Quote of the night

[KnowledgeIsQueen]

7-8-2013


20 Signs A Man Is Insecure

Some of you dudes are raging cases of testosterone overdoses, but that doesn’t mean you’re a real man either. One of the biggest hurdles to true manhood is overcoming your insecurities. And unfortunately, many of our men are far more insecure than our women. Here’s a way to check yourself, or the brothers you know, for defects.

1. Control issues – He seeks to control his woman by making her think, say, and do, what he wants. What he wants is a pet, not a partner. And even a pet won’t do what you tell it most of the time.

2. Overcompensating – He compensates for his shortcomings by dealing with several women at one time, none of whom know about each other. He does a lot of lying to keep himself "looking" sincere.

3. Materialism – He tries to make himself into a more impressive person by surrounding himself with material things that he can show off. Although this dude may not own a house, he WILL need the newest, hottest care to drive.

4. Appearance – He’s worried about appearances more than anything. His woman has to act and look a certain way. He can’t leave the house unless he is looking a certain way. There’s nothing wrong with some pride and hygiene, but dudes like this are missing important things (like a bank account) while trying to show off.

5. Support Group – Not only is he extremely concerned about what other people think of him, he needs to constantly be surrounded by other people who reinforce and supports what he already thinks.

6. Takes It Personal – He thinks someone disagreeing with or criticizing him means that they have a personal problem with him… and he takes it personally.

7. Petty Boy – He gets emotional about the pettiest of things, but argues that he’s right for the way he responds.

8. Baby Boy – He finds a woman who will treat him like she’s his mother.

9. Big Daddy – He treats that same woman like she’s his daughter.

10. Avoidance – He’s actually scared to try new experiences, but lies and says that he’s just not interested in things like that. He avoids any situation where he might not feel comfortable. He also runs from conflicts he can’t control. And he refuses to be open about what’s REALLY going on with him.

11. Contradiction – He uses his words to tell who he is and what he is about, and not his actions. Actually, his actions usually contradict what he believes about himself.

12. Loud – He talks real loud, for no reason, as if he needs attention.

13. Insecure Woman – He finds a woman who is insecure enough for him to control, and the only time they get along is during sex. Sex is the insecure woman’s safety net.

14. Overdoes it – He drives in tiny nails with a sledgehammer. And he usually misses. In other words, he tries to overdo everything to make himself seem more important, more powerful, more whatever than he really is. If he can’t hack it in the white man’s world, he’ll exaggerate his presence in a world of his own.

15. dikk Issues – He’s honestly worried about whose dikk is bigger or smaller than his. But he swears he’s not gay, either.

16. Jealousy – Even if he has a 2008 BMW, he’s still jealous of people driving a 2009 BMW. He tends to “hate” more than motivate.

17. Trendy – He waits until other people think something is hot before he feels the same way.

18. Low Standards – He often goes after unattractive women because he subconsciously believes that they have lower standards and will thus accept him. He avoids women and other situations that require someone to be sure of himself. He acts like its all about sex, but it’s deeper.

19. …..

20. Lies – He lies about things that don’t even matter, just to reinforce the positive (false) image of himself that he’s trying to put out.

Sound familiar? This may describe one of your partners (or many of them) or (if you’re a woman) the man in your life. What can you do? Sadly, not much. You can point it out, and hopefully they’ll change. But most of the time, a man’s insecurity will keep him from even seeing your point. Your best bet is simply to find new company.

Insecurity is a dangerous weakness. Eliminate it or avoid it.


20 Signs She’s Insecure

It’s funny how most insecure women scream "I’m not insecure" the loudest. Here are my observations about insecurity, and if the shoe fits, fix your feet. To be fair, I may not be insecure, but I can be impulsive, insensitive, inappropriate, indecisive, and a ton of other words that stare with "I" (but not impotent). But I’m Me…. So I just can’t be insecure.

1. She says she NOT insecure about ANYTHING, very loudly (reassuring herself she’ll believe it)

2. She attempts to control what you do and where you go (A control mechanism intended so you only answer to her)

3. She attempts to change your friends, or puts them down (another control mechanism)

4. She won’t leave the house without makeup on or a jazzy outfit (not comfortable with herself as she is)

5. She uses makeup to make herself look COMPLETELY different from her natural appearance.

6. She’s attempting to redecorate herself as a white woman (blonde hair, light makeup, blue contacts, self-hating attitude)

7. She’s scared to have feelings for you, or has other walls up.

8. She always putting down other women (being comfortable with yourself allows you to not feel like you’re competing with every other woman)

9. She spends a lot of time drunk or high (staying in a haze to escape her reality)

10. She’s been abused, traumatized, or victimized and NEVER dealt with it (thus never healed)

11. She needs the lights off to have sex (insecure about her body)

12. She’s a germaphobe, hypochondriac… or a paranoid schizophrenic

13. She constantly needs attention of any kind, negative or positive

14. She can’t spend quite time alone enjoying herself

15. She needs to be on her cell phone throughout the day (her way of never being alone)

16. She uses material things (clothes, cars, money, etc) to make her feel valuable and confident

17. She draws attention to what she feels are her BEST features, but they are all physical (but what’s under the surface?)

18. She makes assumptions about who you’ve been with or what you’ve been doing (jealous paranoia is hell!)

19. She argues about everything (another unhealthy way for her to feel some sense of power)

20. She checks your phone, reads your email, attempts to kill your ex, or cuts off your penis

If the shoe fits, it must be legit. But don’t look at this list as a means to condemn women. The truth is that almost all women of color are insecure to some extent. It’s natural. Just as our men are bashed into running from responsible manhood, our women have been scrutinized, dehumanized, objectified and hypersexualized to the point where they worry about the most minute details as if they can determine how much of a woman she is. A woman isn’t a woman because of how skinny she is, how pretty she is, or how much other people love or like her… but our women have been led to believe that. So of course they’re insecure. So work with em. And tell em to work with you. Cause a lot of times the items on this list can apply to men to! We’re all f*cked up. Let’s fix us.

We’ve all got to grow up together.

Rap, Race and Revolution: Solutions for Our Struggle

~*Supreme Understanding

"If men as individuals surrender to the call of their elementary instincts, avoiding pain and seeking satisfaction only for their own selves, the result for them all taken together must be a state of insecurity, of fear, and of promiscuous misery." ~*Albert Einstein

 

[KnowledgeIsQueen]

8-7-2013

"The teachings of the Nation of Gods and Earths have impacted the Hip Hop world from the beginning and to this very day. Artists of the 1980's such as Lakim Shabazz, Rakim Allah (Eric B & Rakim), my favorite group the Poor Righteous Teachers, Supreme Team, Brand Nubian, etc. Going into the 90's to this very day we have members of the Nation of Gods and earths such as the Digable Planets, Wu-Tang Clan (Generals), Frukwuan from Gravediggaz, Busta Rhymes, Gang Starr (Guru), some members of the rap group killarmy and the list goes on.

The 1980's was the conscious music era in Hip Hop. Just about every rapper's message was about upliftment, culture, consciousness and Islam. They would wear things such as leather Afrikan medallions and proud to be black lyrics. In this day and time things have changed in Hip Hop for the worst, which has caused a lyricist, such as Nas to make an album, titled "Hip Hop is Dead." Mindless music rapping about their jewelry, cars, clothes, how many people they murdered, how much cocaine they have sold, how many times they have been in jail, how many times they smoke weed and get drunk and the list goes on. This is the message that we convey to the young, the young wants to do what their favorite rappers talks about. I came from the 80's era and listening to all the X-Clan, Public Enemy type music as a child I wanted to read and learn about our culture because of this influence. I can imagine the type of influence on children now listening to mindless music.

In conclusion, the Nation of Gods and Earths is not a religion although we have Islamic influence in the beginning. There are many who practice the lessons and live it out as a religion and not as their culture. We are not an organization and definitely not a gang! We are a nation of men and woman who have come together for the betterment of the people and the community. For we understand change for righteousness starts with our own individual selves, then comes the family and then comes the community and beyond. We are not anti-white and we do not hate white people. In-fact there is caucasian Five Percent. They cannot be apart of the Nation of Gods and Earths, only Five Percent. Because it is against the laws of Nature for a caucasian man and woman to be God and Earth. For their history speaks for itself, over 2,000 years everywhere they went they brought hell with them. Every land they set sail to they beat, raped, murdered, conquered, and enslaved the people of that land and to this very day the war on Iraq has proven this fact.

There are also those who are not apart of the Nation of Gods and Earths and have been putting out their improper research. #1 We do not appreciate outsiders writing books about us, especially, which has not received permission or approval upon the document being finished. Such people are a brother by the name of Pen Black wrote a book called Gods, Earths and 85ers and he is currently receiving criticism by the entire Nation for such a book. Another book is by a Caucasian Muslim named Michael Muhammad Knight, another one by a so-called five percent named supreme who just put a bunch of lessons in a book (incorrect lessons) and selling around New York. Anyone who is true, living, and apart of our Nation knows that we do not sell lessons. Currently, Allah Team has an incorrect book about our Nation entitled: "In the name of Allah: A history of Clarence 13X and the Five Percenters" by Wakeel Allah. This particular book does not call father by his righteous name but refer to him by "Clarence 13X" which is disrespectful to those of us in the Nation as well as The Father himself. Can you imagine walking up to Muhammad Ali and calling him Cassuis Clay? It also goes on to say that Allah is a righteous Muslim and many more info that The Nation of Gods and Earths does not advocate. The sad thing about all of this is, if anyone comes with a sincere heart and wanting to learn about us and reads one of these books they would be greatly misinformed, miseducated and misdirected. It makes me wonder are these agents purposely putting out incorrect material? These individuals need to cease the sale of these books that are misguiding those who seek to learn from us. Another alternative is to come to Allah School in Mecca and sit with older Gods like Um Allah and straighten out your books and make sure part of the proceeds are giving back to our Nation your making money off of.

I suggest if anyone is studying lessons that they think are the Nation of Gods and Earths and want to know if what they are studying is right & exact and if you are not sure if the person you are learning from are teaching you correctly of this Nation, contact Allah School in Mecca.

NGE Values

L - Look, listen and learn bear leadership and loyalty to The Nation of Gods & Earths
E - Evolve with Education
A - Accelerate with Action
D - Do your duty and fulfill your obligations as a civilized person
E - Everything you do should be done with quality
R - Response with results and respect
S - Set superior standards and provide selfless service
H - Have honest and open communication
I - Input with intelligence and integrity
P - Personal courage and positive attitude

What the NGE Teach

1. That black people are the original people of the planet earth.
2. That black people are the fathers and mothers of civilization.
3. The science of Supreme Mathematics is the key to Understanding man's relationship to the universe.
4. Islam is a natural way of life, not our religion.
5. That education should be fashioned to enable us to be self sufficient as a people.
6. That each one should teach according to their knowledge
7. That the black man is god and his proper name is ALLAH. Arm, Leg, Leg, Arm, Head.
8. That our children are our link to the future and they must be nurtured, respected, loved, protected and educated.
9. That the unified black family is the vital building block of the nation.

What we will achieve

1. National Consciousness: National Consciousness is the consciousness of our origin in this world, which is divine. As a nation of people we are the first in existence and all other peoples derive from us. National Consciousness is the awareness of the unique history and culture of Black people and the unequaled contributions we have made to world civilization, by being the fathers and mothers of civilization. National Consciousness is the awareness that we are all one people regardless of our geographical origins and that we must work and struggle as one if we are to liberate ourselves from the domination of outside forces and bring into existence a Universal Government of Love, Peace and Happiness for all the people of the planet.

2. Community Control: Community Control of the educational, economic, political, media and health institutions in our community. Our demand for Community Control flows naturally out of our science of life, which teaches that we are the Supreme Being in person and the sole controllers of our own destiny; thus we must have the same control on the collective level that we strive to attain on the individual level. It is prerequisite to our survival that we take control of the life sustaining goods and services that every community needs in order to maintain and advance itself and advance civilization. Only when we have achieved complete Community Control will we be able to prove to the world the greatness and majesty of our Divine Culture, which is Freedom.

3. Peace. Peace is the absence of confusion (chaos) and the absence of confusion is Order. Law and Order is the very foundation upon which our Science of Life rest. Supreme Mathematics is the Law and Order of the Universe, this is the Science of Islam, which is Peace. Peace is Supreme Understanding between people for the benefit of the whole. We will achieve Peace, in ourselves, in our communities, in our nation and in the world. This is our ultimate goal."

PEACE

The Immortal Birth

~* Allah Jihad

"Education is a key factor in building any nation; I will utilize this factor when adding on to the cipher of growth and development. I will be dedicated to those in this nation that are true and living. I will exercise initiative by not waiting on any mystery Gods or Earths. I will not compromise the truth or my integrity regardless to whom or what. I will not forget, nor will I allow this family to forget that word is bond and that we are civilized, GODS AND EARTHS!" ~* P.ositive E.nergy A.ctivates C.onstant E.levation

 

[IronFist]

peace my love, are you familar with Dr Naim Akbar work

 

[KnowledgeIsQueen]

8-20-2013

"Power is the ability to influence the environment consistent with one's self-interests. It is true that power in this respect carries the implication of domination, but definitely not the domination of other people. This definition of power has implications for the domination or mastery of our needs. Power is intended to put people into the unique position that they can obtain and achieve within the context of their environment those things that maximize their survival and the continuation of themselves to the best of their ability. In a world of plentiful resources as this one is, such power does not require arming oneself as a predator of other human beings. In a world of predators, though, such power would perhaps equip people to adequately defend themselves from becoming prey from the greed of others or to at least seek a safe asylum from the predator's oppression. Power in this sense does not require the conquest of other people but only the acquisition of those things which have been realistically assigned for the advancement of ones own people as participants in the human community.

We assume that the environment of our outer world and our inner resources together have all that is needed to insure the comfortable and effective advances of the human family. We must use our inner resources in order to take from the environment those resources that insure our advancement as human beings. Power then has to do with the relative effectiveness that we have in getting from the environment those things that are in our self-interest. At the simplest level, the environment is the source of food, shelter and clothing that are the fundamental necessities for physical survival. Translated to a broader dimension, all of the resources that are needed for advancement of the physical being are located in the physical environment. The farmer, the scientist, the manufacturer, the banker, the realtor and the stock broker are all engaged in the process of extracting from the physical environment those resources that insure survival and expand a people's control over those resources. Those who have maximum influence over those physical resources are considered to be very powerful. Those who have limited influence are considered weak or certainly, lacking in power. The effect of greed and the drive for domination is that it drives certain people to gain more and more influence so that they can limit the access of other people to these resources in the environment, while maximizing their own access. This is an exploitation of power that is the exaggeration of a natural impulse of self-preservation that becomes the drive for domination rather than participation. What is needed by a people to insure that they are able to eat, are protected against elements and can defend themselves from danger or disease is nothing magical nor does it require anymore than influencing the environment consistent with our own self interest."

Know Thyself

~*Na'im Akbar

"Ideas represent images, concepts, values and all of those things that influence how people think of themselves and the world around them. Those who influence ideas literally control the minds of the people within the environment of those ideas. Our concepts of what's beautiful, what's important, what's news, what's good, what's desirable, etc., are determined by the environment of ideas. Where people put their energy, their resources, literally, what they do with their lives is determined by the ideas that they internalize." ~*Na'im Akbar

 

[IronFist]

there is a statement he makes early on in that book in reference to Dr Carter G Woodson. the notion of the trained dog and the dog that does what is in his nature (believe it like in the preface)

 

[IronFist]

Even Kings die, thrones rust
Skeleton bones turn to dust
Memories are blown in the gust
It's about how you live when you were here
How you celebrated those years
Were you a follower? Did you try elevating your peers?
Were you sincere when you gave the prophets your ears?
But soon as trouble come you disappear
Listen here were you real?
Did you show love that people could feel?
Did you have jealousy but keep it concealed?
Did you smile at your man's face?
But all awhile wanted to take your man's place

-Walter Reed aka Killah Priest

 

[KnowledgeIsQueen]

8-26-2013

It seems that wolves may masquerade as sheep, but sheep just don't masquerade as wolves. We rarely view one good act as proof someone had a good character all along, yet most of us are ready and willing to do the reverse. Those marked as "bad" can do something nice now and again and our opinion of them doesn't change, but all it takes for a person of seeming high virtue is one slip for us to claim that his or her character is inherently flawed.

This double standard may not be fair, but it's also not particularly surprising. As work by the psychologist Paul Rozin has shown, humans possess a fundamental tendency to accentuate the negative. Drop a fly into a delicious soup and the soup suddenly becomes inedible. Yet placing a drop of delicious soup in a bowl of dead flies hardly makes for a tasty treat. This may be an extreme example, but the point is that, rational or not, for the mind any sign of contamination - physical or moral - is hard to ignore.

History has borne this tendency over and over. In one particularly egregious example, during the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries it was accepted in many southern states that a single drop of "black blood" in one's ancestry rendered one legally black, therefore tainting and making one ineligible for all the civil rights that applied at the time, whereas the reverse didn't apply. In short, the things we deem "bad" consistently seem to hold more weight than those we deem "good".


Good vs bad is so passé

Good vs. bad: it seems pretty clear what side you should be on, right? Sure, it might be fun now and again to take a walk on the wild side, but everyone knows that virtue is the way to live the best life. At least that's how the story goes. The only problem is, it's just a story. It might work well for fairy tales and fables, but under the scientific lens it just doesn't hold up. For most people, virtue implies attributes such as honesty, compassion, generosity, and humility, while vice implies the opposite. Just take a look at the seven deadly sins. There's lust, gluttony, greed, sloth, wrath, envy, and pride. The corresponding virtues are chastity, temperance, charity, diligence, patience, kindness, and humility. Always striving for the good seven and avoiding the bad ones surely will make you saintly, no question about it. But as for happy and successful (in the psychological material, and biological senses, we're not so sure.

Take generosity and kindness. Sure, these are great ways to behave - to a point. The overly generous can give too much or to the wrong people; the unflinchingly kind can sacrifice their own well-being (or that of their family) just for the sake of being nice. Likewise, in too large doses, humility can leave you stranded on the low rung of the corporate ladder. Charity can wipe out your savings. Patience can leave you waiting in the wings indefinitely. And as for chastity and temperance... well, those downsides are obvious. The serious point here is that if taken to extremes, these "virtues" can be quite problematic. If giving to others means depriving yourself too much, and if caring about others' needs means always sacrificing your own, nobody wins, because a population of pure altruists simply isn't sustainable. It sounds cynical, but sooner or later the drive for self-interest will kick in one way or another, and the most virtuous will get left behind.

Similarly, the so-called vices aren't always as bad as one might think. For example, pride can motivate us to develop more skills, spur us to make useful contributions in the workplace and in our communities, and mark us as potentially strong leaders. Wrath and anger can sometimes be the fuel we need to ensure fair play and to fight the things we (and others) deserve. After all, few people would blame a man (or woman) for seeking to punish those who hurt him or those he loves. In fact, not doing so would be seen as a character flaw in many cultures. Lust might be what first attracts us to a future spouse - the mother or father of our future children. In short, the feelings and behaviors that are generally considered to be "vices" don't always lead to ill.

Continued below.....

 

[KnowledgeIsQueen]

A more accurate way to understand the complex battle underlying our social behavior is not to think of the scale of character with an angle on side and a devil on the other, but rather to use a different metaphor - the ant and the grasshopper. If you remember Aesop's fables, you'll recall that the story describes two insects with very different predilections. The ant always looking to the future - it would rather toil to store away food for winter than enjoy the balminess of a midsummer day at leisure. The grasshopper, on the other hand, sees no point in worrying about the future until it gets here, so it spends its time singing, playing, and enjoying itself. Carpe diem is its motto, at least until autumn comes.

Now, picture the scale of character flanked by these two. On one side we have the mental systems that focus on immediate rewards, or pleasure, in the short term: the grasshopper. On the other side, we have the systems that focus on long-term concerns, or what's best for the future: the ant. The important point to realize, though, is that it's not the case that the grasshopper is always a force for vice. Both these systems of the ant and the grasshopper are looking out for our best interests; they just do so in different time frames. Now, that said, in the fable, the moral is clear: it's better to be like the ant and always be prepared for the future. But while this may be true for ants and make for a nice story, for humans in the real world it's not so simple. You see, for ants, life is all about the long-term survival of the colony - individuals don't matter much. That's not how it is for us. Sure, it's important to look out for our long-term survival by working to be valued by our peers and acting in ways that foster social connections, but it's also important to know when great benefits come from acting in ways that give us advantages in the here and now. To thrive, then, we need to consider the implications of our actions not just for our reputations, social standing, and ultimate well-being in the long term but also for what we can gain in the short term. Balancing these two is often tricky business because our short-term interests frequently conflict with our long-term ones, leaving the systems of the ant and grasshopper at odds.


So if we're to use this metaphor, the shortsighted systems of the grasshopper are the ones steering you towards actions and decisions that will bring immediate pleasure and reward. This is the voice telling you to eat the cupcake, buy the new car, screw over a colleague to curry the boss's favor, or play the lottery because you just might win. We know, none of these things sounds particularly virtuous. But hold on a minute. The grasshopper is also the same voice telling you to go demand a promotion from your boss, risk your safety to protect your child, or have spontaneous sex with your spouse - all short-term urges that contribute to physical, financial, and psychological happiness. If this sounds counterintuitive, it really isn't. Evolution has programmed us to want certain things - fatty food, sex, power - in the short term because they have the potential to increase our evolutionary fitness (i.e., the ability to thrive and thereby raise offspring to the age of sexual maturity). That's why all these things feel good to do, to have, or consume.

But that's not the end of the story. As we hinted, humans, after all, are a social species. As a result, our evolutionary fitness also depends on having strong long-term relationships - relationships for sharing resources, for raising offspring, for defending against enemies. In fact, long-term stable relationships - or what is often termed social capital - has been shown by the psychologist John Cacioppo and others to be one of the central factors underlying human well-being. This raises a problem, however. It's hard to have stable, reciprocal relationships when you're focused only on your own short-term goals. Something, then has to counteract those short-term, self-focused impulses.

Here is where the systems of the ant come in. They recognize that reaping rewards in the future often requires making sacrifices in the moment. In other words, this voice is telling you to repay a loan from your friend instead of using that money to buy and iPod, to spend long hours to hone a skill rather than loafing on the couch, to resist the urge to remove your wedding ring and flirt with that hot guy at the bar. Such decisions are surely less rewarding in the short run, but in the long run, they can clearly be beneficial. Your friends will trust you more and continue to share economic resources, you will gain skills that make you an attractive partner or member of society, and your romantic relationship will continue, increasing the chance of raising successful offspring.

As we've said, though, when it comes to character, nothing is black or white. Focusing too much on these long-term rewards can be problematic as well. What if your relationship is already on the rocks and keeping on that ring means you miss meeting the one person who is really meant to be your "soul mate"? Or what if your single-minded focus on honing some skill makes you miss an experience that makes life worth living? Yes, saving money is a good thing, but never spending can make for a pretty mundane life. Likewise, working hard is admirable, but dedicating yourself solely to the office can deprive you of time with family and friends. Being completely ruled by the ant may seem virtuous at first blush, but it may not always lead to the best-lived life. As research by marketing professors Ran Kivetz and Anat Keinan shows, people can come to regret decisions that lead to an overemphasis on long-term outcomes. For example, in one study, Kivetz and Keinan found that immediately after returning from winter break, college students reported regretting that they didn't study enough during the break. However, a year later, their primary regret was that they didn't enjoy themselves more when they had the chance. What's more, when Kivetz surveyed Columbia University alums returning for their fortieth reunion, he found that many, even though they had quite successful careers, wistfully reported missing out on some of the pleasures of life. If you're always saving, working, and putting off pleasure for a rainy day, you might just be old and alone by the time that day comes.

So you can see why the ant and the grasshopper are often locked in an ongoing struggle - one that usually occurs outside your awareness - to tip the scale, and thereby your decisions and actions, to their side. They both think they're right in any given situation. Yet at different times and for different reasons, each can serve you well or lead down the road to ruin.

Out of Character: Surprising Truths About the Liar, Cheat, Sinner (and Saint) Lurking in All of Us

~*David DeSteno & Piercarlo Valdesolo

"Some rise by sin, and some by virtue fall" ~*William Shakespeare

 

[KnowledgeIsQueen]

8-29-2013

False Friendship

"According to Aristotle, "the primary, true friendship is that of good, virtuous men, who love each other for being good and virtuous." According to him, there are three types of friendships. The first one is the only already mentioned, the second is that which is developed for the sake of pleasure, and the third is that which is started for utilitarian aims or vested interests. In regard to this matter, I wish to discuss only those people who, in their friendships with someone, unwittingly damage that person. These are well-intentioned individuals who, in a desire to support their friend in all things, avoid criticizing him in a way that would make him see the errors he commits in his life. This can be done by showing him what he might be doing wrongly, which, as is well known, can be perceived quite clearly from the outside, but very dimly from the inside. While they feel affection for their friend, they try to please him and avoid showing him the realities he is unable to perceive. They succeed in making him feel good, even though he might not be quite so good. He could even bad as seen from the outside, but a friend who loves him despite all this will seldom make him aware of that reality. It seems as though the popular approach to friendship is "to stick up for your friend through thick and thin,' even if this means condemning him to remain enslaved by his vices and defects.

False friendship does not mean having a friend who does not love you, but who by wanting to support you, ends up hurting you....

It is often the case that good friends are really harmful friends, because they do not understand that true friendship does not entail the cover-up of vices, defects, or misdeeds, but rather, consists of desiring good for one's friend and helping him to achieve it, even though that means making him perceive his own defects and irresponsibilities by showing him what he is really like, as seen from the outside. In this way, if he comes to know himself better, he will be able to take advantage of this knowledge for his own self-fulfillment. It means helping him to not take flight on fantastical projects that may be unattainable, to not justify his failures to himself, and to confront his subjective reality as this reality is being perceived from his surroundings.

This is what the so-called "good friend" usually fails to do. Instead, he will devote his efforts to reinforcing his friend's misguided conduct, patting him on the back and emotionally "caressing" him to make him feel what a good friend he is in hope that his friend will do the same for him.

The easiest way to lose your path in life is to be surrounded by friends or colleagues who are incapable of telling you the truth about your own deeds, friends who are not willing to be faithful mirrors that enable one to better know one's own failuresand weaknesses. It seems that the slightest criticism will threaten to damage that friendship, which is what actually occurs on many occasions. It is evident that there are many individuals who are unable to accept criticism because their level of narcissism keeps them detached from objective reality.

Friendships so influence a person's moral life that friends who we might love as brothers can be our virtual executioners when, by trying to please us, they do not give us a true opinion about ourselves, thus leading us to reinforce our defects, vices, or bad habits. For a friendship to be genuine, it ought to wear no mask, for well-meaning hypocrisy ultimately weakens or destroys the person we refuse to criticize. Therefore, we must learn to differentiate between so-called "friendship" and friendship if we wish to yield its most precious fruits and not lead us to frustration and despair. There are people who, because they were let down by a beloved friend, have become disillusioned with the sentiment of friendship. They argue that "loyalty does not exist and all is for the sake of self interest." This, although obvious in certain cases, is not true in the case where one is firmly reproached for one's misdeed by a true friend.

We should differentiate between the three types of friendship as defined by Aristotle:

1. The perfect friendship of virtuous men who, because they are virtuous, resemble one another in their virtue and mutually want the best for each other.

2. The friendship which is based on the self-interest of friends, and for the use they can make of one another. They do not love one another for who they are, but for the profit to be gained from their mutual relationship. At the end they are only looking for their own personal profit.

3. The friendship which is based on pleasure, as is the case with individuals who share pleasurable activities.
Friendship that excludes healthy criticism under the guise of "understanding and supporting one's friend." ultimately becomes harmful and in hence a serious moral fault. It is not ethical to help a person maintain a wrong view of reality, thereby preventing them from properly integrating into society or being able to comply with the pertinent norms of morality. If we reinforce this lack of contact with reality, we ultimately do serious harm, despite our best intention or the affection we may feel for this friend. By doing so we are only acting unethically and will drive them to inappropriate types of behavior.

One has to refine and go deeper into the concept of friendship, in order to make it one of the most important transcendental moral experiences in which a person can enrich others and add value to themselves through an exchange of significant experiences that will lead them to enlarge and ennoble their internal world."

Internal Ecology

~*Dario Salas Sommer



""It doesn't cost me anything to be honest"

 

[KnowledgeIsQueen]

9-12-2013


FAITH IN SELF-BELIEF IN CHANCE

"Faith in self is the - key to success"
"Doubt in self is the - cause of failure.

Belief in chance is something, but faith in self is everything.
Belief in chance is sober, serious, grave, and respectable; belief in self is all that, and more too.
It is not second sight, nor is it the sixth sense, but it is the life of all of these things.

Faith in self gives one the keen eye, the quick ear, and the business spirit; it is the interpreter of all mysteries, the surmounter of all difficulties, the remover of all obstacles.

It is useful in all places, and at all times; it is useful in meditation, for it shows a man his way in the world; it is useful in business, for it shows him his way through the world.

Belief in chance may be power, but faith in self is skill.

Belief in luck, and chance, may have weight, but faith in self is momentum; belief in chance thinks it knows what to do, while faith in self knows how to do it.

Belief in chance makes a man respectable, faith in self makes him respected; belief in chance is wealth, faith in self is ready money.

For all practical purposes of life, faith in self carries it against belief in chance, one hundred to one.

Take them upon the stage of life, an put belief in chance against faith in self, and belief in chance will play a tragedy that will scarcely survive long enough to be hissed, while faith in self keeps the house in a roar, night after night, with its successful acts.

There is no want for dramatic talent which believes in chance; there is demand for dramatic talent which has faith in self. Take belief in chance, and faith in self, before the bar of justice, and let them shake their learned fingers at each other's nose in legal rivalry.

Belief in chance see its way clearly, but faith in self is first at its journey's end.
Belief in chance has many a compliment from the crowd, but faith in self receives the fees from its clients. Belief in chance speaks loud and learnedly, faith in self logically and triumphantly.


And the great secret is that faith in self has no weight to carry; it makes no false steps; it hits the right nail on the head; it loses no time; it takes all hints; and, by keeping its eye on the weathercock, is ready to take advantage of every wind that blows.

Take them on the lecture platform.

Belief in chance has nothing worth hearing, faith in self is sure of an abundance of hearers; belief in chance may obtain a living, faith in self will make one; belief in chance gets a good name, faith in self a great one; belief in chance argues; faith in self converts; belief in chance is an honor to the profession, faith in self gains great honors from it.

Take them in business life.

Belief in chance feels its way, faith in self marches promptly forward; belief in chance is ignored; faith in self is obeyed; belief in chance is sometimes honored with approbation, while faith in self is always blessed by preferment...

Faith in self seems to know everything, without learning anything.

It has served an invisible and extemporary apprenticeship; it wants no drilling, it never ranks in the awkward squad; it has no left hand, no deaf ear, no blind or lame side.

It puts on no looks of wondrous wisdom, it has no air of profundity, but plays with the details of place as dexterously as a well-trained hand flourishes over the ivory keys of the piano-forte.

Faith in self has all the air of commonplace, and all the force and power of genius."

The Master Key

~*L.W. De Laurence

"Self-praise, like a circle, ends where it begins. Many persons revolve around great centres, while others turn only on very small pivots." ~*Lauron W. De Laurence

 

[SemiEnlightenedBum]

"In the stream. - Mighty waters draw much stone and rubble along with them; mighty spirits many stupid and bewildered heads."

-Nietschze

kind of sums up my whole presence here on the Coli&this go round on the dharmacakRA

 

[IronFist]

' Teach him diligence, and his wealth shall increase, Teach him benevolence, and his mind shall be exalted '.. -Circle Seven 23:12

 

[KnowledgeIsQueen]

10-10-2013

"My notion about the rebel and rebellion is very simple: a man who does not live like a robot conditioned by the past.

Religion, society, culture... anything that is of yesterday does not in any way interfere in his way of life, in his style of life.

He lives individually – not as a cog in the wheel, but as an organic unity. His life is not decided by anybody else, but by his own intelligence. The very fragrance of his life is that of freedom – not only that he lives in freedom, he allows everybody else also to live in freedom. He does not allow anybody to interfere in his life; neither does he interfere in anybody else’s life. To him, life is so sacred – and freedom is the ultimate value – that he can sacrifice everything for it: respectability, status, even life itself.

Freedom, to him, is what God used to be to the so-called religious people in the past.

Freedom is his God.

The rebel is one who lives according to his own light, moves according to his own intelligence. He creates his path by walking on it, he does not follow the crowd on the superhighway.

His life is dangerous – but a life that is not dangerous is not life at all. He accepts the challenge of the unknown. He does not meet the unknown that is coming in the future, prepared by the past. That creates the whole anguish of humanity; the past prepares you, and the future is never going to be the past. Your yesterday is never going to be your tomorrow.

But up to now this is how man has lived: your yesterdays prepare you for your tomorrows. The very preparation becomes a hindrance. You cannot breathe freely, you cannot love freely, you cannot dance freely – the past has crippled you in every possible way. The burden of the past is so heavy that everybody is crushed under it.

The rebel simply says goodbye to the past.
It is a constant process; hence, to be a rebel means to be continuously in rebellion – because each moment is going to become past; every day is going to become past. It is not that the past is already in the graveyard – you are moving through it every moment. Hence, the rebel has to learn a new art: the art of dying to each moment that has passed, so that he can live freely in the new moment that has come.

The rebel simply moves out of the past and never allows the past to dominate him. It is a constant, continuous process. The whole life of the rebel is a fire that burns. To the very last breath he is fresh, he is young. He will not respond to any situation according to his past experience; he will respond to every situation according to his present consciousness.
If you live according to your own light you may go astray many times, and you may fall many times; but each fall, each going astray will make you wiser, more intelligent, more understanding, more human."

The Rebellious Spirit

~*Osho

"I do not have any teaching. My life is that of a rebel. I do not have a doctrine, a philosophy, a theology to teach you. I have only my own experience of rebellion to share, to infect you with rebelliousness. And when you are a rebel you will not be a copy of me; you will be an unique phenomenon in yourself."

 

[IronFist]

S.B. 4.11: 18-20


Under the influence of the no doubt hard to fathom potency of the Almighty One in the form of the force of time, the interaction [or disturbance of the equilibrium] of the modes of nature resulted in this diversity of energies upon which the Supreme Personality exerts His influence even though He is not the one acting and in which He leads to death even though he is not the one who kills. He to whom there is no end in the form of Time puts everything to an end, He who knows no beginning constitutes the beginning of everything, He who is inexhaustible gives life to one living being by means of another one and He as death puts an end to everything that kills. As death entering each his life no one is His ally or his definitive enemy. All the combinations of the elements [organic and anorganic] helplessly follow His movement like dust particles moved by the wind



this is a verse from Srimad Bhagavatam, written 5,000 years ago...put into written form by Veda Vyasadeva, the literary incarnation of Godhead...descending knowledge of Deva Nagri script is eternal...Lord Krsna first spoke this knowledge telepathically to Lord Brahma, then Lord Brahma, the creator of this universe, spoke it to his son Narada Muni, then Narada Muni to Veda Vyasadeva...the oral tradition goes from Lord Krsna and Lord Brahma, all the way to His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, my spiritual Grandfather, and spiritual Grandfather to almost all Vaishnavas on earth at this time.

 

[IronFist]

HKMSTA 6-23;​

6. the higher self is a human spirit clothed with soul, made in the form of Allah

7. The Lower self, the carnal self, the body of desires, is a reflection of higher self, distorted by the murky ethers of the flesh.

8. The lower self is an illusion and will pass away; the higher self is allah in man, and will not pass away.

9. The higher self is the embodiment of truth, the lower self is truth reversed and so in falsehood manifest.

10. The Higher self is justice, mercy, love, and right; the lower self is what the higher self is not.

11. the lower self breeds hatred, slander, lewdness, murders, theft, and everything that harms, the higher self is mother of the virtues and harmonies of life.

12. The lower is rich in promises, but poor in blessedness and peace; it offers pleasure, joy and satisfying gain; but gives unrest, misery and death.

13. It gives men apples that are lovely to eye and pleasant to the smell; their cores are full of bitterness and gall.

14. If you would ask me what to study, i would say, yourselves; and when you well have studied them; and then would ask me what to study next, i would reply yourselves.

15. He who knows well his lower self, knows the illusions of the world, knows of the things that pass away; and he who knows his higher self, knows Allah; knows well the things that cannot pass away.

16. Thrice blessed is the man who has made purity and love his very own; he has been ransomed from perils of the lower self and is himself his higher self.

17. men seek salvation from an evil that they deem a living monster of the nether world; and they have gods that are but demons in disguise; all powerful, yet full of jealousy and hate and lust;

18. Whose favors must be brought with costly sacrifice of fruits, and of the lives of birds and animals, and human kind.

19. And yet these gods possess no ears to hear, no eyes to see, no heart to sympathize, no power to save.

20. This evil is a myth; these gods are made of air, clothed with shadows of a thought.

21. The only devil from which men must be redeemed is self, the lower self. if man would find his devil he must look within; his name is self.

22. If man would find his savior he must look within; and when the demon self has been dethroned the savior, Love, will be exalted to the throne of power.

23. The David of the light is purity, who slays the strong Goliath of the dark, and seats the savior, love, upon the throne.