Can Enlightenment Rewire Your Brain? My Kensho Through a Neuroscientist’s Eyes

THE SHIFT HAPPENS RETREAT WITH SIMON & ALEX (October 3rd in London): https://shift-happens-retreat.subscribepage.io/👉 Work with Me - free 15 minute 1:1 consultation: https://calendly.com/simon-wgw/simon-mundie-intro-call👉 Website for coaching endorsements and retreat info: https://www.simonmundie.com👉 Free Course on 'Freedom From the Me Mind': https://www.simonmundie.com/courses👉 My book on Flow and Real success: https://www.bloomsbury.com/uk/champion-thinking-9781526626486/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this clip from our longer conversation, I speak with neuroscientist Dr Andrew Newberg, author of How Enlightenment Changes Your Brain, about a powerful Kensho experience I had about a year ago.I describe a two‑week period of bliss, emptiness of self, and a felt oneness with everything – followed by a lasting shift in how “Simon” shows up: far less identification with the personal story, and a difficulty travelling into past and future through the mind in the old way. My question to Andrew is simple:What actually happened to my brain?Andrew shares what decades of research into spiritual experiences reveal about:The difference between a moment of enlightenment and living from an enlightened perspectiveWhy powerful awakening experiences often create lasting changes in identity, beliefs, and behaviourThe five core elements commonly reported in enlightenment and Kensho experiencesHow states of oneness and non‑separation relate to the parietal lobe and our sense of selfThe role of the thalamus and wider brain networks in “rewiring” our perception of realityWhy unusual sensations in the body (including in the head) are often part of these shiftsTHE SHIFT HAPPENS RETREAT WITH SIMON & ALEX (October 3rd in London): https://shift-happens-retreat.subscribepage.io/👉 Work with Me - free 15 minute 1:1 consultation: https://calendly.com/simon-wgw/simon-mundie-intro-call👉 Website for coaching endorsements and retreat info: https://www.simonmundie.com👉 Free Course on 'Freedom From the Me Mind': https://www.simonmundie.com/courses👉 My book on Flow and Real uccess: https://www.bloomsbury.com/uk/champion-thinking-9781526626486/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

What actually changes when you stop abandoning yourself and begin meeting your experience fully?In this short episode, I step aside and let a few of the people I’ve worked with share—in their own words—what changed for them through our coaching together.If their experiences resonate, you can find details about working with me, and the upcoming retreat Alex and I are running, in the links below.THE SHIFT HAPPENS RETREAT WITH SIMON & ALEX (October 3rd in London): https://shift-happens-retreat.subscribepage.io/👉 Work with Me - free 15 minute 1:1 consultation: https://calendly.com/simon-wgw/simon-mundie-intro-call👉 Website for coaching endorsements and retreat info: https://www.simonmundie.com👉 Free Course on 'Freedom From the Me Mind': https://www.simonmundie.com/courses👉 My book on Flow and Real uccess: https://www.bloomsbury.com/uk/champion-thinking-9781526626486/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this episode, Simon sits down with Dr Eben Alexander, a Harvard-trained neurosurgeon whose dramatic near-death experience – documented in his bestseller Proof of Heaven – overturned his materialist worldview.Simon shares his own kensho (awakening) from last year and explores a central question with Eben: do an awakening and an NDE point to the same underlying reality?Together they dive into:Why both experiences reveal love as the essence of realityHow Eben’s NDE challenged the belief that consciousness comes from the brainLife reviews, reincarnation and what may happen when we dieThe ego as a survival programme – and why “loving it to death” can be more powerful than fighting itAwakening as a form of inner richness that no amount of money can buy, and Eben’s stark views on hoarding wealthTHE SHIFT HAPPENS RETREAT WITH SIMON & ALEX (October 3rd in London): https://shift-happens-retreat.subscribepage.io/👉 Work with Me - free 15 minute 1:1 consultation: https://calendly.com/simon-wgw/simon-mundie-intro-call👉 Website for coaching endorsements and retreat info: https://www.simonmundie.com👉 Free Course on 'Freedom From the Me Mind': https://www.simonmundie.com/courses👉 My book on Flow and Real uccess: https://www.bloomsbury.com/uk/champion-thinking-9781526626486/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

THE SHIFT HAPPENS RETREAT WITH SIMON & ALEX (October 3rd in London): https://shift-happens-retreat.subscribepage.io/In this solo episode, I share why—after powerful conversations with Donald Hoffman, Rupert Spira, and Bernardo Kastrup which have been viewed over half a million times —I’ve had to stop talking about consciousness in the way I used to.Since a profound Kensho experience 10 months ago, something fundamental has shifted. It’s not that those intellectual, non-dual conversations were wrong or unhelpful; in fact, they were an essential doorway for me and many listeners. But what’s become clear is this:The mind can’t grasp awakening—and trying to think our way there keeps us stuck.Awakening happens at the level of the heart, as loving presence, not as a set of concepts.Merely “witnessing” or “accepting” experience can hide a subtle indifference and rejection, whereas the true shift is an embracing, loving yes to what is.👉 Work with Me - free 15 minute 1:1 consultation: https://calendly.com/simon-wgw/simon-mundie-intro-call👉 Website for coaching endorsements and retreat info: https://www.simonmundie.com👉 Free Course on 'Freedom From the Me Mind': https://www.simonmundie.com/courses👉 My book on Flow and Real uccess: https://www.bloomsbury.com/uk/champion-thinking-9781526626486/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

THE SHIFT HAPPENS RETREAT WITH SIMON & ALEX (October 3rd in London): https://shift-happens-retreat.subscribepage.io/In this conversation I sit down with Peter Russell – physicist, pioneering meditation teacher, and author of How to Meditate Without Even Trying – to explore what happens when we stop striving so hard to “do” spirituality.Peter studied mathematics and theoretical physics at Cambridge and worked under Stephen Hawking, before realising that no amount of theory could explain the simple fact that we have experience at all. That insight drew him towards meditation, Transcendental Meditation, and eventually a life devoted to exploring consciousness from the inside out.We cover:Effortless meditation – why trying to meditate usually makes the mind more active, and how to approach practice as “just sitting quietly with yourself.”My own kenshō-style shift – including the terror that came beforehand, the prayer “please be gentle with me,” and the subsequent recognition that it’s not “Simon” speaking, but the universe speaking through everyone.Big experiences vs gradual awakening – why Peter rarely talks about dramatic spiritual events, and why chasing them can keep us stuck.Intuition and the body – how real wisdom often emerges when we drop out of the story and into sensation, and Peter’s powerful example of tracking a current trigger back to a subtle childhood imprint.A new relationship to the ego – seeing the ego as a survival pattern that’s trying to help, and how simple gratitude (“thank you for trying to protect me”) can soften intrusive thoughts and reactive patterns.Forgiving humanity – Peter’s perspective on why our current global crisis is an almost inevitable result of exponential growth, and how inner stability and community become crucial as the pace of change accelerates.👉 Work with Me - free 15 minute 1:1 consultation: https://calendly.com/simon-wgw/simon-mundie-intro-call👉 Website for endorsements and retreat info: https://www.simonmundie.com👉 Free Course on 'Freedom From the Me Mind': https://www.simonmundie.com/courses👉 My book on Flow and Real uccess: https://www.bloomsbury.com/uk/champion-thinking-9781526626486/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Ten months ago I had a kensho. Then the fireworks went. Here's what I found on the other side — and why it matters more than the peak.Chapters:0:00 — The fireworks went (and what that actually means)1:20 — Presence hasn't faded — it's deepened2:45 — When the inner commentary stops4:30 — The nervous system still reacts (but I'm not the storm)6:30 — The heart: from mostly closed to mostly open8:00 — What integration actually looks like in a body10:30 — What I'd tell someone just starting this journey#SpiritualAwakening #AwakeningIntegration #KenshoTHE SHIFT HAPPENS RETREAT: https://shift-happens-retreat.subscribepage.io/👉 Work with Me - free 15 minute 1:1 consultation: https://calendly.com/simon-wgw/simon-mundie-intro-call👉 Website for endorsements and retreat info: https://www.simonmundie.com👉 Free Course on 'Freedom From the Me Mind'👉My book on Flow and Real uccess: https://www.bloomsbury.com/uk/champion-thinking-9781526626486/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

What actually happens in the brain when you awaken – when “you” fall away and only presence remains? In this episode, pioneering neuroscientist Dr Andrew Newberg helps me unpack my own spiritual awakening (Kensho) and maps it onto decades of research into enlightenment, meditation and non‑duality.I share my experience of two weeks of bliss, non‑separation and a resulting “thin” Simon who can't seem to leave the present moment, while Andrew brings in neurotheology, brain imaging and the science of spiritual transformation.In this episode we explore:My Kensho: bliss, non‑separation and why “Simon feels thin” is a classic non‑dual shiftHow enlightenment shows up in the brain – parietal and frontal lobes, the thalamus, dopamine and serotoninThe difference between altered states and altered traits after awakeningDr Newberg’s own “infinite sea of doubt” and why radical not‑knowing can be deeply peacefulHow meditation, prayer, retreats and psychedelics can rewire perception and behaviourThe role of surrender, flow states and hypofrontality in losing the sense of a separate doer👉 WORK WITH SIMON - free 15 minute 1:1 consultation: https://calendly.com/simon-wgw/simon-mundie-intro-call👉 OCTOBER DAY RETREAT with Simon & Alex — a full day of inquiry, presence and practice: https://shift-happens-retreat.subscribepage.io/👉 WEBSITE (including endorsements): https://www.simonmundie.com👉 FREE COURSE: https://www.simonmundie.com/courses Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Shannon had read the books and understood non-duality “in her head” – but was still suffering and abandoning herself. In this short client conversation, she describes the quiet shift into a stable sense of presence where emotions still arise but no longer consume her.If you resonate with knowing the concepts but not yet living them, this is the heart of my 1:1 coaching.👉 WORK WITH ME - free 15 minute 1:1 consultation: https://calendly.com/simon-wgw/simon-mundie-intro-call👉 WEBSITE with more endorsements and retreat info: https://www.simonmundie.com👉 YOUTUBE: https://www.youtube.com/@IAmSimonMundie👉 SUBSTACK: https://simonmundie.substack.com/👉 FREE COURSE: 'Freedom from the 'Me Mind' - https://www.simonmundie.com/courses Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

What if your harshest inner critic isn’t the enemy, but a confused part of you that’s desperately trying to keep you safe?In this episode, I speak with Loch Kelly – non-dual teacher and psychotherapist – about how to transform self-attack into genuine inner support.We explore:Why big spiritual openings don’t automatically heal shame, anger or insecurityHow the inner critic is actually a protective part, not a defectThe trap Loch calls the “witness protection programme” – when mindfulness makes you numb, not freeHow to relate to fear, shame and anger with real compassion, without bypassingMoving from head to heart and living from what Loch calls awake loving flowLoch also guides a couple of short “glimpses” you can follow along with, to experience this shift directly as you listen.If you’ve done “the work” but still feel hijacked by your inner critic, this one’s for you.👉 WORK WITH SIMON - free 15 minute 1:1 consultation: https://calendly.com/simon-wgw/simon-mundie-intro-call👉 OCTOBER DAY RETREAT with Simon & Alex — a full day of inquiry, presence and practice: https://shift-happens-retreat.subscribepage.io/👉 WEBSITE: https://www.simonmundie.com👉 LOCH'S ONE DAY WORKSHOP in London on September 12th: https://www.alternatives.org.uk/event/experience-effortless-mindfulness👉 Get 20% off LOCH'S MINDFUL GLIMPSES APP: https://mindfulglimpses.com/specialoffer/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.