For more information regarding workshops and presentations &
for one-on-one phone or video lessons:
mankh(a)allbook-books.com
ph# (631) 716-1385 -- 10a.m. - 7p.m. Eastern Time
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List of presentations and workshops -- for more info scroll down

* Finding Serenity in the Digital World
* Languages and Consciousness; Tools for Enhancing Your Writing and Lifestyle
* Stanzas & Strings
*Moving Through Life-Experiences Instead of Staying Stuck: Inner and Outer Gates
 FINDING YOUR VOICE: LETTING THE MUSES SING IN YOU
* THE MEDITATIVE ART OF BRUSH CALLIGRAPHY
* THE STATES WE'RE IN: WHAT'S IN A PLACE NAME?
* PERSONALITY & THE ART OF TANTRA
* HAIKU: Being in the Moment: Flowing with the Seasons
* How To Research, Write, and Publish

Author-editor of 17 books ranging from poetry to essays to poetic nonfiction and anthologies, Mankh is also a small press publisher.
He is resident poet and essay contributor at axisoflogic.com. He travels a holistic mystic Kaballah-rooted pathway staying in touch with Turtle Island.  

"Guaranteed to offer an out of the ordinary creative experience, Mankh's eclectic  repertoire will appeal to enthusiasts of the written word, metaphysics, and Eastern arts and philosophy."
 ~Anne Marie Tognella, Programs & Public Relations, Community Services Dept., Sachem Public Library

"Mankh has provided us with enjoyable, interesting programs about Tantra,  Brushstroke Calligraphy, and his poetry. We're very happy to host him when we can."
~Stacey Schilb, Adult Services Librarian, Port Jefferson Free Library.

Mankh has led programs at Bayport-Bluepoint Library, North Shore Library,  Southold Library, Deer Park Library, Bellport Library, Bridgehampton Library, Smithtown Library, Middle Country Public Library, Sachem Library, Emma Clark Library, Mattituck-Laurel Library, Longwood Library, Elwood Library, East End Arts Council, Mills Pond House, Long Island Healing Arts & Learning Center, Feelin O2 Good Holistic Wellness Center, Blue Lotus Center for Yoga and the Arts, Gallery North, and other venues.
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Finding Serenity in the Digital World
The speed and efficiency of tech gadgets is making it more challenging to live in sync with the rhythms  of the natural world. Which do you prefer, screen-light or  sun/moon/starlight? The interiorization of technology means that as we  internalize the energies and behaviors of the technology, this affects our nervous systems and mental processes. Many people are on edge,  jittery, and short-tempered. Success is promoted in 1-2-3 clicks, but good work requires time. Mankh will share and discuss ways to help you  balance your energies, maintain equilibrium, and enhance your intuitive  abilities so you can better manage your digital experiences and stay in relationship with Earth and Spirit energies.

Mankh (Walter E. Harris III) is the author-editor of 17 books ranging from poetry to essays to poetic nonfiction. He has been giving presentations  at libraries and elsewhere for more than 15 years. Mankh travels a  holistic mystic Kaballah-rooted pathway staying in touch with Turtle Island. He enjoys gardening, music, meditation, and more.
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Languages and Consciousness; Tools for Enhancing Your Writing and Lifestyle

The languages we grow up with reflect the culture we come from and the consciousness with which we experience the world around us; the way we speak and write reflects all of that.

Learn of examples from different cultures past and present, including Indigenous  languages which typically have no word for time.

Other examples include Chinese as a picture-language and the A-to-Z hierarchical  alphabet which derives from pictures, yet with modern English we have  lost touch with what is actually being said, for example, Alphabet means "Ox House”€� or more accurately “Upside Down Ox House”.

Along with the bigger picture, tips for enhancing writing techniques with emotion, rhythm, and word/phrase choices.
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Stanzas & Strings: A combo of cello solos, cello and violin with poetry, and electric harp plus singing bowl with haiku. Performances reflect the season of the year.

"Soothing, inspirational” - Cindy Bartek-Medina

Merissa Sobha is an active musician performing and recording music in the Tri-state area and Long Island. In her time in-between performances she teaches violin, viola and cello to a wide range of ages. Merissa is the owner operator of Long Island’s premiere music entertainment company called the Blue Moon Music Company.

Mankh (Walter E. Harris III) is a writer and small press publisher. For many years he hosted poetry readings and is the author of 17 books, many of which are poetry. He travels a holistic mystic Kaballah-rooted pathway staying in touch with Turtle Island and the cycles of the Seasons.

 

Moving Through Life-Experiences Instead of Staying Stuck: Inner and Outer Gates

Interactive presentation, plus book signing. Mankh will facilitate a discussion about one of the main themes in his recent book: how people move through life-experiences or else stay stuck. The living-journey provides opportunities to move through gates, whether physical or metaphysical. Analyzing the obstacles helps to untangle, yet direct experience is necessary for moving through the issue or gate. Walking in balance with Earth and listening to your intuition helps stay with the Path.

 FINDING YOUR VOICE:  LETTING THE MUSES SING IN YOU
(Picasso)

Homer’s The Odyssey (translated by Robert Fitzgerald) begins: “Sing in me, Muse, and through me tell the story...”

The Prayer of St. Francis begins: “Lord, make me an instrument of your peace.”

This presentation/discussion poses the question: How does your writing and your voice change when you allow other energies in? Mankh will discuss  various approaches to this process, ranging from the Greek Muses to haiku to Ray Bradbury to observing signs from Nature to guidance from Spirit to the individual writer’s innate way of tapping into multiple personas and perspectives. Whether you call them Muses or not, observing, listening to and honoring other beings can enhance ‘your’  writings.
Audio Presentation 46-minutes
 

HAIKU — Being in the Moment: Flowing with the Seasons

must be good friends,
three sparrows gathering
on a lilac branch
                                    - mankh

Though its roots go back at least  2600 years, haiku began to flourish in 17th century Japan. Akin to Zen  Buddhist and Taoist philosophy (and other Asian arts), haiku poetry encourages attention to the present moment as well as keeping in tune with the pathway of seasons. A wonderful way to align with nature, enhance one's mindfulness (as well as Zen mindlessness), and hone your verbal skills (being so short, haiku require great precision!).

Learn about haiku as a way of life,  literary genre and creative hobby.  Workshop topics include: a brief history of the shortest poetic form;  traditional guidelines and modern adaptations; the Asian culture, philosophy, and meditative-ness behind the poem; how to write haiku AND apply the haiku-essence to longer poems. For beginner to advanced.

Mankh authored/edited Haiku One Breaths, a how-to write haiku, plus anthology, & edits and publishes Haiku Calendar. His haiku and essays have also been published in Frogpond, at simplyhaiku.com, and elsewhere.

THE MEDITATIVE ART OF BRUSH CALLIGRAPHY

The ancient technique of East Asian brush calligraphy has been considered  part art form and part meditation. In this basic presentation you will  learn how to grind ink, hold a brush, and apply basic brushstrokes, as  well as how to respect the "five treasures" - brush, ink stick, ink stone, paper, and water. Plus, get a glimpse  of ancient Chinese picture-writing and modern variants. Those wanting a more in-depth  experience are welcome to bring their own brush calligraphy kit; brushes, paper, and ink will be provided so that participants can learn  by brush calligraphying the ancient Chinese pictographs for the four seasons.
 

For an in-depth look at this ancient art

Mankh is a self-taught calligrapher who studies and calligraphies ancient Chinese pictographs. He has  facilitated workshops for many years in libraries and arts centers. His  brush calligraphy has been exhibited at Kings Park Library and is often featured in his books and the annual Haiku Calendar.

How To Research, Write, and Publish
Get tips for researching via the internet, library, or people, plus how to integrate the research with your particular project as well as the creative process in general. Complete the equation by exploring various  approaches for getting your work published. The overall process is a  mix of clerical work and creativity.

Mankh (Walter E. Harris III) has sixteen-plus years of experience designing, editing, and helping produce nearly 100 books. He is resident poet and essay contributor at  axisoflogic.com, and his writings have been  published elsewhere both online and in print: Long Island Pulse, Newsday.com, Creations  Magazine, Outlook Long Island, The Long-Islander, PoetryBay.com;  Book/Mark: A Quarterly Small Press Review, counterpunch.com, Starting From Paumanok... The Newsletter of the Walt Whitman Birthplace Association, Performance Poets Association Literary Review, Frogpond, simplyhaiku.com, various local anthologies, and more.

 THE STATES WE'RE IN: WHAT'S IN A PLACE NAME?
More than half of the United States (land called Turtle Island by the Original Inhabitants)are named from Native words and places yet rarely are the actual Native  Peoples and their traditions acknowledged. This presentation bridges the gap between name and Peoples, place and respect for the environment aka Mother Earth. How united are the United States and what can be done to  heal the long-standing divisions? Suggested reading and actions are also part of this wide-ranging, informative, and stirring presentation. Also info about Long Island.

Mankh's book-length epic poem Singing an Epic of Peaceincludes some of the origins of the fifty States’ names.
Sales of this book go to the Shinnecock and Lakota Nations.

  PERSONALITY & THE ART OF TANTRA
Conscious tantra helps a person liberate from a prison of false self-identities  and traumas. Every day we are affected by energies: ourselves, other people, the weather, pets, moods, emotions and more. How you adapt to and navigate these energies is a key part of the art of tantra. Many  people associate tantra with sexuality because that is the most intimate and direct form, however tantra in its fuller sense reflects how,  especially with those we hang-out with, we mirror or 'rub off' on each other, sometimes losing ourselves, sometimes finding ourselves.

Sanskrit tantram, "loom, warp, weave” - tan "stretch, extend, expand", and suffix tra "instrument, technique, that which liberates” loosely defined as: stretching your consciousness so as to liberate from limited experiences/perceptions/personas/etc., and learning how to consciously be  'played' by various energies. 

Mankh draws on 40 years of learning from direct experiences, accentuated because of his empathic nature.

Website © 2024 Walter E. Harris III.