Love & Understanding

In this episode, John speaks with Kat van Oudheusden about the nature of non-duality. Early in life, Kat was an attorney but then, after discovering her own non-dual nature, she moved into coaching professionals and business teams from a selfless leadership perspective. She is now a full-time writer. She is the author of four books and writes daily on Substack about her own direct non-dual experience. I really enjoyed our conversation and I hope you do too.

Substack Profile:

https://substack.com/@katoudheusden?

Books:

https://a.co/d/7aOE1dQ

In this episode, John explores the mind-state of effort, which is the most common translation from the Pali word "virya." Virya is one of three mind-states, along with concentration and mindfulness, the Buddha singles out for us to cultivate in his Noble Eightfold Path, which is a kind of training program to bring peace of heart and mind not only to ourselves but to the world around us.

In this episode, John shares a chapter titled Love from his book The Unbound Heart: Spirituality Without Dogma or Superstition. Because we are habitual creatures who have likely developed unhealthy thoughts and behaviors, John encourages the listeners to actively build a formal practice of loving-kindness into their lives. He encourages you to rewire your neural pathways with some love fiber.

In this episode, John shares a chapter from his book The Unbound Heart: Spirituality Without Dogma or Superstition.

This episode is a recording from Project Human, John's community, where they engage in a bi-weekly Zoom meeting. In this discussion, the community discussed the importance of stories and frameworks in our lives.

In this episode, John speaks with the philosopher and academic Neil Durrant. Neil grew up in a Christian home, eager to become a minister. So, he spent the early years of his adulthood committed to the Anglican Church. After receiving a degree in linguistics, studying Arabic, Old Norse, and an aboriginal language of Australia, Neil then taught himself Hebrew and Greek, before getting a theological degree, so that he could focus more on the philosophical debates rather than spend time learning the language. After exploring European and German philosophers, like Nietzsche, Neil could no longer accept and practice his faith with integrity. John and Neil discuss the consequences of leaving a faith and explore how one might navigate a faith-crisis or -transition skillfully. John and Neil also explore the nihilism many people face after leaving a religion and how they might approach that.

In this episode, John speaks with C.B. Robertson (Chris), a self-described Classical Pagan. Chris points out that we often overvalue the historical truth of a myth at the expense of its deeper meaning. He offers up the myths of 'Santa Clause' and 'The Boy Who Cried Wolf' as examples. Finally, as an anecdote to nihilism born out of a faith crisis, Chris stresses the importance of participating in myth and ritual, which connects us to others and to something larger than ourselves.

In this episode, John interviews Elina Jerschow, M.D., M.Sc, about her upbringing in Russia, her exit after the collapse of the Soviet Union, and her new life in the West. John and Elina also discuss her meditation practice, particularly her relationship with Vajrayana Buddhism.

Elina is a board-certified allergist and immunologist with specialized expertise in Aspirin-Exacerbated Respiratory Disease (AERD), chronic rhinosinusitis with nasal polyposis, and asthma.

Dr. Jerschow completed her medical degree at Vienna University in Austria and pursued further training in internal medicine, followed by subspecialty training in Allergy and Immunology at Albert Einstein College of Medicine in Bronx, NY.

Her clinical practice is dedicated to diagnosing and treating patients with AERD and nasal polyposis. In her research, Dr. Jerschow focuses on the role of immune cell subsets within polyp tissue and their impact on the severity of AERD and nasal polyposis.

In this episode, John invites his dear friend Kandice Knoelk over to take some Molly (MDMA) as they explore how everything circles back to Love. Kandice is a Writing Coach, who helps people connect with their authentic voice by pointing them to the infinite source of love, wisdom, creativity, and play within their own hearts and minds.

If you want to work with Kandice, you can reach her at [email protected] or LinkedIn.

You can find more information about Impact Training here.

In this episode, John speaks with Tomer Duwek, an Israeli American artist and Zen monk.

You can find Tomer's art at https://www.tomerduwek.com

He is also on Instagram and Facebook.