The Aware Show The Aware Show with Lisa Garr

How can you turn a seemingly hopeless situation into a gift? It is possible, according to today’s guest Yuan Miao who shares her story of tragedy to triumph by realizing the profound importance of joy. Yuan Miao is a spiritual teacher, gifted in the art of Mudra and Mantra. As a child, Yuan was thought to be mute, but under the guidance of her grandmother, a Tibetan Spiritual Master, she learned the power of mantric voice. Yuan is joined by her translator, Peter Shiao, and Obadiah Harris, President of the Philosophical Research Society.  
Peter Shiao is the producer of “Phoenix Rising,” a journey into vibration, music, and mantra, in which Yuan shares her magical, healing voice. Peter is a media entrepreneur and film producer. He is currently the founder and CEO of Orb Media Group, which is focused on producing, financing, and marketing films and online games with transformational themes that unite the international and Chinese markets. Peter also chairs the annual US-China Film Summit since 2010. 
Obadiah Harris, an expert in Eastern and Western esoteric cultures and religions, relates the myth of the phoenix rising from the flame and compares it to Yuan’s life after she lost her daughter to leukemia, battled with suicidal thoughts, and rose up to triumphantly share her gifts of sound and mantra with the world. Info: www.NCFinternational.org and www.PRS.org.  

 We’ve all been hearing so much about futuristic technologies, but what will the coming Age of AI mean for us, especially as spiritual beings? If it is a looming crisis, how can we get through the challenges and find deeper perspectives? To address these issues, Lisa continues the conversation today with spiritual teacher and author Derek Rydall. Derek has spent literally hundreds of hours studying AI over the past several years and knows it is accelerating at an unprecedented pace. He talks about the importance of what he calls the “hand-crafted” human and explains the importance of getting back to our roots through community and nature. He believes that simplicity is beautiful and that there are a handful of principles and practices that have been somewhat voluntary up to this point, self-help and spirituality included, but explains they will all become a matter of survival. We need to look within and get back to our roots. 
He talks about how the world is so interconnected. Americans have long taken advantage of development and now other countries are advancing their technology as well. There is the threat of millions upon millions of people losing their jobs because of Artificial Intelligence.  
The solution to this is to consider: What is it about me that’s irreplaceable? We need to ask ourselves that question. Evolution has been asking us to ask ourselves that. What’s truly unique about you? 
In the world of just trying to survive and make ends meet, we’ve not had the opportunity to ask ourselves the deep question – Who am I really? Derek believes we have to “Know Ourselves” as an obligation. It is now a matter of survival. And we must have the courage to be true to that self. There are so many ways we compromise – we don’t want to be judged. We don’t want to be too big. We don’t want to risk scrutiny. We don’t want to fail, etc. but we must have the courage and commitment now to know ourselves and be in integrity with ourselves. What’s been planted in the seeds of our soul? Do we have the right conditions to emerge? 
We don’t want to be apathetic during this time. A maturing is trying to happen. It’s not about making money or having your book hit the best-seller list. We are at a choice point in humanity.  
Derek offers solutions and asks us to aim for a life of integrity. He explains that “Awakening is not guaranteed.” It’s like the charge you feel before a storm. We are in chaos, but we are designed to make greater order out of the chaos. 
Derek himself has experienced tremendous loss and challenge in the last decade. He has come to the understanding that we have to grow our roots deeper to expand higher. It is a message of hope. Immense crisis or transformation asks us to ground our roots deeper. We can all take responsibility for ourselves to be the best version we can become. Something new emerges after the ashes. The important truth to remember is that we are indestructible. To fulfill our potential, we must go through the tuning in process. It is the most hopeful time now, and if humanity can come together, we can solve crises including our climate crisis. We can aim for higher goals. We can evolve into fully conscious beings. Life is meant to have a sense of awe and wonder! This is Part 2 of the interview. For FREE SUPPORT TOOLS and more info, visit: https://derekrydall.com/

  Wisdom is a universal language. Insightful parables are found throughout various cultures in history which offer wisdom about how to live a fuller life, being in harmony with nature, and abiding by universal energies and principles. Gods and Goddesses throughout literature emulate many of these qualities. These stories are based on ancient texts, with an esoteric approach, rather than literal, explains our guest today, Obadiah Harris, Ph.D. (now deceased). Dr. Harris was the President of the Philosophical Research Society, founded by Manly P. Hall, and had combined his skills as a community educator and administrator with the study of the world’s wisdom traditions. He explains how these stories and traditions ask us to see the inner meaning. He explains how esotericism is an attempt to release the individual from a literal hold. Esoteric movements today are moving away from literalism. People are searching for answers and looking for what works. If we look within, we can explore and find our own truth.  
Dr. Harris received his Ph.D. in Education from the University of Michigan as a Stewart Mott Foundation Fellow. His work in community education includes service as Associate Professor and Director of the Center for Community Education at New Mexico State University, and as Associate Professor and Director of the Regional Center for Community Education at Arizona State University. Dr. Harris’s study and practice of the great Eastern and Western traditions has helped shape and direct his life. Info: www.prs.org. 

We’ve all been hearing so much lately about Artificial Intelligence. Some tech experts tout is as revolutionary, while others are deeply concerned about the impact and dangers, especially surrounding the ethics and lack of regulations and laws.  
What will the coming Age of AI mean for us, especially as spiritual beings? If it is a looming crisis, how can we get through the challenges and find deeper perspectives?  
Spiritual teacher and best-selling author Derek Rydall is no stranger to crisis. He has experienced loss at all levels, including the unimaginable loss of a child, his marriage, and his finances and business. Through all of the crises he has endured, he had managed to deeply examine his beliefs as a soul on the planet at this time. He joins us today to share his wisdom and offer possibilities.  
Derek believes that when life squeezes us, it brings out what’s really in us. Do we rise as heroes or heroines? Are we living a life of possibilities? Or are we existing with a sense of loneliness and isolation? He talks about the pandemic, with its multiple levels of loss and challenges, and asks us what did we consciously decide to make of it? We are still experiencing the reverberations as a society.  
We may still be reeling from the pandemic, and now tech experts are warning us about the repercussions of AI. Derek has spent time studying AI for the past several years and knows it is accelerating at an unprecedented pace. 
Derek also talks about a profound message that came to him during a deep meditation when he heard, “Build the Ark, the flood is coming.” He has spent literally hundreds of hours studying about the “flood” of AI that’s approaching. It is not a message of doom; it is a message asking us to prepare. He says we are in an “Oppenheimer Moment.” We have the ability to destroy our world as this may be an existential threat OR it may be a tremendous opportunity to create peace, prosperity, health, and balance on our planet. AI will have a massive effect on music, books, artwork, and creative projects. And there are no laws yet around this. We will be flooded with content, and it will lose all meaning. AI can map all podcasts, all artists, and find out patterns that people respond to and companies will own the content. Derek also talks about Deep Fake videos. At this point, there will not be a way to know the difference. We already have massive amounts of available content and soon we will have ten times more. We will not know if it’s real audio or real video. This will affect our elections and it will become virtually impossible to know what’s real and what’s not. 
How will this affect our relationships and trust? This is no longer Science Fiction. But Derek reminds us that we still have a couple of years. It’s time to prepare now. If you want to build your purpose and your life’s work, the time to grow it is now. The job impact, the economic impact, the mental health impact, and so much more cannot be underestimated. Yet rather than fall from the impact of AI, we can have it be a catalyst for evolution. This is Part 1 of the interview. Info: https://derekrydall.com/

Today’s show originally aired on Sept 11, 2020, the 19th anniversary of one of American’s darkest days. To shed light and understanding about the collective grief and trauma so many faced, we are joined by spiritual teacher and best-selling author Guy Finley. Guy is the Founder of Life of Learning Foundation and the best-selling author of “Letting Go,” “The Secret of Letting Go,” and more than 25 other books. His books have sold millions of copies in multiple languages worldwide. Today he talks about how to look at tragedy and specifically addresses 9/11 and the pain that ensued. He shares how 9/11 changed us and also taught us resilience. He asks us to ask ourselves have we learned the lesson in that pain, both as a nation and as a collection of individuals? And if we have not, then did that event unite us in a new understanding? Or did it divide us further? 
Whether a national tragedy or a personal situation, how can we learn the lesson of pain? When we come upon a tragedy, it may also divide us further. Lisa and Guy talk about Covid, mask-wearing, and how to begin to heal the division among us. 
Guy deeply examines the nature of “Blame” and how it is so difficult for us not to blame. Typically, the first reaction to tragedy is to point the finger. After 9/11, our freedoms were affected literally overnight.  Who is to blame? If tragedy doesn’t change us, it becomes vague. What did this situation reveal to us about ourselves? What freedoms have we taken for granted? Prior to 9/11, security was much different at the airports. 
How can we use these unwanted moments? Do we go into panic? Guy says there is no psychological fear without negative imagination. So commonly, the pain makes us place blame. When we can recognize it, we can realize it serves no purpose to blame. We can liberate ourselves from a mind with a negative imagination. 
We can liberate our minds from the past. We can realize that each moment is new.  There is a way to train ourselves to process the negativity. This is a different level of consciousness. The solution to the suffering is to realize that the pain has no idea what to do. We cannot buy into the negativity and continue to place blame. We must change as individuals before we can see change in our world. 
Guy asks us to consider, “What is your relationship with the Divine?” In the moment when there’s a problem or pain, when we resist it, we are resisting our reaction to it. It seems to threaten us. When we resist, we feel attacked. It’s a misunderstanding of the event. So, how do you illuminate the event to come to a new conclusion?  
Silence can help. If anxiety is guiding you, then fear and negativity are the rulers at that moment. Anger, fear, and worry all lead us toward negativity. What we give our attention to is what we are in relationship with. This guides our experience.  
If we are afraid, there’s something that believes the fear is real. According to Guy, “The fear is real but the ‘Why’ is a ‘Lie.’” Our lower brain creates a response of tension. Guy offers prayers to allow the Divine to let us know the truth. He also teaches free classes online twice a week. Info: GuyFinley.org  and GuyFinley.org/online for free classes.  

 Do you sometimes feel overwhelmed or depressed? Did you know if you feel overwhelmed, you may have an underlying need for clarity? Would you like to be a better communicator and able to express and understand these needs? To further explain the concept of “needs-based” communication, Lisa continues her conversation today with Communications Specialist and Expert Coach Bill Stierle. Bill explains the importance of generating empathy before immediately offering ideas and solutions. 
He also discusses the ideas of trauma, mourning, and celebration. He believes that trauma prevents us from mourning. If we cannot fully mourn, then we also cannot eventually celebrate. He asks us to examine these feelings. Bill is also an expert Parenting Coach and invites us to find out why children may say, “No” as a response to what you are asking. By being empathetic and compassionate first, this will help you determine their missing needs.  
Bill Stierle has been working with individuals, couples, and families for more than 30 years. He has coached thousands of people and has taught numerous workshops locally and nationally on topics that address personal and professional effectiveness, relationships, and parenting. The material Bill presents is designed for people who want to create more ease and effectiveness within their relationships, both at home and work. His latest book is “The Emotional Sobriety Solution: Have More Joy in Your Life in Less Than 30 Days.” This is Part 2 of the interview. Info: BillStierle.com.