Monakhos

I have been listening to a lot of jazz lately. Mostly avant-garde and free jazz. It’s interesting, the connection between music and spirituality. Playing and listening to improvised music opens up a whole realm of being that you can’t get to normally. I think I will write more on that next time.

Anyway, I’m trying to start an avant-garde/free jazz band. I play drums, and I would like to have at least a bass and piano, though any instruments would work, I think. Influences include the Coltrane Quintet, Joel Futterman Trio, Medeski, Martin, and Wood, and The Bad Plus. Leave a comment if you’re interested in playing, listening, or just reminiscing about great music.

What is it about the Way that is hard for religious people to understand? Why is it that the greatest force against the mystical path seems to come from those seemingly steeped in religion?

The film Остров (The Island in English) made me think a bit about these topics. It takes place in an Russian Orthodox monastery on an island in the 1970s. The main character Antoli lives at the monastery as a hermit and works shoveling coal in the boiler room. While he is not an official monk (though he lives in the same way), the people from the surrounding villages always come to see him first when there is a problem. He is rumored to be able to heal the sick and cast out demons. He has visions and prophetic answers to people’s questions. Father Antoli is also quite the rebel. He doesn’t always pray in the right direction during ceremonies he is invited to attend and *gasp* drinks tea with sugar! Despite all this, he is the most spiritually connected person on the island.

I don’t want to describe too much of the movie, because I don’t want to give much of it away. But it really made me think. How many times do I ignore people because they looks or act strange. How much wisdom could I be missing out on? And am I compromising by being too normal?

So check out the movie and let me know what you think. You’ll have to go to an artsy type rental store to find it probably, but it will be well worth it!