Listening.....

[JRL]

Thats pretty funny, Sometimes on Hoffmans bicycle I can do deliberate stuff, but things I do with a non thinking habitual muscle memory sense become problematic, like trying to roll a joint.

[laughingwillow]

We took an old friend of mine to the Phil shows last week. The guy was a psychedelic ranger in college. I thought he'd be a fiend, but it was just the opposite. The first night he wouldn't go near that bicycle and the second saw him take only a couple of token tugs at the pedals. Definitely not enough effort to make it around the block.

Anyway, half way through the first set on the second night I felt a familiar tug and then made my way toward the balcony like the cheshire cat seeking a suitable stoop. I circled in on a spot in the back shadows and ended up right next to my old pal. For the next twenty minutes or so, the spirit had me in a headlock and the music was a cosmic connection between the stage and my crown chakra. That birdsong  grabbed me like a python on a rat. I wanted to panic, but it felt so good. And then there was just the music. There was no inside or outside. Just music....Well, the music and my buddy tapping me on the leg to let me know he was glad to see me..

All I know is something
like a bird within him sang
All I know, he sang a little while
and then flew off......... - Doc Phil -

lw

[JRL]

I would dearly love to go to a show with you! And then have you come to a couple of mine. It's amazing what a couple of high vibration people can do to an average night at a honkey tonk.

[laughingwillow]

I can't wait to get lit at the Torch.

JRL: This topic of listening has led me to an interesting place as of late. Its tempting to dismiss any "lessons" or "therapy" if you will, that I've gleaned from the dead scene as a result of the sacrament and personal insight facilitated by the music. But that scenario oversimplifies the situation, imo. I believe that hundreds/thousands of people experiencing music and sacrament create a level of consciousness which can't be adequately explained with words. Direct participation seems to be the only way to grasp the concept and even then not everyone seems to get it. But that might just be due to the lack of words to describe the event.  

lw

[JRL]

I agree totally. Haveing only seen them maybe 10-12 times I'm sure I have missed out on a lot, but 2 shows in particular I experienced stuff that defies words but has stuck with me all these years.

[laughingwillow]

The dead family operates/communicates on levels not common in society in general, imo. And that multiple level of exploration leads to some novel spaces. SOme feel like a homecoming of sorts. Some can be intense. Some overwhelming. (at least for me.)

My dead experience was fun and games for about the first five years. Strange but fun. Then things got intense for me. Mysteries presented. Courage wavered. Fear competed. The last five years have been the best for me. The toostoned years were too much! Talk about psychedelic adventure....  

Remaining grounded in the above circumstances has been an issue for me. It only takes a few daze in Denver mingling with throngs of dirty hippies to get me homesick for our simple life out here on da prairie. Cause I'm a hermit at heart.

Momma, momma, many worlds I've come since I first left home....  - coupl-0 stinking hippies -

lw

[JRL]

I found the shows, 2 in particular to be undeniable evidence of the reality of spiritual dimensions. Communicating is a good word, it was nothing but communion. I SAW the energy transaction between the crowd and the band and the band/crowd.

First one was at the "retirement" show in 74 at Winterland, the one in the Grateful Dead movie. Being a bit removed from the scene I had no idea I was walking into one of the ones that has gone down in history. First thing I noticed was 2 drum sets, hadn't seen Mickey in years. People were performing acts of magic all through the crowd. The guy in front of me was doing something with this lumps of what looked like gold attatched to a piece of leather, some sort of alchemy. The band played and played, Ned Lagin and Phil did some noodling on the break. They came back and the room was humming louder as the ceiling flew away. We called out for another round...... oops wrong band but it still fits. I could SEE the space, the void, the morphogenic field. Funny how when you describe something like this the words slip iut from under you, though I can still remember the experience so clear. At the end of the show Weir said, see you next year with a brand new band.

Fast forward to 93 Cal Expo, some have reffered to this a s the last great run. TJ and I had just started going together. First set we stood by the soundboard and I watched the crowd give its energy to the band. It looked like Weir was standing  in the surf from my third eye vantage point. Wanting to sit down we moved to the back of the amphitheater into the stands on the set break, When the band played I watched them give back to use the venue looked like a big bowl filling uo with milk. Never has my third eye been so open. It took me 2 days to recover.

Here is the kicker: I didn't dose at either of those shows knowingly, maybe I got squirted but I don't think so.

There IS nothing like a Grateful Dead show!

[laughingwillow]

Now, picture the two shows mentioned, jrl, and throw a stiff dose into da mix.....

We caught the five shows leading up to the sacramento gigs in '93 and I really enjoyed the Oregon and No Cal vibes on that run, even though the last couple of gigs at shoreline did get a little intense for me..... hehe

I enjoyed the time we spent at Cal Expo in the late 80's. But for some reason, I felt a little claustrophobic in that venue on occasion. (And I like small spaces.) But I met some neat people there and even helped a brotha back into his body after a particularly grueling set one evening. Later, he told me that I had become the devil in his eyes that night. bwa-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha!

lw

[JRL]

I went to a couple 80s shows at the Cal Expo 86 and 88 I think. Another good one, that you see pics of alot was the wall of sound show at UN Reno. That was in 74 I think and the Dead couldn't sell out the stadium at that point.

[laughingwillow]

So, listening.....

I'm not sure we humans fully understand consciousness and all that entails. But I do believe that certain knowledge concerning nonverbal communication has indeed been passed down from generation to generation by various groups.

I believe that musicians on stage can form a psychic bond with audience members through the music played and sacraments ingested magnify that connection. Funny how one persons' church service can be another's party. I also believe that the whole is greater than the sum of its parts....  Something non-tangible takes place that isn't able to be described with words, imo. So I'll stop now and just listen.

lw

[laughingwillow]

quote from the Hindu Saint site linked above...In Hinduism, it is believed that certain individuals have developed spiritually to the point where they can lead others to liberation (moksha), or give them access to spiritual states either in this life, or after death. These teachers are believed to have special abilities, such as the capacity to give darshan (a transfer of blessings or spiritual power from guru to disciple via glance or mantra). In addition, some Gurus are said to be able to enter a disciple's dreams to give teachings or initiation. Sometimes the guru's gaze can cause a profound spiritual experience. Many students claim to sense a spiritual atmosphere around their teacher which affects their moods and perceptions in positive ways.

Blessings via mantra, eh? If a mantra is the chanting of certain sounds, we're getting awful close to the realm of music, no?

Teaching through dream state?

I see many similarities between the ancient beliefs quoted above and my experiences with the dead family.

Its here that spirituality meets music and active sacrament for some. Its also the point wherea  seeker might very well end up jailed for his/her foray into the spirit through sound and sacrament....

lw

[laughingwillow]

Anyway, back to listening...

Clearing one's mind of superfluous inner dialogue is required. For me that starts with dose management with a nod toward gastrointestinal management. I prefer to eat a light meal a few hours before show time; I don't want to feel bogged when the groove gets good. Depending on the sacrament, I like to dose about 45 minutes to an before the gig. After consumption of sacrament, I usually put myself into a light trance in preparation for the main event. Upon entering a venue, I usually end up wandering the floor, looking for a place to stash my shoes and sweatshirt. Its during this ritual that I usually start to feel the first effects of the sacrament in question. I begin to feel uncoordinated and antsy. Mingling through the crowd I imagine tendrils of consciousness mixing with those I pass on my random route. I usually find a spot on the floor with good energy before the music starts. Deep breathing and an attempt to slow my physical functions follows. Hopefully, by the time the first notes sound, my systems have been powered down sufficiently for the music to take over....

lw

[laughingwillow]

and then there are the first notes. For some venues, this is when the quest for the cleanest sound starts. For places we know, like the Philmore, I look for specific spots in my favorite listening area without talking audience members. (And that's getting tougher as we go.)

Most shows, I close my eyes. I can picture a cosmic electrical connection from the stage that plugs into the crown chakra. Thoughts become music, lyrics raw emotion. Music controls motion. Energy eminates and mingles with those nearby. The crowd becomes individual cells of a giant battery. Direct communication on a psychic level from the stage makes it difficult to decide if the music is playing or being played by the band. Reactions are instantaneous to the point that I might feel like I have some small input to the output....

lw

[laughingwillow]

Some nights, its the band and audience. Other nights, the spirit might make Its' presence known in a more tangible fashion. When the spirit comes knocking, I've learned its best (at least for me) to find a corner in which to curl, crown chakra always pointed at the stage. Remaining physically and mentally still is vital to this subtle communion, imo.  This is where fear has pounced on me in the past; where I've learned to remain steady in the present. The here and now. The hear and know. Where deep and haunting melodies are born and decay before our ears. Stillness reigns amid the chaos. Ego falls away. My body flushes with a peculiar fever before the cosmic pressure drops. The embrace is loosened. Boons granted. Insight gleaned. Deep breath while our immediate musical future is bandied about on stage. Usually the mood lightens and we can coast toward the set break, content.

lw