Basecamp for Men E86: The Path of Initiation

E86: The Path of Initiation with Special Guest Hunter Toran

 

E86 Introduciton

In episode #83, The Myth of the Grail, I brought forth some of the initiatory themes that lie at the heart of the Grail. Living a life that is marked by initiation is one that allows a person to grow “slowly wise” to use the words of Wolfram Von Eschenbach.

In every persons life, there are countless small initiations and usually a few big ones. The big ones are marked with a big “BEFORE” and “AFTER” signs in your soul’s journey.

It can be a good exercise to take out a notebook and mark out your initiations large and small. It can help you see your Hero’s Journey with more clarity.  I like to mark the initiation in one column and what you learned or how you are different now in the other column. And then ask yourself, what initiations still await my arrival?

To broaden your scope on this, a list of initiations might include things like getting your drivers license or having your parents get divorced when you were young. It definitely would include leaving home for good or the first time you fell in love. Something like military bootcamp is clearly an initiation. Moving to a strange city or country is also an initiation. Anything that marks a clear before and after for the soul qualifies as you will learn much about yourself and where you are going through these trials and tribulations.

I have spoken of my big initiations from time to time but I will mention a few of them again here. Like I said,  it is good to know your own. To know when your Soul found a deeper, more truthful song for you.

For me, moving to NYC was an initiation. I had never even been there when I arrived and had grown up my whole life in the PNW. New York was a strange, powerful, scary new land where I would find new parts of myself that I didn‘t know I had. I became gutsier and more confident because of it.

Another big initiation, as you all know,  was doing the Mankind Projects New Warrior Training. This was a clear “before Tony” and “after Tony”. I came out with a chestful of new tools: a mission I created (and then lived), knowledge of the male archetypes and how to access them, a deep appreciation of the tribe of men and my place in it. MKP gave me a Warrior’s fire and a container to express it. I would never go back to the overly nice, people-pleaser I was when I was younger. Between NYC and the New Warrior Training, I was finding all sorts of newfound inner power as a man.

The next big initiation was becoming a father. I was scared shitless waiting for Lucas to be born. All new fathers feel this (although few will admit it). It is an absolutely awesome, terrifying initiation to be brought into. My son arrived like some tiny force of nature. Divine, powerful, full of raw feeling and powerful vocal chords. He let me know, in no uncertain terms, that my old life was over. It has been a big, incredible initiation. One that I am grateful for every day.

My sobriety was another initiation for me. I know this is true for any addict or alcoholic who has taken on his or her recovery. Quitting drinking 8 years ago changed me. It was an initiation that I was never quite sure I was up to until one day it just happened. I stopped and I didn‘t die. And in my soul, I could feel the excitement that accompanied this new me. I knew it would lead to a hundred new great things if I could just stay with it. And it has! You’re listening to one of the gifts that was awaiting me once I crossed that threshold.

And my marriage to Lisa has certainly been an initiation. In a long-term relationship, you don‘t have anywhere to hide. Oh, you can try and I certainly do. But a life partner or soul mate will bring your love to a new level. It often won’t look the way you would like it to look but the alchemy of a long-term relationship is undeniable. You bring your strengths and your short-comings (we all have them) and you ride life’s ups and downs together, learning the whole way.

What initiations still await me? I can see as men grow older, we are forced to deal with loss. Becoming an empty nester, when your last child leaves the house is certainly an initiation. And losing your parents and other loved ones and friends will be a series of painful initiations as we grieve for what is passing. This all helps to bring us to our final initiation (at least in this body and in this dimension). Our own passing.

If we have grown slowly wise, as Parzival did, then each initiation will ripen and prepare us. We will arrive at our final initiation full of wisdom and grace, rather than regret and fear.  Through all of the changes and passing seasons and lessons and wisdom and grace granted, we will come to our own death with a recognition of what does not change. God bless you on this journey my listener. I am happy to be on this journey with you.

Hunter Toran Bio

Hunter Toran is a Somatic Educator and Therapist within the discipline of Spacial Dynamics and other Somatic practices. Hunter performs individual therapeutic sessions and  group workshops on the entirety of the human experience through conscious movement here in Seattle.  Most recently Hunter has begun to dive deeply into ‘men’s work’ to support containers that see the evolution of the divine masculine as imperative to the survival and development of humankind.

E86 Final Thoughts

I hope you enjoyed my interview with Hunter Toran. To book a session for one of this excellent Spacial Dynamic sessions or to find out more about Hunter’s workshops, go to www.levitytherapeutics.com

Basecamp for Men E84: Health as Your Foundation

Wood background

E84: Health as Your Foundation with Special Guest Janell Hartman   E84 Introduction I hope you are all well. I wanted to start off by saying that I loved what Howard Ferguson said at the…

Basecamp E82: The Myth of the Grail with Tony Rezac

E82: The Myth of the Grail with Tony Rezac

 

E82 Introduction-

Why does the myth of the Grail still enchant us? What is it about it? Its instruction, its hidden meanings, its mystery? As you begin to engage with this myth, something starts to stir in you. If myths carry information and transformative images over time and generations, then this one packs a punch.  You can tell as soon as you start to step into it.

I found this episode to be a daunting task. This myth is mighty and commands my respect. I sense all the powerful beings that are connected to this story. My best option, and the one I took, is to approach it like Parzival, the innocent fool who becomes the hero of the story. Step into the myth in an unsophisticated way and allow it to shape this communication with you.

We must remember that a myth is a living entity and exists within every person. You will get the true, living form of the myth if you can see it as it spins away inside yourself. When working with a myth, it is good to keep in mind that the characters are representatives of all the various levels of consciousness or parts of ourselves as we seek to put ourselves back together. The boundaries between literal and psychological, inner and outer, symbolic and actual, part and whole, microcosm and macrocosm- become very fluid and porous…..

I hope you enjoy the episode!

Tony

Basecamp for Men E80: Spiritual Guidance for Men

E80: Spiritual Guidance for Men

 

E80 Introduction-

Hello dear listeners. Here we arrive at the conclusion of our second season and what a season it has been. However, Chris and I will NOT be taking a break and will continue to bring you fresh episodes every Tuesday.

My website guy Corey and I will make some different categories for the episodes to live under, making it easier for listeners to find episodes on the topics that most resonate with them, knowing that not all topics will be of equal interest for you. We will also divide up episodes by seasons as well.

My intention was to run a season for 40 episodes or so and then take a short break but I don‘t feel ready for a break quite yet. We have some great interviews lined up and I want to continue to speak with you. Hopefully, there will be time later this year for a short break for Chris and I.

Part 1-

I had the wonderful experience recently of connecting with a good friend and he asked me how the podcast was going. I said great but that I recently was banned by Twitter, had episodes removed by Apple, and even had Google put a banner over Basecamp for Men warning visitors that they are entering dangerous territory.

I told my friend that I found myself in some controversial terrain in recent weeks starting with the episode I did where I was asking Dr. Jennifer Marugulis questions about vaccines. To the episodes we did on the Great Awakening and the Q phenomenon.

I continue to be proud of these “Red Pill episodes”. I believe they will stand the test of time and age well. I really do. I have no intention of altering them or removing them. I don’t see the point as they serve to point to you to something. In an ironic twist, these red pill episodes have been the most downloaded episodes. Go figure.

It‘s funny, I have seen all sorts of things about Q in the mainstream media. 60 minutes and CNN and more. And those reports are so full of lies and misconceptions about what Q is and what the value is for WE THE PEOPLE. Completely off base but again, that is to be expected, isn‘t it?

I never set out to be a right-wing conspiracy podcast and I still don‘t consider us as such. This show is still, at its core, about humanity. It’s about men and masculinity and finding new narratives and tools that will help elevate us. I am simply seeking to serve WE THE PEOPLE and the awakening of our tribe.

When you change your philosophy or political orientation or find new terrain that is in alignment with your heart and your truth, it can be challenging. Old friends may find your new ideas to be threatening or wrong-headed or foolish. Such is the way of things.

If we are going to walk the talk of aligning with the truth, the letting go process will have some growing pains. To anyone who feels I have betrayed them in this Hero’s Journey, it was not my intention to have it be this way. I would love to take all my friends from all stages of my life along for the ride…….but that is not the nature of a Hero’s Journey. Like Frodo and Sam, you take a small fellowship down the faint trail and face the truth from there. The process of letting go and travelling light is difficult for most of us. I know it can be for me.

Part 2-

So, what is coming in season three? I wish I knew man! I have some pretty good ideas of what may be unfolding but it is, in every sense of the word, in God’s hands. We will continue to speak with guests about what is happening in the world. Some of these likely get categorized as “Red Pill episodes”.  So be it.

Additionally, seems to be something interesting going on in the Divine Masculine/Divine Feminine balance and we will explore that with great interest. My next guest is author and Jungian Anne Baring and I can’t wait to speak with her. It should be a great episode.

The topic of UFO’s is knocking at our door, both literally and figuratively. I will be researching some guests and unique and insightful angles for that. It’s a juicy topic that has been floating around the fringes but seems to be asking for a bit more attention right now. I’m curious as to why that is.

And we’ll continue to explore relationships via our talks with psychotherapists and spiritual growth with teachers and thought-leaders in those areas.

We‘ll also ask some of our dear friends and guests that we love to come back again to dialogue with us. And we’ll continue to offer the short format Firestarters for Men when I want to simply speak with you directly. They are useful when I don‘t have a guest lined up and don’t want to bother Lisa to do another one!

All of this should add up to a great season three!

Part 3-

One thing that has emerged at the end of season two is new service I am offering men. As you all know, I have spent the past fifteen years leading and participating in men’s groups. Some of you have sat in these circles over the years.

I will no doubt be leading some sort of men’s groups in the future. But things are a bit murky as to when that is happening  and what that looks like. You will be hearing updates on men’s groups here as we start to feel the pull to circle up again.

So as a way to offset the lack of group work, I am offering one-on-one spiritual counseling for men, with a focus on life renewal. What is spiritual counseling?  It is a partnership between you and I where I hold a non-judgmental space for you to show up however you are. From there, we will work with insights, wisdom, and tools that have come out of the men’s movement and group work, customized for you and the next important chapters of your life.

Who would benefit from such calls? Maybe a man who feels stuck or depressed or is hitting a mid-life crisis. Or maybe a man who’s energy is low and he doesn’t know why. Or a man who is not inspired and is just going through the motions. Or someone who wants to make a change and doesn’t know how to go about it.

If you have hit a phrase and thought “what the hell do I do here” and you have no one to dialogue with, I can most certainly help and I would be honored to be your guide.

The intention of these one-on-one Zoom calls will be to identify the obstacles that are keeping you stuck in your current pattern and to use any number of tools to get forward movement and upliftment happening and to do it in as fast a way as possible.

If our intentions are clear, then any man who steps into a partnership with me will feel supported and inspired by his upcoming chapters. Your story is not all told and I can help you discover positive movement towards chapters that hold promise, inspiration, and dignity.

You can find more information about these one-on-one sessions at either tonyrezac.com or basecampformen.com.  If you are ready to get started, simply fill out a contact form and I will get back to you within 48 hours.  Or you can email me directly at tonyrezac@mac.com.

E80Final Thoughts-

I am excited about what is unfolding in the human tribe. The Great Awakening of WE THE PEOPLE continues with great momentum. Basecamp for Men will continue to chronicle this in our own small way. Men are finding their courage, that much is clear. Courage to face ourselves. Courage to let go of habits and ways of seeing that no longer serve us. Courage to lead with our hearts and our heads. And the courage to view other men as allies instead of adversaries. Even when our worldviews are quite different.

We are collectively moving the Hero along the storyline and what has more dignity than that?

I thank you listeners and I look forward  to sharing the exciting journey that will be season three and 2021.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Basecamp for Men E78: The Path with Heart

E78: The Path with Heart with Special Guest Scott Wyman

 

E78 Introduction-

I would like to start by thanking a dear friend of mine, Roger Songster. Roger, your text message really helped strengthen me this week so thank you for that.  You’re a true friend.

I have found that when you follow your Hero’s Journey and commit to living your deepest truth, it doesn’t always come as a celebration to those that are closest to you. This is part of what makes it heroic. You leave what is familiar. This inevitably takes us away, sometime far away, from the familiar faces and viewpoints and identities of where we have come from and where we have been.

I didn’t think when we started Basecamp for Men that it would be such an important  chapter in my life. I have learned just as much as you have about this emerging tribe we are calling WE THE PEOPLE.

Of all the things I have tried and done, I think writing and hosting this podcast has been my favorite endeavor. I never thought it would bring me this much satisfaction. I just love it! It feels like a culmination of all my life experiences and all the things I have read and researched all rolled into one expression. That and I get to interview incredibly wise and kind-hearted people like my guest today.

Scott Wyman Bio-

Scott Wyman has been a passionate student of the spiritual path for over 40 years. A psychotherapist for over 30 years he as come to blend western psychological insights with ancient teachings that have stood the test of time, using practices that go directly to the source of our suffering, connecting the highest truth of our Soul with the darkest aspects of our shadow.

E78 Final Thoughts-

A couple of final things. If all this talk of meditation as a tool for your own growth and development has piqued your interest and you like Scott as much as I do, go sign up for his upcoming 3-day online meditation retreat on March 5-7that www.scottwyman.comThis will surely be a great retreat for beginners and advanced students alike. Let Scott know you heard him here on the show.

And Scott recommended a beloved meditation teacher and author from Vietnam named Thich Nat Hahn.  His book Being Peace is considered an absolute classic in most spirituality circles.  I have a number of his books in my library and they all contain great wisdom.