#1 Keep accounts of your joyfulness
Outside challenges are many. There are many things in the world. Somethings will happen, somethings won’t happen, somethings will act for us, somethings will work against us. – these things are happening all the time. But, am I functioning for myself, or am I functioning against myself. Within this – is my life little more exuberant, little more better, little more joyful, little more peaceful – you just measure this every day. So, you must maintain an account book. Yes!
You are doing business – how do you know whether you are progressing? Only one who keeps accounts knows whether he’s making money, or going down, isn’t it so? Similarly, you must maintain an account. You just see – let’s say yesterday you were joyful 5 times in the day. Today if you are 6 – you are better. Tomorrow if you are 7 – you are better. But, day after tomorrow, if you are 3 – you are worse. How many moments of joy do you have?
Why I am talking about joy is – we are not using joy as a goal. Joy as a measure. Joy means, you are at ease. Joy means, you become more of life, than being a mental mess, isn’t it? Joy does not mean that you attain to something. Joy simply means, life has come to ease. You are not messing yourself up. Spend 5 minutes – have I been better today than yesterday? Has my day been better? Everyday if you keep accounts, you will see – no matter what happens in life situations, you will not go down.
#2 Eating with Gratitude
Here I’m not trying to tell you – what to eat, and what not to eat. You eat whatever you want. But being a human being, the most important thing is that you do it consciously. Whatever you do must happen consciously. Your selection of food, and consumption of food also must happen consciously.
More than what you eat, how you eat it is also equally important. When I say – how you eat it – these are all live substances. Every one of them had a life of their own. Whether it’s a plant, animal, vegetable – everyone of them had a life of their own. If you approach it with a certain sense of gratitude and reverence towards the food that you eat – when I say reverence, it may feel like too much for you. But, I’m asking you – let’s say we put you in a room, and you had nothing to eat for 5 days. If God appears in front of you, what will you ask for? Food! So, that’s how important it is.
The food on your plate is not just a substance, it is not a material, it is not a commodity – it is life
You must understand, the food on your plate is not just a substance, it is not a material, it is not a commodity – it is life. It is the life making material for you. So, you must treat it as such. Right now, when it’s on the plate, when it is out there it has no value. But the moment you consume it and it becomes your flesh and blood, now suddenly it’s of immense value. Why do we live like this. It’s very important, when it comes on your plate itself, you must treat it as a part of yourself – with great reverence, you must consume. Just the way you consume – if you change that, food will behave very differently within you.
#3 Connecting with the earth
The soil that you walk upon has a certain sense of intelligence and memory. So, even if you happen to live in a concrete jungle, it is important to keep in touch with the earth, upon which you live. Create ways for yourself to somehow remain in touch with the soil, or the earth, upon which you live – that part of the earth.
With your bare hands and bare feet – see, particularly the palms and the souls. If they come in touch with the earth on a daily basis, at least for a few minutes, a certain harmonising of the physiological process will happen. Just being in contact with the earth. If you spend at least a few minutes in your garden barefooted, touching plants or trees. Because this is the basis of your life. All life, yours and every other creature, has come out of this earth. Stay in touch with it and harmonise your system.
#4 Wake up with a smile
One thing is, before you go to bed, just sit on your bed, just for two minutes. Two minutes, just see – suppose you’re going to die right now in two minutes time, how it’ll be. And then sleep. You will see tomorrow when you wake up, you will wake up like you were just born. If you go to sleep with this awareness, you will wake up with a completely new dimension of energy within you.
Suppose you wake up tomorrow! No, no, no, no, that’s not…. see, you think it’s, you think it’s a joke. That’s a problem. Every day, nearly 300,000 people don’t wake up tomorrow. So, in case you wake up tomorrow – check. Check and see if you’re still alive. If you are just do this much for your sake, not my sake – one big smile, you’re still alive. Hello? Is your life worth this much? See, do not think every day you will wake up. One day you will not wake up. Yes or no? Tomorrow morning you woke up. Check if you’re still alive. If you’re dead, I will pardon you. If you’re alive – one big smile.
Then if 300,000 people die on the planet, maybe three to five million people would have lost somebody who’s dear to them. So just check those four or five people who matter to you in your life. All of them still alive – one more smile. Hello? And you looked at the watch, it’s seven o’clock and you’re still alive. One more smile. Hello? From now on you must do this every time you look at the time. If you’re alive, you must smile. Because this is the greatest thing happening to you. Not your money, not your profession, not your family – you’re alive right now. This is the thing. Very brief, let’s make it happen.
#5 Make the best new year resolution
Your ability to live well on this planet is essentially – how well you can harness this body and mind. Yes or no? So, if you have to harness this the way you want it – it’s very important, there is a little space between you and the body. There is a little space between you and the mind. Whatever suffering, any kind of suffering that you have known in your life – has entered you either through the body, or through the mind. Any other kind of suffering? Do you know any other kind of suffering? Physical suffering, mental suffering – these are the only two things you know, isn’t it?
If a little distance arises between you and the body, between you and the mind – this is the end of suffering
If a little distance arises between you and the body, between you and the mind – this is the end of suffering. Once there is no fear of suffering – only then you will explore the full depth and dimension of this life.
So, one thing we want to do is – we are bringing this, that is called as ‘Isha Kriya’, which gives you a distance between you and your thought, between you and your body. If people experience this for two minutes a day – their lives will change. Definitely, I’m telling you! Once they know the freedom of it – you will not like anything. You will not like any drink, or drug, or whatever – because it is a much big high than that. Much much big high than anything that you have seen.
So, one of the resolutions that you take for the new year is – I meditate.
