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COMMUNICATING THE WISDOM THAT'S CHANGING THE WORLD
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We all share in high expectations of new leadership in Washington. But these leaders cannot move a nation into any fundamental change without our participation. Howard Zinn, American historian, political scientist, social critic, activist and playwright, best known as author of the classic bestseller, A People's History of the United States, says,"Real change will come when people take direction action." He goes on, "A national leader will not fulfill that potential for change, unless he is enveloped by a social movement, which is angry enough, powerful enough, insistent enough, that he fills his abstract phrases about change with some content. We need direct action, because only that kind of indignation is going to have some affect on the people in Washington." Zinn's thoughts on democracy remind me of the work of Frances Moore Lappé, co-founder of the Institute for Food and Development Policy also known as Food First, now in its 32nd year, as well as the American News Service. Lappé is the author of 16 books, including the 3 million copy bestseller, Diet for a Small Planet and her newest book, Getting a Grip: Clarity, Creativity, and Courage in a World Gone Mad (see New Dimensions interview #3248) In this recent New Dimensions' dialogue she points out that our democracy is in transition and that we can help shape it through what she calls "The Arts of Democracy." She says, "They are that which we can cultivate as an art. You never reach a point in art where, 'oh, I've learned all that I can learn.' In art it is an endless learning." It so ties in with her idea of democracy as a living entity that is never-ending. She adds, "It is a social analog to ecology. It is all about relationship and complexity and beauty. And it is away from thinking about democracy as something that is simply finished." She says if we are to create democracy as an on-going "living entity", then it must be taught as an art. We are born social creatures. We are born intensely embedded in community, but we aren't born necessarily knowing how to be effective in creating together. Here are a few of what Lappé calls, The Arts of Democracy: 1) The Art of Active Listening—which itself has power. Just being listened to changes people. 2) The Art of Creative Conflict. "Maybe," says Lappé, "what we need now is not just conflict management but conflict generation in the sense of being willing to generate the necessary conflict to begin to rethink. Because, as long as we stay in denial and refuse to engage in conflict, then we just keep creating what isn't working". We must learn to hold different worlds together. Poet David Whyte says that it is useful for the post-modern world, where our focus is so fragmented to be able to hold different worlds together. "[T]he old native Celtic tradition would tell you that you can actually hold many different things together, but you must have a deep interior focus in order to actually do it. You must have an internal foundation which is able to anchor you in the world while you are involved in all of these different layers and levels." 3) The Art of Mediation. Facilitating interaction to help people in conflict hear one another, and have real dialogue. 4) The Art of Political Imagination. Re-imaging our futures according to our values. One of the greatest gifts endowed to the human species is the gift of imagination. Everything that ever existed in this world, first of all was imagined. Nothing new is born outside of our imagination. So it is truly important to keep our imagination alive to new and wondrous possibilities. 5) The Art of Mentoring. Because we are constantly learning from one another we must be open to receiving guidance and giving guidance to one another. 6) The Art of Celebration. Honoring the growth that we are experiencing and taking the time to do that. William McDonough is a sustainable design architect and author with his partner, Michael Braungart, of Cradle to Cradle: Remaking the Way We Make Things. He reminds us that form follows function; function follows evolution; and evolution follows celebration. "It's not about survival of the fittest. It's about those who celebrate the most being the true evolutionary winners. Nature is all about fierce celebration." |
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November 2008 Broadcast Schedule
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| The Broadcast Week Beginning Wednesday, November 5-11, 2008
We are at a crossroads. Either we can destroy our civilization or create a more perfect one, living in loving kindness in harmony with one another and the earth that supports us. But our negative thinking, and mindset that nothing can change stands in our way. Dattatreya Siva Baba suggests there is help for us. He says, "There is no way we can get out this imperfect ego, out of this limited ignorant mind and ignorant body. Something has to happen. The divine has to take pity on us and send this light, which I call the 'Grace Light' This will transform our thinking process and give us a break to understand that we are not just the body; we are not just the mind." His main teaching is that there is external help coming, and is here now, and it will transform consciousness. Dattatreya Siva Baba, Dr. Baskarn Pillai, is an unusual spiritual teacher. He's a scholar with a Ph.D. from the U.S., simultaneously a mystic and a completely accessible Guru on YouTube. He emphasizes the scientific and technological approach to create Higher Intelligence as a viable solution to solve human problems. His current project involves teaching Mind Sound Technology to improve the learning abilities, comprehension, and memory of school children all over the world. Besides doing spiritual work, Dattatreya Siva Baba is also a philanthropist and founder of Tripura Foundation. A book about his work, Miracles of the Avatar is compiled by Mohini Bhuvana Jyoti (2008 Brzee Enterprises) and he is the author of Life Changing Sounds: Tools from the Other Side (Vaaak Sounds 2002). He has also produced the DVD set The Grace Light (The Grace Light 2008). To learn more about the work of Dattatreya Siva Baba go to www.thegracelight.com Topics Explored in this Dialogue:
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The Broadcast Week Beginning Wednesday, November 12-18, 2008
The science of the inner training of mindfulness and attention to our own body shows us a different possibility of living with more compassion, more forgiveness, and more understanding. Kornfield gives an example of the benefits of mindfulness, "Mindfulness is a directed attention to what is actually here before we have all our judgments and ideas about what is right and wrong and what is good and bad. Mindfulness means paying attention and seeing things clearly without reaction. From there we can respond in wise ways rather than be caught in our habitual patterns." Kornfield shares with us how we all have an unlimited capacity for love, for joy, for communion with life, and for unshakable freedom. Jack Kornfield, Ph.D. is an internationally renowned meditation teacher and one of the leaders in introducing Buddhist practice and psychology to the West. After graduating in Asian studies from Dartmouth College, he joined the Peace Corps and later trained as a Buddhist monk in Thailand, Burma, and India. Kornfield is a cofounder of Insight Meditation Society in Barre, Massachusetts, and of the Spirit Rock Center in northern California. A husband, father and activist, he also holds a Ph.D. in clinical psychology and regularly gives seminars to mental health professionals. His books include A Path With Heart (Bantam 1993), The Art of Forgiveness, Lovingkindness, and Peace (Bantam 2008), and The Wise Heart: A Guide to the Universal Teachings of Buddhist Psychology (Bantam 2008). To learn more about the work of Jack Kornfield go to www.jackkornfield.org Topics Explored in this Dialogue:
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| The Broadcast Week Beginning Wednesday, November 19-25, 2008
What is the right kind of information to guide us in successfully finding a community of our own? How do we go about researching and checking out various communities? Diana Leafe Christian points out,"If you are expecting to see the benefits of community, it is not a free lunch so to speak. You have to give to that effort in order to co-create with your fellow community people." However, the rewards can be great. She lists some of the benefits of joining an intentional community as: "Having a lighter environmental footprint on the earth... You are healthier... You tend to learn a lot about yourself... You get the feeling that you are safer... You are able to have a lot of good times with like-minded people, companionship, and satisfaction." Christian is a wealth of experience and has done extensive research in the field of intentional communities, eco-villages, and co-housing; thus saving anyone looking to start, or join such a place many headaches and heartbreaks. She points out how to spot a healthy community, one that is compatible with your values and lifestyle. Diana Leafe Christian was the editor of Communities Magazine for fourteen years. She gives workshops and consultations nationwide on the practical steps to start successful eco-villages and intentional communities. She lives in an off-grid homesite at Earthaven Ecovillage in the mountains near Asheville, North Carolina and is the author of Creating a Life Together: Practical Tools To Grow Ecovillages and Intentional Communities (New Society Publishers 2003) and Finding Community: How to Join an Ecovillage or Intentional Community (New Society Publishers 2007). To learn more about the work of Diana Leafe Christian go to www.dianaleafechristian.org or www.ecovillagenews.org Topics Explored in this Dialogue:
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The Broadcast Week Beginning Wednesday, November 26 - December 2, 2008
Omer is a truly a global citizen. He was born in Pakistan and has lived in Turkey, India, Hawaii and now lives in Northern California. His research and life experience has led him to study how we need to move from dysfunctional conflicts to creative conflicts. The problem of our global cultural crisis is not conflict, rather how we handle those conflicts. He says, "We are surrounded by people who perceive differently than us. As long as we’re locked into our personal perceptions and cannot broaden out into different perspectives we will be struggling with dysfunctional conflicts rather than creative conflicts." He suggests that the global challenges of diversity, conflict, and chaos can be met through actively engaging these differences and perspectives with openness, fierceness, and curiosity. He shares with us the idea that peace is not sustained though avoidance of conflict, but is sustained through finding ways to engage in creative conflict. Aftab Omer, Ph.D. is President and core faculty at the Institute of Imaginal Studies. Formerly a faculty member in the Psychology Department at Sonoma State University, he is currently the President of the Council on Humanistic and Transpersonal Psychologies. Aftab's research has focused on the emergence of human capacities within transformative learning communities and his work has included assisting organizations in tapping the creative potentials of conflict, diversity, and complexity. Born and raised in South Asia, he was educated at M.I.T. and Brandeis University. Aftab's publications include "The Spacious Center: Leadership and the Creative Transformation of Culture" and "Between Columbine and the Twin Towers: Fundamentalist Culture as a Failure of Imagination." To learn more about the work of Aftab Omer and the Institute of Imaginal Studies go to www.imaginal.edu Topics Explored in this Dialogue:
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by Justine Willis Toms |
Join with others from around the world for the monthly |
| Let us know where you are from, we are mapping all the places around the world where people are participating. | |
 Parties with a Purpose; Celebrating what's working in our communities, for people, for business and for the environment Nov 8 & 9 in Washington, D.C. and Nov 14 & 15 in San Francisco www.greenfestivals.com |
 Expand Your Consciousness in Optimal Learning Environments www.conferenceworks.com |
 Books for the Evolving Human Spirit www.hamptonroadspub.com |
 Transform the Way You Live and Lead with Purpose, Passion, Energy, and Joy www.getclarity.com |
 Books and Audio to awaken consciousness and global social potential. www.newworldlibrary.com |
 To Help Individuals Realize Their True Relationship with Life Through Higher Self-Studies Guy Finley, Director www.guyfinley.org |
