“Mythology is beyond words. Beyond images, beyond that bounding rim of the Buddhist Wheel of Becoming. Mythology pitches the mind beyond that rim, to what can be known but not told.” – Joseph Campbell, The Power of Myth
They say when an elder dies in South Africa it is as if a library is burned as their culture is passed through an oral tradition. Storytelling is an ancient practice used in all cultures that speaks through metaphor and archetype in order to point spiritual seekers to the divine within.
This class teaches meditation through ancient stories and myths from spiritual traditions around the world. Live music using eclectic and rare instruments will be used at specific moments to create atmosphere and support the narration. Each class will focus on several specific myths and traditions while practical instruction on the technique and path of sitting meditation is provided. Stories and teachings will be drawn from:
- The Ogala Sioux and Black Elk
- The Blackfeet Nation
- The Pawnee Nation
- Zen Buddhism and Vipassana meditation
- Hinduism
- Greek Mythology
- Plato and Socrates
- Existential Philosophy (Nietzsche, Schopenhauer, Camus, and Sartre)
- The Yoruba Religion from Africa
- Ancient Egypt
- The Teachings of Christ
- The Tarot Deck
- and more
Teacher Bio:
Jerry Walsh has been a student of the dharma for the past nine years and a vipassana meditator over six years. Jerry has also been a student of Maestro Manuel Rufino for six years, studying the sacred traditions of humanity focusing primarily on the shamanic traditions of the Indigenous cultures of the Americas. He is a member of the Golden Drum sound meditation ensemble, Dream Seed, and has traveled to over twenty-five different countries on five continents, spending a full year studying Buddhism and Himalayan culture in India, Nepal, and Bhutan from 2010-2011. He currently works with BEAT NYC, a non-profit that teaches Hip-Hop and Beatboxing in NYC public schools. He is a founding member of the Sacred Arts Research Foundation 501 (c) 3 and the Ark in Greenpoint, Brooklyn where he resides with the Golden Drum community.
Sliding Scale of $10-$20 donation to attend the class