Welcome to the May issue of my Blog... www.TheUrbanShaman.blogstop.com

The theme for this month is:
Mindfulness

I hope you are enjoying these blogs... It is my pleasure to share this information to you all. Please pass this information to your friends and family... or email me to join the mailing list if you are not in my database @ TheUrbanShaman@aol.com ...

Also, if you have any suggestions for future blogs... Use the “comments” button on the bottom of this months blog... or email me at: TheUrbanShaman@aol.com

Life is not just a journey... make it an adventure!
ENJOY! & Much love to you all...

Gail the Groovy


This is a thoughtful passage my friend Ralph from Rotterdam sent to me last week... and I am passing it on to you all!

Promise Yourself Each Morning!

To be so strong that nothing can disturb your peace of mind.

To talk health, happiness and prosperity to every person you meet.

To make all your friends feel there is something in them.

To look on the sunny side of everything and make your optimism come true.

To think only of the best, to work only for the best, and to expect only the best.

To be just as enthusiastic about the success of others as you are about your own.

To forget the mistakes of the past and press on to the greater achievements of the future.

To wear a cheerful countenance at all times and to have a smile ready for every living creature you meet.

To give so much time to the improvement of yourself that you have no time to criticize others.

To be too large for worry, too noble for anger, too strong for fear, and too happy to permit the presence of trouble.

To think well of yourself and to proclaim this fact to the world - not in loud words, but in great deeds.

To live in the faith that the world is on your side as long as you are true to the best that is in you.

©Societas Rosicruciana in America






Being Present in Mindfulness

Touching deeply is an important practice. We touch with our hands, our eyes, our ears, and also with our mindfulness. The first practice I learned was to breathe in and out consciously, to touch each breath with my mindfulness, identifying the in-breath as in-breath and the out-breath as out-breath. When you practice this way, your mind and body come into alignment, your wandering thoughts come to a stop, and you are at your best. Mindfulness is the substance of the Buddha. When you enter deeply into the moment, you see the nature of reality, and this insight liberates you from suffering and confusion. Peace is already there to some extent: the problem is whether we know how to touch it. Conscious breathing is the most basic Buddhist practice (that we all can benefit from) for touching peace.

Making Peace

We can practice in the same way with our eyes. Our eyes are wonderful, but we usually take them for granted. Every time we open our eyes, we see thousands of marvelous forms and colors. Those who are blind may feel that if they could recover their sight they would be dwelling in paradise, but we who have good eyes rarely take the time to appreciate that we are already in paradise. If we just take a moment to touch our eyes deeply, we will feel real peace and joy.

Touching each part of our body in mindfulness, we make peace with our body, and we can do the same with our feelings. There are many conflicting feelings and ideas within us, and it is important for us to look deeply and know what is going on. When there are wars within us, it will not be long before we are at war with others, even those we love. The violence, hatred, discrimination, and fear in society water the seeds of the violence, hatred, discrimination, and fear within us. If we go back to ourselves and touch our feelings, we will see the ways that we furnish fuel for the wars going on inside. Meditation is, first of all, a toll for surveying our own territory so we can know what is going on. With the energy of mindfulness, we can calm things down, understand them, and bring harmony back to the conflicting elements inside us. If we can learn ways to touch the peace, joy and happiness that are already there, we will become healthy and strong, and a resource for others.

I Am There for You...

The most precious gift we can offer others is our presence. When our mindfulness embraces those we love, they will bloom like flowers. If you love someone but rarely make yourself available to him or her, that is not true love. When your beloved is suffering, you need to recognize their suffering, anxiety, and worries, and just by doing that, you already offer some relief. Mindfulness relieves suffering because it is filled with understanding and compassion. When you are really there, showing your loving-kindness and understanding, the energy of the Holy Spirit is in you. Mindfulness is very much like the Holy Spirit. Both of them help us touch the ultimate dimension of reality. Mindfulness helps us touch Nirvana, and the Holy Spirit offers us a door to the Trinity.

Living Buddha, Living Christ
by, Thich Nhat Hanh

All photos by Gail Oliver © 2007