my 10 favorites in the 48 laws of power

• Law 1 Never outshine the master.
• Law 2 Never put too much trust in friends; learn how to use enemies.
• Law 3 Conceal your intentions.
• Law 4 Always say less than necessary.
• Law 5 So much depends on reputation. Guard it with your life.
• Law 6 Court attention at all costs.
• Law 7 Get others to do the work for you, but always take the credit.
• Law 8 Make other people come to you; use bait if necessary.
• Law 9 Win through your actions, never through argument.
• Law 10 Infection: avoid the unhappy and unlucky.
• Law 11 Learn to keep people dependent on you.
• Law 12 Use selective honesty and generosity to disarm your victim.
• Law 13 When asking for help, appeal to people's self-interests, never to their mercy or gratitude.
• Law 14 Pose as a friend, work as a spy.
• Law 15 Crush your enemy totally.
• Law 16 Use absence to increase respect and honor.
• Law 17 Keep others in suspended terror: cultivate an air of unpredictability.
• Law 18 Do not build fortresses to protect yourself. Isolation is dangerous.
• Law 19 Know who you're dealing with; do not offend the wrong person.
• Law 20 Do not commit to anyone.
• Law 21 Play a sucker to catch a sucker: play dumber than your mark.
• Law 22 Use the surrender tactic: transform weakness into power.
• Law 23 Concentrate your forces.
• Law 24 Play the perfect courtier.
• Law 25 Re-create yourself.
• Law 26 Keep your hands clean.
• Law 27 Play on people's need to believe to create a cultlike following.
• Law 28 Enter action with boldness.
• Law 29 Plan all the way to the end.
• Law 30 Make your accomplishments seem effortless.
• Law 31 Control the options: get others to play with the cards you deal.
• Law 32 Play to people's fantasies.
• Law 33 Discover each man's thumbscrew.
• Law 34 Be royal in your fashion: act like a king to be treated like one.
• Law 35 Master the art of timing.
• Law 36 Disdain things you cannot have: Ignoring them is the best revenge.
• Law 37 Create compelling spectacles.
• Law 38 Think as you like but behave like others.
• Law 39 Stir up waters to catch fish.
• Law 40 Despise the free lunch.
• Law 41 Avoid stepping into a great man's shoes.
• Law 42 Strike the shepherd and the sheep will scatter.
• Law 43 Work on the hearts and minds of others.
• Law 44 Disarm and infuriate with the mirror effect.
• Law 45 Preach the need for change, but never reform too much at once.
• Law 46 Never appear perfect.
• Law 47 Do not go past the mark you aimed for; in victory, learn when to stop.
• Law 48 Assume formlessness.

*WIKI: The 48 Laws of Power is a 1998 book by Robert Greene.
The book shares thematic elements with Niccolò Machiavelli's The Prince
and has been compared to Sun-Tzu's classic treatise The Art of War.

i told you so, the commandments hold

since sis hanie started her course in shariah, she also (has) started asking me questions about the islam faith. i told her it's not really different from catholic or christian faith, it has it's basic wisdom from believing in one God and loving our fellowmen. up to the present, the famous ten commandents (Moses time) is being posted (sometimes unnoticed) in churches, schools and parks - reminding us of our guide in our dealings. i say, it still holds strong as a guide and basically it's also taught (can be found) in the Qur'an (the holy book of Islam).

to support my statement, i consulted ever-dependable friend 'wiki' (you know what i mean) and it has this to say: 'In Islam Moses (Musa) is venerated as one of the greatest prophets of God. However, Islam also teaches that the texts of the Torah and the Gospels have been corrupted from their divine originals over the years, due to carelessness and self-interest. Despite this purported corruption, messages from the Torah and the Gospels still coincide closely with certain verses in the Qur'an. This is by-and-large the case with the Ten Commandments.'

hence, despite the Ten Commandments not being explicitly mentioned in the Qur'an they are somewhat similar in substance to the following verses in the Qur'an (i took the liberty of placing the christian's version- just in case of reader's memory gap) :

"I am the LORD your God who brought you out of the land of Egypt, from the house of slavery. You shall have no other gods before Me..." "There is no other god beside God." (Qur'an 47:19)

"Do not make an image or any likeness of what is in the heavens above..." "My Lord, make this a peaceful land, and protect me and my children from worshiping idols." (Qur'an 14:35)

"Do not swear falsely by the name of the LORD..." "And make not Allah's (name) an excuse in your oaths against doing good, or acting rightly, or making peace between persons; for Allah is One Who heareth and knoweth all things." (Qur'an 2:224) 

"Remember [zachor] the Sabbath day and keep it holy" (the version in Deuteronomy reads shamor, "observe") "O you who believe, when the Congregational Prayer (Salat Al-Jumu`ah) is announced on Friday, you shall hasten to the commemoration of GOD, and drop all business." (Qur'an 62:9)

"Honor your father and your mother..." "....and your parents shall be honoured. As long as one or both of them live, you shall never (even) say to them, "Uff" (the slightest gesture of annoyance), nor shall you shout at them; you shall treat them amicably." (Qur'an 17:23)

"Do not murder""....anyone who murders any person who had not committed murder or horrendous crimes, it shall be as if he murdered all the people." (Qur'an 5:32)

"Do not commit adultery." "You shall not commit adultery; it is a gross sin, and an evil behaviour." (Qur'an 17:32)

"Do not steal." "They shall not steal." (Al-Mumtahanah 60: 12) and "The thief, male or female, you shall cut off their hands as a punishment for their crime, and to serve as an example from God. God is Almighty, Most Wise." (Qur'an 5:38)

"Do not bear false witness against your neighbor""Do not withhold any testimony by concealing what you had witnessed. Anyone who withholds a testimony is sinful at heart." (Qur'an 2:283)

'Do not covet your neighbor's house; your neighbor's wife, nor his male servant, nor his female servant, nor his ox, nor his donkey, nor anything that is your neighbor's.'  "And do not covet what we bestowed upon any other people. Such are temporary ornaments of this life, whereby we put them to the test. What your Lord provides for you is far better, and everlasting." (Qur'an 20:131)

so there it is. i need not say more. not for now, at the least. i may not be able to answer all questions about the islam faith (i'm just an explorer), but at least i know a little and am willing to know more. and yes,  it's not really different from catholic or christian faith, it has it's basic wisdom from believing in one God and loving our fellowmen. for one, i think, that matters a lot. the famous ten commandents posted in churches, schools and parks - is there to remind us of our ways. may heavens give us enough strength...

10 commandments (for wives only)

oh here it is. with just few hours of my dear friends reading the 10 commandments for husbands, they couldn't wait to see the 'for wives' version. i wondered for a while why. and the thought gave me the cute kind of creeps...

[sakura's thought: husband and wife having a cold war, [meaning-no talking, only the usual piercing looks then] suddenly the wife raises her fingers to a specific number, referring to the commandment, and the husband retracts by raising his fingers to a specific number too, in her face... oh well, if this is the case, they might end up still not talking but giving each other 'cozies'. yes, i love happy endings!]


10 COMMANDMENTS FOR WIVES
(i didn't include the one-line ticklers here 'coz the commandment says it all. girlfriends, you don't need further discussions right?)

1. be proud you're a woman (thou shalt honor thy own womanhood that thy days may be long in the house which thy husbands provide for thee).

2. live on your budget (thou shalt not expect thy husband to give thee as many things as thy father hath given thee after many years of hardwork and economies).

3. keep a sense of humor in your marriage (thou shalt not forget the virtue of good humor, for verily, all that a man hath will he give for a woman's smile).

4. don't nag! (thou shalt not nag!)). - yes dears, it came with an exclamation point

5. pamper your husband (thou shalt please thy husband for verily, every man loveth to be fussedover).

6. keep hubby first! (remember that the frank approval of thy husband is worth more to thee than the sidelong glances of many strangers).

7. keep yourself attractive (thou shalt not forget the grace of cleanliness and neat dress). - oh yeah, 'coz we spent much time in making ourselves so attractive to them so many years ago...

8. keep faith with your husband (thou shalt not permit anyone to assure thee that thou art having a hard time of it). - me violating my non-quoting of any-one-line rule: don't allow yourself the indulgence of dwelling on the faults or failures of your mate...

9. make your house a home (thou shalt keep thy home with all diligence, for out of it cometh the joys of old age).

10. trust in the lord (thou shalt commit thy ways unto the lord thy god, and the children shall rise up and call thee blessed).

10 Rules [Good Christian Married Life]

10 Commandments 

for a Good Christian Married Life 

1. You must be and become the RIGHT person

rather than expecting your spouse 

to be come the RIGHT person.

2. GIVE and TAKE is a necessity.

Let LOVE cover the disagreements 

which will come in any marriage.

3. Never carry into tomorrow the petty troubles of today. 

Forgive at the earliest or at least by the end of the day, 

and then forget.

4. Discuss your disagreements

and personal problems with the LORD. 

Go to HIM for the advice you need. 

Always take Godly counsel when in need.

5. Try to live within your financial means. 

Don't try to copy the life style of some other couple; 

keep within your income. 

And be sure to set aside the tithe for the Lord's work.

6. Keep your love as romantic as possible.

Appreciate each other. 

Express that appreciation in actual love 

and affection in the home. 

7. NEVER, NEVER, NEVER think of divorce

as a solution for your marriage problems. 

You took your vows "until death do us part." 

Divorce never settles anything.

8. Keep your eyes on the person you have married, 

and don't bother looking around for someone else. 

Wandering eyes benefit no marriage. 

It opens the door for the enemy 

to work out his scheme in your marriage.

9. Read God's Word 

and pray together every day. 

To pray together is to stay together.

10. Let Christ shed the love of God in your heart, 
and 
you will be sure to have love for each other

source: 

http://www.godlywoman.co/2012/07/10-commandments-for-good-christian.html