We discuss our personal paths to non-duality. We are all raised to think from a dualistic, black-or-white perspective, but inevitably our experiences lead us to a place where that type of thinking no longer works. We must find something larger that helps us interpret our experience and the world around us with a different mind.

Judging everything – our circumstances, our inner experiences and other things and people – is a tendency we all have, and widely accepted as a normal way our brains work. It is a necessary function of our thinking in the first part of our lives, but then it is important for us to take on a non-dualistic or non-judging stance. It helps us have a more whole experience and be able to accept life as it is, rather than how we wish it was.

We often want to define ourselves and set ourselves apart from others by identifying ourselves with a category or group and by being the heroes in our own stories. We also seek to establish a sense of comfort and stability at all costs. Life comes along and hands us interruptions, irritants and inconveniences that seemingly throw us off course, but perhaps those things that don’t seem to fit can be incorporated into an inclusive whole.

Growth as human beings means expanding our container to let in more and more reality. We often don’t engage in this type of work because it means we will leave behind comfort, safety and others who are like-minded, but expanding consciousness doesn’t mean we are better than others or that we cannot continue to agree and hold space for others’ views. In fact, it means the opposite: we have more space for good, bad and different.

There are two seemingly opposing forces at work in all living organisms: the drive to change and the drive to stay the same. The conservative/progressive divide in our culture indicates this dynamic is at work intensely right now. We must continue to talk to one another, believe change is possible and practice awareness of these seemingly opposing forces. Healthy growth happens through providing the necessary conditions and building to the point where insight and learning takes place.

Conversations are grinding to a halt and relationships are strained due to the current political gridlock. To develop a dialogue that will help move us forward, we must seek to understand the deeply held values in ourselves and others. We must also seek to hold two seemingly irreconcilable things in tension with one another to get to something new. We invite your feedback, and hope you will help us move this discussion forward.

We tend to look at others and focus on ways they can change, rather than practicing vulnerability, which can help us experience transformation. Transforming ourselves will help us be part of change, and also help us practice non-violence. Being able to engage in vulnerability makes us more powerful because we become unflappable in the face of threat.

It is easy to see increasing polarization in our culture about racial tensions and other issues. Our first response to these social issues tends to be taking one side or the other. The rhetoric in our culture is tense and lends itself to rigid stances and power-grabbing. We must examine our own nervous system responses to find within ourselves the ability to speak and act from a truly powerful place. Real power tends to be based in trust and vulnerability.

We are in solidarity with those affected by violence and those who live in fear because of it. Many of us are experiencing tension after violence toward people of color and ensuing riots. In this episode, we discuss ways to respond to tension and the threats we experience in order to establish complex responses which can lead to peace and reconciliation.

This coronavirus pandemic has presented us with prolonged exposure to stress and the realization we are in a larger context than we may have thought. We are used to seeking and attaining comfort and predictability that is not available to us right now. We discuss how we can let our trauma and stress move through us and come out the other side unshakable.