Pokémon [b][c] is a Japanese media franchise consisting of video games, animated series and films, a trading card game, and other related media. The franchise takes place in a shared universe in which humans co-exist with the eponymous creatures, a large variety of species which have special powers.
The franchise's primary target audience was children aged 5 to 12 [4], but it is known to attract mostly geeky adults and kids of all ages [I].
Pokémon is estimated to be the world's highest-grossing media franchise, with the video games in particular being among the best-selling. The franchise originated as a pair of role-playing games developed by Game Freak, from an original concept by its founder, Satoshi Tajiri. More
CALAPALOOZA: UC Berkeley's "Club Day"(Vincent Ooi) Looking back seven years at Cal’s Club Day, when students sign up for what interests them to get involved in campus community life.
Are there any all-girl acapella groups to join?
Summer is over. Everyone is back. This is the slow wind up to the beginning of instruction at the University of California at Berkeley (Cal), the world's greatest public institution of higher learning. Move in days just happened, and everyone is bracing for the full moon day of August as everyone returns to class and studying. Thursday, which is coincidentally also a lunar eclipse, marks a big event on campus: Calapalooza:
With over 1,400 student-registered organizations on campus, a student community is right around the corner. Learning a new skill, meeting like-minded friends, and discovering passions are only a few of the perks of joining a student club. Establishing these connections through activities that members have in common enriches the college experience. life.berkeley.edu
Bohemian Grove is a private campground covering 2,700 acres (1,100 ha) in Monte Rio, Marin County, Northern California.
It is the site of many bizarre rituals related to the occult, capitalism, initiation of the rich, influential politicians, businessmen, and other movers and shakers behind the scenes who control the USA. There are other such gatherings, like the Bilderbergers who get more attention. But so far as anyone can tell, The Bohemian Grove is still operating covertly.
Founded in 1878, it is owned by a rich, private "gentlemen's club" called the Bohemian Club. Each year in mid-July, the Bohemian Grove hosts an annual gathering lasting more than two weeks, attended by invited members and guests from politics, business, and the arts [1, 2]. More
UPDATE: We returned to the daily noon zazen (sitting session) and found it silent, powerful, and very uplifting. Ten assembled quietly on a Tuesday, seven on Wednesday, and the orientation really paid off. Many attend on their lunch breaks.
A group of seven meditators gathered Saturday morning at 8:40 am on Russell St. between MLK Jr. and Adeline at BZC. Zen Joe welcomed us into the Zendo for instruction, which is also online (Zoom). We were oriented on how to hold our hands, where to walk, where not to talk then got instruction on how to sit and hold ourselves erect. We got a short sit, walked out, came right back in for a full session of zazen.
After that, following last week's lay entrustment ceremony, Sue (Ju'en Soetsu), 83, gave a Dharma talk, with precious little Dharma and lots of pablum, ordinary chitchat, very down homey and a whole lot of air.
One was reminded of seeing Thich Nhat Hanh in one of his last visits to the Pasadena Auditorium, possibly his very last, articulating next to no words, just giving darshan, uncomfortably, with 5,000 or so onlookers hanging on his every exhale, singing songs, feeling so very in the moment, smiling, settling...until Thay finally made the point that "a flower is composed out of all non-cloud elements," an instruction meant to show [the impersonal nature of] emptiness (shunyata, anatta) that all we take to be so special about flowers is actually water from clouds, nourishment from mud and atmospheric gases, solar radiation, and so on. All that disparate stuff gives us flowers, just as the Five Aggregates give us living beings, who rarely if ever realize they are ultimately only that. One had to think, unless one had been inducted in the Zen cloud of not expecting anything, "Is that all there is, Cristina?"
Instead here, when Sue made some uber-generic observation, one of the helpers signed at the magnificence of the simplicity of her utterance. When we set up no expectations, it's hard to be disappointed. When we do, watch out. Some men in the audience of 40 tried to ask some deeper questions, Sue brushed them off as if she had been studying how to be a difficult Zen interviewee. "Yes," she answered to a multiple-choice question about the meaning of life. "Will you ever answer my question," the audience member persisted, "Yes."
"Will you do it now?" - "Don't worry about it," was her retort to the gleeful squeals of others in the know. Linda Roshi, the committee-selected BZC abbess of the last two years, gently nodded as if in approval. "What are we here but body, breath, and brain [mind]?" she asked rhetorically then quoted Woody Allen of all people, "Showing up is 80%."
More heads nodded, and all we could think was, "This is a 'Dharma' talk?" Someone was viewing it on Zoom, so maybe it's recorded for anyone to review. We asked Zen Joe afterward, "Was that a normal Dharma talk?" He shrugged his shoulders and answered, "Yeah, pretty typical."
"Some say that to speak of the meaning of the coming from the West is already wrong."
"People these days all make unconcern an understanding. Some say, 'There is no delusion or enlightenment: it's not necessary to go on seeking. Even before the Buddha appeared in the world, before Bodhidharma ever came to this country, it could not have been otherwise. What's the use of the Buddha appearing in the world? What did the Patriarch still come from the West for?"
All such views -- what relevance do they have? You must have greatly penetrated and greatly awakened: then as before, mountains are mountains, rivers are rivers, in fact all the myriad things are perfectly manifest. Then for the first time you can be an unconcerned person." - Roshi Reddit
We think that if we were to ask Sue what she meant, she would rightly say to us, "Don't worry about it."
BZC now offers Zen meditation instruction and orientation every Saturday morning, at 8:40 am. Visit BZC at 1933 Russell St., Berkeley by the Thai Theravada temple, next to the library.
BZC shares how we meditate and also some details about how to move around in the zendo (meditation hall) and join services (bowing and chanting).
After orientation, participants are welcome to join the next period of zazen in the zendo (9:40 am) and a lecture at 10:15 am. The Saturday program ends at 11:30 am.
There is no need to sign up. ALL are welcome!
Online instruction is no longer offered live. Please check out the link to Sojun Roshi’s instruction. Or explore the Teachers Page to make an appointment for a one-on-one zazen instruction.
ABOUT: Hakuryu Sojun Roshi (Mel Weitsman) began to practice at San Francisco Zen Center on Bush St. in 1964. In 1969 he was ordained by Suzuki Roshi as resident priest at the Berkeley Zendo. He received Dharma Transmission from Suzuki Roshi’s son and successor, Gyugaku Hoitsu, at Rinsoin Temple in Japan in 1984 and was officially installed as abbot of the Berkeley Zen Center in 1985. Along with his responsibilities in Berkeley, Sojun Roshi helped train students and teachers at several affiliated temples. From 1988 to 1997 he served as co-abbot of the San Francisco Zen Center. He gave Dharma Transmission to numerous students... More
Come join us in celebrating the Buddha's birthday, enlightenment, and final nirvana. Chanting, food, tea, and blessings, everyone is welcome.
On Saturday, May 9, 2026, we celebrate Vesak, a day to commemorate the Buddha's birth, mahabodhi, and parinirvana.
Hopefully we will become more aware of the fact that we are intrinsically the same as all buddhas and thus will be inspired to use the Buddha’s teachings, his Dharma (Doctrine), to help ourselves and others.
Caltrans removes Junipero Serra statue from Interstate 280 rest stop on the Peninsula
(KPIX | CBS NEWS BAY AREA) Oct. 7, 2025: Caltrans has quietly removed a statue of [colonizer and Catholic saint] Junipero Serra from Interstate Highway 280 on the Peninsula, and the move is reigniting a debate over the 18th-century missionary's legacy. Brad Hamilton reports.
Junipero Serra statue vandalized at California mission
(KSBY News) Nov. 3, 2017: Junipero Serra statue vandalized at California mission (again). [Why would any Indigenous (American Indian) mind a legacy of rape, ethnic cleansing, erasure, and genocide? Come on! It's American history and the legacy of European invasion, colonization, and Spanish conquest. It's Manifest Destiny. It's the will of God against savages to promote and elevate the White Man who cometh onto these shores to plunder and elevate everything to his liking.]
The offending naked part (the "savage" penis) was scratched off by moral vandals long ago.
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(KPIX | CBS NEWS BAY AREA) How dare an artist depict the genocide of the American Indians by the planting of infected blankets for all to see! What if kids see it and start asking questions, uncomfortable questions about ethnic cleansing and the United States' ongoing genocide? Is censorship better?
(KTVU FOX 2 San Francisco) The property manager has told tenants it plans to paint over a mural at 41st Street and Piedmont Avenue depicting interaction between Ohlone Native Americans and Spanish settlers. Critics of the artwork point to nudity and alleged insensitivity in the mural.
His nudity is historically accurate, but is that any reason to be naked?! Yes, we think it's a great reason. The mural depicts the Catholic missionaries coming to enslave, rape, and ethnically cleanse the Natives from the land. No one wants to see facts like that where schoolkids might see it and start asking questions that buck the system.
There is a good life, that of a nomadic hippie -- free as the wind (no savings), enjoying free love, doing whatever one wishes whenever one wishes, feeling good, dropping chemical-assistance anytime (haunted by addiction). That may have been true in the 1960s and 1970s; it is less true now. There's a superficially similar but much better life, that of wandering ascetics like the Buddha, Mahavira, and others in the sramana movement. What is the difference? Underlying motive. Both may be spiritual seekers, but only one is likely to make any progress. Why? Vice and drugs make one possible, whereas the other relies on virtue and restraint.
The word śramaṇa is pronounced /shra-ma-na/ like the English word shaman, a wandering aiming for spiritual development through simplicity, voluntary poverty (relinquishing everything), and often penances or austerities in the misguided attempt to subdue "sin" and evil and develop virtue and self-restraint. Of the many schools and teachers at the time of the Buddha that rebelled against the devotional functions of temple priests (brahmanas), only three seem to have survived to today, Buddhism, Jainism, and wandering yogi sadhus.
Trash recipes
Assortment of dumpster diving finds (wiki)
If one is going to eat "trash," and we do not recommend it, put drugs and drug paraphernalia away, put down the phone, tell pimp or madame you will call them later, and dive into a dumpster, preferably in a group with someone holding a flashlight. Panhandling is a better option, as is eating things growing naturally from trees as well as wild edible plants from the park or other public places. There are always also charitable organizations offering food. But all those sources having failed (and people will usually give food even if they refuse to give change), pick clean greens. Avoid all meat and dairy. Give everything the sniff test. Keep any food found in cool place, which should be easy in SF because it's usually cold at night. Boil over burning dumpster fire or one of those hobo oil barrels. Do not boil a shoe or old boot as that provides no nutrition and is likely to have toxic industrial products, plastics, dyes, and dioxin. Ask a John or Jane to cook or to offer food. Stand by the exit of a restaurant and ask for leavings before customers trash them. Seek public social services. Get a side job at a restaurant that doesn't mind employees eating extras. Finally, pretend you're in lockup, jail, or prison and consider all the jailhouse delicacies crafty and creative inmates dream up. By the addition of crumbled potato chips (which are full of deadly acrylamides in the best of circumstances) seems to make anything palatable. Avoid sugar (particularly high fructose corn syrup) and glutens (wheat, barley, rye, oats, and buckwheat, all of which have very harmful plant lichens that destroy the gut lining and lead to deficiencies, according to Dr. Joel Wallach).
A better way to be a nomad: wandering asceticism
The śramaṇas [a] are people who labor, toil, or exert themselves for some higher or religious [spiritual] purpose [1, 2], a "seeker, or ascetic, one who performs acts of austerity [tapas]" [3, 4, 5, 6].
Looking down on UC Berkeley and SF
The śramaṇa tradition includes primarily Jainism [7], Buddhism [8], and others such as the Ājīvika [9, 10].
The śramaṇa religions became popular in the circles of alms-gathering mendicants from greater Magadha (the adopted home of the Buddha) that led to the development of spiritual practices [11], as well as the popular concepts in all major Indian religions such as saṃsāra (the endless cycle of rebirth and suffering) and moksha (liberation from that cycle) [12, Note 1].
SF is very liberal and full of compassion
The Śramaṇic traditions have a diverse range of beliefs, ranging from accepting or denying the concept of an eternal soul, fatalism (that all things are preordained) to free will, idealization of extreme asceticism (penance) to that of family life, renunciation, strict ahimsa (non-violence), and vegetarianism to permissibility of violence and meat-eating [13, 14]. More
Los Angeles’s collapsing streets: a city in crisis as the homeless take over block by block
(Discovery Globe - Life Documentary) Aug. 2, 2025: HOA KỲ. In this urgent street documentary, let's explore the reality behind the headlines as Los Angeles homeless communities grow larger, block by block.
Glittering Hollywood: The Home of Dreams
Once known for ambition, sunshine, and opportunity, L.A. (aka Tinsel Town) is now recognized as a city in crisis, where LA's collapsing streets reflect deeper problems beneath the surface.
What was once temporary has become "structural" (systemic, a permanent problem)—an unfolding homeless crisis USA in one of America’s most iconic cities.
Captured throughout LA at night, this footage reveals a hidden world shaped by urban decay, growing encampments, and the visible homeless takeover of sidewalks, parks, and business zones.
With each passing week, more areas fall into block by block takeover, changing how the city looks, feels, and functions.
As poverty in LA surges and public service systems strain, the reality of LA's decline becomes harder to ignore. The rise of LA's tent cities in every direction—from Skid Row to Venice Beach—signals a long-brewing social collapse of California now erupting in plain sight.
These changes aren’t isolated; they form part of the broader seedy side of America, where prosperity and suffering share the same streets.
The crime in LA increases alongside the growing instability. As emergency services struggle to respond, parts of the city are left with little protection or support. In many places, urban decay LA defines the new normal, where infrastructure breaks down and basic needs go unmet.
Through real interviews and firsthand footage, we trace how the LA homeless population adapts, survives, and expands amid the chaos.
This street documentary does not seek blame—but rather seeks understanding. From the fall of LA's collapsing streets to the expanding takeover, the footage examines how long-standing economic gaps, housing shortages, and social fragmentation have fueled the homeless crisis now overtaking the West Coast’s largest metro area.
By highlighting the interconnected issues of poverty in LA (and California's second city, San Francisco), the social collapse of California, and the USA's decline, this documentary invites reflection on what the future holds—not only for LA, but for urban centers on the edge.
The images of LA at night tell a deeper story—one of resilience, desperation, and the urgent need for systemic response.
📌 Please note: Thumbnails are crafted to capture attention and spark curiosity. They are designed creatively and may not always represent the video’s full content. We appreciate understanding and hope viewers enjoy what we’ve put together. This video is intended to provide insights for educational and informational purposes only. The content draws from a variety of sources—news articles, forums, social media posts, and public commentary—and aims to present a range of perspectives. While we make every effort to ensure reliability, this is not an official or definitive source. We encourage viewers to cross-check facts, explore multiple viewpoints, and remain thoughtful and discerning when engaging with online content.
📌 This video does not aim to attack or judge any person, group, or country. Instead, our goal is to foster meaningful reflection and learn from the complexities of real-world events. #homeless #homelesscrisis #homelessness #losangeles #california
Maya, the Illusion of the Self: Alan Watts will transform YOU
(Simply Art - Inspire) May 2, 2025: Alan Watts unpacks the ancient concept of Maya — the illusion of the self (The Matrix) — in this 27‑minute remastered talk, set to soothing meditation music and complete with accurate subtitles. Discover how our sense of “I” is shaped by thought (thing) patterns, why letting go of the selfish ego can open us to deep peace, and practical insights for seeing through what is really an illusion.
What is maya? It literally means "illusion," "magic," or "appearance" [1, 2, 3] but has multiple meanings in Indian philosophies depending on the context. In later Vedic texts, māyā connotes a "magic show, an illusion where things appear to be present but are not what they seem" [2, 4], the principle which shows "attributeless Absolute" as having "attributes" [3].
Māyā also connotes that which "is constantly changing and thus is spiritually unreal" (in opposition to an unchanging Absolute, or Brahman), and therefore "conceals the true character of spiritual reality" [5, 6].
The Mahayana (Hindu-Buddhist) way of saying this is to state that self and all other phenomena are empty (Śūnyatā).
Alan Watts, when there was a Zen boom, provided explanations and answers for Westerners wishing to understand Eastern philosophy and The Way, be that the Buddha's eightfold path or the Tao or the marga as found in the Vedas and Hinduism.
Alan Watts (alanwatts.org), KQED; Eds., Wisdom Quarterly
Once upon a time there was a three-day music festival. That time was June 16, 17, and 18, 1967, at the Monterey County Fairgrounds in Monterey, California [1].
The festival is remembered for the first major American appearances by the Jimi Hendrix Experience, the Who, and Ravi Shankar, the first large-scale public performance of Janis Joplin and the introduction of Otis Redding to a mass American audience.
Artsy flyer for the giant music event
The festival embodied the theme of California as a focal point for the [hippie] counterculture and is generally regarded as one of the beginnings of the "Summer of Love" in 1967 and the public debut of the Hippie, Flower Power, and Flower Childrenmass movements and era [2].
Because Monterey was widely promoted and heavily attended, featured historic performances, and was the subject of a popular theatrical documentary film, it became an inspiration and a template for future music festivals, including the Woodstock Music and Art Festival two years later.
Rolling Stone publisher Jann Wenner said, "Monterey was the nexus; it sprang from what the Beatles began, and from it sprang what followed" [3]. More
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