Via JMG: NBC/Universal Celebrates LGBT Pride Month [VIDEO]

Via Ram Dass

June 1, 2016

Death is our greatest challenge as well as our greatest spiritual opportunity. By cultivating mindfulness, we can prepare ourselves for this final passage by allowing nature, rather than Ego, to guide us. In so doing, we become teachers to others, and our own best friends, looking beyond the body's death at the next stage in our Soul's adventure.

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Via The New Civil Rights Movement / FB: Thank you, President Obama!

Via daily Dharma / June 1, 2016: The Solace of Surrender

In the process of surrender what I give up is fear and struggle. A kind of strength comes from truly giving up. Something changes when I genuinely let go and ask for help.

—Rob Preece, "The Solace of Surrender"

Meditation (Dhyaan) to Lord Shiva

Two million expected in Sao Paulo's 20th Gay Pride march

http://www.joemygod.com/2016/05/30/brazil-two-million-attend-sao-paulo-pride-video/

Via Sri Prem Baba: Flor do dia - Flor del día - Flower of the day - 31/05/2016

“A máscara nunca é usada de graça, ela tem sempre uma expectativa, um interesse. E quando esse interesse não é atendido, você entra em contato com aquilo que está por trás dela, ou seja, você revela a sua natureza inferior, que pode se manifestar como agressividade, insegurança e uma série de diferentes mecanismos que te levam ao sofrimento.”

“La máscara nunca es usadagratuitamente, ella siempre tiene una expectativa, un interés. Y cuando ese interés no es atendido, entras en contacto con aquello que está detrás de ella, es decir, revelastu naturaleza inferior, que puede manifestarse como agresividad, inseguridad y una serie de diferentes mecanismos que te llevan al sufrimiento.”

“The mask is never used just for fun – it is always used with a selfish goal in mind. When this expectation is not met, we get in touch with what lies behind the mask. We come into contact with our lower nature, which can manifest as aggression, insecurity, or a series of different mechanisms that lead us to suffering.”

Via Daily Dharma / May 31, 2016: On Dignity

Because human beings can deliberately choose to follow the dharma, we can consciously awaken. This potential for enlightenment is the source of self-worth and self-respect. —Sallie Tisdale, "On Dignity"

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Via Equality House

Via Sri Prem Baba: Flor do dia - Flor del día - Flower of the day - 30/05/2016

“Eu vejo que nosso grande desafio enquanto humanidade é aprendermos a usar nossa inteligência e capacidade criativa para transcender os nossos ancestrais pactos de vingança. Precisamos nos espiritualizar a ponto de irmos além da identificação com a nossa história, que é tão permeada por choques de humilhação e exclusão. Precisamos colocar nossa consciência no momento presente, pois somente nesse lugar o amor pode fluir. Em outras palavras, precisamos aprender a ser felizes, lembrando que a felicidade está dentro de nós mesmos.”

“Veo que nuestro gran desafío como humanidad es aprender a usar nuestra inteligencia y capacidad creativa para trascender nuestros ancestrales pactos de venganza. Necesitamos espiritualizarnos al punto de ir más allá de nuestra identificación con nuestra historia, que está tan permeada por shocks de humillación y exclusión. Necesitamos colocar nuestra consciencia en el momento presente, porque solamente en ese lugar el amor puede fluir. En otras palabras, necesitamos aprender a ser felices, recordando que la felicidad está dentro de nosotros mismos.”

“The greatest challenge for us as humanity is to learn how to use our intelligence and creative capacity to transcend our ancestral pacts of revenge. We need to come into harmony with our spirituality to such an extent that we may go beyond our identification with our story, which is so laden with shocks of humiliation and exclusion. We need to place our consciousness in the present moment, for it is only from this place that love can flow. We need to learn how to be happy, remembering that happiness comes from within.”

Via Daily Dharma / May 30, 2016: How Realistic Is Peace?

Peace can be realistic given the will, insight into an opponent’s view, patience, and the power to seek reconciliation.

—John Crook, "Peace: How Realistic Is It?"

Via Ram Dass

May 29, 2016 When you look at yourself as a set of phenomena, what is there to judge? Is this flower less than that flower? It’s just different. You will begin to appreciate your uniqueness without it being better or worse; it’s just different. This is cultivating an appreciation of uniqueness rather than preference.

Via Sri Prem Baba: Flor do dia - Flor del día - Flower of the day - 29/05/2016

“Toda a vida se move em direção à união, por isso o isolamento é um estado extremamente nocivo. Ele gera uma série de distúrbios e perturbações que fazem de você um prisioneiro do labirinto da mente. Se o seu espírito se move em direção a união, mas a sua mente condicionada, acreditando que a sociedade é inimiga, faz com que você se isole e crie barreiras para a união, isso gera uma contradição interna: são duas forças se movendo em direções opostas dentro de você. E dependendo da intensidade dessas forças, você pode ser esquartejado e sentir-se completamente impotente.”

“Toda la vida se mueve en dirección a la unión, por eso el aislamiento es un estado extremadamente nocivo. Este genera una serie de disturbios y perturbaciones que hacen de ti un prisionero del laberinto de la mente. Si tu espíritu se mueve en dirección a la unión, pero tu mente condicionada, creyendo que la sociedad es enemiga, hace que te aísles y crees barreras para la unión, esto genera una contradicción interna: son dos fuerzas moviéndose en direcciones opuestas dentro tuyo. Y dependiendo de la intensidad de esas fuerzas, puedes ser descuartizado y sentirte completamente impotente.”

“All of life moves towards union; for this reason, isolation is harmful. Isolation creates a series of disturbances and disorders that make us a prisoner of the labyrinth of the mind. If our spirit wants to move towards union, but our conditioned mind believes society is the enemy and makes us isolate ourselves and create barriers against union, then we suffer an internal conflict. These two forces move in completely opposite directions within us. Depending on the intensity of these forces, we may find ourselves utterly divided and feeling completely helpless.”

Via Daily Dharma / May 29, 2016: In It Together

Each of you–not separately, but in the cauldron with all beings, cooking and being cooked—is realizing awakening. Not you by yourself, because that is not who you really are. You by yourself are not Buddha-Nature; but your being in the cauldron of all beings is realizing the Buddha-Way.

—Reb Anderson, "In It Together"

Via Sri Prem Baba: Flor do dia - Flor del día - Flower of the day - 28/05/2016

“A crença é um programa mental instalado no seu sistema a partir de choques vividos no passado. E esse programa passa a determinar suas escolhas, decisões e comportamentos no mundo. As crenças são instaladas mediante situações que geram impacto, formando marcas na substância da alma. São imagens congeladas que agem criando fendas nos corpos emocional e mental. Essas fendas se manifestam prioritariamente como rigidez de pensamento: você tem absoluta certeza de que as coisas funcionam de determinada maneira, porém, nem sempre isso é verdadeiro.”

“La creencia es un programa mental instalado en tu sistema a partir de shocks vividos en el pasado. Y ese programa pasa a determinar tus elecciones, decisiones y comportamientos en el mundo. Las creencias son instaladas mediante situaciones que generan impacto, formando marcas en la sustancia del alma. Son imágenes congeladas que actúan creando grietas en los cuerpos emocional y mental. Estas grietas se manifiestan prioritariamente como rigidez de pensamiento: tienes absoluta certeza que las cosas funcionan de determinada manera, sin embargo, no siempre eso es verdadero.”

“A belief is a mental program installed in our systems due to the shocks we experienced in our past. This program determines our choices, decisions and behavior in the world. Beliefs are generated by situations that have an impact on us, forming scars on the substance of our souls. Frozen images remain in our systems that act to create fractures in our emotional and mental bodies. These fractures manifest primarily as rigidity of thought: we think we can be absolutely certain that things work in a particular way, yet this is not always true.”

Via Daily Dharma / May 28, 2016: History’s Changing View

History is a mirror we look into in order to see ourselves; it evolves as we do.

—Henry Shukman, "Zen and the Art"

Via BuzzFeed: American Baha’is Struggle With LGBTQ Issues

In recent years, American Baha’is have felt a dilemma between their identities as Baha’is and their desire to support members of the LGBTQ community. 

Why are some American Baha’is leaving their faith?

 

In the past two years, three written pieces by Baha’is who left, or considered leaving their faith have gained publicity on social media. All three people who published such pieces left or considered leaving the Baha’i faith due to the faith’s stance on homosexuality. The Universal House of Justice, the Baha’i authority of the world, describes homosexuality as similar to issues such as drinking and doing drugs. While Baha’is are encouraged to be sympathetic toward LGBT members of the faith, the UHJ considers homosexuality immoral if expressed in sexual acts. Since April of 2015, three prominent Baha’is have expressed their struggles and disagreements with this stance. 

In recent years, the first person to come forth so publicly on this issue was former Baha’i Sean Rayshel. In an April 2015 interview with the Huffington Post, Rayshel discussed his journey leaving the Baha’i Faith due to feeling that the official Baha’i stance on homosexuality “debased” him, and claimed that he was part of the world’s disintegration. Just one month later, out gay Baha’i radio talk show host Jake Sasseville published a statement titled, “Baha’i Curious? Religion and Sexuality” in which he mentioned that he considered leaving the Baha’i Faith. Sasseville stated that being a gay Baha’i makes him feel “unlovable” in what is otherwise “the most accepting, loving, and global community I’ve ever known.” In February of 2016, Baha’i actress Anisa George published her letter of resignation from the Baha’i faith to the Universal House of Justice on gaybahai.net. George expressed her sorrow in leaving the faith, however she also stated “when it comes to civil rights issues pertaining to the LGBTQ community, Baha’is are so woefully behind the curve.” 

Rayshel and George express a sentiment that Baha’i holy texts condemn pederasty, and not homosexuality, as the Universal House of Justice has interpreted them. 

Sources:
bahai-library.com/compilation_homosexuality_bwc

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