Via Sri Prem Baba: Flor do Dia- Flor del Día- Flower of the day 12/04/2015

“Tenho dito que a raiz da crise que tem se manifestado nos vários setores da sociedade no mundo todo é devido ao esquecimento da dimensão espiritual da vida. A crise é um produto da nossa desconexão com o Grande Espírito. Nós perdemos a capacidade de enxergar o Espírito por trás das coisas e dos seres humanos (de nós mesmos). Não reconhecemos o Espírito porque nosso olhar está focado na matéria, principalmente na pobreza e nas mazelas do outro. E esse olhar somente alimenta a crença de que somos um pequeno eu. Esse é um encantamento, uma inconsciência coletiva.”

“Vengo diciendo que la raíz de la crisis que se ha manifestado en varios sectores de la sociedad en todo el mundo es debido al olvido de la dimensión espiritual de la vida. La crisis es un producto de nuestra desconexión con el Gran Espíritu. Perdemos la capacidad de ver el Espíritu por detrás de las cosas y de los seres humanos (de nosotros mismos). No reconocemos el Espíritu porque nuestra mirada está enfocada en la materia, principalmente en la pobreza y en los defectos del otro. Este mirar solamente alimenta la creencia de que somos un pequeño yo. Este es un encantamiento, una inconsciencia colectiva.”

"The root of the crisis that has manifested itself in various sectors of society around the world is due to the forgetfulness of life’s spiritual dimension. The crisis is a by-product of our disconnection with the Great Spirit. We have lost the ability to see spirit behind all things and all human beings, including ourselves. We do not recognize spirit because we are focused on matter, especially on poverty and the shortcomings of others. This focal point only feeds the belief that we are the small self, and it acts like a spell upon the collective unconscious."

Via Daily Dharma

True Giving | April 12, 2015 According to Buddhism, true giving involves the awareness that there is no giver, no gift, and no receiver. Attachments of any kind—whether it be to self as the benefactor, the value of the gift, or the acknowledgment by the receiver—nullify the pure act of giving. - Taitetsu Unno, "Three Grapefruits" Read More →

JMG Quote Of The Day - Vivek Murthy

 

"Being gay is not a disorder. Being transgender is not a malady that requires a cure. Had I been Leelah Alcorn's physician, I would have told her exactly that. And that's the message I want other doctors, nurses, health professionals, and public health leaders to help get out to parents and children who may be confronting these issues." - Surgeon General Vivek Murthy, speaking today on a conference call about White House support for bans on "ex-gay" torture.

Labels: brainwashing, ex-gay, feds, Leelah Alcorn, LGBT youth, Obama administration, Surgeon General, torture

Reposted from  Joe Jervis

Via Sri Prem Baba: Flor do Dia- Flor del Día- Flower of the day 11/04/2015

“É possível que você tenha entendido racionalmente a falta de lógica da sua mágoa, e isso te faz tentar uma aproximação, uma conversa; te faz tentar ser amigo do outro. Porém, esse entendimento racional não é o suficiente. A compreensão é um fenômeno que se dá no plano do coração - todo o seu Ser compreende. Então, você precisa transformar o entendimento em compreensão. Para isso é necessário entrar em contato com os sentimentos guardados.” 

“Es posible que hayas entendido racionalmente la falta de lógica de tu herida, y esto te hace intentar una aproximación, una charla; te hace intentar ser amigo del otro. Sin embargo, este entendimiento racional no es suficiente. La comprensión es un fenómeno que se da en el plano del corazón – todo tu Ser comprende. Entonces necesitas transformar el entendimiento en comprensión. Para eso es necesario entrar en contacto con los sentimientos guardados.”

"It is possible for us to intellectually understand the lack of logic behind a particular hurt or resentment of ours. This enables us to come a little closer to the person involved, and attempt to have a conversation with them. We may even try to befriend the other. However, this rational understanding is not enough. Comprehension is a phenomenon that occurs on the plane of the heart – our entire Being comprehends. So we need to transform our understanding into comprehension. This requires us to come into contact with denied and protected feelings."

Via Daily Dharma

From Suffering to Beauty | April 11, 2015 Suffering leads us to beauty the way thirst leads us to water. - Jane Hirshfield, "Felt in Its Fullness" Read More →

Via The Blue Street Journal / FB:

Via FB:

Via Spiritual Ecology / FB:

 

"The basic core values of ONENESS are free! "

"The real innovations that belong to the future should be in service to life, in service to humanity. If we will have this attitude, then the consciousness will be aligned where the information is, where the technology is waiting.... It is a gift."

"There is another interesting point that our culture has overlooked. Which is that everything that is seminal, everything that is really important is a gift. It is a gift from the inner world."

—Llewellyn Vaughan-Lee, "Technology, Consciousness, and the Future: An Introductory Talk"

Listen to the complete talk here: http://www.workingwithoneness.org/node/624

Image: The labyrinth at Chartres cathedral

Sri Prem Baba também apóia nossa campanha

Via Sri Prem Baba: Flor do Dia- Flor del Día- Flower of the day 10/04/2015

“O perdão é uma fragrância do Ser. Ele é como um raio de luz, que encontra-se encoberto por capas de mágoas e ressentimentos. Por mais que você não esteja podendo identificar esses sentimentos, eles existem, e a prova disso é a separação, tanto do outro como de si mesmo. Você pode estar magoado com o outro ou consigo mesmo, mas independentemente disso, o fato é que algo ainda não foi compreendido e aceito. Por alguma razão, você se recusa a aceitar. Mas, a aceitação não pode ser forçada, assim como o perdão não pode ser imposto de fora para dentro. Ela é um fruto da árvore da compreensão.”

“El perdón es una fragancia del Ser. Es como un rayo de luz, que se encuentra cubierto por capas de heridas y resentimientos. Por más que no estés pudiendo identificar esos sentimientos, éstos existen, y la prueba de ello es la separación, tanto del otro como de ti mismo. Puedes estar herido con el otro o contigo mismo, pero independientemente de eso, el hecho es que algo aún no fue comprendido y aceptado. Por alguna razón, te rehúsas a aceptar. Pero la aceptación no puede ser forzada, así como el perdón no puede ser impuesto de afuera hacia adentro. Es un fruto del árbol de la comprensión.”

"Forgiveness is a fragrance of the Being. It is like a ray of light that is covered in layers of hurt and resentment. Even though we may not be able to identify these feelings, they do indeed exist. The proof of their existence lies in our feelings of separation, both from the other and from ourselves. We may have been hurt by others or by ourselves, but regardless, the fact is that something has not been understood and accepted. For some reason, we refuse to accept it. Acceptance cannot be forced, and forgiveness cannot be imposed from the outside. It is a fruit of the tree of understanding."

Via Daily Dharma

Experiencing the Path for Ourselves | April 10, 2015 Following the path is about experiencing it for ourselves. It’s not taking on what other people have described. It’s not based on blind faith. Of course, you need a certain amount of confidence to buy a ticket and start on your journey. You have to believe that the country exists and that it’s worthwhile to go there. But beyond that, the important thing is just to go. - Ani Tenzin Palmo, "Necessary Doubt" Read More →

Via JMG: LGBT Groups Applaud Obama's Support For Laws That Ban "Ex-Gay" Torture

GLSEN

Studies conducted by major mental health organizations and personal testimony from lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender youth have shown that conversion therapy can create dangerous and even life-threatening effects, including depression, decreased self-esteem, substance abuse and suicidal behavior. We are thrilled that President Obama will call for an end to the use of conversion therapy on minors. It is a harmful and discredited practice that uses rejection, shame and psychological abuse aimed at changing one’s sexual orientation or gender identity/expression. Fifteen years ago, major medical, psychiatric and counseling associations rallied to GLSEN’s side to beat back attempts to force this insidious practice into our schools. We salute them for their pioneering stance and thank the President for his leadership in protecting youth from these damaging and misguided practices.

Truth Wins Out

"We are ecstatic that President Barack Obama spoke out against this harmful practice that psychologically terrorizes too many perfectly healthy LGBT youth and stigmatizes them as mentally ill,” said Truth Wins Out’s Executive Director Wayne Besen. “The President’s wise words gave momentum to efforts to prohibit fringe practitioners from traumatizing vulnerable LGBT adolescents and calling it therapy.” “President Obama’s expression of support shows that he really ‘gets it’ at a fundamental level,” said TWO’s Wayne Besen. “We are very fortunate to have a president who is dedicated to equality and ending the destructive practice of conversion therapy.”

Lambda Legal

In both California and New Jersey, Lambda Legal joined with regional and national organizations working with LGBT young people to advocate on behalf of the ultimately successful efforts in both states to enact legislation preventing licensed mental health providers from using therapies with minors that are demonstrably ineffective and can be deeply harmful, and we were part of the correspondingly successful efforts to defend these bans in court. We will continue to advocate on behalf of LGBT young people as other states likewise move to protect them from this preventable harm. These dangerous and damaging efforts to change sexual orientation and gender identity have wrecked lives. Tonight the President lent the full weight of his leadership to the work our community has been doing for years to protect young people and their families. He joins not only Lambda Legal and our sister organizations, but every leading medical and therapeutic organization, as they have unanimously and unequivocally recognized that LGBT people's identities should not be targeted for change.

Labels: Barack Obama, ex-gay, GLSEN, Lambda Legal, LGBT youth, Obama administration, torture, Truth Wins Out

Reposted from Joe Jervis

A Shred of Decency

Via JMG: Reuters Poll: Majority Say They Oppose RFRA Laws, Support Same-Sex Marriage

Via Reuters:

A majority of Americans believe businesses should not be allowed to refuse services based on their religious beliefs in the wake of controversies in Indiana and Arkansas over gay rights and religious freedom, a Reuters/Ipsos poll found on Thursday. The poll, conducted April 6 to 8, also found that 52 percent of Americans support allowing same-sex couples to marry, far more than the 32 percent who oppose it. The poll found solid opposition to allowing businesses to refuse services or refuse to hire people or groups based on religious beliefs.
Fifty-four percent said it was wrong for businesses to refuse services, while 28 percent said they should have that right. And 55 percent said businesses should not have the right to refuse to hire certain people or groups based on the employer's religious beliefs, while 27 percent said businesses should have the right. The Reuters-Ipsos poll found divisions among Americans on where same-sex marriage laws should be made. The largest grouping, 34 percent, believes same-sex marriage laws should be made by the U.S. Supreme Court declaring a nationwide constitutional right.
Another 22 percent said same-sex marriage laws should be made at the state level by voter referendum. Eleven percent said laws should be made by state legislators and 8 percent would leave it up to Congress. The poll found 24 percent did not know how best to handle it. The poll said 55 percent want to see all states - even those that do not permit same-sex marriages - recognize such unions from states where same-sex marriage is legal.

 

Earlier this week the Family Research Council trumpeted very different results from a poll they had commissioned.

Labels: FRC, hate groups, LGBT rights, marriage equality, polls, public accommodations, religion, Reuters, RFRA

Reposted from Joe Jervis

Via JMG: Married Today, Fired Tomorrow

 

Greg Stohr writes for Bloomberg:

Same-sex couples across the U.S. may soon have the legal right to marry. In 28 states, their employer will still have the legal right to fire them. Even as the U.S. Supreme Court prepares for arguments this month on legalizing same-sex marriage nationwide, gays in much of the country lack the anti-discrimination protections that apply to racial minorities and women. It’s a legal anomaly that could become a new flashpoint this summer if the Supreme Court backs marriage rights. Gay-rights advocates are vowing to push for changes to anti-discrimination laws and try to overcome longstanding resistance from Republican-controlled legislatures. “Otherwise, these couples are going to hold public weddings and get fired from their jobs,” said David Codell, constitutional litigation director at the National Center for Lesbian Rights.

RELATED: The above map from the Movement Advancement Project shows the 22 states that currently include sexual orientation in employment protections. Of those 22 states only New Hampshire, New York, and Wisconsin do not also include gender identity in those protections.

Labels: employment, LGBT rights, religion, RFRA

Reposted from Joe Jervis

Grace and Frankie - Official Trailer - Netflix [HD]

Love Rules: 20+ Years Fighting for Marriage

Via Steven Bancarz: 25 Quotes fromthe Buddha that will change your life

By Steven Bancarz| 

Between the 6th and 4th century BCE, a man named Siddhārtha Gautama began to turn heads in Eastern India with his profound spiritual wisdom.  He was given the name “Buddha”, which literally means “The enlightened one”, and to this day we still receive tremendous insight from his teachings.

Interestingly, Buddha never actually wrote any of his teachings down.  Similar to Jesus and Socrates, his method of teaching was verbal and communicative.  Oral traditions kept the wisdom of the Buddha alive until 400 years after his death when the first transcript of his teachings first emerged.

His awakening occurred when he realized that you didn’t have to starve yourself and mortify your body, as was commonly practiced in India at that time to enhance spiritual clarity and wisdom.  When a young girl offered him some milk and rice pudding as an action of compassion, he realized that there was more to The Way than what he had been taught.

He then meditated for 49 nine days after vowing he would not move until he found the truth.  The insights that came from this still remain some of the most relevant and profound spiritual teachings of all time.  Here are 25 quotes from Buddha that will change your life:

1) “However many holy words you read, however many you speak, what good will they do you if you do not act on upon them?”

2) “The way is not in the sky. The way is in the heart.”

3) “A jug fills drop by drop.”

4) “Every human being is the author of his own health or disease.”

5) “To understand everything is to forgive everything”

6) “Better than a thousand hollow words, is one word that brings peace.”

7) “Whatever words we utter should be chosen with care for people will hear them and be influenced by them for good or ill.”

8) “No one saves us but ourselves. No one can and no one may. We ourselves must walk the path.”

9) “In a controversy the instant we feel anger we have already ceased striving for the truth, and have begun striving for ourselves.”

10) “In the sky, there is no distinction of east and west; people create distinctions out of their own minds and then believe them to be true.”

11) “Those who are free of resentful thoughts surely find peace.”

12) “Hatred does not cease through hatred at any time. Hatred ceases through love. This is an unalterable law.”

13) “There has to be evil so that good can prove its purity above it.”

14) “It is easy to see the faults of others, but difficult to see once own faults. One shows the faults of others like chaff winnowed in the wind, but one conceals one’s own faults as a cunning gambler conceals his dice.”

15) “I never see what has been done; I only see what remains to be done.”

16) “The mind is everything. What you think you become.”

17) “Just as treasures are uncovered from the earth, so virtue appears from good deeds, and wisdom appears from a pure and peaceful mind. To walk safely through the maze of human life, one needs the light of wisdom and the guidance of virtue.”

18) “We are shaped by our thoughts; we become what we think. When the mind is pure, joy follows like a shadow that never leaves.”

19) “Work out your own salvation. Do not depend on others.”

20) “Let us rise up and be thankful, for if we didn’t learn a lot today, at least we learned a little, and if we didn’t learn a little, at least we didn’t get sick, and if we got sick, at least we didn’t die; so, let us all be thankful.”

21) “You cannot travel the path until you have become the path itself”

22) “You will not be punished for your anger, you will be punished by your anger.”

23) “To conquer oneself is a greater task than conquering others”

24)  “Three things cannot be long hidden: the sun, the moon, and the truth.”

25) “Have compassion for all beings, rich and poor alike; each has their suffering. Some suffer too much, others too little.”

Let’s keep these words alive.


About the Author: My name is Steven Bancarz, and I am the creator of ‘Spirit Science and Metaphysics’.  I am working on a new social platform is being built called ‘The Conscious Forum‘ to provide the best place online for open-minded people to discuss, engage, and connect with one another in a way never offered before.

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Via Sri Prem Baba: Flor do Dia- Flor del Día- Flower of the day 09/04/2015

“A força de vontade é fortalecida através do esforço. Se você não está podendo se comprometer com a sua prática espiritual, ou com alguma austeridade inteligente que pode te ajudar a romper com determinados maus hábitos, talvez você esteja preso em uma crença. Talvez você acredite não ser capaz ou não ter poder suficiente, e isso te coloca num lugar de tremenda insegurança. Porém, a autoconfiança é um ingrediente fundamental no processo do despertar da consciência, por isso é importante que você consiga atravessar esse pântano, nem que seja se comprometendo com algo bem fácil e simples, mas que possa realizar.”

“La fuerza de voluntad es fortalecida a través del esfuerzo. Si no estás pudiendo comprometerte con tu práctica espiritual, o con alguna austeridad inteligente que puede ayudarte a romper con determinados malos hábitos, tal vez estés preso en una creencia. Tal vez creas que no eres capaz o no tienes el poder suficiente, y esto te coloca en un lugar de tremenda inseguridad. Sin embargo, la autoconfianza es un ingrediente fundamental en el proceso del despertar de la consciencia, por eso es importante que consigas atravesar este pantano, aunque sea comprometiéndote con algo bien fácil y simple, pero que puedas realizar.”

"Willpower is strengthened through effort. If we are not able to commit to our spiritual practice or to some intelligent austerity that can help us break certain bad habits, it may be because we are stuck in a belief. Perhaps we believe that we aren’t capable or that we don’t have enough power, and this makes us extremely insecure. However, confidence is a key ingredient in the process of awakening consciousness. It’s important to get through this swamp, even if it means committing to something relatively easy and simple that we can accomplish."