A samurai came to see Zen master Hakuin and asked, “Is there any hell? Is there any heaven? If they exist, where are their gates?” Hearing this, Hakuin simply asked in return, “Who are you?” “I am a samurai,” replied the warrior proudly. “I am a leader of samurais and even the emperor pays respect to me.” The Zen master…
Author: Yol Swan
5 Keys To Mastering Your Energy (And Your Life)
I remained quite reserved as a child when facing social situations I was unwillingly placed in. This is how I conserved my energy, until I was sure it was okay to share it. I remember accompanying my mother to visit her friends and meeting their children without immediately engaging, especially with those who seemed reluctant to connect with me. We’d…
Do You Take Yourself For Granted?
Did you know that, although deaf and blind, Helen Keller was an author and activist who helped found the American Civil Liberties Union and later was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom? She was an admirable woman with greater clarity about who she was and what she wanted than most people who can see and hear. It’s hard to imagine…
Is Your Perception Expanding Or Contracting?
Did you know that your mind expands with new ideas and creative actions and love and laughter? This also happens when you do something that stretches your comfort zone, because you recalibrate the emotional gauge that keeps your experiences within familiar limits before triggering any resistance. You set that meter higher and higher as you develop emotional flexibility and mental…
Are You Having Fun In Life Yet?
My father was a tough man with a tough life. He was a war refugee and learned from a young age to survive and take care of his twin sisters alone. He was Basque, so the blood of warriors ran through his veins. He studied hard, worked hard, and became a highly successful engineer. His personal relationships, however, were disastrous,…
Carpe Diem: Seize the Day!
We had to put our beloved dog Luna to sleep. She suddenly started eating less and less a couple weeks ago until she stopped eating completely, as if her digestive system shut down. Lab tests, x-rays, and all sorts of examinations came back normal, providing no obvious reason for these radical changes. Her vet concluded it was some aggressive cancer…
Meet Psyche, Your Love Guided Soul
The mythological story of Eros and Psyche is one of my favorites; it’s a great reminder of the many obstacles the soul must overcome to find true love. Eros, the god of love, is one of the primordial gods involved in the creation of the Cosmos, although he was later portrayed as Cupid (or “desire”), a son of Venus, the…