Why Art Of Living ?

A lot of people ask Why Art Of Living?

The only reason sufficient  is because I say go ..

I'm a devout Atheist. Someone who has left prayers and temples since 10th grade.. (immediately after getting the horns.. that's what we call in Hindi.. singh nikal aane ke bad..). Since then I never prayed, stayed miles away from religious gurus/saints/leaders. Still I have faith in gaining knowledge. So continued reading the scriptures like Vedas, Geeta and many other books from prominent religions.

After all this reading, my belief in Atheism got concrete because especially no scriptures in Hindu religion ask you to worship any God. If one read them by heart and know the meaning ..interpret it in correct and true sense, one will understand the concept of "Oneness".  The point of telling all this is, I'm NOT a religious God happy guy!!! Even then, If Vikram Hazra sings his Bhajans I will get up and dance.  Because I'hv broken those inner barrier. I'm still the same..non believer but I appreciate the Art Of Living for bringing in the spirituality and the calmness in society.

Now enough prologue.. coming straight to the point.

Think about this.

We have seen many baba's/gurus/saints/leaders. You can find them easily on any devotional channel.

Who are their followers? Ans: Most of the people are illiterate masses, and sometimes the miracle happy fools who want them to do a magic trick and take away their sorrows.

Who are the followers of Art Of Living: Ans: The elite class of society as well as masses. From NASA/ MIT / IIT / graduates / Engineers/ Doctors ... to the simple breadwinners in small towns. Mostly the highly educated young folks all over the world in 134 countries. Even the teachers of Art Of Living are Graduates from premium institutes. They enjoy the company of Guruji more than earning big bucks. THIS IS THE KEY DIFFERENCE.

Why these many so well educated people turning towards AOL. Because AOL is not about any religion,nation,sect or follower-ship. It's all about learning the vast knowledge and implementing it in real life. Sri Sri is not a magician to perform tricks and heal you. But certainly he is the leader who teaches you how you yourself can heal you. and That's why we call them GURUJI. He will not preach but teach you physical and breathing exercises  which will help you keep fit. He will clean your thought process from stress so you can make clear decisions and stop worrying. I was very reluctant in my initial encounter with AOL when people used to say "Jai Gurudev". I was not able to get these words out of my mouth because I had strong forces inside telling me why should I say that? One day I listened to Sri Sri, He also used to say "Jai Gurudev". I was puzzled. Everyone says jai Gurudev for Him, then for whom he is saying the same? He explained it very well, after listening to that the inner barrier was gone. It's all about gaining the knowledge and dissolving your ego and learning the best of spiritual teaching which is above any religion. This knowledge is pure.

I know that even after reading this people will say, I'm happy I don't  need AOL. Yes, stay the same. Because that's the very essence of AOL. Stay Happy, stress free and keep smiling and spread happiness to the others. :)

Personal note:

After attending the Yes+ course, I became fan of AOL. Direct interaction with Sri Sri /Bawa/Dinesh/Rashmin was very good. After seeing them I understood that earning money is not the only thing. Giving it back to society means a lot. I'hv been to AOL ashram many times, doing seva is the most blissful experience. No one teaches you, you learn your lessons the best way after doing the seva. It teaches you a lot. Cutting the vegetables, cleaning the utensils and floor...that was my education. Those small acts of  Seva will get you immense knowledge. You dont need highfi classrooms or dignified speakers. When you do seva you learn a lot by yourself. Try it.

JAI GURUDEV.

The Breed Called IT Engineers !

There's always a bright side... a silver lining as they say.

I have many friends added on facebook who are fueled by their passion.

Some like botany, some like astronomy, some like photography (bird, nature, wildlife, astro, wedding etc), some like trekking, some like painting, some like singing, some like cycling, running ... WOW Did you see any IT thing in there.

They are full time loyal employees to their companies, but the fraction of time they get out of their schedules, they dedicate it fully pursuing their passions. Some of them have gone so far that they are like institutions. You ask them and they are as good as experts working dedicatedly (i dont know if this word exists) in that field.

Soo whats the point of writing all this?

 Well, the point to be noted is, people scream from base of their stomach that how IT has taken away their lives, how it has imbalanced work-life. To all those guys: IT (Information Technology - some call it "software job") has given you enough money in your hand which you can use to pursue your dreams, chase your passion. You get money, you get two days off in a week and if you are not right behind seeking loans for materialistic things then it's right time for you to chase your passion. Whatever you do, the crux is if you are well placed in your job... you know you can finish the work by just concentrating not more than 4 hours a day.

That is a fact. You may have to slog in the beginning but as you grow mature you master several things, and if you wisely plan your projects you will wonder how easily without much stress they can be finished. This leaves behind the the most important thing other than money ..the much needed TIME to master your skills involving your passion.

Now something personal

I don't know much about human psychology, but I think we discover our passion very early ...may be in our school days. At least that's what happened to me and most of my friends. I am interested in sky watching, astronomy from a very tender age.. that was first passion. Then came physics, cosmology,  computers and photography.

Everything is linked... now I use computers to track the planets and constellations and use my photography skills to capture the wonderful universe, celestial marvels. My pics is my wealth. I love to do this and I will keep doing it.