No more tea, how I left tea

I love love love tea. I could have been one of those bankers who gulped buckets of tea unconsciously in the name of work or even boredom. Alcohol, cannabis was far easier to give up. Tea addiction is the one that took me time to come terms with. Typical black indian tea is the one I am talking about.

First of all, of course I thought everything is out, why should I kick tea out too? Its pretty harmless right. Two reasons convinced me. Its a stimulant we use to have some sort of life back as evening approaches or give an electric start to mornings. When tea is not around, headaches appear. Now that kind of dependency is not required in life. Even if it is not dependency, its almost like alcohol, as soon as you are out of it, you try to get back slyly as if everything is cool. Another reason was it wasn't really healthy or serving any purpose, it was useless addition to life. Indians never really drank tea, Britishers brought it, cultivated it. We fell for it, it became a royalty symbol for slaves who wanted to somehow copy their masters. Bang, decades later we are addicted.

How to get rid of this habit? I can only tell what worked for me. After a lot of relapses to tea, I figured by shutting it off all of a sudden, it will just confuse my body and it will crave it even more. So slowly, every day I reduced the amount of tea in cup, within  a week it was just 1/8 tsp tea  which is just for the color. Somehow, I fooled my body by reducing slowly and it worked. Continued another week but once in two days and then by the end of the week, bam done I was done with tea forever.

I did get some minor headache but didn't give in to the compulsion of just a bit this time. There is no need to pop a pill too, pill is caffeine too so thats another way of getting it back in system.

Honestly, energy is so much more organic than before. Hopefully, I won't give in to this temptation again. With that one spoon sugar is gone too. Sugar free too. Little changes are so big for the body. Try leaving tea , coffee. Your body will thank you, you will feel it. Control gives confidence too. After a while, you won't even control, it will be like I don't need it dude.

Thanks

What how why meditation?

As soon as you google meditation, there are so many options and they are all very confusing. Which one to follow, is just any guided meditation okk or there is a specific way to do it? For almost an year, we did it on our own. It helps a bit but without a structure, as soon as something strikes you crumble. You got to have a plan in it too.

It is not something we can keep changing everyday. What helped me in stabilizing my body and mind is shambhavi mahamudra by sadhguru. Similar kind of practice  called sudarshan kriya is taught by sri sri ravi shankar Following or devoting yourself to a person is not the point. In that way, we are putting them on some higher aisle believing we can't be like them. Its about learning the art of evolving our body and mind. Every human being has the potential to be like sadhguru or ravi shankar or any other gurus. You don't have to become a guru, you just follow a systematic method of awakening consciousness. Again this is not in my experience so I can only aspire to be free. There are certain processes that help in aligning body with mind to be meditative. 

Any person who says something that can benefit you in any way is your guru. Dog is your guru when he gives you unconditional love, child is your guru when he lets go instantly, cat is your guru when it chooses not to eat unconsciously, sun is your guru when it is just being itself not giving not being partial, tree is your guru when it gives you oxygen to survive. Everyone has something to teach us, we just have to be available. It doesn't matter who you learn meditation from as long as the technique is right. Just don't go for the uber hippie stuff, its a very traditional serious thing. Yogananda paramhansa's books are pretty awesome. His geeta is perfect. But books are not a substitute for real way of practicing. 

So some kind of discipline or practice brings a lot of change. It helped me in fixing my sleep time, even reducing it. My food habits are way better now, I need less and there is abundance of energy all day long. The way i see and treat people changed too. For this process to take place, all I did was staying true to my practice which doesn't even take more than 2 hours in a day. 2 hours out of 24 hours is nothing. I am a total beginner so my experience is a bit limited. 

This procedure is working for me. If I had to suggest, it would be learn some practice, do yoga everyday, read inner engineering ,taste of well being books. Not all at once, slowly slowly find time for these things. Even if we shift waking up time by half an hour every week, within  a month we are waking at 5 from 7. You can try yoga at a nearby studio or from youtube just start with 20 minutes of yoga. In food also, start eliminating things slowly. If we try do to everything all together, we are bound to fail. It takes time for body to understand and adjust to new routines, food practices. 

Not just you, people around you will benefit from your changes too. Your kids will learn from your example not from plain hollow preachings. Your parents might approach old age with more graciousness and less desires. Your co workers will feel more safe and open around you. In  a way, you will be whatever life needs you to be without any effort. 

NAMASTE

Meditation phase temptation :)

Well, its really easy to take resolutions, whats difficult is following through. Some people give up with the easiest route, make a silly excuse like I don't even have the time to do it, some people actually try for like a week and then come up with the excuse hmm I really don't have the time, then there are others who know this is not a way out process. You are either totally in or eating out hehe see what I did there. I personally favored postponing tool which is like someday maybe translated to never in my life because I was too fucking lazy. I am trying to get rid of bad habits, they slow us down pull us down. Its like running a marathon with weights with no whatsoever intentions of winning, trying and winning need different amounts of determination and will.

You might say I am trying to act too smart here calling your genuine life problems excuses, so your husband has an early meeting, you wake up early prepare lunch on that day right because you really wanted to and there was no other way. In situations where we don't really want to be involved,we come up with all kinds of meaningful logical excuses. Next time your mind throws an excuse, pause repeat the question and really really think how can I do it and how will it affect your life?

So this phase of meditation is temptations. Everything that we gave up is striking, pulls us in that direction, if we give in to temptation, we resent learn a new lesson and we are back on your path even more focussed. Its like you have been warned. All kinds like eating, tv, laziness, movies, sulking come back with more power, they catch you in the weakest moment like a tiger waiting to attack its prey when its most unguarded and vulnerable. The path is pretty steep though, if you are not careful, the loop of worldly materialism is back on route. Old patterns look comfortable to fall back into but in long term we are just sleeping on our own ikea cactus bed.

There will be days or weeks in stretch when nothing will happen in meditation. I see it like yoga, for months there are no improvements in my yoga, my dancer pose has been stuck for an year, but that doesn't mean the body is not working. When big changes are on way, it takes time to unfold them in their full picture. If we give up in between, we stop the process.

All we have to do is just do it, what will we gain out of gaming, tv, eating. We did it all our lives, got nothing out of it just entanglements and more knots in life. It was fun but it doesn't complete us. So meditation to me seems like the only way, the only adventure of life I want to be on. It is an adventure, there are so many moments where instantly I realize  what is going wrong, how I can be better next time. Its life changing phenomenon of course it will take years. We gathered all this rubbish in minds, its not easy to recycle this kind of garbage.


 I will do what is needed of me, nothing less nothing more.

Inner Engineering Questions Answered :)

Finally, we did inner engineering and it was amazing. So lets see if I can answer some of the questions that were in my mind before attending without revealing the contents of the program.

Online or not?
Hmm if there is no option of attending it in person under a trained teacher, yes go for online. Otherwise best results would be if you can be there for 4 days with undivided attention.

Yoga or not?
Program has nothing to do with yoga skills. You absolutely do not need any experience of yoga. In case you have any pain in body, you can always take next session. It does take a lot of sitting so if your back or legs or shoulders hurt, may be next time. But if you can just be there and learn it using a cushion or pillow, it would be awesome. This is not just about yoga, its way more than that. As soon as you do it, it will start your second life that sooner. If you are pregnant, check if you are healthy and comfortable enough to be there sitting 4 days.

Friends or not?
Hmm I went with my husband and it doesn't really matter who you go with, most probably you won't sit with them. Just don't go for the sake of a friend or take someone for company. Its your own inner journey, no one matters. Work on yourself.

For me or not?
Its for everyone. I am always happy and nothing really bothers me. Still, it hit me how uncontrollable I was with body and mind. Our group had people from all ages, 19 to 50. College students, housewives, working folks, reiki healers, yogis, americans, russians almost everyone from society. So don't think much, it will benefit you.

For long term or short term?
Its definitely a long term solution to life. After some time, you can go for other advanced courses too.


When?
Whenever you are ready, take the leap.

Sadhguru or not?
I did it without sadhguru. Isha teachers are amazing. Yes, it might be different with sadhguru. But inner engineering is not something you delay for an year. Sadhguru's wisdom soul is in program, you just need that. trust me.


How to prepare?
A week before program, don't take alcohol drugs or even unhealthy food. It always works better if you feel more light and healthy in general. There is no exertion involved but you will notice your body and mind will respond more if you feel better inside outside.

How to conduct yourself?
Okay I would say you are going for something life changing and incredibly subtle. Try wearing long tops with comfortable leggings or capris. I would not recommend nightwear just because it is comfortable.  Its not about showing skin or not, its about you being comfortable and not checking if your top is going up or pants are falling down. There is certain ease and simplicity of mind in being decently dressed.
When they serve food, try to take just one serving, don't fill yourself too much just because you feel hungry. If you are lactose intolerant, avoid yogurt.
You are not here to gossip or analyze this program. Whatever wherever applies in your life, absorb it. If you enter with a skeptical mind, you will end up with nothing. If you are really skeptical, don't go to test sadhguru, its your wish but your mind's poison might corrupt others' life journey. You lose receptivity when you doubt.
Don't keep your mobile with you, switch it off in between sessions. Don't note down anything unless they ask you. Program is designed beautifully, you just have to be there. Let loose. For once in life, trust someone fully.


What changed after this?
Well a lot of changes happened. It brought more discipline in my routine, my food my yoga my meditation my life everything is more in sync.


Finally, enter with an open mind, open heart with the willingness to accept. Thats all you need. You don't need to be devoted to sadhguru, see it like a life enhancing program, no one else looses if you decide to sit it out in resentment. Just be there for yourself.

Alcohol Cannabis out Meditation in

Whoops this post was the least expected one. I mean me leaving alcohol was kind of coming up but cannabis aah that was a life changing decision.  Honestly, cannabis brought meditation in our lives too so this is such a betrayal from our side. We dumped cannabis for spiritual trials.

Some moments, some decisions pop up suddenly with age and degrading body. Its like it's meant to be but a few years are given to reach that on your own. It was truly fun while it lasted but more important things were queued up in life.

With intoxicants, you kind of crave for them. Loads of excitement, fun, happiness does come with it but it doesn't last long then of course there's hangover. If you can be high on life without all of these, why not right?

Well, of course meditation will take time. Its a practice that needs a lot of patience. It needs mind and body alignment so this is not going to be easy but hopefully all will be worth it. Anyways, alcohol wasn't really a long term solution and cannabis creates a layer between us and mind. Honestly, everything we eat everything we drink, its all for happiness. Its important to recognize when they become just a habit. When we start drinking, smoking as a ritual not for fun, end is near. Most of us just drink on weekends so none of us are really addicts.  Exit is just a state of mind for us.

I am not going to be a hypocrite and be one of those who want to preach and ban everything they are not on. I think both of them improved my life in those moments, gave me more freedom from my small town personality, they helped me dance when I couldn't dance sober, they helped me express when I was shit scared normally, they introduced sadhguru to us. So enjoy till you can and when you feel like, you can leave them too. Just don't get addicted. Have fun with everything in control.

 Its your life, you decide but do try meditation.