My Profile
Art by Rima Staines
Morten Tolboll
Location: The Forest Garden of Jutland, Rold Forest, Denmark My name is Morten Tolboll. I´m a native Dane. English is only my second language, and I therefore apologize for eventual grammatical errors in my texts. There might also, especially in older texts, be a certain degree of unedited tendencies. I´m not writing in a academical way, and I don´t have any help. This would require an enormous work, and I have too much on my mind to engage in such. I hope you will bear with me. Perhaps it might even be an advantage.
Everything I write is my own personal opinions, but, it is supported by philosophical argumentation. In that way, I consider the work to be philosophically substantial but accessible, written to engage the intelligent lay reader in an adventurous mystery play. After all, as I write in the introduction to this site: the whole thing is an online "satiric" storytelling game: the Godgame. However, with Meditation as an Art of Life, as well as the philosophical counseling opportunity, I offer the reader a way to go beyond the Godgame. About myself I hold an MA in philosophy (University of Southern Denmark 1996-2001) and a minor in psychology (Aalborg University 2002-2005). In addition, I hold the Bardic Grade from The Order of Bards, Ovates and Druids, as well as from The British Druid Order. I have practiced yoga and meditation since 1985 and have during this period discovered and conceptualized the concept Meditation as an Art of Life.
The discovery happened on the background of an awakening of kundalini, and the following years of spiritual crises (also see The Kundalini Files). The Kundalini awakening happened many years ago, and has been constant ever since. However, lately I have experienced two objective visions of spirits (not subjective, I could photograph them). I categorize them as nature spirits, fairy tale beings and divinities (the reason why I´m using the concept “fairy tale beings” is because Rold Forest from ancient times has been called “The Seven-league Forest of Fairy Tale”). One of the spirits had a central tutelary function, and today I, quite naturally, call her: The Forest Mother. The experiences lasted two or three days respectively, whereafter the "normal" perception returned. They were without doubt some kind of initiations. Initially, my spiritual crises caused a critique of New Age, and its infringement of tradition, preparatory work and experiences with such. The critique is therefore not a part of the modern skeptical movement (which doesn´t understand that critical thinking is philosophy, and not science), but a defense of the original wisdom traditions. You can find the critique on the page: My Cultural Criticism.
After I realized that the crisis was a calling, and I decided to drop out and devote myself completely to my philosophical practice and my vagabond photography, I finally found peace. Meditation as an Art of Life is first of all flowering from this primordial experience. Secondly it has been conceptualized and developed further through theoretical research. What I want to share, is my experiences of dangers and pitfalls on the spiritual path, as well as the solutions I have discovered due to distress. This resulted in the concept of Meditation as an Art of Life. My speciality is in that way guiding through spiritual crises. I´m all in for bohemianism. I consider myself as a drop-out hermit in Rold Forest, where I, as Bruce Chatwin said: “have a place to hang my hat”. I like to refer to myself as a Philosophical Globetrotter, Life Artist, and Idler. I campaign against the work ethic (a religious, Protestant dogma, which capitalism is introducing worldwide, and which is making both people and environment sick) and promote freedom, autonomy and responsibility; in reality: the fine art of doing nothing. In this I take an anarchic approach to the everyday barriers that come between us and our dreams. So I´m in for spiritual anarchism, civil disobedience, and the right to be an idler and a drop-out (see my Links to Idlers and Drop-out Philosophies). 
"Hermit", from The Byzantine Tarot
"The Hermit", from The DruidCraft Tarot
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From: The DruidCraft Tarot
I have no view of my own. My critical arguments are simply reduction to absurdity of the views ignorance has created. 
The delusion of money is not something I enjoy Hercules Chasing Avarice from the Temple of the Muses
(1516-17 CE) Design by Baldassare Tommaso Peruzzi
Jesus driving moneychangers & merchants from the Temple
Engraving by Gustave Doré
Jesus, in his sermon on the Mount, preached idleness: Sadhu of India
The greater blessing to all those living moneyless in the world without publicity Peace Pilgrim
Question to Peace Pilgrim: Why don't you accept money? |
