Sacred Instructions: Indigenous Wisdom for Living Spirit-Based Change by Sherri Mitchell, published by North Atlantic Books, copyright © 2018 by Sherri Mitchell. Reprinted by permission of publisher. CREATION SONGS  Our individual stories being with the story of our creation. My creation stories have come to me through the teachings of my tribe. My tribe is Penawahpskek, the Penobscot Nation, a small island nation that floats in the Penobscot River. We are the people of the dawn land; the keepers of the eastern gate. Our relatives are the Peskotomuhkati, Wolastoqiyak, and Mi’kmaq’i (Passamaquoddy, Maliseet, and Mi’kmaq), and together we are the Wahponah... posted on Feb 19 2019 (9,700 reads)

Naked Voice by Chloe Goodchild, published by North Atlantic Books, copyright © 2015 by Chloe Goodchild. Reprinted by permission of publisher. Since childhood and throughout my life, my voice has been my conscience and guide, providing me with an in-built “sonic laboratory” for self-inquiry. In 1990, following a transformative experience in India, I discovered my voice as my very own self. My singing voice became the messenger of this awakening. I called it my naked voice, for it arose from an unconditional source far deeper than my personality or ego could fathom. It touched a place of wisdom and oneness (nonduality) within me that opened vast new fields of... posted on Mar 18 2019 (7,905 reads)

excerpt From Living in Flow: The Science of Synchronicity and How Your Choices Shape Your World by Sky Nelson-Isaacs, published by North Atlantic Books, copyright © 2019 by Sky Nelson-Isaacs. Reprinted by permission of publisher. Stephen Gaertner, a Czechoslovakian Jew living in Hamburg, Germany, was eight years old in 1937 when he came down with tuberculosis. Stephen’s doctor advised him to go to a sanatorium in the Bavarian mountains, as was the common prescription of the day for treatment of tuberculosis. (Antibiotics were not yet fully developed….) Even at that young age, Stephen had a sense of the unrest occurring in his country. He protested to his mothe... posted on May 7 2019 (9,205 reads)

following is an adapted excerpt from A New Republic of the Heart by Terry Patten, published by North Atlantic Books, copyright © 2018 by Terry Patten. Reprinted by permission of publisher. In this pivotal moment of truth for our species, a whole wave of radical conversations is inevitable. For these conversations to really make a difference, we must break through our personas and our inauthentic poses. This is a deeper level of discourse than has hitherto seemed thinkable in public—disarming, tender, and authentic. To my knowledge, we have never had such a public conversation. Any such conversation requires an extraordinary degree of freedom and clarity and intelligence&mda... posted on Jun 2 2019 (5,494 reads)

Marton speaks with Fadak Alfayadh Fadak Alfayadh spent her childhood in Iraq—a country that shifted from one world to an entirely different, “unliveable” one seemingly overnight. 15 years ago Fadak sought refuge with her family in Australia, where they received little support from the system but were welcomed by their community in Dandenong, Victoria. Today, Fadak is paving the way for the refugees who have arrived in her wake. Her “Meet Fadak” tours combat the misperceptions that the Australian community holds about those seeking asylum and the narratives we so often hear in mainstream media, while her work as a community lawyer helps support and sett... posted on Jun 24 2019 (3,089 reads)

grown up in California with a mom who was lesbian, I thought I was one of the most open-minded people around. I was liberal, well-educated, informed on social justice issues and accepting of all people. I had helped fight the long fight for gay marriage. Naturally, I raised my daughter, Claire, to listen to her true self. She was an odd kid, unusually intelligent from a young age and socially awkward, sometimes lacking empathy and always coming at things from a different way than her peers. I had made it my practice as her mother to allow and defend her unique way of being in the world. But when she announced she was a man at age 15, she had gone too far even for this open-minded m... posted on Sep 11 2019 (14,230 reads)

article from the YES! Media archives was originally published in the Spring 2011 issue of YES! Magazine. So many of us have good ideas for helping the world. But we tuck away our ideas. I did. I’d tell myself that if the idea were any good someone else would have already done it. That I’m not capable of making a difference. I’d sit on my ideas, get on with my life, and then feel angry at the world because the problems I cared about didn’t get solved. I had that fear of going first. Then I took my first hapless step into what I call accidental activism. In 2006, I started a project where I lived as environmentally as possible for a year—with my litt... posted on Nov 18 2019 (6,341 reads)

follows is the syndicated transcript of an On Being interview between Krista Tippett and Esther Perel. Krista Tippett, host: Esther Perel has changed our discourse about sexuality and coupledom with her TED talks, her books, and her singular podcast, Where Should We Begin? There, listeners are invited into emotionally raw therapy sessions she conducts with couples she’s never met before. Episode after episode lays bare the theater of relationship, which is also the drama of being human. And that’s what I take up with her this hour. What does “erotic intelligence,” one of her terms, have to do with the human condition writ large and t... posted on Dec 18 2019 (10,521 reads)

follows is the syndicated transcript of an interview between On Being's Krista Tippett and Rabbi Amichai Lau-Lavie Krista Tippett, host: Forms of religious devotion are shifting, just like every institution right now, but there’s a new world of creativity towards crafting spiritual life while appreciatively exploring the depths of tradition. Rabbi Amichai Lau-Lavie is a fun and forceful embodiment of this evolution. Born into an eminent and ancient rabbinical lineage, as a young adult he moved away from religion towards storytelling, theater, and drag. These days, he leads a pop-up synagogue in New York City with a global profile that takes as its tagline: “eve... posted on Feb 23 2020 (4,295 reads)

we grow accustomed to life under lockdown, we are discovering the richness that can emerge from the quiet, contemplative nature of solitude. Hoping to tap into the inner wisdom of our collective attempt to find light amidst darkness, writer Emily Rose Barr asked one simple question of individuals across the globe: What are you doing that's bringing a little extra joy, light, or laughter to your days? As the answers poured in, she realized that perhaps the paradoxes of our time -- hope and fear, connection and isolation, anger and compassion -- are not meant to be reconciled, but simply to be lived. Read more to learn how the discomfort of uncertainty invites us to take care ... posted on Apr 29 2020 (7,719 reads)

think we have to love our sense of place, and champion the heck out of it,” says Greg Tehven, who is turning the world of economic development on its head and inviting people to build the communities they want to live in. Confronted with the business failings of his beloved hometown of Fargo, North Dakota, he asked himself what the community could offer to the public, that would help get it back on its feet. An unexpected answer surfaced, based on the city's small population and open spaces: drones! Fargo now hosts an annual drone conference attracting attendees from around the world. The town has quickly become an appealing city for college graduates, business leaders, an... posted on May 11 2020 (3,304 reads)

Greek mythology, Sisyphus was condemned by Zeus to endlessly try to push a large rock to the top of a hill, an activity Zeus had rigged so that as it neared the top, the rock would roll away from Sisyphus. The story captures the ultimate in frustration and activities that take all of our energy but with no end in sight. The whole exercise was rigged against Sisyphus from the outset. The poor sod was never going to beat gravity. Even though it was Zeus’ punishment for Sisyphus’ supposed hubris, you have to feel for the guy. Indeed if you’ve been involved in activism or campaigning or activism on climate change or any of a range of other issues, you’re probably findi... posted on Jun 30 2020 (4,568 reads)

Being Studios · Richard Blanco — How to Love a Country What follows is a transcript syndicated from on On Being, of an interview between Krista Tippett and Richard Blanco. Krista Tippett, host: As a longtime civil engineer by day and poet by night, the Cuban American writer Richard Blanco has straddled the many ways a sense of place merges with human emotion to form the meaning of home and belonging. In 2013, he became the fifth poet to read at a presidential inauguration — also the youngest and the first immigrant. At Chautauqua, I invited him to speak and read from his books. The wit and the deep thoughtfulness and elegance of Richard Blanco’s p... posted on Nov 22 2020 (4,377 reads)

Dunn leads the way, barefoot, down a winding track behind her house to the banks of Birrurung, or the Yarra river. As we sit on the dry grass in the late afternoon of a 40-degree day, the cicadas chirp and there’s a sense of ease despite the intense heat. The only giveaway that we are in Australia’s second largest city is the distant hum of traffic. As I talk with Claire in this little patch of nature, I start to sense how, as humans, we can also find our way back to the wilder parts within ourselves. The chatter of my domesticated mind begins to fade to a distant hum. Claire is a guide to the wilds inside and out, and her passion is nature-based human development. Sinc... posted on Mar 1 2021 (4,553 reads)

· The Defiant Tenderness Of Surrender "There are so many courageous people just making breakfast in the morning, going to work, taking care of their families, trying to do online teaching. Holy God. I mean, I just wish there was a cosmic scorekeeper that for all of the thousands and billions of people doing their everyday acts of courage that we could track that in the universe. I suspect that what we're looking at in the sky at night aren't stars, they are evidence and markers of all those courageous acts that happened earlier in the day." In this insightful and delightfully human conversation, artist Pat Benincasa, and tech leader Sonesh Surana discu... posted on Mar 15 2021 (5,365 reads)

Mallette. CC0 1.0. “Can we dare to think people are kind, and shape organisations around this view?” That’s the question Rutger Bregman examines in his latest book Humankind, and it’s one that anyone involved in youth and community work like me wrestles with on a daily basis. But is Bregman’s optimistic analysis grounded in reality? For anyone who’s read this piece on the “Real Lord of the Flies,” the gist of the first half of Bregman’s book will be familiar. His premise is that despite news reports, social media, politics, religions and ideologies that suggest otherwis... posted on Mar 8 2021 (4,501 reads)

friend was visiting Berkeley. After a long walk through the Cal campus, we ended up at the best deli on the Northside. Saul’s was packed, people waiting for a table alongside the glass case filled with pickles and kippers and chocolate-dipped macaroons. We slid into our red leather booth, and amidst the warm din of line cooks calling out orders and oranges being juiced, we laughed and ate. My plate past half-empty, I looked up to the bare pipes of the lofty ceiling, gathering the courage to explain my hope of writing a book. I was eager to hear my friend’s perspective, as he’s fifteen years my senior, and a well-established writer.  I felt my face heat up as I ga... posted on Mar 10 2021 (6,080 reads)

become an instant cliche as the pandemic reveals the threadbare fabric of our culture: the truly essential people that make day-to-day life possible are often the ones in the most precarious and poorly paid jobs. As grateful as I am to have professional people in my life, I am utterly dependent on the people who grow, harvest, and distribute food. The people who stack grocery shelves and check us out. The people willing to shop for the elderly and immunocompromised. The people picking up our garbage, manning the water and sewer systems. And, of course, the health care workers. It doesn’t take a pandemic to tell us that our culture has its values and rewards upside down. B... posted on Apr 3 2021 (5,134 reads)

from John J. Prendergast's book: Relaxed Groundedness. He is the founder and editor-in-chief of Undivided: The Online Journal of Nonduality and Psychology. The Four-Stage Continuum of Groundedness The ground is both a metaphor and a felt sense. As a metaphor, it means to be in touch with reality. As a felt sense, it refers to feeling our center of gravity low in the belly and experiencing a deep silence, stability, and connection with the whole of life. Feeling grounded does not require contact with the earth; it can happen anywhere and anytime — even when we’re flat on our backs in a rowboat. Reality is inherently grounding. The more in touc... posted on Jun 10 2021 (8,984 reads)

natural state of the mind is like calm, still water, teaches Michael Singer. The practice of spiritual surrender—to “relax and release” our resistance to whatever arises in our experience—is the pathway to enjoying serenity of mind no matter what the universe throws your way. In this podcast, Michael Singer uses the analogy of an aquatic bird maintaining its balance on rough water to illustrate what to do and what not to do if we want to stay poised and upright when life gets turbulent. [You can listen to the audio of this podcast here.] TAMI SIMON: Welcome to the Michael Singer Podcast. Michael Singer is the author of two widely influential New ... posted on Dec 31 1969 (114 reads)