Healing Times: Haiti and Compassion

Healing Times eNewsletter

Best viewed online!
Click the link above.

January 2010

"In the days ahead we must not consider it unpatriotic to raise certain basic questions about our national character. We must begin to ask, 'Why are there forty million poor people in a nation overflowing with such unbelievable affluence? Why has our nation placed itself in the position of being God's military agent on earth...? Why have we substituted the arrogant undertaking of policing the whole world for the high task of putting our own house in order?"
--Martin Luther King Jr.

Dear Friends,

Let me begin this issue by wishing you a New Year filled with enlightenment, wisdom, love, health, and compassion.

The symbol of the New Year is usually a baby draped with a 2010 flag insert graphic representing the unlimited potential that lies before us. Our joy might be seen as arising from our recognition that we have the power to make new choices, and to transform our lives - thus the concept I explored in our last issue, the "New Year's Resolution."

The new year offers an excellent opportunity to stop and pay attention to the changes occurring around us. The articles this issue (see list at Right) should help you focus on Compassion and the our reaction to the situation in Haiti, among others.

Haiti

"The ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of comfort and convenience, but where he stands at times of challenge and controversy." ~Albert Einstein

This year our joy must be tempered by the awareness of the incredible destruction going on in Haiti. Yet at the same time, there are always two sides to every crisis. On one side there is danger, and on the other there is possibility.

But how can there be a positive side to a catastrophe such as this? This month's articles will address this issue.

Choosing Your Future in 2010

With the arrival of the New Year I'm filled with excitement as to what 2010 will bring. Now that the holidays are over and family and friends have returned to their own busy lives, we take a look around at what we have and what we are going to create for ourselves in this year. With so much for each of us to accomplish in our lives we need to remember to take small steps each day toward better health and fitness. It's important to have a healthy diet for the body and get the right amount of exercise daily, it is equally important to have the right tools to be mentally healthy, strong and ready to tackle all that is sent your way.

Self-healing programs that may prove helpful in strengthening your resolve and achieving success in reaping the potential of this new year include:

     The Serenity Prayer

     Personal Excellence

     Optimal Performance

     Awakening the Leader Within

     Permanent Weight Loss

     Smoke No More

     Easing Into Sleep

     The Ten Minute Stress Manager

As for me, this year I'm working on a series of new products. One will be a special treat for those interested in expanding their role as leaders, and another will be Software For The Mind tools for giving yourself a quick "Mental Reboot."

Warmly,

Emmett Miller, MD

Is God Punishing Haitians for the Sins of Their Ancestors?
By Emmett Miller MD

Listen to Dr. Miller read the poem Call Me By My True Names by Thich Nhat Hanh

How to avoid feeling Compassion

We can turn away by simply avoiding the news and expanding the number of things we are in denial of. Our media pundits, through their comments and behavior, may give us some other clever ways to keep our hearts closed, while pretending they are open.

Going on the Offensive

Consider the approach taken by the putative leader of the Republican Party, Rush Limbaugh. Seems the tragedy is simply another opportunity to attack Mr. Obama: This is Rush avoiding cynicism.

And lest we think that the disrespect is demonstrated only by one side in the media wars, here is the counterattack by Keith Olberman:

Blaming the victim

And here is the Reverend Pat Robertson dipping into religious mythology helping us understand the roots of Haiti's problem, the true story of the "Pact with Satan" signed by their ancestors.

My Challenge

These are extraordinary times indeed, and I find myself extraordinarily challenged by such comments as those recently uttered by Messrs. Robertson and Limbaugh. Like many others, I found the gut reaction to be dismay, disgust and anger. But I have long been aware of how important it is... To read the full article CLICK HERE!

Why Bother Feeling Compassion?
Compassion is Not Easy!
By Emmett Miller MD

As we read of the tens of thousands who have died and the many more who are suffering at this moment, is natural to ask, "How can there be a positive side to a catastrophe such as this?"

Well, there is the cheap thrill of feeling generous by choosing to forgo a few lattes and squeeze 10 dollars through our cell phones by texting the word Haiti to 90999 to support Red Cross relief efforts in Haiti.

Beyond this, it offers us an opportunity to confront to grow as human beings. Our predilection for denial has led to one disaster after another, and an opportunity to learn how to face the challenges in our lives in a different way, in a way that gives us the courage to confront and change what we can change, while accepting what cannot be changed. And, especially, it is only by seeing the truth of what is that we can find the wisdom to know the difference.

We might also take this as an opportunity to grow spiritually. If we look deeply enough to see that, although no one could have prevented the earthquake, the poverty that has rendered the inhabitants totally helpless may be something that we could have helped prevent. Without much difficulty we can then begin to see the imbalances in our lives and in our world that are simply catastrophes waiting to happen, and begin to participate in a proactive way to start to transform this little planet while we still can.

So Why Bother to Feel Compassion

Why should we bother to feel compassion anyway? After all, as Pema Chodrun points out: true compassion is not very much fun, "It is very, very painful. Compassion isn't about seeing cute, dirty children in Latin America on a television commercial and then sending a check to a rip-off pseudo-charity. It's about actually imagining what the experience of a suffering person is like. So to learn compassion one visualizes the American Indian dying of small pox, the Jew in the crematorium shower full of gas, the Tibetan Buddhist nun as she is being raped."

Why bother? It is easier to identify with the aggressor, with the detatched privileged group who are free to pretend that "it's not my problem."

Or perhaps to retreat into the "victim" stance. "Gosh, I don't have much power, what can I do. I've felt compassion before, and it hurt - real bad. Why would I want to touch a hot stove again?"

I Can Think Of Three Reasons Offhand:

1. Because to not do so would be to fail in our duty to the deepest part of ourselves (dharma)

The hardening of our hearts towards others must inevitably close... To read the full article CLICK HERE

A Compassion Meditation
By Emmett Miller MD

Pema Chodrun pointed out the paradoxical truth that "Being able to tolerate a broken heart is the medicine for the pain of existence." Yet, with all the images that will be flooding our tv and internet screens, it is wise to strike a balance. We will almost certainly be treated to 24 hours of a long string of secondary disasters ranging from starvation and water-borne epidemics to violence and even deeper poverty. So it is wise to make sure you don't overdo it.

I have offered some suggestions audio the key is to stay in touch with your heart, and your potential for the acceptance of the truth . . . as the Buddha pointed out, the cause of all suffering is wanting things to be different than they are, right now! This acceptance provides the inner peace that can allow us to see deeper, through the pain to the potential.

One sign that you may have the right balance when, in spite of the pain you feel by empathizing, there will arise a deep sense of connection to these people, an awareness of what you can do to help, and a greater understanding of what needs to be done in the world to prevent even more of these "Katrina-like" disasters.

"The evil in this world is not done only by those who commit it, but by those who stand back and watch it happening."
--Albert Einstein

Listen to a meditation track from the
Software for the Mind - Mental Reboot Series
"Rebooting Compassion"

Special: An Interview with Jerad Diamond on -
The Story and Lesson of Haiti

This morning's show (Jan. 21, 2010) on KQED with Michel Krasny and Jerad Diamond was a brilliant exploration and explication of the situation in Haiti. As the world watches the devastation from the recent earthquake, Krasny and Diamond discuss how Haiti became so poor and so vulnerable to disaster. Diamond compares Haiti to its neighbor, the Dominican Republic, to ask how two nations who share one island could develop so differently.

Sensitive attention is paid to the cruelty of the French enslavers, and to the successful slave revolt which forbade white investment, and set the stage for oppressive dictators. Of special interest is the roll the United States played in helping to ensure that the government of Haiti would fail. An absolutely fascinating show! Listen HERE

· · · ·

· FORUM is KQED's live call-in program presents wide-ranging discussions of local, state, national and international issues, as well as in-depth interviews.

· Jared Diamond, professor of geography and physiology at UCLA and author of "Guns, Germs and Steel," "Collapse" and the forthcoming book "Natural Experiments of History" whick contains an excellent chapter on Haiti! Check out his new book HERE.

Healing Yourself is
Healing the Planet,
Seven Steps to Personal and Community Transformation

A 3-part Lecture/Workshop Series
Location: Nevada County Association of Realtors Building at 336 Crown Point Circle, Grass Valley, CA 95945
Dates:
Session 1 - March 11th, 2010
Session 2 - April 8th, 2010
Session 3 - May 6th, 2010

As human beings, we are part of an immense web of life. Anything that happens to this web ultimately happens to us, and whatever we do has an effect on this web. These truths have been hidden from us by a globalized economic system that benefits from our being victims and consumers.

In his book, Our Culture on the Couch - Seven Steps to Global Healing (OurCultureOnTheCouch.com), Dr. Miller applies his clinical skills to examine and diagnose the root cause of our personal and global symptoms, then presents seven steps you can take to empower and heal yourself, and to heal your planet as well.

Beginning in March Dr. Miller will present these seven steps in a lecture/workshop series, exploring what our families, communities, nations, cultures and planet can do to change our future.

For more information visit our Workshops and Presentations Page (scroll to the top of the page)

May 14th - 16th, 2010
Esalen Institute
Big Sur, CA
For more info and to register at the
Esalen Website click here

What if it is true that there is a wise leader inside of each of us, and that all our problems result from our disconnection from this inner source of wisdom, power, and Love? What if you could take one step forward and enter a new world, where there is congruity between what you most deeply want and the actions you take?

Our goal is to heal ourselves and heal our planet. (Recommended but not required: Our Culture on the Couch (ebook or softcover) and Awakening the Leader Within available on CD or for download.

View this event on Dr. Miller's Workshops and Presentations Page (scroll to the top of the page)

My new book, Our Culture on the Couch, Steven Steps to Global Healing is now available for purchase as a soft-cover book!!! Check out the the book's website OR buy it HERE!

As my gift to you, for subscribing to Healing Times eNewsletter, you may download Our Culture on the Couch - Seven Steps to Global Healing, free of charge by going to www.DownloadOCOTC.com

If you have trouble downloading the eBook, please email us HERE.

Join Dr. Miller Online!

In this issue...we know...it's a packed one

-- Why Bother Feeling Compassion?

-- A Compassion Meditation

-- Why is Haiti So Poor? Krasny and Diamon on Forum

-- Dr. Miller Events

-- Our Culture on the Couch

-- Join Dr. Miller Online!

-- Healing Times Radio Schedule

-- Featured Products

-- Affiliate Program for Our Culture on the Couch

-- For the Funnybone

-- Dr. Miller Events

- Quote - Einstein

Healing Times Radio:
with Dr. Miller

HEALING TIMES RADIO with Dr. Emmett Miller explores Mind/Body Health and how to reclaim our inherent personal wisdom integrating scientific knowledge and techniques of modern medicine. Dr. Miller's mission is to help us heal ourselves so that we can in turn, heal our planet.

Good News!

Due to the overwhelming response you can now listen to Dr. Miller twice a month!

Healing Times Radio with Dr. Emmett Miller at OpenMindRadio.com
airs the first AND third Thursday of each month at 11am (PST).

Show Schedule:

February 4th, 2010

at 11:00 AM(PST)

Carolyn Voss

Noted documentary filmmaker Carolyn Voss is producing a new film,Because They Believed, the true story of African American athletes. Breaking through the color barrier in the United States required the highest levels of faith, dignity, and talent; Carolyn will share with us some of the unbelievable stories of the men and women she has researched and interviewed. Powerful and inspiring.

February 18^st, 2010

at 11 AM (PST)

Patt Lind Kyle

In this fascinating program, we explore the new science of neuroplasticity, the ability of the brain to remap itself by the changing of neurons and their networks in response to experiences. Patt will also share some of the insights and techniques she presents in her new book, Heal Your Mind, Rewire Your Brain.

Save 15%*	Get 15% off any purchase now through January 31, 2010. Visit our new homepage at DrMiller.com and enter promo code (NL0110) on the checkout page of our shopping cart, ShopDrMiller.com
*Offer Expires: 1/31/10