CATEGORIES

Let's Not Limit Nature- According to the Merriam-Webster dictionary, nature is first defined as "the external world in its entirety," with etymological roots from multiple cultures and originating meanings

The ancient Greeks had no word for art. Many indigenous people have no word for religion. Art and religion were inherent to human life until outsiders needed to critique and study these concepts-so they named them. The legacy of the word nature is similar. We speak about nature as if we are separate from itas if, like a starkly delineated shadow on a sidewalk, you can stand with one foot in nature and one foot outside of it.

QUEEN DIAMBI KABATUSUILA SHEDS A NEW LIGHT ON AFRICA

In 2016, before she became queen of the Bakwa Luntu people of the Dimbelenge territory of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Queen Diambi Kabatusuila was a 48-year-old therapist going through a difficult divorce, living in Boca Raton, Florida, and having a recurring dream about an old woman in an African village.

Over the MOON About Helping Animals (and Their People)

Since I was a child, I've had a ritual: Every night, I go outside and search the sky for the moon and stars. I marvel at the magnificence of a dark, crisp, clear, midnight blue sky and its symphony of constellations, occasional meteors, and the glorious moon herself-each illuminating the vastness. This simple practice always gives me the deepest peace and centeredness. It aligns my internal compass every night before bed.

Unlikely Lightworkers from Liverpool

The Beatles were more than musical masters-they were spiritual pioneers.

ENTER THE SAUNA

Journalist Emily O’Kelly shares some uplifting research on the benefits of sweat bathing, a global healing practice not just limited to Northern climes.

LEAVING MESA VERDE

After 21 years of service at Mesa Verde National Park, RANGER DAVID FRANKS recently guided his last tour of the pueblos and cliff dwellings. He says he was fortunate to assist the archeologists with a variety of work and never lost his amazement with their ability to figure out how and when things happened. The question he still wrestles with is much deeper: Why they left?

MY SMILING NEIGHBOR CALLS ME A CHRIST KILLER...

ROADSIDE ASSISTANCE FOR THE SPIRITUAL TRAVELER

FEATURED ARTIST - Paul Lewin

Lead digital editor Brenna Lilly spoke with artist Paul Lewin about ancestral inspiration, visions for the future, and the art of patience.

3 Poses for Awakening

The difference between yoga and many other forms of exercise is that while you are doing it, you are paying attention. You notice your breath, your rhythm, the specific ways the body feels in each posture. Yoga can be a form of moving meditation. This can be true for any pose, but these three advanced poses, which bring energy into the head, heart, and throat, are especially helpful for awakening.

THE SIMPLE THERMODYNAMICS OF ENLIGHTENMENT

When S+H was conceived, evolutionary neuroscientist PEGGY LA CERRA, PhD, awakened to a new understanding of the nature of the mind created by evolution. It’s not widely taught, but the science seems pretty obvious.

UPDATE FROM THE ASHLAND GODDESS TEMPLE

Thirteen years ago, a geodesic dome popped up like a giant mushroom beside a hot spring near Ashland, Oregon. Here, PRIESTESS GRAELL CORSINI led 19 priestesses in birthing a modern-day goddess temple. Priestess Graell now says her creation has taught her “to expand my unconditional love to a level that I had no idea I was capable of.” She wrote this update:

THE ZEN OF CROSSWORD PUZZLES

Refuge can be found in myriad ways. MYLES MELLOR creates one of the more curious and remarkably lasting places of refuge: the crossword puzzle.

OVER THE BORDER HEALING

Spa aficionado MARY BEMIS checks out the new alternative health retreat in Baja

MY TEENAGE DAUGHTER WANTS TO TRANSITION ΤΟ A BOY

ROADSIDE ASSISTANCE FOR THE SPIRITUAL TRAVELER

Shachi Kale

We spoke with Shachi Kale about healing with art, wisdom from the Bhagavad Gita, and the female journey.

HOW TO MINDFULLY PHOTOGRAPH ANIMAL ROOMMATES

CREATURELY REFLECTIONS

THE ARTS OF LIBERATION

OUR WALK IN THE WORLD

Awakening to the Wisdom of the Oak

Kristoffer Hughes is the chief of the Anglesey Druid Order in Wales, and his mission—through his school of myths and workshops and books—is to provide everyone a bite from the cauldron of modern Druidry.

It's Not Just a Metaphor

For the past 15 years, I’ve helped clients shift into a place of being where they connect with their own healing power, Divine wisdom, and creative genius. It can be a dramatic and instantaneous shift, which I first encountered by accident, head-on…

Why Dance Makes Brains Better

How an effort to help people with Parkinson's disease now helps everyone keep a healthier brain, mind, and body

FAITH TECH

STEPHEN KIESLING has a virtual dialogue with venture capitalists bent on buying the stairways to heaven.

DANCE INTO A NEW GROOVE

NOT MOVING is a good way to get stuck emotionally and intellectually, to remain the same, to avoid any new flow of old emotions, and to keep things locked up in our body and mind. Even if we do move regularly, when our bodies are always moving in the same way, we can lose the vital possibilities of sending breath into the areas of our bodies where those stuck emotions, inspirations, or ideas are hiding.

A Surgeon's Long Night's Journey into PTSD

As a neurosurgeon, the Intensive Care Unit used to be my safe place. Over the past few decades, I have consigned thousands of individuals to be intubated and placed on ventilators. As a veteran of Desert Storm, have participated in research studies to evaluate brain function among my fellow veterans afflicted with PTSD. It never crossed my mind that I might experience PTSD myself as a result of being intubated inside my own ICU.

THE ANCIENT SCIENCE OF HONEST PROPHESY

Archaeologist BRADY KIESLING explains how Greeks dealt with bribed gods using perhaps the world's first double-blind experiment.

HAWAII WAS HELL UNTIL HOOPONOPONO KE ALA

When Olympic gold medalist OLIVER FIX moved to Hawaii, the way he had learned to do things did NOT work.

THE PREIDLHOF WAY

Spa aficionado MARY BEMIS visits a magical retreat in Italy's South Tyrol.

Wake Up to the Dark

the Author walks the path toward a new appreciation of the night.

PAUL SUTHERLAND-THE HEART OF HAPPINESS

PAUL SUTHERLAND struggles with creating an off-ramp for his ignorant and stupid thoughts and actions. He falls down, gets back up, and tries again. Comments or thoughts on this article can be sent to paul@paulhsutherland. com.

MARK NEPO-OUR WALK IN THE WORLD

In January, MARK NEPO will be teaching in person at the Kalamazoo Public Library and online with Alternatives of London. In February, Mark will be leading a mastery week at the Modern Elder Academy in Mexico and offering his latest online webinar. Please see marknepo.com and live. marknepo.com for details.

SPREADING GRATITUDE

The start of the year is a time to celebrate our growth and our power to endure changes and difficulties. Giving gifts to others can express our own gratitude and inspire a steady stream of goodwill the whole year through. CURATED BY HUNTER LIGUORE