A Simpler Time
At the risk of dating myself, I have vivid memories of a “simpler” time when there was no voicemail or e-mail. When the only “spam” you had to deal with was the occasional flyer that would show up in the mailbox. If you didn’t make it to the bank by closing time on Friday you had no cash for the weekend and if you wanted to take a trip somewhere you went to the local mall and leafed through glossy brochures under the guidance of a travel agent. Wondering what’s going on in the world? Your options were to stroll down to the local news stand or wait for the six o’clock news to air on the radio or television.
The Rise of Modern Technology
I watched the introduction of the first calculators and personal computers with a child-like wonder (not surprisingly, as I was a child at the time). I can remember getting up bright and early to spend fifteen minutes with one my school’s few Commodore PET computers and even getting my hands on a SuperPET or an Apple II on occasion. I was thrilled when my Dad brought his Hewlett-Packard calculator home for the weekend and managed to program it to accept input and print the results of calculations on paper tape.
The Great Debates
I remember all the debates that sprang up at the time. With the advent of technologies like instant tellers, there was one group who were purveyors of doom and gloom – who were adamant that modern technology would lead to wide-spread unemployment. After all, why would a bank hire a teller when a machine could do their work for a fraction of the cost? At the other end of the spectrum, proponents of these modern trends pointed to all the new jobs that would be created to satisfy the world’s hunger for technology. They were also quick to point out that computers are well suited to mundane, repetitive tasks that nobody enjoys doing anyway. Automating these tedious tasks would mean that us humans would have and abundance of time to enjoy the finer things in life – music, art, literature.
As a wide-eyed teenager in the seventies I was firmly in the second camp. I’m a naturally creative person and saw modern technology as a vehicle with great potential – an opportunity to expand my world and stretch the limits of my imagination. My intrigue led me to pursue a degree in Electrical Engineering with a Computer Systems Engineering focus and to employment as a software developer and project manager on varied and complex software projects.
Welcome to the Future
I’m in awe at how far technology has come in a very short time. In many ways, it has far exceeded the prophecies of the seventies. Technology that, not long ago, was the stuff of science fiction is readily available to the average consumer. Boggling amounts of up-to-date information is accessible at the click of a button and communication, even to the other side of the planet, happens in a blink of an eye and often without a second thought.
Even as I marvel at our technological world, I also witness lives that are out of control and hear stories of excessive stress and overwhelm. It’s all to easy to become distracted by all the “noise” and it’s equally easy to become obsessed with all the tools we have at our disposal for connecting and communicating. If anything, life feels more complicated than it was in the seventies and, especially in our Western culture, I’ve noticed that there’s less emphasis placed on core human values and the finer things in life.
Fast Forward and Out of Control
So, what happened? Why all the stress? I see two core issues at the source of our woes. First of all, a high level of personal discipline is required in order for technology to serve us and not end up being a source of stress. Having a lot of power and information at our fingertips is, in some ways, akin to having a mountain of financial wealth. Sadly people who win lotteries too often don’t go on to live happy and prosperous lives. In fact it’s quite the opposite – their lives tend to be ruined as they don’t have the capacity to deal with their new-found wealth. There’s nothing inherently wrong with having money, just as there’s nothing inherently wrong with having access to technology. What is often missing is a balanced and constructive way of relating to this abundance.
The other core issue is that people generally aren’t taught how to use technology effectively. Instead we tend to be thrown into the middle of it all and are somehow supposed to figure out how all the parts fit together. Add in the myriad of marketing promises, many of them grossly overstated, and it’s not surprising that modern technology has led to so much confusion. People are worried about being left behind and not sure which “band wagon” to board.
Technological Bliss
I feel called to serve in both areas. I have been practicing yoga and meditation for the past fifteen years and teaching since 1999 and see how this ancient technology is needed more than ever in our modern civilization. Getting in touch with our core essence and developing mental discipline is key to not only surviving, but thriving in this fast-paced world we inhabit. A strong sense of self is more important than ever and is something that needs to be cultivated.
I’m also professionally trained as a coach. It’s not surprising that this professional has grown significantly in the wake of our technology advancements. Working with a coach can foster creativity and clarity and can be a powerful way to maintain focus in a world that is full of temptations and distractions.
The world of technology is frequently and appropriately referred to as a jungle. It’s an exciting space to be in and one that can easily become disorienting and uncomfortable to the uninitiated. Having grown up in the technology jungle, I feel well equipped to act as a guide and strive to help others feel at home while experiencing the marvel of this brave new world. This quest exists at a very practical level – as a guide my mission is to separate the substance from the hype and demonstrate, largely by example, how freeing technology can be. The jungle can be a dangerous place and I’m equally committed to pointing out the pitfalls along the way.
Your Humble Sherpa
This officially marks the beginning of a series of blog posts that delve more deeply into both areas. I’m not sure where this will go, which makes the journey all the more exciting. I’ll talk about specific technologies, with the focus being on how they can be used to make life fuller and richer, rather than on the technology itself. I’ll give plenty of practical examples from my own life and I encourage you to share your own experiences and wisdom.
Care to join me?
I’m excited to announce that I’ve invited to be a guest on Drishti Point, “Vancouver’s Yoga Radio Talk Show”, on Monday, June 21 from 5-6pm. This will be my first live radio experience! I’m very much looking forward to hitting the air waves and feel honoured to have been asked.
I’ll be talking about my journey through cancer from the perspective of a yoga teacher and student. Specifically I’ll share the profoundly positive impact that my training as a yogi had a on my healing process and the role that my yoga communities, or sangats as they’re sometimes called, played in my miraculous recovery. I’ll also share some of the many lessons and insights that my bout with cancer has taught me.
If you’re in the Vancouver area, tune your radio to 102.7 FM to listen in. You can also listen to the show live at www.coopradio.org. Thanks in advance for tuning in and I welcome any feedback you have!
To support the people of Haiti in healing and rebuilding following the devastation of Tuesday’s earthquake I’m donating all proceeds from my next two Monday evening Kundalini Yoga classes (January 18 and 25) to the CMAT (Canadian Medical Assistance Teams). Both classes will include a healing circle meditation – an opportunity to send healing to Haiti at a more spiritual, energetic level.
A member of the Yoga West sangat (spiritual community) is flying to Haiti on Sunday with the CMAT to help set up a self-contained field hospital and to treat the victims of the disaster. I acknowledge him for his courage and willingness to serve and am happy to support this initiative. As an added bonus, the Government of Canada will be matching all donations made to the CMAT.
Please see my yoga classes page for more information on the Monday evening Kundalini Yoga class and please feel free to contact me if you have any questions. If you are unable to attend the class, but would still like to support the CMAT you can make a donation through their website: www.canadianmedicalteams.org.
Photo by American Red Cross – http://flic.kr/p/7w4Chp
Starting January 4, 2010 I’m going to be teaching a Monday evening (7:15-8:45pm) Kundalini Yoga class in the Vancouver General Hospital (VGH) area of Vancouver –specifically at the Personal Best Fitness Therapy facility that is located at 731 W 16th Avenue, Vancouver, between Willow and Heather.
Kundalini Yoga, sometimes referred to as the “mother of all yogas”, is a holistic practice that incorporates dynamic exercises, some posture work (asana), breathing exercises (pranayama), relaxation, meditation and yogic philosophy. The class is open to everyone and exercises can be modified to match your fitness level.
For more information please visit my Kundalini Yoga Classes page and feel free to contact me with any questions you have.
The following poem was written by a 19th centry American poet by the name of John Godfrey Saxe. It recounts the parable of the Blind Men and the Elephant that has been told by Sufis, Jainists, Buddhists and Hindus over the years.
As the title implies, the poem tells the story of six blind men who went to see an elephant, “though all of them were blind”. Each man touches a different part of the elephant and comes to his own conclusion. For example, one touches the side of an elephant and decides the elephant is like a wall and another feels its mighty tusk and likens the elephant to a spear.
As humans we have a tendency to define our own realities based on our education, cultural background and experience combined with input from our five senses. It’s all too easy to fall into the trap of believing we know the truth, when all we can ever hope to grasp at an intellectual level is an aspect of the truth. If we approach life solely from a perspective of intellectual understanding we’re inherently limiting ourselves and inviting inner and outer conflict.
I have always had a fascination with science and technology. I went through a period in my life where I sought to understand the world and tended to dismiss anything that couldn’t be scientifically proven. It was when I engaged in practices such as yoga and reiki that I started to open myself to an experiential world that transcends the intellect. It was a major breakthrough for me to be willing to engage in an and accept an experience for what it was – without the need to understand it scientifically. In the words of Albert Einstein:
The most beautiful thing we can experience is the mysterious. It is the source of all true art and all science. He to whom this emotion is a stranger, who can no longer pause to wonder and stand rapt in awe, is as good as dead: his eyes are closed.
Another perspective on these teachings was summed up very succinctly by a coach who led one of my leadership training programs:
To be happy you have to give up being right.
Imagine what the world would be like if everyone, or even a sizeable percentage of the population adopted this philosophy. There would be harmony in relationships and wars over cultural ideologies and religious dogma would be a thing of the past. Instead we would open ourselves up to the realities seen through others’ eyes and maybe one day even catch a glimpse of the entire elephant.
Without further ado here’s the poem:
It was six men of Indostan
To learning much inclined,
Who went to see the Elephant
(Though all of them were blind),
That each by observation
Might satisfy his mind.
The First approach’d the Elephant,
And happening to fall
Against his broad and sturdy side,
At once began to bawl:
“God bless me! but the Elephant
Is very like a wall!”
The Second, feeling of the tusk,
Cried, -”Ho! what have we here
So very round and smooth and sharp?
To me ’tis mighty clear
This wonder of an Elephant
Is very like a spear!”
The Third approached the animal,
And happening to take
The squirming trunk within his hands,
Thus boldly up and spake:
“I see,” quoth he, “the Elephant
Is very like a snake!”
The Fourth reached out his eager hand,
And felt about the knee.
“What most this wondrous beast is like
Is mighty plain,” quoth he,
“‘Tis clear enough the Elephant
Is very like a tree!”
The Fifth, who chanced to touch the ear,
Said: “E’en the blindest man
Can tell what this resembles most;
Deny the fact who can,
This marvel of an Elephant
Is very like a fan!”
The Sixth no sooner had begun
About the beast to grope,
Then, seizing on the swinging tail
That fell within his scope,
“I see,” quoth he, “the Elephant
Is very like a rope!”
And so these men of Indostan
Disputed loud and long,
Each in his own opinion
Exceeding stiff and strong,
Though each was partly in the right,
And all were in the wrong!
MORAL
So oft in theologic wars,
The disputants, I ween,
Rail on in utter ignorance
Of what each other mean,
And prate about an Elephant
Not one of them has seen!
– John Godfrey Saxe (1816-1887)