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I have this little book called The Law of Success by Parmahansa Yogananda and it’s the greatest bit of wisdom. Very to the point, it’s multi-layered in its depth. The following is a great excerpt about Destiny. Enjoy

YOU CAN CONTROL DESTINY

Mind is the creator of everything. You should therefore guide it to create only good. If you cling to a certian thought with dynamic will power, it finally assumes a tangible outward form. Whe you are able to emply your will always for constructive purposes, you become the controller of your destiny.

I have just mentioned three important ways to make your will dynamic:

1. Choose a simple task or accomplishment that you have never mastered and determine to succeed with it;
2. Be sure you have chosen something constructive and feasible, then refuse to consider failure;
3. Concentrate on a single purpose, using all your abilities and opportunities to forward it.

But you should always be sure, within the calm region of your inner Self, that what you want is right for you to have, and in accord with God’s purposes. You can then use all the force of your will to accomplish your object; keeping your mind, however, centered on the thought of God– the Source of all power and all accomplishment.

And that, friends, is one way to do it. Good Luck.

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got this from The Daily Om: www.dailyom.com - It’s a great site where you can sign up to receive daily messages such as this one and daily hororscope which is quite uncanny in terms of how accurate it is.

It’s interesting to read about other cultures and their traditions regarding prosperity. I really like this idea of having a party where you give your stuff away to all your friends. How cool would that be to have one of those?

April 16, 2008
Potlatch
Encouraging Generosity

We can learn much from the Native American tradition of the potlatch. It is a tradition that values generosity above all else, and a potlatch, which is a very grand ceremony, is an exercise in giving away material possessions, food, and money. It is not uncommon for the host of a potlatch to give away so much of his own resources to his guests that he ends up with nothing. However, he can regain his wealth by attending potlatches at which he is a guest. In this way, a potlatch validates generosity and encourages the flow of resources in a community, while at the same time continually reaffirming the importance of community ties.

When we are held in a web of trust and connection, we can give generously, knowing that when it is our turn we will be supported. In this way, our whole sense of ownership becomes less individualistic and more communal. Resources are in an acceptable state of flux, moving within the community through the vehicle of the potlatch, which serves the additional function of strengthening community ties. This seems clearly preferable to isolating ourselves from one another and hoarding our resources.

Perhaps we can find ways in our own lives to create a community in which a flow of resources happens in this way, in which we support one another to be generous. We might begin by celebrating our own type of potlatch, having a dinner party and giving each guest an object that is dear to us. Or we could give everyone a little bit of money in an envelope to spend on themselves just for fun. Someone might get inspired to throw their own potlatch, and before we know it we might have a tradition that supports and validates generosity even as it creates a safety net for leaner times. In the most profound sense, that is what a community, a tribe, and family do best.

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This was in response to a post on the kundalini yoga teacher’s forum, subject: knowledge should be free. The gist was that this person thought it was hypocritical to charge for passing on spiritual teachings. The following is a response.

Many people believe that spiritual knowledge should be free. In many ways it is, but living in a world of duality, one has to give in order to get. That is also in accordance with karmic law. Karma is simply cause and effect, which was proven scientifically by Newton in his third law–“For every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction.” As far as charging for this knowledge, the waters get muddy here in the west, in our modern capitalist system.

In the past, spiritual tradition was typically handed down from Master to Student at great physical cost. A new Chela, or student, wishing to find a master and learn the spiritual path would travel arduously up into the Himalayan mountains and once he found the master, would then work for that master for several years or more until accepted. That is if the master accepted him in the first place and allowed him to work. After this tremendous expression of commitment, the student would then get one kriya to practice and master. In that context, if you stop to think about the volume of technology Yogi Bhajan passed on in such a short time, it’s mind boggling. (more…)

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A friend of mine suggested this idea a few days ago and so I ran with it. After all, everybody loves lists! Thanks Ali.

1. Think About Your Destiny Once A Day
2. Follow Your Heart
3. Follow Your Bliss
4. Pray for Others
5. Pray for Yourself
6. Meditate
7. Give to Charity
8. Follow Your Intuition
9. Breathe Deeply
10. Forgive Someone
11. Love Everyone You See
12. Treat Others as You Would Like To Be Treated
13. Do Something Self-Less
14. Be At Peace Within
15. Live In The Present Moment
16. Accept Things As They Are Now
17. Get Rid of Anger
18. Call Your Mother
19. Call Your Father
20. Be Kind to Yourself
21. Do What’s Right for You
22. Make The Higher Choice
23. Clean Your House
24. Try Something New
25. Don’t Worry

(more…)

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When I worked in commercial real estate, I had a boss who once said something very wise to me. He told me that anything you do in this life is like “getting yourself into orbit.” Think of yourself as a rocket-ship or better yet, a satellite trying to get into outer space so that you can orbit around the earth. In order to get out of the atmosphere you have to defy gravity, which takes a lot of energy. A rocket expends a lot of fuel propelling itself upward towards space. However, once you make it out of the earth’s atmosphere, the gravitational pull of the earth starts to work for you. A satellite hovers around the earth, traveling at great speeds with very little to no effort. An occasional thrust to the left or right for correction keeps the ship on course, with earth’s gravity doing all the work. It’s the same thing for anything you want to do in your life. When you begin a journey of destiny, you will meet with great resistance– this is the cost of getting into orbit.

In Think And Grow Rich, Napoleon Hill says once you determine what your definite chief aim in life is, you must demand of yourself “Persistent, continuous action toward it’s attainment.” It’s this persistent, continuous action which is the energy you use to get into orbit. (more…)

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I was on a workshop recently with my teacher, Harijiwan and in the midst of all of the discussions I was compelled to write down certain things because they resonated with such brilliance. The italics represent my commentary.

“Expectations are resentments waiting to happen.” (actually said by a woman named Carol rephrasing what Harijiwan said.) This is purely brilliant. When you expect a certain outcome and don’t get it, you’re disappointed. 99% of all our problems in relationship with others comes because we expect them to do something we want them to do and they’re not doing it. The only way out of this, other than controlling the other person or conflict, which are not desireable, is to drop your expectations and attachment to how someone or something should be. The flip side of this, and a very powerful tool for countering expectation and attachment is Acceptance.

“The energy wants you more than you want the energy. The energy (of the universe) wants you to succeed and do what you came here to do.” This is the same as the idea that “if you take one step toward God, God will take more steps toward you than there are in the sands in the hourglass of time. ” There are many versions of this that come from various religions but the basic idea is that the energy of the universe is a perfect benevolent mass that wants to come through the human to have experience and hopefully gain knowledge so that it can make a contribution. The mind is the limiting factor. We’re given a mind to master so that we can pull in the energy of the soul and project it to our highest ability. Good luck with that. (more…)

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I was going through a file drawer the other day and came across all these scraps of paper I’d written spiritual thoughts on… Here they are.

At a cafe called Fruition in NW Portland, OR —

The best thing that can happen to you is that you experience God in you as a projection of your soul manifest in all that you see in your life. When this happens, it’s the first step to mastering the projection that is your life.

A paradox of the digital age– technology and storage of information gets smaller and smaller which allows for more and more information. Our world grows closer together because of it and the result is that our world horizon becomes infinite. As the world grows smaller as a result of technology & information our possibilities as humans become infinite.

Praying for the healing of others heals you by default. By sending out light and love to people in your life, you actually heal yourself because the other person is really you.

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“We have electricity and sewage throughout most of the world because we agreed as a collective group that this was a minimum standard of living. Peace will be possible on earth when everyone decides collectively that this is how we wish to live. “

My teacher said this recently and it really hit home. It made me realize that anything we want to be collectively as a human race is possible.

Could you imagine in this day and age, going into the Four Seasons Hotel and having them inform you that there are no toilets, only chamber pots or worse, nothing at all? It’s because we’ve established that as a standard of living.

We simply haven’t collectively decided that we want peace in the world yet and that’s the only reason we’re not having that experience. (more…)

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Coincidences are what Carl Jung termed Synchronicity. There really are no coincidences. People like to say, everything happens for a reason. I don’t think everything happens for a reason, but I do think you can bring reason to everything that happens. A coincidence is like a happy accident, but actually it’s no accident that all. The coincidence is a glimpse into how things are supposed to be. Remember the universe is perfect and whole out beyond time and space. It contains infinite possibilities. It’s we who are limited by the mind. By the same token, we can be unlimited depending on how we use the mind.

When a coincidence happens, you should rejoice that you’re experiencing the divine perfection in the moment. The same goes for when you look over at the clock and it says 11:11 or 3:33 or some such seeming coincidence. That is actually a pulse from the universe where everything is lined up for a moment. My teacher says it’s good to project a prayer of some sort when you find yourself in an aligned moment like that. You can use a mantra or simply “make a wish” as some people like to say when they see these things appear. (more…)

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Came across this in India Times Dec 28, 2007 edition. I think it’s a wonderful description of something that defies reason and description: The Mind.

Mind is a wonderful force inherent in the Self. That which arises in this body as ‘I’ is the mind. When the subtle mind emerges through the brain and the senses, the gross names and forms are cognized. When it remains in the Heart, names and forms disappear. If the mind remains in the Heart, the ‘I’ or the ego which is the source of all thoughts will go, and the Self, the Real, Eternal ‘I’ alone will shine. Where there is not the lightest trace of the ego, there is the Self. –Ramana Maharishi

(Read The Full Article on IndiaPost.com here)

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