“Seven blunders of the world that lead to violence: wealth without work, pleasure without conscience, knowledge without character, commerce without morality, science without humanity, worship without sacrifice, politics without principle.” - Mahatma Gandhi
Those who are well balanced and adaptable will not get bent out of shape! This site was started in 2000 as the first step to help bring more balance into our world, and to bring more of a holistic approach to the many challenges facing us. The aim for this website is for it to become a large base and forum for souls from around the world to discuss balance in all walks of life for personal and community growth and wholeness.
A part of the initial impetus for taking action in this area was a newspaper article in the mid 1990s in Calgary, Canada, which covered a story about a teenager in the nearby small town of Cochrane. He was a very talented student and excelled in most areas at school, to the envy of his classmates. But he wanted acceptance, not envy, so he started dressing and acting more like them, wearing baggy pants, swearing etc. Then they started calling him a “wannabe”, which made matters even worse for him. What was so heart-wrenching at the end of the article was that this wonderful kid committed suicide!
The poem Teen Suicide, which you can read on the Inspirational Poems page, was written in response to this tragedy. From then on I felt a greater commitment to help people, especially the youth, to keep a good balance between outer acknowledgement and self-worth. (See "The balance between self-worth and humility" on the Spiritual Balance page.) This subject is part of Character Education, which is geared to helping children with life skills. It is included in the Holistic Education section on the Intellectual Balance page.
This site is intended to help you make your own decisions towards a wholesome balance that is right for you personally. Therefore it covers a lot of subjects without getting dug-in with too much detail. (For detail, there are many references and links to other material, including on the Links page.) Rather, this site is designed to help you investigate and reflect upon the many wonderful and important facets of life. As Confucius once said: “They [the ancients] assimilated wisdom and put it into practice by investigating and reflecting upon all phenomena and culling out what was true.”
Only you can decide what is true for you. It is not just a process of intellectual study but of the discernment of the heart. For more on the subject, see "The balance between intellectual knowledge and soul knowing" on the Intellectual Balance page. The world we see outside of ourselves is a reflection of the state of the world within us. So to try to change what is outside needs some initial work within us. Confucius described this process brilliantly in the following quote (from which the quote above was taken) from his Great Learning 1:4 translated by Karen Y. LeBeau:
"The ancients who wanted to manifest enlightened virtue in their empire, first healed and brought order to their states.
Wanting to heal and bring order to their states, they first established equanimity in their families and made them whole.
Wanting to establish equanimity in their families and make them whole, they first cultivated themselves.
Wanting to cultivate themselves, they first got themselves in line and in tune with their hearts.
Wanting to be in line and in tune with their hearts, they first became honest with themselves and purified their motives.
Wanting to be honest with themselves and purify their motives, they first assimilated wisdom and put it into practice.
They assimilated wisdom and put it into practice by investigating and reflecting upon all phenomena and culling out what was true."
May you find your own balance and your own way home to wholeness and the fulfillment of your dreams!
For more information about the author and administrator of this website, click here: Craig Nicholson.
