It’s time we made a new majority, a majority for peace and love.
Peace on earth and love for all beings on our earth 🙏
May you all be blessed with a great weekend, filled with Peace and Love 🙂
Namaste with Love
Always
Mark
Compassion
All posts in the Compassion category
Meditation and Mindfulness, a Journey to My Soul
Published 09/05/2014 by inspiringyourspirit
I sit
I close my eyes
I relax
I concentrate on my breath and calm my mind
In and out
In and out
In and out
Deeper and deeper I go, ever closer to my soul
Thoughts enter my mind
Problems at work, problems at home, my past, my future
My life in thoughts, my ego at work, holding me back from the ‘Now’
Back to my breath, In and Out, In and Out
Thank you thought, I don’t need you now
Off they go disappearing forever, forgotten already and on I go
Back to my breath, in and, out, in and out,
Closer to my soul, one breath at a time
Heart beating slowly, in rhythm with my breath
Oxygen filling my body from limb to limb and cell to cell
Channeling my mind and focus on my skin
Perspiration on my brow, a cool sensation, calm and free
I see a pathway leading down, down and down it goes
I follow with joy as the adventure unfolds
My teenage years and childhood lie before me
Innocence to life, a happy place to be
I stay awhile and dream
I play amongst the trees, smell the sweetness of the flowers and watch the bees
I bathe my feet in the coolness of the stream and watch the birds fly by on wings up high
My journey nears its end
Time to return, to reality as is
My breath takes me back, In and Out, In and Out
Upwards I go with every step on the pathway from my soul
Returning again to life, my life
My meditation ends
Namaste with Love
Always
Mark
Listen To Your Heart and Follow Its Infinite Wisdom
Published 08/05/2014 by inspiringyourspirit
How many of you listen to your heart?
Do you really listen to your heart or is it your Ego?
Im currently going through a series of dilemmas, dilemmas of which not only effect me, they also effect my wife, my children, to a certain extent my family, my career and my colleagues and although I cannot go into details here on my humble blog lets just say they are massive decisions I need to make. Now, for most people these decisions would be easy to make especially if they are looking for a bigger career, more challenges, more money and more notoriety but for me these are not my goals, I know if I go with the majority then my life for the next few years will be tied up in business, business which I enjoy very much but is it really what I need in my life? There in lies the biggest dilemma!
Actually I want to establish a spiritual and wellness counselling business, probably in another country far from here but its like starting life anew, taking risks not only of myself but also for my wife and my children, I have no worries about myself, I know I can do it, my calling from source is to follow this pathway but my ego is holding me back, the nagging ego making me procrastinate at every turn in the pathway toward making a decision!
My heart tells me to follow my destiny, following this intuition has always been good to me throughout my life, whenever i come to a crossroad or a problem is placed in front of me, my heart shows me the way every time, without fail and with its own unconditional love for my wellbeing.
So what’s holding me back? Is it the fact of starting all over again, is it the fear of failing my family or is it that i don’t think i can provide for my family through a spiritual practice?
I guess I need to do some deep meditations and truly listen to my heart and act upon its wisdom!
Namaste with Love my friends
Always
Mark
Beauty Is Everywhere, We Just Need To Open Our Eyes
Published 06/05/2014 by inspiringyourspirit
Beauty is everywhere; we just need to open our eyes!
Our newspapers, TV, radio, the internet and social media messages continually bombard us with the doom and gloom of our world, wars, financial crashes, environmental catastrophes, rioting, political unrest whilst the rich and famous earn more and gain the majority of our time via their exposure through the biased and rumor hungry and often one sided media outlets. These messages bring us down, they make us feel sad, depressed, frightened for our lives for our children’s futures or we just switch off, we switch our selves off from the realities that are going on all around us; each and every day!
However my friends, there is a beautiful world outside, we just need to open our eyes and let it in!
I myself sometimes get caught up with all the troubles going on in our world, the extremes of poverty in many countries, the pollution, the environmental catastrophes taking place at the hand of mankind, the wars raging around the world for no reason other than greed, politics or genocidal control….. I cannot block them out so I try my best to do all I can to help stop it!
But I’m one man, I cannot do it all alone, so I’ve resigned myself to do my best; little by little, each day something good that will benefit humanity, and or mother earth.
Love is all-important, love for yourself is a great place to start, then when you have achieved love of yourself you will be able to give love to others, love is infectious and as John Lennon said “Love is All You Need”
As I look around me now I see and hear beauty, the blue sky, the sun shining; its rays gently warming my skin, the pigeons flying gracefully around the buildings; airing their wings, the river running by on its way towards the ocean, the branches and leaves on the willow trees swaying in the gentle breeze, the rich green of the trees in the gardens below my window and the subtle colours, white, pink, yellow and red of the flowers in the garden, my two puppy’s sleeping at my feet; their trust and love for me complete and unconditional, the sound of children playing, the old ladies chattering in the gardens as the children play. Life is wonderful if we learn to open our eyes and let it in!
Mindfulness, “paying attention in a particular way: on purpose, in the present moment, and non-judgmentally.” Dr. Kabat-Zinn
Have a quick look outside and see the beauty all around ☺
Namaste with Love
Always
Mark
If My Heart Had Windows
Published 05/05/2014 by inspiringyourspirit
If my heart had windows you’d see a heart full of love just for you
A tear may appear when I hold you near but that’s for the sweet things you do
If my heart had windows you’d see a heart full of love just for you
By your side I’ll stay till we’re old and gray remembering the young moments we knew
If my heart had windows you’d see a heart full of love just for you
A thief couldn’t steal the joy that I feel heaven for me has come true
If my heart had windows you’d see a heart full of love just for you
If my heart had windows you’d see you would remain forever and ‘Always’ in my heart
If my heart had windows you’d see a heart full of love just for you
If my heart had windows the view would be resplendent, fields of flowers all colours of the rainbow, rivers flowing through the mountainside and into the sea, birds flying by on wings so high, fluffy white clouds sheltering the bright sunshine on clear blue sky, a grass as green as emeralds and trees all around providing shelter to all of God’s creations.
Does your heart have windows?
Namaste with Love
Always
Mark
What The Internet Is Doing To Our Brains
Published 04/05/2014 by inspiringyourspiritI love this short video ‘What the internet is doing to our brains’. We all get caught up in it, our days are full of distractions, information comes at us from every angle from the moment we awake to the moment we go to sleep, TV, Radio, Newspapers, Smart Phones, tablets, Computers and of course the never ending stream of information and disturbances from the internet, emails, text messages, chats etc.
We have no time to take a time out, to calm our minds and to just ‘Sit’ ‘to do nothing’, ‘to reflect’, ‘to look inside’ and ‘enjoy our time with ourself’, ‘connecting with your soul’.
If you meditate, you know how powerful even 2 minutes of meditation can be for you, how these two minutes can calm your mind, take you to a place of total relaxation, away from the daily stresses and leave you fully in the ‘Present Moment’
Enjoy the video and take a moment from your day and be at one with yourself.
Namaste with Love
Always
Mark
What Does Giving Give You In Return?
Published 25/04/2014 by inspiringyourspiritMany of you may have already seen this short Thai video but as I watched it again it still brings tears of joy to my eyes and although its a very cleaver advertising commercial it still has a very profound message, a message we can all learn from.
Giving freely gives us far more in return!
Look at the joy, the happiness, the body language and the compassion in the eyes of the young man, and the loving smiles and gestures of gratitude of recipients towards his good natured acts selflessness and kindness.
Kindness costs you nothing, often just a smile is all it takes to lift someones day, a helping hand, some simple food, a hug can bring so much joy to all concerned.
Have a fantastic weekend my friends
Hold our your hands and give from your heart.
Namaste with Love
Always
Mark
How to Overcome Fear, a Short Video by Sadhguru
Published 21/04/2014 by inspiringyourspiritA nice follow on video to a couple of my most latest posts regarding Fear.
Namaste with Love
Always
Mark
What Can Mathematics Do For Humanity?
Published 20/04/2014 by inspiringyourspirit
Mathematics can show us how to solve anything!
Try to add more love, happiness, joy and compassion to your life and minus some hate, resentment, jealousy, envy and greed. Hold out your hands and give out your thanks and gratitude to the world and you will be blessed with a happier and more peaceful loving life!
Namaste with Love my friends
Always
Mark
Reach Out, We All Need To Do It Sometimes.
Published 16/04/2014 by inspiringyourspirit
As a follow on to my last post I saw this image and thought it was a very fitting follow on. Reach Out, we all need to do it sometimes!
In some countries and cultures, reaching out is very normal and the done thing, to reach out to support groups, councillors, Psychiatrists, Psychologists, religious groups etc but in some cultures and countries it is seen as a sign of weakness and a loss of face to admit to others that you are experiencing a problem.
Look at the words on the arms of the two people in the image and consider reaching out to a friend, a loved one, a family member or a support group if you need help or if you have have time and skills to offer support to others yourself then please consider doing so 🙂
We all need help sometimes!
Namaste with Love my dear friends
Always
Mark
When I started Loving Myself!
Published 06/04/2014 by inspiringyourspiritMy dear friends, this is a post we posted here in China from one of the worlds greatest silent film actors Charlie Chaplin, the post is in English and Chinese, its about life and understanding ‘Self’ and ‘Loving Yourself’
I do hope you enjoy it!
Namaste Mark
什么叫做“成熟”？什么叫做“完美”？
什么又叫做“生活”？
今天我们来聆听查理卓别林老师。这是一首在1959年他70岁生日时写下的一首诗。
What is “Maturity”? What is “Perfection”?
What is “Life”?
Today let’s listen Charlie Chaplin. This is a poem he wrote on his 70th birthday in 1959.
When I started
loving myself
当我开始爱自己
As I began to love myself
I found that anguish and emotional suffering are only warning signs that I was living against my own truth.
Today, I know, this is
“AUTHENTICITY“.
当我真正开始爱自己，
我才认识到，所有的痛苦和情感的折磨，
都只是提醒我：我的生活违背了自己的本心。
今天我明白了，这叫做
『真实』。
As I began to love myself
I understood how much it can offend somebody as I try to force my desires on this person,
even though I knew the time was not right and the person was not ready for it,
and even though this person was me.
Today I call it
“RESPECT“.
当我真正开始爱自己，
我才懂得，把自己的愿望强加于人，
是多么的无礼，就算我知道，时机并不成熟，
那人也还没有做好准备，
就算那个人就是我自己，
今天我明白了，这叫做
『尊重』。
As I began to love myself
I stopped craving for a different life,
and I could see that everything that surrounded me was inviting me to grow.
Today I call it
“Maturity“.
当我开始爱自己，
我不再渴求不同的人生，
我知道任何发生在我身边的事情，
都是对我成长的邀请。
如今，我称之为
『成熟』。
As I began to love myself
I understood that at any circumstance,
I am in the right place at the right time,
and everything happens at the exactly right moment,
so I could be calm.
Today I call it
“SELF-CONFIDENCE“.
当我开始爱自己
我才明白我其实一直都在恰好的时机
恰好的地方、恰好的时间
我才明白发生的一切都恰到好处
从此我得以平静
今天我明白了，这叫做
『自信心』。
As I began to love myself
I quit steeling my own time,
and I stopped designing huge projects for the future.
Today, I only do what brings me
joy and happiness,
things I love to do and that
make my heart cheer,
and I do them in my own way
and in my own rhythm.
Today I call it
“HONESTY“.
当我开始真正爱自己，
我不再牺牲自己的自由时间，
不再去勾画什么宏伟的明天。
今天我只做有趣和快乐的事，
做自己热爱，让心欢喜的事，
用我的方式，以我的韵律。
今天我明白了，这叫做
『诚实』。
As I began to love myself
I freed myself of anything
that is no good for my health –
food, people, things, situations,
and everything the drew me down and away from myself.
At first I called this attitude a healthy egoism.
Today I know it is
“LOVE OF ONESELF“.
当我开始真正爱自己，
我开始远离一切不健康的东西。
不论是饮食和人物，还是事情和环境，
我远离一切让我远离本真的东西。
从前我把这叫做“追求健康的自私自利”，
但今天我明白了，这是
『爱自己』。
As I began to love myself
I quit trying to always be right,
and ever since I was wrong less of the time.
Today I discovered that is
“MODESTY“.
当我开始真正爱自己，
我不再总想着要永远正确，不犯错误。
我今天明白了，这叫做
『谦逊』。
As I began to love myself
I refused to go on living in the past
and worry about thefuture.
Now, I only live for the moment,
where EVERYTHING is happening.
Today I live each day, day by day,
and I call it
“PERFECTION“.
我当开始真正爱自己，
我不再继续沉溺于过去，
也不再为明天而忧虑，
现在我只活在一切正在发生的当下，
今天，我活在此时此地，
如此日复一日。这就叫
『完美』。
As I began to love myself
I recognized that my mind can disturb me and it can make me sick.
But as I connected it to my heart,
my mind became a valuable ally.
Today I call this connection
WISDOM OF THE HEART.
当我开始真正爱自己，
我明白，我的思虑让我变得贫乏和病态，
但当我唤起了心灵的力量，
理智就变成了一个重要的伙伴，
这种组合我称之为，
『心灵的智慧』。
We no longer need to fear arguments,
confrontations or any kind of problems with ourselves or others.
Even stars collide,
and out of their crashing new worlds are born.
Today I know
That is LIFE!
我们无须再害怕自己和他人的分歧，矛盾和问题，
因为即使星星有时也会碰在一起，
形成新的世界，
今天我明白，这就是『生命』！
Remember my friends, LOVE YOURSELF Unconditionally!
Namaste with Love
Always
Mark
You Have Two Hands, Please Use Them Wisely!
Published 03/04/2014 by inspiringyourspirit
This is such a true statement ‘ As you grow older, you will discover that you have two hands, one for helping yourself, the other for helping others’
I just wish more people would use both hands in this way, however the majority use both hands for themselves 😦
A helping hand can bring so much joy to the giver and the receiver, a helping hand offered to someone in need can make the world of difference to their life/s.
We can make a difference to people less fortunate than ourselves, all we need to do is open our hearts and offer one hand in support to someone who needs our help.
Namaste with Love
Always
Mark
Unconditional Love
Published 31/03/2014 by inspiringyourspirit
Unconditional Love.
Wow, this is an amazing picture and clearly shows the unconditional love between the baby elephant and its carer. If you look carefully you will see images like this everywhere in this world, between men and women,loving partners, children, parents and children, grandparents and grandchildren, humans and animals and animals to animals. It’s a lovely thing to see and the feeling I get from looking at a image like this just fills my heart with joy, my smile is as wide as can be and it makes me glad to be alive and thankful for what I have in my life, the love for my wife, the love for my children, for my friends, for my environment and for our world, it also makes me want to bring more of it to our world, to try and make others open their eyes and live the joy that I see 🙂
We are truly lucky to be alive, we are truly lucky to have the opportunity to make our world an even better place to live, we have a chance of making our world a peaceful place, where our children can grow up without fear and animals can roam free without persecution or fear for their lives.
Unconditional love my friends.
Today I smile, today I choose happiness, today I choose life, today I choose forgiveness , today is a new day for us all to enjoy 🙂
Namaste with Love
Always
Mark
World Hunger and our obsession to want more!
Published 30/03/2014 by inspiringyourspirit
Cutting back on our waste and our need for more would help millions of people everyday all around the world, our obsession for the finest, and our greed needs to slow down in order for us to bring back a balance to humanity…
Remember ‘World Hunger’ is not just in Africa, there are millions of people starving in our own countries but they are not in the focus of media attention or in our minds as we pass them by each and everyday.
Reach out today, give something small to a soup kitchen in your neighbourhood, a gift of food or even a helping hand will make all the difference to someones life!
Namaste with Love
Always
Mark
I Wish
Published 27/03/2014 by inspiringyourspirit
I think I have lost count of the number of times I have said this to my friends, colleagues, students and clients here in China over the past 12 or more years. It’s strange but we are all driven to want more, have more and do more throughout our lives and no more so that emerging countries like China, India, and so on. I guess it’s understandable to want a better life, to have a good job that pays well, to own a house, have a car and enjoy all the trappings that these things bring into your life, but one day you realise that these are just ‘Things’, and they cannot do anything for us in our times of need! They cannot make you well again if you fall terminally ill, they cannot take away the pain of loosing someone close to you or stop the hurting inside if you are in a deep depression. Money does however give you options, I.e to do something or not but it has been my experience that chasing the dream of endless supplies of money and possessions does not bring you happiness, infact it quite often brings deep sadness and loneliness 😦 Jim Carey is not the only one to have experienced this, many millions of people have forged on through their lives searching and working for more, more money, more possessions..things… only to crash and burn when a serious problem falls on them.
I was one of these people who had everything,the very successful company, all the money I could want / need, a beautiful home, big flashy cars worth 100’s of thousands of dollars, the beautiful family, incredible holidays, every possession I could ever need but when that call came from my father telling me my mum had cancer and asking me to do something…Wow! That floored me like a punch from a heavyweight boxer, I was out for the count and there was nothing that all my money and possessions could do, I was lost, in a downward spiral and all I could do was give my mum the love and support she needed, be there for my dad, make sure he was looked after with my family all around him and provide the support for my children in their time of need after her passing. This like many other devastating tragedies that happen to us make you aware of what is in fact important in our lives. Please don’t get me wrong, I don’t say you should not be successful, have dreams or work hard for a living, what I mean is we need to realise what is important to us and to make use of the time we have on this earth, protect ourselves, our families and friends and live our lives with love and happiness in our hearts.
Don’t go through your life pushing ever harder each and everyday and miss what’s around you already, don’t miss out on your children growing up, don’t miss out on the love you can give to your family and friends,…Just Live 🙂
Namaste with Love
Always
Mark
My Heart is Filled With joy Today, My Future is Clear and My Pathway Open, Thank You!
Published 26/03/2014 by inspiringyourspirit
My Heart is filled with joy today, my future is clear and my spiritual pathway is once again open, and that its due to you my friends, to our Sangha, our support network, it is due to you that I am feeling how I do today, sunshine is in my heart, sunshine is in my smile and as soon as I go out i’m sure sunshine will be in my step as I walk the streets of Shanghai:)
Yesterday was a dark day, I was down and I reached out to you and you came, you extended your kindness, your love, your blessings and you words of comfort, each word brought a tear to my eyes and as I read them the tears flowed freely, each tear took away my pain, it flushed the darkness from my heart and brought the sunshine back to my smile…So thank you my friends, together we can heal our world, we can make a difference to the lives of others, we are gaining strength as a Sangha.
I’m off to a CSR event today, to speak with like minded souls, to connect to people and organisations in need of help and to find ways to do good once more, to give back for the love, the happiness and the success I have achieved during my lifetime.
My Blessings, my love and my thoughts are with you all today, enjoy them with a smile 🙂
Namaste with Love
Always
Mark
Where Do We Go When We Need help?
Published 25/03/2014 by inspiringyourspirit
Hello my dear friends,
Well, it’s been one of those days, in fact the past few days have been exactly the same…nothing seems to be going right and every form of technology known to man seems to be against me too…You all know I live and work in China right? Well, it’s not always easy here because of the restrictions to internet, we cannot get onto WordPress, Facebook, Twitter or any other form of social media due to Gov restrictions and firewalls blocking their use from China. There are work arounds using VPN’s but they are so painful and slow to use that it is often quicker for me to hand write my posts and physically walk them around the world and post them personally through your mailboxes 🙂
All joking aside, these issues do unfortunately play on your mind, in other parts of the world if you do not get an immediate response to your internet search then you will almost certainly move on to another site! Well; when posting one post to WordPress from here it could take me hours and many, many attempts! I guess these last few days have taken their toll on me physically and mentally, I’m weighed down with the pressures of getting software and hardware to do their job, lost all connections to emails and really challenged when trying to make a post, all these things have hit me hard, hard in my heart, Im always trying to help everyone, i’m well known here for the person to go to for support, for counselling, for help with anxiety, Psych issues, spiritual guidance and healing but it just dawned on me, ‘Where Do We Go For Help’!
This is so unlike me, my mind is messed up, I try maybe too hard to help everyone selflessly; ‘always’, and often to the detriment of my own health.
I have been loosing my way these past few days, doubting my own spiritual journey, questioning my pathway and questioning my future..I need to come back inside and re-connect with my own happiness, I know I have to re-connect or I will perish from the outside in!
Love to you all
Always
Mark
Don’t You Quit, There is Always a Bright Side to Life
Published 21/03/2014 by inspiringyourspirit
Don’t Quit!
From the lyrics of the Monty Python song ‘Bright Side of Life’
Always look on the bright side of life.
[whistling]
Always look on the light side of life.
[whistling]
If life seems jolly rotten,
There’s something you’ve forgotten,
And that’s to laugh and smile and dance and sing.
When you’re feeling in the dumps,
Don’t be silly chumps.
Just purse your lips and whistle. That’s the thing.
And…
Always look on the bright side of life.
[whistling]
Always look on the right side of life,
We often forget that there is ‘Always’ a bright side to life its just we loose sight of it sometimes.
If your feeling down and low, put on some happy music or go sit in the garden, feel the sun and the gentle breeze on your skin , close your eyes and just breathe, feel the air entering your nose and feel it passing out through your mouth on the exhale, calm your mind and focus on your breath, in and out, in and out, in and out, look inward and listen to your heart, here you will find answers, answers to help you on your life’s journey.
Namaste with Love
Always my friends
Mark
Why Oh Why Are We Allowing This To Happen?
Published 17/03/2014 by inspiringyourspiritOur natural world, our forests, our oceans and our wildlife is disappearing fast, all in the name of consumerism, we the consumers are allowing these corporations to destroy our would, our children or their children will not have the privilege to know what wildlife is, they will not know what a rain forest is, they will not know what a Rhino, a tiger or an Elephant is! These beautiful creatures like the Dodo will be forgotten forever and placed in some sort of electronic history book…. a picture of time gone by…another beautiful animal lost forever!
Its a sad, sad world we live in, that we allow ourselves to look at images or video’s like this and do nothing!
Tears are in my eyes
Namaste with Love to all living things
Always
Mark
Mindful Meditation…Living. Breathing, Sensing
Published 12/03/2014 by inspiringyourspirit
My mind is empty and my heart is full
Such is the joy of mindful meditation.
Namaste with Love
Always
Mark
Endless Light and Love 