awe – End of Life University

Learn why and how to intentionally develop your personal death-awareness in order to live your best life.

PodcastDeathAware

If you are a death-worker in any field you probably feel that you are highly aware of death and its many facets. But did you know that the human brain has a primal mechanism to protect us from thinking about and acknowledging our own personal death? Yes it’s true. We can be advanced teachers of death for other people and still be in denial that we ourselves are going to die. In this solo episode I’ll talk about how and why we need to strengthen our own death-awareness for the betterment of our lives and our work.

Listen here:

This episode includes:

A study that shows the defenses against death-awareness that exist in the primitive human brain
Why personal death-awareness must be intentionally cultivated
How death-awareness can expand and transform our lives
Why daily death contemplation is essential to our growth
- Think about the fleeting nature of life
- Acknowledge fears of death and dying
- Recognize barriers to awareness
Benefits of increased death-awareness:
- Enjoy the present moment
- Find comfort in stillness
- Experience authentic gratitude for life
- Experience awe
- Become less attached to material things
- Be more inclusive and less exclusive
- See everything as sacred

Good night Wesley. Good work. Sleep well. I shall likely kill you in the morning.

-from The Princess Bride

Links mentioned in this episode:

BartonWebinarloneliness

FREE webinar (REPLAY provided if you can’t attend live):

The Loneliness Epidemic

Click here to register.

Article: Doubting Death: How our brains shield us from mortal truth
Film: The Princess Bride
Beautiful Dying Expo – November 2, 2019, San Diego CA
Before I Die Arizona – October 30 – November 3, Scottsdale AZ
Spiritual Journeys in Chronic Illness Course
Join the team at Patreon.com/eolu and get access to the EOLU mug: “Mind if we talk about death?” (only Patrons can purchase it)

If you enjoy this content please share it with others and consider leaving a review on iTunes! Thanks again to all supporters on Patreon.com/eolu, especially my newest Patrons Kathryn Mattes, Kristy Lynn, and Astrid Raffinpeyloz, your contributions mean everything to me!

Learn how to make the most of the present moment and give the gift of presence to those you love.

PodcastPresence

In Part 4 of the Mortal Wisdom Series I’ll discuss how to develop the skill of Presence to use in your personal life and work. Presence is the secret of living fully in every moment and you’ll learn how to enhance your ability to stay focused and present in day-to-day life. These are the lessons we can learn from our mortality and how to thrive in life while knowing that death awaits. Listen to Parts 1, 2, and 3 first if you haven’t heard them yet!

Mortalwisdom

Listen here:

This episode includes:

Presence is an essential skill for working with dying patients
Many dying patients seem to have a new-found ability to focus on the present and appreciate each moment
According to Buddhist monk Thich Nhat Hahn presence is the ability to align body, mind, spirit, emotions in a single focus on the here and now
Being fully present with a patient or a loved one allows us to create a sacred space within which healing and transformation can occur
Steps for developing the skill of presence:
- Create time (5 minutes) and space for stillness each day
- Tune in to your physical body
- Breathe deeply with intention
- Allow emotions to arise without attaching to them
- Let thoughts drift by
Practice total focus during small moments e.g. eating a special food, watching a sunset, listening to music, spending time in nature, being with a loved one
The experience of awe has these benefits
- Greater humility (and less ego control)
- Increased social harmony and interconnectedness
- Improved immune health
- Decreased anxiety
- Increased wellbeing and happiness
Daily AWE Practice:
- I am Awake in this moment
- I am Willing to experience and accept whatever life brings in this moment
- I am Engaged fully in living my life moment to moment

When someone is about to die, if you sit with him stably and solidly, that alone may be enough to help him leave this life with ease.

– Thich Nhat Hahn

Links mentioned in this episode:

End Game Documentary available for community screenings
Mortal Wisdom Part 1, Part 2, and Part 3
The Heart of Buddha’s Teaching by Thich Nhat Hahn
Article about research on awe
Join the team at Patreon.com/eolu
Get access to the EOLU mug by becoming a Patron:

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If you enjoy this content please share it with others and consider leaving a review on iTunes! Thanks again to all supporters on Patreon.com/eolu!