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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.

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

Latest Episodes:

Let Go - Be the Witness (45 min) Jun 05, 2018

Show notes

The ancient masters understood that free will is not what we think it is and modern science is finally beginning to catch up. To quote from Sam Harris' book, Free Will, "The physiologist Benjamin Libet famously used EEG to show that activity in the brain’s motor cortex can be detected some 300 milliseconds before a person feels that he has decided to move. Another lab extended this work using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI): Subjects were asked to press one of two buttons while watching a “clock” composed of a random sequence of letters appearing on a screen. They reported which letter was visible at the moment they decided to press one button or the other. The experimenters found two brain regions that contained information about which button subjects would press a full 7 to 10 seconds before the decision was consciously made. More recently, direct recordings from the cortex showed that the activity of merely 256 neurons was sufficient to predict with 80 percent accuracy a person’s decision to move 700 milliseconds before he became aware of it. (Harris, Sam. Free Will (pp. 8-9). Free Press.)

So, as hard as it is to comprehend, you are not the one doing the doing. You can use this meditation to learn to become comfortable with this truth and to start to unpack what this means for you and in your life, right now.

This is a 45 minute version of the complete 'you are not the doer' set.

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

Let Go - Be The Witness (15 min) Jun 03, 2018

Show notes

'Less talk, more meditation' version of the 'Be the witness' practice.

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

Let Go - Be the Witness (30 min) Jun 03, 2018

Show notes

Modern neurological research suggests that our concept of free will is unfounded. The ancient masters understood this long ago. And they developed a series of brain-training exercises to settle in to a state of so-called 'non-doing' or Wu Wei. But non-doing, or just being the witness to the unfolding of your existence, isn't what you think it is. You aren't sitting around doing nothing. Quite the contrary. It's just that the doing that you do do is more organic, appropriate and effortless.

This is a 30 minute version of the complete 'you are not the doer' set.

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

Let Go - Be the Object (15 min) May 22, 2018

Show notes

'Letting go' can seem very scary. After all, if we let go, if we stop doing, then what will happen to us? Won't we starve or rot away on our couch? Or won't bad things happen to us? It turns out that letting go and stopping "doing" aren't what we might at first think. It is true that free will as we normally think about it is an illusion. Even though it feels like we are the authors of our existence, the reality is something quite different. Even though we think we perceive reality through our senses and make judgements about how to behave and what to do with our bodies and our lives, the great masters of old as well as the neuroscientists of our day tell us this is not true. So 'letting go' is really about acknowledging the world as it is. A world where we are the objects of things being done rather than their true author. So it doesn't have to be scary. The wisdom teachers of ancient times explained that, in fact, the realization of this fact that we are not the subjects of our life, that we are the objects of a greater flow, holds the secret to happiness. But we have to learn to let go for it to work. This guided meditation helps you practice this technique of letting go, of not thinking you are the doer in your life, of accepting what arises.

Note: This is a 15 minute version of the Be the Object Guided Meditation

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

Let Go - Be the Object (60 min) May 20, 2018

Show notes

Free will as we normally think about it is an illusion. Even though it feels like we are the authors of our existence, the reality is something quite different. Even though we think we perceive reality through our senses and make judgements about how to behave and what to do with our bodies and our lives, the great masters of old as well as the neuroscientists of our day tell us this is not true. For some, this is quite a scary thought. But the wisdom teachers of ancient times explained that, in fact, the realization of this fact that we are not the subjects of our life, that we are the objects of a greater flow, holds the secret to happiness. But we have to learn to let go for it to work. This guided meditation helps you practice this technique of letting go, of not thinking you are the doer in your life, of accepting what arises.

Note: This is a 60 minute version of the Be the Object Guided Meditation

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

Let Go - Be the Object (30 min) May 20, 2018

Show notes

It feels like we are the authors of our existence. We perceive reality through our senses and make judgements about how to behave and what to do with our bodies and our lives. But the great masters of old as well as the neuroscientists of our day tell us this is not true. Free will as we normally think about it is an illusion. For some, this is quite a scary thought. But the wisdom teachers of ancient times explained that, in fact, the realization of this fact that we are not the subjects of our life, that we are the objects of a greater flow, holds the secret to happiness. But we have to learn to let go for it to work. This guided meditation helps you practice this technique of letting go, of not thinking you are the doer in your life, of accepting what arises.

Note: This is a 30 minute version of the Be the Object Guided Meditation

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

Let Go - Be the Vehicle (45 min) May 15, 2018

Show notes

One of the more confusing and seemingly wrong teachings from the ancient masters is this idea that the secret to a happy healthy life is 'non-doing' (Wu Wei). But what in the world can they possibly mean?! How is doing nothing (if that is what they mean) the key to happiness and health? The answer isn’t what you think. You first need to learn what the old sages mean by expressions like “The wise person does nothing, yet nothing is left undone” (Lao Tzu) or “Self, confused by the idea of an ‘I’, thus thinks, ‘I am the doer’" (Krishna). Or, if you prefer, you can look to the Islamic mystics of 12thcentury CE (such as Ibn ‘Arabi) for a solution. He made a distinction between “Divine Will” and “Divine Wish” which helps elucidate what these ancient teachings mean. Ibn 'Arabi might express it by saying that the truth of reality is that everything that happens, the world as it is and as it becomes each moment, is an expression of God's Will (or you could just say is an expression of the forces of nature of physics, if God isn’t your thing). This is what he calls the ‘Divine Will.’ In contrast, ‘Divine Wish’ is concerned with how each one of us individually as a human can reach "heaven" or "Nirvana" or discover within ourselves the underlying perfection that union with the all (what Ibn 'Arabi would call "Oneness of Being") allows to become manifest. You see, it quickly becomes complicated and overly intellectual. For those that like that kind of thing, I explain what all that means in my blog. But sometimes it is just easier to experience the lesson. That is what this meditation is for. To teach you how to let go, to show you what that feels like, to open you to the possibilities that emerge when you learn this lesson. Just relax and let me do the work for you.

Note: This is a 45 minute version of the Be The Vehicle meditation

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

Let go - Be the Vehicle (60 min) May 14, 2018

Show notes

The great masters have explained in no uncertain terms that we are not the doer. But what in the world can they possibly mean?! How is doing nothing (if that is what they mean) the key to happiness and health? The answer isn’t what you think. You first need to learn what the old sages mean by expressions like “The wise person does nothing, yet nothing is left undone” (Lao Tzu) or “Self, confused by the idea of an ‘I’, thus thinks, ‘I am the doer’" (Krishna). Or, if you prefer, you can look to the Islamic mystics of 12thcentury CE (such as Ibn ‘Arabi) for a solution. He made a distinction between “Divine Will” and “Divine Wish” which helps elucidate what these ancient teachings mean. Ibn 'Arabi might express it by saying that the truth of reality is that everything that happens, the world as it is and as it becomes each moment, is an expression of God's Will (or you could just say is an expression of the forces of nature of physics, if God isn’t your thing). This is what he calls the ‘Divine Will.’ In contrast, ‘Divine Wish’ is concerned with how each one of us individually as a human can reach "heaven" or "Nirvana" or discover within ourselves the underlying perfection that union with the all (what Ibn 'Arabi would call "Oneness of Being") allows to become manifest. You see, it quickly becomes complicated and overly intellectual. For those that like that kind of thing, I explain what all that means in my blog. But sometimes it is just easier to experience the lesson. That is what this meditation is for. To teach you how to let go, to show you what that feels like, to open you to the possibilities that emerge when you learn this lesson. Just relax and let me do the work for you.

Note: This is a 60 minute version of the Be The Vehicle meditation

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

Let Go - Be the Vehicle (15 min) May 13, 2018

Show notes

The great masters of old were all consistent with at least one piece of advice: the key to happiness and health is to stop doing. Wu Wei ('not doing'), the ancient Chinese masters might have said. Old sages like Lao Tzu in the Tao Te Ching tell us that “The wise person does nothing, yet nothing is left undone” or we can look to Krishna who tells us “Self, confused by the idea of an ‘I’, thus thinks, ‘I am the doer’". Or, if you prefer, you can look to the Islamic mystics of 12thcentury CE (such as Ibn ‘Arabi) for a solution. He made a distinction between “Divine Will” and “Divine Wish” which helps elucidate what these ancient teachings mean. Ibn 'Arabi might express it by saying that the truth of reality is that everything that happens, the world as it is and as it becomes each moment, is an expression of God's Will (or you could just say is an expression of the forces of nature of physics, if God isn’t your thing). This is what he calls the ‘Divine Will.’ In contrast, ‘Divine Wish’ is concerned with how each one of us individually as a human can reach "heaven" or "Nirvana" or discover within ourselves the underlying perfection that union with the all (what Ibn 'Arabi would call "Oneness of Being") allows to become manifest. You see, it quickly becomes complicated and overly intellectual. For those that like that kind of thing, I explain what all that means in my blog. But sometimes it is just easier to experience the lesson. That is what this meditation is for. To teach you how to let go, to show you what that feels like, to open you to the possibilities that emerge when you learn this lesson. Just relax and let me do the work for you.

Note: This is a 15 minute version of the Be The Vehicle meditation

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

Let Go - Be the Vehicle (30 min) May 13, 2018

Show notes

Wu Wei. Non-doing. What in the world can the great masters possibly mean?! How is doing nothing (if that is what they mean) the key to happiness and health? The answer isn’t what you think. You first need to learn what the old sages mean by expressions like “The wise person does nothing, yet nothing is left undone” (Lao Tzu) or “Self, confused by the idea of an ‘I’, thus thinks, ‘I am the doer’" (Krishna). Or, if you prefer, you can look to the Islamic mystics of 12thcentury CE (such as Ibn ‘Arabi) for a solution. He made a distinction between “Divine Will” and “Divine Wish” which helps elucidate what these ancient teachings mean. Ibn 'Arabi might express it by saying that the truth of reality is that everything that happens, the world as it is and as it becomes each moment, is an expression of God's Will (or you could just say is an expression of the forces of nature of physics, if God isn’t your thing). This is what he calls the ‘Divine Will.’ In contrast, ‘Divine Wish’ is concerned with how each one of us individually as a human can reach "heaven" or "Nirvana" or discover within ourselves the underlying perfection that union with the all (what Ibn 'Arabi would call "Oneness of Being") allows to become manifest. You see, it quickly becomes complicated and overly intellectual. For those that like that kind of thing, I explain what all that means in my blog. But sometimes it is just easier to experience the lesson. That is what this meditation is for. To teach you how to let go, to show you what that feels like, to open you to the possibilities that emerge when you learn this lesson. Just relax and let me do the work for you.

Note: This is a 30 minute version of the Be The Vehicle meditation

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

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