Today, I will be gentle with myself.
~Jonathan-Lockwood Huie
HI FAMILY!!!
DEAR DIARY: Welcome to HUMP DAY!
As you know, last sunday, I went to
WORLDFEST!!!
In case you don't regularly read this blog, and don't know what worldfest is, The WorldFest 2014 Earth Day Festival is a magnificent day filled with entertainment, education and enlightenment, which is being held tomorrow , from 10:30am to 7:00pm, at the beautiful Woodley Park in Lake Balboa, CA.
So, what can somebody do at Worldfest? Well...
~Get your groove on, because they have Musical performances on Two Stages,
~Pig out at the Food Court
~Become inspired by local and national speakers
~Find Fun and inspiration in the EcoTent
~Enjoy healthy cooking demonstrations and more and more the Healthy Hut sponsored by Vega
~Rescue a new best friend in the Animal Adoptions area
~Cool off in the Oasis Beer and Wine Garden sponsored by the Lagunitas Brewing Company (I don't usually drink alcohol, so I'm probably not going to be doing that)
~Fun for the whole family at Kids' Kingdom (makes me wish I had kids)
~Spay and Neuter Clinic at FixFest
~Meet the leaders in the animal protection movement in the Animal Pavilion Sponsored by Ady Gil World Conservation
~Check out the enviromental and animal art in Art Avenue
~Guilt-free shopping with over a hundred exhibitors
~Find volunteer opportunities with local activist groups
Tickets at:
https://worldfestevents.com/presale.php
or take your bike, the Metro, or be a Senior/Student for other discounts the day of! =)(And I ALWAYS ride Metro, so you KNOW I'm getting a discount!!!)
$12 - General
$5 - Bike / Metro Pass / Seniors
Free - Kids 12 and under!
This was gonna be my first time there, and as promised, it was an amazing experience!!!
There were many Amazing people there that day, but I'm going to focus on only a couple of them.
First, I'm gonna start with the people I went there to see:
That's right. Around 1:30 p.m., in a tent called the Earth Lounge, TheKI was performing, and they rocked!!!
Now I've blogged about them a few times already, but in case you don't know who they are...
TheKI is an ensemble that fuses pop, jazz and electronic music with ancient wisdom and serves as one more voice in the movement to combat the abuse, in all its forms, of human rights and freedom. With jazzy harmonizations floating over ambient grooves and topped with inspirational quotes, theKI invites audiences and listeners to dance, chill, and feel inspired.
Roxie Sakura- Vocals
Sean Hill- Spoken Word
Lucas Francis- Bass and Electronic Beats
Antonio Dangond- Keyboard and Vocals
Nick Kraus- Drums and Percussion
I always use their song "Breathe" when I introduce them, because well, it's freaking AWESOME!
So, here it is:
Anyway, the thing I love about these amazing group of people is that, they're not just musicians, they're also activists, using their music and voices to bring awareness to, and solving some of the many problems facing our planet today.
In fact, when I first met the lead singer
ROXIE SAKURA, it was because she and her best friend, the incredibly talented
RACHEL LYNN SEBASTIAN, was helping to organize a team for a special event for the homeless in Los Angeles.
I had signed up as a MAYBE for that event, and about 2 weeks before the event, she added me as a friend on Facebook, and sent me a beautiful message asking me to make the cause, turn that maybe into a definite YES, and join their team. I didn't know if I could make it out there because I may have been called in to work (And in fact I WAS called in to work on that day), and I told her so, but I could and did
MAKE A BLOG ABOUT IT. I didn't even know she was a singer until at least a month later, when she invited me to one of her shows,
WHICH I BLOGGED ABOUT.
Anyway, since then, I made it out to every one of theKi's shows that I could, and I became a big fan.
The reason they were playing there, was in part to celebrate the release of their album on itunes! Now to show you how monumental that was, I have to take you back a couple of years.
If you want something all the universe conspires in helping you achieve it.
Paula Coelho
Check out this video:
Around 2 years ago, these amazing people had a dream. They had vision so strong, that they had no choice but to go after it with EVERYTHING THEY HAD.
And after two years, and a lot of support from friends and family, (And yes, I made a little blog about it too
http://jkashtonsjournal.blogspot.com/2012/11/lets-help-make-dream-come-true.html).
You will be able to buy The KI's album online via iTunes from wherever you are to push a positive world changing album up on those charts!
https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/theki/id876081841
So, what else did I see at WORLDFEST?
Well family, there's somebody I'd like you to meet.
This, is Junko.
She is part of a spiritual group called
SUKYO MAHIKARI.
Sukyo Mahikari is a nonprofit spiritual and community service organization with centers in more than 100 countries. Originally founded by Kotama Okada in 1959 under the name L.H. Yokoshi Tomo no Kai,[3][4] Sukyo Mahikari was registered on 23 June 1978 by Keishu Okada as part of an amicable settlement following the passing of Sir. Kotama Okada (who was decorated with the Knight Commander and the decoration of The Sovereign (Greek) Order of the Knights of Saint Dennis of Zantein 1972).
The purpose of the organization is to foster the ability in people to develop a world of true peace by understanding and practicing light energy and the universal principles in all aspects of life.
Sukyo Mahikari does not ask its members to give up any pre-existing beliefs or accept Sukyo Mahikari as the only path to happiness. Sukyo Mahikari teaches that all religions and spiritual practices have an important mission to accomplish and should work together to establish world peace. Sukyo Mahikari claims that its emphasis on the spiritual unity of humankind has resulted in a membership that reflects a diversity of religions and nationalities.
Sukyo Mahikari teaches the transmission of light energy through a practice which they refer to as "the art of True Light (Mahikari)" which is believed to issue from the palm of the hand. In this spiritual practice, practitioners believe that the Light of God is transmitted from the palm of the hand (the giver) to another person (the receiver), allowing them to purify and revitalise the spirit, mind and body, and to nurture the soul.[10] Practitioners believe that the light energy represents the wisdom, love and will of God.
The practice of giving and receiving light typically begins with both the giver and receiver offering a prayer for God’s Light and divine guidance. After chanting a prayer that is believed to have a strong purifying power (referred to as the “Amatsu Norigoto Prayer”: not to be confused with "Amatsu Norito", a Shinto prayer), the giver then holds his or her hand approximately 12 inches (30 centimeters) from the receiver’s body and transmits the Light to various points considered vital, including, it is believed, the receiver’s soul. Sessions of Light can last anywhere from 10 to 50 minutes.
The art of True Light is the main activity of Sukyo Mahikari because, it is believed, this practice can help people to restore their original divine nature as children of God. By purifying themselves with God’s Light as frequently as possible and by living a way of life that accords with God’s principles, practitioners believe they can gradually eliminate their spiritual impurities.
Sukyo Mahikari teaches that the primary purpose of receiving Divine Light is to purify and nurture the spirit. Sukyo Mahikari does not advocate for the use of the art of True Light as a substitute for medical or psychological therapy. Sukyo Mahikari founder Kotama Okada taught that the ultimate purpose of Sukyo Mahikari and the art of True Light is not to heal disease or gain personal benefit, but instead to be of service to society.
Founder Kotama Okada taught that the art of True Light can have a deep impact on the spiritual realm and encouraged members to transmit the Light to anyone or anything at anytime[citation needed]. He taught that the Light can not only to be transmitted to human beings, but also to animals, food, buildings, automobiles, and the natural environment, as well as situations of unresolved conflict.
It was this "art of the true light", that Junko and other volunteers were giving to people who came to their booth.
I've been having slight pain in the back of my neck, and in my right knee for quite some time and when she offered to help me, I thought well, it couldn't hurt. And for a while, the pain DID go away. Particularly, the pain in my knee.
Anyway, to make a long story short, Junko got me really interested in Sukyo Mahikari, and I went to their center in Torrance, Ca. the next day to find out more about it, and to recieve more light.
There, I met Junko again, and another very nice volunteer named Row, who told more about the organization, and had a longer session (50 minutes) with me where she gave me more light, and worked on my neck and knee again.
Anyway, it was a very positive experience, and I will DEFINETELY visit the Sukyo Mahikari center again.
Oh, Before I go, there's one more person I like you to meet.
This is ARON (I think I might have misspelled her name)
Aron, if you're reading this blog, thank you so much for allowing me to take your picture, and for making me fel MYSTICAL!!!
And to all of the wonderful staff at WORLDFEST,
Thank You so much for running such a great event, and I'll DEFINETLY go there next year!!!
Well, it's WEDNESDAY, which means it's time for another episode of SHOTS OF AWE, with Jason Silva.
Published on Apr 24, 2014
"If properly harnessed, there's enough sunlight that falls on the earth in just one hour to meet the world's energy demands for a whole year."
Get educated, get involved, and join the conversation:
http://thesolutionsproject.org/.
*We'd like to make an apology at the 01:13 marker - "some of the smartest men in the world", it should be "some of the smartest men and women in the world".
Join Jason Silva every week as he freestyles his way into the complex systems of society, technology and human existence and discusses the truth and beauty of science in a form of existential jazz. New episodes every Tuesday.
Watch More Shots of Awe on TestTube http://testtube.com/shotsofawe
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Category
Science & Technology
License
Standard YouTube License
------------HEAVEN LETTERS------------
Heavenletters™, bringing Earth closer to Heaven.
HEAVEN is here to reach every soul on earth to reawaken:
* Our connection to God *
* Our belief in ourselves *
* Our awareness of our shared worthiness to God *
* Peace on Earth *
God is always bringing us closer to Him.
Heavenletter #4743 Oh, to Be Free, November 19, 2013
God said:
True freedom is freedom from the past.
Yes, of course, bonds imposed upon you from the present outside of you also exist. Of course, you would rather be free to express yourself and to be where you want to be and when and how and never in the slightest have to hide how you are and your real thoughts. Hiding yourself is the same as being imprisoned.
At the same time, even if you have supreme freedom in the world, so long as you are tied up in the past, you are not free. You have the past looking over your shoulder, telling you what to do and how to be. In the grip of the past, you are not free. You are an obedient soldier who automatically reacts. He salutes. He follows orders. The past is a supervisor who does not brook any disobedience. What once was still is until you free yourself from the past. You do indeed have a past.
This is not the first time you have heard that you do not react to what is happening now but rather are responding to what once was. You may well not consciously know what you are reacting to. You think it is someone or something in your present that you are reacting to. Truly, if you were free, you would react differently. You would see and feel differently. When something adverse is happening, it seems like it is happening before your very eyes, yet you are programmed, and you act from the unseen, perhaps unremembered past. It is not such a good thing to be on automatic, for you are encumbered.
The past has fostered what seems like an instinct in you, and that is to respond in a habitual manner. You may well not be aware that someone today reminds you of someone in the past who was unkind to you when you were young and defenseless, and now you are on guard.
Beloveds, why would you be on guard unless something from the past made you so? What would you have to defend had you not been deeply affected in the past? Today, something in the past sets you off.
The bulls in bullfights are stirred to fighting because of the color red or because of the twirling of the cape. From something, the bull seems to have no choice but to fight. He cannot see that he could simply walk away and not see anything at all to fight about. Whether you are the timid mouse or wild tiger, it could be said that you were trained to be so and you simply haven’t been able to let go and love first. You may have spent your whole life reacting and have been unable to initiate, so ingrained in the past you are.
You could say that it is good to be on automatic when it comes to courtesy. There is something to be said for that, yet how freeing it would be to naturally respond with courtesy or, it could be said, to welcome whoever and whatever may be before you now. It is truly freeing to smile in the present, not as a defense and not as a habit, but from joy inside right now.
I am not telling you anything new.
Yes, how wonderful it would be if you could react to what is simply before you. How lovely it would be if you could let go of all wounds, the ones you remember and the ones you don’t, and come forth unwounded and unscarred. Without woundedness, you would unwind. Tension would leave. You would be as fresh as a spring day. You would still remember what you remember of your past, and yet you would be free from it. You would be free.
Permanent Link:
http://heavenletters.org/oh-to-be-free.html
To read any current Heavenletters, click
HERE
And now, as always, I'm gonna end this post with the most beautiful song in this whole, entire world.
------------CLICK HERE TO CHECK IT OUT------------
God is here. God is living inside of you as life, as love, but you have to see that truth, or there is nothing.
~don Miguel Ruiz
The KI's NEW ALBUM IS AVAILABLE ON ITUNES!!!
You can buy it here:
https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/theki/id876081841