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An Essay by Einstein

"How strange is the lot of us mortals! Each of us is here for a brief sojourn; for what purpose he knows not, though he sometimes thinks he senses it. But without deeper reflection one knows from daily life that one exists for other people -- first of all for those upon whose smiles and well-being our own happiness is wholly dependent, and then for the many, unknown to us, to whose destinies we are bound by the ties of sympathy. "I have never looked upon ease and happiness as ends in themselves -- this critical basis I call the ideal of a pigsty. "My passionate sense of social justice and social responsibility has always contrasted oddly with my pronounced lack of need for direct contact with other human beings and human communities. "My political ideal is democracy. "This topic brings me to that worst outcrop of herd life, the military system, which I abhor... "The most beautiful experience we can have is the mysterious. See also Einstein's Third Paradise, an essay by Gerald Holton Related:  lifestyle

Taoism The word Tao means path or way, although the original meaning in Chinese philosophy and religion is more abstract. Behind all material things and all the change in the world lies one fundamental, universal principle which is the Way or Tao. This principle governs everything, all change and all life. Behind the multiplicity and contradictions of the world lies a unity: the Tao. The Power of the Way is Te. The purpose of human life is to live life according to the Tao. "Beyond the gate of experience flows the Way, Which is ever greater and more subtle than the world." From the Tao Te Ching Major Taoist Scriptures The Tao Te Ching written by Lao Tzu. "The Way that can be experienced is not true; The world that can be constructed is not real." Zhuangzi, written by the same name sage is a book of prose, poetry, humor and disputation. The Daozang or Treasury of Tao is considered as the Taoist canon. Teachings & Beliefs P'u is a passive state of receptiveness, state of perception without prejudice.

120 Minutes A few days ago, Seth Godin posted a brilliant piece on his blog entitled Is Effort a Myth? In it, Seth addresses the issue of luck: And that’s the key to the paradox of effort: While luck may be more appealing than effort, you don’t get to choose luck. Effort, on the other hand, is totally available, all the time. A while back, I wrote on a similar theme, arguing that luck happens to those who provide the most opportunities for luck to grow in their life, and pointing out ten things anyone can do to improve their luck. Seth takes a bit of a different route to a similar conclusion. 1. All four points are valuable life lessons, but I wanted to focus in on the first two because the point there is near and dear to my heart. If you can devote two hours a day to improving yourself and doing something to change your situation, your life will improve. All I have to do is roll back the clock two years to provide some proof of this. Two years later, it’s changed my life. So, how can you do it, too?

7 Superfoods for Your Health Were you under the assumption that a superfood is some type of strange and foreign melon from an exotic, far-off country? If so, I’m happy to inform you that superfoods come in many shapes and varieties, and some of these foods are probably in your kitchen right now! Checkout our list of delicious superfoods with phenomenal health benefits and tasty appeal. We’ve even included a super-easy smoothie recipe packed with these superfoods. Click here to share this infographic on your website. Copy/paste the code below to add this infographic to your site.

10 simple things you can do today that will make you happier, backed by science Happiness is so interesting, because we all have different ideas about what it is and how to get it. It’s also no surprise that it’s the Nr.1 value for Buffer’s culture, if you see our slidedeck about it. So naturally we are obsessed with it. I would love to be happier, as I’m sure most people would, so I thought it would be interesting to find some ways to become a happier person that are actually backed up by science. 1. You might have seen some talk recently about the scientific 7 minute workout mentioned in The New York Times. Exercise has such a profound effect on our happiness and well-being that it’s actually been proven to be an effective strategy for overcoming depression. The groups were then tested six months later to assess their relapse rate. You don’t have to be depressed to gain benefit from exercise, though. A study in the Journal of Health Psychology 2 found that people who exercised felt better about their bodies, even when they saw no physical changes: 2. 3. 4. 5. 6.

50 Best Blogs for Zen-Like Living Whether you are a Zen Buddhist or just want to lead a Zen life, these 50 spiritual and simplifying blogs and community web sites will point you down the path of enlightenment. Explore the first sub-section to learn how to have a happy, fulfilled life through Zen-inspired lessons and mantras. The second sub-section is dedicated to those who are seeking a more spiritual side of Zen like Zen Buddhism. Many of these blogs feature meditations and insight on the path to Enlightenment. Learn to Live Peacefully Blogs 1. zenhabits – This no-frills site focuses on ways of slowing down and enjoying life to its fullest. 2. Ahh. Search our database of 350+ colleges and universities to find the right program for you.

28 of the best pieces of advice about life you'll ever read Have the courage to live a life true to yourself, not the life others expect of you. Never attribute to malice that which can be adequately explained by stupidity. “There is nothing noble in being superior to your fellow man; true nobility is being superior to your former self.” Ernest Hemingway Don’t make decisions when you’re angry. “Never argue with a stupid person, they’ll drag you down to their level and beat you with experience.” Only pack what you can carry yourself. Remember you’ll always regret what you didn’t do rather than what you did. “You’d worry less about what people think about you if you knew how seldom they do.” If you blame it on someone else, don’t expect it to get better. “You can be the ripest, juiciest peach in the world, but there will always be someone who hates peaches.” If the grass is greener on the other side, there’s probably more manure there. Don’t give up what you want most for what you want now. Strive to be the man you want your daughter to marry.

40 Tips for a Happier Life Since the end of the 90s a new branch of the science, also known as Positive Psychology has been dealing with the essentials for happiness. In order to help you find out which happiness potentials are maybe lying idle with you, I have summarized the 40 most important insights on the subject “happiness” in an abbreviated format in the following “checklist”. 1. Get to know yourself really well! Whoever knows more about him/herself, will better be able to tap into his/her potential, advance his/her development and learn to better deal with critical issues. (Our personality test is a great starting point for that) 2. Professional and private activities conveying the feeling of absolute fulfillment create “flow” in us – and that makes us happy. 3. People living in long-lasting, good partner relationships are evidentially happier than singles. 4. 5. Positive social contacts reduce stress and promote health. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. 12. 13. 14. 15. 16. 17. 18. 19. 20. 21. 22. 23. 24. 25. 26. 27. 28.

The Top 7 Signs of Self-Sabotaging Behaviors, self-sabotage, self-defeating behaviors, Holistic Living Having trouble reaching all your goals? Are you going for what you want, but feeling like something is road-blocking the way? Are you finding yourself "not" doing some of the things you know you should be doing? You may be a victim of sabotage---self-sabotage. See Also: A Positive Mindset is the Foundation for Success Don’t limit your thinking, as this will limit your beliefs and these will limit your actions, which will limit your successes! Develop Goals, Visualize, and Get It Your mind is your mental workshop. What can I do to succeed? A Goal is a Must so is Concentration Concentration is the magic key that opens the door to accomplishment. You Can Succeed Even in Failure Failure is one of the surest stepping stones to success. 18 Rules For Life Some commonsense rules to follow to have a happy life. More Inspirational Articles Unlock the secret success formula contained within "Think and Grow Rich" . . .

5 Ways To Live The Life You Want In 2013 45% of us make New Year’s resolutions and 8% will be successful in keeping them, according to a recent study from the University of Scranton’s Journal of Clinical Psychology. A very gloomy statistic for sure and I totally get why. We are all amped up in the beginning of the year to lose weight or spend less and then the New Year hits and we get distracted with other commitments and fall back into old habitual patterns. Well, there’s hope. Here are a few easy tactics to help keep the momentum of your New Year’s resolutions going all year long: 1. According to Michael Losier’s book the Law of Attraction, we attract whatever we give our attention, energy and focus to, positive or negative. 2. If you stay optimistic about your resolutions, the universe will support you. 3. Now that your resolutions are in place, stay focused on them! I look forward to having an amazing boyfriend I look forward to losing 10 pounds 4. We are our own worst enemies in getting the life we want. 5.

Inspiration Mind Maps 1-9 The Inspiration Mind Maps 1-9 above are also available as a Free E-Book 25 Killer Websites that Make You Cleverer It’s easy to forget that we have access to a virtually limitless resource of information, i.e. the Internet. For a lot of us, this is even true at our fingertips, thanks to the ubiquity of smartphones and an ever-increasing push for online greatness by tech engineers all over the world. As a result, there are countless websites out there that are geared to make you smarter and more brilliant for either a low or no cost. Here are just 25 killer websites that may just make you more clever than ever before. 1. Duolingo This isn’t the first time I’ve recommended this language-teaching website (and app), and it certainly won’t be the last. 2. Have you ever wanted to pick up a subject you’re not well-versed in, but you didn’t have the money to invest in a college course? 3. Guitar is one of the few instruments out there that’s actually pretty easy to learn if you’re a little older, making it one of the most accessible instruments. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. 12. 13. 14. 15. 16. 17. 19. 20. 21.

10 Decisions Happy People Make We can create health and happiness by choice. Those choices are in how we think, act and react to the things we cannot control. These 10 decisions are choices we can make to lead happier and healthier lives -- no matter what comes our way. 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. For more by Lisabeth Saunders Medlock, Ph.D., click here. For more on happiness, click here.

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