Today's DailyOM Offerings...
August 27, 2010
Celtic Chillout
David Arkenstone
2010
Chicago native David Arkenstone started out playing guitar and piano in local bands while keeping one foot planted in the fantasy worlds conjured by novelists like J. R. R. Tolkien and progressive rock bands like Yes and Emerson, Lake and Palmer. Rock and fantasy swirled together with a purpose in his music, leading him into the New Age community where he has gone on to become a respected composer and musician for TV, video games, and even sporting events. Celtic Chillout finds Arkenstone ably and confidently bringing his sense of folksy jauntiness, emotional depth, and magical scope to instrumental versions of Irish classics like "She Moved Through the Fair," as well as enchanting passages like "The Girl with the Midnight Hair," with its moody harp and lonesome violins. Even though the arrangements are simple, they're elegant, well-crafted, and imaginative, merging to create a free-flowing jam that's both uplifting and melancholic, like the view from a porthole windo! w on a ship bound from Ireland to New York City.
Arkenstone plays mandolin, guitar, piano, accordion, and pennywhistle, and is joined by Susan Craig Weinberg on flutes and Dov on viola and violin. They come together, conjuring the sensation of driving through the Irish countryside on a quiet day where the sun peeps through the clouds and cuts through the mist above the moss. By the time you reach "Shadows of the Past," which lurches with the reedy step of a happy Irishman on his way home from the dance, you're ready to move to Ireland, find a job at the nearest farm, and redefine what it means to "go green."
A superb album for brooding along the moors or just jogging through the neighborhood on a crisp fall day, Arkenstone's Celtic Chillout may or may not become synonymous in your mind with the "real" Ireland-of woe and repression-but it certainly taps into the enchanted Ireland of our collective mythic unconscious. It’s a land where the spirit and magic of the ancient Celts still rules the sweeping green hills and crashing cliffside waves, a land steeped in tradition, mystery, and music that makes you want to clap along, dance, and sing at the top of your lungs in a pub full of ruddy-cheeked locals, and then walk home alone, along the moors, with the melancholic tug of a thousand years' worth of lost bonny loves echoing in the chilled mist around you.
August 27, 2010
Body Connection to Spirit
Sagittarius Daily Horoscope
Your enthusiasm for life could mean that you are giving your activities your all, and this passion might be the result of your desire to seize any and every opportunity that presents itself to you and savor the experience fully today. Maybe this would be a good time for you to partake in some form of activity where you can fully engage all of your being - your mind, body, and spirit. Activities like dancing, where you can move your body to the music and let the rest of you get lost the in joy of the moment, or sports, which can put you in touch with the part of yourself that feels free when moving, are both good ways in which you can really experience life through all aspects of your self today. Doing something physical could really put you in touch with the different parts of who you are.
What we do with our bodies allows us to fully connect with the other parts of our soul. The simple act of free movement works on the rest of our core in a special way, allowing us to fully experience a state of flow, which is, in effect a melding of our bodies and spirit. Sports, dance, and yoga all help us access this part of our self, allowing our passion to put us firmly in the moment and truly delight in what we are capable of experiencing. Engaging in some form of physical activity will let you come in contact with your true passion for living today.
August 27, 2010
Simple Gestures of Solace
Offering Comfort
Sometimes just being with somebody, rather than words, is all that is needed to help.
Sometimes it is difficult to see someone we love struggling, in pain, or hurting. When this happens, we might feel like we need to be proactive and do something to ease their troubles. While others may want our help, it is important to keep in mind that we need to be sensitive to what they truly want in the moment, since it can be all too easy to get carried away and say or do more than is really needed. Allowing ourselves to let go and simply exist in the present with another person may actually provide a greater amount of comfort and support than we could ever imagine.
Perhaps we can think back to a time when we were upset and needed a kind word, hug, or listening ear from someone else. As we remember these times, we might think of the gestures of kindness that were the most healing. It may have been gentle words such as “I care about you,” or the soothing presence of someone holding us and not expecting anything that were the most consoling. When we are able to go back to these times it becomes easier for us to keep in mind that giving advice or saying more than is really necessary is not always reassuring. What is truly comforting for another is not having someone try to fix them or their problems, but to just be there for them. Should we begin to feel the urge arise to offer advice or repair a situation, we can take a few deep breaths, let the impulse pass, and bring our attention back to the present. Even though we may want to do more, we do not have to do anything other than this to be a good friend.
The more we are attuned to what our loved ones are feeling, the more capable we are of truly giving what is best for them in their hour of need. Keeping things simple helps us give the part of ourselves that is capable of the greatest amount of compassion-open ears and an understanding heart.
August 27, 2010
OM Water Bottle, Beyond, Downshifting
Gift of the Week
OM Water Bottle - Since water reflects the intention of our thoughts, we can infuse the water we drink with positive, life-affirming intentions by placing sacred symbols directly on the containers we drink from. This OM Water Bottle features the ancient symbol of wisdom, and drinking from it daily can allow the power and presence of OM to uplift and restore our energy.
View OM Water Bottle
Beyond: Buddhist and Christian Prayers (CD) - Beyond words and imagination, beyond the margins between different faiths, there is a place where compassion, joy, and enlightenment meet. On Beyond: Buddhist and Christian Prayers, three strong women- Tina Turner, Dechen Shak-Dagsagy, and Regula Curti- gather in that place to unite the devotional hymns of two cultures into a single offering of peace and faith.
Listen To Sound Clips
Downshifting (book) - Drake offers practical advice to today's workers who dream of turning their hectic lives into something more peaceful. It took Drake only 15 years to build his own human-resources consulting firm into the largest of its kind in the world before he sold it to Harcourt General and "walked away." Now he counsels others on how to make the same move--even if they don't have the proceeds from the sale of a company to live on.
Read Excerpt
For more information visit DailyOM Gift Shop
Celtic Chillout
David Arkenstone
2010
Chicago native David Arkenstone started out playing guitar and piano in local bands while keeping one foot planted in the fantasy worlds conjured by novelists like J. R. R. Tolkien and progressive rock bands like Yes and Emerson, Lake and Palmer. Rock and fantasy swirled together with a purpose in his music, leading him into the New Age community where he has gone on to become a respected composer and musician for TV, video games, and even sporting events. Celtic Chillout finds Arkenstone ably and confidently bringing his sense of folksy jauntiness, emotional depth, and magical scope to instrumental versions of Irish classics like "She Moved Through the Fair," as well as enchanting passages like "The Girl with the Midnight Hair," with its moody harp and lonesome violins. Even though the arrangements are simple, they're elegant, well-crafted, and imaginative, merging to create a free-flowing jam that's both uplifting and melancholic, like the view from a porthole windo! w on a ship bound from Ireland to New York City.
Arkenstone plays mandolin, guitar, piano, accordion, and pennywhistle, and is joined by Susan Craig Weinberg on flutes and Dov on viola and violin. They come together, conjuring the sensation of driving through the Irish countryside on a quiet day where the sun peeps through the clouds and cuts through the mist above the moss. By the time you reach "Shadows of the Past," which lurches with the reedy step of a happy Irishman on his way home from the dance, you're ready to move to Ireland, find a job at the nearest farm, and redefine what it means to "go green."
A superb album for brooding along the moors or just jogging through the neighborhood on a crisp fall day, Arkenstone's Celtic Chillout may or may not become synonymous in your mind with the "real" Ireland-of woe and repression-but it certainly taps into the enchanted Ireland of our collective mythic unconscious. It’s a land where the spirit and magic of the ancient Celts still rules the sweeping green hills and crashing cliffside waves, a land steeped in tradition, mystery, and music that makes you want to clap along, dance, and sing at the top of your lungs in a pub full of ruddy-cheeked locals, and then walk home alone, along the moors, with the melancholic tug of a thousand years' worth of lost bonny loves echoing in the chilled mist around you.
August 27, 2010
Body Connection to Spirit
Sagittarius Daily Horoscope
Your enthusiasm for life could mean that you are giving your activities your all, and this passion might be the result of your desire to seize any and every opportunity that presents itself to you and savor the experience fully today. Maybe this would be a good time for you to partake in some form of activity where you can fully engage all of your being - your mind, body, and spirit. Activities like dancing, where you can move your body to the music and let the rest of you get lost the in joy of the moment, or sports, which can put you in touch with the part of yourself that feels free when moving, are both good ways in which you can really experience life through all aspects of your self today. Doing something physical could really put you in touch with the different parts of who you are.
What we do with our bodies allows us to fully connect with the other parts of our soul. The simple act of free movement works on the rest of our core in a special way, allowing us to fully experience a state of flow, which is, in effect a melding of our bodies and spirit. Sports, dance, and yoga all help us access this part of our self, allowing our passion to put us firmly in the moment and truly delight in what we are capable of experiencing. Engaging in some form of physical activity will let you come in contact with your true passion for living today.
August 27, 2010
Simple Gestures of Solace
Offering Comfort
Sometimes just being with somebody, rather than words, is all that is needed to help.
Sometimes it is difficult to see someone we love struggling, in pain, or hurting. When this happens, we might feel like we need to be proactive and do something to ease their troubles. While others may want our help, it is important to keep in mind that we need to be sensitive to what they truly want in the moment, since it can be all too easy to get carried away and say or do more than is really needed. Allowing ourselves to let go and simply exist in the present with another person may actually provide a greater amount of comfort and support than we could ever imagine.
Perhaps we can think back to a time when we were upset and needed a kind word, hug, or listening ear from someone else. As we remember these times, we might think of the gestures of kindness that were the most healing. It may have been gentle words such as “I care about you,” or the soothing presence of someone holding us and not expecting anything that were the most consoling. When we are able to go back to these times it becomes easier for us to keep in mind that giving advice or saying more than is really necessary is not always reassuring. What is truly comforting for another is not having someone try to fix them or their problems, but to just be there for them. Should we begin to feel the urge arise to offer advice or repair a situation, we can take a few deep breaths, let the impulse pass, and bring our attention back to the present. Even though we may want to do more, we do not have to do anything other than this to be a good friend.
The more we are attuned to what our loved ones are feeling, the more capable we are of truly giving what is best for them in their hour of need. Keeping things simple helps us give the part of ourselves that is capable of the greatest amount of compassion-open ears and an understanding heart.
August 27, 2010
OM Water Bottle, Beyond, Downshifting
Gift of the Week
OM Water Bottle - Since water reflects the intention of our thoughts, we can infuse the water we drink with positive, life-affirming intentions by placing sacred symbols directly on the containers we drink from. This OM Water Bottle features the ancient symbol of wisdom, and drinking from it daily can allow the power and presence of OM to uplift and restore our energy.
View OM Water Bottle
Beyond: Buddhist and Christian Prayers (CD) - Beyond words and imagination, beyond the margins between different faiths, there is a place where compassion, joy, and enlightenment meet. On Beyond: Buddhist and Christian Prayers, three strong women- Tina Turner, Dechen Shak-Dagsagy, and Regula Curti- gather in that place to unite the devotional hymns of two cultures into a single offering of peace and faith.
Listen To Sound Clips
Downshifting (book) - Drake offers practical advice to today's workers who dream of turning their hectic lives into something more peaceful. It took Drake only 15 years to build his own human-resources consulting firm into the largest of its kind in the world before he sold it to Harcourt General and "walked away." Now he counsels others on how to make the same move--even if they don't have the proceeds from the sale of a company to live on.
Read Excerpt
For more information visit DailyOM Gift Shop