I’m the Chief Cook and Bottle Washer at Buddha at the Gas Pump. Richard Miller hosts a similar interview show called Never Not Here. Somehow we connected and he asked to interview me, not necessarily as an awakened being or teacher, but as a fellow spiritual aspirant. In the summer of 1967, when I was 17 years old, I was driving through Westport, CT with three friends in the car. One of them in the back seat was reading from a commentary on the Tibetan Book of the Dead by Timothy Leary and Richard Alpert (Ram Dass). A quiet but memorable realization dawned in me that there was such a thing as “enlightenment” and that realizing it was life’s ultimate goal. I rather recklessly explored that possibility through drugs for a year, then saw the futility of that approach and learned Transcendental Meditation. I taught TM for 25 years and still meditate regularly, but am not affiliated with any particular spiritual organization. I respect any of them which seem to offer genuine benefits to their participants.
Interview recorded 6/5/2010.
Other talks by or interviews of Rick on BatGap:
- SAND 2019 – Knowledge/Reality is Different in Different States of Consciousness
- 2018 SAND Conference Q&A and Interview by Shakti Caterina Maggi
- SAND 2017: “The Ethics of Enlightenment”
- Talk at Berkeley Open Circle Center
- SAND 2015: Science and Spirituality: Potential Allies in Discovering Truth
- Interviewed by Fax Gilbert
Video and audio below. Audio also available as a Podcast.
YouTube Video Chapters:
- 00:00:00 – Welcome to Never Not Here
- 00:02:56 – The Growth of Transcendental Meditation in Fairfield
- 00:05:45 – A Diverse Spiritual Community in Fairfield
- 00:08:12 – The Blurring of Cultural Boundaries
- 00:11:23 – The Awakening Moment
- 00:13:59 – Sincerity and Genuine Practice
- 00:16:48 – The Profound Effects of Long Meditation
- 00:19:36 – The Process of Re-Entry from Meditation Retreats
- 00:22:28 – Unwinding Deep Stresses
- 00:24:52 – The Benefits of Dissolving Negative Experiences
- 00:26:35 – The Continuous Practice of Meditation
- 00:28:26 – The Reflection of Consciousness in the Nervous System
- 00:30:25 – Becoming a Better Reflector
- 00:32:21 – The African man’s interpretation of the surroundings
- 00:34:31 – The Correlation of Concept and Experience
- 00:38:11 – The Presence of Babbling Saints and Articulating Experience
- 00:41:28 – Different Orientations and Experiences
- 00:45:27 – The Origins of Spiritual Traditions and Their Relevance Today
- 00:48:16 – The Qualities of Enlightenment
- 00:50:06 – Layers of Ignorance and the Essence of Consciousness
- 00:51:56 – Preferences and Enlightenment
- 00:54:03 – The Limitations of Conceptual Thinking
- 00:56:25 – Duality in Concepts: The Positive and Negative
- 00:58:40 – The Tragedy of Locked Perspectives
- 01:01:23 – Living in a State of Enlightenment
- 01:04:27 – Leaving the Incubator and Awakening
- 01:07:11 – The Illusion of Movement in Enlightenment
- 01:10:21 – Embracing Further Unfoldments in Education
- 01:13:33 – The Paradox of Seeking Answers
- 01:16:05 – Remembering the Nature of Thoughts
- 01:18:28 – Farewell for this Episode
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