|
ENLIGHTENMENT IN OUR TIME
 by
EOL Editor, Lonny J. Brown, HHC,
A
user-friendly exploration of the ultimate
spiritual experience.
"Enlightenment
is a vital subject, and your book has the mark of
one who knows whereof he speaks. You also have a
wonderfully clear writing style, which makes for
a truly enjoyable read. Well done!" -
Jim Dreaver,
author of "The Way Of Harmony"
Available
in paperback, ($19.95) or as a downloadable
e-book ($9.95) at www.BookLocker.com/LonnyBrown
or Amazon.com
For
a Free Excerpt,
"Life's
Twelve Cosmic Little Secrets,"
Email
LonnyBrown@aol.com
~~~~~~~~~~~~
INTERNET
INTELLIGENCE & SPIRITUALITY
It
is now evident that the world is transforming
radically, and nothing will ever be the same. We
cannot even comprehend the scope and magnitude of
the changes upon us as the 21st century emerges.
In the immortal words of Bob Dylan, Something
is happening and you don't know what it is, do
you Mr. Jones? The earthquake of change Dylan
prophesized in the 60's is now fully upon us and
impacting every aspect of our lives and world -
for better or for worse - at the dawning of the
21st century. Nowhere is this more apparent than
in the rapidly evolving, computerized,
globally-distributed, instantaneous
communications network.. the great invisible but
omnipresent Net.
Along
with many others, I believe that the
development of Cyberspace represents a
just-in-time quantum leap, not just in
communications technology, but in human
evolution. Just as the development of spoken
language and then writing transformed humanity,
so is the Internet, only accelerated a
thousandfold. In this new age, the future of
the Planet depends upon mankind; and the
evolution of humanity is in consciousness;
that is, in the mind.. your mind. Through
our new-found instantaneous omni-connection, we
are engendering one global awareness. This
idea has been espoused by such luminaries as
Teilard de Chardin, (Noosphere), Marshal McCluhan
(medium as message), and Peter Russell (The
Global Brain ).
As
the modern peace movement embodies the
understanding of one human family, the new
spirituality is a realization of the one
planetary consciousness. To the degree that
this global awareness becomes aware of itself, we
can hope for the beginning of the end of war in
the world, just as one's right hand normally does
not wish to cut off the left. Or (to switch
metaphors), human warfare is like an autoimmune
disease in our system. The cure involves getting
all the "cells" to accurately
communicate and effectively cooperate. Hence, the
most "practical" aspect of the
spiritual search in cyberspace is nothing less
than humanity's success and the preservation of
the planet. I see this newsletter as a small
contribution towards this goal.
This
is not to romanticize the global medium of
cyberspace. We are not naive about the dark side
of the Net. Human stupidity and predatory
behavior are not surprisingly found in the cyber
world (of electrons), as in the material world
(of atoms). The Internet has enabled the mass
marketing of hatred and evil, just as it has
enabled families, religions, and all kinds of
communities to share their knowledge, wisdom and
love. The medium, like atomic energy, is neutral.
It all depends on how we use it. All the more
significant then, that increasing numbers of
people of goodwill everywhere be proactive in
using the Web in enlightening ways at this
critical juncture in history. - LJB
|
| |
"Online
networks offer a medium to find other
kindred spirits. We can use the
opportunity well, or we can use it
poorly. We are at the crossroads"
-
Mitch Kapor, Chairman, the Electronic
Frontier Foundation
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Welcome
to the Premier Issue of
ENLIGHTENMENT
ONLINE - The Newsletter for Spiritual
Cyberspace.
PLEASE
NOTE: You are receiving this inaugural
mailing because you are on my personal
contact database, and I believe you'll be
intrigued by this exciting new project.
If so, you need not do anything to remain
subscribed. If not, the unsubscribe
button is at the bottom. Thanks! -
Lonny J. Brown, Editor
EOL
Newsletter evolved out of a series of
articles and a book I wrote about online
spirituality. You can read some of the
articles at The
Enlightenment Online Project
Web site. The book was never published
because ink on paper is too slow and
static - instantly irrelevant to the
real-time developments on the living
World Wide Web. EOL is dedicated to
tracking and promoting contemporary world
spirituality in the most up-to-date,
succinct, and enlightening manner. Enjoy!
|
| |
| |
| |
 | ENLIGHTENING
WEB SITES |
|
| |
Here's
a happy development: There are now too
many good spiritual web sites to catalog!
There is a list of 65 of them plus some
master lists here,
and we'll be announcing new ones in
subsequent issues. See also Enlightenment.com's
Enlightened Community List
If
you have comments or new web addresses to
recommend, please send them to
lonny@holistic.com. If you Include a
one-paragraph review, we'll publish it.
If you maintain a spiritual Web site,
please consider becoming an affiliate and
exchanging links with The
ENLIGHTENMENT ONLINE PROJECT.
|
| |
| ENLIGHTENING
QUOTES |
|
| |
"We
are merging - as a global economy,
society and entity - into a Living Matrix
which in many ways resembles a real-time
"global neural network."
This "neural network" is the
marriage of global mind, body and spirit.
Each of its components is working in
tandem with the other to send and receive
information that spans the globe through
the neural-net software of the Virtual
Tao" -
Alexander Besher, Pamela Engebretson
& Francoise Bollerot (Global House: A
21st Century Meditation)
|
| |
| ENLIGHTENING
WRITINGS |
|
| |
| BUDDHIST
ENLIGHTENMENT AND THE INTERNET
by
The Wanderling "The
claim by Marshall McLuhan that
the medium is the message raises
the issue about how the Enlightenment
of the Buddha relates to the
information highway
and to the new social reality
shaped by this modern media"
|
| A Child of the
Cyber-Sangha "One
could very well say that I am a
child of the Cyber-Sangha. I have
never actually met another
Buddhist or spiritual seeker in
my real life (at least not that I
am aware of), but fortunately I
have met many on the internet.
Some were enlightened, some were
not, but all of them helped me in
one way or another."
|
|
| |
| ENLIGHTENING
EVENTS |
|
| |
| ONLINE
Ever
attend a worship service in
cyberspace? Do you know of any
real-time or developmental,
interactive, spiritual
gatherings, events, convergences,
or global projects online? Do you
have some ideas for new, world-improving
uses for the Web? Think about
it and let us know.. What do
YOU want to do with our
incredible, evolving global
capability to connect?
|
| OFFLINE GROUP
MIND meditations
Exploring
the creative power of mass intent
on the psycho-spiritual level,
The Global Group Mind Meditations
are held every second and fourth
Sunday of each month.
|
|
| |
| ENLIGHTENING
IMAGES |
|
| |
|
| |
| ENLIGHTENING
EMAIL |
|
| |
THE
ENLIGHTENMENT PROJECT'S NEVER- ENDING
SURVEY: WHAT
IS ENLIGHTENMENT?
"Enlightenment
is like a dance: it can be fast or slow;
with circles or straight lines,
choreographed or spontaneous; with big or
small steps; with or without props ...
but there is always a music, it is
beautiful to watch and it happens in the
moment!" - Hozuhni* Enlightenment
Dance
| In
even the most mundane of everyday
activities the sense of
anticipation, great joy, and
discovery of precious treasures
of consciousness is experienced,
just by being. This is the great
Tao, and the truth of Zen
Enlightenment. - Cynthia
(spiritus@mindspring.com) Participate!
Send your own answer to the
question,
WHAT
IS ENLIGHTENMENT?
to
lonny@holistic.com Your
contribution could appear in our
next book, "Enlightenment
Online - Real Quotes from Real
Friends" (c)
<>
GOOD NEWS <>
I've
always felt that there should be
a Good News Channel on TV to
balance all the bad news we see.
Good news is not in short supply,
it's just not as sexy and
marketable as bad news. This
section is dedicated to the
sharing of positive, life-
affirming stories of hopeful
developments, smart solutions,
and successful outcomes. If you
have such a story, please send it
to lonny@holistic.com
MIND/BODY
SCIENCE: Researchers at Yale
and Ohio University have
concluded from twenty-year
population studies that people
with positive attitudes towards
aging live an average of 7 years
longer. This mind-based variable
is even more predictive of
longevity than diet and cigarette
smoking. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Enlightenment
Online Newsletter invites dynamic
discussion and exchange of ideas,
information, wisdom and support.
Please tell us what you think of
this very first issue, and
contribute your own insights. If
you like what you read, share it
with others and invite them to
and
we'll issue the invitation to
subscribe.
May
the Universe smile upon our new
endeavor.
Be
well and happy!
|
|
| |
|
