The therapeutic encounter between a practitioner and patient is, in many regards, the most important part of a healing relationship. This encounter is another way of referring to the placebo effect. But far from being ineffective, all good healers try to maximize this effect. According to Dr. Daniel Keown, acupuncture is one of the most sublime forms of the therapeutic encounter.
Interviews on The Everyday Sublime
Interviews on Josh Summers' podcast, The Everyday Sublime: Shedding Light on Yin Yoga and Mediation.
Dr. Daniel Keown: Jellyfish, Channels, and Qi
How alive are you? This isn’t a question that Western Medicine frequently asks, but according to Dr. Daniel Keown, this question is at the heart of Traditional Chinese Medicine. And the quality, quantity, and circulation of our Qi determines the potency of our “aliveness.”
Dr. Daniel Keown: The Channels of Chinese Medicine
What is Qi? What are the channels of Chinese Medicine? What is fascia? These questions and more are taken up by Dr. Daniel Keown, explained with lucid brilliance. For anyone interested in Chinese Medicine, this is a must-listen.
Oren Jay Sofer: On Nonviolent Communication
Talking about difficult topics is not easy. Often we get trapped in patterns of reactivity and experience a clash of viewpoints. Oren Jay Sofer offers ways to move past through these impasses in learning how to identify the underlying needs being expressed – the needs that connect us to our shared universal human longings. From this sense of connection, collaborative dialogue becomes possible.
Oren Jay Sofer: On Mindful Communication
All too often, meditation is seen as a panacea for all that ails us. But meditation practice alone is not necessarily enough to smooth out the strife in our interpersonal conflicts. For this we need training in communication strategy – ways to escape the blame game and move towards a deeper understanding of shared needs and goals. In this episode, Oren Jay Sofer lays about a mindful approach to nonviolent communication.
Bernie Clark: Your Sacroiliac Joint
Bernie Clark shares how his thinking about exercise has shifted from an emphasis on mobility to an emphasis on stability. This is important to how we think about what we’re doing in all forms of physical yoga.
Bernie Clark: Developing and Aging Bodies
In our youth, we’re more Yang and need to work on strength and stability. As we age, we become more Yin, and therefore need to spend more time working on maintaining our mobility.
Bernie Clark: Spinal Neutrality, Symmetry, and Asymmetry
In the second episode of a 4-part series, Yin master Bernie Clark unpacks the important concept of spinal neutrality and he explores how to think about symmetry, functional asymmetry, and dysfunctional asymmetry in the body.
Bernie Clark: Your Spine, Your Yoga
In the first episode of a 4-part series, I welcome Bernie Clark back to the podcast to discuss his new book, Your Spine, Your Yoga. In it, Bernie talks about the main themes in the book including the importance of stability over mobility in the health of our spines.
Jason Siff: The Role of Remembering on the Path
In this final installment of my 3-part conversation with Jason Siff, we explore tricky Buddhist concepts of anatta (non-self) and nirvana. And we consider that present moment awareness is not sufficient for the development of deeper wisdom and understanding in one’s life. For that, memory is required.
Jason Siff: The Insight of Experience
In many styles of meditation, if we hold too tightly to meditative instructions, we may unintentionally cut many things out of our meditation practice. In part two of my 3-part series with Jason Siff, we explore letting more things “in” to your meditation, and not letting go too quickly.
Jason Siff: Thoughts Are Not the Enemy
In meditation, all too often, people struggle with their thinking, and feel badly that they can’t stop their “monkey mind” from thinking so much. Meditation teacher Jason Siff offers a kinder, more compassionate approach to working with one’s mind in meditation.
David Lesondak: All Things Fascia
I talk with David Lesondak about his new book, Fascia: What it is and why it matters. David is rapidly becoming a rock star in the fascial world, having extensive work in structural integration, as well as having attended and presented at many of the Fascial Congresses.
Bernie Clark: Understanding Yin Yoga
Here, Bernie Clark talks about the fascial concepts of dynaments and creep. He discusses some misunderstandings of Yin Yoga, as well as how to think about propping and assisting in Yin Yoga.
Bernie Clark: The Science of Yin Yoga
Listen to Bernie Clark discuss: antifragility, confusion between correlation and causation, the four levels evidence in science, piezoelectricity, and Yin and Yang stress on our tissues. Essential listening for Yin Yoga teachers.
Bernie Clark: Hypermobility and Hyperextension
Many people express concern about issues of hypermobility and hyperextension in Yin Yoga. Here Bernie Clark explores these concerns and logically defends Yin Yoga. Essential listening for Yin Yoga teachers.
Bernie Clark: The Mindset of a Teacher
For yoga teachers, it can be a challenging process to unlearn rigid rules of alignment and to adapt their teaching to the unique experience of their students. Here, Bernie Clark will walk you through how to think about and teach functional alignment in Yin Yoga and beyond.