To view this newsletter in the browser, click here                 Issue #147       A newsletter from Creativegarh to help you live a life of passion, purpose and meaning.         The divine play of life. The journey from ego to higher self.                     Life.           It’s a Leela. A play of the divine, but in your limited beingness, you see it as a battlefield where relationships have to be mended, bills have to be paid, children have to be educated, skills have to be learned, texts have to be responded to, critics have to be ignored, uncomfortable conversations have to be had and the fear of failure and success has to be dealt with.           And if this was not enough, you have desires, dreams, wants, needs. You are pulled apart in all directions, wanting the comfort of entitlement, the ambition of name and fame, the approval of your loved ones and the avoidance of things that make you feel less and unworthy.           As much as you want to, you can’t escape from this life. You have to throw yourself into the moshpit. Renunciation is not the answer. Action is. The right kind of action—not of indifference but of detachment. Not to create evil, but to create a space for love and harmony in this world. Action that mitigates the fear, pays the bills, responds to the texts and has the hard conversations you have been avoiding.           You can rein in your desires or let them run amok. With the calmness of your mind, you can navigate through this battlefield or allow ego to play its devious games. But then, sooner rather than later, you crash into the highway of life, leaving behind a debris of everything you never even knew you could be. The truth lies there, in a pool of blood and gore, waiting to be realised.           You are confused. This is not what you had signed up for. This is that moment in your life when you seek answers: what should I do? Should I leave my responsibilities or stay? Should I follow my calling or stretch my legs in comfort? Should I ask for help or manage this life on my own? You’re torn between duty and desire, action and withdrawal, self and ego.           And one day, confused, you fall and life brings you to your knees. You surrender and ask the divine to take over and the divine does. He doesn't pick up the weapons for you in this battlefield but drives you, nudges you and guides you—being your saarthi.           This divinity is not a being but a state of being—your inner wisdom, the divinity within, your higher Self, your divine clarity. He is the inner guru, the witness-self (sakshi), the intuitive clarity that knows your dharma when your ego is blind.           You are never alone, says the divine being. Go, fight in this battlefield like it's play and just be my instrument. Do it not for reward or escape, but because it’s your purpose to bring peace and love.           The battlefield of life is Kurukshetra.           The battlefield within is Dharmakshetra.           Desires, needs, wants, dreams are the horses.                 How much ever you keep breaking, your glue will improve with time.                      At the age of 6, someone will break your favourite toy. You will feel as if your world has fallen down, shattered and splintered into two halves right down the middle. Once you are done with self-pity and the pain of the first loss, you will find the glue to put the toy together again. The glue is called, “the show will go on.”           At 16, someone will break your trust. You will learn to never be vulnerable and you will find a way to cope by suppressing your feelings and never, ever again being truthful. You will eventually find a way to forget the insults, to find a glue to put yourself together. This glue is called, “do whatever it takes to survive.”           At 26, someone will break your heart. You will feel as if your world has been ripped open, you will be dumbfounded, broken, exhausted and ready to give up. Once you are done crying over your fate, you will find the glue to put yourself and your heart back together again. The glue is called, “fk it.”           In a few more years, someone will break a promise, your world will come crashing down, yet again. It will exhaust you to the bone, you will be tired, worn out, fatigued, spent and you’ll be a thousand shards of fallen dreams. Once you are done picking yourself up from this trauma, you will pick up every piece, polish it, line it with gold from within and glue and put it together again. Quite like Kintsugi, you will find perfection in all your imperfections. The glue is called, “self love.”           Sooner than later, life will break you again. This time, you won’t let the world shatter. You will find the glue called “healing,” and you will rebuild yourself again. You’ll choose a different ingredient - yourself. You will choose to be stronger from the inside. You will choose your gifts, talents and purpose. You will choose to step into your own light.           You will learn that every time you have broken, you have broken down. But this time, you rise up from the ashes of self-loathing, self-doubt, guilt, shame, anger, regret, beliefs and the hard coded programming. You no longer fear the breakdowns because you know, from the breakdowns, there will come the breakthroughs.           Your glue just keeps improving with time.             Our upcoming retreats                         Kolhapur Last 6 Seats Left 10th to 16th August     Escape the city's clamor, reconnect with your inner light. Indulge in a life changing retreat, experiencing the discovery of your true self, within the arms of nature.   More details     Reignite conversation     Kasauli Sold Out 31st August to 6th September     The stunning vistas and holistic experiences at Kasauli create the perfect space for self-discovery and ensure this retreat is a transformative and unforgettable experience.   More details         Udaipur Registrations Open 29th October to 4th November     Discover joy at a 400-year-old fort nestled in the peaceful hills of Bambora. For souls in search of a purpose, it provides a perfect space to just be.   More details     Reignite conversation           This week, let's revisit     Kasauli July 2023                         Experience a life full of purpose                     The purpose of my life is to create ease in all human hearts.   Najma Shaikh Kasauli September, 2022         The purpose of my life is to transform the lives of children by unravelling the knowledge of the universe.   Aravindh M Dorrappa Kasauli, April 2022               For a daily dose of Creativegarh and our retreats, follow us here:                           Mantra Gold Coatings & The White Paper Creative         Sunita Somani         Pedal On               View Our Collabs for Joy                   creativegarh.com             You are receiving this newsletter because either you have subscribed to it through our website, interacted with us by filling an invite form or because you have asked us to put you on the database. 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