Seekers of the Eternal - Founders Interview

Both J and I from OCM Magazine had the pleasure of sitting down with 3 founders of Seekers of the Eternal (SOTE). It was an absolute pleasure to be speaking with them, discovering more about who they are as individuals and what they are up to in terms of developing this incredible NFT project and community.

What’s interesting about SOTE is that these founders have a unique connection to OnChainMonkey, a point to be discussed later within this article. In addition to the text below, we have a full-length video interview providing deeper insights and knowledge pertaining to OCM and Seekers of the Eternal.

Questions answered during the video interview:

What is your backstory before NFTs?

How did you get your start in Web3?

How did you first get involved with OCM?

What did the transition look like going from OCM to SOTE?

How is SOTE different from your “previous project” and how will it succeed?

Video:

What is Seekers of the Eternal?

Seekers of the Eternal (SOTE) originally began as a group of spiritual friends gathering each week to train their minds, bodies, and senses through the practice of meditation. Since 2017, these friends have been on a noble quest of life to discover the unlimited potential hiding within each person on planet earth.

In light of that unique quest the group shares, Seekers now invite others on a journey of true self-discovery and personal freedom via Web3 and NFT technologies. SOTE still meets on a weekly basis to meditate and strengthen one another in their endeavors to tap into their full potential as they work to build up a healthy community of like-minded individuals.

Hanuman Warrior

One of the most popular stories in ancient Hindu tradition

The Genesis Pass

Genesis Passes were released back in August 2022 as a free mint by the SOTE team, serving as their allowlist for holders. Each pass contains unique, 4K and 3D animated artwork by world-renowned artist, Palehorse, to invite the blessings of Lord Ganesha (The Remover of Obstacles & The God of New Beginnings).

5,000 Genesis Passes, featuring 6 rarity levels, were released which then quickly minted out in under 60 seconds. The Genesis Pass is the key to unlocking access to all future collections and the private members only community. This special allowlist gives holders access to 3 Hanuman NFTs – Warrior, Immortal, and Devotee.

Members gain access to actual benefits such as ancient teachings, secrets, and digital art that helps lead to self-actualization and connection with the infinite Spirit found within. Genesis Passes can be purchased on the secondary market to receive a discount on the upcoming 'Hanuman Warrior' Collection and benefit from the associated utilities.

Genesis Passes

The 6 rarity levels are Obsidian, Silver, Gold, Emerald, Ruby, and Mandala.

Who are the founders behind SOTE?

Both JD and Derek both hail from the corporate world, with JD being heavily involved for 17 years. He wanted to do something that “feeds his soul” which, at the time, took him into writing children’s books and eventually into exploring Web3. He stated that anywhere he placed his time after leaving corporate America, “it would be in communities where he genuinely loves the work and loves the people he works with”.

Derek handles a lot of the behind-the-scenes and finance details for SOTE, which is an extremely important role. Even though he might not be in the limelight as much as Chris and JD, he still works fervently to help make the project a great success. Derek wrote a book in 2016 and hired on Chris (Palehorse) as the artist, mentioning that “Chris nailed it on the head in terms of artwork”. JD was the one who initially showed Derek the ropes when it came to blockchain and cryptocurrencies.

SOTE Members

Chris (Palehorse) 2nd from left, JD on far right.

Together, JD and Derek approached Chris, a world-renowned digital illustrator, painter, and street artist specializing in sacred art. Before discovering his calling to create sacred art and teach on meditation, Chris was a commercial illustrator with 20 years of experience, creating visuals for top brands such as Nike, Under Armor, and World of Warcraft among others.

20 years ago, Chris had traveled to Thailand essentially as an atheist, but had a fascination with the landscape as he explored the enormous temples and intricate artwork. As Chris states, he was, “mesmerized by the level of detail and the beauty of the artwork”, planting the initial seeds in his mind which then flourished over the years. He then remembered a monkey in that he saw during his trip and decided to read the full story on this powerful god named Hanuman. The rest is history. (Chris tells the story inside the video interview at the 14:54 mark)

The Hanuman Warrior Collection

The Hanuman Warrior collection is a digital collection of NFTs available exclusively on April 6th, 2023 from 9am-9pm EST. The collection will be minting on the Ethereum blockchain for Genesis Pass holders, allow list customers, and also to the public.

Each of the thousands of individual, sacred art images in the generative collection will include a personal message for the holder that is associated with the specific symbolism shown in each NFT. Personal messages are a nice added touch that is not typical of NFT mints.

• Genesis Pass Holders can mint for 0.04 ETH

• Allow List Customers can mint for 0.05 ETH

• The public can mint for 0.06 ETH

Each Hanuman Warrior NFT will feature 7 traits with 7 associated messages for the holder, similar to a tarot card reading. Each trait is hand-drawn in exquisite detail by Krishna Chandra Das (Palehorse) who is a disciple of Paramhansa Yogananda.

The OCM Connection Story

OnChainMonkey was the very first project that JD, Chris, and Derek went in on after realizing the impact that NFTs were making back in 2021. JD made mention that it wasn’t necessarily because of the artwork, but because of the people involved such as Danny Yang, Amanda Terry, and Bill Tai. He liked that the OCM team had IRL impact while also believing in the greater good. Knowing the people and believing in the mission was a big driver in the SOTE founders’ decision to get involved in OCM.

From there, before the SOTE NFTs were even thought of, the founders said that if they ever created their own NFT project, that they would use the “OCM blueprint” and build their project the way that OnChainMonkey is building theirs because of their high levels of belief and conviction in what they were doing.

One of the ways that the SOTE team is giving back and honoring OCM is through their coming mint. OCM holders who mint a Hanuman with a Genesis pass will be placed in a draw for a free OCM Genesis Monkey. Remembering roots and taking action to deliberately pay homage to the project that sparked SOTE NFTs is something we as a community will never forget.

Awesome people

SOTE founders JD and Derek, along with legendary OCM member, Sofia Vaschetto.

Final notes

As stated at the beginning of the article, it was an absolute pleasure to sit down with the SOTE crew and hear their stories. J and I were blown away by what this team has been able to accomplish. We felt their genuine heartbeat for their community which was an extremely special takeaway. At one point, I had mentioned to Chris that he is absolutely beaming from ear to ear and could not be happier with the work he is doing. He nodded in agreement because he is confident in where his life has taken him thus far.

“Guilty as charged”, says Chris.

Palehorse at work

Chris loves what he does and his artwork is second to none. What an incredible talent to have in the Web3 space.

Be sure to check out the Seekers of the Eternal mint happening on April 6th, 2023 from 9am-9pm EST. Again, OCM holders will have a chance at winning an OCM Genesis monkey when minting with a Genesis Pass.

OCM and Hanuman

A super special release you do not want to miss!