675. John Churchill

Born in London, Dr. Churchill’s interest in psycho-spiritual development, Integral theory, Contemplative studies, Western Esotericism, and Mahayana Buddhism began in his adolescence,. During this time, John received the esoteric Planetary Dharma transmissions that would in time unfold as his contribution to a planetary fourth turning teaching.

Dr. Churchill spent 15 years training and teaching “Great Seal” meditation in an Indo-Tibetan Mahayana lineage under the mentorship of the late senior Western teacher, translator, respected author, and clinical psychologist Dr. Daniel P. Brown.

He is also a founding member of the Integral Institute led by esteemed Transpersonal/Integral philosopher, Ken Wilber.

John has received advanced training in: attachment therapy, hypnosis, positive psychology for peak performance, and the “Pointing Out” style of Mahamudra meditation.

For the last 25 years, John has developed a a Fourth Turning Planetary Dharma practice which includes the somatically based contemplative practice path; Embodying the Open Ground, that integrates psychodynamic healing, adult development and meditation.

John holds a Doctorate in Clinical Psychology from William James College, and is a practitioner of Traditional Chinese Medicine.

Married to his partner, Nicole since 2000, they are Co-Founders of Samadhi Integral, and Co-Directors of Karuna Mandala.

Book: Becoming Buddha: Buddhist Contemplative Psychology in a Western Context

Discussion of this interview in the BatGap Community Facebook Group

Summary and transcript of this interview

Interview recorded January 29, 2023.

YouTube Video Chapters:

00:00:00 – Introduction to Buddha at the Gas Pump
00:05:37 – The Different Dimensions of Mind and Cross-training the Mind
00:11:07 – The Path of the Bodhisattva
00:17:12 – Meeting the Needs of a Different Population
00:22:54 – Developing a Contemplative System in the West
00:27:53 – Examining Components and Creativity in Meditation Practices
00:33:32 – Understanding Different Types of Spiritual Practices
00:39:15 – Transcending Sacred Technologies Through Collaboration
00:44:40 – Allowing Our Natural Tendency to Unfold
00:50:08 – Describing the Experience of Brahman
00:55:41 – Gaia as a Multidimensional Being
01:01:41 – Perspectives and Metacognition
01:07:26 – Exploring the Fundamental Nature of Reality
01:12:26 – The Next Stage of Human Development
01:18:12 – Education and Spiritual Development
01:23:03 – Tiered Levels of Cognition and Development
01:28:02 – The Four-Year Contemplative Education
01:32:05 – The Plant Dimension
01:33:19 – The Sacred Tradition of Herbal Medicine
01:38:25 – Thoreau’s Belief in Building Foundations
01:44:05 – A New Contemplative System with Psychedelics
01:49:43 – Legalization of Marijuana and Psilocybin
01:55:20 – Personal Experiences with the Law
02:00:07 – The Significance of a Skull Symbol
02:04:57 – Personal Connection and Future Meetup

674. Debra Martin

Debra Martin is a World-Renowned Intuitive Healer and an International Research Lab Certified Medium with the Windbridge Research Center. Debra is a Spiritual Coach, Survivor of three near death experiences, cancer and an author of six books. Her most recent: “Proof of Miracles” & “Doctors, Faith & Courage”.

Debra had her third near death experience on 1-21-12 where she had an out of body experience and conversation with God. From this experience her mediumship abilities heightened, and she was given the gift to heal.

Debra has developed a healing technique which is not being done anywhere else in the world. In 2013, the Logos Church ordained her as a healing minister due to the healing miracles they were witnessing.

She is a motivational speaker and has been on many radio networks.

Discussion of this interview in the BatGap Community Facebook Group.

Summary and transcript of this interview

Interview recorded January 8, 2022.

YouTube Video Chapters:

00:00:00 – Childhood Encounters with Faces at Night
00:04:17 – Shutting Off and Fitting In
00:08:36 – The Process of Mediumship
00:12:36 – Connecting with the Other Side
00:16:11 – A Life-Changing Car Accident
00:20:01 – Intervention from a Non-Corporeal Being
00:23:29 – The Mysterious Stranger
00:26:26 – A Big Near-Death Experience
00:30:01 – A Divine Encounter and Life Plan
00:33:28 – Unraveling the Mystery of the 90-Pound Condition
00:36:42 – A Personal Connection with God
00:39:53 – Remote Healing and Spiritual Journeys
00:43:33 – Healing Childhood Trauma
00:46:57 – The Healing Process and Physical Effects
00:50:15 – Spiritual Surgeons and Healing Others
00:54:02 – The Power of Lavender Oil
00:58:33 – Healing Childhood Trauma
01:05:45 – Healing Possession of Negative Energy
01:12:07 – Healing through Ancestral Release
01:19:13 – Healing from Resentment Towards Father
01:26:08 – Embracing the Journey of Cancer
01:33:22 – Individual vs Group Healings
01:39:56 – Trusting the Healing Process and Honoring Yourself
01:47:35 – Honoring Yourself and Taking Time Off

673. Anthony Peake

Anthony Peake is the author of 12 books. He has lectured across the UK and Europe and has also given talks in New York and Melbourne, Australia. He has appeared on national television in Germany and France and has been interviewed on numerous BBC local radio stations and nationally on BBC Radio Five Live.

Here are the themes of four of Anthony’s books most relevant to what we discuss in this interview.

  • Is There Life After Death: The Extraordinary Science of What Happens When We Die (2006) Do you occasionally have that strange feeling known as déjà vu? Do you sometimes feel that you know what is going to happen next? Do you ever have a strong feeling that actions you are about to take are the right (or wrong) thing to do? All these perceptions may be everyday clues to your immortality. This book proposes that personal death is a scientific impossibility. Using the latest findings of neurology, quantum physics, and consciousness studies, Anthony suggests that we never die. This book will help you understand the reason for your life and how you can make it better next time.
  • The Daemon: A Guide To Your Extraordinary Secret Self (2008) Appearing in Greek mythology, the Daemon is broadly understood as a guiding spirit which exists as one half of your split self. Anthony proposes that people consist of not one but two separate consciousnesses – everyday consciousness and that of The Daemon, a higher being that seems to possess knowledge of future events. Drawing upon phenomena such as déjà vu and near-death experiences, he explores the ways that our Daemon breaks through into our consciousness and can subconsciously impact upon our decisions. This book draws upon neurology, metaphysics and theology. It also follows the stories of famous figures, including Byron, Geothe, Jean Cocteau, and many others who have “felt a force outside themselves”.
  • The Hidden Universe: An Investigation Into Non-Human Intelligences (2019) From aliens or ghosts to the djinn, electric-voice phenomenon, and UFO abductions, this book is the most comprehensive and enlightening survey ever made of encounters with the “others” – intelligent, self-motivated beings that are clearly not human in their origins. In addition to fully detailing the history of these encounters, the book attempts a bold explanation (never before undertaken) of the true nature of these beings. The book will explore the increasingly frequent entheogen encounters facilitated by substances such as dimethyltryptamine, ayahuasca, 5-Meo-DMT, and LSD, as well as the beings encountered by individuals suffering from Alzheimer’s-related Charles Bonnet Syndrome, young children’s non-corporeal companions, and the seemingly independent beings met during lucid dreaming and near-death and out-of-body experiences. This model proposes that consciousness, far from being simply an accident of evolution, is the actual root source of the material universe. It suggests that at its most basic level everything that is seemingly physical is rendered into existence by consciousness.
  • Cheating The Ferryman: The Revolutionary Science of Life After Death (2022) Is there life after death? This age-old question has plagued humankind from the moment we became self-aware, but do we now have enough evidence to answer it? This book reveals an extraordinary model of life after death—one that brings together ideas from ancient philosophy, neuroscience, quantum physics, and consciousness studies and manages to explain a number of seemingly mysterious experiences such as precognition, déjà vu, synchronicity, near-death experiences, and out-of-body experiences. It is called Cheating the Ferryman. This book is a much-awaited follow-up to Is There Life After Death, which introduced his revolutionary model. Since then, he has amassed more evidence, using new studies by world-leading researchers, theories from the likes of Stephen Hawking, Carl Jung, and Hugh Everette, together with testimonies of NDEs and precognitive experiences that give everyday clues to our immortality. Cheating the Ferryman presents an astounding model of survival after death that is supported by, rather than in conflict with, our present understanding of how the universe works.

Discussion of this interview in the BatGap Community Facebook Group

Summary and Transcript of this interview

Interview recorded December 19, 2022

YouTube Video Chapters:

  • 00:00:00 – Introduction and Background of Anthony Peake
  • 00:06:34 – Aura States and Migraine Auras
  • 00:11:54 – Synchronicities and the Play of Life
  • 00:17:27 – The Particle Zoo and the Concept of the Tulpa
  • 00:23:37 – The Illusion of a Physical Universe
  • 00:30:36 – The Mystery of the Gaps in the Universe
  • 00:36:35 – A Monk’s Synchronistic Discovery
  • 00:41:23 – The Daemon/Eidolon Dyad and Higher Self
  • 00:46:28 – The Unity of Jiva and Atman
  • 00:52:03 – The Participatory Universe and Gravitational Lensing
  • 00:57:29 – The Speed of Light and Anomalies in the Universe
  • 01:04:10 – Nonlocality: The World’s Greatest Discovery
  • 01:10:32 – The Excavation of Understanding Deja Vu and Near Death Experiences
  • 01:15:38 – Groundhog Life: Living Multiple Lifetimes
  • 01:21:23 – The Concept of Reincarnation
  • 01:27:04 – Assessing the Other Side
  • 01:33:09 – Souls and Higher Beings
  • 01:38:41 – The Creative Power of the Daemon
  • 01:44:20 – Can we escape from free will?
  • 01:50:19 – DMT Entities and Hallucinations
  • 01:56:18 – Doors of Perception: Alzheimer’s and the Wider Perceptual Field
  • 02:02:22 – Telepathic Abilities and Denial in Science
  • 02:06:55 – Sleep Paralysis and the Hag Phenomenon
  • 02:11:57 – Building a Network of Amazing Friends