Muhammad Ali

Boxer, philanthropist, and social activist Muhammad Ali was born Cassius Marcellus Clay, Jr. on January 17, 1942, in Louisville, Kentucky. He turned 70 this week.

We are all familiar with Ali's remarkable boxing history: He was loud, humorous, colorful, oftentimes obnoxious, but always loveable – and he was amazingly talented in the ring. He won the Olympic gold medal in 1960 and went on to become the heavyweight boxing champion of the world in 1964.

In 1967 the U.S. Department of Justice pursued a legal case against Ali, denying his claim for conscientious objector status. When he was found guilty of refusing to be inducted into the military, the boxing association took away his title and suspended him from the sport for three and a half years. After returning to boxing, Ali regained the title in 1974 by defeating George Foreman. He retired from boxing in 1981, and announced that he has Parkinson's disease, a degenerative neurological condition, in 1984.

In his retirement, Ali has devoted much of his time to philanthropy. Over the years, Ali has supported the Special Olympics and the Make a Wish Foundation among other organizations.

Of note:

• In 1998, Ali was chosen to be a United Nations Messenger of Peace because of his work in developing countries.
• In 2005, Ali received the Presidential Medal of Freedom from President George W. Bush.
• In 2009, Ali received the President's Award from the NAACP for his public service efforts.

Ali continues to live his live according to six core values: respect, confidence, conviction, dedication, giving, and spirituality.

His legacy lives on several organizations, including: The Muhammad Ali Institute at the University of Louisville, which exists to advance the work, study and practice of peacemaking, social justice and violence prevention through the development of innovative educational programs, training, service and research; and the Muhammad Ali Parkinson Center at Barrow Neurological Institute, which provides diagnostic and treatment services, research, and education for those whose lives have been touched by Parkinson’s disease.

My favorite Ali quote? When asked by David Frost how he would like to be remembered, Ali responded,

“I'd like for them to say he took a few cups of love, he took one tablespoon of patience, one tablespoon or teaspoon of generosity, one pint of kindness. He took one quart of laughter, one pinch of concern, and then, he mixed willingness with happiness. He added lots of faith, and he stirred it up well. Then he spread it over his span of a lifetime, and he served it to each and every deserving person he met.”

Sources:


http://www.biography.com/people/muhammad-ali-9181165

http://www.alicenter.org/Pages/default.aspx

Thich Nhat Hanh

Peacemaker, monk, scholar, and master teacher

Thich Nhat Hanh, or Thay (teacher in Vietnamese), as his friends and students call him, is a world-renowned writer, spiritual leader, scholar, poet, peace activist, and Buddhist monk. He was born in Vietnam in 1926 and became a monk at the age of sixteen. After founding a Buddhist learning center in South Vietnam, he came to America in the 1960s to study and teach. However, during the Vietnam War, he returned to his homeland and become a pioneer of "engaged Buddhism," which melds meditative practices with active nonviolent civil disobedience. He founded a peace magazine, worked unstintingly for reconciliation between North and South Vietnam, lobbied world leaders to put an end to the conflict, set up relief organizations to rebuild destroyed villages, and started the School of Youth for Social Service. These incredible good works inspired Martin Luther King, Jr., to nominate him for the Nobel Peace Prize in 1967.

When he was 40, Thich Nhat Hanh was banned from Vietnam by both the non-Communist and Communist governments for his role in undermining the war effort and speaking out against the violence that was destroying the lives and liberties of his people. Into the 1970s, he was still involved with rescue missions for Vietnamese trying to escape political oppression. He led a Buddhist delegation to the Paris peace talks that helped establish a new relationship between Vietnam and the United States. In 1982, he founded Plum Village in southwestern France, a Buddhist retreat center and monastic community where he teaches the art of mindful living. Since then he has conducted retreats around the world for American Vietnam War veterans, psychotherapists, artists, environmental activists, and children. He also teaches, writes, gardens, and works to help refugees worldwide at Green Mountain Dharma Center in Vermont and Deer Park Monastery in Escondido, California.

Source: http://www.spiritualityandpractice.com/

Why Thich Nhat Hanh inspires me:

There is a simple elegance to the spiritual teachings of Thich Nhat Hanh that shines through every one of his books. He gracefully conveys the beauty of essential Buddhist teachings. He is a master of the art of mindful living and staying in the present moment. His practice of engaged Buddhism has led to the transformation of many people’s consciousness, and his writings on dealing with anger and violence are very concrete, recommending specific practices to undertake in our families and communities. Another of his core teachings — being peace in this conflicted world — has led many to new respect for their enemies and a firmer resolve to bring about reconciliation in our tattered world.

Our practice of everyday spirituality has been enriched by the use of Thich Nhat Hanh's gathas — mindfulness verses said during daily activities, such as when opening a window, brushing your teeth, hearing a bell, washing the dishes, and throwing out the garbage. Thousands have followed his instructions for walking meditation and found it a way of connecting to the Earth and their neighbors. Thich Nhat Hanh speaks to people of all religious backgrounds and has been a bridge builder in interfaith encounters.

Greg Mortenson

Founder and Executive Director, Central Asia Institute
Founder, Pennies For Peace
Co-author, Three Cups of Tea

Greg Mortenson grew up on the slopes of Mt. Kilimanjaro, Tanzania from 1958 to 1973. His father, Irvin, established a hospital, Kilimanjaro Christian Medical Center, and his mother Jerene, founded the Moshi International School.

Mortenson served as a medic in the U.S. Army in Germany during the Cold War, where he received the Army Commendation Medal, and later graduated from the University of South Dakota in 1983.

His lifelong interest in mountaineering culminated in a 1993 climb of Pakistan’s treacherous K2, the world’s second highest mountain, which changed his life. Since then, Mortenson has dedicated his life as a humanitarian devoted to promote education, especially for girls, in remote, often volatile regions of Pakistan and Afghanistan.

By 2007, he has established over 58 schools through his nonprofit, Central Asia Institute, which provides education to over 24,000 children (about 14,000 girls), in areas where children previously had few education opportunities.

Mortenson is a living hero to rural communities of Afghanistan and Pakistan, where he has gained the trust of Islamic leaders, elders, commanders and tribal chiefs for his tireless effort to champion education, especially for girls. He is one of few foreigners who has worked extensively (over 60 months) in the region considered the front lines of the war on terror.

In 1996, he survived an eight day armed kidnapping in the tribal areas of Pakistan, and escaped a 2003 firefight by feuding Afghan warlords, by hiding in a truck under putrid animal hides going to a leather-tanning factory. He has also received two fatwehs from Islamic clerics for his efforts to educate females, which was rescinded by the Shariat Islamic court, and received hate mail and death threats from his fellow Americans after 9/11 for his efforts to help Muslim children with education.

His cross-cultural expertise has brought him to speak on Capital Hill, D.C. think tanks, the Pentagon, Dept. of Defense, outdoor groups, universities, schools, churches, mosques, synagogues, business and civic groups, women's organizations all across America.

Mortenson’s biography and New York Times best-seller, “Three Cups of Tea: One Man’s Mission To Promote Peace…One School At A Time”, Greg Mortenson & David Oliver Relin, Penguin 2007, was selected by TIMES Magazine as a 2006 Asia book of the Year and chosen as a 2006 Pacific Northwest Bookseller’s Association ‘Book of The Year’

While not overseas half the year, Mortenson, 49, lives in Montana with his wife, Dr. Tara Bishop, and two young children.

Source: http://threecupsoftea.com/

Why Greg Mortenson Inspires Me:
I am amazed at Mr. Mortenson's ability to make changes where many thought change was impossible. He continues to stick his neck out and take personal risk to educate, inform, and accomplish incredible things, and he does it by connecting with the humanity in other people. As a result of learning about Mr. Mortenson and his work through his book and websites, I have come to realize the value of education, and that educating ourselves and helping (educating) our "enemies" might be one of the greatest forms of self-defense imaginable!