Dropping In with Omega Institute
44 episodes - English - Latest episode: over 1 year ago - ★★★★★ - 111 ratingsExpand your understanding of your life and the world around you with deep, intimate conversations featuring thought leaders whose work guides millions to their purpose. Recorded live from Omega Institute’s Rhinebeck, NY campus, Dropping In is hosted by Emmy award-winning producer and Omega digital media director, Cali Alpert, with editing and sound design from Grannell Knox, Jay Galione and Scott Mueller. Omega Institute is a vibrant center for lifelong learning, spiritual exploration, and community building. With a variety of workshops, retreats, and online learning opportunities, Omega empowers you to cultivate resilience, ignite creativity, and make positive change.
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Episodes
Jennifer Cohen Harper - Navigating the Rising Tide of Anxiety in Kids
January 24, 2023 07:00 - 37 minutesAnxiety has been rising steadily for more than a decade in all populations, says mindfulness teacher Jennifer Cohen Harper. We see more and more kids struggling with it, she says, due in part to pandemic school closures/reopening, as well as the economic uncertainties so many have faced. Listen to Jenn's anecdotes about her own experience as a parent, how it's wise to make friends with anxiety instead of pushing it away, and how caregivers with anxiety can actually be the greatest support to ...
Devi Brown - Finding Peace in Times of Discomfort
January 10, 2023 07:00 - 42 minutesEveryone has the right to heal, says Devi Brown, whose role as a well-being educator recently expanded to include leading diversity and inclusion at Chopra Global. In conversation with Omega digital media director Cali Alpert, Devi discusses how we experience trauma individually and culturally, her commitment to finding patches of joy within the challenges, and why the journey of self-study and self-discovery is so critical. Devi identifies ways to better serve the collective, through free an...
Padriag O'Tuama - When a Poem Looks Back at You, What Does it See?
January 03, 2023 07:00 - 45 minutesIn conversation with Omega digital media director Cali Alpert, Pádraig Ó Tuama explores the shared sources of prayers and poetry, the multiple interpretations of language and how it changes over time, and how he likes to explore scáth —which means both shadow and shelter in Irish. Pádraig opens up about his upbringing and its challenges, and how children are yearning to look at things of serious meaning, such as life and death. He says when he felt alone as a child, poetry created a space for...
Lisa Williams - Turning to Mediums in Trying Times
December 27, 2022 07:00 - 41 minutesMore Americans are turning to psychics than therapists these days, says renowned British psychic Lisa Williams. Because of that, she’s looking to raise the ethical and professional standards in an industry that is providing so much hope. Among the 101 messages Lisa delivered during the pandemic: We are in a time of change and now is the time to stand up for what you want. Listen to Lisa’s stories about how she is using her intuitive abilities in new ways to give families final messages when ...
Dan Millman - Peaceful Heart, Warrior Spirit
December 20, 2022 07:00 - 43 minutesWhen Dan Millman was teaching a martial arts course at Oberlin College, he coined the phrase that now graces the cover of his spiritual classic, The Way of the Peaceful Warrior. In teaching the class and writing the book, Dan drew on leaders like Mahatma Ghandi and Martin Luther King Jr., well-known people who had a peaceful heart but, at times, needed to show a warrior spirit. Since then, he has come to see everyone as peaceful warriors in training, because we’re all seeking that sense of eq...
Tracee Stanley - Reclaiming Rest
December 13, 2022 07:00 - 35 minutesIn conversation with Tracee Stanley, Dropping In host Cali Alpert asks, “Why has it become a badge of honor in our society to be tired?” Tracee says we can trace that belief back to the Industrial Age, when the dominant culture began to say, "If you’re not productive, you’re not valuable as a human being." Instead of carrying the trope of doing more, acquiring more, and being available 24 hours a day, Tracee is looking to celebrate the rituals of rest, sacred dreaming, and self-care. When we ...
Gabor Maté & Daniel Maté - A Fresh Start for Parents & Their Adult Children
December 06, 2022 07:00 - 51 minutesOn the heels of the arduous and rewarding process of writing a book together, Gabor and Daniel talk with Cali Alpert, Omega's digital media director, about the only relationship where one partner is completely responsible for the other. “No relationship starts off so entirely unequal, moves toward equality, then back toward dependence, all the while demanding mutual respect,” Gabor says. Also, Daniel adds, there’s really no blueprint for how it’s supposed to be. Sharing snippets from their o...
Xiye Bastida - Becoming a Protector of Our Planet
November 29, 2022 07:00 - 44 minutesIn conversation with Omega digital media director Cali Alpert, Xiye Bastida shares her view of climate justice and how it is different from environmentalism, her deep sense of gratitude for Mother Nature, and the meaning of reciprocity across Indigenous cultures worldwide. As she carries the wisdom of a new generation with her, she emphasizes connection—how we need to connect with our elders, and learn from our history, instead of blaming ancestors for the injustices and the extractive practi...
Marisa Peer - Change Your Thoughts, Change Your Life
November 22, 2022 07:00 - 48 minutesWe create beliefs at such a young age, says hypnotherapist Marisa Peer. Those beliefs become part of our identity, and they often impact our entire life, even affecting our physical reality. When Marisa invented the five steps of Rapid Transformational Therapy (RTT®), it was based on her knowledge that the mind does what it believes you want, based on the words you use. That’s why, she says, if you think better words, you have better outcomes. In conversation with Omega digital media directo...
The Moth - The Power of Storytelling
November 15, 2022 07:05 - 40 minutesKate Tellers and Theresa S. Thames share how the art of storytelling has animated their lives, and the lives of The Moth audiences from all walks of life, on this episode of Dropping In. They discuss how to become a great storyteller, the importance of listening, and how to build community through storytelling. The trio talks about how storytelling has the power to bring people together—even in divisive times—to find a place of commonality in the human experience. Don’t miss the big reveal a...
Rupert Spira - What is Your Essential Self?
November 15, 2022 07:00 - 46 minutesLasting peace and happiness is all everyone really wants, says spiritual teacher Rupert Spira in conversation with Omega digital media director Cali Alpert. But, how do we miss accessing it, when peace is available to us at our core? Rupert describes his work in nonduality as an exploration into the nature of awareness. As we draw attention to that within ourselves which is ever-present, which never changes, we realize that peace and happiness are the nature of our being. This episode is part...
Dr. Eric Loucks - Develop Mindful Skills to Thrive in College
April 05, 2022 06:00 - 44 minutesCollege students, and the adults who nurture them, face unique challenges: the anxiety of daily deadlines, social media overload, finances, loneliness, diet and health. In his conversation with Omega digital media director Cali Alpert, Dr. Eric Loucks shares a mindfulness-based method to connect with your body, mind, and spirit; to become healthier and happier; and to live the life of your dreams. Establish a healthy career path in college and embark on a mindfulness journey with the tools...
Mingtong Gu - An Ancient Remedy for Modern Times
January 11, 2022 07:00 - 39 minutesCultivate a sixth sense, accept an invitation to the unknown, and open your heart to the magic of life. In this conversation with Omega digital media director Cali Alpert, qigong master Mingtong Gu talks about the ancient method that changed his life, and how we can learn to co-exist with every aspect of ourselves—the joy, the pain, the courage, the fear. Energy enhances all aspects of our lives, including our physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual health. He says, qigong goes beyond a ...
Andrea Pennington - Cue Self-Care for Emotional Rescue
January 04, 2022 07:00 - 43 minutesIn her conversation with Omega digital media director Cali Alpert, Dr. Andrea Pennington talks about drama and trauma in life, and how we come to manage them. But bouncing back, she says, goes beyond a return to baseline normal—it’s about being able to thrive. Empowering ourselves to slow down, be still and take time out for play are powerful tools that can bolster self-love and provide nourishment for the mind and body. This episode is part of Season 3 of Omega's award-winning podcast, Dropp...
David Elliott - The Healer as a Spiritual Midwife
December 28, 2021 07:00 - 37 minutesIn this episode, author of The Reluctant Healer David Elliott explains how breathwork helps to get people out of their head and into their heart. In his conversation with Omega digital media director Cali Alpert, he unpacks the physiology—how the breath practice causes more oxygen to travel through the bloodstream to the brain, creating enough energy (and electricity) to trigger the hypothalamus, and release endorphins to ductless glands such as the pineal, thymus, and adrenals. David talks a...
Leslie Salmon Jones - Tuning In to the Rhythms of Life
December 21, 2021 07:00 - 44 minutesLeslie Salmon Jones says that Afro Flow Yoga was spontaneously born out of her deep healing journey—including a trip through West African slave dungeons—with her partner in life and work, Jeffrey Jones. In her conversation with Omega digital media director Cali Alpert, Leslie details how her ancestors’ legacy of trauma impacted her body and her mission, how we are always in motion just like bodies of water and the planets, and how to pay attention to our bodies and attend to them with care w...
Scott Shute - Bringing Compassion to Work
December 14, 2021 07:00 - 46 minutesListen as Scott Shute, author of The Full Body Yes, talks with Omega digital media director Cali Alpert about the history of work and how it impacts our conditioning, the human desire to become the best version of ourselves, and how we might shape our work to be more aligned with what we love. Scott shares a personal story about how he developed mindfulness and compassion programs as an executive at LinkedIn, starting with a calling he had from a young age to change work from the inside out. ...
Donna Holland Barnes - Hope Eases the Burden of Grief
December 07, 2021 07:00 - 46 minutesDonna Holland Barnes, a certified grief recovery specialist, life coach, and author of The Truth About Suicide, shares a personal experience about suicide and how it impacted her life, shifting her focus to helping others. In her conversation with Omega digital media director Cali Alpert, Donna discusses grief and suicide, and how eschewing a prescription pad for a healthful lifestyle and the support of others can bolster mental health. With a rise in suicides today—especially among young peo...
Matt Kahn - Ignite the Power of Love
November 30, 2021 07:00 - 49 minutesIn a conversation with Omega digital media director Cali Alpert, Matt Kahn, an empathic healer and best-selling author of Whatever Arises, Love That, shares how love takes many shapes and forms throughout life. Matt gets to the heart of the matter by offering the support people need to love themselves the way they would desire others to love them. He says there is no time in our lives when we are unworthy of love. This episode is part of Season 3 of Omega's award-winning podcast, Dropping I...
Jeff Warren - Make Your Nervous System Sing
November 23, 2021 07:00 - 44 minutesCoauthor of Meditation for Fidgety Skeptics Jeff Warren speaks from his own experience with ADD, when he says that a more fun, accessible approach to meditation is urgently needed today. In his conversation with Omega Digital Media Director Cali Alpert, Jeff reveals why he thinks meditation is one of the most radical acts, how we can tailor a practice to fit our individual needs, and how we learn best in community. This episode is part of Season 3 of Omega's award-winning podcast, Dropping In...
Pema Chödrön - Swimming in the Middle of the River
March 29, 2021 04:00 - 16 minutesIn this episode from Omega's 2011 Living beautifully With Uncertainty and Change Retreat, Pema Chodron shares a 12-minute teaching on patience, coping with daily annoyances, and swimming in the middle of the river. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Ani Trime - Release Negative Thinking
March 15, 2021 04:00 - 26 minutesIn this episode from Omega's 2005 Overcoming Obstacles Conference, the late Buddhist nun, Ani Trime, offers a 22-minute talk on coping with a complaining mind, followed by a 9-minute meditation practice to help release negative thoughts. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Sharon Landrith - A Meditative Transmission
March 01, 2021 05:00 - 47 minutesThis offering from spiritual counselor, Sharon Landrith, is a 43-minute seamless, guided meditation where even the explanation at the beginning is part of the visceral experience. The excerpt is from Omega's 2018 'Love Arising From Stillness' Retreat. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Mallika Dutt, Tony Porter, Elizabeth Lesser - Exploring Gender Socialization and Empowerment
February 16, 2021 05:00 - 39 minutesIn this potent 35-minute conversation, originally recorded at Omega's 2014 Women & Power Conference, Mallika Dutt, Tony Porter and Elizabeth Lesser share stories and perspectives on gender socialization in modern times. Mallika ends the episode by guiding you through a short visualization to promote interdependence. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Rhonda Magee - Honoring Your Cultural Heritage
February 01, 2021 05:00 - 34 minutesIn this episode from Omega's 2017 Being Fearless Conference, Professor Rhonda Magee shares a poignant 24 minutes of teachings honoring her African American heritage, finding collective worth in one's culture, and creating mindfulness around social justice. Later, she offers a 6-minute standing practice to help you honor your personal history. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Roshi Joan Halifax - Strong Back, Soft Front
January 19, 2021 04:59 - 45 minutesToday, Roshi Joan Halifax offers a stirring 26-minute lecture on being a 'war baby', early lessons in unconditional love, and what it really means to be of service, all from Omega's 2013 Women and Power Retreat. Later, she leads a 14-minute body mindfulness practice (starting at 27:38), and shares her core teaching: cultivating a strong back, soft front. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Holistic Life Foundation - Nature-Based Lessons
January 04, 2021 05:00 - 41 minutesToday, the cofounders of the Holistic Life Foundation begin this 38-minute conversation, originally recorded at the Making Peace with the Earth Conference in 2018, with a 13-minute lovingkindness practice. Later, they share the nature-based lessons from their childhoods that inform their work with underserved kids. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Jack Kornfield - A 12 Minute Mindfulness Meditation
December 14, 2020 05:00 - 15 minutesIn this 12-minute episode, Jack Kornfield offers up a lovingkindness meditation from Omega's 2013 Neuroscience of Well-being, Mindfulness & Love Workshop in New York City. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Rev. angel Kyodo williams Sensei - Seeing the Illusion of Separateness
November 30, 2020 05:00 - 21 minutesRev. angel Kyodo williams Sensei offers a 19-minute conversation about the illusion of separateness, originally recorded at Omega's 2015 Women & Power Conference, plus a 7-minute meditation practice to help you re-center (starting at 11:00). Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Jon Kabat-Zinn - Dropping Into Being
November 16, 2020 05:00 - 25 minutesIn this 22-minute episode recorded at Omega's 2017 Being Fearless Conference, Jon Kabat-Zinn discusses how presence and wisdom must be cultivated—then offers a "dropping into being" practice. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Sharon Salzberg - 8 Minute Lovingkindness Meditation
November 03, 2020 05:00 - 11 minutesThis offering from Sharon Salzberg is a short, snackable, 8-minute lovingkindness meditation, excerpted from Omega's 2006 Women & Power Conference. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Sherri Mitchell - Sacred Instructions
August 17, 2020 04:00 - 20 minutesNative American activist, author and indigenous rights lawyer, Sherri Mitchell, considers the job of preserving her Wabanaki ancestry a sacred responsibility. In this bonus episode of Dropping In Mitchell recalls the community elders that nurtured her early potential, explains the spiritual significance of her tattoos, and shares her plea for humanity to honor Mother Nature. This bonus episode features audio recorded at Sherri Mitchell's Omega workshop interwoven with an intimate conversation...
Nina Rao - Bringing Chant to Life
July 27, 2020 04:00 - 23 minutesNina Rao has her grandfather to thank for setting her on the path to sacred chant. It took many years and several professional pit stops—including commercial banking—before she found her way to kirtan and to becoming the musical assistant and business manager for Krishna Das (KD). In this bonus episode of Dropping In, Nina walks her students through the ancient verses of her favorite chant, Hanuman Chalisa, during her Heart Practice of Chanting workshop with KD at Omega. The episode also feat...
Krishna Das - The Power Of Chant
July 13, 2020 04:00 - 23 minutesThe name, Krishna Das, may very well be synonymous with sacred chant, or 'kirtan'. In this bonus episode of Dropping In, the Grammy-nominated musician, and longtime friend of Ram Dass, explains the power of repetition in chant for connecting with the divine and how the lack of early belief systems in his family shaped him. This bonus episode features insights and performances recorded at "KD's" Omega workshop interwoven with an intimate conversation with longtime public radio journalist, Kare...
Don Miguel Ruiz, Jr. - It's A Matter Of Faith
January 13, 2020 05:00 - 34 minutesIn his book, "The Five Levels of Attachment," Mexican-American author and shaman Don Miguel Ruiz, Jr. describes the five guideposts for gauging how attached we are to any particular belief, whether ours or someone else'. In his Omega workshop, he encouraged participants to use these wisdom teachings to regain the power to make their own decisions. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Paul Hawken - A Super Wicked Gnarly Problem We Can Solve
December 30, 2019 05:00 - 28 minutesPaul Hawken thinks we can solve the world's toughest climate challenges. He takes the stage at the Drawdown Learn conference, held in collaboration with Omega institute’s Center for Sustainable Living, to tell us how. Hawken talks about his entrepreneurial path from unfocused Northern California youth to to health food promoter to Project Drawdown, a global NGO aimed at literally fixing the world. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Bonnie St. John - Letting Go To Move Forward In Life
December 16, 2019 05:00 - 33 minutesParalympic athlete, Rhodes scholar and author Bonnie St. John knows about resiliency. She was born with one leg shorter than the other. And at the age of five, she made a tough decision to amputate it. After many surgeries St. John learned to live life to the fullest -- walking, running and skiing with a prosthetic limb. In her workshop at Omega she asked women look deep inside to see what they need to let go of to live their lives with purpose, creativity and passion. Learn more about your a...
Winona LaDuke - Water is Life
December 02, 2019 05:00 - 24 minutesNative American economist, ecologist, and activist Winona La Duke shares traditional teachings from her Anishinaabeg culture about the sacredness of water and the spirits who watch over them. With this wisdom, she encourages us to take responsibility and care for the precious resources of the planet. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Richard La Marita and Ayurvedic Cooking: You Really Are What You Eat
November 18, 2019 07:00 - 24 minutesAyurvedic chef Richard La Marita leads workshop participants in the preparation of three meals while he shares the theory of the ancient Indian path to good health through food. As La Marita explains, diet is really just one aspect of the Ayurveda lifestyle. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Anne Haven McDonnell - Everyone Wants To See A Bear
November 04, 2019 07:00 - 23 minutesPoet Anne Haven McDonnell says that encountering the natural world is encountering the mystery. In part two of our exploration of Orion Magazine's environmental writer's workshop, a bear peers in the window of the classroom at Omega. That close encounter with wilderness inspires McDonnell to read her own bear poem as well as others exploring the kinship between humans and animals. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Major Jackson - The Fate of the Land is the Fate of Man
October 21, 2019 06:00 - 24 minutesThis episode, and the one that follows, grew out of the Orion Magazine's environmental writer's workshop held annually at Omega. Fiction authors, non-fiction authors and poets mingle with the aspiring during this weekend and I became fascinated by the work of poet Major Jackson, who interweaves the rural, the urban and the cultural into his work to profound effect. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Joan Borysenko - Take Risks, Eat Chocolate, Live Long
October 07, 2019 06:00 - 32 minutesDo we all age like a fine wine, or do some of us turn to vinager? Harvard educated cell biologist and licensed psychologist Joan Borysenko explores the physical, emotional and spiritual factors to age with sass and class. Laughter, a sense of purpose, and eating chocolate slowly are some of the tools Borysenko recommends in the face of the very real challenges faced by an aging baby boomer generation. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Tim Olmsted - Small Town Buddhist Preacher
September 23, 2019 06:00 - 19 minutesAlthough Tim Olmsted looks like a preppy dad in a Ralph Lauren ad, he's actually a leading Buddhist teacher and President of the Pema Chödrön Foundation. For the premiere of Omega Institute's new podcast, Dropping In, Olmsted explores Siddhartha, our monkey mind, the four immeasurables of buddhist thought, and how meditation can change our world. This episode features audio recorded in Olmsted's workshop at Omega woven together with an intimate interview by host Karen Michel. Learn more about...
Introducing Dropping In
July 12, 2019 17:00 - 3 minutesOmega Institute's new podcast drops September 23rd. Check out our trailer and subscribe now. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices