Via Sri Prem Baba: Flor do Dia- Flor del Día - Flower of the Day 17/08/2015

“Conscientes disso ou não, nos movemos da consciência humana em direção à Consciência divina. Porém, algumas dimensões da consciência humana ainda são tão primitivas que se assemelham à consciência animal, na qual a crueldade serve para suprir o instinto básico de sobrevivência. Na natureza, muitas vezes é necessário ser cruel, como um animal que se alimenta do outro para sobreviver. Isso não é certo ou errado, simplesmente é. Mas, aos poucos vamos alcançando dimensões humanas mais elevadas, e à medida em que nos libertamos da crueldade e nos tornamos capazes de amar, esse amor nos conduz à Consciência divina.”

“Conscientes de ello o no, nos movemos de la conciencia humana en dirección a la Conciencia divina. Sin embargo, algunas dimensiones de la conciencia humana aún son tan primitivas que se asemejan a la consciencia animal, en la cual la crueldad sirve para suplir el instinto básico de supervivencia. En la naturaleza, muchas veces es necesario ser cruel, como un animal que se alimenta del otro para sobrevivir. Esto no está bien ni mal, simplemente es. Pero, poco a poco, vamos alcanzando dimensiones humanas más elevadas, y a medida que nos liberamos de la crueldad y nos volvemos capaces de amar, este amor nos conduce a la Conciencia divina.”

“Whether we are aware of it or not, we move from human consciousness towards divine consciousness. However, some dimensions of human consciousness are still so primitive that they resemble animal consciousness. In this animalistic state of awareness, cruelty results from a basic survival instinct. In nature, it’s often necessary to be cruel, so that one animal preys on another animal in order to survive. This is not right or wrong; it simply is the way things are. Gradually, as we reach more elevated dimensions of human awareness, we free ourselves from cruelty and become capable of loving. This capacity to love is what then guides us towards divine consciousness.”

Today's Daily Dharma: Direct Liberation

Direct Liberation

The Buddhist teachings say that when we can actually feel pain directly, we spontaneously let go, just as feeling the hot handle of a cast-iron skillet makes us let go. When we feel the powerful, undeniable suffering of jealousy, we want liberation in the most direct way possible. We feel it, and we let go.

- Judith Simmer-Brown, "Transforming the Green Ey'd Monster"

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Kids Speak Out on Religion

Via Spirit Science / FB:

A little known fact of history...

http://fusion.net/story/183139/san-franciscos-stonewall-the-landmark-transgender-rights-riot-of-1966/

and thanks to WGB for the heads up here: http://www.wickedgayblog.com/2015/08/san-franciscos-stonewall-landmark.html

Via Sri Prem Baba: Flor do Dia- Flor del Día - Flower of the Day 16/08/2015

"Quando a mente se aquieta, tudo fica bom. Assim, quando Deus quer, ele te pega. Mas eu descobri que Deus sempre quer te pegar; ele está sempre de braços abertos. O que ocorre é que o ser humano ainda não aprendeu a usar esse instrumento que lhe foi dado, esse grande poder que é a mente." 
Satsang completo -> bit.ly/1TIbdhM

“Cuando la mente se calma, todo está bien. Así, cuando Dios quiere, él te agarra. Pero yo descubrí que Dios siempre quiere agarrarte; él está siempre con los brazos abiertos. Lo que ocurre es que el ser humano aún no aprendió a utilizar este instrumento que se le dio, este gran poder que es la mente”

“Once the mind quiets down, all is well, and when God sees fit, God catches a hold of us. I have discovered that God’s arms are always wide open, waiting to catch us. But human beings have not yet learned how to properly use this powerful instrument of the mind, making it still so God may take us…”

Today's Daily Dharma: The Fact of Suffering

The Fact of Suffering

The Four Noble Truths are grounded in the fact of suffering. People might think that's negative, but it's only the truth. It's our human condition. So Buddhism has us just look at it nakedly. Look and ask yourself, 'What is this? What am I?' - Barbara Rhodes, "Village Women"

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Poet, Blanco, urges U.S., Cuba "to breathe together, to heal together"

Gay Adoption | What Would You Do? | WWYD

Stonewall Trailer (Parody)

Via Sri Prem Baba: Flor do Dia- Flor del Día - Flower of the Day 15/08/2015

“Ao se perceber sofrendo, identifique com qual parte da sua personalidade você está identificado. Por exemplo, se estiver identificado com o ciúme, se pergunte: “Se eu abrir mão disso será que não sobra nada”? Assim, aos poucos você começa a perceber que existe alguém em você que quer sentir ciúme. Esse é o carcereiro dessa prisão de sofrimento. Descubra quem é ele, pois é ele que quer sentir isso - ele tem prazer nisso. E é esse prazer negativo que te impede de abrir mão dos padrões destrutivos. Porque prazer é vida, e o ego teme abrir mão disso, pois ele teme morrer.”

“Al percibirte sufriendo, identifica con cuál parte de tu personalidad estás identificado. Por ejemplo, si estuvieses identificado con los celos, pregúntate: “Si yo suelto esto, ¿será que no queda nada?” Así, de a poco, comienzas a percibir que existe alguien en ti que quiere sentir celos. Ese es el carcelero de esa prisión de sufrimiento. Descubre quién es él, porque es él quien quiere sentir eso – él tiene placer en eso. Y es ese placer negativo lo que te impide soltar los patrones destructivos. Porque placer es vida, y el ego teme soltar eso, porque teme morir.” 

“When we perceive ourselves to be suffering, we can first observe which part of our personality we are identified with. For example, if we are identified with jealousy, we may ask ourselves, ‘If I let go of this jealousy, will there be nothing left of me?’ Gradually, we can see that there is someone inside of us that wants to feel jealous. This prison guard called jealousy wants us to remain in this jail of suffering. Find out who this guard is, because he is the one wanting to feel this jealousy and get the pleasure out of it. It is this negatively oriented pleasure that prevents us from letting go of destructive patterns. Since pleasure is life, the ego fears giving up this pleasure because it fears that it will die.”

Today's Daily Dharma: Abide in Patience

Abide in Patience

Praise and so on distract me and remove my disillusionment with the cycle of existence. They stir up jealousy toward gifted people, and anger at their success. . . . It is wrong to feel anger toward someone, thinking that person impedes my merit. As there is no austerity equal to patience, shall I not abide in that? - Shantideva, "The Way of the Bodhisattva"

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Via Collective Evolution / FB:

How Sitcoms Handled Homos in the 70s and 80s

Via JMG: Totally Not-Gay Catholic Priest Tells Ex-Gays: Homosexuality Is Like Trying To Eat A Bagel With Your Ear

August 14, 2015 Crackpots, Religion

Gay Star News reports:

A Catholic priest has come up with one of the strangest analogies yet for gay sex, claiming it is like cramming a piece of bagel in your ear. Preacher John Riccardo was speaking at a conference in Michigan on Wednesday, called Welcoming and Accompanying Our Brothers and Sisters with Same-Sex Attraction. It was a Catholic conference in order to help gay and lesbian people stay celibate. He was taking part in a lecture called ‘HIV and Other Health Risks Associated with Men Who Have Sex With Men’, led by HIV researcher Timothy Flanigan. Riccardo said junior high students have asked him why God hates gay people, and he responded that it is because gay sex is unnatural. “If i just rip open a bagel, I take it, and I cram it in my ear. What would you say?” he said he tells them. “That doesn’t go there. It’ll ruin your ear canal.”

(Reposted from JMG)

Via WGB: San Francisco Public High School Becomes First-Ever To Offer LGBT History Class

A San Francisco public high school offering an LGBT history class to students next fall is the first in America to do so, according to several reports.

Lyndsey Schlax, the teacher who’ll spearhead the class at the Ruth Asawa San Francisco School of the Arts, told CBS that other private schools around the country have offered similar classes, but this will be the first time one will be offered at a public high school.

According to Schlax, the course will cover the history of gender and sexuality, how they intersect in major media, how different LGBT equality is around the world, and a number of national and international struggles the community still faces. Full story here!

Via Sri Prem Baba: Flor do Dia- Flor del Día - Flower of the Day 13/08/2015

“Estou trabalhando para que haja cura nas relações. Me refiro a uma mudança do eixo: querer receber menos e dar mais. Porque essa é a chave para o fim daquilo que é uma das principais causas do sofrimento neste planeta, a carência afetiva. Não depender de ninguém para ser feliz é liberdade. Você não fica com alguém porque precisa, mas simplesmente porque quer. Somente essa liberdade permite a escolha.”

“Estoy trabajando para que haya cura en las relaciones. Me refiero a un cambio de eje: querer recibir menos y dar más. Porque esta es la llave para el fin de aquello que es una de las principales causas de sufrimiento en este planeta, la carencia afectiva. No depender de nadie para ser feliz es libertad. No estás con alguien porque necesitas, sino simplemente por querer. Solamente esta libertad permite la elección.”

“I am working to promote a healing within all relationships. This will require a complete change in axis, in which each partner truly wants to receive less and to give more. This can put an end to one of the greatest causes of suffering on the planet: emotional neediness. Not having to depend on anyone for our own happiness is freedom. In other words, this means not staying in a certain relationship because you need to, but simply because you want to. Only by having freedom are we able to make this choice.”

Today's Daily Dharma: The Wisdom of Anger

The Wisdom of Anger

Anger is traditionally thought to be close to wisdom. When not projected outward onto others or inward toward the self, it gives us the necessary energy and clarity to understand what needs to be done. - Thanissara, "Don't Worry, Be Angry"

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Via Sri Prem Baba: Flor do Dia- Flor del Día - Flower of the Day 13/08/2015

“Quando a moral religiosa é muito forte, alguns casais acabam ficando juntos movidos pelo medo de desagradar à família, o sacerdote ou Deus. Permanecem na relação, fechados, muitas vezes inconscientes do autoengano, esperando a morte chegar para resolver o problema. E quando a moral religiosa não é tão aguda, com o menor sinal de dificuldade alguns se separam e partem para a próxima relação. Esses são sintomas do que chamo de “síndrome de Walt Disney”, a crença de que existe um príncipe (ou princesa) encantado que te fará feliz para sempre.”

“Cuando la moral religiosa es muy fuerte, algunas parejas terminan quedándose juntos movidos por el miedo de desagradar a la familia, al sacerdote o a Dios. Permanecen en la relación cerrados, muchas veces inconscientes del autoengaño, esperando que la muerte llegue para resolver el problema. Y cuando la moral religiosa no es tan aguda, con la menor señal de dificultad algunos se separan y parten hacia la próxima relación. Estos son síntomas a los que llamo “síndrome de Walt Disney”, la creencia de que existe un príncipe (o princesa) encantado que te hará feliz para siempre.”

“When religious morals are very strong, some couples wind up getting together out of the fear of displeasing their families, their clergymen or God. They stay in a relationship while being closed off to one another, oftentimes unaware of their own self-deceit as they are waiting for death to arrive and solve their problem. In other cases, when religious morality is not as acute, upon the slightest sign of difficulty, some couples separate and run off to the next relationship. These are symptoms of what I call the ‘Walt Disney syndrome’: the belief that there exists a prince charming or an enchanted princess with whom you will live happily ever after.”