Ian Punnett (Twitter) welcomed medical intuitive and board certified psychiatrist, Dr. Judith Orloff, who discussed what messengers in our lives --in the form of angels, ghosts and dreams-- are trying to tell us. She explained that connecting with these outside forces is akin to "tapping into a world larger than ourselves, the unseen, for guidance, for energy, and for protection." As such, she was critical of mainstream medicine which focuses on the "linear mind," since it overlooks the supernatural elements which "help us along the way as we travel on this Earth." Ultimately, Orloff credited intuition as a means of connecting to these external guides by functioning in a "non-linear way" and allowing consciousness to expand.

On how to harness intuition and receive insights from these outside forces, Orloff advised people to simply close their eyes and ask one question. From there, she said, "go inward" and wait for an answer. According to her, the solution can then arrive via images, impressions, sights, smells, or even sounds. She stressed that one should not immediately analyze the information as they receive it, and, instead, they should merely write it down and then later see how it applies to the question. "To get used to problem solving in that way," she mused, "you may be tapping into that wisdom or you can experiment with finding your outer guides." Additionally, she noted that the "hypnagogic state" between being asleep and awake is a particularly strong time for experiencing visitations from outside forces.

While these messages can be powerful, Orloff emphasized that the recipient must "tap into our gut and our inner wisdom and defer to that," rather than strictly following these mysterious insights. She noted that this is because "there are many things out there that are impish and that want to cause trouble" by misleading humans. Therefore, she said, one must be discerning about how they follow this external advice. To that end, Orloff claimed that a positive intuitive feeling may give the experiencer the feeling of "energy going up," goosebumps, chills of recognition, or deja vu. Negative external advice, she said, can make people feel uneasy, tired, or even sick. Should one experience such feelings from outside messages, Orloff warned not to follow their direction because "you're body is giving you important information there."

Information about Dr. Orloff's Awakening Second Sight workshop from July 27-29 at Esalen Institute in Big Sur, California, can be found here.

Surfing & Spirituality

In the first hour, World champion Tandem surfer, Bear Woznick, talked about surfing, spirituality, and rites of passage. "When you're riding a wave," he reflected, "you're detached from all things society wants you to be." Woznick, who said he sets a physical challenge for himself every year, lamented that, in contemporary times, men seem to lack cultural rites of passage to challenge their inner resolve. "You really don't know who you are until you come to an end of yourself," he said, "where you have to cross the threshold of courage or you go further than you can in terms of endurance." Therefore, he suggested that people challenge themselves and seize upon these "now moments" to develop greater spiritual growth.