My Blog:
Spirit on the Web
May 20
To God or Not To God
I've been following the raging debate about God vs. Science that has been taking place in the books of Christopher Hitchens and Richard Dawkins and the pages of the New York Times (Stanley Fish, God Talk, Part 2 ) with amusement but also with a betting interest. The more people reject the concept of a Supreme Being--and that may or may not include less anthropomorphic Eastern concepts, such as Buddha Nature or the Tao--the easier it is to lump them all with the Hitchenses of the world. For these folks, it's all a matter of such simplicity. There is no scientific evidnce that God exists or plays a role in human history, ergo, secular humanism is the only way to go. My problem is that it's never been that simple. The best way for me to sum up my dilemma is to put it this way: The only thing more...
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May 18
Deus Vult! (God Wills It!)
"The devil can cite Scripture for his purpose. An evil soul producing holy witness Is like a villain with a smiling cheek." Wm. Shakespeare (Merchant of Venice i. iii. 93) As we now know, courtesy of GQ's Robert Draper, Donald Rumsfeld's Defense Dept. tricked up glossy (and glossed over) reports on the early stages of the invasion of Iraq. His top-secret briefings for President George W. Bush included a document known as the Worldwide Intelligence Update, according to Draper, "a daily digest of critical military intelligence so classified that it circulated among only a handful of Pentagon leaders and the president; Rumsfeld himself often delivered it, by hand, to the White House." On April 7, 2003, for instance, the cover sheet showed Saddam Hussein striking a dictatorial pose, under this passage from the First Epistle of Peter: "It is God's will that by doing...
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May 14
Doin' the Vatican Rag
Under the headline "Papal Monopoly," a leading Catholic magazine in England revealed details of a new board game for Catholics. Depeneding on how the dice tumble, a cardinal's chances of becoming Pope can be boosted or destroyed. "That's the scenario in the impeccably researched board game Vatican, in which players take the role of cardinals vying for the throne of St Peter," says The Tablet of London. "During the course of their 'careers,' players 'Take a Stand' on weighty theological and moral issues, including contraception, clerical celibacy or the campaign to have the Virgin Mary proclaimed co-redeemer. The race begins as soon as the previous papacy ends, sometimes in bizarre circumstances. "The Pope dies when the popemobile rolls over after hitting a truck carrying bananas. Your earlier warnings that the popemobile was unstable are now seen as evidence of your sound judgment and you gain additional support," reads one card....
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April 30
Pathway to Wisdom May Be Found in Brain Circuitry
The common traits of wisdom appear to follow a universal path in the brain, according to a recent study conducted by Dr. Dilip V. Jeste of the department of psychiatry at the University of California, San Diego. Wisdom appears to be more than a subjective concept, but may actually be contained in certain brain circuits and pathways, suggests Dr. Jeste (any relation to David Foster Wallace's Infinite Jest?), who compiled the first-ever review of the neurobiology of wisdom. He contends that this type of research could potentially lead to interventions for enhancing wisdom. It's widely agreed that wisdom includes six traits: empathy, compassion, altruism, self-understanding, emotional stability and pro-social attitudes, such as a tolerance for others' values, according to background information in a news release about the study....
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April 27
American Stonehenge
"The strangest monument in America looms over a barren knoll in northeastern Georgia. Five massive slabs of polished granite rise out of the earth in a star pattern. The rocks are each 16 feet tall, with four of them weighing more than 20 tons apiece. Together they support a 25,000-pound capstone. Approaching the edifice, it's hard not to think immediately of England's Stonehenge or possibly the ominous monolith from 2001: A Space Odyssey. Built in 1980, these pale gray rocks are quietly awaiting the end of the world as we know it."So begins an article in Wired about an American oddity. It goes on . . ....
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April 15
Hare Krishna in Hollywood
(From left) Tom Petty, Jeff Lynne, Jim Keltner, Paul McCartney and Joe Walsh join former Beatle George Harrison's widow Olivia and his son Dhani during a dedication for Harrison.Hundreds of George Harrison's biggest fans and best friends, including Paul McCartney and Tom Petty, turned out to see a star unveiled during a raucous celebration on the Hollywood Walk of Fame on April 14. Incense smoke snaked into the air during the dedication. "He was a beautiful, mystical man living in a material world," Olivia Harrison said of her late husband. Standing next to her, his son, Dhani Harrison, uttered the mantra "Hare Krishna."Fellow former Beatle McCartney stood next to Olivia and Dhani, as the star was unveiled in front of the landmark Capitol Records building. "Thank you very much!" he yelled to hundreds of screaming fans wearing Beatles T-shirts and holding signs, albums and flowers to honor Harrison. The only...
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April 9
Deflating the Ego for Pesach and Easter
At the Pesach Seder at the Kabbalah Centre in Manhattan, the relatively modest dining area was packed with at least 300 people, although nowhere near the 2,000 said to be attending the seder in San Diego with Karen and Rav Berg, who founded the Kabbalah Centre and have built it into an international organization focused on teaching the universal truth of Kabbalah to non-Jews and Jews alike. Still, during the "connection" service that preceded the communal meal, there was Lucy Liu in the front row on the women's side of the congregation. I didn't even notice her, dressed in demure ninja black, until my new friend Leo pointed her out to me. Leo's a jazz drummer from Philly who now lives in New Jersey and comes down for the occasional Shabbat or holiday service. As in Orthodox and Conservative synagogues and most mosques, the men and women were seated separately,...
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| Quote for
Friday, July 03
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Indeed, the grand Spiritual adventure, the mighty quest for truth, tends to prevent us from seeing and understanding our actual, present unhappiness. You can see that you are involved in a search in every moment, not just in the great, meaningful moments. Our every action is driven by the desire for Happiness, from the momentary scratch of an itch to the endeavor of a lifetime. We are rarely simply Happy.- Da Free John, The Holy Jumping-Off Place
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News
New Workshop:
How to Write & Publish Spiritual Books
A Five-Day Workshop at the Omega Institute in Rhinebeck, N.Y.
May 31-June 5, 2009.
Learn the essentials of structuring your book ideas into a professional format to present to agents and publishers.
For more about the books I've written and helped to write click here.
For more information and to register.
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Peter's Newsletter, March 2009
The Holy Land, Part Two: Sacred and Profane
Banyas Creek, a source of the River Jordan
Some months ago when I mentioned to a friend of mine.a physician who had lived in India until he was twelve.that I would be going on a tour of the Holy Land, he responded with mock confusion. .The Holy Land? Where.s that?. As I lamely started to explain what seemed obvious to me, he broke in to set me straight. .Oh, you mean your holy land.. Then he laughed to let me know he was just making a friendly point. I was talking to someone born and raised in a country of well over one million square miles, all of which is considered holy land by its more than one billion native inhabitants. That got me thinking about what on earth we mean by the Holy Land anyway. The Americas were and are considered sacred turf to their native inhabitants, now largely displaced. Yet the people we also call Indians, the Native Americans, never needed to erect great shrines, temples or churches to feel moved by the holiness of the land they...
[Continued]
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Peter's Newsletters cover his original takes on a wide range of contemporary spiritual topics. Past Newsletters are archived on this site, with subjects including Sacred Love Poetry, Journaling, and the Triune Brain.
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New Workshop:
How to Write & Publish Spiritual Books
A Five-Day Workshop at the Omega Institute in Rhinebeck, N.Y.
with author Peter Occhiogrosso
May 31-June 5, 2009
So many people have an important book inside them with a spiritual theme that they want to send out into the world. Yet they feel overwhelmed by the prospect of completing a manuscript and getting it published. After 24 years of experience writing and coauthoring books for major publishers, I have developed a simple way to translate basic ideas into a format that will appeal to agents and editors. Whether you want to submit work to a commercial publisher, self-publish, or just structure a readable manuscript, this workshop will help you learn how.
Students will have time to work on each segment of their proposal and be invited to share them with me and the class if they choose. I will make suggestions and offer guidance on what publishers and agents want to see. Your topic may involve personal spiritual experience (memoirs); health and healing (including books on diet, nutrition and exercise); historical figures, or any related matter. And because we will be working primarily with spiritual concepts, we will use techniques such as journaling, dream interpretation, seeking guidance, and targeted breathing exercises to help you gain access to deeper levels of your creativity and spiritual insight.
Tuition will be $355, which does not include accommodations or meals.
Visit www.eomega.org for information on accommodations and travel, and to register online.
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World Religions
Visit the all new
World Religions section with detailed material drawn from my book
The Joy of Sects.
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New 8 CD Set: Creating a Personal Spiritual Practice
Peter Occhiogrosso and Lench Archuleta
Many people on the spiritual path have expressed the desire to create a
personal spiritual practice that can be integrated into their daily
experience. In this CD set, recorded live at a three-day workshop held at
Omega Institute in Rhinebeck, N.Y., in August 2007, Lench Archuleta and
Peter Occhiogrosso present a diverse array of wisdom, rituals, and
traditional methodologies from which to create your own daily practice.
Working separately and together, Lench and Peter draw on both Native
American and Eastern traditions that connect Body, Mind, and Spirit.
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New DVD: Building a Personal Spiritual Practice
Peter Occhiogrosso and Lench Archuleta
Discover elements of a Personal Spiritual Practice that you can integrate
into your daily life. Learn to build a home altar. Yaqui healer Lench
Archuleta joins author, spiritual writing teacher and breathing instructor
Peter Occhiogrosso to show how to create a sacred space almost anywhere in
your home. Lench explores the sacred in urban and country landscapes,
including how to create a sacred circle in the woods. Peter demonstrates
a classic Qigong exercise called the Swimming Dragon. Together, Lench and
Peter offer an interactive combination of Native American and Eastern
traditions based on workshops they have taught together at the Omega
Institute in Rhinebeck, NY, and The Crossings in Austin, Texas.
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