SEPT B ISSUE
Trevor Hall
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CONTENTS Trevor Hall SPIRITUALITY
86
36
AWAKENING THROUGH TRIKAYA BUDDHISM
44
4 WAYS TO BETTER CONNECT WITH YOUR SPIRITUAL SIDE
+
ANIMAL SPIRITUALITY 56
ANIMAL PERSONHOOD: DO ANIMALS HAVE SOULS?
IN AND THROUGH
THE BODY
OMLIVING 50
ON GRIEF AND FINDING COMPASSION
INTERVIEW BY LIANE BUCK
Cover Courtesy of Photo by © Emory Hall Photography
RELATIONSHIPS 76
THE NEW WAYS TO GRIEVE DURING THE PANDEMIC CONSCIOUS WRITER
METAPHYSICS 86
PSYCHIC ABILITY VS. INTUITION
PERSONAL GROWTH 92
USING FORGIVENESS AS THE BEST REVENGE
96
DO YOUR POOR LIFESTYLE CHOICES SIGNAL AN ADJUSTMENT DISORDER
70
BUILDING YOUR BRAND THROUGH COLLABORATION
WORLD VISION KARUNA VS. CORONA: 102 COVID 19 AND THE CULTURE OF FEAR
ARTIST PROFILE 64
SPOTLIGHT
MIRA LEHR: SIX DECADES OF ARTMAKING
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OMTIMES • SEPT 2020
Trevor Hall is a talented American singersongwriter and guitarist. Raised on an island in South Carolina, singer/songwriter Trevor Hall realized at a young age that music was more than just a passion - it was his life’s art. At sixteen, he recorded his first album. Hall left South Carolina for Idyllwild Arts Academy in California, where he studied classical guitar and was introduced to the practices of yoga and meditation, which would greatly influence his life and his musical compositions.
Hall’s music, a blend of roots and folk music with touches of electronic elements, is imbued with a deep love of Eastern Mysticism. This powerful symbiosis fostered a deep connectivity with his growing fan base. Trevor quickly matured into a leader of the burgeoning conscious musical community. Along with numerous pilgrimages to India, he has sold out the historic Red Rocks Amphitheatre in Colorado as a headliner. He also completed a series of sold-out international tours with Ziggy Marley, Jimmy Cliff, Michael Franti, John Butler Trio, Matisyahu, and Brett Dennen.
IN AND THROUGH THE BODY, Hall’s latest record, releasing September 25th, 2020, presents his most mature sound yet, touching on the timeless human themes of love, struggle, growth, and redemption. Hall uses a palette of genres that span from folk, rootsrock, indie, and electronic, all with a consistent wash of authentic far-Eastern influence . OMTimes was very fortunate to sit and talk with Trevor about his new Music, his Spiritual life, and His passion for the Ocean. OMTimes: Trevor, undoubtedly, You are one of the rising stars of the conscious Music here in the United States and globally. I would like you to tell us how did you start your journey as a singer? Trevor Hall: I was blessed to have started my musical journey at a very young age. My father is a drummer, so I grew up in a very musical household. There were always instruments around. My father had quite a massive record collection as well. I remember that I would love to explore all the different albums, pull one out that caught my eye, and then play it over the stereo. That’s really how I got exposed to so many different genres of music. OMTimes: I know the ageless art of Kirtan that you’re performing nowadays is essential art – both through the devotional singing and the grounding of energies. How did Kirtan happen in your life? How this came to be? Trevor Hall: I was first introduced to the practice of Kirtan in high school.
OMTIMES • SEPT 2020
Unreasonable Joy
TurÄŤya is a Buddhist monk, teacher, and author who, despite living with chronic pain, founded the Dharma Center of Trikaya Buddhism in San Diego in 1998 to share her path. For over 25 years, she has taught thousands of students how to meditate, trained teachers, and helped people discover the unreasonable joy of our true nature.
AWAKENING THROUGH TRIKAYA BUDDHISM Interview with TURIYA
TurÄŤya believes that Enlightenment is real and exists right now, within us all. In this Om Times interview, she shows how this innovative form of Buddhism, which she has been developing in the United States for over 25-years, can point the reader toward Enlightenment and liberation from suffering.
OMTIMES.COM | 2020
OMTIMES: You have developed a new school of Buddhism; can you tell us how it came about? TURIYA: My teacher showed me a pure and direct path of Awakening. After he passed away, I wanted a community to continue my practice with. I spent time exploring all the Buddhist schools I could access, but none felt like home. I opened the Dharma Center. Over the years, this new school developed as I watched what practices worked in our society and what did not. As Buddhism became more popular, we realized we needed to name this type of American Buddhism to differentiate it from the other schools. We decided on Trikaya Buddhism because the name symbolizes the embodiment of Enlightenment in the world. OMTIMES: What are the essential differences in your school of Buddhism to those currently available?
TURIYA: Trikaya Buddhism is thoroughly American born. As far as I know, all of the other Buddhist schools being taught in the United States carry with them the culture of their founders. Many of these cultural artifacts are beautiful and beneficial, but they don’t necessarily have anything to do with Enlightenment. Trikaya Buddhism is naked Buddhism; it’s stripped down to the bare essence of meeting the mind wherever we are. Some key differences that might confuse some traditional Buddhists are we have female monks. When the Buddha created a monastic order, he was already pushing the boundaries of his society. Because of the limitations of his time, he put women a step below men. In Trikaya Buddhism, we recognize in terms of buddha-nature, there is no difference between women and men. Thus, we give ordained practitioners the same title of a monk. Another big difference is we focus more on internal renunciation than external renunciation. It means our monks decide for themselves if they can be married or celibate or not.
OMTIMES.COM | 2020
ON
GRIEF About five and a half years ago, my daughter took her own life. That is one of the worst things that could happen to a human being.
I have also come to see that some hidden blessings come with that process. This book has been inspired by Melissa's death and my journey through that process. Melissa was 33. Married the year before, she went through a serious mental breakdown. She went through a really high period for about six months, then lapsed to a crashing low for about six weeks and then, apparently toppled off a bridge.
and Finding Compassion
When I heard about it, I was on day four of a fiveday residential group that I had been running for a year. So, I heard about it. The group came back in the afternoon, and – luckily, I had a psychotherapist in the group who took over the running of the group – and very wisely created a Grief Circle. He called anyone who is lost a parent - to step in. Anyone who is lost a friend – step in.
Above Author Malcolm Stern
There are some griefs so loud/They could bring down the sky/And there are griefs so still/None knows how deep they lie.
May Sarton.
OMTIMES.COM-September B edition
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I finished the group. It was another day, and then I went back to be with my kids, who are her half-brother and halfsister. And my ex-wife, who was her stepmother. It is a very strange thing that happens with death because the body is very wise. It does not let the grief all at once. I thought there was something wrong with me that I was not feeling that place of extraordinary grief, that you've lost one of the people closest to you in the world. Someone who has your flesh and blood - and you don't feel that, you know, 'am I a psychopath that I don't have any feelings?' or 'am I some weirdo?' but actually, it's a very gradual process. A friend of mine sent me to her therapist – I tried to do therapy, it was a waste of time, I was just in my head – and it took me five months to really get into my grief. And the way it happened was this. I was so angry at Melissa's mother, and I was holding her in hatred. She refused to allow me to speak at the funeral. She said, "you speak everywhere, you don't have to speak at the funeral…" She then took center stage. She asked that my ex-wife does not come. I said, "If Amanda doesn't come, I'm not coming either – and you explain why Melissa's father's not at the funeral," and she eventually agreed that she could sit - not in the front row, where the ceremony was taking place. Family dramas. And I'm thinking: I'm going to look after my ex-wife – she's a really good woman – and I'm going to look after my kids, so unless they're involved, in whatever way, I'm not playing. So, all that stuff went on, and I was really, really angry and holding the anger. And Melissa's mother had said there is was nothing wrong with Melissa; she was just exhausted at the time. I knew that she had gone through a serious mental breakdown, serious mental health issues. So, I held her in this disrespect. OMTIMES.COM
OMTIMES MAGAZINE
ANIMAL PERSONHOOD DO ANIMALS HAVE SOULS?
Some ageless questions intrigue the human imagination: Are we alone in the Universe? Is there Intelligent Life beside us, the terrestrial humans? The funny thing about these questions is that at no point, we regard our animal companions as our companions in our lives' journey. We don't consider them as real independent beings, at least not sentient enough.
OMTIMES •
"Animals share with us the privilege of having a soul." Pythagoras We are so used to disregard the animals and continuously abstaining from assessing their level of consciousness. We are ignoring. They are evolved sufficiently to be declared as an entity dignified with a soul and qualified to enjoy the privilege of retaining (at the least) some legal rights. We are blind to this visible and obvious reality. Thus, we accept the fact that "we are alone" in your voyage through the Cosmos, devoid of the companionship with any other sentient beings. Animals have an intelligent principle, call it consciousness, if you will, different from that which animates Human beings, nevertheless present. Their processes may differ from ours, and even their evolutionary programming, but undoubtedly, they share with us the benefit of having soul experiences. Â Many Spiritual traditions teach about the need for the Soul to acquire knowledge by gathering understanding through many souls' experiences. With animals, this is not different. In fact, it doesn't matter what skin suit we may be using, what matters is the Soul inside and the experience that that Soul is gathering at that lifetime. Many scientists insist on affirming that animals do not own the ability to be conscious. They believe that all animals have their functions, and consequently, their evolution is the result of their set "Instinctual skills."
OMTIMES MAGAZINE | SEPTEMBER
The New Ways to Grieve During the Pandemic
Grief is an emotion that helps us process change. In the pandemic, we are grieving our loss of freedom and fear and deceased loved ones. Mourning our dead is more challenging because we can’t have ordinary funerals. But our dead are still waiting for us to honor and celebrate them—with them—some tips on dealing with grief in the pandemic. When we think about grief, our first thoughts are usually about the devastation we feel when our human and animal beloveds die. But grief is an emotion that helps us process change. What we’re going through with the pandemic is a global change that has ripped away from the basic assumptions of how we live in community, from how we work to how we love. With loss all around us, we’re tempted to withdraw deeper into ourselves, to keep love at bay, to not feel pain. Ironically, that’s when grief can support us. Yes, grief. Grief in a Time of Crisis As an emotion that helps us process change, grief is cathartic, allowing us to release pent-up feelings that keep us frozen in place, unable to move forward. The problem right now is that many people are reluctant to acknowledge their feelings. They’re living on the edge, lost in a newly dangerous world, fearing a tsunami of emotion that could incapacitate them. They believe that being strong—for themselves and their families—means bottling it up: if the feelings can’t get out, things can’t worsen.
Using Forgiveness as the Best Revenge! written by Marc Lainhart
With many life challenges, we have several opportunities to learn, grow, transform, evolve, and heal from our "Soul Adventures" through the tremendous power of Forgiveness. If we refuse those opportunities, we only will continue to suffer and feel the pain in our lives. The Sufi poet Rumi wrote, "The cure for pain is the pain." Our experiences tell us that this is true. We also know that embedded within every painful time and life's experiences have been the seed of incredible transformations, of healing and of growth, and self! When we avoid Forgiveness and stay within all the negative energy, we allow the pain to grow like a very aggressive fungus. Who suffers from this the most? We do, we always do, and the best revenge and moving forward in life is Forgiveness!
OMTimes.com/ September B
We know that grieving and being in great sadness is one of the most potent and effective ways of beginning the transformational healing process for our lives. When we allow ourselves to surrender and let the grief, anger, sadness, anxiety, depression pass through us, we begin to create a stir of energy flow in our stomachs, hearts, throats, to the top of our heads. When we feel the pain for what it is and have an awareness of such problems, we can acknowledge the pain, respond to pain, and finally release the pain. We enter into the world of tears, moans, sobbing, wailing, healing. We are clean, lifted; we are rejuvenated and revived! We have not forgotten; however, we have forgiven!
These are challenges that only life can offer us through our human experiences, and no better reasons to practice Forgiveness actively! Real Pardon (Forgiveness), through the power of choice, aligned with the will of letting go, can create opportunities filled with healing, joy, love, peace, self-love, positive energy, and a clear path towards full transformation. To consciously chose to move into the arena of Forgiveness not only takes great confidence to face the pain but also takes courage. Only an act of Forgiveness can accommodate a real cure for that pain. This forgiveness arena is always open; tickets are now on sale. There is no better time to take back the power and let Forgiveness become the best revenge for living a positive, joyful, and healthy life!
Many of us wrestle with the concept of true Forgiveness. In order to acknowledge it, let it pass through us, have awareness for it can be very challenging, but can also be very healing for us if we forgive. We can feel stuck and not know how to navigate the pain and change it into Forgiveness and healing. Psychological and emotional distress can carry on for days, weeks, months, and even years filled with rage, anger, dread, regret, despair, and hopelessness. Forgiveness will offer you release from persistent negative thoughts. It will free you from the feelings and emotions you may harbor about yourself, others, and even your past.
Marc Lainhart is an award-winning, internationally respected, and tested British trained Psychic and Spiritual Medium and Best American Psychics 2020 Psychic of the Year. Marc's work as a Radio Show Host, Hiking Guide, Certified Diver, Metaphysical Teacher, Holistic Healer, Inspirational Thought Leader, Certified Healthcare Provider. The writer is to serve, heal, guide, teach, transform, and inspire others in connecting to spirit, self, and this wonderful world around us! Visit him at his website marclainhart.com. Marc is the Host of Inspired Living Radio, Wednesdays, at 3:00 PM ET on OMTimes Internet.
"Once we experience and feel this interdependence of all living beings,we will cease to hurt, humiliate, exploit and kill another. We will want to free all sentient beings from suffering. This is karuna, compassion, which in turn gives rise to the responsibility to create happiness and its causes for all." SURESH JINDAL
OMTIMES | SEPTEMBER B
KARUNA VS. CORONA COVID 19 AND THE CULTURE OF FEAR Article by Bodhi Shuddhaanandaa
Through first learning to love and care for ourselves and then embracing all others, we spread a culture of love and compassion instead of fear and inaction. From the ashes of the past mistakes of humanity, in every sphere of human life, the Phoenix is rising. It will transcend the need for such a fear-based experience. Coronavirus and the Culture of Fear We have all become worshippers of fear! We only talk about Coronavirus and its evil possibilities. What if, instead of spending so much time on Corona news from around the world, we withdraw from all the news sources and stop strengthening the energy of the dreadful virus by not thinking or talking about it. Then we could find more time to be with ourselves, sitting and watching our mind at play, allowing all the fears and negative emotions to surface. The goal is to witness the play of our mind, releasing all our thoughts from our subconscious minds. There is no effort needed to de-clutter our minds. We just notice, and the unwanted fears are released, creating space for health and wellness.
Our body’s defense system (immunity) to fight back any virus or germ and keep us free of any disease depends upon our state of mind. If we meditate and practice yoga, have healthy food and don’t ingest negative energy through our senses, our mind is trained to nurture thoughts and feelings of love, compassion, inspiration, creativity, and, most importantly, the gratitude, we can strengthen our immunity. Through this committed practice, we learn to be more kind and compassionate to our own selves. We find the source of true sustainable happiness in the sanctuary of our own inner silence. From this place of strength and personal sustainability, we are then ready to embrace Compassionate Action. Karuna and the Culture of Compassionate Action Karuna is a Sanskrit word meaning the grace and compassion of God in action. What is needed in our world right now is this culture of kindness, where we focus more on God’s Karuna than the corona! Our selfless acts of love, however small and intimate, are manifestations of this infinite spirit and its love for humankind.
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