Ayurveda Initiative For Global Health

Chapter 4 - The Secret Of Relationships  Day 9  When you are in love with someone, you just go on talking, talking and talking. There's no need to pull so many words out of those mouths. You can just sit quietly with a smile, watch the sunset, or be with them. Learn to be with the person, whom you love, in silence. This is an art by itself. When you are in such deep love, you don't know, what you are talking. Then you go on saying things that you regret afterwards. Sometimes, you don't know that what you have said may hurt the other person.  The intellect is not sharp, not fully alert, when you are in love. You're in a daze and in that daze , you don't know what you are blabbering, or what your blabbering will do to the other person - what effect it will bring on the other person.  But later on, after ten days, or maybe ten years, you'll find out that whatever you said in a light way has affected the other person very deeply. How many of you have exp...

Chapter 4 - The Secret Of Relationships  Day 8  In the same way, the prince would be asked to go and do some menial job, like clean the streets. He would know and understand how a servant feels, and so he becomes sensitive. His sensitivity towards people would grow, though he would live in a palace.  That's why this sort of exchange was called dakshina. In a relationship, this is essential. You have to see that the other also contributes in your life, so that they don't feel completely like a worm - worthless but that they also feel their self-worth.  For love to blossom, self-worth is essential. This is the second important point or secret. The third aspect of a relationship is to give the other space. When you love someone, you're right "on his (or her) neck".  You don't give them any breathing space and they suffocate - and suffocation destroys love. You should give them space and you take your space. Respect each other's space. Take some ti...

Chapter 4 - The Secret Of Relationships  Day 7 First comes attraction. You are attracted to someone but, if you get, what you are attracted to, very easily, the charm goes away - it dies out very fast. However, if what you are attracted to, becomes just a little bit difficult to have, then you develop love for it.  Have you experienced this? Have you observed this? Now, you fall in love. Then what happens? After a while, the soap opera begins. It is because you love someone, that you give yourself and then you start making demands on that relationship.  Now, when you start demanding, love diminishes. All the thrill, joy - everything - seems to be fading away. So then you say, "Oh, I have made a mistake" Now there's struggle and pain to get out of it and after you've got out of it, you get into another relationship - one more relationship - and the same story repeats itself.  What is it that you want to know about relationships? It is really to see, how th...

Chapter 3 - Adolescent & The Elderly  Day 6  When they find someone very close to them, their confidantes (in whom they can confide things) - especially grandchildren, sons or daughters - have come home, then they will complain  “You know, your aunt is like that, she did this, she never even sent a Christmas greeting to me. I sent her three cards and she never even replied with one card”. These are the things that go on in their minds. They'll say all those things.  But, I tell you, don't imagine that they're stuck with those things. Sometimes in their minds, these complaints don't even come, other than when they are with you. They say all that and then forget the whole thing. This is what happens as age advances. There is a nice story. A man earned a lot of money and then gave all his property to his son. When his son got everything, he built a small outhouse behind the main house for his parents and he told them.  "Now you have to stay there....

Chapter 3 - Adolescent & The Elderly Day 5  They said that stupid thing because they had some garbage and they threw it out and you were there, ready to catch it, saying, “Oh, I won't give this away”. Why did somebody insult you? They insulted you because they were hurt, they had garbage in them, and they wanted to throw it out. When they threw it out, you passionately grabbed it and kept it in your pocket, so and so hurt me. They did this, they did that. Come one, wake up. Get up and walk. Don't let your smile be snatched away by anybody.  In the world, not everything will happen perfectly, all the time! In every action, there can be imperfections. Even the best or greatest of actions with good intentions, will have some imperfections.  Unfortunately, the tendency is to go and grab the imperfection and make yourself, your mood, imperfect, make your mind imperfect, make your soul reel in this nonsense. Isn't that so?  So we need to get out of these c...

Chapter 3 - Adolescent & The Elderly  Day 4  Part 1 - The Teenage Years  You know, the "teens" are the most confusing age. You are no longer a kid, who can be pacified with toys or sweets, but neither are you emotionally mature enough. A new world has just opened up in front of you and it's such a difficult time.  On one hand, there are big highs, on the other hand, there are a lot of lows. There's also loneliness. A child doesn't feel lonely, but a teenager starts feeling lonely. Not only that , there are also so many hormonal changes happening in the body.  So he (or she) is getting familiar with his (or her) own body, mind, emotions, urges and difficulties. Suddenly, teenagers feel nobody understands them because what parents say from their standpoint - good or bad - doesn't appeal to them.  Long-term plans don't exist. They want immediate solutions, immediate gratification, everything should happen now. Teenagers feel that adults do not...

Chapter 2 - Interpersonal Relationships  Day 3 It is very important to know about interpersonal relationships. What keeps them going and what really disturbs them. Interpersonal relationships get disturbed, when disagreement begins. As long as there is agreement, they don't get disturbed at all.  So what disturbs a relationship? Disagreement. Now, take a look at yourself. Have you always agreed with yourself? You all have not agreed. You had an idea yesterday and today, you have a different idea.  Five years back, you had different ideas, and they did not necessarily agree with the ideas, you have today. So, when you can have a disagreement with yourself, why not with someone else, next to you?  The person, with whom you have a disagreement, is just an old photocopy of your own self, a copy of your old self - or maybe even a new copy. What you disagree with today, you may agree on, three years from now.  So, you need to take a look at your own though...

Chapter 1 - Finding Real Communication  Day 2 Forgiveness can never be complete, you know. We struggle, trying to forgive someone else. Do you know why? When you say, "I forgive," you think that the person, you are saying it to, is a culprit, and when you think someone is a culprit, and then try to forgive him (or her) However you do it, a little bit of it still remains. It's not complete. But, when you see the grand picture - the big picture - you will see that the culprit is also a victim - a victim of his (or her) own mind, ignorance, unawareness, or unconsciousness. Isn't it? Don't you think so? So compassion arises from within you, when you cannot forgive someone else. There is a story about Buddha. A gentleman found out that all his sons, daughters, daughters-in-law - everybody in his family - were going to Buddha's meditation sessions.  He found out that they were all sitting and meditating, and this was something he didn't like - someth...

Chapter 1 - Finding Real Communication  Day 1  Head-to-head communication is through thoughts and words, while heart-to-heart communication is through feelings. People, throughout the ages, have felt that they cannot communicate their feelings.  If we could communicate all our feelings through words, then we would be living very shallow lives. Life is rich because feelings cannot be captured in words. So we use all these gestures - we hug, so that hearts come closer, we give flowers, so that feelings are conveyed.  We put all our efforts into expressing our feelings and still, feelings remain unexpressed. Soul-to-soul communication is silence. When we transcend the feeling level, we become still.  Stillness is at the peak of any experience - that's why the saying, "Be still and know your God". When our eyes are open, we are lost in activity, and when our eyes are closed, we fall asleep. So we miss the point - the point is in between closing our eyes,...

*Secrets Of Relationships : Introduction* Thoughts, words, feelings are a world in themselves, and there is no school in the world that gives us a lesson on how to deal with them - be it ours or others'.  Head-to-head communication happens through thoughts and words, while heart-to-heart communication happens through feelings.  People, throughout the ages, have felt that they cannot communicate their feelings. If we could communicate all our feelings through words, then we would be leading very shallow lives.  Life is rich because feelings cannot be captured in words. So we use all these gestures - we hug so that hearts come closer, we give flowers so that feelings are conveyed.  We put all our efforts into expressing our feelings and still, feelings remain unexpressed. Gurudev Sri Sri Ravi Shankar Ji explains the dynamics of relations and reveals precious tips for men and women as well. Relationships can become a struggle, and it has been so even for in ...