Beena Sharma (Part 2) – Vertical Development’s Many Gifts: How Continuous Adult Development Becomes Possible, the Potentials It Unlocks, and How Understanding It Makes New Sense of Our World and Our Selves

Beena Sharma Adult Development

Ep. 41 (Part 2 of 3) | Beena Sharma, president of the Vertical Development Academy (VeDA), gives a beautifully cogent explanation of the 8-stage, full spectrum model of adult psychological development, Vertical Development, illuminating us not only to the characteristics of each stage of development, but the implications and ramifications of each stage, the process of human development as a whole, and how this model can help us face our current metacrisis. Beena describes how “each stage is a way of seeing the world and oneself, a constellation of our beliefs and assumptions,” and we discover that our development takes form in patterns of evolving worldviews, a progression of capacities with which we make sense of the world.

On an individual level, Beena asks, “Where is your foot nailed to the floor? Where are parts of you still ahead of you? How can this framework help you make a shift?” And collectively, “What does it mean for the human being to evolve? What makes us think humans at this time are at the end of the evolutionary ladder?” Vertical development focuses on the evolving ego, and interestingly, takes us to the stage where we realize the ego itself is only a construct—and beyond. As well as a brilliant unpacking of the vertical development model, this is a profound, warm-hearted conversation, about human evolution and possibility, the dance of the dual and the nondual, the infinitude of the psyche, and what it means to come home to oneself. Recorded July 13, 2022.

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Beena Sharma (Part 1) – Vertical Development’s Many Gifts: How Continuous Adult Development Becomes Possible, the Potentials It Unlocks, and How Understanding It Makes New Sense of Our World and Our Selves

Beena Sharma - Vertical Development

Ep. 40 (Part 1 of 3) | Beena Sharma, president of the Vertical Development Academy (VeDA), gives a beautifully cogent explanation of the 8-stage, full spectrum model of adult psychological development, Vertical Development, illuminating us not only to the characteristics of each stage of development, but the implications and ramifications of each stage, the process of human development as a whole, and how this model can help us face our current metacrisis. Beena describes how “each stage is a way of seeing the world and oneself, a constellation of our beliefs and assumptions,” and we discover that our development takes form in patterns of evolving worldviews, a progression of capacities with which we make sense of the world.

On an individual level, Beena asks, “Where is your foot nailed to the floor? Where are parts of you still ahead of you? How can this framework help you make a shift?” And collectively, “What does it mean for the human being to evolve? What makes us think humans at this time are at the end of the evolutionary ladder?” Vertical development focuses on the evolving ego, and interestingly, takes us to the stage where we realize the ego itself is only a construct—and beyond. As well as a brilliant unpacking of the vertical development model, this is a profound, warm-hearted conversation, about human evolution and possibility, the dance of the dual and the nondual, the infinitude of the psyche, and what it means to come home to oneself. Recorded July 13, 2022.

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Zvi Ish-Shalom – Mystical Experience, Primordial Wisdom: The Source and Heart of Judaism and the Great Religions

Zvi Ish-Shalom Mystical experiences

Ep. 33 | Zvi Ish-Shalom is a professor of Jewish mysticism, an author, an ordained rabbi, and the guiding light of Kedumah, a teaching out of time and space, whose primary calling is to translate wisdom from the primordial ground of being into a discernible wisdom stream. In this remarkable conversation, Zvi describes how he found ways to map and interpret his own profound mystical experiences, how the teachings arise from the ground of being, about how they might become accessible to us all, regardless of religion or spiritual tradition, and how they are especially relevant for young people today, seeking to find a structure for their spiritual journey. His familiarity with the realm of mystical experience is extremely engaging—he tells of discovering the vow taken by our soul before we were born and dropping the barriers between us and God, surrendering to the divine. Roger Walsh found Zvi’s book The Kedumah Experience “the most profound spiritual text he’s ever read in the Jewish tradition,” and listeners will almost certainly be excited to read Zvi’s latest book, published since the recording of this podcast, The Path of Primordial Light: Ancient Wisdom for the Here and Now.  Recorded at the Science & Nonduality Conference, October 2019, with Dr. Roger Walsh, John Dupuy, and Douglas Prater.

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Chris Bache (Part 1) – The Evolution of Collective Consciousness, Purification and Ecstasy of Insight, and the Profound Genius, Love, and Purpose of the Universe

Chris Bache Part 1 Episode Cover Art

Ep. 9 (Part 1 of 3) | Chris Bache tells what he discovered on his extraordinary cosmological journey, doing 73 high-dose LSD sessions over a period of twenty years. Motivated by a passion to find out more about the universe, Chris became intimate with the ocean of suffering in our collective psyche, the death/rebirth cycle, the preciousness of individuality, integrating consciousness at very high levels of energy, and the future of humanity. Chris explains a universal intelligence met him every step of the way. A modern-day Odysseus, who has explored realms far beyond our normal perceptions of reality, Chris’ presence is profoundly compassionate, grounded in a uniquely deep trust in the love and intelligence of the universe. Recorded on October 25, 2021.

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Colette Baron-Reid – What is Intuition? Curiosity is a Superpower, Our Evolutionary Gift is in the Shadow, Radical Acceptance, and Living in Partnership with the Universe

Colette Baron-Reid Episode Cover Art

Ep. 7 | In this lively, eye-opening conversation, intuitive and oracle Colette Baron-Reid talks about how intuition is available to each one of us and how we can use it to navigate our lives, about why we need to practice radical acceptance now more than ever, about facing our shadow to find our biggest gifts and liberate our lives, about what it takes to cultivate hope and override fear, and about the transformative power of the Twelve Steps. Colette’s deep, practical, psychological wisdom comes like a transmission: “I am not a mistake. Nobody is broken. I trust in my partnership with the Universe. Who can I impact in a positive way?” Colette also tells stories from her past with verve and humor, and we discover how she came to be the wise and popular teacher, guide, and healer she is today. Recorded on November 22, 2021.

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Jamie Wheal (Part 1) – The Psychedelic Renaissance, Hedonic Engineering, Group Coherence, Soul Force & Radical Hope: Ramping Up Human Evolution in Time to Avert Disaster

Jamie Wheal Part 1 Episode Cover Art

Ep. 3 (Part 1 of 2) | “How do we do this human thing with our heads up and our hearts open and not get crushed by the tragedies and absurdities of it all?” “How can we tune into the wisdom, the transpersonal heights?” In this riveting, mind opening (and bending) conversation, philosopher and peak performance expert Jamie Wheal takes our existential metacrisis head on, asking and often answering the biggest questions we, the human race, face today. More than inspirational, this conversation is like an infusion of the energetic, coherent, transpersonal potential of human beings. Guaranteed, you won’t see things the same way after listening. Recorded on September 15, 2021.

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Jeff Salzman (Part 1) – Polarization, Being Woke, the Universal Agenda, Mindfulness Going Bad, and the Integral Vision

Jeff Salzman Part 1 Episode Cover Art

Ep. 1 (Part 1 of 2) | Culture wars, polarization, discernment versus condemnation, how our psychological development determines political attitudes and values, and how Integral perspectives help us understand them all. A candid conversation, ranging from global current events to personal spiritual turning points, with endearing, brilliant, and optimistic Integral pundit Jeff Salzman. Recorded on September 2, 2021.

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