Will Bowen's Blog, page 55

JumpStart – Timing

SYNOPSIS The other day I went to see my doctor for some antibiotics to treat a worsening upper respiratory infection. “I haven’t been sick in years,” I coughed. “I’m sorry you’re sick now,” she responded. “Oh NO!” I croaked. “This is the PERFECT time for me to get sick. I just finished a solid month […]

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JumpStart – Niyama #5 – ISHVARA PRANIDHANA

SYNOPSIS When someone betrays you, disappoints you, or hurts you, you can rail against their behavior or you can, in time, surrender and move on. As you age you can be upset over your body changing and becoming weaker, less agile, and more fragile, or you can surrender to the aging process. To accept is […]

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JumpStart – Niyama #4 – SVADYAYA

SYNOPSIS Like most students drawn to psychology in college, I took Psych classes as a way to try and figure out my own insane family and the craziness I picked up just being a part of it. I still remember one of my first university psych classes when the professor taught us about the Johari […]

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JumpStart – Niyama #3 – TAPAS

SYNOPSIS No, I’m not talking about small dishes of Spanish food. As the third of the Hindu Niyamas (thou SHALT do this), Tapas refers to self-discipline — to improving one’s self through deliberate mental, physical, and spiritual practice. Could you imagine what the world would be like if all cultures believed that to improve one’s […]

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JumpStart – Niyama #2 – SANTOSHA

SYNOPSIS As I’ve said many times before my favorite book of all time is Illusions by Richard Bach. The foreword for the book tells the story of a Messiah preaching to a crowd and the audience becoming so inspired that they swear, en masse, to do anything — ANYTHING — to serve God. To which […]

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JumpStart – Niyama #1 – SAUCHA

SYNOPSIS As I mentioned in previous JumpStarts, unlike the 10 commandments, which are a list of “Thou Shalt Nots,” the Hindu Yamas tell one what NOT to do and the Niyamas tells us what we SHOULD do. The first Niyama is SAUCHA – be pure. Purity in body, mind, heart, ethics, and intention. The rewards […]

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JumpStart – Yama #5 – APARIGRAHA

SYNOPSIS “She’s got that Midas touch” someone says when a coworker scratches off her second winning lottery game card of the week. “Everything she touches turns to gold.” People use King Midas as an example of someone who was very lucky because literally everything he touched turned to gold. However, King Midas’s story is actually […]

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JumpStart – Yama #4 – BRAHMACAHRYA

SYNOPSIS The fourth of the Hindu Yamas is BRAHMACAHRYA — appropriate sexuality. You might be wondering why so many religions put constraints on sexuality. For some, the primary main reason was so that priests could have no legitimate progeny. (I’ll explain why in the video.) Within the context of BRAHMACAHRYA we look at sex that […]

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JumpStart – Yama #3 – ASTEYA

SYNOPSIS The third of the Hindu Yamas is ASTEYA — non-stealing. In the sense of this ancient tradition, not stealing means more than not taking people’s stuff. It means not stealing their ideas, not stealing their good name by spreading gossip, not stealing their sense of self-worth by being critical, and more. When we begin […]

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JumpStart – Yama #2 – SATYA

SYNOPSIS The second of the Hindu Yamas is SATYA — truthfulness. Whenever we consider truthfulness we must remember that the idea of “brutal honesty“ is a myth. There is brutality. And, there is honesty. The two cannot go together. We can be honest with others without being hurtful. How can you begin to be more […]

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