Dedicated to liberation in all its forms, Deconstructing Yourself is passionate about fearlessly investigating, attempting, and questioning all things to do wit...
Tantra, Aghora, and Death, with Dr. Robert Svoboda
Host Michael Taft talks with author and ayurvedic physician Dr. Robert Svoboda about the cemetary practices of the radical nondual Aghora sect, the story of his mentor Vimalananda’s initiation into Aghora and meeting with the goddess Smashan Tara, the path of bhakti vs. the path of jnana, working with the close karmic connections called rnanubandanas, and the importance of continuous remembrance of death.Dr. Robert Svoboda is an American author and ayurvedic doctor who gives lectures and courses around the world, related to the subjects of ayurveda, jyotish, tantra, and Eastern religion. Svoboda is the first Westerner to graduate from a college of ayurveda and be licensed to practice ayurveda in India. He is author of eleven books, including Prakriti: Your Ayurvedic Constitution (1989), and the Aghora trilogy about his guru, Vimalananda, and the Aghori sect.Dr. Svoboda’s websiteYou can support the creation of future episodes of this podcast by contributing through Patreon.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
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Meditation and Memory with Anthony Metivier
Host Michael Taft talks with author and memory expert Anthony Metivier about using memory techniques to enhance meditation, memorizing and reciting scriptures in dead languages as a spiritual practice, using the ancient Memory Palace technique in combination with intense imagery, recall rehearsal, Giordano Bruno, Aristotle, learning foreign languages, nonduality, the Ribhu Gita, and more.Anthony Metivier is the founder of the Magnetic Memory Method, a modern systematic approach to memorizing foreign language vocabulary, names, music, poetry, and more. Dr. Metivier holds a Ph.D. in Humanities from York University and is widely known for his books, talks, and courses on memory improvement. He is the author of The Victorious Mind: How To Master Memory, Meditation and Mental Well-Being. Anthony Metivier's websiteYou can support the creation of future episodes of this podcast by contributing through Patreon.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
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Practicing the Diamond Sutra with Ken McLeod
Host Michael Taft speaks with eminent Buddhist teacher, translator, and author Ken McLeod about how to use the Diamond Sutra as a practice text. What is the sutra really getting at? Is it merely an ancient and enigmatic philosophical puzzle or can we use it as a powerful pointing out instruction?Ken McLeod began his study and practice of Buddhism in 1970 under the eminent Tibetan master Kalu Rinpoche. After completing two three-year retreats, he was appointed as resident teacher for Kalu Rinpoche’s center in Los Angeles, California, where he developed innovative approaches to teaching and translation. After his teacher’s death in 1989, Ken established Unfettered Mind, a place for those whose path lies outside established institutions. His many published works include Wake Up to Your Life, A Trackless Path, and his latest book, entitled The Magic of Vajrayana. Ken's website: Unfettered MindYou can support the creation of future episodes of this podcast by contributing through Patreon.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
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Original Love with Henry Shukman
Host Michael Taft talks with meditation teacher and author Henry Shukman about love, original love vs. original sin, wellbeing intense enough to be called “blessedness,” seeing your original face outside of time, the four zones of love, experience as inseparable boundless space, experiencing love as the purpose of our lives, and much more. Henry Shukman is founder of the Original Love meditation program, spiritual director emeritus at Mountain Cloud Zen Center in Santa Fe, NM, and the author of several award-winning books of poetry and fiction. His newest book Original Love: the Four Inns on the Path of Awakening (HarperOne) is released in July 2024. Henry has taught at Google, Harvard Business School, the Institute of American Indian Arts and Oxford Brookes University. His poetry has been featured in the New Yorker, Sunday Times, and Guardian, and his essays in the New York Times and Outside. He has an M.A. from Cambridge and an MLitt from St Andrews. Henry is co-founder of The Way, a meditation app that offers a unique zero-choice path of deep meditation training.You can support the creation of future episodes of this podcast by contributing through Patreon.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
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Practicing Tummo with Peter McEwen
Host Michael Taft speaks with meditation coach Peter McEwen about the traditional Tibetan Buddhist practice of tummo, deity yoga, the subtle body, ways that tummo practice can go wrong, bliss and semen retention, existential terror and staying with disturbing experience, and much more.Peter McEwen is a meditation coach and the founder of The Field, which offers training, community, and the demystification of basic contemplative practices. Peter McEwen has been an ordained Vajrayana yogi since 1993 under the tutelage of Dzongsar Khyentse Rinpoche, Lama Pema Dorje Rinpoche, and Bruce Tift. He has completed the traditional 3-year retreat curriculum of Vajrayana Buddhism.Awakening Embodied Awareness Peter's new course pageYou can support the creation of future episodes of this podcast by contributing through Patreon.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
Dedicated to liberation in all its forms, Deconstructing Yourself is passionate about fearlessly investigating, attempting, and questioning all things to do with awakening, meditation, mindfulness, brain hacking, consciousness, neurofeedback, and more.Your host Michael W. Taft interviews some of the most interesting thinkers, authors, and teachers around, as well as other offerings. In this hard-hitting, radical, and fun podcast we look at secular post-, non-, un- Buddhism, Vajrayana, nondual Hindu Tantra, philosophy, the neuroscience of the sense of self, neurofeedback and the consciousness hacking movement, aspects of artificial intelligence, entheogens, and much more.If you’re looking for fresh directions, free from dogma and conformism, think of the Deconstructing Yourself podcast as the radical cafe where you can hear from the most interesting luminaries either from the outside edges of dharma, or a fresh take from more traditional teachers. If you’re interested in more, check out the Deconstructing Yourself website at https://deconstructingyourself.com.
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