New Dimensions

This conversation encompasses a wide range of what it means to be human and life’s universal questions from very different perspectives. Valente responds to Trappist monk Brother Quenon’s question, “Does this bring you closer to God?” by saying “I think that's the question we have to ask ourselves all the time in our work. Is this bringing me closer to the Divine Presence? Judith Valente is a former staff writer for the Washington Post and the Wall Street Journal and is a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize in journalism. Valente contributes to the US Catholic magazine and National Catholic Reporter. Besides her life as a journalist, she’s a poet, retreat leader, TV & Radio Producer, and Benedictine lay Associate. Judith Valente and Brother Paul Quenon, OCSO are co-authors of : How to Be: A Monk and a Journalist Reflect on Living & Dying, Purpose & Prayer, Forgiveness & Friendship (Hampton Roads 2021) Interview Date: 4/8/2022   Tags: Judith Valente, Paul Quenon, Thomas Merton, Haiku, Rule of St. Benedict, deep listening, meditation, discontent, surrender, prayer, friendship, Saint Aelred of Rievaulx, Poetry, Letter Writing, Spirituality, Meditation

Tygielski describes a movement that offers direct aid, connecting those who need help with those who want to be of help. Even when problems seem too big to solve, she says, “We start to pare down and look at things on a smaller level (such as within our own families or our children’s schools). Once we start there, it’s surprising how far reaching those effects are.” Shelly Tygielski is founder of the Pandemic of Love movement and is a self-care activist, community organizer, and mindfulness teacher. She is the author of Sit Down to Rise Up: How Radical Self-Care Can Change the World (New World Library 2021)Interview Date: 4/18/2022   Tags: Shelly Tygielski, Pandemic of Love, nonprofit disrupter, Covid Pandemic, Self Care, Self-Care, intention, baby steps, Canal Point Elementary School in Pahokee, Florida, Music teacher Mr. Goindoo, Pyoitr Kropotkin, Peter Kropotkin, Darwin, survival of the fittest, cooperation, collaboration, David Loye, Dan Siegel, Mwe Up Community, Personal Transformation, Community, Social Change

Justine Willis Toms shares principles that lead to a more useful and fulfilling life. She asks the question: is worry fruitful and will it lead me to an effective outcome? She also encourages us to create circles of friends who support us in our fullness. She shares the lessons of the caterpillar and the butterfly. Since 1973, Justine Willis Toms has been exploring personal, social and spiritual transformation through her work as an electronic journalist, editor and writer. She is co-founder, executive director and host of New Dimensions Radio. She is a founding convener of The Millionth Circle Initiative and has been actively involved in circle work since 1980. She serves on the board of World Prayers as well as Women’s Perspective. In June 2004, she was one of 30 people in the world invited to participate in The Synthesis Dialogues with his holiness the Dalai Lama. She was inducted into the Broadcasters Hall of Fame in 2011. She is the author of True Work: Doing What You Love and Loving What You Do (with Michael Toms) (Harmony Books 1999) and Small Pleasures: Finding Grace in a Chaotic World (Hampton Roads 2008)Interview Date: 12/16/2015   Tags: Justine Willis Toms, metamorphosis of caterpillar, hope, optimism, Tom Greenaway, imaginal cells, joy, 4 keys for thriving in chaotic times, curiosity, millionth circle, circle principles, worry, be open to outcome, hold the future loosely, Dalai Lama, gratitude, Personal Transformation, Philosophy, Spirituality, Media

Whether you believe intuition is our soul speaking to us, or that it’s coming to us from a greater field of universal wisdom and knowledge, intuition has been proven to assist us in the betterment of our lives and of the human condition. This dialogue explores examples of how intuition and spiritual telepathy can bring us powerful and enlightened insights. Colleen Mauro is the founder and former editor-in-chief of Intuition magazine published from 1988 to 2001. It explored the potential of the mind and the many varied ways of intuitive knowing, and featured research and how-to information on intuition, inspiration, and telepathy for the general reader. Colleen Mauro is the author of Spiritual Telepathy: Ancient Techniques to Access the Wisdom of Your Soul (Theosophical Publishing House 2015)Interview Date: 1/22/2016   Tags: Colleen Mauro, Intuition, Telepathy, gut feeling, ESP, Mind Dynamics, spiritual telepathy, Patanjali, Alice Bailey, Helena Blavatsky, clairvoyance, channeling, mind training, etheric broadband, mindfulness meditation, evolutionary leap, Prodigal son, Christian virtues, Jack Kornfield, creative imagination, soul, heart, Willis Harman, silence, Eileen Caddy, Findhorn Community, Andy Mackie, Meditation, Spirituality, parapsychology/paranormal

For those of us who are committed to a life of awakening and truth, Sluyter gives us deep insight into the writings of such luminaries as Mark Twain, William Blake, Ernest Hemingway, Virginia Woolf, J.D. Salinger and many more. You’ll not be bored in his class as he takes us deep into the spiritual insights hidden in the writings of these revered literary geniuses. Dean Sluyter lived in New Jersey for 33 years where he developed the Literature of Enlightenment Program at the Pingry School and worked with inmates at Northern State Prison and Mountain View Youth Correctional Facility. He now lives in Santa Monica, California and teaches natural methods of meditation and awakening throughout the United States and beyond. He's known for his funny, down-to-earth style and for making life-transforming teachings accessible and easy. He is the author of many books including The Zen Commandments (Tarcher/Putnam 2001), Why the Chicken Crossed the Road and Other Hidden Enlightenment Teachings (Tarcher/Putnam 1998), Cinema Nirvana: Enlightenment Lessons from the Movies (Three Rivers Press 2005), Natural Meditation: A Guide to Effortless Meditative Practice (Tarcher/Penguin 2015) Fear Less: Living Beyond Fear, Anxiety, Anger, and Addiction (TarcherPerigee 2018) and The Dharma Bum's Guide to Western Literature (New World Library 2022)Interview Date: 4/1/2022     Tags: MP3, Dean Sluyter, William Blake, Mark Twain, Huckleberry Finn, Gary Synder, Jack Kerouac, Poetry, Ernest Hemingway, Haiku, Basho, kenshō, Big Two-Hearted River, PTSD, Farewell to Arms, To the Lighthouse, Anattā, non-self, Dr. Suess, Cat in the Hat, Caravaggio's Calling of St. Matthew, J.D. Salinger, Holden Caulfield, Seymour Glass, Glass Family stories, Gautama Buddha, Meditation, Education, Writing, Art & Creativity, Buddhism

Here we explore afterlife investigations such as near death experiences, after death communication, reincarnation, instrumental transcommunication, mediumship, and much more. Mishlove explores survival after death and whether or not consciousness is separate from the brain. Jeffrey Mishlove, Ph.D. is the only person who has been awarded a doctoral diploma in Parapsychology by an accredited American University - the University of California at Berkeley. For the past 50 years he's been a pioneer in the research of parapsychology. He is the founder and host of the radio and TV program series Thinking Allowed, and most recently, New Thinking Allowed. Both are available on YouTube. Dr. Mishlove is the recipient of the prestigious Bigelow Institute Award of $500,000 for his essay on parapsychology entitled Beyond the Brain: The Survival of Human Consciousness After Permanent Bodily Death. His books include Roots Of Consciousness: The Classic Encyclopedia of Consciousness Studies Revised and Expanded (Da Capo Press; Revised 1997) and PK Man: A True Story of Mind Over Matter ( Hampton Roads 2000)Interview Date: 2/25/2022   Tags: Jeffrey Mishlove, Eben Alexander, M.D., Darien Experiences, Peak in Darien, Elizabeth Targ, Russell Targ, Willis Harman, instrumental transcommunication, Dan Drasin, Emmy Vadnais, reincarnation, Ian Stevenson, Carl Sagan, Max Planck, hyperspace, Jane Roberts, Seth Speaks, Geraldine Cummins, channeling, channelers, Shiva Tripathi, mediums, séances, William James, Parapsychology/Paranormal, Life After Death

Loch Kelly describes open-hearted awareness as a direct experience of our interconnectedness and the feeling of being held by the same essence that holds all life. It is a dynamic place that sparkles with life. Some describe it as “a child on the first day of summer vacation.” It is beyond head-knowing. It taps into a deeper source of intelligence and wisdom. Loch Kelly, M.Div, LCSW is founder of the nonprofit Open-Heart Awareness Institute. He is an educator, licensed psychotherapist, and recognized leader in the field of meditation, who was asked to teach Sutra Mahamudra by Mingyur Rinpoche and to teach nondual realization by Adyashanti. He collaborates with neuroscientists in the study of meditation to discover ways to improve compassion and well-being. He’s an emerging voice in modernizing meditation and social engagement. He is the author of Shift Into Freedom: The Science and Practices of Open-Hearted Awareness (Sounds True 2015) and a CD set of Meditations: Shift Into Freedom: A Training in the Science and Practice of Open-Hearted Awareness (Sounds True 2015)Interview Date: 1/13/2016     Tags:Loch Kelly, nondualism, consciousness, problem solver consciousness, thought based operating system, awareness based knowing, ground of being, mindfulness meditation, waking-up waking-in waking-out, embodied meditation, heart-mind, open-hearted awareness, memory door meditation, shame, well-being, spacious awareness, pure awareness, curiosity, intelligence, wisdom, creativity, Meditation, Philosophy, Personal Transformation, Spirituality

With extended longevity comes a chance to become a true wisdom elder. To leap from adulthood to elderhood we're challenged to uncover our unconscious denials and resistances around repairing the past and reclaiming our creativity thus revealing ways to discover and share our talents and wisdom to become a force for change in ourselves and in the lives of others. Connie Zweig is a psychotherapist and has been initiated into Elderhood as a certified Sage-ing leader. She is known as an expert in Shadow Work and uncovering our inner shadow. Although she is retired from clinical practice, she leads online workshops listed on her website which is also populated with many activities, blogs, videos, and audio references. She is the author of several books including Meeting the Shadow: The Hidden Power of the Dark Side of Human Nature (Tarcher/Perigee 1991 reprint iUniverse 2017), with (Steve Wolf, PhD.) Romancing the Shadow: A Guide to Soul Work for a Vital Authentic Life (Wellspring/Ballantine; Reprint edition 1999), A Moth to the Flame: The Life of the Sufi Poet Rumi (a novel) (Rowman & Littlefield Publishers 2006), The Inner Work of Age: Shifting from Role to Soul. (Park Street Press 2021)Interview Date: 2/14/2022   Tags: Connie Zweig, aging, senior, elder, longevity, ageism, unconscious, shadow work, inner ageist, regret, inner life review, outer life review, self-hate, productivity, depression, Ari Goldfield, wisdom, Anna Douglas, mindfulness, not good enough, inner sight, Bill McKibbon, Third Act, Citizens Climate Lobby, Elders Action Network, Encore.org, Sage-ing International, Sage-ing.org, Moses, Wisdom Circles, Aging, Personal Transformation, Spirituality

This deep dialogue uncovers many spiritual laws in everyday life. Millman gives us a taste of the four mentors who guided him on his spiritual quest. He calls these teachers The Professor, The Guru, The Warrior-Priest, and The Sage. They transmitted practical wisdom and spiritual laws for living wisely and well. These laws are immutable as gravity. Dan Millman is a lifelong student and longtime teacher of practical wisdom devoting his life to mastery, first in sports and then in everyday life. He is a former World trampoline champion, Stanford gymnastics coach, and Oberlin College professor. He teaches The Peaceful Warrior’s Way and is the author of 18 books published in 29 languages including Way Of the Peaceful Warrior (adapted to a 2006 feature film.) (HJ Kramer Revised Edition 2006), The Laws of Spirit: A Tale of Transformation (HJ Kramer book, published jointly, New World Library 1995), The Life You Were Born to Live: A Guide to Finding Your Purpose (HJ Kramer, Anniversary Edition 2018) and Peaceful Heart, Warrior Spirit: The True Story of My Spiritual Quest. (New World Library 2022)Interview Date: 2/4/2022    Tags: Dan Millman, martial arts, gymnastics, bullying, Judo, Karate, humility, Oscar Ichazo, Franklin Jones, Bubba Free John, Da Free John, Adi Da, Gurdjieff, Enneagram, Arica, guru, cult, Michael Bookbinder, David K. Reynolds, Constructive Living, positive thinking, Philosophy, Personal Transformation, Spirituality

Committed advocate of the preservation of wilderness and an explorer of both the outer and inner wilderness, Brooke Williams is constantly looking to understand and experience the value of wild places and what that means for modern humans. Here we explore wildness for ideas, possibilities, and inspiration across the great divide in which we find ourselves as Americans. Brooke Williams is an advocate for the preservation of wilderness. He writes about evolution, consciousness, and his own adventures exploring both the inner and outer wilderness. He lives in Utah with his wife and partner, the writer and former New Dimensions guest, Terry Tempest Williams. He is the author of several books including Half-Lives: Reconciling Work and Wildness (Johnson Books 1999), Escalante: The Best Kind of Nothing (photos by Chris Noble) (University of Arizona Press 2006), Open Midnight: Where Ancestors and Wilderness Meet (Trinity University Press 2017 and Mary Jane Wild: Two Walks & A Rant (Homebound Publications 2021)Interview Date: 1/14/2022.    Tags: Brooke Williams, Hilary Clinton, Donald Trump, Joe Biden, Mary Jane Wilderness, toxic masculinity, white male power, democracy, Coleman Barks, Rumi, field I’ll meet you, awe, Carl Jung, dreams, biological evolution, climate change, climate collapse, extreme sports, wander, wandering, walking, Rebecca Solnit, Charles Darwin, Thoreau, sacred feminine, Terry Tempest Williams, David Hinton, indigenous art, Bill Porter, Red Pine, rock art, desert, wandering, walking, Milky Way, dark sky towns, Ecology/Nature/Environment, Social Change/Politics