Mary Wagstaff - "Addiction, Peace, and Surrender"

Jillian Pransky, author of The Power of the Pause, talks with J about becoming present, open, and gently alert. They discuss reconciling our fathers, falling in love with practice, the gift of feeling OK, buddhist meditation, boundaries, the difference between understanding and agreement, taking wise action, receptivity, longer classes and being in service of savasana, guiding someone to relaxation, the LAR-LAR method, the vagus nerve, the psoas muscle, a little bit often equaling a lot, avoiding regret, and pausing as an act of love.   To subscribe and support the show… GET PREMIUM. Say thank you - buy J a coffee. Check out J's other podcast… J. BROWN YOGA THOUGHTS.    

Andrew McGonigle, author of The Physiology of Yoga, talks with J about the confluence of studying medicine, teaching anatomy, and finding identity. They discuss going to medical school at a young age, transcendental meditation, getting a job at TriYoga, moving to California, debunking misleading claims, addressing pain, shoulder surgeries and knee replacements, professional landscapes, being a teacher, down-regulation, reasons for asana, relationship to aging, engaging spiritual aspects, and developing a sense of inquiry and awe.   To subscribe and support the show… GET PREMIUM. Say thank you - buy J a coffee. Check out J's other podcast… J. BROWN YOGA THOUGHTS.    

Mary Wagstaff, host of Wild Sobriety, talks with J about overcoming addiction and devotion as a center for change. They discuss experimenting with substances, holistic seeds of breath awareness, seva program at Kripalu, self-observation without judgement, choosing sobriety, when behaviors cross the line, curiosity, sacred time-outs, intrinsic moral codes, embodiment tools, simplicity in truth, ecstatic dance, glorifying God, being confronted by life, grace, and moving towards a version of ourselves that honors our most cherished values.   To subscribe and support the show… GET PREMIUM. Say thank you - buy J a coffee. Check out J's other podcast… J. BROWN YOGA THOUGHTS.    

Brett Parris, author of Yogic Metaethics: Comparing Patañjali's Yoga, Nondual Śaivism, and Vedānta, talks with J about the links between spirituality and morality. They discuss inappropriate behavior from gurus, practical vs normative ethical theories, definition of metaethics, moral prescriptions before Patanjai, gunas, satva orientation, theism in Samkhya history, substance and action, Abhinava Gupta, theistic Vedanta, hell, free will and power, divine will, codes of conduct, and viewing the phenomenal world though a lens of grace.   To subscribe and support the show… GET PREMIUM. Say thank you - buy J a coffee. Check out J's other podcast… J. BROWN YOGA THOUGHTS.    

Maile Wicklander, founder of Tula Yoga in Chicago, talks with J about staying committed to a deeper model of yoga when the market often rewards otherwise. They discuss her unusual path from industrial organizational psychology to yoga center ownership, craving community, combining somatics, lease agreements and registration software, transitioning to new focus being called to teach something different, price increases, class titles and formats, networking, and finding sources of hope by putting energy into what excites us.   To subscribe and support the show… GET PREMIUM. Say thank you - buy J a coffee. Check out J's other podcast… J. BROWN YOGA THOUGHTS.    

Jordan Ashley, PhD, founder of Souljourn Yoga, talks with J about the ethics of running retreats and teacher trainings in the Global South. They discuss seeing through the eyes of different cultures, the darker side of voluntourism and orphanage tourism, the NY Yoga scene circa 2016, becoming disenchanted with the yoga industrial complex, teen girls, working with locals, savior-ship mentality, hands on adjustments, retreat guest dynamics, operating as a nonprofit, using AI, and raising awareness and funds for causes we can believe in.   To subscribe and support the show… GET PREMIUM. Say thank you - buy J a coffee. Check out J's other podcast… J. BROWN YOGA THOUGHTS.    

Sage Rountree, coauthor of Yoga Off the Mat: A Practical Guide to the Wisdom of Yoga, talks with J about exploring the deeper aspects of yoga in ways that are accessible and useful. They discuss knowing when to walk away from long held classes, pre/post pandemic numbers and membership models, representations of asana, reverse classrooms and co-creative learning, retirement, parenting, filtering philosophy with primers for complexity, encompassing more than physicality, and learning to find the comfort in comfort.   To subscribe and support the show… GET PREMIUM. Say thank you - buy J a coffee. Check out J's other podcast… J. BROWN YOGA THOUGHTS.    

Rebecca Sebastian, host of the Working in Yoga Podcast and founder of Inside Yoga Magazine, returns to talk with J about challenges and possibilities for yoga professionals. They discuss data that confirms an industry contraction, getting lumped in with pilates, pivoting away from owning centers, transferrable skills, trade organizations, ethics around credentialing, value of spreadsheets, decentralizing power structures, retirement plans, trend chasing, gig economy problems, and a small window for hope that is not likely to last long.   To subscribe and support the show… GET PREMIUM. Say thank you - buy J a coffee. Check out J's other podcast… J. BROWN YOGA THOUGHTS.    

Chad Herst, author of The Performance Trap: The Ache No Success Will Ever Fix, talks with J about departing from deeply ingrained patterns and the nature of embodiment. They discuss coming to yoga through grief, going to Mysore in the early 90's, witnessing abuse, injuries, pressure to be successful, aftermath of fallen gurus, boom and bust of the industry, radical transparency, prana and apana, healing through connection, honest improvisatory spaces, end of the charismatic model, and letting yourself be humbled by life.   To subscribe and support the show… GET PREMIUM. Say thank you - buy J a coffee. Check out J's other podcast… J. BROWN YOGA THOUGHTS.    

Leslie Kaminoff, co-author of Yoga Anatomy, returns to talk with J about his recent blog post on the impact of AI on creators and beyond. They discuss intellectual property theft, industrialized systems of deception, targeting of vulnerable populations, chair yoga, copyright violations, appropriate use of technology, individual sense of integrity, relating to language models, agential medical care, faking expertise, avoiding slop, policy positions for organizations, and where to draw the necessary lines that will keep human beings in the equation.   To subscribe and support the show… GET PREMIUM. Say thank you - buy J a coffee. Check out J's other podcast… J. BROWN YOGA THOUGHTS.