It is with a very heavy and grieving heart that I share with you that  Lisa Barry the co-host of the Exploring Awareness podcast died unexpectedly on November 30, 2021. We grieve together using David Whyte's poem entitled The Well of Grief, and a guided meditation, with emphasis on mindfulness of the emotion of grief using the RAIN acronym of recognize, acknowledge/accept, investigate and nurture. This is tragic, unexpected allows us an opportunity to grieve with grace, and somehow find peace.

There is a deep place of connection within each of us, that is shared by all. In today’s world, distractions, conditions, and inflexible ideas pull us away from the our connection to each other. We focus on the word RETURN as an invitation to connect to a deeper sense of presence, an authentic sense of being -  a return to mindful awareness and a return to a felt sense of the unity of all beings. This is about a realization and a return of our original self shared with all in a common...

The self-improvement industry thrives on a myth that there is something wrong with you that needs to be improved. What if you are already fine and don’t need to fixed? Although your mind may not allow you to believe this, exploring awareness and discovering the qualities at the core of your being leads to a realization of who you really are.  These realizations render self-improvement projects un-necessary. Instead, you are infused with a loving presence and the Joy of being happens organically.

Opinions, advice and judgments tend to be experienced as having to be either this way and that way with little room in between. This very common tendency is called dualistic thinking. In this episode, we bring compassionate awareness to this tendency and explore how it brings reactions instead of responses. From this place of deep awareness, life doesn’t fit into boxes. Now, freedom from duality and an opportunity to act from a place of peace, joy, love and generosity arises.

A popular Ram Dass quote- “The natural state of the mind is pure love, which is not other than pure awareness”- sums up much of the dialogue in exploring awareness podcast episodes. Listen and ask yourself – Is it time to move on from an adolescent, ego-centric perspective, or from a locked in, negative curmudgeon perspective of closed minded adulthood to a loving awareness perspective that will make the world a better place for you and those around you?

We look at the roots of judgement by becoming aware that we are judging, then exploring the awareness of the thoughts that lead to judgment. Although we can't force ourselves to stop judging by just using our mind, we can use mindfulness techniques to explore awareness, watching judgments arise, dissolve and fall away. The freedom that comes from this practice will then give you an opportunity to respond rather than react, you will be happier and so will the people around you

Change is part of the human experience. Welcome change can be fun and challenging, unwelcome change can lead to resistance and stagnation.  In this episode, we discuss a perspective that emerges from exploring awareness that transforms the effects of change into present moment awareness, where everything is stable, peaceful and calm. It may seem counterintuitive, but a realization of the impermanence of all things provides a stability and groundedness that allow us to respond instead of react,

Forcing oneself to "accept things as they are" or asking others to, sets up conflict, invokes defensiveness and leads to stuck, judgmental feelings. Exploring awareness leads to a spaciousness where the present moment event is allowed to be what it is- good or bad. If an event has occurred, becoming aware opens a compassionate channel. Practicing awareness though regular  mindfulness meditation opens  compassionate awareness so that both wonderful and adverse events can be experienced with...

By Becoming aware of the brain as an amazing resource similar to computer hardware and software, the part of us that is aware becomes activated and realized.  With the realization of awareness comes a freedom experienced as spaciousness, open heartedness, open mindedness. When you’re no longer locked into the neurological habits of your brain and woken up to identity as awareness then there’s love, peace, joy, generosity and the ability for a sense of awe and wisdom and response instead of...

When you’re aware you’re aware that is another level of existence that has an opportunity for some real peace and love and a real authentic experience with this very precious human life. It’s so precious and rare and it doesn’t last that long and there are so many ways that you can use it, so why not use it for good?

"Forgiveness means giving up all hope for a better past."- this quote by Lily Tomlin asks us to realize that the past is over, and failing to forgive keeps us locked in the habitual thoughts and judgements that keep us small and confined. We discuss forgiveness of self and others as part of the realization as Awareness for the benefit of ourselves and others. This is the Big Fun Journey that exploring awareness can be- this episode also provides a guided meditation to make it real, not just...

What would it take to find Awe in a brick? To allow yourself to be in the present moment a sense of Awe emerges as a wonderful feeling of connection. By taking the opportunity to be present, to be aware, a sense of relief that there is a larger way of being unfolds and unearths a sense of love and peace and joy found in  present moment -not from the past or future. The deeper we look, and the more present we are, the more Awe we discover- and we may find that we are the mystery we are...

While we often have great intentions to practice meditation and awareness, lack of a framework leads to inconsistency. In this episode, we discuss the foundations of practice from Adyashanti's book The Way of Liberation and provide a guided meditation to help get the practice started. 

Mindfulness practices and  exploring awareness can lead to a deep realization of the unity of all beings. A deep realization comes and goes in glimpses then clear windows, they become deeper and start integrating into daily life, conditioned beliefs and habitual thought patterns start to fall away, we begin to realize that we all share this one unconditioned place in a unified in this field of awareness. The included guided meditation helps one get familiar with an experience of awareness...

A “Joy that has no opposite” can be realized when we use mindfulness techniques to explore awareness. Happiness is wonderful too, but - as an emotion - comes and goes. Our usual ways of thinking, creating expectations, making judgments, reacting to news, making plans- all are part of what “makes us tick”. Becoming aware of “makes us tick” reveals the innate qualities of Joy, Peace, Love and Generosity charting a path for an open hearted life with less suffering that is open and helpful to

Our minds can come up with the details of past events so vivid, it is as if we are reliving them over and over again. These mental creations can lead to stress and trouble sleeping - trying to get rid of them can make it worse! Using mindfulness techniques to explore awareness can activate the “awareness mind”, and in that awareness find a place of peace and calm. We provide a guided meditation for sleep. Practicing exploring awareness during the day is a great way to prepare for those...

Meditation and spiritual awareness open up a wonderful sense of freedom and expansion that reflects an ever present inner sense of being. During the sometimes difficult work of spiritual practice, we catch glimpses of residing inner peace only to get pulled down the rabbit hole to more difficulties. There is a choice between the “cold comfort” of the known habits and the freedom that comes from practicing present moment awareness. It’s hard to explain in words, this episode includes a guided...

Where do words come from and what do they represent? Words are one way to communicate, and in this episode, we explore the awareness of what is happening in our mind that generates the words we use. Words used habitually, reflexively, and not formed with awareness may not represent the inner dimension of peace, love, joy and equanimity. Exploring awareness and finding a base of peace, joy, love and equanimity allows a place from where the words you choose represent your own truth.

“Being mindful” means more than just the ability to focus or pay attention. Being mindful doesn’t mean getting rid of thoughts or getting to a relaxed state, is not about something we need to do for gain. In this episode, we learn how to utilize mindfulness techniques to open to a place of mindful and loving awareness.  You will naturally experience a sense of peace, love, joy and generosity- something that you already have no matter what your situation. It’s a return to that!  

The Covid pandemic is giving the world a long pause from routine and turning expectations upside down.  Even as we may be nearing the end, this past year provided time to go inward, to see what is important, and note what may or may not have been working in life. Some did not have such a luxury and continued an even more frantic life fraught with risk and fear. Here, we discuss how a perspective change from reaction to response comes about using mindfulness techniques to explore awareness.

When one is mindful, a quality of “deep awareness”  opens to wonderous opportunity for discovery and freedom. We call this now a BIG FUN JOURNEY. We are seeing the big picture, taking things apart and looking at them as they are and responding in new and authentic ways. The term Loving Awareness is a good term that captures the felt sense of living in the world with awareness. Loving awareness is the source of self-compassion, and unconditional love for all.

We often hear from experienced teachers “ you are not your thoughts". To the thinking mind, this does not make any sense. This whole idea seems threatening if you haven’t been meditating and practicing exploring awareness. In this episode, Frank and Lisa  take this “idea” apart and use the exploring awareness concepts to bring it to awareness. Nothing is going to be lost AND a new authentic freedom grounded in peace, love, joy and generosity will be there waiting for your return. 

Your body is constantly wanting to heal itself, but the question is “how” to heal. Healing is a return to balance and wholeness - exploring awareness brings imbalance into view reconnection to a balanced core bringing a sense of healing. In this episode, we discuss the difference between curing and healing, and explain how using mindfulness meditation techniques to open to awareness unleashes a wellspring of healing energy – for self-healing and guiding others to their own healing.  

The never ending list of things "to do" is always there- meditation is probably somewhere near the bottom. However, the essence of meditation is not a “doing” but is “being”- and “being” never goes anywhere. Meditation then becomes a way to become familiar with that sense of “being”. There is an opportunity here to wake up to the truth of being and a “don’t know” feeling which could be the source of all wisdom- as Socrates famously observed, “I know one thing, that I know nothing.