Stray Thoughts

A long beautiful quotation from Anna Karenina has its application to many an unhappy young man out there.

“Then, for the first time, realizing that for every man, and he himself too, there was nothing ahead but suffering, death, eternal oblivion, he had decided that to live under such conditions was impossible — he must either find an explanation to the problem of existence which would make life seem something other than the cruel irony of all malevolent spirit, or he must shoot itself.
“But he had done neither the one nor the other: he had gone on living, thinking and feeling, and even at that very time married, had experienced many joys and been happy whenever he was not pondering on the meaning of his life.
“What did that show? It showed that he had been living rightly, but thinking wrongly.
…

Continue reading Investing his life with meaning

This from Hampton Roads author Paul von Ward:

Dear Friends and Colleagues,

My occasional group emails are limited to original personal articles on my research or my reviews of significant books. However, this time I’d like to mention some of my other activities. They may interest you or be events that you would like others to know about.

1. September 16: Paul is George Noory’s guest on “Coast to Coast AM” (the largest overnight talk radio show in the U.S.) to discuss the Reincarnation Experiment and his book The Soul Genome: Science and Reincarnation. For details see www.coasttocoastam.com and www.reincarnationexperiment.org.

Continue reading Paul von Ward appearances

This site:

http://onlinenursingdegreeguide.org/2008/100-awesome-self-improvement-blogs-improve-your-physical-and-mental-health-achieve-your-goals/

is, as the URL says, a list of 100 blogs aimed at self-improvement. In this case, not self-improvement as in “make more money!” but as in the important things in life, the physical, mental, spiritual warp and weft of daily life.

To my surprise and delight, not one but two of my friends are among those listed!

Continue reading Resources for self-improvement

“The idealization of the primitive and the spontaneous, the natural and the effortless, was in origin a salutary revolt against life-denying systems of order. The adventurous exploration and settlement of the planet provided a counterpoise to the mechanical routine introduced by capitalism. Vitalities too long held in check by archaic institutions had reason to crave a fresh outlet, if only on a desert island with Robinson Crusoe: hence romanticism had, for a time, an activating and regenerative effect. And this was true, above all, in the political community where naturalism and democracy served as correctives to outworn institutions, molded to protect a single class. But in overthrowing the artificial hierarchies of property and privilege, the twin forces Romanticism And Revolution also attended to turn their back on natural hierarchies: including those that give authority to knowledge over ignorance, to goodness over malice and evil, to the rational over the irrational, to the universal and enduring over the time-serving and particular.”
Lewis Mumford, Interpretations and Forecasts, 343

This is from the PEERS http://www.WantToKnow.info/008/080825_greatest_good

The excellent essay below from Greater Good magazine by J.K. Rowling, author of the renowned Harry Potter books, implores us to open our sphere of awareness to all who share our world. The moving description of her younger years working with Amnesty International can inspire all of us to work towards the greatest good, so that we might make this a better world for all. I also recommend subscribing to Greater Good magazine for lots of uplifting and inspiring stories and essays which invite us to join together in working for the greatest good. Thanks for caring and please help to spread the word to all who want to join in making a difference

Magic for Muggles
by J.K. Rowling

One of the greatest formative experiences of my life preceded Harry Potter, though it informed much of what I subsequently wrote in those books.

This revelation came in the form of one of my earliest day jobs. Though I was sloping off to write stories during my lunch hours, I paid the rent in my early 20s by working in the research department at Amnesty International’s headquarters in London.

Continue reading Magic for Muggles

How many angry ideologues still have not learned this simple lesson!

“Historic observation shows that there are many modes of change, other than dialectical opposition: Maturation, mimesis, mutual aid are all as effective as the struggle between opposing classes. In failing to take in the diverse modes of change, Marx compelled himself to overlook a good part of human history.”
Lewis Mumford, Interpretations and Forecasts, 201