I've had a cold with a sore throat for the last several days and can only talk in a whisper.  It's interesting how my dogs react to it.  When I first start talking in a strange voice, they listen intently trying to understand why I am talking that way.  Eventually they decide it's just nonsense and they should ignore it.  So when I take them for a walk, and yell in a whisper, "SLOW DOWN!",  they just ignore me.

There are some interesting new articles on the Cosolargy Blog including one based on the lectures we received during the trip to Greece last year.




One of the little electric cars that are popular on St. Barth's


A baby humpback whale off the coast of the Dominican Republic


A 12-foot alligator in the Florida Everglades

        

My brethren, have not the faith of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Lord of glory, with respect of persons.
For if there come unto your assembly a man with a gold ring, in goodly apparel, and there come in also a poor man in vile raiment;
And ye have respect to him that weareth the gay clothing, and say unto him, Sit thou here in a good place; and say to the poor, Stand thou there, or sit here under my footstool:
Are ye not then partial in yourselves, and are become judges of evil thoughts?

Jesus did not judge people based on their wealth or social status.  Neither should we.

        

    Sometimes we need protection from the things that life throws at us.  Coats to protect us from the weather.  Sunscreen to protect us from too much sunlight.  Insurance to protect us from fires and floods.
    What about our spiritual side?  Do we need protection when we are doing spiritual techniques to develop our spiritual facilities?  Yes, we do.
    When we are doing spiritual development techniques, we are often in a very relaxed state mentally.  That makes us vulnerable to attacks from demons or dark forces.  These attacks are not obvious like a vicious dog, but subtle.  A little voice whispering to us that seems to be our own inner self questioning: "why are you wasting time with this?",  "Are you really getting anything from it?", "shouldn't you be playing basketball with the kids instead?", "shouldn't you be doing something profitable instead of just sitting here?", etc.  We may think it is easy to resist these attacks, but it isn't.  One of the best ways to protect yourself is with gem stones or crystals.  I have previously mentions that in the International Community of Christ, we wear a symbolic "thread of life" around our waist.  That thread has eight crystals or gems attached to it.  There is one for every color in the rainbow plus a white or clear one.  In other words, one for every chakra or energy center.  The set of stones that I have are lab grown gems.  They work just as well as natural crystals, have fewer flaws, and cost less.  You don't have to wear the gems around the waist.  They can be in a necklace, bracelet or even a ring.  The important thing is to program them to protect you by simply asking them (don't demand, ask) to do so.

        

Cardamom is another spice that also has medicinal properties.  I is a close relative of ginger.  There are two varieties commonly used.  
    Green Caedmon is used to treat teeth and gum infections, to treat sore throat and to help with lung congestion.  It is also used to break up gall stones and kidney stones.  
    Amomum, also called Black Cardamom, is used in traditional Chinese and Ayurvedic herbal medicine for treating many illnesses including muscle cramps, stomach problems, asthma and anorexia.  It can be used to fight bad breath.  If you use garlic for health reasons, or just as a flavoring, Cardamom is reputed to even get rid of garlic breath.

        

"Your whole idea about yourself is borrowed - borrowed from those who have no idea of who they are themselves." ~Osho

    If someone asks you to describe yourself, you will probably not find it difficult to do so, but, in all likelihood, you will be describing yourself according to the opinions and beliefs of others.  If I say I am old, it is because I have reached an age that others consider old.  I don't feel old, but others think I am and so I accept it.  I am considered tall because I am a little taller than the average American man, but if I moved to certain parts of Africa, I would suddenly become short without actually changing.  
    To some extent, in order to function as a member of society, we have to accept what the society defines us as, but we all should spend some time, general in the evening before we go to sleep, to think about ourselves and define ourselves as we really think we are and as God defines us, namely, as immortal beings of Light.

        

"You must understand the whole of life, not just one little part of it. That is why you must read, that is why you must look at the skies, that is why you must sing and dance, and write poems, and suffer, and understand, for all that is life." ~Jiddu Krishnamurti

    In our modern age, nearly all of us have become specialists.  It isn't possible to do everything well, so we learn to do one thing, or a few things well, and let others take care of the rest.  This is an understandable, and probably even necessary, philosophy regarding our jobs, but not a wise philosophy regarding life.  
    It is understandable that people with limited finances can't travel much and experience too many things, but even people who can afford to, often don't.  They don't travel outside of a few well known spots.  They don't do things other than the same things they have been doing for years, with only a few slight variations.  This is sad because we really learn best from experience.  No matter how well someone describes to you the scent of a rose, you will never know what it is until you actually smell one yourself.  
    This is even more important when it come to religion and spiritual growth.  Many of us have been members of the same church all of our lives.  Many have never even visited another church and especially not a church, temple, or synagogue of a completely different faith.  This not only limits our understanding of people, it also limits our understanding of religion and spirituality and the common truths that lie at the core of all religions.  The same gift, just wrapped in different color wrapping paper and ribbons.

        

Nearly two years ago, I covered pearls in one of my Crystals and Gems posts.   Now we will look at pearls as symbols.  In general, pearls are lunar symbols.  They are also symbolic of the power of water.   They can also symbolize the divine essence and the power of life.  Some ancients believed that pearls were created when lightning struck the oysters so the pearl symbolized the union of fire and water.  A pearl is used to represent the third eye, the spiritual eye, of Buddha and Siva.  Pearls can represent spiritual essence and spiritual enlightenment.  In Christianity, a pearl can represent salvation, Christ, the Word of God or Gnosis.   Aphrodite, the Greek goddess of love and beauty was also called "Lady of the Pearls".  The flaming pearl symbolizes man's search for spiritual enlightenment.  The gate to heaven is called "The Pearly Gates" because in the Book of Revelation, the entrance to heaven is described as: The twelve gates were twelve pearls, each gate made of a single pearl. The great street of the city was of pure gold, like transparent glass.  This is, of course, a symbolic description, like virtually all of the Book of Revelation, and not meant to be taken literally.

        

"In one drop of water are found all of the secrets of the oceans".  ~Kahlil Gibran

    If he were alive today, I'm sure Gibran would be fascinated with the books of Dr. Emoto, the theories of quantum mechanics and holography.    In holography, a hologram can be cut into many pieces, yet each piece contains the entire image.  In quantum mechanics, some say that as the many beams of light cross each other they exchange information with the result that each beam contains all of the information in the universe if we simple knew how to tap into it.  Dr. Emoto has shown that thoughts and emotions can affect water so doesn't it follow that they also effect light?  And, since quantum mechanics tells us that everything is light, than thought and emotions affect everything.

        

I am back from my vacation today, so this will be an unusual entry.  I will be adding to it during the cruise than post it on the last day.




This is CocoCay, Bahamas. I 'll post more picture later.

        

If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him.
But let him ask in faith, nothing wavering: for he that wavereth is like a wave of the sea driven with the wind and tossed.
For let not that man think that he shall receive any thing of the Lord.
A double-minded man is unstable in all his ways.

Wisdom comes from God, not from books.  It comes to us through God's Light.  But you have to be a true believer to receive it.