Do we live in a friendly or unfriendly universe? No less a mind than Albert Einstein once said this is the most important question we as humans can ask our selves. Hi, and welcome to 99* Ways To Be Kind. I believe overwhelmingly that we live in a friendly universe, but I recognize that people, events, and circumstances are not always so. I suspect if you purchased this book you believe the same as I, or you’re at least leaning in that direction. The 99* Ways To Be Kind you read here are not necessarily original groundbreaking deeds from the mind of an avatar who’s been sent here to show you an enlightened path, and I don’t view myself as writer, as much as I do a collector of kindnesses and good ideas, which can b e strung together as ways to improve your little corner of the world.
Kindness and goodness have been a passion of mine for many years, ever since I heard a lecture where Dr. Wayne Dyer spoke of kindness as being so positive for the human soul, that even witnessing a kind act was enough to change human chemistry and increase your antibodies. Think of how amazing that is. Intuitively, we know performing a kindness with no expectation of reciprocity makes you feel good, and when a kindness is shown to you, there’s a tendency to experience a nice feeling in your soul, but imagine the possibili-
ties where an act of goodness is spread in perpetuity to all who witness it, spreading good health as a byproduct. If you could do that, it would make you more resistant to illness and poor health. Kindness truly is a win-win-win action. This was even confirmed when Harvard University did a study where people watched a video of Mother Theresa helping poor people in Calcutta. After seeing it, the viewer’s immune systems kicked in immediately in measurable amounts. The researchers actually call it “The Mother Teresa Effect”.
Allan Luks and Peggy Payne write about this “Helpers High” in great detail in their book, “The Healing Power of Doing Good”, where the majority of over 3000 volunteers reported feeling happier and more energetic after volunteering, a feeling that was similar to runners high. The 3000 went on to say they experienced long-term benefits as well, since the deeds were an antidote to stress, chronic pain and insomnia.
99* Ways To Be Kind is not meant to be a checklist and if you perform 99 kind acts you didn’t satisfy a karmic contract, which now allows you to act like a complete jerk. Most of you will find these ways are things you already do, but weren’t aware of the positive impact they have on other people and your own soul’s nourishment. This book will help you see them and yourself in a new light. When you begin to act and see yourself as a kind person, you will notice a personal transformation where people will respond with more kindness toward you and the list of good and positive things will grow in your life, as befits a person who’s truly kind. Certainly I hope you read and gain some new ideas for displaying kindness in your everyday
lives, but its true meaning is to jog your awareness and see the multiple opportunities and environments there are to display kindness, and how many people in different walks of life can be effected in a positive way.
99* Ways To Be Kind describes different acts and many ways to spread goodness. Some will cost you money, some will cost you time as a volunteer, others ask you to think about another’s needs and feelings, while others specify thinking about yourself and your intrinsic value to the world, but whatever the cost, the emotional “Return On Investment” is staggering. You’ll feel better, others will feel better, and the world can be made a better place. None of this is new however.
When Jesus spoke to his followers about doing for the “least of your brothers”, he was speaking about basic kindness. Judaism describes Chesed. Also translated as Loving-Kindness, it’s central to Jewish ethics and theology and even viewed as the name of God by Kabbalists. When The Buddha gave his followers the Ten Perfections, Loving Kindness was number nine, although I would make an impassioned plea that his number one perfection, Generosity could not be accomplished with out a kind and loving soul first. Islam speaks of
kindness thusly, “The greatest goal of Islam is to extend kindness to self and to the creatures. It is this goal that determines the position of one before Allah in this world and the hereafter.”
What’s the common bond then between four of the worlds most adhered to religions? They were all describing kindness. Saints of all faiths and artists who are able to tap into the creative flow of the universe have always known this, but now its time for you and I to become more aware and practice the “Random Acts of Kindness and Senseless Acts of Beauty” and make the universe we live in a truly friendly place.
99* Ways To Be Kind 