It’s time for another new DVD from Spiritual Cinema Circle — a membership I have thoroughly enjoyed for many years. Why not join me? This month there is a great feature film plus three other films — yours to keep.

The Feature film, in addition to the wonderful documentary this month is “Nativity“. In this film, teacher Paul Maddens may have just taken on the biggest challenge of his life — producing the St. Bernadette’s Christmas musical. The musical extravaganza has to outshine the rival posh school’s production. Then the stakes get raised even higher when dreams of Hollywood take over the town’s collective imagination.

You can watch the trailers in the link below.

Be well — be in Peace,

Ron Rink
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I came across this the other day and thought it might be interesting to put it in the blog and see what sort of reactions there will be. I can tell you I did not do well at all. It’s obvious I’m way too absent-minded. Out of the 15 questions, I only answered 3 of them the way a truly mindful person should have.

This questionnaire, the “Mindful Attention Awareness Scale,” appears in an interesting paper by Kirk Warren Brown and Richard M. Ryan, The Benefits of Being Present: Mindfulness and its Role in Psychological Well-Being.

The more often you answer “ no,” the more mindfully you live. How do you score?

1. I could be experiencing some emotion and not be conscious of it until some time later.

2. I break or spill things because of carelessness, not paying attention, or thinking of something else.

3. I find it difficult to stay focused on what’s happening in the present.

4. I tend to walk quickly to get where I’m going without paying attention to what I experience along the way.

5. I tend not to notice feelings of physical tension or discomfort until they really grab my attention.

6. I forget a person’s name almost as soon as I’ve been told it for the first time.

7. It seems I am “running on automatic” without much awareness of what I’m doing.

8. I rush through activities without being really attentive to them.

9. I get so focused on the goal I want to achieve that I lose touch with what I am doing right now to get there.

10. I do jobs or tasks automatically, without being aware of what I’m doing.

11. I find myself listening to someone with one ear, doing something else at the same time.

12. I drive places on “automatic pilot” and then wonder why I went there.

13. I find myself preoccupied with the future or the past.

14. I find myself doing things without paying attention.

15. I snack without being aware that I’m eating.

Mindfulnss can bring many benefits. It brings clarity and vividness to present experience. It may help people end unhealthy habits and patterns. It can enhance a sense of well-being and calm troubled spirits.

This questionnaire is also useful because its questions suggest specific areas for improvement. I’m going to try to do more of the things I keep saying I’ll do — things like walk more mindfully; eat more mindfully; really listen to the folks I’m sharing time with, and learn to slow down more.

Be well — be in peace,

Ron Rink
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Always remember this wonderful quote from Buddha ….

========================================================

Namaste!

You are special — and you are loved. You are the greatest gift you can be.

Shanti … (A sanscrit word meaning, “Let there be Peace. Peace, beautiful Peace. Peace within, Peace without. Peace in this world. Peace for all beings.”)

http://www.buddhistbelief.com
http://www.theleaderinside.com
http://www.wecould2.com

P.S. Remember, that if you have one of the “readers” — like My Yahoo, My MSN, or the Google Reader, or any of the others, you can get our blog sent to you automatically whenever I post to it. Just click one of the buttons over on the left side to add it to your reader.

I do have a FaceBook page — if any of you partake of this social activity. Mine is:

Ron’s FaceBook Page

Ron Rink
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Give the Gift of Entertainment that Enlightens and Inspires…

Spiritual Cinema Circle is one of America’s most unique DVD clubs, featuring movies that warm the heart and stir the soul.

Our inspirational movies have played to enthusiastic audiences at film festivals all over the world, and many have won major awards. But in most cases, The Spiritual Cinema Circle is the only place to find these amazing films.

Take a look at more details about how this wonderful way to enjoy good entertainment.

Click on the link below. If you want to see what’s in the current month’s DVD, just open the link that says, “Our Films”.

Spiritual Cinema Circle

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In my meditation I often use what I believe is a powerful aide to deep meditation. It’s the The Holosync Solution. I knew that meditation was a vital element to nurturing my soul — to opening myself to the universe — and this tool has allowed me to achieve and receive the benefits of deep, long-term meditation — and to achieve it much more quickly. If you’re having trouble “getting meditation to work for you” – then the The Holosync Solution is what you’re looking for.

Regular, daily meditation can give you …

(1) Increased intelligence and creativity.
(2) Lower stress levels — and with that — increased ability to handle whatever the world tosses your way.
(3) New levels of self-awareness and inner peace.
(4) The healing of emotional issues at the deepest levels.
(5) It is the proven path to finding the peace, love and compassion within all of us –

— it’s definitely worth taking the time for this powerful practice every day.

With a One-Year 100% Iron-Clad Guarantee, you can now do so with no risk whatsoever — just click any of the links that say … The Holosync Solution

— The Holosync Solution
====================================================================
[tags]peace, inner self, inner peace, Buddhist Belief, spiritual energy, hope, action, value, inner balance, enlightenment, destiny, manifestation, meditation, patience, gratitude, tolerance, acceptance, body balance, life cycle, beginnings, endings, positive thinking, ego, silence, consciousness, staying grounded, cycle of life, sustainability, compassion[/tags]

It has been ages since I last did a post to this blog. All the reasons why I avoided doing more writing here have faded into the background. Part of the hiatus was due to the surgery I had in January. Since I’m not a young whipper-snapper any longer, it did take a bit longer to get back in the groove than it might have for someone younger. However, I could have been back in action as far as the writing is concerned much sooner than I did — instead I was doing some serious procrastinating. The important point is I do feel the urge to do some writing again, and this is an attempt to come up with something reasonably interesting.

A few days ago many people in this country celebrated Valentine’s Day. It’s one of those days where men and women make a special effort to let their loved ones know how much they love them. The question in my mind every year is — why do we need this reminder to be loving to our partners and loved ones? Sure, I know it’s a huge commercial thing for the florists, card makers, candy and jewelry manufacturers. I know we start our kids out young with all the cute “Won’t you be my Valentine” cards and the little candy hearts for their classmates at school.

I sort of balk at all this and have a couple of thoughts to share.

One of the aspects of a Buddhist lifestyle has to do with learning how to mindful. As evidenced by one of my other blogs, Buddhistbelief.com, I do live a Buddhist lifestyle, and do consider myself to be a Buddhist. Being mindful, or mindfulness, means to pay attention. It means to be aware of the moments as they go by. It means to be paying attention to what we’re thinking, saying and doing in each moment. It also means to live in the present and not be fretting about past actions or worrying about what hasn’t happened yet.

So much of our time and effort is taken up with our attachments to the past. Anytime we’re focusing our thoughts and efforts to recreating the past, we’re no longer in the present. There are often arguments about this — especially if you’re remembering times in the past where you were having a great time and you want to try to regain the way your felt back then. If you do focus on the past, you are also missing out on what’s happening in the present. Even though we have a tendency to believe we are defined by our past, the truth is only the present exists.

One thing Buddhists believe is to live a mindful life. If we life mindfully, we’ll be on our way to freedom. Once we learn to accept each moment as it is, we will find they are truly new and refreshing.

Here are some ways to bring your focus to the present:

1. Walking meditation. Take just five minutes and try this. With each step you take, pay attention to which foot you are placing down. Do this slowly and deliberately. Think right foot, left foot. If weather and conditions permit do this barefoot. Notice how it feels to place each foot on the ground. How does the ground feel? Is the ground soft or hard? Is your step stable or are you a bit off-balance? As the very brief five minutes pass, notice how your attention is more focused on what is happening right now. You cannot be thinking of walking, taking each step with intention, and be thinking of the past or the future at the same time.

2. Breathing. At least twice each day, take three minutes to just breathe. Sit or lie down — whatever feels more comfortable. Breathe deeply into your diaphragm. Place your hand on your naval so you can feel your breath going in and out. Breathe slowly in and slowly out. Use the stomach muscle to empty the breath. Bring all your focus onto your breathing. You cannot be thinking of the past or future while you’re taking in and letting out conscious breath.

3. Meditation. Those who have studied yoga and other meditative methods feel that it takes as little as 12 seconds to feel the peace of silence. Obviously, longer is preferable, but short, 12 second or more sessions can be done without disrupting your daily routine. Merely sit quietly and close your eyes and focus on your breathing for a few seconds. Just be. This is meditation. More than a few seconds is always better. Try to do this for as long as possible a couple of times a day. It is one of the best gifts you can give yourself.

The practice of being mindful — being in the present — being aware of what is happening in your life in every moment is how we give our energy to the essence, or the heart of us. It is from this precious place within us that we give to others. This is the place where love and compassion for others, as well as ourselves, flourishes.

It’s a great place to be — and if you think about it — it’s the only place we can possibly be. It’s all there is at any moment.

Be well — be in peace,

Ron Rink
====================================================================================================================
Always remember this wonderful quote from Buddha ….

========================================================

Namaste!

You are special — and you are loved. You are the greatest gift you can be.

Shanti … (A sanscrit word meaning, “Let there be Peace. Peace, beautiful Peace. Peace within, Peace without. Peace in this world. Peace for all beings.”)

~~~ Ron Rink
http://www.buddhistbelief.com
http://www.theleaderinside.com
http://www.wecould2.com

P.S. Remember, that if you have one of the “readers” — like My Yahoo, My MSN, or the Google Reader, or any of the others, you can get our blog sent to you automatically whenever I post to it. Just click one of the buttons over on the left side to add it to your reader.

Oh, and another thing — follow me on Twitter (see the button up on the left under Resources or click this link: Follow Me on Twitter) and I’ll let you know what’s going on with my blogs and a lot of other neat things as well.
================================================================

In my meditation I often use what I believe is a powerful aide to deep meditation. It’s the The Holosync Solution. I knew that meditation was a vital element to nurturing my soul — to opening myself to the universe — and this tool has allowed me to achieve and receive the benefits of deep, long-term meditation — and to achieve it much more quickly. If you’re having trouble “getting meditation to work for you” – then the The Holosync Solution is what you’re looking for.

Regular, daily meditation can give you …

(1) Increased intelligence and creativity.
(2) Lower stress levels — and with that — increased ability to handle whatever the world tosses your way.
(3) New levels of self-awareness and inner peace.
(4) The healing of emotional issues at the deepest levels.
(5) It is the proven path to finding the peace, love and compassion within all of us –

— it’s definitely worth taking the time for this powerful practice every day.

With a One-Year 100% Iron-Clad Guarantee, you can now do so with no risk whatsoever — just click any of the links that say … The Holosync Solution

— The Holosync Solution
====================================================================
[tags]peace, inner self, inner peace, Buddhist Belief, spiritual energy, hope, action, value, inner balance, enlightenment, destiny, manifestation, meditation, patience, gratitude, tolerance, acceptance, body balance, life cycle, beginnings, endings, positive thinking, ego, silence, consciousness, staying grounded, cycle of life, sustainability, compassion[/tags]

Oftentimes the true meaning of the holidays can get lost in all the details. You know what I mean — all the different things on your plate — the festivals — the feasts — the decorating of the house — the overloaded to-do-lists and many other obligations and commitments which have a way of arising at this time of year.

Some of these are designed to be times for celebrating life, new beginnings, and traditions, but what so often happens is we get so wrapped up in the stress of the to-do-list, that we forget what it’s all about. Yet there are many unique and satisfying ways to celebrate the holidays without spending too much money or becoming exhausted in the process. Whereas the media, and possibly even loved ones, may encourage you to do and buy more, concentrating on the spirit of the season by giving love and hope during the holidays can help you do more with less. You can create new holiday traditions that help you focus on what you find important.

Many of you know that I follow a Buddhist lifestyle. Even though Buddhists don’t have a particular thing to celebrate this time of year, there’s no reason why this isn’t a great time to take stock of what matters most to me, you, or anyone, regardless of our spiritual beliefs.

What matters to you? Is it family, friends, community, helping those less fortunate, or loving the earth? If you feel driven to give the people in your life gifts, consider presents that encourage positive living or where the gift will have impact felt long after the holidays are over.

Think about donating your effort to making someone else’s life better. Maybe you could make a charitable donation or plant a seedling tree in a loved one’s name. A couple of my favorites are to make a contribution to a place like Heifer International or to Oxfam or Kiva. When I’m asked what I want for a gift, I ask people to make a contribution to help someone else and I suggest these organizations. Instead of giving your friends and family material goods, give them the gift of your time. Time spent making homemade gifts can give you a chance to ruminate on what you treasure about your loved ones.

When exploring the true meaning of the holidays and getting back to the true spirit of the season, allow yourself to alter existing traditions. Even a blessing before a meal or a walk under the stars can help you reconnect with the holidays. Do what fulfills you and then stop before your celebration becomes more of a hassle than a happy occasion. Get back to the basics of generosity and goodwill, and your holiday will certainly be a rewarding one.
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Always remember this wonderful quote from Buddha ….

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I meditate every day to help keep me centered. Those glimpses we get of peace, love, acceptance and happiness when we’re meditating will soon grow into more than glimpses if we keep practicing. Keep those feelings alive. A meditation can be as simple as one, deep, conscious breath. When something happens in one of your moments to cause you to suffer, just stop and take one of those breaths and remember, “This too shall pass!” Another thing that is wonderful, especially at certain times of the year, is to have a fresh flower where you work. Just stop from time-to-time and look at it — don’t label it — don’t judge it — just be with it for a couple of moments. It really does work. It’s winter where I live so I do miss my fresh flower.

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In my meditation I often use what I believe is a powerful aide to deep meditation. It’s the The Holosync Solution.

Rather than write volumes about what it has done for me over the years, there is a new video available called, “One Simple Thing, The Amazing Holosync Story“

Take a few moments, click the link above and check it out. It’s a good one.
===================================================================

Namaste!

You are special — and you are loved. You are the greatest gift you can be.

Shanti … (A sanscrit word meaning, “Let there be Peace. Peace, beautiful Peace. Peace within, Peace without. Peace in this world. Peace for all beings.”)

~~~ Ron
http://www.buddhistbelief.com
http://www.theleaderinside.com
http://www.wecould2.com

P.S. Remember, that if you have one of the “readers” — like My Yahoo, My MSN, or the Google Reader, or any of the others, you can get our blog sent to you automatically whenever I post to it. Just click one of the buttons over on the left side to add it to your reader. Oh, and another thing — follow me on Twitter (see the button up on the left under Resources or click this link: Follow Me on Twitter) and I’ll let you know what’s going on with my blogs and a lot of other neat things as well.
================================================================

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[tags]peace, inner self, inner peace, Buddhist Belief, spiritual energy, hope, action, value, inner balance, enlightenment, destiny, manifestation, meditation, patience, gratitude, tolerance, acceptance, body balance, life cycle, beginnings, endings, positive thinking, ego, silence, consciousness, staying grounded, cycle of life, sustainability, compassion[/tags]
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As you saw, the last article was a small step towards bringing this blog back to its origins and away from the triple “R” — aka the “Ron Rink Rant”! That’s not to say I won’t get peeved about something from time-to-time and write about it — I’m certain I will. But, now I’m tired of harping and want to get back to things of a more peaceful nature. There are so many blogs out there where screaming and yelling are the rule, and I sort of like being the exception to that rule. So, until I get really pissed about something again, I’m back to my kind of writing which relates to more peaceful thinking.

Convincing people to give a daily practice of meditation a chance in their lives is right up there with pulling teeth. I guess it’s just a natural part of human nature to avoid things when people say, “It’s good for you!” We sort of learn to turn our noses up at those “good for you” items from the time we’re small children. Think about how often you were told to “Eat your spinach — it’s good for you!” — and then it was a huge “Yuck” when you took the bite. As we eventually comprehended the “trick” attached to the “good for you” promise, we soon learned to make excuses to avoid those things which others told us would make us feel better, or be better.

Back when I was first learning about meditation there were many times when I would feel a need to sit for a while and feel the peace and power of the silence. But then, the inevitable happened, I’d find myself making excuses — I’m too busy right now — I don’t have the time — I have to finish this project — I really don’t have the right place to do this — etc., etc. It was a lot easier to come up with dozens of reasons to put off meditating than to just stop and do it.

When we take a moment to really look at the kind of excuses we make, we should begin to see a strong message there. These excuses we’re making are actually the strongest reasons why we should look past the illusion of the hustle and bustle of daily life, and take the time to connect with the place within. These excuses are the reasons why we need to go to our inner place that intersects with the timeless power and limitless potential of the universe. This beautiful place within every one of us is where we can always find the perfect, potent stillness — it will always be there no matter what. And we don’t have to go anywhere to find it — it is just a breath away.

Why is it we are making these excuses to avoid meditation? Why do we fight so hard against something so beneficial to our peace of mind and well-being. Are we afraid that if we were to stop this frantic pace we keep day-after-day that our world may fall apart? Are we afraid to take those moments for fear we might have to face some undeniable realities of who we are and see some of the results of the choices we’ve made? Is it a fear of making changes in ourselves?

I suppose it could be some of those things which keep us from slowing down and including mediation in our daily lives, but I suspect it’s more a fear of the unknown. Once again it’s in our nature to fear the unknown more than we fear the frustrations and anxieties of the known world.

But the truth is — when we cooperate with the universe by allowing our lives to develop from the truth of our being, life becomes less of a struggle and more of a process of living blissfully.

I can attest to the power of daily meditation. I’m in a place in my own life where if I skip a day I have a sort of feeling of withdrawal. I will miss spending the time each day in peace and silence. I will miss the bliss of staying in the present, the Now, even if it’s only for a few moments. One plus I wasn’t expecting is the sense of calm wisdom I now bring to my work — a factor I didn’t experience before.

Taking the time, each day, to recenter — to refocus, will remind you how important it is to stay connected to your inner being — your source. When you make meditation a regular, daily part of your life, you will soon notice how time seems to expand to make room for even longer periods of inner peace. You will feel the rejuvenation — you will realize a newfound energy you’ve never experienced before. You will see the power of living with calmness, peace, and amazing wisdom.
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Always remember this wonderful quote from Buddha ….

========================================================
I meditate every day to help keep me sane in this crazy world we live in. Those glimpses we get of peace, love, acceptance and happiness when we’re meditating will soon grow into more than glimpses if we keep practicing. Keep those feelings alive. A meditation can be as simple as one, deep, conscious breath. When something happens in one of your moments to cause you to suffer, just stop and take one of those breaths and remember, “This too shall pass!” Another thing that is wonderful, especially at certain times of the year, is to have a fresh flower where you work. Just stop from time-to-time and look at it — don’t label it — don’t judge it — just be with it for a couple of moments. It really does work. I’m looking at mine as I write this.

========================================================
In my meditation I often use what I believe is a powerful aide to deep meditation. It’s the The Holosync Solution.

Rather than write volumes about what it has done for me over the years, there is a new video available called, “One Simple Thing, The Amazing Holosync Story“

Take a few moments, click the link above and check it out. It’s a good one.

===================================================================

Namaste!

You are special — and you are loved. You are the greatest gift you can be.

Shanti … (A sanscrit word meaning, “Let there be Peace. Peace, beautiful Peace. Peace within, Peace without. Peace in this world. Peace for all beings.”)

~~~ Ron
http://www.buddhistbelief.com
http://www.theleaderinside.com
http://www.wecould2.com

P.S. Remember, that if you have one of the “readers” — like My Yahoo, My MSN, or the Google Reader, or any of the others, you can get our blog sent to you automatically whenever I post to it. Just click one of the buttons over on the left side to add it to your reader. Oh, and another thing — follow me on Twitter (see the button up on the left under Resources or click this link: Follow Me on Twitter) and I’ll let you know what’s going on with my blogs and a lot of other neat things as well.
================================================================

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[tags]peace, inner self, inner peace, Buddhist Belief, spiritual energy, hope, action, value, inner balance, enlightenment, destiny, manifestation, meditation, patience, gratitude, tolerance, acceptance, body balance, life cycle, beginnings, endings, positive thinking, ego, silence, consciousness, staying grounded, cycle of life, sustainability, compassion[/tags]

Since I already started working on this article last night, I’m going to go ahead and publish it even though I have something else on my mind today. I feel a real need to begin a conversation with you about our world — our Earth — and where we are in our relationship with it today. I’ll begin a series of articles on that subject starting with next week. I hope you’ll be back and that you’ll share in this conversation with me.

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For today, let’s once again begin with our meditation. Although this one isn’t the same type of meditation video like the ones I’ve been offering each week, this one is a New Music Video inspired by Oprah & Eckhart Tolle’s A New Earth Web Classes. Be awakened and inspired. Know that YOU are awakening! Feel the peace, love and joy of Presence as you watch.

This is about 3 minutes long.

Here’s a link in case the video doesn’t play for some reason:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0OBG7GjGHOc

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One of the things we’ve talked about often over the past several weeks (hmmm, or has it actually been months, now?) is the fact that we are clearly identified with the mind of our ego rather than seeing our true reality. Our personal world, (and the personal worlds of most of our fellow human beings), is/are the reality that what our ego-minds tell us is true. Once we learn to detach ourselves from this ego-world we will begin to get a taste of another Reality, our true Reality. What is that true Reality? It is just “what is”, right now, this moment, without all the mental images that our minds constantly impose on us. It is our Awakened self.

As mentioned before in this blog, our ego way of thinking will do everything it can to resist and reject our true Reality. It will use every trick in the book to get us to believe that our true Reality is false and will work hard to take control over our thoughts. One of the ways it does this is to make us feel as though what our minds are telling us is “right” and most of this other “spiritual stuff” is not real. It makes us think of ourselves as something better in our relationship with the world and others. Where this kind of thinking is used, the people who are believing it will tend to be conceited and insist on always being right.

Then there is the other side of the coin that the ego will often use, and that is to make us feel as though we are inferior to others. The ego will cause us to develop stories about ourselves to reinforce this belief that we’re not worthy. People who are buying into these stories will usually have low self-esteem and are often depressed.

It’s our ego-minds that are making us believe these stories about ourselves. We’ve been hearing the stories since we learned how to understand language. Sometimes the stories will have some partial truths in them, but usually are quite removed from our true, awakened Reality.

There can be a lengthy laundry-list of the stories we tell ourselves about ourselves.

“I am so creative. I am the princess (or the prince). I was abused as a child. I’m just a loser. I always do the right thing (or the wrong thing). I’m really smart. I’m really dumb. I’m different from you. I’m a loner. I’m a “people-person”. I’m special. I’m lazy. I’m very ambitious.”

You see what I mean? These are the stories we cling to because they give us our identity.

What can we do to break this cycle of stories that we allow ourselves to believe? How do we get to that place where we are able to see who we really are — right now — at this moment?

If you’ve been reading here for any length of time, you know that I believe that one way to break the cycle is to develop a regular practice of meditation. In order to quit buying into the ego-mind stories, we have to find a way to turn the thoughts off, even if it’s only for a short while.

As Dr. Jill Bolte Taylor says in her wonderful book, “My Stroke of Insight“, she has the “priceless gift of knowing that deep inner peace is just a thought/feeling away.”

For many of us the distance between our ego-thinking mind and our compassionate heart can seem miles apart. While it’s true that some of us can travel this distance easily, others of us are so committed to our “stories” about our angers, our frustrations, our jealousies, our endless mind-chatter, that even the idea that there is this beautiful place of peace, love and compassion in us all the time seems like a foreign idea. In Reality, this place is no more than a thought away.

This feeling of peace can happen only in the present moment. It’s not something that we bring with us from the past or project into the future. The first major step to finding that place in us — that place of true Reality — is our own willingness to be present in the right here, right now.

As always, I have to stress to you that one of the best ways to find that place in us, is through the practice of meditation — regular, daily meditation. Once we begin this practice, we’ll get a feel for what that place is like. Once we feel that deep, inner peace, the easier it will be for us to purposefully move there — to feel awakened — the sort of Awakening that the video above tells us is always ours.

Try it! You will love it!

This will be the last article devoted to meditation for now. That doesn’t mean that I won’t still be encouraging you from time-to-time about the importance of this practice. I’ll probably never stop doing that. It is vital to achieving true happiness in our lives. Next week we’ll venture off in another direction — closely related — something of which we are all aware — and that is the crisis unfolding around us. Come back and see what I have on my mind.

I’d love to hear your comments on this. At the very end of this post (after the commercials and the tags) you should see a place where you can leave your comment. It will be a link that says “No Comments” — or “Comments”. Let me hear from you. Thanks.
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Those glimpses we get of peace, love, acceptance and happiness when we’re meditating will soon grow into more than glimpses if we keep practicing. Keep those feelings alive. A meditation can be as simple as one, deep, conscious breath. When something happens in one of your moments to cause you to suffer, just stop and take one of those breaths and remember, “This too shall pass!” Another thing that is wonderful, especially at this time of year, is to have a fresh flower where you work. Just stop from time-to-time and look at it — don’t label it — don’t judge it — just be with it for a couple of moments. It really does work. I’m looking at mine as I write this.

—————————-
If you’re new to us here, be sure read the entire series about meditation. If you look on the upper left of the sidebar, you’ll see a list of the categories. Click the one called “Meditation” and you’ll be able to read the articles you missed. They start with the January 24, 2008 post. The video meditations that I included with the earlier articles may no longer function. I’m sorry about that, but those are out of my control. Hopefully, they’ll all still be working.

Do include meditation in your daily life. If you’re just starting out, make it a 10 minute meditation. If you’ve been doing this for a while, try to do a minimum of 20 to 30 minutes. The longer you can maintain your focus on just your breath, the better. And, remember, anytime you take a deep, conscious breath — that’s a breath where you’re putting your focus on that breath — that’s a meditation. Do it often every day — especially when you’re feeling stressed. I guarantee, you’ll find more peace and happiness in your life if you’ll do this.

Namaste!

And, as I always say in closing — remember these words …

You are special — and you are loved. You are the greatest gift you can be.

Shanti … (A sanscrit word meaning, “Let there be Peace. Peace, beautiful Peace. Peace within, Peace without. Peace in this world. Peace for all beings.”)

~~~ Ron
http://www.theleaderinside.com
http://www.wecould2.com

P.S. Remember, that if you have one of the “readers” — like My Yahoo, My MSN, or the Google Reader, or any of the others, you can get our blog sent to you automatically, whenever I post to it. Just click one of the buttons over on the left side to add it to your reader.
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Even though the live webcasts of the Eckhart Tolle New Earth classes are now concluded, you can still download the entire course. It’s being called “The Best Summer School Course Ever!” I highly recommend it. It’s completely free. All you really have to do is get the book, “A New Earth — Awakening to Your Life’s Purpose” by Eckhart Tolle. You can access the course online at:

http://www.oprah.com/obc_classic/webcast/archive/archive_download.jsp.

You’ll find everything you need there — all 10 classes. If you happen to have iTunes on your computer, you can also access the course by subscribing to it through the podcast link in iTunes. Check it out. Several million people around the globe took part in this amazing spiritual teaching. I hope you’ll soon be one of them. This is how we can create a new consciousness on the New Earth.

Also, Oprah now has her Soul Series of Webcasts started. There is a series with Dr. Jill Bolte Taylor and more from Eckhart Tolle. You can get these from this site for downloading:

http://www2.oprah.com/spiritself/oss/ss_oss_archive.jhtml

I’ve listened/watched all of these so far, and I highly recommend them. If you have iTunes, you can subscribe to them.
================================================================
In my meditation I often use what I believe is a powerful aide to deep meditation. It’s the The Holosync Solution. I knew that meditation was a vital element to nurturing my soul — to opening myself to the universe — and this tool has allowed me to achieve and receive the benefits of deep, long-term meditation — and to achieve it much more quickly. If you’re having trouble “getting meditation to work for you” – then the The Holosync Solution is what you’re looking for.

Regular, daily meditation can give you …

(1) Increased intelligence and creativity.
(2) Lower stress levels — and with that — increased ability to handle whatever the world tosses your way.
(3) New levels of self-awareness and inner peace.
(4) The healing of emotional issues at the deepest levels.
(5) It is the proven path to finding the peace, love and compassion within all of us –

— it’s definitely worth taking the time for this powerful practice every day.

With a One-Year 100% Iron-Clad Guarantee, you can now do so with no risk whatsoever — just click any of the links that say … The Holosync Solution

— The Holosync Solution
================================================================

====================================================================
[tags]peace, inner self, inner peace, Buddhism, Buddhist, The Secret, Law of Attraction, dreams, spiritual energy, action, value, inner balance, enlightenment, destiny, manifestation, meditation, patience, gratitude, tolerance, acceptance, body balance, life cycle, beginnings, endings, positive thinking, ego, silence, consciousness, staying grounded, cycle of life[/tags]

Last week the main topic was happiness and how to find it. We learned that you already are happy and that it’s your choice whether to be involved with the real you, the essence of you, the you that is happiness — or whether to choose the egoic you — the you that is attached to your thoughts of the past and the future.

===============================================
We’ve developed the routine of including a short meditative video with these posts on Meditation. For today, I’ve chosen this one for you. It’s called “Connecting With Nature”. It’s another guided meditation by Sally Morningstar. It will last about 9 minutes.

Take a couple of deep breaths and relax your body and your mind.

Here’s a direct link in case the embedded one doesn’t play for some reason.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lagIlhbjqUk

===============================================

It’s quite easy to see the choice here, isn’t it? It’s clear — one or the other. Making the choice is the hard part. Why? Because we love our stories, beliefs, opinions, judgments, memories, fantasies and other ideas. We love them so much that we find ourselves loving them more than we love the essence of us — the part of us where there is peace, compassion and love.

Why is it that we want to be who we think we are more than we want to put an end to our suffering and be who we truly are? More times than not, when faced with choosing between our ideas and love, we will choose ideas. Before you start berating yourself for this, keep in mind that there is no blame here. Since the day we were born, we’ve been programmed to make this choice. At every point in our lives we’ve been told, or we’ve been shown, or we’ve been advised to choose the direction our ego wishes for us.

However, at some point in the evolution of our souls we need to wake up — look at the way we’ve been programmed — examine how making that choice has worked for us — and make the conscious choice to begin choosing the truth. We’ll know when that time comes because the pull to make that choice will become stronger than the desire to follow our egos.

One of the reasons why you’ve been reading these articles is because you are at that point now. The urge to find another way to live your life will be guiding you to begin to ignore all that old programming. You’ll begin to make new discoveries. You’ll see that teachers will find their way into your life. Teachers like Eckhart Tolle. Teachers like Dr. Jill Bolte Taylor. Teachers like Dr. Wayne Dyer. You’ll discover new books and other articles. All these tools to discovering your true essence will begin showing up in your life. It’s quite miraculous, isn’t it?

You’ll learn that there is a way out of the suffering in your life. However, you will have to make the choice to follow the new way again and again. Your ego won’t give up on the role it has always played in your life. It will be there bugging you constantly even after you’ve begun making these new choices. It will continue to tempt you with the stories, the fantasies, the memories, the drama, the desires and the cravings.

Once you’ve begun to see these egoic thoughts for what they are, that part of you will begin to weaken more and more. Will it disappear eventually? Only you can know the answer to this. It will always be you who makes the choices. Your programming will always be there, but you can choose to change your relationship to it. How long you continue to jump back and forth between your programming and your true self is up to you. It will always be your choice.

Meditation is the best way to advance the training of your mind to let go of the egoic programming and rest in the peace of the present. In order to get beyond the ego we have to become comfortable with what it’s like to be in the power of the now. The more you practice turning off your thinking through meditation, the better your understanding of what that peace is — what it feels like to be in that place — thereby making it easier to choose the real you instead of the ego. Soon you will see that your desire for peace, love and compassion will become stronger than your desire for the old stories.

When that happens you will be on your way to freedom — and you will have found true happiness.

I’d love to hear your comments on this. At the very end of this post (after the commercials and the tags) you should see a place where you can leave your comment. It will be a link that says “No Comments” — or “Comments”. Let me hear from you. Thanks.
=====================

Those glimpses we get of peace, love, acceptance and happiness when we’re meditating will soon grow into more than glimpses if we keep practicing. Keep those feelings alive. A meditation can be as simple as one, deep, conscious breath. When something happens in one of your moments to cause you to suffer, just stop and take one of those breaths and remember, “This too shall pass!” Another thing that is wonderful, especially at this time of year, is to have a fresh flower where you work. Just stop from time-to-time and look at it — don’t label it — don’t judge it — just be with it for a couple of moments. It really does work. I’m looking at mine as I write this.

—————————-
If you’re new to us here, be sure read the entire series about meditation. If you look on the upper left of the sidebar, you’ll see a list of the categories. Click the one called “Meditation” and you’ll be able to read the articles you missed. They start with the January 24, 2008 post. The video meditations that I included with the earlier articles may no longer function. I’m sorry about that, but those are out of my control. Hopefully, they’ll all still be working.

Do include meditation in your daily life. If you’re just starting out, make it a 10 minute meditation. If you’ve been doing this for a while, try to do a minimum of 20 to 30 minutes. The longer you can maintain your focus on just your breath, the better. And, remember, anytime you take a deep, conscious breath — that’s a breath where you’re putting your focus on that breath — that’s a meditation. Do it often every day — especially when you’re feeling stressed. I guarantee, you’ll find more peace and happiness in your life if you’ll do this.

Namaste!

And, as I always say in closing — remember these words …

You are special — and you are loved. You are the greatest gift you can be.

Shanti … (A sanscrit word meaning, “Let there be Peace. Peace, beautiful Peace. Peace within, Peace without. Peace in this world. Peace for all beings.”)

~~~ Ron
http://www.theleaderinside.com
http://www.wecould2.com

P.S. Remember, that if you have one of the “readers” — like My Yahoo, My MSN, or the Google Reader, or any of the others, you can get our blog sent to you automatically, whenever I post to it. Just click one of the buttons over on the left side to add it to your reader.
================================================================
Even though the live webcasts of the Eckhart Tolle New Earth classes are now concluded, you can still download the entire course. It’s being called “The Best Summer School Course Ever!” I highly recommend it. It’s completely free. All you really have to do is get the book, “A New Earth — Awakening to Your Life’s Purpose” by Eckhart Tolle. You can access the course online at:

http://www.oprah.com/obc_classic/webcast/archive/archive_download.jsp.

You’ll find everything you need there — all 10 classes. If you happen to have iTunes on your computer, you can also access the course by subscribing to it through the podcast link in iTunes. Check it out. Several million people around the globe took part in this amazing spiritual teaching. I hope you’ll soon be one of them. This is how we can create a new consciousness on the New Earth.

Also, Oprah now has her Soul Series of Webcasts started. There is a series with Dr. Jill Bolte Taylor and more from Eckhart Tolle. You can get these from this site for downloading:

http://www2.oprah.com/spiritself/oss/ss_oss_archive.jhtml

I’ve listened/watched all of these so far, and I highly recommend them. If you have iTunes, you can subscribe to them.
================================================================
In my meditation I often use what I believe is a powerful aide to deep meditation. It’s the The Holosync Solution. I knew that meditation was a vital element to nurturing my soul — to opening myself to the universe — and this tool has allowed me to achieve and receive the benefits of deep, long-term meditation — and to achieve it much more quickly. If you’re having trouble “getting meditation to work for you” – then the The Holosync Solution is what you’re looking for.

Regular, daily meditation can give you …

(1) Increased intelligence and creativity.
(2) Lower stress levels — and with that — increased ability to handle whatever the world tosses your way.
(3) New levels of self-awareness and inner peace.
(4) The healing of emotional issues at the deepest levels.
(5) It is the proven path to finding the peace, love and compassion within all of us –

— it’s definitely worth taking the time for this powerful practice every day.

With a One-Year 100% Iron-Clad Guarantee, you can now do so with no risk whatsoever — just click any of the links that say … The Holosync Solution

— The Holosync Solution
================================================================

====================================================================
[tags]peace, inner self, inner peace, Buddhism, Buddhist, The Secret, Law of Attraction, dreams, spiritual energy, action, value, inner balance, enlightenment, destiny, manifestation, meditation, patience, gratitude, tolerance, acceptance, body balance, life cycle, beginnings, endings, positive thinking, ego, silence, consciousness, staying grounded, cycle of life[/tags]

Here’s hoping that you had a great weekend. I know there were holidays in some countries, so if you had one I hope it was good for you. Before we got sidetracked over the past two weeks with our brief excursion into “Ron’s Buddhist 101″ course, we were talking about happiness — and how deeply you truly desire to have it in your life. We looked into our constant need for more — or better — and how those needs were getting in the way of finding the happiness we all seek. It’s that darn ego again. Once we find ways to quiet that craving for more and more, we will find that we don’t need more things to make us happy — because we already are.

Before we proceed with today’s article, let’s do a short meditation. This guided meditation is especially pertinent to what we wrote about today, so I hope you’ll stop here and take these few minutes to dwell in the peace of the Present. It is about 10 minutes in length. I should warn you that it does cut off rather abruptly at the end. Take a couple of deep breaths and relax your body and your mind.
===================================================
Here’s a link just in case the video doesn’t play when you press the “Play” button.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uR6bOMeBBd4

====================================================
Yes, we are already happy. That is the truth. I hope you can find it in yourself to believe it. The real you — the essence of you — has always been happy and it has always been possible for you to feel this happiness. Whenever you can stop thinking or stop paying attention to your ego-mind, there it is: peace, compassion, contentment, happiness, and joy. It turns out that the only thing in the way of your happiness is your thinking that takes you away from the NOW and into the past or the future.

As we talked about in the articles about Buddhism, this involvement with this ego part of you is the cause of suffering. This ego-you and suffering go hand-in-hand; you can’t have one without the other. So, the choice is clear: You can be involved with all your egoic thinking and suffer, or you can be involved with the real you and be happy.

Over the past few weeks I’ve been following the discussions on the Oprah Soul Series with Dr. Jill Bolte Taylor. Those of you who have been reading this blog will recall that I showed you a video about Dr. Taylor’s amazing experience when she had a stroke. She experienced complete peace — or in her words, “Nirvana”. You can find that video in the post I did a few weeks ago. Scroll down to the last part of that article and you’ll find it. Here’s the link to the article:

http://www.theleaderinside.com/meditation-finding-the-present.html

I also decided to get her book, “My Stroke of Insight” and am reading it now. I highly recommend it. What Dr. Taylor describes in the video and also in her book is how, since her stroke, she is now able to go to the Present — the Now — at will. She pays close attention to her thoughts and to her feelings generated by those thoughts. If what she’s thinking causes any negative or stressful feelings in her body, she just says, “No thanks! I don’t need that in my life!” She then dismisses that thought and returns to the peaceful present.

The same holds true for any actions she’s considering. If the thought of taking that action causes her to feel discomfort – or just doesn’t feel “right” — that action doesn’t happen. If it does give her a good feeling to go ahead with that action, she moves forward knowing it’s the right thing to do.

So, the goal for all of us to learn to be more aware of our thinking and how we feel about what we’re thinking. If those thoughts are causing us discomfort, stress or negativity, then dismiss them, and move on. If you’re thinking about embarking on some activity, but you have that nagging feeling of negativity in the pit of your stomach, that’s your signal that there may be something in that activity that will cause you to feel unhappy. It may be that you need to say, “No thanks. I don’t need that in my life!”

There’s a quotation from Dinah Craik, from A Life for a Life, that has a phrase worth repeating here.

When it comes to our discursive thinking that takes us away from our inherent happiness ……

I’d love to hear your comments on this. At the very end of this post (after the commercials and the tags) you should see a place where you can leave your comment. It will be a link that says “No Comments” — or “Comments”. Let me hear from you. Thanks.
====================================
Those glimpses we get of peace, love, acceptance and happiness when we’re meditating will soon grow into more than glimpses if we keep practicing. Keep those feelings alive. A meditation can be as simple as one, deep, conscious breath. When something happens in one of your moments to cause you to suffer, just stop and take one of those breaths and remember, “This too shall pass!” Another thing that is wonderful, especially at this time of year, is to have a fresh flower where you work. Just stop from time-to-time and look at it — don’t label it — don’t judge it — just be with it for a couple of moments. It really does work. I’m looking at mine as I write this.

=====================================
If you’re new to us here, be sure read the entire series about meditation. If you look on the upper left of the sidebar, you’ll see a list of the categories. Click the one called “Meditation” and you’ll be able to read the articles you missed. They start with the January 24, 2008 post. The video meditations that I included with the earlier articles may no longer function. I’m sorry about that, but those are out of my control. Hopefully, they’ll all still be working.

Do include meditation in your daily life. If you’re just starting out, make it a 10 minute meditation. If you’ve been doing this for a while, try to do a minimum of 20 to 30 minutes. The longer you can maintain your focus on just your breath, the better. And, remember, anytime you take a deep, conscious breath — a breath where you’re putting your focus on that breath — that’s a meditation. Do it often every day — especially when you’re feeling stressed. I guarantee, you’ll find more peace and happiness in your life if you’ll do this.

Namaste!

And, as I always say in closing — remember these words …

You are special — and you are loved. You are the greatest gift you can be.

Shanti … (A sanscrit word meaning, “Let there be Peace. Peace, beautiful Peace. Peace within, Peace without. Peace in this world. Peace for all beings.”)

~~~ Ron
http://www.theleaderinside.com
http://www.wecould2.com

P.S. Remember, that if you have one of the “readers” — like My Yahoo, My MSN, or the Google Reader, or any of the others, you can get our blog sent to you automatically, whenever I post to it. Just click one of the buttons over on the left side to add it to your reader.
================================================================
Even though the live webcasts of the Eckhart Tolle New Earth classes are now concluded, you can still download the entire course. It’s being called “The Best Summer School Course Ever!” I highly recommend it. It’s completely free. All you really have to do is get the book, “A New Earth — Awakening to Your Life’s Purpose” by Eckhart Tolle. You can access the course online at:

http://www.oprah.com/obc_classic/webcast/archive/archive_download.jsp.

You’ll find everything you need there — all 10 classes. If you happen to have iTunes on your computer, you can also access the course by subscribing to it through the podcast link in iTunes. Check it out. Several million people around the globe took part in this amazing spiritual teaching. I hope you’ll soon be one of them. This is how we can create a new consciousness on the New Earth.

================================================================
In my meditation I often use what I believe is a powerful aide to deep meditation. It’s the The Holosync Solution. I knew that meditation was a vital element to nurturing my soul — to opening myself to the universe — and this tool has allowed me to achieve and receive the benefits of deep, long-term meditation — and to achieve it much more quickly. If you’re having trouble “getting meditation to work for you” – then the The Holosync Solution is what you’re looking for.

Regular, daily meditation can give you …

(1) Increased intelligence and creativity.
(2) Lower stress levels — and with that — increased ability to handle whatever the world tosses your way.
(3) New levels of self-awareness and inner peace.
(4) The healing of emotional issues at the deepest levels.
(5) It is the proven path to finding the peace, love and compassion within all of us –

— it’s definitely worth taking the time for this powerful practice every day.

With a One-Year 100% Iron-Clad Guarantee, you can now do so with no risk whatsoever — just click any of the links that say … The Holosync Solution

— The Holosync Solution
================================================================

====================================================================
[tags]peace, inner self, inner peace, Buddhism, Buddhist, The Secret, Law of Attraction, dreams, spiritual energy, action, value, inner balance, enlightenment, destiny, manifestation, meditation, patience, gratitude, tolerance, acceptance, body balance, life cycle, beginnings, endings, positive thinking, ego, silence, consciousness, staying grounded, cycle of life[/tags]

Last week we started our discussion about Buddhism and how it relates to meditation and also how the basic teachings of Buddha can show us ways to discover true happiness in our lives. Well, we didn’t actually get quite that far, did we? We outlined the first three Noble Truths — the first — that life can be filled with suffering. The second — that the origin of that suffering is our craving for pleasure and our endless “wanting” of things. The third — was that there is a way to end this suffering in our lives.

We left it there last week — which means that this week we need to talk about the Fourth Noble Truth.

But first, here is your meditation for this week ….
===================================================
This is not truly a meditation. Rather it’s a wonderful song written and sung by Dave Carroll. It will run for about 4 minutes. The reason why I’m including this song here is because it’s based entirely on the amazing book, The Power of Now, written by Eckhardt Tolle. The name of the song is, “Now”. I hope you enjoy it.

Here’s a link just in case the video doesn’t play for some reason.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uQ1wtftL3nA

====================================================

Now, let’s get on with our discussion of the basic Buddhist teachings with ….

The Fourth Noble Truth: To rid yourself of suffering you must follow The Eightfold Path. In order to have a way out of the madness and the stress of life as a human on this Earth, according to Buddha you must follow the Eightfold Path. This path will help you to live in a way where desire, ill will and ignorance will not control your every waking moment. Don’t worry too much if you don’t quite “get these” paths. Rather, just become familiar with them, the understanding of them will come in time as you bring them into your lifestyle.

As you’ve probably guessed, the Eightfold Path has eight parts to it. I thought about splitting the Paths into two separate articles for this blog, but decided against doing that. These need to be seen together in order to have a better understanding of how they relate to each other.

The Eightfold Path

The Eightfold Path describes the way to the end of suffering as taught by The Buddha. It’s a practical guideline to become more ethical and to improve yourself with the goal of freeing yourself from attachments, wanting and delusions. Following this path can lead to understanding the Truth about all things. Since I learned about Buddhism with my self-generated Buddhist 101 course, I feel that these steps plus the Four Noble Truths constitute the gist of Buddhism. There is a considerable emphasis put on the practical aspects, and it needs to be said that a regular meditation practice, along with right living, is vital if we want to achieve a higher level of existence. These steps are not intended to be sequential — it’s not about Step 1 — then Step 2 — then Step 3, and so on. Rather these are all interdependent parts that work in a close relationship with each other. For those of us who have learned to live our life as Westerners, these steps are not easy. They’re simple, but they’re not easy.

1. Right View — this is the beginning and the end of the Eightfold Path. It simply means that we should see and understand things as they really are and to be accepting of what is. It’s about learning to be in the Present — in the Now. It means to grasp the impermanent and imperfect nature of worldly objects and ideas, and to understand the law of karma. It’s not about being smarter — anymore than wisdom is not a matter of intelligence. Right view begins with the intuitive insight that all beings are subject to suffering and it ends with complete understanding of the true nature of all things. This step on the path will yield right thoughts and right actions, thereby helping us to improve our view of the world.

2. Right Intention – While right view refers to the way we can learn to think about wisdom, right intention refers to the choices we make, i.e. the kind of mental energy we use to control our actions. Right intention can be described best as commitment to ethical and mental self-improvement. Buddha distinguishes three types of right intentions: 1. the intention of renunciation, which means resistance to the pull of desire for things, 2. the intention of good will, meaning resistance to feelings of anger and hatred, and 3. the intention of harmlessness, meaning not to think or act cruelly, violently, or aggressively, and to develop true compassion.

3. Right Speech — Right speech is the first principle of ethical conduct in the eightfold path. Ethical conduct is viewed as a guideline to moral discipline, which supports the other principles of the path. The importance of speech in the context of Buddhist ethics is obvious: words can break or save lives, words can make enemies or friends, words can start a war or create peace. Buddha explained right speech this way: 1. to abstain from false speech, especially not to tell deliberate lies and not to speak deceitfully, 2. to abstain from slanderous speech and not to use words maliciously against others, 3. to abstain from harsh words that offend or hurt others, and 4. to abstain from idle chatter that lacks purpose or depth. Right Speech means to tell the truth, to speak friendly, warm, and gently and to talk only when necessary.

4. Right Action — This path refers to deeds that involve bodily actions. Unwholesome actions lead to unsound states of mind, while wholesome actions lead to sound states of mind. Again, the principle is explained by Buddha in terms of abstinence: right action means 1. to abstain from harming other beings, especially to abstain from taking life (including suicide) and doing harm intentionally, 2. to abstain from taking what is not given, which includes stealing, robbery, fraud, deceitfulness, and dishonesty, and 3. to abstain from sexual misconduct. To look at this from a positive point of view — right action means to act kindly and compassionately, to be honest, to respect the belongings of others, and to make sure that our close, intimate relationships do not cause harm to others.

5. Right Livelihood — Right livelihood means that one should earn one’s living in a righteous way and that wealth should be gained legally and peacefully. In the studies that I’ve read, The Buddha mentions four specific activities that harm other beings and that one should avoid in order to follow the path of Right Livelihood: 1. dealing in weapons, 2. dealing in living beings (including raising animals for slaughter as well as slave trade and prostitution), 3. working in meat production and butchery, and 4. selling intoxicants and poisons, such as alcohol and drugs. Furthermore any other occupation that would violate the principles of right speech and right action should be avoided. (Right Livelihood explains why so many people who are living a Buddhist lifestyle are vegetarians or vegans.)

6. Right Effort — Right Effort can be seen as a prerequisite for the other principles of the path. Without effort, which is in itself an act of will, nothing can be achieved, whereas misguided effort distracts the mind from its task, and confusion will most likely be the consequence. Mental energy is the force behind right effort; it can occur in either wholesome or unwholesome states. For example, the same type of energy that fuels desire, envy, aggression, and violence can, on the other side, fuel self-discipline, honesty, benevolence, and kindness. Right effort is detailed in four types of endeavors that rank in ascending order of perfection: 1. to prevent the arising of unwholesome states that haven’t yet arisen, 2. to abandon unwholesome states that have already arisen, 3. to arouse wholesome states that have not yet arisen, and 4. to maintain and perfect wholesome states already arisen.

7. Right Mindfulness — Right Mindfulness is the controlled faculty of what you know and how you think about it. It is the mental ability to see things as they truly are. Usually, the thinking process begins with an impression induced by how you see things, or by a thought, but then it does not stay with the mere impression. Instead, we almost always immediately conceptualize whatever it is we’re seeing or thinking. We interpret it, we label it, we categorize it according to other thoughts and experiences from our past, which naturally go beyond the true fact of the original impression. All this happens somewhat unconsciously, and as a result we often see things obscured – not as they truly are. Right mindfulness enables us to be aware of that process of “mistaken identity” and helps us to avoid all the categorizing and labeling that’s been part of our habitual way of seeing things. Buddha accounted for this as the four foundations of mindfulness: 1. contemplation or awareness of the body, 2. contemplation or awareness of feeling (whether something is repulsive, attractive, or neutral), 3. contemplation or awareness of the state of mind, and 4. contemplation or awareness of the phenomena of how we can easily make something into something that it’s not.

8.Right Concentration — Concentration in this context is described as one-pointedness of mind, meaning a state where all mental faculties are unified and directed onto one particular object. In a word — focus. Right concentration for the purpose of the eightfold path means wholesome concentration, i.e. concentration on wholesome thoughts and wholesome actions. The Buddhist method of choice for developing right concentration is through the practice of meditation. The meditating mind focuses on a selected object. It first directs itself onto it, then sustains that concentration, and finally intensifies concentration step by step. Through this practice it then becomes natural to apply elevated levels concentration, not only when you’re meditating, but also in everyday situations.

The Eightfold Path is, as I mentioned, not easy for us who live in the Western culture. It is doable, however, and if we wish to end the suffering inherent in us as human beings, this shows a way out of it.

I’d love to hear your thoughts and comments on this. At the very end of this post (after the commercials and the tags) you should see a place where you can leave your comment about all this. Let me hear from you. Thanks.
======================================
Those glimpses we get of peace, love, acceptance and happiness when we’re meditating will soon grow into more than glimpses if we keep practicing. Keep those feelings alive. A meditation can be as simple as one, deep, conscious breath, anywhere, anytime. When something happens in one of your moments to cause you to suffer, just stop and take one of those breaths and remember, “This too shall pass!” Another thing that is wonderful, especially at this time of year, is to have a fresh flower where you work. Just stop from time-to-time and look at it — don’t label it — don’t judge it — just be with it for a couple of moments. It really does work.

—————————-
If you’re new to us here, be sure read the entire series about meditation. If you look on the upper left of the sidebar, you’ll see a list of the categories. Click the one called “Meditation” and you’ll be able to read the articles you missed. They start with the January 24, 2008 post. The video meditations that I included with the earlier articles may no longer function. I’m sorry about that, but those are out of my control. Hopefully, they’ll all still be working.

Do include meditation in your daily life. If you’re just starting out, make it a 10 minute meditation. If you’ve been doing this for a while, try to do a minimum of 20 or 30 minutes. The longer you can maintain your focus on just your breath, the better. And, remember, anytime you take a deep, conscious breath — that’s a breath where you’re putting your entire focus on that breath — that’s a meditation. Do it often every day — especially when you’re feeling stressed. I guarantee, you’ll find more peace and happiness in your life if you’ll do this.

Namaste!

And, as I always say in closing — remember these words …

You are special — and you are loved. You are the greatest gift you can be.

Shanti … (A sanscrit word meaning, “Let there be Peace. Peace, beautiful Peace. Peace within, Peace without. Peace in this world. Peace for all beings.”)

~~~ Ron

http://www.theleaderinside.com

http://www.wecould2.com

P.S. Remember, that if you have one of the “readers” — like My Yahoo, My MSN, or the Google Reader, or any of the others, you can get our blog sent to you automatically, whenever I post to it. Just click one of the buttons over on the left side to add it to your reader.
================================================================
Even though the live webcasts of the Eckhart Tolle New Earth classes are now concluded, you can still download the entire course. It’s being called “The Best Summer School Course Ever!” I highly recommend it. It’s completely free. All you really have to do is get the book, “A New Earth — Awakening to Your Life’s Purpose” by Eckhart Tolle. You can access the course online at: http://www.oprah.com/obc_classic/webcast/ane_marketing.html. You’ll find everything you need there — all 10 classes. If you happen to have iTunes on your computer, you can also access the course by subscribing to it through the podcast link in iTunes. I did take the course, and I”ve read the book twice through. For me, this has been life-changing. Check it out. Several million people around the globe took part in this amazing spiritual teaching. I hope you’ll soon be one of them. This is how we can create a new consciousness on the New Earth.

================================================================
I don’t know if any of you, my fine readers of this blog, have an interest in starting a blog of your own, but if you do, I have something I’d like to pass along to you.

Over the past few days I’ve been reading a new ebook written by Kevin Brown. Now, I know that a lot of people don’t want to start a blog of their own because they think it’s too complicated. Well, after you read this ebook, your fears will be gone for good!

Kevin is something of a WordPress expert and has recently released a new ebook that goes into great detail on how to install and set up WordPress blogs. This blog you’re reading is written using WordPress, and I also use it for my other blog. Kevin’s book, BlogStorm Blueprint, is the most up-to-date book I’ve ever seen about WordPress with screenshots from the very latest version.

I highly recommend it — especially since it’s being sold at a giveaway price of under ten dollars. It’s really a bargain when you realize that you’ll be getting 106 pages of clear, well-written details.

I’ve been using WordPress for a long time and I think I know quite a bit about how to work with it. I can say that after reading Kevin’s book, I discovered that I don’t know everything. Even though some of the information was basic for me, I still learned loads from the book and heartily
recommend it to you.

It’s the BlogStorm Blueprint — and you can get it here:

Click this link —> http://tinyurl.com/4a5ncq

P.S. Oh, and just so you know, WordPress is free! Learn how to use it with Kevins book …

…… Click this link —-> http://tinyurl.com/4a5ncq

================================================================

====================================================================
[tags]peace, inner self, inner peace, Buddhism, Buddhist, The Secret, Law of Attraction, dreams, spiritual energy, action, value, inner balance, enlightenment, destiny, manifestation, meditation, patience, gratitude, tolerance, acceptance, body balance, life cycle, beginnings, endings, positive thinking, ego, silence, consciousness, staying grounded, cycle of life[/tags]

Last week I indicated that I’d like to devote a few articles to the subject of Buddhism and how it relates so closely to meditation. Let’s face it, there must be some correlation, because I’ve never met a Buddhist who didn’t have a regular practice of meditation in their life. I have now written 16 articles on the subject of meditation over the past several weeks. I also wrote a few more over the entire time that I’ve been keeping this blog. Those of you who have been reading these writings know that I consider meditation vital to everyone’s life, whether they are following a Buddhist lifestyle or not. This is something that everyone should do in order to find inner peace and happiness. By looking at some of the basics of Buddhist teaching and seeing how those teachings relate to our own lives, I’m hopeful that you’ll all begin to see why I feel this is so important.
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… But first, here is your meditation for this week. This one is about 3 minutes long and is the sounds of beautiful waterfalls. The pictures that accompany it are also quite beautiful if you would like to keep your eyes open. I always like to use nature sounds and sights when I can as these are both great doorways into good meditations. Take two deep cleansing breaths and enjoy your meditation.

Here’s a link if the video doesn’t start when you click the “PLAY” button:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f_dnjW6xcQQ

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Rather than get into the life story of Buddha, I’ll get right into the basics of his teaching. There are many web sites and books that have the story of Buddha’s life. Here is one that does a good job.

http://orias.berkeley.edu/visuals/buddha/life.html

What is a Buddha? According to most dictionaries, it is someone who has achieved a state of perfect enlightenment. The study of Buddhism has as its focus the achievement of “awakening” or “enlightenment”. The word “Buddha” is often interpreted as meaning “awake”. “The Buddha” is said to be the enlightened one or the awakened one.

In some of the past articles on this blog, I have talked about the Four Noble Truths that are so much a part of the Buddhist teachings: (1) the suffering, (2) the cause of suffering, (3) the cessation of suffering and (4) and the Eightfold Path. These are a way to free ourselves from attachments and delusions – and – reaching an understanding of the Truth about all things. Great emphasis is put on the practical aspect, because it is only through practice (meditation and right living) that one can attain a higher level of existence and finally reach Nirvana.

Here’s a quick review :

First Noble Truth: Life can be filled with suffering. There’s disease, injury, high rent, final exams, warm beer, complaining spouses, natural disasters, and yes, even death. Sure, there is a lot of good stuff about life, but we have this tendency to spend so much of our time trying to protect ourselves from all the bad stuff, that we forget to pay attention to the good. Even when you’re feeling happy, there always seems to be something lurking in our thoughts that makes us feel some sort of stress. People end up worrying about tomorrow or fretting about the past. It seems like our brains are constantly chattering about the stuff we should have done, or we’re worrying about what we’re going to do next. We’re either suffering, or we’re in pain, or we’re dissatisfied (or all three), about one thing or another. If you truly think about it, you’ll see that this is the truth.

The Second Noble Truth: The origin of suffering is the craving for pleasure. This is the reason for the First Noble Truth. We get it in our heads that we want things, and our minds then become an instrument for chasing after those things. Or, you get in your head that you don’t want something, and you end up running around trying to make things you don’t like go away. The actual objects we’re chasing after are irrelevant. Wanting things — anything — severely limits a person’s capacity to be joyful and serene. We focus so much of our consciousness on wanting things and more things. We have convinced ourselves that if we can only get the things we desire, we’ll be happy. One of the lessons Buddha taught is that nothing is permanent, so even when we get what we want it doesn’t last, so we start craving more and more. Even after we get the things we crave, we don’t stay happy — the glow wears off after a while and we start wanting more things. As Buddha said, the things we get don’t last. They break, they get lost, they wear out, they leave, they get old, they die. It’s our attachment to the things we crave and our resistance to losing them that adds to this suffering in our lives.

The Third Noble Truth: The Truth of the cessation of suffering. Some people say that all this talk about suffering makes Buddhism a pessimistic way of living. And, perhaps it would be if not for the Third Noble Truth — that there is a way to end the suffering in our lives. This is great news, right? This is what the Buddha discovered — it was the main aspect of what he learned. Ridding ourselves from suffering can happen to anyone, anyplace, here and now. There is a catch, though. We have to do something to end the suffering in our lives. One of things we have to do is to bring the practice of meditation into our everyday lives. The “thing” that’s messing us up in the Second Noble Truth is our ego-mind, and one of the best ways to get it under control is through meditation. The key to end all suffering is to get all desire, ill will and ignorance out of our lives. The Buddha didn’t leave it there, though. He gave us the answer when he told us the Fourth Noble Truth.

We will continue this next week with the Fourth Noble Truth.
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Those glimpses we get of peace, love, acceptance and happiness when we’re meditating will soon grow into more than glimpses if we keep faithfully practicing. Keep those feelings alive. A meditation can be as simple as one, deep, conscious breath. When something happens in one of your moments to cause you to suffer, just stop and take one of those breaths and remember, “This too shall pass!” Another thing that is wonderful, especially at this time of year, is to have a fresh flower where you work. Just stop from time-to-time and look at it — don’t label it — don’t judge it — just be with it for a couple of moments.

Even though the live webcasts of the Eckhart Tolle New Earth classes are now concluded, you can still download the entire course. I highly recommend it. It’s completely free. All you really have to do is get the book, “A New Earth — Awakening to Your Life’s Purpose” by Eckhart Tolle. You can access the course online at: http://www.oprah.com/obc_classic/webcast/ane_marketing.html. You’ll find everything you need there — all 10 classes. If you happen to have iTunes on your computer, you can also access the course by subscribing to it through the podcast link in iTunes. I did take the course, and I’m on my second reading of the book. For me, this has been life-changing. Check it out. Several million people around the globe took part in this amazing spiritual teaching. I hope you’ll soon be one of them. This is how we can create a new consciousness on the New Earth.

—————————-
If you’re new to us here, be sure read the entire series about meditation. If you look on the upper left of the sidebar, you’ll see a list of the categories. Click the one called “Meditation” and you’ll be able to read the articles you missed. They start with the January 24, 2008 post. The video meditations that I included with the earlier articles may no longer function. I’m sorry about that, but those are out of my control. Hopefully, they’ll all still be working.

Do include meditation in your daily life. If you’re just starting out, make it a 10 minute meditation. If you’ve been doing this for a while, try to do a minimum of 20 or 30 minutes. The longer you can maintain your focus on just your breath, the better. And, remember, anytime you take a deep, conscious breath — that’s a breath where you’re putting your focus only on that breath — that’s a meditation. Do it often every day — especially when you’re feeling stressed. I guarantee, you’ll find more peace and happiness in your life if you’ll do this.

Namaste!

And, as I always say in closing — remember these words …

You are special — and you are loved. You are the greatest gift you can be.

Shanti … (A sanscrit word meaning, “Let there be Peace. Peace, beautiful Peace. Peace within, Peace without. Peace in this world. Peace for all beings.”)

~~~ Ron
http://www.theleaderinside.com
http://www.wecould2.com

P.S. Remember, that if you have one of the “readers” — like My Yahoo, My MSN, or the Google Reader, or any of the others, you can get our blog sent to you automatically, whenever I post to it. Just click one of the buttons over on the left side to add it to your reader.
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I don’t know if any of you, my fine readers of this blog, have an interest in starting a blog of your own, but if you do, I have something I’d like to pass along to you.

Over the past few days I’ve been reading a new ebook written by Kevin Brown. Now, I know that a lot of people don’t want to start a blog of their own because they think it’s too complicated. Well, after you read this ebook, your fears will be gone for good!

Kevin is something of a WordPress expert and has recently released a new ebook that goes into great detail on how to install and set up WordPress blogs. This blog you’re reading is written using WordPress, and I also use it for my other blog. Kevin’s book, BlogStorm Blueprint, is the most up-to-date book I’ve ever seen about WordPress with screenshots from the very latest version.

I highly recommend it — especially since it’s being sold at a giveaway price of under ten dollars. It’s really a bargain when you realize that you’ll be getting 106 pages of clear, well-written details.

I’ve been using WordPress for a long time and I think I know quite a bit about how to work with it. I can say that after reading Kevin’s book, I discovered that I don’t know everything. Even though some of the information was basic for me, I still learned loads from the book and heartily
recommend it to you.

It’s the BlogStorm Blueprint — and you can get it here:

Click this link —> http://tinyurl.com/4a5ncq

P.S. Oh, and just so you know, WordPress is free! Learn how to use it with Kevins book …

…… Click this link —-> http://tinyurl.com/4a5ncq

================================================================

====================================================================
[tags]peace, inner self, inner peace, Buddhism, Buddhist, The Secret, Law of Attraction, dreams, spiritual energy, action, value, inner balance, enlightenment, destiny, manifestation, meditation, patience, gratitude, tolerance, acceptance, body balance, life cycle, beginnings, endings, positive thinking, ego, silence, consciousness, staying grounded, cycle of life[/tags]