Claymore (クレイモア Kureimoa) OST

I watched this anime series a couple of days ago but I am still entranced by the stellar soundtrack.

Here are some of my favorite tunes (musical compositions by Masanori Takumi):


Dominant instrument - bagpipes
Mood - exuberant overall (but tinged with some melancholy and somber elements)



Dominant instrument - flute
Mood - hopeful



Dominant instrument - flute
Mood - peaceful and calming



Dominant instrument - synth sound coupled with a female voice
Mood - foreboding and ominous



Dominant instrument - drums and ominous female chanting
Mood - mysterious and foreboding



Dominant instrument - xylophone
Mood - pensive and sentimental



FYI: Claymore is the name of Scottish swords (from the Scottish Gaelic claidheamh mòr, "great sword") by the Scottish Highlanders. In the eponymous anime, the half-Youma, half-human individuals enlisted to to dispatch "Youmas" or demons are called "Claymores" for the very swords that they wield.

The American Spirit

I was talking to C.S. last night online and it brought to light again the true state of affairs in this beloved nation I inhabit.

High school civics courses would have you believe the core espiritus de America would be liberty, equality, fraternity, and the pursuit of happiness.  Bullshit.  The driving force behind the American dream is greed.  We should change our bills from "One Nation Under God" to "One Nation Under Mammon." If you don't believe me, then just go to Rodeo Drive, or the Hollywood Hills in L.A. or Wall Street or 5th Avenue or better yet the Upper East Side in NYC.

Why else would hard-working middle class citizens indulge and tolerate all the inequalities and injustices inflicted upon the middle class and poor.  It's because they cling to the vain hope of striking it rich themselves so that they can one day turn the tables on their fellow man.  It's a pathetic part of human nature to want to get revenge, so to say, once they get on top.  It's the mentality behind hazing and why it continues unabated even now at college fraternities.  Freshman endure humiliating even harmful hazing practices with the hope of one day being able to inflict this same misery and depravity on another, once they've "done their time."

When I was in U.S. Government class and we were learning about "N.I.N.A." (No Irish Need Apply) and other discriminatory practices acted towards early immigrants, a classmate stated matter-of-factly that it is just the way it is in America.  He said every new immigrant group needs to be hazed in the U.S. for a period of several years to several decades or more before they can and will be accepted in this great country.  He made it seem like it was perfectly sensible and since every immigrant has been ostracized and abused in the past, this American tradition should continue even now into the gleaming future.  A pay your dues and then gloat and repay the favor attitude.

Well, back to the topic at hand.  At the time I had blithely told C.S. that every nation on Earth is motivated by greed.  Money talks, no matter where you are, for capitalism has penetrated every corner on Earth, even the last bastions of communism (i.e., China is the most capitalistic and free market country I've ever visited in my life).  However, he astutely pointed out that England and Taiwan (to a lesser extent) provide free healthcare for all their citizens.  While U.S. healthcare is held ransom by a few, powerful health insurance companies driven purely by profit as well as large pharmaceutical companies that have huge leverage over hospitals and doctors as well as lobbying power in the Capitol.

I also have an American friend in graduate school in Cologne, Germany.  To my surprise, she informed me that university education is gratis for ALL peoples, not only Europeans.  Granted, obtaining acceptance from a German university is not a piece of cake but there are many programs that are in English and most Germans are fluent in English.  Also, once you are accepted into a German university, then no matter your nationality, you can attend absolutely free.  On top of that, she told me that Berlin is a very affordable city, which is why so many artists and bohemians call it home.  In the artistic district of Mitte, she said a shared studio apartment costs $300 per month or around 200 Euros.

In essence, I love Americans but we need to change the direction our country is headed or we may be in for a nasty surprise.  Already there is a slight 'brain drain' of talent going abroad or back to their homeland of origin.  Once upon a time, immigrants flooded this shore for the freedom to live as they please and to chase their dreams, no matter how fanciful.  They came to express their creativity and to express their unique talent unfettered by bureaucracy,  red tape, discrimination, and big government.  If they got rich, then it was a natural by-product of doing what they loved and doing it well.  Now this process has turned topsy turvy.  People come to worship Mammon and scheme on ways to accumulate as many greenbacks as possible with no regard to their personal capabilities or affinities.  Economics and practicality have trumped all other values in this country, which espouses chasing after one's "dreams."

A country that once prided itself on individualism and ingenuity now worships mainstream media, music, and pop fashion, which tells individuals what to like and dislike and most importantly, what to purchase with credit.  "Individuality" is manufactured in a slave-wage factory in China and then shipped to a Wal-Mart or strip mall in America for mindless consumers to buy.

I'm not saying money is the root of all evil.  It is neither good nor bad.  It can be utilized for either, but when the sole driving force behind one's energies is to accumulate something that has inherently has no value but for the amount society dictates is preposterous.  Inflation may very well the next day render your entire "fortune" and hard-earned savings to be worthless, just look at the precautionary tale of Argentina.  Money should never be the sole factor in determining your decisions and much less in pushing you to do something against your intuition or core values.

This discussion reminds me of the British pop song (by Lily Allen), with surprisingly penetrating and satirical lyrics (audio only):



Watch the official music video here.

Watch & listen to the acoustic version here.

I want to be rich and I want lots of money
I don’t care about clever I don’t care about funny
I want loads of clothes and fuckloads of diamonds
I heard people die while they are trying to find them
I’ll take my clothes off and it will be shameless
‘Cuz everyone knows that’s how you get famous
I’ll look at the sun and I’ll look in the mirror
I’m on the right track yeah I’m on to a winner

Chorus
I don’t know what’s right and what’s real anymore
I don’t know how I’m meant to feel anymore
When we think it will all become clear
‘Cuz I’m being taken over by The Fear

Life’s about film stars and less about mothers
It’s all about fast cars and passing each other
But it doesn’t matter cause I’m packing plastic
and that’s what makes my life so f***ing fantastic
And I am a weapon of massive consumption
and its not my fault it’s how I’m program to function
I’ll look at the sun and I’ll look in the mirror
I’m on the right track yeah I’m on to a winner

Chorus

Bridge
Forget about guns and forget ammunition
Cause I’m killing them all on my own little mission
Now I’m not a saint but I’m not a sinner
Now everything is cool as long as I’m getting thinner

Chorus


__________________________________________________

And I don't think it would be appropriate to write about this without giving a nod towards Wu Tang Clan's classic, "C.R.E.A.M.":



Cash rules everything around me.
C.R.E.A.M.!
Get the money.
Dolla dolla bill, y'all!

Joel Burns' Moving Confession and Uplifting Message

A string of teen suicides — including one fourth grader — due to bullying of boys accused of being gay, has spurred openly gay Texan city council member, Joel Burns, to speak out against the psychological torment of America's children. He told teens struggling with their sexuality or with bullying or both that "it gets better."

This intolerance and hatred born out of fear, I believe, is due to the collective shame and rejection of the natural sexual orientation that occurs frequently in nature amongst dolphins, monkeys, birds, and other animal species but is categorically labelled as degenerate and reprobate by an ignorant and judgmental human race. (Read more about homosexual activity in nature here and here.)

Often times, bullies are merely repressed, closeted cowards, who lash out at those courageous enough to come out in the open, at a relatively young age during the turbulent high school years, for it brings to light what they wish to keep in the dark.

Joel Burns urges in this viral video not to end one's life over disapproval, taunting, ostracization, bullying, etc. because it is only temporary.

Joel Burns: "Yes, high school was difficult. Coming out was painful, but life got so much better for me. And I want to tell any teen who might see this, give yourself a chance to see just how much better life will get — and it will get better. You will get out of the household that doesn’t accept you. You will get out of that high school and you never have to deal with those jerks again if you don’t want to. You will find and you will make new friends who will understand you, and life will get so, so, so, much better.

I look back at my life as full of so many happy memories that I wish I could share with those whose photos were shown up above earlier and those who have taken their lives. Memories that I wish I could share with the 13-year-old version of me on that very unfortunate day..."

Full transcript can be read here (lots of typos and mistakes in that transcript but you get the idea).



It would be wise to view this trying time as the universe's way of tempering and fortifying the steel of your fortitude and integrity.

"If you're going through hell, keep going."
-Winston Churchill

P.S.: Thank you, Conor S., for sending this video to me.

What's So Great About Being a Good Person?

This is a brilliant scene from the HBO TV series:  "Hung."  For those that don't know, it's about Ray Drecker, a Detroit baseball coach that is downsized, loses his wife and kids in a divorce, loses his house in a fire that is uninsured, and resorts to becoming an amateur gigolo when he finds he has no skills besides being well-endowed.

Ray's pimp is the aspiring poet, Tanya Skagle, played by Jane Adams, who is an amazing actress.  The two met again at a get-rich seminar, where she decided to make "lyrical bread" and he got the epiphany to start banking on the only gift he has.  Tanya was tired of being shit on so she wanted to profit from an illegal venture as well.  Thus, "Happiness Consultants" came into being.


Scene transcript:

"Yeah, so?  I'm not a good person.  Because you know what happens to good people?  They get shit on [...] Good people get ignored and stepped on.  Good people get fucked, Ray!  So just this once I'm doing the fucking!  What's so great about being a good person?!"




_______________________

Amusing video of Tanya's reaction to being accused of being a sociopath:

Handstand

So I can do a headstand pretty readily but I'm having trouble with handstands. I can do it against a wall but without support I can't keep it up; my legs go past 90 degrees and I lose equilibrium.

These videos are giving me inspiration. The first video displays yoga practitioners doing impressive backbends and some handstands as well. The second video focuses exclusively on headstands but are captioned in Czech, Serbo-Croatian, Polish, or some other E. European language (I'm not sure).





In the meantime, I'm going to try and strengthen my shoulders and core.

My ultimate goal is to be able to to slowly and gracefully raise up my legs into a handstand — like in the second video — without kicking up into it.

O Father

So I don't need to remind you all how seminal a role a father plays in the emotional and psychological development for a child, especially a boy.

Also, it was my father's birthday yesterday.

So without further ado, here are some emotionally-charged musical numbers from Glee about fathers:


Glee's rendition of "Rose's Turn" (the video footage is flipped, so YouTube won't remove it):





Glee's rendition of "Papa, Can You Hear Me?" by Barbara Streisand (audio only):




From a female perspective (Glee's light-hearted rendition of "Papa Don't Preach" by Madonna):

Glee

Yes, I caved in to peer pressure and watched two episodes of Glee (haven't seen any of season 1) and it's becoming a guilty pleasure.

And O.K., I know this has nothing to do with spirituality (well, not entirely true because it's about love); I know it's the ultimate in cheesiness; I know it's auto-tuned like mad, but I'm a total sucker for romance and sentimentality.  Ignore this post if you don't enjoy corniness and camp like I do.  The following are the musical scenes from "Furt" (season 2, episode 8) (Sorry for the poor video quality, but it's what I found on YouTube.):

Glee's rendition of "Marry You" by Bruno Mars.



Glee's rendition of "Just the Way You Are" by Bruno Mars.



I like how they take superficial pop songs from the radio and add a little depth and storyline to it and thus give it an extra dimension.  These scenes from the show just warmed my heart and made me smile.


__________________

Season 2, episode 9: "Special Education."

Glee's rendition of "(I've Had) The Time of My Life" by Bill Medley and Jennifer Warnes.

Religion in the East vs. the West

"The West has missed having a Gautam Buddha. Jesus is not at all a comparison to him. Jesus is simply a Jew, believing in all the Jewish dogmas. He is faithful—in fact, a little too much. Gautam Buddha is a rebel; he is not a follower of anyone. Nor is Lao Tzu a follower of anyone. They don't have any scriptures, they don't have any belief systems. They have searched on their own, alone—risking, because they are moving away from the crowd on the lonely path, not knowing where this journey is going to end, but trusting their heart, experiencing small indications that peace is growing, that love is flowering, that a new fragrance has come to their being, that their eyes are no longer full of dust, of the past. A tremendous clairty and transparency . . . and they know they are on the right path.

There is no guide, and you will not meet anybody on the path to inquire how far the destination is. It is a flight from the alone to the alone. But once a man finds truth on his own, naturally he becomes aware that no organized religion is needed—it is a hindrance—that no priest, no mediators are needed; they will not allow you to reach the truth. Such a man, who has found the truth, becomes a master.

[...]

The greatest contribution has come from a few masters who attained not only their own freedom but also the freedom of those who loved them. It is simply inconceivable: if you love me, how can I enslave you? If you love me, I will only rejoice in your freedom. When I see you opening your wings into the sky towards the unknown, the far away, the mysterious, that will be my joy; not that you are tethered to a certain dogma, creed, cult, religion, philosophy. These are different names of chains, manufactured by different kinds of people, but their purpose is the same.

Because the West has not known masters . . . . It has known popes, it has known prophets, it has known saviours, it has known saints. It is absolutely unaware that there is a dimension it has missed, and that dimension is the most valuable dimension . . . . Because it has missed it, a great misunderstanding has arisen."

-Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh

The Plastic Scourge of Modern Civilization

Just for a second think about all the plastic around you, how much you use and how much you throw away everyday.  Then realize where the plastic comes from (oil) and where it's going (your body — back into our food supply).





A healthy alternative to plastic? When I was at the Boulder Farmer's Market. All the plastic bags and all the plastic cups were in fact NOT plastic at all but I couldn't see the difference for the life of me. It was all made from corn. It's all compostable.

When I was visiting Bastyr University in Kent, Washington, I had lunch there and all their cups and cardboard trays were also entirely compostable and you wouldn't know the difference from conventional toxic products. The only possible problem is cost. I'm assuming it costs more but we should keep in mind the long-term costs of using a cheap, toxic product that winds up back in our own bodies.

Here's more information about the compostable, biodegradable cups from one of the manufacturers.

Into Thin Air by Jon Krakauer

(FYI: This entry is identical to the post I made to Shida Book Club.)

I just finished this intense personal account of the 1996 Mt. Everest disaster. More than half of the book is primarily exposition and background information on the sport of mountaineering and on the individuals involved. Then once they've reached 8,000 meters (approx. 26,000 ft) and things start getting dicey with the oncoming gale, the books starts getting seriously tense and I couldn't put it down, literally. While, the book is engrossing and truly an important warning for any inexperienced climber harboring romantic notions of reaching the roof of the world, this should serve as a sobering realization that Mt. Everest or Sagarmatha is no small feat that relies not merely on technical skill and experience but also interminable will, self-discipline (to turn back around at the agreed-upon time even within a stone's throw of the summit), timing, and sheer luck.

I'm very grateful that Krakauer summoned the courage and resolve to write this harrowing personal account of the tragedy, but at the same time I can't help but agree with some of the criticism by the relatives of the deceased. At many times throughout the tale, Krakauer seemed to heavily criticize certain individuals or even groups of people who he felt directly contributed to the disaster. As I wasn't there I cannot judge the veracity of these allegations but they just rub me the wrong way.

Scott Fischer's sister, Lisa Fischer-Luckenback wrote:

What I am reading is YOUR OWN ego frantically struggling to make sense out of what happened. NO amount of your analyzing, criticizing, judging, or hypothesizing will bring the peace you are looking for. There are no answers. No one is at fault. No one is to blame. Everyone was doing their best at the given time under the given circumstances.


No one intended harm for one another. No one wanted to die.

What did shock me was how he described how callous some individuals were. For instance, the Japanese team who apparently saw the dying Ladakhis on the trail coming up from the Tibetan side of the mountain and merely ignored them without offering any assistance whatsoever. Then when interviewed about it, their (Hanada and Shigekawa) only response was, "We didn't know them. No, we didn't give them any water. We didn't talk to them. They had severe high-altitude sickness. They looked as if they were dangerous."

"Shigekawa explained, 'We were too tired to help. Above 8,000 meters is not a place where people can afford morality.' Turning their back on Smanla and Morup, the Japanese team resumed their ascent, passed the prayer flags and pitons left by the Ladakhis at 28,550 feet, and—in an astonishing display of tenacity— reached the summit at 11:45 A.M. in a screaming gale."

This passage made me take pause and I had to put down the book for a minute and get something to drink since I could not comprehend putting the dubious goal of reaching the summit over helping fellow human beings on the brink of death.

Having lived for a period of time in Taiwan myself it was also disheartening to hear of the poor actions and behaviors of the Taiwanese team, which was apparently universally panned and derided by the other groups. First for the incompetence in mountaineering and for their debacle on Mt. McKinley in Alaska where they placed the lives of others in danger. This time on Everest, when one of their Taiwanese team members fell to his death while trying to evacuate his bowels, the team leader, 'Makalu' Gau, just replied, "O.K." on the radio and continued to make his ascent to the summit.  (He later explains his questionable actions and attitude in an interview in "Frontline:  Storm Over Everest," but I'm wondering if this was just rationalization ex post facto.)

Of course, this book isn't entirely a chronicle about the foibles and frailties of man, but also about the triumph and heroism of common people. Stuart Hutchinson and Neal Beidelman stepped up when others collapsed due to hypoxia, hypothermia, severe altitude sickness (HAPE or HACE), and/or severe fatigue. Also, Rob Hall died almost entirely due to the responsibility he felt as leader of the expedition. He stayed up on the summit because Hansen could not budge without bottled oxygen. He could have easily left him and gone down to base camp but heroically and obdurately, he refused to leave him and as a result died due to exposure.

I think this message from a Sherpa hits the message home:


I am a Sherpa orphan. My father was killed in the Khumbu Icefall while load-ferrying for an expedition in the late sixties. My mother died just below Pheriche when her heart gave out under the weight of the load she was carrying for another expedition in 1970.  Three of my siblings died from various causes, my sister and I were sent to foster homes in Europe and the U.S.


I never have gone back to my homeland because I feel it is cursed. My ancestors arrived in the Solo-Khumbu region fleeing from persecution in the lowlands. There they found sanctuary in the shadow of "Sagarmathaji," "mother goddess of the earth." In return they were expected to protect that goddesses' sanctuary from outsiders.


But my people went the other way. They helped outsiders find their way into the sanctuary and violate every limb of her body by standing on top of her, crowing in victory, and dirtying and polluting her bosom. Some of them have had to sacrifice themselves, others escaped through the skin of their teeth, or offered other lives in lieu. . . .


So I believe that even the Sherpas are to blame for the tragedy of 1996 on "Sagarmatha." I have no regrets of not going back, for I know the people of the area are doomed, and so are those rich, arrogant outsiders who feel they can conquer the world. Remember the Titanic. Even the unsinkable sank, and what are foolish mortals like Weather, Pittman, Fischer, Lopsang, Tenzing, Messner, Bonington in the face of the "Mother Goddess." As such I have vowed never to return home and be part of that sacrilege.


I'm not sure if sacrilegious hubris is what truly angered Sagarmatha and caused her to wreck revenge on her hapless victims but ever since the British first decided to conquer the world's tallest mountain, she has claimed 200 lives and a 120 of those lifeless remains are still frozen on her slopes.

(For those interested, you can read the original Outside magazine article authored by Jon Krakauer here.)

Massive Attack's Controversial Music Video (NSFW)

This explicit music video with graphic audio and visual is a modern masterpiece of the genre. For adults only.

"Paradise Circus."

Omkara (Lauren Piazza)

"Remember" from Omkara's album, "From the Silence."

Live version:


Remix:

A Beautiful Message

Music: Native Spirit by Tomiko

Psychedelic Sensory Experience

Vivaldi, Winter, Four Seasons

It Turns Out, Seeing is NOT Believing...

This video shows how the mind play tricks on you when there is an inherent contradiction seen.

BBC 2 Horizon's show on the McGurk Effect.

BT - This Binary Universe - Dynamic Symmetry

Excerpt from Fear No Evil by Eva Pierrakos

Blocked Sexual Energy

"Since the pleasure current in the life force primarily manifests itself in your life in what is referred to as sexuality, destructive , blocked energy contains blocked sexual energy. It follows that outer problems must be symbolic or representative of how sexual energy was first blocked by outer conditions... Therefore, every difficult situation in life represents a sexual fixation in the innermost psyche that you fear and run away from. Because you do not face up to this and continue to live with it, the outer conditions become unresolvable; you become more and more alienated from the inner cause where it is still enlivened by the pleasure aspect.

[...]

I have often mentioned that in your most secret sexual fantasies lie the secrets of your conflicts, as well as the key to their resolution. When you find the parallel between the outer problem and the pleasure current in your sexuality, you will be able to make the frozen energy fluid again.

[...]

"Total pleasure is feared for a very important reason: the pleasure supreme of the cosmic energy current must seem unbearable, frightening, overwhelming, and almost annihilating when the personality is still geared to negativity and destructiveness. To put it differently, to the degree that the personality has impaired its integrity, and impurity, dishonesty, cheating, and malice still exist int he psyche, pure pleasure must be rejected. hence the negative pleasure is the only way the entity can experience a modicum of pleasure at all...you must ask yourself, "Where am I not honest with life or with myself? Where do I cheat? Where do I impair my integrity?"

[...]

When you find where you violate your sense of decency and honesty, you can unlock the door which has closed your access to transforming the negative pleasure and forced you to reject pleasure that is unhampered by pain."

-Eva Pierrakos

Personification of Wisdom as a Divine Goddess in the Scriptures

Wisdom 6: 12-16

12 Wisdom is radiant and unfading,
and she is easily discerned by those who love her,
and is found by those who seek her.
13 She hastens to make herself known to those who desire her.
14 One who rises early to seek her will have no difficulty,
for she will be found sitting at the gate.
15 To fix one’s thought on her is perfect understanding,
and one who is vigilant on her account will soon be free from care,
16 because she goes about seeking those worthy of her,
and she graciously appears to them in their paths,
and meets them in every thought.

This passage reminds me of what Prem Baba said, "Take one step towards G-d and G-d takes ten steps towards you."

The Changing Landscape of Human Sexuality

I thought this was an insightful message about human sexuality presented in an entertaining format.  (Clip from season 5, ep. 2 of Nip/Tuck.)




"Sex is like politics. You label yourself Republican, Democrat, straight, or gay and then one day you cross party lines because you have strong feelings about a particular candidate...and then you don't know what you are."

"Labels are for cans of tuna, not people."

-Liz Cruz (lesbian [or 'nonlesbian'] anesthesiologist on Nip/Tuck)

"Love is not these belongings that surround me though there's meaning in the memories they hold..."

I heard this first on Nip/Tuck's Season 4 Finale, so I'm embedding that montage here. The song is by The Submarines called "Brighter Discontent."



I think it's very fitting that they had the Nip/Tuck characters lip sync the words to this song since they are living the good life so to say in Miami, but are still chasing after that elusive notion of bliss that they can't seem to find in objects and relationships.  (There are two mistakes in the closed captioning of the music video, but overall I'm just glad someone posted it on YouTube.)

"I think I might know what I want really want, but is a brighter discontent the best that I could hope to find?"

(I think this is the unspoken mantra of the vast majority of modern Americans today.)

Beautiful Rendition of Leonard Cohen's "Hallelujah"

This is Jeff Buckley's melancholic and moving rendition of the song:  "Hallelujah."

Psalm 23 (King James Version)

I know this one of the most quoted passages from the Scriptures and despite the fact that some may feel it has been read or said to ad nauseum, personally, I still find solace in these hallowed words.

Psalm 23

 ¹The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.
 ²He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: he leadeth me beside the still waters.
 ³He restoreth my soul: he leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his name's sake.
 ⁴Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me.
 ⁵Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies: thou anointest my head with oil; my cup runneth over.
 ⁶Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life: and I will dwell in the house of the Lord for ever.

Contentment is a Divine Attribute

The Scriptures continually remind us to stop worrying about mundane things or anything at all and to be focused on matters of the spirit and on being grateful.   Earlier I had posted a passage from Matthew 6 about this same topic, but speaking from my personal perspective, I think it's always good to be reminded of these things, since we reside in a world that tells us to do the complete opposite.


Philippians 4:6-9

⁶Do not worry about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. ⁷And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. ⁸Finally, beloved, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is pleasing, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence and if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things. ⁹Keep on doing the things that you have learned and received and heard and seen in me, and the God of peace will be with you.

Letter from Chris McCandless

Ron, I really enjoy all the help you have given me and the times that we spent together.  I hope that you will not be too depressed by our parting.  It may be a very long time before we see each other again.  But providing that I get through this Alaskan Deal in one piece you will be hearing from me again in the future.  I'd like to repeat the advice I gave you before, in that I think you really should make a radical change in your lifestyle and begin to boldly do things which you may previously never have thought of doing, or been too hesitant to attempt.  So many people live within unhappy circumstances and yet will not take the initiative to change their situation because they are conditioned to a life of security, conformity, and conservatism, all of which may appear to give one peace of mind, but in reality nothing is more damaging to the adventurous spirit within a man than a secure future.  The very basic core of a man's living spirit is his passion for adventure.  The joy of life comes from our encounters with new experiences, and hence there is no greater joy than to have an endlessly changing horizon, for each day to have a new and different sun.  If you want to get more out of life, Ron, you must lose your inclination for monotonous security and adopt a helter-skelter style of life that will at first appear to you to be crazy.  But once you become accustomed to such a life you will see its full meaning and its incredible beauty.

[...]

But for some reason incomprehensible to me you wanted nothing but to bolt for home as quickly as possible, right back to the same situation which you see day after day after day.  I fear you will follow this same inclination in the future and thus fail tot discover all the wonderful things that God has placed around us to discover.  Don't settle down and sit in one place.  Move around, be nomadic, make each day a new horizon.  You are still going to live a long time, Ron, and it would be a shame if you did not take the opportunity to revolutionize your life and move into a an entirely new realm of experience.

You are wrong if you think Joy emanates only or principally from human relationships.  God has placed it all around us.  It is in everything and anything we might experience.  We just have to have the courage to turn against our habitual lifestyle and engage in unconventional living.

My point is that you do not need me or anyone else around to bring this new kind of light in your life.  It is simply waiting out there for you to grasp it, and all you have to do is reach for it.  The only person you are fighting is yourself and your stubbornness to engage in new circumstances.

Ron, I really hope that as soon as you can you will get out of Salton City, put a little camper on the back of your pickup, and start seeing some of the great work that God has done here in the American West.  You will see things and meet people and there is much to learn from them.  And you must do it economy style, no motels, do your own cooking, as a general rule spend as little as possible and you will enjoy it much more immensely.  I hope that the next time I see you, you will be a new man with a vast array of new adventures and experiences behind you.  Don't hesitate or allow yourself to make excuses.  Just get out and do it.  Just get out and do it.  You will be very, very glad that you did.

Take Care Ron,
Alex



(Excerpt from the letter from Chris McCandless aka "Alexander Supertramp" to Ronald Franz from the novel by Jon Krakauer, Into The Wild.)

*********

This passage really affected me.  I think if you simply replace Ron, with your own name you can see the universal application and perhaps better capture the full import of his posthumous wisdom.

Cosmic Love by Florence + The Machine

I heard this first on a "Grey's Anatomy" episode several months ago but as it happens I didn't really realize its brilliance until tonight as I went jogging in the evening with my Ipod Nano, as I put it on one of my numerous random playlists.  This song came on and I just felt a surge of adrenaline and euphoria.  I keep replaying it over and over on my run back home and now I'm completely hooked.  It just taps a nerve somewhere for me.

She's even great live, which is so rare for artists these days:



Edited, album version:

James 4.1 - 5.6

James 4.1 - 4.6:

Those conflicts and disputes among you, where do they come from?  Do they not come from your cravings that are at war within you?  You want something and do not have it; so you commit murder. And you covet something and cannot obtain it; so you engage in disputes and conflicts. You do not have, because you don't ask.  You ask and do not receive, because you ask wrongly, in order to spend what you get on your pleasures.  Adulterers!  Do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God?  Therefore whoever wishes to be a friend of the world becomes an enemy of God.  Or do you suppose that it is for nothing that the scripture says, "God yearns jealously for the spirit that he has made to swell in us?"  But he gives all the more grace; therefore it says, "God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble."

[...]

James 4.13 - 4.17:

Come now, you who say, "Today or tomorrow we will go to such and such a town and spend a year there, doing business and making money." yet you do not even know what tomorrow will bring.  What is your life?  For you are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes.  Instead you ought to say, "If the Lord wishes, we will live and do this or that."  As it is, you boast in your arrogance; all such boasting is evil.  Anyone, then, who knows the right thing to do and fails to do it, commits sin.

James 5.1 - 5.6:

Come now, you rich people, weep and wail for the miseries that are coming to you.  Your riches have rotted, and your clothes are moth-eaten.  Your gold and silver have rusted, and their rust will be evidence against you, and it will eat your flesh like fire. You have laid up treasure for the last days. Listen!  The wages of the laborers who mowed your fields, which you kept back by fraud, cry out, and the cries of the harvesters have reached the ears of the Lord of hosts.  You have lived on the earth in luxury and in pleasure; you have fattened your hearts in a day of slaughter.  You have condemned and murdered the righteous one, who does not resist you.

(Excerpt from The New Oxford Annotated Bible, 3rd Edition, 2001.)
***

These passages are acrimonious and not representative of most of the texts in the New Testament, but in a way I think it serves as a wake-up call for those who are fallible but still with integrity, and especially for the wealthy, to reexamine their manner of living and attitude towards the downtrodden and impoverished.

New Blog — The Health Guru!

You may have noticed that recently, I've been posting more mundane topics of interest on this blog.  This is because we are Triune beings composed of mind, body, and spirit.  Each component is equally as important though operating at different levels.  I've decided, due partly to my burgeoning interest in health, to start a new blog devoted to matters of the body primarily as well as some topics concerning the mind, such as cognitive health, etc.

Those interested can click on the hyperlink here to be directed.

Amazing Treehoppers of the Rainforest

I just watched an episode from one of my favorite CBC shows, "The Nature of Things with David Suzuki," specifically the episode titled Mini Monsters of Amazonia.

I never even knew the existence of these fascinating albeit minute creatures of the rainforests of South America prior to watching The Nature of Things.  Observing them in their native habitat was truly mesmerizing.

One of the most famous and widely studied treehoppers, Bocydium tintinnabuliferum.

Here are a some photos that I gleaned (without permission) from Google Images.  (Please read the disclaimer below regarding usage of the photos.)  In selecting the photos, I tried to demonstrate the sheer diversity of these splendid creatures.

Copyright belongs to Harshal Desai.  Please visit his blog.

If you would like to view more images of treehoppers.  Wonderful photos can be seen on Patrick Landmann's website.  He was also featured in the Mini Monsters episode.  There is also a fine collection of treehopper images found at this Flickr website.

Disclaimer:  All rights to the usage and ownership of the photos posted in this entry belong to the respective parties, such as the aforementioned Flickr user or the esteemed professional photographer, Patrick Landmann.  I have no association with these persons and no copyright infringement is intended; I merely admire their beautiful photos of these tiny magnificent creatures.  I have made the conscious choice to post these photos for their pure aesthetic beauty and for the edification of my readers — not for monetary reasons.

S. Darko's Soundtrack

I debated whether to post this on this blog, since this blog is ostensibly for chronicling my spiritual journey post-India.  While I think it might be a stretch, I think music can expand our consciousness and even conventional or mainstream music can accomplish this.

I just finished watching a mediocre film (definitely doesn't live up to its predecessor) but it had a phenomenal score by Ed Harcourt and some good songs from some popular and obscure '90s artists.  The movie I'm referring to is S. Darko, with the protagonist being the eponymous sister to Donnie Darko — Sam.

These are three of my favorite songs from the film:

Cocteau Twins — Heaven or Las Vegas


Catherine Wheel — Black Metallic



Dead Can Dance — The Carnival is Over

The Importance of Humility (Luke 14)

I had missed two weeks of Mass, so when I went yesterday I flipped through the Epistle book and perused the readings I had missed.  I found this particular passage from Luke, especially enlightening. It also served as a crucial reminder for me to remain humble and remember not to misplace my values on mundane achievements in a transitory world.


Luke 14:7-14

[7] When he noticed how the guests picked the places of honor at the table, he told them this parable: [8] "When someone invites you to a wedding feast, do not take the place of honor, for a person more distinguished than you may have been invited. [9] If so, the host who invited both of you will come and say to you, 'Give this man your seat.' Then, humiliated, you will have to take the least important place. [10] But when you are invited, take the lowest place, so that when your host comes, he will say to you, 'Friend, move up to a better place.' Then you will be honored in the presence of all your fellow guests. [11] For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted."
[12] Then Jesus said to his host, "When you give a luncheon or dinner, do not invite your friends, your brothers or relatives, or your rich neighbors; if you do, they may invite you back and so you will be repaid. [13] But when you give a banquet, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind, [14] and you will be blessed. Although they cannot repay you, you will be repaid at the resurrection of the righteous."

Happy Rosh Hashana! ראש השנה

Here's a message from our illustrious president:




L'shanah tovah tikatev v'taihatem! שנה טובה

And to the females: L'shanah tovah tikatevi v'taihatemi!
(May you be inscribed and sealed for a good year.)

Unassuming but Heroic Young Man from Beijing

I actually saw this video on the Dr. Mercola website. I was so moved by it that I felt I had to share it with others. I fear sometimes that I've become rather cynical and jaded due to my experiences and from what I've learned about the world but it's in these rare moments — inspired by sheer human beauty and fortitude — that I know we are all still innocent no matter what; that despite all the excrement that covers the masses and in spite of the depth of depravity that humankind can stoop to, we can still surface for air sometimes and occasionally even soar about the filth, unsoiled.





I think this reminds us all really to reevaluate our lives — to realize fully how fortunate we truly are just to have all four of our limbs! You don't think twice about how fortunate you are that you can eat using fingers and not toes. (Today, when I was tying my shoelaces in the garage and walking to my car I smiled inwardly and felt a wave of gratitude knowing the fact that I could perform those simple actions with ease and that I could drive to the gym). These very basic, fundamental things that we never think twice about. I'm so glad that I came across this video (and at a perfect time in my life) because it reminds me to be in a state of perpetual gratitude for being alive and for having robust health; most of all, to know that the only thing holding me back is my own limiting notions of self, rather than some fanciful external impediment that is not actually there.

我覺得在我人生當中只有兩條路：要麼趕緊死，要麼精彩活著。沒有人規定鋼琴一定要用手的。
-Liu Wei

Remarkable Interviews with Inspiring Figures

Both of these videos are excerpts from the DVD Special Features from the documentary "Sicko" (2007) by Michael Moore.

Tony Benn (ex-Labour Party MP):



Aleida Guevara (Che's daughter):



Continued...




For those interested, I wrote a review for "Sicko" on an a shared blog called "Shida Book Club." It's the September 1st entry.

("Shida" is the Mandarin moniker for the university, where the three of us met. The English name of the university is National Taiwan Normal University (NTNU) and the language institute is called the Mandarin Training Center (MTC). Yes, the rampant abuse of acronyms is a universal disease in the academic world.)

A Progressive Example from Norway

While I think Michael Moore might paint Norway in a much rosier light than reality (speaking from a cynical, American — conditioned by Fox News and conservative pundits — perspective of course),  I still think this bit from the special features on the DVD for "Sicko" should give Americans food for thought.  I like the quote by the interviewed Norwegian:  "What we call a conservative in Norway, I suppose most people in the United States would call liberal."  I also think it's remarkably enlightened that they are utilizing biomass for generating electricity. (It's not a myth; here's an article about using biomethane to power buses in Norway.)

The Scourge of E-waste

Most of us don't think twice about where it will wind up when we throw out that monitor or keyboard (and about all of the toxic chemicals that are present in that electronic waste) .  Well, it goes to third world countries in Asia and Africa, where children are paid pittances to recycle the e-waste at the expense of their development and health.

Where does e-waste end up? | Greenpeace International

Ultimately, the large computer companies like Apple, HP, Dell, Lenovo, etc. need to take responsibility for their waste.  The most progressive companies have discovered that it's possible to make waste = food (make their products 100% biodegradable, so that when it's discarded in landfills, over time it will break down and replenish the soil, rather than poison it).  Apple in particular, I find to be hypocritical for it likes to present itself as progressive and edgy but 100% of its products are manufactured in China and Greenpeace has found that it still uses many toxic materials (more so than its competitors).

On a smaller scale, mobile phone companies, like Motorola, Nokia, Samsung, etc., also should be pressured to reduce their environmental impact.  People, nowadays, discard their mobile like it's a candy wrapper and don't realize how detrimental their actions can be towards children on the other side of the world.

The Wind That Shakes the Barley

I sat within a valley green

I sat me with my true love

My sad heart strove to choose between

The old love and the new love

The old for her, the new that made

Me think on Ireland dearly

While soft the wind blew down the glade

And shook the golden barley

Twas hard the woeful words to frame

To break the ties that bound us

But harder still to bear the shame

Of foreign chains around us

And so I said, "The mountain glen

I'll seek at morning early

And join the bold United Men

While soft winds shake the barley

While sad I kissed away her tears

My fond arms 'round her flinging

The foeman's shot burst on our ears

From out the wildwood ringing

A bullet pierced my true love's side

In life's young spring so early

And on my breast in blood she died

While soft winds shook the barley

I bore her to some mountain stream

And many's the summer blossom

I placed with branches soft and green

About her gore-stained bosom

I wept and kissed her clay-cold corpse

Then rushed o'er vale and valley

My vengeance on the foe to wreak

While soft winds shook the barley

But blood for blood without remorse

I've taken at Oulart Hollow

And laid my true love's clay-cold corpse

Where I full soon may follow

As 'round her grave I wander drear

Noon, night and morning early

With breaking heart when e'er I hear

The wind that shakes the barley

-Robert Dwyer Joyce


I think this beautiful ballad can speak to anyone, you merely have to replace Ireland with your nation of choice.  While there are many elements that I don't necessarily agree to — for instance, violence as a recourse and favoring patriotism over unity of mankind, etc.  I still think there is a nobility in this passionate, heart-wrenching ballad.  I believe there is a sense melancholic nobility when man fights for a cause with all his heart, even if it may not be the wisest choice.

Sung by Dick Gaughan:


What is it though about this pastoral notion of 'homeland' that is universally accepted?  My parents hearken back to the charmed days in their homeland but then are disappointed when they return.  This yearning for a place to call home, I think may be predisposed in all mankind as we are all aching to return to Eden.


The female interpretation (sung by Dead Can Dance):

One of my mottoes/mantras...

Living in a hectic, modern age, it's easy to lose focus on what's really important in life.  I know that sounds very trite but it's still true.  I have a short temper and I get ticked off very easily by others because I am such a perfectionist, Type A person.  I know it's something I need to work on continually, 24-7.  One of the tools I use to put things in a better perspective is intoning in my head or under my breath the quote by Wayne Dyer:

People are really doing the best they can given the awareness they have. 

Deepak Chopa said something very similar.  I don't know who came up with it first or if it was merely divine inspiration.  In any case, it's a very simplistic quote, but profound, inherent truths usually are.

This isn't about being haughty and looking down on others considering yourself to be more "enlightened." It's about showing compassion for every living creature because we are all struggling to live together on this overcrowded planet of ours.

This personal mantra reminds me of how Christ on the cross pleaded, "Father forgive them, for they know not what they do" (Luke 23:34).  (I apologize for the recent Christian-heavy entries but it is what I am most familiar with).  In the same respect, we should forgive those that trespass against us since they do it out of ignorance rather than hatred.

Most people are not actively trying to be spiteful or mean, but they are moving through life as if in a haze or a blur.  Their thoughts, actions, and motives are unconscious.  They live as if in "The Matrix." The Masters tell us to live each moment of our precious life as if it was our last and with deliberation.  In the monotony and routine of our daily lives, we lose ourselves to the automatic drudgery and forget to stop and contemplate and deliberately make positive intentions in every thought and action that we perform.  I also want to add that this is also a good way to remind yourself to be kind not only to others but to your very self.  I have a tendency to be my own worst critic.  As we should forgive others for living as if in a trance we should also give ourselves some leeway for slipping up occasionally/often as well.

So the next time someone ticks you off (or if you do something out of character due to ignorance or 'unconsciousness').  Remember that "everyone is doing the best they can at their level of awareness" (Deepak Chopra).

Wisdom, Chapter 9 (Scriptures, Apocrypha)

So at Mass this morning, I mistakenly thought today was the 23rd Sabbath in Ordinary Time C, so I read the wrong First Reading, which was Wisdom 9:13-18.

Well, nonetheless, I thought it was a beautiful and apt passage for me:

13	For what man can learn the counsel of God? Or who can discern what the Lord wills?
14	For the reasoning of mortals is worthless, and our designs are likely to fail,
15	for a perishable body weighs down the soul, and this earthy tent burdens the thoughtful mind.
16	We can hardly guess at what is on earth, and what is at hand we find with labor; but who has traced out what is in the heavens?
17	Who has learned thy counsel, unless thou hast given wisdom and sent thy holy Spirit from on high?
18	And thus the paths of those on earth were set right, and men were taught what pleases thee, and were saved by wisdom."

(I wasn't previously aware that the Vatican approved of usage of Apocryphal texts even in official readings during Mass. Interesting.)

Don't Worry about Tomorrow

^{I find that we often lose sight of what is actually important and get boggled down in myriad banalities and trivialities of daily life.  Today in church I was flipping through the book and found this inspiring passage from Matthew 6:}

²⁵"Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more important than food, and the body more important than clothes? ²⁶Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? ²⁷Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life?

  ²⁸"And why do you worry about clothes? See how the lilies of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. ²⁹Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. ³⁰If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? ³¹So do not worry, saying, 'What shall we eat?' or 'What shall we drink?' or 'What shall we wear?' ³²For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. ³³But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. ³⁴Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.

Amen.

Living in an Airstream

Link to the MSN slideshow: 
http://realestate.msn.com/slideshow.aspx?cp-documentid=24744162#1

I think this is rather ingenious as well as being eco-friendly.  I like the nice touches like cutting memory foam for his bed and using cork instead of linoleum for the floor because it's better for the environment and maintains heat within the compartment.

Also, the solar panel to power his desktop in his "office" is a nice touch too.

I've always liked having less clutter and I found his way of living rather inspirational.

"The Guest House"

This being human is a guest house.
Every morning a new arrival.

A joy, a depression, a meanness,
some momentary awareness comes
as an unexpected visitor.

Welcome and entertain them all!
Even if they're a crowd of sorrows,
who violently sweep your house
empty of its furniture.
Still, treat each guest honorably.
He may be clearing you out
for some new delight

The dark thought, the shame, the malice,
meet them at the door laughing,
and invite them in.

Be grateful for whoever comes,
because each has been sent
as a guide from beyond.

-Rumi (Sufi poet)

Inspiring Words From Dr. Albert Schweitzer

(This will be a continuing chronicle as I continue reading this book finding passages that inspire me—The Words of Albert Schweitzer, Selected by Norman Cousins)

 

(image taken from http://iconicphotos.wordpress.com/2009/05/05/albert-schweitzer-in-lambarene/)

"When I look back upon my early days I am stirred by the thought of the number of people whom I have to thank for what they gave me or for what they were to me.  At the same time I am haunted by an oppressive consciousness of the little gratitude I really showed them while I was young.  How many of them have said farewell to life without my having made clear to them what it meant to me to receive from them so much kindness or so much care!  Many a time have I, with a feeling of shame, said quietly to myself over a grave the words which my mouth ought to have spoken to the departed, while he was still in the flesh."

I vow to never live a life of regret and to speak openly to those around me while they are still alive, so that this sentiment will not burden my heart.

"Developing a true sense of gratitude involves taking absolutely nothing for granted, wherever it be, whatever its source.  Rather, we always look for the friendly intention behind the deed and learn to appreciate it.  Make a point of measuring at its true value every act of kindness you receive from other men.  Nothing that may happen to you is purely accidental.  Everything can be traced back to a will for good directed in your favor. "

I think this is a good reminder to always remain eternally grateful for everything in my life:  the people I come into contact with and all the situations I am confronted with and always to see the silver lining in every cloud.

"Like all human beings, I am a person who is full of contradictions."

Amen.

"I listened, in my youth, to conversations between grown-up people through which there breathed a tone of sorrowful regret which oppressed the heart.  The speakers looked back at the idealism and capacity for enthusiasm of their youth as something precious to which they ought to have held fast, and yet at the same time they regarded it as almost a law of nature that no one should be able to do so.  This woke in me a dread of having ever, even once, to look back on my past with such a feeling; I resolved never to let myself become subject to this tragic domination of mere reason, and what I thus vowed in almost boyish defiance I have tried to carry out."

Alas, youth is wasted on the young.

"To the question whether I am a pessimist or an optimist, I answer that my knowledge is pessimistic, but my willing and hoping are optimistic."

I really relate to this.  We are continually being shown tragedies on the daily news but I try to remain optimistic throughout.

"The most valuable knowledge we can have is how to deal with disappointments."

Dejection is demoralizing and results in impotence.  I think the best way to cope is through concerted and positive action.

"In action lies wisdom and confidence.  A man who does not act gets no further than the maxim:  Life means conflict and tribulation.  But a man who acts can attain the higher wisdom and knows that life is conflict and victory.  that is why God forces men to labor.  that is why he gives them children to bring up.  That is why he gives them duties.  Through action, they may reach a deeper realization."

One may never learn about oneself through reading other people's truths.  One must endeavor and discover one's truth on one's own.

"The deeper we look into nature the more we recognize that it is full of life, and the more profoundly we know that all life is a secret, and we are all united to all this life."

Nature has always left me in awe, which is why I try and commune with nature as often as I can.

(To be continued...)

According to the British Medical Journal, vegetarians are more intelligent

"A man of my spiritual intensity does not eat corpses."
-George Bernard Shaw

"For as long as men massacre animals, they will kill each other. Indeed, he who sows the seed of murder and pain cannot reap joy and love."
-Pythagoras  

"The time will come when men such as I will look upon the murder of animals as they now look on the murder of men."
-Leonardo da Vinci

"You have just dined, and however scrupulously the slaughterhouse is concealed in the graceful distance of miles, there is complicity."
-Ralph Waldo Emerson  

"As long as there are slaughterhouses, there will be battlefields."
-Leo Tolstoy

"The greatness of a nation and its moral progress can be judged by the way its animals are treated."
-Mahatma Gandhi

"Nothing will benefit human health and increase the chances for survival of life on earth as much as the evolution to a vegetarian diet."
-Albert Einstein

"Every man who has ever been earnest to preserve his higher or poetic faculties in the best condition, has been particularly inclined to abstain from animal food."
-Henry David Thoreau

_________________________________________


I found this article by accident but I thought it was interesting that science is starting to catch up with Eastern philosophy:

"Vegetarians are more intelligent: the British Medical Journal says"

In case you find that source to be biased, here's a BBC News article as well:

"High IQ link to being vegetarian."

"But Dr. Frankie Philips, of the British Dietetic Association, said:  'It is like the chicken and the egg.  Do people become vegetarian because they have a very high IQ or is it just that they tend to be more aware of health issues?' "

"Unreasonably" by Em Claire

"Show yourself to me,"
said I to God again.

And this is what happened next:

I became pregnant with Light.
My eyes were sunrise and sunset, both.
Freckles announced themselves planets and stars,
and beamed upon my cheeks.
Each of my lips became a kiss to the other,
my ears heard oceans of life.
Between my eyes there was an indigo wheel,
between my toes, blond fields.
My hands remembered climbing-trees,
my hair, each Lover's fingers.

And then I whispered,
"But why have you made me this way?"
And it was told to me:

"Because I have never had Your name before,
nor heard the way You sing it.
Nor stared into the Universe through eyes like These.
Nor laughed This way, nor felt the path that These tears take.

Because I have not known These ecstasies
nor risen to These heights, nor experienced
every nuance of the Innocence
with which you create your lows,
nor how a Heart could grow so wide,
or break so easily
or Love

quite so unreasonably."

-"Unreasonably," Em Claire (2008)

If you liked this, you can find more of her work at her website: www.EmClairePoet.com

I read this in the book by her husband, Neale Donald Walsch, in his book titled: When Everything Changes Change Everything: In A Time of Turmoil, A Pathway to Peace.

My Personal Experience On Hearing "Namaskaratha Mantra" by Uma Mohan

I just got back from an exhilarating run through a neighborhood trail here in Plano, TX. I was going through my playlist on my Ipod and I discovered a song I never heard before (I bought a lot of CDs in India and then I transferred it on to my Ipod and am just getting to some of the songs). This song instantly struck a chord with me. It just so happened that it was sunset and the sky had brilliant purple, blue, and orange streamers with clouds interspersed, so that it appeared to me uncannily as a yoni. I won't go into those details but it seemed to be beckoning to me, calling me forth. As if I were her Shiva and she were my Shakti. Alas, as I got closer the image started to dissolve and the skies started to get darker. Nevertheless, in those 2 or 3 minutes I felt I had a spiritual experience. Just goes to show that yoga can be practiced in any activity as long as sincerity and devotion are applied.

Insightful Passage About Modern Western Society from Aghora II

Vimalananda wanted his views to be spread to anyone willing to listen because he felt acutely the anguish of the emptiness of the modern world, whose god is Mammon and whose predominant religion is an arrogantly emotionless science which seems bent on suppressing what humanity remains within us. As society disintegrates and meaning dissolves from life, people tend either to descend into despair or to return to their roots. We in the West have for years been cutting ourselves off from our roots, and now, nearly rootless, we are slowly dying from lack of cultural nourishment.

Some Westerners seek to live without roots, hydroponically, through futurism, while others try to reinvent the past via the "men's movement," Goddess Worship, Afrocentrism and the like. Yet others search for roots in such still-living cultures as the Indian, Native American, Tibetan or Chinese, as if perhaps by donning their visages they can somehow assimilate their ways. We have, however, become so superficial that few of us know how to dive deep enough into the cultures we seek to emulate to tap into their roots, and so we usually, as Jung feared, poison ourselves.

Vimalananda had no more faith that mass spiritual movements can save us than he trusted in social programs, political activism or enforced morality to rescue us, since all such solutions are superficial; they change our clothing, not our inner beings. He believed that real change can come only through those individuals who are brave enough to examine all of their reality assumptions and change those which must be changed. The numerous misconceptions about spirituality which permeate our modern world make his teachings on Kundalini valuable for everyone trying to follow a spiritual path.


-Svoboda, Robert E. Aghora II: Kundalini. New Mexico: Brotherhood of Life Publishing, 1993.

Ever since I got back to the states, I've been feeling this overwhelming sense of disillusionment with Western society and its obsession with Mammon. This passage sums up my feeling pretty well.

Lucid Dreaming: Boon or Bane for a Night of Rejevunating Sleep?

So last night I was listening to a self-hypnosis recording that was supposed to help guide me into a state of lucid dreaming. I'm not sure why I felt compelled to try this but I did. Recently, I've learned to trust my gut instincts and if I felt a compulsion to do something I usually followed through on it with positive results. However, this time I had a nagging doubt and worry in the back of mind of what if I'm messing with forces I shouldn't mess around with? What if I get trapped in a nightmare that becomes like a reality for me? After all, becoming aware during a dream...doesn't that take the fun out of letting go completely and abandoning consciousness during sleep? Isn't being awake during the day enough already?

Well, these nagging doubts won out in the end. I stopped the recording since I was really tired and the idea of grappling with such worries when I was so exhausted mentally and physically made me just want to sleep and not dream at all, or if I did dream I didn't want to remember it.

There are so many websites out there about lucid dreaming. They all tell us that lucid dreaming is completely safe, but this seems to be new territory...how much research has been done on this practice? I don't like one of "Dream Views' " motto: "Staying Up All Night." I for one enjoy sleeping all night...and yet why do I feel strangely drawn to this practice despite the back of the mind worries?

For those who have tried it and have had positive experiences please share. Also, for those who have had negative experiences, please share as well. I think I will try listening to the full audio tonight...perhaps nothing will happen...then again part of me is excited and dreading that I may be successful, if I do try...

So lucid dreaming—a boon or a bane for a night of rejuvenating sleep for the psyche and for the body—for me the verdict is still out.

Inspiring Words from God

Yes, you read right. I'm not just spouting blasphemy. The Big Man Himself (or Herself), the head honcho, the Man (or Woman) in charge ... Those who have read the CWG trilogy will not be lost here.

I just finished reading Friendship with God: An Uncommon Dialogue by Neale Donald Walsch and some passages really stayed with me. (How come amazing material like this always has really embarrassing titles like that? It makes me embarrassed to even tell others what I'm reading. Then again the very reason why it seems embarrassing may be due to this the egregious misplacement of values and collective beliefs in our modern society).

Without further ado:

You are God's orchestra. It is through you that God orchestrates life itself. There are no "sour notes" when you play. There is only you, My child, playing your heart out, trying to get it right.

If I failed to see the beauty in that, I would have no soul at all.

Remember this, always:
The soul is that which beholds beauty even when the mind denies it.

[...]

I cannot leave your soul, because I am your soul Your soul is made of what I Am. Go, then, My soul partner, and live in faith, hope, and love, these three; yet know that the greatest of these...is love.

Spread it, share it, be it, wherever you are, and yours will be a light that can truly light the world.

Isn't that beautiful?

Stop sleepwalking.
Go out and live life deliberately: with awareness, honesty, and responsibility.