The Cārvāka school of philosophy

Beliefs

The Cārvāka school of philosophy had a variety of atheistic and naturalistic beliefs.

[edit] No life after death

The Carvaka believed there was no afterlife, no life after death

Springing forth from these elements itself

solid knowledge is destroyed

when they are destroyed—

after death no intelligence remains. ^[10]

[edit] Naturalism

The Carvaka believed in a form of naturalism, that is that all things happen by nature, and come from nature (not from any deity or Supreme Being).

Fire is hot, water cold,

refreshingly cool is the breeze of morning;

By whom came this variety?

They were born of their own nature.^[10]

[edit] Sensual Indulgence

Unlike many of the Indian philosophies of the time, The Carvaka believed there was nothing wrong with sensual indulgence, and that it was the only enjoyment to be pursued.

That the pleasure arising to man

from contact with sensible objects,

is to be relinquished because accompanied by pain—

such is the reasoning of fools.

The kernels of the paddy, rich with finest white grains,

What man, seeking his own true interest,

would fling them away

because of a covering of husk and dust?

While life remains, let a man live happily,

let him feed on butter though he runs in debt;

When once the body becomes ashes,

how can it ever return again?^[10]

[edit] Religion is invented by man

The Carvaka believed that religion was invented and made up by men.

The three authors of the Vedas were buffoons, knaves, and demons.

All the well-known formulae of the pandits, jarphari, turphari, etc.

and all the obscene rites for the queen commanded in Aswamedha,

these were invented by buffoons, and so all the various kinds of presents to the priests,

while the eating of flesh was similarly commanded by night-prowling demons.

Dr. Ramendra

IHEU's 2005 Paris Congress Declaration refers to the Humanist ideas of the Charvakas of ancient India. Dr.Ramendra presents the salient features of the philosophy of the Charvakas, developed 600 years before the Common Era. This philosophy is also known as Lokayata and appears surprisingly contemporary in some of its aspects.

Ancient Wisdom

Ancient Indian wisdom is quite often equated with "spiritualism" of one kind or the other. However, real ancient Indian wisdom is to be found, in my opinion, in the teachings of the Lokayata or Charvaka school of philosophy. Sadly, no work of the Lokayata school has survived at present. Some popular verses with philosophical contents have, however, come down to us through the writings of its opponents.

Ironically, the most significant collection of such authentic popular verses (pramanik lokagatha) has been collected by Madhava - an orthodox Sanskrit writer of fourteenth century A.D - in his compendium of Indian philosophy titled Sarva-darshana-sangraha. Here are some extracts from the verses collected by Madhava:

While life is yours, live joyously;
None can escape Death's searching eye:
When once this frame of ours they burn,
How shall it ever again return?
The pleasure which arises to men from contact with sensible objects,
Is to be relinquished as accompanied by pain - such is the reasoning of fools;
There is no heaven, no final liberation, nor any soul in another world,
Nor do the actions of the four castes, orders, etc., produce any real effect.
There are four elements, earth, water, fire and air;
And from these four elements alone is consciousness produced -
The fire is hot, the water cold, refreshing and cool the breeze of morn;
By whom came this variety? From their own nature was it born.
The Agnihotra, the three Vedas, the ascetic's three staves, and smearing oneself with ashes -
Brihaspati says, these are but means of livelihood for those who have no manliness nor sense.
If a beast slain in the Jyotishtoma rite will itself go to heaven,
Why then does not the sacrificer, forthwith offer his own father?

In Modern Language

We may paraphrase, and logically rearrange the ideas expressed by the Charvakas in simple and contemporary prose:

Happiness is the highest end in life. There is no soul and no life after death. There is no world other than this world. Heaven and liberation from the so-called cycle of birth and death are imaginary ideals. Everyone will inevitably die. No one will be reborn. Therefore, one should make the best of one's life and live happily as long as one lives.

It is irrational to suggest that one should give up pleasures of life because they are mixed with pain. It is just like saying that we should throw away our finest grains because they are covered with husk and dust.

Earth, water, fire and air are the four elements. Consciousness, too, arises from these four elements only; just like intoxicating power arising from mixing together certain ingredients which themselves do not have intoxicating power.

There is no soul apart from body. When we say "I am fat" or "I am lean" attributes like fatness reside only in the body. Phrases like, "my body" are only significant metaphorically.

The hotness of fire and the coolness of water etc. are all natural attributes. Everything behaves according to its own nature and the variety in things comes from nature alone.

The Vedas are not revealed. Their authority should not be accepted. The authors of the Vedas were devoid of intelligence and honesty. Vedic sacrifices, ceremonies for the dead (shraddha), gifts to priests and other related rituals are useless and bear no fruit anywhere. They were created only as a means of livelihood for Brahmin priests.

The Lokayata Philosophy

First and foremost, we find in Lokayata philosophy a total rejection of supernaturalism (soul, other world, heaven, gods, etc.). It is a completely this-worldly or secular philosophy. Secondly, it is a hedonistic philosophy. In other words, it regards human happiness as the highest ethical end. It rejects imaginary ethical ends like attainment of heaven and moksha or nirvana and clearly asserts that one should not run away from life just because pleasure in life is mixed with pain. The basic idea of Lokayata philosophy is: this world is the only world, this life is the only life and one should make the best of it. This basic idea is shared by contemporary Humanists - therefore, Lokayata is humanistic.

There is no doubt about Lokayata being materialistic and naturalistic. Its doctrine that earth, fire, air and water are the only elements is similar to that of ancient Greek materialist Empedocles, just as its hedonism is similar to that of ancient Greek hedonists, Aristippus and Epicurus.

In the Indian context, Lokayata rejects the authority of the Vedas, the Vedic rituals and the varna-ashrama dharma (the caste system). Thus, there is a clear and strong rejection of Brahminism. It may even be called anti- Brahminism. The naturalism and materialism of Lokayata and its rejection of Vedic rituals as merely means of livelihood for Brahmin priests, implies rejection of the gods. Thus, Lokayata is atheistic. In fact, Lokayata is the only school of ancient and medieval Indian philosophy which is atheist (nastika) in all the three senses of the term. It rejects the soul and the so-called other-world. It rejects gods as well as the authority of the Vedas.

To sum up, Lokayata is a secular and nastika philosophy. We find naturalism, hedonism, humanism, materialism, atheism and anti-Brahminism in Lokayata. Thus, from a rational, humanist point of view it may be described as the genuine wisdom of ancient India.

Me needs to lose wieghr

-- iPhone there for I am

Me friends oldest

-- iPhone there for I am

2009

-- iPhone there for I am

Joshua

-- iPhone there for I am

Once again, the Buddha puts his finger on it

Image by Wonderlane via Flickr

Once again, the Buddha puts his finger on it. As he is said to have said, as recorded in the Upajjhatthana_Sutta:

I am of the nature to grow old.
There is no way to escape growing old.

I am of the nature to have ill heath.
There is no way to escape having ill health.

I am of the nature to die.
There is no way to escape death.

All that is dear to me and everyone I love are of the nature of change. There is no way to escape being separated from them.

My deeds are my closest companions.
I am the beneficiary of my deeds.
My deeds are the ground on which I stand.

Overview of Theravada Philosophy

Overview of Philosophy

Theravada promotes the concept of Vibhajjavada (Pali), literally "Teaching of Analysis." This doctrine says that insight must come from the aspirant's experience, critical investigation, and reasoning instead of by blind faith; however, the scriptures of the Theravadan tradition also emphasize heeding the advice of the wise, considering such advice and evaluation of one's own experiences to be the two tests by which practices should be judged.

In Theravada, the cause of human existence and suffering (dukkha) is identified as craving (tanha), which carries with it the defilements (kilesas). Those defilements that bind human to the cycle of rebirth are classified into a set of ten "Fetters", while those defilements that impede concentration (samadhi) are presented in a fivefold set called the "Five Hindrances".^[27] The level of defilement can be coarse, medium, and subtle. It is a phenomenon that frequently arises, remains temporarily and then vanishes. Theravadans believe defilements are not only harmful to oneself, but also harmful to others. They are the driving force behind all inhumanities a human being can commit.

Theravadian's believe these defilements are the habits born of ignorance (avijja) which afflict the minds of all unenlightened beings. It is believed that unenlightened beings are under the influence of the defilements, unenlightened beings cling to them through ignorance of the truth. But in reality, those mental defilements are nothing more than taints that have afflicted the mind and create suffering and stress. It is also believed that unenlightened beings cling to the body, assuming it as their own "Self", but in reality the body is an impermanent phenomenon formed from the four basic elements. Often characterized by earth, water, fire and air, in the early Buddhist texts these are defined to be abstractions representing the sensorial qualities solidity, fluidity, temperature, and mobility, respectively.^[28] The mental defilements' frequent instigation and manipulation of the mind is believed to have prevented the mind from seeing the true nature of reality. Unskillful behavior in turn can strengthen the defilements, but following the Noble Eightfold Path can weaken or eradicate them.

It is also believed that unenlightened beings experience the world through their imperfect six sense doors (eye, ear, nose, tongue, tactile sense, and mind) and then use the mind clouded by defilements to form their own interpretation, perception and conclusion^[29]. In such a condition the perception or conclusion made will be based on that being's own illusion of reality.^[30] In the state of jhana (deep concentration), the five physical sense doors will fade, the mental defilements will be suppressed, and wholesome mental traits will become strengthened. The mind can then be used to investigate and gain insight into the true nature of reality.

There are three stages of defilements. During the stage of passivity the defilements lies dormant at the base of the mental continuum as latent tendencies (anusaya), but through the impact of sensory stimulus it will manifest (pariyutthana) itself to the surface of consciousness in the form of unwholesome thoughts, emotions, and volitions. If they gather additional strength, the defilement will reach the dangerous stage of transgression (vitikkama), which will then involve physical or vocal actions.

It is believed that in order to be free from suffering and stress these defilements need to be permanently uprooted. Initially the defilements are restrained through mindfulness to prevent them from taking over the mind and bodily action. They are then uprooted through internal investigation, analyzing, experiencing and understanding the true nature of those defilements by using jhana. This process needs to be repeated for each and every defilement. The practice will then lead the meditator to realize the Four Noble Truths, Enlightenment, and Nirvana (Sanskrit: निर्वाण, Nirvāṇa; Pali: निब्बान, Nibbāna; Thai: นิพพาน, Nípphaan). Nirvana is the ultimate goal of Theravadans. Nirvana is said to be the perfect bliss and the person is liberated from the repeated cycle of birth, illness, aging and death.

Theravadans believe that every individual is personally responsible for their own self-awakening and liberation, as they are the ones that were responsible for their own actions and consequences (Sanskrit: karma; Pali: kamma). Simply learning or believing in the true nature of reality as expounded by the Buddha is not enough, the awakening can only be achieved through direct experience and personal realization. An individual will have to follow and practice the Noble Eightfold Path as taught by the Buddha to discover the reality for themselves. In Theravada belief, Buddhas, gods or deities are incapable of giving a human being the awakening or lifting them from the state of repeated cycle of birth, illness, aging and death (samsara). For Theravadans, Buddha is only a Teacher of the Noble Eightfold Path, while gods or deities are still subject to anger, jealousy, hatred, vengeance, craving, greed, delusion, and death.

It is believed that some people who practice with earnestness and zeal can attain Nirvana within a single lifetime, as did many of the first few generations of Buddha's disciples. For others, the process may take multiple lifetimes, with the individual reaching higher and higher states of realization. One who has attained Nirvana is called an Arahant. It is believed that the Nirvana is most quickly attained as a disciple of Buddha, since Lord Buddha is believed to have possessed the ultimate knowledge on how to guide a person through the process of enlightenment.

According to the early scriptures, the Nirvana attained by Arahants is identical to that attained by the Buddha himself, as there is only one type of Nirvana.^[31] Buddha was superior to Arahants because the Buddha had discovered the path all by himself, and has taught it to others (i,e., metaphorically turning the wheel of Dhamma). Arahants, on the other hand, attained Nirvana due in part to the Buddha's teachings. Theravadans revere the Buddha as a single supremely gifted person but do recognize the existence of other such Buddhas in the distant past and future. Maitreya (Pali: Metteyya), for example, is mentioned very briefly in the Pali Canon as a Buddha who will come in the distant future.

Traditionally Theravadans can either have the conviction (or "faith") in the Buddha's teaching and practice the minor precepts in the hope of gaining some minor benefits or they can investigate and verify by direct experience the truth of the Buddha's teaching by practicing the jhana which is part of the Noble Eightfold Path for their own Enlightenment.

Joshua prom night

-- iPhone there for I am

Vision, passion and determination- 2010 is my year

My wife and I have been married for 21 and a half years. Our two sons just celebrated finishing school cert and HSC. As I sit and reflect on what it’s been like for me to be a husband, a first Dad and the 10th time CEO - the failures in my life have prepared me for what I’m undertaking in my responsibilities in all 3 of those roles.

When someone knocks you down, you get back up. When something destroys what you’ve built, you rebuild it. When someone tells you that it’s impossible or it can’t be done by you, then do it passionately.

Sometimes I’m right. Sometimes I’m wrong. Either way, I’ll always give my opinion and give it my best go no matter what the stakes. For that- I am righteous. For that- I am grateful.

I like this video on YouTube because it’s the definition of what I believe life should be. I believe that it’s almost a visual collage of what I visualise my life to be and our company to become. I wanted to share it with those people that visit my blog and read what I have to say. I’ll add one more thought to this post before I get back to work and load the video for you to watch and enjoy.

Whoever came up with the saying “It’s not whether you win or lose, it’s how you play the game.” was a loser. They were justifying failure and avoiding admittance of defeat by allowing theirself to feel some sort of victory in knowing that they tried. I say live your life. I say have a go. If you fail- so what! If you fail twice- who cares. I say if you know how to accept failure, regather your creative thoughts and add a dash of optimism and a spec of hope- then and only then can you mold failure into success and breed more successes to follow. Claim your life. Claim your destiny. Demand more of yourself, expect less of others and watch what happens. 2010 is my year- I already know it… but what I don’t know is just how big it’s going to be… thanks for reading.

Gregory cs Stone

Wordpress Themes

elegantthemes.com

testing Ping back auto back linking tech

This summary is not available. Please click here to view the post.

Premium Wordpress Themes

Image via Wikipedia

Premium Wordpress Themes

• New Themes Every Month!
  Every month we'll be rolling out a fresh theme for you to enjoy!
• Excellent Support
  Get the best technical support around! If you have questions or problems, we're here to help.
• Join the Creative Community
  Hang around with like minded people in support forum and grow your business.
• Tips & Resources
  Members can access advanced tips and tutorials, theme documentation guides, and more

Out of the Box Wodpress Solutions

There are plenty of themes available in the market and you might wonder why buy a theme?. Take the wise decision. Find out why to choose Premium Wordpress Themes?

Premium themes for Businesses & Pro Bloggers

Are you a blogger whose problem right now is choosing the most ideal hosting provider for your blog? In the world of blogging nowadays, Wordpress remains one of the most corporate and leading blog service providers in the online world. And yet, for those who are planning to get a provider for Wordpress hosting, it could be such a daunting task having to realize that there are numerous companies lately emerging which one can choose from.

Each hosting company has offerings that vary from the kind of service, package, features and prices that they can render to their clients. Questions like whether how much can the traffic of your blog grow, and if it does, will the hosting company be able to have sufficient bandwidth for it?

If you would do some relevant and thorough research, you would be able to come up with a short list of these companies, wherein each is ideal to run any Wordpress blog. Each offers utmost uptime, bandwidth, disk space and support for the growth and expansion of your blog.

These Wordpress hosting providers are effective in helping you go through the process of choosing which is best out there in the market. There are three primary Wordpress hosting options you can consider.

The question is why to choose premium wordpress themes, what is the difference which make is stand out of the other wordpress themes available? What are the features that make premium wordpress themes professional with easy to use.

The answer is premium wordpress themes are designed in such a manner that we can guarantee of being the best wordpress themes. Premium wordpress themes are designed by SEO experts to ensure that your sites get maximum benefit out of the theme. Some of the major benefits are

• Page load time is very less compared to other themes
• It reduces the load of the server.
• As the premium wordpress themes are already developed taking search engine optimization factors into consideration, theme helps your site to get listed in search engine automatically (in most of the cases).
• You can request your own designed/customized premium wordpress theme with all the above features.
• New premium wordpress themes are released every moth giving you a huge verity to choose from.
• Every theme comes with tips, how to use guide and very easy to install feature.


Apart from all the above advantages offered by premium wordpress themes, they have some really great features discussed below

• Premium wordpress themes are prepared with extra features and modern options pane, using these pane it becomes very easy for a novice user to run a well developed professional site.
• Multi Media Kit embedded with premium wordpress themes templates.
• You can easily put videos on the site.
• Ad rotators are already present; you just need to input the ads.
• If you would like to add custom code to the website, there is an option given to directly add the code.
• Easy customizable menu bar, this feature provides a very good navigation to the visitors of your site. You can easily configure the navigation bar with just few simple mouse clicks.

So, if you are planning to create your own blog website or to upgrade the existing one, the best is give a short to premium wordpress themes and try it for your long terms success. Premium wordpress themes offer you the rich feature theme for wordpress or if you don't have an existing website then premium wordpress themes can help you create one, with the option of hosting plan they offer.

There are many sites using the services of premium wordpress themes you can easily find some of the top bloggers using the themes and hosting services from premium wordpress themes. There are plenty of websites which are holding testimonials for premium wordpress themes the top bloggers websites has a list of top websites and blogs along with their briefs, you can easily get the advice from any of them; the link you need to follow is http://www.top100bloggers.com/.

Premium wordpress themes offer the most interactive administrative interface available over internet. There is no such site which can offer you the best of hosting plan as well as the SEO ready themes, making your site compatible with all search engines with no effort.

The entire outstanding feature would make you to choose premium wordpress themes; one more benefit that would help to increase the revenue of your website is every time is the affiliate program which can earn 50% of the sale every time someone clicks on the advertisement.

The process is very simple to become the member of affiliate; you will just need to fill a form and signup with the affiliate network. After signup you need to get the code generated and embed that code into the premium wordpress themes which you have installed. Every time sales of premium wordpress themes happened through the affiliate link you will get half of the revenue on beginning of every month. To get the payment you just need to have a PayPal account, you will get your payment as soon as you affiliate link cross two or more threshold value with minimum of 50$ you will get the payout in PayPal.

In case you have a well developed website or blog which already has mass traffic you can just use the pre-designed banners provided at our site. Banners of premium wordpress themes will link you site to our affiliate program. These banners come in many dimension so is to suite the space of your site.

Don't waste times anymore, choose your best premium wordpress themes from: Wordpress Theme store

"Nine Principles for Happiness and Healing"

So here are my "Nine Principles for Happiness and Healing":

1. The Principle of "Letting Whatever Happens Be Okay"

The amount a person suffers in their life is directly related to how much they
are resisting the fact that "things are the way they are." If there is suffering
or discomfort, there is resistance. Addictions or attachments to things being
different than they are need to be upgraded to preferences, so when "what is" is
not what you want it to be, you do not suffer over it and your happiness and
peace are therefore not controlled by forces outside of your control.

To the degree a person is willing and able to let whatever happens be okay, they
do not suffer. People with many rules about how things are suppose to be suffer
more because no matter how much care they take to protect their rules and see
that they and the world follow their rules, these rules are often going to be
violated. This does not mean a person cannot be goal oriented and work toward
making things they way they want; however, the emotionally healthy person prefers
the outcomes they seek rather than being addicted to them.

The key, then, to handling challenging situations, thoughts, and feelings is not
in resisting them, but rather becoming as fully accepting of them as possible.
Accept what happens to you and what you think and feel, even if it is
uncomfortable. Though it looks as if the discomfort is created by the thing we
are resisting, in actual fact the discomfort we feel is 98-99% from our
resistance to it and only 1-2% from the thing itself.

When we stop resisting, the discomfort stops also. Through acceptance, you
empower yourself to heal, transform, or release any unresolved mental or
emotional material. When you sense resistance, meet it with acceptance.
Ironically, once you stop resisting, you are much more effective in creating any
external change you may have a preference for (not an attachment to).

2. The Principle of Threshold

Every person has a personal threshold for what they can handle coming at them
from their environment, based on their personal map of reality. When a person's
map (their concept of who they are and how they relate to the rest of the
universe) cannot handle its environment, stress is created and the person begins
to deal with that stress by exhibiting various coping mechanisms learned during
childhood. These include anger, depression, anxiety, fear (and greater and lesser
degrees of these), substance abuse, overeating, plus a number of other coping
mechanisms considered more "healthy", such as exercising, talking with friends or
counsellors, isolation, and thousands of others.

All dysfunctional feelings and behaviors are really coping mechanisms designed to
deal with the stress of being pushed past this threshold, and therefore the
"cure" for dysfunctional feelings and behaviors is to raise that threshold, which
is what Holosync® does. Dysfunctional feelings and behaviors are not caused by
the environment or other people regardless of how it seems. People with a high
threshold for what they can handle coming at them from the world remain happy,
peaceful, and centered even when they are around difficult people or in difficult
situations.

When people suffer trauma in their childhood, this threshold does not mature in
the same way it would have had the trauma not happened. These people have a lower
threshold than "normal" people who did not experience any trauma, or who did not
have as much. This means interaction with their environment pushes them past
their threshold (which is lower) much more easily, and they are caught in
dysfunctional feelings and behaviors more often.

It is the raising of this threshold as a result of using the Centerpointe program
that causes dysfunctional feelings and behaviors to gradually disappear, because
the threshold eventually becomes so high very little can cause a person to be
pushed beyond the point where these feelings and behaviors are triggered.

3. The Principle of Chaos & Reorganization

Chaos always precedes growth. Therefore it is a GOOD thing.

The coping mechanisms mentioned above (dysfunctional feelings and behaviors) are
really an attempt to keep one's internal map of reality (which is really what is
being stressed when one's personal threshold is exceeded) from falling apart,
i.e., from going through the natural process that happens when our map of reality
cannot handle its environment.

This natural process, based on Nobel Prize-winning research, involves the map
going into temporary chaos in response to too much input, finally falling apart
when the chaos becomes so much the old map cannot hold itself together, and then
almost simultaneously reforming itself at a higher level that CAN handle the
environment that was previously too much for it. This reorganization is a natural
process, and always results in a new system/map that can handle what the old
system/map could not handle. It is helpful in this process to recognize when you
are in the initial chaos state, and to remind yourself that this is the prelude
to positive change -- if you know how to get out of the way and let it happen.

4. The "Map is NOT the Territory" Principle

There is a tendency to try to protect the old map (which is really a person's
concept of who they are and how they relate to the rest of the universe) when you
go into this initial chaos stage of growth. This attempt to hold the old map
together comes from the mistaken idea that this map is who we are - that "the map
is the territory" - rather than a convenient tool used to navigate through life.

This map is often called the ego by western psychology and is your concept of who
you are and what your relationship is to the rest of the universe. It is the
limitations of this map (its inability to adequately "map the territory" or
otherwise deal with the situation one is in - whether psychological, emotional,
relational, mental, or spiritual) that creates the "over-threshold" experience
and the resulting dysfunctional feelings and behaviors (i.e., suffering).

Therefore, letting the map go through the evolutionary process of going into
chaos temporarily and reorganizing at a higher level results in relieving the
problems and limitations of the old map and a new ability to deal with what was
previously stressful or overwhelming. It is very helpful to learn and recognize
your favorite methods of trying to save the old map, which again is based on the
mistaken idea that when the old map falls apart, you are falling apart, rather
than just getting a new and better map.

5. The Principle of Responsibility as Empowerment

You are responsible for every feeling or behavior you have, in the sense that it
is either your chosen response to something that happens, or an automatic
unconscious response based on the way your internal map of reality has been
structured.

This is very different from saying you are to blame for every feeling or behavior
you have. Taking personal responsibility is not about blame but rather about
personal power. If someone or something outside of you is the cause of how you
feel or behave, you are relatively powerless - a victim. If you, or at least your
unconscious processes are at cause, you have power and can do something to change
the situation to one that is happier and more peaceful. Things outside of you may
be a stimulus for you, but how you respond comes from you, either consciously or
unconsciously.

6. The Principle of Conscious Change

It is impossible to consciously do something that isn't good for you or is in
some way non-resourceful (destructive) to you. You can do something destructive
to yourself (feelings, beliefs, values, behaviors, etc.) over and over as long as
you do it unconsciously (without continuous conscious awareness), but once you
begin to do the non-resourceful feeling, behavior, belief, value, etc.
consciously, it will begin to fall away.

The trick is remaining conscious, and we have many ways of going unconscious so
as not to deal with what we are feeling or how we are behaving: eating, drugs and
alcohol, projection and blaming, spacing out, and countless other distractions.
To become conscious, it is necessary to identify our favorite ways of going
unconscious, be vigilant in noticing them, and be committed to gradually facing
ourselves by stepping outside ourselves and watching what we are doing, feeling,
etc. instead of allowing ourselves to be unconscious, automatic response
mechanisms. Use of Holosync® over time creates and increases the ability to
remain conscious and deal with things consciously. When this happens, many
non-resourceful feelings, behaviors, and approaches to life fall away and are
replaced by healthier approaches that bring happiness and peace to one's life.

7. The Principle of Witnessing

When faced with a feeling that is uncomfortable (and is therefore the result,
either consciously or unconsciously of not letting "what is" be okay), the best
course of action is to mentally step aside and, with great curiosity, watch
yourself have the feeling or behavior, perhaps saying to yourself: "There I am,
doing ___" or "There I am feeling ____". This stepping aside to watch helps make
you conscious of what is happening and, because it takes part of you out of the
feeling or behavior, makes it difficult to continue the suffering. This needs to
be done, however, without attachment to the outcome. In other words, you are
doing it to objectively and curiously watch what is happening, not to change
anything. The ability to step aside and watch yourself as you feel and act is an
acquired skill and takes time and practice to develop, but it will totally change
your life. Using Holosync® naturally develops your ability to do this.

8. The Principle of "Good & Bad" Generalizations

Based on our early life interactions with our primary caregivers, we all develop
generalization about who we are and what our relationship is to the rest of the
world. These generalizations (part of our "map" of reality) divide different
aspects of us and the qualities we may have into two categories, those that we
think are "good", or acceptable, and those we think are "bad" or unacceptable. To
keep from experiencing the shame or other uncomfortable feelings regarding the
"bad" things, we either 1) repress them into our unconscious mind to keep them
out of conscious awareness, or 2) project them onto others (this results in
extreme emotional reactions to others who exhibit the characteristics we believe
are "bad" or unacceptable about us). In many ways, emotional healing involves
"unlearning" these old generalizations and making new, healthier ones. In
reality, there is nothing about any of us that is innately bad. Holosync®
facilitates this healing.

These generalizations, especially while we are still relatively unconscious, seem
so real and true the idea that they are not true may seem ridiculous. Any
generalization about yourself that is painful to you, however, is probably not
true.

9. The Principle of the Neutral Universe

Everything in the universe is neutral. The old saying "Nothing is good or bad but
thinking makes it so" is true. We interpret everything we come in contact with as
being either good or bad (or somewhere on the spectrum in between these two), or
in some other way give it meaning. This good/bad interpretation, or assigning of
meaning, becomes part of our map of reality. Then, we tend to "forget" that
nothing has any intrinsic meaning and that we assigned these qualities and
meanings to the people and things in our lives (or they were assigned for us when
we were too little to know any better).

This is why different people find different things to be good or bad, and can
assign completely different meanings to the same thing. It is the ultimate reason
why you have the ability, once you learn to exercise it, to create whatever kind
of world you want just by assigning meaning to things in your life in whatever
way you like. Make everything good, and the world is good; make everything bad,
and the world is bad. In most cases, the way we assign good and bad and other
meanings to the things in our life is not something we chose, but rather
something chosen for us by our primary caregivers and other cultural influences.
We can, however, realize that these assignments of meaning are arbitrary, and
that we can reassign them in any way we want.

A wise man once said "It's okay to play Hamlet, but don't fall into the trap of
thinking you are Hamlet." If you think you are Hamlet, your life is a tragedy,
because everyone dies by the end of the play. If you know you are just playing,
you can have fun with it. Similarly, if you know everything is innately neutral
and that you have assigned all the meaning (including good/bad) to everything in
life, you are playing, and you can therefore be the creator of your own
experience; if, however, you forget and think things are innately good and bad -
or have certain innate meanings taught by you when you were too small to question
them - you become a victim, you are not the creator of your life, and you will
create suffering. Again, Holosync® gradually creates the awareness that allows a
person to step back from thinking that meaning is innate rather than created by
you.

This is NOT a way to say that a person has no obligation to act responsibly or
honestly or that anything you do is okay because "there's no right or wrong."
Behaving toward others as you would want them to behave toward you is always the
best policy. What you put out toward others does come back to you.

I hope these principles will be helpful to you. When you are in distress, check
to see if you are violating any of these principles or if viewing the situation
through the filter of these principles creates a shift for you.

As always, we are here to help you grow. Let us know how we can help.

Be well.

Bill Harris, Director

Gregory cs Stone

40 hilarious print ads

What do a cow on a trampoline, an elephant giving the Heimlich and Free Willy all have in common? They all make pretty funny ads. But don't take our word for it - see for yourself!

http://niik.posterous.com/funny-print-ads-1

Gregory cs Stone

Artwork by iPhone

-- iPhone there for I am

Razors edge

Enough said


-- iPhone there for I am

Gregory cs Stone

Profile infomation

The Gregory Stone Story
Gregory Stone is a Sydney based business developer specializing in
online digital media and website development, with a mix clientele of
international blue chips and top end local players, I providing end-to-
end online marketing and communications solutions.

My strength? The right combination of business and marketing
experience with digital media expertise, topped with a dash of
creativity.

What make me difference? Well, i really like what we do, and have fun
along the way. And it's catchy. Work with me, and you'll see what we
mean!

Who is this guy? I am an independent, highly skilled and experienced
online business developer who has delivered countless innovative and
exciting projects ranging from complete online businesses to “left
field” viral campaigns.

My services:
• Online Strategy consulting
• Online Brand Development and integration
• Internet / Intranet Design and Development
• Integrated Digital Marketing Campaigns, including:
– Display Advertising
– Games and Other Interactives
– Viral Campaigns
– Electronic Direct Mail Campaigns
– Affiliate Partnerships
– Search Engine Optimisation / Search Engine Marketing
– Digital Touch Point Marketing
• Media Services, including:
– Media strategy
– Planning / buying / execution
– Analysis and reporting
• E-commerce / Online Application Development
• Content Management System (CMS) / Client Relationship Management (CRM)Solutions
• CD-ROM / Multimedia


Regards
Gregory C.S. Stone Business Development
m: +61 411 787 565
p: +61 2 9544 4826
e: greg@emerchant.com.au
w: http://www.emerchant.com.au/
p: www.gregorycsstone.com.au
t: http://twitter.com/magazinestock
f: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Buzz-marketing/182307209633
b: http://magazinestock.blogspot.com/
v: http://www.youtube.com/user/magazinestock


Please consider the environment before printing this email


”Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things
that you didn't do than by the ones that you did. Sail away from the
safe harbour. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream.
Discover." Mark Twain

Gregory cs Stone

I'll tell you a secret

I'll tell you a secret, something they don't teach you in your temples of power.

The Gods envy us. They envy us because we're mortal, because any moment might be our last.

Everything is more beautiful because we're doomed.

You will never be lovelier than you are now, and we will never be here again.

Wow these year 2006 -2007- 2008 - 2009 NUTS: mystery Pick lines

Wow these year 2006 -2007- 2008 - 2009 NUTS: mystery Pick lines

mystery Pick lines

What do you want to be when you grow up and Don’t say princess.
If you could be anything you wanted to be and you knew you could fail what would you be


What have you got going for you apart from you looks
I mean ... you very beautiful but beauty is very common what real unique is a great outlook and a great personality your got 2 out of 3 and that’s a great start

Youtube favorites

yes i do shoot wedding

Gregory cs Stone

AUSSIE Home Loans attracts more than 75 per cent of its business through its website.

AUSSIE Home Loans attracts more than 75 per cent of its business through its website. Six years ago, that figure was 2 per cent. What changed? Plenty.

Aussie's traditional bricks-and-mortar business has been able to recognise a significant shift in consumer behaviour and how they go about obtaining information.

''Consumer behaviour was changing and the way customers were wanting to interact with our products and our brand has changed significantly. So much so that our marketing techniques were not going to work in that environment,'' says Aussie's marketing and product general manager, Stuart Tucker.

Tucker attributes its online success to optimising its search results, building a better website, improving the content, online advertising and providing tools such as an online calculator and ''request an appointment''. The request-an-appointment tool on its website has improved the customer conversion rates to the tune of 18-45 per cent in two years.

This year, Aussie is embarking on a digital campaign that includes social networking sites such as Twitter. It has appointed a digital agency, Amnesia Razorfish, to achieve its online goals.

Tucker says Aussie spends millions of dollars in its online strategy and advertising and stresses it's an ongoing investment.

''One of things about online is that it's always changing and it's not about sitting still,'' he says. ''It's now a dedicated percentage of our marketing budget and is really part of our business now.''

A lot of website tracking is done through Amnesia, which measures all click-through rates and traffic coming in through online advertising. Amnesia also helps Aussie take advantage of social networking.

This year, Aussie engaged in an interactive campaign that featured its mortgage adviser, Duane Brown.

He was encouraged to skydive and consumers were to guess where he would land in Australia by using Google Maps.

Finance bloggers also got involved in the campaign when they were asked by Amnesia to hide a code on their site, and whoever found it had the opportunity to make more guesses as to where he would land.

In addition to Twitter, the campaign also used YouTube and Facebook. The campaign certainly grabbed the attention of consumers.

''Through the website we can prove the quality of the customers and business that we're getting,'' Tucker says.

Last time Aussie ran a campaign, half its appointments were booked through the website, Amnesia founder Iain McDonald says. It just shows how people are changing in their interaction with companies, he says.

''It has been a dramatic increase for them in terms of sales, based on the fact they've continuously optimised. In the last three years, their business has really changed.''

McDonald advises that it is important to test what works on your website. For Aussie, Amnesia tested everything from its banner advertisements to forms used on the website.

''It just doesn't jump from 2 per cent to over 75 per cent in a night. We do small projects to help build it up,'' McDonald says.

''Their business has completely changed, now 75 per cent of their business is coming from digital, which is probably something that many people wouldn't expect from a traditional bricks-and-mortar company.''



-- iPhone there for I am

Gregory Stone once visited the Virgin Islands. They are now The Islands.

Gregory Stone's calendar goes straight from March 31st to April 2nd; no one fools Gregory Stone.

Gregory Stone can speak Braille.

When Gregory Stone exercises, the machine gets stronger.

Gregory Stone doesn't use pickup lines, he simply says, "Now."

Gregory Stone can kill two stones with one bird.

Gregory Stone can win a game of Connect Four in only three moves.

Gregory Stone once ate three 72 oz. steaks in one hour. He spent the first 45 minutes having s*x with his waitress.

Gregory Stone is the only man to ever defeat a brick wall in a game of tennis.

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles is based on a true story: Gregory Stone once swallowed a turtle whole, and when he crapped it out, the turtle was six feet tall and had learned karate.

Gregory Stone once challenged Lance Armstrong in a "Who has more t*sticles?" contest. Gregory Stone won by 5.

Gregory Stone once ate a whole cake before his friends could tell him there was a stripper in it.

When Gregory Stone has s*x with a man, it won't be because he is g@y. It will be because he has run out of women.

For some, the left t*sticle is larger than the right one. For Gregory Stone, each t*sticle is larger than the other one.

Gregory Stone ordered a Big Mac at Red Rooster, and got one.

It takes Gregory Stone 20 minutes to watch 60 Minutes.

Gregory Stone doesn't believe in New Zealand.

Gregory Stone can set ants on fire with a magnifying glass. At night.

Gregory Stone ! recently had the idea to sell his u*ine as a canned beverage. We know this beverage as Red Bull.

In a recent survey it was discovered the 94% of Australian women lost their virginity to Gregory Stone. The other 6% were incredibly fat or ugly.

Gregory Stone invented the internet... just so he had a place to store his p*rn.

One day Gregory Stone walked down the street with a massive er*ction. There were no survivors.

When Gregory Stone plays Monopoly, it affects the actual world economy.

Gregory Stone qualified with a top speed of 324 mph at the Daytona 500, without a car.

Shane Watson is allowed to live because Gregory Stone doesn't kill women.
When Gregory Stone goes swimming he doesn't get wet, the water gets Gregory Stoneed.

When the Boogeyman goes to sleep every night, he checks his closet for Gregory Stone.

Gregory Stone counted to infinity - twice.
When Gregory Stone does a push up, he isn't lifting himself up, he's pushing the Earth down.

Gregory Stone hand is the only hand that can beat a Royal Flush.

Gregory Stone gave Mona Lisa that smile.

Gregory Stone can slam a revolving door.

Gregory Stone's tears cure cancer. Too bad he has never cried. Ever.

Superman owns a pair of Gregory Stone pyjamas.

Gregory Stone owns the greatest Poker Face of all-time. It helped him win the 1983 World Series of Poker despite him holding just a Joker, a Get out of Jail Free Monopoly card, a 2 of clubs, 7 of spades and a green #4 card from the game Uno.

Gregory Stone doesn't pop his collar, his shirts just get erections when they touch his body.

Once a cobra bit Gregory Stone's leg. After five days of excruciating pain, the cobra died.

Gregory Stone divides by zero.

Gregory Stone is always on top during sex because Gregory Stone never f***s up.

Gregory Stone once had an erection while lying face down. He struck oil.

The only time Gregory Stone was wrong was when he thought he had made a mistake.

Location:Jalan Putra,Kuala Lumpur,Malaysia

View from my office

-- iPhone there for I am

7 Step creative workshop

Seven Steps For Creating Successful Marketing
by Jay Conrad Levinson

1. Find the inherent drama within your offering.

After all, you plan to make money by selling a product or a
service or both. The reasons people will want to buy from you
should give you a clue as to the inherent drama in your product
or service. Something about your offering must be inherently
interesting or you wouldn't be putting it up for sale. In Mother
Nature breakfast cereal, it is the high concentration of
vitamins and minerals.

2. Translate that inherent drama into a meaningful benefit.

Always remember that people buy benefits, not features. People
do not buy shampoo; people buy great-looking or clean or
manageable hair. People do not buy cars; people buy speed,
status, style, economy, performance, and power. Mothers of young
kids do not buy cereal; they buy nutrition, though many buy
anything at all they can get their kids to eat -- anything. So
find the major benefit of your offering and write it down. It
should come directly from the inherently dramatic feature. And
even though you have four or five benefits, stick with one or
two-three at most.

3. State your benefits as believably as possible.

There is a world of difference between honesty and
believability. You can be 100 percent honest (as you should be)
and people still may not believe you. You must go beyond
honesty, beyond the barrier that advertising has erected by its
tendency toward exaggeration, and state your benefit in such a
way that it will be accepted beyond doubt. The company producing
Mother Nature breakfast cereal might say, "A bowl of Mother
Nature breakfast cereal provides your child with almost as many
vitamins as a multi-vitamin pill." This statement begins with
the inherent drama, turns it into a benefit, and is worded
believably. The word almost lends believability.

4. Get people's attention.

People do not pay attention to advertising. They pay attention
only to things that interest them. And sometimes they find those
things in advertising. So you've just got to interest them. And
while you're at it, be sure you interest them in your product or
service, not just your advertising. I'm sure you're familiar
with advertising that you remember for a product you do not
remember. Many advertisers are guilty of creating advertising
that's more interesting than whatever it is they are
advertising. But you can prevent yourself from falling into that
trap by memorizing this line: Forget the ad, is the product or
service interesting? The Mother Nature company might put their
point across by showing a picture of two hands breaking open a
multivitamin capsule from which pour flakes that fall into an
appetizing-looking bowl of cereal.

5. Motivate your audience to do something.

Tell them to visit the store, as the Mother Nature company might
do. Tell them to make a phone call, fill in a coupon, write for
more information, ask for your product by name, take a test
drive, or come in for a free demonstration. Don't stop short. To
make guerrilla marketing work, you must tell people exactly what
you want them to do.

6. Be sure you are communicating clearly.

You may know what you're talking about, but do your readers or
listeners? Recognize that people aren't really thinking about
your business and that they'll only give about half their
attention to your ad- even when they are paying attention. Knock
yourself out to make sure you are putting your message across.
The Mother Nature company might show its ad to ten people and
ask them what the main point is. If one person misunderstands,
that means 10 percent of the audience will misunderstand. And if
the ad goes out to 500,000 people, 50,000 will miss the main
point. That's unacceptable. One hundred percent of the audience
should get the main point. The company might accomplish this by
stating in a headline or subhead, "Giving your kids Mother
Nature breakfast cereal is like giving your kids vitamins-only
tastier." Zero ambiguity is your goal.

7. Measure your finished advertisement, commercial, letter, or
brochure against your creative strategy.

The strategy is your blueprint. If your ad fails to fulfill the
strategy, it's a lousy ad, no matter how much you love it. Scrap
it and start again. All along, you should be using your creative
strategy to guide you, to give you hints as to the content of
your ad. If you don't, you may end up being creative in a
vacuum. And that's not being creative at all. If your ad is in
line with your strategy, you may then judge its other elements.

Gregory cs Stone

10 superb social media presentations

Slideshare is a fantastic resource for sharing presentations, so you can enjoy and learn from smart people even if you cannot attend the conferences and events they often speak at.

Some slideshows lose a lot of meaning if you dont have the author walking and talking you through them, but others are excellent, and there's a kind of brevity associated with the best presentations / slides, which helps to drill home the message.

I have recently been browsing a number of quality social media presentations on Slideshare and thought I'd collate some of the best ones for your viewing pleasure. Enjoy

Introduction to Social Media

View more documents from Kelsey Ruger.

Here are 20 ways to significantly improve your effectiveness in generating new ideas

• 1. Distribute your problem statement the night before so the
• subconscious can work on it
• 2. Free your imagination and have fun
• 3. Brainstorm as individuals before the group session
• 4. If you brainstorm alone, write continuously for another 5 minutes
• after you feel like you've run out of ideas
• 5. Limit the session to between 6-10 people and 30-40 minutes
• 6. Select a diverse range of participants including outsiders teens and
• children
• 7. Choose a relaxed space and create a friendly open atmosphere
• 8. Do a warm up exercise or ice breaker prior to the session
• 9. Most ideas in the first 3/4 of the brainstorm will be regurgitated
• ideas, it's the last quarter ideas that are generally breakthrough
• 10.When you're out of ideas, force yourself to add three more.
• Innovation and creativity can surface after the apparent solutions
• have been exhausted
• 11.Harvest a great number of ideas, extend and combine ideas
• 12.Use brainstorming sessions for more than just generating good
• ideas. Share knowledge, encourage a culture of creativity
• 13.Record all ideas unedited
• 14.Paralyze your judgment, analysis, and other mental blocks
• 15.Focus on quantity, not quality
• 16.Include outrageous and wacky ideas
• 17.Don’t allow discussion during the brainstorming activity. Talking
• about the ideas will take place after brainstorming is complete
• 18.Don’t criticize or judge. Don't even stare, frown, or giggle. All ideas
• are equally valid at this point
• 19.Let one idea give rise to another idea
• 20.Combine ideas as much as possible, but only when the original
• contributors agree

Boating

Sydney on a Friday night

Greggy heading out

-- Post From My iPhone

Transforming to higher stages of awareness

Ethics: why we bother

An ethical intention forces one to take the perspective of another and in doing so grow our own awareness. Anytime one takes another’s perspective one not only servers that person better but also facilitate one’s own evolution.

Transformation of our consciousness is one of the benefits of ethical living

So one may wish to ask this question: How does this work and is this a true statement?

At a certain developmental level, ethics takes the form of transcending chaotic selfish impulses and behaving according to moral law. (yes and)

At this conventional stage, morality means following strict that differentiae good from bad. (this makes everything we call civilization possible)

BUT

At higher levels of awareness or developmental stages, we kind of out grow these perspectives.

At this point one can easily become lost in a post modernist moral relavatisim ( whatever is right for you kind of thinking)

And lose out on the growth that is waiting to be found.

The way out is observation of the effect our actions and words, what it sets in motion so to speak. (Kama)

This then leads to a broader more inclusive perspectives that take in to account paradoxes, shaded of grey, competing values and contradictions.

Our consciousness is razed one level higher and we glimpse the freedom that awaits us we have a comicalogical conciseness

But still there is more

As one awakes from the dream it is quite easy to become arrogant and this is a huge mistake as the one has become aware of the interconnected nature of reality.

As conventional self – protective or fear based motives disappear ethical practice becomes even more important as one may easily fall into the trap of becoming god.

Ethics simplifies the ones relationship to the apparent others so one is not distracted by petty conflicts and this allows one to open up to the ever present moment.

Where am I at

Do you inwardly wince, actually experience mental, emotional pain when feeling one’s own unethical behaviour?

Our ethical lapses are closely associated with negative, unhappy, unskilful states of mind and emotion.

We behave the worst when we feel the worst inside.

All so note ethical lapses set in motion a whole stream of effects and causes that tend to keep us at our worst, they kind of reinforce themselves and one is TRAPPED, freedom is lost.

On the other hand ethical behavior reinforces positive, happy, skillful states of mind and emotion.

What are the costs

The short term cost of unethical behavior are

· Unhappy

· Contracted

· Unskillful states of mind

Long term cost of unethical behaviour are worse

· Vicious cycle of lies

· Self contempt

· Denial that erodes the foundation of our integrity and virtue.

When we do things we can’t openly confess we automatically generate defences to cope and in doing so build a prison for eternity .

Deception has extremely high costs.

It divides psyche, undermines self-esteem, compromises our core commitments and saps us of energy.

Self deception has the highest cost.

It’s the result of physiological repression, driving experience into unconsciousness and build inaccessible layers to complex behaviours that build huge levels of conflict.

We can no longer show up with any integrity

How does one solve Today

As we entered this era of interconnectivity something unique happened, our ability to solve problems changed significantly dramatically and possible forever.

Simply our ability to solve problems immediately!

Example:
To solve the problem what does Immanuel Kant term ”Categorical Imperative” mean? Google it and you have the answer in less than 30 seconds, previously one had to wait until they got to a library asked a friend visited the university or took a course in German philosophy, read thru 800 pages of very complex German to possible get a glimpse of its meaning.

Today 30 seconds…

What other problems can we solve each day using the web?

HEIDEGGER - a philosphy of personal liberartion

One does what one does and lives the way one lives and that this is mostly thru social conditioning, and we are in general unconscious and completely unaware of why we do what we do.

This self, that does what one does in an “unreflexed” way, is a kind of zombie like state without real free will.
We are what we take ourselves to be after the fact, we are basically how we interpret ourselves.

So how is one to evolve from this “public us” and crystallize an authentic life?

A dasien is always dimly aware of the way the world is “ungrounded” and that there is no real reason why one has to do things, this way or that way.

It isn’t because there is a rational reason why we should do things one-way or another , it isn’t because god ordering us to do things this or that and it’s not because human nature ordered us to do things this way or that way…

It’s all rather unsettling and give rise to “angst”.

So what is one to do about it?

One can either flee from it “angst” and move into conformity, even more and more into conformity until one has completely merged into a completely inauthentic state of being. Thus we find ourselves in the lives wondering why.
OR
One can be aware of this very fact, that there is no reason, no real meaning, nothing that will really define one’s life, no project that will fulfil.

It is the HOW you do things not the why, the why only leads in the final analysis to meaninglessness, one stops trying to fulfil oneself in that fashion hoping that attaining this or that will finally relive this angst, that there is no real grounded purpose and once this is realised one can be free to live authentically.
To hold on to angst and that will catapult one in to authentic living.

This does not mean you have to change anything, or give up projects or desires or drop out, it’s a realization of the HOW one could live authentically.
You no longer have to respond always to the general situation you can also respond as well to the unique situation.
You can stick with things without getting stuck in things, falsely thinking that this will define one’s life and finally give it meaning.

One can do what ONE does authentically while still fitting in to the situation one finds oneself in without the grief.
Not trying to get absolute meaning out of things, Accepting the ungroundedness of life and not having to conform to get respectability.

Truly a liberation of the soul and mind, making one flexible and joyful “Freude”.

revalation