Spirit Matters

May 29 2024 8

Spirit Matters Podcast artwork

Never before has the spiritual landscape been as diverse and abundant as it is today. The opportunities for learning and growth are enormous, and spiritual counselor, author, meditation teacher, and speaker Philip Goldberg will help you make sense of it all and apply it to your life. Here you’ll meet teachers, scholars, and other experts from a broad range of traditions (and some from no tradition). Some of our guests are well known; others should be well known. They all have wisdom and practical guidance to impart. The aim is to help you expand and deepen your spiritual practices and speed your progress on your chosen path.

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Explore Vedic Wisdom and Roar Like a Goddess with Acharya Shunya

May 29 2024 65 mins

Acharya Shunya is the first female head of a spiritual lineage that goes back 2,000 years in India. In her teaching, Acharya reinterprets and re-contextualizes Vedic wisdom, the nondual perspective of Advaita Vedanta, the lifestyle principles of Ayurveda, and Yoga philosophy and practices – and in so doing attempts to make the ancient insights relevant to modern sensibilities and

Mindfully Meeting a World in Crisis with Oren Jay Sofer

May 19 2024 65 mins

Oren Jay Sofer holds a degree in comparative religion from Columbia University and now teaches Buddhist meditation, mindfulness, and communication internationally. A certified trainer of nonviolent communication, he is a practitioner of somatic experiencing for the healing of trauma and the author of several books. They include: Say What You Mean: A Mindful Approach to Nonviolent C

A Nuanced Discussion of Spirituality, Religion and More With Swami Medhananda

May 09 2024 67 mins

Swami Medhananda is a monk of the Ramakrishna Order and a distinguished academic, currently serving as Senior Research Fellow in philosophy at the Vedanta Society of Southern California. He received his Ph.D. in 2009 from the University of California at Berkeley, and also studied at Humboldt University in Berlin and at Oxford University in the UK. His current research focuses on th

Diving Into Kashmir Shaivism, Shaktipat, India and More With Swami Brahmananda

Apr 29 2024 63 mins

Swami Brahmananda Saraswati, originally David Nowe of Pittsburgh, met Swami Muktananda and received Shaktipat initiation from him in 1975. He spent the next 8 years studying with and working for Muktananda in various ashram settings. Along the way he took initiation as a sannyasi and received the name Brahmananda. He returned to householder life for a period of time, then resumed t

Mysticism, Social Change, and African-American Religion with Alton B. Pollard III

Apr 18 2024 68 mins

Dr. Alton B. Pollard III is a scholar, author, consultant, and public speaker on the subject of African American and U.S. religion and culture. He is about to join Wake Forest University as the Chair of Baptist Studies in the School of Divinity and professor of African American Studies in the College of Arts and Sciences. His prior positions include: President Emeritus of Louisvill

Spiritual Imagination and Engaged Contemplation with Adam Bucko

Apr 08 2024 62 mins

Adam Bucko is an Episcopal priest, a teacher of contemplative spirituality, and an interfaith activist. Born and raised in Poland under a totalitarian regime, his early exposure to spiritual activism greatly influenced his life trajectory. His books and teachings often include collaborations with spiritual leaders and activists from different faith traditions. He is the author of O

Confluence and Constructive Development with Kimberley Lafferty

Mar 28 2024 65 mins

Kimberley Theresa Lafferty is a teacher-practitioner who specializes in what she calls Constructive Developmental Psychology as well as Indo-Tibetan Vajrayana Buddhism. She offers private online psycho-spiritual counseling for individuals and couples, and in that work integrates the latest research on adult ego development, contemplative psychology, and other disciplines. She leads

The Hard and The Soft of Yoga with Beryl Bender

Mar 18 2024 69 mins

Beryl Bender has been teaching yoga and meditation since 1971, and has been training yoga teachers through her school, The Hard & The Soft Yoga Institute, for nearly 50 years. She’s also the best-selling author of several books on yoga, including Power Yoga; Beyond Bower Yoga; and Yoga for Warriors: Basic Training for Strength, Resilience, and Peace of Mind, which was written esp

Heartfulness and Spiritual Anatomy with Daaji (Kamlesh D. Patel)

Mar 08 2024 61 mins

Daaji, aka Kamlesh D. Patel, is the fourth and current spiritual guide of the Heartfulness Institute, a century-old lineage that used to be known as the Shri Ram Chandra Mission. The organization has taught Heartfulness Meditation to several million practitioners in 126 countries. In addition to teaching and overseeing an international organization, Daaji gives keynote addresses an

Walking on Water in Compassion with Rev. Ann Helmke

Feb 26 2024 64 mins

Ann Helmke is an ordained minister in the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America and serves as the faith liaison for the city of San Antonio, Texas. Prior to that she was the director of spiritual services at Haven for Hope, a program that serves homeless people. She has taught theology, has led workshops and retreats, co-founded the interfaith San Antonio Peace Center, and co-auth