Understand before making it stick.

Last we weeks we were working with BST/KST kids on presentation skills. The discussion moved to and centered on how to make the concept of maya stick. We noticed first that we need to understand the concept ourselves. Many of the younger kids said all stuff was maya (somewhat true). We discussed if our phones were maya and they said yes. What if we lost our phones and it did not bother us at all - was the phone still maya? So the discussion went back and forth. The conclusion was that the attachment to stuff was really maya, stuff was just stuff. The key take away that everyone had was that we had to know our stuff before we made our stuff stick.

When we give presentations in sabha we are fortunate to have a syllabus. The most important thing that the syllabus does is give us concise knowledge. We need to read it and understand it so that we know our stuff on whatever the topic is.

Once we know our stuff, then we can try to make it stick (simple, unexpected, stories, emotions, credible and concrete). The syllabus might help with this part, but really it's on us to get that done. Once we have the knowledge and know our stuff, the syllabus has done its main job.

How can we make the concept of maya stick. Going back to the our phones, here is a great article that shows that the we love our phones. Literally love our phones. By imaging the brain (using fMRI) the researchers discovered that the same areas of the brain that signify love were lit up when people were shown pictures of their phone. Now that's maya.

That's a Rap

In this week's presentation, one aspect of panchvishays that we're tasked with explaining is how powerful their influence truly is.

We feel that this point is better illustrated than explained, so show the following video of how one Southwest steward decided to switch things up.



Or this one.




We all have flown before so we know what he is going to say, but the fact that the audience (and we) won't be able to direct their attention elsewhere stands testament to the power of vishays. In this case the steward only engages two vishays: sound (he is talking/singing) and touch (he wants everyone to clap). Notice also that many people cannot even see him so no sights. When all five vishays come at us, kiss self-control goodbye. Panch vishays can be engaged in any activity - good or bad. In this case it is good that everyone reminds themselves of the emergency procedure. However it would be even better if we can engage the panch vishay on Bhagwan and the Satupurush.

With respect to the presentation, Tulsidas could not have been anymore correct. Try using this as an unexpected start to this weeks talk.

How Long is a Football Field?

With the Superbowl racing up and the fate of the mighty match-up between the Saints and Colts hanging in the air, football fever is high, which is why it may seem silly to ask,

"How long is a football field?"

Duh, 100 yards, but is it?

In fact, our perception of distance can be distorted by none other than desires for the panchvishays as evidenced by a study conducted at Cornell University.

In the new study, 90 undergraduates were made to sit at a table across from a full bottle of water. Half of the participants were randomly assigned to the "thirsty" condition, and given a serving of pretzels to eat. The rest were placed in the "quenched" condition, and told that they could drink as much of the water as they wanted. Both groups were asked to indicate how long it had been since they last had a drink, how thirsty they were and how appealing the bottle of water was. Finally, they were shown a 1-inch line as a reference, and asked to estimate the distance between their own position and the water bottle.

Here's the kicker.

The participants who had been given pretzels to eat during the experiment reported feeling thirstier than those who drank the water, as would be expected. They also rated the bottle of water as being more desirable, and estimated the distance between themselves and the bottle to be smaller than did the quenched participants. Their state of thirst had influenced their perception of distance, such that the water bottle was perceived to be closer than it actually was. 

Bottom line: Their thirst distorted their perception; the thirsty thought they were closer to the water than they actually were!


In spirituality, we see the same effect. The more we indulge in panchvishays, the farther we begin to perceive ourselves from Satsang and the Satpurush. What began as a small indulgence results in a downhill decline.


Controlling desires proves key to avoiding this disastrous outcome.

So try this example out Sunday, and see how far it goes in explaining this abstract topic.

Nothing but Dust

"OMG, it's Friday, and we still need some more material to pump up our presentations!!!!"

Well, here's another dose of dynamic material that can really hype up our upcoming presentations. Take a look at the photos to the right. Cool, huh? Click here for the other two.

What exactly do these four photos show? That the passage of time hasn't really altered much. What was there in the past is more or less present now.

It's this type of cosmic awareness that really enables an Ekantik Bhakta to maintain equality amidst the panchvishays.

While we might be enamored by how attractive something looks now be it cars, clothes, or straight cash, the Ekantik Bhakta enlightenment reveals the true nature of all these things to be material and simplistic.
And now the icing on the cake, a prasang that makes this example concrete and brings the point home.

Once while in New York, some of us yuvaks and devotees went to see the Empire State Building in Manhattan. On our way back, we discussed amongst ourselves the fascinating features of the amazing building.

In the sabha that night, Swamishri put everything back into perspective for us. He said, "Just as in our country the buildings are made out of dust and gravel and bricks and stones, these buildings here are made out of the same bricks and dust. Yet we are fascinated by what we see here. But don't forget, this will all be destroyed one day too. People are amazed when they see these buildings, but in reality, all it is, is nothing but dust."

Show these pictures in sabha and make the link. Let us know how it goes on Sunday.

Attending to the Call of Nature

Distractions are the bane to any sticky sabha be it cell phones, texting, or the random uncle/auntie who walks in only to realize they are in the wrong place. But for some, it's a much more basic problem to which even a balak can relate - the bathroom run!

Now, let's imagine they could only use the stall below - would they even consider it? Suddenly, it can wait.

No joke, this stall is 100% legit in the name of art and was shared by a fellow reader. However, it's not all that bad because in reality, nobody can see you from the outside. The picture below shows a woman about to enter this bathroom. Basically you can see outside but everyone on the outside can only see their own reflection. Now ask yourself a questions - would you still go?

Going to the bathroom is one of the most basic things, we have been doing it literally all of our lives. But if we change the setting even a little - it becomes difficult, we become uncomfortable. We become aware of our body and ourselves. This is the power of maya.

A fellow sticky sabha presenter sent us the following link about this bathroom. It turns out that this viral email claiming that this bathroom is in Houston is a hoax. We find it interesting that the fake story of the bathroom is making the email forward rounds, but the real story of the bathroom as an art installation does not get any email forwarding love.

In the same way we hear about maya many times in sabha, but it does not get forwarded to our memory, it does not stick. Try showing this bathroom to explain maya - it may stick.