The Sun, The Moon & The TRUTH: Recent Episodes
Karina Guthrie & Natalie Backman
Welcome to The Sun, The Moon & The TRUTH podcast, a series of in-depth conversations that create space for messy, playful and challenging conversations about yoga and life and the places where the two meet.
Join us (Karina Guthrie and Natalie Backman, yogini’s and yoga teacher trainers) in our quest to understand yoga's role in uncovering the universal truths woven into the fabric of tradition, society and culture.
Speaking to well-rounded guests from the yoga community, we pull back the veil on eye-opening issues that exist in the yoga industry today.
In these vulnerable and thought-provoking conversations, you’ll learn what inspired us to begin practicing and why we choose to devote ourselves to the practice everyday by living these teachings from the inside-out.
If you’re looking for a podcast that is spiritual and insightful whilst remaining empowering and inspiring, you’ll want to add this to your list!
In this month’s episode, we discuss “The Winding Path of Beauty and Bliss” with the legend, Sally Kempton.
In this conversation, Sally very generously opens up about her introduction to Tantra through Yoga, her years in India at the ashram of her teacher where she was ultimately ordained as a Swami, her first experience of being touched by the Divine Mother, and the mystical, ecstatic experiences which have enlivened and illumined both her practice and her life.
Join us for this remarkable transmission of wisdom from a woman who has been there, done that, and lived to tell the tale. Hers is a path of devotion and love; the winding path of beauty and bliss.
'Truth is Truth, and yet Truth can be expressed in so many different ways.'
Our jaws and hearts are still gaping open in absolute awe over our conversation with Kavithaji.
Both highly academic in terms of history and worldview, and deeply personal, Kavithaji's way of sharing knowledge makes esoteric concepts such as the Tradition of Sri Vidya, Guru Param Para and The Divine Feminine accessible and FELT, intimately. With immense generosity and grace, Kavitha guides us through the landscape of these ancient paths and traditions reminding us not to waste our precious time or energy criticizing any other path, but instead investing those most vital of resources in the devotional pursuit of whatever path is before us.
We anticipate your minds will be blown open and your hearts delicately plumbed by the extraordinary teaching of Dr. Kavitha Chinnaiyan. Enjoy!
Welcome to Episode 04 of The Sun, The Moon & The Truth podcast with Karina Guthrie & Natalie Backman. This month’s episode 'Unshakable in Shakey Times', is a conversation with Tracee Stanley.
Tracee is a lineaged teacher of the Himalayan Tradition, and as such is steeped in the practices and teachings which awaken Consciousness to one's essential nature until the ego-centered personality and identification with the external are replaced by the knowledge of the Eternal Self: ever-pure, ever-wise, ever-free. In our conversation with Tracee, we explore the merits of being rooted in a living tradition, as well as the significance of trusting the wisdom gleaned in practice as your ultimate teacher and guide.
Tracee recently published her first book, 'Radiant Rest,' a rich and nourishing exploration of the ancient practice of Yoga Nidra. In this episode she answers our question, 'why Yoga Nidra?', and 'why now?'. Her answers are sweetly, and powerfully, illuminating and allude to the importance of both discernment and surrender as pillars for becoming 'unshakeable,' particularly in shakey times.
As always, we’d love to know what you think of this episode and continue the conversation, so leave us commend in the review section or reach out to us on Instagram!
Upcoming 300hr YTT with Karina & Natalie:
Advance your teaching with us by joining our upcoming 300hr Yoga Teacher Training, 'Embodied Shakti' - starting September 3rd 2021. A sacred 10-month journey of self enquiry, to a deeper, richer and embodied understanding of yoga. Discover more at www.karinaguthrieyoga.com/300
Find Us Online:
@nataliebackmanyoga www.nataliebackmanyoga.com
@karinaguthrieyoga www.karinaguthrieyoga.com
About Tracee Stanley:
Founder of Empowered Life Circle, sharing teachings that are inspired by more than 20 years of study in the traditions of the Himalayan Masters and Sri Vidya Tantra. The focus of her teaching honours life as a ritual and she is devoted to yoga nidra, meditation, self-inquiry, nature as a teacher, and ancestor reverence. She is the creatrix of the Empowered Life Self-Inquiry Oracle Deck and host of Radiant Rest Podcast which celebrates the practices, teachers, and traditions that prioritize the rituals of rest, sacred dreaming, and self-care.
Tracee’s book Radiant Rest - Yoga Nidra for Deep Relaxation and Awakened Clarity published by Shambhala Publishing is now available where books are sold. Learn more at radiantrest.com, and traceeyoga.com
For this month’s episode we interviewed Mirabelle D’Cunha, with the loose theme of ‘continuity in practice’ but when we reflected afterwards we found it called to us in this way: ‘Your Life is Your Sadhana: Nurturance for when the wheels fall off in your practice’.
If this is something that calls to you, if what you crave is that feeling of being held in (and by) your practice the way a mother holds her child, then tune in. This conversation is for you.
In this episode we discuss, amongst other things;
- The importance of trust and patience in our personal practice.
- Allowing and accepting doubt as an opportunity for growth and humility.
- The relationship we have with our practice, as a reflection of ourselves and what's happening for us. Are we pleasure seeking, or are we seeking the space of discomfort? Or could we be staying in a place of discomfort that no longer serves us in the name of commitment?
Co-hosts Karina Guthrie and Natalie Backman discuss 'The Role of Community in Yoga' with guests Chrissie Chung and Seba Khanna.
In this episode, we dive into the framework of spiritual community, and cover:
- the definition of ‘sangha’, traditionally referred to as ‘a community of friends practicing dharma together’
- their experience and relationship with ‘belonging’
- pivotal memories, or formative experiences, that shape their opinion or idea of ‘community’
- the ‘community’ of yoga teacher trainings, and the collective experience of transformation
- ideals vs lived experiences around ‘community’, including fears and judgements
- the difference between genuine ‘community’ and the contemporary idea of ‘tribalism’
- structure vs ease in the context of ‘community’
- segregated ‘community‘ across the different yoga practices, and the unconscious bias
- dependencies of ‘community’ through yoga training
- seeing or experiencing ‘community’ done well, and why they felt that it was
Chrissie is a Yoga & Meditation teacher and mentor who is passionate about sharing the far reaching potential of Yoga and its capacity to uncover greater joy. Her invitation is to embrace practice as a spiritual science; to learn how to move with purpose, breathe with wisdom and begin the journey of turning our attention inwards so that we can remember a state of Being that is inherently whole.
Seba is a yoga teacher with a passion for restoring the natural rhythm of life. Her days are a living dedication to this return to source. She integrates tools to heal and empower both students and patients so they can touch, and ultimately rest within, the true self, allowing growth and healing to occur on all levels.
Karina Guthrie and Natalie Backman, yogi’s and yoga teachers that met a few years ago at a training in Bali, introduce their new podcast about yoga practice in a ‘safe space’ and putting the ancient lineage into practice day-to-day.
Bringing us all along on the journey, where good questions are more important than the answers, they cover different perspectives to important, vulnerable and thought-provoking topics.
They share the story of how they first met, why they chose to start this journey together and how they hope to inspire others through the podcast. They also touch upon the topics they plan to cover in future episodes and the personal experiences and moments of clarity that led them to dedicate their lives to living these teachings from the inside-out.
In this episode, they cover:
- pivotal experiences that inspired them to begin practicing yoga
- the meaning behind ‘The Sun, The Moon & The TRUTH’ as the name for the podcast
- expanding perspectives and holding space for other views
- the importance of conscious journey meaningfully supporting our daily life
- the role of tradition, from honouring the teachings to the cultural trappings
- what happens to our practice when we are not connected to tradition