Reading Oprah’s take on Mantras, I was inspired to write a post of my own related to the same. Well what I understand here by “mantras”, is that it is a belief or a prayer or a thought which keeps me going in case of any event which is too overwhelming for me. The thought that grounds me and makes me move forward or lie still till the phase passes.. and I am not talking about the much talked about origin of the word here

2010 has been the most difficult year for me, making it memorable in a bittersweet kind of way and thus affirming my faith in the divine and events that have to pass through.

Obstacles : Delays, obstacles, murphy’s law, you name it and I think I have had a large share of it all last year.. and what kept me going ??

My mantra : Its a phase, it will pass.. Sometimes, the best thing to do is nothing.. Remove your association from the obstacle and solutions are easy to focus on..

Loss : Dealing with loss is overwhelming… It bangs you in your face, and after a few numb moments.. as it sinks in, it feels as if there is a big hole.. somewhere..and there is no space to breathe.. it started with mom, friends, things I took for granted.. but yet there it was, I had to be a gracious loser..

My mantra : This is part of your bag that you carry, Accept it and make peace with it. Its alright, its alright to break down, everything will be pieced together slowly… and letting go is part of creating something new.. what you never had cannot be lost… the illusion is in the having.. What I only have is my soul and my inner self.. rest is all part of the world where there is a gain and a loss, a start and an end.. rejoice in the infinity that is my soul… through which I can connect to all that is important to me and keep it with me.. (and I am still working with it )

Intolerance : Watching people earn money the underhanded way back home and coming and preaching about how I needed to run my life…as I grieved,  while I sat and was forced to listen to them .. and also listened when these very people…pretended to care when they really did not and pretended to stand by… when all they wanted was to have a good time with food.. while I watched on.. sorely tempted to judge.. .yet…

My mantra : These souls belong somewhere in my family tree and what they do is their choice and how they behave is their choice… they will never understand why I do or act a certain way that I do.. and to them I could be equally alien…( That brought a smile inside me.. ) So listen and know that they are also part of the superconsciousness that I come from.. so chill.. Stop Judging.. !! Be  detached!! This is supposed to be social networking, the old way, and that is how they comfort each other..

Hatred : Well cannot tell myself, how interested I am when I come across hatred towards me. Its the easiest emotion to read.

Mantra : Your greatest teacher to tolerance and detachment.. And I keep telling myself.. you cannot please all.. I can only be compassionate ( which is tough mind you) and just move on to more useful activities to reduce the temptation to reciprocate.. and also accept that I must have had some reason to bring forth this feeling.. that means, I still have to work on myself… it tells me that I have so much more to do..

Restlessness : When I knew that no matter what I did, I could not see myself in the old job, it started with restlessness and no matter what I did, there was this inexpressible urge to move on.. and that I had done what I had to do with one of my best jobs..I had everything I wanted.. well almost but all best things also come to an end.. the letting go bit was painful and slow.. and though I knew it was time, I had to wait for the right time and opportunity and the waiting was biting..

My mantra : I will go where I am needed the most and I will get just the right opportunity and I was very grateful for my old job sustaining me and taking me to where I stood today.. Each day I show my gratefulness to the place where I was and I pray to take me to where I need to be.. where I will be most useful..

Lies : I think last year, I was confronted with so many lies that I was loath to hold on to the belief that there are honest and ethical souls in this word… Some soul actually lied about his grandmother dying to get what he wanted. So many souls lied to get what they wanted, I was quite confounded.. and again, I was tempted to judge…

Mantra : Here NLP helped me a lot. I remembered and held on to that thought that souls lied because they had a good reason to and my being there would not make a difference.. the root was what mattered.. so it was easy to actually not to hold it against them. As long at it did not affect me, it was fine.. I guess..

Joy : Unexpected occasions of joyful moments.. here and there.. just went to show that with tough also came good.. and vice versa.

Mantra : Do not get too attached to it.. enjoy it for a second and let it go…. with gratefulness… extreme gratefulness and with humble acceptance of blessings.. which manifested in joy… the cup always runneth with joy as well as sorrow…never with only one.. two sides of the coin..

I reflect back and I see that this year though tough has been one of my most formative years as well.. Being in the moment taught me to focus on whats right and fair not only for me but for other parties as well,  and at the same time, not overreact to things which really tempt me to.. its an impulse.. instead work one second at a time.. patience and faith pays.. and mantras or your beliefs as a result of your faith, ground you… and lets you be the one that you are meant to be rather that what you react to be.. .:)  Its been an enriching time.. and I am still learning… Its not perfect yet.. impulses flow, reactions enact, yet… I go back to what I believe..

I cannot forget to dedicate all that I have learnt to all the souls who was responsible in their own way to shape my thoughts.. the good as well as the tough.. I am grateful for that as well.. Could not have done this alone.. it was meant to be just the way it was.. no regrets…

Mantra : Be thankful, you have lived through this and can hold a smile without trembling.. be grateful that you can sleep peacefully… Be joyous that you lived to see the beautiful winter and all that goes with it…. : There is so much more, you have to learn.. its just another layer uncovered of the so many thousands of layers of being that I have.. This is nothing..

My many imperfections will definitely bring in more and more opportunity to test me to get the much required karma coins that I have to earn… and with that mantra, I welcome 2011.. !!! I have a long way to go… and this is just the start… there is a whole incline ahead…

And with that motivation I start my new year… hoping that whatever it brings forth, I am steady and grounded.. and grateful for being able to wake up to each new day… and holding to that thought that my hope , my faith, my beliefs carry me through the next decade… and make me what I am here in this lifetime to be…

Wishing all my readers a very Happy New Year !! May it bring you closer to your dreams and bring you peace and prosperity.. A thousand times over..