My dear bundle of joy! A very happy birthday to you!!
What a special day this is for me as I wish you and recall those memorable moments vividly imprinted in my mind when I first held you in my eager arms in the hospital bed. Oh! What a spectacular moment that was!
When you were to be born, I used to wonder who will it be, how will the child look like and what will she or he become. When you were born on that day, the patient wait of months paid off and at last I saw you. 20th of May is the most memorable day of my life and I have every reason to say so.
‘Spirit In Life’
You know Mandira, I have from the outset, believed that there is ‘Spirit in life’ and one should live life in that spirit.
I have always wanted to live and live very well. I have an earnest desire ingrained in my psyche to live my life to the fullest as I know and feel that in doing so we are able to experience the ever present Spirit within us. The nature of our Spirit is Joy, Ananda.
I experienced that when I first held you. Through you, I experienced the marvel of Nature and the Joy of Spirit, so you are very dear and special to me.
When you were not born, I was made to believe that I may not be able to bear children, better it was in my best interest that I accept my fate. I could never bring myself to believe what others told me as I knew that was not true Mandira,
What your Spirit tells you is always right.
It is like a small lamp that we carry within us which shows us light to tread on our path. As I always believed in myself, I decided to go against everyone’s advice and in favour of the ‘light of the lamp’.
Throughout my confinement, I enjoyed each and every day and used to wonder what is it that women fuss about during their confinement. I told myself, “Look Sarika, enjoy every bit of it. This is the only time in your life when your body is being used to create something very beautiful! So why make a fuss?” Though the body did experience discomfort and uneasiness but my mind was always on you. There were medical hazards during this period which were nothing in comparison to the ‘gift’ I received. That is the spirit I like to live my life even now.
Do not be bothered by small hurdles, hiccups or pitfalls, they are trivial. They come and go, but to live with light within is the point to always remember.
‘Live your life very well and live it to the hilt’ is my mantra.
What should be the most suitable birthday gift for you was the question moving back and forth in my mind in the last few days. I could not find anything appropriate until yesterday when you told me- “Ma, you have lived 22 years more than me. You have more experience than me. You have done good parenting. You have had many exclusive spiritual experiences in life apart from experiences of the physical world. So why don’t you combine all these experiences in one piece, write them and give me as a birthday gift which will serve me as a road map when you are not there. In other words, why don’t you blog? Some other people out there may also get a glimpse of your life experiences.”
And last week you had expressed your wish that as a birthday gift this year you wanted to learn meditation from me as you were unable to be consistent. You wanted to start the day very early on 20th May by meditating with me and by resuming something which was very beneficial and had lasting effects.
We both woke up today morning a little earlier than everyday and absorbed the peaceful vibrations in the atmosphere. As decided, we both meditated for twenty minutes together and read a portion from the booklet ‘Remoulding your Life’ by Sri Paramhansa Yogananda, our dear Guruji. I foresee that there is a purpose behind doing all this today so that on every birthday, you will remember and reinforce the resolve of remoulding the mortal consciousness to Divinity through meditation and concentration.
Meditation is the ideal activity to bring the restless thoughts to rest and tap the Cosmic Energies lying within us. Through it you will be able to see the importance and power of a concentrated mind. You must develop the mind year after year relentlessly. Review your spiritual progress on every birthday! And don’t forget to enjoy these activities with full vigour and enthusiasm. Always remain spirited, cheerful and bring sunshine in other people’s life.
As desired by you, here I am writing and sharing my life experiences about the ‘Spirit in Life’ a title which came about after thinking for a while. Yes, this is what I have been wanting to express as the mental space began overflowing recently. Which other day could be better than this?
My child, whenever my thoughts are saturated with the Divine, when the Spirit silently touches me, I will express myself through my thoughts and translate them in words and present you. I feel very grateful to the Almighty to have given me this opportunity to be able to connect deeply to you and with his other wonderful creation called ‘children’.
