Gerald D'Cunha

  “The best preparation for tomorrow is doing your best today.” ― H. Jackson Brown Jr.     W hile Jesus was dying on the cross, in pain and sorrow, the High Priests, the teachers of religious (Jewish) law, mocked him.   “He saved others; but, he can’t save himself… Didn’t he claim, that he was the king of Israel? Let him come down from the cross right now, and we will believe in him…   He said, ‘I am the Son of God.’    S o, let his God rescue him now, if his God wants him.” As a Christian, I am told in the Gospels, that Jesus knew of his painful end, and he, also, had foretold about his resurrection after three days of his crucifixion. Because, I was born in Christian faith, it’s easy for me to accept that fact.  But, if I am not a believer in Christ, perhaps, I might scoff him saying the same thing that the High Priests did: “Hello, you saved others; why can’t you save yourself now… If you are the Son of God, come down from the cros...

  “Stillness is the language God speaks, and all else is a bad translation.” — Eckhart Tolle   I met this doctor friend of mine after many years when I rejoined the Tai Chi classes. He is a gentle soul; and his presence and speech, always, have a   calming effect on me. Every Sunday morning, after our Tai Chi session, we both sit in a nearby Mani’s restaurant for a simple cup of tea… During those few minutes there, we discuss anything that is simple and light… But, I don’t know if what we discussed this morning was simple and light… One of the relatives of my doctor friend (Age 56) is at a terminal stage of cancer. She and her husband have come (from Dubai) to stay at the residence of my doctor friend for undergoing Chemotherapy in one of the hospitals in Mumbai. “Presence of loved ones around can help the recovery process,” I said. “That’s true,” said my friend, “However, one can be lonely even when surrounded by several loved ones around. Inner issues ne...

  S ome months ago, while speaking on phone, a friend of mine (62), said, “Mujhe phir se pyaar ho gaya hai.” (I am in love again). Before I could say, ‘What?’, he clarified, “Krishna se.” Well, I knew about my friend’s fascination towards ISKCON during last few years, and I had observed how anchored and peaceful he had become. It’s an amazing transformation. Still, that early morning, when he said, “Mujhe phir se pyaar ho gaya hai,” I wasn’t thinking about ‘Krishna’… Instead, being a mortal, I was thinking, “What… at 62?” Then, two weeks ago, this young girl (23), who had just completed her LLB, had turned up for one of our Sunday Workshops. Everybody’s eyebrows had gone up seeing the ISKCON marks on her forehead, prominently displayed… It’s clear, that the young girl had not only just turned a lawyer, she had, also, just turned Krishna’s beloved… “Very good,” I thought, “it will help her stay away from the dirty, dark stand-up comedy shows.” Of late, it’s interesting to ...

  “At the heart of all anger, all grudges, and all resentment, you’ll find a fear that hopes to stay anonymous.” Donald L. Hicks   “H ow’s is your health?”… a woman asked me, gently, a while ago. I had many options to choose my reply from: “Not so good”… “Doctors say this and that”… “Reports say this and that”… Well, these kinds of responses come quite easily… Complaints immediately draw sympathy, you see. And - we may not like to admit it – we long for sympathy from others. But, then, if I had replied to the question – “How’s your health?” – saying, “It’s Great!”… that’s not the truth either. Telling someone your health is ‘Great’, when it’s actually not, is a lie. You are deceiving not only others, but also yourself. So, this morning, I, instantly, replied to the woman, when asked gently – “How is your health?”, “It’s good, no complaints.” The woman, who asked me the question, seemed impressed by my rejoinder - “No complaints”, and said, “I like that phrase...

  “Thank God, I found the ‘Good’ in goodbye.” Beyonce Knowles   T he plastic bucket-chair, on which I am presently sitting and typing this Post, was bought by me more than three decades ago. I had bought four such chairs, and all four are still sturdy. The friend, from whose shop I had bought those chairs, continues to be my friend… and, his chairs, too, continue to be my loyal companions. To me, what is a chair for, except for sitting on them and typing my posts, the way I am doing now? Even if I replace this chair with a sophisticated chair, say worth 25 K, will it make any difference to my writing work, my stories, my simple joy? I realized it long ago, that the kind of chair I was using had no relevance to the kind of stories I was writing. So, I continue to use the same-old bucket chairs… They are still going strong, just as my storytelling mind does… Our possessions are all there for our temporary use… When we let them possess us, use us – comes the danger… t...

        “If it’s out of your hands, it deserves freedom from your mind, too.” Ivan Nuru   O f the many Good-morning messages I received last morning, two related to ‘Letting Go’. One is mentioned above. Let me present it, once again:   “If it’s out of your hands, it deserves freedom from your mind, too.” Ivan Nuru   It’s, often, said, that we can easily forgive; but, we cannot easily forget. To forgive or not to forgive is the job of our hearts; while, to forget or not to forget is a job of our minds. Forgiveness comes from a choice which springs up in our awareness… In fact, when we ‘see’, without any prejudice, what holding on to our pain, hurts, sorrows does to us, that very ‘seeing’ – that awareness - can liberate us from the bondage of holding on. Thus, as Jiddu Krishnamuti says, it is our ‘choice-less awareness’… That’s how it is… The reality… the truth! So, in that sense, forgiveness is not an ‘act’… It is a state of ...

  “I don’t go with the flow, nor do I go against it. I create my own.” Laurie Buchanan T he very thought   of ‘Going with the flow’   has a very calming effect on our minds. I am talking about very simple situations in our daily lives (like arriving at some consensus), as well as complex situations which are beyond human control (like calamites such as Covid, floods, tsunamis, earthquakes etc.) While the former offers us the options to go or not to go with the flow, the latter   (calamities) offer no options to us, but to go with the flow… But, wait a minute: Even when calamities like floods, tsunamis, earthquakes or Covid strike us, do we passively declare, “Take us – Thy will be done?” Or, do we try, with all that we possess, to fight, to survive and to outwit the current? That’s where, I think, we need clarity on the idea of ‘Going with the flow’. When we use this phrase, we should be aware of what we are saying… In all life-situations, whether within ...

  “All of them had a restlessness in common.” John Steinbeck   I n the midst of my ‘restlessness’, suddenly, I found myself writing these down:   Trying to please others… Trying to change others… Trying to prove something to others… Trying to cope with others… Trying to find security in life… Trying to seek approval from others… Trying to make others happy… Trying to explain something to someone… Trying to be perfect in everything… Trying to look smarter, better, wiser than others… Trying to hold on to my beliefs and possessions… Trying to control everything… Trying to fulfill my dreams through my children… Trying to depend on others for my happiness or security… Trying to eradicate fear, envy, anger, hatred from my life… Trying to be guilt-free Trying to be stress-free… Trying to be worry-free… I am not done with it, yet… I think, restlessness comes in me when my energy gets drained. ‘Trying’ is not just another word… It...

  “If you love something, set it free. If it comes back, it’s yours. If it doesn’t, it never was.” Old Proverb   M any years ago, I had a poster displayed in my classroom with the above message. Young boys and girls, would get puzzled… “If you love ‘someone’,” they would understand it that way. So, the advice to set him or her – who they were madly in love with – free would not go down well with them… Detachment is for the old and the sick… This was their (Young ones’) age – the age of attachment. So, after some time, I stopped displaying this message… “Let them enjoy life… Detachment can wait,” I concluded. Attachment mercifully comes in many forms: Attachment to wealth, people, beliefs, ideas, ideologies, opinions, places, creations and so on. I don’t think, it is possible – rather practical – to rid of our every attachment. Yes, as an ideal -   as a philosophy - detachment is very sublime. But, every one of us is a mortal here on earth; therefore, attached ...