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Happy Mind: Meditations from the Ancient World to Modernity — Alternative Health
Happy Mind: Meditations from the Ancient World to Modernity

Ancient meditation techniques from wisdom teachers who are lost in the mists of time are made available to you in accessible, bite-sized or longer guided meditations. Each episode is largely inspired by the original teachings of Taoist, Buddhist and Hindu masters like Lao Tzu, Buddha and “Krishna”, Christian masters like Mary Magdalene, Jesus and Teresa of Avila, Greek masters like Plotinus, Plato and Pythagoras, Islamic masters like Rumi, Ibn Arabi, Attar, and Hafez, and pre-historic masters from Polynesia, Australia and the Americas. From Buddhism to Taoism, from Astrology to Platonism, from Medieval Alchemists to Central Asian poets of yore, (and more), this podcast provides an easy way to access the simple meditation and happy life practices developed by the wisest masters to have graced this planet. Zebediah Rice guides you in an easy and free way to learn to meditate, become more mindful, energetic, happy, peaceful, and mentally sharp. Just sit back, relax, and let me do the work for you.

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Latest Episodes:

The Seven Valleys of Ancient Persia (45 min) Jan 31, 2020

Show notes

The middle ages in the Islamic world witnessed an extraordinary flowering of human spiritual development. There were several extraordinary men and women lay down a map that each of us can still follow today to escape our self-hood’s vicious tyranny and set free our soul. It is a royal way and no mind can penetrate the sovereign whom we seek. The mystery of this unending state remains forever out of reach of the intellect. So you have to leave your mind behind on this journey. And that is what we do in this guided meditation. You will pass through the seven valleys of this mystical framework. At each one shed an aspect of mind so that by the end you are ready to witness the dazzling perfection of Truth. The inspiration for this guided meditation are the great Islamic masters like Rabi'a, Ibn 'Arabi, Abd al-Qadir al-Jilani , Jalaluddin Rumi, and above all (in this meditation) Farid Ud-Din Attar. This is a 45 minute version.

Valley 1: The Valley of the Quest

Valley 2: The Valley of Desire

Valley 3: The Valley of the Intellect

Valley 4: Mystic Apprehension & Detachment

Valley 5: Harmony

Valley 6: Bewilderment

Valley 7: Annihilation

Background reading:

The Conference of the Birds (Farid Ud-Din Attar)

The Secret of Secrets (Abd al-Qadir al-Jilani)

Rab'ia of Basra: Selected Poems

I Heard God Laughing: Poems of Hope and Joy (Hafez)

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The Seven Valleys of Ancient Persia (30 min) Jan 30, 2020

Show notes

Long ago a great many poets and mystics graced the land stretching from the Andulus to the Levant and beyond. In these enlightened medieval times several extraordinary men and women lay down a map that each of us can still follow today to escape our self-hood’s vicious tyranny and set free our soul. It is a royal way and no mind can penetrate the sovereign whom we seek. The mystery of this unending state remains forever out of reach of the intellect. So you have to leave your mind behind on this journey. And that is what we do in this guided meditation. You will pass through the seven valleys of this mystical framework. At each one shed an aspect of mind so that by the end you are ready to witness the dazzling perfection of Truth. The inspiration for this guided meditation are the great Islamic masters like Rabi'a, Ibn 'Arabi, Qadir Gilani, Jalaluddin Rumi, and above all (in this meditation) Farid Ud-Din Attar. This is a 30 minute version.

Background reading:

The Conference of the Birds (Farid Ud-Din Attar)

The Secret of Secrets (Abd al-Qadir al-Jilani)

Rab'ia of Basra: Selected Poems

I Heard God Laughing: Poems of Hope and Joy (Hafez)

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The Seven Valleys of Ancient Persia (20 min) Jan 29, 2020

Show notes

The land of Khorasan has a long history of spiritual seekers stretching back millenia. It was one of many locations in the region stretching from the Andulus to the Levant and beyond where the poets and mystics of old illuminated the uninitiated into the secret ways of the soul. In medieval times in particular several extraordinary men and women lay down a map that each of us can still follow today to escape our self-hood’s vicious tyranny and set free our soul. It is a royal way and no mind can penetrate the sovereign whom we seek. The mystery of this unending state remains forever out of reach of the intellect. So you have to leave your mind behind on this journey. And that is what we do in this guided meditation. You will pass through the seven valleys of this mystical framework. At each one shed an aspect of mind so that by the end you are ready to witness the dazzling perfection of Truth. The inspiration for this guided meditation are the great Islamic masters like Rabi'a, Ibn 'Arabi, Qadir Gilani, Jalaluddin Rumi, and above all (in this meditation) Farid Ud-Din Attar. This is a 20 minute version.

Background reading:

The Conference of the Birds (Farid Ud-Din Attar)

The Secret of Secrets (Abd al-Qadir al-Jilani)

Rab'ia of Basra: Selected Poems

I Heard God Laughing: Poems of Hope and Joy (Hafez)

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The Seven Valleys of Ancient Persia (10 min) Jan 27, 2020

Show notes

In medieval Persia, in the land of Khorasan, a tale would be told of the seven valleys one needed to pass through to reach illumination. The poets and mystics in these ancient times enlightened the uninitiated into the secret ways of the soul. In these times several extraordinary men and women lay down a map that each of us can still follow today to escape our self-hood’s vicious tyranny and set free our soul. It is a royal way and no mind can penetrate the sovereign whom we seek. The mystery of this unending state remains forever out of reach of the intellect. So you have to leave your mind behind on this journey. And that is what we do in this guided meditation. You will pass through the seven valleys of this mystical framework. At each one shed an aspect of mind so that by the end you are ready to witness the dazzling perfection of Truth. The inspiration for this guided meditation are the great Islamic masters like Rabi'a, Ibn 'Arabi, Qadir Gilani, Jalaluddin Rumi, and above all (in this meditation) Farid Ud-Din Attar. This is a 10 minute version.

Background reading:

The Conference of the Birds (Farid Ud-Din Attar)

The Secret of Secrets (Abd al-Qadir al-Jilani)

Rab'ia of Basra: Selected Poems

I Heard God Laughing: Poems of Hope and Joy (Hafez)

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Plotinus' Mirror (1 hr) Nov 26, 2019

Show notes

Plotinus (204-270 CE) was one of the great philosophers and mystics of antiquity. Sharing many of the themes found in the writings of other ancient masters like his intellectual and spiritual forebearers Plato and Aristotle, he directly or indirectly had an enormous influence on later writers like St. Paul, Aquinas, Augustine, and Ibn 'Arabi. He regarded human's true nature as being something wholly different than the one composed of matter that most of us associate with our selves. Instead, he advocated for a conception of a self based on increasingly perfect levels existence. Through spiritual transcendence he believed we could reach these perfect dimensions of consciousness. One of his most powerful metaphors to explain the nature of human beings is that of the mirror. And that is what this one hour version of the Plotinus' Mirror uses to help you reach these higher levels of consciousness.

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Plotinus' Mirror (45 min) Nov 25, 2019

Show notes

The ancient master Plotinus (204-270 CE) was one of the great philosophers and mystics of antiquity. Profoundly influenced by earlier masters like Plato and Aristotle, he directly or indirectly had an enormous impact on writers for centuries to come such as Thomas Aquinas, St. Augustine, and the great Ibn 'Arabi. He regarded human's true nature as being something wholly different than the one composed of matter that most of us associate with our selves. Instead, he advocated for a conception of a self having nothing to do with our physical forms and mental fabrications. Instead, he asked us to focus on an ephemeral conception of the self. Through spiritual transcendence he believed we could reach the perfect manifestation of ourselves. To explain the nature of human beings in his conception he frequently used the metaphor of a mirror. And that is what this 45 minute version of the Plotinus' Mirror uses to help you reach these higher levels of consciousness that he wrote of so long ago.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Plotinus' Mirror (30 Min) Nov 24, 2019

Show notes

The ancient master Plotinus (204-270 CE) looms large among the mystics of antiquity. Earlier masters like Plato and Aristotle informed his thinking but Plotinus took it in a more spiritual direction, thereby influencing later giants such as Thomas Aquinas, St. Augustine, and the great Ibn 'Arabi. He regarded human's true nature as being fundamentally different than the physical stuff that most of us associate with our selves. Instead, he advocated for a conception of a self having nothing to do with our physical forms and mental fabrications. Through spiritual transcendence he believed we could regain contact with the perfect within ourselves. To explain the nature of human beings he frequently used the metaphor of a mirror. And that is the imgage that this 30 minute version of the Plotinus' Mirror uses to help you reach these higher levels of consciousness that he wrote of so long ago.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Plotinus' Mirror (20 Min) Nov 24, 2019

Show notes

The ancient mystic Plotinus (204-270 CE) regarded human's true nature as being fundamentally different than the physical stuff that most of us associate with our selves. Instead, he advocated for a conception of a self having nothing to do with our physical forms and mental fabrications. Through spiritual transcendence he believed we could regain contact with the perfect within ourselves. To explain the nature of human beings he frequently used the metaphor of a mirror. And that is the imgage that this 30 minute version of the Plotinus' Mirror uses to help you reach these higher levels of consciousness that he wrote of so long ago.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Plotinus' Mirror (10 min) Nov 23, 2019

Show notes

In this guided meditation you will take advantage of the Neoplatonic mystic Plotinus' (205-270 CE) ancient methods of understanding your true self. One of the last great philosophers of the Roman world, his influence on philosophy and mysticism throughout the centuries since his time is immeasurable. We will be using his metaphorical mirror as the inspiration for this short 10 minute version of the Plotinus' Mirror guided meditation.

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Tethered Falcon (60 min) Nov 05, 2019

Show notes

In St. Augustine's words: "And being thence warned to return to myself, I entered into my inward self, .... And I entered, and with the eye of my soul (such as it was) saw above the same eye of my soul, above my mind, the Unchangeable Light. Not this common light, which all flesh may look upon, nor, as it were, a greater one of the same kind, as though the brightness of this should be much more resplendent, and with its greatness fill up all things. Not like this was that light, but different, yea, very different from all these. Nor was it above my mind as oil is above water, nor as heaven above earth; but above it was, because it made me, and I below it, because I was made by it. He who knows the Truth knows that Light; and he that knows it knows eternity. Love knows it. O Eternal Truth, and true Love, and loved Eternity! You are my God; to You do I sigh both night and day." Confessions, Book VII, Chapter X

How do you touch this light or love yourself? How do you bring a consciousness of who we really are to the fore? And can you touch this truth, experiencing it directly yourself, if you don't believe in "God"? Indeed you can! Medieval Masters like Hafez and Augustine shared a way of accessing these truths and their words are the source of inspiration for this 60 minute version of the "Tethered Falcon" guided meditation. (Pro-tip: cover your eyes with your right hand during the covered falcon / darkness parts of the meditation)

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