This episode explores the progress that science has made to measure or understand consciousness and is based on a book called Being You by Anil Seth. Frankly, I was a little disappointed by the content of the book, which I have yet to finish. However, I think what I discovered by reading this book is important for us spiritual speakers because it shows the limits of how much objectivity we hold. This in turn is important to keep us grounded in our own perception of what is happening to us as we navigate the spirit world. One of the most important ideas of the first part of the book is that consciousness is not measured or ranked by how awakened we are or whether we can speak and demonstrate that ability. It is very dangerous to assume that a human being has a superior consciousness to a turtle, for example. Because the reality of consciousness is an INNER experience that in a vast majority of cases cannot be captured by the existing methods of measurement. However the author argues that temperature used to be a mystery and science has since demystified temperature to the point where now most people grasp the concept instantly. And that is because scientists have invented an instrument that can measure it. This has not yet been possible for consciousness, but we can be confident that one day they will. The other interesting that surfaced from the book is that we should not confuse wakefulness with consciousness as the dream experiences that we have whilst we sleep are actually part of our consciousness. Why do I think it's important to explore the point of view of scientists with regards to consciousness? Because we need to understand what is real and what is not as spiritual seekers. In the episode, I refer back to the episode about mental health and spirituality which you can listen to here.
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EP 95 The F**k It Experiment
In this episode I explored John C. Parkin and his wife's philosophy that rests mantras that start with the phrase "F**k it". Their book came out in 2019 and made a lot of noise because for the first time, a swear word was associated with a spiritual practice. And although their method is not for everyone, it actually rests on sound principles. Swear words and profanities are looked down upon and sometimes even banned by religion, especially the three Abrahamic ones (i.e. Judaism, Islam and Christianity). It is considered disrespectful, negative and a sign of lack of control. I have to admit to partaking to that point of view myself at the start of my spiritual journey. But then, I unpacked both my prejudice and my privilege and have now changed my views. Swearing is not something I do often, but I no longer consider it "unspiritual". I think this ties in with the episode I did about whether spiritual people get angry, which you can listen by clicking on this link. To get an idea of what the F**k it philosophy is like, I did a fourteen day experiment on my social media, which I also share on the podcast. It was both fun and interesting. Of the six basic mantras that are at the core of the F**k it revolution, I have retained one: "F**k it, I can relax now". In conclusion, I have enjoyed this experiment and would recommend it to beginners on the spiritual path. I would love to know what you think though, so please feel free to comment below.
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EP 94 Our Bodies As Our Temples With Cindy Stal
This month's guest, Cindy Stal, brings a whole new level of wisdom that comes from her first hand experience at healing incredible pain with pleasure. Her awakening happened as she was sitting in her corporate job, in a grey office, with a grey carpet, a grey ceiling and when she looked outside, she saw the grey sky and thought to herself, "I can't do this anymore". She started thinking about how she dreaded going to work on Sunday afternoons, and I am sure some of you will relate to this. A second powerful moment in Cindy's life was when her first husband was in hospital for cancer and she wandered into the hospital chapel and prayed. It's not something she did often at the time, and she heard "Follow your passion". She looked around, only to find out she was alone in the church. When she gave birth to her still born daughter and experienced pain like never before, the voice came back and said "You have to keep your heart open or you will lose everything". So she listened to the voice. Keeping her heart open was the simplest yet the hardest thing she had been asked to do. It is so much harder than to close it down to protect us. And thanks to keeping her heart open, her husband and her became closer instead of growing apart. They were able to be there for each other. Cindy challenges the narrative of the grief industry that tends to reinforce the victim mentality. Instead, Cindy wants to invite us to embrace pleasure as the powerful healer that it is. Pleasure is about choosing life again. This lead her to create the Pussy Oracle, a beautiful deck laced with gold, pink and purple, that talks about so much more than pleasure and sex. To find out about Cindy, head over to her website. You can also find her on IG and FB.
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EP 93 Angel numbers
Angel numbers are a very special way that they can get your attention, through digital clocks, car plates or house numbers. And this is great. In this week's episode, I am going to explore the meaning of numbers 1 to 9 in traditional numerology, then dive into the meaning that Diana Cooper, the angel lady in the UK, assigns to them only to invite you to check how it lands with you. It can be confusing to see that each spiritual teacher assigns a different meaning to angel numbers. Who is right? You are right, inasmuch as what matters is how you feel about one particular teacher or number. Number 3, for example, reminds me of my dad. But to a Christian, it will have the particular association with Christ consciousness or the trinity. Angel numbers are one of the signs that angels use to communicate with you but what I have come to learn is that they use a sign that is significant to you rather than what it is supposed to mean universally. For this reason, I invite you to do an audit of the symbols that mean something special to you. One number can mean something different to you because it is the day you met a certain person, or got your first job, or whatever. I also encourage you to listen to EP 23 about signs from the Universe to get a broader understanding of how signs work.
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EP 92 Black Lives Matter
The BBC has released a powerful documentary called Backlash, the murder of George Loyd. This documentary is the foundation for today's episode. All spiritual people should care about black lives and equality. I felt called to do this episode also because in my interview with Barbara With last month, we talked about World Peace and the fact that peace starts within. I do not believe that anger at systemic oppression falls into that category. That anger is righteous anger. It obviously should be channeled positively but I will be the last one to judge people who have taken part in riots in response to systematic oppression. I will also not tolerate people who call out "wokism" when it is about human rights and basic decency. We live in times where there is a rise in fascism and fascist ideas, which can be very seductive and keeping silent in those times leads to validating these ideas. It is right to be upset when human rights are violated. It is not enough not to be racist, we need to be anti-racist. The spiritual community is mostly white. It is rare to see people of colour as attendees not to mention as speakers and that needs to change. In the UK, 18% of population is black and there should be a proportionate representation in all spaces, but there is not. White spiritual communities still violate the culture of indigenous people by selling white sage and palo santo in "spiritual" shops. I still see dream catchers sold in Mind Body Spirit Fairs. And no one bat an eye lid at it. Even Lee Harris, who i respect and love, has a lit white sage wand in his videos. This needs to stop. Please listen to Episode 75 to educate yourself around what cultural appropriation is. Listen to the episode for book recommendations to educate yourself on the topic of racism.
Welcome to True Spirituality with Ange, the podcast where we explore spirituality on our own terms, free from preconceived notions or dogma. Growing up, I never felt like I fit into the two spiritual extremes of my family: either cynical atheism or devout Catholicism. I wanted something in between, and that's what I hope to offer with this podcast. Join me in creating a bespoke version of spirituality that resonates with you and lights up your world, from home to work and everything in between. Let's find joy and fulfilment in every moment, and build a spiritual foundation that will help us live with no regrets.
Ireland