mostly philosophy
The World Economic Forum in Davos in January, more than usual, prompted a spirited round of elite-bashing, which has now become the trendy political posture on both the right and left. On one side, US President Trump and Fox News hosts slam the out-of-touch establishment that, according to them, has run things into the ground. […]
Is the world’s population living better than ever before?
Love, probably the most debated concept, is easy (it should be, right?) But complicated (for sure). The most natural feeling that ties people together has never been less than difficult, up to impossible sometimes.
Following a certain pattern of impossible loves, going from one impossible affair into another, is not a pure coincidence. Digging deeper, this pattern hides a subconscious (or unconscious) reason.
Falling for impossible loves more than once says a fear of commitment. Worse, it reveals a guilt feeling of betraying parents or closed loved ones. An impossible love doesn’t lead to commitment; so one is safe from commitment, guilt and betrayal.
Always falling for the “wrong” person is not a lack of chance. It is an unconscious choice. It is repeating the same experience over and over again. This repeated pattern of a person lies between the myth of Sisyphus and the Stockholm syndrome.
Emancipating oneself from the chain of the absurdity of this repeated heartbreaks requires a mind reset. And this is a long sinuous road of self discovery.
Weight loss is always trendy. Experts speak about fat loss (and not weight loss).
Fat is a stored energy. The increase of the body fat percentage is a symptom or an indicator of an underlying cause.
The underlying cause is simply the non utilisation of energy which ended up being stored.
In other words, the real underlying cause is a weak muscle.
Therefore, instead of preaching weight loss (or fat loss) which is everywhere on social media, the focus should be on muscle strengthening.
Pump that muscle and let it take care of body fat.
Muscles are the anti ageing (or ageing gracefully) weapon!
How many different apps do you have open on your phone right now? How many tabs on your internet browser? And how many different e-mail threads and Facebook messages? If you’re like most people, you probably have a lot of each of these – too many, in fact. The myth of multitasking has seeped into […]
Do you know about the myth of multi tasking?
Since the subject of meditation is less clear than I anticipated I decided to sum up a description of a Buddhist to save you 1 1/2 hours of listening. The core of the Buddha’s way to liberation consists in the practice of meditation It was by meditation that the Buddha reached enlightenment himself and it […]
A summary of Buddhist meditations
Since meditation has taken social media by storm and everyone is trying to do some kind of meditation, this post clarifies in details the differences between each type of Buddhist meditations.
To those of you who are interested in meditation (especially in hard times of pandemic and financial instability and insecurity), I urge you to check this post of my expert friend and learn step by step meditation.
I have been on a lockdown (forced staying home) for two weeks now and no changes before the end of March. In order not to go crazy bored, here are some tips to help you stay sane and focused
Work online:
If you have this option or if you want to work on your blog, this is a time killer, hours will pass by unnoticed.
Workout:
This is a crucial for fitness in general and for immunity. Without noticing, you will see yourself sitting all day and this is bad. You can find millions of workout videos on youtube for all levels and all sessions, from 4 minutes and so on. Personally, I do my 20 minute yoga routine in the morning, on empty stomach and I workout in the afternoon for at least 30 minutes.
Intermittent fasting and proper nutrition:
It’s not the time to indulge in fast food and processed food and sugar crap, this is bad for immunity. In these days, we must give a break to the body to work, to regenerate itself and to fight anything it must fight. Personally I fast for 16 hours and my eating window is 8 hours.
Decluttering:
And rearranging. Take the time to do it, it will help you know what you should keep and what you should give away. Another time killer activity. Everyday do a part of a room, so some is left for other days.
Art/artcraft:
That’s a therapy, and a great way to keep you and your hands busy. You will be surprised how creative you are.
Reading:
A good novel is always the best companion.
I hope my post will help you. Remember, don’t go out unless you must to. Take all the necessary precautions when going out and coming back. Much love and care are needed in this time. Corona united us all!
It is not about the concept of freedom but the concept of free. A capitalistic world is a capitalistic collective and individual consciousness. Where all is about financial profit, then the concepts of saving and getting free products are related. It goes from free trials, free e-books, free giveaway etc… to ingredients free types of food.
While all this seems to be profitable and legitimate, where the awareness stands?
The idea of free is not bad in itself. People have the right to try a free sample before deciding on buying it or not. Same goes for a free trial, a free class, a free article etc., or even a “buy 1 get 1 for free”. The issue lies in the frantic thinking of getting the maximum of free stuff possible for two main reasons:
It is trickier when it comes to food. Sugarfree is the taste of sugar without having sugar. Fat free, is also the same taste minus the fat. Gluten free: does anyone understand the gluten issue? Put aside allergies and food intolerances, why would anyone want to eat sugar without sugar if it is widely known that is bad? It is lying to ourselves without taking any responsibility for this matter. It is accepting to eat crap and fooling ourselves that it is a healthier option while deeply being convinced that it is poisonous. Mythomania!
It is revolting because paying for something is paying for quality and it is an exchange. Perhaps some things shouldn’t be free and some others shouldn’t be paid for. You choose which is which. Should a party be free? I don’t think so, again for the idea of exchanging intentions and experiences. Art was never free, although it shouldn’t cost a fortune. Creativity must be paid for.
So, where the awareness stands?
It is low, stepping behind a compulsive behavior and a self-cheating mentality. Instead of looking for quality, some people (if not most of them) rely on bingeing bad food, bad quality and bad music. All this is followed by medication afterward. Then we ask ourselves: why are we so unhappy and stressed? How did rational and critical thinking disappear?
The word “sincere” comes from the Latin sin cirus meaning without beeswax as referred to pure honey. Later, this word was used for a person who speaks their mind, who doesn’t fool others.
One can be sincere without telling the truth only if they are unconsciously wrong at the start. In comparison, a liar doesn’t believe their own lie, unless repeated all the time, a perversion called mythomania.
Generally speaking, orators are not sincere: they speak to provoke a certain reaction and not to communicate their thoughts. Therefore, sincerity’s requirements are mostly transparency and sometimes authenticity. For sociability causes, one tends to wear a mask for protection or for manipulation; society often tells us to be less sincere to fit in.
Are we all mythomania?
Mythomania is an abnormal or pathological tendency to exaggerate or tell lies.
If we take this classical definition, can it be adapted to our virtual social behavior on social media? Is an airbrushed photo or a well enhanced profile considered as mythomania? Let’s face it, most people won’t admit they used Photoshop for their photos, not they would admit that they lied about their profiles. Obviously, there is a worse example like identity theft. Is the thief a mythomaniac or aren’t we all?
The paradox is we have all been raised for higher moral values such as sincerity and authenticity. We all went on retouching innocently our photos and marketing ourselves on a larger identity. Maybe the question worse asking here is: are we all, not mythomaniac, but schizophrenic? What if the latters are both social disorders? Are certain types of societies the creator of those disorders, better known as psychological issues?
The easiest way to answer would be to say they are psychosocial. Let’s go further and say they are epigenetic, genetically wired by our culture to be mythomaniac. Epigenetic studies the impact of culture (social behavior and nutrition) on our genes. Would it be an option to explain collective disorders?
The title struck me. I never guessed that happiness could be the enemy of depression. Furthermore, a continuous sights of happiness, like in social media, can cause depression.
To whom it may concern, it is quite a special article, non traditional and insightful. Check it out by clicking on the link below.
Let’s say we are all going in a way down the dark road of depression. I sincerely hope not 🙏
Don’t we all have them?
Imagine sitting alone, thinking of death, of hardships, of a scary phenomenon. Imagine all this happening to you or to your loved ones. Don’t you want to cry over your thoughts?
Hell knows where these thoughts come from. Is it imagination? Worse: is it intuition? Or is it a mental health issue?
Specialists (and I asked some of them) believe that professional help is needed in case of total disturbance of daily activities due to these thoughts. If not, then one can and must know their origin. It’s hard to tell most of the time whether these thoughts are imaginary or intuitive. They are intuitive if the thought becomes reality.
What is less known for common people is the normality of these dark thoughts. A “healthy” mind would have light and dark thoughts. All depends on one’s background and experiences and their interpretation of life.
One of the best ways to deal with dark thoughts is to try to know the cause of their emergence. Is it because of guilt or a feeling of failure? Is it because of deceptions in the past and fear of the future? We know the answers only if we choose to focus and understand. Once we know the cause, the solution is around the corner.
For heavier cases, speaking out is the path to remedy. Also activities such art, sports, yoga, meditation or any kind of activity that keeps the mind busy and helps boost self-confidence can help soothing the pain.
I noticed that dark thoughts emerge in my lonely boring inactive times. Martin Heidegger, the German philosopher, underlined the importance of boredom to reflect on the essence of life in his philosophical masterpiece: Being and time.
I have been trying to keep myself busy with what I like to do and to reflect on my dark thoughts in my alone times. I noticed that all of them have one origin: the fear of a future deception and loneliness. However, these thoughts have become much lighter and some images they brought disappeared.
How do you deal with your dark thoughts?
