JUST COOLING OFF :)

3 weeks back ...a few of my friends and i decided to explore a trek through the jungle which leads to a waterfall in Ampang , KL. So we met up at the Zoo Negara...and drove to Kg Kemansah which is just bout 10 mins from the zoo....and as we drove pass the village....i was amazed at the contrast of lifestyle in between TEN MINUTES !! It was an unbelievable sight....it was such a remote village...with very basic living conditions...little wooden huts by the stream....where you can see....kids, moms and dads...splashing water on each other on a hot day....children using the car tires as a float on little pools by their huts....everyone in their Batik sarong and cotton shirts.......and guess what....as we were passing through the village....we saw a signboard saying " WATERFALL CHALETS ".....now wait a min....we all went in chorus "WATERFALL CHALETS???? HERE???? and one of my friend found out that its the village people themselves staying at the chalets by the stream...now thats interesting....coz i couldnt see the difference between the houses and the chalets....they all looked the same...hahaha....but the thing is...i saw these families having so much fun ....swimming......diving ...and simply sitting in the pool chatting....it was a definitely a peaceful sight....

Anyway..as we drove on....the road was getting a little bumpy and narrow....and finally we came to a Car park ( yes ...they had a car park ! ) ..And the guy handling the parking lots...said...it would cost RM2.00 per car...and also mentioned that the waterfall was VERY near from there....and no problem walking up to it....and that we would see a BLUE ZINC by the road and trek into the jungle will begin there.....so we were all very happy with the useful piece of info we got from him...parked the cars there and started walking up the road....just then ...the sun had comfortably risen and shining abundantly...so off we went with our back packs...walking up the road ....we walked .....and walked...and walked....and there was no sign of the trek anywhere...we walked uphill bout 15 mins...when one of my friend shouted " there! the blue zinc...which was on the right hand side of the road...and on the left there was a very steep trail going into the jungle...so that has to be it....said my friends...but i wasnt convinced that it could be the right track since i knew...we have to pass through an Institute budaya melayu before coming to the trails...so i managed to convince the rest of them to keep walking ....so off we go again...another 10 mins....then we saw...a little far ahead of us...on top of the hill a building which looked like the Institute i saw in the net... so we walked on....by now...we were all getting tired of walking uphill in the hot sun....but finally we came to the institute....and there was board there with some info....my friend Kym reads it and screams " 20 hari (days) from here !!!!!!!!!!! ".....we all looked blur for a second.....then we realise it was actually written " JOHARI " with his contact number ....hahahahaha....we had a good laugh....i dont blame her for reading it as 20 hari though......so we called this person for permission to go pass the Institute....then we walked on....through the institute....and we find a small signboard pointing to the right which leads to Air Terjun Kubang Gajah ....great finally we are on the track....then we walked on ....for another 45 mins through this track..there wasnt much steep spots up to Kubang Gajah falls as it is only the beginning of the trails ....we walked on awaiting the sound of the falls....and finally we heard it.....yes we were there....and heres what we saw.... it was worth the hike and the sun !

The moment we saw this place ....we just rushed to it....changed into our shorts and swimsuits and got into the pool of COOL stream....it is the most refreshing feeling you can get....so we sat there taking pictures ...having some snacks...and chatting away while there were some tiny little fishes nibbling on our feet which felt a little ticklish....and we also scrubbed our legs and arms with the sand which actually left our skin a little smoother by the time we left....so it was a spa out there....A natural one of course.....so we were there for a bout 2 hours....then we got out ...dried ourselves and reluctantly left the lovely falls...

Can you Give UP ?

This afternoon...after having lunch at home ...i sat down to read the magazine "PASSAGE" Vol 1 : 2010 and i came across an article titled " Lighten the Load". And right after reading...i decided to share it with everyone...coz...it is such a simple yet important message to be observed by everyone...so here goes :

" A young man once met a Zen Master and was so impressed that he decided to learn some meditation and live a life of contemplation all alone. " I shall give up everything" he declared. " Dont try anything that doesnt suit your personality, know yourself first", said the Zen Master. But the young man woudnt listen.

He went away to the forest nearby, built himself a small hut of bamboo and palm thatch and began leading a simple life of an ascetic. But soon, he found his hut swamped by rats. They tore away his clothes, gnawed through fruits and berries he gathered for food and even nibbled off patches from the mat he slept on. The young man decided that he must do something about it. So he got himself a cat to hunt the rats.

But cats cannot live on rats alone, they need milk and fish. So the young man went out into the nearest village and begged the people to give him a cow. He needed someone to milk the cow. So he hired a villager. Now he needed to pay the villager. So began spending, two hours every morning gathering berries and fruits from the forest to sell to the villagers. Next he needed a shed for the cow so he began spending five hours gathering fruits, herbs and firewood. He bought building materials, hired some villagers and got the shed built for his cow. His cow needed grass so he cleared out some space in the forest . watered it and turned it into a grazing ground for his cow. He also had to spend a couple of hours everyday taking the cow out to graze.

A year passed by and the old master came by to see how the young man was faring. The young man was so busy that he did not have any time for the master. " Sir , please wait. I shall be with you in an hour. I have to go fruit gathering ....take them to my shop in the village....i have to feed the cow and the cat.....and there are other things to do" The master was amused.

When finally the young man was free in the evening , the master said " i thought you were giving up everything. But you now seem busier than ever. And you possess a great many things - a hut, a shed , a meadow, a cow, a cat, pails for milk and water, baskets for fruit, knifes for weeding, haystacks, a shop in the village...."

The young man grew red in embarrassment. He recounted how it had all happened. The master laughed. "I told you son, it is not easy to give up. If you had not seen the rats as a problem in your life, you woudnt have needed the cat. It is all in the mind: not around you, but inside you. Giving up has to come from within. "

Now..! isnt that an awesome story ?? It is not easy even to give up is it...? Well at least not till we learn how to be at peace within.....coz things around us will always be the same...they will keep bothering us..and pushing us here and there...and we keep hitting one wall to another till we get exhausted...but the moment we learn how to be still and find peace from exactly where we are every moment...then these things around will only hit and bounce away...while we stand firm. And how do we find that balance ? probably just as how we first balanced on a bicycle...we try and we fall to the right and left over and over...then finally you find the balance and once you find it ...you never loose that balance all your life, whether or not you cycle everyday or never cycle again for the next 50 years..you will never fall off the bicycle again...right?...so that balance simply has to come out from us...no one can do it for you...you find it and you have it forever !...so JUST THE SAME.....we have to keep trying to find that balance in life....we might fall here and there a few times....but i am sure we will balance sooner or later...!!

PEACE IS POSSIBLE :)

I read this book ....PEACE IS POSSIBLE , The life and message of Prem Rawat......wow ! While most people are searching too far and too long for the nearest and simplest of things and make everything so complicated by believing in 1000 theories about how to attain peace ...this amazingly peaceful person has proved otherwise by using such simple language and methods to prove that peace is indeed possible ... his answers are crystal clear and fits every human being regardless of the social boundaries or age group....all we need to understand is the phrase " let there be peace on earth and let it begin with me"

And whats even more amazing is ....this person addressed his audience at the age of THREE !!!! If at three he discovered his true self....what are we doing still ? why do we think its impossible to reach to ourselves ...probably it takes a lot of unlearning before we get there....but at least we know its possible :)

I would like to share a little story here which took place in my house last week....my cousin came over to my place and she brought her little 3 years old girl along....it was dinner time for the baby...and she was refusing to eat....and she asked me if she could watch cartoon ...and i told her..." yes u can , but you have to eat first...and then i will switch the tv on for you"....and the little girl says...."no , amma will on the tv" meaning that my cousin would switch it on for her....and my cousin reacts to it by telling her.." no ! i wont, this is not MY tv....its ATHEY's (aunty's) ...so only she can switch it on "...and the little girl keeps telling me....amma will on the TV...

Now ....its such a simple example....that the little girl...does not see whats "YOURS' or "MINE"....a TV was just a TV to her...whether it was in her house....or mine....it didnt make a difference to her...she was at peace...knowing nothing material in this world belongs to anyone...but we adults have started teaching her otherwise....by installing facts like " THIS IS MINE" THAT IS YOURS'...and one thing at a time...soon she will start clinging on to loads of other material things like this is my house, my toys, my books, clothes, my car, and eventually my state , my country .., my people....and then we get exhausted running after peace , and then we look for a GURU to unlearn these things...but by then these material things have been stuck to your soul so hard that ripping it off becomes almost impossible.....so most of us give up on it and simply get used to the material world....but every now and then God reminds us what we are missing....and we choose to ignore these signs coz it has become easier that way....but though getting back to the Three Year old Peaceful Soul isnt going to be an easy task...we could at least eliminate one by one...one at a time....starting with what we think could be the easiest and then keep going to the more difficult ones......and see how far we can go...who knows ....we might just get back there.... :)

LET THERE BE PEACE ON EARTH AND LET IT BEGIN WITH ME :)

Walking in 2010 :)

Love celebrating Ponggal ( the Indian harvest festival)....for its all about sweets and nourishment...and what better way to start a year....and since it falls in the second week of January...it always prolongs the new years celebrations...

16 years ago around this time....i was in India...celebrating Ponggal with my parents , grandparents...uncles , aunties....cousins and a whole bunch of other relatives...what an experience it was....i was in my moms village....so , actually witnessed the very original way of celebrating Ponggal...for they are all farmers and have worked all year through for their bountiful harvest....and deserve to celebrate it . Its a 4 days celebration over there ...begins with the "Boghi" where you gather all your old and unwanted things to be burnt in a huge fire....the significance of doing this is to let go of your past and start anew...to leave behind anything thats negative...and make a fresh start mentally and physically.

Then the next day.....its called veetu Ponggal.....where the entire village...makes fire in front of their own little huts to cook the sweet sticky rice with an earthen pot....everyone pours the milk into their pots at the same time...and waits to see who's milk boils first....and the moment someones milk comes to a boil and flows out of the pot..we could hear ladies and young girls of that family screaming " PONGALO PONGGAL"....which is a way of announcing to the rest of the village that their milk had boiled . And the process continues with adding in the rice...brown sugar and butter and stirring it till it cooks well....then

The third day is for the cows....everyone in the village brings their cows to one spot....adorn them with flowers, bells and color their horns with bright paint ....pray to them showing gratitude to the sacred cows....

I will never forget that day.....when we all gathered at an open field...sat down by the moonlight....and they made me sing....i sang a semi classical song from a tamil movie....katrodu kuzhalin naathamey...which is about lord krishna...then the ladies gathered to do the "Kummi" dance...which is going in rounds clapping their hands in a particular rhythm...my mom joined in this dance as well...its all surreal to think of it now...it was so beautiful....something we only see in the movies.

Probably that experience while i was India....made me keep up with that Ponggal celebration till now..i try my best to create that atmosphere here....but it somehow never came close to that experience...living here in Kuala Lumpur....where the moonlight struggles its way through the city lights to touch the ground...it is far from nature....but still...whats more important is that "FEEL'....and when you could feel it ...the atmosphere is created....

so as always....i called a few beautiful friends for dinner....i adorned my house with sugar canes...and used an earthen pot to cook the sweet sticky rice....but of course i cant start a fire outside my house to cook it...or the Bomba will be here the next instant....so i use my gas stove to do it....cooked a few traditional vegetarian dishes....and had banana leaves to serve it....it was fun..and filled with laughter !! Happy to start the year with lots of sweets :)

Whats your story ?

Yes....its time to write a new chapter again..and the good news is ....the storyline is ALL in your hands....write it the way you want....let it be "YOUR" story....dont copy from another book...or refer to other authors...just write YOUR OWN STORY... ! Create the best situations...with the most loving people you know....and meet new beautiful souls....decorate your pages with the brightest of colours ....use rainbows and sunny skies as backdrop of your story...run around...play...jump for joy....laugh , laugh and laugh...dont forget adorable puppies.....set the warmest weather ...with the coolest touch of breeze.....yes this is your story....so by all means....

WRITE IT !!!

HAPPY NEW YEAR EVERYONE !!!!!!

Crossroads passed :)

Yeah ...just last week i posted " what to do at crossroads?"....and within days i got the answer....and i have chosen the right path at my crossroad....the answer simply dawns to you when you let go of it....and then u stand wandering....how is it that i did not see the obvious answer lying plainly right before my eyes.....yes ....as you go by life's rule you begin to understand that the toughest decisions could be made with the most simple ways...yeah its weird but true....

try letting go a little...just let go...relax....smile...feel yourself light...be blank in your mind ....empty your head.....and you will see all the answers you want flooding into its channels...so sytematically....yes...it really does....its magical..

its just like swimming...you can only float when you learn how to be relaxed and let go....otherwise you drown....nothing else had changed....same water...same place...same day ...same depth....but only one thing change...."You learnt how to let go" .......its just like that....

So be relaxed....breath....smile :)

What to do at Crossroads ?

How do you choose when you are at crossroads....?

I realise that the hardest thing to do in life is to live a life that you believe in...while the world is constantly expecting and wanting something else from you....sometimes we want somethings just to fulfill the wants of others who of course think they are wanting the best for us and mean well but not realising they are obstructing the natural path of ones life....

so when such crossroads appears in your life....is it selfish to choose the path you want for yourself....or are you to sacrifice that and try fake a living full of another person's dream ?? though i believe whatever you choose is your destiny....we still have to make a choice in the first place...and how do we do that? How do we find a balance...?

Anyone ?