7 Tips on the Road to Higher Consciousness by Ben-Arion Climb the Mountain By Deborah King http://AshtarCommandCrew.netIn Partnership With OmTimes Years ago my good friend and fellow mountain climber, Martin, visited a vaidya– an Ayurvedic physician – renowned far and wide for his insightful wisdom. He approached the vaidya with a question that had been consuming him for months. Martin had been an avid mountain climber, exploring the highest peaks in the world, until he had a really bad fall. Terrified that he was “grounded for life,” Martin traveled quite a distance to meet with the physician in hopes that the wise man could use his gifts to shed some light on the future of his life. After a long, anxiety-ridden journey, he arrived at the remote monastery that housed the vaidya. With tears in his eyes, Martin shared his story: his love of climbing, the peaks he’d conquered, the devastating accident, and his fears. The vaidya didn’t say a word, just listened quietly. Choked with emotion, Martin asked, “When will I be able to climb again?” The wise old seer looked deep into Martin’s eyes and said, “What you need to do instead is to climb the mountains in your consciousness.” Flash forward 20 years, and today you’ll find Martin happily and busily mentoring high school kids who are missing parental direction. Martin shepherds them to a local climbing area most weekends and guides them to the top, both literally and figuratively. Your path to enlightenment can be as challenging a journey as climbing Mount Everest. Both require that you be committed, focused and willing to shed any excess baggage (material and emotional) that could slow you down. The road can be rocky, and you might be tempted by detours, or even consider turning back and giving up – but you’ll meet people along the way who will help you in your quest, and once you reach the summit, you will be transformed!

Vladimir Putin spoke before the final plenary meeting of the Valdai International Discussion Club, outlining Russia’s urgent need for a united national idea in order to succeed in a global environment.

 

PRESIDENT OF RUSSIA VLADIMIR PUTIN: Good afternoon, friends, ladies and gentlemen,

I hope that the place for your discussions, for our meetings is well chosen and that the timing is good. We are in the centre of Russia – not a geographical centre, but a spiritual one. [Novgorod Region] is a cradle of Russian statehood. Our outstanding historians believe and have analysed how the elements of Russian statehood came together right here. This is in the light of the fact that two great rivers – the Volkhov and Neva – acted as natural means of communication, providing a natural linkage at the time. And it was here that Russian statehood gradually began to emerge.