Seeing these birds, their sign of affection high up there in their tree perch, oblivious to the other birds and tourists gawking at them, made me stop and think about love.
It’s the most basic human emotion there is. Love makes the world go round, after all!
And yet, it’s the most controversial one too.
We live in the 21st century, and people are still regularly persecuted for being in love.
Continue reading
As I was getting ready for the Mindfulness challenge, pulling together material for the Mindfulness ebook, this quote really stood out to me. I thought it would be helpful to share it with you, along with a few thoughts on what mindfulness is and how this campaign can {hopefully} help you become more mindful.
It is simply being aware of the present moment, without judgements, without attachment to our thoughts, to the past or the future. It’s about being present.
Thoughts and feelings will continue to arise – that’s part of the human condition. But being aware that these thoughts and judgements do not define you, letting them arise and flow away and remaining centered in the present moment, is mindfulness.
Doesn't that sound nice and spooky for a short novella tagged as a dark psychological suspense?
"Seven years ago, he shattered her life. The town eventually forgot the headlines and the nightmares. But 23-year old music student Angelica hasn’t forgotten.
For the past seven years, she’s contemplated payback with as much intensity and unwavering faith as she puts into her violin playing. Finally, all the pieces are in place. Over the course of one night, disguised for a masquerade ball,
Angelica orchestrates a journey of revenge."
I need to slow down. Things have been happening at break-neck speed recently, and October is shaping up to be worse. It’s a very busy period for me at work, and to add to that, it’s also the season for the biggest festival in India – Diwali.
In the middle of all this craziness, though, it’s easy to get stressed out and overwhelmed. And so, I need a bit of a daily break. A reminder to myself to just breathe.
Which gave me the idea of a 15 day {because that’s all that seems doable to me this month} photography challenge – The Mindful Break. It’s just a simple reminder to be in the moment, a gentle pause in the middle of all the frenetic activity.
And I’d love for YOU to join me on this challenge.Continue reading
This is a common question that many people ask when they’re starting out on an inner quest – Tarot Cards or Oracle Cards – which are better? How are they different? Let me try to break it down for you.
The rest of the 56 Minor Arcana cards are suit cards – wands, swords, cups and pentacles. These represent the daily ebb and flow of life. Each of these is related to one of the four elements and a particular trait.Continue reading
I heard something new recently – Ghetto blogging. According to Richa Singh, who spoke of the concept, ghetto blogging is too much of the same content, style, and ideas across blogging, when every other blogger is doing the same content style, like a ghetto.
Which got me to thinking: this is a problem that is common across blogs {and the internet}, yes, but also with ideas.
Like the formulaic cinema of the ‘80s and ‘90s – that was the terrible era of Govinda and David Dhawan, when every movie was titled similarly (Hero No 1, Aunty No 1) and followed the same formula. Govinda was the No. 1 bumbling idiot and almost every dialogue was filled with double-entendres. More recently, Bang Bang was “inspired” by Knight and Day and Partner was a direct rip-off of Hitch. The originals in both cases were infinitely better movies, at least in my opinion! And the rip-off was immediately clear if you had seen the original English movies.Continue reading
There’s something magical that I’ve been noticing in my life recently. It his to do with art. With learning, teaching, and living an artistic life.
When I started down this path, I was quite a babe in the woods – clueless about where I was going, what I was doing, and why I was doing it. All I recognized was a calling… a yearning to create – to pick paints and paper, glue and pictures, with no idea of what to do with them, how to mold them into something that was pleasing to the eye.
I stumbled upon a few teachers – wonderful people who shared their art, tips, and techniques online for free on YouTube. I picked up a few tips here, an idea for a technique there. But very often, these free videos were disappointing. They were either timelapsed and so fast that I had no idea what or how the person was doing what they were doing. Often, they were product demonstrations – and said products were not necessarily available in India. But I persevered.Continue reading
Has this ever happened to you? Periods when you felt like you are drifting along, rudderless, without any ambitions or passions?
It happened to me. It lasted roughly 4-5 long years. Looking back, it was the worst period of my life.
I felt adrift, lost and confused; I had no ambitions and no passions. I can’t remember how many articles I read during that period – articles telling you how to find your passion, how to get up in the morning with boundless energy and raring to face the day. None of them helped. I felt like I was trapped in the darkest depths of my soul and there was no way out. Continue reading
I’ve been wondering about this recently. Where do ideas come from?
There are times when ideas seem to dry up. At other times, they flow so fast and thick that you wonder when and how you will execute them all!
In my previous post, I shared a bit about the history of the Tarot and briefly introduced you to the cards. Today, let me tell you how the Tarot works – and doesn’t work.
There’s a lot of mystery surrounding the Tarot, which isn’t surprising given its portrayal in the movies. Picture this:
A young girl goes to a fortune teller, who pulls out the Death cards and says something like: “Oh, Death! Someone you love is going to die today!” *Cue dramatic music in the background.*
I say: Bullshit!
From the Mary-El Tarot Tarot deck – I love this version of the card. It depicts what Death truly represents – the end of a cycle or transformation.
For one, Death very rarely means the literal death of someone – so breathe! For another, the Tarot does not tell you exactly what will happen, or exactly when it will happen, and a reading isn’t set in stone. Hello, free will!
