We’ve all heard that meditation is good for us — studies show that it reduces stress, improves concentration and makes us more resilient to life’s challenges. But what if these benefits are just the tip of the iceberg? What if meditation could actually change everything?
Pioneering meditation teacher Craig Hamilton has been practicing meditation for 40 years and teaching it over the past two decades to students in more than 90 countries. In this podcast, Craig reveals how this powerful, ancient practice can transform every aspect of human life. He shares key insights from his personal practice as well as on-the-ground research at the leading edge of spiritual practice and inquiry. As a listener, you’ll discover a mix of in-depth talks from Craig on key aspects of meditation, his responses to common questions from students and guided meditations, so you can experience a variety of meditation practices for yourself.
If you appreciate what you hear in the podcast, Craig invites you to download his free ebook, Unlocking the Power of Meditation, to learn about the five common mistakes most of us make in meditation and how you can avoid them. Download your free ebook at 5meditationmistakes.com.
“Awakening is the discovery of consciousness without limits, of a self without limits. It's the discovery that what we are is much vaster than our mind can contain. So if we're attached to a small li…
“When we're in touch with the higher spiritual potential of our lives, it’s natural that we want to express that potential as fully as we possibly can. We’re no longer worried about what that will de…
Spiritual awakening is the discovery of a sacred dimension of our own being that is unconditional, meaning it’s not dependent on something else. We’re discovering that life, existence, our very own b…
Non-dual spiritual practice and non-dual spiritual awakening isn’t only about coming to know awareness or consciousness in its pure form. That’s just the first step. Ultimately, real non-dual practic…
“Emptiness doesn’t mean there’s not a self. It doesn’t mean you’re not a person. It’s the discovery that what we really are is an interdependent web of complex processes that arise in our body, in ou…
Awakened consciousness is none other than our own true nature. It’s never anywhere but right here. You can’t get to it somewhere in the future. The part of you that imagines it’s somewhere in the fu…
This is a concentration practice that you can have in your spiritual toolkit for when you're in a period of intense distraction with a lot on your mind. If you ever have difficulty staying focused du…
“When we are on a path of spiritual awakening, we are going to be required at some point to take a leap of faith. The spiritual path is a path of learning to trust in something that we cannot see, th…
“From one point of view, the only reason our thoughts are a distraction in meditation is that we're interested in those thoughts. We're more interested in thought than we are in what's beyond thought…
“When we let go of our attachment to the separate self, we can begin to discover who and what we really are, which is so much bigger, so much deeper, so much more extraordinary than we could have ima…
“Meditation isn’t something we generate. It’s not something we make happen. It’s something we make room for. It’s something we open to. When you really get this, meditation will be the easiest thing …
“Spiritual awakening is a force that turns our world upside down. It reveals to us that everything we thought we knew, and every way we thought things worked, and what we thought was important was in…
“Meditation offers us a rare opportunity to practice having an open heart in a truly safe environment where there's nothing we need to protect ourselves from. In meditation, we can practice letting d…
“As people awaken, they become ambassadors for good. For an evolved morality that cares infinitely, and burns with a deep love for the greater good. Inherent in that care is an impulse toward oneness…
“Anybody who aspires to awaken to their true nature must be willing to let go of everything that provides them with security, certainty, and familiarity . It doesn’t mean it all goes away. We just ha…
“Spiritual awakening or enlightenment is about the discovery that we don't just have a human nature and an animal nature. We have a supernature. Which means there's another dimension of who and what …
“Spiritual equanimity is not about feeling content with the world, it’s about being content no matter what you’re feeling. It’s about being at ease whether you feel easeful or not. And we all have ac…
“As we get deeper into it, we begin to realize that the real benefits of meditation ultimately transcend any of our personal wants, needs, and desires and we’re really awakening and evolving as part …
“Spirituality is no longer about leaving the world. It's about letting go of the world inwardly so we can become a spiritual revolutionary in the world. So we can bring forth a revolution of the huma…
“When you’re awake to your true nature…there’s a fundamental satisfaction that’s untouched by anything that happens. It doesn’t stop you from being an evolutionary force in the world — quite the oppo…