Teachings about freedom from the Upanishads & Patanjali. How we might view the creation as a play?

Shakespeare and life's drama and the value of going backstage.

All the world's a stage, and all the men and women merely players; they have their exits and their entrances.

This is the ability to speak without any interference or restriction from within ourselves. To help with this we will consider the four states of speech as described in Vedic philosophy.

Dialectic is the examination into the truth of an opinion. It was the tool that Socrates used in his unrelenting search for truth. The process of dialectic can give freedom from false assumptions, attitudes and prejudices.

Myths are messages of a metaphysical kind. One recurring theme conveyed in myth is that of the returning hero. It is universal and found in many cultures. Myth tells in story-form the hero's journey out of a state of forgetting or captivity back to their true state of freedom. In the process, the hero is tested and with each heroic act gains in wisdom. The myth is an outer depiction of what is really an inner journey.

Do we have the ability to choose the mental and emotional approach that we bring into our actions?

In this session, we’re going to consider the subject of emotional energy and its relationship to freedom.

Ficino's three guides for life: Principle, which has been long and carefully tested. Experience, strengthened by long practice. Authority of those ancients who could not have been easily deceived by anyone.

One of the things that is most necessary is to gain freedom from the tyranny of 'I', 'me' and 'mine’. The tyranny takes place where there is a strong identification with 'my anger' etc. It is impossible not to experience anger at times but it does not have to become a tyrant.

The word Ubuntu means humanity. The concept of Ubuntu embodies an understanding of what it is to be human and what is necessary for human beings to grow and find fulfilment. It is an ethical concept and expresses a vision of what is valuable and worthwhile in life.