Letting it all hang out: The Freedom of Being Naked

“My wife was afraid of the dark… then she saw me naked and now she’s afraid of the light.” - Rodney Dangerfield

I need to tell you a little secret, I have never been naked in a public place before, but that changed a few days ago. I have been living in South Korea for nearly a month, and so far it has been an amazing experience. One of my unique experiences was going to one of Koreas many public bath houses and spas called “Jjimjilbangs”. They are a place where you go to get away from it all and simply relax.

As I am in the locker room surrounded by hundreds of Korean men and with only two of my expat friends being the only foreigners, a subtle uneasiness creeps in. I am constantly trying to be in the space of being a passive observer of myself, so I try to remain a witness in order to learn from these thoughts that start arising within me.

As I get down to my boxer shorts I see all my conditioning from the western world rush in front of my mental screen. Thoughts that being naked in public is weird, awkward, and embarrassing. But being able to see it and remaining impartial to it, I quickly brush it off and off come my boxers.

As soon as my boxers came off a certain calmness and freedom comes over me, and the quick realization that being naked is the most natural thing in the world. Even though being naked is the most natural thing in the world, we have somehow in many parts of the world have made it the most un-natural.

Our society has somehow convinced as that our bodies are something that we should be embarrassed and ashamed about. Maybe this is how they are able to create their ideal of beauty and then are able to sell us a solution. Our bodies are amazingly complex and beautiful, a work of art really and we should be grateful that we get to experience this world with them.

The problem is that our society makes us suppress many of the things that are totally natural and healthy for us, and through this suppression becomes expressed in our society in perverted and unhealthy ways. This is why the pornography industry is so huge, because we have suppressed and condemned our sexuality for so long. Sex is one of the most basic and fundamental aspects of our biological nature. Anything that you suppress gets pushed into your unconscious and will become a corrupted energy within you. You become confused and divided.

So as I was walking around the huge spa, it was a very liberating feeling, because there you “are”, nothing to hide behind, and when there is nothing hide behind, a deep acceptance comes over you, and through this acceptance a deep relaxation is possible. You relax into yourself.

I would just like to share this experience of being naked in public as an example for learning to let go, to accept things as they are, and being fully present. If you remain aware you can use it as way to transcend your conditioning and gain a deep acceptance and love for your body. Your mind and body are not separate, they are one, even though you feel they are separate because you live only in your mind. So in accepting your body a calmness will come over you because you see the absurdity in constantly comparing yourself to others or what society deems as being beautiful.

So if at all possible I encourage you to find a spa or a nudist beach and let it all hang out, it could be a great learning experience if you bring enough awareness into it.

If you enjoyed this post check out:

• How To Increase Your Awareness and Expand Your Consciousness
• Discovering Your Life’s Purpose and Exploring Your Divine Nature
• How To Make The Leap Into The Unknown
• How To Enjoy and Grow By Being With Yourself
• How To Be Quiet and Stop Thinking
• How To Develop Your 6th Sense: Intuition
• Understanding Your Relationships To Find Your Path To Freedom
• Stuck In The Middle: Living In The Land of Observation

I Feel Good: The Art of Living Spontaneously

“All growth is a leap in the dark, a spontaneous, unpremeditated act without benefit of experience.” Henry Miller

When I wrote this short post, I was 35,000 ft up in the air, in route to my new home in South Korea. Just like a swift smack to the face, it hits me, the realization of how good it feels to follow your heart. I love exploring new lands but in the midst of great global uncertainty, many of my friends and family think I am a little crazy for moving.

More and more because of the path I have chosen to walk, I consequently feel like a kid again, a kid full of wonder, only difference is that I have a deeper understanding of myself and the world.

What makes me feel like a kid again? The answer is spontaneity. Being spontaneous means acting in the present, being responsible for my actions no matter what they may bring. How does living in this space feel like? The short answer is less thinking more feeling. I get in tune with my total being and learn to proceed by feeling things out and not letting my mind corrupt what I am feeling or becoming lost in my emotions.

When you learn to let the different aspects of your being function independently and not allow them to mix into one another, great energy and awareness is released in you. The awareness that allows you to go beyond your conditioning, so what may look like irrational, crazy, or amazing behavior to others, feels perfectly right and normal for you. People ask aren’t you afraid, or mention that they wish they could do the same thing, but their conditioning keeps them a slave to their limiting ideas.

Of course I am afraid, moving to a place where I can’t speak the language, and don’t know anything about living there is a very scary endeavor. But I choose not to run away from my fears, I try to witness them, look them in the face without judging or distorting, because to run away or change them only serves to increase them.

I would rather suffer from my fears then to be a slave to fixed ideas, to be tied down to the known and comfortable. I strive to live in the new and unknown where anything can happen, because that’s where I feel truly alive.

Guess what happens when you keep pushing and striving to live a spontaneous life? It becomes easier, the more you act spontaneously the more your fears will begin to fade, you develop trust in your being, you feel whole, and your conditioning begins to lose its grip on you. You are then also able to see very clearly how much others are bound to their fixed limiting ideas.

Logically everyone would like to be told how to live spontaneously, but being spontaneous means being free of structure, so obviously there isn’t a system or “how to” book on it.

Just “be” spontaneous, put your fears to the side and suspend your beliefs. It will be very challenging at first but by and by you will come to develop a knack and feel for being spontaneous. Everything you do will have a fresh quality to it. How you speak, how you walk, how you think, and how you act will have a certain freshness to it.

You just have to realize that anything can create fear, anything you have become attached to will create fear. But to let your fears dominate you is to not live your life; your fears will cripple you. So I encourage you to make the leap into the unknown, be spontaneous, magical things await. God speed my friend.

(life in South Korea Video #2)

If you enjoyed this post check out:

• How To Increase Your Awareness and Expand Your Consciousness
• Discovering Your Life’s Purpose and Exploring Your Divine Nature
• How To Make The Leap Into The Unknown
• How To Enjoy and Grow By Being With Yourself
• How To Be Quiet and Stop Thinking
• How To Develop Your 6th Sense: Intuition
• Understanding Your Relationships To Find Your Path To Freedom
• Stuck In The Middle: Living In The Land of Observation

“Be fully present in the moment no matter what you are doing,the best in you will reveal itself.” – Master Jin Kwon

Hello everyone just wanted to let you know I have moved to the land of taekwondo and kimchi, as soon as I have settled into my apartment I will resume with my writing. Until then here are a few video highlight of my time thus far in South Korea. Hope all is well, take care and much love – Ivan

Wake Up! Don’t Wait To Live Your Life

“Don’t ask what the world needs. Ask what makes you come alive, and go do it. Because what the world needs is people who have come alive.” Howard Thurman

If you are a regular reader of mine, you may have noticed that I have not been posting as much as I used to. Just to keep you in the loop I have been really busy with getting ready for my next move to Busan, South Korea. Also in this last month I have lost two very special people, my grandmother and the mother of one of my best friends.

To say the least having these two special people pass away was life’s intense reminder to not take anything for granted. The moment we are born we are dying; life truly is a precious gift. What I am about to say is nothing new nor earth shattering, but it is something that cannot be said enough. Life’s advice to us is this: “wake up and live your life”. Even though biologically you may be alive and breathing the unfortunate fact is that most are not living. To me in the universes grand scheme of things, life is essentially meaningless, it is up to me to create meaning and purpose for my life, it is my responsibility.

Most live monotonous robotic lives because they have yet to develop a deep understanding of themselves and are busy thinking of the past or imagining the future. Totally neglecting the only thing that matters, which is life in the present moment. So by living I mean bringing total awareness to whatever you are doing. Even little things such as drinking tea, with enough awareness anything can be creative. Living a life of awareness will keep you grounded and centered into existence. Living in the space of simple awareness you are one with your actions, you are still able to use your mind yet remain above your thinking processes.

I was fortunate enough to be with my grandmother in her last moments of being aware and conscious. Over several days’ her body was technically alive but she was no longer with us, there was no more awareness left. Life is dynamic, constantly changing, to experience all the dimensions that life has to offer we must learn to live intensely. What I mean by living intensely is to be totally aware of your body, thoughts, feelings, and emotions. When you learn to be aware of these different aspects of your being you will be aware of your own awareness.

If you continue to grow your awareness with time this will become the predominate state of your being. When you live like this you are able to experience the richness of life, you lead a life of harmony in both your inner and outer worlds. Being in harmony means you have developed enough awareness to let your heart learn to feel, and your mind to think clearly, you don’t allow them to mix. Whenever the heart gets mixed with the head (or vice versa), the different aspects of your being become corrupted, your judgment becomes clouded. Through meditation you develop a calm even mind that is able to use reason and logic, and a heart that is able to feel deeply, you become more loving and compassionate.

So is awareness something that can even be cultivated? The short answer is yes, but this has to be something that you genuinely want to discover on your own. Awareness cannot be given to you by anyone or anything unless you apply it to your life and gain your own understanding.

Methods such as yoga, tantra, and meditation will help you become more aware because they help you transcend your thinking mind. They give you the direct experience of creating enough space to dis-identify and become un-clutched from your mind. By becoming un-clutched from your mind you will begin to live in a space that is free to observe, by and by you will learn to recognize this space, and know that your true identity is beyond your thoughts and mind.

You just can’t understand this logically you will need to experience it in your own life, the problem is that we are so heavily conditioned that awareness has not been allowed to blossom within us. People live the same life day in and day out and make no effort to penetrate the mysteries of life and our own being. In the words of Socrates “”An unexamined life is not worth living”, and I agree. It really baffles me that many will end up dying and never go into these issues deeply.

Many of us have only caught glimpses of pure awareness. Deep down we know we have experienced something magical, but since these moments are very short and fleeting, we brush them off. We just hope that we experience them again in the future. We catch these glimpses in extreme sports, driving fast, total relaxation, joy, orgasm, or being in love.

What is the state of being that we experience in these situations? We get a glimpse of “no mind”, when even if it is for a split second your mind becomes utterly empty, peace of mind, or rather peace from mind.

Do you remember a time when you became lost in your lovers eyes? You may have not been able to recognize it but you where in a space of total awareness, you gave him/her the purity of your attention, but where was your mind? You where simply present and totally available to your loved one. But as soon as you tried to verbalize what you where experiencing, you removed yourself from being with them totally. Thoughts are of time, of the past, awareness is of “no time” it is your consciousness functioning in the present.

So to me “living life” is to live with awareness, to be awake in the world, to just simply be. Living a life of awareness will help you discover: love, joy, and purpose.

As you increase your awareness you will discover the part of your being that exists as spontaneous joy. Living a spontaneous life means you make the leap into the unknown and will take responsibility for your actions no matter what they may be. Actions born free of your conditioning. You use the knowledge you have accumulated only if it is useful, but you do not become a slave to it if it will hinder your progress.

Also please don’t accept or deny anything I have said, this is your life so go find out for yourself, truth cannot be given to you by anyone. Words can be tricky when trying to describe the indescribable, impossible really, plus I am not very poetic so please forgive me.

We are all different so each journey will be different, ultimately the view from the top is the same, but getting there will be your own unique path. If you feel like anything I have said resonates with you, then please continue to read some of the posts listed below. I feel they will assist you in increasing your awareness

Posts To Assist You:

• How To Increase Your Awareness and Expand Your Consciousness
• Discovering Your Life’s Purpose and Exploring Your Divine Nature
• How To Make The Leap Into The Unknown
• How To Enjoy and Grow By Being With Yourself
• How To Be Quiet and Stop Thinking
• How To Develop Your 6th Sense: Intuition
• Understanding Your Relationships To Find Your Path To Freedom
• Stuck In The Middle: Living In The Land of Observation

If you find my site valuable please pass it along to your friends and family. I really appreciate you helping me in my personal mission to self empower as many people as I can.