KARMIC RELIEF

Dr. Aaron Conrado holds a Ph.D. in molecular biology from the University of Texas at Austin. While dedicating himself in graduate school to scientific progress for the betterment of others, he discovered a passion for communicating science to non-scientists, and decided to leave the halls of academia to pursue a career using this newfound talent to address societal problems by creating evidence-based policy solutions. Shortly after graduating, he left his home of Austin, TX and moved to Washington, DC to work on science policy in the Office of Science and Technology Policy in the Executive Office of the President (The White House).

Aaron is an old friend of the boys, and despite his secular-minded academic background and professional career as a scientist, he has a refreshingly open outlook on the transcendental. He hasn’t quite “jumped off the cliff”, but science does seem to be moving in closer proximity to spiritual ideals. As a science educator, Aaron’s ask is that we stick to the data, and listen to each other more clearly.

Dr. Conrado’s book recs are:

“The Mystic Christ” by Ethan Walker III

“The Tao Te Ching” by Lao Tzu

“Merchants of Doubt” by Erik M. Conway and Naomi Oreskes

“The Collapse of Western Civilization” by Erik M. Conway and Naomi Oreskes

“Meditations” by Marcus Aurelius

“Ethics” by Baruch Spinoza

Stay connected with us via email:

https://bewherehow.com

Christian Parrish Takes the Gun, known professionally as Supaman is an Apsáalooke rapper and fancy dancer who was born in Seattle, Washington and grew up in Crow Agency, Montana. He dedicates his life to empowering and spreading a message of hope and faith through a unique fusion of traditional and modern culture. He is the recipient of the 2017 MTV VMA award for Best Fight Against the System. He is also a Nammy - Native American Music Award Winner, North American Indigenous Image Award, and seven Tunney Awards.

We talked about Supaman’s early years in hip hop, and what led him to incorporate more of his tribal identity into his creativity.. despite initial concerns by both his Christian pastors and tribal chiefs. He informed us about the state of emergency in regards to preserving the Apsáalooke culture, and how Standing Rock and other indigenous rights movements are emerging—creating glimpses of bright optimism out of the darker collective trauma still impacting contemporary reservation life.

Supaman’s book recommendations are:

“Plenty-coups: Chief of the Crows” by Frank Bird Linderman

“Two Leggings: The Making of a Crow Warrior” by Peter Nabokov

The books of Deepak Chopra

“God is Red: A Native View of Religion” by Vine Deloria Jr.

“Wrestling with Jesus: A candid dialogue with the Master on what Christians must know about their religion—but will never hear in church” by D. K. Maylor

Follow all of Supaman’s latest work:

https://www.supamanhiphop.net/

Heather Feinberg has a B.A. in Anthropology, and an M.A. in Counseling and Human Services from The University of Colorado. Heather is the founder of Mindful Kids, a nonprofit organization that creates pioneering resources for social and emotional learning. Her work is featured in the children's magazine, “Root and Star” and her debut children's book, “Crying is like the Rain: A Story of Mindfulness and Feelings”, was published this year (Sep 2020) from Tilbury House.

We have been inspired by Heather & her work all year as we are separately working to build an outreach curriculum teaching kids mindfulness & meditation. In this episode, Heather covers the importance of creating and facilitating from that same imaginative, intuitive quality possessed by the children she works with. We discuss the usefulness of nature imagery via her book title “Crying is Like the Rain” and how (slowly!) society is starting to shift towards embracing more contemplative qualities.

Heather’s book recommendations are:

“Faith: Trusting Your Deepest Experience” by Sharon Salzberg

“Dreaming Me: Black, Baptist, and Buddhist ― One Woman's Spiritual Journey” by Jan Willis

“The Wisdom of Listening” Mark Brady

The books of Mirabai Starr

There are so many misconceptions around spirituality, but especially “mysticism” or “mystic philosophy”. Many people tend to think “mystic” means “magic”, or that it’s far beyond critical grounded scholarship.

In this extended episode, Bob, Scott, and Melena go through Bob’s new article “Debunking Mystic Philosophy”, providing a useful intro to mysticism: the symbolic string connecting the pearls of the worlds’ faith traditions. We talk about how mysticism essentially means internal discovery; that the mystic is guided by the intuitive understanding; and that there is a rich spectrum of inclusive, accepting paths.

Mysticism: A Study of the Nature and Development of Man’s Spiritual Consciousness by Evelyn Underhill

History of Mysticism: The Unchanging Testament by Swami Abhayananda

Jennifer Millar is a spiritual teacher, healer and interfaith minister who travels the globe facilitating a healing method called, “Cellular Transformation”. A native of Northern Ireland, living south of Austin, TX, Jennifer has been immersed in the field of trauma healing for over two decades, working with thousands of people from diverse cultural backgrounds. Her work is a blend of psychological and emotional enquiry combined with spiritual transformation that results in fundamental life shifts.

Our co-host Ryan Padgett attributes his work with Jennifer to curing his ulcerative colitis—a brutal digestive disease that he had difficulty controlling on the physical level. Listen to Ryan’s own powerful testimony in this episode, alongside our mystically-metaphysical discussion on the mechanics underneath ‘Cellular Transformation’.

Jennifer’s book recommendations are:

“The World’s Religions” by Huston Smith

The books of Pema Chodron

The books of Michael Meade

Connect with Jennifer at https://www.jennifermillar.org

Jeremy Hoffeld is a painter, sketch artist, musician, and spiritual contemplative from New York. He studied art history at Columbia University, and wrote a thesis on Paleolithic cave paintings in France. Hoffeld did an apprenticeship in painting and drawing at the Art Students League of New York, having previously spent two years copying old masters at Boston’s Fogg Art Museum and the Museum of Fine Arts. Nowadays he spends his time on the island of Maui, painting portraits of saints, activists, and other heroes.

We were thrilled to hear his Ram Dass stories, as Jeremy was graced to be able to spend time with that monumental spiritual force in his later years. (Jeremy’s brother plays music with Krishna Das.) Tropical birds serenaded our interview, as we covered social media, creativity, social action, and had a few laughs about his experiences with RD.

Jeremy’s book recommendations are:

“Autobiography of a Yogi” by Paramahamsa Yogananda (1946)

“The Artist’s Way” by Julia Cameron (1992)

See Jeremy’s work on Instagram:

www.instagram.com/jeremyhoffeld

www.jeremyhoffeld.com

Jason Ivy is an award-winning singer, songwriter, music producer, film producer, and entrepreneur from the south side of Chicago. He has a bachelor’s degree in cognitive neuroscience and linguistics from the University of Pennsylvania, a bachelor’s in biology from the University of Chicago and an international relations bachelor’s from the University of Cambridge. He’s also worked with NASA, and he currently works for a startup teaching social emotional learning skills to kids.

The guys took considerable inspiration from Jason’s productive energy. Relevant to Be Where How?, his appreciation for Eastern mysticism helped him realize his personal philosophy of limitless-ness and ultimately how all humans can harness our creative potential.

Jason’s book recommendations are:

The ancient “I Ching”

Keep up with Jason at https://www.instagram.com/thejasonivy/

Miroo Kim is a 15+ year tech professional who has worked at Apple, Microsoft and Facebook. She helped launch early iPhones and now works on Mobile Partnerships at FB, but most relevant to this philosophy show, she heads our Mindfulness club, along with Bob & Melena. We talk about the dynamics of compassion at work and why it’s important to not over-hype mindful practices, despite an exhaustive list of benefits. Miroo’s book recommendations are:

“A Bigger Sky: Awakening a Fierce Feminine Buddhism” by Pamela Weiss

“The Order of Time” by Carlo Rovelli

"How We Work: Live Your Purpose, Reclaim Your Sanity, and Embrace the Daily Grind" by Leah Weiss PhD

Shane Renfro, the songwriter and frontman behind RF Shannon, joins the Be Where How? Show to chat about his writing process, and his seeming dissonance within the mainstream music business thanks in part to his creative philosophy. We discuss permaculture-ing the land, Jodorowsky’s "Psychomagic", and how our ancestral connections can pervade our intuitive understanding.

Listen to RF Shannon’s three full length albums on Spotify.

https://www.rfshannon.com