The New Monastics Charis Foundation for New Monasticism & Interspirituality
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- Religion & Spirituality
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We dialogue with some of today's leading spiritual teachers and thinkers on all aspects of the contemplative life, with a special focus on interspirituality and new monasticism. Amid continuing changes to our spiritual and religious landscape, we explore the tenets of living a life dedicated to spiritual development and truth.
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Accessing Our Divine Nature: Exploring Hindu Tantra with Nataraja Kallio
Nataraja Kallio is a scholar-practitioner of Yoga and Hindu tantra. He is the Chair of the B.A. Yoga Studies program at Naropa University in Boulder, Colorado, and the co-designer of Naropa’s M.A. Yoga Studies program.
In this episode, we discuss Kallio’s upbringing in an American Hindu spiritual community, his travels in India and meetings with his guru, the origins of Hindu tantra (utilizing “the fecund material of our existence”), the spectrum of tantric deities, the transformation of intense emotions to crack the shell of identity, the pros and cons of asceticism, desire, the story of Shankaracharya and the exploration of the flesh, the story of Shiva and the forest ascetics, authentic and inauthentic tantra, neo-tantra and the western obsession with sex, cultural appropriation, epicureanism and sacralization, the ‘tantric’ dimension of all religions, and the treasure of spiritual friendship.
Charis Foundation
Golden Turtle Sound
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Tuning the Moment: The Spirituality of Hip-Hop and Performance with Lily Fangz
Lily Fangz is a respected Colorado-based hip-hop artist and freestyle performer, who brings an authentic presence to the stage. Her lyrics are playful, introspective, and often spiritually-oriented. Lily is also a talented visual artist and public speaker with a background in science.
In this episode, we explore the connections between public artistic performance and spiritual teaching, how each may be responsive to the ‘living moment’ and draw on an unseen source. We also discuss art and ritual, tuning oneself or others to the right ‘frequency,’ training and performance, connecting to the body, ‘subversive spirituality,’ self-purifying inspiration, trust and curiosity, true vocation, facing our fears, and becoming comfortable with the unknown and mystery.
Instagram: Lily Fangz
Bandcamp: Lily Fangz
TED Talk by Lily Fangz
Charis Foundation
Golden Turtle Sound
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Dialogue of the Heart: Exploring Hasidism and Interreligious Engagement with Rabbi Or Rose
Rabbi Or N. Rose is a scholar of Hasidism and Neo-Hasidism who is deeply involved in interreligious dialogue. He is the Director of the Miller Center for Interreligious Learning and Leadership at Hebrew College in Newton Centre, Massachusetts, and co-editor of Rabbi Zalman Schachter-Shalomi: Essential Teachings.
In this episode, we explore Rabbi Rose’s interest in interreligious understanding, the distinction between interreligious dialogue and ‘deep ecumenism,’ ideals and reality in dialogue, and the dialogue of the head, heart, and hands. We then turn to the relationships between Rabbi Zalman Schachter-Shalomi and the Reverend Howard Thurman and Father Thomas Merton. We also explore the origins of Hasidism and Neo-Hasidism, what it means to be a Neo-Hasid from a personal perspective, the spiritual practices of Rabbi Zalman Schachter-Shalomi, and the tension between universalism and particularism in Judaism.
Miller Center for Interreligous Learning & Leadership at Hebrew College
With Head and Heart: The Autobiography of Howard Thurman
Charis Foundation
Golden Turtle Sound
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New Monastics Roundtable: Silence, Change, and Work with Deepa Patel
In this episode, we have a roundtable discussion of spiritual issues with our friend, Deepa Patel. In Part I, we explore the question of what it means to take a vow of silence in our world, and talk about the value and meaning of silence. In Part II, we talk about the difficulty of changing ourselves or anyone else when we are not necessarily vulnerable to change. And in Part III, we dig into the problems of living a spiritual life ‘in the world’ amid the concerns of work and paying bills, not to mention the corrupting influences of capitalism.
Charis Foundation
Golden Turtle Sound
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The Interspiritual Mandala: Creating a Personal Path with Edward W. Bastian
Dr. Edward W. Bastian is an American-born filmmaker, scholar of Tibetan Buddhism, member of the Snowmass Conference, founder of the Spiritual Paths Institute, and the author of Interspiritual Meditation and Mandala. In this episode, we discuss how he found his way to Buddhism, the importance of learning-styles in religions, his meeting with Father Thomas Keating and experiences with the Snowmass Conference, the emergence of the interspiritual, the creation of an interspiritual meditation process, the seven steps of Interspiritual Meditation, the structure of tantric practice, interspiritual ‘processes’ versus ‘practices,’ and the mandala as a discernment tool for spiritual seekers.
Links:
Spiritual Paths Institute
Spiritual Paths Book Series:
Interspiritual Meditation, Mandala, & Meditations for InterSpiritual Practice
Charis Foundation
Golden Turtle Sound
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The Architecture of Circles: Exploring the Wild Woman Archetype with Chris Maddox
Chris Maddox is the founder of The Wild Woman Project where she teaches women how to utilize the gifts of the Wild Woman Archetype in their everyday lives & how to lead women’s circles in their local communities. She is the organizer and facilitator of the beloved annual WILD WOMAN FEST, a women’s retreat-festival hybrid which fosters a deep connection to nature, a direct experience of the divine feminine, and profound spiritual sisterhood among the women in attendance.
In this episode, we discuss Chris's personal journey, her discovery of the Wild Woman Archetype, starting the Wild Woman Project, how the Project has unfolded, the 'superpowers' of women, future visions for humanity, Tolkien's idea of art as 'real,' the 'architecture of circle,' and Charis Foundation's interspiritual dialogues.
Links:
The Wild Woman Project
Wild Woman Underground
Wild Woman Project Instagram
Wild Woman Project Facebook
Charis Foundation
Golden Turtle Sound
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Customer Reviews
Wonderfully deep and broadly aware
Love this new podcast! I am a Benedictine Oblate who is deeply committed to my path and Christian practices. I also know my capacity of absolute knowledge is not. As such I appreciate deeply held beliefs and practices of other traditions. It is paradoxical, non-sensible from a kindergarten level of religious understanding. Allowing for the paradox and the deep unknowability of mysticism gets us so much closer to the Truth.