Speech on Childrens day

I am to give a five minute speech on Children's day in a school. This is what I want to say to them:

Happy Children's day, all of you. And I mean, all of you, all of us.

I find children's day very very special. Do you know why? Because the child in me also celebrates. All of us, including grown ups, have the child within us. Childhood is common to all of us. We are still our parents children, and to God, all of us are his children, aren't we? From the youngest child to the oldest teacher, all of us here are God's children. On this day, let us say hello to the child within us. This day is an opportunity to deeply and truly connect with the child within all of us, and so I wish everyone a very happy children's day.

All of us have heard the phrase, Laughter is the best medicine, isn't it? So do you think it is true? Is laughter really the best medicine? If you go to the doctor for a stomach ache, does he prescribe laughter? have you ever seen a prescription that says, ten minutes of loud laughter, three times daily, followed by a glass of water? Laugh for ten days and then come back to report to me? He should, no?

The fact is, if you have a stomach ache, you will be too morose to laugh, isn't it? But seriously, have you ever tried to laugh off a sickness? Is there anyone here who has a headache or a stomach ache? Children are always getting hurt, no? No one has any aches or pains?

Ok, let us do this experiment. Let us see if laughter is the best medicine.

Once upon a time, there was a teacher in a school. The teacher asked her student,
'How do you spell crocodile?'
'Krokodile.' the student replied.
'But that is the wrong spelling.' the teacher scolded the student.
'Maybe, but you asked me how I spell it.' the student replied cheekily.

One day, the boy asked his teacher,
'Miss, would you punish someone for something he has not done?'
'Of course not.' said the teacher.
'Good. Because I did not do my homework.'

The school is gone on a Himalayan trip. They see a lot of sheep walking about in the mountains.
Then the teacher asks the students, 'How many sheep does it take to make one sweater?'
The student looks baffled. 'I didn't even know they could knit.' he says, wonder-struck.

'So, are you enjoying the scenery?' the teacher asks his students in the Himalayas.
'Yes, Sir, but the Mountains sometimes block our view.'

Now you are laughing at this joke. But if you laugh like this whenever you are in trouble, when you are fighting with each other, when you get hurt, if you include laughter in all your daily activities, it will keep your energy level high, it will keep your lungs clean, and, most important, it will keep you connected to God.

God has made this world for us to be happy. Imagine, if God looks down and sees his children laughing, how will He feel?

God loves laughter. In fact, god has given us the gift of laughter as a secret healing tool. If you laugh continuously for five to ten minutes, your sickness will go away. Always add laughter to your life, it will make you feel light.

There is scientific evidence that proves that regular, long spells of laughter can bring down your blood pressure. Deep belly laughter releases endorphins, the feel good chemicals in your brain.

How many of you have a small statue of the laughing Buddha in your homes? How does he laugh? He has a big belly, doesn't he? And his mouth is open. He has a bag flung over his shoulder. The bag signifies that he is a wondering monk. and how does he stand? With his hands in the sky, like this. What does this posture mean to you? Where else have you seen this posture? Did you know, what this laughing Buddha do all day? And why did he get the name, the laughing Buddha?

He walked from one town to another town, stood in the market place right in the center of the main square where everyone could see him, threw up his hands and laughed and laughed and laughed.

People stared at him, wondering if he is a mad man. But he laughed so beautifully, without any hesitation, without a care in the world, that they also started laughing. Soon the entire market place was laughing. The people who went back home couldn't get over the site of the laughing Buddha. Each time they would remember him, they would laugh. And, because they had laughed so much, the entire village was in a light, happy mood.

The laughing Buddha never uttered a word to anyone, he was in silence. His only job was to laugh.

A small story from a book called Guaranteed Solutions, written by my master, Swami Nithyananda.

Once, there was a conference of Buddhist monks on the meaning of true spirituality.
Each monk went up to the stage and gave a long speech. Finally, it was the turn of a zen monk to speak.
He went on the stage and simply started laughing. He laughed and laughed, from his being. The laughter just rose from his belly. he started shaking uncontrollably with laughter.

And his laughter was so infectious that all the others also started laughing, without even knowing why.
Without their being aware of it, the monks produced a huge wave of positive energy in the room. The monks reached a state of tremendous elevation.

Their thinking was shattered and their being was filled with bliss.
The zen monk finally spoke: 'This is true spirituality.'