ADDICTIONS STORY

 

ADDICTIONS STORY

 

 

Serenity Prayer

God grant me the Serenity to

Accept the things I cannot change

Courage to Change the things I can

AND

Wisdom to know the Difference

 

(All Alcoholics Anonymous meetings commence with this prayer)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Mind and Addictions

Spirits to Spirituality

 

‘Courage is the ladder on which all the other virtues mount,’ — Clare Boothe Luce.

It requires enormous courage to acknowledge our deficiencies and make a 360-degree change in our personality to be acknowledged and acceptable. Normally, we live in a state of denial.

Man is a social being who seeks recognition and positive strokes. Only a sage or an insane person does not seek attention. In the course of personality development, various bottlenecks are encountered.

 

H. H.Sri Sri Ravi Shankar says, ‘If you can win over your mind, you can win over the whole world. Only the presence of the Master will bring fulfilment to your life and all your relations.’ Body and mind are the precious gifts of nature. And we neglect them leading to physical and psychological disorders.

 

We torture our bodies through various forms of addictions, be it excessive sex, smoke, substance, alcohol, food, desire for power, etc. The mind is cluttered with innumerable thoughts which impede clarity in thinking. Most of our thoughts are pessimistic in nature. These thoughts are either fretting about our past or anxiety of what is expected in the future. We are never in the present moment. Living in the present moment is a state of meditation and almost devoid of desires where nature works wonders. How does one reach ‘being in the present state’? There are several techniques and each one finds his or her path.

When I became an alcoholic and a heavy smoker, it had a deleterious impact on my mind and body. I was hospitalised, operated upon and put into rehab. Simultaneously, the relationship with family, friends, parents and my place of work was jeopardised.

My dalliance with alcohol lasted for more than 15 years. Basically, I was at war with myself. I could not pursue my areas of interest — theatre and writing— and had to settle for a job in the government (Indian Railway Traffic Service). I was selected to the Indian Police Service but was dissuaded from joining that too. This added to my frustration as I felt that I had lost out on POWER. Slowly, I hit the bottle and the situation worsened.

 

I overcame addiction through various Art of Living Programmes. The fulcrum of all Art of Living programmes is the unique breathing technique called Sudarshan Kriya (Proper Vision Process) which has magical curative powers. Today, by the grace of the Master, I am an Art of Living Teacher as well.

Breathing techniques and meditation are extremely powerful and can harmonise the body, mind, thoughts complex. Srinivas Iyengar says, ‘Breath does not mean air taken in and exhaled, but the prana (subtle life force) that is the magnetic current of breath.’

 

Spirits to Sudarshan Kriya —A Spiritual Sojourn

Astrologers and soothsayers blamed my problem and misfortune on planetary configurations and the stars, clairvoyants postulated theories that it was bad fate- Karma, science opines that alcoholism is perhaps genetic. Well, some relatives had been alcoholics. An uncle fought back through the fellowship of Alcoholics Anonymous and others regretably succumbed. The fact of the matter was that I had a severe drinking problem and like all alcoholics was in denial mode.

 

Substance abuse, smoking and alcohol have a calamitous effect on human body, mind and soul. Rehabilitation is an arduous and painstaking task which necessarily requires Divine intervention. Science would vouch for professional help. But the addict is absolutely oblivious to any help

and is cocooned in his world of self-denial and arrogance, refusing any form of help and closes all doors. I have seen it happening with myself and a few colleagues who sadly succumbed to the lethal disease. When the addict surrenders to Divine mercy, that professional help works as a miracle.

Those struggling to cope with addictions and really desirous of a 360-degree change in their lives should invariably and without any hesitation clutch the hand of the Divine, whose manifestation is a Guru, in order to survive and help themselves and their loved ones.

 

Today, I recall those wintry weekends of Bikaner, when I hit the bottle after performing a part of my official duties where I was in charge of passenger and freight operations. In fact, railway operations involve a 24×7, 365-days’ effort. All those involved have to be extremely sharp and alert and here I was mixing my work with alcohol. A typical weekend meant speaking to my bosses at Delhi with a mixture of false bravado but primarily trepidation, over several packets of cigarettes, taking a quick shower, a light breakfast and then settling down with my precious bottle of gin.

 

Later in the afternoon, I would settle down with yet another bottle of gin. All through, spar with supposedly non-performing staff, quibble with my wife and shout at my children and literally sleep over lunch, while the telephone from the railway control office would be ringing incessantly. The pattern continued. It was a strange fixation with the drink. I vomited only to drink more. One could call it drinking bulimia.

 

As the sun sank in the deserts of Rajasthan, shadows lengthened in our railway bungalow; the prestigious Palace on Wheels chugged along, coal rakes were being supplied to powerhouses, gypsum and food grain was getting loaded and I was trying to handle the second bottle of gin. As a routine, it became one and a half bottles of gin on weekdays and over the weekends there were two bottles. Nothing to trumpet about. It was a wretched life to lead, no friends, no social gatherings — it was only alcohol. Whenever we were invited for lunches or dinners, my family was absolutely petrified as a drunk and violent person accompanied them for the outing.

This was the scenario every weekend and holiday. My mind was always desperately pining for that bottle of gin. Why Blue Riband Gin? The fact was that I thought gin did not stink. Gin is euphemistically referred to as a lady’s drink, but the stuff has almost 40 per cent alcohol in it.

It is indeed a matter of surprise to me as to how the official establishment accepted and tolerated me. I reckon it was the deep prayers of my mother, grandmother and those of my wife — though she was losing faith in the Divine and lamenting her fate.

Year after year, starting somewhere in 1995 to end-2006, I was drinking like a fish and smoking like a chimney. And this was across all my postings on various railway systems and different places. The consumption was 2 bottles of gin; around 3 to 4 packets of Wills Navy Cut and several packets of Pan Parag (I hoped that it would camouflage the odour). Essentially, I was revolting inside. My body, mind and soul were all tormented and I was looking for an elusive succour. Perhaps I was enjoying the pain. However, the guardian angels and the Almighty were protecting me.

 

Some time in November 2003, my wife registered my name for the Part 1 course of the Art of Living at Jaipur, which I attended. Upon completion of the course that Sunday, I rang up my mother and could discern palpable happiness and gratitude in her voice. After years, her son had spoken in a sober condition over a weekend. Tears of gratitude flowed for the Master, H.H. Sri Sri Ravi Shankar. She had by then seen Gurudev at a Satsang in Hyderabad, apart from watching his discourses on television. However, I was still to give up drinking.

A few years later, in 2010 when my mother met Guruji, the only question he asked her was, ‘Amma, are you happy?’ I had quit drinking by then.

It is essential that a participant who undergoes the Part 1 course (now called the Happiness Programme) should attend the weekly follow up of Long Sudarshan Kriya apart from practicing the short Sudarshan Kriya every day without fail to derive full benefits of the programme. The participant should also attend various programmes from the bouquet of courses designed by Guruji and imparted by the

 

Art of Living Foundation. Unfortunately, I did not attend the weekly follow-up schedule, nor did I attend the Advanced Meditation Course. Though the organizers of the course were quite considerate in agreeing to accommodate me as a non-residential participant in a residential programme, so that my dependency on Bacchus would reduce. My mind was transfixed as to how I would be able to survive the evenings without alcohol and the desperation for cigarettes during the day. Primarily, these were all self-erected impediments which I had yet to overcome.

 

Though I did not attend the weekly follow-ups nor participate in any other course of the Art of Living, by the grace of Gurudev, I continued to practice the Sudarshan Kriya at home daily. Why that happened, is a mystery! My wife and father took me to a liver specialist in Hyderabad a few years later. The doctor exclaimed and wondered as to how I was moving around given my history of drinking! My answer was that I practice Sudarshan Kriya every day (despite consuming alcohol), drink plenty of buttermilk and consume Liv. 52. She acknowledged that the technique did have immense therapeutic value and benefits.

 

Several medical practitioners agree that this rhythmic breathing technique increases the level of prana (Chi), helping it to virtually permeate into each cell of the body. The week-long Kriya session imparts a tremendous boost to the immune system and totally detoxifies the human body. Studies conducted at AIIMS, NIMHANS and several other hospitals have corroborated this point of view.

During my stint at Guntakal (in Andhra Pradesh), I happened to visit the Mutt of Sri Raghavendra Swami at Mantralayam. The alcoholic mind smuggled a bottle of gin and a few cigarettes into the precincts of the holy shrine. After paying obeisance at the shrine, I was desperate to consume liquor in my room at the Mutt. I was shocked to see the bottle absolutely empty. There was no crack in the bottle nor was the seal tampered with or broken, yet the entire alcohol was spilt outside on the carpet and my clothes. Only my puja material and the notes of part 1 of the Art of Living course which I had jotted down at Jaipur were spared. To me, this was a strong manifestation from the divine. This was no hallucination, but a clear message sent to me by

Sri Raghavendra Swami and Guruji that enough was enough! I had to singularly abstain from drinking. The seeds of change were being slowly implanted.

Some months later, as the winter chill was setting in, November 2006 to be exact, I started having apparitions of H.H. Sri Sri Ravi Shankar and Sathya Sai Baba virtually every day, exhorting me to give up alcohol. Now, these are things which a rationalist, atheist, or even science would ridicule. But those nights were quite wretched. I was drunk and kept dreaming of Gurudev and Baba. Through all of this, every morning, even though I was literally a zombie, I practised Sudarshan Kriya. Then quite miraculously, by the grace of the Master, I stopped drinking in early December 2006. It is once again purely his grace that I have not touched alcohol despite all provocations. It is now nearly ten years of sobriety.

 

Upon quitting drinking, I did various Art of Living courses. I recall during one mega Advanced Meditation Course, Guruji met all the participants. I broke down and thanked Gurudev for pulling me out of the morass, the quagmire that I had been in. So did another youngster sitting next to me, from the IT field. We did not know each other, yet by a strange coincidence happened to be sitting together at Vishalakshi Mantapam (at the Art of Living International Centre, Bangalore). Interestingly, we both had emerged from alcohol dependency and were at the feet of the Master. I think that is what Gurudev does when a person surrenders unflinchingly. One has to surrender, bow down and leave all the impressions gathered over a period of time, and then the magic works!

 

Guruji asked me to share my story with the whole world in order to motivate them to take to this path of Happiness. By his grace several railway men have done the course across the length and breadth of this country with startling benefits. We have testimonials of drivers giving up smoking, drugs and alcohol. Similarly, loco pilots who could barely sleep and only saw signals in their dreams, now enjoy a sound night’s sleep. This has been videographed by a former Divisional Railway Manager of Tiruchirapalli Division. Similarly, the office staff of Divisional Railway

 

Manager, Bangalore, had to undergo a lung function test. Smokers, who had undergone the part 1 course of the Art of Living, were surprised to observe there was no trace of tobacco in their system unlike smokers who did not participate in the programme. Such is the power of the Sudarshan Kriya. If the Indian Railways is the lifeline of the nation, Sudarshan Kriya is the life force. Regular Sadhana and surrender to Gurudev has transformed the lives of millions across the globe. Let everyone experience His grace.

 

In February 2014, I travelled with Guruji by a special train- Sri Sri Express. The moment we crossed Kurnool district of Andhra Pradesh Guruji gave me Prasadam from Mantralayam. I was taken aback and reminded of the incident at Rayar’s Mutt (Raghavendra Swami’s Mutt), where I had carried liquor into the holy precincts. I thought to myself if Rayar taught the theoretical aspects of the science of breath, Guruji provides the practical explanation. In a flash it dawned on me that it is only divinity which transcends body, mind and spirit.

 

Guruji spreads waves of happiness and transforms lives of millions. This grace should keep flowing across the globe.

 

Clean your Lungs — No Smoking Please

 

A few years ago, an Irish gentleman and some others were partying at our house. While drinks were permitted, cigarettes were a taboo. An occasional drink was a relaxation, so to say. This Irish gentleman had survived a plane crash and had given up smoking, thanking his stars and the Almighty for this new lease of life. A few years later, he once again survived a plane crash and restarted smoking. I reckon he lacked in gratitude.

 

A short while ago, I met a junior in service who kicked smoking in 2000, but once again resumed smoking 11 years later. Why do we smoke? Peer pressure, just to chill or to relax? There is no definitive answer. However, it is a weak mind which cannot resist the temptation. But all smokers agree that smoking is dangerous to their health. Not only theirs but also that of their family members and those in close in proximity.

WHO estimates that in 2014, approximately 6.4 million deaths occurred on account of tobacco consumption. Apparently,100 million people have perished over the course of the 20th century because of smoking and tobacco-related diseases. There is an apt Japanese proverb that ‘Fear is only as deep as the mind allows it to be’. Despite realizing the dangers of smoking and consumption of tobacco-related products, many of us fall prey to the temptation.

 

The United States’ Centre for Disease Control and Prevention describes tobacco use as ‘the single most important preventable risk to human health in developed countries and an important cause of premature death worldwide.’ Several countries have adopted stringent measures to control the consumption of tobacco with the usage and sale restrictions as well as bold warning messages printed on the packaging.

 

While our vénérable Parliamentarians do not agree to the passage of GST (Goods and Service Tax)* to kickstart the economy, they are however in unanimity not to print the prohibitive and horrific pictures on the products which would otherwise scare the prospective consumer+. Without doubt, the tobacco lobby in India is brazen and emboldened to carry on the sale of their dangerous products. In fact celebrities such as sports personalities, filmstars and others should refrain from endorsing tobacco and alcohol products completely. That should be their minimum social responsibility.

 

Certainly tobacco is one of the single greatest cause of preventable deaths globally. It affects the heart, liver and lungs of human bodies. Smoking is a major contributor for heart attacks, COPD (Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease). This includes emphysema and chronic bronchitis. I recall an incident when an officer (who was both an alcoholic and smoker) in railways who was charred to death in a state of stupor.Such tragic human foibles lead us to hubris as we fail to love and appreciate life.

 

Smoking causes cancers of the larynx and the mouth, hypertension and also pollutes the environment. Secondary smoking is equally debilitating for the passive smoker. WHO argues that cigarettes sold in underdeveloped countries tend to have a higher tar content and are less

likely to be filtered, potentially increasing the vulnerability of tobacco and smoking-related diseases.

Given all these negatives, people still consume tobacco and smoke. To begin with, a person planning to quit smoking should find a powerful reason to stop smoking as his mind remains in a state of denial. The individual should realize that both he and his family needs to be protected.

Is the addict not being self-centred by not caring for the family? Louis Hay says, ‘By choosing loving, joyous thoughts, I create a joyous, loving world. I am safe and free.’ The addict is neither safe, nor free, or joyous.

 

The human brain is wired to this addiction to nicotine. It is the withdrawal symptoms which play havoc on the physical and psychological self. The addict needs to consult a counselor, take medication or join self help groups like smokers–anonymous to be free from this addiction. The craving for that ‘one drag’ needs to be challenged at any cost. It would be sagacious on the part of the smoker or tobacco addict to fix a goal of not smoking at all for a certain period of time and see the results and benefits. Make a solemn promise to the self and family that smoking is injurious to health and therefore resolve that whatever may be the provocation, he would avoid smoking. It would be worthwhile to look at the financial cost of the packet and savings that could accrue by quitting smoking. The amount of money saved in a day, a week, a month, a year by abstaining from smoking would be manifold.

 

Simultaneously, the addict should avoid triggers like coffee, caffeine, tea and alcohol. Invariably, an addict lights up a cigarette while consuming triggers. Instead, I would recommend taking to exercise, long walks and developing hobbies to divert the mind from consuming tobacco products and smoking.

 

A smoker should clear his office room and house of those innumerable stubs and see the garbage accumulated over a period of time. Just clean the environment of the existing stench and appreciate how fresh the air could be despite the existing pollution.

 

I would strongly recommend breathing techniques like Nadi Shodhan Pranayama (alternate nostril breathing), Sudarshan Kriya, meditation and yoga and other Art of Living courses to overcome this malady. An addict becomes addicted to a healthy and holistic way of life and accumulates positive thoughts. Such positivism spreads and permeates to the millions of cells in our body and acts as a change agent.

There is a saying, ‘If you want to walk fast, walk alone, and if you want to walk far, walk with someone.’ So an addict can walk with the Art of Living to overcome the habit. That is what Guruji calls Sangachadwam (Let us Move Together).

 

*The process for the implementation of GST is now underway, following the amendment to Article 122 of the Constitution.

+The pictures printed on Indian tobacco products (bidis etc) are yet to conform with world wide norms.