Spiritual Wisdom in Great Literature

Can the literature we love convey the awakening we seek? Host, Dr. Laurel Trujillo welcomes Dean Sluyter, award winning author and teacher, on a journey for discovering dharmic pathways in Western literature. Find how inspiration and spiritual insight can be found anywhere, at any time, in any situation.

Dean Sluyter has taught natural approaches to meditation and spiritual awakening since 1970. A grateful student of Eastern and Western sages in several traditions, Dean has completed numerous pilgrimages and retreats in India, Tibet, Nepal, and the West. He is known for conveying authentic teachings in forms that are relaxed, accessible, and down-to-earth.  He gives talks, workshops, and retreats throughout the United States and beyond, from Ivy League colleges to maximum-security prisons. His media appearances have included National Public Radio, The New York Times, Coast to Coast AM, The Dr. Oz Show, and O, The Oprah Magazine. Dean is the author of several books including the book that is discussed in this program “The Dharma Bum’s Guide to Western Literature”.

WEBSITE: DEANSLYTER.COM

THE YOGA HOUR TEAM COMMENTS: The conversation with Dean Sluyter was brimming with his infectious enthusiasm. "If it's not fun, what's the point." It's remarkable how he finds dharmic pathways in so many writings. He sees everything as a dharma gate. The message in the Cat In the Hat is the spirit of freedom or moksha. Huckleberry Finn discovered meditating in nirvana (samadhi) floating down the river. I loved his insight that the infinite is not far away. It is closer than close. You are it. It's just falling back into what you have been all along. You can find it everywhere, in literature and in everything. I highly recommend this podcast

DR. TRUJILLO’S COMMENTS: What a joy to have Dean Sluyter as a guest on The Yoga Hour to discuss his new book The Dharma Bums Guide to Western Literature. We were able to draw so many great examples from his book of how inspiration and spiritual insight can be found anywhere, at any time, in any situation reflecting the infinite omnipresence of the Divine. It’s something special when one conversation can draw spiritual lessons from Dr. Seuss, Frederick Douglas, Ralph Waldo Emerson and Henry David Thoreau. I loved his closing inspiration, that the infinite is not very far away, that we can just fall back into what we have been all along

Embrace Grief—Find Healing

How can we heal from the individual and collective grief we experience from the suffering on this planet? Author and teacher Michelle Cassandra Johnson shares spiritual tools that support us in experiencing our grief. We can take action with an open heart in heartbreaking times.

Michelle is a social justice warrior, author, Dismantling Racism trainer, yoga teacher and practitioner. With over twenty years of experience in leading Dismantling Racism work and working with clients as a licensed clinical social worker, Michelle has a deep understanding of how trauma impacts the mind, body, spirit, and heart. She is the author of Skill in Action and the book we are discussing today, Finding Refuge: Heart Work For Healing Collective Grief. She also has a podcast called Finding Refuge.

You can learn more about Michelle and her work at her website MichelleCJohnson.com

THE YOGA HOUR TEAM COMMENTS: This program is going to be a very good addition to our other programs on racial justice and spiritual right action. As Michelle stated, we are dealing with grief, collective grief, as we look at our world and at our history in relation to race and also to all the suffering that is going on in the world. Her book is about looking at that grief, not shying away from it, as painful as it is. She says we need to open our broken hearts to it and understand it so that we can heal from it. Only through healing can we then move forward with compassionate right action. I really appreciate that the teachings of the Bhagavad Gita and the Yoga Sutras guide her work and I appreciate how she brings that out in the practices for healing that she shares in her book.

DR. TRUJILLO’S COMMENTS: It was lovely to discuss how yoga philosophy and the teachings in the Bhagavad Gita both support racial justice and provide a framework for healing our collective grief. I appreciated that she included two verses from the Bhagavad Gita in her book, which she translated as: (2.12) "Never was there a time when I did not exist, or you, or these kings; nor will there come a time when we cease to be.” and (2.40) “No effort is wasted, no gain ever reversed; even a little of this practice will shelter you from sorrow.” These Bhagavad Gita verses, referring to our immortal soul nature, and to the benefit of practice, being sheltered from sorrow, allow us to be present to our heart break and yet remain open-hearted.

The Science of Yoga

How does science quantify yoga’s impact on human physiology? Eddie Stern, yoga practitioner and teacher, shares how Western science is beginning to explain how the practices of yoga can override habitual responses to the world to move us into deeper states of expanded awareness.

Eddie Stern is a yoga teacher, author, and lecturer from New York City. He is known for his multidisciplinary approach to furthering education and access to yoga, as well as his teaching expertise in Ashtanga Yoga. He has been practicing and studying yoga, Sanskrit, and related disciplines since 1987. He is the author of One Simple Thing: A New Look at the Science of Yoga and How It Can Transform Your Life. He co-designed the Yoga and Physiology course at New York University (NYU).

His website is EddieStern.com

THE YOGA HOUR TEAM COMMENTS: It was very interesting to look at the actual science of yoga with Eddie Stern. I was attracted to how the five kleshas (causes of suffering) are governed by different areas of the brain and how we can diminish or weaken their effect by tapping into the neuroplasticity of the brain. The description of meditation opening space in the mind was particularly powerful for me. The idea that meditation opens and expands the gap between thoughts which allows the non-rising of samskaras is fascinating and hopeful.

Change Your Destiny: Part Two

Is it possible to change your destiny? Join Yogacharya Ellen Grace O’Brian, founder of The Yoga Hour, for the second part of this series as she explores the wisdom of the Yoga Sutras of Patanjali, revealing how the tools of yoga possess the key to transform your life trajectory.

Ellen Grace O'Brian (Yogacharya O’Brian) is an acclaimed teacher, award-winning author, and minister who has served seekers of spiritual enlightenment from all walks of life for over forty years. She has published several books and audio programs about meditation, mindfulness and spiritual living, offering a refreshing and authentic voice that makes timeless wisdom accessible to the modern mind. Through her teaching and publications, Yogacharya O’Brian helps people learn to live from the inside out with practices and insights for developing life-transforming skills to cultivate a spiritually awakened, fulfilled life.On her author website, EllenGraceO’Brian.com she offers many online programs. Watch her wisdom talks on her YouTube channel, Ellen Grace O’Brian. She is the founder and spiritual director of The Center for Spiritual Enlightenment and the founder and spiritual director of The Yoga Hour.

THE YOGA HOUR TEAM COMMENTS: What a deep and inspiring conversation with Yogacharya. I very much appreciate the treasure of having a scientifically based road map for changing the trajectory of our life through steady practice of Kriya Yoga meditation and samadhi. She says that if we understand how the mind works, then we can change the patterns in the mind and find liberation from those patterns that don’t serve us. The science of yoga shows us that we can experiment in the laboratory of our own lives. Yogacharya's description and explanation of the three Kriya Yoga practices - self-discipline, self-study, and self-surrender - will bring renewed life to my practice as I am reminded how following this map allows me to quiet the mind enough to experience samadhi. I highly recommend listening to this episode.

DR. TRUJILLO’S COMMENTS: The topic of “Change Your Destiny” turned out to be a good platform for Yogacharya and I to discuss the three practices of Kriya Yoga (self-discipline, self-study, and self-surrender), as well as the importance of having a steady meditation practice and practicing dispassionate non-attachment. As she mentioned, a steady meditation practice helps us to bring more sattvic energy, or illumination, into the mental field, and the practice of self-discipline allows us to arrange conditions so that we are living in the highest way. It strikes me that if we have a steady, regular meditation practice that changes the climate of our minds, and can practice Kriya Yoga (self-discipline, self-study, and self-surrender), it would change so much about the way that we live in the world that it would likely transform our life trajectory (our destiny) as well.

Change Your Destiny: Part 1

Is it possible to change your destiny? Join Yogacharya Ellen Grace O’Brian, spiritual leader, writer, and poet, as she explores the wisdom of the Yoga Sutras of Patanjali, revealing how the tools of yoga possess the keys to transform your life trajectory.

Yogacharya Ellen Grace O’Brian is an acclaimed teacher, poet, award-winning author, and minister who has served seekers of spiritual enlightenment from all walks of life for over forty years. She is the recipient of the 2021 New Thought Walden Award for Interfaith and Intercultural Understanding.  She has published several books including her latest book, The Jewel of Abundance: Finding Prosperity Through the Ancient Wisdom of Yoga. We are currently celebrating a yearlong series of Yoga Yantra, or Divine Pilgrimage, programs to honor the 40th Anniversary of her ministry ordination and the founding of the Center for Spiritual Enlightenment.

A teacher in the tradition of Kriya Yoga, Yogacharya O’Brian serves people from all faith backgrounds who are seeking Self- and God-realization, or awakening. She is the spiritual director of the Center for Spiritual Enlightenment, a meditation center in San Jose, CA. You can find out more about Yogacharya O’Brian’s books and online programs at EllenGraceOBrian.com and CSEcenter.org.

You can also follow her on social media: Facebook, Instagram and YouTube by searching for Ellen Grace O'Brian.

THE YOGA HOUR TEAM COMMENTS: It is a powerful concept, to think that we can change our destiny. The teaching that Yogacharya offered gave us the basics of what the mind is and how the mind can be purified through meditation and our spiritual practices. As Yogacharya said, these teachings are very logical. I appreciated the discussion of Samskaras- the repeated patterns of behavior that direct future behavior. Yogacharya said that samskaras are actually the recording system for karma. Yogacharya also said that through our meditation and spiritual practices the faculty of discernment becomes purified so that it becomes a mirror for the Self. This is how we discern what is right action. When our mind becomes purified we can discern whether our thoughts and actions will change the climate of the mental field so that pain producing thoughts are "neutered". There was so much that Yogacharya shared that helped me feel very positive. We can change our destiny through the practices of Kriya Yoga. I am looking forward to Part Two of this series.

DR. TRUJILLO’S COMMENTS: I loved talking with Yogacharya O’Brian about how to change our destiny through the practices of yoga. We began with the idea of disciple as learner, and explored Patanjali’s Yoga Sutras as a way to understand “how do we know what is true?” As the Yoga Sutras teach us: through direct experience, inference, and valid testimony from scripture or valid authority. Our conversation was so rich: about samskaras (mental impressions) in general, and how we can build positive samskaras in particular, and how we can "change the climate of the mental field” through superconscious meditation.

Spiritual Evolution—Spiritual Revolution

How are the ancient sciences of yoga and Ayurveda sparking a global spiritual evolution? Mas Vidal, author and teacher, discusses how these timeless wisdom practices provide a methodology for healing ourselves, healing the world, and inspiring a future we can all work towards.

Mas Vidal, teacher of Yoga and Ayurveda, and author of the book discussed in this program, The Evolution Revolution: Yoga, Ayurveda, and the Rise of the Soft Power Culture. Mas Vidal integrates a background of athletics, therapeutics, science and ecology into a dynamic synthesis that has lead him to become an innovative voice in the field of integral Yoga and Ayurveda. He offers certification and educational programs internationally and maintains an active counseling practice that embraces Vedanta, Ayurveda and Vedic astrology. He follows the lineage teachings of Paramahansa Yogananda of the Self Realization Fellowship and Swami Jyotirmayananda of the Sivananda lineage. 

His website is Dancingshiva.com, and you can find him on Facebook @dancingshivayoga.

YOGA HOUR TEAM COMMENTS: I appreciated the questions Mas Vidal asks at the beginning of his book- Am I evolving? What does it mean to live an evolutionary life? Am I living a life that is segregated from nature or one that embraces the world as a reflection of my own consciousness?” These are important questions to ask ourselves as we move along the path of yoga. As Mas talks about the philosophy of Vedanta which he practices, I see the very close relationship to the practices of Kriya Yoga which is what is practiced at The Center for Spiritual Enlightenment. These questions that he suggests that we ask ourselves are Self-Inquiry, one of the three pillars of Kriya Yoga. So many of us get stuck in thinking that having specific experiences in meditation are the evidence of our spiritual evolution, but as Yogacharya has taught us and Mas Vidal emphasizes in his book, it is about looking and listening to all of our life and the life around us, (the Kriya Yoga practice of Self-discipline) and understanding and surrendering to the understanding that we are all One with that—we are not separate, which is the third pillar of Kriya Yoga- surrender. I really appreciate Mas Vidal's way of articulating these ancient teachings, making them very relatable for our modern life.

DR. TRUJILLO’S COMMENTS: I really enjoyed our talk about the transformative practices of yoga, Ayurveda, and Vedanta as a path of spiritual evolution. He stated it so clearly at the beginning of our conversation: there is no higher purpose than Self-realization, recognizing our true nature as divine. His exhortation to look at the world as a reflection of our own consciousness really points listeners in a great direction. I appreciated the markers of spiritual evolution that we discussed: a person begins to feel a greater connection to their surroundings and to the energy of all things; the increasing realization that you are the soul; there is increased attunement between the mind and body; the mind becomes more reflective and less reactive; and the mind begins to discern the difference between needs and desires. It’s a great list.

The Rhythm of Life: Thriving with Yoga and Ayurveda

How can we feel rejuvenated, energized, and more at ease in our day? Cate Stillman, teacher of yoga and Ayurveda, shares daily habits that can decrease stress, cultivate peace of mind, and bring radiant longevity to our lives.

Cate Stillman is the author of the book we are discussing today Body Thrive: Uplevel Your Body and Your Life with 10 Habits from Ayurveda and Yoga. Cate has been teaching Ayurveda and yoga programs locally and globally since founding her website YogaHealer.com in 2001. She is the founder and host of the podcast Yogahealer Podcast. Cate offers classes and programs that support people who want to thrive in their bodies and achieve their life goals.

WEBSITE: YogaHealer.com

THE YOGA HOUR TEAM COMMENTS: Cate described that healthy habits align with our life force are the habits of the yogis. It is our natural way of being. Healthy habits are based on syncing with our natural circadian rhythms. She and Dr. Trujillo also talked about how to change unhealthy habits, we can just start in small ways. One of the things Cate stressed that was meaningful to me is that in order to be successful in making life changes it is very helpful to find others who already practice the habits we want next - that we can’t do it alone. (This is very similar to Yogacharya O’Brians stress on the importance of community.). The habits that Cate shares involve being in line with the rhythms of nature.

DR. TRUJILLO’S COMMENTS: I enjoyed talking with Cate about behavior change and incorporating habits that put us more in tune with the rhythms of nature. I appreciated our conversation about how to be more successful at changing habits. We also gave our listeners some ideas about different behaviors to change: eating an earlier and lighter dinner, getting to bed earlier, and incorporating meditation as a daily habit.

THE YOGA HOUR PROGRAM WITH B.J. FOGG,AUTHOR OF Tiny Habits: The Small Changes That Change Everything

Deepen Your Spiritual Practice Through the Dharma of Poetry

How can poetry open up new ways of thinking, feeling, and being in the world? Author, teacher, and poet John Brehm shares how we can enter a poem, allowing its power to be a gateway to experience a deeper sense of wonder and mystery.

John Brehm is the author of several books of poetry, and editor of the anthology The Poetry of Impermanence, Mindfulness, and Joy.  His most recent book is a collection of essays, The Dharma of Poetry, which we will be discussing today. His poems have appeared in numerous publications including Poetry, The Writer’s Almanac, Poetry Daily, The Best American Poetry, The Norton Introduction to Literature, and many other journals and anthologies. John teaches for Mountain Writers Series in Portland, Oregon, and for The Lighthouse Writers Workshop in Denver, Colorado. He offers a monthly Poetry as Spiritual Practice gathering and with his wife, Alice Boyd, leads mindfulness retreats that incorporate Feldenkrais Awareness Through Movement lessons, guided meditations, and mindful poetry discussions. He lives in Portland, Oregon.

WEBSITE: JohnBrehmPoet.com

GUEST COMMENTS: Thank you so much, Laurel, for having me on the show and being such a wonderful host. I felt such a nice connection with you and so appreciated all your questions, as well as the calm presence you brought to our conversation. You made it easy to go deep into the poems. It was a real pleasure and I'm extremely grateful. I know it will bring attention to poetry as spiritual practice.

YOGA HOUR TEAM COMMENTS: As a person who is not really into poetry but would like to be, this conversation has helped open up a new appreciation for me. John Brehm says we can let go of analyzing a poem and what it means, which is the traditional way poetry is taught and just listen, experience and appreciate the poem. I appreciated how he said that poetry has become his spiritual practice. He said "Reading, writing and teaching about poetry are deeply spiritual for me. It has always felt like a way to get closer to the sacred. It gives me a sense of being in the universe in a way that is awake, alive and aware." It was beautiful to hear Laurel read some of the poems to John as well as offering him opportunities to read. His inclusion of poems from many different authors illustrates the concepts that he wants to share. The discussion of James Wright's poem The Blessing as well as Denise Levertov's poem Aware deeply moved me and inspired me to see and read poetry in a new way. Laurel’s inclusion of Yogacharya O’Brian’s poem, Someone Left the Door Open from her book The Moon Reminded Me, at the beginning of the program beautifully set the stage for the rest of the conversation. Thank you for bringing John Brehm to us.

DR. TRUJILLO’S COMMENTS: What a joy it was to have John Brehm on the show to talk about poetry and his lovely lovely book The Dharma of Poetry. I loved sharing some poems with our listeners and talking about how poems can be spiritual teachers, with lessons like: “pay attention; walk through the world with reverence and wonder; look closely at extraordinary experiences and even more closely at “ordinary" ones”. I also loved the idea that poems, which are written through the heightened awareness of the poet, can call forth that same heightened awareness from within us. We gave some great examples of how poetry can deepen one’s spiritual practice which I hope were inspirational to our listeners.