Maybe it's because I'm an Aquarian and I am a fan of the chaotic unruly movement, but this commentary on the recent Mars conjunct Uranus really appealed to me. Astrobarry talks about the erratic behavior when these two pals get together.
Of course, disorderly transits like a Mars-Uranus conjunction don't only affect us—they affect everyone else around us, too. So while we may personally restrain ourselves from too-berserk behavior, we're still likely to be subjected to others' unruly style.
It brings up another point. It's not only happening to you - it's happening to everyone else too. Well, at least if you believe in it. But seriously, you know it's not all about you, right? And even when it is about you, it doesn't have to be. Detachment baby.
When a person is depressed, the last they they want to hear about is how happy someone else is. I used to be depressed. I was medicated with Paxil, with Celexa and Lexapro. I failed an entire quarter of college due to severe depression. In retrospect, in spite of psychiatrist's diagnoses, I don't think I was actually chemically imbalanced or clinically depressed - I just needed to talk, to release myself from all the "victim" stories I was attached to from my childhood of abuse. However, my psychiatrist was of the type who just wrote a prescription and said "we'd talk in 2 weeks after the medication started taking effect. Of course, by that time, when I'd got into the routine of taking the anti-depressants, I felt so numb and distracted by them that I couldn't even access any feelings at all. I weaned myself off of my anti-depressant medications, even through a year where my father, my boyfriend and both my paternal grandparents died. I needed a change of focus, to reprogram the so-often travelled neural grooves of all the thoughtpatterns that led me to depression.
After about a year of intense hypnotherapy, I can't even "think" in those old patterns. After all my training and certification in Neuro-Linguistic Programming, I don't even use the phrase "I'm depressed" anymore because I've learned to discipline my internal dialogue, and even the ways I recognize and describe my feelings. It's too easy to answer someone question "What's wrong?" with "I'm depressed," even if you're just kinda bummed out or having a blah day. It's important to make the distinction between clinical depression, which is severely debilitating and diagnosed by a psychiatric professional, and the kind of melancholy blue that you CAN control - but since people today throw around phrases like "I'm depressed" as often as they say "I'm ADD" without actually being diagnosed, its a really slippery linguistic slope.
At the site SecretGeek, they list steps and strategies to making yourself "depressed". It's easy. The article is intended to show you that there are strategies to creating your internal state - and a way to reverse-engineer happiness.
As usual, I'm finding words of wisdom on the walls of the gas station restroom, so to speak. For some reason, this always happens to me. Everywhere I go, whether it be the art museum, Mcdonalds or a strip club-- somehow, some way, the only person in the room with a story worth hearing will come sit by me and yak my ear off.
It's like someone stuck a sign on my forehead that said-- deposit wisdom 'here'.
Here is what I've collected out in the field this week:
Daniel, with full lips and dreamy Piscean eyes told me that he is a nice guy. A nice guy who used to get upset when all his female friends in college would fall for the 'bad guys'. Not only fall for them, but actually seek them out. It used to make him mad until one day he found a comparison in the myth of Persephone and her kidnapping by Hades. "A young woman will intuitively seek out the worst heart break so that when she has recovered, she will be strong and wise," Daniel said. "It rounds out her character, and now we have the four seasons."
I told Daniel that I've met many men who closed off their hearts because of one bad heart break and were unable to open them back up. But oddly enough, I've met many women who have resilient hearts, and bounce back from romantic disappointments, stronger and richer each time. Do men and women have different hearts? One more rigid, one more pliable?
Then I met Rufus, a man who looked ten years younger than his real age, who removed his cap for me to see his glorious full head of hair. "You thought I was wearing this hat because I was going bald, didn't you?" he cackled at me. Rufus told me that when he was a boy, his papa sat him down and told him if he died with three real friends by his side, he could consider himself a rich man. "My papa was right. I've had people in my life for twenty years, thougth they were friends, but turned out to be acquaintances," Rufus said. "You just haven't had a big enough test of the friendship to prove whether or not they are really friends or not."
I told Rufus that ten years ago I met someone who explained the difference between acquaintances and 'heart friends' to me. he could count two to his name who were true 'heart friends'. I am pleased to be one of them, and feel rich beyond measure.
Wise guys, wise guys...
Now pardon me, but I must be on my way. Afterall there is a world full of good stories waiting for me to find.
Hypothetical situations - everyone asks questions about what you would do if so and so happened. And here at daily mantra we are no different. We're asking the authors - and you - what you would do in this situation.
It's a cold winter day, there's ice and snow in the streets that have been causing accidents, power outages and a variety of emergencies across the city. Sirens are heard everywhere and you think to yourself "god" must be playing with his ant farm. As you continue to walk home, with some difficulty, you hear screams for help. You alter course and walk towards the screams and you see a building with smoke pouring from the roof, and fire coming from all of the windows. You make your way inside and see the building is falling apart. Being the brave soul you are, you rush towards the screaming and see a handicapped elderly man who's been screaming, and an infant laying on the floor by his walker. Both need you to help them out of the building, but it looks as if it will collapse at any minute. The man is crying and saying "I don't want to die", the infant, is laying there unaware of the chaos and danger in the surrounding environment.
So, what would you do?
daily mantra authors will answer the question tomorrow. Stay tuned!
Update 2: What is my answer to the question? Well, before I read all the responses, I was all for the old guy, for some similar and yet different reasons. I like old people, I don't usually like babies. The knowledge and experience of old people is more valuable to me (and society) then the potential of a baby, although it would be much easier to carry the baby out. Then again, maybe the fire started because the old man was smoking and he was supposed to be watching his grandchild.
The thing we've all been taught to do is to help people. So yeah, we'd want to save the lives. But that is a conditioned response. It's not necessarily what's supposed to happen.
I was walking on a beach boardwalk in Monterey, CA many years ago. I saw a seagull with a broken wing caught in the surf, struggling to survive. My first response was to run down and save the bird, but my colleague stopped me. He told me, "Everything has to die sometime. It is not your responsibility to decide." I remember the image of the bird struggling in the surf and the wise words of my friend.
Hypothetically I have the chance to save one life from the burning house and so hypothetically I will save mine.
It's a cold winter day, there's ice and snow in the streets
that have been causing accidents, power outages and a variety of emergencies
across the city. Sirens are heard everywhere and you think to yourself
"god" must be playing with his ant farm. As you continue to walk home,
with some difficulty, you hear screams for help. You alter course and walk
towards the screams and you see a building with smoke pouring from the
roof, and fire coming from all of the windows. You make your way inside
and see the building is falling apart. Being the brave soul you are, you
rush towards the screaming and see a handicapped elderly man who's been
screaming, and an infant laying on the floor by his walker. Both
need you to help them out of the building, but it looks as if it will
collapse at any minute. The man is crying and saying "I don't want to die", the
infant, is laying there unaware of the chaos and danger in the surrounding
environment. After weighing your options and the environment around you, you
realize you can only save one. Who do you save?
I would save the elderly man. Why? Here's the reason: because in the story, the old man spoke to me and said that he didn't want to die, and if I chose to save the infant, I would always hear this man's cries for help in my head for the rest of my life. And frankly, I don't have any particular feeling towards babies or children. Ok, that was the selfish reason. Here is the real reason:
The baby hasn't made any impact on it's karma here on earth yet. It remains, so to speak, at a balance. The old man, on the other hand, has made lots of life contracts, impacted many people's lives, created debt to the world just by existing and being taken care of by others. If he is saved from death, he still has a chance to pay back some of the debt, change his life with the remaining time he has left. Maybe that means he is kinder to his family or maybe he will write his memoires and have a positive effect in someone's life, or perhaps he can have a chance to resolve the conflicts and loose ends of his life before he dies. If he dies in the fire, unwilling, terrified and with strong emotions for the life that he's lived here on earth, chances are these strong feelings will yank him right back into a human body to do it all over again.
I believe that life on earth is a trap. A small prison for souls. It would be fine if we learned our lessons in the lifetime we are given. But it's not enough. We waste our time here and then when we die, we have to come back and try again.The infant, may get killed in the fire and when its soul is released, it may decide not to be reincarnated. Then, it would be free.
I could rest at night knowing that I believed my decision gave both the old man and the baby a second chance.
In response to Heather's query on "What Would You Do?" - Here's "What Would CDJ Do?" - in that hypothetical instance.
(And for the record, the question "What would you do?" makes me think of the song "Freedom Isn't Free" from the movie "Team America" so I'm already kind of laughing)
I usually roll my eyes at these kinds of hypothetical questions, but I'll play along and assume that such a day and such a situation were to present itself to me, today. Here's my context, in answering this question: as of today I am 28 weeks pregnant and waddling like a cross between a giant penguin and Jabba the Hutt. I have all the same values of the equality of human life as the previous respondents, I understand that the old man "said he didn't want to die" and the baby is fresh and new, etc.
I'd quickly assess the situation, meanwhile calling 911 as I took in how much time there was to save ANYONE. Because I'm not just ME, I'm me plus my own baby gestating inside, I'd have to be pretty certain that I'd have enough time to get in and out of there quickly without jeopardizing myself. If I only had 30 seconds, I'd run in, grab the baby and scream for help to save the old man. If help didn't arrive in time, and it was too dangerous to try to lift or drag the old man out, then so be it. I'd have no recrimination or regret, nor would I be haunted by not having saved the old man. I'm pregnant, dammit, so I'm all about that baby as well as my baby.
>> 1. It's a cold winter day, there's ice and snow in the streets that have
>> been causing accidents, power outages and a variety of emergencies across
>> the city. Sirens are heard everywhere and you think to yourself "god"
>> must be playing with his ant farm. As you continue to walk home, with some
>> difficulty, you hear screams for help. You alter course and walk towards
>> the screams and you see a building with smoke pouring from the roof, and
>> fire coming from all of the windows. You make your way inside and see
>> the building is falling apart. Being the brave soul you are, you rush
>> towards the screaming and see a handicapped elderly man who's been
>> screaming, and an infant laying on the floor by his walker. Both need you
>> to help them out of the building, but it looks as if it will collapse at any
>> minute. The man is crying and saying "I don't want to die", the infant, is
>> laying there unaware of the chaos and danger in the surrounding environment.
>>
>>
>> After weighing your options and the environment around you, you realize you
>> can only save one. Who do you save?
To begin with, I probably wouldn't think that god was playing with his ant farm -- I would just think that the accidents were caused by people who were being hurried and careless and not giving the weather-related conditions the respect they deserve. As for the power outages, that's just mother nature reminding us who's boss, despite our attempts to pretend otherwise. But then again, since I live in Los Angeles and we're in a period of global warming, if I woke up to snow and ice-covered streets, maybe that would put the fear of god into me. It would take at least that much.
As for the quandary that's been presented, this isn't much of an ethical question, but more of a mechanical one. A baby that's young enough not to be troubled by smoke, flames, and a screaming old man can't possibly weigh very much. I'm guessing the baby would be no more than eight months old, so wouldn't be likely to weigh much more than fifteen or twenty pounds. If the old man is cognizant enough to be pleading for his life and also possesses the modest upper body strength needed to operate a walker, he could lie on his back and balance the baby on his chest while I grabbed him under the armpits and dragged them both to safety. Lookee me, I'm a hero.
When I worked for a rather large publishing company a few years ago, I ran into a salesman named Shmuly Tennenhaus. Our initial relationship was based on him trying to get ads on my sites for what I perceived to be nothing, but he called a "great deal!" As it turned out, a rather unusual friendship was born outside of the ad/sales arena.
Since this time, he's quit his job, the one where we met, and tried his hand at starting a blog to get on an American Media, Inc (AMI) tv show pilot that never materialized. In the process, he's made his way into USA Today, NY Times, become Jossip's "Crazy Eyes" and created another blog trying to get onto the HBO series, Entourage and on occasion provides Dailymantra.com with some of his thoughts.
I personally find his model to be intrusive, harmless and incredibly entertaining.
His latest video, below, showcases this model exactly as he infiltrates the Seattle Intelligencer Newspaper offices like a Hasidic Ninja.. and I wouldn't be surprised if he ends up becoming a HUGE part of Monica Guzman's life now that they've met. See what she doesn't realize, is she's just sold her soul to a Shmuel.
But for Monica, this is ok, as all I'm really trying to point out something I've said for a long time, is that I believe Shmuly, is destined for stardom.... And you're coming along for the ride.
Here's Shmuly doing his thing:
And here's how I know Monica's bestest new friend will be Shmuly.... And come to think of it, this makes me sad as I've not heard from him in the longest time since he's moved to rain town. SHMUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUULY!!!!!!!!!! What? I'm no good anymore?
When we think of symbiosis, perhaps the first thing that comes to mind are images of symbiosis in nature - the big water buffalos and the little birds, the ant and the aphid, etc. All images of creatures in mutually beneficial relationships. But did you know there are different kinds of symbiosis?
In scientific terms:
There are several classes of symbiosis below. The symbols in brackets are intended to aid understanding, and are not formal definitions.
* Mutualism, a relationship in which members of two different species benefit and neither suffers.'[2] (+ +)
* Commensalism, a relationship in which 'one party gains some benefit, whilst the other suffers no serious disadvantage'[3] (+ 0)
* Parasitism, in which one member of the association benefits while the other is harmed (+ -)
* Amensalism, in which the association is disadvantageous to one member while the other is not affected (− 0)
* Neutralism, in which both organisms are unaffected (0 0)
* Competition, in which both organisms are harmed (- -)
* Artificial symbiosis, the mutually beneficial integration between a live part and an artifact.
When we think about the relationships we have in our lives, and evaluate them for value - usually we can do so in terms of personal benefit - whether we keep a person in our lives because they are beneficial or special to us, because they are emotionally precious, they make us feel loved, or valued - or perhaps they are valuable to us because they provide professional ties or service-oriented usefulness.
Of course, everyone's very "existence" is worthy and valuable, but who are the people who you allow to tap into your energy and resources? Are you satisfied with the majority of your relationships being symbiotic in the mutually beneficial sense or are there people who take more than they give? I'm not advocating for anyone to be un-generous, and of course there are times in our lives when we feel we have less to give and we need more help, but I am always on guard for narcissistic psychic vampires who leave me feeling depleted without offering even friendship or concern as spiritual nourishment in return.
It's important, I think, to take inventory, and take responsibility for being aware of those relationships which are, and aren't mutually symbiotic - so that you never have to blame it on others if you "find yourself" always being taken advantage of.
So, I'm going through a couple of my favorite gossip sites, and I come some links that shows one of the new NBC Heroes, Ali Larter taking her time reading .... a new age publication and emerging from a place called Great Earth Vitamins, drinking something "healthy" that the guys at theSuperficia.coml call delicious!.
A group of friends in the San Francisco Bay Area are meeting over a potluck dinner. Disillusioned by the endless consumer rat race, they are here to discuss how to not shop, to put an end to needless consumption. Taking the concept of Buy Nothing Day to the extreme, they have decided to attempt a full year without buying new products. Dubbing themselves “The Compact” after the Mayflower pledge at Plymouth Rock, the group vowed to limit their shopping to food, medicine and basic hygiene products, buying used wherever they could.
Wow. That's audacious! I like it. I don't know if I could actually do it, but I am very intrigued. I've joined my local LA chapter to learn more and minimally learn to be more consumer efficient. It's a whole movement. Described as:
to go beyond recycling in trying to counteract the negative global environmental and socioeconomic impacts of U.S. consumer culture, to resist global corporatism, and to support local businesses, farms, etc. -- a step, we hope, inherits the revolutionary impulse of the Mayflower Compact;
to reduce clutter and waste in our homes (as in trash Compact-er);
Last week, Japanese Shinnyo-en Buddhists publicly peformed a ritual in Yorba Linda, California, that is usually closed to the public and has only been performed in the U.S. on one other occasion.
During the ritual, ceremonial assistants ignited the grass-covered hearth that stood before a statue of the Buddha. Most Venerable Keishu Shinso Ito... then blessed prayers written on strips of paper before they were placed into the pit to be burned. Believers chanted the Nirvana Sutra and other mantras as the ceremony came to a close.
Okay, so far so good. But what intrigued me was reading this:
Before the ceremony, an orchestra performed the theme song from "E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial" and songs from "West Side Story." Dancers representing diverse nations performed on a side stage.
"The orchestra and dancers are a modern component to the service," said Nichelle Blanco, a member of the temple's clergy. "It gives the ceremony a broader appeal."
Orchestra? "West Side Story"? They're clearly trying to sell this, aren't they?
I guess I'm not going to laugh at them too hard. Buddhism doesn't have much of a tradition of proselytizing, so I guess they've got to find other ways to spread the word. And when you bring a traditional Japanese religious rite to the U.S., you've got to jazz it up some, rite? Oops, I mean, right?
When I think of Buddhist belief, I mostly think in terms of being inside my own head -- meditation, becoming aware of thoughts and actions, stuff like that. But you can't live inside your own head forever. Although that may be what Buddhism is really about at the core -- your own mind -- community is an important and valuable thing to humans of any stripe.
I just wonder which song from West Side Story they did. I hope it was "When You're A Jet." I love that song.
You know how the traditional story goes. You want something badly, the Devil shows up, offers you what you most want in exchange for your soul. Or maybe the Devil challenges you to a fiddle contest and if you lose he gets to take your soul. Either way, in all these stories the Devil is after your soul.
I was meditating about this last week. I happened to be listening to DJ John's Mashup of The Devil went down to Georgia and D.E.V.I.L. by 666 while I was driving down Devil's Slide in Northern California. The sky was clear, blue and gorgeous. The waves were crashing on the jagged coast. The fresh black pavement threatened to send my car down the cliff. I was driving on the edge. I was exhilarated and feeling truly alive. That's when the idea presented itself to me. Why sell the devil your soul, when you can sell it to yourself.
Yes, sell your soul to yourself. Perhaps you assume you own your soul. Do you? Are there ideas? Advertising? People? that possibly own your soul? What's it like to own your soul? How much does it cost? And to whom do you buy it from? And if you don't own your own soul, how can the devil buy it from you?
I don't think we each and everyone own our soul. I think we have individually sold off bits and pieces to values, judgments, ideas, people, things, places - all kinds of things - as we live. My soul is my individual piece of the divine, God, Infinity, Awareness, call it what you will.
Selling your soul to the devil is the same as selling your soul to these things. It's ignoring the divine inside you. It's giving your awareness away. It's using your energy for upholding negative and unreal ideas about yourself. It's anything that holds you back - anything that holds the divine inside you back. Religion, culture, a concept of truth or beauty.
You've sold your soul your entire life. From the moment you were born. But you never realized this. I never realized this. Until I was smacked on the head by the universe. And it told me to share this with you. Because it's time to start taking your soul back.
Each of these stories have a bit of the water cooler talk element to them and that's why I'd like to share them with you today.
A reporter tries her luck with a variety of metaphysical tools including a psychic reading and she's coming back for seconds. (The Tennessean)More...
Rupert Sheldrake a Biochemist who's studied at Harvard University and earned his doctorate degree from Cambridge University has devised experiments showing that telepathy among other metaphysical characteristics are likely happening more than just by chance. (Washington Times) More...
The sole beneficiary of Hong Kong tycoon Nina Wang's multi-billion dollar riches (the 154th wealthiest person in the world_ is her Psychic. (Brisbane Times) More...
The room is wide, but not that deep. The ceiling is low. Hundreds of chairs around a small raised stage. We all wander in, in drips and drabs. One of the overly-friendly volunteers gives me a name badge, my first name printed in big letters. Over the next few days, these badges will be life-savers - there's so much info swimming in our heads, it would be unfair to expect us to recall names.
Our Group Leader is Richard. He is silver-haired, probably in his late 40's or early 50's. He reminds me of Steve Phillips. Richard tells us about how he used to be a drummer in a rock band, and how he owned a nightclub in Santa Monica, and how living the Rock Life made him absolutely miserable. That Landmark saved his life.
My business work and my interest in awareness/evolution/enlightenment has always gone hand in hand. When I learned how to define and build technology products I would apply the same techniques to myself. I thought of myself as a product and how I want to be.
Last week I was in San Francisco at Web2Open giving a presentation about this exact topic. This was given to a technology audience and with everything I do, I added a dash of enlightenment. In this case, the tag line goes "How to create your personal brand online and get enlightened in the process."
I've followed this method of self-analysis/awareness/development from before I knew the process existed. Through my spiritual/philosophical explorations I found more techniques to apply not only to my own self-development, but also my technology products. Being a better product creator, caused me to be a better person.
When creating myself, it's not always clear. Sometimes I decide to do things and after trying them, realize they are not what I was looking for. That's totally fine. Life is about exploring, living, trying new things (to me at least). No technology product is ever complete. There are many revisions. It's the same with myself. I'm constantly revising myself, to be the best heathervescent I can possibly be at this time with the resources available to me. My resources change. Where I want to go changes (as I arrive in the places I previous wanted to reach). My goals and desires may change. It's ok for all these things to change, it's important to recognize the changes to adjust your end-goal. Now that's awareness!
On 4/20, it seems appropriate to post an homage to marijuana.
Lately, I've noticed that I feel that I'm a better parent when I'm stoned.
Of course, there are many who would find this shocking, who would say that anyone who smokes herb is by definition a bad parent.
But after I've returned from a quick and sneaky trip to the garage, I find myself more patient, more willing to just sit down on the rug and play with Legos for an hour, or just do something silly with my kids.
Of course, I agree that it would be better if I could just do this sober, and I do manage to do so. But often, other mundanities intrude into my consciousness -- the dirty dishes in the sink, the hamper full of laundry, the unwritten Daily Mantra posts. I play for a few minutes and then get up again, pulled away from the important to the "important."
Sometimes, I like having a smokescreen to block my view of of distractions so that I can focus on what truly matters.
This is the way it goes-- Imagine you're an astronomer that discovers some interesting little thing out in space. Maybe it's small, like a different type of neutrino, or something nearly invisible like hot shockwaves coming out of a nearby galaxy. And Bam! suddenly, you've figured out that galaxies aren't flat. Or how old the universe is and whether it's expanding.
You know...small things. Just a part of your job as an astronomer.
A few years ago, astronomers using the super-high resolution array of radio telescopes called the Very Long Baseline Array (VLBA) were finally able to measure the angle of those black hole jets roaring out of the core of M106, said Lincoln Greenhill of the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics. His team made the VLBA observations."The innovation now is recognizing the orientation of jets in three dimensional space," Greenhill told Discovery News. "This ends up blasting away the assumption that galaxies are flat."
I found a shortcut to get home faster from the grocery store the other day-- but somehow this isn't as exciting as discovering a blackhole or a new galaxy. This is why I'm an astronomy geek; it puts our tiny little lives into perspective.
News flash: Drinking Girly Drinks are good for you, according to this...
Dr. Korakot Chanjirakul and colleagues at Kasetsart University in Thailand and scientists at the U.S. Department of Agriculture stumbled upon their finding unexpectedly.
They were exploring ways to help keep strawberries fresh during storage. Treating the berries with alcohol increased in antioxidant capacity and free radical scavenging activity, they found.
Ok. That last post might have been a little too doom and gloom for you. (It was for me.) So check this out. If you're not scared by this video, the you might just be inspired. At least I am.
On the one hand, we are ever trying to convince ourselves that we can make a difference on a humble individual basis, in our daily lives, little by little and one recycled Evian bottle at a time, and yet the destructive proof to the contrary is so vast and omnivorous it seems like a nice rerun of "Bambi Meets Godzilla." It can feel as though your little eco-home, your little ethically raised wool rug mean about as much in the overall scheme of earthly health as a speck of organic lint in a nuclear waste dump.
I remember reading, years back, about McDonald's and the enviro movement's long-standing attacks on the junk-food titan's noxious use of those old Styrofoam burger containers. After years of screaming and protests, the eco-dudes finally realized it would be better to actually work with the toxic junk-food giant to help them figure out a way to employ recyclable cardboard boxes and still make a profit.
So, are you going to keep sitting on your ass reading treehugger and recycling? Or do you already know how you're improving the world?
Bending his knees to take a closer look, he saw that the screws had been loosened, and the cremated remains of Deborah Sue Makaryk were gone.
....
Reluctantly, [Maria Isabel Foster] confessed to the theft of Makaryk's remains, he said.
"She said she was trying to use the dead woman's spirit to help solve someone else's family problem," Geist said. "It was perfectly normal to her. She wasn't joking around. It was like you and me talking about sports. It wasn't creepy, it was just strange and informative."
I wonder if Ms Makaryk was an accountant. According to the article Ms Foster had some trouble balancing her checkbook. Well, if the ritual worked, maybe Ms Foster won't continue being arrested for check-scams. Only time will tell, but I'm sure Detective Jim Geist will be there.
Sometimes, TV gets it right, here's a nice clip from the west wing that I found on Daily Kos which is touching and strangely appropriate for some of the hero's such as professor Liviu Librescu and his actions. After you get a chance to view the clip below, Kos can comment further.
We've all gotten them, weird and strange fortunes from our fortune cookies. Here's a site dedicated to them. There's also a Flickr pool for general fortune cookie messages.
Eschatology (from the Greek ἔσχατος, Eschatos meaning "last" + -logy) is a part of theology and philosophy concerned with the final events in the history of the world, or the ultimate destiny of humanity, commonly referred to as the end of the world. While in mysticism the phrase metaphorically refers to the end of reality and reunion with the Divine, in many traditional religions it is taught as an actual future event prophesied in sacred texts or folklore. More broadly, eschatology may encompass related concepts such as the Messiah or Messianic Age, the end time, and the end of days.
In the Discordian masterpiece "The Illuminatus Trilogy" - the phrase "Immanentize the Eschaton" is referred to several times - to implicate the Illuminati and their cohorts who wanted to bring about the end of the world, to accelerate humanity to the "end times."
My grandfather, who is a Christian pastor, has been telling me that we "are living in the end times" since I was about 7 years old. It's always been such a frightening prospect to me, from childhood, reading the Book of Revelations, and sometimes waking up to an empty house (if everyone's gone out) and wondering if everyone had been beamed up to heaven in the Rapture but me.
After going through the news over the last couple of days, regarding the Virginia Tech shooting and what's been coming out, I've begun to notice a trend towards the tabloidization of the stories being reported. Focus has come on the shooter Cho Seung-Hui and how disturbed he was (Can I get a duh?). This is based on reports that he was socially withdrawn, his writings, such as "Richard McBeef" and reports that he was spoken to in the past regarding harassment of other students. In addition, there's blame going around about how the University Police and Leadership were inept and how the students could have done something to stop him, etc... Well unless you're there there's really no point to criticize how people react in a life threatening situation. Personally, I think that's cowardly, and a bit Fox Newsish. We are certainly not all Flight 93 personalities. But there was one story that I think we need to all remember.
There was one individual, who performed something that has brought me to tears, something I've not done since my father died, nearly a decade ago that has restored a piece of my view of humanity.
Liviu Librescu was a Professor of Engineering Science and Mechanics at Virginia Tech. He was the most widely published, and appears to have been one of the most well respected professors at the university.
During World War 2, as a Jew he spent time at the Nazi concentration camp in Transnistria and survived. I can only imagine the horrors he saw there shaped his decision to put himself in front of his classroom doors, hold it closed while Cho Seung-Hui shot through it, hitting him, where he continued to hold it so his students could escape. He of course died in the attack.
I couldn't help but think, about the irony about how his horrifying experience as a teenager affected him, that he survived and was finally gunned down on Holocaust Memorial Day by a student.
Perhaps his earlier experiences with the Nazis shaped his undoubtedly and undeniably heroic last act on they earth. Each of these elements have been taught to me from my family, who is jewish and were a response to the Nazi era.
1. A good man who does nothing, lets evil thrive.
2. A love for your neighbor is a love for yourself
3. A poem by Pastor Martin Niemölle you may have heard that starts:
When the Nazis came for the communists,
I remained silent;
I was not a communist.
We should all be so lucky to be able to have Liviu's capabilities with in us.
A coffee mug has been circulating around the company kitchen lately that is provoking an interesting reaction from my non-religious coworkers. We have no idea who the mug belongs to, but it's inscribed with this writing:
"Dear God, thanks for your help. Praise and thanksgiving please the heart of God. I tell God that I love Him for who He is by praising His name. I thank God for the people in the world around me. I thank God for everything!"
One of my coworkers noticed the mug and said that in no uncertain terms, it was offensive and should be broken in the sink by 'accident'. Another just rolled their eyes at it, and said "Oh brother..." One person in my office suggested we take the mug and snap photos of it floating in the toilet, and post them on the staff fridge.
Granted, it's the sort of empty sentiment that you can find on the inside of a greeting card. But is the mug actually offensive? Does it warrant being dipped in the commode??
And if it is offensive, is it because religious propaganda shouldn't be at work where some unsuspecting atheist might accidentally drink their coffee out of it? (gasp!) Or is it just offensive because the writing is so God awful? (pun intended)
I don't believe the mug is offensive, personally. It's tacky, yes. But the actual sentiment is oddly agreeable to me. I don't worship the Christian God, but I do speak with him on occasion. So, on behalf of my co-workers, I asked him what He thought of this mug. His answer?
Well, I should point out to him, that he also makes some people incredibly angry and they want to kill him. Perhaps he should just stop talking and go away.
And now, from the religion that brought us the term "sodomy," comes... SODOMY! And the best part is that it's a-okay!
At SexInChrist.com, I finally found the answer I've long been looking for to the question, "Is anal sex a sin when practiced in heterosexual marriage?" At least, it's the answer I would be looking for if I were the sort of person who was concerned about what's a sin and what's not -- that answer being a resounding, well-lubricated "YES!"
According to the site,
Anal sex is confusing to many Christians because of the attention paid to the Bible’s condemnation of homosexual acts. However, it’s important to realize that these often quoted scriptures refer only to sexual acts between two men. Nowhere does the Bible forbid anal sex between a male and female.
In fact, many Biblical passages allude to the act of anal sex between men and women. Lamentations 2:10 describes how “The virgins of Jerusalem have bowed their heads to the ground,” indicating how a virginal maidens should position themselves to receive anal sex. Another suggestive scripture tells of a woman’s pride in her “valley” (referring to her buttocks and the cleft between them) and entices her lover to ejaculate against her backside: "How boastful you are about the valleys! O backsliding daughter who trusts in her treasures, {saying,} ' Who will come against me?' (Jeremiah 49:4) And in the Song of Songs, the lover urges his mate to allow him to enter her from behind: “Draw me after you, let us make haste.” (Song of Solomon, 1:4)
Woo hoo! I didn't know that the bible was so dirty! But wait, it gets better: did you know that you can have anal sex and still be a virgin? According to this site, it's true!
For a young woman who has never engaged in sexual intercourse, having anal sex allows her to preserve her virginity (i.e., maintain an intact hymen) until marriage. There is no greater gift that a bride can give than to offer her pure, unsullied maidenhead to her husband on their wedding night.
Anal sex allows both partners to save the most intimate and powerful sexual act, that of face-to-face vaginal intercourse, for their mates in marriage. This type of sexual relationship represents the most powerful union between a man and a woman, and so it rightfully should be reserved for one’s life partner. Fortunately, you can engage in anal sex prior to marriage and still be able to share the deeper, more meaningful act of consecrated love through vaginal intercourse with your wedded spouse.
I'm sure that this will come as welcome news to horny, butt-loving Christian teens everywhere: that you can read the bible any way you like to get permission to do just about anything you want!
But what does the bible say about the Dirty Sanchez?
"Are you a God?" they asked the Buddha.
"No," he replied.
"Are you an angel, then?"
"No."
"A saint?"
"No"
"Then what are you?"
Replied the Buddha, "I am awake."
I really like this story, because I agree, it's all about awareness. Being awake is the same as being aware to me. Unfortunately just because you are awake, doesn't mean you will always be awake. I can be awake, aware and enlightened in one moment, and stupid, ignorant and asleep in another. Since I'm aware I'm sometimes unaware, I have compassion for others (and myself) when we've sit down for a catnap.
THE BLACK EYED PEAS star FERGIE undergoes regular hypnotherapy sessions in a bid to help her find balance in her life. The LONDON BRIDGE singer admits she will never forget how terrible her life was when she was in her mid-20s - she was a 90 pound (40.8 kilogram) drug abuser - and she uses hypnotherapy to make sure she never returns to that hell. She says, "It's like regular therapy. For the first 50 minutes I'll vent, and for the last 10 I'll do deep breathing to get into a more relaxed state. "I'm always looking for ways to help me find balance. I'm lucky I got through the rough times. Now I'm able to enjoy life again."
This is the question Beartato asks himself in this delightful comic. It's the standard journey story, with wise answers along the way. In the end, though, is the best answer.
Does God belong in the realm of the body, or in the realm of the mind? Most traditions, from east to west, put God inside your head, which is as safely far away from the genitals as He can get. That's because the genitals naturally lead back to the earth and to earthly pleasures, distracting you from the idea of the afterlife and your heavenly reward -- as in Christianity -- or from grasping at temporary, fleeting pleasure -- as in Buddhism (which doesn't really have a "God," but you get the idea).
This strategy makes a lot of sense if you're trying to promote your religion. Christians are encouraged, for example, to delay intercourse until marriage, which is good practice for the delayed gratification that is their entire lives, culminating in a post-mortem prize. And the often transcendent experience of orgasm is also seen as something to be controlled, as it can be a path to spiritual ecstasy that completely circumvents any organized institution. In stark contrast are the much reviled
Pagans, who believe that oooh, heaven is a place on earth, and are even a-ok with incorporating sex into religious rituals. Vive la difference.
When a person is depressed, the last they they want to hear about is how happy someone else is. I used to be depressed. I was medicated with Paxil, with Celexa and Lexapro. I failed an entire quarter of college due to severe depression. In retrospect, in spite of psychiatrist's diagnoses, I don't think I was actually chemically imbalanced or clinically depressed - I just needed to talk, to release myself from all the "victim" stories I was attached to from my childhood of abuse. However, my psychiatrist was of the type who just wrote a prescription and said "we'd talk in 2 weeks after the medication started taking effect. Of course, by that time, when I'd got into the routine of taking the anti-depressants, I felt so numb and distracted by them that I couldn't even access any feelings at all. I weaned myself off of my anti-depressant medications, even through a year where my father, my boyfriend and both my paternal grandparents died. I needed a change of focus, to reprogram the so-often travelled neural grooves of all the thoughtpatterns that led me to depression. 
This is the way it goes-- Imagine you're an astronomer that discovers some interesting little thing out in space. Maybe it's small, like a different type of neutrino, or something nearly invisible like 
News flash: Drinking Girly Drinks are good for you, according to 
A coffee mug has been circulating around the company kitchen lately that is provoking an interesting reaction from my non-religious coworkers. We have no idea who the mug belongs to, but it's inscribed with this writing: 
