Many worship Him for the fulfilment of their desires. If desires are in the mind, then mind cannot be understood as having devotion. Then you are doing business with God.

A true devotee does not wish for any material thing or fame or power. He wishes for wisdom that will stop him doing any bad Karma.

 A devotee believes that God never gives you sufferings. If they befall you, those are the result of your own bad Karma. He never blames God for his sufferings. Instead he takes the sufferings happily and positively.

 A lady aged about 50 years used to worship idols of God for about two hours everyday. She also observed fasts and held Katha and Paths often. She was well known to others as a staunch devotee. Once sufferings befell her that paralysed half of her body. From that day, she stopped worshipping God and started blaming Him for her sufferings. She felt it was God’s injustice to her.

Another lady aged about 60 years was also a devotee of God. She fell down twice in two years and broke her hip bone and leg bone separately. She was confined to bed for months. But her devotion to God remained the same. She felt it was the result of her own bad Karmas and thanked God for saving her from more intense sufferings. She used to feel that God must have reduced her sufferings otherwise worse could have happened.

Sufferings are a test. They test the strength of your love and devotion for Him. Only a true devotee can pass the test. God always listens to the prayer of a devotee and He is always there to reduce the intensity and duration of his sufferings.

A devotee’s mind remains focussed on God and not on his sufferings. He remembers God at all times. He does not concentrate on his sufferings. To him sufferings are a part and parcel of life just as pleasure is. He does give importance to it. This is the reason a devotee feels that his sufferings were there for only a short period. Whereas a non-devotee remembers his sufferings all the time and therefore he feels that the duration of his sufferings is very long. The more you remember your sufferings, the longer you feel them. The more you remember God, the shorter you feel your sufferings.

Sufferings should be taken by a devotee as a test for the strength of devotion. Come what may, he should know that God is there watching over him at all times. The bad patches in a person’s life are the result of his own bad karma and that they are there to teach him something.

This article by Pavan Jain was published in his fortnightly column titled “Mind Mantra” in the Hindustan Times, Lucknow edition.

This article by Pavan Jain was published in his fortnightly column titled “Mind Mantra” in the Hindustan Times, Lucknow edition.

Yoga has been divided into two parts. One is called “Ha” “Tha” Yoga (also written as Hatha Yoga)and the other is called “Raja Yoga”.  The former is mainly related to the physical body and the latter to the mind.

“Ha” “Tha” is a technical word and not a Hindi word. These two letters mean two types of different energies within a body. “Ha” “Tha” yoga science believes that ailments or disorders are the result of imbalances of these two energies and the imbalances can be removed by Yogic Shatkarma, Asana, Pranayama, Mudra and Bandha.

Yogic shatkarma are highly effective cleansing processes for the physical and subtle bodies. At the same time, they are also simple and can be easily learnt. There are many methods described in the yoga scripture but today one needs to learn merely a few of them to stay healthy and young.

Asanas or yogasanas are a group of many simple and difficult physical exercises. One needs to learn a few of them to stay healthy and young according to one’s need, age, flexibility and strength. Difficult exercises are helpful to sportsmen, dancers, soldiers etc.

Mudras are also a group of asana but their method of doing is different. They are  generally taught to only healthy persons.

Bandhas are also a group of a few simple physical exercises. They are highly effective in keeping body slim and healthy.

Pranayama is a science of regulation of the flow of pran. Pran is a technical word meaning an energy which keeps body and mind active, healthy, young and energetic. Pran has tremendous property to heal as well as to improve the quality of the functioning of both body and mind. Healing by pran is called Pran Upchaar in Hindi (also known as
Pran Therapy or Aura Healing or Pranic Healing or Reiki Healing  or Energy Healing). This healing method has done wonders in removing various ailments and problems. Prana plays a vital role in transforming the mind and helps in opening doors for the realization of
the soul or Samadhi also. Kirlian photography has greatly helped in understanding the role of Pran in the functions of body and mind.

Since time immemorial asana, shatkarma, mudra, bandha, pranayama have benefitted innumerable patients by removing their physiological, psychosomatic and mental problems.

Raja Yoga aims at the attainment of the highest state of mind or Samadhi.

Maharishi Patanjali has written a beautiful book for this purpose “Yoga Darshan”. He says that one needs to practise eight steps in all for the attainment of Samadhi (merely knowing cannot help) and that is why his method is called Ashtang Yoga. Ashtang is a Hindi word meaning eight. These eight steps are Yama, Niyama, Asana, Pranayama,
Pratyahar, Dharna, Dhyan and Samadhi. It is difficult to understand this book so one needs a teacher to understand the meaning, significance and techniques of these eight steps.

The article has been written by Pavan Jain, Yoga teacher and Aura healer ( also known as Pran therapist or pranic healer), Lucknow, India

Aura is the subtle part of our body which cannot be seen with eyes. It was often shown as an illuminating field around the physical body in old paintings of our saintly persons. Nowadays, taking its photo is possible by Kirlian photography. Aura consists of four subtle bodies- pranic body, mental body, intellectual body and spiritual body. Pranic body is made up of several Chakras which are often shown in the idols of Indian saintly persons like Buddha and Mahavir. These bodies supply life energy (pran) and develop force to keep us alive. They also perform the functions of thinking, feeling emotions, storing information in memory, taking decisions, feeling peace and spiritual happiness.

Pran, besides being life energy, plays a vital role in maintaining the quality and health of all the functions of the physical body, mind and intellect. It can prevent as well as cure any sort of disease. The slightest deficiency of it disturbs the proper functioning of all bodies allowing disorder and diseases to manifest themselves primarily in the subtle bodies and ultimately in our physical body. Besides, our mind develops a negative attitude towards life which is detrimental for our perception of everything in life.

Both life and quality of life depend on the proper functioning of these bodies. If these subtle bodies do not perform normally, the physical body or mind falls ill. At the time of death, these subtle bodies have been found slowly becoming non-functional and ultimately
they leave the physical body to allow it to decompose. The subtle bodies play a role of a protective shield around the physical body and prevent physical and emotional ailments. Generally, diseases develop in the subtle bodies first and then they affect the physical body. Therefore, by taking care of our subtle bodies, ailments can be prevented as well as cured (read feedbacks of my patients).

In Aura healing (pran therapy/pranic healing/reiki healing ), the subtle bodies are repaired without any medicine. The healer simply moves his palms around the patient’s body in a specific way with an absolutely focused and prayerful mind. He scans, cleans and replenishes the subtle bodies with Pran. Patients simply sit or lie in any comfortable
position. At the end of the healing session, patients feel extremely relaxed and calm.

Aura healing (pran therapy/pranic healing/reiki healing ), is extremely useful in removing physical as well as emotional problems. It has been found miraculously effective in:

• removing stress, depression, emotional instability,
  fatigue, conflicts, confusion, worries, sleep disorder
• increasing mental concentration
• improving consistency
• improving positive thinking
• improving decision-making ability
• removing physical and mental ailments
• preventing possible future ailments
• keeping mind calm and full of energy
• protecting from negative vibrations or black magic

Everybody can learn Aura healing Level – 1 (pran therapy/pranic healing/reiki healing ) in just three days easily for self healing or healing others for simple problems. There are no limitations of age, gender or religion. It can be learnt even by teenagers to protect against
diseases, help them focus on studies, and reduce stress. To become an advanced professional healer, additional training, study, and practice is needed under the instruction of a capable guide and teacher.

The article has been written by Pavan Jain, Yoga teacher and Aura healer ( also known as Pran therapist or pranic healer), Lucknow, India

Nature is a silent teacher. You can learn from it. You can also live in compassion.  Compassion means bliss, peace and contentment. If you see the statue of Bhagwan Buddha, you will feel that he is still living in compassion. Bhagwan Buddha is synonymous with compassion.

Compassion cleanses your mind. It removes hatred, anger, jealousy and greed etc. Compassion keeps the mind calm. Today, when mental stress is a big problem, the virtue of compassion can protect you from innumerable psychosomatic diseases.

You can have this feeling of compassion. Everyone has had some physical, emotional, mental or spiritual sufferings at some time in his life and at that time, he wanted someone or something to help him. You can now become that person by giving something, either material or abstract. Recall your experience of sufferings and convert it into compassion. The more you recall your experience and the more you will want to help, the more you will want to give and the more compassionate you will become.

Some people have the heart that can feel the sufferings of grieved persons by just looking at them or listening to them. They can feel those sufferings so deeply that these become their own. Siddharth felt so deeply the sufferings of others that he became ‘Buddha’. Develop this quality of alleviating sufferings of others. The more you can feel, the more you can heal. If you can feel the sufferings of the entire world, the healing energy will be flowing from your existence itself all the time, as the sun is emitting light every moment.

Compassion is a state where thoughts of forgiveness arise. A compassionate person can never hurt anyone. It is full of love always. He forgives even his enemy. Absolute compassion has power to change the heart of even his enemy. Compassion is not a weakness in a person. It is also not powerless. Infact it is extremely powerful. It has the power to remove sufferings in general and to change the heart of even an arch enemy, if it is absolute.

Forgiveness always keeps your mind clean. It removes anger that is perhaps the worst enemy of a human being. It not only spoils and kills the body and mind, but also even kills the soul. Anger is darkness and compassion is light. When light comes and darkness goes, so it is with compassion and anger, when compassion arises, anger dissolves.

Compassion does not make you a coward. Rather it makes you bold and courageous. You stand up against violence. You stand up against your inner violence as well as external violence.

Develop this divine virtue to make yourself divine and let your divinity remove the sufferings of every creature, and show the path of love to those who have gone astray.

This article by Pavan Jain was published in his fortnightly column titled “Mind Mantra” in the Hindustan Times, Lucknow edition.

When you are repeating a word by mouth, check where your mind is? What are the feelings and thoughts in your mind? Check whether your mind is doing the same thing that your tongue is doing? You will find your mind elsewhere and doing something else there. People generally tell me that during Japa they find that their mind is always somewhere else and doing something different and moreover their efforts to control their mind fail. You can do Japa only when your mind is in your control. People also feel that their mind runs quicker to other things when they sit to Japa. Your tongue is saying God whereas your mind is saying money, power or disease. Two opposite things are happening in you. This is not Japa. Japa is unification of mind and body. Japa is doing one thing at a time by mouth and mind both. Japa is possible only when your mind and body become one. Until you reach this state, you are only reciting. Repetition of word is not Japa otherwise when a child crams a new word by repetition it would have also been called Japa.

Japa transforms your mind spiritually whereas Rut does not create any divine feelings. Japa fills your mind with compassion and love for every being, Japa detaches you from the worldly things, Japa develops quality of forgiveness in your mind, Japa gives you wisdom and conscience, it makes your mind flexible and firm, whereas Rut makes you egoistic and stubborn.

Japa is a state of meditation, Japa is a state of feeling Him in your mind. Find your Sadguru to learn to bring your mind to whatever you are doing physically, to connect your mind to your body and to go into the state of Japa. If the people of the whole world could change their Rut into Japa, this earth would become a so-called heaven.

He is one and His names are many. Love is one feeling but this feeling is called by different words by the people of world. Pain is one feeling but it is called by several words. Japa makes you realize this truth and then Rama, Muhammad, Christ, Krishna become different names of one God. You see Him now and not His names. You see the clay and not the different statues made from it. You can use the clay to make either Krishna or Christ. You can also use the alphabets to write Muhammad or Ram. Japa is a way to realize the truth that He is there and He is one only.

This article by Pavan Jain was published in his fortnightly column titled “Mind Mantra” in the Hindustan Times, Lucknow edition.

Besides the above-mentioned things, you need love and care for your survival and growth that are generally given by your parents. Elders and teachers generally fulfill your need for knowledge and experience. In brief, you need many things to live that are being fulfilled by others. But you never think what the others have done for you because of your ego. All you think is what you have done for others, expecting something in return. You do not think what others are doing for you or have done for you, with the result that you remain tense, angry, frustrated etc. on not getting the things expected.

Learn to focus on the help given and sacrifices made by others, instead of your help to others. Your help to others is very little compared the help of God, nature and parents. Think deeply in order to become aware of their help and let gratitude for them develop in your heart.

Gratitude is a wonderful quality of the heart. It transforms your mind, removes your ego and makes your mind peaceful. Gratitude develops immense love and respect for those who helped you in your life in any way.

Gratitude is not merely words. It can only be felt. Words of gratitude without the feeling of gratitude are dead words. They cannot touch the heart of others, they can touch only the ego. So develop gratitude in your heart and make your words alive to touch others’ hearts. This is the right way to respond to others’ help. Your feeling of gratitude gives immense peace and happiness to those who have helped you. This is the biggest and only gift that you can give in return for their help. No material return can be equivalent to the help, support or sacrifices of parents, gurus and God.

To develop gratitude in your heart observe parents bringing up their child or a pregnant mother caring for her unborn baby or a bird caring for its eggs and then training them. Meditate to feel the feelings behind such care. Meditate to feel the force that is working behind such care. You will feel the love behind all this. The moment you are able to feel this love, your heart will start melting and love will start flowing from it. And when you will meditate on the persons or things that have helped you in any way, you will be filled with tears of gratitude, love and respect.

Develop a habit to sit in meditation in the morning and night to fill your heart with immense gratitude for everyone-whether a person or thing. This habit will take all your tension away and will give you immense peace.

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This article by Pavan Jain was published in his fortnightly column titled “Mind Mantra” in the Hindustan Times, Lucknow edition in 2003.