Talks 2015
Click on the links below to watch on YouTube or listen to the audio.
December 27 LA (watch, listen)
There may be no greater test of one's spiritual development than a holiday visit with ones relatives. You know what I'm talking about.
December 20 LA (watch, listen)
There are many experiences and forms of awakening but, unless you physically die in the process, you—or someone who looks a lot like you—returns. You are still here. Now what?
December 13 San Rafael (watch, listen)
Losing the illumination of awakening is not a failure. Seeking permanence in any form is the failure. An abiding awakening welcomes light and dark. It's called Oneness.
December 6 San Rafael (watch, listen)
Beware of spiritual hubris. Having a spiritual life is not an exalted state that separates you from others. It brings you into oneness. It does not free you from life but enfolds you in it.
November 29 San Rafael (watch, listen)
The universe took 14 billion years to create this moment. It was done for you. Don't miss it.
November 22 San Rafael (watch, listen)
Identifying as a seeker is a clever way to avoid finding. Deifying your teacher is a clever way to remain a student. Stop being clever and realize who you are.
November 15 LA (watch, listen)
We fear other people because we fear ourselves. Discover who you are and you will love the world.
November 8 San Rafael (watch, listen)
Worldly collisions, car crashes, instantaneous upheavals are all pathways into the random nature of reality and the hidden power of each moment.
November 1 San Rafael (watch, listen)
Discrimination is an essential spiritual tool. It is partly a cognitive process but mostly it is a state of knowing that derives from Presence. It can save your life.
October 25 San Rafael (watch, listen)
The next best thing to awakening is the practice of being awake. One takes effort, the other doesn't but they are both states of grace.
October 18 NY (watch, listen)
The mind is not your enemy. It is your servant. It is there to protect you. But without guidance it becomes your master and runs your life. Spiritual life returns you to the guide within.
October 17 NY afternoon (watch, listen)
What do you do when your life isn't working, when the foundation is crumbling, when things aren't adding up? Here are some steps that will help.
October 17 NY morning (watch, listen)
It is easy to embrace the comfort in our lives. Spiritual life is an embrace of the discomfort, the sadness, the suffering, the pain—a saying "okay" or "ahh so" to what is.
October 11 San Rafael (watch, listen)
Spiritual work is not rocket science. It is exceedingly simple. It needs to be simple so that anyone on the planet can do it.
October 4 LA (watch, listen)
There is a difference between "doing" and "being." Doing requires a doer. Being doesn't. Doing requires effort. Being just happens. Doing causes suffering. Being is liberation.
September 27 San Rafael (watch, listen)
There is a core spiritual question: "What do I know for certain?" It leads to a profound awareness of how much and little we know.
September 13 San Rafael (watch, listen)
Our practice requires reconciling Rudi's path for getting there with the realization that there has never been anywhere but here.
September 6 San Rafael (watch, listen)
Quality time is an impossible illusion. It is only when time stops, when timelessness arises, that true quality appears. It is called Presence.
August 30 San Rafael (watch, listen)
Non-duality is not an escape from duality but an embrace of it. Running from suffering is the cause of it.
August 23 San Rafael (watch, listen)
The culture we live in creates and reinforces our sense of self. Even when you try to dismantle yourself the world will recreate you. Only when you realize there is no you, will the struggle end.
August 16 NY (watch, listen)
Learning how to yield is at the core of our practice. It allows Presence access to your being. It will flow through you, free you and wash you away.
August 15 NY afternoon (watch, listen)
What is looking through your eyes, hearing through your ears, smelling through your nose is God Itself. That you give It your name is the source of all suffering and misunderstanding.
August 15 NY morning (watch, listen)
There is an oceanic sadness at the core of human experience. It is cosmic in nature. It does not belong to you.
August 9 San Rafael (watch, listen)
The difference between exploration and discovery is that exploration ends and discovery never does.
August 2 LA (watch, listen)
Making your story mythic is a waste of time. Your story is ultimately a delusion since in the final analysis there is no you.
July 26 San Rafael (watch, listen)
Never trust anyone who has The Answer, The Secret, The Truth—especially if the answer is "yogurt," or costs $200.
July 19 San Rafael (watch, listen)
The problem with trying to get out of the box is that there is no box to get out of. The box you are trapped in is of your own making. You can't tear it down because it doesn't exist.
July 12 San Rafael (watch, listen)
50th Anniversary of LSD trip, 25th Anniversary of GHOST. Important stages in a long journey that has led to right now.
July 5 San Rafael (watch, listen)
All spiritual practice can be boiled down into accepting what is. Try it.
June 28 LA (watch, listen)
Human beings are like robots programmed by a mainframe computer of infinite power and intelligence. Free yourself from your robotic mind and realize who you truly are.
June 21 NY afternoon (watch, listen)
Q & A
June 21 NY morning (watch, listen)
Your true being is like the delicious awareness you experience lying in bed before you wake up, before the mind arises and tries to tell you who you are.
June 14 San Rafael (watch, listen)
Self-absorption is the key illness of the human mind. The only cure is to observe this absorption with fierce detachment.
June 7 San Rafael (watch, listen)
If your body is your Avatar, who are you?
May 31 LA (watch, listen)
Being awake to your day, meeting every moment in a state of aliveness, openness and surrender.
May 24 San Rafael (watch, listen)
Neutralize.
May 17 San Rafael (watch, listen)
The answer is: all of the above, none of the above, either/or, both/and, neither/but—all at the same time. Good luck figuring it out.
May 10 San Rafael (watch, listen)
Less discourse, more Q&A.
April 26 LA (watch, listen)
There is nothing new to say and yet it must be said.
April 12 San Rafael (watch, listen)
We are Infinite and Eternal Being. Forever. There is no way out. Now what?
March 29 San Rafael (watch, listen)
Self-soothing and the path to God.
March 22 San Rafael (watch, listen)
The practical day to day work of a spiritual life.
March 15 San Rafael (watch, listen)
Virtual Reality as a doorway to the future and as a metaphor for our very existence. A first person account.
March 8 San Rafael (watch, listen)
The experience of entering uncharted waters is realizing that everything you know will not serve you in the next moment. It is moving forward knowing nothing. Welcome to real life.
March 1 San Rafael (watch, listen)
The esoteric nature of our practice and why you best figure out what it is you are looking for. It is possible that you won't like what you find.
February 22 LA (watch, listen)
How does a universe built out of nothing become so compelling and how do we get so lost in the stories we create? Only in stillness can we find our way out.
February 15 San Rafael (watch, listen)
How do a wish to grow, a wish to be free and asking to surrender conflict with growing, finding freedom and letting go?
February 8 San Rafael (watch, listen)
A long story about nothing and how arriving at nothingness will require you to let go of everything you know and believe. Everything.
February 1 San Rafael (watch, listen)
The great gift of meditation is that it gives you the opportunity to breathe, to detach, to find perspective and ultimately to have the option of choice in every corner of your life.
January 25 LA (watch, listen)
Craving higher consciousness, holding onto bliss, clutching spiritual attainment, are all forms of ego addiction and the source of suffering. Be prepared to surrender everything.
January 18 San Rafael (watch, listen)
What are the advantages of a spiritual life?
January 11 San Rafael (watch, listen)
There are two major elements in good storytelling, "rooting interest" and "urgency." What are we rooting for in your life? Where is the urgency? Why should we care about you?
January 4 San Rafael (watch, listen)
Nearly everyone is wounded in some way. These wounds represent the limitations of your life and are often the reason for your misery. They can also be the source of your awakening.
There may be no greater test of one's spiritual development than a holiday visit with ones relatives. You know what I'm talking about.
December 20 LA (watch, listen)
There are many experiences and forms of awakening but, unless you physically die in the process, you—or someone who looks a lot like you—returns. You are still here. Now what?
December 13 San Rafael (watch, listen)
Losing the illumination of awakening is not a failure. Seeking permanence in any form is the failure. An abiding awakening welcomes light and dark. It's called Oneness.
December 6 San Rafael (watch, listen)
Beware of spiritual hubris. Having a spiritual life is not an exalted state that separates you from others. It brings you into oneness. It does not free you from life but enfolds you in it.
November 29 San Rafael (watch, listen)
The universe took 14 billion years to create this moment. It was done for you. Don't miss it.
November 22 San Rafael (watch, listen)
Identifying as a seeker is a clever way to avoid finding. Deifying your teacher is a clever way to remain a student. Stop being clever and realize who you are.
November 15 LA (watch, listen)
We fear other people because we fear ourselves. Discover who you are and you will love the world.
November 8 San Rafael (watch, listen)
Worldly collisions, car crashes, instantaneous upheavals are all pathways into the random nature of reality and the hidden power of each moment.
November 1 San Rafael (watch, listen)
Discrimination is an essential spiritual tool. It is partly a cognitive process but mostly it is a state of knowing that derives from Presence. It can save your life.
October 25 San Rafael (watch, listen)
The next best thing to awakening is the practice of being awake. One takes effort, the other doesn't but they are both states of grace.
October 18 NY (watch, listen)
The mind is not your enemy. It is your servant. It is there to protect you. But without guidance it becomes your master and runs your life. Spiritual life returns you to the guide within.
October 17 NY afternoon (watch, listen)
What do you do when your life isn't working, when the foundation is crumbling, when things aren't adding up? Here are some steps that will help.
October 17 NY morning (watch, listen)
It is easy to embrace the comfort in our lives. Spiritual life is an embrace of the discomfort, the sadness, the suffering, the pain—a saying "okay" or "ahh so" to what is.
October 11 San Rafael (watch, listen)
Spiritual work is not rocket science. It is exceedingly simple. It needs to be simple so that anyone on the planet can do it.
October 4 LA (watch, listen)
There is a difference between "doing" and "being." Doing requires a doer. Being doesn't. Doing requires effort. Being just happens. Doing causes suffering. Being is liberation.
September 27 San Rafael (watch, listen)
There is a core spiritual question: "What do I know for certain?" It leads to a profound awareness of how much and little we know.
September 13 San Rafael (watch, listen)
Our practice requires reconciling Rudi's path for getting there with the realization that there has never been anywhere but here.
September 6 San Rafael (watch, listen)
Quality time is an impossible illusion. It is only when time stops, when timelessness arises, that true quality appears. It is called Presence.
August 30 San Rafael (watch, listen)
Non-duality is not an escape from duality but an embrace of it. Running from suffering is the cause of it.
August 23 San Rafael (watch, listen)
The culture we live in creates and reinforces our sense of self. Even when you try to dismantle yourself the world will recreate you. Only when you realize there is no you, will the struggle end.
August 16 NY (watch, listen)
Learning how to yield is at the core of our practice. It allows Presence access to your being. It will flow through you, free you and wash you away.
August 15 NY afternoon (watch, listen)
What is looking through your eyes, hearing through your ears, smelling through your nose is God Itself. That you give It your name is the source of all suffering and misunderstanding.
August 15 NY morning (watch, listen)
There is an oceanic sadness at the core of human experience. It is cosmic in nature. It does not belong to you.
August 9 San Rafael (watch, listen)
The difference between exploration and discovery is that exploration ends and discovery never does.
August 2 LA (watch, listen)
Making your story mythic is a waste of time. Your story is ultimately a delusion since in the final analysis there is no you.
July 26 San Rafael (watch, listen)
Never trust anyone who has The Answer, The Secret, The Truth—especially if the answer is "yogurt," or costs $200.
July 19 San Rafael (watch, listen)
The problem with trying to get out of the box is that there is no box to get out of. The box you are trapped in is of your own making. You can't tear it down because it doesn't exist.
July 12 San Rafael (watch, listen)
50th Anniversary of LSD trip, 25th Anniversary of GHOST. Important stages in a long journey that has led to right now.
July 5 San Rafael (watch, listen)
All spiritual practice can be boiled down into accepting what is. Try it.
June 28 LA (watch, listen)
Human beings are like robots programmed by a mainframe computer of infinite power and intelligence. Free yourself from your robotic mind and realize who you truly are.
June 21 NY afternoon (watch, listen)
Q & A
June 21 NY morning (watch, listen)
Your true being is like the delicious awareness you experience lying in bed before you wake up, before the mind arises and tries to tell you who you are.
June 14 San Rafael (watch, listen)
Self-absorption is the key illness of the human mind. The only cure is to observe this absorption with fierce detachment.
June 7 San Rafael (watch, listen)
If your body is your Avatar, who are you?
May 31 LA (watch, listen)
Being awake to your day, meeting every moment in a state of aliveness, openness and surrender.
May 24 San Rafael (watch, listen)
Neutralize.
May 17 San Rafael (watch, listen)
The answer is: all of the above, none of the above, either/or, both/and, neither/but—all at the same time. Good luck figuring it out.
May 10 San Rafael (watch, listen)
Less discourse, more Q&A.
April 26 LA (watch, listen)
There is nothing new to say and yet it must be said.
April 12 San Rafael (watch, listen)
We are Infinite and Eternal Being. Forever. There is no way out. Now what?
March 29 San Rafael (watch, listen)
Self-soothing and the path to God.
March 22 San Rafael (watch, listen)
The practical day to day work of a spiritual life.
March 15 San Rafael (watch, listen)
Virtual Reality as a doorway to the future and as a metaphor for our very existence. A first person account.
March 8 San Rafael (watch, listen)
The experience of entering uncharted waters is realizing that everything you know will not serve you in the next moment. It is moving forward knowing nothing. Welcome to real life.
March 1 San Rafael (watch, listen)
The esoteric nature of our practice and why you best figure out what it is you are looking for. It is possible that you won't like what you find.
February 22 LA (watch, listen)
How does a universe built out of nothing become so compelling and how do we get so lost in the stories we create? Only in stillness can we find our way out.
February 15 San Rafael (watch, listen)
How do a wish to grow, a wish to be free and asking to surrender conflict with growing, finding freedom and letting go?
February 8 San Rafael (watch, listen)
A long story about nothing and how arriving at nothingness will require you to let go of everything you know and believe. Everything.
February 1 San Rafael (watch, listen)
The great gift of meditation is that it gives you the opportunity to breathe, to detach, to find perspective and ultimately to have the option of choice in every corner of your life.
January 25 LA (watch, listen)
Craving higher consciousness, holding onto bliss, clutching spiritual attainment, are all forms of ego addiction and the source of suffering. Be prepared to surrender everything.
January 18 San Rafael (watch, listen)
What are the advantages of a spiritual life?
January 11 San Rafael (watch, listen)
There are two major elements in good storytelling, "rooting interest" and "urgency." What are we rooting for in your life? Where is the urgency? Why should we care about you?
January 4 San Rafael (watch, listen)
Nearly everyone is wounded in some way. These wounds represent the limitations of your life and are often the reason for your misery. They can also be the source of your awakening.