Addison, TX – Reputed as a tireless humanitarian, Mata Amritanandamayi, better known as “Amma” or “Ammachi,” visits Addison, on Friday June 29 (evening program only) and Saturday June 30. (morning & evening programs). She will receive thousands with her blessing – a healing embrace.

Considered a living Saint in her homeland, Amma, 53, has quietly gained an extraordinary reputation over the last 30 years as a result of the extensive charitable institutions she has established, and for her personal outreach. Sleeping merely a couple hours per day, she teaches by the constant example of her own life, emphasizing selfless social service.

Through her extraordinary acts of love and self-sacrifice, Amma has endeared herself to millions. She tenderly caresses everyone who comes to her, holding them close to her heart. Darshan is a Sanskrit term describing “audience in the presence of a holy person”. In a radical departure from Indian tradition (particularly for a woman), Amma’s darshan consists of a long tender embrace. In India, vast crowds usually assemble to the point where Amma may individually receive and hug over 40,000 people in one day, sitting continuously. She will never turn anyone away, nor charge any money. It is estimated that Amma has given over 26 million hugs in her life.
Amma’s compassion crosses all barriers of nationality, race, caste and religion. Amma teaches that the Divine exists in everything – in every person, plant and animal. Perceiving this unity is the essence of spirituality and the means by which to end all suffering. Through this simple, yet powerful message Amma is transforming our world, one embrace at a time.

As Dr. Jane Goodall, while presenting Amma with the 2002 Gandhi-King Award for Non-violence said, “She stands here in front of us: God’s love in a human body.”
“She has been compared to Mother Teresa and Mohandas K. Gandhi…” – Washington Post

With official NGO status granted by the United Nations, Amma oversees a vast network of charitable activities of three distinct types: 1) direct aid to the needy 2) educational institutions designed to help the underprivileged help themselves, and 3) social programs that serve broader society and the planet.

In recognition of her humanitarian endeavors, most recently in the area of disaster relief, Amma received the James Parks Morton Award in 2006. In 2002, Amma was greeted by a roaring standing ovation at the U.N. in Geneva, upon being recognized with the Gandhi-King Award for Non-Violence, an award previously given to Nelson Mandela, Kofi Annan, and Dr. Jane Goodall. Amma was the closing plenary at the 2004 Parliament of The World’s Religions in Barcelona, wherein she emphasized the importance of harnessing “spiritual power” in an effort to rise above religious differences.

It is inspiring to be reminded of what is beautiful and deep about the human spirit.

Program Schedule
June 29 & 30 Addison, Texas,
Hotel Inter-Continental
15201 Dallas Parkway:

Free public programs will take place beginning at 7:30pm. on Friday June 29. This program starts with a talk, and music led by Amma. Darshan begins around 9:30pm and goes late into the night; Amma will not leave until everyone who wishes to have her personal blessing has been received.
The morning session, Saturday June 30, begins at 10:00 a.m., with a brief meditation, and then darshan, which continues into mid-afternoon.
The “Devi Bhava” program, also free and open to all, begins at 7pm on Saturday evening.
This program also includes a 1-hour ceremony honoring the Divine Mother, and personal blessings from Amma for those present – these blessings continue until the early hours of Sunday morning.

Website Info:
www.ammachidallas.org

Dallas Program Information
972-820-6885 or 817-430-3258 email: dwarren108@aol.com

In the wee hours of the morning of July 3, 1992 the magazine you’re holding was conceived. That morning I dreamed of a resource guide for the holistic community. Felicia and I discussed the business plan while strolling 4-month old Marissa at the mall. Divvying up the right brain and left brain tasks was easy for us—I’m the right brain, Felicia makes sure everything fits. We had most everything we needed, a computer, desktop publishing software. We just needed some clients.

I sketched up a poster with the headline “Introduce Yourself to 10,000 Customers” and showed a group of holistic practitioners; they all thought it was a good idea. I was happy to hear that because I had already decided to go ahead with it. Ninety days later with a total investment of $700, the first issue of the Holistic Networker was published.

In the past 15 years, I’ve lost some of my close friends, Eugene, Ed, and Francis, you are dearly missed. Another friend, Dr. Carlos Rodriguez, D.C. passed over in June in El Paso, where he was living with his wife and 4-month-old daughter.

This year marks our website’s 10th anniversary. You’re invited to see the gallery of covers, and flip though interactive copies of the past 16 issues at HolisticNetworker.com. While you’re online, we recommend subscribing to our online newsletter — a lot happens in three months. Why not get a regular update?

Felicia and I have been blessed with amazing colleagues and supporters. Two longtime advertisers deserve special recognition: Carol Stall and Karen Fahey. They have advertised in every single issue.

We truly appreciate all of our readers, advertisers and helpers who make this magazine possible. It is our pleasure to serve you.

Best,
Tony Cecala

Have you ever read a book that transforms your ideas about life and helps you see things in a new way? I just finished reading Byron Katie’s newest book, A Thousand Names for Joy: Living in Harmony with the Way Things Are. Katie is the author of the bestselling book, Loving What Is. For the ten years prior to age 43, Katie was severely depressed. Suddenly one day she woke up and had the realization that her suffering was the result of arguing with reality. She understood that as long as we think that we know what should and shouldn’t happen that we will feel unhappy. It occurred to her that when our mind is closed, then our heart is also closed. She found that the best way to open our hearts is to simply open our minds. We can only do this by questioning our thinking.

Katie’s husband, Stephen Mitchell, is well-known for his translation of the Tao Te Ching. In her newest book, Katie discusses the excerpts that Stephen has chosen from this ancient text as a way to help us better understand essential issues that we all face. Though many believe that Katie is an enlightened being, she modestly says, “I’m just someone who knows the difference between what hurts and what doesn’t. I am someone who wants only what is.”

I find Katie’s approach to be brilliant in its simplicity. How many times have we felt hurt and upset, not by what actually happened to us, but by our thoughts about what happened? There is such joy and freedom in loving what is and believing it was what was supposed to happen. And from this place of love and no resistance, we are better able to find solutions and behave in ways that lead to joy and happiness. While reading Katie’s book, I found myself repeatedly amazed at how she was able to successfully and joyfully handle situations that most people would have found frightening or devastating. Her approach is actually quite empowering. As she points out, loving what is doesn’t mean that we become doormats. When she finds that someone is not honoring their commitments to her, then she finds herself mirroring their movements by moving away herself. However, she does not become upset by their actions. Instead, she trusts people to do what they will do.

Katie says that she feels joy all of the time and has in all the many years since learning to question her thinking and to love what is. I find her approach to life to be so liberating and hope that you, too, will find the peace and joy that is there for all of us.

Love & Light,
Felicia Weiss

©2007 Nicole Mizoguchi • www.nicolemiz.com • nicole@nicolemiz.com

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Michael Bernard Beckwith Shares the Truth about Happiness and discusses the new film LIVING LUMINARIES (On the Serious Business of Happiness)

by Arielle Ford

At the heart of the desire for money, fame, and power is a deep longing for happiness. While Amazon.com boasts more than 200,000 titles on the subject of happiness, it appears that Americans are still searching for it. In the new film LIVING LUMINARIES (On the Serious Business of Happiness), filmmakers Michael Lasky and Larry Kurnarsky illuminate the path to human happiness by presenting concepts about living in the now, as well as, providing thought provoking ideas about consciously choosing love, gratitude, honesty, forgiveness, patience, and kindness. The film follows a young seeker as he interviews an A-list of swamis, shamans, rabbis, ministers, Tibetan monks contemporary thinkers and best-selling authors such as Marianne Williamson, don Miguel Ruiz, Eckhart Tolle & Michael Bernard Beckwith, founder of the Agape International Spiritual Center in Los Angeles. Beckwith, who is also one of the stars of THE SECRET, has had a busy year with appearances on Oprah, Larry King Live and many other national TV shows. We recently caught up with him to discuss his thoughts on LIVING LUMINARIES and the subject of happiness.

AF: What is your definition of happiness?
MBB: Happiness and joy are qualities that are intrinsic to us as unique expressions of the Universe and of God. Happiness is not based upon conditions. Conditions are based upon the feeling tone of happiness that we generate from within our being. It’s a transcendent spiritual quality that becomes imminent as we progress.

AF: What is the message you hope LIVING LUMINARIES will convey to those who see it?
MBB: That we are here as powerful beings to bring joy and happiness and creativity and beauty to the world, but that we are not here to extract that from the world. That would be the tail wagging the dog which is how a lot of people live their life, hoping that the world or something outside of themselves will make them happy. Happiness is something we bring to the world as we become conscious of ourselves. That point was brought home tremendously in the film with the Geronimo Pratt interview. With him we see that during the time he was in jail, he was able to develop the capacity for awakening and harmony.

AF: If we as individuals are focused on our own happiness, does that become incongruent with wanting to live our lives like Jesus, Gandhi or Mother Teresa?
MBB: Once we understand that happiness is an inside job, that it is a spiritual quality, then focusing on (personal) happiness is not selfish, it’s not self aggrandizement. It is waking up to what’s in you and once you wake up to what’s in you, now you can be of service. You cannot give from an empty cup. If you are bitter, unhappy or depressed, then you have nothing to give to the world. But, if you have tapped into the source of that inner enthusiasm, that inner generosity, that inner light, that inner happiness….now you have something to give so that you can live the life that Jesus emulated.

AF: You are someone who is actively participating in having more peace in the world with anti-war demonstrations. How do you balance that with wanting to remain happy and peaceful within yourself?
MBB: First of all I don’t participate in anti-war demonstrations, but I do participate in pro-peace and pro-love and pro-harmony programs, conferences, etc., because I don’t believe in being anti anything. If you are “anti” something, you actually give more energy to that which you are against. So, I teach people to take a stand for something. When I think about the stands that I take, whether it’s for peace or for every boy and girl to have enough to eat on the planet or for everyone to have proper medical care or shelter or access to education, I am actually describing a vision of what I saw is a world that works for everyone. The world changes as individuals are able to describe a vision and walk in that direction.

AF: What is the single most important piece of advice you would give an aspiring spiritual seeker?
MBB: Spiritual practice leads to insight and revelation. So many spiritual seekers are constipated because they have so much information now because there are so many books out there. With a film such as LIVING LUMINARIES my advice is to take something from the movie that they can actually practice. When you watch the film, bring a notepad and when one of the teachers says something that resonates with them or something or anything hits them, write it down and then ask this question, “How can I practice this in my life?”

The law states “ask and you shall receive.” As they ask that question, the Universe will begin to tell you how you can practice. You will have a revelation inside. You will have new ideas flowing to you, inspiration, enthusiasm, high thoughts and your life will change. So, we don’t want to espouse that people look at this kind of movie and just passively absorb that information and do nothing with it. We want people to look at the movie, be inspired and then take some kind of action corresponding to the new information.

AF: What is one of your personal daily practices you’d be willing to share?
MBB: Each day I write in my “Impossibility Journal.” In Lewis Carroll’s “Alice in Wonderland” there is a line where the Queen says, “You have to believe at least six impossible things before breakfast.” So, I will write down six impossible things before I leave the house. I may write something such as, ‘In our lifetime we will see the end of AIDS.’ Or it might be ‘In our lifetime there will be peace on the planet and every boy and girl will have enough to eat.’ I’ll do large ideas like these and sometimes I repeat them or write things for my own life. What happens is that the mind begins to be trained to think outside of what the world calls normal and what the world calls possible. As you get used to thinking like that, now insights can come into you that will help you in your life and even help you to become an instrument in creating some impossible things for someone else. Most people only go for what they think they can achieve, which is not at all creative.

AF: Why do you think THE SECRET has become such a phenomenon?
MBB: For a couple of reasons. One reason is because of the intention of the people who actually produced the film and the intention of the people who are in it. They all really wanted to get out the word about the spiritual principles. Another is that post 9/11, people are ready to hear a message that their destiny is in their own hands. They have been flooded with terror alerts and safety issues and I think THE SECRET offers a message of empowerment.

AF: Do you think that LIVING LUMINARIES will be a natural progression for those who have seen THE SECRET?
MBB: Yes. For those who are ready to make the leap, it’s a natural segue into the idea that joy and happiness is not condition based, but is internally based. If you watch THE SECRET and then you watch LIVING LUMINARIES and some of the other films that will emerge, they all give you a bit of the missing piece. I know that everyone who watches LIVING LUMINARIES will find that their lives are going to be changed, touched and inspired. I would like to offer the readers of this interview a gift. Please visit my website www.agapelive.com and click on “free gift” and you will receive a free download of one of my talks and a free download of a musical piece that my wife Rickie has done.

“Living Luminaries” will be shown in churches and alternative venues through September 30, 2007 via the www.spiritualcinemanetwork.com. Members of The Spiritual Cinema Circle will receive “Living Luminaries” as part of the July 2007 DVD collection. For a limited time, new subscribers to The Circle can receive a free trial membership (for a nominal shipping fee) by visiting: www.spiritualcinemacircle.com or by calling: (800) 556-0129.