becoming oneself - Blog Posts - Yoga Vidya International - Yoga, Meditation and Spirituality2024-03-29T00:27:25Zhttps://my.yoga-vidya.org/profiles/blogs/feed/tag/becoming+oneselfRapids (The Dam part 3 - revisited)https://my.yoga-vidya.org/profiles/blogs/rapids-the-dam-part-3-12011-05-13T00:09:08.000Z2011-05-13T00:09:08.000ZChristopher Stewarthttps://my.yoga-vidya.org/members/ChristopherStewart<div><p style="text-align:center;"><img src="http://poligraf.files.wordpress.com/2011/05/444px-riessbeck_stromschnelle.jpg?w=444" alt="" /><br /><span style="font-size:x-small;">(« <a href="http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Riessbeck_stromschnelle.jpg">Stromschnelle</a> » by <a href="http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Category:Gerhard_Rie%C3%9Fbeck">Gerhard Rießbeck</a>)</span></p><br /><div align="center"><object type="application/x-shockwave-flash" data="http://kiwi6.com/swf/player.swf" id="audioplayer" height="24" width="290"><param name="allowScriptAccess" value="never" ></param><param name="allowNetworking" value="internal" ></param><param name="movie" value="http://kiwi6.com/swf/player.swf" ></param><param name="" value="" ></param><param name="wmode" value="opaque" ></param></object></div><br /><p>In « Rapids, » the third part of « The Dam, » the protagonist/narrator is being carried from a mostly disappointing river straight into an heretofore unseen dam.</p><br /><p>The intent behind this instrumental section is to convey a feeling of being taken ahead by an unrelenting force, and to let the listener reflect on the discourse presented in « River. »</p><br /><p>In the storyline, the rapids represent the rising tension which accompanies the recognition that one's chosen course is not only increasingly unsatisfactory, but that the situation has evolved beyond the point of no return, and thus that a change of direction has become an unavoidable necessity. Our hero is being accelerated towards an ineluctable collision which is portrayed in the fourth section, entitled « Dam. »</p><br /><p>Here's the associated poetry :</p><br /><p><em>my wish is my motion<br />channelled by decision<br />i am running onward<br />to my destination<br /><br />intensification<br />and acceleration<br />there'll be more upheaval<br />before vindication<br /><br />the tension is building<br />hurried awakening<br />to my enfranchising<br />this stream is not leading<br /><br />perhaps this has to be<br />passage necessary<br />from my own eyes to see<br />who isn't really me<br /><br />or then again maybe<br />it is my penalty<br />karma for me worthy<br />of past conformity<br /><br />how life obliges me<br />to be all i can be<br />to shed docility<br />and to choose liberty<br /><br />of turmoil i'm prescient<br />implied in the current<br />i'm heading for a dam<br />latent in the torrent<br /><br />approaching collision<br />silenced inclination<br />bearing artificial<br />the end of repression<br /><br />and then i'll be dormant<br />drowning in the moment<br />water amniotic<br />withdrawn incognizant<br /><br />cocooned in suspension<br />marooned in immersion<br />introspective recess<br />profound transformation<br /><br />before elevation<br />to realization<br />revived buoyancy<br />triumphant emersion<br /></em></p><br /><p style="font-size:x-small;border:1px solid #AAAAAA;"><em>« The Dam » is a 22-minute long suite in 8 movements that uses the metaphor of water flowing from source to ocean to illustrate the process of individual growth.<br /><br />As the title suggest, the focus is directed on one major obstacle/life-changing experience, symbolized by a dam on the river, which the protagonist/narrator has to conquer in order to reach their intended destination.<br /><br />The storyline is inspired by my own life and struggle to reach the goal of earning a living through my artistic output, as opposed to working a day job to support myself and invest what’s left of my energies in artistic pursuits on a part-time basis, as I’ve done for the most part of the last twelve years or so.</em></p></div>Surface (The Dam part 6)https://my.yoga-vidya.org/profiles/blogs/surface-the-dam-part-62010-09-21T22:35:22.000Z2010-09-21T22:35:22.000ZChristopher Stewarthttps://my.yoga-vidya.org/members/ChristopherStewart<div><p style="text-align:center;"><img src="" alt="" /><br /><span style="font-size:x-small;">("<a href="http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:SurfaceTension.jpg">Surface Tension</a>" by <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/cdm/">darkmatter</a>)</span></p><br /><div align="center"><object width="400" height="100" data="http://s3.amazonaws.com/stlth/static/production/swf/audio_controller.swf" type="application/x-shockwave-flash"><param name="allowScriptAccess" value="never" ></param><param name="allowNetworking" value="internal" ></param><param name="movie" value="http://s3.amazonaws.com/stlth/static/production/swf/audio_controller.swf" ></param><param name="wmode" value="opaque" ></param><param name="flashvars" value="song_label=poligraf.the.dam.v13.pt6.mp3&music_track=http://drop.io/download/public/a5iopgkrbwgpxmb8boug/070777889fbc1b5fae3356755ca68e1d27b71879/Asset/2981286/v3/web_preview&autoplay=false" ></param><embed wmode="opaque" src="http://s3.amazonaws.com/stlth/static/production/swf/audio_controller.swf" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="400" height="100" flashvars="song_label=poligraf.the.dam.v13.pt6.mp3&music_track=http://drop.io/download/public/a5iopgkrbwgpxmb8boug/070777889fbc1b5fae3356755ca68e1d27b71879/Asset/2981286/v3/web_preview&autoplay=false" allowscriptaccess="never" allownetworking="internal"></embed> </object></div><br /><p>In « Surface, » the sixth chapter of « The Dam, » the protagonist/narrator is gradually returning to activity after having transformed into who he feels like being, and will ultimately reach the surface where he will properly begin his new existence.</p><br /><p>In the storyline, this step marks the end of a long process of metamorphosis wherein one has endured many transformations and shed that which belongs to their former way of being. Once released from the demanding transition period of the immersion, they are free to emerge and revel once again, safe in the knowledge that a necessary rite of passage is now behind them, and that they have reached the beginning of an inspiring new phase of their life.</p><br /><p>This wasn’t intentional from the outset, but the first part of this instrumental chapter turned out to sound quite a bit Pink Floydy. Not that I'm complaining or anything...</p><br /><p style="margin-top:24px;border-width:1px 0px 0px;border-style:solid;border-color:rgb(170,170,170);font-size:small;">« The Dam » is a 22-minute long suite in 8 movements that uses the metaphor of water flowing from source to ocean to illustrate the process that we affectionately refer to as life.</p><br /><p style="font-size:small;">As the title suggest, the focus is directed on one major obstacle/life-changing experience, symbolized by a dam on the river, which the protagonist/narrator has to conquer in order to reach their intended destination.</p><br /><p style="font-size:small;">The storyline is inspired by my own life and struggle to reach the goal of earning a living through my artistic output, as opposed to working a day job to support myself and invest what’s left of my energies in artistic pursuits on a part-time basis, as I’ve done for the most part of the last twelve years or so.</p></div>