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Determination Archives

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How to Explain Complex Ideas (Like Tech) to Those Who Don’t Understand 5 Tips For Butchering Your Life...So You Can Finally Live Emancipating One’s Self Takes Patience, Grace and a Level of Brutality In Order to Hack Away at That Which Doesn’t Serve In Growth I had been a free-spirited artist who put my dreams, passions and convictions aside to adopt a life that I thought was necessary in order for me to ‘grow up’ and ground myself. You know…to live the American Dream. Then I woke up. 2013 was when I purposely and methodically butchered away my life, my Self, the heavy skin from 10 years of marital and personal discord, as well as sever the restraints of that which I had grown to know as my cage. I was left in pieces—hacked, chopped, bloody and raw. That was the most challenging and painful set of events in my entire life thus far. As the dust has begun to settle around broken debris of framework, I can now more clearly see the crystal blue sky and the seemingly infinite space around me. 1. Let’s face it—we can’t truly predict the future outcome from any one decision. After all, control is all just an illusion. 2.

How Meditation Changes Your Brain Frequency As yogis have known for centuries and scientists can now prove, the benefits of meditation are profound. Meditation is perhaps the most crucial instrument to harness the power of thought, cultivate more peace, clarity and happiness. Learning to train the brain and focus our attention is crucial to thriving and cultivating a peak performance in any endeavor. Longtime psychotherapist Dr. Ron Alexander, author of Wise Mind, Open Mind, speaks of mind strength, or the resiliency, efficacy and emotional intelligence that arise as we begin the process of controlling the mind. Mind strength is one of the most empowering tools we can employ to impact and improve all aspects of life. There are five major categories of brain waves, each corresponding to different activities. Slower wavelengths = more time between thoughts = more opportunity to skillfully choose which thoughts you invest in and what actions you take. 5 Categories of Brain Waves: Why Meditation Works 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. How to Meditate:

Out of Character: The Psychology of Good and Evil by Maria Popova What Aristotle has to do with Tiger Woods and the story of the world. The dichotomy of good and evil is as old as the story of the world, and timeless in its relevance to just about everything we do in life, from our political and spiritual views to our taste in music, art and literature to how we think about our simple dietary choices. But while most of us recognize that these concepts of good and bad aren’t always black-and-white categories, we never cease to be surprised when someone or something we’ve perceived as “good” does or becomes something we perceive as “bad,” from an esteemed politician’s transgression to a beloved celebrity’s slip into addiction or scientology or otherwise socially undesirable behavior. In Out of Character: Surprising Truths About the Liar, Cheat, Sinner (and Saint) Lurking in All of Us, researchers David DeSteno and Piercarlo Valdesolo explore this curious disconnect through the rigorous lens of science. Donating = Loving Share on Tumblr

Zentangle: Pattern-Drawing as Meditation by Maria Popova If greater creativity and more mental balance are among your new year’s resolutions, look no further than Zentangle — a type of meditation achieved through pattern-making, created by artist duo Maria Thomas and Rick Roberts. Each pattern is built one line at a time, organically combining simple patterns into complex zentangles in unplanned, unexpected ways that grow, change and unfold on the page as you enter an immersive state of flow. Totally Tangled offers a fantastic introduction to the relaxing and beautiful practice through step-by-step instructions and over 100 original tangles. We’re particularly taken with Zentagle because its basic principle — building on simple shapes and combining different patterns into complex creativity — is such a beautiful visual metaphor for our core philosophy of combinatorial creativity. Donating = Loving Bringing you (ad-free) Brain Pickings takes hundreds of hours each month. Brain Pickings has a free weekly newsletter. Share on Tumblr

30 Questions to Ask Yourself Before You Die {Via studioflowerpower on etsy} “Rather than money, than fame, than love…give me truth.” ~ Thoreau I woke up this morning and my life clock marked 30. My first sleep-deprived idea was to pack a small suitcase, get on the first train, move to another country, change my name, change my hair color (or get plastic surgery if needed), and start from scratch. By now, I’m good at both: fighting and disappearing. A true warrior doesn’t feel forced to do either, but moves through and with and for life, like water. So after I washed my face and considered the costs of running and those of fighting, I decided to do neither and have some juice instead. {Alkaline Espresso / Click for recipe.} We are a constant process, an event, we’re change. Our life is the house, the rest are just projections, shadows of the greater structure: even our deepest thoughts, beliefs, you, me and everything and everyone we’ve ever known, are subject to interpretation. Loving the questions means to love yourself. You. Comments

The Ego and the Universe: Alan Watts on Becoming Who You Really Are by Maria Popova The cause of and cure for the illusion of separateness that keeps us from embracing the richness of life. During the 1950s and 1960s, British philosopher and writer Alan Watts began popularizing Eastern philosophy in the West, offering a wholly different perspective on inner wholeness in the age of anxiety and what it really means to live a life of purpose. Alan Watts, early 1970s (Image courtesy of Everett Collection) Though strictly nonreligious, the book explores many of the core inquiries which religions have historically tried to address — the problems of life and love, death and sorrow, the universe and our place in it, what it means to have an “I” at the center of our experience, and what the meaning of existence might be. The standard-brand religions, whether Jewish, Christian, Mohammedan, Hindu, or Buddhist, are — as now practiced — like exhausted mines: very hard to dig. Religions are divisive and quarrelsome. 'Möbius Structure of Relationships' by David Byrne.

Is Consciousness Universal? For every inside there is an outside, and for every outside there is an inside; though they are different, they go together. —Alan Watts, Man, Nature, and the Nature of Man, 1991 I grew up in a devout and practicing Roman Catholic family with Purzel, a fearless and high-energy dachshund. He, as with all the other, much larger dogs that subsequently accompanied me through life, showed plenty of affection, curiosity, playfulness, aggression, anger, shame and fear. Yet my church teaches that whereas animals, as God's creatures, ought to be treated well, they do not possess an immortal soul. It was only later, at university, that I became acquainted with Buddhism and its emphasis on the universal nature of mind. As a natural scientist, I find a version of panpsychism modified for the 21st century to be the single most elegant and parsimonious explanation for the universe I find myself in. We Are All Nature's Children

50 Life Secrets and Tips Memorize something everyday.Not only will this leave your brain sharp and your memory functioning, you will also have a huge library of quotes to bust out at any moment. Poetry, sayings and philosophies are your best options.Constantly try to reduce your attachment to possessions.Those who are heavy-set with material desires will have a lot of trouble when their things are taken away from them or lost. Possessions do end up owning you, not the other way around. Become a person of minimal needs and you will be much more content.Develop an endless curiosity about this world.Become an explorer and view the world as your jungle. Stop and observe all of the little things as completely unique events. Try new things. Read “Zen and the Art of Happiness” by Chris Prentiss.This book will give you the knowledge and instruction to be happy at all times regardless of the circumstances.

Sankhyakarika The miracle of a perpetually dynamic Universe is enabled when two opposing factors in an interactive state occur simultaneously. Compression and expansion are two opposing activities but when it takes place simultaneously, activity time is conserved and the dynamic state continues. The theoretical clue, lacking in Physics and Cosmology is the numerical algorithm that defines the threshold of simultaneously interactive states, which is also the key to gravitation phenomena. The consequence of eternal dynamism in space is the ability to extract abundant, clean and perpetual energy at the highest efficiency with minimum effort; all of which forms the greatest gift to humanity. The component forming space is defined dimensionally. ​​​Why is Sankhya theory, derived by Maharishi Kapilla 33000 ( Scientists should be truly intrigued to learn that Sankhya, composed by Kapillamuni in Sanskrit, is a complete unified theory based on axioms.

The Nimatullahi Sufi Order Lucid Dreaming - Gateway to the Inner Self > Home Can't Stand Meditation? This Technique is For You. A consistent meditation practice is a struggle for even the most experienced of meditators. For some reason it’s difficult to bring yourself to sit down and quiet the mind despite knowing that it’s the best thing for you. I was talking about this phenomenon with my good friend Phil Drolet of The Feel Good Lifestyle and he replied with a novel solution. “When you go to the gym, do you just do bench press the entire time?”Tweet I said “No, I do 5-7 different exercises depending on what muscles I’m working on.” “Exactly! The Method Instead of doing 20 solid minutes of meditation, Phil breaks it down into 5 4-minute intervals of different practices. 1-4 min — Breathing Focus 5-8 min — Your Favorite Mantra 9-12 min — Loving/Kindness 13-16 min — Gratitude 17-20 min — Intention Visualization This not only makes your session go by quickly, but also allows you to energize many different parts of your psyche and energy body. Is this a cop out? Yes and no. The Takeaway

Look Into Your Mind “Zen does not confuse spirituality with thinking about God while one is peeling potatoes. Zen spirituality is just to peel the potatoes.” - Alan Watts Tweet I am a guest here, so I’ll start with this. The mission of HighExistence says the site aims to… When I first started learning about Zen Buddhist philosophy, I wouldn’t have been able to tell you whether or not it encompassed all of these things. Now, I definitely can. Why? Mindfulness (always being in the here-and-now)Compassion (generally being a nice, open person)Honesty (both to others, and also to yourself)Health (exercise, good food, and genuine relationships) Zen values experience over intellectualization; while it’s of high importance to learn, read books, and read stuff like this, you mostly need to get off your ass and really exist! Your happiness, freedom, and understanding of the mind– these all rely on your ability to not resist. Historically, people have worked on doing this in various ways. Don’t fear your own mind.

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