Messy, Luminous, Being Podcast
Sarah Beth Hunt
How can we incorporate meditation and spiritual wisdom into the messy realities of our lives? How can we think of spiritual practice as something that happens within life, rather than in retreat?
Hi I'm Sarah, and for years I trained in yoga and a form of Tibetan Buddhist meditation, but found it incredibly difficult with two young children to train in traditional ways which required me to step out of my life to sit on my own. What I have discovered over these many years is that many of us need an adapted form of spiritual practice that fits in with our lives. Especially for women whose approach to spiritual practice may be different.
This podcast is a continuing conversation about how spiritual wisdom can illuminate our messy real lives as women. Sometimes you'll get me with some stuff I've been thinking about. Sometimes you'll get me in conversation with another woman about the realities of their spiritual practice — what it's actually like, how it helps the in practical real-life situations and what inspires them most.
We are Messy. We are Luminous. And just Being.
Hi I'm Sarah, and for years I trained in yoga and a form of Tibetan Buddhist meditation, but found it incredibly difficult with two young children to train in traditional ways which required me to step out of my life to sit on my own. What I have discovered over these many years is that many of us need an adapted form of spiritual practice that fits in with our lives. Especially for women whose approach to spiritual practice may be different.
This podcast is a continuing conversation about how spiritual wisdom can illuminate our messy real lives as women. Sometimes you'll get me with some stuff I've been thinking about. Sometimes you'll get me in conversation with another woman about the realities of their spiritual practice — what it's actually like, how it helps the in practical real-life situations and what inspires them most.
We are Messy. We are Luminous. And just Being.
Episodes
Mentioned books
Jun 22, 2020 • 1h 23min
Episode 044 Creating your own Enlightenedhood w/Leena Lemos & Megan Horowitz
Combining spiritual practice with the journey of motherhood, this episode is a conversation with Leena Lemos & Megan Horowitz, the founders of Enlightenedhood. We talk about how Leena and Megan find space for themselves & their favourite practices. We also talk about ways joy can mix with stress & anxiety and how spiritual practices have helped both women navigate the ups and downs of motherhood. This is an beautiful and honest conversation that will inspire you to keep working to create your own unique and messy journey to Enlightenedhood. You can connect with Leena and Megan on Instagram @enlightenedhood or at www.enlightenedhood.com And if you would love some support and inspiration for your own weekly practice, check out the Breathing Space monthly membership here: https://mailchi.mp/sarahbhunt/breathingspace
Jun 15, 2020 • 26min
Episode 043 Making calm & joy intentional habits
It feels easy to think about getting exercise & good nutrition as part of our weekly habits. And we also easily accept that these habits have a wider impact on our physical health, energy levels, mood and mental states. Yet somehow when it comes to our inner experience and our minds, it feels different. We don't tend to think about feeling calm or a sense of balance or joy being something we can actively cultivate. Somehow we have been told that happiness, peace of mind, & calm that comes from outside us...from holidays, retreats, evenings out...is legitimate. But if these feelings were practiced, if we treated them as a habit like exercise or nutrition, they would be false feelings, inauthentic. It's time to change that mindset. In this episode I talk about why we should be intentional about making calm, joy, balance and all those lovely good things a habitual practice that we do daily.
Jun 8, 2020 • 1h 29min
Episode 042 Releasing the performance and calling forth your authentic self w/Martina Knight
In this episode I talk to Martina Knight, who in the midst of a successful professional dancing career found she needed a way to reconnect with her authentic self. This is how she discovered yoga and then as a yoga teacher has continued to share this practice with others. In this episode we talk about the emotional toll of the performances we all do in everyday life, and how yoga and the breath can be a path back towards feeling more authentically yourself. We also talk about how motherhood has shifted her practice and how she practically fits yoga into her day with a six month old in lockdown. Connect with Martina on Instagram @moving.mindflowness For details of the Breathing Space membership group to support and inspire your daily practice head to: https://mailchi.mp/sarahbhunt/breathingspace
Jun 1, 2020 • 34min
Episode 041 Where do we find meaning?
Have you ever worked for something and when you achieved it, you didn't feel like you thought you'd feel? There are times when we find ourselves in real dissonance between our expectations and our inner reality. For me, these times always bring up the question of meaning. We have this beautiful precious life & it can feel a great responsibility to use it wisely and well. So where do we look for meaning? And where can we find it? This episode is about how we weave our inner journey with our outer journey, and how we find lasting meaning beyond the temporary changing circumstances of our lives.
May 25, 2020 • 1h 18min
Episode 040 Feeding your heart with yoga w/Lucy Holtom
What happens when you stand on your mat and wait for the present moment to find you? How do you find time to do this in busy life? And how might that simple practice transform your life? In this episode I talk with Lucy Holtom about her experience as a yoga teacher, actress and parent. This is a conversation full of heart, practical ideas, and profound golden nuggets of wisdom about the places where spiritual practice and real life merge. For details on the Breathing Space membership group I mention in the intro, head to https://mailchi.mp/sarahbhunt/breathingspace
May 18, 2020 • 46min
Episode 039 How to keep practicing during lockdown with kids (aka finding breathing space in the ultra-mess)
In this episode I take a deep dive into a big issue for many of us stuck in lockdown with kids — how do we find any time for our practice or any space for ourselves when we are homeschooling, working, cleaning the house, keeping everyone fed and busy from the moment we get up until we're too exhausted to do anything but stare at the wall. (Yep I know the feeling!) We keep looking for that 20 minutes to breathe and get to the end of another day not finding it. So instead of fighting our current situation, I'm sharing my thoughts & tips on how we can keep up our practice even in this beautiful, frustration, joyful, overwhelming "ultra mess".
May 11, 2020 • 1h 1min
Episode 038 I'm Awake! Now what? w/Krista Xiomara
What are your big questions? What are the things in your heart that you really want to ask? And do you feel free to ask them? In this episode, podcaster & spiritual seeker Krista Xiomara talks about how asking questions and following our innate curiosity is the vehicle for our spiritual journey. Her story about being raised in a strict sect of the Catholic Church and then setting off on her own spiritual journey is honest, inspiring and full of courage. You can find Krista's own podcast "I'm Awake! Now What?" at all of your usual podcast places.Connect with her on Instagram @ianwpodcast.
May 4, 2020 • 1h 12min
Episode 037 Moments of meditation
In this episode I share a session I ran for the Scapa Home Festival on moments of meditation. Sometimes we only have a few moments here and there, and taking advantage of these times to connect inward can be a really beautiful habit. Moments of Meditation includes both chat from me on my own "messy luminous" perspective on how & why we might meditate in our lives just as they are, and also includes three short practice sessions to help reconnect to that luminous and profound part of you that is so immense and special. Remember you can jump into the weekly zoom Let's Sit Together sessions for free at 7am in the UK with this link: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/129251072 And for more information about the Breathing Space group I mention in the intro you can head here: https://mailchi.mp/sarahbhunt/breathingspace
Apr 27, 2020 • 1h 15min
Episode 036 Walking with yourself & with hope w/Natalie Wiltshire
Questioning and finding ways to make meditation and yoga practice work within our individual life is such a journey. In this episode I talk with yoga teacher and meditation friend Natalie Wiltshire about walking with herself, perspective on hard times, acknowledging our real humanness and finding signs of hope. You can find Natalie at www.natsyoga.co.uk
Apr 20, 2020 • 36min
Episode 035 The beautiful boredom of practice
I remember the first time I tried to meditate when I was about 20 & had a really strange out-of-body experience. I was confused and knew I wasn't going to do that again without more guidance. So five years later when I met a friend who had been practicing buddhist meditation for years, I asked her loads of questions about her experience sitting. What she described then was very mundane and disappointingly dull...or so it seemed to me then. But after a decade now of practice, I've found it's the seemingly "boring" aspect that provides so much subtle illumination. This is an episode to inspire you to get back to your mat and practice!
