Unprecedented

Albert Einstein defined insanity as doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different result. So without any semantic frills, the message rings loud and clear – if we want life to produce different results, we must start doing something different. Given that the path to achieving something different may be strewn with […]

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The Cabinet Meeting

  After Shakyamuni Buddha attained enlightenment, he held a meeting with all his cabinet ministers or disciples. This was called “The Ceremony in the Air.” It was time to hand over the baton for propagating the Mystic Law. Rather than entrust it to bodhisattvas from other worlds, the Buddha decided to entrust it to the ordinary people or […]

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Come as you are

For anyone who has listened to the rather baffling lyrics of “Come as you are“, I’m quite certain you’ll agree that Kurt Cobain didn’t mean to convey a Buddhist message through the song. And yet, the phrase does, at a slight stretch, bear significance in the context of increasing self-awareness. While listening to Robert Harrap’s “Pause for Thought” on […]

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When the balloons aren’t for you

Balloons are normally associated with festivity and levity. Not for all. For the below street children in north Delhi, balloons are their sole means of livelihood. When the traffic light turns red, and the relentless zigzag of vehicles comes to a fleeting halt, bunches of skinny little children leap out from behind concrete islands of […]

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It’s time

My mother definitely was an alarm clock in her last life. If a wedding card says ‘7.30pm onwards’, she will be there just as the clock strikes, come hail come storm. Such Nazi punctuality is laudable in most instances. However, given that ALL Indian weddings operate on Indian Stretchable Time, she has often found herself […]

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Japanese for Progress

Something struck me about the way this little girl with Downs syndrome got up and danced in front of everyone at the Rathaus operetta. The amphitheatre was filling up fast. The projector was poised, ready for screening. The musical prelude was used as an opportunity by some to grab a drink, or start chattering loudly. But this […]

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Karma and Self-Empowerment

The extensive study of understanding Karma and its myriad shades requires more than one sitting. With that in mind, the aim of this blog is to give a decent introduction by: Broadening the lens through which we look at karma Understanding how we create karma Understanding how to empower ourselves to change it I was moderating […]

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“BAM!”

BAM! Apart from this being the noise that my heart made when I handed in my identity card at the till on my last day of work, BAM also stands for Buddhist Action Month. Lisa Cowan’s editorial in last month’s Art of Living included encouragement on reaching out beyond Buddhist activities, into the community. Taking […]

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