contents
Sometimes you have to quit, even when you’re at the peak of your career. At least that’s how the rapper Curse did it – and discovered Buddhism for himself in the process. With a lasting effect.
He was one of the greatest in the German hip-hop cosmos and was often referred to as the philosopher among rappers. But when Curse – real name Michael Kurth – was at the zenith of his musical career, he decided to put an end to it. He traveled to an ashram in India and began to meditate. And this despite the fact that he dreamed of being a rapper as a 10-year-old.
Back then he would have realized that you don’t automatically become happy just because you live what you always dreamed of. “We always believe that to be happy, all you have to do is chase that one dream.” In any case, this did not apply to him, on the contrary.
radical changes
Other things in his life fell by the wayside while chasing his dream. He cared too much about the fictional character Curse and not enough about himself. “Is the only thing important in my life to be successful?” he asked himself.
Something had to change, he just didn’t know what. He began psychotherapy twice, ended a long-term relationship, gave up business contracts and moved out of the large apartment.
Enlightenment in India
But when everything around him changed and he was still unhappy, he understood that the problem and the solution could only lie within himself. “I did all those things because I was ultimately scared to go to the core and look at myself.”
It was a process that lasted several months and initially resulted in the ashram stay in Poone, India. He ended up there almost by accident, he says in retrospect. On this journey, he understood that he needed to break down his rigid self-image and shed the idea of the cool, self-possessed rapper. Meditation helped him with that.
From rapper to «random Buddhist»
Today, Michael Kurth is a Buddhist, systemic coach, yoga teacher and two-time bestselling author. He also runs a successful podcast on the topic of mindfulness.
“Actually, I’m a random Buddhist,” he admits. During therapy he was introduced to meditation by his therapist. “I always thought I could meditate when I was 80.” But then, of all things, he found in it a possibility for self-exploration and the observation of inner processes. “I’ve never discovered that anywhere before,” says the former Christian.
“I was given something that I didn’t know existed.” Meditation gave him a calmness he had never experienced before. Normally, the mind is like a water bottle with sand in it: a shambles of swirling grains of sand. But when she stands still, the grains of sand settle. This is exactly the effect the meditation had on his mind.
The crises became fewer
Last but not least, this will have been the decisive factor in the fact that he was able to celebrate his comeback four years after his retirement. The meditation also changed the way he makes music, Curse says.
“One big difference is that I used to blame my music for making me happy. Today I don’t want to be constantly happy.” He now makes music with more joy and relaxation. And since he’s been meditating, he’s had fewer creative crises.
Without religion and esotericism
That is why it is also important to him to pass on the Buddhist methods. For example in his “Bad Meditators Club”, an online workshop for meditation. This works entirely without religion and esotericism. Because religious affiliation is initially completely secondary for the successful exercise of these practices.
«I think teaching people methods to become calmer and clearer in their everyday lives is a gift from the Buddhist tradition. I don’t think you need to be a Buddhist to do that.”