? How come the ‘ci’ in ‘special’ is different from the ‘ci’ in ‘cinema’?

Teachers may well say ‘Just learn it’ as there is no logical explanation, but it only demonstrates to a child that it is all a bit of a hit-and-miss affair. What else does this randomness in the fundamental building-blocks of language teach a child about the world? That it’s just a confusing, random chance-event? How can this give anyone any confidence?

Now go to a language where everything is following rules. Where nothing is left to chance from the humble origin of a letter to the most sophisticated philosophical idea. How will that child meet the world? Surely with confidence, clarity and the ability to express itself?

I have seen myself and others growing in such qualities, because of our contact with Sanskrit. I have just spent a year in India. Though it felt a bit like camping in a tent for a year, it was well worth it.
For many years, we taught Sanskrit like zealots i.e. with high levels of enthusiasm and low levels of understanding, to both adults in the School of Philosophy and children in John Scottus School. We did not perhaps inspire a lot of our students and may have put a number of them off the study of Sanskrit. It felt to me like we needed to go to the source.

Sanskrit teachers worth their salt need to live with people whose daily means of communication is in Sanskrit. I had already spent three summers near Bangalore at 'Samskrita Bharati' doing just that and becoming less of an amateur, but it really needed a more thorough study. So I moved into a traditional gurukulam for the year. This meant living on campus, eating lots of rice  and putting up with a few power-cuts and water shortages, but by December 2009, I made up my mind that I would step down as vice-principal of the Senior School and dedicate myself to Sanskrit for the rest of my teaching life.

It felt like a promotion to me as quite a few could be vice-principal but right now which other teacher could forge ahead in Sanskrit in Ireland? [Hopefully this will change before I pop off to the next world.] With Sanskrit I’m expecting my mind to improve with age even if my body slows down a little.

Sanskrit is often compared to the full-time teacher, who is there for you 24/7 whereas the other languages are more like part-timers. The effects of studying Sanskrit on me have been first and foremost a realistic confidence. Secondly, it meant I had to become more precise and speak weighing my words more carefully. It also taught me to express myself with less waffle and therefore speak more briefly. My power of attention and retention has undoubtedly increased.Teaching method

Now, let me explain for a few minutes, HOW Sanskrit is taught. To my surprise it is not taught well in most places in India. Pupils have to learn it from when they are around age 9 to 11 and then they give it up, because it is taught so badly! Only a few die-hards stick with it, in time teaching the same old endings endlessly to the next generation. This is partly due to India having adopted a craving to copy the West and their tradition having been systematically rooted out by colonialism.

For learning grammar and the wisdom of the East, I was well-placed in a traditional gurukulam, but for spoken Sanskrit I felt a modern approach was missing.

Then I found a teacher from the International School belonging to the Sri Aurobindo Ashram in Pondicherry. His name is Narendra. He has developed a novel, inspiring and light method to teach grammar, which doesn’t feel like you do any grammar at all. At the same time it isn’t diluted for beginners so you don’t end up with partial knowledge. I also followed a few Sanskrit Conversation camps, which all brought about more familiarity.
Narendra says he owes his method to Sri Aurobindo and his companion The Mother who inspired him to come up with the course we now follow in Dublin. This is one of the many things The Mother said to inspire him: “Teach logically. Your method should be most natural, efficient and stimulating to the mind. It should carry one forward at a great pace. You need not cling there to any past or present manner of teaching.”
This is how I would summarize the principles for teaching Sanskrit as we carry it out at present:

1. Language learning is not for academics as everyone learns to speak a language from an early age before they can read and write and know what an academic is. So why insist in teaching Sanskrit academically?

2. The writing script is not the most fundamental thing to be taught. A language is firstly made of its sounds, words and spoken sentences. [The script we use -though very beautiful- is only a few hundred years old.]

3. Always go from what is known to what is new.

4.  Understanding works better than memorisation in this Age. Learning by heart should only take up 10 percent of the mental work, rather than the 90 percent rote learning in Sanskrit up to the recent present.

5. Don’t teach words and endings in isolation; teach them in the context of a sentence as the sentence is the smallest meaningful unit in language.

6. Any tedious memory work which cannot be avoided should be taught in a song.

7. Do not teach grammatical terms. Just as we don’t need to know about the carburetor, when we learn to drive a car.

8. The course should be finished in two years by an average student according to Narendra. This may be a little optimistic given that we are a little out of the loop not living in India, which is still Sanskrit’s custodian. At present I would say it is going to be a three-year course.

9. Language learning must be playful. Use drama, song, computer games and other tricks to make learning enjoyable.

We have started on this course since September and it has certainly put a smile on our pupils’ faces, which makes a pleasant change. I now feel totally confident that we are providing your children with a thorough, structured and enjoyable course. Our students should be well prepared for the International Sanskrit Cambridge exam by the time they finish –age 14/15- at the end of second year. We will also teach them some of the timeless wisdom enshrined in various verses. At present we are teaching them: “All that lives is full of the Lord. Claim nothing; enjoy! Do not covet His property”- in the original of course.


The future

Let us look at the 500 – year cycle of a Renaissance. The last European Renaissance developed three subjects: Art, Music and Science to shape the world we live in today. It had its beginning in Florence. The great Humanist Marsilio Ficino made Plato available to the masses by translating it from Greek to Latin. We live in exciting times and may well be at the beginning of a new Renaissance. It also will be based on three new subjects: Some say that these will be Economics, Law and Language.

Language has to become more universal now as we can connect with each other globally within seconds. NASA America’s Space Program is actively looking at Sanskrit in relation to I.T. and artificial intelligence.Sri Aurobindo said “…at once  majestic and sweet and flexible, strong and clearly-formed and full and vibrant and subtle…”.
What John Scottus pupils have said:

It makes your mind bright, sharp and clear.
It makes you feel peaceful and happy.
It makes you feel BIG.
It cleans and loosens your tongue so you can pronounce any language easily.
What Sanskrit enthusiasts like Rick Briggs in NASA have said:

It gives you access to a vast and liberating literature.
It can describe all aspects of human life from the most abstract philosophical to the latest scientific discoveries, hinting at further developments.
Sanskrit and computers are a perfect fit. The precision play of Sanskrit with computer tools will awaken the capacity in human beings to utilize their innate higher mental faculty with a momentum that would inevitably transform the mind. In fact, the mere learning of Sanskrit by large numbers of people in itself represents a quantum leap in consciousness, not to mention the rich endowment it will provide in the arena of future communication. NASA, California

After many thousands of years, Sanskrit still lives with a vitality that can breathe life, restore unity and inspire peace on our tired and troubled planet. It is a sacred gift, an opportunity. The future could be very bright.
Rick Briggs [NASA]
You may well have a few questions at this stage after which I would like to introduce you to a plant in the audience. A parent turned into a blazing ball of enthusiasm over Sanskrit grammar: John Doran. I would like him to wrap up.

I’ll give NASA’s Rick Briggs the last word from me:

One thing is certain; Sanskrit will only become the planetary language when it is taught in a way which is exiting and enjoyable. Furthermore it must address individual learning inhibitions with clarity and compassion in a setting which encourages everyone to step forth, take risks, make mistakes and learn.

Life is Beautiful!

Swami Vivekanand:- I can't find free time. Life has become hectic.
Ramkrishna Paramahansa:- Activity gets you busy. But productivity gets you  free.
Swami Vivekanand:-  Why has life become complicated now?
Ramkrishna Paramahansa:-  Stop analyzing life.. It makes it complicated.
Just live it.
Swami Vivekanand:-  Why are we then constantly unhappy?
Ramkrishna Paramahansa:- Worrying has become your habit. That's why you are  not happy.
Swami Vivekanand:-  Why do good people always suffer?
Ramkrishna Paramahansa:- Diamond cannot be polished without friction. Gold  cannot be purified without fire. Good people go through trials, but don't  suffer. With that experience their life becomes better, not bitter.
Swami Vivekanand:-  You mean to say such experience is useful?
Ramkrishna Paramahansa:- Yes. In every term, Experience is a hard teacher.
She gives the test first and the lessons afterwards.
Swami Vivekanand:-  Because of so many problems, we don't know where we are  heading.
Ramkrishna Paramahansa:- If you look outside you will not know where you are  heading. Look inside. Eyes provide sight. Heart provides the way.
Swami Vivekanand:-  Does failure hurt more than moving in the right  direction?
Ramkrishna Paramahansa:- Success is a measure as decided by others.
Satisfaction is a measure as decided by you.
Swami Vivekanand:-   In tough times, how do you stay motivated?
Ramkrishna Paramahansa:- Always look at how far you have come rather than  how far you have to go. Always count your blessing, not what you are  missing.
Swami Vivekanand:-   What surprises you about people?
Ramkrishna Paramahansa:- When they suffer they ask, "why me?" When they  prosper, they never ask "Why me?"
Swami Vivekanand:-  How can I get the best out of life?
Ramkrishna Paramahansa:- Face your past without regret. Handle your present  with confidence. Prepare for the future without fear.
Swami Vivekanand:-  One last question. Sometimes I feel my prayers are not  answered.
Ramkrishna Paramahansa:- There are no unanswered prayers.  Keep the faith  and drop the fear.  Life is a mystery to solve, not a problem to resolve.
Trust me. Life is wonderful if you know how to live.

Service is greater than  meditation.

Self-employment

Is it really better to sell milk than to work at MNC..?

Krishna Rao(K.Rao) passed B.tech and placed at MNC during Campus Recruitment. CTC 4lakhs. His Relatives, Family friends of wished him for success. That’s it K.Rao face glowed like Petramax light and thought himself from today every day will be happy.

Malesh beside to K.Rao house got failed in Degree. All his relatives and family friends blamed Malesh as everyone in Hyderabad is studying B.tech but Malesh even failed in degree. Every one gave him suggestions like to sell Idly, Dosa…. Put Pan shop… or sell Milk… His Father was very much embarrassed. Now what to do…? Malesh asked his mother 2 lakhs and borrowed 2 more lakhs then bought buffaloes and started Milk Business.

K.Rao bought bike through credit card and started to office. Malesh on TVS with Milk Cans also started to sell. K.Rao proudly said ‘Hai’ to Malesh. Malesh with embarrass look said ‘Hai’ and left to their duties.

6 months passed away….

K.Rao cleared 20% interest over bike; still actual price 80K is pending. Malesh cleared 1 lakh out of his 2lakh borrowed money. Both faced each other, K.Rao gave small smile thinking that when he will clear 80K. Malesh also gave narrow smile by thinking about his remaining 1 lakh loan.

1 year passed away…..

K.Rao put hopes on salary hike. Suddenly due to recession company mailed this year no hike. The mail look like Ramgopal Varma Telugu Movie “marri chettu”… L Now half liter milk price increased to 14/-Rs from 10/-Rs. This profited Malesh to 30% and cleared remaining 1 lakh loan amount.

By now anyhow K.Rao cleared his Bike loan and brought Personnel loan of 2 lakhs for 16% interest. K.Rao bought furniture, LCD, LapTop with 2 that lakhs. Every One accolade K.Rao as he brought these accessories in just 2 years of job. Now Malesh with his Profited money brought 12 more buffaloes. His income doubled.

Again both faced each other. K.Rao gave doubtful smile thinking about his Personnel loan. Malesh gave heart full smile since he doesn’t have any debts.

After 2 Years K.Rao got 10% salary hike. He then bought a Maruthi Wagan R car through Car Loan. Mean time Malesh bought 2 acres land for his 3 dozens of buffaloes. Even Milk Prices raised to 30% again. Now Malesh income is 200% more than K.Rao. Malesh owned one Auto to sell Milk. One more time both faced each other. By thinking his Loans and Interests K.Rao unable to give whole Hearted Smile. Whereas Malesh smiled Confidently from his own Auto.

2 more years passed away…..!

K.Rao applied to 40 lakhs home loan and bought one apartment. Malesh buffaloes number crossed Century. Malesh bought 2 apartments. K.Rao got 10more percent salary hike. Milk price crossed 40/Rs per liter now. Total income of Malesh is 500% more than the income of K.Rao. That’s all Malesh bought 1 Skoda and 1 Innova Car. Both faced each other. K.Rao gave tension smile by thinking that when he will clear 40lakh loan. Malesh gave Confident smile since he own a single size Milk Factory with more than 100 buffaloes and 25 workers.

That night K.Rao was in a deep frustration. Because after 5 years Malesh own 4crores of Money, monthly 5 lakhs of income, provided jobs to 25 workers. Whereas K.Rao salary is 7 lakhs with 40 lakhs debt and un satisfactory job. This is the Balance Sheet.

Facts: In 2008 Milk was 10/- litre. Now 40/- litre. Gold 12500/- 10 grams, Now 30000/-. In the last 5 years salary hikes for professionals was just 30%. All commodity prices increased to 300%. Still many people from outside think about engineers that as they earn in lakhs… For them show this or share……..

Viji's Interview in Gyaanavaani

W

When I went to Mysore to attend contact classes for my Masters in Sanskrit in KSOU, I incidentally got an opportunity to give an interview in Kannada in Gyanvaani –Educational FM channel in Mysore. That was a very great experience. All of them were extremely cooperative.

My special thanks to Prof. Radhakrishna Bhat, Mr. V. M Jagadeesh of Gyanvaani & S. Lakshmi naaraayana, the sound engineer & editor of this programme.

Here is the link of that programme broadcasted on 13/6/2014.

https://www.dropbox.com/s/shb772bvcdpnxqp/Gnanavaani%20interview.wma

All Glories to God!

Never Be Late

A Priest was being honoured at his retirement dinner after 25 years in the parish. A leading local politician and member of the congregation was chosen to make the presentation and to give a little speech at the dinner.

However, he was delayed, so the Priest was asked to say a few words in the meanwhile. Not being prepared to speak then, he wondered for a minute and then decided to share his experience on the first day in the parish to highlight how one should not rush to conclusions.

'I got my first impression of the parish from the first confession I heard here. I thought I had been assigned to a terrible place. The very first person who entered my confessional told me he had stolen a television set and, when questioned by the police, was able to lie his way out of it. He had stolen money from his parents, embezzled from his employer, had an affair with his boss's wife, taken illegal drugs, and gave VD to his neighbour. I was appalled.

But as the days went on I learned that my people were
not all like that and I had, indeed, come to a fine parish full of good and loving people.'....

Just as the Priest finished his talk, the politician arrived full of apologies at being late. He immediately began to make the presentation and gave his talk:

 'I'll never forget the first day our parish Priest arrived,' said the politician. 'In fact, I had the honour of being the first person to go to him for confession.'
Moral : Never Ever Be Late.

My Interview in May 2013 Retina India Newsletter

Below is my interview  for May 2013 issue of Retina India newsletter.

Praise is a motivating force, most would say. But only few, like Vijayalakshmi, would convert even criticism into a driving force. When faced with isolation in school, she sought to be included by becoming an achiever in multiple curricular and co-curricular activities. When a teacher sought to scorn her aspiration to study among sighted peers in a regular school, Vijayalakshmi took it as a challenge to prove her teacher wrong. In a recent interview to a premier regional television channel, Vijayalakshmi said that she believes stumbling blocks need not limit one’s aspirations: “There are always ways to overcome obstacles; one only needs to look for them”. And through her own triumphs over tribulations, Vijayalakshmi  gives credence to this conviction.

Featured below are excerpts from an interview with this exceptional young woman, who was recently awarded the Brigade-Rotary special prize for young achievers. Vijayalakshmi, who is now pursuing a PhD in Music, has Master’s degrees in English Literature and Carnatic Music. She is a polyglot with working knowledge of five languages, and bridges the traditional and the contemporary with elan as an accomplished student of Sanskrit who uses the Internet to teach music to students across the globe through Sushravya, the school of music she has established.

Retina India (R.I.): Challenges come in various forms. Most people find it difficult to come to terms even with small setbacks. A few, like yourself, do not allow even the biggest barriers to hold them back. Where does your strength come from? Please tell us about your inspiration and your motivations.

Vijayalakshmi (Viji): If I have to talk about my inspiration and motivation, I should speak about my parents first, especially my mother, Mrs. Rukmini Varadharajan.

We belonged to a lower middle-class family, and there was nobody to support us both physically and financially at the time of my birth. My father was the only earning member with a small income. It was in this situation that I was diagnosed with RP [Retinitis Pigmentosa] at the age of one. Now, one can easily imagine what a big blow that would have been for my parents.

Many suggested that I should be put in a boarding school for special children as it would be difficult for my parents to bring me up in a conventional environment/ setting. My mother did not want this to happen. She took it as a challenge and taught me everything she could from my childhood. She told me inspirational stories to motivate me whenever I was tempted to give up.

She is a science graduate, and did B.Ed for my sake, to join my school as a teacher, to accompany me every day. She would read all my lessons aloud like a news reader after the school despite all discouragement from the people around, and many difficulties. When I joined college, she left her teaching job to take me to the college, and stayed there till I finished my classes and brought me home each day. She did the same when I did my computer courses as well.

Her sacrifices for my sake have been endless. My mother is my inspiration and motivation. She is my real strength. Whatever little I can do today is all because of her. All the credit goes to her. I’m just an instrument in her hands and she is the maker.

R.I : In common parlance, perception is often linked to being able to see physically. But philosophers tend to think of perception as something deeper…

Viji: Though I’m unable to see physically, I have a skill of imagination developed from childhood. Whenever someone explains to me about something, its color, its shape, size etc, I have an exact picture of it within my mind’s eye. Even when I haven’t touched a thing first, I’m often surprised to find that the picture in my mind’s eye is true about that particular thing after I happen to touch it subsequently. This skill has enabled me to do many complicated tasks very easily and efficiently: for example, cooking, wreathing flower garlands, household work like cleaning, washing etc.

I think learning music has also contributed a lot in this. It has helped me in differentiating between minute sounds and tones that even over phone if I hear a person’s voice once, I can identify the person even if he or she changes his her voice.

R.I : Sanskrit and Music are considered paths that lead to this deeper understanding of life and living. You have acquired scholarship in both these areas. Do you think this has helped you in any particular way? Are there any particular Sanskrit verses/ subhashita-s or musical compositions that have had a deep impact on you?

Viji: Learning Sanskrit has helped me in gaining good memory power and in the development of logical thinking and reasoning. Above all, both music and Sanskrit have given me peace of mind, which enables me work well and complete the given tasks successfully.

One of my all time favorite compositions is “sarvam bramhamayam” by Shri Sadashiva Bramhendra.

Whenever I need an answer for any question, I go to Bhagavath Geeta to find it I can affirm that I have got many convincing answers from it

Whenever I have an attack of laziness, or I am tempted by distractions, like watching T.V during studies or over-eating some favorite food etc. I often remember two subhashitas

1: “Alasyam hi manushyanam parama vairihi”

Meaning: Laziness is the greatest enemy of man.

2: “Vidyaarthi cheth tyageth sukham, sukhaarthi cheth tyageth vidya”

Meaning: If you are interested in knowledge, sacrifice sensual pleasures. But, if you are interested in sensual pleasures, sacrifice knowledge.

R.I : You have made excellent use of the opportunities presented by the Technology Age we live in to help your natural talents grow and bear fruit. Please tell us more about the experience of teaching a global student community.

Viji: Online teaching has always been a very good experience for me. Apart from sharing my musical knowledge with students, I also get good insight about different nations, their culture etc, which has in turn broadened my outlook about life in general, and in particular has made me feel proud of my own country and its culture.

As I’m fully equipped for this career, there is absolutely no necessity to reveal my eye condition to persons I’m working with and I definitely don’t want to do that myself as well. But after taking a few classes from me, all my NRI students are generally impressed and come to meet me in person during their vacation in India. My parents and I are glad to see them giving me more respect than before when they find me doing so well in spite of the challenge. These moments are especially delightful for my parents.

During the class sometimes when the students hear ‘Jaws’ speak, they think it is some cross talk by an American lad. These types of incidents often provide much amusement for us.

R.I : Do you find technology empowering in other ways as well? Are there any particular innovations in technology that you would like to have, or any areas where you feel technology lags behind and ought to do better?

Viji: Well, the Internet technology, as all of us are aware, is a powerhouse of knowledge and has left no subject untouched. Especially for me I would say it is a great boon, without which I could not have come up to this level. But I would like to take this opportunity to request the community at large to come up with more open source projects in different areas with special reference to empower people with special needs in order to make them independent and to make them as efficient as their able-bodied counterparts.

Note: You can listen to a concert rendering on Lord Shiva by Vijayalakshmi at the following Youtube link: http://youtu.be/ynduvJZGzxk and watch brief clips of sample classes in an interview that Vijayalakshmi gave to a regional Kannada language channel at the following link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gyPctYBYMts

 Interview link:

http://www.retinaindia.org/insight-2/insight-may-2013/. 

Under the title:

Crossover from eyesight to insight: An interview with an achiever - Vijayalakshmi Varadharajan speaks to inSIGHT

All Glories to God!