The Day After Heaven by Paul Sparks

The Day After Heaven

The Day After Heaven a blogography, quote book, wisdom book, art book. a collection of quotes, articles, art, and philosophic rants sharing a unique perspective on the meaning of life.

Part 1 : The Year 2010

by Paul Michael Sparks 1

The Day After Heaven

This book is... A collection of poetry, philosophy, art gathered over 4 years of world travel. A string of thoughts promoting a Zen mindset ______________ The day after heaven : is the day after “the pursuit” of heaven is forsaken, because there’s been a collective realization that we are already IN heaven! (The Kingdom of Heaven is HERE and NOW! ) What i think is the most interesting collective belief that needs re-assessment is the belief that we need to become enlightened, assuming that we are currently NOT enlightened or NOT in heaven. What liberation there is once we have given up the pursuit of enlightenment... and realized that pleasure, nirvana, heaven, liberation cannot be pursued, attained, or deliberately fabricated through “effort.” It can only be uncovered. After all, how can you attain that which you already are?! It would be like the sun trying to find the source of sunlight, or the heart trying to find the source of love. How silly we humans are... Seeking after love and peace, when we already are the very essence of love and peace itself! :) lol :)

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TABLE OF CONTENTS March, 2010 .................. p11 April, 2010.......................p26 May, 2010........................p58 June, 2010........................p74 July, 2010..........................p88 August, 2010.....................p110 September, 2010................p162 October, 2010.....................p209 November, 2010..................p 225 December, 2010...................p 305

This book is offered on a “Pay What You Want” basis. The full text of this book is available online as a gift. If you feel moved to send a return gift, you may do so below via Paypal. Welcome to the Gift Economy :) “What is this experience worth to you?”

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The Day After Heaven Copyright ÂŠ 2013 by Paul Michael Sparks Cover by: Paul Michael Sparks All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form by any electronic or mechanical means including photocopying, recording, or information storage and retrieval without permission in writing from the author. The Day After Heaven www.thedayafterheaven.com Email: paul@sparkscreativestudio.com Give feedback on the book at: paul@sparkscreativestudio.com

Printed (physically and electronically) in U.S.A

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This book is dedicated... to God the greatest love I eva felt. My Mom the greatest teacher I evaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; had. to my twin soul : Sophia

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Intro... Once upon a time... no, In the Beginning...no, Let’s see... where shall we begin this story? who is the main character of this story? ahhh yes. LOVE of course. So, let’s start with a story about love.

There’s a story of the greek gods. They were bored, so they invented humans. And they were still bored, so then they invented love. Then they weren’t bored anymore. So, they decided to try love for themselves... Then, they had to come back and invent laughter, so they could stand it.

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Love is the ultimate outlaw. Love is the ultimate outlaw. It just won’t adhere to any rules. The most any of us can do is to sign on as its accomplice. Instead of vowing to honor and obey, maybe we should swear to aid and abet. That would mean that security is out of the question. The words make and stay become inappropriate. My love for you has no strings attached. I love you for free. —Tom Robbins, Still Life With Woodpecker

“Be — don’t try to become” ― Osho

May my soul bloom in love for all existence. -Rudolf Steiner

Let yourself be silently drawn by the strange pull of what you really love. ... It will not lead you astray. -Rumi

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affectionetely, your higher self found photo in Eva Blackâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s gallery https://plus.google.com/108111934885084485135/posts

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One of my favorite commercials... super inspiring... The New Guinness World Ad - Bring it to Life

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-pgA8Z7lFVE

The best things canâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t be told, because they transcend thought. The second best are misunderstood. The third best is what we talk about. And so, we clothe the ultimate mystery of life in our limited language.

Edison famously said that genius is 1 percent inspiration, 99 percent

perspiration. Ideas for new businesses, solutions to the worldâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s problems, and artistic breakthroughs are common, but great execution is rare.

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March, 2010 “Nothing in the world can take the place of persistence... March 13 2010, 2:20 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

“Nothing in the world can take the place of persistence. Talent will not; nothing is more common than unsuccessful men with talent. Genius will not; unrewarded genius is almost a proverb. Education alone will not; the world is full of educated derelicts. Persistence and determination alone are omnipotent.” Source: Kroc, Ray. Grinding It Out: The Making of McDonald’s. Chicago: Henry Regnary Company, 1977. Or as Einstein put it:

It’s not that I’m so smart, it’s just that I stay with problems longer. - Albert Einstein

The important thing is not to stop questioning. - Albert Einstein

Content precedes Design

Content precedes design. Design in the absence of content is not design, it’s decoration. -Jeffrey Zeldman 11

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4 Elements of a Successful Business Web Presence March 14 2010, 1:50 AM by Paul Michael Sparks

via mashable.com 1. A powerful clear central website 2. A blog that is current. 3. A Newsletter Subscription 4. Social Media Accounts for ubiquity

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Building brands needs new approach: says CEO of PepsiCo, Indra Nooyi March 24 2010, 3:28 AM by Paul Michael Sparks READ FULL ARTICLE HERE warc.com http://www.warc.com/LatestNews/News/ArchiveNews.news?ID=2647 6&Origin=WARCNewsEmail Key quotes: “The ‘moment of truth’ used to be on the shelf ... Now the ‘moment of truth’ is shifting to the home, because the consumer is planning what they are going to buy before they leave home.” “The world of brand-building is not the same as it was ... We are seeing a tremendous fragmentation of media.” More specifically, channels such as the web are playing an increasingly vital role in the marketing strategies of most major advertisers. “You’ve got to deploy every possible media that you can lay your hands on … The new brand-building model has to encompass an extremely rich mix of items we have to deploy to talk to the consumer.”

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CMS (Content Management Systems) are goin out of style March 22 2010, 3:52 AM by Paul Michael Sparks

So, I’ve been doing a crapload of research about Content Management Systems to help empower web developers and clients to have the most efficient web endeavor possible. There are hundreds of options out there, and it can be quite overwhelming, especially if you are not well versed in all of the web development lingo. Well, after months of research, i feel I have arrived at a system that I feel to be the most effective approach to navigate through all of this madness. Basically, my realization boils down to this. CMS systems are becoming obsolete because we no longer have Content we need to Manage that’s all in one spot. The web is moving to a place where all content will be external, and handled by third party applications and databases. So, nevertheless, I went ahead and installed what I believed to be the highest quality CMS system (modX... supposedly better than wordpress) After looking through the backend and all of the functionality available... I was a bit disappointed. Here is the conclusion I’ve arrived at. ---> next page

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Old school CMS systems are going out of style. Here is the system of the future • Homepage “donut marketing” website built with adobe dreamweaver. • external css stylesheets • use javascript for dynamic content loading (for things like headers, menus, and footers that get loaded repetitively on every page) • POSTEROUS blog • use posterous for a meat and potatoes newsletter/ real time • mailchimp for custom designed email campaigns/ announcements • Flickr manages all our photos • Youtube manages all our videos • Gmail manages all our emails • posterous manages all our blogs • e-junkie manages all of our e-commerce needs.

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new NBC Branding is HOT!

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Life is an ongoing act of love. with occasional breaks for air and food. -Emily Don Julio

The nature of a new paradigm “Everyone thought that a horseless carriage was a fantasy, and now everyone’s driving around in cars.” The Next Great Media Company Won’t Have a Web Site - The Steve Rubel Stream March 14 2010, 1:22 AM by Paul Michael Sparks

Conceivably the next great media company will be all spokes and no hub. It will exist as a constellation of connected apps and widgets that live inside other sites and offer a full experience plus access to your social graph and robust community features. via steverubel.com AND ANOTHER ARTICLE TO BACK THIS UP Welcome to the Site-less Web http://gillin.com/blog/2010/02/welcome-to-the-site-less-web/ The big change in the landscape is that information no longer needs to have a homepage in order to reach an audience 17

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The part of us that cannot be understood by God... March 2 2010, 3:34 AM by Paul Michael Sparks

I could dream it forever and still not do it, but when the time comes for it to be done, God, I want to be ready for it, to be ready for the moment of convergence between the thing done and the doing of it, between the thing to be made and its maker. At that moment, I am speaking for everyone; I am dreaming for the billions yet to come; I am taking the part of us that cannot be understood by God, and letting it bleed from the wrist onto the canvas. And it can only be made, because I have felt these things; my lust, my greed, my hatred, my happiness.

(Picasso via Steve Martin)

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Content precedes design. Design in the absence of content is not design, it’s decoration. Jeffrey Zeldman

Human beings don’t get anything they haven’t worked for. The nature of a new paradigm March 2 2010, 3:27 AM by Paul Michael Sparks

“Everyone thought that a horseless carriage was a fantasy, and now everyone’s driving around in cars.”

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The Next Great Media Company Wonâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t Have a Web Site - The Steve Rubel Stream March 14 2010, 1:22 AM by Paul Michael Sparks

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The Power of Visual Metaphors

If an image speaks 1000 words, then a visual metaphor speaks a thousand times a thousand.

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Top Photography Websites March 15 2010, 12:23 PM by Paul Michael Sparks Phenomenal www.towndrow.ca http://www.egofoto.net Interesting http://lassepedersen.biz http://www.tonydorio.com ( I like how the image comes in from the side) http://www.bergh.dk/ (Not good how you have to wait for every single image to load) bonus: amazing interactive film experience!!! www.bankrungame.com

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What you focus on, you attract. March 28 2010, 11:21 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

You must find thoughts about your relationship that harmonize with the thoughts your inner being have. If the strongest vibration you are offering about relationships is about the absence of the relationships that you desire, than it is not possible for that relationship to come into your experience. The vibrations are too far apart. You cannot find the solution to any problem, when the problem is the most active vibration you are in. - Esther Hicks

Words of Wisdom from Esther and Jerry Hicks March 24 2010, 11:37 AM by Paul Michael Sparks The basis of life is FREEDOM The result of life is EXPANSION and the purpose of life is JOY

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8 things I wish everyone knew about email - from Seth Godin again

April 27 2010, 9:53 AM by Paul Michael Sparks 8 things I wish everyone knew about email 1. Change your settings so that email from you has a name, your name, not a blank or some unusual characters, in the from field. (ask a geek or IT person for help if you don’t know how). 2. Change your settings so that the bottom of every email includes a signature (often called a sig) that includes your name and your organization. 3. Change your settings so that when you reply to a note, the note you’re replying to is included below what you write (this is called quoting). 4. Don’t hit reply all. Just don’t. Okay, you can, but read this first. 5. You can’t recall an email you didn’t mean to send. Some software makes you think you can, but you can’t. Not reliably. 6. Email lives forever, is easy to spread and can easily show up in discovery for a lawsuit. 7. Please don’t ask me to save a tree by not printing your email. It doesn’t work, it just annoys the trees. 8. Send yourself some email at a friend’s computer. Read it. Are the fonts too big or too small? Does it look like a standard email? If it doesn’t look like a standard, does this deviation help you or hurt you? Sometimes, fitting in makes sense, no? 9. And a bonus tip from Cory Doctorow (who got it from danah boyd). Cory gets more email than you and me combined: When you go on vacation, set up an autoreply that says, “I’m on vacation until x/x/2010. When I get back, I’m going to delete all the email that arrived while I was gone, so if this note is important, please send it to me again after that date.” via sethgodin.typepad.com 25

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April, 2010 $152 for a plane ticket to Cancun Mexico - en route to Playa Del Carmen April 6 2010, 12:52 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

best deals ever : www.cheapoair.com

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Amazing Music Jam Session in the Jungle April 15 2010, 11:05 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

What do you get when you combine a classically trained musician playing a violing alongside a sitar player? Heaven on earth. f f

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Arrival to MayaVeda in Playa Del Carmen, Mexico April 12 2010, 8:25 AM by Paul Michael Sparks

Big shots are only little shots who kept shooting. --Christopher Morley April 9 2010, 3:13 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

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Communication + Marketing Wisdom of the day: Open with the Close! Get to the point immediately. Peopleâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s attention is scarce nowadays! April 28 2010, 12:05 AM by Paul Michael Sparks

Cool website interface: Futurosity | Create a Bold Future April 9 2010, 11:31 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

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Frozen Mudd Man @Playa April 14 2010, 12:31 AM by Paul Michael Sparks http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a-c_Y8Im3uM

Cuevo Del Chango Restaurant next door April 15 2010, 11:01 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

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Do More With Less: Ernest Hemingway claimed that his best story was only six words long: “For sale: baby shoes, never worn.” April 9 2010, 3:49 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

Harsh Reality #4: Social media hates selling: Instead of promoting a product or service, promote fantastic content April 6 2010, 12:14 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

Harsh Reality #4: Social media hates selling Is there anything more pitiful than that guy who gets on Twitter and won’t shut up about how he can put you in a condo today with no money down despite your lousy credit rating? Even the spammers are blocking this dude. It’s really hard to sell products and services in social media, mostly because this audience hates salespeople worse than they hate Microsoft. You may be able to get some limited success out of it, but more likely you’ll be banned, blocked, shunned, and abused. Instead of promoting a product or service, promote fantastic content. Promote a great special report or an amazingly valuable email course. Promote wonderful stuff that you’re giving away. Use excellent free stuff to build authority and trust. Then you have the right to make an offer and possibly do some business. Not before. via copyblogger.com 31

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I was born on Oc - The Loyal Heart Mayan Astrology (June 7, 1984 ) April 19 2010, 8:27 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

I met with a Mayan astrologer yesterday in Tulum. In 30 minutes I got more insight about my own self than people get in a lifetime. Hereâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s the KEY POINTS OF THE READING: Those born on Oc enjoy travel and like exploring far-off lands. In business Oc are a true enemy of poverty. Oc are extravagant and fortunate with prosperity. Oc often indulge in creative arts. With interest in unusual ideas and ideologies, some Oc born become eccentric. In their most expanded view Oc can see the bigger picture and help guide humanity into the future. Oc are challenged to realize and remember the inter-connectedness of all existence. Oc are the ones who hold the world apart from themselves. AND HERE IS THE READING IN DEPTH Oc is the companion of the human soul after death and acts as a guide during a critical point in a soulâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s journey where it needs to cross into the afterllife. This is viewed as a courageous and loyal act for Oc. Those born on Oc enjoy travel and like exploring far-off lands. Oc are the best friends and devoted companions. They are 32

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warmhearted and sociable in friendship, partnership, and marriage. Oc is the long-term joing of two individuals with a common purpose. It is about love, affection, and kinship of like souls. Oc are generous and are always willing to help those who ask for favors. Oc know how to enjoy themselves and are fortunate and happy, sometimes even blissful. The ideas and traits that Oc exhibit are acknowledged and respected worldwide. Oc rarely fails, but does so on occasion when discretion isnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t applied, and abilities are wasted defending lost causes. In business Oc are a true enemy of poverty. Oc are extravagant and fortunate with prosperity. They can exhibit strong group or team instinct, and will stick with it in times of difficulty. They have a great ability to be good team players. They are courageous and enjoy being leaders, yet know intuitively when it is time to follow. At times they may become political or artistic, do quite qell in their own business, and make good employers. They have the ability to inspire loyalty in others because they have such loyal natures. Oc have strong loyalty towards community interests and can also have profound loyalty to humanity as a whole. Some may become national leaders who help guide their communities into a brighter future. Some born to this Sun are so committed to their chosen cause, that they make many personal sacrifices for community, group, or their family. Oc often indulge in creative arts. Drawing or painting seems to attract them. They have a good sense of perspective and harmony and may gain a level of recognition for their art. Others may show their creativity in public leadership positions, or in education or social work. Oc are talented, enjoy the limelight, and are often teachers or powerful speakers. Oc are currently informed on the news of the day. They are competitive and have a strong influence that can be quite clever. With interest in unusual ideas and ideologies, some Oc born become eccentric. In their most expanded view Oc can see the bigger picture and help guide humanity into the future. 33

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Depression can arise from a general feeling of being unsupported on the path and alone in the world. In their perspective they are seemingly disconnected from their family and companions. Oc need to learn to be open to the support of companions. Oc are challenged to realize and remember the inter-connectedness of all existence. Oc are the ones who hold the world apart from themselves. The drama and emotion of Oc activate a positive outcome by helping to illumin the root cause of situations. Strong negative emotions usually come from deeply hidden wounds and unresolved conflicts. When issues are healed, Oc will become the loyal light of truth, opening the door to humanityâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s future destiny. Oc is the door to the new beginning, the doorway to the Golden Age.

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If you are working towards the future, or dwelling about the past, then naturally, you are not living in the present...

April 20 2010, 12:27 AM by Paul Michael Sparks The problem with this is that the past and the future are not real. So, if you are not present in the present, then you are not living in reality. How can you ever expect to transform or improve your present reality if you are not even around to see or do anything about it?

In bliss at Tulum beach

April 15 2010, 11:21 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

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Ingredients to a successful online presence April 30 2010, 8:23 PM by Paul Michael Sparks http://www.chrisbrogan.com/a-simple-presence-framework/

Gaining the awareness, the attention, and ultimately the trust of a community online is a challenge many people are working to accomplish. Whether for your own personal interests or for a business-related use, we look to build relationships using these tools so that we can have conversations with the right people. But where should you start? What comprises a good methodology for using the platform? Whatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s the proper etiquette. Here are some starter moves to consider when building a presence framework for business communications purposes.

It is better to lose your life in the quest than to languish miserably. April 24 2010, 4:54 PM by Paul Michael Sparks If you could get rid of yourself just once, The secret of secrets would open to you. The face of the unknown, hidden beyond the universe would appear on the mirror of your perception -Rumi

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http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=asfhGQz0oYc&feature=player_embedded

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Know Thyself - Life isn’t about finding yourself. Life is about Creating Yourself April 5 2010, 12:29 AM by Paul Michael Sparks

via robindracreates.com Great entry by RobindraCreates: Here’s my favorite line: “Goto a yoga class, take an art class, go dancing… its good for business. Find yourself and you will find whatever is missing from your business right now.”

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Life does not reward you with free time after a lifetime of hard work. You have to create your own time. You have to be dynamic and create opportunities for yourself. April 20 2010, 12:22 AM by Paul Michael Sparks

New brand project I just finished UZAZU April 19 2010, 11:53 PM by Paul Michael Sparks check it out here: http://www.uzazu.org

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Quid No Quo - Online is the gift economy. Create work that matters without the ROI. You have to invest heart, energy and caring. April 27 2010, 9:49 AM by Paul Michael Sparks

Quid pro quo (santa math) Walk up to the falafel stand and hand the guy $3. He hands you a falafel, no onions. This for that. Something for something. The time between surrendering the money and getting the sandwich is tiny. You gave him something, you got something. It’s simple. Now, stretch it out a bit. You order dinner in a restaurant. They treat you nicely, the room is beautiful, you enjoy the evening, then you pay the bill. This, pause, pause, pause, that. Go to law school. Pay a lot of money. Spend a lot of time. Be taught a bunch of things you don’t particularly want to know, things you probably don’t need. Get a degree with a modicum of scarcity. Pay for a bar review course. Pass the bar. Then you get a job that pays a lot of money. This, then a multi-year pause, then, in return, that for the next forty years. We call it return on investment. Online, though, I’m not sure the math is so obvious. You don’t write 40

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a blog to get gigs. You don’t help people out in a forum to build a freelance business. Sure, that might happen, but that’s not why you do it. If you are busy calculating quid pro quo, that means your heart isn’t in it, and the math won’t work out anyway. Online, the something, the quid, the this, doesn’t cost cash. It takes heart and energy and caring, which are scarce but renewable resources. As a result, many people are able to spend them without seeking anything external in return. Even better, the act of generosity, of giving without expectation, makes it easier to do art, to create work that matters on its own. I think it’s more like Santa math. Santa flies around the world, giving stuff away, and for what? He earns gratitude, trust and friendship, that’s what. Sure, one day he might decide to license his image or try to sell you something. But right here, right now, gratitude, trust and friendship are plenty. Especially if you enjoy doing what you’re doing. Quid, no quo. via sethgodin.typepad.com

Secrets of the biggest selling launch ever- Seth’s Blog: April 9 2010, 5:33 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

Apple reports that on the first day they sold more than $150,000,000 worth of iPads. I can’t think of a product or movie or any other launch that has ever come close to generating that much direct revenue. Are their tactics reserved for giant consumer fads? I don’t think so. In fact, they work even better for smaller gigs and more focused markets. 41

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Earn a permission asset. Over 25 years, Apple has earned the privilege of delivering anticipated, personal and relevant messages to their tribe. They can get the word out about a new product without a lot of money because one by one, they’ve signed people up. They didn’t sell 300,000 iPads in one day, they sold them over a few decades. Don’t try to please everyone. There are countless people who don’t want one, haven’t heard of one or actively hate it. So what? (Please don’t gloss over this one just because it’s short. In fact, it’s the biggest challenge on this list). Make a product worth talking about. Sounds obvious. If it’s so obvious, then why don’t the other big companies ship stuff like this? Most of them are paralyzed going to meetings where they sand off the rough edges. Make it easy for people to talk about you. Steve doesn’t have a blog. He doesn’t tweet and you can’t friend him on Facebook. That’s okay. The tribe loves to talk, and the iPad gave them something to talk about. Build a platform for others to play in. Not just your users, but for people who want to reach your users. Create a culture of wonder. Microsoft certainly has the engineers, the developers and the money to launch this. So why did they do the Zune instead? Because they never did the hard cultural work of creating the internal expectation that shipping products like this is possible and important. Be willing to fail. Bold bets succeed--and sometimes they don’t. Is that okay with you? Launching the iPad had to be even more frightening 42

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than launching a book... Give the tribe a badge. The cool thing about marketing the iPad is that it’s a visible symbol, a uniform. If you have one in the office on Monday, you were announcing your membership. And if it says, “sent from my iPad” on the bottom of your emails... Don’t give up so easy. Apple clearly a faced a technical dip in creating this product... they worked on it for more than a dozen years. Most people would have given up long ago. Don’t worry so much about conventional wisdom. The iPad is a closed system (not like the web) because so many Apple users like closed systems. And the one thing I’d caution you about: Don’t worry so much about having a big launch day. It looks good in the newspaper, but almost every successful brand or product (Nike, JetBlue, Starbucks, IBM...) didn’t start that way. A few things that will make it work even better going forward: Create a product that works better when your friends have one too. Some things (like a Costco membership or even email) fit into that category, because if more people join, the prices will go down or access will go up. Others (like the unlisted number to a great hot restaurant) don’t. Make it cheap enough or powerful enough that organizations buy a lot at a time. To give away. To use as a tool. Change the home screen so I can see more than twenty apps at a time (sorry, that was just me.)

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As promised, the folks at Vook made their deadline and were ready on launch day. Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s early days, but itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s pretty clear to me that the way authors with ideas will share them is going to change pretty radically, just as the iPad demonstrates that the way people interact with the web is going to keep changing as well. [It turns out that Modern Warfare 2 did far better in its launch than the iPad. Thanks Jon, for the update]. Posted by Seth Godin on April 07, 2010

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Stop trying to sell an umbrella to a drowning man. A drowning man is not troubled by rain April 27 2010, 10:20 AM by Paul Michael Sparks

About the drowning man statement: In a world where everyone’s drowning, the best thing an umbrella company can do is to use their materials to make lifeboats. key points from Seth’s article: - If you’re having trouble persuading people to buy what you sell, perhaps you should sell something else... or talk about what you sell in a different way. - Are you the best at your craft? If there are many other people better at what you do, then why does the world need you? - If you can’t leverage the worldview they already have, you are essentially invisible.

Giving away a magician’s secrets by Seth Godin

Steve Cohen makes more than a million dollars a year doing magic tricks. I will now tell you the secrets of this magic: He sells to a very specific group of people, people who are both willing to hear what he has to say and able to pay what he wants to charge them. He tells a story to this group, a story that matches their worldview. He doesn’t try to teach non-customers a lesson or persuade them 45

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that they are wrong or don’t know enough about his art. Instead, he makes it easy for his happy customers to bring his art to others. He intentionally creates an experience that is remarkable and likely to spread. “What did you do last night?” is a great question when it’s asked of someone you entertained the night before, particularly if you can give the audience an answer they can give. That’s how the word spreads. He’s extremely generous in who he works with, how promiscuous he is about sharing and in his attitude. He’s very good at his craft. Don’t overlook this one. I guess it comes down to this: if you’re having trouble persuading people to buy what you sell, perhaps you should sell something else. Failing that, perhaps you could talk about what you sell in a different way. Important clarification: I’m not telling you to sell out or to pander or to dumb down your art. Great marketers lead people, stretching the boundaries and bringing new messages to people who want to hear them. The core of my argument is that someone’s worldview, how they feel about risk or other factors, is beyond your ability to change in the short run. Sell people something they’re interesting in buying. If you can’t leverage the worldview they already have, you are essentially invisible. Which is a whole other sort of magic, one that’s not so profitable. via sethgodin.typepad.com

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Why I really went to Playa Del Carmen. I went on a mission to activate the next level of existence, service, and mastery for my life. April 15 2010, 10:50 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

As a musician, as an influencer, as a mystic, as a visionary, as a communicator, and spokesperson to the youth.

Some of the most innovative accomplishments in the world were done by people who were “green” to that craft. April 9 2010, 10:15 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

William Bernbach was a creative leader who revolutionized the way that advertising was approached. Above all he valued innovation and intuition over science and rules. In an interview, he credited his creativity as being the secret of his success, saying, “I think I...had the advantage of not knowing too much about advertising, and therefore I could be fresher and more original about it. As soon as you become a slave to the rules, you’re doing what everybody else does; when you do what everybody else does, you don’t stand out.” William Bernback: Former Chairman & CEO, Doyle, Dane, Bernbach (DDB); LINK: http://www.advertisinghalloffame.org/members/member_bio. php?memid=540 47

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The Hacker’s Code: Boredom and Drudgery are Evil April 5 2010, 3:11 AM by Paul Michael Sparks

Hackers (and creative people in general) should never be bored or have to drudge at stupid repetitive work, because when this happens it means they aren’t doing what only they can do — solve new problems. This wastefulness hurts everybody. Therefore boredom and drudgery are not just unpleasant but actually evil. To behave like a hacker, you have to believe this enough to want to automate away the boring bits as much as possible, not just for yourself but for everybody else (especially other hackers). (There is one apparent exception to this. Hackers will sometimes do things that may seem repetitive or boring to an observer as a mindclearing exercise, or in order to acquire a skill or have some particular kind of experience you can’t have otherwise. But this is by choice — nobody who can think should ever be forced into a situation that bores them.) via catb.org

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The Hacker’s code of SHARING Never re-invent the wheel: Being a hacker is about ingenuity April 5 2010, 3:10 AM by Paul Michael Sparks

No problem should ever have to be solved twice. via catb.org Creative brains are a valuable, limited resource. They shouldn’t be wasted on re-inventing the wheel when there are so many fascinating new problems waiting out there. To behave like a hacker, you have to believe that the thinking time of other hackers is precious — so much so that it’s almost a moral duty for you to share information, solve problems and then give the solutions away just so other hackers can solve new problems instead of having to perpetually re-address old ones. Note, however, that “No problem should ever have to be solved twice.” does not imply that you have to consider all existing solutions sacred, or that there is only one right solution to any given problem. Often, we learn a lot about the problem that we didn’t know before by studying the first cut at a solution. It’s OK, and often necessary, to decide that we can do better. What’s not OK is artificial technical, legal, or institutional barriers (like closed-source code) that prevent a good solution from being re-used and force people to re-invent wheels. (You don’t have to believe that you’re obligated to give all your creative product away, though the hackers that do are the ones that get most respect from other hackers. It’s consistent with hacker values to sell enough of it to keep you in food and rent and computers. It’s fine to use your hacking skills to support a family or even get rich, as long as you don’t forget your loyalty to your art and your fellow hackers while doing it.) 49

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The jungle of the Mayan Riviera - all the way to the horizon April 19 2010, 8:12 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

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The new meaning of the web... as a new mode of production emergingMore from Don Tapscott April 9 2010, 5:07 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

Today, many of the best innovations in business/education/society/ are coming from young people, who are using the web as this powerful tool to change the model. Internet is not about putting a video on youtube, or creating a gardening community online, or having a cool website, or a governement portal. This is a new mode of production thatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s emerging. Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s beginning to fundamentally change the way that we orchestrate capability in society, to innovate goods and services, to educate.

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The paralysis of unlimited opportunity April 27 2010, 9:43 AM by Paul Michael Sparks The paralysis of unlimited opportunity There aren’t just a few options open to you, there are thousands (or more). You can spend your marketing money in more ways than ever, live in more places while still working electronically, contact different people, launch different initiatives, hire different freelancers... You can post your ideas in dozens of ways, interact with millions of people, launch any sort of product or service without a permit or factory. Too many choices. If it’s thrilling to imagine the wide open spaces, go for it. If it’s slowing you down and keeping you up at night, consider artificially limiting your choices. Don’t get on planes. Don’t do spec work. Don’t work for jerks. Work on paper, not on film. Work on film, not on video. Don’t work weekends. Whatever rule you want... But no matter what, don’t do nothing. via sethgodin.typepad.com 52

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The ultimate DJ venue - Tulum beach April 19 2010, 8:09 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

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Today is a Gift

April 19 2010, 8:08 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

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Vagabonding: my new lifestyle experiment- Leaving your habitual life to go out and travel in earnest April 20 2010, 12:21 AM by Paul Michael Sparks

you can watch a talk about Vagabonding here on Tim Ferris’ blog http://www.fourhourworkweek.com/blog/2010/02/25/rolf-pottsvagabonding-travel/ Going: not as a consumer, but as a seeker.. Not taking a vacation or escape from your life, but going in to manifest what’s new for your life, and to be open to new experiences. Think of travel as something you give to yourself. People always say, I’m not rich enough, I’m not old enough... but it’s not really a demographic thing. Anybody can use simplicity in their life to gain more free time. Life does not reward you with free time after a lifetime of hard work. You have to create your own time. You have to be dynamic and create opportunities for yourself. I’m not gonna wait till I retire. I’m gonna do it now and get the travel itch scratched. Experience culture at a gut level. Travel has its own dynamic. You can’t really predict what will happen to you while you’re sitting at home. You have to let the trip TAKE YOU. 55

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280 views and 1 response Apr 29 2010, 2:03 AM Bria responded: I wish I could say just this out loud myself, Paul. Thank you for doing it for me, where I learned in.

What if you could purposefully and systematically create Intentional Coincidences : Ponder that... April 5 2010, 12:48 AM by Paul Michael Sparks

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Where are we at in human history? This is not a recession. This is a punctuation point. Weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re going from something old to something new. April 9 2010, 3:42 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

Why is it that dying is something that happens to us, whereas living is something we have to use effort to do? Why canâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t living be a natural organic happening that occurs from a state of non-doing? April 26 2010, 11:48 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

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May, 2010 The Meaning of Art is To Inform and Delight : Milton Glaser May 16 2010, 1:45 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

Pondering the meaning of art, and the role it has played in society over the centuries, Milton reflects on this aspect, once again drawing from his vast knowledge of history... There’s a wonderful book I’ve quoted most of my life, by Lewis Hyde called ‘The Gift.’ Basically, it says this gift giving which occurs in primitive cultures, one tribe to another, is a device for pacifying others and establishing relationships -- is what artists do. They basically create the commonalities, the symbolism, so that people feel as though they have some relationship to one another. When people don’t feel they have that relationship, they kill each other. So, that role of providing common ground is absolutely essential to civilization.

To Inform & Delight The truth is, I’ve been looking for a definition of what art is, all my life -- without fully understanding exactly what it encompasses. But in the course of doing a speech I found several references -- on by Horace, who was a critic and poet back in Roman times, 1st century. He had this great line: ‘The purpose of art is to inform and delight.’ Wow. You can’t get much better than that. via graphic-design.com 58

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100 Million Views Club: The only list of the most-watched viral videos of all time May 7 2010, 3:38 AM by Paul Michael Sparks

The Visible Measures 100 Million Views Club is the Webâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s only list of the most-watched viral videos of all time.

http://www.visiblemeasures.com/hundred#

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Aimless Activism

May 22 2010, 2:23 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

Image by Festival Karsh Ottawa via Flickr We’re claiming we’re gonna change the world. How arrogant and presumptuous of us. What if the world didn’t want to be changed? Even so, what if we took a step back and admitted that we don’t know what impacts the world anyway, and instead, what if we create a global platform with the goal of Listening Intently to the world, with the desire to discover what’s best for it. We might discover it’s something quite different from what we thought. -Paul Michael Sparks Dec 29 2010, 7:28 AM Lisa DeVries responded: When my daughter was 8 y/o in response to a Nickelodian commercial for some “green advertisement to make the world a better place” asked....”why does everyone want to make the world better? It’s fine the way it is.” 60

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Do Something Unreasonable. May 24 2010, 3:11 AM by Paul Michael Sparks

There comes a point in life whre you either accept whatever youâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re doing and just exist, or stop talking about what you used to be and do something completely different.

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Everything Happens...

May 22 2010, 5:20 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

via ffffound.com

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Flight of the Conchords- Issues (Think About It) - The best 6 min’s and 47 sec’s of my life. May 16 2010, 3:00 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

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How Social Media Has Changed Us May 21 2010, 3:24 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

http://mashable.com/2010/01/07/social-media-changed-us/

I have found the paradox in LOVE. If you LOVE until it hurts, it doesnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t hurt anymore. -Mother Teresa May 22 2010, 2:24 AM by Paul Michael Sparks I am PURE LIGHT, not just a fistful of clay The shell is not me I came as the royal PEARL within Look at me not with outward EYE but with inward HEART; Follow me there and SEE how unencumbered WE BEcome. Rumi 64

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My Future Loft

May 22 2010, 5:28 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

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Stop shoulding all over yourself May 22 2010, 1:27 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

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Summarizing a noble life purpose If you want to help this world, you have to teach people how to live in it. --Joseph Campbell May 8 2010, 1:39 AM by Paul Michael Sparks

The following is a collection of pearls of wisdom to help you get a spark of insight towards discovering a noble purpose in life. If you want to help this world, you have to teach people how to live in it. --Joseph Campbell What is a noble purpose to pursue during this human drama? Should I pursue enlightenment, or should I eat, drink, and be merry? I find myself concluding that there may not be a difference between the two paths. So, therefore, I shall pursue whichever is more fulfilling in the moment. -Paul Sparks Weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re not just seeking a meaning in life. Weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re seeking an experience of being alive. -- Joseph Campbell

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The Best Ad Ever

May 10 2010, 5:30 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

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The Future of the HomePage: The Social Web: Flavors.me May 7 2010, 2:45 PM by Paul Michael Sparks https://vimeo.com/7105366

The person who doesnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t make mistakes is unlikely to make anything May 28 2010, 4:35 AM by Paul Michael Sparks

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What do you mean ‘Find Love’? It’s love that find you, silly. May 24 2010, 3:14 AM by Paul Michael Sparks

Why do we have so little tolerance for mystery and wonder? May 23 2010, 2:18 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

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Why the world is a mess: a theory « Scott Berkun May 18 2010, 3:05 AM by Paul Michael Sparks

I’m not looking to pick a fight here about whether the world is a mess or not. I agree with Penn Jillette - the trend line is positive. But there is a basic observation here for why anything at all involving people might be fucked up. Families, groups, companies, countries, cultures, etc. People don’t listen. I don’t mean that their ears aren’t working, I mean it’s rare for person A to genuinely try to understand what the person B is trying to say. Instead they’re waiting for their chance to speak. And the fact that people aren’t listening makes the person speaking feel like they’re not being heard. So they talk louder and make more noise. But talking louder mostly makes people want to listen to you less, so the negative feedback loop ensues, leading to anger, rage, and rash acts, all motivated primarily by the absence of acknowledgment, not the facts being argued. If ever you meet an angry person, odds are good they’re a person seeking to be heard, to be acknowledged or validated in some very simple way, and doesn’t know how to get it, so they’re acting out. It’s amazing how people’s behavior changes when they simply feel someone is truly listening. People don’t read. I have this short blog post, called how to write a book, that basically says it’s work and like all work you just go and do it. This post gets 1000s of views daily. It currently has 420+ comments and generates lots of email. Much of it is in the form of “I don’t want to do the work. Can you tell me how to get around the work?” Which is mystifying. I’m not saying people shouldn’t look for shortcuts, but if you read even one paragraph of the post, it’s clear I’m the last guy in the world to ask. Yet they do. Why? They’re not reading, at least not in any sense of the word that involves thinking. There is another mental process that seems like reading, but it’s really skimming, looking for the single thing you’re hoping to find, rather than trying to understand what the writer was trying to express and perhaps change your thinking about something. And in the case of my post, even if the 71

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singular thing they seek is not in the article, people ask for that singleminded thing anyway, despite how absurd in this case it is they’d get an answer. They’d rather take the time to write a pointless question, than read. To spin the theory around into a conclusion: If people listened to each other, there would be less anger and unrest. If people read more carefully, even just a little, they’re be more likely to get what they want, as there’s a chance they’ll recognize they’re looking for the wrong thing. There’s this assumption in our culture that with all the TV shows, and books, and websites, we’re all reading more and listening more, but I doubt that. Its become increasingly acceptable not to be listening (e.g. staring at your laptop or phone in meetings) and not be reading (skimming how many emails, or blog posts, in an hour). And I bet any culture, a team, a family, a country, where there is more real listening and real reading, people are happier and more successful at achieving things that matter. But I’ve yet to see someone monetize listening, or reading. So the whirlwind of commerce naturally encourages less listening and less reading, but more of everything else. What do you think? READ THE REST AT scottberkun.com

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Win Little Battles, Rather than chasing impossible dreams

May 15 2010, 7:57 PM by Paul Michael Sparks Don Quijote didn’t ship by Seth Godin Society makes heroes out of entrepreneurs and adventurers that tilt at windmills and succeed. Napster slays the music industry! Twitter comes out of nowhere! The thing about taking on the biggest giants is that most of the time (so often as to be all of the time if you’re willing to do some rounding) you fail. You don’t just fail at the end, you often fail long before the end. Yet the dreamers persist. These are usually the garage entrepreneurs, people with little market success behind them, those working without a track record or significant resources. People forget that Google was backed with millions of dollars from the biggest VCs in the world when they took on Yahoo. I know, I know, I’m supposed to be the guy who says, “go for it!” but the fact is, most of the time the choice to take on impossible odds, to challenge the entrenched monopolist is the work of the lizard brain. After all, if you dream the impossible dream and go after the thing that can’t possibly work, you don’t have to worry about being criticized, you don’t have to worry about the responsibility of shipping or serving your customers. After all, it was impossible. Tangling with the largest possible opponent, when you are severely overmatched is a way of giving in to the resistance, of not actually shipping. My best advice: win little battles. Get in the habit of winning, of shipping, of having customers that can’t live without you. Once you’ve demonstrated you know how to do the art, then go after the windmills. via sethgodin.typepad.com 73

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June, 2010 “The essence of love is perception, therefore the essence of self love is self perception. June 18 2010, 3:16 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

“The essence of love is perception,” according to the teachings of Marc Gafni, “Therefore the essence of self love is self perception. You can only fall in love with someone you can see clearly--including yourself. To love is to have eyes to see. It is only when you see yourself clearly that you can begin to love yourself.”

“When I read about the evils of drinking, I gave up reading.”...Henny Youngman (inspired by Anurag Gupta) June 2 2010, 9:47 AM by Paul Michael Sparks

A bank is a place where they lend you an umbrella in fair weather and ask for it back when it begins to rain. - Robert Frost June 14 2010, 1:26 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

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A group of 1400 people, have done 73.4% of all the edits on Wikipedia! June 8 2010, 4:41 AM by Paul Michael Sparks

Burning with longing-fire, wanting to sleep with my head on your doorsill, my living is composed only of this trying to be in your Presence. June 17 2010, 1:54 AM by Paul Michael Sparks

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Deep Changes Awaiting Us: My Clear Vision during this powerful window of the Summer Solstice & Lunar Eclipse. June 24 2010, 2:26 AM by Paul Michael Sparks

Summer Solstice & Lunar Eclipse June 26: A Time to Readjust Your Thinking for 2010 The Solstice event for June 2010 is a truly remarkable celestial alignment. It is the strongest celestial event we have witnessed in years. Astrological fireworks are stirring the pot of the collective psyche this week. There is the Sun moving into the sign of Cancer on June 21 with the Summer Solstice. There is a Lunar Eclipse on June 26 and there is a Grand Cross also called a Grand Square happening along with it. I read a great quote in an article by Stephanie Austin which seems to cover it: “There’s good news and there’s bad news. The bad news: Civilization, as we know it is about to end. Now, the good news: civilization, as we know it, is about to end.” (Swami Beyondananda) I believe that we as souls have chosen consciously to incarnate into these exciting times to be part of the most outrageous changes possible. As divine creators we chose this time to live new dreams on earth after millenniums of suffering in the old Darwinian paradigm of survival of the fittest. references from: http://www.articlesbase.com/astrology-articles/ summer-solstice-lunar-eclipse-june-26-a-time-to-readjust-yourthinking-for-2010-2707318.html#ixzz0rlDLqiTr Under Creative Commons License: Attribution

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The Vision I, Paul Sparks, hold during this time of manifestation: Who Am I? * Artist, Musician, Mystic. Committed to pushing myself as an artist, and as a human being. * Songwriter, thought leader, game changer, shift-maker. * I am a Grammy & Oscar award winning musician, and film composer. * Creator of the successful novelty animated short film series that has become part of modern day culture. This series introduces cultural thought memes that become a point of reference for states of perception beyond our current everyday reality. These little appetizers of wisdom have become a go-to method for parents as an alternative to the traditional / slightly-outdated fables and fairy tales, and have also become talking points within universities and spiritual communities around the world.

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Desire only that of which you have no hope; seek only that of which you have no clue. June 17 2010, 1:53 AM by Paul Michael Sparks

Love is the sea of not-being and there the intellect drowns. - â&#x20AC;&#x153;Subtle Degressâ&#x20AC;? by Rumi (translated by Daniel Liebert in The Rumi Collection, Threshold Books, Brattleboro, VT 1996.

Earth is crammed with heaven... June 8 2010, 4:21 AM by Paul Michael Sparks

Fuel Film Review - Hopeful outlook for the future of energy June 10 2010, 12:01 AM by Paul Michael Sparks http://julieclawson.com/2008/12/01/movie-review-fuel/

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I looked hot today. You missed out. June 8 2010, 5:43 AM by Paul Michael Sparks

My New Blog Design!

June 25 2010, 6:16 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

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Stories are the vehicle that moves metaphor and image into experience... June 24 2010, 2:35 AM by Paul Michael Sparks Stories are the vehicle that moves metaphor and image into experience. Like metaphor and images, stories communicate what is generally invisible and ultimately inexpressible. In seeking to understand these realities through time, stories provide a perspective that touches on the divine, allowing us to see reality in full context, as part of its larger whole. Stories invite a kind of vision that gives shape and form even to the invisible, making the images move, clothing the metaphors, throwing color into the shadows. Of all the devices available to us, stories are the surest way of touching the human spirit. -- The Spirituality of Imperfection

The New Human Experiment - The Makeup of My New Credo for Life from Rob Brezny’s - Pronoia June 8 2010, 4:20 AM by Paul Michael Sparks

The New Human Experiment OBJECTIVE: To explore the secrets of becoming a wildly disciplined, fiercely tender, ironically sincere, scrupulously curious, aggressively sensitive, blasphemously reverent, lyrically logical, lustfully compassionate Master of Rowdy Bliss. DEFINITION: Pronoia is the antidote to paranoia. It’s the understanding that the universe is fundamentally friendly. It’s a mode of training your senses and intellect so you’re able to perceive the fact that life always gives you exactly what you need, exactly when you need it. 80

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HYPOTHESES: Evil is boring, Cynicism is idiotic. Fear is a bad habit. Despair is lazy. Joy is fascinating. Love is an act of heroic genius. Pleasure is your birthright. Receptivity is a superpower. PROCEDURE: Act as if the universe is a prodigious miracle created for your amusement and illumination. Assume that secret helpers are working behind the scenes to assist you in turning into the gorgeous masterpiece you were born to be. Join the conspiracy to shower all of creation with blessings. GUIDING QUESTION: “The secret of life,” said sculptor Henry Moore to poet Donald Hall, “is to have a task, something you devote your entire life to, something you bring everything to, every minute of the day for your whole life. And the most important thing is--it must be something you cannot possibly do.” What is that task for you? DAILY PRACTICE: Push hard to get better, become smarter, grow your devotion to the truth, fuel your commitment to beauty, refine your emotional intelligence, hone your dreams, negotiate with your shadow, cure your ignorance, shed your pettiness, heighten your drive to look for the best in people, and soften your heart--even as you always accept yourself for exactly who you are with all of your socalled imperfections. coming next in a later post: “POSSIBLE REWARDS” of living by this new credo... from Rob Brezny’s - Pronoia

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The new meaning of the web... as a new mode of production emergingMore from Don Tapscott June 23 2010, 4:31 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

The work of the spirit is silent; it is homeopathic. But it is undoubtedly certain and real. June 24 2010, 1:14 AM by Paul Michael Sparks

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This being human is a guest house. Welcome and entertain all guests, even if they’re a crowd of sorrows... June 8 2010, 4:43 AM by Paul Michael Sparks This being human is a guest house. Every morning a new arrival. A joy, a depression, a meanness, some momentary awareness comes as an unexpected visitor. Welcome and entertain them all! Even if they’re a crowd of sorrows, who violently sweep your house empty of it’s furniture, still, treat each guest honorably. He may be clearing you out for some new delight. The dark thought the shame, the malice, meet them at the door laughing, and invite them in. Be grateful for whoever comes, because each has been sent as a guide from beyond. --Rumi

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Vocatus aut non vocatus, Deus adest”? :translation “Called or not, God is present” June 22 2010, 2:10 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

When you want money, ask for advice. When you want advice, ask for money. June 16 2010, 4:13 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

$10 is the ‘magic’ digital-media figure: Online Companies are charging $10/month for access to the most desirable content.

July 7 2010, 12:31 PM by Paul Michael Sparks Entertainment companies are finding their footing and figuring out standard ways to make money. Their solution appears to be charging $10 a month for access to the most desirable content. This crystallized last week when Hulu announced a $10 per month premium service. Hulu Plus offers full collections of current TV shows in high definition, making them available through some phones, game consoles and TVs with Internet connections. It’s roughly the same template that Netflix used to build a streaming movie service, Rhapsody used with subscription music and Amazon. com is doing with Kindle books

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My goal is not to get to heaven. (Return to Majesty) May 22, 2012

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y goal is not to get to heaven I don’t like to shoot so low. I’m not climbing to the top of the world. But to the top of me. To the depth of me, To the greatest potential Of what I can be, This life Is my design, I am the screenwriter, And I intend on winning an Oscar. My goal is to rediscover me endlessly, And share who that is through my living. My breathing. My words. My laughter. To live, Such an outrageously delicious, Illegally indulgent life, That angels in heaven start to get jealous. With so much bittersweet pleasure, that it puts the most hedonistic demons to shame, And with so much love, It makes Mother Teresa look selfish. I think if enough of us pull this off, Earth will develop a reputation As the hottest spot in this corner of the cosmos. I’m on this earth for just a speck of a moment, but as long as I’m here, I’ll be sure to keep the vibe alive as long as I have breath. Unwind my mind, Indulge in giving Re-discover the meaning of living Re-make magnificence This is my return to majesty. Mad Love, Paul Michael Sparks 87

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July, 2010 A Whole New Mind

| Daniel Pink July 14 2010, 2:18 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

A Whole New Mind

* New York Times bestseller * BusinessWeek bestseller * Wall Street Journal bestseller 88

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* Washington Post bestseller

Lawyers. Accountants. Computer programmers. That’s what our parents encouraged us to become when we grew up. But Mom and Dad were wrong. The future belongs to a very different kind of person with a very different kind of mind. The era of “left brain” dominance, and the Information Age that it engendered, are giving way to a new world in which “right brain” qualities-inventiveness, empathy, meaning-predominate. That’s the argument at the center of this provocative and original book, which uses the two sides of our brains as a metaphor for understanding the contours of our times. In this insightful and entertaining book, which has been translated into 20 languages, Daniel H. Pink offers a fresh look at what it takes to excel. A Whole New Mind reveals the six essential aptitudes on which professional success and personal fulfillment now depend, and includes a series of hands-on exercises culled from experts around the world to help readers sharpen the necessary abilities. This book will change not only how we see the world but how we experience it as well. via danpink.com

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7 Prescriptions to gift yourself with a lustfully compassionate day July 23 2010, 2:50 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

1. Meditate naked under a waterfall 2. Relive the last day of your childhood 3. Sip the tears of someone you love 4. Rebel against your horoscope 5. Feel sorry for a devious lawyer 6. See how far you can spit a mouthful of beer 7. Give yourself another chance -Rob Brezsny

100’s of surprising Incorrect predictions July 21 2010, 9:15 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

Read all here: http://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Incorrect_predictions Everyone acquainted with the subject will recognize it as a conspicuous failure. * Henry Morton, president of the Stevens Institute of Technology, on Edison’s light bulb, 1880. Television won’t last. It’s a flash in the pan. * Mary Somerville, pioneer of radio educational broadcasts, 1948.

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All of creation is conspiring to shower us with blessings. Life is crazily in love with us -- brazenly and innocently in love with us. The universe always give us exactly what we need, exactly when we need it. - Rob Brezsny

July 23 2010, 3:33 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

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Blatantly totalitarian government is unnecessary because the mass audience eagerly participates in its own brainwashing. July 23 2010, 3:17 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

Combinatory play seems to be the essential feature in productive thought - Albert Einstein July 14 2010, 12:55 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

First I dream my painting, then I paint my dream - Van Gogh July 23 2010, 11:46 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

Go where your body and soul want to go. When you have the feeling, then stay with it, and donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t let anyone throw you off. - Joseph Campbell July 31 2010, 11:31 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

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How do you choose a woman? July 22 2010, 12:35 AM by Paul Michael Sparks How do you choose a woman? I choose a woman who is most inviting and will tolerate nothing less than consciousness How does she choose you? you look deep into her heart and evoke the depth of yearning that is always there the part that wants to be ravished & opened to god and wants to feel you loving her & opening her to god If everything about you is “I am consciousness, and you are mine” she’ll go, “Aahhhh, finally”

I slept and dreamt that life was joy. I awoke and saw that life was service. I acted and behold, service was joy. -Rabindranath Tagore

July 30 2010, 12:47 AM by Paul Michael Sparks

If God is separate from the universe... July 21 2010, 5:27 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

If God is separate from the universe, I would rather worship a God who can be seen, who can be heard, who can be tasted, who can be felt by my heart and perceived by my soul. I worship the God who is before me. I see the God who is in everything.

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If you must speak ill of another, do not speak it, write it in the sand at the waterâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s edge. Napoleon Hill July 13 2010, 1:11 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

If you so choose to speak, may the words you share be more profound than the silence you break. - Adil Kassam

July 13 2010, 12:07 AM by Paul Michael Sparks

John Legend - Green Light ft. Andre 3000 July 3 2010, 4:30 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

What I like about this video: Shot in a real house (not green screened) I want to play piano in a venue like this: - I like the raw real style of John Legend + natural flow of Andre 3000 - beautiful cream women - great dancing - pimp ass ride at the end 94

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Journey to the Heart

July 7 2010, 4:13 AM by Paul Michael Sparks

Life is a mysterious wonderful, juicy place. July 22 2010, 12:36 AM by Paul Michael Sparks

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OH, How much I love brownies! July 7 2010, 3:56 AM by Paul Michael Sparks

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Originality is not doing something no one else has ever done, but doing what has been done countless times, but with new life, new breath. - Marie Chaplan July 23 2010, 11:47 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

Reclaiming the feminine principle... July 31 2010, 11:02 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

Psychologist Carl Jung proposed that the feminine principle reclaimed within every man and woman would create the intermediary bridge needed to reconcile the existing human needs and collective learnings surrounding the unsolved conflicts, dualities, polarities, and oppositions present within the human psyche.

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REDEFINING Some Important words to give them a fresher meaning. July 4 2010, 2:30 AM by Paul Michael Sparks Money : A symbolic system representing stored energy , Time : The awareness of change... Model: The way something is thought to be Language: Sets of rules for constructing models Art: Exploring the Making and breaking of rules -The investigation of differences and similarities -A Symbolic system researching Energy Systems -A Set of rules for constructing Models -The Symbol as Commodity Science: A Set of rules for testing the validity of Models Technology: The practical ability to cause change Culture: The models and rules common to a group

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Standing on a whale, fishing for Minnows July 31 2010, 10:19 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

I loved this quote so much, I wanted to bring it to life with an original artwork. This polynesian saying, “Standing on a whale, fishing for Minnows”, basically sums up the state of mankind today. In the book, “ The Diamond in Your Pocket: Discovering Your True Radiance,” Gangaji describes our never-ending search as human beings to find fulfillment that already exists if we stop long enough to experience it. Joseph Campbell expounds... We are standing on a whale. The ground of being is the ground of our being, and when we simply turn outward, we see all of these little problems here and there. But, if we look inward, we see that we are the source of them all. 99

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The dawning of the age of intuition and spirit July 31 2010, 10:27 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

The Prophecy of the Condor and the Eagle The dawning age of intuition and spirit From Confessions of an Economic Hit Man (page 209) by John Perkins: Nearly every culture I know prophesies that in the late 1990â&#x20AC;&#x2122;s we entered a period of remarkable transition. At monasteries in the Himalayas, ceremonial sites in Indonesia, and indigenous reservations in North America, from the depths of the Amazon to the peaks of the Andes, and into the ancient Mayan cities of Central America, I have heard that ours is a special moment in human history, and that each of us was born at this time because we have a mission to accomplish. 100

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There is a two-thousand year old prophecy of the Eagle and the Condor. The eagle represents the modern, technological world, and the people of the eagle have developed the intellect at the expense of the heart. The people of the condor represent the indigenous people of the world living close to the land, with the heart and wisdom that come from being attuned to the natural world. According to the prophecy we are at the beginning of the â&#x20AC;&#x153;Fifth Pachacutiâ&#x20AC;?, a time when the eagle and the condor will once again fly together; a time of partnership and healing, and a transition out of an era of conflict and turmoil into more sustainable and earth-honoring ways. You can watch a trailer of a film that we are working on about this subject at elevate.us

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The new 11th Commandment: Thou shalt not bore God July 23 2010, 3:10 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

Being alive on the rough green and brown earth is the highest honor and privilege. It’s an invitation to work wonders and perform miracles that aren’t possible in any nirvana, promised land, or afterlife. We are already living in paradise. Visualize it if you dare. The sweet stuff that quenches all of our longing is not far away in some other time and place. It’s right here and right now. Poet Elizabeth Barrett Browning knew the truth: “Earth’s crammed with heaven.” Evil is boring. Cynicism is idiotic. Fear is a bad habit. Despair is lazy. Joy is fascinating. Love is an act of heroic genius. Pleasure is our birthright. Receptivity is a superpower. Our assignment? Act as if the universe is a prodigious miracle created for our amusement and illumination. Assume that secret helpers are working behind the scenes to assist you in turning into the gorgeous masterpiece you were born to be. Join the conspiracy to shower all of creation with blessings. “The secret of life,” said sculptor Henry Moore to poet Donald Hall, “is to have a task, something you devote your entire life to, something you bring everything to, every minute of the day for your whole life. And the most important thing is -- it must be something you cannot possibly do. “ What is that task for you? - Rob Brezny 102

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This just in: Only 15% of the shoppers in a grocery store ‘express line’ obey the 10-item limit. July 23 2010, 3:12 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

Towards a Visual Culture: The Power of Visual Communication July 12 2010, 11:44 PM by Paul Michael Sparks Sight is swift, comprehensive, simultaneously analytic, and synthetic. It requires so little energy to function, as it does, at the speed of light, that it permits our minds to receive and hold an infinite number of items of information in a fraction of a second.” Caleb Gattengo - Towards a Visual Culture

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We have been given the gift of life for a reason July 5 2010, 4:34 PM by Paul Michael Sparks We have been given the gift of life for a reason. When we understand that reason, our life becomes infused with purpose and meaning. A Sufi sage, Rumi, has this to add: “One thing must not be forgotten. Forget all else, but remember this, and you’ll have no regrets. Remember and be concerned with everything else, but ignore this one thing, and you’ll have done nothing. It is as if a king has sent you on a mission to a foreign land to perform one specific task for him. If you do a hundred things, but not this appointed task, what have you accomplished? Human beings come into this world for a particular purpose, and if they forget it they will have done nothing at all.” (Jalal Al-Din Rumi, 1207 ~ 1273)

“When you are inspired by some great purpose, some extraordinary project, all your thoughts break their bonds: Your mind transcends limitations, your consciousness expands in every direction, and you find yourself in a new, great, and wonderful world. Dormant forces, faculties and talents become alive, and your discover yourself to be a greater person by far than you ever dreamed yourself to be.” (Patañjali )

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What is a 3rd Stage Relationship?... when you surrender to, and realize that you are the infinite mystery that is trying to live through you July 22 2010, 3:21 AM by Paul Michael Sparks What is a 3rd Stage relationship?

stage 1. I need you (to depend on another). stage 2. I don’t need anyone. I could take care of myself. This is wholeness...(but, to be whole requires creating boundaries; healthy boundaries, but boundaries nonetheless).

stage 3. I ache for a partner that opens me wide without boundaries more consistently than I can open myself to God. I don’t need one, but myself isn’t good enough anymore. I prefer to open through a 2-bodied form. I desire someone or something that draws me beyond the boundaries of my wholeness. The third stage is to be god, the surrendering opening into continuity, infinity. everything you perform is spontaneously arising from the divine. a magical dance displaying itself through you. So, in a 3rd stage relationship, you would actually agree to violate all preferences for the sake of love. You would actually agree that both of you are willing to suffer through, or enjoy, whatever occurs when you allow love to live you, when you allow the deepest possible love, 106

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consciousness, or divinity to unfold thorough your relationship. What is going to be the consequences of that, you don’t know until you do it. Maybe it means you get divorced. Maybe it means you stay married forever. Maybe it means you take other lovers, or that you never have sex again and become celibate. Maybe it means you have sex 3 times a day. Who knows how love would move through you?! -Notes from a David Deida talk

Wise words from Herbie Hancock:

Earth is already one planet. We just have to catch up with nature. July 21 2010, 1:13 AM by Paul Michael Sparks

In America, unless you’re Native American, you’re an immigrant. Our roots are from all over the planet.

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Your Consciousness is having sex with reality. July 22 2010, 12:05 AM by Paul Michael Sparks

The entire realm of manifestation is sexual in a certain way Consciousness is masculine, and everything that appears is feminine. So, right now, your consciousness is having sex with everything that you see and taste and smell and feel. It’s merging with it It’s doing it That’s why sex is such an interesting thing for most people, because it’s re-enacting the masculine feminine union of consciousness and light through the bodies. And if one of you could just allow your body to surrender open as light and the other could penetrate that with concioussness, ... absolute, imperturbable, perfect consciousness ... well, that’s really good sex. David Deida

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August, 2010

A woman can say more in a sigh than a man can say in a sermon. ~Arnold Haultain August 3 2010, 5:14 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

Ancient tale of the russian archer with flawless accuracy August 4 2010, 4:26 AM by Paul Michael Sparks

He was a small man, who didn’t talk much, but he was known throughout the village as the best marksmen. His bow n arrow were amazingly accurate, nothing but bulls-eyes The trees of the forest were marked with target circles and his arrows were found dead center in the middle of the circle every time. The Czar of Russia was passing through their hamlet, and witnessed all the clean targets with the arrows perfectly landed. He demanded to speak to this amazing archer. “How can it be that you hit your target perfectly every time?” asked the Zar. “It’s simple,” responded the archer, “First I shoot the arrow and then I draw the circle.” 109

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Art of francoise Nielly

August 18 2010, 1:50 AM by Paul Michael Sparks

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Authenticity is invaluable; originality is non-existent. August 1 2010, 1:58 AM by Paul Michael Sparks

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Be to her virtues very kind. Be to her faults a little blind. ~Matthew Prior August 8 2010, 3:29 AM by Paul Michael Sparks

Every day I spend with you is the new best day of my life - love â&#x20AC;&#x153;godâ&#x20AC;? August 2 2010, 2:42 AM by Paul Michael Sparks

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Goddesses in Every Woman, and the Gods in Every Man August 8 2010, 8:11 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

Goddesses in Every Woman: Just as women used to be unconscious of the powerful effects that cultural stereotypes had on them, they may also be unconscious of powerful forces within them that influence what they do and how they feel, and which account for major differences among women. Psychoanalyst Jean Bolen believes that an understanding of these inner patterns and their interrelationships offers reassuring, trueto-life alternatives that take women far beyond such restrictive dichotomies as masculine/feminine, mother/lover, careerist/ housewife. And she demonstrates how understanding them 113

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can provide the key to self-knowledge and wholeness. Dr. Bolen introduces these patterns in the guise of seven archetypal goddesses, or personality types, with whom all women will identify. Goddesses in Everywoman shows readers how to identify their ruling goddesses (from the autonomous Artemis and the cool Athena to the nurturing Demeter and the creative Aphrodite), how to decide which to cultivate and which to overcome, and how to tap the power of these enduring archetypes to become better “heroines” in their own life stories.

From the Author by Dr. Jean Shinoda Bolen I wrote Goddesses in Everywoman as a psychology of women, that has over the past fifteen years since I wrote it, become something of a classic. I’ve been told how useful it has been to facilitate discussions between mothers and daughters, sisters, and friends about their differences and similarities. It’s helped men understand the significant women in their lives (something women who have given the book to husbands and lovers, with chapters or passages marked, hoped would happen). It’s a book that has become a text in a very wide 114

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variety of courses from high school to graduate school, in mythology, psychology, women’s studies, literature, creative writing, drama, and counseling, and had a major influence in women’s spirituality. Its perspective and mine is Jungian, feminist, spiritual, clinical, right brain and left. I wish that women readers would also read Gods in Everyman, for a complete understanding of themselves. I think that just about every woman who does so, will find an aspect of herself in a god-archetype, which completes her internal pantheon. For example, Hermes (Mercury) the messenger god, is a very significant archetype in me. I have the exploratory energy of Artemis, but it is Hermes that puts what I learn in words and makes the intuitive connections.

My favorite excerpts from Goddesses in Every Woman:

Stereotypes & Archetypes

The Jungian perspective has made me aware that women are influenced by powerful inner forces, or archetypes, which can be personified by Greek goddesses. And the feminist perspective has given me and understanding o how outer forces, or stereotypes-the roles to which society expects women to conform--reinforce some goddess patterns and repress others. As a result, I see every woman as a “woman-in-between”:acted on from within by goddess archetypes and from without by cultural stereotypes. Once a woman becomes aware of forces that influence her, she gains the power that knowledge proves. The “goddesses” are powerful, invisible forces that shape behavior and influence emotions. Knowledge about the “goddesses” within women is new territory for consciousness raising about women. When she knows which 115

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“goddesses” are dominant forces within her, a woman acquires selfknowledge about the strength of certain instincts, about priorities and abilities, about the possibilities of finding personal meaning through choices other might not encourage.

Myth is the Depersonalized Dream When a myth is interpreted, intellectually or intuitively grasped understanding can result. A myth is like a dream that we recall even when it is not understood because it is symbolically important. According to mythologist Joseph Campbell, “Dream is the personalized myth, myth the depersonalized dream.” No wonder myths invariably seem vaguely familiar. When a dream is correctly interpreted, the dreamer has a flash of insight--an “Aha!”--as the situation to which the dream refers becomes clear. The dreamer intuitively grasp and keeps the knowledge.

From Publishers Weekly In her popular Goddesses in Every woman , Jungian analyst Bolen told females how to relate to the Aphrodite or Hera within them. Now she’s back with more received wisdom from Mount Olympus, this time for men, as exemplified by such thunderbolts as: “An Apollo man isn’t much of a lover”; “The Zeus man prides himself on seeing the bigger picture”; “A Hermes man finds settling down difficult.” Her attempt to systematically map a masculine psychology based on archetypes personified by Greek gods is at least as simplistic as sunsign astrology but often sounds more vapid. She does instant readings on celebs too: John Belushi and Jim Morrison, “public Dionysus 116

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figures,” burned out and didn’t survive their midlife crises; Robert Kennedy “had an Ares streak,” which did not endear him to the Mafia, and so forth “This book will help you discover the mythic depth that is the wellspring of your life.” -- --Sam Keen, author of Fire in the Belly

More favorite excerpts: Every archetype is associated with particular “god-given” or “goddessgiven” gifts and potential problems. Appreciating that this is so makes either arrogance or self-blame less likely. And because whatever we do that arises out of our archetypal depths has meaning for us, a man who knows which god or gods are active in him may be able to make choices knowing which options or directions are likely to be personally more satisfying. Reading about the gods sometimes turns out to be a means of “remembering” cut-off (dismembered) parts of ourselves. This process may be also aided by dreams, memories, and myths that tap into our unconscious. Learning about the different Gods in Everyman is also important to women, many of whom put a great deal of effort into trying to understand men ( usually one particular man at a time). Psychologically minded women sometimes realize that they repreatedly get involved with a particular type of man, and they sense that they really need to know “who” attracts them. The Gods in Everyman can tell them they have been drawn to a particular god or archetype in a series of men, and this “god” is not compatible with their expectations, which explains why their relationships repeatedly have unhappy endings. 117

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How to start a Renaissance - make wiser choices August 2 2010, 1:59 AM by Paul Michael Sparks Gregg Braden talks about the Holographic Nature of the Universe, and how, upon understanding how a hologram works, we realize that our individual choices influence everyone else in the world.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yXBnrLPVTVY Gregg summarizes all the the principles that are available to us through the ancient texts into 4 tenants. 1. thereâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s only one of us here. Weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re unity by nature 2. that unity consciousness is moving collectively toward this rare moment in history 3. We have direct access to the creative forces of our world 4. The science of compassion may be the most ancient science that allows us to gracefully challenge the great challenges of our life

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Expounding on the first tenant, which is basically saying that our consciousness is holographic by nature What is a hologram? a pattern that is whole and complete unto itself, and is part of a greater pattern that is also whole and complete unto itself. The cells of your body are holographic, because one cell has all the information it needs to create another you. What does that imply? Any place in the pattern of a hologram where you make one little change... that change is mirrored throughout the rest of the hologram What that means to us? Each time one individual chooses a new way to respond to the challenges of our time... Chooses something other than hate, retribution, judgment... chooses a higher path... it makes it easier for others to choose the same. Are we choosing to carry across this bridge into the new paradigm hate, judgment, and warfare? OR do we choose peace, forgiveness, compassion, and love. honoring all the polarity that brought us to this moment. the hate, judgment and animosity have served us... have thrust us into this new path weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re moving into. Letâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s create a Renaissance!

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‘I am an old man and have known a great many troubles, but most of them never happened.’ - Mark Twain August 29 2010, 3:38 AM by Paul Michael Sparks

Why Constant Worry is Useless We live in a culture where everyone seems to worry. Turn on the news – someone got shot, there’s mercury in the fish we eat, the cows have got BSE, a new super-flu is coming, terrorists are regrouping… on and on it goes. If you take all of this stuff seriously, it’s likely that you’ll never go out, never eat, never travel, or never take any kind of risk at all. But in fact, worry makes no sense at all. 120

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Here are some reasons why worry really is a pointless and damaging activity, though I suspect we all know this deep down. Things never happen the way you imagine. When you worry, you are predicting the future. You are saying ‘I know that things will turn out badly.’ But this just isn’t the case. You have no idea how the future is going to turn out, except to say that it will not be what you think it will be. So why worry?

Worry means you give away your power Some people are so entrenched in worry that they cannot see any other way to live. But worry robs you of your power to be proactive. The truth is that you are in control and you can choose how to react to situations, so why choose to give that power away so easily and so unconsciously?

Worrying is completely unproductive Why waste your energy doing something that gets you nowhere. On a treadmill, at least you get some exercise, but worry is a truly pointless activity. Spend your time and energy on something more useful.

Worry distorts reality We live in an age where people live longer, have better access to health care, have more opportunity for personal and professional growth, more chance to travel, greater access to information and lifelong education, and many other wonderful things. Yes, there are risks and potential dangers, but worry magnifies these disproportionately and blinds us to the wonders of our age. 121

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Worrying is bad for your health Worry is not a normal state of mind and it adversely affects your health, even your physical health. When you worry, physical changes are happening in your body which are very damaging. It increases stress which can increase blood pressure, cause higher levels of stomach acid, cause muscle tension and headaches, among many other things.

Worry is not natural Do little children worry? Do animals worry? Do all adults worry? There is nothing inherent in being human that means you have to worry. Worry is a pathology, a distortion of our natural, healthy state. Do you know the most frequent instruction given in the Bible? Surprisingly, it is not ‘love one another’ or ‘love God’ or anything like that. It is simple ‘do not be afraid.’ I don’t know how many times it appears, but I’ve seen estimates between 100 and 366 times. You don’t have to be religious to realize that this is good advice. So how can we break out of this worry habit? Like all habits, it might not be easy to do, but there are some clear, simple and effective steps you can take to eliminate worry from your life.

Realize that you are in control In The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People, Steven Covey tells us that the first step to a better life is the realization that we are free to choose how to react to circumstances. Worry is a choice – it’s inside our own head and, as such, it is within the sphere of our own 122

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influence.

Recognize that worry is a habit Like all habits, there is a momentum to worry, and it might not be easy to break away from this, especially if you’ve been a worrier all your life. But it’s possible to change any habit. Keep things in perspective. E. Joseph Crossman said, ‘If you want to test your memory, try to recall what you were worrying about one year ago today.’ Are you still worrying about those things? Will all this stuff matter in 100 years from now?

Face your fears Nelson DeMille said that ‘Somehow our devils are never quite what we expect when we meet them face to face.’ After you do something that scares you, you’ll probably find it wasn’t as bad as you thought. With time, all your worry will dissipate.

Stop trying to be in control of everything You cannot control the whole world. Things happen that are truly outside our circle of influence, and so we need to relax and accept that sometimes things just happen as they will. This is part of life, and worry will not change it one little bit.

Stop taking yourself so seriously If you fail, so what? If you screw up, is it the end of the world? Are you really so important that the world will stop turning if you get things wrong? Life is not that serious. 123

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from: http://www.listofdesires.com/

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I am the master of il bel far niente August 24 2010, 7:50 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

Elizabeth Gilbert (Eat Pray Love) writes that Americans don’t know how to vacation and do nothing. In discussing this with an Italian, by the name of Luca Spaghetti, he explains that in Italy people do not have this problem as they “are the masters of il bel far niente” - the beauty of doing nothing.

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I’m speaking at the 2010 Topanga Film Festival August 19 2010, 1:57 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

What I’m gonna be talking about: 1. Using the art of paradox to disrupt someone’s perception of reality. 2. How Social Engagement is Changing. The new paradigm that we are now in, and what the rules of that new paradigm are. * The danger of “horesless carriage thinking”. * We are in the attention age. A wealth of information means a scarcity of attention. * Don’t push a product. Instead, invite people to identify themselves with a tribe. A tribe is a group of people gathered around a common worldview, perspective, idea. 126

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* Dead is the paradigm of interuption marketing, manipulation, business success measured by economics alone, products sold based upon features (bigger, better faster). Today, people aren’t just looking for a good product, or service. People are looking for a tribe to become a part of, to identify themselves with, and the purchasing of that product is simply just a badge that symbolizes that you are part of that tribe. (i.e. “iphone-ers”... or “people that wear nike”... or “people who bring starbucks to work”, or “people who walk around with a yoga mat” , “People who watched Avatar” ). The way we communicate in this paradigm is not about selling products, or pushing a message, or winning customers. it’s about Listening, participating, discovery, serving, uncovering. Connecting to others with wonder and curiosity. 3. Using Mythic Stories to Recreate a Dream Experience: You have to use the language of symbols to communicate deeper truths, and allow the viewer to create their own conclusions. This same process happens in dreams. A film is basically a re-created dream experience. Rapid images flashing before the viewers minds eye, where they’re left having to interpret it into something personally meaningful and relevant that they can apply towards their present life circumstance, or soul endeavors.

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We canâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t master the nature of humanity until we master our inner nature. - Paul Michael Sparks In a world where software and web services are becoming increasingly rich in functionality - and therefore more complex - itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s nice to see tools that reverse that trend - tools that make things easier. August 5 2010, 1:20 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

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Kahlil Gibran on Love August 25 2010, 5:36 AM by Paul Michael Sparks

When love beckons to you, follow him, Though his ways are hard and steep. And when his wings enfold you yield to him, Though the sword hidden among his pinions may wound you. And when he speaks to you believe in him, Though his voice may shatter your dreams as the north wind lays waste the garden. For even as love crowns you so shall he crucify you. Even as he is for your growth so is he for your pruning. Even as he ascends to your height and caresses your tenderest branches that quiver in the sun, So shall he descend to your roots and shake them in their clinging to the earth. 129

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Like sheaves of corn he gathers you unto himself. He threshes you to make you naked. He sifts you to free you from your husks. He grinds you to whiteness. He kneads you until you are pliant; And then he assigns you to his sacred fire, that you may become sacred bread for God’s sacred feast. All these things shall love do unto you that you may know the secrets of your heart, and in that knowledge become a fragment of Life’s heart. But if in your fear you would seek only love’s peace and love’s pleasure, Then it is better for you that you cover your nakedness and pass out of love’s threshing-floor, Into the seasonless world where you shall laugh, but not all of your laughter, and weep, but not all of your tears. Love gives naught but itself and takes naught but from itself. Love possesses not nor would it be possessed; For love is sufficient unto love. When you love you should not say, “God is in my heart,” but rather, “I am in the heart of God.” And think not you can direct the course of love, for love, if it finds you worthy, directs your course. 130

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Love has no other desire but to fulfill itself. But if you love and must needs have desires, let these be your desires: To melt and be like a running brook that sings its melody to the night. To know the pain of too much tenderness. To be wounded by your own understanding of love; And to bleed willingly and joyfully. To wake at dawn with a winged heart and give thanks for another day of loving; To rest at the noon hour and meditate love’s ecstasy; To return home at eventide with gratitude; And then to sleep with a prayer for the beloved in your heart and a song of praise upon your lips. La vie d’artist August 7 2010, 8:05 AM by Paul Michael Sparks ..the French have a way of looking at the world which drew me so much to the french culture when i was younger....La vie d’artist... means the life of an artist...but it is a way of describing a lifestyle or approach to life..

La vie d’artist August 7 2010, 8:05 AM by Paul Michael Sparks ..the French have a way of looking at the world which drew me so much to the french culture when i was younger....La vie d’artist... means the life of an artist...but it is a way of describing a lifestyle or approach to life..

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Love is never having to say you’re sorry. August 25 2010, 6:07 AM by Paul Michael Sparks

True love is unconditional. It is transparent, where we can accept, understand, and allow the other person to make every mistake, falter, stumble, and give genuine heartfelt compassion when they are trying their best, even if their best is can be “better.” Love carries no judgment or manipulation. Love carries no ego, or the need for ego gratification. via selfgrowth.com “Never having to say you’re sorry” means that you know you are loved truly for who you are. In other words, You don’t have to apologize for who you are.

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Love Tis Thy Divine Mirror August 7 2010, 9:36 PM by Paul Michael Sparks I was just doodling in photoshop a few weeks ago, and this is what came out.

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My daily morning cacao smoothie recipe August 4 2010, 3:36 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

Amazingly healthy and super delicious, and thick, creamy, and filling. • Almond milk • 1 banana • 2 tsp cacao powder • 2 tsp raw honey • 4 strawberries • 1 raw free range egg • handful of blueberries • Handful of walnuts • Hanful of kale or spinach (doesn’t affect the taste, but adds nutrients) 134

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My favorite quotes of wisdom I collected when I was 16 August 2 2010, 2:30 AM by Paul Michael Sparks

Does everyone have one perfect relationship that is waiting to be found, or is a “perfect” relationship something that grows and develops over time? “The philosophy of one century is the common sense of the next” There is a wonderful mythical law of nature that the three things we crave most in life - happiness, freedom and peace of mind - are always attained by giving them to someone else. - Peyton Conway March ... People are looking for a mate who “gets” them, someone who understands what matters to them on an almost intuitive level, and shares those values.” Barbara Whitehead When you lose, don’t lose the lesson Remember that not getting what you want is sometimes a stroke of luck Learn the rules so you know how to break them properly Live a good, honourable life. Then when you get older and think back, you’ll be able to enjoy it a second time. Share your knowledge. It’s a way to achieve immortality. 135

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“In sickness the body is already loaded with impurities. By taking a drug/medicine, more impurities are added, thereby the case is further embarrassed and harder to cure.” Dr. Elmer Lee, M.D. “You are not what you were born, but what is within yourself to be” “Nothing is more frequently overlooked than the obvious” He who saves one soul is likened to one who saves the entire universe We’ve never had health care in this country; only sick-care Prayer is not asking. It is a longing of the soul. It is daily admission of one’s weakness... It is better in prayer to have a heart without words than words without a heart. Mohandas Gandhi When two people are in a HONEST, REAL Love relationship, then sex goes beyond the physical act and becomes a vehicle for selftransformation and inward change.

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Putting a dent in the world. How significant Is a Ph.D? August 17 2010, 8:43 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

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Sexy in-CAR-nated

August 23 2010, 5:06 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

Surrendering to the course of life I’ve chosen August 8 2010, 7:54 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

I feel the pressure of life calling me to do more than I’m capable of, yet I know that it’s a course that I have chosen. and so, I press forward, and I surrender into the calling, looking forward to the discovery of my dormant talents and abilities that will be needed to accomplish this task. -Paul Sparks

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The Hackerâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Code August 12 2010, 4:35 AM by Paul Michael Sparks Preamble: We, the people of the electronic universe, in order to establish a society of knowledge and skills, do hereby proclaim the following. Hackers are diverse, from all cultures and backgrounds. Every hacker is unique, yet we all share some characteristics. While not every hacker follows this Code, many believe it is a fair description of our shared traditions, goals and values. 1. Hackers share and are willing to teach their knowledge 2. Hackers are skilled. Many are self-taught, or learn by interacting with other hackers. 3. Hackers seek knowledge. This knowledge may come from unauthorized or unusual sources, and is often hidden. 4. Hackers are tinkerers. They like to understand how things work, and want to make their own improvements or modifications. 5. Hackers often disagree with authority, including parents, employers, social customs and laws. They often seek to circumvent authority they disagree with. 6. Hackers disagree with each other. Different hackers have different values, and come from all backgrounds. This means that what one hacker is opposed to might be embraced by another. 7. Hackers are persistent, and are willing to devote hours, days and years to pursuing their individual passions. 8. This Code is not to prescribe how hackers act. Instead, it is to help us to recognize our own diversity and identify. 141

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9. Every hacker must make his or her own decisions about what is right or wrong, and some might do things they believe are illegal, amoral or anti-social to achieve higher goals. 10. Hackersâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; motivations are their own, and there is no reason for all hackers to agree. 11. Hackers have a shared identify, however, and many shared interests. 12. By reading this Code, hackers can recognize themselves and each other, and understand better the group they are a part of. This will be beneficial to all hackers. via petascale.org

The Hundredth Monkey Phenomenon August 2 2010, 2:07 AM by Paul Michael Sparks The Hundredth Monkey : by Ken Keyes, jr. The Japanese monkey, Macaca fuscata, had been observed in the wild for a period of over 30 years. In 1952, on the island of Koshima, scientists were providing monkeys with sweet potatoes dropped in the sand. The monkeys liked the taste of the raw sweet potatoes, but they found the dirt unpleasant. An 18-month-old female named Imo found she could solve the problem by washing the potatoes in a nearby stream. She taught this trick to her mother. Her playmates also learned this new way and they taught their mothers too. 142

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This cultural innovation was gradually picked up by various monkeys before the eyes of the scientists. Between 1952 and 1958 all the young monkeys learned to wash the sandy sweet potatoes to make them more palatable. Only the adults who imitated their children learned this social improvement. Other adults kept eating the dirty sweet potatoes. Then something startling took place. In the autumn of 1958, a certain number of Koshima monkeys were washing sweet potatoes -- the exact number is not known. Let us suppose that when the sun rose one morning there were 99 monkeys on Koshima Island who had learned to wash their sweet potatoes. Letâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s further suppose that later that morning, the hundredth monkey learned to wash potatoes. THEN IT HAPPENED! By that evening almost everyone in the tribe was washing sweet potatoes before eating them. The added energy of this hundredth monkey somehow created an ideological breakthrough! 143

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But notice. A most surprising thing observed by these scientists was that the habit of washing sweet potatoes then jumped over the sea -Colonies of monkeys on other islands and the mainland troop of monkeys at Takasakiyama began washing their sweet potatoes. Thus, when a certain critical number achieves an awareness, this new awareness may be communicated from mind to mind. Although the exact number may vary, this Hundredth Monkey Phenomenon means that when only a limited number of people know of a new way, it may remain the conscious property of these people. But there is a point at which if only one more person tunes-in to a new awareness, a field is strengthened so that this awareness is picked up by almost everyone! (from the book â&#x20AC;&#x153;The Hundredth Monkeyâ&#x20AC;? by Ken Keyes, jr. The book is not copyrighted and the material may be reproduced in whole or in part. You can look at the whole book also.)

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The Real Concept of Tantra August 3 2010, 11:57 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

Here are my notes from this well written and precise article on true Tantra. Tantra is an eminent science having thousands of principles. In fact, it is the system of our life and a science of practice and practical knowledge. Through Tantra, we can attain superb powers by attracting and deriving the divine faculties pervading the entire cosmos. The aspirant of Tantra makes his internal capacity sharp and intensely forceful just like a magnet. This science is the process of acti vating the various dormant vital glands and Chakras of the astral form, present inside the human body. It makes us aware of the truth that a person can get liberation from his own subjugation, can achieve immense power and even with the physical body present, can free himself from his body and expand his faculties infinitely. Tantra is the process of intensification of our peculiar inner 145

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potentialities so that we can command this atomic arrangement which in other words is known as ‘Siddhi’. The flow of energy is going on ceaselessly in the environment and when your own inner energy becomes capable of influencing the external ones, nothing will remain impossible for you and this is the science of Tantra in which the aspirant’s wish is first and foremost. The Universe is not discriminating about the rightness or the wrongness of your request. It is here to accommodate all requests. All you have to do is be a Vibrational Match to your request, and the Universe will yield it to you.,~ Abraham Tantra is a process of activating internal cosmic faculties of the invisible world and making them favourable for oneself. If you are not afraid, have the required equipment and also a sound knowledge then Tantra is the easiest way for you to acquire the divine powers. To emerge successful in Tantra, fearlessness as well as elevation of inner consciousness are absolutely essential because in this Sadhana, the power is to be evolved from within. the aspirant becomes very much energetic and his vigorous activities must be utilised for public welfare as well as for Self Realisation and not for causing harm to others.

How Tantra became a taboo What then happened in between that has made Tantra a taboo today? Perusal of the past reveals that after Gorakhnath pseudo gurus like 146

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Bhayanand started the misuse of Tantra and thus got introduced vile practices like meat eating, sex and money spinning into the system. These false Tantriks not just used these rather expounded that without them success is impossible in field of Tantra. These unconscientious oneâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s even stooped so low as to resort to drinking, rape and swindling. It was then but natural for the common man to keep distance from such practicers who were unfortunately more in number than real masters of Tantra. Soon society began to shun Tantra and a belief was generated that Tantra itself is a vile practice and has no useful applications in life.

The Real Benefits of Tantra Tantra is basically the source of energy and if you master this science, you can easily conquer your materialistic obstacles, other persons can be influenced by you and their activities can be channelised according to your own will. The harmful effects of planets, influences of an evil eye and evil spirits can be removed. It is also helpful as a remedy of mental tension, unbearable pain and other physical and psychological ailments. The scope of Tantra is very wide including Vashikaran, Maran, Ucchattan, Hypnotism, Divine Vision etc., which in many ways are beneficial in modern life.

on Mantra vs. Tantra ( by Gurudev ) Actually Mantra is a prayer, it is a request put to the concerned deity to help one. But it is not necessary that the deity shall be moved by oneâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s plea. On the other hand if one uses Tantra one could compel the 147

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divine power to help. Tantra in fact is a guarantee that the concerned deity shall without fail have to shower its blessings. A prayer may fail to touch the heart of the deity but Tantra forces it to grant the desired boon. The Sadhanas in Tantra and Mantra methods might appear similar yet Tantra is a thousand fold more powerful and unfailing. Tantra gains all the more significance in the present times when every person has no spare time on hands. One cannot be expected to devote several hours each day to long Sadhana procedures. Today every one wishes for instant success and Tantra sure can bring it ; for Tantra means performing a Sadhana by a special meticulous procedure. Nothing is left to chance and all aspects are taken care of, so that success is sure and instant. Still if due to human weakness some imperfection creeps into the Sadhana or Mantra chanting there are no negative results as is often (wrongly) believed by most people. Only result shall be that the desired wish shall not be fulfilled, but then one could try again. Tantra is a jewel of the Sadhana world that can solve quickly and effectively all problems of human life like poverty, misery, unhappy married life, being childless, jobless, failure in business or health and so on. To resort to Tantra means adopting a sure way to success.â&#x20AC;? http://www.siddhashram.org/realtantra.shtml

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The Real Myth behind SirensTheyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve gotten a bad rap from Greek Mythology August 17 2010, 10:09 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

Key excerpt: DYING TO SELF The song of the Sirens call men to abandon themselves, to hurl into the deep, to sprout wings, to transform, to die to self and emerge into a new form with new knowledge and understanding. It is significant that Sirens are creatures of water for water has powerful symbolic value. Water is also a duality, it can sustain life, give comfort and it is a source of life and abundance. Water is the symbol we use for baptism and spiritual rebirth and renewal. Fear of Sirens is the fear of upsetting the established equilibrium, fear of the unknown, fear of transformation, fear of learning, fear of losing oneself, fear of being out of control and fear of descending into the deep (the unconscious). 149

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It is in the sea, the womb, and the grave all places of birth, rebirth and regeneration where the enigma of transformation is concealed. The danger and seduction of the sea becomes a metaphor for the womb, the grave, and the dangers of the feminine realm. _______________________________ Beatrice Phillpotts, in her book Mermaids suggests that: Supremely beautiful, forever combing her hair, just beyond reach of men, mermaids have beckoned the adventurous to the unknown and the promise of forbidden fruits. However behind this seductive image of the Siren lurks the a metaphor of death, for enticed by her promise and allure, generations have been lur ed to their certain doom in a thousand different stories that form the bases of powerful and enduring myths and legends that continue today.

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DYING TO SELF (extended excerpt) The song of the Sirens call men to abandon themselves, to hurl into the deep, to sprout wings, to transform, to die to self and emerge into a new form with new knowledge and understanding. It is significant that Sirens are creatures of water for water has powerful symbolic value. Water is also a duality, it can sustain life, give comfort and it is a source of life and abundance. Water is the symbol we use for baptism and spiritual rebirth and renewal. It is the primordial soup, it represents purification and regeneration and it is the source from which each of us was born. Water however can also be destructive, causing inundation, drowning, annihilation and death. Sirens and mermaids embody all of these qualities and meanings and are thus symbols of both death and immortality. They call men to the unknown, to change and transformation the essential passage from one space to another, form one condition to another. They serve as escorts during times of transit, danger, transformation, uncertainty, sea voyages and missions of war. Sirens call man, urging him to abandon what he is, to become something new. Fear of Sirens is the fear of upsetting the established equilibrium, fear of the unknown, fear of transformation, fear of learning, fear of losing oneself, fear of being out of control and fear of descending into the deep (the unconscious) Sirens are a universal symbol with a multitude of traditions, myths and meanings. Sirens are hybrid creatures, half animal half woman with strong feminine identities. The two beings coexist in the same body with the prerogative of accessing the qualities of both ever being transformed, perpetually provocative and disturbing. 151

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In her book The Mermaid and the Minotaur, Dorothy Dinnerstein observes: “Myth-images of half-human beast like the mermaid and the Minotaur express an old, fundamental, very slowly clarifying communal insight: that our species’ nature is internally inconsistent, that our continuities with, and our differences from, the earth’s other animals are mysterious and profound; and in these continuities, and these differences, lie both a sense of strangeness on earth and the possible key to a way of feeling at home here. “A mermaid found a swimming lad, Picked him for her own, Pressed her body to his body, Laughed; and plunging down Forgot in cruel happiness That even lovers drown.” - William Butler Yeats The most famous Siren of all is unquestionably the little mermaid of Hans Christian Andersen (1805—1875). It is this mermaid that is the central character Aerial in the Disney film “The Little Mermaid”. The passage from conception to birth takes place in the maternal womb, the eternal earth, the grain of wheat which Persepone represents. Bachelard states; “ In point of fact, the leap into the sea, more than any other physical event, awakens echoes of a dangerous and hostile initiation. 152

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It is the only, exact, reasonable image, the only image that can be experienced of a leap into the unknown. It is in the sea, the womb, and the grave all places of birth, rebirth and regeneration where the enigma of transformation is concealed. The danger and seduction of the sea becomes a metaphor for the womb, the grave, and the dangers of the feminine realm.

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“The universe holds its breath as we choose, instant by instant, which pathway to follow...” August 26 2010, 3:52 PM by Paul Michael Sparks “The universe holds its breath as we choose, instant by instant, which pathway to follow; for the universe, the very essence of life itself, is highly conscious. Every act, thought, and choice adds to a permanent mosaic; our decisions ripple through the universe of consciousness to affect the lives of all. Lest this idea be considered either merely mystical or fanciful, let’s remember that fundamental tenet of the new theoretical physics: Everything in the universe is connected with everything else” ~ Power vsForce, David R. Hawkins

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The Universe is not discriminating about the rightness or the wrongness of your request. It is here to accommodate all requests. All you have to do is be a Vibrational Match to your request, and the Universe will yield it to you. ~ Abraham

August 3 2010, 5:10 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

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The value of a Bachelorâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s degree August 17 2010, 8:38 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

via gizmodo.com

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This is REAL love. Love is not always sweet. Love is Real. Love aches. Love kills. August 3 2010, 5:12 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

Love Because of you, in gardens of blossoming flowers I ache from the perfumes of spring. I have forgotten your face, I no longer remember your hands; how did your lips feel on mine? Because of you, I love the white statues drowsing in the parks, the white statues that have neither voice nor sight. I have forgotten your voice, your happy voice; I have forgotten your eyes. Like a flower to its perfume, I am bound to my vague memory of you. I live with pain that is like a wound; if you touch me, you will do me irreparable harm. Your caresses enfold me, like climbing vines on melancholy walls. I have forgotten your love, yet I seem to glimpse you in every window. Because of you, the heady perfumes of summer pain me; because of you, I again seek out the signs that precipitate desires: shooting stars, falling objects. -Pablo Neruda

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Why Effective Word-of-Mouth Disrupts Schemas August 25 2010, 3:05 AM by Paul Michael Sparks Disrupting a schema turns out to be at the core of all word-of-mouth. The brain cannot live in a state of disequilibrium. One way it gets back to its static state is by talking about the disruption. Significant disruption causes sustained talk. via tremor.com Just Make Sure the Disruption Stays Tied to Foundational Brand Truths There is a lot of talk today about word-of-mouth, social media and all the technologies that surround them. But have you ever wondered why consumers talk? It turns out that understanding why consumers choose to communicate is rooted in the cognitive psychological sciences. Before you nod off, read on, because this just might make you think differently about your marketing. The brain is designed not to think. Did that line disrupt your thought process? It happens to be true. Our brains are designed to try to remain in a static state, to reserve their processing power for true emergencies or survival. A mechanism the brain uses to remain in this static state is the use of schemas, mental models that we use to make the world work. They enable us to assume things and use the model to fill in the missing details. read more here: http://adage.com/article/cmo-strategy/marketingeffective-word-mouth-disrupts-schemas/141734/ 158

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Visionaries close to the edge of neuroticism August 29 2010, 3:28 AM by Paul Michael Sparks

MOYERS: But aren’t many visionaries and even leaders and heroes close to the edge of neuroticism? CAMPBELL: Yes, they are. MOYERS: How do you explain that? CAMPBELL: They’ve moved out of the society that would have protected them, and into the dark forest, into the world of fire, of original experience. Original experience has not been interpreted for you, and so you’ve got to work out your life for yourself. Either you can take it or you can’t. You don’t have to go far off the interpreted path to find yourself in very difficult situations. The courage to face the trials and to bring a whole new body of possibilities into the field of interpreted experience for other people to experience – that is the hero’s deed. But the experience of eternity right here and now, in all things, whether thought of as good or as evil, is the function of life.

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What’ the big deal about facebook? It’s the 2nd largest country in the world! August 9 2010, 2:37 AM by Paul Michael Sparks

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When you find yourself loosing energy and strength... August 29 2010, 4:05 AM by Paul Michael Sparks

When you find yourself loosing energy and strength very often it is because somebody in your circle has negative thoughts about you. This may often be because of jealousy or envy or just because you have insulted either consciously or unconsciously. When you are uncomfortable, stop, find the source and do whatever it takes to regain balance. - Paddi Moore

Wise and capable persons do not come to their conclusions in a moment, but only after a careful analysis of any thing. August 3 2010, 11:44 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

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September, 2010 Ann Hamilton : Experiential Art September 13 2010, 10:03 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

Ann Hamilton is a visual artist internationally recognized for the sensory surrounds of her large-scale multi-media installations. Using time as process and material, her methods of making serve as an invocation of place, of lost collective vocies, of communities past and of labor present. Noted for a dense accumulation of materials, Hamiltonâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s site responsive environments create immersive experiences that poetically respond to the architectural presence and social history of their sites. Whether inhabiting a building four stories high or confined to the surface of a thimble, the genesis of Hamiltonâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s art extends outwards from the primary projections of the hand and mouth. Her attention to the uttering of a sound or the shaping of a word with the hand places language and text at the tactile and metaphoric center of her installations. To enter their liminality is 162

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to be drawn equally into the sensory and linguistic capacities of comprehension that construct our faculties of memory, reason and imagination. In a time when successive generation of technology amplify human presence at distances far greater than the reach of the hand, what becomes the place and form of making at the scale and pace of the individual body? How does making participate in the recuperation and recognition of embodied knowledge? What are the places and forms for live, tactile, visceral, face-to-face experiences in a media saturated world? These concerns have animated the site responsive installations that have formed the bulk of Hamiltonâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s practice over the last 20 years. But where the relations of cloth, sound, touch, motion and human gesture once gave way to dense materiality, Hamiltonâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s work now focuses on the less material acts of reading, speaking and listening. The influence of collaborative processes in ever more complex architectures has shifted the forms of making- the movement of the viewer in time and in space now becomes a central figure of the work.

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Câ&#x20AC;&#x2122;est la vie

September 25 2010, 5:12 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

Chalk drawing by my friend Victoria September 21 2010, 1:22 AM by Paul Michael Sparks

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Following your heart is worth the risk. September 18 2010, 4:47 AM by Paul Michael Sparks

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Guiding Principles for the next noble endeavors I intend to embark upon: September 6 2010, 3:45 AM by Paul Michael Sparks

Where my head is wrapped around as I delve into The Re-Invention of Paul If you change the way you look at things, the things you look at change Desperation, let me always know how to welcome you. And put in your hands the torch to burn down the house of all my limits small fantasies, banal solutions.

My Divine Mission Statement: To channel divine brilliance and artistic genius from â&#x20AC;&#x153;cosmic sourceâ&#x20AC;? into: my art and into dynamic business ventures. To plant seeds of love and joy in peoples hearts + minds

The Path of Easy Go with the stream... to follow your bliss means to follow the path of ecstasy. : the path of e(cst)asy 166

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Lifechanging quotes about “Life Purpose” People have the notion of saving the world by shifting things around, changing the rules, and who’s on top, and so forth. No, no! Any world is a valid world if it’s alive. The thing to do is to bring life to it, and the only way to do that is to find in your own case where the life is and become alive yourself. ~Joseph Campbell If you follow your bliss, you put yourself on a kind of track that has been there all the while, waiting for you, and the life that you ought to be living is the one you are living. When you can see that, you begin to meet people who are in your field of bliss, and they open doors to you. I say, follow your bliss and ...don’t be afraid, and doors will open where you didn’t know they were going to be. ~Joseph campbell When you are inspired by some great purpose, some extraordinary project, all your thoughts break their bonds; your mind transcends limitations, your consciousness expands in every direction, and you find yourself in a new, great and wonderful world. Dormant forces, faculties and talents become alive, and you discover yourself to be a greater person by far than you ever dreamed yourself to be. (Patanjali) I don’t believe people are looking for the meaning of life as much as they are looking for the experience of being alive. Joseph Campbell

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Guiding Principles for an artist • Using Art as a force of culture. • Artists are the mythmakers of today • Story-driven Advertising • Using modern day mythology, symbology & metaphors to transfer deeper truths • Being Different. Do the opposite. Not the obvious. • Difference is deviance, a committment to the unprcedented. to lettin go • My intention is to violate expectations, and to disrupt the status quo and open people up to new possibilities. • What I want to talk about is human being’s habit to avoid “novelty”, and how we can use communication to break people open to new possibilities.

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If the current reality I am facing makes me feel crappy & shitty... I know I have the freedom to stop facing my current reality, at any moment I desire. September 6 2010, 3:23 AM by Paul Michael Sparks

It just depends on when Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;m ready to stop feeling miserable, crappy & shitty. Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve always wondered why I am so determined to place all my energy and attention on things that make me feel miserable, crappy & disempowered. What insane, self-sabotaging part of my psyche am I allowing to run the show here? I am not just a man or woman, with this problem, and that problem, and these gifts, and those gifts I am that infinite mystery that is trying to live through me Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;d have to stop breathing, clamp down my body, and concentrate on my local drama in order for that mystery to not live through me, hugely, and self-evidently So, all practice is simply undoing the knots of closures that prohibit the infinite mystery from happening fully through my embodiment. (artwork by Andrew Jones) 169

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Is there life before death?

September 16 2010, 12:05 AM by Paul Michael Sparks notes from one of my favorite writers, Andrew Harvey:: Is there life before death? Yes, but you must first die while still in the body. To die in life is to become one with the source, and to become life free from the ego. It is to become the entire experience, pain and rapture, joy and grief, even the joy and grief of the insects. “For many years I used to imagine my life before I met my Beloved, as if I were wandering through room after room of a great, shambling, strange house. In each of these rooms, with all the other noise and difficulty and strangeness that were also there, was always the scent of perfume, a strange miraculous mysterious sweetness. This perfume was something I looked for in reading, in sex, in drinking, in walking through the park, in meditating alone, in looking at Greek statues, or listening to Beethoven--something that was present in all of those activities. Then one day, I walked into a room and there She was, the one from whom emanated this scent. Our lives are full of clues, each of the rooms of our lives has the scent of the essence.”

Heaven is made of the smoke of hearts who burn away, Blessed is the one who burns away like this. The mystic “who burns away” actually reverses in every way what the ordinary person considers life to be. The ordinary person considers life to be a brief, painful, tragic flight between nothingness and nothingness. The mystic thinks of life as a manifestation of the eternal, to be savored in all its detail because it is inherently sacred and divine. While the ordinary person, the unenlightened person, 170

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imagines death to be a disaster and deceit, loss and betrayal, the ultimate torment and grief, the one who has died to reality knows death to be what Rumi calls “our wedding day with eternity.” He or she knows that death is the moment when we take off all our clothes and rush, naked, to the naked Beloved. He or she knows that death is not something to be feared, but the consummation of the reason for being here. Death is a marriage with eternity Death is not a letting go, it’s an embracing of that which you previously labeled as separate/ wrong/ not divine. it’s an acnknowledgment of something as yourself, that was previously considered foreign to you. It’s the merging of the unfamiliar into the familiar.

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Manâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s main task in life is to give birth to himself, to become what he potentially is. The most important product of his effort is his own personality. (Erich Fromm)

September 9 2010, 4:39 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

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Meet Lilith. The Real First Woman, before Eve, who was created from the earth, just like Adam September 10 2010, 4:15 AM by Paul Michael Sparks I am called by many names but my birth right is Lilith. I am the Lady of the Night. I was Adam’s first wife. I taught Cain all he knows, and I gave to him the First One’s, his son’s and daughter’s. I welcome you to my home. Any whom enter my realm are embraced with willingness. I offer many pleasures, but more importantly I offer knowledge. But do not seek my wisdom though unless you are willing to pay the price of such learning. Now child tell me what dose your soul hunt for? According to midrashic literature, Adam’s first wife was not Eve but a woman named Lilith, who was created in the first Genesis account. Only when Lilith rebelled and abandoned Adam did God create Eve, In the Alpha Betha of Ben Sira (Alphabetum Siracidis, or Sepher Ben Sira), an anonymous collection of midrashic proverbs probably compiled in the 11th century C.E., it is explained more explicitly that the conflict arose because Adam, as a way of asserting his authority over Lilith, insisted that she lie beneath him during sexual intercourse (23 A-B). Lilith, however, considering herself to be Adam’s equal, refused, and after pronouncing the Ineffable Name (i.e. the magic 173

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name of God) flew off into the air.

If you ask how Lilith herself, the first wife of Adam, became evil, the answer lies in her insubordination to her husband Adam. It is her independence from Adam, her position beyond the control of a male, 174

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that makes her “evil.” She is disobedient and like Eve, and indeed all women who are willful, she is perceived as posing a constant threat to the divinely ordered state of affairs defined by men. Lilith is the personification female sexuality. She represents the deeper, darker fear men have of women and female sexuality. Inasmuch as female sexuality, as a result of this fear, has been repressed and subjected to the severest controls in Western patriarchal society, so too has the figure of Lilith been kept hidden. It needs to be remembered that these demonic “women” are essentially personifications of unseen forces invented to account for otherwise inexplicable events and phenomena which occur in the real world. Lilith, Lamashtu, Lamia and other female demons like them are all associated with the death of children and especially with the death of newborn infants. Again, Lilith and her kind serve as a way of accounting for an otherwise inexplicable phenomenon among men. Today, 85 percent of all men experience “wet dreams” (the ejaculation of sperm while asleep) at some time in their lives, mostly during their teens and twenties and as often as once a month. In the Middle Ages, celibate monks would attempt to guard against these nocturnal visits by the lilith/succubus by sleeping with their hands crossed over their genitals and holding a crucifix. 175

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However, she lurks as a powerful unidentified presence, an unspoken name, in the minds of biblical commentators for whom Eve and Lilith become inextricably intertwined and blended into one person. Importantly, it is this Eve/Lilith amalgam which is used to identify women as the true source of evil in the world.

The Zohar, the great book of Jewish mysticism from the 12th Century, adds yet another dimension. The Zohar generally doesnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t mention Lilith by name, but refers to her as the wife of Samael, the Angel of Death ... and sometimes as the wife of Satan. She sleeps with men, 176

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causing wet dreams, and she collects semen from the marriage bed. (Flowing semen is a symbol of life, the white fluid, contrasted with flowing blood as a symbol of death, the red fluid, so the demoness who kills children collecting semen is symbolically very neat.) kills childern --- more accurate interpretation --- collects/ consumes men’s semen, which is a symbol of flowing life. To me, Lilith is the goddess of female independence and autonomy, both sexually and in other aspects of life. Lilith bows down to no man or god, not even Yahweh Himself. She is also the goddess of female sexuality for pleasure itself and not merely for reproductive purposes. Unlike the average fertility goddesses, for Lilith, the sexual act is not so strongly connected with reproduction. The child-killing witch aspect of Lilith can be considered part of this interpretation as well, considering that the result of sexuality is often children, and Lilith is destroying that result (even though the children destroyed are not Her own—though one must remember that according to one version of the legend, she produced thousands of children each day, and part of her curse for leaving the Garden of Eden was the destruction of half of these children daily). She wants sex for sex’s sake and not for the sake of perpetuating the species.

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Mystery Man September 27 2010, 8:11 AM by Paul Michael Sparks

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Painting has to get back to its original goal, examining the inner lives of human beings. (Pierre Bonnard)) September 9 2010, 4:33 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

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Art has no other purpose than to brush aside the conventional and

accepted generalities, in short everything that veils reality from us, in order to bring us face to face with reality itself. (Henri Bergson)

Paulâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s philosophy discourse for the day September 13 2010, 8:24 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

Why is it that we crave human connection so deeply? There is something so precious about other humans that we yearn to get in touch with. However, I ask you this question... When we discover something magnificent about another human being why do we get surprised? Have we forgotten where we all came from? If a hot oven emits heat, this is totally understood. If a master musician who has trained his whole life plays an unforgettable song, we are amazed... yet would we expect any less from someone with that much practice? So too have each of us traveled many light years, many lifetimes, and many different forms to arrive where we are at in this moment. Use humans... we are vehicles made out of stardust with a divine intelligence implanted within us that seems to have come from another world. The miracle is not our magnificence. The miracle is how us beings of light have managed to disguise ourselves in darkness. Imagine if the sun wanted to travel our planet to be amongst us. Imagine how thick its cloak would have to be in order so that we would not be blinded 180

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by its radiance. Imagine how much heat this cloak would have to withstand. So too have we managed to create these bodies that so powerfully channel our radiant divine energy! We all yearn to return to where we came from, this magnificent place of eternal bliss... but let us not forget the contract that we made... the contract that got us here on this god forsaken planet in the first place. Yes, sometimes life can seem quite hopeless... but let’s always remember that we are the intelligent designers and cocreators of our own lives and of our own planet. Our lives are exactly as we choose them to be. We can pierce through the veil of reality whenever we please... but the reason we are here where we are now is because this is where we choose to be. If we REALLY REALLY wanted to be somewhere else, then we would do whatever if took to be somewhere else. Yes, we are actually that powerful. I propose to you this thought...this golden age we are tring to ressurrect is not an unchartered territory. Our humanity has been there before. There is nothing new under the sun. When we arrive at our golden age sometime in the near future... as a civilization, as one world united, we will actually receive it with a deep familiarity, because it is a place that we’ve been before. Our conciousness travels eternally from one peak to the next peak. As we arrive towards our next peak together, let’s be thankful for the simply beauty of contrast... becsause if it weren’t for the depth of the valley that we just came from, we would have no capacity to appreciate the beautiful heights that we are now attaining together as a civilization. 181

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Perfection is not: being without flaw... September 2 2010, 11:30 AM by Paul Michael Sparks Remember. Perfection is not to be without flaw. Perfection is to be fully WITH your flaws. To embrace your flaws and your darkness. This is a holistic human. To see that your darkness is the womb from which your light is born.

Rest the mind and allow it to identify itself with that which moves it. September 25 2010, 5:49 PM by Paul Michael Sparks Rest the mind and allow it to identify itself with that which moves it. I’ve noticed lately that I’ve been spontaneously Taking lots of meditation breaks in order to integrate, contemplate, and hear that still small voice guiding me through this vibrant storm of creation There seems to be a bunch of voices emerging amidst the muddy chatter of my mind, and I’m trying to get them to come forth and identify themselves. Oh what a wonderfully rich world that is within me.

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Revisiting the New Credo for Life September 6 2010, 3:29 AM by Paul Michael Sparks DAILY PRACTICE: Push hard to get better, become smarter, grow your devotion to the truth, fuel your commitment to beauty, refine your emotional intelligence, hone your dreams, negotiate with your shadow, cure your ignorance, shed your pettiness, heighten your drive to look for the best in people, and soften your heart-even as you always accept yourself for exactly who you are with all of your so-called imperfections. - Rob Brezsny

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ReWork: 24 principles from the playbook for the radically simple way to do business right in todayâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s world. September 10 2010, 8:41 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

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1. Ignore the real world: real world inhabitants are filled with pessimism and despair: The real world isn’t a place, it’s an excuse. It’s a justification for not trying. It has nothing to do with you.

2. Failure is not a right of passage: Learning from mistakes is overrated. Evolution doesn’t linger on past failures, it’s alwasy building upon what worked. So should you. Learn from your success, from what you discovered works.

3. Planning is Guessing: Unless you’re a fortune-teller, longer term business planning is a fantays. Therare just too many factors that are out of your hands: market conditions, competitors, customers, the economy, etc. Writing a plan makes you feel in control of things you can’t actually control. The timing of long-range plans is crewed up too. You have the most information when you’re doing something not Before you’ve done it. Yet when do you write a plan? Usually it’s before you’ve even begun. That’s the worst time to make a big decision. Give up on the guesswork. Decide what you’re going to do this week, not this year. Make decision right before you do something, not far in advance. It’s OK to wing it. Just get on the plane and go. You can pick up a nicer shirt, shaving cream, and a toothbrush once you get there. Working without a plan may seem scary, but blindly following a plant that has no relationship with reality is even scarier

4. Why grow? premature hiring is teh death of many companies. Small is not just a stepping stone. Small is a great destination in itself. 185

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5. Workaholics aren’t heroes. The real hearo is already home ecause she figured out a faster way to get things done.

6. “Entrepreneur” is outdated and loaded with baggage. It smells like a members-only club. There’s a new group of people out there starting businesses. They’re turning profits yet never think o f themselves as entrepreneurs. A lot of them don’t even think of themselves as business owners. They are just doing what they love on their own terms and getting paid for it. They’re called STARTERS. You don’ need an MBA, a certificat, a fancy suit, briefcase, or an above-average tolerance for risk. You just need a n idea, a touch of confidence, and a push to get started. GO

7. Make a dent: If you’re going to do something, do something that matters. These little guys came out of nowhere and destroyed old models that had been around for decades. You can do the same in your industry.

8. Scratch Your own Itch: Make something you want to use. Fall in love with what you’re making.

9 .START making something: Think your idea’s that valuable? Then go try to sell it and see what you get for it. Not much is probably the answer. Until youa ctually start making something, your brilliant idea is just that, and idea. And 186

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everyone’s got one of those. Kubrick knew that when you’re new at something, you need to start creating. The most important thing is to begin. So get a camera, hit Record, and start shooting. Ideas are cheap and plentiful. The original pitch idea is such a small part of a business that it’s almost negligible. The real question is how well you execute

10. No time is no excuse: the perfect time never arrives.

11. Draw a line in the sand: Great businesses have a point of view, not just a product or servie. You have to believe in something. You need to have a backbone. you need to know what you’re willing to fight for. And then you need to show the world. A strong stand is how you attract superfans.

12. Outside money is Plan Z: take on as little outside cash as you can: - you give up control - cashing out investors trumps building a quality business 3-5 yrs down the line - raising money is incredibly distracting. Great companies start in garages all the time. Yours can too.

13. Embrace the idea of having less mass: the more massive an object, the more energy required to change its direction. PROGRESS

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14.Less is a good thing: “I don’t have enough time/money/people/experience.” stop whining. Constraints are advantages in disguise. Limited resources force you to make do with what you’ve got. It forces yout o be creative. Writers use constrainsts to forces creativity all the time. Shakespeare reveled in the limitations of sonnets. So, before you sing the “not enough” blues, see how far you can get with what you ahve

15. You’re better off with a Kick-Ass Half, than a Half-Assed Whole build half a product, not a half-assed product Cut your ambition in half. Most of your great ideas won’t seem all that great once you get some perspective, anyway. And if they truly are that fantastic, you can alwasy do them later. Lots of things get better as they get shorter. (Movies, albums, books)... so start chpping. Getting to great starts by cutting out stuff that’s merely good.

16. Start at the epicenter: “If I took this away, would what I’m selling still exist?” Figure out the epicenter (need hot dogs for a hot dog stand, but you can take away the onions and relish)... and focus all your energy on making it the best it can be.

17. Ignore the details early on: Detail just oesn’t buy you anything in the early stages, but disagreement, meetings, and dealys. Details are easy to decide once youh’ve got the foundation up.

18. Be a Curator: It’s the stuff you leave out that matters. So constantly look for things to remove, simplify, and streamline. 188

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19. Cut back. Do Less: When things aren’t working, don’t throw more people, time, money at the problem... go the opposite direction. Cut back. do less. 20. Focus on what won’t change. A lot of companies focus on the next big thing. They latch on to what’s hot and new. They follow the latest trends and technology. That’s a fool’s path. You start focusing on fashion isntead of substance. You start paying attention to things that are constantly changing instead of things that last. The core of your business should be built around things that people are going to want today and ten years from now. Remember, fashion fades away. When you focus on permanent feature, you’re in bed with things that never go out of style.

21. Tone is in your fingers. If Van Halen played a crappy guitar, you’d still be able to recognize that it’s him playing. It’s tempting to obsess over tools instead of what you’re going to do with those tools: (typefaces, photoshop filters... but nothing to say)... People use equipment as a crutch. They don’t want to put in the hours on the driving range so they spend a ton in the pro shop. In business, too many peopl obess over tools, software tricks, scaling issues, fancy office space, lavish furniture, and other frivolities instead of what really matters. And what really matters is how to actually get customers and make money. You also see it in people who want to blog, podcast, or shoot videos for their business but get hung up on which tools to use. The content is what matters. 189

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22. Sell your by-products: The experience from uilding a company, a product can be uses to create byproducts> blog journals become a workshop, then a pdf, then a paperback.

23. Get it out there: Stop imaginine whatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s going to work. Get it out there, and find out for real.

24. Meetings are toxic: if you must have one: * set a timer * invite as few people as possible * begin with a specific problem: * meet at the site of the problem. point to real things and suggest real changes. * end with a solution and make someone responsible for implementing it.

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Simplicity is the ultimate form of sophistication. â&#x20AC;&#x201C;Leonardo da Vinci

Oneâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s attitude determines ones altitude September 19 2010, 7:11 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

affectionately, your higher self

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Success Secrets of Design Superstar September 5 2010, 4:48 PM by Paul Michael Sparks Success Secrets from Agustin Garza:

Embrace the people you work with and the people you work for. I think they will be your friends for life. Build relationships that are meaningful. Make sure that you practice your career on the basis of the things you love and that bring joy to your life. Whatever you do now, websites, logos, I donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t care what you do. Those things are just professional tracks that wiggle around in time, but the above two things will always be there. I love working with people and feel quite comfortable in creative collaboration, but Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;m driven by personal goals. I find it hard to follow. I like to be in control of business decisions, of the type of clients and pro jects to engage in. 192

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died as a mineral and became a plant,

I died as plant and rose to animal, I died as animal and I was Man. Why should I fear? When was I less by dying? Yet once more I shall die as Man, to soar With angels blest; but even from angelhood I must pass on: all except God doth perish. When I have sacrificed my angel-soul, I shall become what no mind eâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;er conceived. Oh, let me not exist! for Non-existence Proclaims in organ tones, To Him we shall return.

-Rumi

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The Man of Character : the Epitamy of Class September 28 2010, 9:43 AM by Paul Michael Sparks

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he man of character lives at home without exercising his mind

and performs actions without worry. the notions of right and wrong and the praise and blame of others do not disturb him. When within the four seas all people can enjoy themselves, that is happiness for him. Sorrowful in countenance, he looks like a baby who has lost his mother; appearing stupid, he goes about like one who has lost his way. He has plenty of money to spend, but does not know where it comes from. He drinks and eats just enough, and does not know where the food comes from. -Lin Yutang

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The most fantastical mystical multidimensional painting Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve ever seen September 3 2010, 3:45 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

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commentary from the artist: When I first drew this image, I considered that I had taken Kali back to her kinder, gentler roots, making more of a traditional Earth Goddess image in the end. After correspondence with scholars of Hinduism, I realize that there is a better name for this universal goddess, who gives rise to creation, and of whom Kali is but one aspect. That name is Prakriti. I was told that Kali wouldn’t mind being associated with that from whom she was drawn--and that was my original intention, after all--so the title of this painting has changed from Kali to KaliPrakriti. http://www.toddlockwood.com/galleries/misc/01/kali.shtml Kali has unfairly been identified as the horrific aspect of the goddess, however that is only one aspect of her. Kali is one of the most powerful goddesses of India. Her present identity results from an evolutionary process spanning more than two millennia, and her recent arrival in the West as a living deity creates the possibility of new and unforeseen changes within an environment outside her original cultural boundaries. Behind her common surface interpretations lies a different story. The sword that she usually carries symbolizes the higher knowledge that cuts through appearances and reveals things as they really are. The severed heads that she usually wears around her neck represents the human ego, the limiting sense of I-me-and-mine that she slays. Together Kali’s four hands seem to say, “Take refuge in me, let go of your existential fear, let me slay your illusion of smallness and separation, and you will merge into my infinite bliss.” 197

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The nature of invention

September 19 2010, 7:10 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

The fact that men compose books, and set up new skills, is no new composition. They have seen the likeness of that and merely make additions to it. Those who invent something new on their own account are the universal intellect. The partial intellect is capable of learning and is in need of teaching. The universal intellect is the teacher and is not in need. So, when you investigate all trades, the root and origin of them is revelation. Men have learned them from the prophets, and they, the prophets, are the universal intellect.

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The new opportunity for artists.. September 6 2010, 11:51 AM by Paul Michael Sparks So, my fellow creators. If we are in charge of making a New Earth Where do we begin? What stories do we want at the heart of our experiments? The new opportunity of artists: To merge the traditions of cultural myths and storytelling To create heart-opening, earth-shattering experiences wrapped in the medium of film spreading virally through the peer-to-peer connections on the social web. To challenge the status quo, violate expectations, & leave people questioning their assumptions

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The object of art is to give life a shape. (Jean Anouilh) September 9 2010, 4:16 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

There is no absolute truth in life, except the truth that we choose. Life is what we make of it. Weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re always creating by default. That is all we know how to do. We might as well create something wonderful, right? Life is a malleable block of clay, and we are the sculptors. What shape are you giving life?

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The real story of birth - Ellen Frankel - The Classic Tales September 10 2010, 3:18 AM by Paul Michael Sparks “When a baby is conceived, Laylah, the Angel of Night, brings the fertilized egg before God who decides its fate: whether it will be a boy or a girl, rich or poor, strongor weak, beautiful or ugly, fat or thin, wise or foolish. Only one decision does God leave in the hands of the unborn soul: whether it will be righteous or wicked. Between morning and night on that same day, another angel reveals to the unborn soul its future life: where it will live and where it will die and where it will be buried. And then at the end of nine months, the angel announces to the soul that it is time to be born, but the soul protests. The angel silences it: ‘So God has decreed. Against your will you were formed, and against your will you will be born. And against your will you will one day die. Such is your fate.’ Just before the baby is born, the angel taps it right under its nose, leaving a small cleft there. Then the angel extinguishes the light shining above the baby’s head and it forgets everything it has learned during the previous nine months. And then the baby emerges into the world, crying and afraid. Each soul spends the rest of its time on earth recovering what it once knew.” (Ellen Frankel, The Classic Tales, 17-18).

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The stars confirm what I’m going through in my life right now September 3 2010, 11:22 AM by Paul Michael Sparks k2 is eclipsing my venus k2 is the mystical… takes things away Rah is on my jupiter, so I’m expanding I’m sacrificing and giving up This is why I don’t feel “seen”. Surrender everything that’s why nothing is grounded I will be successful in niche area this influence will last until next spring STAY detached exalted jupiter in 3rd: that’s what makes me a genius. - from a Vedic astrology reading with Paddi Moore, a contemporary Neo-Vedic North American Astrologers https://www.facebook.com/PaddiMoore108

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The world is my mirror September 2 2010, 4:41 PM by Paul Michael Sparks Pardon the dust while I climb through my funk. My ego is slowly withering away and dying, and is fighting and clawing for his dear life. but my higher self will win the battle, no matter how bloody and dark. My ego will be embraced by the divine fire of love of my higher self.

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My crisis is that I miss being in communion with my divine beloved. and my awakening, as I am being told, will be when I realize that I am the beloved that I desire. I am being told that the beloved that I am in love with, that I want to be loved by is me. and I think thatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s a beautiful construct to go by, however, there is one thing to be cautious of. in embracing that I am the loved and the lover, I want to make sure not to retreat from the world and into my heart, justifying it by the belief that everything I need is within. This is a dualistic poloarized imbalanced perspective that is only part of the truth.

Here is the more whole integrated perspective. 1. I feel lonely, abandoned, forsaken by my beloved. My divine beloved, which is my highest vision of beauty and ecstasy. That being in which I desire to love and be loved by eternally, and deeply. 2. My physical experience in this life seems to confirm that inner reality. The world around me does not seems to be in service to my inner deepest desires. Wealth, and abudance have escaped from my reach, and I am in a hopeless rut. 3. The breakdown: I have the realization that I am so powerful that I actually had something to do with the creation of this current predicament, this current experience of separation from my beloved. 4. I realize that I can use that same power to create a new reality. 5. The new reality: I am love. I am the very thing that I have been 204

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looking for all my life. The kingdom of heaven, peace, harmony, validation, affirmation, gratitude, and the feeling of total acceptance and community... is all within me. Infact it is the very essence of who I am. 6. I must look at the “man in the mirror”... look at the mirror and see myself, and fall in love with myself 7. The breakthrough: The mirror is not a physical mirror where I see a reflection of my physical body. Instead, the the world is my mirror, my friends, lovers, relationships are my mirror. My calling is to remain engaged in the world, and not to retreat into my inner heart, claiming total detachment from my environment. My calling is to express and share myself vulnerably, and with naked rawness, and in the process to see how that expression bounces off of my friends, lovers, and audience, and how that expression reflects back to me. 8. I will keep on expressing and witnessing the reflection of my expression until I fall in love with that reflection 9. In that moment, I will be looking face to face at my beloved. In’Lakesh (I am another yourself). I recognize myself in you. response: Sep 2 2010, 7:19 PM Beautiful.Raw. Real. Such depth. Life seems to be designed in such a way that we must first be stripped of our egos until we face ourselves naked and are able to truly say..I see God. Our words and thoughts are the source by which the Divine can give us what we resonate. The longing to be yoked with our Divine Source is the yearning that must be quenched by sharing your time with the sky and moon and trees and wind. 205

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If we are very lucky love in the form of a human shows up to show us our reflection. For this we must be humble and open. But in the meantime to simply BELOVE is the answer. In the meantime...we are animal plant mineral light Beings.. And to take our selves too seriously is a mistake. Love and lament and rejoice. Go to your depths for only then can you go to your heights. And never give up the pursuit of aligning word and thought with action. You are a God. I see, hear , feel and love a GOD with you dear One. Big loving Hug...always there for you!!

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Vanish into love

September 18 2010, 4:47 AM by Paul Michael Sparks

The man to whom is unvelied the mystery of Love Exists no longer, but vanishes into love. Place before the Sun a burning candle And watch its brilliance disappear before that blaze, The candle exists no longer, it is transformed into Light, There are no more signs of it, it itself becomes sign...

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You have to die for Love « Natalia Love Koteva

September 10 2010, 3:08 AM by Paul Michael Sparks You have to die for Love. A man will feel as if he’s dying. She will trigger something so deep and profound, That he will go insane. Things will be brought to the surface

to slowly burn away their purpose. But he’ll want to run. She’ll shatter his reality in tiny pieces And like a miracle he’ll see his Truth in humbleness. He’ll see things as they truly are And he will not like it But like a miracle he’ll feel his strength expending. He’ll feel so strong he’ll know he can do anything. A man has to die and loose his sanity for his woman. But man, his rebirth will be the sweetest nectar ever tasted. She will reveal herself with such a grace, love and mystery; he’ll recognize her and himself. Dying for her is the only time he felt alive. For in that moment, She died for Him. And they were born together As Love. Her Love is his fortune, his strength and his greatest lesson. She is his Life. She is Him. via nataliakoteva.wordpress.com 208

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October, 2010 Adhere to your own act... October 9 2010, 10:35 PM by Paul Michael Sparks Adhere to your own act, and congratulate yourself if you have done something strange and extravagant, and broken the monotony of a decorous age. -Ralph Waldo Emerson

Could there be a desire more important than service to mankind? October 31 2010, 3:52 AM by Paul Michael Sparks

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Africa is bigger than you think: Information Is Beautiful | Ideas, issues, knowledge, data - visualized! October 15 2010, 3:09 AM by Paul Michael Sparks

via informationisbeautiful.net

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Another hard day at work. Looks like my plate is full October 5 2010, 12:32 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

Chocolate chip cookie, brownie and raw vegan banana vanilla ice cream. My idea of heaven, - Everything is dessert - you never get full - every bite is like the first On my agenda today, - My first inspiration session in a while. Get on the pulse of whatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s hot in art, design, advertising, ideas, and culture - Complete proposals for 2 projects

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Beautiful scene on southbeach October 7 2010, 9:01 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

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Breaking News: Paul Sparks and Sean Parker (co-founder of Facebook) have 99.999% similar DNA + Propensities October 17 2010, 1:05 AM by Paul Michael Sparks

via vanityfair.com After reading this Vanity Fair article, it seems as though we are destined to be creative partners. Our time of meeting in these bodies is soon coming. Read through these hand picked excerpts, and tell me it doesn’t remind you of me. Parker is widely considered a Web oracle; more than a few acquaintances and colleagues use the word “genius” to describe him. He understands not only computers and Web networks but also how 213

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people want to incorporate them into their lives. As a result, he’s been stunningly successful. That said, he has a libertine side. Parker has a knack for missing deadlines and appointments, for disappearing for weeks on end, for avoiding the press. (His decision to cooperate with a Vanity Fair profile is unprecedented and rather out of character.) He was pushed out of Facebook after an arrest for cocaine possession in 2005. (No charges were filed.) Even among his many supporters, he has a reputation for being an erratic party animal. This is Parker’s pattern—great idea, work like the devil, then disappear for a while.” “Why do we all put up with it?” asks Green rhetorically. “For two reasons. He adds a lot of value in the time he’s there. And he’s very loyal. When you really need him, he will be there. That builds up a reservoir of goodwill.” Reggae plays in the background at Shawn Fanning’s huge 40th-floor apartment, directly over San Francisco’s Bay Bridge. It is late at night. Parker stretches back on an easy chair and bemoans what he sees as the scarcity, in contemporary culture, of revolutionary thinkers on the level of, say, Jim Morrison and Jack Kerouac. “They were capable of folly,” he says, “and willing to take risks in terms of their message. We live in an extremely repressive era, and we fail to realize how repressive it is, because we’re told that all these outlets for rebellion, like listening to rock music, are no longer satanic. Smoking weed— that’s sort of O.K. and acceptable in some circles.” To Parker, the implication is that people in his position have almost an obligation to do what they can with the tools at their disposal—software and the Internet—to free up society through disruptive technology. As he muses, it is clear that he sees entrepreneurship and invention as handmaidens of social transformation. 214

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Parker had been trying to explain himself while he wandered the streets on that hazy night, attempting at length to find Fanning’s apartment (even though the building is the tallest in the neighborhood). “I think the best way to describe me is as an archetypal Loki character,” Parker begins, “like Joseph Campbell’s Hero with a Thousand Faces. I’m like the prankster or Puck in mythology. He’s not trying to cause harm, but rather to pull back the veil that masks your conventional, collectively reinforced understanding of society. This renegade thing was very clear at Napster. The point was that the emperor—the content industry—had no clothes.” He hesitates. “This all probably sounds incredibly pretentious and narcissistic.” It does. But even as Parker alternates between putting himself down and pumping himself up, he can rely on most of his friends to speak glowingly. Says Peter Thiel, “I’ve told Sean he may be the longlost grandson of Howard Hughes—a brilliant entrepreneur who is somehow transforming the United States and yet is not understood by society. Sean is one of the great serial entrepreneurs of his generation, someone who is really changing the world and turning the wheel of history.” It’s easy for Parker to make new friends, and he does quite often. People of all sorts are captivated by his ideas and his enthusiasm. “Sean is a genius, no question,” says Ashton Kutcher, whom Parker advised while the actor was developing his own Net-oriented production company. Wikipedia founder Jimmy Wales met Parker in 2008 and the two started hanging out. “He gets things very quickly,” says Wales. “He’s incredibly intense and engaged about ideas.” One of Parker’s closest friends, musician Sean Lennon, offers, “His brain is like the technological equivalent of the Library of Alexandria. 215

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He’s really one of the smartest people I’ve ever met—and that’s an understatement. He’s always talking about the potential of computers to generate algorithms for likable melodies, and we have this ongoing argument: he believes it’s only a matter of time before computers will be able to create listenable tunes. Sean is an artist—a business artist.” Actress and activist Trudie Styler, who is married to Sting, invited Parker and his then girlfriend to a retreat for philanthropists and activists that the couple hosted at their Tuscany estate last year.

Rachel Levy (Facebook) responded: Oct 17 2010, 3:58 AM it’s a yes, Agreed, noted, witnessed, You and Sean Parker as social architects are nearly One ~ he is a business techno artist, and you are a social cultural artist ~ and I would say his brain like yours is the technological equivalent of the Library of Alexandria ~ what’s questionable is his libertine vs. your morally conscious and high minded nature . . . (and you are cuter)

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Classic pic

October 2 2010, 7:55 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

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Found another goddess

October 2 2010, 7:56 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

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Having a casual, yet passionately creative Monday October 11 2010, 1:50 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

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Imagination is more real than reality October 21 2010, 1:32 PM by Paul Michael Sparks Everything you can imagine is real. ~Pablo Picasso

Imagination is the one weapon in the war against reality Fiction reveals truths that reality obscures. ~Jessamyn West

Let the Lover Be

October 12 2010, 12:27 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

Let the lover be disgraceful, crazy, absent-minded. Someone sober will worry about events going badly. Let the lover be.

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New York moment in southbeach October 31 2010, 8:21 AM by Paul Michael Sparks

Real words from Gandhi

October 17 2010, 4:28 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

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Reality is the leading cause of stress amongst those in touch with it. ~Jane Wagner October 21 2010, 1:33 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

Picture of NYC in my brother Johnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s room October 5 2010, 12:25 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

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Take every chance. Drop every fear. October 31 2010, 1:05 AM by Paul Michael Sparks

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November, 2010 “Don’t just do something, stand there.” - Attributed to Gautama Buddha. November 13 2010, 10:16 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

A Man’s Character is His Fate November 16 2010, 3:06 AM by Paul Michael Sparks

“Faced with crisis, the man of character falls back upon himself.” CHARLES DE GAULLE (1890-1970) -- French military leader and statesman “Fame is a vapor, popularity an accident, riches take wing, and only character endures.” HORACE GREELEY (1811-1872) -- New York newspaper editor The qualities of a great man are “vision, integrity, courage, understanding, the power of articulation, and profundity of character.” DWIGHT EISENHOWER (1890-1969) “The measure of a man’s character is what he would do if he knew he never would be found out.” THOMAS BABINGTON MACAULAY (1800-1859) -- British writer and politician “Few men have virtue to withstand the highest bidder.” GEORGE WASHINGTON (1732-1799) 225

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“Character is the only secure foundation of the state.” CALVIN COOLIDGE (1872-1933) “Americanism is a question of principle, of purpose, of idealism, of character. It is not a matter of birthplace or creed or line of descent.” THEODORE ROOSEVELT (1858-1919) “Character is like a tree and reputation like its shadow. The shadow is what we think of it; the tree is the real thing.: “I desire so to conduct the affairs of this administration that if at the end, when I come to lay down the reins of power, I have lost every other friend on earth, I shall at least have one friend left, and that friend shall be down inside me.” ABRAHAM LINCOLN “The fact that a man is a newspaper reporter is evidence of some flaw of character.” LYNDON JOHNSON (1908-1973) “With all the power that a President has, the most important thing to bear in mind is this: You must not give power to a man unless, above everything else, he has character. Character is the most important qualification the President of the United States can have.” RICHARD NIXON (1913-1994) (From TV ad for Barry Goldwater’s presidential campaign in 1964.) “Character is a word that seems to define almost all human activity and then some...” “Power is what you do and character is what you are...” “ All leaders must face some crisis where their own strength of 226

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character is the enemy.” RICHARD REEVES “In a president, character is everything. A president doesn’t have to be brilliant... He doesn’t have to be clever; you can hire clever... You can hire pragmatic, and you can buy and bring in policy wonks. But you can’t buy courage and decency, you can’t rent a strong moral sense. A president must bring those things with him... He needs to have, in that much maligned word, but a good one nonetheless, a “vision” of the future he wishes to create.. But a vision is worth little if a president doesn’t have the character-- the courage and heart-- to see it through.” PEGGY NOONAN “What a man’s mind can create, man’s character can control.” THOMAS EDISON -- inventor “It is our character that supports the promise of our future - far more than particular government programs or policies.” WILLIAM J. BENNETT-- writer and former Secretary of Education “The best index to a person’s character is (a) how he treats people who can’t do him any good, and (b) how he treats people who can’t fight back.” ABIGAIL VAN BUREN (“Dear Abby”) advice columnist “A man’s character is his fate.” HERACLITUS (c. 540 - c. 480 BC) -- Greek philosopher “Character is an essential tendency. It can be covered up, it can be messed with, it can be screwed around with, but it can’t be ultimately 227

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changed. It’s the structure of our bones, the blood that runs through our veins.” SAM SHEPARD -- American actor/playwright He who says he can and he who says he can’t are both usually right Confucius

Ahhh. The new York subway. November 4 2010, 11:48 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

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All men are equal. Some are just more equal than others. -author unknown

November 18 2010, 3:27 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

Anticipation

November 28 2010, 1:21 AM by Paul Michael Sparks

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There is a candle in your heart, ready to be kindled.

There is a void in your soul, ready to be filled. You feel it, donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t you? You feel the separation from the Beloved. Invite Him to fill you up, embrace the fire. Remind those who tell you otherwise that Love comes to you of its own accord, and the yearning for it cannot be learned in any school. -Rumi artwork by: Victor Bauer

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Chase after the godly within you, and the demons in you will become jealous. How much they crave for your acknowledgement. November 28 2010, 3:22 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

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How much they will ruin you with clouds of darkness until you give them your praise. Chase the light, and the jealous dark will surely chase after you with unending persistence. However, if you embrace the demons within you. Embrace all that is ugly and horrific, all the terrible parts of yourself that you have been taught to deny, then, the god in you, the buddha in you will be bewilderded and in awe of your foolish compassion, and fearless courage, and he will realize that he is not the one worthy of ruling your inner kingdom. Then he will hand you over his throne and the keys to the kingdom within. This is the true path of seeking the kingdom within. Do not be tempted by the yellow brick road... That road was paved by the current ruler of your mind to distract you from facing your demons. artwork by: Miguel Tio http://migueltio.com/2000/2000%20W.htm

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Chocolate and love. Reading rumi with a twix at Philadelphia November 1 2010, 4:16 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

Classic moment at Starbucks. Good ol chess November 1 2010, 4:41 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

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Condoms aren’t completely safe. A friend of mine was wearing one and got hit by a bus. - Bob Rubin November 27 2010, 10:01 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

Dear Humans... “ a letter from Earth.” November 12 2010, 5:17 PM by Paul Michael Sparks Dear Human, Why do you keep on trying to change me? I’m doing just fine, thank you. I’m very proud of mother nature’s recent creation, the human being. The trimming of my rainforests feels very refreshing, like a fresh haircut. The oil spilling to the surface is releiving, like popping a big pimple. And most importantly, the emotional drama of each human adds a nice buzzy layer of electromagnetic vibration to my stratosphere that feels warm and fuzzy. You should come check it out sometime. When you’re done distracting yourself with past regrets and future pursuits, come hang out in the present with me. You’ll be happy you did.

Yours Truly, Earth

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Dizzy, Crazed, Intoxicated Gathering of Lovers November 5 2010, 1:08 AM by Paul Michael Sparks This is a gathering of Lovers. In this gathering there is no high, no low, no smart, no ignorant, no special assembly, no grand discourse, no proper schooling required. There is no master, no disciple.This gathering is more like a drunken party, full of tricksters, fools, mad men and mad women. This is a gathering of Lovers. -Rumi

â&#x20AC;&#x153;Do not believe that there is anything higher in the universe than your own divine self, and know that you are exactly what you permit yourself to become.â&#x20AC;? -Dr. Hartmann

November 16 2010, 12:37 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

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Do not conform: reform, refresh, relook, rethink LIFE November 13 2010, 10:22 PM by Paul Michael Sparks He who joyfully marches to music rank and file, has already earned my contempt. He has been given a large brain by mistake, since for him the spinal cord would surely suffice. This disgrace to civilization should be done away with at once. - Albert Einstein

Do you have a sense of humor? On the deeper role of humor... November 15 2010, 11:54 AM by Paul Michael Sparks

Humor always pokes fun at that which is elevated or that which is forbidden--attacking opposite ends of the acceptability poles. Either pompous or important people or ideas are mocked, or base and forbidden people and ideas are mocked. All humor is aimed at what is elevated, or what is vulgar. Why has this always been, and why do we laugh when the mighty are lampooned, or the vulgar exposed? As with all emotions and psychological phenomena, there are good reasons for their existence. Just as in the physical world, a sneeze expels some irritant in the nasal passage, or a cough removes a foreign object from the throat, so too laughing serves a great function. What is it? Humor is a universal psychological device of the psyche that rearranges the soul’s boundaries, and dynamic makeup. It is significant that we speak of “poking fun,” or “sticking it to him.” 236

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This imagery suggests that some sort of membrane or boundary is assailed. Let’s imagine the personality or individual self as something like a bubble. Each of us is a bubble filled with conscious contensts, including a name, education, experiences, identity, etc. We sometimes call that an “ego” or a “self”. One school of thought suggests that the ego or self is always in need of deflation or inflation, in need of being burst asunder or of being pushed outward. That is how humor works. Humor either pushes the puny self outward, beyond it’s comfortable boundaries, or alternately, humor bursts the rind of the inflated, pompous ego that it might deflate in order to re-inflate. Both experiences allow for the infinite contents of the Unconscious to flow in and transmute the self. Next time fun is poked at your exalted ideas, or some joke exposes something you consider forbidden and/or socially unacceptable, pay attention to your response. Like it or not, Psyche is rearranging your soul, either deflating your pompously inflated ego, or pushing the boundaries of your puny limited self beyond the correct strictures. The Soul cares little about politics, religions, social conventions or any of those things we make ultimate. Soul uses all of life to keep the dynamic of soul-making moving. Soul wastes nothing--it recycles everything for its purposes. Lighten up. - written by Michael Bogar: holds 2 Masters degrees in Theological + Religious studies http://michaelbogar.blogspot.com/ 237

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doing laundry, cleaning the dishes, creating the universe, and other thankless jobs November 7 2010, 2:31 AM by Paul Michael Sparks

I wonder if God is sitting around in his office wondering when someone is gonna give him credit. I wonder why God didn’t sign his name on all human’s foreheads so we can all know who to send the royalties to. Then again, maybe God didn’t do anything that great that he felt he needed to brag about.. After all, he is the almighty, all-powerful, infinite being, right? And this was the best he was able to come up with? If my mom were to donate $100,000 to a charity, I would hope she gets oodles of thanks, but if Bill Gates were to donate $100,000, it would probably go by unnoticed, because $100K to Bill Gates is like a penny. It’s like when we give our 10 year old can of peas to the canned food drive. There’s nothing honorable about giving away a tiny small portion of something that you have a ridiculous abundance of, right? So, when we give our love, which we are infinitely abundant with, maybe we should stop sitting around waiting for people to thank us, and instead just keep on loving. As far as me and God, maybe the best way to show my respect is by living a purposeful, meaningful, outrageously adventurous life with this penny-worth, canned food piece of mud and bones that I’m currently residing in. 238

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If you gave $100,000 to someone, would you rather find out a year later that they spent all the money on a $100,000 gold thank you card, or that they spent all of it on something useful for their life and for the collective well being? So too, when we give, let us not give in order to receive thanks. Let us give in order to spread the spirit of giving, so that we can all be living in a world where everyone gives thanklessly, and eventually, you will be surrounded by givers who are not waiting for you to thank them because their too busy receiving and giving some more. And, as reluctant as my arrogant self may be, Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ll say thanks to my dear friend Rachel for stirring up my soul and inspiring this post. -- Mad Love, Paul Michael Sparks

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Electricity is really just organized lightning. George Carlin

November 16 2010, 1:09 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

Enjoying the Silence

November 5 2010, 12:58 AM by Paul Michael Sparks (aka: communicating telepathically) Consciousness starts where language ends Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;m exploring the path of silence as the most powerful method of communication. Most of the time, words seem to suffocate the potential and possibilities that are wanting to unfold in the moment. When I choose silence, the moment can be anything. When I attempt to articulate, describe, explain, figure out, I label and box in life, I turn infinity into the finite. My describing of the infinite finitizes the magnificence of the moment.

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Enough with old time psychology. Blaming everything on our childhood is a cop-out November 16 2010, 6:04 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

You don’t have to go back and deal with childhood issues, because those childhood issues produced a vibration within you that you are still offering -- which is producing today issues. You can shift your vibration a whole lot easier when you’re dealing with today issues, than trying to deal with childhood issues. It’s the same vibration. That vibration that was creating childhood issues, now it’s creating today issues. Deal with it in your now. “Which thought feels better? Which thought feels better? Which thought feels better?” --- Abraham

Ever wondered why they call it the human race? Where’s everybody racing to? I want to start a new species. The Human Break. November 16 2010, 10:18 PM by Paul Michael Sparks Gloria responded: Nov 17 2010, 12:04 PM “or the Human Rest”

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Find something worth dying for, and live for it! November 5 2010, 7:15 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

Andrew Young, United Church of Christ clergy, civil rights leader, former Congressperson and United Nations ambassador, once said of Martin Luther King, Jr. that the thing King most talked about was death. Not death in a morbid sense, but talk about death because King had found something worth living for and dying for. In John’s Gospel are these words of Jesus, “Very truly I tell you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains just a single grain; but if it dies, it bears much fruit” (John 12:24). “Every morning when I look in the mirror, I realize this day could be my last. It makes you realize, if you haven’t found something you’re willing to die for, you’re not fit to live.”

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Finding That One Thing, my purpose, the Real Me: and finding myself in a new, great, and wonderful world. November 24 2010, 2:18 AM by Paul Michael Sparks

A picture is worth a thousand words. A song is worth a million A deep guttural moan that emerges from the depth of your being involuntarily is worth a lifetime. Even more though, to find something worth dying for... and live for it... that is beyond worth. To discover what that one thing is. The purpose that you would cherish so deeply upon finding, that you’d be willing to sacrifice your own life for it, this is truly the greatest pursuit we can embark on in this life. for this “something” would be the only thing more valuable than life itself. And upon discovering this purpose, this destiny we were designed for, we are then faced with the challenge of answering this call. Which will almost surely require us to have to face a great deal of discomfort. We will have to question our most cherished treasures and beliefs. So, i ask myself... If I’m not willing to let go of everything I am attached to, in order to fulfill that one thing, than shall I conclude it a case of insufficient courage or will? No. Instead, it must be that i just haven’t searched deep enough. 243

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Because when this one thing is finally found, there is no effort necessary to express it, and act it out. On the contrary, It will flow out of me involuntarily, just like that guttural moan. It will pour out like a magnificent song that has been lodged deep in my heart for centuries. It will be like the feeling i get when i meet my beloved. This is not a space where decisions are made. where carefulness is practiced. this is the domain of the madman, the illogical lover. No, the unpreventable, uncontainable outpouring of my life’s purpose, my life’s craft, is surely not an act of labor. it is an act of indulgence. It is like if a fish was stranded on dry earth, approaching its last breath... and the moment it hears the splash of water nearby, not the slightest speck of convincing, or persuading would be necessary to inspire this fish to leap towards the water. Leaping towards what gives us life is not something that needs to be thought about and decided. It’s an unavoidable impulse. Just like if you forgot to breath, your body would impulsively breath for you. So likewise, if you forget to live your purpose, your soul will, on the first chance it gets, impulsively leap towards that which brings you life, which is you living on purpose. For this is what “that one thing” is. the embracing and embodying of our passion is the very source of life to our soul... to the core of our being. The only thing that holds you back is you. Only when we are operating, living and breathing this purpose that we were uniquely designed for, will we be truly living. 244

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There is no greater cause to pursue, and no greater service to mankind, than to seek first the expression and essence of ones own grand nature, ones own architected purpose, or as the old saying says, to seek first the kingdom of heaven... then, all things magnificent, whole, and soulfully satiating will come unto you, and through you. ______________ “When you are inspired by some great purpose, some extraordinary project, all your thoughts break their bonds: Your mind transcends limitations, your consciousness expands in every direction, and you find yourself in a new, great, and wonderful world. Dormant forces, faculties and talents become alive, and you discover yourself to be a greater person by far than you ever dreamed yourself to be.” — Patanjali “Seek out that particular mental attribute which makes you feel most deeply and vitally alive, along with which comes the inner voice which says, ‘This is the real me,’ and when you have found that attitude, follow it.” —William James “When you see what you’re here for, the world begins to mirror your purpose in a magical way. It’s almost as if you suddenly find yourself on a stage in a play that was written expressly for you.” —Betty Sue Flowers “Let yourself be silently drawn by the stronger pull of what you really love.” —Rumi “To understand the heart and mind of a person, look not at what he has already achieved, but at what he aspires to do.” —Kahlil Gibran “Life is what happens when you are making other plans.” —John Lennon “To be yourself in a world that is constantly trying to make you something else is the greatest accomplishment.” —Ralph Waldo Emerson 245

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“You will recognize your own path when you come upon it, because you will suddenly have all the energy and imagination you will ever need.” —Jerry Gillies “Your time is limited, so don’t waste it living someone else’s life and don’t let the noise of others’ opinions drown out your own inner voice. Most important, have the courage to follow your heart and intuition. They somehow already know what you truly want to become.” —Steve Jobs “Too many people overvalue what they are not and undervalue what they are.” —Malcolm Forbes “True happiness is not attained through self-gratification, but through fidelity to a worthy purpose.” –Helen Keller

Flight from Nature

November 13 2010, 11:54 PM by Paul Michael Sparks Living in the midst of nature, we are strangers to her. Ceaselessly she speaks to us, yet betrays none of her secrets. (Goethe) Yet, Men are all in her and she in all It can only be her own working which pulsates also in us. We must find the way back to her again. “We can find nature outside us only if we have first learned to know her within us. What is akin to her within us must be our guide. This marks out our path of inquiry. We shall attempt no speculations concerning the interaction of Nature and Spirit.. Rather, shall we probe into the depths of our own being, to find there those elements which we saved in our flight from Nature. Rudolf Steiner 246

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Growing old, weak, and wrinkly is not a fact of life. It is an outdated, and optional social habit, a learned human behavior... November 24 2010, 2:10 AM by Paul Michael Sparks

Growing old, weak, and wrinkly is not a fact of life. It is an outdated, and optional social habit a learned human behavior that we learn and choose to buy into. ... that we donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t have to participate in if it is not serving us. Growing old, weak, and wrinkly is a tradition passed on Just like overeating is a bad habit passed on from parent to child just like war is taught to young children in africa. Just like drug dealing is taught to a child born in the ghetto. Growing old is a way we deal with our belief that death is terrible when in fact itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s something very precious and magnificent. just like a bulimic deals with her skewed view of her body by denying it of food, so too us humans deal with our skewed view of life by denying it of vigor and youthfulness We are creatures of habit. It takes those of us who are willing to question our habits and traditions to carry us forward beyond behaviors that are no longer serving us.

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I love the airport

November 1 2010, 9:24 AM by Paul Michael Sparks

I think of you in colors that donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t exist November 14 2010, 1:53 AM by Paul Michael Sparks

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If you choose good, you have also chosen evil November 28 2010, 9:34 AM by Paul Michael Sparks

If you choose good, you have also chosen evil. And this is one of the great miseries of all the religions and their saints -- they have chosen good and repressed evil... not only in society, but within themselves. Because of this division they themselves have become divided and split. And not only have they become divided and split, but they have made the whole humanity schizophrenic. Choice brings suffering. If you choose good, then that which is evil in you will continually create a conflict, a repentance, a doubt: â&#x20AC;&#x153;Perhaps those who have chosen evil are enjoying life. I have chosen good, and all that it has given to me is just a seriousness, a dryness. The saint cannot smile, the saint cannot dance; he is afraid, because the song may lead him toward evil, the dance may lead him toward that which he has renounced. Just by renouncing you cannot get rid of things. They remain in your unconscious, waiting for their opportunity. Hence it has happened many times in history that a sinner has become a saint in just a single moment of understanding, and a so-called saint has fallen and become a sinner in just a single moment of unawareness. -Osho

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If you want to tell people the truth, make them laugh, otherwise they’ll kill you. Oscar Wilde November 16 2010, 12:00 AM by Paul Michael Sparks Anna responded: Nov 16 2010, 4:40 PM I love this and am a true practitioner of using laughtter, humor, and “good humor” in those so-called difficult moments of truth.

If you’re reading this... congratulations, you are alive! November 3 2010, 10:46 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

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Illustrating Einstein’s law of relativity November 20 2010, 3:11 AM by Paul Michael Sparks Have you ever noticed that anybody driving slower than you is an idiot, and anyone going faster than you is a maniac?

I’m always relieved when someone is delivering a eulogy and I realize I’m listening to it. George Carlin November 16 2010, 1:09 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

It’s not the battle of good and evil... it’s the dance of good and evil. (they are interdependent). November 24 2010, 3:13 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

We all seem to be frustrated by alternating pain and pleasure. And so we spend our lives pursuing constant pleasure and goodness, and avoiding pain and evil at all costs. When are we going to realize that you cannot have one without the other? Can you have inhalation without exhalation? Then why do you strive to have a world of good without evil? Good is the inhalation of life Evil is the exhalation Good and evil are two sides of the same coin.. Just like you can’t have an inside without an outside or a left without a right or an up without a down. It is time to bring upon the disillusion of the pursuit of goals which do not really exist : 251

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such as: the good without the bad, the gratification of a self which doesn’t even exist in the first place (the false fabricated idea of our self), and the promising future which never comes... As Chang-tzu said, “Those who would have good government without its correlative misrule, and right without its correlative wrong, do not understand the principles of the universe.” To Western ears such words may sound cynical, and the Confucian admiration of compromise may appear to be a weak-kneed lack of commitment to principle. Actually they reflect a marvelous understanding and respect for what we call the balance of nature, human and otherwise-a universal vision of life in which the good and evil, the creative and the destructive, the wise and the foolish are the inseparable polarities of existence. At the roots of Chinese life there is a trust in the good-and-evil of one’s own nature which is peculiarly foreign to those brought up with the chronic uneasy conscience of the Hebrew-Christian cultures. Yet it is obvious that a man who mistrusts himself cannot even trust his mistrust, and must therefore be hopelessly confused. If you want live in a world of good without evel, you will also have to take with it: a world of perpetual inhalation a world with no seasons where on a marvelous statue, there are no shadows and shading to show the curves and grooves. with no black, only white a world with no variation no contrast this would be a truly bland world indeed. If everything was good, no one would even know, because good is only good in relation to that which is less good. It would be like if someone spent their whole life eating vanilla ice 252

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cream. for them, vanilla ice cream would not be a pleasureable treat. It would be just as exciting as breathing in oxygen. But if you spend a life breathing in bad quality air, and then go visit a national park, you’d be able to appreciate the good air because of the contrast. It is the contrast of life that creates a sense of value, of morality, of right and wrong. But the catch is that good is no less evil than evil is evil. and evil is no less good than good is good. They’re just polar opposites. If you’re trying to say that good is better than evil, or that pleasure is better than pain. than you’d also have to say that on is better than off left is better than right cold is better than hot inside is better than outside long is better than short hard is better than soft loud is better than quiet the logic just falls apart when you try to apply it to everything. Rather than living in a bland Vanilla world, try to live with the pain a little more Try to think of pain and discomfort as a supportive force that holds you together, just like if there was no air pressure, your body would explode If there was no ground, you’d fall into forever Think of pain and evil more like anti-matter or gravity. It’s the other end of a necessary polarity. to be continued...

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Life is a song. Not an essay. Stop trying to read into it, and start dancing - Paul Sparks November 14 2010, 1:26 AM by Paul Michael Sparks

Life is like Tango... sad, sensual, sexy, violent and quiet. November 15 2010, 8:28 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

The tango is really a combination of many cultures, though it eventually became the national music of Argentina. Yo-Yo Ma Tango can save your life, and it will break your heart.

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Life is poetry. Not prose. Donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t take things so literally - Paul Sparks

November 14 2010, 1:27 AM by Paul Michael Sparks

Love is not permanent. Love is a fresh fragrant breeze that comes and goes. November 28 2010, 12:42 AM by Paul Michael Sparks

artwork by: Victor Bauer Let go of the idea that love has to permanent, and it will make your love life more beautiful because you will know that today you are together, and tomorrow perhaps you will have to part. 255

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Love comes like a fresh, fragrant breeze into your home, fills it with freshness and fragrance, remains as long as existence allows it, and then moves out. You should not try to close all your doore, or the same fresh breeze will become absolutely stale. In life, everything is changing and change is beautiful; it gives you more and more experience, more and more awareness, more and more maturity. -Every child everywhere has been told in a thousand and one ways that love is eternal; has been told that once you love a person you love the person always. If you love a person and later on you feel that you donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t love, it only means you never loved the person in the first place. Now this is a very dangerous idea. It is giving os an idea of a permanent love...However, in life, nothing is permanent. The flowers blossom in the morning and by the evening they are gone. Life is a continuous flux; everything is changing, moving, Nothing is static, nothing is permanent. You have been given the idea of a permanent love which is going to destroy your whole life. You will expect permanent love from the poor woman, and the woman will expect permanent love from you. Love becomes secondary, and permanence becomes primary. However, love is such a delicate flower that you cannot force it to be permanent. You can have plastic flowers; thatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s what people have-- marriage, their family, their children, their relatives, everything is plastic. Plastic does have the characteristic of permanence, but real love is as uncertain as your life is uncertain. You cannot say that you will be here tomorrow. You cannot even say that you are going to survive the next moment. Your life is continuously changing-- from childhood to youth, to middle age, to old age, to death, it goes on changing. A real love will also change. If you understand that it will change, that once in a while your partner may become interested in somebody, and you have to be understanding and loving and caring and allowing her to go the way her being feels--this is a chance for you to prove to your partner that you love her. You love her; even if she is going to love somebody else, that is irrelevant. With understanding, it is possible that your love may 256

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become a lifelong affair, but remember it will not be permanent. It will have its ups and downs, and it will have changes. Love will go on changing, and once in a while love will just need an opportunity for change. In a healthy society it will be possible to take that opportunity, yet your relationship with someone will not be broken. But it is also possible that you may have to change your lovers many times in life. There is no harm in it. In fact, by changing your lovers many times in life you will be enriched, and if the whole world follows what I am saying to you about love, the whole world will be enriched. There is a value higher than love! If you have love, but not this value, than you will not be fulfilled. that value is FREEDOM: For a lighter life, for a more playful life, you need to be flexible. You have to remember that freedom is the highest value and if love is not giving you freedom then it is not love. - excerpt from OSHO. Being in Love.

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Mature Spirituality November 12 2010, 6:10 PM by Paul Michael Sparks A Buddhist monk Jack Kornfield wrote a popular book entitled A Path with Heart. In this book Kornfield lists the following ten qualities that define mature spirituality:

1. Nonidealism The quality of nonidealism refers to acknowledging that no person, thing or event is perfect, including ourselves. We must adopt compassion and relate to others with the heart instead of through the lens of ideals held in the mind. Perfectionism is unattainable and leads to judgmental attitudes and being overly critical rather than caring and compassionate. We fail to appreciate the wonder and beauty of the world that when we attempt to achieve what can never be attained. What a burden if everyone we encounter was seeking perfection in us!

2. Kindness Nonidealism leads naturally into the next quality of mature spirituality, kindness. This isnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t the sort of kindness that inspires us to rescue scrawny kittens or say something nice to our grumpy neighbor. Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s the fundamental notion of self-acceptance when we are kind to ourselves rather than maintaining a constant emotional field of guilt, blame or shame.

3. Self-acceptance Self-acceptance is harder than it sounds and requires the third quality 258

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of mature spirituality, patience. Very few of us will wake up one morning with the realization that spiritual completeness came to us over night. Living in harmony with dharma, Tao, the universe, God, nature or with whatever we seek to harmonize is a process through time. Patience is not striving for accomplishment of a spiritual goal but recognizing it as being a journey through the seasons and beyond time.

4. Immediacy Therefore the next quality of mature spirituality is immediacy. We find our spirituality in the here and now. It is not a gift to be bestowed in the future it is something we cultivate within the context of our lives. Joseph Campbell in The Power of Myth define eternity as something other than endless time. He said it was something outside of time. It was not the past and not the future, but now. This moment. But as soon as one contemplates the moment it is gone. That is eternity. So if one seeks eternal spirituality it must be a continual process of the here and now. One Zen saying is, “after the ecstasy, the laundry.”

5. Integrated & Personal Sense of the Sacred So now we have an integrated and personal sense of the sacred as our next quality of mature spirituality. This is the direct opposite of compartmentalizing our lives. Nothing is divided between the sacred and the secular. We honor our spirituality in our every word and action. We don’t adopt a spiritual attitude when we walk through a door, we have it in the car on the way to work, when we made breakfast this morning and when we go to school or anywhere else . We tap into the spiritual nature of not only a bird’s twittering on a 259

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cool crisp day but in the wailing of a baby and the honking of a car horn.

6. Questioning The next quality comes almost naturally to Unitarian Universalists and most, if not all of us, have very little difficulty with the notion of questioning. Mature spirituality is not adopting a philosophy or blindly following a teacher. Instead we recognize that we must see and experience for ourselves. We sustain a willingness to discover what is so without imitation. Yes, of course we turn to a living tradition for inspiration but we do not shy away from questioning the relevance and validity of any aspect of the sources of our faith.

7. Flexibility This predisposition to questioning doesnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t automatically guarantee possession of the next aspect of mature spirituality, flexibility. Flexibility in this respect refers to responding to our world with compassion and understanding, recognizing the changing environment around us. Mature spirituality allows us to recognize when to stay present and when to let go. Flexibility is joyful and restful. It allows us to let go of strife and gives us the wisdom to know when to hold on and when to move on.

8. Embracing Opposites This particular aspect is very different from nonidealism and kindness which are more childlike. The ability to embrace opposites is decidedly unchildlike. It is the ability to recognize that a single person is not all bad or all good but can choose to behave either way 260

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at different times. Someone who is angry is not angry all of the time. As we mature we become more comfortable with paradox, life’s ambiguities. Utter duality seems a rather naïve and simplistic world view. A person who embraces opposites can truly appreciate irony, metaphor and humor.

9. Concept of Relationship or Relatedness Kornfield’s ninth quality of mature spirituality has to do with the concept of relationship or relatedness. We are always in relationship to something. We may have little control over what happens in our life but we can choose how to relate to our experiences. The mature spiritualist possesses a willingness to relate to all things. Although at times we may be sorely tested and tempted to withdraw from the world around us we can maintain such isolationism. We exist in relationship to the people in our lives, the food we consume, the air we breathe, and the ground we walk on. Remind anyone of our affirmation to respect the interdependent web of all existence?

10. Ordinariness All of these qualities lead invariably to the tenth quality of ordinariness. This is a simple presence in the moment that allows the mystery of life to show itself. We cannot do that without nonidealism, kindness, patience, immediacy, integrated sacredness, questioning, flexibility, embracing opposites and a willingness to relate. This quality is finding a balance between what was and what will be, which is the here and now. Joseph Campbell refers to this moment as the true definition of infinity. Infinity isn’t the endlessness of time, it’s the illusiveness of the present moment. Once I have considered 261

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whether or not I am in the here and now, that moment is gone. The ordinariness of spiritual life comes from a heart that has learned trust and from a gratitude for the gift of human life.

More about the pointlessness of trying to change the world November 12 2010, 6:03 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

When are we gonna stop complaining about our bleak future, and start dancing in our magnificent present? All of you complainers and activists and fighters for truth... Those of you who only want the good, pleasure able, the light, the nice, friendly, and gushy. And out the window with the bad, painful, dark, mean, and selfish. Do you realize that you are the greatest resisters to allowing the magnificence of the present to unfold? You are not happy with the present, which is why you’re so busy trying to change it. This is because you’re not willing to embrace and accept the present. My guess is that the moment you enter the present, you’ll be presented with something about yourself that your not ready to face and accept. I wouldn’t be surprised if that part of you that you’re denying is strangly familiar to the stuff in your external world that you’re trying to change.

E1mbrace all opposites and turn them into compliments. 262

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Do you realize that we are all kids on the playground of life? You are like the kids protesting about Tom hitting Suzy. Why don’t you go play in your sandbox? Tom’s got his coming. Who are you to say that Tom was in the wrong anyway? Maybe Suzy deserved it. And if Suzy was innocent, then Tom has just delivered her a powerful invaluable lesson that she will take with her the rest of her life. what’s the lesson? That although life is a playground, even fun slides have rusty edges. That even a rose has thorns That the playground of life is also a jungle, and “human nature” is not inherently evil... it’s just Natural. That you cannot live one day on this earth without causing harm to another creature. So deal with it. Welcome to reality. You may be thinking, “But when a human causes harm to another, that’s not natural, that’s man’s skewed manipulation of nature to his own pleasures and pursuits.” Well, consider this... When a hurricane causes harm to humans, it’s natural. when a human causes harm to humans, it’s evil. This belief comes from the core belief that nature is good, and humankind is evil, and that man must rid himself of his “human-ness” in order to be holy 263

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and sacred. Well, the only part of that I can agree with is the possibility that mankind is a disease of mothernature... but if we are going to go there we have to have a deeper understanding of the function of a disease in the body. “Life is a serious of metamorphosis. We are always changing. Many times in our life comes a teacher, or an opportunity to organize a higher harmony in our own life, physical, emotional, mental and spiritual. Only when our personality is resisting this change, the plan of the soul, is when we are sick.” In other words, disease is not the culprit. Disease is the manifestation of our resistance to change... our dis ease with the on-coming growth pangs of the new reality that’s trying to birth itself. Just like the friction of tectonic plates causes mountains and volcanoes)... In this case, the mountain forming would be the “disease”... which doesn’t look like that bad of a thing anymore, does it? Just like :

“A diamond is merely a lump of coal that did well under pressure.” So, in this case, the diamond is the result of the friction / the disease. So, in other words, disease is simply FRICTION, and friction is a sign of 264

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growth. So, if you can stretch your mind with me on this metaphor, let’s take this view on disease and apply it to earth. So, some time many eons ago, the conciousness of the earth was desiring to organize itself towards a higher harmony, to evolve to another level of being, and during that process, some natural “friction” occurs from all the rearranging. That natural friction manifests itself as a “disease”... or a “dis-ease-ment” , This disease is known as human conciousness. So, in other words, the birth of humans came from the earth’s desire to evolve. Humans are the way that the earth is evolving itself, and working out its own identity. So, from this perspective, humans are not the cause of all the atrocities in the world... instead, humans, and all of the raging of mother nature for that matter, are all natural side effects of the earth evolving itself, just like all the heat and light is a natural outcome of a vibrant chemical reaction in the lab. Let’s stop complaining about all the “madness” in the world, and see the “brilliance” and fireworks as a natural outcome of growth, and let’s celebrate the final alchemized product that is being formed. So, it looks like the earth is going through puberty, and humans are the pimples that need to be popped. Or, if you prefer something more romantic, the earth is in the process of becoming a sun, just like her father sun, and humans are the sparks 265

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that will ignite the earth on fire. Bite into that for a bit... see where it takes you. Peace & Chocolate

Need I say more? Welcome to NYC baby :)

November 12 2010, 1:02 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

Never agree to plastic surgery if the doctorâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s office is full of portraits by Picasso. November 28 2010, 12:58 AM by Paul Michael Sparks

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On a flight to the big Apple! Got my entertainment ready November 1 2010, 10:31 AM by Paul Michael Sparks

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On Good and Evil - Kahlil Gibran November 25 2010, 4:59 AM by Paul Michael Sparks Of the good in you I can speak, but not of the evil. For what is evil but good tortured by its own hunger and thirst? Verily when good is hungry it seeks food even in dark caves, and when it thirsts it drinks even of dead waters. You are good when you are one with yourself. Yet when you are not one with yourself you are not evil. For a divided house is not a den of thieves; it is only a divided house. And a ship without rudder may wander aimlessly among perilous isles yet sink not to the bottom. You are good when you strive to give of yourself. Yet you are not evil when you seek gain for yourself. For when you strive for gain you are but a root that clings to the earth and sucks at her breast. Surely the fruit cannot say to the root, â&#x20AC;&#x153;Be like me, ripe and full and ever giving of your abundance.â&#x20AC;? For to the fruit giving is a need, as receiving is a need to the root. You are good when you are fully awake in your speech, Yet you are not evil when you sleep while your tongue staggers without purpose. And even stumbling speech may strengthen a weak tongue. You are good when you walk to your goal firmly and with bold steps. 268

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Yet you are not evil when you go thither limping. Even those who limp go not backward. But you who are strong and swift, see that you do not limp before the lame, deeming it kindness. You are good in countless ways, and you are not evil when you are not good, You are only loitering and sluggard. Pity that the stags cannot teach swiftness to the turtles. In your longing for your giant self lies your goodness: and that longing is in all of you. But in some of you that longing is a torrent rushing with might to the sea, carrying the secrets of the hillsides and the songs of the forest. And in others it is a flat stream that loses itself in angles and bends and lingers before it reaches the shore. But let not him who longs much say to him who longs little, “Wherefore are you slow and halting?” For the truly good ask not the naked, “Where is your garment?” nor the houseless, “What has befallen your house?”

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Our outer beauty is an outcome of our inner environment November 14 2010, 12:23 AM by Paul Michael Sparks When you think someone is beautiful, i t’s because you’re seeing their light. You’re seeing their confidence There wholeness their total acceptance of them self. Even more, you are experiencing a resonation between them and your own vibration. nothing is ever just superficial :)

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Park ave NY November 12 2010, 12:53 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

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Picking up where I left off November 6 2010, 11:36 PM by Paul Michael Sparks So, in October, 2008, I created my first music video, LoveNow, with Kute Blackson. This was 8 months after I had taught myself how to use film editing and animation software, and I did it all on an old model Dell Windows laptop that had gotten me through college. Within a month, the film was debuting at the Nokia Center in Los Angeles, CA at the Elevate Film Festival. After the height of that experience, I got swept up into numerous different business endeavors over the past 2 years, and in each of them, the storyteller in me never really got nurtured. Instead, I was bogged down with responsibilities and promises of supporting the marketing, branding, and communication needs of organizations that were desiring to have a more visceral, real, human, invigorating presence with the world. But, instead of having the creative freedom to go in the direction I desired, I had to always work within the constraints and immediate business needs of the of the organization and itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s executives, which would be naturally expected of a business trying to survive through this harsh economic environment in the world today. The main 4 endeavors I embarked upon were 1. Creative Director for The Difference Engine, a global brand consulting firm in Vancouver, CA, started by Anurag Gupta 2. Left April 2009 to start my own media boutique, www. soulSpeakMedia.com . First two clients were Dole.com, and FunBikeCenter in San Diego. 272

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3. Joined Elevate Films Oct 2009 and co-formed Elevate Studios, and participated in the foundational groundwork of their new online film distribution platform they are launching. 4. Joined the formation of an LA Media Boutique, Siren Media: www. thisIsSiren.com I left Elevate Oct 1st of this year, 2010, on a mission to make a career change from: web/graphic design + communications TO social movement architecting, and cultural gene spreading. (coined Meme-ology) compensated to commissioned work. In other words, shifting from: servicing other people’s needs to, getting commissioned to create my artwork. So, I jumped straight into 4 other project developments in southBeach, Miami, and officially launched my Paulitics MadCast / E-Magazine. www.paulmichaelsparks.com, as well as my own digital publishing house: www.thatseffinGenius.com www.lovebecause.com www.madgreatness.com www.facebook.com/prayerdanse However, after all this, I’m left with the overwhelming desire to pick up where I left off with the LoveNow film that so many people hold dear to their heart. Finally, 2 years later, I’m in New York City, being commissioned by Andrew Hewitt, finally embarking upon a journey to create my next film piece. What will my soul give birth to this time? 273

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Pursuit of a bright future is the trap to a dark present. - Paul Sparks

November 13 2010, 10:35 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

Embrace the present just as it is, with the light and dark forever intertwined, and that will result in an infinitely fulfilling present, and all the sudden the future and past will dissolve.

Queens ny. Back to my birthtown! November 4 2010, 11:54 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

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Real Virtue is not a skill or capacity you develop: It can not be cultivated or imitated by any deliberate method November 7 2010, 2:13 AM by Paul Michael Sparks Superior Virtue is Aimless and Spontaneous. This is not virtue in the current sense of moral rectitude but in the older sense of effectiveness, as when one speaks of the healing virtues of a plant. - Alan Watts This is not a virtue that depends upon an artificial observance of rules and precepts. Is it virtuous for a hammer to finally wake up one day and start hammering nails? Is it virtuous for the sun to shine upon the earth or is it just her nature?

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Some Mind-Opening Movies on the Nature of Reality November 7 2010, 10:41 AM by Paul Michael Sparks

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Sacred Activism Essentials -Andrew Harvey

November 12 2010, 3:03 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

Sacred Activism is a merger of 2 of the most powerful fires of the human psyche The yearning for orgasmic connection with our beloved (sacred) and the yearning to actualize that relationship in 3D reality with our fellow creatures. Essentials for practicing Sacred Activism: 1. Aquire a spiritual practice, and stick to it in the core of your life deep meditation and sacred physical practice that keeps you open to the divine energies 2. Start to live as simply as possible as free from the carbon dominated world as you can as free from the distractions and madnessess of the greed dominated society as you can. 3. Get up at 3 in the morning, ground yourself in peace and ask yourself the question â&#x20AC;&#x153;what, of all the causes in the world, breaks my heart the most?â&#x20AC;? because when you discover your true heartbreak you will discover the passion of compassion that exists like a fountain at the center of that heartbreak and that passion will fuel a tremendous energy to donate all of your thoughts, emotions, and resources to doing something real in the real world that causes your heartbreak 4. Start being a midwife of this new birth of society. notes from Andrew Harvey

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Spiritual english phrases that have gone rotten November 13 2010, 10:11 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

This is your invitation to be an artist of words: a wordsmith. Step 1: Throw out all the garbage. Step 2: alchemize new words and phrases to create new experiences that connect new neurons in the brain... of the listener, and of the speaker. So, first, let’s do STEP 1 I’m starting a list of expressions in our culture that are over-used... to the point where they’ve lost their meaning. We usually use these cliche phrases when we’re too lazy to figure out a more effective and impactful way to communicate our ideas. So, please use these words with caution. I’ll be adding more to the list as they come up. God love change the world consciousness enlightenment self-realization holy sacred prayer religion abundance Let go and let god When you use a cliche phrase, your listener will usually just gloss over what you’re saying. We should refrain from using these phrases in our communication, unless we plan on using them in a different context. 279

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Using over-used / cliche phrases is a very lazy way of communicating. it doesn’t require much thought... we just tend to pull these phrases out of our head without much reflection. If you really want to use your voice for something meaningful, you’d do good to find new, refreshing ways to communicate your thoughts and ideas. When challenged with the task of delivering the FRESH instead of the FAMILIAR, you will begin to realize the value of “poetry” and wordsmith-ing.

Stop Running. Start Living Boldy. November 3 2010, 3:15 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

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Stop trying to change the world. You’re getting in the way of those who already are! : The Art of REAL Social Change is enacted through SELF Change. November 12 2010, 5:04 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

“A citizen of America will cross the ocean to fight for democracy, but won’t cross the street to greet their neighbor.” Stop trying to change the world, and focus on changing your worldview, and change your view of your self. If you change the way you look at things, the things you look at change. The best way to have more “good and loving” people in the world, is to focus on BEING a good and loving person. The biggest obstacle in the way of changing the world, is people who are busy trying to change the world. They are the ones fervently affirming that there’s something wrong with the world, and that it needs fixing... affirming that the world is not perfect just the way it is. If you were to really ask them, I’m sure you’d also discover that they have something in their own personal journey that they’re “striving” for that they never quite get, and the moment they do get it, they’re onto the next goal.

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As long as you are striving to get somewhere, you are affirming that you are not there. “Connected with the pursuit of the good is the pursuit of the future, the illusion wereby we are unable to be happy without a “promising future” for our ego. Progress towards the good is therefore measured in terms of the prolongation of human life. However, the measuring of worth and success in terms of time, and the insistent demand for assurances of a promising future, make it impossible to live freely both in the present and in the “promising” future when it arrives. For there is never anything but the present, and if one cannot live there, one cannot live anywhere.” - Alan Watts “In the first place, we are in no position to change the world. Culture is the kind of power that does not lend itself to direct attempts to change it. It is embedded in institutions and symbols and guarded by gate-keepers and evangelicals are, for the most part, in no position to actually ‘take back the culture.’ - James Hunter What’s more, Hunter says that is actually a very good thing. He says that because of the way power is widely viewed in our day, talk about ‘redeeming the culture’ or ‘transforming the world’ is largely understood as implying conquest, take-over, or domination. It means ‘our side will defeat your side by coercing everyone to do what we want.’ Don’t change the world. Change your mind. Change your worldview. Maintain that new frequency & live It. 282

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As you live your frequency, you affect everyone, every place you go. Your work is to discover your world and then with all your heart give yourself to it. Buddha Quote Now that I’ve put all the social activists out of work, they’re gonna have to start finding deeper motivations for doing what they do. They’ll have to consider letting their work be a process of spontaneity and play, with no agenda or attachment to the outcome. If you really look deep, you’ll realize that the battle of good and evil is not happening in the world, but in your mind. Your mind is the one that is split and out of harmony. The world is doing just fine without your skewed perception of it. Once we can all decide to shed the need for a promising future, we can all just take a chill pill, relax into the moment which is infinitely changing with or without our agreement.

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Success is the art of being a good failure - Paul Sparks

November 11 2010, 12:36 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

The Attempted Murder of Creativity: The Locked up Genius November 8 2010, 3:35 PM by Paul Michael Sparks The greatest Humans have not been born yet. They are waiting patiently for the past to die. So, What is a human being? Not 3 buckets of water, and a handful of minerals No that is just a temporary vehicle we loan for a splinter of time. We are songs in fact anthems unsung So, because no one else seems to have the guts to say it, I’m gonna get it started There is a voice inside each of our hearts, crying out for justice Here’s what it’s saying

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I have a list of demands! Help the world? Save our species? who gives a fuck about all that? we’re not gonna be here anyway. Please, i beg of you! Don’t ever do anything out of obligation. That is the worst plight you can every embark yourself upon. I say, follow the tune of your heart. what does your gut say in this moment? Listen to that impulse. Don’t get caught up in world events. Don’t get distracted by pursuits of greatness, Don’t get distracted by reaches for world fame. Focus on the path to enlightenment Everything else is FLEETING Just look around at your immediate environment. Work with what you have in front of you. Your family your simple desires for friendship, for the simple pleasures of life the magic moments Even the greatest of men still go to bed every night wanting nothing more than a moment where they feel recognized We are all fragile souls hiding behind these bags of bones We are all hiding underneath, waiting to bust free. We come up with excuses to wait... I’ll wait till I graduate till I get married till I get rich THEN I’ll relax, let go, and live in the moment. AND the worst excuse of them all is I’ll rest when I die. The only thing that needs to die here, is your stubborn belief that you 285

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think you’re actually living The only thing that needs to die here is your miserable existence you call Life. The biggest mistake a human could make, is to think they’re living. when they’re actually the walking dead. You think you know what joy is you think you know what evil is? Oh, you must not have much of an imagination I can show you atrocities greater than this earth has ever seen. I can show you wondrous exuberance more magnificent than any man has ever dreamed of. but if you keep on hanging on to the pile of ashes and dust you call your life, how can I show you these magnificent worlds?

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The day the caterpillar resisted CHANGE, and chose COMFORT instead. November 11 2010, 12:42 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

What are you choosing every moment? Comfort or change? If you want improvement in your life. If you want to grow and evolve towards something greater, brighter, and more magnificent, then you have to be willing to CHANGE and Metamorphosize. Change usually will feel uncomfortable. Start to welcome the uncomfortable. We all gladly welcome a life-bringer... but fervently deny the life-taker. The essence that transforms the caterpillar into a butterfly is the lifetaker AND the life-giver. You canâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t have one without the other. lean into the pain, and you will find pleasure run towards death, and you will find everlasting life. In other words, We must see through the illusion that what is pleasant or good may be separated from what is painful or evil.

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“When everyone recognizes beauty as beautiful, there is already ugliness. When everyone recognizes goodness as good, there is already evil. ‘To be’ and ‘not to be’ arise mutually; Difficult and easy are mutually realized; Long and short are mutually contrasted; High and low are mutually posited; Before and after are in mutual sequence.” - Tao Te Ching Good without evil is like up without down To make an ideal of pursuing good is like trying to get rid of the left by turning constantly to the right. One is therefore compelled to go round in circles. -Alan Watts

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The fundamental contradiction of our current worldviews November 12 2010, 5:40 PM by Paul Michael Sparks We are at a stage of history in the conflict between a - one-world theory- monism

- and a 2-world theory - dualism

Monism: means that everything in the universe has only one

source.

There are 2 main types of Monists: 1. Materialist: Only what can be percieved by the human senses is REAL. Tries to argue the spirit away 2. Spiritualist: This physical world is an illusion (maya). Tries to argue away the outer world of physical matter. From monism also comes the belief that you can have UP with out DOWN, and GOOD without EVIL, and LIGHT without DARK. Dualism is where there is a separation between I and the world. And so, in this worldview, efforts consist in the vain struggle to reconcile these opposites: (spirit vs matter, subject vs object, reality vs. perception, good vs. evil.) Dualism is, therefore, mainly connected with religious thought wherein a miraculous component is added to an otherwise physically caused universe. The 3rd Alternative? Embrace all Opposites

“The gem cannot be polished without friction nor man without trials.” —Confucius November 25 2010, 4:59 AM by Paul Michael Sparks 289

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The Fearlessly Ever-changing Woman. Modern class in her times. Feminine of stature; elegant of nature. November 29 2010, 3:05 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

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he cherishes life she radiates energy She is all woman Of prime importance are her needs Her signature is her own creation Aware of who she wants to be she enhances her appearance Strong in her workplace she conquers her spirit,soul and all she believes in . Unique in her preference she thrives on adventure Feminine of stature elegant of nature. Comfortable and free she is in control Fast in her pace for ever changing is her world Powerful her status she demands versatility. Modern class in her times Ambition are her chimes Woman of essence fulfilled by her presence she does not fail to impress She is young and she is old Ageless her charm Her leisure is romance She is truly graceful in every sense With passion she entertains She is extravagant. ...She understands what she represents She carries well at all events Fearless of change. -author unknown

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The greatest cause of pain in the world... is the pursuit of pleasure. Paul Sparks November 25 2010, 4:20 AM by Paul Michael Sparks

The greatest evil-doers are those who oppress us with the obligation to do good. November 28 2010, 3:14 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

The greatest undeniable truth revealed once and for all November 23 2010, 2:44 PM by Paul Michael Sparks God is good. Chocolate is good. therefore Chocolate is God. period.

The Language beyond Language November 3 2010, 3:15 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

Our literary Language was created to communicate about our physical experience. What language do we use to communicate about our non-physical experience of the inner world outside of space and time? I would say that language is ART. (for example, the following are all different dialects of ART: Music, poetry, dance, film, painting, culinary, the womanâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s body ...

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The Madman - Khalil Gibran November 16 2010, 2:53 AM by Paul Michael Sparks

You ask me how I became a madman. It happened thus: One day, long before many gods were born, I woke from a deep sleep and found all my masks were stolen,--the seven masks I have fashioned and worn in seven lives,--I ran maskless through the crowded streets shouting, “Thieves, thieves, the cursed thieves!” Men and women laughed at me and some ran to their houses in fear of me. And when I reached the market place, a youth standing on a housetop cried, “He is a madman!” I looked up to behold him; the sun kissed my own naked face for the first time. For the first time the sun kissed my own naked face and my soul was inflamed with love for the sun, and I wanted my masks no more. And as if in a trance I cried, “Blessed, blessed are the thieves who stole my masks.” Thus I became a madman. And I have found both freedom of loneliness and the safety from being understood, for those who understand us enslave something in us. But let me not be too proud of my safety. Even a Thief in a jail is safe from another thief.

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“The most common road to mediocrity is being realistic.” – Will Smith November 16 2010, 2:32 AM by Paul Michael Sparks Ever notice something about realistic people? … 90% of the time … they’re broke! Realistic people can’t stand change. Realistic people are usually cynical about change, paradigm shifts, new ideas and anything that clashes with their secure world. Realistic people will snear at you in the beginning … but loose in the end. Realistic people stay stuck in a frame of mind that only exists in usually the past. Realistic people don’t believe they can ever do anything other than what has already been done. Realistic people are mediocre at best.

Who wants to be realistic? Let me tell you about unrealistic people. The people who make real differences in this world usually aren’t tallying up the odds, and they aren’t coming up with endless reasons why something can’t work. They don’t care what’s realistic. Let me ask you a question, what the hell in this world is realistic? We wake up every day and do things people would have thought were impossible 20-30 years ago. What if you tried to explain the Internet to someone in 1985? You’d probably have been told your brains are fried. Unrealistic things are happening every day. And if you think being realistic is going to create the kind of life you want, you’re sadly mistaken. Even though things 294

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are changing so rapidly every day, we still have the time to sit back and decide what is realistic and what’s not. BS! There is no such thing as realistic and there is no such a thing as unrealistic. The only thing that doesn’t change is your belief of what is “suppose” to happen. Only you can change that.

“The 95% of realistic people in this world work for the 5% of unrealistic people.” – Will Smith The unrealistic people rule the world. Is it realistic to be the chairman of a top Fortune 500 company? Is it realistic to train your whole life to win a gold medal? Is Open Source software outperforming technology giants realistic? It’s scary to think what the world would be like if some of the great inventors of our time would have been realistic people, who payed close attention to the odds against them. We blame this stuff on luck, or someone who had a fluke opportunity. Even success-minded people fall into this trap. But a few of us know this: when you think unrealistically, it opens a new space in your mind that didn’t exist there before, a higher level of thinking. Albert Einstein said that “a problem can’t be solved at the same level of thinking that it was made at.” Here’s a question to ask yourself: Am I realistic and in what situations am I realistic? Make sure you pay close attention to the answers you give yourself. Next time someone tells you something is unrealistic, your answer should be … “Compared to what?” 295

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A good belief to instill in yourself is that nothing is impossible if you really want it bad enough and do whatever it takes. Maybe it takes working late and starting early, a sickening work ethic, relentless repetition until it works. Just take someone who has accomplished something, that you would consider, nearly impossible and use them as a role model. What makes your little challenges so hard to defeat? Are you even giving 10% of what you could? from: http://clintonskakun.com/

The opposite of love is fear, but what is all-encompassing can have no opposite. - Course in Miracles November 14 2010, 1:06 AM by Paul Michael Sparks Therefore, Fear, Death, Darkness must all be a part of Love, contained within the realm of love.

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The Web Is Dead. Long Live the Internet : November 9 2010, 3:57 AM by Paul Michael Sparks

via wired.com read article here: http://www.wired.com/magazine/2010/08/ff_ webrip/all/1

“Too many of us are not living our dreams because we are living our fears.” —Les Brown November 24 2010, 1:50 AM by Paul Michael Sparks

What is it about us humans pushing our lips together that’s so addictive? November 16 2010, 6:00 PM by Paul Michael Sparks 297

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What will happen to me when I die? November 11 2010, 12:45 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

The anxiety-laden problem of what will happen to me when I die is, after all, like asking what happens to my fist when I open my hand, or where my lap goes when I stand up. Perhaps, then, we are now able to understand the celebrated summary of the Buddha’s doctrine given in the Visuddhimagga: Suffering alone exists, none who suffer; The deed there is, but no doer thereof; Nirvana is, but no one seeking it; The Path there is, but none who travel it - Watts A Marvelous Sufi Discourse on dying to self (the ego). A Bedouin was walking with his dog in the desert, carrying a leather skin of water on his shoulder, and crying pitifully as he went along. When asked why he was crying, he replied, “Because my dog is dying of thirst!” “Why don’t you give him some of your water, then?” the person said. “Because I might need it for myself.” So it is with many who aspire to the Path of Love. They enjoy reading Rumi and Hafez and other Sufi books, and hearing Sufi music, and listening to Sufi Shaykhs give talks, and they like calling themselves Sufis or darvishes (or dervishes), but when it comes time to put it into practice, their nafs, their self-absorbed ego, has second thoughts. The Sufi prayer (namaz) is only two rak’ats. In order to perform these two rak’ats, Sufis do their ablutions with the water of love, then face the qibla of “And wherever you turn, there is God’s countenance.” (11:15), and repeat Allahu akbar four times. With the first Allahu akbar, they put the world and all of its inhabitants behind them. 298

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With the second Allahu akbar, they forget the hereafter. With the third Allahu akbar, they cast the very thought of anything other than God out of their heart. With the fourth Allahu akbar, they forget even themselves. Only then do they begin the prayer, performing the two rakâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ats sincerely over the corpse of their nafs (egos). The ablution alone for this namaz (prayer) takes most Sufis many years. If they manage to complete the ablution, they spend more years on the first Allahu akbar, and there are very few who get to the second and forget the two worlds. Alhamdulillah! May Allah grant His mercy and compassion on all who love and struggle in His name. Ya Haqq!

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What worries you, masters you November 3 2010, 10:52 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

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When the heart weeps for what it has lost, the spirit laughs for what it has found. -Sufi saying November 7 2010, 1:38 AM by Paul Michael Sparks

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Why is there so much suffering in the world? November 29 2010, 4:20 AM by Paul Michael Sparks

There is a tibetan legend that the reason the heart is not in the center of the chest is because it has been displaced from all the eons of humanity pushing aside “matters of the heart,” ignoring the burning fire of truth in our chest, for the hearts medicine is too bitter for us to take. So, instead, as the energy flows through our body from the bottom of our feet to the top of our head, the energy bypasses our heart since it is an energy we have denied. so, to accomodate for this bypass, the biology decided to go ahead and make it more convenient for us by physically moving the heart out of the way. Maybe that’s why so many people are heartbroken, and are having heart attacks... Maybe that’s why we crave so much to free ourselves from this 302

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suffering experience. and then we blame the world for its atrocities...and we scream at god for bringing us into a world that has mostly pain and suffering... not realizing that it is our avoidance of the fire of the heart that has numbed ourselves of the ability to see any good in the world. Because in avoiding the fire and pain of the heart, we are also avoiding the gift of truth and liberation and beauty that it has to offer. We are pushing away the spoon that is trying to feed us what our soul desires! Somewhere along the line, it seems as though our species lost itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s willingness to endure through any suffering, so we threw suffering out the window... we place all of the suffering upon â&#x20AC;&#x153;our saviorâ&#x20AC;?, and chose to live in a society that values only pleasure. That denies the existence of pain, and chooses to only acknowledge pleasure. But true human virtue, the highest human potential, will not be reached along this single-minded path of pleasure. The highest human potential is pure freedom, true liberation. (In Hinduism this is called Mukti)... and has also been referred to as enlightenment. True freedom is a chaotic explosion of ecstasy. There is no justice in freedom. There is no protection in freedom. There is only the irrational unpredictable drunken dance of the soul. Freedom is what our souls desire above all else! and Freedom is not concerned about pleasure vs. pain. If you were locked and chained up in a cave, and abandoned, left to starve and die...would you not bargain even with the devil himself for 303

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your freedom? Or lets say you find a way to free yourself, but it would result in you having to break one of the bones in your arm. Wouldnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t this temporary pain of the arm be worth the freedom you would obtain for the rest of your life? So too are we prisoners of our mind, and there are temporary pains we must endure if we desire to attain true freedom. How bad do you want to be free?

Wisdom from Einstein November 13 2010, 10:17 PM by Paul Michael Sparks A manâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s ethical behavior should be based effectually on sympathy, education, and social ties; no religious basis is necessary. Man would indeed be in a poor way if he had to be restrained by fear of punishment and hope of reward after death.

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December, 2010 @ Dive shop in Tulum Mexico December 27 2010, 7:56 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

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challenging thought of the day

A Murderer reminds us to cherish life. A doctor reminds us to fear death (i.e. anti-aging) December 13 2010, 3:53 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

Just a friendly reminder to check your assumptions of whatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s right n wrong / good n bad. to embrace all opposites to quest for the richness and immense value in all things. 306

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A strange passion is moving in my head. December 30 2010, 10:12 AM by Paul Michael Sparks A strange passion is moving in my head. My heart has become a bird which searches in the sky. Every part of me goes in different directions. Is it really so that the one I love is everywhere? -Rumi

a thought worth repeating

December 19 2010, 9:18 AM by Paul Michael Sparks My beloved always loves only a true warrior, and so, disguises herself in darkness to assure that the heart that enters is he who is insanely fearless enough to survive her wild heart.

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A world with no war, no disease, no poverty...,is a world with no peace, no health, no wealth... December 19 2010, 10:29 AM by Paul Michael Sparks

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All you true naked soul lovers of the world, do not hold yourself back in fear of offending others... December 27 2010, 12:43 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

All you true naked soul lovers of the world. Do not hold yourself back in fear of offending others. For you are a sun, providing light to dark souls. You are a fire that is destined to burn away the garbage of peopleâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s consciousness. You are doing the world a dis-service by repressing your fire and passion. You are depriving us of the privilege of basking in your warmth and 309

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glory. Just as a tree needs pruning, so do people’s psyche. and so does every layer of existence families, cities, governments, institutions, cultures, civilizations, even the human race. We are in a constant process of pruning and refinement. refinement: to purify from what is coarse, vulgar, or debasing; make elegant or cultured. :to make or become free from impurities, sediment, or other foreign matter; purify The human soul can withstand unimaginably horrific conditions. Our souls welcome the pressure because the result of the pressure is strength. It has been said, What doesn’t kill me, makes me stronger. I say, Kill me, so I may rejoice in my strength. so I may Rejoice in what remains after the massacre. You can kill my ego, my pride, my body... but you can never kill my eternal will to create, explode, explore, and stand in wonder. What if the sun held back its light upon discovering that the earth had “vulnerable” spots in its ozone... yes, in the short run, we would have less global warming issues and all that, but in the long run we would lose all of the life giving essence the sun has to offer. Life always progresses forward towards greater good. Mad Love Paul Michael Sparks

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amazing masterpiece! Thought of You by Ryan Woodward December 6 2010, 7:45 AM by Paul Michael Sparks

watch here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OBk3ynRbtsw from the creator: The birth of this animation came from a desire to unite several of my passions into one art piece. Figurative works, 2d animation, EFX animation, and contemporary dance. Put all three of these forms together to support a theme centered around the complexities of intimate relationships…and whalaa! learn more at: http://conteanimated.com/the-animation/#

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Another invalid assumption of modern society. about what Family is... December 6 2010, 7:51 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

Painting = Family of Saltimbanques, 1905 The assumption is that Family equals other humans with similar genetics / blood. So, we attach ourselves to spending time with other humans out of obligation, rather than out of free choice... I advise that humans should use their heart and soul as a basis for choosing what they do and say in their life, not external social conventions Plus, if you really think about it, every human on the earth has the same genetics ANYWAY !!!! ( My great great great great great x100 312

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grandfather is the same person as your great great great great x100 grandfather ) we’re all ONE family on the planet... The idea of a small local tribal family bonded by blood ties is an OLD OLD tradition from the days of ancient man... It’s about you checking with yourself to make sure you are living in alignment with your soul’s passion. So, #1. everyone on the earth is part of our family, and our immediate family is no more special or important than our extended family. #2. It’s obvious that we don’t have enough time to spend with all 6 Billion of our family members... So, therefore #3. We have to choose wisely which global family members we devote our time with in this life If it just so happens that one of the global family members you want to spend time with happens to be your immediate blood family, than that’s GREAT! But it’s ok if that’s not always the case. Gloria responded: Dec 7 2010, 11:56 AM Swell. Terrific. Wondeful. YOUR MOTHER Dec 7 2010, 11:49 AM Paul Michael Sparks responded: GOING BEYOND TRADITION Everything that Jesus did was new. His new understanding of family was revolutionary. The traditional family ties of the time of Jesus were challenged and replaced by ties to Jesus and to doing the will of God. When the mother and brothers of Jesus came to get Jesus, the crowd told Jesus that his mother and brothers were looking for him. Jesus answered by asking, “Who are my mother and my brothers?” And looking about on those who were sitting around him Jesus said, “Look! Here are my mother and my brothers. For whoever does the will of God is my brother and sister and mother.” (Mark 3:31-35) 313

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You do not choose your biological family. Jesus sets you free to chose who will be closest to you and who will most influence your life. What kind of choices have you made in selecting people to be in your life? Your freedom in Christ includes your freedom to decide who your circle of closest friends will be. Freedom to chose your “family” implies your obligation to chose wisely. You can destroy a lot of your freedom by making bad choices. Have you ever done that? Jesus carefully selected his closest friends. God will help you do the same. Dec 7 2010, 11:56 AM Gloria responded: An old Italian woman was in church saying the rosary. A repairman in the rafters thought he would have some fun with her. Hello, down there! This is God speaking. No answer. I’m talking to you down there. This is God Almighty. No answer. Hey, don’t you hear me? This is your Lord, your father in heaven. The old Italian lady’s response: You shutta you mouth. I’m talkin to you mother. And when Mary finally found Jesus that day, she gave him a similar earful, I’m sure. Love, Mama Dec 7 2010, 12:00 PM Paul Michael Sparks responded: lol! hahahahahahaaaa!! Thank God Mary was not my mother. I’ve got it easy compared to JC.

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Ardhanarishwara - Embrace all Opposites December 12 2010, 12:39 AM by Paul Michael Sparks

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How sweet and mysterious is their union! Though the whole

universe is too small to contain them, they dwell together happily in the tiniest particle. -Jnaneshwar Maharaj Look around you! This world is tremendously mingled; Angels, devils, satan, Michael-all mixed up like seed and fruit! Atheist with fundamentalist, materialist with mystic. All cycles and seasons, years, months, and days converge at the dot of now: “In the beginning” is “world without end.” Every point in this circle becomes the first stroke for a million new forms. Every point follows its own orbit, but sooner or later revolution meets itself, coming and going. -by the 13th cent. Sufi poet Mahmud Shabistari, from The Secret Rose Garden “When you make the two into ONE, you will become children of Adam, and when you say, ‘Mountain, move from here!’ it will move.” (Jesus) pic found and shared by my dear soulsister Lotus Enxi with true joy and divine love :-) 316

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“Are there, infinitely varying with each individual, inbred forces of Good and Evil in all of us...? December 2 2010, 2:47 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

“Are there, infinitely varying with each individual, inbred forces of Good and Evil in all of us, deep down below the reach of mortal encouragement and mortal repression -- hidden Good and hidden Evil, both alike at the mercy of the liberating opportunity and the sufficient temptation?” -Wilkie Collins

As a man is, so he sees : Fear Begets fear. Hate begets Hate. Only Love begets love. December 9 2010, 6:15 AM by Paul Michael Sparks striving begets striving wanting begets wanting needing begets needing feeling lonely begets feeling loney complaining begets complaining only love begets love. “Hatred paralyzes life; love releases it.” -Martin Luther King

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Beautiful people donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t just happen December 26 2010, 3:48 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

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Behind every successful man is a woman, behind her is his wife. Groucho Marx December 11 2010, 7:29 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

A manâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s only as old as the woman he feels. Groucho Marx Before I speak, I have something important to say. Groucho Marx A black cat crossing your path signifies that the animal is going somewhere. Groucho Marx

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Birds, crocodiles, ecstasy, longing... Egyptian love song from 1300 BC December 15 2010, 11:49 AM by Paul Michael Sparks

Desire and passion are mysterious forces that grow slowly from inside. rather than reaching outward to fulfill my passionate desires, I am following the stream of desire to it source, which is within. There, I will find communion with my beloved. My beloved waits for me on the other side of a stream. A crocodile waits in the shallows. But when I go down into the water, when I wade through the current, my heartbeat will master the rhythm of the tide, my feet will turn the waves to land. My love for her steadies me-itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s my water magic! As I see my beloved coming toward me, my heart dances and my arms open to encircle her. My beloved comes to me! I have not seen her for seven days and now I am sick. My body is heavy, I pass out easily. If the chief doctor visits, 320

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my heart isn’t satisfied. If the priests chant for me, it’s useless, their diagnosis is flawed. Just tell me, “Here she is!” and I’ll revive: her name picks me right up. Letters from and to her restore my heart. My beloved is a better tonic than any prescription. She means more to me than all the holy books. If I see her, I start to recover. If she throws me a glance, I get younger. If she speaks to me, my strength returns. When we embrace, all evil flees. But I have not seen her for seven days!”

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Career evolution

December 2 2010, 3:26 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

Certainty is helpful, up until you become certain that something is impossible. - Paul Sparks December 11 2010, 10:27 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

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Character is not built. It is uncovered. The only work is clearing away the dirt. - Paul Sparks

December 13 2010, 1:39 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

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Danteâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Inferno: Dante and Virgil in The Fifth Circle of Hell December 27 2010, 2:32 AM by Paul Michael Sparks

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ouguereau’s masterpiece of dynamic composition, a scene from

‘Dante’s Inferno.’ In the Fifth Circle of Hell, on the banks of the River Styx, those damned for the sin of wrath fight each other through eternity, while the sullen and slothful languish helplessly. Dante and his guide through Hell, the ghost of the poet Virgil, observe from the left, while a demonic angel watches over all.

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Consciousness is a recent acquisition of nature, and is still in an experimental state December 13 2010, 1:39 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

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Donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t hate the shadows of your life. Lest you forget to celebrate that which is casting the shadow. December 2 2010, 2:57 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

A shadow is a representation that there is something great and grand that is standing tall. If there is no shadow, either there is nothing standing tall, or there is no light being shown.

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Evolution of Man and Woman December 27 2010, 2:49 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

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Evolution of Man

December 27 2010, 2:55 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

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Good olâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; capitalism: Bringing you lower quality and fewer choices since the 16th century December 2 2010, 1:46 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

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Honesty is the closest thing to intimacy - Gloria Bandy December 26 2010, 7:25 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

I embrace my feminine.

December 12 2010, 12:05 AM by Paul Michael Sparks

I am a male more in touch with my feminine essence than most men. Society has told me that because I have a male body, I have to have primarily masculine essence within me, and that’s why I’ve spent my life feeling like a failure, feeling out of place... because I’ve been measuring my success + progress based up the assumption that I have to exemplify solely masculine characteristics. fudge that. I embrace my feminine.

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I finally found my beloved... December 15 2010, 8:54 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

If you want to get closer to truth, just twist your wisdom more towards a paradox. The more paradoxical, the closer you are to truth. the trick of life is to jump off the cliff of your deepest fears only to discover that there is a bed of flowers below. But you wonâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t discover that until you jump. I spent my whole life searching after my beloved, and only found her when I realized that being the sly clever trickster that she is, my lover disguised herself as my darkest fears. My beloved always loves only a true warrior, and so, disguises herself in darkness to assure that the heart that enters is he who is insanely fearless enough to survive her wild heart.

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I like...

December 27 2010, 1:01 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

I ran into God the other day at Starbucks. Twas rather anti-climatic. December 12 2010, 11:55 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

I ran into God the other day at Starbucks, (he was ordering decaf of course... all the flavor. less the toxins I suppose), So, while I was standing next to him in line, I decided to go ahead and ask him THE question. You know... like, THE Effin Question of all time, so that I can know once and for all what the point of this existence is. So, I tapped him on the shoulder, and he turned around, and I just stared into his eyes for a long time, and then finally blurted out: “Why?” This was followed by another long awkward pause. “Why what?” he responded, even though he knew exactly what I was talking about. “Why did you do it? All of it?” He stared into my eyes like he was staring into deep space, and his 333

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forehead wrinkled up. “Eh. I was curious I guess.” Despite the unexpected answer, I was actually, for the first time in my life, filled with a deep sense of releif... Finding out that the core reason for my existence was for pure thrills, shits and giggles, actually made everything much easier to digest... no more doom and gloom seriousness. Life, the universe, all of it’s joys and woes... is all just one big cosmic joke. So, that answers that. Apparently God created the universe for the same reason we seek to do anything novel and fresh in our lives... because he was genuinely curious to see what would happen. Likewise, we are adventure seeking souls. And what is the motivation for going on an adventure? 1. Because it’s fun as hell (interesting that we have a phrase that relates fun to hell... but maybe that’s the catch. That “suffering” has actually gotten a bad rap, and is actually a very enriching experience, which leads us to #2. 2. Because it enriches our souls. “Life is a challenge. Meet it. Life is an adventure. Dare it. Life is sorrow, overcome it. Life is a game, play it.” - Mother Teresa

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“It is interesting that Hindus, when they speak of the creation of the universe do not call it the work of God, they call it the play of God, the Vishnu lila, lila meaning play. And they look upon the whole manifestation of all the universes as a play, as a sport, as a kind of dance — lila perhaps being somewhat related to our word lilt” (lilt (n) a characteristic rising and falling of the voice when speaking; a pleasant gentle accent.) -Alan Watts In Hindu philosophy the whole creation is regarded as the Vishnu Lila, the play of Vishnu. Lila means dance or play. Also in Hindu philosophy, they call the world illusion; and in Latin the root of the word illusion is ludere, to play. - Alan Watts, Work as Play So Hinduism has the idea that as all the conventions of drama go right along with it, that all this world is a big act, lila, the play of the supreme self, and is therefore compared to a dream---to a passing illusion,---and you should not, therefore, take it seriously. You may take it sincerely, perhaps, as an actor may be sincere in his acting, but not seriously, because that means it throws you for a loop -Alan Watts

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I’ll let Mr. Watts take it to the finish line

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m72iWC-0UpU

And here’s a nice 2 minute animated summary on this play/dance philosophy

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http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ERbvKrH-GC4

I trust my imagination more than I do my reality December 11 2010, 9:53 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

I trust my imagination more than I do my reality. Reality has a way of forcing everyone to think alike. And if everyone is thinking alike, then somebody isnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t thinking! So I chose to dream!!!

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I want you added to my body... December 15 2010, 1:12 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

I want you added to my body, joined like an extension. I want you gifted to me like a baby cousin, attached and sucking at my breast-my field of abundance is enlarged by you. If I came to you outside--if we met in a field-I would overflow, I would give you something to drink. I would embrace and absorb you utterly. No one would rise above me and no one would look down on me. 338

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I would drive you on and lead you in, I would carry you away and cause you to enter. I would take possession of your will and bring you gradually, progressively farther inside-into the interior mansion of all my mothers and grandmothers, into the place where all the birthing happens. I would overflow for you with an abundance of spiced wine. the perfumed essence of my spirit, the rarefied liquor of my intoxication. I would possess you with spaciousness, the melted wetness of my pomegranates, the juice of those rising, expanding, effervescing buds inside. from Song of Songs: 8:1-5 translated from the original Hebrew/Latin/Aramaic by Neil-Douglas Klotz original from King James Version Bible : not as much beauty, romance, feminine, and sacredness!!! KJV: O that thou were as my brother, that sucked the breasts of my mother! When I should find thee without, I would kiss the; yea, I should not be despised. I would lead thee, and bring thee into my motherâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s house, who would instruct me: I would cause thee to drink of spiced wine of the juice of my pomengranite...

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If you have to live with uncertainty... December 27 2010, 1:01 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

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I’m having a love affair with sophia December 15 2010, 6:50 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

If philosophy is the love of wisdom, then I’m in a deep deep love affair. The word philosophy comes from the Greek root words “philo” and “sophia.” The word philo means “love” and the word sophia means wisdom. These words together define philosophy in the Greek language as “the love of wisdom.”

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Irony: A man ambitiously selling a t-shirt that proclaims, â&#x20AC;&#x153;Destroy Capitalismâ&#x20AC;?. December 2 2010, 3:01 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

So often, due to a misunderstanding of the bigger picture, we support the very thing we are trying to destroy.

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I’ve gone Mad! And I’m loving it! My heart is weeping, yet my soul is laughing and dancing! December 29 2010, 8:02 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

I’ve fallen hopelessly, madly in wild love with my beloved. Her name is Mystery What a disastrous blessing that has fallen upon me. I am so drunk ...I have lost the way in and the way out. I have lost the earth, the moon, and the sky. Don’t put another cup of wine in my hand, pour it in my mouth, for I have even lost the way to my mouth. 343

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I am a Hopeless, mad, wild, crazy creature. I am forever hopelessly lost in the jungle of ecstasy. ...I am drunk and intoxicated on the nectar of this magnificent moment. My friends have become strangers and Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;m surrounded by enemies. I have no home. No religion. No family. No consistent foundation to rest on. I am dancing blindly with this moving world. waving my hands and swaying my hips Forever falling Forever falling. Every moment I die to myself I turn in the coat of my identity in exchange for an even more magnificent coat to try on. Every moment I die to myself I surrender all that I know all of my greatest pearls and grandest dreams I abandon. In order to live, We must be willing to constantly hold the hand of death. for I tell you the truth, unless a seed falls to the ground and dies, it remains only a single seed. But if it dies, it can birth an entire forest! - Me & Rumi 344

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Kali: A Love Poem

December 27 2010, 12:26 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

Kali: A Love Poem She who illuminates all dark With her death ray she who disperses universes by opening her third eye 345

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midwife and cosmic clown destroyer She comes to visit The corner of the abyss Where I sit comfortably Penitently Watching the stars fall like ripe Apostrophes On the burnt husks of trees No more waiting now She comes to me With her fragrance of charnel grounds White sparks and spinning wands Her mutating orifices Her dreamsongs I hold out my empty hands To her rain and pain I offer my wordless tongue For her bitter amusement Her screech Breaches flesh claws for your soul grasps your core sucks out your world her laugh marrow of deep space Her voice as soft as deathâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Feather duster Moves me Through unspeakable realms Of holocaust and genocide Her shadow hymn calls Figures like wraiths Amnesias of amoebae Calculations of insanity Ticks and tricks of atomic time Sticks and bones 346

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Age of savage yawp Staging ground and show down Blood of television Her whispery shivery tone poem Time is relative Revelation is reality Now is Her dance of cruel perfection The cosmos interrupts its Regularly scheduled apocalypse To broadcast her pirhouettes Into our hivemind Every step goes deeper Mechanistic technique Last tango Her mudras are the screams of Nerve gas victims and Bhopal orphans Her fangs are curved scimitars Of depleted uranium Transmitting mayhem The hairs on her arms are nerve filaments Shifting vibrational rates of global suffering Out of her ass slides dictators and despots turds of dead presidents and live CEOs shitballs of news anchors and economists diarhhea of bureaucrats and technocrats She craps factory worlds and survelliance systems Farts botox and olestra Burps office politics and new age gurus Vomits stealth bombers and stock tickers Expectorates paranoia A steady flood Of serpents, worms, cockroaches Dribbles from cracked lips Her eyes are cyanide and aspic Her fingers are mauve tentacles 347

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Her lipstick is Agent Orange So cold she is cool So dead she lives Most beautiful Queen of despair Feeds on our fear Empress of horror Sky dancer To love her is pure thrill Navigate negation Fuck the corpse of eternity Lie dead in your scarab tomb Sip napalm To hold her in your arms all razors and snail slime Inflatable sex toy To let her gyrate above you While tactical nukes reign down On mindcontrol cemetaries Thank you, Kali, for this great age For choosing us For murdering us Thank you for dissolving this creation For unleashing demons Thank you for monotony of hells For torture and television For banality and cliche For groovy wannabes For trendspotters Thank you for dissolving this creation Thank you sister mother whore Thank you for this end of time Thank you for nothing Thank you Kali For dissolving this creation

from: http://www.breakingopenthehead.com/forum/archive/index. php/t-2430.html

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Keys for the Beautiful Rowdy Prisoners of Earth... December 28 2010, 10:28 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

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The small man

Builds cages for everyone He Knows. While the sage, Who has to duck his head When the moon is low, Keeps dropping keys all night long For the Beautiful Rowdy Prisoners. --Hafiz

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Let the spirit free

December 21 2010, 10:59 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

Lila: Play : There is NO PURPOSE of God creating the world. The world is a mere spontaneous creation of God. It is Lila, or sport. December 24 2010, 9:28 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

The word lila means play, and is most often associated with the play of the Divine, who creates freely, merely for the joy of it, out of spontaneous creativity, not by any need, lack or desire. Brahman is full of all perfections. And to say that Brahman has some purpose in creating the world will mean that it wants to attain through the process of creation something which it has not. And that is impossible. Hence, there can be no purpose of Brahman in creating the world. The world is a mere spontaneous creation of Brahman. It is a Lila, or sport, of Brahman. It is created out of Bliss, by Bliss and for Bliss. Lila indicates a spontaneous sportive activity of Brahman as 351

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distinguished from a self-conscious volitional effort. The concept of Lila signifies freedom as distinguished from necessity. —Ram Shanker Misra, The Integral Advaitism of Sri Aurobindo the perfect devotee does not suffer; for he can both visualize and experience life and the universe as the revelation of that Supreme Divine Force (shakti) with which he is in love, the all-comprehensive Divine Being in its cosmic aspect of playful, aimless display (lila) which precipitates pain as well as joy, but in its bliss transcends them both. —Rohan Bastin, The Domain of Constant Excess: Plural Worship at the Munnesvaram Temples in Sri Lanka In Hindu cosmology, the powers, or energies of the One are divided into three primary expressions: Brahma, the creative power; Vishnu, the energy of preservation; and Shiva, the force of change. Creation arises, is sustained for awhile, and then things change. That’s the dance. In that dance, whenever evil overtakes creation, Vishnu, to fulfill his role as the preserver, incarnates to save the world. Those incarnations are called “Avatars,” and they appear in different forms during different ages. Some are animal forms, like the fish and the tortoise incarnations. Some are semi-human, like Narasimha, the man-lion incarnation. And some are fully human, like Ram and Krishna.

live backwards is evil - Paul Sparks

December 14 2010, 5:18 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

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Most people say a prayer for what is not. Others proclaim a celebration of what is!!! December 15 2010, 10:31 AM by Paul Michael Sparks

â&#x20AC;&#x153;You must give birth to your images. They are the future waiting to be born. Fear not the strangeness you feel. The future must enter you long before it happens. Just wait for the birth, for the hour of the new clarity.â&#x20AC;? - Rainer Maria Rilke 353

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My countrymen - Khalil Gibran December 30 2010, 11:26 AM by Paul Michael Sparks My Countrymen What do you seek, my countrymen? Do you desire that I build for You gorgeous palaces, decorated With words of empty meaning, or Temples roofed with dreams? Or Do you command me to destroy what The liars and tyrants have built? Shall I uproot with my fingers What the hypocrites and the wicked Have implanted? Speak your insane Wish! What is it you would have me do, My countrymen? Shall I purr like The kitten to satisfy you, or roar Like the lion to please myself? I Have sung for you, but you did not Dance; I have wept before you, but You did not cry. Shall I sing and Weep at the same time? Your souls are suffering the pangs Of hunger, and yet the fruit of Knowledge is more plentiful than The stones of the valleys. Your hearts are withering from Thirst, and yet the springs of Life are streaming about your Homes -- why do you not drink? The sea has its ebb and flow, The moon has its fullness and Crescents, and the ages have Their winter and summer, and all Things vary like the shadow of 354

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An unborn god moving between Earth and sun, but truth cannot Be changed, nor will it pass away; Why, then, do you endeavour to Disfigure its countenance? I have called you in the silence Of the night to point out the Glory of the moon and the dignity Of the stars, but you startled From your slumber and clutched Your swords in fear, crying, “Where is the enemy? We must kill Him first!” At morningtide, when The enemy came, I called to you Again, but now you did not wake From your slumber, for you were Locked in fear, wrestling with The processions of spectres in Your dreams. And I said unto you, “Let us climb To the mountain top and view the Beauty of the world.” And you Answered me, saying, “In the depths Of this valley our fathers lived, And in its shadows they died, and in Its caves they were buried. How can We depart this place for one which They failed to honour?” And I said unto you, “Let us go to The plain that gives its bounty to The sea.” And you spoke timidly to Me, saying, “The uproar of the abyss Will frighten our spirits, and the Terror of the depths will deaden Our bodies.” I have loved you, my countrymen, but 355

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My love for you is painful to me And useless to you; and today I Hate you, and hatred is a flood That sweeps away the dry branches And quavering houses. I have pitied your weakness, my Countrymen, but my pity has but Increased your feebleness, exalting And nourishing slothfulness which Is vain to life. And today I see Your infirmity which my soul loathes And fears. I have cried over your humiliation And submission, and my tears streamed Like crystalline, but could not sear Away your stagnant weakness; yet they Removed the veil from my eyes. My tears have never reached your Petrified hearts, but they cleansed The darkness from my inner self. Today I am mocking at your suffering, For laughter is a raging thunder that Precedes the tempest and never comes After it. What do you desire, my countrymen? Do you wish for me to show you The ghost of your countenance on The face of still water? Come, Now, and see how ugly you are! Look and meditate! Fear has Turned your hair grey as the Ashes, and dissipation has grown Over your eyes and made them into Obscured hollows, and cowardice 356

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Has touched your cheeks that now Appear as dismal pits in the Valley, and death has kissed Your lips and left them yellow As the autumn leaves. What is it that you seek, my Countrymen? What ask you from Life, who does not any longer Count you among her children? Your souls are freezing in the Clutches of the priests and Sorcerers, and your bodies Tremble between the paws of the Despots and the shedders of Blood, and your country quakes Under the marching feet of the Conquering enemy; what may you Expect even though you stand Proudly before the face of the Sun? Your swords are sheathed With rust, and your spears are Broken, and your shields are Laden with gaps, why, then, do You stand in the field of battle? Hypocrisy is your religion, and Falsehood is your life, and Nothingness is your ending; why, Then, are you living? Is not Death the sole comfort of the Miserable? Life is a resolution that Accompanies youth, and a diligence That follows maturity, and a Wisdom that pursues senility; but You, my countrymen, were born old And weak. And your skins withered And your heads shrank, whereupon 357

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You become as children, running Into the mire and casting stones Upon each other. Knowledge is a light, enriching The warmth of life, and all may Partake who seek it out; but you, My countrymen, seek out darkness And flee the light, awaiting the Coming of water from the rock, And your nationâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s misery is your Crime. I do not forgive you Your sins, for you know what you Are doing. Humanity is a brilliant river Singing its way and carrying with It the mountainsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; secrets into The heart of the sea; but you, My countrymen, are stagnant Marshes infested with insects And vipers. The spirit is a sacred blue Torch, burning and devouring The dry plants, and growing With the storm and illuminating The faces of the goddesses; but You, my countrymen, your souls Are like ashes which the winds Scatter upon the snow, and which The tempests disperse forever in The valleys. Fear not the phantom of death, My countrymen, for his greatness And mercy will refuse to approach Your smallness; and dread not the Dagger, for it will decline to be Lodged in your shallow hearts. 358

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I hate you, my countrymen, because You hate glory and greatness. I Despise you because you despise Yourselves. I am your enemy, for You refuse to realize that you are The enemies of the goddesses. Khalil Gibran

New Manifesto for Wo-Mankind : My core philosophies summarized in 3 principles. December 12 2010, 11:17 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

These are my top 3 favorite principles that I feel summarize a lot of my core philosophies of ... well... life. These principles really “color” a lot of what i talk about and explore. 1. Continuous Metamorphosis We live in an Ever-Changing World. Stop trying to hang on, or the world will change around you and leave you in the dust. Perfection is not a static state of being. It is a state of liberation from any and all concepts of truth. The moment you try to document, solidify, officialize, conventinalize any truth, you are basically burying that truth to its grave. It’s like trying to keep the breeze in your house by shutting all the windows. Truth, love, ecstasy, god, perfection, beauty... all of these things are in a constant state of metamorphosis, and they are never the same from one moment to the next. If you want to live in perfection, you must constantly be stepping outside of your comfort zone, always 359

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on the edge of your being. It is the nature of our souls to embark on wild adventures of constant play, danger, thrill, curiosity and surprise. This is what we live for! This is the same reason that “God” created the universe and is constantly destroying and recreating reality every millisecond. 2. Already Enlightened / Always Already Done. So, Enlightenment is not something you attain or accomplish. It is a state of being that you awaken to, or step into. Choose to be in a state of “Already Done” and you’ll find that everything in the world is already perfect just the way it is. 3. Law of Balance / Embrace All Opposites. Pursuing good, the light, enlightenment is the greatest cause of evil, darkness, and unfullfillment, because a reaching for good is always also a repression of the bad, and therefore is a constant affirmation and avoidance of the bad. And the when you repress and avoid something, it does not make it go away, instead it just allows it to grow and persist and causes even more suffering. Only when you embrace your darkness will you realize that there was nothing to run from. The darkness is like the monster in the closet when you were little. The monster is actually a big friendly giant who’s aching for attention and acceptance.

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New Pioneers | by Mark Henson December 13 2010, 9:50 AM by Paul Michael Sparks

Artistâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Statement: I believe that art can have the ability to catalyze social and cultural changes. Art has the magical power to evoke emotional as well as intellectual thinking. Realizing this, my desire as an artist is to create compelling images of beauty and power that serve to promote our Conscious Evolution as human beings, and to show us how to live in a peaceful world. To this end I like to explore and present images with themes of Awakening Consciousness, Divine Sexuality, Political Realities and Living in Harmony with Nature. While I tend to be a down-to -earth person, when aspiring to creativity, I begin by looking deeply within myself, and seek to express what I may find there. My sincere wish is to tap into the Divine Source of Being, to Consciousness, to Spirit, or whatever you may call it-, that place where existence comes from, and to bring into visual reality images manifesting the knowledge revealed while in this presence. Strangely enough, I have discovered that the more intensely personal my vision is, the more universal its message when presented to the world. 361

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On Freedom: In truth that which you call freedom is your strongest chains of imprisonment. December 15 2010, 5:57 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

On Freedom Kahlil Gibran At the city gate and by your fireside I have seen you prostrate yourself and worship your own freedom, Even as slaves humble themselves before a tyrant and praise him though he slays them. Ay, in the grove of the temple and in the shadow of the citadel I have seen the freest among you wear their freedom as a yoke and a handcuff. And my heart bled within me; for you can only be free when even the desire of seeking freedom becomes a harness to you, and when you cease to speak of freedom as a goal and a fulfilment. You shall be free indeed when your days are not without a care nor 362

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your nights without a want and a grief, But rather when these things girdle your life and yet you rise above them naked and unbound. And how shall you rise beyond your days and nights unless you break the chains which you at the dawn of your understanding have fastened around your noon hour? In truth that which you call freedom is the strongest of these chains, though its links glitter in the sun and dazzle your eyes. And what is it but fragments of your own self you would discard that you may become free? If it is an unjust law you would abolish, that law was written with your own hand upon your own forehead. You cannot erase it by burning your law books nor by washing the foreheads of your judges, though you pour the sea upon them. And if it is a despot you would dethrone, see first that his throne erected within you is destroyed. For how can a tyrant rule the free and the proud, but for a tyranny in their own freedom and a shame in their own pride? And if it is a care you would cast off, that care has been chosen by you rather than imposed upon you. And if it is a fear you would dispel, the seat of that fear is in your heart and not in the hand of the feared. Verily all things move within your being in constant half embrace, the desired and the dreaded, the repugnant and the cherished, the pursued and that which you would escape. These things move within you as lights and shadows in pairs that cling. And when the shadow fades and is no more, the light that lingers becomes a shadow to another light. And thus your freedom when it loses its fetters becomes itself the fetter of a greater freedom.

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On seeking meaning and purpose in life... December 1 2010, 10:23 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

“We seek purpose when we are not in touch with who we really are. When an apple tree discovers who it is, the question ‘what must I do?’ disappears. When you discover who you are (at the deepest place of your being) you will find your purpose.” —Colleen-Joy Page

One day you will ask me which is more important? My life or yours? I will say mine and you will walk away not knowing that you are my life. December 15 2010, 7:35 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

Our schizoprenic selves. The many voices of the inner psyche December 7 2010, 12:43 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

-------------> Voices by MITCH BARRETT watercolour and inks 60 x 90 cms

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Perplexity & Wonder is the beginning of knowledge

December 22 2010, 1:57 AM by Paul Michael Sparks The most beautiful emotion we can experience is the mystical. It is the power of all true art and science. He to whom this emotion is a stranger, who can no longer wonder and stand rapt in awe, is as good as dead. To know that what is impenetrable to us really exists, manifesting itself as the highest wisdom and the most radiant beauty, which our dull faculties can comprehend only in their most primitive forms รถf this knowledge, this feeling, is at the center of true religiousness.In this sense, and in this sense only, I belong to the rank of devoutly religious men. Albert Einstein The purpose of art is the lifelong construction of a state of wonder. -Gould, Glenn The larger the island of knowledge, the longer the shoreline of wonder. -MacInnis,Joseph

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Queen of Technical Nonsense December 15 2010, 12:47 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

First there were her eyes, eyes surrounded with a pure, indolent face. Things started to swirl around. A miscellany of intricate organic and mechanic pipes and wires filled up the space between us, and i forgot about everything. I even forgot about gravity. But still...there were her eyes, pure, indolent in the middle of technical nonsense. ----This drawing was initialy a sketch on a thin draft paper (A4 size), but i finally made it a finished artwork. I was almost not allowed to rub out because of the bad quality of the medium, so there are still errors that i canÂ´t touch up anymore (like with the right hand). Michael Zancan

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Reincarnation

December 9 2010, 5:56 AM by Paul Michael Sparks

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Sharing the Wealth

December 13 2010, 9:51 AM by Paul Michael Sparks

artwork by Mark Henson All the forces that come to bear in the challenge of guiding humankind into a new age of either global prosperity or harsh austerity are made manifest in meeting life’s most basic of needs–food. Enmeshed within the food production matrix, two unassailable trends stand out in Malthusian clarity. The amount of arable land on the planet is steadily decreasing at approximately one percent a year, while the populace is steadily increasing at a rate of 1.14 percent or 75 million people per year. There is good reason to believe that by the latter half of this century, when the global population is expected to peak between nine and eleven billion, our children and their children must anticipate, if we have not properly prepared for, some kind of general food crisis. In spite of this inevitability, our growth-based economy hungers on, cutting into arable land with highways and shopping malls, recklessly wasting topsoil with industrial agriculture, and draining the aquifers as if there were no tomorrow. If common sense cannot triumph over profit motive, maybe there won’t be a tomorrow–or at least not the one we would want. 369

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So you caught me in this reverie December 15 2010, 12:44 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

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o you caught me in this reverie,

There at home where I could stay for hours. You thought I was trapped from within. I wonâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t blame you, if you couldnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t notice That my aloneness was filled Richer than all the madnesses and frenzies You all live in. The austere discomfort I am coiled in Beneath that hole on the ceiling Is a whole universe of fancies And the sweetest haven for heart and soul. Michael Zancan, France

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Someday after we have mastered the winds, the waves, the tides and gravity... December 27 2010, 12:05 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

...we shall harness for God the energies of Love, and then, for the second time in the history of the world, man will have discovered fire. Pierre Teilhard De Chardin

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Song of Man : Khalil Gibran December 15 2010, 5:21 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

I was here from the moment of the Beginning, and here I am still. And I shall remain here until the end Of the world, for there is no Ending to my grief-stricken being. I roamed the infinite sky, and Soared in the ideal world, and Floated through the firmament. But Here I am, prisoner of measurement. I heard the teachings of Confucius; I listened to Brahmaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s wisdom; I sat by Buddha under the Tree of Knowledge. Yet here I am, existing with ignorance And heresy. I was on Sinai when Jehovah approached Moses; I saw the Nazareneâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s miracles at the Jordan; 373

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I was in Medina when Mohammed visited. Yet I here I am, prisoner of bewilderment. Then I witnessed the might of Babylon; I learned of the glory of Egypt; I viewed the warring greatness of Rome. Yet my earlier teachings showed the Weakness and sorrow of those achievements. I conversed with the magicians of Ain Dour; I debated with the priests of Assyria; I gleaned depth from the prophets of Palestine. Yet, I am still seeking truth. I gathered wisdom from quiet India; I probed the antiquity of Arabia; I heard all that can be heard. Yet, my heart is deaf and blind. I suffered at the hands of despotic rulers; I suffered slavery under insane invaders; I suffered hunger imposed by tyranny; Yet, I still possess some inner power With which I struggle to greet each day. My mind is filled, but my heart is empty; My body is old, but my heart is an infant. Perhaps in youth my heart will grow, but I Pray to grow old and reach the moment of My return to God. Only then will my heart fill! I was here from the moment of the Beginning, and here I am still. And I shall remain here until the end Of of world, for there is no Ending to my grief-stricken being. Khalil Gibran

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Sophia : by Fabian Perez

December 15 2010, 6:51 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

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How silly we humans are. Seeking after love and peace, when we are the essence of love and peace. What i think is the most interesting collective belief that needs reassessment is the belief that we need to ...become enlightened, assuming that we are currently NOT enlightened. What liberation there is once we have given up the pursuit of enlightenment... and realized that pleasure, nirvana, heaven, liberation cannot be pursued, attained, or deliberately fabricated through “effort.” It can only be uncovered. After all, how can you attain that which you are?! It would be like the sun trying to find the source of sunlight, or the heart trying to find the source of love. How silly we humans are. Seeking after love and peace, when we are the essence of love and peace.

Status: In a Relationship. I’m dating my ego. But don’t worry; we’re into threesomes. December 11 2010, 10:45 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

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The dramatic, universal, ageless experience of childbearing December 27 2010, 6:41 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

I’m interested in how women navigate the dramatic process of childbearing and how it shapes and changes their identity. I aim to create work that is provocative, beautiful and heavy with emotion and symbol. The paintings represent an intensely personal but simultaneously universal and ageless experience. Much beauty and drama is lived through a woman’s body, in ways that can be both empowering and debilitating. The pieces I make have a narrative that unfolds according to the viewers’ own experiences, but also represent aspects of the larger story of women’s history. I hope women can see their own stories mimicked in the paintings, as well as emotions, beliefs and experiences they may not be able to express or fully explain. Amanda Greavette.

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The end of the world is really only, the end of an illusion.... December 31 2010, 12:27 AM by Paul Michael Sparks

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â&#x20AC;&#x153;The human race has one really effective weapon, and that is laughter.â&#x20AC;? December 22 2010, 1:35 AM by Paul Michael Sparks

The Kiss

December 9 2010, 5:56 AM by Paul Michael Sparks

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The heart is a wild horse

December 15 2010, 7:36 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

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y heart is burning with love All can see this flame My heart is pulsing with passion like waves on an ocean my friends have become strangers and I’m surrounded by enemies But I’m free as the wind no longer hurt by those who reproach me I’m at home wherever I am And in the room of lovers I can see with closed eyes the beauty that dances Behind the veils intoxicated with love I too dance the rhythm of this moving world I have lost my senses in my world of lovers -Rumi

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“The man who thinks he can and the man who thinks he can’t are both right. Which one are you?” —

Henry Ford December 13 2010, 9:42 AM by Paul Michael Sparks

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The path of love is not for the weak and fragile, December 31 2010, 1:27 AM by Paul Michael Sparks

The path of love is not for the weak and fragile, for when consumed by love, your heart will be broken every day... over and over... YES! you must constantly Crack your heart. Tear your heart Break your heart...open! to allow the mighty beast within to emerge from its shell. -P. Sparks

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The Raven December 14 2010, 6:51 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

Once upon a midnight dreary, while I pondered, weak and weary, Over many a quaint and curious volume of forgotten lore, While I nodded, nearly napping, suddenly there came a tapping, As of someone gently rapping, rapping at my chamber door. The Raven by Edgar Allen Poe, 1845 Ravens continue to awe, inspire and intrigue us as they balance between sky and earth; man and nature; knowledge and wisdom. Their tenacity, determination, intelligence, teamwork and extraordinary endurance are lessons in survival for us all in an increasingly uncertain world. They are certainly the stuff legends are made of. Now I must go, itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s midnight and I think I hear someone gently rapping ....

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The Three Ants December 15 2010, 7:32 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

Three ants met on the nose of a man who was asleep in the sun. And after they had saluted one another, each according to the custom of his tribe, they stood there conversing. The first ant said, “These hills and plains are the most barren I have known. I have searched all day for a grain of some sort, and there is none to be found.” Said the second ant, “I too have found nothing, though I have visited every nook and glade. This is, I believe, what my people call the soft, moving land where nothing grows.” Then the third ant raised his head and said, “My friends, we are standing now on the nose of the Supreme Ant, the mighty and infinite Ant, whose body is so great that we cannot see it, whose shadow is so vast that we cannot trace it, whose voice is so loud that we cannot hear it; and He is omnipresent.” When the third ant spoke thus the other ants looked at each other and laughed. At that moment the man moved and in his sleep raised his hand and scratched his nose, and the three ants were crushed. Khalil Gibran 385

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The way of the heart is beautiful but dangerous. The way of the mind is ordinary but safe. ~ Osho

December 25 2010, 1:47 AM by Paul Michael Sparks

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They must find it difficult, those who have taken authority as the truth, rather than truth as the authority December 15 2010, 4:51 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

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Think how it is to have a conversation with an embryo... December 13 2010, 11:50 AM by Paul Michael Sparks

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hink how it is to have a conversation with an embryo. You might

say, “The world outside is vast and intricate. There are wheatfields and mountain passes, and orchards in bloom. At night there are millions of galaxies, and in sunlight the beauty of friends dancing at a wedding.” You ask the embryo why he, or she, stays cooped up in the dark with eyes closed. Listen to the answer. “There is no “other world.” I only know what I’ve experienced. You must be hallucinating.” So, Little by little, wean yourself. This is the gist of what I have to say. From an embryo, whose nourishment comes in the blood, move to an infant drinking milk, to a child on solid food, to a searcher after wisdom, to a hunter of more invisible game. -Rumi

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Tired of Speaking Sweetly

December 28 2010, 10:22 PM by Paul Michael Sparks Love wants to reach out and manhandle us, Break all our teacup talk of God. If you had the courage and Could give the Beloved His choice, some nights, He would just drag you around the room By your hair, Ripping from your grip all those toys in the world That bring you no joy. Love sometimes gets tired of speaking sweetly And wants to rip to shreds All your erroneous notions of truth That make you fight within yourself, dear one, And with others, Causing the world to weep On too many fine days. God wants to manhandle us, Lock us inside of a tiny room with Himself And practice His dropkick. The Beloved sometimes wants To do us a great favor: Hold us upside down And shake all the nonsense out. But when we hear He is in such a â&#x20AC;&#x153;playful drunken moodâ&#x20AC;? Most everyone I know Quickly packs their bags and hightails it Out of town. -Hafiz

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To do is to be (Descartes). To be is to do (Voltaire). Do be do be do (Sinatra) December 20 2010, 2:47 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

To see a world in a grain of sand, December 27 2010, 1:41 PM by Paul Michael Sparks To see a world in a grain of sand, and heaven in a wild flower, hold infinity in the palm of your hand and eternity in an hour. -William Blake, â&#x20AC;&#x153;Auguries of Innocenceâ&#x20AC;?

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Within This Body: Mystic Poem of Sant Tulsi Sahib December 25 2010, 1:58 AM by Paul Michael Sparks

painting: Christmas Morning: 1944

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ithin this body breathes the secret essence. Within this body beats the heart of the Vedas. Within this body shines the entire Universe, so the saints say. Hermits, ascetics, celibates - all are lost seeking Him in endless guises. Seers and sages perfectly parrot the scriptures and holy books, blinded by knowledge. Their pilgrimage, and fasting, and striving but delude. Despite their perfect practice, they discover no destination. Only the saints who know the bodyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s heart have attained the Ultimate, O Tulsi. Realize this, and youâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve found your freedom (while teachers trapped in tradition know only the mirage in the mirror). 393

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â&#x20AC;&#x153;Words are my Paints - Minds, Hearts & Souls are my Canvasses!â&#x20AC;?, ~ L. Nichols December 26 2010, 6:33 PM by Paul Michael Sparks

stay tuned for 2011 and 2012 Om Jai Ma Shiva Shakti Om Govinda Namaste Jesus Christ Mother Mary Holy Lord of Lords :) Mad Love. P. Sparks

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