Integral Being

What happens when extraordinary spiritual experiences stop being the destination? In this Integral Being conversation, psychologist, spiritual mentor, and author Aliya B. Haeri reflects on a lifelong search that moved through psychic research, extraordinary phenomena, psychology, and eventually into the contemplative path of Sufism. Aliya recounts working around figures such as Yuri Geller and Dr. Andrija Puharich, witnessing phenomena that challenged conventional ideas about reality. Yet over time, these experiences revealed their own limitation: extraordinary events may open a door, but they do not necessarily transform the person who walks through it. The conversation turns toward her experience of khalwa, or Sufi solitary retreat, including a profound encounter with the Void in which the ordinary sense of body and world disappeared while awareness remained. From there, Aliya and Mark explore the movement from seeking experiences toward cultivating stillness, witnessing, self-knowledge, and conscious response. They discuss the difference between observing and witnessing, the relationship between self and soul, silence as a receptive state, the limitations of spiritual techniques and forms, and what it means to recognize the sacred not as something separate from ordinary life but as the very ground of existence. Aliya also reflects on her relationship with Shaykh Fadhlalla Haeri, the meeting of psychology and Sufi wisdom, healing, timeless awareness, and the possibility of living in what she describes as a sacred universe. Ultimately, the conversation asks a distinctly Inner Life question: What happens when spiritual understanding stops being something we seek and begins becoming the way we live? The episode ranges from psychic phenomena and siddhis to witnessing, self and soul, timeless awareness, silence, love, and the sacred nature of reality. Aliya B. Haeri is a psychologist, life coach, spiritual mentor, and author of My Timeless Journey. A lifelong student of Shaykh Fadhlalla Haeri, she is the founder of the Academy of Self Knowledge (ASK) in South Africa and brings together psychological understanding, contemplative practice, and the wisdom of Islam and Sufism. Integral Being with Mark V. Wiley explores embodiment, contemplative practice, internal cultivation, wisdom traditions, consciousness, and the lived experience of human transformation.

Practice, Embodiment, Spontaneity, and the Taoist Path What happens after decades of practice when the need to attain something begins to fall away? In this episode of Integral Being, Mark V. Wiley speaks with Taoist author, artist, and martial practitioner Deng Ming-Dao about what more than fifty years of Taoist cultivation, martial arts, and meditation have taught him about the nature of practice. Deng describes beginning his path with familiar ambitions: becoming stronger, gaining skill, and acquiring an advantage. Over time, however, cultivation began to reveal something very different. Rather than continually adding techniques and achievements, mature practice can become a process of removing what interferes with our natural capacities. Their conversation explores why the basics are the secret, how sustained repetition creates internal capacity, and why spontaneity does not mean the absence of discipline. They also examine the relationship between meditation and martial arts: meditation as outer stillness and inner movement, and martial arts as outer movement and inner stillness. The discussion eventually moves beyond methods altogether. What unites martial arts, meditation, writing, painting, and other forms of cultivation? What actually becomes embodied after decades of practice? And how does Taoist cultivation become visible in the way we participate in ordinary life? Deng ultimately brings the path back to something remarkably simple: practice consistently, support life, attend to the small things, and stop demanding that every effort produce a reward. "There's a great beauty to doing things for their own sake." —Deng Ming-Dao

How Masonic tools become instruments for self-examination, awareness, and lived transformation Freemasonry is often approached through its history, rituals, degrees, symbolism, and secrecy. But what if its traditional tools were intended to do something more—to become practical instruments for working upon ourselves? In this episode of Integral Being, Mark V. Wiley speaks with Brian Mattocks, author of A Mason's Work, about Freemasonry as a living framework for inner work. Brian explains how tools originally used by operative masons—the gavel, level, plumb, square, compass, and gauge—can be turned inward as symbolic instruments for examining behavior, perspective, boundaries, proportion, and character. Rather than merely knowing what a symbol means, the practitioner learns to apply it to the circumstances of everyday life. The conversation also explores Brian's concept of "the knock," the first internal indication that something requires our attention. Through interoception and greater awareness of the body's signals, we may begin recognizing anger, anxiety, defensiveness, or other reactions before they automatically become behavior. Mark and Brian examine the relationship between symbolic practice and embodiment, the developmental importance of the lodge and other practice communities, the difference between performative and transformative participation in a tradition, and how repeated inner work can create greater space between emotional reaction and conscious response. Ultimately, the conversation moves beyond Freemasonry to a question relevant to any serious practice: Are we simply collecting teachings and tools, or are we allowing them to change how we live? For Brian, genuine inner work begins with two qualities: courage and honesty.

What if medicine were the last step in health rather than the first? In Part Two of my conversation with Guru Yogi Shivan, we move from Kalaripayattu into the healing traditions of Ayurveda and Siddha medicine and explore a very different understanding of what it means to care for the human body. Shivan describes Pancha Bela, a fivefold approach to health built around food, movement and conscious stretching, breath, mind, and finally medicine. Rather than placing responsibility entirely in the hands of physicians or healers, this approach asks us to participate actively in the conditions that shape our health. We discuss traditional Kalari oil massage and the relationship between warrior and healer; Ayurveda as a knowledge of life rather than simply a system of remedies; Siddha medicine and experiential knowledge; breath and prana; mantra and focused attention; and Shivan's belief that ancient traditions and modern science should be brought into meaningful conversation. We also explore one of his simplest recommendations: take 24 minutes each day away from the noise of modern life and devote it to inner observation. Ultimately, this conversation moves beyond therapies and techniques toward a larger question: What if healing is not simply the removal of illness, but the restoration of our relationship with body, breath, mind, nature, and ourselves?

Can authentic spiritual transformation happen without a living tradition? In this episode of Integral Being, Mark Wiley speaks with Shaykh Peter Huseyin Cunz, a Swiss Sufi teacher of the Mevlevi Order—the spiritual tradition inspired by the teachings of Jalaluddin Rumi. Together, they explore why authentic traditions continue to matter in a modern culture that often favors individual spirituality, personal interpretation, and the accumulation of spiritual ideas over disciplined practice. Peter explains how ritual gradually changes the practitioner. Through repetition, embodiment, guidance, humility, and sustained participation in a living path, spiritual practice begins to reorganize how we perceive, respond to, and participate in life. The conversation explores the difference between learning about spirituality and actually being transformed by it. Peter discusses the embodied dimensions of Islamic prayer and the Mevlevi Sema ceremony, the importance of authentic guidance, and the relationship between the ego, surrender, and awakening. Rather than presenting Sufism as a philosophy to be admired from a distance, Peter reveals it as a living discipline capable of cultivating presence, compassion, humility, and greater simplicity. In This Conversation • Why ritual changes consciousness • Why modern spirituality can become spiritual consumerism • The difference between information and transformation • Why authentic spiritual practice requires tradition • The embodied nature of Islamic prayer • The meaning and purpose of the Mevlevi Sema ceremony • Rumi's understanding of the spiritual path • Why authentic guidance remains indispensable • The relationship between ego, surrender, and awakening • Why genuine practice gradually makes life simpler • The meaning of "You only ever take the next first step" Whether your interests include Sufism, Rumi, meditation, embodiment, contemplative practice, martial arts, or human transformation, this conversation offers enduring wisdom for the modern seeker.Discover more conversations, reflections, and embodied practices at: https://innerlifewithmarkwiley.com

What makes authentic Taiji Qigong Shibashi different from simply learning a sequence of movements? In this episode of Integral Being, Mark Wiley speaks with Fabrice Piché, a medical qigong practitioner and one of the few Western students to receive private instruction from Professor Lin Housheng, the creator of Taiji Qigong Shibashi. Their conversation explores the deeper purpose of qigong—not as exercise or choreography, but as a disciplined path of embodied cultivation. Fabrice discusses the principles behind Professor Lin's teaching, the nature of qi, moving meditation, medical qigong, qi emission, Jing-Qi-Shen, and how sustained practice transforms awareness through direct experience. Together they examine why authentic internal arts are measured not by how many techniques we know, but by how deeply practice changes the practitioner. In this episode: What makes Taiji Qigong Shibashi unique Studying directly with Professor Lin Housheng The origins of the 18 Movements Medical Qigong and qi emission Understanding qi through practice rather than belief Jing, Qi, and Shen explained Moving meditation and embodied awareness Why repetition reveals increasing depth Authentic cultivation versus external performance Embodiment as the foundation of transformation Discover more conversations, reflections, and practices at: https://innerlifewithmarkwiley.com

Light is usually understood as something outside us—something that illuminates the world so we can see it. But seeing is not passive. Light enters into a living relationship with perception, attention, the nervous system, and action. In this Inner Life Talk, Mark V. Wiley explores what happens when we stop thinking of light merely as something we observe and begin noticing how we participate in it. From ordinary vision to embodied movement, attention, and practice, light offers a direct way of examining how the condition of the perceiver shapes the world that appears. The transcript makes this participation point explicitly: seeing is an interaction rather than passive observation, with light functioning as the medium through which the world appears in relationship to us. Discover more conversations, reflections, and practices at: https://innerlifewithmarkwiley.com

What is authentic Kundalini awakening? According to Swami Kripananda, it is not something to pursue but something that unfolds naturally through years of disciplined practice. In this episode of Integral Being, Mark V. Wiley speaks with Swami Kripananda about addiction, recovery, Kundalini, yoga philosophy, breath, silence, nervous system development, and the gradual transformation that authentic contemplative practice makes possible. Rather than chasing mystical experiences, Kripananda encourages practitioners to cultivate the conditions through which grace naturally emerges. Together they explore Patanjali's Eightfold Path, breath as the bridge between body and mind, Kundalini phenomena, and why silence—not extraordinary experience—becomes the deepest teacher. This conversation offers a grounded perspective on yoga as a lifelong path of embodied transformation.

What does it actually mean to become an internal practitioner? In this episode of Integral Being, Mark Wiley sits down with René Navarro, a lifelong practitioner of Taoist internal cultivation, traditional Chinese medicine, meditation, and the internal martial arts. Rather than treating these as separate disciplines, Navarro reveals how they form a single path of embodied transformation. The conversation explores what qi really is, how internal energy is cultivated through consistent practice, and why genuine internal development gradually changes not only the body, but also awareness, perception, and the way we participate in life. Topics include: • What is qi? • Can internal energy actually be experienced? • Breath, awareness, and energetic development • The five "triangle bones" and internal organization • Meridians and the energetic body • The Microcosmic Orbit and Taoist cultivation • Internal alchemy as a lifelong process • Why authentic internal arts are about transformation, not performance Whether you come from martial arts, meditation, Chinese medicine, or simply an interest in embodied human development, this conversation offers practical insights into one of the world's oldest living traditions of internal cultivation. Learn more about Inner Life: https://innerlifewithmarkwiley.com Subscribe for more conversations exploring embodiment, consciousness, and human transformation.

Why do we possess more information than any generation in history, yet still struggle to live wisely? In this Integral Being conversation, cognitive scientist and philosopher John Vervaeke explores why genuine transformation cannot be achieved through knowledge alone. Drawing from cognitive science, philosophy, contemplative traditions, meditation, Tai Chi, and embodied practice, he explains how meaning is cultivated through participation rather than accumulated through information. Together we explore: • The modern meaning crisis • Why information is not transformation • Participatory knowing and embodied cognition • Meditation, Tai Chi, and contemplative practice • Flow states and the ecology of practices • Wisdom versus self-improvement • How embodied practice gradually reorganizes perception This conversation offers a compelling exploration of what it means to become more fully human and why transformation is ultimately a lived process rather than an intellectual achievement. John Vervaeke, Ph.D. is a cognitive scientist, philosopher, and Associate Professor of Psychology at the University of Toronto. His interdisciplinary work integrates cognitive science, philosophy, psychology, and contemplative traditions to explore wisdom, consciousness, meaning, and human flourishing. He is widely known for his acclaimed lecture series Awakening from the Meaning Crisis. https://innerlifewithmarkwiley.com/

What if the true purpose of Tai Chi has little to do with choreography? In this episode of Integral Being, Mark Wiley speaks with longtime Tai Chi practitioner, experimental physicist, and author Dr. Robert Chuckrow about the deeper principles hidden beneath the external form. Drawing on more than five decades of practice, Chuckrow explores the relationship between relaxation, breathing, sensitivity, internal strength, and embodied awareness. Together they examine why many practitioners focus on external movement while overlooking the internal processes that give Tai Chi its transformative potential. The conversation explores the meaning of relaxation beyond muscular softness, the distinction between contractive and expansive strength, the role of breath and awareness in movement, and why true development begins when practitioners stop forcing the body and begin learning from it. Topics include: • What beginners discover about tension and balance • Relaxation versus collapse • Internal strength and expansive movement • Tai Chi as embodied experimentation • Breathing, awareness, and sensitivity • The intelligence of natural movement • Push hands and cooperative learning • Presence in motion • Why Tai Chi remains relevant today Whether you are a martial artist, meditator, movement practitioner, or simply interested in human development, this conversation offers a thoughtful exploration of what long-term practice can reveal about the body, mind, and the cultivation of awareness.   Dr. Robert Chuckrow is a physicist, educator, and longtime practitioner of Tai Chi Chuan. He is the author of several influential books, including Tai Chi Concepts and Experiments, which explores internal martial arts through direct observation, practical testing, and lived experience. His teaching emphasizes relaxation, internal strength, sensitivity, and the principles underlying authentic Tai Chi practice.

What does it actually mean for a human being to change? Most spiritual seekers begin with self-improvement—trying to become calmer, wiser, or more fulfilled. But Dr. Ravi Ravindra argues that authentic spiritual practice aims at something far deeper: transformation. In this Integral Being conversation, Ravi Ravindra explores attention, consciousness, self-study, embodiment, and the mystery of awakening through the lens of the world's great wisdom traditions. Drawing from Yoga, Buddhism, Christianity, and the teachings of G.I. Gurdjieff, he invites us beyond acquiring ideas toward becoming available to reality itself. In this episode we explore: • Why spiritual practice is about transformation—not self-improvement • The relationship between attention, awareness, and consciousness • The role of the body in inner development • Self-study and the encounter with the shadow • Religion versus direct spiritual experience • Why authentic awakening requires effort, humility, and receptivity • Moving from knowledge to direct perception • The deeper purpose of meditation and contemplative practice Dr. Ravi Ravindra is an internationally respected physicist, philosopher, author, and spiritual teacher whose work bridges science and contemplative wisdom. His lifelong inquiry asks not merely how we can think differently, but how human beings themselves can be transformed.

Most meditation and breathing methods teach us to control the breath—to slow it, deepen it, or shape it into an ideal pattern. But what if that effort is actually creating the tension we hope to eliminate? In this episode of Inner Life Talks, Mark V. Wiley explores why genuine regulation cannot be imposed from the outside. The moment we attempt to manage the breath, subtle effort enters the system. Rather than restoring integration, control often interrupts the body's own intelligence. Instead of manipulating the breath, this talk invites a different approach: observation. As interference decreases, the breath naturally reorganizes itself. Awareness becomes more continuous, the nervous system settles, and embodiment begins to emerge—not through force, but through participation. This episode explores: • Why controlling the breath creates hidden tension • The difference between control and regulation • Breath awareness versus breath manipulation • How observation transforms the whole system • Why embodiment begins by reducing interference rather than increasing effort "True regulation is not imposed. It emerges." If you're interested in meditation, somatics, Tai Chi, internal cultivation, nervous system regulation, or embodied awareness, this conversation offers a practical and experiential perspective on one of the most fundamental aspects of practice. Learn more at InnerLifeWithMarkWiley.com #InnerLife #BreathAwareness #Embodiment #Meditation #Somatics #Mindfulness #Breathwork #Presence #Awareness #NervousSystem #Consciousness #MarkVWiley

In this Integral Being conversation, Will Johnson and Mark V. Wiley explore meditation as an embodied process of awakening through breath, sensation, posture, movement, and perception. Topics include: breathing through the whole body somatic meditation upright balancing and gravity Ida Rolf and structural integration movement in meditation visual field practices Tai Chi and Zen sky gazing and expanded awareness relaxation through the inhale letting go and embodied presence Rather than treating the body as something to transcend, this conversation explores how deeper awareness emerges through embodiment itself.

What does embodiment actually mean? The word is used constantly in meditation, movement, psychology, and wellness, yet it often remains vague or misunderstood. In this episode of Inner Life Talks, Mark V. Wiley explains embodiment as something far deeper than body awareness or mindfulness. Drawing from decades of study in martial arts, qigong, contemplative practice, and the Inner Life framework, Mark explores how embodiment develops through three progressive layers: sensing, structure, and integration. He explains why feeling the body is only the beginning, how organization transforms awareness into stability, and why genuine embodiment changes not only how we practice but how we move through everyday life. This episode explores the relationship between interoception, posture, breath, attention, and perception, showing how disciplined practice gradually transforms temporary states of awareness into lasting traits. Whether you practice meditation, Tai Chi, qigong, martial arts, yoga, or simply seek a deeper understanding of embodied awareness, this conversation offers a practical framework for understanding what embodiment truly is. Learn more at InnerLifeWithMarkWiley.com

In this episode of Integral Being, Mark Wiley speaks with Aikido and Tai Chi instructor Bob Noah about the deeper transformative potential of internal martial arts practice. Drawing from nearly six decades of Aikido and over fifty years of Tai Chi training, Bob explores the relationship between awareness and embodiment, nervous system regulation, energetic development, pressure training, inner alchemy, and the refinement of consciousness through sustained practice. The discussion covers: Why many practitioners never fully embody their training Awareness vs. lived experience Relaxation under pressure Push hands and sensitivity training Aikido and Tai Chi as vehicles of transformation The teachings of Morihei Ueshiba, Koichi Tohei, Cheng Man-Ch'ing, and Robert Nadeau Ken Wilber's distinction between states and stages Spiritual maturity and ethical development in martial practice Rather than focusing solely on technique, this conversation examines how internal arts can reorganize body, breath, attention, perception, and identity itself. Presented by Integral Being with Mark Wiley. Learn more: Inner Life with Mark Wiley

Most practice begins with imitation. Genuine practice begins when imitation gives way to perception. In this Inner Life Talk, Mark Wiley explores how sustained practice transforms the body from something we control into something that teaches us. Discover why: • Practice begins with imitation but matures into perception • The body becomes a source of continuous feedback • Embodiment is different from simply performing techniques • Breath, structure, awareness, and timing gradually become one integrated system • Transformation is revealed through lived experience—not accumulated information This talk accompanies the Inner Life Field Note: What the Body Reveals Over Time Read the complete article: https://innerlifewithmarkwiley.com/what-the-body-reveals-over-time/

What does Orthodox Christianity teach about the inner life? In this conversation, Fr. Jonathan Ivanoff explores the ancient Christian path of transformation through watchfulness, repentance, prayer, forgiveness, and spiritual discipline. Rather than presenting faith as a collection of beliefs, he describes Orthodoxy as a lived way of life rooted in embodied practice and continuous participation. Together we discuss: • What makes Orthodox Christianity unique • Apostolic tradition and living transmission • Watchfulness (Nepsis) and guarding the mind • Spiritual warfare and intrusive thoughts (Logismoi) • Confession, repentance, and forgiveness • The Desert Fathers and the inner struggle • Why faith must become lived experience rather than mere belief Whether you are Orthodox, from another Christian tradition, or simply interested in contemplative practice and human transformation, this conversation offers a thoughtful exploration of one of Christianity's oldest living spiritual traditions. Integral Being explores the intersection of wisdom traditions, embodied practice, martial arts, contemplative psychology, and human transformation through conversations with leading teachers and practitioners from around the world.

In this Integral Being conversation, renowned Taoist teacher, author, and translator Stuart Alve Olson reflects on a lifetime devoted to Taoism, Tai Chi, Qigong, meditation, and spiritual cultivation. A longtime student of Master T.T. Liang and disciple of Venerable Master Hsuan Hua, Stuart became one of the most influential voices bringing Taoist wisdom and internal arts traditions to Western audiences. Through decades of study, practice, translation, and teaching, he helped generations of practitioners explore the deeper dimensions of Tai Chi, Internal Alchemy, meditation, and Taoist philosophy. Together we explore: • Taoism and the art of yielding • Why the greatest opponent is often ourselves • Tai Chi beyond fighting and technique • Lessons from Master T.T. Liang • The Nine Steps One Bow pilgrimage • Gratitude as a way of life • Embodiment and direct experience • Aging, mortality, and dying well • What authentic cultivation reveals over time Throughout the conversation, Stuart returns to a simple but profound insight: real practice is not about becoming someone else. It is about removing what prevents us from being fully present to life as it is. Following Stuart's passing in 2025, this conversation stands as both an interview and a lasting record of a remarkable teacher whose work continues to influence Taoist, Tai Chi, Qigong, and contemplative communities around the world.

What happens when spirituality is approached not as inherited belief, but as lived experience? In this conversation, poet, artist, and scholar Kythe Heller joins Integral Being host Mark V. Wiley to explore poetry, mysticism, transformation, and the search for direct encounter with the sacred. Drawing from her work in contemplative arts, scholarship, and the Sufi tradition of Bawa Muhaiyaddeen, Kythe reflects on suffering, creativity, spiritual practice, and the role of living transmission in authentic transformation. Together they discuss poetry as a language of recognition, art as a form of praise, the symbolism of the phoenix, the relationship between suffering and awakening, and the enduring relevance of contemplative traditions in modern life. At its heart, this conversation explores how truth is not merely understood intellectually, but discovered through direct experience.

What if suffering arises not from life itself, but from our identification with the personality? In this episode of Integral Being, Mark V. Wiley speaks with psychologist and meditation teacher David Parrish about awareness, conditioning, meditation, self-realization, and the challenge of integrating awakening into everyday life. Drawing on decades of experience as a psychologist, prison administrator, meditation practitioner, and student of human consciousness, Parrish explores the distinction between awareness and personality, why insight alone does not eliminate conditioning, and how genuine transformation unfolds through practice and integration. Topics include: • Awareness and personality • Conditioning and human behavior • Meditation and self-observation • Anxiety and suffering • Awakening and integration • Non-dual understanding • Human transformation and freedom Awareness may reveal what we are. Integration teaches us how to live from it. About David Parrish David Parrish is a psychologist, meditation teacher, and student of human consciousness whose work bridges psychology, contemplative practice, and non-dual understanding. For more than thirty years he worked within the prison system as a counselor, psychologist, assistant warden, and warden while developing transformational programs focused on meditation, self-inquiry, and personal responsibility. Integral Being explores consciousness, embodiment, transformation, contemplative practice, and the cultivation of human potential through conversations with scholars, practitioners, teachers, and explorers of the inner life. www.innerlifewithmarkwiley.com 

What if healing begins not with technique, but with perception? In this episode of Integral Being, Mark V. Wiley sits down with acupuncturist, teacher, and scholar Felix De Haas to explore the deeper dimensions of Chinese medicine, Daoist cultivation, meditation, and the practitioner's state of awareness. Drawing from more than four decades of clinical experience and study, Felix discusses the differences between classical Chinese medicine and modern TCM, the importance of palpation and perceptive touch, Japanese acupuncture traditions, and what he calls "the shape of qi." Together they examine how stillness, presence, and internal cultivation influence healing, why practitioners must learn to separate sensation from interpretation, and how Daoist internal alchemy (Neidan) relates to medicine, embodiment, and human development. This conversation moves beyond protocols and techniques into the subtle art of listening—to the body, to experience, and to the deeper processes that shape transformation. In This Episode • Classical Chinese Medicine vs. Modern TCM • Japanese Acupuncture & Palpation • The Shape of Qi • Perceptive Touch and Clinical Awareness • Meditation and Healing Practice • Daoist Internal Alchemy (Neidan) • Presence, Stillness & Receptivity • Cultivating the Practitioner • Embodiment and Consciousness About Felix De Haas Felix De Haas has spent more than four decades studying and practicing East Asian medicine, integrating classical Chinese medicine, Japanese acupuncture, herbal medicine, palpation-based approaches, and Daoist internal cultivation into a deeply experiential clinical practice. He teaches internationally and is known for his work in the Engaging Vitality® approach and the philosophical foundations of traditional medicine.

In this episode of Integral Being, Mark Wiley speaks with Father Francis Tiso — Catholic priest, theologian, and author of Rainbow Body and Resurrection — about one of the most provocative questions in contemplative spirituality: What if resurrection was not merely symbolic, but transformative in a literal sense? Drawing from Christian mysticism, Tibetan Buddhist accounts of the rainbow body, eyewitness testimony, and emerging scientific inquiry into light and consciousness, this conversation explores reports of luminous transformation associated with advanced contemplative development. Topics include: the resurrection of Christ the Shroud of Turin rainbow body traditions in Tibet contemplative transformation biophotons and consciousness embodiment and spiritual development Christian mysticism and Dzogchen the relationship between light and the human organism Rather than promoting belief or disbelief, Father Tiso approaches these questions through disciplined inquiry — integrating theology, anthropology, contemplative practice, and firsthand field research conducted in Tibet. This is a profound exploration of embodiment, consciousness, and the deeper possibilities of human transformation.   ABOUT FATHER FRANCIS TISO Father Francis Tiso is a Catholic priest, theologian, and scholar of comparative mysticism. His work explores the intersection of Christian theology, Tibetan Buddhism, contemplative anthropology, and the phenomenon known as the rainbow body. He is the author of Rainbow Body and Resurrection and has conducted field research in Tibet documenting eyewitness accounts of luminous postmortem phenomena.

What is Tai Chi actually training? In this episode of Integral Being, Mark V. Wiley speaks with fourth-generation lineage holder Alex Dong about what real Tai Chi is—and what most modern practice misses. Beyond choreography, performance, or relaxation, traditional Tai Chi is a precise method of internal development. It trains structure, alignment, connection, and the integration of body, breath, and attention into a unified system. Alex Dong shares a clear, practical view into authentic training—removing mysticism while preserving depth. This conversation explores how internal skill is built, how structure becomes functional, and why most practitioners never reach the deeper layers of the art. This is not about style. It's about what actually develops. In this episode: What "real Tai Chi" actually means Why structure and alignment are everything The difference between form and function How internal connection is trained—not imagined Why most Tai Chi practice never goes deep The role of relaxation vs. collapse How traditional training builds real skill over time "If the structure isn't correct, nothing else can develop." Tai Chi, in its original form, is not performance—it is transformation through precise, embodied training.

In this deeply personal and wide-ranging conversation, Swami Kripananda reflects on addiction, recovery, yoga, Kundalini, mystical experience, and the search for direct spiritual realization. Drawing from decades of study with figures such as B. K. S. Iyengar, Vipassana teachers, Catholic priests, and Indian swamis, he shares stories of transformation through suffering, discipline, prayer, and practice. The discussion explores: addiction and sobriety as spiritual turning points yoga beyond posture culture Kundalini awakening and Shaktipat initiation meditation, stillness, and involuntary thought breath, energy, and the nervous system mystical experience across traditions the role of religion versus direct experience celibacy, sexuality, and spiritual energy recovery after stroke and paralysis intuition, surrender, and grace Swami Kripananda speaks candidly about his years with addiction, his recovery through yoga and spiritual practice, his experiences with Kundalini phenomena, and his belief that authentic transformation must be lived directly rather than merely believed intellectually. This conversation moves through yoga philosophy, Christianity, Buddhism, mysticism, and embodiment with unusual honesty and intensity — emphasizing practice, direct perception, and the search for stillness beyond ideology.

What are we actually searching for—and why does the search so often fail to resolve it? In this episode of Integral Being, Mark V. Wiley speaks with Sufi philosopher and teacher Shaykh Fadhlalla Haeri on the nature of presence, the role of the ego, and the deeper realities that lie beyond both. Across traditions, human beings pursue meaning through knowledge, identity, achievement—even spirituality itself. Yet something often remains unresolved. This conversation explores why: how the very structures we rely on—including spiritual practice—can subtly reinforce the sense of self they are meant to dissolve. Rather than offering methods or beliefs, this dialogue clarifies the terrain of serious inner work—where effort begins to interfere, where identity becomes transparent, and where honesty reveals something prior to the "seeker." Key themes include: • The illusion of the "I" and the persistence of ego structures • Why spiritual practice can strengthen identity instead of dissolve it • Presence without expectation or outcome • Knowledge vs direct knowing • The dangers of spiritual hierarchy and superiority • "Less is more" — the path of decrease rather than accumulation • Why awakening cannot be forced—and why guidance sometimes matters • Honesty as the gateway to real transformation This is not a conversation to consume. It is one to return to. About the Guest Shaykh Fadhlalla Haeri is a Sufi teacher, author, and guide whose work explores the unity of existence and the direct realization of truth. Drawing from Islamic metaphysics and lived experience, his teaching emphasizes inner purification, presence, and the unfolding of awareness. — Explore more at: InnerLifewithMarkWiley.com Inner Life — Embodiment. Integration. Lived Practice.

In this Integral Being conversation, Acarya Vimalananda Avadhuta introduces Ananda Marga, the "Path of Bliss," as a disciplined system of spiritual development rooted in meditation, tantra, mantra, neo-humanism, and the expansion of consciousness. Rather than treating bliss as pleasure or emotional intensity, this conversation explores bliss as a stable state of expansion cultivated through practice, ethical living, and inner refinement. The discussion moves from philosophy into method, and finally toward the larger questions of consciousness, energy, divinity, and human evolution. Acarya Vimalananda Avadhuta is a senior teacher in the Ananda Marga tradition, with more than five decades of experience in meditation instruction, philosophy, and social service.

What if martial arts were never just about fighting? In this episode of Integral Being, Mark Wiley sits down with Guru Yogi Shivan to explore Kalaripayattu, one of India's oldest and most complete systems of training. This conversation moves beyond combat to reveal how Kalari practice develops the body, breath, nervous system, and perception as a unified field. Rooted in Siddha lineage and traditional Indian knowledge systems, Kalaripayattu emerges here not as performance—but as a method of transformation. Together, we explore: The true meaning of "Kalari" and its role as a training environment Why traditional training spaces were built into the earth The role of humility, discipline, and responsibility in handling power Siddha lineage and the deeper meaning of initiation Breath, prana, and the bridge between movement and stillness Marma science—vital points used for both healing and destruction How martial intensity becomes a pathway to inner balance and awareness This is not a discussion of techniques or fighting styles. It is an inquiry into how disciplined practice reorganizes the human system. Part Two continues into the healing sciences of Ayurveda and Siddha medicine. About the Guest Guru Yogi Shivan is a master of Kalaripayattu, healer, and founder of Indimasi Ayurvedic Healing Village in Kerala, India. His work integrates martial discipline, Siddha lineage, and traditional healing systems—guiding individuals toward restoration through embodied practice. Explore more conversations, practices, and field work: 👉 InnerLifeWithMarkWiley.com Subscribe for more Integral Being dialogues exploring embodied development across traditions.

What if transformation doesn't begin in the mind—but in the body? In this episode of Integral Being, Mark V. Wiley sits down with Dr. Baffour Jan to explore a direct, experiential model of human transformation grounded in balance. Rather than focusing on thoughts, beliefs, or self-improvement strategies, this conversation reveals a different orientation: real change emerges when the body, breath, and mind come into alignment. Dr. Jan explains how imbalance—particularly in emotional and hormonal activity—shapes perception, identity, and suffering. When balance is restored at the physiological level, clarity and awareness arise naturally—without force. This dialogue also cuts through a major confusion in modern practice: the difference between genuine realization and the many experiences—psychic, energetic, or visionary—that can distract from it. What emerges is not something new to attain, but a return to what is already whole. Across the conversation, key themes include: Why working directly with the mind often fails The natural chain of regulation: body → breath → mind Emotional reactivity and its physiological roots Stillness as a gateway to balance and awareness The difference between experience and realization How balance dissolves fear, anxiety, and fragmentation Breath, perception, and the emergence of deep silence This is not a method to follow, but a shift in orientation—one that allows transformation to unfold through alignment rather than effort. About Dr. Baffour Jan Dr. Baffour Jan is a scholar and teacher whose work explores human development, contemplative psychology, and the dynamics of inner transformation. His approach integrates philosophical rigor with practical insight, emphasizing the stabilization of the human system beyond reactive patterns and polarity. About Integral Being Integral Being is a space for serious conversations on consciousness, disciplined practice, and the foundations of human development across traditions. These dialogues focus on lived transformation—where body, breath, attention, and perception are brought into relationship through direct experience. Explore more at: https://www.InnerLifewithMarkWiley.com

Daoism is often misunderstood as philosophy or belief. But in practice, it is something else entirely. In this conversation, Dr. Livia Kohn presents Daoism as a lived process—one that reorganizes how experience unfolds. Rather than striving toward outcomes, Daoist practice cultivates the conditions for experience to arise naturally. Through breath, stillness, and the release of cognitive fixation, perception begins to shift. This conversation explores: • The dissolution of ordinary awareness • The distinction between constructed self and natural self • Methods of clearing such as "mind fasting" and "sitting in oblivion" • Why time slows—or disappears—in deep practice • How ethics emerges from alignment What begins as method becomes perception. What becomes perception becomes a way of being. Dr. Livia Kohn is one of the world's leading scholars of Daoism and Chinese religion. A longtime professor of religion and East Asian studies at Boston University, she has authored and edited more than 30 books on Daoist philosophy, meditation, longevity practices, and internal cultivation. She is also the founder and organizer of the International Daoist Conference and served for many years as editor of the Journal of Daoist Studies. Her work bridges rigorous scholarship with a deep understanding of Daoism as a lived, embodied tradition. Explore more conversations and writings: https://innerlifewithmarkwiley.com/integral-being-conversations/

You don't see reality—you see your interpretation of it. In this conversation, Mike Faff explores how perception, belief, and memory construct the world we experience. In this Integral Being conversation, Mike Faff explores a simple but destabilizing insight: perception is not direct contact with reality, but interpretation shaped by belief, memory, and conditioning. What we take to be the world is not the world itself, but a constructed experience—filtered, reinforced, and often formed long before conscious awareness. This conversation explores: • Why perception is interpretation—not objective reality • How belief structures what we see and experience • Memory as reconstruction, not preservation • Why we never fully encounter another person—only our version of them • The construction of pain, meaning, and emotional experience • The self as part of the same perceptual process it observes What emerges is not a philosophical claim, but a shift in orientation. If experience is constructed, then transformation does not begin by thinking differently—but by conditioning differently. Mike Milo Faff is a practitioner and educator focused on embodied training, breathwork, and the development of integrated human systems. A licensed psychologist and certified medical hypnotherapist, his work bridges psychological insight with experiential methods of self-development, emphasizing how perception, belief, and conditioning shape lived experience. Explore more conversations and writings: https://innerlifewithmarkwiley.com/integral-being-conversations/  

What if human consciousness is not the final stage of development? In this Integral Being conversation, Santosh Krinsky explores the life, awakening, and evolutionary vision of Sri Aurobindo. In this episode, Santosh Krinsky traces the turning point in Sri Aurobindo's life—from political revolutionary to a figure of profound inner transformation following a decisive awakening during imprisonment. From this shift emerged Integral Yoga: not a belief system, but a method of transformation grounded in lived practice. This conversation explores: • The prison awakening and radical shift in perception • The unity of matter and spirit as a single continuum • The idea that humanity is a transitional being • The emergence of supramental consciousness beyond the thinking mind • The core movements of practice: aspiration, rejection, and surrender • Savitri as a vehicle of experiential transmission What emerges is not a philosophy to adopt, but a process to enter. Human development, in this view, is not complete—it is still unfolding. Guest Bio (tightened for podcast): Santosh Krinsky is a longtime practitioner and publisher of Sri Aurobindo's works, with over five decades of engagement in Integral Yoga. His path began during the political turbulence of the late 1960s, when a direct inner experience led him away from activism and toward a deeper inquiry into consciousness. Links  Explore more conversations and writings: https://innerlifewithmarkwiley.com/integral-being-conversations/