Genome Scientist Peers Into the Mind of God

By Steven Swinford
SOURCE: Times Online

The scientist who led the team that cracked the human genome is to publish a book explaining why he now believes in the existence of God and is convinced that miracles are real.

Francis Collins, the director of the US National Human Genome Research Institute, claims there is a rational basis for a creator and that scientific discoveries bring man “closer to God”.

His book, The Language of God: A Scientist Presents Evidence for Belief, to be published in September, will reopen the age-old debate about the relationship between science and faith. “One of the great tragedies of our time is this impression that has been created that science and religion have to be at war,” said Collins, 56.

“I don’t see that as necessary at all and I think it is deeply disappointing that the shrill voices that occupy the extremes of this spectrum have dominated the stage for the past 20 years.”

For Collins, unravelling the human genome did not create a conflict in his mind. Instead, it allowed him to “glimpse at the workings of God”.

“When you make a breakthrough it is a moment of scientific exhilaration because you have been on this search and seem to have found it,” he said. “But it is also a moment where I at least feel closeness to the creator in the sense of having now perceived something that no human knew before but God knew all along.

“When you have for the first time in front of you this 3.1 billion-letter instruction book that conveys all kinds of information and all kinds of mystery about humankind, you can’t survey that going through page after page without a sense of awe. I can’t help but look at those pages and have a vague sense that this is giving me a glimpse of God’s mind.”

Collins joins a line of scientists whose research deepened their belief in God. Isaac Newton, whose discovery of the laws of gravity reshaped our understanding of the universe, said: “This most beautiful system could only proceed from the dominion of an intelligent and powerful being.”

Although Einstein revolutionised our thinking about time, gravity and the conversion of matter to energy, he believed the universe had a creator. “I want to know His thoughts; the rest are details,” he said. However Galileo was famously questioned by the inquisition and put on trial in 1633 for the “heresy” of claiming that the earth moved around the sun.

Among Collins’s most controversial beliefs is that of “theistic evolution”, which claims natural selection is the tool that God chose to create man. In his version of the theory, he argues that man will not evolve further.

“I see God’s hand at work through the mechanism of evolution. If God chose to create human beings in his image and decided that the mechanism of evolution was an elegant way to accomplish that goal, who are we to say that is not the way,” he says.

“Scientifically, the forces of evolution by natural selection have been profoundly affected for humankind by the changes in culture and environment and the expansion of the human species to 6 billion members. So what you see is pretty much what you get.”

Collins was an atheist until the age of 27, when as a young doctor he was impressed by the strength that faith gave to some of his most critical patients.

“They had terrible diseases from which they were probably not going to escape, and yet instead of railing at God they seemed to lean on their faith as a source of great comfort and reassurance,” he said. “That was interesting, puzzling and unsettling.”

He decided to visit a Methodist minister and was given a copy of C S Lewis’s Mere Christianity, which argues that God is a rational possibility. The book transformed his life. “It was an argument I was not prepared to hear,” he said. “I was very happy with the idea that God didn’t exist, and had no interest in me. And yet at the same time, I could not turn away.”

His epiphany came when he went hiking through the Cascade Mountains in Washington state. He said: “It was a beautiful afternoon and suddenly the remarkable beauty of creation around me was so overwhelming, I felt, ‘I cannot resist this another moment’.”

Collins believes that science cannot be used to refute the existence of God because it is confined to the “natural” world. In this light he believes miracles are a real possibility. “If one is willing to accept the existence of God or some supernatural force outside nature then it is not a logical problem to admit that, occasionally, a supernatural force might stage an invasion,” he says.

Don't Forget the Basics

Did you watch Obama's acceptance speech last night? I did. And it stirred up something inside me. It always stirs me up when I listen to him speak, not surprising since he is considered on of the great orators of all time. He has a gift for being able to connect to people on an emotional level and for giving people hope. Change for the better is possible - there is HOPE.

Nowadays, many people feel like they are stuck in a rut they just can't get out of. Even those who typically have a good attitude about life have found themselves victims of high gas prices, ridiculous interest rates on their credit card bills, and a mortgage they are unable to pay. So many people in desperate situations, acting out of desperation, learning to be helpless, and feeling hopeless. But there is a way out. There always has been and there always will be, so long as the Universe exists.

You see, we need to go back to the basics. We need to re-examine our lives and the choices we have made to land us in the situations we find ourselves in. We need to accept responsibility for creating many of the problems we currently face on a personal level, as well as on the community level. I mean, who did you vote for eight years ago? If you are taking the time to read this, you probably didn't vote for George Dubya, but if you did, what were you thinking?!!

Here's another question: Did you really need that thing you bought even though you have already maxed out your credit cards? And who was that who made that insensitive comment to their partner? When you saw that dead cat in the road the other day, did you just drive by it? Or did you take it off the road? Did you at least say a little prayer for it? And let me ask you this, when your child came home from school the other day, did you take the time to stop what you were doing, look them straight in the eye, ask how their day went, and actually listen to their response without resuming some other activity?

I find that how we answer the above questions reflects our current spiritual state. We live in a world that is designed to keep us off balance, that makes us forget that we are at the core, spiritual beings who only temporarily reside in these physical bodies. When we get sick, we go to the doctor. At least we go to the corner drugstore and buy some over the counter remedy to alleviate our symptoms. But what do we do when we are spiritually dis-eased? Who do we go to for that?

I would venture to say that many people go through life in a zombie state, doing what their master society tells them they are supposed to do. They don't question our zombie president, his zombie politics, or their zombie lives. They get stuck in that rut, get depressed, and can't move. Or they simply aren't aware of how much control they have over their lives. Or they have forgotten about the law of attraction.

Remember the Law of Attraction (LOA)? That you attract what you put out on a cognitive level (thoughts), behavioral level (actions), and spiritual level (values and intentions)? In essence, every choice you make regarding how you live your life is an order placed to the Universe; a Universe that is more than ready to deliver.

Listen, I know the law of attraction works, because I work it. Here is an example. My son and I play with the principles of the laws of attraction all the time. We make a game of finding "rock star" parking places when we go shopping. It works like this: we are driving into a parking spot and we state to the Universe, I will have a parking place right in front because I am a rock star! And it works without fail, EVERY TIME! May the Gods strike me dead if I am lying about this! (Trust me; I don't want to die right now). Go ahead, try it!

Here's another example. One day, my son, who was nine years old at the time, told one of his little friends about the Secret. So his friend put his order out to the Universe that there would be no school that day. What do you know? There was no school that day due to the weather! Now they could have gone to school...the weather was not that bad compared to other areas in Iowa today. In fact, we got a phone call that same day from the Superintendent of the schools that there was a two hour delay. So, we drove to school thinking it would be a regular day but when we pulled into the parking lot, guess what? That's right, NO SCHOOL! That is when my son told me about his friends order placed to the Universe.

Now you might be saying "That's great and all, but where is the money?" That is a legitimate question. When taking a leap of faith, which in this case is the belief that the Universe will deliver its promise of co-creation, you have to take baby steps. Using the LOA is retraining your way of thinking and your way of being and for some, this means making a complete 180. I like to think of the secret as a skill that requires honing, and with enough practice, we can become experts at living the life we want.

So how does this work in the real world with money? Well, I am no different than most people. I have had my share of financial struggles as a single mom trying to make ends meet while at the same time paying for a PhD at a very expensive private university. At one point I was facing withdrawal because I simply could not come up with the tuition. Then I put my order out to the Universe. I started saying I would be able to pay for my tuition, I would stay in school, I would get my doctorate, I would make $10,000 a month (why not? I have paid my dues and work my ass off...I am ready to live the good life). Did the Universe answer my call? Let me tell you what happened in a matter of three months.

At the time this was going on my father had just died from cancer. I barely had the energy to seek out the resources I needed to turn my situation around. I couldn't think, and I was absolutely exhausted. Well, I had forgotten that I had applied for a Fellowship about a month earlier. Then, one day I checked my mail and in it was a letter from the university. I thought it was a financial suspension letter. Instead, it was a letter of congratulations. I had been chosen to receive the Fellowship, in the amount of $10,00.00!

The following month, I was checking my personal hub page online at the University. I discovered that the University had awarded my account $26,000.00 as a grant to pay for my tuition!

WOW! If everyone only remembered that one universal law, we could all be living the kinds of lives we need and want! Because, contrary to popular thought, there is enough abundance in the Universe to go around. This doesn't mean you just make a wish and it magically comes true. Working the "secret" means you have to work in tandem with universal forces. You have to do your part. I wasn't just chosen to receive $10,000.00 at random. I was chosen because of the quality and importance of my research, which was judged by the quality of the proposal I wrote and submitted, which was the culmination of months of preparation. I did my part.

Admittedly, the LOA is only one of many universal laws and it does not operate in a vacuum. For example, another law is the law of reciprocity. This means that whatever you give, you get in kind. When working this law, I like to add the Buddhist principle of giving without attachment, without expectation for personal gain. This can be quite challenging when you think you have nothing to give, or you are in the throws of "getting ahead." I just think of it as contributing to my karmic bank account. In this spirit, I have a free gift for you at my website. Go here to retrieve it.

The Universe is listening. What order will you place today?

Visualize Your Ideal Life

Creative visualization refers to the practice of seeking to affect the outer world via changing one's thoughts. Creative Visualization is the basic technique underlying positive thinking. The concept arose in the US with the nineteenth century New Thought movement. One of the first to practiced the technique of creative visualization was Wallace Wattles (1860 – 1911) who wrote "The Science of Getting Rich", which he believed was based on spiritual principles.

Creative visualization is the technique of using your imagination to create what you want in your life. It is purported to be accomplished by various means including expecting the best, focusing intensely on a desired goal, and repeating affirmations and the use of vision boards.

Creative Visualization is distinguished from normal daydreaming in that Creative Visualization is done in the first person and the present tense – as if the visualized scene were unfolding all around you; whereas normal daydreaming is done in the third person and the future tense – the “you” of the daydream is a puppet which the real “you” is watching from afar.

Visualization practices are a common form of spiritual exercise, especially in esoteric traditions. Some people use mandalas as a means of focusing their thoughts and thus manifesting their life vision. This is good if you have trouble controlling a roaming mind.

For more information about visualization techniques, download your complimentary free report here.

Five Deity Mandala
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Cheat's Guide to Happiness

The Cheat's Guide to Happiness
By Jody Ekert,
Source: SameSame.com.au


It’s happiness month here on Same Same. In our quest to find an answer to “What makes you happy?” we sent Jody Ekert to a two day happiness workshop, armed only with a pen, some curiosity and a handful of hope. This week she gives us some shortcuts to a more joyous existence.

I’m always looking for shortcuts. So over the two days of the conference I took notes on any easy ways of increasing happiness. I didn’t want airy-fairy bullshit. I didn’t want a definition of happiness that was impossible to achieve. I wanted scientifically proven, practical suggestions to feel happier, whatever that actually meant.

The simpler or lazier the better I figured, and the more likely I would be to put the idea into practice. Then I hit upon the idea of trying to combine all of them into a kind of cheat’s guide to happiness. Below is the end result with some links for further reading. If you do follow one of these suggestions, or all of them, tell us how it works for you. We’d all love to know.

Give up on chasing more money.
This one was suggested by Daniel Gilbert. Increased money does not buy more happiness, beyond a level needed for survival. His book is called Stumbling on Happiness. Learn to live with what you earn right now, and adjust your spending if needed. If you’re over working yourself and neglecting other parts of your life for more money then stop!

Learn to trust and ask for the experiences of others.
We’re bad at predicting what will make us happy. But if we seek out someone who is currently living what we are thinking of living, this can guide us. Say, if you think a relationship will fix you, talk to people in relationships. If you think it’s living overseas or buying a house, talk to someone who has just gone through a house purchase or a move. You will probably find these people don’t think they are a million times happier than you.

Meditate.
Mediation has proved to increase the activity in an area of your brain called the insula, according to Dr Richard J Davidson. The insula is considered the area of “mind-body connection”.

An article in the New York Times claims:

“The insula ‘lights up’ in brain scans when people crave drugs, feel pain, anticipate pain, empathise with others, listen to jokes, see disgust on someone’s face, are shunned in a social settings, listen to music, decide not to buy an item, see someone cheat and decide to punish them, and determine degrees of preference while eating chocolate. Damage to the insula can lead to apathy, loss of libido and an inability to tell fresh food from rotten.”

Even as little as a two-week training course, or half an hour a day can help activate this area. Monks who mediate for eons have great insulas apparently. And that’s about as hippy and spiritual as I’ll get with this list. I promise.

Practice Gratitude.
One exercise is to think of someone in your life who has influenced you in a positive way, who is still alive to day. Ring them and tell them you are coming to visit but don’t tell them why. Then write 300 words on how this person has helped you and when you visit them, read it to them. This will probably lead to both parties crying, which is quite normal according to Dr Martin Seligman. Follow-ups show that for anyone who has done this there is a sustained increase in happiness, a decrease in depression and a more positive attitude toward past events – even many months after the visit.

On a daily basis, writing down five things you are grateful for also has a similar effect. I actually use a gratitude web site www.butterbeehappy.com that emails me every day and asks me to record my five things.

Volunteer.
Even two hours a week is enough to show improved levels of contentment and several of the speakers drilled in the importance of giving and it’s relationship to happiness.

Learn to use a bit of CBT (Cognitive Behaviour Therapy).
CBT teaches you to recognise that even though you can’t control the world around you, you can choose how you respond to it and feel about it, and thus how you can choose your own consequences. It is a therapy used to help alleviate depression and change problem eating and behavioural patterns.

Here’s an example of the ABC technique:
A (Action): My friend didn’t ring me like they said they would.
B (Belief): Nobody cares for me. I must be unlovable.
C (Consequence): Depression, anxiety.

CBT would challenge you to pick a different belief. Like, oh, my friend must have been really busy. That allows for a different consequence, like perhaps picking up the phone yourself.

Visit friends.
A good social network can help with curing depression and even lower the risk of coronary heart disease and high blood pressure, according to Sophie Scott in her book Live A Longer Life.

Chocolate and red wine.
Two squares of dark, cocoa rich chocolate a day is all you need, and a glass of wine. The chemicals involved can make you feel happier and healthier, also according to Sophie Scott. Like you needed another reason.
____________________________________________________________________________________

How to Live With Yourself and Automatically and Simply Love Yourself to Pure Freedom, Health, Wealth and Relationship Success
The fastest way known to man to a Final Solution to all problems.
A truly and absolutely practical how-to guide. Learn more here...

Kahuna, Keepers of the Hidden Secret

You will discover that the word huna means "hidden secret", and the
kahunas were the keepers of occult secrets known only to a
privileged few. With huna, you can change the future. There are
many possible futures out there for you like vague thoughts
floating around unless you direct and empower them.

As a rule, the future develops from what you're doing right now.
The way you respond to people, events and surroundings affects your
life and your future. If you put out anger, you will get back
anger, and if you love, you will be loved. Everything that happens
to you is a reflection or an echo of your own inner attitudes and
feelings, even if buried deep within your subconscious.

The first step in creating the future is to decide exactly what you
want. Choose only one goal and stick with it. Mind power, like any
other kind of capacity, expresses intensely only when its energies
are focused to a fine point of concentration.

Kerryann, a student of huna, told me, "Whenever I've really focused
on a goal it happens ... not always like I planned, but it
happens." Accordingly, unify your mind with your goal and feel that
you are one with it. By directing your attention to your desired
objective, it will come into manifestation much more easily.

Are You Ready To Change Your Future?

Are you ready to make your dreams and wishes come true? If yes,
take time now to write down your goal. Because your Low Self is
very concrete and literal, writing down your goal will show it that
you are doing something real and not just daydreaming.

If not sure what you want, just write down your ideas. At this
point you are simply brainstorming. Don't worry about coming up
with the perfect wording. Hesitation, worry or being critical will
only put your Low Self out of the picture.

Writing your ideas or your goal on paper will help eliminate the
things that really don't capture your imagination and will make any
vague points more definite. Mull it over for a few days, and it
will become very clear to you exactly what you want. By being very
sure of your goal, you are less likely to be distracted later on.

Kahuna methods teach that concentrated visualization is an
important step toward realization. Form a mental picture of your
goal and then repeat it out loud word for word three times, a
precise verbal statement of what you are working toward. The
stronger and clearer you make your mental image and goal statement,
the stronger and clearer will be the results.

Keep both your visualization and goal very focused. Avoid
distracting thoughts or images. Hold your mental picture firmly
until the manifestation is complete. Visualization and speaking
your future goal will act as a physical stimulus to impress your
Low Self, which will then send it to the High Self to be brought
into reality.

Most people find visualization easy. However, if you need to
develop skill in using mental pictures, you can practice with a
simple object, such as an apple. Look at the apple and slowly and
carefully observe its attributes. Close your eyes and inwardly see
the apple. Open your eyes and look at the color. Close your eyes
once more and visualize its shade of color in your mind's eye.

Move to visualizing something more complicated, such as a group of
objects on a table. Look them over, close your eyes and reconstruct
them in your mind. If necessary, open your eyes briefly to check
accuracy or to refresh your memory.

Click here for more details

by Jim Francis
This was taken from 'Kahuna - Keepers of the Hidden secret' - part
of the fascinating free 7 part ecourse available at
www.TheSuperMindEvolutionSystem.com

Believe

For quite some time now we have heard about the Law of Attraction and what it can do for us. Everyone is telling us: “You have got to believe”. That’s all very well, but believe in what? There are a trillion things you can believe in, but only one that really matters. Belief in yourself.

What does believing in yourself really mean? Does it mean believe you are sick, believe you are fat, believe you are poor? Well it could, but it actually means you should have faith in yourself, faith to know that you can do anything you want in life. The power of believing in you is second to none in this world and there are books available to guide you. I will direct you to some of them later.

There is great magic in the power of believing, and without it you are lost. When you believe in you, I mean really believe, then things happen in the universe to ensure your belief is not wrongly channeled. Belief in yourself is the only belief you need to have, and from this, every thing else will come to be for you.

Want to read more? Then go here for your no strings attached free ebook, Believe.


Interested in how to attract wealth by Feng Shui principles of placement? Check out the video below:



Go here to see more.

10 Things Your Body Can Do After You Die

By Maggie Koerth-Baker
Source: CNN

From getting hitched to saving the environment, here's proof you can still be a busybody long after you kick the bucket.

1. Get married

Death is no obstacle when it comes to love in China. That's because ghost marriage -- the practice of setting up deceased relatives with suitable spouses, dead or alive -- is still an option.

Ghost marriage first appeared in Chinese legends 2,000 years ago, and it's been a staple of the culture ever since. At times, it was a way for spinsters to gain social acceptance after death. At other times, the ceremony honored dead sons by giving them living brides. In both cases, the marriages served a religious function by making the deceased happier in the afterlife.

While the practice of matchmaking for the dead waned during China's Cultural Revolution in the late 1960s, officials report that ghost marriages are back on the rise. Today, the goal is often to give a deceased bachelor a wife -- preferably one who has recently been laid to rest. But in a nation where men outnumber women in death as well as in life, the shortage of corpse brides has led to murder.

In 2007, there were two widely reported cases of rural men killing prostitutes, housekeepers, and mentally ill women in order to sell their bodies as ghost wives. Worse, these crimes pay. According to The Washington Post and The London Times, one undertaker buys women's bodies for more than $2,000 and sells them to prospective "in-laws" for nearly $5,000.

2. Unwind with a few friends

Today, most of us think of mummies as rare and valuable artifacts, but to the ancient Egyptians, they were as common as iPhones. So, where have all those mummies gone? Basically, they've been used up. Europeans and Middle Easterners spent centuries raiding ancient Egyptian tombs and turning the bandaged bodies into cheap commodities.

For instance, mummy-based panaceas were once popular as quack medicine. In the 16th century, French King Francis I took a daily pinch of mummy to build strength, sort of like a particularly offensive multivitamin. Other mummies, mainly those of animals, became kindling in homes and steam engines.

Meanwhile, human mummies frequently fell victim to Victorian social events. During the late 19th century, it was popular for wealthy families to host mummy-unwrapping parties, where the desecration of the dead was followed by cocktails and hors d'oeuvres.

3. Tour the globe as a scandalous work of art

Beginning in 1996 with the BODY WORLDS show in Japan, exhibits featuring artfully flayed human bodies have rocked the museum circuit. BODY WORLDS is now in its fourth incarnation, and competing shows, such as Bodies Revealed, are pulling in $30 million per year. The problem is, it's not always clear where those bodies are coming from.

Dr. Gunther von Hagens, the man behind BODY WORLDS, has documented that his bodies were donated voluntarily to his organization. However, his largest competitor, Premier Entertainment, doesn't have a well-established donation system. Premier maintains that its cadavers are unclaimed bodies from mainland China. And therein lies the concern. Activists and journalists believe "unclaimed bodies" is a euphemism for "executed political prisoners."

The fear isn't unfounded. In 2006, Canada commissioned a human rights report that found Chinese political prisoners were being killed so that their organs could be "donated" to transplant patients. And in February 2008, ABC News ran an exposé featuring a former employee from one of the Chinese companies that supplied corpses to Premier Entertainment. In the interview, he claimed that one-third of the bodies he processed were political prisoners. Not surprisingly, governments have started to take notice. In January 2008, the California State Assembly passed legislation requiring body exhibits to prove that all their corpses were willfully donated.

4. Fuel a city

Cremating a body uses up a lot of energy -- and a lot of nonrenewable resources. So how do you give Grandma the send-off she wanted and protect the planet at the same time? Multitask.

Some European crematoriums have figured out a way to replace conventional boilers by harnessing the heat produced in their fires, which can reach temperatures in excess of 1,832 degrees Fahrenheit. In fact, starting in 1997, the Swedish city of Helsingborg used local crematoriums to supply 10 percent of the heat for its homes.

5. Get sold, chop shop-style

Selling a stiff has always been a profitable venture. In the Middle Ages, grave robbers scoured cemeteries and sold whatever they could dig up to doctors and scientists. And while the business of selling cadavers and body parts in the United States is certainly cleaner now, it's no less dubious.

Today, the system runs like this: Willed-body donation programs, often run by universities, match cadavers with the researchers who need them. But because dead bodies and body parts can't be sold legally, the middlemen who supply these bodies charge large fees for "shipping and handling."

Shipping a full cadaver can bring in as much as $1,000, but if you divvy up a body into its component parts, you can make a fortune. A head can cost as much as $500; a knee, $650; and a disembodied torso, $5,000.

The truth is, there are never enough of these willed bodies to meet demand. And with that kind of money on the mortician's table, corruption abounds.

In the past few years, coroners have been busted stealing corneas, crematorium technicians have been caught lifting heads off bodies before they're burned, and university employees at body donation programs have been found stealing cadavers.

After UCLA's willed-body program director was arrested for selling body parts in 2004, the State of California recommended outfitting corpses with bar code tattoos or tracking chips, like the kinds injected into dogs and cats. The hope is to make cadavers easier to inventory and track down when they disappear.

6. Become a Soviet tourist attraction

Russian revolutionary Vladimir Lenin wanted to be buried in his family plot. But when Lenin died in 1924, Joseph Stalin insisted on putting his corpse on public display in Red Square, creating a secular, Communist relic.

Consequently, an organization called the Research Institute for Biological Structures was formed to keep Lenin's body from decay. The Institute was no joke, as some of the Soviet Union's most brilliant minds spent more than 25 years working and living on site to perfect the Soviet system of corpse preservation. Scientists today still use their method, which involves a carefully controlled climate, a twice-weekly regimen of dusting and lubrication, and semi-annual dips in a secret blend of 11 herbs and chemicals.

Unlike bodies, however, fame can't last forever. The popularity of the tomb is dwindling, and the Russian government is now considering giving Lenin the burial he always wanted.

7. Snuggle up with your stalker

When a beautiful young woman named Elena Hoyos died of tuberculosis in Florida in 1931, her life as a misused object of desire began. Her admirer, a local X-ray technician who called himself Count Carl von Cosel, paid for Hoyos to be embalmed and buried in a mausoleum above ground.

Then, in 1933, the crafty Count stole Elena's body and hid it in his home. During the next seven years, he worked to preserve her corpse, replacing her flesh as it decayed with hanger wires, molded wax, and plaster of Paris. He even slept beside Elena's body in bed -- that is, until her family discovered her there.

In the ensuing media circus, more than 6,000 people filed through the funeral home to view Elena before she was put to rest. Her family buried her in an unmarked grave so that von Cosel couldn't find her, but that didn't stop his obsession. Von Cosel wrote about Elena for pulp fiction magazines and sold postcards of her likeness until he was found dead in his home in 1952. Near his body was a life-size wax dummy made to look just like Elena.

8. Don't spread an epidemic

In the aftermath of natural disasters such as tsunamis, floods and hurricanes, it's common for the bodies of victims to be buried or burned en masse as soon as possible. Supposedly, this prevents the spread of disease.

But according to the World Health Organization (WHO), dead bodies have been getting a bad rap. It turns out that the victims of natural disasters are no more likely to harbor infectious diseases than the general population. Plus, most pathogens can't survive long in a corpse.

Taken together, the WHO says there's no way that cadavers are to blame for post-disaster outbreaks. So what is? The fault seems to lie with the living or, more specifically, their living conditions. After a disaster, people often end up in crowded refugee camps with poor sanitation. For epidemic diseases, that's akin to an all-you-can-eat buffet.

9. Stand trial

In 897, Pope Stephen VI accused former Pope Formosus of perjury and violation of church canon. The problem was that Pope Formosus had died nine months earlier.

Stephen worked around this little detail by exhuming the dead pope's body, dressing it in full papal regalia, and putting it on trial. He then proceeded to serve as chief prosecutor as he angrily cross-examined the corpse. The spectacle was about as ludicrous as you'd imagine.

In fact, Pope Stephen appeared so thoroughly insane that a group of concerned citizens launched a successful assassination plot against him. The next year, one of Pope Stephen's successors reversed Formosus' conviction, ordering his body reburied with full honors.

10. Stave off freezer burn

At cryonics facilities around the globe, the dead aren't frozen anymore. The reason? Freezer burn. As with steaks and green beans, freezing a human body damages tissues, largely because cells burst as the water in them solidifies and expands. In the early days of cryonics, the theory was that future medical technology would be able to fix this damage, along with curing whatever illness killed the patient in the first place.

Realizing that straight freezing isn't the best option, today's scientists have made significant advances in cryonics. Using a process called vitrification, the water in the body is now replaced with an anti-freezing agent. The body is then stored at cold temperatures, but no ice forms.

In 2005, researchers vitrified a rabbit kidney and successfully brought it back to complete functionality -- a big step in cryonics research. (It may help in organ transplants someday, too.)

But science has yet to prove that an entire body can be revived. Even worse, some vitrified bodies have developed large cracks in places where cracks don't belong. Until those kinks get worked out, the hope of being revived in the future will remain a dream.

Photo of Manman Brigitte and Baron Samedi, Guardians of the Cemeteries. Voodoo dolls available at The Mystic Voodoo.

Harmonic Wealth

You may have already heard about it...James Arthur Ray has a new book out called Harmonic Wealth. The result of more than twenty years of study and practical application by World Thought Leader and featured expert for The Secret, James Ray's Harmonic Wealth is based on extensive study of ancient wisdom traditions, cutting-edge findings in quantum physics and other scientific fields, not to mention years of hands-on, hard-won experience. Let this sought-after teacher show you what he's discovered about the secrets of attracting more than you've ever thought possible.







Book Description from Amazon.com

Are you ready to transform your current thoughts, beliefs, and assumptions?　

Are you ready to shatter the illusion that it's not "spiritual" to want a fit body or financial wealth?

Are you ready to create outrageous results in every single area of your life?

You're in the right place.

Harmonic Wealth will propel you to where you want to go. This practical, results-based book will help you to push beyond your self-imposed limitations and show you how to get past all the reasons you think you can't have what you want.

Struggling to know what you want? That doesn't mean you're not perfect, it just means you're ready for a shift. And that's exactly why you picked up this book.

The result of more than twenty years of study and practical application by World Thought Leader and featured expert for The Secret, James Ray's Harmonic Wealth is based on extensive study of ancient wisdom traditions, cutting-edge findings in quantum physics and other scientific fields, not to mention years of hands-on, hard-won experience. Let this sought-after teacher show you what he's discovered about the secrets of attracting more than you've ever thought possible.　

Learn how to:


Heighten your creativity, intelligence,
intuition, and mental functioning.


Deepen your personal relationships and ramp up
your ability to attract the people you want in your life.


Achieve financial freedom.

Maximize your health and energy, and amplify
your physical strength.


Free yourself from unconscious limitations.


Vanquish the fears that have kept you stuck,
kept you from knowing and owning that you deserve the best.


If you've been having trouble with the Law of Attraction, you'll quickly learn the missing keys. Harmonic Wealth will reveal the formula for success in the Five Pillars: financial, relational, mental, physical, and spiritual. You'll see why having anything less than success in all of Five Pillars will never bring you true wealth, and you'll learn how to go 3 for 3 . . . how to have your thoughts, feelings, and actions working together in complete alignment. With these factors firing together, you'll create everything you desire and deserve.

Harmonic Wealth encourages you to get real and get creative about how to achieve your goals . . . and then walks you step by step through the blueprint for their attainment. Stop playing it safe. Stop living in fear. Start living in harmony right now, and know that everything you want is within your reach.

About the Author

James Arthur Ray has traveled the globe, devoting more than two decades to studying the thoughts, actions, and habits of those who create true wealth in every area of life. A World Thought Leader, popular speaker, and featured expert in The Secret, James is one of the few spiritual teachers with stellar business credentials (as an entrepreneur, and also as a top sales manager and personal and business growth expert with AT&T). He's been a recent guest on The Oprah Winfrey Show, Larry King Live, Moneyline, Good Morning America, ABC World News Tonight, and the Today show. He lives in San Diego and Las Vegas.

Harmonic Wealth

The Law of Attraction and 'Success' - What Is 'Success' Anyway?!

Everyone seems to strive to be 'successful' in life. We all look to apply the 'Law of Attraction' to gain 'success'.

But what is 'success'? What makes you successful, and what makes you a 'failure'?

To answer this question, let's first take a look at our world. Our societies are completely focused on our five senses of seeing, hearing, tasting, touching and smelling. Our five senses are constantly stimulated. They are enticed and exploited all the time.

It is therefore no surprise that we tend to focus our minds on materialism 24 hours per day. We tend to focus all the time on big cars, big houses, lots of money in the bank, and so on.

There is nothing wrong with that in itself. Neither does this mean that being
'spiritual' equals being poor and living in a dump. That doesn't make sense either. The problem is not with the 'material' objects themselves. I'll get back to this later.

First, I'd like to know this... So many people want to 'attract a new car'. But what is it with cars anyway? Somehow the car has become a symbol of status, of 'success'. I know a number of people (even some well-known ones) who are so obsessed with their cars, they even give names to their car.

A friend of mine had a car and was really proud of it. He called this car 'Infinity'. Another friend of mine doesn't care the least bit about what kind of car he drives. Still, he needed to buy a car the other day to be able drive to work. But because he didn't really care about it, he simply bought the first set of wheels that he liked even just a bit and of which he thought the price was right for him. "If I can drive to work and back with it, then that's a great car for me", he thought.

He bought himself a pretty old car to be honest. It certainly didn't look that fancy. The other friend would have dubbed it a piece of junk. But this guy couldn't care less. In fact, he could see the fun of it. In response to my other friend who called his car 'Infinity', this guy decided to give his car a name too. He called it 'Finity'.

I kid you not, this is a true story. What it illustrates is the relativity of 'status' and 'success'. What one person would consider being dignified, could be considered by the next person as pathetic.

Like I said, the trap is not with material objects themselves. These are just frequency patterns anyway. The problem comes when we see those objects as the ultimate goals and the very symbols of success that confirm whether we 'made it' in life or not.

It is for this reason that many people look to others to confirm to themselves if they are 'doing well' or if they are 'successful'. When you don't succeed in terms of big houses, big cars, big money, you are often considered as a 'failure', and often consider yourself as such.

The whole system thrives on consumption and the constant expansion of consumption, and the more we consume, the more we are considered to be 'successful'. This even leads to many people borrowing more of what they don't have and getting in even deeper trouble, simply to provide themselves the very things that should testify to others of their alleged 'success'.

So is this the kind of 'success' you are looking for?

What if I told you that the real success you are looking for is not having all kinds of material stuff, but is actually called 'happiness'?

After all, why would you want a lot of money, or a big house, or a big car? Why would
you want others to approve of you? In the end it all comes down to a desire for sense of security and happiness, and being able to live life on your own terms. The quest ends when you're happy and fulfilled.

But when are you happy and fulfilled?

Here's a hint from what a wise man once said:

"Money and fame do not happiness make."

Don't get me wrong. There is nothing wrong with having a lot of money, or being well-known, or having big cars and big houses. These are all thought fields and are just experience. The problem is that so many people get absorbed in pursuing the material 'dream' that they forget about why they are doing that in the first place.

I believe it was John Harricharan who said this:

"Most people are so busy trying to make a living, they forget to make a life."

He's right. Most people are 'human doings' instead of 'human beings'.

The funny thing is that the greatest payoff from trying to get what you want through working with the 'Law of Attraction' comes from a state of being. It is a state of happiness, contentment and love and gratitude for what IS that gets you what you truly want.

At any rate, the greatest payoff from your attraction efforts does certainly not come from an obsession with ever more material stuff in the merry-go-round that gets faster by the day, for the sole reason to seek approval and confirmation of your 'success' from others, in order to compensate for a lack of self-esteem that is the cause of this obsession to begin with.

A sense of security, self-esteem and 'success' is found within yourself, not outside.

And the funny thing is that once you give up the obsession with possession and finally acknowledge your true self, the person who you really are deep inside, you seem to manifest what you want much more easily. When that happens, you can enjoy all kinds of material stuff as much as you like, if that's what you choose. You can choose to have a big car if you like. You can choose to live in a big house if that's what you want.

The difference is that you won't be controlled by the never-ending pursuit of these things. You won't be 'on the path to happiness and success' anymore. You would just BE happy instead, and from there you will allow things to manifest instead of chasing them forever. It's a small difference in perception, but with profound effects.

It is then that you will start to live life, instead of life living you.

So what is 'success'?

Success, my friend, is what you define it to be.

Now go manifest your success, whatever that is for you!

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Nicholas P. Kidd and Henk J.M. Schram are the instigators of the alleged
'Great Revolution', which provides the members with truthful instructions regarding the universal principles of life.

The Revolution is receiving increasingly widespread attention for its straightforward explanations and instructions with regard to complex issues, which are made understandable for people from all walks of life. In essence, the true secrets of the 'Law of Attraction' and the other 'Universal Laws' are explained in much clearer and practical ways than the 'enigmas wrapped in riddles' that usually characterize the descriptions of the Law of Attraction and its application.

More information on the Great Revolution, on joining and on the 'universal principles of life' (the true 'Universal Laws') can be found at Revolutioniz.com.