Lift: The Podcast

Are the swiftly changing times testing your ability to stay clear, centered and calm? Do you feel disoriented or ungrounded? If so, this episode was made for you. We're blessed to live in a world where mindfulness practices are expanding their reach - but still, how many of us feel that we have easy-to-understand, accessible practices that we actively use to stay grounded and calm each day? Too often, the tide of busyness and stress insidiously pulls us in, and our practices fall by the wayside.    In this episode, the incredibly powerful and scandalously funny Yogi Shambu guides us through 4 simple practices designed to help you feel grounded, embodied, and powerful in the midst of anything. Best of all, any of them can be done in a 15-minute break in your day.    Bonus: we'll also cover practices to keep eyes healthy despite increased screen-time, family and couple dynamics, working with isolation, and an approach to scarcity that dissolves fear. 

In difficult times, when we need to know how to live through loss and drastic life alterations, we can look to those who have been through it - the wisdom-holders of our global community. In 2016, Ashley "Ash" Kirchner lost his 20-year-old daughter to a tragic train accident - living through the experience that most parents dread above all. Only, he doesn't view death the way the rest of us do. When he talks about his beloved daughter, it's in the present tense - and, no, he isn't in denial about her death, either.    Originally from the island of Aruba, Ash's family has long put a celebratory spin on loss and regarded the "dead" as not really gone at all. As a result, the man you'll see and hear in this interview is not fragmented by grief. Instead, he brings his grief with him into a full life. Compassionate, glad of heart, and constantly in connection with his daughter, this man has invaluable and timely lessons to teach us about how to remain whole in the face of loss. 

Without a clear sense or our roots, can we as easily take flight? Live our destiny? Realize our potential?    Life coach Ubbe MacLean and I discuss what becomes possible when we dig deep to discover the roots of our ancestry. In today's globalized world, so many of us look "out" - to cultures and traditions that pique our fascination precisely because they are so different from our own. Ubbe defies this pattern - he has gone about 1,000 years back to the Northern European roots of his ancestors, which trace back to Viking culture, and now consciously weaves this heritage into his everyday life and his work with clients. He intelligently blends what he has discovered with his extensive training in psychotherapy and coaching. The result? Ubbe's leadership offers a potent blend of ancient and modern wisdom and answers a collective call for rediscovering our roots.    In today's episode, he discusses his exploration into his cultural heritage, how it's imbued him with a strengthening kind of dignity, and how we can all embark on our own journeys, to harness the strengths and virtues offered to us by our ancestral line.  Tune into Ubbe's YouTube channel here: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCPL5e9vcZTeYmjp13DtyT_Q

So many of us walk around wondering why we can't access our creativity, why our full potential sits there and, while we can feel it, we can't quite access it or truly live from it. It nags at us, and days, weeks and years pass without our stepping into and experiencing the bliss of our full power. Sabrina Lynn is someone who has deeply explored this question - not through intellect, but through her own embodied practice. She's delved deep and returned with astonishing clarity, and an understanding of how stepping into our All-ness truly works. She's explored a wide assortment of archetypes - both masculine and feminine, many of which are taboo and unaccepted by society. She's gone where many of us fear to tread - and come back with a strength and power so many of us crave. Don't take it from me - hear for yourself how much authentic passion and energy lives in Sabrina's presence. Warning: inspiration abounds in this episode, and you just might be tempted to dive into parts of yourself that haven't seen the light of day, but that hold the key to your empowerment. You can find Sabrina at rewildingforwomen.com.

Can music act as a catalyst for our evolution? Can it midwife us past our comfort zone, into new realms, new possibilities, and new ways of seeing? I say it can. Vocalist and songwriter Masha Tretiakova D'Elphenden writes songs that bridge the heartbreaking tenderness and vulnerability of being Human with the vastness of the universe and consciousness itself. At once an exploration of infinite mystery, and a deep-dive into the rawness of the human heart, Masha's music dives bravely into suffering and bring us out the other side: into an uplifted, inspired reality in which wonder reigns, allowing us to dance on the surface of life rather than getting pulled down by its gravity. In this unique episode, Masha discusses the trials, losses, and resplendent gifts that inform her music, and plays her songs in between questions.

Have you ever wished, that the kind of magic that seems to show up spontaneously in childhood, your first kiss, or other rare and momentous occasions in life, was something you could infuse your everyday life with? Do you ever feel tired of the flatness of the mundane world, yet feel powerless to "light it up" into something inspired and rarified, of your own accord? Me too. I sometimes wonder if magic is something that used to be more present, and gradually faded as (much of) humanity adopted a rationalist perspective, largely to the exclusion of rituals whose very purpose is to infuse our lives with that magic. My guest today believes that, even more important that understanding the details of a chart or transit, astrology's job and potential, is to bring magic back, to a soul-starved world. 

Blain Bovee is an astrologer, author, and overall wisdom holder in our midst. Before becoming a professional astrologer over 20 years ago, he studied and earned graduate degrees in both, Philosophy and Far Eastern Studies. His wealth of wisdom is shared with us through this conversation today.    Have you ever wondered, how does astrology work? What do the stars and celestial bodies have to do with our affairs here on Earth? Why would we ever want to look to them, for guidance?    The answer, entails shifting our perspective on the nature of life and the universe, from a rationalist view of our surroundings as lifeless and random, to the vibrant aliveness of a universe that is perpetually speaking to us. Blain and I discuss in our podcast today.    We also touch on:  Astrology as counseling A "job" verses a "vocation," and what to do when you worry that your "vocation" or calling won't make you enough money to live on.  And more.    If you love this episode, find the exclusive accompaniment on patreon.com/katya_coach. Patreon is also the most direct way to help support Lift, and we ardently appreciate all who feel called to support us.    You can also find Blain, sign up for his popular "Sabian Sage Daily" newsletter, and/or (my favorite) consult Blain's Sabian Sage Oracle at boveeastrology.com. 

In Episode 2, Katya speaks with artist Kyra Coates.  Kyra is a 39-year-old mother of 4 who was recently diagnosed with cognitive decline leading to Alzheimer's disease. After a period of grieving, Kyra decided to draw on her extensive spiritual training as well as her lifelong calling as an artist, and turn her deeply personal transition into a work of art. Putting together a series of 18-20 paintings, woven together with a story, she is creating a modern-day, accessible retelling of the Tibetan Book of the Dead. The main characters are herself and her 4 daughters - the people with whom it has understandably been hardest to share the news of her diagnosis - and she leads her daughters through the process of her own death. In it, she shows what the Tibetan Book of the Dead illuminates - that death is not an end, but a transition - a transition colored in a very real way by the states of mind in which we have lived our lives. Her vision, is that the project, along with being printed in the form of individual books, will also travel to hospitals, hospices, galleries, and anywhere else that will welcome this hopeful take on death, that welcomes the sadness of loss while seeing it as only one part of the magic and miracle of this process, and, importantly, inspires us to make wise choices about how we live today. Join Katya as she speaks with Kyra about the process of coming to the phenomenally courageous decision to turn her frightening diagnosis into a vibrant expression of her life purpose, designed to nourish our current understanding of death. You'll hear many synchronicities, such as the work Kyra did in hospice working with Alzheimer's patients in college, and how this artist who has focused mainly on portraying feminine power, became the mother of 4 daughters. Truly a magical, inspiring episode. If you enjoy this episode, consider supporting Lift on Patreon.com/katya_coach. Patrons at the $2 level and above receive access to exclusive episodes with all our guests. In the exclusive extension to this episode, Katya and Kyra discuss the common question, "what would you rather lose first, your body or your mind?" and what happens when we find out the answer, so much sooner than we expected. We also learn more about the Tibetan Book of the Dead itself, and the fascinating after-death research done by generations of monks who corroborated a specific dying process said to be common to all, including isolating a post-death moment at which we are prompted to make a profound, future-determining choice. You can find Kyra Coates and view her artwork at kyracoatesart.com. Until Thanksgiving, 2019, you can also contribute to her Indiegogo campaign, funding the printing of her book at https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/journey-of-the-in-between#/.

In Episode 1, Katya speaks with Kat Courtney, shamanic guide of the powerful plant medicine, Ayahuasca.  Ayahuasca is a vine used for centuries in the Amazon basin for the purposes of healing, rekindling life purpose, and reconnecting with our Soul. It is said by many that it is the *disconnection* from our soul that results in ailments and distresses of the mind, emotions, and eventually even the body. Kat has trained for over 12 years, facilitating and participating in hundreds and hundreds of Ayahuasca ceremonies. Today, she answers basic questions such as "what is Ayahuasca?," "what is the experience like?", "is it for everyone?", and, "what are the potential benefits and risks?" Together, Kat and Katya cover a lot of ground. If you prefer the audio only version, you can also find Lift: the Podcast on iTunes or your favorite podcast player, where you can subscribe, leave ratings and reviews. If you enjoy this episode, consider supporting Lift on Patreon.com/katya_coach. Patrons at the $2 level and above receive access to exclusive episodes with all our guests. In the exclusive extension to this episode, Katya and Kat discuss plant teachers vs. human teachers, the evolution of human sexuality, and radical self-care that embraces both our light and our shadow. You can find Kat Courtney on her website afterlife.coach.

Welcome to Lift: The Podcast. Where we interview luminaries of our time to uplift, inspire, and mobilize ourselves, in interesting and incredibly intense times here on Earth! In this episode, host Katya Slivinskaya explains the mission of Lift, and how it came to be born. To support Lift, and receive exclusive, backstage episodes, visit Patreon.com/katya_coach.