Cara Lai is awesome. That’s the first thing to say. She is humble and real and willing to explore a heated topic without having any easy prepared answers. Backtrack! Cara is a dharma teacher, artist, Mom and former therapist. These days she mostly teaches meditation retreats and a fun online drop-in class called “Meditate Your Face Off!” (Jeff: Be still my heart.)Our subject is the shitstorm happening on planet earth – in the Middle East, the Ukraine, the US, and other hot spots – and whether everyone should be speaking out. We recorded the episode back in May 2024; things are no less urgent today, seven months later. People have very strong opinions on these issues, and very strong opinions both about what should be said, and who should be saying it.We talk about things like:* How we can approach polarizing conversations* What role anger and shame play in how we relate to each other* How mindfulness and compassion might move us in a different directionCara’s guided mindfulness practice comes late in the episode, at 34 minutes. It’s a compassionate inquiry into what’s happening for us – in this moment – that we feel we can’t bear. “It’s hard to have a heart,” she says. In learning to stay present with our own experience, we also learn to stay present with others, even those we disagree with. The episode ends with a conversation about belonging, trust, and sharing our unique gifts with the world.Thank you Cara!LINKS* Cara’s website: caralai.org* Cara’s Podcast: adventuresinmeditating.comThe AfterpartyWhere Tasha and Jeff chat about global culture, neurodiversity, and the privilege of living in this time. What new creative responses to the world’s challenges are waiting to emerge? That, friends, is the true promise, which Jeff immediately degrades in the final two minutes, when he curses and asks for money and then gargle-chokes on some grapefruit LaCroix bubbly water. The whole denouement is exceedingly stupid and immature and should have been cut – but! –well, it made Tasha laugh very hard. And that’s what matters.AND NOW: SOME EXCITING NEWS!We’re stoked to announce our first Mind Bod Adventure Squad Retreat. It’s an opportunity to get wild and embodied and very present with us.It’s going down at the Omega Institute, June 8-13, 2025. We love our community and want to practice with you IN PERSON. Come explore!REGISTER HEREK, That’s all for this week. Thanks for tuning in!Love always,🧘🏽‍♀️ Tasha & Jeff 🧘🏼‍♂️ Get full access to The Mind Bod Adventure Pod at www.mindbodpod.com/subscribe

In this episode we welcome Caverly Morgan, former Zen monk and author of The Heart of Who We Are. Caverly is also the founder of Peace in Schools, a teen-centered mindfulness curriculum for teens.We jump right into it with a discussion of how teens very naturally want to challenge many of the culture’s bogus assumptions – in her words, teens “are on fire with wanting to dismantle what’s not real.”We start with a beautiful breath practice that Caverly uses in high school classrooms. “Dental-mental floss”: back and forth through the center, expanding and grounding.From there, we discuss goodies like:* the primacy of subjective experience* letting go of the need to find the “right way”* shifting towards what works for your situation and what helps you suffer less* the role of lineages and teachers* the joys of many practices … and how none of them may even be going anywhere!The Afterparty (Watch at www.mindbodbpod.com)In this week’s party time, we wax excitedly about concerns that are close to our hearts, which is to say WEIRD SPIRITUAL S**T. We discuss whether there is a universal direction in the contemplative path, one true in all cultures (if so, what might that be?). We talk about how different practices are designed to address different problems or needs, and how these change from culture to culture, person to person, and even - within each person - week to week and moment to moment!NB: there’s a lot of thumbs up emojis in this… Tasha’s macbook was going berserk and apparently fervently agreeing with everythign we said 👍🎉 Enjoy!*The Afterparty will move behind the paywall in January! For real this time! Become a paid subscriber to continue being privy to these strange discussions…Let us know in the comments how these practices landed for you!K, That’s all for now. Thanks for tuning in!Love always,🧘🏽‍♀️ Tasha & Jeff 🧘🏼‍♂️ Get full access to The Mind Bod Adventure Pod at www.mindbodpod.com/subscribe

Kevin Schanilec, a seasoned Buddhist practitioner from Seattle, dives into the intricacies of 'The Ten Fetters' that cloud our perception and cause suffering. He sheds light on the 4th and 5th fetters: desire and ill will, revealing how our emotional reactions are often rooted in misconceptions about ourselves. Through guided introspection, Kevin encourages a transformative practice of observing our impulses without immediate reaction. His insights advocate for a profound freedom, allowing us to break free from the emotional rollercoaster and cultivate a more fulfilling existence.

Today we head off the rails and into the spiritual undergrowth, where the wild things are. Our guest is Diana Piruzevska, aka Neon Dreamer – psychic, medium, healer. Yup – all that! Not her choice - at least not at first…Skeptics might scoff at these intuitions, experiences, and capacities, but that doesn’t change the fact that they kept happening to Diana and have always happened to some of her older family members. After years of battling it, she’s come out the other side and embraced her witchy Macedonian heritage. Diana now shares her talents with others via her radio show and her professional healing practice.For her guided meditation, Diana takes us through a grounding and opening breath practice that she uses with clients before a session. Then, to demo what her psychic process is like, she does a reading for Tasha, sharing out loud what she’s noticing about Tasha’s neat and orderly brain.Diana talks about what it feels like to lock into a client, to get an embodied feeling for their experience. Sometimes it’s very visual, other times more kinaesthetic – she unpacks the whole creative thing for us, leading to a lively discussion on doing magic on creepy dudes, trauma and disembodiment, and how others can navigate the stormy waters between mental illness and spiritual insight.Enjoy!LINKS:* neondreamer.com* IG: @neonandroid* Substack: Neon Dreamer* Spiritual Emergence NetworkThe AfterpartyIn this here Après le Part-AY, your hosts discuss why women and people of colour have higher incidences of empathy and intuition, how hyper-masculinity shuts the whole thing down, and then … a bunch about neurodiversity, since that’s their thing right now.Let us know in the comments how your witchy psychic vibes are doing these days!K, That’s all for now. Thanks for tuning in & see you again in 2 weeks (we’re still doing biweekly episodes until life slows down a bit!)Love always,🧘🏽‍♀️ Tasha & Jeff 🧘🏼‍♂️ Get full access to The Mind Bod Adventure Pod at www.mindbodpod.com/subscribe

Welcome Tim Hwang, an occupational therapist in New York City's public school system. Tim’s specialty is teaching mindfulness to young people with “disabilities classifications” - Autism, ADHD, and so on. Some of these teens are into the practice, some are bored by it, and some are highly resistant to it. And that’s what we get into!Tim, Tasha, and Jeff all have experience teaching meditation to young people, so there’s much insight-sharing and general tomfoolery. Unsurprisingly, Tasha and Jeff revert to their rebellious teen selves when Tim starts guiding them in his GROW practice - an acronym that means Ground, Relax, Open, Warm (the heart).Good times! This episode is for anyone interested in supporting young people - whether you’re an educator, a parent, or a teen yourself.We get into:* emotional regulation* customizing meditation for neurodiversity & ADHD* how to use “five-finger breathing” to calm down* the role of community,* and how teens can find their own unique pathways to practice.Tim - thank you, friend! And to all teens: feel free to ignore everything we say and do it your own way 😅 One-finger breathing!Then join us for The Afterparty video! And let us know in the comments at www.mindbodpod.com how you liked the GROW practice!K, That’s all for now! Thanks for tuning in & see you next week.Love always,🧘🏽‍♀️ Tasha & Jeff 🧘🏼‍♂️ Get full access to The Mind Bod Adventure Pod at www.mindbodpod.com/subscribe

In this enlightening discussion, Steven Martyn, founder of The Sacred Gardener School, shares insights from his transformative journey living in nature. He redefines meditation as a hunt for inner truth, revealing how agricultural practices can be sacred acts. Steven guides listeners through exercises reconnecting them with their inner child and ancestral wisdom. He also dives into the essence of leadership rooted in community and the healing power of the natural world. This conversation invites a deeper bond with nature, sparking potential life-changing realizations.

Welcome Eileen Laird, author of Healing Mindset. This episode, we target autoimmune disease and the role that the mind-body connection can play in reducing pain, increasing resilience, and living a more vital life.There are over a hundred different autoimmune conditions — from rheumatoid arthritis to lupus to Grave’s disease to multiple sclerosis and more — one in ten people have an autoimmune condition worldwide. Stress makes the condition worse… fortunately, this also works in the other direction! In moments of overwhelm, we can learn to send an anti-inflammatory cascade back through the nervous system.And that’s what we practice today! Eileen guides us in a soothing meditation of self-compassion, both working with pain and befriending the body.In our discussion afterwards we explore:* how to work with pain and find safe places in the body* the relationship between sensitivity and autoimmune conditions* how to notice early warning signals* how Eileen supports herself via daily routines* and much more…Take the practice for a spin and tell us in the comments how it went!Eileen, thank you for writing your book and for supporting so many people through your incredible podcast.LINKS:* Healing Mindset Book* The Phoenix Helix Podcast Get full access to The Mind Bod Adventure Pod at www.mindbodpod.com/subscribe

Toby Sola, founder of the Brightmind Meditation app, engages in a fascinating discussion on the creativity of meditation. They explore playful 'mini-meditation snacks' that fit seamlessly into daily life. Topics include the right amount of meditation for stress relief and personal transformation, and navigating cringe moments in our social lives. The conversation dives into the importance of trust and embracing imperfections in relationships, and how mindfulness practices can resemble a multi-course meal, offering rich and varied experiences.

Kaira Jewel Lingo, an author and community nurturer, discusses her transformative journey from communal living with Thich Nhat Hanh to exploring racial identity in spiritual practice. She beautifully integrates mindfulness and meditation, guiding listeners to connect with their skin's stories and their ancestry. The conversation emphasizes the collective healing needed in communities affected by racism and how essential it is to foster genuine relationships. Kaira’s insights inspire hope as we navigate the complexities of identity and seek supportive spaces in a fragmented world.

Welcome, Frank Yang – we love you! Frank is an “Infinite Brah” – a true bodybuilder of consciousness who shares his “journey, insights and practices for accessing the highest states of consciousness, awakening and beyond” to quote his fresh and wildly kinetic YouTube channel.So, there’s lots of talk about the experience (and health benefits!) of non-duality and awakening, whether it shows up in different ways for people in different cultures, the value and traps of using a map to find your way, the primordial mistake of separation (what Tasha’s teacher Lama Lena calls “the original oops”), and other excellent topics for consciousness nerds.Then, 30 minutes in, he takes us to Frank Yang Land — a WONDERFUL and very impactful guided practice that merges mindful noting with surrendering to effortlessness. We hit the sweet spot between doing and non-doing.Then, join us at www.mindbodpod.com for The Afterparty, where we discuss what percentage of our suffering has actually been reduced through practice. Is it 99%, like Frank says for himself, or some other number? How does this change with external intensities (like having kids)? Would the Buddha have gotten his ass kicked if he had to raise two kids in our 21st-century urban insanity? Probably!Let us know your thoughts in the comments!That’s all for now! Thanks for tuning in & see you next week.Love always,🧘🏽‍♀️ Tasha & Jeff 🧘🏼‍♂️ Get full access to The Mind Bod Adventure Pod at www.mindbodpod.com/subscribe