STRESS AND SUICIDE: DR. SHRINIWAS KASHALIKAR

Just as our understanding and insight in stress; is poor; it is also poor; in the phenomenon of suicide.

We keep focusing only on the acute episodes of self infliction to end our life. These acute episodes are only 1/8 superficial and visible aspects of the iceberg of suicide; 7/8 of which is invisible. Acute episodes of self infliction; are like the visible symptoms of a disease; the suicidal tendencies are like real pathophysiology. They are more serious and dangerous; though invisible.

Suicidal tendencies; or potential suicides; are generally not conspicuously seen around and are not counted; as the suicides or even the attempts of suicides.

Let us understand that; the suicidal tendencies keep flourishing within us; due to what is called �Self forgetfulness�; i.e. forgetting our innate core; and/or its voice! This happens; due to being engrossed and trapped in superficial and petty values of glamour and glitter; and NOT interacting with; our true selves. Our true selves, our innate cores, our conscience, our souls; are thus starved. They are emaciated. They are deprived of the ambrosia of immoral happiness that would otherwise keeps us revitalizing, rejuvenating and regenerating! Hence we become unsteady, shaky, unstable, weak, uprooted and listless; like a tree losing the water supply to its roots.

Thus the value crisis propagated and promoted by vested interests; deprives us of our inner strength and makes us vulnerable to self destruction on the one hand; and precipitates the acute attack of self infliction (or infliction to others); on the other.

Incidental and acute STRESS; such as that of failure in examination, competition; or failure to get justice in court case; precipitates acute suicidal thoughts.

Forgetting ourselves; makes us weak, diffident; and vulnerable and we begin to judge ourselves; by the parameters hyped and imposed by �vested interests� of ours and the others! This leads to sub-clinical or potential suicide/s in terms of several self destructive practices such self abnegation, shame, guilt, suffocation, defeat, humiliation, misery, unpleasantness, self pity and habits such as drinking.

This is further compounded by our weak, cowardly and destructive feelings, thoughts, imaginations or even fears of downfall, degradation, degeneration!

The solution to the STRESS and being vulnerable to suicides; is; first; eliminating its cause; viz. being alienated from ourselves; and second; receiving the ambrosia of vitality and immortality; through NAMASMARAN. It enables us; to overcome the value crisis, hype of destructive progress; and evolve holistic perspective, policies, plans and programs; to prevent suicidal tendencies; and catalyze individual and global blossoming.

STRESS AND ASMITA: DR. SHRINIWAS KASHALIKAR
 
These days; one of the major causes of STRESS; is the unabashed and unabated indiscriminate arson and violence; that is being perpetrated; by the restrictive, vicious and mean elements (who have nothing to do with anybody else; excepting their own petty gains); through the misuse of primitive and restrictive identity.

When we are born our first identity; of which we are not even aware of; is that of our body! We do everything unknowingly to survive!

Subsequently, we begin to identify ourselves; with our mother, father, family members, friends, nursery, school, college, village, language, culture, traditions and so on! Gradually we start growing further and get awareness of nationality and the world in which we live.

It is important to note that one identity is not contraposed to another, and we live with these identities in harmony. Just as we care for our body, so do we care for our parents, family, friends, school, college, spouse, children, society, village, region, nation and world; with an almost automatically developed sense of proportion.

However, the life is not always simple and smooth!

As we begin to grow and mature; and internalize the concept of universal unity; we begin to develop a value system; that involves; prioritization of our activities and choices; in view of the importance attached to our identities. So, we begin to sacrifice; what could be called the gains of one identity; for the sake of other identity! This is how the process of �gradation of identities� and �not denying them�; begins!

Thus we can sacrifice our body needs; for our emotions and convictions; and our emotional needs and convictions for our family, where the family identity is given preference; over my identity. Similarly; we can sacrifice the interests of family members; if they go against the interest of our country. Our national identity is given preference over our family identity.

Not only this, we begin to rise above our identities related to our traditions, culture, customs, rituals, religious practices, if they go against the interests of the mankind!

Here our identity associated with the mankind is given preference over the identity associated with traditions, customs, rituals, religious practices etc.

It is important to realize that this is a process of unfolding of and manifesting of our true self; where we do not become the �enemy�; of our identities associated with our body, family, institutions, village, region, culture, customs, religious practices, traditions, and nation! But we actually blossom!

But the leaders misusing the primitive and restrictive identities may attract us; because; restrictive concepts justify and pamper our own sectarian thinking, mean selfishness, petty ego, and disgruntlement and dissatisfaction due to our own drawbacks!

Not only by such chauvinism; but; we may also get trapped in fanatic and terrorist ideologies, which promote primitive and restrictive identities! This is usually; because of our own; often subconscious agreement with them; due to our stunted inner growth and mental dwarfism; making us perverted, arrogant, jealous, and violent from within.

Let us understand that; the �asmita� is; any primitive and restrictive identity; either oppressed and humiliated; or hyped and glorified disproportionately; and thus converted into an oversensitive and sentimental issue.

We must understand that if our blossoming is punctuated; then our inner growth is stunted. In as much it is unnatural to deny our physical and subsequent identities; it is antinatural; to stop growing; and to get saddled in; one or more of the �primitive identities�. Such stunting leads to suffocating STRESS and creates a conflict in our mind when it comes to judging humane and inhuman acts.

If a person committing some inhuman acts; is our family member; and a person serving mankind selflessly happens to be unrelated to us; then whom should we identify ourselves with?
Whom should we consider as �ours�?
Whom should we accept, love and respect?

This holds true for other identities such as our caste, nation, and religion and so on; as well!

There is no denial whatsoever that we have all our identities; but we are not merely identified by restrictive identities such as; our body, family, caste, village, religion; but by all these; together with our spirit of individual and global blossoming!

Seekers of truth involved in the blossoming of mankind; whether belong to any of our family or caste; are our soul mates! It is said that the simplest way to realize this; is the practice of NAMASMARAN. It is up to us; however, whether to keep blossoming together with the universe, or get trapped in the restrictive identities and throttle our soul!

IMPORTANCE OF TOTAL STRESS MANAGEMENT: DR. SHRINIWAS KASHALIKAR


Total Stress Management means; to understand the nature, causes, dimensions, mechanisms, effects and principles of management of stress and practicing the solutions in accordance! This improves; cognition, affect and conation i.e. our views, our feelings and our actions. This includes the study of issues; affecting our private and public life; and is called Conceptual Stress Management. Lastly all this is inseparable from its core; the practice of NAMASMARAN.

Unfortunately many of us try frantically to manage stress without this understanding; and as a result; create and perpetuate STRESS and its numerous ill effects in the society.

Thus a student, who has stress of examination; may avoid appearing for examination, a doctor, who has a stress of treating a difficult disease; may shirk from his duty, a farmer, who has stress of drought; may commit suicide, a mill worker, who has stress of lay off and being rendered jobless; may be forced into illegal underworld activities.

The a prime minister of a country, who has stress of making decisions with national impact; such as nuclear testing, special economic zone, holistic health promotion, holistic education, organic farming, caste or religion based reservation policy; may take a wrong and disastrous decision.
The adverse effects; of the mismanaged stress of these different persons, are not restricted to one�s own body or family. In case of political, industrial, union, media and religious leaders; they influence; various walks of life, a society, a nation or the whole world; and even the future generations; directly or indirectly.
This is comparable to the patients; suffering from highly virulent infectious disease, who; if not put in quarantine, not treated and are allowed to mingle and influence the society; then harm themselves as well as billions others!
This is why; we need evolution of holistic perspective, policies, plans, programs, and actions. In fact; these are vitally important, essential and urgently needed; for individual and global blossoming! We may study, analyze, question, contradict, and argue. But it is not possible to verify the power, potentials and scope of Total Stress Management by mere casual approach, reading, discussion, guesswork, conjecture or imagination. We need to be involved in it!
All short cuts; marketed under the disguise of �stress management, stress relaxation, meditation etc�; claiming instant result; can at times be temporarily useful; but in the long run; and in absence of Total Stress Management (and NAMASMARAN); prove useless and even counterproductive; in personal and social life� as is true for other stress busters involving escapist ways!

STRESS AND ART OF LOVING: DR. SHRINIWAS KASHALIKAR

Most of us believe that love is spontaneous. There is no volition. There is no effort. There is not intention and motive. Hence this title; �How to love?� may sound absurd to many of us.

But actually love is an extremely familiar yet obscure and occult phenomenon; in view of its oceanic dimensions! In the process of trying to understand what love is; we get drowned, absorbed and dissolved in love!

But roughly speaking; love evolves within us, through all shades. It ranges from passionate fixation, to free and sublime bond! It ranges from; interpersonal liking, caring bond between a pet and owner and specific attraction for an object; to deep silent feeling of global benevolence irrespective of any thing and any particular individual.

One of the worst effects of mismanaged STRESS is �degradation, degeneration and desiccation� of love!

In other words; we can say that the quality and intensity of LOVE is directly related to the degree of success; in Total Stress Management! After study and practice for years; it is found that NAMASMARAN taught by immortal gurus; is an inseparable core of Total Stress Management, which itself is �the art of loving�!

The vacillation between; likes and dislikes, attraction and repulsion and favors and vengeance; is because of �our unevolved love� that emerges and is driven by physical needs, instincts, emotions and thoughts. It is controlled by hormones, autonomic nervous system and central nervous system. In other words; it is the product of our ego or subjectivity. We become strongly attached or united; when our wants are satisfied and strongly dispersed and divided; when our wants are unsatisfied.

These get added up and multiplied so as to determine scenario of life; on local, national and global platforms!

Naturally the antidote for this phenomenon is conquering, controlling, harmonizing and synchronizing; the physical, instinctual, emotional and intellectual subjectivity; by �evolved love� i.e. objective and silent global benevolence! This is �art of loving�.

The most rewarding way of learning this; is NAMASMARAN, which is a uniting, emancipating and organizing phenomenon; on universal canvas!

This is because;

1. Just as disruptive influences add up and get stronger, the practice of NAMASMARAN; by billions of people also gets added up and yields the result of bringing people closer.

2. The unique feature of NAMASMARAN is that, unlike most other activities; it can never yield retrogressive or mere individualistic or sectarian gains, benefits or profits.

3. NAMASMARAN is always universally blossoming. This is because NAMASMARAN revitalizes that core of an individual which is inseparable; from that of every other element in the universe.

4. NAMASMARAN may be (though not completely satisfactorily) compared; with proper control/rectification of the individual and cosmic homeostasis, which is vital for the health of every cell in the body; and every being in the universe.

5. We can pardon and absolve or provide PRAYASHCHITTA or punishment; and thus avail justice for ourselves or others; through the practice of NAMASMARAN appropriately.

6. NAMASMARAN is broadly comparable to an upward and correct step taken by the mountaineers; who are tied together by a rope (bond of true or objective love), climbing uphill. Each upward step; i.e. NAMASMARAN; helps every other person, while opposite of this; causes downfall of every one.


7. Our core is linked with the core of even the worst criminals in the society and even the smallest animal in the universe. In as much as we are affected by and are responsible (though not apparently or overtly); for the crime, we can affect and be responsible for the chastisement or emancipation also; of the criminals (though not obviously); through NAMASMARAN!

8. The objective love of NAMASMARAN can be realized clearly and convincingly by us; if we practice NAMASMARAN with this conviction.

The secret or cohort link of objective or cosmic love; between the cores; of the billions of individuals; becomes overt and manifest, (in the form of blossoming of an individual and the universe) through NAMASMARAN! This is endorsed by many immortal gurus including; Sadguru Shri Brahmachaitanya Gondavalekar Maharaj, who reiterated that; name of God NAMASMARAN would emancipate the whole universe!