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Articles from E. (anagarika eddie) Raymond Rock | Selfgrowth.com
- War and Peace - How We Lose Our Happiness - by Submitted on Jan 06, 2008 from E. (anagarika eddie) Raymond RockWar is the opposite of peace. When we say that we wage war in order to secure the peace, this is delusion, this is being ignorant of the truth of the moment, which is war, and replacing it with an ideal for the future, which is peace. It is a shell game. If we believe and confuse ourselves with ...
Views: 1061 - Cooperative Games for Children - by Submitted on Jan 06, 2008 from E. (anagarika eddie) Raymond RockJanet and I decided play a little tennis recently to get a cardio workout. The last time we played was almost 30 years ago when we first met, so we knew the fundamentals but were, to say the least, a bit rusty! At 56 and 66 respectively, Janet and I aren't exactly Serena Williams and Roger ...
Views: 1367 - Nothing Matters - Unless it Matters - by Submitted on Jan 06, 2008 from E. (anagarika eddie) Raymond RockThis sounds like a Yogi Berra truism, but the fact is; nothing really matters at all. Everything we do, our dreams, our aspirations - they all mean absolutely nothing. The expanse of the universe, the inconceivable endlessness of eternity, the indifference of a myriad of generations to come, all ...
Views: 1986 - How Shall We Choose to Live? - by Submitted on Jan 06, 2008 from E. (anagarika eddie) Raymond RockBusiness ethics are quickly becoming meaningless. As a matter of fact, ethics can actually become roadblocks to maintaining the almighty bottom line. We have seen this lately in the mortgage markets where dishonest loans lined pockets on Wall Street while ruining many common people's lives. ...
Views: 948 - How Can I Deepen My Spirituality? - by Submitted on Jan 06, 2008 from E. (anagarika eddie) Raymond Rock"You learn that if you sit down in the woods and wait, something happens." - Henry David Thoreau. Deepening what you know about your spirituality, and deepening your spirituality per se, are two different things. Deepening what you know about spirituality is relatively easy; just read ...
Views: 817 - Meditating in 1997 Thailand - by Submitted on Jan 06, 2008 from E. (anagarika eddie) Raymond RockMeditating in 1997 Thailand Janet and I couldn’t stay at Bhavana as a married couple, so a kind nun at the Bhavana Society referred Janet to a friend of hers; a Buddhist nun living in Thailand, thinking that Janet might be interested in going back to Southeast Asia. When Janet got in touch ...
Views: 768 - Whispers of the New Christianity - by Submitted on Jan 06, 2008 from E. (anagarika eddie) Raymond RockThe new Christianity will include unselfish prayer, followed by not worrying whether or not the prayers will be answered. And God will be described as providing our building blocks, but it is up to us after that. And Christians will begin facing and accepting their destiny, and then taking ...
Views: 930 - How Psychotherapy Possibly Gets it All Wrong - by Submitted on Jan 06, 2008 from E. (anagarika eddie) Raymond RockI am not trained in psychology, nor do I completely understand psychological terms. I am strictly speaking in a nonprofessional manner using nonprofessional terms about psychology, and about how I believe psychotherapy fails to address the primary problem regarding the mind. The primary problem, ...
Views: 792 - The Secret to Winning Every Religious Argument! - by Submitted on Jan 05, 2008 from E. (anagarika eddie) Raymond RockThe important thing is to never lose a religious argument, and this article will tell you exactly how to do that - beginning with the first rule: Don't make the usual mistakes! The usual mistakes include circling arguments. You will be challenged on circling arguments every time because they are ...
Views: 769 - Personal Transformation – What’s Really Involved? - by Submitted on Jan 04, 2008 from E. (anagarika eddie) Raymond RockJust as a fire is built by lighting small twigs so that they can in turn ignite the larger branches, we make the world a better place by changing ourselves first. This change, this transformation, must be mental, because all things begin with the mind, and mind is none other than our thoughts ...
Views: 969(1 vote) - Being Born Again is a Good Beginning! - by Submitted on Jan 03, 2008 from E. (anagarika eddie) Raymond RockBeing born again is a great start, but if you are finally ready to complete this "work in progress," here are seven areas to monitor: · Is there any lingering ill-will toward others that may not agree with you? · Are you self-righteous? (I'm right; you're wrong!) · ...
Views: 840 - Seven Reasons We Don’t Become Enlightened - by Submitted on Jan 02, 2008 from E. (anagarika eddie) Raymond RockLack of adequate guidance Lack of resolve or faith Lack of confidence Lack of courage Distractions Laziness Anger Lack of adequate guidance: According to the Buddha, who is arguably the quintessential expert on enlightenment, in order to become enlightened we must understand how to practice, ...
Views: 695 - How We Intimidate Each Other - by Submitted on Jan 02, 2008 from E. (anagarika eddie) Raymond RockA Thai farmer is in a ditch planting rice in the searing, Southeast Asian heat. He is old, uneducated, ill, toothless, and his body is small and frail, weathered from years of hard labor. Is this old, useless farmer less than you? You, who are educated, beautiful, healthy, relatively young, ...
Views: 1118 - God Is Love - by Submitted on Jan 01, 2008 from E. (anagarika eddie) Raymond RockA good friend of mine, a Methodist, asked his minister if people who didn't believe in Jesus were destined for hell. The minister thought for a moment, and then said, "God is love." This reply is a sign of the shifting landscape of spirituality. The original tenets of religion, that God, or ...
Views: 712 - Understanding the Eightfold Path - by Submitted on Jan 01, 2008 from E. (anagarika eddie) Raymond RockThe Buddha was called the great physician. In his quintessential teaching: The Four Noble Truths, he took us under his wing, as a good doctor should, to care for his favorite patients. In his First Truth, he diagnosed us as being very ill. In his second, he explained exactly what was making us ...
Views: 974 - Why We War Over Religion - by Submitted on Jan 01, 2008 from E. (anagarika eddie) Raymond RockWe go to war to defend our religion. It has happened throughout history and is happening now. Once we label ourselves as a Buddhist, Christian, Muslim, Hindu or Jew, we feel that this label must be defended. This is a separation, where those who don't believe as we believe become the enemy, and ...
Views: 686 - Christian Meditation — Phase Two - by Submitted on Dec 31, 2007 from E. (anagarika eddie) Raymond RockContemporary Christians are discovering the deeper aspects of meditation. Previously, many Christians who have experimented with meditation misunderstood the real benefits of meditation by mistakenly believing that meditation is simply a relaxation technique, or a way to think about and worship ...
Views: 803 - The Four Noble Truths - by Submitted on Dec 30, 2007 from E. (anagarika eddie) Raymond RockThe Buddha would have made a great CEO. He was all bottom line, and the bottom line was freedom, or enlightenment. If something didn't contribute to this directly, then he didn't teach it. One day he was in a forest with his monks, and he said to them, "Which is more, monks, the few leaves ...
Views: 1936(1 vote) - Shopping at the Spirituality Supermarket - by Submitted on Dec 30, 2007 from E. (anagarika eddie) Raymond RockFeel-good spiritual paths espousing light and love and the prospect of some kind of an enlightenment with little or no effort are plentiful, but have they really changed you? A trend is developing toward a serious approach to spirituality involving personal, in-depth, permanent changes in ...
Views: 619 - The Most Important Thing to Look for in a Relationship - by Submitted on Dec 30, 2007 from E. (anagarika eddie) Raymond RockGood looking, intelligent, personable, self-assured, these are important, but if the most important thing is missing, the relationship could be doomed. Usually we are attracted by physical attributes, the most obvious being gender, but build, height, hair color – all of these count too. Then we ...
Views: 1900 - The Heart of the Anger Problem - by Submitted on Dec 30, 2007 from E. (anagarika eddie) Raymond RockLife can be a beautiful thing, but if we don’t understand life, we might end up fighting it. More often than not, it’s you and I against the world. Making a living, holding on to our relationships, to our wealth, our political and spiritual beliefs, these can become monumental struggles. Worry ...
Views: 967 - Anger Mismanagement - by Submitted on Dec 30, 2007 from E. (anagarika eddie) Raymond RockWe will never succeed at changing ourselves by trying to change ourselves directly. We must do it indirectly. By indirectly means merely watching our anger instead of trying to rid ourselves of it, because attempts to aggressively change ourselves into something we wish ourselves to be results ...
Views: 1094 - Seven Indicators That Your Life is about to Take a Turn - by Submitted on Dec 30, 2007 from E. (anagarika eddie) Raymond RockYour plan C has replaced your plan B. It's just not working out the way you had planned. Even when it does work out the way you plan, it still doesn't work out . . . somehow. Asking yourself, "Is this all there is?" This is a definite, clear signal that you've tried about everything that ...
Views: 819(1 vote) - Heaven is a Many Splendored Thing — Isn’t it? - by Submitted on Dec 30, 2007 from E. (anagarika eddie) Raymond RockSome people get a glimpse of where they are headed just before they die. My sister-in-law did. Terminal with lung cancer, we thought that she had passed away early one morning when she abruptly stopped breathing, but after a few minutes, she woke up! She told us that she had just been in a ...
Views: 709 - Meditation — 11 Reasons Why People Begin - by Submitted on Dec 30, 2007 from E. (anagarika eddie) Raymond RockMen and women, seeking spiritual answers they can't seem to find in Western culture or traditional religious pathways, are trying meditation. A large (and growing) number of people are taking up the practice, including open-minded Christians and undocumented millions of seekers who are ...
Views: 615 - Life is a Ball! Or is it? - by Submitted on Dec 30, 2007 from E. (anagarika eddie) Raymond RockAsk anyone that's enjoying good luck and engaged in a full, rewarding life how they are doing, and they will more than likely reply that they are having a ball! Their glass is not only half-full, it is overflowing! Then, when I clumsily come along and say that the Buddha proclaimed that we must ...
Views: 701 - 2012 A.D. - The End? - by Submitted on Dec 27, 2007 from E. (anagarika eddie) Raymond RockI was talking to some friends the other day who just returned to Florida. They have a home down here as well as one in Philadelphia, and when I asked why they came back so early, they said that they just had to get away from their relatives! They went on to tell me about their daughters tragic ...
Views: 803 - The Rich Man and the Beggar - by Submitted on Dec 27, 2007 from E. (anagarika eddie) Raymond RockHave you ever tried to change yourself? Tough, huh? But sometimes we have no choice. Once in a while, during a lifetime, we get a good look at what we are, and when we see what we are, we become so disturbed that a change can't be avoided. It's actually the seeing that creates the change. It's ...
Views: 1747(1 vote) - Affirmations — What Are They? - by Submitted on Dec 27, 2007 from E. (anagarika eddie) Raymond Rock"I am the greatest!" If we repeat this affirmation to ourselves enough times, we will begin to believe it. Then we will begin to act out "Being the greatest," and soon, in our mind, we will be. It doesn't matter what we repeat, it's the repeating that counts, sort of an internal brainwashing. ...
Views: 713 - How to Stop Worrying in Ten Minutes! - by Submitted on Dec 27, 2007 from E. (anagarika eddie) Raymond Rock1 st Minute: Define exactly what it is that is worrying you. Write it down. Worry is simmering fear. In the old days, we would just run like hell when we were scared, but nowadays, we bubble away in our little pots of worry. So, the first thing to do is face what it is that worries us, and ...
Views: 712 - The Simple Meaning of Life - by Submitted on Dec 27, 2007 from E. (anagarika eddie) Raymond RockThe farmer found the mare lying on her side near the edge of the pasture. She was lying peacefully, almost as if sleeping; only occasionally raising her head to look back at where her first-born was soon to meet this wondrous world. It was as if she had done this many times, and perhaps she had, ...
Views: 894 - The Deeper Meaning of Life - by Submitted on Dec 27, 2007 from E. (anagarika eddie) Raymond RockLife on this planet is but a few moments long, considering the endless eons this earth has twirled around its sun. Long after life has found this planet too unfriendly, and after all of our accomplishments are burned up in that incredible supernova that our sun will evolve into just before it ...
Views: 1369 - The Zen Master and a Troubled Man - by Submitted on Dec 27, 2007 from E. (anagarika eddie) Raymond RockI made my way back toward the monastery and noticed a middle-aged man waiting near the entrance; he had his hands clasped, indicating that he would like to speak with me. When I walked over to where he was waiting, he said, “Thank you for a moment of your time. I must make a difficult decision ...
Views: 627 - Hold Her Tight, TonightSubmitted on Dec 27, 2007 from E. (anagarika eddie) Raymond RockHold her tight, tonight. Let her dream of what her life will be, her fairytales of love and happiness. Hold her tight, tonight. Hold her tight tonight, so that monster truth can’t steal her dreams, not this night. This night, let truth not meet time, not yet . . . please not yet. Hold her ...
Views: 1150 - Red Lights and Shoplifters - by Submitted on Dec 27, 2007 from E. (anagarika eddie) Raymond RockHave you noticed that more and more people are going through red lights in their rush to compete in this frantic world, and that no cops are there to stop them. We have only a token representation of police to give the impression that we are being protected. It’s an illusion. Many cheat on ...
Views: 711 - . A Monk's Secret to Sleeping Better - by Submitted on Dec 27, 2007 from E. (anagarika eddie) Raymond RockAs with all advice, always check with your health care practitioner before embarking on any regimen, especially one that you haven’t tried before. Everybody’s body is different. Having said that, I would like to introduce you to the secrets I discovered about sleep while living as Buddhist monk ...
Views: 785 - Dieting -- The Monk Diet - by Submitted on Dec 27, 2007 from E. (anagarika eddie) Raymond RockWhen I was living as a Buddhist monk in the backwater jungles of Thailand, I learned many important lessons that have made my life much easier. One of them was how to handle food. The rules of a Theravada monk include eating only once a day, and that is in the morning. Typically, we would walk ...
Views: 5264(1 vote) - I Am a Meditator - by Submitted on Dec 27, 2007 from E. (anagarika eddie) Raymond RockI am a meditator. When I am meditating, I feel no fear, no ambition, no cowardice. I read no books, I have no opinions. I am peaceful. I am a meditator. When I am meditating, I have no questions, no answers, no problems. I feel no anxiety. I am a meditator. When I am meditating, I feel no ...
Views: 724 - Calculate Your Candidate Based on the Issues — - by Submitted on Dec 27, 2007 from E. (anagarika eddie) Raymond RockThis is fun! Just score each issue, add up your score, and see who's your man . . . or woman! It is important, really important I feel, to not only do our civic duty and responsibly research who matches up to our particular preferences, but to make sure and vote. As Thomas Jefferson once said, ...
Views: 640 - Love - What Are You? - by Submitted on Dec 27, 2007 from E. (anagarika eddie) Raymond RockLove. Stay! Do you understand? I want you. Stay! Are you my love? Will you make me happy? Please make me happy. Be my love. Stay! Will you always love me? Love me forever? Please love me forever. Be my love. Stay! Are you my love? Will you change? Please don’t change. Be my love, ...
Views: 656 - Attraction -- Be Careful! - by Submitted on Dec 27, 2007 from E. (anagarika eddie) Raymond RockResearch has revealed that the part of our brain that is stimulated when we are in love is not the emotional centers as once thought, but the part of the brain that controls physical lust. In other words, being in love has everything to do with sex and little to do with love. Emotionally, after ...
Views: 588 - Five Things That Hold us Back in Life, Love, and the Afterlife - by Submitted on Dec 26, 2007 from E. (anagarika eddie) Raymond RockOther than outright bad luck and unforeseen circumstances, whenever we fail to reach our goals, it's a good bet that one of these five culprits had a hand in it - 1. Taking our eye off the ball: The easiest way to get sidetracked from our goals is to become distracted by a good time. A "good ...
Views: 906 - Ten Benefits Of Meditation - by Submitted on Dec 25, 2007 from E. (anagarika eddie) Raymond Rock· Reducing stress · Feeling better mentally and physically · Eliminating fear and uncertainty from our lives · Changing aspects of our lives we do not like · Deepening and improving our relationships with others · Becoming more ...
Views: 680 - What You Don’t Want To Know About God! - by Submitted on Dec 23, 2007 from E. (anagarika eddie) Raymond RockFrom the Bible, we learn all kinds of things about God. What we don’t know about God, however, are things like; what does He do on Sunday afternoons? Since we are created in His likeness, He must like the same things we do. Doesn’t that make sense? So, He must like football games! Go Packers! ...
Views: 617 - 12 Metaphysical Questions And Answers - by Submitted on Dec 23, 2007 from E. (anagarika eddie) Raymond RockQ. Does God exist? A. If there is a god, he, she, or it, or neither he, she, nor it, would not exist. A god could never be caught within the fabric of existence as we are. A god is Reality, unborn, uncreated, undying, and therefore could not exist, and therefore since we exist, we cannot be ...
Views: 1852 - Going Around In Circles - by Submitted on Dec 23, 2007 from E. (anagarika eddie) Raymond RockJanet and I were taking our three-mile walk around the neighborhood this morning when we met another couple walking in the opposite direction. The woman smiled and said in passing, "Ever feel that youre going around in circles?" I looked back over my shoulder and quipped, "That's life!" Then I ...
Views: 836 - Getting Over Yourself - by Submitted on Dec 23, 2007 from E. (anagarika eddie) Raymond RockWe all seek power. We try to push ourselves up and in the process, many times attempt to push others down. It might begin with a feeling that we have been wronged, which means that our ego has been hurt, and in order to right things we might begin a verbal confrontation with the offending party. ...
Views: 1577 - Worry — Who Needs It? - by Submitted on Dec 23, 2007 from E. (anagarika eddie) Raymond RockWe worry a lot, and the things we worry about are unlimited. For example, the current hot issues - the war, the economy, immigration, global warming, health care - and the list goes on. If these weren't enough, how about our personal problems, our jobs, our relationships, our families, our ...
Views: 626 - How To Be A Hero - by Submitted on Dec 23, 2007 from E. (anagarika eddie) Raymond RockWhat are those unique qualities we call bravery; those almost subconscious qualities that we can't readily put our fingers on whenever we see a hero in action but somehow recognize every time someone does something out of the ordinary? It's almost as if what they do is superhuman, yet their ...
Views: 790 - Who Wants To Be A Coward? - by Submitted on Dec 22, 2007 from E. (anagarika eddie) Raymond RockNo one wants to be a coward, so if we know what it takes to be a coward, perhaps we can avoid becoming one! When we read books or articles on how we can improve, or self-help books that tell us how we can help ourselves, we are in a twilight zone of assumptions and speculation. To get real, ...
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