Life lessons from a Pencil ✏️!!

The menace called whats app – this is what I penned couple of days back in Tamizh, expressing my anguish at how of late I find it a nuisance. The endless forwards and group additions and misinterpretations that comes along with it is annoying. But we are prolly at a stage, its inevitable too. As its always, the good side of it is one gets a good forward too at times.

One such forward was in Kannada and by Almighty’s grace I could understand 90% of it. Since the content was extremely motivating, I am making an attempt to translate it here in English and also in Tamizh.

These messages somehow find their way when you most need them. Is this called the cosmic message or the universe answering your queries ?

The speaker narrates it in the form a story- a conversation between two pencils. Yes, pencils ✏️

There is a small pencil, which is worn out and used inside a pencil box. There comes a new pencil, bright, fresh, sturdy and energetic. The old pencil welcomes the new one and says, I have a few tips for you. I am ready to share my two cents of life experiences with you.

First point is that, you are not capable of doing anything on your own. Only when somebody takes you in his hand you can do things.

Second point is much more important. That is , the lead inside is much more significant than the wood outside. It is the quality of lead which matters than the quality of wood.

Thirdly, they will sharpen you at regular intervals. When do they sharpen you? Every time you become blunt, you will be sharpened.

Fourth point is you will make mistakes. Don’t fret. There is a rubber at your end, use it to rub and rewrite. Every time you make a mistake, rub and rewrite.

These have a significant relation with our life too. We need to remember these points and the cause for all our worries and anxieties is only when we forget these points. ,

“I am not alone. Paramathma is with me “. HE in his benevolence, takes me in his hands and makes me do things. I am just an instrument in HIS hands. In chapter 11, verse 33, Krishna says, to Arjuna, that the opponents are already slain by HIM , and Arjuna is just an instrument to accomplish- ( nimitha maathram ) what HE had already decided – Hastinapura should be ruled by the righteous.

Once the war was over Aruja felt it is he who killed many of the rivals. Bheema felt it is he who killed more rivals than Arjuna. So Krishna takes them both to the battle field and seeing Ghatothgaja’s son Barbareeka there asks him, if he saw Arjuna’s arrows slaying rivals more or Bheema’s mace. He replies it was neither the arrows nor the mace but Krishna’s Chakra which he saw spinning all around the battle field slaying the rivals. Our life friends, is also similar. We need to remove the I factor from our life. It is HE who makes us do. We are an instrument in HIS HANDS. Rama nama or Shiva nama is chanted to remind us of this. To remind us that its HE is the one behind our actions.

Our sukha(happiness) – dukhkha(sadness)

Labha(gain) – nashta(loss)

Jaya(victory)-apajaya(failure)

Maana(fame) -apamanaana(disgrace)

All keeps happening according to HIS wishes. Then what is my role? I am HIS servant. HE is my Boss. If we remember this there is no place for Ahankaraa( Arrogance) and the absence of ahankara makes us humble. This is the first lesson.

nAnu nannadu yemba naraka dolage biddu
nEne gathi yendu nambida dAsana mEle

This is from a Purandara Dasa krithi that I have listened umpteen times in this week.Being in the US now, and having hours and hours of leisure time at my disposal, I spend them fruitfully in listen to upanyasams. One such by Dushyanth Sridhar, has a mention of this above krithi It conveys the same message.

Dasar says ” I have drowned myself in hell, by giving importance to I, ME etc, but you are my ultimate saviour, please have mercy on this dasa!!! ”

What powerful lyrics !!!

The second lesson talks about external and internal status. Its not what you wear, you eat and how much property and luxuries you posses in life, which determines you. Its your inner peace which is your identity. What is the use of all the wealth and fame and luxury if there is no peace within you. When will you get such peace? Only when you surrender. Even extensive rituals, lavish expenditures towards them will not guarantee peace. Money cannot buy peace. Money can buy medicines but not good health. Its only Sadhana(practise) of realizing the Omnipotent’s role in your life, which will make you realize peace. Your success is measured by your peace. You are a pauper if you are not peaceful at heart inspite of thw material wealth you possess.

The third lesson is you are tested at regular intervals. Be ready !!

WHY ME ? – The most frequent question in everyone’s lips.

You will fall sick

You will face losses

You will cry

“I am too good a person, I do this, I do that, How can I be tested , ” – one cannot ask this question.

Rama in HIS avatara had to go on exile

Krishna in HIS avatara was born in the prison

Ramakrishna Paramahamsa, an exponent in spiritual life was afflicted with Cancer. No one soul is spared from dukha.

Only two people are spared from this – one who is yet to be born and the one who is already dead! As long the oceans and mountains and rivers are there sufferings will be there. What should we do? Just be ready. Sukha and dukha take turns and keep surfacing in our life. To be ready and face them is the solution. Swami Vivekananda was once encountered by bunch of aggressive monkeys in the streets of Kashi. He stared at them with determination in mind and no fear and they retraced their way. keep walking in life. There is no way to escape your Prarabhdha karma

Lastly, to err is human. Correct yourself. Forgive others. We feel strongly to be forgiven if we are wrong, but don’t easily forgive! Mistakes are bound to happen. Rub them off, correct yourself and keep going.

Dear friend, though the post is long, I have a satisfaction of sharing such valuable tips on life. May Krishna give you enormous strength to keep walking in life, with utmost peace.

HARE RAMA HARE RAMA

RAMA RAMA HARE HARE

HARE KRISHNA HARE KRISHNA

KRISHNA KRISHNA HARE HARE!!

Kappal and sippal

At the outset, I wish to clarify that this is a small step / attempt I am making to translate my own tamizh blog post.

So it’s tamizh and not tamil.

Zha (ழ) a letter in tamizh is unique to the language and also to malayalam another wonderful south Indian language. One needs to take the tip of the tongue to the roof of the mouth and release the tongue to produce the sound. Looks complicated?. Not really.

Now going back to the title

Kappal – means a ship.

Sippal – means a plate which has perforations on one half . It was in olden days used to cover the pot in which rice was cooked. Once the rice is cooked, the excess water was drained through the perforations. It was also used to scoop out Small amount of rice from the bigger vessel to facilitate serving.

So, kappal is to personify the bigger volume and sippal is to personify the smaller volume.

This post is on a heavy subject. “Death”

I attempted to write on it, just to reassure my clan, that “this too shall pass”. A close buddy of mine lost her younger brother to cancer. But by the time I am translating my original tamizh post, I had so many people writing back to me how my words resonated with them, how they found solace in my words, how it served as a reminder, and how it helped them to understand that it happens to everyone and they are not alone in grieving the death of a kith.

Death was introduced to me by my parents when I was quite young. It is they who dropped me in the scene when someone in the family died and made me swim on my own.

https://anusrini.wordpress.com/2014/10/27/death-and-me/

My mom used to recollect how I had put up the questions of what they do when people die. She never brushed me aside. She once thought, I would not be able to comprehend and just said., “They take the dead person’s body and leave it in a place and come back home”

I seem to have negated her and explained that they ‘burn’ the body as I had read in Harischandra’s story in Amar Chitra Katha.

Shanthi Ramachandran , widely known in Instagram sent a message on that fateful day,

Buddy, my brother lost in his battle with cancer

My respectful homage to Mr. Rajamani🙏🏼🙏🏼

I wished I could hug her, but time and distance keeps us away at such times. I conveyed my condolences to her and gave her time, and called her a couple of days to have a word with her. She is shaken badly. Kept telling how his health deteriorated in the last twelve months. How fond he was to her being the youngest in the family. Her father is ninety three and mom must be in late eighties. Trust me this is not the age tosee your children die. Any age is bad. But to live up to this ripe old age and see your child die is too painful. Right from the Hindu mythological character Shantanu and Malaya who saw their son Shravan die to this day’s Shanti’s parents its misery to the core.

My father in law and my mother were/are very good in using quotes and metaphors and idioms and phrases as they speak.

So its imbibed in me and I was quickly seen using a few of them while speaking to shanthi. When I used to grieve at the death of some one young in age, my father in law uses this metaphor and says,

“Anu.. what can be done? Some souls carry with them in kappal and some in sippal. ”

They carry their karma in a kappal full load and sippal full load. The one that has more has to live, shed the karma and then leave whatever be the age. The ones that have carried a smaller load of karma lives and exhausts it soon and leaves early. How true it is isn’t it? There is nothing which can change the duration of our stay on this planet. But, good deeds and acquisition of good karma can determine whether you will be left with kappal or sippal loads in your next birth.

It is not at all easy to cope with the loss of your loved ones. I swear, you cannot imagine a life minus them. I was in college when my dad was diagnosed of throat cancer. While I was not a young child, I was so scared and probably my brain stopped working, that I thought he will die tomorrow or day after. I used to take a close look of his chest heaving after he slept to make sure he is alive and breathing. I used to ask myself,

“How can there be a life without appa, its unimaginable “

But now its twenty six years since he attained his heavenly abode, and my life is still going on. I have lived three decades without him against the two decades I lived with him. What stopped because of his absence? NOTHING AND NOTHING ALONE IS THE ANSWER. Actually nothing stops. We grieve, then the next dawn is there, there is an urge to have a cup of steaming hot coffee, stomach rumbles and you start searching for food, you have a bath, and continue. Slowly the routine comes back. When I left my mother after my father’s death and when I found it difficult to do that she said,

” As days pass by and food with salt gets absorbed in your system and with ever sip of water that is consumed you will feel better”

How true is that!

Time and time alone can heal us.

She was my embodiment of strength. After all she is the daughter of Janaki amma who is the super embodiment of mental strength. She is my ammamma. ( mother’s mother for a literal translation), my maternal grandmother. She lived upto a ripe old age of 103. Has seen the death of

Her husband

Her first born son

Her first born daughter(my mom)

Her sons in law ( my dad and aunt’s husband)

Yet never asked the “why me” question. She used to say, “Its their karma to suffer /die and its my karma to be a witness”

Is it as simple as that.? To me “yes”

When I found this is the ONLY answer to all those intriguing questions beyond our comprehending capacity, just know that this is the only answer. You may not be able to do it overnight but nothing stops us from being conscious about that and trying to stay calm. I have been seasoned to handle life with this formula. Life threw difficult, tough situations very early in life. But I chose to look around and learn. There are so many out there with tougher situations.

The famous lyricist kannadasan of Tamizh cinema, writes in one of his songs,

If all those who arrive, stay back on this planet, where will we have enough place?

Life is a business

Birth is an income and death is an expense.

The Rajus and Ramaswamys (shanti’s brother and my dad) cannot just stay back eternally. As Shanthi makes a hashtag ” thistooshallpass” we can remember them by deriving strength from their valour, their practicality

We need to learn to emotionally let go.

We need to derive strength from others.

We need to be empathetic towards fellow humans and be willing to lend a shoulder to cry and at the same time make them understand that

“THIS TOO SHALL PASS”

Think, thank and Smile……

Think, thank, and smile…..

 

It’s a ritual I do everyday…not necessarily at the same time everyday, but definitely once or more than once  in a day..

Sometimes in the bathroom,

Sometimes in the kitchen,

Sometimes when I am sweating out in the treadmill,

Sometimes when I squat on the floor,

Sometimes when I ride my scooty,

Sometimes when I walk vigorously,

I think of those days when I was partially crippled

Crippled physically due to a surgery

I thank  the Almighty for having blessed me with a brain and a heart

to have thought about him and be assured,

I smile at my own faith,  an unflinching faith on HIM   and the grace bestowed on me…

 

Retrospectively, I feel my being positive has always helped me.

 

It is in my cells to be positive though my

blood may belong to a negative group !

 

I could handle stressful situations with minimum discomfort,

I could take others stress and still remain calm,

I could provide solace to them,

I could offer my shoulders any time for them to lean on,

In due course becoming the confidante of many of my friends.

 

Words of wisdom from a friend made me put my thoughts in writing

And proved writing is therapeutic !!!

 

I think, thank and smile. 🙂