Ahhhh…I bet your rebellion intensified His presence. Nothing like a little passion to stir up Christ consciousness. Well played, darling! 
Blog #38: Which Direction Home?
http://ayprecovery.org/blog-38-which-direction-home/
I’m up in Georgia again. I say “up” because Georgia is north of my hometown of Tampa, Florida. Also, where I’m at in Georgia is particularly mountainous and well above sea level, so the increase in altitude gives me even greater creative license to use the phrase “up in Georgia”. If I were staying in the Florida Keys, I might say: “I’m down in the Keys,” and that too would be directionally and topographically accurate, since the Keys are not only south of Tampa, but also nearly underwater in terms of their relationship to sea level. So there you have it—a reasonable analysis of cardinal directions and the language that aligns with them.
Aside from that nerdy observation, a deeper contemplation regarding direction and directions comes to mind. What direction am I heading in, and whose directions am I following? Is there some hidden director that’s crafting the show?
When it comes to AYP, I’m following the directions of Yogani, and his instructions are very simple. So simple, in fact, that the mind can sometimes have trouble accepting their simplicity. In a world of complex puzzles, clever games, and deceptive mirages, how strange it is to finally arrive at a place where simplicity and transparency are the shining qualities. The AYP aesthetic is unbelievably refreshing and relieving.
If we drill down a little bit further, we might be compelled to ask: Who gave directions to Yogani?
Well, we know that these techniques are a collection of ancient practices, some of which are derived from scriptures like the Yoga Sutras of Patanjali. This knowledge is actually old stuff, just newly presented. So, following this line of inquiry, another question might arise, which is: Where did Patanjali get the material from? At this point in the investigation, we would have to invest some major time and energy into scholarly research and historical archaeology, or…we could stop chasing the trail and turn our attention inward, to the present moment of Here and Now.
At last, we have found the answer.
The answer is that stillness, which is ever-present and beyond the scope of space and time, produces all of the magic—in the past, present, and future. Though we may not be fully aware of this fact in our surface level of consciousness (due to self-imposed obstructions and layers covering the truth), the reality of pure bliss consciousness is nevertheless operating consistently and unshakably beneath the activity on the surface level. Like the calm eye of a raging hurricane, the center is perfectly at peace and unaffected by the drama of its surrounding weather.
Bringing this full circle, we can see the value of direction and directions. To wind up home, we have to move in an inward direction, and we need to follow directions that use common sense to achieve that journey. Fortunately, going inward does not prevent us from continuing to travel outward. Actually, the silent center expands and enriches our ability to go in any direction we please. Since beginning practices like Deep Meditation, Spinal Breathing, Samyama, and most importantly, pursuing a chosen ideal of high value, I have found the outer world to be increasingly attractive and familiar. There is more adventure than ever before.
Earlier today, I stood atop the summit of Black Rock Mountain, nestled in the foothills of the Appalachians. Looking across the panorama of old-growth forest and other distant peaks, my normal sense of direction seemed to be irrelevant. All the convenient geometry used in the design of an urban landscape (squares, city blocks, rectangular grids, etc.) was not needed to appreciate the curvature of the rolling mountains.
We have a way of dividing the land into parcels, and that’s OK, but from a perspective of stillness, those divisions are not nearly as intimidating as they sometimes seem. The presence of inner silence reminds me that the whole is greater than the sum of the parts. A whole lot greater.
Thanks for reading. Radiance. Abundance. Inner Sensuality.
I said it before but still admire your style of writing. 
And I, your’s.
Blog #39: Addicted to Suffering
http://ayprecovery.org/blog-39-addicted-to-suffering/
Much of the coverage in the mainstream media reminds me of my past relationship with alcohol. There is an acquired taste for toxicity. There is a thirst for poison. There is an addiction to suffering and self-destruction.
This week there was another random shooting at a college in a small town. The major news channels have been feverishly and deliriously adding to the hype of the event.
The reporters sit behind desks, or at roundtables with other public personalities, and speak in fervent tones into the eye of the camera. The pace of their delivery is full of anxiety and panic, though restrained enough to be somewhat intelligible. Much like someone drinking alcohol, the “yellow” journalists have managed to make the disposition of their delirium appear normal (in the sense of being socially acceptable and condoned by the prevailing fashions and cultural opinions of the nation or world).
In AYP for Recovery, I have been adamant about my belief and observation that at the core of every twisted desire is something pure. Underneath a sickly addiction is bhakti, a desire for deeper truth. With alcohol addiction, the seed desire is for transcendence. When it comes to the media’s obsession with violence, the seed desire is for unity. These pure impulses have become distorted and perverted.
All that is required is to return to the source of stillness, and to let stillness shape our decisions and actions in regards to moving forward. Active surrender. That is the way out of our misery. That is the way to shift from promulgating suffering, to broadcasting waves of liberation.
Once inner silence takes hold, and the unity condition unfolds, the level of empathy rises. The division between personal self and collective self becomes much more transparent.
I feel the pain of others as if it were my own. I feel the joy of others as if it were my own. The sick pleasure of thinking “Well, at least it’s not me,” has dissolved, so there is no more advantage in feeding off the misery of another’s suffering. There is no benefit in watching horrifying events and outside commentary from a seemingly safe distance, behind a television screen, in the confines of an enclosed living room. Humorous banter about the absurdity of humanity is one thing; full-blown addiction to the voyeuristic viewing of catastrophic events is another.
On the other hand, being addicted to ecstatic bliss and an outpouring of divine love marks an evolutionary change in consciousness and character. The hardened heart melts, and the mind is much clearer and far more creative than ever before. The utmost potential of a human being begins to be realized once the nervous system opens its channels to Oneness, Truth, and Divine Genius.
Fortunately, there are media stories and styles of journalism that are riding the wave of global enlightenment. There are communication venues that are exuding calmness, vibrant color, and forward thinking. The fixation on violence will not last, and the suffering will be washed away by the unstoppable tidal wave of radiance, abundance, and inner sensuality.
We all have a choice in what we tune into. Choose wisely, for there is no escape from the unity of Self.
this reminds of a quote from a hawkwind song ,the quote is ,if you want to get into it you got to get out ,and if you want to get out of it you got to get into it ,for me the less i involve my self with the delsion of the world the more sattvic my life becomes i gave up watching the news a while ago not out of apathy but the realization that what seed i put into the field is the crop i reap ,chose your seed well and cultivate the field wisely .much love bodhi 
Well said, kumar. Sattvic…the only way to fly. 
Blog #40: We Need Superheroes and Villains
http://ayprecovery.org/blog-40-we-need-superheroes-and-villains/
There it was. A daunting challenge. We stared down at the work beneath us and wholeheartedly dove into our adventure.
You see, it was me, and the young son of a dear friend of mine, and we were slowly and steadily gathering scattered fragments on the carpet floor of his bedroom and matching them together to form a composite picture of his favorite crime fighter. It happened to be a puzzle of Iron Man, who is the superhero portrayed by Robert Downey, Jr. in The Avengers.
While we were assembling the puzzle, the boy was wearing a full Iron Man outfit, lacking only the special Iron Man gloves that emit laser beams out of their palms. But don’t worry, as I write, he’s saving up his allowance and chore money to buy the magical gloves, so he’ll soon be fully equipped and ready to become a perfect emulation of the technological genius he so admires. I know he will achieve the glorious transformation. He is devoted to his ideal, and he will take the steps needed to reach the mountaintop.
After finishing the puzzle, we watched the actual movie Avengers: Age of Ultron. In the film, Ultron is the nemesis. He is a specimen of artificial intelligence gone wrong. He conspires to destroy the world, even though he had originally been designed and created to protect it. Talk about tragic irony and a bad day in the computer laboratory!
Of course, on the verge of mass catastrophe, the Avengers save the day and rescue the human race from the diabolical machine. Notwithstanding some gnarly collateral damage and the death of a few minor characters, the dust of chaos finally settles. Our superheroes have prevailed, but they are left with the lingering questions: what role will technology play in our future, and how do we establish peace on Earth?
These are not fictional questions. They are very real. They are more relevant than ever.
In my quest to discover answers, I have found that, like my young puzzle-building comrade, I need to recognize who my superheroes and villains are. Oh yes, I need both.
So, who are some of my real-life superheroes then? Well, there are plenty. Some I have met in person; others I have not. Some specialize in spirituality and transcendence; others have mastered the arts and crafts of a worldly career. My family and close friends are high on the list. Some ones I haven’t met include: Jesus, Buddha, Yogani, Yogananda and his lineage; great writers like Mark Twain, Walt Whitman, J.D. Salinger, and John Krakauer; origami artists and mathematicians Robert Lang and John Montroll; a whole host of musicians from the distant past and in the present, like Beethoven, Mason Jennings, Michael Stearns, Daft Punk, Radiohead, the Grateful Dead, Sonny Terry & Brownie McGhee, and on and on.
And my villains? Well, my villains tell me which direction I don’t want to head in. It’s not so much that I want to kill my enemies as much as move beyond them. It’s often been said the greatest enemy is within oneself, and I find that to be true. The enemy within is a teacher, a contrasting shade and color to paint the picture with more clarity and depth. And what a picture it is turning out to be!
So, my spiritual villains are the teachers who preach enlightenment as if the ultimate goal was to proclaim victory over the ego and mind (Eckhart Tolle, Adyashanti, Mooji, Sadhguru, Krishnamurti, Osho, etc.)
The beautiful thing is that we get to choose our heroes and villains, so the villains I just listed may be high on the list of heroes for other aspirants. After all, beauty is in the eye of the beholder, and I’m fine with that. If you love those teachers, good for you! I won’t try to convince you to stop loving them, and you don’t need to convince me to stop regarding them as villainous. We can co-exist with our different opinions.
For me, enlightenment is a colorful thing. It’s not black-and-white. It demands texture, layering, vibrant creativity and innovation. It’s about being on the edge of existence—not blotting out existence with clever words coming from talking heads. I’m not interested in talking heads. I’m interested in dancing, robust bodies that are gliding through space with passion and brilliance.
So I say: Suit up, put on your laser-beam gloves, and let’s get to work at saving humanity from the greatest enemy of all—ourselves.
Over and out.
Let’s dance Cody, just dance…
Yay!
And you two dance Divinely!..just a Beacon of Love in my life. 
…but just Divinely Charliedog. 
Awesome,Bodhi. Once you start talking spirituality, they end up becoming too many words. Yes,it is to dance and flow.
Second BillinL.A. comment.
BillinLA. Sunyata.
Blog #41: Perfection Becoming More Perfect
http://ayprecovery.org/blog-41-perfection-becoming-more-perfect/
I am drinking a peanut butter banana smoothie. I am intermittently texting a dear friend in the AYP network. I am sitting at my desk and answering phone calls from nurses, who report deaths from the hospital and contribute to the ever-recycling cache of organ donors and recipients. And, I am writing this blog, of course.
Everything is perfect. The touch of my fingers to the QWERTY keyboard is perfect. The passage of thoughts through my mind is perfect. The matrix of phenomena within the field of perception is incomprehensibly perfect as well. It has all been perfect, from the very beginning, and will stay perfect, until the very end. Well, maybe it will become a little more perfect. Let’s explore.
What do I mean by perfection? I mean that everything is unfolding according to cause and effect. Therein lies the flawlessness. The infallibility of reality does not hinge upon a subjective judgment relating to quality. We are not talking about a diamond connoisseur’s opinion of the sparkling facets of a gemstone. We are talking about the continuity, perpetuity, and ongoing flow of stillness in action. Within the scope of that spectrum are an infinite number of options, including horrifying and terrible occurrences, and even those are perfect.
Even if everything went terribly wrong, it would still be exactly right. Why? Because nothing can outsmart cause and effect. That is why we honor and master the law of karma in AYP. We return to the source of all causes, which is stillness, and then we actively influence the effect of material manifestation through practices like samyama. We place a relaxed but attentive hand on the steering wheel. Not too much tension, but enough to handle the curves of the road smoothly and responsively. It’s finesse, you know.
If everything is already perfect, why bother changing anything? Well, therein lies the paradox. Perfection can become more perfect. A blank canvas that is spotless secretly yearns to be splattered upon with brushstrokes and color. The bare face of a vertical mountain wants to be climbed. The rolling waves of the blue ocean are begging to be surfed. Stillness wants to move. Look all around—the interfaces of nature and the mind are intended to be put to use, with maximum creativity and optimal functionality. Paradise!
Again, a question might arise: if everything in inherently perfect, why is there so much pain and disaster and tragedy?
Because…perfection is becoming more perfect, remember! We are works in progress. We experiment. We operate by trial and error. We discover what ways work the best and what ways lead to detrimental consequences. Fortunately, we can draw conclusions and learn from our mistakes.
Earlier I mentioned a diamond connoisseur, meticulously gazing upon a coveted piece of jewelry. The connoisseur peers through a magnifying glass, looking for trademark characteristics, like color, cut, clarity, and carat weight. The more shining and radiant the qualities are, the more the diamond will be valued. So it is with our human personalities. When we exemplify divine qualities like love, unity, health, wisdom, and strength, we value ourselves, and other people value us too. This is how the perception of beauty comes into play, through perceiving sparkling qualities, both inside and out.
There’s nothing spiritually wrong with searching or striving for more perfection. The diamond connoisseur is not anti-spiritual. But the diamond connoisseur is well-advised to remember where the pristine purity comes from. And where is that? From within. From stillness in action. From the infinite heartspace. That is where the true treasure rests.
OK then, I’ll see you somewhere, skipping and soaring along in our perfectly evolving existence.
@ BillinL.A.
Charliedog 
[OM]
Blog #42: Foxhole Prayers and Bargaining with the Lord
http://ayprecovery.org/blog-42-foxhole-prayers-and-bargaining-with-the-lord/
A couple days ago I chaired an AA meeting. I picked the topic of prayer. I read a passage from As Bill Sees It. In the passage, Bill Wilson wrote that prayer helped him endure stressful circumstances, and that long walks and mindful breathing also helped alleviate his doubt and worry. I was reminded of something that happened to me in San Francisco.
When I moved to San Francisco, I really struggled to land a job. It was late 2008, right after the big stock market crash. The real estate bubble had popped, and hiring slowed down significantly. All I could manage to get were temporary assignments. It was painful. I would interview for full-time positions, get my hopes up, then be denied, often after several rounds of interviews at the same company. The biggest chances came at the headquarters of Facebook, the amazing Pixar Animation Studios, the up-and-coming Pandora Internet Radio, and last but not least, LucasArts (I’m a big Star Wars fan). Just setting foot onto those locations gave me a euphoric buzz.
After failing with those giants, not to mention a bunch of less notable companies, I finally wound up getting an assignment with promising long-term potential at the alumni organization of a prestigious university (UCSF Medical School). It involved editorial tasks and desktop publishing. It was going well. But one day I got pulled into the human resources office. They had found some DUIs in my background check, and I had not transparently divulged the misdemeanors on the initial job application. I thought my attorney had got my record expunged, but I was wrong. I told them my mistaken assumption, and they said they would take it into consideration and get back with me.
I didn’t hear anything for a couple days, and during that time I was silently begging God to let me keep the job. I would say in my mind: “God, if you let me keep this job, I’ll stop drinking alcohol. I swear.” Reflecting on my passionate pleas now, it’s quite hilarious, but at the time, I was pitiful and desperate.
Well, lo and behold, the HR department got back with me and said they would let my transgression slide. I was so relieved! First, I thanked God, then later that night, I bought a 6-pack of beer to celebrate. So much for my promise to renounce the toxic elixir!
But my victory dance did not last long. The next day they called me back in and said they had changed their mind. I got fired. Perfect poetic justice. The snowball of defeat and demise continued. I would drunkenly stumble through more months of small jobs and disappointment until I finally hit rock bottom, got sober, was blasted with kundalini, and then found AYP. The path has been winding, as I know it is for everyone.
The point of me re-telling this story is to find the purpose and effectiveness of prayer. In AYP, samyama is a prayer-like technique, but it’s not the kind of bargaining prayer I was trying to pull off. With samyama, there is not so much fixture on the exact outcome of our desires. It’s more like purposefully planting seeds and trusting the organic process of growth. There is less artificial interference, and more harmonious compatibility with the natural flow of stillness in action.
That’s not to say that there isn’t a need for exactness, precision, and accuracy in life. Of course there is. But without the foundation of pure ideas and essences, there is little value in the exactness of our constructions. Samyama is a tending to the foundation of stillness and subtle thoughts, thereby putting exactness in its proper place as being secondary to the primary cause of infinite silence and beingness.
The best artistry, craftsmanship, and ingenuity come from a place of peace and joy. After all, there is an order to manifestation in life: stillness, then idea, then energy, and finally, physicality. When we abide by that organic process, beautiful and wondrous things happen. The proactive platform of AYP lends itself to achieving skill and mastery in any worthwhile career, because the foundation is being laid for divinely-inspired success.
Catch you on the flipside.
So true, Bodhi! Thank you for bearing your past stories.
And thank you, Dogboy, for tuning in!
Charlie-D