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Now get $80 off of your first month with promo code space80 when you go to toxpace.com. Match with a licensed therapist today at toxpace.com. Save $80 with code space80@talkspace.com. (upbeat music) - Welcome to the metaphysical martini show. We're with and wisdom come together to bridge the gap between the spirit realm and the physical world. With Ani Abadisian, the suburban shaman of production and seismic reality radio. (upbeat music) - Then you alive. - Hello everyone, I'm Ani Abadisian. Welcome to metaphysical martini. Three part spirit, one part rational mind, add two drops of optimism. Give it all a good, hard shake and pour. Dress it with the olives of grace and empathy. Sit back, sit slowly and contemplate the wonder of cosmic creation. And a hearty hello to everyone out there. Hello, hello, hello. Thanks for joining me for yet another round of cosmic cocktails on this week's metaphysical martini. The show that tries to sort out what's true, what's woo and what gets flushed down the loo. In today's overgored, what will they come up with next? Totally gone bonkers and populated with far too many plonkers, crazy little world. Here at martini central, we try to see things from a higher vantage point to let the spirit, as in cosmic divine spirit, inhabit the human. We do not always succeed, but we give it our best shot. And we do love shots on this show. And there's nothing wrong with having a little of something, you know, once in a while, if we don't overdo it. Heaven's people, we're living in biblical strangeness times, time for a little chill out once in a while. So our rally cry is awaken, oh my people, let us not follow the path of the sheeple, and may we never give our God cause to weeple. Well, a week late on this show, 'cause the production office has got flooded out last Wednesday. Luckily everyone's safe and dry, so we're gonna have another show next Wednesday and then go back to our usual rotation. So here we are, and it's lovely to be with you, 'cause I missed you all last week, yes, I did. So what are we gonna talk about on this week? Show the usual stuff, questions and answers. Tarot, a go-go, a bit of philosophy, a bit of poetry, a lot of martini drinking. But let's open with the theme that's on everyone's mind right now, awakening, awakening. Awakening is not all champagne and roses. It can be a bit of a rough ride, as many of us are beginning to find out. You know, realizing that the trust we were taught to place in the institution called government is misplaced, and that's an understatement. That's quite a bitter pill to swallow for most people. I know that most of you who listen to this show have already figured that out, but there's a whole population out there that is only just beginning to figure it out. So remember what a bitter pill it was for us in the beginning when we figured that out? Well, we can hold space now for a lot of people who are beginning to come to that realization. We're awakening and we're looking at the world around us, and it's always been this way in our lifetime, but we're seeing things that were there hidden in plain view from a completely different perspective. We're learning that children in the care of religious institutions and other institutions which were created to provide safe shelter, nurture, and education, we're learning that these children have been physically, mentally, and sexually abused, and that is a very bitter pill to swallow. We're learning amazingly weird things. We're learning that women are kept in underground bunkers and used as brood mares to produce children for the sole purpose of harvesting something called a drenochrome. I mean, that is beyond a bitter pill, and I completely understand why people out there can't believe that any of this is true. These are heinous crimes, and who can believe that one manifestation of the divine would do this to another manifestation of the divine? Yet it happens. What else are people awakening to? What's important in the first world? Money, money, money, money. Understanding how the economy is rigged, to turn our world into masters and slaves, thank you, trickle-down economics, that's a very bitter pill to swallow. And coming to the realization that patriotic men and women, fought and died in wars, created for power grab and control of renal resources, not under the guise of liberation. Yet that's another bitter pill. These basic things, we go to war. Why do we go to war? There is never a good reason to go to war. There's always room for negotiation, but it's all about power grab. And again, you say, well, yes, we know this, but you know what? There's a lot of people that don't know this. 'Cause if a lot of people did know this, we wouldn't be going to war, would we? You know, understanding also that the system of modern healthcare is not designed to promote health, but to create wealth for the 1%. That we build these places called hospitals that of course serve a purpose, but we're literally worshiping our pain in those places. We have built palaces to pain, we worship our disease, rather than nurture our immune system. I could go on. And at some point, I probably will. Awakening, it's painful. It really is. 'Cause it forces us to look within, before we can look without. And no one likes self honesty apparently. The most difficult thing yet, the most essential thing that we have to deal with as manifestations of the divine when in human form. Awakening, yes, it's painful, but my darlings, I think it's not negotiable. We must find the courage to see the world we have co-created. When we wake up to the realization that almost everything we think we know about, almost everything is a manipulation, it shatters us. But it doesn't need to. I should say it shatters the illusion that we have been living in. And we've been living at it 24/7, just going at it. This is why I go on about quiet time, stillness, meditation. How else will we deal functionally with this process of awakening? When we make a commitment to spend time alone in quietude, we hear our own inner voice, perhaps for the first time ever. We learn to differentiate between our true inner voice and the voices of external influence, and that is a shock for many. It is a shock when we register just how much external influence we are exposed to in a modern world. We think we run our minds, we believe we are capable of objective thought, but when we commit to a practice of stillness, of quietude, we are dismayed when we realize that the words we speak do not come from our inner voice, but from the mass propaganda outlets. We are dismayed on many levels, not the least of which is how easy it was to influence our thinking, how easy it was to penetrate our sacred inner space, to hijack our internal connection to supreme cosmic intelligence, our divine right to co-create with the entire hierarchy of light. The propaganda machine, well, it's a well-oiled machine with a built-in fail-safe. I know this because I used to work for it. If it detects anyone getting close to the truth, it runs the distraction tactics program. Recent examples, I suppose, we could cite, it would include the yellow vest rebellion in France, which spread to other European countries. You're Britain leaving the Third Reich, the European Union, massive protests in Hong Kong, here in the USA, people who believe in America's sacred purpose. What do we call them? Let's just call them patriots for now. They're rising up against the deep state ideology and daring to tell citizens they have been duped double big time by people masquerading as love and lights, liberal agenda people. People were beginning not just to awaken, but to rise up and that they were gathering in large numbers all over the world in tens of thousands in America too, just like that, just like that, with all of the people waking up all over the world and going, hell no, we're not going to pay these ridiculous taxes. Hell no, we're not going to do this, that, and the other, just like that, boom, we have a sham-demic. People are getting together and thinking, oh my God, we can't possibly have that, can we? They're actually figuring stuff out. They're mocking us, said the cabal. They're on to us, these little peons, these minions, that we've controlled for so long, so well, how dare they? So we have social distancing. We have the covert identification issue. You know, social distancing, the wording of that phrase is disturbing to me. No gathering in groups of more than 10, wear a mask, stand in line, follow the orange arrow, six feet apart. You know, you can go to Walmart, by the way, or other big lot stores, I'm not picking out Walmart. They're all the same to me, these big lot stores. So you can go to one of these big lot stores where hundreds can shop at a time. Hundreds of people can go if you stand in line. But you can't go to a small business where perhaps only a few people can shop at a time. How does that make sense? Honestly, my darlings, if we cannot see through this, we need to have our spiritual sight adjusted. The propaganda machine, however, it does have a weak spot. It has functioned so well for so many years. Feeding fears, keeping people in a constant state of threat perception, it has muddled our minds for so long now and with such satisfactory results. It never thought to formulate a plan B. It never thought about a bud-out plan. It never thought the masses would really wake up. But we are waking up, aren't we? And the machine does not know what to do because it doesn't have plan B. So it does what it has always done, but it does it with more gusto. Where it used to shout, it now shouts louder. Where it's stomped on our heads and necks, it now stops harder. And where it used to ridicule people who ask questions, it doubles the output of ridicule and shaming. And it refines its program somewhat to increase the fear factor. But you see, I don't think the cabal has anything new to offer, and the louder it barks, the more we the people recognizing their barking as an intrusive external influence. Any day now, enough people will go up to that place where the machine is housed, they'll pull back the curtain and they will reveal what has kept mankind enslaved all these years. Software, basically a software program, unholy, immoral software. A program designed to engineer our perception to take us from our God-given magic to tyranny and tragic. Rather like that Wizard of Oz thing, isn't it? Where you go up and he's like, "Oh, Oz, Oz Wizard." And they pull the curtain, it's a little dude with some sort of a program he's running. Well, my darlings, let's get there to Oz and let's pull back that curtain and let's really reveal who the Wizard of Oz is. It's timed, don't you think? I'm very proud of everyone, by the way. People really are asking questions and they're not so concerned about being right as about doing the right thing. And that, well, that should please us all. Well, that was the end of my Pontifications section. I'm gonna have a sip of this most excellent martini. Oh, yum-o, yum-o. All right, let's get onto the meat of the show. Baba, questions, answers and comments. If you would like to share your thoughts on this show and why, wouldn't you? Email the contents of your fabulous minds too, Arnie@ArnieAvadiscian.com or snail mail to cosmic Arnie. PO Box 714, Wilsonville, Oregon, 97070, USA, USA. Let me know if you wish to be identified on the show by name or location or both or if you want to be anonymous. (clears throat) All right, let's see what's in the giant fishbowl today. Ah-ha, our first question is from a listener in Alberta, Canada, who writes. Dear Arnie, I know you are not one of those psychics who make predictions, but you seem well-connected both on and off-world, so I thought I would take a chance and ask. I am a Christian and I fully understand we are in an epic good versus evil battle. My question is this. Do you have any idea how this will play out? Are we talking gun battles in the streets, mass rebellion against the state? What are we talking? If these arrests do come to light, how do you think the people will respond or should I ask? When you peek into possible futures, which storyline has the strongest potential? Thank you, listener from Alberta, Canada. You are correct, I am not one of those psychics who makes predictions. 7.7 billion people on this planet and each one a universe unto themselves. The swirl of confusion of thought forms on our realm today. I think it's enough to give God vertigo, so no, I don't make predictions. I do have connections on world off-world in the spirit world and I'll share what I know thus far. You have to understand, you don't know what's going to happen until we make up our minds what's going to happen. I've had conversations with God and I've said, God, what's going to happen? And God says, well, when you lock make up your mind, I'll know what's going to happen. It is a free world universe. Intel's thus far that I have the establishment, you know, the deep state dudes. Well, they're not going to give up anytime soon, are they? No, they're not going to pack up and willingly submit to arrest and interrogation. They would quite literally rather die than do that. And not many of us have a problem with that if it's their choice. Failure is not an option for them, so they will fight until the last drop of their tainted blood. So I think it's going to get very dirty, very, very dirty, and it will not be over in days or weeks or even months. I think that's naive, no matter how people interpret Q drops, et cetera. This is a fight for global dominance. And it will take as long as it needs to take to expose and eliminate these illusory and sociopaths. That said, I think the current administration with the full backing of the military will have to start spilling the beans sooner than it wants to because people are getting restless in oh so many ways. My intel says by the end of this year, at the latest, latest, latest early next year, there will be enough expose and enough publicly announced arrests to convince the majority that all systems and structures hitherto in place were created for there, the people's subjugation. So I think in a couple of weeks' time, which would take us through to the middle of June and through the end of this year, it will be a poop flinging fest. Deep State will do anything to prevent the president from being reelected. So Lord only knows what other imagined terrorist scenarios they will concoct to keep us sequestered and in fear. I mean, should we expect Godzilla versus Mothra to hit our streets anytime soon? What about giant killer pineapples from outer space or maybe holograms of fake aliens floating above us in cute little shuttle ships encouraging us to get jabbed and embracing the satanic ideals of transhumanism? Whatever they come up with, they haven't said people, don't fall for it, just call it out and mock it. Mock it, ah ah, I mock you. So when I peek into the future, I see dirty fighting. I see a good portion of the indoctrinated refusing to believe the new evidence so clearly brought to light. I see shock and awe and many aha moments. I do see a fair amount of wailing and gnashing of teeth, whereby people who are distraught at having been misled. A lot of anger, a lot of explosions of rage. There may well be some fighting in the streets. You know, we're getting some rioting now, not to be confused with honest protesters. We're getting paid rioters and opportunist looters. You know, so I think we'll see various pockets of violence here or there, especially if any of the states try to implement torture towards checks for medical purposes. But I don't see at this point, a full blown or anything close to a civil war, an all-out civil war on a physical level. I just don't see that. Right now the war is being, the war that's being fought is on people's minds. And of course, that's where the change has to come. How will it end? Well, my little Alberta friend, that's up to us. The vision with the strongest potential in my current spiritual site is shock or, oh my god, WTF, disbelief, followed by the collapse or dismantling of all establishment assets and structures, rebuilding along the guidelines of, if not necessarily, to the letter of draining the swamp monetary fiscal reform, which is nessara. Um, you know, for those of you who don't know, that's what the president is referring to when he says draining the swamp, uh, draining the swamp fiscal and monetary reform. That's nessara. So he's not making it a arbitrary statement. Um, I think we're going to come out on the other side of this with sanity. There's going to be a lot of disbelief. But I think we're going to come out of this because light Trump's dark always and dark is an illusion and a temporary state of, um, perceptual exploitation. So I look every other day and I do a little meditation into the future. It's going to get dirty. Don't misunderstand me. It is going to get dirty. But it's going to be worth the dirt when we come to the other side of this. Thank you for your question. Our new friend from Alberta, Canada. All right, here's another question from Bellingham, Washington State. Oh, just above me up there. Arnie, what is your take on the Second Amendment? Well, it's a bit of a general question, isn't it? I mean, I'm not a constitutional scholar, not even close. But I'll take a shot. No pun intended. Uh, what does the Second Amendment say? Uh, it says, "A well-regulated militia being necessary to the security of a free state, the right of the people to keep in their arms shall not be in French." I say to that, damn right. But the phrasing of your question is open in general. Are you asking me if I believe it was written from an individual rights approach or from a collective rights approach? I interpret the phrase, "the right of the people to keep in their arms." Um, it creates an individual constitutional right for citizens and legal residents of the United States. And in my Sharman's book, you can't respect collective tribal national sovereignty without first respecting individual sovereignty. So in my book, the Book of Arnie, it means I as an individual, I have the right to keep in their arms for my own defense, the defense of my family, and when necessary, the defense of my collective. I'll tell you what else I believe. I believe if the government wants to disarm you, it's because they're planning to do something they deserve to be shot for. Check your history books if you doubt that. If you trust the government, any government, I don't trust you with a gun. So in my capacity as spiritual advisor, I'm not one to advocate going around shooting at people. Our threat perception, especially in the USA, is perhaps a tad overwired, but here's my two cents worth. I don't really fear my neighbors. The state that offers to give you everything in return for the illusion of security, however is the state that will not hesitate to take it all away from you when it feels the time is right to do so. That's what I'm concerned about, the state. So I'm sure we would all love to create a world without violence. I hope we do, I do, a world where we never have to give a thought as to how to defend ourselves, but we're not there yet. And these are pivotal times. How we react to state-sanctioned actions defines the next thousand years. We have a long way to go, and until that time, and I cherish the vision of living in such a world, it will be refreshing to say the least, but until that time, if all else fails, and a medical team shows up at my door to inject a toxic substance into my body against my will, well, let's just say I'm very glad I have 0.357 reasons why that won't happen. The Second Amendment, quite literally in my humble opinion, is our last line of defense in a world gone mad, and I will stand up for it until it is no longer needed. Cheers for the question, that person from Bellingham, Washington State. Let's have a little sip of my martini. Well, let me have one. You're welcome to have your own. Until such time as the technology goes to sending nanoparticles over the airwaves, we have to mix our own during the show. Let's take another question. What do we have? What do we have? We have here a postcard from Evan in Swansea in Wales, UK. I say this, but I really enjoy receiving postcards from your hometowns. I just love that you take pride in your hometowns. Evan says, "I would like to know when we may expect official first contact between our ET family and humans. I would give anything to speak with an ET." Evan, I would like to know that too. Clearly, we must dislodge the deep state dudes first, or else they will find a way to manipulate the event into a fear fest. I can tell you that although it has not been made official, representatives from off world nations have contacted, hand-picked chosen few peeps in various organizations, including government administration. They're already here. I eagerly await the day we have official contact because it means we've reached critical mass in societal stability. Evan, you don't have to give up anything to speak with an ET. They are accomplished, telepathic communicators. Now, I've been to Swansea. I know it's a busy town these days, but you're near the coast. If your movements back in the UK are not restricted, find a quiet spot overlooking the horizon. Make yourself comfortable. Take along a flask of tea. Start by clearing your energy anatomy with some deep slow purposeful breathing. Affirm your true cosmic nature in your own words. Open your heart to the love of the divine, or whatever you choose to call supreme cosmic intelligence. And let the breath flow through you. Ride the waves of love, Evan. Just say that you're open to receiving communication from light beings who serve the light, the light, and only the light. That's all it takes. You may identify as a human, but that's your temporary designation. At your core, you are a cosmic space adventurer, and you know, just like the space beings that you are so eager to connect with. When you feel relaxed and aligned, sitting there looking up at the sky, send them your love. Hello, I send greetings in my extended space family, any ships in the vicinity, can anyone hear me? Thank you for orbiting our planet. Thank you for supporting our blessed Mother Earth in these times of turmoil. My name is Evan, and then you can tell them any information. You know, share any information you like with them. I assure you, if your heart is open and your mind is cool and your intention is pure, you will be heard. But don't expect immediate contact. They need to develop a familiarity with your energy. They need to know they can trust you. If you pray, Evan, if you're a praying man, include them in your daily prayers. And don't expect them to show up in your living room one day. People always say to me, "Oh, Arnie, how wonderful it would be if that just happened. Trust me, if you're not expecting it, seeing a 10-foot tall ET in your home will frighten the bejesus out of you." And no, it's not wonderful. Not if you're not expecting it. I've been visited by ETs in physical form twice that I remember. And although both were safe and exciting events, I'd be lying if I said I wasn't taken aback. And I am accustomed to seeing weird things. So, you know, take it from me. They could communicate in many other ways with you too, Evan. As I mentioned earlier, be open to telepathic communication. And if you always affirm you wish to receive from the light and only the light, you have nothing to fear from the telepathic communication. They could come into a dream, a sleeping dream, a waking dream. Just be open and keep your energy clear. And you won't necessarily have to wait for official first contact. None of us have any idea when official first contact is going to be. And it's certainly not going to be this year. All right, let's see. One more question today, or maybe a couple of quickies. We'll see what we've got. This one is from Hologna. Ooh, what a lovely name. Hologna. Hologna asks, "What is your interpretation of death? And where do you think we go when we die?" Hmm, let me have a sip of my martini. Well, if we accept that existence is a continuum, then death is a means to leave one experience and move into another experience. Where do we go when we die? Or transition might be more appropriate. Um, after physical worlds were created and they became more complex, over time we created spirit worlds to serve as rest and recreation areas in between incarnations. So in the beginning, we just came out of God, got onto the planet, did stuff, went back into God. And the more souls we created, the more complex lives we created. And then we started this process of an illusionary separation from our divinity. In time we created the realms that we call heavens. And in between our incarnations, we go there. So there's a lot I could talk to you about that. I might recommend that you buy a book called "Math You Tell Me About Heaven" written by Suzanne Ward. I go to heaven a lot. I have a lot of experience in heaven. And this particular book is the best written book explaining the process of what happens when you die and what life is like in heaven. Fabulous book. So rather than me going for hours about that, just go and get that book by Suzanne Ward, "Math You Tell Me About Heaven". And thank you, Helena, for your question. Existence is a continuum. We go from one adventure to another. Death, ah, that's just the body. All right, let's take one more question I think before we move on. And this is from a listener in Boise, Idaho who says, "Do gnomes exist and how big are they?" The fairy realm or the fairy realm, as we call it back home, it's populated by many beings. And yes, gnomes, they exist. They're one of the many races. They don't look exactly like the garden gnomes you buy in the garden center, but pretty damn close actually. I run into them from time to time when I'm clear in property. They've always treated me with courtesy and they've always helped me locate missing objects. Sometimes untapped water wells. They even show me where dead bodies were buried. You know, so what do I know about gnomes? They're lovely, they have sweet, they have a sweet tooth and they like beer. They really do. So when I do my space clearings, I always take along a six pack of Alaskan amber. They seem to like Alaskan amber. So do I for that matter. They like that one very well and they also like pastelies. So sweet stuff. How big are they? I've seen various different sizes. There isn't a race called gnomes. They're gnome like races. Most of the ones that you think are gnomes are actually three to four foot tall. But I've seen them as tall as five foot high in some of the wilderness areas. So I suspect you ask this question because you think you've seen one. Well, don't be shy. Introduce yourself and have a chat with them. There are so many fairy realms out there, so many races. Just talk to them. They're people like you and me. I think that's it for questions, answers, and comments for this week. So keep them coming. Thank you all for your input. And let's see. Is it time for a little musical segue? I think it is. Doo doo doo doo doo doo. What shall we do next? Well, let's take a look. I think we'll do tarot. A go-go. A little shenanigans with the major arcana. So on our last show, we featured number 17, The Star. And that was a lovely card. So on today's show, we feature number 18, The Moon. By the lights. Of a silvery moon. I asked the little fairies. To grab me a boob, boob, boob, boob, boob, boob, boob, boob. Are the magical mystical moon? What secrets does she hold for us? Is she willing to share any of them? Things look different by moonlight. Sunlight illuminates and exposes everything, but by moonlight, we move into the realm of subtleties and secrets, and the ancient energy of the feminine divine. We move into the energy of dreams and dreamwork, multiple realms, multiple dimensions, subtle energies. What should we expect when we pick the moon card? When I look at it, my first hit is always trust your intuition. We don't do that very well as humans. This card, it can represent hidden agendas. As in, hey, can you see through the deceit? There's a great deal of netherworld imagery conjured up by the moon, isn't there? Fantasy, imagination, the strong pull of the moon staring up deep emotions, the unconscious mind swirling away in the background, making decisions on our behalf, choosing what it thinks we are strong enough to make you so. Now, the deception, well, it could be ours, of course, and it could be self-deception. In its extreme form, the moon card is associated with outright lunacy, moon madness, unstable moons, unstable moons, uncertainty, indecision, confusion. If good health is an issue, then the moon card could represent the beginnings of female problems. This card tends to come up when we're dealing with clearing away old belief systems, that whole awakening thing. It's never easy. If you think about how much coding exists on our DNA RNA, I mean, throughout ancestral history, not just in this one lifetime, we become multi-layered onions with, you know, awakening, clearing away old belief systems, will it ever end? Feels like it never will, but it will one day. The old stuff buried deep down comes to the surface. When it comes to the surface, yeah, it needs to be dealt with before moving on. This card also comes up, I find, where there's depression. I think a great many people are depressed on some level, not necessarily suicidally, but you want to see if you have a lack of, if you suddenly wake up one day and you have this new pattern of a lack of motivation and you're no longer curious about life and things, that's the beginning of depression. And you can pick the moon card and you go, well, you know, I'm actually fine. Why did I pick the moon card? Perhaps there's something in your mental health that's been brewing. You haven't checked into it. At the lowest level, it's just a mild depression. At the other end of the scale, it can be outright paranoia. But whatever the issue, the moon card guides us to see what is at play behind the scenes. If we have over engaged our logical minds, at the expense of our intuitive minds, this would be a good time to correct the balance. Now, what if we pick this card in the reverse position? Usually, it's a sign that we're stepping into the light and things are beginning to clear up. The end of the confusion, murky issues clearing up because we see what was hidden. But with this card, that's not always the case. You know, reversed all right side up. When you get the moon, it is not a good idea to take risks. It's not the time. It also means there's more to the agenda than you think. So don't jump to conclusions. And don't waste your energies on hearsay. Wait for the light to return before you investigate. Don't let your imagination run amok. Be still, listen to your inner will. Number 18, the moon. And of course, everything seems so much more manageable after a good night's sleep, doesn't it? A very magical, a very mystical card, the moon. Now, on the show we pick a card, we talk a little bit about it. Of course, I say this every time but I feel I should continue to say it. You don't just look in a tarot card reading book for the meaning of a card. You need to develop a relationship with your cards. The moon means, you know, it evokes everything we just talked about. But in a spread, the meaning can change depending on its proximity to other cards, depending on the position that you placed it in. You know, it's not just a question of this is what it means. So every summer I do a tea and tarot class and this year, because I had to close down my office, I'll be doing it via Zoom. So I can have a hundred of you on this call. Look out for this tea and tarot class that I'll be doing some, sometime in July or August is usually when we do it. And we'll talk for four hours all about the cards, how to use them and how to make them your friends and use them as a tool for divination for meditation. I just love the tarot cards. I just love looking at them and dreaming with them. They can take you to great creative journeys. And for many people, it's their first step into the world of metaphysics. And as such, you know, we should all get a pack, have some fun with them. All right, number 18, the moon. Well, my darlings, what should we do now? I know what. I think we did the cryptic mystic last time. So this time it's time for a little bit of philosophy and that means Plato chips, where we quote a philosopher of note. Today's pick is Lao Tzu. What do we know about him? Not much, really. Some say he's a mythical character. In fact, most people say he's a mythical character. You know, a bit like Homer. Not Homer Simpson, you know, the Greek dude, Homer. And others say that he was a real person and he was a record keeper for the central court of the Zhao dynasty in China. But the legend says Lao Tzu grew weary of the corruption in the court system. So he purchased a water buffalo, as one does, and rode it to the western border of the Chinese Empire. Well, you can't really make this stuff up, can you? The legend continues. Even though Lao Tzu was dressed in humble attire, the border agents recognized him and asked him to put pen to paper and record his wisdom. And we know that wisdom today is the Zhao Dei Jun. So I suppose he got off his water buffalo, wrote down all the wisdom, handed it over to these chaps, and as far as we can make out, then he crossed the border with his lovely water buffalo and apparently evaporated. So groovy, wonderful. Don't really know much about him, but millions of people today follow the teachings of the Zhao, the way, the path. As I remember rightly, and I think I do, I looked at a painting a long time ago from the 12th century, from the Song dynasty, dynasty, whatever it is. I think it was entitled Confucianism, Taoism, and Buddhism are one. And it was the artist's way of saying how these three philosophies were mixed over time and that they were very compatible, Confucianism, Taoism, and Buddhism. And there's this little story about the three great Asian spiritual leaders, Lao Tzu, Confucius, and the Buddha. All were meant to have tasted vinegar. And Confucius apparently found its sour, much like he found the world around him, you know, full of the generous people. And the Buddha found it bitter, much like the world around him, that he found to be full of suffering and bitterness. But Lao Tzu found it was sweet, because he thought that even though the world has discord, there's an underlying harmony guided by something that he called the Dao. So the Dao De Jing, I suppose it's someone like the Bible, isn't it? It gives instructions at times vague, and like all scriptures, generally open to multiple interpretations. But it gives us advice on how to give a good life. It discusses the way of the world, the path to virtue, happiness, harmony, the Dao, the way, the path. Apparently, if we live properly, it's not inherently confusing or difficult. Lao Tzu said, "The great Dao is very even, but people like to take byways." In Lao Tzu's view, the problem with virtue, it's not that virtue is difficult or unnatural, it's just that people are silly, and they resist the simple path, and they get off track, and when they try to get back on the path, they can't remember what the bigger picture was. So in order to follow the path, we need to go beyond simply reading, he said, and thinking about it. We must learn effortless action, what I think is called in Chinese Wu Wei. How to flow. A sort of a purposeful acceptance of the way of the Dao. We want to live in harmony, in alignment. We want to float and flow. And we do this by keeping things simple. I can't disagree with that. Lao Tzu always says, "Take more time for stillness, to the mind that is still the whole universe surrenders." He advises us to review our schedules, and we'll let go of most of them. He thinks we worry too much, and our thoughts are too complex. And we spend far too much time actually analyzing the world rather than experiencing it. We rush from one place to the next, and he says, "Look at nature. It does not hurry, yet everything is accomplished." "All things in their time do not rush things," he says. When it's time to grieve, you grieve. When it's time to grow wiser, you grow wiser. Don't rush relationships, let them mature. Let things happen on their own schedule, like nature. He reminds us to empty our mind of frivolous thoughts, so that we will observe and notice what is important. One of his quotes is, "The usefulness of a pot comes from its emptiness." Empty yourself of everything, let your mind become still, he said. "If we're too busy, if we're anxious, if we're chasing our ambitions, we'll miss millions of moments of the human experience." "The experience is our natural inheritance," he said. "We need to be awake to the way light reflects off ripples on a pond." "To look at how happy people look when they're laughing." "To look at the trees and the wind blowing through the leaves." "We need to be in nature," he said. "To reconnect us to all parts of ourselves." "Our real selves." "Don't spend time worrying about who we ought to become," says Laotzu, on his water buffalo. "But we should instead take time to be who we already are at heart." "To thy own self be true would be the western interpretation of that." "When I let go of what I am," says Laotzu, "I become what I might be." He always recommended practicing stillness by focusing on nature. So all of you people out there who always tell me, "Arnie, I can't find 12 minutes a day to do breathing meditation." "Um, not going there." He would say to you, "Okay, if you can't focus on your breath, which of course is essential, but if you can't do that, practice stillness by staring at some pretty flowers in a meadow, or rocks on the river, or how the wind goes through the trees." Pick something in nature and just watch it being itself. You always advise us, actually, to focus on trees. I think you like trees. I mean, you said a lot about water and all the other elements, but he loved trees. He thought that they were a case study in graceful endurance. He said, "Look at trees." They go through all the different seasons. They get rained on, storms, ice, yet they're still perfectly supple and yet resilient. And they don't suddenly go, "Well, I'm tired of being a tree in this spot. Let me up, root myself and go and see if I can find a better environment." He says, "You know, they just, they survive and they thrive, wherever they are planted." He thought of trees as the perfect image of patience, really. He says, "They sit for long days and nights without complaint. They adjust themselves to the so shift of the season. They show no ill temper in a storm, no desire to wonder from their spot. They are content to keep their many slender fingers deep in the clammy soil, meters from their central stems, and far from the tallest leaves, which hold the rainwater in their palms." Water, another favorite daoist source of wisdom, soft and seemingly gentle and yet, when given enough time, powerful enough to reshape stone. Lao Tzu thought we should adopt some of that patience, some of that water patience, that quiet determination. Well, we probably can do that when we're dealing with certain family members, yes, and frustrating political situations and all sorts of situations in the workplace. And I agree with him, let's sit and focus on nature because, as he said, nature does not hurry yet everything is accomplished. For at the center of our being, we have the answer. We know who we are, and we know what we want. I find his writings very soothing. Go out and get the daoge in. The Book of Dao, there are so many different translations, I'm not going to go into all of them. I like them all, I've probably got 12 different translations of them. So I'll read you just a little bit from one of my favorite little books, the Book of Daoge. Let's see, we find the opening passage, I think. The dao, described in words, is not the real dao. Words cannot describe it. Nameless, it is the source of creation, named, it is the mother of all things. To see the dao, the observer must be motiveless. Those with selfish motives see only the surface, not the innermost depths. These two kinds of observers look alike, but differ in the insight of their observations. They look alike because they are both human. Within humanity is the key to the door of creation. There is something mysterious without beginning, without end, that existed before the heavens and earth, unmoving, infinite, standing alone, never changing. It is everywhere, and it is inexhaustible. It is the mother of all. I do not know its name. If I must name it, I call it dao, and I hail it as supreme. Supreme means never ending, never ending means far reaching, and far reaching means returning. Thus dao is supreme, the heavens are supreme, earth is supreme, man is supreme. There are four Supremes in the universe, man is one of them. Man is subject to the laws of the earth, the earth is subject to the laws of the universe, the universe is subject to the laws of dao, and dao is subject to the laws of its own nature. Dao is a vast immeasurable void. It can be used to infinity. It is truly inexhaustible. Like nature, it appears to be the origin of everything. In it conflicts, sharp edges are satisfied, rounded, differences are resolved, all are united, observations are clarified, disturbances are quieted. It is like a deep, dark pool. I do not know its source. It is a prelude to nature, a preface to God. Looked for, it cannot be seen. It is invisible. Listen for, it cannot be heard. It is inaudible. Reach for, it cannot be touched. It is intangible. These three are beyond analysis. These three are one. A little excerpt there from the Book of Dao, one of the many interpretations and translations of the Dao Dejing. Thank you, Lao Tzu. We are very happy that you got on your water buffalo and went to the outer edges of the Chinese Empire and deep gratitude to those border guards for asking you to step off your water buffalo and write all this wisdom, because it has made a huge difference to us. One of my favorite meditations actually is with the Dao. All right, my little darlings, and I think now that you have heard some beautiful poetry, it's time for some of mine. Yes, it's time for a little pat of poetry, because, folks, as we know, after a hard day's shamaning, I like nothing better than coming home, putting my feet up, having a nice cup of tea or a small drinky pool, and writing really bad, non-peer-reviewed poetry. Today's offering is a tongue-in-cheek ditty, titled "Go Away, I Really Do Not Care," and I wrote this in honour of all the people who, when they decide to unfollow me on social media, decide that they should write me a long dissertation as to why they don't agree with me and why they don't want to follow me anymore. "Ah, people, just do it." "Go Away, I Really Do Not Care," from Aunty Avadocian, tongue-in-cheek people, tongue-in-cheek. "If you want to unfollow my page, click the button, get it done, and save yourself the torture. I am not an airport. You do not need to announce your departure. It is none of my business how you react to my posts and information shared. Have a meltdown and rant if you must, then please go away, because I really do not care. I post to share my research and to promote general awareness, to highlight what you may have missed with regard to injustice and unfairness. If my words offend you, scroll down for more palatable news. Why engage with something that offends you? Unless, of course, you enjoy that type of abuse. If you feel affronted by my point of view being contradictory to yours, big whoopie for you. I'm just going to kick back and open. I can, of course. If you want to unfollow my page, click the button, get it done, and stop playing the martyr. One more time, I am not an airport. You do not need to announce your departure. Oh, a little bit of fun there, really people, just a little bit of fun. Not really going after anyone. It just baffles me why people have to sit and write you these long PhD-length dissertations as to why they disagree with you. It's not even a debate at that point. It's just, I hate you, you're rubbish, and bye-bye. Well, fair enough, you know. All right, I can take a little sip of my martini, cheers to everyone out there. I really do care, by the way. That's why I do this work. If I didn't care, I wouldn't do this work. I do something a lot more profitable and a lot less work and expose myself to a lot less ridicule. Okay, my sweet darlings, let's take a look at the time. Oh, my gosh. My darlings, I think that's it for the show. I finish my drink almost, and that always means the end of the show. Now, I hope you enjoyed listening to it as much as I enjoyed recording it, because let me tell you something. I had a blast. I really enjoy being on the airwaves, connecting with everyone, and I love all the feedback you guys give me too. I would like to say that today's real life martini is four parts bombay sapphire gin and one part lile blank aperitif, yum yum, dressed with a twist of lemon and jolly good it is too. Now, remember folks, cocktails are great if they are an occasional treat. If you use top quality ingredients and take the art of mixology seriously, one drink is all you need. I'm Ani Avidissian. This was metaphysical martini, a production of cosmic reality radio to whom we are most grateful. Until we meet again, let the spirit inhabit the human. You have been listening to the metaphysical martini show with Ani Avidissian, the sperm and shaman, a production of cosmic reality radio.
