Don’t Kill, Don’t Steal, Protection, Don’t Lie and Don’t Blackout

When blogger and nightlife impresario Ladyfag recently suggested that I blog about my experiences in meditation and nightlife and the arts, I had just came back from a two week meditation retreat and was in a NYC club in the above outfit, I thought “Well, that’s absurd!”

To further explain my thoughts at that moment, what I found most ‘absurd’ was the idea of combining my spiritual practice with the debaucherous events that occur in clubs and bars once the majority of the city goes to bed in a blog.  No one wants to hear that!

That same night while I was headed home in a taxi, feet throbbing, drenched in sweat and reeking of cigarette smoke, teeth mildy chattering from too much red bull, I rethought the idea.  The fact is that I had been living this life all along and keeping it balanced this way. Genius Jewish Canadian goddess Ladyfag.

The truth is that I often get the question, “How do you balance a spiritual practice in meditation and then go out and promote and party all night long?”

First off, I have to admit that while I was first exposed to meditation some fourteen years ago in Thailand as a teenager, I am not an expert and do not follow any particular sect of buddhism.  Throughout the years I’ve pulled from various techniques from great teachers, have studied in school and have taken many courses to develop and evolve the practice I have today.  I am also quick to admit that at the end (or beginning) of the day there is no intellectual way to meditating correctly, it is just forcing your self to NOT MOVE and training oneself to do it repetitively.

It is truly the nature of meditation to not rely on book knowledge.  No amount of reading or studying will help you get a deeper understanding of yourself and gain compassion.  Similarly in the nightlife, no amount of facebook stalking will train you on knowing the whose-whose’s or the how-how’s of being able to cross the velvet rope any quicker unless you go out every night and party.

So let’s get to stepping, in buddhism there are precepts or recommendations that one can practice that will help you on your practice.  The first five are for one to consider abstaining from (1) harming living beings, (2) taking things not freely given, (3) sexual misconduct, (4) false speech and (5) intoxicating drinks and drugs causing heedlessness.

Now, before I lose you, The Reader, note that these are only recommendations and that I, myself break at least one a week.  There are an additional five precepts that would prepare you if you were considering the monastic life but that is far from what I am focusing on.  On a side note, in the Theravadan tradition, monks are recommended to follow some two hundred and twenty seven precepts.  So we are all lucky that this is all we need to be considered a layperson.

I like to think of them as: Don’t kill, Don’t steal, Protection, Don’t lie and Don’t blackout.  Just try to follow these while you are keeping on and carrying on during your night out and it will be a beautiful experience.  On this particular night at Greenhouse I broke just one, when asked if I was working the club, I lied.

Please continue to follow me, my beautiful readers as I offer advice on cultivating your spirit and cover the most exciting parties, fashion and art events in New York City and throughout the world.

Lots of Love,

Alberto