B-SCAN 101: Blogging on Self, Culture, and Nature

Integral theory can be summarized as a theory on self, culture, and nature. I started this blogsite a year ago with passion and compassion to share the wisdom of the Integral Theory. Overtime it naturally evolved/devolved into a ranting space, cyber alter-ego, mnemonic device, and a very useful tool in meeting other people, whether in meatspace or cyberspace. Since then it had become an important part of my integral transformative practice. I blog more than meditate. I find the practice of blogging both fun and challenging, and a great way to learn new things. Like journaling it's also therapeutic, yet more engaging because blogging also means connecting and linking--in hyperspeed. In journaling you are limited to your own perspectives. In blogging it's your perspectives and the collective's.

There are three main genres of blogsites: diary, politics, and technology. These genres map perfectly into Integral Theory's self (diary/journal), culture (political), and nature (technology/technical). However, these genres are just generalizations. From writing/recording the entry (self), to publishing (nature), to audience reading/listening/watching with understanding (culture), blogging has all the dimensions of self, culture, and nature, whether bloggers and blog readers are aware of it or not. It is with this premise that I'm starting a new category: B-SCAN (Blogging on Self, Culture, And Nature). B-SCAN is a series of interviews (via email or chat) with bloggers who include blogging as part of their integral transformative practice, and with bloggers who are "consciously" aware of the impact of blogging on self, culture, and nature, "integrally informed" or otherwise. B-SCAN will attempt to draw out a sampling of each blogger's interiors, and externalize them in this infinitely small hyper-connected corner of the Kosmos known as the blogosphere.

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Running B-SCANs:

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12/06/2004: B-SCAN with Matthew Dallman -- Matthew Dallman is a composer, author, poet, independent scholar, and teacher. He has released several albums of original compositions, and composes for independent films. Matthew's approach is to compose for social, serious, and sacred music settings, through use of funk, fugue, and flash sonic structures. His primary instrument is his voice and his Spanish, nylon-string acoustic guitar. His music has been performed in various venues in Milwaukee, St. Louis, Minneapolis, St. Paul, Boston, New York City, Boulder, and Chicago. He blogs his heart and mind at the Daily Goose and Momentary-I.

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03/06/2005: B-SCAN with Vince Horn -- Vince Horn is a student of two worlds--the Absolute and the Relative. A few years ago, he realized that he couldn’t separate these two worlds out, and hence was impelled to learn how to navigate both. This divine impetus recently led him to Boulder, where he works part-time as a webmaster for Integral Institute, is finishing his undergraduate degree in the Religious Studies department at Naropa College, and is a dedicated student of the liberation practices that Gautama Buddha taught (especially as they were passed down through the Therevadin tradition, i.e. Vipassana meditation). He also recently started Generation Sit, a group blog focusing on spiritual practice in the 21st century. Vince’s ultimate ambition is to become a no one, so that he may better serve, what Rudolf Otto called, the Mysterium Tremendum. That and blogging about all the Numinous Non-Sense along the way!

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04/20/2005: B-SCAN with Jim Paredes -- To those of us who had the opportunity of growing up in the Philippines, the name APO Hiking Society is forever indelibly etched in our psyches. With a musical career spanning more than three decades, and still going strong, the group APO is already an institution and has become synonymous with OPM (Original Pilipino Music)--"they have performed in over 50 cities in the United States, in Canada, Singapore, Indonesia, Germany, Switzerland, Italy and Japan to bring Original Pilipino Music to Filipinos the world over." APO is composed of three talented members, Danny Javier, Boboy Garrovillo, and Jim Paredes, who when put together become a super group greater than the sum of their personalities. Their secret? No sex.

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07/17/2005: B-SCAN with Victoria Lansford -- Make no mistake about it, Victoria Lansford is a super-mom; no, make that super-woman; no, make that super-human. When she’s not busy spending quality time with her son, Skyler, or burning the midnight oil in her studio while deeply engaged in metalsmithing, or organizing integral salons, or bellydancing, or doing Salsa "on the floor," she still finds time to blog her heart out, underwears and all. Nakedly treading on both domains, which are seemingly dominated by men – blogging, and integral theory/practice –- Victoria bares forth her unique and much-needed feminine perspectives for all sentient beings to learn from, laugh at, cry over, and to simply get to know the interior behind the exterior known as “V.” I’m deeply honored to have her as the first babe woman in this B-SCAN series.

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11/12/2005: B-SCAN with Ottmar Liebert -- Ottmar Liebert is an accomplished virtuoso guitar player who started a sub-genre called Nouveau Flamenco. Since 1990 he has recorded with his band, Luna Negra.

Recently, after coming back from his European tour, he graciously spent some time answering the questions for this B-SCAN interview series, covering such topics as technology, creative commons, integral theory, spirituality, life, and creativity.

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02/19/2006: B-SCAN with Brian Johnson (a.k.a. CEO+Philosopher of Zaadz) -- Brian Johnson is a dashing, young, hot and compassionate entrepreneur whose passion includes “understanding and living the universal truths while inspiring and empowering people to live at their highest potential.” After his first successful venture as Founder and CEO of eteamz, he embarked on a journey of self-discovery by traveling around the world while studying philosophy, psychology, mysticism, and optimal living. This hiatus planted in Brian the “seeds” that he eventually used to put his passion into practice. The result is a new and upcoming social networking site “with a purpose.” It’s called Zaadz (it’s Dutch for seed).

Brian recently took a break from his busy schedule and graciously spent time for this B-SCAN interview. During this interview, he talked about being a philosopher, a CEO, blogging, the history of Zaadz, the amazing Zaadz team, the direction where Zaadz is headed, and the challenges that lie ahead.

Warning: Brian’s optimism is contagious and fun. This has got to be the most hyper-linked B-SCAN interview ever. Very fluffy.

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04/06/2006: B-SCAN with Rebecca Blood -- If there's indeed a Kosmic Blogging Goddess, Rebecca Blood is her incarnation. She's been blogging her heart out way back since 1999 when there were only a handful of "webloggers" experimenting with the new medium. She's a blogger with a passionate mind and compassionate heart, the author of the classic The Weblog Handbook, which has been called 'the Strunk & White of blogging book', was chosen by Amazon as one of the 10 best books on digital culture in 2002, and has been translated into 5 languages – a must-read for all bloggers who want to learn how to "blog it down the bones."

Rebecca's Pocket is an icon to veteran denizens of the blogosphere. When Rebecca is not hyperlinking, she's out there changing the world one speaking engagement, one conference, one forum, one article, one interview, one "targeted serendipity" at a time. Recently, she was kind enough to take some time and grant me this email interview. We talked about her personal experiences, her visions about the blogging medium, and the philosophy that fuels her passion. She's living proof that one doesn't need to have a complicated theoretical philosophical system to express compassion in the cyber and the real world.

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more to come....

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Tagged @ Ma.gnolia with: bscan, blogging, bloggers, fluffy, b-scan, ~c4chaos, ~c4無秩序, kosmicbloggers, matthew dallman, vince horn, jim paredes, victoria lansford, ottmar liebert, brian johnson, rebecca blood, self, culture, nature, philosophy, passion, compassion