Meditate

Meditation describes a state of concentrated attention on some object of thought or awareness. It usually involves turning the attention inward to the mind itself. Meditation is often recognized as a component of Eastern religions, where it has been practiced for over 5,000 years. It has also become mainstream in Western culture. It encompasses any of a wide variety of spiritual practices which emphasize mental activity or quiescence.

Meditation can be used for personal development, or to focus the mind on God (or an aspect of God). Many practice meditation in order to achieve peace, while others practice certain physical yogas in order to become healthier.



Meditation is a form of acknowledging your connection with the spirit of universal love, and it allows a sense of peace and love to flood your being. The tranquility that follow stays with you, reducing stress and promoting a state of awareness throughout the day. ~ Ruth Ross

When snow drifts quietly down on a winter evening, the hush of nature brings a great sense of peace.

Each of us has known times like this.

Many of these times did not depend on conditions like snow, or soft music.

When we are able to keep a quiet center within ourselves, we are truly in tune with the spirit.

Peace of the heart comes from a Power greater than ourselves, and from the faith that all of us, and all that happens to us, are part of a great plan.

Just as the snow falls softly, without fear, without regard for whether it will land on a tree bough or in the street, we, too, can live our lives with peaceful acceptance of whatever comes along, knowing it comes to us naturally and from God.



Peace and relaxation flow through me with every breath that I take.

As we become more familiar with meditation, the easier it is to trust what we think, feel and remember. And teh more our trust deepens and we let things happen just as they are, the more we begin to develop acceptance.

Trust and acceptance are the beginning of choice.

As meditation deepens, compulsions, cravings and fits of emotion begin to lose their power to dictate our behaviour. We see clearly that choices are possible; we can say yes or we can say no. It is profoundly liberating. ~ Eknath Easwaran

Peaceful Laws

The Law of Reality
People don't change. Deal with them as they are. Don't try to change others or expect them to change. "What you see is what you get."

Unconditional acceptance of others is the way to happy relationships.

The Law of Forgiveness
You are emotionally healthy to the exact degree to which you can freely forgive others for anything they may have done that has hurt you in any way.

The inability to forgive lies at the root of most unhappiness. It leads to feelings of guilt, resentment, anger and hostility toward others.

The Law of Choice
Your life is the sum total of all your choices up to this present minute.

Everything you do is a choice based on your dominant values at the moment. Even taking no action is a choice.

You are where you are and what you are because of your choices and decisions in life to this moment.

Since you are always free to choose what you think about, you are in complete control of your life and everything that happens to you.


The Law of Emotion
You are 100% emotional in everything you think, feel and decide. You decide emotionally and justify logically.

Since you control your thoughts, you are as happy as you make up your mind to be.

The Law of Happiness
The quality of your life is determined by how you feel at any given moment. How you feel is determined by how you interpret what is happening around you, not by the events themselves.

It's never too late to have a happy childhood. At any time, you can go back and change the way you interprete those experiences to yourself.

The Law of Communications
The quality of your relationships will be determined by the quality and quantity of your communication with other people.

Good communications require extended periods of time to build and maintain.

The Law of Self-Esteem
Everything you do in life is to either increase or to protect your self-esteem. You tend to be happiest with someone who makes you feel valuable and important.

The more things you do to raise the self-esteem of another, the more you like and respect yourself as well.

The Law of Value
You are invariably attracted to, and most compatible with, people who have the same values, beliefs and convictions that you do.

Love is not blind.

The Law of Expectations
You increase the amount of luck in your life by continuously expecting lucky things to happen to you. Begin every day by saying,"I believe that something wonderful is going to happen to me today!"

The Law of Relationships
The more people you know and who know you in a positive way, the luckier you will be.

People will give you ideas and open doors for you if they like you.

The Law of Empathy
When you look at a situation through the eyes of someone else, you often find unseen possibilities.

What is it that people need and want, and how could you give it to them?

The Law of Growth
If you are not growing, you are stagnating. If you are not getting better, you are getting worse.

Make continuous learning and growth a part of your daily routine.

The Law of Mind
All causation is mental. Your thoughts become your realities. Your thoughts are creative. You become what you think about most of the time.

Think continually about the things you really want, and refuse to think about the things you don't want.

Obstacles

Obstacles can become opportunities.

Along the way, everyone has experienced obstacles. Perhaps divorce, illness, family problems, hard economic times, legal woes, or even death have taken their emotional toil. Somehow you've straddled the bumps in the road. Maybe you've stepped aside and shielded yourself from the blows. Or perhaps you are one of those who leads a life of silent desperation, putting on a pretty face for the world, yet quietly retreating to your secret world of despair. Or maybe you are in denial about the burdens you carry, or perhaps you face obstacles head on and fight fire with fire.

Whatever your particular brand of coping now is the time to appreciate what you have overcome, the obstacles surmounted, and the strength amassed to rise above life's inevitable challenges.

To some extent, obstacles are what you make of them. One person may see a mean-spirited coworker as an impediment and another may see the same person as a motivating force to do better and shine brighter. Some may see illness as insurmountable while others take it in stride. Still others may see death as a terrible loss while others view it as personally sad, but also as a blessed moment where one's soul can live for eternity in Heaven.

Obstacles, in other words, are big and bright or as small and dull as you make them. They are subject to your interpretation, but you always know one when you have overcome one. You need to pat yourself on the back, as corny as it may sound, when you successfully rise to the challenges that face you.

Only you truly know what you've been through. Fear doesn't taste good. Only you can acknowledge and reward yourself for all that you've become. Confidence isn't easily measured, but it can be found in loving again after having lost, finding another job after being fired, or rebuilding your strength after suffering severe illness.

Courage in adversity is the stuff of heroes, perhaps not the ones you hear about in the papers, but the ones who may be living next door.



By recognizing past obstacles and acknowledging your accomplishments in overcoming them, you are best prepared for today's challenges. With a heightened sense of self, obstacles can become opportunities.

Forgive And Seek Forgiveness

Finding peace of mind begins with forgiving yourself and the people in your past. Forgiveness means letting go of the hurt, pain, anger, and fear that clutter your mind and harden your heart.

These unhelpful negative emotions keep you from being the best you can be. They create doubts, not dreams. They break, not build.

When you are unable to find forgiveness, a dark cloud hovers over your life. The sun's healing rays can only shine through once the clouds part. Only love and the forgiveness you find as a result of opening your heart will part the clouds and lift the burden of the past. No wind or outside force will magically erase the pain of the past. Only faith, love, and forgiveness will dull the pain of any unpleasant memories still harboured today.

To forgive unconditionally is to forgive all -- yourself, parents, family, friends, old loves, bosses, coworkers, and others you have met along the way.




Ask to be forgiven and, at the same time, forgive those who have hurt you.

Forgiveness unburdens your heart. A heavy heart knows no peace. Lighten your load and lift your spirits by not only asking for forgiveness, but also, and equally importantly, forgiving others for the hurt they may have caused you.

Forgiveness asks you to be big, to rise above the smallest of holding grudges and harbouring animosity, to be bigger than the hard-hearted ways of others, to be, in a sense, godly.

To forgive is divine. Forgive yourself and forgive others.

Understanding Mistakes

We all have done something wrong, disappointed or hurt people, and said or done things we later regretted. From the time you were a baby trying to walk, falling down, skinning your knees, and banging your head more times than anyone could count, you have been making mistakes.

The Bible says that man is not perfect. Knowing in your heart that being human is being imperfect and that you cannot expect more of yourself than you are capable of, you can begin to let go of the fear of failure and open your mind to wanting to take chances and make mistakes in order to grow. The challenge is in not looking at the times you fell, but in sharpening your focus on how many times you've gotten back up. Every mistake you make is an opportunity to learn and grow as a person.

Fear not failing.
Fear not taking chances.
Fear not learning.

Think of the three biggest mistakes you've made in the past -- the words you most wish you could take back, the deeds you are ashamed of, and the most pain you may have caused another, intentionally or not. Relive the feelings of the time -- the hurt, frustration, and embarrassment. Take this psychic pain and let it go. Forgive yourself. Ask for forgiveness from those you hurt. Recognize that you are not a bad person. You are human. You may have done bad things and caused pain to others, but it is your actions that are bad, not you.

The most important lesson in life is to learn from your mistakes and not repeat them over and over. In learning how to not repeat the errors of your past, you also learn to ask for forgiveness. If you are fortunate enough to still have the people in your life, try asking for their forgiveness today for the mistakes you may have made in the past. Think about how good you would feel if someone did this to you, if you received a call or letter asking for forgiveness from someone who hurt you and caused you pain.

Being able to admit a mistake builds bridges. After that, the challenge is to not repeat the same ones over and over and learn from the mistakes you make today.

Understanding about mistakes help us to forgive the people around us, who have made mistakes and caused hurt, anger and disappointments in us. By understanding these, it helps us to feel better and for easier to forgive people who bring us hurt.



If you have made mistakes... there is always another chance for you ... you may have a fresh start any moment you choose, for this thing we call 'failure' is not the falling down, but the staying down. ~ Mary Pickford