F.R.I.E.N.D.S.

In most dictionaries friend is defined as "one who is understanding, caring, and shows concerns for others.". A question to ask one's self is what are the qualities every friend should have. I have had many good friends in my life and i think i know at least 10 qualities every friends should have. Friends are very important to me because friends come right after family. You should not be someone's friend because you need them and leave them when you don't. Friends are there for you at all times as you should be there for them at all times. So friends are reliable, thats one of the qualities i think friends should have. Another important thing is that you can tell him or her anything and they can do the same, so friends should be trustworthy.

Thirdly, i think you should feel comfortable and appreciated as who you are when you are around friends, and that you should never try to be someone else to please them. Therefore i think that friends should like you for who you are and not what you have. Another quality is think a friend should have is respect. This is very important because you have a relationship with him or her, and if there is no respect you can not be at ease around that person. I think that friends should care about each other, because like i said, friends come right after family, and a friend should care, because it is the least you can do when you've been in a friend relationship with someone. A friend should also be able to listen to you, even though he might not necessarily agree with what you say. A friend must always lend an ear when he is there. Another quality every friend should have is loyalty. It is very important in friendship. You have to stick by them, even when they aren't at their best. And congratulate them when they are. Honesty is another important quality every friend should have. You should be able to tell the truth to your friends without hurting their feelings. Some say it helps to be tactful but not many people would want someone to lie to them even to spare their feelings. Another important quality all friends should have is sharing similar interests. It makes things much easier because there's always something to talk about and conversations are much more interesting for both people. Even though many say diversity spices things up, i think that similar interests is probably what initiates most friendships. A friend who is nice is a very important quality that all friends should have. Because friends should help build your self-esteem through kindness and encouragement while it's the enemy's role to take that away. And no one likes to be a friend with someone who is mean and who will treat them like dirt.

How to Recognize a True Friend

Is the Person Who Says They Are Your Friend Really a Friend?

Proverbs 18:24 says, "A man that hath friends must show himself friendly: and there is a friend that sticketh closer than a brother."

Over the course of our lives, we run into an untold amount of people. Some people boast of the number of friends they have, wearing the number like a prized badge on their clothing. But what is a friend really?

A friend isn't someone that we just put a name to a face and know a few details about. That's an acquaintance, someone that we know of, but we don't really know. It's important to clarify the difference in a friend and an acquaintance because the two are very different. To have an acquaintance turn into a friend would be wonderful. But to have a friend become only an acquaintance would be a heartbreaking loss.

So how do we know who is a friend? How do we recognize them? How does a friend stand out from the throng of people that call themselves our friend, but yet really have no clue as to what a friend really is?

Friends aren't clones of each other. They disagree on things. They don't always see eye to eye on issues. They might have different religious beliefs. They might be years apart in age or they might be the same age. They might come from totally different backgrounds or lifestyles. So what binds them together in such a way that they become friends?

Someone who is a friend puts their friend first. They don't consider themselves when caring for their friend. They think of the welfare and well being of their friend above their own needs. A friend listens and they encourage their friend to talk if they want to talk, and they are just there when no words are said or needed. They give new meaning to caring, because they don't talk about caring for someone, they show it and practice it.

A friend doesn't remind their friend of their past or how many times they failed and messed up. A friend reminds their friend that they are special and that they are loved, as they are, even when the friend doesn't feel so loved or special. A friend doesn't judge their friend, but neither do they tell them a wrong is right or okay. And most of all, a friend often knows their friend as well or better than the friend knows themselves.

7 Tips for Meditation

Through meditation we can bring about greater peace of mind and powers of concentration. The length of time we meditate is not as important as the focus we give during our meditation. If we can meditate with a silent mind for 5 minutes we can bring to the fore our own divine qualities of inner peace and inner happiness. This is an inner joy independent of any outer success or outer prosperity.

When offering meditation classes for the Sri Chinmoy Centre. I offer these 7 tips which will help us to meditate more successfully.

1. Quite The Mind

The Goal of meditation is to go beyond the mind. Meditation cannot be done by thinking. All the different paths of meditation share this common feature of cultivating a silent mind. When our mind is silent we can start to enter a new consciousness, a consciousness not limited by the intellectual mind. With a quiet mind we will experience peace
"I meditateSo that I can inundate My entire being With the omnipotent Power of peace."

2. Concentration

In whatever we do,we will be more successful if we can concentrate fully on the task in hand. This means being single pointed. When we meditate we need to switch off from everything else and put all our attention onto the meditation.

3. Place to Meditate

It is very helpful to find a Quiet Place to meditate every day. I have a small corner of my room specially set aside for meditation. You can use a picture of a saint or Teacher who inspires you. Or just use flowers and a candle. If you meditate in the same place every day it builds up a meditative atmosphere.

4. Aspiration

Aspiration to meditate. If we are hungry then we are eat. It is the same with meditation if we are not satisfied with what we have and would like to discover the inner peace within ourselves then we will be motivated to meditate every day. This aspiration or inner cry is perhaps more important than learning many techniques.

5. Perseverance and Patience

In the beginning we cannot expect results overnight, each time we meditate we are adding to our capacity's even if we don't have great experiences then we need to persevere. If we practise sincerely we will progress.

6. Use the Qualities of the Spiritual Heart

The heart is the location of the soul. If we focus on the heart, immediately our thoughts have less power. By concentrating on our heart we can enter into the vastness of meditation.

7. Cultivate Happiness

It is important to bear in mind the goal of meditation is to uplift our consciousness and have a more positive outlook about life and about ourselves. When we meditate well we will have a positive outlook on life.