Patience is all about waiting without being disturbed

This morning I asked my father how was his pain in the knee that he suffered due to a minor fall a few days back. Glad that he has recovered it quickly in a couple of days and comfortably resumed his morning walks. The day it happened, he was indeed in pain but otherwise also very disturbed mentally. Even though we started with the medication immediately and he knew he will be fine. But things were bothering him that he will not be able to move so independently and it is going to be trouble for others etc and etc.. So today when he was better, I was curious to ask him, if his mental disturbance the other day was worth and what would have helped him to be less disturbed. His answer was patience. 

The dictionary as it says...

patience | ˈpeɪʃ(ə)ns | noun [mass noun]

the capacity to accept or tolerate delay, problems, or suffering without becoming annoyed or anxious

Do we really practice patience as it is defined here or we justify our wait-time calling it as patience, while we are so disturbed with random related or unrelated thoughts created in our mind in that context?

This incident made me think about the tools that can help anyone to develop patience in a given situation. After a few random correlations and understanding from past, I was able to come up with these three: Trust or faith, Knowledge or Information, To accept things as is.

Let's start with faith. If I have faith and trust in the person with whom I am in that situation, that will reduce a great deal of disturbance and anxiety in me. For example, if I have trust in my doctor who is treating me, I will be calmer and less disturbed. However, since I am in pain at that point in time it cannot remove my anxiety completely.  So... the next tool then.

The knowledge is the next tool that comes to my rescue to deal with the situation further better. In the same context, if I know the cause of my pain or know that it will get healed with the right treatment or this will go away in some time; help me to be more equanimous. At an abstract level knowledge of "impermanence" that everything is temporary and will go away, this is applicable to pain as well, will make me more tolerant. Still, the pain at that moment is still there which is disturbing me. So.. the final tool then.

Accept the thing as is ... we get disturbed because we relate the things from our bad experience that's gone and projecting the consequence for the future that's yet to come. Being in the present will help to see things as is and accept it. So even if I am in pain or suffering, if I am able to accept it as is, then nothing can disturb me in mind but just the physical pain. As heard, they say pain is in the mind, when my mind is not disturbed, pain can't stay for long as well.

Vipassana from what I have understood from my little practice is a simple meditation technique to develop patience that blends all these three tools.

I am sure there will be many more such instruments that might have helped you to be less disturbed while you were or are waiting ... or being impatient.

These three; faith, knowledge and being in present were my tools to share with you all to be patient. So, next time when you claim to be patient, just give a check to your disturbed mind.  Let me know if these tools helped.

Sound of Silence

On my way to home from office, I usually call my wife to let her know about my arrival. The timings are quite consistent every day. However, one day, since I was not feeling well, I started a bit early for home post lunch and as usual, called her. She immediately said you are on the way home. I was not surprised that she recognised, but it was not usual. It was silence in my car and no background noise, I could have even been in my office cubicle, pantry or in my car like yesterday. All these were possibilities of noise-free zones. But among all these, she picked exactly that I was in my car. So, I was curious to ask her though there was no noise (may consider a silence), how she could recognise that I was in the car. Her answer was a statement triggered me to think deep. She said, "Every silence has got a sound !". The silence in the office is different from silence in the restaurant, is different from silence in the pantry (when I go for late lunch of course when no one in cafeteria :) ).

I experienced our sense of listening to the silence at that moment, other than regular meditation sessions. That's amazing power of awareness which is beautiful.

This very thought made me be more aware of the noise-free zones and able to listen to those subtle differences. Also, it actually means in day to day noisy world any noise free zone becomes or considered silence for us, but it could be still noisy for many.

I would love to hear from others on your experiences of sounds of silence.

Coincidentally my past few week's status message was "Open your mouth only if what you are going to say is more beautiful than silence." -- Buddha

Magellan's Discovery

This after noon on 27th of February, at around 1PM we are out on a small ride near by, to have narial pani..on the way before we reached our destination decided to change our destination :)

Let's go to Nagapattinam..so let's have lunch here in a hotel and start by 2:00, hopefully will reach there by 4:00 stay there for 2 Hrs or so and return by 10:00PM...

Ab sochna kya tha jab decide kar liya to..had lunch on the way itself and moved to Nagapattinam..didn't turn back to room..just moved with whatever we were wearing and carrying..

We reached there by 4:30 and had a nice ride on bike off the sea shore..filmy istyle...we found few fishermen coming back home

 from work..we thought they were going inside..we requested if they can take us inside on a boat ride...they were more than happy to do so looking at our anxiety an enthu...then tied the rope on boat around us and went into the sea...spent around 15 - 20mnts inside and came back...the fishermen and we were so happy to get onto the boat..they even refused to take any money when offered which we thought should be given for an extra effort...but I am sorry we couldn't understand their affection at that moment and mapped it to money...may good bless good people on earth...

Then the most boring/crazy for people n exciting task for me, I got involved into was to sit near a crab hole on shore to catch a pic of crab peeping outside..spent around more than 30mnts in silence next to the hole and patient enough to catch it on my cell cam..

And yes it was fruitful to get one snap...never felt that happy taking a pic before..poor crab doesn't even know that it became famous in Orkut & Google...it must have come out with more poses and big smile ;)

A wonderful day overall and we started from there at around 6:30 and back in room by 10:00..

Every thing so unplanned but resulted in wonderful trip..met good people visited new place and satisfied at the end of the day, which gives a nice sleep and smile on face....sometimes we should keep running without any reasons..who knows will find our self some day as a serendipitial coincidence... :)

Search of NO WHERE...

Suddenly without any work makes a busybee to hibernate...is it expected from me in this latch period.. may be not..kuchh karne ka kida to kaam karega hi...in last 4 days I came to explore this place so much...went to one of the two century old temples people manage to visit on vacations and I visited just a evening tour on a bike ride...
Day before yesterday was Brihadeswar temple in Tanjavur an epitome of Dravidiyan scuplture, and attraction of huge NANDI over 20 feet high made up of a single raock encarving and people say it still grows every year by year....
Yesterday was to Trichi Uchhipilliyar (Ganesh Temple) over a hill top to climb around 400 steps high...after a long time been to a temple which brought a feel of being in a temple with stories hidden and many more to explore...
Today back in Tanjavur almost all possible lanes of market place around old bustand we must have moved into...like in search of something...without any reasons...
Driving in a crowded city of Trichi reminded my edge riding of bike in Cuttack...may be that was my search or excitment...
This was an exsiting time pass...
Now how can I leave my coincidences and serendipity...
No plans we had two days ago...and suddenly decided to explore near by city markets but end up exploring two living historical temples...provoked with spiritual and historical thoughts...
Found a genuine north Indian restaurant wit proper snacks...
Plan to search NO WHERE and you will endup finding all possible things you were suppose to serach for...thats where we will reach and find...some times searching nowhere is fun and exciting..try doing this you may end up finding yourself in some corner may be...
That day, for no particular reason, I decided to go for a little run. So I ran to the end of the road, and when I got there, I thought maybe I'ld run to the end of town...
No particular reason. I kept on going...
They couldn't believe somebody would do all that running for no reason.

Serendipity 'n' Coincidence!!!

Taking instance of me start blogging is serendipitial coincidence..
Came here to search and reply for someone known and started introducing myself so that somebody find me as known!!! Searching someone and finding myself is serendipity and we will find each other will be a coincidence....
will know more about us...