Inspiring video

I think that the video speaks for itself. Maybe the only thing left to say is that we should spread the video, and more importantly, follow the example of Narayanan Krishnan.

If a dog were the teacher…

I received this a long time ago and thought it would be nice to share.

If a dog were the teacher, you would learn stuff like:

• When loved ones come home, always run to greet them.
• Never pass up the opportunity to go for a joyride.
• Allow the experience of fresh air and the wind in your face to be pure ecstasy.
• When it’s in your best interest, practice obedience.
• Let others know when they’ve invaded your territory.
• Take naps.
• Stretch before rising.
• Run, romp, and play daily.
• Thrive on attention and let people touch you.
• Avoid biting when a simple growl will do.
• On warm days, stop to lie on your back on the grass.
• On hot days, drink lots of water and lie under a shady tree.
• When you’re happy, dance around and wag your entire body.
• No matter how often you’re scolded, don’t buy into the guilt thing and pout… run right back and make friends.
• Delight in the simple joy of a long walk.
• Eat with gusto and enthusiasm. Stop when you have had enough.
• Be loyal. Never pretend to be something you’re not.
• If what you want lies buried, dig until you find it.
• When someone is having a bad day, be silent, sit close by, and muzzle him or her gently.

The Power of Your Subconscious Mind

I keep receiving very inspiring messages, and this one lists the 10 concepts laid out by Dr. Joseph Murphy in his book The Power of Your Subconscious Mind.

1. Think about good things, and good things will follow.
   Think about bad things, and bad things will follow.
   You are exactly what you think at every moment of your days.
2. Your subconscious mind never questions whether you are right or wrong.
   It just accepts that which your conscious mind determines.
3. You have always the power to choose between the good and the bad.
   You can choose to be friendly or to be unfriendly.
   Choose to be healthy, joyful, helpful, happy, friendly, and sympathetic and everybody else will respond the same way.
4. Your conscious mind is the gate keeper.
   Its main function is to protect the subconscious mind from false impressions.
   Believe that something good is going to happen, and that it is already happening right now, in this exact moment.
   Your biggest strength is your capacity to choose. So choose that which makes you feel well.
5. The suggestions and affirmations of others don't have any power to affect you.
   The only power comes from your own thoughts about what others say and your reaction to it.
6. Be careful with what you say. You will have to answer for each irresponsible word you say.
   Never say "I will fail." Your subconscious mind don't know the difference between a joke and something real. It just accepts everything as being true.
7. Your mind is not geared toward bad things, and no force in nature leads to bad things.
   It all depends on how you use the powers of nature.
8. Never say that you can't do something. Overcome your fears, and use the following affirmation: "I can do everything through the power of my subconscious mind."
9. You are the captain of your (subconscious) soul; you are the lord of your destiny.
   Remember: "You have the capacity to choose. Choose happiness!"
10. Anything that your conscious mind believe to be true will be accepted by your subconscious mind which will make sure it becomes true.

We can make the world a better place by simply making ourselves better persons. (Paulo)

http://thoughtsandnoises.blogspot.com/2010/11/power-of-your-subconscious-mind.html

Light

Most of the times, it is our own prejudices that create the biggest challenges for us. I just came across a passage that says that what we consider as "evil" is just the absence of light. That's all. People who choose this path only do so because they have not seen or felt the presence of light. They are simply ignorant, in the sense of being unaware or naive about their thoughts and actions; they don't know what they are doing. Light--or enlightenment--is the presence of a higher and more meaningful knowledge which aims to benefit not the individual, but everybody and everything.

It is interesting to consider the case of a sunny day. The light of the sun reaches everybody with no prejudices. We are the ones who run for a shade away from this light. We try to protect ourselves no only from the light but from others as well. We build a ceiling against the sunlight and walls against others. We isolate ourselves and create our own world. Similarly to Plato's allegory of the cave, we start seeing the outside world as a theater of shadows, and from the partial knowledge we acquire from that, we create a reality that fits the experience we are having. The result is simple, and resembles the parable of the blind men and the elephant: we can only see part of the whole, and we assume that this part is the whole reality, the whole truth.

Once sheltered from the light, once our reality is set, it can be difficult to leave this situation, but not impossible. We just need to realize that there is one layer (or perhaps more) that separates us from the light. Our challenge, if we decide to leave the dark stage, is to find this layer and remove it. It is simpler said than done. Boethius, a Roman philosopher from the 6th century, writes:

The man who searches deeply for the truth, and wishes to avoid being deceived by false leads, must turn the light of his inner vision upon himself. He must guide his soaring thoughts back again and teach his spirit that it possesses hidden among its own treasures whatever it seeks outside itself.

Then all that was hidden by the dark cloud of error will shine. ... The seed of truth grows deep within and is roused to life by the breath of learning.

(Boethius, The Consolation of Philosophy.)

As Boethius said, learning brings the necessary knowledge that sheds light on what was previously unknown or avoided because of ignorance. Furthermore, this learning is an action that comes from the person, and the answers are within the person. How to uncover, then, these answers? This is part of the process of self-discovery. Different people find the answers in different ways, and it is important in our journey that we find the ways that work better for us.

This is an individual journey, and there is no escape from it. However, there are many people that, as part of their own journey, want to honestly help us along the way. We too must assist those who need our help, but it is important to let them come to us when the time is right, rather than offering help when it is not needed or when it is not appropriate. The same way, we are always invited to take the initiative and look for help when we need, and we should do it.

We shouldn't, however, be too eager to go toward the light, as insects are attracted toward light bulbs. Too much light when we are not ready can be blinding. Learning, really learning, all of the lessons one step at the time, will bring the answers.

In this journey toward the light we need to be humble and curious, respectful and tolerant, and always willing to offer our hand to others with a smile on our face. How about if we start right now by offering ourselves a hand?

http://thoughtsandnoises.blogspot.com/2010/11/light.html

Restart

I lost a toy that made me company during my childhood, but I remember the love of the person who gifted it to me.

I lost my childhood’s privileges and phantasies, but I received the opportunity of growing and living freely.

I lost many people that I loved and that loved me, but I have the care that I received from them and the example of their lives.

I lost unique moments in my life because I was crying instead of smiling, but I discovered that to harvest love you have to plant it first.

I lost many times and many things in my life. However, along with this “loss,” today I try the value of “winning.” We can always fight for what we love, and there is always time to restart!

It doesn’t matter in what moment of your life you got tired. What matters is that it is always possible and necessary to restart.

To restart is to give ourselves a new chance, renew our hopes in life, and more importantly, believe in ourselves.

Did you suffer much during this time?… It was a learning experience.

Did you cry rivers?… It was your soul being cleaned.

Did you hate?… It was necessary for you to forgive.

Did you feel lonely in some moments?… It happened because you closed the door.

Did you think that everything was lost?… It was simply the beginning of your betterment.

Do you feel alone?… If you look around you, you will see many people waiting for your smile so that they can get closer to you.

Restart:

Today, it is an excellent day for you to start a new life project. Where do you want to go? Look up, dream high, wish the best, desire well being, because life brings us that which we ask for.

If you think small, you will receive small. If we firmly think about the best, the positive, and we fight to reach it, then life will bring us the best.

Today is the day to clean your mind. Remove everything that keeps you tied to the past and everything that hurts you. Throw away all impurities, clear your heart, and be prepared for a new life, and for a new love if you are alone. We are capable of loving many times because we are the manifestation of love.

Life calls you. It invites you for a new adventure, a new trip, a new challenge. Dedicate this day to yourself and do your best to reach your goals. Trust life, trust yourself.

 

        - I received this inspirational message and wanted to share with others. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did.

Quotation Series: Be a Dreamer

This is a very motivational quote by Jim Rohn:

You’ve got to be a dreamer. You’ve got to envision the future. You’ve got to see California while you’re climbing 14,000-foot peaks [in reference to early settlers]. You’ve got to see the finish line while you’re running the race. You’ve got to hear the cheers when you’re in the middle of a monster project. And you’ve got to be willing to put yourself through the paces of doing the uncomfortable until it becomes comfortable, because that’s how you realize your dreams.

• Achieving Your Dreams by Jim Rohn

Quotation Series: Hope and Faith

I came across this passage in a moment of personal frustration and I liked it, and I wanted to share it with others:

Every successful man is a man of "faith," every successful man is a man who cultivates "hope." A successful man is always hopeful, is never a pessimist and he brings that which he hopes for, into being and reality, by the strength of his faith.

Therefore I want you first of all to cultivate Hope and Faith for without those qualities no one, no matter how gifted or clever, can ever succeed.

…

Cast your eyes over the lives of all men of great achievement, and you will see that they were all animated by Hope and sustained by Faith. They hoped for success and believed that they had it in them to achieve that success. In their darkest hours they hoped on, believing that soon the reaction would come, which would carry them on to the accomplishment of their ambitions. Nothing has ever yet been accomplished by man on this planet without the inspiration of Hope and the tenacity of Faith. Hope reaches forward and claims success, faith holds on until success is attained. Therefore seek to develop these qualities to their fullest extent.

…

When a man realizes his own interior powers and understands the vastness and wonder of his subliminal forces, and determines to make use of them, and thus become a king among men instead of a slave, then such a disturbance takes place that unless he possesses Hope and Faith he will be tempted to turn his back on the new life and to sink back again into the old sluggish drifting existence, which leads to disappointment and despair.

…

When the entities that cause the disturbance realize that you mean to keep on, and that you cannot be bullied into going back to the old life, they will quickly leave you. In any case there is nothing to be afraid of, because these entities are helpless if one does not fear them. In other words, if you have Hope and Faith you can win through. Hope for better times although the present may be discouraging. Faith in the sure belief that soon all the disagreeable symptoms will disappear.

Hope on; by Faith, hang on, and keep hanging on and you will win through. Do not be discouraged by seeming failure, nothing was ever won without effort. What can be had without effort is not worth having.

Take encouragement from the fact that this disturbance in your life proves that vital changes are taking place within, that the vast powers of your subliminal mind are beginning to awaken, and that the entities of your old erroneous beliefs and habits are taking their departure.

Believe now that you can conquer and win through, and you will conquer and win through. What you believe you can do, you can do, because all power is within you. There is nothing in all the world that can stop you, except your own doubt and fear.

• Hamblin, H. T. (1923). Dynamic Thought. Part I (pp. 12-16). http://sacred-texts.com/eso/dth/index.htm or http://magicmanifestation.com/books/DYNAMIC-THOUGHT-by-H-T-Hamblin-1923.pdf