Nawang Khechog (also known as Nawang Khechong) is a Tibetan
flute player and composer.
Nawang was born in Tibet, but following the Chinese invasion
of 1949/1950, his family moved to India, where Nawang studied meditation and
Buddhist philosophy. He spent eleven years as a monk, including four years as a
hermit meditating in the Himalayan foothills under the guidance of the Dalai
Lama.
A self-taught musician, Nawang's expression springs from his
emotions and his life experience traveling the world as a Tibetan nomad. In
1986, he emigrated to Australia, where he first performed, and his recordings
achieved bestseller status. Nawang is best known for his collaborations with
Kitaro, including performances on Kitaro's Grammy-nominated Enchanted Evening
and Mandala albums. He has received international acclaim for his live
performances with Philip Glass, Paul Winter, Laurie Anderson, Paul Simon,
Natalie Merchant, R. Carlos Nakai, and Baba Olatunji.
Like a patchwork quilt, each story and each connection in
Jerry’s life is a patch, a snapshot in time, of his life journey of
self-discovery, deep within and beyond the surface level of appearances, which
normally reveal only a reflection of what the eye can see. No longer satisfied
with this surface level of identity, Jerry decided to embrace what he refers to
as “the mystery” of life, the essence of life, beyond illusion. He needed to let
go of all forms of identity; this included what he and others identified him
as—an artist, a reflection of his passion.
Along the way, he met some incredible people, with whom each
had a story to tell. Jerry unconditionally accepted them, regardless of what
difficulties they were going through at the time. With that often quiet
stillness and presence that he allowed, uncontaminated by the mind, he was able
to be in that space openly and freely, which allowed others to share in that
space openly and freely, without fear of judgment or ridicule. The usual
illusory walls of separation found in most human connections crumbled and
disappeared into thin air when the people he met and encountered for the first
time felt that unconditional presence and love.
In being there for them, he was also able to be there for
himself, unconditionally. Regardless of what difficulties arose for him along
the way, he found that each one worked itself out. The mystery and his
intuition carried him forward. Regardless of which direction it took him, he went
with the flow of life, with complete acceptance of every experience, every
moment, and every outcome.
He awakened to the true essence of life, which has no
identity, no labels, just pure awareness. Free from attachments, now he is able
to create art, unconditionally, without expectations, without judgment, without
attachments to it or to the outcome. He is now able to go beyond appearances
and dive deep into the unknown, into the mystery of life, which is now
reflected in his artwork.
-Pamela J. Wells, Freelance Writer, www.selflessbeing.com
Jerry Wennstrom Pacifica Graduate Institute Lecture
In this video Jerry shares
his unusual personal story, insights and photographs of the large body of art
that he created throughout his lifetime. It is an intimate and in-depth guided
tour of the creative journey and psychological process of an artist. Jerry
articulates his quest, not just for creative inspiration but also for that
"quantum leap" that sets one on the path of an inspired life.
Paradoxically most of the paintings shown here were destroyed by the artist in
1979 and as stated in the video transformed into a more complete and whole way
of Being. The sculptures presented here are only part of the entirely new body
of art that has emerged.
The ego is holding the rope and giving you a choice, either
me (the ego, the imagined false self) or your physical body. Either way, it is
a death; but the egoic mind trained and programmed like a computer, has
delusional thoughts of worthlessness and the need for acceptance, which is
based upon false delusional societal norms.
From the individual to the collective, our sick egoic state
of consciousness poisons the air that we breathe. With each breath we take, we
mentally and verbally, shoot double-edged swords out of our mouths, penetrating
us and those with whom we intend them for.
We act as if suffering is our birthright and we will defend it with all
our might if and until we hit rock bottom, and when we hit rock bottom, we
either awaken and allow the ego to die by seeing our own delusionally ego
created thoughts (initially, formulated in the mind and then made visible
through physical, material constructs); or, we allow the ego to kill us, first
mentally and emotionally, and then, ultimately, by killing our body by way of
our own hands.
Awaken, consciously, and let the ego (the false self) die,
or continue to sleep while awake, unconsciously, and let the ego live. Awaken
or suffer, it is your choice. Awaken and fully live your live, or remain asleep
and continue to suffer. It is your choice, not societies. You are in control.
You always have been in control. You just didn’t know it.
