– English Lyrics

Lyrics & Translation

[English]

Thank you Bevan, thank you all!

I brought one of my paintings to show you today.

Hope you guys are gonna be able see it okay.

It’s not one of my bigger pieces.

You might wanna move down front — to get a good look at it.

(kidding)

Faculty, Parents, Friends, Dignitaries…

Graduating Class of 2014, and all the dead baseball players coming out of the corn to

be with us today.

(laughter) After the harvest there’s no place to hide — the fields are empty — there

is no cover there! (laughter)

I am here to plant a seed that will inspire you to move forward in life with enthusiastic

hearts and a clear sense of wholeness.

The question is, will that seed have a chance to take root, or will I be sued by Monsanto

and forced to use their seed, which may not be totally “Ayurvedic.”

(laughter)

Excuse me if I seem a little low energy tonight — today — whatever this is.

I slept with my head to the North last night.

(laughter) Oh man!

Oh man!

You know how that is, right kids?

Woke up right in the middle of Pitta and couldn’t get back to sleep till Vata rolled around,

but I didn’t freak out.

I used that time to eat a large meal and connect with someone special on Tinder.

(laughter)

Life doesn’t happen to you, it happens for you.

How do I know this?

I don’t, but I’m making sound, and that’s the important thing.

That’s what I’m here to do.

Sometimes, I think that’s one of the only things that are important.

Just letting each other know we’re here, reminding each other that we are part of a

larger self.

I used to think Jim Carrey is all that I was…

Just a flickering light

A dancing shadow

The great nothing masquerading as something you can name

Dwelling in forts and castles made of witches – wishes!

Sorry, a Freudian slip there

Seeking shelter in caves and foxholes, dug out hastily

An archer searching for his target in the mirror

Wounded only by my own arrows

Begging to be enslaved

Pleading for my chains

Blinded by longing and tripping over paradise – can I get an “Amen”?!

(applause)

You didn’t think I could be serious did ya’?

I don’t think you understand who you’re dealing with!

I have no limits!

I cannot be contained because I’m the container.

You can’t contain the container, man!

You can’t contain the container! (laughter)

I used to believe that who I was ended at the edge of my skin, that I had been given

this little vehicle called a body from which to experience creation, and though I couldn’t

have asked for a sportier model, (laughter) it was after all a loaner and would have to

be returned.

Then, I learned that everything outside the vehicle was a part of me, too, and now I drive

a convertible.

Top down wind in my hair! (laughter)

I am elated and truly, truly, truly excited to be present and fully connected to you at

this important moment in your journey.

I hope you’re ready to open the roof and take it all in?!

(audience doesn’t react) Okay, four more years then! (laughter)

I want to thank the Trustees, Administrators and Faculty of MUM for creating an institution

worthy of Maharishi’s ideals of education.

A place that teaches the knowledge and experience necessary to be productive in life, as well

as enabling the students, through Transcendental Meditation and ancient Vedic knowledge to

slack off twice a day for an hour and a half!! (laughter) — don’t think you’re fooling

me!!!

— (applause) but, I guess it has some benefits.

It does allow you to separate who you truly are and what’s real, from the stories that

run through your head.

You have given them the ability to walk behind the mind’s elaborate set decoration, and

to see that there is a huge difference between a dog that is going to eat you in your mind

and an actual dog that’s going to eat you.

(laughter) That may sound like no big deal, but many never learn that distinction and

spend a great deal of their lives living in fight or flight response.

I’d like to acknowledge all you wonderful parents — way to go for the fantastic job

you’ve done — for your tireless dedication, your love, your support, and most of all,

for the attention you’ve paid to your children.

I have a saying, “Beware the unloved,” because they will eventually hurt themselves…

or me!

(laughter)

But when I look at this group here today, I feel really safe!

I do!

I’m just going to say it — my room is not locked!

My room is not locked! (laughter) No doubt some of you will turn out to be crooks!

But white-collar stuff — Wall St. ya’ know, that type of thing — crimes committed

by people with self-esteem!

Stuff a parent can still be proud of in a weird way.

(laughter)

And to the graduating class of 2017 — minus 3!

You didn’t let me finish! (laughter) — Congratulations! (applause) Yes, give yourselves a round of

applause, please.

You are the vanguard of knowledge and consciousness; a new wave in a vast ocean of possibilities.

On the other side of that door, there is a world starving for new leadership, new ideas.

I’ve been out there for 30 years!

She’s a wild cat! (laughter) Oh, she’ll rub up against your leg and purr until you

pick her up and start pettin’ her, and out of nowhere she’ll swat you in the face.

Sure it’s rough sometimes but that’s OK, ‘cause they’ve got soft serve ice cream

with sprinkles! (laughter) I guess that’s what I’m really here to say; sometimes it’s

okay to eat your feelings! (laughter)

Fear is going to be a player in your life, but you get to decide how much.

You can spend your whole life imagining ghosts, worrying about your pathway to the future,

but all there will ever be is what’s happening here, and the decisions we make in this moment,

which are based in either love or fear.

So many of us choose our path out of fear disguised as practicality.

What we really want seems impossibly out of reach and ridiculous to expect, so we never

dare to ask the universe for it.

I’m saying, I’m the proof that you can ask the universe for it — please! (applause)

And if it doesn’t happen for you right away, it’s only because the universe is so busy

fulfilling my order.

It’s party size! (laughter)

My father could have been a great comedian, but he didn’t believe that was possible

for him, and so he made a conservative choice.

Instead, he got a safe job as an accountant, and when I was 12 years old, he was let go

from that safe job and our family had to do whatever we could to survive.

I learned many great lessons from my father, not the least of which was that you can fail

at what you don’t want, so you might as well take a chance on doing what you love.

(applause)

That’s not the only thing he taught me though: I watched the affect my father’s love and

humor had on the world around me, and I thought, “That’s something to do, that’s something

worth my time.”

It wasn’t long before I started acting up.

People would come over to my house and they would be greeted by a 7 yr old throwing himself

down a large flight of stairs.

(laughter) They would say, “What happened?”

And I would say, “I don’t know — let’s check the replay.”

And I would go back to the top of the stairs and come back down in slow motion.

(Jim reenacts coming down the stairs in slow-mo) It was a very strange household.

(laughter)

My father used to brag that I wasn’t a ham — I was the whole pig.

And he treated my talent as if it was his second chance.

When I was about 28, after a decade as a professional comedian, I realized one night in LA that

the purpose of my life had always been to free people from concern, like my dad.

When I realized this, I dubbed my new devotion, “The Church of Freedom From Concern” — “The

Church of FFC”— and I dedicated myself to that ministry.

What’s yours?

How will you serve the world?

What do they need that your talent can provide?

That’s all you have to figure out.

As someone who has done what you are about to go do, I can tell you from experience,

the effect you have on others is the most valuable currency there is.

(applause)

Everything you gain in life will rot and fall apart, and all that will be left of you is

what was in your heart.

My choosing to free people from concern got me to the top of a mountain.

Look where I am — look what I get to do!

Everywhere I go – and I’m going to get emotional because when I tap into this, it

really is extraordinary to me — I did something that makes people present their best selves

to me wherever I go.

(applause) I am at the top of the mountain and the only one I hadn’t freed was myself

and that’s when my search for identity deepened.

I wondered who I’d be without my fame.

Who would I be if I said things that people didn’t want to hear, or if I defied their

expectations of me?

What if I showed up to the party without my Mardi Gras mask and I refused to flash my

breasts for a handful of beads?

(laughter) I’ll give you a moment to wipe that image out of your mind.

(laughter)

But you guys are way ahead of the game.

You already know who you are and that peace, that peace that we’re after, lies somewhere

beyond personality, beyond the perception of others, beyond invention and disguise,

even beyond effort itself.

You can join the game, fight the wars, play with form all you want, but to find real peace,

you have to let the armor fall.

Your need for acceptance can make you invisible in this world.

Don’t let anything stand in the way of the light that shines through this form.

Risk being seen in all of your glory.

(A sheet drops and reveals Jim’s painting.

Applause.)

(Re: the painting) It’s not big enough! (kidding) This painting is big for a reason.

This painting is called “High Visibility.”

(laughter) It’s about picking up the light and daring to be seen.

Here’s the tricky part.

Everyone is attracted to the light.

The party host up in the corner (refers to painting) who thinks unconsciousness is bliss

and is always offering a drink from the bottles that empty you; Misery, below her, who despises

the light — can’t stand when you’re doing well — and wishes you nothing but

the worst; The Queen of Diamonds who needs a King to build her house of cards; And the

Hollow One, who clings to your leg and begs, “Please don’t leave me behind for I have

abandoned myself.”

Even those who are closest to you and most in love with you; the people you love most

in the world can find clarity confronting at times.

This painting took me thousands of hours to complete and — (applause) thank you — yes,

thousands of hours that I’ll never get back, I’ll never get them back (kidding) — I

worked on this for so long, for weeks and weeks, like a mad man alone on a scaffolding

— and when I was finished one of my friends said, “This would be a cool black light

painting.”

(laughter)

So I started over.

(All the lights go off in the Dome and the painting is showered with black light.)

Whooooo!

Welcome to Burning Man! (applause) Some pretty crazy characters right?

Better up there than in here.

(points to head) Painting is one of the ways I free myself from concern, a way to stop

the world through total mental, spiritual and physical involvement.

But even with that, comes a feeling of divine dissatisfaction.

Because ultimately, we’re not the avatars we create.

We’re not the pictures on the film stock.

We are the light that shines through it.

All else is just smoke and mirrors.

Distracting, but not truly compelling.

I’ve often said that I wished people could realize all their dreams of wealth and fame

so they could see that it’s not where you’ll find your sense of completion.

Like many of you, I was concerned about going out in the world and doing something bigger

than myself, until someone smarter than myself made me realize that there is nothing bigger

than myself! (laughter)

My soul is not contained within the limits of my body.

My body is contained within the limitlessness of my soul — one unified

field of nothing dancing for no particular reason, except maybe to comfort and entertain

itself.

(applause) As that shift happens in you, you won’t be feeling the world you’ll be felt

by it — you will be embraced by it.

Now, I’m always at the beginning.

I have a reset button called presence and I ride that button constantly.

Once that button is functional in your life, there’s no story the mind could create that

will be as compelling.

The imagination is always manufacturing scenarios — both good and bad — and the ego tries

to keep you trapped in the multiplex of the mind.

Our eyes are not only viewers, but also projectors that are running a second story over the picture

we see in front of us all the time.

Fear is writing that script and the working title is, ‘I’ll never be enough.’

You look at a person like me and say, (kidding) “How could we ever hope to reach those kinds

of heights, Jim?

How can I make a painting that’s too big for any reasonable home?

How do you fly so high without a special breathing apparatus?”

(laughter)

This is the voice of your ego.

If you listen to it, there will always be someone who seems to be doing better than

you.

No matter what you gain, ego will not let you rest.

It will tell you that you cannot stop until you’ve left an indelible mark on the earth,

until you’ve achieved immortality.

How tricky is the ego that it would tempt us with the promise of something we already

possess.

So I just want you to relax—that’s my job—relax and dream up a good life! (applause)

I had a substitute teacher from Ireland in the second grade that told my class during

Morning Prayer that when she wants something, anything at all, she prays for it, and promises

something in return and she always gets it.

I’m sitting at the back of the classroom, thinking that my family can’t afford a bike,

so I went home and I prayed for one, and promised I would recite the rosary every night in exchange.

Broke it—broke that promise.

(laughter)

Two weeks later, I got home from school to find a brand new mustang bike with a banana

seat and easy rider handlebars — from fool to cool!

My family informed me that I had won the bike in a raffle that a friend of mine had entered

my name in, without my knowledge.

That type of thing has been happening ever since, and as far as I can tell, it’s just

about letting the universe know what you want and working toward it while letting go of

how it might come to pass.

(applause)

Your job is not to figure out how it’s going to happen for you, but to open the door in

your head and when the doors open in real life, just walk through it.

Don’t worry if you miss your cue.

There will always be another door opening.

They keep opening.

And when I say, “life doesn’t happen to you, it happens for you.”

I really don’t know if that’s true.

I’m just making a conscious choice to perceive challenges as something beneficial so that

I can deal with them in the most productive way.

You’ll come up with your own style, that’s part of the fun!

Oh, and why not take a chance on faith as well?

Take a chance on faith — not religion, but faith.

Not hope, but faith.

I don’t believe in hope.

Hope is a beggar.

Hope walks through the fire.

Faith leaps over it.

You are ready and able to do beautiful things in this world and after you walk through those

doors today, you will only ever have two choices: love or fear.

Choose love, and don’t ever let fear turn you against your playful heart.

Thank you.

Jai Guru Dev.

I’m so honored.

Thank you.

Key Vocabulary

Vocabulary	Meanings
painting ˈpeɪntɪŋ A1	noun - a picture or design made with paint
inspire ɪnˈspaɪər B1	verb - to fill someone with the urge or ability to do or feel something
enthusiastic ɪnˌθuːziˈæstɪk B1	adjective - showing intense and eager enjoyment, interest, or approval
wholeness ˈhoʊlnəs B2	noun - the state of being complete or full
Ayurvedic ˌaɪjʊˈrɛdɪk C1	adjective - relating to Ayurveda, a traditional system of medicine native to India
Tinder ˈtɪndər A2	noun - a dating app
transcendental ˌtrænsɛnˈdɛntəl C1	adjective - beyond ordinary or common experience
vanguard ˈvæŋɡɑːrd B2	noun - the forefront of an action or movement
leadership ˈliːdərʃɪp B1	noun - the ability to lead
imagination ɪˌmædʒɪˈneɪʃən B1	noun - the ability to form mental images or concepts of things not present
ego ˈiːɡoʊ B2	noun - a person's sense of self-importance or self-esteem
compelling kəmˈpɛlɪŋ B2	adjective - evoking interest, attention, or admiration in a powerfully irresistible way
faith feɪθ A2	noun - strong belief or trust in someone or something
playful ˈpleɪfəl B1	adjective - full of fun and high spirits
honor ˈɑːnər A2	noun - high respect, great esteem

Key Grammar Structures

• I am here **to plant** a seed that will inspire you to move forward in life with enthusiastic hearts and a clear sense of wholeness.

  ➔ Infinitive of purpose (to + verb) + defining relative clause (that will …)

  ➔ The infinitive "to plant" shows the speaker’s purpose.

• Life doesn’t happen **to** you, it happens **for** you.

  ➔ Contrastive prepositions (to vs. for) in a negative sentence

  ➔ The preposition "to" expresses direction **to** a person, while "for" expresses benefit **for** a person.

• I **used to think** Jim Carrey is all that I was…

  ➔ "used to + verb" for past habits or states

  ➔ "used to think" shows a belief that was true in the past but is no longer true.

• I have a saying, “**Beware the unloved**,” because they will eventually hurt themselves… or me!

  ➔ Noun clause as object of ‘have’ + because‑clause of cause

  ➔ The quoted phrase is a **noun clause** functioning as the object of “have”. The word "because" introduces the **cause**.

• If it **doesn’t happen** for you right away, it’s only because the universe is so busy fulfilling my order.

  ➔ First‑conditional (if + present simple, will) with negative verb

  ➔ "doesn’t happen" is the negative present simple used in a realistic future condition.

• You can **join** the game, **fight** the wars, **play** with form all you want, but to find real peace, you have to **let** the armor fall.

  ➔ Parallel verbs in infinitive form; infinitive of purpose after ‘but’

  ➔ The verbs "join", "fight", "play" are in the **bare infinitive** form, creating a rhythmic list.

• I’m at the top of the mountain and the only one I **hadn’t freed** was myself.

  ➔ Past perfect negative (hadn't + past participle) in a relative clause

  ➔ "hadn’t freed" shows an action that **did not happen before** another past moment.

• I have a **reset button** called presence and I **ride** that button constantly.

  ➔ Compound noun (“reset button”) + present simple for habitual action

  ➔ "reset button" is a **compound noun**; "ride" is in the **simple present** to show a repeated action.

• I’m **the proof** that you can ask the universe for it — please!

  ➔ Noun phrase with article ‘the’ for specific reference; modal verb ‘can’ + bare infinitive

  ➔ "the proof" uses the definite article **the** to point to a particular example; "can ask" uses **can** + bare infinitive to express ability.