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CONTENTS • OMTIMES

Table of Contents

116

Thubten Chondron

Understanding Human Papillomavirus (HPV)

Interview by Sandy Sedgbeer

By Andrew Pacholyk MS L. Ac

Is There a Special Place That Touches Your Soul By John Holland

60 68

Music of the Soul By Judi Lynch

How to Ground Yourself in the City By Pari Patri

May B EDITION

Choose to be Radical in Your Kindness

Cosmic Reset & Recharge Spiritual Retreat

What if Hitler Had Meditated?

Table of

10 Elements of a Soulmate

Content

106

112

102

124

100

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Table of Contents 94 100 108 112 118 122 130 140

How to Deal With Negative People When a Friendship is Not a Real One Extraterrestrials and the Evolution of Earth Humans Creating a Culture that Acknowledges Death Accessing Success Where to Get More Love Dealing with the Darkness of What Humans Do to Humans Chakra Wisdom Tarot

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C O M P A S S I O N A T E

K I T C H E N

THUBTEN CHODRON

INTERVIEW BY SANDIE SEDGBEER

BUDDHIST PRACTICES FOR EATING WITH MINDFULNESS AND GRATITUDE Food is undoubtedly one of the greatest pleasures in life. We all spend a good time thinking about it, preparing it, eating it, and then cleaning up afterward, but how many of us have ever thought about the many activities associated with food as a spiritual practice? What if instead of seeing these activities as chores or engaging in them purely for pleasure, we could use them to increase our kindness and care and as reminders of how we wish to live out the values that bring meaning to our lives? The Venerable Thubten Chodron has been a Buddhist nun since 1977. She has been a close student of the Dalai Lama with whom she’s co-authored

Known for her warm, practical, and humorous

several books. She is also founder and

explanations of how to apply Buddhist

abbess of Sravasti Abbey. One of the

teachings in daily life, Venerable Chodron

first Tibetan Buddhist training

joins us today to talk about her latest book,

monasteries for Western monks and

The Compassionate Kitchen, in which she

nuns in America.

shares some of the practices from the Buddhist tradition that help us make eating

OMTIMES | JUNE 2019

become part of our daily spiritual practice

Sandie Sedgbeer: Now, you were born in Chicago, and you grew up near Los Angeles. You graduated with a B.A. in history from the University of California, and after traveling through Europe, North Africa, and Asia for 18 months, you received a teaching credential, after which the University of Southern California to do postgraduate work in education. You also worked as an elementary teacher at the same time in the Los Angeles city school system, and then in 1975, you attended a meditation course, after which you went to Nepal to study and practice the Buddhist teachings. What did you find in Buddhism that took you away from your Los Angeles teaching career to become an ordained Buddhist nun?

Venerable Thubten Chodron: Well, I was looking very much for meaning in my life, some long-term meaning, and I was asking a lot of questions about this. I thought meaning had something to do with helping other people, so that’s why I went into education, but then when I went to a meditation course in the certification and encountered Buddhism, it really made sense to me. The teachers encouraged us to think about what they said, to test it out with logic and reasoning and see if it made sense and also to test it through, the meditation practice and seeing if that helped us.

OMTIMES | JUNE 2019

So, I quit my job, and I went to Nepal and India, where these teachers were because it was very difficult to encounter Buddhist teachings in English in the US at that time. So, I went back to Asia and spent time in the Tibetan community. Sandie Sedgbeer:Â Had you had any religious upbringing, particularly?

NOITIDE ENUJ/MOC.SEMITMO

So, I did both of that. Looking at it through reasoning and also doing the practice, I found it really made sense, and it helped me quite a bit. So, I wanted to learn more. I had a very strong feeling that if I didnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t learn more about Buddhism that at the end of my life, I would have a deep regret.

inspiration

Venerable Thubten Chodron: Yeah, my family was Jewish. It wasn’t very religious; I had a spiritual upbringing. But it didn’t really make any sense to me. So, I realized a lot of the ideas about a Creator God, they make sense to other people. They help other people, but it just didn’t resonate with me. However, I am very appreciative to my Jewish upbringing for teaching me good, ethical conduct and also the concept in Judaism of Tikkun Olam, to repair the world, to heal the world, and so, that already had in me the ideas of love and compassion and service. When I encountered Buddhism, it just really took off and showed me how to develop those qualities in a very practical way. Sandie Sedgbeer: When you left America for Nepal, did you have any idea at that point that you may one day become Buddhist nun, or were you just following your heart and seeing where it led?

OMTimes Magazine.com

Venerable Thubten Chodron: Actually, after encountering Buddhist teachings, I knew rather quickly that I wanted to ordain, which is very surprising, and now, when I meet people who have a bad experience, I’m a little bit skeptical, well, why so soon do you want to ordain? But with me, it’s like I knew; I went to Asia. And after living there for a while in the monastery, then I requested my teacher for ordination. Sandie Sedgbeer: You studied and trained all over the world. Practicing Buddhism in India and Nepal under the guidance of his holiness, the Dalai Lama, and other Tibetan masters. You directed a spiritual program in Italy for two years, studied at the monastery in France. Was a resident teacher at a Buddhist center in Singapore, and you spent 10 years as a resident teacher at Dharma Friendship Foundation in Seattle. You’re on the of the first generation of bhikkhunis who brought the Bodhidharma back to the USA. Tell me first, what is the Bodhidharma?

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| JUNE

Venerable Thubten Chodron: The Buddhadharma refers to the Buddhist teachings, yeah, the Buddhist doctrine. That’s the meaning of the word. Sandie Sedgbeer: You then went home to establish, the first Tibetan Buddhist training monasteries for Western monks and nuns in America. What inspired that decision? Did you just wake up one morning and think, I’ll start a monastery, or was it a long thoughtout process? Venerable Thubten Chodron: Well, when I first went to Nepal, I was living at a monastery, I liked very much living in the community. Of course, it has its challenges, but the Buddha set it up so that we lived together, a live-in community, because that way you have a lot of support from your environment and from the people around you. Being one of the first generations of Tibetan monks and nuns, Westerners, in tradition, we didn’t have any monasteries. There were Dharma centers, but the Dharma centers were geared towards the lay people and not towards the monastic way of life. So, I always had this feeling, I just want to live in a monastic environment so that we can really practice according to our precepts. I lived alone, and--but all the time in my heart, I really wanted to start a community, we need this for the Buddhadharma to spread and prosper in the West. So, that was kind of the inspiration to start a monastery.

THE ECONOMY OF GENEROSITY

If people had told me when I was 20 that I would be a nun and that I would start a monastery, I would’ve told them they were out of their mind, but our life often turns out to be very different than we had initially thought. Sandie Sedgbeer: Absolutely. So, what were the challenges that you had to face? How were you going to support it? Venerable Thubten Chodron: That was exactly what I went through because there was no big organization behind me. It was relatively easy to support me, but starting a monastery, entailed a property. So, there was some money that I had saved up from offerings that I had received. When we found a property, which was gorgeous; the owner offered to carry the mortgage for us, then I used that bit of savings and then just put out the word to other people, that this is what we’re doing. If they would like to join, in supporting it, and miraculously, we were able to get the property and then pay off the mortgage. I think, due to the kindness of other people and the enthusiasm of other people because they had encountered the Buddhist teachings. They had found the teachings useful in their life, and they wanted to help start a monastery. Sandie Sedgbeer: Reading your book, The Compassionate Kitchen, which I found interesting and enlightening, it seems to come across to me that you’re the kind of person who really likes a challenge. You pushed yourself all the way through to do things that perhaps are not expected. I can imagine that you just trotted out, a very nice, neat explanation of how you came to find the abbey, but I’m sure it wasn’t that simple. It was such an intimidating undertaking must’ve had it some glitches. Venerable Thubten Chodron: Yes, it did.

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Sandie Sedgbeer: But even when you got the abbey, you then decided that you would challenge yourself even further by setting a goal that you were not going to purchase any food for yourselves but instead would be reliant on the generosity and offerings of others. You tell in the book the story of the origin of the alms round or pindapata, where the monks would stand silently in front of a house with their alms bowl and await offerings, but tell us a little bit about that and why you decided to implement that at the abbey? Venerable Thubten Chodron: When Buddhism began in ancient India, there had already been a culture of wandering mendicants, spiritual people, who went, who, when it was mealtime, went into the city with their bowls and people would support him. This is part of Indian culture and Indian traditions. So, the Buddhist disciples did the same thing, and there are a few reasons behind doing this.

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First, it makes you very, very grateful to other people, and you don’t take your food for granted. You really appreciate that people are giving you food, that they are keeping you alive by the goodness of their heart because they go to work every day and work hard to get the money or get the food, and then, they’re sharing it with you. It really helps your spiritual practice because you realize that you have a responsibility to practice well, to repay the kindness that you’re receiving. The second reason was to cultivate satisfaction or contentment because you eat just what people to give you. So, you don’t go and say, oh, you’re giving me rice. I don’t want rice. I want noodles, or you’re giving me that? It cuts out the pickiness and challenges us to be content with whatever people give. So, you can see, because I had lived alone for a while, and had to go to the store to buy food, then, of course,

I could get things I like and go to the store whenever I wanted. But none of that was good for my Dharma practice. So, in starting the monastery, I really wanted to go back to the idea that the Buddha had for his community. And although it’s a little bit difficult in the US to go on pindapata, to walk with your alms bowl in town, we have some friends in California who did that. So, I thought the best way to do it would be, just to say that we’ll only eat the food that people offer us. We won’t go out and buy our own food, and so, when I set the monastery up like this, people told me, you are crazy. They said you will starve to death. People will not bring your food. I said, well, let’s just try it and see what happens. When I arrived here to move in, people had already filled the refrigerator. There was only one time when we had finished the food in the refrigerator, but there was still some canned food. That was the lowest we ever got. Ever since the beginning, we haven’t starved at all.

We don’t charge for the retreats. We depend on the food people bring to see not only the community but all the people who come here to study and meditate with us. They come, and they offer it. I think being generous makes people’s minds happy, and so, doing it this way, people are generous to us. That enables us to be generous in return. So, we give all the teachings free of charge. It is the economy of generosity. Sandie Sedgbeer: So, in The Compassionate Kitchen, you talk about intention being the most important aspect of any action and how this relates to our motivation for eating. Can you expand on that for us? Venerable Thubten Chodron: In Buddhist practice, our intention, our motivation, is what really determines the value of the action that we do. it’s not how we look to others and whether others praise us or blame us.

We all know how to pull the wool over people’s eyes and make them think we’re better than we are, but in Buddhist practice, doing that is not a spiritual practice. Our spiritual development does not depend on people praising us. It depends on our motivation, our intention. Why are we doing what we do? With this fastmoving world and with our senses always directed outwards towards, the things and people in our environment, we so often don’t really checkup, why am I doing what I’m doing. Generally, we just act on impulse. So, in spiritual practice, it kind of slows you down, and you have to really think, why am I doing what I’m doing, and so, in terms of eating, we have in the book the five contemplations that we do before we eat. It really helps us set our intention for why we’re eating and the purpose of eating. Then having accepted the food, what our job is to repay the kindness of the people who offered it.

OMTIMES | JUNE 2019

Sandie Sedgbeer: There’s been an explosion of late in interesting cook, in food preparation, in food competitions, food TV programs in the technology of food. Many regards preparing food as a meditative practice, but the motivation, I’m not sure that the motivation, the intention, is the same intention as we’re talking about in The Compassionate Kitchen. Venerable Thubten Chodron: Yeah. I don’t know other people’s intentions, but I do know that it could be very easy to have the intention of producing something pleasurable, who knows? But let me just tell you about the five contemplation that we think about before we eat because this really sets the stage for the motivation. So, the first thing we recite together is “I contemplate all the causes and conditions and the kindness of others, by which I have received this food.” It is thinking about the causes and conditions of the food, the farmers, the people who transported the food, the people who prepared it, and what we did in our lives to be able to receive the food.

Then to contemplate the kindness of others, to really see, people are going to work every day. They work hard. It’s difficult in modern society, and then out of the goodness of their heart, they share their food with us. So, to really think about that before we eat. The second one is, “I contemplate my own practice, constantly trying to improve it.” So, this is really seeing our responsibility, to look at our own spiritual practice and then to try and improve it, to better it as a way of repaying the kindness of other people. In other words, not just taking food for granted, not just thinking, well, it’s lunchtime. It’s taking our mind away from all that grasping and self-centered attitude.

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2019

The third contemplation is, “I contemplate my mind, cautiously guarding it against wrongdoing, greed, and other defilements.” So, when we’re eating, to eat mindfully, to eat tentatively, to keep our mind free from wrongdoing and greed and other defilements, so, the mind that is always saying, I like this. I don’t like that. There’s not enough protein. There are too many carbs. The mind is constantly dissatisfied. And so, determining before we eat, we’re not going to give way to that kind of mind, and we’re going to stay in a mind of cultivating contentment with what we have and of appreciation and gratitude. The fourth contemplation is, “I contemplate this food, treating it as wondrous medicine to nourish my body.” Okay, so, instead of seeing the food as, oh, this is good stuff. I’m going to, inhale it and get it into my stomach as soon as possible. We see it as medicine, and it nourishes our body and to really feel how what we eat affects our body. I read the New York Times, and there was an article entitled, “Does What We Eat Affect Our Body,” and I thought, oh my goodness, they have to ask that question. It’s so clear that it does, and what we eat affects our feelings too. If we don’t eat a balanced diet, our body gets out of whack. So, if we eat a lot of sugar, then we get the sugar highs and the sugar lows. So, it’s very clear that the food really is like medicine to us, and it affects our mental state and our spiritual state.

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June 2019

The last reflection is, “I contemplate the aim of Buddhahood, accepting and consuming this food to accomplish it.” And so, seeing that the causes and conditions for receiving the food, and deciding to keep our mind in a good state while we eat and seeing the food as medicine. I have this responsibility to do my practice, and I’m aiming for complete awakening or Buddhahood. And so, I accept this food to sustain my body and mind so that I can accomplish the spiritual path. I’m meditating and practicing the spiritual path so I can be of the greatest benefit to other living beings. So, our practice is not just for ourselves. It’s really to improve our self, gain new qualities so that we can really be of increased benefit to other living beings. Sandie Sedgbeer: You also say that many aspects of this apply to family life as well. Tell me about how we could introduce our children to mindful eating, how could we develop this as a practice at home. Venerable Thubten Chodron: Those five contemplations that I did, I think those are very suitable for a family to do. What an incredible way, if you have children, to get children thinking about the causes of the food, where their food came from, and all the people that were involved in growing and transporting and making the food. So, to really get them to think about the whole process of growing and producing food and learn about the lives of people who do that. I think that’s a good thing for kids. So, getting the kids involved in preparing the food, and I think that’s a great thing for kids, because then, when they go out on their own, in their teen years or early 20s, then they know how to take care of themselves and, cook food themselves. OMTIMES

June 2019

I know one family that goes around, and in the evening when they eat dinner, they each say something that they learned that day, including the parents, So, everybody is sharing how they’re growing on a day-to-day basis, and so, taking the time to have these kinds of conversations about what you’re feeling. What you are seeing and experiencing and what that means to you as a human being, even, what you hear in the daily news and how that’s affecting you and, to communicate with your family members about that.

Sandie Sedgbeer: What’s the reaction that you’re receiving to this book, which, is probably different but maybe not so far removed from what you share in your other books, in terms of philosophies? Venerable Thubten Chodron: Yeah, the reaction’s been good. The people have been very interested in it, the publisher especially. I was a little bit surprised actually how interested the publisher was in this book because they really promoted it. So, they see something, that is a need in society that the book fulfills. So, we’ve had a very good response to this. Sandie Sedgbeer: Yes. So, let’s talk about some of the other things that the abbey does and other resources that you offer to people. I mean, you’ve done a lot of work in the community. You’ve done work in prisons. You’ve done work with homeless teenagers, etc. Tell us about some of the outreach that you do in the community.

It’s a wonderful kind of thing to do, starting when the kids are little and, growing through teenage years because that way when you do that, you’re able to teach your kids values. . If you don’t have time to listen to your kids and what’s going on in their lives, then there’s no time to discuss how do you handle difficult situations, or what do you think about when somebody does this or when this is going on in the world.

Venerable Thubten Chodron: Part of our philosophy is, to cultivate loving kindness and compassion in our hearts but then also to show them, and to be of service to society. So, for example with the prison work, I never intended and again, another thing I never intended to do, but one day, I got a letter from somebody in federal prison in Ohio, asking, for Buddhist resources and having questions about Buddhism. So, we started corresponding, and I didn’t think twice about answering his letter. There wasn’t a thing of, oh no, there’s a prisoner who’s writing me, ahh, it’s dangerous.

It’s important for families to sit down and have time to talk together every day, and dinner time is a good time to do it. We’re a family, and we share the day. And so, sitting down to eat and, taking the time to really talk to your kids.

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June 2019

IThere wasn’t that thought because I’ve taken precepts to, when people ask for help, to do whatever I can do to be of service to them. So, I thought, yeah, I can send this guy some books. I can answer his questions, and then, he began to tell other people that he knew in prison. And the word kind of spread, and then, other prison groups contacted us. And then, soon, it just developed organically, and now, we correspond with over a thousand inmates in our database. We send them books. We send them materials. We make a retreat every year that we invite them to join, even though they’re meditating in prison, and I go and do talks in prisons, prison visits, and other people in the abbey do. It’s a program that just developed very naturally, and it’s so rewarding because these are people that society has thrown away. They just say, they’re worthless, and that’s not true at all, these people have talents. They have interests. They have feelings, and through our work, we can really see some of the people change and develop, to think about their lives, to think about what is valuable. There’s a lot of discussions now in the press about prison reform, and I really see the value in this because by talking to guys who are living in prison, I’ve really come to see what the system is like and how much it needs improvement.

OMTIMES

With the work with the homeless teens, somebody in the local community came to talk to us one day about, they were doing work with homeless teens, and we just said, wow, we want to help because I know, as a teenager myself, I was quite confused. I can’t imagine not having a stable living situation as a kid, especially because of your body’s changing, your mind is confused. So, we wanted to help with that and, help provide services to the kids. We get a lot of requests from different places in the community. When hospitals are having an in-service about helping the dying, they often ask us to come to present the Buddhist viewpoint on death and dying and how to help the dying. We get requests and last night, I was at a synagogue. They had a, as part of their youth group, where they want the kids to learn about different religions. I was invited to come and speak. We have all sorts of people in the community calling and asking us to come to speak and to share ideas. Sandie Sedgbeer: You have an online education program. You also have thousands of teachings on YouTube, and you’re very active on social media. You have two websites full of Dharma materials. Again, all of this freely offered. How are you supported? I mean, when you go out, and you do talks, do people make donations? Do you get paid for the work, the lectures, etc., because there must be something coming in to support the expense?

June 2019

Venerable Thubten Chodron: Yeah, for sure. But we do everything free of charge. It’s like I said, we want to live a life of generosity, and people reciprocate. So, when people, invite one of us, to go and teach, they cover the transportation cost. They make all the arrangements, and then, they usually give a donation. We don’t stipulate the amount of the donation. Again, it’s this thing of whatever people want to give, we accept with gratitude. I think when you live your life like this, then people reciprocate and, at the very beginning when we first moved into the abbey, the original residents were two cats and me. And I remember sitting here like you said at the beginning of the interview. I was sitting here and wondering how in the world are we going to pay off this mortgage because I ordained when I was 26--I had never owned a house or a car. In short, everything is by donation basis. Sandie Sedgbeer: There is a wonderful saying, virtue is its own reward, and clearly, what you’re giving out to the world, you’re getting back, and being supported, it becomes this beautiful flow, doesn’t it? You give, and others give in return. And that allows you to give more. Venerable Thubten Chodron: Exactly. Sandie Sedgbeer: You talk about ethical behavior and that we cannot separate the way the government operates and ethical behavior. This, of course, applies to all governments. What we’re witnessing today in so many countries and cultures falls way, way short of being ethical. How do Buddhists respond to that? How do we, as individuals, cope with that, and what could we personally do to change it?

Venerable Thubten Chodron: Whoa, yeah. I think about this a lot. I think the first thing we need to do is as individuals get our own ethical conduct in shape because accusing people in the government of doing things that we do, that’s quite hypocritical. So, to really work on our own ethical conduct, then when we see things that are not fair, that is not just, to speak up, to say something. It’s really our responsibility as citizens I think to speak up when the government is doing harmful things or when companies are doing harmful things. When they’re putting out products that are not tested well enough, or, in the case of the opioid crisis, advertising things that they know are addictive, to doctors and to consumers. So, I think it’s important that we speak up about these kinds of things in the press and to, put pressure on companies. We live in this world, and we need to take care of it. And we need to take care of each other because if we don’t take care of each other, then we’re going to live in a world with a lot of unhappy people, and when other people are unhappy, they’re going to make our lives miserable. So, the Dalai Lama says, if you want to be selfish, be wisely selfish and take care of others because if we care for others, we’re going to be a lot happier ourselves. But of course, we also want to care for others because they’re living beings and, just like us, want happiness and don’t want to suffer. Sandie Sedgbeer: Thank you for this enlightened Interview. The Compassionate Kitchen, Buddhist Practices for Eating with Mindfulness and Gratitude by Venerable Thubten Chodron, a Shambhala Press publication.

OMTIMES | JUNE 2019

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Human papillomavirus (HPV) is one of the most common causes of sexually transmitted diseases (STD) in the world. More than 100 different types of HPV exist, most of which are harmless. About 30 types are spread through sexual contact. Some types of HPV cause genital warts, single or multiple bumps that appear in the genital areas of men and women including the vagina, cervix, vulva (area outside of the vagina), penis, and rectum. Many people infected with HPV have no symptoms. There are high-risk and lowrisk types of HPV. High-risk HPV may cause abnormal Pap smear results, and could lead to cancers of the cervix, vulva, vagina, anus, or penis. Low-risk HPV also may cause abnormal Pap results or genital warts.

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Health experts estimate there are more cases of genital HPV infection than any other STI in the United States. According to the American Social Health Association, approximately 5.5 million new cases of sexually transmitted HPV infections are reported every year. At least 20 million people in this country are already infected. All types of HPV can cause mild Pap test abnormalities which do not have serious consequences. Approximately 10 of the 30 identified genital HPV types can lead, in rare cases, to development of cervical cancer. Specifically, HPV 16 and HPV 18 have been found in 90% of cases of cervical cancer. Research has shown that for most women (90 percent), cervical HPV infection becomes undetectable within two years. Although only a small proportion of women have persistent infection, persistent infection with “high-risk” types of HPV is the main risk factor for cervical cancer. Cervical intraepithelial neoplasia is also called “CIN.” Sometimes it may be called cervical dysplasia. CIN means that there is a change in the cells on the surface of the cervix. The cervix is the bottom

part of the uterus. With CIN normal cells are replaced with cells that are not normal (abnormal). Over time, it is possible for these abnormal cells to turn into cancer. Any woman can have CIN. CIN itself is not cancer. But it can turn into cancer of the cervix. Following are the 3 types of CIN: CIN I This is also called mild dysplasia. CIN II This is also called moderate dysplasia. CIN III This is also called severe dysplasia. It is not known for sure what causes CIN but it may be caused by a virus that is spread during sex. The virus that causes venereal warts (“HPV”) is thought to play a role in many cases of CIN and cervical cancer. You may be more likely to get CIN if you have many sex partners or if your partner has many sex partners. The following may put you at a higher risk of having CIN. • Less than 20 years of age at time of first sex.

• Having a sexually transmitted disease (STD), like HPV, herpes, or cytomegalovirus (CMV). • A Pap smear test that is not normal. • Cigarette smoking. A Pap test can detect precancerous and cancerous cells on the cervix. Regular Pap testing and careful medical follow-up, with treatment if necessary, can help ensure that pre-cancerous changes in the cervix caused by HPV infection do not develop into life threatening cervical cancer. The Pap test used in U.S. cervical cancer screening programs is responsible for greatly reducing deaths from cervical cancer. For 2004, the American Cancer Society estimates that about 10,520 women will develop invasive cervical cancer and about 3,900 women will die from this disease. Most women who develop invasive cervical cancer have not had regular cervical cancer screening. Although there is currently no medical cure for papillomavirus infection, the lesions and warts these viruses cause can be treated. Methods commonly used to

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treat lesions include cryosurgery (freezing that destroys tissue), LEEP (loop electrosurgical excision procedure, the removal of tissue using a hot wire loop), and conventional surgery. Similar treatments may be used for external genital warts. In addition, some drugs may be used to treat external genital warts. More information about treatment for genital warts can be found in the: Centers for Disease Control and Preventionâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s (CDC) Sexually Transmitted Diseases Treatment Guidelines 2002. Alternative Medicine A study of the clinical efficacy of green tea extracts (polyphenon E; poly E and (-)-epigallocatechin-3gallate [EGCG]) delivered in a form of ointment or capsule in patients with human papilloma virus (HPV) infected cervical lesions. Fiftyone patients with cervical lesions (chronic cervicitis, mild dysplasia, moderate dysplasia and severe dysplasia) were divided into four groups, as compared with 39 untreated patients as a control. Poly E ointment was applied locally to 27 patients twice a week. For oral delivery, a 200 mg Omtimes.com

of poly E or EGCG capsule was taken orally every day for eight to 12 weeks. In the study, 20 out of 27 patients (74%) under poly E ointment therapy showed a response. Six out of eight patients under poly E ointment plus poly E capsule therapy (75%) showed a response, and three out of six patients (50%) under poly E capsule therapy showed a response. Six out of 10 patients (60%) under EGCG capsule therapy showed a response. Overall, a 69% response rate was noted for treatment with green tea extracts, as compared with a 10% response rate (4/39) in untreated controls (P<0.05). Thus, the data collected here demonstrated that green tea extracts in a form of ointment and capsule are effective for treating cervical lesions, suggesting that green tea extracts can be a potential therapy regimen for patients with HPV infected cervical lesions. Women who consume low amounts of foods rich in vitamin C, beta carotene and folic acid have a higher incidence of CIN and HPV. A diet rich in fruits, vegetables, whole grains and legumes (beans) will provide generous amounts of

these nutrients. Antioxidants seem to reduce the risk of CIN and cancer. Low levels of vitamin A, vitamin C and vitamin E are associated with a greater risk of CIN and possibly cervical cancer. The number of antioxidants in a daily multivitamin are reasonable and safe. Copper levels tend to be higher in women with CIN or gynecologic tumors. It may be wise to avoid taking copper supplements if dealing with CIN. Folic acid levels tend to be lower in women with dysplasia and HPV. Folic acid may help prevent CIN but does not appear to eradicate existing CIN. Very high doses of folic acid have been used in treatment, but the amounts present in a B-complex supplement or a daily multivitamin are reasonable for preventive purposes. Pyridoxine (B6) levels tend to be low in cervical cancer. It is interesting that birth control pills can lower B6 levels and birth control pills also seem to be a risk factor for CIN which can progress to cer-

vical cancer if left untreated. Taking vitamin B6 in a daily multivitamin or B-complex supplement may be beneficial, particularly if using birth control pills. Riboflavin (B2) levels tend to be low in women with CIN. Riboflavin vaginal suppositories have actually been shown to cause regression of CIN. Selenium levels tend to be lower in women with cervical cancer. Selenium has been shown to reduce the incidence of experimentally induced cervical cancer in laboratory animals. A dose of 200 micrograms daily of selenium is reasonable and safe. This amount of selenium is often available in a daily multivitamin. Zinc levels tend to be lower in women with CIN or gynecologic tumors. Taking 15 - 30 milligrams of zinc daily in a multivitamin is reasonable. STD information and referrals to STD Clinics CDC-INFO 1-800-CDC-INFO (800-232-4636) TTY: 1-888-232-6348 References Andrew Pacholyk, MS. L.Ac http://www.peacefulmind.com, Omtimes.com

Simply Spiritual To perceive reality from a different perspective is to open oneself to the wonders and unlimited wealth of creation. Simply Spiritual offers the opportunity to visit new places, new methods, and different ways to perceive the vast human knowledge of our Universe.

Is There a Special Place That Touches Your Soul? By John Holland

Have you ever experienced a particular place where youâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve felt closer to God, Spirit, or Heaven? You just know thereâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s something

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special about that place, and it feels as though it touches your very soul. The sense of peace and tranquility encompasses your whole being, and for some inexplicable reason you’re drawn to this place, even though you don’t truly know why. When you’re there, it’s almost as if the veil between this world and the next has been lifted, if only for a short time. In the Celtic tradition, such places are called “Thin Places.” There’s a Celtic saying that Heaven and Earth are only three feet apart, but in these Thin Places, the distance is even smaller. Thin Places not only make us feel calm but also transform us, as if we’re being unmasked. While we’re at these places, we’re aware that we’re far more than just a physical being — we feel ourselves as a spiritual being, our true essential

selves: body, mind, and soul. The Thin Places can be found anywhere on the planet, including churches, temples, beautiful landscapes, and ancient ruins. I’d be remiss not to mention one special place that I hold close to my heart. I can’t explain why, but I’m drawn back to this place time after time; hopefully, I’ll continue to visit for the rest of my life. It’s a tiny coastal village called Trevone in the rugged county of Cornwall in the most southwestern tip of England. Trevone is nothing more than a cluster of houses around two lovely beaches, a place where you can see children playing in the sea, couples walking hand and hand, and elderly folks just taking in a little sunshine. There’s a walk that takes you on top of the cliffs, where you get to see the crashing Atlantic waves roll in one after the other, leaving your face covered in a fine salt

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spray. It’s quite exhilarating and rejuvenating at the same time. Walking along these cliffs in Trevone, I could feel that sense of thinness between this world and the next, as if I could literally step through the veil. Every time I’ve ever walked there, it’s been a special moment for me. Not only is it stunning, but also, it’s a time when I’ll feel my mom draw close to me. The love I feel from her, as I think about the beautiful memories we shared when she visited me in the U.K. brings me to tears that quickly blend with the salty ocean spray. Look at your feet. You are standing in the sky. When we think of the sky, we tend to look up, but the sky actually begins at the earth. –DIANE ACKERMAN JOHN’S LESSON Thin Places give us a chance to

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open ourselves up spiritually, to be present in the now and pay attention to the beauty that we see and feel. They’re a place to let go of all the restrictions and burdens that separate us from communicating with God, Spirit, and our loved ones. When you have a chance and some quality time for yourself, I invite you to think about the Thin Places you’ve encountered along the way in your own life. Is there a special place that awakens and invigorates your spirit and opens the doorway to the Other-Side? Is there a place where you’ve felt closer to God, Spirit, or your loved ones? If you do, please share a description of your favorite Thin Place and how it refuels your spirit in the Comments on my Facebook page or you can call in to my Spirit Connections radio show and share your story together.

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Music of the Soul, Soul of the Music By Judi Lynch

Our consciousness is wired for sound healing. When we listen to the music of the soul, we are powerful, glowing beings of endless creation and constant soul evolution.

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Most of us have memories of songs which remind of us of life experiences or feelings that were brought to light just because we listened. A beautiful melody or message that stirs our being to dream or take action becomes ingrained in our learning process as souls on life missions; Music is magic. The emotions and insights that occur because of the sound of instruments, voices, and arrangements elevate our frequencies to bring us further into evolution. Meditation practices often include tones, sounds, bells, human voices chanting and nature to help connect the higher consciousness with our human brains. Our pineal glands and chakra systems respond to the vibrations which create color codes we turn into healing energy. Activation becomes possible when the mind becomes still and open to receive. Stress and anxiety can be

relieved with the lovely sound of a soft piano concerto or the rhythmic syncopation of 10 drummers. Recognition can depend on our mood and our tolerance for loud noises. For some, it is a great way to release negative energies and bring thoughts for new horizons. Tuning forks which generate certain tones can help the brain relate to the body how to rid itself of toxins and speed the healing of injuries. Music can calm the storm and raise the spirits for maximum powers of creation. Listening to music we love can help us write, study, paint, draw and do housework. It helps us keep motivated or lets us purge our worries and fears. Music gives us something to dance to or celebrate. We can usually choose the music in our environments, but occasionally we walk into other spaces playing something new or unfamiliar. Our senses will either accept or reject the

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sound based on our personal preferences and mood at the time. A sad country song might have some running for the door but an upbeat song saying we have a bright future ahead make us stay around. Listening to a Buddhist chant while the wind chimes softly speak outside during meditation can be an amazing way to start a day. Letting go of the outcome, letting the sounds speak to your inner being for greater intuition and healing energies can grow into daily physical therapy. The music that we love is our way of giving ourselves a â&#x20AC;&#x153;hug.â&#x20AC;? Comforting, enlightening and thoughtprovoking melodies give us hope, healing, and escape. We need the music, and it needs us to appreciate it in all its qualities and quantities. If it sparks our senses and brings, us to love it is living its purpose in humanity.

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Throughout human existence, as long as we experience music, we live in a sacred dream. We are connected as one in sound and vibration whenever we attend a symphony or gather for an outdoor rock concert together. When the sound combines with visual images it becomes a larger experience in connection and frequency. It becomes an unforgettable milestone in our senses; we can take memory and give it new life by living it over again when we listen to an old song we love. We celebrate music when we dance, letting our bodies relate how music makes us feel. The times we were born in and then evolved in are all represented in music. The music created before we incarnated also has an amazing ability to reach our hearts and change our minds with their beauty. The music still to be created is rooted in the beginnings

of our abilities as humans to transfer our thoughts to music. Child prodigies with no training have played, composed and sang with remarkable talent and poise as if the music were born already inside them from a past life. These are the gifts of spirit we were meant to share and heal. Our consciousness is wired for sound healing. When we listen to the music of the soul, we are powerful, glowing beings of endless creation and constant soul evolution. Judi Lynch is a psychic medium, intuitive counselor, healing channel and author. She is president of the Crystal Healing Foundation, Inc. a 501(c) spiritual charity and writer for OM Times Magazine. She has authored two books, Friends with Lights and Conscious Ascension and has read for clients all over the world. To learn more or contact for a session see judilynch.com

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OM Living For those living a more Conscious Lifestyle

How to Ground Yourself in the City by Pari Patri

Working in the city? Here’s how to ground yourself when the stress gets too much. As an executive or entrepreneur, you’re no stranger to stress. You have a million and one things to do, and not enough hours in the day. You like your work, yes. Maybe you even love it. Either way, there are always times when the balance tips and the stress just gets too much. You have so many plates spinning, and making sure one doesn’t fall can feel like a full-time job. Heck, more than a full-time job. So how can you deal with it? I’m an Executive Coach, helping high-powered leaders strategies to help them get back in touch with themselves and the joy in their lives. I give my successful executive and entrepreneur clients the following 5 strategies, to keep them grounded and centered: 1. Implement a 5 minute morning routine If you check your smartphone before you brush your teeth, you’re not alone. 80% of people with smartphones tap into their phone within 15 minutes of waking up in the morning. But this causes problems, because the first 15 minutes are a crucial moment you can use to connect with yourself and start your day off on the right foot. Instead, you’re immediately letting ‘the world’ access your mind, emotions and intentions, before checking in with yourself! The thing is, most of us don’t even realize this is what we’re doing. Of course, we’re keen to check that email from that potential client — did we get the contract? We want to see what’s going on in the world, so look at the news. Did your date WhatsApp you back? We live in a highly connected world, and that’s great news for our access to communication with others. But don’t let that stand in the way of you connecting with yourself. When you wake up, resist the urge to look at your phone. Instead…

Minute 1 — Think of all the things

you’re grateful for in life. If you can’t think of anything, waking up today and breathing is good enough!

Minute 2 — Set your intention for

the day. ‘Today will be a great day.’ ‘Today I will choose joy.’ ‘Today I will ace my presentation.’ The specifics are up to you. What do you want for your day?

Minute 3 — Say 3 affirmations that support your intentions. Affirmations are a super powerful way to program our subconscious mind and delete all the limiting beliefs that hold us back from becoming the best version of ourselves. Put your hand on your heart and say 3 affirmations, such as, ‘Confidence and ease flow through me.’ Pick affirmations that make you feel amazing.

Minute 4 — Meditate. Let go of

any stress, expectations or attachments. This is your time to relax, giving yourself the permission to just be. Observe your breath, and if you feel your mind wandering, bring it back to you breath.

Minute 5 — Drink ‘high vibe’

water. (will there be a link here or…?) 2. Nourish your body It’s all too easy when you’re busy at work to grab junk to eat at your desk or on the way home. Some high flyers find themselves reaching for comfort foods loaded with calories as a ‘treat’ to release stress. ‘I’ve been working so hard,

so I deserve it,’ is the thought that often comes along with it. And it sounds like it makes sense. But here’s the problem: Simple carbs cause your energy to dip and spike like crazy, which affects your productivity. Same with caffeine. Though it takes a little extra effort, drinking more water and adding more fruits and vegetables to your diet can work wonders for your emotional life. 3. Take in some nature Have you heard of ‘earthing’? It’s one of my favorite techniques as it’s truly powerful and so simple to do. All you have to do is take your shoes off and stand on a natural surface, such as grass, soil, sand or rock. It makes you feel connected and ‘brings down’ your energy from your mental space and into your heart and body. If the weather’s no good, going for a walk in nature is a good substitute. 4. Meditate So you’ve already incorporated meditation into your morning routine. But remember you have the option to take a moment throughout the day, too. Even 30 seconds of being still and bringing your focus back to your breath can work wonders. 5. Feed your soul In the hustle and bustle of the business world, it’s all too easy to forget we have a soul to take care of. But forgetting comes with

horrible consequences — feelings of emptiness, worthlessness, disillusionment, and burnout.

changing practice for me and my clients.

But ‘feeding your soul’ is kind of an abstract concept, isn’t it? What practical steps can you take to make sure it happens?

About the Author

I have two recommendations… 1. Taking time — even just small periods — to do something that feeds your soul, can really fill up your cup and help you feel stronger and happier. What does this mean practically? It’s difficult to recommend anything in particular, as everyone is so different. Some people might choose to destress to nature music, while others find dancing to really nurture their soul! It’s really up to you. There’s just one criteria — it has to make you feel deep down good. 2. Read books that speak to your soul — Master life coach Tony Robbins advises you take a half hour a day to read something that really nourishes your spirit. This shouldn’t be something to do with your professional career, and it shouldn’t be a mindless magazine, either — there’s time for both of these, but this is something quite different. Find something that develops your personality, broadens your vision. Hit YouTube and find some TED talks that resonate with you, then go over to Amazon and buy their books. Wayne Dyer, Oprah Winfrey, Neville Goddard, Eckhart Tolle and Esther Hicks are just a few recommendations — the choice is endless! This has been a life-

Pari Patri is a Women’s Empowerment Coach, Entrepreneur, Spiritual Healer and has been a Meditation teacher for over 25 years. She was born in India and is the daughter of spiritual leader Brahmarshi Subhash Patri, the founder of the Pyramid Spiritual Societies Movement.

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CHOOSE TO BE RADICAL IN YOUR KINDNESS By Monica Berg

Being kind is easy when we want to be, but what about when we donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t? That is a time for radical kindness, a level of kindness that gives solely for the sake of giving,

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not based on the perceived worthiness of the receiver. It may not be easy, but it can be simple: when we have the opportunity to be kind, be kind. When we are compassionate, especially when we don’t want to be, we deepen our relationships and become a powerful force of positivity. A simple act of kindness can transform a moment; an entire day; an entire life. “Kind” is something that most of us consider ourselves to be. Certainly, most people are kind. However, kindness goes far beyond just being polite, more than being nice, and more than going out of our way here and there for the people that we love. While these actions are admirable, they aren’t the type of kindness that changes the world. There is another level of kindness, radical kindness. It calls for the highest level of sharing, and when it comes to enacting it in our lives, we

are a much greater distance from where we need to be than we might think. For example, we are kind when we want to be, and when it’s easy and costs us nothing. It’s effortless to be open and generous with the people we love, with people who think like us and believe the same things we do. However, what about the times when don’t want to be kind? Are we thinking of offering kindness even when someone wrongs us? What about when it is a person that we judge as not deserving of our kindness because of their actions, beliefs, or status? How kind are we when we are hurt, angry, sad, or frustrated? Radical kindness isn’t something that we decide to give based on merit. It is something that we are called to give in every moment, to everyone, no matter how may we feel. So often in our lives, when someone wrongs us or when

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someone challenges us, our first instinct is to retaliate: To stand our ground. To teach them a lesson. While it is important to set boundaries, we have the ability, if not the inclination, to do so with kindness. Instead, we withhold our affection, punish, and close our hearts. As the saying goes, ‘holding on to anger is like drinking poison and expecting the other person to die.’ Unwittingly, we are only perpetuating our suffering. Acts of radical kindness inspire love, joy, and peace in both the giver and the receiver. It may not be easy, but it can be simple: when we have the opportunity to be kind, be kind. When we have the opportunity to give, give. No exceptions. The next time we find we have the opportunity to give or to share, let’s open our heart a little more. If there is resistance arising, examine it. Where does it come from?

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How does it keep us from sharing? Note it, and then continue giving anyway. Because when we are kind in moments, we don’t want to be, we deepen connections with others and become a powerful force of positivity, not only in our own lives but in the world around us. It is why radical kindness is always worth it. Moreover, when in doubt, remember this saying, “treat everyone with kindness even if they are rude to you, not because they are kind, but because you are.” Monica Berg is a teacher and writer who specializes in assisting people in living their most fulfilled lives through the wisdom of Kabbalah. She is the author of Fear Is Not an Option and serves as Chief Communications Officer for Kabbalah Centre International. Follow her weekly blog at rethinklife. today and stay in touch via Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.

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Cosmic Reset & Recharge Spiritual Retreat Meditate. Connect. Manifest.

Pari Patri, the founder of Cosmic Moon announced today the launch of the inaugural Cosmic Reset & Recharge Spiritual Retreat on Aug. 2- 4, 2019. Cosmic Reset will be held at the Sevenoaks Retreat of Madison, Virginia, which aims to unite all with nature in the relaxing, pleasant atmosphere of the Blue Ridge Mountains. Spiritual Masters’ deep and innovative spiritual science techniques will allow guests to enhance their spiritual connection and help them manifest the life they desire. Through a comprehensive introduction to spiritual enhancement, guests will combine spiritual practice with relaxation in pleasant surroundings. This was the vision of Cosmic Reset Founder, Pari Patri, a women’s empowerment coach and spiritual healer who has been a meditation teacher for more than 25 years. The daughter of spiritual leader Brahmarshi Subhash Patri, has learned the inner practices of spirituality from numerous masters, gurus and teachers. Following in her father’s footsteps, Pyramid Power reigns high in her teachings. Pari’s spiritual crusade continues with Cosmic Reset being the launch of the Pyramid Power Movement in the United States. She is dedicating her life to helping others align with their Higher Purpose and absorb the power of manifestation. Welcome to the birth of Cosmic Reset: Travel on a Shamanic Journey through the astral realms, awaken your spirit and mind like never before, connect with nature, nurture the body with high vibration foods, and bring your awareness to a higher level. Guests will learn and harness powerful tools to understand their reason for being on this planet.

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What if Hitler Had Meditated?

The authors share a commonlyaccepted quote suggesting that if all kids meditated, future generations would have no violence. Skeptical about the quote’s accuracy, Farias and Wikholm acknowledge that change is also dependent on other factors, both psychological and environmental.

What if Hitler had meditated? ‘If every eight-year-old in the world is taught meditation, the world will be without violence within one generation.’ –The Dalai Lama

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When best-selling spiritual author Marian Williams tweeted the above quote, it quickly went viral. It probably helped that her friend Oprah Winfrey re-tweeted it to her 24 million followers with the comment, ‘This I believe is true. Have seen it in action. The notion that religious or spiritual practice is something of a cure-all isn’t unique to Eastern practices, though. Fundamentally, all religions moot that spirituality can make you a better person. The evidence for this is ambiguous. It is true that religions emphasize the caring part of our human nature – from the ‘thou shall not kill’ of the Hebrew scriptures, through the Hindu praise in the Bhagavad-Gita of the person who hurts nobody and is compassionate towards all beings, and the Quran’s rule to be kind to orphans, the needy and travelers, to the Buddha’s precept to ‘avoid killing, or harming any living thing’, and the Christian golden rule of treating others as you would want them to treat you. While there is psychological evidence that practicing religious people are more charitable, our ability to differentiate between good

and bad deeds is already in place before we acquire religious ideas. Studies have shown that from as young as six months old, we prefer those we see helping another, and we’d rather be with someone neutral (who acts neither positively nor negatively) than with an uncooperative individual. And from eight months old, we can appreciate when a helpful individual act against another that has behaved badly. This ingenious research was conducted with computer images and puppets, so the babies could effectively recognize positive and negative moral behavior in strangers. The idea that we seem to be biologically predisposed towards morality does not answer the question a 16-year-old once asked me at a public lecture in India: ‘If we are born good and kind, how come there is so much violence and evil in the world?’ Religions have dealt with such ‘problem of evil’ questions for a long time and have come up with various answers – the existence of free will, disobedience to God, the work of the devil, and the concepts of illusion, karma or greed. Omtimes.com

Psychologists rarely come up with such enticing explanations about the origins of violence and immorality. We simply know that while we are born with the ability to tell a helpful from an unhelpful gesture, a caring from a callous person, we are also rooted in our needs – our desire to want things, to achieve – and in trying to reach our goals we are able to hurt, and even kill. While some of us have more of a propensity towards doing this than others – for example, those who have psychopathic traits – hurting someone else in order to meet our own needs is something we are all potentially capable of; and to at least some small degree, probably do. While there is evidence that religion can make people act better towards others, there is also plenty of evidence to the contrary: religion can make you more prejudiced towards the non-religious or gay. But we can detach meditation from groups and religions. You can use meditation to de-stress or explore the self just as easily whether you ascribe to a set of religious beliefs or a religious group or not. Omtimes.com

The beauty of meditation is just that – its separateness from the necessity of divine rules of morality and punishment. But, if we take this view, we return to the question that we asked in Chapter 5: meditation without religion might improve its attraction, but is its lack of attachment to spiritual moral guidelines also a weakness? I asked an old friend who runs a sociological research center specializing in equality and racism issues what he thought of the Dalai Lama’s idea that meditation could eventually eradicate violence. He gave me a puzzled look before answering. ‘There are various factors that explain violence, right? Some psychological, others societal. Put them all together in a statistical regression model: start with level of income, education, access to health, then consider psychological factors such as the presence of childhood abuse; see how much of these explain the likelihood of my neighbor being in a fight at the pub or hitting his partner. Then, add meditation to your statistical model – would it add anything in predicting violence compared to the other factors?’

‘Well …’ I started, but he interrupted me. ‘Would it have made a difference if Hitler had meditated?’ he asked grinning. I saw what he meant. You can’t remove an individual from the larger context and one’s psychological makeup. It would not have made much of a difference if Hitler had meditated – like Aaron Alexis did – unless he removed himself from the society that raised him to power and he radically changed his ambitions and ideas. On the other hand, practices such as meditation and yoga are rooted in inner peacefulness, and the spiritual traditions upon which they’re built believe that radical personal changes are possible, regardless of the environment we live in. All in all, I felt I had a puzzle with quite a lot of missing or ill-fitting pieces. I couldn’t quite see the larger picture. Very soon, though, I was challenged to look in a completely different way at the question of the extent to which contemplative techniques are associated with violence. Author Bios Dr. Miguel Farias is an author, lecturer, and industry leader. He

writes about the psychology of belief and spiritual practices, including meditation. He was a lecturer at the University of Oxford and is now the founding director of the Brain, Belief and Behaviour Lab group at Coventry University. Farias is also the lead editor of the forthcoming Oxford Handbook of Meditation. Dr. Catherine Wikholm is an author, clinical psychologist, and a chartered psychologist. She was previously employed by HM Prison Service, where she worked with young offenders. Catherine has worked within the specialism of children and families, both in the National Health Service (NHS), as part of a London child and adolescent mental health service, and in private practice. Her current NHS role is as a Highly Specialist Clinical Psychologist in a London perinatal mental health service. Miguel and Catherine worked together on a ground-breaking research study investigating the psychological effects of yoga and meditation in prisoners. Excerpt from The Buddha Pill – Pg. 183-185 -Reprinted with Permission Omtimes.com

Relationships

The interconnectedness among all human beings and, consequently, the relationships among us are the focus of this section. The dynamics of the web of connections we make is one of the most prominent aspects of human existence: how we interlace with each otherâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s existence in a meaningful way.

10 Elements of a Soulmate Dr. Carmen Harra

The American writer Richard Bach said, â&#x20AC;&#x153;A soulmate is someone who has locks that fit our keys, and keys to fit our locks. When we feel safe enough to open the locks, our

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truest selves step out, and we can be completely and honestly who we are.” True to these words, a soulmate is the epitome of love and partnership; no one can fulfill you the way your soulmate can. There’s a world of difference between your soulmate, your heart’s other half, and a life partner, a person who’s convenient but can’t open your inner locks. Your soulmate makes you feel entirely whole, healed, and intact, like no piece is missing from the puzzle. A life partner may be a great supporter and long-time companion, but he or she can never complement your spirit fully. Many of us remain in compromise relationships because we “settle” for a multitude of reasons. Among them, we may be subconsciously afraid of being alone. Since we’re biologically designed to give and receive love, it’s only natural that we pair up in this world. However, sometimes we prolong what are meant to be temporary

relationships and mistakenly settle into them for good. In some relationships, we must be together with a person for a certain amount of time to close out a karma; in others, we’re meant to have children with our partner but not be with that person forever; and still in others, we experience a melting pot of conflicting emotions that leaves us confused. Whether you’re currently married, in a relationship, or contemplating entering one, it’s crucial that you know what role this person will play in your life. From what I’ve learned in my practice as an intuitive psychologist for over 25 years, certain elements indicate a soulmate bond (or lack of). As you go through this list, think about your partner or potential partner and evaluate whether they meet the soulmate criteria: 1. It’s something inside. Describing how a soulmate makes you feel is difficult. It’s a tenacious, profound, and lingering emotion that words

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fail to capture. 2. Flashbacks. If your partner is your soulmate, chances are he or she has been present in your past lives. Soulmates often choose to come back together during the same lifetime and try to scope each other out in this big world. You might experience sudden and brief flashbacks of your soulmate. You may even feel an odd sense of déjà vu, as if the moment in time has already taken place, perhaps a long time ago in a different setting. 3. You get each other. Ever met two people who can finish each other’s sentences? Some people call that spending too much time together, but I call it a soulmate connection. You might experience this with your best friend or your sibling, but it’s the telltale sign of a soulmate when you experience it with your partner. 4. You fall in love with his or her flaws. No relationship is perfect, and even soulmates will experience their fair share of ups and downs. Still, that

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bond will be much harder to break. Soulmates have an easier time of accepting, even learning to love, each other’s imperfections. Your relationship is more likely to be a soulmate match if you love each other exactly as you each are, accepting both the great and awful tendencies we all have. 5. It’s intense. A soulmate relationship may be more intense than normal relationships, in both good and sometimes bad ways. That’s because soulmates usually have a bit of karma to resolve together. The most important thing is that, even during the challenges, you’re focused on resolving the problem and see beyond the bad moment. 6. It’s you two against the world. Soulmates often see their relationship as “us against the world.” They feel so linked to each other that they’re ready and willing to take on any feat of life, so long as they have their partner by their side. Soulmate

relationships are founded on loyalty and unity above all else. 7. You’re mentally inseparable. Soulmates often have a mental connection similar to twins. They might pick up the phone to call each other at the same time. Even when you’re apart, your minds will always remain in sync if you’re soulmates. 8. You feel secure and protected. Regardless of your partner’s gender, he or she should always make you feel safe. This means that if you’re a man, your woman should make you feel protected, too! You will feel like you have a guardian angel by your side — a person who plays on your insecurities—whether consciously or subconsciously— is not your soulmate. 9. You can’t imagine your life without him or her. A soulmate is not someone you can walk away from that easily. It’s someone you can’t imagine being without, a person you believe is worth sticking with and fighting for.

10. You look at each other in the eye. Soulmates tend to look into each other’s eyes when speaking more often than ordinary couples. It comes naturally from the deep-seated connection between them. Looking a person in the eye when speaking denotes transparency, a high comfort level, and complete confidence. Whether the universe designed you as soulmates or you’re simply two people who have settled for each other’s strengths and weaknesses, the decision is yours; the beauty of free will is that you can start, strengthen, or change any relationship. To be with your soulmate is one of life’s precious treasures. Moreover, if you feel you’ve found your heart’s other half, I wish you endless days of joy and laughter, and countless nights of deep embrace, unraveling the mysteries of the universe one by one. Dr. Carmen Harra

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HOW TO DEAL WITH NEGATIVE PEOPLE by Johanna Kern

Negative people have a problem for every solution. They can drain our energy and spoil our joy of life. Some people advise to avoid them simply – but it’s not always possible because

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sometimes such persons are our relatives or coworkers. It is important to remember that someone’s negative behavior is not a reflection of who we are. It only shows us what kind of person they are and what issues they may be dealing with. Some of us are more prone to negative thinking than others. It can depend on our genetics, or it can be a result of childhood experiences. According to scientists, most humans tend to ponder more bad experiences than positive ones. It is because of an evolutionary adaptation that helps us avoid danger and quickly react to a crisis. Negative people usually are that way because they feel they lack warmth and love. Often, they protect themselves from the world with their negativity. The good news is that our brains can be re-trained and our thought-patterns can be altered. In neuroscience, it is described as “experiencedependent neuroplasticity” –

which essentially means that our thoughts and experiences shape our brains. Just as we can train our muscles, we can train our brains. We can never react to the negativity of our family, spouse, or a friend with our negativity – that will not solve the problem. HERE IS WHAT WE CAN DO: • When you first converse with them provide a listening ear and let them know they are not alone – but draw a line somewhere. However, if they continue to dwell on problems after a few conversations, it is time to disengage. Switch topics, don’t let them pull you in their negativity. Nod or give simple reply such as “Hm” or “I see.” Each time they say something positive – reply enthusiastically – when you do it often, they will soon be more positive in their communication. Whenever they criticize anything or anybody – Omtimes.com

remember that they probably mean no harm, but they are simply caught in their negativity. Don’t let it get to you: take it as their point of view and respond as above. When they dwell on topics that trigger their negativity – switch to lighter topics, such as new songs, movies, hobbies – anything that they may feel more positive. Caution: talking about the weather or shopping can easily trigger their negativity. Stay focused and avoid such topics. IMPORTANT: Be mindful how much time you spend with them. According to scientists, even when our stress and worry are completely hypothetical – even if we just focus on the media news and not on any situation taking place in our own life – the amygdala and the thalamus in our brain aren’t able to make the difference between what is

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real to us, and what is not. Our brain reacts to hypothetical stress in the same way as it does to actual stress. Their negativity will affect your wellbeing and, unfortunately, that’s the truth. Limit the frequency, duration of phone calls or conversations as much as you can, even if they are your own family. It would help if you stayed positive in life, to live a happy life. • Set a limit to how long your interaction with them will be and don’t go over that time. ALSO IMPORTANT TO REMEMBER: We need to be diplomatic, compassionate and very patient with negative people. It sounds hard to do, but it can happen if we want to improve our relationship with a negative person that we care. • Be sincere, and show them the upsides in life.

Over time, small steps toward a positive outlook on life may help them overcome their negativity. Remind them that it is possible to change our life situation and achieve what we want. Of course, we need to put some effort into it – nothing will resolve itself without our willingness to help ourselves truly. Not only talk about it. Studies show that different therapeutic techniques like deep relaxation and techniques to reprogram our subconscious can re-balance our brain. This change doesn’t happen instantly and at least 30 days of practicing a particular technique are required to experience significant changes. (Even better – 6 weeks, as this is the time required to alter neural pathways in our brain.) However, if everything fails and if nothing we do works for the negative person in our life – we need to

take care of ourselves and stop trying. Could you not consider it a failure? Consider it the time when you learned your strength and had an insight into how easy it is to spoil our happiness. Life is to be precious to be wasted on negativity. Johanna Kern is a transformational teacher and multiple award-winning authors of “Secrets of Love for Everyone,” “Master and the Green-Eyed Hope,” “365 (+1) Affirmations to Create A Great Life”. She practices and shares the Master Teachings of HOPE, helping people to find their power and progress in all areas of life. Her story received international attention, winning praise by readers in North America and Europe, and endorsement by three world-renowned experts: Stanley Krippner, Ph.D., Jerry Solfvin, Ph.D., and Brian Van der Horst. https://johannakern.com https://www.facebook.com/ JohannaKernAuthor

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WHEN A FRIENDSHIP IS NOT A REAL ONE Good Friendships brings countless benefits to our lives: it decreases the risk of depression, anxiety, stress, helps our immune system dribble diseases, improves the health of our heart, and many others good things. However, not all friendships are healthy. There are 'friends' who do not deserve us, and yet it is difficult to break a bond when we care for the person. See the signs that you may have a harmful friendship. Â When we start a friendship, everything is usually new, it is light, and we create empathy and affection for the person. But as time goes by, some friends become harmful, they do not add anything useful to our lives, and we begin to avoid that person. There are many reasons for this, and we often do not even realize that this friend is doing us harm. OMTimes | May B

The friendships we have can do us good, or they can break us. Know the ten types that can do more harm than good in your life.

WHEN YOU DO NOT HAVE MORE DESIRE TO MEET THE PERSON Friends like to be together, even when it's hard to find a good time by the rush of everyday life. We try to find a way to meet and have a good time together. When you begin to 'be lazy' to meet that friend is a sign that the effort you make to be together, it is not paying off. It is normal to go through more antisocial moments, but if this feeling of aversion to the person does not pass, it is a sign that this friendship is no longer worth it.

WHEN MEETING THAT PERSON, YOU FEEL WORSE Some friends seem to see us as an escape valve: they only find us to talk about their problems, to complain about life, to ask for advice, to cry, etc. Friendships can and should carry us through terrible times, and it is important to support our friends during their challenges, but when pessimism takes over the relationship, these gatherings become real torments to those who are always hearing problems and complaints. If your friend is transforming you into a wailing wall, he may be harming you. OMTimes | May B

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WHEN DOES A FRIENDSHIP BECOMES HARMFUL ? WHEN YOUR FRIEND ASKS TOO MUCH, ALWAYS "You forgot me, didn't you?" "You do not like me; you just hang out with so-and-so now." Friends are together to feel good, not to make emotional demands that can tax the relationship. It is usual for a friend to feel more abandoned when we begin a relationship or to become more distant, but if he is always demanding of you, it is a sign that you are already instinctively moving away from him. Excessive demands do harm to any friendship, if you are demanding too much or are feeling coerced by your friend's claims, it is a sign that this friendship is harmful.

WHEN YOU ARE IRRITATED WITH THE PERSON We often think: how did I stand such a person? People change, we change, and often a friend that was part of our life happens to no longer fit into it. Either because you have changed, or he has changed, or the two have changed, and affinities have lagged. If you become irritated with a person's attitudes or thoughts and try to maintain the closeness you had before, beware: This attitude may create hostility, which is even worse. It is best to turn away and become friends on occasion, who coexist very little, not to create friction or ill will.

WHEN SOMEONE TEARS YOU DOWN Someone who tries to humiliate you, tells you things that are damaging to you, that does not support you, only criticizes you: It is not a friend. "Do you like this music? That's ridiculous". "You're not good enough for this." "You're not going to get dressed like this, are you? What a mediocre outfit. " This is not a friend trying to alert you it's an enemy transvestite friend. Some people need to make others feel worse to feel on top of - get away from that kind of person. Â WHEN SOMEONE APPEARS ONLY TO ASK FOR FAVORS He has a 'friend' who only appears when he wants something in return when it suits him. When they need a professional appointment, or to borrow money. Then He starts to flatter you, give you a thousand compliments before you get to the point that really matters: To ask you favor or extort you. Run away from that kind of friendship. Â Often, we have difficulty moving away, because after all, the person may not be being a bad friend for wanting. But you have to think. First, friends should always do you good, you should feel like meeting them, sharing good times together, and not being together just to comply with the table. As difficult as it may be, if you have friendship with one or more signs described above, it may be best for you to step away or keep a friendship further apart gradually.

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NOITIDE B YAM • SEMITMO

TEN TYPES OF FRIENDS TO AVOID The friendships we have can do us good, or they can break us. Know the ten types that can do more harm than good in your life. A good group of friends can also motivate and cheer you up. But on the other hand, some bad friends can also drag you to the bottom or ruin your life. Choose your friends carefully and always make sure the friends closest to you are the ones who can make your life better and not worse.

These toxic friends can seem like fun at times, or even take you to unknown risks, but when the shit hits the fan, it's up to you. The Adulator Many friendships have been destroyed because of sweet talk, and false adulation. Generally, people who try to flatter you and talk like you mean the world to them, and that is why they need you to do things for them. They will feed your Ego to keep you dependent on their opinions and advise. You would feel better with a friend who is more genuine and real, than someone that just tries to deceive you.

Not all type of competition is healthy in every relationship. But when the claws begin to come out, and things get incredibly competitive among friends, things can get very ugly. Avoid that.

The Leech A friend who continually borrows his or her money, or depends a lot on you, is one that needs to be avoided. No one wants a one-sided relationship. If all your friend does is get you out, without giving anything back in friendship, there is no reason to remain friends.

The Impersonator

The Perfectionist

Imitation is considered the sincerest form of flattery, but a friend who looks or behaves like your Xerox machine can be terrifying. Have you seen the movie," Single White Female?"

We all trust our friends and ask for advice, but when your best friend starts to act like he is hunting flaws, who only see flaws in your life or relationships, this can get very annoying and depressing. Ask yourself: Do you really need this aggravation?

The Competitor

The Selfish It is the kind of friend that can go with you anywhere, for his benefit. But behave passively when you ask for help. The Cry Baby It is the kind of friend that is never satisfied with anything, they have and spends all the time whining and complaining about how the world is so unfair to him. Stay away! The Bipolar This friend is partially crazy because his mood swings change from good to totally moody in seconds without any provocation.

The Rebel Child Dangerous and unstable is how this type is defined. You usually have problems, or you end up having to save your friend from difficulties. The Mood Murderer It is the friend intentionally kills the mood as soon as he enters a conversation with you. He always seems to find a flaw in anything you do or have, be it your clothes or your love life. He is like the black cloud hovering over you on a sunny day. Nothing positive ever comes out of your mouth. He is never far from sarcastic comments or depressing thoughts. OMTimes | May B

Metaphysics

EXTRATERRESTRIALS AND THE EVOLUTION OF EARTH HUMANS By Judy Carroll

Research is being carried out on the subject of extraterrestrial/ Earth human hybrids and star children who have been born on Earth over the past decades. They have come voluntarily in an attempt to get Earth-plane humanity back on track after a planetary “hijacking” that occurred millennia ago. This

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caused a block in the natural evolutionary flow of Earthplane humanity resulting in a perpetual state of warfare on the planet, culminating in the development of nuclear weaponry. As one of these volunteers, my soul consciousness resonates energetically with both the Earth Human and Zeta Grey Collective, enabling me to have conscious awareness of both cultures. Thus I can carry out the role of an ambassador between the two. All Earth humans are partET hybrids and are a bioengineered species with offplanet genetics in their makeup. The “humanizing process” of Earth plane humanity involved enhancement of the DNA. This process was carried out through advanced genetic engineering by off-planet “creator beings.” In this area of energy transmutation, spirituality and science merge. Author Gregg Braden, in his book, Human by Design, reported that science now accepts that human DNA was edited from chimpanzee DNA in two chromosomes, 2 and 8, approximately 200,000

years ago. One edit enabled spoken language and the other enhanced human reasoning. The amount of DNA active in humans is intrinsically linked to the level of conscious awareness that we can access, as opposed to sub and super-consciousness. Human evolution entails the activation of more strands of DNA to enhance our conscious awareness as a planetary culture. For people to be able to understand this, science and religion need to start working together, rather than being separate and sometimes quite antagonistic entities. It is not about religion – it’s about spirituality. There is a difference; religion tends to divide people, spirituality unites people. DNA is the bridge between the physical body and higher aspects of our being. ET contact is primarily about DNA activation to awaken humanity to deeper and more expanded conscious awareness. Given the awful mess, Planet Earth is in now, with technology and self-serving agendas far out-

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weighing spirituality, many off-planet souls are choosing to incarnate here as Earth humans, and many Earth humans are making pre-birth requests for ET contact to assist their awakening process. It is being done to try to heal and balance the situation, which is rapidly reaching a critical point. Many of you are aware that more and more so-called “star children” are now being born, with IQs way off the normal scale, and possessing some amazing abilities. This is the result of more DNA being activated, either when the egg is fertilized, or else in the embryonic or fetal stage before birth. These procedures require the mother to be taken onto an ET ship where this upgrading process can be safely carried out. A number of us involved in this work have connections with the ET cultures known as the “Greys.” The reason is that one of the Grey cultures (and there are many) had its beginnings on Earth several billion years ago in the form of the Ant People, so we do feel a deep connection to this

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planet. The Greys specialize in environmental science/ ecology and the adaptation of species to changing planetary environments. In this way, they work closely with the Elementals/Nature Spirits. Several reptoid human cultures that followed were the result of another later genesis on Earth. These beings fought among themselves for control of the planet, and wars were also fought between these Reptoids and the Ant People. In my books, I refer to these Earth-plane created Reptoids as “Repterrans,” to differentiate between them and more evolved off-planet Reptilians who are coming here now as part of the “rescue corps.” The Repterrans have continued to reincarnate here to the present day, as the Controllers, Illuminati, Archons, Cabal, etc. Part of their agenda includes taking genetic material from the bodies of genuine ETs who have died in crashed ships and using it to create their hybrids such as the Men in Black, and the Programmed Life Forms (PLFs) referred to by researcher

and author, Steven Greer. These are specifically engineered to resemble Greys and have been developed from Grey and Reptoid genetics. These PLFs are used to frighten people in faked “alien abductions,” which are known as MilAbs (military abductions). Off-planet people are now volunteering to incarnate down here as Earth humans, to change things quietly from the inside. We aim to enable people to take back their rightful empowerment and break free of the mind control and brainwashing that has been going on for millennia. Change may be slow, but it is happening and the time is now! *** Judy Carroll was born and still lives in Australia. She has had 60 years of encounters with Grey ETs since her early childhood—many have been fully conscious encounters— in a variety to situations including being on ships. Her full awakening about her connection to ETs came in 1983 during a daytime encounter

when several Greys appeared to her in full daylight. At that time, she was given a massive download of information and advice regarding the mission being carried out on Earth, the part she was to play in it, and further studies she needed to undertake this role to the best of her ability. Judy previously introduced her life-long connections to the Zeta Greys in her first two books, The Zeta Message and Human by Day, Zeta by Night. In her most recent book, Extraterrestrial Presence on Earth, she reveals that she is a “blended” soul whose conscious awareness spans two planetary connections—both Earth human and Zeta Grey. Judy’s mission, along with other blended souls now incarnated as Earth humans, is to be an inter-planetary ambassador, introducing more clarity and deeper understanding of what has happened here in the past, offering understanding of present time global events, and providing guidance on how to heal our future as a planetary civilization. For more information on Judy, please check out: www. ufogreyinfo.com

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Living Intuitively and Creating a Culture that Acknowledges Death by Robyn M Fritz

While death frequently takes us by surprise, creating a culture that acknowledges its inevitability offers mind, body, and spiritual support to both the dying and their grieving survivors. What could it look like to live healthy, balanced, intuitive lives that recognize they will end?

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Gratitude and Previewing Goodbye It may seem trite, and even a predictable run-around, but it really does help to practice gratitude every day for every little thing that goes well. Or is at least all right, or just plain over. Gratitude doesn’t mean everything is rosy. It means that we notice and move on. Acknowledging the simple, benign details gets us through the days—and to the far side of grief after death occurs. Gratitude includes appreciating those who are in our lives, even if they occasionally, or usually, aggravate us, because, hello, human! Make sure you always let your beloveds know you appreciate and will miss them when you die, even if you’re just fine because you never know. I learned this as a kid from my dad’s parents. After every annual visit, they made a point of saying, “We’re getting older and may die before we see you again, so know that we love you.” I

used to giggle at this quirky ritual: I didn’t know what to make of it, and it made me uncomfortable. Then my brother died unexpectedly, followed by several beloved adults, and I realized that my grandparents were crazy smart to say their goodbyes in person. As it turned out, they both died when I wasn’t around, and all I got was a funeral—and the memories of those savvy childhood farewells. So please, say goodbye before you can’t, and encourage your beloveds to do the same thing. How We Can Acknowledge Death So, how do we create a culture that acknowledges death? A Mexican tradition that has its roots in pre-Hispanic history is Dia de los Muertos, the Day of the Dead, which is celebrated between October 31 and November 2, the days that also lump together Halloween and the Christian holidays of All Saints Day and All Souls Day. During the Day of the Dead celebration, people invite their dead back to be remembered

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and honored, thus keeping them part of the community. Great idea, right? Each country could build on that concept by declaring a national holiday that celebrates life and death with our living and dead beloveds. A declared holiday can create a cultural tradition in the same way that Christmas is an international tradition and the Fourth of July an American one. This holiday could free people from the religious connotations surrounding death and help us have a better relationship with it, even normalize it, instead of ignoring it or shutting it away in hospice. What could it look like? A day off from work, a family and friends gathering, a nice meal with a place set for everyone, including the dead, and a simple ritual to say hello and goodbye. It would take the time—an entire day in our over-packed lives—to acknowledge death as part of life, honor our dead, and celebrate our mortality while

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contemplating what we, the living, still want to accomplish. Yes, imagine the Day of the Dead, Valentine’s Day, Thanksgiving, and life coaching all rolled into one holiday where we preview goodbye while relishing the time we still have together. Losing beloveds is never easy. If we made recognizing the fragility of life part of our operating philosophy, then when death occurs, especially if it takes us by surprise, we would at least remember that we previewed goodbye. I’ve done this with my own beloveds, human and animal. I swear it works. Robyn M Fritz MA MBA CHt hosts the OM Times radio show, “The Practical Intuitive: Mind Body Spirit for the Real World.” An intuitive and spiritual consultant and certified past life regression specialist, she is an award-winning author whose next book is “The Afterlife Is a Party: What People and Animals Teach Us About Love, Reincarnation, and the Other Side.” Find her at RobynFritz.com.

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Dan Maston goes on an epic adventure

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Personal Growth & Development We grow as individuals as we face challenges and overcome lifeâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s obstacles. This section is dedicated to helping you chart your course.

Accessing Success (excerpt from Andrew Pacholyk’s new book, Lead Us To A Place ~ your spiritual journey through life’s seasons) What does success mean to you? Some people equate success with fame or amassing huge sums of money. Others measure success by achieving simple goals they have set for themselves each day or week. So, what goals have you set for your life? Have you achieved these goals? Do you have a

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time frame defined in which you intend to reach them? Short term, immediate goals are the best way to achieve long-term success. Setting simple, achievable goals are similar to building a stairway to your life’s ultimate dream. Each time you reach a new goal, you reach a new plateau on

your way to fulfilling your life’s success, and each new goal you reach gives you an incentive to set new ones Gemstone: Accessing Success “O. Universal truth, be told, success is found be seeking, bold. Enjoy each morning as you rise, eager to keep on late, anigh, for this is truly passion found, and where success will follow, round.” ~ Andrew Pacholyk MS L.Ac The Path to Success The greatest successes come from the ideas we are most passionate about! When we are passionate about something, we devote our time, money, resources and most of all love, to this idea. When you follow your dream and see it through, the greatest reward is your success! This is done in two ways: passion and persistence.. Passion is the root of what you love to do most. It is a blinding force of energy that you desire to do, every waking day. If all you could do is your passion every day, then that is what

you MUST do. It will drive you to success. Your passion will assist you in finding the right audience, attracting those who are drawn to your passion and make you successful. Why will your passion do this? Because you will find the answers through what you love doing most… or these answers will find you. This passion can turn into a profession. A profession from your passion is one of the greatest rewards. There is also the fact that when someone genuinely enjoys their profession and are motivated by their passion, they tend to be more satisfied with their work and more psychologically healthy. When these same people begin to get positive feedback and see results from their passion, they are motivated to work harder to ensure that this passion continues. It is a profession they will always have in their lives. Persistence is the other part of this equation. Omtimes.com

When you are passionate, you do not give up. It is not an option. No matter how long something can take to become a realized dream, this persistence is guided by your passion. So many times, in my life, I have seen patients, friends, and colleagues give themselves a “time limit” for their passion. They would tell me” “if I don’t make it by next year…” “if I don’t publish my work by next Spring…” “if I don’t get this promotion next week…. I’m done”. More often than not, they give up. They let go of their dream or relinquish their passion. It is a tragic end and it hurts to see someone give up on a dream. They block their progress by giving it an “expiration date”. I think this also shows that perhaps, they just were not passionate enough to truly pursue what they desire most in life! Success are steps on a ladder. Omtimes.com

Reaching for the top rung of that ladder is great. But do you even know what that top rung is? Success is often a definition we have in our heads, which we do not seem to stray from. But in reality, success often comes in ways you do not even imagine. At the top rung of that ladder, are other, endless possibilities, that we have never thought of. Many people who have experienced successes, tend to not see them or recognize them as such. They may pass over the fact that… ~ “They finally got a meeting with the top brass”, unfortunately, they do not recognize that they have been waiting a year for this meeting.” ~ “They just sold products to their first big box store concept” but now they are more concerned about getting 10 more contracts with other big stores and fail to realize, that this was the best success they have had in 6 years.” In achieving a success, it is important to remember how far you’ve come. Even though there’s a part of you that

wants to grow and yearns for more, acknowledging each achievement, no matter how small, is necessary. Success is notoriously elusive for many people because their definition of success sets them up to never quite have it. We may have minor achievements, but yet do not feel they are successes, because it’s not the end goal. Success is an achievement in any form, on any level. If your definition of success has the room to include who you are and what you have right NOW, you’ll continue growing and refining, even when you make mistakes. You will realize you are defining success! It is important to recognize, honor and appreciate the little “rungs on the ladder” as these are the real successes. This is the real definition of success. Success is money and power to most people. What also must be included is: 1. Peace of mind, which is the result of self-satisfaction in knowing you did your best

to become the best you are capable of becoming. 2. Well-being, which is the longlasting end result of your success and how it makes you feel. 3. Wonder is your own amazement of where you came from and what it took for you to succeed. 4. Wisdom, from the long journey it took for you to get here and the brain power you discovered to make it all happen. 5. Giving is the gift you offer back for your success.. It is probably the most rewarding of all. 6. Success is a mirror of yourself. It is how you like yourself, how you accept yourself and how you like how you do it. 7. Success is the expansion of your happiness through worthy goals. “Put your heart, mind, and soul into even your smallest acts. This is the secret of success.” ~ Swami Sivananda

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Where to Get More Love A seminar participant asked me, “How can I let in more love from my girlfriend?” I told him, “It’s not your girlfriend’s love you need to let in. It’s your own love you need to let out.”

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We have consistently been taught that what we need is out there somewhere, and our task is to import it. This quest applies to material objects like cars and flat-screen TV’s, as well as spiritual experiences like love from a romantic partner or salvation from a savior. This never-ending search is based on the lie that you are somehow flawed or lacking, and if you can just get what you need from some outer source, you will become whole. But you can never become whole because the quest is based on the illusion that you are broken, and any campaign based on an illusion must fail. Contrary to what you have been taught, you were created in utter perfection. Your real goal, then, is not to import your good, but to accept the good you already are. This is why the master yogi Paramahansa Yogananda called his organization “SelfRealization Fellowship.” We are not going for selfimprovement. We are going for self-knowing.

A Course in Miracles tells us, “Only what you have not given can be lacking in any situation.” This statement is highly confrontive, even insulting to the ego, which swears that if something in your life is missing, it is because someone or something out there is withholding it. Our pain is always someone else’s fault: My husband doesn’t share my spiritual path; my parents don’t understand me; my ex- doesn’t raise my kids properly; my company doesn’t pay me enough; the government won’t acknowledge my gay marriage. Our emptiness never has anything to do with our own consciousness, ego argues; we are innocent victims. We can resolve such frustrating situations by reaching into ourselves and claiming the experience we seek. Tony Robbins suggests a 90-day marriage-saving technique. When a client complains to Tony that his or her partner is not giving

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enough to the marriage, Tony asks the client to invest more of his- or herself in the relationship. If you want more truth from your partner, give more truth to him or her. If you seek listening, listen. If you want your partner to share your path, make an effort to share his or her path. If, after you have given all you can for 90 days, the relationship is still not working, Tony Suggests, feel free to leave. Yet in most cases the relationship works better because you recognize yourself as the source of your empowerment, rather than demanding that your partner fill an illusory gap. This dynamic creeps more subtly into many spiritual paths and religions that teach you to draw energy from your mentor, guru, or savior. If you absorb positive healing energy, you will be healed. So you sit quietly and open yourself to take in the chi, prana, mana, orgone energy, or whatever you name it. Then you feel better

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and thank the guru for healing you. This technique surely works, and if this is your spiritual practice, I absolutely encourage you to continue. Any method that achieves healing is valid and should be used as much as possible. All healing is of God, regardless of the channel through with it comes. Yet eventually you must consider whether or not the healing energy is coming from outside you or from within you. Is your guru or savior really a separate entity who transmits healing, or does he or she live in your own mind? Could your spiritual master be an aspect of your own higher self? Thus, you are not reaching out for your answer, but tapping in. Ram Dassâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s guru Neem Karoli Baba (Maharaj-ji) told him, â&#x20AC;&#x153;Guru, God, and Self are one.â&#x20AC;? This is the meditation of a lifetime! The guru and

God we strive to reach out there are really our own Self. There is no separation. We make up stories of division and then struggle to bridge a gap that doesn’t exist. Rather than seeking a guru to save you, seek to dissolve the false sense of separation that tells you that the guru lives in India rather than your own heart. In a sense, the ego is absolutely correct in telling you that the answer is out there. The answer is far beyond the ego’s own resources. A Course in Miracles tells us, “You cannot be your own guide to miracles, because it is you who made them necessary.” You will never get yourself out of trouble by using the same mind that got you into it. The self that is trying to help is the self that needs help. To be healed, you must reach beyond your current idea of self, which is quite limited and ultimately fictitious. What appears to be the outer

teacher lives within you; he or she is the most valid part of yourself. The outer teacher is your “permission slip” to receive what you already own. Keep using that permission slip as long as it works; it is a blessing from God. Yet the greatest blessing is to recognize that God and all good dwell within you, as you. Then you won’t need to let in more love from your partner or the world. You will already own all the love you could ever need. Alan Cohen is the bestselling author of the newly-released Spirit Means Business, illuminating how you can successfully merge your career and financial path with your spiritual life. He will present a program related to this book on the US Mainland (west coast) in August. For more information about this program, Alan’s books and videos, free daily inspirational quotes, online courses, and weekly radio show, visit www. AlanCohen.com.

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When you look at the view of Earth from space, you are immediately in awe of what you do see: the incredible beauty of Creation. It is not until you look closer that you realize what you do not see. You do not see lines partitioning countries. You do not see separation between races. You do not see division between religions. You do not see the walls people build to isolate themselves from each other. There is only One Planet. There is only One Humanity. This section is dedicated to introducing thoughts and ideas to foster a greater understanding of Humanityâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s interdependence.

World Vision

Dealing with the Darkness of What Humans Do to Humans By Scilla Elworthy, syndicated from kosmosjournal.org

This article shows how in response to thuggish forces the qualities of feminine intelligenceâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;available to men as to womenâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;can enable us to take a significant leap in consciousness and demonstrate what anyone can do to build a beautiful future. Published in Spring | Summer 2017

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What we encounter now—in Europe and the Middle East, as in the US—is an upsurge of primitive, brutish forces employing threat, superior power, trickery, punishment, and information manipulation. It is as if permission has been given for thuggish behavior. We are witnessing—very starkly because it is on our screens daily—the darkest capacities of humans to hurt, humiliate, and kill their fellow humans, and to destroy the majestic natural world that surrounds us. And yet, this darkness that appears to be growing around us may also be an invitation, a challenge. The global issues that confront us now— global warming, migration, overpopulation, cyber warfare, terrorism—are all manmade, and none can be dealt with using superior force. So, this is the time to heed Einstein: “No problem can be solved by the same kind of thinking that created it.” It means that we have to up our game. We need to shift our consciousness and take

a significant leap in what humanity can achieve through awareness. It will require the courage to face the darkness of what humans do to humans, to see the worst results of destruction, to stand up to put a stop to it, to create something alive and dynamic in its place. I will spell out the qualities and skills we need, illustrated by examples of how this is already happening.

How I Learned This The work I do has involved me with people who seem to have much power— physicists who design nuclear warheads, military officers in charge of nuclear weapons, manufacturers who produce and sell missiles and machine guns, strategists who design defense policies. As well as those who sign the cheques— not just in America but also in Britain, Russia, France, China, Israel, India, and Pakistan. By establishing Peace Direct, I also now work with people who risk their lives to stop other people being killed, people of great courage who are building peaceful societies from the

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bottom up. These locally-led peace initiatives are multiplying fast in the hot conflict’s areas of the world; we have now identified 1,400 groups of people effectively preventing war, so this is a fast-growing eruption of green shoots through concrete.

Feminine Intelligence Through the organizations Rising Women Rising World and Femme Q, we have identified five of the outstanding qualities of feminine intelligence— available to men as to women— that can enable us to shift our consciousness and achieve tangible, long-lasting results through awareness. The first is compassion. Compassion is feeling for others—combined with a strong intention to assist them. It means having the strength to step into the shoes of another, even those we dislike, and to understand how they feel and are motivated. It is not simply a quality for the meek and gentle—it prevents suicide bombing. Consider the work of Gulalai Ismail who works in the Swat Valley in NW Pakistan, one of the toughest places in Omtimes.com

the world to be a woman. She trains young people to go into madrassas, find those young men who are being taught to be jihadis and go home with them to their families to discuss how the Koran would not sanction suicide bombing. So far, 4,000 ‘at risk’ young people have been reached by 223 trained youth activists, and over 250 potential bombings prevented. Thus, compassion is the drive not only to feel for others but also to act to assist them. Inclusivity is the second quality. It means ensuring that the marginalized—the ‘majority world’ of those without a voice—are brought in to decision-making. This can mean, as in the case of Germany’s welcome of large numbers of refugees, confronting the anger of those who are afraid of diversity and would prefer to close borders and exclude those fleeing violence or persecution. The example I know best here is of Henri Bura Lady, an exchild soldier in the Congo who, when Peace Direct can send him a small sum of money, gets on his motorbike and rides into the bush. There he buys a herd

of goats and drives them to where the militia are hiding. This is risking his life because the militia is trigger-happy, high on drugs, and don’t like intruders. But Henri knows how to talk to them and swaps one goat (price $5) for one child and brings the children home. Then the hard work begins of reintegrating these traumatized children into their families, members of whom they may have been forced to kill. Listening is a quality that may sound easy; indeed, most people think they are good listeners. Most people are not. Giving another person my full attention is one of the greatest gifts I can give, and that attention needs to be such that I can sense the emotions behind what the other person is saying. It means that, in an argument, I can move from my head, namely, “I’m right, and you’re wrong,” to my heart and sense “Oh, is that what this feels like for you?” With some initial difficulty, I taught our listening exercise (you can find it in my book Pioneering the Possible: Awakened Leadership for a World that Works) to senior executives of one of the largest

global luxury companies in the world. After some resistance, they learned how to give their full listening attention to one another, and they reported: “What you taught us enables us now to resolve in 15 minutes what previously would have taken four hours of argument, and still not been agreed!” So, really listening is a key skill in transforming conflicts. Interconnectedness is the longing to nurture and protect our planet and her resources. The arrogant celebration of ‘man’s conquest of nature’ is being replaced by the realization that we need to respect, safeguard, and help regenerate the planetary life of which we are a part. This is evident in the refusal of millennials to work for companies with outdated values. By 2020, those born between 1980 and 2000 will form 50% of the global workforce and will be the largest consumer class. Surveys show that an overwhelming 75% of those born between 1980 and 2000 has four major priorities: planet, people, and purpose, which all come before profit. They consider Omtimes.com

environmental protection, climate change, resource scarcity, and biodiversity loss as their number one priority. Some are even insisting that governments appoint a Guardian of Future Generations, an official whose job it is to think ahead long term to what may affect our grandchildren, with the power to stop governments or corporations taking actions that may pollute or harm the planet and its creatures. Regeneration is a deeply felt quality of feminine intelligence because the female body is innately in tune with reproduction, with the Earth, and with the cycles of the moon. Men can also be deeply in touch with the current needs of Earth that go way beyond sustainability, the buzzword of ‘corporate social responsibility’ policies that often sadly gather dust in drawers rather than generating action. For years, indigenous leaders have been telling us that decisions must be made—not in the interests of the next quarterly figures but with the interests of the next seven generations in mind. We need to clean up the vast islands of plastic debris Omtimes.com

polluting the Pacific Ocean, enable our rivers to recover from oil and chemicals casually spilled, replace the tops of mountains scalped to permit mining and re-forest lands that have become barren through over-farming. Near Rio in Brazil, Thais Corral inherited a mountain where all the trees had been cut down; she has now established Sino Da Vale, where students come for a sixmonth internship to learn to raise native saplings, plant them according to contours, and protect them from loggers.

What Are the Skills We Need? Anyone of us can develop the skills to do this, and the age we are living through desperately needs people with these skills. To develop them requires that we wake up. Waking up means more than sitting quietly in meditation. It means going deeper into self-knowledge, into the value of integrating the wounded parts of yourself and discovering how to take a stand for what you believe in. Now there are many courses to help you make this journey. They will guide you to discover the ‘gem under your particular dragon’s

foot,’ the gem that will reveal something you have been blind to about yourself. Every one of us has a shadow, which can consist of things that happened when we were young, deep hurts and past experiences that may be largely unconscious. If they remain unconscious, they can trigger unexpected behavior. For example, I found myself enraged by a colleague when we were co-leading a workshop and became so incensed that the entire group could feel a sense of unease. When I looked into it, I realized that my anger was caused by my feelings of jealousy for what she was saying— wanting to be the center of attention myself! This came from childhood experiences when I had felt overshadowed by four big strong brothers who could do most things better or faster than I could. When we are willing to look at our own shadow, we develop a capacity for internal inquiry that enables us to meet and even develop a dialogue with our inner critic, the nagging voice that wants to criticize us most of the time. You can learn to do this through the Inner Critic

exercise in my book Business Plan for Peace. Taking a Stand Waking up means being willing to take a stand on issues that matter to you and learning to stand your ground when people attack you, without escalating the conflict. If you are part of the system or ‘establishment’—or if you are not and would like them to take your views on board— then it can be hard to tell the unpalatable truth. If you do, it is often perceived as troublemaking, which means you become marked out as ‘not one of us,’ which means you don’t get invited to in-crowd events, which means that no one even hears what you have to say. But if you don’t tell the truth, you betray yourself and possibly the future of your company or organization, or your family for that matter. Quite a trap for all concerned—a trap for you because you are faced with choices, and a trap for the establishment because if the truth is never told, decisions progressively deteriorate, and the emperor ends up going around without his clothes. Omtimes.com

Therefore, it is worth preparing yourself well for this work, so that in mind, body, and spirit you are well able to be fully present whenever the moment demands. In your mind you need to be very clear about what you think, the points you want to make, and the tone you will take. Any aggression must be replaced by your integrity because integrity has palpable energy that is more powerful than aggression. When I was helping establish The Elders—a group of experienced international statesmen and women devoted to enabling world leaders to make wiser decisions—I had a visceral lesson in integrity from Nelson Mandela. Aged 89, he came into a room full of people and started to speak. He had a raspy voice and did not do oratorical flourishes, but I immediately got goosebumps. When he stopped speaking 35 minutes later, I still had goosebumps. I asked myself what this was and concluded that I was feeling the energy of his integrity. Here was a man you could not cajole, bribe, or deter from his path. This

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tangible effect of his presence was what prevented a civil war in South Africa. Your Body and Its Language You will want to take care of how your body helps you present yourself. Instead of crossed legs or arms, take a sturdy stance with your feet feeling the ground or, if you are sitting, sit as if on a throne. Take some moments beforehand to exercise your voice with deep clear tones, and above all, breathe very deeply and consciously throughout. The reason for this is that oxygen will then get to your brain and that will help your points to flow smoothly. Your spirit will be the key to your effectiveness and will need just as much exercise and nourishment as your mind and body. Make sure you spend time regularly in self-reflection. In my experience, for my clarity, it’s essential to have a daily practice of quiet contemplation. It can be meditation, walking in nature, chanting, whatever you choose, but make sure it’s regular. Why? Because quietness is when good ideas can drop

sweetly into your consciousness. Quietness is when you learn things about yourself and others that you didn’t know. Quietness gives you grounding and grace. The Time is Now We’re at a time in history when we have to up our game. Such major forces are being unleashed that they require of us not just a shift in human consciousness but a leap. If we can pull it off, this will amount to the evolution of humanity’s capacity to face its darkness, and in so doing, access its greatest capacity for light. On a broader scale, humanity has built up looming threats to our security that weaponry cannot even begin to deal with. Thus, it is time to take a hard look at both the military-industrial complex that drives war and others for whom war means wealth. It is time to divert their skills and our skills to making what humanity now needs, to access a better kind of intelligence, to demonstrate how conflicts can be prevented and resolved without armed violence, and to make peace profitable. This is my passion

and why I have researched and written the first ever fully costed Business Plan for Peace. You who are reading this may already have, and can certainly acquire, the skills to prevent and resolve the internal and external conflicts that can drain so much energy in your workplace, your community, or your family. You can see to it that people around you learn those skills and build a culture of non-violence in your schools, your profession, and even in your country. I am hopeful that readers of Kosmos Journal can once again show themselves to be ahead of the game, to be masterminds in perceiving what the future demands of us. Just before he died, my mentor, the Nobel Prize-winning nuclear physicist Professor Sir Joseph Rotblat, said: “The future belongs to those who can see it.” It is syndicated from Kosmos the print and online journal for transformational thinking, policy, and aesthetic beauty and collective wisdom. http://kosmosjournal.org

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Books

Chakra Wisdom Tarot

This is the long-awaited brand-new card deck from the bestselling creator of the Chakra Wisdom Oracle, Tori Hartman. This is the deck Tori's fans have been asking for, combining her expertise as a tarot reader with her unique insight into the chakra, this new tarot deck will be a powerful life transforming divination tool. Throughout Tori Hartman's work as a seeker, teacher and psychic, she has been continually asked how to apply the Chakra Wisdom system to the tarot deck. Even as a committed tarot user, the time had not been right to make that application--until now. Taking the core ideals of the Chakra Wisdom system--intention setting, personal growth, trusting your intuition--and the seven-chakra structure and applying it to the traditional 78-card tarot system, Chakra Wisdom Tarot is a tremendously insightful and powerful manifesting tool. This deck and its exercises allow the user to seamlessly create what they need in their lives. Honouring the deep tradition and heritage of tarot, Tori's application of the Chakra Wisdom system to this structure is one that will trigger personal insights, intuitive paths and a powerful awareness of how to manifest the things needed to reach the goals of the modern world. Its overlay of the seven chakras on the Minor and Major arcana is seamless, with The Fool serving as our guide and avatar through the deck.

For more information, or to purchase the book, click the cover or visit:

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