061 – The Drunken Taoist: Daniele Bolelli

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Daniele Bolelli The Drunken Taoist is our special guest on today’s show. He is a university history professor, author, and martial artist. Today he is our guide on a journey where desire and destiny collide.

I first heard Daniele on the Joe Rogan show, and I have been following him ever since. I was intrigued by his philosophy on life and found his books On the Warrior’s Path and Not Afraid. Then I started following his podcasts The Drunken Taoist podcast, The Taoist Lecture series, and now the epical-History on Fire.

Practical wisdom is the common thread that runs through all of Daniele’s interests. He is a man who understands the interconnectedness of the subtle, and sometimes not-so-subtle, energies of man, nature and the universe. He embraces life with full intensity and appreciation much like his hero, the original drunken Taoist, Ikyū Sōjun, the Japanese Zen Buddhist and poet who lived in the 15th century.

Daniele is a teacher who gives us lessons about life and spirituality by the example he sets, through stories of personal experience and the historical figures he brings to life on History on Fire. My recommendation is to listen to him carefully.

Topics Discussed Today
[05:17] Daniele likes Tom Robbins because he has depth, but he’s not a suffering artist. He also enjoys his sense of humor. Robbin’s writing speaks to him.
[08:02] A lot of things that Daniele was interested in came from the US and Los Angeles.
[09:38] He is driven by human contact and social activities. Los Angeles ended up being worse than Italy in that respect. The fast pace was the opposite of what he liked.
[12:01] Daniele majored in Anthropology. He at least enjoyed the theory of it. He thought it would be more than history.
[13:18] He also got a master’s degree in American Indian studies. He had a prior interest in this subject.
[14:42] He also spent time on a reservation. He found the sense of community amazing.
[16:29] He went to the sweat lodge and participated in some ceremonies.
[17:28] Daniele shares his sundance experience. Rationally, it didn’t make sense, but it did on an intuitive level.
[19:31] He started training in martial arts when he was 17. He was also an MMA fighter. He liked facing his fears.
[23:12] His late wife was an osteopathic physician who passed away after getting brain cancer.
[23:58] When Michael heard the story on Daniele’s podcast he felt a connection.
[24:50] The first few months after the diagnosis were hell. She did pass away quickly in a 6 month period.
[25:31] His priorities shifted after he came to terms with the reality.
[29:54] Building a great life boils down to knowing who you are and what you want. If you can’t be happy where you are, you won’t be happy anywhere.
[32:17] He doesn’t believe in dividing spirituality from everyday life. Spirituality is playing with your kids, and it is an extension of your life.
[34:19] Words are only a tiny portion of who we are. It’s the energy passing through the words not actually the words we use.
[41:24] He talks about how important it is to see both sides of things. There are right things with the philosophy of liberals and conservatives. We should see the truth in both sides.
[41:49] We need to accept our circumstances and take responsibility and drop blame, and then do whatever we can to move forward and change the circumstance.
[42:57] Daniele has used writing as a key way to express himself. He started with writing, but he has been more successful as a podcast, but three of his books are close to the root of his being and his personal philosophy.
[44:58] As long as your path is leading in the right direction, you are doing great.
[45:33] Daniele spends years writing notes, before he sits down to write. He has been writing the books for a long time. This forces his to figure out who he wants to be.
[46:13] He works a lot on his podcasts. He also teaches in college. He is on all day. He works on several projects at the same time, but he loves his work.
[47:56] Media success is never guaranteed. He plans on teaching long term. One day a week would be ideal.
[52:59] Michael loves Daniele’s story telling ability on his history podcast. Even though, he knows about the historical account, he gets lost in the story.
[53:44] Daniele believes that there is a life force flowing through the universe.
[54:57] Ego can be a problem when becoming the hollow bone or tube.
[55:25] Things don’t come to you when you are needy. This is a bit of an irony. The harder you reach, the more you push things away. The more you can relax, the easier the reach becomes.
[56:43] Daniele doesn’t really meditate, but he takes 10 deep breaths and practices martial arts or works up a sweat.
[01:00:14] Daniele is a man who shares his wisdom by the way he leads his life.
[01:00:48] We have no control in this extremely unpredictable and complex world in which we live in. Knowing who we are will give us the mindset to get back on our feet and keep moving forward.

Links and Resources:
Uncle Michael @TheHollowTube on Twitter
Uncle Michael @TheHollowTube on Instagram
Michael Bays on Facebook
The Hollow Tube Facebook Page
Daniele Bolelli
The Drunken Taoist
Taoist Lecture Series
The Drunken Taoist- Episode 34 Elizabeth Han
History on Fire
Tom Robbins
Still Life With Woodpecker
Jitterbug Perfume
Michael Pollan
How to Change Your Mind
Deep Survival by Lawrence Gonzales
Terrence McKenna
Ikyū Sōjun
Chuang Tzu
The Way of Chuang Tzu
Frank Fools Crow
College of Osteopathic Medicine of the Pacific
What is Cranial Osteopathy?
Dan Carlin
Ennio Morricone
The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack
Books by Daniele Bolelli

Quotes:
“Ultimately everybody gets crushed.” Daniele Bolelli

“If you can’t be happy right here right now where you are, then you’re not going to be happy anywhere.” Daniele Bolelli

“Spirituality is life lived with full intensity, full awareness and appreciation.” Daniele Bolelli

“The only thing that matters is what can elevate the quality of your life” Daniele Bolelli

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