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CONTENTS • OMTIMES
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Khrisna Das Interview With Khrisna Das By Sandy Sedgbeer
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Pain Syndromes, Management, and Care
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By Andrew Pacholyk MS L. Ac
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Addictive Fixes That We Often Dismiss
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Do Your Loved Ones Watch Over You?
By Crystal Presence
By John Holland
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Gita - Interview with Isaac Bentwich M.D. By OMTimes
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CONTENTS • OMTIMES
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Are You Suffering From Normosis?
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How to Channel Energy for Positive Personal Change
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From Spiritual Connections to Sweet Inspiration
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Intuition for Kids: Help Them Discover Their Super Powers
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Table of Contents 96 104 112 116 122 128 134
Special Exercises to Help You and Your Partner Grow Together Use The Tao Precepts to Deal with Challenging Relationships What Are the Wheels of Samsara? Sensing the Right Time The Most Impatient of the Zodiac signs How To Beat Daily Stress And Be at Your Best. Gita - A Timeless Guide for Our Time
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KRISHNA
DAS Flow of Grace INTERVIEW BY LIANE BUCK
Krishna Das is known for his
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ability to transport his audience to other worlds with his deep, hypnotic voice. Fusing traditional kirtan of the East with Western harmony and rhythm, Krishna Das has developed his own musical style. Krishna Das has been called yoga’s “rock star because of the artistic layering traditional art of kirtan with instantly accessible melodies and modern instrumentation.” With a remarkably soulful voice that touches the deepest chord in even the most casual listener, Krishna Das ” known to friends, family, and fans as simply KD ” has taken the call-and-response chanting out of yoga centers and into concert halls, becoming a worldwide icon and the best-selling western chant artist of all time.
Don't wait for a Guru. Your life is your Guru. Krishna Das
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Photos ©Perry Julien
His album ‘Live Ananda’ (released January 2012) was nominated for a Grammy in the Best New Age album category. In February 2013, Krishna Das performed at the Grammy awards in Los Angeles, CA streamed online to millions of viewers. The award-winning film ‘One Track Heart: The Story of Krishna Das’ has been in over 100 US cities, over 10 countries worldwide and is available on DVD everywhere. KD spent the late ’60’s traveling across the country as a student of Ram Dass, and in August 1970, he finally made the journey to India, which led him to Ram Dass’ own beloved guru, Neem Karoli Baba, known to most as Maharaj-Ji. In the winter of 1968, Krishna Das met spiritual seeker Ram Dass and was enthralled by the stories of Ram Dass’s recent trip to India, where he met the legendary guru Neem Karoli Baba.
KD spent the late ’60’s traveling across the country as a student of Ram Dass, and in August 1970, Krishna Das left behind his dreams of being a rock ’n’ roll star and was on his way to India to spend three years with Neem Karoli Baba, known to most as Maharaj-Ji. Given the name Krishna Das, KD began to chant as part of following the path of Bhakti yoga, the yoga of devotio During this time, Krishna Das’s heart was drawn to the practice of Bhakti yoga—the yoga of devotion— and especially to the practice of kirtan (chanting the Divine names). Krishna Das returned to the United States and, as he continued chanting, developed his signature style fusing traditional kirtan structure with Western harmonic and rhythmic sensibilities.
Pain Syndromes, Management, and Care
Acute and chronic pain affects over 100 million people in the United States each year. While pain is best known and characterized as subjective, meaning only the person who is experiencing it can
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explain what it feels like, pain is often called the Universal equalizer. Pain affects people differently. What may be perceived as only a minor nuisance to one person, may be completely debilitating to someone else. Pain is a warning that something isn’t quite right. Pain is not a disease but the result of an underlying condition or due to injury. Pain is not just a physical sensation or psychological event, but a combination of these and other components. Pain is caused by a variety of situations such as accidents, musculoskeletal disorders, improper lifting, bending, sports activities, misalignment of the vertebrae of the spine and disease. It can also appear out of nowhere with no obvious cause. A viral illness may be a cause, or emotional trauma, such as fear or resentment. The vast majority of cases, pain is caused by stasis of blood and or our body’s energy resulting in muscle spasm, trauma, and immobility. From a healthy heart to a good sex life, the proper flow
and circulation of blood in our arteries is one of the most important things we can do to maintain good health, painfree life and push back the aging process. There is a common denominator between good arterial health and pain disorders such as heart attack, obesity, diabetes, and high glucose levels, as well as sexual health. That common denominator is blood. Pain is a vicious cycle: spasm and inflammation lead to more spasm and inflammation. Although the cycle can develop due to injury, the ultimate cause is often in the brain, which can interfere with muscle physiology through the spinal cord. Chronic (long term) and acute back (and neck) pain are common expressions of stress and emotional stress. It demonstrates the true complexity of the mind/body interaction. Many times, it is the brain’s distortion of muscle function that sets us up for pain by preventing muscles from responding freely to physical stresses. Omtimes.com
Addictive Fixes That We Often Dismiss By Crystal Presence
Abstract: How living in an addicted society can keep our destructive habits overlooked and considered part of how life is. How we lose sight of our disconnection with self and our source. Deluding ourselves into believing that using fixes will make our lives feel better, only to lead us down the rabbit hole of lack, fear and powerless. How fixes fixate our energy and personal power.
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A list of common fixes we often dismiss. How to release these destructive habits. We are living in an addictive society; our destructive habits are often overlooked and considered part of how life is. It is common to lose sight of how disconnected we feel from ourselves. As for how disconnected we feel from source with it’s greater intelligence. It leads us to a desperate attempt to fix the uncomfortable reality we find ourselves. In an attempt to lessen our discomfort, we look for fixes that will distract us from the truth of what is happening. We learn to use our thoughts, feelings, and behaviors as habitual ways to disconnect from the source that is always there to help us bring resolution. We delude ourselves by trying to use fixes to make our lives feel better, only to lead us down the rabbit hole of lack, fear and powerless. What if we admit how we have been lying to ourselves and commit to a new context of living? A context of embracing our discomfort, staying connected and living in whole being wellness?
Using a fix to escape our discomfort fixates our energy and personal power in a way that keeps us feeling powerless to have the experiences we want. These process addictions are habitual coping mechanisms that end up creating more discomfort and desperation. Thinking, feeling and acting as if we are powerless is one of the least talked about fixes. We perpetuate this with shallow breathing, no movement and holding onto the belief that we are powerless to make a change. We hold it in place by convincing ourselves that if we feel, vibrate and express the depth of the powerlessness we feel we may discover that our powerlessness is real, so will have to resign to the fact that this is just how we are. Process addictions that we may be using include • Overthinking • Self-importance/Self rejection • Trying to fix, control and manipulate • Shame/Shamelessness • Resentment • Being a victim • Drama
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GITA
Interview with Isaac Bentwich, MD Isaac Bentwich M.D. is a longtime practitioner and teacher of Yoga and Meditation. Trained as a physician and a scientist, he has founded three life-science technology companies, leading revolutions in medicine, genomics, and environmental conservation, and he now heads Innovation Center at Technion, recognized as one of the top-ten innovative universities in the world. The vision and innovations that underlie the companies he founded came through periods of silent meditation retreats at the foothills of the Himalayas and in the Galilee. OMTIMES
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His path is one of reverence to the Wisdom teachings that shine through different traditions and religions. The study and practice of Gita's Wisdom teachings have profoundly touched his life, and he is passionate about sharing this with others. His work on this translation of the Gita spanned twelve years.
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A Timeless Guide for Our Time BY
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The Bhagavad Gita, often referred to as the Gita, is a 700-verse Sanskrit scripture that is part of the Hindu epic Mahabharata, is a dialogue between a disciple and master. The disciple, Indian prince Arjuna, is called to fight a defensive battle against vicious family members who are out to kill him. Shaken by the moral dilemma, he seeks the counsel of his teacher and friend, Krishna, who is also God incarnate. With this dramatic battlefield backdrop, the master leads the prince from the worldly starting point of the prince’s despondency to a captivating, brilliantly clear account of the meaning of life, the source of suffering, and the paths to happiness and self-fulfillment.
OMTIMES: Why do you think that the Bhagavad Gita has been such a revered spiritual text for over two and a half millennia? What makes it timeless? Isaac Bentwich, M.D: The Gita (formally Bhagavad Gita, meaning Divine Song) is one of the world’s most trusted guides for happiness, meditation, and inner spiritual growth. It eloquently captures not only the core of Indian philosophy but also the spiritual essence of all religions and schools of inner development. Aldus Huxley called this common essence “the ‘Perennial Philosophy.’ It sounds like a tall order but is accurate
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Are suffering from Normosis? The disease of being normal By Cathedral of the Soul
Humanity may be being affected by a global epidemic, one called Normosis, a sick obsession for being normal.
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At one point, it was normal in the history of Humanity that two people would fight to the death to entertain the crowd. It has also been normal to burn women at stake for witchcraft and to make people work without pay with the right to physical punishment just because they have a different skin color. It was also normal for humans to marry without love. It has been normal to spend 40 hours a week doing something that one detests, lying to make money and devastating forests in search of a supposed development. Wait, the latter is still normal. After all, is being normal and finding normal things to do should not be a disease? According to some psychologists, yes. The illness of being normal is called, in their opinion, Normosis: a set of habits considered normal by the social consensus that is pathogenic in different degrees and
leads to the unhappiness, the disease and the loss of wisdom in the life. The concept was coined almost simultaneously by a Brazilian psychologist and anthropologist Roberto Crema and the French philosopher, psychologist and theologian Jean-Ives Leloup in the 1980s. They had been working on the subject separately until a third psychologist, the Frenchman Pierre Weil, realized the coincidence. Perplexed, Pierre Weil connected the two, and the three together organized a partnership was born and the book Normosis: The Pathology of Normality. There is a deep-rooted belief in most people’s minds. It is the belief that everything that most people think, feel, believe or do should be considered as normal and as a consequence should serve as a guide to everyone’s behavior. The term “Normosis” is formed by the junction of Omtimes.com
From Spiritual Connections to Sweet Inspiration By Judi Lynch
Our hearts, minds, ideals, and lifestyles all evolve under inspirational force. We get to choose what to do with that coil of possibilities. What inspires us, changes us, forever.
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What inspires our creative abilities? Is it abstract like a color on a billboard we noticed while driving down the interstate? Or is it something that someone said or did which creates a different thought process within us? Our senses function with sights, sounds, smells, and feelings to guide us into making choices; awakening our creative juices, inspiring us to dream. We can be greatly inspired by someone else’s achievements which lead us into new directions and inventions. Life changing ideas are born when we dare to take what inspires us and turn it into something real. A beautiful painting, a melody to dance to, medical devices which save lives have all come from many forms of inspiration. We can also be divinely inspired by spiritual connections brought in through meditation and prayer. A vision can inspire us to start a charity, build a business or completely change our lifestyle. If we are struggling with a health or financial issue, we often look to
others who have healed their circumstances and the methods they used. A child watching a nurse or astronaut speak about their profession can inspire that child to learn more about life professions in general. A music teacher could inspire a high school student to start writing symphonies for the band. Everyone can inspire another in different ways, positive and negative. A beautiful love song can inspire a new relationship to form while a loud acid rock song can inspire a purge of negative feelings to be released by the listener. We are unique in what brings us innovation and new thoughts. When we feel inspired, we feel excited about the possibilities our ideas can manifest and bring to light. We want to keep the momentum going to follow through and see the results of our visions. People who motivate and inspire others are in high demand at this time as people seek out others with common goals who offer friendly support. Women are inspiring each other in politics now like Omtimes.com
The intuition for Kids. Help them discover their Super Powers. by Dagny Grant and Beth Donnelly
It is important to encourage kids to expand their intuition, to better understand the power of their feelings and thoughts and recognize
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their own inner guidance. We could set an example of mindfulness for kids (and some adults too). We all have the power to choose our thought focus, which in turn attracts our experience. Kids can be taught that what they focus on expands…whether it is love or fear, sadness or happiness. “Kids are our future” is not just a tag line…it’s A fact. Imagine the next generation having the presence of mind, self-esteem, compassion, kindness & empathy and the understanding of how to be responsible for their actions and reactions. What if they had the tools to make their greatness shine and create the energy of gratitude in our world. What role can we play to assist them in this process? We know that as adults, we take the mission of inspiring and guiding the hearts and minds of these kids very seriously. It is a journey filled with joyful practice, repetition, sharing & learning.
For this article, we define intuition to be the inner voice or knowing, sometimes called a “gut feeling.” There are many ways to recognize intuition, whether working with a larger group of children, or an individual child. We may ask them to 1. Share the Children thoughts & feelings about intuition as part of a discussion. 2. Learn to pay attention to gut feelings. 3. Practice going inward and “listening to intuition” by meditating. Once a child has learned to recognize their innate intuition, it allows them to act from a place of empowerment to lead a more joyful life, rather than just reacting to random thoughts. The energy of “internal guidance” is felt by the body
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Special Exercises to Help You and Your Partner Grow Together By Guy Finley
If we want to help our partner change, we must change. There is no other way. So, unless we’re exceptionally blessed, it’s unlikely our partner has
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the same wish that we do: to keep growing and exploring a love that, at the start, was filled with surprising changes, but that has lost some of that sparkle because one, or both of us has stopped changing. All this is to say: odds favor you’re the one who will have to initiate the work needed to refresh your relationship. No problem. You’ll find everything you need to get started in the three special relationship exercises that follow. They are designed to work in a two-fold way. Part one unfolds as you initiate the first action and receive the revelation that will help make changes in you. The second part of the exercise happens as your partner sees and experiences this change in you. When you no longer act toward them in the old way, they can’t help but see their mechanical nature that only
knows the “old way” to react to you. In effect, your new actions help to reveal their old limitations so that – for a moment, anyway – and to whatever degree it occurs, your partner suddenly sees the need to change! If ever there was a real “win-win” situation, a way for two people to realize the highest possibilities a relationship can offer, this is it.
Exercise #1: Look within yourself before you “speak out.” Let’s say you’re with your partner and you see something in their character that “strikes a familiar nerve” in you. Maybe it’s impatience, an obvious pretense, or just the unpleasant tone in their voice when they say something unkind or otherwise painful to your ear. There are so many options here, but suffice it to say that it’s whatever
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Use Tao Precepts to Deal with Challenging Relationships. By Ascending Hearts
The TAO is the origin of that which permeates and sustains all Creation. In TAO, everything has a natural way of being. There is only happiness when one
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respects the natural flow of Creation. The modifications and interferences all that is Life is what triggers pain and suffering in existence. The Tao is known as the perfect path, as a natural order underlying the substance and activity of the Universe. The Tao is the path, the Journey and the traveler at the same time. The main work of Taoism is Tao Te Ching, a book containing the teachings attributed to Lao Tse, together with the writings of Zhuangzi, form the philosophical foundation of this Eastern religion. Over time, several Taoist schools have emerged that have blended teachings and practices before Tao Te Ching - such as the theories of the School of Naturalists, which address the concepts of the Yin-Yang and the five elements of Nature. Taoist traditions and
fundamentals emphasize, as a basis for a life with balance and wisdom, the following behaviors: • The Serenity Living • Non-action • the empty • the Control of desires • Simplicity and spontaneity • the contemplation of nature Along with the cultivation of the Three Treasures: compassion, moderation, and humility. Within the teachings of the Tao, we also find wise counsel in how to deal with difficult people. Especially of those whose presences rob us of energy and often obstruct our ways. According to the Lao-Tse principles, in these cases, it is best to keep the serenity, to empty ourselves of negative emotions, and to remove the power of those who are likely to snatch our calm.
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What are the Wheels of Samsara? How are you tied to the Wheels of Samsara? By Humanity Healing
To be born, to live, to die. These are unquestionable truths about the nature of human experience on Earth, where the only certainty we have is that we will someday die. However, death is interpreted in different ways by different cultures and individuals, which give it or a cyclical character, sometimes of eternal continuity or even the end of all existence and consciousness, accepting that there is nothing beyond it.
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For those who perceive life and death as an experience, the Wheel of Samsara (also known as the Worlds of Samsara) bring great insight into the spiritual condition of those who incarnated on Earth. The concept created by the Hindus and Buddhists reached us Westerners in the second half of the twentieth century and expresses the wheel of life and death, that is, the unceasing flow of rebirth through the worlds. It is an idea like karma and reincarnation, where a consciousness that is undergoing an experience in the now and had had other lives in the past. The concepts that deal with the Wheel of Samsara may have different names, but among them probably the most interesting analogy would be the Law of Return or Action and Reaction, where we are responsible for the effects our actions have on others and the world. Any phenomenon, process, or action that a living originates causes and consequences, and sometimes causes disturbances that need to be adjusted and internalized in that soul.
It is the Wheel of Samsara: reincarnation cycles that allow the spirits to live different experiences in the matter and to experience power, subjugation, wealth, poverty, health, illness, finally, to experience all the positive and negative aspects that an incarnation in different aspects of life can offer. In each of these possibilities, the spirit acquires knowledge and is closer to the truth, God, or the Higher Self as some call it. Knowing the concept, we can analyze our life and delve into our inner universe. Discovering which situations present themselves in our lives are karma, a rescue or an opportunity to work and to improve some characteristic of our spirit, making great difficulties allies. Usually, the complications we encounter have a common source and present themselves as a pattern in our life. A great example is a self-esteem: a spirit needs to work on selfesteem. Then, not infrequently, he expresses himself insecure, jealous and with a tendency to feel wronged by life. The soul Omtimes.com
How To Beat Daily Stress And Be At Your Best By Johanna Kern
What overwhelms us in various situations is that we tend to fear that the outcome of our efforts won’t be the way we want it. It is the major cause of how we shoot ourselves in the foot.
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If we are concentrating too much on the outcome, our thoughts often trigger our subconscious fears. Such fears have been imprinted in us. We were never born with them. We were born with our innate joy of life and until our subconscious was programmed by our caregivers, our society, belief system, or the spirit of the times we were born in – we had no reason to speculate about such fears. What’s the remedy for that? • Forget the outcome. It will be what it will be. You are living your life. You can design it in any way you want – BUT there is always some room for surprises or for improvements made by the process of life itself. • Instead, concentrate on the task at hand and see it simply as a challenge: challenge yourself to have fun with the task and do the best you can do – because that is the natural
thing. Fearing what may or may not be – is not natural to us. • Slow down and find a way to de-stress. Listen to music for a while, smell the flowers, look at a peaceful landscape – whatever pleasantly engages your senses helps you to destress. Breathing deeply is another good technique. Alternatively, if there is no time to slow down, use a very simple technique: when a stressful or negative thought comes to mind – shout at it in your mind: STOP! Putt elastic on your wrist and snap it instead. Your brain will quickly learn to associate unwanted thoughts with pain and will avoid them at all cost. It works like magic. • Build your self-esteem. You can do it by repeating useful affirmations and reprogramming your subconscious for positive beliefs about yourself. Remember that all success in life starts with accepting our worth. Omtimes.com
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