Discipline

Behind every great achievement in anyone’s life lies discipline. We see this in every human endeavor. In the field of sports we see this repeated again and again. Outstanding sportsmen spend all their time practicing.  In the process many of them make so many sacrifices which ordinary men and women are not willing to make. The same is true of businessmen who build up fortunes. Most often we see only that they achieve, but once we go behind the scenes we see that they have put in a lot of discipline. We all have read of great musicians, writers and inventors who have credited or discovered breakthroughs in human achievement. Invariably they have said that they owe all their success to discipline.

Discipline is the art, where having determined where we want to go or what we want to create or discover, we stick to our goals whatever the disadvantages until we achieve the goal. Though there are other meanings of the word, this is what concerns us most. We find many applications for discipline in our daily lives; ranging from doing our homework to building up our physical fitness to make sure we join the soccer squad. If we look carefully at the periods of failure in our lives, we will see that in almost every occasion when we failed, it was due to lack of discipline. Hence both in the areas of success through discipline and the lack of success through the lack of discipline and the lack of success through the lack of discipline, there are many examples for us to refer to.

Since a life lived with discipline can offer us much, it is worthwhile discussing how it is to be done. First we have to be sure of what we want to achieve and how much we want to achieve it. If one is obsessed with wanting to succeed in a certain area, the chances of attaining that want is so much more. To do this, one has to dwell on the want through visualizing it happening. The second step is determining what has to be done to attain that want. This will come to mind naturally if one’s want is a sincere and serious one. Hence if a man wants to join the national soccer squad, he must really want to and if he does, he would know what he has to do to get there. The same procedure applies if one wants to write a book, or own a successful business or top the school in English literature. The final step is the discipline to do and keep doing what must be done until the results appear.

There are countless examples to show how people achieve success in this way. One example is the sage of Colonel Saunders. The 65-year-old man from Kentucky had a dream to start a chain on fried chicken restaurants all over the world. To realize that dream, he knew that he needed a restaurant owner to go into partnership with him to open the first restaurant and to fry chicken according to the secret recipe the old man had. Colonel Sanders knocked on 1008 doors before he found a restaurant owner willing to share his dream. It is doubtful if many of us would have had the discipline to knock even a hundred doors.

The old man from Kentucky is just one example. There are thousands of such which show that success can come to anyone through the application of discipline.

Time

In many early philosophical works and scriptures, like the Vedas, it has been written that time is an illusion. That what is true is that everything is going on at the same time. Naturally the world did not understand what they meant and a lot of people had dismissed the idea as just ramblings or superstition. In the last century or so, many prominent scientists have echoed the same theory: Time does not exist; it is just something created by man to understand the world. Even Albert Einstein has stated that time is relative.

In daily life we often come across situations where time does not seem to be a reality. Taking just how a day passes, we see that on a full day of activity, time seems to pass rather fast. When we are on a picnic, for example this happens. When we are busy enjoying ourselves and no one stops to look at the clock, we can enjoy ourselves right through lunch time without feeling hungry and have to be told that it is lunch time. Even the stomach which has been conditioned for years to feel hungry at fixed times every day, seems to miss its cue if we do not look at a watch. Often it is three o’clock before anyone gets hungry. Did time pass too quickly? The writer remembers attending a seminar when the seminar leader demonstrated that time is real only if we measure it – that is, keep looking at a watch. The participants were told to leave all watches at the back of the room, so no one knew what time it was. Then the day was filled with various activities. At a certain time the seminar leader told the participants that it was 2 o’clock and asked if anyone felt hungry. Then he apologized and released them for lunch. Everyone was shocked when they looked at the watch. The time was 7:00 p.m.!

Can time slow down? It does not seem that it can too. If we visit a slow moving society – like a sleepy village in a less developed country where everyone goes about his business without hurrying – we will see time practically standing still. This is true especially if we do not have any dynamic activity but laze around or perhaps read a book. After what seems a long time, if we look at the watch we will see that we have been reading for only a few minutes.

Hence we see that time is really relative. What it really is, we do not really know. At least with our present knowledge it looks like we never will. Perhaps, like so many breakthroughs in recent years, there will be a breakthrough in the future and it will be discovered that time is really something quite different from what we have been thinking it is.

Lesson of Time:

When a bird is alive, it eats ants.

When the bird is dead, ants eat the bird!

Time and circumstances can change at any time,

Don’t devalue or hurt anyone in life.

You may be powerful today,

But remember time is more powerful than you!

One tree makes a million match sticks.

But when the time comes,

Only one match stick is needed to burn a million trees! 
So be good and do good…

Road Safety

Once I saw a television program where a skydiver jumped out of a plane without a parachute. He got a parachute from an associate who had dived out earlier.  After the feat, he was interviewed by a journalist. The skydiver told the journalist that his act was safer – much safer – than driving or walking along the road. On thinking a little while about it I realized that though there are so many skydivers all over the world every day, the accident rate in such a dangerous act is very low. In contrast, hundreds are killed or maimed on the roads every day. The road is a dangerous place.

The first danger on the road I people’s attitudes. Talking with people it became clear to me that everyone seems to think that accidents happen to other people, never to them. In truth, accidents can happen to anyone. All the people I talk to seem to think how unfortunate it is that accidents happen, but never have I heard anyone say that he or she could be involved in an accident. Such a thought seems to be remote. Hence I believe that the attitudes of road users are the first danger on the road.

Careless drivers are another source of danger. I have friends who boast that since they had never had any accidents, they are obliviously good drivers. Having sat in their cars, I realize that nothing could be further from the truth. Some of the drivers that I know are reckless and drive without the least consideration to other road users. The machines they drive are death machines and they do not realize it. Their proud brag that they have never been involved in an accident is empty when I realize that this is only because there are other responsible road users out there. All I can see is that there are a lot of accidents waiting to happen, when two or more equally irresponsible road users meet.

Road conditions contribute to dangers on the road too. Bangkok roads are fairly well maintained. However there are lesser used roads which are neglected. One has only to go to some country roads like Dhaka and see the deteriorating conditions on the road. These are roads that serve as short cuts to the factories and are thus used by heavy vehicles. The heavy vehicles cause damage to the roads and this is dangerous, especially at night. Talking of night, driving at night under poor visibility is a danger in itself. This is especially so in residential roads where there are a lot of trees. Even though the trees add to the beauty of the roads, they also obstruct drivers as they drive around corners.

Safety precaution were hardly care by us unless there is a mandatory law imposed. Such as fines for not fasten seat belt or not wearing helmet. Repairing a broken or damage parts of the car remain pending till any enforce work like punishment or penalty. Most drivers intentionally or unintentionally do not care to check out the car instrument and function in it before starting to drive. Most important thing is that driver must hold a genuine driving license and well trained in knowing the rules and regulation in driving like road and traffic symbols. It’s better to be safe than cure in case of driving.

Dangers on the road are real. What makes them more so is the tendency of road users to think that there are no dangers on the road. Hence unlike when we do dangerous activities, we are likely to be careless. And that is where the danger is. We should minimize the danger of road accident by keeping ourselves alert and taking all sort of safety precaution beforehand. We should always keep in mind that a little neglect in road journey could spoil a person life as well as his or her family life.

Darkness

Darkness always terrified me for it brought back painful memories of my childhood days. When I was younger, I used to fear the dark. The fact that I could not see where I was going, and the tales of “momos” waiting to spring at me, told by relatives who want to make sure that I stay still at one place, struck terror of the dark into me.

"This is the last straw!" shouted my mother in a shrill voice as she dropped something heavily to the floor. I was in my bedroom and could hear the quarrel between my parents late one night. She reacted angrily to my father’s new job which kept him occupied with meeting and projects almost every night. Very much neglected for two continuous months, my mother’s patience snapped that evening.

I listened and shivered silently in the darkness. I cannot describe the fear. The darkness seemed to suffocate me, destroying all the sense of security I had, I badly wanted to have the lights on but the bulb had fused the day before. My lather had promised to replace a new bulb that evening bur the job was delayed by his new job. That was their first and worst quarrel between my parents in their ten years of marriage. Clutching my teddy bear close to me, I whispered a prayer that my parents would not end up with a separation. Such morbid thoughts were unusual for a five-year old child but not so when one is exposed to adult conversations. Fortunately, the quarrel only led to a few days of non-communication between my parents. Realizing his mistakes, my dad rescheduled his priorities and was thus successful in his reconciliation with my mother.

It was also in the darkness that I lost my pet dog Snowy that same year. We had just come home from supper and were walking towards the house with Snowy running ahead of us. All of a sudden, the streetlights went off along a short stretch of road. It was pitch darkness and as we walked cautiously together, I called out for Snowy. My heart was cold with fear and discomfort. What followed seemed to be within a flash. There was a screeching sound of a car and Snowy was hit. I was horrified to see Snowy dead on the road and the bloody sight was firmly imprinted on my mind. Although my parents comforted me with a new dog, I lost my appetite for a week and cried for Snowy in my sleep.

Consequently, for two years in my life following these two incidents, I often associated darkness with unhappy events. I slept with lights on throughout the night so as to get rid of frightening images that often flitted across my mind. It wasn’t until my grandfather decided to knock some sense into his descendant that helped me to overcome this fear of darkness and I began to understand the beauty of darkness.

DARKNESS BEAUTY

My grandfather had been a night watchman for more than forty years of his life. He thrived on darkness; in other word, he was perfectly comfortable in the dark. After he retired, when I was out ten years old, we became great pals. He discovered that I had an irrational fear of the dark and decided to take me in his hands. His methods were drastic. He brought me to dark places during the weekends and school holidays and made me confront my fear. After about a year or so, not only did I overcome my fear of the dark, I actually came to prefer darkness to light.

I now enjoy wandering in the darkness all by myself. I also enjoy sitting in wooded areas at night, my body properly insulated with mosquito repellent, listening to the sounds made by the creatures all around me. The quietness, which usually accompanies darkness, thrills me as I try to blend in and be part of nature. Nature is very much alive at night. A lot of animals and birds come out at night. After listening intently to the bullfrogs singing, I came to realize that it sounds like a strange orchestra. I found out later that what they are doing is singing love songs to attract the females. I also found out that crickets the loudest noise makers at night – are also calling out to their girlfriends. Now how could anyone be afraid of the sounds of love?

Having spent a lot of time in the dark, I have developed a keenness of sight and hearing. I can now hear very soft sounds and see things which others cannot see. This is very thrilling, to be able to confidently move about the jungle, and actually enjoy the darkness. The real thrill is the loneliness that I used to fear. Being alone in the dark in strange surroundings brings out the explorer in me. I feel so powerful that I am alone and that there is no one else nearby.

About fears of the supernatural, grandpa has told me that there is no such thing as supernatural. He said that ghosts are as natural as the living. I have not met any yet, but I hope to one day. In fact I would probably be thrilled when a ghosts walks up – of floats up – and introduces himself or herself.

Hold Your Temper

There is a saying that reads: There is no situation so bad that you cannot make worse by losing your temper. How often have we been in situations where we made things worse by losing our tempers? How often have we seen this happening to others? How often have friendships been broken up because one party, or both, lost their cool and lashed out with their tongues and said things that could never been forgiven afterward? The newspapers are full to reports of wife beating and child abuse, which are unbelievable, yet they were committed by otherwise loving fathers and mothers.

Hold Your Temper

It is obvious to all of us that losing our tempers, instead of keeping cool is dangerous. Those who have lost their tempers have sometimes ruined lives – others’ and their own. A moment of anger has often made persons commit violent crimes. There are at least a few fathers who have been imprisoned because they have severely abused their children. Yet there is no denying that they do love their children very much. It is as if a demon had suddenly taken possession of them and made them do the unspeakable and then after the deed has been done, left the man to face the music. In quite a few cases, the offenders have confessed that they did not know what had made them do it.

It is obvious that keeping cool is a quality to be developed. It is a highly desirable quality to be able to be in a position where one never loses one’s cool. The question now arises: Do we have control over our tempers or is it something that cannot be helped? Can we really develop the art of keeping cool? Since some of us are bad tempered and some are cool, it is apparent that the ability to keep cool can be cultivated. Psychologists say that all our behavior is a result of conditioning. From the time we have been children; those of us who cannot keep cool have allowed ourselves to develop bad tempers. We have done this out of imitating the adults in our lives. In addition, it is true that only the behaviors that gives us pay offs are developed. Considered in this light, it is probably that when we lose our tempers and throw tantrums – as children – we received what we wanted. This would have reinforced the tendency to lose tempers and we would have carried this into adulthood until it became uncontrollable.

Based on this theory, we can develop an ability to keep cool. We could consciously reinforce keeping cool instead of blowing our tops. Whenever we manage to control our tempers we should reward ourselves. This reward need not be elaborate. In small situations, a mere invisible pat on our backs would also be a reward. In more serious situations, like when we keep cool and refuse to lose our tempers and kick that creep – like we are sorely tempted to – we could treat ourselves to an ice-cream or a movie. The mind soon learns that it is more fun to keep cool than to lose our cool. Soon the tendency to lose our cool becomes less and less and we become coolness itself.

The rewards of developing a calm and cool nature are many and we should aim very hard to develop it. History is full of great men who kept cool and earned the admiration of generations. It is well-known that a cool and controlled person can make better decisions and act better. Everyone wants to be such a person.

Depletion of Mother Earth

Depletion of Mother Earth

Mother earth has been kind to all of us, yet we have treated Her extremely shabbily. For centuries we have exploited all Her resources in the belief that they were unlimited. We have destroyed Her creatures without any mercy and killed them wantonly – often for sport – so much so that many of them are now extinct. Her forests have been wiped out in many parts of the world and Her rivers and seas polluted with toxic materials – killing large numbers of Her fish and marine animals and plants.

  

There is certainly order in the world. The planets move around the sun in precise orbits; the earth turns on its axis accurately; the moon orbits around the earth; these are just a few ways. The list is infinite. From the vibration of atoms, to the orbiting of planets, there is order in the universe. How then do devastating natural disasters occur? Immediate thought about them does seem to reveal that natural disasters are freaks of nature. It does not seem sensible to see weather running berserk. Rain, which has been helping nature in its cycle, suddenly sows havoc. There are floods; thousands of plants, animals and humans perish. It looks as if a usually kind and gentle person suddenly becomes violent and kills for sport.

There are of course countless studies which show how floods, earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, droughts and typhoons occur. Scientists who spend lifetimes studying the phenomena are able to analyze the causes. By causes all we really know is what leads to them. We know that there is a fire below the earth, that at certain points the fire bursts forth and we have a volcanic eruption. We even know that the fire is a leftover from the fire that first began burning when the earth was formed. With a lot more study, scientists have even been able to predict the extent of a coming volcanic eruption. There is even a way to say that an eruption is imminent. Without" a doubt, it is useful to know all this. In countries where the technology is available, lives can be saved through timely evacuation.

What is not as far known is how the eruption can be prevented. Nature is just too powerful for any study to be possible in this area - at least so far. The same can be said for the other type of disasters including: floods, typhoons and earthquakes. Research stops short of prevention. Meanwhile the slaughter continues. All of man's defenses are too weak against nature. Perhaps it is nature's way of telling us that we are still rather puny when compared with the vast powers of nature. It is often speculated that natural disasters are nature's way of keeping the human population in check. Perhaps this is too much to assume. But it cannot be dismissed straightaway.

Are any of these disasters caused by man? Well, we can see that man is not the cause of volcanic disasters, earthquakes, but perhaps we do in some way because weather related disasters such as droughts, floods and typhoons. We all know that weather is being affected by the clearing of forests on earth. This is within our control. Hence some disasters can be controlled. All we can do is hope that a day will come when we can control all natural disasters. Till then we have to remain at the mercy of nature.

Then suddenly a few enlightened souls realized the harm that we were doing. Scientists and nature lovers from throughout the world have put their minds together to save the earth. The harm that has been done to the earth is extensive and in many areas, irreversible. But all is not lost yet. A few organizations have been formed worldwide to heal the earth and to save whatever we can for future generations.

There is now awareness among people throughout the world that the earth is ailing and needs everyone’s efforts to recover. The greatest hope in this area is from children who are beginning to see that there is a joint responsibility to save the earth. All because of intense education in the area, people are beginning to see that forests must be saved. They are beginning to feel that all life is sacred and related. There are limits being imposed by governments to save the forests and the rivers. Laws are being parsed in many countries to protect animals and plants.

Many dangerous chemicals which cause the depletion of the ozone layer are now being boycotted by people throughout the world and manufactures are being forced to look for alternatives. Already there are breakthroughs in several areas and we see a general easing off in the use of harmful substances. There is also a general awakening on how to recycle and how to cut wastes. These are indeed good signs.

In spite of the tremendous amount of activity in the save the earth movement everywhere, there is still a lot more to be done. We cannot do everything at once and we see that learning is indeed a slow process. Yet the efforts are commendable. The success of the entire movement and effort in the various directions depends very much on future generations and how strictly they implement the safeguards that have been proposed. There is nothing that we can do except keep showing our love for the Great Mother Earth and hope that She can recover from Her wounds. This is all we can do while waiting for the results of all the attempts we have made to educate people everywhere.

Jealousy

The dictionary defines jealousy as the state of being jealous. Feeling jealous has a few derogatory meanings: Being jealous means wanting to keep what one has possessively, it also means feeling unhappy at someone else success. Another word often used for the last meaning is envious”. Of the two words “envious” means wishing one has something that another has, and “jealous” means something even more unpleasant – actually hating the person who has received good fortune. There are a couple of good uses of the word, but these are not so commonly used nowadays. We can say that a person guards his home or his honor jealously. But usually, the word “jealousy” brings to mind negative and undesirable qualities.

The feeling of jealousy is one of the most dangerous that a person can feel towards another. A person who is jealous almost immediately loses his ability to reason. If a man feels jealous about another’s achievements, chances are he spends a lot of time feeling angry at that person, for something that he has probably gained through his own hard work. Sometimes this anger can lead to violence. Violence usually takes place when all reasoning ends. We read of violent crimes committed by men in love, when the woman he loves someone else. Immediately the loser thinks he is a victim and acts as if he has been cheated. He cannot see that all that has happened is that the woman has chosen according to her own inclinations. If the man had truly loved her then jealousy has no place in his mind. He should think of her happiness. Though the illustration mentions only male jealousy, female jealousy has been known to be just as vicious.

On another meaning of jealousy, some people are apt to be jealous if someone they love, or are just fond of, pays attention to someone else. This is common even in ordinary friendships. A poorly adjusted individual may want a certain friend to keep only his company. So if he sees the person whom he believes he “owns” talking to someone else, he flies into a rage. This kind of behavior shows extreme immaturity. The truth is that no one owns anyone. Even in love relationships, there should be no jealousy involved, and no attempt to possess a person as if he or she were an object. Love relationships should be founded on mutual trust and jealousy has no place in it.

Jealousy at another good fortune is the most harmful of all. Elders, and scriptures, have been telling us that if one is jealous of another, and wishes him evil, the effect of the jealousy will be felt by oneself. This may sound like a tall tale, but now there is scientific evidence of its truth. Research shows that when we wish evil on someone – like wishing him to contract an incurable disease, our thoughts have no power to harm the person we feel jealous about. What happens is that our mind interprets the thought as meaning that is “OK” for such a situation to happen – in this case to suffer from an incurable disease. Since it has no power to cause someone else to be sick, it attracts the illness to the person who has the thought. 

Whatever from jealousy takes it is certainly a very dangers feeling – for the person who feels it as well as for the others. Whatever the impact of jealousy, it’s a kind of feelings or emotions without which make our life spice less. 

Winners and Losers

 A casual look at the world reveals that there is competition everywhere. This is evident in everyday life – ranging from games to work. There seems to be one mad rush everywhere we try to “succeed”.  Often it does not matter to us who perishes while we succeed or “win”. It does not matter who “loses” as long as it is not we who lose. This mad rush in every area of life divides the world into winners and losers. Almost everyone is categorized as one or the other, to be admired or despised; to be befriended or ostracized; to be emulated or avoided. One is prompted to ask: is winning and losing really important? Is being a winner or loser all there is to life?

If we listen to stories by so-called successful people, we see that not all of them consider themselves “winner”. Frequently, there have been cases where people who have been labeled successful businessmen have lost their families through divorce; or have lost their health through overworking to gather wealth. Can we call such people winners? The people probably do not think so. One such person is Elvis Presley. In the world of pop music, he was “The King”. A definite winner; but alas, his personal life was far from successful. He lost his family, his health and died miserably from a drug overdose. His end was pitiful, yet he had vast wealth at his disposal. One is sure that the “King” would have gladly traded all his wealth for a loving family life.

Of course, this is not to say that it is good or even acceptable to be a “loser”. No one should be poor or a failure in life. It is of no credit to anyone if he were to live from hand to mouth, or be homeless or be sick or unsuccessful in family life. In fact with all the joy and happiness we see in the world around us it is an insult to humanity that there should be people who are poor or “losers” in life. However, the fact remains that not many people who consider themselves “losers” actually are. Many people who call themselves losers because they did not win what they set out to are winners – if only they could take honest looks at their situations. For instance, people who come in second place in Olympic events bursts into tears – apparently because they did not become number one. Can they be considered losers? Surely it is a sign of success that they are in second place – in comparison to many others. They should simply congratulate the person in first place and still consider themselves as winners to some degree.

Recently there was an amusing advertisement. A lady observes that there are only twelve supermodels in the world and two billion women who are not. Surely, they are not all losers; then again they are not without beauty. None of us have to winners or losers. We should be happy enough to be ordinary humans in this beautiful world and find happiness in small things, like the smile of a child or the fragrance of a flower or the smoothness of a stone on the beach. Life is certainly not only for those considered “winners” by popular standards; nor is life to be excluded for so-called “losers”. Life is for all of us. We do not have to follow the popular tendency to label people as “winners and losers”. Indeed a loser makes a winner!  As someone lose which make other win ;-)

Natural Disasters

All   Sorts   of   Natural   Disaster

There is certainly order in the world. The planets move around the sun in precise orbits; the earth turns on its axis accurately; the moon orbits around the earth; these are just a few ways. The list is infinite. From the vibration of atoms, to the orbiting of planets, there is order in the universe. How then do devastating natural disasters occur? Immediate thought about them does seem to reveal that natural disasters are freaks of nature. It does not seem sensible to see weather running berserk. Rain, which has been helping nature in its cycle, suddenly sows havoc. There are floods; thousands of plants, animals and human perish. It does not seem sensible to see weather running berserk. Rain, which has been helping nature in its cycle, suddenly sows havoc. There are floods; thousands of plants, animals and humans perish. It looks as if a usually kind and gentle person suddenly becomes violent and kills for sport.

There are of course countless studies which show how floods, earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, droughts and typhoons occur. Scientists who spend lifetimes studying the phenomena are able to analyze the causes. By causes all we really know is what leads to them. We know that there is a fire below the earth, that at certain points the fire bursts forth and we have a volcanic eruption. We even know that the fire is a leftover from the fire that first began burning when the earth was formed. With a lot more study, scientists have been able to predict the extent of a coming volcanic eruption. There is even a way to say that an eruption is imminent. Without a doubt, it is useful to know all this. In countries where the technology is available, lives can be saved through timely evacuation.

What is not as far known is how the eruption can be prevented. Nature is just too powerful for any study to be possible in this area – at least so far. The same can be said for the other type of disasters including: floods, typhoons and earthquakes. Research stops short of prevention. Meanwhile the slaughter continues. All of man’s defaces are too weak against nature. Perhaps it is nature’s way of telling us that we are still rather puny when compared with the vast powers of nature. It is often speculated that natural disasters are nature’s way of keeping the human population in check. Perhaps this is too much to assume. But it cannot be dismissed straightaway.

Are any of these disasters caused by man? Well, we can see that man is not the cause of volcanic disasters, earthquakes, but perhaps we do in some way cause weather- related disasters such as droughts, floods and typhoons. We all know that weather is being affected by the clearing of forests on earth. This is within our control. Hence some disasters can be controlled. All we can do is hope that a day will come when we can control all natural disasters. Till then we have to remain at the mercy of nature.