Bear's Blog

Are you an empath? A lot of people are relating to that term these days. Empaths sense other people’s emotions and feelings. Did you know there are three kinds of empaths, according to what their Energy Signature is?

The Priest, Lover and Gardener are all different energy types that have empathic qualities. The specific way they sense other people’s “stuff” depends on what types are in their Energy Signature. How the three kinds of empaths engage with people is ultimately about a difference in boundaries. They might ener...

The world is forever changed since Covid erupted on the scene in 2020. The whole landscape of our lives is altered - the way we socialize, shop, work and attend school are all being re-imagined. We will be living with corona viruses from now on, managing risk and assessing the benefits of our activity. On a deeper level, the pandemic changed how we view ourselves, our goals and our lifestyle. Where does work fit into that equation? How do the demands of work affect our quality of life?

For some, Covid loosened the bonds ...

Did you know you could be more in sync, approach difficult conversations, and have a better connection with someone by practicing Chakra Communication™? All it takes is a little bit of chakra knowledge and a few moments of recognition at the beginning of an interaction.

The practice is simple – identify the chakra they are coming from, meet them there, listen and say a few affirming words from that place, and then lead the conversation to a more productive arena (and the chakra will follow.)

Here are some examples of wh...

Generational trauma comes from our ancestral, biological karmic inheritance transmitted to us through DNA. The other stream of karma that meets to form the basis for this particular lifetime is our soul karma. The history of that karma is written not in our body, but in our soul’s journey as it evolves through lifetimes.

When we die and leave this body behind, the soul moves on - and on. What carries through into our next lives is the progress we’ve made, lessons learned, and embodied patterns from previous lifetimes. So...

I believe two streams of karma meet in an individual to create a life that is utterly unique. The biological karma from our ancestors is embedded in our DNA. The soul karma has a history of past lifetimes, and actually chooses its parents and that particular biological line. Both influence the gifts and challenges of the current life. There is always an opportunity for each person to heal, and also bring healing to their family,  their lineage and ultimately contribute to the evolution of the human race.

The new field of e...

On May 8th, 1945, Germany surrendered, ending WWII (Hitler had committed suicide a week earlier.) It is known and celebrated as Victory in Europe Day, Liberation Day, V-E Day, and in Ukraine, Victory Day over Nazism. Ukraine is now fighting another dictator’s aggression (ironic, as they are being labeled Nazis by their enemy.)

How do we as humans overcome the fear, anger and violence that manifests in tyranny? The desire for power and, to maintain that power, exerting control over others through force? Is it so baked int...

Are there situations where the suffering is deep and complex, and you don’t know what to do or how to help? It seems an appropriate time to share this Tonglen meditation again (it was part of my “Corona Care Series” in the spring of 2020.)

The pandemic, war, violence and natural (and non-natural) disasters are taxing our resilience and understanding of the world. Tonglen is an antidote to feeling helpless or fearful. In class many years ago, a student asked me during the (first) Iraq war “what can I do?” and this was my ...

The natural world is eternal, and within that there are cycles, and within that – well, have you heard the phrase “the only constant is change”? We are also eternal, and yet constantly changing (and one hopes, evolving.) How can we feel so different over time, and yet essentially the same? It’s your soul body that moves through many lifetimes, but we can consciously track our growth and distinct phases in this lifetime.

The cycles of the natural world are reassuring in their regularity. There are also predictable changes i...

Photo: Odesa City Official

Thich Nhat Hahn, a humble Vietnamese monk, was a gentle and persistent warrior for peace who coined the term Interbeing. He died earlier this year and the whole world mourned. His Buddhist lineage (Mahayana) describes enlightenment as a call to “awaken with all beings.” In other words, no person is left behind. Interbeing points to the reality that we are intimately connected with every other living thing on our planet.

We measure war’s losses in terms of human life, the destruction of infrastru...

The story we’ve heard is that a comedian with no political experience was elected President of Ukraine. Or was it a schoolteacher? He is an honest, educated man whose mission is to root out corruption and create a modern democracy. To build a better life for its’ citizens. What is real? What is imaginary? Who is Volodymyr Zelenskyy?

The world is surprised and enthralled watching this courageous, clever man respond to a superpower invading his country. He has emerged as the most inspiring proponent of democracy seen in deca...

A lot of people come to healing because they had a personal health crisis, but I never thought of myself in that category. I was, however, born with an extra lumbar vertebrae - and my spine curved to the left, then the right in a big “S” as a result. I noticed one hip was higher than the other when I got my first bikini at age 13, and soon was seeing a specialist. He referred me to Dr. Blount; the man who invented the “Milwaukee Brace” that I spent the next several years wearing.

It was physically restrictive, but I worked...

When I was young I identified as a writer, and went to study at one of the best journalism schools in the country. If I had continued in that profession, I would have been drawn to reporting in a war zone. Something about immersing myself in a great battle, where everything is more intense, including suffering, called me. More than the "normal" suffering inherent in the human condition - something more abrupt, more acute.

In Buddhism suffering is viewed as having a cause which can be addressed. That remedy is an embrace a...