Life and Spirituality

F ew people realize how much of our food comes from grass. Wheat, Sugar, Rice and Corn are forms of grasses. Animals we depend upon for food, such as meat, eggs and milk, produce that after consuming grass. Grass as bamboo is an excellent building material. In fact more research is needed for construction of human dwellings based on a structure of bamboo combined with minimal use of wood, plastered with mud, inner walls covered with wallpaper made of grass and the outer surfaces covered in waterproof paint. Floors may be made of jute matting and roofs out of clay tiles and solar panels. One need not avoid cement, steel and glass completely but all of them use copious amounts of energy for their production and it is wise to minimize their use. With proper design such a hybrid building can be just as strong and elegant while being much greener. Just as humans stand out amongst oxygen breathing life forms, the tree stands out in the plant world. Trees as a food source have no...

A s one advances in age it is inevitable that one would have to contend with some health issues. Some that I have faced in recent years is reduced energy, occasional disturbed sleep, stiffness in muscles and occasional lapses of short-term memory. However if one works on these or other such health issues it is definitely possible to improve the situation. It is wonderful if one can age gracefully without any major health issues and move on to the next world when still physically independent. It is tragic and basically bad karma if one undergoes a prolonged disability requiring help or hospitalization before exit from this life. There is much about karma in older posts. I do not rely on modern medicine and allopathic methods for chronic and minor ailments. For me allopathic methods are a resort for acute conditions, emergency or diagnosis. Therefore I have been working on my health issues through more natural means such as diet, exercise, yoga, life style changes,...

Wealth and Happiness Graph The desire for happiness is widespread amongst humans. A misunderstanding about how that happiness is to be achieved is equally widespread. It appears that humans do not fully understand the mechanism for the production of happiness. Humans do know that a sensuous spicy meal, a breathtaking sexual experience, a binge drink of good champagne, a sudden appreciation of the look of awe on the faces of friends and acquaintances by a flashy car or a swanky apartment produces a sudden surge of Joy. But they are also aware (or become aware of it sooner rather than later) that this sort of joy does not last very long. It is followed by depression in the very least or pain in severer cases. Therefore some possibly wiser humans seek and cultivate other more durable avenues for happiness such as philanthropic pursuits to add happiness in the life of others that just reflects back on them, learning to commune with nature or finding and spending life in the comp...

Image source (modified here): http://www.nasa.gov/topics/universe/features/universe20110722-image.html B ack from my trip and checking out some of Vincent’s posts I was delighted to read that Vincent has now started to believe in the existence of Angels. He will not believe in anything easily unless he has very sound proof of it. I hope this belief of his is long lasting. Simultaneously, Vincent mentioned that he still does not believe in God. That is all right because as discussed much in this blog earlier that is a matter of definition. There is as yet no common definition of God among humans. I too disagree with several prevailing definitions of God.  My own definition of God is very simple and so I have no difficulty in believing in God. To me God is everything there is, the entire universe and beyond, if there is anything beyond the universe. I also believe that this Everything has an infinite intelligence and an infinite consciousness with our own being small pa...

T he source of our Karma is Free Will linked to our desires through various emotions that humans possess. All life forms possess it. It is the distinguishing feature of life much more so than ability to reproduce etc. as defined by scientists because after all a sterile person is a life form too. Whenever we exercise our free wills and make a choice or carry out an action based on that choice, it will influence some other life form or some other part of the Universe and most importantly our own soul and it may therefore generate Karma. The word “may” is used in the last paragraph because karma may not be generated at all. The Universe as a whole has a Will also, but the Universe does not accumulate karma in the exercise of that free will, because it does not influence anyone but itself. We are all parts of the Universe. We may not realize that fully but the universe is never in doubt of that. It is possible to align one’s free will with that of the Universe in a sp...

T he comments to the first post on Karma have raised several issues that need elaboration besides several other aspects that have not been touched upon yet. As Hayden has rightly pointed out the goal of the Karmic principle is not punishment, - how can that be, if the very consciousness that maintains this principle, the Universal Consciousness is compassion and love? We are born from a portion of this Universe and are therefore the children of the Universe. A loving parent punishes or rewards a child from time to time in order that the child will develop into a better individual and punishment is never so damaging that it causes permanent scars. The goal is progress. The role of the karmic principle is precisely that - To nudge us towards progress into compassion and love. A way to teach a person a lesson in compassion is to make the person see the other side. Thus a child who hurts others by throwing things may be taught not to do that through explanation. If an ex...

A series of four notes. Links to subsequent notes is given at the end of each note. T he principle of Karma is a central part of spiritual philosophies. Karma is a Sanskrit word used in eastern philosophies of Hinduism and Buddhism. In Islam and Christianity different words are used to describe the same principle. Basically the principle of Karma implies that everything we do, good or bad is recorded by the Universal Intelligence and causes a reaction similar to our deed. It is the principle of retribution. As you sow so shall you reap! The main difference between Christianity and Eastern religion as regards this principle is that in prevalent interpretation of mainstream Christianity the actions and reactions take place over two lives (this one and the next) because only a single reincarnation is assumed whereas in eastern philosophy it is something that can be executed over several life times with a soul taking birth repeatedly. The principle of Karma is a...