-by Dr. Dan L. Edmunds, Ed.D.
www.DrDanEdmunds.com
to arrange a consultation, please e-mail DoctorEdmunds@DrDanEdmunds.com
It is necessary to live in the present moment, to not seek excess in complete deprivation or in the desire for material possessions or unrealistic visions. Life is to be lived compassionately. Life is to enjoy and behold each moment as precious. We should look upon all occurrences as part of the nature of things. All things change, nothing is permanent. The cause of emotional distress and turmoil lies in this desire to make things permanent that are impermanent and changing. If we understand that all is changing, and we see our experiences for what they are, we can attain peace and tranquility. We can transcend struggles and sufferings for we will understand the nature of existence. We should seek to master our minds to understanding that each moment in which we exist can be lived joyfully. Troubles that befall us and sufferings arise because we live in a world that has not understood how to live compassionately; a world that seeks to fulfill only the desires of the self and does not realize that all things exist in a unified web of being. We should seek to walk a path towards compassion,to live rightfully and joyfully. We should not hold hatreds or be bound to rigid laws. We will not gain from externals and ritual, but from what exists in the heart. We should seek transformation and insight and mastery of ourselves. We must come to know that we are of the human family, the sufferings of one are the sufferings of all. Truth does not exist in excess and glamorous trappings, it exists not in an institution nor in a singular person or authority. Truth is something that is created in our hearts when we seek to put aside our attachments, when we seek to understand reality. Within humanity exists the innate nature and ability to do that which is benevolent. This spark of benevolence remains with every being, though it may be covered by the filfth of greed, aggression, animosity, and other impure thought. We are like a mirror that will reflect this benevolent image fully only after we have been able to clean away these things that cause the reflection to be dimmed. Truth does not exist in the arrogance that only a singular path or a singular entity or authority is the guardian of Truth. Truth manifests in many ways, and there have been throughout the ages and cultures, many who have manifested Truth as it would be understood to the people of that age and culture. The truth was given as the mirror reflecting a radiant image, but it has always been that through the addition of dogmas, through the quest for power, through greed and avarice, that the Truth manifested has not remained in the hearts of some. The unifying message of all those who have brought these messages of truth, lies in compassion and removing selfish aims. The disunity arises out of what has been added to the message not from the message itself. When we become dogmatic and we hold to irrational ideas, we are bound to create barriers to love.
Wednesday, September 9, 2009
Sunday, July 12, 2009
Excerpts from Dr. Edmunds' book ANARCHO-PSYCHOLOGY
ROOTS OF DISTRESS can be ordered through amazon.com or
http://stores.lulu.com/voice4kids
American society is now filled with the concepts of self interest, entitlement, and playing victim. The downward spiral of our economy should be no surprise, our attitudes have only led to this eventual result. As I have mentioned previously, the education system does not value or reward initiative or creativity, it is rather focused on the self interest of the educators and administrators who seek to have children conform to standards based on tests and gain their compliance so that the administrators can appear as if they have fulfilled their duty while the children actually languish. We are a society that expects others to 'fix' our errors and provide for our relief. We are a society of shifting blame. We are a society that does not seek to take ownership and responsibility. We are a society that knows not how to think critically but only to possess and consume. The American dream can be now said to be the American nightmare. We do not think of others, but we focus on our own survival, and our political leaders and the elite have placed persons in this uncomfortable position of intense worry for their own survival. When this occurs, the concern for others lessens, and we focus solely on our own needs, our own desires. Society itself is sick, yet it seeks to pathologize those who would react to this sick society, and it offers them its technologies, it offers them its drugs, to numb them into accepting things as they are rather than to actively protest and change the injustices that exist. American society has become apathetic and numb, and if such persists, our further decline is only inevitable. Let us hope that some will awaken from their stupor before it is too late.
We are controlled in this country by a ruling elite, whether we wish to recognize it or not. The elite have their paths paved for them. The middle class struggle to survive and are burdened and the elite seek to make them slaves to the system. For example, a middle class young person will be burdened with student loan debt possibly until the day they retire, the elite do not face this. The elite have created this system to keep people 'in their place'. For the poor, the elite have sought to entice them with financial incentives if they will go along with the sad debacle of having their children labeled as 'crazy' or to be shipped off to fight the wars that the elite have created and benefit from. Some are more than willing to submit to this system, to receive the governmental handouts and to abdicate their freedom as well as any responsibility for themselves or their children. The elite seeks to keep this nation ignorant and stupid. Our educational system has become not about learning at all but rather regurgitation of information as the elite would have it.
There is no present presidential candidate or any politician for that matter that can really save us from the mess we are in. Our only real hope is for people to flee from ignorance and to awaken to the real situation we are in, and for there to exist a true effort to restore social justice. Is it too late?
http://stores.lulu.com/voice4kids
American society is now filled with the concepts of self interest, entitlement, and playing victim. The downward spiral of our economy should be no surprise, our attitudes have only led to this eventual result. As I have mentioned previously, the education system does not value or reward initiative or creativity, it is rather focused on the self interest of the educators and administrators who seek to have children conform to standards based on tests and gain their compliance so that the administrators can appear as if they have fulfilled their duty while the children actually languish. We are a society that expects others to 'fix' our errors and provide for our relief. We are a society of shifting blame. We are a society that does not seek to take ownership and responsibility. We are a society that knows not how to think critically but only to possess and consume. The American dream can be now said to be the American nightmare. We do not think of others, but we focus on our own survival, and our political leaders and the elite have placed persons in this uncomfortable position of intense worry for their own survival. When this occurs, the concern for others lessens, and we focus solely on our own needs, our own desires. Society itself is sick, yet it seeks to pathologize those who would react to this sick society, and it offers them its technologies, it offers them its drugs, to numb them into accepting things as they are rather than to actively protest and change the injustices that exist. American society has become apathetic and numb, and if such persists, our further decline is only inevitable. Let us hope that some will awaken from their stupor before it is too late.
We are controlled in this country by a ruling elite, whether we wish to recognize it or not. The elite have their paths paved for them. The middle class struggle to survive and are burdened and the elite seek to make them slaves to the system. For example, a middle class young person will be burdened with student loan debt possibly until the day they retire, the elite do not face this. The elite have created this system to keep people 'in their place'. For the poor, the elite have sought to entice them with financial incentives if they will go along with the sad debacle of having their children labeled as 'crazy' or to be shipped off to fight the wars that the elite have created and benefit from. Some are more than willing to submit to this system, to receive the governmental handouts and to abdicate their freedom as well as any responsibility for themselves or their children. The elite seeks to keep this nation ignorant and stupid. Our educational system has become not about learning at all but rather regurgitation of information as the elite would have it.
There is no present presidential candidate or any politician for that matter that can really save us from the mess we are in. Our only real hope is for people to flee from ignorance and to awaken to the real situation we are in, and for there to exist a true effort to restore social justice. Is it too late?
Saturday, July 11, 2009
BOOKS BY DR. DAN L. EDMUNDS
ODDITIES OF RELIGION (2009)
ROOTS OF DISTRESS (2008)
EXPERIENCE: THE SOUL OF THERAPY (2007)
CHILDREN OUR TREASURE (2006)
order from http://stores.lulu.com/voice4kids
ROOTS OF DISTRESS (2008)
EXPERIENCE: THE SOUL OF THERAPY (2007)
CHILDREN OUR TREASURE (2006)
order from http://stores.lulu.com/voice4kids
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DR. D.L. EDMUNDS, ED.D., B.C.S.A.
- International Center for Humane Psychiatry
- Dr. Dan L. Edmunds is a noted psychotherapist, social activist, Comparative Religion scholar and author. Dr. Edmunds received his Doctorate of Education in Community Counseling from Argosy University of Sarasota. He received a Masters of Arts from the University of Scranton and completed undergraduate studies at the University of Florida with a major in Religion and minor in Sociology. He also completed post graduate coursework in Dispute Resolution through Nova Southeastern University's Department of Conflict Resolution and Analysis.