Meditations on Nature - Rilke on reconciling

Read these beautiful words this morning and it made sit back to contemplate

If you trust in Nature, in what is simple in Nature, in the small things that hardly anyone sees and that can so suddenly become huge, immeasurable; if you have this love for what is humble and try very simply, as someone who serves, to win the confidence of what seems insignificant, then everything will become more coherent and somehow more reconciling. Not in your conscious mind perhaps, which stays behind, astonished, but in your innermost awakeness and knowledge.
~ Rainer Maria Rilke

And then the words of David Wagoner came back to me after years of being lost in my consciousnesses

Stand still. The trees ahead and bushes beside you
Are not lost. Wherever you are is called Here,
And you must treat it as a powerful stranger,
Must ask permission to know it and be known.
The forest breathes. Listen. It answers,
I have made this place around you.
If you leave it, you may come back again, saying Here.
No two trees are the same to Raven.
No two branches are the same to Wren.
If what a tree or a bush does is lost on you,
You are surely lost. Stand still. The forest knows
Where you are. You must let it find you.

— David Wagoner

KONTIKI - Book Review and Recommendation: 5 STARS

Just finished with Kontiki -What an astonishing adventure, 5000 miles from Peru to Polynesia on a wooden raft. Thor Heyerdahl is a biologist who believed that Polynesia was settled by South Americans 1500 years ago.
He followed his theory into practice when every scientific establishment and publication shut him out. He and a band of 5 friends go on an adventure of a lifetime including
1. Building a raft based on 1500 year old designs
2. Getting financing from the Peruvian Govt. and survival material/shark repellents from the US Navy
3. Radio break downs, and pet parrots being eaten by sharks
4. Hunting for a shark with hand held blade
5. A clash of Faith and Science
6. A deep study of leadership and the hero’s journey
These gentleman changed the way adventure and exploration was viewed post world war two. The story is inspirational and gripping.
IMO one of the must read stories of our time.
FIVE STARS rating from me on this, and I intent to come back to this “teaching story” again. It is worth 10 times the price of its low $5 market price. THIS IS A TRUE CLASSIC!

KONTIKI - Book Review and Recommendation: 5 STARS

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Just finished with Kontiki -What an astonishing adventure, 5000 miles from Peru to Polynesia on a wooden raft. Thor Heyerdahl is a biologist who believed that Polynesia was settled by South Americans 1500 years ago.
He followed his theory into practice when every scientific establishment and publication shut him out. He and a band of 5 friends go on an adventure of a lifetime including
1. Building a raft based on 1500 year old designs
2. Getting financing from the Peruvian Govt. and survival material/shark repellents from the US Navy
3. Radio break downs, and pet parrots being eaten by sharks
4. Hunting for a shark with hand held blade
5. A clash of Faith and Science
6. A deep study of leadership and the hero’s journey
These gentleman changed the way adventure and exploration was viewed post world war two. The story is inspirational and gripping.
IMO one of the must read stories of our time.
FIVE STARS rating from me on this, and I intent to come back to this “teaching story” again. It is worth 10 times the price of its low $5 market price. THIS IS A TRUE CLASSIC!

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Book Review: Motorcycle Diaries by Che Guevara 5 STARS MUST READ

Spent this morning with a real treat.. the dairies of Che on his epic Latin America adventure.

The chronicles of a young Che Guevara’s journey through Latin America, and the transformation of the man to become the legend he is. This is a wonderuful story of and reminded me of a wonderful Joseph Campbell quote “We’re not on our journey to save the world but to save ourselves. But in doing that you save the world. The influence of a vital person vitalizes.” This is the story of how Che goes on his self discovery/journey to become vitally human, and one might argue that how he in so many ways revitalized humanity around him.

The story begins with the “call to adventure” and to explore the whole of Latin America on a motorcycle. Many adventures later, they lose their beloved motorcyle and continue their journey on foot. in the hope of reaching the northern most point of Latin America

The story is gripping, reminded me a lot of Jack Kerouac. The turning point comes when young Che sees the plight of the Peruvian mine workers and natives. Here is drawn to something greater than himself, and begins to stir his very soul. As the hero’s journey unfolds Che has a run in with a doctor treating leprosy. His heart calls him to apprentice and serve a much grander vision of himself. He begins his service at a leprosy camp in San Pablo helping serve something greater than himself.

ON his 24th birthday he realizes “that seperation of various nations of Latin America is a fallacy, and all of Latin America is but one race.” And the new vision of the possible life enters his life, and through him into Latin America. He then faces his greatest fear of Asthama in a daring midnight swim across the cold river. A new man is born as he says goodbye to Peru. The aimless roaming across America by two men not only changed them, but changed the course of history in the process.

Take those journeys of solitude seriously and as study the lives of men who have dared to do so before us. As the eminent historian Will Durant says in his wonderful essay called a Shamelss Worship of Heroes “To contemplate such men, to insinuate ourselves through study into some modest discipleship to them, to watch them at their work and warm ourselves at the fire that consumes them, this is to recapture some of the thrill that youth gave us when we thought, at the altar or in the confessional, that we were touching or hearing God.”

This is the story one one such man. I am going to be visiting this story/book again and again

PS: I got a few messages asking me about my political leanings on the polorising Che.
This books is NOT about his political writings.. what I read was the conditions in the making of a very charismatic leader. You can choose to agree/disagree with his stances, the fact remains, in his becoming he changed the geo-political landscape. And as far as I go, this story is a HUMAN STORY, and worth a read/watch

Book Review - Essentialism By Greg McKeown

As some of you know have gotten back to reading voraciously again. Around 2007 my two good friends &I had contemplated putting out summaries of the books we read, but we never did. Am now trying to take that forward and will post the summaries of books that others may find interesting. Cheers

Essentialism By Greg McKeown

The disciplined Pursuit of Less in an overloaded world. The author lays out “the process of how to focus on what is essential,” and apply all your energy towards the relentless pursuit of that intent. Becoming an essentialist is key to creating space in one’s life and creating space for fulfillment. Reading this book has made me rethink about what things I say yes to. A powerful read with the potential to change how you lead your life.

Eight key ideas discussed in the book are

1. Explore options, eliminate quickly and execute flawlessly. Repeat cycle. Essentialists exercise the power of choice

2. An essentialist thinks almost everything is non essential. The trick is to distinguish the vital few from the trivial many.

3. FOCUS -Essentialists ask “what problem do I want to solve? What do I bet big on?” This is the study tradeoffs, risk and reward

4. CREATE SPACE – Essentialists create space to escape, and have this time to explore and choose focus

5. SEE CLEARLY – Essentialists learn how to see – discern signal from noise, and pay attention to what is not being said

6. PLAY – Essentialists see work as play, stress kills. Stress takes away choice and ability to explore. Shift into the play mode to be successful

7. SELECT – Your response to life and things should be Hell Ya or NO! Say yes only to the top 10% of opportunities. Remember if it is not a Clear Yes, then it is a Clear No.

8. ESSENTIAL INTENT – Have clear essential Intent, and clearly know when your task is done. Design a routine that enshrines what is essential. The essential is the default position

If anything it will get you rethinking of what is truly important and convince you to focus on the Essential Intent. Good easy reading, and can be applied to all areas of life.

FOUR STARS rating from me and WORTH A READ.

Mahipal Lunia

www.TheRenaissancePath.com

www.RadicalChangeGroup.com

www.MountainViewAiki.com

Automatic Customer Book Review - FOUR STARS : BUY & STUDY premier into the emerging Subsription economy

Synopsis: If you are in a service biz or work with technology – BUY THE BOOK to learn the new language and math of business! This would have been an even more powerful book had the author walked you through the process of selecting the right models for your industry in a step by step way. However given its an emerging model, its a survey course on possible models, and anyone with a lil discipline will be able to put together some interesting pricing and subscription models.

Synopsis: Subscription Biz models are here to stay in everything from software, to content to household consumables.

The author has listed 9 specific models/approaches to take:

1. Membership Website Model: Works best in a tightly defined niche with specialized knowledge is needed
2. All you can eat library model: Evergreen content is an example. Think netflix – even the most addicted watcher could not go through it all
3. Private Club Model: Limited supply being sold to an affluent clientele. High prices, low numbers
4. Front of the line model: Different prices for different levels of service/support. works best on complex products/services.Think salesforce.com’s model for how your complaints are dealt with
5. The Consumables Model: Selling products that naturally run out as a service, where ordering things can be a chore. Food, blades, vitamins e
6. Surprise Box Model: when you have a network that is willing to buy deeply discounted consumables from manufacturers at deep discount. The idea being some of the consumers will then order a subscription service at regular prices.
7. Simplifier Model: Its a complex word, simply the buying process and choice. Works best with an affluent consumer needing a service on an ongoing basis
8. Network Model: fixed price, and value of service grows as number of subscribers grow. Think phones
9. Peace of Mind Model: this is the insurance sale , where you pay for a peace of mind in the event you may need the service.

He closes the book out with the new math of the subscription game with concents such as Customer acquisition cost, Monthly renewal rate, Life time Value of customer, Margins and Churn.

The book is a good way to think about what models will work best in your industry / Excellent premier.

If you are in a service biz or work with technology – BUY THE BOOK to learn the new language and math of business!

Mahipal Lunia

Martial Musing: Randori as Warrior Dialouge

Martial Musing: Randori As Warrior Dialogue

Free sparring has long been a way to test ones skill and understanding in the warrior arts. A small shift in perspective in the goal of randori brings massive rewards. I will share my view and approach to it.

Randori (????) is a term used in Japanese martial arts to describe free-style practice. In the dojo we do emphasize randori as a means to test ones skill and create new understandings. We usually have one person get in the center, and from that point on everyone just attacks the person in the middle.

Sometimes things get heated, and emotions flare. And its my job as Sensei to bring things under control. One one such occasion I was trying to explain the difference between “winning” the randori session and “learning in randori.”

When the student views the randori session as a mere fight the objective is to win. And we begin to rely on our most trained attribute and favorite techniques to do the same. And that is quite all right yet something is forgotten. The literal meaning of Randori is “chaos taking” or “grasping freedom,” implying a freedom from the structured practice of Kata (preset forms).

What we do when we hit a brick wall is to stop the session and together find a way out of it. This to me is the essence of Randori or Kumite or free sparring. When this shift happens in the dojo everyone wins. No sacred cows here, and every option is explored. This is the beginning of true Warrior Dialogue, and for me captures the essence of freedom from the known. Also we all learn what works best.

So try this next time you spar or do randori

1) Instead of testing your attributes and winning, begin to see it as an inquiry – begin to see each attack as a question posed to you. Now examine all possible answers, and most importantly the best answer for you

2) When you get stuck in a particular place or technique, return to your basics. I return to my Tai Sabaki (body positioning methods) and have discovered that most answers are there. When you do this particular method for a while you discover that “Advanced techniques are basics understood and done well.”

3) Get into the mode of multiple attackers on one, and its ok to get knocked out or tap out. The moments of “failure” can become what the Nobel Laurette Bucky Fuller used to call “Great moments.” Failures become great moments when you stop and learn from them in real time. Randori provides the best opportunity for great moments on the Warrior Path, when you approach Randori right.

When the student gets this, s/he begins to see randori as “dialogue” rather than a test. This step is critical as now the student is no longer viewing the sessions as something to win, or show his might. Rather s/he begins to understand that is is an opportunity to truly make this an inquiry into what works best. It becomes about finding the right way together with other students and the Sensei. In short everyone wins.

As always I remain open to your thoughts and constructive criticism. Until then train hard, and enjoy the chaos taking.

Mahipal Lunia
www.MountainViewAiki.com
www.TheRenaissancePath.com