Update
OWL Is Now a Fuji Declaration Partner Organization |
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OWL member and guide Alan Briskin has been working on the Fuji Declaration, which was initiated in Japan by Masami Saionji, Dr. Ervin Laszlo and Hiroo Saionji. It is an international alliance of individuals and organizations who are united by a shared commitment to advance a more harmonious, compassionate and sustainable era for all humanity. Their signatories include many well-known global leaders, they are very much aligned with OWL values, and any of us can sign the declaration.
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| Fuji Declaration Home Page |
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| Signatories and how to add your signature to theirs. |
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| An Historic Celebration coming in May, 2015 |
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New Book by Andrew Vidich
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OWL global citizen Andrew Vidich Ph.D., is an author, academic, consultant and international speaker in the fields of meditation, mysticism and leadership. With a Ph.D. in Religion with a specialization in Islamic Sufism and the transformational methods within religious traditions, he has taught university courses ranging from Religion and Islamic Sufism, to Death and Dying. As a life-long student of three spiritual masters within the Sant Mat tradition — Sant Kirpal Singh, Sant Darshan Singh, and Sant Rajinder Singh — Andrew also serves as a respected teacher and leader in that community. His newest book, co-authored with Arthur Stein and published in November, is Let there Be Light: Experiencing Inner Light Across the World’s Sacred Traditions.
Congratulations Andrew! |
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Let There Be Light explores seven of the world’s great spiritual traditions: Judaism, Christianity, Islam, Hinduism, Buddhism, Sikhism, and Sant Mat. It leads the reader through a history of each tradition, highlighting its great stories, ideas, historical periods, and leaders. The common thread that ties everything together is Light (always capitalized in the book). Light as an image of the Divine, as metaphor, and also as an actual reality that followers of the mystical, inner practices of each tradition can experience.
From the introduction:
Marshall Zaslov, MD, psychiatrist
You can check out the book on Amazon. |
Compassion: 5 Speakers, 5 Views
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NPR recently featured TED Talks from five well-known speakers offering five views of compassion from within contemporary Western culture, on the TED Radio Hour. For anyone aspiring to live a life of compassion, these talks offer a diverse set of viewpoints on which to reflect. |
Karen Armstrong:
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Daniel Goleman:
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| The complete set of talks is at TED Radio Hour. |
A Path Appears
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New York Times columnist Nicholas Kristof and his wife Sheryl WuDunn offer us a clear eyed, compassionate look — filled with both inspirational stories and well researched data — at how ordinary people everywhere, in the face of human suffering that can appear overwhelming, are acting to save lives and make a difference.
A great handbook for anyone in the OWL community committed to supporting a course change for humanity by supporting each other. Highly recommended. |
“Nobody clarifies the social challenges of our time, or the moral imperative to help meet them, better than Nick Kristof and Sheryl WuDunn. Their latest book, A Path Appears, offers an inspiring roundup of the many simple and effective ways in which we can lend our hearts and talents to grow hope and opportunity both at home and around the globe—and an important reminder that just because we can’t do everything doesn’t mean we shouldn’t do something.”
—President Bill Clinton“Nick Kristof and Sheryl WuDunn have done us all a great service by shining a light on the problems faced by the poor. These stories of real people struggling for survival and opportunity serve as a powerful reminder that poverty is complex and painful, but the call to action doesn’t need to be. With insight, compassion and optimism, Kristof and WuDunn show us that we can all play a role in making the world a better place. A Path Appears is a compelling read that can’t help but to educate and energize.”
—Bill and Melinda Gates, Co-chairs, Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation
Science of Kindness
 KindSpring is a global movement of kindness with over 44,000 members. They practice small acts of kindness, share stories, and cheer each other on. They have put together a library of articles — from sources like the Wharton School, The New York Times, TEDx, the BBC, Stanford Graduate School of Business, Science Daily, etc. — that explores the research on how and why kindness works. A valuable resource for all of us in the OWL community seeking to build our community and change the world through acts of kindness. See Science of Kindness. |