Gary Crowley was born in 1965 and was raised in Massachusetts as a practical-minded New Englander. He graduated from Stanford University in 1987 with degrees in Economics and Political Science.

At a young age, he was attracted to Eastern philosophy and spiritual writings that seemed to offer a glimpse of something greater than the life he had known growing up. However, by 2001, Gary finally gave up on all forms of spiritual seeking after decades on the path. He surrendered under the weight of the many well-intended spiritual teachings he'd accumulated over the years. All the study had not caused the shift in awareness that he'd so earnestly sought and had been so often promised.

The problem, he then realized, was that he had been simply piling up concepts without addressing the very foundation - his sense of "self" - that was doing the seeking. He discovered that it is only by dismantling our assumptions about "who we are," rather than merely describing a state of being such as oneness or wholeness, that we can bring about a natural opening to a new way of experiencing life.

Gary's site: http://garycrowley.com/

Gary's books:

Pass the Jelly: Tales of Ordinary Enlightenment

From Here to Here: Turning Toward Enlightenment

Transcript of this interview

Interview recorded 8/11/2010.

YouTube Video Chapters:

00:00:00 - Past the Jelly, Tales of Ordinary Enlightenment

00:03:00 - The Surprising Repetition of the Same Stuff

00:05:44 - Compassion for Ourselves and Others

00:08:32 - The Process of Change

00:11:18 - Insights from the Book

00:13:12 - Exploring Eastern Philosophy and Spiritual Writings

00:16:02 - A Shift in Perspective and Understanding

00:18:36 - The True Nature of Self

00:21:39 - The Experiencing of Living

00:24:51 - Observing the Soup of Life

00:28:06 - The Illusion of Perception

00:30:54 - Quantum Possibilities and Everyday Miracles

00:34:06 - Athletes in the Zone

00:36:59 - The everythingness of experiencing

00:40:00 - The Mystery of the Human Condition

00:42:49 - Perspectives on Politics

00:46:01 - The Illusion of Conscious Will

00:48:48 - Embracing the Actuality of the Human Condition

00:51:48 - Freedom from Illusion

00:55:03 - Helping People in Need

00:57:54 - The Tapping Technique for Change and Healing

01:00:23 - The Diagnosis of a Bone Spur

01:02:24 - Relieving Neck Pain with Body Work

01:05:21 - The Distraction of Physical Pain

01:07:47 - A Shift in Perspective

01:10:03 - The ebb and flow of experiencing everythingness

01:13:04 - The Impact of Stress on Brain Development

01:16:08 - Trading Spiritual Jokes

01:19:06 - The Mantra Meditation Challenge

01:20:26 - Discussing distribution of the interview

01:22:18 - The Error of Premature Claims to Enlightenment