James Allen Daily

"Therefore, did we say, Kalamas, what was said thus, 'Come Kalamas. Do not go upon what has been acquired by repeated hearing; nor upon tradition; nor upon rumor; nor upon what is in a scripture; nor upon surmise; nor upon an axiom; nor upon specious reasoning; nor upon a bias towards a notion that has been pondered over; nor upon another's seeming ability; nor upon the consideration, "The monk is our teacher." Kalamas, when you yourselves know: "These things are bad; these things are blamable; these things are censured by the wise; undertaken and observed, these things lead to harm and ill,"
abandon them.

"Come, Kalamas. Do not go upon what has been acquired by repeated hearing; nor upon tradition; nor upon rumor; nor upon what is in a scripture; nor upon surmise; nor upon an axiom; nor upon specious reasoning; nor upon a bias towards a notion that has been pondered over; nor upon another's seeming ability; nor upon the consideration, 'The monk is our teacher.' Kalamas, when you yourselves know: 'These things are good; these things are not blamable; these things are praised by the wise; undertaken and observed, these things lead to benefit and happiness,'
enter on and abide in them.

~ Buddha, Kalama Sutta

 

Loneliness does indeed seem to be the ill being of our time. One of the major ones at least.

And so it begins. James Allen from here on out.

As errors and impunities are revealed, purge them way.

January Seventh.

EVERY step upward means the leaving of something behind and below. The high is reached only at the sacrifice of the low. The good is secured only by abandoning the evil. Knowledge is acquired only by the destruction of ignorance. Livery acquisition has its price, which must be paid "to the uttermost farthing." Every animal, every creeping thing, possesses some gift, some power, which man, in his upward march, has laid down, which he has exchanged for some higher gift, or power. What great good men forfeit by clinging to old selfish habits! Behind every humble sacrifice a winged angel waits to bear us up the heights of knowledge and wisdom.

Let him who has attained guard against falling back. Let him be careful in little things, and be well fortified against the entrance of sin.

Aim, with ardour, for the attainment of a perfect life.



Seventh Morning

The will to evil and the will to good
Are both within thee, which wilt
thou employ?
Thou knowest what is right and what is
wrong,
Which wilt though love and foster?
which destroy?

Thou art the chooser of thy thoughts and
deeds;
Thou art the maker of thine inward state;
The power is thine to be what thou wilt be;
Thou buildest Truth and Love, or lies and
hate.



Seventh Evening


Beyond Science

The teaching of Jesus brings men back
to the simple truth that righteousness,
or right-doing, is entirely a matter of
individual conduct, and not a mystical
something apart from a man’s thoughts
and deeds.

Calmness and patience can become
habitual by first grasping, through effort,
a calm and patient thought, and then
continuously thinking it, and living in it,
until “use becomes second nature,” and
anger and impatience pass away for ever.



"Both Jesus and Buddha were enlightened beings and spoke of the same path...this is what Jesus spoke about renewal of the mind, dying of the self. Buddha just gave the recipe in detail. Why do we separate two sages who spoke of the same thing? Just like Thich stated - I love Jesus as well as Buddha. It's the people who like to cause divisions and quarrels." - Marta Eyore

 

The strife of the world in all its forms has its origin in one common cause, namely, individual selfishness.

January Eighth.

ALL the varied activities of human life are rooted in, and draw their vitality from, one common source—the human heart. The cause of all suffering and all happiness resides, not in the outer activities of human life, but in the inner activities of the heart and mind ; and every external agency is sustained by the life which it derives from human conduct.

The man who cannot endure to have his errors and shortcomings brought to the surface and made known, but tries to hide them, is unfit to walk the highway of Truth. He is not properly equipped to battle with and overcome temptation. He who cannot fearlessly face his lower nature cannot climb the rugged heights of renunciation.

Each man comes under the laws of his own being, never under the laws of another.

Eighth Morning

Man is made or unmade by himself; in the
armoury of thought he forges the weapons
by which he destroys himself; he also
fashions the tools with which he builds
for himself heavenly mansions of joy and
strength and peace. By the right choice
and true application of thought man
ascends to the Divine Perfection; by the
abuse and wrong application of thought
he descends below the level of the beast.
Between these two extremes are all the
grades of character, and man is their
maker and master.

As a being of Power, Intelligence, and
Love, and the lord of his own thoughts,
man holds the key to every situation.

Eighth Evening

Whatsoever you harbour in the inmost
chambers of your heart will, sooner or later,
by the inevitable law of reaction,
shape itself in your outward life.

Every soul attracts its own, and
nothing can possibly come to it that does
not belong to it. To realize this is to
recognize the universality of Divine Law.

If thou would’st right the world,
And banish all its evils and its woes.
Make its wild places bloom,
And its drear deserts blossom as the rose-
Then right thyself.

 

The main goal of this thread is to share the James Allen passages daily, as I've stated LOL. They were laid out by him to read morning and evening, EVERYDAY. Of course only the most dedicated Truth (Truth is essentially the Universal golden strand connecting all spiritual teachings in this world and beyond) seekers would attempt such a routine, but if Truth is important to you I must encourage you to read the passages how James intended his readers to when he wrote his books. The passages can be found out of texts at the library link in my signature (obviously). If not that at least once a day, and if not everyday well you aren't really resolute in your spiritual path or James Allen isn't your cup of tea. I study teachings of several different Masters and don't solely read James Allen but his works embody what all the great Teachers, Saints, Sages, and Saviours have spoken throughout time immemorial. You just can't be spiritual and go wrong making it a habit to read James Allen.

I will also be sharing other mind expanding content, heart warming even, that I randomly come across day to day from other sources, like this song:



(CANNOT FIND THE LYRICS BUT IT IS A DEEEEEEP SONG IF YOU LISTEN TO THE LYRICS)

And this, completely random, whatever pops up on my screen while I'm doing other things and resonates with the main theme of this thread I will be sharing at times alongside the dailies:

 

This thread is definitely not for closed minded people.

Even an open minded power hungry atheist or passion ridden humanist who doesn't want anything to do with spirituality will benefit from what is in this thread. The key being open minded. Doesn't matter if you want to be rich, famous, or live an epicurean lifestyle. I understand people from all walks of life as I've been through it all and around all kinds of people. I understand this is a secular forum and I didn't create it for myself alone nor with any one type of person in mind.

5 Easy Ways To Begin A Spiritual Practice Today - www.mindbodygreen.com/0-7505/5-easy-ways-to-begin-a-spiritual-practice-today.html

Neuroscience's New Consciousness Theory Is Spiritual - www.psychologytoday.com/blog/mind-in-the-machine/201512/neurosciences-new-consciousness-theory-is-spiritual

Embarking On A Spiritual Journey
By Jessica Beltran, MS
~ 4 min read



Growing up I didn’t know much about spirituality. All I knew about was religion, which required following a certain dogma that contradicted my rational mind. The idea of having to strictly adopt a predefined belief system above all others was beyond me. Especially when I didn’t share many of the rules that were a part of it. So I decided to give up on religion a long time ago. And with it, I gave up on spirituality.

It was not until seven years ago when I was conflicted with this concept once again. Not the part about religion. I know how I feel about that. But the part about spirituality. That is, believing there is something greater than the tangible world we see. I was in a very dark place at that time. I felt very lost and had no idea why. My desperation was such that I started praying. I wasn’t sure who I was praying to but I was trying with all my heart to get my message across to something or someone bigger than me. I would sit out on the balcony of my apartment and pray for clarity.


Despair does that to you. It makes you do things you would never imagine doing. As they say, desperate times call for desperate measures. So I prayed and I meditated. Asking for enlightenment. I thought it was a long shot but at that point I had nothing to lose. My rational mind was failing me so I had no other option but to rely on what I now know is spirituality. I was desperately searching for meaning in my life. I needed at least some light in that rather dark tunnel I had no idea how to get out of.

I did get a ray of light one day. It was one of those “aha” moments you can’t logically explain. Out of the blue I suddenly realized my so-called passion in life made me feel empty. It was like an inner voice speaking to me. And just like that, that beam of light turned into a full sunrise right before my eyes. With time I realized my career was just the tip of the iceberg. Not only had I no idea what I wanted to do with my life but I had no idea who I even was. And because of this, I soon learned how I had failed to make the right choices for me.

So I spent the following years doing much introspection and therapy. I worked hard, very hard, on getting to know myself. And the more I knew about who I was the more changes in my life I started making. Big transformational changes. Both internal and external. And after much pain, fear, and discomfort I finally started feeling content. And the more content I was the more I started to forget how this whole process of transformational change had begun. Without knowing it I went back to being my old rational and logical self. And by doing so I completely forgot how spirituality had held my hand along this arduous process.

But the Universe is wise. So very wise. It forced me to open my eyes and wake up once again. This time the challenges I had to face were even harder because I had absolutely no control over them. I needed something more powerful than my rational and logical being to overcome the possibility of losing my son to a stroke. To better manage the desperation that comes with trying to reclaim your life when everything along the road makes it feel impossible. Once again I was face-to-face with the need for a higher power. Desperate to connect with something larger than myself. So, I decided to embark on a journey of spirituality again, but this time, with full awareness and conviction.

I’ve come across persons and books along the way that I can’t help but think are teachers and lessons the Universe is offering me at a time when I’m finally able to accept them. I’m starting to say prayers, mantras, and affirmations that feel completely ridiculous at first but with time somehow make me feel better. I’m meditating, in spite of my easily distracted mind, and taking advantage as much as I can of every opportunity to contemplate the inexplicable beauty of nature. And I’m engaging in activities that nurture my soul and give me a sense of connectedness, such as writing.

I can’t say I have blind faith in the Universe just yet. But I’m working on it. Because despite what my unconscious may be telling me to sabotage this quest for inner peace, I now know with certainty that my mental well-being depends on it.


And here’s what I’ve learned about spirituality so far:

• 
  
  
  • Spirituality goes beyond religion. It is not concerned with politics, rules or traditions. Spirituality is about feeling connected to a power greater than all of us. It allows us to cultivate a positive state of mind by having faith in the world we live in. As science has shown, being spiritual is positively correlated with optimism, strength, inner peace, gratitude, and contentment. In other words, spirituality makes us happier.

• 
  
  
  • Spirituality is an experience that comes from the soul and can be pursued in many different ways. You can connect with the Universe by marveling at the wonders of nature. Expand your consciousness through meditation. Induce your mind to positive beliefs through the repetition of mantras and affirmations. Or build your faith in the Universe through the power of prayer.

• 
  
  
  • Spirituality makes it easier to let go. It helps you accept the part of your fate you have no control over. Because despite what some of us may believe, we are not fully responsible for every single thing that happens in our life. All we can do is our best and surrender what’s left to the Universe. And just by accepting that, the burden begins to feel a lot lighter.

• 
  
  
  • Spirituality fills the gaps that logic and reason are not able to. It does not make us less rational, but more comfortable with the uncertainty of life. Unlike what I used to believe, spirituality is not a free pass to sit back and watch life happen to us. It just gives us the piece of mind we need once we’ve done everything in our power and still haven’t reached the outcome we were looking for. It gives us hope that, regardless of our wishes and desires, something better is waiting for us down the road, even though it’s in a different shape or form than we had planned for.

So despite what my logic and reason may think, I’ll keep trying to invite spirituality into my life every day. Because I’m now wide awake and refuse to go back to sleep. Not when the sky has lit up right before my eyes.

Enjoyed this post? Please visit my website and like my Facebook page so you can keep up with my writing. Let’s thrive together!


About Jessica Beltran, MS
Jessica Beltran, MS is a deeply passionate soul who firmly believes it is never too late to become who we want to be. She started out her career as a corporate attorney to later realize that her true passion and calling in life is psychology. She now holds a Masters of Science in Psychology and currently works in Human Resources, applying psychology to the business world. Jessica loves to write about the human mind and behavior not only based on what science has taught her but on what she’s learned from her own self-discovery journey. Psychology changed her life and Jessica hopes through the beauty of words and her love for the field she’ll be able to change the lives of others.

 

My own mind
is my own church. —Thomas Paine

Sometimes I get mind impulses to say something in this thread. Perhaps someone is reading it and furrowing their brow in confusion or scoffing at some lofty spiritual idea. Perhaps I'm just a madman whose lost his marbles?

 

When the soul is most tried, its need is greatest.

January Ninth.

DO not despair because of failure. From your particular failure there is a special greatness, a peculiar wisdom, to be gained ; and no teacher can lead you to that greatness, that wisdom, more surely and swiftly than your experience of failure. In every mistake you make, in every fall you encounter, there is a lesson of vital import if you will but search it out; and he who will stoop to discover the good in that which appears to be disastrous will rise superior to every event, and will utilise his failures as winged steeds to bear him to a final and supreme success.

Foolish men blame others for their lapses and sins, but let the truth-lover blame only himself. Let him acknowledge his complete responsibility for his own conduct.

Where temptation is powerful, the greater and more enduring will be the victory.

Ninth Morning

Whatever conditions are rendering your
life burdensome, you may pass out of and
beyond them by developing and utilizing
within you the transforming power of
self-purification and self-conquest.

Before the divine radiance of a pure
heart all darkness vanishes and all clouds
melt away, and he who has conquered
self has conquered the universe.

He who sets his foot firmly upon
the path of self-conquest, who walks,
aided by the staff of faith, the highway of
self-sacrifice, will assuredly achieve the
highest prosperity, and will reap abounding
and enduring joy and bliss.



Ninth Evening

It is the silent and conquering thought-
forces which bring all things into
manifestation. The universe grew
out of thought.

To adjust all your thoughts to a perfect
and unswerving faith in the omnipotence
and supremacy of Good, is to co-operate
with that Good, and to realize within
yourself the solution and destruction
of all evil.

To mentally deny evil is not sufficient;
it must, by daily practice, be risen above
and understood. To affirm the Good
mentally is inadequate; it must, by
unswerving endeavor, be entered into
and comprehended.

 

Not a fan of Neil per se. I mean I love the guy but I'm not totally into him like a diehard fan is haha. But his words are needed in this thread for the time being, I apologize for the drastic tone changes it may cause.



Fee-fi-fo-fum, I smell the IP of a rational one......

 

SHEESH NOW I'M NOT TRYING TO TURN THIS INTO BUDDHISM DAILY OR ANYTHING BUT THIS INSIGHT IS NEXT LEVEL, granted he is still a junior monk in training not a High Sanghan Dharma Master by any means:



Let's keep the -ists, -ians, -ics, -ishs, -ims, -ars, -us and -isms out of here please.

WE'RE ALL JUST HUMAN OK??!?!?!!!!

Now this was as high as Dharma Masters come in the modern era:

 

OK.



Time to get SECULAR.

We will return to Abrahamic faiths in the future don't worry this isn't a thread that is biased towards any one faith/teaching/philosophy. I will NOT be sharing ANY religious content here and if you think I already have THEN YOU DON'T KNOW THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN 'RELIGION CREATED UPON DOGMA' AND 'SPIRITUAL TEACHING NOT BASED ON DOGMA'.



So sad he killed himself. What a brilliant author.

 

GO ON, CALL ME CRAZY!!!! CALL ME A WACKO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Or just continue analyzing everything in this thread over and over each time you see a new post with your mundane thoughts until you stop reading it. Or just save yourself some time & future confusion if you're that type of person and quit now.



The great need of the soul, then, is the need of this permanent principle, called
righteousness, on which it may stand securely and restfully amid the tempest of
earthly existence, no more bewildered, and whereon it may build the mansion of a
beautiful, peaceful, and perfect life.

January Tenth.

THE old must pass away before the new can appear. The old cottage must be demolished before the new mansion can appear upon its site. The old error must be destroyed before the new truth can come. . . . The old self must be renounced before the new man can be born. When the old self of temper, impatience, envy, pride, and impurity has perished, then in its place will appear the new man of gentleness, patience, goodwill, humility, and purity. Let the old life of sin and sorrow pass ; let the new life of Righteousness and Joy come in. ... Then all that was old and ugly will be made new and beautiful.

It is in the realisation of this Principle where the Kingdom of Heaven, the abiding home of the soul, resides, and which is the source and storehouse of every permanent blessing.

A life of virtue is noble and excellent.

Tenth Morning

Every thought you think is a force sent out.
Whatever your position in life may
be, before you can hope to enter into any
measure of success, usefulness, and power,
you must learn how to focus your thought-
forces by cultivating calmness and repose.

There is no difficulty, however great,
but will yield before a calm and purposeful
concentration of thought, and no
legitimate object but may be speedily
actualized by the intelligent use and
direction of one’s soul forces.

Think good thoughts, and they will
quickly become actualized in your outward
life in the form of good conditions.



Tenth Evening

That which you would be and hope to be,
you may be now. Non-accomplishment
resides in your perpetual postponement,
and, having the power to postpone, you
also have the power to accomplish-to
perpetually accomplish: realize this truth,
and you shall be to-day, and every day,
the ideal being of whom you dreamed.

Say to yourself, “I will live in my Ideal
now; I will manifest my ideal now; I will
be my Ideal now; and all that tempts me
away from my Ideal I will not listen to;
I will listen only to the voice of my Ideal.”

 

I'm sorry for the tone changes.

I feel a need to change the tone at times and caution readers just because once some of the insight from the works of James Allen gets into your mind, it can profoundly change your outlook on life. Some people will not like what they read I have no doubt about that.

I'd rather inform the reader of what they're possibly getting into before they actually get in too deep for them as an individual.

May all benefit.



I have to share these things I posted in another thread from YouTube. There is going to be a ton of material on renunciation and self-sacrifice coming up so let's make sure we don't get ourselves in deeper than we understand or are ready for. You deserve to have love for yourself and just because you may not be able to comprehend the true meaning behind some of the passages does not mean you cannot absorb at least the parts you do understand and reap benefit.

It is said by some spiritual Masters the chances of becoming enlightened by one's own efforts alone this day and age in less than 1 in a billion or something. It's just not going to happen that easy and it sure isn't going to be broadcasted by someone who attains it, lol.

Anyways, don't get too worried about not being able to sacrifice your ego upon the altar of selfless service to all beings, that is an ineffable state to be in and sometimes our worldly minds somehow view it as painful or simply not attainable for a human being.

Love yourself. Then love others. Then love creatures even. The rest will follow.

This guy is a long time NoFap bro really deep into his progress, years deep (this channel is no longer active but the videos uploaded are worth a gander for sure):

I Love Myself

 

Ok.

One last Buddhist bit before the switch to secular content only (is there a difference hehehe ) for a while before delving into non-religious Abrahamic schools of faith.

This one is for the science minded logical thinkers. The Theravadan teaching is right up your alley. Mahayana teachings may take a more open minded, faith based person to handle. But hey it's all in your own conditions and affinities ultimately, your own roots.

Dhamma Talks Archive » Amaravati Buddhist Monastery (Best Theravadan Monastery I know of but hey I'm into the Mahayana myself if I was asked to make a distinction so what do I know?)

BEST OF THE BEST THERAVADAN MONKS RIGHT HERE, CALL ME A CURATOR OF THIS TYPE OF MATERIAL : www.amaravati.org/dhamma-books

Ajahn Chah » Amaravati Buddhist Monastery

Interesting little tale right here revelatory perhaps for some minds, an archaic layout do explore slowly and mindfully if you choose to visit it,

beginnings.endings

Ahhh.

And now onto our next lesson.

 

I would like to rebuke some of what has been said.

It is completely up to one's own personal interpretation as to what constitutes a 'religion' or not. I realize many arguments form in regards to religion, hell wars break out because of it. Some people claim all of the world's major spiritual teachings are religions, fair enough.

Before this thread goes any further, don't trust anything that has been said so far if it doesn't ring true for you . I explicitly encourage you to take it with a grain of Himalayan pink crystal salt.

 

Understanding humanity as a whole is a great thing for everyone. Secular or sacred, it doesn't matter which way ye swing, understanding is something every person on this planet can reap massive benefits from.

Another mind expanding video to pave the way for the secular content coming tomorrow, watch or don't watch, no one is making you read this. I feel discussing all this is expanding my own understanding. And I feel it is more than necessary to enter into such topics if this James Allen thread is to remain here, otherwise I'd delete it and run along hahaha, but I'd rather continue the mission that was begun on a flash of intuition,

 

Whatever you do in life, MAKE IT COUNT FOR YOURSELF AND OTHERS.







Self Improvement Update:

I just faced a small test. I was on Facebook and doing a search for a user when some female whose account I 'digitally molested' i.e. fapped to her pictures popped up automatically. I thought it was no longer on Facebook as I didn't see it last time I binged but here I am clean as a whistle and it's shoved right in my face, just her name recommendation. I didn't click on it. I sat and looked at it for about 10 seconds bewildered that it was even showing. It was just staring at me waiting for me to click it, I didn't click it.

 

We seem to be 1 day ahead of schedule. I can't seem to hold my horses until the next sunrise but on track we will be I'll see to that me will.



It matters little what is without, for it is all a reflection of your own consciousness.

January Eleventh.

THE deplorable failure of many outward and isolated reforms is traceable to the fact that their devotees pursue them as an end in themselves, failing to see that they are merely steps towards ultimate, individual perfection.

All true reform must come from within, in a changed heart and mind. The giving up of certain foods and drinks, and the breaking away from certain outward habits, are good and necessary beginnings; but they are only beginnings, and to end there is to fall far short of a true spiritual life. It is good, therefore, to cleanse the heart, to correct the mind, and to develop the understanding, for we know that the one thing needed is a regenerate heart.

It matters everything what you are within, for everything without will be mirrored and coloured accordingly.

Eleventh Morning
Be as a flower; content to be, to grow
in sweetness day by day.

If thou would’st perfect thyself in
knowledge, perfect thyself in Love.
If thou would’st reach the Highest,
ceaselessly cultivate a loving and
compassionate heart.

To him who chooses Goodness,
sacrificing all, is given that which
is more than, and includes, all.

Eleventh Evening

The Great Law never cheats any man of
his just due.

Human life, when rightly lived,
is simple with a beautiful simplicity.

He who comprehends the utter
simplicity of life, who obeys its laws,
and does not step aside into the dark
paths and complex mazes of selfish desire,
stands where no harm can reach him.

Then there is fullness of joy,
abounding plenty, and rich and
complete blessedness.

blessedness
noun
1 a feeling or state of well-being and contentment <the proud parents can scarcely describe the blessedness of having four healthy children>

Synonyms beatitude, happiness, bliss, blissfulness, felicity, gladness, joy, warm fuzzies
Related Words elatedness, elation, exhilaration, exultation, high, intoxication; ecstasy, euphoria, glory, heaven, nirvana, paradise, rapture, rapturousness, ravishment, seventh heaven, transport; delectation, delight, enjoyment, pleasure; cheer, cheerfulness, comfort, exuberance, gaiety (also gayety), gladsomeness, glee, gleefulness, jocundity, jollity, joyfulness, joyousness, jubilance, jubilation, lightheartedness, merriness, mirth; content, contentedness, gratification, satisfaction, triumph

 

I consider the above video secular as the theories in the video are based upon scientific research. Science is very, very slowly delving into the realm of consciousness and dare I say the spiritual realm these days. Can you believe that? Or do you even care hehe.

 

“Which came first, the phoenix or the flame?”
"...I think the answer is that a circle has no beginning."
"Well reasoned.”
― J.K. Rowling, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows

“A truth that's told with bad intent
Beats all the lies you can invent.”
― William Blake, Auguries of Innocence

“I suppose therefore that all things I see are illusions; I believe that nothing has ever existed of everything my lying memory tells me. I think I have no senses. I believe that body, shape, extension, motion, location are functions. What is there then that can be taken as true? Perhaps only this one thing, that nothing at all is certain.”
― René Descartes

“When dealing with people, remember you are not dealing with creatures of logic, but with creatures bristling with prejudice and motivated by pride and vanity.”
― Dale Carnegie, How to Win Friends and Influence People

“What does the brain matter compared with the heart?”
― Virginia Woolf, Mrs. Dalloway