Journey towards the Goal

One midnight a call was received! It was a voice from within, beckoning to visit a place which remained unaccomplished until the last 19 years. On the earth, temples are the spots that become powerful due to accumulation of positive energy over the period of time. The temples built in the olden days have a myth and a story to tell: about Devas, Asuras, gods, demons and so on. So is Sri Kollur Mookambika Temple. It evokes interest in everyone to know about the myth behind the temple.

Once upon a time, (as natural as it is) a saint and an Asura were worshipping Lord Shiva. Asuras are portrayed as villains who destroy the Earth and Devas as heroes who rescue the globe from evil hands. Both worshipped so hard that Shiva would appear in front of them at any moment. Goddess Parvathy, the better half of Shiva, was perturbed. She knew that if her husband is appeased, he would grant any wish blindly. She foresaw the peril awaiting the world if the Asura is given the vision of Shiva. She intelligently interfered and made the Asura dumb. Consequently, he failed to ask for the wish once Shiva appeared before him. Henceforth, the deity at Mookambika is named 'mooka ambika', goddess who turned the Asura dumb. 

Back to the present from myth! The journey to Mookambika started at 3. am on the Republic Day. At times, our mind believes what we feed it with. We knew that the distance to be covered is 500 kms approximately from the starting point. But the destination entered on to the GPS was Mahe! (A heaven on Kerala where petrol is sold with a price nominally less than the fuel sold out in our neighborhood!). We filled our tank and felt contented for we saved some Hundred rupees. A typical Malayalee attitude indeed! Next destination was Kasargode and then Kannur. Every time you enter the next finishing point, GPS keeps showing a duration of 2.30 hrs. Thus, when the proposed finishing point was touched, we didn't feel exhausted. Once the journey got back to the first starting point, it was really shocking to discover that the travelling time in 48 hours was 23 hours! In short, out of two days, a whole day less an hour was spent on driving. Oh, my goodness! 

Recently, I happened to listen to the audio book on Buddha: Spirituality for Leadership and Success. The description was simple and easy to follow. It does not merely speak about spirituality, but, how spirituality can be intertwined with day to day affairs. How to have a goal driven life together with inner peace is the crux of the book. The author emphasizes on being the controller of inner domain. What happens outside is not under our control. But what happens within us is entirely under our control. The author shares an incident from Buddha's life. One day a man spat on Buddha. Disciples of him were enraged with this action. While Buddha stayed calm and did not react at all. His explanation was that, it is his choice to react or not!

The author puts the burning issues faced by the present time on discussion. He says that people of the time hardly live in the present. They are either hooked to the past or dragged by the future. Brooding over the past causes regret and anxiety will be the result of thinking about future. The only way out to this common disorder is to live in the present. This can be accomplished through practice. Breathe in often and exhale slowly. Bringing back the consciousness to the present. Concentrating on one's breath will abruptly bring one to consciousness. 

In life, we come across traffic jams. Looking at the crowd from the end of the line, one might ever wonder if one will be able to cross the path through the bustling vehicles. But there had been plethora of road blocks we have overcome. The only smart way to touch one's destination is not to look at the traffic ahead, but to the nearest spot one can cover. While setting goals, we can have a step-by-step leap rather than jumping to an unattainable height by skipping the steps and breaking the back or gaping and gasping with the thought of the steps to climb.

No journey is undertaken without a cause. There will definitely be a fruit waiting at the end. Grabbing the fruit reveals that the journey has not come to an end, but the finishing point is the starting point for the next accomplishment. There goes the goals of life. Endless.  

Ms. Saritha. K, Head, Dept. of English, Al Shifa College of Arts and Science, Kizhattoor, Perinthalmanna.