original approach to art and to life. A world-renowned painter who trained as a physicist, he’s fascinated by the deeper order that “whispers” beneath the surface of things. Works of art that endure, he says, possess their own form of consciousness. And a quiet life of purpose is a particular form of prophecy. The following is the audio and transcript of an onbeing.org interview between Krista Tippett and  Enrique Celaya. Krista Tippett, host: I love finding extraordinary people, well-known in their fields but hidden from many of the rest of us. Learning about such people, hearing from them, can shift our own world a little bit on its axis. E... posted on Nov 12 2017 (9,236 reads)

leading out. They pushed in and took the Iraqis by surprise. There’s even some footage I found on the Internet, of the Iraqis when they knew they’d lost the battle and fled into underground bunkers. There’s footage of them coming out of the bunkers holding their white T-shirts up in surrender. And this became a sentence in the book. One man was holding up a plate with the prophet Ali on it, to kind of say, “Hey, I'm with the Iranians!” Because the Iranians love the Prophet Ali. So it shows men being flushed out of these bunkers and pouring out like ants.      That’s all to say that when Zahed arrived a day later, his job was t... posted on Oct 10 2017 (7,241 reads)

and always need extra hands to clear debris and restore the paths. The Appalachian Trail Conservancy offers volunteer opportunities, while the Pacific Crest Trail also needs volunteer crews to keep more than 2,500 miles passable throughout the year. Information about trail maintenance projects can be found at local parks or by visiting the National Park Service website. 2. Count Animals Helping scientists count animals and preserve other park resources is an easy way to merge a love for the outdoors with science. Park naturalists and conservationists depend on citizens, usually without scientific training, to help keep tabs on the health of the parks. Glacier National Park o... posted on Sep 3 2017 (5,901 reads)

was crying and screaming at the guy, “You killed my family!” And he goes, “What are you talking about?” I said, “These birds were my family; you killed them. How can you do that?” And I made an oath at that point in my life, in third grade. I said that no matter what happens in my life, I have to make sure people understand they can’t treat creatures like this. We are all connected…. My greatest mentors were those robins. And my greatest love was a bear, Susie Bear, 330 pounds. PB: A bear in Ohio? SK: No, here in California. She was in Grizzly Adams and The Wilderness Family. She was retired and came to the sanctuary before we had... posted on Oct 24 2017 (10,713 reads)

That’s almost a natural component of who we are. There are times when we become obsessed with wanting to know what that information is. “Curiosity has several kinds or flavors, and they are not driven by the same things.” Livio: That’s right. In that sense, the digital age helps us because we can find that information, and that may drive us to look for something else about this. And that would drive perhaps epistemic curiosity, which is this love of knowledge and wanting to learn new things. Knowledge@Wharton: Do you think love of knowledge is truly the driving force behind curiosity and the other pieces are part of the spider web off ... posted on Sep 25 2017 (11,892 reads)

And I’m curious, specifically, whether you would find traces or roots of not just your interest in morality, but in a sense, your passion for morality, in the religious or spiritual background of your childhood. Mr. Haidt: Well, my religious and spiritual background is sort of stereotypical for my generation — born in 1963 to parents who were first generation. All four of my grandparents were born in Russia and Poland, came to New York, worked in the garment industry, loved Roosevelt, union organizers. My parents moved, raised me in Scarsdale, New York. I was very assimilated — I have a strong sense of being Jewish as my culture, but not as, really, as a reli... posted on Sep 21 2018 (17,206 reads)

has Detroit thinking about its city now in a different way, a city that can be both urban and rural. And yes, I know, these stories are small, these stories are neighborhood-based stories, but these stories are powerful. They're powerful because I'm showing you how we're creating a new society left vacant in the places and the spaces that was disintegration from the old. They're powerful stories because they're stories about love, the love that Detroiters have for one another, the love that we have for our community, the love that we have for Mother Earth, but more importantly, these stories are stories&nbs... posted on May 15 2018 (10,309 reads)

be the ones, through our own practice and training, who actually embody the best of human qualities: generosity, kindness, intelligence, sanity, and that we have to be a clear and present embodiment of the best of human nature. TS: Now you mentioned, Meg, that you've studied this pattern of complex civilizations and you've read quite a bit of the literature. You talk about this in your new book, Who Do We Choose To Be?—about the collapse of civilizations. And I'd love for you to talk more to our audience about this time that we're in and how you came to this conclusion, which I think is—for many people, for me—startling. That it's a time to... posted on Mar 29 2018 (26,832 reads)

in the shop, there in the middle is Leonardo at age probably 12 or 13, posing for that statue. He was a misfit. Steve Jobs talked about how he was among the misfits, the rebels, the round pegs in the square holes, those who think differently. Leonardo was illegitimate, which was lucky for him. Being born out of wedlock, he didn’t have to be a notary like his father and grandfather and great-grandfather. He was gay. He was left-handed. He was vegetarian. He was heretical. And he was beloved in the town of Florence. They accepted that and assumed, like Leonardo did, that you could learn everything you wanted about anything you wanted. We could still be a little bit more like that. W... posted on Apr 6 2018 (12,260 reads)

be the ones, through our own practice and training, who actually embody the best of human qualities: generosity, kindness, intelligence, sanity, and that we have to be a clear and present embodiment of the best of human nature. TS: Now you mentioned, Meg, that you've studied this pattern of complex civilizations and you've read quite a bit of the literature. You talk about this in your new book, Who Do We Choose To Be?—about the collapse of civilizations. And I'd love for you to talk more to our audience about this time that we're in and how you came to this conclusion, which I think is—for many people, for me—startling. That it's a time to... posted on May 17 2018 (15,848 reads)

conscious,” the nurse says. I trust this Vietnam vet with his acne scarred face and tender resigned heart. His sad eyes help me face what’s coming. The two of us stand next to a bed in the oncology unit of Strong Hospital and look over my husband Vic’s limp body. “He can hear you,” the nurse says, “but he’s too exhausted to respond. You can ask him to squeeze your hand.” Yes, I could ask Vic to squeeze my hand if he loves me. But I don’t doubt his love. I can ask him to squeeze if he hears me, but he doesn’t need to hear me. He needs to die, so I don’t call him back to life and to me, but let him stay w... posted on Apr 25 2018 (21,804 reads)

said the statement completely applies to them.18 These surveys show that experiences of profound communion with the aliveness of the Universe are not a fringe phenomenon but, instead, are familiar encounters for a large portion of the public. Humanity is measurably waking up to a bio-cosmic view of ourselves within the Universe. Awakening to an intimate connection with the unity and intelligent aliveness of the Universe is often accompanied by feelings of great joy, boundless love, and the presence of a subtle, radiant light. To illustrate, below is a classic account of a spontaneous awakening experience. While an undergraduate student, F.C. Happold had this experience of ... posted on Apr 30 2018 (15,013 reads)

Verlag edition, clothbound, with Gothic script on soft rag paper, and on the cover the print of the three-jetted fountain the poet had chosen. This pocket-sized volume has traveled with me across the spiritual landscapes of my life—from the rubble of a once-sturdy faith in church and God, into the streets of political activism, and into the Buddha-fields of South and Central Asia. The first poem I recall reading was as exhilarating to me as the fresh cold alpine wind off the slopes I loved to ski: I live my life in widening circles that reach out across the world. I may not ever complete the last one, but I give myself to it.   I circle around God, that primordi... posted on Jun 25 2018 (10,490 reads)

the unconscious, beyond the reach of one’s own intelligence, and await with deep humility and patience the birth-hour of a new clarity: that alone is living the artist’s life: in understanding as in creating. He echoes Goethe’s largehearted, increasingly needed wisdom on the only appropriate response to the creative labors of others and writes: Works of art are of an infinite loneliness and with nothing so little to be reached as with criticism. Only love can grasp and hold and be just toward them. Letters to a Young Poet — which also gave us Rilke on what it really means to love, the life-expanding value of uncertainty, ... posted on Jul 8 2018 (11,397 reads)

forth as the dawn and your healing will quickly appear.’ (Isaiah 58:8, New International version). In other words, our healing depends on the healing of the world. In this exciting new vision, every progress I make for myself, I make for the whole world. Every polio or cancer patient who overcomes his or her disease through active participation in the healing process helps all others afflicted with the same disease on the whole planet. Every time you replace hatred with love, overcome your nagging desire for the umpteenth ‘last’ drink, replace your usual biting retort to your companion with silence or – why not – kindness, you are helping... posted on Sep 10 2018 (10,712 reads)

traveler running faster. Warrior is born. Battle to be won. Past trauma, future hurt. I’m a child of the dirt and I'm ready to give birth. Planting a dream. Panting, I breathe. Running towards the future with a handful of seeds. Stronger than greed. I am stronger than hate. I stand under the shade of trees planted so long ago. A product of ancestral love, I’m here because my elders danced in the sun. They would give it all up for us and from day one it was practiced like religion to prepare for the ones to come. We are here to give all our love to the ones unborn. ... posted on Sep 23 2018 (15,215 reads)

she had collected from businesses and individuals. “Everything was being done out of my home when I started,” Ramirez says. Recognizing her efforts, the property manager of an abandoned local storefront gave her use of the facility. That’s when her charitable acts became a community shop—Detroiters Helping Each Other (DHEO)—where kindness and generosity, not money, is the currency of exchange. Their motto: Teamwork makes the dream work. “I would love to see us not need this anymore,” she says. “In the meantime it’s showing people the community still cares.” Decades of economic and population decline, a depleted t... posted on Aug 21 2018 (5,849 reads)

day for you. The first question I have would be, what gets you up every day to do what you do? Giang: Every day I wake up because of the sun that comes into the window -- I live on the riverbank. I look forward to getting out of bed and seeing the world. Then, I ask if I am at the place where I want to be, doing exactly what I want to do, being with the people who I want to be with. So it's just a sense of celebration, a sense of, "Yeah! A new day begins." Xiao: I love the image you painted for us. The river, the sunlight... Every day is a new day. I'm curious to know how you became who you are today. Were you just born happy or were there any turning point... posted on Sep 5 2018 (3,654 reads)

was Buddha able to organize in those days a religion that millions follow. This question dramatically changes the plane of inquiry. Other searching questions swiftly follow: Who were the leaders. How were they shaped. How did the disciples of Christ spread their mission around the world. And then a final question that he would ask in a thousand different ways: How do I become a perfect instrument. Live In the Soul and Be Guided By It Dr. V firmly believes that action motivated by love exerts a force and organizing power of its own. He makes the cultivation of unconditional compassion for all beings a daily goal—a Dalai Lama-esque endeavor not always easy to pull off. In ... posted on Oct 1 2018 (9,525 reads)

behavior. The memorial shows with heart-breaking clarity what we humans are capable of if we don’t do the essential work of transforming the ego. The third powerful site for me was the concrete wall that seals off the West Bank from Israel, in effect isolating the Palestinian town of Bethlehem from all the surrounding communities. What a difference from the Wailing Wall, which exudes piety and devotion! This political wall screams of pain and injustice. Ted: I have a deep love for Israel. I grew up with the Middle East prominent in my life. I have long been a supporter of a Jewish state and a Palestinian state. I can be extremely critical of Israeli positions, but some... posted on Oct 13 2018 (5,728 reads)