About the Author

Updated as of 2/17/2017

Hallelujah 🙂

This site exists to serve you!  The Buddha says, “Put no head above your own.” Meaning, seek the truth directly.  What you’ll find on this website is spiritually oriented, reflecting on learning from personal experiences as well as the intellectual understanding of spiritual teachings, to be confirmed via direct experience.

By all means, go for the direct experience.  At the same time, having an intellectual understanding of what the direct experience might be is helpful – so here I hope to provide a little bit of both.

As far as seeking the Truth via direct experience, some of the initial experiments I partook in included:

• 7 days of blindness
• 7 days of water-fasting
• 7 days living as homeless on the streets of New York City with my brother
• 6 months living without using money
• 30 day yoga teacher training immersion
• 14 day meditation teaching training immersion
• 9 months in an ashram as a part of a service exchange program (serving 30 hours a week in exchange for room and board and a small living stipend)
• 5 months raising a baby (my nephew)
• 5 months serving as an employee in ashram
• 5 months serving as overnight support for an elderly woman
• a whole host of 30 day challenges…

Perhaps most valuably, I’ve spent the last few years immersed in spiritual study and living around people who had the great fortune of knowing a realized master.  I’m well-versed in the work of Dr. David R. Hawkins as well as Swami Satchidananda, and also studied Jesus, Buddha, Ramana Maharshi, Sri Nisargadatta Maharaj, Mother Theresa, and Gandhi.  All are great teachers and testimonies to the truth that sets us free 🙂

So, my intention is to serve the Highest Good, and in this case that service comes from sharing direct life experience as well as intellectual understanding of the great teachings.

I am here to serve and uplift the consciousness of humanity by living the truth to the best of my ability and sharing whatever feels appropriate to share – being open to the Divine Grace.

Sri Ramana Maharshi says, “The greatest service you can render for humanity is your own Self-Realization,” meaning that our spiritual growth and liberation is a greater service than anything we do in the physical plane, so primarily when I write it is because it feels natural, spontaneous, and really serviceful for my own processing and understanding, and by God’s Grace it may serve you too.

At times it may look like I’m writing in an attempt to teach, but really it is more like me just reminding myself of some of the truths I’ve been exposed to and know to be true but have challenge sincerely living in alignment with the teaching – so I write them down again!

You might say this blog is more just like a public journal, and if it serves, so be it!  Always happy to serve.

If questions arise, please feel free to contact me or ask.

Very grateful and honored by your Presence. Thank you 🙂

Glory to God in the Highest!

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Updated as of 3/23/2014

Hallelujah!

So grateful for this Present Moment 🙂

Anyway, the simple life is the good life…or at least…that’s kind of what I’m exploring.  The more we simplify our lives, the more we can connect with what really matters most to us, and the more we open ourselves up to our experiencing the Truth of Reality and perhaps the consciousness of the universe.

My name, meaning the name of the physical body writing this ;-), is Brad, but you can call me Whatever You Want.  I’ve considered changing my name to Thankyou Loveyou Congratulations, initials TLC, but for now the name’s still Brad.

To sum up the story briefly…

Grew up in an awesome family, went to a great high school.  Personally was super materialistic and ‘lacked’ personality / charisma / any distinguishing characteristics, so of course I made up for that by purchasing absurd clothing like bathing ape and an abundance of flashy sneakers, hoodies, and way too many pink button downs.  The materialism continued through college until I read a book about Gandhi in which was mentioned the ascetic ideal, which suggests that the best life is the life of minimal material possessions, which resonates with the Bible when Jesus says, “Store up your treasures in Heaven, where neither moths can decay nor thieves can break in and destroy.”  I began a process of giving away all of my ‘nice’ clothes and shoes and started wearing the same pear of jeans, a white v-neck, and a blue hoodie every day.

From a class titled Politically and Socially Engaged Buddhism, I learned about the idea of a Street Retreat – being homeless for a period of time to grow in empathy with the homeless.  Having worked with the homeless and being a sucker for new, extreme experiences (previous to this I had fasted for a week and blindfolded myself for a week), I decided that I’d go on a Street Retreat shortly after graduating from college.

About a month after graduating, I found myself homeless in NYC with my brother, Rob, who is a mother-flippin’ champion and I’m so grateful for him…ahhh so grateful :-).  After the homeless experience, I realized more fully that the best things in life are free, just like the Beatles say.  I proceeded to live without using any money for about 6 months, practicing lots of meditation and yoga and connecting with nature and life and just trusting my intuition and going with the flow.  “Peace is Every Step” was my mantra through much of this journey.  All you have to do is think Peace, and you’ll be good 🙂

After living for a while without using any money, I decided to return to Cincinnati for the winter holiday season, and there I gained some more clarity on the life path and enrolled in a yoga teacher training at Satchidananda Ashram, aka Yogaville.  Totally abundant community.  Ah so in love with that place.

So for a while I was very opposed to the idea of working for money.  The Street Retreat opened my eyes to how so many of people are enslaved by money, and won’t even give a dollar to a person begging in the streets, alas.  My perspective on money has evolved and last summer I even worked at summer camp, receiving money in exchange for my services.  Crazy thing…trading your life for pieces of paper.  Good news though, the camp, Merrowvista (woohoo 222), part of the American Youth Foundation, is totally loving and abundant and a great place to be, and my experience there affirmed that you can indeed exchange your services for money and still be doing incredible work in the world and aligning with your core values.  Working for money does not necessitate that you compromise the core of who you are (woohoo 444!).  You can, Hallelujah!, align with your heart and serve and receive money in exchange for your good work.  So money ain’t all bad after all 😉

The rest of my time I spend praying, affirming, intending, expressing gratitude, meditating, practicing yoga, reading, writing, juggling, laughing, dancing, singing / chanting, practicing mindfulness, going slowly, studying personal growth, reflecting on life, seeking clarity, and doing what I can to spread joy.  Going with the abundant flow is one of my favorite activities.

Long-term projects I’m working on include writing a book documenting some of the more transformational experiences of my life, including the Street Retreat.  Also, I’d like to attain a certain level of mastery in the fields of meditation and personal growth so that I can more abundantly raise consciousness and awareness and serve the Highest Good of ALL 🙂  (The language in the previous sentence courtesy of Steve Pavlina, who is the Flippin’ Man!)  I’m also thoroughly enjoying creating an abundance of audio recordings that contain some of the more valuable lessons I’ve learned.  And I say learned… but really…learning is tough!  Learning, as I’ve heard, is behavioral change.  So, I can say I’ve learned a lot, but rarely does it result in behavioral change.  Alas, words.

Some of the most influential people in my life, many authors of either books I’ve read or videos I’ve watched on YouTube or listened to on an iPod include Gandhi, Jesus, Buddha, St. Francis, St. Thomas More, Mother Teresa, Martin Luther King Jr., Abraham Lincoln, Terence McKenna, Napoleon Hill, Earl Nightingale.  Those are the ‘deceased’ ones who I’ve spent a lot of imaginary time with 🙂 (2 of the 3 videos linked above in this paragraph I have watched many many many times…one of them over one hundred times…they are great :-))

As for the living teachers…Steve Pavlina!  Ahh he’s so abundant.  Leo Babuata, author if Zenhabits.net, another totally abundant human being.  Thich Nhat Hanh, ahh beautiful buddhist monk.  Deepak Chopra, Wayne Dyer, Eckhart Tolle, David Hawkins.  Sean Stephenson.  Eban Pagan / David deAngelo.  Neil Strauss.  Tony Robbins. Brian Tracy.  These are all people who have helped teach me a thing or two and been part of the journey of liberation from the material world and discovering the conscious universe and the abundance that is everywhere.  Ahhh so grateful for this people 🙂  And yet, I haven’t written any of them a thank you note, except for Steve, kind of.  Especially considering that in the past I’ve ‘downloaded’ many of their audio programs ‘without paying for them’, the least I can do is write them a thank you note.  Perhaps I should get on that…

So many great human beings.  So many awesome teachers.

Oh, of course, two of the greatest teachers…Baja and Tux.  Two dogs that have occasionally ‘enlightened the sh*t’ out of me.  Nothing like being in the Present Moment 🙂

Ultimately, it comes down to happiness.  And happiness, thankfully Hallelujah! :-), does not come from the material world.  Because the nature of the Reality is far more than just material, and the best things we’ve been given in life are free.  We’ve got the Gift, the Kingdom inside us.  The Mind if Magnificent.  Consciousness is Amazing.  When we realize these things and awaken to our own Awesomeness, we’ll start living more joyous, abundant lives that are co-creating all sorts of wonderful in the world 🙂

And, favorite word? Hallelujah! 🙂

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You’re undoubtedly awesome for the simple reason that you are here and now.  We are all incredible and living in the midst of a miracle.  On that note,  Hallelujah!

If there is anything I can help you with, please let me know.

Peace!

A friend also once said to me, “You’re like the opposite of a menace to society.”

My dad also shared, “You’ll make a great 80 year old.”

In past lives you might have called me a Nose-picker, Video Game Champion,  Porn Addict, eBay Addict, Drug Dealer, Drug User, Meathead, Frat Star, Depressed Frat Star, Personal Improvement Fiend, Poetry Buff, Class Clown, and then…I graduated!  And the Love for Wisdom and Beauty of Creation has continued to grow in me.  Thankfully, experience taught me that the best things in life are truly free.
p.p.s.  To share with you a bit more about my experience and where I am now…

What serves a function in my life now and presumably forever is Love.  So long as I go forth in Love, One provides, and for that – I am most grateful!  Hallelujah 🙂