<\/p>\n
Each lesson will begin with an affirmation, as seen above, for the family to repeat together or alone. Repeat it together or individually to impress the mind with positive thoughts. This one speaks of a powerfully positive way to confront the world. We are surrounded by an intelligent and remarkable universe, and if we are in tune with it, that makes us remarkable and intelligent, too.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
It was a hot summer day, and Chandran was looking forward to using the afternoon to throw a ball around with his cousin Abhinav. As the car drove into the driveway, a distant barking sound became louder. As he got out of the car, a small beagle dog came running towards Chandran, wagging his tail. Chandran bent down to pet him when he saw Abhinav come running from behind the house. \u201cSit! Stay!\u201d he said, and immediately the beagle sat down and did not move.<\/p>\n
Chandran was surprised. He hadn\u2019t seen a dog that obeyed orders like that. He said, \u201cHey, Abhinav, is this your dog? What\u2019s his name?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cSnoopy\u2014after the most famous beagle of all, in the Peanuts cartoons. He\u2019s just one year old.\u201d Abhinav petted the beagle, who was still sitting obediently.<\/p>\n
\u201cWatch,\u201d said Abhinav. He motioned to Chandran to follow him, and the two turned and walked away with their backs to Snoopy. After about 50 feet, they looked back. Snoopy was getting a bit unhappy, but still hadn\u2019t budged an inch. Abhinav raised his hand, beckoned to the dog, and shouted, \u201cCome!\u201d Snoopy jumped up and ran to Abhinav. When he was about five feet away, Abhinav ordered, \u201cSit!\u201d and Snoopy immediately sat down. Abhinav stepped up to him, patted him on the head and said, \u201cGood dog.\u201d Chandran was impressed.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat\u2019s not all he can do,\u201d Abhinav said, \u201cWatch!\u201d This time Abhinav didn\u2019t speak at all, just pointed at the ground, and Snoopy sat down. Then he motioned with his palm downwards, and the dog laid down. Finally, Abhinav made a circular motion with his hand, and Snoopy rolled over. \u201cGood dog,\u201d he said, and Snoopy jumped up.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Chandran asked, \u201cHow do you get him to do all that?\u201d<\/p>\n
Abhinav shrugged and explained, \u201cTime and patience\u2014lots of patience! My uncle gave Snoopy to me, and at the same time a book on dog training. He explained that a trained dog is more fun to have; and it\u2019s more interesting for the dog, because he knows what you want him to do. Snoopy can sit, stay, come, roll over, play dead, shake hands and fetch. Now I\u2019m teaching him how to jump through a hoop.\u201d<\/p>\n
All the way back home, Chandran\u2019s mind was on the little beagle who was such a good friend for Abhinav. He never seemed to get tired, knew all sorts of tricks and was always ready for a game. How he would love to have a friend like that!<\/p>\n
That night, as Chandran sat down for dinner he asked, \u201cAppa, can I get a dog, please?\u201d<\/p>\n
His father paused for a minute, then said, \u201cI don\u2019t have a problem getting you a dog, son. But do you know that having a pet comes with responsibilities?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cResponsibilities?\u201d asked Chandran.<\/p>\n
\u201cOf course,\u201d Appa replied. \u201cYou have to feed him, bathe him, take him for walks and\u2014most importantly\u2014you have to be kind and loving to him.\u201d<\/p>\n
Chandran felt a surge of excitement building within him. The way his father was talking indicated that he might allow him to get a dog.<\/p>\n
Hurriedly he promised, \u201cAppa, I\u2019ll do all that and more.\u201d<\/p>\n
Chandran and Appa explored the various kinds of dogs. They finally settled on a golden retriever. They are a smart breed that is good with children. They had to consider Chandran\u2019s three-year-old sister, Meena. A golden retriever is a big dog, so if small children play roughly with him, no one is likely to get hurt.<\/p>\n
The eight-week-old puppy that Appa brought home Sunday morning hardly looked like he would grow into a 70-pound dog. Chandran took the puppy in his arms.<\/p>\n
\u201cAppa, what shall I call him?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHow about Bhairava, which means the form of Siva who has a dog for a companion?\u201d suggested Appa.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Bhairava had the most beautiful eyes and was very happy to meet Chandran. His mom had told him that one day he would have his very own human friend.<\/p>\n
The first two weeks was all about house training. Retrievers are extremely smart, so it didn\u2019t take long for Bhairava to understand that he should stand by the back door when he needed to go outside.<\/p>\n
That accomplished, Chandran decided to start leash training. This was pretty simple. He took the dog for a walk, and each time the dog stopped, he pulled gently on the leash to get him to come along.<\/p>\n
The goal was to teach Bharaiva that Chandran was going for a walk, and he was coming along. Bhairava was not taking Chandran for a walk and stopping whenever he pleased! This training let Bhairava know in a kindly way who was boss.<\/p>\n
After a couple of weeks of leash training, Chandran was ready for something more difficult, the \u201csit\u201d command. Unfortunately, Bhairava wasn\u2019t.<\/p>\n
With the dog on the leash, Chandran faced him, pointed at the ground and commanded, \u201cSit!\u201d<\/p>\n
Bhairava just looked at him. Chandran pushed down on Bhairava\u2019s hindquarters, the part of the dog\u2019s back above his hind legs, to make him sit. Bhairava stood up immediately, and Chandran pushed again.<\/p>\n
Appa, who was watching all this, counseled, \u201cNow, be gentle and patient with him. If he becomes afraid of you, it will be much harder to train him.\u201d<\/p>\n
Unwillingly, Bhairava sat. Chandran let go of his hindquarters and, in the split second before the dog stood up on all fours again, called out, \u201cGood dog!\u201d<\/p>\n
Appa and Chandran had studied the different methods of dog training. Some people train their dogs by rewarding them with food when they do the right thing. Others punish them for doing the wrong thing. Still others praise the dog for doing the right thing. Chandran decided he wanted to just use praise. He did not want to bribe the dog with rewards or hurt him with punishments. This is how he was being raised himself, and he thought it should work for Bhairava, too.<\/p>\n
On it went, ten minutes a day: \u201cSit!\u201d pushing down his hindquarters and \u201cGood dog!\u201d This training made no sense at all to Bhairava, who thought he should sit down when he felt like it and not when someone told him to. But finally, after about twenty training sessions, Chandran said, \u201cSit!\u201d and Bhairava sat down all by himself. Chandran was really happy, and hugged the puppy.<\/p>\n
After this, the sessions got easier. Bhairava, being a smart dog, soon got the idea of \u201csit.\u201d After all, if his friend Chandran wanted him to sit down, he was happy to do so. Of course, he\u2019d only sit down for a few seconds, so the next command to teach was \u201cstay.\u201d<\/p>\n
This was even harder than \u201csit.\u201d Chandran would tell Bhairava to sit, and Bhairava would sit. Chandran would say, \u201cStay!\u201d and put his palm out toward the dog, like a policeman stopping traffic. Then he\u2019d back up several steps. Bhairava would get up to follow him. Without saying a word, Chandran would pick him up, take him back where he started, repeat, \u201cSit! Stay!\u201d and then walk away again.<\/p>\n
This went on for days. Chandran was getting frustrated. So was Bhairava, who just didn\u2019t understand why he wasn\u2019t allowed to follow Chandran\u2014wasn\u2019t that what all that leash training was about?<\/p>\n
\u201cHe just won\u2019t obey,\u201d Chandran complained to Appa.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
\u201cPatience, patience,\u201d replied Appa. \u201cWe humans have been training dogs for thousands of years. Keep trying and one day it will work.\u201d<\/p>\n
As with \u201csit,\u201d suddenly one day Bhairava stayed put when Chandran told him to \u201cstay!\u201d and walked away. Chandran went back to him, said, \u201cGood dog!\u201d and petted him on the head. They kept at this for another two weeks, until Bhairava stayed every time he was told to. Somehow the training made them better friends. Bhairava knew at least a bit of what Chandran wanted him to do, and this made him more secure.<\/p>\n
Chandran showed off Bhairava\u2019s new skills to the family, and everyone was impressed.<\/p>\n
Three-year-old Meena tried, \u201cSit down, Bhairava,\u201d but nothing happened.<\/p>\n
\u201cJust say \u2018Sit!\u2019 Meena, nothing else,\u201d explained Chandran.<\/p>\n
\u201cSit!\u201d said Meena, and Bhairava sat down, to Meena\u2019s great excitement. In fact, after that, Appa had to ask Meena to stop telling the dog to sit until the training was done. Meena wanted to do it over and over again. Bhairava found that quite annoying, but he understood Meena was just a puppy herself in the human world. He never, ever growled at her, even the time she yanked on his ear, which really hurt.<\/p>\n
After \u201csit\u201d and \u201cstay,\u201d Bhairava learned \u201ccome,\u201d \u201clie down,\u201d \u201cshake hands,\u201d \u201chigh five,\u201d \u201croll over,\u201d \u201cfetch\u201d and even \u201cplay dead.\u201d Chandran learned how to be patient. It was a lot of fun for both of them.<\/p>\n
During the winter holidays, Abhinav and his family came to Chandran\u2019s house for a visit. After a long, leisurely lunch, everyone relaxed outside on the patio. Chandran called for Bhairava, who came bounding up. Bhairava was no longer a puppy. In fact, when he stood on his hind legs, he was as tall as Chandran.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Chandran ran him through all the commands.<\/p>\n
Meena came up to Bhairava while he was sitting. Their noses almost touched, as they were about the same height. She raised her right hand, reached toward the dog and said, \u201cHigh five.\u201d Bhairava lifted up his big right paw and gently touched Meena\u2019s raised hand. This sent her into a fit of giggles, and everyone clapped.<\/p>\n
Abhinav congratulated Chandran, \u201cWell done, Chandran. Bhairava is a real show dog!\u201d<\/p>\n
Chandran smiled and said, \u201cIt\u2019s all thanks to you and Appa. You explained when Bhairava was a puppy that he wasn\u2019t going to learn right away. It would take practicing the commands over and over again in a kindly way. Now I have not only trained my dog, but learned the value of patience as well. I can accomplish anything with discipline and patience!\u201d<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Bhairava already knew how to be a dog\u2014his mom had taught him. So whatever this \u201cpatient dog training\u201d business was about, he was just happy to spend time one on one with Chandran\u2014happy human, happy dog.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
A Keynote video by Satguru on the art of listening.<\/p>\n
Click the link to watch the movie.<\/p>\n