389. Brian Yosef Schachter-Brooks

Brian Yosef Schachter-Brooks is a Jewish spiritual teacher, musician, and founder of Torah of Awakening (2006). He has taught this Jewish Path of Presence to hundreds of students around the world through workshops, retreats, and his on-line program. He also served as clergy and sacred music director at Chochmat HaLev synagogue in Berkeley, California (2000- 2016). He received s'micha (ordination) as Minister of Sacred Music from Reb Zalman Schachter Shalomi z"l (2013), Spiritual Teacher from Rabbi SaraLeya Schley and Shaykh Ibrahim Baba Farajaje (2013), Jewish Meditation Teacher from Dr. Avram Davis (2004) and holds a Bachelor in Music from the Eastman School of Music (1991). He lives in Tucson, Arizona with wife Lisa and their two children. Website: torahofawakening.com Summary and Transcript of this interview Interview conducted 2/26/2017 YouTube Video Chapters: 00:00:00 - Introduction to Buddha at the Gas Pump 00:06:20 - The Early Years of Spiritual Exploration 00:12:12 - A Shared Awakening 00:17:56 - The Potential for Enlightened Consciousness 00:22:37 - Meditative Practices and Spiritual Education 00:26:42 - Connecting deeply to the present moment 00:31:00 - Dislodging Scabs of Anger 00:35:02 - The Vulnerability of Spiritual Awakening 00:39:15 - The balance of strength and sensitivity in relationships 00:42:52 - Divinity Revealed in Hiddenness 00:47:06 - The Nature of God and the Relational Experience 00:50:54 - The Connotation of God 00:54:49 - The Duality of Prayer and God's Response 00:59:30 - Recognizing the Oneness of God and Reality 01:03:53 - Practices for Deepening Presence in Judaism 01:07:53 - Integral Jewish Meditation and Daily Practice 01:12:24 - The Baal Shem Tov's Call for Accessible Spirituality 01:16:08 - The Power of Sacred Language 01:20:10 - Hebrew and Vedic Language Connection 01:24:29 - The Purpose of Incarnations and Fulfilling Roles 01:28:43 - The Meaning of "Shema Yisrael Adonai Eloheinu Adonai Echad" 01:33:20 - The Miracle of Our Consciousness 01:38:03 - Awareness and the Field of Experience 01:42:10 - The Implication of "That" and "This" in Non-Duality 01:46:04 - Global Spiritual Awakening 01:50:13 - The Influence of Indian Spiritual Teachers on Jewish Culture 01:53:56 - The Universal Wound in the Jewish Psyche 01:59:00 - The Judaism of the Mind 02:03:16 - The Jewish Meditation Center and the Power of Music 02:07:03 - Torah of Awakening Resources Save