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Question:

My question today is about kleshas which I believe are sometimes described as defilements and I understand them as character traits rooted in the unconscious mind which give rise to unwholesome behaviour, such as fear, greed, envy etc.

Following my shift in consciousness I spent about 5 years in a blissful state. Emotions arose but seemed to pass through and I didn’t have the sense of being driven by them. It was as though life was living itself through me and there was a lack of a personal self.

About 2 years ago I began to experience very strong emotions. It was as though the emotions were suddenly back and the gloves were off. Things that had not bothered me at all, suddenly seemed very important and after a while I had to admit that they were definitely driving me. I found this very confusing. About a year ago, I met an Indian gentleman who is a Hindu and has studied extensively in that tradition but also in the Buddhist tradition. He was able to help me with an explanation. He makes a distinction between levels of Samadhi and levels of enlightenment. He said that there are 4 levels of Samadhi which can be experienced in a human body and that the shift I experienced in 2002 took me to the third level. I had described it as feeling as though nobody was driving the bus and he said that I could think of it as moving from a relatively small bus, to a huge bus, so huge that I could no longer find the driving seat. The driver was still there but at a subtler level. There are also 4 levels of enlightenment which can be experienced in a human body and the first level is attained when the kleshas of wrong view, envy, avarice and doubt are gone. He said that through the mantra meditation I had done I had dealt with the branches and trunk of the kleshas but that the roots were still there, hence the strong emotions. I’ve since read up on some of this in Theravada Buddhist books and have also read Joe Dispenza’s “Evolve Your Brain”. After a big shift, the mantra didn’t seem to do anything anymore, so I hadn’t had a daily practice since then. About six months ago I learnt vipassana meditation from my Indian friend during a 10-day silent retreat that he held for a small group. My program now is about 2-3 hours in the morning comprising physical yoga, yogic breathing and vipassana meditation. I also do about an hour of vipassana meditation in the evening. I am enjoying this and feel it is right for me at the moment, however, I’m finding these very strong emotions quite hard to deal with even though I now have a greater understanding of what is going on. I have another 10-day silent retreat coming up soon so I’m sure that will help.

I would be very grateful for your insight.

Few people are totally good or evil.  Most are a blend of the two and it is in this that we can find wholeness. The Spectrum of the Mind – Good vs. Evil vs. Wholeness by Andrea Mathews     What is the playground of the mind? Where does it dally? What is the range of possibilities available to you within the scope of your mind? No, I’m not going to talk to you, yet again, about the Law of Attraction. I’m going to talk to you about the range of possibilities inherent within the Good/Evil spectrum. You see, most of us grew up believing that there was a standardized definition of “good” and a standardized definition of “evil.” The spectrum actually ranges from “Holy” to “Evil” with “good” at close proximity along the spectrum to “Holy,” and “bad” at close proximity to “Evil.” That’s the range of possibilities available, then, to most of us in our minds. We believe in “good,” “bad,” “Holy,” and “Evil” more than we believe in almost anything else. We came to this belief because our families of origin taught us that certain things were good, and others were bad or downright evil. It was possible for us to be good, bad or evil, but it was not possible, within this belief system, for us to be Holy—that was reserved for the divine. So most of us were taught to strive after being good so that we wouldn’t be bad or evil. And most of us have spent our lives trying to do that. Of course, this also means that some of us will identify with the bad or evil side of the spectrum since it is one of the possibilities available to us. So, for example, a child who is chastised with severity or…

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Lawmakers in the state of Georgia have introduced a new bill that takes pro-life logic one step further and aims to ensure that any time men who are 55 or older ejaculate, they would be bound by law to immediately report themselves to law enforcement.

The new bill, House Bill 604, is succinct and cuts straight to the point: “Any male 55 years of age or older shall immediately report to the county sheriff or local law enforcement agency when such male releases sperm from his testicles.”

HB 604 co-sponsor Rep. Park Cannon told the Atlanta Journal-Constitution that the “bill helps men who are well past reproductive age to self report when they willfully engage in conception.”

But the bill, which was sponsored by a group of black female Democratic state representatives, isn’t simply a case of “big government” run amok.

The intention isn’t so much a bid to restrict a man’s right to choose or to interfere in his reproductive health, but to make a broader point against the state’s recently-passed “heartbeat bill,” which aims to ban abortion at any point once a heartbeat is detected in the womb–which often occurs six weeks into a pregnancy, before many women are even aware that they are carrying an embryo.

Another proposal, House Bill 481, would also see fetuses “at any stage of development” included in the state population count and would allow parents to list the unborn as dependents in their tax filings.

State Representative Dar’shun Kendrick has lambasted the move as yet another sign of a predominantly male, conservative legislature seeking to control women’s bodies and their reproductive rights.

In a Monday tweet, Kendrick contributed to the debate with her own “testicular bill of rights,” saying: “You want some regulation of bodies and choice? Done!”

Ggggooooodddd morning! Introducing my "testicular bill of rights" legislative package. You want some regulation of bodies and choice? Done! pic.twitter.com/5E8HBRSc9l

— Dar'shun Kendrick (@DarshunKendrick) March 11, 2019

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The tweet, which had already been retweeted 4.5 thousand times as of Wednesday evening, was accompanied by a screenshot of an email listing how her proposal would protect the “rights” of testicles. Those rights include banning and punishing vasectomies, demanding that men obtain written permission from sexual partners before they obtain prescriptions for erectile dysfunction medications, and criminalizing sex without a condom as “aggravated assault.” Men would also require a 24-hour waiting period before they purchase any pornographic or erotic materials such as sex toys.

But Kendrick isn’t seeking to push some agenda against males—in an interview with Rolling Stone she admitted that her “testicular bill of rights” has little chance of advancing through the Georgia Assembly.

But as a lawyer, she also understands that bills seeking to ban abortion are simply unconstitutional and are largely a test balloon, part of a broader incremental assault on women’s reproductive choices.

And she is “dead serious” about the introduction of her proposed legislation, noting that she wants to see a draft on her desk by the weeks’ end. Kendrick added: “[This bill will] bring awareness to the fact that if you’re going to legislate our bodies, then we have every right to propose legislation to regulate yours.”

The post Lawmakers Push ‘Sperm Bill’ Requiring Older Men to Call the Cops When They Ejaculate appeared first on The Mind Unleashed.

Question:

I hung up the phone last night after talking to my best friend of 30 years. I haven’t been able to think of anything else, since then. So, I decided I needed to ask someone I admire to help me understand. She and I have spent so much time learning about different paths to spirituality, reading The Power of Now, Conversations with God together, and traveling to Las Vegas to see all of you wonderful teachers at the “I Can Do It” Events. So my question is this: She told me on the phone that the Mexican immigrants are ruining everything in CA. They take jobs away from us and don’t want to work just drain the government, etc. How can I reconcile this behavior with who I thought she was and accept or help her see exactly what she is saying? I tried to ask her where she got those facts and she said, “I do my research”. Am I crazy? It just seems that the “right wing extreme positions” (I don’t know how to describe that) cannot coincide with A Course in Miracle’s teaching of love and acceptance and abundance for all. Help me, I don’t want to lose my dear friend, but I don’t know how to talk about things with her anymore. Thank you for any insight you may have for me.

The following excerpt describes the interview process in the authors’ study, as well as the fluctuating moods and behaviors that many prisoners experience after beginning meditation and yoga. Farias and Wikholm discuss the dangerous effects that prisoners might have when they are too aware of their emotions, sharing a letter from an inmate. Downward Dog with Deviants – Yoga For Prisoners     The interview process was quite full on keen to get as many participants as we could, I would often interview several prisoners a day. The majority went very smoothly. All the prisoners were taking part voluntarily, and all of them wanted to do the yoga, so it’s probably not surprising that they were generally co-operative. Many also seemed to be pleased to have the opportunity to speak to a human being who wasn’t a prison officer or another prisoner, even if the conversations mostly involved me asking them about 200 closed questions regarding their mood and behavior. Only a couple of times did I find myself in an uncomfortable situation. Once, I had to halt an interview midway. All was going well until the prisoner thought that the question ‘How guilty have you felt over the last week, on a scale of one to five?’ implied that he was guilty of his offense. His response was aggressive, raising his voice and slamming his hands down on the table. When he had calmed down enough to give his answer, it was a very emphatic ‘1’ (‘not at all’). We continued for about three more questions until I had to ask: ‘How ashamed have you felt over the last week?’ The response this time was an angry tirade of denial and fury at the criminal justice system – and it was the only time during the interviews that I…

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OMTimes is thrilled to have William Keepin, Ph.D. on the cover of the OMTimes Magazine March A 2019 Edition. OMTimes Magazine March A 2019 Edition with William Keepin, PhD William Keepin, Ph.D., is a co-founder of the Satyana Institute and the Gender Equity & Reconciliation International project. William Keepin is also a mathematical physicist, social activist, and environmental scientist whose research on sustainable energy and global warming influenced international environmental policy. His latest work is Belonging to God: Spirituality, Science & a Universal Path of Divine Love. OMTimes is proud to share this exclusive interview. OMTimes Media is one of the leading online content providers of positivity, wellness, and personal empowerment. A philanthropic organization, their net proceeds are funneled to support worldwide charity initiatives via Humanity Healing. Through their commitment to creating community and providing conscious content, they aspire to uplift humanity on a global scale. OMTimes: Co-Creating a More Conscious Lifestyle. You have found value with us over the years, it is time to share the positive energy back and help support the changemakers of this community.  To enjoy the OMTimes Magazine Digital eZine with its eye-catching graphics, please CLICK HERE TO READ THE EZINE ON THE OMTIMES WEBSITE or choose one of our awesome partners below. Kindle and the Kindle App If you are going to read the eZine on an iOS or Android device, please make sure you download the free Kindle app which is available on the page. Magzter Issuu Issues offers individual issues.  Select the edition you wish to read and click on it.  You can also order print copies. iTunes Google Play   To receive the best of OMTimes articles delivered to your inbox, Sign up for the OMTimes Newsletter!   Connect with OMTimes Magazine Digital eZine Subscribe to the OMTimes Magazine Digital eZine

Transnational corporation Johnson & Johnson has been accused of playing the role of “kingpin” in the nationwide opioid epidemic that continues to claim thousands of lives every year, according to an Axios report.

The pharmaceutical, medical, and consumer goods giant–which holds a range of properties including some of the most recognizable U.S. brands such as Band-Aids, No More Tears baby shampoo, and Neosporin, among others–has been accused by officials in the state of Oklahoma of playing the role of supplier, seller and lobbyist in the global opioid market.

J&J’s work in the painkiller market was done through two subsidiaries, Noramco and Tasmanian Alkaloids, which it sold to a private equity firm in 2016 for $650 million, according to Axios.

The company has long depicted itself as a “family company” operating under the credo:

“We are responsible to the communities in which we live and work and to the world community as well.”

But the new revelations cast, in sharp relief, how the company pulverized entire communities and destroyed families while raking in massive profits from a crisis that has fed waves of crime and a crisis of addiction and deadly overdoses that claim over 100 lives per day.

The tragic yet fascinating story of how Johnson & Johnson (ironic twitter name @JNJCares ) enabled @purduepharma the Big Pharma in developing and delivering one of the most addictive substances on the planet: Oxycodone (brand name OxyContin). https://t.co/EpOCSnzX8X

— Eric Bolling (@ericbolling) March 12, 2019

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Oklahoma Attorney General Mike Hunter has requested that the state release a vast tranche of confidential documents numbering in the millions of pages that Johnson & Johnson was forced to submit during the discovery phase of Oklahoma’s legal fight against the key companies who sparked the opioid crisis.

In his request, Hunter noted:

“Oklahomans deserve answers … [we] need to know about how one particular company, J&J, inserted itself into our State and sought to influence every opioid-related decision the State made or considered – from scheduling to swallowing … J&J continues to fight to keep those answers concealed. In the dark. Away from the public.”

He added:

“The public … deserves to know the full extent of J&J’s efforts to influence policymakers at all levels of government in order to increase sales of their (and their co-conspirators’) drugs.”

The litigation hints at how the culpability for the opioid epidemic can hardly be restricted to companies such as Purdue Pharma, the producer of OxyContin. Purdue is currently being sued by Massachusetts for its role in deliberately misleading the public over the lethal dangers of its opioid painkillers.

Yet the new report shows how J&J played a key role in producing the plant materials–such as the raw narcotics from Tasmanian poppy fields–which were turned into the active ingredients of popular opioids, including those produced by Purdue Pharma.

In investor slides, the company also openly boasted of the addictive qualities of its products, noting that its opium poppies “enabled the growth of oxycodone,” while the morphine content of its other poppy was among “the highest in the world.”

In the meantime, the company also reportedly provided funding for pro-opioid advocacy groups such as the Pain Care Forum. Brochures for seniors produced by a company subsidiary also made the ludicrous false claim that “opioids are rarely addictive.” Such propaganda and promotional efforts, referred to as a “pro-opioid echo chamber” in the motion, were a part of the company’s concerted effort to target vulnerable demographic groups, including children.

J&J has lambasted the attorney general’s motion as containing “baseless and unsubstantiated” allegations meant to generate “sensationalistic headlines and to poison potential jurors.” The company has also argued that its subsidiaries, which were sold to private equity firms years ago, “met all laws and regulations.”

Yet it remains obvious, based on the once-confidential material that Oklahoma now possesses, that the company had been making billions of dollars hand over fist while trafficking and hustling addictive substances through what it called its “pain management franchise.”

And as increased calls to tackle the opioid crisis grow louder, from the White House to state legislatures and the streets, it remains clear that the big players who caused the crisis should be exposed from top to bottom, along with their nefarious practices and concerted attempts to mislead and deceive the U.S. public.

The post Johnson & Johnson Exposed as ‘Kingpin’ Supplier, Seller, Lobbyist of Opioid Epidemic appeared first on The Mind Unleashed.

Conservative artist Julian Raven is reportedly suing the Smithsonian museum because they refuse to display his giant painting of President Donald Trump. The painting is called “Unafraid & Unashamed” and is 16-feet wide by 8-feet tall. It’s a painting of Trump. It’s gotta be yuge!” Raven said.

According to the Daily Beast, Raven has been trying to convince the Smithsonian to display his painting, has already attempted to sue through the U.S. district court in Washington D.C., and is now threatening to take his case to the supreme court. Raven will reportedly be representing himself.

Raven says that when he asked the National Portrait Gallery to display his painting for Trump’s 2017 inauguration, he was told by the gallery director, Kim Sajet, that the painting was “too political” and “too big.” To add insult to injury, Sajet even told Raven that the painting was “not very good.”

“The last thing she said to me was ‘it’s no good,’” Raven lamented.

Raven is now accusing the museum of infringing upon his First Amendment rights and his Fifth Amendment right to due process. However, if Raven has a right to display his painting in a museum, that means every U.S. citizen has the same right, regardless of the size or quality of the art.

To be fair, Raven is a talented painter and the gallery has hosted paintings of other presidents, like former President Barack Obama for example, but they do have the right to select whichever pieces they want for display.

Raven says that the art world “is controlled by very strong political ideologies on the left.”

Raven explained that he got the idea for the painting while watching Trump on TV in 2015.

“I just had the words go through my mind: unafraid and unashamed. The image in my mind was this soaring flagpole, a U.S. flag pole falling to the ground. Right before it falls to the ground, an eagle swoops in and snatches it,” Raven said.

Raven says that his association with Trump has had a negative impact on his art business. “It’s been a very uncertain and oftentimes very discouraging journey that did affect negatively my art career. My art sales just took a nosedive,” Raven said.

The supreme court is expected to confirm the ruling of Judge Trevor McFadden, who presided over the case in the U.S. district court of D.C. The judge said that the museum has “what amounts to complete discretion in choosing portraits,” and that to force them to show a specific piece of art would essentially be compelling speech from them—violating their first amendment rights.

“The First Amendment simply does not apply to government art selections, no matter how arbitrary,” Judge Trevor McFadden wrote in his ruling.

The piece was shown at CPAC this year, where it received rave reviews from conservatives.

incredible art at CPAC this year pic.twitter.com/yxZyMdpNeb

— Max Tani (@maxwelltani) February 28, 2019

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The post Artist Sues the Smithsonian for Not Displaying His 16×8 Foot Trump Painting appeared first on The Mind Unleashed.

Question:

I wanted to ask you a question about metaphysical meditation. I think that is what it is but am not sure.

Since I was a child I have on occasion meditated on the physical universe and all existence within it. Visualizing its vastness in my mind. I then try to bring my focus to the outside of that universe, to the outside of that physical space. What was there before the universe? And what space is that space since it cannot be the physical universe. If it was not here there still must be something or is it just nothingness? Unbeing…is that possible?

Thinking about that visualization and focusing on that meditation brings on a very overwhelming feeling which is indescribable. I think it is fear or anxiousness. I am not sure. I even physically feel it right in my solar plexus and the tingling sensation has been so strong that I have to stop the meditation at times.

However on 2 occasions the mediation ended in an overwhelming feeling of happiness or satisfaction I am not sure again. The first time this happened was when I was about 8 or 9 years old and it was the first time I thought about it. I wondered what would there be if none of us were here including the universe. What would be left? And the meditation left me with an actual high. Since then it has happened one other time.

Could you please shed some light on what is going on? What is it that I am trying to conceptualize and why does it give me such a strange feeling? I am a Buddhist in philosophy but am not familiar with all of the various dogma from the lines of teaching. I simply try and follow the simple tenets and mostly the teachings of the Dalai Lama and a few other Buddhist teachers such as Geshe Kelsang Gyatso.