Sangha of Auspicious Companions

October 1, 2019

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The Rise in Giving Across Africa

“Douglas Ng’ang’a stands in the middle of the “slum library” he runs. Only he doesn’t take credit for the 3,000 books housed in his childhood home in Nairobi’s Mathare Valley. “The books just showed up,” he says. Well, not exactly. His neighbors brought them. Ng’ang’a funds the library by working as a driver. He started the collection with 200 of his own books. Members of the community spread the word through social media and pitched in. In Kenya, the generosity that led to the library isn’t an exception. Each year, the Charities Aid Foundation (CAF) compiles a World Giving Index, and the 2017 rankings list Kenya as the third most generous nation behind Myanmar and Indonesia.” This story from NPR shares more. { read more }

Be The Change

What assumptions, conscious or unconscious, might you be carrying about generosity? Test those assumptions rigorously this week and see what happens.

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September 30, 2019

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Creating a World That Works for All

In a world with overwhelming problems, there can be little reason for hope. In this excerpt of the book, Creating A world That Works For All, Sharif Abdullah is unflinching in what we face: self-destruction. Our world does not even truly work for the select few. The solution is simple: inclusivity. Our lives are inextricably linked. “Inclusivity is the basis for a world that works for all.” We must remove the blindfold of ignorance and make fundamental change at the personal level. Abdullah lays out the path– given a clear vision, a society that works for all is possible using the resources available with a change of head, heart, and hands. We can figure out what to do. “Things can and will get better, for us all.” { read more }

Be The Change

Who or what and how are you excluding? With no judgment, spend one day practicing inclusiveness then reflect on how that changes things.

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September 29, 2019

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The Zookeeper’s Wife

There will always be a need to tell powerful stories from some of humanities darkest times. This rings especially true for stories about the Nazi’s and the Holocaust because we have a resurgence of the same sentiment that led to one of the worst regimes in history. Diane Ackerman wrote a story based on real life historic heroes that remind us that we can fight against oppression in a non-violent way with her book “The Zookeeper’s Wife”. The book has subsequently been made into a film. In this 2017 interview, Ackerman shares her process of learning about the remarkable heroism of the woman at the center of the story and how her choices still hold up as a reminder of human kindness in a sometimes cruel world. { read more }

Be The Change

Consider a struggle in your own community that seems so much larger than your capacity to make a difference. Look again at the problem through a lens of love and compassion. Now, act from your everyday strength and courage.

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September 28, 2019

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I Couldn’t Let Them Die Alone

Sister Helen Prejean is best known for her 1993 memoir, Dead Man Walking, about her role as a spiritual adviser to a convicted killer on death row. The story was adapted into an Oscar-winning film starring Susan Sarandon and Sean Penn. Prejean has accompanied six prisoners to their executions and has been at the forefront of activism against the death penalty. “In [their] last moments, I was amazed that they’re walking,” she says. “‘Sister, pray that God holds my legs up as I walk.’ They take steps. I read scripture to them. … All I knew was: I couldn’t let them die alone.” Her new memoir, River of Fire: My Spiritual Journey, tells the story of her life leading up to her awakening to social justice movements in the 1980s. { read more }

Be The Change

Learn more about Sr. Helen Prejean’s work. { more }

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September 27, 2019

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Protect. Restore. Fund.

Climate activists Greta Thunberg and George Monbiot talk about solutions to the problem of anthropogenic global warming: a combination of leaving fossil fuels in the ground and protecting and restoring living ecosystems like forests, mangroves, swamps and seabeds that can pull enormous quantities of carbon from the air and store them safely, naturally. Current government subsidies around the world enhance the use of fossil fuel. Thunberg and Monbiot advocate for the increase in funding for natural climate solutions so that we can protect and restore the environment for future generations to come. Thunberg and Monbiot, walk their talk. Likewise, this film was made with the smallest environmental impact possible. “We took trains to Sweden to interview Greta, charged our hybrid car at Georges house, used green energy to power the edit and recycled archive footage rather than shooting new,” says Tom Mustill of Gripping Films. Everything we do counts. What will you do? { read more }

Be The Change

What will you do to protect and restore nature? Share your thoughts in the comment section of this video.

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September 26, 2019

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Call of the Forest: The Forgotten Wisdom of Trees

“Call of the Forest” is a documentary that follows visionary scientist, conservationist and author, Diana Beresford-Kroeger, on her journey to the most beautiful forests of the northern hemisphere. From the sacred sugi and cedar forests of Japan, the ancient Raheen Wood of Ireland, the walnut and redwood trees of America, to the great boreal forest of Canada, Beresford-Kroeger tells us the amazing stories behind the history and legacy of these ancient forests while also explaining the science of trees and the irreplaceable roles they play in protecting and feeding the planet. Watch the trailer here. { read more }

Be The Change

Beresford-Kroeger’s latest book “To Speak for the Trees: My Life’s Journey from Ancient Celtic Wisdom to a Healing Vision of the Forest” was just released this week. Join us this Saturday for an Awakin Call with her. More details and RSVP info here. { more }

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September 25, 2019

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Wild Mind: Reclaiming Our Original Wholeness

Our human psyches possess, as capacities, a variety of astonishing resources about which mainstream Western psychology has little to say. By uncovering and reclaiming these innate resources, shared by all of us by simple virtue of our human nature, we can more easily understand and resolve our intrapsychic and interpersonal difficulties as they arise. These resources, the four facets of the Self, or the four dimensions of our human wholeness, wait within us, but we might not even know they exist until we discover how to access them, cultivate their powers, and integrate them into our everyday lives. There’s a facet of the Self associated with each of the four cardinal directions: north, south, east, and west. Describing the Self in this way is in keeping with traditions around the world that have mapped human nature onto the template of the four directions (and the closely related templates of the four seasons and the four times of day: sunrise, noon, sunset, and midnight). { read more }

Be The Change

Consider which of the four facets of Self calls for cultivation in your life. Do one thing this week to support and nurture this side of your universal soul.

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