(Mind51)- A meditation technique straight from Upanishads

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Upanishads may be the most ancient of the philosophical texts that deal with meditation and the ultimate realities of the world. They are parts of ancient Indian Vedic scriptures, which the Indians believe to be eternal and authorless.

(Mind50)- What to do with a focused Mind?

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In the previous episodes, we climbed the 4 steps of the Yoga ladder and came up to the step namely Pratyahara. The first 4 steps namely Yama, Niyama, Asana, and Pranayama gradually shaped our mind into a well-focused Mind.

(Mind49)- What happens when you have a single pointed Mind?

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A single pointed mind is a prerequisite for advanced stages of Yoga practice. The initial steps of Yoga namely Yama, Niyama, Asana, Pranayama are meant primarily to take you to that state. A state where your mind does not wander around.

(Mind48)- How does a focused mind minimize stress?

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A stress-free mind is a boon since it keeps us healthy. Whether we are really interested in the end results of Yoga practice or not, all of us want to live a healthy life.

As we discussed a few episodes ago, there are three ways Yoga minimizes stress.

(Mind47)- Which focusing technique is the best?

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Having a focused mind is definitely an advantage in many ways. Such a mind not only minimizes stress but also helps you in achieving greater success in life.

(Mind46)- Are you a ‘physical’ person?

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Many of us are good at ‘physical’ activities than at intellectual tasks. Anything that involves action, appeals to us and we can do that easily.

If I ask you to sit in one place and concentrate, probably you will find it very difficult. But you may be good at sports, may be good runners, good musicians, good cooks, and what not. But merely sitting and thinking is not your cup of tea. You just can’t keep your mental focus.

(Mind45)- Are you a good talker?

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Many of us may not be good listeners. But we are good talkers. I mean, may not be proficient talkers but profusive talkers 😉

Can we use this talkativeness to hone our focusing skills? Afterall, tongue is a very powerful tool that we have.

(Mind44)- Are you a good listener?

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In my younger student days, I was such a good listener that I could reproduce whatever the teacher said in the class just by listening once!

Later I extended this to ‘easy reading’ or ‘lazy reading’ if you wish - where I used to loudly read a chapter from my book, record it on a tape – I am talking about those good old days – and play the tape back. 

Just listening to the tape once, I could remember the entire chapter for a long time without ever having to re-read it again!

If you are a good listener like me, then the focusing technique I am going to narrate next, is for you.

(Mind43)- How long can you keep your eyes open?

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There is a legend that once two warring brothers Bharata and Bahubali engaged themselves in a ‘staring war’!. They were two princes who ruled India more than 2000 years ago. They wanted to settle a succession dispute among themselves by engaging in a ‘war of staring’ or DrShti Yuddha. 

They did not want to indulge in bloodshed. They kept staring at each other without batting an eye lid. Whoever winked first, is the loser. A completely nonviolent way of settling a dispute!

(Mind42)- Are you mindful or Mind FULL?

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In the previous episode we were discussing the Pranayama technique of Yoga that helps us in honing our focusing skills. 

Towards the end of that episode, I also made a passing reference to methods that also go by the same name, but come from a different source and have an altogether different purpose.

(Mind41)- Pranayama – Yoga’s way to improve concentration

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Many modern Gurus interpret the word Pranayama to mean controlling of the life force or Prana. They are right if they are talking about the air we breathe in and out. That is definitely something that keeps us alive.

(Mind40)- Developing a sharp focus is the key to success

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Let me start with a nice little story. This story may be a bit out of context. But let me narrate it in a new way. This is a story from Ramakrishna Paramahamsa, the Guru of Swami Vivekananda.

(Mind39)- One good Yoga exercise

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Though I don't wish to add the prefix ‘Yoga’ to this exercise, I will add it to satisfy the masses who think that it is part of Yoga 😉

I don’t know the exact origins of this exercise which is quite popular these days. It may be a few decades old. It tries to combine various aspects of Patanjali Yoga as well as Hatayoga in one single ‘one fit for all’ kind of exercise.

It has many of the Hatayoga asanas, breathing regimes, devotion, mantra chanting, aesthetics, all combined in one. Some Gurus even try to superimpose it with figurative aspects of Yama and Niyama as well!

(Mind38)- A Sanyasi’s stone soup!

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A sanyasi is a recluse who is supposed to keep aloof from worldly matters. He is not supposed to have any processions of his own, nor he is supposed to entertain any desires for pleasures.

But come on, he is also a human being! 

Once there was a sanyasi who had a desire to drink soup! But he has no resources. Nor he can ask anyone to make some soup for him.

GardenTalk15- Hope is OK. But needs to be tempered by skepticism.

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I have been discussing about some new ways of gardening for the past several weeks. The topic I started with was “self propelled endless store of nutrients”

(Mind37)- Is Asana a misplaced step?

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Yes, I often use verbal overloading or pun to make fun of situations or people. But not here. 

A few episodes ago, I compared the eight steps of Yoga to eight steps of a ladder. Asana is the 3rd step in the original Yoga of Patanjali. In the previous episode I have explained how the meaning taken on by the word asana these days, does not match the original meaning of the word. 

So, am I suggesting that Asana as propagated today is a wrong step in Yoga? A wrongly placed step can topple the person who tries to climb up the ladder 😉

(Mind36)- ‘Asana’ as in Bhagavad Geetha

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In the previous episode, we were discussing how the concept of Asana or Yoga posture as understood today, is quite different from what was stipulated by Patanjali in his Yoga sutra.

GardenTalk14- It works!

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I was talking about the experiment that my friend carried out to decompose the grain waste using the magical bacterial solution provided by Dr. Krishan Chandra.

(Mind35)-What is the best Yoga Asana?

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Once someone asked Ramana Maharshi the same question. By the way, Ramana Maharshi (1879-1950) was a great Indian Yogi who spent years in meditation, before he started interacting with the world.

(Mind34)-How does Yoga minimize stress?

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Most research studies indicate that Yoga reduces stress. Lower stress means lesser chance of getting into many health problems that we discussed in the previous episode. 

Actually, you don’t need to recollect the previous episode. This list of health problems includes almost all illnesses known to us today!

But how does Yoga achieve stress reduction?

BookTalk: Was Jesus really in India?: Final verdict on the age-old mystery

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In today’s book talk I am going to discuss about my recent book “Was Jesus really in India? : Final verdict on the age-old mystery”.


You probably have read about the controversy raised by a Russian Journalist Nicolas Notovitch, way back in late 1800s. He claimed that he found an ancient manuscript related to Jesus in a remote Buddhist monastery in the Himalayas.

(Mind33)-Is stress really bad?

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Not really! Some amount of stress is actually good for our body and mind. Stress readies us for any eventuality and protects us. It is only when stress gets prolonged and repetitive, do we get into problems.

What exactly happens when we undergo stress? Bear in mind, the cause of this stress could be either physical or psychological. The mechanisms are similar.

(Mind32)-What causes stress?

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There are two things here. The external events that induce stress and the internal brain mechanisms that interpret the external events as stress.

I have seen many poor villagers who have barely sufficient to eat. Their life is full of uncertainties. Day in and day out they face all kinds of hardship and their life is really a struggle for existence. But they somehow seem to withstand all these hardships and manage to pull on.

On the other hand, I have seen many well-to-do youngsters who commit suicide unable to bear the stress they face in their life. This is in spite of the fact that they have a secure life, with all comforts, good position in the society, great educational background and so on.

Why is this anomaly?

GardenTalk13- God-sent soldiers to save this earth

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Sometimes we don’t notice how well organized this entire world is. Everything is well planned and well orchestrated. It is only that we human beings upset the balance!

Let me get back to my gardening mood. I was talking about the nightmare my friend had while he was in the process of decomposing the grain waste as part of the acid test for our bacterial solution. What was it all about?

(Mind31)-Are you under stress?

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In today’s fast paced life, with pressure from all sides, chances are that most of us are perpetually under stress.

Many of the diseases that are becoming common these days are attributed to stress. So much so that 60 percent of all the illnesses are either caused by stress or are exacerbated by stress!

(Mind30)-God can help even if He does not exist!

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Am I making a ridiculously insane statement? No. I will explain soon.

GardenTalk12- Wormy nightmare

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Continuing our discussion on the use of Dr. Krishan Chandra’s bacterial solution as a waste decomposer, let me discuss a very interesting experiment we did. 

This experiment not only provided an acid test for the solution but also can be a boon to many problems we face every day.

(Mind29)-The four things that can potentially calm you down

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In the previous episodes we discussed the five ‘do’ s of Yama – the first step of Patanjali’s 8 step Yoga.

If you have observed carefully, these 5 things can eliminate the causes for your mental unrest. Basically, they try to eliminate the causes for negative thoughts.


Patanjali spells out five more ‘do’s as part of his second step namely Niyama. These are meant to develop a positive mental outlook. Let me take up four of them in this episode.

(Mind28)-Brahmacarya – the most misunderstood word!

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Thanks to the ill-conceived ideas of Hatayoga, this word Brahmacarya has been a deterrent to many a sincere enthusiast of Yoga.

If you are one of those lucky ones who never got into this confusion, let me briefly explain what Brahmacarya is all about, I mean as per the Hatayoga.

GardenTalk11- Things are not as rosy as one would expect

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The atmosphere in the Indian capital New Delhi had recently become a big news. Well, I am not referring to the political atmosphere😉