The Spiritual Forum

Episode 224 - Exile and Rebirth of the Divine Mother

“We have divorced ourselves so entirely from the living soil, that we imagine we exist outside of its cosmic order. With our screens and our machines, our drugs, and our dictators, we have placed all faith in the greatness of our intellect, and in doing so, sent into exile the intuitive wisdom of the divine feminine force.” -- Maré Hieronimus
Maré Hieronimus is a mother, dancer, writer and philosopher. Her unconventional upbringing on a commune in Maryland - surrounded by mystical teachings, a reverence for the earth, and a love of dance - allowed her to grow up keeping traditional societal roles and values at arm’s length. She listened to the call of her soul to live a creative life. Maré is a return guest on The Spiritual Forum podcast (check out Episode 170 - Choice Between Two Paths: Nature or Transhumanism). In this episode – one year later - we once again explore what we see happening on the world stage through a spiritual lens. Maré shares her perspectives on transhumanism, the exile of the Sacred Mother, the widespread dislocation of the soul from the body, the war on children and women, and the meaning of sacred biology. Some of the things we talk about are
• The need to have conversations about what is happening
• The divine feminine as the portal
• The erasure of the high sacred feminine through transhumanism
• The ways we play God
• Extraction from our wisdom lineages cause us to not anchor
• The sacred nature of the human form
• We are set adrift when we split ourselves from our bodies
• Divine wisdom pulses through us when we are healthy
• There is a mass dislocation from our intuition
• What is the remedy?
• The inversion of politics
• Hope in the human spirit
Website: https://thesacredbody.earth
Sacred Body Teaching: https://www.patreon.com/TheSacredBody
© the spiritual forum 2023

Episode 223 - Religion: Reality Behind the Myths

Are religions the primary source of violent conflicts of human history? Can a person be spiritual but not religious? Is secularism devoid of close-mindedness and irrationality? These are some of the questions addressed in this episode by theolgian, Jonas Atlas. Jonas is a Belgian scholar of religion who writes and lectures on religion, politics and mysticism. Growing up Christian in predominately secular Europe he found himself having to defend himself for being religious. Additionally, his marriage to a Muslim from Turkey influenced his interest in deconstructing the way people think about religions. Jonas currently teaches classes on ethics, spirituality, and religion at the KDG University of Applied Sciences and Arts in Antwerp, Belgium. He is also an independent researcher at the Radboud University, as a member of the Race, Religion, and Secularism network. His latest book, Religion: Reality Behind the Myths, unravels the most common misunderstandings about religion.
Here are some of the things we talk about:
• What are the seven myths about religion?
• What is religion?
• Religions, like languages, evolve
• When we pretend to live without structures, we become blind to all the structures we are really in
• Can you be spiritual but not religious?
• The characteristics and behaviors that people think are bad about religions are in all organizations because violence, control, oppression is in our consciousness
• Everything that can be said of a religion can also be said of the secular world (i.e. they both do dumb things)
• “Us versus them” mentality keeps us from reconfiguring our consciousness
• The spirituality of the big bang
Jonas Atlas links:
Website: https://jonasatlas.net/
Book: https://www.amazon.com/Religion-Reality-Behind-Jonas-Atlas/dp/1803411821
Podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/re-visioning-religion (where you can hear the conversations with Jeffrey Kripal and William Cavanaugh)
Interfaith conversations with Muslim scholars, activists and artists: https://halalmonk.com/
© the spiritual forum 2023

Episode 222 - Spiritual Discernment

“For me, the number one reason of our temporary sojourn on Earth is simply to grow in love.” — Pierre Pradervand
Pierre Pradervand is a true world citizen, having labored most of his life for social justice. Among his varied work experiences, he had a brief stint in the United Nations in Geneva, worked as a demographer in Algeria, worked for American Friends Service Committee in Senegal and started a periodical that became the best-selling magazine in sub-Saharan, French-speaking Africa. Pierre has led workshops on personal development and spirituality for 30 years and is the author of 22 books, including The Gentle Art of Blessing and The Gentle Art of Spiritual Discernment. At the wise age of 86, he is totally happy living a simple life in his home in Geneva, Switzerland. In this episode Pierre shares about his relationship with Texas inmate, Roger McGowan, and how he got him off of death row. We also talk about:
Pierre Pradervand is a true world citizen, having labored most of his life for social justice. Among his varied work experiences, he had a brief stint in the United Nations in Geneva, worked as a demographer in Algeria, worked for American Friends Service Committee in Senegal and started a periodical that became the best-selling magazine in sub-Saharan, French-speaking Africa. Pierre has led workshops on personal development and spirituality for 30 years and is the author of 22 books, including The Gentle Art of Blessing and The Gentle Art of Spiritual Discernment. At the wise age of 86, he is totally happy living a simple life in his home in Geneva, Switzerland. In this episode Pierre tells the story of getting Texas inmate, Roger McGowan, off of death row and his continued relationship with him. We also talk about:
• The privilege of life itself
• Pierre’s two mystical experiences
• The basic structure of the universe
• Similarities between Joel Goldsmith and Unity co-founder Charles Fillmore
• Spiritual Discernment, integrity and finding your own point of view
• The #1 problem in the world
• We all must be our own teacher
• Discussion on the scientific method
• Women’s World Foundation run by Pierre’s wife
• The debt we have towards Africa
• The spiritual practice of blessing
Pierre's website: https://pierrepradervand.com/
Gentle Art of Blessing: https://gentleartofblessing.org/
Gentle Art of Discernment book: https://www.amazon.com/Gentle-Art-Spiritual-Discernment-Discovering/dp/164411805X
Messages of Life book co-authored with Roger McGowan:
https://pierrepradervand.com/messages-of-life/
https://www.amazon.com/Messages-Life-Death-Pierre-
Pradervand/dp/1439235600/ref=cm_cr_arp_d_product_top?ie=UTF8
Women’s World Foundation run by Pierre’s wife: https://www.woman.ch/
Prize for Women's Creativity: https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/wwsf-prize-womens-creativity-rural-life-2017-giving-elly-pradervand/
© the spiritual forum 2023
#blessing #spiritualjourney #pierrepradervand #spiritualdiscernment #deathrow #integrity #joelgoldsmith

Episode 221 - Journey of Compassion

Dianne Waltner grew up in rural Kansas where her Mennonite family ran a poultry hatchery. An introverted, highly sensitive child who was bullied and ostracized at her small school, Dianne always felt a sense of solidarity with the underdog, which ultimately led her to challenge the paradigm she was raised in. Her journey through cognitive dissonance, feelings of loss & rejection, depression, self-medication with alcohol, and her ultimate redemption is told in her book, Evolving Into Wholeness – A Journey of Compassion. Through her self-discovery and its unavoidable companions, pain, courage and dark nights of the soul, Dianne ultimately chose to align her life with her deeply held values of compassion for all. Dianne is an ordained Animal Chaplain and Main Street Vegan Academy certified Master Vegan Lifestyle Coach and Educator (MVLCE). These are some of the many things we talk about in this episode:
• How quickly humans become desensitized to the suffering in the world
• The spiritual path is about becoming ourselves not the living out the patterning of our parents and culture
• What is cognitive dissonance
• The compassionate nature of our inner child
• The struggle associated with breaking away from family norms (especially if you are loved)
• Self-care/love versus will power is at the root of quitting unhealthy habits
• Connection to all life supports loving the self
• Changing habits like diet or drinking isn’t about giving up, it’s about gaining
• The Animal Chaplaincy program - what the program is about and what people are doing with it (starts around 35 minutes)
Websites: https://diannewaltner.com/ & https://evolvingintowholeness.com/
Memoir: www.amazon.com/Evolving-into-Who…ion/dp/B08WZMB9CL
Email: dwaltner@icloud.com
Animal Chaplaincy Program: www.compassionconsortium.org/training
Main Street Vegan Academy: https://mainstreetvegan.com/
Books referenced in the episode:
Man Kind? by Cleveland Emory
www.amazon.com/Kind-Incredible-W…eld/dp/0060100923
America’s Last Wild Horses by Hope Ryden
https://www.amazon.com/Americas-Last-Wild-Horses-Ryden/dp/B001LGC4GA/ref=s
© the spiritual forum 2023

Episode 220 - Tibetan Book of the Dead for Beginners

“How we live is how we die” -- The Tibetan Book of the Dead for Beginners
The Tibetan Book of the Dead is the English translation of the Tibetan text known as Bardo Thodol. It serves as a guide for the soul of the deceased after it has left the body and before it is reborn. Lama Lhanang Rinpoche and Mordy Levine co-authored a recently published book, The Tibetan Book of the Dead for Beginners, which provides enduring and accessible advice for living with wisdom and compassion, and meeting the end of life with courage and peace.
Lama Lhanang Rinpoche was born in northeastern Tibet. At the age of 8 he was chosen and invited into the monastery by a great Buddhist master. He studied there until he completed his training as a monastic. He has received teachings from a large number of teachers from the different lineages of Tibetan Buddhism, including from His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama. Lama Lhanang Rinpoche is from the Nyingma school of Tibetan Buddhism. He is the founder and director of Jigme Lingpa Center, a non-profit organization with centers in the US, Canada and Mexico. His mission and teachings are to develop world peace through inner peace.
Mordy Levine, an accomplished entrepreneur, has been a Buddhist practitioner for over 40 years. He is the creator of the Meditation Pro Series, which teaches meditation for conditions that affect western civilization such as stress, insomnia, weight issues and smoking. He serves as president of the Jigme Lingpa Center.
In this episode we talk about:
·      Lama Lhanang’s story of coming to America, his initial resistance
·      Mordy’s first experience with karate which led to his journey with Buddhism and his initial resistance
·      Our state of not knowing that we are unhappy
·      Summary of the Tibetan Book of the Dead and its history (life and death, the six bardos, direction on how consciousness should proceed during death)
·      Differences between western and Buddhist perspective on death and aging
·      When you work with death, death is not death, it is liberation
·      Fear of death is rooted in our fear of the unknown
·      We can prepare for death now – training our mind today can bring a peaceful state of mind at death
·      Chasing material things without appreciation keeps people hungry and unsatisfied; it’s Important to have happiness in our hearts and peace in our homes
·      The benefits of a meditation practice to retrain our minds to be in the present moment
·      Consider alternative views of the self to create positive karma
·      Difficult confrontations are gifts to help us see who we really are, we all think we are good people until we are challenged
·      Learning in wisdom through listening
·      The only thing we know is our mind; we know nothing about the minds of other people
·      How to support loved ones as they navigate death (last 10 minutes)
Jigme Lingpa Centers: https://www.buddhistsandiego.com/
Book: https://www.amazon.com/Tibetan-Book-Dead-Beginners-Living/dp/B0C384VH5J
Mordy’s YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCGQb8ts_ORIbjigbSL9RoCw/featured
Complete transcription of this episode: https://docs.google.com/document/d/15QsnenQnFqlDvHj9HM23RBN0BdIMCfza/edit?usp=sharing&ouid=117420754387657503464&rtpof=true&sd=true
© the spiritual forum 2023

Episode 219 - Reciprocity and Entanglement with Geoff Thompson

“Until we can use our will to live consciously and make wise choices every day, to be self-aware, to self-observer and be virtuous, we cannot lay claim to the kingdom.” -- Geoff Thompson
In this second hour with Geoff Thompson (best-selling author of nearly 50 books, successful playwright, BAFTA award winning screenwriter, and one of the world’s highest ranking martial arts teachers), we get into more depth on the Law of Reciprocity (aka Law of Compensation, Law of Cause and Effect, Law of Karma, etc.), the forces of good and evil, the power of the will, and how we can use entanglement to thrive. He also tells the story of how his single act of compassion transformed a neighborhood street in London. In Part 1 (Episode 218 - Freedom Through Forgiveness) Geoff shared his experience of confronting his childhood abuser as an adult with truth and forgiveness rather than vengeance. He embarked upon a journey of turning into his fear and converting it to light. Geoff's most recent book, 99 Reasons to Forgive and Revenge Ain’t One, catalogues his personal experience of transformation and the power of forgiveness. Some of the things we discuss in this episode are:
• If the judicial law doesn’t serve you, you don’t need to concern yourself because the law of reciprocity is impeccable
• We have evil and good inclinations like a right terminal of energy and left energy of energy in a lightbulb
• The best way to keep the dark forces at bay is to constantly be in a place of love
• Simple message – just live kindly (the golden rule)
• Understand the rules of life – they are restrictive and protective It is the will that makes the change from cultural conditioning
• The part of us that exercises the will is our true authentic self
• Everything is connected – we are in a sense responsible for everything that happens, so we want to contribute in a positive way
• Revenge interrupts the flow of love
The Forgiveness Project: www.theforgivenessproject.com/stories-li…-thompson/
Instagram: @geoff_thompson_official
Book: www.amazon.com/99-Reasons-Forgiv…int/dp/1803411341
© the spiritual forum 2023
#forgiveness #lightanddark #goodandevil #authenticself #revenge #karma

Episode 218 - Freedom Through Forgiveness with Geoff Thompson

“When we forgive someone, they should be very afraid. It means we have given them over to the law of reciprocity. It means we have let them go.” -- Geoff Thompson in 99 Reasons to Forgive and Revenge Ain't
Geoff Thompson is a best-selling author of nearly 50 books, successful playwright, British Academy of Film & Television Arts award winning screenwriter (writer of Retaliation starring Orlando Bloom), and one of the world’s highest ranking martial arts teachers. In his most recent book, 99 Reasons to Forgive and Revenge Ain’t One of Them. Geoff shares his experience of confronting his childhood abuser as an adult with truth and forgiveness rather than vengeance. He embarked upon a journey of turning into his fear and converting it to light. Freedom and restored innocence, will and soul was the result. In this episode Geoff shares how his life was ruled by fear prior to forgiveness and the expansiveness that resulted when he turned over psychic entanglements to God. This is Part 1 of a two-part series. Along with some very rich storytelling, here are some of the things Geoff shares in this episode:
• Revenge blocks our ability to see what we’ve done wrong
• Curiosity neutralizes fear
• What forgiveness is and isn’t
• Who has the power to forgive and who doesn’t
• Control of personal will is the Kingdom of God
• Discussion on the law of reciprocity
• How suffering can be a gift when you can change how you see it
• The inner “battle’ of winning ourselves back from habits, beliefs, concepts and precepts
• Recognizing where we don’t have control of our will (control of thoughts, eating, body, congruency, etc.) and the journey to mastery (i.e. the kingdom)
• The power of a single act of compassion
The Forgiveness Project: https://www.theforgivenessproject.com/stories-library/geoff-thompson/
Instagram: @geoff_thompson_official
Book: https://www.amazon.com/99-Reasons-Forgive-Revenge-Aint/dp/1803411341
© the spiritual forum 2023

Episode 217 - Conscious Divorce & Spiritual Integration

Theresa Beran Kulat, a pioneer in the field of the Collaborative Process, works as a lawyer, mediator, and coach in the divorce space. She founded Trinity Law Firm (Chicago) in 2003 so that she could offer unique legal services and balance her schedule with the well-being of her family. Teri is a deeply spiritual person with a daily meditation practice. She also provides coaching using astrology and has mastery level training from the TantraNova Institute and Quantum Healing training in The Rowley Method. Teri integrates her spirituality with her work world with ease and grace to help people build new futures. In this episode we talk about relationships, specifically divorce, which is typically a messy experience, and how it is possible to go through that process in a way that honors the humanity and spirit of those involved. We also discuss:
• Holistic law
• The ways we split ourselves between career, personal and spiritual
• Intention, trust and commitment to a path
• The importance of somatic work
• Invitation to heal versus run away
• Listening for guidance through dreams
• The importance of prayer and meditation
• What a collaborative divorce can look like
• The importance of ritual for endings and beginnings
• Marriage is the creation of a new life, so is divorce
• Conscious contracts
• The essential need to stay centered
Law firm: http://www.TrinityFamilyLaw.com
Personal website: http://www.TBKulat.com
Seven Ways to Save Your Marriage online course (enter code TSF200 and get $200 off): https://tbkulat.teachable.com
© the spiritual forum 2023