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IT’S A
Beautiful Life SADHU VASWANI Question: What makes your life beautiful? Answer: I have a friend. He protects me. He guards me in illness. He blesses me every day. And He stretches forth His arms of love to enfold me in silence and darkness of the night. He is your friend, too. Indeed, He is the Friend of friends. Question: I am passing through a stormy period, and I feel forsaken and lost. Tell me what shall I do? Answer: Fear not when the thunder roars and the tempest shakes. Beyond the thunder and storms is He who made you and knows your needs. And He is compassion and love.
Question: These are times of great insecurity. And this is what worries me and robs me of sleep at night. What shall I do? Answer: this world changes, surrendered God.
You are not secure in of swift, cataclysmic until you have yourself wholly to
Question: What is the beginning of the spiritual life – the life in God? Answer: Attachment of the earth must end before life in the Spirit begins. In the mirror of the heart the image of myself must no longer be reflected, if, indeed the knowledge of God is to shine upon me. The ‘ego’, the ‘I’, must go! When I lose myself, I find the soul!
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Question: How may I lose myself, and find the soul? Answer: To lose myself, I must be lifted above myself, I must turn away from the transient. And this is not possible, until the gate of my heart is opened to receive the richest gift life can give — the grace of God. Question: What must I do to receive His grace? Answer: • I must seek Him every day. • I must have no worldly ambitions. • I must accept all suffering. • I must welcome what comes to me – joy or pain, love or hate. • I must realise that I am but a child and so must ever strive to carry out the Will of God – the Will of the Divine Mother! • I must love silence in the midst of the world’s noises and strife. Gradually, I shall grow in the presence of God, seeing Him all around – and beyond Him, nothing, only shunyam, a void! Question: What must a seeker do to walk the Way? Answer: Three things must a seeker achieve in order to advance: • He must purify his antahkarna, the inner instrument. • He must develop his intuition. • He must have reverence for all life. Question: Why is it that though we have all we need, we still are unhappy? Answer: Ye are unhappy because ye wander. Question: Why is it that we wander and have no peace in our hearts?
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Answer: Ye wander because ye are victims to desires and appetites. They will not let you rest in peace. Question: What may we do to be free from desires and appetites? Answer: Give your mind and heart to God. Let your hands be engaged in work: but let your thoughts dwell on the Lotus-feet of the Beloved. For thoughts are internal forces. And as you think, so you make or mar yourself. Question: I try to fix my thoughts on God but lapse, again and again, into forgetfulness. What may I do? Answer: If you would constantly live in the thought of God, love Him. A man thinketh as he loveth. Love is the Sun round which our thoughts revolve: they derive their light from love. Question: What is the secret of happiness? Answer: You will not be happy by possessing things. If you will be truly happy, do the Will of God in daily life. This is not an easy task. You must do tapasya. You must bear your cross. Suffering purifies. And none was truly happy who did not purify himself. Question: What may a man do to be truly happy? Answer: The king of all the world is unhappy! Happiness lies not in wealth and power. A Maharani once told me, “I am unhappy.” Kings and queens are not happy. They are too ‘big’ to be Contd. on page 10
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Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu J. P. VASWANI Seven centuries ago he came, he whose name is a benediction, he whose memory is fragrant. Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu they call him. He was born in far off Nadia in Bengal. He was a great scholar. He was a professor. He was a professor of logic. He laughed at bhaktas, at devotees of God. Whenever the devotees of God visited his town he picked faults in them. He made of them a laughing stock before the people. He did not believe in devotion to God. He disregarded it all. Suddenly a transformation takes place in his life. His mother has sent him to Gaya, in connection with certain ceremonies which are to be performed on behalf his dear departed father. And there in the temple of Gaya a miracle happens. The true miracle is the miracle of transformation. The true miracle is when our life is transformed, when we become new. This is what happens to him. This is what happens to this professor. In the temple of Gaya he has a vision of Sri Krishna. He has the vision of the nitya leela of the Lord. The Leela that is eternally going on. The veils are lifted from the eyes of Sri Chaitanya. He was known as Professor Nimai then. And this
professor suddenly becomes a prophet. He returns to Nadia, he returns to the University of Nadia. But now there is but one name that is on his lips: Krishna! Krishna! Krishna! This is the one mantra that he repeats again and again and still again. They put to him many questions. He was the idol of Nadia’s youths. They flocked around him wherever he went. They were eager to catch the pearls of wisdom that dropped out of his lips but now he is become a different person. To every question that is put to him, he has but one answer to give, Haribol, Haribol, Haribol bhai. They put to him this question, they say to him, you have spoken
*March 1 is sacred as Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu’s Birth Anniversary.
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to us concerning the mysteries of the Name Divine, the mysteries of the Holy Name, tell us who is qualified to repeat the Holy Name of God? Tell us who is qualified to get into tune with the vibration that is the Name Divine? And in answer to this question, this great prophet Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu says, “If you would get into tune with that vibration which is at the heart of the cosmos, the heart of the universe, which is there within every one of you, if you would get into tune with this vibration, if you would become one with this vibration, if you would be lost in this vibration, you must be humble as a blade of grass. You must be more forbearing than a tree and you must seek to honour others without seeking any honours for yourself.” The books speak of seven sins and every sin keeps us away
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from the Lord. The greatest amongst these sins is the sin of pride – the sin of egoism. And Sri Chaitanya says, if you would be one with the Name Divine, you must be humble as a blade of grass. Regard yourself as nothing. The one prayer which my revered Master, Sadhu Vaswani use to repeat and he gave to us was this, ‘Naham! Naham! Tu ho! Tu ho!’ I am nothing O Lord. I am naught Thou alone art! I am nothing I am like the dust of the road. Men may trample me under foot. I shall not complain. When you arrive at such a state then indeed are you worthy of repeating the Name of God. Then indeed is there hope that you may get into tune with that cosmic vibration, which is at the heart of the universe.
DECLARATION Statement about ownership and other particulars about the journal “East and West Series” (English) under (Rule, & form IV) Newspaper (Central) Rules, 1956. 1. Place of Publication: Gita Publishing House, 10, Sadhu Vaswani Path, Pune - 411 001. 2. Periodicity of Publication: Monthly. 3. Printer’s Name, Nationality, Address: (Ms.) Gulshan G. Dudani, Indian, at Print Impressions, 101, Raunaq Industrial Estate, 131/7B, Hadapsar Industrial Estate, Pune - 411 013. 4. Publisher’s Name, Nationality, Address: (Ms.) Gulshan Dudani, Indian, Gita Publishing House, 10, Sadhu Vaswani Path, Pune - 411 001. 5. Editor’s Name, Nationality, Address: Piya G. Uttam, Indian, 10, Sadhu Vaswani Path, Pune 411001. 6. Name and Address of individuals who own the paper: Sadhu Vaswani Mission, 10, Sadhu Vaswani Path, Pune - 411 001.
I, (Ms.) Gulshan Dudani, Member, Sadhu Vaswani Mission, hereby declare that the particulars given above are true to the best of my knowledge and belief. (Ms.) Gulshan Dudani (Signature of the Publisher)
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THE ART OF MEDITATION SADHU VASWANI
What is meditation? (1) It is withdrawal, retreat, detachment from the outer to know myself. Who am I? Meditation is turning inward. (2) Withdraw from the senses, the five senses and the outer world. Sink deeper and deeper, until you reach the mind, purified mind, refined mind. Withdraw still further until you reach the heart, remove yourself from the domination of thought, desire, body and feeling. By this process of withdrawal, you sink deeper and deeper, until you touch the pure white light. You have to sink deeper still: until you merely not see Light but become Light-like, recover consciousness of what you are eternally — a ray of the Eternal Sun. (3) It will help this process of withdrawal if you reserve a separate room for meditation and meditate there, locking the door.
That room will gradually be charged with a beautiful atmosphere which you may breathe in and be blessed: you gradually move in the midst of the Light around you. Two very good periods for meditation are — dawn and twilight when the sun is going down. In the quiet of these two periods, the process of interiorisation is much helped on. Face the East or face the North: try to forget the physical body. (4) Quietly take in what comes. Try to empty the mind: try to still the mind and accept what comes. You will, at last, see a point, a point of Light: it will grow! (5) Observe the law of persistence. The mind is restless: it is difficult to empty it. But you must persist! Practice makes perfect. Do abhyasa. By purified sankalapa, break the old habits. The mind (lower) is often a rebel:
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it will take time to convert the rebel into a devotee. (6) There is also, the law of association, association with your Ishta, your Guru. It is difficult to meet a Guru of the true type in these days. Dark night surrounds us. But in any case try to be associated, in thought and love, with an Ishta, — Guru Nanak, Sri Krishna, Buddha, Jesus or any one of the Great Masters. This association is shradha, faith in the Master, confidence in the Teacher. (7) The Law of vibration: this calls for breath-control, slowing down the breath-movement: regulated in-breathing and outbreathing. Yet more than breathcontrol is humility: it removes mental barriers. And to humility
It’s A Beautiful Life
happy. They are not simple: they are not free. To be happy, you must awake, aspire, and achieve. • Awake: Happiness is not bhoga or sense enjoyment. Who, wandering in pursuit of pleasures, was ever happy? This night wandering, this sleep of the senses, must go. Hence the ancient teaching: “Uttishtha! Jagrata!” “Stand up! Awake!” • Aspire: Many are unhappy, for they have clipped their wings. Ambition, power, ease and enjoyment hold men down. Happiness is in the realm which transcends enjoyment. Aspire! And, believe me, every aspiration becomes an achievement someday. • Achieve: Happiness is not a
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add longing, aspiration, thirst for Truth, for Light. So live that your very presence may send out vibrations of humility, longing and love! (8) Meditate and meditate: and the day comes, through a prolonged period of meditation, when you see the whole world in a new Light, you see the world as a series of pictures thrown on the screen of your consciousness. (9) Great Peace, the joy of which no tongue may tell, then, fills you: and you become, ever increasingly, a vehicle of grace to others and a Source of service and strength to the lowly and the lost in this broken, bleeding world.
Contd. from page 6
passive experience. And happiness is not merely a quest. Happiness is a conquest. And none may achieve it without meeting the challenge of sorrow and suffering. They discipline, they purify, they strengthen us. They teach us sympathy and love. And without love none may be truly happy. Question: Why is it that God upsets our plans, again and again? Answer: God upsets our plans to set up His own. So plan nothing. Leave everything in His safe hands! Choose not but acknowledge and adore His Will. Accept the burden His wisdom lays on you. And believe that every burden is a blessing.
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Hand Your Life Over To The Lord J. P. VASWANI One of the first lessons that my beloved Master, Sadhu Vaswani, taught me was this: “Hand your life over to the Lord. Turn over your life in childlike trust to God.” Let me emphasise the words childlike trust. In India people offer a beautiful prayer every day in which God is addressed as a parent and much more: Twameva mata cha pita twameva, Twameva bandhu sakha twameva It means – Thou art my mother; Thou my father art; Thou art my brother and friend too… I know millions of Christians all over the world offer the prayer given to them by Jesus, which begins: Our Father, which art in Heaven, hallowed be Thy Name, Thy kingdom come… The prayer of the Sikh Guru is similar: Tu mata pita ham balak tere… You are our father and mother; we are your children. I emphasise this childlike trust because I would
like each one of you to remember, always, that you are God’s children. You know it indeed – but do you behave in daily life as if you were God’s children? Have you ever seen a child living under the shadow of fear or worry or anxiety? Never! The child is carefree; he knows that his mother is near and so he has nothing to fear. The burden of worry and anxiety is not carried on the child’s heart. Offer the child some food or a glass of milk. Will he put away a part of it somewhere safe, to be eaten later when he is hungry? Never! The child is absolute in the faith that he will be given food whenever he is hungry and that his mother will not forget to feed him at the right time. This it is to live like a child – carefree! The child lives without the burden, for his burden has been cast upon his mother! Dear friends, I do not need to tell you that your burden, my
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burden and ultimately all the burden of the universe, of the solar system and the galaxies beyond, are all borne by the Lord. How foolish of us, then, to be carrying our burdens on our frail shoulders – like the villager, who travelled with his baggage on his head so that the railways would not charge him for excess luggage? The heavenly Father/Mother is always by our side – all we have to do is turn to Him/Her, and hand our problems over. He/she will take care of the rest. Prayer is the swiftest and surest way to establish a link with God. It cleanses your thoughts, purifies your mind and elevates your consciousness. It enables you to talk to God directly – and much more effectively than you can to people. For you can be sure that God listens carefully to every word you say! Opening your heart to God is the most effective form of prayer. I urge my friends never, ever to forget their “daily appointment with God” as I call it – a brief, simple prayer first thing when you get up, and a quiet, reflective prayer before you fall asleep at night. You may utter prayers from the scriptures; or use your own words when you pray. The language of the heart is the best for any prayer! You Are Not Alone – God Is With You! This is a magic mantra that we need to repeat to ourselves constantly. Whatever your faith, whatever the nature of your belief, you need to realise the presence of God within you. And you need to turn inward and contact this
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Divine Presence within you. This contact is vital to our happiness and well-being. Some of us seek this contact in the temple, church or mosque. Others seek this in silent prayer. Wherever and whenever it may be, this communion with God is essential to recharge our spiritual batteries and keep us fit for facing the future. A moment’s vital contact with God can bring you success, comfort, grace, blessing – whatever it is you seek. Doctors tell us that a moment’s prayer, “O God, I treat — but Thine is the Cure!” helps them connect with God, and do what is just right for their patients. Patients hand their lives over to God in complete surrender – and find themselves miraculously healed. Doctors or patients, all of us must realise that life itself is a form of prayer, and that we never need to be alone – if only we grew in the awareness that God is always with us, within us, watching over us and protecting us with His love and mercy. I once visited a dentist in Bangalore. On the wall of his consulting room was the inscription, “The doctor treats. It is God who heals.” I asked him, “Can I make a small change in the inscription?” The doctor, a wonderful human being, readily invited me to do so. I said to him, “The doctor entreat. It is God who heals!” The very next day I found the changed inscription — “The doctor entreats. It is God who heals!”
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Die & Live! SADHU VASWANI
It was Good Friday. The bells were ringing. In the Hall of the Ashram, we met, in holy silence. The Rishi came. We bowed to him. His face was radiant. Not sorrow but compassion was in his eyes. He spoke to us of death. His words were kindled with fire. He referred to Jesus and Socrates. The Rishi said, “Ye have died again and again. And, again and again, ye have been born. Today, the name of Jesus is on your lips. Meditate on his death.” Heroic was the death of Socrates, he drank the cup of hemlock, and there was serenity in his face. Jesus died on the cross with compassion in his eyes for all who condemned him to death. In the hour of death there was upon his lips the benediction of life, “Father! *March 30 is sacred as Good Friday.
Forgive them, for they know not what they do!” Jesus like the Buddha was the Lord of compassion. Alas! He is still mocked, still disregarded in the counsels of the nations that call themselves Christian. His name has gone into the hymns and songs and the literature of the West. But how few are they who sing him in daily life and speak of him in their actions and aspirations! Yet he looks on us all with compassion, he smiles upon our wayward ways. The world crucifies him, again and again, trampling upon his silent brothers, the poor and the weak, the lowly and the lost, the empty-handed “have-nots”, and the homeless wanderers. Yet their agony he beholds with compassionate eyes.
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Churches have they built to him: yet they know him not. For they honour not the lonely and the lost, the poor and forlorn! We meditated in silence, on the Cross and the crucifixion of Jesus. Then one of us said, “Master! We fain would know of the mystery of death.” The Rishi said, “If you will know the mystery of death, you must be in tune with the heartbeats of life. For life is the river that men call death, even as the Indus floweth until it enters into the Great Indian Ocean!” In life is hidden the dream of death, and in death is hidden the door to the life beyond this life. So fear not death. To die is to stand in the presence of life. And before you stand in the presence Supreme, you must, through death, drink of the waters of the river of Silence, and drinking in silence and coming to the other side, you glimpse the Light and your soul bursts into a song of Joy! Then, indeed you discover the destiny of death. It is to lead you on to fuller, richer, more radiant life. In and through death, we make the great voyage of the discovery! And then you know that he doth truly live who dies to the “ego”, the little “I”. You realise that true life is aspiration to the timeless, not thirst for power. All thirst springs in time and perisheth in time, all thirst is “wandering”. So Swedenborg says that all thirst for power comes from hell! Alas! The vast majority of men miss the meaning of life,
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n life is hidden the dream of death, and in death is hidden the door to the life beyond this life. So fear not death. To die is to stand in the presence of life. they become, as Balzac said, the “galley-slaves of ambition”, and so they wander from unrest to unrest! Life and death are one, for what they mourn on this side as “death”, they greet on the other side as “life”! Death is birth into a new life! Die and Live! Forgetting this, your life will be a moaning and a cry on this darkened earth! Aspire to a life eternally new! What is death? A withdrawal, a fading of the light of the Atman from the body, a sunset! But what is sunset here is sunrise elsewhere! Our earthly eyes see the sun sinking: but the sun sinketh not! The sun shines on! And the Atman, the Spirit, lives and works on, from eternity to eternity! In the hour of death, think of the Lord and repeat the Holy Word, the Holy Name and, as you cross death, you will find that darkness travels towards light, and the light unveils the Face of the Beloved.
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Hanuman And The Evolution Of Faith
Hanuman, the great monkey God of the Ramayana is a symbol of the mind that has become disciplined and filled with devotion. Hanuman is the evolved state of our unruly monkey mind that constantly jumps from thought to thought. This mind is fully focused on the presence of the Divine Self, the Lord of Life within the heart. When Rama asks Hanuman, “How do you look upon me?” the great monkey gives a three-part
T
answer, “When I believe I am the body, then I am your faithful servant. When I know I am the soul, I know myself to be a spark of your eternal Light. And when I have the vision of truth, you and I, my Lord, are one and the same.” With this answer he shows us three states we flow through in our spiritual quest. Many times we identify with the person, the body-mind-ego we think we are. At those times we can realise that we are here to do God’s work, to
rue faith is not belief. Faith is not what we think or have been told, nor is it belief in someone else’s belief. It is much more real than that. It is based on the direct experience of Truth and therefore more solid than rock. *March 31 is sacred as Hanuman Jayanti.
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serve that higher Self in us and in everything. This is the foundation of Karma Yoga, the yoga of service. One level up and we realise we are not as separate from divine intelligence as we thought, that there is a higher knowing and presence working through us. We sense we are not separate from other beings and that our existence is an expression of the indescribable presence of God in us. This is where Bhakti and Raja Yoga open us further. The most dramatic shift in our perception occurs when all veils lift and we have the vision of truth. Then we know that we are all that exists. We are the Source; we are One. Jnana Yoga aims at this direct perception. What allows Hanuman to have this complete vision? It is faith (shradha). This faith is the origin of five essential levels of spiritual practice. Hanuman is therefore the manifestation of faith that gives us strength, which transforms our memory and leads us through samadhi to perfect wisdom. Let me explain. True faith is not belief. Faith is not what we think or have been told, nor is it belief in someone else’s belief. It is much more real than that. It is based on the direct experience of Truth and therefore more solid than rock. For those on the devotional path faith is born out of love and love grows our faith. We know we are onto something most real, most important. Although we often forget, we have an intuitive
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sense of the preciousness of the inner Source of our faith and sense that we are no other than emanations of the infinite grace of that Source. And we have a deep love and respect for the means, the knowledge and the practices that remove the obstacles to the full blossoming of our true nature. This faith gives us strength and allows us to remain increasingly unshaken in the ups and downs of life. We begin to receive nourishment from within. We discover the inner Source of the nectar of contentment and joy. It brings us fulfilment and the power, stamina and agility necessary to pursue our path. As our strength grows, it evolves our memory. Realising the crucial importance of our spiritual practice, our commitment becomes increasingly stable and we approach a state of continuous remembrance of our Source. When powerful memories of past injuries, desires or distractions arise, this higher memory heals, protects and focuses our mind in the guiding grace of the Divine. Rather than falling for our stressful thoughts, we witness the mind and become less vulnerable to its distractions. Instead we are able to surrender to the Divine at our core again and again. With that we come to taste states of meditative absorption in the Divine presence within and our mind becomes settled and unperturbed. [Source: www.ramdass.org]
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CREATING A
New World SADHU VASWANI A New World is in the making. The man-made world has proved to be a broken, bleeding world. Man has blundered badly, for man has believed in force. Even marriage at one time, was marriage by capture. Man has had his chance. Masculine mentality has blundered. Now woman gets her chance. She is called upon to build a New World. She is a symbol of shakti in the Hindu scriptures. And shakti is not force. Shakti is integration. Today, disintegration is setting in. A woman is the centre of social integration... Our homes must move in a new atmosphere of the simple life; else they will break up for they cannot stand the strain of this heavy drain... The woman-soul has the shakti to rebuild the shattered world in the strength of her intuitions, her purity, her simplicity, her spiritual aspirations, her sympathy and silent sacrifice. The woman-soul will lead us upward on!
*March 8 is observed as International Women’s Day.
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Children’s Corner BREEZE THROUGH EXAMINATIONS With the final examination season rolling in for most of the students I am sure many of us are getting jittery. The voices in our head are surely playing a mean game. Have we prepared enough? Oh so and so has definitely studied more than me. And to top it all off our own expectations and goals along with our parents just adds the cherry on this double decker cake of pressure that we have baked. Let us just breathe and take it all in. Exams are never ending especially if we want to keep growing and be an eternal student of life. As impossible as it sounds if exams are always going to be a part of our life lets rock and roll with them. Keep Calm and Carry On – A thirty second deep breathing practice before starting your studies as well as before beginning your examination
paper can work wonders. It basically helps to ground you and hold on to the present moment which is what we all really have. It is scientifically proven that when we are focussed in the present moment we are 100% more productive. This means that a little deep breathing before we start our studies will help us grasp more and before we start writing our paper will help us be more apt towards answering the paper. Give your gadgets a break – As horrific as it sounds it is true. Put down your phones/ i-pads/TV remotes and get out for a little fresh air. While taking a break it would be more helpful to go down to your garden and see the greenery around. The trees, plants and the fresh air will revive you from the fatigue. Give it a shot. It is all about evolution. Just as a bud blooms into a beautiful flower exams also help us grow into our own unique selves.
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LET’S GET TO KNOW LONDON
Ale Heathrow Bank Of England Big Ben Black Cab Bond (Street) (London) Bridge Buckingham Palace Canary Wharf Charing (Cross) Christie’s Double-Decker Bus Downing Street Harrods
Hyde Park Lloyd’s Lord Mayor Museums Music Oxford (Street) Parliament Plays Queen Sculptures Selfridge’s Tube Tudor Westminster Abbey
England Gardens Gatwick Greatfire (Changing Of The) Guard Hamleys Hard Rock Cafe St. Paul’s Cathedral Thames Throne Tower (Of London) Trafalgar (Square) Whitehall Wimbledon
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Laugh Your Way To Health “Make me one with everything,” says the Buddhist to the tofu hot dog vendor. Then, after getting his tofu hot dog, the Buddhist hands the vendor a twenty dollar bill. The vendor takes the money and begins helping the next customer. The Buddhist looks puzzled and asks the vendor, “Where is my change?” The vendor replies, “Change comes from within.” *** A guy dies and is sent to hell. Satan meets him, shows him doors to three rooms, and says he must choose one to spend eternity in. In the first room, people are standing in dirt up to their necks. The guy says, ‘No, let me see the next room.’ In
the second room, people are standing in dirt up to their noses. Guy says no again. Finally Satan opens the third room. People are standing with dirt up to their knees, drinking coffee and eating pastries. The guy says, ‘I pick this room.’ Satan says Ok and starts to leave, and the guy wades in and starts pouring some coffee. On the way out Satan yells, ‘OK, coffee break’s over. Everyone back on your heads!’ *** A burglar broke into a home. He heard a soft voice say, “Jesus is watching you.” Thinking it was his imagination, he continued his search. Again, he hears: “Jesus is watching you.” He turned his flashlight around and saw a parrot in a cage. He asked the parrot if he was the one talking. The parrot said, “Yes.” So he asked the parrot his name, and the parrot replied, “Moses.”
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The burglar asked, “What kind of people would name a parrot Moses?” The parrot replied, “The same kind of people who would name their pit bull, Jesus.” *** A guy walks into a post office one day to see a middle-aged, balding man standing at the counter methodically placing “Love” stamps on bright pink envelopes with hearts all over them. The balding man then takes out a perfume bottle and starts spraying them all. His curiosity getting the better of him, he goes up to the balding man and asks him what he is doing. The man says, “I’m sending out 1,000 Valentine cards signed, ‘Guess who?’” “But why?” asks the man. “I’m a divorce lawyer.” *** The other day my girlfriend told me to take the spider out instead of killing it…. So we went out and had some drinks. He’s a cool guy, wants to become a web developer. *** Q: Why are Helium, Curium, and Barium the medical elements?
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A: Because if you can’t heal-ium or cure-ium, you bury-um. *** Reaching the end of a job interview, the Human Resources Officer asks a young engineer fresh out of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, “And what starting salary are you looking for?” The engineer replies, “In the region of $125,000 a year, depending on the benefits package.” The interviewer inquires, “Well, what would you say to a package of five weeks vacation, 14 paid holidays, full medical and dental, company matching retirement fund to 50% of salary, and a company car leased every two years, say, a red Corvette?” The engineer sits up straight and says, “Wow! Are you kidding?” The interviewer replies, “Yeah, but you started it.” *** A man goes to a movie. Man: Should I buy tickets for my children? Conductor: Yes! they are above 8.
Only
if
Man: Thank God, I have only 6 children!!
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Recipes For The Month APPLE CAKE
to the cake batter and mix well. • Pour batter in the cake tin, evenly distribute it and sprinkle sugar cinnamon topping. Bake for 40 minutes or until done.
BARLEY SALAD RECIPE
Ingredients: Wet Ingredients:
Applesauce......................................................½ cup Soy yoghurt................................................... 1/3 cup Oil...................................................................½ cup Sugar............................................................1¼ cup
Ingredients:
Diced fresh apples..................................... 2 ½ cups Chopped walnuts.............................................1 cup Topping: Raw cane sugar.......................................3 teaspoon Cinnamon powder...................................................
Olive oil..........................................................1 tbsp Madras onions (baby onions).............................4-5 Green capsicum, diced..........................................½ Red bell pepper, diced..........................................½ Yellow bell pepper, diced......................................½ Corn kernels...................................................½ cup Cooked barley..............................................1 ½ cup Red chilli flakes...............................................1 tbsp Roasted cumin................................................1 tbsp Salt and pepper............................................to taste Parsley, chopped........................................... ½ tbsp Thyme, chopped........................................... ½ tbsp Rosemary, chopped....................................... ½ tbsp White vinegar.................................................1 tbsp
Method:
Method:
Dry Ingredients:
All-purpose flour............................................2 cups Baking soda.......................................... ½ teaspoon Baking powder.......................................1 teaspoon Salt....................................................... ½ teaspoon Cinnamon powder............................. 1 ½ teaspoon Nutmeg powder.................................... ¼ teaspoon
Additional ingredients:
• Preheat oven to 350 F • Mix all wet ingredients in a bowl and whisk until completely blended. • Sift all the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients and mix well. The batter consistency should be thick. • Add diced fresh apples and chopped walnuts
• In a pan add olive oil. • Add the onions, bell peppers, capsicum, and corn. Saute till vegetables are half done. • Add the barley. Saute for 2-3 minutes. • Add chilli flakes cumin, salt, pepper, parsley, thyme, rosemary and red wine vinegar. Mix well. • Serve.
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Ingredients: Boiled rajma....................................................½ kg Olive oil.........................................................2 Tbsp Cumin powder................................................ ½ tsp Coriander powder........................................... ½ tsp Chili powder................................................... ½ tsp Tabasco.............................................................1 tsp Lemons.................................................................. 2 Onion....................................................................½ Chopped lettuce Processed mozzarella cheese
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Burrito: • In a pan add olive oil and then heat the pan for a while. • Add kidney beans and slightly mash them. • Season it with salt and pepper. • Add cumin powder, coriander powder, chili powder and let the beans cook for some time. • Then add tabasco sauce and squeeze in half a lime to lift the flavours of kidney beans. • Chop some onions and add it to kidney beans. • In a plate take corn tortilla and add kidney beans mixture, salsa sauce and coriander leaves. • Season it with salt. • Now fold the tortilla and put it into a baking dish pre sprayed with olive oil. • Add a layer of mozzarella cheese and put the baking dish into the oven for 8-10 minutes at 180 degree. Finish with coriander leaves.
GREEN GRAPE SMOOTHIE
For salsa sauce: Tomatoes..............................................................½ Onion..................................................................... 1 Jalapeno................................................................ 2 Lime....................................................................... 1 Coriander leaves......................................... Handful Cumin...............................................................1 tsp Spring onion.....................................Handful chives Tortillas...........................................................4 corn Salt and pepper............................................to taste
Method: For the salsa sauce: • Chop tomatoes, onions and jalapenos. • In a bowl, add tomatoes, onion, chives of spring onions, jalapenos chopped, and squeeze in 1 lime. • Add coriander leaves for the freshness and season it with cumin seeds, salt & pepper and olive oil. Mix them well.
Ingredients Plain greek yogurt..........................................½ cup Milk.................................................................¼ cup Green grapes (frozen)....................................2 cups Apples (peeled and sliced).................................... 2 Ground flaxseed......................................... 1½ tbsp Ground cinnamon........................................... ½ tsp Honey (to taste)..............................................1 tbsp
Method • Blitz all the ingredients in a blender. Garnish with a pinch of cinnamon. Serve chilled.
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SIMPLE RULES OF HEALTH SOME TEA TO CALM YOUR ANXIETY
When it comes to beating anxiety and alleviating stress, nothing works quite as quickly as a soothing cup of tea! Studies show that herbal teas have the uncanny ability to control anxiety, release stress, and provide instant relief from nervous tension. All types of tea work great when it comes to soothing the nerves but these healing teas are proven effective in banishing stress and anxiety: 1. Chamomile Tea When it comes to calming tea, chamomile tea is a perennial favourite and it certainly tops this list! Chamomile is an effective remedy for anxiety and insomnia because it contains
compounds that control the brain chemical cortisol. Cortisol is a stress hormone that triggers the body’s “fight or flight” response. This steroid hormone gives the body a quick boost of energy but leaves you psychologically drained. Ancient Egyptians used chamomile tea as a remedy for various disorders caused by nervous tension. A study published in the Journal of Clinical Psychopharmacology reported that drinking chamomile tea reduces anxiety among participants suffering from mild to moderate generalised anxiety disorder. 2. Passion Flower Tea Passion flower tea has an invigorating, fruity aroma and a deep, earthy flavour. This tea is traditionally taken to reduce stress. Studies show that passion flower tea increases the production of gammaaminobutyric acid or GABA in the brain. GABA is a type of amino acid that promotes a sense of calm and uplifts the mood. A University of Maryland Medical Center study reported that when combined with other calming herbs, passion flower tea induces deeper relaxation and better sleep. A separate
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study published in the Journal of Clinical Pharmacy and Therapeutics found that the tea is effective in managing the symptoms of generalised anxiety disorder. 3. Peppermint Tea Peppermint tea has a light, refreshing taste and an equally invigorating aroma. This tea makes the perfect pick-me-up because it calms the nerves and clears the mind. The secret to the calming effects of peppermint tea is its musclerelaxing effects. The herb contains certain nutrients that alleviate tension in the muscles. This leads to an instant and deep relaxation. Peppermint tea also promotes better sleep and enhances mental alertness. A study published in the International Journal of Neuroscience reported that the herb increases focus and concentration among participants. A separate study conducted by University of Cincinnati researchers confirmed the mind-boosting benefits of peppermint tea. 4. Valerian Root Valerian root is traditionally used to treat sleep disorders and induce calmness. When taken as a tea, valerian root makes an excellent stress buster! A report by MedlinePlus noted that valerian is possibly effective as a treatment for insomnia and anxiety disorder. A separate study published in the American Journal of Medicine found that
valerian promotes better sleep without causing any side effects. The study involved reviewing 16 studies on the effects of Valerian root. 5. Kava Tea Kava tea is perhaps one of the most well researched herbal remedies for controlling anxiety symptoms. In fact, some scientists believe the soothing effects of kava tea are comparable to that of common anxiety drug Buspar. But unlike Buspar, kava tea is neither addicting nor cause side effects. The herb contains kavalactones, compounds that alter the brain chemistry. Studies show that kava tea promotes calm and reduces the risk of depression and anxiety. As a natural sedative, kava tea promotes better sleep, eases muscle pain, and treats insomnia.
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