Conversations with Kara-Leah

Welcome to the fourth episode of season 3 of Conversations with Kara-Leah.

My guest today is EJ Kidd. (Full bio below)

 

Highlights from our conversation.

On Tantra and Plant Medicines

🌀 "Tantra is not a dogmatic construct. Tantra is self-dissolving, self-eating—like the ouroboros, the snake that devours itself. Anything within the context of Tantra will dissolve itself once it has served its purpose."

🔥 "The path of poisons isn’t about chasing peak experiences. It’s about remaining completely sober—completely anchored in the base of awareness—even as the substance is circulating in your brain."

🌿 "Is it medicine? Is it a drug? Is it toxic? Is it dangerous? If you’re dedicated to Tantra or Yoga—should you even be working with these things? Or is that just spiritual tourism?"

On The Dangers & Pitfalls

🌿 "I see people go from ‘I sat with the medicine a few times’ to ‘I’m called to be a shaman’ in under two years. Meanwhile, the indigenous medicine carriers start training as children and don’t serve until decades later."

🌪️ "Plant medicines don’t just show you truth. They also reflect your illusions. If you’re cycling in your mind, the medicine will amplify the cycle. If you’re grasping for power, it will feed that too."

🔮 "One of my teachers sat me down and said, ‘EJ, what are you doing in my ceremony?’ And I had to ask myself—was I here for truth? Or was I just using the medicine as a spiritual colonic, trying to purge my problems away?"

On The Intensity of the Experience

🦋 "Cannabis isn’t just a substance. It’s a spirit. And that spirit is sticky. You don’t smoke cannabis—it smokes you."

🎭 "I took what was supposed to be a ‘small’ dose of Wachuma, sat down in a restaurant—and watched the walls start melting. Meanwhile, I was ordering dinner like nothing was happening."

💀 "When you ingest a plant medicine, you aren’t just altering your consciousness. You’re inviting an entity inside you. The question is—who’s really in control?"

Chapter Highlights

00:44 Meet EJ Kidd: From Silicon Valley to Peru

01:31 Exploring Plant Medicines and Their Role in Awakening

03:40 EJ's Journey: From Corporate Life to Spiritual Path

06:40 First Encounters with Tantra and Plant Medicine

10:30 The Intersection of Tantra and Psychedelics

18:06 Navigating the Pitfalls of Plant Medicine

30:46 The Role of Facilitators and the Impact of Capitalism

39:41 Roles and Training of Indigenous Shamans

41:13 Community Recognition and Western Facilitators

41:51 Impact of Western Ideals on Indigenous Practices

44:18 Navigating Plant Medicine with Pure Motives

45:21 Understanding Non-Corporeal Entities in Tantra

53:56 The Path of Poisons in Tantra

59:04 Cannabis as a Tool for Embodiment and Healing

01:10:58 Final Thoughts and Key Takeaways

Who is EJ?

EJ is a practitioner of Tantra and meditation, exploring the wisdom of presence, energy, and deep connection with life. Rooted in ancient teachings, EJ’s path is one of deep inquiry—exploring the connection between sound, awareness, and the profound intelligence of nature. With a focus on the intersection of Tantra and plant medicine, EJ explores how these traditions open doorways to healing, expansion, and remembrance. EJ is a musician, educator, ceremonialist, and connector for those seeking plant medicine. As a vocal expression guide, EJ helps others unlock the power of their voice for healing and transformation. EJ also offers small group and private healing retreat experiences, creating sacred spaces for deep exploration and connection.

Find EJ.

https://www.instagram.com/ejkidd/

EJ on SoundCloud:

https://soundcloud.com/ej-kidd-246881263/

EJ on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/6eEebEFOxBEHsxSXUNU56H?si=_UQdJnhVQrmvo2l9xSQYAw

 

Show Credits

Audio • Luke Bowman

Music • Sexy Urban Beats by PenguinMusic

Photo • Pete Longworth

Graphic Design • Tara Spice

 

Subscribe to KL's newsletter

https://karaleah.com/subscribe/

Welcome to the third episode of season 3 of Conversations with Kara-Leah, recorded in my new home - Squamish Sḵwx̱wú7mesh, Canada. 

My guest today is poet Laura Sharp.

Laura is a Scottish Poet and Bodyworker living and working in Squamish (Skwxwú7mesh.)  She’s 31 years old and has had as many different jobs, and as many different addresses in as many years.  Her debut book Places You Catch Yourself is a collection of poetry and prose about the never-ending search for home in new places and strangers faces. 

 

Her work has been featured by the Lupine Review, BBC The Social, Speculative Books and most recently Whistler Writers Festival. Hilariously, Laura never wanted to be poet but she has always wanted to understand life deeply and has recently come to learn the two go hand in hand.

Laura & I talk about all the things including:

✨ the allure of the Sea-to-Sky Corridor & how life 'makes sense' here

✨ why she started writing poetry

✨ being haunted by not-enoughness

✨ on writing your way out of suffering

✨ writing as a practice for liberation

✨ her yoga journey & the impact of the lockdown

✨ yin yoga & writing poetry

✨ poetry as a process of listening

✨ why the book finally got published

✨ the power of the next step

✨ self-love of all aspects of being

✨ the power of being vision-led

✨ why she burned the first copy of her book

✨ how she uses poetry to write her life into being

✨ being on the stage at Whistler Writer's Festival four months after publishing

✨ the power of art beyond numbers

✨ the art of surrender

✨ Squamish Poet Next Door's thriving poetry scene

✨ the power of owning your shit & letting it move through you

 

Find Laura here:

https://www.instagram.com/thebreathworkpoet/

https://www.facebook.com/laura.sharp.731

 

Show Credits

Audio • Luke Bowman

Music • Sexy Urban Beats by PenguinMusic

Photo • Pete Longworth

Graphic Design • Tara Spice

 

Subscribe to KL's newsletter

https://karaleah.com/subscribe/

Welcome to the second episode of season 3 of Conversations with Kara-Leah, recorded in my new home - Squamish Sḵwx̱wú7mesh, Canada. 

My guest today is Bhairav Thomas English.

Bhairav is a dedicated teacher, practitioner, and empowered guru of Tantra and Kundalini Yoga with over 25 years of experience. His journey began after a near-fatal car accident, which led him to travel the world and be initiated into various traditions and lineages. He spent four years living in India, studying under his first yoga teacher until he met his Guru, Maharaji Guruji of the Bhairavananda lineage. Bhairav is the author of The Power of Tantric Meditation and the visionary behind Anuttara Ashram. As a co-creator and facilitator within the Anuttara School, Bhairav continues to share his deep wisdom, guiding others on their path to self-realization through authentic spiritual practices.

Bhairav & I talk about all the things including:

✨ the near-death experience that changed everything for him

✨ what happened when he met his first yoga teacher in the foothills of Rishikesh

✨ how yoga healed him from an old car accident, including finally becoming medication-free

✨ what becoming a renunciate meant to him

✨ the impact of immersing in yoga practice for 6+ hours a day

✨ why he resisted teaching when his teacher asked him to

✨ how he met his tantric Guru and what happened when he first met him

✨ how the car accident blocked ajna chakra and what his Tantric master told him about it

✨ what it was like to go through a guru initiation

✨ the meaning of Tantra

✨ his understanding of karma

✨ astrology, Bill Gates, billionaire and being wealthy as a karmic tendency

✨ the intersection of destiny, free will, and karma

✨ Grace and Kundalinī

✨ what causes Kundalinī to awaken

✨ why a Guru is necessary once Kundalinī is awakened

✨ what happens when Kundalinī gets blocked at certain chakras

✨ the difference between awakening to the energy field, and Kundalinī awakening

 

Find Bhairav here:

https://www.anuttara.org/ https://www.instagram.com/anuttara_ashram/ 

 

Show Credits

Audio • Luke Bowman

Music • Sexy Urban Beats by PenguinMusic

Photo • Pete Longworth

Graphic Design • Tara Spice

 

Subscribe to KL's newsletter

https://karaleah.com/subscribe/

Welcome to the first episode of season 3 of Conversations with Kara-Leah, recorded in my new home - Squamish Sḵwx̱wú7mesh, Canada. (Listen to the correct pronunciation here.)

My first guest this seasion is Warren Hooley.

Warren Hooley is from Penticton, British Columbia and was born of Okanagan/Syilx, English and Ukrainian heritage. He is passionate about nonviolent communication, decolonization and healthy masculinity and has facilitated over 2500 workshops in the past 13 years. Today Warren is based in Vancouver, BC and his overall vision is to help create communities where everyone can thrive and find genuine happiness. In his workshops, Warren loves to weave engaging activities with fascinating diagrams. He has a talent for creating spaces where people can learn skills that measurably impact their lives for years to come. 

Warren & I talk about all the things including:

healthy masculinity and why Warren prefers the term restricted masculinity to toxic masculinity

relational neurobiology, nervous system regulation, shame and humility

how tools like NVC (non-violent communication) can be used to manipulate

the gift of fawning

the Missing Factor in the Fight, Flight, Freeze & Fawn Model

the ineffectiveness of cancel culture

confidence as a coping mechanism

the tragedy of men trapped in shame - and how to climb out

the continuum of emotional expression, processing and containment

what it means if you can't handle an action-adventure movie

staying safe as a male facilitator

decolonization, the wall of shame, the river of grief and the ocean of possibility

the danger of prioritizing productivity as a value

and finally, Warren's vision for the more beautiful world. 

Find Warren here:

https://www.warrenhooley.com/home

https://www.instagram.com/mrwarrenhooley/

https://www.facebook.com/Warrenseannhooley

Credits
 
Audio • Luke Bowman
Music • Sexy Urban Beats by PenguinMusic 
Photo • Pete Longworth
Graphic Design • Tara Spice

This conversation went to ALL the juicy places - the playful, the painful, the divine, and everything else in between. 
 
We talk about Adam's personal journey with trauma and how he found healing. We get into hot-topic issues around gender, sexuality, identity, and Adam's experiences as a gay man in New Zealand. And we talk about making Transformational Festivals into spaces that are TRULY safe and inclusive because as much as we love these Festivals we also recognise how they could be better. Oh, and there's a bonus twerking lesson in there too! You're welcome.
 
Adam Robertson is a Neurosomatic Facilitator, Public Speaker, Coach, and founder of Twerkwerk.

 
Find Adam here:
 
Website • https://www.adamrobertson.co.nz/
Instagram • https://www.instagram.com/adamtrobertson/

Facebook • https://www.facebook.com/adamtrobertson0
Twerkwerk • https://www.twerkwerknz.com/

 
Credits
 
Audio • Luke Bowman
Music • Sexy Urban Beats by PenguinMusic 
Photo • Pete Longworth
Graphic Design • Tara Spice