After 20+ years of Buddhist and non-dual practice, in 2003 Tina Rasmussen, Ph.D., undertook a year-long solo retreat during which awakening occurred. She later ordained as a Buddhist nun with a world-renowned meditation master, became the first Western woman to attain that path, and was authorized to teach. Tina has been studied by Yale Neuroscience Lab for research on the effects of meditation on consciousness and the brain. Tina is co-author of Practicing the Jhanas: Traditional Concentration Meditation as Presented by the Venerable Pa Auk Sayadaw, and has been featured on Conscious TV and in Non-duality Magazine. She is also involved in the Diamond Approach to realization. Tina teaches students worldwide how to walk the path of the “urban mystic”—functioning from deep spiritual understanding while living a modern human life. Dr. Rasmussen has also worked in the field of human/organizational development as a consultant/coach for 25+ years, with several published books on humanistic leadership.
Website: luminousmindsangha.com
Discussion of this interview in the BatGap Community Facebook Group.
Summary and transcript of this interview
Interview recorded February 23, 2019.
YouTube Video Chapters:
00:00:00 - Introduction and Previous Interviews Menu
00:06:01 - Exploring Meditation and Inquiry Techniques
00:10:50 - The Brain Changes with Meditation
00:15:41 - Overcoming Hindrances in Meditation
00:20:33 - Understanding Awakening
00:24:17 - Uniqueness and Awakened Beings
00:28:08 - Fine-tuning the Contraption
00:31:56 - Deep Retreat Experience
00:35:55 - Handling Intense Energy during Meditation
00:39:37 - The Awakening Journey
00:43:32 - Working with Awakening in Daily Life
00:47:39 - Different Paths for Different People
00:50:55 - The Hare and the Tortoise
00:54:33 - The Neo-Advaita Shift
00:57:59 - Moving from Distortions to Integration
01:01:55 - Awakening in the World
01:05:28 - A Vision of a More Enlightened World
01:09:30 - The Lack of Understanding and Emphasis on Awakening
01:13:38 - The Importance of Diligence and Discernment
01:17:18 - Exercising Discernment and Ethical Living
01:21:14 - Living in Alignment with Realization
01:24:32 - Manifestation and Meditation across Different Walks of Life
01:28:24 - The Balance of Effort and Letting Go
01:32:47 - The Continuity of Awareness and Identification with Instinctual Drives
01:36:54 - Understanding the Harm and Delusion in Spiritual Practice
01:40:26 - The Challenges After Awakening
01:45:05 - Awakening and Dealing with Personality Material
01:51:11 - Insight and Rigpa: Stages of Liberation
01:59:03 - The Ground of Awakening
02:06:22 - The Full Potentiality of the Human Experience
02:12:23 - End of Presentation