drifting-very emotional

Lately, I've been drifting-very emotional.
Things like unemployment, social injustice, authentically living and dying.
Tears fill my eyes just enough for me to notice their presence and shoo them away.
Those powerful moments are reserved for the listeners of humanity.
As my first decade as a man approaches, I both love and fear the world's prospects-
that much i cannot hope to control.
However, I do not lie afraid of my life's prospects-
that much i understand.
I squint my eyes closed to try and feel the future coming at me head on.

RwmG

We Want to Wonder "Why?"

well, we want to wonder "why?"
why lights burn out in minds and in the sky
why some of our love pours and some runs dry
why success or failure outweighs the try
why some dames eat orchids and men crave guys
why we follow socialists, capitalists, and Bear-oh my
why pot remains criminal but poisoned tobacco is a legal buy
why financial giants, Populist despots and Dick love to watch their comrades die
why it's harder to be authentic then it is to be sly
why it takes years of good men to slow down a government's lies
why greed and fear toss ice caps into furnaces to fry
why "it's the too-huge world vaulting us, and it's goodbye"
why bright lights, glowing sticks, and large breasts catch our spinning eyes
why they broke their backs lifting Moloch to Heaven on high
why some human beings don't have 20 dozen reasons to want to survive
why pharmacies can cure and cause us to cry
why all therapy isn't musical-vibrant and Live

RwmG

Lords of Light

In a flash, love was made by two white elephants,
with wild bouts of Chantix induced anti-nicotine tendencies and lucidity.
Exactly how long is your effect's duration, Pill Generation?
Long enough for breakfast in bed-to burst the Yolk of Heaven
and rage against the dying of the light,
until that other pupil remains wider than its ordinary brother.

Things are well kept and controlled here my Brahman brother.
Nothing repeats itself in this hollow space besides the elephants
and freedom references and fluorescent light.
And as I so deemed I dreamed, missing my lucidity.
No one mentioned that there are apples covering the ground in heaven,
left partially consumed-but not yet browning-for a generation.

It's more like the High Fructose and make believe generation.
These thoughts i treat like Ishmael and others like his little brother.
Rhythms of silence can make a moment heaven.
The solitudes of the flesh are the skin of elephants.
Sin is a state of being known by those devoid of necessary lucidity.
Sons of the Lords of Darkness replaced by the Sons of the Lords of Light.

RwmG

Between Arlington and Austin

A traveling stranger
taught me to move
my feet to keep
from falling into that circle
of anxiety--insane,
revolving,
automatic,
directionless.
I would peer into his
strange eyes--shrinking,
widening, capturing, gleaming
like some purple
magenta square stone
long lost at home.

Now, as my mother sings
and firefly rain
falls all around my
hopeful excitement;
I wonder fully and
give half-assed affection
to those dispersed women
slowed by misunderstandings,
men mulligans,
and mazes.

And the road can be cold,
and the road can be hot,
but the road has my trust.
Be sure to miss the God rush,
catch the Incident,
bring out your Dead,
know shades of Grey,
spread Rothbury,
miss the Moon, hug Hubble,
embrace Barry's change,
learn from Yasgur's
and read Songs of the Doomed.

Already, I miss that last
bite, sip, or whiff
of my life's morning
sun. Bright and golden
are the good times
we hold so close
that memory is our skin
is our thinning hair
is our racing heart
is our jeweled teeth
is the cracks
of crusty lip that we
bite, tear, chew
and digest unto our
bodies again and again.

RwmG

Be There

Some of us on this breathing sphere
see things slip and sink.
Some of us on this wet rock
see things climb and expand.

In a polite town is where I reside.
I move and get down to the beats inside,
and live to dream about a worldwide Shakedown-
where hearts and eyes gleam and honest reality is found.

Some of us on this breathing sphere,
hope for shortcuts and sedation.
Some of us on this wet rock,
hope for equality and pretty peace

It beats me how they can continue to fall down
this circling Ferris wheel of anxious frowns.
Roads are often dark and wide, lights bright,
for the old and inexperienced alike.

Some of us on this breathing sphere,
are playing with reverence to our mistakes
Some of us on this wet rock,
are setting off explosions in our minds.

My hand rests upon my finally shut eyes.
At this stubborn sudden moment i realize
I've been getting the shakes and permahigh
and I see now how far out Saturn lies.

Some of us on this breathing sphere,
want to be gone.
Some of us on this wet rock,
want to be there.

RwmG

Melt

Sometimes I fell like they're just trying to eat me.
These with their hearts scattered.
"I need you" today
"I don't need you" this way.

Knock my head, pain my liver to make it sleepy.
Compassionate dreams heal--for some it can't matter.
I'll forgive you someday,
How can we believe a thing we say?

Who knows what instrument fits right in this mix?
It's an undeniable process we venture upon.
But we focus on our breathing,
try and melt this forward thinking.

It is safe to dance with family pics,
but perilous tongue to tongue on this lawn.
Upgrade you love, but not so often,
roll into others arms with caution.

RwmG

Years of the Yuppie: The Personal Consumer (4/8/09)

The election of Ronald Reagan as President of the United States in 1980 resulted in a comprehensive shift in American values and lifestyle. During his two terms in office, the Reagan Revolution marked society’s rejection of ‘60s counterculture, activism, and liberalism. Reagan’s “Greed is Good” initiative encouraged Americans to indulge in their own livelihood, prosperity, and material gains. Wall St. became the generator of an advantageous new American economy; while personal consumption and spending proved to be a rewarding means for the American individual to feel as though they held a stake in both their own lives as well as the state of the nation. For the first time in their lifetime, a younger generation of Americans felt an encouraging feeling that “things were looking up” in the 1980s. The introduction of the American Young Urban Professional-commonly known as the Yuppie-into society created a new breed of American. The ‘80s proved to be not only the Reagan Decade but also the decade of the Yuppie. Jay McInerney’s 1984 novel, “Bright Lights, Big City”, depicts the plight of the yuppie from within the garish metropolis of Manhattan. The rise of the Yuppie produced a new understanding of what it meant to uphold and strengthen one’s personal identity in society, and what it meant to be a consumer in America.

The Yuppies embodied an American cultural phenomenon—the “Me Generation.” Many baby boomers—who participated in and experienced the ascension of an idealistic and communal ‘60s counterculture—found themselves faced with the harsh reality of their own independent well being by the 1980’s. These people “‘chilled out’ during the 70’s, compromised, dropped much of the social commitment, and began to become—a yuppie.” Yuppiedom did not simply occur by means of some external factor. Instead, it transpired through a heightened sense of self-indulgence in their personal lives. Unlike, the “Man in the Grey Flannel Suit” and the Nuclear families of the 1950’s, the yuppies adopted a new system of middle class living that was not centered on the family and the home. “They have rejected the suburban values of their parents in favor of living where the action is.” The central character in McInerney’s novel lives the standard ‘80s New York City yuppie lifestyle marked by luxurious tastes and desires, and a promising profession. His yuppieness is a direct product of his migration from the Midwest to the City. “You began to feel that you were no longer on the outside looking in. When you were growing up you suspected that everyone else had been let in on some fundamental secret which was kept from you.” The baby boomers and yuppies no longer felt a need to exist within the margins of society; now they could focus on decisions in regards to their own life’s direction.
For many people, being a yuppie meant turning their aspirations inward. “Much of the energy and optimism and passion of the ‘60’s seems to have been turned inward, on lives, careers, apartments, and dinners.” As hard working Americans, the yuppies believed that they owed it to themselves to amass wealth and consistently satiate their personal desires. Constantly aspiring for more from oneself and never being satisfied. “Your presence here is only a matter of conducting an experiment in limits, reminding yourself of what you aren’t.” For most yuppies, every decision, every move became inherently calculated in a selfish way. Their ideas and work became for the self. They no longer focused their interests on society, those people close to them, or some struggling oppressed whole. By rejecting their aged hippy political ideologies, the yuppies “converted ‘our thing’ into ‘my thing’.” This shift in concentration of the yuppie’s concern can be seen in how the protagonist of “Bright Lights, Big City” reacts when an old woman is accosted on the train by another man. “You would like to see if she’s all right, but at this point it wouldn’t do much good. You sit down.” Focusing their attention on their material lives and the prospect of upward mobility, the yuppies popularized an apathetic American mood. “What Yuppies have discovered is nothing less than a new plane of consciousness, a state of Transcendental Acquisition, in which the perfection of their possessions enables them to rise above the messy turmoil of their emotional lives.”

Perhaps the most lasting impact that the yuppies had on American society can be found in the economics of the “Reagan Decade”. Paired with Reagan’s supply side economics, tax cuts, and limits upon the federal government; the yuppie’s devotion to new ideals of consumption drastically changed American economics. “The yuppie bind of having to work hard to afford the kind of luxuries that make hard work possible.” The yuppies wanted more and more out of their material lives, so they frivolously worked the most profitable jobs they could attain. As they made more money, they spent more money—becoming trapped in a cycle of BMW car payments and penthouse leases. “A man’s home after all, is his castle.” For McInerney’s main character, the concept of a home exceeded traditional modest ideas. Yuppies saw their homes, their cars, their clothes as a means to show the world how perfect, clean, and attractive their life was. “Yuppies like to think of themselves as having: an ability to perform deftly, technological sophistication, elegant looks.”

As their level of spending increased, the yuppies’ new-age consumption became a model in which the corporate market had to adhere. “Yuppies are challenging the ossified corporate structures, just as they once challenged the sacred traditions of academia, and forcing them into more imaginative solutions.” An entirely new popular area of consumption emerged—that of the private sector. “Even those who don’t meet all the statistical criteria my find their lives and spending habits to a large degree falling into patterns set by the Yuppies.” By 1984, a trickling down of the privatization of everyday life became commonplace amongst business and society alike—with the private sphere being seen as a “better” alternative to the public sector. The average American consumer suddenly had extra cash to spend on a steak dinner, or a blouse from Bloomingdales. “You had rent covered, you had your favorite restaurant on MacDougal where the waitresses knew your names and you could bring your own bottle of wine.” The yuppie’s new model of consumption provided American’s in the ‘80s with a belief that anyone could get rich, or at least live rich.

The impact of the yuppie upon the future of the American economy did not limit itself strictly to the role of the consumer. Yuppies that made enough to have extra money left over after satisfying their need to spend often looked for new opportunities to make money. The “Reagan Decade” embodied the rise of the small investor. In “playing the stock market”, the yuppies discovered a means in which they could gain some influence over the economy itself. “They make money from money, manipulate markets for their own profit, and provide highly skilled and rewarded service central to a capitalist economy.” Additionally, the ‘80s became the period in which the popular American entrepreneur surfaced. More and more, Americans used their affluence to fill their pockets with new money from new personal businesses. “They all have enterprises on the side, typically a little something in real estate.”

In the late ‘80s, the American yuppie saw its popularity slide, becoming an object of scorn—their reputation ruined by an obvious increase in immoral business decisions made by well-known yuppies. However, the yuppie ideal lived on. The impact of yuppiedom on American society fueled a period of expansive economic growth that-until very recently-led the nation into a prosperous and enchanting couple of decades. Even amidst our current economic malaise, American’s still embody the yuppie essence. American’s today continue to strive for the best possible way to live their lives, placing a special importance on efficiency. One would be hard pressed to find Americans within today’s society who does not value their own well being in one or more manners introduced by the yuppies.

Zach Lipkins- Air Whales

The positively down-tempo music of our good buddy-Mr. Zach Lipkins(a resident of Pdubz, USA)-has definitely cemented it’s place among the Bonobo’s and Thievery Corporation’s of the world on my “2-5am & and Thoughtfully Stoned” Itunes Playlist. For anyone who hasn’t gotten a chance to get down to some of Zach’s head-y jams, letss do diss!…

I might not have really paid notice to it so much when I first played his album, Air Whales, but I can’t help but feel good blasting some of these mind picking,organic-done-electronic tracks straight from Zach. I think this album is so soothing, it's gotten to the point where my ADD-esque mind is just fine with letting it play from end to end, if only it could get rid of this head cold.

After much deliberation, I think that Sebra has become that one most auspicious track that my mouse gravitates to initially on this tracklist. It starts off with the hollow sound of finger’s rubbing across a guitar fret, moves into some head bobbing soft break beat’s, and adds a little repeating synth progression. All the while, some of the sounds make me feel like I am inside of a freshly OCD-cleaned out Illadelph, or simply floating through something very fluid.

The one live show I was able to attend of Zach’s last year nearly blew me and the rest of the 20 Pratt crew right off our seats (yes, this was quiet, sit down show amongst scholars )…and into the quietest dance off ive ever been a part of. I am excited to catch his next show (TBA), which will hopefully include a longer set and some Gavin Castleton (Gruvis Malt) live vocals. I think someone should work on getting Zach to throwdown some late night sets in the near future, i got a few ill dance moves ready for that night.

PS. ask Zach how to get a copy of the album at zlipkins@gmail.com or at myspace.com/zachlipkins

The Mind and Enlightenment (11/1/08)

By Rich Guerra

The notion that most people’s minds’ cling to ideas, doctrines, words, and other such dependencies is indisputable. This spurs from a natural misunderstanding since conception of the world and life that surrounds us. Most would be unable to fathom, or put into practice for that matter, any notion that we are in fact able to reach out and understand the nature of our existence. Hui Neng’s Platform Sutra exposes the means in which anyone can develop the understanding that so many believe to be unattainable. In this paper I intend to explore the necessity of understanding one’s own mind and looking solely to it for progression toward Buddha hood; the pitfalls of the misidentified mind and the defilements of the impure mind; as well as the fundamental principle of non-attachment. The Sutra of Hui Neng represents the Sudden School and provides the reader with an alternative to traditional Buddhist teachings. Hui Neng’s Sutra connects Buddhism and Enlightenment intimately with the human’s most complex component, the mind. I hope to illustrate his understanding of one’s Essence of Mind, as well as his belief in its ultimate necessity within this essay.

“When he came to the sentence, ‘One should use one’s mind in such a way that it will be free from any attachment,’ I at once became thoroughly enlightened, and realized that all things in the universe are the Essence of Mind itself.” The moment in which Hui Neng attains sudden enlightenment through the Patriarch Hong Ren’s words exemplifies the importance of the principle of non-attachment to the Sutra. The myth of Hui Neng is meant to represent the life of a pure Buddha, and the single concept that spurred this pure Buddha’s enlightenment was that of non-attachment. By realizing that “all things are the manifestation of the Essence of Mind”; Hui Neng sees instantly that the mind is the instrument which must be utilized in order for enlightenment to be reached. He states in the forth chapter of his Platform Sutra: “If we allow our thoughts, past, present, and future, to link up in a series, we put ourselves under restraint. On the other hand, if we never let our mind attach to anything, we shall gain emancipation. For this reason, we take ‘non-attachment as our fundamental principle.” Any idea, such as the self or time, is simply a way for the mind to become attached, thus limiting the nature of one’s Essence of Mind. Hui Neng explains to his followers that one must practice ‘Idea-lessness’ in order to remain detached from all circumstances and avoid belief that there is anything to be attained in the Essence of Mind. Hui Neng states in the second chapter of the Sutra: “The capacity of the mind is as great as that of space. It is infinite, neither round nor square, neither great nor small, neither green nor yellow, neither red nor white, neither above nor below, neither long nor short, neither angry nor happy, neither right nor wrong, neither good nor evil, neither first nor last.” If all things in the universe are the Essence of Mind itself; there can be no idea or form used in which one can wrongfully limit its nature. Once you can see the mind with non-attachment, you can use the mind to connect to your Buddha nature. Hui Neng continues his argument in relation to Dhyana: “If we are attached to outer objects, our inner mind will be perturbed. When we are free from attachment to all outer objects, the mind will be in peace.” This practice of non-attachment is Dhyana, and Samadhi remains as the inner peace that is reached. One must be able to grasp this concept of non-attachment in order to realize the Essence of Mind. Enlightenment cannot be found if a person has found themselves trapped by the defilements of ignorant practice.

Zhi Chang was first taught by Master Da Tong the way to realize the Essence of Mind and attain Buddha hood, but had not yet become enlightened. In his explanation, Da Tong had confused Chang with the concepts of “Right View” and “True Knowledge.” When Zhi Chang came to Hui Neng to ask him of the true nature of the Essence of Mind, Hui Neng replied: “To let these arbitrary concepts rise spontaneously in your mind indicates that you have misidentified the Essence of Mind, and that you have not yet found the skillful means to realize it. If you realize for one moment that these arbitrary concepts are wrong, your own spiritual light will shine forth permanently.” Zhi Chang was unable to realize his Essence of Mind since his mind remained contaminated by ideas. The instant he believed that the Essence of Mind would not be found within the delusion of concepts of phenomena, Zhi Chang became enlightened. Chang remains as an example of how easily one can allow enlightenment to slip through their fingers. Even the teachings of a Zen master can defer your realization of Essence of Mind, through the smallest attachment. “It is because of the delusion under which our mind works that we fail to realize it (the Wisdom of Enlightenment) ourselves…There is no difference between an enlightened man and an ignorant one. What makes the difference is that one realizes it, while the other is ignorant of it.” This ignorance that Hui Neng speaks of is characteristic of anyone who is yet to realize the Essence of Mind. The enlightened man has not simply spoke about the Essence of Mind, as the ignorant man often does, but has used his mind to make such thoughts into reality. He does this by cutting ties with mere thoughts and delusions, and instead uses mental practice to see that the only nature that exists is Buddha nature. I really connected to this idea, because I find it much more comforting to believe that through mental practice one could become closer to understanding existence. “He who does not know his own Essence of Mind, and is under the delusion that Buddha hood can be attained by outward religious rites is called the slow-witted. He who knows the teaching of the Sudden School and attaches no importance to rituals and whose mind functions always under right views, so that he is absolutely free from defilements or contaminations, is said to have known his Essence of Mind.” Hui Neng stresses the fact that the teachings of Gradual School are merely defilements. Buddha hood cannot be attained without realizing one’s Essence of Mind. One cannot come to understand the Essence of Mind if they remain attached to any religious concepts or practice. The Essence of Mind cannot be found within any devout religious practice and cannot be understood by any ignorant person who does not realize that the pure mind is to be found within the impure mind itself.

In the opening lines of Hui Neng’s Platform Sutra he states: “Learned audience, our Essence of Mind which is the seed or kernel of enlightenment (Bodhi) is pure by nature, and making use of this mind alone we can reach Buddha hood directly.” Hui Neng explains here that there is only one place to look for enlightenment: within one’s self; and only one way to realize that enlightenment: through one’s mind. This is the meaning behind the entirety of Hui Neng’s Sutra. A person’s Essence of Mind is their true nature free from defilements associated with attachments. Every person, no matter who they are, has Buddha nature, but they must utilize their mind to understand that nature. When Fa Da comes to Hui Neng, he explains that he has recited the Lotus Sutra three thousand times and has yet to become enlightened. “The Patriarch replied, ‘Fa Da, the Law is quite clear; it is only your mind that is not clear.’” Hui Neng goes on to explain that: “You should therefore accept the interpretation that Buddha-knowledge is the Buddha-knowledge of your own mind and not that of any other Buddha.” He explains to Fa Da that there is nothing outside of your own mind that can assist you to realizing your Buddha nature. No matter how many recitations Fa Da performs, the Lotus Sutra remains another Buddha’s Enlightenment-knowledge. He must realize that his own Enlightenment is to be found within his own mind. “For him who does not know his own mind there is no use learning Buddhism.” Sutras and teachings are not enough to help a person attain his Buddhahood. Hui Neng stresses throughout his Sutra that although every person has Buddha nature, they cannot hope to realize it until they first come to realize their Essence of Mind. A person could practice Buddhism all of their life, and would never find enlightenment without attaining full understanding of his mind. “When our mind clings to neither good nor evil we should take care not to let it dwell upon vacuity, or remain in state of inertia. Rather should we enlarge our study and broaden our knowledge, so that we can know our own mind, understand thoroughly the principles of Buddhism, be congenial to others in our dealings with them, get rid of the idea of ‘self’ and that of ‘being’, and realize that up to the time when we attain Bodhi the ‘true nature’ (or Essence of Mind) is always immutable.” Buddhist teaching acts as a way to prepare oneself for realizing one’s Buddha nature, but a follower must go further and attain full understanding of their own mind. The Essence of Mind is nothing and everything at once, it can neither be created nor annihilated, and it is absolute.

Hui Neng believes that the difference between one person and another is simply whether they use their mind or they do not. Within his teachings, he remains entirely focused on the mind and its direct association to Buddha hood. If Buddha hood is a person’s goal, there is no alternative to realizing one’s Essence of Mind. If the true nature of the mind is to be understood, one cannot remain attached to any person, thing, or idea. These dependencies, no matter where their origins remain, must be overturned if enlightenment is to be reached. There is no special genetic makeup that needs to be had in order to realize Buddha nature; it is simply a process of overcoming ignorance and realizing one’s Essence of Mind. In today’s society, it seems like enlightenment never crosses the minds of most regular non-monk citizens. I feel like Hui Neng’s principles regarding the mind and attachment could, in fact, serve any lay person well. They don’t necessarily have to be obsessed with understanding their Essence of Mind, or racing towards Cessation. I believe that Samadhi can be attained in a smaller, not so all encompassing, sense. So that, by practicing even a nominal amount of Hui Neng’s teachings regarding the human mind, a person may find themselves a little more content with the uncertainty of existence.