by Michael Mamas | Saturday, October 1, 2011 | Personal Growth, Relationship
In a heated argument we are apt to lose sight of the truth. – Publilius Syrus
I see this quite often, not only by the main participants of a conflict, but also by their supporting friends and family.
I think it was Davey Crockett that said, “First get your facts straight and then go ahead.” However, when things become heated, facts tend to fall by the wayside.
In those moments it is best to settle down and give it the time and space necessary to come from a better place… a healthy second response.
No one has the right to attack another in a heated moment.
© Michael Mamas. All rights reserved.
by Michael Mamas | Friday, September 30, 2011 | Spirituality |
What one thing do the two following quotes address?
If you want your children to be intelligent, read them fairy tales. If you want them to be more intelligent, read them more fairy tales.
The pessimist sees difficulty in every opportunity. The optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty. – Winston Churchill
There is nothing of greater value than a free mind. A free mind naturally gravitates to the highest just as assuredly as a helium balloon when released soars upward to the sky.
A free mind’s domain is the universe.
Education, real education, frees the mind.
A free mind is creativity.
A free mind is imagination.~
A free mind is joy.
A free mind is one with God.
A free mind is enlightenment.
A free mind is a free soul.
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Do you want to be happy? Do you want to be fulfilled? You must free your mind.
© Michael Mamas. All rights reserved.
by Michael Mamas | Wednesday, September 28, 2011 | Personal Growth
Truth is all around you. But it is up to you to put it all together.
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Consider the following three quotes:
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Good plans shape good decisions. That’s why good planning helps to make elusive dreams come true. – Lester R. Bittel
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If you’re going through hell, keep going. –Winston Churchill
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I do not think much of a man who is not wiser today than he was yesterday. – Abraham Lincoln
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Now putting them together:
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Have a good plan for your life. Determine what is most important in life as the central theme and move forward in that direction.
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As it is said in the game of chess, an imperfect plan is better than no plan. All too often I see people get so lost to details that they lose sight of the big picture and start spinning, as scattered thoughts bounce back and forth in their head.
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During tough times, keep moving forward… get through it. Do not wallow in the mire. Do not crumble, panic, or give up or give in. Now is the time to be strong and keep going.
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Learn as you go so you become more skilled to move in the direction of the plan.
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Every experience is a learning. You must be willing to expand your thinking, expand your horizons. Conditioned thinking is a rut that most live by, are tortured by, and die by.
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Look beyond that horizon. Life is not as you have been led to believe.
© Michael Mamas. All rights reserved.
by Michael Mamas | Thursday, September 22, 2011 | Relationship
The simplistic answer is ‘be nice.’ As the old saying goes, ‘you will catch more flies with honey than with vinegar.’ But your understanding of ‘being nice’ must not be superficial. So I would add to this, ‘Be straight.’
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People feel things. They can tell not only when they are being assaulted, but also when they are being manipulated, i.e. when you are not being truly honest with them. When you are throwing darts, when your motivations are coming from a distorted place.
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It is not always easy to be straight with people. You may feel hurt or any other form of negativity that puts a spin on your emotions making it very difficult to stand up straight and deal with whatever is going on. In such instances, give yourself the time and space required to access and act from a wiser place within. This can take time and effort, but as the saying goes, ‘if you do not have time to do something right, how are you going to find time to fix what you have done wrong.’
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You may also see that the person you are dealing with is in just that sort of emotional spin making them inaccessible. It is common in such instances to retaliate. But that will only make things worse. You must find it within yourself to wisely give them the time and space they require. At such time, it may be all you can do to wait and watch for an ‘in’… an opportunity to connect with them on a deeper level.
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This all begins with an honest relationship with yourself. What are you really feeling? You may think you are angry for example. But anger is often just a cloak for the deeper emotion of hurt or frustration. You need to find honesty within yourself. Then present yourself to the world from that place of honesty. This does not mean throwing yourself at the feet of another. It means being honest with yourself and acting wisely in your interactions.
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Rest assured that people will sense where you are coming from, and if you are acting from an honorable place within, they will, at least in time, respond accordingly. The best way to get what you want is to behave in a manner that elicits respect… be nice in a profound sense, not a plastic or superficial sense. Being nice means being straight. Come from the place of maturity within. In other words, being nice is far more than a sugar coating. It means simple, honest, straightforward integrity.
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Integrity is a word that is thrown around far too freely often used when a person is not doing what you want them to do or what you think they should do. But true integrity runs much deeper. Integrity means integration. Are the many facets of what you are feeling integrated with what you are thinking, what you are knowing, and what is actually the case? Are you really being honest with yourself and others? Are you standing up straight in your dealings with life? This is not so easy to do.
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But it is what is required if you want the respect of others. And that is your best chance of getting what you want.
© Michael Mamas. All rights reserved.
by Michael Mamas | Tuesday, September 20, 2011 | Spirituality |
I was asked to comment on the following quote:
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”Do not be too moral. You may cheat yourself out of much of life. So aim above morality. Be not simply good; be good for something.” – Henry David Thoreau
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The question here is what is meant by ‘morality.’
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Certainly, there are some extreme views here. What some consider moral, others consider barbaric. Some fundamentalist, middle-eastern groups see the west as barbaric and visa versa. Culture certainly plays a major role in what is considered moral.
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A healthy cultural tradition is a blessed touchstone. Yet is the culture healthy? Where then does one look to find what is truly moral?
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The simple answer is to evolve and act from the place within you that is in harmony with God, the Divinity within. However, you might use that as a rationalization to do whatever you want to do by telling yourself that your impulses are a ‘higher calling.’ Similarly, you may use it as a rationalization to judge others or yourself.
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Life is a paradox. Most look for simple solutions, rules, or justifications to hang their hat on. But life is not that simple. Through discernment you must learn to weigh the many variables and components in life. Are your feelings ‘your truth,’ i.e. God’s Voice, or are they your issues, i.e. your distorted views? How can you tell?
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The answer lies within you. Yet the path to it is riddled with conflicting perspectives. Though many demand it, I do not offer simplistic solutions for they are lies used to placate people.
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Morality, dharma, and happiness are all facets of the same diamond. What is true of one is true of the other. As Sri Ramana Maharshi put it: “Happiness is your nature. It is not wrong to desire it. What is wrong is seeking it outside when it is inside.”
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You must learn to discern. Take the time to reflect, ponder, and question. Be willing to look deeper with humility and patience. Do not look for a simplistic formula to navigate life’s waters. Though such roadmaps are offered, and even imposed upon you, look beyond them. Truth lies, just beyond the horizon. It is not something you grasp with an iron fist. Truth is a subtle whisper you sense at the depth of your soul. Through refinement of your inner world, you begin to hear it more and more. Yet it is never a dictate. It is a song… sweet, simple… sublime.
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To live in tune with the song is called Dharma. All else is called Karma.
© Michael Mamas. All rights reserved.
by Michael Mamas | Monday, September 19, 2011 | Mount Soma |
Creating an enlightened community will stand as a model for all of society.
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Just as the sun radiates its influence to permeate our entire globe, so the influence of such a community will radiate a new way of being that will permeate humanity. It will free the individuals to rest into their own true divine nature—a place inside that lies beyond the grasp of notions and philosophies, a place inside that resolves the conflicts of the limitless contradictions and paradoxes that have confounded humanity throughout the ages.
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It must not be a place that indoctrinates people into an attitude or philosophy. Too many such communities have already come and gone throughout history.
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The art of creating such a community is profoundly subtle. Our habit is to cling to notions and adhere to philosophies as the thing that will enlighten us.
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The finesse required to move humanity beyond that mindset cannot be overstated. However, this is our purpose: to move humanity to that whole new level of evolution.
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Read the entire article.
© Michael Mamas. All rights reserved.
by Michael Mamas | Friday, September 16, 2011 | Spirituality |
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A person starts to live when he can live outside himself. – Einstein
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Here is another Einstein quote that again refers to the small self versus the True Self.
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To live in accord with the True Self, the Divine Self, seems like living ‘outside’ the self only to the small self. To the True Self, it feels like freedom from the pettiness of the inane. Though the small self is experienced as, and believed to be, the True Self, it is in actuality a drag on life. Yet this is not really realized until you awaken to the True Self, i.e. become enlightened.
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Interestingly, Einstein here is thinking of the small self as the Self. Or perhaps it is really just his choice of words… semantics. From the perspective of the small self, the True Self lives outside the self. From the perspective of the small self, the small self is what you are.
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From the perspective of the True Self, the small self is a Cosmic Joke… a mirage… just a little dust on the surface of life, remarkably being embraced as the essence of one’s life.
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From one perspective this is so absurd. From another it is so lovely, for without that illusion, the universe would cease to exist as all would simply melt back into Oneness.
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How exquisite that there is a level of life where one can live in relativity without losing the Self to relativity… or as Rama Krishna said, ‘have the boat in the water but no water in the boat.’
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There is a cosmic stream. It is a flow that permeates and overtakes all existence. It is the Krishna value, or quality or aspect or facet of all that is.
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Lose your small self to that. Discover your True Self and become free. This is the highest form of devotion. It is also the destiny of all that is. Your emancipation is just a matter of time. How long will it take is up to you. How long do you choose to cling to limitation?
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As the poet said, ‘“The answer is blowing in the wind.” Yet God calls out to you, “I am here and I will teach you how to fly… how to soar… if, or rather when, you choose to.”
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The path is subtle, yet the door remains wide open.
© Michael Mamas. All rights reserved.
by Michael Mamas | Monday, September 12, 2011 | Spirituality |
The greatest religion is to be true to your own nature. Have faith in yourselves.
– Swami Vivikenanda
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This is a lovely quote from the great saint Vivakenanda. Being true to your own nature is, of course, only truly attained by the enlightened.
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It is, in fact, by definition, what it means to be enlightened. It is a physiological state, not an attitude or philosophy. Yet it is something that you must have the courage to strive for every day.
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What is your nature? What would you do if you were truly free? What is your heart really saying to you?
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Very few people responsibly respond to these simple questions. All bias, be it fear, affinity, aversion, anger, or resentment, interfere with the process of resting into your true nature. Bias, be it well intended or not, distorts your view of who you are.
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The spiritual path is a path of courage.
© Michael Mamas. All rights reserved.
by Michael Mamas | Sunday, September 11, 2011 | Relationship |
“Look to be treated by others as you have treated others.”
– I do not know the source of this quote
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I like this better than the proverbial ‘do unto others.’ This speaks more directly to the mechanic of relationship.
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If you can just take a step back to see how you behave… and remember that most of your behavior is about the energy you project, not really the words that you use.
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What is in your heart is expressed outwardly as the energy you radiate. Others experience this energy as a feeling.
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Pay attention to how you make the people around you feel. Your behavior is best evaluated based upon that. All too often, people evaluate their behavior based upon what they justify or rationalize.
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People will treat you in a manner that mirrors how you make them feel, not what you say or think.
© Michael Mamas. All rights reserved.
by Michael Mamas | Saturday, September 10, 2011 | Spirituality |
If upon seeing suffering and unhappiness in the world, I did not see how I could do much about it, I could understandably just go about my life trying not to think about it.
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However, I know we can change the world… I know there is a technology that can change the world… so how can I do anything but try to bring it forth? How can I rest? How can I take even a moment off?
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There are people out there suffering. I am telling you that we can create Heaven on Earth. The only question is, will people understand what I am saying? Or will you think, “How can that possibly be so?”
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We must not waste time. I assure you that at some point my words will be proven true. People will then be compelled to wonder, how it is they sat on the sidelines, sipping their tea, while others stepped forward to help pull the world out of the grip of misery?
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There are those out there that believe they understand my teachings. If they do understand me, how is it they are not involved… shoulder to shoulder with me… striving to transform this world? It can only be that they will not really understand until we have accomplished our goal. Then they will deal with the question of why they did not join in.
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My appeal is to become a visionary. Learn to connect the dots that are in front of you to see the direction the arrow points. Then believe in yourself and what you know enough to move forward with conviction and determination.
© Michael Mamas. All rights reserved.
