C. Lia Rikugun

"Keep Questioning, Stay Hungry"- Interview with Lia Rikugun, Guardian for Play as Being.

I met Lia Rikugun at the Play as Being Pavilion in Beiup. I found that her first Play as Being session was November 12, 2008, and like many to-be future guardians, had her first play as being session with good conversation and onigokko (grateful again for the wiki logs!). As I was going over past guardian interviews, I noticed that Lia has not been interviewed yet in the chronicles, something I wanted to take care of right away. One of the things Lia does for the group is to monitor that the 4-times-a-day Play as Being sessions get covered by a Guardian, which can be a very busy job!

We started with greetings and general chat...

SophiaSharon Larnia: Hi Lia!
Lia Rikugun: hello sophiasharon!
SophiaSharon Larnia: so nice to see you, I just got here myself
Lia Rikugun: yes so nice to see you too ;)
SophiaSharon Larnia: is it later where you are? You are from Germany?
Lia Rikugun: yes i am from germany
Lia Rikugun: it is 7pm here
SophiaSharon Larnia: oohhh hopefully not too late
Lia Rikugun: i just had dinner so i am feeling very good :)
SophiaSharon Larnia: yay :)
Lia Rikugun: yaey!
Lia Rikugun: and you where are you from?
SophiaSharon Larnia: Pennsylvania, USA
Lia Rikugun: ah
SophiaSharon Larnia: its 1 pm, and I too have eaten so I feel great lol
Lia Rikugun: it is very early?
Lia Rikugun: no like 1pm?
SophiaSharon Larnia: yes
Lia Rikugun: haha! wonderful

SophiaSharon Larnia: From the beginning, when I first came to play as being, I found your statements so refreshing
Lia Rikugun: hm in what sense?
SophiaSharon Larnia: your input
SophiaSharon Larnia: I'm not sure, your equanimity and willingness to share
Lia Rikugun: i ask a lot of questions because i don’t know.. :(
Lia Rikugun: and i am trying to understand, but usually i get more confused ;)
SophiaSharon Larnia: yes, that is part of what is so refreshing, sometimes people don't say what is on their minds
SophiaSharon Larnia: yes me too
SophiaSharon Larnia: very clear, too
Lia Rikugun: hm
SophiaSharon Larnia: You have been with Play as Being for a long time....
Lia Rikugun: well thank you
Lia Rikugun: let me think
Lia Rikugun: about one year and a half i think
Lia Rikugun: wow!
SophiaSharon Larnia: yes wow
Lia Rikugun: or maybe 1 or 2 months longer

Lia describes how she found Play as Being... it turns out she had met Pema in RL before coming to Play as Being in SL, something I did not know before!
 

Lia Rikugun: I was working in SL
SophiaSharon Larnia: oh??
Lia Rikugun: as a kind of internship, created some automatic avatars, bots
Lia Rikugun: through this job I got in contact with Pema Pera
Lia Rikugun: in RL
SophiaSharon Larnia: wow
Lia Rikugun: we were both in Japan
Lia Rikugun: and well after meeting once or twice we started to talk about philosophy and spirituality
Lia Rikugun: and this is how I came to PaB :)
SophiaSharon Larnia: that was in the very beginning?
Lia Rikugun: of PaB?
SophiaSharon Larnia: yes
Lia Rikugun: I think it is now 2 years old no?
SophiaSharon Larnia: yes it is :)
Lia Rikugun: I guess it was then like half a year later that I joined
Lia Rikugun: :)
SophiaSharon Larnia: oh ok 6 months later or so
Lia Rikugun: yes

Playing as Being and the 9 seconds over her year and a half... dynamic changes in the group, changes in herself...
 

SophiaSharon Larnia: has the group changed a lot for you over that time?
Lia Rikugun: more people
Lia Rikugun: :)
SophiaSharon Larnia: ha! yes
Lia Rikugun: it is very dynamic
Lia Rikugun: every session is different so this is great
Lia Rikugun: everybody brings something different to it
Lia Rikugun: i would be able to say what changed
Lia Rikugun: but its changing constantly i think
Lia Rikugun: which i think is great
SophiaSharon Larnia: and that is a good thing too,
SophiaSharon Larnia: :)
SophiaSharon Larnia: it is very different! Over this period of tie, has the concept of being change for you in any way?
SophiaSharon Larnia: time*
Lia Rikugun: what does period of tie mean?
SophiaSharon Larnia: over this period of time of 1 1/2 yr
Lia Rikugun: ah since i am in PaB
SophiaSharon Larnia: nods
Lia Rikugun: i think everything is changing all the time, my ideas of the world and who I am, my conception of being and everything
Lia Rikugun: going through ups and down
Lia Rikugun: seeing the world as completely hm
Lia Rikugun: what is the word
Lia Rikugun: meaning less and then the next day everything makes sense again
SophiaSharon Larnia: ah yes :)
Lia Rikugun: it is changing every day
Lia Rikugun: and i guess this is what changed
Lia Rikugun: my perception of the world as stable
Lia Rikugun: i don't know if i am making sense
SophiaSharon Larnia: what have been your experiences with the 9 second practice?
SophiaSharon Larnia: you are very much making sense :)
Lia Rikugun: haha hopefully :)
SophiaSharon Larnia: it is hard to pin down with words, it does change so much
SophiaSharon Larnia: to describe makes it a static thing
Lia Rikugun: yes
Lia Rikugun: as for the 9 seconds
Lia Rikugun: in the beginning I took a break every 15 minutes to take 9 seconds and relax
Lia Rikugun: and think
Lia Rikugun: then later try to drop
Lia Rikugun: now i don't do it as regularly every 15 minutes
Lia Rikugun: I try to take some time every evening and do a little meditation
Lia Rikugun: where I drop
Lia Rikugun: but actually the 9 seconds really helped me to relax
SophiaSharon Larnia: nods
Lia Rikugun: and the meditation helps me to keep these thoughts in my life
Lia Rikugun: i can get so caught up by every day life
SophiaSharon Larnia: oh yes
Lia Rikugun: that after a week of not meditating it is much more difficult to get back to these ideas
Lia Rikugun: just to remind myself there is something more
SophiaSharon Larnia: yes, I’ve found that too, I’m not as disciplined with that as I'd like to be
Lia Rikugun: something to think about
Lia Rikugun: yes definitely
Lia Rikugun: :) but when I do it, it helps me a lot
[Lia Rikugun: its like doing sports, you need to get up and do it and afterwards you feel great ;)
SophiaSharon Larnia: ahh great analogy :)

Lia and I talk about her other activities with Kira, and as you will see, she asks me questions about me. This is one of the things that I like so much about her.... always open, questioning and curious. ^^
 

SophiaSharon Larnia: have you been involved with other things at Kira?
Lia Rikugun: I participated at the Time Workshop
SophiaSharon Larnia: i remember when i first came to SL I heard you in the cafe at Kira, I forget what the meeting was
Lia Rikugun: and I went to the phenomenology workshop
SophiaSharon Larnia: oh! I think it was pheno??
SophiaSharon Larnia: hmm
Lia Rikugun: you heard my voice?
SophiaSharon Larnia: i think so
Lia Rikugun: if it was voice i think it was the time workshop
SophiaSharon Larnia: a 'long time ago' :)
SophiaSharon Larnia: ohhhh time then, that is when I must've seen the tags for play as being :))
Lia Rikugun: when did you come to SL first time?
Lia Rikugun: oh yes :)
SophiaSharon Larnia: 11/08, but left for a while because i was on an old lap top ^^
Lia Rikugun: ohhh laggy :)
SophiaSharon Larnia: yes I still don’t know why i came back it was pretty bad hahah
Lia Rikugun: haha
Lia Rikugun: maybe it was so interesting ;)
SophiaSharon Larnia: yes it was and is

Lia has attended two Play as Being retreats, and here I ask about them...
 

SophiaSharon Larnia: You have been on several PaB retreats now haven’t you?
Lia Rikugun: yes i was on two retreats
Lia Rikugun: did you have the chance to go to a retreat?
SophiaSharon Larnia: i went to a mini retreat in Princeton
Lia Rikugun: oh yes nice!
SophiaSharon Larnia: couldn't go to this one (April in San Fran)
Lia Rikugun: how was Princeton for you?
SophiaSharon Larnia: very exciting, I was so nervous
Lia Rikugun: to meet the people?
SophiaSharon Larnia: even though I knew it was going to be fun
SophiaSharon Larnia: yes
Lia Rikugun: yes i can understand :)
SophiaSharon Larnia: how were the retreats for you?
Lia Rikugun: for me it was ok, because i had met Pema and Fefonz before :)
SophiaSharon Larnia: ahh that helps
Lia Rikugun: hm the retreats very very inspiring and opening
Lia Rikugun: and it was great to meet so nice people
Lia Rikugun: it was interesting to see how everybody was thinking
SophiaSharon Larnia: I re-read the Malta retreat logs yesterday
Lia Rikugun: and to see where the experiments or meditations go
SophiaSharon Larnia: yes, where they go....
Lia Rikugun: i must say during the first retreat I mostly watched
Lia Rikugun: what was going on
Lia Rikugun: i was and am still not very experienced with meditating
Lia Rikugun: so I just wanted to see
Lia Rikugun: but during the second retreat I could be much more open in a way
Lia Rikugun: so this was also very interesting to learn about myself
Lia Rikugun: i guess i have learned a lot about myself too during those 1 and a half years
SophiaSharon Larnia: nods.............. me too Lia
Lia Rikugun: :) so thats great! :)
SophiaSharon Larnia: some things were and are surprising
SophiaSharon Larnia: was it hard to adjust to real life after the retreats?
Lia Rikugun: hm
Lia Rikugun: i am not sure if I can remember clearly
Lia Rikugun: i think i went back to work
Lia Rikugun: and this was very frustrating
SophiaSharon Larnia: now that is right back in the thick of things!
Lia Rikugun: to have been in such an open environment where we exchanged ideas and thoughts and then come back to an atmosphere which is not that open
SophiaSharon Larnia: yes
Lia Rikugun: but this might be my work as well :)
SophiaSharon Larnia: i understand that, i think :))
Lia Rikugun: i dont think i can put it in better words
SophiaSharon Larnia: nods, and that is true too lol
Lia Rikugun: :) but maybe this is what it was like

Sounds like a Happy Place to Be....
 

SophiaSharon Larnia: You spoke a bit about dreams, have you been working with your dreams?
Lia Rikugun: i have different kind of dreams :)
Lia Rikugun: something I call going to my happy place
Lia Rikugun: which happens while I am awake
Lia Rikugun: and then I experimented a little with dreaming
Lia Rikugun: and had some experience with a lucid dream once
SophiaSharon Larnia: ohh
Lia Rikugun: but I like my happy place more
Lia Rikugun: :)
SophiaSharon Larnia: yes, the imagery that you shared struck a deep cord in me Lia
Lia Rikugun: well maybe lucid dream is too much, this is just a definition i use
SophiaSharon Larnia: nods
Lia Rikugun: struck a deep cord?
Lia Rikugun: what does this mean
SophiaSharon Larnia: it means it hit me in a particularly significant way
Lia Rikugun: in a good way i hope :)
SophiaSharon Larnia: oh yes
SophiaSharon Larnia: yes. You said that you go to some kind of cabin and speak to an old man there...
SophiaSharon Larnia: I remember a bit, but that is what stood out
Lia Rikugun: :) yes from time to time, sometimes I just walk around there seeing what will come up
SophiaSharon Larnia: yes :))
Lia Rikugun: i see it as some kind of experimenting with my unconscious
SophiaSharon Larnia: yes
SophiaSharon Larnia: its a very brave thing to do
Lia Rikugun: and i can really feel being there in a sense
Lia Rikugun: even though it only feels half real
Lia Rikugun: it is half real
SophiaSharon Larnia: yes
Lia Rikugun: so this is what is interesting for me
Lia Rikugun: i don’t have any interpretation or don’t really know what i am doing
SophiaSharon Larnia: do any of us, really
Lia Rikugun: i don’t think it is very dangerous at least this is my personal feeling this might be different for someone else
Lia Rikugun: it is just interesting to see what might happen
Lia Rikugun: and maybe i can learn something
Lia Rikugun: and i think i do
SophiaSharon Larnia: :))
Lia Rikugun: :)
Lia Rikugun: but well in the end i don’t know anything :)

This is not quite the 'traditional' golden question, but maybe a little... I ask Lia what she would ask Lia....

SophiaSharon Larnia: Is there anything you'd like to add to this, is it okay if I add what you just said to the interview?
SophiaSharon Larnia: me either !
Lia Rikugun: hehe :)
SophiaSharon Larnia: but i am so honored that you are saying these things
Lia Rikugun: yes i think it is ok

SophiaSharon Larnia: Is there anything you would like to add Lia?? Something I didn’t ask you???
Lia Rikugun: oh
Lia Rikugun: i wouldn’t know what :)
SophiaSharon Larnia: laughs
SophiaSharon Larnia: if you were me, what would you ask?
Lia Rikugun: maybe some wise words? ;)

Lia Rikugun: keep questioning , stay hungry

SophiaSharon Larnia: ohhh
SophiaSharon Larnia: so important!
Lia Rikugun: HAHA at least this is what I am trying to do
SophiaSharon Larnia: very very important
SophiaSharon Larnia: maybe i will write that and put it on my bulletin board so I see it all of the time
Lia Rikugun: oh i should do this too ;)
Lia Rikugun: not thinking of this every day
SophiaSharon Larnia: a reminder
SophiaSharon Larnia: do you mind if I take a picture?
Lia Rikugun: oh no please do
Lia Rikugun: how can i smile?
Lia Rikugun: smile
SophiaSharon Larnia: hahaha
Lia Rikugun: cheeeese
SophiaSharon Larnia: giggles for real :))
Lia Rikugun: :)

Lia Rikugun: i want to read the other interviews now
Lia Rikugun: :)
Lia Rikugun: to see if i performed well :)
SophiaSharon Larnia: aww Lia, I was nervous interviewing you
Lia Rikugun: :) hehe
SophiaSharon Larnia: and there are different kinds of interviews
Lia Rikugun: yes maybe it was good not to read the interviews
Lia Rikugun: otherwise i would have gone into a specific direction
Lia Rikugun: now it was very free
Lia Rikugun: thank you again for interviewing me :)
SophiaSharon Larnia: seriously, i paced a little around my living room :) haha You are one of the 'oldbies' at PaB and therefore fit the Gods and Goddesses category! (this comment was in reference to something that Adams Rubble said in another Play as Being interview...I never forgot it!)
SophiaSharon Larnia: :))
Lia Rikugun: ?
Lia Rikugun: :)
Lia Rikugun: i dont feel like an oldby
Lia Rikugun: i feel like a newby
SophiaSharon Larnia: laughs, I hope you don’t take that the wrong way
Lia Rikugun: and I think i always want to feel like this
SophiaSharon Larnia: me too!
Lia Rikugun: :)
Lia Rikugun: keeps things open I guess
Lia Rikugun: or dynamic and flexible at least this is my idea of newby
SophiaSharon Larnia: yes, not fixed to a certain mind set, out of habit
Lia Rikugun: but you have been in PaB over a year too
SophiaSharon Larnia: yes it doesn’t feel like it
Lia Rikugun: so you are as oldby as I am! :D
SophiaSharon Larnia: heheh
Lia Rikugun: oldby or newby as you want to look at it
SophiaSharon Larnia: it’s getting kind of strange in sl for me, i am distracted by appearances here
Lia Rikugun: what do you mean?
SophiaSharon Larnia: just like being distracted in rl by appearance
Lia Rikugun: what kind of appearance is distracting you from what?
SophiaSharon Larnia: well, we chose how our avatars look (some of us) and change clothes, and shapes, which takes time and thought
Lia Rikugun: oh ok
Lia Rikugun: and what do you want not to get distracted of?
SophiaSharon Larnia: seems to distract from what is 'real' or what we came here to do, explore being
Lia Rikugun: hm
SophiaSharon Larnia: in some way, i almost wouldn’t mind if we were all boxes, just for the sake of meetings hahahaha
Lia Rikugun: :)
SophiaSharon Larnia: it would feel truer
Lia Rikugun: but like this its a lot of fun
SophiaSharon Larnia: oh yes, i love making things here
Lia Rikugun: i think it depends on how you feel
Lia Rikugun: I have these thoughts a lot
Lia Rikugun: "a i should be doing this instead of doing that"
SophiaSharon Larnia: maybe I can find my pab shirt too
Lia Rikugun: but in the end you are doing what is fun and what you like
SophiaSharon Larnia: yes, thats true :))
Lia Rikugun: this is what i am telling myself
Lia Rikugun: i guess there are times when you do that and there are times when you do this
Lia Rikugun: haha but maybe i am completely wrong
SophiaSharon Larnia: no, none of it is wrong
Lia Rikugun: i just relax when I tell this to myself
Lia Rikugun: and i dont need to have a bad conscience
Lia Rikugun: ;)
Lia Rikugun: even though i know it would be "better" to do the other thing
Lia Rikugun: but maybe there is a specific time for everything
Lia Rikugun: i dont know
SophiaSharon Larnia: yes, a time for everything,

SophiaSharon Larnia: thanks for talking with me Lia :))
Lia Rikugun: well thank you for interviewing me
Lia Rikugun: i hope I did a good job
SophiaSharon Larnia: you are great!!!
Lia Rikugun: you are great!! we all are! :D
Lia Rikugun: yeay!
SophiaSharon Larnia: and I’ve wanted to talk to you for a longgg time
Lia Rikugun: oh wow
SophiaSharon Larnia: not necessarily in an interview
SophiaSharon Larnia: but because of your outlook
SophiaSharon Larnia: etc :)
Lia Rikugun: thank you
Lia Rikugun: i am blushing :)
SophiaSharon Larnia: grins, ))
SophiaSharon Larnia: I have to go... bye for now Lia!!!!
Lia Rikugun: yes you take care
Lia Rikugun: and thanks again!
SophiaSharon Larnia: ~waves~
Lia Rikugun: byebye