TheLeaderInside.com

The Big Picture — It Continues

“The truth that many people never understand, until it is too late, is that the more you try to avoid suffering the more you suffer because smaller and more insignificant things begin to torture you in proportion to your fear of being hurt”

~~~ Thomas Merton

Last week we talked about the growing disparity between those that have and those that don’t. Our current way of handling this problem is to encourage those who don’t have — to spend, spend, spend. Did you catch the way our government handled the recent economic stimulus check? What did they encourage all of us to do? You got it! It was to take that check and go out and buy something. Don’t save it! Don’t pay something off! Go spend it! Of course, the more we spend, the better off will be those who produce the products, and we spenders will continue to struggle to keep our heads above water. This is the way we’re trying to get ourselves out of poverty - by spending our way out of it.

Sorry to break the news to you — but that won’t work. The only way is to fix the root of the problem, not merely apply more band-aids. Our planet can’t handle any more of the same-old, same-old. We need to find ways to redistribute our resources and to move our production from nonessential to essential uses.

Now, that last paragraph may sound a bit communistic. On the contrary. I am a proud American and a firm believer that our country can be the country I grew up to love. Only over the past 20 years or so has our country shifted away from the ideals that made it the envy of the world. There was a time, not so long ago, that we lived in a middle-class democracy without the class extremes that we’re experiencing today. We once believed that equity was the reason our democracy worked. That ideal of equity represented what our country was all about. None of us has the right to take the natural wealth we inherited from our Mother Earth and try to monopolize it — and monopolize it to the extent that our fellow beings are excluded in some way.

In America we elect our government officials by a democratic form of voting. If so, then who’s to blame for the way our elected officials are performing? Is it our fault for not electing the right people? Or is it their fault for not using their power properly?

You know what’s surprising? Neither of those answers is entirely correct. Nope, our world is not governed by democratically elected governments as you might think. Rather, we are ruled by money-power. It’s the huge financial companies and the financial speculators, the gamblers, who are swapping billions (maybe it’s trillions) of dollars every day looking for more and more profit so that their bottom-lines get fatter and fatter. As they get richer and richer, their power in the world grows exponentially. This gives them the power to buy our governments and our elected officials. Plus, they can buy and sell corporations like candy in a candy store. Those corporations and the speculators that own them have an obligation to make more and greater profits to make the speculators more and more wealthy. The way they do this is to get the rest of us to buy more of their stuff than we need.

Looking at the “big picture” tells us quite a bit about what we need to know, doesn’t it? The hard fact about how to fix this mess is that it means we’ll have to make some changes — and we’re all wondering how much suffering we’ll have to endure if we agree to those changes.

Next week, we’ll take a look at what some of those changes are and what effect they’ll have on us and our world.

Stay tuned.
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How many of you took the time to watch “The Story of Stuff” by Annie Leonard that I gave you the link for last week? If you didn’t take the time — or you’re new to us here at this blog — then here’s the link again:

http://www.storyofstuff.com

Do take the time to do this today. This short video is an absolutely remarkable way to graphically show you how a system like the one we live with today is designed to make a small number of people very rich, without paying any attention to what that system is doing to our human and natural resources.

I’m not done with this rant — but that’s enough for this week. I’ll pick it up here next week on Thursday. I hope you’ll check back and see what else I’m thinking along these lines.

Again, I’d like to urge you to watch this video. It will take about 20 minutes of your valuable time. Even if you don’t feel that you can spare 20 minutes right now, I urge you to make an exception and take the time to watch this. If nothing else, you’ll hopefully see that I’m not alone in expressing the frustration with what I’m describing in this article.

And also, please share it with others.

Here’s the link again:

http://www.storyofstuff.com

C’mon back next week!
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“You yourself, as much as anybody in the entire universe, deserve your love and affection.”

~~~ Buddha

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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You would think that the writer of these past two articles wasn’t the same person that has been authoring this blog since the beginning. I’m still the same guy, but I also believe that those of us who are working for more spiritual growth in our world have to be a part of The New Earth. (See Eckhart Tolle links below.) I meditate to help keep me sane. 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.

“Each flower is a soul blossoming out to nature”

~~~ Gerard de Nerva

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Although I’m on a bit of a rant for these next articles, I still would like you to bring meditation into your life. It sure is helping to keep me reasonably sane. If you’re new to us here, I’ve written a series of articles 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.

“Those who really seek the path to Enlightenment dictate terms to their mind. Then they proceed with strong determination.”

~~~ Buddha

Namaste!

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

You are the most precious gift you can give yourself. Every day look in the mirror and say, “I’m available to more good than I have experienced, realized or imagined ever before in my life!” Do this every day while you look into your own eyes.

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.”)

“Peace comes from within. Do not seek it without.”

~~~ Buddha

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

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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.

“Feeling will get you closer to the truth of who you are than thinking. ”

~~~ Eckhardt Tolle —

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.
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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 …

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(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
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