Axis of Evil... Not-So-Much

Please show your support by leaving comments on the Huffington Post article here and by passing it on to other harmonically-minded individuals. President Bush's January 2002 State of the Union Address, where he coined his "Axis of Evil" terminology to describe Iraq, Iran and North Korea, was an attempt to fit entire governments, populations and countries into a catchphrase box. Marketing propaganda at its very best. The trouble is, these countries are populated with real flesh-and-blood people--mothers, fathers, grandparents, children--just like us. While the media loved repeating the "evil" line for a while (sound bites are sexy and fun!), this good-guys-versus-bad-guys approach to foreign policy turned mostly into a public relations nightmare, empowering the hardliners it was meant to control. Energy flows where attention goes. Plus, I shudder to think how many millions of our fellow human beings felt judged and labeled unjustly. We haven't just been watching a backwards nation... We've been watching ourselves. Haven't we too been just as backwards in our thinking, believing people to be "less than" because they're different from us? Very few stop to realize that "evil" is just the word "live" spelled backwards. Evil is nothing more than to live in a backwards way. Think about it. How evil have many of us been with our backwards way of thinking? America's teens, for instance, grew up during the Bush years, and until very recently, didn't know Iran as anything other than "evil." The marketing and conditioning had set in--and set in well. "We should nuke bomb the whole country," I heard several teens say, after learning that its president disavowed the Holocaust. In their minds, it was easy to imagine wiping a country off the map when populated by a group of evil (and not individual) human beings. But maybe our teens' judgments (as well as our own) have shifted, after seeing images of tens of thousands of beautiful, passionate and energized Iranians protesting in the streets for their right to vote for a more progressive, democratic leader and future. The fact that courageous Iranians are willing to lose their lives for a fraction of the freedom most of us in this country take for granted is hopefully not lost on our youth--or their parents. Apart from color, race, country, or religion, it's becoming impossible to ignore that all human beings are the same and, ultimately, want the same things. Of course, we reach for different things at different times, and we come to the point when we're ready to stand up for those rights at different intervals. But shift happens. It's evolution, baby... And it can't be stopped. You Can't Turn Back the Clock Evolution is inevitable. It can't be stopped... Not for long. The human spirit is always for fuller expression and expansion. What we're witnessing in Iran and across the globe, where people are showing their solidarity for these expanding souls standing up for their rights, is a profound evolution of spirit. As consciousness expands, people once held down are awakening, beginning to say, "I'm worth more than this, and I deserve the rights and freedom to make my own choices and have a say in my own life." Consider Obama's election. Don't you think his election into the highest office in the land is certainly evidence of a huge shift in our country? One of the most obvious signs that consciousness is expanding was on Inauguration Day, where this son of a Muslim, said: "We are a nation of Christians and Muslims, Jews and Hindus and nonbelievers. We are shaped by every language and culture, drawn from every end of this Earth." How did we go from eight years of Christian supremacy to honoring Muslims and nonbelievers? Man, what a leap! Although Obama's statement got some people's DNA twisted tighter than a drum, the truth is that this evolution is as natural to life as birth itself. And, like the birthing process, it's difficult and challenging. Think about it: for anything new to live something first has to die. For you to be born to this lifetime, you had to die to the warmth and safety of the womb (where anything you needed was delivered immediately). Creation and destruction are two opposite poles of the same dance, and we must be willing to dance the dance. We must be willing to let go of the old to come into a new level of experience. Check history and you'll find that all profound transformation and growth always begins with a shift in consciousness. Just months ago, Iranians were part of the Axis of Evil. Now they're our brothers and sisters fighting for their freedom while we cry at their losses and pray for their safety. A Shift from "Me" to "We" to "All" The way I see it, there are three expanding levels of awareness with each expansion inclusive of the last. Humanity, helped in large part through the internet, is beginning a shift from the first and second levels to the third. Whether you like it or not, again, this process cannot be stopped. Let me explain. In the first level, Egocentric, it's all about "me." Me. Me. And me. In the second level, Ethnocentric, it's all about "we." Me and my friends (who are just like me--Christian, Jewish, American, white, black, male, female, wealthy, what have you). But, in the third level, Worldcentric, it's about "all." We can't help but go from "me" to "me and my buds" to "all." If you look at Obama's speeches, starting with his campaign speeches to his Inaugural address to his recent speech to the Middle East at Cairo University, Obama repeatedly makes "world statements." This snippet from his Cairo speech is an example of both an "All" and "Expanded Consciousness" mentality: "...There are some who advocate for democracy only when they are out of power. Once in power, they are ruthless in suppressing the rights of others. No matter where it takes hold, government of the people and by the people sets a single standard for all who hold power: You must maintain your power through consent, not coercion. You must respect the rights of minorities and participate with a spirit of tolerance and compromise. You must place the interests of your people and the legitimate workings of the political process above your party. Without these ingredients, elections alone do not make true democracy." In other words, the world is slowly starting to understand that we can't forsake an entire group or population of people--no matter how far away or how foreign--because of a few Ego or Ethnocentric political and business leaders. All must be valued. Inclusion and integration is paramount. How Would Gandhi Think, Feel and Act? We would do well at this juncture in history to remember that Gandhi arose out of a culture of oppression, becoming a pioneer of non-violence and civil disobedience. His phrase, "Be the change you wish to see in the world," is perhaps one of the world's most inspirational slogans. His success in rallying his nation to freedom no doubt fuels the fight of so many others. If you've followed my work in any way, you've no doubt heard me speak on going "3 for 3." Going 3 for 3 is what happens when your thoughts, your feelings and your actions are all firing simultaneously and in alignment, creating a powerful, undeniable magnetic field. Gandhi knew what it meant to live in alignment with his thoughts, feelings and actions all working toward one goal: freedom for his people. We're observing the same thing now in Iran. This is not a populace who is just thinking and feeling that they need to be free with rights. They're thinking, feeling and taking ACTION! It takes a certain level of awakening and awareness to get to the point where you're ready to act. An idea usually has to germinate for a long time and gain substantial emotional energy behind it before people are courageous enough to shake, rattle and roll. And yet, that's exactly what we're seeing. Pain Precedes Change You've heard it before: People don't change unless and until they experience enough pain with the way things are (some say that's the "gift" of pain). A woman doesn't stop eating cookies until the pain of having thunder thighs is worse than the pain of not downing Oreos. A man doesn't quit his job until the pain of working for his maniacal boss is greater than the idea of living out of a cardboard box. Only then do we say: "Hey! Enough already!" Only then do we figure out how to think, feel and act in a different direction. In the case of America, it took eight years of Bush to help us elect a new, more inclusive leader. Sure, some were scared shitless to have someone with a middle name of "Hussein" leading a Christian nation at this time in history (with Muslim roots, no less). But, it was a hell of a lot scarier not to change, which would guarantee nothing but more of the same! The world is evolving, on that you can count. How quickly or how pain free, only time will tell. I know to my core, however, that freedom is eventually inevitable, for all people. The world can't stop evolving, even if we want her to. Neither can her people. This is not Disneyland, and you can't get off the ride. And, although birthing is hard, what choice do we have? Just suppose a mother during labor said, "I'm not going to go through with this after all. This process is just too damn hard." Would that stop the baby from coming? Would it stop pushing, turn around and go back up for another ten years? Hardly! Once spirit starts to birth forward, new life must happen. It's happening... Do you feel it? Better yet: Are you willing to Think, Feel and Act it? To your continued wealth and happiness, James Arthur Ray President/CEO James Ray International, Inc.

Conscious Capitalism

Check out my first post as a Huffington Post blogger: Conscious Capitalism: Taking Actions That Are Good for Self, Others and the Entire World. Here's an excerpt: Just three short months ago, we let out a collective sigh of relief as we stood on the precipice of a new era in American politics. Though we weren't sure how President Obama would respond to the many challenges at hand, many of us shared in his determination to shift our country's fear-based focus into a mindset of hope and progress. When the election dust had settled, we began to tell ourselves that we'll all be fine now. All of our needs will be met. Well...if you're one of the many who think that Obama's stimulus package will miraculously save us, that home foreclosures will magically cease, consumer confidence will instantly increase, and everyone will go back to work in the blink of an eye...think again. Click for the rest of the post and be sure leave me your thoughts and commments: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/james-arthur-ray/conscious-capitalism-taki_b_193743.html To your continued wealth and fulfillment, James Arthur Ray President/CEO James Ray International, Inc.

Take an active part in history...

Be a part of the impact... You may have read my open letter to President Obama last month, and if you're like the many people thus far who have expressed their support of its message, I know you can feel the excitement rising within you. The impact that these concepts can have on our nation and our world are not only inspiring but are much more than possible... They're becoming a reality! Because I'm truly grateful for your comments and support regarding the letter, I've put together a special video for you that addresses how you can play your part in this monumental moment in history... Read the letter here and either check out the video below or grab the podcast. To your continued wealth and happiness, James Arthur Ray President/CEO James Ray International P.S. Catch me and my friends Leeza Gibbons and Olivia Newton-John this Sunday, February 21st, during a charity event on Oscar night! I'll be part of a live webcast streamed from their "A Night to Make a Difference" viewing party discussing the importance of philanthropy, advocacy and giving back. To catch the action, simply do so on www.ExtraTV.com or www.Glam.com on Sunday evening. The streaming broadcast will start at 5 PM Pacific.

Open letter to President Obama.

If you resonate with this message, please sign your name in agreement by submitting a comment at the bottom of this post and pass it on to other like-minded individuals. January 26, 2009 Dear Mr. President: Congratulations on your new position and for your willingness to step into office in this time of great transition and opportunity. I'm sure you're well aware of the magnitude of the job you've accepted, and I'm also certain you would not have chosen this path were it not for your true desire to contribute and leave a lasting legacy. Never in my lifetime has a new president taking office created such a large sense of hope, excitement and anticipation in the American people. As you know, with great power comes great responsibility, and to that end, I respectfully write you today to communicate and encourage you in what I consider imperatives in the years ahead. Please know that in order to bring lasting change, the path you travel must often be a path that many are unwilling to take. Much like hacking your way through a dense jungle, the first trip through is difficult and takes tremendous work and commitment. However, once the first pass is cleared, the second pass is much less difficult, and the third is easier still. Over time, the once difficult and non-existent path becomes the norm. While you and I both know that carving a new path is difficult, the good news is that we have a growing body of individuals who realize the old path has taken us as far as we can go. In many cases, nothing fails today like the success of yesterday. Mr. President, it's evident that in the last few years, we've reached a crucial juncture in our history. We stand upon the threshold of a major shift toward a new stage of social, cultural and spiritual evolution that has been predicted by many great traditions and ancient cultures across the ages of time. These shifts are every bit as dramatic as it must have been for our ancestors to move from caves into grasslands then from nomadic tribes to settled villages. At the dawn of the industrial revolution, we moved into industrious societies. Now we must move beyond those societies and fully integrate into an interconnected, knowledge- and spirit-based global system that transcends--yet includes--cultural, ethnic, political and religious boundaries. We know this is not your responsibility alone. Yet in the years to come, you'll have such a great influence and impact, and we'll need your understanding and support. The decisions we make individually and collectively right now are determining whether we set the stage for probable termination of the human adventure on this planet or create a blueprint for reaching a harmonious and cooperative global community. While there is much talk about the economy and the security of our country, these are not the primary issues we face. In fact, these are but the effects of a much greater cause. To bring lasting transformation in any area, you must always deal with the cause versus the effects. I submit to you that the cause is the consciousness of each and every American as well as each and every human being. This critical shift in consciousness is the leap from an ethnocentric or cultural-centric consciousness to a world-centric consciousness. Sociologist Emile Durkheim stated, "When mores are insufficient, laws are unenforceable. When mores are sufficient, laws are unnecessary." Much more is required today than piecemeal action or a quick fix. We need to perceive our challenges in their totality and deal with them not only with our intellect but with the coherent integration of head and heart, both mind and spirit. A new way of thinking and feeling must be fostered for responsible living and acting. No longer may we spend multiple billions of dollars a year on arms and military across this planet while we spend a pittance to maintain a livable and sustainable environment. No longer can we allow our government to get bogged down in what should be personal choices such as sexual preferences, right to life or choice and individual religious issues while there are much greater matters at stake. I cannot overemphasize that what is needed is true harmonic wealth in this world. Yes, in many of my writings, I maintain that creating a state of harmony and wellbeing is a very personal issue. Ultimately, worlds don't change. Countries don't change. Governments don't change. Corporations don't change. Nor do states, cities, neighborhoods or families. Only one thing changes: the individual. When the individual changes his or her way of thinking, feeling and acting, the families, neighborhoods, cities, states, countries and entire world must also change. While harmonic wealth must begin personally, it's much more than just personal. True harmony and wellbeing will occur on our planet when we individually and collectively respect and foster the creativity and individuality of all human beings. We've all heard the word "diversity," and yet many still limit their definition of it. While diversity includes gender and race, it's so much more than that. I was excited by your Inaugural Address when you stated that, "We are a nation of Christians and Muslims, Jews and Hindus, and nonbelievers." If my memory serves me, this is the first time a president of the United States has ever acknowledged this fact in such a way. Too long have we as Americans played the world's enforcer of our most dominant belief system. I believe our intention has certainly been good, and I also believe that if someone is misusing their power, it must be addressed. All too often, we've assumed that what works well for us as a nation must be what's best for all. This is not always the case. From the Hindus, we were gifted the original understandings of how the universe is structured--the precursor to quantum physics. From the Buddhists, we learned to open our heart with compassion and to quiet our mind. From the Jews and Muslims, we reinforced that there is but one Creator God and that there are definite laws and systems of operation if we choose to live in harmony with nature's rhythms. From the Christians, we were taught that our universe and Creator is not malevolent but loving and completely benevolent. Furthermore, we were told that if we too just love and give like The Source loves, we shall live in harmony and perfect peace. True diversity is inherent in all human beings as well as in nature, science and art. A symphony cannot be created by only one note or one instrument. An atom cannot exist without both a positron and an electron. A work of art must have many shapes and colors just as the most beautiful garden has a multitude of plants, flowers, rocks and trees. Likewise, a harmonious world and human community must have a genuine respect for differences not just in race and gender but in age, sexual preferences, beliefs, religion, various ways of worship and personality. Just as the human body is killed by cancerous yet homogenous cells that continually reproduce and kill the other cells, so too is the world endangered by the domination of only one, or maybe a relative few, varieties of cultures, religions and civilizations. And yes. This principle even extends to how each country chooses its governance. Please let me reinforce my position that we must address those who misuse their power. In your Inaugural Address, you brilliantly stated, "To those leaders around the globe who seek to sow conflict or blame their society's ills on the West, know that your people will judge you on what you can build, not what you destroy." And this measure must extend to all people in the world--including the United States. To uphold or stand for anything, we must first be a shining example of that for which we stand both internally and externally. Once again Mr. President, we need your help, understanding and support. This is a time to call for responsibility both individually and collectively. I believe you to be an optimist, and for that reason, we are kindred spirits. I believe all this can be accomplished in our lifetime. In fact, it must! To this objective, I submit it will only be completed through the application of three imperatives: Consciousness, Communication and Community. These are fundamental values that will change the world. If we maintain obsolete values and beliefs, an attachment to the past and a self-centered approach, we will quickly become obsolete. The time has come to act. The human species needs more than just a job, food, water, a house, a little money and family. While these things are an important part of life, we also have the intrinsic need to have something to live for: an ideal to achieve, a purpose to fulfill, a legacy to leave. Mr. President, we need your help in encouraging the Consciousness of responsibility at all seven levels of being instead of just one or two: individual, gender, race/ethnicity, cultural, human, sentient and spiritual. We must become responsible for seeking our own interests while remaining in harmony with, and not at the expense of, other human beings and the environment. While capitalism works, we must move toward conscious (or enlightened) capitalism. Conscious capitalism is founded upon the ideal that we must consistently make decisions that are concurrently good for the individual, good for our country and good for the world. We must become responsible for not tolerating brutality or misuse of power here and abroad. We must become responsible for not bringing more children into the world than we can properly care for and support or that our planet can sustain. We must become responsible for ensuring our leaders, to quote the words of scripture, "beat their swords into plowshares and their spears into pruning hooks," and realize that we're all one people living on what is a very tiny round speck in the grand scheme of the cosmos. We must become responsible enough to realize that the geographic boundaries we've created are arbitrary, and that if we are to win, we all must win. While we must demand this focus of our leadership, we cannot ask for what we don't ourselves embody. Therefore, we must be responsible to recognize that peace and harmony begins within our own individual lives, businesses and households. We must become responsible for ensuring that our corporations don't continue a shortsighted pursuit of economic ends at the cost of others as well as the destruction of the very planet that allows us to live. We must become responsible for finally letting go of the racial and religious pains and injustices of the past. Let us be reminded that energy flows where attention goes. As we continually look for references in the rearview mirror, we surely find and perpetuate the very thing we abhor. We must become responsible as members of the human race to hold in the highest awe and respect the human spirit and the drive encoded in our very DNA to rise to personal and spiritual excellence. To understand the intrinsic need to love, connect and to understand and be understood. We must know above all else that evolving the human spirit and consciousness is the first cause shared by the entire human race and be responsible to that end. Mr. President, all these things must be grounded in a major shift in individual, national and global consciousness. Secondly, we must Communicate these critical issues clearly, repeatedly and consistently. I am thrilled with the possibilities in this arena for your skills as an orator are self evident. Words and ideas do change the world. There will be many distractions coming your way that must be dealt with and competition from issues that must be communicated by you. Yet if you understand the severity of this winter we face, you also know that after every single winter comes spring--always and without exception. The seeds we plant individually and collectively right now are determining our next spring and the harvest we will or will not experience as a nation and a world. We stand on the end days of an old, dying system. An outgrown way of thinking, feeling and acting has served its purpose and must be let go and transcended. Every significant breakthrough is always preceded by a breakdown. For something new to live, something first must die. We need your help in communicating that we stand poised on the brink of a new era and new life versus focusing on the fear and insecurity of the death of the old. As a people, we must demand that our media communicates more possibility and opportunity versus scarcity and fear. We must stop communicating characterizations of different cultural beliefs and religions as backward or threatening. When we stereotype any single group, we tell a lie as we turn people into categories and things. Einstein said, "You cannot simultaneously prevent and prepare for war." Once again, energy flows where attention goes. We need your support in continuing to focus on what we choose to create versus what we choose to avoid and to stand for something versus against something else. Let's collectively move toward harmony, peace and wellbeing for all Americans and the entire world. Let's keep our attention on that, versus continuing to wage a "War on Terror." A bonfire will only continue to rage when logs are continually thrown upon it. If we place our consciousness and communication primarily on the fire we choose, old unwanted fires will die out from lack of attention and fuel. Finally, with a shift in consciousness growing and evolving, the message being continually focused upon, communicated and fed, we will build Community and unity in our world. A new global community that, as we've discussed, respects, values and leverages the differences of all creative beings. And we will certainly create our symphony. Isn't it interesting that the field in which we play this amazing and wonderful gift called life is called a universe? Uni-Verse. One song, one people, one planet, one symphony. Mr. President, I told you I'm an eternal optimist, and I'm not alone. There's a growing body of people who are optimistic as well. Not romanticized optimism, for we know that anything of true and lasting value takes work, focus, commitment and time. But now is the time to march. As stated before, every significant breakthrough is almost always preceded by a breakdown. It's normally only in our times of greatest challenge that we step back and take a hard inventory of our lives, where we've been and where we choose to go. I believe this is the most exciting time in our world history to be alive. It's a time in which future generations will look back upon us and say, "They were the ones that figured it out. Thank God for them. The decisions they made in our most critical hours determined our destiny as a people and a world... They were the ones who figured it out." We're doing that right now, Mr. President. We need your support for the awakening of a new era. You have ours. Thank you for time in your busy schedule. Let's leave a lasting legacy together. Let's change the world. Much love and respect. Your friend and partner in world transformation, James Arthur Ray President/CEO, James Ray International Founder, World Wealth® Society New York Times bestselling author of Harmonic Wealth®