Letter to my Guru: Celebrating Each Breath

My Dear Dr Venkat

A very happy birthday to you!!! I am so grateful to this Universe and the mother who brought you into this world to spread love and wellness in this world.

This is what you said last year on your birthday – “Every breath is a new birth. So it’s a birthday for all of us, all the time.”

Last year (2015) had been the year which taught me so much through you, through your words, under your guidance. The year started or I would say it continued its course from the previous year jerks and when I did not slow down it just pushed me forcefully from the mountain where I was standing. Down I went in few hours to an end , to death. I would not say I saw any light in the dark tunnel as many have seen in the near-to-death experience. I do not remember one whole day of my life – may be it was a transition period from death to a new life. For a new beginning and for a new life to start, there has to be an end to the previous one.

The new beginning, the new start of a new life started that day. I could see my husband, my parents, my family and my friends all with a smile when I entered this new life. But there was a fear in their eyes behind that glow, there was a worry behind those smiles which they would have gone through in last 30 hours. I know you were also so much worried about me constantly taking updates from Mumbai but it was you who had given me the strength, it was you who had filled in me the vitality towards life which helped me fight and be born again. I was happy to gain my breath back. It was scary two days back to that day when I was struggling for each breath.  It was a sad ending but a happy beginning.

It is almost a year now. The new journey started that day but the fear and the worry in those eyes were constantly haunting me. And then I, with my husband beside me as always, decided we would juggle our priorities putting our health first. You made us realize that self care and self love adds vitality to life.

Our own experiences made us realize the real meaning of the phrase that we all have learnt from childhood “Health is Wealth”. All our dreams, our ambition, our aim everything comes after health. Everything else can wait. Without health there is no life. We all have seen in our families or around us how impaired health of one member of the family can affect the whole life of other family members. I have seen it since my childhood, in my extended family.

We were ready to miss other things happening in the world. And why not? We have ignored ourselves, our health for last 30 years running behind other things. We can ignore “other things” for this wonderful creation of nature – our body. We are so grateful to you for making us realize how beautiful our body functions. We all appreciate nature, the creation of nature – the forest, the flowers, the wildlife, the mountains, the river but we forget to love and appreciate one of the beautiful creation which is always with us – “Our Body” – “The Self”.

If it was not you we would not have embarked on this journey with the FAITH that like every creation of nature, our amazing body would also grow(heal) if we nurture it with love and care. No life long or life threatening illness can take over this wonderful creation if it is nurtured with right inputs at right time. It is like nurturing that dry plant with sunlight, water, love and faith and in few days it is alive and green.

You with your love and care helped us realize that when we love and appreciate something/someone, we spend more and more time with them. When we spend more and more time with them, we start knowing them better. In our case it was “THE SELF” -> “OUR BODY”, “OUR SOUL”, “OUR MIND”, “OUR EMOTIONS”, “OUR THOUGHTS”.

As I am knowing myself more and more, I am feeling that all these years I was living a superficial life, it was a superficial “ME”. And I owe this new life and the new (rediscovered) “ME”, my new breath, my new birth to you Dr Venkat. I wanted to tell all this to you sitting in front of you but I was late. Nevertheless I know you can still listen to me.

Love you, Love you, Love you

Voice of Dr Vijaya Venkat

Late Dr Vijaya Venkat is the founder of The Health Awareness Center, Mumbai. These letters are a tribute to her letting her know how she has impacted our life which I could not share with her when she was present physically with us. This is also an attempt to let the world know how she had a profound impact on our life through her teachings, her guidance.