My name is Joshua Nash, which is no indication of who I really am. Originally from Nashville, I transferred to Buncombe County in 2006 to begin Religious Studies at Warren Wilson College. The Buddha's teachings came into my life by way of my engagement with music as mystical experience (hearing jazz's avantgarde, Bach, Shankar, to name a few big ones), to make a long story short. Those initial teen-aged curiosities have blossomed beyond belief, and only continue to grow in interest of freeing myself and all life. As this leg of the path at WWC winds to an end in December, I am excited in seeing what is over the ridge: Urban Dharma and the challenge/privilege of "changing minds and transforming cities." Viewing my own wavering mind over these 8 years of Buddhist education and practice, through times of greater or lesser regularity, I realize that this is no easy mission-- indeed, seemingly impossible. However, we could not have a nobler task. What could be more important than discovering for ourselves and with others our true nature and living joyfully in our interdependence? With that as motivation, this project in building community is a once-in-this-lifetime opportunity. Ashevillians, visitors, newcomers and seasoned veterans alike will come to Urban Dharma to learn ways to ease suffering, clear the mind, find simple enjoyments (friends & tea), and keep ignorance at bay. My wish is that this center kindles my own aspiration to free minds, and that it instills such ambition and compassion in the hearts of all who come to see, hear, and be themselves.
JN: Great profile. Hope you will have the opportunity to stick around Asheville to see for yourself, and be part of, what's over the ridge. I am intrigued by your entrance, perhaps entrancement, to Buddhism through music, especially Bach. There's actually something special about Bach's and other Baroque music's affect on the human brain--my father did some research on this, and the repetitive nature of this style can put the mind in "alpha" a relaxed state conducive to creative brainstorming. For me, I just get blissed out. Now when I listen to Bach, I will listen with my fairly newly discovered Buddhist ears. It's great to have you as part of this growing and developing sangha.
ReplyDeleteSo, in short, you're an anarchist-skater-dharma punk.
ReplyDeleteNailed it. ;-)
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