Billing itself as “A Spiritual Oasis in the City,” the Peace Awareness Labyrinth and Gardens is a gift of the Movement of Spiritual Inner Awareness (MSIA) (see pg xxx). A free meditation garden, there are numerous terraces with places to sit and contemplate, listen to the trickle of water fountains, or walk the labyrinth which is a replica
One would expect LA to have over-the-top and charismatic occult celebrities, and these characters who also took prominence on the world stage do not disappoint. All have fascinating biographies which would be worth your while to explore further:
To the curious visitor, Scientologists are nothing but friendly and cordial. Of course, we’ve all heard stories of strange happenings for those who get further involved, but what you’ll witness if you visit is normal-looking people spending time and money to improve themselves and their
A mainstay of the Topanga Canyon scene since the height of the hippie days, the Inn of the Seventh Ray restaurant opened serving healthy organic fare in 1973. It is rumored to have been built on a sacred site of the Chumash Indians (see page xxx) and to have perhaps been a private retreat spot for Aimee Semple McPherson (see page xxx). And one of her lovers? We will never
Hopi Indian legend told of Snake Brothers who built and occupied underground cities in what are now California, Arizona, Mexico and Central America. These people and settlements were believed to have vanished five thousand years ago.
In 1934, an article was published in the Los Angeles Times that one of the Hopi lost cities was believed to be underneath downtown LA. This settlement was believed to be in the shape of a lizard: the head by Dodger Stadium and the tail beneath the Central Library. Warren Shufelt, a mining engineer, was so sure the remains of the city would be found that he was ready to dig up the downtown financial district. His research was actually authorized by the City Council, but later dropped.
A popular post circulating Facebook recently posited that the signs of spiritual progress are about becoming increasingly upbeat, positive, and blissful, a common new-age misconception. Spiritual progress is not about entering an eternally ecstatic state -- that’s called being high. Instead,
People often ask what happens in psychotherapy. Sometimes, although more rarely than you might imagine, therapists give good old fashioned advice, and famously, we listen intently. Often we teach skills that people missed in childhood such as how to communicate or manage angry feelings. Therapy involves getting better in touch with your emotions, or
Sometimes in therapy it can feel like you’re going backward instead of making progress. Sometimes, it might appear that you’re much sicker than you thought. Well, you might be, but then again, you probably aren’t. It’s just that when you finally catch a glimpse of all the stuff you’ve been avoiding, you may be shocked at what you see.
It’s like turning on a light and going down into the basement: You had no idea that
Philip Larkin, one of the great poets of the twentieth century, famously wrote:
Your mum and dad, they fuck you up,
They may not mean to, but they do.
They fill you with the fears they had,
And add some extra just for you.
Everyone could benefit from identifying where their parents “f*cked” them up and working through it. In fact, being clear of non-useful parental programming is an essential milestone on the psychological and spiritual path. If you’re stuck with pain, upset, or
The adorable young woman sitting in front of me has been sent by her boyfriend for counseling because she doesn’t orgasm in a few minutes as a porn star pretends to.
The main source of sex education for many young people these days is online porn, and much misinformation is being disseminated. The major inaccuracy is that yang sex is all there is: sex is only about looking a certain way, vigorous activity, technique, and performance. There is no place for sensual exploration, non-goal oriented play, or relaxation in the presence of the beloved. Very few