Khājeh Shams-od-Dīn Moḥammad Ḥāfeẓ-e Shīrāzī (Persian: خواجه شمسالدین محمد حافظ شیرازی), known by his pen name Hafez (حافظ Ḥāfeẓ lit. ’the memorizer’ or ‘the keeper’; 1325–1390) or Hafiz,[1] also known by his nickname lesān-al-ḡayb (‘the tongue of the unseen’),[2] was a Persianlyric poet[3][4] whose collected works are regarded by many Iranians as one of the highest pinnacles of Persian literature. His works are often found in the homes of Persian speakers, who learn his poems by heart and use them as everyday proverbs and sayings. His life and poems have become the subjects of much analysis, commentary, and interpretation, influencing post-14th century Persian writing more than any other Persian author.[5][6] (Wikipedia.org)
New Thinking Allowed with Jeffrey Mishlove Apr 12, 2026 James Tunney, LLM, is an Irish barrister and author of The Mystery of the Trapped Light: Mystical Thoughts in the Dark Age of Scientism plus The Mystical Accord: Sutras to Suit Our Times, Lines for Spiritual Evolution; also TechBondAge: Slavery of the Human Spirit, Human Entrance to Transhumanism: Machine Merger and the End of Humanity, and AI-Govnerveance: Care and Possession in Dustopia. His most recent book is Trotsky vs Jesus: Battle of the AI-Millennium. His website is https://www.jamestunney.com/ James explores the deep mystical roots of the Carmelite Order, tracing its lineage from the prophet Elijah on Mount Carmel through centuries of Christian contemplative practice. He examines key figures such as Teresa of Ávila and John of the Cross, highlighting themes like the “dark night of the soul,” divine intimacy, and the interior experience of God. Tunney reveals how Carmelite spirituality integrates discipline, symbolism, and inner transformation into one of the most enduring mystical traditions in the Western world. 00:00:00 Introduction 00:02:02 Overview of Carmelite mysticism 00:06:06 Mystical foundations and Tunney’s path 00:08:30 Carmelite tradition and western mysticism 00:11:42 Mount Carmel and Elijah symbolism 00:18:13 Interior experience of the divine 00:24:24 Teresa of Ávila and John of the Cross 00:28:10 Dark night of the soul explained 00:37:14 Levitation and mystical phenomena 01:12:30 Conclusion New Thinking Allowed host, Jeffrey Mishlove, PhD, is author of The Roots of Consciousness, Psi Development Systems, and The PK Man. Between 1986 and 2002 he hosted and co-produced the original Thinking Allowed public television series. He is the recipient of the only doctoral diploma in “parapsychology” ever awarded by an accredited university (University of California, Berkeley, 1980). He is also the Grand Prize winner of the 2021 Bigelow Institute essay competition regarding the best evidence for survival of human consciousness after permanent bodily death. He is Co-Director of Parapsychology Education at the California Institute for Human Science. (Recorded on March 20, 2026)
Associated Press Apr 12, 2026 Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán conceded defeat on Sunday after what he called a ″painful″ election result, ending 16 years in power for a powerful figure in the far-right movement allied with U.S. President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin. Subscribe: http://smarturl.it/Associ
CBC News Apr 12, 2026 Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán conceded defeat to opposition leader Péter Magyar on Sunday after what he called a ‘painful’ election result, ending his 16-year reign. The powerful figure in the far-right movement was allied with U.S. President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin.
DW News Apr 12, 2026 Hungarian opposition leader Peter Magyar is set to form the next government in Budapest after incumbent Prime Minister Viktor Orban conceded defeat in an historic election. Early official results showed his Tisza party leading across the country. Orban described the result as “painful” and confirmed he had congratulated his rival. The outcome could reshape Hungary’s relationship with the European Union and NATO, and has major implications for Ukraine, where Orban had repeatedly blocked EU support. His defeat also sends shockwaves through right-wing political movements globally, including allies of US President Donald Trump and Russia’s Vladimir Putin. Magyar campaigned on tackling corruption and restoring democratic institutions, while promising to repair ties with European partners. Our correspondents report from both campaign headquarters as Hungary enters a new political era. 00:00 Orban concedes defeat 00:24 Magyar’s campaign on corruption, the Ukraine war, and EU ties 00:42 What we know so far 01:11 Orban camp reaction with DW Correspondent Ferenc Gaal 05:30 DW Correspondant Fanny Facsar from celebrations in the center of Budapest. For more news go to: http://www.dw.com/en/
“The knower and the known are one. Simple people imagine that they should see God as if he stood there and they here. This is not so. God and I, we are one in knowledge.”
“Die before you die” is a spiritual and psychological concept—often rooted in Zen, Sufi, and Christian mysticism—meaning to voluntarily surrender your ego, false identity, and attachments while still alive. It implies letting go of the fear of death, overcoming the illusion of separation, and discovering your true, eternal nature or consciousness. Reddit +4
Key Aspects and Meanings:
Ego Death: It is the voluntary shedding of mental conditioning, personal history, and the rigid sense of “I”.
Letting Go of Attachment: It involves releasing possessions, beliefs, and expectations to live without fear.
Experiencing True Nature: It is a moment of profound insight, similar to meditation or a “near-death” perspective, where you realize you are consciousness itself rather than just a physical body.
Living in the Now: By releasing the past and future, you focus on the present moment, increasing the ability to live freely.
Usage Examples & Context:
Eckhart Tolle often uses this phrase to explain that “death is a stripping away of all that is not you”.
In life transitions: When facing significant loss or letting go of an old life, this phrase represents finding peace by surrendering control.
Meditation/Mindfulness: A user on a Reddit thread described this as seeing one’s own ego vanish, as mentioned in.
Spiritual Practice: A Sufi saying often interpreted as: “Before you die, you must die,” which encourages seeking spiritual awakening before physical demise, as explained in. Reddit +4
Common Synonyms & Related Phrases:
Surrender the ego
Letting go of the false self
Ego death
Spiritual awakening/transformation
Surrender the illusion of separation
Living in pure awareness Reddit +3
Essentially, as one user suggested, it means navigating life with the wisdom that you are not just your body or mind, thereby losing the misery associated with fear and greed. Facebook
Pleroma (Greek for “fullness”) is a theological and philosophical term representing the totality of divine powers, essential in Gnosticism as the spiritual realm of light, and in Christian theology as the fullness of God in Christ. It signifies a state of complete, divine perfection, contrasting sharply with the void or the flawed material world. Merriam-Webster +2
Pleroma in Gnosticism
Definition: The “fullness” of being; the perfect, spiritual realm of divine light and the dwelling place of the Aeons (divine emanations).
Significance: It is the source of all divine emanations, existing before and beyond the material world, which is created by a lesser, ignorant deity (the Demiurge).
Goal: Gnosticism teaches that humans contain divine sparks from the Pleroma and seek to return to this divine fullness through gnosis (knowledge).
Pleroma in Christian Theology
Usage: Used 17 times in the New Testament, notably by St. Paul to describe Christ’s divine nature.
Meaning: Represents the fullness of divine excellencies and powers, particularly the fullness of God dwelling in Christ (Colossians 1:19, 2:9). Merriam-Webster +2
Pleroma in Jungian Psychology
Interpretation: Psychologist Carl Jung (via Gregory Bateson) adopted this term to describe the non-living, undifferentiated world.
Opposite: In this context, it is contrasted with creatura, which represents the world of living creatures, differentiation, and subjectivity. Fandom
Symbols and Nature
Symbolism: Often symbolized as the “eternal uncarved block” or a pure, radiant matrix of all possibilities, void of the imperfections of material form.
Opposites: The antithesis of Pleroma is kenoma (the void, emptiness) or the material, created world (the Demiurge’s realm).
A lost, shining example of 70’s socio-futurist wondering, Upwingers is a stirring manifesto. Real proclamations are hard to find in this day and age of sound bites and half-hearted cynicism. See why the Village Voice called F.M. Esfandiary “a man so rational, so articulately confident, that he emanates a kind of ultimate optimism–the triumph over alienation and irrationality.” He deals in possibilities; he makes the unknown his favorite subject and with Upwingers, he makes the future a revolutionary rendezvous
FM-2030 (October 15, 1930 in Brussels – July 8, 2000 in New York) was an author, teacher, transhumanist philosopher, futurist and consultant.[1] FM-2030 was born Fereidoun M. Esfandiary (Persian: فریدون اسفندیاری).
He became notable as a transhumanist with the book Are You a Transhuman?: Monitoring and Stimulating Your Personal Rate of Growth in a Rapidly Changing World, published in 1989. In addition, he wrote a number of works of fiction under his original name F.M. Esfandiary.
The son of an Iranian diplomat, he travelled widely as a child, living in 17 countries by age 11, then, as a young man, he represented Iran as a basketball player in the 1948 Olympic Games[2] and served on the United Nations Conciliation Commission for Palestine from 1952 to 1954.
