Ah…Another Sunday !?

Don’t make a problem out of it.

The mind is constantly searching for something to pounce upon — even happiness. It makes a problem out of happiness also. If you are feeling happy, you ask, ‘Why?’ That question is dangerous. If you are suffering it is good to ask ‘why?’ because the suffering has to be dissolved, transcended; ways and means have to be found to get out of it — so the ‘why?’ is relevant.

But when you are happy, then to ask ‘why?’ is to disturb it. There is no need to ask any questions. When happiness surrounds you accept it totally without any questioning. If you are ill, diagnosis is needed, analysis is needed, because the disease has to be found. But if you are healthy you don’t go to the doctor to ask, ‘Why am I healthy? Diagnose my health. What is happening to me?’ You don’t go.

It is a habit of the mind because it has been always living in misery, unhappiness, and always the ‘why?’ has been relevant. So when clouds disappear for the first time and the sun shines in your life, the old question goes on persisting — ‘Why?’ Learn to accept happiness, learn to enjoy it without any questioning, learn to trust happiness, don’t doubt it, because the very doubt will be a poisoning. Happiness rarely happens. Those moments are very few and far between. When they come, welcome them, open your door, receive them with your full heart, don’t withhold anything. Even a question will become a very, very strong wall between you and your happiness.

Every day is a Sunday. It should be so. Every day is a holiday. It should be so. Because all days belong to Him. Each moment is holy. Once you understand it, you will stop asking questions like this.

Don’t think that any particular day is needed for you to be happy — only a particular mind. It has nothing to do with time; everything depends on the attitude, how you look at life. There are people for whom even a Sunday is not a Sunday. There is no light, no sun rising — even on a Sunday. They are clouded in their own darkness, shrouded in their own misery. They carry their hell around them. Even if you force them into heaven, they will go on carrying their hell. They will live in their hell. Nobody can force them out of their hell unless they decide to drop it. It is your decision to be happy or to be unhappy.

I have heard about a Sufi mystic who was always happy, always and always. Nobody had ever seen him unhappy. It was as if he did not know that language, as if the only way he knew how to be was happy.

He became very old and one day a man asked him, ‘Will you please tell me your secret? How you remain so happy? How you remain so unperturbed? How each moment you can be so blissful? It is impossible. It is unbelievable. What is your secret?’

The old man laughed and he said, ‘Long before, I found one simple thing: that each morning, when I opened my eyes, there are two alternatives to choose for that day — either to be happy or to be unhappy. And I always chose to be happy. Simple is my secret: each day gives me only two alternatives to choose — to be happy or to be unhappy? And I always choose to be happy, that’s all. There is nothing more to it.’  But you will not believe in this. You will say this old man is deceiving. He must have some other secret.

But I also tell you this is THE secret. All great truths are simple truths, very simple. Try tomorrow morning. Before you open your eyes have a clear-cut vision of two alternatives: being in hell or in heaven. Visualise misery on one hand, visualise blissfulness on another hand. See deeply into both. Don’t be in a hurry. Look into both as deeply as possible and wait — then decide. If you want to be unhappy then decide, let it be your decision — and then be truly unhappy the whole day. Be committed to your decision and don’t try to escape from it. Whatsoever happens, you remain miserable. And if you decide to be happy, then stick to it and soon you will realise that YOUR LIFE IS YOUR DECISION.

You are suffering because you go on deciding in that way; you are suffering because you go on clinging to your suffering. You have made a habit out of it. It is just mechanical.

Good, you should feel grateful that it is happening to you — that every day is becoming a holiday. Holidays are disappearing from the world. In the legal sense people have more holidays. Work days are being reduced all over the world, from six to five, from five to four, and soon even that will not be so — in the very highly developed technological societies, one day of the week will do and for six days people can have holidays. But ‘holiday’ is disappearing — that quality of sacredness, that quality of holiness is disappearing.

To be with oneself and to be happy with oneself — that dimension is completely lost. That’s what a holiday is, or should be. One is so full of God, so full of being, that there is no need to do anything, there is no need to be occupied. Occupation is just an escape. It is a good way to avoid encountering yourself, encountering life. Holidays are disappearing.

The Christian parable says that God created the world in six days and on the seventh day, Sunday, he rested. That rest was very beautiful, it was out of great creation. He was feeling fulfilled. He had created the whole world and, on the sixth day, he looked and he said, ‘Good, very good.’ And he rested. He was happy, like a small child who has made something and looks from every side and says, ‘Good. I have done it.’ He rested on the seventh day. That rest-day was a fulfillment-day.

Many people go on working and working and working and one day they die…because their work is not creative. When is the work creative? The work is creative when you love it, the work is creative when you feel in tune with it, the work is creative when you enjoy it, the work is creative when you choose it, when it fits with your being and there is a great harmony between you and your work.

If I am going to die and God asks me, ‘If I send you back, how would you like to live?’ I will say, ‘The same. I loved it. I enjoyed it. I would like to live the same way.’ Just think about you. If you die and God asks you, ‘If you are sent back to the world what changes would you like to make in your life?’ Will you be able to say that you would like to live the same way, absolutely the same way? If not, then you are doing something wrong with your life. Then you are dragging your life, then you are not living it. Then you are simply killing time — as they say. Then you are simply wasting your energies, they are simply dissipated. They will not become an integral force and there is not going to be any blossoming — your tree is going to remain without any fruits and flowers. Then how can you be happy and how can you enjoy?

Time as holy opportunity, that is the meaning of holiday — a holy day, a day which is not profane, a day which is not ordinary. And once you know how to be creative, each moment becomes holy. Whenever you create something you participate with the creator — you have become a small creator in your own right. If you write a small poem or you sing a song, maybe nobody likes it, nobody applauds it, but that is irrelevant. You enjoyed it. Singing, you were happy, you participated in that moment with God, you helped him to create a song, you became instrumental. In fact, whatsoever is created is created by him — you allowed him to create a small song through you. Then you feel tremendously good, good about yourself.

And that is one of the basic qualities of a religious man: he always feels good about himself. He is not in any way guilty, guilt does not exist in him — because he lived life as he wanted to live it; he loved his life the way it happened; it was the only life he wanted to live. Then there is no guilt. Remember, a guilty person is not a religious person. A guilty person is ill, a guilty person is neurotic, a guilty person needs psychiatric help.

A religious person feels tremendously good about himself; whatsoever he is doing, he is doing something intrinsically valuable. This should be insisted upon as much as possible: worth in life arises only when you do something intrinsically valuable.

Something tremendously beautiful is happening to you. ‘Allow it to happen. Don’t help your mind to create any trouble.

Nobody is creating misery for you. You are clinging to it.

But this is very hard to accept because then your whole image becomes neurotic – and you carry a very golden image of yourself.

I have heard a very beautiful anecdote. It is a rare beauty.

Senior citizens Israel and Emma met at a singles’ dance on Miami Beach, and within two weeks they were married. They felt it was a perfect match, for they were both ninety years old.

On the first night of their honeymoon, they got into bed and the old man squeezed Emma’s hand. She squeezed back and they fell asleep.

The second night, Israel squeezed her hand again. Emma squeezed back and they went right to sleep.

On the third night, Israel once more squeezed his bride’s hand. ‘Not tonight,’ said Emma, ‘I’ve got a headache!’

People go on repeating old tapes to the very end.

This is an old tape that is creating the question, ‘What is happening to me?’ It is as if something like a catastrophe, or something like a calamity is happening to you. Nothing is happening to you, you are coming back home. Nothing is happening to you, you are dropping nonsense, you are dropping the rotten mind, you are stopping playing the old tapes.

Osho: Dang Dang Doko Dang Chapter #8 Chapter title: Another Sunday Q 1

मुझे ख़बर नहीं ग़म क्या है और ख़ुशी क्या है,
ये ज़िंदगी की है सूरत तो ज़िंदगी क्या है?………………..अहसन मारहरवी

mujhe ḳhabar nahīñ ġham kyā hai aur ḳhushī kyā hai,
ye zindagī kī hai sūrat to zindagī kyā hai?……………………………AHSAN MARAHRAVI

I do not know what sorrow is or joy,
If this is what life is then what is life?

HAPPY SUNDAY !!! 🙂
Satte Pe Satta (1982) is one such movie which I can watch 1000 times but still won’t get bored. This song gives enormous joy, energy, hope and optimism. I want my family members to dance on this song whenever we get a chance. Just listening to this song makes me feel younger. Pancham da ROCKs!!! (1659) Zindagi Milke Bitayenge – 4K Video | Amitabh Bachchan | Satte Pe Satta | Kishore Kumar | R.D. Burman – YouTube

6 thoughts on “Ah…Another Sunday !?”

  1. Rajendra Dhandhukia

    Awesome… I can experience vaccum and then happiness. The more I live in present and in synch with the flow of life, I feel more and more happy. Thanks for reinforcing such divine feeling with me. Great read for all.

  2. Thank you Rajiv ji. Indeed what you write is so obvious and so simple. This simplicity is the Saatva Rang jo jahaan Rangeen banata hai!!

    As mind searches for reasons….alas another Sunday comes to an end…and I learn to say ‘’having rested well, am eager to get my hands dirty once again’’

  3. Hi Rajiv
    Very well written and I could connect it with so well. Satte pe Satta I had watched it in theater at least seven times. Sunday I do long cycle rides. Hope to see more such blogg from you.

  4. Simple rule, always live in the moment, without any past regret or future anxiety
    Every moment will be blissful

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