Are Your Spiritual Endeavors Effective?

There is a simple touchstone for determining how effective your spiritual practice is, whether it involves sitting in stillness, being absorbed in movement, letting devotion and worship flow from your heart or giving yourself in service. Does it take you to the Source of your being? Does it dissolve your sense of being separate from everything else, or at least weaken the illusion that your are a solitary being in an indifferent universe? This, to me, is above all other measures and benefits.

Adventure in the Bush

Ranger in Namagdi National Park Visitor Center: most of the trails are closed due to recent flooding but there's a nice hike up this valley. Just watch out for the snakes, with this sun they'll be out and in the tall grass they'll be hard to see. Me: Snakes? What kind of snakes? Are they venomous? Ranger: Oh, yea they're all poisonous. There's the brown snake, the tiger snake, the death adder, the mulga,… Me: uh, what'll happen if I get bit, is the area patrolled? Ranger: well, you might die. Cell phone coverage is a spotty back there.

I drove to the Orroral Campground, where there was a single car, 2 kangaroos munching the grass next to it. I put on my running shorts and shoes and took off into the forest, following the Orroral river upstream, treading carefully and slowing to a walk when the grass obscured the trail. The trail climbed, then descended into a lush valley. I could see hundreds of kangaroos in troops about the valley, and rabbits scampered in all directions as I followed a barely-visible trail further upstream. Eventually I came to the site of a former NASA tracking station, now just concrete foundations. Aside from the 3 people I had passed on the trail just a short ways from the campground, I didn't see a single other person or car in the valley for the whole afternoon. The valley was magical, enchanting, dreamlike. The songs of birds I had never heard before, the breeze dancing in the tall grass, the brilliant blue sky adorned with billowing white clouds all made me very happy that I had come. And I didn't see a single snake.

I later learned that Australia is the only continent where venomous snakes (70%) outnumber non-venomous ones.

Belief (with a Captial "B")

"Is Religion a force for good?" was the topic of discussion at a evening gathering of friends last weekend. The nine of us (an instructor at Naropa, the local Buddhist university, a Christian physicist, a Sikh, several agnostics and 2 high school students) greatly enjoy exploring the diverse viewpoints each of us brings to these intimate gatherings. Although we didn't arrive at a consensus on whether religion was a force for good or not (lots of evidence on either side of the issue), we did spend hours talking about why religion exists, whether it's necessary or inevitable, and what the purpose of prayer was. During the discussion I came to realize that belief in God (or the Divine, or the Ultimate Reality), if it is not based on an experience of God, can be a double-edged sword. It can comfort us in difficult times, but it makes us vulnerable to those who would promise to take us God. Belief, if based solely on faith, i.e. something you accept on the basis of what someone else has told you, can keep a person from growing spiritually rather than helping them. It has been well established that we do not see what does not fit in with our beliefs. It takes courage to be a seeker of God - to be open to the Truth in whatever form it is presented to us in. On the other hand, as someone in the gathering said, relentless examination and questioning of your beliefs can distract you from finding the Truth.

I believe there is within each person a longing to fully awaken, to see and experience all dimensions of existence with unfettered eyes. I also believe this is only possible by transcending the analytic mind, and this takes commitment to a practice. A true spiritual practice originates with someone who has succeeded in fully awakening and through this experience realizes that the only worthwhile endeavor is to help others awaken. Because everyone, on some level, longs to awaken, they are drawn to those who have awakened. When a seeker only has the teachings and spokesmen of an awakened one who is no longer present, it is all to easy and common to embrace dogma and settle into unquestioning belief. But having a glimpse, even a fleeting one, of the Transcendent, makes the longing to awaken an inescapable imperative.

Mishaps and Opportunities

After a desperately busy week Jitka and I both felt we needed some time in the high country. So on Sunday, despite having a mountain of unfinished home tasks, we drove to Brainard for a quick hike to Blue Lake. Getting back to the car about four hours later, feeling refreshed and happy that we'd get home well before dinner time, we found ourselves locked out. Yes, I had split the keys and pocketed the office keys rather than the car keys.

This mishap didn't really dampen my spirits. It'd all work out. We're just going to spend a little more time in this beautiful setting than planned. We asked a few fellow hikers returning to their cars whether they had a coat hanger, of the metal variety, with them. This, predictably, did not yield the desired breaking-into-car device. So, we found some kind folks who agreed to give Jitka a ride into Boulder, where she could call AAA road service. Having used this service once before I knew it would be a long while until they showed up. So, I set about looking for makeshift tools. I walked to the campground (which was closed for the season), but it was quite clean of debris. I found a maintenance yard with a junk pile in which there was a long fiberglass rod that had served as a flag holder for a kids bike. Then I found an old nail and bent the tabs on the mounting bracket for the pole around it. Now I had my tool. But since the door lock knobs are smooth it was quite difficult to get purchase with the tip of the nail. Suffice it to say that it took at least an hour configuring the tool and maneuvering it just so until finally I was able to raise the knob and get in. I met the tow truck driver on the road as I was about to hit the Peak-to-Peak Highway.

Both Jitka and I met some very nice people through the incident. Plus, while I was wandering through the woods looking for the right piece of wood to pry the door frame I stumbled across the CMC mountain hut, which I had known about for many years but didn't know the exact location of. So, in the end I was grateful for the opportunity to engineer a solution from makeshift materials and for the chance to interact with kind and interesting people I might have only said "hi" to otherwise.

Photos of the hike and the makeshift tool: http://picasaweb.google.com/sjskhalsa/BlueLakeFall2010#

Gettin' out of Ankara

I knew there was a whole country out there, but should I risk missing my flight to experience it? Anakra is not a particularly attractive or interesting city, although it did ease my way into Turkish culture and taught me a few words of the language. My meetings in Ankara ended at noon and Friday, and my flight wasn't until 6 am the next morning, so i rented a car and headed west, towards Istanbul. Getting out of Ankara was harrowing. Everyone drives fast and reckless, I couldn't understand the signs and my Google maps directions were almost too complicated to follow. I missed a turn off the main thoroughfare (it was a center lane exit) so had to loop back through narrow, crowded streets. It didn't help that my map had the highways numbered but these were not used on the highway signage. They used placenames, cities that I didn't know. Eventually, I manage to get on the correct road heading out of town, navigate a few more interchanges and finally get to where I could relax and enjoy the drive, knowing I was on the right road.

The countryside of the Anatolia plain is dry and mountainous. I was following a valley, where a river fed many small plots of fruits and vegetables on the bottom land. Roadside stands selling produce were quite common.

I would have missed the turnoff to the spa if I hadn't coded the waypoint into my GPS. The single-lane road climbed through hilly grasslands and then down into a small valley where the resort was. I was led into to the lobby and introduced to an English-speaking woman. She said rooms were 65 TKL (about $42). I said I was staying a short while and only needed a bed. So, I got a room with three single beds, a table, a locker, 3 chairs and bare bulb hanging from the ceiling. Perfect. It was $5. Oh, and a prayer run and beads were included.

I headed straight to the indoor hot pools. They were a steaming 46deg C (117F). Wow. The waters were available to drink as well and I availed myself of about a quarter liter. While I was hanging out in changing room after soaking a man respectfully asked me where I was from, because his grandson wanted to know. We talked and others in the room moved closer, because they were curious too. They asked - how did you know about this place? Only one man spoke English. He was a retired electrical engineer. After we'd talked for a while I asked if I could take a picture. When I went to leave I asked the Engish-speaking man where I could get a towel. It then dawned on me that it was a "bring your own towel" affair and they hadn't supplied one with the room (what do you expect for $5?). The man very kindly offered his towel, if I took a shower first (appropriate, since I was still sweating from the soak).

I then drove to the nearby city Beypazari. I had no idea where the downtown was, but when I got to a place where there was nowhere to park I figured this must be it. I found a spot a little ways away, parked and walked into the shopping district. Exactly what I wanted. There was one thoroughfare with hardware, clothing, grocery etc. and then an open marketplace with produce stalls, and, well, every kind of merchandise you can imagine in a maze of narrow streets. I ate it up. I had read in the guide that the town was famous two things - silver jewelry and carrots. In fact, there was a statue of a carrot in the one roundabout near the market. The jewelry was indeed remarkable, and one shopkeeper literally pulled me into her shop to look at what she had. I came out with a pendant of intricate silver meshwork with a garnet set in the center. Price: $10.

When I got back to the spa with bread (two sizable loves for $0.75), cheese, peaches, a melon, and, yes, some carrots, I ran into the English-speaking man again, and he invited me to share dinner with him and his family. I knew that would be a long affair, and I would have to decline the meat, so I apologized and said no.

The adventure continued on the drive back to the airport early next morning. I had set my alarm for 3 am but when I awoke at 1 am to pee (I had misgauged in rehydrating after the baths) I decided to pack and leave, allowing extra time in case unforeseen events extended the time it took to get to the airport. Although I had pre-paid the $5 for the room, the guard at the gate would not allow me to exit until i formally checked out at the front desk. So, we walked back to the hotel where the receptionist didn't speak a word of English, and had trouble working the computer to check me out. I eventually left, still relaxed because of the extra 2 hrs I had.

I was using the GPS and maps in my phone as I got near Ankara (I had to be sure it wasn't connecting to the network, because I had unknowingly run up hundreds of dollars in data charges after using it in S. Africa and Greece a few months ago.) Well, at 3pm, just as I was approaching a critical interchange, the alarm on the phone dutifully went off, and the screen froze as I fumbled to turn it off. Completely locked up. Map didn't change. So I'm fumbling to cycle power and I won't. So, still driving on the expressway, getting closer to a point where I will most need guidance, I'm taking the back off the phone, to remove the battery. I finally get the phone restarted, but it's too late. I had to make a decision and it was the wrong one. So here I am wandering the outskirts of Ankara trying to get back on the expressway. Still, no worries, flight isn't for another 3 hrs.

I'm finally on the road approaching the airport. I'm looking for a 24-hr gas station. I spot one with its lights on and pull in. No one in sight. I'm about to drive off when the attendant walks over from a nearby parking lot. I ask for diesel. He cheerfully fills the tank but when he goes to remove the nozzle, it's stuck. He tugs and twists, gives me a "what's up with this?" expression, then goes back to struggling. I watch for a while, then open the trunk and get out a flashlight so he can see better. Still no luck. He goes into the station and gets a screwdriver. He's fiddling, i'm holding the flashlight. More time goes by. Now I'm beginning to wonder how this will get resolved. But eventually he pokes the right and the nozzle comes free.

I got to the airport, through checkin and up to the business lounge in enough time to take a shower (I still smelled slightly to the mineral water, since the showers in the bathhouse used it). Refreshed, relaxed and ready to go home, I grin with the satisfaction of knowing that my gamble paid off.

Photos here

Czech Vacation 2010 (and a midnight visit to a Czech emergency room)

Jitka's parents live in Jicin, a delightful historic town at the boundary between a verdant agricultural plain dotted with picturesque villages and the "Czech Paradise" of mountain parks, lakes, castles and fantastic rock formations. During the summer they move to Jitka's mother's ancestral home in a nearby village, Hubalov, and it's here that we stay during our summer visits.

This year we rode bikes, hiked, swam in the rivers and backpacked in various parts of Bohemia and Moravia (the northwestern and southeastern parts of the Czech Republic). The photo album highlights the beautiful places we saw.

On our next to the last day we went on a day-long excursion to a region in the Czech Paradise around the village of Mala Skala. Our 13-km route climbed a ridge where we visited 2 castles, then down through a valley, through several forests to the Jizera River, where we took a break, putting on our swimming suits and buying some cold brews (NA for me, of course).

Czech are sporting types. There are always many hikers of all ages out on the trails, and here there were canoes and nearby camps for kids with rope courses. Where we had stopped someone had run a cable between two tall riverside trees and in the middle affixed a climbing rope hanging above a stump. The rope had a knot on the very end, for shorter people to grab, and a wooden bar about 2 feet higher for taller people to hold onto while swinging out over the river. Barbora and I took turns swinging and dropping into the river. What I didn't realize was that since the rope was very elastic, there was a tremendous recoil when I let go and on my final swing I was facing the shore when I let go, as opposed to facing away, and when the knotted end of the rope whipped up it hit me violently in the eye. It was left in a great deal of pain and later that night, with no abatement in the pain, we decided that I had scratched my cornea and needed to visit a doctor, because infection is danger in such cases. The hospital in Jicin did not have an eye specialist so Jitka's dad drove us to the nearest large city, Hradec Kralove, where there is a teaching hospital with an emergency room for eye injuries. Not only were we admitted immediately, but the lead doctor examined and treated me. The best part: total cost (no insurance), including antibiotic eye ointment, was around $30.

Photos from our time in Czech are here.

Greece Travels, Summer 2010

As on our first visit to Greece in 2002, we started in Thessaloniki, the de facto northern capital. We used frequent flier miles to get to Prague, found cheap airfares to Thessaloniki on Malev, the Hungarian airline, and good rates on a rental car from Thrifty. Our plan was to drive across the breadth of mountainous northern Greece to the Ionian Sea, in one day. The recently-completed EU-funded highway made this possible. However, we encountered a detour about 3 hrs into the drive, which took us over a high mountain pass on narrow, winding roads, adding probably 1.5 hrs to the drive. We had no complaints, though, as the route was very scenic. We arrived a little after 10 pm, thankful that the maps on my new cell phone guided us through the narrow streets of Parga to our pension.

We chose to make Parga, a fishing village on a picturesque bay, as our base. Although tourism is clearly a large factor in the local economy, many still work the olive groves and fishing boats, and life on the backstreets away from the waterfront appears have remain unchanged for centuries. The town is built on a steep slope dropping into a bay with several small islets, giving the town the feel of a Greek island. The tourist season had not quite gotten into full swing when we arrived, but by the time we left 10 days later, the waterfront was noticeably more crowded on our evening strolls.

One of the main reasons for choosing Parga was the numerous beautiful beaches available - three within walking distance of where we were staying and many more up and down the coast, ranging from small coves accessed by really bad dirt roads (built for the olive groves) to broad sandy beaches that we had pretty much to ourselves.

We stayed in a family-run pension 2 blocks from the beach. We had a refrigerator in our room and access to a kitchen, so we prepared our own breakfasts and lunches, but ate out every night. There were probably 30 or more tavernas to choose from within walking distance. One thing we never lacked was access to good food. That's one of the things we love about Greece. The smallest village will have 1 or 2 tavernas in which you can always get a good vegetarian meal.

One day we made an excursion to the Pindos mountains of Ioannina Prefecture. The region of deep canyons and thick forests has been difficult to access through much of history, remaining autonomous during the Ottoman Empire and flourishing through the 16th, 17th and 18th centuries. The Zagorian people who live there (zagoria meaning land behind the mountains) established 46 mountainside villages, building houses entirely from the local slate and constructing a series of amazing stone bridges that are still standing. Dominating the landscape is the Vikos gorge, deeper, it is said, than the Grand Canyon. We hiked to an overlook on the eastern rim and then drove to village of Monodentri and visited the nearby Agia Paraskevi Monastery, built in 1412, which is perched on the western edge of the gorge.

Another interesting spot we visited on another day was the Nekromanteion of Acheron, or oracle of the dead, where evidence indicates worship of the gods of the underworld has been carried out since the 14th century BC. It contains the palace of Hades and Persephone, where people went to meet with the souls of the dead.

I should add that we encountered no problems related to the current economic situation in Greece (but did see a sign in the window of a shop in the tourist section of Parga that read "crises prices"). Also, it seems that now a great deal more signage is in both Greek and English.

In all a great trip. We vowed to return, especially to Zagoria and spend more time roaming those mountains and villages.

Photos from the trip are here.

Why isn't it natural and easy to become liberated?

Isn't it strange how, as humans, we have this gift of consciousness but squander it by allowing our minds to run wild and not using it to perceive the true nature of reality thereby releasing us from suffering? Why isn't it self-evident what we are here to do? Or at least why isn't it common knowledge, widely taught and shared? I suppose Truth has to have a cultural context and so we find it expressed in many different ways, each expression becoming progressively more narrow in its interpretation of Truth and therefore more inaccessible, or unpalatable, to all except those steeped in that culture or subculture, as time goes on. Perhaps even if the mind does get a glimpse of Truth and the path to end suffering, it resists. Why? Because the path to fully awakening is arduous? Why would this be so? Why does the mind create obstacles? Is it simply that the ego, the limited self, fears the annihilation that would come with awakening? I don't understand the purpose of this. Is our culturization somehow responsible - instilling in us the notion that we have to fend for ourselves? If we grew up in a society where everyone cared for each other, where no one had to worry about defending what was theirs, would a less dominant ego make it easier to live in an awakened state and be more fully human?

But this is not how most people grew up, and so the world is full of people who are suffering, and more often than not blaming their suffering on other people, institutions or fate, but still, on some level of consciousness, knowing that there is a greater Truth that can free them of their suffering. So this brings me back to the question of why, if we have the capacity to grasp the Truth and there is a longing in everyone to awaken, is it not a natural, spontaneous process? Or at least a process that can be simply and universally explained and understood?

Attuning to the Spirit of Jesus on Easter

Today Jitka, Barbora and I stood outside in the early morning light and invited the Spirit of Jesus to be with us. We began facing east, the place of Light, and recalled the inspiration that Jesus brought, and thought of Jesus in his transcendent form. Then we turned south and thought of the fire and passion with which Jesus worked to awaken humanity, and remembered Jesus as the tireless servant. Then we turned west and thought of the blessings the he brought, of the purification of the holy waters that wash away our sins that keep us from seeing the truth. Then we turned north and remembered Jesus as the teacher, as the channel for divine law that is our foundation – the immutable, timeless guideposts to living a worthy life. We then stood close, facing each other, and remembered Jesus as he is manifest in our hearts, in every heart, and read aloud words that Jesus had spoken. Our selections were:

I am the light that shines over all things. I am everything. From me all came forth, and to me all return. Split a piece of wood, and I am there. Lift a stone, and you will find me there.

If those who lead you say to you, "Look, the Kingdom is in the sky," then the birds will get there first. If they say "It is in the ocean," then the fish will get there first.
But the Kingdom of God is within you and outside of you.
Once you come to know yourselves, you will become known.
And you will know that it is you who are the children of the living Father.

They said to Him: "Shall we then, being children, enter the Kingdom?" Jesus said to them: "When you make the two one, and when you make the inner as the outer and the outer as the inner and the above as the below, and when you make the male and the female into a single one, then you shall enter the kingdom."

You are the light of the world. A city set upon a hill cannot be hid. Neither do men light a candle and put it under a bushel, but on a candlestick; and it gives light to all who are in the house. Let your light so shine before men that they may see your good works and be led to glorify your Father who is in heaven.

Appreciation for Critical Thinking

A typical dinner table conversation in our family involves someone taking a position or making an assertion and me taking the opposite viewpoint so we can explore the dimensions of the issue and expose the basis of our beliefs. This sport was never embraced by Jitka, and she would get quite mad at me when it upset our daughter. But as Barbora matured she also grew to enjoy the mental sparring, even though the debates sometimes brought out strong emotions.

Our beliefs and assumptions so strongly influence how we see the world that it behooves us to critically examine them and measure them against opposing views. Firmly held positions should be traceable to a set of fundamental values that, ideally, express the goodness shared by all humanity.

It warmed my heart today when Barbora thanked me for the dinnertime debates while she was growing up because it helped her become adept at identifying faulty thinking, taking opposing views for the sake of argument, and discerning what her core beliefs are.

Welcome 2010

January 1, 2010 was a day to savor. I hope it portends a good year. It began with a joyous welcoming of 2010 at midnight, under the stars and the full moon directly overhead, with 3 generations of family as well as good friends. Despite getting to sleep at 1:30am, I still awoke early enough to take a cold shower and sit for a long meditation before everyone else in the house got up. After breakfast we worked on a complex jigsaw puzzle that we had begun on Christmas day (a family tradition) and other deliciously unhurried leisure activities. After lunch we headed up to Eldora ski area, where Barbora did training for Nordic racing while Jitka and I did a backcountry XC ski trip up Jenny Creek. The conditions were perfect: sun and plentiful, dry snow. When we got back home, we quickly showered and prepared for a dinner party at a friend's house. There was perfection here too - a warm-heated and gracious host, good food and animated, thought-provoking discussions that everyone participated in (i.e. there was only one conversation going on). The night started on politics (is democracy possible or appropriate in Afghanistan?), progressed through contemporary physics and causality, lingered on lightweight topics such as existence of the soul, ventured into various conspiracy theories and the threat of extraterrestrials and ended with everyone rating the current state of their life on a scale of 1 - 10. Among the 5 men and 3 women present we had Buddhists, Christians, Atheists and a Sikh, and we all thoroughly enjoyed each others' company. A great finish to a delightful day.