Saturday, June 18, 2016

Worlds of Dreams


Photo credits Lucid Dreaming

I started to study courses of Universal Anthropology and Philosophy by AGEAC Vietnam at Sharing Coffee (69 Vo Van Tan) every Saturday morning (10:00 - 11:30). Our nice Teacher is Ms. Mihaela from Romania. I enjoy the courses very much.
AGEAC (Geophilosophical Association of Anthropological and Cultural Studies) is a humanistic, philosophical and anthropological institution whose raison d'être is to investigate the cultural values immersed in the traditions, folklore, mythology, philosophy, art, customs and beliefs of all peoples of antiquity with the aim of extracting from them the principles and values that allow the modern man to live in a more conscious and intelligent way.

Although AGEAC studies, among many other aspects of the human culture, the different religions that have existed in the world, our institution is not any religion. AGEAC respects the individual beliefs of its affiliates, and to its courses attend people of different faiths and philosophies.

AGEAC ( Geo philosophical Association of Cultural and Anthropological Studies) opens a new series of lectures dedicated to inner knowledge and meditation.
(See more at AGEAC's website http://ageac.org/en)
Next Wednesday there will be the first lecture for the new series (new phase) from 6:30 pm: The causes of our sufferings.

"Knowing yourself through self observation, dreams, meditation, it's the only way to find the answer to the questions: Who am I? What is the purpose of my existence? What is my vocation? etc.

The key of all this answer is your hands in your daily life circumstances, through your oneiric experiences, between your different types of relation (family, friends,..).

We wrongly believe that the causes of our sufferings are outside, due to the way that others treat us, due to the lack of materialistic things and so on. But they are deep inside us part of our psychology, in our psychological disorder. So if we need to end all of that we need to start from knowing our self, learning to be aware, transform impressions and put order in our own psychology.

This lecture will be followed by others lectures related to awakening of the consciousness, the universe of mind, meditation and so on.

Know yourself and you will know the Universe and the Gods ( Inscription on the frontispiece of the Temple of Apollo, Greece)"


Here are some notes from the lecture "World of Dreams" on 4th June 2016.

*****

The Transcendence of Dreams (Lecture's Notes)

"A man is known by his dreams." ~ Plato

Through our dreams we can know more about ourselves.
Prophetic dreams, deja -vu: "Dreams are warnings from God about future events." ~ Plato

"Dreams are the royal road to the Unconcious." ~ Freud

"In dreams our Unconcious becomes manifested and then we can discover some of our psychological facets unknown to us." ~ Carl Gustav Jung

"The language of dreams is exactly comparable to the language of parables. The images of the supra-sensitive worlds are wholly symbolic. Even the apparently most absurd dreams contain the greatest revelations if you interpret them wisely." ~ Samael Aun Weor

For the Egyptians, dream interpretation was an important science. Dreams are symbolic and we can decipher the mysteries of life and death. We can use dreams to self-discover, to receive answers, initiations... Symbolic dreams reflect the reality of the inner world.

Mind is energy. Brain is only an instrument to capture this energy. The state of unconsciousness in which we live, with a too heavy egoic load, makes it impossible for us to bring to the physical body the awareness of the experiences we have in the astral body.
Einstein, the father of the Theory of Relativity, demonstrated that if we vibrate the atomic structure of any material object at the square of the velocity of light (300000 km/s), it leaves the physical plane and penetrates the energetic one. Namely, there exists a bridge between those two worlds - matter and energy - which is simply determined by the inner velocity of vibration of the bodies.

Above and below the physical and material region where we live, there exist other regions or worlds of manifestation which are not physical, and yet they are as real as this one. One of those world is, precisely, where we go every night while our physical bodies sleep in bed. Our psychic material, namely, our Consciousness trapped in all the undesirable elements that make up the Ego, the "Myself", escapes the body in those moments and, free from the shape, it lives in regions that are parallel to this physical and three-dimensional one where we live during the day. Such a region is also where the deceased go when they are disembodied.

This Astral world is the "Fourth Dimension" of modern science, where "Time" no longer works according to the criteria we have at present. The past and the future become brothers in an eternal present, and one may gain access to yesterday or tomorrow from the very today... For this reason, Plato said that it is possible to see scenes of our own future in dreams.

The divine which exists within man, may guide him in his life very accurately. "A dream which has not been understood is like a letter which has not been opened..." ~ Talmud - a sacred Jewish book.

This is why among the ancient peoples, such as the Babylonians and Assyrians, any man who wanted to make an important decision asked his oneiromancer - interpreter of dreams - for advice first.

To the Egyptians, for instance, interpreting dreams was a terribly sacred, religious and scientific art. History tells us how the very Greek Gods, who quite liked to take part in the mortals' daily lives, sent messages in dreams which had to be interpreted by analysing the symbols comprised in such oneiric experiences.

Types of dreams

Mechanical dreams: related to the facts we are experiencing. And transcendental dreams which are prophetic or symbolic.
It is not neccesarily that all dreams may be transcendent in our lives, because many of them are the result of the world of wishes which hides in the human subconscious, as Freud said.
While the body sleeps, the ego lives in the inner worlds and travels to different places. In the inner worlds we are tested many times. In the inner temples we receive the initiation. It is necessary to remember what we do outside the body.
Beside the five inferior centres of our organic machinery, we have two other centres: the superior intellectual and emotional ones. The dreams related to the two superior centres are very interesting.

It is useful to receive messages and to be in contact with Aztec, Maya, Toltec, Egyptian, Greek and other adepts. It is also wonderful to speak with the diverse higher parts of our Being (the divine that we have inside). The divine manifestations may, quite easily, make us receive a message to solve the dilemma we have and, consequently, they may influence positively the destiny of our lives. When the superior centres are fully unfolded within us, it is easy to receive this kind of superior message which we must learn to grasp consciously.

When we begin to realise the deep meaning of the specific type of dreams, it means that certain forces are fighting to awaken, heal or cure us. By carrying out a rigorous study of the superior type of dreams, we may find the well-known prophetic or warning dreams, and symbolic dreams.

Those who have dissolved within themselves the whole of the psychological aggregates and enjoy having a completely awakened consciousness have access to a superior language, a magic and powerful language.

Sunday, June 12, 2016

Saigon Vegan Festival & Joyful June Dinner





I had a nice evening last Saturday with lots of fun at the vegan pool party in Sun Rise city, enjoying the company of these kind and so friendly new friends. We did some yoga breathing, playing team games ('Plant' vs. 'Power') with some stretching, balance and quiz. Then we enjoyed delicious vegan food together over sunset. We then visited Janny's appartment and playing some strange cards and then the interesting Werewolf Game. Each of us took a role in an imaginary village, where some could become werewolves at nights...

Saigon Vegan Festival is a project by Tyra Nguyen, with monthly Vegan festival events in Ho Chi Minh city, where vegans can come to enjoy food, networking, getting to know each other and playing together. Sharing the dream of animal lovers, vegan practitioners, environmentalist and those who have a beating heart for this wonderful Earth and Life, Tyra initiated a website to promote this true way of living in harmony with ethics and nature. Her websites:

*****
Notes and photos by Tyra on Saigon Vegan Festival

- An exclusive venue with a stunning view and ambience!
- A great stretch with breathing exercise led by Tarun Tri!! (& an unforgettable arm + leg pull game too hehehehe)
- A super fun vegan quiz with a "terrible" vegan punishment!
- A great meal by chef Thanh Phuong with the Cha ca La Vong roll!
- A lovely weather with only a few drops and no rain!!!
- A great host team (Janny, Alexis, Huyen) running up and down, back and forth so we can have a smooth night!
- A strangely non-related party games (Against Humanity + Werewolves) HAHAHA

I've got to say this dinner is so far the most time and effort consuming for me as the organier. And the result turned out so good, with big help from Janny (the co-organizer and host), and Dylan (my source of encouragement and support). For sure, all friends who joined were there to chip in their smiles, cheer, hands, heads, feets... Thank you all from my heart!!!

We had fun, very light yet deep fun!
 

 




Saturday, June 4, 2016

Storytelling Saigon #1

"As humans, we love stories. They have been shared in every culture as a means of entertainment, education, cultural preservation and instilling moral values. Now is your chance to hear and see people’s personal tales in an on-stage format yet to be tried out in Vietnam. Narrated by a wide variety of people from different backgrounds, this should be a fascinating night and one certainly not to be missed. (Word Vietnam)

If you are interested in attending our FREE WORKSHOPS on storytelling/public speaking please join our growing Facebook group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/875908592519678/

For more information about storytelling as an artform please see below:

In the spirit of The Moth (https://themoth.org/) or RadioLab (http://www.radiolab.org/) or This American Life (http://www.thisamericanlife.org/), we want to introduce everyone to the intimate art of storytelling. :)

Storytelling is the conveying of events in words, sound and/or images, often by improvisation or embellishment. Stories or narratives have been shared in every culture as a means of entertainment, education, cultural preservation and instilling moral values."

James Dilday

La Fenêtre Soleil, 4.6.2016
James and the audience




"The Torture of Gideon Mantell"  - a story by Patric M Davies
Patrick performs comedy for Stand-Up Saigon. He is originally from London but he says his heart will always stay in Saigon. It's amazing how he was telling and at the same time painting the illustrative pictures.



"My uncle's friend had that - He's dead now" - a story by Claire Robbin
Claire is a ghostwriter, and a singer-songwriter from London.


"Meeting a True Meditation Master" - a story by Trevor Weltman
Trevor is an American living in Saigon, where he works as a life coach and trainer. He is a daily practitioner and teacher of Heartfulness Meditation. You can read his writing at
http://MeditateActivateElevate.com/



"Up the Stairs, Looking Backwards" - a story by Tom Sanders
Tom Sanders is the co-founder of the Saigon-based Youth Culture Library. He has performed spoken word, poetry and short-fiction in London and in Vietnam (Saigon Ranger and La Fenetre Soleil).



"Just the Right Dose" - a story by Tom McNulty
Tom is a longtime performer of Stand-Up Comedy in Saigon.



"The Art of Doing Nothing" - an inspiring talk by Daniel Tran Anh Tuan
Coming back to Saigon last year from Singapore, Daniel has been a trainer of human potential to help others realize their paths in this world.



"The Importance of Collaboration within the Arts" - by Emily Navarra
An artistic director, choreographer and performer, Emily formed Standpoint Theories - Legends of Vietnam in 2013 a collaborative yearly project which retells six Vietnamese legends through dance, visual art and live music. In 2015, she founded the Movement Kitchen which aims to create a wider platform for local dance artists and encourage further understanding of the art of movement, mentally and physically.



"Experiences in a Hospital" - a story by Kieran Michaels
Kieran is a funny comedian from Sweden.



Burt Teplitzky and his funnt fantasy story about the parallel world,
where he exchanged his role with a beautiful lady...



Adam Palmeter and his childhood story.

The Canadian band after the show