There are three main schools of thought when it comes to the ethics that are applied on an individual and collective level. Most people believe in one of these theories of ethics. Even if we do not make a conscious decision to follow one of these schools of thought our actions still reflect one of them.
I have been following Steve Pavlina's blog since 2006 and a lot of his articles have been helpful for me. His direct approach to personal development makes it simple to get a lot out of reading his blog.
Learning goes hand-in-hand with awareness. Someone once said to me: "You can become enlightened to cars, shoes, or drawing." Enlightenment is just a matter of being aware of each of the processes that make up a single task. I have come to the conclusion that being aware of the self-process is one of the greatest things a person can do. But we can also use a process of learning to become more aware of other things too. There is no limit to how much a person can become aware of. You should strive to be aware of something that is new as often as possible.
I looked at this blog's web statistics when I woke up to find that I had received more visitors in the last 24 hours than I have in the last month. So I wanted to give special thanks to Irene from Light Beckons who stumbled the last article I wrote "10 Lessons From The Buddha". As a result I received a lot of positive reception on this article, perhaps less than more popular blogs receive for each of their articles, but 2000 9000 readers for a single article in 24 hours is much more than I have received in the past. So I wanted to express my gratitude for her help in getting the word out about the article and this blog.
A dog is not considered a good dog because he is a good barker. A man is not considered a good man because he is a good talker.
Our actions are not in constant alignment with our thoughts and inner process. Sometimes we judge a person based on their behaviour in one event and fail to consider the whole individual.
Your work is to discover your world and then with all your heart give yourself to it.
It is common to take into account just one-side of an experience and to stop looking for a richer understanding of our life and the world around us. It is also not difficult to become lost in the magnitude of negative things occurring in our world, but it is important to find our own light and to give ourselves to illuminating the darkness.
The way is not in the sky. The way is in the heart.
Your heaven, dreams, and purpose all exist within, not in the clutches of a divine external force.
You, yourself, as much as anybody in the entire universe, deserve your love and affection.
Instead of comparing how much or how little care and attention a person "deserves" each one of us should strive to give love without reserve – the more we give, the more we have.
You will not be punished for your anger, you will be punished by your anger.
It is not the police or a higher law that should be feared as a consequence of an unconscious expression of anger, but the internal ramifications that expression has on the balance of the soul.
To live a pure unselfish life, one must count nothing as one's own in the midst of abundance.
To declare ownership or rights to something is to state that the universe somehow lacks that thing, but to let go of the idea of securing ownership is to accept the infinite abundance that is available to all and can never cease.
For individuals who have asked where I found these teachings, see The Dhammapada. One of the most accessible interpretations of this book is "What the Buddha Taught".
To be idle is a short road to death and to be diligent is a way of life; foolish people are idle, wise people are diligent.
Taking action and making a mistake is better than not taking action at all.
A jug fills drop by drop.
You can bring attention to a desired goal, but don't expect to achieve it overnight. Each moment of conscious intention is a raindrop that will in time turn into a stream, and then a river flowing to its destination.
There are only two mistakes one can make along the road to truth; not going all the way, and not starting.
Even the smallest action creates a ripple of potential.
The foot feels the foot when it feels the ground.
Sometimes we are not aware of things going wrong or our unaware state of being until we experience a glimpse of true insight and revelation. If we do not feel our full power and potential then it might be because the right stimulant to push us into action has not come around… it might be waiting for the first step off the ground before revealing the path ahead.
I see the astral and the physical as balancing each other out – giving us a chance to either replicate and hold onto something good and creative and essential, or to let it go, to allow the next moment to be present. This is often the process that occurs in creative acts.
[youtube:http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=_ojfEyrgD00]
The magic of our inner gifts and talents becomes lost when we focus on swimming against the currents of our inner being. It seems so much easier to grab onto something known than it is to consider the parts of ourselves that we have not discovered. It is easier to assume the roles that are handed out in our social environment than it is to fight for our uniqueness and the right to defend that.
Sometimes one of the greatest obstacles we can be faced with is not knowing our exact purpose or goal in the path that we are on. One of the convictions held in our social structures is the praise of academic success, financial success, and business success in the field that we choose to work in. However it is rare in our world to encourage the search for the unique gifts and sense of purpose that each person has within.
The last week I have spent a lot of time thinking about the 6% concept that I read about in Working on Your Relationship Doesnt Work when I first came across the book. This book suggested straight off that working out things or attempting to fix things is useless when a person is not aware of the problem in the first place. That made, and still does make, a lot of sense to me.
Return to One is an e-book from Cathy Preston. It is one of the most insightful novels I have read on the spiritual path I am on. I posted a review at return-to-one.com in 2006 when the book was first made available, and I thought I would repost a revised review here for those who have not come across her site. The e-book costs £8 and is available to download from return-to-one.com.
