GO AQUATICO

Ok I did start that new blog on all things Aquatic & Beach Living. I will probably post more over there in these coming months as i am doing more traveling in the Caribbean and want to continue an exploration of my fascination with beach aquatic life style: see AQUATICO

Flying into Space

Incredible film of a ride in a U2 spy plane. Just wish that James May had kept quite - the images & music say it all.

Music For A Journey to Bacalar Lagoona

Aquatic Ape Theory & human evolution

I am thinking of starting a new blog on Beach Life .... now that i am back on the Caribe Coast ... and i want to link it indirectly to Aquatic Ape theory which i subscribe to. I have been posting on this subject when ever i get more convinced that we went through a major change in our evolution living close to the ocean. Here is an old BBC documentary on the theory on Youtube

And the main preponent of this theory Elaine Morgan

Her Web page: http://www.elainemorgan.me.uk/

and a recent Ted Talk she's in good form for 80

We are all Liquid

My new film - a preparation for a dive. More evidence of the Aquatic Ape theory in evolution at work.

Humans descend to the watery depths below, at the edge of land. But all is liquid in this world.Set to Sigur Ross.

We are all Liquid from Agent M on Vimeo.

Eternally Incredible Roma

Eternally Incredible Rome from Agent M on Vimeo.

Art Advertising & Antiquity in Rome 2 more pics

Art Advertising & Antiquity in Rome

In Rome everything visual has to pass a test

'Does it integrate with antiquity in a stylish way?

If it does it may get presented as an 'Installation' meaning its gotta be art. Two examples i saw from my recent mission there , looks like the world swimming championships are coming to Rome so around the city is this really cool poster of a statue like swimmer in googles. Down in the Piazza del Spagna is an installation of a swimmer about to dive into a pool, man this is cool advertising, something that informs entertains & embellishes the location.

Down by the Coliseum they are branding that building with a great pic of Vespasian the emperor who created it.

I salute the agencies who did this. Rome is just too cool. I love it.

A Statue of some Enlightened Roman Goddess

A Villa in Rome

The Shadow Agent in Roma

The Shadow Agent was on a new mission in the Eternal City...

The Shadow Agent in Rome from Agent M on Vimeo.

It's Gonna Be Okay . . .

"It's Gonna Be Okay . . ." the Shadow Agent has been sighted in Rome - film coming soon - meanwhile this is A Portrait of the Pantheon also see A Statue's Lament

A Portrait of the Pantheon from Agent M on Vimeo.

A fish in the Piazza del Poppolo

Ciao Roma

Great to be back in Roma, just completed a film portrait of the Pantheon, eternally inspiring !

A Portrait of the Pantheon from Agent M on Vimeo.

Eternal Espresso

The travel bag is packed once more, as tomorrow i head to the eternal City to see friends & to make some new films. I will be hoping to catch site of the Shadow Agent again, i hear he likes espresso.

But the film i have been thinking a lot about recently is a portrait of the Pantheon, my favorite building in antiquity, its gonna be a challenge.

The Wind Blades of Denmark - Eco Sculptures

I have always marveled at the incredible Wind Turbines of Denmark,apart from the generation of green energy they are stunning sculptures in the landscape. I find them hypnotically beautiful. Their design & wind technology has been exported all over the world, you see them usually in communities of other wind mills, this one was standing by itself. It seemed to welcome my visit and consented to being in this film.

The Hypnotic Wind Blades of Denmark from Agent M on Vimeo.

The Patience of Stones 11, The Lankavatara Sutra & The Matrix

I have just finished another short movie 'The Patience of Stones 11'filmed on Tisvile beach, i have included a quote in it from the Lankavatara Sutra' words on the nature of reality i had originally seen on the introduction to a book 'The Drop Edge of Yonder' by Rudi Wurlitzer ... the Patience of Stones series is a meditation on reality and as i began to look into The Lankavatara Sutra which from my limited reading sujests that the Reality we think is reality, is nothing but MIND ...so i remembered a couple of scenes from The Matrix. The one where Morpheus is instructing Neo about reality and the Spoon Bending scene.

The Lankavatara Sutra is the original corner stone of Zen... which to my mind at least is saying that the 'No Mind' state of Zen IS Reality..

What do you think of that zen ?

The Patience of S T O N E S 2 from Agent M on Vimeo.

Cool Caribbean Colors

I had to add this pic of the Bahamas this morning to remind me of the colors in the Caribbean. Almost mid summer in DK and it feels like Autumn here. This migratory bird flies south in July, much earlier this year.  I hope there are no Hurricanes to greet me in the Caribbean. This shot taken from a seaplane over the Exumas Keys will be appearing on my Film Website.

IS it Serious ? Alan Watts

While we are on the subject of reality Alan Watts asks 'Is it Serious?'

Two Takes on What IS

Ken Wilber on Subject / Object relationship - the 'I AM' that is neither ...




A Zen Roshi's take on the great Illusion from the perspective of the skin bag, which i think is a reference to Alan Watts who once talked about humans as 'Skin Encapsulated Egos'

Some Photos from Flickr

Caribbean Mission Winter 2008/9 : Mexico - Bahamas - Miami - St Maarten's - St Barths - Havana

www.flickr.com Go to Agent M2009's photostream

Sun Riser Film

Sun Riser from Agent M on Vimeo.

A little film i made of Agent M heading for the Sunrise

Sunset stills from Sun Riser

 

 

Bronowski's The Ascent of Man

The Wanderers from Pale Blue Dot

Another wonder 'full' documentary by Carl Sagan was Pale Blue Dot. Sagan's unique take on the history of the quest for knowledge of ourselves and the Planets 'The Wonderers' in our solar system. I particularly like the pace of this film, The first episode, the way he narrates the images and allows the story to unfold. It is reminds me of Jacob Bronowski's - The Ascent of Man, which came out in 1973, another classic educational documentary series on mans technological & cultural evolution.

Both Sagan & Bronowski explore mankind's unending impulse to explore the universe, both the inner dimension and the external world. Both weave an inspiring story of both culture and science to explain who we are. The is no end to mans fascination about the world, and if your curiosity has dried up watching these shows again will light the spark that will ignite the flame of learning.

When there is so much hogwash on tv these days its good to know that these wonderful documentaries are still available to us to entertain, inspire & inform, which i think are the 3 aspirations of great education. I will find The Ascent of Man and give you the link.

Carl Sagan's Cosmos

This documentary by Carl Sagan is now a classic in popularist science. I loved the 13 part series when it first came out in 1980, i remember it inspired me to get a telescope and spend some awe filled moments outside looking up at the night sky. The haunting music by Vangelis became a hit and many people around the world were inspired by this great teacher to find wonder in the world around them.

6 Degrees of Separation

I remember when i first encountered the theory that you were only 6 people away from being able to meet anyone on the planet,I thought it might have been less.

In this documentary mathamaticians step into the fray to try to establish equations of inter-connectivity in complex systems like cells, animals, humans and the internet.

The key is 'Hubs' where dense amounts of connectivity occur in clusters ,with outlieing individuals in the system with less connectivity of their own 'plugging' in.

While this is a subtle form of Reductionism by science to explain the organic nature of life, it is a step in the right direction, a step to the Buddhist notion of 'Interconnectivity' It forces scientists to overlap and become interdisciplinary and look for patterns in the data, and thats where systems thinking combined with computer models can show us things that ordinarily lie hidden.

They run a neat experiment in the doco selecting 6 people from around the world at random in different countries who are given a parcel to send to someone they don't know in Boston USA. They have to find a way to send it in 6 people of less who can deliver the package.

What started off as an urban myth about a Hollywood actor, a theatre play and then a feature film has become a new study of interconnectivity in human beings.It has the obvious implication for medicine in the way disease is spread around the planet, for technology in the way viruses impact the internet and perhaps more culturally important how we are all connected here on earth. 

The Patience of Stones

The Patience of Stones from Agent M on Vimeo.

This is the rugged beach that i occasionally take a 'skinny dip' in. Its a piece of the Danish coast that is very beautiful, and even now, almost into summer still devoid of people. 

This is a short film i made of the place, which has been a peaceful creative haven for me over the years.

The stones here are in deep meditation.If you want to learn patience - just sit on a stone.  

Early morning WAKE UP!

Another way to begin your day in a positive way, is a short sharp 'fcuk dats cold !!!' dip in the ocean. I say a dip because its too cold for me to swim here in Denmark in May. I am amazed that many people here take a dip all year round. The Danes are true Vikings.

You do feel fantastic when you come out because the your body is alive with endorphins and neurotransmitters that have exploded into your skin.

It changes your mood in an instant and you feel just GREAT. With the water at this kind of (too me freezing) temperature you can't think too much about going in, you gotta take your clothes off and then as Nike says 'Just Do It!'

Breathflex

BREATHflex

For as long as i can remember i have been starting my day with some form of energy exercise. Ever since my father taught me some simple 'Prana' breathing exercises he had learnt in the army, while stationed in India i have been experimenting with Tai Chi, Qi Gong and other forms of breath work.

Here is a series of 6 i have been working with for sometime now, very simple, very gentle, they are not really exercises more breathing moves.They will wake you up to the new day and refresh your mind body & spirit in an energising way.

You see in this video i begin standing feet together.First take 3 full yogic breaths - always breathing in and out through the nose.Breath slowly. Begin inflating the lower 'abdominal' part of the lungs first, then the mid section finally the top of the lungs. At the top of the breath pull the navel in towards the spine , hold for a count of 3 then release the breath in the reverse order top middle & lower lungs. 

Then begin the Breathflex moves.

1. Touch toes breathing out, stand up breath in

2.Arms out by your sides up on your toes on the in breath, breathe out returning to standing position

3.Feet apart swim into the sky, inhale going up exhale out as you bend your knees

4. Reverse this move, as you come down hold momentarily fully exhaled in the 'Horse Position'

5.Bending between your legs breathing in touch the ground, exhale as you learn back, flex the abdominals as you do.

6.Side to side swish of the arms breathing out as you rotate to the side going up on your toes.

On completion: Exhale fully and with palms together thank the sun and the air you are breathing.

Key points with this is to keep your self fully loose as you move and then slightly flex your muscles at the 'final moment' of the exhalation. This full body flex at the end of the out breath brings an energising dynamic tension to the whole body, then you glide through the movement on the inhaling/ exhaling breath.

Its a gentle routine , very adagio, musically think Baroque.The music is from Boroque Garden by Hemisync.

Go outside at sunrise & perform Breathflex early in the morning.Its calm and peaceful then and the air is pure. I recommend 3 rounds of each move to begin with, then work up to 6.

As a trial do this routine every morning for 30 days. Its a great start to a new day in a strange place, if you are on the move and traveling a lot. 

Feel the 'wake up' difference & enjoy your morning.

I Don't Believe In ... John Lennon

Watching this from way back when the Beatles split up i am reminded in this song by Lennon that if you let go of all there is to
b e l i e v e  in, in this world you only have yourself and reality to deal with.It's a bold step to let go and just BE. Maybe at that point you can begin to understand what it is to believe in anything other than WHAT IS.... and then belief in anything seems futile and a waste of time & energy.

I think an enlightened person (if enlightenment is real and not just another belief) may be is just someone who is content with JUST THIS ... and nothing else. Maybe he or she is like that Bodhisattva in the train, when you wake up to JUST THIS you laugh. NO belief necessary ... HOW FREE WOULD YOU BE TO BE LIKE THAT... i think we already are but we have forgotten to stop believing in .......... a million crazy things....

See what it feels like to contemplate that maybe "God IS a concept by which we measure our pain..."

Bodhisattva Training

Travel in the time of Swine Flu

Back in Europe after my CARIBBEAN sojourn i sit in a cold quite place in Denmark thinking of my flight from Cancun. Mexico was recently shut down as a step to contain the recent outbreak of Flu, i got one of the last planes out.To get out of the country you had to take a health test, a temperature check being the primary indicator if you were a possible victim of the flu.Flu kills people every year in all countries, what made this 'Outbreak' so hyped. The WHO for one thing ramped up the phases of pandemic, which spread a lot more fear then the swine.And speaking of sick animals something should be done about the condition of factory farming. Is is any wonder that pigs should be the next in line to develop viruses after chickens (bird flu) and those cows that went mad. What's next ?

Don't get caught in transit in a pandemic is my advise. Failing a simple temperature test could have you hauled away and admitted to some kind of detention centre. Although i must compliment the Mexican para medics at Cancun airport they were very organised and civil. In less friendly circumstances in other countries the experience could have been very fascist. 

Yes you have to attempt to contain something like that but with air travel been what is is with up to 2 million people traveling on planes around the world at any one time, the cat is probably out of the bag before you can put a mask over your head.And people wearing masks spread more fear around... do they really work?

An airborne disease of pandemic world proportions will happen again, flu viruses have killed millions in our history on earth, what to do to prevent another outbreak? I am not sure that it is preventable, contingency plans must be ready for sure, but begin at the source - improve the conditions of animals in factory farms.If that is the source of these mutant strains of viruses.Or is it a lab somewhere that is developing chemical WMD's. Makes you think. 

One thing for sure its about the quickest way to close up a country and confine its citizens to there houses, to turn a free country into a prison.  

Revolutionary Cars of Cuba

What has kept the Revolution going for 50 years? Very resourceful adept creative car mechanics. Probably the best in the world. 

What a hot ride ...

Back from La Revolucion part 1

On this trip, my second to Cuba i went with a specific purpose to live with the people & to make 2 short films - one about the Old 1950's Cars there, which are about the most colorful thing in Havana, other than the Habaneros, and to see how 50 years later after Fidel's victory, Ernesto 'Che' Guevara lives on in the streets of Havana.

My previous visit 10 years ago was very different, still exciting in a different way, i hung out with a bunch of probable ex mercenary military high flying types, smoking cigars and doing the tourista thing in the Habana Libre Hotel.

In Cuba everything changes and nothing changes, you can still meet some interesting international types trading with the enemy as the USA would call it. This time i wanted to live with the enemy and get a feel for life with them on the inside, outside of central Havana in a regular suburb without tourists.

What you don't see from the lobby of the Hotel National or any of the other big hotels there is that for the people of Cuba basically La Revolucion = Hardship.

In Revolutionary terms, after victory over the oppressor and its regime comes freedom for the worker - which in this case was in over throwing Batista's US backed government & the Mafia in down town Havana. Well that was the way it began. 50 years on and the wheels of Revolution still turn albeit without the lubrication of oil metaphorically speaking.And since the demise of the Soviet experiment called Communism those wheels turn even slower.

I do think after Fidel does finally exit stage left, and Obama possibly opts for direct talks with Raul there will be a change in US Cuban relations, which will lead to perhaps the biggest revolution Cuba has known since 1959.

Because things do have to change to relive the common hardship there.

In the mean time...

Somehow the people get by, in spite of the privations of the blockage, although i think that is not the main reason for all the hardship. The Cubans are an amazing resilient resourceful people.I don't think the world fully appreciate this, unless you visit. Castro, The Buena Vista Social Club aside, their sports heros, cigars, rum & baseball,old 50's cars, very beautiful women, Ernest Hemingway & Che on t-shirts is how most of the world see Cuba.

I guess my 2 films add to that perception a little. Although with the homage to 'Che' i wanted to show that his spirit is alive on the streets and not just that famous enigmatic Korda image on t- shirts.

I am particularly inspired by Ernesto Guevara's story for many reasons. I have to do some more thinking about this Cuban mission & particularly about Che. Will report part 2 soon.

hasta luego -

Comandante Che Homage in Havana 2

Comandante Che Homage in Havana from Agent M on Vimeo.

Ernesto 'Che' Guevara 'Lives' in Havana

The Joy of the Old Cars in Havana

The 'Joy' of the Old Cars in Havana from Agent M on Vimeo.

Back from La Revolucion

An amazing 5 days in La Habana. I am editing 2 films i made there, one on the old cars that are still running from the 1950's and one on 'Che' 

Fly me to Cuba

Tomorrow i go to La Habana for a 5 day assignment, i will report on my mission in Travel Agent M. Hasta Luego.

The Way of Shibumi

"How does one achieve this Shibumi , sir?"

"One does not achieve it, one ... discovers it."

And so Nikko Hel, the hero of Trevanian's master piece of espionage & Go esoterics is introduced by his mentor General Kishikawa-san to this Japanese aesthetic of understated refinement.

The General elaborates:

" SHIBUMI has to do with great refinement underlying common place appearances. It is a statement so correct that it does not have to be bold,so poignant it does not have to be pretty,so true it does not have to be real.Shibumi is understanding,rather than knowledge.Eloquent silence, In demeanour, it is modesty without pudency.In art, where the spirit of shibumi takes the form of Sabi, it is elegant simplicity,articulate brevity. In philosophy, where shibumi emerges as Wabi,it is spiritual tranquility that is not passive; it is being without the angst of becoming. And in the personality of a man it is  ... how does one say it? Authority without domination? Something like that."

I read this novel 20 years ago and became a big fan of Trevanian the elusive hermetic novelist, who because of his reclusive life in the Basque Pyrenees mountains became a bit of a legend in the publishing world. 

I like many others, eager to consume intelligent cross cultural novels, was introduced to this Japanese concept of Shibumi by Trevanian in this very book, and it struck a deep spiritual cord in me. There is no English word that relates to it, as far as i know, and so one is left expecting the concept to return to you later in life. Since then i have referenced this word a number of times particularly in relationship to Wabi Sabi in design. (I will post more on that soon.) 

I was recently asked (as a disciple of aesthetics, by one who is committed to beauty & harmony) how i can remain content in less inspiring surroundings. 

I didn't have a ready answer. 

I can only think that i do occasionally discover this elusive Shibumi right under my nose - where ever i am. And then i might just as well be in a Palace.

I am enjoying re reading this book for many reasons, but now i really appreciate what a fine writer Trevanian was. He died in 2005. His Web site is on links.

Maybe he discovered this Shibumi.

 

The Hero's Journey in The Matrix

The movie The Matrix contains some very interesting things.The Wachowski Bros did their homework on many levels, leaving aside the concept of a Reality Matrix, the development of the character Neo, the hero in the film, is a good example of the universal mythic journey that any hero must take in his or her quest on earth.

I am refering to the work that Joseph Campbell did in his book published in 1949 called The Hero with a Thousand Faces. 

Campbell scholarly work, now a classic in Comparative Mythology studies, integrates the universal journey recounted in nearly all the world's cultural myths. It shows that for a hero (ie every person) to complete this journey (awakening) of spiritual development(consciousness) a person goes through many transitions to complete this Quest (for enlightenment).These stages seem to be universal in all cultures and so it is call The Mono Myth.

There are 17 such stages each distinctive in what it liberates in the psyche of the individual, these 17 transitions are basically grouped in 3 mega transformational levels.

1. Departure - separation from the known world into the unknown

2. Initiation - into knowledge of the true Self 

3. Return to The World - now with this knowledge as a gift to mankind

I wont go into the minor twists and turns of the Hero's Journey here( this book is definately worth a space in your library) but sujest you look at the video of Chris Vogler see links talking about these transitions in the movie The Matrix. He has adapted Campbell's study in his own analysis of this film to 12 stages, which i think are pretty accurate for film story telling. I came across Vogler's work via The Revolutionary Man see links.

I read The Hero with a Thousand Faces years ago when i first discovered the subject of Mythology, what is interesting about this work to me now, as a teacher of Film Studies, is the degree to which the great story tellers of our age ie Film Director/Writers have used this Mono Myth in their story structure. 

We as audience relate to stories told in this way at a very deep level. For all our intellect and technology we are not that different from an audience listening to Homer's Iliad or the Odyssey around a camp fire thousands of years ago. Modern directors know the power of Epic Story telling that has embedded this Universal Monomyth.

The Star Wars Trilogies of George Lucas are a classic example and a topic i will post on later, as i played a minor role his last movie Episode 111 Revenge of the Sith.

With the world so wonderfully dysfunctional right now, re-integrating The Mono Myth in our lives may be the deep psyche healing that we need. For many people the complexity of consciousness studies & its spiritual disciplines is too demanding. The Power of Myth may be the answer to re connect people with their Heart.

May the Force be with You !

Thinking like Leonardo da Vinci

Any reference to architecture, art, science & technology has to include the genius Renaissance polymath Leonardo.

There has been many studies of da Vinci's mind and extensive commentaries on the results of his creativity in painting, in drawings and of course his written codexes (notebooks)

One of the books i have enjoyed the most is by Michael J. Gelb called How to Think Like Leonardo da Vinci. see his webpage in links.After immersing himself in a study of da Vinci he concluded that there were 7 key characteristics of da Vinci creativity, 7 principles he adhered to that produced his extraordinary innovations and insights.

He sets them out in Italian, as a training program that we can practice to improve our own creativity. Based on the idea that if you want to get better at anything, study some one who is great at it, imitate the master until you can discover your own inner mastery.Ok here is the 7 ways that da Vinci achieved his full potential as a creative human being.   

1. CURIOSITA 

explore - question - be in a state of wonderment - love to learn - don't take no or yes for an answer

2. DIMOSTAZIONE

test everything yourself - experiment - learn from your own mistakes 

3. SENSAZIONE

refine your senses - see when you look - listen when you hear - feel when you touch - ect - be fully present - be aware - be awake to what is going on around you

4. SFUMATO

embrace paradox & contradiction - accept uncertainty - allow grey areas to resolve - there is also a reference here as sfumato means 'to go up in smoke' to integrating ones shadow, Leonardo drew shadows like no one else could

5. ARTE/SCIENZA

integrate left & right brain thinking - a holistic approach -learn the art of science & the science of art

6.CORPORALITA

balance the body - learn poise - co ordination - grace in movement - learn kinesthetic skills - ambidexterity 

7. CONNESSIONE

apply systems thinking - see that all is interconnected - be integral in analysis & synthesis

This is a pretty good list of personal development skills & abilities to focus on and what's more i think it promotes an enlightened view of the world.

Considering Leonardo came on the scene 500 years ago and emerged at a time when Europe was still steeped in a medieval view of the world, he was a true radical. No one's master he basically did what he did to satisfy his own curiosity, accepting weapons development commissions from the local DOD Dept of Defence to finance his exploration of the natural world. I imagine the clergy even left him alone in awe of his genius. Thank goodness he didn't get the same fate of G. Bruno,as i am sure he could have gotten fried for any number of experiments that he conducted probably in secret.

Anyway i think Gelb's book is worth reading if not to improve your own creativity then to give you a glimpse of what human potential can be.