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The Wisdom of the Stoics by Frances Hazlitt and Henry Hazlitt

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The Wisdom of the Stoics: Selections from Seneca, Epictetus and Marcus Aurelius

If you want to know know about Stoicism I suggest you wiki it first because I’m not even going to start on it. Well maybe a little bit. There is so much wisdom in the philosophy. Too bad some of it confused me because of the way they talk that old school english.

Some things that stood out to me:
- I will live and die with this testimony: that I loved good studies, and a good conscience; that I never invaded another man’s liberty; and that 1 preserved my own. I will govern my life and my thoughts as if the whole world were to see the one, and to read the other; for what does it signify to make any thing a secret to my neighbor, when to God, who is the searcher of our hearts, all our privacies are open.
One part of virtue consists in discipline, the other in exercise; for we must first learn and then practice. The sooner we begin to apply ourselves to it, and the more haste we make, the longer shall we enjoy the comforts of a rectified mind; nay, we have the fruition of it in the very act of forming it: but it is another sort of delight, I must confess, that arises from the contemplation of a soul which is advanced into the possession of wisdom and virtue. If it were so great a comfort to pass from the subjection of our childhood into a state of liberty, how much greater will it be when we come to cast off the boyish levity of our minds, and range ourselves among the philosophers? We are past our minority, it is true, but not our indiscretions; and which is yet worse, we have the authority of seniors, and the weaknesses of children (I might have said of infants, for every little thing frights the one, and every trivial fancy the other). Whoever studies this point well will find that many things are the less to be feared the more terrible they appear.
- Bestowal of benefits: Don’t give because you’ve been asked to give, don’t give because you expect to reap some reward, don’t give to someone who will want more, etc.
- If you know someone is going to ask you for something… don’t wait for them to ask, let them save face and give if it is within your … givinghood?!
- It is better to offend seldom (owning it when we do), and act often wisely, than to say we seldom err, and offend frequently.
- If any one tells you that such a person speaks ill of you, do not make excuses about what is said of you, but answer: “He doth not know my other faults, else he would not have mentioned only these.”
- There is a funny part where Marcus Aurelius cautions one not to get angry over another persons smelly armpits and/or bad breath.
- Speech is the index of the mind.

Big up Tim Ferriss for mentioning Stoicism.

Contents
1. Introduction

2. Seneca
- Of a happy life
Happiness Founded Upon Wisdom
Happiness Founded Upon Virtue
Philosophy the Guide of Life
The Force of Precepts
No Felicity Like Peace of Conscience
A Good Man Can Never Be Miserable
Providence the Cure of Misfortunes
Of Levity of Mind
A Wise Man Proof Against Calamities
Of Sincerity of Manners
Happiness Can Never Depend Upon Fortune
What Befalls One May Befall All
A Sensual Life is a Miserable Life
Of Avarice and Ambition
The Blessings of Temperance and Moderation
The Blessings of Friendship
Consolations Against Death

- Of Benefits
Of Intentions and Effects
Of Judgment in the Bestowal of Benefits
Of the Matter of Obligations
The Manner of Obliging
Of Requital
Of How the Receiver Should Act
Of Ingratitude
Of Anger
Suppressing Anger
Anger a Short Madness
The Effect of Anger

- Epistles
Of Writing and Speaking
The Knowledge of Virtue

3. Epictetus
- Book One
- Book Two
- Book Three
- Book Four
- Fragments of Epictetus

4. Epictetus: The Enchiridion (or The Manual)

5. Marcus Aurelius
- Book One
- Book Two
- Book Three
- Book Four
- Book Five
- Book Six
- Book Seven
- Book Eight
- Book Nine
- Book Ten
- Book Eleven
- Book Twelve

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Born Standing Up (Audiobook) by Steve Martin

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Click to get the book, ebook or audiobook

Born Standing Up (Audiobook) by Steve Martin

I got this because Dane Cook mentioned the book in his talk with Google. The audiobook is read by Steve himself and it’s like a memoir about how and why he go in and got out of stand up comedy. The thing is, when Steve reads the book he sounds so boring. It’s like he didn’t have the energy to do it, nothing like how you see him in the movies. So while it was the hardest audiobook to focus on, I got to know parts of Steve that I didn’t know existed. And because I was so disappointed with the narration I thought I’d go through his standup albums and works before doing this review. Well his stand up is not only funny… the guy plays a mean banjo. I mean proper banjo skills! His act has lots of props and gimmicks, lots of magic, music and the tempo is all over the place. And his heckling skills are great! Some other works of his include a couple of music albums where he mostly plays the banjo in the band. So the audiobook was the not the most entertaining. Big up Dane Cook anyway, I got to see another side of Steve Martin.

Contents
- Beforehand
- Coffee and confusion
- Comedy through the airwaves
- Disneyland
- The bird cage theatre
- Television
- The road
- Breakthrough
- Standing down
- Acknowledgements

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EntreLeadership: 20 Years of Practical Business Wisdom from the Trenches (Audiobook) by Dave Ramsey

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EntreLeadership: 20 Years of Practical Business Wisdom from the Trenches (Audiobook) by Dave Ramsey

Click to get the book, ebook or audiobook

Most small businesses NEED to read or listen to this!!!! Everything you wanted to know about building and growing a business. This book is like The 4 Hour Work Week only more doable. How to be a leader in the business, how to grow more leaders. He doesn’t call them his employees but his team. It’s like a family and a dream family at that. Discipline is a must, if you are caught gossiping or having extra marital affairs, you gots to go. If you don’t fit the mission statement and goals, you gots to go! Such a wealth of knowledge, practices, ideas, mind frames and suggestions. Recently I was in Perth checking out my bros business and he’s already practicing most of it. How did he know!?

To get a better idea have a look at the first few pages of the pdf link below.
http://dlc.grandyassociates.com/files/pdf_UZWTKHJM.pdf

Contents
Introduction: And So It Begins
1. EntreLeadership Defined
2. Start with a Dream, End with a Goal – Living your Dreams, Visions, Mission Statements, and Goals.
3. Flavor You Day with Steak Sauce – Making the Most of Time Management and Organization.
4. “Spineless Leader” Is an Oxymoron – The Easier Way to Make Hard Decisions.
5. No Magic, No Mystery – The System, the Recipe, and the Truth About Great Marketing.
6. Don’t Flop Whoppers – A Practical Guide to Launching Your Dream.
7. Business Is Easy … Until People Get Involved – Hiring, Firing, and Personality Styles.
8. Death of a Salesman – The Art of Selling by Serving.
9. Financial Peace for Business – Bulletproof Principles for Money, Debt, and Funding Your Future.
10. The Map to the Party – Grasping the Undeniable Relationship Between Great Comunication and Great Companies.
11. People Matter Most – Building Unity and Loyalty with Your Best Resource.
12. Caught in the Act – Amplifying the Success of Your Business Through Recognition and Inspiration.
13. Three Things Successful People Never Skip – Dealing with Contracts, Vendors, and Collections.
14. Show Me the Money! – Compensation Plans That Fire People Up.
15. Mastering “the Rope” – Delegation: The Best Way to Build a Business Bigger Than You.

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Baloo the bear, Leo the lion and Shere Khan live together … thanx Reens

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Pics at the bottom

They make an unlikely trio but Baloo the bear, Leo the lion and Shere Khan the tiger have forged an unusually strong bond.
Considering that they would be mortal enemies if they ever were to meet in the wild, it is stunning to see their unique and genuine friendship in these intimate pictures.

Rescued eight years ago during a police drugs raid in Atlanta, Georgia, the three friends were only cubs at the time at barely two months old.

They had been kept as status symbol pets by the drug barons.
Delivered to the Noah’s Ark Animal Rescue Centre in Locust Grove, Georgia, the decision was made to keep the youngsters together, because of their budding rapport.

‘We could have separated them, but since they came as a kind of family, the zoo decided to keep them together,’ said Diane Smith, assistant director of Noah’s Ark. To our knowledge, this is the only place where you’ll find this combination of animals together.’
Living with the zoo’s founders for the past eight years, Shere Khan, Baloo and Leo have now moved to a purpose-built habitat where the US public can now witness first hand their touching relationships.

‘We didn’t have the money to move them at first,’ said Diane.
‘Now their habitat is sorted and they have been moved away from the children’s zoo areas where the public couldn’t really get a good look.
‘It is possible to see Baloo, who is a 1000-lb bear, Shere Khan, a 350-lb tiger and Leo, who is also 350 lbs, messing around like brothers. They are totally oblivious to the fact that in any other circumstance they would not be friends.’

Handled by Charles and Jama Hedgecoth, the zoo’s owners and founders, the three friendly giants appear to have no comprehension of their animal differences.

‘Baloo and Shere Khan are very close,’ says Diane.
‘That is because they rise early, and as Leo is a lion, he likes to spend most of the day sleeping. It is wonderful and magical to see a giant American Black Bear put his arm around a Bengal and then to see the tiger nuzzle up to the bear like a domestic cat.When Leo wakes up the three of them mess around for most of the day before they settle down to some food.’

Surprisingly for three apex predators with the power to kill with a single bite or swipe of their paw, they are very relaxed around each other.

‘They eat, sleep and play together,’ said Jama.
‘As they treat each other as siblings they will lie on top of each other for heat and simply for affection.

At the moment they are getting used to their new habitat.
Shere Khan is being quite reticent about the move, but Baloo, the bear, is very good at leading him on and making him feel comfortable and safe.’

Explaining that the three ‘brothers’ have always seemed to share a unique bond, Charles said: ‘Noah’s Ark is their home and they could not possibly be separated from each other.

‘You just have to remember who you’re dealing with when you are with them, though. It’s when you forget that these fellows are wild animals that you get yourself in trouble.’

The trio’s new habitat had to be constructed carefully, in order to accommodate its occupants.

Jama said: ‘The clubhouse had to be very sturdy for the guys, because they all sleep in it together,’

She added: ‘We had to include a creek, because the tiger and the bear both like to be in water.’

 

Lion, Tiger, Bear

Lion, Tiger, Bear

Lion, Tiger, Bear

Lion, Tiger, Bear

Lion, Tiger, Bear

Lion, Tiger, Bear

Lion, Tiger, Bear

Lion, Tiger, Bear

Lion, Tiger, Bear

Lion, Tiger, Bear

Lion, Tiger, Bear

Lion, Tiger, Bear

Lion, Tiger, Bear

Lion, Tiger, Bear

Lion, Tiger, Bear

Lion, Tiger, Bear

Lion, Tiger, Bear

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Vedic Wisdom behind eating with your hands

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Vedic Wisdom behind eating with your hands

Vedic Wisdom behind eating with your hands

Eating food with the hands in today’s Western society can sometimes be perceived as being unhygienic, bad mannered and primitive. However within Indian culture there is an old saying that,
” eating food with your hands feeds not only the body but also the mind and the spirit”.

In the Big Brother series some years back, an English participant complained about a indian participants use of her hands during food preparations and her eating habits, “They eat with their hands in India, don’t they? Or is that China? You don’t know where those hands have been.”  Within many Indian households nowadays, the practice of eating food with the hands has been replaced with the use of cutlery.

Have you ever thought of why previous generations in India ate with the hands? There is a reason for their this.  The practice of eating with the hands originated within Ayurvedic teachings. The Vedic people knew the power held in the hand.

The ancient native tradition of eating food with the hands is derived from the mudra practice, which is prevalent in many aspects within Hinduism. Mudras are used during mediation and are very prominent within the many classical forms of dance, such as Bharatnatyam.

The hands are considered the most precious organ of action. This is linked to the Vedic prayer of

“Karagre vasate Laksmih karamule Sarasvati Karamadhye tu Govindah prabhate karadarsanam”

(On the tip of your fingers is Goddess Lakshmi, on the base of your fingers is Goddess Saraswati; in the middle of your fingers is Lord Govinda), which we recite whilst looking at our palms. Thus, this shloka suggests that all the divinity lies in human effort.

Our hands and feet are said to be the conduits of the five elements. The Ayurvedic texts teach that each finger is an extension of one of the five elements. Through the thumb comes space; through the forefinger, air; through the mid-finger, fire; through the ring finger, water and through the little finger it is earth.

Each finger aids in the transformation of food, before it passes on to internal digestion. Gathering the fingertips as they touch the food stimulates the five elements and invites Agni to bring forth the digestive juices. As well as improving digestion the person becomes more conscious of the tastes, textures and smells of the foods they are eating, which all adds to the pleasure of eating.

You may have noticed that elders in the family hardly ever use utensils to measure all the different type of masala, and would instead prefer to use their hands to measure the quantity instead. As each handful is tailored to provide a suitable amount for the own body. Overall there are 6 main documented forms that the hands take when obtaining a measurement a certain type of food ranging from solid food to seeds, and flour.
This is a prime example of how many things within Hindu culture may seem weird and unusual at first glance, but once a closer look is taken it is surprising, but a vast amount of knowledge is revealed.


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Legend of the Serpent: The Biggest Religious Cover Up in History … from Rajesh Ganatra

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Legend of the Serpent: The Biggest Religious Cover Up in History … from Rajesh Ganatra

The serpent has been portrayed, within the western culture, as profane for many generations because of Christianity. But wouldn’t you know, the amount of wisdom and knowledge hidden behind the serpent it’s “self”, be sacred.


The serpent is depicted in several different ways, but the main format of use inherited represents the Spiritual balance of the Universe. (+) & (-) [positive and negative] or duality. In the flesh, the serpent symbolizes the control of desire or lack thereof. Positive charged control being portrayed with Quetzalcoatl, The Buddha, Shiva or even Moses. Negative charged lack of control, or chaos, is portrayed like Queen Madusa or Tiamat.

In Hinduism, a meditation technique called Kundalini is practiced. This technique balances your Chakras and helps open your 3rd Eye with practice. The person who’s intent is pure control over desires within this 3rd dimension, would be in great hands if this technique is practiced daily. Benefits range from enhanced life force (chi) to self healing awareness from this enhanced life force. As well as Soul rebirth to transformation and immortality, also because of this life force energy. And increased fertility. This technique consist of a style of meditation that pulls energy from Mother Earth through your Root Chakra and up your spine through every Chakra all the way up to your Crown Chakra. You can feel the tether of energy from the ground up with practice.

The energy pattern created by the practice of Kundalini, around the spinal cord, creates the Caduceus or the Staff of Hermes (Hermes also being a profane character to hide wisdom behind and maybe the origin of the profane devise). This portrays balance and control of desire. The Caduceus consists of a Female Serpent (+) and a Male Serpent(-). Each point of connection between the two serpents starting at the tail, represents each Chakra at the point of connection and the eyes of the serpents represent the 3rd Eye Chakra and the balancing of positive and negative energies it takes to open the 3rd Eye. The ball at the top of the staff symbolizes the Crown Chakra that connects us to Divine source. And of course the staff represents our spine. Once the 3rd eye is opened through this practice of Kundalini, flight in between the mortal and divine realms is enabled if mastered, represented by the wings.

This translates even further into the representation of the balance of atomic energy release through natural insemination, becoming your double helix of DNA.

We were created, energetically balanced into this world. Through lack of energy balancing practice, we have become extremely unbalanced.

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