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Jul 17, 2023·edited Jul 17, 2023Liked by Guy Duperreault

Hi Guy.

Had to read it twice, now about 1:30 am here in Japan, just after taking my sleeping meds.

Just wanted to say I enjoyed reading it, and saw myself oscillating with myself, probably terminally so. Will read it again on another day.

Hungry Ghosts reminded me of a book I had read a few years ago, Gabor Maté "In the Realm of Hungry Ghosts" about his working with the homeless and addicted on the streets of Vancouver. Other than your post, that is the only reference I've come across regarding those things, but I guess it overlaps with the psychology of the sociopaths attracted to concentrations of power over others.

In the new local community center that I just joined, I rented a book shelf to market English classes. Among about a dozen books I stuck in it includes a couple by Shel Silverstein, the Penguin History of Jazz Recordings, and Paul Reps' "Zen Flesh, Zen Bones". Reading your post, I remembered appreciating those ox herding pictures from undergrad days, maybe in a book by Suzuki Daisetsu? And though only vaguely familiar with chaos theory, and the shape of the Lorenze attractor ... I could not help but to feel a bit of synchronicity. Not more than an hour ago, I enjoyed the last podcast of my YouTube spree tonight by watching Veritasium on "The Most Misunderstood Concept in Physics" (entropy) , and earlier watched a podcast by Frans de Waal on debunking the most common misconception of the Alpha Male, and reminding us we are social primates.

Just a couple of days ago, a friend helped me choose to the text to stick on the back of my new name card featuring a mandelbrot set with my face in it. The text in Japanese was a brief definition of fractal theory in general, the English text was the first four lines of this poem ... https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poems/43650/auguries-of-innocence. I thought you would appreciate it. Enjoyed the Kate Bush.

Synchronicity I guess. Was feeling down and listless all day. I needed this.

Eyelids getting heavy ... g'night from Japan.

steve

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Hola, sleepy head Steve!

I liked/loved that wonderful little and so pointed a synchronicity! Actually, my hairs are standing up on end. And so glad that these ideas helped you shift from being listless to ego-less, meaning in this moment of sleeping joy!

*Zen Flesh, Zen Bones* was a part of my library before I embraces *aperigraha* and returned it to the flow for someone else to enjoy and be inspired.

It is about 11:15, now as I write this. I had a lovely little sleep after my all-night write. Somehow those Sunday night Monday morning writes have often been very bright and right inspirational practices for me.

I love, love that poem! I remember it from my Romantic Poetry semester! What a great way to experience a synchronicity. And oddly enough I was going to include a 19th Century Japanese painting that was used as an example of fractals! I may go and my essay to include that. Here is the link to the mathematical discussion of the fractal beauty/magic of Math in art - Katsushika Hokusai's “The Wave” painted The Wave in 1831. https://www.intmath.com/blog/mathematics/math-in-art-hokusais-the-wave-595

As to the text, do you know which font you picked? I stumbled across new-to-me fonts: 'maru'. At one time I was deeply fascinated by them, and began creating one of my own. (That was shelved when life took off into a kind of craziness in about 2016.) Here is an example of roman style GT Maru here; https://www.grillitype.com/typeface/gt-maru. There is Japanese hiragana font called 'Honoka' here: https://fonts.adobe.com/fonts/honoka-maru-gothic. Time for shave/shower then sadhana and visit the 'big' Cuidad de Oaxaca.

The first four lines are a perfect intro to fractals.

From the poem this has particular meaning to me as pure Gautama Buddhist thought:

Man was made for Joy & Woe

And when this we rightly know

Thro the World we safely go

Joy & Woe are woven fine

A Clothing for the soul divine

Under every grief & pine

Runs a joy with silken twine

All the best! どうもありがとうございます

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Jul 18, 2023·edited Jul 18, 2023Liked by Guy Duperreault

Still a pre-coffee late morning here in bed when I read this ... so only half alive.

But at least half as much woeful feeling as yesterday 😂.

Although I've come across Hokusai's wave as an example of franctals, that post in itself was a new fractal for me.

Thanks for the poem, also new to me. Somehow It reminded me of something Jung might have said.

Had to look it up, and have to admit "aparigraha' is one of my many achilles' heels. My apartment looks like a cross between a used fishing / camping tackle shop and book strore. The musty back room customers rarely see. The fishing tackle is slowly being sold off, but the books keep collecting — though not sure if a digital collection is for better or worse.

So my pledge for a late coffee morning is to create a bit of a breathing space here with some much needed organizing, and even more needed trashing. A paricularly sticky thorn is piles of lesson plans and 'good-bye' messages from students who had no idea that most of their teachers are treated as disposable migrant labor. Reminders of my own pre-black pilled innocence.

Gotta grab that coffee.

Later Guy!

p.s. I forgot about your question regarding font. The font on my name card? In English, it is probably Times Roman (easier to read because of the seriphs) ... but I have no idea regarding Japanese fonts. I just leave it up to the taste of my friend.

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O! I get to respond to two of my favorite correspondents at once! And I have another poem that speaks to your topic, Guy:

A Spiritual Journey

And the world cannot be discovered by a journey of miles,

no matter how long,

but only by a spiritual journey,

a journey of one inch,

very arduous and humbling and joyful,

by which we arrive at the ground at our feet,

and learn to be at home.

~ Wendell Berry ~

Did I tell you before (or did you tell me?) that someone told John Lennon it was good to have some ego and that was when he went back to writing songs? He'd been too transcendent to bother until then.

Steve, I hope your beautiful card brings you some beautiful students who appreciate you.

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Hola, Tereza.

I love this poem. And Berry is one of my favourite poets. I kept one on my office walls for many years. You may like 'The Peace of Wild Things':

When despair grows in me

and I wake in the night at the least sound

in fear of what my life and my children's lives may be,

I go and lie down where the wood drake

rests in his beauty on the water, and the great heron feeds.

I come into the peace of wild things

who do not tax their lives with forethought

of grief. I come into the presence of still water.

And I feel above me the day-blind stars

waiting for their light. For a time

I rest in the grace of the world, and am free.

Thank you for bringing Berry back to my consciousness. Both these poems are really resonating with me. So powerfully, with a different experience than I was capable of having even a few years ago. Muchas gracias.

I did not know that about Lennon! What an interesting facet of this ego thing in about and around us. Again gracias.

Chantal Kreviazuk's 'Surrounded': https://youtu.be/yqfd4v-_byg

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All was good until my YT switched to Kerala Dust, then all productivity was lost. I'm mesmerized by their dancing!

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RotFL! Yes! I have the same challenge! And even when I'm not watching, my body starts moving, twitching and often I'm up and dancing!

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Oh gorgeous! I've read it before but, as you know, everything hits differently each time. He is also up there with Hafiz as my favorite poets. And now I'll listen to your songs while cleaning the refrigerator. Perfect!

Or as that piece I referenced said, so many problems, how wonderful!

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🙏❤️🙏

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Thanks Tereza. Still trying to recover from a bad case of the blues yesterday, and rather than song writing (yet), coffee, is my best, if temporary, therapy. That's another thing that amazes me ... your consistent quantity as well as quality. The sheer amount of energy you have to draw on is a mystery to me, and maybe what separates the wheat from the chaff.

Cheers Tereza. I've got to make a hot cup of instant "woke'. 😂

steve

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Go easy on yourself, Steve. Don't give yourself too much homework. the world will spin and unravel without you, and you can jump back in anytime.

My productivity yesterday was all your fault! Without finding my book pdf for you, I wouldn't have had the easy task of reading a chapter and formatting it. My posts on solutions never get as much interest as the controversial topics like RM but that's okay. I'm just doing this to amuse myself anyway. Otherwise, dance class and daughters would be the only things providing structure to my days. As it should be for all of us at this point in our lives!

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"Should be". As an unemployed foreigner without family in Japan, I'm trying to dance for dimes as a conversation 'teacher', and not very good at it. I guess I've had my fun and time in the sun, and don't expect much more. I just don't want to be shown off the stage by self-selected sociopaths.

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Hola, Steve.

We are waking people one person at a time and so the forced exist, stage left, is becoming less and less sure.

Now it is my turn for some coffee! Even though it is late here, my intuitive body is asking for some, after an amazing day meeting an amazing young man looking to jump head first into the spiritual journey. He is so inspiring to me, so much courage and desire to be aware.

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Sounds good! I'm on my third coffee, just having exchanged notes about music with a Japanese guy who co-hosted a coffee-shop book corner chat-intro to music (mostly jazz). Wishing substack allowed comments to share photos.

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Yes, that was a juxtaposition I made intentionally. You are, sadly, in good company with the rest of the world who have all been reduced to 'precariats' as the Greeks say. In the world of my system, there are hundreds of ways you could support the community you love and make a living equal to the cost of housing. The system has failed you, not the other way around. You should expect much, much more for yourself and everyone else trapped in it.

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Hola, Tereza!

This morning starts very well, with my sadhana and now some 'svadhyaya', self knowledge from self-study and from scripture.

I hadn't seen (don't remember having seen?) 'precariats' before.

I looked into that and so great. Gracias. And I found this written by another 'Guy'! Too funny.

The Precariat: Today's Transformative Class? by

Guy Standing. 2018.

https://www.greattransition.org/publication/precariat-transformative-class

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The ego serves the body, not the other way around which is big in spirituality, even though they state overcoming the ego.

The only way to communicate with the child/ ego is to notice it.

There's an interesting field of work in reconnecting to the body called feldenkrais which is pretty simple and not difficult.

https://youtube.com/@TaroIwamoto

And here a therapist that uses that for dealing with trauma..

https://youtube.com/@IreneLyon

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Aug 5, 2023·edited Aug 5, 2023Author

Hola, Rob (c137)

Thank you for your comment. I've added it to another kind of exploration of the ego that seems to be evolving. Likely I'll extend my discussion beyond strange attractors to the strange behaviour of the sub-sub atomic particles, charm and the like some time in the future.

I'll look into Feldenkrais a bit more going forward. I looked at it cursorily many many years ago. Time for a revisit. A friend is familiar with it much more than I am. Interesting.

"The only way to communicate with the child/ ego is to notice it."

Interesting how similar that is to Gautama's instruction for 'dealing' with the armies of Mara: to see each one, without hostility, resentment or delusion, and say "I see you.' I wonder if they are related? Hmmmm.

Thank you for the comment and links. And for subscribing! Muchas gracias. All the best, with peace. respect, love and gratitude.

P.S: I apologise for the slow reply. I have found myself unexpectly busy the last few days. So I'll be slow to reply meaningfully to your other comments. I will get to them, though. Good night.

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