"VANITY, PRIDE & ARROGANCE" oh my -  "There were cases, too, where we had damaged others who were still happily unaware of being hurt.  Why, we cried, shouldn't bygones be bygones? Why do we have to think of these people at all? These were some of the ways in which fear conspired with pride to hinder our making a list of all the people we had harmed." (12 & 12, p. 79) "The truest characters of ignorance are vanity, and pride and arrogance." - Samuel Butler (1835-1902) English novelist   Sri Swami Vishwananda speaks on pride and ego Pride (In…

OUR SPIRITUAL MYSTERY - "It may be possible to find explanations of spiritual experience such as ours, but I have often tried to explain my own ... ." "I know the feeling it gave me and the results it has brought, but I realize I may never fully understand its deeper why and how." (As Bill Sees It, p. 323) "Remember that you don't choose love; love chooses you. All you really can do is accept it for all its mystery when it comes to your life. Feel the way it fills you to overflowing then reach out and give it away."…

THE ENEMY WE BATTLE NEVER SLEEPS - "In our disease, we are dealing with a destructive, violent power greater than ourselves that can lead to relapse."  "We can never fully recover, no matter how long we stay clean. Complacency is the enemy ... ." (The Basic Text, pp. 84-85) ON THE BATTLE FIELD - "When World War II broke out, our A.A. dependence on a Higher Power had its first major test. A.A.'s entered the services and were scattered all over the world. Would they be able to take the discipline, stand up under fire, and endure ... ?" (As…

THE TYPE OF "SELF SERVICE" THAT WILL BRING GREAT RELIEF - "Relieve me of the bondage of self; that I may better do Thy will [i.e., the will one's of Higher Power] ." (The Big Book, p. 63) THE BOND OF SELFLESSNESS -  "Make us servants of Your will and grant us a bond of selflessness, that this may truly be Your work, not ours - in order that no addict, anywhere, need to die from the horrors of addiction."  (The Basic Text,p. xi ) "Do some selfless service for people who are in need. Consider the  whole picture, not…

CAN WE CAUSE HARM IN LITTLE WAYS -  "We might next ask ourselves what we mean when we say that we have  "harmed" other people. What kinds of "harm" do people do to one another, anyway? To define the word "harm" in a practical way, we might call it the result of instincts in collision, which cause physical, mental, emotional or spiritual damage to people." (12 & 12, p. 80) "He who has loved and who betrays love does harm not only to the image of the past, but to the past itself."- Theodor Adorno (1903 - 1969) German philosopher…

THE SPIRITUAL GROWTH MEASURING CUP -  "Many of us use spiritual principles as a power greater than ourselves." "This makes sense to us.  Because we have tried many times to think ourselves into a better way of life.  Trying it the other way.   Practicing a better way of life by living according to spiritual principles, will eventually have an effect on our thinking." (It Works, How & Why, p. 15)  "The real spiritual progress of the aspirant is measured by the extent to which he achieves inner tranquility."  - Swami Sivananda (1887 - 1963) Hindu spiritual teacher   Out of…

MAKING PEACE AND HARMONY -  "In the previous steps, we began to make peace with our Higher Power and with ourselves. In the Eighth Step, we begin the process of making peace with others." (It Works,  & Why, p. 54) "Shall I not inform you of a better act than fasting, alms, and prayers? Making peace between one another: enmity and malice tear up heavenly rewards by the roots." The Prophet Muhammad (570 - 632) founder of Islam   Peace Train - Cat Stevens (4:05) Teachings of Prophet Muhammad (3:44) Gregorian Chant Meditation (3 Hours)     How have you…

THE HEART OF THE N.A. WAY - "We begin by asking for help and trying out recommendations of people at the meetings. ... In time we learn to pass on what we have been given." "[I]t is the heart of the N.A. way of recovery from addiction - one addict helping another." (The Basic Text, p.57) "That change we seek ... it can not happen without you. ... [W]ithout a new spirit of service - a new spirit of sacrifice. So let us summon a new spirit of patriotism, of responsibility where each of us resolve to pitch in and work…

Acting Upon our Spiritual Principals- "To a degree, he has done this when taking a moral inventory, but now the time has come when he ought to redouble his efforts to see how many people he has hurt and in what ways."  (12 & 12, p. 77) A CLEARER PICTURE OF THE HARM WE'VE CAUSED - "By making our list, we can no longer deny that we caused harm.  We admit that we hurt others, directly or indirectly, through some action, lie, broken promise, or neglect."  (The Basic Text, p. 38) "A person may cause evil to others not only by…

TAKE ACTION TODAY - " ... we simply try to live this program in the here and now. We find joy as we start to learn how to live by the principles ... needed to carry the message of recovery." "Spiritually refreshed we are glad to be alive." (The Basic Text, p. 52) "Unless you try to do something beyond what you have already mastered, you will never grow."  - Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803 - 1882) U.S. poet   Get Out the Vote on Broadway (2:35) Spiritual Freedom in America - Emerson (1:44) Powerful Healing Gayatri Mantra (3:31)   How…