Karma Talk

by Swami Beyondananda

Dear Swami:

This is sort of a troubling question, but I will ask it anyway. Why is there so much violence these days by children against children? I know there are a number of theories attributing the increased violence to vaccinations, food additives, environmental pollutants, and even medications like Prozac. Swami, what do you think?

Mahalia Kabb,
Bronx, New York

Dear Mahalia:

While there has indeed been a rise in pre-medicated crime among our youth, I’m afraid the roots of the problem go way deeper. Our culture is suffering from a severe B-9 deficiency, and unfortunately that deficiency affects children first and foremost. Vitamin B-9, which has yet to be discovered by modern medical science, is an invisible substance that causes feelings of safety, well-being, inner security, and happiness. For example, kindness is high in B-9, as is open-hearted good humor. Esteem is also rich in B-9, which is why four out of five metaphysicians recommend a daily esteem bath for young children. 

Children are particularly at risk when they lack nourishing B-9 energy in their lives. Because their skeptic systems are still undeveloped, they are unable to process some of the huge ironies of modern culture. For example, their Sunday school teachers tell them the Bible says, "thou shalt not kill," but they soon realize that the fine print says, "unless done in extremely large groups." Add to this parents too busy making a living to have a life, and children exposed to too much television and not enough tell-a-vision, and the result is an alarming deficiency of B-9 in our children’s daily diet.

Children who are most susceptible are the ones who actually "detonate", and this is simply our early warning system going off. Of course, we’ve come a long way since those barbaric days when thousands filled the Coliseum to cheer as lions devoured Christians. Now that we’re more civilized, we simply put a bunch of contestants on a desert island and watch them devour one another. To a child already deficient in B-9, it only serves to reinforce the message that this is a dog-eat-dog world where the lovable little Benjis, Totos, and Snoopys are merely puppy chow for the pitbulls and rottweilers out there.

Sadly, with our children growing up so quickly, you hardly hear about puppy love anymore. But did you know that puppies are one of the richest sources of B-9 on the planet? Over the centuries, well-meaning spiritual folks have made a great error by instructing us to treat each other like brothers and sisters. Everyone who came from a family knows that brothers and sisters fight all the time, even when they love each other. But who ever fights with a puppy? Maybe if we taught children to treat each other like puppies, we could raise the B-9 level enough for children to start feeling safe again.

* * * *

Dear Swami:

I read with interest that you participated in the worldwide meditation for peace a few months ago. Do those things actually work? If so, what is the proof?

Ann Sadat,
Gary, Indiana

Dear Ann:

Yes, it works and the results were extraordinary. During the entire duration of the meditation, there was not one act of violence perpetrated by anyone taking part. This is an amazing 100% success rate! The trick now is to get everyone on the planet meditating all the time.

* * * *

Swami’s Quiz Question for August: Perhaps you’ve noticed that beautiful sunsets seem to go on and on, but ordinary ones are over quickly. How would old-time baseball manager Leo Durocher explain the phenomenon?

Answer next month. Submit your answer at www.beyondananda.com. You’ll have a chance to win a copy of Swami’s new audio tape, Beyondananda and Beyond.

Answer to July Quiz. Why can’t you do Gestalt therapy with pigs? Because that would be casting Perls before swine.

Copyright 2000 by Steve Bhaerman. All rights reserved.

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About the Author

Hear the Swami’s wisdom with your own ears -- just click onto www.beyondananda.com. To find out more about Swami’s products and appearances on the "outernet", call 1-800-SWAMI-BE.

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