May 24, 2008

The legend of the Hundredth Monkey

In the process of achieving our dreams, do we realize the impact of our energy on the world around us? Is it important to share our secrets of success with each other? Physics speaks about the reality of the quantum leap. Is there a quantum leap in consciousness as inspired in the legend of the Hundredth Monkey? The legend goes like this:-

The Japanese monkey
Macaca Fuscata,
has been observed in the wild
for a period of over 30 years.

In 1952, on the island of Koshima scientists
were providing monkeys with sweet potatoes
dropped in the sand.
The monkeys liked the taste
of the raw sweet potatoes,
but they found the dirt on the potatoes
unpleasant.

An 18-month-old female named Imo
found she could solve the problem
by washing the potatoes
in a nearby stream.
She taught this trick
to her mother.
Her playmates also
learned this new way
and they taught their mothers, too.

This cultural innovation
was gradually picked up
by various monkeys
before the eyes of the scientists.

Between 1952 and 1958,
all the young monkeys
learned to wash
the sandy sweet potatoes
to make them more palatable.

Only the adults
who imitated their children
learned this social improvement.
Other adults
kept eating
the dirty sweet potatoes.

Then something startling took place.
In the autumn of 1958,
a certain number of Koshima monkeys
were washing sweet potatoes-
the exact number is not known.

Let suppose
that when the sun rose one morning
there were 99 monkeys
on Koshima Island
who had learned
to wash their sweet potatoes.

Let us further suppose
that later that morning,
the hundredth monkey
learned to wash potatoes.

THEN IT HAPPENED!

By that evening
almost everyone in the tribe
was washing sweet potatoes
before eating them.

The added energy
of this hundredth monkey
somehow created
an ideological breakthrough!


But notice.
A most surprising thing
observed by this scientists
was the habit
of washing sweet potatoes
then jumped over the sea –

Colonies of monkeys
on other islands
and the mainland troop of monkeys
at Takasakiyama
began washing
their sweet potatoes!

Thus, when a certain critical number
achieves an awareness,
this new awareness
may be communicated
from mind to mind.

Although the exact number may vary,
the Hundredth Monkey Phenomenon
means that when only a limited number of people
know of a new way,
it may remain
the conscious property
of these people.

But there is a point at which
if only one more person
tunes-in to a new awareness,
a field is strengthened
so that this awareness
is picked up by almost everyone!


The legend emphasizes the importance of sharing and acquiring knowledge, for we, or others, may become aware of some secret, put it into practice, and become the “HUNDREDTH MONKEY”...

The wisdom of the Toltec

Thousands of years ago, the Toltecs were known throughout southern Mexico as 'men and women of knowledge'. They came up with 4 agreements we have to make with ourselves that can help us make our dreams come true. The first agreement is - Be impeccable with your word. The second agreement is - Don't take anything personally. The third agreement is - Don't make assumptions. The fourth agreement is - Always do your best.
The Toltecs promise that if we honor these 4 agreements in our lives, we are going to have a beautiful life.

May 18, 2008

Buddha

Today is Wesak Day. Its a good day to meditate on the Buddha's teachings.
Buddha says that a wise man is not interested in 'the way' because he is not going anywhere, so there is no point in thinking about any 'way'. He is simply HERE in the NOW. When you are going somewhere you need a way. The present moment, the NOW is enough. There is no where to go, so what is the point of a way, a path, a means? There is no goal, no where to go. Just be here, now, as totally as possible. Dont let your mind go any where. And in that moment when you are not going any where, everything falls into silence. Experience it. You are then in tune with the dhamma, you are in tune with the universe. The man who understands this has nothing to do, he just HAS TO BE.
The Buddha also said that desire brings misery. Desire means you have moved away from reality, you have moved from that which is. Desire means you have fallen in the trap of a DREAM. Desire means you are not here now - you have gone somewhere in the future. Non-desire is enlightenment.
So to all dream chasers, we have fallen into the matrix world of dreams because we desire..and that means we are entangled in the law of karma.
Happy Wesak Day.

May 17, 2008

The dreaming faculty

The dreaming faculty, like every other faculty, may be abused. I have been guitly most of the time of doing nothing but dreaming. I would talk hours with my friends and colleagues, spending all our energies in building castles in the air which of course we try to make real but never seem to become real. I must admit that i would be the one coming up with the bright idea but later, let everybody down by not having the grit, resolution and tenacity of purpose to make that castle a reality. I have good friends who have put up with me all these years. I am grateful to God for them. What i am trying to say here is this - i know the truth and it is this - dreams only come true when coupled with hard work and persistent endeavor. This is the general rule for all dreamchasers. The exception is when you have rich and powerful connections or a rich girlfriend or boyfriend or a wealthy husband or wife who can make your dreams come true instantly. As this general truth has not been 100% lived by me - the proportion of my success so far is in proportion to the effort i have put in living this truth. The best i have done so far is but a sorry apology for what i ought to do or might do.
But hard work and persistent endeavor would involve risks - the risk of failure, being the most deterring factor of them all. What if, with so much time, energy and money wasted, the castle fails to be built coupled with the fact that age is catching up and when one has so many other pressing commitments. Dr. Leo Buscaglia has a poem for dreamchasers at such times:-
To laugh is to risk appearing a fool.
To weep is to risk appearing sentimental.
To reach out to another is to risk involvement.
To expose feelings is to risk rejection.
To place your dreams before the crowd is to risk ridicule.
To love is to risk not being loved in return.
To go forward in the face of overwhelming odds is to risk failure.
But risks must be taken because the greatest hazard in life is to risk nothing.
The person who risks nothing does nothing, has nothing, is nothing.
He may avoid suffering and sorrow, but he cannot learn, feel, change, grow or love.
Chained by his certitudes, he is a slave.
He has forfeited his freedom.
Only a person who takes risks is free.

Anything is possible

Hello again.

I read this from an unknown author-

If there was ever a time to dare,
to make a difference,
to embark on something worth doing,
It is now.
Not for any grand cause necessarily,
But for something that tugs at your heart,
something that's your inspiration,
something that's your dream.
You owe it to yourself
to make your days here count.
Have fun.
Dig deep.
Strech.
Dream Big.
Know, though, that things worth doing
Seldom come easy.
There will be good days.
And there will be bad days.
There will be times when you want to turn around,
Pack it up, and call it quits.
Those times tell you
that you are pushing yourself.
That you are not afraid to learn by trying.
Persist.
Because with an idea,
Determination and right tools,
You can do do great things.
Let your instincts, your intellect,
and your heart guide you.
Trust.
Believe in the incredible power of the human mind.
Of doing something that makes a difference.
Of working hard.
Of laughing and hoping.
Of lazy afternoons.
Of lasting friends.
Of all things that will cross your path this year.
The start of something new
brings the hope of something great.
Anything is possible.

I would like to add that whatever we do in life, we have to be in an ambition-arousing atmosphere. We need an environment that will stimulate us to self development. We need to keep close to the people who understand us, who believe in us. Who will help us discover ourself and encourage us to make the most of ourselves. People whose aspirations run parallel to ours. This may make the all the difference between grand success and a mediocre existence.
Let me just say i am talking from experience as I have not been that succesful in life so far (well at least that is how i feel because i still can't buy that BMW i like or that dream house in front of the beach and top of the mountain) because the closest friends i have are all like me-mediocre- we like to take it easy..dreamers and are, like my mum says NATOs - no action, talk only. We are passionate, sometimes too blinded by passion that we do not know what to do. Some have started their own blogs to vent their frustrations in life. So i have decided to follow suit. I must stop digressing - So that is evidence why i am where i am. But that does not mean my friends and i cannot be succesful. We can be suddenly aroused, stirred from the slumbering power within us..We have done it before but it comes once in a while.
Now to continue with chasing the dream. To be succesful, all we have to do is to avoid doing the things i have been doing in the past - We must stick to those who are trying to do something and to be somebody in the world-people with high and lofty ambitions. These people will infect us with the spirit to dominate the environment. Ambition is contagious. I am going to try it. Let's see where it brings me by the end of the year. Will keep you posted on my progress...

Dreamchaser with a credit card problem

I met a young girl recently. She seemed to have gone into debts with the credit card. I guess she is not the only one with this problem. I would say she is a dreamchaser too..her dream is to be have nice clothes, nice bags, nice looks, nice body etc. And the credit card is her magic wand...which if like all good things can turn bad if used wrongly...her short happy dream had turned out to be a nightmare...

Shania Twain's song, 'Ka Ching" comes to mind - "We live in a greedy little world, that teaches every little boy and girl..to earn as much they can possibly can,,then turn around and spend it foolishly. We created us a credit card mess. We spend money we dont possess. Our religion is to go on and blow it all. So its shoppin every Sunday at the mall. All we want is more a lot than we had before..

When you are broke go and get a loan. Take out another mortgage on your home. Consolidate so you can afford to go and spend more when you get bored. All we ever want is more. A lot more than we had before. Lets swing, dig deeper in your pocket....

How to stop our dreams from becoming nighmares? The chase goes on...

May 16, 2008

Dreamchasers

This is a blog for the dreamchaser...Let the chase begin...