Ritual for Radiant Living

T h e   M o n k   w h o   s o l d   h i s   F e r r a r i

Below are the rituals as explained by the monk for Radiant Living

1.    Ritual of Solitude

-          daily ensure to have a mandatory period of peace in silence (10-15 min) contemplating on who you are.

-          find a place where you will find the peace and practice this daily at the same time.

-          works as the pit-stop for the soul

-          e.g. walk around the garden, watch the sun rise, feel the morning breeze and relax

2.    Ritual of Physicality

-          take care of your body and nourish it with rigorous exercise.

-          at least 5 hours of the total 168 hours of a week should be invested for some kind of physical activity

-          e.g. vigorous walking, yoga, pranayama (art of effective breathing)

3.    Ritual of Live Nourishment

-          poor diet affects physical and mental energy

-          have diet of fresh vegetables, fruits and grains

-          vegetarian diet- sattvic diet

4.    Ritual of Abundant Knowledge

-          Lifelong learning and expanding our knowledge.

-          become student of life and use what you have learned.

-          read regularly for thirty minutes a day will do wonders (and be selective about what you put into the lush garden of your mind).

-          read something which will improve you and the quality of your life.

-          some books are to be tasted, some to be chewed and some are to be swallowed whole !

-          books of wisdom are not to be just read but to be studied by reading it several times.

-          Every answer to your every problem you have ever faced is in print. All the mistakes you will ever make in your life have already been made by those who walked before you. The answers and possible solutions are all recorded already on the pages of books. So read the right books

-          Biography of American Benjamin Franklin, Mahatma Gandhi’s autobiography – The Story of My Experiments with Truth, Siddhartha – Herman Hesse etc

5.    Ritual of Personal Reflection

-          Every evening reflect on the full day activities sitting in a silence.

-          Write down your thoughts or do a Personal retrospection

-          Think about all positive and negative thoughts encountered – make immediate repairs to your negative actions/thoughts

-          Those who repeats the same mistakes are not aware of their self – Self-Awareness is the quality that separates humans from animals

-          Step-out of yourself and see what you are doing is right or wrong – a quality which is blessed only for the human beings

6.    Ritual of Early Awakening

-          Rise with the sun

-          Six hours quality sleep (uninterrupted)

-          Pain is the precursor to personal growth – Don’t dread it. Embrace it!

-          Meditate on serene thoughts for 10 min before going to bed, relax

-          And do this ritual for 21 continuous days to install it as a habit

7.    Ritual of Music

-          Play good music which soothe the mind.

-          Never forget the power of music

8.    Ritual of the Spoken Word

-          Make recite the mantras (which frees the mind) a part of your life

-          “I am inspired, disciplined and energized”

-          “I am strong, able and calm”

9.    Ritual of Congruent Character

-          This ritual requires us to take daily, incremental action to build our character.

-          Strengthen the character which becomes your action, action becomes habit and habit lead you to your destiny.

-          Be guided by heart

-          Congruent (Harmonious) Character has the following features which makes your life live according to the laws of nature

·         Industrious

·         Compassionate

·         Humility

·         Patience

·         Honesty

·         Courage

-          A failure to adhere to these principles, the true happiness will always elude you

10.  Ritual of Simplicity

-          All-important -Live a simple life

-          Never live in the thick of thin things

-          Stop picking up phone every time it rings, stop wasting time reading junk mail, stop eating out three times a week

-          Spend time with kids, Spend a day a week without your watch, Survive without facebook

-          Watch the sunrise every few days

-          Sell your cellular phone, dump your pager

Apply these rituals for one month, and you will surely start to see the difference within you !

10th Day after my Rebirth!

May be I should say, this is the 10^th day after I was reborn.
If you wonder what great I have done in the last two weeks to be reborn, here it is –

I did the ritual of waking up daily at 5 am and doing pranayama for 10 minutes. It is as simple as that.

But let me tell you, personally, it was almost impossible for me to be reborn against my three decades of decayed thoughts.

But I did.

I feel cheerful for what I have achieved in these 10 days.

It was easy for me to preach my team or my friends on several nice things we can do in our life.

What was difficult for me was to teach the same principles to my own mind.

Probably I never realized the simple principle that the only thing which I can change in this world is my self alone!

Yes. Now, things are slowly changing. My mind is now taking control of my thoughts and slowly I feel the power of will building up within me.

I feel it slowly building up as the fort against all the negative thoughts. I feel the deep calm, I feel the utmost safety inside my fort in construction.

I thank the supreme power who kindled in me these thoughts through the “Monk who sold his Ferrari”.

Once again, I am thankful to the supreme power for making me read this book at the right time of my life – neither early nor late.

Five Step Method for Attaining Goals

The Monk Who Sold His Ferrari

Step 1 : Create a clear mental image of the outcome.

If you want to lose weight, imagine yourself as trim and fit with full of energy.

If you want to be a good husband/wife, imagine yourself as the most caring one of your family, helping all in their daily tasks

If you want to be a violinist, imagine yourself playing the songs which you like

Step 2 : Apply positive pressure on yourself.

Do a public pledge on your goal. Tell everyone you know you will lose weight/you will cook the lunch for family/will play the favorite song on violin

Associate pleasure with good habits, and punishment with bad habits – punish yourself (!)

Step 3 : Attach timeline to your goal.

...in next 5 months I will trim

…by 2012 Jan, I will learn 5 new songs

…in another 1 year, I will take my family and parents for 2 vacations

Step 4 : Write it down !

Get a notepad/book and write down your goals.

Classify the goals as family/profession/spiritual/personal.

Stick pictures and inspirational notes in it.

Step 5 : Apply Rule 21 !

For the new habit to crystallize it should be practiced for 21 days without break at the same time of the day.

Installation will be complete in our brain in 21 days and a new neural pathway will be created !!

Enjoy the process and have the True Passion for your goal !