Author Archives: Rick Archer

704. Anna Yusim

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Dr. Anna Yusim is an internationally recognized, award-winning, Board-Certified, Stanford, and Yale-educated Mind Body Spirit Concierge Psychiatrist & Executive Coach with a Private Practice in New York, California, Connecticut, and Florida. She is the best-selling author of Fulfilled: How the Science of Spirituality Can Help You Live a Happier, More Meaningful Life. As a Clinical Assistant Professor at Yale Medical School, Dr. Yusim is presently creating a Mental Health & Spirituality Center at Yale. With clients including Forbes 500 CEOs, Olympic athletes, A-list actors and actresses, and the Chairs of academic departments at top universities, Dr. Anna Yusim helps influential people achieve greater impact, purpose, and joy in their life and work.

After working as a neurobiology researcher with Dr. Robert Sapolsky Ph.D. and completing her studies at Stanford, Yale Medical School, and the NYU Psychiatry Residency Training Program, Dr. Yusim felt that something was missing from her life. In her quest to find it, she traveled, lived and worked in over 70 countries, while studying Kabbalah, learning Buddhist meditation, and working with South American shamans and Indian gurus.

Dr. Yusim has published over 150 academic articles, book chapters, scientific abstracts, book reviews, and articles for the lay public on various topics in psychiatry. A frequent contributor to CNN, Fox News, ABC, and NBC, she has been a guest on hundreds of national and international TV shows, radio programs, and podcasts.

As a highly sought-after speaker, Dr. Yusim gives keynotes for physicians and professionals all over the country and the world on topics related to mental health and spirituality, preventing burnout, physicians as meaning-makers, and resilience. For healthcare professionals, corporate leaders, and community members, she also conducts workshops to empower individuals to sharpen their intuition, cultivate authenticity, awaken self-compassion, enhance their capacity for empathy, and improve their ability to connect with others.

Discussion of this interview in the BatGap Community Facebook Group.

Interview recorded April 14, 2024

Video and audio below. Audio also available as a Podcast.

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703. Constance Casey

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Constance Casey, MDiv, is an author and teacher providing spiritual guidance for those interested in living a gentle and peaceful life.

Constance offers guidance for those entering deeper practice into the nature of reality and adjusting to a shift in consciousness. Her awakening occurred in 2008.
She has been practicing in the contemplative arts for over 40 years– first through her years in recovery, and then, as she deepened in Buddhist practice in 2007—which she shares in her memoir.

She’s a graduate of the Spirit Rock Community Dharma Leader Program. Some of her teachers include Trudy Goodman and Jack Kornfield.

Constance obtained a Master of Divinity focusing on religious studies and went on to do hospital chaplaincy work. As an interfaith hospital chaplain, she offered compassionate care for patients and families while embracing the spectrum of human experiences. She is also authorized by Naropa University to teach meditation.

Constance’s practice is primarily informed by the suttas in Theravāda Buddhism where she has developed her own online classes, the most recent one is called Clearing Skies: Dispelling the Clouds that Hinder Us, and she leads support groups for dedicated meditation practitioners.

Through her experience she respects and values your unique spiritual practice and journey while supporting you to find balance and significance in the face of adversity. Constance will encourage you to attune toward being more mindful and aware for release and serenity.

Her first book called Time for Awakening: A Memoir shares her story of awakening and deeper meditation practice and is what brings her to our meeting today.

Discussion of this interview in the BatGap Community Facebook Group

Summary and Transcript of this interview

Interview recorded March 30, 2024

Video below. Audio coming soon.

YouTube Video Chapters:

  • 00:00:00 – Welcome to Buddha at the Gas Pump
  • 00:05:13 – The Levels of Receptiveness to the Dharma
  • 00:09:13 – “Just Who Do You Think You Are?”
  • 00:13:05 – A Snowy Awakening
  • 00:16:54 – Healing and Bonding with My Sons
  • 00:20:17 – Parenting as a Spiritual Practice
  • 00:24:11 – A Fly on the Wall
  • 00:28:09 – Tools of Recovery
  • 00:31:31 – Ethical Structure in Spiritual Circles
  • 00:35:14 – The Vicious Cycle of Repressed Discomfort
  • 00:40:09 – Seeking Further
  • 00:43:44 – Simplifying and Finding Fulfillment Within
  • 00:47:39 – Expressing Experiences Through Art
  • 00:51:17 – Finding Balance in Self-Care
  • 00:54:59 – Honoring the Need for Rest and Balance
  • 00:58:35 – The Power of Meditation and Personal Growth
  • 01:01:38 – Constance’s Carpentry Journey
  • 01:04:44 – The Importance of Speaking Out and Trauma (Conversation)
  • 01:07:29 – Seeing the Teacher as a Human Being and the Absence of Hierarchy
  • 01:10:27 – The Indescribable Experience of Awakening
  • 01:14:19 – Following the Way
  • 01:18:32 – Psychological, Theological, Sociological Perspectives
  • 01:22:14 – The Power of Kindness in Movies
  • 01:26:42 – The Intimacy of Stream Entry
  • 01:30:45 – The Support of a Teacher
  • 01:33:33 – The Association for Spiritual Integrity
  • 01:37:43 – Factors of Enlightenment and the Hindrances
  • 01:41:38 – Hindrances in Meditation Practice
  • 01:45:49 – Cultivating Tranquility and Equanimity in Meditation
  • 01:49:05 – The Benefits of Meditation and Inner States of Being
  • 01:51:48 – Closing Remarks

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702. Neil Theise

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Neil Theise is a professor of pathology at the NYU Grossman School of Medicine. Through his scientific research, he has been a pioneer of adult stem cell plasticity and the anatomy of the human interstitium. Dr. Theise’s studies in complexity theory have led to interdisciplinary collaborations in fields such as integrative medicine, consciousness studies, and science-religion dialogue. He is a senior Zen student at the Village Zendo in NYC. His life long Jewish practice has involved both traditional observances and formal academic study. In recent years, (to his surprise) he has also undergone shamanic initiation.

Books: 

Website: neiltheiseofficial.com

Discussion of this interview in the BatGap Community Facebook Group

Summary and transcript of this interview.

Interview recorded March 9, 2024

Video and audio below. Audio also available as a Podcast.

YouTube Video Chapters:

  • 00:00:00 – Introduction to Buddha at the Gas Pump
  • 00:04:25 – Complexity Theory and the study of life
  • 00:08:34 – Dynamic Healing of the GI Tract
  • 00:12:40 – Artificial Life and Complexity Theory
  • 00:17:26 – Awakening through the Koan “Mu”
  • 00:22:41 – The Fascinating Idea of Biocentrism and Organizing Complexity
  • 00:25:45 – Discovering Complexity Theory
  • 00:28:37 – The Illusion of Materiality and the Nature of Pure Awareness
  • 00:33:37 – The Non-dual Fundamental Awareness
  • 00:37:38 – Complementarity in Quantum Physics and Beyond
  • 00:42:36 – The Quantum Field of the Body
  • 00:46:29 – Direct experiences of quantum level reality
  • 00:49:14 – The True Nature of Conscious Reality
  • 00:53:25 – The Illusion of Reality
  • 00:56:56 – The Mechanism of Human Consciousness
  • 01:01:23 – Challenging Empirical Science and Promissory Materialism
  • 01:04:51 – The Intimacy of Subject and Object in Quantum Science
  • 01:08:53 – The Limitations of Mathematics and Empirical Science
  • 01:13:30 – Gödel and Turing’s Implications for Mystical Exploration and Consciousness
  • 01:17:33 – Shifting Paradigms and the Nature of Consciousness
  • 01:21:20 – Self-Organization and Complexity in the Universe
  • 01:24:44 – Negative and Positive Feedback Loops
  • 01:29:02 – The Adjacent Possibles and Creativity
  • 01:32:16 – The Subtle Dimensions of Living Beings and the Universe
  • 01:35:26 – Language Limitations and Perspective
  • 01:39:02 – Awakening through Traumatic Experiences
  • 01:42:35 – Wondering about Luck and the Beloved Name
  • 01:45:28 – The Universe’s Construction and Spiritual Practices
  • 01:48:30 – The Divine Feminine and Unconditional Love
  • 01:52:57 – The Nature of Reality and True Compassion
  • 01:55:56 – Conclusion

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