His Holyness The Dali Lama
When will we start to realise that we are ‘All THE SAME’ and start to respect each other as brothers and sisters, unite and be as one?
Namaste
Mark
Spirituality & Religion
All posts tagged Spirituality & Religion
Naked Feet
Published 19/04/2013 by inspiringyourspirit
There was a time when barefoot walking was considered to be immodest and was frowned upon by people. In fact, watching someone walking without his/her shoes, or at least slippers, on was bound to create a negative impression about him/her in other people’s mind. However, this has ceased be the case in the present times. In fact, today, there is a complete society, called ‘Society of Barefoot’, dedicated to the cause of walking barefoot. Have you ever wondered why more and more people are taking to bare foot walking these days, especially in their home? Let us tell you that walking bare foot has a lot of positive effects on the health of a person. If you want to explore the benefits of bare foot walking, go through the following lines.
In Children
It has been noticed that people who have walked barefoot in their childhood encounter much less foot troubles, as compared to those whose feet were always covered with slippers, sandals or shoes. In other words, the children who go barefoot, and are allowed to do so by their parents, have been seen to have lesser foot deformities, greater flexor strength and more feet agility. At the same time, they are able to spread their toes to a greater extent than others.
In General
• Irrespective of the extent of care shoes companies take, in making footwear that suits the shape of human feet, they can never ever beat the comfort that one gets from bare foot walking. In fact, those who walk with their shoes on encounter much more aches and pains in the body, as compared to the people who indulge in home bare foot walking.
• Barefoot walking helps straighten out the toes of a person. At the same time, if you walk bare foot, even the lazy muscles of your feet are prompted to move and develop more, with the result that you have toned and much stronger foot muscles.
• Another positive effect of bare foot walking, which most of the people are unaware of, is that it helps the leg muscles pump blood back to the heart. This makes it beneficial for those who are suffering from the problem of varicose veins.
• Though most of the people are unaware of the fact, walking barefoot helps relax tired feet. It has also proven beneficial for people suffering from flat feet, in many cases helping them overcome the problem altogether.
• Walking barefoot in the summer season has been found to have a cooling effect on the body of a person, especially if he/she walks on morning grass, leaves or a piece of log in the garden.
• In traditional exercises, like yoga, tai-chi and martial arts, it is believed that being barefoot helps a person absorb Chi, the life-force energy. As you walk with your feet bare, you increase your vitality. At the same time, it helps you think clearly and increases your capacity to work.
• Walking barefoot in your garden or the local park will help you feel closer to the nature. This will not only take your mind off everyday tensions and relax your body, but also rejuvenate your mind and boost your energy levels.
Wise Woman Way: Barefoot Meditation
By:Susun Weed
Winter or summer, indoors or out, in the forest or the desert, on a mountain or a city street, I prefer my feet to be bare. I do own shoes, not many, which I wear when I must (airplanes, restaurants, when driving, at the gym), but most of the time my feet are bare. (My bare toes are wiggling at you as I write this.) What is this love affair with bare feet? Why would I expose my toes and soles to wet, gooey, sharp, slimy, muddy, thorny, prickly, and possibly dangerous terrains? Because bare feet sharpen my senses, expand my consciousness, give me a greater connection to nature, energize me, keep me in touch with my overall health (thanks to reflexology), and remind me that every step is a blessing.
Going barefoot sharpens my senses. I listen more acutely, pay much more attention to odors, even use my eyes in a different way when I am barefoot. I am more present, more aware of every detail. When walking barefoot, I go more slowly, I observe my surroundings in detail. Instead of being lost in my head, I am connecting to what is beneath my feet. Instead of carelessly plopping my heels down on the ground, I send my toes out ahead to reconnoiter. Once they give the “all clear,” the rest of my foot is safe to fall softly and caringly upon the earth.
Going barefoot expands my consciousness and enhances my experience of being alive. It nourishes the thoughtful and appreciative aspects of my personality. It causes me to move more gracefully through life.
Going barefoot gives me a greater connection to nature, physically, because I are experiencing it with my bare feet, and metaphysically, because I are being grounded into the electrical circuit of the planet. Rubber (the soles of most shoes) insulates me and prevents me from partaking of the energy of the earth.
Without shoes, I become part of the electrical and magnetic flows around this planet. I pulse with the same rhythms as all other barefoot life. Grandmother Twylah (Wold Clan Grandmother of the Seneca Nation) admonished us to: “Let your heart beat as one with the heartbeat of Mother Earth.”
Going barefoot energizes me, directly and intimately, with Earth Energy. My bare feet connect me to the endless flow of loving, healing energy that emanates from the earth. With every barefooted step, I can feel it tingling up my legs. I breathe it into my belly and nourish my personal power. I breathe it into my heart to help it stay in rhythm. I breathe it into my joints, and let it put a spring in my step.
You can experience this merely by taking off your shoes and placing your bare feet on the ground. No need to walk around if that is a challenge. Even five minutes a day of sitting quietly with your bare feet on the earth can have amazing repercussions on your health, sense of contentment, and feelings of joy.
Going barefoot keeps me in touch with my overall health. When I am healthy, my feet flex in all directions and conform to uneven ground without pain or discomfort. When I am ill, it hurts to walk barefoot. Reflexologists say that there is a reflex point on the bottom of the foot that relates to each organ and system of the body. When it hurts to walk on gravel, I connect the pain I feel to the part of the body it reflexes to, and then do what I can to nourish that organ. (Reflexology charts are easy to find.)
One of my first teachers (Margo Geiger), would go into a room, choose a “victim,” drop down on the floor next to them, take their foot in her hands, remove their shoe and sock, elicit a piercing scream as she knuckled their reflex points, and finish by telling them what their health problems were, all within a minute! Walking barefoot is like having a reflexology treatment several times a day. Perhaps it keeps me healthy, too.
Going barefoot reminds me that every step is a blessing. I am blessed to be alive in these most interesting times. Every barefooted step is a blessing. I allow myself to be blessed and to bless each thing my feet touch. Every step is a blessing. I am filled with gratitude to have a body. Every step is a bountiful blessing. Each step is a barefoot meditation. Each step is a blessing. Beneath my feet, plants. Each step is a green blessing.
I hope this article inspires you to take off your shoes and feel the earth as it should be felt ‘Naked’
Namaste
Mark
Clarity
Published 16/04/2013 by inspiringyourspirit
Clarity…..!
My mind is lost, it’s spinning and it seems to be out of control, and, no matter what I do to control it, it just keeps spinning!
I seem to have lost my clarity of vision, my intuition is clouded and my spiritual pathway has come across a roadblock, just like a great tree has fallen in my way.
I usually see life with such clarity, if an issue, a challenge or a problem arises I normally sit back, meditate and my clarity of vision takes control and within a short space of time I come up with the right way forward, however, right now I’m finding it difficult to be in the ‘Now’ to see things for what they are…and I just don’t know why!
Maybe you, my blogging friends can come up with some reasoning behind what is happening to me right now! Why am I feeling this way? ‘Lost’ is probably the best word to state how I’m feeling right now.
Namaste
Mark
Rejecting the wanting self
Published 15/04/2013 by inspiringyourspiritA wonderful and enlightening take on desire by Tara Brach
“We have been raised to fear … our deepest cravings. And the fear of our deepest cravings keeps them suspect, keeps us docile and loyal and obedient, and leads us to settle for…many facets of our own oppression.” – Audre Lourde
In the myth of Eden, God created the garden and dropped the tree of knowledge, with its delicious and dangerous fruits, right smack dab in the middle. He then deposited some humans close by and forbade these curious, fruit-loving creatures from taking a taste. It was a set up. Eve naturally grasped at the fruit and then was shamed and punished for having done so.
We experience this situation daily inside our own psyche. We are encouraged by our culture to keep ourselves comfortable, to be right, to possess things, to be better than others, to look good, to be admired. We are also told that we should feel ashamed of our selfishness, that we are flawed for being so self-centered, sinful when we are indulgent.
Most mainstream religions — Judeo-Christian, Buddhist, Hindu, Muslim, Confucian — teach that our wanting, passion, and greed cause suffering. While this certainly can be true, their blanket teachings about the dangers of desire often deepen self-hatred. We are counseled to transcend, overcome or somehow manage the hungers of our physical and emotional being. We are taught to mistrust the wildness and intensity of our natural passions, to fear being out of control.
Equating spiritual purity with elimination of desire is a common misunderstanding I also see in students on the Buddhist path. This is not just a contemporary issue. The struggle to understand the relationship between awakening and desire in the context of the Buddhist teachings has gone on since the time of the Buddha himself.
A classical Chinese Zen tale brings this to light: An old woman had supported a monk for twenty years, letting him live in a hut on her land. After all this time she figured the monk, now a man in the prime of life, must have attained some degree of enlightenment. So she decided to test him.
Rather than taking his daily meal to him herself, she asked a beautiful young girl to deliver it. She instructed the girl to embrace the monk warmly — and then to report back to her how he responded. When the girl returned, she said that the monk had simply stood stock still, as if frozen.
The old woman then headed for the monk’s hut. What was it like, she asked him, when he felt the girl’s warm body against his? With some bitterness he answered, “Like a withering tree on a rock in winter, utterly without warmth.” Furious, the old woman threw him out and burned down his hut, exclaiming, “How could I have wasted all these years on such a fraud.”
To some the monk’s response might seem virtuous. After all, he resisted temptation, he even seemed to have pulled desire out by the roots. Still the old woman considered him a fraud. Is his way of experiencing the young girl — “like a withering tree on a rock in winter” — the point of spiritual practice? Instead of appreciating the girl’s youth and loveliness, instead of noting the arising of a natural sexual response and its passing away without acting on it, the monk shut down. This is not enlightenment.
I have worked with many meditation students who have gotten the message that experiencing desire is a sign of being spiritually undeveloped. While it is true that withdrawing attention from certain impulses can diminish their strength, the continued desire for simple pleasures — delicious foods, play, entertainment or sexual gratification — need not be embarrassing evidence of being trapped in lower impulses.
Those same students also assume that “spiritual people” are supposed to call on inner resources as their only refuge, and so they rarely ask for comfort or help from their friends and teachers. I’ve talked with some who have been practicing spiritual disciplines for years, yet have never let themselves acknowledge that they are lonely and long for intimacy.
As the monk in the Zen tale shows, if we push away desire, we disconnect from our tenderness and we harden against life. We become like a “rock in winter.” When we reject desire, we reject the very source of our love and aliveness.
Wonderful and Enlightening 🙂
Namaste
Mark
“Nothing To Attain . . . “
Published 14/04/2013 by inspiringyourspiritThis excellent post is from a blogging friend of mine Rising Hawk http://risinghawkspeaks.wordpress.com
Bodhisattva Siddhartha Gautama determines that if he’s really going to attain enlightenment, the bowl will float upstream. And so it does… He subsquently attains enlightenment that very night. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
Why do I do what I do?
Why do I spend my time writing, blogging, risking being labeled as crazy, developing, devising, and suggesting methods to “attain” something which is already present?
I often ask myself this question. The entire premise seems ridiculous when viewed as I just described it. I don’t get paid, I’m not famous, and I have no scheduled appearances on any of Oprah’s programs, or tours with Wayne Dyer. And, “What is he talking about,” you may ask.
It’s one word. The term most often kicked around is “enlightenment.”
This word conjures up images of half-naked sages in mountain caves, or wise ones in flowing robes, and a whole litany of other associated notions. Just for the record, the outward appearance and the actual state itself are not related – at all.
If you come across a half-naked sage throwing dust on his head, or a man or woman in a saffron-colored robe with a bald head, or a person in some other form of “priestly” attire, or a very spiritual title, you are looking at an advertisement.
I do not mean that to be taken in the negative connotation of capitalist commercialism, (though that may sometimes be the case). What I mean is that these people are outwardly presenting the fact that they have a story to tell – specifically, about how they “discovered” what was never missing, how it changed their experience of life in a positive way, and maybe how what they learned could help you, too.
Personally, I find myself less and less interested in the idea of “enlightenment” when it comes to sharing and teaching. I AM enlightened…and so are you. The very moment that we take the position of wishing to attain the state, we “lose” it: You get caught in the trap of looking for something that isn’t missing. But there is a challenge. Although you are enlightened, that fact may very well be hidden from you by that master of illusion – your brain.
This is what ALL of the teachings about “enlightenment,” or finding true and lasting deep peace, or being the embodiment of compassion and so forth, are designed to address. We need a method of “getting around” our brain and selfish egos – and they play AMAZING defense.
You see, if you aren’t worried about anything, and have no expectations, no fear of death or rejection, and move through life without a care – totally at peace with the ebb and flow of existence – well, your ego does not like that at all.
I can recall when I first realized a glimpse of this state. The very first, (and immediate), words that arose in my mind were, “I have to re-think everything about my life now!” And that was quickly followed by a panicked, “You can’t do this!”
What is your brain going to do if you aren’t worrying? What will your mind do if you aren’t thinking everything to death? How can you relate to anyone or anything if the precious “identity” that you have worked so hard to build is no longer valid? What happens when you “die” to self, (as Jesus, Buddha, and practically every other spiritual master has taught us we must do in order to see God)? I have the answer to those questions: NOTHING changes except your perspective. In that instant, all of your interactions are filled with…peace…and Divine love…and compassion.
So, there are times that I write about methods that can assist you in getting around the brain’s stubborn and relentless defense. I certainly do not do so for fame, or for recognition, (good thing, or I would be sorely disappointed)! I do it in an effort to end the mental suffering and anguish that so many put themselves through every day. And your realization of that dynamic peace will spread like wildfire into every nook and cranny of your existence; even more wonderfully, into the existence of those around you.
Understand, there is nothing to attain – but that “nothing” is hidden from many. Reflect upon this when you have a chance – it may bear you much precious fruit.
Keep Soaring,
Rising Hawk
Angels by your Side
Published 13/04/2013 by inspiringyourspirit
Is there an Angel by your side?
Watching over me
Making sure I’m safe and sound
Holding me back from signs of danger
Pushing me forward when opportunities arise
Hugging me when I’m sad and tears roll down my face
Keeping me warm when the nights and days are cold
Leading me through the dark into the light
He or She is there…I can feel them!
Can you?
Namaste
Mark
Meditate
Published 12/04/2013 by inspiringyourspirit
And Who Am I to Argue !
Spend some quality time alone this weekend, relax your mind, de-stress, feel the life blood and Qi energy flowing throughout your body, concentrate on your breathing and be at peace with the world 🙂
Namaste
Mark
Human Race Get off your Knees
Published 05/04/2013 by inspiringyourspiritJust Watch, then THINK…This speech was made by David Icke in 1994, how far have we gone since then? and how much worse is the state of our planet!
Good Deeds
Published 26/03/2013 by inspiringyourspirit
What is a ‘Good Deed’? And should we do them or even need to do them?
Well, I guess that depends on what you deem as a good deed! In my mind a ‘Good Deed’ is something you do for someone else without any question as to why and without any need for a response, for thanks or for any form of repayment for that deed. It is a free service if you will, a no questions asked deed given freely from your heart and your very soul.
I remember my dear mother telling us when we were young to go out and do some good deeds for our neighbors, especially our elderly neighbors, like; go to the shops for them, mow their lawns, tidy their flower beds, clean their car, wash their windows, walk their dog, simple little tasks that made us understand the simple values of life, of being neighborly and how to communicate with others. But, how far does a good deed go before repayment in some shape or form comes around?
This also brings me back to my earlier question, ‘What is a Good Deed’?
If I see someone begging on the street, do I give him or her some money? Is that a good deed or am I giving them the money to give to someone else who is forcing them on the streets to beg for cash, or is that good deed giving them the cash to go and buy drugs or alcohol!
If I see someone fall on the street, should I stop to help them up, offer them a helping hand or will my act of kindness lead to them to blame me or allege I pushed them down in the first place!
If I see someone being accosted or robbed on the street should I intervene and offer support towards the victim or will that good deed get me in trouble and then become the one who is attacked and maybe even injured or killed!
Years ago, we would have not thought twice over doing any one of these good deeds for our fellow human beings, the problems lie with our society as it is now and how it has evolved! The worries of legal action has stopped us from becoming involved, we now turn a blind eye to our fellow humans because of the fear of legal action. We turn a blind eye if we see someone being attacked because of our fear of being hurt or injured.
The Internet and media are full of stories and videos of this nature and I’m sure we see them with our own eyes each and everyday. I know I have and each time it saddens me.
I have experienced accidents here in China where people have been lying in the street badly injured from being knocked off their bicycle but people don’t stop, they just look and walk right on by, cars and trucks just move on by and no one wants to be involved due to the worry of being implicated with the accident and held responsible for the medical costs!
I have personally been beaten on the streets by thugs for helping an innocent victim and people just walked on by while I was receiving a beating!
I have seen a lady being robbed of her cell phone in the middle of the day on a busy pedestrian street and whilst she was screaming and being kicked and punched by her male attacker, people all around her just walked right on by until the robber gave up, took the phone an just wandered away into the crowd!
I could go on and on, but it takes me back again to my question. ‘What is a Good Deed, and should we still do them?
Did you know there is a Good Deeds Organisation on the Internet?
http://www.thegooddeedsorganisation.com
I would love to know your thoughts and for you to share your experiences.
Namaste
Mark
Friendships and Our Spiritual Journey
Published 25/03/2013 by inspiringyourspirit
It’s the end of yet another day, a productive and happy day but as I sit here quietly contemplating I can feel tears rolling down my face one more time, tears of sadness and despair so I sit and wonder if my spiritual journey is becoming too much for me to bare….I ask myself ‘Why me, Why Now’, ‘What do I have to do?…..
Our spiritual journeys are all very different and our aims, needs and destinations are all very different too! In my case, I have no idea as to why I have been chosen to follow a spiritual journey; but all I know is, I must follow the path and help as many people as I can along the way.
My days and nights are often full of sadness, trying to juggle family life, business life, friendships and relationships at home and abroad whilst also trying to follow a spiritual pathway to an end we often still don’t understand. I have always been a soft hearted man, easy going as many might say, always putting the needs of friends, employees and business relationships before thinking of; or, caring for myself, never putting anyone down, smiling as often as possible and trying to keep a cheerful, sunny, caring disposition as much as possible, and certainly not intentionally doing anything to hurt or harm anyone or anything as I go. However, what I don’t understand is ‘why do our friends treat us differently as we grow spiritually? It’s like they no longer trust us, or think were doing something underhand, untoward or against them! They become distant and off-hand with us for no reason! Maybe its just me overthinking things too much or maybe it’s their lack of understanding or nervousness of where we may be headed…I honestly don’t know why they change, but I do know it’s upsetting and it breaks my heart! When we honestly ask ourselves which person or people in our lives mean the most to us, we often find that it is those friends who, instead of giving much advice, solutions, or cures, have chosen rather to share our journey, help us through the spiritual growing pains we are going through and touch our battle wounds with a gentle and tender supporting hand. The friend’s who we care for dearly who can be silent when the time is right and also offer words of wisdom and support to us in our moments of frustration, despair, lack of energy or general spiritual confusion, friends who can stay with us in our hours of need, who can tolerate not knowing, not curing, not healing and face with us the reality of our powerlessness, that is in my opinion a friend who cares.
I still don’t know where I’m heading but I know I’m on the right pathway, I keep checking my direction at each and every kink and curve in the road, and look for clarity along the way. I don’t possess to be anything special, I’m just a simple man who needs to follow his destiny and love and help people along the way.
So my dear friends please, please be open and honest with each other because friendship is precious and love is needed by all, not just the few!
Namaste
Mark
Happiness Contract
Published 18/03/2013 by inspiringyourspirit
On March 20th 2013 we celebrate ‘International Day of Happiness’.
Most of us believe that it is external circumstances that decide whether we can be happy or unhappy in life. But psychologists all over the world have discovered one of the greatest discoveries in this century: ……it is all in the mind.
Our happiness depends on what kind of thoughts we are thinking and how we are reacting to the external stimuli that keep on pouring into our lives.
From the beginning of time people have been continually trying to change the external things, the amenities, comforts and luxuries of life that they believe will make them happy. They search for a happiness that will remain with them, a happiness to which they can cling.
But humanity has yet to achieve lasting happiness. In spite of possessing everything we desire, and attempting to control everything, most people remain in a state of frustration, in a state of frictional stress. A kind of negativity grips us and we become more and more restless inside, and it envelops the whole mind.
As a result, the mind sees the external world and chooses vibrations that bring more restlessness to the mind. It is like we are seeing the world with the wrong prescription in our glasses. The world appears crooked, bent, and disfigured when our vision is out of focus. However, if we correct the prescription in our glasses, if we change the way we view the world, then our vision is completely transformed and we see a beautiful world of love, peace and harmony. The world has not changed, the world has remained the same, but we, the seer, view the world in a very different light because now our “glasses” are set right.
This is the whole process of correcting our inner mode of seeing the outside world. That’s very important. We have to gradually change our inner self if we want to see the beautiful world outside of us because basically we are mirroring from inside out.
We all get caught up in worrying about the small things in life. Anything that is a little inconvenient can put us out of balance. We become intolerant, we anger very easily, and all the negative emotions possess us so easily. Why do you think this happens? It’s completely attitudinal.
Nobody can make us unhappy unless we resolve to be unhappy. No outside circumstances, no situation can make us unhappy unless we agree to become unhappy, unless we sign the contract to be unhappy.
There is a contract to be unhappy. There is an offer and there is an acceptance. Then it becomes a contract. Somebody may make us an offer, but if we reject it, there is no contract. It is up to us if we react to any external, negative situation. Until we sign, there is no contract. It cannot bind us. We are free. We need to be certain that we understand the terms of the agreement. Take the time to be sure. Don’t sign until you know that what you are agreeing to will manifest the happiness of your spirit, and not a material, transient binding to so-called happiness. Sign only when you sign with full awareness that you are signing a contract to be happy , knowing that you are truly acting on your own behalf, on behalf of your spirit.
Deeply contemplate the above. Realize the truth in it. Understanding is important. Understanding that triumphs over conflict and confusion is paramount. You can give up any deep-seated resentment or negative clinging of the mind the instant you understand that the time to correct the situation is here and now. Resolve to give up brooding over any negative contracts of the past and….. Relax.
You have signed a new contract to be truly happy.
Attitudes can be changed. Once we change these attitudes toward life, once we change the vision in our glasses, our whole world changes. When this happens we don’t jump out to change the world, we don’t quarrel with the person who is not being right with us, we do not try to fix everyone else in this world, we do not try to take care of the external things, but we come deep down within ourselves to make the inner correction to the glasses that we wear to perceive the world. We make a mindful and conscious decision to sign acontract to be happy
! It is time for true celebration. Celebrate with the Universe in its unending dance of life and be happy!
Namaste
Mark
Mindfulness or Concentration!
Published 14/03/2013 by inspiringyourspirit
“Some people do not know the difference between mindfulness and concentration. They concentrate on what they’re doing, thinking that is being mindful. . . . We can concentrate on what we are doing, but if we are not mindful at the same time, with the ability to reflect on the moment, then if somebody interferes with our concentration, we may blow up, get carried away by anger at being frustrated.
If we are mindful, we are aware of the tendency to first concentrate and then to feel anger when something interferes with that concentration. With mindfulness we can concentrate when it is appropriate to do so and not concentrate when it is appropriate not to do so. ”
~ Ajahn Sumedho
Namaste
Mark
My Spiritual Journey Part 3
Published 12/03/2013 by inspiringyourspirit
First of all I would like to say a big ‘Sorry ‘for not writing an update on My Spiritual Journey for such a long time, but hey, here is part 3, better late than never and we are now only about a year behind the current date, so, maybe with two more updates I can bring you to where I am right now. I will also add this post to the first two articles on my home page under ‘My Spiritual Journey’, if you would like to read it all at once.
Namaste my friends
Mark
My Spiritual Journey Part 3.
Joyce and I have met three times since that first session in Shanghai and almost two years have past me bye and what a period it has been, filled with very sad and tough times and so many happy experiences too.
My spiritual awareness and growth has continued, and my intuitions and senses have become more refined and sensitive which has it’s good points and bad points. My sense of smell and touch is now so acute and even the slightest change in temperature or weather (rain) can be felt at least one day before it happens. I seem to know when the pollution levels are getting worse, again, at least one day before it happens! My throat starts to swell, it gets very sore and I cough continually just as it did when I had childhood asthma so many years ago. I tried to make sense of what Joyce and Noriko had told me but always my logical mind made me stop to think
“Why Me, Why Now”
I felt myself reaching out and touching people, not really touching (please don’t think I’m crazy) but just a soft touch to the arm or shoulder when we spoke, I noticed this more and more often over the past year or so and I even noticed some people reaching out and touching me, especially older people or young children. Our friends often handed me their babies and for some reason they lye in my arms for hours, never stirring or waking J Animals started coming to me without me calling them, horses who were way off in a field came running over to us as we walked by their field and stopped by us until we decided to leave, even hundreds of Koi Fish and Goldfish in our local Buddhist temple make their way over to me every time we go and as I sit and meditate by their pool they stay close even when they are being fed by all the temple patrons at the other end of the pool! Cats of which I have never been keen and fond of came up to me freely, sit on my lap and snuggle down to sleep, this happens so often and still continues.
The Law of Attraction works for me continually, I only need to think about something and it happens very quickly, if I think too much about spiritual issues that are in my head an answer comes to me via email, by phone or by meeting someone out of the blue.
I can think of a friend even in another country and within a few minutes they call me or I receive an email, I think about business or getting a new contact and it happens. All these things are great, they are all positive and right for all the right reasons, but as always my logical mind kept asking
“Why Me”, “Why Now”
We were going through a really happy period in our lives, the children were all doing well at work and in their studies, work was good, we were all healthy and happy, so, my wife and I decided to go back to the UK to spend Christmas with my father and to see my beautiful children and family. This was a spur of the moment decision because we had only just got back from our UK holiday three months before this decision was made. My dad had taken a tumble at home a couple of times and as he was fit and healthy and never been ill in his life there was no cause for alarm or concern from the doctors and nursing teams who checked him out, all tests came back ok, no problems or issues were found, he was as they said, fit and healthy…He fell again and was admitted into a emergency care home until he got better, this is where he was when my wife and I returned home a day or two before Christmas.
My dad was not particularly compos mentis, which was certainly not like him at all, he would drift in and out of conversations; one minute being lucid and happy the next down and forgetful. We noticed he was loosing weight quite rapidly… he said he hated the food in the care home, it had no taste and that was why he was loosing weight! So we made him food, brought him food and as we thought made sure he was eating well, but then we found uneaten sandwiches hidden in his jacket pockets and food in the waste bin in his room…We took him out on Christmas Day and Boxing day, home for lunch on both days to see the grandchildren and great grandchildren. He watched TV, laughed and smiled and enjoyed the freedom away from the care home. On the 28th December I took him to the county hospital for a series of neurological tests and after being prodded and shocked he, for the first time told the consultant he was not feeling so well! Three days later he was diagnosed with Motor Neuron Disease, the same disease that Steven Hawking has; however, my father was a few day short of his 83rd Birthday, so this was going to be an uphill battle. And as the consultants told us there was nothing that could be done for him and things would become worse over the months to come. A couple of days past by and dad became ill with a slight cold and cough, so to be safe he was admitted into hospital where they could monitor him more effectively and give him the care and medication he needed to fight off the chest infection which quickly turned into Pneumonia. We stayed with him 24 hours a day and early one morning around 5:30 am my wife called me from the hospital, she was on the night shift with him that night and soon it was my turn to replace her so she could also get a few hours sleep, but this call was different, she needed me to speak to him on the phone, he was becoming agitated and aggressive with her and the nursing staff. I spoke to him and asked him to calm down, to be nice to the nurses and tell him I was on my way to the hospital…He said “Mark I’ve had enough, I don’t want this anymore”, I rushed to the hospital and arrived there within 20 minutes of that call. As soon as he saw me, he switched off and slipped into a coma, all our family, his children, our children and their children were with him as he passed away peacefully on the 13th January 2012 and joined the love of his life my mum Marion, his childhood sweetheart and soul mate since the age of 14.
Another day on my spiritual Journey
“Why Me”, “Why Now”!
Part 4 of My Spiritual Journey to follow soon.
Open You Eyes and See The Beauty of Nature
Published 11/03/2013 by inspiringyourspirit
If Only!
If only we could all open our eyes and see the wonders that Mother Nature lays out for us each and every day!
Infinite beauty is everywhere, in the first light of day, the wind through the trees, flowers in bloom, the sweet scent of a rose, song birds calling out, insects chattering, rivers meandering quietly through the countryside, ocean waves breaking on the shoreline, children laughing as they play in the yard or on the street side, senior citizens chatting as they pass the time of day, the quietness of a smile that makes your day as its passed to you by a stranger on the street to the quietness of the closing of the day, the clouds, the stars….What a wonderful world…
Let’s Open our Eyes and Live 🙂
I would like to dedicate this post to my mum on Mother’s Day, her beauty and wisdom will ‘Always’ be with me..RIP with the Angels..with Love Mark
Namaste with Love
Mark
Adult Bullying: What to look out for.
Published 09/03/2013 by inspiringyourspirit
You may not hear a lot about adult bullying, but it is a problem. Read this article to learn more about different types of adult bullies and get some ideas on how to deal with an adult bully. Adult bullying is a serious problem and may require legal action.
One would think that as people mature and progress through life, that they would stop behaviors of their youth. Unfortunately, this is not always the case. Sadly, adults can be bullies, just as children and teenagers can be bullies. While adults are more likely to use verbal bullying as opposed to physical bullying, the fact of the matter is that adult bullying exists. The goal of an adult bully is to gain power over another person, and make himself or herself the dominant adult. They try to humiliate victims, and “show them who is boss.”
There are several different types of adult bullies, and it helps to know how they operate:
Narcissistic Adult Bully: This type of adult bully is self-centered and does not share empathy with others. Additionally, there is little anxiety about consequences. He or she seems to feel good about him or herself, but in reality has a brittle narcissism that requires putting others down.
Impulsive Adult Bully: Adult bullies in this category are more spontaneous and plan their bullying out less. Even if consequences are likely, this adult bully has a hard time restraining his or her behavior. In some cases, this type of bullying may be unintentional, resulting in periods of stress, or when the bully is actually upset or concerned about something unconnected with the victim.
Physical Bully: While adult bullying rarely turns to physical confrontation, there are, nonetheless, bullies that use physicality. In some cases, the adult bully may not actually physically harm the victim, but may use the threat of harm, or physical domination through looming. Additionally, a physical bully may damage or steal a victim’s property, rather than physically confronting the victim.
Verbal Adult Bully: Words can be quite damaging. Adult bullies who use this type of tactic may start rumors about the victim, or use sarcastic or demeaning language to dominate or humiliate another person. This subtle type of bullying also has the advantage – to the bully – of being difficult to document. However, the emotional and psychological impacts of verbal bullying can be felt quite keenly and can result in reduced job performance and even depression.
Secondary Adult Bully: This is someone who does not initiate the bullying, but joins in so that he or she does not actually become a victim down the road. Secondary bullies may feel bad about what they are doing, but are more concerned about protecting themselves.
Workplace bullying can make life quite miserable and difficult. Supervisors should be made aware of adult bullies, since they can disrupt productivity, create a hostile work environment (opening the company to the risk of a law suit) and reduce morale.
It is important to note, though, that there is little you can do about an adult bully, other than ignore and try to avoid, after reporting the abuse to a supervisor. This is because adult bullies are often in a set pattern. They are not interested in working things out and they are not interested in compromise. Rather, adult bullies are more interested in power and domination. They want to feel as though they are important and preferred, and they accomplish this by bringing others down. There is very little you can do to change an adult bully, beyond working within the confines of laws and company regulations that are set up. The good news is that, if you can document the bullying, there are legal and civil remedies for harassment, abuse and other forms of bullying. But you have to be able to document the case.
Adult bullies were often either bullies as children, or bullied as children. Understanding this about them may be able to help you cope with the behavior. But there is little you can do about it beyond doing your best to ignore the bully, report his or her behavior to the proper authorities, and document the instances of bullying so that you can take legal action down the road if necessary.
A Simple Story:
A teacher in New York was teaching her class about bullying and gave them the following exercise to perform. She had the children take a piece of paper and told them to crumple it up, stamp on it and really mess it up but do not rip it. Then she had them unfold the paper, smooth it out and look at how scarred and dirty is was.
She then told them to tell it (The Piece of Paper) they’re sorry.
Now even though they said they were sorry and tried to fix the paper, she pointed out all the scars they had left behind. And that those scars will never go away no matter how hard they tried to fix it.
That is what happens when people bully and hurt others, they may say they’re sorry but the scars are there forever.
The looks on the faces of the children in the classroom told her the message hit home.
Namaste with Love
Mark
Evolution has its purpose but this is NOT IT!
Published 07/03/2013 by inspiringyourspirit
One day mankind will come to it’s senses and realise were all in this together!
I just hope it won’t be too late!
If each and everyone of us stood up and said THIS IS WRONG…then things will change!
Namaste with Love
Mark
Feeling the Hurt: The Disconnected Self
Published 04/03/2013 by inspiringyourspirit
The disconnected self. We all may feel this way, at least on occasion.
The sensation exists that we are beings separated from each other by space, time, or material construction. We will categorize and classify these differences and even exploit them if it suits us. However, as different as we may be, we also cannot deny our connections and similarities.
To truly understand and feel the hurt that we and others experience, we rely on our empathic skills. The word “compassion” itself means having sympathy for the suffering of others. It is no stretch of the imagination to know that people do suffer in the world. There are many kinds of trauma–physical, emotional, and psychological–that so many of us endure.
We have had the pain, terror, and horrors of war for about as long as humans have been around. The natural world itself is full of the struggle to survive under the most basic of circumstances. There is the expression, “It is a dog-eat-dog world out there.” We must understand the hurt, pain and suffering we have before we can try to help make things better.
We are, indeed, fortunate if we have someone with whom we can talk about these matters. For many people who follow certain religions, they turn to church leaders to get them through difficult times, such as when there is a death or serious illness in the family. Laypersons have counselors, mentors, and other healers–trained people who will coach us through hard times. They help us see the possibilities; they listen to our troubles, and help us take the right steps back on the positive side of things.
Compassion is not only a skill of those trained to work in those kinds of situations. It is something any of us may choose to do, because if we are honest with ourselves, we know there is a lot of pain and suffering out there, and we often cannot alleviate the pain alone. It is a positive action to be concerned about doing something to make the pain more bearable.
Some will advise that it is best to not look at the difficulties or look upon a particular horror directly, feeling it is a waste of time or counter-productive. Yet, look at the many appeals for help we see televised or that come to us on the internet these days. They can be rather graphic and show some of the real struggles of the young and old alike. We cannot deny the things that present themselves to us.
Eagerness to go out and work on eliminating them actively calls to each of us in different ways. There are people who see very little benefit in talking the problem over first, or realizing that they are not the first or only people who have suffered in this particular way or with this certain problem. Avoidance and fear do not help, clearly.
However, before we can know how much attention to place or how much work will be involved in maintaining a healthy attitude, we must first really see, know, and understand the extent of the problem, how deep it goes, how long it is been around, etc. In order to know how best to apply our energy or work on some sort of action plan, it is best to have a goal.
The goal of compassion is to alleviate suffering. This basic understanding is what a compassionate person knows from the very beginning. How to go about doing that is something unique to each situation, which is why it pays to look before we leap, so to speak. We may not be equipped to handle every case of suffering that crosses our path in life. We may feel best suited to help where and when we can, knowing that we cannot handle it all, or there are just some circumstances or situations that are beyond our capabilities.
This brings us back around to the concept that we are individuals, all having separate experiences. There can be some rather significant obstacles to overcome, when it comes to helping others, such as time and distance. When we see a situation in some far-off, war-torn land, we might wish we could be there to help in some way to care for the orphans or the sick and injured. More directly, there may be nothing more helpless than the feeling when a loved one is hurt or injured in some place where we cannot reach them or be with them in times of strife.
While it may be true that we all have our own unique perspective on our human lives, together we can create and accomplish great things. Compassion is one act that we can choose to do–one that will help others as we help ourselves to get beyond the pain and negativity that can hold us down. Together we rise, if that is our choice, and we are willing to do the work involved.
This is when we can actively choose to lessen the obstacles of time and space. Realistically, we may not be able to travel at a moment’s notice halfway around the world, but we can hold compassionate attention and cohesive energy to aid persons who need the spiritual support we can provide. We can work on making the steps happen to get there in person while we keep in touch with the suffering that exists.
Nobody says life is easy. It may not lessen the huge problems that negativity brings to the existence of the human struggle, but each little act of compassion and support we give each other sure does knock down the negativity and other obstacles bit by bit. To say we have done our one small part to make things better is something each of us can do–and it is up to us to do it.
Choose and act accordingly–there is great power in that.
Article written by Kathy Custren
Namaste
Mark
Children Beyond
Published 26/02/2013 by inspiringyourspiritTina Turner – Sarvesham Svastir Bhavatu – (Peace Mantra)
Origin: Hindhuism
Language: Sanskrit
Lyrics :
Om Om Om
Sarvesham Svastir Bhavatu
Sarvesham Shantir Bhavatu
Sarvesham Poornam Bhavatu
Sarvesham Mangalam Bhavatu
Om, Shanti, Shanti, Shanti
The mantra means:
“May well-being, peace, wholeness and tranquility, hapiness and prosperity be achieved by all”.
Sing it for peace of all sensitive beings, for calmness and harmony”
Namaste
Mark
The Now
Published 20/02/2013 by inspiringyourspirit
In which tense are you living in now?
It’s ultimately your choice, so do ‘YOU’ need to make a change to ‘YOUR’ life?
Lao Tzu is a particular favorite of mine and I have studied his writings but he is only one of many great sages that can offer you great advice and help you bring your thoughts into the NOW.
The Now is where you need to be, you need to be happy and content with who you are and where your life is taking you, if not then you need to make a change.
I wish you happiness, love and peace.
Namaste
Mark
Inner Peace
Published 15/02/2013 by inspiringyourspirit
Unless and until we have peace deep within us, we can never hope to have peace in the world. You and I create the world by the vibrations that we offer to it. If we can invoke peace and then offer it to somebody else, we will see how peace expands from one to two persons, and gradually to the world at large. Peace will come about in the world from the perfection of individuals. If you have peace, I have peace, he has peace, and she has peace, then automatically universal peace will dawn.
Namaste
Mark
Endless Light and Love 