As I complete my two-mile morning walk in rural South Carolina, I feel as if I am at another threshold, surfing yet another wave of growth and awareness — another wave of awareness of The Self, one that has poured more into me through the practice of Equanimity I learned during a 10-day silent Goenka Vipassana meditation course.
Vipassana, which means to see things as they really are, is one of India’s most ancient techniques of meditation. It was rediscovered by Gotama Buddha more than 2,500 years ago and was taught by him as a universal remedy for universal ills — an Art of Living. This non-sectarian technique aims for the total eradication of mental impurities and the resultant highest happiness of full liberation.
The course is ten days of silence (no phone), meditating ten hours a day — 100 hours in total. Vegan or vegetarian meals. Starting at ~5am and going until ~10pm.
The course requires hard, serious work. There are three steps to the training. The first step is, for the period of the course, to abstain from killing, stealing, sexual activity, speaking falsely, and intoxicants. This simple code of moral conduct serves to calm the mind, which otherwise would be too agitated to perform the task of self-observation. The next step is to develop some mastery over the mind by learning to fix one’s attention on the natural reality of the ever-changing flow of breath as it enters and leaves the nostrils. By the fourth day the mind is calmer and more focused, better able to undertake the practice of Vipassana itself: observing sensations throughout the body, understanding their nature, and developing equanimity by learning not to react to them. Finally, on the last full day, participants learn the meditation of loving kindness or goodwill towards all, in which the purity developed during the course is shared with all beings.
(Credit: Dhamma.org)
Over my last 128 days, the first wave ended softly — yet it was not “easy.” Wave two was a Nazaré, Portugal kind of wave: quickly towed into it on a jet ski, ~100 feet tall — equivalent to a 10-story building. Exhilarating, fast, and quick finish. Both waves were my teachers, happening for me. I learned a lot from reflection and contemplation, and from feeling the feminine flow and energy of them. Power versus Force.
Years ago — before Meditation, before Vipassana, before more Awareness — I would have chalked the experiences up to the wave being the problem: external. As a semi-pro soul surfer, I am looking more in the mirror. I am using The Art of Contemplation (see the Gene Keys system); I am more aware of my Human Design, and of how my emotional decision-making centers (aka Chakras), and others, can govern or drives us. And last, I am deep into the 3 Mirrors principles taken from The Gospel of Thomas.
Gospel of Thomas (91):
“You read the face of the sky and of the earth, but you have not recognized how to read this Moment.”
The 1st mirror is that you are presented with others as a reflection of who you are being. Self-explanatory, yet the ego leads us to believe otherwise.
The 2nd mirror is who you are attracting, and why. The subtle truth of this could entail being very integrous in business and your interactions, yet judging those who are not, or who have ulterior motives — whether they are aware of it themselves or not. For example: out of a fear of being cheated or stolen from in the past, a person attracts “not being stolen from” — and so “bad actors” are what they see, even though that may not be what is actually occurring. That just what they see. Their/our fear shows up as control, asymmetry, gatekeeping, or overly prudent protection, when in reality it’s a lack of forgiveness, lack of trust, or missing the unconditional state of love — of seeing everyone as pure divine beings at the core. So, the second mirror has been a tremendous teacher for me. I see where I had a “charge,” an emotional charge of judgement toward such behavior — which might have been the very purpose of that wave: to teach me the 2nd mirror, a greater awareness of my emotional guidance system saying, Please proceed to the highlighted route.
The 3rd Mirror is The Vessel — pouring out too much of yourself for another, unknowingly, until storehouse of what you have to give, your emotional bank account, is empty, overdrawn. So, this taught me Discernment, in many forms.
Here is the video of Gregg Braden walking through his own life experience and the Mirrors:
Discernment, for me, is present in my Gene Keys ‘12’ — which shows up 4x in my chart! Gene Keys is based on a system derived from the I-Ching. In Gene Keys you have 14 numbers. Of my 14, I have ‘12’ four times! Lots to learn here!
The Shadow – Vanity
The Gift – Discernment
The Siddhi – Purity
The last wave corresponded precisely with astrological timing (a 5-day period in June), when, with clarity, I was riding the wave into Discernment. So you can track with me — and for those not familiar with the system, each Gene Key has a ‘Key’ and a ‘Line.’ For example, 12.5 is my sphere of EQ (Emotional Intelligence): the 12 is the Key (think: you as the Character), and the .5 is the Line (think: you acting out the Plot).
The Plot! [ACTION! ]
The .5 Line, for me, is Respect / Disrespect (think: two-way):
“Your [my] secret to healthy relating involves cultivating emotional maturity, humility, and honor as you strive to make the world a better place.”
COWABUNGA! (1960s surfer slang)
For me it felt like being super stoked to catch the wave! A 90-day ride! AND BAM!!
Interspersed with twisty-tingy, guttural feelings coming from my emotional center, the solar plexus — right in the Fn gut! UGH. But wait Ryan. That’s your emotional guidance system. It was like my internal GPS. If only… Okay — now I know how to better read a different instrument: my body. In the moment. Discernment. That said, layering in the 3rd mirror perspective, it was my disposition to see only the good in “the wave,” so I didn’t correctly read the danger.
To tie all this winding, interwoven, roller-coaster of a wave together,
What did I learn: A LOT.
Each of these studies and practices has allowed me, as the student, to go deeper within — revealing greater and greater insights. Seeing reality as it is.
I truly believe that through these teachings — and their integration through real-life experience, after getting back to livin’ in the world, away from the meditation hall — I am being prepared for a much bigger life purpose: the next chapter. All the experiences of these waves — in my life, with my family and friends, and in business — are happening for me. And I am finally able to feel, hear, and, most importantly, listen.
Surf’s up, soul surfers!
With Grace and Gratitude for all my teachers.
© Ryan Scherzinger 2026+
The Voice lives here on Substack and my Instagram.
See my other section The Proof and The Promise for business and what’s coming.