Philip O'Rourke profile picture

Philip O'Rourke

'Now' is the child of yesterday and the parent of tomorrow - and we own neither our parents nor our

About Me


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About me there is little to say.

One day I was born.

One day I will die,

but in between

'I Will Look To This Day'.



For those who do wish to know more, what can I say!

All of my life I have been interested in the spiritual realms. Dreaming played a major role in this. By the age of eight, in order to alleviate chronic pain caused by some teeth problems, I found that by sitting very still and staring into a mirror I could drift into a state in which there was no pain. Later in life I discovered that this was a form of deep meditation or a ‘state of ecstasy’ . After a time, I did not need the mirror but could induce this state at will, which took me on a lifelong study of altered states of consciousness. I found that in these altered states I had the ability to examine situations without judgement and learn at an accelerated rate. It was not until my travels abroad, in my early twenties, that I discovered these methods to be the very basis of some of the techniques in Shamanic practices; hence the next twenty years researching and studying this whole area. Though I did pursue a highly successful career in business during this time, a lot of it as a ‘motivational consultant’ and as an internationally published photojournalist in the latter, the call to serve my Mother Earth and all of her children, two legged and other, became stronger and stronger.
A little over a decade and a half ago I divested myself of my attachment to worldly goods and dedicated my life to honouring my ancestors and serving where I could. I rented an old rundown cottage in the heart of the country and lived there for the next two years, as a recluse spending most of my time meditating while sitting on a rock in the middle of a field. I must have given much amusement to the odd local farmer, who might see me there in all weathers, including rain and snow.
I am not a saintly, mild mannered figure. I enjoy life, and you would be more likely to find me playing jokes on people than on my knees with my eyes thrown towards the heavens. I can’t help it, I love to laugh. I laugh at everything, starting with myself.
For me, there are no ‘rights’ and ‘wrongs’. Who am I to judge what is right and wrong. I live my life by three basic guidelines.
First, I live with the knowledge that I have brought my death out of the womb with me and that twin walks with me, and whether he calls me now or thirty years from now it matters not. Until that time comes, I will live every moment as my last.
Second, I care a lot about people, but I don’t give a fiddlers (don’t ask) what they think of me.
Third, I will try to do harm to none, but outside of that I will be as I please.
I presently live in the county of Limerick, where I see clients as a ‘Life Coach and Shamanic Practitioner’. I do this without fee and live purely by the generosity of others. I also have a number of students, whom I am in the process of driving utterly mad.

My Interests


Things I enjoy doing

Theatre,


Photography,


Genealogy,

Spending a lot of time maintaining my site

Irish Ancestral Pages


Music,


Meditation,


Reading,


Writing,


Bicycling,


Cooking,


Singing,


Yoga,


Smiling,


Making Friends,


Dancing to the beat of a silent drum,


Drumming to the tune of an unknown song,


Dreaming of life,

Living my dreams,


Taking delight in chatting about unimportant subjects


and above all,


Living each moment as my last.


I'd like to meet:


John Moriarty

Dennis Banks

James Connelly

Deepak Chopra

Mahatma Gandhi

Bobby Seales

Tenzin Gayatso

Rosa Parks

and another Philip


Music:


The beat of a drum,

the toot of a flute,

the string of a harp,

and any sound

which has

Rhythm and heart,

passion and depth

Movies:



Jonathon
Livingston
Seagul


Heroes:


My own parents

Who have gone to prepare a place for me

in the halls of our ancestors

My Blog

Memories of when I was Nine

  It never seemed to rain in those days.  The back river smelled of the sent of Blackthorn and valerian, which grew along the river wall.  The air was filled with the sound of blue...
Posted by Philip O'Rourke on Tue, 01 Jul 2008 06:13:00 PST

Shooting Myself for the First Time

SHOOTING MYSELF FOR THE FIRST TIME   I decided to shoot myself for the first time on video. Nothing serious, just a little rant.   I wish you a pleasant week. Philip     ...
Posted by Philip O'Rourke on Sun, 17 Jun 2007 07:41:00 PST

School Days at 'The Quay'

  The handball was made from the paper wrappings from  the pupils sandwiches and tied together with pieces of string.  The play area was the enclosed section of the school yard, betwee...
Posted by Philip O'Rourke on Tue, 06 Feb 2007 03:33:00 PST

Two Weddings One Bride

My mother's brother - Michael John, was a very serious man, who I can never remember laughing.  He was, in a way, the black sheep of my mother's family, certainly of the men anyway.  Wherea...
Posted by Philip O'Rourke on Wed, 22 Nov 2006 08:00:00 PST

Who's looking after Table Three?

Who's looking after Table Three? While nearly everybody has eaten in a restaurant, not everyone has experienced the restaurant kitchen. Contrary to the belief, held by some people, that kitchens are...
Posted by Philip O'Rourke on Mon, 20 Nov 2006 11:49:00 PST

I muse and I rant. This is a rant

Let us deliberate for a while on the topic of stolen values.  The butcher, at an early age will labour with one who correspondingly has at a similarly early age has worked for an attenuated ...
Posted by Philip O'Rourke on Sun, 12 Nov 2006 06:14:00 PST

A Dream of a Mystical and Ancient Land

  I dreamed a dream of a mystical and ancient land.  A land where the runes were once cast and a magical web was woven.  This was a land where saint and scholar and bard were one, ...
Posted by Philip O'Rourke on Tue, 15 Aug 2006 08:01:00 PST

Dreams of My Forefathers

  My dreams took me to a point of realization that this life does not begin nor end with my potential three score and ten years, but before the foundations of this world were laid. That the expe...
Posted by Philip O'Rourke on Fri, 13 Oct 2006 06:04:00 PST