In this episode, I discuss some points from the book Flow: the psychology of optimal experience, by Mihaly Csikszentmihaly. I focus on the traits of the autotelic personality, my own experience with flow, and the transformation that came from reflecting on the question: Is this all there is? I talk about how we come to create meaning in our lives, my screenplay: The Suicidal Penguin Club, my past experiences with suicidal thoughts, friends who have committed suicide, and how there is always hope and the possibility of changing our attitude, thinking patterns, and beliefs. I mention a quote by Kurt Vonnegut, and a poem by Dylan Thomas, how both relate to living in an autotelic manner and being driven by the life force. I discuss one my short film Fotograma, how I became sober, and how much I've evolved since I made that decision. I believe we are all malleable, and can always improve. I bring up symbols, the ways we place value, the Montessori method, and how important it is to maintain a self-driven attitude throughout your life. Perception alters reality.

In this episode, I discuss two chapters of the book Yoga and Health, by Selvarajan Yesudian and Elisabeth Haich. I focus on respecting the body and the instincts, and how to bring the mind in harmony with the body in order to become whole and live in a higher plane of existence. I talk about the difference between real hunger and civilized appetite. I explore the great temptation, shame, and what it means to eat of the tree of knowledge of good and evil, what it means to sin against nature, against your body, and the natural order and design. I look at free will, pleasure, the way humans turn instinct into an end of itself, and how we subordinate our intelligence to the service of our instincts. This episode is centered on food, nutrition, keeping your thoughts positive, and how to love your body and develop it to become a vehicle for the manifestation of the spirit so that we can live for the highest good.

In this episode, I discuss a quote from the book Antic Hay, by Aldous Huxley, which gave me the inspiration for the name of this podcast: The Crystal Quiet. I have managed to turn this Crystal Quiet into a haven and a home for myself. I also talk about Aristotle's Poetics, as well as the passive and active parts of the mind, and what happens when they coalesce. I mention some strategies I have found to be helpful when it comes to quieting the mind and bringing it to stillness. I bring up Erich Fromm and Herman Hesse in order to discuss fear vs. love, and as a way to study the dualities of life and transcendence. Mainly, I focus on what happens when you pay attention to what you are doing, what it's like to be truly present, and how it feels to do something just for the sake of doing it, without any other intention.