712. Melinda Edwards

Melinda Edwards, MD is a mother, writer and physician in Charleston, South Carolina, providing psychiatric care for underserved adults. She attended the Medical University of South Carolina and completed her residency in psychiatry at Stanford Medical Center. She has studied complementary and alternative medicine with Andrew Weil, MD, researched the effects of MDMA on PTSD with Michael Mithoefer, MD, and is a columnist for Autism Parenting Magazine. Dr. Edwards is the author of PSYCHE & SPIRIT: How a Psychiatrist Found Divinity Through Her Lifelong Search for Truth and Her Daughter’s Autism.

As a child of medical missionaries, Melinda grew up in a Mayan Indian village in Guatemala, Central America. Early in life she experienced an inner pull to a deeper truth. Her journey has taken her through various spiritual practices including meditation retreats, guidance from spiritual teachers, travel to India, and living in spiritual communities. Her quest led to the ongoing discovery of the sacred in all.

Inspired by her journey with her daughter Saachi, Dr. Edwards founded the 501c3 nonprofit organization Living Darshan to foster a deeper understanding of autism in the world.

Website: melindaedwardsmd.com

Discussion of this interview in the BatGap Community Facebook Group

Summary and transcript of this interview

Interview recorded July 20, 2024

683. Jeff Carreira

Jeff Carreira is a meditation teacher, mystical philosopher and author who works with a growing number of people throughout the world. As a teacher, he offers retreats and courses guiding individuals in a form of meditation he refers to as The Art of Conscious Contentment. Through this simple and effective technique, he has led thousands of people in a journey beyond the confines of fear and self-concern into the expansive liberated awareness that is our true home.

As a philosopher, Jeff is interested in defining a new way of being in the world that will move us from our current paradigm of separation and isolation into an emerging paradigm of unity and wholeness. In his books and lectures, he explores revolutionary ideas in the domains of spirituality, consciousness, and human development. He creates courses and programs that encourage people to question their most foundational experience of reality until previously held assumptions fall away leaving space for a dramatically new understanding to emerge.

Jeff is passionate about the potential ideas have to shape how we perceive reality and how we live together. His enthusiasm for learning is infectious, and he has taught at colleges and universities throughout the world.

Jeff is the author of numerous books including:

Website: jeffcarreira.com

Discussion of this interview in the BatGap Community Facebook Group.

Summary and transcript of this interview.

Interview recorded May 20, 2023.

YouTube Video Chapters:

  • 00:00:00 – Introduction and Background
  • 00:05:24 – Discovering Conscious Contentment
  • 00:11:12 – The Influence of Past Experiences
  • 00:18:53 – The Bright, Clear Awareness
  • 00:26:00 – The End of Seeking: Letting Go and Contentment
  • 00:32:29 – Letting go in Meditation
  • 00:40:10 – Overcoming Sleepiness in Meditation
  • 00:45:28 – Lucid Dreaming and Spiritual Experience
  • 00:49:39 – Interpreting Spiritual Experiences
  • 00:54:07 – The Role of Interpretation in Spiritual Progress
  • 01:00:44 – Exploring New Paths and Spiritual Growth
  • 01:04:51 – P.D. Ospensky and Cosmic Consciousness
  • 01:10:53 – Embracing Creative Expression
  • 01:16:32 – Expressing Ourselves and Taking a Break
  • 01:21:24 – “Partners on the Spiritual Path”
  • 01:29:07 – The Effects of “Crazy Wisdom” Teaching
  • 01:34:21 – The End of an Experiment
  • 01:38:12 – Transparency and Spiritual Integrity
  • 01:41:57 – The Intensity of Spiritual Practice
  • 01:46:09 – Spiritual Experiences and Seeking Alone in the Mountains
  • 01:49:01 – Embracing the Opportunities in Your Circumstances
  • 01:54:02 – The Middle Realms of Being
  • 01:58:23 – The Importance of Non-Dual Awakening & the Advaita Tradition
  • 02:02:10 – Higher Realms of the Soul

680. Daniel Stone on Meher Baba

Daniel Stone is a follower of Meher Baba. He came to Meher Baba in 1972 after a period of spiritual search that led him to travel overland to India in search of a master. While there he found and received an awakening with Neem Karoli Baba, who then inwardly guided him to Meher Baba, who Daniel recognized and accepted as his master.

Meher Baba is widely known and regarded my many throughout the world as the Avatar of our current age, as God in human form, and as a source of spiritual guidance and awakening for all who approach him. Since becoming a follower of Baba, Daniel has been actively engaged in sharing about Baba’s teachings and life-work through talks, publications, radio programs, video programs, and music. He serves on the board of directors for the Meher Spiritual Center, the major center for Meher Baba in the West, and has consulted extensively for Baba groups around the world.

Videos:

Books:

* Digital copies can be downloaded for free at https://avatarmeherbabatrust.org/online-library/

Websites:

In his professional life, Daniel is a strategic organizational consultant, providing assistance to a wide variety of organizations including the Centers for Disease Control, the United Nations, World Economic Forum, and many others. He lives in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina with his wife, two cats and a grand-dog. Daniel is also a member of the Evolutionary Leaders Circle where he co-leads a group focused on helping achieve the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals. He is also a recording musician, whose first CD of songs dedicated to Meher Baba is entitled “Decorate With Song”.

Discussion of this interview in the BatGap Community Facebook Group

Summary and transcript of this interview

Interview recorded April 16, 2023

YouTube Video Chapters:

  • 00:00:00 – Introduction to Buddha at the Gas Pump
  • 00:06:30 – Meeting Neem Karoli Baba
  • 00:15:18 – Introduction and Background: Meher Baba’s Early Life
  • 00:21:37 – The Wanderings and Encounters
  • 00:26:34 – The Role of the Avatar
  • 00:32:28 – The Concept of an Avatar
  • 00:37:59 – The Limitations of Human and Divine Capabilities
  • 00:43:24 – Meher Baba and His Ability to Make Contact with Multiple Beings Simultaneously
  • 00:50:06 – The Male Form of the Avatar
  • 00:56:49 – A Life of Hopelessness and Helplessness
  • 01:05:34 – Earning Trust Before Obedience
  • 01:13:07 – Baba’s Silence and Communication
  • 01:20:15 – Accessing Higher Levels of Consciousness
  • 01:25:21 – The Fourth Layer of the Heart and Divine Guidance
  • 01:31:11 – Revitalization of Sufism and World Religions
  • 01:36:10 – The Miracles and Love of Meher Baba
  • 01:39:55 – Insightful Film and Atheism of Zeffirelli
  • 01:44:48 – The Masts and their Spiritual States
  • 01:50:08 – The Ripple Effect of Baba’s Work
  • 01:56:45 – Awakening All Over the World
  • 02:04:01 – The Role of the Master in Eliminating Sanskaras
  • 02:08:38 – The Journey of the Soul and Higher Planes
  • 02:15:13 – Finding Me Inside Your Heart
  • 02:19:51 – Links and Resources