Authentic Living

Today we are so honored to have Iyanla Vanzant here to talk to us about her latest book, Forgiveness: 21 Days to Forgive Everyone for Everything. Iyanla Vanzant, NY Times Bestselling author; host of the number one reality show on the OWN network, Iyanla: Fix My Life; and frequent guest on Super Soul Sunday and Oprah’s Life Class, is easily one of America’s most profound spiritual leaders, who empowers individuals all across the globe to live into the truest self. Her body of work spans over three decades and includes CDs, television, radio and on stage performances, 15 published books, and 5 New York Times Bestsellers, which have been translated into 23 languages. Iyanla’s no nonsense approach to helping others to live healthy and whole demonstrates her clear capacity for delivering the absolute truth with love. She warms our hearts while pushing us to grow. Today we are going to get to talk with her about the purpose, the power and the freedom of forgiveness. Do NOT miss this show!

Mark Nepo is an author, poet, philosopher, beloved teacher and cancer survivor who has, for thirty years, been exploring how we can stay awake and authentic when our wounds make us numb and hidden; how we can minimize what stands between us and our experience of life; how we can create a practice that wears down what thickens around our hearts and minds. And today we are going to talk to him about those very things, as we explore together the meanings and messages of his books, The Endless Practice and Reduced to Joy. The Endless Practice explores how the soul works in the world, and how by engaging our soul in the world, we are shaped by the endless practice of becoming who we were born to be. Reduced to Joy is a book of poems about the nature of working with what we are given until it wears us through to joy. This is a special opportunity to come closer to your own soul. Don’t miss it.

There are many people out there telling us today, that the shadow is the bad, sabotaging part of us, and that because it is, we need to clean it out. Those same people tell us that the ego, though also bad, is the opposite of shadow and what we need to do with ego is to get rid of it altogether. But what if the divine Self is also in the unconscious, and the ego is just a liaison between the conscious and the unconscious? You see, since most of us have lived largely unconscious of who we actually are, the Self is hidden from us in the unconscious. Instead of living as Self, we’ve lived in an identity that isn’t at all who we are, but rather a mask and costume meant to help us cope with and survive our childhoods and families of origin. And the liaison of the ego is, in this case weighted way too heavy on the outer world. So if what we have learned about the shadow isn’t really true, how do we work with the shadow? Tune in to find out.

Isn’t that what we all want—to get what we want? And if I told you today that all you would have to do to get what you want is to do A, B and C, you’d probably do it, right? Well, that’s what’s been happening—with all kinds of strategies, from commercials for toothpaste to marriage proposals, people are always promising to give us what we want. There are two primary problems with this: 1) most of us don’t know what we really want; and 2) there is no bargain with the universe which will absolutely guarantee that after we have done A, B and C we will definitely have what we want. These promises leave out the possibility of the wondrous mystery of life. There is, however, a trust we can offer to ourselves, a trust that defines the divine as desire. And we absolutely can own that trust. Tune in today to find out how.

One of the most important tasks of maturity is learning to live with and accept another person as is, while simultaneously holding on to one’s own authenticity. But most of us go through a few relationships with Mr. or Mrs. Wrong before we get involved with someone with whom we can actually complete that task. This should be someone we cannot control and who cannot control us. It should be someone who encourages our authenticity as we encourage theirs. But what does it take to grow to the point where we can have such a relationship? That’s the $65,000 question, as they say. Well this show is going to answer it. Be here for that.

There is not one single shred of any endeavor humans ever make that is not touched by the myth of morality. Myth? Why am I calling this a myth? Because the entirety of the good/evil polarity is based on a misperception about who we are. Because we believe that we are separate from the divine, we have devised a plan to be reunited, which involves us being good enough for such a reunion. And of course if we are “bad” then we just don’t get to be reunited with the divine. Regardless of faith we all have this deep sense of separation from the divine. And morality is at least part of the plan to do something about that separation. But because we truly are not separate from the divine, we can get out of the morality game. Want to know how? Tune in.

What is the purpose of your life? Do you know? Do you think you should know? What if you knew that you could not know the purpose of your life until it is over? Would that change your feeling about your life? Your judgments of its value? Many of us have been taught that we must know our life’s purpose so that we can get in line with it. The superfluous “they” tell us that there is one specific purpose for each life and if we do not get in touch with it, we will live a failed life. Therefore, many will forestall their own plans until they get clear on a purpose. Many college students are trying to divine their life's purpose before deciding on a major. Many at 30, 40, 50 and even later, are still saying, “I wish I could talk to someone who could tell me my life’s purpose.” Well today, we are going to talk about your life’s purpose. Don’t miss it.

Most of us know that the United States Supreme Court has agreed to resolve the national debate over gay marriage once and for all, beginning in May of this year. The slow, and lately more rapid, cutting edge of this issue comes as a result of the number of people who have come, over time to be intimately acquainted with a GLBT person. Everybody knows someone who is GLBT—even if we don’t know we know them. That knowing begins to create an openness. The political arguments never tell the whole story—it is told by becoming intimately acquainted with the story of someone—someone we could love if we knew them. Meagan O’Nan is one of those people who has a story to tell, a story that allows us to see the person behind the label. Her book is called Courage and she tells us that agreeing to disagree is no longer enough. Gay rights is just one of the many areas of bias and discrimination that run rampant through our country, and our world. Today we open the door to a further discussion.

So, you are trying…right? You are working really hard on your career and financial goals, working really hard on that relationship, working really hard on meditating and thinking only positive thoughts. But you keep slipping. You keep wondering why you are slipping. And every time you slip, you feel more uncertain, more shameful and more resistant to trying. But you have to keep trying, right? Because to not try means your…what? A failure? A jerk? But what if you could achieve the results you wanted without trying. And what if there were results you haven’t even considered that come from not trying? Yeah, right. What are you selling…right? Well, let’s just stay in “What if” for a moment and consider what the sacred texts and what initiations from mystic practices around the globe have to say about trying. Don’t miss this eye-opening show.

Here we are again at another new beginning. At least it is one that most of us recognize as a new beginning. The problem, however, with new beginnings is that we think we have to throw out the old to have the new. We think of it in very black and white, purist terms. But what if you knew that you didn’t have to eliminate anything to have something new? Things don’t die when new things are born. Rather things are integrated when new things are born. But what does this mean? What does it mean to integrate something old to find something new? Aren’t we just supposed to think of something we want, stop thinking negative and start thinking positive as we work toward our new goals? Well here it is the 8th of January. Is that still working for you a little over a week into the New Year? What is the difference between a drive to a new goal, and a drive that comes from integrated material? Today we are going to learn how to begin again. Be here—you don’t want to miss this.

In our third week of our Countdown to Heaven, we are talking to Bruce Lipton, bestselling author of The Biology of Belief about his latest book, The Honeymoon Effect: The Science of Creating Heaven on Earth. We all understand either the actuality of the honeymoon effect, or the dream of it. But most of us see it as temporary—because we have to get back to “real life.” The Honeymoon Effect is a state of bliss, passion, energy and health resulting from huge love. But we cannot imagine that we can have that on a regular basis. But Lipton tells us that the Honeymoon Effect is not a chance event that happened to us because the right circumstances collided, but rather it is a personal creation. In fact, he tells us that love is the most potent growth factor for human beings. How can we manifest this heaven on earth? Tune it to find out—and to hear the clip from Oprah’s upcoming Super Soul Sunday. Don’t miss it.

This is that time of year when we talk about it. We sing about it. We even pray about it. But no one really believes that we are actually going to have peace on earth, right? I mean, look around man! You can’t really believe that this crazy place is going to one day be all peace, love and joy, right? We are not those people. We are not the people who can facilitate this. We are people who are weak, sinful, and definitely incapable of joining forces to bring about a peaceful outcome. Naaah. It’s a nice thought and all, and we can wistfully speak of it at Christmas time, but no one in his right mind takes that stuff seriously. Well, today, we are going to take it seriously, right mind or no. We are going to really, out-loud consider it—even do a feasibility study of the possibilities and implications. Because if it’s not possible, we just need to shut-up about it. And if it is, well then, maybe we need to get busy on it. Don’t miss this one.

Most of us have been taught that when we meditate, one of the things we might hope to achieve is an altered state of consciousness in which we feel elevated emotional connections such as bliss and ecstasy. And we also know that when we use substances such as alcohol, LSD, cocaine, crack, marijuana, narcotics, benzodiazepines, and others, we will probably experience an altered state of consciousness. What does this mean? It means that reality seems to shift—we see and feel things differently so that the difference now seems more real than the previous reality. At this point we may begin to wonder what is real. Seeking altered states of consciousness has become a national obsession to the point of a national addiction epidemic. But others seek the same through meditation. Is this the real point of meditation? If not, what is the point of meditation? And what is the truest state of consciousness? This show will answer these questions. Don’t miss it.

Neale Donald Walsch is a modern day spiritual messenger whose work continues to touch the world in profound ways. With an early and deeply felt connection to spirituality, Neale spent the majority of his life searching for spiritual meaning before beginning his very public Conversation with God, a NY Times Bestselling series that has touched and inspired millions around the world. In addition, he has published 16 other works, and a number of video and audio programs. Neale’s work has redefined God and shifted spiritual paradigms around the globe, and because of that redefining process and the response to it, he built the Conversations with God Foundation, a non-profit educational organization dedicated to inspiring the community of the world to move from violence, confusion and anger, to peace, clarity and love. And this week we’ll be talking to Neale about change, based on his bestselling book “When Everything Changes, Change Everything.” Don’t miss it!

An interesting age-old phenomenon of human psychological/spiritual processing is that we tend to look for the light. Indeed, we look for light even when everything is really dark—often ending up creating an illusion of light, when seeing the dark would be a much smarter thing to do. We fear the dark, assuming that within it are all manner of monsters, even demons who will devour us if we but see them. We tend to think that the darkness—in whatever form we imagine it—is the worst possible thing. But what if the truest light can only be found in the dark? What if sitting in the dark is the only possible light? What if seeing the monsters is imperative to our evolution? Well then, while we are running from the dark, pretending that we’ve found the light, we miss the truest light. This show is going to be all about learning to be with, sit with, walk in the dark. Since it is so very prevalent in our lives—this might be a good time to listen.

Joan Borysenko is back this week for the third time to talk with us about guilt, for guilt can be a major block to our resilience factor. Her latest book, “It’s Not the End of the World: Developing Resilience in Times of Change” will be combined with one of her earlier books, “Guilt is the Teacher, Love is the Lesson” in an in-depth discussion of this devilish master craftsman of our lives. In the extreme, many of us live whole lifetimes driven by guilt and responsibility for other people’s stuff. But most of us worry over guilt at least some of the time. It works us over and compels us at times to do things that are not only unnecessary but often come down to downright interference with other people’s lives. And it eats at us from the inside out, through that niggling little voice that just won’t seem to let go until we finally give into it. Well this week, we are going to help it let go. Don’t miss this important discussion.

Today we are so honored to have Iyanla Vanzant here to talk to us about her latest book, Forgiveness: 21 Days to Forgive Everyone for Everything. Iyanla Vanzant, NY Times Bestselling author; host of the number one reality show on the OWN network, Iyanla: Fix My Life; and frequent guest on Super Soul Sunday and Oprah’s Life Class, is easily one of America’s most profound spiritual leaders, who empowers individuals all across the globe to live into the truest self. Her body of work spans over three decades and includes CDs, television, radio and on stage performances, 15 published books, and 5 New York Times Bestsellers, which have been translated into 23 languages. Iyanla’s no nonsense approach to helping others to live healthy and whole demonstrates her clear capacity for delivering the absolute truth with love. She warms our hearts while pushing us to grow. Today we are going to get to talk with her about the purpose, the power and the freedom of forgiveness. Do NOT miss this show!

What is it? Your grandest fantasy about your life? What do you want? You might be surprised to learn that a majority of people don’t even know what they want. Why is that? Because we’ve been taught, and have learned, to put our wants, our desires, on the back burner for so long that we’ve totally repressed our desires. Further, we get the method of attainment mixed up with true desire. And finally, we get wants related to all manner of addictions, trying to heal the past, and bargains with the Universe, mixed up with true soul desires. So when it comes to fulfilling our lives, we often end up on the wrong path pursuing the wrong happiness—and wondering why we haven’t attained our goals. So, really now, what do you want? This show will help you learn how to discover what you really want and launch your plan to get it. Don’t miss it.

So, you are stuck in a job, a relationship, an attitude, a life stance. The worst part is that you know you are stuck. You want out, but you don’t know what you want to do next. Or you don’t know which of a few options would work best. What do you do now? Not knowing is a place just as important as the place of knowing. There are some very real things that can come out of not knowing. This show is all about what to do when you don’t know what to do. If you have arrived at that sacred ground of uncertainty—this show is for you. Be here for it.

Okay, so let’s talk about that F-bomb, FEAR. Many are telling us that fear is “negative.” They tell us that fear is the opposite of love and that it is impossible to have fear and love in the same moment. In fact, they are telling us that fear is something to be feared. We shouldn’t have it, they say, for fear brings “negative” things into our lives. Well, that certainly something to be afraid of, right? What vicious cycle of fear/no fear “they” put us in! Well, there’s good news. There is nothing to fear in fear. Yes, I know I just changed Franklin D. Roosevelt’s famous statement (There’s nothing to fear but fear itself), but it’s true…there is nothing to fear in fear! In fact, what this show will prove is that fear is an open door to the divine. Don’t miss it.