By Paulo Coelho
Is this new perception really important?
LeShan agrees that the problem is truly complex. On the one hand, we can “operate” very efficiently in this world such as we know it. On the other, we know that a considerable number of people worthy of our trust, such as Gandhi, Teresa D’Avila, or Buddha, sought to perceive this reality in a distinct manner, and that this led them to take giant steps and change the destiny of humanity.
Just like at the gym, where a good teacher always has a series of different exercises for each type of student, there is no single technique for meditating, and anyone interested in the subject should try to discover his own way. However, there are a few elementary steps which are present in almost all religions and cultures which use meditation as a way of encountering inner peace, which I shall now describe (based on Lawrence LeShan’s highly interesting book, How to Meditate: a Guide to Self-Discovery)
The first thing is to be aware of one’s own breathing.
Counting the number of times we breathe every two minutes, helps us concentrate our attention on something we do automatically, and thus removes us from that which is normal. At first, this may seem very simple, but we mustn’t be fooled by this simplicity: whoever decides to try out this exercise in practice, notices that this requires considerable effort and large doses of patience. However, as we do so (and we can practice conscious breathing anywhere, before going to sleep, or on public transport on the way to work), we come into contact with an unknown part of ourselves, and feel the better for it.
Choosing the place:
The next step is to try and dedicate ten or fifteen minutes a day to sit in a quiet place, and repeat this conscious breathing, trying to remain still (like the Zen monks we have already talked about here). Thoughts will appear, against our will, and at this moment it is useful to recall the words of St. Teresa D’Avila about our mind: “it is a wild horse which goes anywhere, except where we want to take it.”
Silencing without violence:
Finally, as time passes (one should know that this requires two or three months of exercises), the mind has emptied itself naturally, bringing with it great serenity to our everyday lives. However great our problems appear, however stressful our lives, these fifteen minutes every day will make all the difference, and help us to overcome – generally in a subconscious manner – the difficulties we face.
According to a well-known Zen story, Lao Shi asked his master, Wang Tei:
- What must I do to be closer to God?
Wang Tei told him to follow him high up onto a mountain, There, he took a candle from his bag and gave it to his disciple to light. Lao Shi tried several times, in vain.
- It is too windy, I can’t light it.
- But it’s not windy three kilometers away from here.
- What use is that? I’d need to walk all that way, to light the candle where there is no wind.
- Similarly, in order to educate the mind and light the flame of God within you, you must walk to a calmer place – replied Wang Thei.
Whether in search of God, or just in search of oneself, a man who meditates will find a calm place, and succeed in obtaining a clearer, more object view of the world.
Sunday, 31 October 2010
The secret of happiness
A merchant sent his son to learn the Secret of Happiness from the wisest of men. The young man wandered through the desert for forty days until he reached a beautiful castle at the top of a mountain. There lived the sage that the young man was looking for.
However, instead of finding a holy man, our hero entered a room and saw a great deal of activity; merchants coming and going, people chatting in the corners, a small orchestra playing sweet melodies, and there was a table laden with the most delectable dishes of that part of the world.
The wise man talked to everybody, and the young man had to wait for two hours until it was time for his audience.
With considerable patience, the Sage listened attentively to the reason for the boy’s visit, but told him that at that moment he did not have the time to explain to him the Secret of Happiness.
He suggested that the young man take a stroll around his palace and come back in two hours’ time.
“However, I want to ask you a favor,” he added, handling the boy a teaspoon, in which he poured two drops of oil. “While you walk, carry this spoon and don’t let the oil spill.”
The young man began to climb up and down the palace staircases, always keeping his eyes fixed on the spoon. At the end of two hours he returned to the presence of the wise man.
“So,” asked the sage, “did you see the Persian tapestries hanging in my dining room? Did you see the garden that the Master of Gardeners took ten years to create? Did you notice the beautiful parchments in my library?”
Embarrassed, the young man confessed that he had seen nothing. His only concern was not to spill the drops of oil that the wise man had entrusted to him.
“So, go back and see the wonders of my world,” said the wise man. “You can’t trust a man if you don’t know his house.”
Now more at ease, the young man took the spoon and strolled again through the palace, this time paying attention to all the works of art that hung from the ceiling and walls. He saw the gardens, the mountains all around the palace, the delicacy of the flowers, the taste with which each work of art was placed in its niche. Returning to the sage, he reported in detail all that he had seen.
“But where are the two drops of oil that I entrusted to you?” asked the sage.
Looking down at the spoon, the young man realized that he had spilled the oil.
“Well, that is the only advice I have to give you,” said the sage of sages. “The Secret of Happiness lies in looking at all the wonders of the world and never forgetting the two drops of oil in the spoon.”
from the book “The Alchemist”
However, instead of finding a holy man, our hero entered a room and saw a great deal of activity; merchants coming and going, people chatting in the corners, a small orchestra playing sweet melodies, and there was a table laden with the most delectable dishes of that part of the world.
The wise man talked to everybody, and the young man had to wait for two hours until it was time for his audience.
With considerable patience, the Sage listened attentively to the reason for the boy’s visit, but told him that at that moment he did not have the time to explain to him the Secret of Happiness.
He suggested that the young man take a stroll around his palace and come back in two hours’ time.
“However, I want to ask you a favor,” he added, handling the boy a teaspoon, in which he poured two drops of oil. “While you walk, carry this spoon and don’t let the oil spill.”
The young man began to climb up and down the palace staircases, always keeping his eyes fixed on the spoon. At the end of two hours he returned to the presence of the wise man.
“So,” asked the sage, “did you see the Persian tapestries hanging in my dining room? Did you see the garden that the Master of Gardeners took ten years to create? Did you notice the beautiful parchments in my library?”
Embarrassed, the young man confessed that he had seen nothing. His only concern was not to spill the drops of oil that the wise man had entrusted to him.
“So, go back and see the wonders of my world,” said the wise man. “You can’t trust a man if you don’t know his house.”
Now more at ease, the young man took the spoon and strolled again through the palace, this time paying attention to all the works of art that hung from the ceiling and walls. He saw the gardens, the mountains all around the palace, the delicacy of the flowers, the taste with which each work of art was placed in its niche. Returning to the sage, he reported in detail all that he had seen.
“But where are the two drops of oil that I entrusted to you?” asked the sage.
Looking down at the spoon, the young man realized that he had spilled the oil.
“Well, that is the only advice I have to give you,” said the sage of sages. “The Secret of Happiness lies in looking at all the wonders of the world and never forgetting the two drops of oil in the spoon.”
from the book “The Alchemist”
Poem by Robert Frost (1874–1963).
TWO roads diverged in a yellow wood,
And sorry I could not travel both
And be one traveler, long I stood
And looked down one as far as I could
To where it bent in the undergrowth;
Then took the other, as just as fair,
And having perhaps the better claim,
Because it was grassy and wanted wear;
Though as for that the passing there
Had worn them really about the same,
And both that morning equally lay
In leaves no step had trodden black.
Oh, I kept the first for another day!
Yet knowing how way leads on to way,
I doubted if I should ever come back.
I shall be telling this with a sigh
Somewhere ages and ages hence:
Two roads diverged in a wood, and I—
I took the one less traveled by,
And that has made all the difference.
Monday, 19 July 2010
the magnetism of the earth
Life on hearth is protected by an invisible energie: the magnetism. What will happen if it disapear?
From inside our planet, from the center of hot fusion, the magnetism is created, an invisible protection for us and our planet. Mars lost it and died because of it, but we don't know really why. So now it's our turn, the spaces wind are always here but now we are more exposed. Our protection, the magnetism around the earth start to lose is strains by 10% already! and it continue very fast to decrease... So do you think we are going to lose it as well? What it will do to the earth? You need to watch this to know the answer... but it's an important thing to know...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7-Qz2Ac3Q9Q&playnext_from=TL&videos=E48fP-pCmgM
La vie sur Terre est protégée par un bouclier invisible : le champ magnétique. Que se passerait-il s'il venait à disparaître ?
Généré au plus profond des entrailles de notre planète par une masse de fer en fusion, le champ magnétique est un bouclier providentiel sans lequel la vie n'aurait jamais pu apparaître sur Terre. Mars aussi possédait autrefois son propre champ magnétique, mais il a disparu pour des raisons inconnues. Laissée à la merci des vents de l'espace, la planète est devenue inhospitalière et, apparemment, sans vie. Or, il semble que le champ magnétique de la Terre soit lui aussi en train de perdre de sa puissance, et ce, à très grande vitesse. Pouvons-nous un jour être privés de ce précieux garde du corps ? Quelles conséquences cela pourrait-il avoir ? Le film suit le travail de scientifiques qui tentent de comprendre comment le champ magnétique fonctionne et quelle a été son évolution au cours du temps.http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7-Qz2Ac3Q9Q&playnext_from=TL&videos=E48fP-pCmgM
Monday, 24 May 2010
Forgive and Forget?!
Forgive and forget it’s quite hard sometime to do…. As you said it, forgive somebody it’s good but to forget… well this is an other storie. I think it depends How i was hurt and by Who!
My most hard forgiveness was for my mum… She left when i was 2 years old and it toke me so long to forgive her… as i was young i was sad, then angry then i learn to forgive her as i knew more about her past and that she was a bite messt-up and have problems… but i will never forget, as i can’t, i can’t pretend that it never happened… my brother did but i can’t,… but i am not angry with her anymore.
I am just sorry for her. But i want to remember, as it’s a part of my life and always be, and by what she did it made me who i am now, by her action, she changed my life forever, and made me grown up faster, as i have to be the mum and the sister and the wife (kind of) for my family… (father and little brother). But i am ok and enjoy what i have, and i am not sad, its part of the life, that’s it! But it’s good to remember, i try with this to advise my friends sometimes… they are complaining about that they mums are too much one them, etc… and i tell them to enjoy what they have, (even when sometimes it’s difficult) it’s better, as they will miss her if she’s not with them anymore.
So it’s very important to forgive people… you never know why it happened and what made them do it, but never forget just for you own sake, so you can remember and not do the same mistake again, and share your experiences… but if you did forgive then you need to remember that there is no more bad feelings in you, no angryness, no sadness, just souvenir!
But forgiving don’t mean that your weak or something like that… i think you need to be strong and know yourself and the situation, etc… to do it plainly, you need a lot of courage and love in you to be free of what happened to you!!! but as God did, he did forgives us, but didn’t forget what we did and are doing. He wrote the bible to make us never forget what happened good or bad! So we can understand and will try to not make the same mistakes…
I hope everybody can forgive, as it will mean that we all can be friends and love each other and continue our life in peace with our-self… so we can move on and do better and try to help others at not making the same mistakes… If you forget your history your future will be in the dark. But don’t live in it either. Just a memorie! What is important is now, what you are doing with your life now.
My most hard forgiveness was for my mum… She left when i was 2 years old and it toke me so long to forgive her… as i was young i was sad, then angry then i learn to forgive her as i knew more about her past and that she was a bite messt-up and have problems… but i will never forget, as i can’t, i can’t pretend that it never happened… my brother did but i can’t,… but i am not angry with her anymore.
I am just sorry for her. But i want to remember, as it’s a part of my life and always be, and by what she did it made me who i am now, by her action, she changed my life forever, and made me grown up faster, as i have to be the mum and the sister and the wife (kind of) for my family… (father and little brother). But i am ok and enjoy what i have, and i am not sad, its part of the life, that’s it! But it’s good to remember, i try with this to advise my friends sometimes… they are complaining about that they mums are too much one them, etc… and i tell them to enjoy what they have, (even when sometimes it’s difficult) it’s better, as they will miss her if she’s not with them anymore.
So it’s very important to forgive people… you never know why it happened and what made them do it, but never forget just for you own sake, so you can remember and not do the same mistake again, and share your experiences… but if you did forgive then you need to remember that there is no more bad feelings in you, no angryness, no sadness, just souvenir!
But forgiving don’t mean that your weak or something like that… i think you need to be strong and know yourself and the situation, etc… to do it plainly, you need a lot of courage and love in you to be free of what happened to you!!! but as God did, he did forgives us, but didn’t forget what we did and are doing. He wrote the bible to make us never forget what happened good or bad! So we can understand and will try to not make the same mistakes…
I hope everybody can forgive, as it will mean that we all can be friends and love each other and continue our life in peace with our-self… so we can move on and do better and try to help others at not making the same mistakes… If you forget your history your future will be in the dark. But don’t live in it either. Just a memorie! What is important is now, what you are doing with your life now.
Tuesday, 27 April 2010
See i you can catch yourself complaining in either speech or thought, about a situation you find yourself in ,, what other people do or say, your surroundings, your life situation, even the weather. To complain is always nonacceptance of what is. When you complain, you make yourself into a victim. When you speak out, you are in your power. So change the situation by taking action or by speaking out if necessary or possible; leave the situation or accept it.
Some peole would always rather be somewhere else. There "here" is never good enough. If you find your here and now intolerable and it makes you unhappy, you have three options: Remove yourself form the situation, Change it, or Accept it totally. If you want to take responsibility for your life, you must choose one of those tree potions, and you must choose now. Then accept the consequences, No excuses. No negativity.
Any action is often better then no action, especially if you have been stuck in an unhappy situation for a long time. If it is a mistake, at least you learn something, in which case it's no longer a mistake. If you remain stuck, you learn nothing.
Is fear preventing you from taking action? Acknowledge the fear, Don;t let the fear rise up into your mind. The false, unhappy self that loves feeling miserable resentful, or sorry for itself can then no longer survive, This is called surrender. Surrender is not weakness. There is great strength in it. Only a surrendered person has spiritual power. Through surrender you will be free internally of the situation. You are free.
Get up and do it now. Enjoy it!
Some peole would always rather be somewhere else. There "here" is never good enough. If you find your here and now intolerable and it makes you unhappy, you have three options: Remove yourself form the situation, Change it, or Accept it totally. If you want to take responsibility for your life, you must choose one of those tree potions, and you must choose now. Then accept the consequences, No excuses. No negativity.
Any action is often better then no action, especially if you have been stuck in an unhappy situation for a long time. If it is a mistake, at least you learn something, in which case it's no longer a mistake. If you remain stuck, you learn nothing.
Is fear preventing you from taking action? Acknowledge the fear, Don;t let the fear rise up into your mind. The false, unhappy self that loves feeling miserable resentful, or sorry for itself can then no longer survive, This is called surrender. Surrender is not weakness. There is great strength in it. Only a surrendered person has spiritual power. Through surrender you will be free internally of the situation. You are free.
Get up and do it now. Enjoy it!
Tuesday, 13 April 2010
enjoy the moment...
Pleasure is always derived from something outside you, whereas joy arises from within. The very thing that gives you pleasure today will give you pain tomorrow, or it will leave you, so its absence will give you pain. So you need to become fully conscious of your emotions and be able to feel them before you can feel that which lies beyond them. Real love doesn't make you suffer. http://bit.ly/XubzD
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