Islands of Coherence

Joining us on the show this week is Buddhist teacher, author, coach, and trainer, Irini Rockwell! In this episode we're exploring the ancient but profound teaching of the Five Wisdom Energies of Tibetan Buddhism (also called the five Buddha families). This teaching is a Tantric Buddhist view of reading the energies that constitute our physical reality, how they manifest in relationships, personalities, landscapes, music, food, and societies. While coming from the Tibetan system, this is a completely secular view of the world that empowers us to open ourselves to the current unfolding moment and to flow with the currents of the energies at play. Irini is the current torchbearer of this view and has been training her students in how to utilize it for over 30 years! She was a student of the venerable Chogyam Trungpa Rinpoche and a professional dancer.  She's written two books on the topic,  'The Five Wisdom Energies, a Buddhist Way of Understanding Personalities, Emotions and Relationships and Natural Brilliance' and is the founder of the Five Wisdoms Institute. 



You can follow her work, sign up for classes, and order her books over at fivewisdomsinstitute.com

Joining us this week is the sensei of the Producer Dojo, ill Gates! If you're uninitiated, ill Gates is a mainstay of the west coast bass music scene and has been traveling the globe sharing his music for well over a decade. Collaborating with some of the biggest names in the industry, he's established himself as a pillar of the electronic music scene with a consistent release lineup of albums, singles, and mixtapes.

In this conversation we talk about his ill methodology which is a system that has helped thousands of producers find their creative momentum and start their careers in the music industry. We also cover his journey into a success, four essential qualities of goal achievement, how to create an action plan to maximize your creative output, and how he maintains his creative flow while touring. Check him out on Spotify, Soundcloud, or YouTube and also at his online production academy, Producerdojo.com . His music can also be found on the website, illgates.com

Welcome back everyone! We are officially returned from the month long hiatus with the long awaited video component of the show! Joining us this week is the one and only Anjie Cho, to talk about the ancient art and practice of Feng Shui! We cover the basic elements of practice, how you can incorporate some of these tools into your daily life right now, what an expert Feng Shui practitioner does when you enlist their services, as well as Anjie's personal story, training, and experience in this wonderful field. 


"Anjie Cho is a creator of holistic spaces, specifically focused on designing interiors, and teaching feng shui and meditation. She is the author of Holistic Spaces: 108 Ways to Create a Mindful and Peaceful Home [CICO Books 2018]. Since 1999, she has been designing beautiful and nourishing spaces (inner and outer) with balance and harmony, informed by the ancient practice of feng shui and meditation. Her focus is to create nurturing and supportive environments, tailoring her practice to each individual’s specific needs. Anjie is the owner of Anjie Cho Architect, co-founder of the Mindful Design Feng Shui School, and founder of Holistic Spaces which hosts a blog, podcast and online store. Anjie is also a teacher of dharma arts and meditation in the Shambhala Buddhist lineage and for Dharma Moon. She's the feng shui expert at The Spruce, a regular blog contributor to MindBodyGreen and has been featured in dozens of publications including: the New York Times, Domino Magazine and BuzzFeed. Anjie is a New York State registered architect, a graduate in Architecture from the College of Environmental Design at the University of California at Berkeley, LEED Accredited Professional, and certified feng shui consultant from the BTB Feng Shui Masters Training Program. She has trained as meditation teacher and in shamanic healing modalities."


anjiecho.com
mindfuldesignschool.com
https://www.amazon.com/Holistic-Spaces-create-mindful-peaceful/dp/178249667X

This week I'll be trying out a new format, the solocast! In this inaugural debut, I'm diving deep into some of the core principles underlying the show that I haven't had the time to fully articulate. To do this I spend some time drawing out a map of 21st century wellness that includes our relationships to aspects of the external world as well as finding internal harmony within our lifestyle choices. I also spend some time talking about why I personally find it important to include psychedelics and spirituality into the conversation, what my role in this show is, and a roadmap of what the future looks like for this platform.

With all that said, this episode marks the end of Chapter 1 of this conversation and will kick off a month long hiatus that will allow me to prepare the next batch of content, with a new website, video functionality, Patreon support, and a slew of new conversations expanding what it means to be alive in this strange time we find ourselves in. If you haven't already, now would be a great time to follow us on social media to stay up to date on the approaching Chapter 2! Enjoy the start of summer, be kind to each other, and tell the truth. 

See you June 16th!

Joining us this week on 21CV is my personal meditation coach, Neil Taylor! Outside of being an excellent teacher, Neil is also a yoga instructor and massage therapist. We spend this hour talking about cultivating awareness through meditation, impermanence, the importance of thinking about death, the difference between the mind and brain, and much more regarding massage therapy as a means to explore the self. 


To connect with Neil and receive online mindfulness meditation training or massage therapy/yoga instruction (Boston area only), head on over to https://www.neiltaylorbodywork.com/ 

This weeks deep dive is into the world of tea ceremony! Our guest Aurora is a ceremony facilitator, ayurvedic counsellor, aromatherapist, and yoga instructor based out of Asheville, North Carolina. We spend over an hour talking about the history, process, breakthroughs, and instructions for hosting your own tea ceremonies. We also cover the importance of service and silence on the path!

You can check out Aurora's platform by heading over to Auroraayurveda.com or her Instagram 'Aurora Ayurveda'. She's available for online virtual ayurvedic consultations as well as in person ceremony, aromatherapy, and yoga instruction!  

This weeks guest is Matt Furie! Artist and author of the Boys Club comic, Night Riders, and the newly released Mind Viscosity. Matt blew onto the scene when one of his beloved characters, Pepe the Frog, turned into the biggest viral memes of the 2010s and was eventually appropriated by alt-right and white supremacist groups. The recent documentary 'Feels Good Man' covers this sordid tale from Matt's perspective as he enters the dark underbelly of the internet to save his intellectual property. This episode covers a little bit of that harrowing tale but goes beyond Pepe into the wild and strange world of Matt's other work. We talk about his approach to facing darkness, his inspirations, goals for the future in a post-pepe world, and David Bowie's codpiece from Jim Henson's 'Labyrinth'. 

Check out Matt's other work over at:
mattfurie.com
(and maybe order one of his dope books or sign up for his fun patreon)

Rent the documentary over at: 
feelsgoodmanfilm.com

Here's a Trailer: 
https://youtu.be/ZEiqZWw5vYs

Joining us this week is Kate Lewandowski and Christopher Ray of Be Well Marquette. Between the two of them they have a total of 30+ years in bodywork, with Kate focusing on breath and Christopher utilizing a range of massage techniques, they help clients step into more spacious versions of themselves. In this episode we dive deep into the influence of breath on our waking consciousness and how to work with it to create lasting change. 

You can keep in touch with their platform by following Be Well Marquette on Facebook or Instagram as well as checking out their website, bewellmqt.com

Joining us this week is the silversmith, Benjamin Ripley! In this conversation we cover the intimate and high risk process of crafting beautiful and expensive jewelry. From this foundation we explore ultimately what it takes to maximize your artistic output while first and foremost taking care of yourself. From navigating the dreaded 'pit' of feeling uncreative, to balancing the other elements of your life, to working with clients on a project that is then going to be used as a spiritual talisman to navigate rites of passage. It's a really meaty conversation that is relevant to anyone pursuing an artistic endeavor. 

Check out his website and socials to keep up to date on his beautiful work
https://www.benjaminripleyjewelry.com/ 
@benjaminripley

Joining us this week is the project manager and content curator from the Love, Serve, Remember Foundation, Mangala and Ganesh Das. These wonderful humans are helping us explore the path of Bhakti Yoga! Alongside their work at the LSRF, they also write and maintain The Sloppy Bhakti blog that explores the intersection of music festivals and the path of love and devotion. In this episode we talk about Bhakti Yoga, Kirtan, Ram Dass, and their own spiritual journeys from righteous atheists to falling in literal love with a path of devotion. The Hindu god of Bhakti and strength, Hanuman also makes an appearance near the end! 

If you wish to stay in contact with these two lovely humans, head on over to Ramdass.org or Thesloppybhakti.com

To keep up to date on the newest iteration of the Soul Land Music Series, head on over to Ramdass.org/music to see all of the lovely work that Mangala has been up to!