Wonderstruck

Through setting out to find meaning in his own life, John Vervaeke, a professor in the psychology department at the University of Toronto—and a YouTube sensation—has developed a fascinating framework and adopted a series of practices through which others can pursue and achieve a deeply meaningful life, too. In sharing his research and findings from the world of 4E cognition and consciousness (embodied, embedded, enacted, and extended), with Wonderstruck’s Elizabeth Rovere, John reveals the significance and logic of embracing faithfulness over certainty, how to do the work of reorienting ideas about reality and rationality, and why connectedness and love can be improved by a practice called circling. “People frequently say things like, ‘I've been hungry for this kind of intimacy, but I didn't know it,’” says John. “They discover it and they're lit up by it.” https://wonderstruck.orghttps://www.instagram.com/wonderstruckpod/https://www.youtube.com/@wonderstruckpodhttps://www.facebook.com/wonderstruckpodhttps://johnvervaeke.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

As a student of Bharatanatyam, a form of sacred Indian classical dance, Daniela Riva connects with the divine using choreography that dates back more than two millennia. In developing her expertise, and her following as a performer, teacher, and author, Daniela tells Wonderstruck's Elizabeth Rovere that it took years of dedication and surrender to understand how to move profound currents of energy throughout her body. During a period of awakening, while stomping her feet in service of her dance training, Daniela recalls feeling a jolt. "My teacher has a beautiful way to describe this," Daniela tells Wonderstruck's Elizabeth Rovere. "She used to tell me, 'Daniela, this is like current. It's like electricity. We need to channel this energy--otherwise, it is just pure energy, and it's everywhere.'" Now, having harnessed this energy, Daniela shares how each of us can activate our own bodies in pursuit of empowerment, happiness, and spiritual growth.  https://wonderstruck.orghttps://www.instagram.com/wonderstruckpod/https://www.youtube.com/@wonderstruckpodhttps://www.facebook.com/wonderstruckpod Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Groundbreaking scientist, psychology professor and best-selling author Dacher Keltner's latest book, AWE: The New Science of Everyday Wonder and How It Can Transform Your Life is an instant classic. Supported by field work, cultural survey, and autobiography, this essential volume explores the many benefits of pursuing, encountering, and embracing awe as an emotion--and as a regularly occurring experience to which we all have access. As Dacher tells Wonderstruck's Elizabeth Rovere, awe is also crucial to the future of social reform, urban planning and education. But, as Dacher explains, his own relationship with awe had been interrupted by grief after the death of his brother. "What went with him?" Dacher asks. "My capacity for awe." In intimate detail, Dacher reveals how he reclaimed it.https://wonderstruck.orghttps://www.instagram.com/wonderstruckpod/https://www.youtube.com/@wonderstruckpodhttps://www.facebook.com/wonderstruckpodhttps://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/622175/awe-by-dacher-keltner/https://ggsc.berkeley.edu Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Russell Brand, comedian, actor, author, seeker, and Stay Free podcast host reveals to Wonderstruck’s Elizabeth Rovere why spiritual pursuits keep him alive, which teachings anchor him, and how he manages his own “beautiful monsters” in the hope of converting anxiety into action and accessing efficacy through chaos. With singular humor, wide-ranging scholarship, and a heart-led connection to the profound, Russell shares how he negotiates the pull of ecstasy against the need for serenity, why he thinks he might miss out on true greatness, and, in tender detail, what’s brought him closest to the divine. “There was nothing between me and God for that little moment,” he says. “It has happened other times. It will happen continually if I forget myself.”https://wonderstruck.orghttps://www.instagram.com/wonderstruckpod/https://www.youtube.com/@wonderstruckpodhttps://www.facebook.com/wonderstruckpod Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Through her private yoga and coaching practices, and in her role teaching Compassion-Based Resilience Training at Nalanda Institute in New York City, Rahshaana Green helps students manage stress and heal reactivity by developing greater clarity, self-knowledge, and grace. But, as Rahshaana tells Wonderstruck’s Elizabeth Rovere, her own path to becoming a practitioner meant overcoming pain and trauma. “When you literally have to have an injury make you stop and pause,” Rahshaana says, “there’s a few things that aren’t working.” Reflecting on her own life— from the complexities of her childhood in Houston’s inner city to embracing her mother as a source of empowerment to the surprising evolution of her career—Rahshaana shares how she ultimately learned the value of vulnerability and stillness, and how she carries forth an intimate, ongoing relationship with wonder that was once beyond her imagination.https://wonderstruck.orghttps://www.instagram.com/wonderstruckpod/https://www.youtube.com/@wonderstruckpodhttps://www.facebook.com/wonderstruckpod Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Growing up in a British working class, non-religious family, TV presenter, best-selling author and Happy Place podcast host, Fearne Cotton, felt the presence of the spiritual world from an early age. "I just looked at the stars and felt completely overwhelmed," she tells Wonderstruck host, Elizabeth Rovere. "It was like, wow, there's something else going on here. It can't just be going to school, coming back, and having my tea." As a girl, Fearne's mother encouraged her daughter's nature as seeker, and her curiosity about seemingly inexplicable, but powerful things, taking her to yoga before yoga became a popular suburban pursuit, and even bringing Fearne to a rebirthing guru after a brush with teenage heartbreak. Now in her 40s, Fearne shares why her work with healers, rituals, and ancient wisdom is more important to her than ever before as she continues her search for self-acceptance, compassion, freedom, and love. For more Wonderstruck content, please check out:https://wonderstruck.orghttps://www.instagram.com/wonderstruckpod/https://www.youtube.com/@wonderstruckpodhttps://www.facebook.com/wonderstruckpod Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Be open to the wonder in your own life! Host Elizabeth Rovere, clinical psychologist, yoga teacher, Harvard Divinity School graduate, and seeker, introduces Wonderstruck, a new podcast about the transformational experiences of awe and wonder. From radical visions to fire-based rituals, from pursuing a rainbow body in Tibet to finding the luminous in your everyday walk, we dive deep into the what, wonder and wow of being with levity and thoughtful curiosity. Starting March 1st, join Elizabeth and guests like Fearne Cotton, Rahshaana Green, Russell Brand, Dacher Keltner, John Vervaeke, Daniela Riva, Father Francis Tiso, Mary Reilly Nichols, Sravana Borkataky-Varma, and Radha Agrawal on the first season of Wonderstruck.For more Wonderstruck content, please check out:https://wonderstruck.orghttps://www.instagram.com/wonderstruckpod/https://www.youtube.com/@wonderstruckpodhttps://www.facebook.com/wonderstruckpod Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.