Archive for July, 2009

Upcoming Events…

Thursday, July 30th, 2009

Upcoming Award:

I was recently informed that I am to be the recipient of the “Champion of Forgiveness, Nonviolence and Peace” award, by the New Thought Center for Spiritual Living. For more information: http://www.newthoughtcsl.org/

From their flyer:

Sunday, August 2, 2009

13th Annual Celebration

The Worldwide Forgiveness Alliance (www.forgivenessalliance.org) founded the first International Forgiveness Day the first Sunday of August, 1996. Over 20 cities and 9 countries celebrated International Forgiveness Day last year. Rev Noel McInnis was a founding member.

The focus of the International Forgiveness Day is to honor those identified has Heroes and Champions of Forgiveness, Nonviolence and Peace. These people exemplify the power and benefits of the healing power and benefits of forgiveness and nonviolence. They also serve as outstanding role models, which are so desperately needed.

Upcoming Radio Interview:

I recently recorded an hour-long interview with Steve Bhaerman for his Heartland Security Radio Show.

http://www.worldpuja.org/heartland-security.php

Steve has been a friend and “co-conspirator” for quite awhile. You may know his “alter ego” self – “Swami Beyondananda”. Through humor, “they” are working on the same point of awakening that is the mission of Commonway. I think you will enjoy this interview!

The Internet broadcast is Tuesday, August 4th at 11 am PT, (2 pm ET) and is re-broadcast at 6 pm PT / 9 pm PT. Give it a listen, and tell us what you think. Listen here http://www.worldpuja.org/heartland-security.php You will need to sign up, but there is no cost or obligation.

Upcoming Tele-Seminar??

Those who were able to participate in the recent “Maestro Conference” tele-seminar reported back a very satisfactory experience with the new technology. As a presenter, it was simply amazing to be able to break people into small groups, ask for questions and actually SEE who wants to ask a question…

The Maestro Conference folks have offered the technology to me for the month of August. I am considering putting together a short tele-seminar series. I am considering one of two topics:

  1. I am considering “Our Collective Shadow”, focusing on how we address issues of race, poverty/class and other sensitive issues from the perspective of inclusivity and a world for all.

  2. I am also considering “The Challenges of Nonviolence”, focusing on the ongoing violence in Sri Lanka and how that violence is our challenge to evolve to a more appropriate form of humanity on our planet.

Would you be interested in another “quick” tele-seminar? Which one? Let me know…

Buy the Book!!

I’ve heard from quite a few people that they’ve tried to purchase “Seven Seeds for a New Society” from Amazon or Barnes and Noble, to no avail. The “global” distribution stuff won’t be completed for another month or so…

And… if you purchase through one of the multinational corporations, virtually ALL of the money benefit of the book goes to THEM. Commonway receives less than 75 cents when the book sells through Amazon or B&N. That compares with several dollars that come to Commonway when you purchase direct from our printer, www.lulu.com.

So… click on THIS LINK http://www.lulu.com/content/paperback-book/seven-seeds-for-a-new-society/7396858 which will take you directly to my book. Thumb through a few pages… then BUY IT! Now! (Actually, buy two! One to keep, one to wave around to show your friends…)

Peace,

Sharif

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Sri Lanka Update: July, 2009

Sunday, July 26th, 2009

I continue to monitor the LACK of progress in Sri Lanka since the end of the war.  Now, months after the crushing defeat of the Tamil Tigers as a military force, there are STILL hundreds of thousands of innocent Tamil civilians locked in detention camps, with no relief in sight.

Today, the trustworthy and independent International Crisis Group, quoting the International Herald Tribune, stated in part:

“War Without End”,
Robert Templer in International Herald Tribune

21 July 2009
International Herald Tribune

The guns have fallen silent in Sri Lanka’s bloody civil war, but the deep wounds of ethnic animosity have not even begun to heal. An estimated 300,000 Tamil civilians remain essentially prisoners in internment camps run by a Sinhalese-dominated government.

To begin easing the deep mistrust between the communities, donor countries will have to pressure the government to be as serious about securing a just peace as it was earlier this year about winning the war.

)To read the entire article, click here:  http://www.crisisgroup.org/home/index.cfm?id=6234&l=1)
The promises of the Sri Lanka government to close the prison camps can now be seen for what they are: empty gestures to mollify the Sinhalese people into complacency.  The government is not listening to the international community, donor countries, international NGO’s… the Rajapakse government is only listening to the sound of its own voice.)

(Believe me, if the Tamil Tigers still existed, I would be just as critical of them for using the innocent Tamil civilians as “human shields”.  But, they don’t exist — the government’s wiped them out.  In a perverse way, the brutality of the Tigers acted as a check on the brutality of the SL Government.)

What is needed in Sri Lanka is the same thing that is needed in a dozen other countries with out of control governments (and/or out of control insurgent groups like the FARC, Taleban, etc)… in these situations, the people need a VOICE that is independent of the government and insurgents, one that is aligned with the deepest values of all of the people. People in the Sudan, in Zimbabwe, in Burma and in Sri Lanka need a nonviolent way to hold their violent rulers IN CHECK.

Stay tuned… I predict this situation will get much worse before it gets better…

Peace,

Sharif

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“Seven Seeds for a New Society” Now Available!

Tuesday, July 21st, 2009
Seven Seeds for a New Society

Seven Seeds for a New Society

My newest book, Seven Seeds for a New Society is available NOW!

“Seven Seeds” is emerging at a critical phase of our time here on the planet. Many of us can see an unprecedented catastrophe looming on humanity’s horizon. I believe that we can still avert that catastrophe – a crisis caused by the arrogance of the exclusivist “Breaker” mindset. It is not too late to take the next step in our human evolution – moving out of our “caterpillar” phase (consuming everything in sight), into our transformative “butterfly” phase, casting beauty everywhere.

There is still time for all of us (including our President) to engage in “Plan B thinking” – if we’ve struck an iceberg, we are NOT getting back to “normal”. Trillion dollar life support for institutions that are TOO BIG TO EXIST gets us nowhere. “Plan B” is: “let’s do something different”.

The change of consciousness is already in motion! You already understand this. Others, including our brilliant President, will eventually get there. We can help this process by being CLEAR that this is not a “Progressive” (or “Conservative”) agenda. Those are just two different ways to articulate an ADVERSARIAL point of view. That separating, exclusivist point of view has gotten us all in trouble, no matter which side you are loyal to. It’s time to free ourselves from our limiting thoughts and viewpoints. “Seven Seeds” was written to show us how.

“Seven Seeds for a New Society” provides you with a very concise tool to engage people in the conversation on how to transform our society from its current toxicity to one which reflects our deepest values.

Do you notice how often conversations stay stuck in discussing “the problem” and don’t go on to solutions and visions? Do you notice how people can talk about what they DON’T want easier than discussing their hopes, dreams and visions? “Seven Seeds” is designed to help us past those conceptual barriers.

PLEASE HELP ME SPREAD THE WORD ABOUT “SEVEN SEEDS”. I don’t have a huge advertising budget. I don’t have a paid publicist or a staff cranking out press releases. What I’ve got is you. Acting together, we can raise awareness and consciousness, better than a hired marketing staff.

1. Buy the book! To order, go to the Commonway website and follow the directions: http://www.commonway.org/seven-seeds-for-a-new-society. (In a few weeks, you will be able to buy from Amazon, Barnes & Noble and also from your local bookseller.)

2. Encourage others to buy the book. We all have “networks” that we belong to. Some are only a few dozen people. Others are in the hundreds or thousands. Regardless of the size of your list, please tell folks on your lists that (1) you are buying this book, and (2) you encourage them to do the same. (Don’t forget to send them a copy of the webpage link.)

3. Print out a copy of the two-page flyer. Pin a copy to your church’s bulletin board. Make another copy for the community board at your coffeehouse or café. Leave a copy on top of your desk, for your nosy office mates to have something to look at! (At the bottom of the web page is an attachment for the printable version, in PDF format.)

Let’s work together to get this in front of as many eyes, minds and hearts as possible, to catalyze the next steps on our evolutionary path.

Lao Tzu said that “a journey of a thousand miles begins with one step”. Our journey of 6,800,000,000 hearts and minds begins with your first contact.

Peace,

Sharif

PS: For the observant: you may have noticed a title change. I am still writing “Spirit on Earth: An Operating System for a Spiritual Society”, which will definitely relate to “Seven Seeds”. But, talking about two books with one title was confusing even me! “Seven Seeds” should be considered a stand-alone “prequel” to “Spirit on Earth” when it comes out sometime next year.

PPS: On the printer’s website (www.lulu.com), “Seven Seeds” is listed in the “Religion and Spirituality” category. That’s simply the “least bad” category available from their website. They don’t have categories for “Consciousness”, “Current Affairs”, even “Politics” or “Ethics”. (I could have listed it under “Horror”, or even “Cooking”, but I’m not sure many people would have gotten the joke.)

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