Thought of Tuesday, June 12, 2012

This mail is HTML format, it contains pictures. If you cannot read it, Click here.

Tuesday, June 12, 2012 "When you give something to someone, obviously it is no longer yours. When you give the greengrocer money in exchange for a pound of cherries you are buying, you have a bit less money in your purse. But on the psychic plane, it is different: anything you give that is good and luminous makes you richer. Yes, and when you feel gratitude toward people, even if they give you nothing, you receive something. Does that surprise you? No, there is nothing surprising about it. Gratitude is the opening of your heart and your soul, and by opening up in this way you receive everything beautiful and good that nature and life have to offer. Even if such gifts were not intended for you in particular, you will receive them, whereas those who are ungrateful receive nothing, even if the gifts were meant for them. Be grateful, and you will have the feeling that the whole of heaven is opening up for you. Even if you have no reason for giving thanks, say many times a day, 'Thank you, thank you, thank you, Lord…'"   Complete Works SPIRITUAL ALCHEMY   Complete Works COSMIC MORAL LAWS   Izvor Collection The Mysteries of Fire and Water Omraam Mikhaël Aïvanhov

Feuilleter les livres sur www.prosveta.com Vous pouvez consulter la table des matières et lire le 1er chapitre de tous  nos ouvrages.

To make changes to your subscription or to unsubscribe... Click here

 

On Equality.

 

 

 

 

"Sine era et studio" (Without fear or pretentiousness) - Tacitus
On Equality      "Equality" was one of the three famous rallying cries of the French Revolution, the others being "Liberty" and "Fraternity."   "Equality" has been a goal of numerous political and social movements, Communism among them. "All people are born equal" had in it the assumption that if people are born equal, they should remain so. Inequality to them is an anomaly. The kibbutz movement in Israel, which I am advising now, has always had equality as a cornerstone of its philosophy. And it is a cornerstone of many religious movements, as well. I consulted to such an organization years ago: Kripalu, a USA yoga spiritual center. The Catholic Church, to whom the Adizes Institute consults today, has many Orders whose members commit to equality, poverty, and service. I encountered something similar in consulting to some Jewish families, originally from Halleb, Syria. The brothers in the family work as hard as they know how, earn as much as they can, but share equally, regardless of how much each of them has contributed. The same is true in traditional Albanian families. But, how does it work? Does it work? First, we should realize that there is no equality in nature. Look at animals; there is a clear hierarchy. But the same holds for humans. Look at your children: Don't they fight for the toy their sibling is holding, even if an identical toy is sitting on the floor next to them? In other words, if they want equality, there it is: two toys, exactly the same. So why are they fighting? For dominance. For a position on the totem pole, in the hierarchy. Not for equality. A hierarchy is one of the causes of inequality.  Since hierarchy cannot be avoided, nor can it be eliminated either legally or politically, since it is a natural phenomena, inequality can not be eliminated either. When equality is forced like in income levels, for instance, in order to return to the natural state of inequality, inequality in non-pecuniary differentials will appear with extra force(Status will become more important than when there are income differentials). And if equality is forced both in income levels and in status, somehow the dynamics of the social interactions will find a way to bring the system to its natural state of inequality. Take the kibbutz example. In my opinion, the insistence on equality in the monthly allowance for each member, as well as the insistence on the principle that leaders get no more recognition than anyone else, is causing much of the internal discord, even backstabbing, that characterizes some kibbutzim. Inequality is created by the negative feedback people give each other. They put themselves up by putting others down. A condition for finding a solution I believe is to first of all emancipate ourselves from a utopian expectation of equality. We should accept that there is not and cannot be equality, always and forever. Instead, we should be vigilant in ensuring that the inequality, at any point in time is not hopeless:  the "losers" should not perceive the inequality as impossible to overcome, that there is no future opportunity to be equal even through multi-generational efforts. In the meantime what to do?  What is a "workable inequality"? Regarding income differences, I found out from experience that a multiple of seven is tolerable: the top person in the organization does not earn more than seven times what the lowest paid in the same organization earns. A multiple of five is not only acceptable but recognized as being legitimate. A multiple of three is tolerable, but not sustainable; It will discourage people from taking leadership positions. I found out, again from experience, that those multiples work not only in financial terms, in income, but also for non-pecuniary rewards such as recognition and status symbols. For example, when structuring companies with the Adizes methodology, we insist on no more than seven layers in the organizational structure, regardless of how big the company is. (The largest company we ever restructured was a multi-national company with 250,000 employees.) I also insisted on this principle in designing a structure for the armed forces of a country: from private to the chief of staff, there should be no more than seven ranks. (Unfortunately, the client did not accept the principle, and the result has been an increasingly bureaucratic military establishment.) How about a family structure? Obviously, children are not equal to parents. But what about equality between the parents? Women have been demanding equality in all aspects of running family life. But in reality, has equality been achieved, or has a new and different but still unequal balance been established? I have noted a burgeoning movement of men demanding equality, because, for instance, they feel that women are increasingly getting a preferential treatment from courts in time of divorce. The multiple principle will not work here. No one is on salary and there is no such a thing like a multiple in recognition. What to do? With some effort, a workable inequality can be achieved in a dynamic way. How would that work? In certain areas of life, one party will have more than the other. For instance, the cosmetic needs of women exceed the cosmetic needs (so far) of men. So be it. At the same time, men's need for gadgets exceeds that of most women. (Please do not take this differentiation literally. Of course it is sometimes true that a woman wants more gadgets and a man more cosmetics. What is important is that there is give-and-take. The principle will obviously not work if one of the parties wants more of everything, in every arena, than the other party gets.) How about the hierarchy in decision-making? A workable solution is that on some issues the wife has final authority, while the man has final authority on others. The decision about who has final authority on which issues should be negotiated. There are extreme situations where "equality" is a social or political or religious requirement, a value statement that is forced. I found it can work (more or less) but it requires a very strong "parent," or leader, who is accepted unequivocally by all the stakeholders, who ensures that the natural forces of inequality are dealt with, one who instills religious, political, or social pressures to overcome the natural tendency for inequality. In the case of the kibbutzim, in the past, when Israel was being established, the dual ideologies of Communism and Zionism to build a homeland for the Jewish people, temporarily created a unifying force that obviated the need for a "parent" to solve the problems caused by forcing people into an unnatural environment requiring total equality. That unifying ideology did not last: the country was established and the Israeli pioneering society has been replaced by rampant materialism, and the kibbutzim inside that society that are still trying to live by the principles of equality are in serious crisis. Some have dissolved utterly, while others have become somewhat privatized and continue to struggle with how to define "equality"-and, indeed, how to define "kibbutz"-under these new organizational principles. The goal should not be equality in results. It is not natural. The goal should be equality in opportunities. The inequality in results should be carefully managed by the leadership of that system, in order not to become dysfunctional.  At the minimum, leadership must provide hope that the inequality can be overcome. Sincerely, Dr. Ichak Kalderon Adizes      Click here to comment on this article in the blog. Blog URL: http://www.ichakadizes.com/blog   Ichak Kalderon Adizes, PhD. CEO/President, Adizes Institute www.adizes.com What do you think? Please post your comments, criticism or support on my blog ...let me have it all. ***Reprint granted on the condition that a link to www.ichakadizes.com is provided. Copyright © 2012 Ichak Adizes. All Rights Reserved.		Permission granted to forward, print and download if full credit is given. ADIZES INSTITUTE LINKS About the Institute Professional Services Management Development Graduate School Online Store Licensees ANNOUNCEMENT These Insights are sent from insights@ichakadizes.com, and Insights from the Adizes Institute are sent from insights@adizes.com.  Please add these addresses to your spam filter so you can continue receiving our insights. FEATURED Tune in to my hour-long Internet Radio program titled "Adizes Methodology for Collaborative Management for Exceptional Results". The program airs every Saturday at 10 AM Pacific Time. Listeners can tune in by visiting www.voiceamericabusiness.com.

Forward email This email was sent to jaypeeji@gmail.com by insights@ichakadizes.com |   Update Profile/Email Address | Instant removal with SafeUnsubscribe™ | Privacy Policy. Adizes Institute | 1212 Mark Ave. | Carpinteria | CA | 93013

Living With the Himalayan Masters.

Living With the Himalayan Masters by Swami Rama

In this inspirational collection of stories Swami Rama relates his experiences with the great teachers who guided his life, including Tagore, Mahatma Gandhi, Sri Aurobindo, and Ramana Maharshi. Living with the Himalayan Masters documents Swami Rama's spiritual quest, which showed him that direct experience is the source of real knowledge.

"I will tell you how I grew up and how I was trained, about the great sages with whom I lived and what they taught me, not through lectures and books but through experiences," writes Sri Swami Rama in the opening pages of this timeless saga. 

These stories record his personal quest for truth and enlightenment. Inspiring, illuminating, entertaining, mystifying, and frequently droll and humorous, they bring you face-to-face with some great Himalayan Masters including Mataji of Assam - a ninety-six year old lady sage who never slept; Gudari Baba, who taught Swami Rama the value of direct experience; Yogi Sri Aurobindo, who integrated meditation with action; Uria Baba, who teaches that every human being has the potential for healing; Mahatma Gandhi, the Father of the Nation; and many other great and sometimes unknown saints.

About the Author:

One of the greatest masters from the Himalayas, Swami Rama is the founder of the Himalayan Institute. Born India, he studied in both India and Europe and received his spiritual training in the Himalayan cave monasteries and in Tibet. His best known work, Living With the Himalayan Masters reveals the many facets of this singular adept and demonstrates his embodiment of the living tradition of the East. 

---

Autobiography of a Yogi

 

 

Autobiography of a Yogi is one of the world's most acclaimed spiritual classics.

As the life story of Paramahansa Yogananda — who is often referred to as the Father of Yoga in the West — the book has touched the hearts and minds of millions around the globe. Translated into many languages, it has served as an ambassador for India's ancient science of Yoga, introducing countless readers to the methods for attaining God-realization that are India's unique and lasting contribution to world civilization.

In 1999, a Harper Collins panel of distinguished authors and scholars selected Autobiography of a Yogi as one of the "100 Best Spiritual Books of the Century."

Alive with all the love, warmth, joy, and wisdom that characterize Paramahansa Yogananda, this masterwork of religious literature includes chapters about: 

the science of Kriya Yoga meditation; the law of miracles; the lives and missions of Mahavatar Babaji, Lahiri Mahasaya, and Swami Sri Yukteswar; Yogananda's meetings with Mahatma Gandhi, Rabindranath Tagore, Ramana Maharshi, Luther Burbank, Therese Neumann, and other spiritual luminaries of East and West.

Initially published in 1946 to widespread critical acclaim, Autobiography of a Yogi quickly gained recognition as a literary masterpiece as well as a seminal work in the field of Eastern philosophy.

Before his passing in 1952, Paramahansaji revised the book — adding extensive material, including the lengthy last chapter. Since then, Self-Realization Fellowship has kept the book in print continuously. A perennial bestseller, it is one of the most widely read and respected books ever published on the wisdom of the East, and is used as a text and reference work in colleges and universities throughout the world.

"There has been nothing before,
written in English or in any other European language,
 like this presentation of Yoga."

 

— Columbia University Press

---

Apprenticed to a Himalayan Master

One of the most read and discussed books of modern times:

 

 

 

Apprenticed to a Himalayan Master:
A Yogi's Autobiography by Sri. M

The author Sri 'M' is an extraordinary individual. His uniqueness lies not only in the fact that at the young age of 19 and a half, he travelled to snow clad Himalayas from Kerala, and there he met and lived for several years with a 'real-time' yogi, Babaji, but also that he should undertake such an unusual and adventurous exploration, given his non-Hindu birth and antecedents.

The metamorphosis of Mumtaz Ali Khan into Sri 'M', a yogi with profound knowledge of the Upanishads and deep personal insights, born of first hand experiences with higher levels of consciousness is indeed a fascinating story.

The bonus for those interested in the secrets of yoga, meditation and sankhyan metaphysics is that Sri 'M' is still living and easily reachable. He leads a normal life, married with two children, wears no special robes and conducts himself without pomp or paraphernalia.

Someone who met him recently said, "I expected a flashy godman and instead I saw a jean clad gentleman with a smile of his face, ready to discuss my problems. In five minutes flat, I said to myself, this is no ordinary man. The peace and tranquility that enters your system is tangible".

For more information about Sri M, please visit
www.satsang-foundation.org

---

Breaking Patterns.

It is required that we frequently break away from our methods so that we don't fall into patterns. It often becomes necessary because we cannot wait for someone or something to complement us. We have to do both parts and then there is peace. One should be quite hasty and at the same time consciously slow-paced. Then the stress graph will show a flat line.

---

Good deeds return.

There was a Nebraska farmer who grew award-winning corn. Each year he
entered his corn in the state fair where it won a blue ribbon...

One year a newspaper reporter interviewed him and learned something
interesting about how he grew it. The reporter discovered that the farmer
shared his seed corn with his neighbours.

"How can you afford to share your best seed corn with your neighbors when
they are entering corn in competition with yours each year?" the reporter
asked.

"Why sir," said the farmer, "didn't you know? The wind picks up pollen from
the ripening corn and swirls it from field to field. If my neighbors grow
inferior corn, cross-pollination will steadily degrade the quality of my
corn. If I am to grow good corn, I must help my neighbors grow good corn."

He is very much aware of the connectedness of life. His corn cannot improve
unless his neighbors corn also improves.

So it is in other dimensions. Those who choose to be at peace must help
their neighbors to be at peace. Those who choose to live well must help
others to live well, for the value of a life is measured by the lives it
touches. And those who choose to be happy must help others to find
happiness for the welfare of each is bound up with the welfare of all.

The lesson for each of us is this: if we are to grow good corn, we must
help our neighbors grow good corn.**