Bio (abridged)

I was born at an early age in the Cumbrian hills on the fringes of the Lake District, up North in rainy England. My childhood in those beautiful mountains and valleys, running wild and running free, shaped this clear soul. That and Celtic generosity, with its unabashed leavening of basic honesty. Thus were we forged. . . .

John earned his first class honours degree in 3D design at Bath Academy of Art, majoring in ceramics (head of dept. John Coldbeck, mediating Bernard leach/Shoji Hamada aesthetics and technique), also, creative photography, vernacular architecture and literary linguistics, amongst other studies.

(This was after being a professional musician/songwriter (mainly guitar) in various musical formats, including mutlimedia theatrical productions and TV.)

After completing his 5 year art course, John took a final year's option to acquire national teaching qualifications (PGCE/ATD). He then set up as a craft potter and worked his own studio, 7 days a week, around the dial, for 20 years (whilst helping to raise a boy and a girl with his home town wife and mentor in the skills of ordinariness irradiated with intepid dedication). The nature of his work intimately involved John with the elements and the seasons.

During this period he studied and practiced in the Western Mystery Tradition (SOL) and after 10 years of practical work and daily programmed meditations became fully initiated. During this period, also, a good working knowledge of comparative religion, world mythology (specialising particularly in creation myth), western science and, of course, ongoing art and literary studies. He was following his bliss.

John then moved on from ceramics into retail electronics (specialising in PC hardware/software) and home entertainment products across the board (from DVDs through games and collectibles, to popular and antique books). He operated his 2 busy businesses for 15 years.

ASIDE

This was an interesting and demanding period of my life. From country peace to town noise. Enantiodromia, with a bullet. My primary retail footprint was located in the exact epicentre of a hard-pressed town. Extreme poverty, gangs, violence, suicides from the multistory car park next door. Every day was a movie. A tough place to be, as you may well imagine from your daily international news reports. From the get-go I was challenged by the streets, their power structure. But I learned. Eventually, an entire sector of the hierarchy of the area, to a radius of 30 miles and more, respected and supported my bravery and upstanding decency under all circumstances. I'd become a popular leader. (Which brought more politics from the other leaders!) Mothers would bring their babies to show me. God bless them. I became a role-model. The tough guys backed off. The township had tested my mettle in ways beyond civilised belief, and this, on a daily basis, for over a decade, and now I actually miss the deal. So it goes.

Then he called it quits.

John Potts currently resides in the undulating Wiltshire Downs and pursues his profound mystic interests through the lens of traditional haikai (mainly haiku) and hairon (haikai theory). He is now a self-initiated, total instrument of the living Wind. One of his primary dedications is to challenge the decadence of western haiku and propose/action initiatives which harness the power of true haiku, with special focus on the formal education of youth around the world. He is currently working on an expanded existential schema which places haiku (et al) within a broader catagorical domain; mainly that of genetics and the perennial way, in a plain, non-technical and user-friendly, figurative manner.

PERSONAL STATEMENT

"Haiku is a powerful DNA generated, evolutionary meditation technique for the people. Technical error, ubiquitous self-aggrandisation and vanity publishing have destroyed what could have been a boon and turned western haiku into a neon-lit junkyard, picked over by refugees from western science's Frankenstein matrix. This needs to be addressed by producing an enlightened and intelligently organised, alternative agenda."

John Potts

01-10-11

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MANTRA

"Haiku is the person, affectation is useless."

APHORISM

"The right eye of the clear, bright spirit of haiku is pitiless truth.

Her left eye is compassionate wisdom."

PROVERB

"Never expect a butterfly to help you over a wall."

— jp

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