"Unless you embrace love, true love, then you will never know the full potential of being a human. "
That must be my favorite quote from the book "the power of self coaching". http://www.amazon.com/The-Power-Self-Coaching-Essential-Creating/dp/0471463604 Go read it now.
I just read an article in a business website that was saying how Narcissism is good. ..and remember a narcissist is someone who doesn't feel empathy or love for themselves or others or anything really. The article said "A recent study conducted by accredited psychologist Oliver James, has classified the four types of people who excel in business: psychopaths, Machiavellians, narcissists and the amalgamation of all three." And remember I said that this article is in support of narcissism. That's the kind of people we are dealing with.
I always had a weird feeling in my stomach around such people and in most of mainstream society. Until recently I didn't know how important it is to listen to that feeling. I now have the clarity of thought besides just the feeling of why these people are to be avoided. It is in fact these types and this disorder that is the problem with the world. It is lack of love that is putting the planet in peril. If you can't truly connect with or love another person then you won't be able to connect with or love a tree or nature. In one Derrick Jensen book he quoted a logging business man as saying "when I look at the trees I see dollars". That is a huge disconnect. So is looking at people and seeing consumers. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3hx-G1uhRqA
Wow the U.S. is super messed up and it's strange to be here. I know. It's not just the U.S. but it is way more narcissistic here then in say..Scandinavia or most other first world countries. It's narcissism that makes one not want to help their fellow humans. In other first world countries they have free doctors and university. They have lots of co housing and a social safety net. Here they blame the poor for not working. Blame the victim. ..I know I mostly hang out in third world countries and love to visit native people. I think most people there are poor. They are way less materialist then first worlders. ..and the poor are usually more generous too. There are even natives that still remember how to live the old way without jacking up the planet.
In this world love is the most revolutionary act one can do. Love makes ordinary people extraordinary. It makes non poets write poems. It makes people skip out of work or run away together. It boosts your immune system and makes you live 10 years longer.
Love also makes you help out a poor person. Love and empathy. The ability to feel other peoples feelings. That is being more alive. If you can't feel all that then you aren't really living. Love also makes you stop a forest from being cut or try to stop a war.
Connection to people, ourselves, and to the natural world through love and empathy is what we must cultivate if we are to survive on this planet.
The Buddha means "the awakened one". The Buddhist quote of "if you meet the Buddha on the road, kill him." refers to that the Buddha is nobody other then yourself. If you think it's something else then that idea, kill the idea. I'm not Buddhist but I can get the good out of any philosophy. I agree with this stuff. We need to be trying to wake up. All of us need to wake up and then try to wake up the others.
Studies have shown that Sociopaths and people of this sort have brain waves similar to a normal person while asleep. They didn't have a totally enlightened person to brain scan, but when they scanned some of the Dali lamas buddies, the happy parts of their brains were lit way up. That was from a happiness psychology video. I will post the link. It's great. here. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5-RVECUWOGQ It's the best. So we know that the sociopath, the psychopath, the narcissist, is literally more asleep then us...and the Buddha is totally awake... how much waking up do we all have to do?
The long path to waking up can be a hard one. but then it just keeps getting better and better. I recently had loads of difficult feelings and came out the other side a better person. I think that will continue to happen for a while. One of my favorite things he said in that video that I hope you just watched is that you can't be happy all the time. There are 2 types of people who don't experience bad feelings like fear, shame, guilt, remorse, and such. They are psychopaths and dead people. So when you are feeling not so hot, be glad because you probably aren't a psychopath or dead.
Now go out in the world. Wake up. Feel things and fall in love. Have amazing adventures. Make giant smiley faces while you play your favorite childhood games. I will be. Maybe I will see you there.
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