Category: Uncategorized

Here’s a quick update on what’s new at SpiritualTeachers.org and elsewhere.

Podcast
The Induction Series continues with Ramana Maharshi: Exploring Who am I? a selection from the book Talks with Sri Ramana Maharshi. Covering the period 1935 to 1939, the book is an excellent resource for the teachings of Ramana Maharshi and was a constant companion while I lived in a cabin on Richard Rose’s farm.

 As always, the podcast is free. I am asking one favor during the Induction Series, however. Please leave a review of my book Subtraction: The Simple Math of Enlightenment on Amazon. If we can get 100 ratings/reviews, it will really help the book get noticed. We’re at 67 so far!

Events
What Does It Mean to Be Awake? is the theme of the April 8 – 10, 2022 TAT meeting, which will be held in-person at the TAT Center in North Carolina. It’s the first official in-person meeting at the TAT Center since it opened in 2020!  Paul Rezendes, Art Ticknor, Bob Cergol, Anima Pundeer, Mike Gegenheimer, and Paul Constant are some of the many teachers and friends planning to be there.  Check out the full schedule and register to attend. 

On February 23, 8:00pm Eastern Time, I’ll lead a session for the Pittsburgh Self Inquiry Group on “The Contraction of Self.” They meet via Zoom so anyone can check it out!

Videogames?
I didn’t know it was possible, but I recently received an email from a video game designer who, by himself, built a spiritually-themed videogame titled Separation for Playstation VR.  I haven’t played video games since I was a kid playing Tron at the arcade, but they’re obviously a way to reach people with messages.  I’m glad there are people raising the bar on the themes videogames tackle. Here’s an in-depth review on YouTube.

Quote That I’m Pondering
“We all assume that we’re never going to die at an inconvenient time.” ~ Bob Cergol. 

Wishing you all the best,
Shawn

• Added a new T-shirt design: “I cannot distinguish myself from the Light” Doré and Rumi, available in a variety of colors and styles.
• Removed ads from the website.
• Revamped the Store to include books, films, and t-shirts.
• Simplified the About dropdown menu.
• And… gasp… added a new photo on the bio page.

Here’s a quick update on what’s new at SpiritualTeachers.org and elsewhere.

Podcast
The Induction Series continues with “To Think of Time,” a selection from Walt Whitman’s 1855 edition of Leaves of Grass. If you listen and allow the words to work their magic you may feel the expansion and uplifting that Whitman strives to transmit as the covering of self slips from the Self. As always, the podcast is free. I am asking one favor during the Induction Series, however. Please leave a review of my book Subtraction: The Simple Math of Enlightenment on Amazon. If we can get 100 ratings/reviews, it will really help the book get noticed. We’re at 56 so far!

Events
There is both a free, informal one-day event at the TAT Center in North Carolina on November 6 and a November 20 TAT Virtual Gathering featuring a variety of sessions.  The list of speakers hasn’t been published yet, but I assure you it will be well worth your time. 

T-Shirts
Just in time for Christmas, there are now several “Life is… Poetry in Motion” t-shirt designs available for purchase featuring an image inspired by Bob Fergeson. There are long sleeve, short sleeve, and V-neck styles, as well as organic cotton. Check them out at the SpiritualTeachers.org Store.

Quote That I’m Pondering
[Thanks to a reader for sending this quote]
“The silence is one and without it the words could not have been heard. It is always there – at the back of the words. Shift your attention from the words to silence and you will hear it.” ~ Nisargadatta Maharaj

Wishing you all the best,
Shawn

Here’s a quick update on what’s new at SpiritualTeachers.org and elsewhere.

Podcast
The Induction Series continues with Spiritual Poetry: Seeker and Finder, a selection from the TAT Foundation publication Beyond Mind, Beyond Death.  The reading juxtaposes the heartfelt experience of both seeker and finder, while revealing the Essence which flows through both. As always, the podcast is free. I am asking one favor during the Induction Series, however. Please leave a review of my book Subtraction: The Simple Math of Enlightenment on Amazon. If we can get 100 ratings/reviews, it will really help the book get noticed. We’re at 54 so far!

Events
There is both a free, informal one-day event at the TAT Center in North Carolina on November 6 and a November 20 TAT Virtual Gathering featuring a variety of sessions.  The list of speakers hasn’t been published yet, but I assure you it will be well worth your time. 
On October 20, 8:00pm Eastern Time, I’ll be leading a session for the Pittsburgh Self Inquiry Group. They meet via Zoom so check it out!

New Book
I just finished Bart Marshall’s Becoming Vulnerable to Grace: Strategies for Self-Realization. While Bart’s views on Covid and other matters may or may not be in agreement with yours, his chapter on Self-Inquiry is fantastic and his “Eightfold Way of the Spiritual Warrior” has the potential to become a roadmap for many.  

Quote That I’m Pondering
[Bruce Springsteen asked about his friend George Theiss, who was his last surviving bandmate from his first group]
Q: This is a hard question to answer without making you feel self-conscious, but do you feel you understand why it is that you became famous and he didn’t?
A: Well, there’s a lot of reasons, you know? There’s some luck involved, there’s some choice of path. George was married very, very young — 18 or 19, I believe — and became a father very young, so he had a lot of responsibilities. And then it comes down to also writing; your ability to write is essential in how you progress. I really studied and perfected my writing skills very, very intensely. But it’s just different paths, really. I don’t really have an explanation as to why life takes someone one way or someone the other. I mean, I was a one-track mind before anything else — before work, girls, I was always just: music, music, music, music, 24 hours a day, seven days a week. And that had a lot to do with it.

Wishing you all the best,
Shawn

Here’s a quick update on what’s new at SpiritualTeachers.org and elsewhere.

Podcast
The Induction Series continues with a selection from Nisargadatta Maharaj’s I Am That titled “The Realization of Nisargadatta.”  In this excerpt Nisargadatta clearly and, as always, succinctly describes his spiritual realization. Listen to my reading of The Realization of Nisargadatta — another example of a work infused with the “living word” of its author.  As always, the podcast is free. I am asking one favor during the Induction Series, however. Please leave a review of my book Subtraction: The Simple Math of Enlightenment on Amazon. If we can get 100 ratings/reviews, it will really help the book get noticed. We’re at 48 so far!

Event
The August TAT gathering at the TAT Center was rescheduled and is now a September 11-12 Virtual Gathering.  Still titled “Love, Friendship, and the Return Home,” it features  Art Ticknor, Anima Pundeer, Norio Kushi, and Mike Gegenheimer.  For those who couldn’t travel to the originally planned August event in North Carolina, now’s your chance. See the full schedule. 

New Book from TAT Press
The Kindle version of Always Right Behind You: Parables & Poems of Love & Completion by Anima Pundeer and Art Ticknor is now available.  This is the first book from Anima, and its no-nonsense approach to spiritual seeking shines through.  Combined with Art’s insights, I find the feminine/masculine and East/West perspectives particularly intriguing.

Quote That I’m Pondering
“Summer settles like a bee on clover – golden, busy, here then gone.”
A single line that equally encapsulates all of life.  From This is How You Lose the Time War by Amal El-Mohtar and Max Gladstone.  When you find a quote that stops your mind in its tracks, do all you can to give it space to work its magic.

Wishing you all the best,
Shawn