Plants and trees give us our very life. Without them, we wouldn’t have our breath, tissue, food, cognitive abilities of “higher mind,” emotional stability, and spiritual guidance.
Because of our close symbiotic relationship, we share a common ground with the plants that surround us. Our life-giving connection with the green beings is inherent in our humanness and our birthright is to be intimately related.
Communicating effectively is one of the foundations in a relationship that builds to a co-creative partnership. We all know how to communicate with plants… this innate knowledge lives within us, but has been forgotten due to the chaotic nature of our day to day lives.
Do animals show empathy? Are there any signs of morality in animal societies? Can a monkey distinguish right from wrong? And what are the standards of what is right and what is not? Does morality evolve in time both for human societies and animal societies?
It is hard to imagine that empathy—a characteristic so basic to the human species that it emerges early in life, and is accompanied by strong physiological reactions—came into existence only when our lineage split off from that of the apes. It must be far older than that. Examples of empathy in other animals would suggest a long evolutionary history to this capacity in humans. Over the last several decades, we’ve seen increasing evidence of empathy in other species. Emotions suffuse much of the language employed by students of animal behavior — from “social bonding” to “alarm calls” — yet are often avoided as explicit topic in scientific discourse. Given the increasing interest of human psychology in the emotions, and the neuroscience on animal emotions such as fear and attachment, the taboo that has hampered animal research in this area is outdated. The main point is to separate emotions from feelings, which are subjective experiences that accompany the emotions. Whereas science has no access to animal feelings, animal emotions are as observable and measurable as human emotions. They are mental and bodily states that potentiate behavior appropriate to both social and nonsocial situations. The expression of emotions in face and body language is well known, the study of which began with Darwin. Frans de Waal will discuss early ideas about animal emotions and draw upon research on empathy and the perception of emotions in primates to make the point that the study of animal emotions is a necessary complement to the study of behavior. Emotions are best viewed as the organizers of adaptive responses to environmental stimuli. If you like this kind of stuff you should read: Are We Smart Enough to Know How Smart Animals Are?
As our civilization careens toward a precipice of climate breakdown, ecological destruction, and gaping inequality, people are losing their existential moorings. Our dominant worldview tells us we’re split between mind and body, separate from each other, and at odds with the natural world. This worldview has passed its expiration date: it’s based on a series of flawed assumptions that have been superseded by modern scientific findings.
In this talk, author Jeremy Lent will discuss themes from his new book, The Web of Meaning, revealing how another worldview is possible—based on our deep interconnectedness with all of life. Showing how modern scientific knowledge echoes the ancient wisdom of earlier cultures, the presentation weaves together findings from modern systems thinking, evolutionary biology, and cognitive neuroscience with insights from Buddhism, Taoism, and Indigenous wisdom.
Jeremy Lent, described by Guardian journalist George Monbiot as “one of the greatest thinkers of our age”, is an author and speaker whose work investigates the underlying causes of our civilization’s existential crisis and explores pathways toward a life-affirming future. His award-winning book, The Patterning Instinct: A Cultural History of Humanity’s Search for Meaning, examines the way humans have made meaning from the cosmos from hunter-gatherer times to the present day. His new book, The Web of Meaning: Integrating Science and Traditional Wisdom to Find Our Place in the Universe, offers a solid foundation for an integrative worldview that could lead humanity to a sustainable, and flourishing future. He is the founder of the nonprofit Liology Institute and writes topical articles exploring the deeper patterns of political and cultural developments at Patterns of Meaning. Author website: https://www.jeremylent.com
From the streets of NY, to the stillness of the Ganges, and deep into the jungles of Peru, he immerses himself in meditation, self-inquiry, and plant medicine whilst conversing with top experts like Russell Brand, Alex Grey, Graham Hancock, Joseph Goldstein, Rupert Spira, Sri Prem baba, Zelda Hall, and more to find the root cause of the problem and learn how to finally find freedom from his crippling anxiety. He finds answers to why a person who seemingly has it all can continue to suffer from debilitating panic attacks, whilst recognizing the beauty and power that lies within each of us, if we are willing to go there. Let your journey begin with Chasing the Present.
With an open mind, investigative journalist Renée Scheltema investigates the cause, and symptoms of our crisis while offering hope. She meets experts, and pioneers all over the world, trying to stave off global decline. They concentrate on matters such as ecological economics, organic agriculture, renewable energy, saving species, reducing plastic, our carbon footprints, sustainable finance, and more..
I recently saw the documentary, Aware: Glimpses of Consciousness, and I felt that it would be a perfect conversation for the show because of how it digs into multiple layers of consciousness and asks a lot of big questions and answers, a couple of questions. But you’re also left with questions at the end of films, which is always a good sign to keep the conversation going.
Frauke Sandig and Eric Black have done a number of other projects together on a common theme of social, environmental, and psychological consciousness.
Set to be theatrically released in the US and Germany in September 2021, Aware confronts the “Big Questions”, cutting a window into a realm previously held tight by philosophy and religion: AWARE follows six brilliant researchers, approaching the greatest of all mysteries from radically different perspectives, from within and without: through high-tech brain research and Eastern meditation, by scientifically exploring inner space through psychedelic substances and by investigating the consciousness of plants. Scientists are arriving at new insights – some have been integral to Indigenous knowledge for millennia.
AWARE opens as a science film but emerges well beyond the explicable, ultimately leading one on a voyage upon the ocean of consciousness, a contemplative, sensual, cinematographic meditation. The networks of consciousness are reflected in ‘grand’ imagery revealing the vast interconnectedness of Nature – from the smallest organisms to the world of plants and animals and on to the cosmos.
We explore the depths and crevasses of the topic of consciousness and how we are impacted by it inwardly and outwardly through meditating, psychedelic research, etc.
The duo has done exceptional work highlighting stories or topics that challenge our subjective experience and implore the viewers to look harder, think deeper, and act better.
“I found AWARE to be in many ways the most moving and beautiful depiction of deep understanding of consciousness and of who we are that I have seen depicted through film.” – Jack Kornfield, author and Buddhist teacher “
Aware: Glimpses of Consciousness is a heady experience – dare I say spiritual? – that stirs feelings of awe and wonder, humility and connection… the film creates a contemplative openness that words alone might find hard to describe. It’s a remarkable film.” – Valerie Kalfrin, Alliance of Women Film Journalists
What is consciousness? Is it in all living beings? What happens when we die? Why do we seem to be hardwired for mystical experience? In these times of existential crisis, there has been an explosion of research into consciousness. AWARE follows six brilliant researchers, approaching the greatest of all mysteries from radically different perspectives, from within and without: through high-tech brain research and Eastern meditation, by scientifically exploring inner space through psychedelic substances and by investigating the consciousness of plants.
With Richard Boothby, Monica Gagliano, Roland Griffiths, Josefa Kirvin Kulix, Christof Koch, Matthieu Ricard and Mingyur Rinpoche
For 20 years, Lynne McTaggart, an internationally bestselling and award-winning author, has been uncovering your birthright – the miraculous power of intention. In this interview, Lynne McTaggrt shares her knowledge on the importance of connection, relationships, and community.
In this conversation, Tara interviews Dan about the themes in his new book, “IntraConnected.” They explore how our identity gets formed, and the profound healing and freedom that come with widening our sense of identity from me to what Dan terms “Mwe” (me plus we.) The principles they touch on come from indigenous wisdom, the contemplative or wisdom traditions, neuroscience and quantum physics.
Conversation with Tara Brach and Dan Siegel: Part II – IntraConnected [2022-12-21]
