Expert Advice for Safety of Women

1) What should a woman do if she finds herself alone in the company of a strange male as she prepares to enter a lift in a high-rise apartment late at night?

Experts Say: Enter the lift. If you need to reach the 13th floor, press all the buttons up to your destination. No one will dare attack you in a lift that stops on every floor.

2) What to do if a stranger tries to attack you when you are alone in your house, run into the kitchen.

Experts Say: You alone know where the chili powder and turmeric are kept. And where the knives and plates are. All these can be turned into deadly weapons. If nothing else, start throwing plates and utensils all over. Let them break. Scream. Remember that noise is the greatest enemy of a molester. He does not want to be caught.

3} Taking an Auto or Taxi at Night.

Experts Say: Before getting into an auto at night, note down its registration number. Then use the mobile to call your family or friend and pass on the details to them in the language the driver understands .Even if no one answers your call, pretend you are in a conversation. The driver now knows someone has his details and he will be in serious trouble if anything goes wrong. He is now bound to take you home safe and sound. A potential attacker is now your de facto protector!

4} What if the driver turns into a street he is not supposed to - and you feel you are entering a danger zone?

Experts Say: Use the handle of your purse or your stole (dupatta) to wrap around his neck and pull him back. Within seconds, he will feel choked and helpless. In case you don't have a purse or stole just pull him back by his collar. The top button of his shirt would then do the same trick.

5} If you are stalked at night.

Expert Say: enter a shop or a house and explain your predicament. If it is night and shops are not open, go inside an ATM box. ATM centers always have security guards. They are also monitored by close circuit television.

Fearing identification, no one will dare attack you.

After all, being mentally alert is the greatest weapon you can ever have.

Please spread it to all those women u care & spread awareness as this is the least we can do for a social & moral cause and for d safety of women.

The Art of Giving - Everyone Must Know

"Rivers do not drink their own water, nor do tree eat their own fruit, nor do rain clouds eat the grains reared by them. The wealth of the noble is used solely for the benefit of others!

 

Even after accepting that giving is good and that one must learn to give, several questions need to be answered.

 

The first question is:
When should one give? 
We all know the famous incident from Mahabharat.
Yudhisthir asks a beggar seeking alms to come the next day. On this, Bhim rejoices that Yudhisthir his brother, has conquered death! For he is sure that he will be around the next day to give. Yudhisthir gets the message.
One does not know really whether one will be there tomorrow to give!
The time to give therefore is now.

 

The next question is:
'How much to give?'

One recalls the famous incident from history.
Rana Pratap was reeling after defeat from the Moghals. He had lost his army, he had lost his wealth, and most important, he had lost hope, his will to fight. At that time, in his darkest hour, his erstwhile minister, Bhamasha, came seeking him and placed his entire fortune at the disposal of Rana Pratap. With this, Rana Pratap raised an army and lived to fight another day.
The answer to this question how much to give is:
"Give as much as one can!

 

The next question is:
'What to give?'
It is not only money that can be given away. It could be a flower or even a smile.
 
It is not how much one gives but how one gives that really matters. When you give a smile to a stranger that may be the only good thing received by him in days and weeks!

 

"You can give anything but you must give with all your heart!"
One also needs answer to this question  whom to give?
Many times we avoid giving by finding fault with the person who is seeking. However, being judgmental and rejecting a person on the presumption that he may not be the most deserving is not justified.

"Give without being judgmental!"

 

Next we have to answer:
'How to give?'
Coming to the manner of giving, one has to ensure that the receiver does not feel humiliated, nor the giver feels proud by giving.
 
In giving, follow the advice 'Let not your left hand know what your right hand gives? Charity without publicity and fanfare is the highest form of charity.'

'Give quietly!'

While giving, let not the recipient feel small or humiliated. After all, what we give never really belonged to us. We come to this world with nothing and will go with nothing. The thing gifted was only with us for a temporary period. Why then take pride in giving away something which really did not belong to us?
Give with grace and with a feeling of gratitude.

 

"What should one feel after giving?"
We all know the story of Eklavya. When Dronacharya asked him for his right thumb as "Guru Dakshina, he unhesitatingly cut off the thumb and gave it to Dronacharya.  
There is a little known sequel to this story.
Eklavya was asked whether he ever regretted the act of giving away his thumb. He replied, and the reply has to be believed to be true, as it was asked to him when he was dying.
 
His reply was "Yes! I regretted this only once in my life. It was when Pandavas were coming in to kill Dronacharya who was broken hearted on the false news of death of his son, Ashwathama, and had stopped fighting. It was then that I regretted the loss of my thumb. If the thumb was there, no one could have dared hurt my Guru?

 

The message to us is clear.
Give and never regret giving! 

And the last question is:
'How much should we provide for our heirs?'
Ask yourself 'are we taking away from them the gift of work? - A source of happiness?
The answer is given by Warren Buffett:  
"Leave your kids enough to do anything, but not enough to do nothing!"

 

I would conclude by saying:
Let us learn the Art of Giving,
and quoting the Saint Kabir:
"When the wealth in the house increases, when water fills a boat, throw them out with both hands!"
This is the wise thing to do!

The Frogs

A farmer came into chinese town and asked the owner of a restaurant if he could sell him a million frog legs. The restaurant owner was shocked and asked the man where he could get so many frog legs! The farmer replied, "There is a pond near my house that is full of frogs - millions of them. They all croak all night long and they are about to make me crazy!" So the restaurant owner and the farmer made an agreement that the farmer would deliver frogs to the restaurant, five hundred at a time for the next several weeks. The first week, the farmer returned to the restaurant looking rather sheepish, with two scrawny little frogs. The restaurant owner said, "Well... where are all the frogs?" The farmer said, "I was mistaken. There were only these two frogs in the pond. But they sure were making a lot of noise!"

1- Next time you hear somebody criticizing or making fun of you, remember, it's probably just a couple of noisy frogs.

2- Problems always seem bigger in the dark. Have you ever laid in your bed at night worrying about things which seem almost overwhelming like a million frogs croaking? Chances are pretty good that when the morning comes, and you take a closer look, you'll wonder what all the fuss was about.

Gift of Existence

There lived a Sadhu who regularly used to give discourses. One day at the end of the discourse he was talking of being grateful to existence. ``Operate from a space of gratitude, `Kritajna'. This will allow us to expand.'' a beggar was sitting in a corner and listening to the discourse, he came up to the Sadhu and said, ``Maharaj, your talk was great. But one thing I am not able to do. You said to be grateful to the existence because it has always showered benediction on you. Sorry! But, existence has not given me anything. I am struggling even for one roti''.

The Sadhu said, `` I agree with you, I will give you two lacks, right here, will you be grateful?' The beggar was thrilled.

``But I want something in return from you'', said the Sadhu. ``I do not have anything, what can I give you? If I have something I will definitely give you.'' said the beggar.

``I won't ask you anything that you do not have'', said the Sadhu. The agreement was made.The Sadhu said, ``I will make arrangements for the two lacks; you please give me both your eyes."

The beggar was astonished. ``What will I do with these two lacks without my eyes! I don't agree to the deal,'' he said. ``I prefer my two eyes to the two lacks''.

The Sadhu said, ``but you said you don't have anything and were cursing existence.'

This is a beautiful story. Two eyes he had, then two hands, two legs, stomach etc., He is already a multi millionaire. But all these gifts we do not see. For the beggar, money was very important.That we can see is such a great gift of existence. We can hear. We can walk. All are great gifts. If you say you are unhappy, it is ridiculous. In fact we should dance and celebrate that existence has given us so many gifts.

We are normally focused on what is missing in life. The moment you start operating from what you don't have, whatever you have also go into darkness.

Being Positive

You cannot instantly change the situation by being positive about it. What you can instantly change is your perspective, and that will give you an enormous advantage.

Even when there's no good justification for being positive, be positive. Because it is always far superior to the alternative, and gives you maximum power and effectiveness.

Being positive is a choice you can make that will connect you to the best possibilities. Being positive forces you to also be positively creative.

When things are difficult, do you really want to make them even more difficult by being negative? Choose instead to realistically see the situation for what it is, and then to be positive about moving forward from it.

Eventually, somebody is going to change things for the better, and it might as well be you. Think and see and do from a positive perspective and create good, meaningful value.

By being positive you are being powerful, useful, thankful, compassionate, sincere and highly effective. Make the choice to be positive, and truly make the world a better place.

Are you Coffee, Carrot or an Egg?

A daughter complained to her father about life and how things were so hard for her. She did not know how she was going to make it and wanted to give up. She was tired of struggling. It seemed that as soon as one problem was solved, a new one arose.

Her father, a chef, took her to the kitchen. He filled three pots with water and placed each on a high fire. Soon the pots came to a boil. In one he placed carrots, in the second he placed eggs, and the last he placed ground coffee beans. He let them sit and boil, without saying a word.

The daughter sucked her teeth and impatiently waited, wondering what he was doing. In about twenty minutes he turned off the burners. He fished the carrots out and placed them in a bowl. He pulled the eggs out and placed them a bowl. Then he ladled the coffee out and placed it in a bowl.Turning to her he asked. "What do you see?" "Carrots, eggs, and coffee," she replied.

He brought her closer and asked her to feel the carrots. She did and noted that they were soft. He then asked her to take an egg and break it. After pulling off the shell, she observed the hard-boiled egg.

Finally, he asked her to sip the coffee. She smiled as she tasted its rich aroma. She said, "What's the point?" He explained that each of the items had faced the same adversity - boiling water - but each reacted differently. The carrot went in strong and hard. But after being subjected to the boiling water, it softened and became weak. The egg had been fragile. Its thin outer shell had protected its liquid interior. But after sitting through the boiling water, its inside became hardened. The ground coffee beans were unique, however. After they were in the boiling water, they had changed the water.

"Which are you?" he asked his daughter. "When adversity knocks on your door, how do you respond? Are you a carrot, an egg, or a coffee bean?"

Help before it's TOO LATE

LET’S SHOW our love while we can, while people need us. That is something I learnt from an incident in Bhopal .

I saw a little boy daily near the Hanuman temple, always in a white tee and black pants, with a small Hanuman pendant around his neck.

He sat with a basket of fresh floral garlands. Be it at six in the morning or nine at night, he would try his very hardest to sell his wares.

I was a frequent temple goer and each time the boy would ask me earnestly to buy a garland. But somehow I never did. Even when I came out, he would follow me to my car, begging me to buy one at least.

Other boys sold flowers too, but none as persistently as he. I went back to the temple recently after a gap of some months.

The boy was there, seated exactly as before. I tried to avoid his gaze(look), assuming that he would follow me. But he did not budge(move).

I went inside the temple and came back. But the boy made no effort to sell his garlands.

I thought he was angry or just showing his own self-respect.

I suddenly missed the communication. I always had with this unknown boy and went to him. He looked at me but did not speak.

This was strange. I gathered courage and asked: “Dear, why are you not asking me to buy your garlands?”

He said, “Bhaiya, why should I ask? You are rich but you can’t spend five rupees on my garland. Anyway now I am not so desperate. My sister was suffering from cancer and I had to work for her medicines. My father had left us. My mother makes the garlands and I sell them. We used the money for my sister’s medicines. She passed away two months ago. You can now take one for free.”

I bought them all. But I felt so small. I still repent that I did not respond then when he tried so hard.