Tune your ears a bit and his English will start making sense. Here, Master Yo Hoon talks about meditation and how it is an understanding of the mechanism of the universe more so than any technique. From his zen perspective, Yo Hoon discusses how the mind works and how we cannot have more than one thought at one time. Essentially, time and emotions/thoughts are bound and our understanding of the changing nature of this phenomena can set us free. He claims that there is no reason to fret about changing anything because the universe is constantly changing in perpetuity. Heaven and Hell are right here and now based on our perception of the present moment and our ultimate freedom is derived from our understanding of the mechanism of the universe.
The Hanged Man is one of my favorite Tarot cards from the Western Hermetic Tradition. It is a simple picture which coveys a great deal of meaning- especially when looking at the cards from a Taoist perspective. First of all, this man seems to be in a relatively dubious position but, looking at his face, he doesn’t seem too upset about it. In fact, there seems to be a smirk on his face as he crosses his left leg under his right- showing the ancient symbol for Mercury- the agent of Alchemical transformation.
To quote from the BOTA Tarot lineage about the Law of Reversal: “To reverse to conditions of misery, disease and failure, and substitute for them their opposites of health, happiness and success, it is necessary to think, speak and act in ways which are the reverse to those in which most persons think, speak, and act.”
Stress, anxiety, and depression are all symptoms of disconnection to our inner source of peace and tranquility. Here, Pedram discusses how it is through our loss of connection with nature that we have become fixated on abstract concepts and separated ourselves from our original connection with nature.
This a a ten minute clip from my main zen mediation master who sounds like a Taoist but also speaks with some Buddhist influences. His discourse is part of a longer interview which I will post soon. This segment focuses on the nature of meditation and how we interface with our consciousness. His discourse is truly magnificent because it really illuminates how most people are fixed on meditation technique versus a profound understanding of Who we truly are and how the Universe works.
Zen mediation and a profound understanding of Reality is not a meditation technique but an enhancement of one’s consciousness. This falls in line with the true teaching of Taoist and Buddhist masters as well.
His English is a bit tough to understand but you’ll get used to it and its well worth the listen.
Enjoy!
Six weeks of diligent study in Africa turned into the adventure of a lifetime. While working on the film, Origins, we participated in a 28 day Trails Guide course which included: Tracking, Scouting, Animal Behavior, Wilderness Survival, Botany, Meteorology, Navigation, Astronomy, and more. Our quest was to return to the environment of primitive man and live as he lived. We wanted to re-learn the information that our ancestors had worked so hard to acquire. We wanted to return to the source and chronicle the changes in our consciousness while living in the wild of Africa. We really got what we went there for.
Here’s a key point to walk away with-
Any animal who forgets how to survive in the very environment it comes from is stupid. Welcome to humanity.
Here we ask, Who Am I? – and challenge the notion of the self
Ramana Maharshi was a famous Indian Saint living around the turn of the 20th Century. He was best known for his cutting discourse and no-nonsense approach to the human condition. Ramana is one of my favorites because he delves deep into the process of personal inquiry. His most notable contribution, in my opinion, is the essence of the inquiry into the “I”.
When asking the question, “Who am I?” for instance, Ramana’s response would have been another more poignant question- essentially, “Who just asked that?” and then “Who just answered that question?”- Deeper and deeper becomes the probe- (more…)
A Gong in Chinese Taoist tradition is a set amount of days one devotes to a particular task. It is a promise to one’s self to stay focused and on path towards a designated goal.
The typical gong I like to practice with is the 100 Day GONG. The reason for this is that it takes at least 90 days for a new habit/behavior to burn itself into our nervous system so I’ve had incredible success with this format over the years. So what do you do during this gong? (more…)
Simply put: Our lingual encoding of the world determines the world in which we live. Read on to discover what to do to unlock your mind
I had the privilege of spending some quality time with Jay Weidner in Ashland, OR. Jay is an alchemy scholar who has always been a great mentor and teacher to me. He’s an enlightened dude with a great heart and a wonderful sense of humor. Always look for people who don’t take themselves too seriously when searching for esoteric teachers- Jay is a riot and he really knows his stuff.
On our long drive through Oregon, we got into a great conversation about semantics and its impact on our understanding of Reality. He taught me a lot. (more…)
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Developing Will Power
Here you will learn how to find your personal power from the lessons of Kung Fu, and what you must do each day
Having gone through the rigors of training in Kung Fu over the years, many of the profound benefits have dawned on me at a much later date than when the lesson was first handed down. Sure- you are told it is good for you and yes-discipline is important so you do what you’re told. Does that teach you the underlying lessons of what’s to develop in your inner psyche? I can’t see how it could for a young man on the front side of the experience. Growing up is a maturation process- like the ripening of a fruit- nature will take its course and we are foolish to poke and prod too much. Of course, we expect an apple from an apple tree but what quality? What was the quality of the tree? How was the rain that year? The issue is so multi-factoral that there is always an art and a science to this practice.
The same happens in Kung Fu. The literal translation of the term is “Hard Work” or alternatively, “Eat Bitter”. Sounds romantic but what does it mean? (more…)
There has been so much said in the past decade about the world coming to an end that many people have become desensitized. As we are rounding the corner into 2012, we approach the dreaded date of December 21, 2012- the “end” of the Mayan Calendar. Many people have speculated about what is to happen then. Will it be a sudden flash? Will the poles shift causing massive earth changes? Will we nuke ourselves to smithereens? Or maybe we’ll perish via increased solar flare activity and magnetic field fluctuations which many claim are already happening.
What if, like the dreaded 1/1/2000, nothing at all happens? It could…I mean, it just happened to us a decade ago right?
In my opinion, something is happening and it is big. (more…)
