Yo Yogi
June 2006
By Life Positive
Time out with Ananda
Monkey Tricks
Nikita had once again done poorly in the tests. Worried, her mother talked to Ananda. ‘She is so bright and intelligent, but is always distracted by TV or computer games.’ That evening, Ananda shared an interesting fact with the children.
‘In Africa, large wooden vases are fastened to trees. Each vase has a single opening, just big enough for the outstretched hand of an adult monkey. Candy is put inside the vases because its smell lures the monkeys to reach inside. But their clenched fists are too large to go back through the openings.’
He paused. ‘What do you think the monkeys would do in this situation?’ he asked.
‘Let go of the candy?’ said one of the children, hesitantly.
Ananda smiled. ‘No, that’s exactly what they don’t do. The Africans know that rather than ‘let go’ of the candy to escape, most monkeys will allow themselves to be captured by the hunters.’
‘We are not too different,’ he continued. ‘Exams are approaching, we know we need to attend to a lot of things, yet the television, internet, computer games, lure us. We switch on the TV for a ‘break’, and get more and more drawn to the programs, fooling ourselves that we are going to continue for ‘just a little more time’. In the pretext of taking ‘breaks’, we are often in a state of a perpetual ‘break’. Are we not as foolish as those monkeys?’ he asked.
The children giggled. Nikita blushed.
Mind Blowers
Tickle your Brain
What gets bigger as you take more out of it?
Answer: A hole!
You are traveling on an electric train north. The wind is headed south, against you. You make two 45 degree left-turns. The wind doesn’t change directions, and the track doesn’t twist. When you’re about to stop at your destination, what direction is the smoke from the train blowing, if the wind speed is stronger than the train’s speed?
Answer: Nowhere. An electric train doesn’t blow steam.
There is a rope ladder hanging over the side of a ship. Each of the rungs of the ladder are a meter apart. The tide rises at the rate of 80 centimeters an hour. How many rungs are covered after four hours?
Answer: The same as before… the ship floats, so it rises with the tide.
Action Station
It’s holiday time. What would your dream holiday be like? Do share your thoughts with us and you may win a surprise prize.
Technique
Create your Dreams
Want a sleek music player but dare not ask your parents? Well, try creative visualization.
Creative visualization is the creation of an image in the mind, and through natural, mental laws cause it to manifest on the material plane.
You need to just keep four simple tips in mind while using this.
1. Set your goal – something that is positive, keeping in mind others’ feelings.
2. Create a clear idea or picture – have an absolutely clear idea about what you want and how you want it.
3. Focus on it often. Thank the Lord as if you have already received the gift.
4. Be positive. Incorrigibly believe that you deserve it and can attain it.
So what are you waiting for?
Poems that Please
Awaken with a Prayer
In Prayer, child, we make ourselves, A small and humble thing.
That seeks to be encompassed by
The Lord’s protective wing.
We let go of cares that endlessly have
beset our minds at day.
Because in prayer we know that now
The Lord will guide the way.
We surrender to a higher power
No expectations that life should be just so,
and in that surrender, a quality
called ‘acceptance’ , begins to grow.
And just as water flows gently down
an inclination, we will find
that Divine Grace, from the Lord,
fills a humble mind.
Prayer makes us empty
of our egos and our pride.
Can we appeal to a higher power
If there’s no humility inside?
That ego is the reason which
separates us from the Lord.
And Prayer seeks to build within
A loving Bond with God.
Only in Love does that ego fall
The Divine then fills your heart.
In prayer, do we really learn
Of Whom we are a part.
So pray, dear child, it matters not
what you really say.
Just keep those lines of communication
open through the day.
The Lord already knows, what you need
He will give. All in good time.
Just have the faith, perseverance too
‘My Lord, my hand in Thine.’
Archana Savnal
Courtesy: The Chitrapur Sunbeam
Did you know?
Ant colonies are one of the most successful teams on the planet – they are so dominant in nature that despite their tiny size they make up 10% of the planet’s biomass. No matter where you are in the world, if you are outside and you look down, you will probably see an ant.
Ants have no overall leader – the queen’s role is simply to reproduce. Even with their tiny brains, ants use swarm intelligence to solve complex route-planning problems as efficiently as our best computers.
Laugh out Loud
Young and foolish pilot wanted to sound cool on the aviation frequencies.
This was his first time approaching a field at night, and instead of making any official requests to the tower, he said, ‘Guess who?’
The controller switched the field lights off and replied,’Guess where!’
A young and enthusiastic girl went to a flight school, insisting she wanted to learn to fly that day. As all the planes were currently in use, the owner agreed to instruct her on how to pilot the helicopter solo by radio.
He took her out, showed her how to start it, and gave her the basics and sent her on her way.
After she climbed 1,000 feet, she radioed in. ‘I’m doing great! I love it! The view is so beautiful, and I’m starting to get the hang of this.’
After 2,000 feet, she radioed again, saying how easy it was becoming to fly. The instructor watched her climb over 3,000 feet, and was beginning to worry that she hadn’t radioed in.
A few minutes later, he watched in horror as she crashed about half a mile away. He ran over and pulled her from the wreckage.
When he asked what happened, she said, ‘I don’t know! Everything was going fine, but as I got higher, I was starting to get cold. I can’t remember anything after I turned off the big fan.