GETTING INVOLVED WITH MINDFULNESS

Staying in an environment exclusively reserved for the self leads towards an experience called mindfulness.

Residing in this environment are the present moments connected to what one is doing, cohering internally with one's own body and mind while keeping an absolute awareness of breath's inhale and exhale flow.

Mindfulness is the idea of being present within yourself at the moment while the world's traffic of events moves on.

It is a practice of being intensely aware of what the person is sensing and feeling in a moment, without interpretation or judgement.

Based on ancient Buddhist practice, it was popularised in the mid-'70s by Thich Nhat Hanh, a world-renowned monk from Vietnam who died on January 21, 2022, at the age of 95.

In his book "You Are Here,"  introducing the concept of mindfulness, he emphasized what we're experiencing in our bodies and minds at any given moment and not dwell in the past or think of the future.

He stressed the awareness of the breath by repeating internally, "I'm breathing in; this is an in-breath. I'm breathing out; this is an out-breath."

According to Hann, peace, happiness, joy, and true love get realized only in the present moment.

Mindfulness slightly deviates from meditation that it can be practised anytime, with closed or opened eyes, without any guru-given mind-focussing mantra. Or even when engaged in routine chores like doing dishes. The idea is to focus on the activity and be fully present. Another example is exercising on a treadmill or bike.   

Living in the present and being involved within does not mean disengagement with the world. Instead, mindfulness with total concentration still keeps the people connected with the surroundings that do not disturb them.

The subtility of mindfulness rests on the essential human ability to be fully present, aware of where we are and what we're doing, and not overly reactive or overwhelmed by what's going on around us.

-by Promod Puri

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 MOTHER INDIA:

She is a symbol of Mother India, fighting for the poor, fighting for the Dalits, fighting for justice, fighting for human rights, fighting for the voice of dissent.

In all these concurrent battles, she got caught up in the web of sweeping “anti-terror” laws that landed her in prison.

After spending three arduous years in a Maharashtra jail, Sudha Bharadwaj was released on bail early last month in a trial. The government accused her of participation in the infamous 2018 Bhima Koregaon case.

(Bhima-Koregaon is a small village in the Pune district of Maharashtra, linked with a crucial facet of Maratha history. On January 1 each year, members of India’s marginalized Dalit community gather at Bhima-Koregaon to mark a battle in 1818. The Dalits sided with the British colonial army to defeat Hindu upper-caste Peshwa rulers.)

While personally facing the ordeal of prison life in its most downgrading and inhumane environment, she helped and fought for fellow prisoners facing dire situations, especially during this ongoing Corona pandemic.

Sudha Bharadwaj, 60, is a committed activist.

For the last three decades, she got herself actively involved in struggling for the landless and extremely poor against their eviction and exploitation in the mineral-rich state of Chhattisgarh.

Sudha Bharadwaj was born in Boston, USA, to well-known academic parents.

She gave up her US citizenship to dedicate her life to work for tribals in Chhattisgarh and for the Dalit cause. With a law degree and as a professor at the National Law School in Delhi, she decided to use her credentials and dedicate her life to securing dignity and justice for the most disadvantaged section of the Indian population.

-Promod Puri

 

 In God We Trust:

The four-word phrase appears on all American currency.

The fact is, rather than God, the Trust lies in honouring the printed value of a currency note as promised by the signature of the U.S. treasury secretary.

God does not play any role in the legality of the legal tender.

So why does God's commitment inscribed on all the United States currency, since 1938 on coins and 1957 on printed money?

It refers to the mix of politics and nationalism to coin the expression "in god we trust."

It was initiated and still supported by the Christian nationalism that wants governments and people to "trust in God"; through the medium of money.

The paper money and the coins have thus become an ongoing vehicle to establish and promote the message that the United States is a theistic state who believes in God or trusts in God.

For that reason, the logo becomes the national motto embedding God's commitment. But it appears nebulous and carries no monetary promise when displayed on all the U.S. currency.

Opponents of the phrase argue that it amounts to a governmental endorsement of religion and thus violates the First Amendment's establishment clause.

However, federal courts have consistently upheld the constitutionality of the national motto. Whereas, in Judaism and Christianity, the official motto "In God We Trust" is not found verbatim in any verses from the Bible. 

A 2003 poll stated that 90% of Americans support the "In God We Trust" inscription on the U.S. currency.

 

Proponents have extensively argued for the inclusion of the national motto in more settings, grounding it in the traditional invocations of God that they say have now become an element of civil religion and should express the will of the founders, who believed in God.

Over the years, from coins to paper bills, the national motto's usage and presence have expanded to other visible mountings, especially on motor vehicle licence plates. Currently, about 24 states offer the choice without any additional fee. In God, We Trust is poised for more rides as more states are in line to get the national motto on the licence plates.

In God We Trust is more like an established tradition that is neither religious nor secular that cannot be masked, especially in the rising ultra-Right American culture.

 

 EXPECTING A CRISIS-FREE ERA AS WE ENTER 2022

By Promod Puri

If the circa 2020 and 2021 get merged, we clock an era of a worldwide pandemic, the planetary threat to global climate change, and the sharp and clear emergence of political far-Right.

The impromptu eruption of extreme conservatism, as seen during the last US presidential election followed by the Capitol Hill insurrection, reveals a phenomenon that stubbornly goes unvaccinated to the crisis posed by the pandemic and climate change.

The alt-Right wave runs continental, north to south America, Europe, Asia and spots in Africa. The familiar Left-Right political spectrum got jolted much in '20-21.'

The spur in Far-Right extremist ideas and militancy strikes a grave threat to the pluralist liberal democracies. The danger comes when these ideas get mainstreamed and permeate into political functioning.

Democracy allows this influence in its tradition of having dissent and debate. But the far-Right spread primarily benefits political carpetbaggers.

Prime Minister Modi of India has dexterously introduced and inspired the far-Right culture into the mainstream to advance its ideology as a Hindu nation despite the constitutional affirmation of its diverse and secular character.

The trend is explicit worldwide that opts for monolithic societies in terms of the same religion, same language and same culture.

While extreme conservatism spreads with the excessive doses of nationalism, jingoism and the promise to restore the over-hyped 'past glory,' many nations across the globe stand embroiled in the ongoing internal or external conflicts and combats.

The world remains engulfed in an environment dotted with turmoils and strifes triggered by political, racial, religious, caste, class discords and disturbances fueled with an unlimited supply of arms and ammunition.

From Kashmir to Myanmar, Syria, Iraq, Yemen and Ethiopia, the never-ending Israel-Palestinian on and off skirmishes, and many more, the trouble spots are the stable marks on the global vicious and violent scene.

Enormous tragedies are happening worldwide that sound like a normal state of affairs. We are "becoming so desensitized to crises and suffering that they are now happening while hardly being noticed," according to Pope Francis in his X-mas message.

The world population faces desperation and miseries from the never-ending combats and conflicts, contributing to escalating refugee populations year after year. The destitute migrants in their dingy boats die, and those who survive to knock on every available door for shelter to escape from the regimes determined to crush humanity and fundamental human rights.

There seems to be no end to conflicts and crises, battles and bloodshed where radical Right emerges as an influential player in the current state of affairs worldwide.

The issue is how amid all these turmoils and tensions, we can collectively, as one world community, fight the menace of Coronavirus and climate change.

As we head towards 2022, confidently, we do not swing into a revolving door that brings us back to the era of 2020-2021.

 

-30-

 MY REMEMBRANCE DAY:

 It all happened on the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month, of 1918 when the First World War hostilities formally ended, and the occasion got the flag of Remembrance Day.

World War1 began in 1914 until 1918. During the conflict, Germany, Austria-Hungary, Bulgaria, and the Ottoman Empire (the Central Powers) fought against Great Britain, France, Russia, Italy, Romania, Japan, the United States, and Canada (the Allied Powers).

In the four years of the war, 16 million soldiers and civilians alike were dead.

Remembrance Day is the armistice day to mark the war's end and remember and honour those who die in the line of duty.

For that reason, Remembrance Day is a sad day that human lives got sacrificed by the decisions and orders of the ruling elite of the combating nations.

On the battlefields, humanity gets divided as enemies. Human beings appear marked targets. Those who got killed become martyrs, and the killers emerge as heroes.

When 16 million people died during WW1 as soldiers and civilians, imagine how many families faced devastation, how many children were orphaned, how many women became widowed.

But that is least remembered. What is more significant is the essentiality of war.

It is staged with utmost fervour of nationalism and patriotism so that "by the sacrifices made by the courageous and brave, we live in the free world."

True, their sacrifices matter. But why war in the first place. Is it the failure of the leaders or their intentions that ignite a war?

The ruling leaders are not hurt or die on the battleground. The soldiers die.

The First World War, the Second World War, and the ongoing wars on every continent of the globe cost trillions of dollars annually in military spending with catastrophic consequences impacting every aspect of the planet earth.

When there are no more wars, nations dissolve their armies, factories that manufacture deadly bombs, missiles, tanks, etc., and even the AK-47s get raised to the ground; that would be the signal for my Remembrance Day.

-Promod Puri

 RELIGIONS NEED TO BE FREE FROM FANATICS:

Fanatic Hindu, fanatic Muslim, fanatic Sikh, fanatic Christian, Jew, or Buddhist!

These are the labels we often hear or assign to persons of different faiths based on our involvements and experiences or by the society with its blanket overlook.

The prefix fanatic undoubtedly contaminates the purity of religion to which it is attached and obscure its spiritual pathways?

Moreover, the pejorative affix over a while creates the visible face of a religious order. In this frame, expressions like Islamic extremism and Islamophobia influence the perception of Islam in its religious presentation.

Religious fanaticism develops when ritualistic commitments get more emphasis and involvement than apprehending and pursuing the theological education offered by faith.

Zealous engagement focusing on the security, protection and preservation of the rituals, customs and traditions of religion reflects the mind of a fanatic believing that service or commitment to the faith lies in these acts.

No religion in the world faces danger; instead, the fanatics make the followers believe so.

In this behaviour, fanatics get obsessed with ceremonial practices, only believing that is their religion.

Ritualistic flavours of different faiths give a strong and bonded sense of belonging and identity to a fanatic who leeches on to a religion sucking its divine vitality.

 

While rituals give religion character, identity, and dynamics, the excessive and exuberant practices create fanaticism that offers nil attachment to a faith.

A fanatic is a fanatic to the core with a raging and rough temperament who does not need separate identities like fanatic Hindu, fanatic Muslim, fanatic Sikh, fanatic Christian, Jew, or Buddhist.

-Promod Puri

 

 THE HYPE OF PROTEIN AND THE TASTE OF GHEE:

Growing up in India, the most nutritious food item loaded with protein besides vitamin A and other healthy stuff was the mighty ghee. Nobody cared about its fatty contents as calories.

I don't know on the health chart what ghee's status shows up now in India. But in most of the economically developed nations, protein is the king.

Recommended by health professionals and followed by extensive advertising, protein has buildup as an essential component of daily intake of healthy food.

Protein supplement production represents a billion-dollar industry globally. Its formulation is mostly a combination of whey and casein, both found in milk or peas, soy, and brown rice.

Protein is a complex molecular arrangement that meets our need for the structure, function, and regulation of the body's tissues and organs.

Protein bars, protein shakes and smoothies, besides the regular protein content in animal food, fulfill our daily protein requirement. However, the hype for protein has escalated its consumption much more than what we need.

The USA National Academy of Medicine recommends a daily protein intake: 56 grams for men and 46 grams for women. A dedicated athlete need not take more than120 grams of protein per day.

The academy warns that a high protein diet can strain kidney and liver function and increase heart disease and cancer risk.

Moreover, when we replace meals with a protein bar, shake, etc., we also risk missing out on the rich sources of antioxidants, vitamins, and many other benefits of real food.

Protein intake presents its consumption limits per day, so does the time-honoured ghee.

But the latter also has its culinary value. Besides its taste and flavour, ghee occupies a good spot in our cultural, traditional, and religious affairs.

The Punjabi delicacy of 'Sarson da Saag' and 'Makki di Roti' offers a dry look unless it gets garnished with a topping of a spoonful of ghee. What could be savorier than the sweet and heavenly combination of ghee, 'shakkar,' and 'Makki di roti' for the dessert?

Love your protein within the recommended limit. And enjoy the ghee but in moderation according to taste while keeping an eye on the waist.

-Promod Puri