Editorial notes: This post was found in ‘Draft’ mode in the original blog and may be incomplete. It is published here in its original state. It was last updated on 15/06/2016 Decomposition of Zoroastrian mythology into Rasta ritual and cant An historical narrative with novel conclusions The field of comparative religion has been stymied by a reluctance to attribute any reality to...
Echoes in the green smoke
Editorial notes: This post was found in ‘Draft’ mode in the original blog and may be incomplete. It is published here in its original state. It was last updated on 12/05/2016 I first heard this story while smoking a thick reefer, bathing in a hot water spring in the interior of Fiji. I had travelled by cattle truck, foot and horse to arrive at this place. And it was good. I had long...
Learning maths with Khan Academy
Khan Academy[I] is awesome. Learning maths with Khan Academy is fun and rewarding. Here’s how I started, why I started, my thoughts and experiences. How I started Its been a decade since I last did any mathematics, and whilst I can still remember many general principles and a few rules, the maths part of my brain has certainly grown more than a little rusty. It’s not just forgetting...
Letter to a Stranger
Dear stranger, Down the road is a bridge over a cement creek. The waters are always very low, except when it rains, then it stays high for a few days. In the middle of the creek, to the side of the bridge, is a supermarket trolley lying on its side, half submerged. I walk over the bridge most days – to the train station, or the shops, or the library – and sometimes I see two ducks standing next...
On perspectives of right view
Editorial notes: This post was found in ‘Draft’ mode in the original blog and may be incomplete. It is published here in its original state. It was last updated on 23/01/2016. Perspective of samma ditthi[I] Right view is an achievement of comprehension, regarding the nature of experience. It is the answer to the question, “What is reality”, and also “What is the...
Walking towards a right refuge
Editorial notes: This post was found in ‘Draft’ mode in the original blog and may be incomplete. It is published here in its original state. It was last updated on 15/01/2016 To motivate oneself consistently to walk the eightfold path it may not be enough to pursue its truths since those truths may not be fully intuited before certain liberations. Tradition recommends that a follower...
First Taste of Yoga
Editorial notes: This post was found in ‘Draft’ mode in the original blog and may be incomplete. It is published here in its original state. It was last updated on 26/11/2015 I had never experienced any form of yoga before a week. Now I have a week’s experience of a daily habit of a Pawanmuktasana series that focuses on joints. Practically detailed, I have conducted 30min daily...
Wisdom in the Talmud as will
Editorial notes: This post was found in ‘Draft’ mode in the original blog and may be incomplete. It is published here in its original state. It was last updated on 20/11/2015 This is a variation-on-a-theme. Where I previously wrote on reading Talmud with Levinas, here I revisit the issue, simplifying some aspects, and expanding on the concept and role of will. There is one idea I wish...
Perceptions of wisdom in the Talmud with Emmanuel Levinas
Editorial notes: On this day Shai publishes his first post dedicated specifically to Judaism. This is significant as it is the beginning of the fourth phase in Shai’s intellectual journey. After having first devoted a substantial body of writing to scientific inquiry and to the study of ancient and classical Western philosophers, and having recently commenced his study of Eastern Wisdom, Shai...
The Traveller is the Journey – Subjects
Categories Journal – relating and describing the experiences of my own day to day life Out-of-the-darkness – specifically my efforts and experiences in recovery Self-improvement – specifically my efforts and experiences in remaking and improving myself Searching – specifically my thoughts and responses to deciding and reconsidering direction Observations –...