Deconstructing Yourself

Host Michael Taft speaks with teacher, author, and founder of the Diamond Approach to Self-Realization A. H. Almaas on the topic of Nondual Love, the qualities of awareness itself, the five dimensions of our fundamental nature, the differences between individual love and nondual love, the importance of being human, and how to know yourself as a “boundless ocean of nectar.” A. Hameed Ali, whose pen name is A. H. Almaas, is founder of the Diamond Approach to Self-Realization, a contemporary teaching that developed within the context of both ancient spiritual teachings and modern depth psychology theories. Almaas has authored eighteen books about spiritual realization, including the Diamond Heart series, The Pearl Beyond Price, The Void, and The Alchemy of Freedom.The Diamond ApproachYou can support the creation of future episodes of this podcast by contributing through Patreon.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Host Michael W. Taft speaks with Tantra scholar and teacher Christopher Wallis about the word “enlightenment” in English and the words in Sanskrit it is typically the translation for; the differences between awakening and liberation; karma, samskara, and the deep unconscious; Shiva-oriented practice and the importance of including Shakti, the teachings of Abhinavagupta, and the centrality of embodied awakening.Christopher Wallis, also known as Hareesh, is a Sanskritist and scholar-practitioner of Classical Tantra with thirty years experience. He was initiated by a traditional Indian guru at the age of sixteen, and received education at yoga āshrams, both in India and the West. He holds several degrees including an M.Phil. in Classical Indian Religions from Oxford, and a Ph.D. in Sanskrit from U.C. Berkeley. Hareesh is the author of several books including The Recognition Sutras, and a new book entitled Near Enemies of the Truth. Hareesh.org – Christopher Wallis’ websiteCheck out his new book, Near Enemie

Join host Michael Taft as he speaks with meditation teacher and author Andrew Holecek about “reverse meditation,” the Mahamudra-based practice of using difficult experiences as the focus of our meditation, how this moves us through our perceived limits and allows us to recognize the perfection of the moment, and allows us to make any situation a profound and excellent meditation. Andrew Holecek has completed the traditional three-year Buddhist meditation retreat and offers seminars internationally on meditation, dream yoga, and the art of dying. He is the author of many books, including Dream Yoga: Illuminating Your Life Through Lucid Dreaming and the Tibetan Yogas of Sleep and a new book, Reverse Meditation. Andrew is masterful at joining the wisdom traditions of Asia with the knowledge of the West. He holds degrees in classical music, biology, and a doctorate in dental surgery. https://www.andrewholecek.com/Contribute to Michael’s Patreon or directly to help fund the creation of more of these podcasts.

Host Michael Taft talks with neuroscientist and Executive Director of the Alembic, Kati Devaney about meditation, the neuroscience of meditation, predictive processing, the wonder of travel, psychedelics, and more.Kathryn Devaney, Ph.D. is a neuroscientist and meditation practitioner, with over 20 years of meditation experience. Kati earned her PhD in 2018, using fMRI to examine attention and default mode network function in experienced Vipassana meditators. After completing her postdoctoral fellowship at Harvard Medical School, Kati moved to Berkeley CA to start The Berkeley Alembic Foundation with Michael Taft and Erik Davis. Kati is currently the Executive Director of The Alembic, the Chief Science Officer of Jhourney.io, and a researcher at the UC Berkeley Center for the Science of Psychedelics. You can support the creation of future episodes of this podcast by contributing through Patreon.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-no

Your host Michael Taft is interviewed by Jake Orthwein about the various kinds of nonduality, the difference between monoism and nondualism, fundamental confusions about nondual practice, the major contrast between the transcendence-orientation of dualistic religions and the world-engagement of nondual religions, as well as the crucial distinction between the two main types of nonduality.Jake Orthwein is a filmmaker based in Santa Monica, CA, and a dharma student of mine. You may have seen his Youtube video entitled, “How Politics Became Pro Wrestling,” and he is currently working on a series of films surrounding meditation, psychedelics, and predictive processing. Jake Orthwein on TwitterSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Join host Michael Taft as he talks with Tantrik scholar and practitioner Christopher Wallis about the tradition of Nondual Shaiva Tantra, the full void pregnant with possibilities, savoring the transcendent in every sensual experience, the differences between Nondual Shaiva Tantra and Advaita Vedanta, the origins of Tantra and Vajrayana, sublime beauty, aesthetic rapture, and much more.Christopher Wallis, also known as Hareesh, is a Sanskritist and scholar-practitioner of Classical Tantra with thirty years experience. He was initiated by a traditional Indian guru at the age of sixteen, and received education at yoga āshrams, both in India and the West. He holds several degrees including an M.Phil. in Classical Indian Religions from Oxford, and a Ph.D. in Sanskrit from U.C. Berkeley. Hareesh is the author of Tantra Illuminated: The Philosophy, History, and Practice of a Timeless Tradition, and of The Recognition Sutras, a translation and commentary on a 1000-year-old masterpiece on experiential recognition of

Join host Michael Taft as he continues his talk with translator, author, and teacher Ken McLeod about Ken’s new book: The Magic of Vajrayana, and issues around receiving initiations and empowerments, the experiential component, aspects of White Tara and Mahakala practices, the power of mystical poetry, and the future of Vajrayana in the West.Ken McLeod began his study and practice of Buddhism in 1970 under the eminent Tibetan master Kalu Rinpoche. After completing two three-year retreats, he was appointed as resident teacher for Kalu Rinpoche’s center in Los Angeles, California, where he developed innovative approaches to teaching and translation. After his teacher’s death in 1989, Ken established Unfettered Mind, a place for those whose path lies outside established institutions. His many published works include Wake Up to Your Life, A Trackless Path, and his new book, entitled The Magic of Vajrayana.You can support the creation of future episodes of this podcast by contributing through Patreon.See Privacy P

Join host Michael Taft as he talks with translator, author, and teacher Ken McLeod about Ken's new book: The Magic of Vajrayana, particularly the tripartite practice structure of guru, deity, and protector in Tibetan Buddhism.Ken McLeod began his study and practice of Buddhism in 1970 under the eminent Tibetan master Kalu Rinpoche. After completing two three-year retreats, he was appointed as resident teacher for Kalu Rinpoche’s center in Los Angeles, California, where he developed innovative approaches to teaching and translation. After his teacher’s death in 1989, Ken established Unfettered Mind, a place for those whose path lies outside established institutions. His many published works include Wake Up to Your Life, A Trackless Path, and his new book, entitled The Magic of Vajrayana. You can support the creation of future episodes of this podcast by contributing through Patreon.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-inf

Host Michael Taft talks with philanthropist, serial entrepreneur, technologist, and meditator Dr. Shamil Chandaria about predictive processing as it relates to meditation, our phenomenal self model, recognizing our own fabrication hierarchy, replacing our top level priors as a way to understand nondual enlightenment, and much more.Dr Shamil Chandaria OBE is a philanthropist, serial entrepreneur, technologist, and academic with multi-disciplinary research interests spanning computational neuroscience, machine learning and artificial intelligence, and the philosophy and science of human well-being. His PhD, from the London School of Economics, was in mathematical modelling of economic systems using stochastic differential equations and optimal control theory. Later he completed an MA in Philosophy, with Distinction, from University College London where he developed an interest in philosophy of science and philosophical issues in biology, neuroscience, and ethics. In 2018 Dr. Chandaria helped to endow

Host Michael Taft speaks with professor John Vervaeke about relevance realization—the process by which we decide what matters in any given situation—and its application to meditation, how we gain an increased sense of meaning in life, and why there is no panacea in practice. John also answers the question: what is a wise person? John Vervaeke is an award-winning lecturer at the University of Toronto in Psychology, Cognitive Science, and Buddhist Psychology. His areas of interest include wisdom, mindfulness, meditation, relevance realization, general intelligence, rationality. He is the author of the Youtube series Awakening from the Meaning Crisis and co-author of Zombies in Western Culture: A 21st Century Crisis.You can learn more about John’s work at: https://www.youtube.com/user/johnvervaekeYou can support the creation of future episodes of this podcast by contributing through Patreon.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-i

In this episode, host Michael Taft talks with Rosa Lewis about spirituality, creativity, working with trauma, embracing the darkness, the inner critic, the power of meditation, and more.Rosa Lewis is a mystic and a meditation teacher. Her teaching combines Buddhist emptiness, shadow work, tantric embodiment, the archetypal realm, mysticism and a radically new way of relating to heartfulness.Her approach to spirituality involves healing the trauma or embracing the darkness that exists in all of us. She helps people uncover and nourish whatever it is that most wants to come alive in them, in order to create a more joyful presence in the world. You can learn more about Rosa on her website at https://rosalewis.co.uk/You can support the creation of future episodes of this podcast by contributing through Patreon.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Host Michael Taft speaks with author, science journalist, and psychology nerd David McRaney about what sorts of conversations actually cause human beings to change their minds; the fascinating on-the-ground research of groups like Street Epistemology and Deep Canvassers, the stories of people deciding to leave insular in-groups such as the Westboro Baptist church and 9-11 Truthers, the deep neuroscience behind "The Dress" phenomenon, the role of storytelling in human interactions, and much more. David McRaney currently hosts a bi-weekly, top-100 podcast about human judgment and decision-making, and recently created a documentary about IQ and genius and a television show about how to better predict the impact of technological disruption. His most recent book is How Minds Change, about the science, and the experience, of transformation.https://www.davidmcraney.com/You can support the creation of future episodes of this podcast by contributing through Patreon.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and

Host Michael Taft speaks with artist, bodyworker, and philosopher Guy Sengstock about the origin and creation of Circling practice, how the asynchronous qualities of new technologies have created a deeper hunger for basic human contact, the crucial importance of embodiment in communication, mindfulness of presence, as well as the new practice he’s creating with Jon Vervaeke, known as Dia-Logos.Guy Sengstock is the founder and creator of the Circling Method. He has been facilitating transformation for individuals, groups and corporations internationally for more than 20 years. He has a BFA from the San Francisco Art Institute and is the co-founder of The Arête Center for Excellence and the Bay Area Men’s Circle, which is still thriving today. He is an artist, philosopher, poet, body-worker, and visionary.The Circling InstituteContribute to Michael’s Patreon or directly to help fund the creation of more of these podcasts.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://ar

Host Michael Taft speaks with meditation teacher and author Kelly Boys on the practice of non-sleep, deep rest—a modern name for the ancient practice of yoga nidra, using liminal states as gateways to profound meditative experiences, finding ways to let go more completely, how this practice relates to nonduality, and the transformative power of embodied practice. Kelly Boys is a mindfulness trainer and author of The Blind Spot Effect: How to Stop Missing What’s Right in Front of You. She co-developed the Peace on Purpose mindfulness and resilience program for UN humanitarian and development workers, training UN staff in the Middle East, Central Asia and beyond. She has worked with veterans with PTSD in the VA system and in San Quentin State Prison as part of the Prison Yoga Project. She directed a teacher training for the Search Inside Yourself Institute, bringing facilitators from around the world together to learn the emotional intelligence and mindfulness curriculum as taught at Google. Kelly is the f

Host Michael Taft iterviews Tibetan Buddhist meditation teacher and author Andrew Holecek on nondual practice and theory, finding your way back to the true nature of mind, the dangers of getting dropped off in the deep end too soon, challenging to notion of path, the art of doing nothing (and doing it well); Andrew also offers listeners a dream-based nondual guided practice.Andrew Holecek has completed the traditional three-year Buddhist meditation retreat and offers seminars internationally on meditation, dream yoga, and the art of dying. He is the author of many books, including Dream Yoga: Illuminating Your Life Through Lucid Dreaming and the Tibetan Yogas of Sleep. Andrew is masterful at joining the wisdom traditions of Asia with the knowledge of the West. He holds degrees in classical music, biology, and a doctorate in dental surgery. https://www.andrewholecek.com/Contribute to the creation of more of these podcasts at https://deconstructingyourself.com/donateSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/priva

Host Michael Taft speaks with meditation master and neuroscience consultant Shinzen Young on the background and history of Zen Master LinJi (aka Rinzai, in Japanese), the meaning of his famous phrase "the authentic person," various aspects of nonduality, an unpacking of LinJi's Four-fold Analysis, as well as cessations, the current state of Shinzen's research, using ultrasound to change the brain, and how to equanimize the biggest curveballs life can throw at you. Shinzen Young is an American mindfulness teacher and neuroscience research consultant. His systematic approach to categorizing, adapting and teaching meditation, known as Unified Mindfulness, has resulted in collaborations with Harvard Medical School, Carnegie-Mellon University, and the University of Vermont in the burgeoning field of contemplative neuroscience.https://www.shinzen.org/Contribute to Michael’s Patreon or directly to help fund the creation of more of these podcasts.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Pri

Host Michael Taft talks with meditation teacher and author Tina Rasmussen about how psychology and meditation practice can work together to help people heal, working with trauma, the importance of heart-based practices such as metta, spiritual bypassing, using shamatha to build new brain networks, and Tina’s own story of her birth trauma and her path to healing.Tina Rasmussen, Ph.D., began meditating at age 13, and has practiced in the Theravada and Tibetan Buddhist traditions for over 30 years. In 2003, she completed a year-long solo retreat, was later ordained as a Buddhist nun and became the first Western woman authorized to teach by renowned meditation master Pa Auk Sayadaw. Tina has been studied by the Yale Neuroscience Lab, and is the co-author of Practicing the Jhanas, as well as several books on human potential. Tina Rasumussen’s website: luminousmindsangha.comContribute to Michael’s Patreon or directly to help fund the creation of more of these podcasts.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/pr

Host Michael Taft talks with neuroscientist and meditator Ruben Laukkonen about the phenomenology of the insight experience, how the sequence of deepening meditative practices maps onto the model of predictive processing in the human brain, the Eureka heuristic, what neuroscience can tell us about the deconstructive model of meditation, the science of cessations, and much more. Ruben Laukkonen is a postdoctoral fellow at the Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam and lecturer at Amsterdam University College. Ruben seeks to uncover an empirically grounded and experientially authentic understanding of meditation, insight, and non-duality. Using a combination of neuroimaging, machine learning, and phenomenology, he is investigating some of the rarest states of consciousness available to human beings. Ruben has an eclectic contemplative background, including traditions such as Zen, Advaita, and Theravada.Learn more at https://rubenlaukkonen.com/Help to support the Deconstructing Yourself podcast at Patreon.Or give a one-ti

What can ancient Sanskrit poetry of love and longing teach us about our own deepest spirituality? Join host Michael Taft as he explores this question with professor, author, and teacher Rick Jarow. Further topics include the tantric aspect of poetry, how landscape and nature informs and embodies our spirituality, the role of the word in transcendence, sacred passion for the divine as expressed in the poetics of longing, and much more.Rick Jarow Ph.D. is a author, teacher, and scholar of Indian languages and literature. Recently retired from his position as a Religious Studies professor at Vassar college in New York, Rick leads workshops and retreats worldwide. His books include: In Search of the Sacred, Tales for the Dying, and a new work: The Cloud of Longing: A New Translation and Eco-Aesthetic Study of Kalidasa's Meghaduta. Rick Jarow's websiteHelp to support the Deconstructing Yourself podcast at Patreon.Or give a one-time donation: DonateSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California

Host Michael Taft speaks with Dorje Lopön Chandra Easton about her recent work with the 21 manifestations of the Goddess Tara, some aspects of Green Tara, and especially the role of vision and visualization in Vajrayana, and Buddhism more generally. Beginning with the somewhat negative role of the eyes in early Buddhist practice, moving through the Mahayana sutras talking about "enlightened eyes," and the "Eye of the Buddha," and culminating with the rainbow light practices of Vajrayana and Dzogchen. Topics include: Nagarjuna's vision metaphor of emptiness, the esoteric subtle channel from the heart to the eyes, meditation on kasinas, and much more.Chandra Easton has taught meditation and yoga since 2001. She has had the good fortune to study with many Tibetan and Western Buddhist teachers such as H.H. Dalai Lama, H.H. Karmapa, Lama Tsultrim Allione, B. Alan Wallace,Tulku Sang-ngag Rinpoche, and Jennifer Welwood. She is currently the Assistant Spiritual Director & Head Teacher at the Tara Mandala Retreat