Six String Buddha

It’s not a stretch to say The Beatles were pioneers on many levels, from music to pop culture and their experiences with meditation and eastern wisdom undoubtedly influenced several of their songs. Of all of them, the song that planted a spiritual seed in me was “Tomorrow Never Knows” as the lyrics were inspired by John Lennon’s own fascination with universal consciousness.

Although you may be familiar with what meditation is, without first hand experience, it’s difficult to grasp the profound benefits it provides, because results aren’t exactly obtained overnight and most abandon the practice before realizing its full potential.

What does a consistent meditation practice entail? How does one sit and focus their attention for five minutes, let alone hours at a time? Is it even possible to quiet the mind in a world riddled with random distractions?

There are several types of meditation and the disciplines vary, depending on which sect of buddhism one follows. So, how does someone choose which one is best suited for them? Are some methods more effective than others? Do they all provide the same benefits?

With so many questions, beginning a meditation practice can be overwhelming. However, it’s the discipline of consistently practicing that enables us to recognize and cultivate our inherent Buddha consciousness, which motivates us to continue.

In this episode, I address these questions and explore how meditation can positively impact anyone, even if you’re not a Buddhist. I also share my personal meditation journey spanning nearly three decades, shedding light on its evolution and the profound influence it’s had on my life.

So sit back, relax and float downstream with me, as I unravel the mystery of meditation, offering insights, guidance, and inspiration to both novice and experienced practitioners alike. Discover the transformative power of this timeless practice and embark on a journey towards self-awareness and the truth of human consciousness!

By definition, practicing means doing something repeatedly, to develop skill, proficiency, or competence, in order to become “better” at it. It involves spending time, implicitly focused on a particular area of interest, to rise above the surface level and master something; then perhaps eventually using your knowledge, talent or skill to help or inspire others to strive for excellence and develop themselves in that area as well.

As a young kid, my aspiration to be a great guitar player taught me the importance of disciplining myself to sit and practice. Music touched me on such a deep level that I wanted to be able to share it with others, in my own way. I knew that if I ever wanted to play like the guitar heroes who’d influenced me, I’d need to first put in the time to master the fundamentals, study the relevant theories and learn whatever I could from other players, in order to develop my own style, using the skills and knowledge I’d acquired. It was difficult at first, but I conditioned myself to make it a habit.

In that manner of thinking however, what does it mean to practice buddhism and what exactly, are we trying to become better at? Is there some “expert level” to strive for? (and, who’s judging, anyway?) Why should anyone even begin practicing in the first place? Does it contribute any value to others, or is it merely a self-indulgent pursuit for enlightenment? More importantly, if someone decides they want to practice buddhism, how does one actually do it? (hint: there’s no rulebook or blueprint!)

In this episode, I reflect on my own experiences as a musician and as a buddhist, to answer those questions and explain the similarities as well as the differences between practicing music and walking the Eightfold Path - and why practicing anything is a lifelong pursuit!

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Whether you’re a Buddhist, a Christian, Jewish, or Jedi, or even if you don’t identify with any preconceived ideology, if you’re human, there’s one thing we all have in common, without exception. That is, none of us are able to go through life without eventually encountering obstacles and adversity. No matter how rich or poor, or how well-educated you may be, there’s no such thing as a perfect life, devoid of mishaps. Even Luke Skywalker had issues…

Regardless of how much we plan, or how hard we work on achieving something, at some point, without fail we’ll inevitably hit a roadblock that forces us to rethink our strategy. Just when we think we’ve got everything under control, we’re blindsided by a tornado of unforeseen dilemma. Sometimes a setback can throw us completely off course and discourage us from continuing on our journey, creating stress and frustration and subsequently, weakening our self confidence.

The strategy for dealing with adversity and remaining on the path is to first identify the root of the problem and then determine whether we’re allowing our ego to get in the way to distract us and sabotage our progress.

When we’re inadvertently tossed into the eye of a storm, most of us react impulsively, based on our deluded, egoic self. Unfortunately, the ego has a way of stirring up the waves and throwing us overboard, making things even more difficult. If we instead become more mindful and allow our enlightened consciousness to make decisions, we’ll eventually realize the issue isn’t really the problem itself, but rather, our reaction to it.

In this episode, I discuss the buddhist concept of the Eight Winds and how becoming aware of what they are and identifying how they affect your decisions can help you turn your sails more effectively and use resistance to navigate through the storms. After all, you were born to resist, not to be abused…

For more information, please visit https://www.sixstringbuddha.com

Of all the terms most commonly associated with buddhism and eastern philosophy, the word “enlightenment” is likely the first one you think of, any time buddhism or meditation is the topic of conversation. It’s also the one that’s often misunderstood, misinterpreted, or thought of as some superhuman state that requires years of deep meditation and drastic lifestyle changes to attain. It couldn’t possibly be something the average person could experience, with a 9 to 5 job, family, kids, school, or whatever distraction we allow to occupy our mind, from moment to moment, right? 

The funny thing about enlightenment is that it’s already inside each and every one of us and just about everyone has experienced it at one time or another, even if they’re not practicing meditation, or not the least bit spiritual. The great thing about enlightenment is that once you understand what it really is, the more you’ll want to have the ability to access it in your own life, at any given moment, to bring about that feeling of interconnectedness, or being “one” with everything and take control of your erratic & anxious mind.

It’s the very same thing Eckhart Tolle describes in his best-selling books “The Power of Now” and “A New Earth” - both of which I highly recommend! Once you develop a deeper understanding of what enlightenment is (and what it’s NOT!) you’ll see how it can drastically improve the quality of your life and create a sense of inner-peace, regardless of what this chaotic and entropic world of ours is conjuring, moment to moment.  

In this episode, I break down my understanding of enlightenment, through my own experiences, as both a buddhist and also as a musician and explain it to the best of my ability, for you to utilize, at any moment . You may be surprised to find out how you’ve already had “fleeting glimpses” of it in your own life and just how powerful it really is! 

Looking at the world through the myriad of media sources we have at our disposal, it seems as though there’s no shortage of suffering and indifference. Between the pandemic affecting all of us, to the racial injustices, political discord, threat of war and the surmounting environmental issues, it seems logical that we’d distract ourselves from all of it, with our devices and the never ending streams of mindless entertainment we’ve all become addicted to.

With all these distractions, it seems the one vital thing we’ve managed to neglect is compassion. Feeling empathy for suffering that doesn’t affect us on a personal level seems abnormal, since most of us believe there’s nothing we can do to alleviate the suffering of someone outside of our circle. The truth is, cultivating our own sense of empathy and compassion for all living beings unconditionally, has the ability to affect the world on a global scale and create a more peaceful future.

Compassion is the foundation of buddhist philosophy and exercising compassion for all living beings is a virtue of buddhist practice. Without compassion, a peaceful world is an impossibility. Unless we allow ourselves to know the pain of others, we can’t expect to empathize with them, much less help end their suffering.

But what does that look like? How does more compassion translate into putting an end to all the suffering in the world? What does one person’s compassion have to do with all of these global issues that seem insurmountable? Surely, one person can’t change the world, right?

In this episode, I take a closer look into the real meaning of compassion, how important the concept is to buddhist practice and ultimately, to creating a more peaceful world, with less suffering and more unity. I felt the song “Driven To Tears” by The Police is a great metaphor to help explain this concept and what a change of heart can mean to the world, if we each take a look inside ourselves and strengthen our own compassion muscle.

Through the years, there have been many different schools of buddhist thought, but they’ve all built upon the original teachings of Shakyamuni and passed down what they’d learned to the next generation. They did this by following in the footsteps of their mentor and honored them by living the teachings with integrity, setting an example and then passing the torch to the next disciples, keeping the flame of the dharma burning brightly. Essentially, this is how all humans have learned things, from the dawn of mankind - through the knowledge and wisdom of those that came before them. However, the purity of the wisdom depends entirely on the integrity of the teacher…

This lineage of 'mentor and disciple' is woven into everything we do and having the right mentors throughout our lives can determine the outcome of our life's mission and ultimately, whether we succeed or fail. I wanted to honor one of the most important musical mentors I’ve ever had and exemplify just how his wisdom and influence played such a big part in who I’ve become, musically as well as personally. The lessons I’ve learned by following Edward Van Halen over the last forty two years go far beyond just music...

Losing Edward on October 6th, 2020 was much more devastating to me than even I had imagined it would be and I still feel like a piece of who I am is no longer with me. I put this episode together as a tribute to him and the piece in the second half was written as sort of my own, personal eulogy, that I’d imagined myself reading at his memorial. I asked some of my very best guitar player friends to contribute some music, so that this would be an extra special episode that Edward himself would appreciate! There’s some killer guitar music in this episode and all who contributed are also disciples of King Edward, the "punk kid from Pasadena" who made all of our lives so magical. I’m sure Edward would approve! I hope you enjoy it!

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Karma affects every one of us and our collective karma affects the entire planet as a whole. Cause & effect is the law that determines the nature of the karma we create. The lyrics to Rush’s epic song “Natural Science” from their album “Permanent Waves” provide a perfect blueprint to explain these two concepts.

It’s no stretch to say that Rush’s drummer, the late Neil Peart, was certainly a modern day Aristotle, when it came to expressing deep, philosophical lessons, within the context of a song. Using the allegory of the “natural science” of our own planet (as well as inter-galactic space), Peart compares our human world with the macrocosm of the entire universe, beginning with the smallest microorganisms and their symbiosis and the role it all plays in the ongoing story of human life.

What about the collective karma of humanity, over the course of the next millennium? Will mankind survive and evolve, or will we follow in the footsteps of the dinosaurs and eventually become fossils for the next intelligent species to piece together? Can humans learn to peacefully coexist, or will we be responsible for our own demise? The answers to these questions are entirely up to each and every one of us and the actions we take, from moment to moment.

After listening to this episode, you’ll have a clearer understanding of how humans are mutually in control of our own destiny. If we learn to understand our individual karma and the karma of others and also abide by the law of cause & effect, it’s still possible for us to turn things around from the direction we seem to be headed and point us toward a brighter future, devoid of conflict and war. Come with me as I explore the inner workings of the quantum world and its connection to the farthest reaches of the universe and how each one of us plays a role in this cosmic drama.

https://www.sixstringbuddha.com

This podcast is hosted by ZenCast.fm

Apart from being an amazing song, with enough guitar wizardry to shift the axis of the planet, the title track from Jimi Hendrix’s debut album is like a psychedelic spaceship, designed to take the listener’s mind on a journey… but not to “outer” space. Listening to “Are You Experienced?” with the ears of a Buddha, it becomes clearer that perhaps the destination is closer than we think, but more challenging to get to… inner space.

Not only was Jimi Hendrix a guitar god, he was a visionary who left us a wealth of wisdom at a time when there were many seekers. And he amassed quite a flock of disciples with his electric gospel. His genius is multi-dimensional, timeless and unmatched. From the chaotic beauty of his gracefully fierce guitar playing, to the deep, philosophical simplicity of his lyrics and poetry, Jimi Hendrix was an icon.This song is a perfect example of his innate genius and bottomless wisdom.

Was Jimi talking about an acid trip, or was he trying to open your eyes to the truth of your own consciousness? Was he subconsciously sending us all a message through his lyrical dharma? I’ll bet you’ll be amazed at just how deep the rabbit hole can go, once you start climbing into it. If you’re ready to take a little trip with me, then kick back, roll up and listen. You’ll be surprised where you end up, if you delve into the sublime riddle, hidden within the poetry of Jimi’s prose.

In my debut episode, I share my interpretation of the song and just why Jimi and his music mean so much to me, as well as so many millions of others. Just fire up the lava lamp, put on those paisley pants and purple suede boots and step down the ladder of your own mind, to see what’s hiding there…

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This podcast is hosted by ZenCast.fm