Soul-Talking

Everyone craves for a life full of wonders & to seek that we run everywhere & to everyone. But more often than not we feel disenchanted and come back to our own abode to find that the world that we were seeking out was within, waiting for us to return. It is sure that one day we will come back & seek asylum in the comforting confines of our soul. And then we only wonder why we failed to notice the light within & lived in darkness. 

One day, I decided to do some soul-searching & had an interesting dialogue with my soul. 

When probed why don't we see the light even though we want it badly, it answered, "My dear child, the light that is there can't be seen; it can only be felt & to feel this light one needs to have a soul that is devoid of all impurities. It has to be as fresh & pure as a newly bloomed flower."

Then I questioned, "Why didn't I notice it when I was a child? I met all the requirements to notice the light."

And it whispered into my ear,"You noticed it in your initial years. This is why it is said that a child is closest to God. But you started ignoring it soon as your vision was blinded by the external influences. And once that happened, you closed your eyes forever to ignore it & engaged in material pursuits."

But I was not to be defeated so easily. I continued pestering my soul, "But you could have talked to me. After all, you are my soul. It is your duty to guide me whenever you think I am heading towards the wrong direction."

It smiled as if to tease me, "My dear child, I was continuously talking to you as I am talking now. But my voice was muffled by the noise outside. What you call intuition was me talking to you. But you ignored that too."

"But I said my prayers regularly. Then, what is the difference between prayer & intuition?" asked I.

It answered, "You said your prayers that is why you had a strong intuition. Prayer is you talking to God & intuition is God talking to you."

"So, how am I able to listen your voice now?", questioned I.

It smiled again & replied, "Because now you understand that the real world is within you. All that you seek is within;rest all is a mirage."

And then feeling frustrated & tired, I demanded, "Why are you giving these answers now? "

It replied softly, "Because you are asking the questions now. And 'now' is all that matters. Don't regret; don't fret over what you have lost. Rejoice over what you are going to experience now."

You Cant Grow, But I Can

The biggest proof of life is growth. If someone is not busy growing, he is surely busy dying. The basic difference between objects & human beings is that while objects only decay, human beings have the option of growing. We are not talking about growth in social status or financial standing but growing in mind, body & soul.
The first big area that we should concentrate upon is mind & man starts to grow naturally in this particular area from his early childhood. In fact he grows best when he is young & has not achieved much. The problem begins when he starts thinking that he has learnt enough to pass rest of his life easily & he exactly does that- he only passes his life. Another difference between a child & a grown up man is that while a child's learning is multidimensional, a man's growth is uni-dimensional. He learns only in the area of his work & cuts himself off from rest of the areas. There is nothing wrong in specializing in one particular field, but limiting oneself only to that field will limit one's achievements only to that area. 
Second important area to grow is in the body which surely doesn't mean to become stronger or to live longer. It only means to lead a healthy & disease free life as long as one lives. It is funny that to gain material pursuits we compromise with our health & to regain the same level of health that we had before the compromise, we are ready to let go of all our wealth, but in vain. Most of us settle for a diamond-studded wheel chair! Not getting time for exercise is like not getting time to get your tank filled when you know your vehicle will run out of petrol sooner than later.
"Those who think they have not time for bodily exercise will sooner or later have to find time for illness."
                                                                                                                   - Edward Stanley
The third and the most important area to grow is soul. Surprisingly, we don't have to do anything extraordinary to achieve growth in this area. If we learn to live simply without making much efforts, we will grow. If we have to learn something, it is stillness of mind not the speed. 
"To understand the immeasurable, the mind must be extraordinarily quiet, still. 
                                                                                                                  - Jiddu Krishnamurti
The only objective of meditation is being quiet, being still & being in peace with self. Instead of pushing for life, let the life come slowly; let each moment approach you as if it were made only for you & immerse yourself into it.  
In order to live an abundant life, it is important that we channelize all our energy to grow in these areas & the rest of your life will take care of itself.