How to stop absorbing other peoples energy

Author of “Emotional Freedom” and the bestseller “Positive Energy”, Dr. Judith Orloff, tells everyone who’s ever been labeled as “overly sensitive” how to keep your energy high, even in negative or frustrating situations. A liberating video for anyone who tends to feel exhausted by the world.

Inner Peace and Gratefulness

Many people around the world today are looking for inner peace. They are searching in many places, in many techniques, in many books and in many workshops for an answer. I understand this very well because inner peace was the reason why I went to the Zen Buddhist monastery when I was 17. I realised that no one around me could really say with 100% truthfulness, “I am totally in my centre and I have a sense of inner peace”. This made me ask, “What is inner peace? Where do you find it?”

I think that anyone who asks that question begins to search and the first place I looked for it was in other people. I met and found a few wise people who claimed that they were enlightened and felt that inner peace, so from that space I asked the question to them, “What is inner peace? Where do you find it?” They invariably answered that inner peace is not an experience outside of yourself nor is it an experience inside of yourself. It is an experience that goes beyond that question because it is not an experience that you can find - it is an experience that you have to live in this moment. Read more

Affirmative Peace Is Crucial in Tumultuous Times

It is always difficult for those of us whose spiritual path to peace includes a deep belief in the fundamental benevolence of God and the Universe, to continue that belief in the face of mounting external evidence to the contrary. Never mind trying to convince others that by our very thoughts we co-create the experience we have of our environment, it’s hard enough to keep our own upper lips sufficiently starched at times.

In the current economic circumstances, this difficulty is being brought into stark relief. Much if not most of the outward evidence of our nation and our world economic picture is dismal at best, doomed at worst. Dire predictions of complete economic, social and governmental collapse appear on the pages of all of our newspapers and on the screens of all of our broadcast news sources. In the face of this onslaught, it is difficult to maintain optimism. Read more

The Time I Thought I Was Going to Die

“There was a time when we were not: this gives us no concern - why then should it trouble us that a time will come when we shall cease to be?” - William Hazlitt

A couple of years ago, I was flying home late one night after spending all week in California for a business trip. I would fly for these trips to either California or Tokyo about once every 1-2 months so they were very familiar and routine for me. Pretty much nothing interesting ever happened, which in my opinion is a great thing when it comes to traveling.

On the flight that one fateful night, I had just finished reading Steve Pavlina’s Personal Development for Smart People, and as I was writing my review of it, I notice that the airplane started going downwards very fast… faster than I’ve ever experienced before. My ears almost never pop when I fly, but that night my ears were popping every minute for several minutes in a row. Read more

Tying Up Your Loose Ends

If you’re at home, then take one minute to look around your living space. If you’re not at home, visualize where you live.

Did you notice anything out of place? More specifically, did you notice things that you once loved or valued, only to see that they don’t seem to call to you as much anymore?

Did you see a movie that you’ll probably never watch again? Does your bookshelf have some books that you know without a doubt that you’ll never read again? Are there foods in the freezer that you can’t remember when you bought and can’t imagine when you’d ever eat or buy again? And last but not least, does your closet have clothes that you haven’t worn in years, but you keep holding onto because you feel like you might need them for a specific purpose in the future?

These are all things which are bringing extra weight to your life. Read more

S.N. Goenka Speech at the United Nations

Mr. S.N. Goenka, a revered spiritual leader, gave a powerful and inspirational speech at the “Millennium World Peace Summit” at the United Nations World Headquarters in New York.

Ancient Wisdom

Grant yourself a moment of peace

and you will understand

how foolishly you have scurried about.

Learn to be silent

and you will notice

that you have talked too much.

Be kind

and you will realize

your judgement of others was too severe.

~Chinese proverb

The Beauty of Life

My beloved dog, Staci passed away gently in the night on Valentine’s Day. I lay with her while she transitioned stroking her fur and murmuring how much I love her. I reminisced about all the fond memories we shared in the past 14 years. She was my companion when I did not have anyone else to depend on. Staci was by my side while raising my son. I cannot express the feelings her life and death have invoked in me. Well, I guess I will try to express it as best as I can.

I found out she had a mass cell tumor nine months ago. The vet said she didn’t have very long to live. He said we’ll do what we can and however long you have with her is a gift from God. I used as many remedies as I could, both conventional and holistic. She flourished under my love and care. The symptoms she had of approaching death diminished and we were given the gift of time. Read more

My Fight For The Joy Of Being Defenseless

We’ve all heard of stories of Mahatma Ghandi and non-violence, and Jesus advising us to turn the other cheek when struck, but how does that relate to us every day?

I’ve struggled with that very question, especially having been an advocate for “eye for an eye” for many years. It made sense to me that if somebody set a home ablaze, that their home would in turn be torched, and I didn’t understand what was meant by “an eye for an eye makes the world blind.” That just seemed like spiritual nonsense to me.

So often in my life I’ve thought about the “fight.” Not so much in a literal sense with my fists, but rather, on a mental level. The experiences of my youth led me to want to right the wrongs, particularly those wrongs against me, and as mentioned before I saw “eye for an eye” as a means for equal and fair justice. I would “fight” when I’d flip off or honk at another driver who cut me off, when a friend or family member “wronged” me and I felt the need to set them straight or just to be “right” about something. And I definitely “fought” (politely, mind you) when somebody cut in front of me in line. Read more

Life is a Trip, but Where are You Going?

Too often our experience of life is like a series of breathless, unconscious, one after the other chase scenes in a fast-paced movie. Rather, I believe life is meant to be a series of vibrant still shots or landscapes to savor and enter into with just a sprinkling of the right amount of mad-cap scenarios to add some spice.

Often, as soon as we wake up in the morning, we are immediately mentally inundated with an infinitely long “To Do” list. Instead, I would propose that we start off our day by focusing on creating an exquisite, rich, high quality “To Be” list. Let me explain.

As I see it, it’s not about what you want to “do” today that is most important, but rather what you want to “be” or feel or experience. What qualities of life do you want to primarily participate in today: peace, balance, love, courage, happiness, joy, humor, harmony, confidence, etc? Or do you really want to go into a lowest common denominator default mode and experience their opposites? Read more

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