"What I got from the show Mystical Experience is seeing the beauty of universal diversity when wisdom, patience and respect are in the conversation." - Shahid Muhammad, chat participant quote via Facebook

Question: Does fearfulness lead to aggression and fundamentalism? Do those on the spiritual path go through a fundamentalist stage? What is the best way to address fundamentalism inside and with others? What can we learn from this new understanding about how we work with those that come from a fundamentalist perspective?

This is a continuation of a conversation I had with the lovely human being and great shaman Sandra Ingerman.

Interview with Sandra Ingerman, Part 2 by global_spirit

In this podcast we talk about:

How joy and love are our responsibility to the future.
How can an really listen to what the earth needs from us.
Sandra’s work with Fundamentalist Christians.
Shamanism and the the Bible.
What is the difference between Shamanism and Mysticism?
Integrating mystical experience.

Again, we would love to hear your comments here or on Facebook.
Much Gratitude.

Megan

Several months ago I had a conversation with a great American Shaman, Sandra Ingerman.  It was my first interview in a long time and I have to say I am so happy it was with her… for there is an ease about her, a homeyness and deep presence that made me quite comfortable and allowed for a certain kind of flow to happen between us. I had committed to myself to make this Podcast something that was alive, in the moment and interactive... a conversation between two people trying to become fully human and I feel we really hit the mark (although I do cringe a bit when I hear my voice!!)

Listen to Part 1:

Interview with Sandra Ingerman, Part 1 by Global Spirit

There are two parts that we will be posting. In this first one which is 25 minutes long, we discuss how we as individuals can actively participate in the healing of the world. We talked specifically about the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, but what Sandra says can be applied to any world event... even those that are extremely positive, like what is going on in the Middle East, and the demand for the right to govern oneself. How can we support positive things and how can we work with the positive in seemingly negative situations?  We also talked about what is being taught to us through world events and how we might listen to the symbolism, the news behind the news, and support what is being born. 

And then we moved into the idea of spiritual responsibility.  How our individual shadow and dreams contribute to the collective, and what we manifest in the world together. And then lastly, we discussed what can we do to champion what is coming alive in us and around us and how our joy and following our hearts can guide us beyond ego desires to contribute to the health of the whole.

Seems like a lot! But somehow... she made it simple and I am so grateful for her participation in this podcast and her great wisdom.

I also want to thank Adrianne Anderson, super producer, for all her input and help, for without her this would not have been made.

I hope you enjoy it and PLEASE comment... We want to hear what you know and what you want to hear more of.

Megan

UPDATE: Part 2 of the Interview with Sandra Ingerman.

There are a select few public figures alive in the world today that have transcended fame and entered the realm of living legend. It is difficult to separate person and myth when they have reached this level, and rare to get a glimpse into who they really are. The Dalai Lama is one such figure, someone who has been in the public spotlight for the majority of his life, a person who is seen as a holy symbol by his people and revered the world over for his courage and outspokenness against oppression. Yet, behind the public persona there is a man who few outside of his inner circle have seen. Filmmaker Josh Dugdale gained unprecedented access to His Holiness for a three-year period and was able to elucidate not only the Dalai Lama’s true political intentions, but also his humor, joy, pain, and humanity as well. The result is Sunday’s DOC-DEBUT premiere of The Unwinking Gaze.

Throughout his lifetime, the Dalai Lama has struck a tenuous balance between spiritual leader and political activist. It is an amazing feat for a person to be able to carry such gravitas spiritually while also being a savvy political operator and inspirational leader. And to think that this person was discovered as the reincarnation of the Dalai Lama in a far flung village at the age of two makes one wonder whether the Tibetan leaders who found him really did come upon the true reincarnation. One of the most intriguing mysteries surrounding this man is whether he has become the individual he is through teaching, meditation, and life experience, or whether divine lineage through past lives really do account for his extraordinary character.

Josh Dugdale’s film gets closer to this answer than any movie that has come before: there is no clear explanation beyond the Dalai Lama’s humility and humanity. Dugdale follows him from the headquarters of the Tibetan government in exile in Dharamsala, India, to Canada, England, and the United States. The film shows the Dalai Lama as an oasis of composure in a sea of chaos. He is surrounded by Chinese misinformation techniques, radical Tibetans who are impatient at his approach, opportunistic Western politicians, and fiery emotions on all sides. Dugdale is able to get inside the calm eye of the storm and see what makes the Dalai Lama tick. His Holiness is indefatigable despite his frenzied calendar and advancing age. He remains patient in pursuit of a solution despite his people’s growing anxiety. He is aware of Western countries’ attempts to use him as a pawn in their power plays against increasing Chinese influence, and like a skilled chess player, strategically sees several moves ahead.

On his motivations for making The Unwinking Gaze, director Dugdale says, “I had seen a number of films on the Dalai Lama, but I felt they didn’t show who he really was. It seemed that he was being wheeled out for the cameras, for stage-managed set pieces.” This film strips away the veneer and gets at the man behind the curtain. It presents fair critiques from both sides, and the measured responses of the Dalai Lama. In an age of fiery political rhetoric and few admirable leaders, it is refreshing to see someone confront maddening politics with reason. It is even more refreshing to see the internal struggles that the Dalai Lama confronts, just like any other human being has to. Tune in this Sunday at 11pm EST/8pm PST and meet the real Dalai Lama for the first time.

Link TV's new spirituality series, Global Spirit, premiered on April 12 and is now available online!

Global Spirit will offer insights into some of mankind’s deepest existential questions, tracing our collective human journey in the timeless quest for truth, wisdom and understanding. Each Global Spirit program will highlight the trans-cultural, transcendent dimensions of human inquiry, from the ancient or indigenous wisdom traditions to the latest advances in scientific knowledge. Global Spirit will do for the first time on national television what the Mars Rover did for space: beam back a celestial wonder, a glimmer of what is possible in the realm of human consciousness, spirit and the mind.
 
Most new episodes will also premiere online weekly.

What Muzzammil Hassan has done to his wife is reprehensible, sick and horrendous. But I would not be so quick to label this murder an honor killing. What is an honor killing anyway?  I would not be so quick to conclude that Islam or even Pakistani culture has anything to do with what this man has done. Perhaps he got in a fight with his wife and decided to kill his her then and there.  In America, this is murder, plain and simple.  So let us not blame the murderer’s or the victim’s culture or religion without knowing the facts behind this terrible killing. We should blame the murderer himself, who like other murderers  before him, have put aside all religious and ethical values in committing his crime.

All I can say is Inna lillah wa inna ilayhi rajiun “We come from God and to God we shall return.”

According to National Women Abuse Prevention Project,  34% percent of the women homicide victims over age 15 are killed by their husbands, ex-husbands or boyfriends.

Below are some more interesting statistics that put this case into perspective

The National Crime Victimization Survey found that in 2005:

• Intimate partner violence occurs across all populations, irrespective of social, economic, religious or cultural group. Young women and those below the poverty line are disproportionately affected.

• Nearly 5.3 million intimate partner victimizations occur each year among U.S. women ages 18 and older. This violence results in nearly 2 million injuries and 1,300 deaths.

• 44% of women murdered by their intimate partner had visited an emergency department within two years of the homicide. Of these women, 93% had at least one injury visit.

• Seventy-four percent of all murder-suicides involved an intimate partner. Of these, 96% were females killed by their intimate partners and 75% of those incidents occurred in the home.

You would think that it can not happen in the USA. You could think that if one creates a channel for tolerance and understanding ISLAM, you are a good person. But you never know what lurks under the skin and facade of people. Both of us have been working to break streotypes, and changing perception of the other. This story makes is clearly a challenge. The murder of Aasiya Hassan near Buffalo, NY, is supposed to be some sort of Honor killing. By her husband is the founder of such a TV channel. Apparently he decided that a terrible tradition, that has not been yet eradicated in the Middle East, is good everywhere. I wondered what you know about violence against Muslim Women in the USA? Why and how do some immigrant import such “traditions”? What is being done about it?

David, I think that people always take risks by doing something that is considered unpopular. Certainly, we are both taking risks but if it means being examples of how two people from two totally different backgrounds and perhaps opinions can get along, then I am all for it!

It has taken a long time and many years of working in the same office to get to this juncture and actually posting a joint blog. Living in America, I have always been around people of other faiths, particularly of the Jewish faith. One thing we usually always agreed upon was not to talk politics because we would surely disagree.

It’s my hope that the combination of your chutzpah and my prayers will lead to a substantive dialogue that is a mix of culture, politics, personal ruminations and fun.

Souheila, eyes are the window to the soul. When I look into your eyes I know that I can trust you .This did not happen overnight. It was a process between 2 people who come from very different background and history. As you wrote in my birthday card, you liked my Chutzpa, I saw that a sense of humor helped.

Our openness and mutual respect also helped.Your daily praying during work breaks caught my attention. I was intrigued, as in Israel I would always would be at a great distance from Muslim Women. I interacted only with secular Arab women who appeared on my Tv shows. I think this unique trust could only happen here in the USA–outside the deep polarized and suspicious world of the Mid East.

So looking into your Green eyes I reflect that we are a minority which reaches out and that you might take a risk by making our friendship public.