As I age, observe great thinkers and philosophers, and continually seek wisdom, I've become increasingly convinced that caring for one's spirit is as important - no - more important than caring for one's body and brain. After all, long after our muscles have atrophied and skin has sagged, long after our brains have degraded and accumulated with plaque, long after our blood vessels and nerves have become clogged and weak and long after our relentless pursuit of fitness and longevity has become a vain effort, our spirits can be just as strong and bright as ever. Yet, sadly - especially among those immersed in physical culture, fitness and biohacking, it seems that the spirit is the most oft-ignored component of our human vessels, quite frequently shrunken and shriveled from a near complete neglect of the spiritual disciplines...

...disciplines such as meditation, gratitude, prayer, fasting, study, fellowship, celebration, charity and all those elements that most of us know are important but somehow shove to the side because, let's face it, life gets busy and it just seems far more practical and immediately useful to go hit the gym rather than sit cross-legged on the floor meditating breathing, spending an extra ten minutes in bed journaling, or prioritizing a family dinner. 

As I mention with increasing frequency the importance of the spiritual disciplines, I'm often ask how I personally incorporate these practices in my own life.

So, similar to how last week I shared with you the nitty-gritty details of my own nutrition supplementation program, in this podcast I'm going to delve into how I weave everything from yoga to breathwork to plant medicine into my own life. I in no way profess to be an expert in these matters, and although it is my goal over the next ten years to become as spiritually fit as I am physically fit, and to focus perhaps even more on the spiritual disciplines than I currently do on the physical disciplines, I hope that a few of the insights I've incorporated into my own life these past several years may serve you well in your own pursuit of spiritual greatness.

During this podcast, you'll discover: -Why value spiritual disciplines in the first place?...6:40

• Focusing only on physical health and wellness can be quite shallow
• Spiritual exercise/discipline is just as real and vital as physical
• Caring for our spirit is just as important, if not more so, than our body and brain
• Attachment exercise from Awareness by Anthony Di Mello
  • Think of something or someone to which you're attached
  • Say, "I really do not need you to be happy; I can be happy without you"
• Happiness is a state of non-illusion -- the absence of an illusion

-How Ben has educated himself on spiritual disciplines...13:00

• Celebration of Discipline: The Path to Spiritual Growth by Richard Foster
• Spiritual Disciplines for the Christian Life by Donald S. Whitney
• Spiritual Disciplines Handbook by Adele A. Calhoun
• The Jesuits Guide to (Almost) Everything: A Spirituality for Real Life by James Martin, SJ
• Solitude: A Philosophical Encounter by Philip Koch
• Once a year practice of stoicism
  • 2-5 days of silence and solitude
  • No family, completely alone
  • Reading, journaling, fasting
  • Kion Fasting book

-Ben's morning spiritual disciplines...19:27

• Before getting out of bed, time w/ family, etc. read in bed (scriptures, aforementioned books) for 5-10 minutes
  • Study
  • Meditation
  • Prayer
• Enhancing meditation tips:
  • Eco Meditation from Mind to Matter by Dawson Church
  • Joe Dispenza's meditations from his book Becoming Supernatural
  • Dab a bit of Third Eye essential oil by Essential Oil Wizardry between the eyes
  • VieLight Gamma
  • Psilocybin micro dose
  • Stealing Fire by Steven Kotler (book)
• Spiritual disciplines can be "hacked" just like physical disciplines
• MiCacao tea w/ Kion Coffee
• Spend 10-15 minutes doing stretching and deep tissue work
  • The 5 Forgotten Tibetan Longevity exercises
  • BGF podcast w/ Stephen Cabral (and Cabral's show #1378)
  • Our Daily Bread
  • The Solid Joys Daily Devotional
  • Gabriel Fernandes YouTube channel
• Family gratitude practice
  • Christian Gratitude Journal
  • Sing a song together

-Ben's sauna practice...37:45

• Clearlight Sanctuary sauna
• Flow yoga w/ deep breathwork
• Drink a hot beverage beforehand (black pepper tea or coffee or green tea)
• Respire Essential Oil by Essential Oil Wizardry (sprinkled in the sauna before going in)
• Listening to something educational
  • Book: The Science of Enlightenment by Shinzen Young
• Prototype topical oil by ATP Science (enhances your ability to sweat)
• Finish w/ a cold plunge in a Morozko Forge ice bath followed by this prayer:
  • Our Father in heaven, I surrender all to you Turn me into the father and husband you would have for me to be Into a man who will fulfill your great commission And remove from me all judgment of others Grant me your heavenly wisdom Remove from me my worldly temptations Teach me to listen to your still, small voice in the silence And fill me with your peace, your love, and your joy. Amen

-How Ben manages stress during busy and intensive work days...44:45

• Brief pauses throughout the day for breath work
  • Box breathing (4 in, 4 hold, 4 out, 4 hold)
  • Alternate nostril breathing
  • 4-8 breathing (4 in, 8 out over and over)
• 21 day Soma breath work course by The Renegade Pharmacist

-End of day spiritual practices...47:28

• Gather for family dinner (big factor for longevity in Blue Zones)
  • Meditation, activation of para-sympathetic nervous system ..."I'm aware of my body I'm smiling at my body I'm aware of my food I'm smiling at my food I'm aware of my company I'm smiling at my company"
  • Centering breaths
• Games for family dinners
  • Table Topics
  • The oatmeal: Unstable Unicorns, Bears vs. Babies, Exploding Kittens
  • Gubs
  • Quiddler
  • Boggle
• Finish up remaining business while family cleans up and gets ready for bed
  • You dwell on and dream about what you've dwelt on during the day
• Family bedtime
  • Sing together
  • App: Ultimate Guitar Tabs
  • Prayer together
  • Eye gazing
• Self-reflection journal (a la Ben Franklin amazon links...)

-Spiritual lovemaking...57:50

• True, tantric, spiritual sex is oft ignored in modern society
• Backjack chairs - chat for 5-15 minutes prior to lovemaking, sleep, etc.
• Couple's plant medicine therapy
• Holotropic breath work (Renegade Pharmacist offers this)
• Ben's massage setup
  • Blast body w/ Whole Tones by Michael Tyrrell
  • Ketamine and oxytocin intranasally, occasionally w/ THC
  • PEMF table by Pulse Centers

-Areas for improvement...1:09:00

• Participating in local charitable causes
• Share your gifts -- make your service enjoyable
• Strengthen connection w/ local church community

-And much more... Resources from this episode:

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