Buddha At The Gas Pump

Meeting of Founders and Members of the Association for Spiritual Integrity Forty-five spiritual teachers, members of “The Association for Spiritual Integrity”, met for four hours prior to the start of the 2019 Science and Nonduality Conference. For the first couple of hours, we engaged in a deep, honest discussion about the challenges teachers face, seeking to learn how we might better support one another. We then broke into six groups, each focusing on a particular topic. Then we reassembled and recorded the remainder of the meeting. This video includes: Introduction by Rick Summary of discussions in each of the six breakout groups. (1) Bringing forth women and feminine empowerment. Distinguishing between women and yin-style teachings in a way to not exclude men from the conversation. Action items: to have each day of SAND have a 3-hour session led by women. to have more yin-style teachings on the SAND website (2) Ongoing growth for teachers and continuing education, trauma, attachment,

Panel Discussion at the Science and Nonduality Conference on Sexual Misconduct, Money, Power, Trauma & Ethics in Spiritual Communities, with Jac O'Keeffe, Mariana Caplan, Craig Holliday, and Miranda Macpherson Introduction by Rick Archer The spiritual awakening sweeping the world may be critical to addressing our critical problems. Ethical breaches by spiritual teachers sabotage this awakening. How the ASI was founded. Its role & perspective. Qualities and Characteristics of a healthy teacher, student, and spiritual community. What to look for in a spiritual teacher The student’s responsibility. Healthy teacher/student relationships. Support for teachers recognizing their blind spots. Are higher consciousness and more ideal behavior correlated? Continual growth and learning, even in the teachers’ seat. Discriminating between Awakening, Integration process, and actualization. Abiding exclusively in nondual awareness vs. developing a multi-layered perspective. What contributes to

Leanora Rose founded Embody Truth in 2012 as a way to support an integral approach to awakening and embodiment.  The work is originally inspired through a personal awakening and culminates into a coherent and disposable map helping others navigate the terrain.  Using a direct felt sense experience a somatic meditation practice supports unification, integration, and embodiment of all phenomena (traumatic material, identity, essence, back to stillness). Leanora Rose provides one-on-one sessions,  for those awakening as well as online group programs for ongoing practice, learning, and support. Born in Africa she has lived in seven countries, including London, and California.  A life of contrasts, from farm girl to corporate America, a variety of careers, from IT to cottage industry within a land-based, permaculture project in New Zealand for 25 years.  She currently resides in Ubud, Bali. Website: embodytruth.com Facebook Page Youtube Channel Interview recorded January 17, 2020 Discussion of this inte

Susan Raven is a long-time student of Anthroposophy and an experienced workshop facilitator. She has worked with the methods and exercises prescribed by Rudolf Steiner for seeing into the supersensible realms and has also trained with Dorian Schmidt, director of the Biodynamic Research Institute. Susan is author of the book "Nature Spirits: The Remembrance", featured in the Cygnus magazine, Nexus, Star & Furrow, and Caduceus. Susan is also a singer-songwriter and has produced two CDs entitled "Glittering Cities" and "Ravensong" which are regularly played on local and regional radio stations including the BBC. Website: susanraven.com Book Susan mentioned near the end of the interview: Universe of the Human Body: With Gaia Touch Body Exercises Discussion of this interview in the BatGap Community Facebook Group. Transcript of this interview Interview recorded January 11, 2020 Video and audio below. Audio also available as a Podcast. YouTube Video Chapters: 00:00:00 - Introduction to Susan Raven and

Born in 1968, Sebastián Blaksley is a native of Buenos Aires, Argentina, born into a large traditional Catholic family. He attended the Colegio del Salvador, a Jesuit school of which the headmaster was Jorge Bergoglio, the current Pope Francis. Although he wanted to be a monk as a young man, his family did not consider it acceptable, and the inner voice that he always obeyed let him know that: "You must be in the world, without being of the world." He studied Business Administration in Buenos Aires and completed his postgraduate studies in the United States and Argentina. He also attended other studies in England, followed by several highly responsible positions in well-known international corporations, living and working in the U.S., England, China, and Panama. He then founded his own corporate consulting firm in Argentina that he led for over 10 years. Sebastián has two daughters with his former wife. At the age of six, Sebastián was involved in a near-fatal accident during which he heard a voice, which la

Opening points: People get polarized in different perspectives. The more they focus exclusively on their perspective, the more justification for it they find. Learning to appreciate paradox; accommodating different viewpoints within a broader perspective. Enlightenment as Totality. Only Totality can realize Totality. Totality has no difficulty reconciling paradoxes. Getting comfortable with paradox might be conducive to our realization of Totality. Examples of contradictory realities: free will vs. determinism personal self vs. no-self Are we already enlightened, or must enlightenment be attained? Is practice an aid or an obstacle? Is the guru model dead? Does non-duality imply that there are no stages of spiritual growth? direct vs. progressive paths patience vs. determination on the spiritual path Additional points covered: Acting in accordance with your own experience, not a concept of someone else’s. Absolute reality does not negate relative realities. Radically differ

Mirabai Starr writes creative non-fiction and contemporary translations of sacred literature. She taught Philosophy and World Religions at the University of New Mexico-Taos for 20 years and now teaches and speaks internationally on contemplative practice and inter-spiritual dialog. A certified bereavement counselor, Mirabai helps mourners harness the transformational power of loss. She has received critical acclaim for her revolutionary new translations of the mystics: John of the Cross - Saint John of the Cross: Devotion, Prayers & Living Wisdom Teresa of Avila - The Interior Castle, and Julian of Norwich - The Showings of Julian of Norwich: A New Translation She is the award-winning author of: God of Love: A Guide to the Heart of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam, Caravan of No Despair: A Memoir of Loss and Transformation, and Mother of God Similar to Fire, a collaboration with iconographer, William Hart McNichols. Her latest book, Wild Mercy: Living the Fierce and Tender Wisdom of the Women

Rabbi Zvi Ish-Shalom, Ph.D., is a professor of wisdom traditions at Naropa University and is the founder of Kedumah, a universal mystical school that teaches a step-by-step approach to spiritual awakening and personal development. Integrating the timeless wisdom of the great mystical traditions with cutting edge knowledge of psychology, science, and the somatic healing arts, Zvi gently points us toward the primordial light of boundless freedom that abides at the heart of our experience. He is the author of the book The Kedumah Experience: The Primordial Torah and teaches retreats, workshops, and inner work groups internationally. Website: kedumah.org Discussion of this interview in the BatGap Community Facebook Group. Transcript of this interview. Interview recorded November 30, 2019 Video and audio below. Audio also available as a Podcast. YouTube Video Chapters: 00:00:00 - Introduction to Buddha at the Gas Pump 00:05:02 - Understanding the Vibration of Texts 00:09:32 - Early Religious Ex

John J. Prendergast, Ph.D., is the author of The Deep Heart: Our Portal to Presence and In Touch: How to Tune in to the Inner Guidance of Your Body and Trust Yourself. He is a retired adjunct professor of psychology at the California Institute of Integral Studies and a licensed psychotherapist. He studied for many years with the European Advaita master, Jean Klein, as well as with Adyashanti. He was invited to share the dharma by Dorothy Hunt. He offers retreats in the U.S. and Europe, as well as online. Website: ListeningFromSilence.com Discussion of this interview in the BatGap Community Facebook Group. Transcript of this interview First BatGap Interview with John Interview recorded November 23, 2019 Video and audio below. Audio also available as a Podcast. YouTube Video Chapters: 00:00:00 - Introduction and Background 00:03:49 - Following the Subtle Impulses 00:07:19 - Mysterious Encounters with Wise Teachers 00:11:02 - The Wisdom of Not Knowing 00:14:24 - Crossing the Barr

Julie Brown Yau, Ph.D., has a 30-year background in psychological, somatic and spiritual traditions providing her with a unique depth of knowledge and direct experience. Julie’s unified approach for addressing developmental and complex trauma, includes the latest neuroscientific & psychosomatic findings, depth psychology, & Eastern wisdom. Julie is an author, speaker, and has a private practice in Laguna Beach CA. She works on Skype worldwide. Julie supports those on a spiritual path to embody realizations and assists those going through spiritual emergence. She is also the Director of Education and Program Development at Compassionate Care ALS, helping families and individuals through trauma and the dying process. Julie's latest book: The Body Awareness Workbook for Trauma: Release Trauma from Your Body, Find Emotional Balance, and Connect with Your Inner Wisdom. Website: juliebrownyau.com Discussion of this interview in the BatGap Community Facebook Group. Transcript of this interview. Interview recor

Vicki Woodyard is a spiritual writer living in Atlanta, Georgia. Born and raised in Memphis, Tennessee, she graduated from The University of Memphis, magna cum laude, with a B.S. in English and Psychology. She is a meditator, a webmaster and has a lifelong interest in the spiritual path. Her late husband, Bob, died of multiple myeloma in 2004 and they lost their only daughter to cancer when she was seven. This equips Vicki to write about her path in an honest and humble way, opening the reader’s own heart to what is worth living for. The light of her path is tinged with humor as she lays down the bottom line and invites you to consider what YOU are living for. Awakening is but a dream until you sink into the heart. When you are caught in the dream, it just means you have temporarily forgotten. Vicki’s writing, as Elsa Joy Bailey says, "serves as a bookmark to help you find your place again. The website is a way into what is. Vicki’s writing catches one off-guard, waking people up to their mortality and infin

Mark Nepo. Photo by Frank Berkhout Mark has been called “one of the finest spiritual guides of our time,” “a consummate storyteller,” and “an eloquent spiritual teacher.” His work is widely accessible and used by many and his books have been translated into more than twenty languages. A bestselling author, he has published twenty-one books and recorded fourteen audio projects. In 2015, he was given a Life-Achievement Award by AgeNation. In 2016, he was named by Watkins: Mind Body Spirit as one of the 100 Most Spiritually Influential Living People, and was also chosen as one of OWN’s SuperSoul 100, a group of inspired leaders using their gifts and voices to elevate humanity. Mark has a regular columnist for Spirituality & Health Magazine. Recent books include Drinking from the River of Light; More Together Than Alone: Discovering the Power and Spirit of Community in Our Lives and in the World, cited by Spirituality & Practice as one of the Best Spiritual Books of 2018; Things That Join the Sea and the Sky, a

Annette Kaiser was born in Zürich, Switzerland in 1948. She is a spiritual teacher, founder and spiritual director of the retreat center Villa Unspunnen in Switzerland. Under her guidance, this place has become a gem of peace and light, that inspires many people in their spiritual work. She is a visionary of a Universal Spirituality and has written more than ten books. After completing her studies in economics and sociology at the University of St. Gallen (Switzerland), she worked for many years in the field of development cooperation. Her special fields were the women`s cause and intercultural dialog. During 17 years, she was a student of Irina Tweedie, an Anglo-Russian Sufi-teacher (author of Daughter of Fire: A Diary of a Spiritual Training with a Sufi Master). In the late 1980s, Annette Kaiser opened her Tai Ji DO-School, training teachers for over 30 years. Since 1998, she is authorized by Mrs. Tweedie to continue the Naqshbandiyya Mujaddidiyya Sufilineage, guiding human beings on the path of love. In th

Henry Shukman (Ryu’un-ken) is an Associate Zen Master of the Sanbo Zen lineage, based in Kamakura, Japan. He has trained primarily with Joan Rieck Roshi, Zen teacher John Gaynor, Ruben Habito Roshi, and now continues his training under the guidance of Yamada Ryoun Roshi, current abbot of Sanbo Zen. Henry is dedicated to what he sees as core Zen training—clarifying our essential nature to our own satisfaction, and thereby finding true peace of mind, and then living that essential nature in every moment of daily life, in freedom, love and deep responsiveness. As it happens, Mountain Cloud Zen Center was originally founded by a teacher whose training also took place within Sanbo Zen back in the 1950s, and Henry is the first Sanbo Zen teacher to have taught at Mountain Cloud since its founder. Henry is a writer and poet of British-Jewish origin, who has published eight books to date, of fiction, poetry and nonfiction. He writes regularly for Tricycle, The New York Times and other publications, and his most rece

Dr. Miles Neale, PsyD, is a Buddhist psychotherapist in private practice and founder of the two-year online Contemplative Studies Program. Author of Gradual Awakening (Sounds True, 2018) and co-editor of Advances in Contemplative Psychotherapy (Routledge, 2017), Miles is a faculty member of Tibet House (US) and Weill Cornell Medical College. With more than twenty years integrating the mind science and meditative practices of Tibetan Buddhism with psychotherapy, trauma research, and neuroscience, Miles is a forerunner in the emerging field of contemplative psychotherapy and leads pilgrimages around the Buddhist world. Websites: milesneale.com 2 Year Online Contemplative Studies Program Audio course: The Gradual Path - Tibetan Buddhist Meditations for Becoming Fully Human Discussion of this interview in the BatGap Community Facebook Group. Transcript of this interview. Interview recorded September 28, 2019 Video and audio below. Audio also available as a Podcast. YouTube Video Chapters: 00:00:

From my earliest memories, God was always at the center of things. After exploring a number of teachers and modalities in the great spiritual garden of late-sixties San Francisco, things really geared up when I learned the Transcendental Meditation (TM) technique in Berkeley in 1967. TM’s gifts were unmistakable and I began a thirty-year career of devoted service to Maharishi Mahesh Yogi and the Vedic tradition. This encompassed many years of teaching TM in the U.S., Europe, and Asia, and lots of time simply meditating, including seven years in a convent style setting. All this yielded vast personal and spiritual growth which remains fully integrated into my life, a gift that keeps on giving. Towards the end of this period, I studied and shared several healing modalities, especially Cranio-sacral therapy. This deepened my experience of the body as energy and Light and helped me discover the body’s huge role in lasting and comprehensive healing. In 1996, my path led me to the indigenous traditions of the Wes

Cassandra Vieten is Executive Director of the John W. Brick Foundation, Scholar-in-Residence at the Arthur C. Clarke Center for Human Imagination at the University of California, San Diego, and a Senior Fellow at the Institute of Noetic Sciences where she worked for 18 years and served as President and CEO from 2013-2019. She is a psychologist, mind-body medicine researcher, author of numerous articles in scientific journals, and an internationally recognized keynote speaker. Her research has focused on spirituality and health, transformative experiences and practices, and the development of mindfulness-based interventions for emotional well-being. She received her Ph.D. in clinical psychology at the California Institute of Integral Studies, and completed her research training in behavioral genetics at UCSF. She is the author of Mindful Motherhood: Practical Tools for Staying Sane During Pregnancy and Your Child's First Year, and co-author of Living Deeply: The Art and Science of Transformation in Everyday L

Noah is an explorer of what is happening in his own experience. This started on the level of mind, and gradually opened to exploring what's going on in his body, and then from his soul. This journey has led him to meet, feel, heal, and let go of a tremendous amount of pain. Through this journey, a lot of wisdom and honesty has revealed itself. Noah now shares himself and his insights with others. Books: A Guide to The Present Moment Una Guía para El Momento Presente (Spanish Edition) Discussion of this interview in the BatGap Community Facebook Group. Transcript of this interview. Interview recorded September 7, 2019 Video and audio below. Audio also available as a Podcast. YouTube Video Chapters: 00:00:00 - Introduction to Buddha at the Gas Pump 00:04:05 - Growing Up in an Ashram and Following a Guru 00:08:11 - Personal Journey and Learning from Teachers 00:11:55 - Discovering Your Own Truth 00:15:17 - Rebellion and Self-Discovery 00:18:51 - Breaking Free from the Guru's Influence

Rey Hernandez is Executive Director of the Consciousness and Contact Research Institute (CCRI), a 501c3 academic research institute comprised of 15 Ph.D. academics and medical doctors whose mission is to explore the relationship between Consciousness, our Cosmology, and Contact with Non-Human Intelligence via the Contact Modalities. Rey was previously one of the co-founders of The Dr. Edgar Mitchell FREE Foundation, a 501c3 academic research institute comprised of 12 Ph.D. academics and lay researchers who recently completed a 5-year comprehensive, worldwide, academic research study on UFO Contact Experiencers.  The late Apollo 14 Astronaut Dr. Edgar Mitchell, the 6th man to walk on the Moon and the founder of the Institute for Noetic Sciences, and Dr. Rudy Schild, Emeritus Professor of Astrophysics at Harvard University, were two of FREE’s co-founders. Rey graduated with honors from Rutgers College, was a Masters Candidate at Cornell University, and was a Ph.D. Candidate at the University of California at

Gillian Ross has always found it difficult to put a label on her spiritual perspective. If pressed she would describe herself as a Christian Buddhist yogi and mystic with a penchant for Taoism! Over recent years, however, she has been happy to call herself a spiritual evolutionary or evolutionary mystic in the tradition of Teilhard de Chardin in the West and Sri Aurobindo in the East. Born in the UK in 1940, she migrated to Australia as an academic in the early sixties. Her Western education gave her an Honours Science Degree, a Masters degree in Philosophy and a Doctorate in the Behavioural Sciences but left her feeling increasingly restless and unfulfilled. There was a growing awareness that her intellectual conditioning had disconnected her from the natural spontaneity and mystical riches of her childhood. The deep love she felt for her children awakened lost memories of spiritual connection. She began to meditate, practice yoga and study Eastern philosophies. In her early forties, she left her marriage,