Salka Wind Blog

Posts on the Andean Cosmovision

Search results: "ayni" (page 3 of 8)

Wildflower Seeds — Workshops — Europe

Tossing salka seeds into the wind.

As part of my (self-directed) participation in the poetic salka movement on this planet I have written this blog, and a book, and have given presentations at academic conferences, and have taught several hundred Andean (salka) meditation classes and workshops in Utah. I would like to also offer presentations, classes, and workshops in other areas of the country and other places on the planet. The only way I can think to nourish this happening is to let you all know that I am available and interested.

Part of the cost in having me come to your area is the expense of transporting me there. But if I happen to be in the neighborhood anyway…..

This August my wife and I will be vacationing in Europe. I would love to connect with waikis in Europe while we are there. If you would be interested in arranging for me to give a presentation on the Andean Cosmovision, or an Andean (salka) meditation class, or a short workshop, please contact me at info@SalkaWind.com. I can let you know the types of presentations/classes/workshops  I offer and if you are interested we can talk dates, logistics, and ayni.

Thanks waikis!

P.S. My academic vita can be found in this blog on the page Oakley’s Vita.

P.P.S.  The poetic salka movement on the planet was founded by don Américo Yábar and don Gayle Yábar who deserve all of the credit for the beauty of the path they have shown me.

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Contents (By Category)

The Book: The Andean Cosmovision

I created this blog as a place to publish rough drafts of the various chapters that would become my book:  The Andean Cosmovision:  A Path for Exploring Profound Aspects of Ourselves, Nature, and the Cosmos.  When I had enough material I selected which posts to include in the book, rewrote them, added a few more chapters, and put them in an order that made (artistic) sense to me.  The book is better but it is important to me that the material remain available for free in this blog.  I would love it if you bought my book as it creates ayni (the Andean concept of reciprocity) into our relationship; anyi flowing back from you to me in reciprocity for my sharing what I know of the Andean Cosmovision, and also ayni between our culture and the Andes, for I have been sharing half the profits from the book with the people of the Andes.

Articles and Papers

These should, perhaps, be included in the “Integration with the Western Worldview” section below, but they are tied to the stories in the section above.

The Meditations

I lead you through a few of these meditations in the Podcasts.

Podcasts

Integration with the Western Worldview

There are two aspects to our exploration of the Andean Cosmovision.  The first aspect is actually entering that way of experiencing reality.  The second aspect is how to then integrate what we find there with our lives back here in the West.  In the following posts I share some of the thoughts have found useful in integrating the Cosmovision into my Western worldview.

Feeding Our Intellectual Mode of Thought

Caressing Our Intuitive Mode of Thought

Sharing with Others

Personal

Thread A: Paths to the Other Side of Reality

This post is a continuation of Thread A and is pretty much what I have been working up to in that thread.  My goal is to shed further light on the Andean Cosmovision by viewing it within the larger context of various other paths that lead into the other side of reality.  I usually don’t step out of my path to compare it to others as I know them less well.  I would like to apologize ahead of time if I do not adequately or accurately portray the path you are on.  In any event I hope that you find this post interesting or useful or both.


In the post The Other Side of Reality I developed the idea that we do not consciously experience reality itself, we experience instead a neuronal representation of reality created by our mind, brain and sensory organs. This representation can be thought of as a map of reality, and like all maps it corresponds to the territory being mapped yet at the same time it is fundamentally different than, and much less than, the territory. The territory, reality itself, exists beyond all of our thoughts and concepts and perceptions. I refer to this essential “suchness” of reality as “the other side of reality”.

Our consciousness is the observer who experiences our representation of reality.  It is possible to turn off our mind/brain’s process of representing reality and when we do our consciousness becomes directly aware of reality itself. When we do this we turn our eyes away from the shadows cast by puppets on the wall (ala Plato’s Cave) and walk out into the ineffable, sacred, beauty of the Cosmos. Over the millenia many paths have been developed in many cultures for reaching that state.

In the post The Guardian of the Threshold I defined our “ego” as all of the thoughts, concepts, and beliefs we have about ourselves. Our ego is not who we are, it is our map or representation of who we are. We exist as Beings, however, beyond all of the thoughts and beliefs we have about ourselves. Just as the essential suchness of reality is ineffable, beyond all thought, and ultimately mysterious, the essential suchness of who we are is ineffable, beyond all thought, and ultimately mysterious.

A major challenge we face when we seek to experience the other side of reality is that when we endeavor to turn off our map of reality we are also turning off our ego. Our ego tends to respond to this as if it were facing death. In mystical approaches this is known as the little death, the (temporary) death of the ego, as compared to the big death (our actual physical death). Like the computer HAL in the movie 2001, the ego does not take the prospect of being turned off very well. The ego responds with everything it can think of to stop us. Its main weapon is fear. In this way the ego, in mythological terms, serves as the guardian at the threshold to the other side of reality.

In this post I would like to take these two ideas–the nature of the other side of reality and the nature of the ego–and use them to differentiate three paths that lead to the other side of reality; the Path of Knowledge, the Path of Power, and the Path of Heart. While the Andean Cosmovision cannot be encompassed with words or understood through thought, my intellect (yachay) likes to have some idea of where that-which-is-beyond-thoughts might fit into the scheme of things.  It is with that in mind that I would like to share the following reflections.

1) Mystics and the Path of Knowledge. The goal of the mystic is to turn off the brain/mind’s interpretation (map) of reality. When this happens our consciousness gets to know (in a purely experiential, not intellectual, way) the other side of reality. The other side of reality cannot be put into words. “The Tao that can be talked about is not the Tao” (Tao Te Ching). When mystics do attempt to describe the mystical experience their words point at that which is beyond words. The concepts of time, and of the universe being made up of separate objects, are concepts, part of our brain/mind’s map of reality, rather than being a part of the essential suchness of reality that exits beyond our thoughts. Thus when mystics attempt to describe the mystical experience they speak of entering Eternity (a state outside of time) and they speak of being One with the Cosmos (of no longer being a separate entity). They also speak of experiencing the Sacred (which exists beyond any belief system).

Many mystical paths use meditation to achieve this special way of knowing reality. When I first entered the field of psychology there was a great deal of interest in the psychology of consciousness, altered states of consciousness, and meditation. The following was proposed as a way of understanding meditation. I am not sure it quite does meditation justice, but I have found it to be interesting at least.

Meditations generally fall into one of two categories; those that call for us to “focus in” and those call for us to “open up”. Focussing-in meditations involve attending to an unchanging stimulus, such as a mantra, or our breathing, or a flower. Opening-up meditations involve paying attention to all of the every-changing stimuli reaching our senses in the moment. In order to work properly our mental processes that create our representation (map) of reality rely upon a certain rate of information flowing into our minds. Focussing-in meditations (attending to an unchanging stimulus) underwhelm our map-making processes causing them to collapse, rather like a wind sock with no wind. Opening-up meditations (paying attention to everything at once), on the other hand, bring in so much information that they overwhelm our map making processes, also causing them to shut down. With either type of meditation, and extensive practice, we can learn to stop our process of creating a representation of reality and when that happens we become conscious of what is left, the essential, unprocessed suchness of reality itself. This is what I believe is pointed at by such terms as enlightenment, satori, buddhahood, etc.

It may take many years of dedicated practice to collapse our representation of reality. But along the way benefits arise. Our maps of reality tend to be self-reinforcing. Our map largely determines what we pay attention to and what meaning we assign to what we perceive, which then tends to reinforce our map, which then determines our experience of reality, and so on. My relatively limited experience on the path of the mystic is that when I am meditating, cracks (metaphorically) appear in my map of reality, light from the essential nature of the Cosmos leaks through, and my map of reality begins to change in ways that open me up to new ways of Being.

To touch the other side of reality requires that we temporarily put aside our ego. It is a challenge to put aside our concepts of reality and our concepts of ourselves when moving through our social world. Everyone we meet reinforces our concept of the world and our concept of self.  For this reason mystics often seek isolation, by going to meditation retreats, or even by becoming hermits. It is much easier to shed our society’s view of reality and of ourselves when we are outside of our society. The archetype of the wise old person living in a cave in the mountains comes from this path.

2) Shamans and the Path of Power. The term “shaman” comes from the indigenous culture of Siberia where it refers to people who have special powers that fall outside of our normal map of reality. The term has since been adopted by our Western culture and applied to people with similar powers in cultures across the globe. I am simply using the term here to refer to individuals who walk the path of power. The power might be used to gain information on the origins of a person’s health problems, or to retrieve lost pieces of a person’s soul, or to alter the energy of a person or a situation, or for other purposes that lie outside of our culture’s view of reality.

An important characteristic of power is that it is not inherently good or bad. Technology, for example, is a path of power and technology can be used to heal someone (e.g. medicine) or to kill them (e.g. nuclear weapons). How power is wielded, for good or bad, depends not upon an inherent characteristic of power but upon the values of the person wielding it. Shamanism is a path of power. Some people become shamans in order to have the power to heal others, to do good, to serve humanity. Other people become shamans to boost their ego, to feed their own self-importance, and to manipulate the world to their own advantage. In observing people who follow this path I note that some are loving and humble, some are creepy and have huge egos, and others are somewhere in between. Power is power, it doesn’t care.

How is it possible for someone to enter into the other side of reality and at the same time maintain a big ego? How is it possible to have the mystical experience of immersion in the essential suchness of reality and still maintain a materialistic and selfish approach to reality? The answer is that it is not possible. The path of power is not a path into the essential nature of reality that lies beyond all maps of reality. It is, instead, the development of a different map of reality, one that includes aspects of reality that fall outside of the map provided by Western culture. It is still a map of reality, just a different map, one that opens up new abilities and power.

My understanding of this has been shaped by don Juan Matus (a Yaqui spiritual guide) in the writings of Carlos Castaneda. Don Juan used the term “sorcerer” to refer to people who are on the path of power. To gain power a sorcerer needs to experience a completely different way of perceiving, being in, and interacting with reality. This is no easy task, and to survive the challenges that arise a person needs to have the impeccability of a warrior. Much of the earlier work of don Juan with Carlos was to help Carlos develop a sorcerer’s map of reality.

In don Juan’s worldview there is also a step beyond becoming a sorcerer, and that is to become a “man of knowledge”. Having two completely different maps of reality (our every-day map and the sorcerer’s map) makes it possible, for a sorcerer who so wishes, to transcend all maps and know the ineffable suchness of reality itself. Thus the path of power can eventually become a path of knowledge. For this to happen the ego would need to be dropped to get past the guardian at the threshold of the other side of reality.  According to don Juan, relatively few sorcerers choose to move on to become people of knowledge.  Those who take the path of power to feed their ego and sense of self-importance, or to gain advantage in the material world, would be actively moving away from what it would take to reach the other side of reality.

I often see references to the Andean Cosmovision as a path of power. Peru is a land of many paths and some are paths of power. I have heard don Americo refer to shamans/sorcerers in Peru as “brujas” (witches) but without the negative connotation the word carries in English. On several occasions he has arranged for brujas he respects to work on my energy. I have noticed that he hangs around as they do, I assume that he is monitoring the work to make sure it is beneficial, and I have indeed benefited from their beautiful work. I have also heard many stories of shaman/sorcerers (in Peru and in the West) who do great harm, either on purpose or through ignorance. Power doesn’t care whether it is used for good or harm, only the people on the path of power care (and some do not).

Another term I have heard applied to people on the path of power in the Andes is “layqa”. I believe layqas are the people that don Americo refers to as brujas and brujos. I have searched the anthropological literature to see if this is a correct use of the term layqa, particularly when compared to “paq’os” (described below). I view the academic literature with ambivalence. On the one hand it seems more reliable to me than second-hand information coming through Westerners, particularly as that information is often translated from Quechua to Spanish and then to English. On the other hand, academicians can be completely ensconced in the Western worldview and utterly and stubbornly oblivious to how the Andean Cosmovision may differ from the Western worldview. The bottom line of my research is that it seems layqa is more connected with power, power over nature and power over people, while paq’o has a different, more beneficent, connotation. We will consider paq’os next.

3) Paq’os and the Path of Heart. “Paq’o” is a quechua term that is usually translated into English as either “mystic” or “shaman”. Both terms apply a little and neither exactly fits (see the post Paq’os:  Shamans or Mystics). “Paq’os” and a “path of heart” go together and the latter defines the former, and so I will hold off on a definition of paq’o and develop instead the essential nature of the path of heart.

There are undoubtedly many paths of heart on the planet. I want to focus on the path of heart as I have experienced it during my twenty plus years of working with don Americo Yabar, don Gayle Yabar, and the paq’os of Peru. To what degree my experiences on this path correspond to other paths of heart I know not, but I suspect there are many similarities.

The Andean path of heart is the path of the munay. The munay is one of our three centers of being. It is located in the area of our heart and is the center of love. The love associated with the munay, however, is not an emotion. It has nothing to do with romance or sex or sentimentality or jealousy. It is, instead, the feeling that arises from experiencing our interconnectedness with the rest of the Cosmos, and this feeling is labelled with the closest word in English, which is “love”.

The path of heart is a path of interconnectedness, not as an ideal or a concept but as a process. As for how exactly to proceed along this path, well, I have written this blog and a whole book about it, and that is only part of what I could have said. I would, however, like to give a brief overview here, and perhaps that will be of interest even to those who have read my blog or book or both.

The main image or metaphor that comes to my mind for describing the path of heart is that it involves a certain way of dancing with the Cosmos. Dancing is an active process, something we do, and we are doing it in response to the Cosmos, which in turn is responding to our dance. The dance is, in other words, an active relationship with the Cosmos where we influence each other.

This dance with the Cosmos is made possible through a non-Western map of reality, the Andean Cosmovision. Within this way of experiencing reality the whole Cosmos is conscious. This includes, specifically and especially, the Pachamama (the great Being who is the planet Earth), Mama Tuta (the void, the night, who holds the stars in her embrace), the stars themselves, Tai Tai Inti (the sun), Mama Killa (the moon), the Apus (the Beings who are the majestic mountain peaks), the rivers that cascade down the mountains, Mama Cocha (the ocean), the trees, the stones, everything, including the Cosmos itself. They are all conscious, we can interact with them, we can dance with them, and if we make our dance with the Cosmos a work of art then our life begins to unfold in beauty.

Our steps in the dance are the “meditations” I have shared in this blog and in my book. They are not like the meditations of the path of the mystics, and I only call them meditations because I have no better term. These meditations provide a means for experientially exploring new and profound aspects of ourselves and of the Cosmos. While the meditations have value in themselves there are also beautiful effects that slowly emerge as we continue down this path. These effects arise naturally from the way the meditations allow us to connect to the consciousness of Nature and the Cosmos. This is beautifully stated in a quote from Eckhart Tolle (while not from an Andean perspective it fits nicely).

“There is a higher order, a higher purpose, a universal intelligence. We can never understand this higher order through thinking about it because whatever we think about is content while the higher order emanates from the formless realm of consciousness. But we can glimpse it, and more than that, align ourselves with it, which means be conscious participants in the unfolding of that higher purpose. In a forest, not a man-made garden, let go of thought, become still and alert, and don’t try to understand or explain. Only then can you be aware of the sacredness of the forest. And soon as you sense that hidden harmony, that sacredness, you realize you are not separate from it, and when you realize that, you become a conscious participant in it. In this way, nature can help you become realigned with the wholeness of life.” Eckhart Tolle, A New Earth, pp 194-195.

The Andean meditations change our relationship with Nature and the Cosmos. When a relationship changes the relata (the entities in relationship) change as well. My experience is that as I have learned to dance with the Cosmos in this new way that subtle and beautiful changes have arisen within me unplanned and unexpected. Don Americo calls these “kamaskas”, small initiations into a new way of being that arise when we align ourselves with the Cosmos. This unfolding of a new way of experiencing reality takes us closer to the other side of reality which begins to inform our experience of who we are.

The theme of the paq’os relationship with the Cosmos is service and the operating principle is ayni. To be a paq’o is to be of service, service to the community, service to the Pachamama, service to the Apus, service to the Cosmos. Ayni (the Andean principle of reciprocity…see the post Ayni) insures that the service is service and is neither servitude nor mastery. We neither dissolve and surrender ourselves to the Cosmos (the path of the mystic), nor do we attempt to coerce and manipulate the Cosmos (the path of power). We dance with the Cosmos and as we do we become realigned with the wholeness of life, and we find our salka.

 

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Oakley’s Vita

Academic Vita
Oakley E. Gordon, Ph.D.

Department of Psychology
University of Utah
380 South 1530 East
Salt Lake city, Utah 84112
801-581-4328
FAX 801-581-5841
Email: oakley.gordon@utah.edu

Education

B.S. Psychology.
University of Utah, 1976
Magna Cum Laude

M.S. Experimental Psychology
University of Utah, 1981

Ph.D. Experimental Psychology
University of Utah, 1984
Emphasis: Human Cognition
Commendation by supervisory committee

Academic Positions

Southern Utah University

  • Assistant Professor of Psychology 1986-1991
  • Associate Professor of Psychology 1991-1998
  • Professor of Psychology 1998-2001

University of Utah

  • Part Time Associate Professor 2001-2016
  • Career Line Associate Professor (Lecturer) 2016-present

Courses Taught

Courses Taught at the University of Utah

  • Research Methods in Psychology (undergraduate course)
  • Statistical Methods in Psychology (undergraduate course)
  • Quantitative Methods I & II (graduate courses)
  • Applied Statistics (graduate course)

Courses Taught at Southern Utah University

  • Statistics in Psychology
  • Cybernetics, Self, and Society
  • Models, Methods, and Professional Issues in Psychology
  • Experimental Research Design
  • History and Systems of Psychology (capstone course)
  • Surviving in a Technological Age (honors course, team-taught)
  • Eastern Thought for Western Thinkers (honors course, team-taught).
  • Mind, Body, and Health
  • Readings in Transpersonal Psychology
  • Andean Mysticism
  • Introduction to Psychotherapy (sections on Gestalt and Transpersonal Therapies)
  • Physiological Psychology
  • Cognitive Psychology
  • Abnormal Psychology
  • Personality Theory
  • Senior Seminar (capstone course)

Additional Responsibilities:

  • Director: Psychology Computer Lab, Southern Utah University (1986-2001).

Honors

  • Southern Utah University nominee: CASE National Professor of the Year Award, 1990.
  • Distinguished Educator, Southern Utah University, 1991-1992.

Current Research Interest

Andean epistemology as reflected in their Cosmovision and how this can expand our understanding of what it is to be human and inform our relationship with nature.

University Committees (Southern Utah University)

Elected Positions

  • Faculty Senator (1988-1991; 1993-1996).
  • University Leave, Rank, and Tenure Committee (1994-1995).
  • Chair of the University Leave, Rank, and Tenure Committee (1995-1996).
  • College of Humanities and Social Sciences Rank and Tenure Committee (1998-2001)

Appointed Positions

  • Chair of the Faculty Senate Publications Award Committee (1988-1991).
  • SUU Ad Hoc Computer Master Plan Committee (1988-1989).
  • Academic Computer Users Committee (1989-1995).
  • Provost’s Ad Hoc Committee on the Growth Model (1993).
  • Technology in the Classroom Committee (1994-1995).
  • Faculty Honor Lecture Series: Centennial Project. (1995-1996).

Other

  • Founded, wrote the policies and procedures for, and served as first chair of the SUU Institutional Review Board for Research on Human Subjects (1994-1995).
  • As chair of the University Leave, Rank, and Tenure Committee authored a major revision of the University’s policies and procedures.
    Served on numerous department committees.

Publications

  • Hansen, K. E., Malloy, T. E., Gordon, O. E., Rose, D., & Fleming, J. (1984). Nitrous oxide and cognitive set: Implications of an altered state of consciousness for creative problem solving. Imagination, Cognition, and Personality, 4(1), 85-98.
  • Malloy, T. E., Mitchell, C., & Gordon, O. E. (1987). Training Cognitive Strategies Underlying Intelligent Problem Solving. Perceptual and Motor Skills, 64, 1039-1046.
  • Gordon, O. E. A Review of Gregory Bateson’s “Steps to an Ecology of Mind”, (1989, July), Anchor Point: The International Journal for Effective NLP Communicators, 7-8.
  • Gordon, O. E. Pacing the Medical World. (1990, June), Anchor Point: The International Journal for Effective NLP Communicators, 1-7.
  • Gordon, O. E. (1992). Proposed Guidelines for Ethical Research in NLP.  NLP Connection: The Journal of the International Association for Neuro-Linguistic Programming, 7(1), 14.
  • Gordon, O. E. (1993). Reducing Faculty Burnout. The Learning Professor, 1(2), 1-2.
  • Gordon, O. E. (December, 1994). Policies and Procedures: Institutional Review Board for Research on Human Subjects. Southern Utah University Policies and Procedure Manual.
  • Gordon, O. E. (May 1995). What is NLP? A Brief History (Part 1). Anchor Point: The International Journal for Effective NLP Communicators.
  • Gordon, O. E. (1995, May). What is NLP? A Brief History (Part 2). Anchor Point: The International Journal for Effective NLP Communicators.
  • Gordon, O. E. (2000, Fall). Pedagogical Issues in Internet Education. AABSS Journal.
  • Gordon, O. E. (2001) A Therapeutic Relationship Between People and Their Geography in the Andes. Clio’s Psyche, 7(4), 184-185.
  • Gordon, O. E. & Malloy, T. E. (2002). Online Homework/Quiz/Exam Applet: Freely available Java software for evaluating performance online. Behavior Research Methods, Instruments, and Computers
  • Gordon, O. E. (2004, Spring). The Real Heart . Sacred Hoop.

Additional articles published in the Salka Wind web site (www.SalkaWind.com)

  • Gordon, O. E. (2003) An Environment Epistemology of the Andean People of Peru.
  • Gordon, O. E. (2005) Ayni.
  • Gordon, O. E. (2008) A Nobler Want.
  • Gordon, O. E. (2008) Andean Mysticism and Healing the Planet.
  • Gordon, O. E. (2008) In Search of Sami.
  • Gordon, O. E. (2011-present) I have written extensively about the Andean Cosmovision in the Salka Wind blog (www.SalkaWind.com/blog).

Custom Published Books

  • Gordon, O.E.  A Thoughtful Guide to Statistics (currently in its 5th Edition) . An undergraduate statistics textbook. Pearson Custom Press.
  • Gordon, O.E. Applied Statistics (currently in its 2nd Edition). A graduate statistics textbook. Lulu Press.
  • Gordon, O.E. The Andean Cosmovision: A Path for Exploring Profound Aspects of Ourselves, Nature, and the Cosmos. Gordon Press.

Papers at Conferences

  • Gordon, O. E. & Malloy, T. E. (1977, May). Consciousness, Meditation, and Human Information Processing. Rocky Mountain Psychological Association.
  • Malloy, T. E. & Gordon, O. E. (1977, May). An Incorporation of Consciousness Into the Human Information Processing Model. Rocky Mountain Psychological Association.
  • Hansen, K. E., Malloy, T. E., & Gordon, O. E. (1983, April). The Effects of Nitrous Oxide-Oxygen on a Mechanized Cognitive Set. Rocky Mountain Psychological Association.
  • Gordon, O. E. & Malloy, T. E. (1988, March). Emotive Imagery. Rocky Mountain Psychological Association.
  • Winter, M., Jones, L., & Gordon, O. (1994, April). An Orientation Class for Psychology Majors; Rocky Mountain Psychological Association.
  • Gordon, O. E. (1991, October). The Power of Myth. The International Association of Neuro-Linguistic Programming Mountain States Regional Conference.
  • Gordon, O. E. (1993, April). NLP & Research: Going Meta. The International Association of Neuro-Linguistic Programming Annual Conference.
  • Gordon, O. E. (1997, April). Therapeutic Metaphors in Andean Mysticism. Utah Academy of Science, Arts & Letters.
  • Gordon, O. E. (2000, January). Pedagogical Issues in Internet Education. Annual Meeting of the American Association of Behavioral and Social Sciences.
  • Gordon, O. E., Mace, B., & Berg, L. Environmental Epistemology of the Andean People. (2000, April). Rocky Mountain Psychological Association.
  • Gordon, O. E. (2000, April).  Building a Bridge from the Andes to Arizona. Rocky Mountain Psychological Association.
  • Gordon, O. E., Mace, B., & Berg, L. (2000, June). Finding an Epistemology that Supports Loving and Caring About Nature. International Symposium on Society and Resource Management.
  • Gordon, O. E. (2000, June). An Intimate Connection with Nature: Teaching Andean Epistemology to Westerners. International Symposium on Society and Resource Management.
  • Gordon, O. E. (2001, April).  Andean Epistemology: The Nature of Love, Wisdom, and Environmental Concern. Western Social Science Association.
  • Gordon, O. E. (2001, April). Applying Andean Epistemology to Our Societal Problems. Western Psychological Association.
  • Gordon, O. E. & Malloy, T. E.  (2001, April). Online Homework/Quiz/Exam Applet: Freely available Java software for evaluating performance online. (2001, April). The Society for Computers in Psychology.
  • Gordon, O. E. (2014, October).  The Andean Cosmovision: A Path to a Deeper Relationship with Nature. Utah Ecopsychology Conference.
  • Gordon, O. E. (June, 2016).  The Andean Cosmovision: Connecting to the Heart of Nature. International Conference on Positive Psychology and Cognitive Behavioral Therapy.

Additional Professional Presentations and Workshops

  • Introduction to NLP. (1989, March). First Annual Southwest Utah Winter Sunshine Conference; Southwest Utah Mental Health/Alcohol and Drug Center.
  • Understanding the Family System. (1989, September). The Governor’s Second Annual Strengthening Families Workshop. State of Utah Social Services.
  • Neuro-Linguistic Programming Techniques. (1989). A workshop for the State of Utah Social Services, Community Operations–District 5.
  • Introduction to Psychology. (July, 1990). A workshop for Youth Corrections, Cedar City.
  • Applications of NLP. (1990, October). An advanced clinical training seminar for Southwest Utah Mental Health/Alcohol & Drug Center.
  • Creating Your Destiny. (1990, November). A one-day workshop for the general public. Zion National Park.
  • Reaching Your Goals. (1991, March). Utah Correctional Association Annual Spring Conference: Crime & Ethics.
  • Creating Your Own Destiny. (1991, August). Success Connections for Quality Teaching and Learning Conference, Utah Rural School Association.
  • Putting the Wind in Your Sails. (1992, March). Keynote Address at the Juvenile Court Conference, Zion National Park.
  • Snipping the Circle: Understanding Relationships. (1992, July). Governor’s Honors Academy.
  • Heart of the Mind–Mind of the Heart. (1995, March). Iron County Women’s Conference.
  • La Sabiduría de Gregory Bateson y la PNL (Gregory Bateson’s Influence on NLP). (1995, March). A two-day workshop for NLP trainers in Guadalajara, Mexico. (With a translator).
  • Metaphor & Systems. (1996, May) A four-day workshop on therapeutic metaphors and practical applications of the work of Gregory Bateson. For Anchor Point Associates.
  • Wisdom in an Interdependent World. (1996, May). Free-to-the-public evening lecture in Salt Lake City, sponsored by Anchor Point Associates.
  • La Sabiduría de Gregory Bateson y la PNL (Gregory Bateson’s Influence on NLP). (1996, August). A three-day workshop for NLP trainers in Querétaro, Mexico. (With a translator).
  • Metaphors, Ecology, and Aesthetics. (1997, February). A two-day workshop for Anchor Point Associates.
  • Shamanism, Science, and Psychology. (1997, February). Free-to-the-public evening lecture in Salt Lake City, sponsored by Anchor Point Associates.
  • Practical Andean Therapy. (1997, May). A workshop for the staff of Horizon House.
  • Spiritual Warrior Workshop. (1997, May). A two-day workshop for the general public. Co-taught with Terri Latterback-Cotts.
  • Metaphors, Ecology, and Aesthetics. (1998, February). A two-day workshop for Anchor Point Associates.
  • Spiritual Warrior Workshop. (1999, July). A two-day workshop for the general public. Co-taught with Terri Latterback-Cotts.
  • Andean Meditation Workshop: Touching the Heart of Nature. (2015, July). A three day workshop for the general public in Grand Junction, Colorado.
  • Andean Meditation Workshop: Connecting to the Heart of Nature. (2016, June). A three-day workshop for the general public as a fund-raiser for The Heart Walk Foundation.
  • Shamanic Journeying and the Andean Cosmovision. (2016, September). A three-day retreat co-taught by Karen Cottingham.
  • Salka Classes. (1997-present). Several hundred Andean meditation classes for the general public.

Presentations to the Southern Utah University Community

  • Graduate Record Exam Preparation, for students in the Department of Behavioral and Social Sciences.
  • Psychology of the Nuclear Arms Race, for the Progressive Student Union.
  • Basic Counseling Skills, for the student peer counseling program.
  • Creating Your Future, for Psi Chi.
  • Selecting a State of Mind, for Psi Chi.
  • Introduction to State Control and NeuroLink, for Psi Chi.
  • Introduction to HyperCard. Workshop for faculty and staff of S.U.U. University, sponsored by the Academic Computer Users Committee.
  • Day of Dialog: Middle East Crisis (co-organizer), for the students, faculty, and staff of S.U.U.
  • Nonverbal Counseling Techniques, for Psi Chi.
  • Verbal Counseling Techniques, for Psi Chi.
  • Report on the Thich Nhat Hanh Workshop, for Psi Chi.
  • Use of Student Journals in the Classroom, for the 1994 Faculty Development Conference.
  • Pacha Cuti–Time of the Great Transformation, for the university community.
  • Report on My Research Trip to Peru, for members of the department and Psi Chi.
  • Report on My Second Trip to Peru, for members of the department and Psi Chi.
  • Andean Magic, for the university community, sponsored by Psi Chi.
  • Java and the StatCenter Project, for the SUU Linux club.
  • Andean Mysticism, for the SUU faculty, at a ‘Sandwiches and Scholarship’ workshop.
  • Andean Meditative Techniques, a workshop for Psi Cho (a department-sponsored student association).

Presentations to the University of Utah Community

  • Andean Research. (2003). For Psi Chi.
  • An Andean Way of Knowledge. (2003). For Mortar Board.
  • Andean Epistemology. (2004). A presentation to the psychology department.
  • The Andean Cosmovision: An Ancient Path to a New Reality. (2014). For the Distinguished Speakers Series of the College of Social and Behavioral Sciences.
  • The Andean Cosmovision. (2016). A presentation to the psychology department.

Additional Andean-Related Professional Activities

  • Vice President of Kenosis Spirit Keepers (2007-present). Kenosis Spirit Keepers is a Section 501(c)(3), nonprofit, charitable educational organization. Its mission is to honor and preserve the integrity of indigenous wisdom and sacred cultural practices by providing cross-cultural exchanges, education, and community-building opportunities.
  • Sixteen trips to Peru (1996-present).

Ccochamocco

Warning:  my story of Ccochamocco has come unstuck in time (apologies to Kurt Vonnegut).  Note that I have also added a glossary to the blog, it is available through the menu on the right side of the page.

In the year 2000,  Américo and Gayle Yábar took a few friends and me to the Q’ero village of Ccochamocco (also spelled Qochamoqo) in the high Andes of Peru.  It was such a remote place.  First, of course, we had to get to Cusco, which itself seems pretty remote, located at 11,000 feet and 4,500 miles from my home.  From Cusco we drove on a dirt road for several hours, winding higher up into the Andes to get as close to the village as we could by road.  We set up camp by the road, and then the next morning we mounted horses and rode for two days, over two 17,000 foot passes, to reach Ccochamocco, itself located at 15,000 feet.  In Ccochamocco we met the villagers, engaged in sacred ceremony with the paq’os, and connected with the energy of Apu Wamanlipa.  It was one of the great adventures of my life.

I have recently been informed that Ccochamocco can now be reached by road.   It feels to me like the end of an era.  There are some stories and photos I would like very much to share.


I would like to begin 16 years ago.

Bob Pasternak (left) and me (right) at the camp along the road.

 

The next morning we began our two-day ride to the village.

 

This was taken from the first summit at 17,000 feet, looking back at Apu Ausangate.

We set up camp in a valley between the two summits.  As we sat around relaxing after a long day of riding horses, Américo casually mentioned that he had not notified the people of Ccochamocco that we were coming, and that he could not guarantee our reception.  He added, however, that this should not be a problem as he had been visiting the village for over 20 years, and they knew that he would only bring visitors who had open hearts.

choochoo

This photo was taken shortly after don Américo pointed out to us that the Q’ero always sit huddled together to share body warmth. We introduced them to the ‘Choo Choo’ formation.

 

Don Bonito and don Pascual

Don Bonito (left) and don Pascual (center). Don Pascual was probably in his 70’s at this point, still walking to and from Q’ero. He was a cherished part of my trips to Peru. Don Américo described him as “The Merlin of the Andes”. Don Pascual died a few years ago.

 

Don Americo Yabar

Don Américo Yábar

 

The photo above was taken just past the second summit. Don Domingo (now deceased) is in the foreground, Apu Wamanlipa (the primary Apu of Ccochamocco) is in the background.

 

arriving

Coming down from the summit to the village (Bob Pasternak in foreground). In addition to our own food and equipment we brought supplies as a gift for the village.

 

The village of Ccochamocco, at 15,000 feet.

We arrived in Ccochamocco in the afternoon of the second day. We set up camp in an alpaca corral on the other side of a small hill from the village. I walked up the hill to take the photo.

 

Don Favion (center) and don Pascual (to his left…our right).

A delegation of village elders came out to meet us, including don Favion.  We were very lucky (if indeed it was luck) that don Favion was visiting Ccochamocco.  He was a very renowned paq’o and he agreed to lead our ceremony.  Don Favion died a month after we were there.

This meeting was not a social event.  A very important part of the Andean Cosmovision is the process of people harmonizing their different energies.  It is a test of the compatibility of people’s energies.  With the Q’ero, as far as I can tell, this involves my willingness to open my munay (my heart energy).  I love being with people where their acceptance of me is based upon my willingness to open my heart.  It is what makes coming back to the United States, and academia, so difficult for me at times.  My society seems so cold and distant by comparison.

Four years earlier, in my first trip to Peru, my first formal meeting with the paq’os from Q’ero took place in a forested mountainside outside of Cusco, at dusk.  We were sitting in a circle in a small clearing.  We each were given an opportunity to say something.  I didn’t know what to say so I just described my experience at the moment.  I said that I could feel the energy of my heart expanding in their presence.  They responded, “yes, we are watching that”.

They were all sitting with their mesas spread out in front of them.  After much internal debate I took out my red cowboy bandana and spread it out on the ground in front of me and put a quya on it that had been given to me by don Américo.  I wanted to honor them by joining them in this, but I didn’t know if it would be taken as such or if they would be insulted, and I really cared about how they would feel about it.  I finally sucked up my courage and did it. I asked don Americo about it afterwards.  He said that for 500 years (ever since the Spanish conquest) the Q’ero had remained purposely isolated from a Western society that belittled everything the Q’ero cared about. They knew that I had traveled a far, far distance to be with them, and I had a mesa.  He looked at me with kind eyes and smiled.  It was evening by the time our meeting was over, and we made our way in silence down the mountainside, through the darkness, under the trees, a Q’ero holding each us each by the hand to guide us down safely.

Back to Ccochamocco. After the delegation left it was getting late and Américo told us that our meeting with the rest of the villagers would take place the next day.

The following morning I awoke early and sat on a rock in the morning sun writing in my journal and drinking coffee.  Then occurred one of the most meaningful moments of my life.  I can’t really describe why it was so meaningful, I can only describe what happened, perhaps you will understand.

Trip 3: Amiga 1

I looked up from my journal and was surprised to see a young girl standing there, just a few feet away, looking at me.  She had walked over from the village to check us out.  At that moment my friend Sally leaned out of her tent and took this picture.

The little girl was pure salka. I didn’t speak quechua and she didn’t speak English. I am a father, however, and I know how to communicate my heart to children. I remarked on her pretty necklace and her beads, I told her how happy I was to see her.

Trip 3: Amiga 2

She cuddled up next to me, and together, in salka, we watched the morning unfold.

Much later I gave a report on the trip to my department at the university. When I told this story one faculty member said, “Sounds like a special moment for you Oakley, but did anything important happen during the trip?” Two worlds. I live in them both. I endeavor to be a bridge.

Don Américo wasn’t around that morning.  When he returned he explained that he had been with don Favion.  Even though, I believe, they knew each other quite well,  as part of the process don Favion had to demonstrate to Américo that he had the power to initiate us, and don Américo had to formally take responsibility for us being ready for the ceremony (there would be energetic consequences to him if we weren’t).  He did not elaborate on what these processes and consequences entailed.

Before we could have a sacred ceremony with the villagers we needed to meet with them.  It was necessary for all concerned to see if we could mesh our munay (heart) energy in a harmonious way, for only then could we travel on together.

Gathering with the villagers.

Trip 3: Villagers 2

The meeting was beautiful.

Gayle’s friend ‘Rojo’ (back left) and don Américo (back right).

Later that day we walked part way up Apu Wamanlipa to a natural stone circle at its base, to have our ceremony. We were welcome to take pictures but I wanted to be fully immersed in the experience rather than documenting it, so I only have photos of us going up Apu Wamanlipa to the ceremony and coming back.

walkingup

Heading up Apu Wamanlipa. Clouds born far, far below in the jungle are working their way up the valley.

 

Walking back from the ceremony through the clouds.

The next day we began our two day trek back to the road.

breakfast

Breakfast on the second morning of our journey back. The ambiance is great but it is hard to get reservations.


When I first met don Américo in the 1990’s the Q’ero would walk for five days through the mountains from their villages to Cusco to sell their goods and to purchase what the villages could not make themselves (sugar, candles, matches, etc.). Which reminds me of a story told to me by Tom Best.

Tom was with Américo when he made a phone call from the U.S. to his daughter Arilu in Cusco.  Américo asked after the Q’ero who were in Cusco at that time and then exclaimed “Don _____, I though he left for Q’ero four days ago!”. After the phone call was over Américo explained that don ______ had walked two days back towards Q’ero when he realized that he had left his wristwatch at don Américo’s house. So he turned around and walked back to get it.  Américo then laughed and said that the watch doesn’t even work.  I have to admire a life where that decision makes as much sense as any other.

I asked Américo about that story later. He added another piece to it. Américo and Gayle caught a ride in the back of a pickup truck up to an isolated pass in the Andes where they were to meet the Q’ero at a specified time. They hopped off the truck and looked around, no Q’ero. They waited for quite a while and finally decided they had better start walking back. After an hour or two of walking down the road they passed a stone hut, and went in for shelter. There were the Q’ero.  Américo spoke to don ______ saying “where were you, you were suppose to meet us at the pass hours ago?” Don ______ looked at his (broken) watch and replied, “No, we are right on time!”


The indigenous people, like the Q’ero, who live in remote villages, who still live a life informed by the Andean Cosmovision, and are identifiable by their traditional clothing, reside in the lowest level of the strict Peruvian social structure.  In Cusco, teenagers jump out of pickup trucks and beat them up.  They are often denied entry to hotels and restaurants.  If they are allowed into a restaurant they may receive very poor service and noticeably inferior food.  It is one of the few times I have heard of Américo getting seriously angry, when he stormed into a kitchen after the Q’ero were served soup with no meat or vegetables.  When we are in the outback of Peru, Gayle and Américo will usually take over the task of being the waiters to the Q’ero, making sure they are treated with respect and get the same quality food as the rest of us

When I first met Américo his friends from Q’ero would stay at his house when they visited Cusco.  When that finally got to be too big of a burden for his wife, Américo arranged for a safe house in Cusco where the Q’ero could stay for free, and a restaurant where they could eat.  If the Q’ero left a thumbprint on the receipt Américo would pay it.


There are many paths into the Andean Cosmovision, some are paths of power and some are paths of heart.  As a personal predilection I have been drawn to the path exemplified by don Américo and don Gayle, which is a path of heart.  On this path power is not the goal; instead, wisdom, beauty, and power arise as a byproduct of being in right relationship with Nature and the Cosmos. These relationships are guided by munay and fueled by ayni.

In 2014, I sponsored a workshop by Américo here in Utah. When Américo arrived he told me that before he left Peru he met with a group of Andean women.  When he told them that he was going to the United States, and that he would be seeing me, they all removed their necklaces and gave them to him to give to me. I was stunned and moved to tears when he told me this. Later that morning we were all sitting together in the workshop and a thought arose from deep inside (where I believe we are connected to the Cosmos) and I did one of those rare perfect things at the perfect time.  I told the participants the story about the necklaces, and then gave one to each person there. I said that this path was not about us, it is about Us; you, and me, and Pachamama, and the trees, and the rivers, and the stars, and the people of Peru.  At that moment, as I passed on the necklaces, I was a station on the circle of ayni.  The path is about munay and ayni and circles of relationships, relationships with organic beings and inorganic beings. This is a dance that is way beyond the realm of the intellect and its ego.


I know of two organizations that are helping the Q’ero achieve the higher quality of life they desire from their increased interactions with the West, while validating  the beauty and importance of their worldview and nourishing its continuance, I recommend them both to you; they are  Kenosis Spirit Keepers (of which I am the vice president) and the Heart Walk Foundation.  They approach this mission from somewhat different directions, if you are interested please check them both out.  From my munay.  Oakley

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