Simplicity gives us peace, love, happiness, life purpose and so much more. The change within reflects the change outside. This Navratri realized it
The Navratri time is going on and garba is in the air. My daughter Nabha most of the times, lives with her dad and occasionally visits me. Yesterday late evening, she came and asked me if we could go to play garba. After several years, I went with her to play garba. It was our first Navaratri/garba event time together after she grew up. Now we are almost same size so our clothes fit to each other. She started hunting my wardrobe to wear something for garba. Since years I have not gone to play garba so I gave away all garba dresses that I once had. She felt she can wear skirt in the absence of the Ghagra choli. She got skirt to wear with matching top and dupatta. Then we started from home to Nandanvan lawns to play garba.
When we reached Nandanvan lawns, Nabha saw the fully dressed up girls there. She realized that she forgot to wear earring and necklace and she shared that with me. Then I said, "The most important thing that you can wear is a smile." Our faces had beautiful smiles and we moved ahead. I remember my college days when I used to go to play garba. I used to be all dressed up with make-up and jewelry before I went for garba. However, yesterday nothing occurred to me other than wearing a flaired (Gherwala) dress, so it’s fun to turn around while playing garba !
Once Nabha and I reached the place, we were busy in our masti, our dance, moving to the tune, aligning to the music, trying to sync with each other, making mistakes and laughing on ourselves, etc. When she is with me, its full time laughter and fun time, or its full of peace, creativity and mindfullness. With time Nabha changed and evolved. Nabha, who once hated me now feels we both are the best friends. She told me once "mumma, in spite of having daughter mother relationship and in spite of having more than 30 years of age difference, still we have one of the best relationships." This gives me immense satisfaction and contentment which words fall short to describe.
With time, my mindset changed. Of course it was not very easy journey. But its worth everything. The change in the mindset, in the inside, changes everything outside. Earlier the attention was on the dress, looks and jewelry and how we looked. And now it just doesn’t matter. The outer appearance is all maya. Maya is a Sanskrit work and there is no english word to that. The nearest to it can be spell, attachment and where our attention goes which is superficial. And when the real world is experienced, the superficial world vanishes.
Someone yesterday commented on us saying, "You both look great. Simplicity shines." And i realized then that when we become simple inside, it automatically reflects on the outside, it reflects everywhere. It reflects in looks, in what we wear, what we eat, what we think, in our relationships, in life and also how we feel.
Life is simple. We complicate it and create chaos. But we can also create simplicty. In simplicty we find our peace, harmony, awareness, stillness, happiness, enjoyment, purity, our relationships, our life purpose and also God.
Be simple, be natural.
- Manjushree Rathi
Director, ME Holistic Centre
+91 7843007413
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