Gaia: The Whole World Is Medicine

Touching Enlightenment

http://t4om.gaia.com — Thu, 08 Oct 2009 23:35:07 GMT

"After years of meditation, you may feel you’re making very little progress. But the guide you may need has been with you all along: your body. Drawing on Tibetan Yogic practices, Reggie Ray takes on the modern crisis of disembodiment."

Feeling, freeing ...

"Touching Enlightenment"

Sudden Awakening and Koans

http://t4om.gaia.com — Tue, 01 Sep 2009 21:42:51 GMT

"Awakening can come gradually, almost imperceptibly, or in a sudden, life-altering flash. But however it happens, what’s important is that awakening is real and possible. Like life itself, Zen’s enigmatic koans offer us a path to surprising, unpredictable transformation. When will it happen to you and what—donkey, broom, or morning star—will trigger it?"

More ...

External, Internal, and Nondual Space, by B. Alan Wallace

http://portico.gaia.com — Tue, 25 Aug 2009 00:50:00 GMT

From the B. Alan Wallace essay, “External, Internal, and Nondual Space”:

According to physicist Henning Genz, "Maybe quantum mechanical fluctuations initiated not only the stuff our world was made of prior to inflation but also space-time itself. Maybe the true vacuum, the true nothing, of philosophy and religion should be seen as a state wholly innocent of laws, space, and time. This state can be thought of as nothing but a collection of possibilities of what might be."

Deep and wise and wonderful!

Cooking for the soul and each other.

http://portico.gaia.com — Thu, 06 Aug 2009 18:27:41 GMT

The Complete Tassajara Cookbook

Jun Kaneko: Pure Form and Collaboration, by S. Portico Bowman

http://t4om.gaia.com — Wed, 10 Jun 2009 22:04:42 GMT

From Portico's article in Ceramics: Art and Perception:

Jun Kaneko is probably making the largest hand-built movable ceramic art forms on Earth. He is creating these pure powerful forms with apparent grace and ease through a unique collaboration with industry. Kaneko’s pure forms are timeless. His work will inspire and play with the visual and spiritual dimensions of imaginations that are not yet born, while delighting those of us who are. This delight and wonder is the permanence and power of his art.

—from http://www.scribd.com/doc/16305211/Jun-Kaneko-Pure-Form-and-the-Industry-of-Collaboration-by-S-Portico-Bowman

The Spell of the Sensuous

http://portico.gaia.com — Tue, 11 Sep 2007 02:32:17 GMT

From: The Spell of the Sensuous

"If, for instance, one comes upon two human friends unexpectedly meeting for the first time in many months, and one chances to hear their initial words of surprise, greeting and pleasure, one may readily notice, if one pays close enough attention, a tonal, melodic layer of communication beneath the explicit denotative meaning of the words -- a rippling rise and fall of the voices in a musical duet, rather like two birds singing to each other." Abram, pg. 81.

Flesh and Bone

http://portico.gaia.com — Sat, 08 Sep 2007 01:34:31 GMT

Thich Nhat Hanh invites us to meditate with him. He writes,"After a little while, notice the functioning of your different organs -- your heart, lungs, liver, kidneys, digestive system, and so forth. Normally these organs function without difficulty and do not attract attention unless they are in pain. Notice the blood flowing like a river through the countryside, nourishing the fields with fresh water.

You know that this river of blood nourishes all the cells of your body and that your organs, composed of cells, enrich (digestive system), purify (liver, lungs), and propel (heart) the blood. All the body's organs, including the nervous system and glands, rely on each other for existence. Lungs are necessary for blood, so lungs belong to blood. Blood is necessary to lungs, so blood belongs to lungs. In the same way we can say lungs belong to heart, liver belongs to lungs, and so forth, and we see that every organ in the body implies the existence of all the others. This is called, "the interdependence of all things," or "interbeing" in the Avatamsaka Sutra." pg. 64, The Sun My Heart.

Keeping the body comfortable requires the proper nourishment going in, and the proper nourishment going around.

Jai Ma!

The Thing of Everything

http://t4om.gaia.com — Wed, 27 Jun 2007 10:18:03 GMT

For greater clarity, I've slightly expanded my ”Thing Theory.” (It's now fifty words!) :)
I've also given it a new title:

The Thing of Everything

Anything is many things*.

Each and every thing — everything — is something else, so nothing is anything exclusively.

Including everything is the Thing of Everything.

* The scope of “things” is all-inclusive, including all words and all meanings, all thoughts and all theories, from philosophy to physics, from politics to spirituality.

Cheers!
~ Tom

Thing Theory

http://t4om.gaia.com — Sun, 24 Jun 2007 07:33:37 GMT

Here's my ...

Thing Theory

Anything is many things*.

Everything is something else, so nothing is anything exclusively.

Including everything is the Thing of Everything.

* The scope of "things" is all-inclusive, including all words and all meanings, all thoughts and all theories, from semiotics to physics, from politics to spirituality.

~ Tom

Feast!

http://portico.gaia.com — Fri, 06 Apr 2007 17:44:58 GMT

Really, really great to see this video and to read Brian's commentary. With Whole Foods just across the street from Ralphs I thought it would be nice to plant Brian's post here!

Joy!
Portico

Hands and Hearts

http://portico.gaia.com — Sat, 31 Mar 2007 23:33:48 GMT

Yesterday Tom sent me this interesting thread about the Law of Attraction from the Integral Institute pod at Zaadz. While reading through the very interesting discussion I followed Balder's suggestion to read David Bohm's Soma-Significance: A New Notion of the Relationship between the Physical and the Mental. I loved it, or what I have read so far (there are eight printed pages left in my knitting bag that will accompany me for another reading session to Starbucks later tonight), but the reason I am making this post is to make a special place for the beautiful passage where Bohm writes, "The word subtle is derived from the Latin sub- texere, signifying `woven from underneath, finely woven.' The meaning is rarefied, delicate, highly refined, elusive, indefinable, intangible. The subtle may be contrasted with the manifest (which latter means literally what can be held in the hand)."

I love the "manifest" metaphor, or the reference to an activity of the hand, weaving, to describe the intangible. This is a wonderful paradox, or play with image and word and meaning. Beautiful!

Om!
Portico

Integral Institute Zaadz Pod Welcome

http://t4om.gaia.com — Tue, 13 Mar 2007 01:20:31 GMT

This is the welcome letter sent to Integral Institute Zaadz Pod (IIzaadz) members:

Welcome to IIzaadz, a pod/forum founded on the work of Ken Wilber and other integral theorists. Our aim is to provide a space for broad discussion of second tier living, loving and learning. Please read our guiding principles - the Road Rules for Transformation - carefully, as well as some of the introductory material on the What Is Integral? and Integral Institute (I-I) 101 boards - we particularly recommend

What Is Altitude?
Waves, Streams, States and Self
Integral Theory and Practice
Ego Development: 9 Levels of Increasing Embrace by Suzanne Cook-Greuter

We'd love to know who you are, and what brings you to our integral space, so please Introduce Yourself to our community.

Many of us have memberships in Integral and/or Integral Spiritual Center, so that we can enjoy the incredible array of audio and video materials made available at low monthly cost by Integral Institute. A variety of free materials are linked to on our Integral Multimedia board; particularly note Integral Videos On YouTube and Integral Spiritual Center: Free Materials.

If you have any questions or concerns about the pod, please send a Private Message to one of the moderators; currently we are pelle , MaryW, and adastra. We endeavor to keep this busy pod running as smoothly as possible, and invite any comments or questions on the Feedback and Suggestions board.

Have fun, and thank you for joining us!

-Turquoise Mod Squad

The letter comes from II pod moderator adastra.

Re: Ambrosia! Bliss at RCLJ!

http://portico.gaia.com — Mon, 19 Feb 2007 17:31:56 GMT

Blessings!

I see that the post I made yesterday did not pick up my efforts to spell check and “essentail” remains and will remain because my opportunity to "edit" has disappeared. My first reaction is how embar-ass-ing because I’m reminded of the sexual slang expression that incorporates the word “tail.” And then perhaps it is not such an awful mistake - just my perspective on it - because the next verse in the Vijnanabhairava after the one I posted yesterday is:

Dharana 45
Verse 68

Vahner visasya madhye tu cittam sukhamayam ksipet/
Kevalam vayupurnam va smaranandena yujyate

Translation

One should throw (ie concentrate) the delightful citta in the middle of the vahni and visa bothways whether by itself or permeated by vayu (pranic breath), one would then be joined to the bliss of sexual union.

And the verse after that is:

Dharana 46
Verse 69

Saktisangamasamksubdhasaktyavesavasanikam
Yat sukham brahmatattvaasya tat sukham svakyam
Ucyate

Translation

At the time of sexual intercourse with a woman, an absorption into her is brought about by excitement, and the final delight that ensues at orgasm betokens the delight of Brahman. This delight is (in reality) that of one’s own Self.

Notes:

1. This absorption is only symbolic of the absorption in the Divine Energy. This illustration has been given only to show that the highest delight ensues only at the disappearance of duality. Sivopadhyaya quotes a verse which clarifies the esoteric meaning of this union.

“Just as being locked in embrace with a woman, one is totally dissolved in the feeling of one-ness (unity) and one loses all sense of anything external or internal, so when the mind is dissolved in the Divine Energy, one loses all sense of duality and experiences the delight of unity consciousness. The Sruti (scripture) speaks of the union with a woman only to illustrate the union with the Divine. It is only a fool who takes this illustration as an injunction for carnal pleasure.

2. The delight is that of one’s own Self.

__________

Lorin Roche Ph. D in his “zesty life-affirming approach to meditation,” has translated The Radiance Sutras where I think the infinite and Divine interchange of body, being, sexuality and spirituality is beautifully portrayed.

Therefore I suppose my only regret about the typo is that the subject of sexual bliss was introduced through my thinking about a “slang” term, because I think as sex turns into slang, it also becomes nothing more than “sex” and orgasms are great, but Bliss is better!

A complex and Divine subject...

Love and Joy!
Portico

Ambrosia! Bliss at RCLJ!

http://portico.gaia.com — Sun, 18 Feb 2007 20:55:58 GMT

A wonderful passage from the Vijnanabhairava or Divine Consciousness, translated by Jaideva Singh:

Dharana 42
Verse 65

Sarvam jagat svadeham va svanandabharitam smaret/
Yugapat svamrtenaiva paranandamayo bhavet

Translation

The yogi/yogini should contemplate the entire universe or their
body simultaneously in its totality as filled with their (essentail,
spiritual) bliss. Then through their own ambrosia-like bliss, they
will become identified with supreme bliss.

Notes

1. Simultaneously (yugapat) means "with totality of attention,"
in one sweep of attention, not in bits.

2. "Their own bliss," means "their own spiritual or divine bliss"
(cidananda), not the pleasure derived from sense-object.

3. The word mrtena or ambrosia points to the fact that there
is no change in this bliss. It is eternal.

Ksemaraja has quoted this verse in Siva-Sutra vimarsini at
two places, in I, 18, and III, 39.

According to Svami Laksmana Joo, the word, "va" occurring in this
verse would not be taken in the sense "or" but in the sense of "ca"
ie "and" (samuccaya). So the first line of the verse would mean "The
yogi/yogini should contemplate the entire universe and their body
simultaneously in totality as filled with their spiritual bliss."

_____

Please note I have taken the extreme liberty to adjust the text so
it is more gender inclusive. I feel supported to do this after reading
the very interesting essay that explores how history and
historians have written women out of India's story.

INDIA

ARYAN PATRIARCHY AND DRAVIDIAN MATRIARCHY

Ray Harris

Joy and Bliss!
Portico

Re: Food for the Gods: Pan's Labyrinth

http://portico.gaia.com — Sun, 18 Feb 2007 20:31:56 GMT

It has been almost a week since I've seen Pan's Labyrinth. The movie is still moving with me and one of my students has now seen it too. Last night while reading the Vijnanabhairava
I came across a passage that says exactly what I was trying to say but in a different way:

Dharana 43

Kuhanena prayogena sadya eva mrgekasane
samudeti mahanando yena tattvam prakasate

"O gazzelle-eyed one, by the employment of magic, supreme delight arises (in the heart of the spectator) instantaneously. (In the condition of the mind), Reality manifests itself.

NOTES

When a spectator beholds some wonderful magical performance, his ordinary normal consciousness is raised to a plane where there is no distinction between subject and object, where it is freed of all thought-constructs and is filled with reverential awe, mute wonder and ineffable joy. At that plane of consciousness is revealed the essential nature of Bhairava. This is only one example. When by contemplating on any scene - vast, awe-inspiring, deeply moving, the mind is thrown into ecstasy and mute wonder, it passes into nirvikalpa state, then that is the moment when suddenly and instantaneously Supreme Reality reveals itself.

This is an example of Sakta upaya.

-----

The text goes on:

According to Svami Laksmana Joo, this verse can have another meaning also. The word 'kuhana' also means 'tickling the arm pit'. So the verse would mean, "O gazelle-eyed one,
by tickling the arm-pit, there occurs instantaneously a great joy. If one contemplates over the essential nature of joy, Reality manifests itself."

__

I do believe that Joy is one "key" way for magic to manifest. Tickle on! Magic and Mystery dance with Spirit!

The Amazon post is missing the beautiful cover of the book. You can see it here.

Re: Altitude and Integral Theory and Practice

http://portico.gaia.com — Fri, 16 Feb 2007 17:53:40 GMT

I have been reading through the "Introduction to Integral Theory and Practice," and I have thoroughly enjoyed watching the story that the following paragraph planted in my mind. I think it's very funny, sort of sweet and no doubt very true. The author writes, "male logic, or a man's voice, tends to be based on terms of autonomy, justice and rights; whereas women's logic or voice tends to be based on terms of relationship, care and responsibility. Men tend toward agency; women tend toward communion. Men follow rules; women follow connections. Men look; women touch. Men tend toward individualism, women toward relationship. One of Gilligan's favorite stories: (referring to Carol Gilligan, author of In a Different Voice), goes on to describe a little boy and girl playing; the boy says, "Let's play pirates!" The girl says, "Let's play like we live next door to each other." Boy, "No, I want to play pirates!" "Okay, you play the pirate who lives next door." (pg. 15).

I realize there are many nuances to a description such as this, but at the same time it was sort of nice to "smile" at the interchange between these two young voices.

Gilligan is in general referring to the idea that women and men develop through 3 or 4 major hierarchical stages of growth. The essay identifies that these stages are hierarchical because each stage has a higher capacity for care and compassion. But she says that women progress through those stages using a different type of logic - they develop in a "different voice."

What I appreciate even more is when the essay goes on to transcend gender and moves into the discussion of the "Good, the True, and the Beautiful, and how it is possible through an integral transformative practice, to discover deeper dimensions of your own Goodness, your own Truth, and your own Beauty. (pg. 24).

Thank you for the post!
Love and Peace,
Portico

Re: Integral Naked ... on YouTube

http://t4om.gaia.com — Wed, 14 Feb 2007 22:40:24 GMT

"Here is a list of all the Integral Naked videos currently posted on YouTube, with links and descriptions; they can be viewed for free."

Cool! Check it out! :)

Re: Happy Heart Day!

http://t4om.gaia.com — Wed, 14 Feb 2007 21:10:33 GMT

I listened twice to be as certain as I could that he says not “Life Blood of the Universe” but rather "lifestream of the universe." But then he does finally conclude with this: "throbbing with life, throbbing with bliss"! That's the big heartthrob, "very wonderful" indeed! Thank you!

Re: Altitude and Integral Theory and Practice

http://portico.gaia.com — Wed, 14 Feb 2007 20:42:01 GMT

Ken Wilber's Integral Theory is like an origami peace crane. The complete theory is majestic and symbolic and yet each fold unfolds to reveal another fold and in the end a blank sheet of paper remains that somehow invites me to participate with what I can bring to the Integral perspective at whatever stage or state I am moving through at the time. This is a wonderful audio presentation reflecting upon the concepts you have posted.

Ken Wilber Interview with Steve Paulson

I just realized RCLJ pod folks might not have a password for IN, but maybe they
can listen with you sometime.

Peace,
Portico

Happy Heart Day!

http://portico.gaia.com — Wed, 14 Feb 2007 20:13:29 GMT

This is a beautiful audio recording with Brother David Steindl-Rast.
It seems very appropriate for Happy Heart Day because he concludes
his discussion by talking about the "Life Blood of the Universe."

Happy Valentine's Day!

Very wonderful!

Peace and Blessings
Portico