On the Kabbalah, Eastern Mysticism, and the Art of Being

Some time ago I watched the inductions into the Canadian Music Hall of Fame: Joni Mitchell was the major inductee, and one of her songs, Woodstock, was performed by James Taylor. Taylor, of course, made it his while keeping it true to the Mitchell original. You could see in James' eyes and hear in his voice how very much the words he sang influenced his life and who he is today. I thought, during the performance of her songs, of how much the Hippie sentiment of those heady (no pun intended!) days has been a central factor in arriving at my present dharmic location. My children tease me about being an ancient Hippie, and last night I realized just how true it is. Just check out the words of this "philosophy of our time," to see how compelling and attractive this philosophy can be to a modern humanist.

Woodstock, by Joni Mitchell

Well, I came upon a child of God
He was walking along the road
And I asked him, tell me, where are you going
This he told me:
Said, I'm going down to Yasgur's farm
Gonna join in a rock and roll band
Got to get back to the land
And set my soul free

{refrain}
We are stardust
We are golden
We are billion-year-old carbon
And we got to get ourselves
Back to the garden

Well then, can I walk beside you?
I have come to lose the smog
And I feel myself a cog
In something turning
And maybe it's the time of year
Yes, and maybe it's the time of man
And I don't know who I am
But life is for learning

{refrain twice}

By the time we got to Woodstock
We were half a million strong
And everywhere was a song
And a celebration
And I dreamed I saw the bomber jet planes
Riding shotgun in the sky
Turning into butterflies
Above our nation

We are stardust
We are golden
We are caught in the devil's bargain
And we got to get ourselves
Back to the garden

You just have to love the lyrics and the sentiment expressed. Check out the wondrous lyrics of John and Paul's "Fixing a Hole" for an interesting segue. Both the songs are fine examples of how the use of entheogens in popular music composition offer compelling insights into the many aspects of reality. However, on to a discussion of different philosophies than that inhaled in 1960s.…

Although I am not a student of the Kabbalah, ontology, or other philosophies that seek to make an arcane and esoteric discipline from subjects that are impossible to resolve and codify, I continue to make the mistake of getting caught up in the dialectics of Cartesian logic, only to be confronted by the illogic of the "Cartesian Other" before travelling too far down the road of resolution and comprehension. I do, however, note some parallels between the Ten Sifirot of the Kabbalah, and certain aspects of earlier Assyrian mysticism, both of which appear to be influenced by the philosophy of Zoroaster, and the all-pervading mark of early Hinduism and the concept of the balance of Order and Chaos, the many faces of reality, and individual Oneness with Brahman.

In the ragbag philosophy of Jim Fanning, I have cobbled together a series of beliefs that, to me, resonate with Right. I believe that which is called the "soul" is our connection to the universe, and whatever might be: our touchstone that provides our sense of morality, of justice, and of truth. This connection can be "tweaked" to provide a less obscured view of "What Is" either through the use of physical aids (e.g. prayers, chanting, chakra chimes, temple bells, incense) or mental aids (e.g. entheogens, meditation, sensory privation, etc.). Further, although the many religious texts offer versions of the Truth, and are solid guides to morality and personal spiritual gratification, they are, ultimately, flawed because while they purport to be the revealed word of God, they are, in sad fact, only the feeble words of Man, self-serving, biased and offering only an incomplete glimpse of the whole cosmic picture. The words are only candles, lit to offer some small refuge against the absolute cosmic night that underscores the profound mystery of it all: a pitiful human gathering around our campfires, seeking collective comfort against the sure knowledge of our insignificance.

At this stage of my life, for me, the Buddhist concept of Mindfulness (being aware of NOW) is a satisfying way to focus my life into the present, to avoid dwelling on the past, and to stop fretting about the future (either immediate or beyond). Marvels exist all around us, and yet we ignore them as we are too wrapped up in either "What Was" or "What Will Be." Mindfulness permits me to listen to the wind in my jackpines, and watch wind patterns in the long grass, to see how branches reach to light, to hear chakra chimes resonate with other objects, to marvel at the moonpath on the Bay, and to savour the melancholic taste of history in a bottle of Bushmill's or Jameson's Irish whiskey. If, then, this is all there is, it is Heaven for me NOW: if there is more, that NOW will be explored when it arrives.

Are there other realities, other worlds, other NOWs? I do not know, but I would think that, in the face of the infinite mystery of the universes, nothing can be discounted, in the fields of quantum theory, multiverse theory, superstring theory.  Nor, of course, should anything be credited as Truth, without verifiable evidence.

Peace.

On Writing a Holy Book, and Proselytizing

If a philosopher, social scientist, or idealist, were to write a "holy" book, they would follow certain precepts:

1) lay out a moral code that people, with a innate sense of "right," could relate to,
2) provide the concept that there is a "higher" purpose to our lives, thus giving us something to strive for,
3) provide stories and examples in the form of parables, and suggest that the book is the inspired word of the Higher Authority as revealed in dreams, visions, or personal conversations with said Authority,
4) provide for a prophet, saviour, or leader and provide him/her with a context with regard to fulfilling prophecy, showing the truth, and, finally,
5) indicate that by following such a person/deity one might hope to achieve Nirvana, go to Heaven, achieve Enlightenment, be removed from the cycle of reincarnation.

We readily see, therefore, that the creators of the holy books have faithfully and globally followed the foregoing criteria. And we must admit that all of the writers have admirably risen to the task.

It has been reported that part of the interrogation methods at Guantanamo Bay, prisoners have had their religious beliefs mocked. Denigration of one's strongly held beliefs is one widely-used form of demonisation, or the process of making a person something other than an equal and human person. The facility at Gitmo is a sad and horrific testimonial to how far we have yet to travel to achieve a global and just society. That the world's so-called moral leader and arbiter of morality is operating this heinous facility, and that the rest of the world permits it, is inexcusable.

If you were to walk the streets of some of the cities in which I have lived, and wished to talk to the locals about their religion and learn about it, then you would be welcome. If, however, you went up to them as a Christian proselytiser or evangelist, intent not on learning about their way of life, but on converting or "saving" them, you would only be reinforcing the picture of modern Christianity being simply an extension of the history of forced hardship, conversion, and custom change that evangelical Christianity, both Protestant and Catholic, have been imposing upon the "heathen" or "pagans" that has been taking place since the early apostles went forth to preach the gospel.

On the other hand, if you show that you want to learn and discuss, not preach, you would be welcomed to sit with them, drink their coffee, eat their food, share their religious psychotropic drugs, sleep in their hovels, tents, or palaces, and come to better understand the wonderful diverse species that we all are. There are lessons to be learned everywhere and questions to be asked and some to be answered. To sit back and say that it is all the will of God, or that God wants it this way, or Allah wants it that way, or the guru says this must be, or we must do that....is, as we used to say in the 60s, a cop-out. Mankind is not born to blindly accept: we must question and quest.

Okay, nuff said. I still do not feel that the foregoing was very coherent, but I will now return to my centrifuge of a mind, and try to separate a bit more of the wheat from the chaff.

Reality, Religion, and the New Renaissance

Reality is a very personal perspective, with each individual viewing his/her own universe in an egocentric manner. One’s intellect, or intellectual capacity, varies from person to person, and, I submit, is exactly at the level that the individual needs to cope with his/her perception of reality. For some people, faith plays a major role in filling in the grey areas at the edge of perception: for others, logic is the keystone, with the unknown remaining unknown, and the logician accepting that the grey areas are indeed grey areas. Hence each accepts the individual reality of his/her individual universe on individually designed terms.

Over the ages of our evolutionary development, Mankind, in order to survive, has had to hone and balance the growth of physical skills together with those of the intellect in order to more effectively respond to environmental and societal crises. This uniquely human symbiotic relationship of body and mind has been so wildly successful that we have extended our lifespan substantially, have been able to kill others at the push of a button, while completely ignoring the fact of millions of our fellow humans live in penury and intolerable squalor, decimated by petty wars, archaic prejudices, starvation, have no sanitation and not even the most basic medicine.

The more complex our lives have become, the more we feel the need to understand who we are, why we are, and where we are going. The dichotomy between SUVs, plasma TVs, the consumer mystique, and the refugees of Darfur, and displaced Palestinians, is apparent to all but the most socially insensitive.

Growth industries have sprung up to service our need to understand. Established religions, New Age philosophies, Eastern mysticism, and Zen meditational techniques, are all enjoying a Renaissance.

Sacred texts, be they religious texts or peer-reviewed scientific journals, have come to be viewed by their various target audiences as the sole and only key to understanding that which we are not able to understand. Reliance on any one viewpoint, while closing the mind to different interpretations, is unworthy of our level of sophistication. What seems to be the key to some may appear as a facile crutch to others.

What is purported to be the word of an absolute god is, in fact, only the writer’s perception of what he believes his god is saying. His divine inspiration may have been caused by lead poisoning, the ingestion of psychotropic substances, hunger, or simply impending madness or an attempt at social manipulation. On the other hand, what is said to be the absolute scientific proof of theory X, is, in fact, only the conclusions drawn from a set of tests that may, or may not, be later determined to be invalid.

The thinking individual will attempt to process all forms of Truth, or Proof, through the filter of cynicism and, if extremely lucky, be able to glean at least a glimpse of one small portion of what may be a universal Truth, but will, of course, bear in mid that such Truth is valid only in his egocentric view of such things, coloured necessarily by cultural, religious, and possibly genetic bias.

All major religious texts agree on some form of continuation. The Torah, the Koran, the Bible, the Vedic texts, the works of Zoroaster, and various Buddhist sutras all agree on two things. The first is the continuation of the spirit, either through reincarnation, Heaven, Paradise, Nirvana, or the catch-all “higher level of existence.” The second point of convergence is the acknowledgment of the cosmic and ongoing battle between good and evil: parables of Chaos and Order struggling to tip or maintain a universal balance.

So what conclusions can a person, setting aside faith, draw from these two common lines of agreement? Only that man feels a sense of anticlimax from his existence: a feeling, a hope, that there must be more to it than this. There must be more than just the now, more than the wars, more than the pain, the heartache. Fertile ground indeed for a growth industry selling a message of hope and immortality. One must, however, remember that words are only words, and, in an egocentric universe, only subjective experience is acceptable.

John Lennon wrote “Whatever gets you through the night, it’s all right, it’s all right.” Given our basic human need to shine light into the darkness, Mr. Lennon may well be right, with the caveat that your “whatever” doesn’t impact negatively on one’s neighbour. And it is here that the problems begin.

Not content to huddle together in shelter from the unknowable cosmic mystery, man tends to split into diverse groups, each of which claims an exclusive key to the unknowable. Further, if you do not accept their key as the only key, you are outcast and excluded from their group. Rather than accepting a global community united against the common darkness, as would appear logical behaviour under such threatening and untenable mystery, we tend to form tribes, with each tribe claiming exclusivity and stature as sole arbiter of the Truth. Until we lose the bazaar hawker mentality, with each sad salesman selling his own ticket to the unknown, we are destined never to reach the social renaissance of which we are capable.

Given the foregoing, it behooves us all to seek, to learn, to listen. We must seek any knowledge that may ameliorate our condition. We must learn from our collective wealth of experience. We must listen to all points of view.

Standing at the pinnacle of human development, we all have our individual and unique strengths and talents. It is how we utilize these talents, and what we do with acquired knowledge that is the true measure of intellect.

Northern Ontario Winter

I was 16 when Mom, Dad, and Twila left Timmins. The plan was for Mom and Twila to go stay with Gram Lottie until Dad got established in Elliott Lake, and then they would join him. I was to finish my Grade 11, then go off to Elliott Lake to find summer employment.

I arrived in Elliot Lake just days before I turned 17. Dad was working shift at CanMet and had no car. I stayed with family friends and soon discovered that no mine wanted to hire a 17 yr old. I worked as cleaner at a 300 man construction camp for $100/per month plus shared room and board. When the camp closed in October, I got a job with the catering company (Crawley-McCracken) as night watchman at Algom Nordic, patrolling 7 bunkhouses, rec centre, and dining hall between 9 pm and 6 am 6 days a week for $100, room and board. Mine pay-days were hell, with the Germans trying to fight with the Portuguese, French-Canadians trying to fight with the English, and many belligerents trying to fight anyone they could! My room was shared with a German engineer, who was working as dishwasher until he could learn English, a crazy Elvis wannabe from Valleyfield who drank constantly and babbled nonsense, and me, my first real time away from a caring home environment.

During the days, I would explore the woods around the camp, and do some rockclimbing. I saw Dad once every 6 weeks or so for a couple of hours, when our shifts agreed. In the winter, on my day off, I would walk the several miles into town, and, coming back to camp, with little or no traffic on the roads, I had lots of time for thought, reflection, and searching for meaning in it all.
There is something magical, spiritual, and eternal about a Northern Ontario winter, and this time of extreme discouragement, loneliness, and lack of direction, I found, in those cold, star-filled nights, an inner peace that sustained me.

When the Lake started to come apart in 1960, I was 18, but years older that the 16 year old who arrived there two years earlier. Dad and I were among the last miners to leave CanMet. He was a shift boss, and I was the deckman. He and his crew dismantled the heavy equipment, and the cageman and I made sure that the cage could handle it. We returned to NS in June: I turned 19 in July and joined the Navy effective October 12.

And the rest, as they say, is history.

I well remember the sense of wonder and awe at sheer size and majesty of Northern Ontario in winter. There is never a week goes by that I do not think of it, and, although I would not want to do the whole thing again, there are aspects of that time of my life that I consider essential in making me the person I am today.

The God Gene, and the Religious Establishment

I have read and heard many interesting testaments of Faith. These “testimonies” encapsulated the infuriating dichotomy that exists between individual Godliness (or goodness) and the many varied institutionalised interpretations of the purported Word of God.

While I concur with, and applaud, the concept of individual belief in a "Higher Purpose," or "Supreme Being," (the "God gene," if you would) I have trouble with the religious Establishment generally (I have had the pleasure of knowing some true "social shepherds" in many religions and they are the obvious and commendable exception to this generalisation). While the world's holy books contain many wise and profound guidelines for a pragmatic and just social order, the codification of such guidelines into dogma has always caused me worry. The only proof that the individual has as to the validity of written "Divine Revelation" is the word of the Establishment that serves that particular revelation, and, perhaps, a gut feeling that "hmmm...this seems right." Who is to say that the particular writer was not politically motivated, or driven by fear of retaliation by the religious establishment of the day, or had consumed a strange fungus (as in the case of many aboriginal cultures) that helped him see truth clearly, or had starved himself (as in the case of other cultures) until he saw visions, or had flagellated himself until he "perceived the truth," or just made up a bunch of stuff to enhance his name as a prophet or mystic.

We know and understand what the proper use of words can do, and the power that they have. Because of this knowledge I fear what misuse or misinterpretation of written word can bring about. The same applies, perhaps even moreso, to oral histories: we have all played the parlour games in which a whispered message is passed around the room, and laughed at how the final message varied from the original. In the final analysis I must believe that the final arbiter of "the will of God" rests with thinking individuals. Whether the Voice of God speaks to one as one's conscience, one's pastor, one's Holy Book, one's guru, saint, or prophet, the decision to listen and the interpretation of what is said rests with the individual, and does not, therefore lend itself to proselytisation or external codification.

In a universe of unfathomable mystery and complexity I must suspect anyone who says to me "this is the only truth." A certain amount of Faith (or faith) should be a part of anyone's personal journey through life, but to abandon logic and the quest for truth and understanding completely to faith in what is unknowable, or faith in what is written, or faith in what has been said, seems, to me, to be abandoning one's worthiness to participate in, or be a part of, any "Higher Purpose."

All of the foregoing is, of course, mho (my humble opinion), and is not intended to detract from, or denigrate the beliefs or opinions or anyone of any and all religious affiliations, or lack thereof, but merely to further, through discussion, my own perception of the unknowable.

Chakra Chimes and Good Vibrations

My darling daughters, Kelly and Erin, banded together for Christmas 2005 to bless Greyhavens with a fitting and appropriate Christmas gift: a perfect set of hand-made Chakra Chimes from the good and long suffering people of Salt Spring Island, BC. I am sure that you will all know about the artisans of this island, including the problems they had last summer with the Police grow-op spotting overflights frightening livestock, rattling handmade crockery, waking babies, and disrupting the tourist industry. Their complaints did, eventually, cause the flights to lessen, but only after several plantations were destroyed. You gotta love the strange dichotomy that is Canadian law, and the fervour with which Enforcement pursues the adherents of this "victimless" crime.

The chimes are composed of tuned aluminum (or aluminium, in Terry's case) rods set in a pine and cherrywood frame, with a wand with which to strike the rods. The notes go from the high C (aura) to the lower C (root) for a full, perfectly tuned and resonant octave. For those of you not familiar with the concept of Chakra, it is a belief in Hinduism, Yoga, and some New Age movements, that the body contains seven main energy nodes located from the top of the head to the base of the spine. An eighth Chakra (Root) is sometimes described as being from the base of the spine to the feet. The word Chakra (pronounce Chuhkruh) comes from the Sanskrit word for wheel or circle, thus corresponding to the Hindu wheel of life, or the Buddhist circle of enlightenment. Each chakra is associated with a certain colour, multiple specific functions, an aspect of consciousness, a classical element, and other distinguishing characteristics. The chakras are thought to vitalise the physical body and to be associated with interactions of both a physical and mental nature. They are considered loci of life energy, or prana, which is thought to flow among them along pathways called nadis. Traditional Chinese medicine also relies on a similar model of the human body as an energy system.

The Aura symbolises connection to the next plane
The Crown symbolises Spiritual Wisdom
The Third Eye represents Intuition
The Throat represents Communication
The Heart represents Love/Compassion
The Solar Plexus symbolises Personal Power
The Sacral symbolises Sexuality/Relationships
and the final Chakra, Root, represents Grounding, or Reality.

Although I have always had difficulty with Meditation techniques, I am finding that the resonance of the Chakra notes help clear my head of the out-of-control, whirling, chaotic state that is my normal (default) setting. I think that, with the assistance of the Chimes, and a bit of focussing, I shall be able to meditate at last. I have positioned the chimes on the south wall of that offshoot of the livingroom I call my conservatory, where Terry's multitudinous potted and hanging plants create a suitable environment for my Sadhus, Temple bells, batiks, limestone Buddha, incense burners, etc. I have placed them just above the two foot bronze of Lord Siva in his Nataraj (Lord of the Dance) incarnation, which stands on an circular inlaid Indian table, and just below a small bronze face representation of Hanuman, the monkey god who aided Rama (an avatar of Vishnu) in reclaiming Rama's wife from the evil King Ravana. They seem to have been made to fill their allotted space. Good vibrations indeed, man!

May your Chakras resonate with harmonic clarity that illuminates your Dharma.

Zen, and the Art of Sushi Making

All of my adult life I have joyfully embraced different national cuisines, a welcome side benefit of global travel. I am sad to say, however, that when it came to Japanese cuisine my mental response was "raw fish...yuck!" This still shames me somewhat, as I like to think of myself as open-minded. Early last year all of that changed. I discovered sushi! We were happy to see that Atlantic Superstore had sushi in abundance, albeit at a rather high price.

The high price, at least for this pensioner, was instrumental in my desire to learn to make my own sushi. I have now accomplished this feat, and this old dog is very proud of his new trick. I made our first sushi: a nori maki, composed of the traditional sticky rice (sumeshi), flavoured with rice wine vinegar, stuffed with shredded ginger, canned salmon, and thinly sliced English cucumber, the whole wrapped, of course, in baked seaweed wrapper (nori). We were very pleased with the result, which we enjoyed for lunch, with a light soy sauce and the wonderful, but powerful, wasabi (horseradish paste).

Siobhán and I followed that with a sushi making session in which we produced nori maki stuffed with smoked Atlantic salmon, cucumber, parboiled red pepper slivers, shredded ginger in rice wine vinegar, and roasted sesame seeds. We also attempted the more difficult sushi nagiri, oblong shaped rice constructions topped with a dab of wasabi, roasted sesame seeds and a slice of smoked salmon. I had previously pickled some ginger root, which, the recipe says, will eventually turn the required shade of traditional pink. We whipped up a salad of cucumber, tomato, red pepper, romaine lettuce, sesame oil, rice wine vinegar, topped with roasted sesame seeds. We dined in an uncustomary quiet, prompted by our appreciation of our tasty repast.

As to the Zen aspect of preparing sushi: the arrangement of the various fillings, the challenge of preventing the rice from sticking to the hands, the rolling of the nori into an even, firmly packed cylinder, the satisfaction of slicing the nori roll into eight perfect nori maki thanks to the sharpness and ideal weight of my sushi knife, complete with bamboo handle. These things all combine to give one a sense of satisfaction, an appreciation of the symmetry of the maki arranged in a circular pattern on a serving plate, an enhanced awareness of the smell of the vinegar underlined by the smoky smell of the salmon, an understanding of the underlying importance of family and togetherness in an age of encroaching and pervasive Chaos, and the joy of a small portion of order being imposed upon one small corner of that Chaos.

In Zen Buddhism, the koan embodies a realized principle, or law of reality. They often appear paradoxical or linguistically meaningless dialogs or questions. (What is the sound of one hand clapping? Why is a mouse, when it spins? What is the difference between an orange? These are all koans remembered from my study of Kerouac, the Beat Movement, and Gary Snyder) To quote from that fount of all knowledge, Wikipedia, "the 'answer' to the koan involves a transformation of perspective or consciousness, which may be either radical or subtle, possibly akin to the experience of metanoia in Christianity. They are a tool to allow the student to approach enlightenment by essentially 'short-circuiting' the logical way we order the world. Through assimilation of a koan it is possible to 'jump-start' an altered mindset that then facilitates enlightenment." In effect, the practitioner becomes the answer.

It is not necessary to have a Zen mindset to roll your maki (no, that is NOT a euphemism!), but I have found that, in the action, I become a small part of the answer to the koan that my life constantly presents to me.

Faith, and the Phoenix

Soul Fugue

All things must end,
but is the ending
an absolute?
Is not that end
a shining doorway
that opens to a new beginning?
Does not the phoenix spring,
singing,
from its' ashes
into a different sky?

Nataraj dances
while the cosmic wheel turns:
endings and beginnings
are defined
by point of view.

—James D. Fanning

The Merriam Webster online dictionary defines "faith" as:
1 a : allegiance to duty or a person : LOYALTY b (1) : fidelity to one's promises (2) : sincerity of intentions
2 a (1) : belief and trust in and loyalty to God (2) : belief in the traditional doctrines of a religion b (1) : firm belief in something for which there is no proof (2) : complete trust
3 : something that is believed especially with strong conviction; especially : a system of religious beliefs
synonym see BELIEF

Given the above definition, I must state unequivocally that although many possess the faith mentioned in 2 above, especially when they capitalise it as "Faith," others possess it as 1, especially as 1b(2). In "Soul Fugue" I feel the phoenix is singing because of a profound sense of surprise at her rebirth, not because she expected it. It is the same joy that she feels all throughout her 500 year life, and perhaps even the joy and wonder she feels as, at the end of that life, she bursts into glorious flame. I feel that it is important to live life to the fullest, to embrace life, and to attempt to communicate that joy to others, through kindness and civility.
As a child, the religious upbringing that I was given left me with a sense of guilt, of fear, of being unworthy. The older I got the more I felt that the "faith" that was being taught me was more a doctrine of fear and intimidation than a lesson of love and hope and forgiveness. This was, perhaps, not the fault of the religion, but of the actual sect, or the minister: I am not sure.
As my life progressed, and my travels expanded exponentially, I saw that the dogma that I had been taught was invalid in my global community. I met people who, although good and moral, would have been condemned to eternal hell and damnation by the religion of my youth. My readings of the lives of various ancient (as opposed to the more recent) philosophers and humanists , including Jesus, Gautama, Mohammed, K'ung Fu tsu, Lao tsu, and of various doctrines, including the Veda and the Bhagavad Gita, have led me to believe in a broader concept of good and evil, of yin and yang, of chaos and order, than was taught me in my youth.
The Buddhist concept of Now has long appealed to me. To try to condense this concept into a few ineffective words is difficult, but the Now concept teaches that we must live THIS MOMENT to the fullest, doing good, loving, helping: in short, a form of moral 'be'-ing. The thought of being moral simply to atone for past sins, or to avoid future retribution is an alien concept. A micro battle between good and evil is residence in each of us: how each fares in this battle is dictated by choices made, irrevocably, that makes each "now" moment either our heaven or our hell (rather like Zoroastrianism on a non-cosmic scale!).
For some, strong adherence to a religion strengthens them, and makes it possible to live good and moral lives. To these good people, Faith is a cardinal focus of their lives, and it works for them. For others, the pursuit of knowledge is sufficient to prevent the infinite vastness and mystery of the universe from crushing them. For still others, like our phoenix, it is enough to live each glorious moment to the fullest, both constructing and inhabiting heaven on a daily basis. In the words of an old song, "Whatever gets you through the night, it's all right, it's all right." (John Lennon)
Phewww! That turned out to be much more than I intended, but, once started it was difficult to stop.