R@J aur Sweety ka Scribble Pad

Walking the dogs this week, I was listening to a discourse by Swami Sarvapriyananda. He was explaining a profound line from Adi Shankaracharya: “ In wakening, dreaming, and deep sleep — there is one consciousness. ” At first, it sounds simple. But as he unpacked it, something stirred within me. We live through different states each day — wakening, dreaming, and deep sleep — each so distinct in experience. - In wakening, we navigate the outer world: people, work, emotions, conversations. - In dreaming, our mind becomes the creator — spinning stories, fantasies, fears — often vivid, strange, and deeply personal. - In deep sleep, there are no thoughts, no dreams, not even the awareness of “I am sleeping.” It's a void of experience — and yet somehow, we know it happened. And yet, through all of this, one thing remains constant: the witnessing consciousness. It is not bound by sleep or activity. It doesn’t disappear when the mind goes quiet. It is always there — not doing, just being. A...

Read a post about making choices and it stayed with me — it made me ponder: what actually makes people happy? Or more importantly, how can we stay happy, especially when life is unpredictable? Some thoughts came to mind… -  Happiness isn’t a constant high —it’s more often a quiet contentment, a sense of alignment with one’s values, and the ability to navigate life with acceptance - Own choices without regret - Some work out and some dont, but they were made with the best set of information that we had at that point in time. Regret only stings when we believe we should have known better. But no one ever makes a bad decision on purpose—they simply made the best call they could with what they had. - Don’t Replace, Just Release - Never think about replacing everyone. Just move forward by leaving that space. Humans will never be a like for like replacement. People are not interchangeable. Relationships, memories, and impacts are unique. Trying to “fill a gap” often leads to compa...

  Over the weekend, I heard a coach say this to a bunch of graduating high school seniors “ Remember, We are a C between B and D ". I found this very interesting and when I looked up online I found that this is a quote by French philosopher   Jean-Paul Sartre , where "B" represents birth, "C" represents the choices we make, and "D" represents death. Ironically thereafter, I even watched a movie called “The    Choice” where two individuals that are poles apart are attracted to each other and end up making choices to live and love each other hoping against hope and overcoming many challenges. And today I came across this thought provoking article in social media that talks about thinking through some of the choices carefully before we make them especially the choices that impact our life and the people we hold dear… “One day, you’ll realize that the same person cannot be found twice in life. Not everyone is replaceable. Be careful with the hearts you to...

Parkinson’s Law — originally coined to describe bureaucracies — states: “Work expands to fill the time available for its completion.”  Over the years, I’ve realized this doesn’t just apply to office work. It applies to life itself. Give yourself a free evening, and you’ll likely find a way to fill it — sometimes with intention, often out of habit. A weekend with no plans? Suddenly, errands appear. Obligations multiply. Emotional loops replay. It’s as if stillness is too unfamiliar, even threatening. So we stay in motion — not because we must, but because we’re used to it. And it makes me wonder: Are we managing time, or is time managing us? We often chase productivity, but rarely ask: Productive toward what end? Sometimes, the most radical thing we can do isn’t to squeeze more into our day — but to protect some space within it. Space for rest. Reflection. Or simply, to be. When the mind is blank, we often let the motions take over. Stillness can feel like a void. Silence, unsettlin...

We were recently listening to Hotel California again, and one line stayed with us long after the music faded: "We are all just prisoners here, of our own device... You can check out any time you like, but you can never leave." It’s haunting — not just because of the melody, but because of the unsettling truth it hints at. Sometimes, life feels exactly like that — a grand, beautiful illusion. Full of movement, choices, and color on the surface, yet beneath it all, a quiet sense of being trapped. Not by walls or systems alone, but by our own thoughts, fears, expectations, and the identities we've carefully constructed over time. At other times, it feels like a well-decorated maze. We move through routines, ambitions, desires — always seeking the next thing that promises escape, relief, or meaning. Yet slowly, a realization sets in: what holds us captive isn’t out there. It’s in here. - We carry invisible prisons — comparison, old wounds, societal scripts, internal pressures...

 The first time I came across the term Atmanirbhar was when Prime Minister Modi launched the Atmanirbhar Bharat mission. Over the past decade, I’ve come to understand that self-reliance isn’t just a national aspiration — it’s deeply personal as well. At the national level, Atmanirbhar signifies more efficient, competitive, resilient, independent in areas like energy, raw materials, defense manufacturing, capital, and even markets. But for an individual, self-reliance is more nuanced. It means being physically, mentally, and emotionally self-sufficient — reaching a state of contentment that doesn’t depend on external validation or stimuli. It’s about finding inner stability and peace, regardless of what’s happening outside. Recently, I mentioned to Sweety that she seems to be constantly seeking distractions. I don’t think it landed well with her — and understandably so. It's not easy to hear, and perhaps not easy to say either. But that moment made me reflect deeper on what individu...

Back in Nov 2024, when we were trying to figure out a path forward for our relationship, Raj had said “Love can be an enabler, that can nourish our soul, and grow ...I want that.”  At that time, I understood his intent more as a goal we can aspire for and work towards. Now after 4 months, slowly I am realizing the effects of it. With changing times we have adapted to new ways to stay in touch and supporting each other to learn and grow together. It constantly surprises me how our love in subtle ways has enabled us to keep each other motivated and be accountable for the goals we have set for ourselves.  Along with that, our love has also been an inspiration to some creativity in areas that we have not tried before. Here is a result of one such inspiration.. मेरे ख्वाबों में देखु तेरी मुस्कराहट (I see your smile in my dreams) तू बन गया है मेरी जीवन का सहारा (You have become the support of my life) कोई हो या न हो मेरे पास (Whether there is someone or not with me) फिर भी जी ल...

Who knows our True Self? Do we ourselves know it?  With ever changing situations, circumstances and moods when do we exhibit our True Self?  Is True Self just an idea of how we want to portray ourselves?  This is what I came across while I was searching answers to these questions above.. "Being authentic means sticking to our values, and our beliefs, even when faced with pressure to act otherwise, being honest to ourselves and taking responsibility for our actions." In our daily lives being around family, friends, acquaintances, and strangers how many of us exhibit our authentic self? I think most of us are wearing a mask while projecting ourselves to be different people at different instances of time based on situations and moods.  When are we our True Self? The most important factor that enables us to be our authentic self is courage to unapologetically accept who we are and express our opinions, thoughts, choices and behaviors without the fear of judgement and con...

It is tempting. When we see someone we care for is making decisions or has made a decision contrary to what we would have  our instinct tries to tell them what to do  Maturity lies in stepping back and trusting that people are mature enough to figure out what to do At the end of the day, it is their life, it is their choice  it’s more valuable to provide support and encouragement without giving unsolicited advice Give people space to make their own decisions,  even if they decide to take the scenic route that we  definitely wouldn’t have chosen Good or bad, it leads them down paths that they themselves have chosen they’ll probably make it to the end with a few bumps and a lot of lessons. Remember, the last thing we want to do is say "I told you so"