Archive of ‘Spirituality & Religion’ category

02
May
2016

Spiritual Humility

categories: Authentic Living, Spirituality & Religion

For anyone who embraces and embodies The 5 Principles of Authentic Living, learning is a daily occurrence. How could it not be?

These principles do not suggest anything final or absolute; they do not imply any kind of end-game. As someone who embraces and embodies these principles, and has done so for decades — even before I consciously knew and named them — I would say they have more to do with the idea of Zen mind, beginner’s mind. The more we live in and from these five principles, the more we learn about how to do so. We learn how to live from the inner hub of universal creative and expressive power. We learn how to live from the inside out, being carried by great unconquerable streams of shakti, life-force.

Every day we learn. If we are being present, paying attention, listening deeply, speaking truthfully, and acting creatively — if we are living with and from The 5 Principles of Authentic Living — learning is an everyday occurrence. And yet on some days, I am called to school in a way that is more intense, vivid, and expanding than the day-to-day learning. It’s as if I am called into an accelerated class, taught by a master teacher. It’s a master class, convened spontaneously for a particularly important and timely lesson. (more…)

12
Apr
2016

Witches & Healers from Poland

categories: Social Transformation, Society & Culture, Spirituality & Religion
This article and these photos are priceless! I discovered these courtesy of Rob Brezsny’s newsletter, and I’m reprinting his introduction to the link.
Rob Brezsny

Rob Brezsny

“Maxim’s “Hot 100” is the magazine’s list of the planet’s sexiest women. Sports Illustrated has its yearly Swimsuit Issue, which presents a bevy of twenty-something women dressed in skimpy bikinis. Esquire’s regular feature “Women We Love” is a gathering of skinny young celebrities. Now here are some of my current favorite beauties. The images are from photographer Katarzyna Majak’s assemblage of witches and healers of Poland.”

Maria

Maria

19
Feb
2016

Do You Have an Orchestra in Your Head?

categories: Authentic Living, Society & Culture, Speaking Truthfully, Spirituality & Religion

(September 24, 2015)

Last week, I experienced two seemingly unrelated events: I facilitated a two-day Speaking Truthfully masterclass and I watched the Oscars on television.

The masterclass focused on authenticity in self-expression — which includes speaking but really is about how you show up in and play the game of life. Basically, we looked at overcoming all manner of known, suspected, and unknown forms of self-suppression preventing us from flying our freak flag of glorious uniqueness. How? By supplanting prior decisions and choices with new ones. Sometimes that’s easier said than done, because the practice of obeying embodied decisions and choices may be very strong indeed. It can be challenging, even daunting, to declare our freedom from tyranny. These habitual patterns of self-suppression actually become the institutionalized taboos against being and expressing your authenticity, your truth, your creative surges and eruptions of universe-disturbing, big bang-like cosmic roaring.

(more…)

16
Feb
2016

TABOOS!

categories: Authentic Living, Speaking Truthfully, Spirituality & Religion

In order to manifest our most authentic and daring self, in order to speak from our uncensored depth of being, to set free radical and unprecedented ideas and feelings, we have to be able to say anything. Choice comes from freedom, not repression.

And yet, from early in our adventure on planet Earth, we are told there are things that we just cannot say: certain words, phrases, and ideas; certain feelings and desires, certain ways of being. We all have been told certain things are inherently bad, or taboo. We may have been told to keep secret those things that actually happened, or were done to us. Taboos and secrets wage their war against freedom and authentic self-expression. Their weapons in this war include shame, embarrassment, intimidation, group-think, spiritual step-overs, self-doubt, fear, religion, cultural norms, advertising fantasies, mass media manipulation. (more…)

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