The next thing I am focused on is sugar in my diet. I’ve never quite looked at sugar as an ingredient by itself that is added to various items but rather as a natural part of a food item that belongs there. So, it is clear why I hadn’t thought about its separation from the food and elimination of it entirely. Now I can’t quite look at any food the same way! I separate the sugar from a particular food and realize how much of it there really is in a small piece of food item or dish. It’s unbelievable. I was never one not like sugar but at the same time was not craving it incessantly either. Now, that I am more aware of its presence in everything, I have become more mindful of it! Ahhh, I love being mindful. It makes me feel like I am here and now. The only place I need to be right now. The first step I’ve taken towards mindfulness of sugar is I have cut it out of my morning coffee. Period. No artificial sweeteners, just plain coffee and milk. Now, I used to think not too long ago, “how can anyone drink coffee without sugar, yuk!” Well, I have surprised myself. I now drink (or can) coffee without any sweetener. This I have to attribute it to my reading the book “Eating Mindfully” which taught me to truly be aware and be mindful of what I am eating. Its taste, texture, color, smell and how it feels as I swallow it are what I focus on when I eat or drink anything. When I had my first cup of coffee without sugar/sweetener, I truly knew what coffee really tastes like without masking it with sweetness. I became familiar with the true taste of how coffee tastes, smells and feels with every sip. It was wonderful! So, this is what coffee tastes like, I thought. Since then, I have continued the cut-off and it has been a great experience. I have not had the desire to add it back in. It takes about three weeks to form a habit (good or bad) and be patient and cultivate a good one. I feel so privileged to be able to enjoy a fresh original taste of coffee.

After this experiment, I can’t help but think about how much sugar is added in a cup of tea in India!! It should be illegal. If sugar prices were raised for sugar, its consumption would be reduced significantly.

I’ve been very mindful lately of mindfulness. I like the way this sounds. Have you ever thought how you went through life not knowing or wanting to know something so significant to life itself? I did just that on the practice of mindfulness. How could I not have heard about or come across this earlier? But mindfulness is the exact opposite of such quandaries. Of course, I cannot leave out the fact that after listening to the audio book ‘The Power of Now’ and reading ‘A New Earth’, I’ve become mindful of things. So, in being aware of what is going on inside myself, I’m discovering new things I’ve never before come across.

This often occurs where as soon as you hear, read or see something of interest and learn more about it, you are bombarded with it afterwards. I’ve learned that to be true. Now I come across books, articles, movies, clips, etc. on mindfulness. So, in this way while browsing through a magazine I found this book called ‘Eating Mindfully’ to be interesting. I bought it and read the entire book in a couple of weeks…I know not a couple of days as I still need to learn a lot about focusing and being mindful without being distracted. It’s a daily practice.

So, what is eating mindfully? Mindfulness is pure awareness. Mindful eating is eating with full awareness. When you are eating you are aware of the food itself, smell, texture, quantity, portion, color and your own body’s needs. You are aware of your hunger and where the hunger comes from. It is about why you are eating. Are you hungry? How hungry are you? What portion or food would satisfy this hunger at this time? Do you have the craving to eat because you just passed by bakery or saw a picture of a fresh looking slice of pizza? Or do you want to eat because someone in the office brought in muffins and they are sitting there ever so near you? These are some of the questions you need to be aware of at the time you are about to get something to eat. Learning why and how to eat and not so much what to eat. Why eat? This is a very good question to ask yourself as soon as you have the feeling you want to eat. You need to eat to satisfy yourself and not stuff yourself or be overly full. How you eat is very important. Eat slowly, chew thoroughly and enjoy your food. Be aware of the taste, smell, texture, color, shape, how it feels in your mouth while you chew it and notice the need to swallow before chewing completely. Be aware of all of that. After being aware of it each time you put a bite into your mouth it will become second nature. You will find that you are satisfied after eating half the amount you ate before because you saw what you ate and chewed it thoroughly.

Here are some tips to keep in mind:

• Be kind to yourself
• Do not make internal negative comments
• Wait until you are hungry to eat
• Eat whenever you are hungry
• Tune into your body to recognize the hunger and what type it is
• Think about what would satisfy you at this time and eat that particular food
• Sit down to eat with a smaller portion than you normally would
• Eat without distraction of reading, TV, music, talking
• Look at the food and the portion
• As you take your first bite, chew it thoroughly until it is mush
• Put your fork, spoon down between bites and enjoy each bite
• Be aware as you swallow and as the food enters your stomach
• You should start to feel satisfied as you take a few bites
• After a few bites, ask yourself how hungry you still are
• Stop eating when you are 3/4 full
• After 20 minutes you may feel completely full as it takes that long for our brain to send the message
• Visualize the food going into your body and how it will be used for energy
• Be aware of how your stomach feels and becomes fuller as you eat and hunger dissapating

I have been trying to focus on being aware of these points. I find that if I listen to my body and mind they are sometimes very different in what they say. My mind may want chocolate but my body does not care one way or another. Although I find that if I eat it mindfully, I really do not want a whole lot after all. A small piece or a bite or two satisfy me as I savor it. I try not to deny myself of much unless it is unhealthy. In the process I’ve adopted a healthy eating habit.  I visualize what is inside the food and how it will affect my body and react with it. I picture fries and visualize the oil inside of it as it is being fried, the oil on my fingers, the oil that erupts in my mouth as I bite it, and in my stomach.

This can be a daily awareness exercise from morning to your last meal of the day.

There is so much to revere in the subject of mindfulness! Years ago, when I was an adolescent, I was in India at my grand- parent’s house visiting them. While there, my simultaneously young cousin comes out from a closed room. I wondered what she was doing in there by herself. She revealed the mystery on coming out and said in our native Gujarati, “I meditate for 20 minutes every day.” I didn’t think much about it at the time nor did I ask questions. She said when she meditates for 20 minutes, she feels as relaxed and rested as if she had slept for 8 hours of blissful sleep. However, we all know that sleeping does not always equate to getting the rest we need. We toss and turn, have dreams, nightmares and do not always sleep well through the night. Years later, I cannot help but clearly remember her words and how true they were now that I too meditate and know more about it and its benefits. Although I still wonder how she became interested in meditation at such a young age. I wonder if she still meditates! I will definitely be asking her that the next time I see her.

I’ve become really interested in meditation and pranayam as of late and cannot help but realize there is so much goodness in it that is at our disposal if we choose to take advantage of it. In my travels, I came across this little book called “The Miracle of Mindfulness” by Thick Nhat Hanh. If you want to learn and are curious about what mindfulness is, read this book! Mindfulness IS meditation. You will be surprised as to what meditation really is and how it can be practiced. I truly enjoyed this book.

Photo courtesy of www.eckharttolle.com

Like me, if you’re a fan of Eckhart Tolle’s teachings, you may have heard that Eckhart Tolle TV is launching its membership to the public on June 1, 2009. See Eckhart Tolle TV Site. It’s an exciting venue to be able to have access to his teachings, seminars, talks, Q&A and more and bring the community together for forums as well. I had hoped that I would not have to travel to one of his meetings or simply read his books as I really enjoyed him speak on the subject on Oprah.com webcasts. He has a peaceful, soothing way of talking about the most difficult topic of awakening and awareness. Upon listening to him though, it does not seem as difficult and the world begins to feel they can do this for themselves and the community. It’s a great new beginning and I’m very excited!

My favorite spiritual teacher Eckhart Tolle will be on national TV channel PBS for the first time in March 2009. All you Eckhart Tolle fans, please check your local listings for the date/timing in your area. The program is titled “Eckhart Tolle: Awakening in the Now.” Tolle is the author of books “The Power of Now” and “A New Earth.” I have read both of these books and I highly recommend it to everyone! It has changed my “thinking” and the way I live my daily life and I wish everyone can learn something from these books even if it’s just one small change. It will open your eyes and mind to things that you already know but are too busy to realize because you are busy “thinking” about “more important” things.

Check current broadcast schedule for the upcoming program in March 2009.

Shanti (i.e. peace) in the movie, there was none of. There was however, music, tragedy, drama, comedy, romance and of course Shah Rukh! I recently saw “Om Shanti Om”, a 2007 Indian movie and I have to say, I enjoyed it for the music yet not so much for the story itself. The movie had terrific foot tapping music that livens the whole room. One cannot help but to dance to the tune. The movie featured Shah Rukh Khan and a debut of Deepika Padukone. She did a great job and has good screen presence. All the songs are good, but the song “Main Agar Kahoon…” is one of my favorites! You can sample it here Listen and watch “Main Agar Kahoon”. Have you seen this movie??

Photo courtesy of www.eckharttolle.com

Well, I’ve suggested to all of my friends and readers of this site to take advantage of one of the best books I’ve ever put my hands on…and that too by chance. I tried to think back how and when I came to know about this book and how I became interested in it which led me to buy this amazing book and the webcasts on Oprah.com simultaneously! I couldn’t quite figure out what led me to this, other than it was meant for me to read it, that I was ready to be awakened and was ready to absorb what Eckart Tolle had to say in this book. I believe you stumble upon things that are meant for you to experience and the finding of this book is one such incidence. I have always been interested in spiritual reading but I have never read a simple, clearly written book like “A New Earth…Awakening to Your Life’s Purpose.” I recently finished reading the book and I loved it. I immediately wanted to start reading it over again the second time because there must be some things in it that I may have missed. There is a lot of good to take away from this book and I am sure I will discover new things as I read it again. I highly recommend this book to everyone. Read the first chapter and see if it grabs your attention. If if does, read on, if not, then you are likely not ready yet. The webcasts are still available on Oprah.com as is on iTunes for download. These are interesting segments as the author, Eckhart Tolle and Oprah discuss each chapter of the book. I feel that I was to read the book because I discovered his first book “The Power of NOW”, heard the audio version of it a couple of weeks before this one and then very soon after, heard about the webcasts on Oprah.com. It fell into place nicely and I really enjoyed the experience.

Photo courtesy of www.exoticindiaart.com

If you’re of an Indian origin…or Indian, you’ve often asked yourself this question. Or better yet, you’ve wondered why your fellow Indians are the way they are! After all, that is what this book is about - lack of self-regulation and pouring all the obligation on others and not taking responsibility for change. Written by V. Raghunathan, an academic at IIM ( Indian Institue of Management), Ahmedabad for two decades. He uses the props of game theory and behavioral economics to give an insight into this most difficult question: Why are we the way we are?

“Game theory is nothing but economists’ term for what psychologists call the theory of social situations. And behavioral economics is the interaction between psychology and economics that tries to explain how human limitations and complexities affect choice.” In the book, our rationality, irrationality, selfishness, egotism, competition and our aversion to cooperation and collaboration are explored and discussed. He talks about how a little self-regulation can change the face of the largest democracy in the world. Why are we so individually smart and collectively naive?

This is a very interesting book and a quick read which will satisfy the soul such as mine who has always wondered if there was anyone out there that wondered and asked the same question? Well, there is and I am glad! The author discusses why we cut queues, throw garbage in our neighbor’s yard, drive with high beam at night, cut red traffic lights and other interesting queries. Check out the book if you’re curious - it’s available from sellers of Amazon.com!

Based on a true story. After graduating from Emory University, top student and athlete Christopher McCandless abandoned his possessions, gave his entire $24,000 savings account to charity and hitchhiked to Alaska to live in the wilderness. Along the way, Christopher encounters a series of characters who shape his life. This is one of the best films I’ve seen and loved every minute of it! It is one film everyone must see as we tread through this materialistic society, world and everyday life searching and acquiring for things that we perceive to fulfill our void, not knowing the void. It is a pit that is never filled nor satisfied and we are trapped in a whirlwind of “fitting in” type of society. I was ecstatic as I watched this film. I couldn’t believe there is a movie I would love so much. It coincides very well with the topic of my site, in particular, with “simple living.” It is right in line with Oprah and Eckhart Tolle’s webcast every Monday night on Eckhart’s book “The New Earth.” I wonder what else I will discover in the coming weeks that repeat the same message to me!?

Year: 2007
Director: Sean Penn
Cast: Emilie Hirsch, Marcia Gay Harden, William Hurt, Jena Malone

Photo courtesy of www.mastermindnewmedia.org

I have been thinking about podcasting since I first heard/encountered them on various websites. I found them to be very interesting little pieces where instructions, stories, real conversations were recorded and uploaded to the web much like any written content or article. They are not very difficult to create and a lot of fun if you like to add some “life” to your message. Vocally, you can add tone and facial expressions which will come across to listeners.

So, here is my first podcast I created where I am reading a miniature Zen story. Do you have any ideas on the type of podcasts that might be interesting, beneficial and worthwhile? Your comments are always welcome!