• Deal of the day: 

The Deal of the day concept originated in July 2004. This is a concept where a site only sells one product every day, and the products that they sell are all deals.

• Group buying: 

These website depend on bulk orders to get greater discount. In these sites, like-minded people come together to get deals that a user can never get by buying single products.

• Scouting: 

Some sites don’t sell any product themselves. Instead they direct users to different sites where the best deals are available.

• Interactive: 

Some of the sites interact with members to find out deals from members, and encourage them to post comments, feedback, and updates.

Best deals website can use one of these approaches or a combination of the described solutions. However, with the advent of social networks and advanced technology, one of the things that is common across most of the best deal sites is that they enable users to be updated of new deals in networks like Twitter, and Facebook and the level of activity on these Social Media sites is the prime selling point to the clients. As Diwali is approaching near and the shopping mood is on I have listed down the following best deal websites in India that helps you get the best when looking for the best.

48 Best Deals Indian Sites 

Listed below are 48 best deal sites that are popular across India. Though the following websites are listed under deal sites India, they sometimes have similar sites across the world to that cater to the products available in the region. In no particular order these are the latest and hottest website in the Indian Deal Sites scenario: 

1. Mydala: 

 mydala located in New Delhi founded in 2010, is a platform that gives users great deals in their city leveraging the power of group buying. MyDala has partnered with more than 60 popular businesses across India to provide deals on restaurants, shopping, health and beauty, recreation, services, and events. Presently the city it serves includes Mumbai, New Delhi, Bangalore, Kolkata, Pune, Hyderabad, Chennai, Ahmadabad, and Chandigarh. The site is active on social network sites Facebook (4,120 likes) and Twitter (8.272 followers).

2. Deals and You: 

Deals and You, like mydala, is a group buying portal. It covers deals on what to see, eat, and buy in some of India’s leading cities. In India, DealsAndYou.com offers its services in Delhi, Mumbai Bengaluru and all major cities. While it plans to expand its presence to the top 10 cities in India by the end of this year. The site is active on Facebook (119,700) and Twitter (478 Followers)

3. SnapDeal: 

 SnapDeal is one of India’s largest deal-a-day site. It is a service that drives large number of customers to retail businesses, by offering one very attractive deal everyday (upto 90% off). Presently the city it serves include, Bengaluru, Chennai, Mumbai, Pune, Kolkata, Hyderabad, Ahemdabad, Cochin, Coimbatore, Surat, Lucknow, Mysore, Vadodara, and Vishakhapatnam. The site is highly active on Facebook (74,165 likes) and Twitter (478 followers).

4. Taggle– : Taggle founded in 2010 is a new internet company that is here to make life a little more fun and a lot more affordable. It brings you a variety of offers from some of the most respected brands in the country. Presently the city it serves includes, Bengaluru, Chennai, Mumbai, Pune, Kolkata, Hyderabad, Ahemdabad, Cochin, Coimbatore, Noida, and Kochi. The site is active on Facebook (178,715 likes) and Twitter (83 followers).

5. Daily Deal 

– DailyDeal aggregates and recommends the best daily deals in your city. It collects all the great daily deals from Snapdeal, Koovs, Mydala and 13 other providers for users to choose from. Presently the city it serves includes Ahemdabad, Bangalore, Chandigarh, Chennai, Pune, Mumbai, Delhi, Gurgaon, Hyderabad, Jaipur, and Kolkata. The site is also active on Facebook (232 likes) and Twitter (51 followers).

6. Upto 75 – 

Upto75 based in Hyderabad was founded in 2008 displays deals, offers, sales, coupons and discounts currently on offer to retail buyers. Shoppers save money, experience the fun of choices while shopping and avail unbelievable deals up to 75%. Presently the city it serves includes Bengaluru, Chennai, Mumbai, Pune, Kolkata, Hyderabad, Ahemdabad, Cochin, Coimbatur, Noida, Faridabad, Chidambaram, Calicut, Ghaziabad, Paranur Village. The site is also active on Facebook (1282 likes) and Twitter (188 followers)

7. 24 hours loot 

– 24hoursloot based in Pune was founded in 2010 is an online store for selling a new t-shirt (sometime other products) everyday at deep discounted price in limited quantity. An item is released every midnight at 12AM Indian standard time, seven days a week. If that item sells out during its run (in 24 hours), a new item will not appear until the next release time. It presently offers services anywhere in India. And the site is active on Social Network sites like Facebook (1553 likes) and Twitter (1947 followers).

8. Flipkart 

– Flipkart based in Bangalore was founded in 2007 offers an exciting new way of buying books online in India. While the idea itself is not new, they have put it on steroids by offering low prices, free shipping and an intuitive interface to help you search for all your favourite books. It presently offers service anywhere in India. And the site is also active on Social Network sites Facebook (499,900 likes) and Twitter (2033 followers). The site is majorly accessed for its best book deals.

9. Aajkacatch 

– Aajkacatch based in Hyderabad was founded in 2009 has a mission to provide you the most unique, useful and qualitative product at a very low price. So that you can now shop without the hassles of clustered products. It also aims to provide an environment where you would feel safe about shopping online by building trust through a quality driven work ethics. It presently offers service anywhere in India. And the site is also active on Social Network sites Facebook (4,890 likes) and Twitter (426 followers).

10. Loot More –

 Lootmoe is an online store that exclusively focuses on selling cool quality stuff at cheap prices. Here you’ll always find the latest and greatest brands at prices you can afford. They feature one product for sale per day, every day, at an attractive low price. The feature product goes live at precisely midnight and is available for 24 hours and no more, unless sold out prior. It presently offers service anywhere in India. And the site is also active on Social Network sites Twitter (452 followers).

11. Koovs 

– Koovs based in Bangalore was founded in Dec, 2009 is a place to find and buy all kind of products at a much discounted price. This gives you the possibility of choosing the best deal from the best service provider and grab discounted koov (coupon) available only on the website. Presently the city it serves includes, Bangalore, Chennai, Mumbai, Pune, Kolkata, Hyderabad, Ahemdabad, Cochin, Coimbatore, Surat, Lucknow, Mysore, Mangalore, Vadodara, Indore, and Singapore. The site is also active on Social Network sites Facebook (7424 likes) and Twitter (949 followers).

12. Dealivore 

– Dealivore based in Hyderabad was founded in 2009 is all about that, getting you the best deal that you cannot find anywhere else. These are not run of the mill discounts that you see everyday-but unbeatable and exclusive deals from their retail partners. Presently the city it serves includes, Hyderabad, Chennai, Bangalore, Pune and Mumbai. The site is active on Facebook (182,933 likes) and Twitter (100 followers).

13. Mob Street –

 Mobstreet based in Mumbai was founded in January 2010 is social commerce platform selling products and services in “Deals” format at best price. They put up deals for Restaurants, Pubs, Cafes, Spas, Salons, Movies, Theatre, Nightlife, Music/Dance, Sporting Events, Adventure Sports, Outdoor Activities and Workshops, New Launches and Upcoming Events. It presently offers service anywhere in India. And the site is also active on Social Network sites Facebook (2440 likes) and Twitter (90 followers).

14. Masthi Deals 

– Mastideals based in Chennai was founded in February 2010 is a deals site designed by a bunch of folks who are behind the successful launch of various social networking initiatives right from friendster days. The team is always excited about the power of community right from charity initiatives to getting better deals on great products. Presently the city it serves includes, Chennai, Bangalore, and Hyderabad. The site is active on Facebook (125 likes) and Twitter (26 followers).

15. Buy the price 

– Buytheprice based in Hyderabad is an online shopping portal that will change the way you shop. Buytheprice not only uses innovative technology so that consumers have a fast and easy transaction but introduces the concept of ecommerce 2.0. majorly deals with Mobile phones, Computer and accessories, Cameras and accessories, Music and video players, Lifestyle & accessories, TV/LED/LCD, Home and kitchen applications. It presently offers service anywhere in India. And the site is also active on Social Network sites Facebook (3,267 likes) and Twitter (135 followers).

16. Deal Magic  

– Dealmagic based in New Delhi helps to connect the best businesses in a city to thousands of its coolest customers. Customers get exposure to the best their city has to offer, at unbeatable discount deals (50-90% off). It features only the absolute top restaurants, fashion brands, spas and retail outlets are extended this unique opportunity. Presently the city it serves includes Delhi, Bangalore, Gurgaon, Chandigarh, Chennai, Mumbai, Pune, Kolkata, Hyderabad, and Jaipur. The site is active on Facebook (1748 likes) and Twitter (3 followers).

17. Scoopstr – 

Scoopstr based in Bangalore is a social buying site that helps you and your friends try new experiences at extraordinary prices. You get 50% to 90% savings on the most exclusive restaurants, events, hotels and spas in your city. Presently the city it serves includes Bangalore, Mumbai, and New Delhi. The site is also active on Facebook (156 likes) and Twitter (13 followers).

18. Grabbon – 

Grabbon based in Bangalore is a deal

site that tries to harness the collective buying power of the online community in

a way that benefits all. Grabbon feature deals on the best stuff to do, see, eat, and buy in your city. They intend to host the best-in-class service providers atunbeatable prices. Presently the city serves only include Bangalore, and has a plan to expand soon.

19. Offer Dable : 

This website offers discounts offers in Mumbai on electronics, food, entertainment, beauty, travel apparels, health, and more.

20. Discount Box : 

This website offers discounts in Bangalore, Delhi-NCR, Mumbai and Pune. Helps you browse through different deals by category and businesses. 

21. So Sasta: 

This offers deals in Ahmadabad, Bangalore, Chandigarh, Chennai, Delhi-NCR, Hyderabad, Jaipur, Kolkata, Mumbai, Nagpur and Pune. Referring a friend to the site can earn you Rs.100. It allows you to make your own deals and vote on them.

22. Deal Drums : 

This is a deal site that offers different kinds of discounts around Hyderabad, and also provides you Rs.50 just for signing up to the site. You can get daily discounts on spas, restaurants, salons, food, hotels, gyms, travel and more.

23. Deals online 4 u : 

This site identifies itself as a fully professional Indian deal aggregator site. They list all the best deals from other deal sites like Kochi, Indore, Surat, Lucknow, Delhi – NCR, Mumbai, Banglore, Pune, Chennai, Hyderabad, Chandigarh, Kolkata, Ahmadabad, Jaipur, and others.

24. Bindaas Bargain: 

This site provides a new deal every day. According to the website it is India’s first one-deal-a-day online shopping.

25. Deals Guide : 

Provides deals on a range of products including computers, electronics, entertainment, fashion, food, mobiles, travel, health and beauty, and other offers. It also provides discount coupons for daily deals to like Ahmedabad, Banglore, Chandigarh, Chennai, Delhi, Kolkata, Mumbai, Pune.

26. Buzzintown Deals: 

This site is for deals in Delhi (NCR), Bangalore, and Mumbai. It has a list of today’s deals and deals that were offered in the past. The site also encourages you to invite friends and earn 50 buzz credits. The site offers deals on weekend getaways, spas, merchants of repute and so on.

27. CityOffers.in: 

This website helps you buy the best deals in Ahmadabad, Banglore, Bhubaneswar, Chandigarh, Chennai, Delhi – NCR, Hyderabad, Indore, Jaipur, Kolkata, Mumbai, Pune, Mumbai, Surat, Vadodara, and others. Every day the site brings one of two deals between 12.00PM and 11.59AM. However, these deals could sometimes be for over 24 hours.

28. Coupon2Buy  : 

This website helps you buy the best deals in Ahmadabad, Banglore, Chandigarh, Chennai, Delhi – NCR, Hyderabad, Jaipur, Kolkata, Mumbai, Pune, and others. This website posts Group Buy deals that are negotiated at bulk buy prices. It provides anywhere between 40% to 90% savings on the most exclusive restaurants, events, hotels and spas in your city.

29. Coupons on Mobile : 

This site offers deals to people in Agra, Ahmadabad, Amravati, Amritsar, Banglore, Bhopal, Bhubaneswar, Chandigarh, Chennai, Chittoor, Cochin, Coimbatore, Dehradun, Delhi – NCR, Guntur, Guwahati, Hyderabad, Indore, Jaipur, Jalandhar, Jammu, Kolkata, Lucknow, Ludhiyana, Mangalore, Mathura, Meerut, Mumbai, Mysore, Nashik, Navi Mumbai, Nellor, Pondicherry, Pune, Rajkot, Surat, Vadodara, Vapi, Varanasi, Vijaywada, Vishakapatnam. This deal site does not require printout of the coupon. Once a deal is bought, your registered mobile and email ID will receive a unique coupon code. Showing that code will enable you to redeem the deal.

30. Dealface : 

At this point the deals offered in this site are for Mumbai alone. However, it will expand to other cities soon. The site provides exclusive coupons and discounts up to 90% on spas, salons, restaurants, fashion stores and more.

31. Deal on Pune : 

As the name suggests this site provides discounts in Pune. The discounts could be as high as 90% on different deals like massages, restaurants, hotels, spas, theatres and more.

32. eBay Kuponan : 

The site provides interesting discounts in Mumbai and Delhi. It provides everyday deals that get counted down. It also gives you the opportunity to buy stuff from the rest of the world.

33. Fandoo Deals : T

his site offers deals to people in Agra, Ahmadabad, Amravati, Amritsar, Bangalore, Bhopal, Chennai, Delhi, Dewas, Gwalior, Hyderabad, Indore, Jaipur, Kanpur, Kolkata, Lucknow, Ludhiyana, Meerut, Mumbai, Nagpur, Nashik, Patna, Pune, Rajkot, Surat, and Vadodara. This site provides one deal with a great discount each day. After buying a deal if you share the deal and 5 other friends also buy the deal, then you have the opportunity to get your own free deal.

34. Foodome.infoodome.in : 

This site provides discount deals on food all across Chennai. The deals include discounts on different restaurants across Chennai.

35. GroopOffers : 

This site offers deals to people in Ahmadabad, Bangalore, Bhubaneswar, Chandigarh, Chennai, Delhi-NCR, Goa, Hyderabad, Jaipur, Kolkata, Mumbai, Pune, Surat, and Vadodara. This site offers deals on most things like all other sites, and also gives travel and properties deals. It was created to be a virtual shopping mall to the consumers empowering them the benefits of Collective Buying.

37. MasthiDeals : 

This site offers deals to people in Bangalore, Chandigarh, Chennai, Delhi-NCR, Hyderabad, Kolkata, Mumbai, and Pune. Launched in 2009, the site had made a dramatic change in February 2010. It aims at providing irresistible deals for customer.

38. MastSale : 

This site offers deals to people in Bangalore, Chandigarh, Chennai, Delhi-NCR, Gurgaon, Hyderabad, Kolkata, Mumbai, Noida, and Pune. Provides sale of the day, and alerts for people who have registered. The site provides discounts on apparels, accessories, food, health and beauty products, and much more.

39. Offer Bean : 

This site offers daily deals to people in Bangalore, Chandigarh, Chennai, Delhi, Hyderabad, Indore, Jaipur, Kolkata, Mumbai, Patna and Pune. It offers daily discount on a host of things. It also shows old items deals, product details, and recent details.

40. Rediff Deals  : 

 Mumbai, Delhi, Kolkata, Chennai, Bangalore, Hyderabad, Secunderabad, Agra, Ahmedabad, Allahabad, Amritsar, Aurangabad, Bhopal, Bhubaneswar, Chandigarh, Cuttack, Faridabad, Goa, Gurgaon, Guwahati, Indore, Jabalpur, Jaipur, Jamshedpur, Jodhpur, Kochi, Kolhapur, Lucknow, Ludhiana, Nagpur, Nashik, Patna, Pune, Raipur, Ranchi, Varanasi, Vijayawada, and Vishakhapatnam. It provides daily deals on a whole bunch of things.

41. : 

This site is available for people in Delhi, Jaipur and Chandigarh. It provides a host of discount on hotels, spas, saloons, and much more. You can earn about Rs.500 by inviting friends to the website.

42. Times Deal : 

This is available to people residing in Delhi-NCR, Mumbai, Pune, Kolkata, Chennai, and Bangalore. Provides city specific discounts every day.

43. Urban Gain : 

This is available to people residing in Delhi-NCR, Mumbai, Pune, Chandigarh, Jaipur, Kolkata, Hyderabad, Chennai, and Bangalore. The site provides great deals of the day and last minute deals for a whole range of information including spas, saloons, tattoos, jewellery and so on.

44. Voucher Wow : 

This site offers daily deals on different aspects to Mumbai, Delhi and Bangalore. You can get daily updates in your email inbox just by signing up and get up to 90% discounts in your city.

45. Web Kolkata Deals : 

This is a deal page that advertises deals that are available across Kolkata. It provides a range of deal including, spas, sliming and beauty clinic, hotels and restaurants, and much more.

This website provides one deal a day. It provides you the facility to pay when the item gets delivered (also called Cash on Delivery). It provides its users the best competitive offers for products that are in demand.

this site provides daily and weekly discounts on a host of items. The categories they sell are apparels and accessories, bazaar coins, beauty and fashion, car accessories, computers and accessories, electronics, fun stuff, games and toys, health and personal care, mobile phones and more.

This is a site that promotes exclusive auctions on brands that you use and promises saves as high as 99%. This is yet to be launched but already has a lot of promotion.

Death is the most fateful experience of each of our lives. But no Hindu really fears death, nor does he look forward to it. Death for the Hindu is merely transition, simultaneously an end and a new beginning. Over two thousand years ago Saint Tiruvalluvar wrote that "Death is like falling asleep, and birth is like awakening from that sleep." In one of the ancient languages of our religion, the physical body had a name which literally meant "that which is always dropping off." When key truths are understood and accepted about the nature of the soul and the cycles of birth, life, dying, death, afterlife and rebirth, all sense of foreboding and fear of death perish. Here we explore those realities.

For Hindus, death is nobly referred to as mahaprasthana, the "great journey." When the lessons of this life have been learned and karmas reach a point of intensity, the soul leaves the physical body, which then returns its elements to the earth. The awareness, will, memory and intelligence which we think of as ourselves continue to exist in the soul body. Death is a most natural experience, not to be feared. It is a quick transition from the physical world to the astral plane, like walking through a door, leaving one room and entering another. Knowing this, we approach death as a sadhana, as a spiritual opportunity, bringing a level of detachment which is difficult to achieve in the tumult of life and an urgency to strive more than ever in our search for the Divine Self. At death we drop off the physical body and continue evolving in the inner worlds in our subtle bodies, until we again enter into birth. We are not the body in which we live but the immortal soul which inhabits many bodies in its evolutionary journey.

Our individual soul is the immortal and spiritual body of light that animates life and reincarnates again and again until all necessary karmas are created and resolved and its essential unity with God is fully realized. Our soul is God's emanational creation, the source of all our higher functions, including knowledge, will and love. Our soul is neither male nor female. It is that which never dies, even when its four outer sheaths change form and perish as they naturally do. The soul body has a form just as the astral body has a form, but it is more refined and is of a more permanent nature. It is this body which reincarnates, creating around itself new physical and astral bodies, life after life after life. This process matures and develops the body of the soul. The body of the soul is pure light, made of quantums. It is indestructible. It cannot be hurt or damaged in any way. It is a pure being, created by God, maturing its way to Him in final merger. The body of the soul is constant radiance. Its mind is superconsciousness, containing all intelligence, and is constantly aware, does not sleep and is expanding awareness as the soul body matures. The body of the soul lives in the eternity of the moment, simultaneously conscious of past and future as a one cycle. The true nature, everlasting secure personal identity, is realizing oneself as the soul body. This is truly finding our roots, our source, our indestructible, ever-maturing soul.

In Sanskrit, the bodies of our being are called kosa, which means "sheath, vessel, container or layer." They are the sheaths through which the soul functions simultaneously in the various planes of existence. The kosas, in order of increasing subtlety, are as follows: --annamaya kosa: "Sheath composed of food." The physical body, coarsest of sheaths. --pranamaya kosa: "sheath composed of prana (vital force)." Also known as the etheric or health body, it coexists within the physical body as its source of life, breath and vitality, and is its connection with the astral body. --manomaya kosa: "Mind-formed sheath." The lower astral body. The instinctive-intellectual sheath of ordinary thought, desire and emotion. --vijnanamaya kosa: "Sheath of cognition." The mental or cognitive-intuitive sheath. It is the vehicle of higher thought, understanding, knowing, direct cognition, wisdom, intuition and creativity. --anandamaya kosa: "Body of bliss." The intuitive-superconscious sheath, the ultimate foundation of all life, intelligence and higher faculties. Anandamaya kosa is not a sheath in the same sense as the outer kosas. It is the soul itself.

The term "astral body" names the subtle, nonphysical body in which the soul functions in the astral plane. The astral body includes the pranamaya kosa, the manomaya kosa and the vijnanamaya kosa.

As the physical forces wane, all the gross and subtle energy goes into the mental and emotional astral body. If the person was prepared for death, sudden or otherwise, his mental and emotional astral body would have already been well schooled in readiness. Sudden death to such a soul is a boon and a blessing. At death, the soul slowly becomes totally aware in its astral/mental bodies, and it predominantly lives through those bodies in the astral dimension. The soul functions with complete continuity in its astral/mental bodies. It is with these sensitive vehicles that we experience dream or "astral" worlds during sleep every night.

When the physical body dies, this automatically severs the subtle silver cord that connects the astral and physical bodies. This cord is an astral-pranic thread that connects the astral body through the navel to the physical body. It is a little like an umbilical cord. During out-of-the-body experiences, this silver cord is often seen as a cord of light connecting the physical, astral and spiritual bodies. When the cord is cut at the death of the physical body, the process of reincarnation and rebirth begins. The Vedas say, "When a person comes to weakness, be it through old age or disease, he frees himself from these limbs just as a mango, a fig or a berry releases itself from its stalk."

It is painful to the astral body to have the physical body cut or disturbed seriously within seventy-two hours after death. The soul can see and feel this, and it detains him from going on. As soon as you tamper with his physical body, he gets attached, becomes aware that he has two bodies, and this becomes a problem. Ideally when you die, your physical body goes up in flames, and immediately you know it's gone. You now know that the astral body is your body, and you can effortlessly release the physical body. But if you keep the old body around, then you keep the person around, and he is aware that he has two bodies. He becomes earthbound, tied into the Pretaloka, and confused.

The Sanskrit, loka, means "world, habitat, realm or plane of existence." Hinduism describes three primary lokas, as follows. --Bhuloka: "Earth world." The world perceived through the five senses, also called the gross plane, as it is the most dense of the worlds. --Antarloka: "Inner or in-between world." Known in English as the subtle or astral plane, the intermediate dimension between the physical and causal worlds, where souls in their astral bodies sojourn between incarnations and when they sleep. --Karanaloka: "World of God," and of the Gods and highly evolved souls, existing deep within the Antarloka at a higher level of vibration. It is a world of superconsciousness and extremely refined energy, the quantum level of the universe.

Subdivisions of the Antarloka are: --Devaloka: "Place of radiant beings." The higher astral plane, or mental plane, the realm of "angels." --Pretaloka: "World of the departed." The realm of earth-bound souls, or ghosts. It is an astral duplicate of the physical world and closest to it. --Narakaloka: Abode of darkness. The lower worlds, realm of "demons." Equivalent to the Western term "hell," a gross region of the Antarloka. A congested, distressful area where beings suffer the consequences of their own misdeeds in previous lives. Described as a place of torment, pain, darkness, confusion and disease. Narakaloka is not a place where souls reside forever. Hinduism has no eternal hell.

Where the soul goes in the astral plane at sleep or death is dependent upon his earthly pursuits and the quality of his mind. If the soul body itself is evolved, it will occupy the astral/mental bodies in the Devaloka. If somebody dies in the states of anger and fear, he goes into the lower worlds of those states of consciousness. And in that realm there would be hundreds of thousands of people in that same state of consciousness. The thoughts at death are the next samskaras of the astral body. Even if you have the thought, "When you're dead you're dead," your astral body might just float over your physical body and be "dead." A lot of people who are about to die do not believe in life after death, so they remain hovering over their physical body when it is lifeless. Astral-plane helpers have to come and "wake them up" and tell them that their physical body is dead and explain that they are all right and are alive in their astral body. It is often not easy getting them readjusted.

At death you leave through a nerve ganglia of consciousness, a chakra. Each one is a window, and at death it becomes a portal, a doorway. The tunnel of light that is experienced by so many people at the point of death is the portal they are going through, the window, the chakra. Passing through the tunnel is leaving this world and going into another. So, it is the state of mind at death that gets you into one loka or another. At the moment of death, you have the opportunity to stabilize yourself in the highest chakra you have experienced in this life. The dying should always remember that the place where one will reincarnate is the place that he is thinking about prior to death. So, choose your desires wisely. The last thoughts just before death are the most powerful thoughts in creating the next life. Secret questionings and doubt of Hindu belief, and associations with other belief systems will automatically place him among like-minded people whose beliefs are alien to Hinduism. A nominal Hindu on Earth could be a selfish materialist in the astral world. The Hindu also knows that death must come naturally, in its own course, and that suicide only accelerates the intensity of one's karma, placing one in a lengthy earth-bound limbo state in the astral plane, bringing a series of immediate lesser births and requiring several lives for the soul to return to the exact evolutionary point that existed at the moment of suicide, at which time the still-existing karmic entanglements must again be faced and resolved.

Everyone is prepared to die, and whether it happens suddenly or slowly, intuitively each individual knows exactly what he is experiencing and about to experience. You don't need any counseling. It is a blessing to know when you are going to die, because then you can prepare for it, make a decision whether you are going to be reborn, do intense sadhanas, make preparations. When one knows he is going to depart the physical body, he should not hesitate to tell his relatives he is going to die, and that is a wonderful blessing for them, as they can prepare for his great departure. In turn, family and friends should release him, be happy. Don't cry; you will make him unhappy. The sadness at death comes from Western attitudes. Western thought has to be reversed. He should consciously go over his wealth, his properties, be the executor of his own will, taking care of everybody, not leaving these things to others to deal with after his passing. After everything is settled, all personal possessions disposed of, then he begins meditation and awaits the fruitful hour, trying to exit through the highest chakra of the attainment of this life.

The ideal is to leave through the top of the head, through the door of Brahman, to get into the highest heaven and not have to come back. The dying person should, at the time of transition, concentrate awareness at the top of his head and willfully draw up into it all the energies from the left and right legs and arms, one after another, then the energy within the entire torso, and all the energies within the spine, from the muladhara chakra, up into the third eye and crown chakras. With all the energies gathered at the top of his head, he will leave through the highest chakra he experienced this lifetime. This would put him in a great place in the inner world.

Prolonging the life of the individual body must be done by the individual himself. Medical assistance is needed to cauterize wounds and provide the numerous helpful things that are available, but to prolong life in the debilitated physical body past the point that the natural will of the person has sustained is to incarcerate, to jail, to place that person in prison. Ayurvedic medicine seeks to keep a person healthy and strong, but not to interfere with the process of death.

Our soul never dies; only the physical body dies. We are not the physical body, mind or emotions. We are the immortal soul, atman. We neither fear death nor look forward to it, but revere it as a most exalted experience. Life, death and the afterlife are all part of our path to perfect oneness with God. People wonder whether death is a painful process, such as in the case of cancer victims. Cancer, which produces a lot of pain, is a process of life which results in death, but death itself is not painful. Death itself is blissful. Death is like a meditation, a samadhi. That's why it is called maha (great) samadhi. A Hindu is prepared from childhood for that mahasamadhi. Remember, pain is not part of the process of death. That is the process of life, which results in death. Death takes place in a short period, but is a foreboding affair to those who have never meditated. But dying is not such a dramatic experience really. Every night you "die" and leave your physical body. It is very similar.

The fear of death is a natural instinctive reflex. We encounter it sometimes daily, once a month, or at least once a year when we come face to face with the possibility of obliteration of our personality and of leaving the conscious mind. The fear of change or fear of the unknown is an ominous element in the destiny of a human being. The study and comprehension of the laws of reincarnation can alleviate this fear and bring an enlightened vision of the cosmic rhythms of life and death. It is a simple process, no more fantastic than other growth problems we experience daily. Death, like birth, has been repeated so many times that it is no mystery to the soul. The only problem comes with conflicting beliefs, which produce fear and anxiety about death. This temporary ignorance soon subsides when the failing forces of the physical body reach a certain level. At this point, the superconscious intelligence, the soul itself, is there.

Certain karmas can be resolved only in the physical world. This is due to the fact that on the refined inner planes only three or four of the higher chakras are activated; the others are dormant. For nirvikalpa samadhi, all seven chakras, as well as the three major energy currents, have to be functioning to sustain enough kundalini force to burst through to the Self. At the right time, the soul is reborn into a flesh body that will best fulfill its karmic pattern. In this process, the current astral body--which is a duplicate of the last physical form--is sloughed off as a lifeless shell that in due course disintegrates, and a new astral body develops as the new physical body grows. This entering into another body is called reincarnation, "re-occupying the flesh." Generally, the soul, at the time of conception, chooses the body he will inhabit but does not actually enter the womb until the infant body takes life and begins to move and kick.

During our numerous Earth lives, a remarkable variety of life patterns is experienced. We exist as male and female, often switching back and forth from life to life as the nature becomes more harmonized into a person exhibiting both feminine nurturing and masculine intrepidness. Therefore, the Hindu knows that the belief in a single life on Earth, followed by eternal joy or pain is utterly wrong and causes great anxiety, confusion and fear. Hindus know that all souls reincarnate, take one body and then another, evolving through experience over long periods of time. Like the caterpillar's metamorphosis into the butterfly, death doesn't end our existence but frees us to pursue an even greater development. Reincarnation ceases when dharma has been well performed, earthly karma is resolved, God is fully realized and moksha, liberation, is attained.

Poison in plastic bottleA Potentially deadly toxin is being absorbed into bottled mineral water from their plastic containers. And the longer the water is stored, the levels of poison increase, research reveals. As the sell-by date on many bottled waters is up to two years, scientists have now called for extensive further studies.

The research by world expert Dr William Shotyk - who has vowed never to drink bottled water again - will be published in the Royal Society of Chemistry's journal next month. It is sure to revive concerns about the safety of bottled water, the world's fastest-growing drinks industry, worth £1.2billion a year.

The tests found traces of antimony, a chemical used in the making of polyethylene terephthalate (PET) bottles, used by most mineral-water sellers.

Small doses of antimony can make you feel ill and depressed. Larger quantities can cause violent vomiting and even death. The study stressed that amounts of antimony were well below official recommended levels. But it also discovered that the levels almost doubled when the bottles were stored for three months.

Professor Shotyk, of Heidelberg University in Germany, said: "I don't want to shock people but here's what I know: Antimony is being continuously released into bottled drinking water. The water in PET bottles is contaminated."

He tested ground water and 15 types of bottled mineral water in his native Canada. The ground water contained two parts per trillion (ppt) of antimony. Bottled water had an average 160 ppt of antimony when opened immediately after bottling. But ground water stored in a PET plastic bottle had 630 ppt of antimony when opened six months later.

Professor Shotyk then tried the experiment in Europe, collecting 48 brands of water in PET bottles and water from its source in the ground at a German bottling plant. The water had four ppt of antimony before being bottled, the contents of a new bottle had 360 ppt and one opened three months later had a staggering 700 ppt.

Antimony finds its way into water by 'leaching' from the plastic in the same way that water absorbs flavour from a teabag. Health authorities said even the higher levels of antimony found are way below official safety guidelines, set at around six parts per billion by international environment agencies.

Elizabeth Griswold, director of the Canadian Bottled Water Association, added: "The levels do not pose a risk to humans. They are simply trace elements."

But David Coggan, a Southampton University-based epidemiologist who works with the Medical Research Council, called for further research into the findings.

He said not enough was known about the effects of antimony and how much had to be consumed before it became dangerous. Last year naphthalene, which can cause liver damage in high doses, was found in two bottles of Volvic mineral water. Bacteria which could leach into bottled water has been cited as a possible reason for rising levels of food poisoning.

Know what you eat?

You are what you eat, so eat well. A stupendous insight of civilizations past has now been confirmed by today's investigative, nutritional sciences. They have shown that what was once called 'The Doctrine of Signatures' was astoundingly correct. It now contends that every whole food has a pattern that resembles a body organ or physiological function and that this pattern acts as a signal or sign as to the benefits the food provides the eater. Here is just a short list of examples of Whole Food Signatures.

A sliced Carrot looks like the human eye. The pupil, iris and radiating lines look just like the human eye...and YES science now shows that carrots greatly enhance blood flow to and function of the eyes.

A Tomato has four chambers and is red. The heart is red and has four chambers. All of the research shows tomatoes are indeed pure heart and blood food.

Grapes hang in a cluster that has the shape of the heart. Each grape looks like a blood cell and all of the research today shows that grapes are also profound heart and blood vitalizing food.

A Walnut looks like a little brain, a left and right hemisphere, upper cerebrums and lower cerebellums. Even the wrinkles or folds are on the nut just like the neocortex. We now know that walnuts help develop over 3 dozen neuron-transmitters for brain function.

Kidney Beans actually heal and help maintain kidney function and yes, they look exactly like the human kidneys.

Celery, Bok Choy, Rhubarb and more look just like bones. These foods specifically target bone strength. Bones are 23% sodium and these foods are 23% sodium. If you don't have enough sodium in your diet the body pulls it from the bones, making them weak. These foods replenish the skeletal needs of the body.

Eggplant, Avocadoes and Pears target the health and function of the womb and cervix of the female - they look just! like these organs. Today's research shows that when a woman eats 1 avocado a week, it balances hormones, sheds unwanted birth weight and prevents cervical cancers. And how profound is this? .... It takes exactly 9 months to grow an avocado from blossom to ripened fruit. There are over 14,000 photolytic chemical constituents of nutrition in each one of these foods (modern science has only studied and named about 141 of them).

Figs are full of seeds and hang in twos when they grow. Figs increase the motility of male sperm and increase the numbers of Sperm as well to overcome male sterilit y, and guess what they resemble?.

Sweet Potatoes look like the pancreas and actually balance the glycemic index of diabetics.

Olives assist the health and function of the ovaries

Grapefruits, Oranges, and O there Citrus fruits look just like the mammary glands of the female and actually assist the health of the breasts and the movement of lymph in and out of the breasts.

Onions look like body cells. Today's research shows that onions help clear waste materials from all of the body cells They even produce tears which wash the epithelial layers of the eyes

Here are some junk food facts that help you understand the harmful effects of eating them. Some of them are long term while others are short-term effects.

Lack of energy:

This is known as a short-term adverse effect resulting from eating junk foods. As junk foods don't provide you with essential nutrients, even though they can be very much sufficing, you feel weakened. Consuming deficient nutrients could be as a supplement.

Poor concentration:

This is another result of junk food habit. These are traced to affect in immediate and medium term periods. When you have a sumptuous junk meal rich in oil you feel drowsy and fail to concentrate. Over sustained periods of junk food eating, blood circulation drops due to fat accumulation. Lack of vital oxygen, nutrients and proteins particularly can stale your grey (brain) cells temporarily.

Heart Diseases:

Junk food diet is a major cause of heart diseases. Myocardial infarction (a sever heart failure) is due to plaque formation in arteries which demands heart to put in extra effort to pump blood on the down stream. On the up stream, there is lack of returning blood to heart. This causes two damages to heart - heart fatigues by the continuous extra effort it makes and it suffers oxygen supply. The onset and remedy both take a long time and a great determination to win.

High Cholesterol

Apart from forming plaques and constricting arteries, cholesterol also affects liver where it is metabolized. High cholesterol from junk food and diet strains liver damaging it eventually. This is a long term effect.

How to Avoid Junk Food

Clever junk food advertising and the lure of convenience in addition to taste get people to junk food addiction. Awareness on junk food facts is lacking dramatically in every corner of the society. Here are some useful tips to avoid junk foods.

• Junk food and children have a strange affinity to each other. This is partly so owing to junk food advertising. Do not let children to get habituated to junk foods.

• Controlling children from eating junk foods in schools is another step that helps in a long term. Schools administration along with parents has a responsibility to educate children about junk foods in schools.

• Junk food, the name itself is tempting enough. Eliminating the temptation is one way to avoid it. Keeping good food nearby and having meals right on time may help in this direction. Controlling the temptation is not as hard as alcoholism can be.

• Develop awareness for fitness. This helps you separate junk food and diet from your regimen.

Finally, not all foods are junk; moreover, our bodies have enough stamina to take care off occasional junk food eating. However, beware; the lure is strong enough to get you addicted. It is in your hands choose junk food or health.

Also See

• Dangerous Junk Food
• What is Cholesterol?
• Harmful Effect of junk food
• 10 ways to quite Junk Food
• Health - Important notice
• Stop Cough in 5 minutes
• STROKE - Remember STR

Music: Universal Language

Music occupies an important place in our daily lives. When we draw an analogy between music and sport, in the sense that they both involve practice and performance, we get a clearer picture of who we are, and of the social, moral and aesthetic values that guide our existence.

Picture yourself sitting lazily in a lounge bar, having your favorite drink along with few of your friends. You let off few jokes, discuss the latest news and trends and let your soul and body relax from the everyday style of urban working. Now imagine all this without music! Feel out of place? I bet you do. Even if you don’t recall a single melody or flow of notes, still your subconscious has been catching all the music played in the background. Slowly easing and swaying to the rhythm, you enjoy the atmosphere that is created around.

Music is called the universal language of the world because of many reasons. First and the foremost, music is made up of 7 main notes. No matter, what part of the world you are, and what instrument you play, all the music created are one of the 7 notes. There may be different names for all 7 notes in different parts of the world, but for the performer, they are still the same. Secondly music, being a form of art can reach the deepest parts of your heart and soul. You don’t have to be a patient or a psychologist to understand music. As long as any melody and rhythm make you feel yourself, it is the best doctor a person can find, and best remedy anyone can recommend. Thirdly music, like any other language can express any and every type of emotion. But where it scores more is where the words fell short of expressing, while music can go on and on vocalizing all that you ever want to say.

Music therapy is even effective on animals and plants. There have been studies carried and research done on this and findings show that plants and trees that grow in company of good music show a growth percentage much more than normal ones that live without the aid of music. Animals too, reflect their behavioral pattern much better when exposed to music.

Music has evolved along with man and it’s civilization. Old cultures like India, China and some parts of Middle East have a very long history of civilization and their music is far more intricate and complex and some of their western counterparts. For e.g. in India, there are 2 main forms of music, distinct in its tonic quality and geographical location. If we combine these forms, we have more than 300 scales (combination and playing style of the 7 notes). Different scale and style of play portray different mood. Even these scales can be used in free form to someone who know the in and out of such a music form. But in some parts of the world, there are only 2 main scales (major and minor) on which all of their music is based.

If we can feel that It is not our voice, Not our fingers, But some reality deep inside our heart Which is expressing itself, Then we will know that it is The soul’s music. The outer music Comes from an outer instrument. The inner music Comes from the heart. The name of this inner music Is oneness.

Music is the inner or universal language of God. I do not know French or German or Italian. But if music is played, immediately the heart of the music enters into my heart, or my heart enters into the music. At that time, we do not need outer communication; the inner communion of the heart is enough. My heart is communing with the heart of the music and in our communion we become inseparably one.

In the spiritual world, next to meditation is music, the breath of music. Meditation is silence, energising and fulfilling. Silence is the eloquent expression of the inexpressible. Aldous Huxley says: “After silence, that which comes nearest to expressing the inexpressible is music.”

Silence is the source of everything. It is the source of music and it is music itself. Silence is the deepest, most satisfying music of the Supreme.

Silence is like a stream that goes to one place and becomes a river, or to another place and becomes a brook, or to the sea where it is totally expanded.

Silence is the nest and music is the bird. The bird leaves the nest early in the morning and returns to the nest in the evening. Similarly, in the spiritual world, divine music comes from the inmost soul of silence.

Soulful Music

Soulful music immediately awakens and inspires our hearts because it embodies the Absolute Supreme. Soulful music is the Light that wants to express itself in a divine way. Even as darkness wants to manifest its authority on earth, Light also wants to manifest its Reality and Divinity in a specific way. Light is the soul of everything. Light is the soul of music, Light is the soul of love and Light is the soul of all art. When Light divinely manifests itself in the form of music, it is the music of the soul.

Music means Self-expansion and oneness. The Self expands through music. The Self that expands is not the individual self but the unlimited Self. Music is the expansion of unlimited Reality.

We can use music to help us in our spiritual life provided we know that music and the spiritual life are like twin brothers; we cannot separate them. How can we separate two fingers, two eyes? They sit side by side. If one eye is not functioning well, then we feel that our vision is imperfect. Similarly, music and the spiritual life must go together; one complements the other. Music helps the spiritual seeker to go deep within to get the utmost satisfaction from life, from truth, from reality. The spiritual life, in turn, helps music to offer its capacity and its strength, which is the soul’s light, to the world at large.

When we listen to soulful music, or when we ourselves play soulful music, immediately our inner existence climbs up high, higher, highest. It climbs up and enters into something beyond. This Beyond is constantly trying to help us, guide us, mould us and shape us into our true transcendental image, our true divinity. When we hear soulful music, or when we play a soulful piece of music, we feel a kind of inner thrill in our entire existence, from the soles of our feet to the crown of our head. A river is flowing through us, a river of consciousness, and this consciousness is all the time illumined.

Music and Meditation

Next to deep prayer or meditation, music is of paramount importance. Meditation is like a direct route, or shortcut, to the goal. Music is a road that is absolutely clear: it may be a little longer, but it is quite clear of obstacles. If we can play soulful music or hear soulful music, the power of our meditation increases. Soulful music adds to our aspiration. Similarly, if a spiritual seeker wants to be a musician, even if he does not have a musical background, he will be able to be a good musician because prayer and meditation contain all capacities. You may never have studied music, but if you pray and meditate soulfully, then inside your prayer, inside your meditation, by the Grace of the Supreme, the power of music looms large. Then you can utilise this power in your own way.

Each time soulful music is played, we get inspiration and delight. In the twinkling of an eye, music can elevate our consciousness. But if we also pray and meditate, then we are undoubtedly more illumined and fulfilled than a music-lover who is not consciously leading a spiritual life. Each spiritual musician is consciously spreading God’s Light on earth. God is the cosmic Player, the eternal Player, and we are His instruments. It is the Supreme who makes the proper instrument. Then, it is He who makes the player play properly, and it is He who makes the musician.

The Power of Music

Soulful and spiritual music really helps us; it feeds our inner life. Music has tremendous power. With fire we can burn ourselves, or we can cook and do many other good things. It is the same with music. Divine music immediately elevates our consciousness, whereas undivine music immediately lowers our consciousness and tries to destroy our sincere inner cry for a better spiritual life. The spiritual person will immediately be affected by this music. So music can change our consciousness provided it is the music that comes from the heart and enters into the heart. The music that touches the very depth of our heart can elevate our consciousness.

The Mind and the Senses

Our senses are restless. Therefore, our mind suffers. Our mind is doubtful. Therefore, our senses suffer. The mind has no capacity to bind or discipline the senses. Here music comes to the mind’s rescue. With the help of music, the mind binds and disciplines the senses and makes them into perfect instruments so they can be inundated with peace, light and bliss from above.

Again, when the mind is doubtful, when the mind drinks deep of doubt-poison, the senses have no capacity to inject faith into the mind. Here also music comes to the rescue. The senses take help from music to transform and illumine themselves. When the senses are calm and quiet, the doubtful mind is totally transformed and it becomes inseparably one with the heart, which is all receptivity. At that time our Inner Pilot—the Supreme Musician—can manifest Himself blessingfully, powerfully and measurelessly. As He is manifesting Himself in and through us, the divine music becomes part and parcel of our existence and we grow into perfect Perfection. In and through us the Supreme Musician creates a new world. We become the divine music, and a new vision of God’s transcendental Reality operates in and through us.

Can spiritual music be played during meditation?

Certainly, although it depends on the one who meditates. There are many seekers on earth who meditate extremely well, but who have not developed their musical sense. Their ears have not been trained, so we cannot expect them to change their nature overnight. They either lack the capacity of appreciation or they have some austere feeling about music. Psychic music is not very widely appreciated, and very few people appreciate the soul’s music. They feel it is like a stranger that is entering into their consciousness. But it is actually their eternal tenant, their soul, that is deep within them waiting to come to the fore.

If divine music is played during deep meditation, it enhances the meditation. It will immediately help in elevating the consciousness. If you are fond of music, then playing soulful songs or chants during your meditations at home will definitely help you.

Were we to play spiritual music on tape while we slept, would it benefit us in any way?

While you are sleeping if you play soulful music, your subtle vital, subtle physical and subtle mind will enjoy it. But your physical body may find it difficult to appreciate it, for it wants total silence. Although soulful music will add to pure silence, inner silence, the physical body wants a kind of silence which is totally devoid of outer sound.

If you play your tape very softly, it will definitely help and inspire the subtle physical and subtle vital which are not sleeping.

Many, many times when the physical sleeps, the subtle physical and the subtle vital do not sleep. They move around. They roam here and there. They visit their friends and enemies. My music is definitely a source of joy to them. So for the subtle physical, subtle vital and subtle mind, undoubtedly it is a help. But for the gross physical which is trying to sleep, it may be a hindrance, a disaster.

What is the supreme duty of an artist or musician?

The supreme duty of an artist or musician is to meditate before he creates something and, while creating, to be in a very contemplative, divine mood. Then, when the creation is completed, he will immediately offer his creation to the Supreme. No matter what others say about his creation, no matter what his feelings are about his own creation, as soon as his creation is completed, he will offer it to the Supreme for Him to use in His own way. This is the supreme duty of the spiritual musician or artist.

Is creativity another form of meditation?

It depends on what you are creating. If it is spiritual art or music, then certainly it is a form of meditation. But if you play undivine music or write unbearable books or keep your mind in the gutter while you are painting, this is not any kind of meditation. While you are creating, if your consciousness is in the lower vital world, it will not be a form of meditation. But if you are singing something soulful or if you are in a very high consciousness while you are creating, if you are giving yourself in a divine way to the object or subject that you are involved with, then definitely you are doing a form of meditation. You have to know what you are creating and where your consciousness is while you are doing it.

I am giving a lot of importance to aspiring through music.

There is nothing wrong if you feel aspiration in your music. But you have to know how many hours you can think of your music. If you spend five hours, six hours, seven hours a day on music, then you should spend one hour or two hours, let us say, on spirituality. Music is also a form of spirituality; I do not deny it. But the height that you will achieve from meditation either you may not get or cannot get from your music. Music is an added help.

If you can play spiritual music, soulful music, then you will have no problem in your life. But if you play only mundane music, then you may not be satisfied. You may be pleasing the outer world, but you are not pleasing your Inner Pilot in His own way. If you are not an aspiring seeker, that is fine. But if you are a sincere seeker, then you will feel miserable.

When I play music, I feel a tingling around my third eye.

That indicates an awakening. But this does not mean that your third eye is about to open. No. When you play most soulfully, an inner vision-light will come to the fore. Vision is within you, yet it is dormant. But now it wants to function properly; it does not want to sleep anymore. So inner vision is starting to operate. The vision of the third eye is trying to come to the fore, and that is why you are getting that sensation. It is a very good experience.

What is the soundless sound, and can it serve as a bridge between the manifest and the unmanifest worlds?

As it stands now the outer world is not at all aware of the inner world. So first the outer world has to be fully aware of the inner world, and then it has to listen to the blessingful dictates of the inner world. Then the soundless sound—which is now heard only by very, very few Truth-seekers and God-lovers—can be of divine service to mankind. It is an inner discovery. This discovery has to be brought to the fore, and for that the outer world has to be consciously awakened and devotedly accept the beauty and divinity of the inner world.

The soundless sound is something real, absolutely real. But we hear it only in our highest realm of consciousness, or when we dive deep within and reach the inmost recesses of our heart. The soundless sound is infinitely, infinitely more powerful than any man-made sound. But up to now, it has been operating only in the inner world. So those who have a free access to the inner world can hear this sound. Not only do they derive tangible benefit from this sound, but it helps the seekers and God-lovers immensely in their self-giving life to God the Creator and God the creation.