“Learning to walk humbly on the cusp of what needs to be done and what we are capable and qualified to do is a huge thing that every one of us needs to find a way to navigate.” ~ Sally Kempton
EPISODE EIGHT – SALLY KEMPTON ON MEDITATION, AUTHENTICITY AND THE GODDESS
AWAKENING THE TRUE BLUEPRINT WITHIN
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About this interview:
Cultivating inner power and understanding the tantric perspective of the divine feminine.
In this episode, Amisha enjoys an intimate and reflective conversation with writer, teacher, and former swami Sally Kempton. Sally grew up in a secular, socialist environment as the daughter of a well-known left-liberal journalist in New York. She began, immediately after college, to follow in his footsteps taking a role at an alternative newspaper called The Village Voice, until in her late twenties Sally took had her first psychedelic trip and experienced what she calls a “download of love” and a subsequent recognition of the ultimate ecstasy of reality.
This opening led her to study non-dual tantric yogic philosophy and esoteric practises for radical internal transformation, which brought about an intense secondary awakening and introduced Sally to the man who would eventually become her teacher, Swami Muktananda. She then began travelling with him, editing his books, and was eventually initiated as a swami in his ashram, training in the Shiva lineage from Western India. Eventually called to bring these teachings out into the world, she became a teacher and writer herself – seeking to apply the teachings of non-dual tantra to everyday lives – and re-entered the conventional world of the householder.
Sally and Amisha discuss the true meaning of Shakti, how to identify archetypal Goddess energies at work in our internal and external worlds, and how they might help us respond with grace and power to the profound planetary shifts of our times. Together they reflect on the power of prayer and asking for help and how to recognise help when it comes – learning to listen for and follow signals from inside and from the world around you. Sally tells the story of a life backwards – learning the life-lessons of worldly adulthood in her 60s – and reflects on cultural appropriation and the process of taking a spiritual path that comes from a different culture and speaking for a tradition that is not hers by birth.
Sally shares her thoughts on the need for traditional teachings in a culture of peer-led spiritual paths, why there is more to meditation than mind-hacking, and how awakening through spiritual practise compares to the awakenings induced by psychedelic trips and plant medicines. She explains how patriarchy is in fact a function of the goddess, why there is so much more to Shakti than sex, and what discovering the divine feminine means for men in modern practise.
“We need to discover the greatness of our capacities and we also need to discover our limits. In order to be willing to look deeper.” – Sally Kempton
Sally Kempton is one of today’s most authentic spiritual teachers. She teaches devotional contemplative tantra—an approach to practice that creates a fusion of knowing and loving. Known for her ability to transmit inner experience through transformative practices and contemplation, Sally has been practicing and teaching for forty years. A disciple of the great Indian guru Swami Muktananda, she spent twenty years as a teaching swami (monk) in the Saraswati order of Indian monks. In her guru’s ashram, she received a traditional training in yoga philosophy and practice, and became a popular teacher, deeply versed in the teachings and practices of Vedanta and Kashmir Shaivism.
In 2002, Sally began teaching independently. She now offers heart-to-heart transmission in meditation and life practice through her Awakened Heart Tantra workshops, teleclasses, retreats, and training in applied spiritual philosophy. Her workshops and teleconference courses integrate the wisdom of traditional yoga tantra with the insights of contemporary evolutionary spirituality and cutting-edge psychology. Sally is the author of Meditation for the Love of It, a groundbreaking book on meditation, and Awakening Shakti.
To find out more about Sally Kempton, visit www.sallykempton.com
To connect or work with Amisha Ghadiali, visit www.amisha.co.uk
Resources from this episode:
- Sally’s Books: Awakening Shakti and Meditation For The Love Of It
- Siddha Yoga Ashram
- Swami Muktananda
- Triyoga London
Connect more with us:
- Beautiful Leadership mentoring
- Amisha’s One-to-One sessions
- Amisha’s book – INTUITION
- all that we are membership
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