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Tuesday, June 21, 2011
Saturday, June 18, 2011
THE MESSENGERS: WHAT HAPPENS WHEN YOU DIE...
The Messengers
A Story from the spirit world
by Andre Luiz, through the mediumship of Francisco C. Xavier
Reviewed by Theresa Welsh
Do you wonder what happens when you die? Would you like a tour of some regions of the astral world populated by spirits? I say "some regions" because the spirit world is a very large place and our tour guide, Andre Luiz, can only tell us about the places he actually visited. Andre Luiz is the "spirit pen name" for one of a number of spirits who dictated information and stories through the mediumship of Francisco "Chico" Xavier.
About Chico Xavier
Chico Xavier, almost unknown in the United States, was immensely popular in Brazil, where his books - over 400 received by automatic handwriting - have sold millions of copies. Xavier was born into a poor family in Minas Gerais in 1910. He had a difficult childhood, losing his mother at age five, but he soon showed psychic ability. He began to sense messages from spirits and one of his sisters was healed through Spiritist intervention.
As a young man, he began receiving documents through automatic handwriting, where a spirit literally moves the hand that writes words on paper. The literary output of Chico Xavier, covering many topics, became popular literature in Brazil. Xavier never took a cent from the sale of these books, instead becoming a one-man charitable institution for the poor of his native land. There is no doubt he was a sincere and saintly person and the many web sites (pretty much all in Portuguese) dedicated to his memory (he died in 2002) attest to how much he was loved and revered by Brazilians.
Spiritism is is the belief that spirits of the departed are all around us and that the physical world is influenced by, and influences, the spirit world. Much of its main ideas are in The Spirits Book, which was compiled by Allan Kardec in France in the mid 19th century. The Spiritist Doctrine was taken to Brazil by Brazilians educated in France and there it took hold with the general population.
The books of Chico Xavier are generally unavailable in English, but an organization called the Allan Kardec Education Association (AKES) has as its goal the translation of as many as possible, given time and funds, into the English language. Only two Chico Xavier books are currently available and The Messengers becomes the third. I admit to some personal excitement about this one because I had the privilege of editing the book. I got a thorough advance look at this tale of the afterlife from the spirit pen of Andre Luiz.
Nosso Lar
The book picks up the activities of Andre from a previous book, Nosso Lar. In that book, Andre had been rescued by spirit helpers from the "Lower Zone," an area of the astral plane that is close to earth and where spirits who passed over in poor spiritual condition find themselves. It is not a nice place to be, full of darkness, anger, hatred and nasty spirits who lash out at each other. In his physical life, Andre (who is called "Andy" in this book) had been a physician, but had spent his life in selfish pursuits, with little empathy for family or his patients. He had not had any particular religious beliefs and knew little or nothing about Spiritism. But after years of unhappy wandering in the Lower Zone, he regrets his past mistakes and, desiring to find a better existence, is ready for help. That help comes from rescuers from the astral colony of Nosso Lar, a place that is actually a city full of spirits, all engaged in learning how to help others. Mainly these helpers travel back to earth to assist people who need spiritual help. Interestingly, Andre is rescued by an angel named Clarence (think for a minute about the movie, It's a Wonderful Life)
In The Messengers, Andy is studying with instructors in Nosso Lar to become a helper, or messenger, to the people of earth. He listens to lectures, talks with instructors, and is finally given an assignment, along with another former physician, Vincent, to return to earth under the care of an advanced worker, Aniceto. Aniceto tells Andy that the task is difficult and that "we don't waste time whining or expecting praise every time we do a good job."
Andy goes to a lecture at The Messenger Center in an auditorium filled with other spirits and learns that most of the spirits sent to earth, either in a physical body or as spirit helpers, have failed in their assigned duties. The lecturer, Telesphor, paints a grim picture of the tasks ahead. Since this manuscript was received during the 1940s, the lecture includes reminders of the terrible war that rages on earth. After the lecture, Andy lingers to hear the stories of some of the other spirits in the audience. He mostly hears sad stories of past failures. Andy is a bit shaken, but ready to move forward.
The Journey Back to Earth
He finally departs from Nosso Lar with Vincent and Aniceto. Advanced spirits have the ability to move rapidly and safely from one place to another, and there is a safe pathway back to earth, but Andy and Vincent do not have enough spiritual energy to use this method, so they must make the trip by a longer and more difficult method. They come to a region that is dense, dark and a bit eerie. In this forbidding place, Andy suddenly becomes aware that his spirit body is radiating light! He is overwhelmed with joy at the realization that his spiritual energy is increasing. But the journey continues until they come ot an outpost surrounded by thick walls. This is a place of light in the dark region dedicated to helping the unfortunate spirits inhabiting this region. Here the messengers from Nosso Lar will rest and visit with Alfred, the administrator of the outpost.
The outpost is an amazing place, where the spirit helpers who live within its walls must defend against constant attacks from deranged discarnates whose anger and hatred cause fierce magnetic storms. Only within the walls can rescue and rehabilitation happen. The workers within minister to many confused and sick spirits who are well enough to receive help. They also have long wards of beds where the "sleepers" lay, reliving their worst actions on earth in a dreamlike state. Skilled workers assist these poor souls in an effort to awaken them to the reality of their situation.
Andy meets Alfred and his beautiful wife, Ismalia, who lives in a higher plane and is with Alfred only for a visit. Alfred has another sad story to tell, about his life on earth and a friend who told a false story about Ismalia, whom he had sexually harassed. A jealous Alfred believed the stories and left Ismalia and his children and only returned after Ismalia had passed on. When the man who had given false witness was on his death bed, he told Alfred the truth. When Afred passed on, he learned that Ismalia had worked to help him from the other side. He wanted to be with her again, but, due to his need to make amends, was only able to have her visit from time to time. Since becoming administrator of the Outpost, he had been working diligently to serve others.
Later we meet Paul, the man who had falsely accused Ismalia. He is tortured by the memory of what he did (not only to Ismalia, but other women as well) and the lives he helped ruin. We find that Alfred and Ismalia have not only forgiven him but are now working to help him. They are carrying out Jesus' dictum to do good to those who harm you.
Aniceto explains: "The criminal cannot run away from universal justice, because the crime committed will be carried in his or her conscience. On Earth or over here, each individual lives in the reality of his or her own interior world. We all have to live with the most intimate creations of our minds."
We meet other interesting characters at the Outpost and read about a beautiful prayer ceremony where Ismalia's prayer produces "a profusion of small bluish flowers" emanating from her heart and showering onto those present. A spectacle of "special effects" along with music makes this an event unique to the spirit world.
But soon the astral travelers continue their journey. It seems there are many modes of transportation in the spirit world and in this case, Alfred provides a car and driver to take the travelers through some difficult areas ahead. They used "volitation" to get the rest of the way to coast of Brazil. (Volitation is a method of "flying" - just moving without using your feet).
Activities In Rio
Their final destination is a home in a poor section of Rio de Janeiro. This home is occupied by a widow, Isabel, and her five children, but is also a sort of "safe house" for spirit workers. Isabel has four girls and a boy. The girls and their mother are tuned in to the spirits around them, but the boy is different and takes no interest in the spiritual activities of the home, causing sorrow for Isobel. We learn a great deal about how spirits and humans interact from this part of the story. We learn that much spiritual activity goes on at night, when those in the body can leave their physical body and join the spirits. Isabel's deceased husband, Isadore, joins her and other incarnate persons also come, in their spirit bodies. Many spirit helpers arrive at the home and Andy learns a lot about the activities of these spirit helpers.
We learn that even on earth (maybe especially on earth), there are demented spirits who try to disrupt the helpers. In fact, Andy is amazed at the number of dark-looking spirits who seem to be everywhere around town. He says that anywhere he went, there were easily as many discarnates as people in the flesh. As Andy gains spiritual strength, he is able to see more and more of what had been invisible to him before.
Here is an interesting conversation between Aniceto and Andy as they rested in the countryside from their work:
"But does the mental matter emitted by individuals also have a life of its own, just like microbes that generate physical illnesses"?
"And could it be any different? You both know that incarnated humans are both physical and psychological beings. When one examines a physical illness, one doesn't take into consideration only the physiological situation, but also the psychological status of the individual."
"If the sick body produces millions of pathogenic microorganisms, so does the sick mind launch millions of mental forms into the environment. In this way, when it comes to people who have no knowledge of spiritual realities, not only the bodies, but also the minds, become ill. "
And another interesting passage from the same section of the story:
"As we all know, no living creature could survive on Earth without nitrogen. Although humans move around in an ocean of nitrogen and breathe in approximately one thousand liters per day, they cannot absorb it directly from the air. For the time being, God has not permitted the development of cells in the human body which are capable of spontaneously absorbing nitrogen, such as is the case for oxygen. It is only the plant kingdom which is capable of removing nitrogen from the soil and fixing it, so that other beings can live. Each grain of wheat is a blessing, and each fruit is a receptacle of sugar and albumin, loaded with indispensable nitrogen. All farming and cattle ranches are nothing more than the organized and methodological search for this precious element. If humans could fix only a small part of the nitrogen that they take in daily, Earth would be transformed into a true spiritual paradise. But if the Lord gives us much, it is also reasonable that He expects us to collaborate and make an effort towards our own happiness. Even in "Nosso Lar", we are far from being able to absorb our nutrition entirely from the air. And humanity, my friends, transforms the search for nitrogen into a mayhem of uncontrolled passions, hurting and being hurt, offending and being offended, enslaving and becoming enslaved, always surrounded by darkness …"
Giving Assistance
Finally, Andy attends a special meeting at the home of Isabel. It is meant as a rehabilitation process for the many suffering spirits who the helpers bring to the meeting. Aniceto explains that the anguished-looking spirits being helped into the house are living in a world of their own making. He says:
"The concept of the oneness of the universe is a vision not all can grasp, and it can cost a high price that we are not always willing to pay. We find it tough to do away with old habits and get on the right path. Under these circumstances, once we discarnate, the environment that we will find ourselves in will be full of the mental creations that we lived with while incarnated. Consequently, it's logical that those who thought and talked about nothing else but their illnesses will find themselves enslaved to these thoughts once in the spiritual world."
The helpers begin to provide "magnetic treatments" to the sick spirits. Andy joins in this work and finds he has cured a spirit of her blindness. He is startled as she says to him, "Who are you, Messenger of God?" Andy is naturally shaken by this experience. Aniceto tells him not to be affected by the woman's natural reaction and go on with his work and Andy finds he is not successful with everyone he tries to heal.
At the meeting are also people in the flesh, and several engage in a conversation about the work of mediums. There is a discussion of "phony mediums" and other problems with the process. We learn that good communication between the physical and spiritual planes depends on a lot of factors and can be disrupted by bad intentions or the presence of individuals not ready for serious communication. It is an imperfect process with many pitfalls.
Aniceto, Andy and Vincent are called to help a woman who has just died and is afraid to leave her physical body. She is in the morgue, lying on a slab, with the spirit of a young man who loved her close by, trying to coax her from her body. Aniceto takes over and tells the women that he is a doctor who has a new treatment. The woman is relieved and says she has had a bad dream in which she died and saw her fiancé. Aniceto tells her "Death doesn't exist...just believe in life" They go on to help another dying man, whose spirit mother is by him, trying to help him separate. He too is helped to peacefully pass to the world of spirit.
Finally, Andy's first experience as a Messenger was over, and it was time to return to Nosso Lar.
The story of Andy's experiences as a Messenger makes interesting reading and as you can see from this summary, there are many ideas in this material that are generally unfamiliar, such as: The spirit world has colonies and outposts; spirits travel by flying, walking and even by vehicles; spirits are all around us and can influence us; spirits assist us when we are dying so we can separate from our bodies; spirits use magnetic healing.
The Messengers comes with an Introduction, a Prologue and a Preface. There is also a glossary in the back that gives more information on Spiritist concepts.
To purchase a copy, see the Allan Kardec Educational Association (AKES) website
Personal Note: I had the privilege of introducing The Messengers at the book launch on July 9 at the Community Church of New York. The audience filled the church as several speakers gave their views on the life of Chico Xavier. I gave a fifteen minute talk on the adventures of Andre Luiz as told in The Messengers, explaining that the truths in this manuscript are the same as many very ancient spiritual traditions and also bear a striking resemblance to the revelations in the Readings of Edgar Cayce.
The main speaker was the very dynamic Divaldo Franco, who spoke in Portuguese. Those of us who don't know that language had headphones with a simultaneous translation. It was clear that many in the audience DID know Portuguese, as many were Brazilian. Spiritism is primarily a Brazilian movement, but a number of organizations in the US are working to bring its literature to an English-speaking audience. The Spiritism Group of New York is one of those organizations.
A Story from the spirit world
by Andre Luiz, through the mediumship of Francisco C. Xavier
Reviewed by Theresa Welsh
Do you wonder what happens when you die? Would you like a tour of some regions of the astral world populated by spirits? I say "some regions" because the spirit world is a very large place and our tour guide, Andre Luiz, can only tell us about the places he actually visited. Andre Luiz is the "spirit pen name" for one of a number of spirits who dictated information and stories through the mediumship of Francisco "Chico" Xavier.
About Chico Xavier
Chico Xavier, almost unknown in the United States, was immensely popular in Brazil, where his books - over 400 received by automatic handwriting - have sold millions of copies. Xavier was born into a poor family in Minas Gerais in 1910. He had a difficult childhood, losing his mother at age five, but he soon showed psychic ability. He began to sense messages from spirits and one of his sisters was healed through Spiritist intervention.
As a young man, he began receiving documents through automatic handwriting, where a spirit literally moves the hand that writes words on paper. The literary output of Chico Xavier, covering many topics, became popular literature in Brazil. Xavier never took a cent from the sale of these books, instead becoming a one-man charitable institution for the poor of his native land. There is no doubt he was a sincere and saintly person and the many web sites (pretty much all in Portuguese) dedicated to his memory (he died in 2002) attest to how much he was loved and revered by Brazilians.
Spiritism is is the belief that spirits of the departed are all around us and that the physical world is influenced by, and influences, the spirit world. Much of its main ideas are in The Spirits Book, which was compiled by Allan Kardec in France in the mid 19th century. The Spiritist Doctrine was taken to Brazil by Brazilians educated in France and there it took hold with the general population.
The books of Chico Xavier are generally unavailable in English, but an organization called the Allan Kardec Education Association (AKES) has as its goal the translation of as many as possible, given time and funds, into the English language. Only two Chico Xavier books are currently available and The Messengers becomes the third. I admit to some personal excitement about this one because I had the privilege of editing the book. I got a thorough advance look at this tale of the afterlife from the spirit pen of Andre Luiz.
Nosso Lar
The book picks up the activities of Andre from a previous book, Nosso Lar. In that book, Andre had been rescued by spirit helpers from the "Lower Zone," an area of the astral plane that is close to earth and where spirits who passed over in poor spiritual condition find themselves. It is not a nice place to be, full of darkness, anger, hatred and nasty spirits who lash out at each other. In his physical life, Andre (who is called "Andy" in this book) had been a physician, but had spent his life in selfish pursuits, with little empathy for family or his patients. He had not had any particular religious beliefs and knew little or nothing about Spiritism. But after years of unhappy wandering in the Lower Zone, he regrets his past mistakes and, desiring to find a better existence, is ready for help. That help comes from rescuers from the astral colony of Nosso Lar, a place that is actually a city full of spirits, all engaged in learning how to help others. Mainly these helpers travel back to earth to assist people who need spiritual help. Interestingly, Andre is rescued by an angel named Clarence (think for a minute about the movie, It's a Wonderful Life)
In The Messengers, Andy is studying with instructors in Nosso Lar to become a helper, or messenger, to the people of earth. He listens to lectures, talks with instructors, and is finally given an assignment, along with another former physician, Vincent, to return to earth under the care of an advanced worker, Aniceto. Aniceto tells Andy that the task is difficult and that "we don't waste time whining or expecting praise every time we do a good job."
Andy goes to a lecture at The Messenger Center in an auditorium filled with other spirits and learns that most of the spirits sent to earth, either in a physical body or as spirit helpers, have failed in their assigned duties. The lecturer, Telesphor, paints a grim picture of the tasks ahead. Since this manuscript was received during the 1940s, the lecture includes reminders of the terrible war that rages on earth. After the lecture, Andy lingers to hear the stories of some of the other spirits in the audience. He mostly hears sad stories of past failures. Andy is a bit shaken, but ready to move forward.
The Journey Back to Earth
He finally departs from Nosso Lar with Vincent and Aniceto. Advanced spirits have the ability to move rapidly and safely from one place to another, and there is a safe pathway back to earth, but Andy and Vincent do not have enough spiritual energy to use this method, so they must make the trip by a longer and more difficult method. They come to a region that is dense, dark and a bit eerie. In this forbidding place, Andy suddenly becomes aware that his spirit body is radiating light! He is overwhelmed with joy at the realization that his spiritual energy is increasing. But the journey continues until they come ot an outpost surrounded by thick walls. This is a place of light in the dark region dedicated to helping the unfortunate spirits inhabiting this region. Here the messengers from Nosso Lar will rest and visit with Alfred, the administrator of the outpost.
The outpost is an amazing place, where the spirit helpers who live within its walls must defend against constant attacks from deranged discarnates whose anger and hatred cause fierce magnetic storms. Only within the walls can rescue and rehabilitation happen. The workers within minister to many confused and sick spirits who are well enough to receive help. They also have long wards of beds where the "sleepers" lay, reliving their worst actions on earth in a dreamlike state. Skilled workers assist these poor souls in an effort to awaken them to the reality of their situation.
Andy meets Alfred and his beautiful wife, Ismalia, who lives in a higher plane and is with Alfred only for a visit. Alfred has another sad story to tell, about his life on earth and a friend who told a false story about Ismalia, whom he had sexually harassed. A jealous Alfred believed the stories and left Ismalia and his children and only returned after Ismalia had passed on. When the man who had given false witness was on his death bed, he told Alfred the truth. When Afred passed on, he learned that Ismalia had worked to help him from the other side. He wanted to be with her again, but, due to his need to make amends, was only able to have her visit from time to time. Since becoming administrator of the Outpost, he had been working diligently to serve others.
Later we meet Paul, the man who had falsely accused Ismalia. He is tortured by the memory of what he did (not only to Ismalia, but other women as well) and the lives he helped ruin. We find that Alfred and Ismalia have not only forgiven him but are now working to help him. They are carrying out Jesus' dictum to do good to those who harm you.
Aniceto explains: "The criminal cannot run away from universal justice, because the crime committed will be carried in his or her conscience. On Earth or over here, each individual lives in the reality of his or her own interior world. We all have to live with the most intimate creations of our minds."
We meet other interesting characters at the Outpost and read about a beautiful prayer ceremony where Ismalia's prayer produces "a profusion of small bluish flowers" emanating from her heart and showering onto those present. A spectacle of "special effects" along with music makes this an event unique to the spirit world.
But soon the astral travelers continue their journey. It seems there are many modes of transportation in the spirit world and in this case, Alfred provides a car and driver to take the travelers through some difficult areas ahead. They used "volitation" to get the rest of the way to coast of Brazil. (Volitation is a method of "flying" - just moving without using your feet).
Activities In Rio
Their final destination is a home in a poor section of Rio de Janeiro. This home is occupied by a widow, Isabel, and her five children, but is also a sort of "safe house" for spirit workers. Isabel has four girls and a boy. The girls and their mother are tuned in to the spirits around them, but the boy is different and takes no interest in the spiritual activities of the home, causing sorrow for Isobel. We learn a great deal about how spirits and humans interact from this part of the story. We learn that much spiritual activity goes on at night, when those in the body can leave their physical body and join the spirits. Isabel's deceased husband, Isadore, joins her and other incarnate persons also come, in their spirit bodies. Many spirit helpers arrive at the home and Andy learns a lot about the activities of these spirit helpers.
We learn that even on earth (maybe especially on earth), there are demented spirits who try to disrupt the helpers. In fact, Andy is amazed at the number of dark-looking spirits who seem to be everywhere around town. He says that anywhere he went, there were easily as many discarnates as people in the flesh. As Andy gains spiritual strength, he is able to see more and more of what had been invisible to him before.
Here is an interesting conversation between Aniceto and Andy as they rested in the countryside from their work:
"But does the mental matter emitted by individuals also have a life of its own, just like microbes that generate physical illnesses"?
"And could it be any different? You both know that incarnated humans are both physical and psychological beings. When one examines a physical illness, one doesn't take into consideration only the physiological situation, but also the psychological status of the individual."
"If the sick body produces millions of pathogenic microorganisms, so does the sick mind launch millions of mental forms into the environment. In this way, when it comes to people who have no knowledge of spiritual realities, not only the bodies, but also the minds, become ill. "
And another interesting passage from the same section of the story:
"As we all know, no living creature could survive on Earth without nitrogen. Although humans move around in an ocean of nitrogen and breathe in approximately one thousand liters per day, they cannot absorb it directly from the air. For the time being, God has not permitted the development of cells in the human body which are capable of spontaneously absorbing nitrogen, such as is the case for oxygen. It is only the plant kingdom which is capable of removing nitrogen from the soil and fixing it, so that other beings can live. Each grain of wheat is a blessing, and each fruit is a receptacle of sugar and albumin, loaded with indispensable nitrogen. All farming and cattle ranches are nothing more than the organized and methodological search for this precious element. If humans could fix only a small part of the nitrogen that they take in daily, Earth would be transformed into a true spiritual paradise. But if the Lord gives us much, it is also reasonable that He expects us to collaborate and make an effort towards our own happiness. Even in "Nosso Lar", we are far from being able to absorb our nutrition entirely from the air. And humanity, my friends, transforms the search for nitrogen into a mayhem of uncontrolled passions, hurting and being hurt, offending and being offended, enslaving and becoming enslaved, always surrounded by darkness …"
Giving Assistance
Finally, Andy attends a special meeting at the home of Isabel. It is meant as a rehabilitation process for the many suffering spirits who the helpers bring to the meeting. Aniceto explains that the anguished-looking spirits being helped into the house are living in a world of their own making. He says:
"The concept of the oneness of the universe is a vision not all can grasp, and it can cost a high price that we are not always willing to pay. We find it tough to do away with old habits and get on the right path. Under these circumstances, once we discarnate, the environment that we will find ourselves in will be full of the mental creations that we lived with while incarnated. Consequently, it's logical that those who thought and talked about nothing else but their illnesses will find themselves enslaved to these thoughts once in the spiritual world."
The helpers begin to provide "magnetic treatments" to the sick spirits. Andy joins in this work and finds he has cured a spirit of her blindness. He is startled as she says to him, "Who are you, Messenger of God?" Andy is naturally shaken by this experience. Aniceto tells him not to be affected by the woman's natural reaction and go on with his work and Andy finds he is not successful with everyone he tries to heal.
At the meeting are also people in the flesh, and several engage in a conversation about the work of mediums. There is a discussion of "phony mediums" and other problems with the process. We learn that good communication between the physical and spiritual planes depends on a lot of factors and can be disrupted by bad intentions or the presence of individuals not ready for serious communication. It is an imperfect process with many pitfalls.
Aniceto, Andy and Vincent are called to help a woman who has just died and is afraid to leave her physical body. She is in the morgue, lying on a slab, with the spirit of a young man who loved her close by, trying to coax her from her body. Aniceto takes over and tells the women that he is a doctor who has a new treatment. The woman is relieved and says she has had a bad dream in which she died and saw her fiancé. Aniceto tells her "Death doesn't exist...just believe in life" They go on to help another dying man, whose spirit mother is by him, trying to help him separate. He too is helped to peacefully pass to the world of spirit.
Finally, Andy's first experience as a Messenger was over, and it was time to return to Nosso Lar.
The story of Andy's experiences as a Messenger makes interesting reading and as you can see from this summary, there are many ideas in this material that are generally unfamiliar, such as: The spirit world has colonies and outposts; spirits travel by flying, walking and even by vehicles; spirits are all around us and can influence us; spirits assist us when we are dying so we can separate from our bodies; spirits use magnetic healing.
The Messengers comes with an Introduction, a Prologue and a Preface. There is also a glossary in the back that gives more information on Spiritist concepts.
To purchase a copy, see the Allan Kardec Educational Association (AKES) website
Personal Note: I had the privilege of introducing The Messengers at the book launch on July 9 at the Community Church of New York. The audience filled the church as several speakers gave their views on the life of Chico Xavier. I gave a fifteen minute talk on the adventures of Andre Luiz as told in The Messengers, explaining that the truths in this manuscript are the same as many very ancient spiritual traditions and also bear a striking resemblance to the revelations in the Readings of Edgar Cayce.
The main speaker was the very dynamic Divaldo Franco, who spoke in Portuguese. Those of us who don't know that language had headphones with a simultaneous translation. It was clear that many in the audience DID know Portuguese, as many were Brazilian. Spiritism is primarily a Brazilian movement, but a number of organizations in the US are working to bring its literature to an English-speaking audience. The Spiritism Group of New York is one of those organizations.
Chico Xavier: A Brazilian Saint for Whom World Was a Big Family
By Michael Rubin from brazzil.com, April 2010
This year on Good Friday, April 2, Brazil is celebrating what would have been the 100th birthday of Chico Xavier. Xavier is revered by millions of Brazilians, particularly the people of Uberaba, where he lived in Minas Gerais. He is widely regarded among Brazilians as the foremost proponent of the Spiritist movement. The anniversary of his birth is also being marked by the release of a film biography.
Chico Xavier is one of the most famous and prolific practitioners of psychography, commonly known as spirit writing or automatic writing. Using this technique of transcribing without awareness or premeditation, Xavier produced over 400 books, some of them in foreign languages in which he was not fluent.
The respect for Xavier in Brazil is akin to the reputation of Mother Teresa in India. He was hailed as a living example of a true Christian, thanks to his dedication to making himself and his talents as a medium available to anyone who requested them. The wealth he accumulated from donations and the success of his writings was immediately distributed among the needy of Uberaba and numerous charities.
It was common for celebrities to visit Xavier's home in Uberaba for advice. For more than 30 years he was seen as a kind of Christian guru. In his teachings, Xavier made it clear that every country had a role in spreading the Gospel. He is known for famously declaring that the term "foreign" or foreigner should be stricken from the dictionary.
Despite the power and appeal of his message, Xavier eagerly professed that none of the abilities attributed to him were really his, but that he was only a channel for the work of the spirits. He never professed to perform miracles such as healing people.
The phenomenon of psychography, or spirit writing, is an age-old mystery and decried by skeptics, who point out there's no way to prove the author of the writings is anyone other than the writer. Proponents of automatic writing, however, insist that although deception is not unheard of, there are genuine practitioners of spirit writing, like Xavier. The most famous proponents of automatic writing were the Surrealists of early 20th century France.
Xavier's authenticity was verified in at least one regard - his own demise. In a TV interview years before his death, he remarked he would like to die on a day where there was a national celebration occurring, so that his passing would not bring sorrow. In fact, he died on the same day the Brazilian soccer team won the World Cup in 2002.
He "wrote" one of his many books in English, entitled Between Brothers of Other Lands, while visiting the US in 1965. There he introduced Spiritism to meetings of like-minded individuals, often referred to as spiritualists. His presence helped inspire the creation of a Spiritist center in Washington, D.C. in the 1960s, which was called the Christian Spiritist Center.
They were a loose organization of seekers, bound by their common belief in spiritual evolution and reincarnation. Xavier introduced Americans to the Christian aspects of the Spiritist movement, which had been formalized in the work of the 19th century French educator, Allan Kardec.
Certainly the willingness of Xavier to dispense with his book royalties and his kindness and patience with all those, rich and poor, who wished an audience with him, lend certain credence to his life's work. Additionally, there are thousands of Brazilians who personally witnessed his medium powers and insist they were authentic.
I have a friend in Curitiba who visited Chico Xavier to seek his deceased mother. Xavier was able to "write" a letter from the mother to my friend, in which she mentioned details that Xavier could not have known.
Curitiba has several Spiritist centers, where followers practice what they consider to be a religion, a philosophy, and a science. One center, the Brazilian Society for Spiritual Studies, offers courses and spiritual guidance, as well as operating a charity. Followers are encouraged to seek help from the center's mediums as well as instructed in the principles of Spiritism: spiritual evolution, charitable work, and lifelong study.
At the center, members absorb the works of Kardec or traditional subjects such as physics and journalism. The relentless pursuit of knowledge is one of the foundations of Spiritism and was diligently practiced by Chico Xavier.
For Spiritists, the purpose of life is to learn, grow, and evolve. This explains their great emphasis on education. Like many followers of Eastern religions, Spiritists recognize the role of learning as the pathway to a better understanding of God and as a way of coming closer to God, without necessarily having a clear definition or concept of God.
Members of Spiritist churches, designated during meetings by their white aprons, also practice "passe," the holding up of hands for the passing of positive energy. "Passe" can be practiced individually or in groups, with no regard to whether the recipients are healthy or ill.
There are numerous denominations of Christian Messianic churches in Brazil that also practice variations of "passe" under different names or with one hand instead of two. It is common for Roman Catholic families to invite followers of such churches into their homes when a family member is sick to have them hold their hands close to the ailing body for positive energy and relief from suffering.
Brazil's Catholics, by the way, differentiate this from the evangelical practice of "laying of hands" to cure diseases, the primary difference being evangelicals touch their subjects in order to cure them, and in "passe" there is no touching involved, and it can be applied to healthy individuals as well.
I know very little about the life of Chico Xavier, and I have never read his books or the books of Allan Kardec, which provide the mandates of Christian Spiritism. I do know that Spiritism has millions of followers today, people who never personally witnessed Xavier's ability to communicate with the spirits, yet are convinced of the remarkable abilities of this gentle man, who produced about 100,000 pages of spirit writing during his lifetime.
If you ask a Brazilian who Chico Xavier was, you're likely to hear him described as a "sensitivo." Besides the obvious label of sensitive or compassionate, "sensitivo" also may be translated as a person with ESP. However, in Xavier's case, I don't believe it was the type of ESP Americans are familiar with, e.g. telepathy, clairvoyance, or communicating with extra-terrestrials. Instead, Xavier's ESP was extrasensory perception, the ability to perceive more than the rest of us.
Thanks to Xavier and others, the Christian movement known as Spiritism has more followers in Brazil than any other country in the world. Allan Kardec, the Frenchman who essentially defined Spiritism, also did not consider himself a healer, nor did he proclaim his talents as proof of a divine calling to riches and fame. Kardec was a professor of mathematics, physics, and chemistry, among other subjects, and often gave free courses for the poor.
Communicating with spirits was not uncommon among 19th century educated Europeans, and Kardec found the subject so fascinating, that although he himself was not a medium, he assembled all the information he could find by witnessing such events and interviewing mediums.
He coined the term "spiritism" in his first book on the subject, The Spirits' Book, in 1857. (This book is still in print today and available in English.) He did not view spiritism as a religion but rather as a science. The book was followed by a series of others Kardec wrote and they have come to be known as the Spiritist Codification.
Kardecist Spiritism, as it is often called, became immensely popular in the late 1960s and early 1970s thanks to Chico Xavier's public presentations and live TV appearances with audience members requesting spiritual communication and then positively verifying the details of the communication. Spiritists regard automatic writing as an explainable scientific fact, not a miracle; in the same way that they do not believe Jesus performed miracles.
To this day, what many Westerners would view as a psychic cult, or a silly seduction by a medium of people longing to communicate with departed loved ones, is considered an important religion in Brazil.
In my opinion, if Spiritism can be viewed as a type of spiritualism, the belief in forces of energy in the universe having greater powers than we, than it is not altogether different from the 1970s New Age spiritual movement in the US, which tapped into our most primitive beliefs in the power of the sun and the moon and water, concepts going back to the dawn of civilization.
Spiritists and spiritualists, along with followers of other religions like Buddhism, believe death is merely another dimension, and life may be viewed as providing a body or vehicle for the spirit.
If Spiritism is a type of spiritualism, than it is easy to recognize the way in which Chico Xavier's popularity signals Brazil's unique place in the world. Brazil today stands at the crossroads of the past and the future. The 19th century medium's role of communicating with spirits is one dating back to the shamans of Native Americans and all primitive peoples.
What I find interesting about Chico Xavier is the way in which his life's work bridges the past and the present. Spiritism has come to be accepted in Brazil as a religion. Xavier, like most Brazilians today, was a Roman Catholic, and he made it clear that should anything in his spirit writing contradict the words of Jesus, Xavier's followers were to disregard the writing.
During Xavier's lifetime, Liberation Theology became popular in the Catholic churches of Brazil and throughout Latin America, a religious philosophy that distances itself from many of the Pope's strict dictates, for example, and like Spiritists, views death as simply another dimension. It is common to hear these Catholic priests in Brazil speak about reincarnation to their congregants.
For Brazil's Catholics, finding a place for Spiritism in their Christian belief system was not a leap. Like Kardec, followers of Spiritism see no conflict between ancient beliefs and modern religion.
I believe the continuing popularity of Spiritism and the respect for the memory of Chico Xavier illustrate how our spiritual lives accommodate change and enable us to balance conflicting ideas. It is easier to accept new ideas in our spiritual life than it is in our social life.
Chico Xavier may have been an honest medium in more than the coincidence of his departure on the day of the World Cup finals. He also may have seen what challenges lay ahead for a country that straddles the old and new world. Perhaps he was trying to prepare Brazilians and people everywhere for a time when "foreign" was no longer in the dictionary.
Michael Rubin is an American living in Curitiba, Brazil. He can be contacted at rubin.brazil@gmail.com.
This year on Good Friday, April 2, Brazil is celebrating what would have been the 100th birthday of Chico Xavier. Xavier is revered by millions of Brazilians, particularly the people of Uberaba, where he lived in Minas Gerais. He is widely regarded among Brazilians as the foremost proponent of the Spiritist movement. The anniversary of his birth is also being marked by the release of a film biography.
Chico Xavier is one of the most famous and prolific practitioners of psychography, commonly known as spirit writing or automatic writing. Using this technique of transcribing without awareness or premeditation, Xavier produced over 400 books, some of them in foreign languages in which he was not fluent.
The respect for Xavier in Brazil is akin to the reputation of Mother Teresa in India. He was hailed as a living example of a true Christian, thanks to his dedication to making himself and his talents as a medium available to anyone who requested them. The wealth he accumulated from donations and the success of his writings was immediately distributed among the needy of Uberaba and numerous charities.
It was common for celebrities to visit Xavier's home in Uberaba for advice. For more than 30 years he was seen as a kind of Christian guru. In his teachings, Xavier made it clear that every country had a role in spreading the Gospel. He is known for famously declaring that the term "foreign" or foreigner should be stricken from the dictionary.
Despite the power and appeal of his message, Xavier eagerly professed that none of the abilities attributed to him were really his, but that he was only a channel for the work of the spirits. He never professed to perform miracles such as healing people.
The phenomenon of psychography, or spirit writing, is an age-old mystery and decried by skeptics, who point out there's no way to prove the author of the writings is anyone other than the writer. Proponents of automatic writing, however, insist that although deception is not unheard of, there are genuine practitioners of spirit writing, like Xavier. The most famous proponents of automatic writing were the Surrealists of early 20th century France.
Xavier's authenticity was verified in at least one regard - his own demise. In a TV interview years before his death, he remarked he would like to die on a day where there was a national celebration occurring, so that his passing would not bring sorrow. In fact, he died on the same day the Brazilian soccer team won the World Cup in 2002.
He "wrote" one of his many books in English, entitled Between Brothers of Other Lands, while visiting the US in 1965. There he introduced Spiritism to meetings of like-minded individuals, often referred to as spiritualists. His presence helped inspire the creation of a Spiritist center in Washington, D.C. in the 1960s, which was called the Christian Spiritist Center.
They were a loose organization of seekers, bound by their common belief in spiritual evolution and reincarnation. Xavier introduced Americans to the Christian aspects of the Spiritist movement, which had been formalized in the work of the 19th century French educator, Allan Kardec.
Certainly the willingness of Xavier to dispense with his book royalties and his kindness and patience with all those, rich and poor, who wished an audience with him, lend certain credence to his life's work. Additionally, there are thousands of Brazilians who personally witnessed his medium powers and insist they were authentic.
I have a friend in Curitiba who visited Chico Xavier to seek his deceased mother. Xavier was able to "write" a letter from the mother to my friend, in which she mentioned details that Xavier could not have known.
Curitiba has several Spiritist centers, where followers practice what they consider to be a religion, a philosophy, and a science. One center, the Brazilian Society for Spiritual Studies, offers courses and spiritual guidance, as well as operating a charity. Followers are encouraged to seek help from the center's mediums as well as instructed in the principles of Spiritism: spiritual evolution, charitable work, and lifelong study.
At the center, members absorb the works of Kardec or traditional subjects such as physics and journalism. The relentless pursuit of knowledge is one of the foundations of Spiritism and was diligently practiced by Chico Xavier.
For Spiritists, the purpose of life is to learn, grow, and evolve. This explains their great emphasis on education. Like many followers of Eastern religions, Spiritists recognize the role of learning as the pathway to a better understanding of God and as a way of coming closer to God, without necessarily having a clear definition or concept of God.
Members of Spiritist churches, designated during meetings by their white aprons, also practice "passe," the holding up of hands for the passing of positive energy. "Passe" can be practiced individually or in groups, with no regard to whether the recipients are healthy or ill.
There are numerous denominations of Christian Messianic churches in Brazil that also practice variations of "passe" under different names or with one hand instead of two. It is common for Roman Catholic families to invite followers of such churches into their homes when a family member is sick to have them hold their hands close to the ailing body for positive energy and relief from suffering.
Brazil's Catholics, by the way, differentiate this from the evangelical practice of "laying of hands" to cure diseases, the primary difference being evangelicals touch their subjects in order to cure them, and in "passe" there is no touching involved, and it can be applied to healthy individuals as well.
I know very little about the life of Chico Xavier, and I have never read his books or the books of Allan Kardec, which provide the mandates of Christian Spiritism. I do know that Spiritism has millions of followers today, people who never personally witnessed Xavier's ability to communicate with the spirits, yet are convinced of the remarkable abilities of this gentle man, who produced about 100,000 pages of spirit writing during his lifetime.
If you ask a Brazilian who Chico Xavier was, you're likely to hear him described as a "sensitivo." Besides the obvious label of sensitive or compassionate, "sensitivo" also may be translated as a person with ESP. However, in Xavier's case, I don't believe it was the type of ESP Americans are familiar with, e.g. telepathy, clairvoyance, or communicating with extra-terrestrials. Instead, Xavier's ESP was extrasensory perception, the ability to perceive more than the rest of us.
Thanks to Xavier and others, the Christian movement known as Spiritism has more followers in Brazil than any other country in the world. Allan Kardec, the Frenchman who essentially defined Spiritism, also did not consider himself a healer, nor did he proclaim his talents as proof of a divine calling to riches and fame. Kardec was a professor of mathematics, physics, and chemistry, among other subjects, and often gave free courses for the poor.
Communicating with spirits was not uncommon among 19th century educated Europeans, and Kardec found the subject so fascinating, that although he himself was not a medium, he assembled all the information he could find by witnessing such events and interviewing mediums.
He coined the term "spiritism" in his first book on the subject, The Spirits' Book, in 1857. (This book is still in print today and available in English.) He did not view spiritism as a religion but rather as a science. The book was followed by a series of others Kardec wrote and they have come to be known as the Spiritist Codification.
Kardecist Spiritism, as it is often called, became immensely popular in the late 1960s and early 1970s thanks to Chico Xavier's public presentations and live TV appearances with audience members requesting spiritual communication and then positively verifying the details of the communication. Spiritists regard automatic writing as an explainable scientific fact, not a miracle; in the same way that they do not believe Jesus performed miracles.
To this day, what many Westerners would view as a psychic cult, or a silly seduction by a medium of people longing to communicate with departed loved ones, is considered an important religion in Brazil.
In my opinion, if Spiritism can be viewed as a type of spiritualism, the belief in forces of energy in the universe having greater powers than we, than it is not altogether different from the 1970s New Age spiritual movement in the US, which tapped into our most primitive beliefs in the power of the sun and the moon and water, concepts going back to the dawn of civilization.
Spiritists and spiritualists, along with followers of other religions like Buddhism, believe death is merely another dimension, and life may be viewed as providing a body or vehicle for the spirit.
If Spiritism is a type of spiritualism, than it is easy to recognize the way in which Chico Xavier's popularity signals Brazil's unique place in the world. Brazil today stands at the crossroads of the past and the future. The 19th century medium's role of communicating with spirits is one dating back to the shamans of Native Americans and all primitive peoples.
What I find interesting about Chico Xavier is the way in which his life's work bridges the past and the present. Spiritism has come to be accepted in Brazil as a religion. Xavier, like most Brazilians today, was a Roman Catholic, and he made it clear that should anything in his spirit writing contradict the words of Jesus, Xavier's followers were to disregard the writing.
During Xavier's lifetime, Liberation Theology became popular in the Catholic churches of Brazil and throughout Latin America, a religious philosophy that distances itself from many of the Pope's strict dictates, for example, and like Spiritists, views death as simply another dimension. It is common to hear these Catholic priests in Brazil speak about reincarnation to their congregants.
For Brazil's Catholics, finding a place for Spiritism in their Christian belief system was not a leap. Like Kardec, followers of Spiritism see no conflict between ancient beliefs and modern religion.
I believe the continuing popularity of Spiritism and the respect for the memory of Chico Xavier illustrate how our spiritual lives accommodate change and enable us to balance conflicting ideas. It is easier to accept new ideas in our spiritual life than it is in our social life.
Chico Xavier may have been an honest medium in more than the coincidence of his departure on the day of the World Cup finals. He also may have seen what challenges lay ahead for a country that straddles the old and new world. Perhaps he was trying to prepare Brazilians and people everywhere for a time when "foreign" was no longer in the dictionary.
Michael Rubin is an American living in Curitiba, Brazil. He can be contacted at rubin.brazil@gmail.com.
Thursday, June 16, 2011
LIVE LONGER AND HEALTHIER BY TAKING THE MOST POTENT ANTIOXIDANT IN NATURE
The Most Important Food for Healthy Eyes...(No, it's Not Carrots)
Do you have any idea what causes wild Pacific salmon to have its color? It is one of the hottest new nutrient discoveries from a marine algae called astaxanthin, which is a far more powerful cousin of beta-carotene.
If farm raised salmon don't eat this or are not given artificial colors, they are a dark grey fish. Also, you might not know that baby flamingos are born white and they don't become pink until they start eating food with astaxanthin in it.
It is clearly one of the most amazing supplements I have ever learned about, the only one that exceeds it, from my perspective, is vitamin D.
Astaxanthin belong to a class of naturally occurring pigments called carotenoids which have powerful antioxidant properties that are crucial for your health. Carotenoids are the compounds in your foods that give them that vibrant cornucopia of color,from green grasses to red beets, to the spectacular yellows and oranges of your bell peppers..
There are more than 700 naturally occurring carotenoids, but most people are familiar with only a few. Right now, you probably have about 10 different carotenoids circulating through your bloodstream. Other carotenoids are easily obtainable through a good diet rich in fresh organic produce. However, astaxanthin is harder to come by.
Astaxanthin is in a League of Its Own
Astaxanthin is produced only by the microalgae Haematoccous pluvialis when its water supply dries up, forcing it to protect itself from ultraviolet radiation. It's the algae's survival mechanism—Astaxanthin serves as a "force field" to protect the algae from lack of nutrition and/or intense sunlight.
There are only two main sources of astaxanthin: the microalgae that produce it, and the sea creatures that consume the algae (such as salmon, shellfish, and krill).
Astaxanthin is now thought to be the most powerful antioxidant found in nature.
Astaxanthin not only provides the color to salmon but is also the reason salmon have the strength and endurance to swim up rivers and waterfalls for days on end.Their diets are high in this pigment, which concentrates in their muscles and makes them one of the "kings of endurance" of the animal kingdom.
Astaxanthin is leaps and bounds more powerful than beta-carotene, lycopene and lutein, other members of its chemical family. It exhibits VERY STRONG free radical scavenging activity and protects your cells, organs and body tissues from oxidative damage.
Astaxanthin's unique "antioxidative artillery" provides for an impressive array of health benefits, including improving cardiovascular health, stabilizing blood sugar, boosting your immune system, fighting cancer, improving endurance and athletic performance, improving fertility—and even protecting you from sunburn.
But for the purpose of this article, I will focus on the benefits specifically related to your eyes, brain and central nervous system.
What Makes Astaxanthin Special?
There are many properties that make this carotenoid unique. Here are the main differences:
• Astaxanthin is by far the most powerful carotenoid antioxidant when it comes to free radical scavenging: astaxanthin is 65 times more powerful than vitamin C, 54 times more powerful than beta-carotene, and 14 times more powerful than vitamin E.
• Astaxanthin is far more effective than other carotenoids at "singlet oxygen quenching," which is a particular type of oxidation. The damaging effects of sunlight and various organic materials are caused by this less-stable form of oxygen. Astaxanthin is 550 times more powerful than vitamin E and 11 times more powerful than beta-carotene at neutralizing singlet oxygen.
• Astaxanthin crosses the blood-brain barrier AND the blood-retinal barrier (beta carotene and lycopene do not), which brings antioxidant and anti-inflammatory protection to your eyes, brain and central nervous system and reducing your risk for cataracts, macular degeneration, blindness, dementia and Alzheimer's disease.
• Astaxanthin is soluble in lipids, so it easily incorporates into cell membranes and protects them from oxidative damage.
• It's a potent UVB absorber and reduces DNA damage.
• It's a very potent natural anti-inflammatory.
In terms of how this powerful nutrient can benefit your eyes, brain and central nervous system, astaxanthin has been shown to be protective against:
• Glaucoma
• Cataracts
• Retinal arterial occlusion
• Venous occlusion
• Diabetic retinopathy
• Age-related macular degeneration (ARMD)
• Cystoid macular edema
• Injuries to the brain and spine
• Inflammatory eye diseases (i.e., retinitis, iritis, keratitis, and scleritis)
• Parkinson's, Huntington's and Lou Gehrig's (Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis) diseases, Alzheimer's disease, and other types of dementia
And how about some more great news?
There have been no adverse reactions found for people taking astaxanthin, that is right, there is no toxicity. The only known side effect if you consumed too much is that you would turn pink for awhile...
Why "Eat Your Carrots" Was Good Advice!
When you were a child, odds are you were told, "Eat your carrots—they're good for your eyes." There is some truth to that old adage, as carrots contain carotenoids—many of which are important for your eyes. Vitamin A, or retinal, is vital to your retina—without it, you would simply go blind.
But vitamin A is another nutrient that is readily available from your diet.
Your retina is a highly light and oxygen rich environment, needing a large force of free radical scavengers to prevent oxidative damage there.
Two carotenoids, zeaxanthin and lutein, are actually concentrated in the macula of your retina to help combat these free radicals. The concentration of these two pigments in your retina is what gives it its characteristic yellow color. (The macula is actually called the "macula lutea" which literally means "yellow spot.")
It is interesting that your eye preferentially concentrates zeaxanthin over lutein in the central macular retinal area (called the fovea), where the greatest amount of light impinges—and zeaxanthin is a more effective singlet oxygen scavenger than lutein. Your body seems to naturally "know" this and accumulates it where it's most needed!
Leading Causes of Blindness: Macular Degeneration and Cataracts
Although zeaxanthin and lutein do provide benefits to your eyes, science is now revealing that astaxanthin is the ULTIMATE carotenoid for eye health and prevention of blindness. Blindness is an enormous problem worldwide.
These statistics might disturb you:
• Age related macular degeneration (ARMD) is the leading cause of blindness for people over the age of 50.
• Sixty million people suffer from ARMD worldwide, and 10 million are blind.
• Severe, irreversible vision loss affects 30 percent of people over the age of 55.
• Cataracts are another major cause of blindness, affecting more than 20 million people in the US alone. Cataracts are caused by lipid peroxidation of the epithelial layer of the lens. Although they can have other causes, most are related to aging.
• Cataracts result in 3 million cataract surgeries every year.
Substantial evidence exists that most eye and brain diseases result from oxidation and inflammation in those vital organs. Free radicals and singlet oxygen wreak havoc over time, eventually leading to problems such as macular degeneration, blindness, and Alzheimer's disease.
As you age, your body loses some of its ability to produce the high levels of antioxidants it needs to counter the everyday assault on your tissues and organs by pollution, contaminants in food and water, household chemicals, pharmaceutical drugs, and the high levels of stress in modern life.
Your eyes are now subjected to much higher levels of oxidation than our ancestors experienced. Not only are there more contaminants in today's environment, but the depletion of our ozone layer is causing more intense sunlight than ever before, which directly exposes your eyes and skin to more free radicals.
Clinical studies tell us that photic injury from the cumulative effect of repeated "photic insults" and the resulting gradual loss of photoreceptor cells is a major cause of ARMD. Free radicals and singlet oxygen oxidize fatty acids in your retina, compromising your retinal cell membranes and causing damage to your retinal cells.
Once your retina is damaged, it cannot be replaced.
Therefore, anything you can do to cut your losses from these photic insults will reduce your risk for developing macular degeneration and other diseases. Antioxidants that cross the blood-brain-retinal barrier to reach the inner eye are crucial to protect you from increasing numbers of free radicals as you age.
How Astaxanthin Protects Your Retina—Research is Pouring in!
Scientists have studied the most common carotenoids (lutein, zeaxanthin, canthaxanthin, and astaxanthin) and compared their respective abilities to protect the retina. But none perform to the degree that astaxanthin does, in terms of potency as a free radical scavenger and permeability across the blood-brain-retina barrier.
In studies, canthaxanthin was actually found to be potentially damaging to the eye as it caused eye inclusions, which can lead to retinopathy, so this carotenoid was ruled out as a supplement.
Dr. Mark Tso of the Wilmer Eye Institute at Johns Hopkins University has aptly demonstrated that astaxanthin is the clear winner when it comes to protecting your eyes.
He discovered that astaxanthin easily crosses into the tissues of the eye and exerts its effects safely and with more potency than any of the other carotenoids, without adverse reactions.
Specifically, Tso determined astaxanthin could ameliorate or prevent light induced damage, photoreceptor cell damage, ganglion cell damage, and damage to the neurons of the inner retinal layers. Other researchers (Shimidzu et al, Bagchi, Martin et al, and Beutner) have since confirmed Dr. Tso's finding that astaxanthin is the most powerful antioxidant ever discovered for eye health, giving your eyes an additional layer of long-term protection.
For example, eye fatigue, eyestrain, blurring and diplopia (aka "double vision," caused by unequal action of your eye muscles) are problems for many people today who work in front of computer displays for long periods of time.
A 2002 Japanese study by Nagaki set out to examine the effects, if any, of astaxanthin on these types of visual problems among computer workers.
They found that giving these workers just 5 mg of astaxanthin daily for four weeks resulted in a 46 percent reduction in eyestrain and improved eye focusing. Another Japanese study by Nakamura in 2004 found similarly positive effects on eyestrain at doses of 4mg, and even better effects at 12mg. In fact, there are now NINE different human clinical astaxanthin studies published in the area of eye fatigue, all showing positive results.
Additional studies have demonstrated that natural astaxanthin supplementation can also help with a wide range of other common eye issues, including the following:
• Reducing eye soreness, dryness, tiredness and blurred vision (Shiratori 2005 and Nagaki 2006)
• Preventing eye fatigue from occurring in healthy people (Takahashi and Kajita 2005)
• Improving retinal capillary blood flow (Yasunori 2005)
• Improving your eye's ability to focus by enabling the lens to more easily adjust
• Improving depth perception by 46 percent (Sawaki 2002)
• Reducing ocular inflammation (Suzuki 2006)
But astaxanthin's performance doesn't end with your eyes—studies are suggesting it may have equally astounding benefits for your brain!
Your Brain on Astaxanthin
Less research has been done about the effects of astaxanthin on your brain than the extensive work related to your eyes. However, what has been done shows great promise. Most of the research to date has been performed on rats.
Blood pressure is a causative factor for many brain and eye diseases.
A study at the International Research Center for Traditional Medicine in Japan found astaxanthin reduced blood pressure in hypertensive rats after only five weeks of supplementation. Researchers discovered the nutrient appears to have a neuroprotective effect in ischemic mice—mice whose blood flow to the brain was obstructed.
This finding offers hope that astaxanthin may be protective against stroke.
If plaque builds up in your carotid arteries, the blood flow to your brain can be compromised, since your carotids are the primary arteries serving your brain. This arterial obstruction can lead to many different serious conditions, including stroke and dementia.
Other studies showed the following:
• Astaxanthin may improve memory in vascular dementia (Hussein 2005)
• Astaxanthin may boost intelligence
• Astaxanthin may prevent brain damage due to ischemia (Kudo et al 2002 and Oryza Company 2006)
There are also indications that astaxanthin can potentially improve recovery from spinal cord and other central nervous system injuries. Although scientific studies to date have been restricted to animal models, the results are nevertheless exciting and demonstrate great promise for humans.
Make Sure Your Astaxanthin is the Natural Variety from Marine Algae—NOT Synthetic
Synthetic (laboratory-made) astaxanthin is now commonly used worldwide to supplement fish feeds in order to obtain the desired pinkish to orange-red color.
Please avoid synthetic astaxanthin because it's made from petrochemicals.
Some aquaculture companies are beginning to use natural astaxanthin instead of synthetic, even though it costs more, because it's better for the health of the animals, and it's far superior for pigmentation. Animals fed fish food with natural astaxanthin have higher survival rates, better growth rates, better immunity, fertility and reproduction.
Unfortunately, synthetic astaxanthin still dominates the farmed salmon industry worldwide.
If your salmon label does not read "wild" or "naturally colored," you're probably going to be eating a coloring agent somewhat closer to motor oil than antioxidant. Natural astaxanthin is more than 20 times stronger as an antioxidant than synthetic astaxanthin.
Wild salmon are 400 percent higher in astaxanthin than farmed salmon, and 100 percent of their pigment is natural astaxanthin, rather than synthetic. Plus, wild salmon have much higher levels of omega-3 fatty acids than the farmed version. Just make sure to get wild Pacific salmon.
But even if you are successful in purchasing genuine wild salmon, there is the problem with high levels of mercury and other unwanted toxins, not to mention the skyrocketing prices.
Final Recommendations
You may recognize the name astaxanthin because I have mentioned it in reference to krill oil, my favorite source of animal based omega-3 fatty acids. One of the reasons I am such a fan of krill is that it naturally contains astaxanthin..
But, as high as it is, new research suggests you could enjoy even MORE benefits by further increasing your astaxanthin, even if you are already taking a krill oil supplement. If you decide to give astaxanthin a try, I recommend starting with 2 mg per day. If you are on a krill oil supplement, take that into consideration; different krill products have different concentrations of astaxanthin, so check your label.
Do you have any idea what causes wild Pacific salmon to have its color? It is one of the hottest new nutrient discoveries from a marine algae called astaxanthin, which is a far more powerful cousin of beta-carotene.
If farm raised salmon don't eat this or are not given artificial colors, they are a dark grey fish. Also, you might not know that baby flamingos are born white and they don't become pink until they start eating food with astaxanthin in it.
It is clearly one of the most amazing supplements I have ever learned about, the only one that exceeds it, from my perspective, is vitamin D.
Astaxanthin belong to a class of naturally occurring pigments called carotenoids which have powerful antioxidant properties that are crucial for your health. Carotenoids are the compounds in your foods that give them that vibrant cornucopia of color,from green grasses to red beets, to the spectacular yellows and oranges of your bell peppers..
There are more than 700 naturally occurring carotenoids, but most people are familiar with only a few. Right now, you probably have about 10 different carotenoids circulating through your bloodstream. Other carotenoids are easily obtainable through a good diet rich in fresh organic produce. However, astaxanthin is harder to come by.
Astaxanthin is in a League of Its Own
Astaxanthin is produced only by the microalgae Haematoccous pluvialis when its water supply dries up, forcing it to protect itself from ultraviolet radiation. It's the algae's survival mechanism—Astaxanthin serves as a "force field" to protect the algae from lack of nutrition and/or intense sunlight.
There are only two main sources of astaxanthin: the microalgae that produce it, and the sea creatures that consume the algae (such as salmon, shellfish, and krill).
Astaxanthin is now thought to be the most powerful antioxidant found in nature.
Astaxanthin not only provides the color to salmon but is also the reason salmon have the strength and endurance to swim up rivers and waterfalls for days on end.Their diets are high in this pigment, which concentrates in their muscles and makes them one of the "kings of endurance" of the animal kingdom.
Astaxanthin is leaps and bounds more powerful than beta-carotene, lycopene and lutein, other members of its chemical family. It exhibits VERY STRONG free radical scavenging activity and protects your cells, organs and body tissues from oxidative damage.
Astaxanthin's unique "antioxidative artillery" provides for an impressive array of health benefits, including improving cardiovascular health, stabilizing blood sugar, boosting your immune system, fighting cancer, improving endurance and athletic performance, improving fertility—and even protecting you from sunburn.
But for the purpose of this article, I will focus on the benefits specifically related to your eyes, brain and central nervous system.
What Makes Astaxanthin Special?
There are many properties that make this carotenoid unique. Here are the main differences:
• Astaxanthin is by far the most powerful carotenoid antioxidant when it comes to free radical scavenging: astaxanthin is 65 times more powerful than vitamin C, 54 times more powerful than beta-carotene, and 14 times more powerful than vitamin E.
• Astaxanthin is far more effective than other carotenoids at "singlet oxygen quenching," which is a particular type of oxidation. The damaging effects of sunlight and various organic materials are caused by this less-stable form of oxygen. Astaxanthin is 550 times more powerful than vitamin E and 11 times more powerful than beta-carotene at neutralizing singlet oxygen.
• Astaxanthin crosses the blood-brain barrier AND the blood-retinal barrier (beta carotene and lycopene do not), which brings antioxidant and anti-inflammatory protection to your eyes, brain and central nervous system and reducing your risk for cataracts, macular degeneration, blindness, dementia and Alzheimer's disease.
• Astaxanthin is soluble in lipids, so it easily incorporates into cell membranes and protects them from oxidative damage.
• It's a potent UVB absorber and reduces DNA damage.
• It's a very potent natural anti-inflammatory.
In terms of how this powerful nutrient can benefit your eyes, brain and central nervous system, astaxanthin has been shown to be protective against:
• Glaucoma
• Cataracts
• Retinal arterial occlusion
• Venous occlusion
• Diabetic retinopathy
• Age-related macular degeneration (ARMD)
• Cystoid macular edema
• Injuries to the brain and spine
• Inflammatory eye diseases (i.e., retinitis, iritis, keratitis, and scleritis)
• Parkinson's, Huntington's and Lou Gehrig's (Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis) diseases, Alzheimer's disease, and other types of dementia
And how about some more great news?
There have been no adverse reactions found for people taking astaxanthin, that is right, there is no toxicity. The only known side effect if you consumed too much is that you would turn pink for awhile...
Why "Eat Your Carrots" Was Good Advice!
When you were a child, odds are you were told, "Eat your carrots—they're good for your eyes." There is some truth to that old adage, as carrots contain carotenoids—many of which are important for your eyes. Vitamin A, or retinal, is vital to your retina—without it, you would simply go blind.
But vitamin A is another nutrient that is readily available from your diet.
Your retina is a highly light and oxygen rich environment, needing a large force of free radical scavengers to prevent oxidative damage there.
Two carotenoids, zeaxanthin and lutein, are actually concentrated in the macula of your retina to help combat these free radicals. The concentration of these two pigments in your retina is what gives it its characteristic yellow color. (The macula is actually called the "macula lutea" which literally means "yellow spot.")
It is interesting that your eye preferentially concentrates zeaxanthin over lutein in the central macular retinal area (called the fovea), where the greatest amount of light impinges—and zeaxanthin is a more effective singlet oxygen scavenger than lutein. Your body seems to naturally "know" this and accumulates it where it's most needed!
Leading Causes of Blindness: Macular Degeneration and Cataracts
Although zeaxanthin and lutein do provide benefits to your eyes, science is now revealing that astaxanthin is the ULTIMATE carotenoid for eye health and prevention of blindness. Blindness is an enormous problem worldwide.
These statistics might disturb you:
• Age related macular degeneration (ARMD) is the leading cause of blindness for people over the age of 50.
• Sixty million people suffer from ARMD worldwide, and 10 million are blind.
• Severe, irreversible vision loss affects 30 percent of people over the age of 55.
• Cataracts are another major cause of blindness, affecting more than 20 million people in the US alone. Cataracts are caused by lipid peroxidation of the epithelial layer of the lens. Although they can have other causes, most are related to aging.
• Cataracts result in 3 million cataract surgeries every year.
Substantial evidence exists that most eye and brain diseases result from oxidation and inflammation in those vital organs. Free radicals and singlet oxygen wreak havoc over time, eventually leading to problems such as macular degeneration, blindness, and Alzheimer's disease.
As you age, your body loses some of its ability to produce the high levels of antioxidants it needs to counter the everyday assault on your tissues and organs by pollution, contaminants in food and water, household chemicals, pharmaceutical drugs, and the high levels of stress in modern life.
Your eyes are now subjected to much higher levels of oxidation than our ancestors experienced. Not only are there more contaminants in today's environment, but the depletion of our ozone layer is causing more intense sunlight than ever before, which directly exposes your eyes and skin to more free radicals.
Clinical studies tell us that photic injury from the cumulative effect of repeated "photic insults" and the resulting gradual loss of photoreceptor cells is a major cause of ARMD. Free radicals and singlet oxygen oxidize fatty acids in your retina, compromising your retinal cell membranes and causing damage to your retinal cells.
Once your retina is damaged, it cannot be replaced.
Therefore, anything you can do to cut your losses from these photic insults will reduce your risk for developing macular degeneration and other diseases. Antioxidants that cross the blood-brain-retinal barrier to reach the inner eye are crucial to protect you from increasing numbers of free radicals as you age.
How Astaxanthin Protects Your Retina—Research is Pouring in!
Scientists have studied the most common carotenoids (lutein, zeaxanthin, canthaxanthin, and astaxanthin) and compared their respective abilities to protect the retina. But none perform to the degree that astaxanthin does, in terms of potency as a free radical scavenger and permeability across the blood-brain-retina barrier.
In studies, canthaxanthin was actually found to be potentially damaging to the eye as it caused eye inclusions, which can lead to retinopathy, so this carotenoid was ruled out as a supplement.
Dr. Mark Tso of the Wilmer Eye Institute at Johns Hopkins University has aptly demonstrated that astaxanthin is the clear winner when it comes to protecting your eyes.
He discovered that astaxanthin easily crosses into the tissues of the eye and exerts its effects safely and with more potency than any of the other carotenoids, without adverse reactions.
Specifically, Tso determined astaxanthin could ameliorate or prevent light induced damage, photoreceptor cell damage, ganglion cell damage, and damage to the neurons of the inner retinal layers. Other researchers (Shimidzu et al, Bagchi, Martin et al, and Beutner) have since confirmed Dr. Tso's finding that astaxanthin is the most powerful antioxidant ever discovered for eye health, giving your eyes an additional layer of long-term protection.
For example, eye fatigue, eyestrain, blurring and diplopia (aka "double vision," caused by unequal action of your eye muscles) are problems for many people today who work in front of computer displays for long periods of time.
A 2002 Japanese study by Nagaki set out to examine the effects, if any, of astaxanthin on these types of visual problems among computer workers.
They found that giving these workers just 5 mg of astaxanthin daily for four weeks resulted in a 46 percent reduction in eyestrain and improved eye focusing. Another Japanese study by Nakamura in 2004 found similarly positive effects on eyestrain at doses of 4mg, and even better effects at 12mg. In fact, there are now NINE different human clinical astaxanthin studies published in the area of eye fatigue, all showing positive results.
Additional studies have demonstrated that natural astaxanthin supplementation can also help with a wide range of other common eye issues, including the following:
• Reducing eye soreness, dryness, tiredness and blurred vision (Shiratori 2005 and Nagaki 2006)
• Preventing eye fatigue from occurring in healthy people (Takahashi and Kajita 2005)
• Improving retinal capillary blood flow (Yasunori 2005)
• Improving your eye's ability to focus by enabling the lens to more easily adjust
• Improving depth perception by 46 percent (Sawaki 2002)
• Reducing ocular inflammation (Suzuki 2006)
But astaxanthin's performance doesn't end with your eyes—studies are suggesting it may have equally astounding benefits for your brain!
Your Brain on Astaxanthin
Less research has been done about the effects of astaxanthin on your brain than the extensive work related to your eyes. However, what has been done shows great promise. Most of the research to date has been performed on rats.
Blood pressure is a causative factor for many brain and eye diseases.
A study at the International Research Center for Traditional Medicine in Japan found astaxanthin reduced blood pressure in hypertensive rats after only five weeks of supplementation. Researchers discovered the nutrient appears to have a neuroprotective effect in ischemic mice—mice whose blood flow to the brain was obstructed.
This finding offers hope that astaxanthin may be protective against stroke.
If plaque builds up in your carotid arteries, the blood flow to your brain can be compromised, since your carotids are the primary arteries serving your brain. This arterial obstruction can lead to many different serious conditions, including stroke and dementia.
Other studies showed the following:
• Astaxanthin may improve memory in vascular dementia (Hussein 2005)
• Astaxanthin may boost intelligence
• Astaxanthin may prevent brain damage due to ischemia (Kudo et al 2002 and Oryza Company 2006)
There are also indications that astaxanthin can potentially improve recovery from spinal cord and other central nervous system injuries. Although scientific studies to date have been restricted to animal models, the results are nevertheless exciting and demonstrate great promise for humans.
Make Sure Your Astaxanthin is the Natural Variety from Marine Algae—NOT Synthetic
Synthetic (laboratory-made) astaxanthin is now commonly used worldwide to supplement fish feeds in order to obtain the desired pinkish to orange-red color.
Please avoid synthetic astaxanthin because it's made from petrochemicals.
Some aquaculture companies are beginning to use natural astaxanthin instead of synthetic, even though it costs more, because it's better for the health of the animals, and it's far superior for pigmentation. Animals fed fish food with natural astaxanthin have higher survival rates, better growth rates, better immunity, fertility and reproduction.
Unfortunately, synthetic astaxanthin still dominates the farmed salmon industry worldwide.
If your salmon label does not read "wild" or "naturally colored," you're probably going to be eating a coloring agent somewhat closer to motor oil than antioxidant. Natural astaxanthin is more than 20 times stronger as an antioxidant than synthetic astaxanthin.
Wild salmon are 400 percent higher in astaxanthin than farmed salmon, and 100 percent of their pigment is natural astaxanthin, rather than synthetic. Plus, wild salmon have much higher levels of omega-3 fatty acids than the farmed version. Just make sure to get wild Pacific salmon.
But even if you are successful in purchasing genuine wild salmon, there is the problem with high levels of mercury and other unwanted toxins, not to mention the skyrocketing prices.
Final Recommendations
You may recognize the name astaxanthin because I have mentioned it in reference to krill oil, my favorite source of animal based omega-3 fatty acids. One of the reasons I am such a fan of krill is that it naturally contains astaxanthin..
But, as high as it is, new research suggests you could enjoy even MORE benefits by further increasing your astaxanthin, even if you are already taking a krill oil supplement. If you decide to give astaxanthin a try, I recommend starting with 2 mg per day. If you are on a krill oil supplement, take that into consideration; different krill products have different concentrations of astaxanthin, so check your label.
BITDEFENDER SAFEGO
BitDefender safego
PROTECT YOUR FACEBOOK ACCOUNT AND PC FROM HACKERS TRYING TO STEAL YOUR INFORMATION
BITDEFENDER SAFEGO will help you avoid that. This software is integrated with Facebook and will constantly scan your profile to detect any ficticious links and malware
PROTECT YOUR FACEBOOK ACCOUNT AND PC FROM HACKERS TRYING TO STEAL YOUR INFORMATION
BITDEFENDER SAFEGO will help you avoid that. This software is integrated with Facebook and will constantly scan your profile to detect any ficticious links and malware
PROTECT YOUR FACEBOOK ACCOUNT AND PC FROM MALWARE
Protect Your Facebook Account From Malware Attacks
Phishing is all too easy on Facebook. Someone (you don't really know who) sends a friend request which you, of course, accept. Then he posts a tempting item on your Wall like, "Shocking video of Britney and J-Lo in a hot tub" with a link to the purported video. You click, and a fake YouTube page appears.
"Download the latest Flash player to view this video," a pop-up windows commands. Of course, you do. But what you really download is a malware program that hijacks your Facebook credentials. Then the malware hidden on your system spams all of your Facebook friends with similar bait, using Facebook email, news feeds, and chat. Your friends trust you, so they fall for the phish too. Thousands of Facebook accounts can be "clickjacked" in a very short time by this method.
Meanwhile, the malware is scouring all infected computers for other information it can use: bank account login info, Social Security Numbers, usernames and passwords, etc. All of this digital loot is bundled up and sent to the controlling hackers.
Facebook apps are another vector for malware. In April, 2011, many Facebook members received a message from a "friend" saying, "Hey, I just made a Photoshop of you!" A link in the message takes the user to an application installation window. The app requests access to your Facebook profile (name, gender, photo, lists of friends, user ID, etc.) and access to your Facebook Chat. If you click "Allow," the bogus app takes you to a Web site of weird images while it instantly spams your friends with the same offer.
M86 Security Labs reported that over 88,000 people clicked on that link per hour shortly after the attack was launched. An estimated 600,000 Facebook accounts were compromised.
Steps to Protect Your Account
To protect yourself from Facebook malware, there are several things you should do:
Choose your friends wisely. If you don't know the person who's sending a friend request, don't accept it carelessly.
Be skeptical of atypical messages from your friends. Does the writing style sound like your co-worker? Would Grandma really send you a link to Britney and J-Lo? Think before you click.
Avoid third-party apps that offer features Facebook does not sanction, like the ability to see who has viewed your profile or a completely fictitious "dislike" button.
Minimize the number of apps that have access to your Facebook profile. Before adding an app, do some online research to see if it's legit or a scam.
SafeGo is a legitimate Facebook app that prescreens links in Facebook email, news feeds, and chat. SafeGo was developed by BitDefender, a respected anti-malware developer, and will screen links against a constantly growing list of malicious Web sites and warns you before you click.
A bit of common sense and some helpful software should go a long way to help you avoid Facebook malware and scams.
Have you experienced any of these problems on Facebook? Post your comment or question below...
Phishing is all too easy on Facebook. Someone (you don't really know who) sends a friend request which you, of course, accept. Then he posts a tempting item on your Wall like, "Shocking video of Britney and J-Lo in a hot tub" with a link to the purported video. You click, and a fake YouTube page appears.
"Download the latest Flash player to view this video," a pop-up windows commands. Of course, you do. But what you really download is a malware program that hijacks your Facebook credentials. Then the malware hidden on your system spams all of your Facebook friends with similar bait, using Facebook email, news feeds, and chat. Your friends trust you, so they fall for the phish too. Thousands of Facebook accounts can be "clickjacked" in a very short time by this method.
Meanwhile, the malware is scouring all infected computers for other information it can use: bank account login info, Social Security Numbers, usernames and passwords, etc. All of this digital loot is bundled up and sent to the controlling hackers.
Facebook apps are another vector for malware. In April, 2011, many Facebook members received a message from a "friend" saying, "Hey, I just made a Photoshop of you!" A link in the message takes the user to an application installation window. The app requests access to your Facebook profile (name, gender, photo, lists of friends, user ID, etc.) and access to your Facebook Chat. If you click "Allow," the bogus app takes you to a Web site of weird images while it instantly spams your friends with the same offer.
M86 Security Labs reported that over 88,000 people clicked on that link per hour shortly after the attack was launched. An estimated 600,000 Facebook accounts were compromised.
Steps to Protect Your Account
To protect yourself from Facebook malware, there are several things you should do:
Choose your friends wisely. If you don't know the person who's sending a friend request, don't accept it carelessly.
Be skeptical of atypical messages from your friends. Does the writing style sound like your co-worker? Would Grandma really send you a link to Britney and J-Lo? Think before you click.
Avoid third-party apps that offer features Facebook does not sanction, like the ability to see who has viewed your profile or a completely fictitious "dislike" button.
Minimize the number of apps that have access to your Facebook profile. Before adding an app, do some online research to see if it's legit or a scam.
SafeGo is a legitimate Facebook app that prescreens links in Facebook email, news feeds, and chat. SafeGo was developed by BitDefender, a respected anti-malware developer, and will screen links against a constantly growing list of malicious Web sites and warns you before you click.
A bit of common sense and some helpful software should go a long way to help you avoid Facebook malware and scams.
Have you experienced any of these problems on Facebook? Post your comment or question below...
Wednesday, June 15, 2011
FLIGHT DEALS FROM LAS VEGAS TO MANY CITIES
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Los Angeles, CA (LAX) No min. stay. Nonstop flights. One-way for half the roundtrip fare (Southwest) See all details »
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Los Angeles, CA (LAX) Nonstop flights. No min. stay (Spirit Airlines) See all details »
$98 RT
Los Angeles, CA (LAX) No min. stay. One-way for half the roundtrip fare (Southwest) See all details »
$168 RT
Los Angeles, CA (LAX) Nonstop; Travel this weekend (US Airways) See all details »
Complete Attention to Undersstand
What do we mean by attention? Is there attention when I am forcing my mind to attend? When I say to myself, "I must pay attention, I must control my mind and push aside all other thoughts," would you call that attention? Surely that is not attention. What happens when the mind forces itself to pay attention? It creates a resistance to prevent other thoughts from seeping in; it is concerned with resistance, with pushing away; therefore it is incapable of attention. That is true, is it not?To understand something totally you must give your complete attention to it. But you will soon find out how extraordinarily difficult that is, because your mind is used to being distracted, so you say, "By Jove, it is good to pay attention, but how am I to do it?" That is, you are back again with the desire to get something, so you will never pay complete attention. When you see a tree or a bird, for example, to pay complete attention is not to say, "That is an oak," or, "That is a parrot," and walk by. In giving it a name you have already ceased to pay attention. Whereas, if you are wholly aware, totally attentive when you look at something, then you will find that a complete transformation takes place, and that total attention is the good. There is no other, and you cannot get total attention by practice. With practice you get concentration, that is, you build up walls of resistance, and within those walls of resistance is the concentrator, but that is not attention, it is exclusion. - J. Krishnamurti, The Book of Life
21 CONSEJOS SABIOS
UNO. Dale a la gente más de lo que esperan recibir y hazlo con alegría.
DOS. Cásate con un hombre/mujer con quien te guste platicar. Conforme envejeces tu sentido por conversar se enriquecerá como cualquier otro.
TRES. No creas todo lo que oyes, no te gastes todo lo que tienes y no duermas todo lo que quieres.
CUATRO. Cuando digas 'te amo', dilo con un profundo sentimiento.
CINCO. Cuando digas 'lo siento' mira a la persona a los ojos.
SEIS. Está comprometido por lo menos seis meses antes de casarte.
SIETE. Cree en el amor a primera vista.
OCHO. Nunca te rías de los sueños de los demás. Las personas que no tiene sueños, no tienen mucho.
NUEVE. Ama profunda y apasionadameente. Puedes salir herido, pero es la única manera de vivir la vida plenamente.
DIEZ. En desacuerdos, pelea justamente. No digas nombres.
ONCE. No juzgues a la gente por sus familiares.
DOCE. Habla con calma y piensa rápido.
TRECE. Cuando alguien te hace una pregunta que tu no deseas contestar, sonríe y pregúntale 'porque quiere saber eso'.
CATORCE. Recuerda que un gran amor y grandes retos siempre envuelven un gran riesgo.
QUINCE. Di salud cuando siempre que escuches a alguien estornudar.
DIECISEIS. Cuando pierdas, no pierdas la lección, aprende.
DIECISIETE. Recuerda las tres R´s: Respeto por ti mismo; Respeto por los demás y Responsabilidad por todos tus actos.
DIECIOCHO. No permitas que una pequeña disputa lastime una gran amistad.
DIECINUEVE. Cuando te des cuenta que has cometido un error, toma inmediatamente acciones para corregirlo.
VEINTE. Sonríe cuando tomes el teléfono para contestar una llamada, la persona que llama lo podrá sentir en tu voz.
VEINTIUNO. Pasa algún tiempo solo.
CHISTES
-¡Papá!, ¡Papá!, ¿le robaron la tarjeta a mamá?
-Sí hijo, sí
-¡Papá! ¡Papá!, ¿y lo has denunciado?
-No hijo, no
-¡Papá!, ¡Papá!, ¿y cuando vas a denunciarlo?
-Nunca hijo. El tipo que la robo gasta mucho menos que tu madre.
-Sí hijo, sí
-¡Papá! ¡Papá!, ¿y lo has denunciado?
-No hijo, no
-¡Papá!, ¡Papá!, ¿y cuando vas a denunciarlo?
-Nunca hijo. El tipo que la robo gasta mucho menos que tu madre.
Tuesday, June 14, 2011
VIOLENCIA
Una reflexión abreviada de esta funesta emoción que tanto daño nos hace en la salud y socialmente, y que cada vez se ve más y más frecuentemente
Le aconsejo a un amigo que cuando una persona se enoja con otra por la razón que sea, justificadamente o no, eso no le da motivo para insultarla y herir sus sentimientos a cualquier costa. Hay heridas que no sanan. O no lo hacen a corto plazo. Por lo que es mejor no producirlas y tener que arrepentirse de ello después. Las diferencias entre los seres humanos nunca se resolverán con la violencia. Violencia genera violencia. A toda acción corresponde una reacción directamente proporcional. Si utilizas violencia te van a responder con violencia. Es la ley natural.
La violencia puede ser física, verbal, y yo diría que incluso psicológica. La violencia psicológica es cuando hacemos un comentario o un gesto destinado a intimidar, denigrar o humillar a alguien. Y este último tipo, quizás sea el peor de todos, ya que deja heridas que no sanan fácilmente en el tiempo y que pueden producir daño en la persona o en una relación por toda una vida. De hecho pueden destruir a ese ser humano.
En una relación, sea de amistad o sentimental entre esas dos personas, este es el peor precedente. En realidad, esa relación es imposible. El precepto primario de una relación entre dos seres humanos es el respeto mutuo y la consideración. Esto es una ley moral inmutable y que no cambiara nunca mientras el mundo sea mundo. Las diferencias se resuelven racionalmente. No es lo mismo exponer nuestro punto de vista racionalmente a la otra parte y tratar de convencerla, que ella lo acepte voluntariamente, que ella reciba y asimile un señalamiento, que imponérselo por la fuerza. La otra parte nunca lo aceptara, aunque no lo exprese. Si no de inmediato, lo guardara y en la primera oportunidad se desquitara. Si no aceptan nuestro punto de vista, todo lo que podemos hacer es seguir intentando convencer a la otra parte con mejores argumentos de lo correcto de nuestra opinión, o examinar y ver si no SOMOS nosotros lo que estamos errados.
La única situación que justifica el uso de la violencia, es para salvaguardar nuestra propia vida o la de otra persona. Pero si queremos bajar al nivel de los animales e imitarlos, entonces seamos violentos. Pero si tenemos que tener muy claro como dijo Benito Juárez, que el respeto al derecho ajeno, es la paz del mundo...
Y si Ud. es una persona que por naturaleza es violenta, o tiene problemas personales o emocionales en su vida que lo llevan a eso busque ayuda profesional. La otra cosa que puede hacer, y es lo que recomiendo más para crecer uno mismo, es obsérvese. U observe esa reacción violenta en Ud. Quizás en ese proceso se dé cuenta de lo absurdo de tal conducta y nunca más incurrirá en ella. O por lo menos en ese momento y por ley energética natural la misma se disolverá, ya que al prestar atención a la reacción misma, la causa que la provoca desaparecerá de inmediato. Piensen en ello y no evitaremos muchos problemas y ratos desagradables.
SOCIEDAD
Todos estamos siendo testigos, a menos que Usted viva debajo de una roca, de todos los problemas que están pasando en el mundo contemporáneo, muchos de los cuales empeoran cada vez más: como el hombre se degenera física, mental y moralmente por malos hábitos de alimentación, estilo de vida, ambición personal, persecución del placer a toda costa, etc.; como se destruye el medio ambiente; las incesantes guerras; cómo se van perdiendo todos los valores familiares tradicionales, etc.
En mi opinión, esta civilización va derecho al auto-exterminio, y esto no es la primera vez que sucede. Sucedió en el antiguo Egipto con los faraones, en China con los emperadores, en Grecia, en Roma, etc. La corrupción de todo tipo socavo y pudrió estas sociedades desde dentro. El derrumbe de estas civilizaciones no fue debido a invasiones de tribus bárbaras, ni desastres naturales precisamente, ya que los hombres cuando se organizan como colectivos son capaces de superar todas estas calamidades. Fue la degeneración física y moral de estas sociedades. Y nuestra sociedad actual va por el mismo camino. La unica diferencia es que esta vez el planeta va a quedar inabitable por la destruccion del medio ambiente. O sea, va a desaparecer la especia como tal sin posibilidad de reivindicarse. Todos los adelantos de la ciencia y la técnica no nos van a servir de nada.
Y está comprobado que mientras más rápido una persona se libera de tener que luchar por el sustento diario, mas rápido se degenera física, mentalmente y moralmente. Y esto no quiere decir que el bienestar material necesariamente conlleve a la degeneración. Pero existe esta fuerte tendencia si el hombre se descuida. Son harto conocidos los escándalos de los ricos y personas famosas y en posiciones de poder. Los gobernantes y gobiernos quieren cada vez más poder, y los ricos más dinero. Y es precisamente en las sociedades rurales o países pobres, donde el ser humano tiene que batallar día a día por el sustento, donde encontramos más ayuda mutua, amabilidad y solidaridad humana.
La sociedad es simplemente la suma total de todos los individuos. Cada uno de nosotros es el que la conforma. Si cada uno hacemos lo que sabemos es incorrecto, y cada uno lo sabemos, exceptuando a aquellos que tienen daño cerebral, o somos indiferentes a lo incorrecto que hacen otros, los problemas no solo persistirán, sino que empeoraran, porque somos nosotros mismos con nuestro comportamiento irracional quienes los crean.
Ningún hombre tiene derecho a adueñarse de un país por inteligente que sea o buenas sus intenciones. La sociedad tiene que regirse por una democracia, un sistema en que todos los individuos tomen participación en la misma y los problemas se resuelvan de un modo colectivo. De lo contrario se crean las dictaduras, que a la larga o la corta empeoran las cosas y solo sirven para satisfacer el ego de un hombre. Y aun así, hay gente desalmada que las apoyan o se dejan comprar por los dictadores. Ejemplos hay muchos, pero a manera de ilustración estamos viendo a diario como los pueblos árabes están siendo masacrados por aquellos mismos que se suponen están ahí para protegerlos y garantizar el bien común.
Se están viendo cosas cada vez más y más monstruosas y repugnantes: como una madre mata a su propio hijo (el actual juicio de Casey Anthony), como una persona en nombre de una causa supuestamente justa o porque alguien ofendió su ego, pone fin a la vida de muchos otros inocentes con una bomba o fusil de asalto.
El egoísmo y la indiferencia son la raíz de todos los males que nos aquejan.
Si el hombre, cada uno de nosotros, no tomamos conciencia de sí mismos, de cuál debe ser el rol que juguemos como individuos en una sociedad, no le damos una educación correcta a nuestros hijos, no superamos nuestras desmedidas ambiciones, en suma, no hacemos lo que es correcto en cada situación y momento, estamos condenados a desaparecer como especie. Y no va a ser por desastre natural o designio divino (el famoso Armagedón o fin del mundo), si no como resultado de nuestro propio comportamiento.
Mi modesta opinión.
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