Mar 11
All people who love fine Italian food are going to rebel when they read this. But, hey its tasty, and I didn’t want to call it Tarragon and Smoked cheese khichidi 
Yum Yum!!
2 cups of rice washed and soaked for about an hour
2-3 bunches of fresh tarragon, leaves separated
4 strands of green garlic finely chopped
2 carrots, a small broccoli, handful of french beans, half a zucchini, mushrooms all roughly chopped from chunky to small sized pieces
A big piece (50 gms) of smoked cheese grated
Olive oil and a small piece of butter (10 gms)
2-3 tablespoons of basil or tomato pesto
Put some olive oil and the butter in a cooker, and heat until the butter melts. Add the garlic and 1 dried red chilly and cook until slightly brown, add the tarragon leaves. After it sputters for a minute or two, add all the veggies and cook for a few minutes. Add the pesto.
Remove the red chilly.
Add the rice and salt to taste. Add water to cover the mixture by about an inch.
Add the grated cheese.
Pressure cook for 3 whistles. Simmer for 5 more minutes.
Wait until the cooker has cooled down enough to open it, about 15 minutes or so.
Serve piping hot. It’s really tasty!
Jai Gurudeva!
love
bawa
Print this post
Mar 9
From the Knowledge Sheets…
Have been making a few videos from the Knowledge Sheets (yes, yes you will see it as soon as they finish editing) and one quote stayed with me …
If you are open, then you are close to me…
If you are close to me, then you cannot but open up!
very cool na?!
Jai Gurudeva!
love
bawa
ps We have been recording a lot in the past few days in Bombay… There is a nice talk (if i may say so myself) that i gave at Ruia College… Please watch The Technology of Spirituality … as well as all the other experience videos we have created
pps we now have a dedicated YES!+ Tv channel on youtube, where we will be fairly regularly uploading Experiences, Knowledge talks, and other cool stuff … keep checking
Mar 1
First of all … A Happy Happy Holi!!!!
Do play Holi with a lot of water, don’t worry about “wasting” it… People who eat non veg food will waste more water in a single meal that you and your family will waste playing a full fledged Holi with lots and lots of water … Do be careful of the colours you use though, best is to go organic or simply play only with chandan (Sandal wood powder) …
I was at BITS Goa for the TEDx there and their magazine interviewed me… here is that interview (a little abridged)…
Q. Life teaches us many lessons as we go along, then why does one need Art of Living? What is its importance in daily life?
A. So that you learn the lessons properly! If you have learnt your lesson you will not commit the same mistake again. If we had learnt our lesson in World War 1, would there have been a World War 2? Would there have been the Vietnam, Iraq or all the other wars? We don’t know how to learn the lessons that life has to offer. We need lessons so that you don’t commit the same mistakes over and over again, like a stuck record. Art of living allows you to make new mistakes in life.
Q. In today’s world we see people leading hectic lives, with hardly any time for leisure. How would you integrate spirituality with that kind of a lifestyle?
A. If you don’t have spirituality you will be stuck leading the life you have to lead rather than the life you want to lead. Spirituality makes you efficient, productive, and creative so that things that you have to do you manage quickly and you have time to do the things you want to do.
Q. Are there any myths associated with spirituality that you would like to clear?
A. The biggest myth is that it is not for me. It is for you. There are only three types of people not eligible for spirituality. Type one- you are dead. Too late. Type two- you are enlightened. You are already spiritual. Type three- you are clinically mentally retarded, then Art of Living cannot help you. If you do not fall within these three categories, then spirituality is for you. This is the biggest myth- “I don’t need it”. Until you do it, you have no idea what it is and whether you need it or not.
Q. Sir, you mentioned that this course has helped you a lot. Could you please mention a few transformations that you have seen in yourself that would interest the students of BITS?
A. There are so many things. In IIT while i was studying, I was a four point someone and I graduated as a seven point someone. I think that should interest everybody! Physically my health improved terrifically… And I became a better piano player, a better cook, a better son, a better friend… a better human being. I was upgraded.
Q. What would be your message to the students?
A. Upgrade yourself!
Q. Not everybody can be Einstein. Can people still have satisfaction and fulfillment in their lives?
A. Every person has some amazing, brilliant thing with them that they need to contribute to this world. The moment they start giving, they get fulfillment and satisfaction. The moment they start taking they feel frustrated and miserable. The whole purpose is to start giving. Taking is such a futile thing- you take a degree, you take money and within a few years, you are dead. But how will you make your mark on this planet? By giving. Like Lata Mangeshkar gives with her voice, Aamir Khan gives with his acting. So, I give knowledge. Guruji gives us spirituality. Figure out what you can give. Don’t waste your life figuring what you can take. Anyway, it is going to be taken away from you eventually. So learn to give. And know that you have an abundance to give. Don’t think that you are poor or have nothing to give.
Right in the beginning there was a big race, a great race… Three hundred million sperms were fighting, and you won. So never think that you are a loser. You are one in three hundred million! You started your life as a winner, and so continue your life like that!
Jai Gurudeva!
love
bawa
Interviewed by Abhishek Agrawal and Basanti Nachine from the Department of Journalism and Media Affairs at BITS Pilani, Goa Campus
Feb 25
One of our teachers in the US got asked this question on a course:
What does Sri Sri think of his picture being displayed so prominently with a candle as it if were a religious shrine?
Here is my answer to it
Its an Indian tradition to honour the One who has given us this great Knowledge like this … i know of course, that this is not India, but Yoga, Meditation, Pranayama, all the things that we have done here (on the course) are very much Indian, and so to honour that Person and that tradition, we keep this little photo of His and the candle. The candle signifies the light of Knowledge burning away the ignorance. It signifies purity of consciousness.
As far as Sri Sri is concerned, He doesn’t care whether His photo is displayed or not, whether a candle is there or not… all He says is Be happy and make others happy … but the candle and the photo definitely make me (bawa) happy … and now that you know what it means, it should make you happy too
Jai Gurudeva!
love
bawa
Feb 16
There is a lot happening here, and many days dont have the energy to write out anything for the blog … so everyone will have to forgive me for being irregular till march 18th
Meanwhile here is a joke:
Q. Santa Singh aur Art of Living me kya farak hai?
A. Santa Singh Sardar hai… Art of Living Asardar hai!!!!
(it’s hindi and untranslatable, so if you dont understand hindi, just laugh out very loudly)
Jai Gurudeva!
love
bawa
Feb 11
100,008
The Mumbai YES!+ Team has taken for themselves a formidable target… that of organizing a YES!+ course for 100,008 people! And that too within a space of just a few weeks. This mega event is scheduled to happen from 18th to 21st March 2010 at the K. J. Somaiya Grounds at Sion from 5:00 pm to 9:30 pm. Meanwhile, Poona is not too far behind with a target of 25,000 and they are going to make it happen a week earlier, from the 11th to the 14th of March at gaflaflajhlj from 5:00 pm to 9:30 pm. Since both these courses are happening just after the 12th standard board exams, we have opened the courses up for people who have just written their exams… After an entire year or maybe three of crazy hard work, this will be the perfect way for them to reward themselves and relax…
March 18th to 21st ... Be there!
Mumbai already did Yuvaratri, three years ago at the exact same place with 75,000+ young people… We want to top that this time by making it a lakh and 8 people + instead of one evening, making it a 4 evening program that will have a lasting effect on all those who participate, and many, many more who may simply get benefited by the huge waves of Goodness and Sattwa that this event will unleash…
Yuvaratri
We will also have a live Ensemble with 300+ musicians, actors and dancers who will perform everyday. Auditions for this have already started… All the performers will also be doing the course!
The work for the event has started in earnest… We are approaching many colleges and educational institutions to send their students en masse for the course. Many hundreds of intro talks are being organized and registrations are pouring in… Many corporate houses are also being approached to sponsor deserving candidates as part of their CSR initiatives. We already have 1000 (part) scholarships, and we are aiming for at least 20,000.
This is an exciting time to be in Mumbai… We need all our readers and their friends and families to support us in this grand venture… Please tell everyone about the course and get them to it!
Come and be a part of this History in the making.
And if you can’t make it here, then please send us your prayers and blessings…
For more details, please visit the site dedicated to this course www.yesplusevents.org (this site is very much a work in progress, and you will see it evolve over the next few weeks)
Jai Gurudeva!
love
bawa
Feb 10
The HopeLine
Mumbai and Poona have seen a sudden increase in teen suicides. If you have not already read it, please read what i had written about suicide a pretty long time ago. It’s still very relevant and i feel it needs to be made available to many more people to read as well… As the two cities struggle with the tragedies, Art of Living has swung into action by launching a helpline in association with Just Dial. Only, we called it the HopeLine. It’s for anyone who needs to talk, but doesn’t have any one they can talk to about anything they wish to.
Please spread the word and let many people know about this. you may just save a life.
Meanwhile as it says on the poster, we have started the Better Parenting Workshops for parents, and the Stress Free Teaching Workshops for teachers in schools and colleges. These are free workshops and in less than 10 days more than 5000 people have undergone the training and many lives have been transformed. A father and son who attended the workshop told us later that they had intended to kill themselves the next day and that just being on the workshops had given them hope and that they now felt they had the strength to carry on. Many such experiences made us feel that the Mumbai Angels really need a huge boost in the Sattwa levels here…
Will tell you what we are doing about that tomorrow
Jai Gurudeva!
love
bawa
ps the HopeLine number is # 69999999 and is valid on 10,000 pin codes, more than 1/3rd of India
