Why ISIS Does Not Fathom Peace

ISIS brings spirits a demise

To see how dark the world can get

Removing composure from eyes

To see how some minds can be set

They fight for something they believe in

Not knowing the joke is on them

Thinking they're doing Islam a favor

When they're really just destroying it

If only one could talk sense to them

Tell them that what they're doing is wrong

Yet that would be totally foolish

As they won't stop singing war songs

They're not willing to open their minds

Millions of Muslims don't condone their actions

They feel so completely and direly bad

It seems that there's nothing modest Muslims can do

To a world gone so sad and mad

We'll never know for sure

What the driving force really is

Some videos and reports say

That it's a result of the power hungry leaders

Who are performing intricate black magic

To brainwash and whitewash young minds

Yet we'll never know for sure

The answers aren't clear

Everything about ISIS is a blur

And so hearts are filled with fear

Truly the joke was on them

Yet they see it not

People just want to get on with their lives

Yet some people would kill for power

And that's why they fight and strive

And even if we stood atop a high tower

Calling them to stop, it seems that they won't

And so the world descends into a whirl of chaos

Although saints and heralds would call for love

Those whose hearts and spirits that are made of

Purity and simplicity, ISIS would heed them not

For surely some minds get so strained, they begin to rot

From all the poverty, yet that will never justify

Why so many have to tragically die

If only there's something we can do

To inspire upon such regions the meaning of peace

Yet it all seems fruitless, and down a cycle we go

And the end to all this, is something we'll never know

Surely all we need, is a positive and enlightened change

To somehow throw ourselves into a newer reality and age

Where peace, love and empathy into our hearts is filled

Where people all over can live happily, and not have to be killed

We Are Capable Of Infinite Patience And Strength

The hardships go on, all through the days

Emotions flow all the time, left to right

We try to find purpose, then all seems to fade

Fade before the sorrows which life has filled us in

And then we search for answers, although the answers were simple

Usually the complex answers don't carry meaning

We seek the omens of those who lived before

To hear what they said, to better improve our lives

Although the answer always lay within, in our core

And surely, all of us will have the chance to soar

For even within Hell, one has the chance for redemption

For God always gives a chance, but why?

Because hope never dies

It's lit as a fire that rests in us

It keeps us alive with every passing day

It exists in the words that we always say

And surely there was a power when one prays

To be able to shun all the darkness far away

For within us all exists a persistence so supreme

It battles through everything, no matter what

And surely such a gift, which surely has no measure or length

Exists within that infinite capacity within us all, for patience and strength

Armageddon

The world's a breeze

We try to take it with ease

Yet the darkness within does release

And we may never know the meaning of peace

From the depths of Earth we ask for more

More of serenity, yet there are wars

Which go on and on until we all die

And then all children and women do cry

And so the misery goes on, and even God above

May very well weep, witnessing a world devoid of love

Yet still it goes on, never will we know harmony

Even though the one main prize is that of tranquility

Soon enough the Armageddon will consume us all

And from there will God give his final call

And surely, the only way for all of this to end

Is to make the entirety of humanity, our dearest friend

Why Thinking About Politics/The World Is Pointless

Worrying about the world's affairs is completely useless. It's all for nothing really. We go about worrying about every little political aspect of the world, and no matter what we do, nothing will really happen. The agenda of the world is not for us to choose. Not to be a pessimist, but as the world (seems) to be descending towards chaos, all we can really do is try to enjoy life itself. 

We can go about thinking about every little thing. "Oh My God, ISIS is going to screw up the world." "For heaven's sake, the situation between Russia and USA is getting worse by the day." We can sit alone at night, wondering how it'll all play out, that's true. But, can we sit around wondering what we can do about it? No. Basically, if one doesn't have that needed power, there's no need to think about anything beyond one's control. If one keeps doing that, he'll only lead himself to further negative thinking. And honestly, I've had my share of negative thinking. And after all the assumptions and realizations I've had about the world, I really don't care anymore. It's not the idea of being nihilistic, but rather of acceptance. 

Okay, ISIS is messing things up. What are we going to do? Stand up atop a pedestal of fate and shout out to them, "Hey! What?! Please, chill out. There's no need for world conquest. People just want to get on with their lives." Unfortunately, the world is losing understanding more by the day. So trying to use understanding is like trying to construct an artistic masterpiece with no tools. I say, let it slide. 

Maybe the only thing we can so is hold on to prayer. And in prayer, one needs to learn to perform action as well. Prayer is action; or, prayer is words based on action. We just carry on through this breeze of life, knowing that maybe the dream of people like Bob Marley will play out. I don't know. The main problems that are caused by the world, and in my own life, is that sometimes we take things too seriously. When that happens, people develop these over exaggerated dreams about the future, thinking that they know exactly what the world needs. And thus is the case with ISIS. 

Trying to solve the world's problems is like trying to build a hotel by the use of only your hands. We need other people to do the job. Basically thinking about how the world is or isn't going to end or go to disaster, is pointless. Who knows? Maybe just our presence, of being happy, relaxed, and optimistic, will somehow alter the divine structure of the Earth's magnetic field to the world's favor. And for people who are wondering about what the hell that means, there are many, many sources of knowledge and information, pointing out to the fact that we are all, somehow and in some way, connected. 

People who assumed that they were able to solve the world's problems, decided that they needed to construct a Utopian world, where everyone always lives in peace. Unfortunately, the dark side to such an equation would be that all those who don't abide by the rules of such a 'Utopian' system would die in the most gruesome ways possible. Everything goes on completely well in such a world, and everyone appears as an angel, until someone breaks a single rule. And then everyone turns into a non relenting demons. 

Politics keep changing. It's like a grocery store. Everyday, there is a new batch of vegetables. One day things may going to complete disaster, and the next, the leaders get along like in fairy tales.

It's not being selfish to not care about the world. It's being realistic. It's being normal. Just care about how you can achieve a better life. It's not apathy. Again, it's acceptance. For so many nights of my life, I wondered how I can solve things. But all that was really happening, was that I was thinking while staring at the ceiling at night. Life is too short to be dreaming of doing things we can't do. 

Even though love is the only solution to everything, evil will always exist. Even though the entire world was filled with love, it takes one evil man to mess everything up. And although we all wanted a world filled with love, everyone who preaches love ends up shot in an alley way. So just spread love in whatever ways you can, but don't go out trying to change things. Just love your family and friends, and that's all that really matters. 

In short, the evil in the world will never be eradicated. It has existed since the dawn of mankind, and before it. So all we can learn to do is deal with it. We carry on, doing whatever good we can, and whatever we can't do, we throw out the window. Keeping a filter in the brain is important. Throw out the garbage, and keep in the needful. Keep what we can actually use. Throw out what is out of our control. 

Of course, we can raise awareness. We can let people know what's going on. But we can't make judgments about what the world needs. If we have this idea of how the world should be, there will always be at least one person who would throw what we said in the trash. On the other hand, we can be politicians, and try to pull strings here and there. But being a politician is a long process which needs to meet certain standards. Not everyone can be a politician, and thus, not everyone can alter things. Basically, being negative is dreaming about doing and achieving things which can't be done. Who knows? Maybe we can do it. But, that'll only happen on a small scale. Usually, negativity comes upon someone who dreams of being in world he isn't in. And, when he/she tries to achieve that wanted world, and ends up failing a kazillion times, that leads to further negativity. Being positive is realizing one's limits. We should go out and experience the world. We can't go on thinking about how it should be. We should live it. 

How To Conquer OCD

Obsessive Compulsive Disorder can be conquered. I personally have. For a very long time, it had ruined my life. And when I say that, I really mean it. But as time passed, I've learned to gain a complete grip on it. Before I say how I did it, I want to share what I believe OCD is.

I believe that OCD is nothing more than a control mechanism. All it means is that our brains are moving so fast and wildly, that some part of the brain needs to control it, through some mechanism. When all the parts of our brain are shooting so rapidly in thousands of places, without us being prepared for such movement, the brain starts to develop 'what-if' statements to place such activity in a cage. I have come to learn that, despite conventional belief, that OCD is there to PROTECT us. I have a major feeling that if the OCD was just taken away from us, we'd probably be diagnosed with schizophrenia.

There were several articles I read a while back that stated that: OCD and schizophrenia have very similar brain activity. If you want you can Google "Similarities between OCD and Schizophrenia", and you'll find so many websites pointing to the same fact. Now, I know it's hard to believe this at first, but it makes so much sense to me. OCD is just the brain's way of protecting us from having no control of our brains, leading to schizophrenic/psychotic episodes. Think about it. Whenever we give in to the compulsion, we get this feeling of relaxation within our brains. It's this sudden feeling of relief. Why is that though? Why? Is it because initially our brains were swaying around in a schizo-like manner, and then it needed some sort of control mechanism to calm it down? Who knows?! Maybe OCD was there to protect us! But even though there is that possibility, that doesn't change the fact that OCD still SUCKS, BIG TIME!

It is true that Psychiatrists and Psychologists are men and women of good hearts, and are willing to do what it takes to help you. But at the end of the day, they don't have first hand experience. One needs to go into the mind of an OCD sufferer to truly understand what it means. It seems that OCD almost takes away one's free will! There are so many things we wish to do in life, but it always takes such things away from us. And from such misery, we drown further and further down into a completely voided life. I know it's hard, and that it drains all the life in you. However, there are ways to deal with it. There is no such thing as a cure or 'full remedy'. But there are ways to deal with it. All over the planet, everyone seems to be dealing with this one little thing, or one big thing, that they just can't get rid of. To you, it's OCD, but to them, it's something else. Everyone has their personal curse. Yet we were made not only to survive, but to learn how to cope.

Since OCD is a control mechanism, how do we deal with it? WE GO OUT OF CONTROL! And when I say that, I don't mean that we literally go crazy and start breaking the first thing we see. No. What I mean is that we do things in an extravagant manner. When in the car, listen to very loud music. When you walk around, keep your eyes alert, scanning everything and maintaining wild eyes. When we jog, instead of running at a low pace, run as fast as hell. When you go out with friends, go to places you've never been before. Expand you experiences. If you have a punching bag at home, punch it and punch it until you feel your knuckles go numb. If OCD is there to control our brains from not going crazy, then go crazy one bout at a time. OCD is your friend. It's telling you, "John Doe, I know that I suck. But if you measure the lesser of two evils, I am there to protect you." So if you'd ever want to relieve yourself from OCD, you have to exceed the limits of the things you do. It's not about going crazy and wild all the time. It's only about letting your mind free, by doing new things everyday, and exceeding the limits in the things you do, even though you do so only in certain hours of the day.

So basically the solution is this: Find HEALTHY ways to go out of control. You can't go out of control by causing emotional harm to those you love. If you paint: Go into a room, get a large poster, and go wild by throwing random colors on the poster. A long time ago, in the days of barbarity, people used to use this excess energy in the mind to run away from and hunt animals. Who knows? Maybe if we were back in those times, we would've been pretty decent hunters! But that doesn't change the fact that we live in an era with excess technology and relaxation from the dangers of beasts. Thus, we have to find channels, or methods, with which to allow this wild side within us to be expressed.

At the end of the day, we can't put all our hopes on the traditional methods to treat OCD. We need to find our own ways, because everyone is different. What works for me may not work for you, and vice versa. Every single day, we learn new ways to cope. It's not easy at all. Sometimes with OCD, you begin to feel as though everything is a dream of some sort, because when the suffering gets so immense, our grip on reality somewhat lessens. Finding new ways to cope is a personal thing. Each OCD sufferer has to find his own techniques that would give him that grip on OCD. I wish I could say I found a cure, but I haven't. I believe OCD is far too complex to be dealt with by a certain antidote. Who knows, maybe you can use OCD to your advantage. Since we are SO persistent in fulfilling those compulsions, we can use that quality of persistence on something else productive. Although, it doesn't change the fact that it totally sucks. The way I dealt with it, is by trying to push the limits of everything. I don't mean breaking the law or harming others. I mean doing NORMAL things extravagantly, because the more you allow life experiences to be embraced, the more neural connections we would form. And when that happens, our brains reprogram themselves. 

The method I gave of 'going crazy one small bout at a time' is merely a philosophy. And I believe that philosophies define the core root of our psyching. If we are able to change our philosophy on life, then we can also change the working of our mind. Who knows? Maybe the 'philosophy' I mentioned above may not work for you. Maybe you'd need to find another one. The one that works for you may be hard to find (which means that nothing is certain. Although, you must learn to deal with uncertainty!). Sometimes you can find the right philosophy in a great book, or from a life experience. We have to keep seeking for that peace we crave. It takes a lot of hard work, but in the end, if you stick to your plan, it'll work out. 

How To Deal With ISIS Ideology

The only thing we can do in such times, is remain strong; stronger than we can ever imagine. Especially with this ISIS ordeal, and whatever is going on between USA and Russia. I have no idea how things will play out. Yet truth and light always prevail. It's like a cycle. Darkness comes, then light does. And it goes on to repeat again and again. Although, if we face this darkness together, we can see this through. 

What drives ISIS? They just want to destroy. It's simple. When they endure so much poverty, the only thing left to hold on to is religion. And when they do that, they grip on to it more and more firmly, holding it to be beyond ultimate truth, thus forming clans and cults in order to spread their realm of influence. Sometimes when people don't have anything, instead of building, they want to destroy, and that is the case of ISIS. The actions necessary aren't exclusive to destroying ISIS physically. The Middle East needs an ideological revolution. In other words:

The Middle East needs TONS of schools of thought on Islam. 

People ARE what they think. And thoughts come from books. You probably have at LEAST read 10 books, or 20, ranging from several different topics. However, in the case of ISIS members, all of their thoughts come from a single holy book! And even more than that, all the other books they read are BASED on that holy book, the Koran. There needs to be variance in the thoughts that are introduced to Middle Eastern culture. Although unfortunately, the Bible and the Torah are banned over there, and there is unbelievable censorship of just about any topic critical of Islam. The only way for minds to flourish is by being introduced to newer thoughts everyday.

Here's the problem though. All the thoughts being introduced about Islam stem from the religious figures and leaders. And those leaders get their thoughts from particular university and scholarly sources. And the narrow of focus goes narrower and narrower. Until we reach the Muftis, whose word about the constructs of Islam are considered to be fully true. Besides them, we ought to think of Al Azhar University, which writes most of the books in children's educational system. Unless we go back to such roots, and convince them to reiterate their religious discourse, as President Sisi of Egypt suggests, then the Arab world will never progress.

It's simple. The only way to see clear into reality, is to allow thoughts from different sources reach the mind of the future generation of the Middle East. And thankfully, this is what the internet is doing. Although to many of the high religious leaders, they consider the internet to be a very evil place; as it is, in a certain way, raising doubts in future Muslim generations, regarding to non good ideas spread about Islam. Yet even though it may be painful to them, it may be necessary. The world can't be going down the same road forever.

Yet such a change may never happen. Why? Because change is the scariest thing to the East. Certainty is the one thing keeping them in the realm of sanity and comfort. The whole mindset of a chaos theorist is extremely hard for someone raised in a type of surrounding that would breed destructive cults such as Boko Haram and ISIS. It's ALL they know. It's like trying to rewrite mathematical equations to their minds. It takes a lot of work. Yet if we'd offer ISIS members solutions with the mindset of understanding, it won't work; because they have lost understanding. The only way for things to change, is for voices WITHIN the tribe of the East, speak out from the top of their lungs. 

No matter how much people in the West try to solve such issues, their efforts won't really work. It's because conspiracy theorists will keep claiming that there is some sort of plot behind the media and the thoughts it introduces. The opposing voice has to come from within the tribe. People from the East need to speak up against this darkness. Yet even though they'd wish to, and I'm sure that many do, they won't. Why? Because they are completely terrified. They are fully petrified. It's because the fear factor is extremely strong when it comes to being critical of Islam. And thus the cycle continues. The only way to break it, as I said, is for voices within the tribe speak up.

War is inevitable. Maybe throughout the course of human history, when peace goes on for long enough, the 'beast' inside keeps trying to resurface through that time of peace. And then, it just comes out. And when that happens, it becomes contagious. One person spreading hate reflects upon someone else, and the epidemic of fury has its way of spreading like wildfire. Maybe if the Earth is between heaven and hell (if they exist), then it's just a mixture of both.

Sometimes it seems as though reason is impossible. No matter what, humans will trigger some sort of chaos; be it externally or internally. In the case of ISIS, for example, they are just BRINGING the demons inside, and throwing them straight towards all others around them. There is just too much mayhem, especially int he Middle East. Is there a  real, solid solution to all this? I don't know; probably not. I have come to the conclusion that the only way for peace to be between people, is for it to start from one self. Maybe we need some sort of herald to stand atop the highest building, and shout out peace slogans to the world. But then again, people would call him crazy.  

Let us hope the world won't descend further into chaos. Surely I do. It seems as though the world is spiraling down towards an oh so darkened road. Yet I can't just say, "Hey, stop!" Wars have been fought since the dawn of mankind. So basically, someone can't just be some sort of hero all on his own. We'd need assistance from others. Maybe we need mass awareness in the name of love. I know that may sound corny, but maybe love is the only way.

There are so many of us humans on the planet, more than there ever was. I saw this video on TED saying that literally "THE EARTH IS FULL!". I really do love my fellow mankind. It's not that I lost faith in humanity. However, if there are that many of us on the planet, and if we choose not to coexist, then complete disaster would happen. 

I mean, what can I do? Can I just walk the streets with a banner trying to instill love into our hearts? Surely, there are MANY of us who want nothing more than for love to spread among us all. But the Devil is a smart being. He wants us separated. He wants us to remain subservient to his all powerful need for war. We don't really have to call him the "Devil with horns", we can just refer to him in a symbolic way: The darkness that exists inside us. It's normal to have darkness inside us. We are humans of both light and dark. That's what makes us human. What's not human, is to purposefully express the darkness, turning it into something which can lead to chaos. 

What Powers Does Decision-Making Have?

Decision making is what separates us from success. Usually when I can't make the right decisions, I go into this sense of misery. It's because I can't see where I'm going. We commit our lives to making a difference in the world, but it all starts with changing ourselves, as Gandhi said. Making a decision is what brings us towards our aspirations. The word 'decide' means to cut off everything in our lives that doesn't please us or make us happy. It means to sever everything in our lives which brings us grief and sorrow. I'm not the happiest man alive, yet I decided to change, and that's the main reason I started this blog. This blog is mainly to document my personal road towards thinking positive. It's a long path, and although it's hard, it's not impossible. 

There are so many things in our lives which bring us down. And no matter how much we try to shake them off, we can't. Such things stick to us as though they were a permanent marking on our spirits. We drown further into misery, and we try to get that very needed sense of joy. Deciding is what allows us to pull our selves out of that misery. It is what cuts off everything in our lives that brings us depression, sorrow, etc. It's not easy. And it's definitely not easy growing up in a world where everyone is succeeding and we're not. Yet as Thomas Edison said, with each failure discarded, there's another step towards success. We learn from our failures. Simply put, we fail. And God knows I've failed.

I believe that decision making is so much more than what seems. It doesn't only have to do with the major decisions in life. I believe that in EVERY moment we make a decision. In a single moment we can choose to act or to remain still. Within another moment we can choose to think negatively, or positively. In the next moment we can choose remember the miseries of life, or the joys of it. Sometimes, even though we know we have so much blessings in life, we focus on the negatives, almost involuntarily. This applies to me, and maybe to you. I don't know. All I do know, is that in every moment, there is a decision. There is life on the one hand, and death on the other. There is work on the one hand, or sitting idle and still on the other. There is cherishing life on the one hand, and wishing for death on the other. When we make a decision for life, what happens? We immediately cut off death. It's that simple. Decision cuts off everything we don't want by choosing the things we do want.

Yet much of the times we refuse to make that needed decision. Decisions are scary to make. I bet that in the structures of the brain, the part that makes decisions is linked to the part that signals fear. Sometimes we need to make major life decisions which are vital to our well-being, but the fear remains so strong. There are times when people put off making a needed decision for a VERY long time, until they reach a point when they have no choice but to decide. Deciding was never choosing, it was always cutting off. Decision shapes our destiny. Thus, if we don't decide and cut off everything that's unwanted, we won't find our fate and purpose in this life. I'm starting to learn all of this more and more, day by day. If we aren't able to learn and grow, we aren't in the flow of life. Growing means living. And a part of growing involves deciding what we really want to do in life.

However, some things are really hard to cut off. Some things seem too vital for our survival, and even though those things are bringing us down, we choose to cling on to them. Unless we let go of the things that wear our bodies and spirits into weakness, we can never go strong. Life's handing you so much lemons, but we want to make orange juice. I know that sounds stupid, but that's the way I see it. We can't make a wooden table out of paper. We have to locate those natural resources inside of us, figure out what they are, and put them into action. And throughout the process of acting, we make decisions, thousands of them.

Everyday we make COUNTLESS decisions. Am I going to work for the next three hours, or am I going to sit back and watch two movies? Am I going to eat a load of chocolate bars, or a salad? Am I going to sit on my bed all day long reminiscing on miserable memories, or am I going to go out for a walk? Am I going to take a shower for three hours to forget life, or am I going to face the world, regardless of how hard it is?

It always comes in choices of two. Choose and decide. That's all we need to do. Decide to cut off the unwanted. We should know, that throughout the day, we make more decisions than we think. Yet are they the right ones?

We have to be conscious of our decisions. Despite the fact that we make so many decisions in a single day, sometimes we aren't aware that we made them. Sometimes, we 'just do things'. I believe it's important to be aware of every little decision we make through some sort of meta cognition (To think about our own thoughts). Keep a mind that is fully awake all the time, always busy, and constantly alert to all the little decisions you make. When the mind is aware of all such decisions, we can begin to prosper, as we have taken the right steps and decisions towards building our lives. 

There are times I feel as though I'm in some sort of hypnosis, and that my decisions just play out for themselves. In such times, it's as though I seem to make every wrong decision, and due to that, I descend further into sadness. Such times aren't really often anymore, as I feel I'm snapping out of it. But usually when such times arise, I realize that when one has a negative mindset, his decisions also change. Moreover, not only do they change, they also seem to be involuntary. For example, I'd give into vice after vice without even being aware that I'm doing them. Whenever something wrong in my life would happen, I'd give into vices again. One such vice in cigarette smoking. I've cut back a lot so far. I may even quit soon. But the one thing I've learnt is that as soon as I started to be aware of my decisions, I got closer and closer towards being the positive person I've always wanted to be. And it wasn't only about being aware of the decisions, it's also about making them in the first place!