(An apple is used in this example but you can use whichever fruit you want). Firstly, hold the apple in your hands and close your eyes. Now, feel it all over; examine every part of it with your fingers, especially using your finger tips because they’re an ultra-sensitive part of touch. Is the skin as smooth as you first expected? Is the apple cold or hot? Is it springy or firm?
Don’t rush any part of this exercise.The more you relish each section, the more you will get out of it.
When you feel you really know what it feels like, move it closer to your nose and, still keeping your eyes closed, smell the apple. Take a deep breath in and feel that breath being sucked all the way down into your stomach, so that you’re actually drinking in the smell of it. Is it a sweet smell? Or is it sharp? Are you aware of a slightly chemical odour? Keep taking deep breaths and wallow in the experience of really smelling every nuance of scent. Does the stem part of the apple smell differently from the base? When you feel you know its odour thoroughly, then open youreyes. Now look at an apple properly, as if for the first time in your life. Study the shape of it. Is it symmetrical? If not, how is one half different from the other? Look at the colour of it and notice how different shades run around the apple. Then look at where the stem grows. Study it intently. What about the base? Now turn your attention to the skin itself. Look at each line and ridge, each tiny indent. Study it for as long as you like. (This exercise can go on for ages. If you’ve the time, let it). You should now know this apple intimately. You should feel that if you put it in a bowl of apples and got someone to hand you one at random, you’d know straight away if it was yours because you now know there is no other apple like it in the world. No two apples are exactly alike; it’s impossible.
Once you feel you could pass that test, then take a bite of it. (As this stage, some of you may feel rather attached to your apple and even feel guilty about eating it! Remember it’s only an experiment and apples are nature’s gifts, intended for consumption). Bite into it slowly, feeling the juice splash up against your lips, noting the crispness of the flesh and the different texture of the skin. Hold it in your mouth for a moment before you chew, closing your lips together. It’s hard to do this because your natural reflexes are to chew. Can you taste much in this state? If so, what? Hold your nose closed for a brief moment. Now can you taste anything? Breathe again through your nose and start to chew, but very slowly and deliberately. Again, this is hard for many people because they usually eat at such a fast rate. Try to chew it for at least thirty chews; it will probably take a great effort not to swallow it before then. Can you define what it tastes like? Most people would just say ‘it’s an apple taste, that’s all’, but what is an apple taste? Imagine defining it to a person who has never experienced an apple before. As you swallow, really feel the apple sliding down into your system, feel it nurture and enrich you.
Now you’ve started eating the apple, you might as well finish it, so as you continue eating, let your thoughts dwell on the apple’s origins. It started from a tiny seed, planted in the earth. Think about planting that seed in the soil, covering it and watering it. Think about how the plant was nurtured, drinking in the sun and rain and goodness from the soil, slowly growing and expanding. Think about the blossoms that came, how they died away and how small apples started to form. Think about their growth, their eventual harvest and the possible journey they made to arrive in your hands. Have you finished the apple now? Open up the core and look at those tiny seeds. If you feel the urge to plant them in a small pot of soil and nurture them, why not do so?
How did all that feel to you? Strange? Wondrous? Does it make you contemplate all the other things around you that you never fully observe, smell, touch or taste? Do your senses feel slightly heightened now? As you look around you, do colours seem brighter? Do certain objects seem more interesting? Are you aware of new smells in the room? Touch any item around you with your fingertips, perhaps a particle of your clothing. How does that feel? This exercise can go on forever and, in a way, so it should. You have the opportunity to increase your five senses in a practical, day-to-day way. Everything around you can be seen in a new light. After a while you may discover certain items haven’t as much appeal to you as before. Or you may find out that you would like some different clothes or objects- or even fruit! You can do this experiment on everything edible and then take away the taste element for other objects. If you have a partner with whom you’re comfortable and uninhibited, it’s a wonderful means of increasing your awareness and appreciation of each other. The possibilities are endless and as you open your awareness more, you’ll discover new elements for yourself.
Now, apart from these five senses, you actually have another two. These probably aren’t developed in you, at least, not yet, but they can be. You need to have an understanding of them before you can start discovering them.Different people and philosophies have various names for these two senses (and some believe there are even more) but it will probably clarify it best to use the words ‘Intuition’ and ‘Knowing’ for them. You may already know a bit about the intuitional sense. It’s also sometimes called a kind of gut instinct, a ‘feeling in your water’ or a ‘mother’s sense’. (The last seems unfair, as men also possess and demonstrate extraordinary depths of communication with their children). This intuition comes from contact with outside energies and probably most people have experienced it at some time in their life. Did you know the phone was about to ring even though you weren’t expecting a call? Did you know who was calling even though there was no obvious reason for you to know? Have you ever looked into someone’s eyes and known that you’ve met them before? (This often happens when you look into a very young baby’s eyes).Have you ever had a vague sense that something nice was about to happen to you without having a concrete reason for feeling that way? Or, conversely, an uncomfortable premonition that something not so great was going to occur? In case you were wondering, this latter experience is nothing to do with voodoo, black magic or fortune-telling; it’s you tapping into energies that are all around us.
]]>Were you surprised by how many sounds there were when you really stopped to listen? Most people can’t believe how many sounds surround them, until they try that exercise. Did it take you a while to hear them all and then, just as you thought you’d acknowledged them all, did you become aware of yet another noise? Perhaps you even heard another sound after that point. What happened when you started becoming aware of your heartbeat? Did the other sounds fade into the distance? Most of them would have still been around you, but did you stop focusing on them? Was it easier to shut out the other noises as you took more deep breaths? Stillness and silence are hard to achieve in our modern world and it gets harder each day. Most of us can’t physically create that around us, so we have to find another way to still ourselves, to slow ourselves down. Only through doing that, can we find our inner self, our spiritual being. How we breathe is a major part of that process. The one exercise above can’t accomplish it on its own but it can set you on a new path. Our breath is our life force and it is also the means through which we accomplish a great deal in psychic work. You need to start becoming more and more aware of your breath and how it affects your body. You need to start acknowledging its tremendous strength and beauty. Further exercise will help develop this appreciation.How often do you find time for a moment of peace? This doesn’t mean sitting in front of the television, reading a book, chatting to a close friend, knitting, or making love. The above are all highly pleasurable past times and they have their place but they are all geared to stimulate various parts of you.
They can’t offer you a moment of stillness or peace. If you practice yoga, you will have experienced what is being referred to, or taichi, or any other form of holistic exercise that deals with the mind, body and spirit.Most of us never take time for ourselves. We feel it’s selfish or wrong. Or we don’t think we can fit it in to our day, which is crammed full of the practical things like working, eating,sleeping and socializing. Those are the things most of us think of as important. It’s self-indulgent to contemplate spending ten or fifteen minutes each day devoted to nothing but being alone and ‘doing our own thing’.
As for the thought of spending as much as half an hour! It’s impossible, isn’t it? This is where psychic development can make an enormous difference to you. It can persuade you to slow down for a small part of each day and teach you how to rejuvenate yourself. You can start with just a few minutes spent in relaxation, in the form of a visualization or a meditation exercise. (Don’t worry if you’re now thinking that you don’t know how to meditate: exercises throughout this book will gradually introduce you to this experience, without specifically using the word meditate. You will be doing it before you know it!)
Perhaps you hadn’t realized that renewing your tired energies is also part of the plan and one of its benefits? You see, it’s not a selfish act of only thinking of yourself. Setting aside a small time each day to relax and renew yourself will enable others to appreciate you more. Which would the people around you prefer? A tired, grumpy person who flops in front of the television to relax, incommunicative and disinterested in them? Or would they prefer someone who spends a quarter of an hour alone somewhere and then re-emerges to greet those they love with a relaxed attitude, full of warmth and enthusiasm?
The difference can be as powerful as that, it really can, provided you are prepared to work at it a bit. One session on your own won’t necessarily turn you into a more contented human being but several of them can. Regular trips into your peaceful, spiritual self can accomplish miracles that influence others, not just you. Also, don’t under-estimate that whoever you might live with, would also welcome some space sometimes. Have you ever argued over a television programme that one wants to watch but not the other? What a perfect opportunity for one of you to retreat for a little meditation. It can suit both parties. Is all this making you feel a little more interested? There’s a great deal yet to discuss, so read on.
In many ways, life was much simpler before we created our highly technological world. People were less demanding; their needs were basic and they asked for little else. Because of this simplicity, it was easier for them to be in touch with themselves and also, and this is a BIG also, to be in touch with nature. Our rapidly increasing population has led to a frightening overcrowding of our small planet and many of us are struggling more and more to find a quiet oasis where we won’t be disturbed and bombarded by modern-day pressures.Everywhere you turn, you see forests and wild-life being trampled over and destroyed in our frantic quest for so-called ‘progress’: a better way of life.
People want faster cars, bigger houses, higher-paid jobs. But is that what they really want? Is it really making the majority of people happy, filling them with peace, contentment and a clear conscience? This obsession with material things has finally reached such a crescendo, that people are now beginning to pull back, to say ‘Hold on, is this really what life is all about?’ People who once held intensely pressurized, high profile jobs are suddenly opting out and choosing to live a modest life in the country. At long last,our awareness is increasing about what we are doing to this beautiful planet; how we are systematically destroying large areas of it, blasting holes in the ozone layer, wiping out entire species of animals, birds and fish, and creating such polluted environments for humans that they’re constantly contracting an ever-widening and bewildering array of illnesses. Living in overcrowded conditions has made humans claustrophobic, aggressive, depressed and angry.
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Vitamin B - vitamin B regulates the secretion of oil, keeps hair healthy & moisturized. Eat more of fresh green leafy vegetables, tomatoes, cauliflower, cereals, liver kidney, yogurt, bananas and green vegetables.
Minerals - minerals like zinc, iron & copper promote healthy hair. Food sources: zinc - red meat, chicken & green vegetables; iron - beef, dried apricots, red meat, parsley, eggs, wheat & sunflower seeds; copper - seafood, egg yolk & whole grains.
Proteins - consuming more of protein gives your hair natural shine and good texture. Include more of sprouted whole grains, cereals, meat and soy in your diet.
Remedies for gray hair:
1. Take 100 gms of curd. Add about 1 gm of black pepper to it. Mix it well and apply it evenly on the hair and scalp. Keep it for an hour and then wash with warm water and mild shampoo. Do this treatment once a week to see the remarkable difference in the texture and color of your hair . Your hair will become silkier and regular use will also make the hair dandruff-free. Curd helps in curing dandruff and making the hair softer while black pepper helps make the hair black. So one recipe gives 3 benefits - a) dandruff-free hair b) soft and silky hair and c) black hair. Doing this once a week helps in maintaining the hair color and delaying greying to a great extent. This recipe should be avoided by people who have a tendency to catch frequent colds and coughs. Curd causes a cooling effect on the head and this may worsen a cold situation.
2.Rubbing your left and right hand nails with each other is a splendid way to cure hair fall, increase hair growth and get back the lost color. The beauty of the method lies in its simplicity and the fact that it is free, needs very little time and has absolutely no side-effects. Regular use brings back lost color. The new hair that grows back is also colored and not white. You need to fold both your palms inwards and place the fingernails of both hands against each other. Then with regular swift motions, rub them against each other. This rubbing procedure increases the blood flow to the scalp and helps in strengthening the roots. It is simple and can be done anywhere anytime. Do it for about 5-7 minutes twice a day. It is tried and tested and is guaranteed to show results. It is well popularized by naturopaths and ayurvedic experts in India. You need to be patient though. You will begin to notice a difference in about a month and by the end of 6 months you will se remarkable improvements in your hair.
3.Mix sesame oil or olive oil in juice of bottle gourd and apply to hair. This helps make the hair long, black, thick and shiny. This helps prevent gray hair and hair fall and is very good for the overall health of hair.
4.Make a paste of gooseberries and mango seeds. Apply this onto the hair and scalp and leave on for some time before washing off. When done at regular intervals, this is a good grey hair treatment.
5.Boil tea leaves in water. Strain and let it cool down. Mix two teaspoonfuls of salt into it and apply to hair and scalp. Wash after an hour with plain water. This process when done once in 10 days can prevent gray hair.
6.Make a paste of henna in an iron vessel and leave overnight. Also add some walnut pulp in the morning. Apply this on the hair and make a neat bun. Leave for 1 - 2 hours or till it dries. Gently and carefully wash off. Apart from preventing early greying, it also adds a beautiful red tinge to the hair. It is completely natural and harmless. It also conditions hair.
Apart from all take a well balanced diet.Try to take fish liver oil tablets and dates everyday this helps you to stay away these problems than any other food items.
]]>By examining each step and seeing how it fits into our holistic learning theory, we can have a strategy for learning. With this strategy, you can use specific tactics to fix holes in your current technique. You can also develop new methods to replace inefficient ones you have for various steps along the holistic learning process.The sequence of holistic learning is:
1) Acquire
2) Understand
3) Explore
4) Debug
5) Apply
A final step which exists outside the sequence but applies to every step is Test.
Testing is checking to see how well you are executing each of these steps. Without
rigorous self-testing (by the time you reach the exam room, you’re too late) you may not
realize a step was poorly executed.
Here are the six steps:
1) Acquire - The point at which information enters through your eyes and ears.Reading, taking notes in a class or personal experiences are all part of the Acquire Phase.The goal here is to get accurate information in the most compressed form.
2) Understand - Understanding means taking raw information and giving it a context. This would be the most basic interlinking you would need to perform in order to learn.
3) Explore - The Explore Phase is really where holistic learning takes full force. Here you form the models, highways and broader connections needed for well defined constructs.
4) Debug - The Debug Phase looks for errors in your models and highways. This phase prunes back your connections so invalid ones won’t remain, or will be constrained to the area they work.
5) Apply - The Apply Phase takes debugging to the final level by making adjustments compared to how this information operates in reality. Having a set of understandings is useless if they aren’t tailored to the real world. Failure on this step could be an example of people who have book-smarts but can’t seem to use them outside the class.
6) Test - Continuously you should be testing your methods and learning throughout all six stages. This will help you quickly identify problems in the system you use for learning, and help you develop new techniques to combat weaknesses.
]]>Holistic learning is based on three main ideas:
1) Constructs
2) Models
3) Highways
Holistic learning takes a different approach.Instead of trying to memorize information by making a perfect copy in your brain, it uses the web of neurons you have. Holistic learning creates webs of information. One idea relates to another idea. That interrelating of ideas allows you to easily navigate through complete understandings.With holistic learning, ideas aren’t learned in isolation. If you follow holistic learning closely enough, you’ll soon realize that it is impossible to learn an idea in isolation. Learning anything requires associations. The more associations you can create and the stronger those associations are, the better.
Rote memorization would suggest learning fits into neat little boxes. A box for math containing algebra, arithmetic and calculus. Your calculus box contains more boxes for how to find the derivative of a function, and a few common applications of those rules. Nowhere does your calculus box contain information on biology, history or the plot of a science fiction movie. But learning doesn’t fit into boxes. Learning fits into webs. A holistic learner wouldn’t take such an organized approach to storing information (which might explain why so many smart people have horrible organization skills). Instead holistic learners connect everything. A derivative isn’t just a formula, it’s a feeling, an image and you can relate it to flying a supersonic jet. Rote memorization seems to make sense when you can’t see the alternative.When you don’t know the steps learning should follow and lack techniques to move through those steps, simply pounding information in your skull seems to work. This is like a caveman using a rock to hunt mammoths instead of a rifle. Until you understand the steps and techniques for learning, rote memorization is crude and inefficient, but it still works better than nothing.
Here are some good other subjects to talk about
*Films
* Music
*TV
* Holidays
* Hobbies
* The News - Scandal and gossip stuff , not serious .
* Work
* Well known people.
*Pets
* Clothes/Fashion
What NOT to say : Anything she’s unlikely to be interested in, e.g. football. No problems, moans or complaints. Stay away from those boring, worn-out openers like the time or the weather. The next important technique you must use is to avoid asking her QUESTIONS which can be answered with ‘YES’ or ‘NO’ . If she just answers ‘no’ and your nerve breaks then you’ve virtually blown it. It’s far better to say something to which she has to give a proper answer. Then USE THAT ANSWER TO BASE YOUR NEXT BIT OF CHAT ON. This way you should never be stuck for something to say because she will tell you what she wants to talk about without even realising it!
Few tips for talking..
* That’s a great hair style!
* That’s a great dress!
* That’s a nice watch/necklace/unusual earrings!
* That smells nice (her perfume) It’s …. I think. (Try and guess what it is! )
* Someone told me you live near ….
* Didn’t I see you in …… last week?
* Didn’t you used to work in …. .?
* Didn’t you used to go out with ….? .
* So what’s going on in Accounts at the moment?
* I’d rather be ….
* Who’s your favourite “… . ?
* What’s it like in ….. .?
* What’s John Smith like to work for ?
* Do you like …. . ?
* Have you heard about …. . (Something that has happened today.)
* How are you today? (1 know everybody says this anyway but it works well if you sound like you really mean it AND make her tell you!)