The Liberated

Posted on February 5, 2010 by verteosofia

barrywheeler.net

 ALTHOUGH dedicated practice is the foundation of all successful art and science, it takes more than “practice, practice” as the saying goes, to play in Carnegie Hall.   

Hard work and technical skills are expected. But a celebrated performer is one who knows how a piece ought to be performed, embraces the intention of the composer, and combines it all into an inspiration of his own.
 
And, every musician must be free of the written score, and become finally,”free of the keyboard.”   

The shift signals that an artist has the needed technical foundation, and is ready to develop the music in his own inspired way. Read more »

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The Language of Life

Posted on January 29, 2010 by verteosofia

BLIND chance could never on its own have produced a self-conscious thinking human being, nor would it have any reason for doing so, since intelligence was unnecessary anyway.

Intelligence by any other name undeniably exists, and the paradoxes of self-consciousness it creates in human nature are usually challenging— especially coping with hard karma.

But just like every caterpillar’s solo struggle to grow wings, “the true Adept — the developed man,” H. P. Blavatsky said,

“must become – he cannot be made.”

The process, she wrote, is one of ” growth through evolution — and this must necessarily involve a certain amount of pain” — at least for us humans. Read more »

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The Soul of Things

Posted on January 25, 2010 by verteosofia

René Descartes

RESCUING consciousness from the camp of reductionism, where it has languished for centuries, takes an imaginative and fearless investigator.

Dubbed the “Father of Modern Philosophy,” Descartes held that non-human animals could be reductively explained as mere automatons.

Unlikely to be a popular concept with animal rights activists!

The French philosopher-mathematician was also the one who famously declared “I think therefore I am” — without ever defining what a thought is, or explaining the ever-elusive presence of consciousness.

Why can’t the reverse also be true — “I AM, therefore I think?” Read more »

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Nothing to Lose

Posted on January 19, 2010 by verteosofia

THE classic struggle between hero and villain, the “good guys vs the bad guys,” is a staple of our entertainment and literary culture.

Without this persistent duality, there would never have been Hercules, Batman, Spiderman or Superman — or the Lone Ranger on his white horse Silver.

Nor would we be enjoying productions of Macbeth or Hamlet, or any of the riveting psychological dramas of Shakespeare.

Daytime television, also, would be soap-free. (Hey, can’t you leave us with something?) Read more »

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Angels in Winter

Posted on January 9, 2010 by verteosofia

SNOW angels, as far as we know, are only human-made depressions formed in an area of snow in the shape of an angel.

Snow angel making is a classic and fun winter child’s game — adults too can’t resist.

Nearly everyone living in northern latitudes knows about making “snow angels.” If you don’t, or haven’t, here’s the recipe.

The creation of the snow angel is a simple process. The first step is to find an undisturbed blanket of snow. The next step is to lie on your back on the newly fallen snow, spreadeagled. Arms and legs are then swept back and forth, creating the winged shape.  Read more »

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Saint Buddha

Posted on January 6, 2010 by karalebeau

IN the spirit of the season, I’d like to pay tribute to that treasured Christian saint, Saint Buddha. Well, he wasn’t exactly called that—he was known as the duo saints, Baarlam and Yosaphat.

Baarlam and Yosaphat were popular and revered in the Middle Ages. They even had feast days–honored in the Greek Orthodox Church on August 26 and in the Roman Martyrology in the Western Church on November 27.

The Legend Grows

They figured in the casket scene in Shakespeare’s Merchant of Venice and even the King of France claimed to have a holy relic—the finger of one of the saints.

“The popularity of the Greek version of this story is attested to by the number of translations made of it throughout the Christian world, including versions in Latin, Old Slavonic, Armenian, Christian Arabic, English, Ethiopic, and French,” explains scholar Douglas B. Killings. Read more »

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What We Believe 2

Posted on January 3, 2010 by verteosofia

Lourdes Lopez, Firebird, NYC Ballet

THERE are many beliefs we adopt that become part of our life’s dominant soul-view. Some foster a spiritual life-changing dance, others energize our material side.

Eastern New Age beliefs encourage tolerance, open our hearts to Nature, and build universal brotherhood and sisterhood. They are widespread today, reports a new Pew Research Center Forum poll, (see part one of this Post.)

Many Americans, the Poll reveals,”blend Christianity with Eastern or New Age beliefs such as reincarnation, astrology and the presence of spiritual energy in physical objects.”

In the world as a whole, more people believe in reincarnation and karma than do not. But the question of why these ideas have become so widespread in the West, remains unanswered. Read more »

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What We Believe

Posted on December 28, 2009 by verteosofia

BUDDHA probably never had any intention of establishing a religion 2500 years ago, at least not the sectarian kind.

Nonetheless, followers across Asia and India split his teachings into separate branches and sects, enforced by priests and monks.

Disappointingly, abstruse doctrinal disputes are endemic among the sectarian intellectual elite.

Yet, Buddha had a much more egalitarian view of truth. He said that one ought to…

“Believe nothing, no matter where you read it, or who said it, no matter if I have said it, unless it agrees with your own reason and your own common sense.” Read more »

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A Solar Puzzle

Posted on December 21, 2009 by verteosofia

Nicholas Roerich

TEACHINGS hidden away in certain ancient scriptures say that the Sun, like our heart, is a mysterious, central force having both a physical and spiritual function.

Many ancient temples, chambers and pyramids built around the world, are connected to Sun symbology and occult astronomy. Such sites are considered mere burial tombs by archeologists. But at the time of their construction these sites were in fact intended, says Theosophy, as sacred places of initiation.

Says the Rig-Veda about the Sun:

“His radiance is undecaying —  the intensely-shining, all-pervading, unceasing, undecaying rays of Agni desist not, neither night nor day.”

“This evidently related to the spiritual, central sun, whose rays are all-pervading and unceasing, the eternal and boundless life-giver,” explains H. P. Blavasky in Isis Unveiled: Read more »

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The Mystic Power

Posted on December 15, 2009 by verteosofia

THE oral teachings of Buddha were transcribed forming The Dhammapada, which means “the path of Dharma,” or Duty. Not meant to be a new religion, these were practical teachings anyone could understand and follow. In his first commentary Buddha emphasized that our thoughts have real creative power:

“ALL that we are is the result of what we have thought: all that we are is founded on our thoughts and formed of our thoughts.”

Depending on their source and intention, thoughts could also have destructive power, and the ability to deceive.  They could either be directed to service and harmony, or cause confusion and harm — both emanating from conflicting aspects of the mind. This is why the mind, with its companion desire, is sometimes thought of as a ‘two edged sword.’ Read more »

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