Deconstructing Michael, with Erik Newton

Turning the tables on the usual show format, host Michael Taft gets interviewed by Erik Newton. They talk about the meaning of awakening, the paradox of suffering, the end of seeking, the value of personal experience vs. scriptural understanding, Erik’s awakening experience, new technologies of awakening, the genesis of the Deconstructing Yourself podcast, and more. Erik Newton is a lawyer and was the head of a successful family law firm, which gave him the opportunity to take part in 1000s of divorces. As the result of his experience, two things happened: one was that he created the wildly popular podcast entitled “Together” — the podcast that explores the truth of human relationships — in which Erik uses his hard-won knowledge of the many failure modes of relationships to help couples understand how come together. The second was that he had a major awakening experience. Links Kenneth Folk on DY Am I Mindful Right Now The Cosmic Joke Masters of Oblivion The Forest Refuge Michael’s Book on Non-Duality Daniel Ingram on DY Meditation Magick Fire Kasina Popping the Bubble of Projection Michael’s Article on Awakening The Mindful Geek Show Notes 3:50 – How The DY Podcast Began 6:58 – The Conversation of Awakening as a Creative Journey 9:30 – The Joy of Getting Inside Somebody Else’s Mind 10:40 – What is “The Path”? 12:09 – Where Did the Name “Deconstructing Yourself” Come From? 14:48 – Deconstructing Leads to Reconstructing 16:13 – Deconstruction and Reconstruction in Buddhism 16:57 – Erik’s Awakenings and Emptiness Experiences 18:58 – “Heaven is a Place Where Nothing Ever Happens” 20:24 – The “What Next” Factor Leads Us Back to The World 21:30 – The Pros and Cons of Michael’s Style of Learning and Teaching 24:04 – The Value of Academia and Scripture 25:24 – Everything is Partially True and False 26:43 – Michael’s Time as a Seeker 28:00 – What is a Seeker? 28:36 – The Slow Death of the Seeker 31:02 – Awakening Can Save the World 32:36 – Nothing Matters and A Lot Matters 34:51 – Does It Hurt to Be Aware of Suffering? 36:03 – The Game of Recognizing Emptiness and Engaging Anyway 37:37 – Awake People Are Still People 38:46 – A Perfect Relationship Doesn’t Exist 40:21 – Popping the Bubbles of Projection 41:33 – Redefining Awakening Through Science 43:06 – Empathizing with Critics 43:54 – Teaching for The Western Mind 45:42 – The Practical Impact of Awakening 46:26 – Plant Medicine as a Shortcut for Awakening 47:15 – Technology’s Place in Awakening 51:48 – The Power of Communication Technology 52:19 – Normalizing Awakening 53:46 – Nudges Towards Awakening 55:22 – Teaching Meditation at Erik’s Start Up 56:33 – Beginner’s Mind 57:18 – Goals, Motivations, and Ethics in Meditation 58:42 – Waking Up in Silicon Valley You can help to create future episodes of this podcast by contributing through Patreon.