New Dimensions

All complex systems share limited randomness, whether it’s human society, ants in an ant colony, cells in a body, there's got to be a limited range of randomness. This randomness in biological life makes us different from machines. Also included is a discussion about how the brain does not create consciousness and consciousness is fundamental in the universe. Neil Theise, M.D. is a practicing pathologist and leading stem-cell researcher as well as an explorer in the nature of consciousness and its relationship to us and the cosmos as revealed in Complexity Theory. Theise is also a senior student of Zen Buddhism at the Village Zendo, in New York City, under the guidance of Roshi Enkyo O’Hara. He is the author of Notes on Complexity: A Scientific Theory of Connection, Consciousness, and Being. (Spiegel & Grau 2023) Interview Date: 2/25/2023   Tags: Neil Theise, ant colony, ant colonies, errant ant, quenched disorder, technosphere, liver cells, stem cells, hard problem in science, complexity theory, consciousness, Max Planck, spacetime energy field, quantum physics, particles, photons, waves, complementarity, nonlocality, mass extinction, Covid, AIDS, holocaust, Buddhist relative and absolute. Science, Buddhism, Personal Transformation

Thomas Merton was an American Catholic writer, mystic, and Trappist monk who died mysteriously in Bangkok, Thailand when he was 53 years old. The gifts he left behind from his short life were immense. He combined deep contemplation with social action. Here Fr. Matthew Fox shares his profound intersection with Merton via Creation Spirituality. Tags: Matthew Fox, Thomas Merton, Michael Toms, activism, Dan Berrigan, Philip Berrigan, Martin Luther King, Jr., Karl Marx, Pere Chenu, Saint Augustine, Second Vatican Council, original sin, D.T. Suzuki, Meister Eckhart, Thomas Aquinas, prophetic Christian, Augustinian Christian, Dalai Lama, mysticism, Thomas Berry, hermitage, New Grange, spiral, Hildegard of Bingen, Hagia Sophia, Feminine side of god, Doctor of Spirituality DSP, Cosmic Mass, African mass, Spirituality, Religion, Social Change, Politics, History, Ecology, Nature, Environment

Humanity is poised on a threshold that could be described as a global dark night of the soul. This global crisis is not asking us to simply “make things better” or invent new ways of living. It’s demanding that we surrender to a transformation so radical that we become a new variety of the human species. Our assignment is to become sacred activists. Carolyn Baker, Ph.D. was a psychotherapist in private practice and a college professor of psychology and history. Now through her webinars, podcasts, live workshops, books, and articles, as well as one-on-one life coaching, Carolyn is touching the lives of thousands to assist them in deeply adapting and becoming resilient in the face of the unprecedented changes confronting humanity. She works closely with Andrew Harvey for the Institute for Sacred Activism. She is the author of Undaunted: Living Fiercely into Climate Meltdown in an Authoritarian World (Apocryphile Press 2022) and Radical Regeneration: Sacred Activism and the Renewal of the World (co-author Andrew Harvey) (Inner Traditions 2022).Interview Date: 2/17/2023    Tags: MP3, Carolyn Baker, Stephen Jenkinson, H.H. the Dalai Lama, sacred activism, sacred activists, Margaret Wheatley, caterpillar liquefying, rite-of-passage, shelter in place, pandemic, Willis Harman, pessimism, optimism, Paul Levy, infinite possibilities, AI, Artificial intelligence, Shoshana Zuboff, Jonathan Harari, fascism, democracy, sacredness, reverence, joy, isolation, eldership, Social Change/Politics, Personal Transformation, Spirituality

Horses are valuable teachers and healers. They show us powerful lessons in how to be effective leaders. You'll be surprised by what Resnick reveals about the secrets of how a horse becomes and maintains its leadership of a herd of wild horses. Horses’ extensive language and communication skills are a matter of survival and they do it without words. Carolyn Resnick is the founder of The Resnick Method of Horsemanship and offers many online courses, clinics, retreats, and certification opportunities that create a magical connection with horses using rituals that are innate to the horse. She is a master horse communicator who grew up with horses and spent three summers of her childhood gradually becoming accepted into a community of wild horses, culminating in her ability to ride a lead mare bareback and without a bridle. She is the author of Naked Liberty: Memoirs of My Childhood, Guided by Passion, Educated by Wild Horses (Amigo Publications, Inc. 2005).Interview Date: 10/18/2022   Tags: Carolyn Resnick, Ray Hackworth, lead mare, dominant horse, leader horse, Thomas Banyacya, Joe Brown, Lame Deer, Personal Transformation, Animals, Indigenous Wisdom

In this deep dialogue we discuss how the brain selectively filters our perception of reality through our personal histories, our beliefs, habits of mind, and our prejudices. It highlights the evidence that we are living in a “consensual realty” and our senses are reporting back to us only a very small portion of the greater reality. Howard Eisenberg, M.D. is a medical doctor with additional postgraduate training in both psychology and psychiatry. He’s also been awarded a postgraduate degree for his parapsychological research on telepathy. He is the author of Inner Spaces: Parapsychological Exploration of the Mind (Musson Book Co. 1977) and Dream It to Do It: The Science and the Magic—Decoding Reality 2.0 (Syntrek® Inc. 2021).Interview Date: 1/20/2023   Tags: Howard Eisenberg, collective illusion, love, meditation, universal mind, consciousness, Jesus, intention, imagination, the placebo effect, silo thinking, empathy, soul gazing, Philosophy, Meditation, Personal Transformation, Science

Williams tells the story of her initiation by the living land when she was 7 years old. While taking a school trip she ended up alone, in the dark, in Mount Timpanogos Cave. For a brief but powerful moment she felt the beating heart of the mountain. She says, “For the rest of my life I’ve been trying to retrieve that sacred space I felt inside that mountain alone. I have been searching for that moment when you’re part of something so old, so deep, so true.” Take a tour with Williams and find the relevance of our national parks in the 21st century and how these public commons might bring us back home to a united state of humility. It’s Terry Tempest Williams’ hope that we learn what it is to offer our reverence and respect to the closest thing we have to sacred lands.

Most of us are trapped in the stories we tell ourselves. Archetypes, such as are found in the Greek myths, can trigger a story in our brain that helps us notice opportunities, props, and characters that may have been invisible to us. They change what we are noticing and can enhance our narrative intelligence and encourage us to tap into our potential. Carol Pearson, Ph.D. is an expert in depth psychology and transformational leadership as well as archetypal narrative intelligence. She has served as professor at several universities and colleges and also served as president of Pacifica Graduate Institute in Santa Barbara. She was the senior editor of The Inner Edge: A Resource for Enlightened Business Practice. She is the author of such classic works as: The Hero Within (republished, Harper Elixir 2015), Awakening the Heroes Within (Harper Elixir 2015),The Hero and the Outlaw (coauthor Margaret Mark) (McGraw Hill Education 2001), Persephone Rising: Awakening the Heroine Within (Harper Elixir 2016)Interview Date: 8/3/2016     Tags: Carol Pearson, archetypes, Zeus, Demeter, Persephone, Dionysus, Eleusinian Mysteries, somebodies and nobodies, interdependent, sit-in strike, sharing power, Greek myths, eros, allurement, Stephen Denning, narrative intelligence, archetypal download, Mythology, Personal Transformation, Social Change

Here we look at the life adventures of a father, husband, writer, corporate marketer, world traveler, and meditation and yoga teacher. We explore the question of whether our search for spiritual fulfillment and creativity has to take a back seat to our livelihood. Bajaj takes a year sabbatical from corporate work every four years and suggests how we can too. Karan Bajaj was born and raised in India, and trained as a Hatha Yoga teacher in the Sivananda ashram in South India. He learned meditation in the Himalayas. He’s been named one of India Today’s Top 35 Under 35. He lives in New York City but soon will be returning to India with his wife and young daughter. He is the author of several novels, including Johnny Gone Down (Harper Collins 2010), Keep off the Grass (Harper Collins, India 2008) and The Yoga of Max’s Discontent (known in India as The Seeker) (Riverhead 2016).Interview Date: 6/23/2016     Tags: Karan Bajaj, habits, routines, yoga, bodhisattva, belief, Buddha, enlightenment, venture capitalist monk, flow, sabbaticals, Spirituality, Meditation, Travel, Personal Transformation, writing, work/livelihood, parenting

The heart releases its own logic, going beyond our everyday attempts to meet goals and solve problems. Mark Nepo helps us re-kindle the fire of our aliveness, and reminds us that kindness allows us to experience our connection with all things. Prepare to be deepened by his ability to be authentic as he illuminates the wisdom that is available in our own hearts. Mark Nepo is a poet and philosopher who, for over three decades, has been teaching in the fields of poetry and spirituality. As a cancer survivor, Mark remains committed to the usefulness of daily inner life. He devotes his writing and teaching to the journey of inner transformation and the life of relationship. He is the author of 18 books including Seven Thousand Ways To Listen: Staying Close To What Is Sacred (Atria 2012), Reduced To Joy (Cleis Press 2013), Inside the Miracle: Enduring Suffering, Approaching Wholeness (Sounds True 2015), The One Life We’re Given: Finding the Wisdom That Waits in Your Heart (Atria Books 2016) and The Way Under the Way: The Place of True Meeting (Sounds True 2016). His many audio learning courses include Staying Awake (Sounds True 2012) and Holding Nothing Back (Sounds True 2012)Interview Date: 7/18/2016   Tags: Mark Nepo, surrender, listening, courage, trust, choices, upaguru, e dai, kindness, kinship, regret, grace, fear of past, fear of present, fear of future, wonder, resilience, Spirituality, Personal Transformation

Executives can spend hours in daily meetings to ensure the success of a company. What if that commitment can be applied to your own personal life? May McCarthy says we should consider working with a “Chief Spiritual Officer (CSO)” whose job it is to make our goals a reality. Our part is be clear, be disciplined, pay attention, and act. She has co-founded and grown six successful companies over her thirty-year career, with the largest growing to over $100 million in annual revenues. She is a successful entrepreneur, CEO, angel investor, and philanthropist, and is the author of The Path to Wealth: Seven Spiritual Steps for Financial Abundance (Hierophant Publishing 2015) Interview Date: 7/3/2016 Tags: May McCarthy, Barbara Frederickson, CSO, Chief Spiritual Officer, C-Suite, CFO, CEO, intuition, guidance, prosperity, giving, receiving, daily meeting, opening, meditation, expression, goals, gratitude, law of attraction, doubts, denial statements, gratitude statements, fraud factor, seven steps, mantra, ritual, leads, Spirituality, Personal Transformation, Spirit Guides/Angels/Spirit, Self Help