I sat in a café some 3000 metres above the sea on top of the Swiss Alps doing some of my mathematics studies during the World Economic Forum in Davos when a group of men walked in and almost immediately people were rushing to take selfies with one of them – applauding him and shaking his hand. At about 6 foot 6” (2m) tall and a big build I guessed he was some sort of athlete but could not put a name or sport to the face. After the group left the café the waiter informed me that he was one of the most famous boxers in the world, from Russia.
This left me wondering… all the celebrations, congratulations and well-wishes – what are they actually for?
For the record, if two men, or women, both want to get in a ring and punch each other in the heads, then by all means that is up to them… their bodies, their lives.
The point here is more about the interest and devotion that this sort of activity garners. And so the questions that come to me are:
- How are we at a place where millions of people use pay-per-view to watch from home and many more spend the equivalent of thousands of dollars to travel to and attend such an event?
AND…
- Where have we really come to as a society if, apart from perhaps the consent of both parties, things have not changed since the times of the Colosseum?
A fascinating part in all this is that if we show someone a video of a man being horribly and brutally beaten, it will in most cases receive gasps and looks of disgust. But then if you were to explain that the person had consented, it all becomes okay – yes? Where does this incoherence stop? If it is okay to commit an act of violence with consent, are we then able to commit murder with consent? If that’s too much to stomach, are we then able to perform random unregulated amputations with consent? Would this too attract a large crowd and vast sums of money? Who does and how does one draw the line of distinction between what is acceptable under the guise of consent and what is not?
With all the issues going on in the world at the moment – wars, corruption, poverty, cancer, mental illnesses, suicide, female genital mutilation, sex trafficking all the way down to lack of self-worth, lack of confidence and body issues to name but a few – SURELY there are ways of spending our time, energy and money that benefit us rather than punching us in the face, literally speaking.
I count myself blessed to know what I consider celebrities to be: real people doing real jobs in such a way that is worthy of celebration – and then some!
Serge Benhayon and his family have become a massive part of my life, from the most inspiring chats over dinner to workshops and presentations that not only give me the opportunity and support to bring out the best in me, but at the same time show me how humanity has gotten into this particular point on its derailed trajectory. The Benhayon family, the most ordinary extraordinary group of people, have shown me what deep down I have always known – that there is a way to live life without letting life live you. In other words, we can be in life empowered through our wise and loving choices without being what life wants us to be.
This to me is something that not only I have not seen anywhere else, but in fact the opposite has been cemented; the idea that without (especially tertiary) education you cannot be successful; the concept that marriage is a ‘compulsory’ part of a ‘complete’ life (you only have to look at the divorce rates to see the falsity of this one); the belief that what we make of ourselves career-wise is who we are, and by that token if we are a cleaner or serving in McDonalds then we are not worthy contributors to the all as much as perhaps the Rolls-Royce riding rich are.
So, when I go to celebrate someone, my first question is: what are they contributing to society? Are they accelerating our evolution or are they delaying it? A good space to ask ourselves another question here – what is evolutionary about punching another in the head to the point that their facial features get distorted, permanently damaged and or they even become comatose? Which part of this disturbing factual scenario is entertaining? Our money’s worth?
If the external is glamorised and made to be everything, then I would suggest that this perpetuates the current plague of self-doubt, lack of self-worth and self-abuse we are all witnessing in large doses in society at the moment. Not something I personally care to celebrate.
If it is that we are already everything, already amazing, beautiful and awe-inspiring before we even take a step to do something, if it is that we are so much greater as a society than the way we are choosing to live, if it is that there is absolute GOLD just waiting to be unlocked in each and every person that walks this planet – surely, living THAT is what we should be investing in and celebrating.
And that is what I continue to celebrate, for as a very caring young man, to see us all gently rise out of the predicament we have taken ourselves into would make my heart sing.
True celebrities are men and women who dedicate their lives to know themselves through their innate love, wisdom and light, not through fame, recognition or glamour.
By Michael Brown, Maths Student and Manager in Retail
Related Reading:
Are Humans Insane?
Serge Benhayon – A True Man
Words on Serge Benhayon 
Be caught up in being a celebrity or being fixated on bettering this one life distract us from the fact that this is one, yes one, of hundreds of lives we have had and it is time we awaken to this fund-a-mental truth about our lives and thus expose one of the greatest lies perpetrated on humanity.
True celebration is not for an individual but for the love and brotherhood shared with all.
So true Mary, and could it be sisterhood is the opening to what we can bring to humanity first?
Those who make life about people are definitely worth celebrating.
Learning to play is so much fun and we can Truly enjoy being together sharing but as soon as it becomes a sport it sorts itself into a competition and distracts us from being together and separates us into our individuality, and thus disconnects us further from our Essences, Inner-most-hearts / Souls. When connected we can evolve.
It’s a strange thing that if someone appears on TV, they can garner a celebrity status even if they are not truly contributing to society or inspiring values such as decency, respect, care of others, etc. In fact, you can be a celebrity for being narcissistic, selfish and vacuous – but looking great! We apparently hate this in politicians but love it in others on TV – it’s not making much sense is it? I’m not a fan of anything that doesn’t advance us equally and inspire a deeper cohesiveness and equality in society.
I agree with you Michael that by attending the Universal Medicine courses and workshops I have discovered “that there is a way to live life without letting life live you. In other words, we can be in life empowered through our wise and loving choices without being what life wants us to be.” This is a great offering to the world and one which we do not fully appreciate yet as we are still in the out play of our choices, believing we can get away with our disregard towards ourselves and others.
Celebrity status is usually equated to money. The sad example of the violence in a boxing ring is compounded by those watching baying for blood and betting large sums of money on the outcome. True celebrity walks gently beside us inspiring us to be true to who we are.
True appreciation, of our essences is a celebration we can live every day, and as this is the sacredness of our living ways a natural deepening happens.
When we see someone bashing themselves in a boxing ring, or playing rugby etc, we celebrate that. But when someone looks after themselves caringly and with deep respect for themselves and their body and others, we ignore it or worse yet we criticise it or condemn it. Does this make sense? How much are we being controlled to not express the real core of who we are?
You raise a great point Henrietta why is it that we criticise others because they are taking care of themselves? Do we criticise because we are being shown up in our own disregard.
Thank you Michael for highlighting in this blog the crazy things that we celebrate in this world! The other day I saw an advertisement for Rugby lessons for toddlers. To me this is just as crazy how from an even younger age when a toddlers body is still so sensitive and tender, we are now encouraging them to shut down from what they are feeling. And of course it goes without saying that this “Rugby for Tots” could only have been developed from our shutting down in other ways to begin with and hence is only an honest expression of where we have allowed ourselves to come to as a society to then accept and celebrate a toddler learning rugby.
As you have mentioned Michael we haven’t really moved on from the Roman times and the entertainment of the Amphitheaters.
There are even people that have become celebrities because their group of friends are mainly celebrities. Are these just pilot fish?
It’s a great question – ‘What’s really worth celebrating?’ and it really makes me realise how we do not stop to feel the true quality and value but instead so easily get tantalized by stimulation, just like those birds that collect anything as long as they are shiny. ‘Celebrity’ – it’s such a funny word. To me it comes with this sense of pseudo-worshipping that is just so ready to turn its back on as soon as it finds something more entertaining.
It is sad when people that do very little in life get accolade that does not in any way support humanity and those that commit their life to supporting humanity, work unnoticed and for some even vilified and attacked.
If we look very closely at what gets attacked and what doesn’t, we’ll see what challenges the model of life and what contributes to it.
Spot on Michael – no different to the huge attack by the media and others on Serge Benhayon, who is one of the most humble and caring and respectful people I have ever met. You must ask why so much attack on one person and an organisation? Could it be that there is something being delivered that is deeply evolving for humanity that some are choosing to resist and try to put a stop to?
It can’t be easy going down the ‘celeb’ road as it constantly needs feeding. It seems as though even stardom doesn’t fill the emptiness as many go on to abuse drugs and alcohol, some get involved heavily into charities to bring a sense of fullness and purpose. Without purpose, we are lost.
‘Are they accelerating our evolution or are they delaying it? ‘ Great question. It’s a great question to ask my self in regard to how I am and also in respect of the relationships in my life. Am I choosing a relationship to evolve me or to keep me where I am in comfort?
I’ve read about internet video stars and how anyone can now be famous with the advent of the internet. But with that fame comes demand and eventual burn out as the demand to constantly post videos on a regular basis or loose followers in the thousands is an ever looming threat. I have a youtube channel and just posting once a week was a pressure I didn’t enjoy, all for the sake of a like or view. It’s not worth it and since dumping that posting schedule it’s much easier and lighter. Anything done for recognition often requires a hell of a lot of effort!
That’s an interesting insight Leigh, and one that when I think about the details of life I can see quite clearly.
When I look at magazine shelves and see the pictures and captions I find nothing inspiring there, it is usually a very gossipy or negative insinuation as the headline, this kind of material spreads harm and encourages comparison and self-hatred. Very very yucky.
I recently heard of a Fifty Leading Lights list for kindness-business leaders recognised and celebrated for inspirational work and quality of relationships with colleagues, staff and customers.
Truly bonkers that people get all the adulation and all the crazy rewards and plaudits for being the best in the world at hitting someone else. Just writing that sentence makes me wonder about the extinction of the dinosaurs. Perhaps like us they did not adapt and eventually their own stupidity led to their demise?
Celebration to me includes the “what’s next” factor, otherwise it tends to be an indulgance.
The more I become my own celebrity the more I can see how a life lived without being affected by everything outside of you is actually possible.
Nothing is more powerful and gorgeous than an open heart.
‘SURELY there are ways of spending our time, energy and money that benefit us rather than punching us in the face, literally speaking.’ Great question. I’m aware to not go into judgement but understanding about what it is that attracts so many to watch boxing and what is it that people feel to box.
We make people into celebrities by rallying behind them, and following their every move… but so few if any of the so called celebrities I know have added value to my life, save maybe entertainment for a few hours, and even then is entertainment ultimately valuable? I am looking for people who are inspiring to the core, who live a life of joy and commitment, who open the doors to their lives so you can see they are normal, and not better or more special than you, who without question live a life that is true for them. Serge Benhayon is such a man.
Yep that’s exactly what I look for in a role model too – someone who inspires my every cell to get up and bring everything I am to life and people.
I agree Heather Serge Benhayon has opened up the doors of life to show us that it is not all we think it is that there is far more going on under the surface of life than many care to admit or want to know about.
When we celebrate someone for something that this person stands out in, we commit a brutal act of reductionism that falsely feels like an enhancement.
If we were to celebrate true achievement then it would be a person’s ability to fade their individuality out and thus merge themselves back into the Oneness that we’re all from but as you say Eduardo, the only thing that we currently celebrate is a person’s ability to stand out and be seen. And often the more a person is able to stand out from the crowd the more we applaud them! Whereas what is really worth applauding is how deeply a person can manoeuvre themselves back into the folds of the universe.
We celebrate a lot in the world but we do not celebrate the truth of us and that makes the world a very hard place to live in.
It is a global issue that we celebrate people who are so insecure about themselves that they have a reality show about their lives in order to get attention. It is a global issue that despite the fact that we know people are drug addicts and alcoholics, we still praise them and think that the quality of their music/ movies and products actually benefits humanity.
We have celebrities who are constantly showing us that we’re not good enough – role models who throw thousands and millions on plastic surgery, designer wear and the sorts. A constant reminder that we have to do something to ourselves to make us look better or feel better. The celebrities you mention in your life are vastly different to that, like you say they have dedicated their lives to knowing love and living it with themselves and all others – yes, that is truly worth celebrating.
it has always fascinated me how celebrities are based on fame alone – someone being important in the eyes of society because they are on TV or they have a skill. But what is great here is the possibility that celebrities can be people who are living love and reflecting this back to humanity. That is truly inspiring.
Particularly because everyone can be inspired and make changes themselves. Its not restricted to how big and heavy your are, or whether you are willing to punch someone else!
There has been in fact no change in many of the ill-consciousnesses such as slavery, supremacy and the glorification of war, that we under great illusion consider are ways of the past, yet still run our society today through our willingness to be run by them. Same energy only different bodies perpetuating its activity. What are we celebrating is something we all need to ask ourselves, as if it is less than love, decency, respect for ourselves and equally so our brothers then we are submitting ourselves, our children and all of us to normalising abuse, violence, and all that comes from lovelessness. We are more that this and it is in celebrating the love we are within that we stand up for the love we know we are all here to live together, and nothing less.
This is so true Carola, we have made evil look so much better than ever before.
Carola I agree with you that the “ill-consciousnesses such as slavery, supremacy and the glorification of war, that we under great illusion consider are ways of the past, yet still run our society today through our willingness to be run by them”.The same energy has been running our bodies for eons, we are born into this energy. It has always been the Ageless Wisdom teachings through the ages that have constantly reminded humanity that this energy is loveless and destructive but like moths to a flame we are mesmerised by it.
It is crazy how our world is obsessed with famous people. And much of that news is about all the drama they have.
Do we really look up to them, or are we glad to see all the problems they are having?
Honoured indeed is the person who understands the true nature of humanity, divinity, and is in-service to restore the two to their innate and rightful connection
The weird thing about celebrities and our devotion to them is that we focus on that one part of their lives that we see as special but completely disregard the rest. We bow down to someone because they can hit a golf ball really well (not something that will evolve mankind in any way) but ignore the fact that their personal life and relationships are a mess.
Yeah true Fiona we like to separate what we see vs. what we don’t see. Musicians are a perfect example of this too – if we saw everything that happens in their lives would we still enjoy their composition?
Yes, if true integrity is what we are going for, we need to tighten who and what we celebrate as we could say it’s harmless to celebrate a boxer in fact we are encouraging beating people up.
Everything affects everything, and just because it may be classed as entertainment boxing is not exempt from this universal law.
Learning to live life from our innermost is most certainly something to celebrate and a much fuller way of living success in the world.
Absolutely Jenny – as this would restore the true meaning of what it is to celebrate, to solemnise, honor, proclaim and praise that which is of the absolute truth that represents us all.
I really really love how we can JUST ask these questions to bring us out of the muck if they are answered or not.
Yep exactly Rik, when there’s no investment in the answer/outcome the job is already done.
‘the belief that what we make of ourselves career-wise is who we are’ I used to live this one for many reasons, the main ones being I didn’t appreciate who I am -so I always thought it was about how good I did something- and the fact that the magic that can come through me isn’t something I created or even own, it’s there for everyone. I am not special but I am as precious and dear as we all equally are.
The world seems to be obsessed with celebrities at the moment where anyone can become a celebrity over anything, irrespective of how shallow that thing may be. This sets us up to have a really low standard in terms of who and what we celebrate..
I wonder if our current take on celebrities, and often you don’t actually have to do anything to be a celebrity (big brother, reality tv shows etc) is simply a form of distraction away from our own lives. Because with celebrities it’s like we pretend they live amazing perfect lives when often the opposite is actually true – it’s like we’re not even truly celebrating the person, but a perfect fantasy picture we’ve created of them that we can use to escape from the difficulties of our own lives, when underneath is a human being struggling with the same stuff we are.
Absolutely Meg, we use celebrities as a way of escaping what we see as our own mundane and difficult lives, without understanding that these ‘celebrities’ are struggling too. Actually the energy we are projecting onto them is foul because we are using these people as crude as it sounds, as we are getting off on them as a form of relief from our own struggles of life.
I have heard that the domestic violence rates in Australia and NZ and no doubt elsewhere actually go up when a prestigious rugby or soccer match is on even if the team win or lose. This says a lot about society and sadly where our choice to not evolve has taken us.
Yeah it seems crazy that it is so endorsed and financed.
Thailand Kickboxing competitions have been known for causing deaths, and recently there was an uproar because a 13-year-old boy died. So, what is the age it is all right to die for your sport?
We really need to wake up to the fact that awarding people celebrity status for allowing themselves to be bashed while they bash another is crazy.
This whole celebrity thing used to be reserved for a select few, but now with the onslaught of get famous reality TV shows, people are clambering for the celebrity lifestyle. From the outside, it looks like it’s the best life can offer, as in being rich and famous but in reality, the emptiness is still there as life is without true purpose.
“True celebrities are men and women who dedicate their lives to know themselves through their innate love, wisdom and light, not through fame, recognition or glamour.” These celebrities are the ones who are lifting mankind out of the mess we are in by their constant reflection of a loving living way of life. We can each one celebrate the love we innately are and have come to know.
‘A fascinating part in all this is that if we show someone a video of a man being horribly and brutally beaten, it will in most cases receive gasps and looks of disgust. But then if you were to explain that the person had consented, it all becomes okay – yes? Where does this incoherence stop?’ I have always clocked this about boxing and always disliked the violence of it intensely…I never got how beating another man up was considered a sport. I have also clocked the same around murder. This is against the law (rightly so!), devastating for all concerned and a prison sentence for the perpetrator. Yet, murder is allowed in war and men come back as war heroes and championed for killing others. This incoherence does not make sense to me.
“True celebrities are men and women who dedicate their lives to know themselves through their innate love, wisdom and light, not through fame, recognition or glamour.” Beautifully said. A true celebrity is someone who inspires us to be all that we already are.
‘If the external is glamorised and made to be everything, then I would suggest that this perpetuates the current plague of self-doubt, lack of self-worth and self-abuse we are all witnessing in large doses in society at the moment. ‘ If the external is celebrated and no consideration of what’s going on within then there leaves an emptiness for all the rot of emotions to take root within. If we celebrate people who aren’t present but are allowing emotions and dramas to rule them, then we’re not actually celebrating who they are, and then everyone thinks this is the norm and continues. I know I have been caught up in this and it feels empty as.
What is it that appeals to the general public about being a celebrity? Is it purely for the recognition and a sense of importance? Surely, at the end of the day with no one but themselves, deep down they know that what they have chosen is not it.
That then becomes the aim of the game: Anything but be with themselves, otherwise the emptiness is there to feel.
Identification is the name of the game, we all clamour for it, we simply can’t get enough of the stuff and so to be famous is to be seen and recognised by an awful lot of people, identified by the masses. Not that the identity hungry spirit is satisfied once we become famous, it’s not, because it’s never ever satisfied, it needs to be fed constantly. I often think of the spirit as a Pacman kind of a character, always hungry and always looking to be fed.
So spot on Michael. You know all those magazines that devote themselves to celebrity goings-on? It seems in every industry in which there are celebrities, they are abusing themselves and other people…. and moreover it’s considered juicy news! I can’t stand those mags – it hurts to look at them. They tantalizingly display the ugliness we are capable of, that isn’t the true us. But it’s a good so-called ‘reality check’. When will we see magazines that celebrate the true celebrities, the loving ones you speak of? Well I guess the first of them are here now, like Women In Livingness magazine, Serge Benhayon TV, and these websites…. thank God!
It doesn’t hurt me so much to look at them, but it definitely hurts me to look at how much they sell.
It is interesting to meet famous people when they are not wearing their famous public face, and we get to see them the same as everyone.
Part of them love when they get seen as being equal, but there is still the part of them which needs the idol status and the worship that comes with celeb life.
I love the fact that I have true celebrities in my life, guiding and supporting me to become my own celebrity!
I don’t care if I’m the only one cheering for myself, my own applause is more than enough.
Great blog Michael. Images, pictures, ideals are all sold to us of what is the best and most desirable way to be that we have to become. Complete lies because if we really saw how these people were actually living and how they actually felt more lost than most of us do then we certainly would not be inspired by them.
The incoherence you speak to here Michael is rife in our societies and indeed is glossed over and ignored. It goes to the heart of how we live … and the inconsistencies in that living … we do not yet live as a whole making it about the all, valuing and understanding that each of us has a part of play and that it may look different but nothing is ever less, and until we do live this way it’s great to be honest about what is truly going on so we can start to have some real conversations about what truly matters in life … all of us evolving.
I think it’s great how you give us the opportunity here to reflect on what we are championing or aspiring too, to consider really what it is that we are supporting and if it is truly something that feels harmonious or healthy…
“So, when I go to celebrate someone, my first question is: what are they contributing to society?” The truth is very few if any Celebrities would stop for a moment to consider if there is anything they are actually contributing to support or change the way society is, they are in fact the ones that perpetuate self-seeking needs and goals and so-called ‘success.’ Everything about their life is about keeping and building on their celebrity status, it is all about self and nothing to do with humanity and the state the world is in.
“True celebrities are men and women who dedicate their lives to know themselves through their innate love, wisdom and light, not through fame, recognition or glamour.” . . . hear, hear Michael! We all will come to this in the end. Unfortunately, most of us have to try all the other outward ways to fulfill themselves before taking the step inward toward their inner heart, where all is felt and known.
To be able to punch someone in the face, or really anywhere, means you have to shut down your sensitive inner essence, there is no way we would be able to harm another in this way when we are connected to the loveliness we are. And this is the real problem with these kind of sports and the many people that celebrate it, because we are literally celebrating people disconnecting from themselves so far they can hit someone and feel good about it. It indeed is abuse with consent and it does make violence acceptable without looking at why someone actually feels like he or she can punch someone. Because those feelings should be an alarm bell for someone not feeling ok in themselves.
Put 2 young boys in an enclosed space together and I can guarantee the first thing they do will not be punch each other!
You have to be very hurt to be able to punch someone repeatedly without being provoked.
It is so true glamorising what we do and achieve in life creates such an inequality, and yet all the time we miss the opportunity of celebrating the gold within us all our inner hearts.
What is the obsession we have with ‘celebrities’ or more so what is the obsession media and journalists have with ‘celebrities’? It is actually really insidious how journalists use people/celebrities as a way of standing out from other journalists. Who has got the latest news/gossip etc. However, ALL of this, even the fact that we have celebrities, is constantly trying to pull us away from the true truth of who we are. It is like being given the whole Universe but looking through this tiny little hole, instead of the absolute entirety, to say who we are! Quite bizarre.
Michael, this is a great question; ‘Celebrities – What’s really Worth Celebrating?’ Now whenever I hear of ‘famous’ people or celebrities I think of your article and ponder if if what they bring to the world is really worth celebrating.
And that is the point, not to categorise a group of people worthy of celebration, or not. But to discern in each moment whether the person is truly worth the energy of celebration we give.
What is worth celebrating -– simple things like if we stop eating things that are not good for our body. Who is worth celebrating? – Anyone who listened to, honors and cherishes their connection with their divinity enough to not dishonor the body.
I look at boxing and it pains me to think this is sport. We have made normal a brutal act of violence putting it down to entertainment and consent yet how much of that consent is out of need. If you don’t trust that you can earn money to survive and getting beaten up or beating up is a way to put food on the table and change your circumstance then you are more likely to do it. That doesn’t mean we should encourage it.
This opens up a whole new topic of what certain people get paid for doing, mindless things that are void of any purpose … so many blogs to write!!
“my first question is: what are they contributing to society?…” This is a great thing to question and consider when we find ourselves on the precipice of falling into the abyss of celebriti-ism as there’s nothing more disempowering than being bedazzled by false lights of glamour and stardom
It’s interesting to note that in the film industry, the power of the celebrity is now actually dropping. 10 years ago there was a large handful of actors and actresses who could get any film financed and could absolutely guarantee $XXX at the box office. That is fading fast and now it is all about the titles; Marvel, Guardians, Superhero or remakes of already established hits – that is what is drawing the crowds and people are now much less interested in who the actual actors are. Even the mega-big names are now no longer absolute guarantees of people coming to see their movies. I wonder if this is a reflection of the plethora of stories that break each week about broken lives, addiction, abuse etc…Movie celebrities used to be able to exist behind some kind of cloak of secrecy…perhaps now that people can see the truth, their allure is fading?
Interesting point, to me it shows society has simply moved from absolving themselves in a person to immersing themselves in a storyline/plot/world of fiction instead, whether that be for better or for worse I couldn’t say.
Well – taking this further..the latest Avengers movie had 28 Marvel super-heroes in it. As a heroin addict needs to up their dose to hide the root hurt, it seems that the escapism addicts need to do the same.
What I observe when people watch sport on TV or go to a competitive event, is that they sit there feeling less then. I see their bodies get excited and tantalised by the showmanship and athleticism that they are watching and there’s a fleeting moment of considering themselves up there and what that would be like. So the whole ‘I’m not enough as I am” is nurtured, not in a good way, by having people put up as celebrities. That is contributing to more separation on the planet.
They are everything when the spotlight hits, but then you have to ask what is left when the spotlight fades?
Exactly… which is not something that is questioned, especially in schools when children are asked to talk about their heroes and sports stars.
Yes, by all means celebrate who you like but at least know the emptiness you are celebrating.
Giving up on Love leaves us at the mercy of a million glittering rewards, but all each one does is beat us to a pulp like the meanest boxing glove. Looking outside of Love is never worth it.
Each one of those million with a different flavour for every possible desire, scary what we have created to appease ourselves and comfort our lack of love.
It is well worth stopping to question what we celebrate rather than blindly celebrating things that have not progressed since the Roman times.
We do seem to have got it all mixed up with the things we celebrate and consider as being entertaining, and ultimately inspire to be like our idols. Yes, it seems like we have been sold a bill of goods packaged in a certain way to provoke the interest and to create followers and yet the majority of the hype comes from us; we are the ones who want to believe the hype and then boost the celebrities up onto a high platform. Much of what we know about celebrities is formed in our minds, and I might add, quite unrealistic expectations can arise from this.
Who are our hero’s in life and why and do we really need hero’s? Often we only look at something someone is good at such as sport for an example and don’t look at any other aspect of how they may choose to live. Or like you say are they offering evolution to our current way of living? Now that is a great point that you have raised Michael, for that rarely comes into play when we align to who is a hero and who is not. What are they offering the community as a whole? Are they offering a way of living that is representing our future or taking us back to ages gone? Importantly for us who we align to is very important for we take on everything that person represents, not just what we like them for. An important pondering for us all.
I tend to experience celebrities with my work and I used to get caught up in all the hype and put them in another world to where life is. Since building my relationship with myself I have started to really feel and appreciate it is all about the being inside and that we are all equal. Now a days that’s the way I relate with them I treat them as an equal, I talk to them like anyone else and I allow the space for us to truly connect. From what I have notice they absolutely love it, not all though some are very much attached to having the upper existence.
yes, so true, yet by playing into that game we don’t offer a reflection of much more mentally and physically healthy way of relating.
Very rarely do we celebrate the depth of who we are before we have done anything to ‘prove’ we are worthy of such accolades. Lack of appreciation of ourselves and others leads us to low self-worth and to a biting comparison that slowly erodes us as we make ourselves either ‘more’ or ‘less’ than a fellow equal brother.
Hence why it is so important to genuinely appreciate others, for then we all get to feel the stunning qualities each and all bring.
Yes Michael, there is something very caring and loving to consider us all as celebrities rather than look out and wish we had what another has because of what they do. My sense is we have a long way to go before that is even a concept, let alone a thought or a reality for the majority.
I have always felt we need to look to celebrities when there is something missing in our own lives, far better for us to admit the emptiness and to deal with it rather then waste our time and energy following someone else’s life.
For this only fuels the emptiness in both the follower and the ‘celebrity’.
That is so true Michael. When we celebrate celebrities and really champion what they do, do we ever stop to see that as a huge rejection, not only of ourselves but also of the celebrity we are focusing on? It’s like putting all this energy into a facade, a picture another wants you to see but not feeling past that to the gorgeousness that is underneath.
Just another method of keeping ourselves earthly and not awakening to the fact that there is far more than human life/existence here on earth.
Celebrity magazines should come with the same sort of health warnings that are on cigarette packets! Of course this will never happen, but actually it is true…feeding that emptiness is poison for our bodies.
I love this idea. WARNING: MAY CAUSE ADVERSE EFFECTS ON YOUR SELF-WORTH or WARNING: READING THESE MAGAZINES KILLS…. YOUR BODY IMAGE
Or the publishers could be even more transparent; “This magazine is specifically edited, written, configured and designed to make you feel even less than you did before you started reading it, so that you buy the products that are advertised within our pages (and hence boost our revenue) in a futile attempt to make yourself feel more, and so that when you are still feeling empty, worthless and ugly and that your life has no merit, purpose or value, you will then buy this magazine again because you’d rather try to escape into another’s life that deal with the hurts of your own”….or something along those lines? Not gonna happen is it?!
A salient point Jane. For we live in a supply/demand system and as you say a celebrity is not a celebrity unless people are choosing to celebrate them. And thus the – why? When we are so lost we will happily latch onto another’s life for comfort or distraction (the root design of Facebook). What is even more revealing is how we revel in the demise of a celebrity; far easier to enjoy another’s downfall, thus making us feel better about our own lives, than it is to actually take responsibility for that life of ours.
Today, some people are famous for being famous – no other criteria needed in these celebrity stakes where one is gone tomorrow, replaced by another/others who is/are even more keen and empty enough to want to be famous.
A famous American Family springs to mind – I have spent time trying to figure out why we invest in that kind of calibre and quality of person, and the only thing that I can think of is that we are so bored and unsatisfied with our own lives we turn to pretty much anything for a distraction.
I was recently at a course where all of us participants had a 10 minutes icebreaker session. And one of the questions we were asked to ask was, Which celebrity have you met? So now not only are we placing value on ‘celebs’ lives but now our value can be altered depending on who we have met. So far away from celebrating a person for their qualities it is unreal.
It is unreal indeed. We somehow are supposed to feel validated and elevated by having met a celebrity! If it wasn’t so sad, it would be downright hilarious.
What we’re all silently mouthing is ‘look at me, look at me’ and we don’t really care why we get looked at, as long as someone sees. The thing is deep down what we’re all craving is for our beingness to be seen, the real and true us to be met and registered and so getting looked at for having a beautiful face or being able to cycle fast will never satisfy us, not deep down anyway, at best it temporarily distracts us from our deepest ache.
This is insane. So am I a better person because I have met three more celebrities than you?!
It was insane, but what i enjoyed is that the people who attended the course were quite unimpressed by the celeb aspect and enjoyed getting to know each other’s work and what they did in life. Once we shared what we learnt about each other back to the group however the facilitator made the celeb aspect a massive deal. Reads: Let’s interest up your lives a bit ’cause you surely can’t be doing anything interesting to tell us about.
Of course! Because if we started to feel complete within ourselves then we wouldn’t need “course facilitators” to help us try to fill the holes in our sense of self. The whole system is parasites sucking the blood of another parasites. But also lovely to hear that aside from this, your colleagues loved the aspect of connection – super simple and nectar for all of us.
We are a lost species Michael, at least we surely act like one. We’ve lost the connection to there being more to life than meets the eye. If we hadn’t we wouldn’t accept what we accept and you put some great examples as in thinking it’s ok to have something we now call boxing where you deliberately hurt someone and get away with it just because the other person says it’s ok. Sure is crazy.
We all have qualities to be inspired by and qualities to inspire another and hence no one is ‘better’ than another…but when we forget to focus on the qualities that are actually here to support us then we can get distracted in looking at another’s so called talents which may not actually be there of true support. This seems to be the case in our world where celebrities are ‘celebrated’ for talents and achievements that are not truly deeply inspirational – and so we must ask, how blinded we have become? Serge Benhayon is a great example in that he is no celebrity but he is someone who is deeply inspirational and in his wonderful ways a very humble and yet extraordinary man. I celebrate Serge Benhayon for all that he has inspired me with and all that he continues to inspire me with, not to mention the true and beautiful changes that are happening in the world from such inspirations…
We cannot champion someone just because they have achieved something in the temporal world because in so many ways this is totally disempowering. We can however celebrate someone just for being themselves.
A beautiful insight into the real qualities you celebrate and admire in people and their reflection and expansion of life lovingly . Serge Benhayon and Universal Medicine really does offer something for us all to live and celebrate in our lives enormously from within by reflecting the way.
Wow, what a wise view on life. Inspiring to read, and encouraging that there are those in the world who can see through the fog of “how the world is” that is presented by our current society, and see through to how it could be in truth.
What’s worth celebrating? A person who will stand up for the truth no matter what, a person who lives with the utmost integrity and respect for their fellow human beings, someone who is not just in this for themselves, someone with absolute commitment to life, someone who loves everyday of their lives – now these are qualities that truly inspire others to also reignite the same grand qualities in themselves.
I think the reason for the lack of celebration when it comes to a person’s true qualities is because we don’t choose them ourselves, so to celebrate say commitment in another we’d have to look at our own commitment, especially if it was sorely lacking, so instead of getting inspired we tend to turn a blind eye.
Currently we celebrate a person who stands out from the crowd but in time we will celebrate all those who stand up and say that they are no different from anyone else and that we are all equally majestic because we are all the One United Body of God. In truth there can be no such thing as a celebrity unless that celebrity is God because God is all there is and because we are all contained within the One United Body of God then if we applaud one of us then we must also applaud us all.
A very sobering blog here about what are really celebrating or championing in our so called ‘model’ or ‘famous’ human beings. Are their actions really making a difference to the misery and pain and suffering that is everywhere on the planet? Or are we applauding them for finding a way to cushion themselves from the mess?…. and therefore taking care of numero uno? Do we admire this and want to do the same?
Yes, Michael, for someone to become rich and famous for being the best at inflicting violence on another and causing them pain, injury and even death, shows how far removed we collectively are from our true nature.
Truth, love, harmony, joy, stillness, relationships – these are all things that are worth celebrating and cherishing to the bone.
Great question Michael: “So, when I go to celebrate someone, my first question is: what are they contributing to society? Are they accelerating our evolution or are they delaying it? A good space to ask ourselves another question here – what is evolutionary about punching another in the head to the point that their facial features get distorted, permanently damaged and or they even become comatose? Which part of this disturbing factual scenario is entertaining? Our money’s worth?” – We can so easily get caught up in the masses and feel like we need to belong, and so we enjoin the crowds in their celebration. But we must stop to ask what are we really celebrating? Because we could be celebrating the very thing that actually holds back ourselves and another.
Great blog Michael in highlighting that the true celebrities in our world are actually those that live extraordinary lives such as Serge Benhayon – the changes he allows for and inspires in others on a world wide scale are incredible. When we put it like this, then celebrating the other aspects such as boxing, cage fighting etc all becomes ridiculous in terms of what they inspire in a world that is already struggling on a mass scale.
What’s really worth celebrating? A life lived from our essence, living the truth of who we are every day, in full, with no apology.
This ‘over attention’ must bring huge pressure to celebrities, constantly concerned about image, expectations and what’s next, not surprising that so many have agents to plan and manage this for them, yet this very ‘help’ is further disempowering the person and steering them away from their inner worth and value.
I work in retail in Central London, and am often in a situation where I have to serve a ‘celebrity’. It’s amazing how much excitement this creates in store, simply over a person shopping. And really it is just another person shopping. There is nothing spectacular and nothing out of the ordinary. They are simply another person who I connect with and offer help to.
Great point Rebecca, it does appear to be a game of popularity, whilst true celebrities such as Serge Benhayon continue to be humble and easily accessible and endlessly inspiring when it comes to making true change in our lives.
This is so true… a demand and supply that produces a ‘less than’ – ‘better than’ arrangement.
“there is a way to live life without letting life live you” – I love this Michael… Do we walk IN life’s problems, or do we walk with us and observe the world from a steady gait.
Very simply, a celebrity is someone who celebrates their lives, whose lives are worth celebrating. The entertainment business has gotten it skewed that celebrities are only public faces but have empty real lives, often messy, but glamorous in front of the public. This is not the truth or honesty of Livingness that would inspire. So my question would be, what are we following/celebrating if what celebrities are endorsing are lies?
Every day we could say we live in a boxing ring, just different versions, and those of us that are so-called successful we are celebrated. But a very pertinent question is – what are we celebrating, our demise or something that is truly evolving not only for us but everyone. We celebrate one winning over another, rather than one living in equality with another, where we are all celebrated for being ourselves and instead of boxing make every aspect of our lives for each other’s evolution.
Deepening my relationship with myself with the support of Serge Benhayon and the Universal Medicine modalities I have realised that I am worth celebrating and in this my interest for the outside world being better than me has been exposed for the lovelessness that it is.
Nothing has changed since Roman times, and the sooner we admit to that and look at why, the sooner we can make some serious changes – joyfully of course.
Yes… Imagine if a celebrity was, someone who was truly celebrated, or simply someone who walked with the love of God in every step, who knew themselves totally, and loved humanity to a heretofore unknown depth.
Anyone who is able to show that there is ‘a way to live life without letting life live you’ as you say Michael, is a true celebrity to show people there is a different way to be. This gives us the opportunity to move on and change our lives, there is a purpose there that supports everyone.
Yeah if only we paid as much attention to Serge and what he shares as we do to those in the public eye for reasons that are often innane.
It is so true there is no glamour in being an equal of another, so we must feed the accolades needed for glamour to exist.
Yes, it is up to them if they want to go in the ring but that action is also associated with a lot of people indulging in some very bad behaviour, watching the spectacle, barracking for one of the contestants etc.
We like to play the game of lesser than and better than… being lesser than another or superior to another, it is all the same game – when in truth we are all equally awesome.
Very true Paula, and we get off on being on both sides of the spectrum equally.
Beautifully said – I’ve been a celebrity of the lesser game. A game it might be said that we can never win – until we absolutely stop playing.
This is so cool Paula, you have nailed this game so simply. There is no-one better than us and we are never better than others, we are all equal.
So well said Paula. Both being lesser and being superior are ways of attracting attention from others, albeit in different ways, but equally exclusive, demanding and energy sapping. Whereas being equal to everyone else is totally vitalising and inclusive.
And the ‘less than more than’ game is one that we play constantly. We’re constantly tallying up if we are smarter, prettier, richer, faster, slimmer, funnier, cleverer, fitter, happier, more successful, more skilled, more evolved etc than each other.
The joy of living a life true to our innate essence is a life worth celebrating.
A celebration of connecting to others is very inspiring and changes everything allowing a growth and purpose in our lives .”when I go to celebrate someone, my first question is: what are they contributing to society? Are they accelerating our evolution or are they delaying it?”
I am already celebrating the relationship I have with the many ‘unknown’ people that I will be in contact with today, through work and elsewhere. What celebration our connections and interactions bring!
It is quite bizarre how we put the status of a person higher than another, when in truth we are all equal.
Yes, that equality is very powerful.
Just reading a lot of these comments and feeling how we don’t hold ourselves equal to others. There is inequality everywhere we look.
So true Kim, any inequality or comparison only serves to cut us or another down, and we find it everywhere.
As a society we seem to be aware of the more obvious inequality of looking down on others but are refusing to see the damage done when we place someone on a pedestal or hold them as an idol.
“True celebrities are men and women who dedicate their lives to know themselves through their innate love, wisdom and light, and history has provided so many people who have shared from the Love that can only come from our essence, so as you have shared Michael inspiring indeed we all can be.
It’s extraordinary that we might believe that by being associated with a celebrity in any way that it might make us a better person or more important ourselves.
Putting people on a pedestal has never worked because we then have a situation of putting people as being different and better than us, above us and out of our reach. Not only does this do the other an injustice because they then have to live up to our expectations, and it keeps us feeling less and undeserving of self-appreciation. Separation at it’s finest.
So true Julie for when we make people better than or less than we are straight away in competition.
The thing is, in truth there is no ‘us’ and there is no ‘them’. When we look out from our eyes we’re seeing an optical illusion when we see another person because in truth there is no gap between us, we are the never-ending, endless body of God, which stretches further than the eye can ever see and so what is a celebrity really?
Have noticed that when we meet a celebrity, why is it a common response that, I thought they were taller! Could this be an illusion we create to fit they’re bigger than life image?
So true Michael – what we champion does not add up. If we truly value Love then why not establish and commemorate it’s beauty? That we don’t highlights the stark hipocracry between how we live life and our stated aims – these need to equalise.
Because we do not value love, we value relief.
Perhaps we should celebrate ourselves more often, in recognising our own qualities rather than give our power away to ‘celebrity-ism’?
Michael your blog reminded me this morning that what we do in order to make a living does not define who we are, and it is the quality we bring to it which should be the same quality we live by if we are at work or at home, that there is a consistency in that quality, as there is in Serge Benhayon who inspires many of us, to live the truth of who we are.
Quality before function every time. Not that I do it every time but if one is to live the truth of who we are this is what we must make our foundation.
Yes… just imagine celebrating truth and wisdom, absolute honesty and true observation… and the quality of a man to be truly tender.
“True celebrities are men and women who dedicate their lives to know themselves through their innate love, wisdom and light, not through fame, recognition or glamour.” Absolutely agree with you here Michael. There is a true celebration in this, that is long lasting, as opposed to a fleeting moment of over excitement that accompanies the celebration of a celebrity.
If we try to twist ourselves into what life wants us to be there may be high moments but with it comes the need to maintain those heights and in that lays our inevitable downfall.
We give our power away when we celebrate another as we are all equally worthy of celebrating.
A life lived with true love, truth, joy and harmony is a life worth celebrating.
Sounds exotic…Swiss Alps 300 metres above sea level…. I would have loved to have been sitting with you!!! Great place to be studying maths.
True celebrities live their lives all around us, not wanting any recognition for their service at all.
What’s worth celebrating? I used to be totally hooked into the celebrity thing even though I played it down, it was all role models really but once I started to connect within with the support of Serge Benhayon I realise the only person worth celebrating was the absolute beautiful being that I am. Here no matter what is going out on the surface it doesn’t matter and you get to feel oh how magnificent we really are. Now I see it in me I see it in everyone.
It is simply because we make it all about the outer world that makes it possible to go in all kinds of extremities in getting recognition and reward. We then too tend to celebrate when we collectively decide that this extreme behaviour is very special. But indeed, Micheal, when we then ask but what do they contribute to the prosperity of our societies, the answer will always be empty.
Could it be that by having celebrities we have something outside of us to be proud of and to celebrate so we do not have to take any responsibility to make our own lives of any value to be proud of and to celebrate?
What are we really celebrating – is it all that we are, or is it all that we are not?
The former will confirm all that is true and lives within us all, while the latter will confirm all that is not true but that we are told to live from outside of ourselves. One of the reasons we are so lost as a humanity is because we keep championing role models (so called ‘celebrities’) that confirm a certain way of life that has strayed very far from the essence of who we are and do not spend nearly enough time celebrating those amongst us that reflect a truer way to be.
To celebrate all that we truly are is to celebrate us all.
Everything and anything to avoid being aware and cognisant of who we truly are.
There is absolutely nothing about seeing someone getting punched in the face that makes me inspired to open up and be all of me. In fact it is quite the opposite. It makes me want to curl into a little ball and contract away in protection of being hurt. That is not evolution. That is pure evil.
Same for me Joshua, punching one another is not a nice thing to look at, let alone when you get involved yourself in such a situation where you meet people that prefer to behave outrages because they are inspired by what they see the celebraties they champion do and therefore feel authorised to behave like these in public, all to give free vent to their frustrations about life.
The, “if you’re not careful you’ll end up working in McDonald’s for the rest of your life” conversation is incredibly demoralising and SO far from being supportive, and it’s a common scare tactic for the younger generation. Not only does it carry huge baggage with it, judgement and everything which is the opposite of inspiration, but it also neglects the fact that in ANY job we can bring our all, commit in full and have an amazing impact on people’s lives.
I think a lot of the time with celebrities we are celebrating an image of what we consider ‘success’ to be, whether it be based on appearances or achievements such as sporting wins, or something else… But it does make me really consider what I think of ‘success’ as being and what it really comes down to has to be about energetic quality, the way in which we live and are with everyone…
This all makes sense and it is important to question and nominate. But the entertainment industry will keep going and will not change in one day, so what is there we can do with all this that has been said? This is an awesome question for me in taking deeper responsibility.
Indeed true celebrities are really role models who can inspire us to live our innate wisdom and love by their own quality of living which we can see and observe.
I do wonder about consent. That it’s all ok because someone gives their consent. Many people consent to differing degrees of abuse in daily life. It could be because a person wants to be loved they consent to a relationship that isn’t about love but uses and abuses both within it, because it’s better than being alone. A person may consent to activities because they want or need the financial gain from it, or the recognition and fame. Yes it is all free will but it doesn’t make the activity of it, if it is abusive, ok.
Bonnie and Clyde were American criminals in the Great Depression of the 1930s. There is a museum for them that includes the car they were ambushed in that was the end of their exploits, but their fame still lives on! When we support something that is not true, are we standing still in our evolution?
Self worth never comes from the outside. But it is from within us, that we then live out in everything we do.
Strange how we celebrate acts of harm and denigrate those who restore real Love to this world. We have rather got things back to front.
It’s true Michael what are we really celebrating when we idolise celebrities? Should we stop for a moment and question what have they truly contributed to society, the answer would be very little if anything at all, for most seek recognition for themselves, without caring how or what they do to bring about the celebrity status they have achieved.
“Where does this incoherence stop?” If you can recall the history of inquisitions it is seen as acceptable at the time. Or the simple fact of war that we have now. We are so lost. I in my body have not a violent cell. I was brought up to be aggressive in general. Sport fuelled rage. Alcohol fuelled anger. I became very angry – the torturous abuse was directed at myself. This chipped away over time and I gave up and withdrew from life. I was now a statistic case being diagnosed with severe depression lasting for over 10 years. For the record and the large frame built man that I am – I am the most sensitive tenderly harmless man you can meet and I tell you this brings the greatest joy!
How utterly gorgeous to have this so claimed Rik. It really is quite a disgrace to me that many boys feel they can get away with bullying other boys for their sensitivity, or that society, in general, doesn’t accept, nurture or celebrate this within boys and men.
… and an utter disgrace that young boys and even men are not celebrated for being tender and feel like I do. I very much appreciate your divine delicate words Michelle. You have proven it does not take much to follow your heart and show the world the true depth that we are and are from.
No it doesn’t take much and it only takes one person to make an enormous difference to all those around him/her. Staying true to who we are in the face of all that hardness creates ripples that we just won’t know the true consequences of, but I just know they are deeply felt and make an enomous impact. Rik to stay true to the gorgeous essence you hold will have inspired far too many to count.
I witnessed a shop assistant get verbally abused by a customer yesterday and when I asked afterwards if she was ok she brushed it off as though it was completely fine. When I offered that to speak to someone in that way, irrespective of the reason, was abusive and not ok, she continued to deny there was any issue and completely normalised the behaviour. She fully accepted being lesser than the customer and accepted the abuse.
I have to say, one thing that really urks me is people drooling and bowing down to celebrities. Especially when what they are celebrating of the celebrity holds not integrity. Blows me away.
I find that it urks me because I recognise that I still hold certain people on pedestals and don’t actually discern the quality in which they are speaking or acting.
Yes Jane there is always far more going on than what meets the eye. We need to discern the energy behind everything as the energetic reading is how we know what is really going on.
In answer to the question “what is worth celebrating” I would say we are, all of us when we choose love.
It must be exhausting being a celebrity with all the focus on you and feeling like you can’t let down your image. Having to constantly be concerned about how you look and your image is meeting all the expectations. Yet it is a choice if you choose to be there in the falsity of that world of joy and we as a society feed it.
I often get bookings as a massage therapist to massage celebrities and I get told by their agent or concierge that they can’t tell me who it is and I always laugh because even if they did tell me their name it wouldn’t mean anything to me. I treat everyone the same, even if they think they are a VIP, we are all in fact very important people, not one more than another.
It’s a magical process to see more and more people come into my life that represent what I choose to celebrate, absolutely magical.
This is so true. It reminds me of the example of parents who have said they didn’t want their child to play rugby because it is such a violent sport but this seems to go unheard of when the, ‘can’t be a wimp’ mentality over-rides it and there is fear of repercussion from the justifications that rugby is good because it is a sport. How is it that sport enjoys immunity from critique or question so anything labelled a sport becomes untouchable, sacred even?
‘I count myself blessed to know what I consider celebrities to be: real people doing real jobs in such a way that is worthy of celebration – and then some!’ – Hear hear, we are all blessed by the reflection of real people doing real jobs in and with a quality that considers and includes everyone equally.
Yes, it’s all about quality but because energy isn’t widely seen as being of significance, much greatness goes unacknowledged.So those who bring immense quality will be known by what they do which will be judged by the accepted norms of what is considered to be positive as an outcome. Breaking out of the constructs of this and not falling for what looks good and is seen as a good thing but actually isn’t because it’s not allowing someone to be who they are, or for condemning someone for an outcome that is actually healing but looks bad because a karmic lesson is being learned, is really necessary if we are to find our way out of repeating patterns that are causing us endless suffering.
It is a great call reflecting on just what is it that we are celebrating. Is it fame and notoriety that we are making a big deal of, or are there actual values being lived that we value and are inspired by?
Hear hear.. Michael Brown.’True celebrities are men and women who dedicate their lives to know themselves through their innate love, wisdom and light, not through fame, recognition or glamour.’
For it is the reality. Those that truly serve do not bend over any success or glamourised appearance, as serving is natural.
Generally speaking, the private lives of celebrities are quite unstable. Perhaps it’s because what they are celebrated for isn’t really worth celebrating and they know it. Do something that is truly worth celebrating and you can have your own party of complete fulfilment – no amount of celebrity status will add to your overflowing cup.
“Celebrities – What’s really Worth Celebrating?” – only the fact that they highlight to expose the exact nature of inflated falseness and hence just how much work there is to be done to restore the quality of how we are living.
Who is a celebrity is always relative. Recently I found myself queuing to have my photo taken with Serge Benhayon and then was so nervous and worried about getting a good photo that I forgot to enjoy that moment with him. He’s a celebrity in my world.
It doesn’t even have to be a famous celebrity but anyone who we put on a pedestal in our lives, whether it’s a manager, father or friend – what values are we promoting and contributing to by celebrating that person.
Yes, agreed. Putting anyone on a pedestal is a huge self-disempowerment. Being inspired by another is far more empowering, as it pulls you up to discover and claim your own capacity of what talents, known or unknown, that you bring to life.
How true, valuing or ranking others is a big thing in our society.
Yes, Michael, whether in the Colosseum or the boxing ring, mankind continues to enjoy watching physical violence, encouraging each other to behave like animals rather than re-claim the exquisiteness of our innately divine nature.
A publicist may be used as a job to prop up celebrities. Could it be that their job is to reinforce the pedestal we have placed them on?
Great to bring the reality of what is going here Michael… where are we at as a humanity when we celebrate two people abusing one another?!
“And that is what I continue to celebrate, for as a very caring young man, to see us all gently rise out of the predicament we have taken ourselves into would make my heart sing” Beautiful Michael, and we start this process within ourselves.
I find it interesting that many celebrities do things that are considered nearly impossible – they are driven by a professionalism (and possibly certain natural characteristics like height, weight, beauty) and to the absolute pinnacle of their sport or job…. which I tend to think of as unattainable for the other 99.9% of the world. So we get this vicarious enjoyment of watching. Its a very strange setup.
To then read your blog Michael, and consider people like Serge Benhayon that are living to the max of everything they are, but equally inspiring everyone around them, showing us and teaching us how to be more of ourselves without having to perform … to just be me.
That is worth celebrating.
To me, the word ‘celebrities’ indicates the privileged, someone more special/significant than the majority, it does not go with the absolute equality. There is something about our attitude that is charged, rather than the details of what is being celebrated. A bit like creating peaks amongst the ordinary, stimulation. It comes with an attitude from both ends that disturbs a potential to simply appreciate and be inspired by to move onto something greater.
The production of a celebrity has become part of an industry which profits from having such people within it so as much as we are being fed celebrities of a certain quality it is also because that is what we are asking for too in our quest to remain distracted by entertainment.
It’s a job in an industry that comes with a huge amount of glamour. Society decided that actors and singers should be famous but not plumbers and teachers. No matter the job, we’re all people in a vocation. What is celebrated about those famous actors and singers? Usually their hair, their clothing, their mansions – but nothing in truth that is worth celebrating.
I love the title of this blog. I often ask, what are we celebrating when it comes to what each celebrity is representing? I feel many people are not so enamoured by celebrities or celebrity culture any more – it’s more a bad habit. I know when I used to read about celebrities it always felt yucky and it got to the point that I had to admit the poison that is gossip and titillation. But I am not immune to still taking a peep at the headlines.
In my local shop the newspapers have moved to a different stand so I no longer see the front pages. I could feel the difference in not reading them. Today though I did look but looked away pretty sharpish: it was like seeing a car crash victim spread across the counter so emotional and sensationalised the headlines were. I looked away and will continue to do so.
It is a sad state of affairs in this world when we worship ‘celebrity status’ over and above celebrating quality of life, integrity in action, and Truth in expression.
What is also sad is the number of celebrities that over medicate themselves to death. In the past few years, the numbers keep rising. Why have they given up on life? Could it be they discovered money doesn’t buy happiness?
Great point Steve and I wonder if the ‘movies’ showed the way the people we celebrate are living ie the quality we would come to see there is perhaps less to celebrate here whilst those who quietly go about living with a true quality and integrity needing no such celebrity status are in fact the truly inspiring role models on the planet.
Our whole out look on celebrities and the absolute infatuation with them leaves everyone in a state of surrealism. Which then ripples into other area’s of our lives and before we know it the lies and manipulation that is portrayed is horrendous and nasty.
Celebrating something or someone means to celebrate that which their intentions come from.
Incoherence is a great word, Michael, to describe the way most of humanity is existing at present, wanting love but choosing to tolerate abuse, feeling lost but not yet looking for the true way home. As they say, home is where the heart is, and it really is that simple.
Could it be that as a society we have always been caught-up in one-up-man-ship to be able to feel the truth as you have shared Michael. “True celebrities are men and women who dedicate their lives to know themselves through their innate love, wisdom and light, not through fame, recognition or glamour.” Then when allowing our-self to feel the level of love that you have shared Michael, we feel that essence and it becomes normal without any hype needed.
Working in the film industry, this topic is particularly ripe for me. On a very basic and simplistic level, it guts me even reading the credits of a film. The actors name in big, bright letters – having been living in swish hotels, getting paid zillions of $, every creature-comfort catered for etc – and then in tiny letters, whizzing past too fast for anyone to read are the real heroes of the film – the people who worked 20 hour days, 7 days a week for months on end, in freezing weather, for minimal pay etc…These are the people that I celebrate.
Good point Otto, the real stars are the people who have laboured and put in the hours. When I was a child I would make a point in reading who did what but like you say the credits get too fast to read.
But it’s everywhere; in every business, endeavour, company – there are always the true workers behind the scenes. Which in itself is totally fine and is how systems have to operate and every process requires different skill bases – the issue is the inequality of the appreciation and how that then leaves the ‘workers’ feeling.
Agreed Otto. It is the people on the ground who work so hard and are the ones who’s support is undeniable in enabling the whole process to happen, whatever that may be, who are so often the unsung hero’s, whatever industry it is in. Everyone’s part is equally important and should be celebrated as such, as ultimately they all make up the whole.
I’m always surprised and somewhat confused by the titles that now come with so many jobs. Working in America I have noticed it a lot. Junior Vice President of Production. Senior chief development executive. Assistant HR support co-ordinator. I’ve no idea what any of these mean?! And it seems to be all part of the same issue; feeling the inequality, everyone then becomes desperate for something that makes them feel special or unique in some way. If everyone was celebrated at every level, then the clamber for recognition through job titles wouldn’t be so prevalent.
There are those that take the glory, and those who live it.
And then there is you, Nikki – glorious for sharing such wisdom.
Straight to the heart Otto 🙂
I have found that celebrities under their shiny outside are modest and private people and many find being famous is a noose. When they lose themselves in the role, the first thing to go is who they truly are and at some point will crash back to being not being famous having forgotten we are all amazing just being ourselves.
‘…that there is a way to live life without letting life live you.’ We have this choice each day. I am noticing opportunities more and more. This is wonderful because I’m stepping out of the confines. This includes I don’t have to get stressed when more than I expected comes my way in a day – I don’t have to hide away so I evade being asked to do things. I don’t have to let putting what there is to do before me and the quality I can bring to life. I don’t have to let time rule my life but still do things in good time.
There is very little honesty about the way we live today, we champion abuse then complain about it anyway. But when truth makes it’s way towards us we get angry, upset and run the other way. We’ve spent our lives avoiding love at all costs to our serious detriment. We should never underestimate the viciousness of this resistance.
‘we champion abuse then complain about it anyway’ – Exactly – it is actually really bizarre.
I agree with the question you have asked .. could the fact that we glamorise the external perpetuate self-doubt, the lack of self-worth and self-abuse? On Friday in just a group of 5 people one women shared how her 19 year old daughter had got an lip filler injection that had made her lips swell up double the size and another young women shared how she was going to get ‘birthday botox’ I thought she was joking but she was really serious. What years ago seemed only a few people were doing/getting now seems to be really common and starting at a younger age. I find this really sad. Currently on the whole we are not taught to truly appreciate and celebrate ourselves in how we our and our uniqueness, our inner beauty but constantly signposted by magazines, adverts and media what we ‘need’ to be … this is so far away from our truth.
It’s interesting Vicky – celebrities in this day and age do not appreciate the influence they have on others and that with that comes a huge amount of responsibility. The only people that will keep them in check will be their corporate sponsors, and they have a very iffy moral compass at the best of times!
It is another supply and demand thing, if we didn’t need to put people on a pedestal and then long to be like that person because we aren’t happy in our own skin, then there would not be a market for it.
This makes sense, Kevin. if we were taught to appreciate our qualities from the get go then this empty drive to be something we are not, would not exist.
And Kevin, the irony of this, that we then love it when these celebrities crash – because it makes us feel better about our lives. A gross game that is just us refusing to take responsibility for our own lives.
Great point Michael…”…that there is a way to live life without letting life live you.” And it is a transformational way of living … no longer at the mercy of life, reacting to life, but responding from a place of stillness, truth and harmony – where nothing is needed from outside because everything is already there within.
Well said Michael ‘True celebrities are men and women who dedicate their lives to know themselves through their innate love, wisdom and light, not through fame, recognition or glamour.”
True celebrities do not need the recognition, the glamour or the status. To be a celebrity is to know our purpose and live our lives in full to the best of our ability.
Celebrities can either be a model of responsibility or irresponsibility. Most are models of irresponsibility that do not challenge but rather confirm the status quo.
Indeed Michael, perhaps the most important thing is to look at what is truly being offered and or provided by the person and how they are living. Then our view of who is and who is not a celebrity may change.
Celebrating anything or anyone for something that is not of our true making and thus not fostering to be who we are is actually a deliberate distraction away from ourselves, therefore in celebration of not being who we are. This makes no sense unless we bring into the picture a spirit that is inhabiting the human body without any interest of coming to its true beingness but prefers to create a persona to its personal liking in ignorance of its divine origin and nature.
‘if we show someone a video of a man being horribly and brutally beaten, it will in most cases receive gasps and looks of disgust.’ – It goes to show that we have a natural inbuilt feeling for what it is like when another human being is being treated in a way that is so far from decency, not to say love and care, How are we able to feel that – isn’t it because we are all from the same source? And how then, can we under certain circumstances turn this awareness off?
The adoration is for the boxer who survives the ordeal. They will have long-term damage but are ready to accept this damage for the adoration and wealth it brings.
The length that we can go to to have wealth and fame is absolutely crazy.
We love making the investment as long as we are reaping the rewards. As soon as the rewards dry out we feel the force we have had to pull in up to that point and it feels devestating.
Spot on… and if we valued life, we would value ourself as equally as others – no one less, no one more.
As long as we are not fully ourselves we miss something essential that often then is substituted with wanting to be special in some way. No wonder then, that we compare with and celebrate those who are special on exactly this deficiency of true self.
This is a very precise way of observing it. And it is this detail and honesty that makes the movements of society so simple to read. We know exactly what we are doing and where to go to get exactly what we need.
I love the invitation here for us to reflect on what we celebrate, put on the pedestal and give power to. We can apply the same to our thoughts and conversations we indulge in. What are we choosing to focus on and through our engagement enforce and magnify? Through our choices we are constantly shaping our world.
Or even worse than junk food! At least the body is very capable of cleansing itself of poisonous food without much effort. The poison left by buying into ideals and beliefs is much more subtle however.
Yes, it’s more like “I want to be a celebrity – get me in here!” There is a desperation to be known as a celebrity no matter what it takes – even putting oneself through ridiculous trials in the jungle! Does that truly quantify a celebrity?
Celebration is usually associated to glamour and those ‘chosen ones’, while in fact it is something available to everyone of us at every little moment. Why not celebrating the amazing beings we are just for being who we are?
Yes, the need for celebrities disappears when we celebrate, appreciate and confirm ourselves.
Absolutely celebrate the amazing beings we are, as celebration is available to us all.
‘That there is a way to live life without letting life live you’ is a great motto and apt summary of The Ageless Wisdom teachings as presented by Serge Benhayon for our age. It hits the nail on the head, as they say.
How true Gabriele – The Ageless Wisdom teachings have helped me make sense of things that had always kept me in bewilderment.
I observed that no matter if it is a person or a restaurant for example, that offers evolution and sticks out of the usual energetic pandering of the public, they are not as celebrated as those who will not rock your boat and confirm you in your comfort. Who won’t ask any questions or live different to the majority of people.
Interesting what obvious origin the following success then has, and how the respond is either way.
There is a strong resistance in humanity to come back to the love that we all are. That’s why there are so many things invented that keep us in excitement but not connection with each other. The list is never ending and gets more and more extreme because the lust of getting heightened by any entertainment gets bored very easily as well. Question is, why does the majority of humanity runs away from stillness and harmony by all means and feels seemingly satisfied by entertainment, glamour, gossip, arrangements, idolising people and the list goes on…?
Great description/question, Stefanie:’Question is, why does the majority of humanity runs away from stillness and harmony by all means and feels seemingly satisfied by entertainment, glamour, gossip, arrangements, idolising people and the list goes on…?’ Just reading this list I am feeling indigestion, and clocking what a toxic diet humanity is feeding its mind on. All the ideals, beliefs, identifications and consciousnesses which feed the whole celebrity thing is enormous poison to the physical body. I briefly caught some award ceremony on youtube searching for a movie I had to tutor a student with, and the smug, satisfied, arrogant back-slapping going on was nothing less than sickening, and very sad, knowing the beauty, clarity, divinity of who we truly can be.
Your comment exposes the fact that our world is run on supply and demand, and what is not demanded has a very short lifespan indeed.
Celebrating anything that doesn´t confirm truth means to foster lies that we for some reason idealize and favour over truth.
Great questions to ask before celebrating anyone, what are they contributing to society, and are they accelerating our evolution or are they delaying it? We could also ask these questions of ourselves, I just have!
I agree Richard. I should imagine that there are all kinds of pictures about what it means to be a celebrity and all the promises it makes to lure people in and what a disappointment it must be to find out that it’s not it and the emptiness is still present.
Beautiful Michael “when I go to celebrate someone, my first question is: what are they contributing to society? Are they accelerating our evolution or are they delaying it” Such a wise and truly loving way of seeing and feeling what is really going on in the world and the true celebration of someone.
It’s worth celebrating our neighbours, sisters, mothers and fathers if they are people who pull us up when we’re not being ourselves, and love us unconditionally just for being who we are. These are the things that bring joy to us – not the big bum, dream house and the empty relationships we so often see in the media.
A question really asked in truth…”So, when I go to celebrate someone, my first question is: what are they contributing to society? ” The do good, or the show our charitable giving, is not it, it is how we are in all areas of life, whether we think we are being watched or not…this is a true contribution to society. So yes, I understand what is our contribution and how does the way we live our lives impact on humanity?
It seems that we celebrate many things that do not evolve us or humanity in any form, in fact, I would go so far as to say they retard us – keeping us numbed to the fact that there is more to life.
It is easy to put celebrities on a pedestal without really observing that there’s more to a person and how they live their life, to what is displayed on film, camera and behind the bright lights and glamour. One can’t celebrate a part, as a part comes with the whole.
There was a recent interview with a famous actor that said he has always hated acting, even though he has won many awards. The only reason he continued, was because he had no other talents to pay the rent and pretending to be someone else and remembering lines was easy. Have we placed him on a pedestal for what he does and not who he is?
What his words do illustrate very plainly is that it is just a job. No better than any other. As you say, it is what he does, not who he is.
Gosh, “pretending to be someone else and remembering lines was easy..” is a sure way of locking up the doorway into knowing who you are and to not express, live, love who you are… in other words, a way to keep oneself ‘lost’ in space.. this surely is the definition of ‘heartbreak’.
Michael, I celebrate you for the love and wisdom you are so willing and dedicated to share, the astronomical YES to life you don´t shy back to shout out loud for everyone to hear, you make hearts sing and hope rise that we can live a different way of life that is truly worth to be lived.
Thank you for those touching words, and I echo them back to yourself and so many others I know and celebrate 🎉
Surely it would be wise to truly investigate the lives of some of these celebrities before we celebrate them. What goes on behind their closed doors? Are they really worthy of our accolades and attention? Through my work I have met a number of so-called ‘celebrities’ and, almost without exception, I have found the veneer to be wafer thin and very quickly the truth of their lives is plainly exposed; often it is not a pretty sight and certainly it is not worthy of celebration.
If we celebrate ourselves we are our own celebrities.
This is gold Otto… “If we celebrate ourselves we are our own celebrities.” To honour, appreciate and confirm ourselves is to honour, appreciate and confirm all others too.
The science of ripples and reflections. Heaven’s got this.
I looked up the Oxford definition of celebrity; “a famous person, especially in the world of entertainment and sport.” Fascinating to see how the false illusion is embedded in the roots of the word. What is so special about these lines of work. What about the cleaner who lovingly and religiously sweeps the floor and cleans the desks of every single employee in an office; clearing out the bins, making sure the windows are sparkling, gets rid of all the coffee cups, food wrappers, and other detritus of the day, setting up the environment to inspire us and support us to (whether we choose it or not is our choice) move in a different way, every single morning, day after day after day; without any true appreciation, thanks or support…and all for a millionth of the money that the sports person of entertainment figure might receive. So who is the real celebrity here?
Love this, it really is crazy that the oxford definition doesn’t include the act of celebrating within the word celebrity.
Well, is it? The bastardisation of words and the irresponsible and scatter-gun style in which we use and spray them around is one of great crimes against humanity. As to the Oxford Dictionary – it is just responding to our movements.
Otto your observation about how we use words without integrity has got me wondering. New words are coined each year and enter the dictionary so I looked them up to see how they described where we’re at. They make interesting reading and many are science related (I’ve not spent long reading them all) many are more urban and there’s a sense of naming aspects of life but without depth of understanding or significance.
And then there is the tone in which we use words. How many of us have felt the poison of ‘nice’ words delivered with an underline of jealousy or anger or whatever….Or, how many of us have done this ourselves? I know that I have – zillions of times. I am very much more attentive to it now; both in spoken word and in emails and the like. It’s great to be doing this – but it’s also pretty shocking – in that once I started to really look at this, I have seen how everywhere it is. A big clean-up operation is in process….and it’s ongoing; like when you re-paint one room, it makes another room look a bit shabby!
Otto I love the invitation you offer for us to reconsider our definition of celebrity and in fact celebration-worthy through the example offered by your appreciation of the work of a cleaner. Apart from anything else, it would be amazing if we paid attention to and appreciated such true contribution in ourselves as well as others. We don’t do that nearly enough and if we did, we would more clearly see how hollow are half the areas we have previously been considering important.
This is really interesting. Huge in fact. In the same way that we only celebrate the leader of an organisation rather that the cleaner, do we only celebrate in ourself the ‘big’ achievements, the ‘good’ days and the ‘major goals’. If cleaning the office is as important as being the CEO, then how we get dressed is as important as how we are in a key meeting. But what you are saying, which is great, is that these ‘less foreground’ movements also need to be CELEBRATED. I know that there are hundreds of amazing choices that I make every day that I kinda dismiss or consider as nothing – but these choices are amazing and I’m a celebrity for making them.
Society has stepped out far beyond the realm of living the simple and yet extraordinary life of the Benhayons and without this model we would be even further down the road to ruin and destruction.
I was at an event recently that had as a guest speaker a world famous rock star and what I observed is that by paying for this presentation we are in full acceptance of a particular way of life. And I wonder if it is so we can look at these people and be inspired to want to live that way of life if so we are normalizing this kind of behaviour and making it more acceptable.
I celebrate you, Michael, for calling out the falsities you observe in everyday life from your deep love of humanity.
Whom we celebrate and whom we don’t celebrate is worth looking at. I love to celebrate those people who challenge me to be more, to bring truth and love to my life and to the world. I am fortunate enough to have a lot of those people in my life.
I agree. And I feel there is great value and teaching in using the word and movement of celebration in its absolute sense. This is how we correct the current illusion of celebrity. This is how we inspire and educate the next generation to value what is true in a person rather than what they may present as their public facade. Every single one of us who choses to live their truth and serve their brothers, no matter what we do, how rich we are, what possessions we have or what talents we flaunt, is worthy of our celebration. If we express and deliver this appreciation, then we can re-imprint ‘celebrity’
Well said Otto, we can re-imprint ‘celebrity’ when we expose the illusion of celebrity and use “the word and movement of celebration in its absolute sense.”
The more I consider it, the more absurd it is that these people are called ‘celebrities’. In fact I hate it, I hate that we are so lost that we will pour our attention, energy, time, money and focus onto these people rather than celebrating what is true, celebrating the simplicity of the magic that is within us and around us all.
The celebrity studded media is just one of the ways that the forces, inimical to man’s evolution, distract humanity with a false starry universe. These lights are so imitation it is laughable – in the face of the Benhayon family, and many others who have brought or reclaimed their universality in full to the earth. Note that many corporations call themselves Universal – where this word has been bastardised to lull its audience into comfort.
Beautifully observed and juxtaposed Michael, you take the 2 scenarios back to their primary state and show us what is worth celebrating: “True celebrities are men and women who dedicate their lives to know themselves through their innate love, wisdom and light, not through fame, recognition or glamour.”
A ‘celebrity’ is made from a people worship perspective, that is, if there weren’t people giving the attention, like false gods, there would be no celebrity status. To truly celebrate someone is completely different and there is not an ounce of ‘celebrity status’ in it.
Jenny well said, the falseness around ‘celebrity status’ is so ugly when you expose it for what it is.
This makes me reflect on what is the definition of a celebrity and more importantly what is its purpose? If it is to do with celebration, I too would choose “men and women who dedicate their lives to know themselves through their innate love, wisdom and light, not through fame, recognition or glamour.”
But somehow the word celebrity in its current use for me has a feel of putting someone on a pedestal and more special than everyone else. This does not represent my relationship to the men and women I choose to celebrate. The word “role model” is more fitting on this case, and as for those currently labelled as “celebrities” in society, they are certainly offering no example I would wish to model my life to.
Yes, Michael, the key for all of us is to connect to the gold within and know that we are rich beyond measure when we connect to our soul.
It is that knowing of what true richness is that allows the contentment in our own bodies, no longer needing to strive or drive for what is outside of ourselves.
We are rich beyond measure when we connect to our soul. That connection to the gold within is the ultimate key.
Who makes celebrities? What is their foundation without us placing them on a pedestal? We are all bringing our own flavour to the mix of life, and that is something to celebrate!
It’s a good question Steve. Perhaps if we all appreciated our own flavours more, we wouldn’t need to be putting these others on pedestals?
I notice the more I am settled within myself and don’t look outwardly for confirmation but know and feel within me what is true then when seeing celebrities and how they are portrayed simply is not interesting. When I meet or am around them I feel totally comfortable with me that I just treat them for who they are not what they have potentially become. Celebrities just love being treated real.
‘Celebrities just love being treated real.’ – A great reminder Natalie, deep down everyone loves to be treated real, celebrities are no exception – well, majority of them anyway.
I totally agree with this Natalie. At the root of it all everyone wants to be loved and celebrated for who they actually are, not what they do.
‘For the record, if two men, or women, both want to get in a ring and punch each other in the heads, then by all means that is up to them… their bodies, their lives.
The point here is more about the interest and devotion that this sort of activity garners’. Yes, this has always puzzled me since being a child – why would people want to inflict pain on each other and why would anyone want to watch it!? I have come more and more to realise that one of the most dominating dynamics on earth is that of ‘crime and punishment’ based on a kind of self-hatred. Along with this on an even more refined level is the ‘right and wrong’ we get chained to at school and the seemingly fine ideal of justice and injustice.
But most of all, from my understanding, the incidence of the ‘fight’ in the ring is simply a very obvious version of using our own bodies to fight our own Divinity– two gods, gone awry fighting each other and smashing each other’s bodies.
‘I count myself blessed to know what I consider celebrities to be: real people doing real jobs in such a way that is worthy of celebration – and then some!’ – Totally agree on this, real people living their lives in such a way that it makes them real and true role models is what and who we should celebrate.
We definitely have to pay attention to the fact that WE are the ones celebrating a certain type of behaviour that we deem worth celebrating.
Put like that, it is a great reminder that most of us don’t even question what these people are delivering before we join the club of ‘celebrating’ them.
100%. Celebrities are not celebrities if no-one is celebrating them. Thus the questions become; why do we need these figures? what is it that we are actually celebrating? Where are we at that we would rather pour our attention and affection into a random stranger, rather than ourselves and our own relationships? The celebrity machine is a supply and demand system – thus it is us that is creating these figures.
A great expansion. May I take it further? For all this investment of time, money and energy what we actually get back in return is; feelings in inadequacy, self-worth issues, infected with false ideals and beliefs, poisoned by the movements of these people that we have allowed to become our role models, hooked by aspirations and ambitions that will keep us in constant tension and a life-long membership to the We-Are-Not-All-Equal society. To take that back to your bank analogy – not a great return on our investment. Thus the question – why are we all so readily choosing to be so ripped-off?
It’s ironic and reflective of the state of society that the person worth celebrating in the café was quietly sitting there doing his maths studies. I look forward to the day when it is the man who is aware and wise who inspires celebration, rather than the one who can hit people most effectively.
With activities such as boxing, when we say it is ok because it is between consenting parties and use that as a justification to support the whole thing, isn’t it a convenient abdication of our own personal responsibility? I know for fact that there are people in the world who consent to sell their own organs too. Let’s instead of supporting another’s consent to getting harmed, observe and understand what brings someone to that point where such an extreme form of self-abuse is considered the preferred choice.
Most people do not recognise that ‘True celebrities are men and women who dedicate their lives to know themselves through their innate love, wisdom and light’ but this is the truth about what we need to celebrate. Anything else is empty illusion, all glamour and void of love.
The emptiness of so many so called celebrities lives is mirrored in those who obsessively follow them. Whereas ‘True celebrities are men and women who dedicate their lives to know themselves through their innate love, wisdom and light, not through fame, recognition or glamour.’
“True celebrities are men and women who dedicate their lives to know themselves through their innate love, wisdom and light, not through fame, recognition or glamour.” Absolutley Michael. There is nothing worth celebrating more than someone who has come to deeply know themselves by learning to let go of all the ideals and beliefs that they have taken on throughout their life from others, rather than living what they know to be true for themselves. To be witness to someone blossoming in this way, and rediscover themselves is pure joy and is something to be truly celebrated.
Serge Benhayon and his family are incredibly inspiring role models to put it mildly and have always been amazing role models to me – inspiring me to connect with and be more of who I truly am, more love, more commitment to life, more honesty and with that never to be held as better or on a pedestal but as my and everyone’s absolute equal, truly that is something to celebrate.
“True celebrities are men and women who dedicate their lives to know themselves through their innate love, wisdom and light, not through fame, recognition or glamour.” Well said Michael and in this sentence you expose how in reality we hardly have any true celebrities.
True. And the few we do have are defamed because they don’t fit the latter part of the sentence you quoted Sam.
What makes a celebrity? According to today’s society it is someone who has been on the telly! It has nothing to do with who a person is, the integrity with which they live, what they offer to humanity, or how much love they live with. It has nothing to do with how much they truly inspire others to live in a way that is true to themselves. Apparently it has everything to do with looking cool, following the latest fashion trends, how badly they can behave, and how witty they are with their tongue. A sad state of affairs.
A video clip of something simple or an inane act can go viral on any of the multi-media sites, and you can become an instant celebrity just because it viewed by millions. Fame is like a falling star that is soon not remembered.
This is so true Steve. What’s more the scale of your social media presence now has a very real and valuable market price. Having a huge following is a bona fide business that is making people very, very rich. The beast feeding the beast. So now any and everyone can make a very substantial living just from doing and saying inane and sensationalist things. Truly we are lost.
It’s definitely time to begin the process of redefining what a true celebrity is, as at this point in time the meaning has become very distorted indeed. I would put Serge Benhayon and his amazing family on my list of true celebrities, as well as the many other men and women who are choosing to live their lives with the same truth and integrity while they serve humanity in many wonderful and world-changing ways.
The ‘celebrities’ that we do, as a race, applaud are celebrities of the ‘soup’ – the toxic soup we swim around in when we forget that we are fish who can swim in the water and not get wet. We have forgotten to observe and have joined the morass of false living.
Reading the last bit of your blog made me want to stand up and applaud with all my support, love, appreciation and a depth of honour for having such people in my life. It becomes a no brainer when all the questions you put forward are asked as to who to celebrate. Do we celebrate people that confirm the mess humanity are in, or do we celebrate people who show a way out of the mess?
It is true Kim, there is so much appreciation due for where you/I are at today and what we are doing with our lives. It’s magical to see what is possible when we say yes to something other than the comfort that life continuously offers.
‘Do we celebrate people that confirm the mess humanity are in, or do we celebrate people who show a way out of the mess?’ – Bravo Kim, this is the hard hitting reality – what in the world are we doing?
Great exposure of the crazy things that we celebrate celebrities for, beating each other up either physically or with vicious words and both are spectator sports that people willingly waste lots of money on. Truly we are bankrupting society with our obsessions with celebrities and distorted ways of being that are so far from the love that we all innately are.
One of the many things I love about the teachings of the Ageless Wisdom is that it does not matter what you do, whether that be a cleaner or a CEO of a global company, all positions are held as equal. What matters is the quality you do what ever you are doing.
And this is somehow unheard of in a world where we are all ranked by the position we have, starting from the top towards the bottom.
I hadn’t linked the words “celebrate” and “celebrity” before but now you mention it the link or the world play is brilliant – a celebrity is someone we celebrate, and I love your questioning here of what or who do we really want to be celebrating? Someone leading the way in showing us that there is a different way to live? Or someone glorifying and perpetuating the same ruts, same behaviours, same old, same old that keeps the world back from truly moving forward.
There is so much in the world that is celebrated that does not make sense, it makes me wonder if people realise what they are congratulating here. The fastest runner or the highest climber, all for self gain, gratification and glamour. I celebrate that I have opened my eyes and seen through this all and know what I celebrate is my inner knowing and connection, thanks to the teachings of Serge Benhayon and Universal Medicine.
I am with you Michael – let’s celebrate true wisdom and true livingness – that is something really worth celebrating. The rest is trumped up distraction to quell the masses and the incessant restlessness we all experience when we are not living in our fullness.
The most mundane and basic about being a celebrity is “are we celebrating ourselves”? How many celebrities feel emptiness and the need to be recognized and supported constantly? How many if there are any which celebrate the self-worth of themselves every day and share it on screen with everyone and their audience? How many truly live and commit to lives in realness and although imperfect, still celebrate the lessons behind for evolution?
What is really worth celebrating is ourselves.
Totally Elizabeth, well said.
So much is championed and ‘celebrated’ in this utterly crazy world that is complete madness. I can say that I celebrate my connection to my inner heart and my Soul, and that is because of the life and work of Serge Benhayon and Universal Medicine.
It is also true that what we celebrate and value is what we set our own personal standards at, so why would domestic violence or cyber abuse be an issue when we glorify priced abuse on a national physical level first.
Love how you have turned this around Michael – in terms of sharing how the real celebrities are the Clark Kent’s out there in the world…the extraordinary ordinaries….such as Serge Benhayon and so many following in his footsteps in terms of the loving choices made. – “I count myself blessed to know what I consider celebrities to be: real people doing real jobs in such a way that is worthy of celebration – and then some!”
All considering, it is a strange thing indeed to be celebrating someone punching someone else, and yet in direct or indirect ways, as humans, we do celebrate quite frequently violence over another or others, particularly through sports – with boxing, cage fighting, as the most obvious ways but also through the competition of all sports really. In the latter, we may not see fists swinging, but there is an aggression that is pitting one brother against another, no different to a physical punch, only you have no broken bones or bruises to show for it. My question is, what is this then setting us up for as a society when we accept this fighting and competing as the norm? Could it possibly feed such things as domestic violence and especially so when mixed with alcohol…? Could it be that we have normalised two ingredients (competition and alcohol) that are part of what we seek to maintain violence in our society?
There is so much to celebrate within ourselves that when we open up to see it, there is no need to look externally.
So true Michael and the more we connect with in the grander we know ourselves to be.
‘that there is a way to live life without letting life live you, yes there is and I have found this by living true to myself by always feeling what feels right for me, which builds self trust and confidence and self love.
It is great to ask what are we truly celebrating? When we celebrate someone we celebrate also all the person does in its down time like maybe drinking alcohol, watching porn, being abusive with their family etc. It is wise to not just celebrate someone for what they do but look at the whole person and how they are living and if this is something truly joyful or not. Otherwise we are accepting behaviours in life that we actually should not be accepting and celebrating because they do not serve us to evolve in any way.
How many celebrities rapidly fall from the grace of the publics admiration when their darker private life becomes exposed. Could it be, this showing us how fickle we are?
“So, when I go to celebrate someone, my first question is: what are they contributing to society? Are they accelerating our evolution or are they delaying it” Such a great question to ask, unfortunalty at this point in our history we are still celebrating many for all the wrong reasons.
We have enough horrific abuse in this world without the need for people to pay money to watch it.
We are transfixed with stardom, glamour and fame, which is only possible because we have totally lost sight of the absolute magnitude of who we all are. If we could only so much as glimpse the level and depth of our own beauty, we would see what we currently deem as ‘desirably glamourous’ as the absolute empty offering that it is.
At work I constantly am around people that put celebrities on a pedestal and when they are around them become all erratic, nervous, weird and play less than. I was like that before I started to practice the Ageless Teachings as taught by Serge Benhayon and I have come to see them for who they are, and as an equal person. They actually love hanging out and being treated as normal as any other person.
Part of them does and part of them does not. One has to seek fame (and all that comes with it) to get it.
Love what you are saying here Doug – and yes, why don’t we want everyone to be equal winners?
Exactly Richard – we demand all sorts of things that are totally against our nature and it goes to show how disconnected from ourselves and our true nature we really are.
An energetic truth that is not always so popular is that in any situation of abuse where there has been an unconsenting party, at a deeper level beyond that which the human or personality part of us is conscious of, there is an energetic consent by both parties (what we deem to be the ‘perpetrator’ and the ‘victim’) that allows for the act to physically take place. All is not as random as we may like it to be. Nor are we the victims we play ourselves to be in this game we call ‘life’ that is thus far for the most part controlled and tightly orchestrated by the human etheric spirit and not yet fully impulsed by the love and light of our Soul.
Spot on Liane, and so beautifully expressed – for nothing in this world is random, and the sooner we realise this and begin to understand the part we play, then the sooner this can begin to shift the miasma we live in that keeps us blind to the fact that every choice we make, every breath we take, every move we make has a consequence energetically, and primarily so.
There is so much settlement in understanding this fact let alone accepting it. It is not an easy pill to swallow however, due to the bitter taste it brings to the fore in regard to our irresponsibilities throughout our existence.
‘Where have we really come to as a society if, apart from perhaps the consent of both parties, things have not changed since the times of the Colosseum?’ – Shocking isn’t it, to realise that we have come nowhere – we are still chasing our own tail.
A revealing understanding of true celebrities and the meaning of life that makes a difference to society and changes peoples lives lovingly.
Well said Michael, from our core we shine and bless others, this is never ever truly possible from glamour, fame or recognition.
Glamour, fame and recognition are always about something outside of us and never about who we are.
Great observation hear on assumptions we can make in society, drawing a veil back on what we see and perceive about the reality we live in and how our perception can be so different, if we so choose.
And amongst all the different perceptions there is the One Unified Truth that will return us all to brotherhood.
If even God wouldn’t want to be seen as a celebrity, then surely we have to look at what’s in it for us?
Thanks, Michael. A great exposé of our loveless choices to invest in things that are endorsing violence and harm.
I have to be honest and say I have never been that taken or impressed by celebrities as I can see they are no different from anybody else, but I must admit I have been a bit star struck by various members of the Benhayon family at times due to the fact of being in the presence of such wisdom and amazingness.
I absolutely concur Kevin – star struck and awe inspired.
Absolutely agree, the Benhayon family have been a great inspiration with the amazing wisdom they bring through.
Our current way of living together in the world is based on individuality and separation that give space for the need of recognition and reward. Recognition and reward that otherwise would not be needed as when lived impulsed from the inner heart, we will be celebrated by God every moment of the day.
Thanks God to have Serge Benhayon around this time as he show us “that there is a way to live life without letting life live you”, the Way of The Livingness where the need for recognition and reward does not play a role anymore. Only to live life to the best of your abilities impulsed from the inner heart instead,. And when we live like that there is not celebrity to celebrate anymore as it simply make no sense in a life where everybody is equal.
Is self-harm not a sign of illness? Is allowing some else to harm you any different in this regard?
‘… we can be in life empowered through our wise and loving choices without being what life wants us to be’ – this is something to be truely celebrated for it enables us to stay true to who we innately are, without giving our power away to anyone or anything.
Since young I have been feeling either a discrepancy or an emptiness in celebrities in front of the screen. So the entertainment business has never attracted me. But lo and behold I ended up working in this industry, working with people from this industry and being a part of this industry. In succumbing to the common picture of what a celebrity is, there would be doubts and thoughts of comparison coming through me everyday but when I celebrate myself in the deepening love of myself and the revealing of more realness every day, there is a strength that comes through and supports me being in this field. I am enjoying this exploration. Celebrities are no different from you and me, and the honesty is to ask what are we really celebrating? And is this a celebration for others too?
I am often quite taken aback with how obsessed we are with celebrities, I’ve never really understood the fascination particularly with those who are famous for the sake of being famous.
I have never understood the madness around celebrities, never been drawn to it. They are just human beings like us, whats so special about them.
We make a big fuss about what we hate but go on and do the same ourselves every day. If we are serious about Love let’s make it our way and champion every step towards truth that we take. Thanks Michael – Gold Medal for you sharing so beautifully from your heart.
When we meet true celebrities we have a choice. To emmulate their integrity, ethics and commitment to life, people and work OR find ways to avoid our true calling and indulge in activities that cap our awareness, evolution and real grandness and then pretend these pursuits are worthy of our attention, appreciation and applause.
Yes Rowena, we all have a choice, every moment of the day, to return to the grandness we already are. But when we need the attention from people to feel a grandness in us instead, we live in the illusion that life is about recognition and reward and do whatever is needed to get this attention, knowingly from deep within that it is not it but the best we can get this moment.
It is strange how we can celebrate fighting, in a boxing ring under the guise of being a sport – and also many celebrate the fighting that comes in a war, and the cheering that goes on in a fist fight that breaks out at a pub or school…but how is this any different to domestic violence? Or beating up a child. The supremacy of one over the other and a constant reminder that ‘you are not safe in this world’ – for once under the control of fear and lack of safety it is easy to control people, to control the masses. And we celebrate this? Us humans can be really strange! So when is it that we will stop to clock this and realise what we are doing – and more importantly that it is all in our hands to make a change…
‘A true celebrity makes an enormous and valuable contribution to life, lives it in full with the utmost integrity and love; paving the way for others to do the same because they know everyone as an equal brother.’ – Well said, hence a true celebrity is also a true role model for all equally.
Great questions Ariana. When we put someone on a pedestal no matter who they are, we are in fact putting ourselves down by playing less and playing small. How does this make the other person feel, how does this make us feel? There is no equality or love in putting anyone higher or lower than us as this form of expression stunts our evolution and connection.
More and more people are waking up to the fact that it is unnatural for us to abuse each other and one day humanity will no longer be able to watch and celebrate two people physically punching each other as a form sport/entertainment. This reawakening is happening on a global scale and thanks to the Benhayon family living in absolute love, they are inspiring thousands and thousands of people to live love too.
Success is a confusing prospect in today’s society; we celebrate the academic who has the most knowledge and letters after their name, and at the same time celebrate the celebrity who leads a glamorous and picture-perfect lifestyle, but do either of these extremes involve true responsibility, respect for others, integrity, care or giving back to the community without a reward? What is success if this is all that we should be aspiring to?
I find the extent to which society glamourises professional sport and holds those who are successful up to be role models quite disturbing. Even the recent ball tampering incident with the Australian Cricket team which exposed the lengths some players will go to win, will unfortunately not be enough for people to be able to see through the falseness of this glamour.
Indeed Peter, although I do not know the details of the incident you are referring to, there is a effort in keeping the illusion alive. as when you believe the illusion to be your reality of life, then you are blind to the falseness it is based on.
Correct – they will find a solution and put a bandaid on and go back to things being ‘normal’; until the whole thing erupts again. Question is how many times we need to go through this before we are willing to probe deeper and find the answers to how lost we are.
Could it be that celebrities are born from our innate impulse to connect and yet our fear of being truly intimate, open and transparent with another? We can convince ourselves we have a relationship with the celebrity simply from seeing them on TV, film, photos etc. which might seem to satisfy our need for intimacy, and yet because it doesn’t even begin to deliver it’s promise, we crave more and more and more contact with them, hence the seemingly insatiable demand for stories about those we have made into celebrities.
‘Who does and how does one draw the line of distinction between what is acceptable under the guise of consent and what is not?’ Good question. We have a pretty low bar here which seems to be becoming more and more extreme as we become more and more numb. Ultimately we all have free will and yet we also have the responsibility to use this free will in a way that supports all. When we don’t (and that is our choice) the law of Karma comes in to play. Our collective karma is pretty massive and so we are seeing the outplay of this whilst still collecting more and more. It has to stop somewhere so what if we are the one that chooses not to react to the karma we have collected, and instead bring energetic responsibility into our lives. There is one less person then feeding the cesspit and one more spark of light in the fog for others to see.
Such a great questions you are asking. Indeed what do our choice of people we place in the ‘celebrities’ bracket and what we choose to celebrate in one another show about the level of life we have settled for as our aspiration?
I love your question here – ‘what is a celebrity contributing to society’ – this i have not considered but it makes it very simple to discern when we put that file on a celebrity – or anyone in society for that matter. It exposes that people who are sports stars or movie stars are just very wealthy all have an opportunity to love in a way that is responsible but we don’t really celebrate this at all.
‘there is a way to live life without letting life live you.’ – Brilliantly said Michael, we are never a victim of what life seemingly throws at us, we have so much more influence on our own life than we are aware of.
I agree Eva. This breaks the pattern of being in victimhood, it exposes just how much we are in fact in control of life and of where we are at and where we are heading. It brings it back to basics, the two words so many of us void…. ‘taking responsibility’.
A wise woman said to me today ‘People look bigger when you hold yourself small’ ~ R.E. It is only on an equal playing field that we can really connect with one another’s true qualities and see what is behind the boxer or the cleaner. This is the depth of connection we all crave, and more so deserve.
I was going to say it is almost animalistic to enjoy seeing two people beat each other to a pulp, but that would be an insult to the animal kingdom because they don’t gloat over the success of the one that is seen as the winner. We could learn a lot from the animal kingdom because they are obedient to the laws of their own evolution. Human beings on the other hand are a million miles from their evolutionary path and where they could be, and fighting and celebrating the success of one over another is not any where close to the love that is naturally within us.
It is great to stop and observe for a moment what we are celebrating if we get drawn into this game of following and applauding a person for doing something that is unloving. Living life in awareness and connection to our bodies is the true celebration we can all bring to ourselves.
Yes, Michael. I feel absolutely blessed to have people in my life like the Benhayon family, who deeply inspire me by the way they live love to the max every day.
Competition and everything that goes with it is sadly still something we really champion as a human race without fully realising or understanding the harm it actually is doing to our species.
Yes we are spending a lot of time comparing with others, striving to be ‘the same’ or even ‘better’, instead of simply being ourselves.
What is worth celebrating is living connected to our true essence and simply being ourselves in all that we do. The extra-ordinary found in simple everyday activities.
We really have lost the plot. The other day a female TV presenter accepted a boxing challenge against another woman to raise funds for charity. We feel the brutality and senselessness of it all but sadly many do not.
Michael, this so makes sense; ‘True celebrities are men and women who dedicate their lives to know themselves through their innate love, wisdom and light, not through fame, recognition or glamour.’ Reading this makes me realise how far away we have come from celebrating true heroes – people who live their innate qualities such as tenderness and sensitivity and care of others, instead we celebrate almost the opposite.
Throughout our history capital punishment has been a spectator event, even a celebration! The crowds that gathered for; stoning’s that you were encouraged to join in, public hanging’s were events, and during the French revolution, the guillotine was a daily show for a year. Has this all been a devolution from who all are? We are not cursed by the blood on our father’s hands unless we chose too.
I hadn’t considered this aspect before Steve, it’s fascinating. Just to see how we all have a hand in the atrocities that lay before us.
Society is infatuated with celebrities and in some instances, it is not even clear what these people are actually famous for – as long as they are famous. We so want to be recognised, or so we think but celebrity status does not quell the inner turmoil and angst as is evident from the lives of those who populate the relevant screens, stages, magazines and shows.
‘With all the issues going on in the world at the moment – wars, corruption, poverty, cancer, mental illnesses, suicide, female genital mutilation, sex trafficking all the way down to lack of self-worth, lack of confidence and body issues to name but a few – SURELY there are ways of spending our time, energy and money that benefit us rather than punching us in the face, literally speaking.’ The reason we do as a society spend time watching brutality (whether obvious and physical or subtle and psychological) is that brutality is our whole acceptable way of life. We have all the brutalities named here because that is how we live and so naturally we entertain ourselves with more of it. Our entertainment is a reflection of the way we live.
Totally Susan. We treat our own precious bodies with a lot less than Love. Yesterday I had to prepare a tutorial which was comparing Orwell’s novel 1984 with Fritz Lang’s movie (1927) Metropolis and in reading up on the background of the 1920s I came across these words by the famous French architect Le Corbusier when he was drawing up the project for the Plan Voison for Paris in the 1920s: ‘My proposition is brutal because town planning is brutal, because life is brutal’. A very accurate observation, but as a raison d’être for putting forth a brutal plan of architecture, it left me a bit gob-smacked. There is much brutal architecture out there with angles that confound us – I often find architecture brutal to feel, and I remember feeling it intensely as a child.
I was touched by your description of yourself as a very caring young man, it was a delight to read. We need more caring young men to declare this, to make it ok for all boys/men who are caring (which are many) to ‘come out’ so to speak.
History is filled with those who have shined there light and it is time these were give the true stature they deserve, and as Michael has shared the “Benhayon family” are worth while studying today so you can make up your own mind about true religion!
It is good to examine this idea of celebrating or congratulating someone and to consider what exactly are we celebrating them for and is this really worthy of celebration?
Andrew I agree, I never used to consider this before but now the real celebration is in the quality that we choose to live and that people choose. Thats worth celebrating when you see someone in their true glory.
I love what you have shared Michael “True celebrities are men and women who dedicate their lives to know themselves through their innate love, wisdom and light, not through fame, recognition or glamour.” when we live from our own innate essence this is something to celebrate, we become our own celebrity. Reflecting to others that they too have within them something of immense value to celebrate.
There are so many people that are genuinely worth celebrating, people that put love and care into all that they do, that value what is true to them and in doing so reflect that truth back to others. I’m fortunate enough to say I have many people like this in my life, each reflecting a different quality and each inspiring me in a different way to be more.
“True celebrities are men and women who dedicate their lives to know themselves through their innate love, wisdom and light, not through fame, recognition or glamour.” How back to front are we living life when we celebrate others for what they do and or what they look like on the outside… rather than who they truly are in essence, who we all are equally within.
We are so enamoured with celebrities that we somehow believe that we are elevated to some pseudo celebrity status if we come into contact with one or have some distant dealing with one. If we can casually drop the name of someone well known into a conversation, then we feel that our identity is bolstered in some way. The name of the game has, to our absolute detriment, become about identity. We have lost sight of the fact that we literally have every-thing already and scrabble around for some semblance of who we believe ourselves to be.
Yes, it is ridiculous the amount of money and time that our world spends on sports stars. It is important to take responsibility for this fact. The only reason professional athletes exist is because we have created a demand for them.
Agreed Ken. And where is that demand coming from? could it be that we are trying to replace something we are missing in ourselves.. our inner connection, so we look outside of ourselves for something to fill the gap.
Great blog Michael. What came to me as I was reading it is that as long as we are seeking recognition from outside of ourselves, even if it is a simple pat on the back, then the longer we will have the reflections you describe here of the extremes people will and do go to in order to feel that they are worth celebrating for the truth is in our essence we are all worth celebrating without having to do a thing.
‘If it is okay to commit an act of violence with consent, are we then able to commit murder with consent?’ Excellent question to ask us where we are at with how we treat each other, and that the masses, well what often is ok and normalised is actually brutal and not ok and even more damaging because it is a consensus amongst the masses – where does one go to if the masses are saying it’s ok and it’s all agreed. There are many different laws as to what is ok and isn’t in different countries and cultures, some of which feels so ugly (child marriage for example) to me. Referring to what people are accepting on mass as ok without discerning what is feeling into that choice creates much abuse in the world.
Within a society that calls ourselves evolved it is astounding that we still think it is ok to cheer on a sport that involves brutally beating each other. And then celebrate someone for winning! Totally astounding.
It really is quite astounding! And many sports are like this. I also wonder how we are entertained by sports that are rife with performance drugs – what happened that a person feels the possible reward of winning is worth going to extremes that damage their bodies to get there? But how different is it for me to push myself to get work completed or a job done? I feel the effects of this big time!
Very good point Karin. Yes we can abuse our own bodies by pushing through. I still do this sometimes and the effects are not great. It is like self punishment.
It seems we celebrate parts of life like this, that truly are not worthy of this expression… and then we celebrate by having a beer, or extra cake all adding the strain to our bodies. What we have accepted as normal part of life is something we need to reflect on.
It certainly is astounding Rebecca. It is extraordinary that brutality has nested so deeply into every crevice and corner of our society that it is celebrated – and so hypocritical and inconsistent with that, because, other kinds of brutality are called out and damned (even if only comparatively recently), such as sexual brutality, or paedophilia, or murder etc. It is the brutality that is accepted, for example in sport ( as the article mentions) or a more disguised form of verbal brutality in governments, education, law, that is so dangerous and lays the ground for the more easily recognised forms to flourish. All this is done to simply fight God and the fact that we are Sons created equal.
We have not moved on from the energy of gladiators being fed to the lions for sport and entertainment or watching hangings, nothing has changed, in fact it is probably worse due to the fact of our apparent sophistication.
It is really jaw dropping Rebecca I agree. We claim to be so intelligent and advanced, we have even got man to walk on the moon and here we are championing people for literally knocking the daylight out of each other. Surely we can come up with more truly beneficial and evolutionary entertainment than giving each other brain damage.
To be a true celebrity is to celebrate within yourself the love and support to walk in the world with grace and compassion, and reflect this quality for others to find it in themselves. How many people are even conscious of this possibility? Most are still repeating and repeating all the old ideals, comforts and abuses, and so celebrating a life that holds us all back from the change which needs to happen for us to live in harmony together. This is a great blog Michael, beautifully expressed.
I like this idea Joan of celebrating ones self for our qualities rather than relying continuously on recognition and accolades from others.
In so doing we may inspire others to explore their own preciousness and feel the choice that is there for them to appreciate and celebrate their own self.
And, on the fact of what we find entertaining, we might not want to see the truth of what we choose to check out from the reality of life with as it is quite confronting. One only needs to take an honest look at what the most popular TV programmes are at this point of time…..
Awesome Michael, to unravel the meaning of celebrity and asking ourselves the question what are we actually celebrating? Do we know how our so called celebraties live, the quality of their lives, the amount of love lived, the way they treat the people around them? Often we do not have a clue and all we celebrate is the fact that someone has made fame through appearing in the media or having a physical achievement. If we stop and think about it it shows the ridiculousness of it all.
“If it is okay to commit an act of violence with consent, are we then able to commit murder with consent? If that’s too much to stomach, are we then able to perform random unregulated amputations with consent?” This may sound outrageous but sadly this is now already fast becoming truth. If we look at the – for now still -excesses in the behaviours of young people where suffocation games are making numerous victims and physical mutilation is considered part of personal expression then we cannot but realise that we have derailed immensely as a society.
I think we have to ask ourselves the question why we need this type of hero worship of celebrities and are our lives so empty. The more I come to love myself and the more I am able to see others as my equal whether they are higher or lower on the so called social, financial or fame scale the less any of that nonsense makes sense.
Yes agree… the more our own self-love deepens, it’s like you come to see the false infrastructure that holds up the ‘entertainment’ or celebrity industry where it is all clever marketing and self promotion, and how hooking this is when one is looking outside of themselves to feel something about themselves.
It seems it is actually ‘fame’ that most of us are obsessed with. Very little focus and value is put on the actual quality of life and expression. In fact does not appear much of a priority or ‘fashionable’ to have such a discussion in general life. Yet through the example of Serge Benhayon and many others who I also witness who choose a life of deepening love, dedication and service to humanity I know that this is where true value and celebration lies.
‘If the external is glamorised and made to be everything, then I would suggest that this perpetuates the current plague of self-doubt, lack of self-worth and self-abuse we are all witnessing in large doses in society at the moment. Not something I personally care to celebrate.’
We only have to look at how many teenagers and students are depressed and feel they can’t cope with life to see the effects of this.
My understanding is that the ‘celebrity’ life is an empty one, with the possibility of the celebrity searching for recognition and acceptance to feel fulfilled. This is a reflection of our own lives, for do we not also crave the same? It’s like we are willing to cross boundaries to get it and then accept the ill consequences that come with it.
The culture of notoriety is very big at the moment as everyone seems to want to be famous, irrespective of what that fame is for. Could it be that this need to be famous is telling us that deep down there is a deep unrest within ourselves and that we do not want to feel it so get distracted by having others focus on us?
The point is that when we celebrate fame, recognition and glamour it is empty and never lasts long, always seeking the next bit of the same from another… whereas those who celebrate “…their innate love, wisdom and light…” are constantly full and there is no need to seek outside themselves for anything else.
Beautifully said, Michael. It is deeply touching to feel your love for humanity in exposing its misdirected investments and irresponsibilities.
I would far rather bang my drum about the Benhayon family than many of our current celebrities. What Serge Benhayon and his family are establishing in our societies around the world will serve humanity for centuries to come. These are people well worth celebrating because their entire focus in life remains firmly fixed on the evolution of all rather than on the championing of a few.
Celebrities are great or handy in one sense because they show us just how far and for how long a time we have chosen to walk away from the love of the soul and straight into the clutches of the material world and all its created absorbing excesses. Their reflection to us is worth appreciating for in it we can make a choice to see the absurdity of this movement of creation. And return back to a more true way of the appreciation of others through how connected they are to themselves and the light of their soul.
Thank-you for this sharing Michael, indeed it exposes our joint accountability for the very rot & abuse that we condemn within society. I whole heartedly agree, re-turning to the grand simplicity of who we innately are; smiling from the inside out is the tide that will restore full bodied joy.
You’ve exposed something here Michael that just shows the attachments, ideals and hunger for entertainment we have in society – abuse, beatings, gambling and even prostitution is looked down upon, however when these things are ‘consented’ or published online as ‘entertainment’ it is a very different story…
This is a very important point too you’ve mentioned here about publishing online Susie. There are millions of registered accounts on pornography sites yet one could make a reasonable assumption that not even half would actually go out and seek prostitution. There are equally millions who play online games where beating up or killing their opponent is the objective, yet how many of those millions would do something like that or act in such a way in person. We have made screens a license to do what we want, and this is taking us far further into the depths of disgrace than we ever were during the times of the colosseum.
Spot on, Michael, for although people may not go out and replicate what they see and practice on the screen, however, it does desensitise them as it is part of the process that is normalising the abuse in society.
‘Where have we really come to as a society if, apart from perhaps the consent of both parties, things have not changed since the times of the Colosseum?’ This is what we need to acknowledge, nothing has changed or maybe it has but it has only got worse and further down the line with some of the ways we abuse ourselves, more sophisticated and not easily seen as the obvious physical abuse, either with or without consent. Thank you Michael for raising your questions here and giving a clear answer to what true celebrities are and what the purpose is of being here together.
When we hold absolute wisdom in our bodies, access lies in their care. What are we working so hard to ignore when we treat our bodies with anything other than such care as is natural to us, let alone such levels of battery such as boxing and combat sports?
We champion so many things in the world and above all how far we have come as a society / humanity in terms of technological development and our living standards today. But how far, or more so, where have we really come, when our way with each other is still that of competition and entertainment and achieving more, while the matter of the heart and true care and love has been neglected to a point where it counts less and less.
Celebrating competition, sport and other activities that glorify some people at the expense of others rather than loving and enhancing ones when the greatest desire of everyone is for love, is a reflection of the confused state of society.
There was not that many years ago a game show that was called gladiators. It was the same as the Coliseum; but with less blood, no lions and no one died. There is a Japanese show that starts with 100 people competing to survive to the end of all kinds of tasks, that is not meant to have a winner. It is a game show of attrition, and we call it entertainment?
I remember as a child to be afraid of the older boys fighting at the school playground, the fear of having to fight when I would be of their age as to me it seems something you had to learn as a boy. Luckily this almost never (possibly once or twice) happend to me when I was at that age, but I can feel that that fear is still in me as it is not natural for human beings to fight.
I like to have this angle of view to what liking viewing boxing matches actually means to us. Why do we not shrink in pain when we see two people fighting and hurting one another but instead say we do love to watch people fight defended by saying that we are from the apes and that animals fight too. With other words that it is natural to us.
When we look at the level of abuse humanity is accepting, it is shocking, sad and pretty crazy. Your blog Michael really expose how crazy this is and inspires us to question what is going on.
It is so strange that people pay money to watch such brutality, I suppose this has happened for centuries.
I am afraid it is Fiona, that people pay money to see people fight is something people are doing for ages.
A sober look at at what a celebrity status really is and also the crazyiness of a sport (or any sport!). When you say it like that ‘punching someone in the head’ which is exactly what it is. Something else that I just cannot comprehend is how we can pay millions of pounds for someone to kick a ball around a field but pittance to nurses, teachers and doctors etc .. another thing that just makes zero sense.
Irrespective of what the sport is, anyone who is performing at an elite level is by default pushing their body beyond where it naturally wants to be, which is abuse, the toll on the body is enormous and can then lead to drug use to numb the pain. With the pressure to stay at the top it’s then a short step for this to become more than medicinal and a way to get an edge over fellow competitors.
It is a good point you raise here about the levels of violence that we tolerate as normal in our societies from sport to movies to even the music we listen to. We don’t even call it violence if it is sport but the human body does not know the difference between violence with and without consent. Have we really stopped to consider the full effects of accepting this violence and abuse?
Things might be getting more brutal – cage fighting attracts many boxing fans and a lot more blood flows than in boxing. I haven’t seen any study which fighters get more damaged but cage fighting looks more brutal and that may be the purpose.
I hadn’t never heard of cage fighting, the title alone sound demeaning.
It is a very good observation and one we could do well to take in relation not only to boxing but to all sport, especially those that incur a lot of physical injuries such as rugby or American football, but in reality anything where a person or team are seen to champion over another. Why do we celebrate an activity that leaves others feeling less? How can this bring about true fulfillment?
The ways that many of us have used to get recognition and be ‘celebrated’ adds to the collective extremes we are seeing out in the world. How do we abuse ourselves in life? The truest celebration is the re-connecting to the essence of divinity within us, being met by this love that we all are.
Yes Michael it is worthy of our questioning, what sort of world are we living in when we champion self abuse, and abuse those that are bringing truth and the true way forward for mankind out of this mess we have created. We are not appreciating what is truly worth celebrating.
I was so lost many years ago, I used to watch boxing with a fascination that 2 consenting men would beat themselves to a pulp for the sake of the glory of winning a title. Now the thought of it makes me realise that they are so lost to do this, this is the extreme of where we are in humanity right now.
People seek to be celebrities because of what it brings, fame, recognition, success and in most cases financial reward, but it comes with an emptiness that needs to be constantly fed. To know we are beautiful and amazing before we do anything is gold but it is something we are not taught and society does not endorse, and so we seek outside ourselves for the gold, rather than going within.
This is so very true and a great call out for us all, what exactly do we consent to (and our participation in the audience is also consent), and what do we celebrate? Is it about growing and developing all of us to live and express who we are or relieving ourselves with entertainment? Anything less is just adding more to the mess we’re all in.
Yes, we may be looking down at the obvious blood lust in ancient Rome but I wonder how much damage participants in reality TV receive?
Someone close to me was a professional boxer. However close we were, I drew a line when it came to watching him box and never attended any of his boxing matches.
I live and know a community where many residents, if not celebrities, have lived influential and affluent lives. What I know is this, regardless of wealth or status, we are all the same. There comes a time when everything is stripped back to truth and we all stand naked and equal before God. There is nothing to worship in another, without first worshipping ourselves.
Do equality and celebrity status mix?
A question that answers itself Christoph.
Congratulating someone who, for example, ran a marathon is actually supporting them to further harm and abuse themselves. They say, it is good for their psyche that they reached a goal, that seemed unreachable. That it gives them self confidence and the feeling of being able to do anything in life. But on which costs?! Yes, you can reach a lot in life with a hardened body, question is, if the goal is more important than your own body. The moment you realise that your body is the greatest treasure you have, you would never push and treat him like that anymore.
Our investment in entertainment as a distraction and escape from life has given rise to the type pf celebrities we have today. If we were to engage in life fully, without looking to escape then those who would be celebrities would be those who have lived life in truth and offer this as a way for others to be inspired by.
Yes I agree we have celebrities today which are based on how entertaining or well known they are, not how inspiring they are as human beings and how much they are contributing to society. This is what humanity has chosen to celebrate and gives away the fact that despite the obvious sufferings and injustices in the world today there is yet to be a sufficient appetite for real change. We need true role models who are leading the way not the so called celebrity who represents distraction and numbness from the harsh realities of life on our planet.
Not only what is worth celebrating but also HOW do we celebrate. Do we celebrate and condone abuse with further abuse by abusing our bodies with alcohol, sugar and junk food?
Wow, great point Nicola. The word celebration has been hugely distorted in our society because I see how easy it is to celebrate abuse with more abuse but when we truly celebrate love, it is impossible to go into abuse. I can see a simple equation here, ‘celebrate’ abuse = more abuse and the opposite of this is celebrate love = more love. It is easy to see which one is a true celebration and which one is not.
I guess they are both true celebrations, just a question of what you are celebrating!
Yes there is an energetic science here of confirmation that goes along the lines of, if we experience something and we feel it is true then we confirm or celebrate it, which embodies the energetic experience and we align with it, which means it becomes part of our foundation of our way of living going forwards. This science can be used by both sides of the fence, either to cement or ingrain an abusive pattern, belief or behaviour even more or to confirm a loving act, thought or intention.
Completely concur Michael…”True celebrities are men and women who dedicate their lives to know themselves through their innate love, wisdom and light, not through fame, recognition or glamour…” And the Benhayon family is a great example of this.
The word ‘celebrities’ smells pretty well manufactured. The attention is a commodity. I am pretty sure this word was not used as it is now until 20 years ago or so. Didn’t we used to just say ‘famous people’? Interesting how this word seems to have acquired our attitude and response to that status of being well known for whatever the reason, I wonder which came first – the word or our response.
That’s a great point, when I was younger we referred to people that were known well as famous or well known. It feels like celebrities came about when we launched into reality TV and people become celebrities just for being in front of a camera (as a commodity they were used). When you think about this way of treating people, as willing as they may be, it feels horrible. It is no wonder to me that there are so many deaths amongst those that are famous (used as a commodity) because each person is precious and of value far greater than any financial reward.
Great comment and it is so true that attention has become a commodity and being famous has become a career prospect no matter what it seems you are famous for. The rise of reality TV shows and the extra spin offs that go with this fame are a great example of how much people clamour to be famous believing that it will set them up for life because this is the image that we are sold about ‘celebrity land.’
I agree with — “If the external is glamorised and made to be everything, then I would suggest that this perpetuates the current plague of self-doubt, lack of self-worth and self-abuse we are all witnessing in large doses in society at the moment. Not something I personally care to celebrate.” Words of wisdom and Truth!
I agree Michael… the pure gold within each and every one of us is so worth investing in and celebrating.
Great point Michael, why are we celebrating a person who can punch another person harder and faster than the other. How is it that we applaud and champion abuse, all under the guise of sport?
I love how you expose the absurdity from cheering something that hurts another, in this case physically. The same happens with words when people laugh about jokes that put others down. Why would we confirm that by laughing, when we can all feel the pain in it?
Love this. The people we celebrate reflect what we value.
I value true love, inspiration, brotherhood, truth, purpose and constant vibrational pull up. That’s why I celebrate Serge Benhayon- a real celebrity! Another reason: Because he does not NEED my recognition and attention. He just does what needs to be done. Full stop.
True celebrities inspire by the way they live not by what they have achieved or can do. And given the appalling track record of so many celebs with lots of drug addiction, emptiness and emotional discontent, it is clear the way most of them are living is in no way inspiring rather it is deeply concerning.
I had never actually linked the words ‘celebrity’ and ‘celebrating’ together before. The science of words is fascinating.
Whether we watch boxing on tv, pay thousands to travel to a venue, talk about it as a topic of conversation we feed the energy and for as long as we feed it, it stays alive. It reminds of the importance of being present and what I pay attention and give energy to in my day.
Most celebrities are embroiled in the illusion that we are all separate human beings, vastly different from each other, with some people being gifted and talented but the majority being decidedly average and ordinary. Not only that but their stardom further confirms and enhances the whole notion of individualism, in fact without individualism there would be no celebrities because being a celebrity relies on people perceiving you to be better or different in some ways than others. But the truth of the matter is, that we are all extraordinary beyond measure and that is not some wishy washy pie in the sky statement, most have absolutely no idea how truly, truly magnificent we all are.
Well expressed Michael and I totally agree. What ‘adds grist to the mill’ is that the recognition may bring physical rewards. Very few, if any, feel complete and fulfilled in their recognition – there is always another mountain to climb reflecting emptiness within. Within true achievement of celebration it is not the end rather a deepening and expansion of completeness.
“Celebrities – What’s really Worth Celebrating?” – if the life is lived truly with love celebrate it fully, openly. And if the life is filled with less than love, love celebrating it through exposing the complete falsity and lie of that life.
The difference between boxing and a street fight is skill, or craft. So it is the skilful-craft of the boxer moving their body in such a way that can over-come their opponent that is celebrated, which in turn is gratifying for them and justifies all the hard work they have put in to learning that in the first place. So, when a boxer is celebrated, are we not saying that we recognise that there are such things as masters and role models.
What this highlights for me is that we can moan about the ills and tensions of the world, come up with solutions and patch it up until the tension builds again. Or give up and numb out from the world. But if we are attached to being recognised for these abusive ways in any shape or form it’s not going to go away because we still want it around.
“So, when I go to celebrate someone, my first question is: what are they contributing to society? Are they accelerating our evolution or are they delaying it?
These are much needed questions Michael. In my experience, one young man comes immediately to mind – a hospital porter who was taking great care to connect with respect and sensitivity to sick patients before very gently wheeling them off from emergency wards, around hospital corridors for x-rays etc without any expectation of anything other than to ensure his consistent level of care with already fearful or traumatised patients.
We think that if we become a celebrity then we will ‘be someone’, forgetting that we are already part of the sum of the One and that there is nothing that even comes close to this.
The definition of what a celebrity is has changed due to reality TV – now there is a belief that just anyone off the street can become a celebrity. This need to be recognised as being special is nothing new and as long as we as a humanity want the distraction from our issues then we will build people up and then drop them – stardom is a fickle bedfellow and we have to look at who is using who.
I watched a documentary the other night about the fighters that fought Mohammed Ali and it was just brutal the punishment they inflicted on each other all in the name of sport and entertainment.
I heard a lady sharing how excited she was this week because a celebrity walked in to a restaurant her and her husband were eating at and sat behind them. She so wanted to go and say hello, and said it completely made her night that this celebrity was there. It was almost like she knew the celebrity because of what she reads in the news, magazines and sees on TV. Yet, as we know, we can all show what we want others to see of us but not us in full. It’s also the picture that we often get tantalized by, the grass is greener kind of scenario and our reality sitting right in front of us (her partner) is just not enough. What if we stopped to feel how some body lives, or what they are really like… would we still idolize them or celebrate them?
Very true Aimee, while we allow ourselves to be sold the ‘pictures’ we create we miss the beauty sitting right in front of us.
Yes Susan, and when we do that it’s actually a form of rejecting the human being that is in front of us by giving them this label of celebrity, and not actually feeling who they are.
Celebrity is just a label for someone that we feel has achieved the ability to do something that we can’t and are paid a great deal for doing it. Celebrations, congratulations and well-wishes are given to achievements and winning something but also given to people that just had a child who is just the beginning.
What you offer Michael is the choice where to put our interest/energy – we can choose it for celebrities outside of us or for celebrating us our inner heart and soul and all the Benhayon’s who are all wonderful role models to live a life from inside out and not from outside in.
The inner heart can always see what’s not natural amongst the sea of “normal”.
And what exactly is it we are celebrating by virtue of these championed ‘celebrities’? We are championing the fact that their reflection offers us nothing of truth or a true way to live but instead confirms that we are to seek outside ourselves for recognition and accolades and once this is achieved we will be rewarded with the ultimate trophy of ‘success’, which is just another word for comfort but certainly not a true comfort in terms of the settlement of our being within our body and that body feeling more settled in the world it is a part of, but more so a comfort that comes from being numbed to the eyeballs on a certain vibration or frequency of energy that offers us no evolution so we do not get on with the task at hand which is to arise back to our true and soul-full selves.
As there is no ounce of self in Soul – for how can there be when it is the very vibration of us all in harmony and ‘at one’ with life, each other and our creator – there is very little appeal of this way of living for the self-seeking human etheric spirit who has carved a life for itself drunk on the spoils of all it can create in this realm and thus play out through its physical form we know of as ‘the human’. If this reads like a fictitious horror story then we have 2 choices: go back to sleep and pretend it is not happening, or allow ourselves to truly awaken to the truth of what is going on and the work we need to do to arrest it.
If we are going to make a celebrity of a boxer who’s job it is to literally hit someone in the head so hard it knocks them out, then we might as well make celebrities out of a mugger on the street who does the same thing to steal from people after beating them up. Shouldn’t our true celebrities be the ones who are leading us away from this animalistic way of surviving via crushing another, such as Serge Benhayon and all those connected to Universal Medicine?
Great to stop and ask ourselves.. what exactly are we championing and celebrating when we get behind someone, or something – what is the true quality of that person’s life and choices, the values they live by, the product we’re getting behind, and does it contribute to our awareness and expansion, or just perpetuate more of the same?
This is great Michael, as yesterday I was pondering on how much dedication we have to our way of living that keeps us from our divinity but when it comes to staying connected everything seems stacked against us? Could it be our spirit who would have us running around in circles in the ring of life that keeps us supposedly satisfied with our lot but in reality we are missing the connection to our essence and this is what we are unknowingly fighting for? Are we so in-trenched in the ideal human existence we have lost sight of our divine roots? When we re-connect to our essence to “see us all gently rise out of the predicament we have taken ourselves into would make my heart sing.”
” if it is that there is absolute GOLD just waiting to be unlocked in each and every person that walks this planet ”
This is so true of every body and one day it will be known.
Absolutely agree Michael Brown. “True celebrities are men and women who dedicate their lives to know themselves through their innate love, wisdom and light, …” and in doing so raise our evolutionary path for everyone. The fact that we rah rah sports that evidently do the opposite is a sure sign that humanity has derailed from its intended evolutionary trajectory. The Benhayons are re-laying those tracks for all of us and are most definitely worth championing, celebrating and appreciating to the hilt as they restore to us our true glory, integrity and power in full and loving respect of one another, not a boxing glove in sight.
Thanks Michael for starting this discussion. This sharing offers so many layers of understanding of the subtle ways we endorse a person’s separation from who they are in their essence. In the case of a celebrity, this person is rewarded extensively each time they step further away from their truth whilst being subtly undermined in who they know deep down themselves to be. It is truly a sticky web that needs to be exposed.
That is a great way of describing this situation and pattern of behaviour Christine… and most certainly something that needs to be exposed for the lie that it is.
That is the viscous circle you get in. You realise that you get celebrated the most the more you sell yourself out. Not for who you are but for whatever talent, family background or look you have. If you fall and need that recognition you actually say yes to a prison. Plus you feel that most of the people are actually friends with you, because they get enhanced by you and your status. It is all there to keep you very lonely and not being seen for who you are and that you stay in the belief that you are not worth to be loved for who you are.
For fame- what a poor exchange.
What a great blog Michael! It certainly shows where the world is at and how absurd it is to celebrate a couple of men, naturally tender in their early years on earth, beat each other’s faces to a pulp for entertainment. Certain sections of Humanity have long been fascinated by such forms of entertainment – watching hangings and beheadings and the obvious lions at the Colosseum ( I was reminded of this yesterday when tutoring Orwell’s dystopian fiction 1984, with the neighbours children hungry for an execution.) However the sophisticated Chamber Orchestra concert and the celebrities leading them are no less absurd and harming, just belonging to a different social echelon and ‘illusion’.
Mostly people celebrate celebrities, no matter what the flavour, because of their virtuosic capacity to distract us as a race from our woes.
Michael, I’ve loved reading your blog and considering the true meaning of celebrity and what a celebrity could be vs how we in society glorify the picture of success. What is worth celebrating is true and loving, perhaps as its so infrequent in society we end up celebrating an image and adoration – which is far from true and loving.
Not only does boxing, as do other contact sports, lead to severe superficial injuries but the repeated assault on the brain and the many whiplash incidents can cause brain damage, Parkinson’s and other conditions, as has been well documented. And yes, as you say, what is there to celebrate?
Another thing I was thinking about this morning Gabriele, is how fans appear to really ‘love’ their sporting heroes until they slip up on the field or in the ring. As soon as they are at the top of their game and play less than that, it’s incredible how quick so called fans turn on them, trash them and go on to the next sports person that impresses them. It shows how completely empty the celebration of another is, and how we don’t truly know anything really about them. If people truly connected to their celebrity sportspeople, they could never stomach watching them get beaten and bashed in a ring or tackled and slammed on a field.
To me this just exposes the fact that we will do everything to remain in comfort and not look at the devastation within our own lives. To that extreme, is the mess we’re in.
I have spent some time with who people call celebrities – and behind closed doors life is very different. There is a deep sadness and need to keep impressing and hold onto a status – why celebrate them any more than a good cleaner, tailor, carpenter who is committed. It is quite scary the society we have created.
It’s an unreal world HM of celebrities keeping up appearances to feed an image hungry society as well as their own inner emptiness.
We could ask the question why do we ‘need’ celebrities! And I would say there has been a demand for them because as a society we can go ‘look this is how we can achieve in the world’. The truth is this is complete illusion and going the complete opposite way to which we should be going. Thank goodness for Serge Benhayon, the Benhayon family and Universal Medicine who are showing us the True Way. And yes I agree to know Serge Benhayon and Universal Medicine is an Absolute Blessing.
“True celebrities are men and women who dedicate their lives to know themselves through their innate love, wisdom and light, not through fame, recognition or glamour.” Absolutely agree with this Michael. It takes true courage, inner strength and a willingness to be completely honest with ourselves to know the truth of who we are. And that is something very real that is worth celebrating.
In my opinion, it does appear completely ridiculous to celebrate the bashing of another – but how is it that this can appear to be so obvious for some people and yet so not obvious to others? Is it really just a question of taste? Or are we perhaps influenced by external factors, energies etc?
Michael – thank you for this blog – I love the twist in it in terms of the presentation of absolute brutality (from the boxing) to an extraordinary gentleness (as lived by Serge Benhayon). The extremes make us realise the ridiculousness of what we live and how much we have allowed ourselves to be distracted from our innate and natural way of being.
Michael, this is a great article. Reading it I can feel how there is so much celebration of sportsmen and women. I notice at my local school that footballers are held as heroes to many children and yet behind the scenes there are players having affairs and getting hurt and having short careers due to injury and yet this is what we celebrate. It feels like there are so many more amazing people to celebrate, who truly contribute to society.
Rebecca great point the whole ‘celebrity’ thing is something that often takes us away from appreciating and feeling the amazingness we are and individuals are, instead looking to be something that the media hold up to be “it” when “it” is most often not “it”.
You are a beautiful example of a true celebrity Michael. What you have exposed here is brilliant and a huge wake up call for many. We are living in a society where billions and billions of people are choosing to celebrate and reward abuse and attack love. This shows me that humanity is very unwell, not just physically but mentally and energetically.
When a large casino (think one of the southern hemisphere’s largest) was looking to be built in the regional town I live in, there was lots of talks about jobs, putting our town on the map, tourism benefits etc…. And some of the benefits I could understand, but I could not get past the fact that it was gambling. And did we really want that energy in our town? Is it truly what is needed for our community? Is it evolving us?
I get the same from reading your blog, yes boxing fans would present that they get benefits from watching these events, meeting these celebrities, but what is actually truly contributing to this world? Is it evolving our human race or de-volving it?
Yes Michael , it is a crazy world we live in. We still like watching people beat each other up – physically and emotionally, we set them up to see them fall and find this entertaining. hence the popularity of ‘reality shows’. This world is not about Love, Brotherhood and uniting humanity – yet.
I agree, Jenny, what is trending on TV is very exposing in terms of what is becoming acceptable and more normal in our society, which is very shocking when you look at the sorts of shows that are very popular. Not just reality TV, but the TV series with violence, abuse and foul, vicious language is becoming more and more extreme. It’s as though watching these shows makes our own lives feel so much ‘better’, which is something for us all to deeply consider.
These are very good points Michael. What exactly are we celebrating when we are enamored by the glamour of a celebrity? It’s good to take a step back and ask ourselves what they actually stand for and what they bring to humanity. When we look at it this way we might find that we see through the glamour and illusion to the truth, which may not be so pretty.
‘If the external is glamorised and made to be everything, then I would suggest that this perpetuates the current plague of self-doubt, lack of self-worth and self-abuse we are all witnessing in large doses in society at the moment.’ I know this is true for me and I see many with similar experiences to myself in that if we are not honoured and nurtured for being the amazing people that we innately are, for our unique, divine qualities that we bring, but we see all the outside achievements celebrated that haven’t come from our connection within and who we are is ignored; then surely this creates a lack of self-worth etc? I know it has for me and many others. As I return to who I am and drop all the attempts to be a success in terms of being good at something, I am starting to appreciate the gold that can be delivered through me. Those that deliver this gold are worth appreciating to the max!
‘Who does and how does one draw the line of distinction between what is acceptable under the guise of consent and what is not?’ I have observed the amount of abuse we consent to (that I have consented to too), which stems from a lack of self-worth or lack of self-regard. I have observed both children and adults consent to abuse because they don’t want to rock the boat or because they want to be liked/fit in. This exposes how little self-regard most of us have, but when we get teachings embedded in our culture that it is selfish to put ourselves first or that we have to put others before ourselves we are not taught to honour our needs or to consider what we would like important, at all.
Yes Michelle the ruse of being liked and polite is probably the most sinister of dishonouring to our bodies and souls that we are taught to be. I work a lot now with autistic children and I love their expression as they are not interested in social niceties which are basically about lying to each other to keep the status quo happening.
The amount of burying that goes on with these social ‘niceties’ is really yuk, isn’t it? The amount of damage we cause by telling ourselves to stay out of it, it’s not our business, putting a veneer over the top with ‘nice’ or ‘polite’ is a very convenient way of not rocking the boat or having to face some uncomfortable truths. Not only does this affect ourselves in the lack of honouring with expression, cementing ideals and beliefs into the body, but the fall out for those we don’t express honestly to/about in everyday situations allowing abuse to be perpetuated either by them or to them continues.
I agree the real heroes of this world are those that responsibly get on with life, no fuss, no look at me, how pretty/handsome ,fast, big or whatever, but achieve, noticed or not worthwhile stuff like breaking consciousnesses on health and diet and lead the way in a truer way of living, leading many people out of their stuck way of living into one that holds great joy.
Spot on Kevin, and true heros are those that often work behind the scenes. Superman was one such hero that just went out and did what he did, and then got on with life at the same time, never seeking an accolade, never seeking to be seen or celebrated as he knew it was just what was needed and he was there to commit to that. Serge Benhayon is another superman, and deep within each of us is a super hero waiting to be fully revealed, not so that we can be paraded around, but so that we can let our true colours shine and get to work at the same time! 😉
Funny to read this as I’d just had a discussion about boxing – in the ring (or with consent, as you say) it’s fair game. If those aren’t the rules, it’s grievous bodily harm. But I guess the bigger question I have is the ‘why’ – people willing to subject themselves to harm or abuse for the recognition by others. We all do it or have done it to some degree, I’ve spent most of my life seeking outside recognition for my achievements, etc. I’m aware of this and am working to remove that aspect of my life – and I do this by recognising that I am enough, that I’m an amazing man just for being me. I’m my own celebrity.
Hahah the next step Nick is to do some selfie recording and play it back to the family on the widescreen after dinner 😉
This is our true way forward Nick, seeing where we have contributed to the greater abuse that we are seeing. We have it inside out, what is worth celebrating is the connection within us.
Sitting in the Swiss Alps would be all the celebration needed, such majesty and grandeur with stillness. How fickle our attention is, how excited we can be by anothers apparent celebrity status, when we are just being swept away from any semblance of truth. It is so easy to do with lots of different celebrities and what we are celebrating sure hasn’t got anything to do with what made the Swiss Alps or us.
It doesn’t really matter what you are doing these days, whether it’s boxing, abusing someone on a TV show, or horribly criticising others on a talent show, so long as you’re on TV you’re a “celebrity”. Once upon a time it was values we celebrated.
It is true that there were times within certain communities where values were, and still are celebrated, however the past should not be glamourised just because the present is so bad. There has been plenty of glorification of evil throughout the ages.
It is pretty sad to see what we do to ourselves under the guise of entertainment.There is little love for self or humanity in most forms of entertainment .
It is Anne and the crazy thing is, this form of entertainment is proud of the fact that we celebrate abuse and not love. This form of entertainment is all for glamour and recognition, there is zero level of love, brotherhood, integrity or equality. How has it become possible that people are willing to accept payment and receive applause for abuse? Our law enforcements are trained to arrest people for any form of crime, to arrest anyone who is causing harm and abuse to another human being. So, it makes me wonder after reading this blog why are we and the laws we’ve set in place not doing anything about the entertainment that displays abuse?
What a joy to read this blog Michael ! I have a lot to do with actors who are celebrities and I often asked the question, what is it, that this profession gets so glorified?! I understand, that it can be quite funny if someone from TV stands in front of you. But why do we put these people on a pedestal and treat them like kings and queens? That represents in fact that we don’t appreciate every single one with what they uniquely bring to society. Imagine we would celebrate and give awards to cleaning ladies or supermarket cashiers? How cool would that be ?!
I love what you suggest here, Stefanie, how would it be if we celebrated the people that take energetic responsibility and do an amazing job at supporting others to be who they truly are. That would also mean no more salary differences between a CEO and the cleaning lady or the road workers. How cool and equal would that be if we can deeply appreciate each of us for our unique qualities?
We glorify actors and actresses, famous singers and sportsmen and women because they are known by many people and that to the human spirit is an achievement. The human spirit craves identity, it thrives on it and therefore being ‘known’ by hundreds or thousands of people is to be ‘identified’/recognised by them. And it doesn’t matter to the human spirit if we’re loved or hated by those people, the fact is they know our name and that for our identity hungry spirit is enough.
I love the questions you raise about celebraties:
‘what are they contributing to society? Are they accelerating our evolution or are they delaying it?
Nothing to celebrate, if what is offered only brings comfort and delay.
Unless comfort and delay are what we want.
And comfort and delay are what pretty much all of us want and choose because otherwise we’d know that we’re the living consciousness of God already, but we don’t, we think that we’re human beings living a human existence on Earth. Our perception of what life is is not only small (minuscule in fact) it’s totally warped.
Amazing I was just pondering this situation re boxing and it being a glorified sport just the other day. My father used to like watching boxing on t.v. and I could never see the point, in fact it quite shocked and saddened me especially as my father seemed such a mild mannered man. My uncle, who by all accounts was very intelligent, watched wrestling. That ‘sport’ also seemed absurd, the fact that people could get pleasure out of seeing others hurt themselves. People pay a lot of money to get a ‘good’ seat at these fights and the participants get paid a lot to hit each other. I recently heard of a particular fighter being trained in the East in energy control which he used to manipulate his opponent. Some will go to no ends to win and be recognised. But why do we continue to recognise these activities as not only acceptable but also entertaining? Time to speak out as you are doing Michael and bring greater awareness to this area.
Wonderful questions aired here. We are constantly creating our world through our choices of what we align to. It is very worthwhile, in fact crucial, to reflect on and ongoingly assess what we choose as worthy of magnifying through our thoughts, words and actions.
Superbly beautiful Michael, thank you. This is a very needed look at what indeed do we celebrate when we celebrate and who and more so for what do we celebrate someone or something. We take the world as it is and try to find our niche in it but to truly change the world to a loving place we need to step back and out of what we deem normal and take a closer look to be able to truly see how very absurd the lives we live have become.
Spot on Doug and well said, ‘It’s a way of distracting ourselves from what we really need to focus on.’
Well said Michael, ‘there is a way to live life without letting life live you’. True celebrities are people we can be inspired to be like, knowing we too are the same, and so we can all be celebrities as each and every single one of us makes a difference when we are being the love that we naturally are. Yet the current celebrities we have are not this and interestingly more and more of the so called superstars in the world are having their private lives being exposed as not being all it is cracked up to be. So whilst they can be ‘great’ in front of an audience at home they are essentially a mess or a car crash waiting to happen.
Thanks Michael, this is great, and gives lots to consider. It makes me think about what we find entertaining and also how there’s not much difference in a way between watching something like ‘university challenge’ and a boxing match – just one is more obviously physically fighting whereas the other is about a mental competition…
Good point Fiona – whenever there is competition, there is always a winner and a loser. Whether it is physical or mental, there are emotions triggered in competition. that energetically affect the body – a momentary peak of elation and the inevitable low or berating and beating oneself up with demeaning thoughts.
What really needs to be considered here is just what we say yes to when we celebrate one who may be living life with slack values. Because such celebration says that it is ok to live life void of values and this then makes it ok for us to “let things slide” in our own lives, to where, before we know it we are living our life void of our own values.
Love this article. Who and what we celebrate is a significant sign of how we live. As this article shares to celebrate violence because it is consensual does not make it right.
Yes it is quite ludicrous to think that people applaud and congratulate people who beat each other up, break each other’s bones and smash each other’s faces to bloodiness, all under the guise of sport.
I agree it is crazy but it is nothing new, we just have to go back to the Roman times with the Gladiators to see that nothing has changed.
It actually shows how blinded we are as humanity- by the label of “sports”, we shut down our own awareness. I presume that many who love to watch boxing don´t even ask themselves or consider the fact that it is actually absolutely unnatural and not making any sense either.
A brilliant sharing and exposing of the harm of much that is celebrated in the world as successful and famous.
“True celebrities are men and women who dedicate their lives to know themselves through their innate love, wisdom and light, not through fame, recognition or glamour.” And Serge Benhayon and his family are certainly truly to be celebrated in every way for their love and dedication to humanity in their every moment and livingness for us all.
Fighting in a ring and watching the so-called sport are both one and the same – one is contributing to the other. If people were not willing to pay, watch and cheer on the fighters there would be nothing to see. So, I suppose it all comes down to supply and demand like everything.
These words are pure Gold – ‘that there is a way to live life without letting life live you. ’ If only we all made this our first priority in life the rot we see in the world today would have no place to exist and circulate.
There are two very different versions of life that can ‘live us’ we can either be lived by the astral version of life, which is a totally false way of living or we can be lived by a soulful way of life which is the truthful way of living but basically we are all being lived by one or other of the two different versions of life because there is no ‘us’ to live life, we are whatever version of life that’s coming through us.
It’s not only with boxing, but with most of the sports that I think: why do we applaud for this? What reflection does this bring to the world? Many professional sports people who are celebrated and get paid loads of money by sponsors live with total disregard for their body. When there is no celebration for the body and an absolute love for the wisdom of our body, then why take a selfie and get all excited about somebody?
There would be no need for a true celebrity to seek celebrity status or even consider themselves as such. But have a natural confidence in the knowing what they bring to life that inspires others.
‘…. if we are a cleaner or serving in McDonalds then we are not worthy contributors to the all as much as perhaps the Rolls-Royce riding rich are.’ – this belief would also be false, as in my experience, it’s those who have the least that often tend to contribute the most in life, without any need for recognition or notoriety, but because they feel the impulse to do so.
Beautifully put, Michael, the sport of knocking another man around till he is senseless is, well, sense-less.
Haha nice wordplay Carmel, and full of truth to boot!
To celebrate comes from the Latin celebrates, which is the past participle of celebrare “assemble to honor.” So, what we celebrate gives it away what is that we choose to honor. Although that is not a domain to preach, it is very healthy to state our minds: If what we choose is to honor those who stand for truth, love and evolution for all, we offer others another point of reference of what is possible and desirable to honor; a way to honor them as well. It is never about us, but about our choices.
I like your reframing of what a celebrity should be – someone to celebrate for the contribution they make to the evolution of society. It’s strange how we lose sight of the facts of what is happening (eg. two people punching each other for the entertainment of others) when it comes to sport. We have created all this glamour around sport to hide the fact of what they are really about.
There is such sense and wisdom in your words Michael, the days of sensationalism/ drama and bloodsports are still with us in may parts of our society .And a good questions ask Why are still people needing to see such acts of violence? When our bloodstained history should have been enough – thank God the ancient wisdom teachings have the explanation and there is another way.
You raise some great points Michael, and yet in many ways at least with something like boxing it is in your face (literally). It is all the nice and good stuff that pretends to be something beneficial but is not at all what it seems to be and is in fact deeply harming that we have to watch out for.
Actually we have to watch out for and call out it ALL – that is all that is not of truth and love and that is a LOT. By calling out it does not mean we need to go around and impose on others, as you say if people want to punch each other that is their choice, but for me it is about being aware of what I am seeing, being clear about what my choices are and not supporting or condoning anything that is loveless.
I love the exposing here of the boxing thing and celebreties… as a kid I never understood why it was ok to punch someone’s lights out in a ring and potentially murder them (as as happened recently in boxing fight), but it is against the law outside the ring… and I always asked myself, how can it be ok to physically hurt someone and call it a sport! I agree with you, Michael that true celebrities are the ones who seek to live life from inner wisdom, who are willing to deal with their stuff and express more love without any need for recognition or glamour.
And the Exposing the fact that with consent in the ring is it so called deemed as ok by society yet in the street or in homes it is abuse. The truth is it is all abuse of an extreme measure yet because it is mixed with sport then we as a humanity have turned a blind eye to this fact and redirect our attention to the moves or technique and do not allow ourselves to see that two members of humanity are taking turns in beating each other to a pulp.
So true Michael we have this illusional way of seeing celebrities, that they are somehow special when in fact the man sweeping the streets and keeping our streets tidy should also be celebrated, he is cleaning up after our disregard and the way we do not care about how we throw our litter away. Unless we stop and look at what we are celebrating in a person we will always see celebrities through rose coloured spectacles and put them on their illusional pedestal.
If we take off the tide coloured glasses and saw them for a quality they lived with we will often see the reality of the fact that celebrities are not doing so well – we would see their need for recognition, their investment in being ‘good or better’ at something, the manner in which they speak or move their bodies, how they do or do not take care (abuse) of themselves and so on.
There are so many gems of wisdom in this blog – this sentence stood out strongly to me this morning – there is a way to live life without letting life live you. Serge Benhayon is the greatest blessing to this planet for reflecting that there is another way to be.
“The Benhayon family, the most ordinary extraordinary group of people, have shown me what deep down I have always known – that there is a way to live life without letting life live you. In other words, we can be in life empowered through our wise and loving choices without being what life wants us to be”.
It is mad how we put all these athletes ,rock stars, film stars on such pedestals when the true hero’s of this world don’t get the same recognition. When we can connect to ourselves we can see how superficial it all is and they are no different than anybody else except maybe further from knowing who they really are.
The sad thing is that by celebrating and applauding them we are supporting them to continue to move further and further from their connection with themselves. If we were to stop our accolades they would be left to feel the emptiness of their lives and then possibly make different choices.
In fact that it is a true blessing for a celebrity, when they are not “wanted” anymore. Why? Because they start to become humble again and feel what is truly going on in their life. If they choose to of course. There are some who never come to inner peace, after the success stays absent- they become these sad puppets of chasing any form of career, no matter what it is. Allowing the emptiness and reason/hurt to be felt why we totally identified ourselves with being a celebrity, getting recognized by the outside and its false produced hierarchy of appreciation, would be the first steps to stop the drive to get the recognition and acceptance from the outside.
Emptiness applauds emptiness, it’s only those who rediscover who they are that choose to stop clapping.
This is a brilliant look at the absurdity of life on planet Earth. Were another being from afar to arrive and look at the mayhem we have not only created but willingly condone by way of our participation, voyeurism or apathy, they would be forgiven for thinking us humans are a brutal lot. But brutality is not our nature. In essence we are exquisitely tender and divine creatures that are all birthed into the world with this quality despite the circumstances we are born into. But due to all that we as humans have created on this plane of life, we have allowed ourselves to be shaped by forces that are not true to the love that we are. Thus we create systems that crush us and forms of entertainment to ‘lift’ us so we can escape (numb ourselves) from such horror. When the horror becomes the entertainment, we know we are truly lost. Our way out of this mess is in these gorgeous words: “that there is a way to live life without letting life live you”. A truly beautiful piece Michael. Thank you for this. You are a true celebrity in the making 🌟
If the blog is a question, this is most definitely the answer. Thank you Liane.
A brilliant distinction well made Michael. I’d never put these words ‘celebrate’ and ‘celebrity’ together, primarily because something we typically do is denegrate these people and rip them apart. This just goes to show that the glamour and hate is the same energy at play – none of which is from the heart.
Great point Joseph. And it also goes to show just how much we have bastardised the true meaning of words through the way we use them.
Yes the tide of affection can swing on a six pence as the old saying goes, todays fashion is tomorrows out of date, the glamour and hate are most definitely from the same coin.
I recently spent a month in India with my partner and son. In certain places we were all asked by random strangers if they could have their photograph taken with us. My sixteen year old son was often surrounded by other young men, who all wanted their photo taken with him. Now, he’s not famous but just the fact that he was a ‘Westerner’ with ‘cool clothes’ was enough to get people thinking that he was in some way ‘special’. No one knew whether or not he was a nice guy and no one cared, he looked good and so posing for photos with him, made others look good. We, as a society have become literally fixated on image and yet the absolute gold of who we all are is on the inside.
How beautifully written Michael – clear, precise, no pushing your opinion onto the reader but simply presenting what you have witnessed and the pondering it brings to you. Nudging us to ponder too.
I agree. An awesome read and consideration.
Ok, so I have never been punched in the face but energetically speaking, I repeatedly punched myself in the face for close to thirty years.
Alexis – what a powerful ‘STOP’ statement this is. It really brings home how destructive we are with abuse on ourselves – no wonder it becomes normal for abuse to carry on throughout life, where harming another is just masked under a label of acceptable ‘good sport’ that basically gives us permission to act out unresolved frustration, anger and hurts, e.g. in a boxing ring, rugby games – anywhere that lovelessness and violence is supported rather than developing awareness of our true and natural way of being of love, harmony and brotherhood.
“So, when I go to celebrate someone, my first question is: what are they contributing to society?” – Excellent question Michael that would certainly change our perception of celebrities and celebrity culture; if responsibility and role modelling were the name of the game, would we aspire to the same individuals and industries?
The people we celebrate and admire are those who go about their lives quietly, not seeking recognition or accolades, but simply living life lovingly and in service to others.
I had a similar insight recently Michael. I spoke to someone who bemoaned the supposedly ‘changed’ rules of rugby preventing a player from forcing, kicking or hurting his opponent and felt this ruined the game. I wondered how a man who would describe himself as a gentle-man, could think this way. I asked myself what’s the difference between a rugby pitch and life? How can you tell your child to respect and be kind one minute and then condone different behaviour once he dons a rugby shirt?. But this is how it is. We live in a world where brutality in the name of sport is condoned.
Kehinde, the question you ask here is really pertinent. It is no wonder there is so much confusion, contraction and withdrawal from our youth when we are sending them such mixed messages, but not consistently living the love we are asking them to connect to and that which they know but is not confirmed.
Bull fighting is highly debated as is fox hunting, it is very curious that boxing is celebrated and not as far as I am aware even really questioned.
That we have something like boxing as a sport and way of entertainment that is consented, promoted, paid for and revered reveals the true extent of how poor and destitute we actually are in self love. A single embrace from when we were a new born that lacks the warmth of love contributes a loveless world.
I have been pondering recently on the falsity when I celebrate another for their achievements. Whether they are children or adults, celebrities or the non-famous, extreme or simple behaviours such as winning a race, they are all one of the same. It has felt very sickly in my tummy, a symptom I have chosen to quickly override and ignore. So it is no coincidence that this blog comes my way to support me in my evolution to question more deeply as to why I fall into celebrating something that is not true and does not support me or anyone but in fact delays and contributes to my ill-behaviours and keeps the ill-momentum alive in society. Thank you Michael for sharing.
What a great question as a title and issue raised in this blog. It clearly does not make sense to champion such people as celebrities when they promote activities which are so harmful.
Great post Michael. “I count myself blessed to know what I consider celebrities to be: real people doing real jobs in such a way that is worthy of celebration – and then some!” Hearing about the private lives of some ‘celebrities’ don’t sound too great. I know many real people- who deserve to be celebrated – who live lives of service and who have integrity in both their work and home life equally so.
We need to ask and discuss this topic of consent
“Who does and how does one draw the line of distinction between what is acceptable under the guise of consent and what is not?”
I was told recently that there are now extremely violent pornographic films that are being made and can be watched on a membership web site. At the end of the film the woman says she gave consent to the content of the film. Some of the women are now coming out to say that they were not fully informed of what did take place they were falsely coerced. My question to society is where have we gone so wrong that we now find making and or viewing such violence against women acceptable on any level? To me it shows me a society that is deeply sick to its very core.
The mind boggles with the things that we as a humanity find important enough to celebrate, even the cruellest of acts are celebrated – fighting in a ring and beating another senseless brings in the crowds and the money. How is it that this is celebrated and televised all over the world as being a ‘good thing’ and have we learnt nothing from the cruelty of our past.
Maybe it is “good” but it is certainly not “true good”. The way we use good these days same as the way we use love is very, very far from the true energetic meaning. These days we have so bastardised words that we have to add the word “true” before any word to distinguish it from the common usage which is the opposite of what that word means. This enormous harm continues to be exposed on Unimedpedia: http://www.unimedliving.com/unimedpedia
Brilliant in-sight into this messed up world of ours Michael. You expose so clearly the ridiculousness of the boxing match and the beating up the two opponents suffer, willingly so. It may be seen by many to be sport but to me it is simply abuse. These are not in anyway true celebrities just people seeking empty recognition. “True celebrities are men and women who dedicate their lives to know themselves through their innate love, wisdom and light, not through fame, recognition or glamour”.
Yesterday I watched an MMA fight with my son. The fight was over in 40 seconds as the ‘victor’ managed to get his opponent on the ground and then once down was able to punch him in the head with such repeated force that the fight was stopped. The crowd loved it. I however felt absolutely sickened that we have got to such a point that we pay a lot of money to watch people inflicting such violence on a fellow brother and call it sport.
Much of fame and celebrity is confused with money and especially in the world of sport where gambling adds to the status and pressure to win at all costs. True cause to celebrate those who offer love and harmony to the world is priceless.
There is a joke that is not that far from the truth about going to a fight and a hockey game broke out. It is just the Colosseum on ice. All of your listed issues in the world have become normal and we have become numb to the carnage that exists and we are all complicit by pretending it doesn’t affect us. There is a light at the end of the tunnel, we just choose to walk the other way.
Love it Michael. I can feel your love of humanity in this and how your love for others has offered you the insight to seeing the utter falsities in life. Love is the only way to heal corruption and lies.
This is very true, thank you Joshua.
Yes the celebration of one person beating up another person is already an indication of a society that has lost its way because what is the true enjoyment in two people harming each other?
We don’t need to touch each other to harm one another, we are harming each other all of the time by not being who we are in truth.
True Alexis, although let’s tackle one fish at a time 😉