Clipmarks | abailart's clips

Amazing stairs

Thu, 24 Apr 2008 23:21:11 GMT

clipped by: wiganfootie

Amazing Stairs

Mechthild of Magdeburg - German Mystic, Poet, Beguine

Thu, 24 Apr 2008 20:05:16 GMT

clipped by: Johanna_G
clipper's remarks: The Flowing Light of the Godhead. (Transl. by Frank Tobin)

Even in her lifetime, Mechthild of Magdeburg gained some renown for her extraordinary book of mystical revelations, "The Flowing Light of the Godhead", the first such work in the German vernacular. Yet her writings dropped into obscurity after her death, many assume because of her gender. In "Mechthild of Magdeburg and Her Book", Sara S. Poor seeks to explain this fate by considering Mechthild's own view of female authorship, the significance of her choice to write in the vernacular, and the continued, if submerged, presence of her writings in a variety of contexts from the thirteenth through the nineteenth century. [...] "Mechthild of Magdeburg and Her Book" offers new insights into medieval vernacular mysticism, late medieval women's roles in the production of culture, and the construction of modern literary traditions.

amazon.de

Clip Source: www.fembio.org

Born ca. 1207/10

Died 1282 or 1294

Mechthild’s book, which, following divine inspiration, she named “Das fließende Licht der Gottheit” (“The Flowing Light of the Godhead”), renders in highly individual, vivid language the mystical encounters of the Magdeburg Beguine. The work is composed of seven “books” and contains Mechthild’s conversations with God. The forcefulness and originality of her language and the intimacy of the dialogues with the divine lover make this a text of high literary quality. “We find forms and images which reflect her experience of the world and spirituality with an immediacy unique in the Middle Ages.” (Kurt Ruh)

Beginning at the age of twelve she received each day a divine “greeting,” as she called her mystical encounters with God.

In her mysticism of divine love Mechthild reflects the tradition of courtly love poetry as well as the biblical Song of Solomon; the mutuality of God’s and the soul’s longing for each other is, however, unique to her

Clip Source: www.amazon.de

Clip Source: sitb-images-eu.amazon.com

Tags: mechthild, mysticism, love

Dealing with Energy Vampires (negative people)

Thu, 24 Apr 2008 17:39:00 GMT

clipped by: abailart
clipper's remarks: I found 5 and 6 interesting. Think the focus should be on how to remain 'energetic' oneself while helping unhappy people, rather than shutting people out. One day, now maybe or soon, any of us could become 'negative' and need a listening ear.

Clip Source: www.life-with-confidence.com

They're like human black holes which suddenly come out of nowhere and just suck the life out of you. You try to stay positive and remain strong but their negativity ends up just completely draining you, you feel exhausted, and you may also start to feel depressed too.

Judy Orloff

in her book, "Positive Energy"

refers to them by the following names which you might recognize: the sob sister, the blamer, the drama queen, the constant talker or joke teller, and the fixer-upper (requires endless help).

energy vampires

pay attention to what the person talks about. Is it always about how bad things are? Do they just complain and never actually do anything about what's upsetting them?

10 strategies on how to deal with negative people

1. Where’s it coming from?

2. Just smile and remain completely detached

3. Say, “Now tell me something positive.”

5. Is it a sign?

6. What does it say about you?

7. Trying to feel needed

9. It’s not your fault

Tags: negative people

Everyday Paranoia

Thu, 24 Apr 2008 17:27:32 GMT

clipped by: abailart
clipper's remarks: Just because you haven't got a diagnosis doesn't mean you're not paranoid.

Clip Source: findarticles.com

In the 1990s, the term "everyday paranoia" (EP) came into usage among psychologists to describe the intense anxiety that was becoming prevalent in society. Everyday paranoia is sparked by fear of losing one's job, feelings of inadequacy when confronting a new interpersonal or romantic relationship, or insecurity in a marriage or other long-term relationship. Low self-esteem and feelings of insecurity contribute to a person's susceptibility to feelings of everyday paranoia. Stressful situations-economic insecurity, divorce, a move, a job change-can also reinforce a person's paranoia. Almost everyone experiences feelings of suspicion or insecurity-and in fact, paranoia can be a mechanism for coping with misfortune or personal problems. Rather than view the situation as "bad luck" or personal failure or incompetence, paranoia places the responsibility for the problem on some "enemy."

Tags: paranoia, projection, defence mechanisms

Wonderful essay on God/Science/Universe "dilemma"

Thu, 24 Apr 2008 16:50:07 GMT

clipped by: papananook
clipper's remarks: Read the whole thing please. I love this essay! waiting for a reply from Stwish on the author....

Clip Source: stwish.livejournal.com

Can one believe simultaneously in God and the Big Bang ?

"Why, sometimes I've believed as many as

six impossible things before breakfast." The White Queen

One can, at least one one, myself, can. I can believe it in several different ways, depending on the weather. It all depends on definitions.

If God was constrained by Physical Reality, what Jefferson called Natural Law, and if the Mathematics are correct, then God must have used the mechanism of the Big Bang to create any universes He so desired. It's all a matter of definition. A matter of faith. Is the concept "God" greater than mathematics, included in mathematics, outside of mathematics entirely, or subordinate to mathematics ?

Experience proves, sadly, that a person cannot even comprehend any other person completely. You might be chained to the same oar with another person for twenty years and they would still have the capacity to totally astound you. One can even astound one's self, given half a chance and a following wind.

Feeling stressed? Pull yourself together

Thu, 24 Apr 2008 15:27:35 GMT

clipped by: Tri-City Psychology

Clip Source: www.independent.co.uk

Feeling "stressed"? Problems everywhere you look? Stuck in the traffic again and late for work? Congratulations – you're human. There's nothing abnormal about having problems or a lot to do. They are not clinical conditions. Yet when we say we are "stressed" we assume that we are suffering from some medical malaise about which there is huge scientific evidence and a lot of fear. Indeed, if you go to your GP and tell him about these feelings, he might even give you a sick note.

It may interest you to know that in all of the scientific research there is no identifiable condition called "stress". The same word is used to refer to more than 650 quite different things, including most human emotions. Anxiety, annoyance and frustration may not be pleasant, but they are perfectly normal.

Correct treatment depends on correct diagnosis. Sick notes should refer to illnesses. And, according to the Health and Safety Executive, "stress" is not an illness.

Newly discovered Planet has Intelligent Life

Thu, 24 Apr 2008 08:53:48 GMT

clipped by: abailart

Clip Source: en.wikipedia.org

Tags: africa

Neurophysiology and Buddhism

Thu, 24 Apr 2008 08:09:50 GMT

clipped by: abailart
clipper's remarks: <<<It is undeniable, however, that the false reification of that which we identify spuriously as 'self' — now acquiring the weighty imprimatur of modern science — has devastating implications for all brands of Theism.

Buddhism alone not merely encompasses this late-revealed truism, it makes it the basis of a new moral order that sees the annihilation of the self as the inelutable first step in our mastery of the existential predicament that doggedly besets us in this sorry world. A few concluding words — there remains a metaphysical (and theological) hiatus in dealing with 'being' without a reference to that other great existential puzzle — the transformative aspect of life that is generally subsumed under the title 'becoming'.>>>

Clip Source: lankaguardian.blogspot.com

The physical basis of the mind — the corporeal self — is a collection of dynamic units massively parallel in operation yet cross-linked and capable of a momentary holistic performance.

It would take us too far into the technicalities of neurophysiology to deepen our understanding of this vastly-complex neuronal system, but the message is clear — what is called the ‘self or ‘ego’ has no enduring epistemic basis. Indeed, about 99% of the work of the brain is unconscious or robotic. The interludes of awareness have a ‘personalised’ aspect that is mistaken for a permanent (and commanding) entity called the self.

extraordinary reduction of neurophysiological doctrine to tally with fundamental Buddhist thinking on these matters

world-renowned expert in these fields — Professor Francisco Varela — has declared himself a Buddhist and has made it his mission to effect a grand synthesis between the sophisticated formulations of neuroscience and the ancient truths of Buddhist psychology.

Tags: anatta, neurophysiology, buddhism