Notes on Video: 'Essential Alan Watts: On Meditation, Nothingness' (1973, 58 min) by Alan Watts (1915-1973): "To go out of your mind at least once a day is tremendously important, because by going out of your mind you come to your senses."

Nothingness:
- there is no nothing without something

On Meditation:
- there is a difference between the Real World and the symbols we have in our minds about this world; we often believe to see the former although we really only think about the latter

- our world is a system of concepts: e.g., constellations of stars are not really there, they are man-made systems

- most of us are compulsivly thinking, i.e. it almost never stops, it becomes a constant chatter; but: he who talks all the time does not hear what others have to say.

- in meditation, we become interiorly silent, and seize from the interminable chatter in our heads

- meditation should not have a reason (such as to serve improvement of the self); it should rather be like making music or dancing, i.e. for enjoyment and fun; it is important to understand that the journey is the point, not reaching the goal; in meditation we have the insight that the point is always the arrival at the immediate moment; time is always NOW, no past and no future; realizing this brings us into a state of peace

- support items: gong, incense, string of beads (to unconsciously time yourself; move one bead per breath stroke)

- how to engage into meditation: be aware of what IS by doing the following:
1.) listen to sounds around you
2.) listen to your toughts (without trying to control them)
3.) be aware of your breath

ad 1.) begin meditation by listening to all sounds around you (the hum and buzz of the world); do not try to name sounds, do not try to identify what they are, do not judge them, just let go; but: if you can't help judging, do not force the thoughts out of your mind, just let them happen

ad 2.) look at your own thoughts just as if they were noises; the thoughts become happenings like the sounds on the outside

ad 3.) let the breathing go just as it will, do not do breathing exercises; do not think about breathing, just let breathing happen; when exhaling, let the air fall out; when inhaling also let it fall in; the breath will get more and more easy, and slower, and more peaceful over time, and more poweful

- sound (e.g., gong) and chanting can aid in the exercise; one can chant a Mantra (=chanted sound). Mantras are used not so much for their meaning as for their simple tones; should be chanted with slow breath; e.g., Om = mantra that represents the total energy of the Universe


Snippets:
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Video: Strange Days (1995). 145 min. w/ Ralph Fiennes (The English Patient), Angela Bassett, Juliette Lewis (What's Eating Gilbert Grape); directed by Kathryn Bigelow (Point Beak); story and screenplay by James Cameron (Titanic, Terminator). Sci-fi thrilller. Ex-cop who serves the black market with recordings of memories and emotions (similar to 'Brainstorm' (1983)), tries to solve the murder of a prostitute and friend. Sex and violence. Nothing for the squeamish. Plot is good, but story is a little too artificial. Angela Bassett has an excellent performance. My rating: 6 out of 10.
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Mylene Farmer. French-Canadian disco chanteuse. More Photos.
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Theater: King Lear by William Shakespeare. Yale Repertory Theater, New Haven, CT. Feb. 13-March 13, 2004. w/ Avery Brooks (Star Treck: Deep Space Nine) and an all-African-American cast. Directed by Harold Scott. Great, colorful performance. Tragic story of a British king and his three daughters, of the struggle for power and of vengeance and deception. Plot and comments. Text, Essays, and Links. Painting by Edwin Austin Abbey (American, 1852-1911). King Lear (1898).
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Video: Still of the Night (1982). 93 min. w/ Roy Scheider, Meryl Streep, Jessica Tandy. Directed by Robert Benton. Psychiatrist suspects an assistant auctioneer (that he fell in love) with, to have murdered one of his patients. Effective suspense with small tricks. Good camera angles. Story is on the simple side. My rating: 5 out of 10.
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Book on Tape: Robert A. Heinlein: Stanger in a Strange Land (1961). Part 1 (10 cassettes, 15 hours) + Part 2 (9 cassettes, 13.5 hours). Unabridged version, including some 60,000 words that had been cut from the original manuscript. A man who was raised on Mars, returns to earth, becomes independently wealthy, has super powers, and preaches his philosophy for a new type of religion. Long, but worth it! Contains many unusual thoughts, sometimes revolutionary. Has to be put into perspective to the time it was written.
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