Greetings! My name is Scaughdt (pronounced"scot"), and for a number of years now I have been living a pilgrimage of sorts. I call myself a "numinous nomad" -- "numinous" because it is my intention to bring the light of Inner Peace to all I encounter, and "nomad" because I have no home of my own; purpose-fully wandering from community to community relaying a message of unconditional acceptance and radical compassion. I have discarded or given away almost all of my material possessions, have no money of my own, and accept no reimbursement for the services I perform for others. I have chosen to live this way in order to more freely spread the greatest of news: that the bliss of true Happiness is a practical goal attainable by every Human Being; that the truth of unconditional Love is both real and realizable; and that each and every one of us can powerfully enable a new world order to come into being -- a world order founded in harmony instead of conflict, wonderment instead of routine, and joy instead of sadness.

In the summer of 2003, I had reached a "dead end" with regards to my many years of reading and philosophizing about truth and "the meaning of life". Even though I had absorbed my life's teachings intellectually, my life still felt meaningless. Full of despair over my failure to find "true happiness", I was almost ready to give up my quest. And yet, before I could do so with a clear conscience, I first had to radically apply what I had learned to "the real world." To do so, I made a list of the moral principles in which I believed (e.g. "Love your enemies", "It is better to give than to receive", etc.), I journeyed to a place I felt to be sacred, and I began testing these truths by radically applying them to my everyday encounters.

For years, I challenged these moral precepts in all types of social settings -- as a father & without a family, in intimate relationships & alone, with material wealth & "dirt poor", residing in a mansion & living homeless on the street, with a stable job & as an unemployed "bum." To my amazement, regardless of how I was living, the more courageously I applied these selfless principles, the more power-fully I enabled Peace & Joy to fill my life and the lives of others around me. After this realization became clear, I chose to dedicate the rest of my life to spreading its message – the "Good News" that Inner Peace is both powerful & available to us all -- in every situation, all the time!

Despite the courage required for me to live this unusual lifestyle, I do not consider myself "special" in any way. Like many of you, I am a grandson, a son, a brother, a cousin, a father, a friend, and an "enemy." I have also experienced many of the pains and crises that inflict much of humanity; having personally lived through divorce, the loss of a child, the death of a companion, extreme poverty, homelessness, intense hunger, severe illness and debilitating injury. From the wisdoms I have learned from my life's many Teachers, to the various Services I have fulfilled for others, to my immersion into the Sacred Spaces I have visited during my Travels, I have been constantly and consistently encouraged to choose my current path of selflessness.

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What's truly in a Name?

During one of the more powerful phases of my re-Awakening, it became clear that I was more than my ego. Determined to bring this more noble version of True Self into being, I began to engage a number of practices designed to help me re-member this persona during my everyday encounters.

One of those practices was the Purpose-full shift from using my birth-name to using an alternative that would constantly re-mind me of the more Noble Man that I could always choose to become. To enhance the power of this choice, I attached an alliterative meaning to each letter of this new name, and referred to these meanings every morning for many months.

For those interested, here are those alliterative characteristics of SCAUGHDT - my True Self:

Serendipitous Sage ...
I choose to gratefully engage what IS, as opposed to striving for either what could or should be. A sage's life is constantly serendipitous.
Serendipitous: an aptitude for experiencing unintended, unexpected and fortunate discoveries ...
Sage: a profoundly wise man of especially sound judgment ...

Care-full Creator ...
I gently co-engender my reality, doing so in order to lessen others' suffering and enhance their sense of Inner Peace.
Care-full: to have under watchful attention; to care for affectionately; to love ...
Creator: one who generates, synthesizes or manifests ...

Amicable Altruist ...
I give joyfully to others without becoming attached to either their current suffering or their future joy – and without desiring any reward for my services.
Amicable: characterized by or showing goodwill; friendly; peaceable ...
Altruist: one imbued with both a selfless regard for others' interests and a brotherly kindness ...

Universal Umbilical ...
I am aware that my thoughts, intentions and deeds directly affect every facet of the Cosmos, and that they do so significantly & eternally.
Universal: extending to, including & affecting the entirety of space-time; infinite ...
Umbilical: intimately connected to; pertaining to the center; a source of nourishment ...

Grace-full Gazer ...
I notice my ever-present opportunities to serve others, and I See the same as privileges – instead of as burdens or difficulties.
Grace-full: imbued with kindness & mercy; an effortless inclination to benefit others ...
Gazer: one who deeply perceives; one who looks intently upon ...

Humble Healer ...
I use every power at my disposal to enable those who suffer to re-member how to heal themselves; knowing that it is their own courageous faith that ultimately does so.
Humble: unpretentious; willingly giving honor to others; modest ...
Healer: one who helps to restore another to a state of original purity or integrity ...

Destiny Dancer ...
I feel my innate Divine Calling, and smoothly actualize significant portions thereof in each of my moments.
Destiny: the potential "maximum actualization" resting within any person or situation ...
Dancer: one who purpose-fully flows with the energetic rhythms of his/her surroundings ...

Truth-full Traveler ...
Wherever I Am, I reside Within.
Truth-full: an exact acceptance of & accordance with all that IS, was and shall Be ...
Traveler: one to whom Home is where he/she already IS ...

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To Whom I've Listened

On this page you will find links to quotes from many of the saints & mystics whose teachings have proved enlightening to me and whose lives have served as inspirations for my own. They have all deepened both my appreciation for and my understanding of the immense power of perfect, unconditional, selfless Love -- a Love that forms the foundation for everything shared in this website.

And how did I choose these few from the millions of potential candidates? While there are specific personality traits that distinguish "True Guides" from our lives' many "false prophets", each of these Teachers is mentioned because the selfless version of Love that they champion happens to mirror the Love I have personally experienced to be most potent. While experimenting with radical Kindness from 2003-2005, I labeled as "Loving" all of my choices that enabled others to either experience deep-seated Peace or that brought them profound Joy. Conversely, everything I attempted that engendered discord, that brought others pain, or that increased sadness or fear was deemed to be "false." And, while this list is by no means exclusive, these 18 Teachers all happen to espouse ideals that harmonize with my personal rediscoveries.

It is important to note that I do not consider any of these men and women to be the sources of the Wisdoms relayed throughout this website. While I lay no personal claim to the discovery of the Truths expressed herein (as they are all many thousands of years old), my unique portrayals of them have all come first and foremost from my personal experiences. In most cases, the wisdoms of these Teachers were encountered after I had already made similar re-discoveries on my own.

I also do not endorse any of these men and women as "perfect" representations of the selflessness of which I write and speak. Nor do I endorse their particular religions, creeds or unique spiritual beliefs. Like the rest of humanity, they are mirrors of the truth of Love, not perfect "masters" of the same. They are beacons of light upon the selfless Way, not "leaders" upon that path. They are to be emulated, not blindly followed.

That having been clarified, I do deeply respect each of them, I do consider them to be paragons of what it means to live as an actualized Human Being, and I do endorse all the thoughts and implications tied to the quotations from them that I have included herein ...

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What I've Done

Seeing as how the message (i)am relays focuses on encouraging people to serve others with selflessness*, it comes as no surprise that I am often asked about the services that I myself have provided others during my journey.

As a Landscaper, I learned that it is best to harmonize with what the Earth desires ...
As a Construction Worker, I learned that all things are innately impermanent ...
As a Prosecuting Attorney, I learned that forgiveness is the only effective form of justice ...
As a Basketball Coach, I learned that "winning" is worthless if it means that another must lose ...
As a Home Painter, I learned that all "flaws" can be seen as beautiful art ...
As a Feng-Shui Analyst, I learned that we affect our environment as much as it affects us ...
As a Farmhand, I learned that death is a part of life & that it is not necessary to kill in order to live ...
As a Prep-Cook, I learned that there is no job "too small" to have a significant, positive impact on others ...
As a Teacher's Aid, I learned that children are the wisest of Teachers ...
As a House-Sitter, I learned that Home is wherever you are & to act accordingly ...
and as a Nanny, I learned that there is nothing more important than extending Kindness to others ...

It is not necessary to become a Peace Pilgrim in order to serve powerfully. Indeed, my experience has shown that it is not how one is living or what is done, but why one acts that matters (i.e. from a place of Kindness) ...

*While I have performed most of the above "for free" in my life, I also earned money for a few of them before becoming a Peace Pilgrim in 2005. And yet earning money for a service does not preclude it from being selfless. Receiving benefit from helping another does dampen the power of any act, and yet if that job is done with altruistic intentions, selfless it remains - and therefore also brings a measure of Inner Peace to the one providing it.

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Where I've Been

Many people I have met during my journey have been interested in where my travels have taken me. Some have asked where and how my "Awakening" took place*, while still others have wanted to know where I have shared my message of radical Kindness ever since. Thus, to provide all of you with my answers to these three questions, I offer the interactive map below.

On it, the black dots ( ) represent the travels taken by my ego over the years (question 1: "Where I've Been") - from its birth in Johnson City (New York) to its bigger "deaths"* in southern Mexico, on the Big Island of Hawaii, and most recently in Park City (Utah).

The white dots ( ) represent places I've been where I have consciously experienced powerful Lessons that enabled me to shed more of my ego's desires and enliven more of my Soul's selfless inclinations (question 2: "Where/how I Awakened").

The gold dots ( ) on the map mark the various Sacred Spaces within which I have resided. Some of these Journeys have been made "in ego"-- mere "vacations" when the Earth's guiding energies unkowingly entered me at a cellular level. Other visits were "pilgrimages" engaged purposefully by my True Self --when those same energies entered not only my subconscious awareness, but immediately affected the essence of my consciousness as well ...

Finally, the green dots ( ) indicate the places I've been since choosing to live primarily as a Peace Pilgrim (question 3: Where I've Served since my Awakening). These are places where I have been asked to share my Message of radical Kindness in a number of powerful ways for a number of Wonder-full people (see the Workshops section of this website for more details about each).

*While the first and last of these questions were relatively simple to answer, the second query is a much more convoluted one, as there is no one point in time or space where my ego completely disappeared and my True Self completely emerged. Rather, life seems to be a continual "dance" of ego and True Self - with the selfish ego continually "dying"and the selfless Soul being ever-more-potently reborn ... Still, when we look at life as a collection of independent moments (as opposed to a gradual "river of time"), it is relatively easy to identify which of these two personas is present in any given instant.

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For two years of my life, from late 2003 through the end of 2005, I chose to live "on the streets" ... I did so purposefully in order to dedicate myself more completely to my Search for Truth; specifically my social experiments dealing with how far faith in "divine providence" would sustain a person living selflessly. During that period of time, I was, in every sense of the word, "homeless."

And yet, one day after mentioning to an acquaintance that being homeless was certainly an enlightening experience for me*, he looked at me and calmly said, "But you're not homeless. You're home-free!" ... What an epiphany! My material status did not determine who I was or how I was to be judged! I was the only one qualified to judge myself and I was the only one determining whether or not I was content with my lifestyle. I remembered that, because I was choosing to continue to live on the streets, I was no longer "down and out" homeless, but rather "up and over" home-free!

*While "on the streets", I learned firsthand how "invisible" the homeless community is; how even the most well-intended citizens look down upon the homeless with at least a mild taint of disgust ... I couldn't even get a job at a bookstore because I was "dangerous" and "brought in a bad element" (this to a well-grromed man with a law degree!) ... I also learmed how incredibly intelligent many of my homeless compatriots are; and how every one of them with whom I spoke had a completely different, and equally valid, reason for living "on the streets" ... Yes, there was rampant drug and alcohol abuse witnessed regularly. And yes, a few homeless folks I knew made no real effort to hold down any steady form of employ ... And yet most of them were trustworthy, caring people - and none of them deserved to be treated the way most passersby treated them ... And it was when I realized that I too had treated homeless people in this manner during the earlier years of my life that I became dedicated to spreading my sincere and courageous Love to them whenever possible.

In essence, (i)am's "selflessness" reflects a State of Being where a person is so intimately aware of his/her interconnection with others that he/she acts primarily for the betterment of the whole. In this sense, the selfless person does not lose his or her individual identity at all. Rather, he/she simply realizes that the ultimate purpose in any given moment is the furtherance of harmony in the entire Universe (most often via the furtherance of harmony in his or her immediate surroundings) - and this State of Being is most powerfully actualized by those who choose to radiate compassion towards those who are attacking, ridiculing, annoying, ignoring, or persecuting them (i.e. "being kind when least inclined").

Altruism is commonly defined as "an uncalculated devotion to others' interests." This website identifies it similarly as any selfless deed that is consciously intended to either relieve the suffering of another or add to his/her joy. It is choosing to give more than is expected, without thought to personal reward, especially when least inclined to do so.

Discerning Teachers of Truth

It seems that wherever we look, the majority of folks are actively seeking advice on "the meaning of life." Be it from preachers, life coaches, politicians, psychologists or loved ones, we tend to be ever on the look-out for our next "advice-giver." What also seems clear is that many of the more popular of these "prophets" are falsely leading their followers into self-centered choices that cause them to inevitably experience suffering in their lives ...

I myself searched similarly for over 20 years of my life, during which time I discovered a few useful bellwethers for helping me to determine whether a particular teacher was a "true guide" or a "false prophet" . What follows, then, is a set of guidelines intended to help you make this choice more accurately for yourselves. While I do not claim to have any specific advice that is Right for you, I have experienced enough to share some "Pathfinder Personality Traits" that will enable each of you to seek (and inevitably find) a "True Guide" for your Way.*

This collection of characteristics is not based upon mere "logic", nor is it founded in my personal beliefs. Rather, it is founded solely upon a personal witnessing of hundreds of community leaders -- how they taught, what they taught, and (most importantly) what consequences came from their teachings and their methods. The consequences that brought pain to themselves and others I deemed "false", while those that brought Peace and deep-seated Happiness were deemed to be "True."
So, what follows are the guidelines that help identify life's "True Guides" --

1. The True Guide (and his/her Teaching) is Accepting & Patient ... He/She radiates Compassion to everyone in the hopes of allowing them all to rediscover their own True Selves. The "false Prophet", on the other hand, tends to radiate condemnation or pity to others, in the hopes of encouraging them to glorify his/her own ego. The True Guide sees others as his/her brothers and sisters - already "Children of God", while the "false prophet" sees them as "underlings" who need his or her assistance to become "saved." The former encourages followers to discover their own Paths, while the latter attempts to force others onto paths that are "better" or "more appropriate."
A true Teaching preaches unconditional Acceptance of others (not an agreement with them, merely a deep-seated recognition of their innate validity). "False prophecy", on the other hand, professes a knowledge of "the right Way" or "the only Way." A true Teaching is open in its sharing (inclusivist), while "false prophecy" harbors "secret knowledge" that only the "worthy" can learn (exclusivist).

2. The True Guide (and his/her Teaching) is Selflessly Generous ... True leaders look to help those in need, and are never wealthier than the poorest member of their congregation. "False prophets", on the other hand, are fixated on material abundance and often exude superficial displays of personal vanity. The True Guide focuses on what we can attain in our lifetime (specifically how to more powerfully serve others in the present moment), while the "false prophet" tends to concentrate on opportunities for "advancement" in the future or "salvation" in the afterlife (typically how a follower can either "be happier" or "get to Heaven").
A true Teaching preaches generosity, while "false prophecy" encourages you to "protect your own." A true Teaching preaches selfless service for others , while "false prophecy" tempts its followers towards fulfilling their own personal desires.

3. The True Guide (and his/her Teaching) is Gratefully Humble ... True Guides have no desire to lead others or to change them. They simply are who they are -- not caring whether they are followed or not. "False prophets", on the other hand, exert time and energy trying to win others over to their own ideas of "what's right."
The True Guide teaches with humility (i.e. with an open-mind); honoring everyone. The "false prophet," on the other hand, tends to find subtle ways to honor him/herself, exuding pride and arrogance in his/her own set of beliefs while doing so.

4. The True Guide (and his/her Teaching) is Kind & Joyful ... "False prophets", on the other hand, are often sad, angry or overly serious. The True Guide teaches with gentleness, while the "false prophet" demands stern obedience. The former listens more then he/she speaks; teaching often via an open willingness to learn. The True Guide teaches with joy and positive encouragement, while the "false prophet" uses anger &/or melodrama to persuade his/her followers. The former knows success when his/her followers are at Peace, while the latter knows "success" by "saving souls" or "enlightening the ignorant."
A true Teaching preaches Joy & Happiness, while "false prophecies" entrench fear, often using shame, guilt &/or embarrassment to convince or manipulate others. The former focuses on Seeing humanity as One, while the latter has us focusing warily upon -- and striving to protect ourselves from -- our "enemies."

5. The True Guide (and his/her Teaching) is Consistent - Faith-fully "Walking the Talk" ... "False prophets", on the other hand, often engage in the same "sinful behaviors" they condemn. The True Guide is courageously truth-full, communicating with either flagrant honesty or complete silence -- while the "false prophet" is often merely "polite", "tactful" or "friendly."
The True Guide evidences nobility as his/her "norm", while the "false prophet" only displays a deeper Morality when "on his/her best behavior." The True Guide acts righteously voluntarily and cheerfully, while the "false prophet" tends to confine his/her life with rules and vows that he/she feels compelled to obey ...

In conclusion, if you have the Courage to neutrally examine the leaders in your Life, it will be relatively easy to identify which are "True" for your current Life-Path and which are not. Note that no leader is completely "false" or completely "True." Thus, these characteristics are not meant to show you how your own True Guide should act or appear. Rather, they are guidelines for helping you to determine whether the leaders in your life are giving you accurate advice or not. The more purely a leader reflects the above-mentioned traits, the more you can know that his/her guidance will bring you Peace. And the more he/she diverges from the same, the more that advice will bring you and others pain and suffering ...

In essence, your objective should not be to find someone else to blindly follow, but rather a guide to enlighten your Path as you walk It. You are both teacher and student in Life. Remember that you are the co-creator who continually responds to and acts upon the environment around you.

"Believe nothing merely because a so-called Wise Person said it. Believe nothing merely because a belief is generally held. Believe only what you test yourself and then discern to be True." ~ G. Buddha

What it means to be truly Conscious

Initially, as far as (i)am is concerned, an Awakening does not stem from an external force, but rather is grounded solely in the decisions of the awakening individual. It is true that we are all influenced by external situations, and that some of these influences are quite persuasive. And yet, in order to truly Awaken, we must each choose to respond to those situations selflessly - as humble agents of the Universal Whole.

Similarly, (i)am's use of Awakening does not refer to a process of "growth" that requires persistent effort over time to attain. Indeed, the In-Lighten-ment to which it refers occurs both completely and immediately in every moment that a person experiences intense dis-ease (apathy, fear, anger or sadness) and yet responds by selflessly caring for others anyway.

What makes land "Holy"

Initially, it is the philosophy of this website that every space on Earth is essentially Sacred - meaning that every location can be used as an arena for personal transformation. That having been established, certain locations on this planet do seem to have more power than others. Some have called these places "vortexes", while others label them as "holy ground", "energy nodes" or "ley lines." When visiting such regions, thoughts become clearer, emotions become intensified, and physical forms become radically altered - sometimes by mysterious illnesses and sometimes by "miraculous healings."

There appear to be two primary dynamics that make such places more potent. The first has to do with the physical, electro-magnetic workings of the planet. Humans are electro-magnetic beings and the Earth has strong electro-magnetic lines of force that criss-cross its surface. As such, it is no surprise that the Earth has a stronger influence on human beings in locations where those forces are more intense (e.g. the Glastonbury Tor - where two major lines of energy intersect on its lower, southern side, and the Big Island of Hawaii - which, as a live volcano, is also an immense "living magnet"). The second dynamic is tied to the intensity of focused intention that people have given particular sites over extended periods of time. Quantum physics seems to support the contention that focused thought (especially intensely focused thought like the kind exuded during sincere spiritual worship) tends to physically alter its surroundings. In places where such thought is exuded by thousands of people over thousands of years, it can be no surprise that those locations would have a more potent effect on all subsequent visitors. It is locations where both of these dynamics seem to be in "full force" that (i)am refers to as Sacred Space.

Note: While these "places of power" can be used as sources of inspiration and/or healing, doing so in a self-centered fashion actually brings more pain than peace. These locations radiate a frequency more purely in alignment with the base-frequency of the Universe -- a frequency of selfless Oneness. As such, only those who approach them humbly as servants of the Highest Good can truly reap the blessings of Inner Peace and Self-transformation they constantly offer.

(Posed to a group of 4 to 8 year olds: "What does Love mean?")

"When my grandma got arthritis, she couldn't bend over and paint her toenails anymore. So my grandpa does it for her now all the time, even when his hands got arthritis too. That's love." ~ Rebecca (age 8).

"Love is when you go out to eat and give somebody most of your French fries without making them give you any of theirs." ~ Chrissy (age 6).

"Love is what makes you smile when you're tired." ~ Terri (age 4).

"Love is what's in the room with you at Christmas if you stop opening presents and listen." ~ Bobby (age 7).

"If you want to learn to love better, you should start with a friend who you hate." ~ Nikka (age 6).

"Love is like a little old woman and a little old man who are still friends even after they know each other so well." ~ Tommy (age 6).

"Love is when your puppy licks your face even after you left him alone all day." ~ Mary Ann (age 4).

"Be kind whenever possible. It is always possible."

"Happiness is not something ready made. It comes from your own actions."

"I find hope in the darkest of days, and focus in the brightest. I do not judge the universe."

"If you can, help others; if you cannot do that, at least do not harm them."

"If you want others to be happy, practice compassion. If you want to be happy, practice compassion."

"My religion is very simple. My religion is kindness."

"Old friends pass away, new friends appear. It is just like the days. An old day passes, a new day arrives. The important thing is to make it meaningful: a meaningful friend - or a meaningful day."

"Be kind whenever possible. It is always possible."

"Happiness is not something ready made. It comes from your own actions."

"I find hope in the darkest of days, and focus in the brightest. I do not judge the universe."

"If you can, help others; if you cannot do that, at least do not harm them."

"If you want others to be happy, practice compassion. If you want to be happy, practice compassion."

"My religion is very simple. My religion is kindness."

"Old friends pass away, new friends appear. It is just like the days. An old day passes, a new day arrives. The important thing is to make it meaningful: a meaningful friend - or a meaningful day."

"If you understand these things, Blessed are you while you Do them." ~ (John 13:17)

"First clean the inside of the cup, that the outside may also become Clean." ~ (Matthew 23:26)

"Whoever becomes Humble like a child is the greatest in the Kingdom of Heaven." ~ (Matthew 18:4)

"But when you give alms, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is Doing, let your alms be Done in secret ... You received without payment; Give without payment." ~ (Matthew 6:3-4 & 10:8)

"If you persevere in living my Way ... you will Know the Truth, and the Truth will make you Free." ~ (John 8:31-32)

"Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, so that you may be Children of your Father in Heaven; for He makes his sun rise on the evil and on the Good, and sends rain on the Righteous and on the unrighteous. For if you Love only those who Love you, what reward do you have?" ~ (Matthew 5:44-47)

"Blessed are the Peacemakers." ~ (Matthew 5:9)

"Whoever drinks from my mouth will become as I Am; I shall become that person, and the hidden things will be revealed to them that drink." ~ (Thomas 108)

"Know that I am in my Father, and you in Me, and I in You ... You judge by human standards. I judge no one." ~ (John 14:20 & 8:15)

"The Kingdom of God is not coming with things that can be observed ... For, in fact, the Kingdom of God is already within and all around you!" ~ (Luke 17:20-21)

"I have said these things to you that my Joy may be In You, and that your Joy may be complete." ~ (John 15:11)

"Violence is not merely killing another. It is violence when we use a sharp word, when we make a gesture to brush away a person, when we obey [an impulse] because of a fear."

"It is no measure of health to be well adjusted to a profoundly sick society."

"A man who is not afraid is not aggressive, a man who has no sense of fear of any kind is really a free and peaceful man."

"You must understand the whole of life, not just one little part of it. That is why you must read, that is why you must look at the skies, that is why you must sing, and dance, and write poems, and even know pain ... for all that is life."

"If I love you because you love me, that is mere trade, a thing to be bought in the market; it is not love. To love is not to ask anything in return, not even to feel that you are giving something- and it is only such love that can know freedom."

"In order for us human beings to commit ourselves personally to the inhumanity of war, we find it necessary first to dehumanize our opponents, which is in itself a violation of the beliefs of all religions. Once we characterize our adversaries as beyond the scope of God's mercy and grace, their lives lose all value ... From a great distance, we launch bombs or missiles with almost total impunity, and never want to know the number or identity of the victims."

"We will not learn how to live together in peace by killing each other's children."

"To be true to ourselves, we must be true to others."

"Your living is determined not so much by what life brings to you as by the attitude you bring to life; not so much by what happens to you as by the way your mind looks at what happens."

"You give but little when you give of your possessions. It is when you give of yourself that you truly give."

"Keep me away from the wisdom which does not cry, the philosophy which does not laugh and the greatness which does not bow before children."

"Love one another, but make not a bond of love: Let it rather be a moving sea between the shores of your souls ... Love possesses not nor will it be possessed, for love is sufficient unto love."

"Truth is a deep kindness that teaches us to be content in our everyday life and share with other people the same happiness."

"If a person seems wicked, do not cast him away ... Requite his injury with your Kindness ... Do not cast him away. Cast away his wickedness."

"Do not use force against the World, for that which is forced is likely to return – Where armies settle, Nature offers nothing but briars & thorns ... Things that gain a place by force will flourish for a time and then fade away."

"The age-old Lesson that others Teach, I also Teach: As you plant, so you reap ... As you live, so you die."

"The best Way to Live is Be like water ... For water benefits all things and goes against none of them ... One who Lives in accordance with Nature does not go against the Way of things ... He moves in Harmony with the Present Moment."

"A mind filled with thought, identified with its own perception, beholds the mere forms of this world. The Mind free of thought, merged within itself, beholds the Essence of [the Way]."

"I object to violence because when it appears to do good, the good is only temporary; the evil it does is permanent."

"It is unwise to be too sure of one's own wisdom. It is healthy to be reminded that the strongest might weaken and the wisest might err."

"The weak can never forgive. Forgiveness is the attribute of the strong."

"You must be the change you want to see in the world ... The future depends upon what we do in the present."

"You must not lose faith in humanity. Humanity is an ocean; if a few drops of the ocean are dirty, the ocean does not become dirty."

"I am prepared to die, but there is no cause for which I am prepared to kill ... An eye for an eye makes the whole world blind."

"Where there is love there is life ... The good man is the friend of all living things."

"Everyone can be great because everyone can serve. You don't have to have a college degree to serve. You only need a heart full of grace; a soul generated by love."

"He who passively accepts evil is as much involved in it as he who helps to perpetrate it ... An individual has not started living until he can rise above the narrow confines of his individualistic concerns to the broader concerns of all humanity ... It is not enough to say we must not wage war. It is necessary to love peace and sacrifice for it."

"Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that ... Every man must decide whether he will walk in the light of creative altruism or in the darkness of destructive selfishness."

"Life's most persistent and urgent question is, What are you currently doing for others? ... The time is always right to do the right thing."

"Man must evolve for all human conflict a method which rejects revenge, aggression and retaliation. The foundation of such a method is love ... Nonviolence means avoiding not only external physical violence but also internal violence of spirit. You not only refuse to shoot a man, but you refuse to hate him."

"The means we use must be as pure as the ends we seek."

"Go with the flow ..."

"What is resisted, persists ..."

"What goes around, comes around ..."

"Be Here Now ..."

"We are all ONE ..."

"This is the way of peace: Overcome evil with good, falsehood with truth, and hatred with love ... The way of peace is the way of love. Love is the greatest power on earth."

"Pure love is a willingness to give without a thought of receiving anything in return."

"To attain inner peace you must actually give your life, not just your possessions. When you at last give your life - bringing into alignment your beliefs and the way you live, only then can you begin to find inner peace."

"Anything you cannot relinquish when it has outlived its usefulness possesses you, and in this materialistic age a great many of us are possessed by our possessions."

"Before the tongue can speak, it must have lost the power to wound."

"Keep your feet on the ground and your thoughts at lofty heights."

"No one can find inner peace except by working, not in a self- centered way, but for the whole human family."

"He who wants to do good knocks at the gate; he who loves finds the gate open."

"Let us not pray to be sheltered from dangers but to be fearless when facing them."

"The most important lesson that man can learn from his life is not that there is pain in this world, but that it depends upon him to turn it into good account, that it is possible for him to transmute it into joy... Man's freedom is never in being saved from troubles, but it is the freedom to take trouble for his own good, to make the trouble an element in his joy... that in pain is symbolized the infinite possibility of perfection ..."

"We come nearest to the great when we are great in humility."

"I slept and dreamt that life was joy. I awoke and saw that life was service. I acted and behold, service was joy."

"For it is in giving that we receive."

"It is no use walking anywhere to preach unless our walking is our preaching."

"Lord, grant that I might not so much seek to be loved as to Love."

"No one is to be called an enemy, all are your benefactors, and no one does you harm. You have no enemy except yourselves ... Lord, make me an instrument of thy peace. Where there is hatred, let me sow acceptance."

"While you are proclaiming peace with your lips, be careful to have it even more fully in your heart."

"The most precious gift we can offer others is our compassionate presence. When our mindfulness embraces those we love, they will bloom like flowers ... People deal too much with the negative, with what is wrong...Why not try and see positive things, to just touch those things and make them bloom?"

"When we come into contact with the other person, our thoughts and actions should express our mind of compassion, even if that person says and does things that are not easy to accept. We practice in this way until we see clearly that our love is not contingent upon the other person being lovable."

"If in our daily life we can smile, if we can be peaceful and happy, not only we, but everyone will profit from it ... Smiling is very important ... It is not by going out to demonstrate against nuclear missiles that we bring about peace. It is with our capacity of smiling and being peace that we make peace."

"A bodhisattva is someone who has compassion within himself or herself, and who is able to make another person smile or help someone suffer less. Every one of us is capable of this."

"I would not look upon anger as something foreign to me that I have to fight... I have to deal with my anger with care, with love, with tenderness, with nonviolence."

"Until he extends his circle of compassion to include all living things, man will not himself find peace."

"As the sun makes ice melt, kindness causes misunderstanding, mistrust, and hostility to evaporate."

"You must give some time to your fellow men. Even if it's a little thing, do something for others - something for which you get no pay except for the privilege of doing it."

"A man does not have to be an angel in order to be saint."

"A man is truly ethical only when he obeys the compulsion to help all life which he is able to assist, and shrinks from injuring anything that lives."

"Load the ship and set out. No one knows for certain whether the vessel will sink or reach the harbor. Cautious people say, I'll do nothing until I can be sure' ... If you do nothing, you lose. Don't be one of those merchants who won't risk the ocean."

"When you do things from your Soul, you feel a river moving in you, a joy ... Be source, not result."

"You've heard it said that there is a window that opens from one mind to another. But if there is no wall between them, there is no need for fitting the window ... Your task is not to seek love, but merely to seek and find all the barriers within yourself that you have built against it."

"An eye is meant to see things. The Soul is here for its own joy. A head has but one use: to love a true love."

"Gamble everything for love if you're a true Human Being. If not, leave this gathering. Half-heartedness cannot reach into life's majesty."

"For the meaning of life differs from man to man, from day to day and from hour to hour. What matters, therefore, is not the meaning of life in general but rather the specific meaning of each person's life at any given moment ... Ultimately, man should not ask what the meaning of his life is, but rather he must recognize that it is he who is asked."

"Challenging the meaning of life is the truest expression of the state of being human ... Each man is questioned by life; and he can only answer to life by answering for his own life; to life he can only respond by being responsible ... When we are no longer able to change a situation - we are challenged to change ourselves."

"Everything can be taken from a man or a woman but one thing: the last of human freedoms to choose one's attitude in any given set of circumstances, to choose one's own way ... [This is indeed] the last of human freedoms - the ability to chose one's attitude in a given set of circumstances."

"Try not. Do or do not, there is no try."

"Size matters not."

"Strength flows from the Force ... May the Force be with you."

Tom Regan

"Being kind to animals is not enough. Avoiding cruelty towards them is not enough. Housing animals in more comfortable, larger cages is not enough. Whether we exploit animals to eat, or to wear, or to entertain us, or even to learn or educate others, the truth of animal rights requires empty cages, not larger ones. Indeed, it is not larger, cleaner cages that justice demands, but rather cages that are completely empty; not a more traditional animal agriculture but rather a complete end to all commerce in the murdered flesh & stolen secretions of dead animals; not more humane hunting and trapping, but rather the total eradication of these utterly barbarous practices."

"It is not an act of kindness to treat animals respectfully. It is an act of justice."

"To be 'for animals' is not to be 'against humanity.' In truth, to require others to treat animals justly, as their inalienable rights require, is not to ask for anything more nor less than in the case of any human to whom just & decent treatment is due. As such, the animal rights movement is not opposed to the human rights movement – it is an integral part of it."

"It is true that the world is not going to dramatically change overnight, nor in my lifetime, nor even in my grandchildren's lifetime. And yet it will change, if we change, not for a day or a month or a year, but rather for a lifetime. Yes, it most certainly will change, but only if we change first."

Inner peace is commonly defined as "a mental condition marked by a freedom from disquieting thoughts*" ... Some equate it to living in harmony with our surroundings, while others feel that it reflects the times when we have little or no negative stress (a.k.a. fear) in our lives. Regardless of your personal definition thereof, inner peace is hardly a "norm" in these turbulent times. Nations are at war, members of different religions are condemning each other, companies are competing viciously for profits, we are seemingly surrounded by people who annoy or criticize us, and even our own minds are constantly temtping us to fulfill selfish desires and/or avoid self-centered worries ...

And yet, it has been my personal experience over the last five+ years that there is another way to Be; that even though this discordance is "normal" in our everyday lives, it is anything but natural. And this is the ultimate purpose of this website: to provide you with tools you can use to realign your life with a more peace-full, natural state of Being. Indeed, there seem to be no other words that so perfectly identify the ultimate intention of this website: to bring you "Inner Peace" - to bring you back into a state of internal calm; a harmonious state of awareness that will allow you to re-member your true nature as a selflessly compassionate being.

And the term "re-member" is truly key to comprehending what is meant here, as it is not enough to simply intellectually "understand" the (i)am material. The "Inner Peace" to which I refer does not come from logical thought or emotional prayer or intense visualization (though these are beneficial practices on the path towards Inner Peace). Rather, in my personal experience, true Inner Peace comes only when one has the courage to actually apply these principles to everyday life with acts of selfless service and/or radical kindness ... In each moment of life that we choose to practice selfless kindness, we create a powerful force for Peace in the world, and thereby experience a deep-seated Inner Peace ourselves.

"There is no way to Peace... Peace is the Way." ~ M. Gandhi

*Webster's 3rd New International Unabridged Dictionary (1986)