thoughts of hope

[Morris Krok essence@xxxxxxxx]

 Thoughts of hope from my ACADEMY OF ADVANCED THOUGHT

 When man finds himself and uses the little he knows to the best of
advantage, then he vibrates in unison and with attunement to the
all-encompassing intelligence that pervades life.

 Franklin D Rooseveldt in rallying America during the second world war said,
"our greatest enemy is fear, the fear of fear itself."

 Man is vulnerable in many walks of life if he is not vigilant.

 We must not cave in to terror. The fear of terror causes greater turmoil
than the loss of life and material damage they do.

 The world must not remain as fear-ridden varmints and shiver in their
boots. This is when terror succeeds beyond its wildest dreams.

 It may be a mistake to rush into war when more can be accomplished in
subtle ways. Sanction, beefing up security and intelligence will prevent and
neutralise our enemies and terrorists at its roots.

 To rise to great heights; to rise when the tide is against us; to rise
above and beyond those thing which are a constant thorn in your side; to
rise from the lowly plains to the predominating mountains which surround us
and which seem so far to reach; to rise from the seemingly ridiculous to the
sublime requires courage, sacrifice and endurance.

 Our power lies in being fully aware and constantly in communion with the
intelligence ever-present in the deeper recesses of our mind.

 These three principles: respect for ourselves, respect for our fellowmen
and respect for the environment summarises and extracts the best that
philosophy, religion, everyday living and life can teach. It is a triad that
can never be surpassed. The only snag that it requires discipline to keep
these thoughts uppermost in the mind - certainly a task for a lifetime.

 When things are at their darkest and all hope seems lost, remember what a
Roman slave said.
 "Everything has two handles, the one we can take hold of, and the other we
cannot. Where shall I find the good and the bad? Externals are not in my
power but within are the things which are my own. Will is my power."

 When you find yourself; when you put control of your life back where it
belongs - to the intelligence within; when you are in harmony with life's
all-encompassing logic, then you will not need to consult books, no matter
how wise and sacred they are deemed. Or to put it another way if you are not
in harmony with yourself, you will only derive a little benefit from the
written and spoken word. This of course does not refer to scientific and
technical matters but just learning to be happy and content with one's self,
something that one goes to religion for or to counselling.

 A few evil persons of diabolical propensities should not be allowed to hold
the entire world at ransom. They have taken the worst aspect of Islam,
probably that period when Mohammed for his survival had to use the sword.
Mohammed you must remember is an unlettered man, and though some of the
Koran is derived from Judaism and Christianity, he did resort to a primitive
strategem, that is to get the Bedouin and other unlearned tribes of the
desert to accept his teachings and rally to his cause with the sword, by
promising them many things in heaven for their martrydom. So those who
resort to suicidal missions and unprovoked terrorism are living 1400 years
behind the times.

 It is written that the pen is mightier than the sword, so that what we are
experiencing today may be traced to preachings in the disant past, a few
noble and kind thoughts uttered now may just help to put things back on even
keel. So everyone who says something beneficial will certainly keep the ball
rolling, help to steady the ship and apply healing balm.

 Thomas J Abercrombie wrote an article in the National Geographic Magazine,
July 1972 - "The Sword and the Sermon." He briefly explains how Islam spread
in a few short years from Spain to the borders of China, India and the
Soviet Union, encompassing in the process all of North Africa and the Middle
East. It deals basically with his trip to all these countries. He mentions a
very redeeming thought that he heard on this journey - something that all
those who propagate Islam or any religion for that matter should take
cognisance of.

       "The ink of scholars is more precious than the blood of
martyrs."