Unconditional Healing with Jeff Rubin
Can a person embrace immense adversity in their life to not only cope, but to thrive and discover their most authentic self?
As a teacher of Buddhist meditation and psychology for four decades, and someone "blessed" with a chronic illness for two of those decades, Jeff Rubin has been obsessed with answering this question. This obsession led him to develop a program called Unconditional Healing, a new model of health that has helped countless people transform their relationship to pain, adversity, and illness, and unlock their own storehouse of confidence and resilience.
In this podcast, Jeff explores the principles of Unconditional Healing with talks, healing practices, and interviews with those who have discovered how to thrive in the face of adversity. He also features guests who are experts or thought leaders in a particular aspect of health and well-being. If you are dealing with an acute or chronic illness, the loss of a loved one or your livelihood, the dissolution of a relationship, or any other adverse circumstance that has you feeling anxious and confused, then this podcast is definitely for you. Especially if you’re looking for a more nuanced, more spiritual way to work with life's inevitable difficulties.
Please note the podcast is currently on hiatus, but all episodes remain available on all the major podcast platforms.
Unconditional Healing with Jeff Rubin
Interview with Andrew Holecek - On Demystifying Death and Dying
Andrew Holecek is a prolific author and spiritual teacher who writes and teaches extensively on navigating the Buddhist path. He is able to present this tradition from a contemporary perspective, by skillfully marrying the ancient wisdom of the East with the scientific findings and knowledge of the West.
I first encountered Andrew years ago when I read his first book, The Power and the Pain. Drawing upon his years of intensive study and practice, the book teaches the value and opportunities that exist in obstacles and difficulties on the spiritual path, a philosophy that resonated with me as someone confronting a serious chronic illness. I found his work a perfect fit for my Unconditional Healing teachings, as an approach towards lessening suffering when our life circumstances change and we are faced with painful, unavoidable situations.
To back up a bit, Andrew was raised in a Catholic household and had an experience with meditation at the age of 20 that changed the course of his life. Confused by this very blissful experience, he began a quest to explore many of the world’s spiritual and religious traditions that could help explain what had occurred. Eventually, after years of searching, Andrew’s journey led him to the East where he studied Tibetan Buddhism for years with many masters of that tradition.
During our conversation, we then take a deep dive into Andrew’s second book, Preparing to Die: Practical Advice and Spiritual Wisdom from the Tibetan Buddhist Tradition. While encountering our own mortality is both scary and fraught with the notion that “there’ll be time for that”, Andrew discusses the subject in a matter-of-fact, almost scientific way that expertly covers the topic from both the spiritual and the practical perspective of dealing with end-of-life issues. We talk about what constitutes a good death, the ability to let go of everything, and as Andrew says, “to stop looking in the rear-view mirror”. If you think about it, we spend more time planning our yearly vacation than we do planning for arguably the most seminal event of our lives.
We also spend time discussing lucid dreaming, the ability to became self-aware that one is dreaming while in the midst of a dream. Widely recognized as an expert on lucid dreaming and the Tibetan yogas of sleep and dream, Andrew is an experienced guide for students drawn to these powerful nocturnal practices. He makes the case that lucid dreaming is a skill that can be acquired by anyone. Finally, Andrew offers advice on the many benefits of meditation for anyone from any walk of life or tradition.
For more info on Andrew, click here.
After you listen, you can learn about and register for our next Healing Circle here. It’s virtual, there is no charge, and you’ll find like-minded folks with whom to practice meditation, and share the journey toward unconditional health and well-being.
And you are always invited to join our Unconditional Healing Facebook group here.