1. Looking at Lifedifferently p l dhar

2. Looking at Lifedifferently p l dhar 3. Why this topic ? ? Stress, confusion arises from living lifeunconsciously . Looking at life verysuperficially Living Consciously, looking at life deeply,with insight reduces confusion and stress . 4. Conscious vs Unconscious living Unconscious living : following the rat raceDefault world view : hedonistic materialisticworld view Happiness lies in sensory pleasures obtainedthrough things, power, name, fame, . Its consequences : Cut throat competition, acquisitiveness,consumerism, aggressiveness, strife, stress,continual dissatisfaction, ecological and moraldisaster 5. Conscious vs Unconscious living Let me decide what I should be doing ? What do I need to feel good ? Money Career growth Name and fame Using my skills for betterment of society Understanding the phenomenon of Life How do I prioritise these objectives ? 6. Prioritising the Objectives Analyzing our experiences Competition vs cooperation Grabbing vs sharing Self-centered vs altruistic actions Anger vs forgiveness Jealousy vs joy at others success Deceit (smartness) vs truthfulness Attachment vs dispassion Pride vs humility 7. Analyzing our Experiences We get much greater joy and longer lastingsatisfaction in actions motivated by compassion,altruism, self-less ness, detachment, humility Actions motivated by pride, selfishness, jealousy,attachment give momentary excitement but leaveus tense and apprehensiveAll Humanity is One in these Conclusions 8. Analyzing our Experiences Handling difficulties Failure, loss Injustice, betrayal, blame Bereavement Aging, chronic (terminal) illness, deathBMW syndrome & anguish WHY ME ?Understanding thePhenomenon of Life 9. Understanding the Phenomenon ofLife The wisdom of impermanence Even this will pass away 10. Who upon a signet ring,Carved a maxim strange and wise,When held before his eyes,Gave him counsel at a glance,Fit for every change and chance:Solemn words and these were they: Even this will pass awayTrains of camel through the sandBrought him gems from Samarqand;Fleets of galleys over the seasBrought him pearls to rival these,But he counted little gain,Treasures of mine or main;What is wealth? the king would say, Even this will pass away 11. Mid the pleasures of his courtAt the zenith of their sport, when the palms of all his guestsBurned with clapping at his jests,Seated midst the figs and wine,Said the king: Ah, friends of mine,Pleasures come but not to stay, Even this will pass awayWoman, fairest ever seenWas the bride he crowned as queen,Pillowed on his marriage bedWhispering to his soul, he saidThough no monarch ever pressedFairer bosom to his breast,Mortal flesh is only clay! Even this will pass away 12. Once a javelin pierced his shield.Soldiers with a loud lamentBore him bleeding to his tortured side,Pain is hard to bear , he cried,But with patience, day by day, Even this will pass awayTowering in a public squareForty cubits in the air,And the king disguised, unknown,Gazed upon his sculptured name,And he pondered, What is fame?Fame is but a slow decay! Even this will pass away 13. Struck with palsy, sore and old,Waiting at the gates of gold,Said he with his dying breathLife is done, but what is death?Then an answer to the kingFell a sunbeam on his ring;Showing by a heavenly ray, Even this will pass awayTheodore Tilten 14. The dawn of Wisdom of impermanencemarks the beginning ofLooking at Life differently ! 15. Due to the lack of this wisdom(avidya) we get attached to-our body-our thoughts, views, name and fame-sensory pleasures & sorrows-relationshipsand suffer !Humanity is ONE in this suffering 16. Getting established in this wisdomwe understand :-Sensory pleasures CAN NOT give abidingsatisfaction-Grasping / resisting sensory stimuli are thereal cause of sufferingWe 17. Getting established in thiswisdomwe see the path to freedom :Thoughts, emotions are also evanescent& would cease naturally provided we donot interfereIf we train our mind to merely observewhatever arises in the mind or body webecome more and more Tranquil andEquanimous at peace with ourselvesand the world. We 18. There are no problems inLife...only situationsRespond unwisely : sufferRespond wisely : grow 19. Wise responseis.Accepting what we can not change,changing what we can, andknowing the difference betweenthe two ! {pragmatism} 20. Wise response is... every situation concealsan opportunity to evolveby reducing Clinging,Aversion and Ignorance No impulsive reaction tosituations : we ACTConsciously - we gainresponse-ability 21. As we sow, so we shall reapwe get what we giveAs C A I reduce we gainInsight into the Laws of Nature 22. We are not distinctdifferentiated individuals But intimately interconnected at the bodylevel & the mental level with the whole cosmos..We realize 23. Imbued with such wisdom we caneasily prioritise our ObjectivesMoneyCareer growthName and fameUsing my skills for betterment of societyUnderstanding the phenomenon of Life and be more happy and peaceful ! 24. Examples of a few people inmodern times who looked atlife differently 25. Albert Einstein A human being is a part of a whole, called by usuniverse, a part limited in time and space. Heexperiences himself, his thoughts and feelings assomething separated from the rest... a kind ofoptical delusion of his consciousness.This delusion is a kind of prison for us, restrictingus to our personal desires and to affection for a fewpersons nearest to us.Our task must be to free ourselves from this prisonby widening our circle of compassion to embraceall living creatures and the whole of nature in itsbeauty. 26. Victor Frankel Everything can be taken from a man but one thing:the last of the human freedomsto choose onesattitude in any given set of circumstances, to chooseones own way." "He who has a why to live for can bear with almostany how." "When we are no longer able to change a situationjust think of an incurable disease such as inoperablecancerwe are challenged to change ourselves" "Fundamentally, therefore, any man can, even undersuch circumstances, decide what shall become of him- mentally and spiritually. He may retain his humandignity even in a concentration camp." 27. Morrie Schwartz This disease is knocking at my spirit. But it willnot get my spirit. It will get my body Aging is not just decay once you understandyou are going to die, you live a better lifebecause of that When people say , oh, if I were young againYou know what that reflects? Unsatisfiedlives. Unfulfilled lives. Lives that havent foundmeaning. Because if youve found meaning inyour life, you dont want to go back. You wantto go forward. People havent found meaning in their lives, sothey are running all the time looking for it.They think the next car, the next house, thenext job. 28. Morrie Schwartz I delight in being a child when it is appropriate to be I delight in being a wise old man when it isappropriate to be. I believe in being fully present. that means you shouldbe with the person you are with. I try to be focused onwhat is going on between us. I am not thinking aboutsomething we said last week. What is coming up thisFriday.. When some one wanted to go ahead of me in traffic, Iwould raise my hand, wave and smile. You know what,a lot of time they smiled back. Do the kinds of things that come from the heart. Whenyou do, you wont be dissatisfied, you wont be envious,you wont be longing for somebody elses things. Onthe contrary, youll be overwhelmed with what comes 29. Facing the FutureEvery journey beginsWith but a small step.And every day is a chanceFor a new, small stepIn the right direction.Just follow your Heartsong.I want people to knowmy life philosophy,to remember to playafter every stormMattie Stepanek(1990-2004) 30. Looking at Death differentlyWhat the caterpillar calls the end of the world,the master calls a butterfly.-Richard Bach 31. Thank You !Talk given in IITD in 2007