This is part 2 of my interview with Erik Jampa Andersson. In this fascinating interview, we continue to discuss his new book Unseen Beings: How We Forgot the World Is More Than Human.

In this episode, we get way more esoteric. Erik explains exactly who unseen beings are, and why we need to understand that we share the world with more than humans.

We talk about the Nagas - find out who these serpentine beings are. We discuss spirits and mantras, particularly how certain mantras are spells used in literal combat.

We both share a ton of Naga stories and experiences from the one Prashant Iyengar shared with about Patanjali to how the Nagas became guardians of the Chod founder’s tradition and many more.

Plus there’s a bonus episode right after this one on the importance of ritual and we dive much deeper into mantras are spells.

HIGHLIGHTS FROM THIS EPISODE INCLUDE:

• Find out who the unseen beings are and why it matters that we learn to identify them.

• The importance of Nature spirits and learning to understand who the serpentine Naga beings are.

• Critical connections between human health and environmental health.

• Erik shares the story of Machig Labdrön, the founder of the practice of chöd: Tibetan Buddhist Mahamudrā chöd lineages.

• Erik draws on traditional eco-philosophies and Buddhist wisdom, asking us to rethink the very nature of our existence on this incredible that we share planet.

If you loved this episode, please subscribe to my podcast, write a review, and follow me on Instagram. You can find me online at tatyannawright.com and theconsciousdiva.com

MORE ABOUT ERIK:

Erik Jampa Andersson, founder and director of Shrimala, is a London-based practitioner, teacher, and scholar of Tibetan Medicine (Sowa Rigpa), Tibetan Buddhism, and Environmental History. He is a graduate of the Shang Shung Institute School of Tibetan Medicine and is currently finishing an MA in History at Goldsmiths University. He is the author of Unseen Beings: How We Forgot the World is More than Human (Hay House, May 2023).

A Buddhist practitioner since 2005 (at the age of 14), Erik found an early home in the Tibetan tradition under the close guidance of Lama Tsultrim Allione, founder of Tara Mandala retreat center in Colorado, and has studied with an array of teachers from Tibet and the Himalayas. While pursuing a degree in religious studies at Naropa University, he was inspired to change course and enrol in a five-year Tibetan Medicine program at the Shang Shung Institute, in which he was trained extensively under notable senior physicians including Dr. Phuntsog Wangmo, Dr. Namgyal Tsering, Dr. Nyima Tsering, and other Sowa Rigpa experts in America and Asia.

RELATED LINKS:

https://www.shrimala.com/about

https://www.erikjampa.com

https://www.taramandala.org/blog/erik-jampa-dec-2022

INSTAGRAM: https://www.instagram.com/erikjampa/