Date: 06/17/2018
Date: 06/24/2018
This documentary (released August 2017) is inspired by the work of Sri Aurobindo and Mirra Alfassa, and grows out of an earlier film featuring Dr. Haridas Chaudhuri.
Conscious, featuring Stanislav Grof, Brian Thomas Swimme, Michael Murphy, Aster Patel, Matthijs Cornelissen, and many more, asks about our potential to achieve a transformation in consciousness, which might be both inevitable and essential at this juncture in our development if we are going to continue the human journey within the cosmic advance. With beautiful imagery, inspiring music, and the wisdom of respected scholars, Conscious invites us to find a deeper meaning in our changing world.
Alan Baiss graduated from CIIS in Integral Counselling Psychology before working for twelve years as a Psychotherapist. While participating in a workshop facilitated by Hilary Anderson on the legacy of Dr. Haridas Chaudhuri, he became inspired to produce his first film, Integral Consciousness: Sri Aurobindo’s Yoga and how Haridas Chaudhuri brought it to the West.
Joseh Garcia is a Doctor in East-West Psychology (CIIS). He is a former psychotherapist with a focus in Transpersonal Psychology who has also ventured in the realm of music and literature. Joseh composed and performed the original soundtrack for the film.
The film Conscious is available along with a CD, which features the film’s original soundtrack, and a book, which offers more development of the descriptions offered by the interviewees than could appear in the film. Please see www.integralinspirations.com.
Date: 07/01/2018
Date: 07/08/2018
Meditation begins by not being afraid of who we are, and by being willing to communicate with all aspects of ourselves and our life. It involves the paradox of both having control over ourselves and simultaneously abandoning ourselves. Buddhist meditation is the practice of walking the razor’s edge of not too tight not too loose, suggesting that it might be refreshing to approach our everyday life without armor, meeting the world with openness.
This quality of direct contact with our immediate situation stands in contrast with “madness,” which is to be internally elsewhere, distracted and confused. Madness is when we are having breakfast while being preoccupied, and we barely taste the fresh fruit in our bowl or feel its texture or delight in its fragrance.
This talk will unpack the Buddhist map for how to walk the path of everyday life with courage, dignity and gentleness. Using contemporary Western psychological language we will clarify the essential meaning of these 2600 year old teachings, and how to make them relevant to our everyday lives.
Ira Rechtshaffer holds a Ph.D. in Buddhist studies and has been a Buddhist practitioner for approximately 40 years. He practiced Zen Buddhism in Japan for four years, has been a practitioner of Tibetan or Vajrayana Buddhism since 1976. Ira has taught Buddhism in various seminaries, contemplative centers and graduate school programs. He is a practicing psychotherapist, integrating Buddhist with Western psychology.
