Illuminatiam - Illuminations: Wisdom From This Planet’s Greatest Minds

ILLUMINATIONS: Wisdom From This Planet's Greatest Minds

Digital Edition

Copyright 2016 Illuminatiam

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First Edition: February 2016

First Digital Edition: May 2016

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Introduction

Wisdom is a key to wealth, health, and happiness.

More valuable than knowledge, wisdom is gained by learning from the past to find solutions in the present.

Illuminations is a compass for all who seek lives of greatness.

By examining the words of presidents, queens, moguls, and thought leaders, any person can begin to bridge the gap between where they are and where they are meant to be.

Read the Illuminations in order or choose any page.

Browse the " and more.

Reflect on the Illuminations often.

They have been chosen carefully and contain many meanings. Spend time thinking about each Illumination and ways you can apply its insights to your life.

Power & Leadership

"A crown, golden in show, is but a wreath of thorns."

John Milton

Do you desire to be a leader, or are you merely a seeker of the power and privileges that leaders receive? The people may see their king on a throne and wonder why one human is allowed to reign above another believing that they are deserving of a life they believe to be easy.

But when war comes to their gates, will they have the courage to decide whose children must be sent to fight and die, and whose will stay and live? When the crown of a prince's father and grandfather adorns his head, will he be able to defend their people? When you answer to no one, no one answers your cries for help.

It is easy to strive for the benefits of power while overlooking their great responsibilities. If you are meant to be a leader, seek wisdom over riches. Those with power and no wisdom often lose it; those with wisdom and no power often gain it.

"A leader is one who knows the way, goes the way, and shows the way."

John Maxwell

Leaders enjoy the privileges of wealth and power and prestige, but also must bear the burden of responsibilities that followers can never understand. The leader has no one to follow no one to say which way to go and which path to avoid. They must forge ahead with certainty, calculating every possible outcome to ensure the safety of those who walk behind them.

The lives of millions rest in a leader's hands. Are you prepared to lead when times are hard and others look to you for direction? Are you certain that you will point them the right way?

"A man who wants to lead the orchestra must turn his back on the crowd."

Max Lucado

A leader cannot lead and follow at the same time. Followers seek riches and glory for their own satisfaction, focusing on their own desires rather than the needs of the people around them. Leaders look beyond the trappings of personal gain, knowing that their decisions affect the lives of all who look to them for guidance and direction.

True leaders give little attention to the shallow material pleasures that surround their palaces and offices: gold and silks are merely decorum to prove the prosperity of the people they represent. Followers seek glory and riches without the responsibility they carry. If you wish to lead, first you must cease to follow.

"If you want to see the true measure of a man, watch how he treats his inferiors, not his equals."

J.K. Rowling

The soul of every human is equal but their bodies are never the same. Some are born rich while others are born poor; some are strong while others are weak. Equality is a mythical goal striving for it is honorable but attaining it is impossible. Some will always be superior to others. Even the weak are stronger than the dead.

However, it is the duty of every human to treat each other as if all are at the same level, for every person has the opportunity to become greater. Those who are weak now can become stronger in time. Every person regardless of their current stature or prestige should be treated in a manner befitting their potential. The podium of judgment that looks down upon the weak is a pedestal that is easily toppled.

Lions don't lose sleep over the opinions of sheep.

The life of a sheep is easier than the life of a lion. Sheep are given food and water freely by their shepherd, and are protected from predators by shelters they did not build.

But these comforts bind the sheep into slavery. The sheep are bred to be weaker of mind and body, to require the shepherd's protection so greatly that they can be free of physical chains but never stray. Theirs is a lifetime of servitude one that is comfortable but ends at the shepherd's whim.

Lions have no masters. Though the lion must hunt for its own food and search for its own shelter, it is free to roam where it wishes and requires no one to open its gate. Though the feeding trough of the sheep is filled, it is only with the grass and grain of its master's choosing. A lion must hunt and chase its meals, but feasts on anything it catches.

Wealth and power never come to those who simply wait for them to arrive.