...I just got talked in to it by my mate Roland Stern,(his parents were in the German Gestapo)but he is a real fine person...v is expected to do a lecture in 2 or 3 weeks,and I have no idea what to say.Eri,v needs help,fast.

PLEASE, PLEASE film and post this online when it happens.

this is what i came back for - the high beast of the local wicca cavern.

Who can't make it to TEMPLE station, ironically.

You could talke about how you can blow off a man's head from 600 yards away, or so you've been told.

Wow, look at that -- I spelled "talk" olde school.

Dougie,v can indeed take a mans head clean off at 600 yards,v did that most times in the Army,hows your shooting? a rib at 25 yards?...betcha aint been on a shooting range for years,pussy....yo! and how are you with a full auto Bren Gun?,now v used to blast them targets in to bits.,and thats with blasts of 3 shots at a time,on full auto fire...v was told allways to fire in bursts of 3,"to conseve rounds"...Dougie,when v was in the Army,v was told "you have 3 good Armys in the world,British,German and Israeli,the Yanks count for nothing,all they have is fire power",just telling what I was told...perhaps its still secret info to this day,w.d.f.

Anti,v did for a fact get with in 2 miles of you,and as you recall,it was one of then long hot sweaty days in London,but some time soon,right?...before v allmost met you and that fine looking girl v did 12 hours in a non air-con office at 45 c....thats like the Arizona desert on an extra hot day.v understands you are pissed off at not meeting the Vampire,just post a pic of "Max Shreck" about 1930,him and me look much the same.

what you really need to do is consult with daniel sssss

I expect it may come down to that.

I'm from Texas. That don't impress me, V. But I'm only giving you shit. I'll catch you the next time I'm in town. Don't die in the next five years, m'kay?

Tiggy, you wanna make a run to SAT for me?????

SAT? Whassat?

San Antonio

Interesting, that someone comes and posts about wicca, and now *suddenly* v is elected the Grand Poobah of his wicca cavern. Me thinks I see a coincidence.

6 hour drive! One way! That's just whack...

Whack, yeah, I think that's what Spunky had in mind ;p

I get you not? Would I be the whacker or the whackee? Wait. Don't answer that.

LOL.....

thats just nasty! whackaway. I was in houston all week, and it would have been so easy to jump in my rental car, and would not have cost me a red cent......

Yeah, but that would've been six hours in the car, man. Just look me up next time you're in town. We'll head over to Fort Worth and beat the shit out of droopy.

i have been meaning to. too bad I am only in town to change planes lately

Czarina,yo,for a fact,v admires your handle,but do you have the brains to handle that title?...undersand v is part Russian,25%,,how come you have taken that title? What is your reason?

Because she p0wns yer ass.

Anti/droopy,v happens to love the 2 of you,and I promise to meet up real soon,Hill of crosses,LITHUANIA .,SOON, da?

Tonight, in a dream.

well, to clarify: Daniel ssss is not wicca nor wiccan nor pagan as is commonly misunderstood or meant... but likely more Buddhist than upstate luteran and more likely neither of those as I have been forced to embrace what my friend Harvard theologian James Fowler would call "universalizing." Give me a drum. That is, Ms Syrup, if anyone gives a care. I doubt that any newly elected high faluting WhizBob would care. Aunt Jemie toll me dat when she did the voodoolady in the freezer. And Cz, you know you always are the reigning Danubian (as in River Danube lest one misjudge the inference) archeologist in my book at least. Why, there's even a float in you honor. How is the post-diluvian end of the road? And I am not from Texas, though, lord and siddhartha oughta know every body I loves from Texas. Or moved there. Or moved from there. Y'all know that. And it's a "coven." Any one who can handle a gun should know that. But I don't want to humor it. Do we know if that's bored or punched?

i didn't say you were wiccan, i just said he should consult with you. calling someone a universalist is like saying they're a joseph campbellist. if there was such a thing. did you know i attend worship almost every morning? usually from 6:30-6:50 a.m. monday thru friday. and 10:30 a.m.-noon on saturdays. sometimes i take sundays off. if not, it's usully within 30 minutes after getting out of bed.

sarah,v started off as Russian Orthodox,thats a bit like Catholic,how about you?...as for Muslims demanding I worship Allah,no thanks.,you can keep your 400 year old Allah.2 foot to the right of me on this computer desk is a hugh copy of "The Holy Qur,an",all though it is an English translation,you still read it from the back to the front,like Hebrew,and it is still a book written by a cave man,for cave men.

Daniel ssss,v has no problem with you,some nights you get bored,or pissed off,same as v,provided no one insults me,I will allways reply back.We keep this place going.,right?,from v,s point of view,I just post what I think at that moment in time.How about you?

Si, I can be a Campbellist too. In fact, I like the idea of being esconced in mythlogical dimensions, playing the hero's quest, and seeking the holy or unholy grail: the meaning of it all. The term is "universalizing," an action of embracing and allowing whatever and whoever (really practicing religious and spiritual tolerance and acceptance) so too embracing one's own ideas. Fowler's idea is that one moves from the immature, unquestioning of parental religion of birth; to rejecting parental religion of birth and embracing whatever one's friend down the street practices; to embracing whatever one finds most applicable given personal choice and availability and resonance; to finding a place of universal undersanding and acceptance of all and everybody's idiosyncractic religious belief, while sticking to one's own. Such is the process of maturing faith. Wicca, luteran, catolick, they all is religious. Or religion, meaning the relationship with that which is, was, will be long after we sorry ass is mush in the ground. Religion = relation, while spiritual = (recall your latin now) = breath. I prefer that spiritual quest, a personal, breathing, organic, can't get a way from it belief in life. Prolife and prochoice are not antithetical. You wanna be a pagan jew or catolick or luteran, muslim or nothing at all, go for it. It's all just a different route to the same place. And worship? Luteran by birth (hard to escape), it is a given that worship (we mean corporate not personal) is a hallmark of being luteran. It is part of the definition. I have a sixty foot diameter prayer circle in my back yard surrounded by irises and bleeding heart and herbs like yarrow and agrimony and basil, and some fruit trees. It's a pretty good altar. Old celts didn't have altars the way the new agers think: they had a hearth... and in the center of the prayer circle is a fire ring. I worship too in the morning: if it is warm, a cup of vietnamese coffee in the sun room is nice. If it is cold, a sweater takes me on a walk in the woods. If I were yogic, it's gonna be a salute to the sun. If luteran, to the trinity of gtfgtsagthg, if celtic to the directions of the three elements of earth air and water, then to fire, the first shaman, if buddhist, ah! the fresh orange of juice. Some people wonder about the last hundred lives, or become anxious about the next hundred lives. The buddhist is meanwhile warming water for tea. (old and not really good koan). There's a Korean poet who says instead of reminiscing about the past lives or wondering about the future ones, take the bus to work. So on my little bus, I have no problem with v, or anyone else, though Sem and I occasionally used to discuss archeology rather heatedly. Probably most often on my little multicolored vw bus, this old hippy has been called a shamanist, which has tones of some belief system. However, I no more believe in shamanic realms that I believe in my farfenugen bus. Both simply are... Neither calls for a belief system. Nor is it a discipline, or a practice; though many think of such a shamanic worldview that way. It is indeed a paradigm, a way of looking. I don't get bored or pissed off much anymore either. But I am curious what takes twenty minutes in the morning to worship? Seems that you are refering, Sarah, to something other than saying mass. Morning matins used to be a favorite of mine. I don't post much anymore, and really still have a connection to the on line community here... But Hotel Mark Thomas runs by itself very well without me.

...like I say a while back,Sorabji is on autopilot,post what you wish.Perhaps the pilot died years back,bones in the cabin.I dont know.

he's quite well. mr. v, tell me what you know about the university of salford, university of manchecter system???

whatever Rumi worshipped, that's what i worship.

islam?

Entre ahora y ahora, entre yo soy y tu eres, la palabra puente. i'm hella crushin on octavio paz.

entonces bioy casares record� que uno de los heresiarcas de uqbar hab�a declarado que los espejos y la c�pula son abominables, porque multiplican el n�mero de los hombres. -- jorge luis borges i warship rum unless i have whiskey.

more like sufism. sufis are to islam, as unitarians are to christianity. sufis were like the founders of the idea of a new age religion. unitarian universalits churches (UUCs) may have evolved out of christianity - however they claim no creeds, only statements of purpose. my experience of sufism is analogous to that. it evolved out of islam, but claims no creed. but like UUCs, sufism does have liturgy, ceremony, recitation, music, dance. what UUC calls prayer, sufism calls meditation. same same. from what i understand, concepts of deity are diverse among universalists (one god, no god, many gods, whatever). the sufi concept of deity is "La Illaha Ill Allah", which means roughly "There is no god, but God, who is One." so Muslims worship "God" via Muhammad. Christrians via Jesus and/or Mary. Buddhists via Buddha. etc. Jews? i don't know exactly who/what they perceive as God. they worship God directly perhaps? and in a way, land. it's more of an ethno-religious outcropping of paganism, only with a totally micro-managed set of rules. (despite being raised in a jewish family, i understand very little of the jewish cosmology.) in any case, the three fundamental and essential aspects of any religion are 1. assigning the concepts of "right" and "wrong" to human behaviors, 2. defining what happens to you after you die and why, and 3. ceremony and/or ritual. but the fundamental value or goal of Sufis is simply to let go of all notions of duality, of the individual self, to recognize the divine in everything, and realize everything is one. unity. and then there's yoga. yoga basically means "union". union of your soul with the universal soul. in the practice of yoga, the way you achieve this union is through the integration of one's own mind, body, and spirit. the goal of yoga is 'the cessation of mental fluctuations', which gives rise to inner peace. being at peace with oneself. but yoga of course is not just flipping and twisting around on a yoga mat. in yoga, there are eight "limbs" of the practice: Yama - the five abstentions: violence, lying, theft, illicit sex, and possessions Niyama - the five observances: purity, contentment, austerities, study, and surrender to god Asana - the literal translation is "seat," and originally referred mainly to seated positions. but Asana is the physical practice of yoga. the flipping and twisting around part. Pranayama - control of your breath Pratyahara - they call it "reversal of the senses", i think it's better described as being able to completely let go of all your senses, where you literally do not see, hear, feel, taste, or smell anything. Dharana - which means "concentration", so fixing the attention on a single object Dhyana - meditation Samadhi - trance, bliss, transcending consciousness, a mental/physical/spiritual state of liberation. that kind of thing. i guess i didn't really need to type all that out, you could look it up if you cared to, but whatever. i probably didn't spell them correctly either. anyway, what i *love* about yoga is that it acknowledges its own contradiction - that the body is both the barrier AND the portal to "god", the union, the experience of everything being one. on one hand, body consciousness is the root of spiritual bondage, but it is also one of the means to spiritual freedom. i feel like i just so *get* that. the part of yoga that i reject is the religious aspect - the practice of meditating on various deities as the best way of attaining liberation. and this is the part where it bleeds over into Hinduism. there are like a bazillion deities and, while i think their mythologies are all really cool, i'm just not down with iconography (although i would love to get a "Ganesha" tattoo, because even though i won't pray to him, i think he's cool). so if i had a religion, it would be somewhere between sufism and yoga. but religion is not quite the right word. religion is a specific practice with a specific goal. in my own little private sufi church (on my yoga mat, in my living room), there's no worshipping of any deity. the belief system of my church has nothing to do with the concepts of sin, judgment, right, wrong, doctrine, iconography, organized gatherings, or ceremony. i don't recognize or pray to a living or dead human being as a prophet of any god. i don't believe in an after life or in the concepts of heaven or hell. it's just sort of a paradigm a way of life that seems good to me, that i try very hard to practice every day. and when i fail to practice this goodness, i don't have to go to confession or ask any god to forgive me. i just acknowledge my fuck-up, apologize if my fuck-up affected someone else, and try to do better. for me, the purpose of having a spiritual focus is three-fold: to be as happy as possible while i'm alive, to practice non-violence as often as possible, and thereby hopefully helping other beings in the world also to be as happy as possible while they are alive. to accomplish this, i start every day by practicing 6 out of the 8 limbs. i can do six of them for the first 20 minutes or so every week day. granted, about 17 of those minutes is mostly Asana, Dharana, and Pranyama, and i squeeze Dhyana into about 3 minutes :) on weekends i usually get in 60-90 minutes on saturday and/or sunday. and i go to a class at least once a week. i try to practice Yama and Niyama all day long. Yama is the easiest. abstaining from violence, lying, theft, illicit sex, and possessions is not that hard, except possessions is a difficult one when you're a homeowner. (for the record, the two limbs i'm not even close to getting yet are Pratyahara and Samadhi.) anyway, it sets the tone for the day and has been really helpful in making most of my days happy. and of course, just like everyone else in the world, i get stressed, pissed, sad, dejected, and all that. but at the very least almost every single day i give myself those 20-90 minutes. and i truly believe that, because of it, i am mostly happy, and a lot less angsty. also practicing yoga first thing every day, just like any habit, reinforces the ability to recognize the divine in everything, and to realize everything is one (because that's what i personally believe to be true). it brings to the forefront the integration of mind/body/spirit. so i've discovered that i treat myself and those around me with more respect. i am trying harder to contemplate the short- and long-term effects of my actions (or inactions). because of it, i'm more apt to recognize and act on opportunities to spread that happiness around. of course, it's taken me, what... 10 years of yoga practice to get just this far. but now that i'm practicing almost every single day, i'm gaining a lot more out of it than i ever have before. not to mention, you wouldn't believe what kinds of crazy sex positions i can get myself into now.

Yep, I believe in crazy sex positions but not the illicit sex, yep. nice twenty minutes darlin. yep. and thank you. Son took a new /old Rumi collection with him to Europe yesterday morning in fact. Sufi= muslim mysticism? maybe islam mysticism, dunno. universalizing, not universalist. ssss

"I doubt that any newly elected high faluting WhizBob would care." This is great!

So V, it's been 2 or 3 weeks. How was your lecture?

http://somethingpositive.net/sp04242002.shtml

"This place is a dream. Only a sleeper considers it real. Then death comes like dawn, and you wake up laughing at what you thought was your grief." -Rumi

I can't laugh without crying. -Me

It is a strange world, a sad world, a world full of miseries, and woes, and troubles. And yet when King Laugh come, he make them all dance to the tune he play. Bleeding hearts, and dry bones of the churchyard, and tears that burn as they fall, all dance together to the music that he make with that smileless mouth of him. Ah, we men and women are like ropes drawn tight with strain that pull us different ways. Then tears come, and like the rain on the ropes, they brace us up, until perhaps the strain become too great, and we break. But King Laugh he come like the sunshine, and he ease off the strain again, and we bear to go on with our labor, what it may be. -Bram Stoker

holy fucking shit. I am alive.

Holy fucking shit. I still love Sarah.

did you almost die?

Sometimes I wonder, sweetest love, if you Were a mere dream in a long winter night, A dream of spring days, and of golden light Which sheds its rays upon a frozen heart; A dream of wine that fills the drunken eye. And so I wonder, sweetest love, if I Should drink this ruby wine, or rather weep; Each tear a bezel with your face engraved, A rosary to memorize your name. There are so many ways to call you back - Yes, even if you only were a dream. - Rumi

Я вас любил: любовь ещё, быть может, В душе моей угасла не совсем; Но пусть она вас больше не тревожит; Я не хочу печалить вас ничем. Я вас любил безмолвно, безнадежно, То робостью, то ревностью томим; Я вас любил так искренно, так нежно, Как дай вам бог любимой быть другим. --Пушкин I loved you; and it may be that love is not extinguished in my soul; But don't let my love trouble you; I don't want you to be saddened by any of this. I loved you without words, without hope; Now with shyness, now with jealousy tormented. I loved you so sincerely, so tenderly; May God grant that you may be loved so by someone else. --Pushkin (my translation!)

Live to give everything away So nothing keeps us apart. -- Rumi

What ever happened to V?

The Watcher, I think m.t. blocked him from visiting this site.

Rachel was home alone that evening. Her husband had some business in Waco. She didn't mind; there was always something to keep her busy around the ranch, and if she got tired of that she had friends she could call up to chat with. The house was a small one-story off the highway, nestled in a secluded spot on the prairie. No neibhors could be seen from her house, just the rolling fields and criss-crossing fencelines. They kept horses in the back. Just four, but they were Rachel's greatest pleasure. She had been a rodeo girl when she was younger, a champion barrell racer in her prime. These days, at 61, she could still beat her husband in a friendly horseback race, but the rodeo days were a treasured memory the horses helped keep fresh. She was working on the ranch account books when she heard the noise. What was that? It wasn't a loud sound, but more like a door closing or something like that. Maybe it was the shed. Couldn't have been a car. The house is so far out, people never rarely drop by unannounced. She went back to the account book. Must've been the shed. The knock on the door startled her. Who on earth could that be? She went to the front door and, without opening it, said "who is it?" The voice from the other side of the door said, "Ma'am, can we use your phone? My car's dead, I just barely made it to your house. And you know, stupid me, I forgot my cell phone and my girlfriend doesn't have one. So if we could just use your phone, we'd really appreciate it." Rachel look through the peephole. A young man stood in front of the door holding the screen door open with his shoulder. He wore a t-shirt and jeans and so did his girlfriend, who stood behind him on a lower step. She kept her head bowed down as if embarrassed. "Young man, I don't normally let strangers into the house of the evening. If you would like, I'll make a call for you." "Well, it might be better if I called. You know, I gotta give 'em directions to get out her and everything. And maybe bring tools and stuff. You sure I can't just come in for a second and make the call?" "Couldn't I just call you a tow truck?" "Tow trucks are so expensive! And I live pretty far away. Please." Rachel opened the door just a crack, just to get a better look at the young man's face. When she did, he gave the door a hard kick. The door hit Rachel and she staggered back a few feet. This was enough for the man to push his way in, followed by the woman. He pointed a gun at her. "Money! Money, jewelry, whatever the fuck you got, Miss Ellie!" "Please," she said, "I don't really have anything of value in the house!" "The hell you don't, Miss Ellie. Yeah, that's right. Y'aaalls Miss Ellie. Out here in bumfuck Egypt with a barn and shit. And that stupid accent. Say something for me again, say something!" "Please, if you want money...." The man gave a crazed laugh. An exaggerated, mocking laugh while sleeping his knee with his free hand. "Oh Miss Ellie, you shoar do talk purdy!" He stepped forward, grabbed Rachel by the arm and held the gun up to her face. The barrell touched her cheek. "I know you got a purse with money in it, where is it?" Rachel pointed to the kitchen and the man dragged her in there. He dumped the contents of the purse on the kitchen table. The billfold had only $27 and change. The rest he scattered looking for anything of value. Finally he swept everything onto the floor. "You think this is worth my fucking time!" he said, holding up the $27. "You better come up with something to make this worth my time or your life ain't worth shit. What've you got?" "I told you, I swear, we don't have anything valuable here," Rachel said, tears flowing down her cheeks. "Nothing, I swear." "You got horses back there, right?" "You want a horse?" "I don't want no fucking horse," he said. "I fucking hate the things. But I'll tell you what, If you don't come up with something right fucking now I'm gonna take you back there and you're gonna watch me shoot every horse back there. Every filthy, stinkin' one of them." "Oh no! Please, no." Rachel said, yes, she had jewelry. She took him to her bedroom. She pulled an ornate box out of the top dresser drawer and opened it for him. "That's more like it," he said. "Do you need a bag to put it in?" said Rachel. "Just give me the fucking box!" he said, and snatched it out of her hand. "But my mother gave me that box. Please, you can have everything inside it, but leave the box." Rachel was sobbing heavily. "My mother gave that to me when she passed away. It only means something to me. It couldn't be WORTH anything to you. Please." "You gotta be fucking kidding me," the man said. "You miss your mom so much, go be with her." When he pulled the trigger, the barrell was touching Rachel's forehead. She dropped to the floor, blood flowing over the carpet.

Doesn't sounds like v but, the posting is orginally from Texas, not England.