May 13, 2013

Ellen Emmet writes, "I live in Oxford, U.K. alongside my husband Rupert Spira, whose pure and luminous teaching never ceases to deepen my understanding. I continue my practice as a Psychotherapist, and Authentic Movement facilitator allowing my background of Dance-Movement Therapy, and Transpersonal Psychology to be permeated by and to express the non-dual understanding. I also offer Non-dual Yoga sessions in the tradition of Kashmir Shivaism exploring our true nature at the level of the body."

The above is from Ellen's excellent website http://ellenemmet.com, where you can learn more about Ellen's background, listen to her leading meditations, watch videos, and immerse yourself in what she does.

Listen to Ellen Emmet's interview with visual content on YouTube

Tracks

0:00 - 7:08 Some banter, Ellen's background, self-introduction. Authentic Movement introduced. Janet Adler mentioned and her book Arching Backwards. Some of Janet Adler's story of her Kundalini awakening and her description of direct experience. Ellen being drawn to Adler's writing.

7:08 - 13:23 Inclusion of Authentic Movement under the umbrella of nonduality as inspiring to Ellen. Adler's use of the terms nonduality and unitive state. Varieties and roots of Authentic Movement.

13:23 - 21:06 Ellen describes what Authentic Movement is. Roles of mover and witness profoundly described.

21:06 - 24:45 Responsibilities of the witness and facilitator of Authentic Movement. Formalizing of AM by Adler. The people drawn to AM. AM being like therapy. 

24:45 - 27:38 Use of the term "longing" by Adler in Offering from the Conscious Body. Conjecture of what Adler meant by longing. Significance of longing. 

27:38 - 31:22 The form of Authentic Movement discussed. Shifts in the quality of the atmosphere and time. Sacredness of repetition of movement. 

31:22 - 36:24 "Being moved" compared to "I'm moving." Oneness with creativity or shakti. Longing re-visited. Experience of unitive states and value of knowing about nondual teachings.

36:24 - 39:56 What clients of Authentic Movement are looking for. 

39:56 - 44:24 AM as a source for all creative endeavors. A brief reading from Adler's Offering from the Conscious Body. Meaning of "energetic phenomena." 

44:24 - 54:24 Ellen's discovery of Francis Lucille while working with Janet Adler. Ellen responds to question about role of AM as a portal to nondual discovery. Francis's teaching of yoga and its profound focus and outcome. The real body as awareness. Rupert Spira's clarity mentioned.

54:24 - 58:16 Nature of Francis Lucille's message and teaching. The real body as awareness. Clarity of Rupert Spira. "You can be as clear as you are clear." Ellen addresses the question, "How has Authentic Movement been of value to you in communicating nonduality?" Being "intimate with the unfolding of experience."

58:16 - 1:02:56 Applying some of the form and purpose of Authentic Movement to nondual discussion groups. The gift of witnessing. Incorporation of a witness. Silence.

1:02:56 - 1:07:39 Ellen's interest in bringing Authentic Movement to her nondual offering. Ellen questioning herself on how the "less nondual" teachings fit in with her nondual offering. 

1:07:39 - 1:14:36 Feminine nature of these offerings. Meeting at a connection of the heart. Sharings beyond the body/mind as where Ellen received glimpses of the nondual. "The sense of hearing the space was exquisite." Combing strands of space. Glimpses not being completely met. 

1:14:36 - 1:20:11 It's all art. What Ellen will be doing at the Science and Nonduality Conference Europe 2013. Her other work. Talking about interviewing Rupert. Facing the places of resistance. Finishing the interview. Casual conversation.

April 29, 2013

Gonzalo Fernandez is a native of Costa Rica, "the happiest country in the world." Gonzalo organizes meetings in his country featuring nondual teachers/sharers from around the world. He spoke from the community of Moravia, a suburb of the capitol San Jose. Meet Gonzalo on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/gonzalo.fernandez.5437

Play or Download link:

http://nonduality.com/gonzalofernandez29april2013.mp3

Watch on YouTube

Tracks:

0:00 - 10:24 Beginning of Gonzalo's search. Milestones including discovery of J. Krishnamurti, Nisargadatta, and Ramesh Balsekar. Went to India to visit Ramesh. His realization is demonstrated to Ramesh. Roshi Phillip Kapleau mentioned. Teaching of J. Krishnamurti as too intellectual.

10:24 - 15:19 Life after meeting Ramesh. Costa Rica and nondual teachings. Spiritual practices are popular. A few years ago met people who like him were interested in Nisargadatta. Formed small groups after coming out of zazen group. 

15:19 - 23:40 Eckhart Tolle comes to Costa Rica but locals were not allowed to hear him. It was too expensive for locals and the locals weren't invited. Spirituality as a business.

23:40 - 30:41 Gonzalo's involvement in starting groups. Eckhart Tolle group. Toni Packer's work discussed. Sandra Gonzalez invited to Costa Rica to lead silent retreats. 

30:41 - 41:26 Unmani invited to Costa Rica twice. We digress and talk about Costa Rica as a retirement destination, especially the option of living a simple life. We talk about Unmani again. Gonzalo talks about his role in bringing teachers to Costa Rica and the roles others play. 

41:26 - 47:13 Elena Nezhinsky discussed. Nature of Elena's teaching style, her visit to Costa Rica and the time spent with her. 

47:13 - 49:04 The nature and humor of seeking when the answer is always right here. There are no seekers, yet seeking happens. 

49:04 - 53:55 Noumenon and phenomenon discussed. "Seeking happens, but there are no seekers." Seeing all this as consciousness dreaming and we are a dream character. I ask Gonzalo whether he has spoken as a teacher to locals and talks about that.

53:55 - 58:02 We talk about locals in Costa Rica forming their own groups without inviting teachers from the outside around the world. Is it necessary to invite outside teachers? "Are prophets not prophets in their home town?" You can find enlightened peope everywhere.

58:02 - 1:03:24 Encouraging a locally grown group in Costa Rica. Nature of such local groups in which Gonzalo has been involved, as confrontational and requiring the presence of someone who they see as holding spiritual authority. We talk about what it takes to form and operate an open-minded group that supports and nurtures all who are drawn to it.

1:03:24 - 1:08:27 Inviting Hashim Zaki (aka iamyou on the internet), a student of Nisargadatta Maharaj, to Costa Rica, where he is going to speak for a few days and may decide to retire. 

1:08:27 - 1:11:18 Running open meetings with locals without focusing on a single teacher. My meetup group http://nonduality.ca mentioned as possible model for free-running nonduality groups. 

1:11:18 - 1:16:04 Light-hearted talk on the beautiful women Gonzalo invites to Costa Rica. The beaches. Nosara Beach discussed for it's spiritual activities and women. Pamela Wilson and Jac O'Keefe mentioned. 

1:16:04 - 1:25:06 Everytime Gonzalo wants to stop getting involved in inviting people, but someone comes across for him to invite. Francis Bennett mentioned and planning to come to Costa Rica. Nature of Jerry's visit to Costa Rica discussed and marking the next step in group meetings in Costa Rica. Jean Klein mentioned as a teacher of Gonzalo. Gonzalo will let Hashim Zaki know about the local group, which Hashim might become part of if he moves there.

1:25:06 - 1:42:55 Things get personal here and I feel we're hearing the natural Gonzalo these next few minutes aside from his work in nondual teachings. Gonzalo's daily life in Costa Rica. His interest in farming. He prefers to walk and sit in nature. Gonzalo's family. His minimal needs. His conversations with the farmers at a local bar. What he drinks. "Peace is the most essential thing." Just being who you are. Friendship in its most basic sense as a sharing of being. Being social as natural. Accepting all interaction including the belief that there's a seperate entity, thus welcoming the dissolving of the separateness. The oneness that we are. Life is nothing complicated, belief makes it complicated. 

1:42:55 - 1:50:48 We express mutual gratitude and talk about the nature of doing what interests you compared to doing work in order to make money. People avoiding others who are too peaceful; they need you to be against something so they can fight with you. However, it's nice to talk to people about things other than ultimate reality itself. We talk about some details of farming coffee. We talk about coffee and how Gonzalo makes his coffee.

April 27, 2013

Enza Vita lives in Adelaide, South Australia, where she and her husband Leo Drioli own and operate Inner Self Magazine.

Enza's site it http://EnzaVita.com

Watch Enza Vita interview on YouTube

Here is a listing of the tracks:

In the first hour (1:16:38, to be exact) there are blasts of static throughout the interview. Apologies for that.

You may skip to 1:16:39, where the last hour is static-free.

0:00 - 4:43 Enza's first interview. Husband Leo Drioli. Australia. Meeting Enza at SAND. Chatting, talking about Enza's name.

4:43 - 17:52 Born in Italy. Going to Australia at age 17. Alice Springs. Coming from Solarino, Sicily. Growing up in Solarino. Feeling different growing up and having various boundary dissolving experiences that were outside the normal thus making her feel isolated. Several experiences described growing up and talking to different people in order to understand them. Trying to be normal. Discovery in Alice Springs resonating with childhood activity and being a sign she should stay in Australia. Family dinners in Sicily.

17:52 - 24:09 Family dinners in Solarino remembered and described. Enza being up on the roof to get away. Stories. How much of nonduality is stories? Awareness introduced.

24:09 - 30:36 Continuation of the discussion on going to Australia at age 17. Not speaking English. Dealing with her dad who didn't want to let her go. Living in Alice Springs for two years. Reading at the library. Seeking. Trying to understand her experiences. 

30:36 - 35:54 Nature of Enza's seeking. Moving to Adelaide. Meeting her husband Leo Drioli. Making herbal potions. Studying naturopathy. Seeing teachers. Discovering Nisargadatta's I Am That. Also Ramana Maharshi, Dzogchen books.

35:54 - 46:15 All the teachings having flown through Enza, being part of Enza as guiding energy. Current connection with Chogyal Namkhai Norbu http://www.dzogchen.it/ . Remarkable story he tells that connects directly with Enza's childhood experience. Experience with Zen breathing/meditation teacher that led to an opening up. More about resonance with Chogyal Namkhai Norbu stemming from her childhood. Mystery of it.

46:15 - 57:29 Being meditated, significance of. Paradox of getting from here to here. Enza learned to describe her knowing out of questions from her husband Leo. Not having anything to teach. Waiting for the next step as a teacher to become clear. If there were no questions she would have nothing to say.

57:29 - 1:01:58 Waiting for space to open to start teaching. Needing a reason to give teaching. The breast feeding story/analogy to giving a teaching.

1:01:58 - 1:13:11 Terms consciousness and awareness discussed. Coming from consciousness compared to standing as awareness. "I am" as consciousness. Nature of awareness itself. "Dark radiance of pure awareness." Nature of "I am" and how to realize. Why isn't the "I am" awareness promoted in today's nonduality circles?

1:13:11 - 1:16:38 Suffering at the level of relative truth and as inseparable from absolute truth. Embracing both. Practice of presence. In teaching, starting with where a person is at. 

ON THE TRACKS BELOW THERE IS NO STATIC:

1:16:39 - 1:21:08 Enza changes phone. Chatting about coffee and karaoke. Casual chat. Enza talks about her memory not being too good so she doesn't remember what we were talking about before she switched phones.

1:21:08 - 1:27:34 The event of dropping away, non-separation, or shift in perception, or looking and seeing that she was everything. Everyone is already looking in this way. As a searcher or seeker you are looking for something other than this non-separation. Spiritual people resisting that Enza had this realization. This was seven years ago. 

1:27:34 - 1:34:16 Is this realization a big deal? How the initial realization played out for Enza. Not talking about it openly for a few years. Role of meditation in facilitating realization. Not necessary to meditate as a practice. Enza having an inner knowing that this lifetime was for self-realization.

1:34:16 - 1:42:55 Enza feeling that a rope from within was pulling her toward "something" and that it was inevitable. Having trust. Nature of honoring that tug toward the inevitable. Relaxing into the spacious knowingness or "I am." 

1:42:55 - 1:48:15 Talking about awareness alone could be boring as it is not the complete picture. Nature of the separate person. We don't need thoughts to know the sharp lucidity. Yet the mind is used to carry out the business of discussing awareness. 

1:48:15 - 1:55:15 A space between the words. I ask Enza if she reads any current books. She says her memory is no longer photographic as when she was young. Things don't stick around, even in the middle of speaking. Silence as the default stand. Her husband Leo keeps her exteriorized. How Enza is engaged in the world. Living in the body. 

1:55:16 - 2:07:00 We talk about the Science and Nonduality Conference (SAND) U.S.A. 2012, where we met. Enza suggests a SAND for Australia. I talk about the group in Nova Scotia I'm involved with. Mind grasps perspectives. The activity in satsang where the teacher tries to get people to shift perspective toward non-separation. Enza's experience addressing her husband's questions. Headlessness. 

2:07:00 - 2:16:50 A natural approach to self-realization compared to forcing it, yet can't dismiss the more forced approach. The nature of being interviewed. Is anything happening? Awareness in movement and awareness still. Ramana Maharshi on deep sleep. Enza's out of the body experiences as a kid and energetic experiences as an adult. Enza rehearsing as a backup singer for her husband Leo's band which is opening for the Dalai Lama's upcoming appearance.

Enza's site it http://EnzaVita.com

April 23, 2013

Didier Weiss is French, 50 years old, and has lived in Auroville, India since 1994. He is married and has one child. Didier is a sound engineer for his company Sound Wizard, which designs acoustic spaces for concert halls, auditoriums, hotels, convention centres, nightclubs, home theatres, and every other kind of space that requires acoustic design. His website at http://soundwizard.net . His contact point is soundwiz@gmail.com.

Play or Download link:
http://nonduality.com/didierweiss23april2013.mp3

Listen to Didier Weiss interviewed with visual content on YouTube

Tracks:

0:00 - 6:05 Didier talks about some of his life prior to living in Auroville and how he and his wife Cecilia picked up there life in Paris and moved to Auroville where they've been for twenty years. The price of responsibility. 

6:05 - 13:03 Didier's spiritual background beginning at age 15 - 16. Stephen Jourdain discussed. http://www.consciousnessjunkie.com/interview-with-stephen-jourdain/ . Spiritual nature of Auroville. Sorry about some static that appears near the end of this track. The static shows up periodically in this interview. It was a problem somewhere between our computers. I'm in Nova Scotia and Didier is in Auroville, India.

13:03 - 20:03 Didier meets Ramesh Balsekar and talks about his teaching and what he communicated. "I could almost see what he was talking about." The penny drops, a shift happens. Seeing what it was all about. Loss of a centre. Integration of the shift.

20:03 - 23:55 Life goes on after the shift. The nature of the spiritual story. Life as being on auto pilot. How life is to Didier.

23:55 - 24:25 Richard Sylvester and addiction to meaning. Nondual writings as art.

24:25 - 28:35 Didier's work as a sound engineer and designer of acoustic spaces. The nature of his business. How things unfold for him. How nondual understanding comes into relationships with people he encounters in business.

28:35 - 34:54 Lack of concern for the outcome of work even while being passionate, active, and fighting for business. It's a game. The place of stillness in the game. Pleasure of the game. Some practical and technical details of Didier's business and work.

34:54 - 40:01 What is perception? How does it work? Didier's interest in perception started when he was mixing music. His discoveries regarding perception of sound. 

40:01 - 51:13 Didier goes further into insights that came out of his experience mixing music. The three lessons about perception he learned as a sound engineer. Silence. Quotation from Leo Hartong. http://www.soundwizard.net/ressource-about-silence-15.html The experience of silence as the space in which sound arises and present all the time. Silence as source. Beautiful confession about silence. 

51:13 - 58:37 Didier talks a little about family. "The universe is made of stories, not of atoms," (Muriel Rukeyser) is what he feels. Talking about nonduality. You can't teach anything. A journey happens. 

58:37 - 1:02:33 Valuing the discovery of insights. Nature of seeking. Hiding reality in plain sight, such as silence. Simplicity of nonduality is the most difficult aspect to talk about. 

1:02:33 - 1:06:08 Didier's life as simple, but complexity within it. Complexity doesn't add any weight to life. The total weightlessness of what happens. What's gone is something that's not real. Problem of disappearance of the center. Suzanne Segal mentioned. There is no real loss. 

1:06:08 - 1:07:52 Silence as the best way to communicate "this." Reality as a singularity. Analogy of a movie.

1:07:52 - 1:11:52 Talking about business again. Applying the community philosophy of Auroville to relating to people who work for him. Harmonious interplay of the parts of Didier's life. 

1:11:52 - Didier talks about his wife Cecilia and her interest in nondual teachings. Anamika mentioned. Relationships and nondual consciousness. Family stuff. Understanding the mechanical or conditioned nature of personality and relationships is basis for a simpler and more harmonious life. Gordon Neufeld's work with children discussed: http://neufeldinstitute.com/ . Connecting at the source. 

1:19:35 - 1:24:53 Resonance with another person through a root connection or a non-separate reality. Gordon Neufeld and feeling of suppression and sense of separation.

1:24:53 - 1:28:03 Art as healing. Music as healing. The suffering of artists he's met.

April 9, 2013

Relevant websites:
http://liberationunleashed.com/ | http://www.ElenaNezhinsky.comhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gPGzc4BNE14 (This Youtube video explains Liberation Unleashed, what we do and how we do it, and where to go if there is an interest to engage in this work with a guide.)

Play or Download link:
http://nonduality.com/elenanezhinsky9april2013.mp3

Watch on YouTube | Graphically rich version on YouTube

Elena writes, 

"This was a delightful interview. Almost as though Jerry and I were sitting in his kitchen in Halifax, Nova Scotia, drinking tea. This is how Russian friends usually meet - in the kitchen by the tea pot. The conversation just rolls about anything that comes up, and between friends there are no places where the conversation can't go. So this was just like that. Very lighthearted talk where many people's names who helped me to do this work, came up with much gratitude and appreciation. And some of the nonduality teachers names came up with all the respect to our own uniqueness, that creates the variety of the work we do.

"Jerry and I spoke a lot about this and that, and I think people might be curious in a simple conversation. Many are tired to hear about awarness and awakening, emptiness and void. People want human talk, but also we had some of that "awakening stuff" in between, so we covered it all.

"What I am looking for in this interview is people's relation to me as one of them (and its true) , approachable and ordinary (all true), at the same time I want to evoke curiosity to look for themselves, like i did. Hope this was the essence of the interview."


Interview tracks:

0:00 - 2:49 Light-hearted opening. Elena not seeing herself as a teacher, rather a sharer.

2:49 - 4:49 Giving compared to sharing. Sharing coming out of appreciation. 

4:49 - 8:58 Charisma possessed by teachers or sharers. Elena speaks about why she thinks she is effective as a sharer.

8:58 - 13:51 Role of curiosity in her spiritual milestones. Encouraging curiosity about language. Elena gives the example of curiosity around "sitting" and shows how it leads to clear seeing.

13:51 - 20:04 Elena's spiritual journey as reclusive and why she started to search. Her life with vipassana meditation discussed. How it created the sense of separation and the urge to look elsewhere. Value of attending an Adyashanti retreat. Asking what is true.

20:04 - 23:55 Elena feeling that she was standing at the gate. Seeing illusion of self. Seeing what is real and pointing the mind toward registering it.

23:55 - 26:27 Liberation Unleashed. http://liberationunleashed.com. The power of the movement. 

26:27 - 33:36 Elena's in-person teaching. John R. Shirley invited Elena to Florida for meetings. Invited to Costa Rica by Gonzalo Fernandez. Profound value of relationship with Shane Wilson.

33:36 - 36:33 Meditation as purification. Elena's work as radical. Value of meditation or practice when conditioning arises strongly. Help with integration. Pamela Wilson, Scott Kiloby, and Rupert Spira mentioned as helping with integration.

36:33 - 42:16 Elena is asked about value of outsiders when locals are available. Why bring in outside teachers? Gonzalo Fernandez, Alvaro Lopez, Jenny Ortuno mentioned. Local meetings in Costa Rica. 

42:16 - 45:13 Elena's work as not progressive, only one look to see illusion of self, therefore different than satsang. Her work is more focused. Value of local groups discussed. 

45:13 - 50:11 Liberation Unleashed discussed as a movement. It's nature. Ilona Ciunaite mentioned. Elena's book and how it got written. It can be seen that no one wrote the book, rather it is a kind of movement. Paradox.

50:11 - 54:33 The sense that nothing is happening while much is happening. Limitations of language in talking about these things. Meaning of "I am That" discussed. Via Negativa. Experience itself. 

54:33 - 55:36 Elena speaks of taking care to not mix methods. She doesn't ask, "Who is looking?" but she arrives in the same place as that inquiry.

55:36 - 1:03:06 Gary Falk mentioned. Being silent together. Elena talks about the kinds of audiences at her meetings. Some are more energetic, some are more relaxed. Elena's preference. Inspiring people to look. Nature of attention. "Clear seeing is not peace." People's expectation. Working on integration. The moment when people realize the self doesn't exist.

1:03:06 - 1:06:26 Elena's feelings about holding meetings and being seen as a teacher. The nature of how her meetings unfold.

1:06:26 - 1:14:17 Elena talks about Korean sauna she goes to. Elena's childhood, growing up. Volcanos. Sauna as a pointer to illusion of self. Sweat lodges and Vipassana as ways to see if there is a self that chooses sensations. Shinzen Young's sauna meditation as a way of feeling sensations of the body. 

1:14:17 - 1:18:47 Elena talks about her house catching fire. Pamela Wilson mentioned. Value of hearing that others are having a hard time. Breaking up of her family and job. Meaning of this falling apart. 

1:18:47 - 1:21:06 Anything not aligned with your essence will be destroyed. You function from inspiration, not motivation and gain clarity about what to do. 

1:21:06 - 1:28:07 We talk about making money in nonduality and Elena is very open about it. Respecting people's service. Wanting to share donations with those who volunteer at her meetings. 

1:28:07 - 1:34:58 Giving and receiving. Rita Friedman mentioned as example. Conditioning with regard to giving and receiving. Elena talks about Florida. Miracle as total flow and as life unfolding. 

1:34:58 - 1:38:46 Elena talks about having the best time in Cost Rica. Jenny Ortuno mentioned. Elena talks about meetings and the awareness of people who attend with regard to direct pointing. Cesar Teruel, Gonzalo Fernandez, and Unmani Liza Hyde mentioned.

1:38:46 - 1:40:32 Working with people who are confused, at their end, no longer believing anything. Conclusion.

Play or Download link:
http://nonduality.com/elenanezhinsky9april2013.mp3

Watch on YouTube

March 25, 2013

Howard Peck has been a student of Tai Chi Chuan since 1988. He began teaching in 1999. His classes emphasize the importance of open, relaxed unbroken flow of movement, proper posture and an attentive mind. Howard's descriptive website is http://taichiwithhowardpeck.com .

A video of Howard performing Tai Chi is here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5qQvIoHS0o4&list=UU4Z3M_J7QIuJ-dBBmlWZQxQ&index=1

Play or Download link:
http://nonduality.com/howardpeck25march2013.mp3

Watch on YouTube

Tracks:

0:00 - 2:51 Introduction. Mention of the Nonduality Highlights. Tai Chi Chuan and flow and body movement and aging.

2:51 - 8:21 Introduction to Tai Chi Chuan. Evolution from a martial art to a way of health. Awareness and postural integrity.

8:21 - 12:10 Inclusion of music in practice and teaching. A video of Howard performing Tai Chi is here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5qQvIoHS0o4&list=UU4Z3M_J7QIuJ-dBBmlWZQxQ&index=1 It includes Chinese music. Standing Meditation described.

12:10 - 18:57 Howard offers an exercise in Standing Meditation that the listener may practice. 

18:57 - 25:13 Discussion of Standing Meditation and Tai Chi movement. Relation of Standing Meditation to discussion of nonduality. Tai Chi taught from the viewpoint of nondual understanding and rooted in real experience rather than promises. 

25:13 - 27:31 Concept of chi as related to physical skill and mental Intention, giving a result rather than the promise of a cosmic experience.

27:31 - 32:28 Sharing of spiritual experiences by teachers may not be based on actual experience. Howard is asked about the role of power as a teacher and his relationship with power. Empowering people. J. Krishnamurti discussed. 

32:28 - 34:35 A story about the humility of J. Krishnamurti revealed when he appeared at Madison Square Garden in New York City. 

34:35 - 35:35 Relationship as friendship. Howard's job helping seniors navigate Medicare in the U.S. We return to this topic later and relate it to relationship.

35:35 - 41:28 How Howard got into Tai Chi Chuan. Aikido mentioned. Taoism as source of Tai Chi. Buddhism as Howard's interest. Vipassana meditation and nonduality. U.G. Krishnamurti and Mooji mentioned. Robert Wolfe as standing out from the pack of current nonduality teachers. 

41:28 - 45:13 Howard's introduction to nondual teachings arising out of meeting with Steven Harrison many years ago. R.P. Kaushik mentioned. Some reflection on his life and nature of his understanding.

45:13 - 56:17 The interview ends and re-starts on another level where Howard talks about his consultative approach to selling supplemental Medicare products. Listening is discussed and how it leads to a nondual alignment with people. Sharing authenticity in relationship. How sales people can address times where sales aren't coming. 

56:17 - The secret to sales revealed. Conclusion. Science and Nonduality Conference mentioned.

Play or Download link:
http://nonduality.com/howardpeck25march2013.mp3

Watch on YouTub

March 7, 2013

Jacob Parece is a new teacher who lives in Rhode Island, U.S.A. He gave his first teaching talk in September, 2013. He turned 21 about two weeks ago. His website is http://jacobparece.com. Jacob's Facebook is http://www.facebook.com/jacob.parece?fref=ts. The photos are taken from Jacob's Facebook site.

Play or Download link:
http://nonduality.com/jacobparece7march2013.mp3

Watch on YouTube

Tracks:

0:00 - 3:14 Introduction. Difficult childhood described. Sense of darkness (fear, anxiety, depression). 

3:14 - 4:45 Taking up baseball as a way to avoid personal difficulty. Illness. More about family and the experience of darkness.

4:45 - 6:17 Discovery of Trevor Hall ( http://www.trevorhallmusic.com ) and how this led to discovery of other nondual teachings. The hurricane. New view of darkness.

6:17 - 8:52 Darkness meets freedom and beauty. More about the nature and qualities of darkness and what's behind it.

8:52 - 11:42 A "successful" life as an obstacle to pursuing depths of self. Being apart from society. The value of feeling different with regard to self-realization.

11:42 - 14:42 Jacob's employment and teaching work. Where he lives. His website http://jacobparece.com. Nature of self-identity and dissonance within society. Why he dropped out of college. Experiencing your own presence.

14:42 - 16:51 The how of "experiencing your own presence." 

16:51 - 19:32 The problem with sincere questions. Using spirituality and nonduality as avoidance of experience. What most people are seeking. Getting to the real question. 

19:32 - 21:01 Role as a teacher to inspire questioning rather than give answers or to assign new labels. Abandoning labels.

21:01 - 23:45 How Jacob became aware of his ability to teach. His first talk. (Video is at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P5OMJfcPWBI ) 

23:45 - 25:37 Jacob's visit to Sedona a couple weeks prior to this interview and his experience of pure awareness. Nature of changing experience. 

25:37 - 27:54 The subtle adjustment/choice to staying attached or letting go. Self-improvement as sometimes necessary. Feeling from an authentic place.

27:54 - 30:13 Jacob's view of the nonduality teaching scene. Scott Kiloby mentioned. Need for being with oneself. 

30:13 - 33:49 Engaging some inquiry with customers at his convenience store job. Watching people at work. A lot of people are sad and not present. Meeting people on a subtle level. 

33:49 - 36:25 Future teaching events. Vacation in Sedona. More about Jacob's job. 

36:25 - 39:14 Jacob's friends. Baseball career. Shattering of his baseball dreams and value of that. 

39:14 - 42:20 Jacob's coming out as gay. Interest in working with the gay community. Current relationship with parents and how it's affected by letting go of struggle. 

42:20 - 47:50 Talking to young people about nondual consciousness. The struggle of young people today. Need for more questioning. Reaching out to his age group. 

47:50 - 54:17 GLBT community and nonduality. Jay Michaelson mentioned. Value of being open. Paradoxical value of being "closed off" from the world. Value of solitude. Sedona experience of pure awareness revisited. Seeking spiritual experiences. 

54:17 - 56:29 Truth is not the experience but the one experiencing. Chasing experiences. Living a life balanced between waiting for grace and getting up and doing something. Nature of experience.

56:29 - 1:02:03 "I believe there is a choice." Teachers Jacob likes. Challenging perspectives including his own. Going beyond experience to fearlessness. The urge to learn, to experience, to fit into the nonduality scene.

1:02:03 - The traps of structure within spiritual/nondual community. Undermining perspective. Fear of being judged for pursuing truth. Suffering as a doorway to realization. 

1:05:05 - 1:09:41 Baseball career revisited. Lighthearted chat around worldly success and money. Sports and nondual consciousness. Allen Jaeger mentioned (http://www.jaegersports.com/home.php ) Jacob's experience of "the zone" in his baseball career. The work involved in becoming a professional baseball player. 

1:09:41 - 1:14:03 More on sports and nondual consciousness. Jacob getting back into baseball. 

1:14:03 - 1:17:42 Aspects of nonduality and enlightenment as taken too seriously. The need to look at our own experience. Comment on young teachers. Conclusion.

Jacob Parece interview:

Play or Download link:
http://nonduality.com/jacobparece7march2013.mp3

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March 1, 2013

Brendan Smith is a 27 year old intern at the Krishnamurti Foundation of America in Ojai, California. His main interest is space itself in which is allowed "the freedom of raw perceiving," and that is the primary topic of the conversation. 

Brendan is co-hosting the Timeless Spring retreat in September, 2013: http://farhorizons.org/programs/2013programs/timeless-spring/ 

Brendan's informative and revealing website is http://everythingislooking.com

Play or Download link:
http://nonduality.com/brendansmith1march2013.mp3

Watch on YouTube

Tracks:

0:00 - 4:44 Introductory. Moving their friend. Working on the herb garden. Krishnamurti Foundation of America. An interpretation of Krishnamurti's statement that no one understood what he said.

4:44 - 7:12 How Brendan got into the KFA internship program. Jaap Sluijter mentioned. 

7:12 - 8:38 Space rather than content being what is valued at KFA.

8:38 - 10:57 Educational background at UC Davis where he designed part of his degree in religious studies to emphasize nondual wisdom traditions.

10:57 - 14:34 Prior to college, an experimental time as a youth walking in the woodland in Maryland. Experiences. Getting a "real" education in terms of experiencing himself in a new way. 

14:34 - 19:22 A game with a wild red fox. Sensing the "softness of the fabric of our perception." Description of this perception and how it was his education. Allowing the space to see all that. Value of Science and Nonduality Conference (SAND) discussed. The freshness of his experience in the woodland.

19:22 - 20:43 A Upanishadic story about the woods and non-human encounters and application to his experience.

20:43 - 23:03 Silence. The two ways to do an interview. Sweetness of just being here.

23:03 - 26:15 Gathering. Quaker meetings. Brendan's interest in setting up gatherings. Changing perceptions in California. "Opening space for people to come and die." 

26:15 - 29:45 The Timeless Spring retreat Brendan is designing: http://farhorizons.org/programs/2013programs/timeless-spring/ 
Nature of structuring the retreat around space (the unconditioned) rather than content (the conditioned).

29:45 - 35:09 Timeless Spring compared to The Science and Nonduality Conference (SAND). The emergence of structure in an unconditioned space. Questioning. No reference place in nonduality, nothing being taught or facilitated. Brendan's website: http://everythingislooking.com. Nonduality as popular among "kids."

35:09 - 38:51 More details about the retreat. The location at Far Horizons Theosophical center. Location, lodging, meals. Value of nothing happening. 

38:51 - 42:14 Nature of leadership at the retreat. Nature of structure. Designing spaces for questioning. SAND discussed.

42:14 - 45:42 Everyone can express themself from their own beingness. More about the Timeless Spring retreat and the magic of it. 

45:42 - 47:36 Explaining to people what the retreat is about. 

47:36 - 53:18 Marketing the retreat. The TED silence compared to TED Talks. More on the vision for such a retreat. Cost for the retreat. 

53:18 - 54:45 More details about the retreat. It's a two week retreat but you can come for one week or even a day or a weekend.

54:45 - 58:03 The apparent spreading of nondual awareness among people. The emergence of a lostness. Nature of lostness.

58:03 - 1:01:03 Wisdom 2.0 Conference discussed and compared to lostness. Lostness of the knowing mind collapsing into the lostness of not knowing. 

1:01:03 - 1:07:37 What Brendan is doing after his internship ends in April. Building a community out of this lostness. A space that has no authority. Would you allow Adyashanti to speak there for free? Nature of authority. East Bay Open Circle mentioned: http://www.opencirclecenter.org/. The nature of the space further discussed.

1:07:37 - 1:09:27 Visions of the proposed community. 

1:09:27 - 1:13:42 Center for Nondual Awareness discussed: http://nondualcenter.org/. Will teachers be less in demand? Challenging all knowing as what nonduality is about. The teacher can dissolve in this kind of community. 

1:13:42 - 1:17:14 Existence playing at being a teacher. One of the revolutions in Brendan's perception being of the nature of non-separation and without a center. Walt Whitman. 

1:17:14 - 1:22:47 Physical death and the losing of the sense of "I." Comparing that context of hospice to the realization of the nondual. Death. Facing death now. 

1:22:47 - 1:25:17 Is there an experience of nonduality? Explaining nonduality to his mother.

1:25:17 - 1:29:08 Brendan's music. Suggestion for more music at SAND. Brendan talks about his website: http://everythingislooking.com. His book and his album. 

1:29:08 - 1:34:32 Importance of the internet for the dissemination of nondual teachings along a level playing field. Shift from pursuing teachers to pursuing space. Space as the teacher. 

1:34:32 - 1:36:29 What they do on the weekends at KFA. Conclusion of the conversation.

Brendan Smith interview:

Play or Download link:
http://nonduality.com/brendansmith1march2013.mp3

Watch on YouTube

February 13, 2013

Sage Stoneman is 18 years old and lives in Ojai, California where he is an intern at the Krishnamurti Foundation of America.

Play or Download link:
http://nonduality.com/sagestoneman13feb2013.mp3

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0:00 - 3:51 Living in southern California. Introduction. Krishnamurti Foundation of America in Ojai, California. http://kfa.org/ Nature of the internship program of which Sage is a part. Meaning of sangha at KFA. Living at KFA and what it's like. 

3:51 - 7:08 The internship further described. More about the KFA. Michael Khronen as coordinator. Where Sage lives on the property.

7:08 - 9:52 What a typical day is like for Sage as an intern. What other interns do during their day. Free time.

9:52 - 12:11 Dialogue group that meets. About sharing rather than giving opinions, theories, or talking about learned things. 

12:11 - 17:17 Sage's introduction to Nisargadatta's I Am That, and having read it at age 15. An experience at age 12 where his father Rafael introduced him to self-inquiry. Other milestones in investigation of self. Appreciation of Nisargadatta.

17:17 - 20:20 How following the teaching of Nisargadatta cut off many other material and spiritual pursuits. Dealing with crushes on girls and wanting to party and living with the teaching and knowing of what his reality is. (Here's a reminder that Sage is 18 years old.)

20:20 - 23:50 Attendance at the Science and Nonduality Conference 2012 and perceptions about it. Nonduality as a concept that can be worshipped like any other religion. A recent turning where it is seen that suffering could be discounted as part of all that is.

23:50 - 28:58 The source of such turnings and relation to living at KFA and sangha. The kinds of discussions at KFA. Interns Zach and Francesca mentioned. Looking at experience in the moment. Contentment described as in the moment, not elsewhere.

28:58 - 30:51 Seeing how thought creates discontentment out of nothing. Attending to these thoughts by way of a certain looking, and what is seen. 

30:51 - 34:04 The nature of action with regard to contentment. The need to achieve something through action. Action not changing what one is. Allowing action free of the idea of them bringing anything.

34:04 - 35:50 J. Krishnamurti's teachings as newly appreciated.

35:50 - 37:44 Applying for the KFA internship program: http://kfa.org/intern-students.php. How Sage got in. Jaap Sluijter mentioned.

37:44 - 41:03 Talking to his friends about these understandings. The gaining of a "great clarity" in communicating these understandings.

41:03 - 45:47 This clarity in communication further discussed. The importance of listening to people. The nature of listening. Thought as an apparent intrusion to full attention on a person. Seeing beyond meaning, words, and interpretations, and the totality of a human that opens up.

45:47 - 49:57 The effect of this deep listening on relationships. Dealing with anger. Nature of anger. 

49:57 - 53:36 Two people communicating via deep listening. The nature of "you" and "I" as the same. 

53:36 - 58:57 The valuing of seeing the fact that we exist or are alive. Relation to the "I am" as described by Nisargadatta. Contradictory teachings in Nisargadatta. Seeing beyond the contradictions. Staying with "I am."

58:57 - 1:02:59 Following the "I am" compared to reality beyond the "I am." Sage's experience of being beyond consciousness and the meeting of a girl he really liked who didn't like him as much, and what was learned from that. Truth in Nisargadatta's teaching not contained in anything such as his words. 

1:02:59 - 1:05:13 "Really listening" or deep listening applied to reading. 

1:05:13 - 1:07:24 Teaching these understandings in high school. 

1:07:24 - 1:08:41 Attending the Science and Nonduality Conference 2012 and what he enjoyed.

1:08:41 - 1:10:37 Sage's generation and a focus on questioning.

Play or Download link:
http://nonduality.com/sagestoneman13feb2013.mp3

Joel Lesko is a long-time meditator and a filmmaker. He set out in this film, Tears of the Buddha: Spiritual and Emotions, to find out what modern Buddhistic, or Advaita, non-dual oriented teachers teach - about spirituality, and specifically about how to orient towards one’s inner emotional life on the spiritual path.

Joel's film explores the spiritual path through the lens of emotion: are emotions an impediment to spiritual growth? What about so-called unspiritual emotions like anger and hate? Do emotions trap a seeker in the personal self? Rather than another documentary about a teacher's enlightenment, the documentary questions age-old teachings about emotions and leads to an important conversation about individual selfhood - is it real or is it an illusion? Joel interviews leading teachers including Gangaji, Eli Jaxon-Bear, Jeff Foster, and others, and shares his experiences from more than 35 years in practice.

Trailer, reviews, download info: http://brightagefilms.com/

Digital download purchase: http://brightagefilms.com/collections/frontpage/products/digital-download

Play or Download link:
http://nonduality.com/joellesko5feb2013.mp3

Watch on YouTube

Tracks:

0:00 - 3:15 Ashland, Oregon. Tears of the Buddha introduced. Some spiritual autobiography leading up making of Tears of the Buddha. Importance of paying attention to nondual teachings in relation to how daily life is lived. 

3:15 - 5:09 The making of Tears of the Buddha compared to the publication of the film. Does the filmmaker Joel disappear into the self-inquirer in the making of this film? 

5:09 - 10:04 How Joel got into filmmaking and how his goals and purpose have changed toward his own investigation. The two major challenges in the making the film.

10:05 - 12:43 What Joel learned about himself from making Tears of the Buddha. What teachers are really saying regarding emotions and how it bears on your life. 

12:43 - 14:15 Redefining of enlightenment in terms of embodiment. Karl Renz. Gratitude to the teachers interviewed.

14:15 - 17:28 Joel's impression of the persona of the teachers he interviewed. The scripted versus the personal side of teachers exposed. The sealed-off character of most teachers he interviewed. Gangaji. 

17:28 - 19:34 Some people's enlightenment discounts the personal, Joel says. A new public conversation on spirituality and emotion. 

19:34 - 21:03 The one teacher who said emotions, rather than consciousness, are intrinsic to life. Daniel Barron. How could enlightenment be redefined?

21:03 - 27:24 Joel's use of the term "Buddhistic" and the nature of the title Terms of the Buddha. Reflections on the Buddha. What if the essence of our human life is not consciousness? The gnawing feeling in the heart despite 30 years of meditation. The validity of emotions. 

27:24 - 29:36 Spirituality as an escape from being human. Maybe we're here to embrace our woundings rather than dismiss or transcend them.

29:36 - 32:32 Getting personal about facing that gnawing. Psychotherapy. Karl Renz's view on the self and transcendence. Dealing with the self meets up with the realization/teaching that there is no self.

32:32 - 34:04 Nature of teachers as confident. Value of film as a featuring of teachers addressing same questions.

34:04 - 38:43 Joel is asked about what he meant at the end of Tears of the Buddha, as far as what Buddha would teach today and the wholesale transcendence of the person. What if there is something more essential than transcendence of duality? Success as a filmmaker is the raising of questions. The teachers are missing something.

38:43 - 41:51 Is a teacher essential? Questions in that regard. Shadow questions. Looking at emotion rather than transcending. Emotional healing of wounds. Karl Renz and Daniel Barron.

41:51 - 48:29 Tears of the Buddha. Some revelations on making it. Some further comments to enhance the viewing and to clarify the themes.

48:29 - 51:08 Dealing with everyday life. Emotion as just energy moving and what that means for your personal life and looking at the root of what a teacher says regarding emotions.

51:08 - 54:18 Some financial and creative realities on making Tears of the Buddha. Christopher Alexander saying to create something as though it's a "gift to God." 

54:18 - 58:00 Transcendental Meditation and some more of Joel's background. The truth of nondual enlightenment and stretching that over daily life as if that's the whole truth, and problems created. Embracing emotional life.

58:00 - 1:00:11 Our conditioning negativizes certain experiences or could avoid them by asking, "Who is asking about negative emotions?"

1:00:11 - 1:06:46 The inquiry of asking what is most essential. Spiritual conditioning saying that emotions are impediments. Listening deeply to the teachers in the film because they tend to use the same words. Staying open. Asking "What if" questions. 

1:06:46 - 1:09:36 Teachers conditioning their students. Joel's experience with emotions while studying TM. The split between feeling what you feel and being conditioned to seal off those feelings.

1:09:36 - 1:16:00 Vipassana meditation giving space to emotions and the possibility that this could create a splitting off or a transcendence or a diminishment of experience. Anger. The nature of spirit, heart, and humanity. Depression arising from avoidance of emotion through nondual transcendence.

1:16:00 - 1:20:14 Joel asks about Jerry's background in publicizing nonduality. The nature of nonduality interviews. Jeff Foster's view of emotions. Teachers changing. The apparent fixity of older established teachers. 

1:20:14 - 1:25:10 Joel's corporate film work related to education and the workplace. His future film based on Buddhistic questions. 

1:25:10 - 1:26:47 Reflections on the interview. The word "Buddhistic" and need to clarify it for people who expect it to be tied to Buddhism.

Play or Download link:
http://nonduality.com/joellesko5feb2013.mp3