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THE NEW ALTWIRE
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Welcome to OmPlace's Altwire newsletter. Please direct your submissions and suggestions to: susan@omplace.com
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FEATURED PRODUCTS
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MAKING A DIFFERENCE
with TOM ATLEE
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Observations Regarding a Missing Elephant
I read this article first
early in 2001 and immediately searched the Web to learn more about
the man who wrote it so I could talk with him. I was devastated to
discover he'd died a few months previously. I read "Observations Regarding a Missing Elephant" again
on my walk in the hills this morning and it seems even more profound
now, thirty months after my first reading of it. After you read it,
you may want to set it aside to stumble upon it again in a few years.
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RECIPE OF THE WEEK
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Recipe of the Week: Sautéed Collards and Burdock by Rebecca Wood / RWood.com
The turmeric, garlic, onion, ginger and burdock enhance this recipe's ability to help reduce chronic pain. If burdock is not available, substitute a carrot. This recipe is from Rebecca Wood, author of The New Whole Foods Encyclopedia.
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HERB OF THE WEEK
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Hawthorn for the Heart
by Christopher Hobbs / The Virtual Herbal
Both homeopathic and allopathic doctors used the herb for various heart and cardiovascular ailments from the late 19th through the early 20th centuries, with great clinical success. Hawthorn had entered American clinical practice by 1896 - only to fade from use in the 1930s.
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QUOTES OF
THE WEEK
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"Happiness is the absence of striving for happiness."
~ Chuang-tzu
"A happy life consists of tranquillity of mind."
~ Cicero
"There is only one way to happiness and that is to cease worrying about things which are beyond the power of our will."
~ - Epictetus
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THOUGHTS & EXPRESSION
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Unconditional Love Defined poetry by Ellen Louise Kahne / Reiki Peace Network
"A butterfly lights on my fingertip /
--an embodied thought /
of Divine Love and Beauty /
--Communing for a moment /
In the perfect stillness of my peaceful heart ... "
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FYI
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Second International Conference on Tibetan Medicine:
Practicing the Art of the Medicine Buddha in the West will take place at the Hyatt Regency in Washington DC, November 5 - 8, 2003. The conference will provide a unique opportunity for direct interaction with highly regarded doctors of Tibetan medicine, as well as extraordinary Tibetan Buddhist Lamas. For more information please go to www.procultura.org |
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MOVIE REVIEW
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Mystic River
by Ed Gonzalez / SlantMagazine.com
Clint Eastwood’s Mystic River is a somber evocation of a poor, close-knit section of Boston on the brink of moral collapse. Not only is the film the director’s best work since his undervalued A Perfect World, it’s also one of the most spiritually profound works to ever come out of Hollywood.
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ALTERNATIVE NEWS |
Judge Backs Student's Bush 'Terrorist' T-Shirt from Reuters News Service
A federal court judge ruled on Wednesday (Oct. 1, 2003) that a Detroit-area school acted improperly in barring a student anti-war protester from wearing a T-shirt emblazoned with a picture of President Bush and the words "International Terrorist." The American Civil Liberties Union filed a lawsuit in March claiming that the constitutional rights of Bretton Barber were violated a month earlier by Dearborn High School when it ordered him to either wear the T-shirt inside out or go home. In a preliminary injunction, U.S. District Court Judge Patrick Duggan in Detroit said the school had failed to back its claim that the T-shirt threatened to create a "disturbance or disruption" at Dearborn High.
He also rejected the school's argument that the schoolyard was an inappropriate place for political debate. "In fact, as (the courts) have emphasized, students benefit when school officials provide an environment where they can openly express their diverging viewpoints and when they learn to tolerate the opinions of others," Duggan wrote in his decision.
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ENTERTAINMENT |
 Russel Simmons - Heeding Hip Hop's Higher Calling
interview by Katherine Turman / Mother Jones Magazine
A devout yoga practitioner, ruthless entrepreneur, dedicated philanthropist, and burgeoning political player, Russel Simmons is most famous as the co-founder of Def Jam Records, the label that launched Run-DMC, Public Enemy, and the Beastie Boys, and along the way propelled hip hop out of the ghetto and into the Mall of America. Simmons sold Def Jam to Universal in 1999 for $100 million, which he has since parlayed into a creative and merchandising empire that includes a hit Broadway show (Def Poetry Jam), two HBO programs, Phat Farm apparel, One World magazine, UniRush financial services, and on and on. This summer, Simmons received both a Tony Award and a Peabody. Simmons also runs the Hip-Hop Summit Action Network, founded in 2001 to promote economic and social justice. This summer, the Hip-Hop Summit set its sights on New York's draconian Rockefeller drug laws, and Simmons teamed up with Andrew Cuomo and tens of thousands of activists to demand that Governor George Pataki end the state's severe mandatory minimum sentences.
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SPIRITUALITY
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The Power of Sound by Rajgopal Nidamboor / Boloji.com
Divine sound is the cause of all manifestation — a tremendous power. Great musicians, for instance, aver that sound is God’s power — in other words, Nada Brahma, the divine sound that reverberates through the universe. Which explains why we have been traditionally taught that sound is God, what with music being the spiritual discipline that raises one’s inner self to divine bliss. The power of sound, or mantra, as you’d have thought, has, therefore, been given a special pride of place in everyday life — an expression of tremendous spiritual strength - a dynamic, highly individualized, and non-violent way to approach conditions we wish to change. Mantra, in simple terms, is a Sanskrit word with many shades of meanings — a tool of the mind, divine speech, language of human spiritual physiology, and so on. It is also an extension of energy — a therapeutic ‘gizmo’ for healing problems that we face in life, one time or the other. Mantras, quite simply, not only help us to feel more at ease or more energized; they can also help us cope with illness and effect physical healing.
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HOLISTIC HEALTH |
 Integrative Vision Care And Nutrition by Marc Grossman, O.D., L.Ac. /
Mind/Body medicine is based on the fact that our health and well-being depends on all the individual parts to work together effectively. So it should come as no surprise that healthy eyesight is also dependent upon our total well-being, which is affected by our genetic makeup, the food we eat, our work environment and exposure to airborne toxins, as well as our general belief systems about ourselves and the world we live in. Each of us is unique and literally takes the world in through our senses, primarily through our vision. Many believe the way we take in the world is, to some degree, a reflection of who we are and which symptoms we might manifest. The integrative approach attempts to bring in the patient as an active partner in the program to improve or maintain eye health. Specific habits have been identified in studies to be very damaging to eye health, including smoking, excessive alcohol, coffee, excess sugar and refined foods, and hydrogenated oils (like margarines). Nutrition could play a key role in helping to prevent vision loss and keeping our bodies strong.
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CONSCIOUS TRAVEL |
 Ecotourism and the Ecology of Independent Travel by Edward Hasbrouck / Author of "The Practical Nomad"
Ecotourism and "responsible travel" are growing trends, reflecting rising public awareness of the ill effects and irresponsibility of much tourism, and a desire on the part of increasing numbers of travelers genuinely to immerse themselves in the places they visit. But what is "ecotourism"? How should a concern for the environment influence the way you travel? And is it really more "green" or "responsible" to take an ecotour than to travel on your own? All travel, and especially long-haul air travel, has adverse ecological consequences. Unlike trains, which if electrified can get power from a variety of renewable sources, airplanes all fly on fossil fuel ("jet fuel" is kerosene). The present window of opportunity for transoceanic air travel - affordable to large numbers of people - is likely to be, in historical terms, a brief one before the world runs out of oil. There is no such thing as "sustainable" or "low-impact" air travel. Given that getting there by air is an unavoidable ecological cost of long-distance travel, ecological responsibility in travel means both minimizing the avoidable environmental costs and trying to make a positive contribution in some other way to offset them. That's what ecotourism is supposed to be about.
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MASSAGE |
The Japanese Facial Massage By Shogo Mochizuki / Adapted from "Ko bi do: The Art of Japanese Facial Massage" (via Biotone.com)
Japanese facial massage developed to improve one’s health and longevity, emphasizing the prevention of problems rather than the curing of existing ones. When properly administered, it improves one’s beauty, removes toxins from the face, and balances ki, or life force, to improve overall health. The aim of Japanese facial massage is unique. While Western facial massage addresses the external skin itself, Japanese facial massage is concerned with the condition of the skin, subcutaneous musculature and what is referred to as ki, or the life-force energy, often translated as "bioelectricity." Traditionally, the purpose of Japanese facial massage is to work specifically and precisely with the facial meridian and tsubo (acupoints/acupuncture points) to achieve a balance in the entire facial skin, the facial muscles, and the internal organs.
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VEGETARIAN FOOD
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 Food as Medicine: Mushrooms Detoxify
by Rebecca Wood
/ author of The Splendid Grain and The New Whole Foods Encyclopedia (via RWood.com)
What makes shiitakes so special? This Asian fungi has more clinical data than any other mushroom to support its medicinal prowess. But even though the shiitake is exceptional, all mushrooms have cleansing properties. They are one of the few rich organic sources of germanium, which increases oxygen efficiency, counteracts the effects of pollutants and increases resistance to disease. Mushrooms are rich in zinc and help neutralize toxic residues in the body. In traditional culinary systems (Ayurveda excepted) mushrooms are valued for their culinary and healing properties. However, they are not recommended for daily use for the convalescing or the very young.
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YOGA |
Yoga and the Enlightened Body by Howard Napper / Agoy.com
Many Eastern philosophies – yoga among them – don’t rely on the mind to define the self. A common technique used in the East is to correct one extreme by moving towards its opposite, with the ultimate aim of arriving at a middle way of unity and balance. The yogis were very aware that having too strong an attachment to the mind is an easy trap to fall into. So instead they looked for spiritual development and a way to reach the deeper parts of the self through the body. Through this experience, the ultimate realisation is that neither the mind nor the body takes precedence, for they are not separate. The yogis understood that where there is separation there will inevitably be conflict. So the main aim of yoga is to unite the mind, body and spirit. It is this quest for union that gave the practice it name: yoga, meaning to yoke or unite.
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TAROT |
Comfort Decks
by Elizabeth Hazel / TarotPassages.com
I adore my comfort decks. They're always around, like little cardboard friends you have over to tea several times a week. You know where you stand with them, you know what to expect. Then there's my magical mood decks. These are favorite visitors, for ceremonial divinations and meditations. These decks get conjured along with sabbat spirits, on the nights when you pull out that bottle of mead, or wine laced with sweet woodruff. They hold the scent of past smudgings, lingering essences of myrrh, sage, or rose petal smoke. The candles are already lit as they are pulled from their cloth sacks. They are decks for the sacred night, never seen in the light of day. Some day one of these decks may tell me the meaning of life. Then there's the stranger decks that only come out for an unusual client to whom the artwork appeals. Maybe it doesn't speak to me, but it speaks to them. Last of all, there are collectors decks that only get looked at, never for reading. Mostly these are foreign, or limited editions.
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READING ROOM |
In Search Of Erotic Intelligence
by Esther Perel / Psychotherapy Networker (via Utne Reader
Everybody's not doing it. That's the word from Newsweek, The Atlantic, and other trend watchers: Couples are having less sex these days than even in the famously uptight '50s. Why? Busy, exhausting lives is the easy answer. But how Americans view eroticism in the wake of recent sexual and social revolutions may be an even bigger factor, according to a growing number of researchers and social observers. "Ironically, some of America's best features - the belief in equality, consensus-building, fairness, and tolerance - can, in the bedroom, result in very boring sex. Sexual desire and good citizenship don't play by the same rules. Sexual excitement is often politically incorrect; it often thrives on power plays, role reversals, imperious demands, and seductive manipulations. American therapists, shaped by egalitarian ideals, are often challenged by these contradictions."
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HOLISTIC ANIMAL CARE |
 Keylor: An End of Life Story
by Jeff Levy, DVM / Homeovet.net
It was in May of '98 that I discovered the tumor of Keylor's left anal gland. My best buddy for nearly fourteen years (an Akita/Samoyed cross) had been doing well in general, but showing signs of advancing age. His biggest problem had been mild signs of degenerative myelopathy, with the typical progressive weakness and incoordination of the hind legs. I consulted an oncologist, who recommended against surgery for the presumed adenocarcinoma, and estimated that he had perhaps 6-8 weeks to live. Over the course of the next 5 months, with homeopathic treatment, of course, Keylor continued to relish his dinner every day. He maintained his weight, was enthusiastic about his daily walks, and basically showed no systemic signs of cancer. (He was on Carboneum sulphuratum for much of that time.) However, the tumor continued to grow slowly.
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ASTROLOGY & DIVINATION |
 Rudhyar's Astrology In Plain Language by Greg Bogart / Widgets Astrology World
Dane Rudhyar was modern astrology's greatest visionary. He evoked the most spiritually refined potentials of astrology as a discipline of mind and consciousness, and a method for self-transformation. There is a commonly held opinion that Rudhyar is a difficult writer. Like any great writer and philosopher, his work makes some demands on our intellects. I believe that once we are familiar with his basic themes we can read Rudhyar's books easily. His core concept is that evolution is cyclical. Rudhyar's astrology is the study of how our lives unfold in cycles, as structured processes of change.
In his book The Practice of Astrology as a Technique of Human Understanding, Rudhyar said that the purpose of astrology is "to understand the apparent chaos and confusion of [our] life experiences by referring them to ordered patterns of cyclic activity which [we discover] in the sky". The goal of astrology is not to predict events but to identify phases in a person's development.
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ENVIRONMENT |
 Living With Gaia by James Lovelock / Author of Gaia: The Practical Science of Planetary Medicine (via New Renaissance Magazine)
We cannot manage the Earth, but we can usefully regulate our own lives, and our human institutions. It is helpful as a start to keep in mind the three deadly C's: Cars, Cattle, and Chainsaws. We need not be fanatical and ask for them to be banned; it wouldn't work. But we can remember the physiological truth that the poison is in the dose, and be moderate in our use of these and other dangers to the health of Gaia. There are other ways of living better with the Earth. Most of them are personal and I do not see this as the place to list them. These are for you to find for yourself, using your own judgement on how to moderate your demands on the Earth, and yet enjoy life. In the same way, you do not need me to tell you all the positive actions you could take - from planting trees wherever you can, to helping clean up the environment where you live and work.
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SOCIAL ISSUES |
African Anglicans At Odds with Gay-Friendly Religion by Rachel Scheier / The Christian Science Monitor
As other devout Africans, these parishioners dress smartly, share Bibles, and kneel on the dirt floor to pray. But they are admittedly gay, making them criminals to their government and sinners to their church. Like most of the developing world's vast Anglican Communion, the Church of Uganda considers homosexuality explicitly incompatible with Christianity. But Erich Kasirye, a young priest, and Bishop Christopher Senyonjo, a 71-year-old father of seven and pillar of the local Anglican community, disagreed. So three years ago, they set up a tiny congregation a few miles west of Kampala to welcome the pariahs. Soon after, the Rev. Mr. Kasirye was fired from his job as youth secretary at a local diocese. Bishop Senyonjo was threatened with arrest. The archbishop of Uganda has suggested that he be defrocked. The furor exposes a cultural and ideological split between the Anglican faithful in developed countries who are increasingly liberal on the issue of homosexuality, and their more numerous and conservative counterparts in the developing world.
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PRODUCT OF THE WEEK |
Francene Hart is a internationally recognized visionary artist whose work has been widely published in books and magazines and hangs in the homes of art collectors and the offices of healers and seekers around the planet. She was summoned by spirit in 2001 to the Big Island of Hawaii and is now painting, swimming and living her bliss in bless'ed Hawaii. "Forest Cathedral" and other prints by Francene Hart are available for only $45 each. Each print is 12x18, matted, sealed and signed.
For more info click here. |
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