21st Century Vitalism

Reclaiming Our Sovereignty Through the Creative Process with Ayla Nereo

Joining us on the show this week is the singer, composer, producer, dancer, and creative guide, Ayla Nereo. For this conversation, we explore her work with the Living Song project; a creative community aimed at helping people dissolve creative blocks and find their authentic voice. We then use that as a foundation to explore central themes in Ayla's work such as resiliency, vitality, and the role of our intuition in the creative process.

Ayla's music can be streamed wherever you find your music and her courses can be found over at thelivingsong.aylanereo.com

SHOW TOPICS
- What is the Living Song Project?
- What does it mean to be a Vessel?
- What is Writer's Block and How Can We Overcome it?
- Grasping Vs. Trust
- The Energetic Throat Center
- The Four Elements and Creativity
- What is Vitality and Intuition?
- Importance of Feeling Good
- What is Sovereignty in the Modern Age?
- Facing A Troubled World, What Can We Do As Creatives?
- Sovereignty and Motherhood

Spiritual Warriorship in the Modern Age with David Nichtern

Joining us on today's show is the CEO of Dhama Moon and my personal meditation teacher and friend, David Nichtern! Dharma Moon is an online meditation community which specializes in teaching the next generation of mindfulness meditation instructors. As a senior teacher in the lineage of Chogyam Trungpa Rinpoche, David has gone on to write two books, be an Emmy winning and Grammy nomiated musician, and host of the popular, Creativity, Spirituality, and Making a Buck Podcast. 

In this conversation, we talk about some of the most compelling teachings that we've explored together which are commonly referred to as the sacred path of the warrior. They're a perennial set of teachings found in cultures around the world which are uniquely relevant for living a spiritually inclined life in the modern age. They ask us, how can we be fully awake, courageous, and authentic right now in the life that we're currently living? 

If you want to study with David he has many online offerings that can be found through the link below. I highly recommend his 'Mindfulness Teacher Training' course starting up in June for one of the most comprehensive deep dives into meditation you can find on the internet.  

SHOW TOPICS
- What is Warriorship?
- The Qualities of a Warrior
- The Strength of Being Gentle
- Seeing Clearly
- How to Properly Face Oneself 
- Meditation
- How Being Self Conscious Closes Off the World
- Discovering our Basic Goodness
- Moving out from the Cocoon
- The Profundity of Householder Practice
- Business and Warriorship

LINKS
dharmamoon.com

Addiction, The Road to Recovery, and Electronic Music with Mr. Bill

Joining us on the show is the globally renowned electronic music producer, educator, and performer, Mr. Bill. In this conversation we talk about the incredibly important subject of substance abuse and recovery. Having gone through his own stint of addiction, we dive into his story of struggling to stay afloat while being a touring musician and the hard fought battle of getting sober. We also share our mutual appreciation of electronic music, production, and the rave scene which undoubtedly changed both of our lives.

All of Bill's work can be found streaming wherever you find your music - with his tutorials solely on mrbillstunes.com.

His new album, 'Mechanomorphic' is out on April 12th through Monstercat! The first two singles, 'Bones' and 'Rawthentic w/ Infected Mushroom' are out now on all streaming platforms.

SHOW TOPICS
- Bill's Story of Finding Electronic Music
- Cultivating an Ear for EDM
- Differences in Creative Process for Instruments and EDM
- Raves and Substance Use
- How Scenes Dictate What Substances are Used
- Ketamine's Influence on Electronic Music Culture
- What is Ketamine? 
- Bill's Story of Ketamine Addiction
- Touring/ Playing Shows With an Addiction
- Getting Sober
- Touring as a Sober Musician
- Attending Shows Soberly
- How To Show Up for Friends Struggling with Addiction

Death, Dancing, and Cultivating an Attuned Heart with Keely Garfield

How to Support the Show!
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Joining us on the show today is the incredible Keely Garfield. A NYC based choreographer/dancer who doubles as an interfaith end of life Chaplain. Not only that, but she's also an esteemed Buddhist meditation teacher, yoga instructor, Urban Integrative Zen Therapist, and reiki master. Regardless of what she's engaged in, Keely seems to be consistent in her desire to be of service to those around her. In this conversation we explore the intersection of her life as a dancer and her work as an end of life chaplain - how do these worlds inform each other and can we all learn something from her exploration of these practices?

keelygarfield.nyc

SHOW TOPICS
- Why is a Service Mindset Important?
- Honoring Our Stories While Holding Them Loosely
- Why Focus On The Dark?
- Cultivating an Engaged Compassion
- Navigating the Universal Human Suffering that Groans
- End of Life Care and it's Influence on Dance
- Qualities of Dance that Inform End of Life Care
- Sensitivity and Skillful Means
- Connecting to a Sense of Ritual
- Being Okay with Not Leaving a Legacy
- Ephemerality of Dance
- Strength of Compassion

Clowns, Identity, and the Ominous Future with Matthew Silver

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Joining us on the show today is performance artist and founder of the Idiot's Hour Comedy Show, Matthew Silver! Well beloved for his eccentric street performances in New York, with viral videos soaring in the millions of views; Matthew offers a unique love centered form of clowning around that has interested and inspired dozens of new performers. In this conversation we explore his life of performance - with it's highs and lows, the troubling state of the world, and the pitfalls of having a strong identity. 

If you want to stay in touch with Matthew, you can find him on all of the social media platforms!

SHOW TOPICS
- Matthew's Draw Towards Performance
- The Role of the Performer
- The Ways Our Brain Blocks Creativity
- Problems of Identity
- Time Being an Illusion
- Navigating Discomfort as a Performer
- Love Is Not Supported by the Government
- The Difficulty of Worthwhile Goals
- The Idiots Hour Comedy Show

Clean Language, Metaphor, and Working Through Trauma with Nick Pole

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Joining us on the show this week is UK based shiatsu practitioner, author, and clean language facilitator, Nick Pole. In this conversation, we explore the practice and theory of 'Clean Language', which is the topic of Nick's book, 'Words That Touch'. Clean Language is a methodology of facilitating mind/body communication to help participants investigate their immediate somatic experience and begin a rich inquiry into their emotions and patterns. 

SHOW TOPICS
- What is Clean Language?
- Losing Touch With Our Immediate Experience
- Mirror/ Heart Dynamic in Therapy
- The Role of Awareness in Unwinding the Mind/Body
- How Does Language Remove Us From Our Perceptions?
- The Essence of Words
- Importance of Silence
- Trauma and Creativity
- What is a Metaphor and How Can We Unpack Them?
- Safety and Coregulation
- Clean Touch

www.nickpole.com

Contemplative Practice, Materialism, and the Buddha Dharma with Andy Karr

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This weeks conversation is with Buddhist scholar, author, and photographer, Andy Karr. As a former student of the legendary meditation master, Chogyam Trungpa; Andy has gone on to share the teachings of the Buddha all across the world. From cofounding the first Shambhala center in Paris to teaching at the Gampo Abbey Monastery College, Andy is most known for his well articulated teachings on Contemplative practice and dharma art. His newest book, 'Into The Mirror' released in the Spring of 2023 and serves as a foundation to the themes covered in this show. 

andykarrauthor.com

SHOW TOPICS
- What is a Contemplative Practice?
- Different Methods of Contemplation
- The Issue with Getting Caught In Concepts
- Spiritual Materialism
- Limitations of Materialism
- What is Samsara?
- The Three Vehicles to Liberation
- The Outer and Inner Journeys
- Different Approaches to Contemplating Emptiness
- Letting Go of Self Cherishing
- Stages of Compassion
- The Paramitas

Narrative Collapse and the Art of Dying Before You Die with Android Jones

This weeks guest is the one and only, Android Jones! One of the world's most prominent psychedelic visionary artists working today. Based out of his hometown in Colorado, Android's work has been featured across the world in a wide array of different mediums. From having an extensive clothing line, to projecting his art onto the Empire State Building, Android has gone on to establish himself as one of the forerunners of technologically infused art. In this conversation, we explore a recent tragedy that Android underwent at the start of 2023 and it's implications on the nature of surrender and groundlessness.

SHOW TOPICS

- Android's Brush with Tragedy in 2023
- How Does a Space Affect our Creative Process?
- How Android Prepares to Create Art
- Dealing with the Groundlessness of the Bardo
- Becoming Vulnerable and Receiving Support
- Receiving Love from Strangers
- Does Fixating on Fear Help Us?
- Navigating Narrative Collapse
- How Do We Help Others Moving through Narrative Collapse?
- Emphasis on Physical Practices for Healing
- Suffering and Grace

LINKS
androidjones.com

Exploring Continuum and the Deep Heart with Susan Harper

Joining us on the show this week is the visionary Susan Harper! Continuum teacher, heart-soul-counselor, creative instigator, and inspired teacher of perceptual and movement inquiry; Susan has an incredibly rich and thorough series of offerings that she's brought to thousands of people across the globe since 1975. In this episode we explore Continuum, a unique movement practice that invites us to connect with our fluid body to connect with our deeper oceanic creativity. From there we survey the anatomy of shame, the reciprocal nature of perception, and the importance of connecting to awe. 

Susan offers online workshops which can be found over at continuummontage.com

Show Topics:
- What is Continuum
- What is the Fluid Body and How Can we Connect to it?
- Developing Continuum
- The Problems With Overidentifying with our Thinking Mind
- The Anatomy of Shame and Embarrassment
- The Role of Sensuousness and Feeling
- Haptic Perception
- How Can We Stay Balanced With the Pain of the World?
- Connecting to Awe
- Trusting the Deep Heart

Rest, Reflection, and the Discovery of the Luminous Self with Tracee Stanley

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This weeks episode is with yoga teacher, author, and founder of Empowered Life Circle, Tracee Stanley. On the cusp of releasing the forthcoming book, 'The Luminous Self: Sacred Yogic Practices and Rituals to Remember Who You Are' she joins the show to discuss internal yoga practice, self-inquiry, and Yoga Nidra.

To stay in touch with Tracee's offerings, head over to traceestanley.com to check her extensive catalog of teachings, courses, podcasts, and online community, Empower Life Circle.

You can order 'The Luminous Self' wherever you purchase your books. If you happen to be seeing this before it's release on October 10th you can head over to Shambhala.com and preorder a copy using the code LUM30 to receive 30% off!

SHOW TOPICS:
- Discovering Who You Really Are
- Distinguishing Between Internal and External Yoga
- Reflection and Contemplation
- Recognizing Extractive Spirituality
- Touching into Pain Without Overwhelm
- Community and Support on the Spiritual Path
- There Are No Safe Spaces, Only Sacred Spaces
- The Role of Discomfort and Fiery Emotions
- Yoga Nidra
- Yoga Nidra and Relationships