Meditation: Mindful Prostration

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Once you have checkmarked the points discussed in the introduction, then you should be able to start your meditation session, which consists of three separate sections:

1. Mindful prostration
2. Walking
3. Sitting

Mindful Prostration:

Some people may find it unnecessary, a waste of time or even something that is against their religious beliefs. Far from that, mindful prostration is good for your body and your heart as well as being an excellent tool to prepare the mind for the rigours involved in the following sections. Essentially it will help you to meditate better as it is part of the meditation process itself.

Here's a video that shows you how to correctly perform a mindful prostration (Buddhist Vipassana):

Read more on this article...

Meditation: Introduction

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I will be discussing different meditation methods in order for you to get acquainted with them and get into the dynamics of meditation which is nonetheless a tool that enables the practitioner to tap into subtle universal energies and activate the higher self. These methods are drawn from Buddhist and Taoist systems but can be used for anyone regardless their spiritual and/or philosophical beliefs.

Before I start, you must bear in mind that no meditation method is successful if patience, discipline and regularity are not observed. There are ways that accelerate this process (Qigong, Pranayama, Internal Martial Arts) but ultimately perseverance is the key to success.

Complicated yogic postures (asanas) will not be discussed because they do not provide (regardless of many teachers' claims) the benefits of the insight or self-inquiry method, or even pure concentration, for instance Buddhist samatha or Taoist Golden Light meditation. Those postures are great for physical health but ultimately they will not help you tap into higher states of consciousness or spiritual enlightenment if that were the goal.

1. The first and foremost point of practice is finding a comfortable place to meditate. Do not worry about isolating yourself from the external environment because sooner or later you will come across something distracting and interfere with your practice (problem that many meditators encounter as they try to develop a deeper concentration level). Therefore that place needs to be in touch with the world so to speak. Comfortable and quiet but not to comfortable and quiet.

2. You can sit on the floor leg-crossed or on a chair but you must ensure not to rest your back against the back something as this will be too comfortable and real meditation goes beyond that. I will further explain this point later on.

3. If sitting on the floor using a cushion or two to keep your spine straight and a mat to provide a soft surface for both legs to lay on. Personally I have a tilted pelvis and use a telephone book that I place below my meditation cushions enabling me to sit higher and therefore maintain a correct spine posture.

4. Do not use any devices that are helpful to get into low frequency brain waves (alpha and theta) because they will deviate us from the real goal, which is controlling mind-thought. I may sound harsh but if you use these devices then you will become dependent on them and as a result the mind would have won another of its battles. You need to learn to meditate using only the power of YOU.

5. Make sure to wear comfortable and loose clothing if possible as they will help you to become more relaxed and allow the flow of internal energy. Remove any jewelry or foreign objects of your body if you can for the same reason.

6. Your meditation room needs to be free from any devices that are a source of electromagnetic energy as they interfere with the natural meditative course. Read more on this article...

More about alcohol

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I read in the newspaper today that hearing problems may be a sign of fetal alcohol exposure in some children. One researcher stated that even if children did not have the facial features of fetal alcohol syndrome, they might still have a hearing deficit due to alcohol exposure in the womb.


In addition, researchers also stated that alcohol could affect the developing baby's central nervous system.

Along these lines, investigator John W. Olney, M.D., Professor of Neuropsychopharmacology described that copious amounts of alcohol can trigger such extensive death of nerve cells that it provokes a permanent reduction in the size of the brain and long-term cognitive impairment in mice. He believes the same type of process can explain the harmful effects of alcohol on the developing human brain, a condition known as "fetal alcohol syndrome."

I would add to that that not only human fetus but also young, adult and old humans. Stop reading here and think of the consequences that excess "fire" energy will have on a living organism: it will simply burn it overtime due to the imbalance created by the excess itself.

I don't think this news will deter people from drinking alcohol but at least it will rise awareness about the risks involved in alcohol consumption not only to ourselves but also to others. Read more on this article...

Meditation

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The main purpose of meditative practices is to balance mind, body and spirit and tune it with the natural vibrations of the Universe. They can be classified in two major groups:

1. The ones that work directly on the mind.

2. The one that use internal energy to remove various blockages and attain what Chinese Taoists call a state of emptiness; that is, where one is at peace with the self and the external environment.

A classic example of mind-based meditation is Buddhist Samatha which is designed to improve sustained concentration, and concludes in an attention that can be maintained steadily and for hours on end.

On the other hand, Taoist meditation uses human internal energy in order to accomplish serenity. Mind concentration is important here as we are visualizing the energy flow through the various meridians and vital organs.

Which method is the best?

It all depends in your goals, spiritual seekers trying to attain spiritual enlightenment a method devised by Gautama Buddha will be used. For all others, any meditation system is good as it will trigger a profound transformation of body, mind and spirit increasing the vitality, improving the health of the practitioner and ultimately delay the aging process. Besides, things that are commonly a cause of worry and stress to the ordinary human will appear transparent to the experienced meditator.

In the future, I will be discussing in more detail different meditative methods so you can start practicing on your own and enjoy their benefits.

Also bear in mind that no meditation methods are productive if discipline and dedication are not not put in place. Always keep this in mind. Read more on this article...

Superbugs in water

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Today I came across a newspaper article that discussed the issue how flesh-eating bacteria resistant to antibiotics have found their way from hospital sewers into rivers and streams throughout Queensland, Australia.

Interesting article which proves that filtering tap water is a must today. Just think what could have happened if any of those bugs found their way through public water supplies (highly unlikely but not at a 100% rate). Not only that, hospital waste water also carries 56 chemicals and heavy metals -some highly toxic-. It is not difficult to imagine that anyone swimming in a waterhole were the waste from hospital sewers was running back down to was at high risk.

Authorities turn a deaf ear on this issue since their political agendas are too busy with affairs that tend to generate a financial profit ignoring the fact that a healthy and vibrant community is something that must be nurtured in order for the whole to function positively. It is well-known that whether whether people are healthy or not, is determined by their circumstances and environment. To a large extent, factors such as where we live, the state of our environment, genetics, our income and education level, and our relationships with friends and family all have considerable impacts on health, whereas the more commonly considered factors such as access and use of health care services often have less of an impact.

The context of people’s lives determine their health, and so blaming individuals for having poor health or crediting them for good health is inappropriate. Individuals are unlikely to be able to directly control many of the determinants of health.

Enjoying a healthy water supply is beyond the control of the inhabitants of any community, and therefore communities which do not fulfill that requirement will have lowered health outcomes as opposed to those living in communities with a correct water supply.

An excellent source of information about this topic can be found in the following text:

Basic Environmental Health (Yassi et al.). Hardcover. Oxford University Press. 2001. Read more on this article...

Do you buy the correct food?

Time to promote Easter treats. Target the children as they are an easy market to prey on!

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People think that eat good quality food when the reality is unfortunately different. When you go and take a look at the local supermarket then you realize that most foods are junk. What consumers carry in their trolleys is not a good indication that that person/family are purchasing the correct foods to be able to achieve a state of good health. Besides, schools don't include in their curricula "Nutrition" as a subject and if they do what they teach is quite limited. The reality is quite frightening because as we know: You are what you eat.


OK, let's take a look at the various foods you can find in a supermarket trolley in the city where I currently live (Brisbane, Australia):

1. Soft drinks
2. Pastry
3. Biscuits and savoury biscuits
4. Highly processed breads, i.e. sliced white bread
5. Sauces
6. Various edible oils, butter and margarine
6. Processed meats
7. Processed cheese
8. Breakfast cereals, doughnuts, waffles, etc.
9. Frozen fast foods

All this junk is sold in many supermarkets around the world and make people believe that it is healthy for them. Far from that, as they are loaded with sugar, fat, additives and preservatives that create addiction. Major food companies label, heavily promote and sell them to the public, and this people don't care about your health. Their policy is pure profit and to achieve that they act in similar fashion as tobacco companies do with cigarettes: load their products with addictive substances in order to sell more.

I advice you to introduce a food-plan where you slowly start crossing out the items I listed above and replace them with natural alternatives (fruits, vegetables, nuts, fresh fish, etc.). It will required some time to achieve this goal since your taste buds and your controlling mind have been accustomed to from the very moment you started consuming them. It requires habit to break a habit.

Also, this problem will be aggravated if the consumer is happen to follow a sedentary lifestyle since the system is clogged with all the poisons deposited by the consumption of junk foods.

My recommendation is to stay away from most of the foods sold in the supermarket if you are to live a healthy and disease-free life.


Some photos I took today at Woolworths (Indooroopilly, Brisbane), the largest supermarket chain in Australia. They are all in order starting at the top:

1. Frozen desserts

2. Tim Tams (highly addictive garbage)

3. Dips section






















































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Is alcohol bad for you?

Calories are needed to provide energy so the body functions properly. The number of calories in a food depends on the amount of energy the food provides. The number of calories a person needs depends on age, height, weight, gender, and activity level. People who consume more calories than they burn off in normal day activity or during exercise are more likely to be overweight.

From the following mini-table you can see that alcohol contains almost the same number of calories as fat in 1 gram:

Fat: 1 gram = 9 calories
Protein: 1 gram = 4 calories
Carbohydrate: 1 gram = 4 calories
Alcohol: 1 gram = 7 calories
Dietary fibre: 1 gram = 3 calories
Water: 0.001 litre = 0 calories


The following guide provides a comparison amongst different sources of alcoholic beverages:






















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Note: 1 Calorie = 4.184 kilojoules


As you all know alcohol has been portrayed in society as a cool thing, a way of either socializing with others or as a escape from life/society pressure. But its effects are devastating on the mind (if abused) and in the body as well (if we add alcohol to an already deficient diet).

Check out this table in detail:






























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So it is entirely up to you whether you should continue with this unhealthy practice or not. But honestly alcohol consumption provides no other benefits than temporary pleasure which is fleeting anyway and the significant disadvantage of being highly addictive. I am still trying to understand why society hasn't condemned the use of alcohol but it is quickly judging values such as honesty, trust and virtue. I will talk about this issue in more detail later on.

In the meantime watch this clip and you'll see about the consequences of alcohol misuse:





Read more on this article...

Eat healthy and drink purified water

Eating healthy is one of the keys to good health (the other three being good air, water quality and mind control). Today's food quality has worsened for the following main reasons:

Our physical well-being is more dependent upon the quality of the vitamins and minerals (micronutrients) than the exact proportions of fats, proteins and carbohydrates (macronutrients); in other words, what people call calorie counting. Crash diets only bring stress on the system because the quality of the food is not as good as it used to be due to soil depletion, food additives, use of pesticides, unnatural feeding farm stock practices, etc.


In addition, today's society structure has led humans to rely on quick food sources instead of more traditional models, which has only triggered more health issues. What you see on TV is what you should eat! Basically this is the motto in major industrialized countries such as the US, UK, Canada or Australia.

It is sad to see how pizzas and hamburgers obtain more promotion than strawberries or fresh fish. Insane!
























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My guidelines are the following:

1. Eat as much fresh food as you can. Fruit, vegetables, fresh fish, legumes and control the red meat intake. If you can afford it eat organic food sources (not found in the regular supermarket though).

2. Drink plenty of purified water. Avoid bottled water (anyway I find nuts having to pay for water). Purchase a water-filtering system instead. There are several systems available in the market. Activated carbon filtration is still most effective as the design efficiently scrubs away any harmful contaminates without stealing any mineral water benefits. I would stay away from the hype of Reverse Osmosis systems since they remove all the minerals existing in the water.

I will discuss living in an environment with plenty of fresh air as well different mind control techniques in following posts. Read more on this article...

Better health

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Is it feasible to attain good health?

Indeed it is but there is a lot of misinformation going on. Sometimes I am wondering if all this nonsense we have have been exposed to by society and fuelled by the media is really conducive to a healthy lifestyle. The truth is very simple: NO.


Society and modern consumerism haven't really empowered individuals in terms of making good healthy choices; far from that, they have been exposed to unrealistic goals which in turn have led them to develop a range of mental, emotional and physical conditions which are indeed problematic.

Does this mean that modern societies are worse off than before industrialization started in the early XIX century?

No, I didn't say that, what I said is that we have developed conditions that were unseen in ancient societies: stress, alienation, anxiety, etc.

I will keep this sort because I don't want to frame my blog into something purely academic.

In here I will share with you my secrets which can be achieved by everyone who is willing to put a bit of effort.

And remember the trick is making my teachings a habit. Read more on this article...

Health and Meditation Corner

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In upcoming weeks, I will share with you a range of healthy and meditative methods that will increase your stamina, concentration, physical and emotional well-being.

My system is not conventional because it incorporates methods that cannot be proven by modern science yet; however they have been practiced in ancient cultures for thousands of years, namely India and China and have been proved effective by their practitioners.

Am I implying these methods are pure hoax? Fat from that, I can assure you they work very effectively because I have experienced firsthand their immense benefits and will certainly teach you how to incorporate them in your daily life bearing in mind busy lifestyles. Read more on this article...