From the Desk of Managing Editor: 03 June 2016

“You might question the value of such a detailed explanation, but I have a purpose, and that purpose is to force you to think, to think deeply, with intensity. Don’t confuse the word 'intensity’ with ‘tenseness'. Tenseness implies mental strain, and arises out of fear and anxiety. It is destructive to both mind and body. My use of intensity here suggests mental force or power, and its results are constructive.

Your progress depends upon your degree of sustained intensity in a given direction.”

—John McDonald from The Message of a Master 

Whenever in life we are working towards something, we want to apply a high level of mental power to what we are doing without fear; just pure, enthusiastic, creative mojo. That’s a very good thing.

If however we took that same intensity and combine that with fear plus an attachment to the results along with self-consciousness and overthinking, you are heading for nothing other than a huge amount of stress and eventual burnout. Stress and tension seem to creep in when we get too attached to outcomes. So when you find yourself over trying or getting overly tensed about anything in life, that’s a good time to step back and think about how much you would enjoy doing the same things without being attached to the outcomes.

Having said that, once you have established that frame of mind, you need to ensure that you work towards your goal with the fullest intensity.

June marks the month of Matariki—the start of a new phase of life. It is a time of festivity for Maori, the tangata whenua, or first people of New Zealand.

Matariki is an important time in the Maori calendar and is associated with the start of the cold season when the pataka kai (food storehouses) are full and the land is at its most unproductive. Matariki is also a celebration of people, language, spirituality and history. It is the time when people gather to share kai (food), rituals, entertainment, hospitality and knowledge.

Every year, this month is celebrated with events involving theatre, comedy, music and dance, arts and crafts, including carving and weaving, passing on knowledge and history, traditional ceremonies and family activities. I hope everyone is able to take the time out this month and catch atleast one such activity.

Matariki is also viewed as a signal of what kind of year lies ahead. If the stars are clear and bright, it is a sign that the year ahead will be warm and bountiful. If they are hazy and shimmering, a cold, unproductive year is expected.

For the Maori, this is also a time to reflect on, acknowledge and celebrate the year gone by, to show respect for the land and learn about it, to remember the whakapapa (ancestry) who have passed on to the next world, and the legacy they have left behind . It is a time to turn to the future, welcome the new generation to the world and make plans for the year ahead.

Let's make this month a fresh start and mindfully move ahead in whatever endeavour we may wish to achieve with full intensity.

Until next time.

Giri Gupta