The Mystical Positivist: February 2014

Saturday, February 22, 2014

The Mystical Positivist - Radio Show #146 - 22FEB14

The Mystical Positivist is now a weekly radio show on KOWS-LP 107.3 FM, Occidental, CA. Listen live on Saturday evenings from 4:00 - 6:00pm, PST, via the web at KOWS Live Stream.

This week's podcast features:

A conversation with John Suslov. John Suslov is a student of the great wisdom traditions. From an early age John has had the conviction that there is more to our inheritance of myth, tradition and religion than meets the eye. He graduated from a Russian Orthodox seminary, but after having been exposed to the work of Henry Corbin has become an ardent student of many of the great traditions, including the Greek Platonic tradition, Eastern Christianity, Islam and the Chinese and Indian traditions. He is an advocate for the position that the myths and religious traditions speak a language, and refer to a vision of reality, that differs significantly from everyday language and the reality to which everyday language refers.

He has a Bachelor of Arts in Eastern Orthodox Theology from Holy Trinity Seminary and received his Master’s Degree in Humanities with an emphasis in Religion from Dominican University of CA in 2004.

For more information about John Suslov's work, cantact him at johnsuslov @ yahoo.com

Saturday, February 15, 2014

The Mystical Positivist - Radio Show #145 - 15FEB14

The Mystical Positivist is now a weekly radio show on KOWS-LP 107.3 FM, Occidental, CA. Listen live on Saturday evenings from 4:00 - 6:00pm, PST, via the web at KOWS Live Stream.

This week's podcast features:

A conversation with Ji Hyang Padma, author of the recently released Living the Season: Zen Practice for Transformative Times. Ji Hyang Padma combines an academic career as Director of Spirituality and Education Programs at Wellesley College with her role as a Zen teacher. She has done intensive Zen training and teaching in Asia and North America for 20 years, 15 of these as an ordained nun, and has completed several 90-day intensive retreats in Korea and North America. She also teaches Zen workshops annually at Omega Institute and Esalen Institute. While her practice has been situated within the Korean Zen tradition, she has had the benefit of studying with teachers across a wide spectrum of Buddhist lineages.

Ji Hyang has also served as Director and Abbot of Cambridge Zen Center, one of the largest Zen Centers in the country. Additionally, she has served as a meditation teacher at Wellesley College, Harvard University and Boston University. She is gifted at finding an entry-point into practice for people who are just beginning their journey.

Currently, Ji Hyang is completing a Ph.D. in Transpersonal Psychology at Sofia University with a research focus on Buddhist practices of healing. She serves on the board of Education as Transformation, an international organization that works with educational institutions to explore the impact of religious diversity and the role of spirituality in the learning process.

Ji Hyang’s recent writing has been published in Our Neighbor's Faith: Stories of Interfaith Encounters and Arts of Contemplative Care: Pioneering Voices in Buddhist Chaplaincy and Pastoral Work.

More information about Ji Hyang Padma's work and interests can be found at:

Ji Hyang Padma's website: www.natural-wisdom.org
Ji Hyang Padma's Blog: www.naturalwisdom.blogspot.com

Saturday, February 8, 2014

The Mystical Positivist - Radio Show #144 - 08FEB14

The Mystical Positivist is now a weekly radio show on KOWS-LP 107.3 FM, Occidental, CA. Listen live on Saturday evenings from 4:00 - 6:00pm, PST, via the web at KOWS Live Stream.

This week's podcast features:

A conversation with Russell Schreiber, Ph.D. Russell Schreiber has worked with the Gurdjieff system of inner development for over forty years. In his new book, Gurdjieff's Transformational Psychology - The Art of Compassionate Self-Study, he explains, in depth, how modern psychology and Gurdjieff's Work enrich each other. The book explores Gurdjieff's methods within a psychological framework useful for beginner and advanced student. The book advocates for the gradual development of self-compassion, as the foundation of self-study and inner evolution. Practical exercises are given to facilitate the ability to experientially apply self-study in an objective and compassionate manner. Some areas covered in the book include:
- Attention
- Self-observation
- Sensing
- Development of Inner Life
- Specific psychological traits as focus for self-study
- Transformation of Negative Emotions
- Advanced method of Participation
- Compassion & Self-Compassion
Russell Schreiber is a practicing clinical psychologist in a community-based psychotherapy clinic in Northern California. As a staff psychologist, he supervises and trains psychologists and psychotherapists. He specializes in depth psychology and somatic psychotherapy. His recognition of the need for the development of self-compassion in his clients is emphasized in his clinical practice.

More information about Russell Schreiber's work and interests can be found at:

Russell Schreiber's Gurdjieff Reading Group in Sonoma County: www.meetup.com
Gurdjieff's Transformational Psuchology on Amazon.com: www.amazon.com
Russell Schreiber's Clinical Psychology Practice: russellschreiber-clinicalpsychologist.com

"The Mystical Positivist" Radio Show

The Mystical Positivist is a weekly radio show on KOWS-LP FM 107.3 Occidental, CA, and on the web at KOWS-LP Live Feed, Saturdays from 4 - 6pm PST. Coming up on The Mystical Positivist:

April 20: A pre-recorded conversation with Ken McLeod, Buddhist teacher and author of the newly released book, The Magic of Vajrayana. In this conversation, we plan to explore a compelling quote from Ian McGilchrist's The Matter with Things: If you had set out to destroy the happiness and stability of a people, it would have been hard to improve on our current formula: remove yourself as far as possible from the natural world; repudiate the continuity of your culture; believe you are wise enough to do whatever you happen to want and not only get away with it, but have a right to it—and a right to silence those who disagree; minimise the role played by a common body of belief; actively attack and dismantle every social structure as a potential source of oppression; reject the idea of a transcendent set of values.

One of the more innovative Buddhist teachers today, Ken McLeod is known for his clear explanations, poetic translations, and pragmatic approach to practice. He is one of the first generation of Western teachers in the Tibetan tradition and one of the few to be authorized to transmit the full scope of these teachings to students. In particular, his approach resonates strongly with those whose path lies outside established institutions.

After graduating with a degree in mathematics, Ken cycled across Europe to Istanbul and then continued his journey overland to India. In 1970 he met his principal teacher Kalu Rinpoche at his monastery near Darjeeling. There Ken began a study and practice in Tibetan Buddhism that lasted more than twenty years. He completed the traditional three-year retreat program two times, translated for many teachers, and helped set up Buddhist centers in Canada and the United States. After his teacher's passing, Ken moved away from the hierarchical structures of Asian Buddhism to explore new approaches.

In 1990, he founded Unfettered Mind in Los Angeles. His approach of one-on-one consultations roiled the Buddhist world in the early '90s, but was quickly recognized as a viable way to teach and guide students in the West. He made individual interviews a central feature of the many retreats he taught in California, New Mexico, and British Columbia. Through numerous small groups in Southern California, he developed the materials that became the encyclopedic meditation manual, Wake Up to Your Life.

Now retired from formal teaching, he lives in Northern California where he hikes and writes. His writings and translations include The Great Path of Awakening (1987), Wake Up to Your Life (2001), An Arrow to the Heart (2007), Reflections on Silver River (2014), A Trackless Path (2017), and The Magic of Vajrayana (2022), as well as a corpus of articles and translations in Tricycle and other Buddhist magazines.