My trusty laptop has gone kaput. Thanks to the generosity of a friend I’m able to dash off this quick post to let you know I’ll be offline for a few weeks. I appreciate every one of you and I’m sorry for any inconvenience. Bear with me. See you soon!
I really enjoyed this video. He delivers a very worthy message. “I can be myself.”
“We often strive to live up to our own expectations and those imposed on us by our associates and society at large. This pursuit of the unachievable causes enormous stress and a sense of failure followed by low self-esteem.
We can raise our self-esteem by recognising and rejecting the increasing and unrealistic nature of these expectations, and replacing them with an acceptance of the fact that we are not perfect. If we can accept ourselves then others will accept and welcome us.
When we are at ease with ourselves and have good self-esteem, chances are that we can take it further and develop ‘no-self esteem’. This is when we do not define ourselves, but are who we are at the present moment. We are not ‘locked’ in our past and we are not anxious about the future, but are free to enjoy what life has to offer. This is ‘no-self esteem’.”
Although your body is made of star stuff, you are not the Universe. You are what witnesses its existence. — J.M.
Does a caterpillar want to be a butterfly?
Or just do what caterpillars do?
Does it dream of beauty in the cocoon; remember the sky of blue?
When it emerges as a butterfly, its form forever changed,
Does it remember it was a caterpillar?
Does it find its winged body strange?
Fluttering from bloom to bloom, doing what butterflies do,
Does it think about tomorrow?
Or what’s next when life is through?
I’d like to think from flower to flower and from tree to tree
The only care it ever has
Is simply to just be.
Neuroscientist Sara Lazar’s amazing brain scans show meditation can actually change the size of key regions of our brain, improving our memory and making us more empathetic, compassionate, and resilient under stress.
http://www.tedxcambridge.com/thrive/sara-lazar/
I found Sara hard to follow because she speaks very fast, however her data speaks volumes.
Discovered on: dharmasimulation
This video is unspeakably beautiful. Time lapse images of the fragile shell of our atmosphere, the aurora, and a phenomena called “air glow” are presented in a way we haven’t seen before. It’s breath-taking.
To quote Alex Rivest, the creator of this video:
“A good photograph is one that sparks a question. In looking at the pictures taken from the International Space Station of the earth at night, I find my attention drawn to that thin line separating earth from space: Our atmosphere.”
Alex has also created a blog spot, Earth, Night Glow, Aurora and Atmosphere, that contains a respectable amount of information regarding the images in the video.
After viewing this video, I was left not only with a sense of profound awe but also a conflicting feeling of how fragile our existence is and how amazing it is that this thin shell has maintained life on this planet for all these eons.
Enjoy a trip around our world with new eyes. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did.
Discovered on: The Paradigm of a Paradoxical Ideology
Yesterday my husband and I made the trek to Delhi in the steamy July air to visit the Lotus Temple. The Temple is a Bahai house of worship but due to its stunning architecture it’s become a popular attraction for people from all over the world. Built in 1986, the structure follows the Bahai’s scriptural requirement of being a nine-sided building. The interior is devoid of any adornments, pictures or statues. It’s very plain but the simplicity is stunning. The ceiling sweeps up as if one is standing inside a blossom and at the tip where the petals would open, they greet a golden sun skylight bearing the name of God.
Although it’s a Bahai house of worship, all are welcome there. You are asked to remove your shoes as you approach the temple and after a brief welcome outside by temple members you are free to enter the sanctuary. Cell phones must be turned off and cameras must be stowed away. The final qualification as you enter is that you remain completely silent during your time inside.
Wooden benches encircle the sanctuary. The only decorations are vases of fresh flowers and the view of the grounds through the large windows which encircle the base of the building. There is a hush there. Even with the inevitable sounds of people moving, something touches the silence in you and asks it to spread its petals.
We meditated there, hand in hand, for quite awhile. During our silence we were serenaded by a pair of mina birds who had chosen to make their home inside the sanctuary. I went so deeply into the hush that all sound eventually ceased. But there was the feeling of peaceful unity hung about me like a comfortable blanket.
When I opened my eyes again, I realized there were people from other countries mingled in with the native Indians. Some held rosaries or other types of prayer beads, some wore the bindi of Hinduism, others wore the white cap or hijab worn by Muslims. We were just a silent sea of humanity joined for that short time within the blossom of the lotus with one heart joined in one intention. It was beautiful.
If you’d like to read more about the Lotus Temple, go here or visit the official website here.
Photos from our day:
The beauty and artistry of nature is expressed in a stone like no other as if frozen in time. Each one whispers a story if you dare to listen. If you love crystals and minerals as much as I do, I hope you enjoy these images. I couldn’t even begin to collect them all here. This is just a drop in the cornucopia of Earth’s mineral kingdom. If you are curious what each stone is, right click and go to “save as”. I have named each file appropriately.
MoonLightened Way 