443. Shakti Caterina Maggi

Shakti Caterina Maggi has been sharing a message of awakening to our true nature as One Consciousness since 2003, with workshops and meetings held in Italy, Europe, and around the world. Although in the vein of the Advaita and non dual tantric tradition, Shakti shares a very contemporary approach to self-realization and reveals the real possibility of seeing what we are and embodying it in our everyday life with clarity, wisdom and humor.

The first glimpses and non-definitive openings to the Self and the true nature of reality began to occur for her at a very early age. At around 27, these temporary windows of our true nature brought her to a state of great inner openness, without having the cognition that what was happening was called “awakening” or “enlightenment” in other cultures.

In January 2003, while working as a financial reporter in Milan, she had the first experience of kundalini awakening. “Everything vibrated from its infinite nature: my body, the room, the bed I was on were all a unique vibration of love that expanded and dissolved itself in a space without borders. I was myself and at the same time I was no longer me, Existence itself was my nature. After about two hours everything disappeared into nothingness and I was surprised to wake up in the morning still alive. Honestly, I was certain I was going to die that night. Now there was something vast and completely silent that looked at a funny little me, acting like a cartoon character, moving but also loving. “

For the first time, she realized she needed a spiritual guide. Knowing that all this had occurred without her conscious desire or intentional action, she simply waited for life itself to deliver someone able to clarify what was unfolding. Four months later, she met Bodhi Avasa in a satsang in Milan, and after only five days she encountered a definitive experience of self-recognition. “I suddenly realized that Caterina had never existed. It was just a thought of My Mind, and that My Mind was the Divine Mind. No separate identity existed, but only a single Self, empty and aware, from which Existence itself was born as in a dream. “

It took a few months for this quantum leap to stabilize, as mind and body were traversed by profound and transformational understandings. Encouraged by Avasa, she soon thereafter started to share her experience, although it was only in 2011 that she began to hold true satsang. The process of integration of the awakening, and purification from what Ramana Maharshi referred to as vāsanas (latent tendencies), required several years, allowing her to develop a deep understanding of the path that takes place after awakening and its integration into daily life.

Website:

Discussion of this interview in the BatGap Community Facebook Group.

Transcript of this interview.

Interview recorded February 15, 2018.

YouTube Video Chapters:

  • 00:00:00 – Introduction and Background of Shakti Katarina Maggi
  • 00:04:25 – The Power of Synchronicity
  • 00:08:46 – Early Experiences and Love for God
  • 00:13:39 – Insights Before Sleep
  • 00:18:07 – Meeting the Teacher
  • 00:22:41 – Dissolving Identification and Conditioning
  • 00:27:38 – The Delightfulness of Being Human
  • 00:31:54 – Acting without Attachment to Results
  • 00:36:15 – Awakening to Truth
  • 00:40:11 – Appreciating the Glory of Life
  • 00:44:58 – Life’s Unexpected Paths
  • 00:48:57 – Embracing the Darkness and Discovering the Beauty
  • 00:53:03 – Love and Relationships in Awakening
  • 00:57:46 – Awakening in the Heart
  • 01:02:52 – The Illusion of Separation and Duality
  • 01:05:53 – The Experience of Teaching from the Heart Level
  • 01:09:55 – Meeting Darkness and Light in Neutrality
  • 01:15:22 – The Attitude of a Beginner
  • 01:19:56 – Embodying Awakening
  • 01:24:51 – Living Life in Awareness
  • 01:29:02 – Integrating Words and Consciousness
  • 01:33:00 – Life as the Guru
  • 01:37:06 – The Appearance of Beingness
  • 01:41:05 – The Experience of Life
  • 01:44:57 – The Individual Expression of Being
  • 01:48:48 – Contradictions and Paradoxes in Oneness
  • 01:53:46 – The Joy of Seeing the Perfection of it
  • 01:58:05 – Spiritual Connection with Whales and Consciousness
  • 02:02:39 – The experience of Kundalini and its significance
  • 02:06:45 – A Delightful Conversation
  • 02:10:00 – Radiating Information for Registration

432. Paul Morgan-Somers

Paul was born in 1961 and lived most of life in the coastal county of Pembrokeshire, UK. He always loved the sea and aspired to be a professional football (soccer) player. One day, at the age of 15, while playing football, unbounded awareness dawned. Everything was the “ocean”. He didn’t know what this was, or whether anyone else had experienced it, but later on he discovered the Upanishads in a bookstore, which led to his joining a Vedanta Monastery for five years. For a time after that, he lived a hermit-like life. One day in meditation, a woman’s name came to him. He had never heard of her, nor did he even know whether she existed, but he knew he would marry her. He later did, opened a gallery and had two boys. He now spends his time supporting the boys and their business and chatting about the ocean.

Facebook Page

Email Paul.

Discussion of this interview in the Batgap Community Facebook Group.

Interview recorded December 3, 2017.

Transcript of this interview

YouTube Video Chapters:

  • 00:00:00 – Introduction to Buddha at the Gas Pump
  • 00:05:31 – Changing Sense of Identity
  • 00:10:17 – Kundalini and Energetic Experiences
  • 00:15:04 – The Beauty of Human Experience
  • 00:20:02 – Assimilation and Adjustment Challenges
  • 00:24:42 – Falling in Love with the Ocean and Finding Books
  • 00:29:34 – An Old Monk’s Experiences
  • 00:34:02 – Shake-up of Central Structures of Authority
  • 00:38:32 – The Limitations of Words and Language
  • 00:42:25 – Non-verbal communication and the limitations of language
  • 00:46:24 – Insecurity in Identity
  • 00:50:21 – The Paradox of Movement
  • 00:54:19 – The Process of Creative Intelligence
  • 00:57:53 – The Importance of Individual Paths
  • 01:01:37 – The Wholeness of Everything
  • 01:05:36 – A Journey of Awakening
  • 01:09:06 – The Power and Intoxication of Authority
  • 01:12:58 – Power and Abuse in Spiritual Circles
  • 01:16:28 – The Role of Teachers and Students
  • 01:20:13 – The Power of Humility
  • 01:24:29 – An Unexpected Journey
  • 01:28:30 – The Nature of Reality in Words
  • 01:32:03 – Conversations and Tea
  • 01:36:02 – Chatting and Helping People with Awakening
  • 01:39:45 – Unsettling Experiences and Fear
  • 01:43:52 – Dancing in the Bedroom
  • 01:47:47 – The Presence of Subtle Beings.
  • 01:51:49 – The Paradox of Existence
  • 01:55:52 – A Delightful Virtual Tea and the Dance of Words
  • 02:00:04 – The form and the formless
  • 02:03:41 – John Sampson: A Life of Fascinating Experiences

419. Carole Griggs & Ted Strauss

Carole Griggs, Ph.D. is the founder/CEO of Carole Griggs Enterprises LLC. Dr. Griggs is a professional coach and consultant, university professor, international speaker, author/writer, and pioneer and leader in the areas of Conscious Human Development, and Integrative Wellness and Nutrition. Carole has a PhD. in Professional Coaching and Human Development, a Master’s degree in Education and Teaching, and a Bachelor’s degree in Science. Carole is co-founder and developer of iConscious: accelerating human development and the iConscious Human Development Model, a comprehensive and integrative meta-framework created to accelerate the process of reducing human suffering and maximizing full human potential both individually and collectively. Carole (and her colleague, Ted Strauss) has been applying her experience in an important Artificial Intelligence project that is part of the IBM Watson X-Prize Competition.

Carole is a professor at John F. Kennedy University for the Masters in Consciousness and Transformative Studies department, where she co-developed and teaches Human Development and the Evolution of Consciousness. She also developed and teaches courses at National University for the Masters of Science in the Complementary and Integrative Healthcare department.

Carole has worked with thousands of individuals and company leaders worldwide. She has extensive experience in personal and professional coaching, teaching, training, and facilitating groups and individuals, personally and interpersonally. Carole brings a depth and breadth of experience and expertise in the evolution and expansion of human consciousness and potential, personal and interpersonal development, awakening self-awareness, empowerment from oneness, clear communication, leadership development, and various modalities of embodiment and wellness. Carole’s mission is to help streamline and accelerate conscious human development for the evolution of humanity’s full potential, and create various educational platforms and technology tools to help scale this process to where we live in a world in which awakening – in all domains – is the new normal.

Ted Strauss is co-founder of iConscious and has been a writer and teacher of awakening for over 40 years. Over the past 19 years, he was instrumental in building the foundations of the Waking Down work, including designing and presenting core dharma workshops and the mentor and teacher training programs. During that time, he worked very personally with thousands of students to assist their iConscious realization and further awakening process. Through this experience, Ted has discovered ways to streamline personal and interpersonal development, enabling most aspirants to experience major shifts in days or months instead of years or lifetimes. Recently, Ted has been applying his experience in an important Artificial Intelligence project that is part of the IBM Watson X-Prize competition.

Website: iconscious.global

Previous Batgap interview with Ted Strauss and Hillary Davis

Discussion of this interview in the Batgap Community Facebook Group.

Transcript of this interview.

YouTube Video Chapters:

  • 00:00:00 – Introduction to Buddha at the Gas Pump
  • 00:05:09 – Awakening and Human Development
  • 00:09:27 – Patterns and Similarities in the Process
  • 00:13:49 – Levels and Stages of Development in Non-Duality
  • 00:18:13 – Awakening to Personal Self and Integration
  • 00:22:13 – The Importance of Integration and Development
  • 00:26:25 – Awakening in Different Domains
  • 00:30:08 – Distinct Types of Awakening
  • 00:33:38 – Laying out the Whole Picture
  • 00:37:18 – Updating Belief Systems and the Realization of Unity
  • 00:40:49 – The Unfolding of Consciousness in Different Individuals
  • 00:44:23 – The Journey of Self-Discovery
  • 00:47:51 – Integration and Development of Consciousness
  • 00:51:23 – Understanding the Results of the Guided Self-Assessment
  • 00:54:47 – Exploring Different Chapters of Development
  • 00:58:16 – Introduction to the Daily State of the Industry Update
  • 01:01:39 – Awakening and Fluidity in Consciousness
  • 01:05:21 – Various States of Consciousness
  • 01:08:26 – High Resolution Images and Neurophysiological Correlates
  • 01:11:59 – Awakening through Artificial Intelligence
  • 01:15:30 – Human Support Still in Demand
  • 01:18:33 – Interactivity on iConscious.global
  • 01:21:48 – Comparing Levels of Awakening
  • 01:25:13 – The Importance of Honoring Your Own Journey
  • 01:28:37 – The Evolution of the Seeking Impulse
  • 01:32:09 – Finding the Right Teacher at the Right Time
  • 01:35:27 – Individualized Teaching and Moving On
  • 01:38:50 – The Different Forms of Teaching Awakening
  • 01:42:00 – Collaborating with Jeffrey and potential collaboration projects
  • 01:45:14 – Transcend and Include
  • 01:48:41 – The Expertise of Cynthia Bourgeot in Centering Prayer

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