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Mindfulness and the Brain – with Jack Kornfield ...

Dan Siegel
Jack Kornfield — December 18, 2014

Mindful awareness creates scientifically recognized enhancements in psychology, mental functions, and in our interpersonal relationships. But how can we integrate this information into our personal or professional lives? In the Mindfulness and the Brain online course, Jack Kornfield, PhD, and Dan Siegel, MD, offer theoretical and experiential teachings on the power of inner transformation and the cultivation of a wise and loving heart. With thoughtful dialogue and practical tools, this interactive professional development training offers therapists, healers, educators, parents, meditation practitioners—and anyone else interested in developing a healthy mind—an intriguing exploration of what it means for us and our world to be able to shift our awareness.

Complete with memorable anecdotes and real-life stories that illustrate key concepts, Mindfulness and the Brain offers a comprehensive training with specific learning objectives including: utilizing mindful practice to help reduce suffering and promote resilience; how a “resonance circuit” enables an individual to attune to oneself and others; and incorporating intrapersonal attunement to catalyze mental, interpersonal, and psychological well-being. Via weekly video downloads, you’ll receive more than seven hours of progressive insights and teachings from these renowned experts as well as seven different practices and exercises on audio to use in your personal or professional life. To deepen your learning, two live interactive Q&A sessions will be offered with Jack Kornfield and Dan Siegel.

From thorough explanations of scientific findings and down-to-earth Buddhist perspectives to moments of stillness and laughter, Mindfulness and the Brain invites you to discover a more integrated and connected way of knowing and developing a wise and loving heart.

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The Power of Self-Hypnosis

Dr. Steven Gurgevich — January 19, 2010

Tami Simon speaks with Dr. Steven Gurgevich, a licensed psychologist who specializes in medical hypnosis. He is the director of the Mind-Body Clinic at Dr. Andrew Weil’s Arizona Center for Integrative Medicine and the author of several Sounds True titles including the Self-Hypnosis Home Study Course, Deep Sleep with Medical Self-Hypnosis and The Self Hypnosis Diet. He will also be teaching an online course beginning May 5, 2010 on The Power of Self-Hypnosis. Dr. Gurgevich discusses how self-hypnosis works and the role our subconscious mind plays in healing. (56 minutes)

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Andrew Harvey: The Love of Divine Rebels

Andrew Harvey — May 15, 2012

Tami Simon speaks with Andrew Harvey, a poet, writer, teacher, and mystic. Andrew is the founder of the Institute for Sacred Activism, and is the author and editor of many books, including The Direct Path and Son of Man. He has created several audio programs with Sounds True, including the 13-part audio series with Caroline Myss called Divine Rebels: Saints, Mystics, Holy Change Agents—and You. In this episode, Tami speaks with Andrew about why we need both the fire of devotional practices as well as the coolness of contemplation, how there are actually two dark nights of the soul on the spiritual journey, the importance of shadow work, and what is “the whole mystical truth.” (72 minutes)

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Sandra Ingerman and Marie Manuchehri: What are Spirit ...

Marie Manuchehri
Sandra Ingerman — October 29, 2013

In this special edition of Insights at the Edge, Tami Simon speaks with Marie Manuchehri and Sandra Ingerman about their experiences with spirit guides and how we might meet these helpful forces ourselves at any moment in our lives. Sandra and Marie share their perspectives on how to access information that we can trust, communication through metaphor, and how they work with spirit guides for healing in their professional practices. Sandra and Marie also share advice and recommendations for those curious about connecting with their own spirit guides. (61 minutes)

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Seth Godin: Taking the Leap

Seth Godin — February 3, 2015

Seth Godin is a bestselling author and popular blogger who is known for his writing on marketing, the spread of ideas, and mindful business strategies. In this episode, Tami Simon and Seth discuss the concept of resistance and how it must be sought out in any effective pursuit of art. They also talk about the contemporary “connection economy” and how there is no guarantee that one can make a living through genuine self-expression—but also how one should do so anyway. Finally, they spoke on the necessity of taking leaps and Seth’s concept of living a life of faith. (62 minutes)

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How to Breathe With Your Whole Body

Clemens G. Arvay — January 24, 2019

Blog header - How to Breathe With Your Whole Body Sounds True blog

Spending time in the woods—or shinrin-yoku (“forest bathing”)—has been proven to significantly strengthen our immune system and increase our overall happiness. The forest air triggers our bloodstream to produce 40 percent more natural killer cells, which help fight harmful viruses, bacteria, and other illnesses. The tradition of forest bathing goes back a long time in Japan’s folk medicine, but it has its longest history in China and Taiwan and has been called senlinyu there for centuries.

Ancient knowledge about healing from nature is also found in traditional Chinese medicine. Numerous exercises from qigong are designed to “absorb the chi of nature” and are carried out mainly in forests or green areas with trees. Even the qigong masters of the past apparently knew that nature not only heals in the form of plant- and mineral-based pharmaceutical substances, but also by a person simply being present in a green space and breathing. In qigong, absorbing the chi of nature is always associated with breathing techniques.

Xiaoqiu Li, a two-time Chinese state champion in wushu (traditional Chinese martial arts), taught me the following exercise for “whole-body breathing.” This specific exercise helps you to take in the healthy forest air quite intensely and to release old air and harmful substances very consciously. You will especially feel the purifying effects of this exercise in your body if you are a smoker or live in a polluted city.

Look for a place in the woods that appeals to you and that has an even surface to stand on, and then follow these steps:

Stand with your feet shoulder-width apart and as parallel to each other as possible, with your knees slightly bent and arms relaxed at your sides.
“Open” your chest cavity by lifting your arms up in the air away from your body, in the form of a circle overhead, as if you were a tree revealing its mighty crown to the sky. Take a deep breath in while doing this, starting in your stomach and continuing to fill up your chest with air.
When your arms meet over your head, guide them down in front of your body, holding them together and parallel to each other. Simultaneously begin to breathe out, making fists with your hands while squatting down.
At the end of these movements, slowly press your elbows against your body at stomach level. This pressing of the elbows and curving of your body help your lungs to empty themselves entirely.
Repeat these movements slowly and mindfully and try to make everything as smooth as possible.

Excerpted from The Biophilia Effect: A Scientific and Spiritual Exploration of the Healing Bond Between Humans and Nature by Clemens G. Arvay.

Born in 1980, Clemens G. Arvay is an Austrian engineer and biologist. He studied landscape ecology (BSc) at Graz University and applied plant sciences (MSc) at the University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences in Vienna. Arvay examines the relationship between humans and nature, focusing on the health-promoting effects of contact with plants, animals, and landscapes. He also addresses a second range of topics that includes ecologically produced food along with the economics of large food conglomerates. Clemens G. Arvay has written numerous books, including his bestseller The Biophilia Effect. For more, please visit clemensarvay.com.