Meditate

On my 200th post, here's a self-reminder.

Painting by Goro Fujita

Introverts, you are OK.

An introvert being erm... introverted!

After the TED talk I posted a few days ago, this is the second article I find this week about introverts. This time The Guardian discovers that being quiet, shy and a "what if" thinker is not all bad.

We live with a value system that I call the Extrovert Ideal – the omnipresent belief that the ideal self is gregarious, alpha and comfortable in the spotlight.

Don't say!

Introversion – along with its cousins sensitivity, seriousness, and shyness – is now a second-class personality trait, somewhere between a disappointment and a pathology.

QUICK! Pass one of those extroversion pills before it's too late!

Velocity of speech counts as well as volume: we rank fast talkers as more competent and likable than slow ones.

"And then he was like 'Uh...' and I was like 'Duh!'"

Without introverts, the world would be devoid of Newton's theory of gravity, Einstein's theory of relativity, WB Yeats's The Second Coming, Chopin's nocturnes, Proust's In Search of Lost Time, Peter Pan, Orwell's Nineteen Eighty-Four, The Cat in the Hat, Charlie Brown, the films of Steven Spielberg, Google (co-founded by introvert Larry Page) and Harry Potter.

"Wassup with this list?! Steven makes cool movies, yeah? But the others didn't go to gigs not even nearly often enough. Specially that Chopin dude!"

"The glory of the disposition that stops to consider stimuli rather than rushing to engage with them is its long association with intellectual and artistic achievement. Neither E=mc² nor Paradise Lost was dashed off by a party animal."

"Booooriiing!!!"

A few things introverts are not: the word introvert is not a synonym for hermit or misanthrope. Introverts can be these things, but most are perfectly friendly.

Oh really?! Disturb my blog-ing time and you'll see.


In conclusion, we can all breathe a breath of relief - it's ok to be introverted as introverts are not sick people after all. Phew! I'll cancel my operation then.

Read the full article: Why the world needs introverts

Are you an introvert, extrovert or do you swing both ways? Do the Quiz: are you an introvert?

Chris Hedges: "I don't believe in atheists"

Interesting argument put forward in this speech. Journalist and author, Chris Hedges, points out the dogmatic similarities between religious extremism and new atheism. The externalization of "evil" beyond the self; simplistic, binary, us versus them, white and black, point of view of the world; and a sense of superiority, are some of the characteristics of both these philosophies, which pave the way to dangerous extremism that knows no empathy.

Hedges comes across as very lucid and well researched intellectual with always extremely powerful arguments backed by facts. I guess we're all extreme in one way or another ; )

"I certainly understand that there is nothing intrinsically moral about being a believer or a nonbeliever, that many people of great moral probity and courage define themselves outside of religious structures, do not engage in religious ritual or use religious language, in the same way that many people who advocate intolerance, bigotry and even violence cloak themselves in the garb of religion and oftentimes have prominent positions within religious institutions."

~ Chris Hedges interview to Salon.com

PS: Chris has also written a book entitled I don't believe in atheists.

Dilige et quod vis fac.

I thought I would share something profound that I (re) discovered last night. I was reading about the law of attraction and came across this book which claims that only 1 in 1000 people are able to manifest their wishes using the law of Attraction, and those who do it doesn't appear to be the law that manifests them. The book claims that the law of attraction as it's being taught is incomplete. There's one crucial ingredient missing for successful manifestation of all our desires. And not surprisingly that thing is Love. Not the feeling or emotion of Love but love as a state of being. When I read this I had a aha moment and several pieces of my truth seeking puzzle came together in my head. Everything makes sense The Law of Attraction, Deepak, Echart and all of the spiritual books that I have read say the same thing. When you love unconditionally you're able to manifest what you want because you no longer have egotistical desires. What you want becomes what the Universe needs and that is always what's the best for the Universe as a whole. And so the Universe's force creates the circumstances to manifest its needs. Although this seems quite obvious now that I write it, last night I felt like the meaning of life was for the first time being revealed to me. And now every time that I think about it, I marvel in amazement at how simple it all is and how it could not be any other way. The quote "Love and do what you will" never made so much sense as it does now. This is I think the most beautiful and meaningful quotation that I have ever read. So I thought that I would share this with you...

 ~ AL 01/04/2009

Before and after

Before enlightenment - chop wood, carry water.
After enlightenment - chop wood, carry water.

~ Zen Proverb

The empty part inside

CHAPTER 11

Thirty spokes converge on a single hub;
It is the emptiness in the hole of the hub
that is the usefulness of the cart.

In manipulating the clay to make a vessel,
it is the empty space within that
is the usefulness of the vessel.

In drilling a door and window to make a room,
it is the empty part inside that
is the usefulness of the room?

Thus, possessing does have advantages,
but, it is the nothingness that will have usefulness.

~ Tao Te Ching

RAP NEWS X - #Occupy2012

Rap News strikes the Zeitgeist once more, this time with the endorsement of Noam Chomsky and Anonymous.

The song of life by Alan Watts

Big Bang Breathe

The Big Bang Theory S04E18

"We tell ourselves stories. We weave together different plot lines, wondering if the outcome of the story might be different were we to have done or said something other than what we had done or said, all the while knowing that the various alternative outcomes are just more stories - fictions meant to distract us from what's actually happening. And so we pause from weaving and comment breathing, gently and non-judgementally saying hello to what is...

Oy vey." ~ Chuck Lorre

Concentrated wisdom

Eckhart Tolle

Some favourite quotes by Eckhart Tolle, from his books A New Earth and The Power of Now.

"If her past were your past, her pain your pain, her level of consciousness your level of consciousness, you would think and act exactly as she does. With this realization comes forgiveness, compassion, peace. The ego doesn’t like to hear this, because if it cannot be reactive and righteous anymore, it will lose strength."

"One conscious breath is meditation."

"Worry pretends to be necessary but serves no useful purpose."

"...sometimes letting go is an act of far greater power than defending or hanging on."

"Identification with your mind creates an opaque screen of concepts, labels, images, words, judgements, and definitions that blocks all true relationship."

"Whenever anything negative happens to you, there is a deep lesson concealed within it, although you may not see it at the time."

"Be at least as interested in what goes on inside you as what happens outside. If you get the inside right, the outside will fall into place."

"Power over others is weakness disguised as strength."

"The most common ego identifications have to do with possessions, the work you do, social status and recognition, knowledge and education, physical appearance, special abilities, relationships, person and family history, belief systems, and often also political, nationalistic, racial, religious, and other collective identifications. None of these is you."

"All the things that truly matter — beauty, love, creativity, joy, inner peace — arise from beyond the mind."

"...relinquish, for a moment, your desire to explain and label..."

"The reason why the romantic love relationship is such an intense and universally sought-after experience is that it seems to offer liberation from a deep-seated state of fear, need, lack, and incompleteness that is part of the human condition in its unredeemed and unenlightened state."

"Life is now. There was never a time when your life was not now, nor will there ever be."

The happiness mirage

Every human being seeks happiness in one shape or another and most would probably agree that happiness appears to be a very subjective thing. A lot of us spend our whole lifetimes seeking that which will make us happy, only to find out, time and time again, that happiness that comes from exterior events, people or things is short-lasting. If it did, the wealthy Western society would not have so many people suffering from depression and anxiety.

However even after we own everything, we thought would make us happy, and we are at the top of our game, we realise that that happiness was a temporary mirage... because there's still that a inner void... a sense of unfulfilment and loneliness even... and makes us wonder if lasting happiness exists at all.

Many have attempted to define happiness but Gandhi, I feel, described it most holistically:

"Happiness is when what you think, what you say, and what you do are in harmony."

Once we realise (not just think) that at the most basic level of existence, we are fine the way we are, that there's no need to try add more to our being, we start accepting ourselves. This is the beginning of the end to try to find happiness somewhere else... and certainly not by acquiring a new phone or waiting for the victory of our favourite sports team.

Lessons learned and new year's resolutions

The Cat's Eye Nebula - a dying star.

2010 was a year of change. I did something I meant to have done for a long time, I took a break from the full-time office job and volunteered for causes I believe in — worked on organic farms, visited an eco-community, collaborated with an anti-gmo organization, saw breathtaking nature, spent more time with family and met incredibly inspiring people.

This last ride around the sun was crazily tumultuous but also provided plenty of learning/growing opportunities. I learned we can't run away from our creation. I learned that there are a lot of courageous people out there, doing what they believe is right. I learned how much power people give away to each other, mostly unconsciously, and how destructive this can be. I learned how we often confuse dependence and attachment with real happiness. I learned that there's nothing out there that will miraculously heal the inner grieving or forever fulfil our happiness expectations. I learned that you can't willingly wipe memories or change the past. I learned that we don't stare into space often enough. I learned that you can't force anyone to feel what you feel... nor would that be right. I learned how important it is to show you care... while you can. I learned that it's not where you are and what you do that matters as much as who you're with and how you do it.

However, the main revelation of all this year was to discover how shockingly little I know myself, as I observed my ego's insecurities hurt the one I cared for the most, sabotage a loving relationship and dissolve lifelong dreams, overnight. Let this be my lesson from 2010 and learning how to assume responsibility for the consequences of my own (perceived) mistakes, my 2011 resolution. Well that and saving the world... after all aren't those one and the same? Happy new year.

The humbling silence

Sunset at Azambujeira beach, Portugal

Today I went to a funeral of a grandmother of a couple of friends. The lady was in her eighties and had been loosing her strength for a few years. I barely knew her but regardless of the degree of closeness or surprise of one's loss, moments like this always make me stop and wonder about the unanswered questions of life. And although some of us live our lives in denial of the harsh truth, of our time limited existence, at one point or another we'll have to confront the reality of ceasing to be... at least in this reality or who knows forever more.

As I stood in the crowd, the priest's words faded into the distance while uncomfortable questions scrolled through my mind. What is the purpose of life? Why going through the trouble of getting born to end up like this? Is this really the end? Who and what the heck am I?

For as pointless as this exercise seemed at the time, to ask seemingly unanswerable questions, seeking to understand myself has got to be one of the most grounding experiences ever. As the inner silence fails to eco an answer, the dawning realisation of one's self-ignorance can be as humbling and as liberating as the answers themselves.

R.I.P. Maria

Chuck Lorre's spiritual insight

The Big Bang Theory - Easter egg S01E15

The Big Bang Theory and Easter Eggs

The Big Bang Theory sitcom is my latest obsession. I know, I'm 3 years late and I have no excuse!

But, it's refreshing to find a comedy series where geekiness, nerdiness and intelligence is no longer ridiculed or feared. Ok, maybe it is ridiculed a little but in an endearing sort of way. Perhaps this is it, a symptom of the evolution of human consciousness reaching a point where the strange and odd is not only embraced but actually explored with curiosity and celebrated. Or maybe Hollywood just ran out of Joey jokes.

Either way, one of the oddities of the series is that each episode has an "Easter egg" (Google Easter Egg if clueless). This flashes for a second before the end credits, in the form of text written by the show's creator, Chuck Lorre. Below is the screenshot of the text in episode 9 of the first series, which I found rather hmm... wholesome.

The Big Bang Theory S01E09 Easter Egg

What do I really want??!

"The mass media [...] is drumming into you that in order to be a good citizen you have to have a great car, your own house, a family, a career, designer clothes, etc. After seeing this picture of the perfect “member of society” for decades on TV and in print your subconscious has absorbed the information and now you are convinced that you really need all these things (the same of course goes for attitudes and fashions). To get all this you have to really work hard. But you cannot work fast enough. You want these things now. So you buy on credit and with installment plans and slowly but surely you are caught in the net that has been laid out for you so perfectly, and obligations and debts will tie you up for decades.

Add to this the family and the kids, the money for holidays, car repairs, etc. you are finally trapped in the vicious circle “created by yourself”, with your oh so many problems, so you find neither time nor inclination to check whether what you happen to be doing is what you actually want to do.

And then some time you discover that you are not at all happy with what you created in the outer world and that today you would go about it differently but that now it is too late. [...] In addition you might feel inadequate to deal with all the problems and you look for refuge in drugs and alcohol. Once you have reached that point, the race of this life is all but over anyway. Yet some still make it. [...] it's never too late."

~ page 333-4, Secret Societies and Their Power in the 20th Century, 1995 by Jan van Helsing

What is Meditation?

In this short clip, Dr Deepak Chopra explains in simple terms what meditation is and how it benefits the body.

Planetary Consciousness

It's not the first time I have heard about one consciousness shared by all humanity but this is the first conference that I've heard of that discusses it. The following is a clip of the conference entitled "Wisdom and Science in a Dialogue: The New Planetary Consciousness" that took place in Düsseldorf, Germany from March 23 to 25, 2006.

What the bleep do we know?!

What the Bleep do We Know?! movie presents an unusual format of half documentary, half film about the world of quantum physics and what the latest discoveries in this field reveal, with a slight spiritual slant. The documentary side of the movie is the most scientific with scientists interviews. While the storyline of the film focuses on a female photographer and how her mental attitude affects her daily life.

The documentary concludes that the apparently chaotic quantum field is actually influenced by our thoughts, positive or negative. Some may find this thought terrifying by itself. Others may find it comforting to know they have some level of control over the physical world. I guess it all depends on how much each one of us is in control of our thoughts.

Trailer of What the Bleep do We Know?!

"Who looks outside, dreams; who looks inside, awakes."
~ Carl Gustav Jung